How did Discord become the Lord of Chaos? Was he always the only draconequus? What made him turn evil?
Long ago, long before Twilight Sparkle and her friends become the Elements of Harmony, a strange creature arrived in the land of Equestria and this creature's name was Discord. Through a series of unfortunate events, betrayals and heartache, discover how the Lord of Chaos went from a lonely orphan to a cruel and vicious tyrant. After all, villains aren't born; they're made.
The pre-dawn hours were a time when the sun had yet to reveal its shining visage or before the moon hid its face beyond the curtain of day. It was a time of mystery and mayhem, as well as black magic and malicious intent to the more superstitiously inclined. While the correlation between the pre-dawn hours and dark sorcery is still debated to this day, it was agreed by many that this particular time of night would forever become associated with dread and ominous fright. To all of those who would live through the forthcoming ordeal, this would become known as “Discord’s Hour.”
Violet Twinkle carefully and quietly crept through the vacant halls of the Canterlot Orphanage, the rooms basked in the gentle glow of her horn as she made her way to the kitchen for a late cup of tea. She was a middle-aged unicorn with lavender skin and a long amethyst and dark purple mane, which made her quite the catch for many of the city's most eligible bachelors. Despite the attention that she received from her many suitors-and there were many, many of them-and the appreciation that came with it, Violet was simply much too concerned with taking care of her children to devote time to romance. Ever since the death of her beloved husband Hawthorn, she dedicated herself fully to the orphanage that they'd built together, ensuring that his legacy lived on through guaranteeing that each and every child that passed through its doors were happy and provided for.
Sitting at the kitchen table, Violet watched the steaming brown liquid in her teacup swirled around as she munched on an almond cookie. She was narcoleptic, a condition she had since she was a filly and one that she managed to cope with surprisingly well, using it to plan her activities for the next day and to complete tasks she didn't finish during the day. Hawthorn used to joke that she couldn't sleep with all of the check-list items floating around in her head. Violet smiled sadly and caressed the gold ring secured to her horn. There was one thing that the couple wanted more than anything in the world and Violet blamed herself for not having it. She loved the orphans but none of them could ever serve as substitutes for a child of her own. I'm so sorry Hawthorn my love. I failed you.
There was a sudden stillness in the air and Violet threw her forelegs around herself as an unexpected chill filled the room, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand up as her breath came out in little puffs of mist. Her ears popped and a flash of shimmering, golden light erupted outside the kitchen window before the night returned once more to its peaceful state. What in the name of Concordia was that? With leaden hooves, she approached the front door and froze in place, afraid of whatever lurked on the other side. A magic experiment gone wrong? An evil sorcerer? Changeling scout? Ignoring the thumping in her chest, Violet lit up her horn and flung open the door, prepared to defend her children from who or whatever was waiting in store for her.
At first, there was only the gentle humming of her magically-charged horn and the steady symphony of chirping crickets echoing in the darkness. Violet began to chastise herself for being so terrified when she heard light whimpering and then a choking sob. Cautiously, she approached the wicker basket that sat a few feet away from her and slowly peered inside. What...is that? Wrapped up in a garishly multi-colored quilt, there lay what at first glance appeared to be a foal crying as it thrashed around in the basket, its mismatched arms futilely grasping at the air. Its right arm was a lion's paw while its left was a feathered bird's claw. Two miniscule horns peeked out of the creature's scalp while yellow eyes with red irises glanced up at her, begging her to do something as their owner continued to bawl miserably.
Violet had heard of chimeras-beings that were combinations of other animals such as griffins or sphinxes-but she'd never seen nor heard of one like this before. She could've run away, she wanted to run away but the infant's wailing only made her pity the creature and without a second thought, she tentatively picked up the chimera and held it close to her. She shushed it and gentle rocked it, making sure that its quilt was wrapped tight around its rail-thin body until its cries died down. There was a tiny giggle and a lion paw reached up to grab-stroke Violet's mane. She glanced down at the chimera and felt a pang of maternal affection enter her chest.
"Alright, alright, let go. Let's go inside and fix you something to eat, okay?"
In lieu of baby food, Violet fed her new ward some milk and almost two quarts of orange yogurt, which the little chimera seemed particularly fond of, before burping him and bringing him with her to the common room to sit by the fireplace. Briefly unwrapping the chimera out of his quilt, she inspected it, finding it made of shockingly high-end fabrics and concluding that its material and the skill with which it was made could only come from a family of wealth. She found the word, "DISCORD," neatly stitched into the blanket, which had to be the tyke's name. "Discord?" Weird name. Then again, he's a weird little thing. Discord's right leg was scaly and tridactyl while his left was furry and ended in a cloven hoof. On his back, he possessed one bat-like wing and another that was feathered and had a reptilian tail with a tuft of white fur at the end. All in all, he was quite curious looking.
Rubbing baby Discord's back, Violet smiled warmly as he purred against her chest, his mismatched hands clutching her for dear life and the unicorn briefly found herself imagining the joys of true motherhood.
"Miss Violet, what is that?"
Dawn Glimmer, a fellow unicorn and orphanage co-matron, stared incredulously at the chimera nestled in Violet's arms. She had curlers keeping her purple and blue-streaked mane up and an unmistakable half-asleep look about her. Rubbing her eyes, she peered once more at the pair and took a step forward to get a better look.
Violet carefully picked the chimera up and held him, giggling as he babbled and attempted to stand on top of her thighs. "Hello Dawn. This, urm, this is the newest addition to the orphanage. Say hi to Discord."
Dawn closed her open mouth and shook her head. "'Discord?' Honestly Violet, I would've thought you'd be more creative with naming strays. Where did you find him and more importantly, what is he?"
"First off, that's the name that was on the quilt that came with him and secondly, I found him outside the front entrance. Thirdly, I'm...not entirely certain. He's some sort of chimera. But isn't he just adorable!" As if to illustrate her point, Discord stuck out a forked tongue as he hung his head to the side, his tiny fingers flexing and unflexing as he reached for the newcomer.
Dawn smiled nervously, "Um, Violet dear? Are you sure that it's a good idea to take in this...um...special case?
Violet brought Discord back to her chest and narrowed her eyes at her friend. "Dawn, you know what our dogma is: 'Any child that enters through our door is given shelter forevermore.' We are not about to turn him away just because he's different! Discord has nowhere else to go and if his parents return, he should be in the last place they left him."
Despite opening her mouth to speak, no words came out of Dawn's throat and she thought for a minute. Finally, she said, "You're right, Vi but what if they don't? Do you really intend to keep him? I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this but there's no way that he'll ever get adopted. And what about the other children? If any fosters come visiting, they'll take one look at him and decide to look somewhere else."
"I...I'll cross that bridge when I come to it," Violet stated, though Dawn's words had already worked their way underneath her skin. "He needs me, Dawn. Like you said, nopony will want to adopt him so what choice do I have? Leave him out in the cold until he dies? I won't do it." Violet defiantly stood up and held Discord against her chest. "He's mine now and I won't abandon him when he needs me the most."
"B-but you...and he...ugh, fine!" Dawn threw her hooves up and prepared to exit the room when she stopped to look over her shoulder. "Your heart's in the right place but your brain isn't. Just remember, whatever happens next is on your head. Don't say I didn't warn you."
Violet's steely gaze followed Dawn out of the room before she turned her attention back to Discord, who had fallen asleep peacefully in her arms. "Don't worry, Discord. I won't let anything happen to you. You're safe now."
Bliiiiiiing! Discord's eyes flew open and he slapped his bird claw down on the wind-up alarm clock, stopping its ritualistic cacophony as he stretched himself cat-like on the meager aluminum cot he called a bed. He carefully and meticulously folded his quilt blanket and set it on the foot of the cot, his fingertips rubbing at the fabric as if to commit it to memory. Like all "doorstop donations" as they were known as, he longed to know who his parents were and where he came from. Miss Violet only knew that he was a chimera and that his treasured quilt was the only possession he had with him. Discord sighed and put the question in the back of his mind in order to prepare for the day ahead. His room was at one point a broom closet, which explained its small size and smell of soap. Since he was, well, different from the other orphans, Miss Violet cleaned out the closet and gave it to him so that he could have privacy. Its tight quarters didn't bother him one bit; he had his own room after all! How many orphans can say that?
Since it was still early in the morning, Discord tip-toed through the hallways, being careful to make as little noise as possible before he arrived at Miss Violet's room and gently tapped his knuckles against the door. Ever since he was seven, he made sure to wake up early before the other kids so he could help Miss Violet prepare the orphanage for the day. This included helping Miss Dawn prepare breakfast, scrubbing the floors, ironing and folding the laundry, cleaning the fireplace, replacing the firewood and anything else Miss Violet needed of him. After all, she took him in when he had no home and was the only one at the orphanage that was nice to him. Oh, Miss Dawn was polite enough but it felt like she was only putting on a show for Miss Violet's benefit and Discord honestly didn't like the way the pink unicorn stared anxiously at him when she thought he wasn't looking. As for the other children...they could be cordial but only for societal niceties rather than the desire to be kind.
"Come in!" A soft voice replied and Discord opened and shut the door as gently as possible, finding his most favorite person in the world hard at work knitting a new scarf. Miss Violet's purple eyes shined through her half-moon glasses and she set her creation aside to greet her most-frequent visitor. "Good morning, Discord! Did you sleep well?"
Discord nodded, "Good morning to you and I sure did, Miss Violet! What shall I do today?"
Violet smiled, "Well, I need to run a couple of errands in town and I was hoping that you could make Hazel Chestnut a new knit cap. She seems to have misplaced her old one. Could you do this for me?"
Miss Violet wants me to knit something for one of the other orphans? Under the unicorn's instruction, Discord had become a competent knitter but she never asked him to make anything and he usually knitted something for himself. He raised his lion paw and saluted. "Yes, Ma'am! I'll have it ready ASAP!"
He lightly giggled when a hoof rubbed the mop of white hair on his head, messing it up and making it stick out in all directions. "That's what I like to hear! I'll be back soon so make sure Miss Dawn doesn't burn the place down."
"You've got it! The house will still be standing by the time you get back."
After replacing her glasses and donning a sweater Discord had made her for Hooves and Hearts Day, Violet kissed Discord on the head and grinned, "Thanks Discord," before heading out. Once she was gone, Discord went hard at work to get the hat ready, making sure that he worked at a steady pace but also to get every last detail right. He remembered that Hazel's last hat had a little poof ball on the top so he dug through Miss Violet's crafts box until he found one. Despite it being bigger and a more darker shade of red, he managed to make it work and stood back to appreciate his handiwork. I hope she likes it. Maybe then we could have an actual conversation!
Discord mad his way to the kitchen, where Miss Dawn was already in the process of setting wads of pancake mix on the stove. "Good morning, Miss Dawn! Miss Violet asked me to help you!"
Eyeing the chimera wearily, Dawn replied, "Is that right? Well, you can start by cutting up the fruit. With the knife this time." She went back to her work, ensuring that she didn't accidently burn herself while keeping a close watch on Discord, who went about humming merrily as he separated the strawberries and bananas before cutting them. When he was two years old, Discord was playing in the backyard when it suddenly began to rain chocolate milk. It didn't take long for either Dawn or Violet to figure out how that happened. This was followed by the walls turning into peanut brittle, the trees into candy canes and a swarm of bubbles to appear out of the blue. Everything turned back to normal but since then, they had to work extra hard to make certain that Discord didn't use his "unique" brand of magic.
After cutting the fruit, Discord helped Dawn whip up a batch of pancakes and set up the table, all the while the unicorn closely observing her little helper. True, it'd been four years since Discord last used his powers and had been on his best behavior but Dawn still watched him like a hawk. She didn't think he was a bad kid, just that he was too cheerful for her liking and those powers of his spooked her out.
"Alright Junior, I can take it from here."
"Really? Are you sure there's nothing else I can do to help you...-?"
"Yes, I'm sure. Take some pancakes to your room."
Discord knew better than to argue with Miss Dawn so he did as he was told. After eating breakfast alone, which he was used to doing, he washed his dishes and went to find Hazel Chestnut. He found her chatting with a couple of other fillies and waved to her, seemingly failing to notice her hesitance at seeing him. She was coffee-brown with a head of light brown hair that she kept in a pair of pigtails and had a face dotted with freckles.
"Hi Hazel! How're you doing?"
"Fine. Can I help you?"
Keeping his composure, Discord held the hat out to her. "Miss Violet said you lost your hat so she asked me to make you a new one. Sorry if it's not exact. I tried my best to make it look like your old one."
Hazel's two friends backed away and started whispering and laughing to themselves. Hazel looked uncertainly at them and then back at Discord. "Thanks. I have to go now." She left without another word and rejoined her friends, who were now discreetly pointing at Discord and chatting excitedly. It didn't take a detective to figure out that they were mocking him but he did what he always did: lock his sadness inside and wear a happy face.
STUPID LITTLE FILLIES. WHAT RIGHT DO THEY HAVE TO LAUGH AT YOU?
"Huh?" It had been years since Discord last heard The Voice, which seemed to happen the first time he discovered having powers. He didn't hear it so much as feel it. It was genderless and appeared to echo through his bones rather than enter his ears. It was something he didn't share with anypony, not even Miss Violet, since he was afraid that it would scare her off and leave him all by himself. It was in a pony's nature to fear the abnormal.
"Hey Freak! Are you bothering these girls?"
Discord gulped at the sound of the voice. Four colts suddenly appeared in front of him, led by a silver-gray temperamental unicorn called Lance Bright. He was flanked by two Pegasi, one dark green and one dark blue and an overgrown earth pony with orange fur and a red mane. The girls, seeing the quintet, backed away slowly to give them room but still stayed to watch, curious with what they were going to do to the helpless chimera.
"N-nothing Lance. Just...talking."
"'N-nothing Lance. Just...talking," the dark blue Pegasus parroted, earning him a high-hoof from the green one.
"Nice one, Dash!"
"Thanks Speedy!"
Lance ignored their banter and pointed a hoof at Discord. "You'd better watch your step, Freak. You know that your kind doesn't mix with ours. Do we need to teach you another lesson?"
Discord felt like a foal being scolded. "No Lance but I wasn't doing anything. Miss Violet asked me to...-"
The big earth pony, aptly named Bulky, snorted, "Yeah, well, Miss Violet ain't here now, is she?"
"Just back off, Bulky. You're being too obtuse. You should...-"
A swift hind leg kick to the cheek sent Discord colliding into a wall, his mind playing catch up with his body as stars danced across his line of sight. He could make out his assailant as Lance approached him, a wicked sneer on his face.
"Do you hear that? The Freak's got quite a mouth, doesn't he? Let's fix that."
All at once, they all pounced on him, a seemingly endless barrage of punches and kicks nailing his body all over, the worst of which were aimed at his back and stomach. Through the hazy cloud of pain, Discord looked pleadingly to the three fillies that stood nearby, his eyes welling up with tears as he silently begged them to help him. The first two promptly left, with Hazel taking a moment to grimace at the brutal display before her. She locked eyes with the unfortunate chimera and then, with severe regret in her eyes, ran away and refused to look back.
Everything hurt. After the beat down, Discord dragged himself to the kitchen and made himself a few ice packs, scowling at the aching sting as cold met screaming muscles. Once that was taken care of, he slowly and carefully found his favorite perch on the roof and buried his face in his hands. The air didn't matter neither did the freezing rain. He merely sat there, hating the bullies for hurting him, hating the fillies for doing nothing but most of all, hating himself. Noting the ugliness of his mismatched hands, Discord finally uncorked the bottle and bitterly wept.
"Hold still, sweetie," Violet whispered as she dabbed Discord's face with a washcloth, keeping a calm demeanor as the chimera winced quietly. She had been delayed by running into an old friend of hers and Clover's and came home to discover a bruised and sobbing Discord sitting on the roof in the rain. Sadly, it was too common to find him crying in the corner or covered in cuts and bruises. Little punks! They actually wait until I'm out of sight before they pick on poor Discord! Her suspicions came to rest on Lance and Dash but as per usual, Discord refused to point out his attackers, either from fear of retaliation or some bizarre desire to protect his bullies. Either way, it broke Violet's heart to know that anypony would assault somepony as sweet and innocent as Discord just because he looked different.
The swelling around Discord's eye and cheek had gone down though he'd be sporting a shiner for the next few days. He sniffled and threw his arms around Violet's neck. "I-I didn't fight back, Miss Violet. It's like you said, 'Violence never solves anything,' so I didn't fight back! They...just kept hitting me and hitting me! I hate them!" Violet pulled the weeping chimera close to her and rubbed his back, shushing him and whispering words of encouragement in his ear.
"You should never hate anypony, Discord. Hate does nothing, brings nothing-...."
"I hate myself too!"
Suddenly yanking Discord away from her, Violet snapped, "Don't say that! Don't you ever say that again, do you hear me?!" She immediately regretted this as Discord began quivering in her grasp. "I...I'm sorry, sweetheart," she cooed and embraced him. "You shouldn't hate anypony, especially not yourself. You're a good boy, Discord. You have such a loving heart and I promise you that you'll meet somepony that'll appreciate you for that."
"But Miss Violet," Discord sniffled. "How can anypony see my inside if they only look at my outside?"
For once, Violet didn't have an answer. She just held him tightly in her arms, wishing and dreading for the day that somepony would come to take him away and give him the life that he deserved. If that day ever came.
The small rubber ball bounced off of the floor to return to Discord's bird claw and he mimicked this routine for longer than he cared to recall. All of the orphans had been brought to the living room for some kind of announcement, with the exception of Discord, who chose to remain in the hallway. This worked for him since he could still see and hear everything but still put him at a distance from the other kids. After two more passes, Discord went to toss the ball again when an idea crossed his mind and he carefully set it down on the floor. Looking back and forth to ensure that he was alone, he took a deep breath and rubbed his hands together. Miss Violet said not to use his powers in front of the other children but he was alone now, wasn't he?
Clearing his head of everything, he focused on the ball, taking in its size, shape and texture. The air crackled all around him as he raised his outstretched lion's paw, feeling an electric shock travel all throughout his body and out through his fingers. The ball began to slowly rotate, gradually picking up speed the more Discord focused on it until it spun like a top. Little by little, the ball rose off of the floor and floated up to Discord's line of sight, the excitement of the action bubbling up and he fought the urge to laugh and cheer at the display.
