An Unprecedented Advancement

by GravelordNito

Rating: teen
Tags: Romance, Comedy, Discord, Slice of Life, Twilight Sparkle, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Length: 23055

Twilight is having a same-old night of hard studying at her castle in Ponyville, until Discord unexpectedly arrives, and is acting as he always does. However, something seems a little off about his attitude tonight.

Twilight is alone in her castle shortly after the defeat of Tirek, feeling as intimidated by her new-found home as she has been since its sudden appearance. As Twilight indulges in the mountains of books provided by the ruler of Equestria herself, little does she know she is about to receive a very unusual visit from an equally unusual Draconequus.

How will Twilight react to Discord's visit? After all, Twilight is unsure as to whether she has yet forgiven him for his recent betrayal.

Rated Teen for some suggestive themes. Will add tags as it is deemed necessary.

Cover image from Masemj on deviantart.com

Published 2015-08-23 00:50:01 UTC
Last updated 2019-10-31 09:15:09 UTC

Chapter 1 - The Arrival

*This chapter is tagged for a re-write

Princess Twilight Sparkle was sitting in the study of her castle in Ponyville in the dead of night. But unfortunately for Twilight, her castle was rather large and disconcerting compared to what she was used to, especially when she was alone. Twilight had always been the excessively modest type, and so a castle like her new home sticking out like a sore thumb in the small, modest town of Ponyville made her feel uncomfortable. A lack of furnishings and company meant that every slight movement she made echoed around the room, which she found both irritating and intimidating.

Spike had gone away earlier that day and said he wouldn't be back until tomorrow, and he would not say where it was he was going. Twilight intended to stay up late as usual to perform her studies. A rather large range of distracting thoughts were racing across Twilight's mind, as she hurriedly crammed copious amounts of information contained within the various textbooks provided to her by none other than Celestia herself into her adequately capable cranium. She thought of her friends, and what they made of her recent ascension into princess-hood. She worried for the future of Equestria: Since Tirek came so close to assuming complete control over the lands, who was to say there was not some other, possibly even stronger villain waiting for the opportune moment to strike?

As these thoughts slowly consumed her actively buzzing mind, she constantly stressed herself with her obsessive compulsive need to soak up all of this information concerning her magical studies within a certain tight time frame. Despite the fact she should know such habits are unhealthy, such is the nature of her disorder that this fact remains alien to her, as she believes that in order to avoid disappointing the biggest role model of her life, princess Celestia, she must continue to complete these tasks at a consistent rate.

Twilight's mind was plenty occupied already when, much to her irritation, a loud and Discordant knocking was audible emanating from the grand, golden doors of her castle.

With a frustrated grunt, Twilight made her way over to the source of the knocking and hesitated slightly, taking a second to sift through her mind in search of any hint as to who could possibly be visiting her at a time like this. When she came up with nothing, still rather unsure as to whether this was a smart idea or not, she slowly opened the large doors and prepared to greet her visitor.

She was still unsure as to what she should expect, however she definitely was not expecting to be greeting the Lord of Chaos himself, who now stood before her with his usual confident grin. He was holding a checklist of an exceedingly long nature along with a feathered quill, clearly in mockery of Twilight's habit of making checklists for almost everything she did on a regular day-to-day basis. His grin slowly widened as he hid the contents of the list from her and ticked one of its boxes with a deft swipe of his paw whilst cheerfully remarking in a voice clearly meant to mimic Twilight's,

"Surprise our beloved princess of friendship with an obviously pleasant, and completely innocent visit in the middle of the night? Check!"

Author's Note

I am just going to post a couple of short chapters for now and get to work on scripting the rest. Since this is my first story, I would love to hear from anyone who happens to read this what your opinions and criticisms are.

Also, feel free to let me know what sort of direction you would like this story to go. I have a vague idea, but if any of you would like something in particular and I like the idea of it, I'll take it into consideration when writing the rest of this story. Please bear in mind that this chapter is simply meant to set the scene, and so I have been as descriptive as I can and haven't gone anywhere major yet with the story.

