Several minutes passed, and not a sound could be heard from Celestia's room, save for the tick-tock of the clock on her wall. Another sound accompanying the ticking was the tap of Discord's goat hoof and lizard foot stepping against the surface he paced across. Discord tilted his chin down and looked at the wrist of his claw, where a watch was affixed. “Alright, it’s been long enough.” Discord looked upwards, where he saw Princess Celestia still unconscious on her recliner. “Let's see if she's ready to wake up.”
Discord jumped from the ceiling of Celestia's room, and let himself float downwards towards the floor. Even closer to Celestia, he could see the alicorn's upper body rise and fall as she breathed in rhythm. It was faint, but if he listened closely, he could just barely hear her snoring through her muzzle. He slowly, carefully extended a talon of his claw towards her shoulder, and tapped her fair white coat.
“Celestia?” He called to her, his voice just above a whisper. The princess remained fast asleep. “Oh, Celly? Anypony home?”
Celestia's face wrinkled slightly, and an audible groan escaped her throat. Though it wasn't what Discord was expecting, he at least was glad to see some response from her.
“Come on sunny; time to wake up.”
“Rowr...” Celestia grumbled, her ears twitching as he spoke to her. Her wafting tail shook from side to side a few times, before she buried her head in her hooves and rolled over, her back facing Discord.
Did it work? Discord wondered. He smirked a bit and continued to poke her.
“Somepony sounds sleepy. But you can't spend your whole day sleeping now, can you?” A soft whine escaped Celestia, as she fidgeted about in a lazy attempt to escape Discord's touch. “Hey, don't ignore me, missy. Wake up.” Hey urged her, the volume of his voice increasing as he coaxed her to awaken. “Come on... wake up wake up wake up wake up!” He pestered her, while incessantly poking at her head.
“Grr...” Celestia growled just a bit, conveying her annoyance. Her vocal ministrations were matched by her stomach, which Discord found quite amusing.
“Well fine then, stay asleep!” He feigned defeat as he withdrew his claw. “I guess somepony doesn't want me to feed her.”
Celestia's ears pricked up at the mention of those last two words.
“Oh, what's that? You want to be fed?” Celestia's head lifted up instantly, and she looked over her shoulder at Discord, her eyes wide and alert. “Are you hungry, missy?” Celestia jumped to her hooves, standing up from her recliner on all fours. She shook her body from side to side in quick fashion to rid herself of her sleepiness, then stepped off to look at Discord with an eager smile.
Discord rubbed his chin in admiration of her movements. From the behavior she was exhibiting, it seemed that his treatment of her had done its job. But he needed extensive testing to make sure.
“Hm, I still can't tell if you're hungry or not. Maybe you should tell me?” Discord bent his knees slightly with his palms on his knees, looking forward at Celestia's eye level. “Say 'I'm hungry Discord!'”
“Arf!” Celestia barked happily, her tongue hanging out of the side of her mouth.
“Yes!” Discord exclaimed, pumping his fist into the air. He immediately put his grasp around Celestia's face, coddling her cheeks and smushing them up towards her eyes. “It worked splendidly! You think you're a doggy now, don't you? Are you my little puppy?” He teased in a playful tone of voice.
Not seeming to mind Discord's show of affection on her face, Celestia let her tongue slip in and out through her lips as her energetic eyes were locked on his own. Her stomach gurgled again, reminding Discord that she had only woken up because he had tempted her with a meal.
“Oh fine then.” Discord retreated his grip from her face and pat her on her head behind her horn. “Let's see if I can find you something to eat.”
Straightening two of his talons, Discord opened and closed them together up through the air like a pair of scissors. The sound of fabric snipping came from each motion, cutting a thin line through the empty space in Celestia's room. Once it was long enough, Discord poked his arms through the incision and stretched it wide open. Looking through, he was granted with a view of the castle's kitchen, clouds of steam from the various pots and pans making it difficult to see the white walls of the area. The ruckus of dishes and utensils filled the air, along with the orders of the chefs as they prepared a number of dishes for the denizens of the castle.
Keeping his lower torso in Celestia's room, Discord stretched the rest of himself into the kitchen, snaking his way across the ceiling. He kept his vision downwards, surveying the area as best he could and scanning the meals being put together by the chefs. Whenever a cook would turn away, whether to grab another ingredient or for guidance from their recipes, Discord would dip his head down and inspect what they were making. He shook his head in disapproval over several dishes, finding its contents quite unappealing. A few yards down the room, something at the center of a large table caught Discord's eye.
It was a round object, cabbage from the looks of it. Its surface was lined with cooked carrots, and wrapped in layers of spinach, as well a hefty layer of hay covering the vegetables. And the entire dish was glistening to the point that Discord could see his own face reflected off the surface. Taking a sniff, he deduced that a coat of honey was what had given the meal its enchanting shine.
“Perfect!” Discord uttered, before grabbing the dish and reeling himself back across the ceiling, and back to the opening up above. Pulling himself fully back into Celestia's room, the tear within space sealed itself back up, as if it had never been there before. The white alicorn sniffed the air, noting the presence of the cuisine in Discord's grasp, and she craned her neck in to inspect the delightful scent before her. She wasn't sure what it was, but it smelled enchanting to her. Her mouth hung open in anticipation, and strands of drool escaped the corners of her lips as she panted in excitement.
