//------------------------------// // There's a Rainbow There Somewhere // Story: My Little Chimera: Friendship is Discord // by TheGreatAllie //------------------------------// Princess Celestia landed on the ground after raising the sun. Another beautiful day, shining all over Equestria, made possible by her grace and magic. She had done it more times than she could count, yet there was still a special feeling inside her whenever she landed on the ground after raising the sun to greet another gorgeous day. Now, all she had to do was head to the back of the palace, where she could wait for-- “Celestia.” Princess Luna stood in front of Celestia. Curse her cleverness, she had used the long morning shadows to hide herself so she could step out just when Celestia was wrapped up in the beauty of her morning and there was no way to avoid her. “Good morning, Luna,” said Celestia. “Did you have a nice night?” “Why have you been avoiding me, dear sister?” Luna wasn’t going to waste any time in cutting to the chase. “Avoiding you? I haven’t been avoiding you.” Celestia began to walk back to the palace, and Luna fell into pace behind her. “You know how flighty I can be sometimes. I must have just been flitting about in different parts of Canterlot--” “We need to talk about this,” said Luna. “Go ahead and talk, I’m listening.” Luna jumped ahead and stood in front of Celestia, who stopped. “No. You and me. Not the Royal We. Celestia and Luna need to talk.” “What about? The weather? Sports? I hear the Canterlot Polo team is favored to win today’s match against--” “About Discord.” “I see,” said Celestia. “Not a polo fan, then?” “Tia,” warned Luna. Celestia sighed. “All right. You’ve got me. I have been avoiding you because I was afraid you wouldn’t understand.” “You would be right,” said Luna. “I don’t understand. I don’t understand how you can banish me, who was once good, to the moon for a thousand years while you let him, a creature that can never be any more than a monster, run free. But Celestia, you owe it to me to try.” Celestia sighed. “I do owe it to you, dear sister, and I apologize. Come. Let us walk through the garden.” The grass in the garden gave off a lovely earthy smell this early in the morning, the flowers fragrant. Already animals were flitting about, because this time was theirs. It was so peaceful and tranquil, that even with such charged emotions running between the sisters it would be impossible for them to fight. This was a time for productive discussion, not angry arguing. The two regal sisters walked slowly, going nowhere but needing to move. Before Luna could ask a question, Celestia cleared her throat. “Well. About Discord, then. Luna, you must understand that I did not want to lock you away. That wasn’t my first choice, or my second or even third. Especially to use the elements we once wielded together, as a symbol of our bond, to drive you away from me for so long.” “I regret that I did not give you much choice,” Luna coneeded. “Looking back there may have been a better way. We were much younger then, and both a bit foalish. When you broke free as Nightmare Moon, I feared that the sister I loved so long ago truly was gone forever. But then, the morning of the Summer Sun Celebration, seeing you as yourself, and hearing you say how much you loved and missed me...” Celestia stopped talking, and stopped walking. There were tears on both ponies’ faces. “I don’t like to do these things,” said Celestia. “When I saw that you could be redeemed, I thought, why not him?” “Because he’s nothing but the spirit of Chaos,” said Luna. “He can’t exist any other way.” “That’s just it, dear sister,” said Celestia. “I always assumed that, because he was born from chaos that there was no other way for him to exist. But Luna, what if I was wrong? What if Discord is the sum of influences in his life rather than the embodiment of an abstract idea?” Luna turned that thought over in her head. “You mean... what if he’s just an all-powerful but spoiled grown-up child who’s never been told ‘no’ before?” “I owe it to him to find out. I owed it to you.” Luna rubbed her neck against Celestia’s. “You don’t owe me anything but to love me,” she said. “If you’re wrong, then Discord turns back to stone of his own accord. But if you’re right... then someone is spared.” Celestia’s tears fell on Luna’s mane. “I do love you, little sister.” “I love you, too.” Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, Discord gagged. Bright Eyes looked up from her breakfast. “Something wrong?” Discord started digging in his ears. “No... just had a weird sensation that something overly sentimental was going on and it involved me somehow.” “Oh.” Bright Eyes picked up her plate and went to the sink. “I’ll be with the baby ponies again today. Will you stay?” “No,” said Discord. “I’d like to talk to a certain someone.” “All right,” said Bright Eyes. “Could you wash the breakfast dishes before you go?” Discord opened his mouth to say no, but he suddenly felt his tail slam on the floor, the tip of it now being solid stone. He quickly changed his mind. “I’d be delighted,” he said through his teeth. Bright Eyes smiled, and Discord finished breakfast. Half an hour later he was out of the house and down the path. He couldn’t fly yet, so he had to walk. Discord never walked to get somewhere before, he only walked for the sake of walking. At first he strolled down the path on his hind legs, but then felt off-balance and went down to all fours. Either way the ponies all gave him strange looks. Discord didn’t really care. Usually he enjoyed the attention, but today he was preoccupied with his current predicament. The time for self-pity was over. Now was the time for action. Discord remembered the way to Medly’s house, where Cherries Jubilee had taken him three days ago. Had it really only been three days? He wondered to himself, tallying up the days in his mind. Yesterday he had been sick. The day before that he had moved into Bright Eyes’s yard. And the day before that... he had been turned to stone and sent to Dream Valley. So, yeah. Three days. Medley’s house was quiet when he let himself through the front gate. He was disappointed not to hear strains of discordant music, but pleased that he didn’t have to listen to any well-composed music. Discord rang Medley’s doorbell, and it chimed out the first ten notes of a familiar tune. “Just a minute,” Medley called warmly. Discord shoved his finger on the doorbell and held it there, causing the chime to repeat the first note rapidly. “Just a minute!” Medley called again, this time with much more irritation in his voice. Discord held his finger on the button until the occupant yanked the door open. “How can I help you?” she said with a snarl. “Hi,” said Discord. “Can I come in?” Medley leaned her head way out the door and looked around. Nopony was looking at them. She looked up at discord. “Make it quick.” She grabbed his mane with her teeth and yanked him inside, bucking the door shut behind them. When she let go, Discord rubbed his neck. “You tugged on my hair,” he said. Medley spat out some hairs. “I know.” “What’s with the attitude?” said Discord. “You weren’t like this the other day.” He shoved a few woodwinds aside and flopped down on her couch. “I wasn’t sure who you were the other day.” Medley had her wings up and out- a common defense mechanism to make herself look bigger, an instinct held over from her wild pony ancestors. “I thought, oh, it does look like him, but then it’s been years since my study of ancient statues and curses, and you were only mostly stone. It just didn’t make sense. Why would he be here of all places, and why would he even be partly free? “Well, I did my homework and now there can be no question.” Medley put her snout right up by Discord’s face. “You’re the spirit of Chaos and Disharmony. Here to ruin the peace of Dream Valley. The silence echoed in Discord’s ears after Medley finished. Always ready to say the wrong thing, Discord said, “Are we going to kiss now?” Medley put her hooves on his chest and shoved. “Okay, okay,” said Discord, rubbing the spot where she touched him. “You’re wrong, though. I’m here to make friends.” “Good luck,” Medley scoffed. “Why did you let me inside?” “I was planning on murdering you in my basement.” Discord laughed. “Don’t tempt me.” Discord stood up. “Well, I can see that you’ll be of no help. I shouldn’t be surprised. After all, it really is impossible for a pony to know everything. Cherries may think you’re smart, but...” He was already casually strolling to the door. Medley didn’t watch him go. Instead she started picking up the woodwinds Discord had knocked over. “You want to know if I can help you out of a jam and just won’t?” “Of course you couldn’t. After all, you’re not a unicorn.” “You can leave now,” said Medley. So Discord left. On the path outside Medley’s house, he re-assesed his situation. Cherries had said Medley could