//------------------------------// // Chaos Theory, Part II // Story: Revenant // by Muramasa //------------------------------// Stepping through the portal was always hard. It was hard going to the human world for the first time, it was hard going back to Equestria, it was hard for the first visit, and it was hard leaving after the visit in question. I hated the damn thing, but I had always been drawn to it like a moth to a flame, because even though Equestria was where I truly belonged, I knew very well that every time I would come to leave that portal after the monthly visits, a piece of me would stay behind. We had a great time. We watched Jennet's football tryout; she absolutely made a mockery of the entire Canterlot High School Broncos' secondary, and got the starting job without a problem, making her the first girl to ever make the team. Of course, with the gender ratio, there were plenty of mares in the Equestrian Football League with the stallions, but in the human world, it wasn't at all a common occurrence; we congratulated her afterwards before heading back to the band room to practice for old time's sake. I was very rusty on the guitar, although I was able to get into rhythm eventually; Sci-Twi had already far surpassed me skill wise, however, so my presence among the newly formed Rainbooms did more harm than good. I also saw Flash Sentry again. It was rather awkward, of course, but we said hey and chatted for a few minutes about absolutely nothing before departing. His band was doing really well, of course, and he even invited me to one of their shows out of what I had assumed was pity; I declined, naturally, as I would be in a completely different dimension by the time it actually occurred. The goodbyes were bittersweet, naturally. I would see the girls again in two weeks, I had promised, and I swore I would take Sci-Twi to visit Equestria. She was very excited, of course, and as a result, I was as well. It wasn't as hard as I imagined it would be, though, knowing that the next visit would not be far away. When I came out of the portal, I had two thoughts; the first being a mental note to buy new boots the next time I went to Equestria, and the second being that there was someone--something--I needed to see. To see the being in question, I went to the front yard (more like the front valley) of Twilight's castle, where I had first met him. Starlight Glimmer was currently living in the residence with me in order to watch over Twilight, who had been sleeping for about a week now, so we were very much getting to know each other a lot better. She was a very cool mare, and one that I was glad to call my friend; she was also as funny as ever, so it served as a nice relief to have her around while worrying about Twilight. I sat down on in the yard in front of the castle. The sky was exceptionally blue today; maybe that was because I had spent two days in the human world. The grass looked greener, too, but I had shrugged that off as a figure of my imagination at this point. After admiring the scenery of the landscape around me, I shouted as loud as I possibly could into the air. "DISCORD!" I had no idea if that would actually work, as I had only met him one other time, but sure enough, in front of me appeared the very being of chaos I had been looking for. He, for whatever reason, was wearing what looked to be a very expensive full suit, the navy blue gleaming in the sunlight above him. He looked very annoyed with me, but that was perfectly okay because I didn't care one bit at the moment. "What in Tartarus do you want? I was just at Rarity's getting a new suit fitted, so this had better be quick, Shimmer," he said. I gave him a deadpanned look. "Well, it won't be. Rares can wait. You knew what would happen to Twilight, and so that's why you told me to tell her to cancel; I want to know how," I stated simply. Discord rolled his eyes and begrudgingly sat down on the grass himself, doing a very bad impression of the way I was sitting. "That's about the only thing I don't like about you, Sunset Shimmer; everything is straight forward with you. It's yes or no, black and white, day vs night, Son of Krypton vs Bat of Gotham--oh, sorry, I just got back from the movies. My point is that you need to know how everything works, when there's one thing you have to fundamentally understand; a magician doesn't give secrets. And thus, neither will I," he said, smiling. I gritted my teeth and fervently shook my head. "No! I am NOT doing this again! You're going to tell me how you knew, or I'm going right to the Princesses and telling them that you had prior knowledge of the event and failed to do anything about it," as soon as I said those words, Discord raised an eyebrow and snorted with a smile on his face. "Um, excuse me? I did warn you beforehand; I told you that she should probably cancel the speech. But did you tell her? Obviously not! Or if you did, she wouldn't listen; the newspapers and Bards hardly tell tales of the stubbornness of Twilight Sparkle. But if you truly must ruin the joke, I I suppose I'll let you sleep at night; I have the ability to properly gauge the magical pool of any pony, griffon, or zebra that has one. As soon as I took a look at her in recent days, it was clear to me that something was wrong. Are we done with this now? I mean, come on, nopony died! Yet!" he said, putting his hands up in defense. Once again, with a piercing stare, I slowly shook my head. 