The plate that held the meal turned to a blender, and the contents were shredded into a chunky paste within a few seconds. The blender quickly reformed its shape into an orange dog bowl reading “Celly” on the side. Celestia herself was so excited she was bouncing off the ground in joy, her shimmering mane flowing up and down through the air. Her wings flared momentarily in excitement, before folding back in place as he lowered the bowl to the floor in front of her.
Celestia drew her soaking tongue across her lips as she looked at the mash placed in front of her. With a sense of vigor, she stepped forward, her mouth merely an inch from tasting the inticing banquet in front of her.
“Ah ah ah!” Discord placed his palm in front of her face, stopping her advance. Celestia's brow softened in disappointment. She looked up at Discord, her eyes begging him to let her eat.
“Sit.” He instructed. On command, Celestia lowered her posterior to the ground, her back straight and at attention. “Shake.” He ordered, extending his paw. Celestia lifted the corresponding hoof to touch his. “Other hoof.” When Discord traded his paw for his claw, Celestia did the same with the opposite foreleg. “Down.” Celestia lowered her chest to the ground, resting on her knees. Several seconds of silence passed, Celestia's sight locked on the bowl in front of her. Every fiber of her being remained motionless from the fear that one wrong move might risk it disappearing from her forever.
“Okay, you can eat.” Discord said as he tapped his leg. In the blink of an eye, Celestia sprung to her hooves and dove her mouth into her bowl. She lapped up the slop in a frenzy, gulping down each mouthful after only a few seconds of chewing.
Discord marveled at the sight in front of him. Through and through, his ministrations had worked even better than he had anticipated. Princess Celestia, the ruler of Equestria, regarded as the most regal pony in the land, was eating from a dog bowl. She was completely convinced that she was a dog through and through, and seemed to be enjoying it. She didn't even object to taking orders from him, much to his surprise. She saw him as her owner, which made her his pet.
“This is gonna be fun. I can't wait to show you off to Fluttershy and her friends.” Discord said to her, as he rubbed the fair white coat of her back. A knock at Celestia's door broke Discord's thoughts as he looked up towards the entrance of her room. “Who is- erm!” Discord cleared his throat, as he was suddenly reminded that his appearance in Celestia's room had not been planned, and would likely cause a rift in the favor he was doing for the princess. He continued to cough, and with each effort, his vocals increased in pitch. After a few seconds, his coughs had a more feminine sound to them. “Y-yes? Who's there?” He asked. His voice for all accounts was an identical match to princess Celestia's.
“Your majesty, it's been quite some time since you began sorting out paperwork.” A gruff voice called back. “Are you alright?”
“Yes, I'm alright.” Discord called back, still retaining his impersonation. “Or rather, no- I'm not alright. I, uh- oh I'm not feeling well at the moment.” Discord closed his eyes, and grabbed his stomach in mock agony. “I think I may have caught some sort of stomach bug. Ohh, it's dreadful! I don't think I'll be able to leave my room at all today!” He said, lifting his paw to his forehead in melodramatic fashion, while also keeping an eye on the real Celestia, who was still scarfing down her meal from her bowl.
Celestia chomped away at her meal earnestly. Her tongue dipped out and scooped up a helping of the mush her master had graciously presented to her, and she hastily chomped it before swallowing. It was leafy, chewy and crunchy, and delightfully sweet. It helped to fill the void of hunger plaguing her belly in a most satisfying fashion. She hadn’t the mind to reflect on past meals, but she was convinced that whatever she was eating at the moment was undoubtedly the best thing she had ever tasted. She was so intoxicated by its taste that she could not stop herself from it for even a moment, not until every last morsel was licked clean from her bowl.
“Oh dear, that's unfortunate to hear your majesty.” The voice replied back, a touch of dread in his voice. “I'll see if I can fetch some medical attention.”
“No no no! That won't be necessary!” Discord waved his arms in a fluster. “It's just that... they've already come by! Yes, I've had a physician take a look at me; nothing to worry about, just need to sleep it off. So, no need to fetch anypony. In fact, best not to mention it to anypony you see, because they most likely already know.”
“Well, that's a relief to hear your highness. I'll leave you to rest then. Feel better soon.”
“Yes, thank you. Goodbye.” Discord said, listening to the sounds of hooves clopping away from the door. “Phew!” Discord breathed a sigh of relief back in his normal voice. He heard the sound of scraping across the room, and saw Celestia with her head still in her bowl. Evidently, she had engulfed every last morsel of food, and was licking the bottom of the bowl with enough force to drag it across the ground.
“All done?” Discord asked. His voice caught her attention, prompting her to look at him over her shoulder. She leaned her head back to her bowl, picking it up with her teeth, and prancing towards him. She stopped in front of him with the bowl in her mouth, looking with lively eyes, and her shimmering tail wagging energetically. “What, you want seconds or something?” Discord chuckled, snapping his claw and making the bowl vanish. “You don't want to eat too much, or else you'll be too full to go play with Fluttershy and the others.”
