• Published 27th Jan 2015
  • 7,568 Views, 476 Comments

The Most Chaotic Night Ever!!! - Azure129



It's Grand Galloping Gala time! Discord, now fully reformed, is surprised when Princess Celestia both invites him to the party and makes a special request of him as her friend. Celestiacord. Tons of Discord!

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Chapter 5: Discord's Denial, Celestia's Concerns

Around midnight, Discord was lying awake in his little grassy hideaway in the statue garden. He yawned in a touch of boredom, lazily twirling in his hand a wildflower he had conjured up complete with chaotically-shaped petals and leaves coated in blue polka dots. “Well, I didn’t dream about her again during my little nap here. Just nice, normal chaos. That must be a good sign. At least I’m not obsessed or anything.” He smiled. “Still though…” his smile fell, “I should ask Celestia for that dream interpretation book, just in case the dreams come back.” He blushed a little. Then he glanced side to side to make sure he was definitely absolutely still alone. Then he started plucking the petals one by one from the flower in his hand. “I’ll never love Celestia…I’ll really, really never love Celestia…I’ll never love Celestia…I’ll really, really never love Celestia…I’ll never love Celestia…I’ll really, really never love Celestia…I’ll never love Celestia.” The final petal finished.

Discord pouted. “Hmm, it never ends on the right one. And I’m the one making the flower petals! How fair is that?!” He threw away the flower (onto a rather large pile of other plucked chaotic flowers behind his head). “Perhaps the better question though is…is there any chance Celestia could secretly love me, as the rumors say? Just as an idea to play with, just to consider every potential source of the Gala gossip lately.” Discord grinned to himself, snapping up a cushy velvet pillow behind his head so that he could relax as he considered the situation. “She asked me to the Gala. All right, but putting aside the preposterous logic that one invitation to one dance constitutes some kind of binding romantic agreement between us…I suppose I have been known to charm the occasional lady in my day.” He chuckled to himself. “A tryst here and there in my chaotic travels…but nothing official, of course, nothing long-term, nothing mushy. Like I told the girls, I haven’t even needed friends until now, I wasn’t about to start actually courting or dating. Ugh, how formal!” Discord considered further, gazing up at the bright moon. “I don’t know. I suppose it’s possible Celestia might have developed a teeny crush on me.” His grin picked up on one side. “Ever since I got reformed, she laughs at practically all my jokes. And she keeps wanting to get closer to me. And maybe I wasn’t entirely bluffing to Twilight and the girls the other day about how much I have to offer anyone, even Celestia, as a romantic companion—maybe I do have a few desirable traits even she might find appealing.” His grin picked up even more. “And after all, last night when we talked she did seem awfully eager about showing me off to everyone at the Gala, and she did tell me that she was certain I’d be as handsome and charming as usual and call me ‘mighty lord of chaos.’” He had to chuckle.

Discord’s laughter finished, and he sighed, rolling on his side in the grass. “Okay, let’s say she does have a little crush or something on me, just for argument’s sake. Well, I do not have those feelings for her. No, I mean…like I told Luna, Celestia’s nice and smart and funny and cute, but…I just like being her friend. And I have nothing compelling me to complicate our already complicated relationship further. And besides she really is soooo orderly.” A deep sigh escaped him. “I think the best thing for me to do is just to continue being her friend and preparing to be a good escort for the Gala. All of that will require us to spend some more time together, and then I’m sure I’ll be able to tell from her behavior easily enough if she has any feelings about me. Luna must have already discussed the rumors with her, so at least Celestia will know her secret’s out if she does indeed have one. And if she does want to pursue something romantic between us, I’ll just let her down gently. But if she just wants to be friends, like I suspect…well, then, less mess for me to clean up, I just get a free party out of the deal.” He nodded to himself. “Sounds like a good plan, Discord.”

Discord yawned, unable to help himself, and turned onto his stomach, resting his head on his arms upon the pillow. It was just so peaceful here, and despite napping earlier, he was feeling sleepy again. “Listen to me, I really must be losing my marbles. I’ll be nice and let her down gently, take her feelings into consideration, think before I act… Fluttershy’s rubbing off on me.” He smiled a little more to himself. “Good. I’m a better person when I’m closest to her. And that’s good for all of my friends and me too.” Discord blinked a few times, nestling more against his pillow. “It’s all right. I’ll sleep. I think I can handle my dreams for now. And if I can’t, and Luna visits me tonight, we’ll talk. And if I do have to go to the sun,” he grinned and yawned, holding up a finger of his paw high in the air, his eyes closing, “free fruity drinks with little umbrellas in them for all of my friends, and we’ll limbo under the solar flares!” He chuckled and snapped his fingers, wrapping himself up in a cozy blanket. And with that, Discord dozed off in the calm of the night.


The next day, late in the morning, Princess Celestia was residing in her study looking over some rsvps for the Gala. “Good. Almost all of the guests have answered…and I haven’t had one pony, no matter how concerned about Discord they are, actually turn down an invitation because he will be attending.” She smiled more to herself, setting aside the final rsvp she had received for the day. “I’m sure this Gala will go a long way toward improving everyone’s image of him.” Her smile leveled out for a moment, her gaze going downward toward her desk. “I’m not sure how he’ll respond though when ponies bring up the Tirek incident at the party. I wish he would just talk about what happened openly, but I think the best I can hope for is that he’ll avoid the subject with a joke, and the worst I’ll have to worry about is that he’ll get frustrated and abandon the conversation with a chaotic exit.” Celestia let out a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment. “It’ll be all right, he’s been a lot less difficult lately. I’m sure he’ll do his best.” She opened her eyes, smiling once more. Her attention went to the next pile of documents on her desk. “Maybe I’ll talk to him about it before the Gala…” she mumbled to herself. “And if he stays asleep in the statue garden much longer, I might just go down there and do it today.” She laughed softly and she shook her head.

A few seconds passed. Then there was a knock on Celestia’s study door.

Celestia looked up. “Come in.”

The door opened, and a guard entered—one of her lieutenants. “Your highness.” He bowed. “Pardon the interruption, but you wanted to be kept informed about Discord’s activities this morning. I just wanted to report that according to some of the guards near the statue garden, he awoke about half an hour ago and has since flown away from the castle grounds.”

Celestia smiled more. “Thank you for letting me know. Do you happen to know in what direction he was flying?”

The guard nodded. “Toward Ponyville. We assumed he was heading to visit Princess Twilight Sparkle.”

Celestia nodded. “Thank you very much. You are dismissed. And after you go, will you do me the favor of letting the kitchen staff know that I will be taking lunch out today?”

