My Little Pony: Sora's Misadventures in Equestria

by Codex92

Make New Friends but Keep Discord

It was a beautiful morning in Ponyville, where today was the usual weekly get-together for Discord and Fluttershy at her cottage. He always appeared on time at her home on Tuesdays, although with his betrayal a while ago, it took a while for the draconequus to sum up the courage to show himself around her. He felt awful for breaking her trust when she was the only one of the group who gave him the benefit of the doubt. It took quite a lot of good deeds for him to make it up to the princesses as well, but at least he had breaks in-between helping others.

"And that's not all!" Discord said as he seemed to be finishing up a story as he lounged on one of Fluttershy's sofas. "When I went to look for them again, they were on the ceiling!"

Fluttershy giggled at the funny tale. "Oh, Discord, I've never known anypony as funny as you! I love that story about the time you tried to train your right paw-" She broke out in a fit of giggles again. "-to fetch your left leg!"

"And it's still taking forever to get my paw's training just right," Discord said, his right paw suddenly popping off his arm and tried to escape. "Hey! No! Get over here!" He grabbed his runaway paw and forced it back on the stump on his wrist. "At least it's not like training a puppy not use the bathroom outdoor and not on the carpet."

"Oh, I do love our Tuesday teas," Fluttershy said. "I missed them."

"Yes, so did I," Discord said, though guilt welled up again as he stared at his empty teacup. "I didn't know if you wanted to be around me after...well, you know."

"We already forgive you, Discord," Fluttershy assured. He knew that was a lie as Fluttershy was the only one who trusted him again, whereas the others were on an incredibly thin line the size of a molecule with him. "And I can't wait for you to meet my friend Tree Hugger. I have a feeling she's going to like you too."

Discord's guilt suddenly turned to jealousy, being the first time he heard of this Tree Hugger. "...Tree Hugger?"

"I met her when I was on my trip to see the Breezies," she said. "She's a member of the Equestrian Society for the Preservation of Rare Creatures."

"...Well, how nice for you," Discord grumbled, munching on his teacup as he failed to hide his envy.

"We're all going to have so much fun at the Grand Galloping Gala tonight," Fluttershy said. "Oh! I'm not sure if you knew yet, but there's-"

"I was actually wondering about the Gala!" Discord interrupted. "I'd love to join you with the others!"

"Oh. Umm, I'm afraid I already asked Tree Hugger to be my plus one." Hearing that made Discord's face droop to the floor, quite literally, too. "I'm sorry, Discord. I assumed you got your own ticket since you and Princess Celestia are now friends. Were you not invited?"

Picking his mouth off the floor, Discord hid his jealousy and anger, though quite poorly as he put on a purple jacket. "Who, me?" he asked. "Oh, it probably got lost in the mail or something. No biggie as the kids say. I better be going!"

"But we haven't had any of our Tuesday teacakes yet," Fluttershy reminded as she held up the plate of pastries, Discord swiping them and rolling them down into his jacket.

"Then I guess we're going to have to exclude them from our party this time," he grumbled aloud, Fluttershy tilting her head in confusion at her draconequus friend's strange behavior. "...Oh, did I say that out loud? I mean, ta-ta."

Turning away and grabbing a cap off the coat hanger, Discord scowled as he teleported away, leaving Fluttershy alone in her house. "...Oh my...Well, maybe he also knows about Terra, too. He knows a lot about Sora and the others from the...memory thing he does." Looking at the time, the pegasus got up and began to leave as well. "I can't believe I almost forgot she was coming down to visit before we leave for Canterlot tonight."

---

Inside the Castle of Friendship, Riku hummed to himself as he took a shower to get himself ready for the Gala tonight. Twilight had to leave earlier to help set up the Grand Galloping Gala this evening, which meant the others needed to get ready with their new dress outfits for the evening. He grabbed some shampoo, lathered some of the substance in his hooves before rubbing his hair, blinded by the soapy suds. As he raised his head up to the shower head, he didn't feel the warm water rain down on him and rinse the soap out of his eyes.

"Oh come on," he grumbled. "I can hear it running. Where's that stupid-?" As he reached out to find the source of the running water, his hoof touched something oddly furry and scaly all at once. Confused, he instead reached a wing out to grab his towel and wipe the soap out of his eyes. Looking up now that he can see, he let out a high-pitched scream as he saw Discord stand in front of him, blocking the water as it fell down his back. Riku instinctively covered himself with his towel, shocked and a bit confused as he expected the draconequus to laugh uproariously at the feminine screech he made. "Discord!? What are you doing in my shower!?"

"Where's Twilight?" he growled.

"She's in Canterlot getting the Gala ready with Celestia and Luna!" Riku answered in annoyance. "Now get out of my bathroom!" Discord let out a frustrated growl as he teleported away, letting the water hit Riku and soak his dry towel. Letting out an irritated grunt of his own, Riku tossed out the wet towel and rinsed his head. "Of all the times for that walking zoo to come back, he picked a moment where I was in the middle of a shower. And what part of him got up his butt that's got him so miffed?"

---

Down at the Carousel Boutique, Rarity was busy getting everyone she needed fitted into the outfits she's made for them months in advance. Ventus and Terra stood still, both with irritated grimaces as Rarity's aura poked and prodded them as they wore their new tuxedos the fashionista made for them. Their tuxes were designed as their namesake in a fashionable style, slight waving wind patterns on Ventus's and jagged, earth-shaped patterns on Terra's.

"How much longer is this going to take?" Terra asked. "I can stand at attention, but this is a completely different agonizing wait."

"Well, your build is much bigger than the others," Rarity said. "Not as buff as Bulk Biceps, but you certainly have some muscles that could threaten to tear through the suit."

"That's why I prefer wearing loose clothing, not anything constricting." Ventus nodded his head, preferring his own clothes rather than a monkey suit.

On the other end of the room, Aqua was busy getting the Crusaders fitted in their dresses, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo joining their sisters, surrogate or blood-related, as their plus ones for the Gala. She was working on the latter two's dresses as they wore them while Apple Bloom went to change in a dressing room. Sweetie Belle wore a very pale green dress with a lime green sash tied in a ribbon and similar colored trimming, a fake blue lotus flower in her mane while Scootaloo wore a pale purple dress, a slightly darker streak of purple running around the dress from her hip, with a purple dragonfly hair accessory on a yellow feather in her mane.

"Ok, girls, I think that about does it for you two," Aqua said. She turned to Applejack and Rainbow Dash, both mares busy playing a round of cards as they waited for their sisters' fitting. "All that's left is Apple Bloom."

"We're going to the Gala!" Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo chanted, bouncing up and down excitedly. "We're going to the Gala!"

"Alright, y'all, keep it down," Applejack said. "It ain't like a life changin' experience or noth-" As she turned to face the dressing room, the farm mare's jaw dropped as the curtains opened and saw Apple Bloom. The filly was wearing a white and light pink dress, a fake flower on the chest of her outfit and in her mane, still wearing her pink bow that helped compliment her dress. Noticing her stunned older sister, Apple Bloom grinned as she posed. Applejack began tearing up at the sight of her baby sister in that dress. "My little sister's all grown up."

While the young Apple joined her friends, Applejack grabbed Rainbow's tail as she lazily floated beside her, using it as a tissue to her irritation. "Hey!"

As the pegasus mare pulled her tail away from the proud farm mare, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo jumped around joyfully as they're all going to the Grand Galloping Gala. "This is gonna be the best night ever!"

"It's not really all that it's cracked up to be," Ventus muttered.

One of the mirrors by the Crusaders suddenly turned into a red and yellow eye, the three fillies noticing it stare and blink at them as they screamed and ran away. The mirror shrunk as Discord moved out of his hiding spot, turning his eye back to normal as he made his appearance.

"Discord," Aqua grumbled. "To what do we owe the displeasure of your unwanted entrance?"

"Oh, nothing," Discord said. "I was just wondering if these-" He slithered up to Apple Bloom, but Applejack stood in his way, not letting him anywhere near her sister while he grimaced at what he was going to say. "-adorable little cutie pies have their own tickets to the Gross Gruesome Gala...Do they?"

Apple Bloom responded with a raspberry, leering at him as Aqua answered his question. "They're actually coming as Applejack's, Rarity's, and Rainbow Dash's plus-ones."

"We're plus-ones!" Sweetie Belle chanted, the other two fillies joining in just to irritate the draconequus, which was actually working.

"Ok! I get it!" he shouted, before realizing that the Keyblade wielders were also going. "Or, maybe you-?"

"No," Aqua and Ventus both said.

"Oh, come on!" Discord whined. He turned to look at Ventus, surprised to see the other stallion getting fit into his tuxedo. "...Who are you?"

"Name's Terra," Terra said as he introduced himself. "And I assume you're Discord. You're definitely as chaotic as you appear."

"...Wait a minute..." Snapping his fingers, Discord summoned one of the Keyblade wielders' book of memories crafted in his chaotic magic, the cover showing a crude drawing of Aqua. Flipping through the pages, he found the same person that matched the earth pony stallion's hair, though the drawing of him on the page had him scowling while looking like a manic villain. Grumbling to himself, he dropped the book, already more irritated than he had been earlier today. "You cannot be serious right now...You're a Keyblade wielder like these two?"

"And you didn't glance at my cutie mark to even tell," Terra said.

"Where did you even come from?" Discord asked. "I thought you were supposed to be gone! Like gone, gone!"

"Guess you didn't bother updating those cheat sheets you made about our lives after your little betrayal earlier," Ventus said, bringing back that horrible mistake of the draconequus's to his dismay.

"Oh, is that why you won't invite me? Because I'm still not trustworthy!?" he asked. "And I told you how miserable my life was before all this, Ventus."

"Yes, I know," Ventus said. "But even knowing that, it's going to take a lot more than apologizing for us to trust you again."

