Celestia had just finished for the day and was waiting on one last appointment. Luna sat next to her, waiting to go to the dining hall with Celestia. “Just one last piece of business, Luna. Then we can go eat.”
The throne room’s door opened softly before a voice drifted through. “Celestia? You called for me?” Discord stepped through, obviously tense.
“Yes I did, Discord. I trust you have a grasp on the reason why?” Celestia spoke, her tone formal. She had to be, for the events about to happen. Luna sat next to her, just as stone-faced as her sister.
Discord’s ears sagged. “I may… is this about the whole thing with Tirek?”
Celestia nodded. “Among other things, yes.”
Discord moved closer, crossing the room quickly, and asked, “Did you like those flowers I gave you?”
“They were pretty, yes.” Celestia’s face was at odds with her tone. A small, warm smile graced her face, but her tone was anything but happy.
“Good! I thought you might like them.” He seemed relieved to hear that.
Celestia’s face returned to it’s slight frown. “Discord, off the top of your head, how many times have you stood against us?” Luna quirked an eyebrow at her sister.
His face paled. “T-Three times, Celestia. The first time, when you turned me to stone, then when I originally broke free and was turned to stone by Twilight and her friends, and just earlier today with Tirek.”
Celestia tisked as she stood up. She motioned for Luna to follow her down the steps. “You’re almost right, but you missed one.” Her horn lit as she cast a simple spell. It washed over the throne room and a picture coalesced in front of her. “The vines attacking the Tree of Harmony.”
He backed away slightly. “That shouldn’t count! I originally sowed those seeds of discord before our original confrontation!”
Luna looked to her sister again and spoke softly, “He’s kind of right, ‘Tia.”
“And yet, he never revealed their continued existence until it was too late for us to deal with them. Twilight and her friends had to deal with them.” Celestia’s frown deepened.
Celestia looked to Luna and asked, “Be that as it may, how many of the four times could be considered betrayals?”
Luna’s face looked shocked before she answered softly, “Two of them.” Her mind raced to find where the train of questioning ended. From her preliminary thoughts, this conversation wouldn't end well.
“Discord, I only want to ask you one question. Why do you feel the need to continuously betray myself, my sister, and my little ponies?”
Discord shrunk back as Celestia took a step forward. He spoke quickly, “I-I can’t really answer that, Celestia.”
“Since you ‘declared’ yourself reformed, you’ve done little else other than cause mischief and strife among ponykind.” She stalked forward one more step and Discord tripped stepped backward, landing on his back.
He stared up at Celestia as he asked, “W-What are you saying, Celestia?”
Her frown deepened. “Since you love your riddles so much, I’ll give you one. Why is there the saying, ‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull colt’?”
“W-What?”
She continued, “Because all play and no work makes Jack a stupid colt!” She stomped a hoof and raised her voice, “Discord, you’ve done nothing but mess around since you got here. You’ve not helped in any meaningful way, and you’ve betrayed Equestria twice now. You are a liability and a problem waiting to strike again.”
Scowling, she stalked forward and pressed her nose against Discord’s. “You are a recurring problem, one I now fully intend to remove.”
Discord turned stark white and tried to scramble back. “N-No! Please, Celestia! Just one more chance! I swear I’ll do better!”
Luna looked on, torn. On one hoof, Discord was a pain. On the other, some of his jokes were funny. “‘Tia?”
Celestia stepped back and looked to her sister, a pleasant smile on her face. “Yes?”
“Why don’t we give him one more chance to prove himself?” Luna asked. The scared-witless draconequus took the distraction to start to scramble away.
With a smile she answered Luna’s question, “Luna, since we met him, he’s been nothing but a pest, a warmonger and a traitor.” She shook her head. “I gave him these chances to redeem himself, to be able to live among the rest of the world without strife, and he’s proven that he’s a lost cause. That’s why I’m not going to give him another chance.”
At that, she turned around and her horn not only lit, but shone with the sun’s intensity.
“No! Please, no, Celestia! I’m sorry!”
“No, Discord. I’m sorry. For thinking I could trust you.” She stalked forward, her head low as heat radiated from the solar alicorn.
He scrambled back before turning around and clawing at the carpet he stood on in his attempt to reach the door.
“We can do this the easy way, or the hard way, Discord. Either way, I will protect my country, my sister, my ponies from you, once and for all. Submit to your punishment, and it will be as painless as I can make it.”
Tears started falling from Celestia’s eyes, evaporating before they hit the carpet. “I thought you could be trusted, and this is how you prove you can?” She stomped her hoof once, the carpet starting to catch fire under her hooves. “You thought my nearly-infinite patience would keep my wrath from you when you threaten my little ponies?”
Luna backed away from Celestia, the heat becoming unbearable.
