It was a stormy night at the Everfree, and I couldn't sleep at all, so I decided to take a walk around the castle. It's been three months since Celestia got her cutie mark, and things were going for the better for me. My role as fillysitter became more and more important, and the two fillies saw me as a fraternal figure, and if it was as a sister or mother, I did not know, and it did not matter to me, the important thing was how much we loved each other. Lightning illuminated the hallway I was walking in, followed by thunder that echoed off in the distance, making me jump a bit, directing my gaze to the windows in chaotic patterns.
The rain fell with force, hitting against the windows, although according to the nature of the lord of the castle, the drops that fell on the glass rose upwards, before changing and going to the right, sometimes to the left, other times to the bottom. , and so on. At first it seemed weird to me, but in the end I got used to it, just as I got used to having the ingredients from my kitchen come to my call. With a sigh, I continued my way through the corridors, thinking about the recurring dream that had awakened me, and that had been in my mind for a long time. It was always the same, my parents ended up finding me and dragging me away from here, back to the hell in which I lived before. And even though I knew it was ridiculous, I kept asking myself ... what if they found me?
I shook my head hard, it was a ridiculous thought, no matter where I looked at it. First, I was sure that I had been disinherited, everything would now go to my little brother, always ready to please my parents. Second, in the rare event that they wanted to find me (even if it was just to kill me), they had no idea where I was. Third, if they reached the Everfree, they would have to go through the poison jokes first, the timberwolves, meek to their owners but aggressive towards strangers, the manticores, the parasipes, damn, there was even a sea dragon that lived in the nearby river and served as a guardian too. And fourth, if they managed to get through all of that, they had to try to convince Discord to turn me over to them, which would not work. My parents may have had influences in the unicorn royal family, but they wouldn't convince the god of chaos.
Calmer with that idea, I continued my night walk to the castle hall. Notice the great dome that curved inward, and if it weren't from the lord of chaos, there would be a pool inside it, but no, the drops slide down its surface as in the two windows at the sides of the door, one in diagonal and another horizontally. I watched the erratic path of the water droplets for a while, before deciding to go back to my room, but something stopped me.
The windows were in their usual chaotic state, but soon, they began to slowly straighten, and raindrops going in any direction, ignoring any laws of gravity or physics, began to fall naturally. I blinked in confusion, until three sharp, forceful knocks rang out on the door, causing me to jump in fright. Confused, I took a step up the stairs, before stopping uncertainly. Should I open?
"What are you waiting for? Our guest is going to catch a cold" said a voice on my shoulder, causing me to jump with fright.
As I turned my head, I saw Discord there, sitting cross-legged on my shoulder and staring at his lion's nails. I closed my eyes for a moment to calm myself and remind myself that he was the god of chaos, so I shouldn't be surprised to see him on my shoulder. After calming down, I gave him a doubtful look.
“Sure, sir?” I'd had a habit of calling he sir since he hired me, which Discord seemed to amuse.
"Very sure. You know where my office is" he said with a wink before entering my mane and disappearing completely.
Resisting the urge to search inside my mane, knowing it would be useless, I advanced to the door and opened it slowly, finding a mare, tall enough to remove a head or two, and covered by a traveling hood that covered everything. her body. Somewhat intimidated by the height of her, I asked her to enter, closing the door again, observing the unexpected guest. The robe floated in a dark pink aura, settling on a coat rack, which was normally shaken to remove moisture from whatever garments were placed on it, which used to be Celestia's or, more recently, mine, but which this time held still. To my surprise, the mare was an alicorn, with a violet fur, like her eyes, which showed a wisdom that could only give a very long life, her mane was a dark blue tone, and as for her cutie mark , It was the kirin symbol of ying and yang, only that the white half was a shade of purple darker than the fur and the black half was red and yellow in equal parts. The mare looked at me with a small smile, apparently amused by my amazement.
"Good night dear."
"Go... good night," I said, coming out of my stupor and remembering Discord's words. "Fo... follow me, they're waiting for you."
With a nod and a friendly smile, the alicorn began to follow me, and I can't help but notice the effect she was having in her wake. The dome was placed in a position more in line with the standards of the rest of the domes, the torches were straightened, the doors that led nowhere disappeared, and I could assume that those that opened in any direction changed to a more normal opening .. Of course, when she walked away, it's returned to normal (well, the common normality of chaos), and I wondered if she was doing it on purpose or not, and most importantly, who was she? Discord's office was actually his private living room, the place where he first received me, and I already knew its location more or less well. Upon arrival, I tapped gently before opening and poking my head out, seeing the lord of chaos staring out the window. I entered, closely followed by the mare, and closed the door, then glancing at the draconequs, who had never turned around.
"You should not spread your harmony here, it is territory of chaos."
"Says the guy who causes chaos in my house" said the alicorn with a smile.
"What can I say? The duty of an older brother is to screw the little ones" said the draconequs turning around with a smile.
"You're older than me for a few minutes," said the mare with an irritated sigh, but at the same time funny.
"You say that, but I was born before time, do you really think it was a few minutes?"