Many thanks, Lord Nito :heart:

P.S. This is the first chapter I have ever written, and so it is not as good as all my other chapters. However, despite the fact it desperately needs a re-write, I don't think I'll be doing that yet. The reason for this being that it is a good reference later when I have gotten much better. And also, it has a sort of sentimental value. :twilightoops:

Chapter 2 - Alone Time

At first Twilight could not believe her eyes; what business did Discord have at her home in the dead of night? As this thought crossed her mind, Discord spouted in an overenthusiastic tone,

"Why, good evening, Miss Sparkle! In need of some wonderfully entertaining chaos this evening? Well, no need for you to answer that one. Judging by the your dishevelled mane and the bags under your eyes, you have been bored out of your mind working on an assignment for Princess Sunbutt, I presume?"

Upon hearing her mentor's most distasteful nickname, Twilight shot a furious and impatient glare straight into the eyes of the Lord of Chaos before her and demanded,

"What on Earth do you want from me at this late an hour Discord? Or is that a stupid question to ask? Because knowing you, you are here for no particular reason at all, and unfortunately for the rest of us, it's in your nature to do so."

Discord was rather disappointed that Twilight had chosen not to comment on his mock checklist, and thus rolled it away without further comment, and instead chose to keep the chaos to a minimum. At least, until she let him inside...

"Oh Twilight, my dear, what do you take me for, some sort of nuisance?" Discord chuckled, "Now wouldn't that be just ridiculous?" Upon meeting Twilight's deadpan expression, he knew he was heading in the wrong direction if it was his wish to be invited into her home, and so decided to hold up on antagonising her further.

Discord suddenly had what he considered to be a brilliant idea, which would be the means by which he would achieve his goal of being invited into the abode of Twilight Sparkle. And so, he snapped his fingers as subtly as he could and caused it to begin to rain heavily. He was almost certain that Twilight knew he had caused this abrupt downpour, but that was not what mattered, because without proof Discord could simply deny any accusations if Twilight decided to pursue her suspicions.

Discord wrapped his arms around his torso and shivered intensely, whilst looking at Twilight in a pleading manner of an exaggerated nature. This caused Twilight to roll her eyes and sarcastically say,

"Would you like to come inside?"

"Oh yes I would Twilight, yes I would," said Discord, in a deep tone which made Twilight's skin crawl for a reason she could not quite put her hoof on, "I would like nothing more than to spend some quality time with a close friend of mine."

And so Twilight begrudgingly stepped aside to allow the now soaked Discord into her home. Discord could taste the scent of initial success on the tip of his tongue, and decided that now was a good time to resume his previous antics in order to pursue his cause further. Twilight walked past him and noticed something rather peculiar about her floor, it looked a little more glossed than usual. However, she thought little of it and proceeded back to her study, choosing not to offer Discord any pleasantries.

The sooner he was out of her hair the better, and in order to achieve this, her best bet was to ignore his antics as best she possibly could. After all, she felt sure that Discord's only aim was to rile her up as usual and provoke reactions from her. And Discord would feel more tempted to linger the more he saw that he was getting under her skin.

"Twilight, I couldn't help but notice the absence of a certain baby dragon; is he away?" asked Discord.

"Yes, he is for now. Why do you ask?" Twilight explained.

"Oh, I was simply curious, you know how well little Spike and I get along and all," remarked Discord.

Perfect, thought Discord. He would have little interference in his efforts tonight, he may even be successful after just this one night. However, it was still too soon for him to get his hopes up.

After Twilight had picked up a book, notepad and quill, and resumed her reading and taking notes, Discord decided to mess with her a little bit and thus regain her attention. After a brief period of thought and awkward silence, at least on his side, Discord said,

"Well, Twilight, you are clearly having a much more fun time reading those books than you would be indulging in pro- I mean, recreational activities with a rather dashing draconequus, who happens to be sat right behind you," commented Discord, "however I cannot help but point out that you are not going to get very far with your notes if you continue to scrawl along the paper with your heavily overused toothbrush."

