All I Have is you (it is all that I'm breathing for)
All I Need is you (Now I can't make it trough)
Finally, the rehearsal of the wedding was to take place. Princess Celestia arrived at Ponyville when Luna took over at night, and everyone decided the rehearsal would be held at Apple Acres, upon insistence of Discord. However, Shining Armor was missing, nobody had seen him for the past two days, which started to worry Twilight and Cadence. After all, Shining Armor was the Best Colt, but apparently, they would have to do the rehearsal without him.
The first in entering the barn, where Celestia and Discord were already waiting, were Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity and Applejack, holding up their heads in the air with pride.
"Excellent work, girls," Celestia drew a smile on her lips and glanced at the entrance doors of the barn while the ponies giggled excitedly, "You know what to do next, everypony."
Cadence walked in next, taking her place as Twilight's Best Mare, but Spike had to occupy Shining Armor's place while he arrived, if he arrived at all. The next ponies in coming in were Pinkie Pie and Screwball, hopping happily as if it was them getting married. And finally, Big Macintosh and Apple bloom had offered to open the doors of the barn when it was time for Twilight to walk in.
They opened the door (before going back to bed, for it was late and they were tired), and Twilight was outside, waiting for her turn. Discord didn't take his eyes off his bride-to-be, smiling as she slowly walked to her designated place; he could already imagine her in her wedding dress and town, he just couldn't wait to join his life to this wonderful mare. When Twilight reached her place, Celestia was about to speak when Discord spoke first.
"Yeah, we know what's next, Celestia!" Discord twitched his tail in boredom and let out a big yawn, "Twi enters, you speak, we say the vows, and then you pronounce us colt and mare, and we live happily ever after!"
"Well, in this case, it would be, 'I pronounce you Draconequus and mare,'" Celestia smirked, to which Discord made a pout, like she anticipated.
"Oh, yeah, rub it in my face." he said, crossing his arms and trying to sound as hurt as he could.
"Daddy, can I go with you on the honeymoon?" Screwball inquired innocently
"Depends on what your future stepmother says."
Twilight blushed, "well.. Screwie, honeymoons are supposed to be a special time where a newlywed couple spends time with each other and... do what married couples do."
Screwball tilted her head and drooped her ears, which made her look quite adorable, "What do married couples do, future mommy?"
Everyone present grew nervous at that question, although Celestia kept her cool. She put a hoof on Screwball's shoulder, "I'm sure your parents will explain it to you sometime."
"I just hope we won't have to use dolls again, my little bubble," Discord giggled, remembering the first time he attempted to give her the 'Talk.'
Cadence, however, was still worried about Shining Armor, and feared he would commit a nonsense. After all, it sounded like he was willing to do anything to stop Twilight Sparkle from marrying Discord. Speaking of which, Rarity poked Discord softly.
"Hey, your 'surprise,'" she whispered, to which Discord panicked.
"Oh, I almost forgot!" He snapped his fingers, and a small box with a red ribbon appeared in front of Twilight, "I... made this for you, but I'm not really good at sewing, so...." he was getting redder by the minute, "Please don't laugh at me."
The others, minus Rarity and Spike, got closer to Twilight to see what was in the box; the purple Unicorn used her magic to open the box, and everyone was marveled at what was inside.
It was a lilac-colored scarf, with golden trimming, although it was crudely done, but intention is what mattered. However, what called the attention of everyone were the words on the scarf...
"STOP!!"
Suddenly, Shining Armor burst into the barn, a determined look on his face. Cadence, Twilight and the present ponies were shocked when the stallion charged into Discord, sending them both plummeting to the ground.
"GET AWAY FROM MY SISTER!" Shining Armor snarled in fury, to which Discord reacted by snapping a finger and lifting Shining Armor of him, and holding him in the air.
"What's wrong with you?!" he snapped, "You're going to ruin my hair!",
"Shining, what in the hay are you doing?!" Cadence snapped
"Why did you just attack my groom?!" Twilight added, incensed at her Best Colt for tackling her future husband.