“Of course.” The guard raised a hoof to salute. “Your highness.” And then he made his exit.

Celestia looked back down at her desk full of royal documents, magically raising a quill to sign one of them, her smile remaining bright. “I’ll have to visit Twilight to see Discord then. Good. I love an excuse to visit Twilight and her friends…and an excuse to go out and get something for lunch besides Canterlot Castle watercress sandwiches and tea. I could go for a nice western style hay burger and a milkshake.” She laughed warmly to herself and then continued on about her work, hoping lunchtime would come as soon as possible.


Meanwhile, out in the hallway, the lieutenant guard let out a deep breath and headed up the corridor. As soon as he came to a corner, three other guards met him, all clearly anticipating any news of a certain nature he might have to share with them.

The lieutenant paused and rubbed the back of his neck. “I told her he was gone, and she smiled, and then she said to tell the kitchen staff that she was taking lunch ‘out’ today.”

The three other guards all blinked and looked at each other a touch uneasily. A guard with a brown coat held up his hoof. “Do you think that means she’s going out with him for lunch?”

The lieutenant shrugged. “I don’t know. I did mention, when she asked, that Discord flew to Princess Twilight’s castle. She could just as easily be going there.”

A guard with a grey coat stepped forward. “But either way she’ll still be seeing him.” He frowned in concern.

A guard with a white coat nodded. “Yeah, but at least with Princess Twilight and her friends around, nothing can happen.”

A guard with a brown coat spoke up now. “But are we sure anything would happen anyway? I don’t know, these rumors seem so strange. I mean, Princess Celestia never, ever, ever, ever gives, uh…romantic favors to anybody.”

The grey guard rolled his eyes to the side, smiling a little. “And it’s not for lack of potential suitors, that’s for sure.”

The white guard nudged him a little. “Hey, that’s our princess. Come on, guys, we shouldn’t be wondering about her like this. She’s not just going to go off with Discord without warning and let him…you know…be her special somepony or something.” He blushed, rubbing the back of his neck with his hoof and looking very awkward.

“But are we sure about that?” the brown guard asked, holding out a hoof. “Mares are tricky enough to figure out, let alone alicorn mares. Maybe she does have feelings for him. What should we do?” He looked to all of his friends.

The lieutenant sighed, his look becoming a little firm. “Our jobs. We shall serve Princess Celestia as we always have, and not question her orders which are always sound and fair.”

The other three guards frowned and all seemed about to protest.

The lieutenant went on, however, smiling and shrugging as he explained. “We can’t do anything but what we’ve always done without some justification. If we see Discord posing any threat to the Princess, then of course we’ll intervene—that’s what we’re here for. But for now, we just have to trust that Princess Celestia knows what she’s doing like always, no matter what the truth is about her relationship with Discord or those rumors that have been going around. We owe her that loyalty, and it’ll be our honor to continue giving it to her.”

The other three guards sighed but all finally nodded.

“Yeah.”

“You’re right.”

“We can’t overstep.”

The lieutenant nodded. “Good.” Then he lowered his voice and added, “Of course, part of doing our job is keeping a very close eye on the princesses and any guests or visitors they may have. I say we just keep an extra close eye on Discord when he’s around, especially when he’s sleeping in the statue garden.” He smiled, his tone full of motivation and encouragement. “Don’t let his jokes or his powers intimidate you—just be the same steady, sturdy, vigilant guards we’ve always been, and as long as his actions earn him a chance…we’ll do our best to put aside any awkwardness and give him one.”

His three friends smiled in return and all four of them nodded to each other.

The lieutenant sighed. “Now come on, let’s go tell the kitchen staff about Celestia’s plans and then see if we can get some early lunch. I’m starved.”

The party started to head off together, content (for now) with their plan of action regarding their sun princesses’ new gentleman friend.


Princess Celestia (following a yummy and discrete-as-possible lunch in Ponyville) had just teleported herself several hundred feet in front of Twilight’s new castle where she could pause for a moment to admire the beauty of the structure. She walked toward it with a smile, finally reaching the front gate. “Now, I’m assuming they’ll all be in the library since Twilight has decided to cordon off the throne room until her surprise is done.” Celestia smiled warmly to herself and then flew up to the balcony of Twilight’s library.

She landed there and approached, ready to announce herself and greet the room. However, she blinked and then had to pause for just a moment at the sight that met her eyes.

The girls (and Spike) were all sitting around a large, long crystal table in the middle of the library, and a very animated conversation was going on which Twilight was doing her best to keep orderly as usual. Discord, meanwhile, was seated at a wooden desk just off to the side and wearing a brown and green tweed jacket with a red bowtie and a pair of bifocals. He was lazily typing away on an old typewriter, occasionally pausing to let his tail take over the work while he sipped from a cup of what appeared to be coffee (there was a large gold espresso machine to his left). And now Celestia also noticed that all of the girls had cups of coffee too and plates of various desserts before each of them.

Spike suddenly noticed Celestia’s entrance and instantly jumped up and dashed over to her side, then bowed low. “Announcing Princess Celestia of Equestria!”

All of the girls turned to her and smiled and bowed (except Twilight), instantly delivering greetings and phrases expressing surprise and appreciation over her visit.

“Hello, girls, it’s very nice to see you again too,” Celestia replied back warmly.

“Princess Celestia!” Twilight stood up and dashed over to her mentor, coming right up to her side with a big smile. “It’s so nice of you to come by again.” Twilight glanced around at the library shelves. “Look, see, I’ve already manage to salvage and restore a few dozen books from your old castle. It’ll take time, but I’m sure I’ll get the rest of them done and over here before you know it.”

Celestia smiled and nodded. “Very lovely, Twilight. I think your library’s coming along nicely.” She winked down at her.

“Thank you!” Twilight tried not to blush too much. Then she turned and headed back toward the table. “Can we get you a seat, Princess? I hope you can stay for a while. We were all just discussing the Gala a little bit actually and finishing up lunch.”

“I’m putting in bold print the part where you just asked Celestia if she’d like a SEAT in your CASTLE, Twilight,” Discord suddenly announced in a dry tone from his desk, his hands steadily typing away.

Twilight sighed and shook her head, smiling over at him. “Thank you, Discord.” She turned to the Princess again. “Anyway, would you like a seat, Princess? I didn’t conjure up any extras, but you can have mine if you want of course, or I’ll conjure you up a new one.”

Celestia smiled but shook her head. “It’s all right, Twilight, I don’t mind standing. You girls just carry on together. Besides, I’ve already had my lunch. But after you’re done here, would you mind if I borrowed Discord for a bit?” She glanced over at him, an eyebrow raised, smiling curiously at his newly adopted persona.

