Luna didn’t tell Celestia what she had learned. Like Twilight, she was doubting her own motivations. Did she want everypony to get along, was all that what she wanted? Was she going to take action over the rebellious alicorn? Was she simply apathetic? Nopony knew, not even herself. To some extent, she enjoyed the ambiguity; it was scarce. Strangely enough there did exist laws limiting her power to manipulate the dreams of other ponies, but they were as obtuse as they were unenforceable.
Celestia, out of fear, love, or both left things as they were.The sisters as a collective were as indecisive as a mule deliberating between two stacks of hay. They carried on as if Twilight didn’t exist until they couldn’t.
Twilight true to her subconscious sent copies and requests to support ousting the royal sisters to various rulers in the kingdom and beyond. Over a period of weeks she received the replies. The Griffin kingdom, Baltimare and Trottingham accepted the call. But Yanhoover refused, so did the Buffaloes and with an irony that made her nauseous, so did Ponyville. She didn’t bother sending a copy to the mayor of Canterlot. There weren't enough signatures, nowhere near enough, and Twilight knew that wishing otherwise wouldn’t change that. She needed to do more than wish.
On the following sundown, Twilight presented the list to a tired Celestia, adding “With wroth sentiments, Twilight Sparkle and supporters.”
The solar goddess raised a cynical eyebrow before brushing the petition aside.
‘They won’t wage war and neither will you, Twilight. What do you think you’re doing?’
‘Won’t I, dear Celestia?’
Twilight advanced, with different intentions than when Celestia had done so. For an instant, the beginnings of purple wisps flickered around her eyes. Celestia understandably became anxious, looking at everything except the pony looming in front of her.
‘Would you do the same to me if I asked? No, of course you wouldn’t! I’m too much of a precious student to you, Celestia! You’ve put too much work into raising me, as your little workhorse, doing all these royal chores for your convenience!’
Now the guards were anxious. ‘You're scaring me, Twilight,’ Celestia said, cowering in a corner.
‘I’d fucking hope so! That’s what you deserve, you worthless piece of filth! You fucking murderer, you craven murderer!’
Luna strode in, froze for an instant, then interrupted Twilight.
‘Leave her alone, I told you, she’s not to blame for Philomena.’
‘She fucking killed her! Of course she’s to blame! I don’t care what you told her, she cast the spell, nothing else matters!’
Celestia started to speak-
‘No, Tia, this is my fault, I’ll mend it as best as I can,’ Luna interrupted, voice shaking. She turned back to Twilight.
‘Twilight, we’re going somewhere else.’
At that Luna took Twilight with her, back to a turquoise pocket-realm Twilight hadn’t been to since she was wingless all that time ago. Dots of both yellow and white appeared to be at an endless distance , not changing in size or brightness wherever Twilight or Luna went. Similar to a boundary of the mind Luna played in, the floor ceiling and walls were constructed by will, at will, though they were always invisible here. They both sat upon a floor.
‘Let me out of this place, I’m not a unicorn anymore.’
‘Not until you’ve calmed down.’
‘Fuck you.’
Luna shrugged.
‘You're justified in your anger, Twilight. I killed a memory for you, didn’t I? You remembered Philomena as Celestia’s-’
‘Stop putting your words in my head, stop it right now or I might just get angry at you too.’
‘Feel free to, I’m the one who deserves it.’
‘Oh shut up with this self-deprecating crap, Luna. Your sister deceived me and my friends.’
Twilight ground her jaw.
‘I can’t deny that it was Celestia who conceived the terms. If you want me to get philosophical Twilight, I think what’s hardest to accept about the passage of time is how the friends we once loved about end up in brackets.’
‘I don’t give a damn what you think! Am I fucking calm enough for you yet, am I?! I didn’t fucking think so! I’m going to have to wait here until you’re satisfied I won’t break your sister’s neck the moment I leave!’
‘Come now, Twilight, you’re too kind to do that. You're not the same as me, who’d kill anyone who asked. I think you’ve demonstrated that.’
‘Demonstrated it by trying to overthrow you?’
‘It’s true!’ Luna chuckled.