help him. Somehow, even though he knew couldn’t really be true, he had fixated on that. Asking Medley for help was a much easier goal than “learn how to make friends and overthrow Celestia.” But if any other ponies were like her, this friend-making business wasn’t going to be easy for him. Good thing Discord wasn’t afraid of a challenge. CRACK! “Heads up!” Discord looked up and saw a pink blur-- --and then black with lots of white stars. ‘Hey, when did I fall on my back?’ he wondered. Good thing, because he suddenly had a splitting headache. “Eh, sorry,” said a pony voice above him. “You okay, Tacky?” “Did you get the license number of that apple truck?” Discord’s voice sounded funny. He heard Medley over from her house. “What are you doing, Firefly?” “Racing myself!” Discord recognized Firefly’s voice. The stars were fading and now he could see a pink blur standing over his head. “Why do you have to fly so dangerously?” Medly said. Firefly laughed. “Danger is my life, Medley!” Discord sat up, rubbing his head. “Am I dead?” “I’m really sorry,” said Firefly. “I’m trying to beat my time from the front gates of Paradise Estates to the top of Dream Castle. Are you okay?” “Yeah,” said Discord. “It didn’t hurt much at all... I mean, it’s not like you were going that fast.” Firefly jumped up and landed in a pouncing stance. “Are you kidding me? I’m the fastest pegasis in Dream Valley!” “Uh-huh,” said Discord with a mock yawn, “and I’m the fastest tortoise in the desert. So we both have something to be proud of.” “You think you’re faster than me?” “I don’t have to be a rabbit to know a turtle is slow.” Discord flapped his wings. “But yes, if I wasn’t still weighted down by the Elements of Harmony, I would be flying circles around you.” Firefly flipped her mane. “Excuses,” she laughed. “Yeah, you could fly faster than me... if you were faster than me!” Then she flattened her ears. “How about a race?” “Fine.” Firefly lifted herself up in the air. Discord followed, not letting himself show how relieved he was to realize he could actually fly. Not very well, he was heavy and wobbly, but he was airborne. Firefly pointed with her hoof. “See that castle on that part of the hill, way over there?” Discord squinted. He could see pink-capped stone towers quite a ways away. “Yeah.” “First one to the tallest tower wins,” said Firefly. Then she shouted to the house, where Medley was still watching with amusement, “Medley! Count us down!” Medley sighed. “Okay, okay. Ready... steady... go!” Firefly took off like a bolt. Discord went off too, as fast as he could. He was never really one for speed, and he didn’t expect to beat her even at his peak, not without cheating and using his magic to trip her up. But for the first time since his arrival, he cut free of any sort of boundary and really went for broke. He felt the wind, his body was heavy but free. When he got to the tower, Firefly was already there, leaning against the spire and cleaning her hooves idly. Discord was out of breath. “I’ve been waiting,” said Firefly playfully. “Race you back,” panted Discord. “Double or nothing.” “We didn’t bet anything.” “Oh, so you’re chicken. Pwok, pwok, pwok!” Discord flapped his arms and everything. Firefly narrowed her eyes and grinned. “Count us down.” “Five, four, three, two, one!” Discord was already off before the three was out of his mouth. Firefly didn’t complain, because immediately after he finished saying “one,” she was in front of him. Between Paradise Estates and Dream Castle was a large, grassy field, with gentle slopes and wide patches of wildflowers. Firefly paused over the field, then she started ascending straight up, no curves. Discord, not really competing as much as he was playing, followed her up to the clouds. When she was as high as she wanted, she stopped and waited for Discord to match her altitude, which he soon did. She grinned. He smiled back. Then she dove. Firefly flew towards the ground at breakneck speed. She flew so fast that the wind stung her eyes until they teared, and the wind in her ears drowned out every other sound. Beside her, Discord matched her speed nose down. This wasn’t a free-fall. They were both actively propelling themselves towards the ground as strongly as possible. The instant before Firefly hit the ground she pulled out of the dive and skimmed along the grass until she slowed enough to stop. Meanwhile, right before Discord hit the ground he made a giant pillow of cotton candy below him