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// Chapter 1: When Duty Calls 
// Story: When Discord Calls (Name pending) 
// by Moonlight_Glimmer 
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	Closing the magic with her book, a young, purple mare sat pondering. Her straight, highlighted, sapphire mane rested casually on the bed she lay on. In deep reflection, her entire body lay still, from her horn to her wings. Eyes shut, the alicorn seemed to be considering the plausibility of the information she had just read. Several moments passed, until a sudden, high pitched voiced echoed across the room.
"Gee, that Doctor Whooves sure can write a good book!"
Startled, the purple mare jolted off of her previous resting place and landed on the cold, crystalline floor beside it. Looking behind her, it was quite clear what caused the ruckus. A pair of cerulean eyes and a wide grin staring into her face, the purple mare inched backwards to obtain a clearer view. In front of her stood a pink earth pony with a trio of balloons adorning her flank. She seemed to be brimming with energy; even her curly, raspberry mane seemed to be grinning with joy. The purple alicorn knew it could only be one pony whom could be standing before her.
"Pinkie Pie, you really shouldn't sneak up on me like that. You scared me half to death. At least KNOCK before you barge in here. Speaking of which, when did you-"
"Sorry, Twilight! I didn't want to bother you while you were reading so I figured that I'd just sit and wait until you were finished so that I can talk to you and now your done so I can talk to you about-"
"Whoa, Pinkie. Slow down. First of all, how long have you been in here?"
"I've been here the whole time."
"Oh, okay... Wait, what?"
"I was walking through Ponyville on my way back to Sugarcube Corner after going shopping for Mr. and Mrs. Cake when all of a sudden my cutie mark was all glowie and it went like 'Wooo! Woooooo-'" 
Thoroughly confused and slightly annoyed, Twilight placed her hoof in the chatterbox's mouth. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, the Princess of Friendship gave her overzealous friend a strained response.
"Pinkie Pie, breathe. Then continue SLOWLY."
After Twilight removed her hoof, the pink bundle of energy simmered down from her unusually high state.
"All done?"
Pinkie nodded and continued her story.
"First off, Mrs. Cake asked me to go pick up some ingredients from the market. I had just bought the 50 pound bag of flower when I saw you through the window of your castle. You looked sad so I decided to plan you a surprise party. I rushed back to Sugarcube Corner after I finished the rest of the shopping. The weird thing is, when I was hopping my way here, my cutie mark started glowing and stuff. I galloped my way here to tell you, but-"
"You're cutie mark was glowing? That must mean the map wants you to go someplace. Why'd you wait for something so important? Also, how did you get in if the door was locked?"
"Hehe, that's easy, Twilight. Remember when I said I was gonna give you a surprise party?"
"Yeah..." Twilight hesitated but reluctantly responded.
"Well that's when I decided that if I was going to surprise you, I really needed to surprise you, so I grabbed a few balloons and floated up and climbed through the window." With this, Pinkie gestures towards the open window near the bed before continuing. "I saw you reading, so I decided to wait until you finished." Satisfied, the pink earth pony grinned from ear to ear.
". . ."
". . ."
Finally tired of the silence, the purple mare asked a question. "Pinkie?"
"Yes, Twilight?"
"Aren't you going to go see where the map wants you to go?"
"Oh, yeah! Heeheehee~"
With that, the pink hurricane bolted out of the room and out of sight. Giving a sigh of relief, Twilight prepared to head out as well, curious of the destination set for the party pony.


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Trotting into the map room, Twilight was greeted by the most bizarre of sights. Pinkie stood in front of her beloved party cannon, loading it for Celestia knows what. The real oddity, however, was what was being shoved down the barrel.
"Uh...Pinkie? I don't think that elephant will fit."
"Of course it will fit, silly. This baby can hold parties of any size! Besides, what's an animal party without an African elephant?"
Confused and unwilling to delve further, the purple princess glanced towards the map table in the center of the room. Sure enough, Three balloons circled a location on the map. On further inspection, the location was somewhat surprising.
"Fluttershy's cottage? That doesn't make any sense. Fluttershy's out with Spike for the annual dragon migration. Why is the map sending you there?"
"Beats me. Maybe I've got to throw Fluttershy an amazing welcome back party?"
After several moments of thought, an idea pops into Twilight's head, which she quickly dismisses. "Hmm...No, it couldn't be."
"Couldn't be what?"
"Well, it's just that- Pinkie did your voice change?"
"It wasn't me, Twilight. I thought YOU said it"
"Both of you are wrong. I'm over here."
Looking towards the source of the voice, both mares were greeted by a familiar face. A scientific impossiblity, the creature that hovered before them was a mix and match of body parts of different animals. His long snake-like body was equipped with all sorts accessories: an eagle claw, a deer antler, a pegasus wing, and a goat beard on his pony face, among other things. A creature such as that can only be describe as the unnatural draconequus. Twilight, however, knew him by another name.