VERY GOOD, DISCORD. NOW BLOW IT UP.
The ball dropped from the air and bounced along the floor, completely forgotten by the shook-up chimera. The Voice's spine-chillingly yet silky-smooth appearance scrabbled Discord's thoughts and now all he wanted to do was hide. The small bit of magic he'd just performed was exhilarating but also...deeply pleasurable, like soaking in a warm bath. So why do I feel so bad? He asked himself. And why does the Voice show up?
"Alright children, gather around!"
Discord shook his head and hurried to poke his head in the doorway, watching Miss Violet as she smiled serenely at the gathered ponies. He could make out a shape behind the orphanage matron but couldn't tell what it was. He wished he was closer but didn't want to risk the wrath of the other kids so he stayed where he was.
"We have a new filly joining us today. Come on out; it's alright, sweetie."
The shape slowly made its way out in front of Miss Violet, revealing it to be a tiny, cyan-blue Pegasus around Discord's age, her whole body trembling as she stepped into the light. Green eyes worriedly glanced around the room before she hid them behind her poofy blonde hair, which tumbled down her face and shoulders like a golden cloud. She was dressed in a striped peach-colored dress and tightly held a ragdoll to her chest. It was a pity sight to see the filly so frightened and Discord instantly felt himself feeling bad for her predicament.
Violet bent over and put an arm around the filly. "Everypony, this is Posey Autumn and I would like you to make her feel as welcome as possible. Would you like to say hi, Posey?"
The filly nodded and cleared her throat. "Hello everypony," she whispered before burying her face into Violet's chest. It was clear that she was shy but that didn't stop many of the orphans from chattering noisily or cracking jokes. Ignoring them, Discord stared at Posey, noting that she was actually pretty, in an awkward wallflower sort of way. Just thinking about her attractiveness made him aware of his own warped physiology and he quickly shooed those thoughts away. Then just like that, the meeting was over and Discord had to duck into the nearby office to avoid the swarms of colts and fillies that filled the hallway.
After waiting two minutes, he exited the office and entered the living room, finding both Miss Violet and Miss Dawn comforting Posey, who seemed much more relaxed and even cheerful. Huh, she has a nice smile. Shaking his head, Discord cleared his throat and the three turned to face him, with Posey unsurprisingly clutching Violet's forearm.
"Uh, h-hello there. I'm Discord. You're new, right?" He stuck out his lion paw and upon realizing Posey wouldn't shake it, withdrew it and coughed awkwardly. "Well...I came to say 'Hi' and I did so...see ya!" He spun around and half-trotted to the doorway, feeling like a proper fool for expecting her to take his paw. Shy or not, nopony wanted to touch him. He was about to leave and sulk in a corner somewhere when a small voice stated:
"Goodbye Discord. Thanks."
He turned suddenly to face Posey only to find her being led away by Dawn and Violet, who mouthed a quick, "That was so nice of you," before vanishing from sight. Discord scratched his head with his bird claw. That voice...it was so bashful but also...sweet and kind. He decided that he wanted to hear more of it. But would she speak to him again?
It had been a week since Posey's arrival and heeding Miss Violet's advice, Discord decided to let her get settled in and used to her new surroundings before he tried to engage her again. Despite this, he still watched Posey to see if she was alright and wasn't surprised to see the shy Pegasus keeping to herself, avoiding as much social contact as possible. He covertly left her food or toys without Posey noticing and was somewhat elated to find her not only accepting his offerings but also acting joyfully at receiving them. Discord enjoyed making the filly smile; she did have a magnificent smile and he longed to see more of it. He just had to be patient.
Canterlot was rewarded with a humid, mid-summer day just when the sun was at its zenith and all of the land was bathed in its warmth, the perfect day for outside activities. The orphanage’s backyard was full with the bustling movements of colts and fillies at play, either chasing one another around, playing hide and seek or simply relaxing on the grass. Despite the cheerful disposition, two lone figures stalked the interior of the empty house, each one keeping to their own reasons for isolation. Upon spotting Posey sitting in her room alone, Discord saw his opportunity and inhaled, wanting to make a good second impression. He carefully strode into the room and sat on a bed a few feet away from the Pegasus, who turned her head slightly at the sound of the bed springs squeaking. She then turned her gaze to the floor in front of her.
"Hi. I'm not sure if you remember me but my name is Discord."
Posey continued to stare at the floor, her arms folded across her chest as she squeezed her ragdoll over her heart. Her eyes darted over to look over the chimera before snapping back to their previous location. Other than the ticking of the wall clock, no other sound was present as the pair sat in awkward silence. Finally, Discord sighed, "I'm sorry for trying to force you to talk. It's just that, I was...well, I was kinda hoping we could be...friends? Anyway, I'll see you later, I guess."
It's...it's okay. If you wanna talk, I mean," the filly whispered, causing Discord to nearly jump out of his skin.
"Oh...ahem. Cool, th-that'd be n-nice."
A soft giggle filled the air and it took a split second for Discord to realize that Posey was the source. Wow, even her laugh is adorable! He though giddily as he leapt off of the bed and sat hunched over three feet away from the pegasus, being careful not to overstep his boundary. Another minute of silence passed before Discord was able to form another sentence, his mind hard at work trying to find something to get a conversation moving.
"Soooooo...how're you liking it here?"
For the first time since he entered, Posey looked up at Discord's face and peered into his eyes. "It's fine. Miss Violet is real nice and Miss Dawn is polite but kind of icy. Everypony else is...well, here."
Her eyes...it's like staring into two shimmering emeralds. Discord snapped his attention back to Posey, being sure to let her know that he was actually listening. "I agree, Miss Violet is the best! As for Miss Dawn...eh, she's always like that so don't take it personal. The other kids, well...I can't help you out there. None of them really talk to me anyway."
"Is it because you look...um, different?"
Discord nodded, somewhat impressed with her. She was clearly trying to be sensitive about the matter but still asking about it directly. "Yeah, when you look like me, ponies don't exactly want to be in the same room with you. Plus I kinda have magic that I'm trying to get control over."
Posey scooted a little closer to Discord. "Really? How do you do that without a horn?"
Discord scratched the back of his neck with his bird claw. "I don't know. I mean, obviously I'm not a unicorn. Miss Violet says I'm a chimera, which just means I'm a hybrid animal of some sort. I don't know anything about what I am specifically only that I'm funny-looking. I don't know where I'm from or what I am."
He trembled slightly as a gentle hoof laid itself over his lion paw. "You're lonely. I can understand that."
Peering into Posey's emerald irises, Discord lifted an eyebrow. "You-you do?"
"Even though I'm a pegasus, I can't...actually fly."
The next couple of words were whispered so lightly, Discord couldn't make them out. "I'm sorry but what?"
"I can't fly." She muttered again, this time louder but still indecipherable.
"What?"
"I can't fly!" Posey nearly shouted, making Discord jerk his head back at the sudden increase in volume. "Oops, sorry."
Regaining his composure, Discord cleared his throat and grinned, "It's okay. So you can't fly, huh? Well, that's nothing to be ashamed of! I can't fly either. I don't think my wings were built for it." To demonstrate, he unfolded his undersized extensions and began to beat them as fast as he could, not managing to lift himself even an inch off of the floor. He stopped and chuckled, "Oh well, at least I have two good feet."
Posey smiled softly, "That's true. Do you think you could show me some of your magic? I'd love to see it." She then covered half of her face in her hair and murmured, "That is, if it's okay with you."
She-she wants to see my magic? Yes! I can totally do that!
But Miss Violet said not to.
Come on! It'll be a short demonstration, that's all. Just some pizzazz and sparkle and whatnot.
"Sure! Just give me a minute." Drawing a deep breath, Discord closed his eyes and reached deep inside of himself, past all of the hurt and loneliness, all of the fear and rejection until he found nothing but unbridled joy and serenity. He reached his right paw out towards a nearby shelf, where a collection of discarded toys lay motionless. They began to rattle and levitate into the air, bouncing merrily as though they were marching in a parade. Discord opened his eyes and let his jaw hang open at the display before him, taking in the sight of floating dolls, bubble wands and plastic balls.
Out of the corner of his eye, he found Posey staring awestruck at him and then at the levitating toys. At first, she sat ramrod-straight before jumping up and down and clapping loudly.
"Incredible! This is just fantastic!" Posey cheered, her eyes and voice full of wonderment.
Posey...you think my magic is...incredible?! I'm incredible!
OF COURSE YOU ARE, MY DEAR. YOU ALWAYS WERE. NOW THEN, DON'T YOU THINK YOU COULD MIX IT UP A BIT?
Discord shook his head, losing focus as the toys came crashing down and clattering inanimately to the floor, drawing a shriek from both Posey and himself. Ugh, why does the Voice always have to chime in when I'm doing my thing? It bothered him immensely; not only the thought of hearing a disembodied voice in his head but also that it only appeared when he tried using his magic, the one thing that seemed to make him feel unique and happy.
"Um, Discord? Is everything okay?"
Posey's timid voice snapped the chimera back to reality. "Huh? Oh yeah, yeah, I'm okay. Like I said, I'm still learning how to control it. Sorry if I ruined everything." He hung his head low, mentally kicking himself to ruining a chance to make a real friend his own age. What is wrong with me?! I can't make friends like ponies can. I really am just a freak!
To his total surprise, Posey giggled and patted him on the back. "It's okay, Discord. It was amazing that you were able to do that! Most unicorns our age can only lift one object at time and even then most of them have trouble. What you did just now was just incredible. You should be proud of yourself for having such talents."
Even though she sounded genuine, Discord still found himself disbelieving. "You really mean that?"
With a radiant smile, Posey replied, "Really really."
Discord tapped his forefingers together shyly. "So does that mean you...want to be friends?"
Hiding behind her hair, Posey smiled, "Yes. If you want to."
Even though Discord was calm on the outside, on the inside he was skipping, yelling and throwing a party on the inside. He smiled and evenly said, "Yes, I'd very much like that."
Confusingly, Discord scratched his head and peered down at the white and black checkered board. The black chess pieces greatly outnumbered his own white ones and found that indeed, Posey's bishop had taken his king.
"Whoa, how are you so good at this game?" He asked in awe, not caring in the least that it was the sixth time in a row that he'd lost. It was nice seeing Posey so relaxed and confident plus he got to see her pretty smile.
Posey, lacking her usual demure manner, smugly crossed her arms and replied, "My folks taught me. I could end a game in three moves flat before I could walk." While the filly was externally confident, internally she was pleasantly thrown off by Discord's compliment and reverence for her chess skills. Her shy demeanor, coupled with the other children's absence of interest in chess, made it hard for her to find anyone her own age to play with. At least now I have a friend.
"So do you want to go again?"
Discord shook his head. "Nah. As much fun as it was to get my tail kicked by you six times, I think we should do something else. Hmm. What about hopscotch?"
Posey pulled her ragdoll Sally into her lap and played with its mane. "Too short."
"Monopony?"
"Too long. It takes forever to get every piece of property and it's even worse with only two players."
Discord tapped one bird talon against his chin. "What if we went for a walk in the backyard garden? Hardly anypony goes there, right? Trees, flowers, peace and quiet. It sure beats the heck out of being cooped up inside on a day like this."
Posey considered this and excitedly nodded, "Great idea, Discord! There are some roses that I'd like to look at!"
"And we could watch the blue jays as they start making their nests!"
"Oh! We could eat peanut butter sandwiches while sitting beneath the maple tree!" Posey squealed, wrapping her arms around Discord before tittering nervously and promptly letting go. "Oops, sorry."
She...she hugged me! No girl's ever hugged me before! Discord thought with a sigh. Maybe...
A cruel laughter erupted from the doorway as four ponies entered, their eyes full of malicious glee.
"Well, well, well," Lance Bright said mockingly, "Lookee here at the lovebirds."
Discord and Posey huddled together as the four bullies surrounded them, their derisive laughter building to a crescendo and driving spikes of fear into the pair. Never before had Discord felt so terrified and helpless; it was usually just him that was suffering at the hooves of these colts. Now, it would be his only friend who would be unjustifiably pushed around and he was too scared to do anything to stop it. He flinched at his own spinelessness, wondering why anypony would want to be friends with him. Why am I such a coward?
A dark blue blur sped past Posey and hovered next to the ceiling. Dash grinned as he revealed the filly's ragdoll in his hooves. "Look at little Prissy Posey's dolly! I bet she sleeps with it too!"
Speedy flew up to join him. "How pathetic is that?!" He gave his friend a high-hoof and the two laughed their heads off.
"Give me back Sally, p-p-please! Give her back!" Posey shrieked, shaking her hooves at the two Pegasi while Lance magically held her back. "She was the last thing my parents gave me!" Ignoring Posey's cries, Dash and Speedy took turns carelessly tossing Sally back and forth before throwing her over Posey's head like a football and right into Bulky's hooves. Discord was fuming. He understood all too well the attachment that one could form with a personal object, his baby quilt being his own. This time, the bullies went too far.
"Give Posey her doll back, you jerks!" Discord snapped, realizing his mistake all too late.
Lance released his hold on Posey while Bulky pounded his hooves together threateningly, causing Discord to gulp and shrink back. "What did you just say to me, Freak?"
Well, the cat's out of the bag now. "J-Just leave Posey alone. She hasn't done anything wrong."
Lance's hoof shot out and smacked Discord across the cheek. "Shut up, 'Pisscord!' Nopony asked you so shut up!" Wiping the blood from his mouth, Discord could only glare up at Lance through eyes of pure hatred. Something powerful started up in the chimera's chest, heating it up like a furnace and setting every nerve in his body ablaze.
MAKE THEM SUFFER FOR THEIR INSOLENCE, DISCORD. MAKE THEM PAY.
"Lance, please...d-don't hurt Discord. He's my friend-..."
SMACK!
"Posey!"
The filly was sent rolling across the floor, crumpling up into a ball. She sniffled and glanced fearfully up at Lance through tear-filled eyes before letting out a squeaky whimper. A red haze filled Discord's vision, his claws digging into the floor as his breath came out in short furious bursts. Drawing himself to his full height, he let out a challenging roar.
THAT'S RIGHT, MY SON. SHOW THEM YOU ARE A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH. LET THEM KNOW WHO YOU ARE!
"You...you bastard!" Discord's voice cut through the air like a superheated blade, forcing everypony to freeze in place from the severity with which he spoke. He started to advance on his tormentors, who stared frightfully at their onetime victim while Posey could only widen her eyes at her friend's sudden transformation. "You can make fun of me, call me a 'freak' and beat me bloody but you do not, I repeat, do not...mess...with...my...friend!" Energy crackled around his fists, illuminating his snarling face with a bright crimson luminescence. "Now you're going to pay."
RELEASE YOUR FULL MIGHT! LET THEM FEEL THE MIGHT OF CHAOS!
Recovering his wits, Bulky charged at the chimera only for Discord to wave his paw and the earth pony found himself literally sinking into the floor as though it were quicksand. He then curled his bird talons and transformed Speedy's wings into stone, sending the Pegasus plummeting painfully into the bookcase and crashing to the floor. Dash attempted to flee but was seized by a giant glowing fist and slammed into a nearby wall, leaving only Lance remaining as the last pony standing. Discord's heart swelled with pride at his handiwork, feeling the exquisite feel of chaos enveloping him like a blanket. Yes, yes! Why didn't I do this sooner?
BECAUSE YOU DENIED WHO YOU ARE, WHO YOU'RE MEANT TO BE!
"Please, stay away from me! Don't hurt me!" Discord snapped out of his reverie to find the fearsome Lance Bright backed up into a corner and shivering, his cheeks stained with fresh tears. "I-I'm sorry! Do you hear me? I'm sorry!"
"You took Posey's doll, the special reminder of her parents, made fun of her and dared to strike her and you think an apology will make it right? Oh ho ho, my dear Lance, you are sorely mistaken." The light radiating from Discord's hands intensified, his smile manically sadistic as he bared his teeth. The chimera advanced on Lance, who sat on the floor shivering, wetting his face with snot and tears as he pointlessly tried reasoning with his attacker. "Time to say, 'Goodbye!'"
"Discord, stop!"
A sudden pleading voice stopped Discord in his tracks and he swiveled his head to take in the sight of Posey with her arms wrapped around his left leg. "Please, just...stop. They-they've suffered enough. Please." Soft green eyes bore into his own and his hands dropped to his sides, the energy dissipating and he gazed around the room as though waking up from a dream. He looked uncertainly at his hands, failing to recognize them. What...what happened to me?
DON'T REGRET YOUR ACTIONS. THEY WERE JUSTIFIED. THOSE RUFFIANS DESERVED WHAT THEY GOT.
"What are you?!"
He turned and to his horror, found a crowd of orphans staring horrified at him from the doorway, Hazel Chestnut standing at the forefront and pointing a shaking hoof at him. Fear gripped Discord's chest; his breaths becoming faster and harsher as he felt so many eyes staring at him, judging him, condemning him. All of his fury was instead replaced with terror and the room began to feel smaller, more constraining. He was empty; all vindictiveness and joy drained from him and replaced with fear and shame. Even Posey was shying away from him, her eyes full of fright at the sight of the chimera. What have I done?
With tears in his eyes, Discord whimpered, "I didn't mean it," before running past the crowd of ponies, who all hurriedly parted to allow him to flee. He ignored Posey's frantic cries, instead stumbling his way down the orphanage's hallways, unable to meet the eyes of everyone he came across. He ran until he made it to his broom closet, slammed the door and crawled beneath his quilt. Exhausted and full of hurt, he bitterly wept into his pillow. What am I?
Discord groggily opened his eyes at the gentle knocking at his door, remembering that he had cried himself to sleep and slowly rose from his bed. "Go away! I...I want to be alone right now!"
