This story is a sequel to Kindness and the Heart of Shadow
Shortly after the events of Kindness and the Heart of Shadow, Fluttershy begins to worry how much her foal might take after its father—the evil King Sombra. While Twilight and Pinkie Pie head for the Crystal Empire to learn more about the shadow ponies, Fluttershy comes to a realization that raises the question of immortality. Discord is so afraid of the thought of losing her that he flees, only to come to a terrifying realization of his own...
A Fluttercord story, with a couple other ships thrown in for good measure.
Chapters (12)
A sequel! A sequel, a sequel, a sequel!
You write everypony and Discord so well. I love how he makes excuses to make himself feel better, but it's a sweet kind of selfishness.
I kinda hope his relationships with the others improve. He needs more than just Fluttershy.
A very good start to what I'm sure will be another great story!
Oh, this poor, poor Pegasus.
I'm loving all this magical lore, though. And once again, your characterization is spot-on. Raining alphabet letters! I wish I had thought of that!
Pinkie Pie was a delight in this, too. And Twilight teasing Fluttershy as Discord perused through the romance section was something I didn't realize I was waiting for until now!
I look forward to finding out what Discord himself is researching. Somehow, I don't think he's just looking for dating excursion ideas.
10238048
Don't get too excited, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to turn this little series into a trilogy! I've already sketched the plot for the final installment, but you're right: Discord needs to work on his other friendships! There will be a little bit of that coming up here, but I'll try to remember to explore that in more detail in the next story. Thanks for the read!
YES YES YESSSSS A SEQUEL
The ocs be like
Wait I thought the stare doesn't work for him
So this takes place after the 2 parter finale or..?
The ending tho
Me: WTF WTF WTF WHAT'S HAPPENING IS IT HAPPENING ALREADY IDK
I look forward on what'll happen tho
10248114
Those poor OCs! I'm sure somepony in magical ponyland knows a spell or two to make equine reproduction more... flexible. In this universe, Flutters probably hasn't given the idea much thought. She is surrounded by all her unmagical animal friends, after all.
10248137
A stare, not The Stare. Fortunately, Discord is sensitive to Fluttershy's desires even if the manipulative power of The Stare doesn't work on him!
Maybe I should make a blog post about the timing of this story; I can see how it could be a little confusing. I started writing this series shortly after the airing of the season 9 opener. The events in Kindness and the Heart of Shadow start there and mostly unfold in their own way, independent of the rest of season 9. Here in the sequel, the setting and Twilight's rule are kind of similar to the end of the show, but still ultimately an AU.
Yaya new chapters. I found an error
Dunno if it's an error or not
Great chapter tho and the immortality thing really hit me.
Discord and rainbow being a duo this'll be fun
10248254
Ohhh ok tnx for pointing it out
10248400
Not a typo, but now that you point it out, "ceded" doesn't quite mean what I wanted it to mean. I've changed it to "murmured" instead. Thanks for your diligence!
Another exciting chapter, a mix of intrigue and action balanced by a warm moment of friendship and many scenes of Pinkie being adorable and Twilight nerding out. You're also excellent with pacing, something I've always struggled with. Another great read I thoroughly enjoyed!
Creepy
Twi don't question Pinkie
Oo
Gah!!
Aww
I friend-ship it
(not yet ship but it's close)
Now I ship it
I'm curious now
10262007
Thank you! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter.
10263277
Looks like I got the reactions I was hoping for with this one! As for TwiPie, I think they're super cute together, whether just as friends or a little something more!
The immortality question when it comes to fluttercord is such a gray area. I've seen both sides and they both have key points. I could see her going either way based on how she approaches it. Is love enough to conquer such trials and tribulations that serve as the price of immortality? Or is it wrong to go against nature when it is not your purpose to do so, and does it take too heavy a toll to watch so many loved ones go when you weren't meant to? Is it better to accept it and make yourself stronger as you face such pain for all time? Or is it better to go and join them and let nature do what it does best? After all, Discord should learn how to help himself and have others to lean on, not just Fluttershy.
