A/N: Surprise chapter! And yes, it's short again. Bad me. But if it's any consolation, I hadn't expected to update again this year. So there you go. Thanks for the reviews! They keep me thinking and writing. Seriously, I keep a tab open to track the hits this thing makes just to keep me going. As always, speak your mind in the reviews!
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Celestia did not appear at her balcony for three days, nine hours, and seven minutes after their late night conversation. She mentioned she would have to ready her remaining strength, but this was ridiculous. True, it had taken the combined powers of the Elements of Harmony, Celestia and Luna to imprison him, and yes, Celestia's powers were diminishing... but never in all of Discord's existence had time moved so slowly.
And it wasn't the dull, average day to day boredom of the gardens that got to him, no. Not the usual passing pony, shoveling the snow into neat pathways or the exact scenery he's memorized over the hundreds of years he's stood there. It was far worse than that. As the hours passed, a slow realization awakened in a deep secluded corner of his mind that she was the cause for his impatience. She had broken his routine. Absent for those moments he's come to look forward to.
The thought was troubling to say the least.
In the first few years, cut off from all feeling within the stone... he used to shudder at the thought that she might break him. Change him. Save him, rehabilitate or recycle him. Whatever justification self righteous ponies use when they want to make somepony into something they don't really want to be. Silly, really. It was like watching a hamster in a wheel, all that tireless futility. But now that his freedom is so close... he's found himself shuddering at the thought of what he'll do when she's no longer apart of his life; watching him from her balcony.
Discord decided right then, to look into picking up a few new hobbies.
Start a rock garden, maybe. No... a cheese garden. That would be wonderful! And delicious! Who doesn't like cheese?
And so, the hours passed as Discord entertained himself with thoughts of his future cheese garden; fondue rivers and tortilla chip trees occasionally dotting the landscape. At length, it no longer became a garden, but a little hamlet up the coast complete with a Mayor to run the place for him while he's off on vacation. Cheesington would be the envy of the world, no doubt, if it wasn't for the salsa spewing dragons who wreaked havoc upon the gouda citizens, but no matter. That's what makes it fun!
So wrapped up in his plans, picturing what the tourist attractions would be like for a town he'll most likely forget about later, Discord hadn't noticed a quartet of royal pony guards approaching him until they surrounded him.
“This is the one?” A guard inquired the others.
There was a collective nod in the group before another spoke. “Any reason why our Highness wants this thing in the dungeons?” This 'thing'. Really?
“We don't question our orders,” another said peevishly. “If Princess Celestia would like it moved, it'll be done. Personally, I've always thought it's been a bit of an eyesore.”
Revenge, Discord decided as they strapped a harness to his stony body, will be sweet and slow as molasses.
But at the moment, he contented himself with the strain the ponies were going through just to move him. The move... well it was slow, but the best ride of his imprisonment. He briefly recalled watching some of Canterlot's construction but had never actually been inside the castle. It's a curious feeling, watching the world turn and grow and never apart of it. It was like watching a caterpillar transform into a butterfly under a magnifying glass; distant and yet so close at the same time. And the castle was a butterfly, beautiful in an ordinary sort of way you'd expect castles to be; regal and a bit too boring for his tastes. Still, any view over the garden hedges was appreciated greatly.
During the hesitant process of navigating him safely down the stairs, Discord wondered what Celestia had in store for him in the dungeons. She had been vague about what had to be done and their conversation short; grim and mysterious as always. They both knew his prison was a mortal one and it wouldn't hold him forever, but breaking it could still be costly. And like all magics, a price must be paid. He only hoped that Celestia was still up to the task.
“Here should be fine,” a guard interrupted his thoughts and with a relieved sigh, unceremoniously dropped his pedestal on the ground.
Oh, yes. Revenge for him too. Revenge just seems to keep piling up today. He'll soon need to make a to-do list to keep track of it all.
The dungeon was pretty typical when it comes to dungeons, damp and a bit dark with coarse stone walls and dirt floors. Discord noted it must not get many visitors and was probably built mainly for show since how many evil doers would there be in a land of peace and harmony? Such a shame. All this wasted space. If anything, they could have used it as a rec room for table tennis at the very least. It was certainly spacious enough, that's for sure.
“I'll inform the Princess --”
“No need,” came Celestia's voice from behind Discord's line of sight. At three days, fifteen hours and seventeen minutes, her voice was like a caress. Finally. He could stop counting. “Thank you very much, my ponies. Now, please leave me and lock the door.”
The door creaked shut with a resounding finality and Discord sensed rather than heard Celestia approach him, still just barely at the corner of his vision. “Speak.”
“A dungeon, Princess? If I didn't know any better, it looks as if you plan to release me into another prison.”
“Only a precaution,” Celestia said patiently. “I am not sure if this will work and my chambers aren't suitable for experimentation.” Celestia stepped into view; a worried expression dusting her features. “In fact, I do not trust myself and the results could be... dangerous. It is safer down here should anything go wrong.”
“Let's get to it, Princess. I've got centuries worth of pent up ideas to get started on.”
“For this to work, a small piece of your power must be freely given,” Celestia continued as if he hadn't spoken. “And so will mine, the little there is left. An exchange. A bond. So that through our unity, there could be a semblance of Harmony. In time, the Elements could be restored, although I don't think I shall ever be able to wield them again.”
Discord believed that there are a fixed set of explanations most ponies apply to situations, and if one of those easy explanations doesn’t fit they either push harder to make it fit or they ignore the whole damn thing and learn a few card tricks instead. Celestia was not like most ponies in this regard and rather manipulated others so that everything fit smoothly without getting her hooves dirty. And this new bit of information rank of it; like a contract where the fine print blurs into miniscule dots, impossible to read. Restriction and compromise. Rules of a game he didn't create.
“Do you agree to this exchange?”
“Sounds like you're asking for my paw in marriage, Princess,” he stalled as he tried to make sense of it all. “I'm so sorry, but I'm still in my prime and I'd like to play the field. It's not that you aren't lovely or anything – ”
“Do not test my patience. Answer or I shall leave you here, in the dark, until you do.” He's figured as much, moving him down here had to have been a bargaining maneuver. What a manipulative nag. “Do you trust me, Discord?” She asked and her horn glowed, humming with magic.
In truth, Celestia didn't have anything to bargain with other than his freedom and they both knew he would one day break free from her weakening spell, all he had to do was wait it out. He didn't care for uncertain future of Equestria and it's many faceless ponies. Living alone in a world consumed by chaos was simpler that way; denying the world he once would've embraced. The talk of binding should grind his desire for freedom into nonexistence; play it safe and metaphorically spit in her eye. But it doesn't. It does the complete opposite. There was something about the way she looked at him, that got to him. Bored in claws deeper with every glance she took. Maybe it was her tired eyes or just her plain stubborn hope that things could be perfect, but he couldn't picture an eternity where he couldn't bug her at least once a day and twice on Sundays.
“I trust your nature, Celestia,” he said finally and that much was true. He could trust in Order to do it's thing like it always does. He could trust in her honor, her loyalty, honesty. But Order has a way of stepping it's boundaries until it becomes stiffing control, full of loopholes and half-truths. “But I do not trust you.”
Celestia smiled wanly, as if she knew exactly what he was thinking and wouldn't blame him in the least. “That would have to do.”
Her horn glowed a blinding white and the last thing he saw was her eyes.
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A/N: Also, I'm thinking about changing perspectives. Maybe writing Celestia's narrative. Any thoughts or tips?
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