“...So yeah, I tried to figure out these runes but they just didn’t make any sense to me. ‘Lirr Ot Ekd’ is what it looked like to me. I used my magic to just send it to where it needed to go, but something just seems weird to me about having to figure out some ancient runes. What do you think?” You asked Ocellus as you moved a few bushes away for her to move through as you both neared the exit to the forest.
“‘Lirr Ot ekd’? I’ve never heard of that before. I-I haven’t been around as long as the queen, or my older siblings, but I’d think I’ve been around enough to hear of some ancient runes that look like letters. But, Anon, they might not even be letters. Mnnnn, you think Cozy’s friend isn’t good, don’t you?” Ocellus asked as she gazed at you with a frown.
“It’s just sort of suspicious, that’s all. But if it is some old dude, then I don’t wanna be the guy who goes charging in on a doddering old pony and give him a heart attack or something. I mean, what, do you think it’s wrong of me to think the guy isn’t on the up and up after what happened with the Storm King?” You asked her.
“A-actually, it’s alright to be a little protective. It’s weird Cozy Glow seems to be making mysterious friends, but it isn’t right of us to accuse them of anything, especially since we don’t know them and it doesn’t seem they’ve done anything wrong.” Ocellus said, feeling sure of her words. “I-I think she knows better this time. MMmmmm…” Ocellus began to murmur to herself, she noticed she was about to take a shot at you and your relationship with Chrysalis, but she stopped herself before she could say a single word about it. “I-I’m sure everything will be fine. You just have to believe in her. I’m sure the runes are probably just to make things interesting for her friend. He sounds old and lonely, so he might just like to play games. You said you sent a bench, right? What’s so evil about a bench?”
“Uhhhh…” What was so evil about a bench? You just stood there, deep in thought.
There really wasn’t anything evil about a bench. Even if it was made with chaos materials, he couldn’t do anything with it. Hell, thinking about it, it may actually be dangerous for this Winter Krumb guy to have.
Suddenly, Ocellus began to giggle. She found your reaction amusing. “Oh, Anon, that’s actually kind of funny. I guess we can both feel dumb together now about being so suspicious about our frien-AHHH!” Ocellus suddenly let out a shrill yell. “SMOLDER! I FORGOT ABOUT SMOLDER! Oh no!” Ocellus held on to her head as she began to panic. “She’s going to be so scared and worried about me. She must have seen me just disappear and she has no idea why! Anon, I need to get back to her before she tells Headmare Twilight! Y-you could get in trouble if everycreature goes out looking for me.”
For some reason, you remained calm about this. It was actually kind of nice to see her care about your well-being like that. Though, it would be fucking terrible if the situation wasn’t quelled before it got out of hand. You just waved your hoof forward and gave her a smile. “Hey, no worries. Go back to Smolder, okay? Tell her what happened. I mean, uhm, you can smooth this out for me, right?”
“I’ll try, I’m sure she’ll understand if I explain everything. B-but what about mentioning the queen?” Ocellus asked, her hooves bouncing up and down as she got antsy about the situation.
“Just tell her. I think it’s better to be honest about this whole thing than to make up a lie. I mean, she’s not going to go and try to talk to Chrysalis, right?” You asked.
“I… I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen.” Ocellus said, with a dead serious tone in her timid voice. Of course she was going to do her best to make sure none of her friends visit Chrysalis. That is, if they ever got the idea to. To her, she was still dangerous, even if she was possibly reformed.
“Thank you. Uh, don’t worry about me, I’m going to detour towards my aunt’s cottage. I have stuff I have to do there.” In fact, you had to go there tonight. Now that the house was yours and Discord’s again, the small amount of things, like your dresser, had to be teleported back to your room. Though, you wonder if Discord is going to tell Fluttershy about what happened with Jimmy, if you have to, or if she’s even going to be told at all.
“O-Okay! But be safe, we’re still in the forest, after all.” Ocellus said as she opened her buggy wings and began to hover upwards.