It's a heavy argument. Yours has good points. But whatever she really chooses, I'm sure it will make sense and be *her* decision. I look forward to finding out.
Oh Discord. You're lucky to love someone who is so experienced in panic attacks. I wonder what those whispers are...?
On to the next chapter!
Rarity has some good questions. How *does* their elemental magics work individually? Hmmm. I hope we find out!
Poor Fluttershy. But she has some friends to help her! Good job keeping the friendship theme highlighted in a romance story. Oh, especially the scene from a couple of chapters ago with Discord and Rainbow Dash! It was great!
Hmm... Sombra, perhaps?
Clearly you made it vague on purpose. But no matter! I am patient.
10272936
This is the point where I've pretty much committed to writing a third installment for this series. I realized a lot of the headcanons and lore I've been setting up would be kind of a distraction from the point if I explore them too much here. Suffice it to say, the mysteries I leave are meant to result in what I hope to be a satisfying grand finale. It might be a while, but I hope you find your patience pays off!
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I feel like of all the ponies, Fluttershy is actually the one best suited to immortality. People talk about the immortality thing like "I have to watch all my friends die", but Fluttershy watches friends die all the time. Sometimes she has to put them down to end their suffering. Because Fluttershy has friends who are small, short-lived animals. Angel Bunny has a lifespan of 8-12 years and we don't know how old he is already. Her bear friend will live 25 years at best; if he's a young bear now, he'll die when Fluttershy is middle-aged. Common garden birds, according to Wikipedia, have a lifespan of 2-5 years; some of her bird friends undoubtedly have died, and if she has any mouse friends, they've died too. Mice live 2 years or so. The butterflies that saved her life all died before winter came, possibly within weeks of her meeting them.
So for me, Fluttershy angsting about "I don't want to outlive my friends" seems off. Fluttershy considers many animals her friends. And if the ponies have a human lifespan, which they seem to (or a greater than human lifespan), then Fluttershy will outlive every single friend she has now who isn't a sapient being, unless she is friends with a parrot or a tortoise.
10273577
I just want to say, you make a very good point! Fluttershy must be used to saying goodbye to animal friends already. Like you said, though, she will outlive any friend that isn't a sapient being, but her friendships with those sapient beings must of necessity be of a different kind. Prepared as she is for goodbyes to animal friends, she's lived her whole mortal life so far with the expectation that she won't have to say as many goodbyes to her sapient friends, and that at that point, she won't be living much longer to stew in the sadness of that anyway. The tragedy of immortality might be just a little bit easier on Fluttershy than any of the others, but the broken expectation of being unable to leave life around the same time as her sapient friends must still be a source of great pain. Thanks for your interesting analysis, and I hope you are enjoying the story!
Yay chapter I can't count now my reactions
Tell that to the fluttercord ocs (me being guilty as well). Pffffffffffffffff ^ flutters you've never read the fics
Oh god!?
*that time when you need to go through the chapters again cuz ur forgetful* oh right
The one word Immortals want to hear the last.
At least they're alright
Ya think
Awwww
Awwww
*that time when u try to voice act as the characters
Yes tried but failed (I literally summed up what twilight said lol)
Up, don't say the s word
*coughs* tried to voice her again
DANGIT TWILIGHT SAID THE S WORD
IT'S AN ALICORN
Yes it is I the reader of the fic lol but seriously who
Uh Raven-Flight duh
WHAT WHO WHAT WHY
WHO!?
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All shall be revealed in time... *cue evil laughter*
Bittersweet and full of hope and just so *wonderfully* written. I like that we don't know for sure what way this is going to go in terms of immortality. I like it.
I will say, though, I am wondering if I missed something or if there is a part that has yet to be revealed. What makes it so that Discord disappears because of Fluttershy?
Did NOT see that coming.
Which are the best kind of twists! Didn't imagine it happening this early either, but I trust you.