"I'm not using a toothbrush, I'm using one of my qui-" she glanced at the two items held within her magical grasp, "Discord! No funny business or you are out of here! I'm only letting you stay until this rainstorm is over, despite the fact you could probably just teleport home at any time if you wanted to,"

"Wasn't me, you must have picked it up by mistake," he said with a small grin as he held up his hands in front of him in order to emphasise his supposed innocence.

With an irritated grunt of dismay upon realising that she just gave Discord exactly the kind of response he probably wanted, she lay the toothbrush down and picked up another quill. However upon glancing back a few seconds later, she found that another quill had appeared in place of the toothbrush.

Keeping her cool, she resumed her work, surprised at how mild this prank was for Discord, he would usually turn her limbs to silly string, or mould her horn into an ice sculpture or something like that.

Discord noticed that he had to step it up a notch, if he was to get her to react how he wanted her to. So, Discord turned all of her chairs into beds of flowers and disappeared from sight for a while, intentionally not speaking to her at all, and leaving her alone on her freshly transformed bed of flowers. Twilight didn't think much of it as she absentmindedly sank into the flowers, feeling her drowsiness slowly overcome her as she dropped what she was holding and drifted off. Discord, who was watching from a mirror in Twilight's room, pumped his fist into the air as he succeeded in his aim yet again.

With twilight asleep for the time being, Discord began to make some changes to the castle which were sure to give her a surprise when she woke up. Whether or not it would be a positive surprise for her or not was not yet certain in Discord's mind, however he could only hope for the best.

Author's Note

The story is now much less descriptive than the first chapter, and much more focused on story progression, as my main objective with the first chapter was to set the scene. The story is going to take off from this chapter onwards!

Chapter 3 - Setting Up Shop

"Hmm, what to do, what to do," Discord pondered aloud, as he paced throughout the castle. He was unsure of how long he had left before Twilight awoke, "perhaps I could... No, that wouldn't... Or maybe I could simply be myself? No, maybe not. Twilight doesn't find 'myself' all too appealing." As Discord ran his thoughts, a sudden idea came into his head, however for a reason beyond himself did not find its way past his lips: What if I were to be myself, but in a romantic way that is sure to tingle Twilight's heartstrings?

Knowing now what it was he was to do with her castle, Discord set to work on making it happen. With a snap of his fingers, Twilight's dining table became laden with candles which floated upside down about half a foot off the table, their dripping wax forming a heart shape as it dripped onto the ceiling, defying both gravity and the laws of motion. Perfectly subtle, thought Discord, with a satisfied grin on his face. Two wine glasses with snaked necks and swiss cheese bases were placed across from each other, either side of the table. A little late for dinner, but it's never too late for a glass of wine or two and a friendly chat.

Discord was pleased with his work thus far, however he was not yet finished setting the scene for his night alone with whom he believed to be a particularly bright sparkle in the desolate sands of over-abundant life. After having had a sudden thought cross his mind, Discord came to the realisation that he and Twilight could not be any more different from one another. Twilight was a perfectionist who cared a whole lot for following rules and set routines, whereas Discord was all about breaking the rules and preferred everything to be not quite right in one way or another. Despite this fact, Discord believed that it was this which would bring them together, as opposites generally attract. He would have to remember that one for later; Twilight loves science after all.

With another snap of his fingers, Discord replaced the regal curtains with blocks of chipboard, which he decided would look lovely painted red with a diagonally placed oblong window or two through them. The curtain supports could not support the chipboard blocks, so they simply hung in the air in front of the windows. They span in a clockwise motion, and then an anti-clockwise motion, swapping direction in short intervals and turning at varying speeds. He considered flipping the castle upside down and/or causing it to spin randomly, however he realised that this would be too much. He couldn't get carried away, or Twilight would not be impressed.

Next, Discord decided that the carpet had to go. He replaced the carpet with a seemingly endlessly deep body of water, with two small groups of lily pads across the table from one another. They were sprouting on the surface of the water from the flower beds which previously adorned the carpets. After hanging some streamers made from interlinked pretzels from the ceiling, Discord, with a loud chuckle, decided that he had done enough to the dining room. Now to move onto the rest of the castle...

