//------------------------------// // The Burden of Loss // Story: My Dear, Fluttershy // by Fluskie //------------------------------// “Ow!” Sunny yelped, her forearms positioned right over a prickly bush she had been trying to avoid stepping on but had been pricked while carefully stepping over. Its thorns stuck out and pinched Sunny’s skin as she moved backwards from it and cradled her stinging arm. This had been the second time she accidentally got herself caught in a particularly thorny plant while investigating the area. The last occurrence had been a dainty orange flower that caught Sunny’s attention almost immediately and had her trotting over to view it. She had to admit, it was pretty stupid of her to stick her muzzle into the center of an unknown flower and not expect anything to happen, especially with the new reintroduction of magic in Equestria, but did it really have to latch itself onto her face? She spent a solid fifteen minutes attempting to pry its clasped petals off her before her alicorn magic finally kicked in and the plant was sent flying from an induced shockwave of her materialized horn. She felt a bit sorry for the flower but the continuous aching from her muzzle being squished and dug into by tiny thorns reminded her of the ridiculous trouble she had caused herself just to experience the scent of the exotic flower. She promised herself she wouldn’t interact with any more of the plant life around here after that incident in fear that it would try and entrap her in some other way but it seemed inevitable that her path would be crossed by another dangerous plant. “I’m going to Mane Melody after this and seeing if Pipp knows a thing or two about massages and relaxation. I don’t think just a new mane style is enough of a pick-me-up after all this…” Sunny sighed. Truthfully, Sunny didn’t originally want to be out here trudging over wildlife and uncharted territory. She had been called here by the unity crystals, the three ancient artifacts that held all of Equestria’s magic and regulated it for all to use. She had previously thought there only function was to be held together and as long as all of ponykind remained harmonized and one, they would continuously provide a gift of magic for all. But apparently, they could draw Sunny’s power towards an overgrown forest, unexplored for generations. It was an itching urge mentally that could not be cured unless she followed what the crystals wanted so she had done what they wished. She didn’t even tell her friends she was here and trusted in the crystals to lead her where she needed to be. All she had hoped was that whatever god or higher power that had been watching over her and guiding her to her next objective had good intentions for her. And maybe a tiny bit convinced herself that it was Princess Twilight Sparkle, the old ruler of Equestria showing her her purpose and destiny?... Maybe that was a bit much. It was rude of her to assume she would be entitled to a powerful princess’s guidance simply because she admired her. What if she was a goddess now? Sunny shook her head of her rampant thoughts, she was letting herself get sidetracked by her fantasies while on an important mission. She couldn’t let herself be distracted now! She started galloping through the long grass, weaving in and out of trees and ducking over low-hanging branches. She could feel a metaphorical string pulling her to where she needed to be and felt its grip loosening and becoming less strained as she got closer and closer. It was almost as if she could see it in front of her very eyes, a sparkly trail of stardust that was roped around her heart. It didn’t hurt, it just felt like a force gently pulling her along like a little filly, excited to show her something important. And then, an uprooted tree caught the end of Sunny’s hoof and she went rolling down a trail. “Woah, woah, woaaahhhh!” The forest had taken on a completely different appearance, almost as if she had rolled into a different area. There were no more overgrown vines and lopsided trees for her to navigate under and around. The ground was barely littered with fallen leaves and small plants broke from the soil surface and rose as little sprouts. She could hear the chirping of lively birds from the well-groomed crab apple trees towering over her and the skitter of critters within their homes. Although, the most defining thing about this place for Sunny was the tens of thousands of magnificent flowers swaying in the wind and facing the setting sun in the distance. They were all blooming with beautiful petals, ones only some earth pony gardeners would ever hope to achieve. And with the orange sunset casting its rays upon the sight, Sunny could barely believe her eyes, so in wonderment, at this little treasure, she just happened to stumble upon. “This is beautiful…” Sunny mumbled to herself, carefully rising to her hooves. Careful to not disrupt nature’s work, Sunny stayed on a worn-out path as she admired the beauty all around her. Was it possible for all of this to flourish without the assistance of a pony? Why was it this particular part of the forest that