'We are not done. I have another question, and you are going to answer it; what do you know about my time in the human world? You turned me into my human form effortlessly," I explained. Discord smiled and, instantly changed outfits with a snap of his hand. His nay suit became purple, and his face was now completely white with red lipstick smeared across his lips; the very little hair he had turned a sickly green. "Memories can be vile, repulsive little brutes...but can we live without them?" he asked me, cackling wildly as he said it. I gave him a "really?" look, which prompted him to roll his eyes and immediately undo everything he had just done to himself, save the suit; it was still purple. "You're the only one I can make these pop culture references to, and you don't appreciate them. Ugh, whatever. It's your memories of that place that fascinates me; memories only few on this planet have. It's easy to see why that particular aspect catches my attention; it's simply different, and I love different. As for how I knew what you looked like, you'd be a fool to think I wouldn't hang out in the human world from time to time! They're constantly at each other's throats with every turn, and they're greedier than a horde of dragons! How could I resist, Sunset? They're so juicy! But, I must admit...there is some sort of purity to them all. They're technologically advanced light years ahead of us, and yet, in so many ways, they're so far behind! Oh, there I go again with the rant..." he began. I didn't say anything at first, because I had come to a realization I had thought I'd never reach. "No, I...I get it. You're right," I told him. He recoiled in mock surprise, holding a claw to his mouth in feign shock. "Wwwwhhhhaaattt? You didn't come here just to ridicule me? I--am--shocked! Oh, by the way, I don't think I've met that apprentice Twilight's gotten yet! What is it, Twilight Shimmer? Sunset Glimmer? Starlight Sparkle--what is it with you all and your alliteration and equal-syllable names? And why do you all know each other? Is the universe just trying to spite me?" he asked. I got up from my seated position and began walking back towards the castle door. "I have nothing more to ask you Discord. Go get your new suit," I told him, magically levitating the doors open with my magic. As I was about to leave him, Discord spoke once more, and what he said stopped me dead in my tracks. "Of course! The Grand Galloping Gala only deserves the best! And to think it's only two weeks away..." he said. The Gala! I had completely and utterly forgotten all about it during my time in the human world. It was the best, most entertaining, genuinely fun night in the whole year, and as Celestia's protégé, I got to go every year. Well, I used to be able to, but that was a long time ago; I'm not even sure how the selection process went. The only thing I knew was that Twilight had passingly mentioned that she had gone with the rest of the elements one year, only for it to be a complete disaster. At any rate, just hearing the words made me excited, but as I turned to face Discord, I certainly didn't show it. "How in the hell did you get a ticket to the Grand Galloping Gala?" I asked him, an exaggerated look of disbelief. He gave me a smile. "First of all, Sunset, we don't say "hell" over here; it's "Tartarus". But, to answer your question, it's because I'm reformed now! Just like you, just like Starlight, just like Trixie, though it took her a few tries. Took me few tries too, but that's beyond the point. At any rate, what are you worried about? Nothing could be as much of a trainwreck as the time the elements showed up; let me tell you, if I had even been there, even I couldn't have made it more chaotic. You'll get your tickets in the mail, I'm sure, though if Twilight happens to even wake up during that time, I'd be surprised. Parfait?" he stated. I looked in his claw to see, once again, a yogurt parfait levitating with it. I sighed in defeat. "You're gonna ask me if I want one of those every time we meet, aren't you?" I asked him. He gave a very content nod with his eyes closed. "Indeed I will. You'll take it eventually, Sunset, however long into the future that may be. Everyone else around you did; now I'm just waiting on you. Oh well, no matter; Rarity is going to be absolutely infuriated at my absence. I'm totally blaming you for it, by the way. Oyasuminasai!" he exclaimed before immediately disappearing. I stared at the spot he had occupied only seconds earlier. Everyone takes it...what's that even supposed to mean? I asked to myself. It wasn't long after that another thought promptly came to mind. Oyasuminasai? Isn't that Japanese for "good night?" It's one in the afternoon! I wasn't going to pin down Discord for an expert on foreign languages from another dimension, but at that point, I'd stopped analyzing him. I had only just turned around to make my way back into the castle when the door was quickly opened by none other than Spike the Dragon, with Starlight in tow. They both had big, goofy grins on their faces, and it was easy to tell what had happened before it got out of their mouths. "She's up!" they both exclaimed, at the precise same time.