A happy start and end?

Nothingness, that’s all there is, an ever-expanding void as far as the eye can see. If a person were to find themselves here, they’d lose all sense of direction. Which way is up? Which is down? Everything here is lost, but if they were to look into the distance, they would find something amiss—a splash of color in the infinite black. Floating in a relaxed position is a creature, unlike any other. An abomination of beasts mashed into a single entity. Something otherworldly, monstrous.

“How rude!” The creature flips around to look into the void as if facing something. “I spent a great deal making myself presentable for this!” Rolling his eyes, he goes back to relaxing. “As if you’d answer.”

Things fall silent as he continues to eye something that isn’t there.

“You already know my name, use it. Also, stop pretending as if I’m not looking at you.”

In this nothingness, Discord sits alone, talking to himself.

“I’m not talking to myself! Don’t make it sound as if I’m the crazy one,” he shouts. “Don’t you remember? You’re here for a story.”

With the snap of his fingers, he summons furniture to relax on properly but floats just above one of the chairs he made. The other sits empty, with no one taking it.

“I was starting to get bored. I thought you’d never show, but curiosity is a common trait amongst your kind.” He leans back, the couch morphing to his shape, even though he’s still floating above it. “Why are you interested in this place anyway? I find your world far more fascinating compared to my own.” He shrugs. “Well, it matters little to me.”

With a stylish twirl akin to a ballerina, Discord morphs into a smaller childlike version of himself before facing forward.

“Since this is a story, I should start from the top,” he states in his high pitched voice. “I wasn’t born like other creatures, I simply was. As far as my memory is concerned, there was nothing, and then I opened my eyes.”

What a strange transition. Wait a second, am I the narrator? Perfecto! This will certainly liven things up! Look, over there! Oh, yeah, you can’t see me. Stop facing the sky and look down by the trees!

There’s a vast collection of trees as far as the eye can see. Attempting to look past it would be fruitless as—

Not those trees! That one there! The one with the two fillies!

Out past the line of trees that makes up the border of the forest, a single tree sits a few feet ahead of it. Underneath are two fillies. One of white with a pink mane—

The reader already knows who they are! They’re the royal sister. Well, they will be someday, but right now, they’re just two young princesses. Keep your eye on the bush just behind the tree they're sitting at, to the left.

Celestia and Luna are sitting beside one another, perfectly content with being alone and close to the woods. Celestia finds comfort in the sunshine and her sister, the cooler air that drifts from the forest. So they spend a lot of time sitting here talking about random things.

“We shouldn’t wait too long here, Luna. I’m sure Mom will come to find us sooner or later.”

“But we rarely get to come out here!” Luna pouts. “Just a few more minutes?”

Celestia looks to her younger sister. “Very well, a few more minutes, but we’ll need to return with haste. Magic study will begin shortly after.”

Ahem.

“So, what do you think he’s going to teach us today?” Luna asks.

Ahem! I thought this was my story! Forget about those two. Just look over by that bush.

A sudden flash of light blinds the two fillies briefly, but Celestia is quick to come to her senses as she hops to her hooves and stands in front of her sister in a low stance. Her little wings are raised while her body trembles from the unknown threat, but she cannot allow any harm to come to Luna!

“Ow, my head hurts!” a male voice calls out.

Hearing the voice immediately brings calm to Celestia’s heart. Was that flash merely a colt playing with magic? While not likely, it’s far from impossible.

“Excuse me; you are on royal grounds. Are you lost, or do you require aid?” Celestia asks while still holding her ground as she has no visual of what could be lurking.

“No, I’m fine.” The bush starts to stir.

Pay attention here; this part is hilarious!

Both sisters lock their gaze onto whatever comes their way, and what breaks past the leaves is something they weren’t expecting. A creature unlike anything they’ve ever encountered is standing there dazed as it rubs its strange goat-like head with a lion—

We already know what I look like! You’re going to miss the best part!

Where the fillies once were is nothing more than a dust cloud as they run off towards a castle.

I...I told you! You didn’t even get to see their eyes go super wide and them squealing in terror! It was priceless!

Little Discord sits on his rump, confused as he looks around the wooded area.

“Where am I?” He asks.

“Pause!”

Where there was the scene of little Discord looking around his world perplexed, is now replaced with old Discord as he stands in the void.

“I’m not old.” He scratches the back of his neck. “Alright, I’m old in your human standards, but that’s beside the point!” He takes a few steps closer. “If you want this story to break the mold of all the trash that’s been written, then you have to let me direct it! That moment we missed, that was one of the most embarrassing moments for the sisters, and only I can truly appreciate the awkwardness whenever I bring it up!”

He sighs before using his eagle claw to stroke his beard. “So, I get it; you’re scene building and all that stuff. It’s the building blocks to any good story, but you have the advantage of knowing someone who knows what events will transpire. So make sure to pay attention because a lot of the stuff I point out is pure gold! Can you do that?”

He stands there looking off into the void before rolling his eyes.

“Sparkling conversationalist. We’re wasting time here, let’s get back to it.”

The two sisters are galloping as fast as they can before stopping, forced to catch their breaths while their hearts hammer in their barrels.

“W-What was that, Tia?” Luna asks, trying her best to stop the trembling in her hooves.

“I have no idea, Lulu.” Celestia quickly recovers as she looks over her withers down the hall to confirm if the creature they saw followed them. “It doesn’t appear to have given chase. I believe we are safe for now.”

Let’s go back to where I am; we’ll see these two again later on.

The entire scene shifts in a way that looks like someone dragged one photo away just to replace it with a different one seconds later. Little Discord is sitting by himself in the garden with a confused look as he faces the grass below him. A moment later he face plants into it unmoving.

“Soft,” his voice speaks, muffled from the grass. “Prickly.”

Sitting back up, he uses his eagle claw to pull a few blades out and examines it. Letting it go, he gets up and walks over to the tree and runs his lion paw over it.

“Rough.”

Aren't I the cutest? Look how adorable I am! This was my first time coming into existence. So a lot of this stuff was new to me, and I had to learn quickly.

Little Discord, while entranced by all of the new sensations of the world he finds himself in, finds his thoughts return to the two creatures that ran from him.

“Ponies?” He tilts his head curiously to the side. “What else is there to learn?”