"Because he doesn't deserve you! In fact, you should not even stand next to him in the altar! I should have told you this from this beginning, Twiley!"
Discord looked at his bride and shrugged, showing he didn't know what Shining Armor was talking about; Shining Armor used his magic to break free of Discord's, and stood between him and Twilight.
"I'm not letting you do any harm to her!" he snarled again, fiery determination in his eyes, "You may have gotten all of the others under your control, but not me! I know what you're trying to do!"
"What's gotten into you, Shiny?" Rainbow looked both confused and angry
Screwball just stood there, frozen like a statue; Pinkie Pie and Applejack rushed to her side to calm her down, at the same time giving Shining Armor fulminating glares. Really, why was he doing this?
"Everyone, he's being lying to you the whole time!"
"Shining-" Celestia attempted to make him stop, but he interrupted.
"No! You'll listen what I have to say!"
Discord narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms, "Fine! Then speak, and explain why I have been 'lying to them the whole time!' What did I do, according to you?"
"He never changed! He's still the same evil Spirit, and he'll always be!" Shining Armor continued.
The Mane six started chattering among themselves, and even Cadence was speechless. Twilight kept staring at her brother, frozen in shock and shame. She wished to disappear.
"He hypnotized Spike when he heard something about his plans, he brought his lover here under your noses," he pointed at Screwball, who by then was crying uncontrollably, "and he gave Twilight that blasted chocolate milk of his to control her so that she would marry him! In fact, he offered most of you something to eat or drink! He offered his cotton candy to Cadence and Applejack, then I saw him giving water to Rarity! It's all a fake!"
Discord snarled, "And what would I win if I actually had done what you say I did?"
"You tell me, It's your plan, after all!"
Discord closed his eyes shut in anger, but decided to leave it for other day; he wouldn't hurt his beloved Twilight's brother, even if he deserved. He set his eyes on Twilight, and saw tears were forming into her eyes. It pained him to see his bride like this, and he wished to comfort her, but apparently Shining would not let him a hoof step near Twilight.
"If you'll excuse me, girls, I think I need to punch somepony... Or at least something that looks like certain somepony," he gave Shining Armor a final glare before snapping his fingers and disappearing.
Shining Armor then yelled at the top of his lungs, "And I don't want you near my sister ever again, you hear me?!"
Saying this, he proudly turned his back on where Discord had been, proud of finally telling the truth to everypony. However, he ran into Twilight's much smaller frame; she was giving him a furious glare, and her ears were flat against her skull, he could swear he could see smoke coming out of her nostrils
"... Why...?" she hissed almost inaudibly, but her anger was notable by the stone of her voice.
"Twiley..." Shining felt a shiver running down his spine, and he couldn't even speak clearly, "A-Are you alright?"
He tried putting a hoof on her shoulder, but the the unicorn aggressively pushed it away.
"ALRIGHT?!" She screamed at the top of her lungs, "YOU JUST RUINED THE REHEARSAL OF MY WEDDING! YOU JUST ACCUSED MY GROOM OF NEVER HAVING CHANGED! YOU JUST EMBARRASSED ME IN FRONT OF EVERYPONY! AND YOU STILL HAVE THE NERVE TO ASK ME IF I'M OKAY?! WELL, I'M DEFINITIVELY NOT OKAY, THANKS TO YOU!"
Everypony gasped at Twilight's sudden emotional outburst; they had never seen her so angry before. In fact, it seemed as if she was a completely different pony; yet, they knew she had every right to be furious.
"Twiley, I was trying to save you!" Shining finally said, more firmly this time, "I saw him giving you his chocolate milk to drink! I went to the Canterlot Library and I read his chocolate milk, or anything he produces, can be used for mind control if he wishes to!"
