(Part two, and I warn you it gets brutal. XD Brutal, tickle, torment filled chapter. This story is also set where Discord and Celestia are rather in loove, and pretty much back to the relationship they had mentioned in the third chapter of "Broken Spirit" )
Rainbow Dash hurriedly tied the rope securely, yet gently around both his mismatched wings, pinning the draconequus long enough to tie his fingers together so he couldn't snap.
Discord unlatched his jaw from the grass, spitting out clumps of dirt as he struggled, feeling something wrapping around his wings and lifting his claw in instinct-- only to have it pinned to the ground by a familiar teal hoof.
The spirit looked up and gaped. "You?!" he snarled at the smirking pegasus, rearing back and trying to use his tail to whip her off, mismatched eyes widening as it was also pinned down against the ground, whirling his head around to stare at Applejack hog-tying his tail.
His panic died off within seconds, however, his shock melting into a sneer. "What's with the rope, girls? Going to drag me off and punish me with hugs?" Ugh, not a great way to spend a few hours, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle. "Maybe give me a stern puppet show?"
Within moments the hapless spirit was entirely bound, from his hands, to wings, to ankles. Every pony slowly emerged in the moonlight, each with the most sinister grin over their face. They said nothing and it was Angel that jumped up casually onto Discord's chest, holding the feather duster in his mouth. He just stared at him with beady eyes.
The spirit's horrified eyes turned to look back at the girls, and the dozens of feathers surrounding Twilight in a magic bubble.
"Not quite, Discord," Applejack sneered. "We got a much better idea in mind."
Angel made the first light stroke of the feather duster against the spirit's feet.
Discord twitched, the most he could do in his position. A fleeting giggle escaped him, mostly bitten back and swallowed up in a gulp as the feather duster came again. The spirit glared at the bunny, wanting to turn the little bunny into a football and kick him across the field. "When I g-get-- hehe!-- o-out of th-this, y-you-- HAH!-- you'll be the f-first," he growled at the rabbit.
Angel merely twitched his nose and began to officially tickle the wriggling, now guffawing spirit.
"Now steady, Angel," Twilight chuckled quietly, pulling the rabbit back a bit, much to his disappointment. "We don't want to thrust him into hysterics right away. We want to build him up to that point," Twilight grinned, hovering one of the feathers over to lightly, barely rub against his stomach.
"Ah think a half hour will suffice," Applejack sneered. "Ya did say that the longest he got was from Luna and that was seventeen minutes, right Fluttershy?"
"Yes," Fluttershy squeaked quietly, sighing and shaking her head at her giggling spirit. "Oh sweetie, you've gotten yourself in a mess this time."
Discord stared at Fluttershy, trying to use his large, sparkling eyes to lull her into an intense state of guilt so that she would charge in and help him escape. But it was hard when he had to close them as he cackled uncontrollably as another batch of feathers glided over his tummy.
"Fluttershyyyy~! Th-This-- heheeee!-- This is beyo-awwhahahahahahahaha!- b-beyond cruel! H-How could y-you?!" he strained out between fits, eyes watering as the tickling increased, tossing him into a state when it lightened to a faint touch, and then bore down like there was a flock of fuzzy birds dancing merrily on his stomach.
He wasn't going to last a half-hour. At least with any bit of sanity he had left.
"I'll decide when we stop," Twilight decided with a smirk, also running a hoof lightly over his sides, smirking as he desperately tried to fight the laughter, puffing out his cheeks. "If he starts getting too distressed I have a spell to make him fully recover instantly~ But yes, I do agree, Applejack: a half hour or a little less will be a perfect and adequate punishment for his actions tonight."
Gradually, a couple more feathers floated over, another stroking over his stomach and one stroking under his arm. Applejack trotted over next with a grin, taking place at his other foot and plopping onto her haunches. "This is fer messin' with the grass at the farm!" She took a feather into her mouth and lightly glided it down the center of his foot.
It seemed that after Discord's laughter reached a louder pitch another pony walked over to join in on the torture. Fluttershy just sighed, holding his arms up over his head and having to smile. "He's going to sleep well tonight; he's going to be absolutely exhausted."
