//------------------------------//
// What Now? 
// Story: Son-In-Law of Discord 
// by DisneyFanatic23 
//------------------------------//

	"Well that was rude," Screwball huffed once she and the others were outside Trixie's wagon. "She didn't need to slam the door in our faces!"

"You shouldn't've called her a two-faced, mopey, identity-confused coward," Mothball murmured.

"She had it coming! Now what are we gonna do?"

Twilight shrugged. "We can't force her to change her mind."

"Yeah, we can! Ain't you ever heard of positive punishment? I brought the duct tape."

"Screwy, let's just forget it," Mothball said.

She turned to him in confusion. "Forget it? What do you mean 'forget it?'"

"Look, it's obvious that Bellatrix, Trixie, whoever she is, doesn't want the throne, and I don't think any amount of duct tape is going to change her mind."

"Well, we gotta try something! Otherwise, the changelings won't stop bothering us until you agree to be King!"

"Maybe I should be King."

Mothball quickly covered his mouth with his hoof, but it was too late. Screwball's eyes narrowed and her teeth gritted together.

"What?!" she spat.

Mothball sent Twilight a glance and saw that she was already slowly backing away, not wanting to get involved. He was on his own for this one.

"I mean…" he stammered, facing his fiancée again. "Well…like Twilight said, if I were King, I could change the colony for the better."

"Yeah, but…" Screwball said in a cracked voice, not believing what her love was saying. "If you become King…I'd have to become a changeling!"

"But would that really be so bad?"

She gasped. "You said you liked me the way I was!"

"I do! But it's not like we'd be changing everything about you and we'd still be together. Isn't that all that matters?"

She paused, tears developing in her spiral eyes. "What if…what if I don't want that for us? Would you…would you replace me with some changeling girl?"

He was taken aback. "Screwy, you know I wouldn't…"

"But you would, wouldn't you?! After all, you have to 'keep the species going,' right?!" She held up her ringed hoof. "And this?! Does this mean nothing to you?!"

"Of course, it does! You have any idea how long it took me to raise the bits for that?!" He folded his hooves. "But apparently, it doesn't mean much to you!"

She blinked. "What do you mean?"

"I thought that when ponies got married, they would love and accept each other no matter what! Where one goes, the other follows! I don't know if you've noticed, Screwy, but I'm a Prince of the Changelings, and whether I like it or not, it's a part of me! And if you can't accept that, then maybe you don't love me as much as I thought!"

Screwball's eyes were now completely glazed in water. At the sight of them, Mothball immediately regretted what he had said.

"Screwy, I didn't mean it like…"

"Fine!" she snapped. "If that's what you think of me, then…then…"

She grunted as she tugged the amethyst ring off her hoof and slammed it to the ground. Mothball stood frozen in shock as he watched his love stomp away.

"Where are you going?" Twilight asked as Screwball passed her.

The chaotic pony came to a stop. "I don't know!"

"Well, we can't go anywhere now. It'll be dark soon. We should make camp for the night."

"Fine."

A small pink tent materialized. Twilight peered in and realized it was bigger on the inside with a kitchen, living room and two adjoining bedrooms. Mothball was about to follow the mares in when Screwball's furious head poked out.

"Oh no, you don't!" she exclaimed. "You're sleeping in there!"

She pointed to a simple, brown tent even smaller than the pink one appeared on the outside. He trotted over to it and looked inside. The space was as small as it should've been and on the ground lay a pillow and a blanket covered in moths. He groaned at Screwball's cruel sense of humor.

"Can we talk about this?" he called out to her.

"NO!" Screwball screamed before disappearing into her tent.

Mothball huffed and crawled into his tiny living space for the night. He shooed the moths away and curled up on the blanket. Then he frowned and turned back to himself as he lifted the ring with his magic so that it was floating above him.

A familiar feeling returned to him, one he hadn't felt for five years. He had felt it the night he had betrayed Screwball to the changelings.

Guilt.

"Oh, Screwy," he sighed sadly. "I really screwed up this time, didn't I?"

Then he began to silently cry, thinking of how Screwball would've laughed at that unintentional pun.


	
"So what was that all about?" Moonbeam asked her mother. "I mean it's cool that you got me Princess Twilight's autograph, but what was she doing here in the first place?"

Trixie sighed. "Twilight and I…have a bit of a history."

The filly's eyes widened as she dropped the signed picture in her hooves. "What?! You know Princess Twilight and never told me?!"

"It was a long time ago! And she wasn't a princess back then."

"Unbelievable! But still, why was she here?"

Trixie took a frying pan from a shelf and set it on the greasy stove. "Hand Mummy the chili peppers, will you?"