Twilight narrowed her eyes. "And you based your hypothesis on something that you simply saw? Couldn't you have even come and ask me what I was drinking? Do you think I'm foolish enough to not notice if someone is trying to cast a mind-controlling spell on me? You simply drew a conclusion from old books from centuries that might as well be outdated! In case you didn't properly read."
"And in case you didn't read properly, that is not the only thing his magic can do! He was giving me chocolate milk because I had started to get the symptoms of a cold! And his milk can be used as a medicine should he want to!"
Shining Armor was speechless, "M-Medicine? You mean... he was curing you?"
Twilight flicked her tail as she snapped, "Of course he was! But in case this doesn't convince you of his innocence!" Twilight's horn and she cast a detection spell on herself and the rest of the Mane Six, but there was no reaction that showed any sort of mind-controlling or influential spell on any of them. They were all free. "And do you know what his surprise was?!"
Twilight used her magic to extend the scarf Discord had made for her, so that her brother could read the crudely-sewn words.
I love you, Twilight Sparkle
"But-" Shining Armor tried to speak, but was interrupted by Twilight, who by then had started to weep in anguish.
"How could you do this to me?! You knew how important this was to me! I thought you wanted me to be happy, but I see I was completely wrong! Are you getting revenge for your rehearsal?! I did have a reason to act like I did!! I knew Cadence since I was a filly, I knew how she was like, and it tipped me off to see her act out-of-character! But you didn't even know Discord more than one day, and you're already accusing him of things just because you didn't give yourself a chance to actually know him!"
"That's not true, Twiley!!" Shining spoke, "It's not revenge! I was trying to protect you! I tried to talk to you, but Discord always found away to keep me from talking to you! Even your friends and Cadence were manipulated by Discord to keep me form talking to them! There had to be a reason for that!"
Applejack frowned. "Well, how about he was being nice? In case ye forgot, he tried to be friendly with you too, but you never gave him a chance!"
"I can give you a quick-portation to Canterlot, Shiny. That way you'll have more time to prepare for the wedding."
"Want some, Shiny?"
"I'm Mr. Grumpy Armor! I would rather be polishing my armor than being here!"
"Come on, Shiny! Don't be a party-pooper! Let's make the conga!"
Shining Armor felt intimidated by all the hostility in the air, but he still managed to speak. "Twilight, I only wanted to protect you! That's what big brothers do-!"
"What?!" Twilight yelled, furious, "To ruin a sister's most beautiful and important moments?! To break her heart a few days before the most important day of her life?! To embarrass her like this?! If that's the kind of brother you are, then I no longer consider you my brother at all!!"
Twilight attempted to run away, but Shining Armor stopped her.
"Twiley, please..." he begged, but she pushed his hooves away
"DON'T TOUCH ME! I HATE YOU!"
When she was by the door, she stopped abruptly and gave her former BBBFF a tear-filled glare.
"AND YOU CAN FORGET ABOUT BEING MY BEST COLT!! IN FACT, DON'T YOU EVEN THINK ABOUT PUTTING A HOOF IN MY WEDDING!!!
Then she ran away in tears, completely crushed, taking the scarf with her. Her own brother had ruined one of the most beautiful moments in her life; perhaps he was getting revenge because she had done the same at the rehearsal of his wedding, but she had been right that time about 'Cadence'... But in this case, Shining Armor had judged Discord without knowing him, and that was angered her the most.
Shining Armor was frozen in shock and grief; his baby sister had just told him she hated him. She had cut him off her life. She had told him he was no longer her brother. He never thought he would hear those heart-breaking words coming from her. He slowly turned around in great pain, and saw that the Mane Six, Cadence and Celestia were still glaring at him.
Spike stepped to the front, incensed about what just happened, "Do you want to know what happened between Discord and me at the library?!" he hissed, "He wanted to give Twilight a nice wedding gift, and he asked me what things she likes! And I asked him to hypnotize me so that I would not open my mouth!"
Screwball stomped her hoofs as she yelled at the stallion, "What did my daddy ever do to you?! Why did you attack him?!"