Discord laughed. He laughed long and hard, hardly able to catch his breath between each pony. His claws dug into the ground as the torture seemed to stretch on for eternity, a year longer under each individual tickle. He roared and giggled and guffawed until his sides ached and his throat grew hoarse, and even then he wheezed out a few rough bellows of laughter. The feathers swept over him, delicately skating across his toes, brushing over his stomach, rooting fluffily into his neck and searching every ticklish nook and cranny imaginable.
Gasping for another breath of cold night air prickling over his tingling, abused skin, he almost wished he was back in stone.
Twilight caught on to the distress and cast a spell, a purple glow washing over him. He calmed, blearily glancing up as the ponies ceased the attack for a moment. "That spell is to keep you alert and without any respiratory distress or pains."
"Don't we want him to be in pain?" Rainbow Dash asked coldly from where she was stroking a feather over the spirit's side.
"No," Twilight chuckled, "we just want to torture him with something he hates for a good half hour~" She cleared her throat and then burrowed her hooves under his arms as he squealed pleadingly. "Now THIS is for the books!" she growled, giving him a jab in the belly. "And THIS is for locking Spike in the freezer!" A look of horror came to her face. "Oh, Spike is still in the freezer!"
"No, 'm not," a squeaky, quivery voice spoke as the frozen baby dragon approached. "I'm right here."
The spirit's lips twitched in a real grin, even as he squealed at Twilight's furiously scribbling hooves, wriggling wildly against his restraints. "W-Why l-look who's h-HEHEHEHEHEHEHEEEE! -here! A Spike-sicle! D-did y-you... hehe... en-enjoy the t-trip t-to your winter w-wonderland?"
Spike was about to growl, but Twilight instead merely gave Discord a much more vigorous tickle, causing him to shriek out before managing to look back to the dragon.
"No!" Spike growled. "No, I didn't! It was even worse because I froze...and..I was right beside a cherry popsicle and couldn't reach for it!" He growled as Discord gave a non-tickle induced laugh at that, looking smug, before falling back into helpless wails and laughs.
"What are you doing to him?" the dragon asked awkwardly, walking to them. Well, it was obvious what they were doing, but WHY were they? Oh yeah, he was a jerk.
"Tickling him," Fluttershy said with a giggle, "a rather routine thing for me. Want to... help~?"
Discord choked back a fit of giggles at that, mismatched eyes darting frantically from Fluttershy to the baby dragon. "N-No! H-He doesn't w-wanna h-help! H-He's, uh, t-too -- hic! -- b-busy de-defrosting, I'm s-sure!" He snickered delightfully, wincing at the slow smile growing on Spike's face. Where was a fridge when he needed it?
The dragon sneered, raising an eyebrow at the draconequus, who's look to him was pleading. He couldn't take another pony - er dragon - tickling him! Oh well, he'd have tooooo~ "Oh, I hate to break it to you, but my fingers are plenty free," he grinned, wiggling them sinisterly.
"So are some feathers!" Pinkie Pie chirped, waiting for it to be her turn; she was the one with the feathered anklet after all. She pointed a hoof to where a few of the feathers were busily tickling the spirit by magic, dragging over his feet and behind his knees. With another glow from Twilight the feathers poofed in Spike's claws.
The dragon now seemed apprehensive to attack the spirit of chaos. Albeit, it would be fun and did he ever deserve it, but..eh..spirit of chaos. He noted how helpless the spirit was and shrugged, taking position by a foot with Applejack.
Attacked by several feathers and little dragon claws, the spirit of chaos could only lay there and take the unbearable torture. By now he couldn't see through the tears, but at least the girls were "kind" enough to perfect that spell on him so he wasn't gasping or fading to gray.
Angel was the one in command, showing NO mercy to the spirit. Unlike the girls who had playful looks on their faces, his was for pure revenge and suffering. He twiddled the feather duster in the very center of the spirit's tummy, by far the most sensitive spot on his entire body, as if the loud roars of laughter didn't confirm that.
"Shouldn't we stop yet?" Fluttershy squeaked, mostly holding his arms up over his head for the girls rather than attack herself. "I' usually only do it for seven minutes!"