Twilight Sparkle had begun to stir due to the sudden changes in magic concentration in her castle. At first she jumped up, alarmed at the presence of a magic-wielding intruder, but she soon remembered that Discord had shown up earlier, and she had allowed him entry. Twilight was unsure of exactly how long she had slept. However, she was sure it had not been too long, as upon gazing from her study windows, it was clearly still the dead of night.

Twilight became aware of Discord's absence, and suddenly experienced a sinking feeling when she realised that she had dozed off and left Discord not only unsupervised, but also with a free run of her castle. She heard a loud cackling noise coming from her dining room and set off to investigate,

"Discord! You better not have caused any trouble while I was asleep," called Twilight as she ran to the dining room.

In a sudden panic, Discord decided not to bother with the rest of the castle for now, and snapped his claws to produce what he considered to be a rather dapper outfit: a purple shirt, a green blazer, a blue tie and a walking stick made from polished oak, topped off with a silk, green top hat to match his blazer. Discord quickly teleported into the hallway to greet Twilight before she reached the dining room,

"Miss Sparkle, I would be most delighted if you would join me in the dining room for a glass of wine, and a friendly chat between two close friends," hummed Discord, rather courteously.

Author's Note

After some very kind and helpful comments on my story so far, I have produced this chapter with their advice in mind, and I hope it is as good as you all are expecting. I have to be honest, this chapter was a little difficult to write, as I knew what Discord aimed to achieve with his changes to the castle, I was just unsure of how he was to go about it. But in a sudden moment, the idea for a simple glass of wine in a specially prepared dining room crossed my mind, and I latched onto it. I still don't think I have remedied all the problems with my previous chapters which were kindly pointed out to me. However, I have given it a try, and hopefully I am steadily improving.

Thanks so much for your continued support,

Love, Lord Nito :heart:

Chapter 4 - Dressed To Impress

Twilight Sparkle halted suddenly, as her gallop down the hallway leading to her dining hall was brought to an abrupt stop. Discord blocked her path, and after having listened to his offer, she could not believe her ears. Why she did not just teleport into the dining room, Twilight was unsure of. Perhaps she just hadn't fully woken up yet.

"Excuse me? Are you up to something? What have you been doing while I was asleep?" She yammered, still panting after her panicked sprint.

"Slow down, slow down, Twilight. That's a few too many questions for me to answer all at once, don't you think? I'm innocent; why in Equestria would I meddle with this shiny, new castle I am certain you absolutely adore?"

Sensing that he was lying, and actually had made some changes, Twilight replied,

"One can never tell what will happen with you around, Discord. Plus, what makes you think I would want to spend time with you? I have not forgotten about your recent betrayal, Discord, and it's going to take a lot more than a medallion to gain back the trust I'm not even sure I had for you in the first place!"

For a very brief moment, Twilight thought she could sense something in Discord's eyes. Grief? Remorse? Hurt? She quickly cast the thought from her mind, and took a moment to take in the features of his attire. What was with this getup? He must be plotting something, trying to make a fool out of her, mocking her as he does to all before him.

"Discord, why are you wearing such an outfit, only for us to mull over a glass of wine?"

"Isn't that obvious, Twilight? Dining with a princess is serious business, after all!" Replied Discord a little nervously, whilst tugging at his collar gently and attempting to hide his face with the edge of his hat.

Discord's current behaviour was very strange, even for him. Twilight's thought process was alert with intense suspicion, her eyes following his every move, like a hawk honing in on it's prey. She was onto him, and she was going to tread with caution from now on. She had to admit, she was quite curious as to how this situation would turn out if she accepted his offer. She knew that whatever Discord had to throw at her, she would be ready.

"Okay, Discord, I'll humour you. I don't have to get back to my books right away, since it doesn't seem as though I was asleep for very long,"

"No, you weren't," whispered Discord, some signs of agitation and disappointment in his voice, "well, you are here now, so let's make the most of our time together!" He exclaimed, with an anxious chuckle, "if you would follow me, please, princess..."