Twilight didn’t say anything, deciding to turn the anger onto herself. She was crying; she could have sworn familiarity, though she hadn’t cried more than a tear of sorrow for decades. There was no doubt it was familiar, but how could it be? It couldn’t be, and yet it was.
‘Are you happy now?’
‘No, but I am relieved to see we’re all alive. Philomena would be glad.’
Luna cautiously edged closer to the griever.
‘What am I to you, Luna, a foal throwing a tantrum?’
‘I thought you didn’t care for my thoughts.’
‘...I don’t.’
Luna gradually extended a wing over Twilight, pulling them closer into a tight embrace. Typically it was a gesture seen among loving pegasi or griffins as wings were very fragile things. Twilight didn’t know what to feel, Luna’s touch sickened her, but was the only warmth she had. To her slight reluctance, her sobbing died down.
‘Do I have dreams?’
Luna shivered at the question, as if she were alone in the limitless expanse; innocent Twilight snuggled closer, thinking she really was cold.
‘Do you, Twilight?’
‘Well I don’t remember them, that’s for sure.’
‘You do have them, sometimes.’
‘What are they like,’ she chirped excitedly.
‘I rarely look at dreams, unless it’s a dream of turmoil. Yours are mostly ones you wouldn’t want to remember, they're upsetting, even for me... Through no fault of your own, of course.’
It was funny, Twilight jumped at seemingly false alarms and let genuine untruths pass on by. Through no fault of her own, of course.
‘It’s the same with Celestia's, I suppose it comes with the life.’
‘Are you going to let me out?’
‘Are you going to kill my sister?’
‘For once, I’m not sure either way.’
‘Then there’s one more thing I’d like to remind you of, if I may.’
‘Whatever you say, mother,’ Twilight said, disgruntledly shuffling under Luna’s wing.
‘I’ll make it quick then. You don’t have to lead this life if you don’t want to. I’m sure neither I nor Celestia would object if you chose to leave now. We wouldn’t hold it against you; the burden you hold is not to be envied. My sister has elaborated to me in great detail as to what carrying all of harmony on your meager shoulders does to you. You could really be anypony you wanted to after that, or nopony at all.’
‘And if I did give the elements away; who’d take my place?’
Luna was pleased to hear the question.
‘It’d be your choice, though I feel it would be a little unfair to hurl them onto my sister again. I’d be alright taking them on, I suppose. I’m the only one out of the three of us who hasn’t carried them, aren’t I? It’d only be fair for me to take them.’
There was a silent interlude.
‘So, are we done?’
‘You may want to apologise to my sister and yes, we’re done.’
They faded back to the empty chamber.
Luna had been successful in mitigating a substantial portion of Twilight’s anger, diverting the blame for Philomena’s killing away from Celestia and toward Luna. But she couldn’t be wroth at Luna, she just couldn’t.
In the coming days Twilight did indeed apologise to Celestia and though accepting, she was perturbed it hadn’t come sooner. Celestia showed her the bruise was long gone as was any punishment for it and she was simply glad they hadn’t ‘lost’ Twilight.
‘Lost, as in try to rule for eternal low-light?
Celestia shot her a glare and Twilight rolled her eyes in response.
‘What, is it still raw? You’re never going to get over it at this rate!’’
‘I don’t think it would be beneficial for me to get over it. It helps me ensure it won’t happen again. Not allowing your power to cloud your judgement is all I can ask of you as the sole bearer of harmony. I asked little more of myself when I held them.’
‘Right, Tia, right.’
Celestia offhoofedly changed the subject.
‘Luna said you were considering leaving the regal life altogether.’
‘I'm only playing with it for now.’
‘It’s a spiky toy.’
‘I know.’
Twilight smiled.
‘I was going to inform you regardless, but Discord’s free again.’
‘Oh no, he isn’t wreaking chaos already is he?’
‘No, quite the opposite! He’s been patiently waiting for you for nearly a day now, doing nothing except wave at the guards, occasionally who were rather alarmed. He’s different, Twilight he’s... timid.’