10283479
Discord deliberately did not explain that. It's a problem for the third installment of the series (which is now fully drafted and in production!). Advance warning: there's a lot of headcanon backstory involved—but you've gotten this far and haven't fled yet from my wild ideas, so maybe that warning isn't necessary.
10283497
Oh, did I forget to mention this little fic is a bit shorter than its predecessor? Maybe I'll tack an author's note on the last chapter (next week!) to explain my scope and intentions a little better. By design, there will be a few questions left unanswered... For now.
Glad you enjoyed the little twist, though!
COZY GLOW WHAT!?!?!?
Thank god
WDYM DIZZY *anime gasp* HE'S nononono I'll save that later
*insert dark Vader saying no here together with me*
NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!
*anime gasp
To
There're tears in my eyes *sniff*
Yes *sniff* change the subject for me
Huh?!
Just like me
Reaction to title: *bables about why it's named like that
What's RNA
MIRIAM WEBSTER: a substance in the cells of plants and animals that helps makeproteins
Oh
Have I heard this before
*slow clap
*searches in Miriam Webster what the flip Scooby snacks are
NOW SERIOUSLY
*has dod vibes
OH THANK GOD DASHIE
TWO
I honestly was about to say "ya think" but it's Flutters and being rude to her is just mean
I'm so thankful u didn't leave us to a cliffhanger there cuz if ya did my tablet would be broken by now
Ahhh, so that was the direction you were going with for the 4. And Rainbow's doing her own thang. I like it! I wish I could be as satisfied with life going either way, partner or no!
Twilight, omg. Twilight. You have no idea what you just did. The purple princess really is clueless about relationships outside friendship and family, isn't she? Poor Pinkie!
Those are quite the names and I hope to Celestia you don't ever ask me to record my voice attempting to say them. What are these flowers???
Also my heart simultaneously exploded and melted at this chapter. Every single word of it was beautiful. And Discord ranting about how creating life from the same two parents is chaotic is not only an amazing point and a good way to give motivation for Discord to want kids (as many argue that he's the kind of guy who wouldn't want them; I disagreed before you indirectly pointed this out but I'll always take even MORE reasons why he'd be interested in having kiddos), but also Awkward Shy Discord gives me life.
I look forward to the next installment! You can count on me being there!
Tell me about it
Hmm I smell a ship or see a ship
Aww
True that I've babysit my baby cousin twice and I know the pain
Aww
*sniff* pinkie no sad *sniff * BE SAD WITH ME
Aww
*facepalm* TWII
Oh she's still a- ohhh
AWWW
AWWWW I literally Have tears in my eyes rn I'll
Ooo
That's better
dizzy what r u ta-
No
...
No you're not going to trick me that easily, I see its still 'incomplete' hmmm
Btw it's my birthday
10294731
Don't worry I tried to voice acting them too
10294807
I posted these last chapters really early in the morning and wasn't awake enough to change the story status to complete, so sorry if that was a little misleading. I hope my accidental birthday present to you was everything you were hoping for in the closing of the story, and thanks so much for all of your reactions and comments along the way!
Hey, happy birthday!
10295014
Ty and it's ok ^^
10294731
"Fiorello" is just an Italian name meaning "little flower", but his color palette and future character were inspired by black hellebore flowers. "Coreopsis" is a pretty typical garden flower, and I chose it because I liked "Corey", meaning "from the hollow" as a diminutive. In both cases, the names are Fluttershy-approved flowers with just a touch of potential darkness in honor of their father. ...I am perhaps too fond of naming characters.
Anyway, I'm glad for your approval on Discord's opinion on kids, and thanks again for your faithful reading, commenting, and encouragement! It really means a lot to me and helps motivate me to keep on writing!
one question are the foals earth ponies or Pegasai!!!?
10337036
) Thanks for asking!
You know, that would have been a pretty important thing for me to mention... whoops! Fio and Corey actually take after their father and are both unicorns. I might have to revise this chapter just a bit to address the implications of their race. (Can't believe I forgot about that...