Moonbeam narrowed her eyes, seeing that her mother was ignoring her questions as usual. Nevertheless, she was hungry and levitated the shopping basket over to her. After spraying some oil on the pan, Trixie lifted a bunch of peppers out of the basket and laid them neatly in the pan.

"Do you want them lightly fried or deep fried tonight?"

"Lightly," Moonbeam replied, folding her hooves. "Don't think I don't know what you're doing. You're avoiding the topic again."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Trixie said dryly.

"Yeah, you do! Whenever you don't wanna talk about something, you shut me out and do something like start dinner! Why were Princess Twilight and those other ponies visiting you? And why'd you shove them out like they were tax collectors or something? No pony in their right mind would kick a princess out!"

"You forget who we are, Moonbeam. Do you have any idea what would've happened if you had sneezed in front of the princess?"

"Ah, come on. She wouldn't…"

Moonbeam sniffed as her mother started shaking pepper into the pan.

"Achoo!"

As she sneezed, green flames whooshed up her body. Her mane remained the same color, but had become flat and webby. Her body was now sleek and black, a green beetle shell and holed, transparent wings on her back. Her eyes were still yellow, but the pupils had narrowed into slits. If her horn, tail and hooves had changed, no sign was given, as they were still concealed by her odd clothes. A second sneeze came and she returned to her pony form.

"See?" Trixie said. "You've got to learn to control that. If any pony sees what you really are, you'll be sent on a one-way trip to the Canterlot dungeon! A princess witnessing this would make absolutely sure that would happen!"

Moonbeam sighed as she dropped onto her rear. "Okay, I get it. Still, why do I have to wear this dumb stuff? The hat I can live with, but these boots are pinchy! And my tail keeps running up my…"

"Don't!" her mother warned.

"My point is that what's so bad about the stuff I can't hide when I'm a pony? It's not like they'll know I'm a changeling if any pony sees."

Trixie sighed. "You'll still be ostracized, Moonbeam. Once ponies see what's underneath all those clothes, they'll laugh at you, ridicule you, to a point where you'll feel small and," she said the last word in a whisper, "worthless."

"Maybe it won't be like that," the filly insisted. "After all, there's always a half-something walking or flying around Ponyville. You've got eagle-lions, scorpion-lions—lot of part-lion guys—and wasn't Daddy a…?"

Trixie spun around and glared down at her child. "DON'T! I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times, Moonbeam. We are never to speak of the big 'D' word! EVER!"

Moonbeam flinched at her mother's outburst. Then Trixie sighed as she shook her head.

"Trust me, Moonbeam," she said softly. "When you're older, you'll understand these things."

She turned back to the stove and Moonbeam knew that meant the discussion was closed for the moment. The filly moaned sadly as she stood up and walked to the door. She threw open the upper part and gazed out. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise when she discovered two tents set up outside.

"Mom," she called. "Some pony's camping out there. I think it's Princess Twilight and those other two."

"What?!" Trixie exclaimed, dropping her pan and coming to the window.

She gazed out, and sure enough, Mothball, in his pegasus disguise, popped his head out of the brown tent to stare across at the pink one.

"Ugh," Trixie groaned. "They just don't give up, do they?"

"Can we invite them over for dinner?" Moonbeam asked eagerly.

"No!"

"Please? We never have any pony over for dinner!"

"And for good reason!" her mother snapped as she returned to the stove.

"Come on, Mom!" the filly begged. "It's Princess Twilight! We'd be dining with royalty!"

Trixie momentarily snorted at the irony of that statement, but held her sternness.

"We're not inviting them to dinner, and that's final!"

Moonbeam narrowed her eyes at her mother. Then she pushed open the lower door so she could trot outside.

"You never let me have any friends," she mumbled.

It wasn't that she didn't love her mother. They had been through a lot together and Moonbeam knew she cared about her well-being. After all, they were all each other had. She just wished she wasn't so cold most of the time. She knew her mother loved her, but also that she was hiding a lot. Her mother hadn't revealed much about her life before Moonbeam was born. She had never discussed her childhood, only that both her parents were gone, and the subject of Moonbeam's father was especially delicate. All she knew was that he had left before her mother had realized her pregnancy, and that Moonbeam had him to thank for the way she looked.

Well, not the changeling part, anyway.

Moonbeam was well aware of the consequences of revealing that part of herself. Changelings were not welcome in Equestria, because their shapeshifting powers were considered a threat. However, she didn't see the harm in taking her hat, pants and boots off. It was so annoying wearing these things all the time, and her mother could have at least chosen a more comfortable disguise. Yet her mother scolded her every time she tried removing her clothes in public.