"Give him ten more minutes," Twilight smiled, grazing the feather up his side and under his arm.
"Or twenty," Applejack smirked.
The spirit bit his lips when the assault continued with a fury of hooves and one particular feather duster aimed straight at his tickle button. The draconequus's eyes widened, jaw parting to let loose a little squeak. Clamping his mouth shut in embarrassment at the sound, he jolted, back bowing in a hilarious resemblance to a crooked, misshapen straw, his cheeks puffing out like balloons before exploding with another round of loud, unbridled spasms of giggles.
Feathers. Hooves. Rabbits. Watery scarlet looked around, the orbs sparkling and twitching in hysterical torment. He swore he heard a crackling sound inside his head, but it was smothered by another wave of laughter. They were everywhere! EVERYWHERE!
A sneer did wriggle over the maniacal bunny's face, the utter enjoyment heightening at Discord's every plea as he desperately tried to wriggle away, even bargain with the ivory fluff ball. His response was to attack with his wiggling bunny fingers, dancing them across the tickle button with more vigor as the spirit of chaos just howled with laughter.
Twilight observed this display for several seconds before giving a laugh. "In a minute girls we'll pull the finale we discussed."
"Is this where I come in too?" Pinkie squealed, and Twilight nodded with a giggle. "Yaaaay!"
"H-Huh?" Discord gulped, heaving for air, shudders wracking his aching, sore, exhausted body as breathless chortles and snorts escaped his throat. Even with Twilight's magic seeping into him to prevent the ponies from having to stop or offer and semblance of mercy, the poor draconequus was still drained of energy with each inevitable snicker.
To think, he was actually getting tired of laughing.
"You have three minutes to recover before the grand finale of this torture," Twilight smiled, stopping the tickling with everyone else. Having to glare at Angel for a few moments to make him finally stop. "Three minutes to recover and three minutes to endure~"
"So, regrettin' messin' with us yet?" Applejack asked, leaning her chin on her hoof and grinning.
"Oh, what are you doing to my baby," Fluttershy mumbled meekly, pressing his arms over his head still in case he tried to get away. For the most part the entity was enjoying a few minutes to for once not howl with laughter.
Discord promptly collapsed as the last feather retreated from his quivering form, his frozen grin widening impossibly as he was allowed to lay back and take a breather. His serpentine form shuddered against the ropes, but he still rolled his eyes as Fluttershy attempted to coddle him in her usual love-you-lots style. Baby? She would never put a baby through thirty minutes of non-stop tickle torture. The spirit scoffed, a tired giggle following the noise.
"Hm. Heh. Hehehe. D-Do I r-regret messing... w-with my favorite l-little p-ponies?" That deserved its own genuine, obnoxiously mocking laugh, the sheer amusement seeping through his teeth in a hiss. "Why... I w-would GLADLY d-do it, heheheh, all over again! F-Feathers or-- hmnehehehehehe, hooves alike~! HAH!"
"....Are ya sure we can't do it for another half hour?" Applejack gritted out, mane flaring in rage, as were the rest of the girls. He probably shouldn't have said that to the girls that pretty much decided his fate right now. They may have actually gone a little easier, but there was no chance now.
"Your time to recover is up, Discord," Twilight smirked, standing over him. For good measures she cast another recovery spell, bringing him to a state where he was calm and ungiggly. That wouldn't last for long! "Ready, everypony?"
"ATTACK!" Each pony leaped on the struggling spirit and began tickling with more vigor than they had before, scribbling eight hooves all over his vulnerable body in every spot, Angel mastering the center of his belly with the feather duster.
If that wasn't bad enough Pinkie had hopped on board with her tickle anklets and at least thirty feathers were gliding over every square inch of him. Their ears pinned back at the screaming laughs erupting from him, but it only fueled them to go faster, intent on torturing him the last two minutes and teach him nopony messed with them.
Fluttershy stayed off to the side with a tiny "meep!"