NOW THAT THE THIRD ONE HAS TOLD US MORE, THIS CHAPTER ISN'T NEARLY AS VAGUE BUT NOW I HAVE MORE QUESTIONS!
Is Discord an elite amongst his own kind?
But "I never wanted your obeisance"? But everyone saying "My Lord"?
Him asking who is in charge but they reply instantly "you are"??
I HAVE A THIRST FOR ANSWERS THAT YOU HAVE YET TO COMPLETELY QUENCH!
Tell meeeeeeeee
10979384
Haha, I'm glad you remembered the little nugget of foreshadowing that was this chapter. I hadn't intended the wait to be this long, but fear not—the answers have been written at last and are queued for publishing!
Ooh, this is already shaping up to be an interesting story! Good to see some magical lore, even if they're still trying to figure out exactly what Sombra is and what Fluttershy's foal will look like. I feel like Pinkie's guess could be pretty close, though.
Discord seemed very in character, here—you showed well how much he cares for and dotes on Fluttershy, but also how much he loves messing with others (especially Twilight)
I do wonder what research he was doing, exactly...
Poor Fluttershy...I cannot blame her for not wanting to see Sombra for a very long time, or ever again. Glad to see Discord's willing to take her home whenever she feels traumatized or uncomfortable, and that her friends genuinely don't want to make her upset...they just want to know more things about Sombra in order to help her.
I'm enjoying this, even if I might end up reading it really slowly...
11001517
Thank you so much for the kind words! I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far, and I hope you find the journey worthwhile, however long it happens to take!
Great chapter! Poor Fluttershy...at first it was wonderful to see Discord comforting her, but then the argument...hopefully Discord won't have disappeared for too long. Though the issue of immortality needed to come up at some point or another (and I wonder if that's what all his research was for), I hope they can find a way that both of them are happy.
(Though knowing Discord, there's going to be quite a bit of chaos along the way.)
Also, I was happy that Twilight and Pinkie came to check on her!
And that Fluttershy was able to calmly explain to someone how she felt about immortality. I wonder what exactly their research on shadow ponies will yield...
The beginning of this chapter, with Discord trying to calm himself with actual non-existence and causing all those chaotic things around himself just by thinking? Absolutely perfect, I loved it!
Also, his thought becoming frenzied and unpuncuated when he started thinking about Fluttershy not wanting immortality was a very nice touch.
Good to see that he's promised he'll go back to Fluttershy, but I still worry that he'll try to distract himself from her and his worries...though in the meantime, we get some Rainbow and Discord shenanigans! This'll be fun.
Also nice to see that AJ and Rarity have started their correspondence!
But oh Discord, don't you ignore that tingling symptom...I sense foreshadowing.
This chapter was gripping and intense! When I started, I couldn't stop. And the chase was thrilling and spooky, and the fact those skeletons just vanished is chilling. I wonder what, or maybe who, coukd have been in that crystal...
The moments between Twilight and Pinkie were very sweet. Especially their determination to understand and love Fluttershy's child, not matter what they turn out to be.
I'm glad to see Fluttershy considering whether she really wants immortality, weighing the sacrifices she'd have to make. It's a tricky subject to handle, and hopefully she and Discord can have a calm discussion about whatever decision she makes.
Poor Discord...though seeing Fluttershy helping him through the panic attack was rather sweet. I wonder if his spasms are due to the panic attack or the mumbling, or if the panic attack was brought on by the spasms...
And those whispers at the end...oh dear. I'm interested about what's going to happen, though a bit nervous of what might happen to Discord based on that word...
Lots of interesting information in this chapter! Great to learn a little more about shadow pony history and biology. And I'm very interested in what ways the girls' element magic might show itself.
Fluttershy's trauma is realistic, to my knowlege...it'd be a bit surprising if his name didn't affect her somehow. But it was good to see her friends supporting her, helping her calm down, and keeping an eye out for her while Discord is gone. It's nice to see a story that puts focus on the strength and magic of friendship, not just romance.