"Discord, please open the door." The gentle, familiar tone softened him up a bit but he was still uncertain, wrapping his quilt protectively around his shoulders tightly. "Discord, please." Reluctantly, Discord opened the door and found Miss Violet standing there, her face full of tenderness and understanding. He sighed and sat on the edge of his bed, beckoning her to come in. The mattress sank slightly beneath the mare's weight and the two sat quietly. Finally, after an eternity of silence, Violet placed her hoof on Discord's shoulder and asked, "Discord, would you like to explain to me what happened earlier?"
The chimera tightly clasped his hands together, trying to shut out the memory but also wishing to explain himself to the one whose opinion mattered the most to him. He sighed, "I was playing with Posey when those...those jerks showed up and took Posey's doll. I tried asking for it back but Lance hit me and then...Posey stood up for me. She...she called me her friend." A smiled crossed Discord's lips as he recalled the filly's change from shy wallflower to opinionated heroine. The smile vanished once the image of Lance hitting her and sending her sprawling set his teeth on edge. "Lance...he actually struck Posey. He hurt her!" Discord all but growled, the fur on his back standing on end in a feline-esque manner.
"And then you used your magic," Violet finished as-a-matter-of-factly, her voice level and nonjudgmental as she put the pieces together. "Discord, I understand that you were defending your friend but that was no excuse to hurt the boys like that. They could've been seriously injured! I'm just thankful that all of you are alright."
"'Alright?' But what about Posey? She was terrified and it'll be a week before her bruises heal! And Lance...-"
"...Will be punished for his actions, along with the others." Violet hooked her arm around Discord and pulled him to her side. "Their behavior will be addressed, that much I can promise you. The fact remains that you still lost control and lashed out at Lance and his friends, no matter if they deserved it or not." Some light sniffling caught her attention and she found Discord lightly sobbing. "Oh Discord, sweetie-..."
"I'm not evil! I-I swear. I'm...not." He choked on his words and buried his face into Violet's chest. "I didn't mean to hurt them. I was just angry..." The mare brought the point of her hoof underneath his chin so that they could talk face-to-face.
Violet smiled softly, "I know you're not evil, Discord. You have such a good heart. I know that you're different and that you have this...power inside of you but that doesn't mean that you have to be bad just because others say that you are." She got off of the bed and had Discord lie down, wrapping his quilt around him and taking time to run her hoof through his hair. "We'll talk more about this later but for right now, why don't you get some rest?"
Discord nodded wearily and watched Violet open the door ajar. "Okay. I really am sorry."
"I know you are, sweetheart. Now try to go to sleep. Good night, Discord."
A trembling hoof momentarily held the door open as Violet peered at the chimera laying with his back facing her. She slowly closed the door and replayed that moment in her head. He was like her own child, even more so than the others and this made her feel somewhat ashamed and at least partially guilty of nepotism. She'd raised him from infancy, taught him to walk and talk, instructed him on how to read and spoken to him of things she hadn't told anypony else. No matter what happened, Discord would always be her son and she would do anything to protect him.
Inside the sparkling-clean throne room of Canterlot Castle, Queen Concordia read and reread the letter three times to ensure that her eyes weren't deceiving her. Nearby, her trusted advisor and court magician Star Swirl the Bearded thoughtfully wove a hoof through his long flowing namesake, patiently awaiting his queen's orders. The alicorn ruler opened the scroll once more and focused on its words, hoping that she was mistaken in what was written:
Your Majesty,
I am writing to you from the Canterlot Orphanage, which I run alongside my compatriot Dawn Glimmer. Discord, who is one of my charges, lost control of his magic, injuring and intimidating four of the other children and scaring the rest. Now mind you, he was defending a friend of his from the four colts in question and must be treated as sympathetically as possible. He is a chimera, though I am unsure as to what kind as he possesses a pony's head, a lion's paw, a bird talon, a cloven hoof and lizard claw for feet, a serpentine tail and two wings, one bird and one bat. I worry for Discord's safety as well as the safety of the others so I humbly request that you send one of your wizards to inspect him. He truly is a kind-hearted and virtuous young colt but his unconventional appearance coupled with his unique brand of magic make it almost impossible for him to make friends. Please help him. You are his only hope.
Your Humble Servant,
Violet Twinkle
Queen Concordia sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. It was simply impossible for any of them to still be around and the mention of it having magic worried the queen more than anything on Equestria. She sat up straight in her throne and beckoned for her advisor. "Star Swirl, do you believe the authenticity of this Miss Twinkle's account?"
The old stallion replied, "Yes, Your Majesty, though I do find it a tad difficult to believe. Surely you don't think...-"
"Indeed I do!" Queen Concordia replied sharply. "If even one draconequus is running loose in Equestria, then we might very well be looking at the end of our way of life." Taking a deep breath, she then drew herself up very regally and commanded, "Star Swirl, I am sending you to the Canterlot Orphanage to see this 'Discord' and confirm Miss Twinkle's story. If it is true, then bring it here as soon as you can. I must see it with my own eyes."
"Yes, Your Majesty," Star Swirl replied starkly and quickly departed, leaving Queen Concordia alone with her thoughts. Her eyes caught the sight of a familiar painting, its subject an older unicorn stallion with an imperial beard, an orange and yellow mane wildly cascading down his shoulders like fire. She sighed and gazed at the painting's soft smiling face, wishing for nothing more than to hold him in her arms again. Ten years had passed since King Solaris' passing and since that day, Queen Concordia vowed to never let her family suffer another loss like that again. They took my beloved away from me and my daughters but justice won out in the end. She took one last longing glance at the painting before preparing herself for whatever Star Swirl's inquiries would discover.
Although he could've been easily brought into town by wagon and armed escort, Star Swirl insisted that such actions would draw too much attention for a fact-finding mission and Queen Concordia finally relented, agreeing that his presence should be kept low-key. For as long as he had been in the queen's employ (which was far longer than he cared to remember), Star Swirl had never seen Concordia so frantic and terrified before, even after the twin ordeal of the Umbrum-Draconequus War and the death of her husband. The shock of a surviving draconequus and the implications of his existence were surely ominous but the queen treated this as the end of all life. Star Swirl furrowed his brow at this thought. He knew better than anypony how dangerous this particular breed of chimera were but he didn't share his monarch's inherent fear and loathing for them. If anything, they were a fascinating species and it would be nice to study one that wasn't trying to eat him or turn his head into a pumpkin.
Finally arriving at the modest but well-built house, Star Swirl knocked on the door and was promptly greeted by a pink mare with a dark purple and blue-streaked mane. The mare took in the sight of the tall pointed hat and flowing cape before she smiled somewhat nervously, "Hello there, Sir. Good morning to you."
Star Swirl raised a busy eyebrow. "What do you mean, 'Good morning?' Do you wish me a good morning, or mean that it is a good morning whether I want it or not; or that you feel good this morning; or that it is a morning to be good on?"
The mare blinked. "A-all of them, I suppose."
"Let me get down to business. I am Star Swirl the Bearded, court magician to Her Majesty Queen Concordia and I am here to inspect one of your orphans, the one you call 'Discord.'" To prove his authenticity, he showed her a medallion bearing the Royal Seal along with a edict with Queen Concordia's signature and wax seal.
Both pieces of evidence caused the mare to drop to her hocks as she began to praise both Queen Concordia and Star Swirl, causing the old stallion to roll his eyes. "Yes, yes of course! Come in and I will aid you however I can! I am Dawn Glimmer, co-matron of this fine establishment. Surely you must be tired from your journey! I will make you a nice cup of tea. Or would you prefer coffee? A nice cranberry cocktail?" The mare continued to prattle on as she led a now annoyed Star Swirl to the living room and practically shoved him into the large recliner situated right next to the fireplace.
He raised a hoof and cleared his throat somewhat contemptuously. "No, no, I require nothing, Madam. I just need to speak with Miss Violet Twinkle and this...Discord. Can you manage that?"
Although Star Swirl's gruff demeanor was off-putting, Dawn merely grinned, "Yes, of course. I will go fetch them!" She quickly ducked out of the room, leaving Star Swirl to stretch his legs and relax in what was admittedly quite a comfortable chair. At least that irritating chatterbox can do something right-...
"Won't you reconsider a cup of tea? I just heated some up," Dawn grinned as she suddenly popped back in the room.
"No thank you," Star Swirl insisted through gritted teeth.
Dawn nodded and turned as if to leave when she asked, "Some apple cider...perhaps?"
"I'm fine." Star Swirl could feel his patience wearing dangerously thin.
Dawn almost made it to the door when she turned once more to the wizard. "Ovaltine?"
"No thank you. I'm perfectly fine," Star Swirl said much more forcefully, feeling the vein bouncing on his forehead.
"Alright then, if you're sure. I'll just go get Violet and Discord-..."
"Yes, yes, hop to it!" Star Swirl snapped and the mare finally took the hint and left, grumbling about the decline of good manners in Equestria.
Two minutes later, a purple unicorn in a frilly dark-blue dress arrived, leading a small timid figure that hid behind her hindlegs. Star Swirl rose to meet her, finding enough time to calm himself down and shaking her hoof calmly.
"Greetings Star Swirl. I am Violet Twinkle and I am honored to have you here," She began cordially and Star Swirl noticed that he already found her company much more enjoyable. "Discord? Come on out. The nice stallion just wants to talk to you. You're not in any trouble, I promise." A small gray head popped out from behind its hiding spot, its yellow and red eyes staring uncertainly at the new visitor. "Come on, it's okay, sweetie." With much trepidation, Discord finally emerged, his whole body shaking as he sat on the floor in front of Star Swirl, whose face remained impassive despite the millions of thoughts racing through his mind at the side of a creature he thought long gone.
An honest-to-goodness draconequus! Truly astounding! How Queen Concordia managed to miss one I cannot say though I am somewhat happy that she did. Star Swirl eyed the little colt up and down. "Do you know why you're here?"
Discord looked back at Violet, who nodded encouragingly at him before he turned to Star Swirl and gulped nervously. "Is it...because I went overboard with my magic? I swear, I didn't mean it!"
It was strange to see an adolescent draconequus, especially one so fearful. The only ones Star Swirl had ever seen were full grown and charging at him with spiked maces and battle-axes, the fires of war and violence burning brightly in their eyes. He replied, "I am curious about your...talents. Show me."
The little chimera shrank, his eyes widening enough to dominate his face. "W-what?"
Star Swirl folded his forelegs. "Show me your magic. I want a demonstration."
Again, Discord looked to his guardian for permission and once he received her conformation, he sighed and focused on the stack of playing cards on the lampstand beside Star Swirl's chair. With a quiet pop! the cards floated into the air, sailing past his head like an airborne locomotive before landing on the coffee table, each card beginning to fold around as they began to form a structure. When it was finished, the cards formed a perfect replica of Canterlot Castle. The wizard was stunned. Such a display of magic was much more advanced than ponies around that age and yet Discord managed it in only a few seconds' time and without breaking a sweat. This might actually work to the queen's favor.
"You...you don't like it?"
Star Swirl noticed Discord's hurt expression and realized that his jaw had sprung open. Promptly snapping it shut, he smiled, "My boy, that was one of the most impressive feats of magic that I have ever seen."
The chimera stared bafflingly at the wizard, his expression half-incredulous, half-skeptical. "R-really?"
"Really! I should inform the queen of this at once! She'll definitely want to meet you as soon as possible!"
Violet put a foreleg around Discord protectively. "M-meet the queen?"
Star Swirl stopped in the middle of dictating his letter and responded as-a-matter-of-factly, "Of course! Such talents would go to waste here in this place, no offense. He needs proper training to hone his gifts and I don't trust the academy to handle such a responsibility. With the queen's permission, I will personally tutor young Discord at the castle."
Violet appeared as though she was going to faint. "The castle?! Mister Star Swirl, are you...certain of this? Discord is still so young after all and as you can see, he's a very unique child. Isn't this a bit soon?"
"Oh nonsense! With such raw magical talent, he should begin training sooner rather than later. Besides, weren't you the one that wrote to Queen Concordia asking for assistance with Discord's gifts? Wouldn't he be better off living at the castle, having his every need taken care of and receiving a proper education? It's a fine better arrangement than most ponies could even ask for!" Star Swirl then sighed, "Then again, as Discord's guardian, the choice is up to you."
Drawing Discord in tight, Violet began taking deep, prolonged breaths as she stared into his mismatched eyes. Star Swirl's offer was far greater than she ever couldn't hoped but the thought of being separated from her ersatz son was simply too much. She recalled rocking him to sleep as an infant, the day that he uttered, "Violet," which was his first word. For every moment of his life so far, Violet had been there and now hearing that he'd be leaving her was a blow she thought she'd be ready for. Every orphan is expected to be adopted but Discord wasn't a regular orphan. He was her son.
"May I think about it? It's such a big decision," Violet finally stated, her voice shaky with heartbreak.
Star Swirl, noticing the fresh tears lightly peppering the mare's eyelids, nodded solemnly. He never thought he'd see the day that a pony would cry over a draconequus. "Yes, you may." He rose from his seat and headed for the exit. "I'll be sampling the local shops should you change your mind. You have six hours." And with that, he left.
For two hours, Violet Twinkle sat locked up in her room, shutting out the external noise of the outside world and watching as the steaming tea in her cup swirled around, a tiny white spiral in a sea of hazel. Spread all out across the mare's desk were a collection of mementos relating to her happy times with Discord, from the finger painting he made at age four to the scarf he'd knitted her for last Hearth's Warming Day. Violet groaned. Ten years of love and laughter on display and yet none of it could vanquish the vice gripping her chest nor dry her eyes. She picked up a crayon drawing of the two of them that Discord drew when he was seven, signing his name proudly in large letters: "LOVE, DISCORD."
The door squeaked open and Dawn Glimmer retrieved the still-uneaten tray of food Violet had pushed off to the side, too busy sniffling and staring trance-like at a lumpy clay figure of a manticore, clearly made at the hands of a child. Dawn looked at her old friend sadly, crestfallen at seeing her so depressed and isolated. The usually-preppy unicorn took everything in stride, never letting anypony or anything get in the way of her happiness, just smiling the problem away with a bounce in her step and a hum on her lips. Now Violet sat hunched over with her tail curled around her, her eyes still puffy and red from crying. It appeared as though she was going to experience undeserved heartbreak for the second time in her life.
"Vi, are you alright?" Dawn quietly asked, touching her friend's shoulder with the very tip of her hoof. While it was true that Discord's freaky magic creeped her out, Dawn had nothing against the chimera and actually admired his cheerfulness and kind nature, noting how alike he was to Violet and how he filled a hole in her heart left by Hawthorn's passing. Violet turned to face Dawn, nodding stiffly as she accepted her friend's hoof caressing her shoulder.
"It's just so hard, the idea of giving Discord up. He's my child; I don't care what anypony says." Despite the glum look on Violet's face, it did nothing to affect the fiery determination in her voice. "He needs me."
"Honey, I know you love him like a son but think about it: when will a chance like this ever come again?" This seemed to wake Violet up, her eyes becoming much clearer and focused. Dawn continued solemnly: "We've had to keep Discord in the house in order to protect him. Do you remember when he was six and you decided to bring him into town? Ponies will only fear or ridicule him for the way he looks. He was never going to be adopted, never going to have the same opportunities other kids will have. Now he has a chance."
"I know. Believe me Dawn, I know," Violet sighed. "On the night I found him, I promised Discord that I would protect him and care for him. I hoped for somepony to one day come for him but now that the day's here, I...don't want to let him go." The choking sound in her throat indicated that she was ready to cry but her tear ducts were all dried up.
Wrapping her forelegs around Violet, Dawn held her head to her chest and stroked her mane. "You've raised him like your own child, I get that but at least at the castle Discord will be fed and kept safe. Besides, you can still visit him right? I'm sure the queen will allow it if you just asked."
Violet lifted her head up. "You're right. I do want the best for him. It's just hard to let go."
"If you don't let him go now, then how can you ever expect to do it later?"
The question echoed throughout Violet's head like the ringing of a bell. As much as she loved Discord, she knew it would be selfish to keep him at the orphanage just because of her own neediness and desire for motherhood. He was an oak tree; he was strong and needed room to grow. All he needed now was the right soil. Shutting her eyes tightly, Violet took a deep breath and stated, "I've made my decision."
Star Swirl looked around at the empty alleyway and decided now was the perfect time to deliver a message. Pulling an ornate hoof-mirror from out of his satchel, he powered it with a glow from his horn and watched as fog churned around on its surface, twisting and writhing like serpents before they coalesced into the shape of a throne room. The crowned unicorn mare stared at the wizard expectantly. "Star Swirl, what news do you have to report?"
"Your Majesty," he bowed. "I did as you asked and it turns out that it is indeed a draconequus. What's more is that he's very gifted. His magic is quite advanced for someone so young."
There was a pause as Queen Concordia froze, her eyes gazing off into the distance as she digested this new information. Once the shock wore off, she regained her senses and enquired, "I see. So why aren't you there now?"
"I asked Miss Violet Twinkle to take Discord with me back to the castle. As her guardian, I had to give her the option. She's taking time to think over her decision before I return. Her time's almost done."
"Star Swirl, while I admit your consideration and dedication to adhering to the law, I have to ask you one simple question: what if she says 'No?' Did you consider this?"
The wizard shook his head. "My apologies, Your Majesty, the thought hadn't occurred to me. If Violet were to refuse, what would you have me do?"
Queen Concordia considered this. "Take him anyway. After all, you are acting on my behalf and thus you have the authority. If Violet Twinkle resists, have her arrested for interfering in royal affairs."
Star Swirl exhaled through his nostrils, floored by her callous response but still duty-bound to carry out her orders, no matter the moral ramifications. He understood the pain and fear that drove her towards such cold-heartedness; after all, Queen Concordia know better than most how deadly the draconequui were and a single one, especially a magic user, was deadlier than one-hundred royal guards. "As you wish, Your Majesty. It will be done." The mare's face vanished and the mirror once again became nothing more than a reflective surface. Replacing the mirror, Star Swirl wove his way through the throngs of busy ponies as he made his way back to the orphanage.
"Discord, you have to go with him." Violet readjusted the pull strings of the simple gray sack that contained Discord's meager belongings and slipped them over his shoulder and chest. "The queen herself asked to see you. She will take care..." She couldn't finish her sentence; her throat was stiff and she could feel the pressure in her chest full to bursting.