Discord couldn't hear anything over the roaring in his ears as he shrieked with laughter, his lungs rumbling in his chest as the spirit forgot how to breathe, only knowing how to laugh. And laugh. And laugh. His immobile body was helpless against the onslaught, forced to feel the hooves skittering over his twitching limbs, feathers darting here and there and everywhere, and the fuzziest duster in all of Ponyville rooting firmly into his stomach.
That was it. He was done. Finished. He was going to melt into the ground after being tickled into a pile of Discord mush. Tears streaming down his face, the draconequus howled and bellowed, snorting up a storm.
Seconds passed, slowly and loudly, and neither the chaotic demon nor his torturers noticed when Discord's pinned claw began to flicker and twitch sporadically. The magic shifted inside of it, the urge to escape overwhelming the spirit and sinking into his bones. The claw tapped against the ground, shooting small sparks of light across the grass.
Amidst the roaring screams of a spirit in ticklish distress, the ground began to shake. But the ponies were relentless, and were too focused on reducing the poor spirit to hysteria to notice the mayhem that began all around them.
The girls were thoroughly enjoying themselves. The spirit of chaos wasn't even recognizable in the teary, laughing and shrieking multi colored wriggling ball. They laughed loudly, evilly, none of them wanting to stop but did so at Twilight's command.
"Alright girls, let him go. I think we made our point with him!" The mare was snorting deviously, beyond delightful at having truly made this brat pay. "He's not going to be able to get up for a while. Hehehehe! Well, I'll be kind and lend a hoo-"
Grass morphed into slabs of caramel and vanilla swirl, sinking around their hooves in sticky puddles. The trees began to uproot and dance in jaunty, earthy movements, swinging branches like showtime canes. And giant lollipops popped up from the ground around the ticklers and tickle-ee, caging them in a sweet prison.
Rarity gave a scream from behind, and each of the ponies turned to him, eyes widening at the mess under their feet. "Oh, I can't move! Oh, my hooves! My beautiful hooves!" Rarity wailed, fighting and thrusting in the gloop. The rest of the ponies were too.
Fluttershy gasped and tried to climb behind her companion, but his now-free tail merrily, lightly thwacked her into the butter scotch mess. She thrashed, but it was to no avail.
Each girl screamed as the lollipops caged them in. By now, Twilight's spell she had used to free him right before he trapped them had gradually untied all the restraints..leaving him totally free and them trapped. She tried to step protectively in front of her friends, but she couldn't move. "Girls, stay calm, stay calm! It's only butterscotch! We're only trapped...with the most evil thing ever deciding our fates," she gulped, voice becoming squeaky. "Who we just tickled mercilessly."
Trapped in sugary sanctum, the group felt a collective sense of fear and irony as the darkness grew overhead.
"N-Now, girls, we'll be fine. Maybe we can eat through this candy and-- WHA!" Twilight leaped back as a pair of mismatched pupils stared back between the slivers of butterscotch bars. "Discord!"
The spirit grinned at the ponies, claws tapping the side of the candied jail. "Oh, hello, girls! Boy, I wish you could join me out here! It's so nice and spacious!" he crooned, ripping off a chunk of a gingerbread lock to gulp down, tongue lolling out in delight. "Mmm~! I do enjoy the sweet taste of freedom!"
"Consarnit! Let us outta here, Discord!" Applejack barked at the draconequus. "We was just givin' you yer rightful punishment! Ya'll been causin' us trouble all night an' it was time you gots a taste of yer own medicine!"
"Medicine? Bleck! I prefer candy." Discord broke into an evil cackle, causing the ponies to sink further into the goop to shrink back as the spirit suddenly began to grow, growing larger, and larger, eventually towering over the ponies and even the jail.
He leaned casually on one of the lollipops, grinning darkly. "So..." The draconequus surveyed his soon-to-be victims with no little amount of gleeful spite, as if imagining all the fun little things he could turn them into. "Who's bright idea was it to tie up and tickle the ol' Spirit of Chaos for a few hundred laughs, hm~?" He smirked as all the ponies looked away, seemingly innocent. "Any volunteers?"
A moment passed, and a squeak led his eyes to finally land on the cowering form of Fluttershy. She was trying to hide behind a tiny flower, her large blue eyes glimmering with fear and guilt.
