Discord stepped out of the library, his pony form in place, and walked into town. He had decided to go and visit Derpy. Guessing that she lived in Cloudsdle, he had traded in the unicorn horn for a pair of pegasus wings. He stretched them out and admired them with a smile. "Not bad."
He had asked Derpy last night if she would be I town. She had said 'yes', but he had had his doubts. Still....better safe than sorry. He chuckled to himself. Safe? Since when did he worry about being safe?
It didn't take long to discover that Derpy was indeed in town. What tipped him off? The sound of something crashing.
"No! Just set it down!"
Discord picked up the pace until he rounded a corner to discover a moving carriage. Boxes were everywhere. And in the middle of it all...
Derpy was looking at the ground, her eyes crossed slightly. "Sorry."
A large stallion stood nearby, his face in is hooves. "Whatever. Why don't you take the rest of the day off?"
Discord backed away as Derpy took off into the air. He watched her go, her sad eyes burning in his mind. He looked back at the stallion and frowned. With a mischievous smile and a hoof stomp, the rest of the boxes in the carriage came toppling down. The stallion's head surfaced from the cardboard pile and looked around in confusion. Discord smiled to himself and ran off after Derpy.
It took him all of three seconds to realize two things. One, he would never catch a pegasus on hoof. Two, he was a pegasus! Why was he running at all? He unfolded his wings and jumped into the air. He looked around for any signs of Derpy. Nothing.
-------------------------------
It took several flybys above town, but Discord finally spotted a yellow tail hanging from a cloud higher up in the sky. He flew up and around until he was eye level with Derpy.
It was several seconds before she spoke. "You have wings."
A smile crept to his face. "I do. I thought I'd come visit you in Cloudsdale. But here we are, a cloud in the sky."
Derpy rolled over onto her back. "Have you ever laid on a cloud? It's comfy."
Discord stared at her or a few moments. She had such a simple way of thinking. Had she always been like this, even before her accident?
For no apparent reason, she giggled. Discord smiled at that. She giggled just like Startail. What else had she inherited from her mother? More importantly, what had she inherited from him? He couldn't decide if he wanted to find out.
Realizing there had been nearly a minute of silence, he cleared his throat. "Would you like to fly around for a while?"
Derpy turned back over and smiled.
-------------------------------
The rest of the day was spent flying between the clouds. Discord would show off by performing simple aerial tricks mixed with magic. Derpy in turn would laugh and show off as well.
It surprised Discord how she seemed more normal now. She wasn't klutzy, cross-eyed, or anything. Perhaps it came from having somepony who was interested in her. He had seen how some had reacted to her before. He guiltily admitted to himself that he was one of them. But now as he flew through the sky with his daughter, he saw a different side to her.
This new side came with a surprise. They had landed on a cloud to rest and Derpy looked at Discord. She blinked a few times and tipped her head to the side.
Discord locked eyes with her. "What's wrong?"
"You... You look familiar."
He rolled his eyes. "I should hope so. We've been flying together all day."
She shook her head. "No. I mean.... I recognize you from somewhere. A long time ago."
How could she recognize him from somewhere else? He had never used this pony form anywhere else except...
Startail led him towards a small booth. "Come on! It'll be fun.
"What exactly are we doing Star?"
She kissed him on the nose. "It's a photo booth. It takes your picture."
"Doesn't sound very fun."
She smiled. "Don't you want a picture of the two of us? Something we can cherish forever?"
Discord smiled. She must have kept those photos. And Derpy had seen them! She was remembering something.
He looked at the pegasus. "Do you know where you've seen me before?"
Derpy closed her eyes in concentration. There was absolute silence for a few minutes. When she opened her eyes, they had grown sad. "Sorry."
Discord couldn't believe what he was about to do. He reached a hoof around her and gave her a hug. He had never given hugs out of sympathy. Only for annoyance. This was a first. But he felt the need to comfort Derpy. Was he...acting like a father?
-------------------------------
Discord walked into the library, a smile on his face. He conjured a couch and laid down.
Twilight appeared from the upstairs room. She paused as she took in the scene in front of her. "Well, it looks like you had a good day."
He didn't respond. He didn't want to raise her hopes by mentioning Derpy's epiphany. He didn't want to raise his own hopes either, even though they were already higher than the moon. She was beginning to remember.