With that spark of wanting to know more, he wanders off to where he last saw those two fillies.

Alright, so let’s skip ahead a bit. I take my time learning about things as I go, not very entertaining if you ask me. How about we head over to see what the sisters are up to?

“Are you sure we shouldn’t tell Mom and Dad?” Luna asks, twiddling her hooves.

Celestia shakes her head. “They’ll never let us out by the forest again if we tell them.”

The two sisters decided to retreat to Celestia’s room once they were sure that the creature they saw from before wasn’t following them. Content that they could put that little scare behind them.

Rather bizarre to see this part of the conversation. By all rights, I shouldn’t even know this stuff, but it appears with you around I can see things I’ve never seen.

Just like before, the world tries to shift from one scene to another but quickly snaps back as it remains focused on the sisters.

Hmm, but I can’t see anything deviating from the story. Oh well! I wanted to count how many dragons there were before the war, but I guess we’ll have to stick with the plot for the time being.

“Do you have any idea what it was?” Luna asks.

“I haven’t the faintest clue. I don’t recall mother or father telling us of any creature like the one we saw.” Celestia mulls it over for a moment. “At the very least, I believe it wasn’t hostile. It’s appearance, while strange, looked to be as young as us.”

“Could it have been a mutant?” Luna asks, frightening herself.

That causes Celestia to roll her eyes with a smile. “Highly doubtful. Whatever it was, I hope it left.”

Three, two, one.

A knock echoes throughout the room as both sisters look at one another, slightly confused.

“Perhaps that is Mom, ready to bring us to our studies?” Luna suggests.

Celestia was thinking the same thing. Surely it couldn’t be the creature they saw from before, right? Without hesitating, she walks up to the door and uses her magic to open it wide. She comes face to face with the creature from before. In an instant, she slams the door shut and quickly backs away. Little Discord looks stunned by what just happened.

He tries to push the door like he did to get inside here, but it’s not moving. Tilting his head, he pushes again, but something else happens; he melts between the cracks and reforms on the other side. He wants to question what just happened there but finds the frightened gaze of the two ponies from before.

Can you hear what they’re thinking right now?

“That creature just phased through the door. Does it possess magic?” Celestia thinks. “What can I do to keep Luna safe?”

“It doesn’t look as scary as I thought.” Is Luna’s only thought.

Huh, it’s like you have a power all of your own.

“Should I say something?” Discord asks himself. “What is that look they’re giving me? I don’t like it. Maybe I should say something?”

Don’t go into my head too! Just pay attention to this moment. It’s crucial to the entire story.

“H-Hello?” Discord waves with his lion paw.

Celestia is baffled on what to make of this creature. Now that it stands in plain view, she can confirm it’s the same age as them, but she doesn’t know what its intentions may be.

“Hello,” Luna replies.

“What are you doing here?” Celestia asks.

“Um...” Discord looks to the floor, unsure. “I don’t know. I guess I wanted to talk to you two.”

The three jump in surprise as a knock echoes past the door. Discord, startled, pushes away until he’s standing beside the two fillies. The three have their attention locked to the door as it opens after a brief pause. What walks in is an older stallion, gray with a horn atop his head, a crown sitting just behind it.

“Tia, Lulu–”

The stallion stops, his deep blue eyes shifting from the two sisters to the creature beside them. His brows furrow as his gaze returns to the sisters.

“Tia, what is that?” He asks.

“Um.” Celestia doesn’t know what the right choice is. To lie or tell the truth. “It came into our room... I don’t know if it’s a creature from the Everfree, Father.”

“I’ll be the judge of that,” the stallion says.

True Sense, the father of the sisters.

With a wary eye, True Sense walks over to the creature that resembles nothing he’s ever laid eyes on before. Whatever it is, it’s not of this world, that much he knows for sure. As foreign as its appearance, the strange disturbance of magic within it is what worries True Sense the most. It’s chaotic when compared to the magic ponies use. Far more potent than something so young should possess. If it grows without guidance, it would undoubtedly become trouble later down the line.

Seeing the piercing gaze of her father on the creature, Luna can’t hold herself back as she steps forward to defend Discord. He’s done nothing wrong, and she wouldn’t want to see him punished for no reason.

“Dad!” Luna runs up to him with glistening eyes. “H-He’s done nothing wrong! I swear!”

Luna would often stand up for me back then. It’s strange to think at one point in our lives; we were friends. While unseen, there’s a hint of melancholy to Discord’s tone. I’m not melancholy.

True Sense looks down at his youngest daughter. He hates to admit he can’t stand to see her look like this. Not that he planned on locking this child away, but he will keep him under surveillance to ensure the safety of his family.

“Honey, what is going on?” A tall light pink mare walks into the room, her white mane resting lazily on her head, a small crown poking out the top. When she rounds the corner and sees Discord, her eyes light up. In a flash, she’s already taken him into her hooves, “Oh my! Who is this cute colt!?”

A-Alright, I think we can move on from here. The scene tries to shift but goes nowhere. You can’t be serious? You want to see this?

“Melody, let it go!” True shouts.

Melody has a loving smile as she continues to nuzzle the very confused Discord.

“What a precious little thing,” she states, not listening to True. “Where did you come from?” She asks, pulling away to face Discord.

“I-I don’t know,” Discord answers. “I just woke up outside.”

Melody gasps. “Oh, my! That must've been scary!”

“Scary?” Discord tilts his head.

“Yeah, like BOO!” She shouts, making Discord jump and his heart race. “Do you not know what scary is?”

“I do now,” He answers.

True Sense can tell that the creature isn’t lying at the very least. However, his wife appears to be getting far more attached than he’s comfortable with.

“Melody, we don’t know if it has parents looking for it.”

She still has that smile on her face as she keeps her eyes locked onto Discord. “Well, he’ll need to stay somewhere until we find them. What’s your name?”

“Um...” He looks confused. “Name?”

“Yes, my name is Hearts Melody. The stallion behind you is True Sense. Then there are my two daughters, Luna and Celestia.” Melody points to each pony to give Discord an idea of who she’s talking about before taping his chest. “What’s your name?”

Discord.

Little Discords ear flickers as if he heard something. “D-Discord.”

“What an interesting name,” Melody states. “Do you want to stay with us while we find your parents?”

“I-I don’t know if I have any...”