The chimera stood there dumbfounded, his whole body shaking as he felt himself on the verge of tears. "But why me? I'm nopony special. Did...I do something wrong?"
Oh sweet Concordia help me. "No, you did nothing wrong...-"
"You don't want me anymore?" Discord whimpered.
Those five words sent sharp pangs into Violet's heart and she quickly pulled Discord into her forelegs, afraid that he would drift away like smoke if she let go. "It's not that. You deserve a better life than one I can provide for you. Star Swirl will help you with your magic and make sure that you're taken care of." Small arms found purchase against her back and she rested her chin on Discord's head. "Just remember that no matter what happens, you'll always be my son."
"I love you, Mom," Discord sniffled, fighting the urge to cry but still feeling the tears as they began to build up.
And with that, the flood gates were opened, wetting Discord's hair as Violet let loose all of the love, fear and heartache that had taken solace inside of her since this morning. "I love you too, Son. So very much." She wiped away her tears and, taking one last look at him, kissed his cheek and motioned for Star Swirl to take him. Unable to bare the image of her child's departure, Violet shut her eyes and wept into Dawn's chest, who steadfastly held her tightly as the wizard and the chimera headed out.
"Star Swirl," Dawn said flatly, causing him to turn in confusion. "You'd better take good care of him."
"He will be taken care of," came his immediate reply and was about to open the door when a young Pegasus filly came charging down the stairs and tackling Discord in a massive bear-hug, her face drenched in tears.
"I'm going to miss you!" Posey cried. "You're my bestest friend in the whole world!"
Discord held her tightly, his bird's claw gently combing her wild mane. "You're mine too. I'll miss you so much."
As touching as this display was, Star Swirl had a schedule to keep to and didn't wish to prolong his meeting with the queen. After spending a couple minutes prying the two children apart, Star Swirl simply teleported the filly into another part of the house and inched Discord out of the door, Violet's sobs of agony following them. The chimera understandably shirked from his touch and Star Swirl kept his distance, wishing to keep Discord as calm as he could.
"Come along, Discord. The queen is waiting."
Discord was planted in his spot, paralyzed as he took one last glance at the only home he'd ever known. He tried to commit everything to memory: the slightly tilted doorway, the periwinkle blue paint, the potted plants. Even the simple steel railings on the steps seemed to jump out at him. True, he'd suffered indignation and prejudice there, but he'd also experienced love and friendship. The good things don’t always soften the bad things just as the bad things don’t spoil the good. With that in mind, Discord straightened his back and rejoined Star Swirl on their journey to Canterlot Castle and hopefully, Discord's purpose.
The castle loomed overhead like a giant stone behemoth, its towering golden and lavender spires appearing to scrape the clouds as it stood majestically adjourning a gushing crystalline waterfall. Wow, it's much bigger than it is in the book. Discord noted, awestruck by the sheer enormity of the structure and overwhelmed by what it represented. It wasn't everyday that a simple chimera actually visited the castle of Equestria's royal family, under the queen's orders no less. He barely noticed Star Swirl nudging him towards the gate, past the cold, judgmental eyes of the royal guards.
"Come on, come on, we haven't got all day," Star Swirl snapped impatiently.
"I-I-I'm sorry. It's just that it's...incredible!"
Star Swirl's eyebrow shot up but he said nothing. He had to admit, Discord was nothing like he expected a draconequus to behave, being a race of emotionally erratic, fiendishly clever and selfish con artists. The young colt (what else do you call a young draconequus?) on the other hoof, was overly enthusiastic and ridiculously sweet and naïve. As he watched Discord glance starry-eyed at the castle's interior, the wizard couldn't help but wonder if his preconceived notions about him were wrong. After all, being a veteran of the Umbrum-Draconequus War didn't make Star Swirl an expert on the draconequui themselves.
Perhaps this child is more than he appears...
Entering the throne room, the two approached the dais, where a female alicorn sat proudly on an alabaster throne, her golden gaze starkly fixed on Discord. The light illuminated her reddish-pink coat, giving it a soft glow as she spread her massive wings. Her flowing mane was adorned with violet, sapphire blue and rose-colored streaks that shimmered beneath her golden, jewel-encrusted crown. Queen Concordia was the very image of traditional royalty: stoic, celestial and unapproachable, making her appear quite alien to Discord.
I wonder if she's ever smiled before.
"Your Majesty," Star Swirl bowed reverently. "I have brought the one you requested."
Following his guide's cue, Discord bowed. "Y-your Majesty. I-I'm Discord and it's an honor to be in your presence."
Queen Concordia stared at him warily. "You have very...precise manners."
"Oh, well, Miss Violet says that you should always address your superiors with respect," Discord replied, beads of sweat gathering on his forehead. "After all, they deserve it because they work so very hard."
Star Swirl could see the confusion etched on the queen's face. "I see. What are you staring at?"
Discord's eyes snapped back to attention. "Gosh, I'm sorry, Your Majesty. It's just that your castle is so beautiful. I've only seen pictures of it and they pale in comparison to the real thing. It's just incredible!"
The queen briefly glanced over at Star Swirl before looking down her nose at Discord. Rising from her throne, she stepped down from the dais to tower over the young draconequus. "Thank you. So, Star Swirl has informed me that you're a particularly gifted magic user. Is this true?"
Discord wrung his hands together, replying sheepishly, "Well, yes...Your Majesty, but I'm not sure if-..."
Queen Concordia waved a contemptuous hoof. "I require a demonstration."
A-a-a demonstration? In front of the queen?! Sweat dripped down Discord's face, fear enveloping every fiber of his being and freezing him in place. Performing in front of one old stallion was one thing but doing it in front of the most powerful pony in Equestria? You might as well have asked him to gargle tatzelworm gel.
"Now!"
Golden eyes narrowed at him impatiently. Gulping loudly, Discord felt himself shrink beneath Queen Concordia's glare. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Star Swirl nod at him, almost approvingly. Did he just smile at me? Shaking his head, Discord took a moment to calm himself, inhaling and feeling something wrapping around him. Fire ran through his veins as energy spread and surrounded his lion's fist in a blazing corona.
THE UPTIGHT QUEEN WANTS A DEMONSTRATION? YOU SHOULD GIVE HER ONE TO REMEMBER!
Snapping his fingers, the throne was engulfed in a bright light and melted into a puddle before reforming and congealing into a glass statue in the queen's likeness. The guards gasped and nearly dropped their spears while Queen Concordia eyed the structure up and down incredulously. Ha, how's that for a demonstration?! Discord suddenly felt a hoof touch his shoulder and found Star Swirl standing right beside him, an proud smile on his grizzled face.
"This is...astounding." The two turned to find Queen Concordia admiring Discord's handiwork, her hooves carefully trailing the statue's smooth, iridescent surface. "Simply amazing." Once she realized that she was being watched, she once again donned her mask of chilly indifference and approached the two. "Star Swirl?"
"Yes, Your Majesty?"
"Find Discord a room and ensure that he has easy access to food and water. You have a new student and I want him well-fed and ready for his lessons first thing in the morning. After my daughters' of course."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Star Swirl beckoned for Discord to follow him but first he surprised the old stallion by walking right up to the queen and kneeling before her, his head bent low as his bird's claw grasped at Queen Concordia's hoof. The mare looked as though she was going to explode with rage but kept herself poised, curious as to the meaning of the unnecessary-not to mention, completely unwanted- physical contact.
"Thank you for your wisdom and charity, Your Majesty," Discord stated solemnly. "Praise your name and may you continue to reign for a thousand more moons." Not waiting for an answer, he kissed Queen Concordia's hoof and scurried back to Star Swirl, who put his arm around him to keep him from seeing the queen's great displeasure at the action. As the two exited the throne room, Queen Concordia swallowed her rage and took a minute to reevaluate the last few minutes. The draconequus whelp was timid yet polite, traits that she never would've associated with his species and as she feared, a gifted enchanter. The only reason she hadn't had Discord imprisoned in crystal and smashed was to keep a close eye on him. After all, the chaos magic of the last draconequus could be very useful someday.
Moving past the kitchen and down a twisting corridor, Star Swirl led Discord to a room with several shabby-looking wooden doors and opened one, revealing a small cell with a straw mattress and a tiny barred window.
"This is the servant's quarters. This room here will be yours."
Streaking past the wizard, Discord happily threw his bag onto the bed and laughed as he stopped to look outside his minuscule window. "Wow, thanks Star Swirl! This is even better than the broom closet! Now I have a window!"
"Oh, um, er, you're...welcome?" The wizard offered up, unsure of how to respond to such a statement. "Ahem, I will have somepony bring you some food and water shortly. Now get some rest. Your training begins tomorrow."
"Yes, sir!" Discord saluted as Star Swirl rolled his eyes and closed the door, trying his hardest to suppress an amused grin. Perhaps he's starting to grow on me. After informing a servant of Discord's imminent feeding, he slowly made his way past several royal guards all the way up to the queen's private chambers. He knocked and upon receiving a reply, opened the door telekinetically and slammed it shut behind him. He found Queen Concordia sipping some wine while looking over some old documents, her face one of extreme concentration and displeasure.
Finally, she began: "By Hyperion's name, this...this is terrible! I can't believe I missed it! I'm such a fool!"
"Your Majesty?"
Queen Concordia stared at Star Swirl as if noticing him for the first time. "Read this and you will understand."
Taking the scroll, Star Swirl carefully read it, realizing that it was a royal draconequus genealogy record. He scanned through it until he came across the Fifth Dynasty, which happened to be the last of the now defunct Draconequus Empire. "'Apep took Tiamat as his queen and in turn fathered one son Tannin and one daughter Laverna. Tannin, successor to the throne, was wed to Dysnomia, who bore him a son, Seth.'" He looked uncertainly at Queen Concordia.
"Keep reading," She urged and Star Swirl, reasoning that there was a reason for this little history lesson, did as he was commanded. He didn't know what got the queen so bent out of shape but he knew it was serious.
"'Seth was wed to his queen Eris and together they had a son named..."
This...this can't be right! There must be some sort of printing error! Star Swirl read the document again and nearly dropped the scroll, catching the look of fear in Queen Concordia's eyes. With much trepidation, he read the name aloud:
Finishing up his oatmeal, Discord smacked his lips together and sighed appreciatively, wondering when it was since he last ate so much. Despite being told it was what "peasants" were fed, it was honestly the best oatmeal that he'd ever had. He took his bowl and spoon to the kitchen and was about to set them down when he fell under the hard gaze of the cook. She was an older mare with a copper-colored coat and a messy dark brown mane with stripes of silver, her face haggard and worn out from years of nail-biting stress. Slamming down a newly-washed flagon, she placed a hoof on her hip.
"You done?"
"Yes, Ma'am," Discord replied timidly and shook as he felt the cook's practically bone-chilling stare. Not wishing to be in be in the same room as the moody mare, he chuckled nervously and dashed out of the kitchen while the cook shook her head disapprovingly. Making his way down the corridors, Discord stared at the ornate columns and high ceilings, his little mind blown by the sheer enormity of it all. Something's...off. Realizing where he was, or rather, where he wasn't, he abruptly looked around and gasped, "Wait...where am I exactly?"
After a run-in with some less-than-cheerful royal guards, Discord sped into the royal library at full speed, his breaths heavy after such a rush. Bursting through the doors, he panted, "Sorry I'm late! I'm here now, Star-..."
He stopped to find Star Swirl in the middle of tutoring two young unicorn mares and immediately shut his mouth upon seeing the wizard's disapproving frown. The mares also stopped to glimpse at the newcomer, though their faces each held a different expression. The bigger and older of the two possessed snow-white fur and a pink-colored mane, her pink eyes staring annoyingly at Discord as she let out a derisive snort. It was her sister, however, that drew the draconequus' gaze, his heart slowly halting its beats. She was dark blue and also had a mane that seemed to defy gravity, only it was Persian blue and flowed past her like a small curtain of night. Unlike the other mare, this one smiled at Discord and her cyan eyes twinkled with a kind of good-natured amusement that made it impossible to turn away.
Star Swirl shook his head. "Well, I suppose it can be daunting the first time navigating the castle on your own so I'll forgive you for your tardiness. Discord, this is Princess Celestia and Princess Luna-" The two bowing when their names were mentioned; Celestia gave a curt nod of her head while Luna did a little curtsey and giggled, much to her sister's annoyance. "-and they are my other students. Your Highnesses, this is Discord and he will be joining us from now on."
"Really, Star Swirl? We have to train with...this?" Princess Celestia asked disdainfully, refusing to look Discord in the eye or even acknowledge his presence. "What is he anyways?"
"Celestia, there's no need to be rude!" Princess Luna admonished, giving Discord an apologetic look. "I am so sorry...Discord, was it? My sister can be quite...abrasive but she-..."
Princess Celestia stomped a hoof on the floor. "Luna, you should not be apologizing on my behalf, especially when I gave no such indication that I was considering it! I mean...just look at him! Why is he even here?"
"Because your mother ordered it," Star Swirl interjected, immediately silencing the squabbling siblings. Clearly, whenever the old stallion spoke, his word was the last. "As her royal decree, Discord is to be instructed by me in the ways of magic, to teach him to control and hone his unique gifts." As well as to keep a very close eye on him. He may not know it, but there is more to him than meets the eye. He was still somewhat spooked by last night's discovery, unable to fully believe their luck (or misfortune) at not only finding the world's last draconequus but also a royal at that! The wheel of Fate doth spin in strange directions. "Now then, let's continue with our lesson. Luna?"
The dark-colored alicorn nodded and focused on a stone dodecahedron, her horn faintly glowing a cobalt blue aura. That very same aura began to surround the dodecahedron and it began to steadily rise in the air, though the look of strained concentration on Luna's face coupled with the beads of sweet gathering on her brow made it evident that she was struggling with the task. The stone object wobbled and then tumbled to the floor, Luna sagging onto her haunches to catch her breath. "I...I'm sorry, Master. It was just...too heavy," she gulped atop wobbling legs.
"Now Luna, what have I told you about weight? The weight of an object is inconsequential compared to focus, concentration and willpower. If you believe it to be too heavy, then it will remain too heavy. Understood?"
"Yes, Master," Luna replied sadly as she sat in a chair far from the center of the room.
WELL THAT WAS PATHETIC. THE GIRL LOOKS AS THOUGH SHE COULD BE KNOCKED OVER BY A GUST OF WIND.
"Quiet," Discord hissed.
Star Swirl turned sharply. "What was that?"
"Um, nothing, Mister Star Swirl."
He eyed Discord suspiciously. "While we are training, you will address me as, 'Sir' or 'Master' and while not studying or practicing, you may call me, 'Star Swirl.' Is that clear?"
Discord saluted and grinned, "Yes sir, Master!"
Beneath his stoic expression, Star Swirl was beaming on the inside, somewhat amused by Discord's energy and enthusiasm. However, as a serious mage and teacher, he had a certain appearance to keep to if he wanted the respect and discipline of his students. "Good. Celestia, you're up."
Giving her sister a watch-how-I-do-things smirk and eyebrow wag, Celestia took up an offensive stance and stared intently at the dodecahedron. A bright golden aura shimmered around her ivory horn and traveled to the stone object, pulling it into the air and surrounding it with a blazing radiance. It began to twist and rearrange itself like a large puzzle block until it formed into a cube and gently came to rest right back where it started, much to Celestia's delight. She stepped back to admire her handiwork and, once satisfied with the end result, gave a deep bow and trotted back to her seat. Luna, meanwhile, gritted her teeth as Star Swirl clapped his hooves together and nodded respectfully at Celestia.
"Well done, Celestia! Once again, you've proven yourself a most apt pupil. Well done!"
Noticing the envious pain written across Luna's face, Discord leaned over and whispered, "I thought you did a pretty good job," adding in a wink and a thumb's up which lifted her spirits somewhat. Ironically, the dark-themed mare was much more warm and inviting than her colorful counterpart and this intrigued Discord immensely. The two smiled at one another and Discord could feel a funny fluttering feeling in the pit of his stomach. His heart seemed to slow down and speed up when Luna opened and closed her long dark eyelashes. Whoa, is it just me or is it really hot in here?
"Discord, it's your turn."
The gruff statement snapped Discord out of his blissful stupor. "What, me?"
Star Swirl rolled his eyes and shot a beam of bluish-gray energy at the cube, twisting and morphing it into its previous polyhedron shape before pointing a hoof at it. "Yes, you. I want you to levitate this object and transform it into another shape, similar to what Celestia did. Of course, it should be no problem compared to your throne transmogrification feat."
Six pairs of eyes studiously watched Discord, observing him as though he were a butterfly in a glass jar. He scratched the back of his neck anxiously. "Well, the thing is, I...don't know how to do that."
To his shock, Star Swirl began laughing, a deep, roaring laugh that bounced the bells on his hat around. "Ah, a student with a sense of humor? This is a new one. However, as much as I enjoy a good joke every now and then, I'm asking you to apply your magic to the dodecahedron here."
"B-but I'm not joking! How do I change the object's form?"
The wizard's mouth quickly formed into a frown. "You-you're serious? But what about the house of cards or-or-or the glass sculpture? Are you telling me that you did that on a whim?"
"I didn't know what would happen! I just concentrated on the object and poof, it kind of...did the rest."
Rubbing his forehead hard, Star Swirl incoherently grumbled before clapping his hooves together. "Discord, when you use magic, you must focus on your target and only your target. Don't just think of it and expect something to happen. You must picture the object in your mind and imagine the result. Here, give it a try."
Discord looked uncertainly at the stone dodecahedron and sighed, figuring that it was a fight he wasn't going to win. He focused on the stone, getting a mental image of it in his mind's eye as he lifted his paw towards it. The stone wobbled and flipped onto its side before levitating six inches above the floor. Come on, come! Turn into a cube!
YOU ARE EXTRAORDINARY SO WHY NOT SHOW IT? WHY ACT LIKE THESE INSIGNIFICANT SPECKS?