was untouched by time and climate change? Of course, it wasn’t a rare occurrence for nature to be able to conjure its rarities but everything here appeared to be well kept as if an invisible hand was aiding it in survival. Nopony had been here in many, many moons. It couldn’t have been one of Sunny’s kind, could it? She stopped when she heard hoof-steps fastly approaching to her right, panic overtaking her as she dived behind a tree. Oh no, did she accidentally trespass on somepony’s property? She didn’t mean to, she simply fell here from her clumsy thinking. Maybe she could escape before they noticed she was here? She listened as they passed dangerously close to the tree she was hidden behind before their walking became more distant. Once she was sure she was out of their line of vision, she shifted a little so she could lean herself against the tree’s trunk and slowly peeked her head over to spy at them. She had to suppress herself from audibly making a noise of surprise as a tall and slender hybrid creature trotted away from her on all fours. Its red dragon-like tail swayed with each movement as its limbs noticeably trembled to balance the large creature on top of them. Lengthy silver hair overflowed over its shoulders and down its mismatched arms as it struggled in the direction it was walking to. To make matters worse, one of its wings, a bat wing, was torn and full of holes, possibly hindering its ability to flight altogether. Even though Sunny was terrified of whatever this creature was, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for it. It seemed old and was lacking the mobility it may have had years ago to get itself around. Not to mention that it was injured, which would surely exacerbate the situation. She wanted to help it but she didn’t know how. “Fluttershy, I’m back…” Sunny’s ears perked up, did the creature just talk? It was a soft but hoarse voice with a pronounced hint of exhaustion to it. Well, it wasn’t uncommon for animals to talk, after all, Hitch could somehow communicate with every animal in Maretime Bay, possibly with every creature in Equestria. And…Fluttershy? Were they talking about the Element of Kindness? The same pegasus who was best friends with Princess Twilight Sparkle and saved Equestria multiple times? It couldn’t be…Perhaps they had a friend who was named after the caring pony. Or she misheard what they were saying? They were quite a distance away from her. She watched as the creature kneeled itself in front of a stray cherry blossom tree, the only one of its kind in the forest. A few pink petals flew off the branches and nestled into their mane as they bowed their head to the tree and shut their eyes. They appeared to be honoring the tree and showing their respect before it continued its actions. “I picked some sunflowers for you. You never really told me what your favorite flower was so I chose myself. I hope you don’t mind.” They rested a bundle of sunflowers at the tree’s base. “Then again, you loved everything that came from nature, didn’t you?” The tree must have resembled somepony important to them since they addressed it like it was a living thing that they used to know. Did something happen to them? The creature treated the tree with kindness and spoke in the past tense…What could have happened? “I would have brought us both some tea but I appear to be lacking in a kettle and teacups,” They peered down at their lion paw. “My magic isn’t as chaotic as it used to be. But not to worry, I’ll bring some next time!” They sat in silence for a moment, thinking about their next train of thought before speaking again. “You know, it’s rude of you to not thank somepony for a gift. I spent all of this morning inspecting and thoroughly checking each sunflower to find the prettiest ones just for you. The least you could do is show me some appreciation.” They crossed their arms and frowned. When they were met with no response once again, they sighed and gazed down at the sunflowers laid in front of its trunk. There leaves were already wilting from being away from the soil for far too long and were losing there bright “flowery” look. The creature swallowed hard and glanced at the tree again. “When are you going to answer me again?” The question left a tense feeling in the air, one that made Sunny feel like she shouldn’t be here. It wasn’t her place to intrude upon this. But she couldn’t just simply leave. “I’ve been tending to the garden, taking care of the animals-...Angel has had several generations of grandchildren and you haven’t said a thing to me since that day. I’ve come back here every day bringing you gifts and greeting you and yet you still have left me in silence.” Sunny could physically feel a wave of bottled-up anger starting to rise in the creature as its back began to tense and it narrowed its eyes. “Was it them?