Discord huffed, feeling like he had done enough for a while after betraying everyone and worked for Tirek. "Fine, then. I'll just find somepony else to be their plus-one for the Gala."

He teleported away, leaving everyone alone to their relief, though Aqua was a bit confused by what Discord was talking about. "When did he tell you about his life story, Ven? We haven't seen him after the castle appeared."

"...He told me after he knocked you and Kairi out when we fought him," Ventus said. "I think it's obvious seeing how he was different from everyone else in Equestria and never fit in. You can put two and two together to know how alone someone can be if everyone else judges you by appearance. And it was all before he decided to take over Equestria back then, as well."

"Yes, we overheard their little talk as well," Rarity said, finishing up with Terra's outfit now that it fit him perfectly without restraining his muscular body too much. "As sad as Discord's life was, he's going to need to work for our trust this time. Fluttershy gave him the benefit of the doubt at first, and so did we, but he squandered it thinking friendship was weakness."

"We all proved that wrong," Rainbow said. "Especially Sora. He's the strongest out of all of us. Why is it that bad guys think that they're strong on their own when they're outnumbered?"

"Because they have power that they believe is better than working together," Terra answered. "Xehanort betrayed us for a long time, and we were all too blinded to even notice..." He grunted and looked down at his hooves as he thought back to their master, Eraqus. "...I wonder if Master Eraqus knew, but believed Xehanort could turn around..."

"It's already too late for forgiveness for that man," Aqua growled. "The moment he turns up, he's going to regret ever messing with us."

---

Down at Sugarcube Corner, Pinkie finished a customer's order and saw them off. "Have a wonderful, special fantastic day!" she said as the customer headed off with their treat. She walked back over to the corner, noticing a mysterious looking box sitting in the middle of the room. "Hi, Discord. Want some cake?"

A giant red exclamation mark appeared over the box, Discord opening the flaps as he poked his head out, a little surprised to see Pinkie guessed it was him inside. "That pony is more chaotic than anypony else...and yet she doesn't have any special magic...Right?"

"I can give you a list of all the flavors we have in order of most delicious to incredibly, unbelievably delicious!" Pinkie said as she watched Discord climb out of the cardboard box, which poofed away as he was fully out.

"Actually, Pinkie Pie, who are you taking to..." Discord stumbled on his words, finding it infuriating to constantly ask someone to take him to the Gala. He didn't want to go, but if Fluttershy was, he had to just so he can at least spend a lot more time with his first friend he's ever made in his long life. He gave up as he approached the counter. "You know what? I actually am rather famished. I'll take all of the cakes."

Pinkie gasped in surprise. "ALL of them!?" She then looked at the screen, grabbing it and shaking it excitedly. "He wants ALL of the cakes!"

She quickly ran into the kitchen and began packing cakes at the counter. "Well, I'm going to need my energy when I cut a rug at the Gala, if I decide to go. Oh, by the way, are you bringing anypony?"

"Of course!" Pinkie said. "I was actually going to bring my mom, because she's, you know, my mom, but it turned out she didn't want to go-!" As the mare rambled on about who she was bringing, Discord looked out the front door. He gasped when he saw Fluttershy walk down the road with another mare, the two of them busy talking about something. Lowering a periscope down from the ceiling, he got a closer look at the other mare, a green earth pony with red messy dreadlocks, her hair having light vermilion highlights, a flower bandanna on her head, and her cutie mark a red heart shaped tree. The scope began blinking red as Discord fumed, his best friend hanging out with somepony he didn't know. "-and I realized, of course! Who loves fancy exciting affairs more than anypony else? My sister Maud!"

Pushing up the periscope he created, Discord glowered as he held up his claw to snap himself over to them. "You know what? Cancel my order."

As he teleported out of the bakery, Pinkie's jaw dropped as the entire room was filled with every single cake Sugarcube Corner can bake. "You want none of the cakes now!?" She slumped over and groaned. "I hate when customers order something then cancel it at the last minute. Now they're all gonna go to waste!"

---

Fluttershy escorted her friend, Tree Hugger, around Ponyville as she showed her what the town had to offer. Discord tailed after them, keeping a close eye on the earth pony mare while staying hidden. As the two mares talked, Sora and Kairi approached them as they spotted Fluttershy.

"Hey, Flutters," Sora greeted. "Who's this? New visitor in town?"

"Yes, and she's also my plus-one for the Gala tonight," Fluttershy said. "This is Tree Hugger. I met her when I went on my trip to see the Breezies. Tree Hugger, this is Sora and Kairi."

"Righteous," Tree Hugger said, her voice and gaze seeming aloof as she appeared to be overly relaxed. "Fluttershy was just telling me about you and your other friends with those weird sword thingies. Pretty radical stopping those evil karmatic monsters that show up."

"...Uhh, yeah," Kairi said. "Pretty 'radical'."

"You guys, like, have such a harder job, fighting to save the world," Tree Hugger said. "Not as bad as taking care of baby manticores injured by poachers. Gotta keep those little guys calm, otherwise they're sting you worse than a hive of irritated hornets."

"I'd take the manticore sting over a hive full of angry bees," Sora said. "Trust me. I've dealt with several mad honeybees when a certain bear I know just can't stop getting enough honey."

"Can't blame bears wanting some honey from the bees," Tree Hugger said, licking her lips. "Sometimes, the best of anything comes from the source."

Discord suddenly appeared between the four ponies, surprising Sora and Kairi, but Tree Hugger barely flinched. "Sorry to interrupt your little chat!" he said. "Seems like everypony's got something to talk about: the Gala, birds and bees, bears wearing red shirts who constantly badger a rabbit about honey while having a bottomless pit of a stomach."

"Hello, Discord," Sora uttered in disgust. "Busy eavesdropping and looking through others' memories again? That's called 'invasion of privacy', you know."

"Don't care. Lord of Chaos," the draconequus said.

"Oh, and this is Discord, Tree Hugger," Fluttershy said, introducing her new friend to Discord. "This is Tree Hugger, Discord. The pony I...asked to be my plus-one."

"Radical to meet you, dude," Tree Hugger said. "Really digging your vibe."

"My vibe?" Discord questioned skeptically.

"Discord, it was a compliment, not a threat," Sora said.

"Oh, sure it is," Discord muttered. "Well, I must be off." He teleported away, only to come back a second later. "And it has nothing to do with seeing you or not seeing you. You can rest assured after that." He disappeared again with a nervous chuckle, coming back yet again, Sora and Kairi wishing he would just leave already. "Have fun at the Gala!"

Discord turned away from Fluttershy and Tree Hugger, smacking himself in the face in annoyance and finally leaving them be. "Righteous," Tree Hugger said. "How does he do that?"

"He has magic," Kairi said. "And not the kind you would want to get involved with. Ever."

"Are all of you still a little mad at Discord for what happened?" Fluttershy asked, but she got her answer just from the blank stares coming from the two Keyblade wielders. "...Right. Silly question..."

"Sorry, Fluttershy," Sora apologized. "Maybe you can look past what he did with Tirek, but not all of us are truly accepting with him as an ally one hundred percent."

"He was acting a bit weird, though," Kairi noted as she saw he was a bit irritated more than condescending.

"I kind of noticed that, too," Fluttershy said. "Maybe he's a little upset because he didn't get his Gala ticket yet. I hope he gets it soon and doesn't feel left out."

"I'd actually rather have a normal, boring ball to go to like last time than have it turn upside down with Discord involved," Sora said. "Speaking of, I think we should get ourselves ready soon. I think our old dress outfits still fit us, though I'm kind of wondering what Ven, Aqua, and Terra will be wearing."

---

Inside of a strange portal that lies out in the middle of nowhere with a sign that read "Discord's Home", there was an internal dimension of random chaos that definitely felt like home to him. Off-beaten paths to different random sections of his home that floated in the air, a background of a disturbing void that could easily get someone lost, and several random things floating by through the endless void. A normal looking house with a front porch was the home of the draconequus, though on the inside, it was far from what anyone would expect.

Discord teleported in his living room, huffing angrily. "'Oh, Tree Hugger, you're such a great friend!'" he said to himself, utterly fuming as he mimicked Fluttershy, but not releasing his pent up anger on her as it was aimed toward Tree Hugger. "'So much funnier and more interesting than Discord!'" As he ranted to himself, he went about "cleaning" his house while wearing cleaning gear: dropping a glass vase on his floor, creating dust bunnies under his couch, smudging the windows with a window washer, and dirtying his dishes as they were dunked in the soapy water in the sink. "'No, no, here. Take my plus-one. I insist. Before somepony else thinks HE'S my friend and expects to be asked instead.

"'What's that? You're worried Discord might be upset?' Not a problem! I can make more new friends anytime I want. It's not as if any of this actually mattered to me, being the mutant freak I am!" Discord growled and plopped down on his sofa. "I didn't even want to go to the Gala anyway!" As he leered angrily at his ceiling, he heard someone screaming for help outside. Looking out the window, he saw a postpony floating out of control through the looping void of his home. Sighing, he teleported to his door and outstretched his clawed arm to grab the stallion, pulling him to safety. "Are you perhaps looking for me?"

"Uhh, are you..." The stallion pulled out a letter as he read out the recipient it was meant to be sent to. "Discord or other resident? I can't find a street number to this place."

Discord raised a brow as he pointed at himself. "You're kidding right? I'm practically the only living creature of my kind in existence, and you can't tell I'm Discord? And I placed a sign outside of my portal's home, too! And if you wanted to avoid floating around aimlessly, I laid out safe paths for you!"

The draconequus turned the mailpony around, showing him the floating planks that were considered "safe" to walk on. "...Uhh, are you sure? Some of them were...upside down and sideways."

"There'a a gravitational pull on each of the-Urgh, forget it. Just give me my mail!" Snatching the envelope, Discord tore it open, and to his surprise, it was his Gala ticket. "...My ticket to the Gala! I was invited after all!" His excitement quickly turned sour, slowly leering at the stallion who delivered his mail several days late. "Why was this so late?"