Ah hah! Always the quiet ones. Really, the quiet ones who knew a spirit's greatest weakness and would use it in light of more violent methods. "Et tu, Flutter Butter?" Discord pouted, mockingly hurt by the betrayal. "Did you have fun playing your role of Fluttershy the Feather Fiend?"
Fluttershy let out a fearful squeak, trying to back up in the mess, finding she couldn't. She bit down on her lip, staring at his plotting smirk. Okay, good...he wasn't glaring. Oh no, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to..dear Equestria, who KNEW what - to her! Wait, no..this was Discord, the spirit she lived with. He'd never hurt her. Oh no, but hurting her is almost what she feared he wouldn't do in comparison to what he might.
"Um...uhm...well, uhmm.." She was about to defend her case with what they would have done to him instead, but that might make him angry and his plans of whatever he was going to do to them would probably change. "I...yes, it was my idea, Isorry," she squeaked hurriedly, bowing her head.
"Not to worry, girls! I can get us out of here in a - what?!" Twilight gasped as her horn disappeared, as did Rarity's (not that she'd be much help, all worried about her hooves getting ruined).
"Umm.." Fluttershy held back her squeak of fear as a rather large feather appeared at her side, trying to cower down away from it. Okay, she could do this. She had endured his horrible tickles before. "Uhm, okay it was my idea, so let them go free? And remember that you love me?" The last sentence was so squeaky it was almost unintelligible.
Discord tucked a talon under his chin in thought as the feather hovered mere inches away from the pegasus.
Fluttershy stared up at the giant spirit nervously, feeling a tiny spark of hope in her chest as he seemed to refrain from setting the feather on her. Maybe what she said had actually gotten through to him? Oh, she knew he had a heart!
That spark, unfortunately, was instantly crushed as the draconequus' expression morphed, an even larger, darker grin slowly making its way across his lips. Lightning flashed dramatically overhead, casting his body in frightening shadows.
Fluttershy trembled at that look, panic overtaking her system within seconds, her mind a million thoughts at once. What was he going to do? What horrors awaited them in the spirit's wrathful plans?
She shook as Discord raised a claw. She squeaked as it glowed...
And the jail disappeared. A large bubble of magic enveloped the ponies, plopping the them onto the field. As they stood up, they were surprised as the goop receded from their hooves, leaving them clean and good as new, if also totally bewildered and utterly dumbstruck and many other adjectives that were needed to describe what they were feeling.
"Okay, you're free to go~!" Discord chirped, snapping his fingers merrily.
Twilight, shaken, stood up, startled as a flash of magic made her horn reappear, whirling around and watching as as her friends regained their missing wings and horns as well. "Huh?" she murmured, staring up at the large draconequus. Discord... let them go? Just like that?
"....Ah don't buy it," Applejack said suspiciously, narrowing her eyes. Just like that her friends leaped on her, shoving their hooves at her mouth before she talked them into the jail again and this time a revenge of feathers and being turned probably into lollipop flavors he thought accented their personalities and such.
Really, none of the ponies bought it, but they were out of their jail and out of the range of his attack, so... They all just sort of looked at each other, shrugging, before trotting off to finally get some shut eye. They sent the spirit a half suspicious look, half a grin.
Really, the tickle torture had been for punishment and revenge, but it was also for fun. If they wanted to hurt him they would have hurt him. They knew Fluttershy and Discord were close, so despite all that happened tonight...perhaps it was finally time to try and all make amends.
At least, that's how Twilight felt and how she knew Pinkie Pie felt. Pinkie Pie just loved his antics and his ideas of fun, and Twilight had been trying to make friends since the incident.
She glanced up at the spirit, who looked down at her, face curious.
"Well, um...." She smiled a little, chuckling. It had been fun. All pranks aside, all begrudging thoughts of having to rearrange her books again, it had been fun. "Good..night. We should all do this again sometime," she grinned, and then laughed at the look on his face. "No, I don't mean the tickle torture.. although that does sound fun too~ I mean just..do things all together." She trotted off before Discord could respond.
