A new perspective

The sun had made its descent almost completely behind the mountains to the west by the time the small group was done with their picnic. Though everything had gone quite well, it had to come to an inevitable end.

Despite being wholly accepted by his six...friends, Discord was still having a bit of trouble accepting that he was not only free, but that he had made friends. Friends who represented the very magick that had sealed him away so long ago, not that he held a grudge. He knew the Elements had been wielded by Celestia and Luna, not these six before him.

Looking up at the stars again he realized he had faded out of the conversation. Coming back into the tirade of verbal slinging going on in front of him, it wasn't hard to tell he had become the topic of interest.

"I already told you I called him for tonight!" It was Twilight, standing and wielding her voice like the weapon it truly was. A bit of a surprise for Discord seeing as she was supposedly Celestia's pupil. Following the argument, he would have to say, for what reason he did not know, that she seemed almost possessive of him, but the others would hear none of it. They argued back and forth until the shyest, Fluttershy if he remembered correctly, brought up a simple fact.

"Wouldn't your report...uhm benefit further if you wrote it with him at the end of the week...I mean...He would have all of those...experiences to tell you about...and-and you would have that whole day...if you wanted to I guess..."

The others looked at her and he just smiled knowing she was right.  Shortly after the small silence, Applejack spoke up.

"Alrighty then, Ah'll be takin' him with me to the farm. The farthest trek for the first night and day. While Ahm here lets plan out the week, oh course if'n thats alright with our friend here." Her hat nodded in his direction and he smiled.

"I'll leave my week..." And how short a week can be "..In your hands ladies. For once I don't want to play a part in any kind of scheme." with his last remark his smile had faded a little, responding quickly so they would not notice he finished "But I am more than glad to make the trip to...your farm..wherever it is." He was by no means a people pleasure, his past showed that without leaving room for argument, but his logic argued that this time around, maybe he should actually try. It was quite strange for him...many things were...for one, he had not even bothered using any of his magick since earlier, something he used to not be able to go five minutes without. He nodded in conclusion to the cowpony.

With another nod Applejack began again.

Before long the plans came together. It was easy for him to make a quick mental map of their home town based on the locations of each of the six that lived within and outside of its borders. Fluttershy acting as the border, Applejack as the outskirts, and the rest as landmarks throughout the town.

Sunday into Monday, the first day, which included tonight would belong to Applejack,

Monday night into Tuesday would belong to Fluttershy,

Tuesday night into Wednesday would belong to Rarity,

Wednesday night into Thursday would belong to Pinkie Pie,

Thursday night into Friday would belong to Rainbow Dash,

The rest of Friday would be spent at the Carnival with all of them, and then came Saturday.

Saturday, the whole day, and into Sunday, belonged to Twilight Sparkle. He smiled.

No one tossed out any plans passed that single week. Only he found it funny or ironic as he smiled and laughed inwardly at his own situation.

One week

With a final dab of Twilight's quill the schedule was complete. Business aside it was time for each of them to part ways. Giving cautious waves to each of his new friends, Discord looked around, spotted the golden hair of his guide, and walked after her. Within minutes they reached a road leading away from town.

The air seemed to almost filter the further the two companions paced. After a moment of looking to the stars again, Discord flicked an ear in Applejack's direction and spoke. "Not that I mind a nice walk after....after eating, but how far is this place of yours?"

She looked up at him and her eyes seemed to pierce right through the blanket of night around them, shining with the luster of the stars above. "Don't yew even try to lie to me. Ah know full-well that yew had somethin' else on yer mind." For a moment he almost decided to let the statement ring and remain silent. With another glance into his companions eyes he realized she would need to be appeased to drop the subject entirely.

Well, at least until the week was up.

Forcing the thoughts of his limited time to the back of his head, he found himself determined to simply carry on, though he would indeed answer.

Applejack gave him another simmering look from the side and finally spoke after the silence had hung for a full minute. "It's only ah few miles outside ah town. Mind telling me what yew were gonna say pardner?" Though the look she gave displayed a slight aggression, the tone of her voice was sweet, almost inviting. He simply forgot what 'friendly' sounded like.