There wouldn't be much point, anyway. She would still be friendless. With all the touring in the wagon, they had never stayed in one place for long, and few ponies her age came to her mother's shows. Every time she had the opportunity to make friends, however, her mother would call her away. She worried Moonbeam would sneeze and expose herself if she stayed around ponies for too long.

Well, Moonbeam wasn't going to give up. Even if these ponies weren't her age, they interested her. Not just the princess, but her companions. The one with the swirly eyes was especially intriguing, and the similarities between the green pegasus stallion's scent and her own peaked her curiosity. Her mother had forbidden her from inviting them to dinner, but she hadn't said anything about paying them a visit.

She went to the brown tent first and popped her head in.

"Hi!"

The pegasus stallion jumped with a yelp and tucked something behind his back, but Moonbeam had already seen the doll. She ignored this, however, and smiled brightly.

"Whatchya doin'?"

The stallion took a moment to recuperate. "Oh, it's you."

"Mind if I come in?"

He shrugged and scooted over so she could have space to enter. Moonbeam glanced around with a grimace on her face.

"Wow, this place is worse than the wagon," she said as she sat down beside him. "I would've thought the princess' buddies would be sleeping somewhere more…glamorous."

Mothball groaned. "Let's just say I'm in a time-out."

She raised her eyebrows. "Princess Twilight put you in a time-out?"

"Not Twilight. My…fiancée."

Moonbeam glanced outside and then back at him. "You mean that mare with the lollipop eyes?"

He chuckled a bit. "That's what I call 'em."

"Who is she, by the way?"

"Screwball. She's the daughter of Discord."

Her eyebrows went higher. "You mean that chaos guy? No way!"

"Way."

"Wow. Oh wait, I remember! This Discord dude married one of the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, didn't he?" She frowned. "But then she died."

"What?"

"Mom tells me that story every now and then. Not a very nice ending."

"Mom didn't die! I mean…Fluttershy didn't die! I mean she kinda did, but she isn't, and…the point is she's still alive!"

"Really?" Moonbeam said, tilting her head. "Huh. Wonder why Mom told me that. Must've been poetic license. Hey, what's your name, by the way?"

He hesitated. Trixie probably didn't want him revealing everything to her daughter, but then figured there was no harm in telling her his name.

"Mothball," he said, holding out his hoof.

She grinned and shook his hoof enthusiastically. "I'm Moonbeam! Nice to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you too, Moonbeam."

"So how do you know my mom?"

He froze. Now what should he do? He couldn't reveal that he was her royal half-brother. Then again, was it so wrong to at least admit his relation to her? It was only now just starting to sink in that he was this little filly's uncle.

He was an uncle. She was his niece.

She should have the right to at least know that, right?

"I'm, uh…" he stammered, biting his lip. "I'm kinda her brother."

One eyebrow went up this time. "No way. Mom doesn't have any brothers or sisters."

Mothball sighed. "Well, I guess that's half true. We hadn't even officially met until today. See, I'm her half-brother."

"Half-brother?"

"Same mother, different father."

"You can't be my uncle. To be my uncle, you'd have to be a…"

She paused and took another sniff at him. Her eyes widened in disbelief.

"Are you…?"

He smiled. "That's right."

She narrowed her eyes skeptically and crossed her hooves. "Prove it."

He shrugged. "Okay."

He transformed into his changeling self and Moonbeam's jaw dropped.

"Oh my gosh," she uttered. "You are my uncle!"

Mothball smirked. "Told ya so."

Her face glowed as she grinned. "This is incredible! I've never had an uncle before!"

"Well, I've never had a niece before."

"So Uncle Mothy…may I call you Uncle Mothy?"

He shrugged. "Sure."

"Uncle Mothy, can you tell me stuff about my grandma? Mom doesn't talk about my grandparents much, just that they died before I was born. But I didn't think there were other changelings in Equestria, or that one of them would be my uncle!"

Mothball wasn't sure how to respond. He knew Trixie was keeping things from her daughter, but he didn't think it'd be this much. Should he tell her? She was looking up at him with hopeful eyes and didn't want to disappoint her.

He'd seen Discord play the role of an uncle with the foals of Fluttershy's friends. That usually involved taking them for rides on motorcycles or giving them gifts such as stuffed animals that spat jelly at adult ponies. Sometimes he would just sit with them on the couch and tell them wacky stories. Was that what Mothball should be for Moonbeam? That cool male adult figure that would show and tell her exciting, interesting things?

"I, uh…" he started to say.

"Moonbeam!"

The two jumped and turned to the exit to see Trixie's angry head poking through.

"How many times have I told you not to go wandering…?" She froze at the sight of Mothball in his changeling form. "What do you think you're…?"

"Isn't it great, Mom?" Moonbeam said excitedly. "Mothy here is a changeling too!"