Celestia's eyebrows perked up at the mention of the timid pegasus, and her head cocked to the side. Discord giggled at Celestia's mannerisms. “Oh, do you remember Fluttershy?” he asked in a playful tone. Celestia turned her head to the other side, and her ears perked up as she smiled. “What about... Twilight?” Celestia's ears twitched, and her mouth opened in a wide smile. “Do you want to go see Twilight?” Celestia began to bounce up and down on her hooves in joy, and Discord laughed hugely.
“You are cracking me up, Celestia!” Discord wrapped his arms around the alicorn's head in a tight hug. With his claw, he twirled around the circumference of her neck, and a turquoise collar appeared. When he pulled back, a yellow leash connected to the collar appeared within his claw. “Alright, let's go see Fluttershy and Twilight!” With another snap of his talons, the two disappeared, leaving not a trace of themselves behind in Celestia's room.
A red rubber ball bounced across the meadow, the smooth grass of the area blown by a gentle summer breeze. The ball slowed to a roll, until it was stopped in its tracks by a fluffy white tail.The owner of the tail, a well-fed cat named Opalescence, took a break from grooming herself to inspect the toy that had bumped into her. She touched it with her paw and rolled it around, deciding it suited her fancy. She had only enjoyed its company for a few seconds, before the sound of paws rushing towards her broke her concentration. She turned her chin up to see the brown and white dog Winona panting happily towards her, her rear up in the air with a wagging tail to match her expression. The dog made a foolish error in craning its head towards the ball, and avoided a swipe of Opalescence's claw in the nick of time. With a disdained expression, Winona lifted a paw towards her, beseeching her to give up the toy. The cat responded with a vehement hiss, and her claw raised up high, ready to swipe again. Winona sat back on her haunches in defeat.
Luckily, two airborne souls were ready to assist Winona with her plight. With a silent hum of rotary blades chopping through the air, the hovering tortoise Tank flew towards Opalescence and tapped his rounded feet against her back. The sudden contact made the cat turn around, yowling at whatever fool dared to touch her when she least expected it. She was startled by a loud “Hoot!” as Owlowiscious spooked her from behind. Narrowly dodging a swipe from her, the owl backed away as he was joined by Tank. The two aerial rascals incurred the wrath of Opalescence and fled for their safety as the feline gave chase. Winona watched them move away, and then used her mouth to scoop up the rubber ball that had been relinquished.
While the various animals played amongst themselves, their six owners watched with glee from afar as they chatted amongst themselves. Even further away from them, Discord watched the two groups from behind a bush. Discord wasn't used to feeling nervous, despite having experienced it once before in Celestia's bedroom earlier that day. With leash in paw, Discord took a deep breath, in an effort to calm himself.
“Okay. We're going to go over there, introduce you, see if they'll let us join them for a bit, and then we're going to go back to the castle.” Discord rehearsed aloud. “Sounds simple enough, right Celly?” Discord looked back to the other end of the leash only to see the large white alicorn sitting on her side with her back towards him. Her long neck was dipped in front of her while her left hind leg was raised up, and soft licking sounds could be heard from the other side. Discord stared at the sight for a few seconds, until Celestia lifted her head over her side to meet his gaze, staring back at him with an innocent expression.
“You are absolutely right, my dear! Nothing to worry about.” He chuckled, tugging on her leash gently, prompting her to stand. “Just need to apply an appearance concealment spell,” A spark of light orange appeared at the tip of his paw, and shot out above Celestia's horn. It expanded into a large orb that surrounded Celestia for a moment, then vanished without a trace. “And we're good. Okay, let's go meet the others then.”
The six ponies laughed as they watched Tank and Gummy engage in what seemed to be a staring contest without end. They were caught off guard by the masculine sound of somepony clearing their throat behind them. They all turned to see Discord, greeting them with a wave of his paw and a wide smile on his face.
“Discord?” Rainbow Dash was the first to break the silence between all of them. “What are you doing here?”
“Well, it's pony pet playdate day, isn't it? We'd love to join you girls, if you'll have us”
“And what exactly do you mean by 'we'?” Rarity asked. She joined her friends as they all gasped in unison at what stood next to the draconequus. They saw at the end of the leash not princess Celestia, but a canine, much taller than any of them. Its coat was mostly white, with large patches of turquoise on its head and back, even extending down to its skinny wagging tail.
“Discord... she's beautiful!” Fluttershy exclaimed jubilantly. “But where on Earth did she come from?”
“You know, it's the strangest thing,” Discord began as he looked at Celestia. While the ponies surrounding them may have seen a tall white dog, he could still see Celestia for the regal alicorn that she was. “Right after you left the cottage to join your friends, I found her roaming around outside. No collar, no tags, no nothing. She warmed right up to me, so I thought I'd keep her.”
“But you know she probably belongs to somepony in Ponyville, Discord” Twilight addressed him earnestly. “Even if she likes you, you need to see if her rightful owners are looking for her.” As she was busy talking, Twilight hadn't noticed that the white alicorn disguised as a dog had trotted up to her. She was only aware of her presence as Celestia craned her head in and sniffed her violet mane, which made Twilight laugh.