“Well, if that’s true, you’re free to stay here as long as you want.”

Discord looks up to Melody with glistening eyes. He feels an odd tightness in his chest. For reasons he didn’t even understand, he leaned forward and hugged her. Melody returns the hug while looking up to her husband. True Sense could tell from the look in her eye that he wouldn’t have much say in what happens. Not that he’s surprised.

Once again, Discord appears in the void. He doesn’t look happy.

“It’s been a while since I’ve thought about them.” Discord looks to his lion paw for a moment before snapping back to the void. “We’re moving forward a few years. Melody took me in as if I was one of her own. In many ways, she was just as much my mother as she was the sisters. Though I never saw them as sisters, we just never fully clicked like that.”

He takes a moment as he pulls the hair on his chin. “Let’s start when I started learning about my powers. It wasn’t something any pony understood, so I was left to understand it myself. I guess you could say this is where the story begins.”

Here’s when I started testing out my powers. I didn’t have a reference since all I’ve ever seen is the sisters casting spells. So, for my first test, I tried doing what I’ve seen them do many times before.

Discord looks to a flower in the distance and tries to levitate it towards himself like he’s seen Celestia do. However, what happens isn’t what he expected. It’s as if the distance between him and the flower didn’t exist. One moment he was too far to touch it, and then he was right next to it. He didn’t move, and the plant didn’t move either. It’s just like space wasn’t there.

To be honest, I still don’t understand how chaos magic works. I just will things, and they happen one way or another. Though it never happens the way I ever expect it to, hence why it’s chaos magic.

Discord plucks the flower from the bush and decides to try something he’s never seen Celestia do. He rests his eagle claw over the flower that sits in his paw and thinks of a frog. His eyes snap open when he feels something jump in his grasp. He moves his claw and is surprised to see the flower that was in his grip, behaving like a frog.

“What are you doing?” A small voice calls out.

Discord looks over his shoulder and smiles as he finds Luna standing there.

Feels like it was yesterday; the two of us would hang out. Once again, there’s a particular pain in his tone. Shut up and pay attention. I... I have other things to do. I’ll be back in a bit.

“Look!” Discord says with a smile as he shows Luna, the flower hopping around in his paw.

Her eyes widen. “Whoa!” She leans close. “Is it alive?”

“I don't know!” Discord answers with a smile. “I just wanted it to be a frog, and then it started doing this.”

“Cool!” Luna outstretched her hoof, and the frog leaps from Discords paw to her hoof.

She giggles as it hops around a few times before falling flat on her hoof. Both of them raise their brows as Luna looks up at Discord.

“Did the magic run out?” She asks.

“Maybe?”

“Oh well, that was still pretty cool!” Luna then eats the flower before getting up. “Lunch is ready.”

“Good! I’m starved.”

Luna and Discord walk off towards the castle.

Celestia, Melody, and Sense wait patiently for Luna to bring Discord. However, Celestia is slightly annoyed by the fact that her sister was sent to get him. She doesn’t trust Discord; he’s always doing weird stuff, and the fact her sister likes him makes it unbearable to leave them alone. Perhaps Luna is too naive to see it, but Celestia does, Discord is trouble waiting to happen.

The doors leading to the dining room slide horizontally, as if melting into the wall. Both Discord and Luna walk inside giggling to themselves as Discord snaps his fingers, making the doors reappear where they once were. True Sense looks disturbed by what he just saw, but Melody is smiling as she clops her hooves together.

“Was that a spell, Discord?” She asks.

He and Luna take their seat, and he nods his head.

“Yup! I was practicing in the garden,” he states. “But, it’s weird, it does the thing I want but never the way I want it.”

“How so?” Sense comes in a stern tone to his voice.

Discord's happy mood fades as she shrinks into his seat. “U-Um... I don’t know. Like, for example, I’ll get myself a glass of water.”

Discord raises his eagle claw and snaps his fingers. The table shakes slightly, and before Discord, a small storm cloud forms and rains onto the table, but instead of making a mess, it appears to form into a cup, the cloud disappearing once the container is fully developed. Before anyone can say anything, the cup fills with water from top to bottom.

Everyone is silent for a moment. True Sense wasn’t sure what Discord just did, but it filled him with a deep sense of dread. A feeling he can honestly say he’s never felt before, in all his years on this planet. On the flip side, Melody can’t shake her smile; she can sense that her husband is worried, but she can also detect that Discord is pure of heart.

“That was fantastic!” Melody clops her hooves again, praising Discord. “I’m sure you’ll become a potent user of the arcane if you keep practicing.”

“Really? It’s not weird or anything?”

“Of course it’s weird!” She states. “But that’s not a bad thing.”

Discord’s face lights up. He likes Melody; she’s always praising him. His eyes then shift over to True Sense, his face stone-like and gaze piercing.

“I would request that you do not practice without supervision,” True warns.

Discord nods. “Understood.”

Celestia hasn’t moved her sights from the cup. How in Equestria did he do that? Everything about what he just did goes against the fundamental laws of magic that she’s been studying! However, a sideways glance from her father is enough to keep her mouth shut. But she will keep a closer eye on Discord if only to ensure Luna is safe.

“I’m starved!” Melody calls out.

“Me too!” Luna agrees.

“Well, let’s not wait around. Service!”

The world turns static as everything shifts back to the void. Discord is standing in the center looking miffed.

“I’m sure you’re starting to get bored with all this stuff. So how about we just get on with it and move to the point where everything went wrong.” Discord looks off into the distance. “A few years later, during my first summer sun festival. That’s where it all happened.”

“Are you three excited?” Melody smiles as she looks over her two daughters and Discord.

“I’ve never been to a festival before.” Discord admits, twiddling his claws.

“It’s fine, as long as you three stick together.”

“Melody, we’re going to be late,” True calls past the door.

“Almost done!” Melody walks up to Discord and fixes his bow tie. “You behave now and keep an eye on these two.”

“Ok,” Discord says with a nod.

“Alright, girls. Your father and I will be on the stage during the festival. You’re free to walk about, but make sure you stay in sight of one another and don’t talk to strangers!”

“Ok, Mom,” They both say.

Melody gives one last nod before joining her husband. Now Discord and the sisters are left alone. Luna looks over at Discord with a smile.