Twilight smiled and nodded. “Of course. He said he’d be done doing what he’s doing once our meeting was over anyway.” She raised a hoof to rub one of her temples, sighing deeply but mostly trying not to smile too much as she took her seat again. “I think he’s my new temporary secretary or something.”

Discord cleared his throat and reclined back in his chair, hands behind his head, letting his tail do the typing for a moment. “I’m just trying to make my wayward self useful—taking the minutes of your little meetings and whipping up coffee and desserts to make sure your sugary selves stay peppy as ever is at least something for me to do and something you need done. And, of course, whenever I get bored, I’ve just been making your chairs slide around with you in them like this.” He grinned, snapped his fingers, and instantly all of the chairs started sliding around the table and spinning while the girls held on tight and just smiled and laughed until their seats finally paused in a new pattern around the table. “This is my way,” Discord went on, “oh Princess Twilight, of encouraging you to cut the modesty and just HIRE A STAFF for this place already. Between my shenanigans and poor, baby dragon Spike feeling the need to dash all over on those short legs to do half the jobs you need done, you’d think you’d just break already and accept that you need help.” His grin rose on one side, and he tilted his head to look at her over his glasses. “You’re going to have servants. It’s inevitable, Twilight Sparkle…. Accept it.”

Twilight just sighed and glanced to the side, straightening her crown from the ride around the table. “Fine, Discord, I’ll pencil in a meeting about…about servants,” the word clearly stuck in her throat, “in the future. Okay?”

Discord nodded and snapped his fingers, making a black book appear in the air with a quill writing in it. “Already penciling it into your memo book.” He raised an eyebrow, grinning more and narrowing his eyes a little. “Now, I’ve also been getting a lot of calls about when you’re going to start holding public court in the throne room to settle friendship disputes—broken promises, illegally borrowed toys, hilarious misunderstandings, you know, the usual. When shall I say that’s happening? You know, the throne room being opened again?” He pumped his eyebrows up with interest.

Twilight just smiled softly. “In time, Discord. Tell anyway who asks that it’s all happening in time.”

Discord’s smile fell to a dry look, and he sighed. “Ugh, what a wretchedly perfectly diplomatic answer.” He sipped from his cup and then snapped away the memo book and went back to typing with his hands. “I think I’ll go back to taking minutes by hand for a little while. More cappuccino first for anyone?” He held up a his paw, ready to snap his fingers.

All of the girls nodded.

“Oh, yes, please, and thank you so much, Discord.” Fluttershy smiled.

“I reckon another cup wouldn’t be bad. This stuff’s pretty good.” Apple Jack finished off the last of what was in her cup.

“It’s simply divine is what it is.” Rarity nodded with a delighted smile. She looked to Twilight. “Twilight, if you do get a staff soon, let’s get caterers and chefs so we can hold council like this all the time. It’s so classy.”

“Yeah, this stuff really isn’t bad—what did you say is in here, caffeine?” Rainbow Dash grinned and punched the air. “I feel like I could cloud bust all day without breaking a sweat!”

“Discord, are you reeeeeeally sure I have to stick with decaf?”

Yes!” everypony around the table announced all at once, looking at Pinkie Pie firmly.

Discord just sighed, his smile picking up on one side at this (already repeated three times so far this afternoon) question from Pinkie Pie. He glanced over at her. “I told you, Pinkie, we’ll experiment with giving you espresso in some form some rainy day when I’m particularly bored and have the stamina to chase a bouncing, squealing ball of pink pony around Equestria. For now though,” he snapped his fingers, making the girls’ cups (except Pinkie’s) all float over to the espresso machine to quickly refill themselves and return to their owners while Pinkie’s cup just refilled all on its own at the table, “More decaf coffee for you. But I will throw in some whipped cream.” He snapped again, topping her cup with a little mountain of white fluff.

Pinkie beamed. “Thank you!” She dove right into the drink with her whole snout.

Discord smiled more. “It’s jalapeno flavored. Enjoy.”

Steam was coming out of Pinkie’s ears, but she just smiled and raised her head to lick her lips. “Delicious! I love it! What a kick!” She dove back into the drink.

Discord sighed, his smile falling. “Oh I’m never sure whether to be amused at how much that one loves chaos or put off by the fact that my pranks almost never get to her.” He shook his head and then went back to typing with both hands as the girls went back to talking.

“Discord, could I stand by you while the girls finish their meeting?”

Discord stopped typing and glanced up to see Celestia smiling and standing before him after having delivered this question.

“Hmm…” Discord played with his beard with one hand, then… “No, I’m afraid not.” He gave her a bright smile and then resumed focusing on his typing once more.

Celestia blinked and almost frowned a little.

Discord, barely glancing up, noticed her sad look at his rejection, took in the observation with interest, and then snapped his fingers.

“Oh!” Celestia remarked as she suddenly found a comfortable, large, cushioned chair underneath herself which then came to be placed right beside Discord’s desk.

Discord just sighed, shaking his head, trying not to laugh too much at his own joke. He crossed his arms over his chest and put his tail to work with the typing again, looking to his new companion. “Like I would actually let you just stand while the girls are all sitting and I’m sitting and especially when I know the pain of being left without a chair in a room of friends. Besides, Celestia, I’m going to be your escort at the Grand Galloping Gala—I think that means I have to start acting a little bit more especially kind to you, at least for now.” He grinned.

Celestia smiled very warmly, settling into her nice seat. “Thank you, Discord. I appreciate your assistance.”

“Don’t mention it.” Discord rolled his eyes to the side. “I mean, really, don’t mention it—I don’t need anyone hastening my slippery slope into a reputation as a goodie two shoes.” He shrugged. “But if you want any cappuccino or coffee, you’ll have to get that yourself. I can’t do everything. But would you like me to snap you up some dessert while I have a second? Donuts, pie—cake was a popular choice this afternoon…” He held up his fingers.

Celestia’s smile brightened, but then she glanced forward and let out a deep breath. “Oh, no, erm…that isn’t necessary for now, but thank you.” ‘You’re here on an important matter, Celestia, cake can wait until later.’ She cleared her throat and looked back at him with a small smile. “But I wouldn’t mind something to drink. I’ve never tried much coffee though—that’s more Luna’s preference. So I’m not really sure what kind of drink to try preparing for myself. Can you tell me what you’re having, and I’ll whip that up?”

“Oh.” Discord shrugged, glancing at his own large cup. “Er, well…mine’s Fluttershy’s special chamomile tea actually.”