that dispersed all of his falling energy in a tasty, sugary flop. And since his intentions were benign, it didn't cost him any body parts. Firefly fluttered over to Discord’s landing pillow. “Cool,” she said. “I didn’t know you were magic.” Discord began popping chunks of spun sugar into his mouth. Firefly trotted over and sniffed the cotton candy curiously. “How did you do that?” “Magic,” replied Discord. “Duh. Here, have some.” Firefly took a big bite out of the cotton candy cushion. It dissolved in her mouth and made her shiver. “It’s good,” she said. Suddenly Buttons burst out of the cotton candy, taking a huge bite. “Yum! Delicious!” she shouted happily. “Buttons?” Firefly was startled onto her hind legs. She eased herself back down. “Where did you come from?” “I love cotton candy!” Buttons took another big bite. Firefly laughed. “Buttons, you are so random.” Discord got off the cotton candy before it melted into his fur. Then all three of them finished it off together. Full of sweetness, they lay down on the grass, heads together, bodies apart. “What else can you do?” asked Firefly. Buttons piped up, “Well, I can make a self-shank, and I can do a sew-through, and I can fasten a stud-button--” Firefly shook her head. “No, no, no. I meant Discord. I know what you can do.” “Oh! Sorry!” Buttons giggled. Discord thought about the question. “My specialty is chaos and disharmony. But I’m not allowed to do that.” “Huh,” said Firefly. “You’re a pretty good flier.” “You think?” Buttons rolled over onto her belly. “I bet you’d be good at buttons,” she offered. Discord didn’t ask how one would be “good” at buttons. Instead he got up and stretched, first his arms, then his back, then his legs. Firefly watched him. “Whatchya doin’?” Discord smiled. “Finishing our race,” he said smugly the instant before he took off. Firefly jumped up. “Oh, no you don’t!” she cried happily, and flew off right after him. Buttons hopped along after them, not seeming to care that she was far, far behind. “Ooh! Ooh! Are we racing? I love racing! Ready, set, go! That evening Bright Eyes was alone in her house. The baby ponies had gone home, and she had cleaned up after them. All the toys were back in the toy box, the storybooks ordered and back on the shelf, the snack table scrubbed clean, and the nap mats rolled up and put away. Bright Eyes lit a fire and fixed herself a cup of herbal tea, then settled into her easy chair to relax. Bright Eyes spent many nights alone, mentally unwinding and relaxing in preparation of the next day. She heard a ruckus approaching from outside, at first faintly but steadily growing louder as the shouting and laughing drew nearer. Finally, when the sound reached it’s apex the door swung open, and in strutted Discord with Firefly flapping behind him and Buttons bouncing happily. “I so beat you!” Firefly crowed. “You did not, you were dead last!” “I was ahead by a country mile!” “Yay! Yay! Yay! Yay!” Buttons cheered as she bounced. Then Bright Eyes spoke, and even though she barely raised her soft voice, she was heard- and Firefly and Buttons shut their mouths right away, with Discord quieting up too soon after he saw his conversation partners were mute. All Bright Eyes said was, “Please use your indoor voices.” Buttons sat down and put her hooves over her mouth. Firefly landed. “Sorry,” she said in a slightly quiet voice. Bright Eyes turned to Discord. “Where have you been all day?” “Out,” said Discord. “Me and Firefly were racing, and Buttons was the color commentator.” “You’re very late for dinner,” said Bright Eyes. “Well, I filled up on cotton candy.” “I wish you wouldn’t.” Firefly, ears hanging low, looked to Buttons. “We should go,” she whispered. Buttons nodded, and the two ponies slinked away. Bright Eyes bid them goodbye and closed the door behind them. “If you’re going to live here, I think we need to set some ground rules,” she said to Discord. Discord gaped at her. “You’re kidding, right?” “Can we work together and agree on something that’s fair to both of us?” Discord rolled his eyes. “Fine. I’ll crash somewhere else.” “If that’s what you think is best.” Without a word, Discord left the house and the yard, and began walking along the beaten paths of Paradise Estates. He didn’t care about leaving Bright Eyes. Who did that pony think she was, anyway? Besides, he’d never wanted to be there in the first place. For some stupid reason, she’d stuck him in her yard like an ornament, with all those