Discord led the way into the dining room, holding the door open for Twilight. When she saw the watery depths below her in the room, she looked back at Discord with a look of anger and disbelief. However, Discord still held his bow outside the door, looking at the floor whilst holding his arm into the room like a signpost. Twilight chose not to comment aloud, and took flight over the water, now taking the time to take in the full view of the room before her.

Discord looked up once she had passed him, and froze in place. He was now eagerly watching her and awaiting her response, with a rapidly intensifying sense of dread. After what felt to Discord like an eternity of waiting, Twilight spoke to Discord without turning to face him,

"Discord... I am quite impressed." Discord's face brightened up with hope at her words, as a smile slowly spread across his face from ear to ear, only to suddenly be shattered by the words that followed, "this is much less severe a change than I thought it was going to be, I was planning on incinerating you if it was too much." Discord laughed heartily at her words, but once again, this was quickly halted when he saw the confused expression on Twilight's face, as she finally turned to face him. With an awkward cough, Discord flew past her and perched on his lily pads, beckoning her over to sit across from him on the other bed of pads.

"Come hither, Twilight, and let us make a toast to your new home!" Discord sang, as he held up his empty glass with his paw.

Without saying a word, Twilight slowly lowered herself onto the lily pads. She took her suddenly full glass in her magical grip, noticing its peculiar design,

"cheese and wine. How original, Discord." Twilight said with a sarcastic, bored tone, attempting to provoke a response from the draconequus. However, he merely offered his glass across the table without a word. Confused by the lack of a response, Twilight raised her glass and clinked it with Discord's, which made a loud beeping noise. Twilight looked around her to identify the source of the noise, however quickly realised that things like that were to be expected, considering the one she was currently in the presence of.

Discord laughed upon seeing this response, and after having gradually filled up his glass as he motioned to tip the initially non-existent contents down his throat, he said,

"Twilight, what am I to you?"

This was a sudden, and very heavy question to ask. At first, Twilight was unsure of how to respond. After she had sipped a little of her wine, she then said,

"I think you already know the answer to that one, Discord." He looked around, avoiding eye contact whilst whistling a tune and pretending he did not hear her answer. He also strummed the same tune on a handful of seaweed he had pulled from the water.

Twilight sighed, and then her face hardened as she turned serious,

"If you want to hear the full answer, I'll be happy to spell it out for you," upon hearing this, Discord halted his activity and chose to change the subject. This is not going how I wanted it to at all, he thought, I was foolish to ask such a question so early on! He quickly changed the subject and attempted to score some points with her. After wiping the sweat forming on his brow, Discord crossed the table, grasped her small, lavender frame in his grip, and brought his face next to Twilight's; motioning around the room with his other arm, he said,

"So, do you like what I have done with the place? All you said earlier was that the lack of severity impressed you, but I want to know what you really think."

Pulling away from him as best she could against his powerful grip, Twilight replied,

"Well, these lily pads are more comfortable than I expected, however I'm not so sure about the new curtains... Oh! Those candles give off quite a romantic fee-" she trailed off, as she looked up towards the wax dripping onto the ceiling. Instantly realising that he had messed up, Discord hurriedly retreated to his side of the table. Feeling severely feverish, he braced for impact. And I was foolish enough to think those patterns were a good idea! He cursed himself.

Author's Note

Taking my time with the coming chapters, got to get it right. :twilightsmile:

Love, Lord Nito :heart:

Chapter 5 - Paving The Way

"-ling." Twilight finally finished, as she recovered from her period of glazing over at a sight which obviously had baffled her. Twilight slowly lowered her head, and locked her petrifying gaze upon the dilated, mismatched pupils of Discord. His heart lurched in reaction to the seemingly cold, emotionless look now smeared across her face.