Celestia blinked. “Chamomile tea?”

Discord shrugged and sighed though he remained smiling. “Oh don’t get me wrong, normally I’d have the espresso on an IV drip into my arm just for kicks but…I’ve been a little preoccupied lately. So I thought some nice tea and maybe some—Pinkamena Diane Pie!” Discord suddenly announced, stopping mid-sentence and making his tail go in front of the espresso machine to wrap around a certain pink pony’s leg just in time to stop her from latching her mouth onto one of the faucets of the large contraption. Discord held her up in the air, observing her, and let out a sigh. “Now, Pinkie dear, this is the third time you’ve snuck away from that table, and you are a small pink pony and I am the master of chaos—I’m never not going to catch you trying to get at the espresso.” He grinned a little. “But I suppose you’re welcome to keep trying. It is a little amusing, after all.”

“Aw sprinkles!” Pinkie Pie just exclaimed with a pout as Discord set her back down on the floor. She went back over to her chair and sat down her cup of decaf with a frown, though she did smile again as Discord snapped her up some more jalapeno whipped cream for on top.

Discord shook his head and then turned back to Celestia. “Sorry. Wrangling that one is a full time job. She actually does get close to sneaking up on me, and I’m still not sure how.” His tail went back to typing (and Celestia just tried not to laugh too much at the somewhat cute exchange she had just witnessed). “Anyway, as I was saying…yes, I thought some nice tea and seeing my friends might help relax my restlessness.” He glanced down at himself and his current get up. “And this secretary thing is just a bit to keep me amused and distracted.” He grinned at Celestia, lowering his voice. “I’ve been taking minutes but also inserting a lot of totally fictitious compliments about myself from the girls into what I’ve been typing up. Twilight is going to be bothered so very much when I turn in everything I’ve got for her royal records.” He chuckled.

Celestia laughed softly along with him. “I’m sure she’ll find the humor in it as well though. And I think some tea and time with friends sounds like an excellent way to relax.” Celestia’s horn glowed and made a cup of tea appeared before her. She sipped.

“So what did you want me for after this exactly?” Discord asked, turning his full attention to her now while his tail continued to take care of the typing.

“Just to talk,” Celestia replied, lowering her cup. “Mostly about the Gala.” Her smile fell a little. “I just want to make sure nothing about it is overly stressful for you, Discord. It’s a very big event, there’ll be a lot of guests—some looking forward to seeing you more than others, as I’ve said—and you may be asked some difficult questions about your reform and especially about your actions recently.”

Discord understood instantly what exactly she was referring to but chose not to betray any sign of his specific understanding. He just nodded and waited for her to go on, looking as mildly interested as ever.

Celestia raised an eyebrow, unsure of what to make of his response so far, but decided perhaps he would express more detailed thoughts on the matter to her later when they were alone. She smiled now and added to help lighten the mood, “And also Luna tells me you’ve heard about these rumors going around about the Gala being a date for us…” Her smile grew and her gaze warmed.

Discord nodded and chuckled, rolling his eyes. “Oh yes. Apparently,” he gestured to himself and then to her with his paw, “You and I will be together for one glorious evening of romantic scandal, and then I’ll just dump you like the careless brute I am.” He grinned, almost blushing. “Try not to take it too hard when we break up, okay? We really must think of the ‘children.’ ” He gestured to the girls with his head and laughed more.

Celestia’s smile picked up on one side. “I’m glad that part of things isn’t bothering you.”

Discord shrugged. “Why would it be? You’re the one who’s supposed to have the crush on me, after all. You’re the one on the spot.” He snapped and made a small spotlight appear above her head. “I’m just along for the ride.” He snapped and made a steering wheel appear on his desk and beeped the horn. Then Discord snapped a final time, making both items disappear. He put his hands behind his head, grinning casually, though all the while glancing very closely at Celestia out of the corner of his eye.

Celestia just smiled at his jokes and shook her head, then spoke back to him as normally as he had ever heard her speak. “Well, at least rumors like that show that everypony truly realizes that I like you and that we’re close now even if they’re taking it too far.” She cleared her throat, something a touch serious coming to her tone and look again. “But as I said, the larger problem will be the recent events of Equestria’s latest salvation. I just want to make sure you’re all right, whatever you might face at the party about Tirek.” She leaned just a little closer to him.

Discord blinked. “I…I…um…” He swallowed, leaning away from her a little. “Yes, well…perhaps after the meeting then, like you said, we can talk.” He cleared his throat and promptly changed the subject, “Besides, there was something I wanted to ask you about—a small favor. I need to borrow a very specific book, and Twilight mentioned you might have a copy.”

Celestia smiled with interest, her seriousness forgotten for the moment. “Of course, Discord. We’ll go to the Canterlot library right after this.”

“Erm…pardon me, Discord?”

Celestia and Discord both blinked and looked forward.

Rarity stood in front of Discord’s desk, glancing to the side somewhat shyly, a small portfolio held against her chest. She looked to the draconequus. “I, erm…I just wanted to see if you could come by Carousel Boutique this weekend so that I could take your measurements and make some sketches for your tuxedo.”

Discord sighed…but he did nod. “Very well. I’ll pop by.” ‘And just like that I am now officially going along with this fancy suit thing. Oh joy.’

Rarity smiled up at him. “Thank you, Discord. I’ll look forward to your visit.” And then Rarity turned her sights to Discord’s companion. “And, erm…Princess Celestia?” she gave a nervous bow to the Princess. “I’m so very sorry to bother you, and I know this is quite a long shot, but as long as you’re here I wanted to mention…well…and I think Twilight already wrote to you and mentioned…since I’m designing a tuxedo for Discord for the Gala, and he’s your escort, I was wondering if maybe you’d like me to design a little something for you too, just to coordinate the both of you?” She smiled brightly, looking up at Celestia again. “It could be a full dress or merely an ornate hair ribbon or anything in between. And I have some designs here that I’m working on.” She magically held out the small portfolio. “I could send them over to Canterlot when I’m done or I could even send some actual samples to the castle for you to look at. Then you could have your final fitting a little before the Gala, maybe even when Discord has his. Of course, I’ll understand if you’d rather not.” She glanced down. “I know the Gala is the social event of the season, and you’re probably asked by hundreds, maybe thousands of designers each year if they can work with you. But I just wanted to offer.” She smiled and then gave a little bow again, clearly very nervous about the response she would get.

Celestia just smiled warmly and leaned down toward her. “Rarity, I would love for you to design something for me. You’re very talented, and I loved what you came up with for your friends to wear least year. It will be an honor to wear something to the Gala created by you.”