irritating baby ponies prancing around and making noise. Okay, sure, she’d let him inside when it was raining, and she fed him that exquisite Italian dish... and let him sleep in her bed when he got sick... and then gave him his own room when it was clear he didn’t need to live in the yard anymore... and it was getting cold... and Firefly said it might rain... and Bright Eyes was a superb cook... and he really didn’t know anypony else in Paradise Estates... Discord was so lost in thought that he didn’t realize where he was until he was directly in front of Bright Eyes' front gate. Whether he’d gone in a circle or just turned around at some point he wasn’t sure. And, though it disgusted him to do it, he went up the path and back inside her house. Bright Eyes was back on the easy chair with her tea. She smiled when she saw him. “Okay,” said Discord, trying to save face. “I have decided to hear your terms before deciding whether or not they are acceptable to me.” She set her teacup down. “Glad to hear it.” Discord flopped on the floor by the fire. Bright Eyes sat down on the floor next to him. “First things first,” she said, and cleared her throat. “Before you go out, I would like to know where you’re going and who you’ll be with.” “Why?” Bright Eyes continued, “and you must return home before it gets dark. Dinner will be at six and I want you home and washed up before then.” “Are you kidding me?” “I want you to make your bed every morning when you get up, and clean your dishes and set them to dry after every meal.” Now Discord’s mouth was just hanging open. “Oh, and you’ll also be responsible for a few household chores. I’ll leave out a list at the beginning of the day. Nothing too difficult, just things like sweeping up and taking out the recycling.” Bright Eyes took a sip of her tea. “I think that’s everything.” “You can’t be serious.” Bright Eyes smiled. “I’m not your foal, you know.” “I know.” Discord rolled his eyes. “And,” she added sternly, “we will show proper respect. Do not roll your eyes at me, mister.” “Why are you doing this to me?” “Because I want what’s best for you.” Discord gagged. “All right.” Bright Eyes made direct bright eye contact and something in her look made Discord’s shoulders sink and his ears droop. “I think you need to go and calm down for a few minutes.” “Are you... giving me a time-out?” “Why don’t you go lie on your bed and think about this?” “Are you sending me to my room?” “And don’t come out until I say so.” “... Are you grounding me?!” Bright Eyes stared him down. Discord didn’t stand a chance, and after a try at defiance he slinked to his room and curled up on his bed. It wasn’t easy going from being Chaos Ruler of Equestria to answering to a nursery pony. But he wasn’t about to fall back into his game of self-pity. As he curled up on his bed a strange memory came to him very suddenly. He couldn’t see it- there was blue above him and green below him, but that was it. He was tiny, and he was having trouble flying. Somepony- or somebody- was laughing at him and making him cry. The smell of mud stung his nostrils. No one came to help him, so he just cried. When the memory passed, Discord rolled over onto his back. ‘That was strange,’ he thought. What brought that up? Who was laughing at him, and why? He felt a slight burning in his throat, like heartburn if he had been eating. He sat up and burped- then he belched loudly, spewing a torrent of green smoke. From the other room, Bright Eyes called, “And what do we say?” “Must have been a barge coming through!” he called back. “Discord...” she warned. “Excuse me,” said Discord in the most nasal voice he could manage. Bright Eyes seemed to accept that, as she didn’t say anything else. Discord turned his attention to what his belch had produced- besides an awful smell, he now had a scroll in his hand. It was wrapped in a red ribbon and fastened with a drop of wax bearing the Royal Canterlot Seal. On some level he’d known a Draconequus was dragon enough to send and receive letters through firemail. However, no one had ever sent him a letter, and he’d never had anyone to write to. He pinched it very carefully, and opened it with his claw. My Reluctant Student Discord, Discord sneered and considered shredding the letter and sending it right back. Something compelled him to finish it first, though. How are you? It has been a few days since I sent you to Dream Valley. I’m sorry I can’t drop by, but I would love to hear how you’re