Trixie glared at her half-brother and then at her daughter. "Moonbeam, come out here this instant!"

The filly rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay. But can't Uncle Mothy join us for dinner?"

Her mother raised an eyebrow. "Uncle Mothy?"

"Yeah. He told me that you're brother and sister."

Her glare went back to Mothball and she gritted her teeth. "Did he, now?"

"So can't he stay? It's not every day we have family over, and I wanna find out more about my grandparents and…"

Trixie's eyes widened before narrowing again. "That's enough! Come out here, now! I'd like a talk with…Uncle Mothy."

Moonbeam sighed as she rose to her hooves. "Fine."

Once the filly was out of the tent, Trixie stepped in, her eyes burning into Mothball's.

"You showed her that you were a changeling?" she growled.

"I didn't tell her about the hive or how we're royalty," he insisted, holding up his hooves. "I just felt she should know we're related."

She stepped further in so she was just inches from his face. "Why are you all still here? Didn't Bellatrix make it perfectly clear that she does not want to associate herself with the hive anymore?"

"Look, you don't want the throne, I understand. We've just been traveling all day and need rest. Besides, I…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "I've actually been rethinking Mother's offer…"

Trixie raised an eyebrow. "What about that little girlfriend of yours?"

"Well…"

He levitated the amethyst ring for her to see.

"Oh," she scoffed. "No wonder you're sleeping in separate tents. What happened? You and Miss Juliet weren't in the same place?"

"Let's not talk about that," he said, dropping the ring. "Why do you keep lying to Moonbeam?"

She rolled her eyes. "I thought I had already established that! I don't want her to get tangled up in…"

"Not about changelings, but…other things."

"What do you mean?"

"She told me about one of your bedtime stories. The one about Mom and Discord?"

"Excuse me?" she said, cocking her head. "I never tell her stories about Mother, especially her history with Discord."

"No, I mean Fluttershy and Discord."

She scoffed. "You call that wimpy pegasus Mom?"

"She's not wimpy, and yes! She's been taking care of me since I left the hive, but that's not the point. Why'd you tell Moonbeam she had died?"

Trixie looked away from him. "What's the use of giving her false hope in a world where happy endings don't exist?"

He blinked. "So you tell her stories with sad endings like that?"

Her glare returned. "How I raise my daughter is none of your business. You stay away from her, or I swear, Bellatrix will tear you limb from limb!"

On that note, she turned on her heel and started to leave.

"You know, for someone who doesn't have a heart, you seem to care a lot about your daughter."

She paused for a moment. Then she turned her head slightly and said in an almost regretful tone:

"There's a difference between caring for some pony and loving some pony."

Then she opened the flap and went outside. Moonbeam was waiting, staring up at her mother with narrowed eyes and a pouted lip.

"What?" Trixie grunted.

"You never let me hang out with any pony," her daughter complained, "and I get why, but when some pony who knows our secret comes along, you do the same thing! Why can't Uncle Mothy come to dinner? Why?"

"Moonbeam, you don't under…"

"Please, please, please, please, please, please…!"

Trixie rolled her eyes as the filly wrapped her hooves around her foreleg. She knew she was never going to hear the end of this, so she had no choice.

"Ugh! Alright! He can come to dinner!"

Moonbeam clapped her front boots together. "Yay! Ooh! Princess Twilight and Screwball too?"

"Sweetie…"

"Please, please, please, please…!"

"Fine! They can come too! But on one condition." She knelt down to her. "You are not to discuss anything about changelings, alright?"

"But he knows we're…"

"Moonbeam…"

The filly sighed. "Fine. I won't bring it up."

"Good girl. Now go inside and keep an eye on the peppers."

Moonbeam rolled her eyes as she complied with her mother's request. Trixie moaned as she poked her head back in Mothball's tent.

"Congratulations," she grumbled. "You're invited to dinner." Mothball opened his mouth to speak. "But you are not to talk about the hive, or Mother, or anything regarding our changeling heritage!"

Mothball shook his head. "I won't."

She nodded and disappeared.

"But you should," he finished under his breath.

Trixie trotted over to the pink tent and peered in. "Twilight, you…"

She trailed off when she got a good look at the amount of space inside.

"What the…?"

"Daughter of Chaos," Twilight said from a purple couch, tilting her head toward one of the bedrooms.

"Right," Trixie said, shaking her head. "Anyway, Moonbeam wants you losers to join us for dinner."

The alicorn grinned politely. "We'd be delighted to join you."

"Don't think this means anything, Twilight! You are not to talk about the changelings with my daughter, and when the sun rises tomorrow, Trixie expects to see you and your logic-defying tents gone!"