Rarity’s eyes went very, very, very wide…and then a huge smile beamed across her features, her voice bursting with high-pitched joy! “Thank you! Thank you! Oh a thousand times thank you! I’ll send anything over that I can as soon as possible!” She hugged her portfolio very tightly and then trotted in place for a moment before zipping back over to the table to talk and talk and talk about this latest development with her friends, who were all still talking about the Gala too.

Celestia sat up again and laughed warmly at the sight of her. “You were right, Discord—me agreeing to have her design for me nearly did ‘rocket her to the next universe.’”

Discord’s grin picked up on one side. “True. But you do know that now she will in fact end up scheduling some horribly embarrassing ordeal of a fitting for us together once we get closer to the Gala, complete with the girls ‘oohing’ and ‘ahhing’ and poking and prodding us, right?” Discord rolled his eyes, glancing at Celestia again.

Celestia nodded. “Probably, yes. And actually that sounds like a very good idea. We want to make sure we’re look like a nice couple for the Gala.” She winked at him.

Discord’s eyes went a little wide though he managed to maintain his grin. “We do?”

She laughed. “Yes, or everyone who wants to think we’re on a date will be very disappointed.” Celestia sipped more of her tea, smiling to herself.

Discord watched her curiously, sincerely unable to decide if she was just being coy or just expressing her sense of humor which he had rarely gotten to see over all of these years.

“All right, girls, I think we’ve gone over everything we can go over today,” Twilight suddenly announced. She smiled (perhaps a bit too perfectly) as she looked at all of her friends and added, “I’m sure all of you still have a lot of things to take care of today…a-and I know I do too. I don’t want to keep you.”

“Now that you mention it, I should really get around to using all this caffeine to get ahead on my cloud busting,” Rainbow Dash replied, finishing the last sip of her coffee and flying up.

“And I feel like I could buck ten acres of trees without breaking a sweat.” Apple Jack grinned and glanced over to the wooden desk. “That was a mighty fine treat, Discord, thank you kindly.”

“Ooo, yes, and I have to get designing!” Rarity was practically beaming still. She looked to Twilight. “Spikey Wikey will be coming with me again, Twilight dear—I hope that’s all right.” Spike, of course, nodded and shot Twilight a pleading smile begging her not to protest.

“Oh, yes, and I really should go home and check on my animals,” Fluttershy added softly, pushing aside her cup. “I left Angel Bunny in charge while I was out, but sometimes it’s hard for him to get along with others…a lot of times, actually…and there can be fights. I really should go home and check.”

“I want to go introduce this new jalapeno whipped cream stuff to the Cakes! I think the customers at Sugar Cube Corner would love it!” Pinkie grinned, throwing her arms up in the air.

Twilight just smiled warmly at all of her friends. “Of course, girls. And you too, Spike. You all get going and do what you have to do. I’ll stay here and…redecorate the throne room some more.” She winked at them.

All of the girls smiled and winked back at her.

“They’ve been doing that all day whenever the throne room gets mentioned,” Discord whispered in a low voice to Celestia, leaning toward her. He snapped, making a Sherlock Holmes deerstalker cap appear on his head and a magnifying glass appear in one hand and a bubble pipe appear in the other. “I’ve deduced that they think they’re ‘cleverly’ keeping from me the fact that they’re ‘cleverly’ keeping something from me. I don’t know what Twilight’s cooking up in that room downstairs, but it better be good enough to live up to the hype.”

Celestia just smiled and tried not to laugh.

Discord smiled too and then he snapped his fingers. The desk and his outfit and the espresso machine all disappeared (and Celestia’s chair, leaving her sitting on the floor now), as did all of the girls’ cups and plates. He then cleared his throat and addressed the room. “All right, well, if the meeting’s adjourned, then my secretary duties are done for the day. So you girls just scamper off to your pony activities, and I’ll just kidnap your Sun Princess for a bit.” He grinned smugly.

Twilight blinked at these words and couldn’t help but give Discord a bit of a look, an eyebrow raised (and the same went for the rest of the girls and Spike and even Celestia as well).

Discord glanced at all of them and shrugged. “What? It’s just an expression—I’ll be kidnapping her, or you could even say that she’ll be kidnapping me—we’re kidnapping each other actually.” He floated up in the air, talking to himself a bit, his paw to his chin. “Kidnapping. Not a bad idea. I should have tried that back in my villainous days. I could have ransomed Celestia for all of Equestria.” He laughed playfully.

Celestia just stood up, smiling and shaking her head at Discord’s antics. She looked to the girls. “Discord and I will be at Canterlot Castle for a little while if anyone needs us. It was very nice to see you girls.” She gave a small bow of her head to the room.

All of the girls stood up from their chairs and bowed low to her.

“Goodbye, Princess!” Twilight, instead, gave Celestia a friendly wave.

Celestia gave her a wave back. “Goodbye as well, Princess.”

Twilight blushed a little in modesty.

Discord just sighed, floating down to Celestia’s side. “And on that note of prim and proper royal sappiness, the two immortals bid the six little ponies and the baby dragon a fond farewell. Oh and Pinkie?” He snapped, making a fresh cup of coffee full of whipped cream appear before her. “Before I go, here’s an extra cup of coffee with the jalapeno whipped cream…for you to show the Cakes.” He winked at her.

Pinkie beamed up at him. “Gee, thanks, Discord!”

Discord just chuckled. “Enjoy!” Then he snapped his fingers once more, and he and Celestia both disappeared in a flash of light.

The girls (and Spike) all proceeded, amongst some idle chatter, to prepare to leave the library.

“Girls, wait, before you go,” Twilight called out, holding up a hoof as her friends approached the doorway. Everyone paused. Twilight smiled at them. “I just wanted to thank you all for being okay with what I’m doing in the throne room.”

Apple Jack smiled in return. “Aw, sugar cube, you didn’t even have to ask us if it was okay. This is your castle, your home—you can do whatever you want with it.”

Twilight smiled more. “I know it’s my home, but the throne room belongs to all of us in a way, and it wouldn’t feel right changing anything in it without the approval of all of you.”

Rainbow Dash shrugged. “I’m still not sure if it’ll turn out looking okay, but you were right, Twilight. Discord really was important to us defeating Tirek, and he really does seem like an okay guy now. I think he might deserve it.”

The other girls nodded.

“Thank you all again,” Twilight bowed her head, “And bye for now.” She waved her hoof.

Her friends waved and wished her goodbye in return before finally departing the library.