"I-I, uhh, kinda got a bit lost after escaping from those flying badgers," he explained. "Can you point me in the direction of the bottomless pit? I think I can find my way back from there."

"...I think it's over there," Discord said dully, though he was also unsure of where it was himself. "Somewhere. Just go over there." He gave the mailpony a shove, sending him floating in a random direction. Ignoring his cries for help, Discord walked back inside as he stared at his ticket. "Looks like I'll be seeing you at the Gala after all, Fluttershy. But I can't show up alone. She'll think that she's my only friend." He paced around as he tried to think of someone, anyone he knew he could bring with him to the Gala to show Fluttershy and make her jealous of him. Getting an idea, he snapped his fingers and chuckled sinisterly. "Oh, I know exactly who to bring..."

---

Later in the evening, the Gala was already underway as those in Canterlot and those given a personal invitation to the event were already filing into the castle. Like the last time, the group arrived in style as Sora, Ventus, Riku, and Terra pulled an apple magically enchanted into a carriage big enough for all the girls to ride in. They pulled up outside of the castle gates, the stallions unhitching themselves while wearing their specialized tuxedos Rarity made them.

"Here we are at the Gala again," Sora said. "Although, it's going to be a first for you guys. It's a shame Spike didn't want to come along."

"Would have been a bit too boring for him," Ventus said. "He went off to Doughnut Joe's after we went inside last time." Before they opened the doors for the girls inside the carriage, Ventus pulled out one of the Doctor's special flameless fireworks he managed to get after his suit was tailored perfectly by the fashionista. "Hey, Terra, give Aqua this flower."

"Uhh, ok?" Terra said, a little confused as he took the odd, rainbow-colored flower. "First, what kind of flower is this? And second, why?"

"It's a pretty rare flower someone back in Ponyville was selling," Ventus lied, wearing a sly grin. "And, I don't know, I thought maybe Aqua would like it."

"Not sure if Aqua's much of a flower person." As Terra looked at the "flower", Sora opened the door to the carriage to let them out.

"Canterlot Castle, ladies!" Sora announced. "That'll be 500 Munny per mare!"

"Ha ha, Sora," Rainbow said. "As if I'm paying you anything."

"Hey, it's a long walk," Sora reasoned.

"Then how about this instead?" Kairi stepped out, wearing her old Gala dress, giving Sora a kiss on the lips.

As she pulled away, the stallion wore a goofy grin. "Yeah. That'll work."

The others exited the carriage, along with any of them who brought a plus-one with them. Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow, and Pinkie wore a different dress this time, followed by the Crusaders in their new dresses, then Maud in a simple blue dress with lighter specs of blue scattered in different areas of her outfit, then Tree Hugger in a pale fuchsia dress with yellow trimming, wearing a hoofmade flower wreath around on her head.

"I never thought in my life I'd ever ride in a magical apple," Tree Hugger said. "Organic transportation needs to be a thing."

"I don't think it'll catch on with technological progress," Riku said. He then leaned over to Sora, not knowing much about this new mare that joined them. "Is she on drugs or something? She sounds and looks high."

"Riku!" Kairi exclaimed, overhearing the white pegasus and punching him in the shoulder.

"Ow! What!?" he asked as he rubbed his shoulder. "I'm not the only one who thinks that, right?"

"Maybe, or she actually is that aloof and relaxed, always high on life and nature," Sora guessed.

"I still think she's a hippie," Riku whispered, earning another punch in the shoulder by Kairi. "Quit that!"

"Hey, Aqua didn't come out yet," Rarity noted as the Keyblade Master didn't exit the carriage. "Aqua, we're here, darling!"

"I know!" she said. "J-Just give me a moment!"

"What is she even worried about?" Terra questioned. "And when she stepped in, why was it that I was apparently the only one struck with a Blindess spell? Is her dress not as-?" He paused as Aqua finally stepped out of the carriage, his jaw hanging open as he saw her in her Gala dress. It was almost similar to the same dress he saw the Fairy Godmother give Cinderella a long while back in the Castle of Dreams: a shimmering aqua blue and white dress, crystal blue dress shoes, a black choker, and a light blue hair band. Though her hair was still its usual style, not like the Princess of Heart's she dressed like, but Terra was still left speechless, his brain processing if this was the same Aqua he knew. "...Uhhhhhh..."

Aqua tried not to blush as Terra ogled her, using her magic to straighten out her dress. "A little inspiration from one of the seven Princesses of Heart I thought would be a nice dress for this Gala. Rarity did most of the work...and made a better design of it than my crummy drawing skills." She bit her lower lip as she walked up to him, keeping her voice down so the others couldn't hear her. "And I wanted to surprise you with what I was going to wear."

"...Well, color me surprised, then," Terra whispered back after finally finding his voice. Snapping out of his daze, he remembered he was still holding onto the "flower" Ventus gave him. "Oh yeah. Uhh, Ven got me this flower to give to you..."

"Really?" Levitating the "flower" closer, she looked at it carefully. "Hmm...This is a...pretty strange looking flower. Nothing I've ever seen, either in person or in any of the books in the library."

"He said it was some rare kind of flower that someone sold in Ponyville." Aqua stared at Terra skeptically, then at Ventus, who whistled nonchalantly while looking at the castle.

Just from the story behind where he got the "flower" and planting it on Terra to give to her, Aqua had a feeling that Ventus knew about them being in a romantic relationship. Deciding to humor him, and maybe later in the evening let the others know of their love, she accepted the "flower" and placed it behind her ear.

"Thanks, Terra," Aqua said.

"Heh. I think it's Ven you should thank for finding it." Now that everyone was properly ready after exiting the enchanted carriage, the group made their way to the castle to meet up with Twilight and enjoy what she had planned for this year's Gala. As Terra and Aqua followed the others, the stallion leaned his head over to his date's. "Ven knows, doesn't he?"

"I think so," Aqua whispered. "I have a feeling this flower is no ordinary species of flora.
Might even be enchanted so he can hear us talk when we're alone. Let's just humor him for a while, and later this evening, we'll tell everyone."

Terra was a bit taken aback by Aqua wishing to reveal to the rest of their friends of their relationship, but he grinned, finally putting an end to being flung away from the unicorn when someone walks in on the two of them. "I actually expected you to maybe wait another week or so before you were comfortable enough to let the group know. Maybe now my back can rest from all the walls, tables, and couches you keep flinging me into."

The couple silently laughed, unaware of Ventus looking back at them. Riku noticed the grin on his face, wondering what he was so cheerful about.

"What's gotten into you, Ven?" Riku asked.

"Oh, nothing," the young pegasus teen said. "Let's just say there's going to be some fireworks tonight."

"Ooh! You brought fireworks!?" Pinkie asked. "What kind!? Sparklers? Poppers? Spinners? Shrieky noise makers!?"

"That was meant as an expression, Pinkie," Ventus said, disappointing the excitable pink earth pony. "Though there is that one behind Aqua's ear...Just needs a little 'spark' to ignite."

"You say something, Ven?" Sora asked as he looked behind him.

"Just talking to myself." The stallion shrugged off the answer as they walked inside.

Through the opened doors into the main foyer, they spotted Celestia and Twilight at the top of the stairs. Celestia this year actually wore something other than her regalia to the Gala, keeping her crown as she wore a dress of light purple to white, part of it translucent that still showed her cutie mark. Twilight wore a light blue dress with blue sunflower patterns going around the hem of her dress and the collar, an orange-yellow sash tied in a bow around her waist, her mane styled differently to suit her as the princess she is.

"Well, there's your princess," Sora said to Riku, teasing him as he stared slack-jawed at the lavender alicorn. He gave his friend a nudge to snap him out of his stupor. "We'll be in the ballroom mingling. Try not to get stuck greeting guests on the stairs."

"Uhh, yeah. Sure." As the rest of the headed off to enjoy the Gala, Riku walked up the stairs to meet his princess. Though it wasn't the same Gala dress as she promised him to show off in, she at least wore something blue, and it definitely complimented her coat. "Well...Hello, gorgeous."

"Charmer," Twilight said with a giggle, giving Riku a small kiss as he stepped up to her. "How do I look?"

"Wasn't my earlier compliment not enough?" the stallion asked with a smirk. "Ok. How about pretty? Beautiful? Amazing? Majestic?"

Twilight giggled again as she blushed, lightly smacking his chest with her hoof. "Ok, I get it. Stop."

Celestia couldn't help but chuckle to herself as she watched the couple bantered. "To be young again," she said to herself. As soon as Riku stopped teasing his girlfriend, the white alicorn spoke up as she looked over how the Gala this year was planned by someone other than herself. "I must say, it's a bit nice having you take over some of the planning responsibilities for this year's Gala, Twilight."

"Anything to make it easier for you, Celestia," Twilight said. "And make it a little more fun for all of us."

"I am actually quite looking forward to just enjoying the Gala for once," Celestia said. "And no more greeting guests the whole night."

Their conversation was interrupted as one of the announcing ponies by the door blew their trumpet to signify someone of importance entering the castle. "Announcing the spirit of chaos, Discord, and his guest, the...umm..." Discord leaned over to the stallion, wearing an orange tuxedo, top hat, and held a cane in his paw, whispering the name of his plus-one to him. "The Smooze!"

Discord stood proudly at the entrance as his plus-one slugged its way up beside him. To everyone's shock, Discord's guest was a blob of living green slime, wearing a blue top hat that with a red bowtie. Though it had no eyes, it did have a mouth as it grinned.

"What in the heck is a 'Smooze'?" Riku asked. "And why would Discord bring that here? What's he doing?"