… Twilight and all of them. When you met them all again, you decided that everything else didn’t matter anymore, is that it? You had no problem leaving Equestria behind.” “Leaving me behind…” Sunny stepped out from behind the tree, a compelling feeling provoking her to approach them. “It’s been thousands of years and I’m still here, mourning a lifeless tree.” They took a sharp breath in before bringing themself to their hind legs, using their tail to support them from falling backwards. They stared daggers at the tree, unstoppable wrath consuming them as their cloven hoof crunched the bundle of sunflowers underneath it. They raised their eagle claw high above their head, threatening to harm the tree out of their feelings of betrayal and grief. “You’re a liar. You’ve always lied to me.” They said bitterly. “Wait, stop!” The creature’s arm fell almost immediately as their head turned abruptly to Sunny who was galloping over, concern written all over her face. They recoiled out of fear as the fur on their back stood up defensively. “Who are you, ponies aren’t supposed to be here.” They snarled. “I’m not here to hurt you. I just saw you were going to hit that tree,” She gestured to the cherry blossom tree. “I wanted to stop you!” “I know you’re not going to hurt me. A small earth pony like yourself could hardly hurt a fly. And even if you could, you’re no match for me.” “Hey, that’s a bit offensive,” Sunny scowled. “Just because I’m an earth pony doesn’t mean I’m weak.” “In comparison to some of your earth pony ancestors, they were a lot more capable and stronger than you. Your generation seems more like a defect to everything they worked for.” Sunny was utterly appalled by this creature’s behavior. She had come over to try and help them and now they were sputtering nonsense about her appearance and her race. They hadn’t even met her before and all they could do was judge her based on something that was completely out of her hooves. Maybe that was the purpose of her mission that the unity crystals had sent her on. To try and reconcile a grumpy creature from its terrible ideals. It was an awful task to be given but if it was what the unity crystals thought, Sunny would just have to put up with them. “Well, that’s not fair at all. What if I just came up to you and started pointing out things about your appearance? That wouldn’t be very nice.” “So what, ponies used to do that all the time. This isn’t the first time a pony has commented on the way I look. In my opinion, they should all just go paint themselves purple or polka-dot, at least then they wouldn’t have anything to complain about.” “Huh?...” Sunny tilted her head in confusion. They emitted a dramatic sigh before dragging their claw across their face, highly disapproving of Sunny’s lack of understanding. “Let’s just start over,” They held out their paw to Sunny and forced a smile. “I’m Discord, Lord of-...Well, I suppose nothing now. Just Discord is fine, my dear.” Sunny gasped loudly, her hooves doing a little giddy dance in place as multiple fireworks and stars shot off in her mind mentally. She couldn’t believe who she was standing in front of and was practically shaking with excitement. “D-Discord?...You mean the same Discord who was friends with Princess Twilight Sparkle and made ponies suffer in eternal chaos and-” Before she could continue her spree of ancient Equestrian knowledge, Discord placed his finger at her mouth, quieting her. “Alright, no need to go that far. I’m receiving second-hand embarrassment from your recounting of those events.” He removed his finger from her mouth and she frowned, a tiny bit disappointed he wouldn’t allow her to obsess over one of her favorite topics with him. “Anyways, now that we’re acquainted and you know my name, I believe it’s time for you to depart and leave me be. Good evening and may the rest of your short life be tolerable!” He replied quickly. Before Sunny could argue with that, he whipped himself around and slapped her in the face with his tail. She held her cheek, taken aback on whether that was intentional or not just as the draconequus trotted away hurriedly. Was Discord always this distant and moody? Sure, he was a bit of a menace and created a lot of problems for the Mane Six in their earlier years, but he had been reformed and was recalled to be at the sides of the six girls, defending Equestria from time to time. He was a free-spirited, charming jokester who in the end always meant well about his actions. Why would he be so judgy and sharp-tongued to a fellow pony? And why was he about to slam his fist into a harmless tree? Things didn’t seem to add up. “Hey, Mr. Discord, come back!” Sunny shouted, chasing after him. The draconequus didn’t quicken his pace when he noticed the mare catching up with him but he appeared particularly unimpressed with her not listening to him when he attempted to “shoo” her off. He remained silent just as she reached his side, hoping his lack of speech would motivate her to leave. Instead, she took his refusal to not say a word to her as an opportunity to speak. “Why were you going to hit that tree anyway?” Sunny asked. “It’s a little silly to be angry at something that can’t even move or talk back to you.” “If you’re going to stick around I’d prefer you do something more productive instead of clinging to my feet and asking a million questions.” “Oh, do you need help with anything?” Sunny perked