All alone now, Twilight sighed and looked up at the nearly bare library walls. “I guess I could spend the rest of the day restoring more books. But it really would be nice to have something more official to do in the afternoons while my friends are taking care of their own responsibilities…even if that something was training servants and holding court.” She shrugged. “I guess for now I can be productive by studying more about the magic of friendship or the rainbow power or being a princess…or something.”

Suddenly Pinkie Pie popped her head back into the library. “Oh, sorry, Twilight, I almost forgot to take my drink home to show the Cakes the jalapeno whipped cream!” Pinkie pranced over to her former seat to grab her cup.

Twilight smiled. “Oh, sure, Pinkie.” She magically pulled a book off of a shelf and placed it down in front of herself on the table, opening it to begin perusing.

Pinkie smiled at the sight of her cup and licked her lips as she headed back over to the door. “Well…maybe I’ll take just one sip before I bring it to the Cakes.” She moved the cup closer to her mouth, and it was then she saw a little note attached to the rim. It read as follows: ‘For PP. Caffeine! From Discord. P.S. Twilight’s free—she can help you if things get out of hoof!’ Pinkie beamed, made a loud gasping sound, and instantly started to chug the entire cup.

Needless to say, Twilight soon began to spend a very full afternoon chasing a squealing, bouncing ball of pink pony all around town herself.


Meanwhile, in the Canterlot Castle Library a certain alicorn Princess and a certain (chuckling) draconequus appeared flying in midair…and upside down.

Discord realized, of course, and just smiled and kept himself suspended. Celestia (of course) did not realize, blinked, and almost fell right down to the library floor though she quickly got herself righted and on four hooves just in time to land safely.

Discord laughed and turned right side up as well, landing beside her. “Get a little turned around, Princess?”

Celestia sighed, giving him a bit of a chiding look. “Discord, you really should be more careful if you do things like that. I could have hurt myself.”

Discord just crossed his arms over his chest. “Oh, like I would ever let anything bad happen to any of my friends. I was all set to catch you with my magic if you needed it.” He raised an eyebrow and grinned a little. “And come on, I especially can’t let anything happen to you, Celestia—not to Equestria’s most perfect princess and the only woman around crazy enough to offer to be my Gala partner. Now,” he glanced around, starting to stroll forward, “This is your library, so I’m assuming it’s painfully well organized which means it shouldn’t take too long to locate a particular book. What are they arranged by—title, author, degree of boredom…?”

Celestia just smiled and shook her head before walking forward with him. “It depends on the subject matter, Discord. The main part of the library is divided into fiction, non-fiction, and reference, and then there are subdivisions within those sections until finally we go by the author’s last name. What book did you want anyway?”

Discord sighed deeply but tried to seem casual as he replied, “Starswirl the Bearded’s Guide to Nightly Musings…”

“A dream book?” Celestia blinked and stopped walking, then held up a hoof and smiled. “But why don’t you just ask Luna to—”

“Because not all of us want alicorn princesses traipsing through our subconscious minds.” Discord stopped as well now and turned back to Celestia, his arms crossed over his chest and his tone a bit firm. “Do you have the book or not, and if so can I borrow it?”

Celestia’s eyes went a little wide. Then she sighed, something a touch dull coming to her gaze and a touch firm coming to her own tone. “Right this way.” She walked past him, her head held high.

Discord looked after her, an eyebrow raised. Then a frown came to his features. He followed her.

They were just quiet for a moment, walking along.

Then Discord bit his lip and spoke again. “Celestia? Erm…” he took a deep breath, “I didn’t mean to snap at you. And I appreciate you letting me borrow the book. And I like Luna, I really do, but I’m just a very private person. I prefer to take care of my own concerns on my own.”

Celestia smiled a little again. She glanced at him. “It’s all right, Discord. I understand.” She shrugged. “I’m the same way. I even usually ask Luna to stay out of my dreams too.” She raised an eyebrow. “You said you’ve been feeling restless lately—you haven’t been having trouble sleeping, I hope.”

Discord shook his head. “No, it’s just…my dreams aren’t as chaotic as usual…or they’re more chaotic than usual. I’m not sure, it’s complicated…and a little personal.” He glanced to the side.

Celestia nodded. “Well, I’m here to talk if you’d ever like to.”

Discord chuckled a little. “Hmm…I’ll keep that in mind.”

Celestia smiled more and then magically opened a door to an older section of the library. She looked forward as they headed inside. “Here we are: the Starswirl the Bearded wing. Now let’s see…” She went over to a large, gilded shelf and examined some titles.

“Woo!” Discord whistled, looking up at the large, ornately decorated section of the library specifically for Starswirl’s work. “Wow, you really must have liked his books to give them this kind of treatment.”

“Yes, I liked his books. But I liked Starswirl more.” Celestia’s smile grew as she continued to examine some titles. “He was my best friend for a very long time. Ah, here we go.” She magically took down a rather large volume and put it into Discord’s hands. “Here you are, Discord—Starswirl’s Guide to Nightly Musings.

“Ooo!” Discord let his arms drop dramatically to the ground as soon as his hands took on the full weight of the book. “What is there, a secret magical brick inside of this thing? Don’t you have an abridged version? Or a Sparkle Notes reference guide perhaps?” He raised an eyebrow at Celestia, hoisting up the book and getting himself standing straight again.

Celestia just smiled at him and shook her head. “I’m sorry, there’s just that, Discord. But I promise it’s an interesting read.” She went back over to the doors. “Come on. We can talk more back in the main section of the library. The lighting’s never been very good in here, and there’s always so much dust.” She headed out.

Discord followed after her, enchanting the book to float in a bubble behind him.

“Discord, as long as I have you here, I want to apologize in advance for the behavior of my guests at the Gala.” Celestia sighed, glancing over her shoulder at him. “Some of them are probably going to press you about some sensitive subjects during the party, and it’s not fair of them. You should just be allowed to enjoy yourself.”

“More issues with my former villainy?” Discord shrugged. “Sheesh, it was a thousand years ago and just a little bit after I first came back. There’s been half a dozen villains since then—seriously, can we get over it already?”

“I think the bigger issue will be how you betrayed us to join Tirek,” Celestia finally informed him directly. “Luna and Cadance and I were hurt…and while we may forgive you, it won’t be as easy for some of our loyal subjects to do the same.” She looked at him seriously and spoke with care. “I think we should talk about the best way to respond to the ponies about this matter, Discord.”

Discord was very specifically not looking to her eyes. “Oh. Well that’s easily taken care of.” He walked a little more quickly to get ahead of her.

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “It is?”

Discord nodded. “I won’t be answering any questions about that particular misadventure. At all. Period.”

Celestia blinked, moving to catch up with him. “But Discord, you’ll have to say something eventually.”