"Good evening, everypony!" Discord greeted. "What a glorious affair!" The Smooze looked at the trumpet the stallion was holding, licking its lips as part of its amorphous body reached out and snatched it. It sucked the trumpet into its mouth, absorbing the shiny instrument into itself, its body glowing and growing slightly. "He does have a knack for shiny things, the rascal."

Discord gave the Smooze a one armed hug, only to regret it as he pulled away, his sleeve covered in its slime. "I'll take care of this," Twilight said, flying over to the draconequus, utterly infuriated by him bringing some strange creature into Canterlot Castle. "What are you doing here with...that!?"

"Now, now, Princess Twilight," Discord said. "The Smooze may be an 'it', but it's an it with a heart of, well, blob."

The Smooze wandered off on its own, tailing after a couple ponies while leaving a goopy slime trail on the floor and carpet. It was more likely going for any of the shiny jewelry some of the mares wore. Twilight leered at the smirking draconequus, warning him with her gaze alone not to do anything crazy.

"This night is really important to me, Discord," she said. She looked back at Celestia and Riku and waved at them, quickly going back to glowering at Discord. "Keep that thing under control!"

"Yes, yes, yes, of course," he said lazily. "Now, where is Fluttershy? Have you seen her?"

Without waiting for a response, Discord made his way around, the Smooze following after him after getting bored following the other guests. Twilight let out a frustrated sigh and hovered back to her former mentor and coltfriend.

"I'll keep an eye on that blob for you," Riku said. "I'll alert the others, too. I don't know what this Smooze is, but it seems a bit dangerous to even be remotely harmless."

"Ugh. Can't we all have one night at the Gala where nothing goes horribly wrong?" she muttered.

"When has there ever been a single day where nothing goes wrong?" Riku asked, earning a glare from the miffed alicorn. "...I'm gonna tail the slime monster now."

"Smart idea," Twilight grumbled, the stallion quickly following Discord and the Smooze before he faced his girlfriend's wrath.

---

In the ballroom, many of the guests chatted with one another as they enjoyed the musical entertainment performing for them. Discord and the Smooze walked in, the former materializing a large diamond in his hand and fed it to the latter, growing a bit more in size upon consuming the gem. Ignoring the Crusaders as they cheered, being a part of the Gala with their sisters, Discord spotted Fluttershy and Tree Hugger together at a table. Tree Hugger was talking about something majestic about the auras in everything, Fluttershy's intrigue and giggling riling the draconequus up as he approached the mares to get his pegasus friend jealous of his new friend.

"Oh! Fluttershy!" he said. "I didn't see you there."

"How did you even know to look for an aura on a waterfall?" Fluttershy asked Tree Hugger, not even paying attention to Discord. He cleared his throat to try to get her attention, only to hack as hard and irritably as he can just so she can hear him. "Oh! Discord! I thought you weren't coming!"

"No, I never said that," Discord said. "Funny how you remembered it that way." He then looked at Tree Hugger, who he assumed wasn't sure she was aware of her surroundings with her drooped eyes and carefree grin. "Anyways, good seeing you...uhh, Tree Friend, was it? Your name is slipping my mind."

"Nice to meet you," Tree Hugger said. "I'm Tree Hugger. Blessings."

"You have met me before!" Discord said in irritation.

"Cool! Like, in another life, or something?" the mare asked, annoying Discord even more.

"You have got to be kidding me," he uttered. "You don't even remember me?" Discord took off his hat, showing Tree Hugger the mismatched antlers on his head and pointed at them for emphasis. "We met earlier today? Ring any bells???"

Instead of recalling, Tree Hugger let out a small laugh. "I meet a lot of different creatures, each one of them perfect and unique."

Suppressing his growl, he ignored how oblivious Tree Hugger was and slithered beside Fluttershy, draping his arm around her. "Well, as I was saying, it's actually great to be here with my oldest, bestest friend."

"Am I really your oldest, bestest friend?" Fluttershy asked.

"You?" Discord questioned with a chuckle. "Of course not! You don't think I have other friends? I'm centuries old!" He teleported beside the Smooze, surprising Fluttershy as she saw the living blob of slime. "I was talking about the Smooze! Smooze Face, the Smoozinator. Well, at least that's what I called him back in college."

"But, I thought you didn't have any other friends," Fluttershy recalled.

Discord balked, almost forgetting the others heard about his depressing life story along with Ventus when he betrayed them. "W-Well, no friends that weren't mammals or sentient beings, at least." He teleported himself and the Smooze onto the table the mares were at. "Smooze, this is Fluttershy, and, umm, hmm...Tree Embrace, right?"

"Oh, I like that," Tree Hugger said. "It's so in rhythm with my life force. Maybe I'll change my name to Tree Embrace."

Resisting the urge to facepalm, Discord wondered how Fluttershy ever made a friend with somepony like her. Then again, she gave him a chance, and he was a walking zoo that could bend reality in a heartbeat. Fluttershy pet the Smooze, never knowing there could have been anything like a living slime that existed in Equestria.

"You never really talked about the Smooze before," Fluttershy said, the Smooze sliding down from the table as it left a trail of its ooze behind it. "Sounds like you two are pretty close."

"Well, I'm glad you got that," Discord said, grabbing the Smooze and lifting him up into a hug, its mouth frowning in confusion as it was held. "We are, indeed, VERY close."

"That's wonderful! The four of us should go out for dinner sometime!" Hearing Fluttershy's offer made Discord's eye twitch, his hold on the Smooze failing as it slipped from his arms, its amorphous body splitting in half before morphing back together.

"We should all go out to dinner sometime!?" Discord questioned in offense. "Have you no heart?" They heard some ponies scream in fright as the Smooze began chasing after a couple of the Gala guests. "Ooh! Looks like somepony wants to mingle. We'll be back in a bit."

"Oh. Ok," Fluttershy said as Discord followed after the Smooze. "Treezie and I would love to talk to you more later."

"'Treezie'!?" Discord exclaimed as he zipped back toward Fluttershy. "Really? Pretty juvenile nickname, don't you think?"

On the other end of the ballroom, Riku walked in and spotted the Smooze terrorizing some of the guests. He flew up to the slime monster, shoving it back as he kept it far away from the terrified ponies.

"Ok, you green ball of mucus, that's far enough from the other guests." He pulled his hooves away, grimacing in disgust at the slime that dripped off his hooves. "I'm gonna need gloves. Thank goodness this thing isn't made of acid." Shaking the goop off, he looked over at Discord in the middle of his jealous conversation with Fluttershy. "Hey! Discord!"

Turning around, he noticed the stallion calling him over with the Smooze looking around aimlessly. "Ah! Riku! I'll see you later, Fluttershy, Tree Kisser," Discord said to the mares, though with disgust at Tree Hugger's many nicknames to try to annoy her, yet failed to do so. He casually walked up to Riku and the slime monster, the former trying to keep the latter from glomping him and covering him in its slime. "I see you're getting acquainted with the Smooze."

"Twilight told you to keep an eye on this thing," Riku reminded the draconequus. "If it causes any harm-"

"Please. You're not getting burned alive," Discord said. "Just covered in annoying goop."

"Discord!" Riku shoved the Smooze back to Discord, shaking off more of the slime as he made sure none of it got on his white tux. "That thing is your guest, so it's your responsibility to make sure it doesn't ruin the Gala."

"What are you? The Gala police?" Riku growled in response as he held up his hoof, ready to summon his Keyblade if necessary. "Alright, alright. Put your foreleg down. I've got the Smooze handled. Sheesh." Discord guided the Smooze away as Riku kept an eye on him. As soon as he was sure the chaotic deity wasn't going to cause any trouble with his slimy partner, he walked off to a nearby washroom to get rid of the sticky sensation of the Smooze's slime. Discord and the Smooze approached a door leading out to the gardens, looking back to make sure Riku or any of the other Keyblade wielders weren't around. "Now, listen here, Smooze. I need to make this a party of one for now." Opening the door, he shoved the slime monster outside, the Smooze looking back at him in utter confusion. "Just stay out here until I come back for you."

He slammed the door in its face and locked it out, hiding the key in his tuxedo as he waltzed off to rejoin Fluttershy. While he jumped into the conversation she and Tree Hugger were having with Rainbow, Applejack, Scootaloo, and Apple Bloom, Riku came back now that his hooves were thoroughly cleaned off. He approached the table where Sora, Kairi, Ventus, Aqua, and Terra were sitting at.

"This castle is pretty amazing," Aqua said. "And I thought seeing it from outside of Equestria was enough to marvel at."

"And this Gala isn't all that bad, either," Terra said. "Thought it would be a boring, rich party with small, twelve course meals and talk of how big the size of everyone's wallets are from what they do or don't do for a living."

"Try the one year Kairi and I came to the Gala with the other girls," Sora said. "They expected the best night ever, only for it to not be like they wanted and end in disaster. Animals went wild, pillars knocked over, a giant apple cake flung across the room."

"A fun night turning into chaos," Kairi finished.

"Speaking of chaos, Discord's up to something," Riku said, getting the others' attention.

"So, were you bored standing around on the stairs or did Twilight give you permission to go?" Sora teased.

"Sora, I'm serious right now," the white stallion said. "I'm not sure if any of you noticed, but aside from the strange behavior coming from him, he brought some green slime monster called the Smooze here to the Gala."

The other Keyblade wielders looked at each other, then back to Riku in confusion. "He brought a what?"

They soon heard a scream come from outside in the garden, someone banging heavily on the doors and turning the knob. "Help! Somepony let me in right now!"

"That was Rarity!" The six defenders of light quickly made their way to the door, the rest of the guests in the room wondering what was happening. Sora grabbed the doorknobs and tried to open them, but they were locked for some reason. "Who the heck locked these doors!?"

Twilight and Celestia walked into the ballroom, hearing Rarity's cries for help concerning them. "What is going on out there?"

"Somepony just open the doors!" Rarity screamed in distress.