“I know. Trust me, we got this far without any trouble, I doubt anything is going to jump out at me now. We’re literally a few yards from the exit.” You said, pointing towards the forest clearing.
“R-right! Okay! Take care, Anon! Be safe! I-I know I just said that, and that I shouldn’t worry, but I still mean it!” Ocellus said before hurtling through the air back to Smolder.
“Shit…” You whispered to yourself. “I wonder if it’s a good idea for Smolder to know so soon. No, c’mon, Anon. Smolder respects you, she’s not going to go bother Chrysalis just like…” You stop when you suddenly hear a growl behind you. You turn back to see three rather large Timber Wolves on a log, growling at you. “...Because of course irony would slap me in the face for shits and giggles.”
You just look at them with a bored look as you open your saddlebag and slap your wings on your back. “Y’know, I don’t even get you guys. Do you even need to eat? Were you following us? Yeah… not really feeling like a fight today, so… Seeya!” You salute as you launch yourself in the air, the ravenous creatures trying to grab onto you as you rise above the trees and look forward into the setting sun with a sigh. “God, today has been rough. This has literally been the best part of my day and… And I’m talking to myself again.” You flew forward with a sigh, heading towards the exit of the forest, heading towards Fluttershy’s for some well deserved R&R. As you flew, you raised your hoof towards your ear to give Discord a call, to ask if he told Fluttershy about what happened. “Discord, you there?”
“Hm? Anon? There’s not another problem, is there? Bailing you out twice in one day isn’t very becoming of you, it makes you seem lazy.” Discord replied.
Goddammit… “Y’know, sometimes I just wanna chat with you.”
“Yes, but you’re about to either have me save you from something or ask me how it’s going with Fluttershy. Am I right? Really, you could have called me for a joint prank venture, a challenge against Celestia for being so thick headed, or even a friendly chat about the weather would have been nice. Well, actually, that last part is dreadfully boring and I would have scolded you for even bringing it up.” Discord said, sounding rather amused with his own words.
Double dammit… “Fine, I was going to ask about Fluttershy. So, what? Did you tell her what happened?”
“I did, and I did it personally without using a clone to take all the hullabaloo. And before you ask, she took it well. Yes, I skimped on some of the finer details, but I also wasn’t there to really observe said details, so she accepted the mere tale of a changeling who finally went too far with his gambling.” Discord said with a cruel chuckle.
“Ignoring the fact a certain draconequus went too far with the same gambling, that’s the best I could hope for. Alright, look, I’ve had a pretty tough day, so I just kinda want to hang out with Fluttershy and forget this whole daEAFDSFD” And without even realizing it, you crash through an open window, and through the curtains of one of the rooms in Twilight’s castle, rolling forward until you crashed into a bookcase located in her bedroom.
“Anon? Anon? What happened? I heard something stupid happen and I am hoping, quite greatly I might add, that the sound I heard wasn’t from you.” Discord said in mock worry.
You just stared at the ground, and slowly moved your hoof to your ear with an aggravated huff. “I… I decided to visit Twilight instead.”
“Oh, then it was from you then. Well, you have fun with that. Ciao!” Discord said as the communication link cut off.
You rolled to the side, onto your back, and huffed as your wings popped off. “Why was this castle so tall again?”
“Uh, because it’s a castle. So, are you gonna explain the raid on yonder window or is this some chaos thing you and Discord are pulling? Because I’m sorta busy working on Twilight’s schedule here.” Spike said as he walked over to you, standing over you as he looked down on your face, confused. “Or if you actually came for a game of O&O, then you’re kinda early.”
…
Whatever…
“Spike, why can’t it just be that I crashed through the window like an idiot?” You said with a groan.
“Yikes… I guess I’d ask why and hope it isn’t anything serious. What’s wrong? does it have to do with friendship school?” Spike asked, showing a little more concern for you.
“No, it’s because I crashed through the window of a castle because I wasn’t paying attention.” You said stoically.