Shining opened his eyes wide, "Daddy? You're not his...?"
"She's Discord's daughter!" Applejack growled, her usually calm, emerald eyes were filled with anger, "He had gone to Canterlot statue garden and encountered her by chance! Then they returned to Ponyville, and he introduced her to us!"
Rainbow Dash hovered towards him, coming face-to-face with a glare. "Seriously?! Discord might be cynical, irresponsible, and he might like to cause trouble every now and then, but he is not evil! At the most he'd be a sort of frenemy, but a very cool one!"
Pinkie Pie added, "You are a big meanie! You made Twilight cry, you hurt her feelings, you broke her heart, and now she won't stop crying! And when she cries, we are sad! Now everyone will be sad!"
Fluttershy sighed, "Girls... we should not waste our time trying to argue with him. We should go and check on Twilight, she needs us now."
The others nodded and walked out of the barn, not giving Shining a single glance. Spike passed by him with an angry look of his face, he hated when Twilight was hurt. When Screwball passed by Shining Armor, she stuck her tongue at him and left indignantly and hurt. When Cadence was passing by her husband, she gave him a sad and disappointed look.
"Are you happy now?" was all she said before going after the others.
"Princess, I-" Shining Armor tried to speak, but Celestia cut him off.
"I asked you not to take decisions that would hurt Twilight," she coldly told him, disappointment notable in her tone, "Not only did you hurt her feelings, but you made Discord really angry. I agree with Twilight, don't even bother in going to the wedding."
"Are you..." Shining Armor was close to crying, "... dismissing me from the wedding too?"
"I'm afraid you have brought this upon yourself. Not only you are forbidden from attending to the wedding and dismissed from being the Best Colt , but you will not see Twilight until she decides to talk to you. Until then, you shouldn't even try to speak to her, she won't want to see you."
Celestia walked out of the barn, closing the doors of the barn behind. Shining just stood there, alone and miserable. He fell to his knees in complete regret.
"Perhaps I was jealous..." he lamented in a very low tone, "Perhaps I did misjudge Discord..."
He remained all alone, and eventually fell on his knees. He had really messed up this time; he hadn't meant to hurt Twilight's feelings, yet everypony thought that was his intention. Now he was truly alone.
The stallion wept silently, not only because of his blunder, but because he had just lost his little sister, perhaps forever...
I'm losing you forever
(I'm lost in pain without you)
I am leaving ground forever
Discord launched lightings at a cloud with the shape of Shining Armor he had summoned, and when it was destroyed, the smaller clouds that formed merged together again and took the shape of the Captain of the Guard. He had ruined the moment, accusing him of being evil and not having changed at all! He couldn't even hear if Twilight liked her gift or not!
"Damn you!" he roared, throwing another lighting at the Shining-shaped cloud, "How could you to that to Twilight?! To us?!"
After while, the spirit stopped to regain his breath, and the cloud dissipated. He had the feeling that Shining Armor would not like him form the start, but he never thought the stallion would be capable of interrupting the rehearsal and complete ruin it.
But he had the feeling it was not the fact he was a Draconequus or his past what was bothering Shining Armor...
"We'll have to talk about this..."
All I have is you (It is all that I'm breathing for)
In the library, Twilight was crying her eyes out; she and her friends were in her room, but she was in her bed. Cadence was next to her, caressing her mane compassionately, like when she was a foal. Applejack got closer to the bed.
"There, it's alright, Twi," she whispered softly
"I-I can't believe my b-brother did this!" Twilight was sobbing uncontrollably, "I think he did it on payback!"
"Don't say that, he was just being jealous," Cadence spoke softly, "He'll get over it."
"Perhaps, but I still don't want him in the wedding anymore! I don't even want to see him!"
"Don't worry! We'll make sure he is not 50 meters neat the wedding!!" Rainbow Dash offered herself, but it didn't make Twilight feel any better.
The rest of the night seemed like an eternity.
All I need is you (Now I can't make it through)