Twilight looked around her dress for the key to the doors, but she couldn't find it. "Where the hay is that key!? I knew I had it on me earlier today!"

"I think it's quicker just to open it our way." Sora summoned his Keyblade and aimed it at the locks, firing a beam of light inside it.

As soon as the doors were unlocked, Rarity barged through, her dress covered in green slime as she hyperventilated. "Rarity, what happened!?"

"T-That creature took my jewels!" the white unicorn mare cried out as she pointed outside.

In the direction she pointed at, they saw the Smooze slither along and approach a mare talking to a stallion. As it slurped a jeweled hairpin out from the mare's mane, the stallion fled, along with her after noticing the monster swallowed her accessory. The Smooze's body began glowing and grew bigger as the jewelry was consumed in its body. The grouped slowly turned to Discord and leered at him sans Celestia, everyone else in the room looking at him, though he didn't seem to care about his plus-one's behavior.

"Discord!" Twilight said. "I thought I told you to keep your 'friend' under control!"

"Oh, please," Discord said, waving a hand around as he shrugged off his guest's actions. "I have much better things to do than watch that thing all night." He flinched as he looked down at Fluttershy, looking at him questionably while the others leered at him. "What I meant was that thing is a dear, dear friend, and I'll make sure the ooze that he can't help but secrete doesn't get on anypony else." Using his chaotic magic, Discord materialized a vacuum cleaner, holding the suction nozzle over Rarity as it sucked up all the ooze the Smooze left on her. It also sucked up her Gala dress, the unicorn wincing as she tried to cover herself and slip away. "Oh, come on, Rarity! None of you ponies wear clothes!"

"And you need to keep a leash on this thing," Riku said as the Smooze tried to glomp him again. "Hey! Will you quit that!? I do not want a hug from you!"

"Yes, yes, I'm on it," Discord said, creating a leash and pulling the Smooze away to one side of the room. While Twilight tried to ease the guests, the draconequus was getting annoyed by his guest despite bringing him here. "You are making me look like an idiot around Fluttershy. You stay right in here until the Gala is over."

He shoved the Smooze into a random room, but what he didn't notice was that he dragged the slime monster into a room with shelves lined with dozens of shiny gold and jeweled objects inside. It licked its lips as it hit a literal goldmine of delicious morsels for its appetite.

---

As the Gala continued despite the Smooze gooping Rarity, the mare always prepared as she had another dress for any emergency, the Keyblade wielders wondered what was wrong with Discord. His early statement bothered them over his slimy plus-one guest and his attitude with Fluttershy and the Gala earlier today. He claimed the Smooze was his friend, but is brushing it aside and treating it like a thing.

"Ok, Discord is really messed up," Riku said. "More messed up than he already is."

"Yeah. He's acting weird around Fluttershy now, and we thought he wasn't coming to the Gala tonight," Sora said. "...You don't think he's got a thing for her, does he?"

"Well, as weird as that possibility is, I don't think that's it," Kairi said. "He brought that Smooze thing with him as a plus-one when he could have just come by himself." She looked over at Fluttershy and Tree Hugger, the pegasus laughing as her friend told some kind of joke. It soon dawned on her why Discord was behaving so strangely. "...Oh my gosh...Discord's jealous of Tree Hugger."

"He's jealous of Tree Hugger?" Ventus asked. "What makes you think that?"

The lights suddenly dimmed out in the ballroom, a stage appearing out of nowhere in front of everyone present. "Ok, what's going on now?"

A mic stand and a small stool with a glass of water appeared on the brick-walled stage, Discord sliding into the spotlight as he grabbed the microphone. "Check, check. One, two, three. This thing on?" Discord said into the mic, his voice echoing across the room. Everyone crowded in front of the stage, wondering what the heck the draconequus was doing at this formal event. "Good evening, fillies and germs! I just flew into Canterlot, and wow, are my interspecies parts tired!" A rimshot played at the horrible joke, no one barely making a chuckle as crickets could actually be heard in the room. Pulling his hat down over his body, it popped up and disappeared, his clothes changing into a red jacket as he wore a gold pendant around his neck and a belt around his waist. "I've only got these tiny mismatched wings, and even I can fly better than Twilight Sparkle! Am I right!?"

"Hey!" Twilight complained as another rimshot played, taking offense to that joke.

Celestia was the only one who laughed, giggling softly at the jab against her former student. The Keyblade wielders stared blankly at the draconequus trying to perform a stand-up comedy routine when he could actually do something more hilarious with just his chaotic magic alone.

"Ok, maybe he is," Ventus said. "And getting a bit too desperate..."

"Maybe some observational humor will suffice," Discord said with a nervous chuckle, disappearing before phasing his head through the wall of the stage he crafted. "Did you ever notice how you always materialize out of 'thin' air?" He phased the rest of his body through, now wearing a blue dress jacket, a white dress shirt underneath, and a loose red necktie. "Why not 'thick' air? What's the deal there?" Again, no laughter, Discord grabbing his tie to loosen it further as he stared into space. "Tough crowd."

"I can't believe he's trying to do stand-up comedy," Riku uttered. "His jokes are as old as he is."

While Sora, Ventus, and Terra snickered at Riku's better joke, Pinkie gasped excitedly as she overheard him. "Maud! Jokes!"

"My favorite," the monotone mare said.

As the audience was distracted, no one else noticed the room the Smooze was tossed in began glowing brightly. Now Discord wore a red and white striped shirt with a black vest over it and a black beret, a watermelon now in place of the water sitting on the stool.

"Knock knock?" he said, but no one responded as part of the joke. "You're supposed to say 'Who's there?'! This is the most basic of jokes!"

Grabbing a large wooden hammer from stage right out of nowhere, Discord slammed the mallet down on the melon, splattering its juices all over everyone. Maud didn't even bat an eye while the others flinched.

"You're the most basic of jokes," Maud said, making everyone laugh at her delivery while speaking with her deadpan tone.

"That's a good one, Maud!" Sora said as he laughed. "I think she makes a better comedian than Discord!"

Discord growled as everyone laughed at Maud heckling his comedy routine, even Fluttershy was giggling as the rock enthusiast insulted him. While the audience continued heckling, Ventus stopped laughing as he heard a bang come from the door behind everyone. He saw a light from inside begin to dim as the door began to open, green slime oozing out from within as more and more began flowing out.

"Uhh, guys!?" he called out, getting the other Keyblade wielders' attention.

They turned around and saw the green slime come pouring out like a flood, all six humans-turned-ponies quickly leaping to higher ground while everyone was else noticed too late and got drenched in the Smooze's ooze. A puddle of the green ooze laid out over a majority of the marble floor as many ponies' hooves got stuck or splattered onto the walls like Fluttershy and Tree Hugger, even sticking pegasi's wings to their sides. Aside from Sora, Riku, Kairi, Terra, Ventus, and Aqua getting out of the way, the pegasi flying high enough to where the splashing flood couldn't get their wings while the others jumped onto nearby tables, Discord was the only one who hovered out of the Smooze's ooze.

"What in Equestria is happening!?" Twilight exclaimed. She tried using her magic to blast some of the slime away, but all it did was splash some of it around like a rock dropping into a lake. "None of my magic is working! Can you stop it, Celestia!?"

The alicorn of the sun tried to use her magic, but the goop surrounding her horn only caused it to inflate and pop, no amount of unicorn or alicorn magic able to destroy or move it away. "I'm afraid not!"

"It's that Smooze thing!" Riku said, spotting the mouth in the growing puddle of ooze with a slimy blue top hat and red bowtie floating with it. "How did it get like this!?"

Aqua summoned her Keyblade and began firing a volley of magic spells to try to keep it from getting its slime on everything, but just like with Equestrian magic, there wasn't a single bit of it scorched or encased in ice. "You have got to be kidding! Not even our own magic affects it as well!"

"I'm not sure if we can even slash away at a creature made of slime!" Terra summoned his own Keyblade and tested that theory. He sliced at the ooze around his table, but as soon as his blade made contact, it immediately got stuck halfway through his swing. He tried to pull it out with all his might, only for it to remain stuck in the slime as if it was glued down into it. "Ok, don't attack it either! It's immune to both magic and physical attacks!"

"Can you call your Keyblade back!?" Kairi asked.

Terra moved his hoof away and tried to call his blade back, but something was blocking his ability to return it back to him. "What the-?" He looked at his hoof, spotting some of the slime that got on his foreleg when he slashed the ooze, splashing some of it on himself by mistake despite his Keyblade's longer reach. Using his other hoof to try to wipe it off, the sticky goop got on his other hoof as well and stuck to him. "I can't call it back...This gunk is somehow able to seal everything magical if it touches us!"

"Just as it did to Celestia's horn," Aqua said to herself. The slime sloshed around her table, the unicorn quickly leaping up and taking refuge on the chandelier, Kairi and Terra joining her to avoid getting drenched by a small wave that capsized the tables they stood on. "How can a slime monster create so much of its secretions in a matter of minutes!? What did it even eat!?"

"Who knows?" Kairi said. "Nothing can stop this thing, and we're all sitting ducks!"

While Aqua tried to figure out what made the Smooze so much bigger than it was, Tree Hugger watched the slime curiously as she hung upside down on the wall beside Fluttershy. "This is kind of a bummer."

"Isn't it, though?" Discord asked, lowering himself down on a safe platform beside the two mares. "And to think, this wouldn't have happened had I come to the Gala as somepony else's plus-one."

"Seems like something might have harshed his flow, you know?" Tree Hugger said. "Like, his senses are agitated."

"You don't know anything about rare creatures," Discord assumed with the blissful mare's surprisingly calm behavior. "I have known Smoozeface for ages! He's not agitated, he's partying down!"