She switched to the Royal Canterlot Voice as he ran to the door, “You thought you could steal my country, my ponies, and my power from me and not suffer the consequences? You thought you could side with Tirek to take over Equus? Give me one good reason I shouldn’t incinerate you on the spot!”
“N-No Celestia!” His tone turned desperate. “I sided with Tirek because I thought if I defeated him myself, then you might see me as something other than a monster! I… I thought if I defeated Tirek alone, you might… you might like me.” Placing his back to the door, he sat down dejectedly. “There… now you have the truth, Celestia. I’ve had a crush on you, and was hoping you might have agreed to go out with me. I just never thought it would turn out this way.”
Her rage faltered for a minute, before her mane and tail turned bright orange, billowing in gale-force winds. “A CRUSH? You caused all of this strife over A CRUSH?”
He nodded, tears falling freely now. “Whatever you’re going to do, just get it over with.” He stared into her eyes and silently thought, ‘It’s not worth me fighting back. I screwed up big time. She’s probably going to kill me.’
Luna called out, “No ‘Tia. Calm yourself!”
Celestia’s face returned to a more neutral scowl as she spoke once more, “Discord, you stand accused on multiple accounts of treason. As one of the ruling diarchs of Equestria, I am prepared to pass judgement on to you. How do you plead?” Her mane and tail continued to whip about wildly as the carpet below burned freely.
He looked down solemnly. “Guilty, Your Majesty.” ‘Well, here it comes…’
She nodded once and turned to Luna, “Princess Luna, as a ruling diarch of Equestria, will you bear witness to the punishment I deliver unto the guilty?”
Luna, from the throne dais, responded, “I… I will, Princess Celestia. I will bear witness to the punishment delivered unto the guilty.” She quietly added, “Though, I wish I did not have to…”
“Very well. I, Princess Celestia, Diarch of Equestria, witnessed by Princess Luna, Diarch of Equestria, hereby pass judgement. For aiding Lord Tirek in his invasion and hostile takeover of Equestria, for betraying Equestria and attempting regicide on not only myself, and my sister, but on the newly crowned Princess Twilight you shall be turned to stone forevermore. Should, perchance, you escape from your prison of stone, you shall be put to death.”
Discord sobbed openly. “I’m sorry… I’m so sorry… I just…” His words faded to gibberish as Celestia strode forward once more.
She cast a binding spell on him, physically restraining him. “Do you have any final words for the record, Discord?”
He looked up, his eyes determined. “I do. I want it on record that I now realize how stupid I was and how badly I screwed up.” He smiled as he continued, “I love you, Celestia. Even as you’re about to condemn me to death, I can’t say I don’t love you.”
She touched her horn to his forehead. Her voice was nothing more than a whisper, “I’m sorry Discord. I thought I could trust you. You’ve proven to me now that you can’t be trusted. I wish things had turned out differently, honestly. I might lift your sentence in several thousand years, if you’ve been good and haven’t tried to escape.”
Discord nodded, a glimmer of hope on the horizon. “Thank you, Celestia. I wish I’d realized how stupid I’d been earlier than now.”
She stood up, telekinetically lifting him to his feet and releasing his restraints. “Assume the position you wish to take for the rest of eternity.”
He struck a pose, standing straight with his arms crossed across his chest, and his head bowed.
Discord knew no more as Celestia cast her spell, sealing the draconequus in his own flesh turned to stone.
Once the process was complete, she dropped to her knees, her power flowing away. Luna doused the surrounding flames as she ran up to her sister, before helping her back to her hooves.
Panting, Celestia spoke, “It is done, Luna. He will trouble us no longer.”
Luna replied, “Did he really have to be sealed in stone for eternity, sister?”
“It was either that or incinerating him where he stood.” Celestia hummed thoughtfully. “Even now, I’m merciful to a traitor. We shall see if he’s worth trusting in a few thousand years, Luna.”
Celestia lit her horn and telekinetically lifted Discord. “Come, let us find a suitable spot for him to keep watch over Equestria. Maybe watching our country grow will inspire some goodness in him.”
Luna nodded and they made their way out of the throne room. “That sounds like a wonderful thought, sister.” She looked to Celestia and noticed something odd. “Sister, you’re crying.”
Celestia lifted a hoof to her cheek, it came away damp. “So I am.” Her expression turned philosophical. “Luna, am I a monster for what I’ve just done?”
Luna shot her sister a quizzical look. She took a big breath and spoke comfortingly, “I know you are not a monster ‘Tia. A monster would have just killed him. Not explained to him what he had done wrong and helped him see the error of his ways. It is too bad he learned too late what he had done wrong, but like you said, in several thousand years, he may be ready to try again. I just hope he is sincere if we do let him out.”