"Discord." Twilight deadpanned dangerously, "what is the meaning of this? Are you toying with me again?" Twilight firmly, yet calmly demanded of the now quivering draconequus, making it clear how close she was to blowing her top,

"Well, You see..." Discord nervously ran the fingers of his paw through his beard, as he could sense himself slowly slipping away from the situation. He could almost feel the chances of his plans coming to fruition flowing through his fingers, as softly and easily as his well groomed beard currently slipped between his digits. Now all too aware of how he had taken far too long in coming up with a viable excuse, Discord began to sweat profusely, "u-umm, w-well, it's just, you know, umm..." Discord's eyes flickered left and right as he desperately searched for a distraction, a solution, anything to get him out of his current nightmarish situation. But he could find nothing. His mind betrayed him; he could not even think clearly enough to come up with a use for his magic to aid his cause. Since when had Discord, the Lord of Chaos and Disharmony, been stuck for ideas with his chaotic magic?

After having teetered on the verge of oblivion for several moments, Twilight, of all things, was to become his saviour. Or at least that's how he felt at first, as he let loose a colossal sigh of relief upon hearing her voice.

"Discord, if this is some sort of ploy to mess with my mind, give it up now, you will not be fooling me again. We made our amends once Tirek was defeated, let's not ruin that of our friendship which we have recently rekindled. Now tell me, loud and clear, no more mind games. What are you trying to achieve with something like this?"

Discord was dumbstruck; this was not the reaction he expected at all, exactly what was going on in her head? Discord felt a fresh wave of worry wash over him, dousing him in a thick cuticle of paranoia. Is there a big misunderstanding going on here? How am I to make her understand my feelings without seeming too forward? Discord considered the challenge of getting the mare of his dreams to reciprocate these feelings for a brief moment, however decided to push it to the back of his mind. He had to focus on clearing up this misunderstanding first, whatever the nature of it was. He knew Twilight suspected him to be plotting against her again in some way, however what exactly it was she believed he was trying to achieve through this current situation was beyond him at the moment. She is giving off the impression that she does not know, however if she had no idea, there would be no suspicions or references to a time when we were enemies. Discord reasoned, as his mind began to cool off, his paranoia seeping away as a result of his reasoning.

This thought process was swift and sure, Discord now had another goal to aim towards, and he had to be careful about how he chose to proceed, as he was treading on thin ice at the moment, not to mention he was currently under her roof. Discord focused his resolve on the task at hand, and after having calmed down from his rather lengthy moment of weakness, he knew if this was to go anywhere, he would need to take a small risk, however he could not go too far. Discord answered Twilight in a steady tone,

"Why, Twilight, I do believe you are rather a large fanatic for books of all kinds. Surely you of all ponies, know of a kind, and romantic gesture when you see one?" Discord said with a roll of the tongue upon the word "romantic", and then, after having whipped out a large bouquet of flowers from beneath his hat, he offered them to the princess.

As Twilight tentatively reached across the table to retrieve the flowers, cautious of his every move, she squeaked and dropped the flowers as they coughed over her face in a comic fashion. Twilight awkwardly cleared her throat, blushing in embarrassment at her involuntary noise-making.

The delightful pangs of success tickled Discord's sides, along with a pleasant tweak in his recently revived heart. He felt overwhelmed with gratitude due to the adorable display he had just witnessed. He could tell his gamble had paid off when the room once again fell into silence. However this time, a more comfortable and much less tense silence than before. Discord is back in the game, no more hiccups will be made tonight. He cheered himself on.

The rest of their time together was short-lived but comfortable, and mostly involved both of them trapped within their own thoughts. After both had finished their wine, Discord wrapped up the night with a snap of his fingers, causing the room to revert to its original form.

"I do hope you had a nice time tonight, Twilight. Makes for a nice change from those boring old books, right?" Remarked Discord, with a slight smirk pulling at the edges of his lips.

"Yes, well, thank you Discord. This was not as bad as I thought it would be. I think I should hit the hay, busy day tomorrow... The storm is still raging outside by the looks of it, so you can stay in one of the guest rooms upstairs, just take your pick. I'll wake you up in the morning and send you on your way." Twilight looked worn down and deep in thought, as she slowly made her way towards the door.