"All he needs is some, like, auditory therapy." Tree Hugger's theory made Discord cease his dancing at his random guess on the slime monster's flood of ooze, growing irritated at her more and more. "I know I always feel really at peace when I'm being bathed in positive vibes. Maybe he'll calm down with some sonic bliss."

"Do you even know what you're saying!?" Discord questioned. "I don't think you even know anything that's happening! What kind of 'herbs' are you eating!?"

"If she's an animal expert like Fluttershy, maybe she actually knows what she's talking about!" Riku exclaimed. "Heck, I'll believe her if she finds a way to tame this Smooze monster!"

Right as Discord was about to retort, Tree Hugger began performing what was supposed to be known as auditory therapy. She let out a meditative chant, making weird screeching sounds like a dolphin would make. The draconequus gave the peace-loving mare an odd look, but he soon heard the Smooze making calm gurgling noises, surprising everyone as it seemed to enjoy the strange screech chanting with a grin. The ooze in the room shifted as it returned to the amorphous blob, slithering off of everyone that was covered in its goop, even the small splotches of it that were on Terra's forelegs. Fluttershy and Tree Hugger slid down from the wall, the latter still giving the Smooze auditory therapy all the while.

"Let go, Smooze!" Tree Hugger said. "Bliss out!"

All of the slime returned to the Smooze, its body several times bigger than it was before. Tree Hugger ended her chanting now that the monster was calmed down, apparently suffering from some indigestion from what it ate. Riku was a little shocked that Tree Hugger's idea worked, which showed she actually did know what she was doing and was more in tune with nature and rare creatures in this world than he thought.

"...Ok, that was actually incredible," Riku said. "...And also weird."

"Nice job, Tree Hugger!" Sora said, the Gala guests cheering for the mare's expertise and taming the Smooze.

"That was the most magical thing I've ever seen done with animals!" Fluttershy complimented, which got on Discord's nerves as he grinded his teeth as he was about to explode in anger.

"Thanks, everypony," Tree Hugger said. "It makes perfect karmic sense why magic doesn't work on him. He only responds to vibrations that peace out his energy fields."

"I still want to know how the Smooze was immune to magic," Aqua said. "Maybe if I take a sample of its secretions..."

"Stop it!" Discord shouted, having had enough of his plans being ruined by Tree Hugger. "Just stop it! That is it! I am done with you, Tree Hugger!"

"What is your deal, Discord?" Kairi questioned. "She just helped us from getting drowned in green, magic-sealing ooze!"

"Yeah, dude," Tree Hugger said. "You're bumming me out. Can you just, like, lower your voice a skosh?"

"...A skosh?" Discord asked, his voice low as fire lit up in his eyes, glaring spitefully at Tree Hugger. "A skosh!? I'll show you a skosh!"

Snapping his fingers, he levitated Tree Hugger off the ground and brought her over to him. He slashed the air beside him with a claw, ripping open a dimensional portal, bringing the mare toward it as she got a look inside the strange, realistic dimension on the other side.

"Whoa, dude!" she exclaimed. "What is that!?"

"Discord, drop her!" Sora warned, the Keyblade wielders summoning their Keyblades, including Twilight.

"Relax. I'm not going to hurt her," he assured. "Just drop her in another dimension so you can't interfere with my relationship with Fluttershy ever again!"

"Discord, stop!" Fluttershy exclaimed.

"I will, just as soon as she's out of my life!" Discord said. "Then we'll have a good laugh about this affair at our next Tuesday tea time."

"Discord, let her go right now!" Riku exclaimed. "You're looking into being turned back into a pigeons' outhouse if you throw Tree Hugger in there!"

"Oh, shut up!" The draconequus materialized a shiny disco ball in his hand, throwing it at the Keyblade wielders hard.

Riku managed to avoid getting hit, but the others weren't so lucky with the massive ball as the rest of the group aside from Fluttershy were bowled over. The Smooze saw it and chased it like a dog, snatching the helpless heroes in its body, rendering their magic useless against it to free themselves.

"Ok, that's it!" Riku shot up into the air and threw his free hoof forward, shooting out a barrage of Dark Firaga at the draconequus's hovering form.

Discord was hit by the dark flames, too distracted by preparing himself to throw Tree Hugger in the dimension to pay attention to what happened to them. "Don't get in my way," Discord uttered coldly, keeping Tree Hugger suspended by the portal as he turned to leer at Riku. "You honestly think you can win a fight against me?"

"I'm trying to stop you because you don't seem to care about turning back into a statue!" Riku said, getting back into his usual fighting stance. "You keep getting too many second chances, and this last one's about ready to snap! Drop Tree Hugger right now!"

"I'm just doing her a favor," Discord reasoned, though his actions aren't justified in the slightest with the dimensional portal to the random world still opened with Tree Hugger floating dangerously close beside it. "It's actually a lovely little dimension: white sandy beaches, attentive wait staff-"

"That looks like a crayon-drawn backboard with a life-size sock puppet thing more than a beach with waiters!" Riku interrupted. "Last warning!"

"You know, you're always looking at the glass half-empty," Discord said. "Never positive in the slightest."

"Fine, then we're doing this the hard way!" Riku shot up at Discord from the floor, tackling the draconequus and sending him crashing through one of the windows.

Not hearing a cry of pain, Riku hovered in the air as he held onto a fake dummy of Discord, leaving behind a recorded laugh of his voice that mocked him before exploding in a blast of fire. Sent hurtling back in the castle, Riku rolled back onto his hooves as he faced the draconequus.

"Seems like we are doing this the hard way after all," Discord said, reaching behind him to pull out a wildly curved blade that doesn't even seem practical to use in combat, let alone hold. "But we know who's going to win."

"Don't get cocky, Discord," Riku growled. "That's what made you lose. Every. Single. Time."

"Why, you-!" Discord and Riku flew off and drew their blades back to strike, only for Fluttershy to fly between them.

"STOOOOOOOP!" she shouted, the draconequus and stallion both stopping as their weapons stopped mere inches from hitting the mare. "Riku, I'll handle this. Without violence."

"But he's holding your friend-!" Fluttershy glared at him, using her Stare to silence him. Being under her frightening gaze, he dismissed his Keyblade and crouched in fear, easily succumbing to her glaring eyes. "Ok, I'll stop..."

She then looked at Discord, who unfortunately was immune to her Stare. "Discord, I don't understand why you're even doing this! We were all getting along so well!"

"As well as we could," Discord argued. "That is until you stomped all over our friendship by inviting her-" He pointed at Tree Hugger, slightly confused by the draconequus's reason why she was ruining their friendship when she never tried to at all. "-to the biggest night of the year as if it didn't matter at all!"

"Seriously!? Did you really think I'd abandon you just because I have a new friend!?" Fluttershy asked.

"Yes, because that is exactly what you did!" Discord exclaimed.

"No, Discord! I invited a friend to a party! I didn't abandon you at all!" Fluttershy exclaimed. "What if you had a friend that you could discuss chaos-based magic with? Would that mean that we aren't friends anymore because you found somepony who liked the same things as you!?"

Caught off guard by the question, Discord stammered as he realized what Fluttershy meant. In his jealous rage, he completely forgot the others and their friendships with each other, some of them sharing similar likes and discussing other topics they enjoy. If there was someone who actually shared interests in anything chaos, he would have enjoyed talking about that more than with Fluttershy, or her talking about her interests in some of her animal friends.

"...W-Well, no, I suppose not. It would mean I'd have different friends for...different things..." Discord looked around, feeling like a complete idiot as he embarrassed himself over his own jealousy. He chuckled nervously, causing so much trouble over his overreaction all because he didn't want to lose the only friend he ever made. "I-I guess I overreacted just a skosh."

"More like a lot of skoshes," Fluttershy said, turning away from him crossed her forelegs over her chest.

Discord wilted, now really worried about his friendship with Fluttershy now that she was upset with him over his immature outburst and behavior. "I'm so new to this whole friendship thing. It's a lot more complicated than it looks."

"How about you stop acting like a narcissist and constantly poke fun at everyone like it's all a game to you?" Riku suggested.

"Riku, you're not helping," Fluttershy scolded, the stallion quickly shutting up to avoid getting the Stare again. "I think you owe somepony an apology." Discord created a flower and held it out in front of her, but she slapped it away. "Not me!"

"Oh! Uhh, right." Discord snapped his fingers, dismissing the dimensional portal he ripped and dropped Tree Hugger under a large, soft pillow, Fluttershy flapping over to her friend and hugging her. Hearing the rest of the Mane Six and Keyblade wielders struggling to break out of the Smooze, the slime monster also going after the rest of the guests, he teleported beside it and stuck a hand in its body, pulling out all of the jewelry the Smooze ate. It returned back to its smaller size along with freeing the trapped ponies inside it, all of them crashing to the floor in a heap. After returning the jewels back to where they originally belonged, Discord approached Tree Hugger apologetically. "Er, Tree Hugger, sorry about...well, you know, almost getting you thrown into a random dimension."

"Oh, it's all groovy," Tree Hugger said, but as Discord tried to hug the mare, she pushed him away from her. "Um, I need like a few minutes to clear out my chakras before I can hug you from a place of authenticity."

"Oh. Right," Discord said dejectedly. "Fair enough..."

---

Despite the "minor" amount of disruption, the Gala continued, even with the Smooze joining them. As the ball continued, Twilight highly surprised to hear that Celestia was having a blast even after one of her subjects was almost tossed in another dimension and a slime monster nearly covered her ball room in its ooze. This was surely going to be a year at the Grand Galloping Gala where none of the other guests would forget, nor would they forget the slime monster jiggling around as he danced to the music with Pinkie, already befriending her after they saw he wasn't as dangerous as he appeared to have been earlier.

