Not too long after they’d both gotten used to the new order- or chaos- of things, Fluttershy had to leave town with her friends to help welcome the games inspector to the Crystal Empire.
“Are you sure you’ll be alright on your own?” Fluttershy asked nervously as she left the house, saddlebags firmly in place.
“Of course, Fluttershy,” Discord assured her for the third time, wearing a bathrobe and waving her off with a mug of hot licorice in his claws.
“Okay, well, remember that Spike is going to be watching Angel Bunny for me,” Fluttershy said.
“I know,” Discord said with an amused smile.
“And I’ve fed and watered all the other animals, so they should be fine until I get back,” Fluttershy added.
“I know,” Discord said again.
“And-”
“Fluttershy, if you don’t leave soon you’re going to miss your train,” Discord pointed out.
“Oh, um… right,” Fluttershy laughed self-consciously. She turned to walk out the door before pausing and turning back around. “I’ll miss you,” she said with a shy smile. The simple statement shocked Discord, taking him a bit off-guard.
“I’ll… miss you, too,” he replied shakily. After hesitating a moment, he leaned down and gave her a brief and awkward hug, which she returned warmly. WIth another smile in his direction, she turned and headed for the train station. Discord watched her go, taking abnormal notice of the beating of his own heart. So that’s what a hug is like… it’s strangely nice.
Fluttershy, meanwhile, was fighting down a blush as she reached the Ponyville train station and met up with her friends. She was so glad that Discord saw her as a friend close enough to hug… and for some reason she got the feeling he hadn’t had many hugs before. She was flattered, honestly. Luckily, she managed to get rid of the blush before any of her friends saw it.
Discord, as he did nearly every other day, teleported to Canterlot, and reported to Princess Celestia in the throne room.
“Ah, Discord,” she greeted. As usual, she launched right into discussion of things that Equestria could use his help with, which normally he listened to, if for no other reason than to have something good to brag about to Fluttershy, but now he was so distracted by the hug that he barely heard a word she was saying. “So I need you to go to Saddle Arabia and turn the desert into a chocolate milk ocean,” Celestia said after a few minutes.
“Wait, what!?” Discord said, snapping out of it and staring at Celestia like she’d grown a second head. She laughed.
“Gotcha,” she teased. “Mind a bit preoccupied with Fluttershy, I see?”
“How did you-”
“You were daydreaming. Luna isn’t the only one who can enter your dreams, you know,” Celestia said.
“Oh,” Discord huffed. He’d have to be more careful what he thought about around Celestia from now on.
“I’m frankly quite glad to see you getting along so well with somepony, even if I’m surprised.”
“Yes, you’ve made your disbelief at my friendship quite clear before, thank you, Celestia,” Discord said dryly.
“Well, I suppose you’d better head home, then,” Celestia said with a smile. “You’re obviously too distracted to work, and I think we can manage without you for a day.”
“You managed without me for over a thousand years, Celestia. I don’t see why you’re so dependant on me all of a sudden. Ciao,” he said, waving his paw dismissively. With that, he disappeared.
He thought about just lounging around in his haven, as he’d come to call it, but he’d grown used to having Fluttershy’s company and figured he’d probably get bored. So, he thought he’d see what Spike and the animals were up to. If he knew anything about Angel Bunny at all, he knew that Spike would have his hands full, and that sounded like entertainment.
He followed Spike and the crew around for the rest of the day, keeping hidden, and fought to keep his laughter in while Spike struggled.
When they left on the train, however, he stayed behind, knowing that Fluttershy would be home relatively soon, and he decided to wait for her there so he could tell her exactly what had happened with her dear Angel Bunny that day. Of course, she’d probably forgive Spike, being the way she was, and nothing entertaining would come of it, but still.
“I’m home!” Fluttershy called a few hours later, walking into the normal half of her house to see Discord lounging on her sofa.
“Ah, Fluttershy!” Discord greeted happily. “You’d be fascinated to hear what I did today.”
“Weren’t you in Canterlot helping Celestia like always?” Fluttershy asked, confused.
“She gave me the day off, actually. So I thought I’d keep an eye on Spike,” Discord informed her with a grin.
“Is that what you wanted to tell me?” Fluttershy asked. “Oh, well I knew Angel was under the seat on the train, actually…”
“How!?” Discord asked incredulously.
“I saw him run off to get Spike a gemstone,” Fluttershy admitted with a shy smile. “I asked him about it on our way home, and he says that Spike learned his lesson, and since his tail got fluffed, all is forgiven.”
“Typical,” Discord said disappointedly, crossing his arms and rolling his eyes.
“I do have a story of my own to tell, though,” Fluttershy said, making Discord’s ears perk up. A few minutes later, Discord was rolling around on the floor, laughing.
“You really spent the whole day catering to the whims of the wrong pony?” he guffawed. “Now I wish I’d followed you instead! Goodness, the strangest things seem to happen to you and your friends, Fluttershy. I think it’s your influence, being a natural talent for chaos and all!”
“Well, I suppose it’s inevitable when we’re the Elements of Harmony and Twilight is Princess Celestia’s student and Princess Cadence’s sister-in-law,” Fluttershy said with a slight, graceful shrug. “I don’t know about talent for chaos…”
“Don’t be ridiculous! Not many ponies can think up something chaotic before the master of chaos himself! Don’t sell yourself short, my dear. I knew I was going to enjoy living here!” Discord teased, ruffling Fluttershy’s hair. She smiled happily up at him.
“Oh, I’m so glad,” she said excitedly. “I’m enjoying it, too!”
Things calmed down a bit after that for awhile, though Discord did his best to keep things entertaining. Whenever things got too dull for him he’d simply invite Fluttershy into his haven and create all sorts of controlled chaos to play in, oftentimes tailoring it to something he thought Fluttershy, specifically, would enjoy, such as the meadow full of exotic plants and animals that shouldn’t be able to grow in Ponyville’s climate or the time he let Angel Bunny actually speak for an afternoon. (That had been interesting, but he never planned to repeat the experiment, as the bunny had some not-too-nice things to say to him.)
Fluttershy had never thought she’d enjoy chaos at all, but she found, in moderation, it was just what she needed. She’d been enjoying quiet days at home for too long, and having Discord there to liven things up was an unexpected bright spot.
Discord, on the other hand, found himself oddly refreshed by Fluttershy’s calm, timid personality. She was about as far from chaotic as you could get, normally, though she showed promise when she put her mind to it and when she was angry she could be a sight to behold… Regardless, he’d bonded with her in a way he’d never thought he’d be able to connect with anypony. Any thoughts he’d had initially of abandoning this life to return to complete and total chaos were promptly abandoned. Despite the fact that he was quite literally the embodiment of all things chaotic and disharmonious, he knew that he’d give all that up in an instant to stay where he was, if it came to that. And Fluttershy, wondrous creature that she was, had given him the space he needed to ensure that he’d never have to make that choice.