For the hundredth time that evening he looked up, but this time directly towards the moon that was now cresting a mountain in the distance. His eyes grew somewhat distant and his companion leaned closer, reaching out to comfort him, thinking she had said something wrong. Before she could make contact he spoke.

"I..have been gone for a long time. To put it simply I wound up being far too full of myself and thinking with my heart over my head. The princesses put me in my place after I took things too far. But by far the worst part of it all, was being trapped with myself. Dealing with the warring sides inside me that told me what I had done was right or wrong. The one place I had always taken refuge became my prison." He didnt notice he had stopped walking until he shifted his vision to the dirt road and saw his feet where not moving.

Looking over he saw the look in Applejack's eyes had changed. Far from use to the many feelings of the evening, Discord was again shocked to see they now held something he had not seen in centuries....compassion. Reaching out to him, Applejack gripped his shoulder and pulled him into a hug.

The move was by no means sudden but it startled him nonetheless. With a jolt he was stiff as a board until he heard her soft whisper into his fur. "Ah don't know what yew've been through Sugar, won't ever pretend to, But yew 'ave us now. Yer friends." She held her grip until he had relaxed and absently placed an arm around her in a return of the embrace.

The action nearly tore his resolve for moment. The first show of affection he had felt in centuries and it had come from one thing he thought he would never have again....a friend. Parting from the small embrace he looked forward and they began their pace again. In an almost offhand way Discord stated "Thank you." The sentiment was not lost on Applejack as she simply nodded. Nothing more need be said.

Their journey down the long road gave way to dirt paths and winding country side, sparking a conversation between the two of agriculture and soon leaking into the pool of their favorite things. Though he was by no means of the earth tribe entirely, he was always astounded by the works they could do with the hard packed earth all around them, Applejack and her entire ancestry as an example. Soon they had glossed over the topic of innate magick and moved on to personnel topics. Discord skipped quite easily over his early adolescence and to his great pleasure Applejack did not question him, knowing that must have been the time when things took a turn for the worse.

In the middle of talking about the different kind of apples and why they become the color they do, applejack interrupted herself with a serious question to her companion. "Have yew ever talked to anyone about the bad memories yew have? It could do yer heart a mighty good deal."

For a moment, he was taken aback but regained his composure with a smile, "The princesses know of my struggles. In my time I spoke with them."

His meager excuse wasnt enough to dissuade her, "Well shucks, even ah speak to the princesses 'round here every now and agin', that dont mean yew talked about what yew really wanted to." Taking a step closer to him, they matched pace as they continued on through the night.

Glancing up and then over to her he sighed, "You know Honesty....I think you might be right. I'm...just not ready to talk about it though."

The answer was enough for the cowpony "No pressure from me sugar."

The walk through the first fields of the Apple families orchards had been a treat for Discord. He had teleported about once every five seconds, not only took keep up with Applejack's steady pace, but to check each and every new shade of leaf or fruit he came across. It wasn't long before they found themselves at their destination. Applejack lead the way up the wooden steps to the farmhouse and held the door open as he walked in and took in the surroundings. The entry way was welcoming with a few mats and brushes for the dirt and mud, a dog brush or two lying to the side, several simple pictures of favored livestock and awards. A few steps and they found themselves in a dark but cheerful living room. On every wall were many pictures of what one would imagine to be family members based on the abundance and resemblances.

To answer the question in his mind and make a compliment he spoke up "There's no way you live on this farm alone and tend all these orchards by yourself Honesty..."

She smiled and allowed her eyes to fall on each of the many photos one at at time as she spoke "Ah course ah dont. I have mah younger sister, mah older brother, and mah granny ta help, as well as family that stops in every now and agin."

"So then, Where is everyone now?"

She chuckled for a second "They went on a trip to the royal city, I volunteered ta watch over the farm since harvesting season is over..besides, ah wanted to spend yesterday with the girls."

A frown crossed his face "I'm sorry I interrupted your time with them."

She closed the gap between them with another hug, ruffling his cinnamon hair with a grin. "Sugar, you made the day better. What could any of us ask for more than making a new friend."