“Yak yak yak!” Rolling his eyes, Discord's talons took the form of Twilight's purple head and mane, with her mouth moving in a pristine and pompous manner. “Yes princess, I'll put up some signs through town before the day is over. Just let me hold onto her for a while and see what it's like to have a pet, eh?” As Discord appealed to Twilight, Celestia licked her face eagerly, making the bookish princess laugh. “Would you look at that. She likes you, Twilight!”
“Okay, okay!” Twilight chuckled, gently pushing Celestia away. “You can keep her for a while. She seems nice.” Celestia's tongue hung out of her mouth with a strand of saliva dripping out as she looked towards Rarity. With a disapproving frown, the unicorn used her magic to conjure a small force field, just in case the “dog” in front of her got any ideas about getting friendly with her as well.
“Ooh, ooh, what do we call her for now?” An exuberant Pinkie Pie asked as she bounced up and down. The other ponies all craned their necks towards Discord curiously.
“Ah... her name is...” Discord's teeth clenched as he scrambled to come up with a name. His eyes looked over Celestia, wandering down to the bright yellow orb resting on her flanks. “Sunbeam!”
“Hey, look!” Rainbow Dash's voice caught their attention, and they all looked towards her to see their pets making their way towards, them their attention fixed on Celestia. “Looks like the others want to meet her too!”
“Well, we were about to get going,” Applejack began as she looked between the pets and “Sunbeam” who had just taken notice of them. “But I guess we could stay a bit longer. Winona ain't had another dog to play with in a long time.”
Celestia wandered towards the group of animals, her nose hovering over each of them curiously. She was fascinated by the smell of books and parchment coming from the brown owl, who stood still while she investigated him. And from Tank's hard tortoise shell, she took in the smell of the crisp air, and a bit of pegasus sweat from flying around with Rainbow Dash. She could smell cupcakes and other sugary odors coming from the alligator Gummy. The way he stood so still without hardly acknowledging her presence made her wary of staying around him for too long. She drew close to Opalescence, but seeing her bare her fangs and hiss made her stay clear of her. Angel Bunny stood on his haunches with his arms crossed as Celestia sniffed his ears. His right foot began to thump impatiently as she found herself captivated for quite some time by the various scents he had acquired from Fluttershy’s cottage. Eventually she had gained her fill and let the little rodent be.
The last animal that Celestia met was what captivated her the most. Only a fifth of Celestia’s size, Winona looked up at the new “pet” with wonder. Celestia craned her neck down, past her haunches and sniffed behind Winona's tail. She became more familiar with the little dog, who jumped up behind Celestia so she could do the same and get to know her a little better. After introducing themselves to one another, Winona trotted in front of Celestia, and with her eyes fixed on her, sunk her head down to the ground and wagged her tail through the air. Celestia mimicked her behavior, interpreting that the little dog was more than ready to play.
Winona barked a few times, and jumped forward slightly. The movement startled Celestia, but she understood what the dog was trying to do. Feeling a rush of energy, Celestia ran with all her might past Winona, leaving her in the dust. She looked back and noticed that despite Winona running her hardest, she had trouble keeping up with her legs not even half as long as Celestia's. The alicorn slowed her pace significantly, taking some pride that she had proven her speed was greater. Winona leapt with all her might, nipped at Celestia's neck, and the alicorn quickly rolled herself over the grass. With her hooves up near her face she and Winona bared their teeth and snarled at one another. Winona dove in and playfully chomped at Celestia's neck. Though her grip was firm, it didn't hurt at all, and Celestia continued to growl at Winona as she was bit. A few seconds passed, and Winona relented, letting Celestia roll over and stand on her hooves.
While Celestia shook her body of the grass and leaves clinging to her coat, she received a torrent of excited barks from Winona. Despite her being so much smaller, the little dog wasn't afraid to remind her new friend that she was the rookie in this place, and Winona was her superior.
“Heh, that's right Winona, you tell her!” Applejack cheered from afar. The rest of the animals had struggled to keep up with the two speed demons, and had finally reached an appropriate distance to watch them. Winona bolted away from Celestia, prompting the alicorn to give chase to her instead. With the two of them running, the group of pets once against began to follow them.
“Hey, Discord?” Pinkie Pie asked aloud. “You're going to take Sunbeam over to Fluttershy's cottage once we're finished here, right?”
Discord tapped his chin in thought. “I hadn't exactly planned on that.”
“Really? Well, where else were you gonna keep her until her owner shows up?”
Discord fought to keep himself from wincing. He had originally planned to take Celestia back to Canterlot after they dispersed. Now that they believed he was looking after somepony's lost dog, they would find it suspicious if he were to take her somewhere else.
“I suppose you have a point there, Pinkie Pie. Off to Fluttershy's she goes!”
“Fluttershy, can I please come over?” Pinkie asked the timid pegasus. “I really wanna get to know Sunbeam; she seems like such a cool doggy!” She gushed, as she and the others watched Winona writhe on the ground under her captor.
“That sounds fine.” Fluttershy replied gingerly, before turning her gaze toward the others. “In fact, why don't all of you stop by? Discord and I would love to spend more time with you.”