“Where do you want to go?”

“Well, we should scope everything out and then figure it out from there.”

“Great idea! I want to find the dessert table quick!”

Celestia is keeping a close eye on Discord. Over the few years he’s been around, she couldn’t shake this strange feeling that sits on her withers. A weight that screams something about him is off and that in time leaving him alone will undoubtedly cause a disaster. So here she is, even now, following close behind to keep an eye on those two.

Luna isn't as cautious as Celestia. She enjoys Discord’s company, and they go off a lot to enjoy everything the world has to offer. She and her mother enjoy Discord's bizarre control of magic and have encouraged him to use it more often.

What she doesn’t know is that today is the day they all came to fear me.

Discord has been so quiet that it was startling in a way to hear him speak.

Keep an eye on Luna and me. It’ll happen soon enough.

Luna and Discord are sitting at the dessert table, eating their fill of all the things that are offered.

“Discord, do you think you can make more of these?” Luna floats the cookies over to him, only a few more left.

“Um, I don’t know. I’ve never made cookies before.”

“Try!”

“It shouldn’t be too hard.” Discord thinks to himself.

With a snap of his fingers, he thinks about baking cookies and all the ingredients it requires. He looks around and doesn’t see anything happening. With a quirked brow, he looks over at Luna and shrugs, but before he can say anything, he notices she’s looking up with wide eyes. He follows her gaze and spots a giant bag of flour hanging over the party.

“Oh no,” Discord says under his breath before the bag opens.

The entire contents are dumped onto everypony at the party, but that’s not all. A swarm of eggs fly in and lay chickens, while at the same time, the sun moves closer for a few minutes before backing away for the moon to come and cool things down. Once that’s done, everything returns to normal or as normal as it can be after all of that.

Feeling his heart sink, Discord decides to try and make it right.

“S-Sorry! I’ll clean this up!” He snaps his fingers, and a tornado appears in the center and tosses everything around. “T-That’s not what I want!” He snaps once again to try and figure out how to fix all of this but causes a large broom to appear that sweeps everyone up into an oversized dustpan.

“Discord, stop!” Luna shouts.

Frozen in fear, Discord just sits there as everypony around picks themselves off the ground in a daze. He didn’t want this to happen. All at once, the angry stares of everyone look his direction. So much hate was burning in their eyes. Even when he looks over at Luna and Melody, he can see the sheer terror in their eyes. He doesn’t want to be here. He wants nothing more than to disappear.

He raises his eagle paw, giving one last glance at everyone around.

“I don’t want to be here,” He says before snapping his fingers.

The last thing he remembers is Luna reaching out to him, but everything faded away.

Young Discord stumbles slowly before falling onto his knees in a puddle. Laborious breaths leave him as he tries to shake away the double vision from his eyes. After a moment, he peers into the reflection of himself.

"Why did I do that?” he thinks to himself. “All I wanted to do was help, and now I’m in trouble.”

His thoughts fade as a strange noise comes to him. He looks down the alleyway he’s in and catches strange figures passing by. He doesn’t know why, and just like the first time he awoke in Equestria, he gets the sense that he’s no longer in a world he knows. Lifting himself, arms tucked close to his chest; he cautiously walks to the end of the alley and peers out.

This isn’t Equus. He’s never read about creatures like these before, and any thought they could be from the Everfree leaves him as the skyscrapers take his attention next. Taller than anything he’s ever seen, even the smallest of buildings are three times the size of what he’s seen in Canterlot. There’s no logical way these creatures could’ve existed secretly in Equus without anything noticing.

The only conclusion Discord can come to is that he’s found himself in another world.

Yes, I’ve been to your world before. It’s why I’m not surprised you’re here. Though if you thought this would be a wacky adventure, you’re sorely mistaken.

Discord isn’t sure what to do as he peers into the swarm of creatures. With cautious steps, he walks out and onto the sidewalk. In seconds he bumps into a few of these creatures and is forced back into the alleyway. The strange thing is, none of them turned to look his way. He peers out once more, but this time decides to speak.

“H-Hello?” None of them turn to his direction. “Can they not see me?”

He’s quicker the next time he leaves the alleyway, darting between the legs of these beings as they go about their business, not a single one had noticed him. Discord isn’t sure where he’s going, but he wants to get far away from the sea of these things. Walking down the sidewalk, making sure to keep a reasonable distance between him and the creatures, he takes this time to explore this new world he finds himself in.

He admits that the tall buildings are mesmerizing as he finds his gaze always drifting up to look at them. Though what he fails to notice is the intersection that’s coming up. Just as Discord is about to step into oncoming traffic, a hand snatches his at the last second. Shocked by this, Discord whips around and comes face to face with a smaller creature.

It’s looking right at Discord, one hand holding what Discord can only assume is his parent and the other on his.

“You don’t cross when it’s red.” He says.

“Red?”

The child nods. “There.”

Discord follows his finger and finds a small box that has the appendage of the creature, and it’s red. It switches to green, and with that, all the creatures waiting start crossing the street.

“Bye.” The small creature says before walking off.

He’s so young. Discord's voice sounds far off as if he’s lost in this memory. It wasn’t until he saw me, that I realized how terrified I was of being alone. So, I followed him.

Little Discord keeps some distance as he trails the family, keeping a close watch on what they do. None of these creatures can see him, but this one can. Perhaps they can be friends? Yeah, a new start, where no pony knows he’s a monster.

Things rapidly shift back before everything falls away to the blackness. Discord is stroking his beard while looking off into the void.

“I didn’t think I’d feel much by seeing him again,” Discord says aloud. “It’s been so long since we’ve seen each other.” He turns away, so his back is the only thing visible. “I think you have it from here. I have some things I’d like to do while you’re looking into my past.”

With a snap of his fingers, he and the void shift away.

Slowly a new scene takes the place of the one before. There is no city or skyscrapers but instead a row of houses and street corners. A residential area, the typical white picket fences, and well-kempt lawns stretch for some time before a road splits things apart and perhaps lead to even more homes. Discord is following behind the young boy who helped him before but kept his distance as not to disturb him.

It takes almost five minutes of walking before the family walks up to a rather lovely two-story home. Just like all the other homes here, everything is well taken care of. They enter inside, and just as the door closes, Discord stops at the front.