"Discord." Gritting her teeth, Twilight steeled her body in a battle-ready pose, unsure of what awaited her.
Giving an unnervingly deceptive grin, the draconequus slithered between his pony friends. "Really Twilight, is that any way to greet a friend? I mean, I simply stopped by to say hello. That is what friends do, isn't it?"
"Sorry, force of habit." Twilight, remembering the events of the past few months, recalled their unsteady friendship and relaxed her stance, albeit slightly. "After all, your idea of 'hello' usually comes with some unexpected...surprise."
With that, a small explosion came from the ceiling as confetti rained down. Pinkie, brimming with joy, couldn't contain herself and burst into her trademark laughter. "Hee hee hee~"
Annoyed, Twilight stared into her friends eyes with an intense disdain. "Now is not the time, Pinkie."
"It wasn't me. I mean, don't get me wrong, I tried to do it, but the confetti was already there."
Grinning from ear to ear, Discord had a look of triumph on his face like no other. Warping to Pinkie's party cannon and resting his eagle claw on the barrel, he spoke about the strange event. "Why, it was me who set off the confetti, after all, what's a surprise without confetti?
"That's what I was telling Fluttershy last week. She was too scared to listen, though."
Both of the kindred souls shared a hardy giggle while their "guest of honor" sat with a look of disbelief. Shrugging the moment aside, the princess cleared her throat and proceeded to the task at hand. "What is it you that you want, Discord? No offense, but we were kinda in the middle of something."
Discord seemed to ponder this for a moment wile stroking his goat beard. "What was it? Oh yes, I remember now!" Warping to Pinkie Pie, he clasped his paw and claw around her right hoof. "Miss Pie, I am planning a party for all of Ponyville and I was hoping that you would help me with the preparations. Surely you would be able to help a friend in their time of need?"
Staring into his puppy-like eyes, Pinkie had an uncharacteristically serious expression on my face. After a moment of silent staring, Pinkie's face softened as she gleefully proclaimed, "Of course I will! You had me when you said party, I mean a party is so much fun! I even love the word party, it's more fun than a soiree but it can be crazier than a shindig. Honestly who doesn't lo-"
Placing a hoof in the party pony's mouth, Twilight took charge of the conversation while Pinkie obliviously mumbled with her mouth full. "I'm terribly sorry, but Pinkie here's got other things to do today. Just look at the map over there." As she motioned to the map with her other hoof, she quickly needed to double take to make sure she had seen correctly. Mortified, she rushed over to the map, speaking with a rather rushed, distressed tone. "Ohmygosh, whereisit?Imeanitwasjustrighttherebutwherecoulditbeit'snotlikeitwouldjustgetupandgosomewhere."
"Could you be looking for THIS, by chance?"
Quickly snapping her focus towards the voice, her worst fears were realized. There, above Discord's head, three brightly colored balloons circled, as if to indicate something. "No," she continued, "it couldn't be."
"Oh, it is."
"The map..."
"Mhmm."
"The map that tells us where we're needed..."
"Yeah."
"Is telling us..."
"Indeed."
"To help YOU?"
"It would sure seem that way. Friends ARE supposed to help their friends when they are in trouble. Fluttershy taught me that. Yet ponies call YOU the Princess of Friendship."
Seething with rage, Twilight's cheek turned a deep shade of red. She could not believe that Discord was the one in need. Realizing she had no say in the matter, she reluctantly closed her eyes and tilted her head slightly downwards. "I guess you're right," she mumbled under her breath. "I'm sorry."
Satisfied, Discord teleported under Twilight's muzzle and gave as heartfelt a reply as he could give. "I forgive you, after all, friends fight. It's a sign that they care." Directing his focus to the other mare, who just so happened to still be chatting away, he spoke in a cheerful tone, eager to get things going. "Shall we be off my pink party pony friend?"
"...and then I said, 'Gummy, dresses aren't for eating.'" Realizing that no one was paying attention, Pinkie shyly blushed and nodded.
Sweeping Pinkie up and onto his back, Discord shifted his attention back to the purple mare. Resolved in the matter, he cleared his throat and proceeded to speak, despite Twilight's lingering disapproval. "Don't you worry your pretty little head, Twilight. I promise that I will make Miss Pie's safety my number one priority." Moving towards the window, Discord seemed to remember something and turned back towards Twilight. "Oh, and one more thing..."
Staring impatiently, the purple alicorn waited to hear what her house guest had to say.
"The party will be ready ten days from now at town hall. It starts at exactly midnight, so be sure to tell your friends in advance. Toodles~" With that he snapped his lion's paw and both he and his traveling companion turned to smoke and flew out of the window.
Frustrated, Twilight sat and mumbled under her breath for several moments before she came to a sudden realization. "Ten days? That's the day of the Summer Sun Celebration!"