Spike looked back at the window, then the ground, then back at you. “Yeesh, that’s worse than Twilight when she first got wings. Maybe you should stop wearing these, huh?” Spike said as he picked up your cardboard wings and looked them over before slipping them into your bag. “As cool as it is to fly, if you don’t have a grasp on it like I do, then all you’re gonna do is crash into things.”
“...I’ll keep a note of it. So, uh, ugh…” You just groaned to yourself. This still wasn’t the worst thing to happen to you today, and it was mostly your fault. Your mind was muddled with what happened with Jimmy, and Ocellus, and even Discord’s attitude. You needed to find a way to get your mind out of this funk. You slowly began to stand and dust yourself off. “Look, Spike, I’ve actually had a pretty bad day. You mind just, I dunno, talking with me for a while?”
“Huh… Well, okay.” Spike said, concerned about your sudden self defeatist attitude. “What’s on your mind, Anon?”
“I dunno, I guess I’m doubting myself. You’d think reforming Chrysalis would be a bigger deal, but nopony outside you guys seem to want to give her a chance. Then there’s the fact that I’ve been feeling self-conscious about what others think of me. I’m not asking for everypony to like me. No, that’s not it. I guess it’s because somepony I didn’t expect to talk about me behind my back was talking about me behind my back. And it made me think, well, what do my other friends really think of me? I guess I’m feeling a little vulnerable.” You explained as Spike brought you a small seat to sit on as he hopped onto Twilight’s bed to listen to you.
“Geez, that’s weird hearing that from you. Self-conscious, huh? Well, the Chrysalis thing is kind of tough to swallow for some of us, Anon. Sure, I’m okay with it, but getting Shining and Cadance to accept it, or even any regular ponyfolk to believe that is gonna be rough. Don’t get me started on the changelings, Twilight hasn’t even sent a letter to King Thorax yet because she doesn’t want to send the whole hive into a mental breakdown.” Spike shrugged. “If you want everypony to give her a chance, you’re gonna have to give them some time. But I also wouldn’t worry too much, you still have Twilight and the other princesses on your side, so there’s that. As for somepony talking about you behind your back, I don’t think that’s right. Anon, whoever it was, don’t worry about it.” Spike gives you a thumbs up. “Whatever they said, I bet you it isn’t true.”
You winced at Spike’s optimism. Your ears fold as you let out a depressive sigh. “Except it kinda is, Spike. Not all of it, but some. I dunno, Spike, do you think I’ve managed to improve myself from how I used to be?”
“Anon… Hey come on, what is this? Who was saying bad stuff about you? What did they even say?” Spike asked, even more concerned as he rarely, if ever, saw you so down before.
“You know Ocellus, right? It was her…” Well, it was her and Jimmy, but you didn’t want to talk about him, nor did you even want to think about him anymore. “And what she thought of me, er, kinda was true? Basically, I guess someponies see me as shady or untrustworthy…” You let out a regretful sigh. “Which is true, and I try not to be, but I always screw that up.” You then look to Spike, with some desperation in your voice. “But I do good things to offset that, right? I mean, I reformed Chrysalis and I help out with my magic. Ugh… Spike, am I overthinking it, am I a bad guy? I mean, am I somepony who everypony should watch out for, or… Something? I dunno, something close to that?”
Spike just stared at you, confused as to why you were acting like this, acting so vulnerable. “Uhhhh, okay, uhhh, wasn’t really expecting that from Ocellus… Uh, didn’t know she could make you feel this down.” Spike was rubbing the back of his head, thinking hard, trying to think of something to say. “Look, do you want the truth? Like, how I feel?”
You just look at him, and nod.
“Okay… Anon, you’re kinda like Discord in a way. You do things nopony likes and make everypony worry, and I mean, sometimes worry more than when everypony worries about what Discord is doing. It’s just the truth, you do some pretty crazy stuff, and sometimes it’s stuff nopony likes. But, dude, come on, you’re a hero, just like me! You reformed Chrysalis, nocreature could do that! You went hoof to hoof with the Storm King! We have one of the best school counselors thanks to you. And dude, Fluttershy like, totally adores you. Look, if you want my advice, confront Ocellus, without going overboard about whatever she said, and tell her how you feel. She seems pretty sensible to me, so what can go wrong?” Spike hops off from the bed and gently pats your back. “If Twilight was here, she’d tell you for all your faults, you have a big heart to share with everypony. Corny, but true.” Spike says, raising his claw in a matter-of-factly like way. “So what, are you suddenly going to mope over nothing? Or are you going to go out there and be the best Anon you can be?”
