//------------------------------// // Chapter 5: Playing Charades // Story: A Tyrant To A King // by ShuTodoroki //------------------------------// Five days had passed since Discord had last seen Sombra, and he gave a disappointed sigh as he materialized a watch on his lion’s paw, during his morning tea party with Fluttershy. “My apologies, Fluttershy, but I’ve got to check on Sombra. As I told you, Celestia suggested I leave him alone for a few days, and we’d both agree that five days is more than ‘a few.’” Fluttershy set her teacup down as they sat in her cottage, a nervous expression crossing her face as she looked at Discord. “Oh, I do hope you’re careful when you see Sombra again, Discord! I’m afraid of what he could do if he’s angry from being left alone…” “And that’s why I’m trying to reform Sombra and not you, Fluttershy. But not to worry! He’s in a cage that neutralizes his magic, so I doubt that he could do anything against me. Besides, I’m much more powerful than him, so even without the cage I really have no reason to fear him. All bark and no bite.” Discord paused as he looked thoughtful, his confident demeanor faltering slightly. “Well, even if he poses no threat to me, I still haven’t thought of a cohesive plan to get him to cooperate and, you know, not be turned to stone. It’d truly be a disappointing result for him, me, Celestia, pretty much everyone involved.” “I’m sure you’ll figure out something, Discord. After all, Princess Celestia wouldn’t have chosen you for the job if you weren’t right for it.” Fluttershy reassured, with a soft smile. “I would try to think of something, but if Sombra is that adamant to refuse help, I’m not sure if there’s any way to get through to him. Did you try giving him food?” Discord raised an eyebrow at that question. Why would he need to give Sombra food if the tyrant was already provided food and water by the royal guards? Celestia wasn’t cruel and provided for his needs, so why was that his problem? “The one time I visited him, I didn’t bring any food because Celestia already gives him stuff to eat. The royal guards take turns leaving food for him I think; would giving him something really make him open up, in your opinion?” Fluttershy obviously wasn’t very confident that it would work, if her hesitance was anything to go by, but she gave a shrug of her shoulders as she started to clear up their set up for their tea party. “Well, I’m not sure if it would work for Sombra, but most ponies would show gratitude, and building trust is always the first step before someone is willing to reveal more about themselves.” “Huh. I guess it wouldn’t hurt to try that, but I highly doubt Sombra will take kindly towards me trying to be his friend. You know, I think he still holds a grudge against me for standing up against him when you all asked me to help fight him.” Discord muttered as he rolled his eyes, before standing up and getting ready to head out the door. “See you later, Discord!” Fluttershy called after him as he waved goodbye, before appearing in front of the same staircase that led down to the dungeons of Canterlot in an instant with the snap of his fingers. Well, now or never, Discord. The draconequus told himself, as he started walking down the stairs, slightly curious as to how the charcoal stallion would respond. Even if Sombra’s only way of knowing the time was the subtle increase of light that came in the caverns with Celestia raising the sun, he could tell that Discord hadn’t visited him again for five days. The former tyrant was a very vigilant person, able to tell since he kept track of the meals that were provided for him since he had nothing better to do. Not that he cared at all about the draconequus’s well being, he couldn’t help but idly wonder why Discord hadn’t visited him again ever since that first encounter. From what he had gleaned when Discord spoke to him, it seemed like Celestia had given him a mission to reform him, so why did it seem like he had just given up? Perhaps Celestia has already dismissed him, since he failed to do his job. But then when he gave it more thought as he sat listlessly in his cell, he found that it made no sense. That was after one visit; surely Celestia had more patience than that when she gave someone a task to do. He highly doubted that Discord took notice of his body language that practically screamed that he wanted to be left alone, since from his limited knowledge of the Lord of Chaos, he didn’t seem to be the type to adhere to what other people wanted. His musings about why the draconequus could have suddenly disappeared didn’t take up the majority of the time he spent in his cell, but it was certainly one of the things he found more enjoyable than counting the number of crystal shards on the wall opposite him. It was quite mind numbing, to be by one’s self for so long. The only other ponies he had seen were the royal guards who brought him food to eat, and it was painfully obvious that they were only executing orders when they quickly teleported the plate through the cell bars and then left him be. Not that he cared about them; far from it. But he had to admit that there was something about interaction with another pony that kept one sane, and he was starting to feel the effects of that when the only being he could interact with was himself. Wait…that was the point of this, wasn’t it? Yes, he could understand it now, as his eyes narrowed with the realization. Celestia knew he wouldn’t talk, and probably told Discord to leave him alone. She wanted him to break