up, eager to possibly fulfill the unity crystal's request for her. He stopped and thought to himself, dragging his fingers through his beard before he came up with an idea. “You could watch Reginald Fursome for me, he gets particularly clingy when I’m trying to tend to the flowers.” “Reginald Fursome?...” As soon as his name was mentioned, the small patter of tiny paws approached Sunny and she found herself gazing downwards at a tiny creature. A little blue opossum who wore a yellow name tag around his neck stared up at her in wonderment, most likely surprised to see someone else other than Discord. She was able to make out two words written in fancy letters on the tag, “Reginald Fursome”, just as he had said. “Aww, that’s so cute! He has a little name tag.” Sunny gestured to it, a grin on her face. “Of course he does, he’s very proud of his name. So much so he had to attach it to a piece of plastic and wear it around his neck.” He replied matter-of-factly as if Sunny should have known that already. “He made this himself?” “He makes everything himself. He’s one of the most creative creatures I’ve had the privilege of meeting. He’s normally busying himself creating birthday cards or celebratory gift cards for all sorts of occasions,” Discord turned to Sunny. “But instead he seems more infatuated with you.” Sunny happily waved at the opossum before the creature suddenly dashed off in a hurry behind some trees. “Huh, where’s he going?” “He’s probably off to find materials for a card for you. It’s not every day he gets to meet a pony like this.” With the small animal off to fetch some supplies, Sunny turned her attention to the old draconequus who now stood to the side of a group of hyacinths. They were a variation of purple and pink with tiny clusters of petals rung all around them. With a watering can in his clutch, he pointed his finger into the can and water seemed to mysteriously expel right out of his fingertip. Glugging noises emitted from the can as it was filled to the brim with liquid. He stopped the stream of water from his finger with a simple blow and held the watering can to the flowers. He began generously sprinkling the water across the leaves and soil below, ensuring everything was well watered. “Is this your garden?” She gently scooped a flower’s petals into her hoof. “It’s not exactly my garden. It belongs to an old friend of mine. She’s not exactly capable of caring for them anymore, nor the animals gathered here so I took over for her. I might not be as diligent as she was but I try my best.” “I think you did a wonderful job.” Sunny praised him. “I’m sure she’d be proud to see the state of her garden. I know I was impressed when I first came here.” He set the watering can at his feet and gazed at her. A gentle smile tugged at the corner of his lips before it was forcibly removed shortly after and replaced with a scowl. “Yes, well, you weren’t supposed to come here in the first place.” Why was it so difficult to get on his good side? All she was doing was complimenting his hard work. All she had ever done since stumbling upon this place was try and display that she was a good pony and only wanted to be his friend. Why was he shoving every attempt at friendship away? He was the friend of the Princess of Friendship, wasn’t he? Surely he would know the signs of a true friend. “Ah, it seems Reginald has returned.” The small creature ran on all fours with a piece of paper in his mouth, even larger than his head. It was a surprise that he could even see past it as the little one planted himself down at Sunny’s hooves. On his back, he had a mouse-sized set of colored paper, pencils and markers, stickers, and even a pair of scissors that would only fit his little fingers between them. Sunny giggled at his adorable craft set as he got straight to work creating Sunny the perfect card. Possibly a greeting card? It’d be more welcome than Discord had given her. “I didn’t know animals were able to do a lot of things ponies were able to. It’s cute that Reginald has a little hobby.” “It’s disappointing that an immense amount of the knowledge of animals has been lost to time with ponies. They play very important roles in the ecosystem and are as articulated and full of personality as ponies. They deserve to be listened to and heard like all who live on this land.” Discord replied to her as a small robin rested on his deer antler, another on a fragment of what was left of his horn. “I have a friend named Hitch who knows a lot about animals. He can communicate with them and hear them speak as clear as day!” “Say that again,” Discord lowered his head closer to her face. “A friend who can communicate with animals?” “Yes! After magic was returned to Equestria, he just mysteriously was able to not only talk to animals but hear what they say back to him! It’s such a rare skill that I had no idea it was possible. Maybe it’s a side effect of earth pony magic?” “That’s…That’s not possible,” Panic struck the draconequus’s face. “There’s only one pony in all of Equestria who was able to do that…This…This can’t be.” “What pony?” Sunny asked, listening in on his barely