You're not helping! Discord mentally shouted, losing focus on the object and straining to keep his concentration. There was a bright flash of light and to his horror, Discord watched as the dodecahedron became a pile of bananas, which promptly collapsed onto the floor. He buried his face in his hands, unable to face his teacher or block out Celestia's uproarious laughter. He peeked through his fingers to find Luna smiling warmly at him and mouthing, "You did a good job." This brightened his spirits a little though he still had to contend with Star Swirl's look of disapproval.
Star Swirl shook his head. "Your attempt was valiant and despite the impressive transformation spell, you failed to do what I asked. We will reconvene for another lesson later on in the day. Dismissed." He then patted Discord's head and trotted out of the library, followed by Celestia, who purposefully shouldered her way past Discord with a "Hmph!"
Discord hung his head in shame. Well, that was a complete disaster.
WAS IT? YOU DON'T NEED HIS APPROVAL YOU KNOW.
"I'm sorry about my sister," Luna said softly. "She really isn't that bad once you get to know her."
"Aw, it's no big deal. The kids at the orphanage are way worse than her."
Luna stared guiltily at Discord. "You're an orphan? Gosh, I'm sorry. I didn't know."
Discord shrugged and scratched the back of his neck, blushing as the familiar fuzzy feeling returned in his stomach. "It's okay and thanks for apologizing, even though you didn't need to."
Luna rubbed her pastern with one hoof. "Well somepony had to. You're really nice and you don't deserve to be bullied, especially not by Celestia." She brushed some of her dark blue locks out of her eyes, an action Discord couldn't help but watch with pure fascination. Luna, meaning, "Moon." It was perfect considering her mysteriousness, soft dark beauty and external brilliance. A lovely name for a lovely mare.
Coming to the realization that he'd been staring, Discord cleared his throat. "So, uh, the castle's quite something. Do you think...maybe you could perhaps, um...show me around?"
"The grand ballroom was constructed under orders by King Astraeus and Queen Hemera in honor of the birth of their daughter Phoebe. It was later expanded upon by Queen Iris during the First Alicorn Reformation to commemorate the founding of Alicornia. The first Grand Galloping Gala was held here shortly after my sister's birth."
Luna led Discord through the castle, enthusiastically pointing out every single room and the history behind it with such passion and in such excruciating detail, he thought she was a professional tour guide. The delightful shimmer in those cyan-blue eyes coupled with her small but sweet smile made Discord's heart do backflips. He found it difficult to avert his eyes from the unicorn's face as not gazing at her splendor would seem almost disrespectful. Unbeknownst to him, Luna did in fact notice his gazing and fought to keep a blush from creeping across her cheeks. They soon approached the throne room and found Queen Concordia conversing with some foreign dignitaries when her eyes fell coldly upon the pair.
"Luna dear, now is not the time for...sightseeing. Mother is busy."
"Mother, if...if Discord's a guest here, then we should make him feel welcome...-"
"That's nice dear, but not when I have visitors. Understood?"
Luna looked down submissively. "Yes, Mother." Leading Discord by the paw, she gave Queen Concordia a sorrowful parting glance and sighed. She didn't understand her mother's displeasure with her new friend, being one of the most kind-hearted ponies she'd ever known. It couldn't be that he was a chimera; centaurs, minotaurs and even a sphinx had visited the castle at one time or another and the queen never showed such prejudice towards them. Whatever's the problem with my mother goes deeper than Discord's appearance. But would could it be? There was only one person that could possibly know the answer. Luna just hoped he would be cooperative.
Queen Concordia stared after them, displeased and even disgusted by the thing wandering around her castle. Unsupervised. With her daughter. "Captain Swift Wing?"
The armored Pegasus bowed. "Yes, Your Majesty?"
"Follow them. I don't want either of my daughters left alone with that draconequus."
Captain Swift Wing bowed once more and started after them. Queen Concordia excused herself from her guests and headed to her bedchamber, the rage at seeing Discord and Luna together steadily rising the more she thought about it. Pouring herself some wine, she drained the glass and instantly refilled it. Ever since the discovery of Discord's heritage, she felt herself on edge even more so than usual. Only a very select few draconequui were born with an inherent gift for chaos magic, the majority of which came of a royal bloodline and were thus far more powerful. Now that she had seen firsthand what a draconequus' powers could do, Queen Concordia feared his true potential.
Thankfully, Star Swirl's report of about Discord's current magical progress seemed to indicate that the chimera still had a long road ahead of him. Good. Perhaps his chaotic abilities can be put to good use for once. Sipping her wine, Queen Concordia stared at a family portrait of her with King Solaris and their children, the first and last they would ever appear in together. She raised her glass and emptied it. "Damn them. Damn them all."
"Canus fructum!" Star Swirl shot an enchanted beam at the bright red apple, causing it to rapidly age until it became a fuzzy, dark green glob of fungus. "Fructus principium!" The apple was engulfed in a bluish-gray aura and rapidly shrank into an apple seed. The wizard smiled triumphantly and jotted down his findings, searching for an empty space on his table to place his notes. His tower was a cluttered mess of scribblings, alchemical devices, spell books and outrageous chemistry equipment sets. While many would term it "disorganized," he disagreed, finding that he could easily locate anything with his unusual categorization system. "Now where did I put my magnifying glass?"
The double cedar doors swung open to reveal two familiar young pupils, uncertain expressions etched into their faces. "Hmm? Oh, Discord and Luna! How may I help you?" Star Swirl put away his notes and gestured for the two to step closer. "I do apologize for the mess. I don't often receive visitors and it's how I prefer to keep things ironically orderly."
Luna nudged Discord forward and he stared up at his mentor nervously. "Mister Star Swirl? I was just wondering...do you perhaps, I don't know, happen to know what it is that I am exactly? I'm a chimera but that's all I know."
Of course he'd have that question on his mind. Still, Star Swirl wasn't surprised that Discord would ask him; it was how soon it was that threw him for a loop. "I see. Well, Discord, the thing of it is...you're partially right. You are indeed a chimera but as for the specific type, you are what is known as a draconequus."
"A dracone-what?" Luna inquired, equally as confused as Discord.
Star Swirl pulled at his beard, wondering how much he should reveal to the two. "Draconequus. It is, or rather was, a species native to a place known as the 'Chaosverse,' a realm of disorder and near-lawlessness. They derived their power from manipulation of chaos magic, a raw but extremely rare type of magic. With it, they were capable of just about anything."
Discord interjected."Wait, you said, 'was.' Does that mean...I'm the only draconequus left?" His voice trembled, his shoulders sinking as if bearing the weight of such a revelation. Luna patted his back sadly and looked to her mentor for answers.
"I'm afraid so, my boy," Star Swirl painfully admitted. "They were all destroyed during the Umbrum-Draconequus War over ten years ago. The umbrum, or shadow ponies, wished to control the Chaosverse and harness chaos magic for their own usage so they waged war with the draconequui, a war that seeped over to Equestria and threatened to cover the land in darkness and disarray. They ended up destroying each other and now neither species is alive today."
"All except for me, right?"
It truly hurt Star Swirl to see the child so distraught but the truth had to have come out sooner or later, or at the very least was the truth that was officially adopted. Discord had so far shown himself to be a humble, kind and reserved young man and it was evident that the pain of being the last of his kind was dragging him deep into depression. He was already ostracized for his appearance-having grown up in a place where he beaten for such a reason-and now had to live with possible survivor's guilt and loneliness. Star Swirl sighed, unsure what he could do or even if he could do anything.
"Yes. But know this Discord: you are not alone," Star Swirl smiled.
Luna placed her hoof over Discord's bird claw. "No you're not."
The doors burst open and Captain Swift Wing came rushing in, panting heavily as he did. Spying the children, he landed and gave Star Swirl a salute. "I'm...sorry for the intrusion, Sir, but the queen ordered me to stay by their side. For security purposes of course." He smiled nervously underneath the old stallion's scrutiny.
"It's quite alright, Captain," Star Swirl grinned, causing the Pegasus to visibly relax. "You are only performing your duties after all and should be commended for doing so."
Captain Swift Wing wiped his brow and let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you for understanding, Sir. Anyway, it's time for the princess' music lessons. Come along, Your Highness." He then began to usher Luna out the door, unaware of the glare the wizard was throwing his way nor the look of sadness on Luna's face as she bade her friend goodbye. Once the two disappeared from sight, Star Swirl dropped his friendly façade and angrily muttered to himself, speaking in a tongue Discord didn't understand nor wanted to.
It was obvious why the captain was really there: the queen was worried about Luna being alone with Discord. Even though he barely knew anything about the young draconequus, it seemed to Star Swirl that it was highly unlikely that Discord was harm Luna in any way. The two seemed to genuinely hit it off, based off their interactions in the library. Now that he thought about it, would it really be a bad thing if the two were romantically involved? Discord was a prince after all and marrying a royal was in a princess' job description. Then again, perhaps Star Swirl was reading too far into it.
Letting his body relax, Star Swirl patted the seat of a wooden stool and said, "Now then, while the princesses are occupied, how would you like to learn about the finer points of alchemy?"
Discord leapt onto the stool and wagged his tail like an excited puppy. "Would I? Sure! Teach away, Master!"
The skies erupted in red and orange bursts, cannonballs and boulders whizzing through the heavens as pony-shaped shadows leapt up to tackle serpentine shock troopers. Thick black smoke choked the air while armies clashed with fire, steel, wood and magic. Battalions of earth ponies and pegasi joined the fray, attacking the umbrum forces with enough ferocity to rival hordes of bears. Star Swirl directed his unicorn mages towards the eastern front, half of them telekinetically raining debris upon their enemies and the other half releasing torrents of magical energy blasts. The roars of battle-cries and the screams of the dead or dying echoed across the crimson-drenched fields.
The torn banner of Equestria was ripped loose from its flagpole by a gust of wind and King Solaris watched it soar away over the battlefield, his heart saddened by the sight of the disharmony all around him. This isn't Equestria. This isn't my home. His armor dragged painfully across his skin with every step, his chainmail and sheathed sword rattling as he stepped over the many, many corpses of his fellow soldiers. Crows and vultures voraciously picked at the corpses, a sight that King Solaris forced himself to view, to remind him why he was fighting and the cost if they lost the war.
It was only two years ago when the war was brought to Equestria, when their mortal enemies the umbrum began to conquer small villages in order to supply themselves with food and troops. The draconequui soon arrived after, offering their services in ridding Equestria of the umbrum in exchange for a safe haven for the Chaosverse's refugees. Along with the griffons, crystal ponies and dragons, they began their campaign against the umbrum and as a result, their world suffered. The fires of war spread across the land, leaving virtually every corner of the land scorched by either flame or chaos. In the end, it no longer mattered why they were fighting, only that the innocent were suffering.
"Your Majesty?"
King Solaris peered over his shoulder and found a broad-chested earth pony saluting him, his helmet tucked beneath one arm. He was young, perhaps in his late 20's and bore several scars that haphazardly ran across his face and muzzle.
"Yes, what is it, Sergeant?"
The earth pony replied, "The war council requests your presence, Sir."
Taking one last look at the devastation before him, King Solaris nodded, "Very well then, Sergeant. Lead the way."
The two trekked their way across a trench-dug field and narrowly avoided being bombarded by flying acorns the size of basketballs, the handiwork of a draconequus spellcaster no doubt. King Solaris noticed the unusual mauve-colored section of the sky as well as the giant bubbles and fifty-foot tree men that stomped their way across the battlefield. He let out a weary sigh, wondering if his chimeric allies were really worth having around after all. There was no doubt in the king's mind that the draconequui were very useful in battle and was grateful for their assistance however, their sporadic mood swings, lack of knowledge of societal graces and unpredictable magic made them quite stressful to deal with. He knew that he agreed to house Chaosverse refugees but would it really be the best thing for Equestria? True, only a select few possessed chaos magic but even the "regular" ones could be a hoofful.
Entering a massive gray tent with the scar-faced sergeant in tow, King Solaris found himself face-to-face with several beings standing around a circle oak table, their faces grim as they took turns relaying warfront news. Only King Seth, the ruler of the draconequui was in high spirits, contact juggling a glass orb across the back of his mismatched hands as he hummed some sort of childish tune. Fireheart, the wine-red Dragon Lord, rolled his golden-green eyes at Seth's antics and murmured something about a snake-thing barbeque. A grizzled old dark green earth pony noticed King Solaris' presence and tapped the table with his hoof to grab the others' attention. Salutes, bowing and warm salutations greeted the king.
"Ah, welcome, Your Highness. I'm glad to see that you're still kickin'."
"Thank you, General Brunswick, as am I. Dragon Lord Fireheart, General Sunstone of the Crystal Empire, Lord Gilead of Griffonstone, King Seth of the draconequui, I bid you all welcome." He then gestured towards the scar-faced earth pony that stood silently beside him. "This is Sergeant Steadfast of the Thundering Hoof Cavalry Division."
Sergeant Steadfast nodded towards the others and greeted them via grunt.
Lord Gilead gave King Solaris a respectful nod. "So Solaris, what news do you have to report on from the eastern front?"
"The umbrum forces in that region are being repelled by Star Swirl the Bearded and his unicorn mages," King Solaris explained, pointing at the map that lay unfurled on the table. "While over here, a Pegasus battalion and earth pony artillery squadron have managed to break through the Brabant Pass. Umbrum crystal enchanters have taken up residence in the Campeiro Hills, constructing magic-resistant black crystal barriers."
King Seth flicked his tail around impatiently, his eyes following the glass orb as it rolled up one forearm and down another. "Why not send some of my chaos magicians to clear the way? Those crystals aren't indestructible after all and should shatter after a few hundred tons of pressure. A giant mallet or battering ram should do the trick."
General Sunstone folded his arms against his incandescent, copper chest. "We need every available draconequus magician on the northern front. King Erebus and his personal guard are giving us the hardest time there. Besides, I've seen what happens when those black crystal structures shatter. Their debris is more dangerous than cannon fire and take days to clear up. Perhaps Star Swirl has a better approach?"
King Solaris considered this. "He's been working on a way to bypass the black crystals' magic-negating properties but has so far found nothing. Their unique makeup is simply beyond our comprehension at the moment."
"Why not send in some of my dragoon forces to eat the crystals?" Fireheart offered up.
Lord Gilead shook his head. "We don't know what'll happen to them. The crystals are made of black magic so there's no telling what effect they might have on your men if ingested. They might be corrupted or even killed."
"Which is why I'm needed over on the Campeiro Hills! Withdraw your forces and let us handle it!" King Seth insisted.
King Solaris rubbed his temples with irritation. Seth did have a point, since capturing Erebus would end the war and thus the draconequui sorcerers were needed in the north. He knew that the draconequus king was doing what he thought was right but that didn't mean that he was. Despite the good his kind attempted, the draconequui were just too unconcerned with civilian casualties, instead focused on eliminating their foes as soon as possible and with extreme prejudice. He began to wonder, Did I choose the right allies?
"King Seth, tell your ground forces to stall for time until Star Swirl and the other mages can handle Erebus. Lend General Sunstone some of your chaos magicians to clear the black crystals and this time, try to keep the safety of others in mind. The meeting is adjourned."
There was, of course, grumbling amongst the leaders as they mulled over their choices and in the end, agreed on Solaris' plan. King Seth wasn't happy with the outcome, vocalizing his displeasure with Dragon Lord Fireheart but still agreeing to send aid to the crystal ponies over in the northern front. Letting the others leave first, King Solaris was ready to make his exit with Sergeant Steadfast when Lord Gilead beckoned him over with a sway of his head. Curiosity got the better of him as he joined the griffon in a corner of the tent away from the others. Lord Gilead's pale yellow eyes darted around nervously before he spoke, checking and double-checking to ensure that the two were, in fact, alone.
"Your Highness, you've no doubt noticed King Seth's behavior and how it affects the others. He and his ilk are beyond frustrating, the way they behave as if nothing in the world matters."
King Solaris carefully responded, "Yes, I have noticed this. However, they are our most powerful allies. Are you suggesting that we sever ties with them? We're in the middle of a war."
"Yes, one that they brought with them! The umbrum gave us Equestrians trouble before but it only intensified when the draconequui appeared. Now we can't throw a stone without hitting one. At least back then, the umbrum kept their distance." Lord Gilead then leaned over and whispered, "I can't be the only one that noticed the shadow ponies' only got worse when the war started up here. As much as they say they are our allies, the draconequui are nothing but trouble. They're worse than the umbrum. King Seth himself could end us with a snap of his fingers if he so chose to."
"And yet he hasn't," King Solaris replied, admittedly siding somewhat with Gilead. "He and his kind could wipe us all out but they haven't and will not. It's simply not in their nature."
"Solaris, just because they haven't doesn't mean that they won't! What if they get bored and decide to take over Equestria? You know how their mood changes so quickly. Just...don't forget that."
Lord Gilead promptly departed, leaving King Solaris more uncertain than ever. As much as he wanted to continue to defend the draconequui, every argument fell through the cracks, leaving behind only the mounting concerns of their unpredictable and sometimes erratic nature. I need a drink, he thought miserably.
Princess Celestia's hooves slid gracefully across the harpsicord's keys, creating a lovely tune that nearly moved her music teacher to tears. She become lost in the music, allowing it to sweep her away far beyond the castle and Equestria. Past the stars and beyond the moon she traveled, wrapped in a cloak of melodious wonder. Celestia was so enraptured by her own playing that she failed to notice the envy that radiating off of Luna's eyes as she held her shaking hooves tightly behind her back. Once Celestia lost herself to the music, nothing else existed. Not time, princess training or striving to be the perfect daughter. There was only her and the music.
"Brava! Perfezionare, mia cara!" Cheered the music teacher, a cinnamon-colored unicorn mare with a dark brown mane styled in a large bun. Cantata Arpeggio was a famous music instructor from Bitaly and had been teaching the girls since Celestia was six and Luna was four. She folded one foreleg to hold her riding crop so that she could wildly clap and praise her star pupil in her thick accent. "'onestly, at tis point, you don't need me!"
"That's not true, Signora Arpeggio!" Celestia protested. "After all, practice makes perfect and you aid in my practice."
"Si, tis is true." Cantata smiled and cupped Celestia's face. "Very well! I will stay!"
"Ahem."
They turned to find Luna impatiently tapping a hind hoof. "Shall I get started, Signora?"