“We sure would, Fluttershy.” Discord said uneasily. Though he wasn't opposed to spending an evening with the others, he was a touch nervous as to how long he could keep Celestia's identity a secret from them. Though he knew her spell would keep her concealed, there was always the slip of the tongue to worry about, and Twilight's gift in magic was another factor he had to account. As he worried silently to himself, he noticed that Winona was prancing towards Applejack, no large alicorn anywhere near her.
Snapping out of his trance, he looked up to see Celestia walking by herself, intently sniffing the ground. She locked in on one spot of the grass, and stepped with her hind legs up to her fore legs, forcing her back to hunch. With her rump above the ground, Celestia's beautiful wafting tail rose up into the air just slightly.
“What is she doing?” Discord murmured to himself as he watched Celestia's peculiar ritual. His eyes opened wide in panic as he looked just a bit lower and received his answer. “No! No no no no, not that!” Discord waved his arms as he frantically begged in vain. It was too late, however; the damage had been done. Discord slumped over in defeat as he heard the other ponies giggling next to him.
“Looks like she's leavin' ya a present.” Applejack snickered, reaching into her saddlebag, and pulling out a roll of plastic bags. “Here ya go; something ta gift wrap it in!” She teased as she tore one off and held it near him.
Unamused, Discord turned his head towards her, while the farmer curled her lips in to keep herself from laughing too hard.
“Gee, real thoughtful of you Applejack!” Discord snapped, swatting the bag from her hoof. Out of thin air, a large wooden post with a metal scoop on the end appeared, which he grabbed in frustration. “But I’m good, thanks.” He said, stomping away from them.
“Aw, come on Discord!” Pinkie Pie called after him. Her teeth were clenched together as she fought back a fit of giggles. “Don’t be such a party pooper!” The pony of parties and the rest of her friends broke out into an uproar of laughter at the situation at hoof.
“Oh ha ha, so funny!” Discord mocked in a bubbly feminine tone. “Don’t be such a party pooper Discord, see what I did there? Ha ha ha, whatever.” He grumbled bitterly. Just a few feet from him, Celestia looked over her shoulder while her hindlegs kicked up some swipes of dirt and grass over what she had just left behind. She suddenly noticed Discord's presence and wagged her tail happily with a smile, while he glared at her fiercely.
“The things I do for you, Sunbutt.” He mumbled, before Celestia leaned forward and licked his face appreciatively.
The group sat in a circle in the living room of Fluttershy's cottage, Fluttershy herself sharing the recliner next to the window with Discord, who had Celestia sitting on the floor beside him. The rest of the ponies were stretched out comfortably on pillows and blankets on the floor in front of them. Each of them had a cup of tea and a plate of cookies that Fluttershy had prepared, Pinkie Pie offering a helping hoof with the cookies. The treats were crisp with a soft interior, and savoring sweet, with an enchanting smell emanating from them as well.
“And so I said to her 'Your dress, darling? Oh, I thought that was one of your blankets!'”
Discord and the rest of Rarity's friends erupted into a chorus of laughter at the unicorn's humorous anecdote. While the group enjoyed each other’s banter, their pets kept themselves occupied throughout the cottage. Opalescence kept her claws busy as she ran them across a large scratching post near one of the walls, while Winona laid on the floor away from the group and bit at a squeaky toy in the shape of a fish. Tank enjoyed the act of hovering lazily through the air by his copter, while Owlowiscious kept himself perched at the highest point in the house to watch over everything. While the tiny alligator Gummy sat next to Pinkie Pie, staring blankly at nothing in particular, the sight of Fluttershy’s Angel Bunny was very much occupied.
Discord noticed that the little rabbit’s sight switched from Celestia and to the draconequus himself, as he sat on the side of the couch next to Fluttershy. Angel had a look of disapproval on his face, which wasn’t unlike him. But his eyes seemed narrowed on him suspiciously. It was clear that something wasn’t sitting right with him.
Did Angel know what Discord was up to? Could he see past the spell that had been put on Celestia? Did the spell even work on animals? Discord took a sip of his tea as he dwelled on the perplexing thought. If it didn’t work on animals, then did Winona just see a large alicorn playing with her, rather than another dog?
The sensation of something soft and warm poking against his leg broke him from his thoughts. Discord noticed that Celestia had her nose brushing across his leg, her eyes transfixed on the few cookies he had left. She was drooling hungrily from the smell filling her nostrils.
“Aw, somepony hungry?” He teased, holding up a cookie in his claw and dangling it in the air, her eyes following as he moved it about. “I don't blame you; they are just scrumptious, after all.” Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie giggled humbly at his casual appraisal of their work. Stretching his claw out, he gently placed a cookie on the tip of Celestia's snout. He drew back, and it remained balanced as she stood still. To her, nothing else in the room existed; it was just her and the cookie, as well as the command she was waiting for to allow her to eat it.
A snap of his claw, and in one fluid motion, Celestia popped her nose up, and snapped up the treat in her mouth. She loudly crunched it between her teeth, as Discord offered her a pat between her ears.
“Nice moves!” Rainbow Dash said in admiration. “Does she know how to catch?”
