Princess Twilight always had many responsibilities. But, no matter how many she had, she would always get them done to the best of her abilities.
But, for the past week, something was...different. Everyday it seemed like she had something on her mind. She would stare into space when somepony was talking to her.
She would always seem unfocused, her mind obviously elsewhere.
Unbeknownst to anypony else, she did have something on her mind.
And, that something was Discord.
For some reason, she couldn't seem to get Discord out of her mind. Everything seemed to remind her of him.
Whenever she would talk to somepony, she'd think about him.
Her nights were plagued with dreams of Discord.
Twilight decided that enough was enough. Discord had to have cast a spell on her or something. As a prank, most likely. That had to be the reason.
Besides, what else could it be?
-----
"Twilight, are you sure about this?"
Twilight rolled her eyes, "Of course, Spike. Discord cast a spell on me, and I intend to make him stop."
Spike gave an eyeroll of his own, "You know, you don't have any proof that Discord's responsible. I mean, this doesn't really seem like something Discord would do."
"He's Discord, Spike. He doesn't need a reason to do anything. He just does it."
Spike crossed his arms, "But, he hasn't done anything like that for awhile."
Twilight groaned, "Spike, he may be much better behaved than he was before, but that doesn't mean he still won't pull this kind of stuff."
Spike rolled his eyes again, "All right, fine. But, I say you're wasting your time."
"Say what you want. I need to get to Fluttershy's."
Without another word, Twilight exited the castle.
-----
Twilight trotted over to Fluttershy's cottage, an angry expression on her face.
"Discord, I swear, if you cast a spell on me, I might lose it."
She arrived at the cottage in record timing.
She took a deep breath, not wanting to look angry in front of her friend. She knocked on the door.
"Coming." A quiet voice came from the inside.
The door opened, revealing the yellow pegasus. "Oh! Hi, Twilight. It's good to see you."
Twilight offered her friend a warm smile, "It's good to see you, too, Fluttershy."
Her smile slowly left her face, "Do you...do you know where Discord is?"
Fluttershy raised an eyebrow, "Discord? Why? What's wrong?"
Twilight rubbed her temple with her hoof, "Ugh, I think he cast some sort of spell on me."
Fluttershy opened the door fully, "What? Why would he do that?"
Twilight huffed, "Hay if I no. But, for some reason, I can't stop thinking about him."
Fluttershy blinked, "Really? Why would Discord cast a spell to make you think about him?"
Twilight shrugged her wings, "He's Discord. Why wouldn't he is the better question. Anyway, I need to get this thing sorted out. I've been unfocused all week, and it's driving me insane."
Fluttershy stared at her alicorn friend, "It's that bad? Are they bad thoughts?"
Twilight shook her head, "Not really. And, that's the weird part. If I'm talking to somepony, I'll think about conversations I've had with him. Pleasant conversations." She smiled, "Like the time Discord helped me figure out my lecture about my ascension. Which actually went really great."
Fluttershy pushed her mane out of her eyes, "Well, if they're not bad thoughts, then what's the problem?"
Twilight sighed, "The problem is that I can't seem to concentrate on anything else. He's been plaguing my mind, and I don't why."
Fluttershy raised an eyebrow, "And, you're certain that Discord's cast a spell on you?"
Twilight looked at her friend with uncertainty, "I don't know. I mean, what else could it be?"
Fluttershy shrugged, "It just doesn't seem like the kind of thing he would do. Especially since he's been so nice lately."
Twilight's eyebrows flattened, "Yeah, but he's still Discord. Look, I just want to talk to him. If he's innocent, then he'll have nothing to worry about. Do you know where he is?"
Fluttershy sighed, "He's not here. But, there's a portal to his home in the guest room upstairs. I think it's in the closet."
Twilight blinked, "Oh, he doesn't live here?"
Fluttershy shook her head, "Not anymore. When he first started being reformed, he stayed with me. But, eventually, he created his own living space. It's...chaotic, that's for sure."
Twilight chuckled flatly, "Well, what do you expect from someone named Discord? Thanks, Fluttershy."
Fluttershy let the princess in and led her upstairs.
The two mares trotted down the small hallway and into the guest room.
They entered the room. Fluttershy walked over to the closet in the corner. She opened it.
Twilight's jaw dropped slightly upon seeing the swirling vortex inside the closet.
"Well, here it is. You're going to have to ask him where the portal is to leave. I never know." Fluttershy giggled softly.
Twilight nodded, "Okay. Thanks, Fluttershy. I shouldn't be long."
Fluttershy trotted out of the room, leaving Twilight alone.
Twilight stared at the swirling vortex for about a minute. She didn't know what was on the other side of it.
Her head hurt just thinking about what Discord's home might be like.
But, if she wanted to start focusing on things other than Discord, she had to find out.
Despite her hesitation, Twilight stepped through the portal.
-----
Whatever Twilight imagined Discord's home to be was certainly not what it actually was.
Discord lived in his own dimension. His own universe.
As Twilight floated in place, she took in the sights around her.
Twilight knew that Discord was powerful. But, being able to create his own inter-dimensional home, Twilight knew that Discord was far more powerful than probably all of the princesses, including herself, combined.
In a way, Twilight envied Discord. He could bend and shape reality to his will with a snap of his fingers.
If Discord hadn't been so cocky, he could've easily managed to avoid being turned to stone.
Twilight shook her head to clear her thoughts. She saw a house way in the distance. Since that was the only house around, she assumed that it belonged to Discord.