“Nope, afraid not, and you can’t make me.” He turned to face her and crossed his arms over his chest, holding his head up high.

Celestia stopped walking and held up a hoof. “But…don’t you want the chance to explain and defend yourself, Discord?”

“To a bunch of judgmental ponies I’ve never even met before?” Discord scoffed, looking down at her. “I couldn’t care less. Either way though the answer remains no. I just want to put what happened with Tirek behind me now, so I’m not talking about it to the girls, to you, or to anybody! Got it?” He scowled and frowned.

Celestia’s features took on some of that look of frustration as well. “Discord, I’m just trying to help you. Why do you always have to be so stubborn?”

“Stubborn?” He put his hands on his hips. “Why, because I’m not going to humiliate myself by having ponies rake me over the coals? And because I’m not going to explain myself to you like I’m your newest faithful student? I’m not one of your ‘little ponies’, Celestia. For chaos’s sake, I’m older than YOU are, and that’s saying something.”

Celestia’s eyes went a little wide and she blushed a bit. However, she managed to keep her voice calm and level as she replied, “It doesn’t matter who’s older if one of us clearly acts less mature than the other one of us all the time.”

“You just don’t understand!” Discord scoffed and held out his arms, though his scowl did waver a little.

“But I want to understand, Discord!” Celestia asserted, some of her annoyance calming into sincerity. She leaned in closer to him.

Discord blinked, feeling himself backed slightly against a shelf of books, and seeing her violet eyes looking into his with so much caring. There was silence and a small standoff between the two magical beings for just a moment. Then a question popped out of the master of chaos’s mouth. “Why do you always want to be nice to me?”

Celestia blinked, moving back just a little. “What?”

“I’m almost never nice to you.” Discord looked at her sincerely and spoke the same way…and maybe also a touch curiously. “So just let me handle the ponies any way I want to. What does it matter if they don’t like me or I embarrass myself a little? I don’t deserve all of this help, Celestia. And I don’t know why you want to give it to me anyway.”

Celestia’s features softened. She frowned and stepped closer to him again. “I didn’t mean to put pressure on you. I trust you, Discord. You can handle the questions anyway you like. But if you do need me, if you ever want to talk about it, I’m always here. It doesn’t matter what you think you deserve.” She smiled. “And you’re nicer to me and to everypony else than you give yourself credit for. And I like being nice to you too.”

Discord’s eyes were a little wide now as he looked down into hers. He tried not to feel like blushing. “I…I’m not sure I know what to say.”

Celestia smiled more, a small laugh escaping her. “Discord? Speechless? I think that’s a first.”

Discord had to grin again, and at her laugh he felt his usual ease returning. “Oh ha ha. Just for that, I’m going to talk your ear off at this Gala thing.” He snapped his fingers, suddenly making one of Celestia’s ears pop off of her head and disappear.

“Oh!” Celestia remarked, looking up in surprise, her eyes wide.

Discord chuckled. “Oh dear, now let’s see where that pesky thing went…” He suddenly reached behind her attached ear and magically pulled out the unattached one. “And, look at that, your ear was behind your ear the entire time.” He snapped, securing the ear into place once more. “Ta da.”

Celestia blinked a few times but then couldn’t help laughing. “Very funny. You know, I wouldn’t mind a nice talk though. Really,” she encouraged, getting her merriment under control. “We’ve had so little time just to chat ever since you learned the magic of friendship, Discord.”

“Yes, well…” Discord shrugged, grinning proudly, “I’m sure I’ll be very popular during Gala night since so many of your subjects are interested in me as you said. But you do have first dibs on me for any talking—I am your escort after all. As long as you don’t come to your senses before the Gala and ditch me for some stallion of nobility or something, of course.” He rolled his eyes with a playful smile but also observed her closely.

“Not a chance.” Celestia winked, smiling at him.

Discord smiled a little more and almost had to try not to blush again.

Celestia put a hoof to her chin in thought. “Discord, you know, I had some minor meetings scheduled this afternoon, but I could postpone them. And as long as you’re here and I have some time, would you like to have your dance lesson now?” She lowered her hoof and smiled.

Discord blinked. “Now? Er…well…I suppose I…Oh!” Discord’s eyes went wide as he suddenly found himself surrounded by a purple aura which he could feel was quickly summoning him away from Canterlot Castle and…to Twilight Sparkle, if he wasn’t mistaken! “Oh really, Celestia, why did you teach Twilight that summoning spell?!” The entire midsection of his body had been pulled into a magical vortex, though he still held on to the edges of the vortex to keep himself here a bit longer. “And shouldn’t she not be able to do this without those pesky Elements of Harmony?” Discord raised an eyebrow.

Celestia just smiled with interest. “Well, her magic on its own has gotten stronger, Discord. If she really wants your return for some reason, she could summon you on her own, and especially if she’s in her castle made by the Tree of Harmony and knows where you are.” She shrugged.

Discord sighed, and his look went a little dry. “Great, great…so now I can’t just prank her and dash because she could just rip me back to her castle whenever she feels like it.” The entire half of his body up to his arms was in the vortex now. He frowned stubbornly at Celestia. “I blame you for this.”

Celestia just grinned a little. “Don’t forget your book, Discord.” She made the bubbled book go through the vortex. “And as soon as we can schedule things, I really will see you back here for your dance lesson. Have a good afternoon with Twilight.” She started to head away.

“Wait, Celestia!” Discord whined a little, everything but his head and one arm sucked into the vortex now. “Come on, for old time’s sake, get me out of this one! I left Pinkie Pie with coffee spiked with a triple shot of espresso and Twilight to clean up the mess. She’ll probably turn me into a chandelier or a coat rack or something! I protest this mistreatment by royalty! I know my rights, you know! Uh…Twilight’s castle doesn’t have a dungeon does it? Oh…sprinkles!” And just like that he was gone and so was the vortex.

Celestia just laughed to herself and shook her head. Then she slipped an interesting book from one of the library shelves and headed out into the castle, magically perusing the volume as she walked along.


Discord found himself on the library floor in Twilight’s castle now.

And there before him stood Twilight Sparkle, breathing heavily, scowling, her mane frizzed and blown up on one side and full of sprinkles, her wings molting a few feathers and covered in frosting, her crown on her head half bent, and several scuff marks on her face and body that were white and appeared to be from powdered sugar or flour.

Discord grinned. “Hey there, Twilight. You look a little tense?” He snapped his fingers, making a white mug appear in his hand with a curl of steam coming off the top. “A cup of coffee to settle your nerves? It’s decaf…” He held it out to her and tried very hard not to burst into laughter.

