The setup
“She was acting weird even by HER standards” – Apple Bloom told them while speaking to her two friends, Sweetie Belle and Scoota ”the chicken” Loo, more known simply as Scootaloo.
“Yeah, it was like something out of one of those horror movies, or something!” – Scootaloo, of course, agreed with her friend. She found herself agreeing more and more with Apple Bloom (Or, as she called her, AB) as time went on, it was somewhat worrisome....
“Huh huh, it was actually kind of scary!” – Sweetie Belle the “Wimp” of the group by default (not that her puffy body and high pitched voice helped), completed the train of thought.
The setup
The three had been acting up, in this old night, with ghosts and spooky creatures made to hang from strings, asking for treats, when Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon had approached them. It was October and so it was relatively cold, enough for there to be a solid layer of snow in the ground, snow Diamond Tiara (who had fake blood hanging from her neck as well as some vampire fangs) and Silver Spoon (who had a very loose cloth hanging about), picked up and threw at them.
The whole thing would be considered another prank in the old mare’s night, if it weren’t for the empty look they exchanged. Their eyes were mostly blank, the pupils missing, and they shone a bright green. It made the girls think of changelings or worse.
As for why the two of them had done so, we must go back to the beginning, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon they had awoken in front of the old cemetery. It wasn’t a place they liked very much, or anyone for that matter, because when someone went there, something very wrong had happened. Nevertheless it was there they had woken up, not knowing what they had done or why, but feeling the cold touch of snow as the night bickered and bite them with the wind. Their coats were, mostly warm, Silver’s a tad warmer than Diamond’s, but they weren’t uncomfortable, they just didn’t know who or what the heck had brought them there.
“C’mon Silver” – Diamond whispered. It felt appropriate to whisper instead of scream, given the environment they were in. That and the dark night.
“We may not have any lighting, magic, tools or anything at our disposal, and there may be a rumor that in this night spirits roam the land, but...” – And Diamond paused, because this sounded completely idiotic even to her own ears – “I’m sure we’ll do fine, really.”
Despite her words Diamond stood still giving Silver a shot of going in first, something she didn’t want to do. They stood still, both, side by side, before Diamond decided the rumors were a bunch of crap and stepped in.
As she stepped in the lighting around her changed, like she was in a haunted house, yellows, greens, reds, all lights flashed by and she gave out a frightened yelp before attempting to leave.
But the gates had long since closed, and it seemed they hadn’t been moved in years, rust taking up most of the space. Diamond knew it to be useless but she still tried pushing against it. The results? None, it was firmly stuck in place, not moving an inch even with Silver (who was also inside the cemetery) pushing along.
“O....kay” – Diamond’s voice was shaking and she fought to keep it under control and have a clear head. – “We’re trapped, probably by a ghoul, a ghost, or a demon....” – She feared she could wet herself, and her knees were wobbly, but she didn’t let those two facts stop her from being determined to find the culprit and kick total butt. – “But....” – And she struggled to see a positive in being trapped somewhere, with no lighting, no tools, and scared half to death. – “But...” – Nope, still couldn’t see one.
“Hey Di...?” – Silver’s voice came even more shaky than Diamond’s, she was terrified of whatever could happen and at every snap, and twig moving, or the wind howling she would turn her head and try to follow, unfortunately, as if playing tricks on her, the wind howled in all directions at the same time.
She looked at her friend, seeing the lack of coloration in her, she was sure she was even less colored than her friend, but that thought didn’t faze her much at this point, all she had to do was get out of there.
“Y..yeah?” – Diamond tried to think of a plan, anything, and while she let her mind process the thinking she was doing, she half answered the plea, the desperate attempt at comfort Silver needed. She moved in closer, seeing the coat of her friend, and put a hoof to her back.
Silver felt the touch and jumped 20 feet in the air, she was jumpy like that, and even if she knew, logically it was her friend, her scared emotions made her jump.