Discord, however, sat outside in the garden, away from the party. He had apologized to the Smooze after he gave his apology to Tree Hugger, getting glomped on and covered in slime in its own way of accepting his apology, but he left, already feeling like a mule after embarrassing himself in front of everyone, including Fluttershy. He stared at the spot where he once stood while he was a statue for a millennia, the moment he was freed where he also met and tried to trick the Mane Six and Sora. Out of all of them, Fluttershy was the only one who was able to resist his power when he tried to manipulate them, leaving him to have to force his chaotic influence on her instead of toying with who they were. It was ironic how he became friends with the timid mare, though she's gotten more bold as time passed.

"Miss being a statue already?" Discord turned his head, finding Riku standing beside one of the actual statues in the area. "If Fluttershy didn't stop us, I'd help grant your wish."

"Hilarious," Discord muttered. "Looking into stand-up comedy if your career as a Keyblade wielder turns south?"

"After hearing your terrible jokes earlier? I don't think so." Riku walked over to the draconequus and sat down a few yards away from him. "Sora might, though, and he can come up with a better routine."

"Why are you out here talking to me?" Discord asked. "I thought you would have come out to try to continue where we left off. Unless you actually did want to lose to me."

"You have a poor track record on your win-lose streak when it comes to us," Riku said. "I actually came out here to take a break from the party. Formal gatherings can get a little boring after a while, even with some slow songs to dance with Twilight." The two sat in silence for a while, staring at the empty platform. Riku looked up at the night sky, slightly wondering where Luna was at the Gala or if she didn't want to attend at all. He took the moment of silence to finally speak his mind with Discord about what the draconequus had felt earlier with Fluttershy. "...Seems like we both have something in common, if you can remember anything from the memories you 'borrowed' with your reality bending magic."

"And what exactly would that be?" Discord asked.

"...Jealousy toward our best friend," he answered. Curious, Discord summoned the crude book of Sora's memories and found the pages Riku mentioned. "When Sora, Kairi, and I were separated when our home was destroyed, I was lost and had no idea where I was. I met Maleficent, and like an idiot, I trusted her into helping me find them. When I saw Sora, I was glad he was ok, but when he interacted with Donald and Goofy, all the lies that witch told me about him betraying me...I didn't want to believe they were true..." The stallion let out a heavy sigh as he looked down at the ground. "In the end, I did believe her, and I really thought Sora abandoned me and Kairi.

"I let my anger get the better of me, turned to darkness to try to beat him and get back at him for abandoning us...I was blinded by envy and anger to even listen to him. With your best friend, they never forget or leave your side, and Sora still kept trying to find me after he saved me and we got separated by the Door to Darkness." Riku looked at Discord, the draconequus following the memories as the pegasus recalled them as he looked at him as well. "We both ended up forgetting just who our best friends really are toward us. And we were blind to notice they do care and we overreacted for no reason and ended up hurting them or others."

"...I guess it should have been obvious for me after all," Discord said. "Fluttershy is just too nice to be hurtful to anyone...unless somepony messes with her friends or animals...Now I know she won't abandon me." He groaned, dropping the book as it disappeared as he brought his hands to his face. "I feel like such an idiot."

"For a chaotic schemer, you're not exactly as clever as you seem," Riku said, earning a glare from the draconequus.

"You do realize I could turn you into a plant with just one snap, right?" Discord reminded the stallion.

"And you're not going to do that because you don't want to lose your freedom," Riku countered, winning the argument as Discord pouted. Riku stood up as he was about to head back inside, not wanting to keep his princess waiting too long even if the Gala was not fun for him. "Word of advice, Discord. Never doubt your best friend. They know more about you than you might know yourself. Fluttershy and Sora are just too nice to let go of anyone they care about and wish to see become a better person than they think. Just be glad you don't have a rivalry with Fluttershy. Sora can be quite a pain when it comes to picking fights...even if I start some of them to rile him up."

Riku walked back to the castle, only to end up bumping into Discord as he teleported in his way. "This conversation doesn't mean we're immediately friends, are we?"

"Not by a longshot," Riku said. "Still on a very thin line with me on that betrayal when you sided with Tirek."

"You still hold a grudge against me for that?" Discord questioned in offense.

"You nearly doomed this world, had all of our magic taken away, including our Keyblade magic, and with Tirek powered up with what magic he stole, I thought he killed Twilight and he destroyed the Golden Oak Library," the stallion listed. The draconequus cringed, never going to have his mistakes let go for Riku, or anyone else until he could regain what trust he did have with the others. "Yeah. I can see why Celestia sees you as a helpful ally, but until you finally quit acting conceited and actually be serious around others, the only friend you'll have will be Fluttershy."

Discord sighed and nodded his head, understanding the changes he needed to make with himself. Riku walked past him and entered the castle, leaving the draconequus alone again.

"Changing my behavior when I'm practically chaos incarnate..." Discord looked down at his hands, his mismatched paw and talon clenching as he stared at his limbs. His highly different body parts that made him unique had brought him loneliness in the past, everyone judging him by how he looked before they even knew him. Now, no one saw him as a multi-species chimera and made their judgement by his actions, a small step toward a better life, but he was still several miles away from truly fitting in with the ponies who gave him a second chance after his second defeat from the Elements of Harmony. "...That's going to be difficult...I still have a lot to learn about friendship, I guess..."

---

Inside the ballroom, Riku had rejoined his friends as the night continued on. The orchestra performing soon began playing a soft melody, some of the couples who came together to the Gala stepping away from their tables to dance with their partners on the dance floor. Getting looks from their girlfriends, Sora and Riku obliged Kairi and Twilight with another slow dance, stepping out hoof-in-hoof to join the rest of the couples. As Aqua watched, a little disappointed that she hadn't shared a dance with Terra yet, she flinched when she saw him hold his hoof out to her.

"Want to dance?" Terra asked.

"...Do you know how to?" Aqua asked curiously.

"Dancing is kind of similar to fighting, only without weapons, right?" As weird as the similarities between dancing and swordplay can be, the mare did see his point. "It just takes two and making sure not to step on your dance partner's feet."

Aqua couldn't help but giggle at the blunt explanation Terra made. "Almost. But, I'd really like a dance."

She took his hoof as they both joined the rest of the dancing couples. Ventus noticed them walk off, waiting eagerly for the moment of truth. His excitement didn't go unnoticed with the others as they watched Aqua and Terra begin slow dancing, both of their movements perfectly in sync despite the earth pony stallion's first time dancing like this.

"What are you grinning about?" Rainbow asked.

"You'll see," Ventus simply answered.

"Just what exactly are we supposed to see?" Scootaloo asked. "They're just dancing."

"Wait for it," Ventus said, eyeing the flameless firework behind Aqua's left ear.

Aqua noticed everyone watching them, Ventus grinning widely at them as if he was expecting something to happen. The others were watching too, even Sora, Kairi, Riku, and Twilight. She felt a little nervous, but she did say she wanted to show everyone else now that she and Terra were a couple, and there were two ways to prove it to them: show or tell.

"Everyone's watching," she said. "And Ven's looking a little bit eager over there."

"Yeah, I recognize that grin on his face," Terra said. "Just pretend no one's here, and don't lose your nerve."

"Kinda hard to do that when there's a live orchestra playing, and other guests, including a living amorphous slime monster and the ruler of this kingdom," Aqua said. She leaned closer to Terra, resting her head on his shoulder as they slowly swayed back and forth. The flameless firework began glowing, but it wasn't enough to spark it and set it off, neither her nor Terra noticing it illuminate. "It's all so strange to me, just relaxing and having a good time without anything involving fighting or survival."

"Same here," Terra agreed. "I still don't like wearing a suit, but aside from Discord and the Smooze earlier, it's actually pretty nice spending an evening doing nothing but have fun. Now, if we had vacation days, I'd go nuts if I spend more than a few days without training." Aqua giggled in agreement as she nodded her head, Terra laughing with her. She lifted her head up as the two gazed in each other's eyes, their swaying slowing to a halt. "You look absolutely beautiful, Aqua. Wish you'd wear a dress more often."

"Don't get used to it," she said. "I still have to model for Rarity's other designs before I can get those special crystals to craft our magically enchanted communicators on Heartless eradicating missions. Not much of a girl who likes to play dress up and look pretty on a daily basis."

"I can live with that." They both gently pressed their foreheads together, never breaking eye contact as they moved closer to each other. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Aqua said back.

They brought their lips together in a long, passionate kiss, surprising their friends as they continued watching them. As the girls murmured, Rarity the only one of them who had a feeling that Aqua had a closer bond to Terra with how she talked about him, Ventus watched the flameless firework glow brighter, Aqua and Terra's love for each other with that kiss setting off the spark. It shot up from Aqua's ear, surprising her as it suddenly left her, pulling away from Terra as she looked up. Once it reached halfway up to the ceiling, the firework exploded into a flurry of colorful sparks and embers, creating a few shapes with a small boom that shocked everyone in the castle.

"What in the world-?" Aqua uttered. She pressed a hoof to her ear where the "flower" used to be, looking over at Ventus as he seemed to be silently cheering to himself. She sighed and shook her head. "Ven, what was that you gave us?"

"...I don't think that was actually a flower," Terra said, earning a light jab in the chest by his girlfriend over stating the obvious.

Aqua walked over to Ventus, Terra following behind as the pegasus teen grinned widely. "Ven...that wasn't any rare flower you gave Terra to give to me, was it?"

"Nope," he said. "That was what is called a flameless firework, created by a stallion by the name of 'The Doctor'."

"Flameless fireworks?" Aqua asked curiously.

"How exactly can you ignite a firework without fire?" Rainbow asked.

"And you said there weren't going to be any fireworks, Venny!" Pinkie exclaimed, her dress covered in ooze from dancing with the Smooze earlier. "You lied to me."

"It's a weird invention, but it's able to ignite by love around them," Ventus explained, confusing everyone with how that was possible. "It happened the other day at Cranky and Matilda's wedding when the rest of you were at Master Yen Sid's tower. Derpy brought them in, saying they looked like flowers-"

"Which it kind of did," Aqua interjected.