Twilight, still looking very unhappy, magically knocked the coffee cup right out of his hand and to the floor.

“Oh dear, you’ve only had this castle a couple of days and you’re already staining the crystal interior.” Discord tutted and shook his head. “Here, I’ll play maid for the rest of the afternoon and clean that up.” He went to snap his fingers.

Twilight magically stopped him by putting her aura around his paw and pulling him forward. She looked into his eyes. “Oh, you are going to play maid all right. For Ponyville.” She magically teleported them over to the balcony. Down below, Discord could see a clearly marked chaos path of cake and balloons and confetti leading right through town, all around the perimeter of Ponyville and back through town again at another angle until it ended with a sleeping Pinkie Pie nestled on top of a mountain of cupcakes in the town square.

“Wow.” Discord observed the scene with interest. “You know, if I ever want a vacation, I think Pinkie Pie might just be my new number one choice to fill in for me as chaos master. I mean, truly I wish she was awake and here with us right now so that I could give her a round of applause and a congratulatory glass of chocolate milk.” A chuckle escaped him and he shook his head, crossing his arms over his chest. “I always knew there was a reason laughter was my favorite element.”

A rather harsh sigh left Twilight Sparkle, and she got right in front of him, looking him square in the eye. “Listen to me, Discord—no jokes, no hijinks, no ‘I don’t do windows’, no shtick. Clean up this mess—now!” Twilight let out a deep breath, calming herself and trying to return her usual princess poise.

Discord held up his hands, grinning away and nodding. “Okay, okay, I’ll clean it up. I promise. No need to unleash your friendship wrath on me, oh mighty Princess Twilight.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Discord, why would you even do this to me in the first place?” she asked, just a touch of her frustration returning. “I know you like pranks, but you have no idea what I just went through. None.”

“Oh come on, it couldn’t have been that bad.” Discord waved her off, floating up to sit in the air.

Twilight’s eyes narrowed. “She filled her party canon with piñatas filled with smaller party canons!

Discord laughed but quickly got himself under control. “Look, I was just trying to help you, Twilight. All of your friends had to go off again to see to their own tasks for the day, and I did too, which meant you would have been left all alone in your castle with nothing to do. But I know you always like feeling like you have a purpose—who doesn’t? So I just did my best to give you one for a bit this afternoon—chasing down a caffeine crazed Pinkie Pie.”

Twilight sighed, her look going a little dry. “I’m sure I don’t even have to guess how you know I’ve been looking for things to do lately once the girls go home for the day. Eavesdropping?”

“What?” Discord shrugged. “It’s my favorite pastime. And how else am I supposed to find out about the secret wants and needs of my friends?” He laughed just a touch smugly and then went on. “So anyway, as I said, I gave you the favor of wrangling Pinkie Pie for the afternoon. Though I must say, I’m honestly surprised you caught and sedated her this quickly.” He raised an eyebrow. “I thought I’d have at least an hour to myself before you had time to come looking for me.” He snapped his fingers, making a strange meter appear in his hands. “Her chaos readings are at an eight on a scale of one to ten. Ten being me and one being you when you’re studying…or, you know, Celestia at any given moment in time.” He snapped his fingers again to make the meter disappear. “Your magic really must be getting stronger.”

Twilight sighed, putting a hoof to her forehead to rub her temple. “I’m just grateful she wasn’t a pegasus or a unicorn. Having the advantage of flight and magic helped, especially when I had to launch cupcakes full of sleeping potion into her mouth.” She looked up at Discord, wanting to say something stern again. But then his words really sunk in, and the look on his face bore no malice—he really sincerely had been trying to help her in his own chaotic way. “Discord…” Twilight took in and let out a deep breath, then went on calmly, “while I hope next time you pick something a little less stressful…thank you for trying to give me something useful to do. I do appreciate the gesture.” She smiled.

Discord smiled brightly. “Of course, Twilight. And next time I promise to give you something just a smidge milder to do.” He stretched a little, glancing around at the (now) empty library. “If you don’t mind me saying so though, I think the fact that your friends have jobs outside of being your court is another reason for you to start opening this place up in full force like a princess—it would give you something to do after a long morning of studying friendship with your friends besides just studying friendship even more on your own…which is kind of pointless since the magic of friendship really requires friends of course.” He shrugged.

“After the Gala, Discord,” Twilight replied decisively.

Discord blinked, angling himself down toward her in the air. “Come again?”

Twilight smiled up at him. “After the Gala. The throne room will be done by then, and I should have other things in place in main parts of the castle as well. Then I’ll start looking into the formalities of being a princess. I agree with you, I think it might be good for me too.”

Discord smiled more. “Good. And for what it’s worth coming from me, I think you’ll do fine at the daily duties of princessing, Twilight. I mean, you keep me under control most of the time, and I have to be the most difficult subject around. You’ll whip Equestria into shape with friendship in no time, you’ll see.” He gave her a wink.

Twilight smiled more in return. “Thanks, Discord. And you know, you can visit here all you want too, even once I start trying to be more of an official princess. I can’t bother Princess Celestia all of the time or Luna or Cadance either, but it would be nice to have someone to talk to who’s been around a while and seen a lot of Equestria’s history. Sort of like an unofficial advisor.”

Discord blinked and then beamed and gestured to himself with his paw. “Me? A royal advisor?” He considered, but then sighed. “I don’t know, that sounds like an awful lot of work. Couldn’t my title just be the court jester?” He snapped, making a jester cap appear on his head.

Twilight laughed. “Whatever makes you happy, Discord.” Then her smile remained but her gaze and tone got a little firm once more. “Now, I’m going to take a long, hot bath, and you are going to get to cleaning.”

Discord sighed and rolled his eyes. “Oh fine, Princess Twilight, I hear your commands, and I obey.” He snapped his fingers to make his French maid’s uniform appear and then snapped his fingers again to (finally) be off on his duty.

Twilight just watched him go with a smile and a shake of her head before sighing and adjourning to the bathroom for some well-deserved relaxation after her very long afternoon.

Author's Note:

Thank you all for your patience with this update! Between getting that Luna/Donut Joe story ready in time for Valentine's Day and then spending President's Day weekend at Ponycon, I barely had time until now to work on this. I'll try to keep posting as regularly as possible, and I hope you all enjoyed this installment.

Also, I just got an editorial posted on EQD (yay!) It's about Sunset Shimmer and the question of whether she should stay in the human universe or return to Ponyville--if it's a topic that interests you, I hope you'll check it out. Thank you in advance for that (and for any reviews too of course) :)

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