I was already lost from the older brother part, overwhelmed at the idea of being in front of another goddess. As life was like, going from being surrounded by snobs unicorns who were only interested in reputation and wealth to being surrounded by gods, funny. While debating whether I should bow, Discord gave me an amused look.
"Harmony, this is pastry chef, housekeeper and fillysitter of Celly and Lulu's, Cake."
"Wait," I said with a frown. "Since when have I been the housekeeper?"
"Since you opened the door for her and guided her here, congratulations!"
Instantly, a black robe and hat appeared on me, along with a diploma, certificate and all. The one called Harmony giggled a bit, before lighting up her horn and making everything I wore disappear.
" Nice to meet you, Miss Cake."
"Equally" I said with a smile as I bowed, why couldn't the pony rulers be that kind?
"Please, don't bend over, you don't have to", she said with a kind smile, and I slowly obeyed, seeing how she looked at me kindly before looking at her brother. "I have to say, Discord, I never thought you'd have a mortal next to you."
"Well, when Celestia threatened me not to speak to me again ... it is a great motivación" said the lord of chaos pointing to his floating seats. "Make yourself comfortable."
Harmony looked at them with a raised eyebrow, ignoring her brother, who sat on one of them. With a gesture, the seat closest to her was gently placed on the floor with her sitting down shortly after, before being quickly lifted.
"If you think you're going to sit in a boring normal seat, you're done" Discord said as he created two cups of chocolate milk.
Seeing only two glasses and two seats, I saw it as my signal to leave, walking out of there after saying goodbye politely. Once outside, I debated with myself about going to my room or ... knowing why Harmony was here. In the end, I shrugged my shoulders and put my ear to the door, my father always told me, I had a bad habit of listening to other people's conversations, well... yes, I do, and I would work on it at another time.
"Thank you for having me" I heard Harmony's voice, followed by a sip from her glass of chocolate.
"It is a pleasure, dear Sister" Discord answered, but lacking the joy or the good humor that he had had before, which gave me a very bad feeling. "Although I have to say that it is a surprise to see you here, I have not seen you since I decided to take care of the little ones, and that was a long time ago."
"I'm so sorry, Discord, I ..."
"Don't even try to look for an excuse, father and mother at least come once a year, and they monitor the whole existence. If they can, you and the rest too" Discord was heard taking a sip of his drink before continuing to speak. "Do you know that Celestia thinks that our brothers, you included, hate them?"
"How can you think that?!" Harmony's alarmed voice spoke.
"It is what happens if they never come to visit them ... But this is not the time for reproaches, you are here, even if it is to ask me for a favor" the voice of the lord of chaos returned to a cheerful tone, although with some seriousness in the background .
"I can never fool you, huh?"
"It is not that you know how to lie, my dear, it is not in your nature. Now what brings you my home?"
"Well ... in part I do want to ask you a favor, but I also came for Celestia's cutie mark. I was hoping to arrive before her bedtime" even through the door, I could see the smile in her voice.
"Well, well, how did you know, dear sister?"
"The delays in the sunrise and sunset in the first days, as much as those stiff unicorns say it was a technical failure, they are not deceiving me, I know it had to do with Celestia."
"Wait ... Didn't they say that the sun is no longer under her power?" Discord said incredulously.
"If they did, it would show that they are losing power, and the other pony breeds could attack."
"They still hate each other, right? Cake had told me about it, but he didn't know it was that bad."
"You have no idea ... my brother-in-law has had to reinforce the guard in the royal castle to avoid another terrorist attack from earth ponies or pegasus, it is chaos- she said with a small sigh."
"And it is not the chaos that I approve" Discord said bitterly, before returning to the cheerful voice. "Well, it does not matter, they will learn, and speaking of brother-in-law ... decided to give up your full divinity? What was his name? Nix Spurcle?"
"Night Sparkle," Harmony answered, and I could detect a touch of deep sadness in her voice, one that I knew well, and, apparently, Discord too, as I put all jokes aside.
"Something wrong?"
"He was sent to the borders surrounding the Yak Empire," said the alicorn after a long silence. "The unicorns want to expand their territory, and they have sent several incursions. Night ... died in combat, the body was not found."
For almost a full two minutes, there was no sound, and when I was about to leave, Discord spoke again.
"I'm so sorry, Harmony, I know you loved him."
"Thank you, brother ..." I could hear tears in her voice, which surely would have been wiped away before continuing. "But it is not for consolation that I came, I need you to make me a promise, Discord."
"Whatever you want, little sister."
"You see, I'm ... I'm pregnant and ..."
"Pregnant?" Discord said, visibly surprised. "From a mortal?"
"Yes, from a mortal."
"Do you know how dangerous it is to give birth in your state?" This time, the tone used by Discord was concern. "Not only did you renounce much of your divine power, any weapon, well used, can kill you, and if you live in the unicorn capital ... there won't be much harmony, and that makes you ...
" I know, Discord, that's why I'm asking for your help. If something goes wrong, I want you, in the event that my son, or any of his descendants inherits my divine powers, to help him control his powers and fit in. Please."
"And you can't give birth here? Believe it or not, the Everfree Forest is very harmonious, and I am willing to keep the castle in total harmony during your stay."