intelligible mumbling. “None of your business!” He snapped before he disappeared with a poof. Confusion and guilt batted at Sunny’s mind, unsure of what she had just done or where things went wrong. She didn’t mean to upset him. She knew he already wasn’t quite fond of her but this may have been the straw that broke the camel’s back. What was so wrong with asking who a pony was? When she replayed the question through her mind a few times, it didn’t seem inherently offensive. It couldn’t have been something she did wrong. Maybe there was more to this pony that he just wasn’t willing to open up about? Of course, who would want to spill something personal like that to a stranger…Perhaps she was being a little too pushy. She felt a little tapping sensation on her arm and she peered down to see Reginald Fursome staring up at her with a proud smile on his face. He held a card up towards her, prompting her to take it. Unfolding it with care, inside the card she found stickers of flowers, squirrels, and little birds dancing across the page. She smiled warmly at the cute little creation before her eyes fell on a letter pasted inside, written in fancy hoof-writing. She had never seen hoof-writing this neat before in her life and reminded herself to commend Reginald for it once she was finished reading. “Dear, Sunny Starscout, I apologize that the Lord of Chaos, Discord has not been so kind to you upon your arrival. He is entirely different once you get to know him personally. In fact, he wasn’t always this way with ponies. He used to have a pegasus best friend whom he always was at the side of and tended to this garden and the other animals with. He was very fond of her up until she disappeared one day. He hasn’t been the same since and has been alone for many years, more than I could ever count. Maybe if you talked to him about it, he’d be willing to tell you more. All I know is that her name was “Fluttershy” and that she was well loved by our ancestors. I wish you luck with your discussion with him, maybe he’ll learn to appreciate more than just this place. From your friend, Reginald Fursome.” She gazed up in awe at the opossum, utterly shocked that he was able to have such a complicated thought process and express it so clearly in words without even needing to speak it physically. These animals truly were creatures worth treasuring. “Thank you, Reginald. I understand now. I’ll try my best to help Discord, I promise!” She placed her hoof to her heart confidently. Reginald nodded and placed his paw to his heart in appreciation. “Do you know where I could find him?” He then proceeded to give her another card. This one didn’t have any extravagant decoration on it this time but more words had been pasted inside. “He normally stays by that tree you found him at. However, there is another place…” In a field untouched by pony hooves, a fast-moving river splashed two and fro as fish leaped out and dived back into the water. The field was mostly inhabited by wildlife but multiple trails and streams of water interconnected throughout the peaceful area. The perfect place for any animal living in Equestria, aquatic or land to situate itself without being bothered by any outside forces. Beside a small lake, an old worn-down cottage, barely distinguishable from being a home at one point, was in shambles. Once a lively and bustling home for creatures of all kinds was now a pile of rotten wood and decaying leaves, surrounded by water and swamps. A broken bird house lay on the ground in front of a large crevice underneath the wood where many small animals had taken refuge. A few birds chirped and a tabby cat meowed from the shelter just as a large figure began to approach them. “I thought I told you all to leave this place? This cottage will eventually collapse and have you all stuck underneath it. It would be wise to heed my warning.” Discord kneeled down to the grass, peering into the small space. The critters didn’t move, but they did chatter excitedly at him. “There’s been nothing here for the last few millennia, I don’t understand what all of you are waiting here for. You’d be far safer if you left.” He leaned his lion paw to the ground, palm open in an attempt to urge the little critters to trust him and follow his suggestions. A blue jay and a robin perched themselves onto his paw and the little tabby cat trotted over, rubbing against his legs on its way, but all the other animals stayed put. They weren’t scared of Discord, nor entirely rejected the idea of leaving with him, but something seemed to be keeping them here. The only reason Discord could think of was one he had truly hoped they weren’t refusing him for. “Are you still waiting for the Element of Kindness to return?” He asked in a soft tone. Many of them nodded their heads, and others decided to verbally express it, but they were all agreeing on the same thing. They were waiting for Fluttershy, the previous caretaker from many moons ago that took care of their ancestors. In their short life spans, they would have never been able to meet her, but despite knowing this, they wanted her to return to this abandoned