//------------------------------// // Chapter Six // Story: Head Full of Cotton Candy // by TheManWithTwoNames //------------------------------// Head Full of Cotton Candy A “My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic” fanfiction By TheManWithTwoNames I do not own any of the characters contained in the following work.  “My Little Pony” and all subsequent properties belong to Hasbro and Lauren Faust. I’m at the drop spot to make the exchange for the T-shirt. I have a bad feeling about this... Gray. It all was gray. The skies were strangled by heavy clouds that refused to dissipate or break. The sunlight that managed to push through the dismal covering was stained, casting a doleful light across the land. The grassy expanse that stretched all around had seemingly been drained of all its former, gorgeous luster. Whatever quaint charm he had seen in the dilapidated hotel was gone and forgotten. Discord was so very, very tired of gray. The gray that surrounded him, the gray that emanated from him, the gray that was the only force keeping him alive. The horrible, mind-numbing, deathly shade was his only company in all the world, and he hated it with every inch of his being. A numbness in his feet informed him that it was time once again for his loathsome ritual. The draconequus dragged himself off the uncomfortable couch and balanced his body on his two claws. He moved across the inn’s ruined lobby and exited the building, his scowl growing even more when he laid eyes on the miserable view. After making his way to the dirt road, he finally dropped onto his rear and threw two handfuls of earth into the air, snapping his fingers at each. One of the clouds turned into a metal spring that bounced along the road for several feet before bursting with a loud crack. The other became a few cupcakes and pies that twirled in the air before splatting against the ground. The feeling in his feet returned, prompting Discord to stand and sluggishly march down the road away from the hotel. He had no idea how long it took him until he hit the invisible wall. Without a view of the sun, it was near impossible for him to tell one hour from the one before it. His attempts to repair the grandfather clock in the hotel’s foyer only spawned bad memories and inevitably resulted in catastrophic failures. The rising and setting of the sun and moon were completely dependent on when the King of Equestria decided to fall asleep and wake up. She would have been so proud of him to see him remembering his royal duties all on his own... Discord tapped experimentally on the invisible wall and placed his lion paw against it. He traced the wall as he navigated the interior of his magical barrier, reassuring himself that the magic was still holding strong. Deep down he was aware that there was no real need for the inspections, but they were the only excuse he could come up with for getting away from the building. After hours of walking, his tests yielded a positive conclusion: the wall was holding strong, and nothing would be able to get in. Or out. He still had to protect his nation. And now that he was the greatest threat to his subjects’ happiness, it was only right that he locked himself away from them. A part of him protested the imprisonment, demanding that he set himself loose and follow whatever whim carried him. But he couldn’t listen to that voice again. It was the voice that always gave him ideas for jokes and fun that made her get mad at him. Worse than that, it was the voice that told him to enjoy that world that terrified her so much. But worst of all... it was his voice. He couldn’t stand being cooped up there, with nothing but endless gray to keep him company and squeaky floorboards to pass the time. He wanted to leave and never come back, to rush out and explore the world that he was promised, bringing fun and color to everywhere and everyone he met. The thought tempted him as he stood in the open doorway of the inn, looking at the boundless world just outside the barrier. He could even swear he saw some traces of color just on the horizon. He took a deep breath and turned his back on it, slipping between the gloomy shadows in the building and crawling onto the most comfortable couch he could find. The last three days had passed like this. A spiritless cycle of waking up, raising the sun behind the clouds, eating something, loathing the gray, fighting off the creeping numbness, patrolling the barrier, imagining the wonder of exploring the world, and then lying down until it was time to go to sleep. There was nothing else he could do, he thought. The spirit was roused from his place by some faint sound he was confident would certainly turn out to be some figment of his mind. His ears perked as the noise came again from beyond the stairs. Though now it sounded more like a smell. Or did it feel like a taste? He wasn’t sure, but whatever it was, it was gray, and he knew he would have nothing to do with it. He tentatively placed his hoof on the first step, hoping that the smelly sound would just go away. There was no such luck, and he put his lizard foot on the second step and waited. And then the third. And the fourth. And then he waited. And then the fifth, and the sixth, and the feeling was growing