“What do I do now?” He thinks to himself while looking around.

“Drew, you can play in your room. Dinner should be ready in a few hours.”

“Ok.”

While Discord didn’t recognize the voice from before, he did remember the boys. Feeling a leap in his heart, he contemplates how to get inside. As if instinct, he raises his claw but quickly stops himself. He doesn’t want to do magic; he’s afraid that something terrible will happen. He’ll have to find another way inside.

He walks around the home and soon finds a small flap of some kind connected to the backdoor. Curious, he walks up to it and pushes it. Strange, it’s a type of entrance, and while Discord has no idea what it could be for, he accepts this as a means of getting inside. Pushing his way in, he’s now within the home, and it’s a lot warmer than outside.

Still, with his hands pressed to his chest nervously, he walks deeper into the home. It’s a lot different than the castle. Peering off into one room, he finds the larger male, and what he can only assume is the boy’s father. He’s sitting in a chair reading something by himself. A noise startles Discord as he whips around to face another door.

Poking his head inside, he finds the mother. She’s hard at work cleaning the dishes and also prepping something. Discord can feel a rumble in his stomach; he hasn’t eaten in a while. Still, he has to find the boy. Leaving the kitchen, he continues to explore until he finds a set of stairs, with no other place to look, he gradually climbs them, which are bizarre, as they aren’t as short and wide as the ones in the castle. So he takes extra caution while climbing.

Once he’s at the top, he can already hear some noises he’s familiar with: Clinking of toys and other things. Approaching the door, he stops before entering.

“Should I be doing this?” He looks sadly to his feet. “I don’t want to cause any more trouble.”

He’s at an impasse. He wants to speak with the boy, but he also knows that it’s only a matter of time until he screws something up. However, he doesn’t want to be alone. That’s enough to drive him as he reaches up to the knob and turns it. He pushes the door open and peeks inside. The boy is sitting on the floor, playing with a few toys. At hearing the door open, he turns and finds Discord there.

“Hi,” The boy greets.

“H-Hi.”

“Do you want to come in?”

Discord nods dumbly before entering and closing the door behind him. The two of them are staring at each other, but what Discord finds strange is the lack of reaction from the boy.

“Are you not scared of me?” Discord asks.

“No,” the boy answers.

“Why not?”

The boy looks confused before shrugging. “I don’t know.”

Discord finds himself in a position he’s never been in before. When he first appeared in Equestria, the sisters showed fear, but here this boy didn’t even blink at his mixed appearance. For the first time in his life, he felt as if he wasn’t a monster.

“I’m Discord.”

“I’m Drew.”

“Do you want to be friends?”

“Sure.”

Discord comes closer and sits next to Drew.

“What are you playing?”

“Mega Hero.”

“What’s that?”

The boy shows Discord a figure of some kind. It’s big and intimidating looking and in his other hand is a more slim figure, like the mother he saw.

“This is Mega Hero; he saves people who are in trouble.” Discord watches the child move the female one up and down. “Help me!” a few smaller green figures in various poses holding Stange tube-like polls surround the female. “Do not fear, Mega Hero is here!” Drew shouts before picking up the larger male and slamming him into the smaller green figures. “Thank you, Mega Hero! You’re my hero!”

Discord has never played this game before. “So, it’s like storytelling?”

“Yeah. He goes on all sorts of cool adventures and saves the day.”

“Wow. Does Mega Hero live around here?”

“No, he lives in a place called Metropolis.”

“Oh,” Discord scratches his head. “So who saves people around here?”

“The cops,” Drew answers.

“Are they like guards?”

“I think so.” The boy sets his figures down before turning to face Discord. “Where do you come from?”

“Equestria.”

“Where’s that?”

“I don’t know.”

“Are you lost?”

“Um, yes, and no. I left because I got in trouble.”

Drew looks sad. “Oh, I know what that feels like.”

“You do?”

“Yeah, I accidentally broke something, and everyone was mad at me.”

“Me too.” Discord scoots closer. “What did you do?”

“I said I was sorry, and everything was better.”

“That easy?”

“Yup. Have you said you’re sorry?”

Discord rubs the back of his lions paw. “I-I don’t think it would be that simple. They were really mad.”

“Oh... What did you do?”

Discord is hesitant to tell him but also feels compelled to. “I tried to make something with magic, but it ended up going wrong.”

“Magic?” Drew's eyes light up. “Can I see?”

“I-I don’t know.” Discord twiddles his paw and claw. “Maybe later, okay?”

“Sure.” Drew is still smiling. “So, do you want to play?”

It’s strange, but for Discord, he can feel a certain warmth grow inside of him.

What did I tell you about looking into my feelings? A sigh fills the air. Let’s go.

“Sure!” Discord says before everything returns to the void.

“There’s a lot that happened,” Discord says with his back turned. “We grew close, and I lived with him for the most part. His parents were none the wiser; they thought I was nothing more than his imaginary friend. It was after a few years later that I showed him my magic. This was the start of my downfall.”

“Really?!” Drew asks excitedly.

“Y-Yeah. Just, it may not go as expected.”

“That’s fine, what’s the worst that could happen?”

Discord nervously chuckles. “Right...” He shakes his head clear. He needs to concentrate! “I’m going to make something to drink.”

Drew is sitting quietly as he watches Discord. His enthusiasm reminds Discord of Luna. Discord shakily raises his paw and snaps his fingers. Drew is mesmerized as water starts to flow from the floor and up into the shape of a cup. Discord is amazed nothing terrible has happened yet.

Just watch.

The widow nearby shatters, and the pieces quickly cling to the water and make a cup before everything settles.

“Drew?! What was that noise!?” Drew’s eyes are wide as his mother comes running in and notices the window. “Drew! What did I tell you about playing with that ball inside the house!?” She walks over to the window and looks it over. “I’ll have to call your father so he can get it replaced.”

“B-But Mom.”

“No, buts mister! I want you to clean up whatever glass there is; I don’t want you stepping on it later.” She walks out of the room and quickly goes about calling her husband.

Drew looks over to Discord as he stands stock still. “What happened?”

“It... I don’t know. My magic isn’t stable.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t do that again?” Drew offers.

Discord nods. “Yeah,” He gives Drew his best smile. “Here, let me help.”

As Discord is about to reach out and help, for Drew, he suddenly disappears.