cottage and meet the kind soul. The stories of her heroic deeds in Equestria and the animal sanctuary had come a long way through generations of creatures, but they never forgot her. They refused to forget her legacy and persisted here. It was a determination that even Discord knew he couldn’t sway. Yet, he tried. “You have to understand that she no longer exists in this realm. She departed so long ago that it would be impossible for her to come back. You cannot bring someone who’s already gone, back.” But the creatures argued with him. They didn’t want to believe that all hope was lost. The caring spirit would someday come back for all of them, as long as they remained here waiting for her. “No, she won’t,” His tone became more stern. “Her time here has already passed and she’s demanded of elsewhere, she can’t come back.” The once calm and collected discussion dissolved into angry screeching and calls from the critters as they insulted Discord in their own language, furious that he would even suggest such a thing. Discord raised to his feet, his body tensing as the animals spilled out of the crevice underneath the wreckage and surrounded him. Squirrels, birds, mice, bunnies, and even a baby bear were yelling at him in a fury. A few birds swooped in and pecked him on his shoulders and arms, a squirrel threw an acorn at his head and the tabby cat hissed and growled at him. They were all berating him and questioning his authority to say things about Fluttershy. Had he even been her true friend in the first place? Why would somepony as worthy as her stick with someone as disastrous as himself? Was a reformation ever going to change the fact that he was a monster and never was and never will be accepted into society?  He stood there unmoving as the animals attacked him, the sensation of being hit no longer being a feeling. Their yells and sounds faded as ringing replaced the silence. His eyes fell on a patch of grass before him, feeling like he was being sucked away from the world around him and to a place only he could see. “F-Flutter…” The words caught in his throat as his breath hitched. Four yellow hooves stood on the patch of grass he was staring at, a pegasus with her back turned. Her lengthy pink mane trailed down her shoulders and gently swayed in the breeze, her wings shifting at her sides. “...Shy.” He muttered. Her head moved slightly to the right as if she heard him, but she didn’t look at him. Her gaze stayed fixated on the distant kingdom of Zephyr Heights, almost as if she was ignoring him. “Please, Fluttershy…” Her head lowered yet no words came from her mouth. He reached his arm as far as he could, his claw outstretched and attempting to grasp her long silky mane.  “Please turn around…Please talk to me.” Her legs shifted and she slowly rotated herself around. Excitement built within Discord, his longing to see her soft turquoise eyes and her gentle smile, maybe even hear her say his name again. He hadn’t heard her precious laugh in ages, nor her many stories about assisting animals and assuring they were well taken care of. He wanted to see her so badly, he needed to see her. He had been empty for so long without her and she was right here… His desperation soon reached a breaking point when he noticed her physical form starting to fragment and crack before she could turn her face to him. The tips of her wings had begun to fade away into tiny fragments, along with the beginning of her hooves at an increasingly fast rate. “Fluttershy, no!” He shouted, commanding his body to move with every fibre of his being. However, his legs refused to cooperate with his wishes and he only swung his arms forward. Something wasn’t allowing him to reach her, it wanted to keep him there as he desperately watched the pony very dear to his heart fade away. This couldn’t happen…He wouldn’t let it happen! He had to get to her before he’d never see her again! He grunted and furrowed his brow, screaming within his mind for him to be released from this invisible prison. He was the Lord of Chaos and had control over many aspects of himself and the world around him that ponies would never come close to being able to manipulate. Why was a simple movement of his body that he was capable of every time, but now so difficult? He didn’t have time for this. “Hold on, Fluttershy, I’m almost there! Just hang on a little longer!” By now, all that was left of her was her chest and head, it too quickly cracking away and vanishing into thin air. He finally found control over his legs again and rushed to embrace Fluttershy into his arms before she could leave him. But instead, his paws swiped through the air to find nothing to grasp onto and he fell onto his stomach, exhaling sharply. He gazed up at her, her face still invisible to his view as her head and the rest of her body dissipated and left his field of vision. He found himself back in the reality of Equestria where multiple animals clung fiercely to his body and continued to name-call him in resentment for what he said earlier. However, they were the least of his worries as his mind was clouded with nothing but loss and