stronger. When he finally reached the second floor, his heart dropped. It was coming from the room at the end of the hall. Screwball’s room. He hadn’t seen the purple pony since he carried her body out of the pouring rain into the hotel. He had laid her down on the bed in the nicest room he could find and then walked away, promising her that he wouldn’t let himself or anything else ever hurt her again. And now there was something in there with her. He didn’t want to think. He dashed down the hall on all fours, snapping his a claw and turning the door into a giant wafer cookie before barreling into it and breaking it into splinters. Silently cursing himself for giving into that sudden impulse, Discord shook himself off and looked around the room viciously. His eyes strayed around the room, looking for any sign of the disturbance. Most ponies would have never been able to remember any details about the ramshackle suite’s horrid state, but the spirit found that every imperfection and flaw was crystal clear in his memory. The wallpaper was still yellowed and peeling in all the right places, with no signs of claw marks anywhere. The windows were broken in their same spider web pattern, with the moth-eaten curtains still barely clinging to the windowsill. Half-destroyed furniture was in their proper place strewn across the room, each with the proper half destroyed. Finally, there was only one place left to look. He hesitantly brought his eyes to the bed at the center of the room. The bed sheets weren’t any dirtier than he had left them, other than a few stray bits of cookie settled among the folds of cloth. Discord didn’t try to fight the tears building in his golden eyes as he looked down at Screwball, lying just as still and peaceful as he left her. The draconequus turned his head away and sat down, hunched over his knees. He coiled his ruby tail around his legs so he could twist the extension as the pony’s last words echoed in his mind. She had called him kind and loving. She said that he could do anything. But she was wrong. All those times he had thought he was helping ponies and changing things, he had just been hurting them. No one liked the gray that all his magic brought, and it never made anything better. What was the point of being able to do anything if he couldn’t do anything right? Maybe it would have been kinder if he had gone with Time and left Screwball alone. At least then she wouldn’t have gotten hurt. ‘We’re inclined to agree with you on that one.’ Discord jumped at the voice. Slowly rising to his hooves, he crept over to the side of the bed and gave the pony a light nudge with his snout. “S-screwball?” ‘What do you want?’ “Screwball!” the draconequus cheered, all hesitance in his body completely destroyed in the face of his pure elation. In a flash, he had grabbed the pony by her hooves and began swinging her around in circles, hopping all about the room in a mad jig as she bounced along. ‘Put us down, you lunatic!’ Discord stopped all at once, nearly losing his grip on her. Regarding her curiously, he set Screwball back down on the bed. Her eyes were still closed, and her mouth hadn’t moved. It was undeniably strange, but it was the sort of strangeness he could appreciate. Not that it mattered to him in the slightest. All that was important was that Screwball was back! “Scroob, I’m so glad you’re okay!” ‘You call this “okay”? You’re joking. You’ve got to be joking. We’ve been stuck lying in bed for the last we-don’t-know how long! Were you just not satisfied with how difficult you’ve made our life, so you decided to turn us into a vegetable?’ “I’m... I’m sorry, Screwy,” he said softly, flinching from the harsh words, “I... I never wanted anything to happen to you--” ‘We said from the very beginning this would only end in disaster. And it looks like we were right. If we didn’t have to fight us every single step of the way, none of this would have happened! This is all your fault, you big, stupid freak!’ The spirit had never felt so small. He bowed his head and was just about to leave the room when a wave of heat washed over him. Turning back to face the pony, his eyes widened when he saw a scowling gray specter hovering over Screwball, her ghostly eyes narrowed on the draconequus. ‘Are you still here? Get out, you cretin!’ “Who are you? Tell me!” Discord growled, baring his fangs at the apparition. ‘We’re Screwball, you moron,’ the spirit snapped back. “No… No, I know you.” Discord’s mismatched eyes bulged. “You’re the voice! You’re that awful voice that’s always shouting at Screwball and making her feel miserable! Who are you really?” ‘We said we’re Screwball. So stop asking, you’re bugging us.’ “No you’re not!” The phantom couldn’t help but snicker at the draconequus’ tantrum. ‘We’re in our head, aren’t we? We know your pink fairy of a brother said that you were dumb, but we thought you’d be able to wrap your head around this at least.’ “You’re not Screwball!” Discord shouted again, pointing a claw at the phantom. “Screwball was nothing but nice to me! And I’ve heard you shout at her and say terrible things. You’re not Screwball! You-you’re somepony else!” ‘Huh,’ the ghost grunted thoughtfully, looking at the ceiling in thought. ‘You want to know something?’ Discord was caught off-guard by the sudden softness in her voice. “What’s that?” ‘You are impossibly, unbelievably thick, thick, thick!!’ she wailed. ‘But if it would get you to leave us alone faster, then fine, we--excuse me--I’m not Screwball. You remember Savoir Faire? Well, seeing as that was my idea, you can just call me that. There, are you satisfied? Now leave me alone.’ “You still haven’t told me who you are,” he said firmly. “And I don’t just mean your name! I want to know why you won’t leave Screwball alone. I always hear you being awful to her for no reason!” ‘Excuse you? “No reason”? Without me, she never would have lasted this long! Whenever she was lonely, I was the one who kept her company. Whenever she started getting impossible dreams in her head, it was me who stopped her from getting her hopes up just to be disappointed. And whenever something went wrong, I reminded her that there was no point in being upset because nothing ever went right for her anyway!’ The ghostly pony’s words were drenched in venom as she floated around the room and kicking uselessly at the scattered debris with each exclamation. After a pause, her expression melted into a grin that sent a chill down Discord’s spine and she vanished, reappearing over Screwball again. Savoir Faire kept her eyes on the body as she spoke, combing her hooves through the purple and white mane as though she were holding a doll. ‘I was always there for her. I was the only one in the world who cared. She started talking to herself not even a month after that old nanny of hers left her alone, and then she made me, and then we became our-- I became her own best friend.’ Discord blinked at the revelation. Screwball had always been nothing but compassionate and kind. And even when she was upset she was always trying to be positive. It just didn’t seem possible that the tender pony he had known his entire life could have all that--that--gray inside of her! The gray was bad! It made ponies upset and ruined things! It... He swallowed. It kept them alive... Both of them. ‘I always had to be the one who endured all the pain in her life. Things were always fine when it was just us. And then you came along, you lumbering, stupid, dangerous, freak!’ The assault pulled the draconequus from his thoughts and he scowled at the offensive phantom. Savoir Faire was hovering just an inch away from his face, her eyes burning with hatred. ‘She was mine! She was all mine, and she didn’t need anypony else! And then you showed up and ruined everything!’ Savoir Faire shrieked. In an instant, her expression turned to ice and she drifted back to her lifeless body again. ‘Do you have any idea how much she hates you?’ “You’re lying,” he dared, taking a step forward. The gray pony gave a sharp laugh and turned her back to the creature. ‘Or maybe she’s been lying to you and I’m the only one with enough kindness to be honest. The truth hurts, doesn’t it?’ “Hah!” Discord folded his arms triumphantly and turned his head up high in pride. “Shows what you know! Truth is one of the Virtues of Sovereignty--” His confidence waned in the face of the vicious cackling. ‘You actually bought into all that garbage she was slinging? She made it all up! Everything she’s been telling you about being a king has been one big lie! You’re no king! You’re a monster!’ The word seared across his mind like a bolt of fire. The spirit retreated a few steps, clutching his head in agony, grabbing onto his horns as though he was trying to snap them off his head altogether. That word. That awful word... He remembered hearing it before. He remembered ponies and dragons and griffins screaming and running away from him, tripping over their friends who were just lying on the ground. Some of them were attacking him and he -- and then they stopped. They were all shouting the same thing. Discord howled and scratched at his eyes, hoping he could stop the images and drown out the screams. His skin began to burn up as the gray began to seep behind his eyes. He roared and struck out at the obscuring haze with claw and magic, his struggling becoming wilder and wilder as his frustration built. He bashed his shoulder against the walls and dressers, smashing the wood to pieces. His arms flew forward and the windows exploded out from their frames and broke into shards on the ground below. A wicked voice laughed from somewhere behind the gray and he prepared to destroy it. And then, all at once, he stopped. A small purple body was floating peacefully in the endless fog, laying on her side in a deep sleep. Discord wrapped his arms around the pony and pulled her against him so he could hear her whisper. “Forget about all the bad and the chaos... Just think about the laughter.” The gray thinned and faded away, leaving Discord alone with Screwball. His paw began to automatically stroke her back delicately, feeling her coat rub against his own. It felt like ages had passed since they last held one another. But even now, it still wasn’t the same. He needed her back. ‘Aww, is the tantrum over? Why’d you stop? I was hoping you would get caught up in the moment and throw yourself out the window.’ Savoir Faire’s smirk soured when the draconequus mumbled something too quiet to hear. ‘Hey! You answer me when I’m talking to you! And I told you before to put me down!’ “She saved me,” he repeated softly. “Screwball saved me.” ‘Oh, gag me. Aren’t you sentimental? You really are as dumb as you look.’ The phantom’s scowl grew to match Discord’s smile. “Screwy... You saved me again. Just like always.” He ignored the gray pony’s screams as he held her tighter, remembering all that they had been through together, and all that she had done for him. She had stayed with him through all their hard times, despite all he put her through. “She cares about me.” ‘No no no! No! She’s mine! She doesn’t care about you!’ Savoir Faire shrieked, yanking her own mane. ‘Everything she ever told you was a lie!’ “Even if she did lie about some things,” he began as he set the mare gently on the bed again, “she only did it to protect me.” For the first time, he took his eyes off Screwball and turned look out the open windows. He could swear that the clouds were beginning to clear. “And as far as I’m concerned, that’s better than the truth.” ‘Well, she’s dead, so none of that even matters anymore,’ Savoir Faire hissed, her face contorted into a hideous mask. “She isn’t dead,” Discord said knowingly as he turned back to face the pony. ‘This is just pathetic. You’re only kidding yourself at this point.’ “You’re here,” he said, looking into Savoir Faire’s eyes, “so she has to be alive.” The phantom returned the stare for as long as she could manage before briskly turning her head away. She would never admit it, but she saw something in those blood red eyes that frightened her. It looked like confidence. ‘I liked you better when you were an idiot.’ “I’ve been getting lessons.” Discord held his paws over Screwball’s body, trying to understand what had happened to her. Her body was coated by two hues: a blue one trying to push through and reach her form, and a gray one shielding her and fighting off the foreign energy. Her mind was perfectly intact, she was just... sleeping. Savoir Faire hovered over Discord’s head, watching him critically. ‘So what are you going to do?’ Discord would have normally ignored her, but the surprising lack of wrath in her tone caught him off guard. “I change things. She’s stuck asleep, so I’ll just change that,” he replied, raising his eagle claw up and tenting his fingers. ‘If you really care about her at all,’ Savoir Faire said, her tone a mere echo of her earlier bitterness, ‘you’ll leave and never come back after you’re done.’ “And just leave her alone again?” Discord scoffed, noticing the phantom’s dreamy smile at the thought. “Get used to having me around. Because I am never going to leave you alone with her ever again.” Savoir Faire raised her nose at the draconequus before dispersing into a shapeless cloud of gray. As Discord watched the haze soaked back into Screwball’s head, he considered saving them both the trouble and ridding them of the hateful consciousness. He ultimately decided against it, thinking that Screwball may have grown some slight attachment to the voice. The draconequus raised his paws again and gathered all of his focus. He couldn’t afford to mess anything up this time. Not again. Not when it involved her. Regarding the purple pony one last time, he gave a weary exhale. He couldn’t even glimpse at a tree without feeling an impulse to turn it into taffy, but in all the world, with all the power to change and create he held, the pony was the one thing he never wanted to change. “I hope she’s not upset about the white hairs,” he thought out loud before cupping his hands around his mouth and leaning down to the pony’s ear. “Time to wake up, Scroob!!!”                 Screwball nearly kicked Discord in the mouth as she flailed her legs in alarm, her body instinctively trying to flee from the explosion of sound. Instead, she only managed to tumble on the bed sheets and roll over the side of the mattress with a soft whump. “Discord, please don’t do that,” the pony yawned sorely. Screwball wasn’t on her hooves for more than four seconds before she was immediately lifted back up into the air and twirled around by a madly grinning draconequus. After several dizzying minutes of politely asking to be put down, the pony was set back down by the giddy spirit. She definitely ranked it as one of the more interesting starts to a morning she ever had. “Somepony’s happy today,” she laughed before a thought crossed her mind. “Where’s the owl? What happened? How... Are we in that filthy hotel?” she asked, scrunching up her nose. “Well, I had to keep you somewhere while you were sleeping. And I already paid for the room, so I figured it would be alright.” Discord tried to sound apologetic, but the creature could not stop himself from giggling with every word. Screwball simply shook her head and gave a soft laugh. She turned to the mirror to laugh at her bed head and froze. “Discord. Why is my mane white?” she spoke through grit teeth.                 The spirit didn’t wait to give an answer and immediately dashed for the doorway, with Screwball yelling right behind him. And as he laughed in elation, a small part of him suggested that this moment could only be made better with an explosion of chocolate pudding. And after some thought, Discord decided to give that instinct a second chance.