You turn your head to look out the window. “It’s kinda getting dark.”
Spike slaps his face and groans. “You know what I mean.”
You chuckle at that. “I do. So, heh, I mean, I guess nopony really has a problem with me right now beside Shining and… Wait, you mentioned Cadance. Princess Cadance has a problem with me?”
Spike twirled his hand around a bit before twisting it left and right. “Ehhhhhh, kinda? You know how it is. Shining can’t get over it, and if he can’t get over it, then it’s also her problem. According to her last letter, she just wants to get the guy calmed down enough so you and him can have a sit down and sort things out. Speaking of…” Spike then points at you, giving you a serious stare. “When that happens, you’re gonna play it straight, right? Because, dude, you do not want to stay on Shining’s bad side.”
You rolled your eyes and groaned. “Yeah, yeah, I promise to be good. But just to let you know, Twilight’s brother needs to get over himself, he did break my leg after all.”
Spike crossed his arms and raised his eyebrow at you. “Discord already told me what actually happened, Anon.”
You winced hard at that one. Holy shit, he told Spike?! “G-guh… Um, h-he did? Okay, okay, fine. But he was being a huge jerk! He threatened to lock me up! Like seriously, that’s messed up!”
Spike nodded. “Yeah, he told me and Big Mad during our last session. One of the rare moments when Discord feels self-conscious and was trying to get me and Big Mac to tell him how we feel about it. He tried to pose it as a hypothetical, but I knew what was up. But don’t worry, you guys' secret is safe with me as long as it doesn’t hurt anypony. As for Shining…“ Spike shrugged. “I’ll give you that one, especially since he didn’t know what was up. Look, relax, Anon, things are gonna be fine. And if you still are doubting yourself, well, go talk to your aunt then. You know how it goes, if Fluttershy doesn’t like you, then you’re actually a problem.”
You snickered at that. “But she loves me, Spike, like, unconditionally.”
Spike waved his claw at you, smirking at you. “Yeah, yeah, so that just means you better not break her heart, or else Discord is gonna mess with you instead.”
“Aha… Good point. Ah well, I already know things are fine with her. But yeah, I was heading towards the cottage before I crashed in here.” You let yourself relax, then look to Spike with a warming smile. “Thanks Spike, you make a good therapist sometimes.”
“Ah, well, y’know.” Spike said with a humble chuckle. “When you hang around Twilight all your life, literally, you kinda pick up on a few things when it comes to helping a friend sort out their problems. Like, literally, I do it all the time.”
“Yeah, I noticed. Y’know, Spike, you really are a hero, you know that? I don’t think I could do your job.” You said. Like seriously, you thought about it for a moment, and you realized being around and actually assisting Twilight would drive you insane, much worse than anything Discord is capable of.
“Well, that’s why I’m her number one.” Spike said as he stood proudly, pointing at himself. “I’m the best dragon for the job.”
He sure was. With a more positive outlook on yourself, and realizing you shouldn’t be so hard on yourself over what others have said about you, you say your goodbyes as you head downstairs through the castle while making sure to avoid Twilight, if only because you didn’t want to converse with her. You stepped out through the front doors of the castle and took a deep breath as the sunset greeted you with an ever darkening orange glow. It was getting dark, so you knew you had to hurry to Fluttershy’s before she prepared dinner.
But suddenly, you hear a giggle.
A familiar Draconequus’s giggle…
“Discord? Ah fuck, Discord… What? What did I do?” You said, looking around frantically, wondering what the fuck he planned to do to you, and why.