Discord crashes down onto a solid and cold surface in a daze.

“I can’t believe it worked.” An oddly familiar tone calls out.

“M-My head hurts.” Discord rubs his head but notices that something about himself is off.

“It’s been so long.” A different but also strangely familiar voice calls out before something embraces him.

This startles Discord as he shoves whatever grabbed him and moves away until he slams against a wall. Disoriented, he tries to understand what could’ve happened just before everything went black. His eyes adjust, and standing before him are two mares. His eyes flicker to them both, they look like the sisters, but that can’t be the case.

“W-Who are you?” Discord is startled as he notices his voice is deeper.

The two ponies before him look at one another, one concerned and the second skeptical. The darker one that looks like Luna cautiously approaches.

“Discord, it’s me, Luna.”

“Time has never been linear for me.” Everything becomes muffled as Discord’s voice takes over the scene. Luna is still talking to the confused and terrified younger Discord. “For me, not much time had passed, but for Equestria, many years went by. That entire time, Luna wanted nothing more than to bring me home. She studied and pushed herself farther than I ever expected. In her success, she also put in motion my and her downfall.”

The scene freezes as Luna hugs Discord.

“I too aged rapidly, as if I never left Equestria at all. Even though I was happy to see they weren’t angry at me, I knew at that moment that someone else was waiting for me.”

“I have to go.” Discord says as Luna hugs him.

“Go? But why? You just came back?”

“It’s... a long story.” Discord wouldn’t even know where to begin, but that’s not what matters to him right now. “Someone is waiting for me. I’m sorry.”

Without a second thought, Discord raises his eagle claw and, for the first time in his life, truly wished that he’d return to where he left.

“No! Wai-”

When Discord opens his eyes, a sense of relief washes over him. This is where he left, and now he’s back. Though he does note that the room is cleaned and the window repaired, he looks down at his body and finds it’s still the age it was back in Equestria. A sinking feeling sits in the pit of his stomach as he explores the room.

“Drew?” Discord calls out in hope for someone to call back.

In another room, he can hear the sound of something falling. Cautiously, Discord leaves Drew’s room and walks over to the stairs to investigate. Though it’s not needed as he finds Drew standing at the bottom stairs. He’s just frozen in place as he looks up at Discord. Discord immediately notices how much older Drew is now. He’s not too aware of human aging, but he guesses that Drew is now around thirteen or so.

“D-Discord?” Drew calls out in a tone that questions his sanity.

“...Yeah. A lot has happened, but I’m back.”

Drew slowly climbs the stairs, never looking away from Discord the entire time. Once he’s close enough, he reaches a handout and rests it on his chest.

“So, you weren’t my imaginary friend?” Drew asks, still baffled to be seeing the creature that left so many years ago.

“No, I’m very much real.” Discord rests his lion paw onto Drew’s hand. “I wanted to say I’m sorry about disappearing that time the window broke. Again, a lot happened.”

Drew drops his hand. “Yeah, that was pretty mean, but I guess you’ll have to explain yourself.”

Discord nods. “That’s understandable.”

“So, what happened?”

“It’s funny. Even when faced with something so impossible, Drew always believed me. I told him how my old friends had used magic to bring me back to their world forcefully and that, for some reason, I was older than I was when I left. For me, it was as if ten minutes had passed, but for him, it was five years.”

Discord comes into view in the void.

“It was nice being back. I know Equestria was technically my home, but it didn’t feel that way to me anymore. I wanted to stay on earth, but while at the time it was great, I never expected the events that lead to my downfall.”

Discord takes a deep breath and slowly lets it out.

“I’m not going to bother you with all the boring details. Drew and I continued to live together and have fun as the years went on. We’d talk about so many things, and for the first time, I felt accepted without my magic, so I never used it.” Discord’s jaw clenches. “I should’ve realized the impact I was making. Even while I never directly did anything, others noticed Drew’s change. It was only a matter of time before they started to question his sanity... That’s when it happened...”

Discord has been waiting in Drew’s room while he’s at high school. As he didn’t want to be a distraction to Drew and also he would take time to practice his magic outside. Nothing too crazy but small things to hopefully get a better understanding of his power and to maybe help Drew more in life. That’s what a friend does, and Discord doesn’t want to hurt his friend.

Now he sits and waits for Drew. It doesn’t take long before he hears the car door shut and the steps up the stairs before Drew enters the room. Though what Discord notices first is that Drew looks distraught. Discord gets up and walks over.

“Hey, is everything alright?”

Drew closes the door and walks close to Discord.

“No,” he whispers. “My parents think I’m crazy. They say I’ve been talking to myself and all the other stuff we do together. They’re going to send me to the doctor.”

“What will the doctor do?”

“I have no idea, but...” Drew looks determined. “Discord, I want you to prove to them you’re real.”

Discord freezes in place. “Y-you want me to use my magic?”

“It’s the only way. Even if it ends up bad like the last time, there’s no way I could ever do what you do in our world. Please.” Drew grabs Discord lion paw. “Do this for me. I know you dislike your magic, but it could help me right now.”

Discord looks into the eyes of his friend. He wants to help him. This is his fault for being around him, and he needs to make it right.

“Alright... I’ll try.”

Drew smiles. “I believe in you. Let’s do this now before we lose our nerve.”

Discord nods as Drew guides him out of the room and into the living area. His parents are sitting there, talking to one another.

“Mom, Dad. I’m not crazy. Discord is real, and he’s going to prove it right here and now.” Drew turns to Discord.

Discord takes a deep breath to steady his thoughts. This is where he’ll make something happen, and it won’t become the usual chaos that ensues. Just as he lifts his claw and opens his eyes, he gives Drew one last look before something else begins to tug at him.

Discords eyes widen, and all that can escape him is “Oh no.” before he disappears.

“Answer me, Luna!” Celestia screams in outrage. “He made his choice!”

Luna is focusing on her spell, the fur around her eyes still matted from the days spent grieving.

“Mother would’ve wanted him at her burial,” Is all she says as she starts to sense Discord’s essence. “Where he covets to stay is his decision, but this isn’t something I will allow him to forget.”

Celestia takes a step in front of her sister. “He isn't family. Why haven’t you grown to realize what father and I knew as soon as we laid eyes on him? He’s a monster.”

