It was yet another lovely day in the seemingly never-ending Everfree.
A grand forest teeming with life and delightful little surprises, it was no wonder that he took to it like a fish in water. Discord couldn't remember if he was born into the dark forest or if was simply a happy chance he found himself here since his hatchling days, but it hardly mattered.
Sunlight warmed his fur, gently greeting him into the waking world. The young draconequus stretched his disproportioned limbs with a gaping yawn. Mismatched claws scrapped and clawed at the soft oak tree under him. The spirit of chaos had twisted the tree into something more akin to putty and pudding, a disgusting abomination that melted into the earth below as he shook the final remnants of sleep from his body.
"Oh, why hello there, sleeping beauty!" A voice called out to him.
The fur on the back of the young draconequus stood on end; it wasn't as if he was opposed to having company, but to have somepony call out to him so casually was indeed starting.
But not much more surprising than seeing just who was calling out to him. Black eyebrows raised as he looked over something he's never seen outside of chancing at a reflection in the water. A creature that looked like him. Just like him. Only this one was a touch larger and with white fur speckling his body.
The young draconequus reeled back in shock. "Dad?!" He cried out in bewildered confusion.
"What- No! NO!" All bravado spilled out of the elder draconequus as he frantically waved at the air between them. "Sweet Celestia - Do we even have one of those?!" The elder asked more towards himself, stroking at his beard as he mulled over his possible origin for a moment.
The Younger, unsure of what to make of this very handsome stranger, slinked his way up a tree- manipulating its structure as he did so; the bark turned twisted and patterned in fevered spots as he loomed over the other with a suspicious stare. "Who are you then?" He asked, summoning as much authority as he could in his voice. "This is my territory. Even if you... appear to look like me."
"Oh... I was a testy little thing, wasn't I?" Discord snickered to himself. He didn't bother chasing his younger self up the tree, nor did he bother to do anything to match his height. Discord instead snapped his fingers and apparated a comfortable chair to the forest floor and flopped his lengthy body back against it. "I'm you! Can't you tell by my dastardly handsome face?"
The younger pauses, looking over the elder with wary curiosity. "You're... me?" He parrots back. The words didn't make sense to him - not first. But then, many things surrounding his existence didn't make sense. But he thinks about the times he's pushed his own limits- and how so many of those limits were seemingly imposed by his own apprehensions and fear. He thinks about how easily he could tear into one reality and then the next. He thinks about the sheer vastness of the void that existed just behind this thin display of so-called reality. He thinks about the things he knew in his core that he shouldn't trifle with - not yet. Not until he was certain he would be the one in control.
Suddenly, his eyes glowed with excitement. Of course, he would eventually get a grip on things, wouldn't he? Eventually, he would lay claim to this world in its entirety. This was obvious proof of that. Of his growing ability. Of his power.
He lunged forward, tackling himself with unbridled delight. Discord rolled with the 'attack' as best he could, laughing at the youthful enthusiasm.
"You're me! Oh ho ho- this is a very good game! What brought this on? And why are you so old?" The younger squeezed at 'his face,' taking in every wrinkle detail. "Because sweet Gaia- you are old! You're even missing a tooth!"
"Alright - that's enough!" Discord slapped 'his' hands away from his face and pushed back his younger self with a pink bubbly barrier. "Personal space, boy! It isn't as if we have all the time in the world!"
"Time! Why wouldn't we have all the time in the world?" The younger asked in a haughty tone, waving off the strange bubbles that pressed against his chest. What strange tricks his elder self had. They were bright and colorful- something that he couldn't help but find pleasing in a strange way.
Discord huffed. "It's just the nature of the spell I'm working with. I don't want you to threaten my present, so we're locked in a fun little paradox right now." He smirked mischievously and added. "And when my time is up, for you, it'd be like trying to remember a dream within a dream. Another fun little failsafe. So asking too many questions would be pointless, my precious little doppelganger."
The younger frowned. He didn't like that. He didn't like that at all. There were rules and limits being set. "You sound like one of them."
Discord blinked. "One of who now?"
"A blasted pony! You sound like one of them."
Basted pony. Discord did his best to hold back a snicker. Oh, this was adorable. But he wasn't about to argue with himself. "You're right! Quite right - let's get to the point, shall we?" Discord clapped his hands together, happy to have the perfect segway. "I'm here to relive my youth. That'd be you. All I want is for us to do what you always do. Play a delightful game with some of those boring ponies."
Satisfaction filled Discord as he watched his younger self taking the bait readily. It was surprisingly easy to distract him - almost insultingly so. But he wasn't too surprised. To his own memory, this was the carefree days of his youth. Back when he freely made trouble for others but not so much that called the attention of a certain pair of pesky alicorns. There would be some years yet until that occurrence.
"There had been a rather pesky little group of traveling Earth ponies trying to make a home for themselves in the west," The young draconequus said, chuckling to himself. "We could play a little game with them?"
"Lead the way, O' spirit of Chaos!" Discord sang back, excited to finally get this party started. "Let's have ourselves a magnificant time."