In truth the smile warmed him. He had been having second thoughts of this whole thing, these feelings, since they had reached the orchard. With so many objects, living or otherwise, around him the urge to change them had come upon him, if even for a brief moment. All of those urges, even as slight as they where, had given him pause. Now they faded away and he remembered the moon. A stable in his old days that always gave him comfort. Looking down to Applejack he rested his head on top of hers for a moment and returned the hug. Grabbing his arm she pulled him towards the stairs. "Its late, both of us need ta get some rest. After all, ah still need to show you 'round my neck of the woods in the morning afore ah hand yew off." With those words the weariness did set upon him and he felt the need for sleep, a bed sounded wonderful.

Allowing himself to be led into a large room and pushed lightly towards a bed he thought to himself  'so, this is what its like to feel accepted.'

"Well, yew sure do look happy." stated Applejack as she threw a blanket over the top of him and moved for the door. "Ah'll be across the hall if'n yew need anythin."

With a wistful grin he replied "Thank you Applejack....Goodnight."

With that she closed the door and was lost to his vision.

Looking out the window to his right he rolled over to better face the view of the moon. It brought a beautiful glow across the land and shot tendrils of delicate light through the branches of the hundreds of apples tree's he could see. Watching the tree's he had the urge to turn a few into marshmellows. As he was about to snap and make it happen he looked harder at the blotch of trees he had examined earlier. Taking interest in the shoots of light coming through the branches and shining down to the ground. It reminded him of his split view earlier that day and he again saw the balance of chaos and harmony in front of him. The want to change things in favor of one of the sides vanished as it had before and instead he felt the need to walk to the window. Getting up he saw a bright flash outside the house and decided since he was up, he might as well investigate, for all he knew it could be the rest of Applejack's aforementioned family back early from their trip. He wondered for a second what would have made the flash, he didn't remember seeing any unicorns in the pictures downstairs.

Making sure as to not wake the hopefully sleeping Applejack across the hall, he made his way down the stairs and quietly out the front door only to find himself strides from the eldest princess.

A moment passed between the two as their eyes locked and neither showed any iota of emotion.

It was the princess who broke the calm first, "You know I've given you more power?"

After a moment Discord answered without changing expression "Yes, your highness."

Quirking a brow she continued "Well. I noticed you've done nothing but...." She made a rolling motion in front of her and did the same with her eyes, "..teleport a bit."

Now breaking his stony expression, Discord clenched his jaw for but a moment "And what business is it of yours what my travel methods are?" he raised a brow and showed a few teeth.

"I see at least a shred of your...demeanor has come back." Celestia spat.

Discord was growing weary of being in Celestia's company already "Why are you here. I have done nothing wrong unless you consider hugging one of your precious subjects to be a crime."

She clenched her jaw lightly and allowed a pause before replying "I understand why you treat me with such hostility and for that I am more sorry than I can say."

He had turned away after his last remark and this new one, catching him by surprise, caused him to turn his head back and stare at the princess. With venom is his voice he asked "What?" It was spoken like the falling of a guillotine, filling Celestia with a flash of dread she had not felt in centuries.

Slightly taken aback at his tone, the Princess spoke "I-I said that I am sorry."

The aghast look upon his face turned to a sickening grin "If you came here to apologize then leave. I give you my thanks for this chance at a new life as you put it, but that does not mean this is a get-out-of-your-past-mistakes-free card." He snapped his fingers and the sounds of a very familiar argument swirled around the two.

Celestia winced before a fire lit in her eyes, "Will you just listen to us for once in your life!"

Her voice was a shout now, and holding the tone of the royal we. He new without a doubt it would have awoken the dreaming Applejack. That fact alone added to his now rising temper

He leapt forward off of the patio steps and landed a few bounds from Celestia, the creaking of his leap masking a noise from deeper in the farmhouse.

There was a fire in his eyes to match her own when he spoke "First off CelestiaYou may be the princess but there are others in this world, you would do well to remember that and respect their times of rest, Secondly, Thanks to you I am on a time limit, why should I spend a fraction of what could be the last days of my life speaking with the one who will take it away?...and third" He paused, letting the sting of his last remark sink in before his anger truly rose, "Third, The last time I trusted you!...you..."The anger left his voice and was replaced with sorrow, "The last time I trusted you....you turned me to stone."