But he didn’t reply, there was just another giggle, which prompted you to follow it. “The hell, he’s around here, right? Discord? You there?”
As you looked around the outside perimeter of the castle, you noticed something… Glowing and glittering. The fuck? It almost looked like him, but he kept disappearing whenever you tried to get a good look at him. he seemed to be moving away from you, hiding behind trees and even in the water as he zipped about, seemingly heading back towards the Everfree, casually moving through the town as you slowly followed him. “It… Looks like him. Woah, woah… Hold on. Why am I following him? It’s obviously a trap.” You put your hoof over your ear and activate your codec. “Discord! Yo, pick up! I’m not gonna play this game.”
It took a moment, but Discord did indeed pick up. “Anon? Ah good, perfect timing. I need you to come to Fluttershy’s, post haste. There’s a certain rabbit here who won’t give me back my golden carrot. Normally, I’d just use my magic, but I did promise Fluttershy to handle a situation like this with words rather than violence.”
Wut? “Er, okay? I mean, did you try using words then?”
“Why would I do that? It’s my carrot! Now then, would you be a good little colt and help your dear old father figure out an alternative solution to this situation? I refuse to show any kind of humility to this thieving rabbit.” Discord asked
“Discord, just talk to Angel. How did he even get your carrot, anyway?” You asked back, already exasperated with the situation.
“Would you believe that I left it for him so I could have a laugh at him foolishly trying to lift a solid gold carrot? He’s surprisingly strong.” Discord said
…Okay…
“Alright… Okay, fine, I’ll be right over. But, uh, Discord, I need you to be real with me for a minute, okay?” Okay, let’s hope he’s in a truth telling mood.
“If it will get you over here faster, then I’ll be more real than the readers of an overly long and ultimately pointless story.” Discord replied.
“Alright… So, I’m pretty sure I am seeing you fly around town, heading towards the forest. But you’re all shiny, and giggling creepily. Is that you?” You asked, somehow dreading it even more if it isn’t him.
“What do you take me for, an amateur? One does not simply try to spirit a colt away with whimsical glitter and giggles. You have to use their own traits against them, twist them to your will, that whole thing, you watched the episodes. So no, it isn’t me. Is that a good enough answer? Are you coming or not?” Discord asked in a more demanding manner.
You just went silent, feeling a chill up your spine. So… that thing wasn’t Discord then? What the fuck was that thing? You looked around towards some of the townsponies going home, and noticed that none of them seemed to have noticed any of the sounds or the shining Discord. Which was weird, because you know they’d be moving faster to get away from him had they seen him. “Discord… Can you come and get me please?” You were actually scared. You didn’t have your charges right now, and whatever that thing was, you were afraid it was trying to spirit you away to eat you… Or something like that.
“Anon…?” Discord said your name, with sudden concern in his tone. “What exactly did you see? Anon?”
“I just… Discord, I think there’s some sort of doppelganger trying to lure me away into the forest. I don’t have any charges, and nopony seems to have seen it passing by them.” You said as you backed up towards a building, hiding by the steps, keeping your eyes peeled for the false Discord.
“How peculiar, you’d think I’d sense such a thing. Fine, keep the golden carrot, you long eared rat thingy. Do you see it now, Anon?” Discord asked.
“Not anymore.” You said, slowly poking your head out and looking around.
“Are you sure it isn’t some changeling toying with you? It could be the Apple’s dog trying to lure you into some sort of challenge. I know if I wanted to lure me into the forest, that I’d do it in that exact way.” Discord said, sounding rather jolly about it. “Oh yes, it’d be a glorious battle for sure, let me tell you.”
…Oh, right, it could be Scrappy. Hell, it could be Chrysalis. Maybe Ocellus? You went from scared to rather unamused. “Ugh, I somehow forgot about that. Okay, whatever, fuck this. I’ll be over there soon, don’t worry about it.” Like, fuck that noise, you weren't going to follow it. If Scrappy wanted a challenge, then he can fucking come challenge you like a man! Or, uh, a changeling? Dog? Whatever...