Discord nodded and slowly lowered his head, tipping his hat to the princess and flourishing his arm as he held the door open for her. He stayed put as Twilight made her way down the hall leading from the dining room, she seemed to be staring at the floor and looked slightly dazed as she walked. Discord figured she really was just exhausted.

Yes! Discord internally screamed, as he began to strut off through the opposite doors, his swagger back in his step, as he made his way up the stairs to the guest rooms. He had a satisfied smile written across his face, feeling sure he had taken a step in the right direction. Twilight did not snap back at him after his latest advance, her reaction was a victory in his eyes. Since his risk was successful, he believed that this would serve as the match to ignite the flame which was his ideal romantic relationship. Discord went to bed with the firm belief that it was only uphill from here, and although it would most likely be an arduous trek at times, he would make sure he was prepared to handle this relationship with care, no matter how long it took.

As Twilight walked lethargically up to her room, her mind was ablaze with thoughts following on from the events of this evening. What is he planning? Does he want to claim my heart, only to tear it out of my chest and destroy my resolve? Surely he has truly learned his lesson, and therefore would not do something so cruel? He seemed sincere enough about his apology for his betrayal... Perhaps, these advances are for real? No, they can't be, that's completely out of character for Discord. There is something going on, I know it! But what is it?

Twilight had been walking on auto-pilot, and thus had not realised she was now stood next to her bed. Suddenly realising where she was, and also how exhausted she was, she pushed these questions out of her mind. She could only hope that they would fade away along with Discord once he departed tomorrow morning. Feeling slightly more sound of mind, Twilight climbed into bed, closed her eyes, and let sleep overcome her as she thought of nothing but her desire to rest.

Author's Note

Hello everybody, it has been a short while. This chapter has taken a while longer than usual, as I have just gone back to school, and it is often difficult to find the time and energy required to write a good, quality story for you guys, I hope you can understand. :twilightblush:

With that out of the way, I have a question for you: do you like the chapters as they are, or do you think they should be a bit longer? The reason I am asking this is because all of my chapters so far have been on the shorter side, and so perhaps making them a bit longer will help you guys feel as though I am providing you with enough content to satisfy you in the periods between chapters. If a chapter is too short, then surely there is a chance that some of you will think it wasn't worth the wait? Perhaps I am just being paranoid... Anyway, tell me what you think in the comments, if you have the time. :twilightsmile:

As always, I hope you continue to enjoy my story,

Lots of Love from Lord Nito :heart:

Chapter 6 - An Interesting Arousal

A blindingly bright strip of light poured through a gap in the curtains, into the temporary domain of the Lord of Chaos, as the Princess of the Sun rose her Sun into the morning sky with her magic. With a startled gasp, Discord woke up and wiped his eyes with a currently bloodless and suffocated paw. Noticing a distinct lack of feeling in his limb, he gave it a shake and a rubbed it in order to get blood to flow back into the strangled appendage. He looked over to the clock on the wall of the room to check how cruel Celestia had felt that morning.

6 am… Six o’clock, in the morning. Discord could never understand why ponies liked to wake up this early, it seemed to him like nothing more than a bother to wake up before your body told you it was ready to do so.

The memories of the previous night suddenly flooded his mind, and he realised where he was. Jumping out of bed, he snapped his fingers and teleported into Twilight’s study, the place he thought he would most likely find her. Discord had not given much thought as to what he was going to do this morning in order to follow up on the previous night’s, “complete success”, as he considered it.

This realisation hit much too late, as he was now already in the study and possibly in the presence of a certain lavender mare, whom he eagerly sought to impress with his decisiveness, confidence and… Handsome-ness? The doubt as to whether or not this was actually a word was short lived due to his vastly superior vocabulary. It should have been obvious to him from the start that “handsomeness” was a real word, as he was Discord, the one and only super-intelligent stud in Equestria, who had seen more days than most ponies had brain cells... Or so he liked to think.

Once he had finished glorifying himself in his own mind, he realised he had been stood for a long time with his talon to his chin in a deep state of meaningless contemplation. He had not been able to decide whether he was an amazing draconequus, or whether he was just an amazing draconequus; his chaotic mind eventually told him the answer was goulash, and that was a plenty satisfying revelation. He had been stuck in his trance for much too long if it was his aim to remain undetected by any other presence in the room with him at the time.