Fluttershy, still trying to recover from the trauma of the giant feather, lightly nudged her spirit's chest. "I bet you're tired, sweetie. Let's go home."
Discord swallowed back a few lingering chuckles as he shrunk back to his normal size, his grin ever-widening. "Tired? Tired? Why, I'm tickled-- tuckered out!" he giggled, a tiny twitch settling in his wide scarlet eye. His ribcage still tingled, making his claws clutch at his sides in instinct.
The spirit was walking funny, limbs almost numb and still twitchy from the intense tickling they had all received. His entire body was tingling; the feathers hadn't left one area untouched, not even his legs, which Fluttershy noted he had to keep scratching. He had a triumphant smirk/smile on his face; he couldn't believe he had scared the girls that badly without doing anything to them. Ah, psychology~
The pegasus trotted silently behind her chaotic companion. She was silent for a few moments, before Discord heard the squeaky little sobs as she buried her face in her hooves, crouched low to the ground. Yeesh, change of mood much?
She felt awful. She didn't want them to torment him that long, but she hardly had a say in it. Besides, it was either a long tickling or probably a fierce beating, at least from one southern pony. She definitely didn't want THAT! Seeing the poor thing just sort of stumble around broke her heart, even though he didn't really seem to care, actually snickering now and then as he bumped into her from his wobbliness.
The pegasus hiccuped, feeling his tail coil slightly around her, draping a little over her back as she sniffled. Dear Equestria, she was acting as if they had flogged him! She could almost feel Discord rolling his eyes. Sure the torture hadn't been fun, but she always had to make a mole hill out of an ant hill!
Fluttershy had been so busy feeling horrible for her behavior that she was startled as the tail wrapped tightly around her and forced her up with a sharp squeak. She leaned back, almost smashing into the spirit's musing face, teary blue meeting amused scarlet. He wasn't in the mood to comfort his very own tickle executioner.
"Better turn that frown upside-down, or I'll tickle it out of youuu~!" Discord smirked, wriggling the very tip of his tail in front of her snout. "And I might not stop this time."
He kept his smile up as he trotted off with Fluttershy towards their home, noting the delighted, if wary expression the young guardian held as she lavished the draconequus with affectionate encouragement, telling him how proud she was of him taking the high road, of being the bigger person in spite of his horrendous punishment.
Heh. Clever, clever Discord.
It had gone too perfectly. Did Fluttershy actually believe he let her and her friends go because he had a change of heart? Hm. Such a touching, loving suggestion that undoubtedly showed her faith in him. Too bad it wasn't true. The spirit wasn't nice. Discord was petty. Petty and obnoxious. Just how he liked it.
All in all, what he just went through was a small price to the pay for the revenge simmering in his cotton candy brain, melting into an ingenious goo of the utmost torment designed for six certain little ponies, one dragon, and a terrible rabbit.
"HOMEWARD BOUNDDDD~!" he sang happily, excitement crawling alongside the ghostly tickles that ran across his skin in spasms. He was thinking about things. Very chaotic things.
She was a tad unsettled as she looked back at that devious smile. Definitely devious. He was plotting something. She'd sleep covered in pillows tonight.
They didn't expect what they opened the door to. There was Celestia, who had already put a fire on in the cool cottage. Fluttershy gave a squeak of surprise, but hey, she did say to "drop by anytime!"
"Tia, these cookies are stale." There was the starry, foggy blue mane, gorging on Discord's cookies.
"Luna!" Celestia hissed, "I told you not to eat her food!"
"Why, Tia! Woona!" The draconnequus stumbled in casually as if he expected the two immortals to be lounging about in Fluttershy's living room, his tail bashing against a table in his state. "A surprise visit? My, my. How chaotic."
"Yes, I suppose so," Celestia giggled. "I expected you all to be here when we came, especially at this time of night, but apparently not." She watched as he stumbled and knocked over a lamp. "....Are you drunk?"
The spirit shook with a cackle as he leaned against the doorway. "Drunk? Hm. Perhaps I am drunk. Drunk with laughter!" Mismatched vermillion stared down both alicorns, teeming with mischief. "So, what brings our favorite rulers of Equestria to Flutter Butter's humble home?"