"I can't, Discord, my home is with my mother-in-law, my sister-in-law and brother-in-law, my nephews, they have become an essential part of my family. I beg you, brother, promise me."
"I ... okay, Harmony."
It was at that point that I decided that it was enough, walking away and heading to my room, thinking about what I heard. A goddess at risk of dying in foalbirth, that was something difficult to imagine, and it should not be easy for Discord. The next morning was happy for Celestia and Luna, and although I knew that the lord of chaos should be worried, he did not show any of that concern, he knew very well how to hide his true feelings. It wasn't until after noon that Harmony made up her mind to leave, promising that if all went well, she would come see us again. Internally, I wish it were so.
The months passed slowly for Discord and me, waiting to hear from Harmony. Although the lord of chaos could camouflage her true feelings to perfection, Celestia seemed to have a knack for knowing if something was bothering her, as she asked him several times if she was alright. It was like that for a time, at least until the day came, that fateful day. We were in the castle garden, enjoying a meal outdoors, with the sun high in the sky. I still remember it perfectly, everything seemed to be fine, but then ... something broke in me, I don't know how to explain it, but it was as if my soul, my very essence, knew that something was terribly wrong.
And I was not the only one to notice it, because both the little Luna and Celestia seemed to notice it too, they, and every other creature nearby, who stopped as if puzzled. I saw the birds in the sky stop their flight, confused, those that rested in the trees stopped their songs, the ants that tried to approach our food suddenly stopped, the timberwolves that were in the distance, watching over us, they straightened up, tense ... Everything was calm, a calm that made my hair stand on end, until I heard a glass break, caused by Discord, who had an empty gaze, and from then on, it was a domino effect. The skies were covered by blackened clouds and a torrential rain began to fall, later I would know that this phenomenon occurred all over the planet at once, the trees began to drop their leaves, leaving their bare branches exposed, the animals moaned in anguish and the very brightness of the sun seemed to fade.
Discord, after being completely silent for a few minutes, ignoring his worried sisters, took flight and took off into the clouds with a cry of pure sadness that was heard throughout the Everfree, followed by hundreds of howls and roars from the forest creatures. Although I was missing information, I could deduce that it had just happened, Harmony, goddess of harmony, had just died giving birth to her child. Silently, I gathered my things up and headed for the castle, placing a sobbing Luna on my back and gesturing for Celestia to follow me.
"What's wrong?" asked the girl, immensely worried.
"Discord will explain it to you when he can ... if he feels ready."
As she suspected, none of this happened, and it took two weeks for the rain to stop, at least in the Everfree because in the rest of the world it stopped in the first week. However, the lord of chaos did not return directly to the castle, instead, I saw him, from my room window, heading to the ravine below the castle, carrying a bundle in his arms. Worried, I left my room and went to the entrance of the palace, going outside exposing myself to the night air. Without pause, I descended the slippery stairs, which ran to the side of the bridge, and went down the edge of the rock face. As I got closer to the end, I could see a glow coming from a cave at the bottom, and cautiously, I sidled up and poked my head out, seeing the figure of the god of chaos lying on the ground, some spheres of light floating nearby and illuminating the cavern.
"Come closer, Cake," he said, making my blood run cold.
Swallowing, I approached slowly, seeing Discord's immensely sad face, observing two mounds of earth, which soon realized that at least one of these contained Harmony's body.
"How are Celly and Lulu?"
"They miss their eccentric older brother" I said with a small smile as I cautiously laid me down, relieved to see him do the same.
"Of course, without me, this castle is a gamble. But he had something to do, find Night Sparkle's body so that he and Harmony could rest in peace."
"Has his sister ...?"
"Yes, I don't have to tell you how, you should know, you heard us talk, after all" my eyes widened, looking at Discord, who had a mischievous smile. "I am the god of chaos, don't think so I don't know when they are spying on me. But don't worry, I'm not mad at you."
I sighed in relief before turning my gaze to the two tombs, the resting place of a goddess and her eternal love.
"And your nephew?"
"Niece ... and she's fine, alive. But she has not inherited divine power, although she has great potential in magic, so I will stay out of it."
"Are you going to leave her?" I said, unable to believe what I was hearing. "After complaining that none of your brothers were going to visit Celestia and Luna, it's a bit hypocritical, right?" Immediately after saying that, I realized that maybe I had overdone myself, but before I panicked, I saw Discord laugh lightly, relieving me.
"I know. But ... do you know the difference? Celestia and Luna are, for all intents and purposes, goddesses, and they do not live among ponies. My new niece, however, is a mortal and she will live among the ponies, and my presence will only make things more difficult for her to adapt, it is bad enough that she has a more powerful magic, imagine with me as an uncle. But I promise you one thing" Discord turned to look me directly in the eye", despite not having divine powers, she belongs to my lineage, so I give you my word that I will always keep an eye on her, and if one day she is in trouble, I'll be there, you can be sure."
I held my gaze at him for a while before nodding, agreeing with his answer. I may not like that the filly never knew her origins, but at least she would not be left to her own devices.