down, and become soft like the rest of them and practically beg for conversation! Unfit for a king like him, who had no need for anyone else. He convinced himself that he would pay Discord the same amount of attention he did last time: none. He was a resilient stallion who didn’t need anyone interfering with how he wanted to live his life; reformation was something he couldn’t even consider without recoiling in disgust. When he heard hoofsteps he initially thought it was just another royal guard who had been sent to keep him alive, but when he saw the silhouette of Discord in the dark and damp cavern he gave a defiant huff, truing his back so that’d be the first thing the draconequus saw. He certainly didn’t need Discord’s visits, and the Lord of Chaos would be a fool to think otherwise. When Discord saw that Sombra was still being stubborn just from his body language he gave an exasperated sigh, slouching over as he stopped just behind the bars of Sombra’s dark magic-proof cell. Seriously? The former tyrant was still so adamant to make a point that even after five days, he remained unchanged? Though he supposed that he should’ve expected no less. “And here I thought you saw reason, deciding to never come back since I obviously don’t want you here. A shame.” Sombra muttered, still not making eye contact with Discord as he refused to even give the draconequus the pleasure of seeing his face, as his dark flowing mane obscured it from view. “But where would the fun be in that? You’re a smart stallion, Sombra, you should know that I never see reason in anything.” Discord retorted as he materialized a bunch of grapes in his lion’s paw, temptingly dangling them between the bars of Sombra’s cell. “I got you grapes. I figured you like them since you were eating them on your throne.” One of Sombra’s ears involuntarily perked up at that, which he mentally cursed since it showed Discord that he was interested, whether he liked it or not. Yet he knew that one wasn’t just nice out of the goodness of their heart; he was astute enough to see through that. “Poison is a very naive way to go.” “Oh for the love of-!” Discord facepalmed, letting out a long sigh as he ran his lion’s paw down his face. “Look, Sombra, it’s not poisoned. They’re perfectly normal grapes, which by the way is a sacrifice I had to make since they would be much better if they could fly.” “That is King Sombra to you.” Sombra spat, turning his head to glare at Discord, who looked unfazed by the act of bravado the charcoal stallion was putting on. “I’m not calling you a king when you don’t even have an empire. Now either you take this food I have so graciously provided for you as a sign of friendship, or you make this more difficult than it has to be and you’ll suffer more of my presence.” Discord asserted as he jabbed the bunch of grapes toward Sombra. “So what? If I bow to Celestia’s every whim and reform myself, I get to go free?” Sombra inquired with a raised eyebrow as he turned his head, since that’s what it sounded like from what Discord said. “Well, from my understanding, yes. It’s either you promise to use your magic for good or you get turned into a statue that sits in the gardens of Canterlot. Trust me, you don’t want to pick the second option.” Discord said with a shudder for emphasis, his sense of self-preservation stronger than his pride. Sombra, however, was cunning enough to make sacrifices. Sure, he had his pride, but if Celestia was so gullible to let him go if he played nice, he was definitely capable of playing charades. After all, he didn’t become the ruler of the Crystal Empire if he wasn’t the master of manipulation, and once he convinced Celestia that he was “reformed” enough to be set free…the Crystal Empire would be right there for his taking. It had been so easy to take over before, if it wasn’t for the meddling of those six ponies. But this time, he had a plan to evade them. Nothing was going to stop him from taking back his rightful kingdom if he had anything to say about it. He faked sincerity as he took the bunch of grapes that Discord held for him, making himself look less hostile. “Alright, Discord, I see what you’re saying. I suppose giving up some freedom is worth not being turned to stone, hm?” He agreed, as he took a bite from one of the grapes, levitating them with his magic. Discord crossed his arms as he looked at Sombra with a raised eyebrow, able to tell the abrupt change in the former tyrant’s behavior. “I want to believe that you’re finally seeing reason, but I also know as a former villain myself what you might be trying to do. I’ll just say this; if you try to pull anything when you’re released, Celestia won’t be so forgiving.” “Oh, please, isn’t the foundation of friendship trust? You can’t be the one to reform me and then suddenly not trust me when I try to change myself for the better, right?” Sombra questioned, ignoring DIscord’s advice since he never asked for it anyway. His prime objective was to get out of his confinement; strategizing would come later. “Well…I suppose you’ve got me there. But seriously. You’ve got a second chance. Don’t waste it.” Discord advised, still unsure about whether Sombra was really being sincere. Most likely he wasn’t, and he would hate to see Sombra turned into stone if he did something stupid. “Uh huh, right.” Sombra dismissed, deciding to change the subject since if he managed to convince Discord to tell Celestia that he was all good and ready to be released, the Crystal Empire would be right there, ready to be his. Perfect.