After some extensive persuasion, Celestia convinced Twilight they were referring to the same being. Confuzzled, Twilight trotted on down to the royal garden to meet him.
When Discord had last been free, he’d entered a frenzy once his beloved Fluttershy passed on, destroying countless acres of both rural and urban scape alike before adorning them with a flutter of butterflies. As a result the mad god had spurred Twilight to petrify him once more, with the full power harmony invoked. He’d completely razed some cities, turned others into villages and scarred the land so deeply that evidence of it still remained. Enigmatic fissures and craters were left as a testament to the rage of Discord. Somehow he’d escaped again.
Twilight found him quickly - he wasn’t exactly hard to spot, even though he appeared remarkably similar as he did when he was a statue. Bold Robins were perched on his head boasting their brave exploration of the new object while the warblers on his limbs were quiet. Twilight didn’t know what to say to him; they hadn’t departed under the kindest of circumstances.
‘Hello.’
Twilight talked to him like he was on the other end of a device transmitting the voice.
‘Hello, hello hello’ Twilight said a little louder.
‘Hush, my dear, you’re going to scare off the birds.’
Twilight sat opposite him, observing the avians. It was several minutes before one of them spoke again.
‘Aren’t pleased to be here again, Discord?’
‘Oh yes, very pleased’ he said with as much vim as a dead frog.
‘You don’t sound like you are.’
‘Maybe you should trust me for once in your long life. I’m hopelessly at your mercy.’
He effortlessly conjured an oversized tear and let it roll down his pointed cheek.
‘My friends don’t seem to mind me,’ he said, eyes flicking to the creatures perched. ‘But I’ve never understood animals, not like you, and many others. They’ve always interested me in that sense.
‘Always is quiet the span.’
‘It’s only as far as I care to think about, Twilight. Isn’t it the same for you?’
‘I suppose.’
Twilight unconsciously turned the question she had been facing onto Discord.
‘What are you going to do?’
Discord thought.
‘Twilight, I believe you’re Queen now, correct?’
‘Its more complicated than that.’
‘And you want to leave?’
Twilight frowned a grumpy frown.
‘How did you know that?’
‘I had to strain my ears.’
She snorted in disbelief.
‘In truth, my dear, I’d like to go with you.’
Twilight spluttered in incredulity!
‘You scared the birds away. That’s not nice,’ he said.
‘You want to travel with me? The mare who turned you into stone, seriously? You’d be interested in my affairs like that?’
No longer concerned he’d scare the birds off, Discord slinked himself over the mare. When he replied, it was from the position of his head laying on the ground, gazing up at Twilight.
‘Well I was interested in Fluttershy, wasn’t I? Can’t I be interested in you too? Or will you cruelly cast me aside?’
‘I’d like it if you weren’t interested in me in the same sense you were interested in her,’ Twilight said, repulsed.
Discord chuckled heartily.
‘You can imprison me if I try! Throw me into one of your little cute dungeons, that’d be a laugh!’
‘I see you two are getting along,’ Celestia said, strolling into the garden.
‘Yes we’re having a ball, Tia!’ Discord exclaimed, struggling to contain his mirth.
‘Be cautious, Twilight you’ve seen what he’s capable of.’
‘I’m not sure what’s changed, but you’re right, he is different. He’s harmless.’
‘Just, be careful... You shouldn’t trust him.’
Celestia was secretly shocked they were able to hold a conversation, let alone trust one another.
‘Don’t worry, I’ll keep him in check.’
‘So how’s life been, Tia? All your little ponies getting along, no wars?’
‘None at all thanks to Twilight.’
She would have gone over to her to give her a friendly nuzzle, but she wasn’t particularly keen to get any closer to Discord then she needed to.
‘How boresome! I might just spice things up for her, if that’s the case.’
‘Don’t you dare, or you’ll be stone before blood’s spilt,’ Celestia snapped.
‘Come on, I’m just pulling your leg Tia! You don’t need to give me your despotic sentiments every time I’m having fun,’ he said, head now resting on Twilight’s side.
‘Oi, she’s right,’ Twilight said.
Discord gave an irritated grunt.