Fluttershy cringed.. "Um..I'm gonna head to bed." She hurriedly skittered up the stairs.
Celestia watched Discord give a groan and flop onto his back on the couch. "Drunk with..are you twitching?" She had to grin, confused and amused. Gently, she ran a hoof over his stomach, starting to rub it - only to draw back as he gave an abrupt, short laughing shriek.
His insides squirmed as her hoof gave the softest rub against his belly, and the spirit reared up with wild laughter, claws digging into his sensitive skin to fight back against it. Oh, torture, torture to the tummy! Another rush of ghostly hooves jabbed against his nerves.
"D... D-Don't, pl-please!" he pleaded half-heartedly, snorting uncontrollably as he eagerly bit down his giggles.
Celestia blinked, absolutely confused by this behavior. He loved belly rubs and she wasn't even trying to tickle him at all. Shrugging, she grazed her teeth gently over his ear, stunned as he giggled and wriggled away at that too. Okay, this was ridiculous.
"What's up with you?" she laughed. "Did Fluttershy give you laughing gas?"
"Yeah," Luna added, simply giving him a poke in the foot, watching in pure amusement as he gave a giggling shriek there as well. "It's funny," she giggled, plopping beside her brother.
"Heheh. Y-You could say that. Flutter Butter gave me a stern tickling. But it was special." His eye twitched. "In the form of five little ponies with a fondness for mass assault."
The flashbacks played in his mind, each more unbearable than the last. Ten hooves. Dozens of feathers. One helpless Discord.
Celestia gasped, starting to laugh a little. More in shock than anything. "I beg your pardon? All the girls tickled you? Okay, you've been tickled many times before, but you've never been so..giggly after it."
The snickering spirit raised a brow. "Oh, really? Well, Princess, let's see YOU be treated to a collective tickle ambush, complete with hooves, manes, feathers, and one dastardly duster." Discord snorted, falling back onto the couch, his claws still protectively in place as he shuddered at the memory. "Your Majesty would turn into royal jelly."
"Well, that depends," she said in amusement, laying her head next to his. "How long did they do it for? Ha, knowing you, you probably couldn't even last five minutes.."
"He got seventeen from me one time," Luna chirped.
Discord grimaced, stuffing his face with a pillow. "Half."
"Half?" Luna blinked, giving the spirit a smirk. "What, half a second?"
Discord snorted. "Half. An hour." A squeak of laughter escaped him as he recollected the eternity he spent underneath all those prodding hooves.
Celestia's mouth hung; Luna's did too. Half a WHAT? He could barely hold on for those seventeen minutes!
"Seriously?" Luna gaped, prodding his hypersensitive body, blinking as a poke to the leg set him off. "That long? With that many attackers? How did you make it out alive?!"
The draconequus puffed his chest out proudly, though it was hard when the alicorn's experimental pokes sent him careening back into the cushions. "With t-tenacityyy-heehee, Lu-LuLuLuLu! Sh-Sheer will... w-willpower! I a-am all-- HAH-- all-powerful, y-you know!"
"Luna, stop it!" Celestia scolded, slapping her hooves away as her amused prods gradually brought him back to hysterics. "Wow, I'm impressed." She cringed. "What..did you do to them afterwards? Oh no, please don't tell me you have to be tickled and punished all in one night."
The spirit managed to flash Celestia a grin at her suspicious look, shaking his head as his body quivered and curled up into himself. "I-I d-didn't do a-anything, T-Tia~! N-Nothing of the-- heheheh -- s-sort!" A shaky claw pointed up to the ceiling. "A-Ask Fl... Flutter B-Butter if y-you d-don't trust th-this handsome f-f-face!" he whined out, unsuccessfully pouting and laughing and cringing at the same time.
Celestia sighed; the poor thing, he was barely incoherent in his hysterics and she gently laid him down. "Alright, darling, you get some sleep. You're absolutely exhausted!" She summoned a blanket up over their forms, making sure she stayed a safe distance away from him. Such a shame since she wanted to snuggle him so bad.