"Si, si, go ahead," Cantata replied rather irritably. "Same song, per favore."
When it came to her students, Cantata was warm and excitable with Celestia but bored and disinterested with Luna, even sometimes forgetting the younger sister's presence altogether. Although Celestia didn't appreciate Cantata's gruff treatment of Luna, she didn't want to lose her teacher's favor. Cantata Arpeggio was the best around and had powerful connections, connections that could land Celestia a suitable husband for her mother to fawn over and her kingdom to adore. It was not ideal, but it was the life of a princess, especially one of all of Equestria. Which someday I'm going to rule over, Celestia thought with much forlorn trepidation.
These thoughts were interrupted, however, with the clank of discordant notes, filling the air with sounds equivalent to the screeches of dying cats. Luna smiled sheepishly at them, Cantata only frowning sourly and rolling her pastern and hoof in a get-to-it motion. Celestia, meanwhile, smiled and gestured for her to take deep breaths. Nodding with understanding, Luna inhaled deeply and carefully placed her hooves above the keyboard, collecting herself and bracing for the right moment to begin. Come on, Luna. You can do it. The hooves descended and slowly, but surely, sweet music filled the air.
The melody was slower and the song was played with sharper keys but the music was still beautiful nonetheless, embodying the pain, but also hope, of somepony looking for her place in the world. The dark unicorn swayed back and forth on the bench like a reed in the wind, her movements stiff but also graceful as her head bobbed to and fro. Heel, toe, heel toe, Luna played, her lips parting as she hummed along, her soubrette soprano softly encircling those listening to it and wrapping them in its embrace. She began to sing an aria, her voice like a caged songbird just begging for freedom to spread its wings and fly. Celestia may've been better when it came to musical instruments but Luna just proved that she dominated when it came to singing, sending both Celestia and Cantata soaring before letting them plummet just as she finished up.
Standing up to take a bow, Luna was greeted with wild applause from her sister while Cantata nodded her head politely and lightly tapped the tips of her hooves together in a dainty hoof-clap. Luna wasn't used to this kind response from her music teacher and smiled broadly. "Your playing skills arrre still soobparrr boot yourrr voice? Magnifico!"
"Thank you, Signora-..."
"'owever, I did not ask you to sing! You do not follow instrrrooctions, joost doing whatever you feel like. You still 'ave a lot of worrrk ahead of you. You're dismissed!" Lowering her head, Luna slowly cantered away. Celestia looked sadly at her sister's departure, feeling that their teacher's treatment was much ruder than usual.
"Um, Signora?"
"Si, my star pupil?" Cantata asked, her demeanor gone from ice queen instructor to sickly-sweet best friend.
"Don't you think that you were a teensy bit...harsh?"
Cantata crossed her forelegs. "I don't tink so. Tough love makes forrr strrronger stoodents, no? Luna 'as mooch potential boot does not apply 'erself. Si, she needs a good poosh." Before Celestia could protest further, Cantata kissed her on both cheeks and scampered out of the room, saying something about a meal with an off-duty guard. Celestia shook her head and sighed before trotting off to find Luna, hoping that she wasn't too downtrodden.
Discord exhaled deeply and stretched his back, feeling the shingles scratching his fur and sighing with contentment. Beneath the sun's warm rays, Discord's quasi-reptilian body soaked up the heat like a sponge, purring slightly as the warmth heated up his insides, He watched the clouds roll on by, figuring out the shape of each and giggling when he pictured them in his head. Bicycle. Pegasus with a top hat. Sailboat. His ears perked up as somepony approached him. Looking up, he spotted a dark blue filly standing over him, her head tilted inquisitively. "Hey."
"Um, hey," Luna replied. "What are you doing up here?"
Discord shrugged, "Sunbathing, watching the clouds. Wanna join me?"
"Er, s-sure." Luna paused to inspect the draconequus, noticing the way he kept his serpentine body casually laid out on the roof of the tower, fascinated by the mix of avian, equine and reptilian in his anatomy. She laid down three feet away from him and followed his gaze, finding a very lumpy and puffy-looking cloud. "That one looks like a cragodile with a full stomach," she observed, noticing Discord's expression of consideration. Unconsciously, Luna then scooted herself over a little closer, watching the way his chest rose and fell with every breath.
"I suppose you're right. And look! He's even bent over like, 'Oh! I shouldn't have had seconds!'"
Luna giggled at the sound of Discord's deep-voiced imitation and added, "Yeah! 'Curse you, Ma's cooking! Why can't I say 'no?!'" She sounded cartoonishly deep, her voice coming off as backwoods dopey.
The two burst out snickering, with Discord even slapping his goat leg and Luna snorting very unladylike, which only prolonged their laughing fit and literally had them rolling. Once it finally subsided, they stopped to stare into each other's eyes, almost hypnotized by what they saw when they looked at the other's pupils. Luna's cyan eyes met Discord's yellow and crimson eyes and suddenly, the whole world melted away, leaving only them.
Discord was the first to break the silence. "So, erm, does this mean...that we're...friends?"
"Friends?" It wasn't exactly what Luna was expecting but she delightfully accepted it, since it meant that the two could spend more time together and, more importantly, it meant that Discord wanted to be around her. No pony ever wanted to be around Luna, she was just "Celestia's little sister." Noticing Discord's outstretched hand, Luna beamed at Discord and took it in her hoof. "Definitely!" Her heart thundered away in her chest when Discord curled the fingers of his lion's paw around her hoof to shake it, the warmth traveling from his hand and into Luna's chest.
"Great! I'm so happy I met you, Lu-Lu!"
"'Lu-Lu?'"
"Yeah! Since we're friends, we can give each other nicknames, right?"
Lu-Lu. She nearly sighed it aloud. "Okay, but only if I get to call you...Dissy."
"Great! Dissy it is then!"
Unbeknownst to either of them, this was the day that their fates were intertwined. Once they had started down this road, there was no going back. From then on out, neither Equestria nor either of them, would ever be the same again.
"The dodecahedron exercise was to demonstrate one's grasp of the telekinetic or psychokinetic method of offensive and defensive magic, which can be used to not only lift objects but to also manipulate their physical form." Star Swirl tapped the chalk board with his teaching stick, drawing attention to a series of crude sketches depicting a unicorn magically lifting a carriage and transforming it into a wooden hut. "Telekinesis is the most basic form of magic but on that same token, also remains the most versatile. Between moving physical matter and conjuring energy barriers, it shall be your most-used tool in your arsenal. A true magician is capable of dividing their focus between multiple targets in a combat situation and today we'll be-..."
Discord sighed contently, Star Swirl's voice lulling out into dull background noise as everything but Luna faded out of existence. He gazed dreamily at the filly, his eyes trailing her flowing sapphire and Persian-blue mane, idly wondering how it would feel between his fingers.
WHY DO YOU JUST SIT THERE? TELL THE FILLY HOW YOU FEEL.
It's not that easy! I can't just tell her that! Look at her...and look at me.
For the past week, Discord was more at ease with talking to the Voice, discovering the presence to be oddly soothing, like he had something looking out for him. As much as he'd enjoyed his friendships with Posey and Luna, he always found it to non-judgmental and always in tune with how he was feeling. He often wondered would it be like to have a sibling, especially a twin, and the Voice fit the bill. In its weird, genderless, non-corporeal way.
I AM. YOU LOOK FINE TO ME. IT'S THE FILLY I DON'T GET. HONESTLY, I DON'T UNDERSTAND THE ATTRACTION.
Luna stopped scribbling in her notebook to give Discord a tiny wave, her smile lighting up her face as a light blush reddened her cheeks.
Seriously? She's beautiful! It's as if...somepony took a piece of the night sky and gave it life.
WHATEVER. IT'S NOT MY LOVE LIFE. STILL, YOU COULD TELL HER THE TRUTH.
Discord could practically see the Voice rolling its nonexistent eyes. He was about to retort when he saw Luna's gravity-defying hair flowing over one shoulder, giving him a great view of her profile and he noted the softness of her cheeks and the quiet intensity of her eyes. She was the underpony, the one that was often ignored in place of her big sister. Celestia was older, more magically adept, a skilled musician and was going to inherit the queen's throne when she came of age. Luna was just the "other daughter" and that frustrated Discord. Why can't anypony else see how amazing she is?!
Star Swirl's voice droned on and in Luna's opinion, sounding like a trombone making wah-wah-wah noises. Normally, she would hungrily devour every one of the ancient unicorn's words, painstakingly taking notes of his lecture in hopes of gaining enough skill to finally beat Celestia in something but found herself fixated on a certain chimeric friend. Her eyes quickly flicked over to where Discord was sitting, trailing the unique contour of his body to watch the gray fur of his swan-like neck disappear into reddish brown fur and back into a scaly dragon-esque tail. She took another look at his limbs, wondering how he could possibly move so gracefully with two different legs, one clawed and one hoofed. His wings were also disproportionate and asymmetrical, an odd pair of chiropteran and avian wings that could and should not allow flight.
Surveying her notebook, Luna nearly dropped her pencil upon that discovery that she'd nearly covered the entire page in hearts of varying shapes and sizes, some with arrows and some with flowery borders. Each one contained either the words "Dissy and Lu-Lu" or the initials "D+L," leaving her scrambling to flip the page in an attempt to hide this mortifying action. What in the name of Alicornia is wrong with me? I feel...hot. Am I sweating? Oh no, oh no!
"Luna?"
She looked up and realized Star Swirl was staring expectantly at her, one bushy eyebrow bouncing in irritation.
"Yes, Master?"
The unicorn sighed, "I said, 'What is the fundamental law of magic regarding matter transmutation?'"
"Oh, um, 'Matter cannot be destroyed or created out of thin air, only changed from one form to another. In order to initiate said change, something must be altered in order to provide the raw material for transmutation.'"
Star Swirl nodded, his eyebrows lifting up. "Very good, Luna. According to the Elrein Law, in order to obtain new matter, something must be given up that is of equal value. If you want to create, say, a two-foot stone block, you must pull that stone from somewhere. Building objects out of solid matter requires existing matter. What most ponies-and sentient creatures for that matter-fail to realize is that magic isn't some fix-it-all solution. It is the precise manipulation of cosmic energies and physical matter to provide multiple effects. Magic is simply science that takes thoughts and transforms them into action."
Luna wagged her head up and down, though magical applications was the farthest thing from her mind right now. Detecting a pair of red and yellow eyes probing her, she turned to find Discord staring at her, which brought a very noticeable blush to her already warm cheeks. Admittedly, she wasn't used to having colts stare at her like Discord was and this made her do a giddy little jig inside her mind. Aw, I think I might die if he keeps looking at me like that! Giving him a little wave, she turned to once again face the front of the classroom, missing the look of suspicious indignation on Celestia's face.
Once the lesson was over, Luna galloped out the door and towards the Royal Garden, humming a merry little tune as she trotted with a noticeable bounce in her step. She marveled at how much each and every color appeared to pop, as though she'd been wearing murky-lensed goggles up until now. The wind caressed her face and mane, the sun was shining even brighter and even the air tasted crisp and fresh. Her heart did little jumping-jacks at the thought of Discord, how handsome he was, abnormalities and all. Just the way he looked at her left her breathless. There was no doubt about it: Princess Luna, daughter of Queen Concordia and heir to the Equestrian Throne, was in love.
"Luna!"
"Hey Celestia, what's..." Luna froze. The normally-beautiful filly's face was pale, even for her and her scowling face with trembling lower lip did little favor for her face, which was considered by many to be the most stunning in Canterlot. A clump appeared in Luna's throat, one she tried to banish with an audible gulp. "Celestia? Is everything okay?"
Taking a deep breath, the ivory-colored unicorn replied, "Luna, what exactly is going on with you and Discord?"
"What are you talking about? We're friends." Feeling suddenly bolder, she added, "Is that a problem?"
Celestia narrowed her magenta eyes. "Luna, it's cute that you're searching for a playmate but seriously, him? A draconequus? You could do better you know."
"And what do you mean by that?" Luna shot back with a half-growl. "Why not him? Sweet Gaia, is this about the way he looks? I'm surprised at you, Celestia! As the future queen, you're supposed to care for each and every one of your subjects, no matter what they look like!"
"Luna," Celestia replied with slight force, "Can't you see that he's dangerous? Don't you remember what Mother told us about the Umbrum-Draconequus War? Those things are dangerous!"
"He's not a 'thing!' He's my friend and you...you should leave him alone! You...rotten speciesist!" Angry tears began to stream down Luna's face as she glared at a stunned Celestia. "You don't even know Discord! You don't want to know! He's been nothing but nice and polite since he got here and yet you and Mother treat him like vermin!"
"Luna, please just calm down-..."
"No! Don't tell me to calm down, not when you're talking bad about the only friend I have!" Luna shouted, choking slightly at the end. "He's nice to me, he makes me smile and he listens, really listens! And I'm..."
In love with him...
"-...Proud to have him as my friend! And do me a favor: at least have the common courtesy to at least talk to somepony before you look down your fat, snooty muzzle at him!" Before Celestia could retort, Luna groaned and ran off, littering the stone pavement with salty droplets as she wildly balled her eyes out.
"Annnnnnd…now!"
Snap! The pile of rocks rumbled and flopped around on the ground before rolling over and spelling out, "DISCORD RULES" in all capital letters. The young draconequus pumped his fists and did a celebratory dance, exhilarated by the sixteenth trial being a success. Star Swirl, noticing Discord's trouble with hand waves, and recalling the glass throne transformation, suggested that he should concentrate his magical energy into a finger snap. He theorized that because of the volatile and unpredictable nature of chaos magic, a class of magic that is extremely emotion-based, Discord should use a gesture that was more relaxed than say a closed fist or a finger point. Since then, his skill seemed to improve and levitation and telekinetic spells seemed to come much more easier.
Uh-huh, yeah! Did you see what I just did?
YOU MEAN MOVE A FEW PEBBLES TO FORM A JUVENILE SENTIMENT? THAT'S HARDLY IMPRESSIVE.
Aw man, why do you always have to be such a downer?
BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT APPLYING YOURSELF. BE IMAGINATIVE. THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX. YOU DON'T NEED SOME STUFFY OLD UNICORN WITH SCRAGGLY FACIAL HAIR TO TEACH YOU HOW TO USE MAGIC.
No? Well I need somepony to help control it, to harness it.
"CONTROL?" YOU DO REALIZE YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT CHAOS MAGIC, RIGHT? KIND OF CONTRADICTORY.
Look, it's a matter of...hey, is that...Luna? And she's crying!
AND WE SHOULD CARE BECAUSE...?
"Lu-Lu, are you-...Oof!"
Nearly bowled over by the filly's embrace, Discord grabbed hold of the stone bench and righted himself, keeping one arm around Luna as she sobbed into his chest. "Luna, what happened? Why are you crying?" At first, she babbled through his chest, making very, very little sense but once he wrapped his arms around her, she began to calm down. After a minute, she wiped her face and took a shuddering deep breath.
"Celestia…she was being very nasty about you. She called you a 'thing' and didn't like that we're friends."
A eagle claw gently collected a tear beneath Luna's eye. He chuckled, "Is that all?"
Luna gazed up at his curiously. "'Is that all?' Aren't you bothered at all?"
It was infuriating but Discord didn't think Luna needed to know that. One of them needed to keep their head in this situation."It's certainly mean but I'm used to it. Besides, it's her opinion and it doesn't matter. Does it affect how you feel about me?"
Luna's cheeks lit up at this query. She looked shyly away. "No. I'm still your friend. But Celestia…-"
"-...Can have her own opinion. She's not hurting me, she's not hurting you so why let it bother you?"
The unicorn's eyes met his own. "Because you're my friend, Dissy. My only one. You don't deserve to be treated unfairly, especially from my family. Friends stick up for each other."
Discord smiled affectionally at her, his right paw gently rubbing her shoulder. "You're my friend too, Lu-Lu."
BUT YOU WANT TO BE MORE THAN THAT, DON'T YOU "DISSY?" YUCK! SO MUSHY!
"Be quiet!" Discord hissed.
"Huh?"
Discord momentarily froze. "No, not you, Lu-Lu! I was just thinking of something and I ended up thinking out loud." He then gave a half-hearted laugh and mentally kicked himself as Luna looked at him questionably.
"O-kay. Hey Dissy? Would you maybe...like to go on a picnic w-with me?"
Discord's ears flew up, excited by the prospect of food. "A picnic? Sure, I'd love to! A nice picnic with my best friend. I can't wait! We can have chili dogs, cookies, cucumber sandwiches, chocolate milk!" He was so wrapped up in his rambling that he didn't see Luna stare off into space disappointedly.
Yeah...a picnic...between friends. That's what I meant.
All throughout the morning, Luna's heart was aflutter as she thought of her upcoming picnic with Discord, even if it was strictly platonic. Just being around the draconequus made her chest heat up and her head dizzy, feelings that she'd strangely grown accustomed to and looked forward to having. As something of an introvert, Luna spent much of her free time by herself, either practicing her magic, creating macramé animals or reading, which she did an exorbitant amount of. The young princess would often spend many nights pouring over many quaint and curious volumes of forgotten lore, sometimes reading until she fell asleep or when the candle burned out. To spend time out of her room with an actual friend, one that she also harbored romantic thoughts for, was something so alien and yet so exciting, Luna found herself nervous but also excited at the same time. If there's not a word for it, then somepony should make one.
The Royal Gardens of Canterlot were considered by most to be one of the most beautiful in all of Equestria, rivalled only by the Hanging Gardens of Babylope. It was filled with every kind of flower known to ponykind, from zinnias and chrysanthemums to forget-me-nots and hydrangeas. After settling beneath a magnolia tree, Luna closed her eyes and inhaled the aroma of a thousand different flowers, her lungs taking in each unique scent and then exhaling them out through her nostrils again. What the young princess felt for her chimeric friend was like a flower garden: sweet, pure and beautiful to behold. It didn't matter that he was a draconequus commoner and she an alicorn princess; Luna knew that her heart belonged to Discord, even if he didn't reciprocate her feelings. As much she wanted to be Discord's special somepony, she treasured their friendship and would remain his friend if he asked her to.