Luna grits her teeth. “You dare call him a monster? What would Mom think if she caught you stating such things?” Celestia holds her ground with that stern expression she learned from dad. “He may not be related by blood, but that doesn’t change the fact that Mom and I cared about him.”

Celestia scoffs as she steps away from Luna but dares not leave her alone. She can’t describe this sensation weighing on her; there’s something in the air that’s warning her of approaching danger. Luna completes her spell, and in a blinding flash, Discord stands before them, much older than last they saw. However, he’s not dazed from the translocation spell. He’s shaking gradually, like an injured animal.

“No, no, no, no, why now?” Discord drones to himself. “Why, why of all times?”

“Discord,” Luna greets him.

Discord’s eyes snap to Luna and Celestia. It’s just like last time, they’re much older than he last recalls and so is he. That can only mean one thing, that time has drastically jumped on Earth. The sisters' recoil as a flash of pure hatred emanates from Discord. His thoughts become corrosive as they gnaw away at him. That was his chance to prove himself, to support a friend, but these two took that away from him! Discord wants everything to disappear.

“You” Discord takes a step forward. “You did this.”

Luna steps back from Discord's open hostility.

“S-Something happened, Discord.”

“You’ve ruined everything,” Discord states.

Celestia cannot restrain herself anymore as she steps forward to face down this beast.

“How dare you speak to us in such a manner!? Though I should’ve expected nothing less from a monster!”

Something happens at this moment that everyone takes notice of. The entire room falls into an eerie stillness. For Discord, the resentment that spilled from him calmed as Celestia's words sank in. If he goes back, five years or more will have passed. That’s assuming that Luna wouldn’t try to tear him away should she fancy the thought.

The past has come back to haunt him. This is their fault; it’s all their fault. There’s only one solution that Discord can see before him.

“You’ve always seen me as a monster.” Luna’s eyes widen as tears roll down Discord’s cheek. “Just a being of pure evil.” Discord lifts his lion paw to clear his eyes before locking them to Celestia. “You two can’t even fathom what you’ve done. You’ve taken everything from me!” Discord’s face falls to one of disgust. “So, what’s left?” He then raises his eagle claw. “A monster.”

The realization hits them too late as the echo of his finger snap reaches their ears. The entire sky turns inky black with clouds, lightning bolts exploding trees and buildings, a black fire setting anything it touches ablaze.

Luna is paralyzed. Why is this happening? What did she take from him? Maybe if they could talk, like they once did as children, then perhaps this can be solved?

“Discord! I don’t know what I’ve taken from you but know that our parents have passed! I’m sorry! Please, let’s talk this—”

A scorching ray of light flies past Luna and hits Discord square in the chest, though he shows little reaction as his gaze moves from Luna and over to Celestia.

“This isn’t the time for talking!” Celestia roars. “We must destroy him!”

Another snap echoes out, and the very ground quakes as vines reach up and grasp Luna, pinning her to the ground. Celestia took to the sky before they could reach her and hastily burns the vines holding her sister down.

“Discord. I’ll give you one chance to yield! Should you deny my offer, you will pay the price.”

“You’ve always been scared of me, Tia.” Discord mocks. “Ever since we were children, you lived in fear of my magic, how much stronger it is compared to yours. Well, I’m here to say.” Discord raises both hands this time. “Your fear was justified!”

“This was the moment that changed everything. Not just between the sisters and me but Equestria too. This one spell created more chaos than I ever assumed possible, and while I didn’t know it then, I do know now that chaos magic is based on emotion. Hate, love, happiness. It can affect the outcome drastically. Even a moment of distress can cause the spell to go awry. However, this moment here, I desired only one thing in my heart. To destroy Equestria.”

The clouds that were stock still start to drift as the trees blacken and twist into deformed shapes. The soil itself loses its color and plants as far as the eye could see dying in mass. Any creatures nearby are torn apart and reassembled into beasts the likes the world has never seen.

“Luna, we have to stop him before he destroys this place!”

“I-I can’t!”

“If you don’t, then we’ll all die!”

As Luna looks past her sister and back to Discord, she can see it. Any love that was once there is gone. Any chance of salvaging this was thrown down the drain when her sister attacked. No matter the choice, it’s not one she wants. Tears roll down her cheek.

“Alright.” She relents.

“We need to use the elements of harm-”

A hail of glass shards slam into Celestia’s back. She clenches her teeth as blood streaks down her back, tainting her fur.

“Did you think I’d make this easy on you?” Discord smirks. “No, I’m just getting started.”

Snapping his fingers, a black thorny vine grasps Celestia’s leg, digging into her flesh. She cries out but quickly casts a spell to burn it off before flying up into the sky. All she can hear is another snap and a shadow cast over her. She turns back to see a sizeable skeletal raven swoop down with its talons, but she dodges out of the way before it crashes into a bone pile that suddenly morphs into smaller birds that fly up to slash at her.

Luna doesn't waste time to summon the elements and return to the battle. There she can see Discord toying with her sister, the power gap being monumental between the two. Another snap and Celestia is surrounded by a swarm of butterflies, their wings having been replaced with thin blades.

“Sister!” Luna shouts.

Celestia holds back her screams of pain as she notices her sister there with the Elements of Harmony. Breaking free from the swarm, Celestia lands beside her sister, covered in blood, panting heavily. Discord stops as he looks at them.

“What are you planning?” He asks with a smirk. “Just accept your fate.”

“You’re a monster, and we were given something to deal with that,” Celestia remarks, wiping the blood from her eyes.

Discord giggles, then slowly it turns into full-blown laughter, but it continues past that to the deranged laughs of someone who has lost everything. Luna still doesn’t understand why this has happened, but her friend from before is long gone. The two sisters call on the power of the elements, and in a blinding flash, Discord is frozen while he laughs in pain.

Discord comes into view as he looks off into the void. The expression he’s giving makes it seem as if he’s stuck reliving those memories.

“That’s neither here nor there. As far as this story is concerned, this is where it ends.” Discord turns his attention to an audience that isn’t there. “What? Did you expect a happy ending? That I’d return to Drew once I broke free from my prison?” He scoffs. “It’s not like the thought didn’t cross my mind, but a thousand years in stone had taken any chance of that happening away.”

