//------------------------------//
// Chapter 5: A New Home 
// Story: Twin Chaos 
// by Moon Glow 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 5
A New Home





"We should be at my cottage shortly from here." Fluttershy spoke as she lead Ebony and Ivory out of the Everfree Forest.

After discussing the living arrangements with Olivine, everypony made their way back to Ponyville. Rainbow Dash, being the fastest, flew out of the forest and returned to work with the Weather Team.

Twilight was quick as well, returning to her castle to tell Spike about the twins and to no doubt look through every book on the subject. Not to mention write to Princess Celestia about the group's latest discovery.

Applejack returned to Sweet Apple Acres to tend to the day's farm-work before breaking the news of Ponyville's newest residents to her family.

Rarity made her way back to Carousel Boutique to not only continue working on her lines, but to ponder on how to dress the twins. It made things a bit easier for the unicorn after Ebony informed her that she was allergic to wool and both twins gave her their color preferences.

Pinkie Pie, being her usual self, sped into Ponyville to spread the news about the twins. However, she had to make a Pinkie Promise to not tell where exactly the twins were staying in order for the pair of Draconequus children to retain some privacy.

And Discord teleported away from the ruins so as to begin work on developing the twins' room.

"We again thank you for letting us stay with you, Fluttershy." Ivory spoke up.

Ebony nodded in agreement with her sister.

"You and the others have been so kind to us. I, for one, don't know how we can repay you."

Fluttershy blushed at the compliment and thanks from the two Draconequus fillies.

"Oh! Don't worry about that."

Yet, Fluttershy's mind was saying something else.

"Just bond with Discord. He is your father, after all."

The revelation was still echoing in Fluttershy's mind. She was very surprised not at the fact that Discord never knew he had children, but mostly on the fact that he had made a friend and fallen in love years before he met Fluttershy and the other ponies. It almost made her a bit envious of Olivine. But circumstances were different at the time.

She had thought the story of Discord and Olivine's meeting and courtship rather romantic. Granted, it was sad that they were forced apart for fifteen years. But at the same time, there may be hope for the romance yet. Fluttershy could see how much Discord felt for Olivine when they met her for the first time that day. There was love in his voice when he spoke to the witch.

But it would be sometime before there would be a need to go into that. For now, all Fluttershy had to think about was housing the twins and how to get them and Discord to bond. While there was a chance he may resume his courtship with Olivine upon her arrival, there was still the matter of his two daughters. She also had to figure out on how to help Discord with his parental duties. It would've been easier if the twins were ten years younger. But Discord got a pair of teenagers instead. And from what Fluttershy had experienced in handling young animals, it's that teenagers were very difficult to raise.

The butter-colored mare broke out of her thoughts when her cottage came into view. She wondered what Discord had planned for his daughters' room and was both curious and afraid to find out. Turning to the twins, Fluttershy spoke.

"There it is. Home, sweet home."

The twins took in the amazement that was Fluttershy's cottage. It looked like something from a fairy tale like Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, which was further proven by the abundance of animals that went about their day around the cottage.

Fluttershy opened the door and allowed the twins inside. Due to their increased height, the sisters had to bend over a bit in order to get inside. Especially Ebony with her horns. Fluttershy then pointed to the staircase.

"Your room is up the stairs and down the hall on your right. I'm going to see about making a proper breakfast."

The sound of the twins' stomachs growling was evidence against any protests Ebony and Ivory could speak of.

As Fluttershy left to work on breakfast, the twins walked up the stairs and followed her directions to their room. As they made their way to the door, Ivory looked to her sister with a smile.

"I still can't believe it. We've finally found our dad, Ebbie!"

Ebony nodded, though she was not as thrilled as her sister.

"This is definitely not how I pictured us meeting our father, Ivy. I mean, I for one never expected to learn that we are half-human among the other things we've just learned."

"Or that Dad is a dracon…dracone…?"

"Draconequus. Our father's a Draconequus." Ebony concluded Ivory's sentence.

Ivory noticed something in her sister's speech and voiced her concern.

"You're not calling him 'Dad.' Why is that?"

Realizing her sister noticed her apprehension, Ebony proceeded to explain to Ivory.

"I'm not ready to call him 'Dad' just yet, Ivy. I'm not even sure he wants us to call him 'Dad.' Just…let's take some time for the three of us to get used to each other. Then maybe, just maybe, I'll call him that."

Ivory didn't say anything after that. Her twin was right. While the younger twin was happy to have finally found her father, she hadn't considered the possibility that Discord didn't want to be their father. And while Ivory was ready to jump at the very idea that he was their father, Ebony was more cautious than her. She didn't want to be disappointed.

All thoughts broke from the twins' minds when they opened the door that led to their room. Expecting either an empty room or a storage closet, neither twin expected the warped reality before them. It looked like an abstract painting mixed with themes from "Alice in Wonderland." Instead of a wooden ceiling, there was endless twilit sky. There were no walls, but seemingly endless land. There were trees that, instead of fruits and nuts, bore treats instead. It was an orchard of gumdrop trees, chocolate bonbon and truffle trees, lollipop trees, and trees that had chocolate coins. There were cotton candy shrubs and a chocolate milk river with gummi fish splashing about while several gummi worms made minor appearances from the multi-colored grass floor. The two pieces of furniture they could identify were beds, though one was carved in a large mushroom cap while the other was made entirely of cloud.

Ivory was impressed. Ebony, however, was shocked with disbelief.