"Hiya Lu-Lu!" A familiar exuberant voice shouted, flinging Luna's eyes open so that she could behold its owner, watching him adoringly as he ran up to greet her, his disproportionate eyes sparkling in the sunlight. Although Luna agreed to supply the picnic basket and blanket, Discord insisted that he bring the refreshments, having made the lemonade himself that morning. She rose to meet him and threw her forelegs around him in a gentle but firm embrace, feeling her cheek touching the cloud-soft fur of his chest as she listened to the thumping of his chest. She inhaled, making out the unique scent of cherries, banana cream and daffodils, a scent as random as the creature that possessed it.
"Hi Dissy!" Luna chirped, gazing up to meet his eyes and beholding his joyous grin. She abruptly ended the hug and cleared her throat, nervously pushing a few strands of hair behind her ear. "I noticed Star Swirl was showing you around the royal library. What do you think of it? Pretty neat, huh?"
Discord momentarily stared at Luna before nodding, "Yeah, it was! I've never seen so many books before!" He stopped to spread the picnic blanket out before taking a seat, with Luna shortly joining him. "Did you know that there's an entire section dedicated to textile arts alone? I bet I could really raise my knitting skills."
"You knit?"
"Uh-huh. I learned it from Miss Violet. She's says that it's an excellent way to express creativity." He then sighed and lowered his head, the fingers of his paw and claw hands intertwined as he twiddled his thumbs. Luna glanced despondently at her friend-but-hopefully-someday-more-than-friend, following his mournful gaze out past the gardens and towards the city. She scooted closer to him and placed her hoof on his shoulder.
"You really miss her, don't you?"
"She's like my mom," Discord replied softly. "She wanted me when nopony else did. She's the only family I have."
"That's not true!" They both jumped at the volume of Luna's sudden outburst. The young alicorn blushed and patted Discord's arm apologetically. "I mean, she's not. I'm here too." She followed this up with the brightest, most sincere smile she could manage, all the while hiding the pain she felt at hearing those words pour out of Discord's mouth. For so long, he's been alone and scared. Why? Is it because of how he looks? Ponies are so shallow! She yipped slightly as a pair of mismatched arms pulled her into a tight embrace.
"Thank you, Luna. Thank you."
Luna sighed and returned the gesture, basking in Discord's warmth. "Anything for you, Discord." If she could freeze this moment and stay in it for all eternity, she would. Her eyes drifted towards a pair of gray lips and realized that all it would take was one swift movement and they'd be kissing each other. But would that be wrong? Sure, Luna was head-over-hooves for Discord but what if he didn't feel the same? Would he think less of her? And what if Celestia or her mother saw them? Queen Concordia made no secret of her disdain for the draconequui race, though it eluded Luna why that was exactly. Her mother wasn't exactly the most talkative of ponies.
"Well, I'm hungry. Who's up for cucumber sandwiches?"
From the other end of a brass telescope, Star Swirl observed the children as they sat amongst the flowers, dining on an assortment of snacks and smiling like idiots. Although he couldn't hear what was being said, it was clear that Discord and Luna were blissfully happy in each other's company and this was both heartwarming and worrisome to the wizard. Princess Luna and Discord? He stroked his beard, turning his back on the couple to finish stirring a potion that was meant to prevent split ends and promote softness in facial hair. No, PRINCE Discord. Hmm. In the short time that he'd gotten to know Discord, Star Swirl found him to be amiable, polite and optimistic, sometimes to an annoying degree. In other words, completely the opposite of what was to be expected of his species. Star Swirl knew; he'd met a few of them and was not particularly fond of the chimeric chaos-bringers.
Perhaps it was the fact that he'd been raised amongst ponies that made Discord behave more, well, rational. His magic, though raw and at times unpredictable, was still manageable and could be used in constructive ways, unlike the chaos magic demonstrated during the War. The more Star Swirl thought about it, the more of a marital arrangement between Discord and Luna seemed to make more and more sense. They were both royalty, heirs to thrones of powerful kingdoms and they already liked each other, that last fact becoming more obvious by the second. Now there was only the matter of children. Could a draconequus even mate with a pony, let alone an alicorn? If so, then what would the children be like? Would they be more pony-like or draconequus-like? Would they inherit their father's chaotic magic abilities?
He knew such concepts were inappropriate considering the two were so young but it is never too early to plan for the future. Besides, such a union would unite Equestria and the ruined Chaosverse, bringing more to the alicorn royal family and maybe even producing more powerful offspring. An alicorn or two with chaos magic could prove to be powerful rulers. He frowned. What would Discord be like as a king? Would his simple, equine upbringing give him wisdom and insight into ruling the kingdom or would he turn out to be like his father? The thought made Star Swirl shudder.
Ten Years Ago...
From up atop his perch on the stone fortress' rampart, Star Swirl gazed starkly across the carnage of the battlefield, staring unblinkingly at the piles of corpses that littered the trench-dug earth. Dear Chthonia, what has become of us? He was once a simple wizard, entrusted with instructing magic to the royal family and offering them aid in socieo-political matters. Now he was a commander of a legion of battle-hardened mages. He saw a cluster of pony soldiers marching up to the fortress, the majority of them not even old enough to drink or marry. With the demands of having a massive army and not enough nobles' sons, King Solaris issued a summons to all able-bodied stallions, resulting in a collection of farm-colts, runaways and beggars lining up to join the fight, some of which were less than willing.
The umbrums had managed to recruit many Equestrian-based species to their ranks, including cyclopes, changelings, minotaurs, bat-ponies, chimeras and sphinxes. King Solaris, on the other hoof, was limited in allies, turning to the three races of ponies-four, if you counted crystal ponies-as well as the griffons and dragons, both of whom had to be promised riches in order to even bother to show up. Then there was the issue of the draconequui. Not merely sated by the slayings of their foes, they'd taken to turning parts of Equestria into little hamlets of disharmony. He shook his head, wondering if siding with the strife-bearing serpents was even wise in the first place.
"Master? Are you alright?" A mustard-yellow stallion appeared beside Star Swirl, his tattered blue cloak billowing in the breeze as his dark green eyes pierced into the old wizard's soul. He removed his hood to reveal a short, chestnut-brown mane and a freckle-riddled snout, his face oddly soft with a bit of a hard edge to it.
"Yes Clover, I'm alright. And you can drop the formality; I haven't been your master for some time," Star Swirl regarded his former student, a small grin appearing on his face. My word, it seems only yesterday he was a colt. Now look at him: co-founder of Equestria and a powerful enchanter in his own right. Time does seem to fly, doesn't it?
"Yes, well, old habits die hard, don't they?" Clover replied, smiling nostalgically. "Remember that time I set your curtains on fire trying to do that lightning shield spell? You almost had a stroke!"
"It was a real pity that. They were a nice set of curtains. Still, you managed to conjure a lightning shield. Sort of."
"They were hideous and you know it."
"No they weren't!"
"Mas-Star Swirl, they were mauve with lavender polka dots. If anything, I did you a favor."
The two broke into a fit of riotous laughter, holding onto each other's shoulders for support until they could both breath again. Even with the macabre surroundings, it was nice for a former teacher and apprentice to share a laugh, or perhaps it was because of their surroundings that it was apropos. A break from wartime grievances, as miniscule as they are, become necessary to one's mental health. One could go mad from staring at dead bodies all day. Catching his breath, Clover wiped a tear from his eye before clearing his throat, his expression going from silly to stoic within a millisecond.
"Star Swirl, about the draconequui. I have to warn you that-..."
"Hey there, Starry!" A pair of red and yellows eyes materialized between the pair, nearly forcing them out of their skins as the eyes floated over to reattach themselves to a gray smirking face and a serpentine body. King Seth was dressed in his usual attire of a gold crown studded with multi-colored gemstones and a deep purple military coat with a high-collared, fur-trimmed cloak. He lazily paddled in mid-air, circling the two unicorns while humming an absurd little tune.
Star Swirl regained his composure and whirled on the intrusive newcomer. "King Seth, this is most irregular! Honestly, I thought that at least you, a royal draconequus, would have some degree of common courtesy or manners!" While the draconequus king and queen showed more sanity than their non-royal counterparts, they were still prone to acts of idiosyncratic behavior, such as devouring plates and washing their food or appearing out of nowhere right in the middle of conversations. This made it very hard to plan strategies with King Seth, who seemed to treat everything like a game. His solution to everything was using chaos magic, which made things even worse.
"Sorry to interrupt your little soiree, gentlecolts, but I thought that I should personally tell you that the Everfree Forest and the lands surrounding it are now henceforth the designated property of the Draconequui Empire."
"Wh-what?" Clover gasped incredulously. "Your Highness, there was no such agreement made. Neither King Solaris nor Queen Concordia would allow that to transpire!"
King Seth merely chuckled, "Spoils of war. The umbrum claimed that land by taking it from you and in turn, we took it from them. Now it's ours. After all, they did force us out of our home and now we need a new one. This one."
"Why, you...-"
"Clover, stand down," Star Swirl interjected, a blue-white aura surrounding his former pupil's horn. Clover sighed and stepped away, allowing the magic to blink out of existence. Turning his attention to King Seth, the old pony stated, "Your Highness, while it is true we offered you and your people asylum here, we never gave you permission to start claiming land. You would have to talk to King Solaris about such matters before you just start stealing-..."
"'Stealing'? Did you just say, 'stealing'?" The draconequus loomed over Star Swirl, though he refused to show even an inch of fear. "Last time I checked, the alicorns didn't own all of Equestria. They came in and took it, just as my kind is doing now. So go, go to your king and tell him that I'm 'stealing' all of 'his' land. Don't make me laugh. You ponies act as though you own the world. Well, that's going to change soon." King Seth finished ominously, fading away until Star Swirl and Clover were once again standing alone on the rampart, both of them comprehending what they'd just heard.
"Master?"
Looking once more at Clover, Star Swirl sighed, his heart heavy with resolution. "Report this matter to King Solaris. Tell him that the draconequui are getting out of hoof and must be dealt with immediately." And may Chthonia help us in whatever happens next.
The majestic city of Canterlot, the crown jewel of Equestria, was abuzz with activity as its citizens swarmed the streets like a colony of ants. There wasn't a street corner or storefront that wasn't decorated with red and pink streamers or heart-shaped banners. Amidst the sea of pink and red, couples of different backgrounds, sizes, shapes and colors flocked the bustling streets, eating lunch or going for romantic walks. Others openly exhibited their romance with garish matching sweaters or hoof-holding, the kind of public displays of affection (PDA) that made the more cynically-inclined sick to their stomachs from the sweetness outload. A bowtie-wearing earth pony stallion locked forelegs with a cross-eyed Pegasus mare as he led her away from their blue box transport, marveling at the scene of vast romance occurring all around them.
Meanwhile, up in Canterlot Castle, a certain young draconequus watched all of the activities from the window, a sigh escaping his lips at the sight of so many couples with their special someponies. Discord was never really fond of the holiday, due to the obvious nature of his bizarre appearance, which was not aesthetically pleasing to the young fillies back at the orphanage. As was the tradition, he spent the holiday with Miss Violet, helping her with the decorations and happily munching away on the caramel apples she'd share with him as they watched the fireworks in the distance. His sad fondness of the memory was shoved into the corner when Discord's gaze met the back of Luna's head, watching almost mesmerizingly as her dark blue mane flowed in mid-air, enticing him to reach out and touch it. He fought the urge to run his fingers through its silky surface, his nostrils flaring at its jasmine-infused scent.
MY GOODNESS, THE LITTLE VIXEN'S REALLY GOT YOU UNDER HER SPELL, HASN'T SHE?
Don't talk about Luna like that! She's...nice. And pretty and-and smart!
YES, SHE'S THE WHOLE PACKCAGE, ISN'T SHE? THEN AGAIN, THE CHEESE ON THE MOUSETRAP LOOKS INVITING TO THE RODENT, IF YOU CATCH MY DRIFT.
Discord rolled his eyes, his patience slowly ebbing. Ever since his discovery of his attraction to his new friend, he had to put up with the Voice going on and on about how Luna can't be trusted and that Discord's affections are wasted on the alicorn. As much as Discord enjoyed the Voice's company and appreciated its insistence on protecting him, he could not abide its snarky, disrespectful tone towards his platonic-for-now-but-hopefully-one-day-marefriend-friend.
Just please knock it off. For me?
There was silence and then:
VERY WELL THEN. FOR YOU, I WILL...NOT BADMOUTH THE ALICORN.
Thank you...
Something white appeared in Discord's peripheral and he found Luna leaning back in her seat, trying to appear innocent while peering at him naughtily, like a kid that just snuck a snickerdoodle out of the cookie jar. Quickly grabbing the object, Discord slid it across his desk and onto his lap, being careful to appear attentive to Star Swirl's lesson as the old unicorn demonstrated the correct way to stir and mix a paralyzing potion. The object in question was a piece of notebook paper and upon unfolding it, Discord found that it contained a swirly pink and red border with little hearts and arrows dotting the inside. A neatly-penned message was inscribed in the very center:
Happy Hearts and Hooves Day, Discord!!
Lu-Lu
It was the sweetest gesture that a filly had ever extended to him. Hearts and Hooves Day was a time for romance and love, something that, despite Discord's external optimism would tell you otherwise, he was absolutely certain that he would never experience from a member of the opposite sex. The note was cheap paper but the detail that went into the artwork and the flowing calligraphy moved him to his very core, his heart hammering away in his chest as he fought the urge to start crying. Thankfully, the tears stayed where they were; Discord didn't need Luna to see him as a crybaby, have Celestia point and laugh at him or awkwardly explain his outburst to Star Swirl. He jotted down a quick little message and covertly slid the note into Luna's satchel, giving the alicorn a little grin and a shush motion before they both returned to the lesson, unaware that Celestia had been watching the whole exchange and was not pleased with it.
Ignoring the pile-up of clothing on the floor, Luna frantically threw open the doors of her wardrobe, tearing out dress after dress and tossing them over her shoulders. That night was the annual Royal Hearts and Hooves Banquet and Luna wanted to look her best, not for the hundreds of guests she didn't know and didn't care to, but to catch the eye of a certain draconequus. How else was she going to work up the courage to ask him to be her special somepony? I want Discord to think that I'm pretty! She dipped forward to glance at her reflection in her vanity mirror, taking in the dark blue face and star-littered hair. Celestia was the pretty one, the mare that commanded all of the attention and had scores of colts flock over to her like moths to a torch. Meanwhile, Little Sister Luna was just...plain, barely a spot on the map.
Sinking to her knees, Luna looked disparagingly at all the dresses littered around the room, each one of them elegant or colorful but not representing what she wanted to say, what she needed to say. Her gaze found Discord's note, which lay opened and propped up on her vanity, its simple but neat handwriting sprawled across the page in big letters:
RIGHT BACK AT YOU, LU-LU
DISSY ☺
P.S. Check under your bed. I "borrowed" something from the kitchen to give you. Hope you like it!
When Luna returned to her room, she discovered a small box of caramel-filled bonbons-her favorite sweet-and, to her own shame, devoured the whole box in one sitting, finding the creamy chocolate flavor much more deliciously pungent than normal. Despite the fact that she discouraged Discord's need to steal, she was nonetheless touched by the gesture and realized just how much he actually listened to what she said. With that in mind, she was still bombarded with the matter of finding the right dress. Inspiration struck and Luna, despite being only an average artist, hastily began working on a series of sketches to show to Corsage du Roux, the royal fashion designer. She only hoped it would not only capture Discord's attention but also his heart as well.
That night, Canterlot's elite crowded the grand ballroom and grounds of the royal palace, everypony from prominent business owners to the exceedingly wealthy attended. Amongst the garishly-colorful masses, Discord stuck himself in a corner, dressed in a red evening jacket with golden buttons and a pink bowtie and cummerbund. Queen Concordia insisted that the draconequus was to be formally dressed for the occasion, not out of the kindness in her heart but to ensure that he didn't embarrass the royal family by coming to the banquet unprepared. To his credit, Discord mostly kept to himself and said very little, which didn't matter seeing as how none of the guests either noticed him or preferred not to be seen conversing with an impoverished chimera. So there he stood, silently and quite miserably sipping punch and mentally shaking his head at the snatches of hoity-toity conversations he picked up from the privileged masses.
LISTEN TO THEM. THEY'RE ALL SO STUCK-UP AND DULL. I BET HALF OF THEM DIDN'T EVEN EARN THEIR FORTUNES.
Yeah, but that's the way of the world. Most ponies only see gold or fancy titles.
IT'S TOO STAGNANT, TOO ORDINARY. TOO...ORDERLY.
Discord could practically feel the Voice gagging its words and a spike of revulsion shot up through his stomach. He ignored this and went to refill his punch, catching the occasional (or frequent) stares of the partygoers, with or without sideways murmuring to their dates or associates. He noticed Celestia across the room chatting it up with some sharply-dressed colts and he had to admit, she really looked good, dressed in a flowing carnation-pink gown with lacy shoulder straps and a large fake flower pinned to her bodice. Her normally flowing rainbow-colored hair was gathered up in an intricate chignon with diamond hairpins, giving her the appearance of being a proper lady. She's neither "proper" nor a "lady." Discord snorted, raising his cup to take a drink but then froze when he saw her descending the staircase, all time seeming to stand still for him.
A dark blue goddess gracefully floated down the stairs, her body wrapped up in a ball gown that resembled that painting of the night sky by Van Gait: swirling azure blue and black vistas dotted with stars of various sizes. She had her sapphire and Persian blue mane tied in a side braid and worn a silver tiara made up of several glittering stars. The top of her gown was dominated by a sweetheart neckline and ended in a flowing transparent trail, giving her the appearance of actually gliding across the ballroom. While she acknowledged each and every guest, her cyan eyes were fixed solely on Discord, her smile small but sweet. Wait, is it just me or is she fluttering her eyelashes?
"L-Luna?" Discord's voice came out in a squeak and he instantly wanted to crawl into a hole and die of embarrassment. "You look...um...wow?" Yep, crawling into a hole and dying sounds good right about now. Then again, there's a nice window over there I can jump out of. Less work and much quicker. To his relief, Luna half-giggled and did a little curtsey, which made all of the tension in Discord's body vanish as he recalled that he was just talking to his friend. His nicely dressed, very beautiful friend.