doing. Have you made any friends? I noticed you were covered in affection when I last saw you. I hope your hands are free now so you can write me a letter. I look forward to hearing from you. Your Ruler, Princess Celestia Discord crumpled up the letter. “She wants to know how I’m doing, eh?” he growled. “Oh, I’ll tell her how I’m doing.” He began searching the room, knocking things over and making a mess until he found some paper and a quill in the dresser. He gritted his teeth and wrote, Dear Princess Trollestia, If you really hope that I’m not made of stone, you know you have the power to remedy that any time you want. I am giving serious consideration to going back on my don’t-turn-ponies- into-stone stance, as I now think I would still be better than you even if I did stoop to that particular level. Have I made any friends? Well, let’s see. There’s Cherries Jubilee. She took me to town, dumped me in town square, and I haven’t seen her since. And I can’t forget Miss Whiplash, known to the locals as Firefly. She’s always flying at the speed of sound and knocking me over. Then there’s Buttons, who rides the short wagon to school, if you catch my drift. Oh, and I can’t forget that snob Medley, who knows who I am and hates my guts. Not to mention I’m living with a pony who I am convinced is trying to turn me into her foal. As we speak I am being grounded in my room. So yes, Celestia, I am making lots of friends. Maybe we’ll have a big friendship party. I’ll invite you once we pick a date. Bring a dish to share. Your reluctant “student,” Discord Without proofreading, he sent the letter off. Then he threw himself onto the bed and, quite surprisingly, fell right to sleep. Day five. Discord lay in bed for a long time after he woke up. It was still dark out, but he couldn’t fall back to sleep. His head swam with the events of the past week. He was trapped in stone for over a thousand years and free from it for only a few days. This week felt longer. If it weren’t for those cursed Elements of Harmony-- Discord sat up. The Elements of Harmony. The representation of friendship. What were they? Laughter, of course. Honesty. Generosity. Loyalty. Kindness. Magic. If those mares could wield them instead of Celestia and Luna, then maybe he could build his own troop of friendship to take the power from Twilight Sparkle and those. Then he would banish all of them and become the ruler of all Chaos! It could work. It could really, really work. Discord was in such a good mood that he decided to get up and make breakfast. He’d never cooked a meal before in his life, but he’d watched ponies eat so he figured he had a pretty good idea of how it worked. Sure he made a pretty big mess doing it, but it was probably just all part of the process. When he was nearly through cooking, Bright Eyes padded into the room. She was wearing her robe and slippers, and looked very tired. Her mane had a serious case of bedhead, and her hairs were sticking out all over. “Discord?” she said, stifling a yawn. “Why are you up so early?” “Fell asleep early. Woke up early.” He glanced at her. “I’m not still grounded, am I?” “No...” She looked confused. He reached over and tweaked some of her hairs. “Love your mane,” he said with a wink. Bright Eyes sat down. “What did you make?” Discord dropped a plate on the table. “Eggs and toast.” Bright Eyes stared, her bright eyes big and round. The toast was black and shriveled, dropping crumbs by the spoonful. The egg was half raw, half burned, the yolk broken and spilled all over the whites, and the entire shell was broken up and mixed in with the rest of the egg. Bright Eyes looked at Discord, who was watching her with an unreadable expression. She then leaned down and took a tiny bite of the curled part of the egg. “It’s no good, huh?” Bright Eyes swallowed. “Well, it was a good effort.” Discord went to the cabinet and poured a bowl of cereal. He put it dry in front of Bright Eyes, pushing the plate out of the way with the same fluid gesture. She leaned over to take a mouthful, when suddenly it burst into flames under her nose. She jumped back, startled but unharmed. Discord grabbed the bowl and tossed it into the sink, then pumped milk from the faucet onto it to put out the flames. He laughed- of course he did it on purpose. “I guess I really don’t know how to cook.” He smiled broadly at Bright Eyes until she began to laugh softly, too. Then she got up and fished leftovers out of the icebox for them to share.