“Only way way to find out.” He said, before turning back to Celestia. “Go see Rainbow Dash!” He instructed her actively. “She has something for you, go see her!” Celestia turned her head to the left to see the blue pegasus whistling to her, holding a cookie in her hoof. The alicorn sprang from her haunches and moved towards Rainbow Dash. She sat down in front of her politely, her sparkling tail wagging across the wooden floor as the others watched.
“Come on Sunny, beg for it” Rainbow said to her. Celestia leaned back on her hindlegs, her front hooves up in front of her chest submissively. “There you go; now catch!”
The pegasus flung her cookie forward, and Celestia caught it in her jowls. Applejack, Pinkie Pie and even Rarity clopped their hooves together, softly cheering the princess for her efforts.
“You know Discord, I'm ashamed to be saying this,” Twilight began as she watched the spectacle before her. “Part of me is hoping that whoever owns her doesn't end up coming to find her after all. She just feels like she fits here with us.”
“You don't say?” Discord replied, his mouth full of the cookie had had taken a bite of. “Well, if you girls like her so much, I might have to bring her around more often then.”
“Come on, two for two!” Rainbow Dash said, holding another cookie up while Celestia stayed upright on her haunches. When she tossed the treat however, Celestia snapped her mouth a bit too early, and the cookie ended up hitting her nose and flying off to the side. Celestia looked confused for a moment, until she saw the snack land several feet away from her.
“That's what you get, Sunny” Discord teased. “You're getting too eager, so you didn't catch it.”
Celestia paid her master no mind, and instead pranced away from Rainbow Dash to claim her prize. However, just as she opened her mouth to scoop up her treat, a small brown squirrel scampered in front of her and picked it up in its little fingers. Celestia's brows rose in offense. She knew very well that cookie had been meant for her. It was only because she had mistimed her catch that the squirrel was even able to hold it. Celestia pleadingly reached a hoof towards the squirrel, who turned away from her, keeping the confectionery to itself. And just to spite her, the little creature even stuck its tongue out in defiance.
A frustrated growl escaped Celestia's throat, and her powerful white wings flared out from either side, making the squirrel tremble in fear. She wanted that cookie, and she was prepared to take it back by any means necessary. The squirrel took hold of its stolen prize in its mouth, and ran toward the right wing of the living room. Celestia thrust herself towards the furry thief, her hooves scratching against the wooden floor in a frenzy. The noise caught the attention of Discord and the rest of the ponies just in time to see them rushing towards the small wooden staircase leading up to Fluttershy's birdhouse.
“Cele- Sunbeam, no!” Discord shouted, albeit too late. Just as he had screamed, Celestia smashed hard into the staircase, roughly cleaving it in half and sending a mess of birdseed into the air. As it fell towards the floor, the feathered residents poked through the tiny hole and took flight as their home crashed to the ground. The birds flew over Celestia's dazed eyes for a moment, before she shook herself and regained her focus, sending them away. She looked ahead to see the brown squirrel taking a bite of the cookie that was rightfully hers. She jumped to her hooves and lunged after him, sending more birdseed flying into the air. Her thunderous galloping startled the various bunnies, otters and mice in Fluttershy's cottage. The once peaceful living room had in a matter of seconds been transformed into a stage show of chaos with birds flying about the air and critters scurrying across the floor in a panic. Fluttershy found it difficult to decide which of her pets to console first, and the other ponies could only take cover under their hooves or wings as the commotion unfurled.
In the middle of the commotion of animals, Winona and Opalescence retreated to their owners, while Owlowiscious and Tank did what they could to stay afloat above the commotion. Angel himself took shelter underneath the sofa, not so much out of fear, but rather annoyance at all of the commotion. Gummy however seemed not to be aware that there had been any change in the atmosphere around him. He closed his eyelids as bits of food and dirt were tossed through the air, and it took several seconds for him to open them up again, not even slightly phased by what was taking place around him.
The squirrel jumped over Celestia's attempt to snatch him in her jaws, and she crashed hard into the stairs. Before she could mount another pursuit, Discord materialized behind her, wrapping his arms underneath her forelegs and holding her back as she wriggled against his constraint. Receiving a face full of glittery hair, Discord craned his neck over her mane to keep it away from his mouth.
“Hey! You stop this right now, or we're going home!” Discord berated her as she tried desperately to break free. His words fell on deaf ears as Celestia's focus was still on the rodent who had taken what was rightfully hers, and munching away at it with glee. A powerful growl built in her throat, one with enough force that even Discord could feel it vibrate against his chest.
“ARF! WOOF WOOF WOOF!”
Unconsciously tapping into her seldomly used royal Canterlot voice, Celestia's barks thundered throughout the room.The sound was deafening to those within earshot, and it shattered the windows of the cottage. The frightened animals retreated out through the glassless openings, and fled towards the expansive lush of the Everfree Forest.
Fluttershy shook her head in attempt to clear the ringing in her ears. A look of panic came over her face as she looked at the state of her home. Discord, seeing the mare who had first befriended him looking so upset, dropped Celestia from his hold, and the alicorn pranced towards the cookie that the squirrel had left behind in fear.
“Fluttershy, I am so sorry.” Discord began, his claw and paw clasped together pleadingly. “I never meant to-”
“My animals!” Fluttershy wailed hysterically. “They went towards the forest! Poor babies, they're not safe there!” In an instant, Fluttershy took to the air and glided out of the broken window.