"Thank you, Discord. You look very 'wow' yourself."
"No, I mean, you look b-beautiful! I mean, you always do but, wait, scratch that I-..." The more that Discord talked, the more he wished that he'd stayed in his room instead of coming to the banquet. He clamped his mouth shut and nervously scratched the back of his neck, sweat pouring out of nearly every orifice as the words exited his brain. Oh great, what now?! I look like an idiot!
THAT CAN EASILY BE REMEDIED: ASK THE FILLY TO DANCE. FORTUNE FAVORS THE BOLD AFTER ALL.
"Would you like to dance?" The words shot out of his mouth faster than he had time to fully comprehend them. From Luna's shocked expression, Discord feared that he'd made a grave mistake and felt his chest ache from the sight. Great. Thanks a lot, Voice. He turned away and was ready to leave when he heard three words that never sounded so beautiful before:
"I'd love to!" Before he knew it, Discord was dragged onto the dancefloor and stood uncomfortably close to Luna, her hooves settled on his chest as she balanced herself on her hindlegs. He gulped, placing a shaking claw on her waist and taking her hoof with his paw. Miss Violet had shown him how to dance but he'd never danced with a filly before, especially not when they looked like this and gazed into his eyes. Drawing in a deep breath, Discord began to lead, being careful to avoid stepping on Luna's dress and ruining their evening. The guests were all staring, some even starting to whisper amongst themselves and he wished he was somewhere else.
"Discord?" He peered at Luna and was nearly melted by her soft, lovely eyes. "Ignore them," she said with a gentle smile. "It's just you and I tonight." And with that, all of Discord's fears were alleviated as the two became lost in one another, just two stars encircling one another in their own private galaxy.
Queen Concordia had seen enough. Watching her own daughter dancing with a creature like Discord dropped a veil of red over her eyes. She wouldn't send her guards onto the dance floor; it would disrupt the banquet's activities and make her look bad in front of her subjects. Well, make her look worse. Politely excusing herself from her guests, Queen Concordia exited the ballroom with as much stealth as she could manage and found her way to her bedchambers, where she locked the door and began to drown her sorrows in wine. How could she embarrass me like this? How can she embarrass the kingdom?! Her gaze found the portrait of King Solaris and tears filled her eyes, blinding her to the world around her as she took another gulp.
"How can she betray your memory, my love?"
A three-knock rattle at the door caused her to snap, "Who is it?!"
"Your Majesty, it's Star Swirl."
Despite her current state of irritation and desire to be left alone, she knew that she could always count on her royal advisor's wise counsel, especially in such a dire time as this. Star Swirl would know better than most what devilish little fiends draconequui are. She unlocked the door with a dark pink flash of her horn and barked, "Enter!" The door gently opened and closed as the elderly unicorn entered the room, accompanied by the usual jiggling of his hat bells and bowed deeply, his arthritic bones cracking audibly. "Arise Star Swirl. We have urgent matters to discuss."
"What seems to be the issue, Your Majesty? I saw you leave the banquet quite abruptly."
Queen Concordia nodded and sat up straight. "I saw dear Luna dancing with that-that abomination."
Star Swirl blinked at her. "Um, forgive me, Your Majesty, but I fail to see the problem here."
The queen froze in mid-sip, the wine glass tumbling to the floor and shattering into a thousand pieces. She faced him angrily, slowly rising as her wings unfurled around her like those of a great raptor's. "You fail...to see...the problem?" Queen Concordia annunciated dangerously. Star Swirl, however, stood his ground and looked the alicorn in the eyes.
"Yes, I do." The wizard replied, keeping a calm, respectful tone. "How exactly is this a problem, Your Majesty?"
"BECAUSE OF WHAT HE IS! BECAUSE OF WHO HIS PARENTS WERE! HOW CAN YOU NOT SEE IT?!"
"I know very well what Discord is and who his parents were. Who we are and where we come from do not dictate who we will one day become. I myself came from a dirt-poor village and grew up the son of a wagon-builder. Now I am among the top enchanters in the land and the royal advisor to its queen. I know what it is like to be doubted because of my background. All ponies ever saw was a scrawny little colt with patchwork clothes and not a bit to his name. You look at Discord and are reminded of a war ten years past and a foe long since defeated. You have not gotten to know him nor made an effort to do so. You let your grief and bigotry cloud your vision. Discord is not King Seth."
Queen Concordia's wings sagged to her sides but her eyes still furiously rattled at Star Swirl. "Just because you are my friend and advisor, you do not presume to tell me how I should think or feel. You have no idea what I lost during that war."
Star Swirl looked sadly at her. "Yes, I do. You're not the only one who lost somepony they loved. And it is because I'm your friend and advisor that I'm telling you this: please do not project your loathing onto that colt. The more you treat him like a backstabbing monster, the more likely he is going to be driven to be exactly that." Without waiting for a dismissal, he turned and departed, leaving a very angry and slightly contemplative Queen Concordia alone to ruminate on his words.
Sitting outside in the garden, Luna stared out at the multitude of stars, feeling as though she could drown from the sea of bliss that she was currently in. True, she hadn't asked Discord to be her special somepony; they were both so nervous about their dance and what it could mean for their friendship that she didn't think it was fair to bring it up. Besides, she got the reaction she wanted out of Discord. He thought that she was beautiful.
"Hey Discord?"
The draconequus turned away from the spectacle he was witnessing to face his friend. "Yeah Luna?"
"The gift you left me...in my room. It was very sweet of you. You know it's wrong to steal, don't you?"
"Yeah, I know. I just wanted to surprise you with something, to show you how much I appreciate you. Our friendship, I mean. Having you as a...friend."
It was a good thing that they were outside away from the light otherwise he could've seen the blush heating up Luna's cheeks at that moment. "Thanks I appreciate you as a friend too," she admitted half-truthfully, wishing that they could be much, much more than that. "By the way, how did you know caramel-filled bonbons were my favorite?"
Discord snorted and placed his arms behind his head. "Are you kidding? You told me that a week ago. I remember every little conversation that we have, no matter how seemingly trivial."
Oh, now this is something I have to see. "Really? What's my favorite flower?"
"You can't decide between lilies and carnations, so you say both."
"If I could be anything else besides a princess, what would I be?"
"Pfft, that's easy. A ballet dancer."
"Who's my secret crush?"
This gave Discord room to pause. "Um, you never told me and I wasn't aware you had one. Is he rich?"
"Nope."
"Is he from Canterlot?"
"Yes."
"Do I know him?"
"Mmm-hmm."
"Is it Star Swirl?"
Luna gave a fake-disgusted groan and playfully pushed him. "Ew, no! That's so gross!"
"Well hey, if it's the beard, I can understand. Mares love guys with facial hair."
"Will you stop? It's not Star Swirl."
"Captain North Star?"
"No, besides, he's married."
"Forget-Me-Not?"
"Medley Song Brook's little brother? He's like six!"
"Okay, I give up." He then added cheekily, "Is it Star Swirl?"
"No, you moron, it's you!" Luna then gasped, clamping her hooves over her mouth and turning away. Oh, my Cosmos, I did not just say that! And not to him! Ugh, now I want to die! A soft avian's claw gently grabbed her shoulder and she peered over at Discord, her heart melting at the tender gaze he was giving her. Once she'd turned to face him, he reached out with both hands to carefully unwind her mane from its braid, allowing the dark blue, star-littered mass to flow freely in the night sky and scintillate in the moonlight.
"Your mane looks much better flowing. Much more beautiful like that."
If Luna were to drop dead at that very moment, she would've died a happy filly. Is this...is this really happening? Then, without warning, the draconequus leaned forward and planted a chaste kiss on her cheek, heating her face up like a Hearth's Warming Day bonfire. It was better than any dream she could've ever had. She reached out and caressed Discord's right hand, taking in the softness of the feline fur that covered it. "Discord, I...-"
"What are you two doing out here? The party's inside," Celestia interjected, the two almost leaping out of their skins as they quickly moved away from one another.
"Hi Celestia!" Discord cheerfully stated. "Say, did I say how nice you looked tonight? Very pretty, very regal."
"No, you didn't and thank you. Luna, come on inside before you freeze out here."
Reluctantly, the younger alicorn sighed and made her way inside, stopping to give Discord an apologetic, longing glance before vanishing. Once she was gone, Celestia turned to face Discord and he instantly knew that he was caught. She gestured towards the bench and, seeing no way out, obliged and waited patiently for her to speak. She crossed her forearms and tapped her hindhoof on the stone patio. Sweat gathered on Discord's brow and while he was certain that he could just outrun her, it'd be pointless. After all, princess trumps peasant.
"You know, I love my sister deeply," Celestia began, her voice commanding but also gentle. "Ever since she was born, I'd felt the need to protect her from anything or anypony." She leaned forward so that their noses were nearly touching. "Do you understand me?"
Discord nodded and as Celestia turned to leave, he added, "So do I."
She instantly whirled around. "'So do I,' what?"
Gathering up all of the strength that he could muster, Discord stood up and faced Celestia defiantly, despite every nerve in his body begging him to stay quiet or run.
"I love her deeply too."
What happened first was that Celestia's jaw dropped. What happened second was that she quickly closed the distance between the two of them, her expression reading somewhere between dumbstruck and anger.
"I know you don't believe me, but it's true. Luna's incredible! She's smart, kind-hearted, has a lovely singing voice and is so humble she doesn't think that she's pretty or has much to offer anypony. But she's wrong on both accounts. She's the most beautiful mare I've ever seen and would make somepony a very lucky husband one day." He lowered his gaze and sighed sadly. "Even if...even if it's not me."
Once Celestia's jaw clamped shut, she took a moment to study Discord, as if she'd never seen him before. While she didn't find him classically appealing, she did suppose why Luna might. His face was soft, his eyes weird but sincere and even his mismatched body was oddly intriguing. And, not to mention, he had guts, standing up to the heir to the throne of Equestria like that. Luna was pretty but nopony ever went out of their way to bring that up and the passion with which he spoke of her was downright romantic. But most of all, he was Luna's friend, something that she didn't have and desperately needed. Even though Discord was a freaky little creature, it softened Celestia's heart to know that Luna had such a faithful companion.
"You're alright, Discord. Just don't try anything funny with Luna. If I find out that you've hurt her in any way, I'll turn your head into a turnip."
"No, no, no! Tis is terribile!" Cantata Arpeggio rubbed her horn irritatingly, her riding crop tapping rhythmically against her right thigh. Luna sat at the harpsicord, her head hung disparagingly as the brown mare marched in front of her like a drill sergeant. Celestia stood on the other side of the room, not wanting to get involved despite the expression of sadness on her sister's face. "You arrre doing even worrrst than oosooal! What is going trrrough yourr ‘ead, silly girrrl?"
"I-I'm so sorry, Signora," Luna began, a small blush peppering her cheeks. "It's just, I kind of...met a boy and-..."
"I don't give a flying fig if you joost met a boy!" Cantata bellowed, scaring Luna's mouth shut. "Di tutti gli stupidi…You arrre my stoodent and as sooch, you will give me yourrr fool and oondivided attention!" She brandished her riding crop like a rapier, jamming it in Luna's face. "You arrre a prrrincess and it is time you starrrted acting like it! Yourrr ‘ead should rrremain clearrr of toughts of boys, do you earrr me?"
Something snapped and Luna seized the riding crop, her eyes cold and steely. "As your princess, I order you not to stick that damn thing in my face!" She tore it out of Cantata's grasp and flung it across the room, leaving both Cantata and Celestia silent. "All you ever do is tear me down and make me think less of myself! Do you call that teaching?!"
"L-L-Luna, per favore…"
Luna slammed a hoof down, shoving her face close to Cantata's. "Well, I may be a screw-up but at least I'm not some bloated old strumpet who is so bitter about being a childless spinster that she takes her aggression out on others!" For a nanosecond, Luna's voice became a rumbling growl and her eyes had been reduced to cat-like slits, terrifying the Bitalian music teacher and sending her scurrying for the exit, her sobbing echoing throughout the halls. Wait, what just happened? "W-wait, Signora Arpeggio, stop! I-I didn't mean it!"
She turned to Celestia, who stared fearfully at her. "Luna...what...what was that all about?"
Luna's eyes filled with tears. "I don't know! I'm scared!" She flung herself at Celestia and wrapped her forelegs around her neck, choking sobs filling her chest. Celestia slowly returned the embrace, still unsure of what had exactly gone down. Cantata's behavior was unforgivable but seeing Luna snap at her like that and with such malice? It was like seeing a whole other pony standing there. Her Luna would never had said something like that. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"
The only thing Celestia could do was hold Luna tightly and stroke her mane. "I know, Luna, I know. We'll figure this out, I promise."
Star Swirl eyed the young draconequus. "Discord? You've been stirring that same batch of sleeping draught for the past ten minutes. Is something amiss, lad?"
Discord snapped out of his reverie and sheepishly set the ladle aside. "I'm sorry, Master. It's nothing."
"Is it? I hardly think so. Tell me what the issue seems to be."
A light blush touched Discord's cheeks. "I-I think I'm in love, sir."
This got Star Swirl's attention. "Do you now? And who is the young lady, may I ask?"
Discord's face turned white. Literally. "I couldn't say! I mean, I want to but I'd get in trouble!" He pushed his face into his mismatched hands and began to mumble incoherently. Star Swirl couldn't help but chuckle at the display. He remembered being a colt once and was actually quite the charmer in his youth. There was no feeling in the world that matched the fuzzy sensation of being smitten by your first love.
"It wouldn't happen to be Princess Luna now, would it?"
Discord peeked through his fingers. "W-what?"
The old unicorn chuckled and placed a hoof on Discord's shoulder. "Come now Lad, it's quite evident at this point, at least to me, that you and fair Luna have feelings of a romantic nature for one another. You'd have to be blind or stone-dead stupid not to see it." Discord lowered his heads and hung his head low. "It's nothing to be ashamed of. Buck up."
Discord nodded and gave him a weak smile. "You mean, you're not mad?"
"'Mad'? Why would I be? I'm not the filly's father after all. Besides, it would be a perfect arrangement, you two being royals and all, plus you could-..."
"What do you mean...'us two'?"
Star Swirl's mouth hung open; aghast at his own careless faux pas. "Well, I mean...the thing of it is..." He sighed heavily and took a seat on a nearby wooden bench, gesturing for Discord to join him. Once the colt had sat down, a scroll materialized in the air and Star Swirl opened it up for the both of them to read. "I was in the archives when I discovered this. It's a copy of a royal birth certificate. The last rulers of the Draconequus Dynasty were King Seth and Queen Eris and their only child and heir...was a colt. His name was, or rather, is...Discord."
Trembling hands took ahold of the parchment. "You mean...I'm a...pr-prince? I'm a prince?"
"Indeed you are. And as such, you are fully entitled...to marry a princess."
For a minute, Discord said nothing, his expression one of pure shock and bewilderment and Star Swirl was afraid that he had broken the poor colt. He nearly fell off the bench when Discord vanished and reappeared on the other side of the room, accompanied by party horns and confetti. "Whoo-hoo! I'm a prince, I'm a prince!" He snapped his fingers and the silverware in the sink suddenly sprouted cartoonish faces and limbs, who then proceeded to crawl out of the sink and begin to dance to music that appeared out of nowhere. The stoppers to vials and bottles of potions rocketed into the air, followed by jets of different colored liquids. While the display of magic was quite impressive, Star Swirl was ticked off by the destruction of his laboratory and sanctuary.
"Discord, while this is all amazing, could you please stop wrecking my workshop?!"
"Whoops, sorry, Master!" With another snap, everything was returned to normal, not a single spoon or bottle out of place. "Sorry about that. I guess I got just a little bit carried away." Star Swirl raised a serious eyebrow. "Okay, maybe a lot carried away! Oh man, can you believe it! I'm a prince! Wait until Lu-Lu hears about this!"
"Now wait just a moment!" Star Swirl started. "There's, uh, no reason to start announcing this little epiphany, is there?"
Discord slumped onto his stool and peered confusingly at the old unicorn. "But why not? Luna's my best friend and we tell each other everything. Besides, this means that Queen Concordia has to accept me, right?"
Star Swirl ran a hoof through his long beard, desperately clutching at a suitable answer. He'd already slipped up by revealing this one secret and he knew letting Discord know of the others would be disastrous. "Discord, listen. I know it's new and exciting to receive such information but trust me, we need to keep it between us. A royal's life is one of danger. If the truth of your heritage were to be discovered, then it might draw out enemies, enemies that might try to hurt you because of your princely status. I'm asking you to please keep this between us. At least for now."
Weighing the importance of Star Swirl's words, Discord finally nodded. "I promise. Nopony will hear it from me."
"Good lad," Star Swirl sighed. "Now let's get bad to work. These potions aren't going to make themselves."
By the time Luna met Discord at their spot on the rooftop, the sun had already begun to vanish behind the tree line, leaving the sky in an odd half-orange glow. The young draconequus leapt up from where he lay and engulfed Luna in a tight embrace. "Heya Lu-Lu, how was your day?! I heard Cantata Arpeggio was especially rough on you. Are you okay?"
There was no way that Luna could tell Discord of her outburst, nor of her momentary transformation. Despite the love she had for him, there were some things she'd keep to herself, if only to not mar his image of her. She twirled some of her dark mane and threw it aside. "It was a little tough but I'm okay here. Now. What about you? You were making potions with Star Swirl, right? Pretty boring I'd imagine."
"Oh it was! Yep, soooo boring. No excitement there!"
They both laughed uncomfortably, which was followed by an extended period of awkward silence, during which the pair decided to sit down shoulder-to-shoulder. Instead, they elected to watch the night sky and avoid thinking about their respective experiences that day. One was coping with a surprising revelation about his family while the other was struggling with her inner demons, something that nopony wished for but all had to go through in order to better themselves. Luna rested her head on Discord's shoulder and Discord took the opportunity to stroke Luna's mane, a comforting gesture for the both of them. Yes, no matter what challenges lay ahead, at least they were both secure in the knowledge that they had each other.