Discord half-groaned, half-chortled at the blankets strewn across his body, sticking his tongue out at the ceiling. This tickle was no mere act of punishment. It must have been a collective effort from all ponies to prevent him have any snuggle time with the alabaster alicorn.
"Tiaaa! C-Can't y-you give m-me some m-more p-power so I c-can g-get rid of the-heeheehee-- sq-squiggles in my t-tummyyy~?" he moaned, putting on his best pitiful face in the midst of laughter.
Celestia looked skeptical of that. He had a lot more magic than he did a year ago. He could manipulate the weather slightly and his surroundings, but not for too long. She was sure that was good enough. The princess let her horn glow, filling him with a smidgen more power, not realizing the huge mistake she was probably making.
The spirit's true grin was hidden underneath his twitching maw, the warmth filling him as she allowed him more of his power almost smothering the feeling of lingering feathers darting across his toes. Yes yes yes yes--!
As soon as the last sprinkles of magic entered, his claw darted into the air with a firm 'snap'. Immediately, he was able to breathe as the draconequus felt the last bits of agony wash away from his skin, the last stabs of imaginary manes and hooves and bunny paws vanishing within seconds.
Absolutely relieved (and completely plotting), Discord snuggled into the blanket with a satisfied sigh. Crimson eyes slid open and stared up at the alicorn.
"Thank you, Tia, darling," he purred gratefully. The same claw tapped the blanket. "Care to join me now~? No tickles in sight!"
Eagerly, she darted under the covers with him, wrapping her hooves around him and drawing him into a deep kiss, her twinkling tail wrapping around him in a complete, gentle embrace. "Gladly, Dissy, dear." She nuzzled his face.
Of course the moment had to be interrupted by Luna, who hopped up in the bed with them to snuggle her siblings. Celestia shoved her off to the ground. Sulking, the blue alicorn trotted to the corner of the room and curled up there.
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Fluttershy had her dressy horseshoes on to protect her feet through the night. She was horridly paranoid. She was even in a fort of pillows. Oh, what did she think he'd do to her anyways. Don't answer that, don't answer that.
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Discord snickered at Luna's annoyed expression at being booted off the bed, watching it contort into childish disgust as he pulled Celestia close and nuzzled her with a kiss, making her giggle and tap his cheek with a hoof.
"I'd ask you to join, Lulu," Discord grinned as the alabaster unicorn was tucked underneath his chin. "But I'm worried that you'd catch a severe case of cooties."
"Yeah, knowing how many you have," Luna muttered, and a switch was summoned to give her a light, playful swat in the rump by Celestia. She whined and glared at them both, curling up like a puppy.
Celestia went back to snuggling and kissing Discord, finding herself beginning to drift off. She was exhausted. In the case of a black out she had to check nearly every place in Equestria and check on the ponies.
Discord noted the tired, drifty-eyed look on the eldest princess's face with a playful grin, giving her a tap on the forehead. "What's this? Tia has been bitten by the sleeping bug? Oh, dear!" he gasped, clasping a paw to his cheek in mock horror. "How will Ponyville survive a night without their ruler?!" Didn't she run off of sunshine and happy thoughts and the occasional sugar-filled teacup?
Her head was already dropping in exhaustion, eyes tiredly closing. He opened them, obnoxiously waving at her and shouting "heeeellllooooo?"
"Discord, I'll tickle you. For a half hour and five minutes." He let her go instantly.
"Geez. For a benevolent ruler, you definitely don't let anyone mess with your precious beauty sleep." That earned him a zipper across the mouth. Discord blinked, mumbling something else to the alicorn's smirking, sleeping face as he slumped forward in annoyance towards her ear. "Mmphpharfaf, errefaf."
Okay, that did it. Celestia pulled him into her lap, back down, scribbling her hoof over his stomach and stilling him with magic so he couldn't move. Too bad she had given him his magic and he soothed the tingling nerves, because his reaction wasn't half as hilarious as last time. Regardless, she still had him a laughing and hiccuping mess within forty seconds.
The princess dropped the laughing spirit face down on the pillow and turned over to sleep. "I love you~" she chirped with the widest smirk. He muttered something, summoning pillows over his belly and wrapping an arm around her.