Of course, he could be living in that tree over there. Who knows when it comes to Discord.
She opened her wings and flew over, landing on the grassy part of the floating crater that held the house.
She trotted to the door and knocked then took a step back.
Not a minute later, the door opened. Upon seeing the purple alicorn, Discord's face took on a surprised look.
"Twilight? What are you doing here? More importantly, how did you get here?"
Twilight shrugged, "Fluttershy showed me the portal. I want to talk to you about something."
Discord smirked, "You came all this way just to have a little chit-chat with me? Well, by all means, come on in, dear Princess. I will get some snacks."
Twilight smiled, walking in behind him.
Discord's house was surprisingly...organized. In a chaotic way.
A couch sat in the corner of what she assumed to be the living room. In front of it was a small table.
She looked to the side to see some stairs. Upside down stairs that led to another room.
Twilight wasn't sure if she was standing on the ceiling or not. She decided not to worry about it.
Discord came back into the room with a plate of cotton candy and two glasses of chocolate milk.
He set them down on the table in front of the couch.
Twilight looked over at the snacks and gave a snort, "High marks for originality, Discord."
Discord shrugged, plopping onto the couch, "Hey, it tastes good. To me, that's all that really matters. You want something else?"
Twilight shook her head, "No, it's fine. Thank you." She levitated a piece of cotton candy into her mouth, savoring the sweetness.
Discord grabbed his glass of chocolate milk and started drinking it. "So, what is it that you wanted to talk about?"
Twilight rubbed her neck nervously, "Oh...well, heh, funny story."
She cleared her throat, "Um, Discord...have you, uh, cast any spells on me recently?"
At that, Discord stopped drinking. He looked over at the princess with a confused look.
"No? Whatever gave you that idea?"
Twilight's cheeks began to warm up, "Well...I have been unfocused all week."
Discord let out a snort, "Well, you can't pin that on me."
"Because I can't stop thinking about you."
Discord sat up. He stared at Twilight for several seconds.
Twilight frowned at Discord's silence.
But, eventually, a smirk started to spread across Discord's face.
"Princess Twilight Sparkle has been unfocused all because she can't stop thinking about me? Well, color me flattered, Ms. Sparky. Although, I would have to wager that these thoughts are not exactly good, right?"
Twilight bit her lip. She could easily tell him yes. But, for some reason, she felt inclined to tell him the truth.
"Actually, they're all good."
Discord's smirk turned into a smile, " Really? Well, I must say, I am touched."
He blinked, "Wait. Did you come all the way down here to see if I had cast a spell on you?"
Twilight blushed, "Well, it could've been a prank or something. It's not beneath you to do so."
Discord shrugged, "Perhaps. But, I have done nothing of the sort. Your thoughts about little ol' me are all yours. Why am I the focus of your thoughts I haven't the foggiest. But, I do know that I was not responsible."
Twilight sighed, "I should've listened to Spike and Fluttershy. Well, thanks, Discord. You're innocent."
Discord put a paw to his chest, "Naturally."
"Well, I'd better go. Sorry for wasting your time." She started to make her way over to the door.
"Wait!"
Twilight turned back to face Discord, "Yes?"
Discord rubbed the back of his neck, "Y'know, I don't normally get visitors. It would be nice if you could stay a little longer. We can talk. Play some games. Just hang out as friends."
Twilight smiled, "You know what, Discord? That actually sounds really nice. Sure, I'll stay a little longer."
Discord grinned, "Really? Great!" He snapped his fingers and a box of Ponopoly appeared on the table.
Twilight trotted over to the table and sat down next to it. "Ponopoly, huh?"
Discord opened the box, "Yup. Although, I should warn you. I am a master at this game."
Twilight raised an eyebrow, "You're a master of a board game?"
Discord shrugged, "I played with Fluttershy and her animal friends. Can you believe I almost lost to Angel?"
Twilight giggled, "I can believe it."
Discord stuck his tongue out, "Well, after that game, I learned to play and win. You are going down, Sparkle."
Twilight narrowed her eyes playfully, "Not if I take you down first."
Discord smirked and started setting up the game.
-----
"And, with this move, you are officially bankrupt. I win." Discord raised his hands in a triumphant manner.
Twilight gawked, "What? How? Who? Wha - ?"
Discord shrugged, "I told you I was a master at this game. And, I won fair and square. No twists or turns."
Twilight chuckled, "I guess you're right. Even if I lost, that was actually really fun. I...enjoyed that."
Discord smiled at her, "Me, too."
They stared at each other for about a minute.
Twilight blinked upon realizing that she had been staring. She blushed, turning away.
Discord turned away, too. Although, she couldn't tell if he was blushing.
She cleared her throat awkwardly, "Well, uh, Discord, this has been fun. But, I told Spike that I wouldn't be gone long. So, I should get going."
Discord nodded, "Of course. Here." He snapped his fingers, and a swirling vortex appeared in the room. "This portal will teleport you directly to your castle. But, it'll disappear the moment you exit it."
Twilight stood up, "Okay, thanks, Discord."
She began to trot towards the portal.
"Wait!"
Twilight turned back to Discord, "Yes?"
Discord gave a nervous chuckle, "I had a lot of fun today. I don't suppose you'd be willing to do this again? And possibly, for longer?"
Twilight looked down then looked back at him.
She smiled, "I'd be happy, too."
Discord smiled, "Wonderful. So, I'll, um, see you around."
Twilight waved a hoof.
And, with that, she stepped through the portal.