“Whoah” – was all Diamond could say, for even jumping 6 meters, they still wouldn’t get high enough to jump the wall that separated the cemetery from the rest of the world. And was it her mind playing tricks on her or was the stoned wall really increasing in size, tenfold? It couldn’t be....
When she returned home, Silver was going to need a lot of counseling before she could go and sleep peacefully again. As she fell, on her rump, she could feel the sharp sting of a twig she had overlooked.
“This isn’t...and has never been funny....why are we h...here again?” – Silver’s speech was inundated with pauses and shivers, but she was hoping Tiara, the smart Diamond who always led, had a good reason for them to be here.
The truth? Diamond had no freaking idea, because she too had found herself regaining conscience (or at least some semblance of thought) when in front of the cemetery.
She could look at it now, row upon row of neatly stacked plots, with darker ground and a tombstone, some in some crude shape, like a cross, some round, some with the words “RIP”, some with some small inscription.
Her own mother was there somewhere, but she didn’t know where, she had never been one for this place, and whatever desire she had of entering was gone now, and even less of meeting her dearly departed mother (now probably just bones).
She advanced cautiously, walking around the plots of land, not wanting to dare to interrupt the departed’s sleep.
Silver followed, shifty, jumpy, scared. Diamond was scared too, but she couldn’t let it show.
She stopped, she was at the top of an hill and what seemed like an ocean of tombstones followed. She knew it to be impossible, the cemetery had clearly defined borders, she had heard her father negotiating selling some land so it could expand, but looking at it you wouldn’t know it.
A voice, this awful gravely voice came out, and it seemed to be hissing at her neck, behind her, it called her, “Tiara....” and she felt the fur in her coat and neck stand up.
She slowly oh so slowly turned around, she wanted it to be the cmc playing a prank, or Silver, in a mask, but what she saw....it was worse, oh so worse.
“BOO!” – It screamed, and Diamond fell on herself, so fast she turned, the dragon, goat, lion, kind of creature had been tormenting them, and she was going to make sure it was going to pay for it.
Silver looked as Diamond gathered the snow in her hooves, though she couldn’t see Discord, she didn’t know why Tiara threw the snow at nothing until the same voice told her to run.
So she did, wandering around without a route, stepping and tripping, falling, not sure of when and where to stop.
“You girls are so much fun” – he chanted, watching them run at one another and crash. “You really are second to none” – His voice, now in it’s natural tone, was one of mockery, he clapped and they found themselves out, again, he clapped, cemetery, clapped, streets, clapped, Diamond’s house, clapped, cemetery.
They had eventually stopped running, and they just stared at Discord, Diamond had rage in her eyes, and he made a mocking standing back and pulling his arms up gesture “Oh no, whatever shall I do?” – He joked.
“If you don’t tell us, why you were messing around I’m going to...to....” – Diamond was too furious to finish her treat, but it was no problem, as Discord finished it for her.
“Lose your head?” – He exemplified by removing his head like it was a Bowling ball and turning it towards them. – “Or perhaps steam?” – His head showed small inklings of steam, as it poured some tea into some teacups that had magically appeared. – “No, you’re not, because I have a proposition to make.”
Diamond’s business sense, one that her dad had cultivated in her, grew, a proposition, from someone like him? It was too good to be true, really. It probably was some kind of trick, but she was interested.
“Go on...”
The head now back in it’s place, his tongue rolled off like a parchment, eventually going outside the room where they were at, down some stairs.
“Very well then....” – He snapped his fingers and everything was back to normal. – “I want you, to create some chaos, by pranking the little sisters of the elements of “ – he made a mocking voice – “Harmony...”
“Yeah, what’s in it for us?” – Silver piped in, unannounced, clearly back from her earlier state of confusion and fear.
“Whatever you’d like....mostly, no falling in love, no raising people from the dead, yada yada, no, go Watch Aladdin and you’ll know”.
“Ok....so here’s the plan...”