He summons a chair and takes a seat, this time actually sitting down on it.

“Not even my chaos magic has the power to control time. Even if it did, I wouldn’t trust it to get me where I want to go.” As Discord leans back and closes his eyes to rest, a giant swirling golden vortex opens beside him. He opens a single eye and looks it over. “Really?”

He gets up and leans a bit closer. “Is this what they call a convenient plot device? Let me guess, does this take me to before I met Drew or before Luna teleported me?” Walking around and giving it a once over, he hums in thought. “Hmmm... You humans are certainly scary. This type of power goes beyond logic or chaos.”

While he may not admit it, Discord is afraid to return to him.

“Afraid?!” Discord brows furrow. “I’m not afraid to see Drew again! I already know how it’ll go. He’ll hate me! I’m nothing more than a monster of his past. I’m fine thinking everything worked out for him.”

The portal starts to waver, and for a brief moment, Discord notices his body flinch.

He bites his lip in frustration. “Alright, you got me. Maybe one look couldn’t hurt.” His gaze lingers on the portal. “Right?”

With that said, he steps in and disappears from the void.

Discord is slammed into a solid surface at an incredible speed, causing him to gasp for breath as all the wind was knocked from him.

“A-A, little more gentle would’ve been appreciated.”

Discord gets to his feet, leans back far enough to cause a series of cracks from his spin. When he opens his eyes with a sigh of satisfaction, he comes face to face with a man. It takes only a moment for him to recognize him. It’s Drew. He’s easily in his late twenties, dressed in a suit, looking at Discord with wide eyes. Discord can tell he’s exhausted, reasonably from work, but that doesn’t matter. Despite the startled look, he appears to be okay.

“Hey.” Discord gives Drew a wave. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

Discord wasn’t sure what to expect, but even he wasn’t expecting Drew to pull him into a hug suddenly.

“Discord!” He gives him a big squeeze before leaning back but never letting him go. “I-It’s you, right?”

A sense of calm washes over Discord. A burden that’s been on his shoulders lifts away as Drew smiles at him.

“Yeah, Drew. It’s me.” Discord leans low and rests his head onto Drew’s shoulders, as he’s easily three feet taller than him and returns the hug. “I want to tell you everything that happened, but all that matters is that I’m sorry I left when I did.”

“No, I knew what happened as soon as you uttered those last words. Those people retook you, didn’t they?”

Discord nods. “Yeah, but so much more too. How did it go with your parents?”

Drew lets go of Discord. “Well, that act was the last straw. They put me into counseling for a while. They tried to get me to take meds, but I turned them down. I knew I wasn’t crazy and only had to wait for you to come back.”

“You’ve been waiting this whole time?”

Drew looks to speak but stops as he looks around.

“Follow me.” Drew grabs Discord’s paw and drags him inside his apartment. “We don’t have to worry about anyone seeing me talking to nothing.” Drew takes a seat on his couch and waves Discord over. “Get comfortable.”

Discord does, but things fall silent, neither knowing what to say at this moment.

“It’s surreal to see you again. I’ll be honest; I assumed that you’d never come back, for reasons I’d never understand. Still, I held out hope. I’ve been living my life to the fullest, so I could show you what I’ve been doing.”

As Discord looks over Drew, he can’t fight the feeling of pride. Seeing that boy grow into a man, living a healthy life. Deny it as he might, but Discord honestly did want to see Drew and know his best friend was alright. Discord leers at the void.

“Shut up.”

“What?”

Discord gives Drew a nervous smile. “Sorry, long story. Um... I was brought back by uncertain means. I’ll be straightforward, Drew. I could be taken back to my world without warning again. However, before that happens, I want to say I’m happy. I’m so happy I got to see you again, to know you’re safe and living your life. You’re my friend, and no matter where I am, you’ll always be.”

“It sounds like you’re saying your final goodbye.”

“I guess in a way, I am. I don’t want to leave without having said it.”

Drew notices Discord starting to glow like the last time he left.

“Wait, but you just got here!?”

“Heh... I guess they want a bittersweet ending?” Discord states to himself before pulling Drew close. “Hey. See you later?”

Discord’s eyes widen as Drew latches onto Discord.

“I don’t accept this. You hear me!” Drew looks up to the roof. “I don’t accept this!”

Discord would want nothing more than to stay, but before he can say anything, the glow turns into a flash, and he finds himself standing in the throne room. Celestia is there with glasses on her muzzle and some kind of bill in her magic. What’s strange is that her gaze isn't on him but something lower. With wide eyes, Discord finds Drew is still holding on to him.

Drew rubs his eyes and looks over at Celestia. From there, he turns to look up at Discord.

“Discord, what is that?” Drew points to the Princess.

“Um... Well, you’re in my world.”

“Did you do this?”

“No, but something else brought you with me.” Discord rubs the back of his neck. “I doubt I could send you back home.”

Drew looks up at Discord. “Well... I guess that’s fine. I’ve always wanted to see your world.”

“You know, it’s one thing when you pull your antics by yourself,” Celestia speaks. “However, what is that?”

Discord looks over to Celestia. “So, Tia. Remember when I went berserk a few thousand years ago because you took everything from me?”

She raises a brow. “...Yes.”

“Well, here he is.”

The scene starts to pull away as Discord, Drew, and Celestia talk about everything that’s transpired. Perhaps that means this is a happy ending?

“Hey!” Discord looks up to the roof. “Is that really how you’re going to end it?” The scene zooms back to him. “I get it can’t go on forever, but at least, I don’t know, make it into a big thing!”

Everything shifts into a wedding scene, Discord in a long and beautiful dress and Drew dressed in an elegant tux. Celestia is standing behind a podium bewildered by the sudden change. Drew looks just as confused as the other three hundred guests that preside.

“Haha.” Discord mock laughs. “Just... You know what, forget it.”

Discord tosses the bouquet as a bunch of mares dive for it. He then jumps into Drew’s arms as Drew starts to giggle.

“Good to see you’re still as weird as I remember.”

“Shut up and take me to the carriage. I need to get out of this dress and show you around town.”

“Sure thing.”

Discord waves and blows a kiss to the audience as they all hesitantly clap, still unsure what is happening. While not what Discord expected, he can easily say this is, without a doubt, a happy ending. Discord rolls his eyes as everything fades to black.

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