guilt, his body uncontrollably shaking with intense emotion he couldn’t even begin to describe. It was enough for him to completely give up and lie his head on the ground, surrendering to the raging animals on top of him. No amount of repeated insults and physical harm would be enough to break him more than he felt right now. “Discord?...” To make matters worse, that insistent earth pony had found him despite his best efforts to make her lose his trail. However, to his surprise, she was now traveling through the air with a pair of transparent gold wings and a horn now resided on her head. He had long thought alicorns had disappeared for a good many millennia ago, never mind a previously earth pony ascending to princess hood in a matter of a day. This new age of ponykind was full of surprises. She carefully landed behind him, tucking her alicorn wings at her sides and watching in confusion as the small critters attacked him with their tiny fists. A few even bit him but he refused to move a muscle. “What’s going on here? Why are you all attacking him?” Sunny asked worriedly. Although Sunny wasn’t capable of hearing them speak in the first place, they didn’t even bother trying to explain to her and continued to harm Discord. With no answer being given to her and seeing how they weren’t intent on stopping their aggression, she used her magic to levitate all the animals off him and placed them a distance away from Discord. “You can’t just attack others like that. That’s mean and unnecessary,” Sunny placed a hoof to her chest. “I can’t understand what you all are saying but I’m sure Discord could. You should try talking it out with him instead of jumping to conclusions.” “They don’t want to talk it out, I already tried.” Discord replied exhaustively behind her. “Are you sure?” Sunny turned to him. “Animals don’t just hurt others for no reason. For them to be this angry it has to be something that really upset them.” Of course, Discord knew exactly why they were so upset, he just felt as though it wasn’t necessary information. At least, in his opinion anyway. That pesky fake earth pony didn’t need to know anything more than she already did. “Yes, they don’t want to solve things peacefully.” He replied sharply. Sunny knew that was a lie and Discord was just being difficult on purpose, especially since he was so fond of the animals earlier. He most likely had done something they didn’t appreciate, but what? He wasn’t going to explain it out of spite, how was she supposed to figure out what occurred here if no one could explain it? “Hmmm, oh, I got it! Why don’t we go and visit Hitch?” Sunny grinned. “Hitch?... Oh, your strange little friend you were talking about earlier, right?” Discord asked his irritation for Sunny leaking into his words again. “I wouldn’t say he’s strange, he’s just gifted with an uncommon talent! And because of that talent, he could help you and the animals! They could explain their side of the story to him so that we can figure out how to resolve this.” “What about my side of the story? Doesn’t how I feel matter as well?” Discord titled his head, scowling at her. “You didn’t want to tell me your side of the story so there’s not much I can do about that.” Discord sighed. “Fine, let’s go see this Ditch then.” “Hitch.” Sunny corrected. “Whatever, but you’re going to have to carry me there. I’m far too worn out to walk myself there. Besides, all those ponies staring at me are going to give me a headache.” He rubbed his head with his claw. “Carry you?! But- you’re gigantic! I can’t lift you myself!” “And you’re supposed to be the disciple of Princess Twilight Sparkle, yes? Well, Ms. Sparkle would not approve of the way you’re addressing me right now. It’s rude to talk about another’s weight. If you plan on following in her hoof steps, you could try being nicer to me.” Sunny rolled her eyes, irritated at the fact that he was most likely right. Twilight wasn’t exactly here to confirm whether she agreed with him but considering she was brought up to respect everypony, no matter their appearance or capabilities, this was something she’d just have to grin and bear. Hopefully long enough to where she could drop the responsibility of the draconequus onto Hitch for a bit. “Fine, but I’m carrying you with my magic! There’s no way you’d fit on my back.” “Much appreciated, Starscout.” He smiled. “Please don’t call me that, Sunny is just fine.” She hadn’t lifted anything quite large with her magic in a while and lifting Discord wasn't a piece of cake. She strained to concentrate on her magical flow around his tall body and his weight was another factor working against her. She had to force her eyes shut so she could visualize her flow of magic easing him up into the air due to the stress being caused. She was able to levitate him in the air but she would have to hurry, she wouldn’t be able to perform this for very long. “Am I that bad?” Discord frowned. Sunny began to pace herself to a canter and regulate her breathing. “J-Just…Don’t worry about it. The sooner w-we get to Maretime Bay, the better.” “If you can make it to Maretime Bay.” He chuckled softly.