“Come on y'all, let's see if we can help her.” Applejack encouraged the others, still a bit out of sorts. “I'll betcha if the five of us help her, we can get those varmints wrangled up in no time!” The ponies in front of her all nodded solemnly, before prancing towards the front door, their pets who had stayed behind accompanying them as well.
“Hey, six of us, right?” Discord said feebly as he watched them all leave towards the door. In a flash of light, he was donned in a brown jacket with a large net in his paw. “Heck, I could probably-”
“I believe you and that beast of yours have done more than enough.” Rarity cut him off harshly, before flipping her spiral mane upwards and closing the door behind her with her magic. Discord was stricken with grief as he realized he was right back where he had started so long ago. He was reminded of the day he had angered Fluttershy and come so close to losing her friendship; her, the only pony who had ever seen more than just a fiend and given him a chance at friendship. She and the others once again disapproved of him.
A loud crunching sound snapped him out of his thoughts. He looked to the side to see Celestia laying on her belly, swallowing the last bits of the cookie she had reclaimed, and licking the floor for remaining crumbs. A scowl appeared on his face as he connected the real reason this travesty had happened. This was a mess she had caused, but he was the one taking all the blame for it. There was plenty of blame to go around, and he was sure that she would get hers.
Blinking himself out of his costume, Discord materialized a roll of newspaper into his paw as he stepped towards the unsuspecting pony. He reared his arm up and delivered a swift blow to her rump with the paper, and Celestia let out a frightened yelp as she turned around towards him.
“Bad!” He scolded her viciously. “Very, very naughty! You have been causing me nothing but trouble since I introduced you to them, and I'm the one having to take all of the heat for it!”
Celestia looked up with pitiful eyes as he overshadowed her. She couldn't understand what he was screaming, but she understood that he was angry. And the way he was staring, she knew he was angry at her.
“I thought this was going to be fun for both of us, but you, you've just been a little brat. If it were a year ago, I may have enjoyed that little bit of chaos you just caused. But it might have cost me my best friend right now, so I'm not enjoying it in the slightest bit! So here's what's gonna happen.” Discord snapped his claw, and Celestia’s collar appeared around her neck, the other end wrapped around the leg of Fluttershy's staircase. “I'm going to go see if I can help the others find the animals you scared away, and hope they forgive me enough to call me their friend. You, missy, are going to stay here, and not do anything. Understand?” Celestia looked from the leash to Discord, her back hunched as her bottom lip trembled. “Don't you give me that look; I'm not in the mood for it.”
In the blink of an eye, Discord vanished from the tattered living room. Celestia tried once to step away from the staircase, but the tug on her neck indicated that her efforts were in vain. Circling about the floor once, she slumped down onto her legs, her head resting on her hoof. A dismal sigh escaped her nose, and she closed her eyes. She wasn't sure what she had done to upset her master, but she was sorry for it. She wished she could make him understand that. But he was furious with her, and didn't want to see her anymore. Her sorrow made her feel exhausted, and she didn't fight the urge to sleep. She hoped for a moment that when she woke up, he would be there, and he would be happy with her again. But she couldn't know for certain; all she could know was that she wanted to sleep.
There had once been a name for the forest outside of the Castle of the Two Sisters. Since the castle had been abandoned following the Battle for the Dawn, the forests demeanor had grown unruly beyond recognition. Its trees had grown tall and misshapen, their shrubbery so wild it blocked out the sun. The creatures who roamed there were no longer small and charming, but fierce and dangerous. To remark its change in environment, ponies began to refer to it as the Everfree Forest. Only the bravest ponies dared cross its threshold, except in the case of dire emergency. And only one foreign soul had ever been brave enough to call the dark, mysterious forest her home.
However, just as things in this world can change for the worst, they can just as easily change for the best in the blink of an eye. Though it had nearly consumed Ponyville, Twilight Sparkle and her friends had given up their treasured elements of harmony in order to restore balance to the disorder of the forest. The dark cloud of maliciousness had been lifted from the forest, and harmony had been allowed to return to the wilderness once again. However harmonious, it was still by its nature a forest, fit only for critters who were their own masters and deemed the outdoors their everlasting home. It was certainly no place for animals who had been raised in a peaceful cottage, with a roof and walls protecting them from the environment outside. Fit for their needs or not, the birds, otters, squirrels and bunnies who had escaped from Fluttershy's cottage decided for the moment that an ever expansive forest might be a better alternative than being eaten by the barking creature that had scared them off.
“Hey, get back here!” Rainbow Dash called to the squirrel she was in hot pursuit of. The little brown creature climbed up a tree and scurried across to the other side of its trunk, out of Dash's view. The pegasus swooped to the other side, only for the little rascal to dart immediately back around. The two circled around the tree several times, until Rainbow Dash found herself becoming dizzy at the repeated motions.