They noticed that in the center of the room was Discord as he pondered the room. He snapped his claws and the pink color of the sky-ceiling changed to a rich violet.

"No, no, no! This is all wrong."

He once again snapped his claws, causing the chromatic floor to develop a black and white checked pattern, which warped into little hills. Having seen Discord's chaos magic for the first time, the twins were bewildered.

Soon, the twins started to have different looks on their faces. Ivory's held giddiness and amazement at what her father was capable of. Ebony, on the other hand, was trying to find words to what she was feeling other than total disbelief. She stood at the doorway, trying to resume all functions in her brain, while Ivory ran into the room and approached their father.

"This is amazing! Did you do all of this?" she asked.

Hearing the voice of his youngest daughter, Discord turned around to face Ivory. His surprised expression turned into a mischievous smile as he tapped the tip of Ivory's snout with this lion finger.

"Why, indeed I did. Though I was planning on this to being a surprise."

Ivory beamed as she took in the fantastical scenery.

"We are surprised! Aren't we, Ebony?"

Ebony didn't say anything other than a giving off a slight nod. This "room" was more to Ivory's taste then Ebony's.

The only thing she could say was, "Has Fluttershy seen this room?"

On que, a gasp came from behind Ebony. The dark-maned Draconequus turned around as she moved to the side, allowing shocked Fluttershy to view the room.

"What…what happened in here?"

Clearly not taking Fluttershy's shock as a bad thing, Discord proudly puffed up his chest as he spoke.

"Why, I'm in the middle of decorating my daughters' room. At first, I thought about space. But when I made the room larger, it just seemed…boring. So, I added a touch of chaos here and there. Still needs a little work, though."

But Fluttershy wasn't happy.

"Discord! I wouldn't have minded if you had asked me to make such changes. But did you ever considered what Ebony and Ivory want for their room? I mean, they may have different tastes."

That was true. Despite having been born as identical twins, Ebony and Ivory were as different as black and white. It was even in their names and hair colors.

"She's right…" Ebony managed to mutter.

Ivory, however, grew an impish grin as she decided to change the subject by asking her father a question.

"Can Ebony and I do that kind of magic, too?"

The trio gawked at Ivory for a minute before displaying different reactions. Fluttershy's was one of disapproval. Ebony's was one of curiosity. Discord, however, was thrilled as he gave off a mischievous smirk.

"Why not? You are my daughters, after all. And since I am the Lord of Chaos, I guess that makes you two the 'Princesses of Chaos.' So, why not?"

He then got an idea as snapped his eagle talons. There was a quick flash of light and all of the chaos in the room vanished. The room was as it had originally been: a simple tan room with two beds long enough to hold a single Draconequus each. The change was a relief to Ebony, but a disappointment to Ivory. That was…until Discord spoke.

"How about I leave your room as it is. That way, you two can practice at the end of the day."

He then laughed at his own words.

"Oh! What am I saying? Of course you won't need practice. You're my children, for Celestia's sake. You'll be masters of chaos-based magic in no time."

Once again, the twins were interested, though Ivory's was showing more vibrantly than Ebony's. The latter, along with the hostess mare, were just relieved that the room was back to normal, minus the change in height to accommodate the twins. Discord teleported behind his daughters and placed a paw on Ebony's right shoulder and a claw on Ivory's left.

"Think of your temporary room as a blank canvas, my little chaotic artists."

Another flash of light and Discord's head transformed into a talking oyster.

"All of Equestria is your oyster. All we need to do is to help you two find your pearls."

Fluttershy narrowed her eyes at the Lord of Chaos as she tapped the mollusk shell to gain his attention.

"Now, Discord. Don't lead the girls down the path you 'left' long ago. You don't want them to become statues in the Canterlot Gardens like you were, right?"

Oyster Discord reverted to his original form, frowning at Fluttershy's words. While he wanted his children to discover the joys of causing chaos, the Element of Kindness did have a point. He just met his daughters and he didn't want them to become garden statues. Not to mention he would have to face the wrath of their mother if she found out afterwards. Raising his hand-like appendages, Discord spoke to the butter-colored mare.

"Don't worry about that, Fluttershy. I won't teach them to go that far. Just enough to get their magical abilities off the ground. Afterwards is entirely up to them."

Though in the back of his mind, Discord was looking forward to causing mass chaos with his heirs by his side.

After eying Discord suspiciously, Fluttershy sighed as she started to move away from the door.

"Well, as long as you are careful and set some guidelines. I'm going to finish making breakfast."

"And I've got to ask Olivine a few questions." Discord announced before turning to the twins. "I'll check on you two this evening. In the meantime, have fun, my Princesses of Chaos."

With that, Discord disappeared as Fluttershy left, looking tired after the conversation. With the pair gone, Ebony and Ivory retreated to the opposite sides of the room and sat on their chosen beds. Ebony chose the bed by the northern nook, while Ivory chose the bed with the vast amount of space.

"Well. That was…something." Ebony spoke as she tested the bed's softness.

Ivory was grinning as she sat on her own bed.

"Something? That was so…amazing! I can't believe that was Dad's magic. I can't wait to try it! It looks like a lot of fun."

Ebony remained silent as Fluttershy called them down for breakfast. With a grin, Ivory stood up and made her way to the door.

"Come on, 'Princess Ebony.' I'm starving."

Ebony shook her head at her sister's mischievousness.

"I am not going to call her 'Princess Ivory' to satisfy her game. One of us needs to keep their head on their shoulders."

And that was exactly what Ebony intended to do.