"-and after they officially got married, the moment they kissed, the fireworks lit up and ignited," Ventus continued. "I had a gut feeling that you and Terra were a little bit closer than how you were back then, though I was hoping to hear it go off when I wasn't anywhere near you guys to know I was right."

"So, how long were you holding out on us, darling?" Rarity questioned. "When did you two officially start dating?"

"Uhh..." The blue unicorn looked at Terra, not sure how to explain when they got together before the others knew.

"She came onto me about a couple hours after she found out I was still alive a while back," Terra said for Aqua, making the mare blush heavily. "I mean, she had a thing for me before back in the Land of Departure, but after I told her how I came back when we reunited at the old cabin I lived in, she leaned toward me and planted a wet one right on the lips without even thinking about what she was doing."

Aqua's face was burning red as Terra recalled how it started. "I-I was happy to have him back! And I was also lonely for so many years! P-Part of me wanted...s-someone to be around, and I ended up kissing him by complete accident!"

"Nope. It was definitely on purpose," Terra teased with a smirk. "Aqua was a little nervous wondering how all of you would react to our relationship growing to a romantic one, which was why she wanted it to be kept a secret. And it explains why she kept throwing me around the rooms when we're alone together and one of you barges in."

"I'm still really awkward being around others even after a year of escaping the Realm of Darkness!" Aqua exclaimed. "Including relationships!"

"So, you actually thought I would find it weird that you two are dating?" Ventus asked. Aqua nodded her head in response, but the young stallion laughed and shook his head. "Come on, Aqua. Why would I find that weird? When I was around you two after I arrived and recovered in the Land of Departure, I thought you two would make a perfect couple."

"Really?" Terra and Aqua asked, the two of them looking at each other questionably, then back to Ventus.

"Yeah," Ventus said. "You two were close friends, so I thought maybe there was something more before I showed up. Turns out I was right when I started suspecting you two for the past few weeks, and I'm pretty glad you two are together like this."

"...Well, thanks, Ven," Aqua said. Her horn lit up as her aura grabbed Ventus's ear, making him yelp as she yanked it hard. "But next time, don't give me a magical firework that I put behind my ear that might not have shot up and exploded safely in the air to prove a guess you had about me and Terra."

"They were harmless!" Ventus explained, his ear still being pulled harshly as if Aqua was his mother scolding him. "The ones at the wedding went off inside Town Hall! None of the sparks from the fireworks even burned anything or anyone!"

"Regardless, that was a reckless idea and you could have either got me or anyone else burnt. Even if you say they were harmless." Aqua finally let go of his ear, the teen rubbing his sore appendage with a wince. "Tomorrow morning, one hundred laps around Ponyville on foot, then a thousand push-ups and sit-ups. And I'm going to be watching you like a hawk if you decide to slack off."

"...Seriously?" Ventus asked.

"Yes, seriously," she said. "I may be your friend, but as a Keyblade Master, I must give out punishments to little delinquents like you." The teen groaned in annoyance, earning a light bop on the head. "No complaints. Unless you want a different punishment."

"Like what?" he asked.

"How about finding you a girlfriend next?" Sora suggested. "There's plenty of mares in the Crystal Empire who are interested in you. Join the relationship club, Ven!"

"I'd rather take the workout," Ventus grumbled, everyone laughing as he grimaced over his encounter with Sora's fangirls chasing him after he announced to them he was his "younger brother".

While the others teased Ventus, pestering him to maybe find some interests in girls around his age, Sora made his way over to Celestia as she finished talking to a few of the Gala guests. "Hey, princess. Looks like we didn't run out of the castle this year."

"You can thank Twilight for making this year's Gala a bit better," Celestia said. "And I invited Discord for a little more excitement. I should probably thank him for bringing the Smooze."

"And just like before, you invited him to crash the Gala just to steer away from the monotony of the other thousand years you've had this ball, only with a lot less collateral damage than when it was just me, Kairi, and the girls. Like I wrote to you when you gave Twilight those tickets back then: you are a major troll." The alicorn simply giggled in response, not even denying the fact she enjoyed teasing her subjects for the fun of it. "So, where's Luna? I thought she was over being introverted from her first Nightmare Night a couple years back."

"I was actually hoping she would join me and Twilight this evening, but she said she wasn't feeling up to it," Celestia sadly said. "She's been getting a little distant with me and she always looks exhausted in the morning. I'm really starting to worry about her." She looked up at the ceiling, wondering what her sister was doing in her room as she took charge of the night. "I just hope I never experience another Nightmare Moon incident. I don't want to lose her again."

"Have you asked her what was wrong?" Sora asked.

"I have tried, and I'm taking notice of her behavior this time unlike my neglect in the past, but she says she's just tired from all the nightmares she's been taking care of in the middle of the night." Celestia sighed, looking down at the floor, gravely worried about facing Nightmare Moon again. "Maybe I'll try again tonight after the Gala."

Sora hummed in thought, wondering what seemed to be troubling the lunar princess. Last time he saw her while trying to save Apple Bloom from her Nightmare, she looked a bit troubled when he asked her if she ever had dreamed when she wasn't helping ease other ponies' nightmares. He wondered if there was anyone who could help her with her own dreams, maybe he could pop by later tonight when they got back home to speak with her easily in the dream world. Or if she was learning how to fight Nightmare Dream Eaters that have begun appearing in Equestrians' dreams and she gets exhausted after going into several hundred dreams in one night. For now, if she ever needed help, she can ask him, or if she gets too stubborn, he'll come to her aid if she's struggling with her own problems.

Comments

[ArcanaMaverick7]

Ooo! I love all the foreshadowing to how the Tantabus episode is going to be played out! I can't wait to see everything!

[BenictheHedgehog]

OOO! Nice and foreshadow for the Tantabus episode, a confession to everyone on Aqua and Terra being in love, and a bit of a bond moment between Riku and Discord once he has calmed down from him being jealous of Tree Hugger. Though I will admit, I thought for a second that Riku would have called on the Darkness to put him in his dark outfit back in Kingdom Hearts 1 and Kingdom Hearts Re Chain of memories just to show now mad Discord got him and show the others that he could control it unlike Terra. after all out of all of them, Riku is the only one that manage to make the power of Darkness his own and still use it to protect the light and his friends from those that would threaten them.

Overall, this was a nice episode Codex. Still do wish we could see Riku show off his true strength and how Shock Twilight, Aqua, and Terra would be when Riku needs to protect those he cares for and it comes from calling the Darkness.

[BenictheHedgehog]

After a Crazy and Slimey Gala brought by Discord and the Smooze, Sora and the others could enjoy a night of less fighting with knowing of Terra and Aqua being a couple to end the night. But even though things turned out ok, Everyones trust will be even harder for Discord to earn even with the bond moment with Riku. And to make matters worse, Princess Celestia worries of her sister Luna during her nights along with Sora.

Will Sora be able to find out what is wrong with Princess Luna? Will Discord ever find a way to win back everyones trust? Will Riku ever be tempt to use the Darkness again to save his friends? And how will Aqua and Terra react knowing a Guardian of Light has mastered the Power of Darkness to protect the light? The excitement and Suspense Continues! Next time on MY Little Pony: Soras Misadventures in Equestria!

[ShadowLight96]

Nice foreshadowing to "Do princesses dream of magic sheep?"

[jjb0420]

Even after Discord revealed why he did all that in the past, they still won't even give him a chance! I would never call them proper friends except Fluttershy and Spike. They at least give things a chance rather than thinking 'screw it, this thing is different and has power we don't, so let's be distrusting and hostile towards its entire species!'. Does anyone else agree that things with the changelings would've went smoother if they at least tried diplomacy, and Discord probably wouldn't have betrayed them if they gave him what Fluttershy does, FRIENDSHIP! If I ever went there, and they were that hostile, I would say 'screw you too' and never trust and/or keep away from them.

[Codex92]

8247798
Well, they'll be in a dream...so, anything can happen in a dream, including changing into something else the subconscious randomly makes up. The Crusaders and Luna were the only ones highly curious of seeing someone who looks a lot like a pony they've known for a long while as some other creature never known to Equestria
8247977
Despite Discord revealing his past, after all the chaos he unleashed when he was freed before, messing with everyone during his reformation, and betraying them to side with Tirek and nearly have the world ruled by the centaur tyrant, it can be hard to trust someone who stabbed you in the back after they were given a chance to change. Discord won't do it again, but actions speak louder than words, and if he's going to regain the others' trust, including the other Keyblade wielders aside from Ventus, who he told about his past, he's going to need to work extra hard to prove to them that he really has changed. All of them, except maybe Kairi, had experienced being betrayed: Riku fighting back against Sora, though that was due to Maleficent manipulating Riku when she wanted to help him while leading him down the path of darkness, and Ventus, Terra, and Aqua with Xehanort back then as he stabbed Eraqus in the back, literally and figuratively, destroyed their home, and tried to use Ventus as a vessel for himself and to create the X-blade with him and Vanitas. Kinda hard to trust someone shady or strange-looking, even if you know about their past and look past their looks in my opinion.

[Codex92]

8253088
...I'm not making changes until I actually see the episode, when it was SUPPOSED to be aired in America, because Canada and Australia are freaking impatient, and because of them, they keep showing highlight images of the videos about the episodes either normally or from reactors who have watched them, and it drives me nuts having things spoiled that look incredibly important! What is wrong with people!? No one can wait for anything anymore! They better not do this same thing for the second half, otherwise I just might do something crazy...and it's not watching the episodes that came out in another country far too early than they should.

[Petor]

8253482
It's available on KimCartoon. And I was just saying

[Bahamut Omega]

And we have a nice segue into fighting the Tantabus.

[Xavy T Drag]

8251267
If you remove "Rarity and" in the second part, it is incorrect when "I" is used.