Her other friends weren't having any more luck themselves. Applejack jumped left and right rapidly, dodging an unrelenting assault of acorns flying through the air. Winona growled at the attackers, making them scurry away in a fright. Pinkie Pie seemed to do fairly well keeping up with the otters, but rather than catch them, she seemed to have been caught in a game of hide and seek with them. The only one who seemed to be having any real luck was Fluttershy, who had managed to coax a bunny out of hiding from the bushes and into her forelegs. She also had a number of birds clinging to her mane and shoulders. But with her hooves full, she realized she wouldn't be able to do much good until she could relinquish the animal safely, while ensuring it wouldn't run off again.
“Are you sure Rarity and I can't use our magic, Fluttershy?” Twilight Sparkle asked as she watched the yellow pegasus hover gingerly in the air. “We could probably catch them a lot quicker that way.”
“I'm sure you could,” Fluttershy replied. “But I just don't know if it's a good idea. These creatures are so small and gentle; I don't know if your magic might be too rough on them, or worse- it might scare them.” Fluttershy ran her hoof across the bunny's ears, while it closed its eyes in satisfaction.
“Well then, I guess Rarity and I'll just stand here and look pretty.” Twilight said in a huff.
“I won't object to that.” Rarity said, flipping her mane over her shoulder and lifting her left hoof to her chest while turning to the side, in a graceful pose.Twilight raised an eyebrow, noting that Rarity might have looked a little more glamorous if she didn’t have her plump cat resting on her back at the moment.
In the blink of an eye, parts of the forest sprang to life, the grass that the otters stood on expanding and towering over them, until they joined at the top to form a small round cage. The bark of the trees shot up around the squirrels to prevent their movements, even as they twitched about and tried to claw their way out. And the bushes that the rabbits were hiding in formed into large wooden baskets, soft and warm blankets inside to keep their fragile bodies safe.
As the ponies stared about in confusion, the orchestrator of the commotion revealed himself, dusting his claw and paw off as he strode towards them. “That's right Twilight; your magic might be just dandy for blasting overpowered centaurs bent on ruling Equestria; but it just won't do when it comes to handling pwecious widdle wabbits.” Discord mocked her as he levitated the wooden baskets along with all the other confined animals he had behind him.
“Discord, did you find all of them?” Fluttershy asked astonished.
“Swept the whole forest. Count 'em up for yourself!”
As Fluttershy swooped around the floating animals and counted them up, Applejack removed her stetson and shook some of the acorns that had built up at the top. “You know, we mighta gotten off to a rocky start,” She began, before replacing her hat on top of her head. “But I gotta admit, I'm finding it pretty hard to stay mad at him anymore.”
Discord allowed himself to grin just as Fluttershy flew back down towards him. “That's all of them!”
“Great! Then let's get them out of here.” Discord willed a large gathering of roots and vines from the Earth, and attached each of them to the confinements. They miraculously rose to the air as he took flight above the trees, keeping them all tethered by holding the ends of the vines like one would strings to balloons floating above them.
With Gummy’s grip at the end of her curly mane, Pinkie Pie let out an amused snort as she watched the animals floating above Discord. “Hey girls, look! Balloon animals!”
Rainbow Dash clutched her stomach from laughing while floating in the air. Twilight and Rarity however appeared as if their brains had shut down from trying to process how Pinkie Pie had come up with such a pun on the spot. Shaking their heads, they followed Pinkie Pie and Applejack on the ground, while Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash joined Discord up above the trees, guiding the airborne animals back home towards the cottage.
Celestia's ears twitched as she heard a faint tap from across the room. She blinked leisurely as she slowly woke up, her eyes darting in all directions in search of what had made that noise. She tilted her head upward against the floor, and saw from a sideways perspective a tall bird on top of the mountain of spilled birdseed. Celestia rolled over onto her chest to look at the creature more intently. It had fine, smooth feathers jutting out from its head, and dark points on the ends of its wings. It's long, pointed beak darted in and out of the feed quickly, pecking away at the free meal it had discovered.
It was so preoccupied with eating that it had no idea Celestia had it in her sight. A sense of ambition swelled in Celestia's chest as she rose to her hooves. Though she wanted desperately to bound towards it and snare it in her jaws, she had enough sense about her to remain patient and stealthy. She would claim her prize in due time, and when she did, she could present it to her master Discord when he returned. Her tail swished quietly as she imagined it: his face would light up in joy as she put it on the floor in front of him, and he would praise her and tell her she was a good girl, all while patting her head or rubbing her belly.
Unfortunately, when she was nearing the unsuspecting bird, her collar tugged at her neck, reminding her that she was still tied to the staircase. The sudden pull made her hoof scratch against the floor, and the noise alerted the bird to her presence. Dread overcame Celestia as she watched the bird spread its wings and jump away from the mountain of seed. In an instant, she realized her prize was getting away, and that she would have nothing to present to her master if she couldn't stop it. Celestia pushed through the discomfort of her collar tugging at her neck and bound forward with all her might. It took some great effort on her part, but the post at the bottom of the staircase came apart with a loud and vicious crack.
She was free. Celestia bounded towards the winged creature, chasing it in circles around the room, until it managed to fly out the window. But Celestia wasn't giving up that easy. She leapt through the air, and cleared the edges of the broken window in a single bound. Outside, with the bird just a few hooves above her, she gave chase to the creature, barking at it intently as they fled from the sight of Fluttershy's cottage, in the direction of the little town of Ponyville.