"What?"

Both the princess and Discord turned to the new voice, It was Applejack who had indeed been awaken by the princesses shout and walked in on the latest tidbit of conversation.

She looked at Celestia in shock "Princess? What does he mean?"

"I....will check on you again." backing away the princess vanished in a waiting orb of shimmering white light.

Discord looked at where she had been....had that been a test to see if he would retaliate when offended? Or had she been serious?

"What in the hay is going on?" Applejack sounded non to pleased.

Scratching at the back of his head Discord mumbled "I uhm.....I think the princess just came to check on me. I'm sorry she woke you up, we have a habit of arguing."

With a frown she answered back "Mayhaps this isn't the best time ta be talkin' 'bout this. Its too early, lets both go back ta bed an' talk about it all another time."

He was more than happy to go back inside the house. Though his slow trudging would have said otherwise. He could tell just by the way she had said "Another time." their conversation would come much quicker than he would like.

The rising sun signaled the end of a slow night for Discord. Slow in the manner that sleep would not find him. If he had been asked why, he didn't know if he could rightly answer. His mind felt so new, this whole new view on the world as a balance was indeed beautiful yes, but it put a large amount of strain on his nature. It was like reteaching yourself how to function. Having always been the opposite of any harmonious thing, it made it even more difficult for him.

Stepping down the wooden stairs he could hear the sounds of Applejack humming over dishes. From the look of the table being set up she had been awake for some time and had already made up breakfast for the two of them. Sitting down to enjoy a few pancakes with an apple fritter, he again found himself with an old feeling from deep within. For once it wasn't the urge to change the colors and functions of everything in the room, instead, it was a warm feeling that spread across his chest and brought a smile to his face.

He was happy.

After a short meal and a few rounds of Questions and Answers, Applejack lead Discord across the farm and showed him each of the different fields, telling in great detail all the different techniques, procedures, and histories that were a part of cultivating the crops and fields. Of course, he listened in rapt attention and soaked in the information as quickly as she dished it out, he never knew when he might need this info again. Luckily for him she never once did bring up the events of the night before. He chalked it up to her maybe thinking it had been a dream.

The weather was warm and a tad humid, something he loved. Every now and then he would pick an apple from a tree and slice it through with the one protruding fang that stuck out of his maw before eating the halves. All the while Applejack seemed to find his apple eating antics hilarious as she giggled whenever she noticed him nonchalantly eating one.

Walking back towards the farm house to enjoy an early lunch he stopped to pick up an apple and peg Applejack with it lightly, turning she stared in mock surprise before smirking and picking up another apple that had already fallen to throw back at him. Before he could rightly retaliate he found himself being pelted by apples of all sizes and shades.

The events of that battle would go down in history as one of the most ferocious apple fights to have ever taken place...if there had been anyone else there to witness it.

Both panting for air and hanging about each others shoulders they arrived back at the farmhouse to find that they had a guest waiting in the living room.

Discord smiled and addressed their guest "Ah, Fluttershy, you've come for me?"

She nodded in her usual soft way before looking to Applejack and smiling. Applejack returned the smile and  Fluttershy strode forward to greet him. "Its...Its good to see you are..uhm..doing well." she finished with a meek smile before batting her lashes and staring down at the floorboards.

He took a moment to look her over before speaking "Well, I suppose I should get out of your place Applejack, dont want to keep time from Fluttershy. Thank you for everything so far...I still kicked your hide in that apple fight."

Applejack nearly lost it to her competitive boasting before remembering that Fluttershy was there. "Jus' go with her now, yew and me'll 'ave our rematch, yew can bet a bit on that....take it easy Sugar." She tipped her hat and gave a wink.

As the two walked out of the farm house they could both hear Applejack yelling a final goodbye "Yew're welcome back anytime y'all!"

His first day in a new town with his new...friends. Was he ever going to get use to that word?

shaking it off he looked over at Fluttershy who was examining his different features with a quizzical expression.

He could tell already that this was going to be an interesting day, after all, the countdown had begun.

Six days left.