Discord could not believe his luck when Twilight was nowhere to be seen. This meant he had some extra time to think about how fantastic he considered himself, in order to bolster his confidence. He needed this confidence for the day ahead, after all, if all was to go his way.

A sudden idea came into his head which made him rather giddy: What if Twilight is not awake yet? Do I dare take a peek at her sleeping face? He quickly shook the idea out of his head, picking up the goofy grin threatening to jump off of his chin, literally. The runaway smirk had been attempting to abseil down his goatee in vaguely disturbing silence, subverting into a frown upon capture by a large paw.

He had to focus less on creeping, and more on impressing. I think I have just the thing… He chuckled to himself contentedly, quickly turning his frown upside down and smiling once again. His mind danced with images of Twilight blushing and jumping into his outstretched arms, accepting all he was, and all he had to offer her.

Stop it, Discord, get your head out of the clouds, you already took one successful gamble, but that does not mean she will be showering you with love and kisses after one unofficial date! He cursed himself. He had to be careful, not only in his actions, but also in his expectations in respect to his crush’s responses to said actions. Whether things went his way or not, Discord knew he was going to be under a lot of stress today. This is going to be a long day; better get to work on phase one of my master-plan…

Twilight Sparkle opened her eyes, and hopped out of bed, surprisingly well-rested after the previous night’s happenings, ready to tackle the day head-on. She looked over to her clock, and realised how late it was: 7 am. She had overslept! Ears pressed against her head, Twilight began to feel her skin crawl with discomfort upon realisation of the fact that she had broken her daily routine of being up by 6:30 am at latest every single day, no matter what time she had gone to sleep the night before. Her left eye involuntarily twitched several times, and Twilight suddenly felt much less prepared to embrace the day ahead of her than she had mere moments ago.

Twilight swore to herself that she would never commit such an inexcusable act ever again. Realising there was little she could do about it now, she let her head droop in a sulk, and made her way to the bathroom to freshen up with a nice, long and relaxing shower.

It’s perfect… Discord’s eyes twinkled with mirth as he gazed over his creation: pancakes with golden syrup and lemon juice, prepared with love in the kitchen, ready on a tray to be delivered to its intended recipient on a silver platter. Discord felt very proud of his accomplishment; it had taken a large bulk of his resolve to stop himself from snapping some pancakes into existence with his magic. After all, where would the love in that be?

Wheeling the cart on which the platter was placed across the ceiling, Discord set out to deliver his masterpiece to the sleeping beauty upstairs. Discord knew exactly where Twilight’s room was, as he had taken a few trips to have a look on one or two evenings... Or ten, 'to see how his favourite pony was doing'. However, he excused himself from feeling creepy through logical reasoning: I needed to know where she slept in advance, just in case anything like this came up. You never know what will happen to me, after all, I am the Lord of Chaos!

Discord zig-zagged his way through the painfully straight hallways of Twilight’s castle with his currently anti-gravity breakfast on wheels in hand. Once he had reached the spiral staircase, he realised he couldn’t think of anything interesting to do in order to traverse them, and so snapped his fingers to teleport, thus skipping them. No harm in cheating every once in a while to mix things up a bit.

He had finally reached the doors of his - the princess’ bedchamber, he checked himself. Slowly and awkwardly letting himself in, Discord looked around the room, his eyes passing the unfortunately regularly rectangular window directly across from him, until his mismatched pupils landed squarely (and slightly less regularly) upon Twilight’s bed, to his left.

Missing.

Where in Equestria is she?! I had better not have worked my backside off making these pancakes, only for Twilight to have up-and-left me here alone… As though in answer to his cries, Discord heard a loud running of water coming from the door just across the room from Twilight’s bed. Without considering for even a second what he could be walking into, Discord was absolutely fixated on delivering this platter to Twilight. Time seemed to slow down as Discord approached the door with a grin across his face, his mind up in cloud nine, and thus he failed to recognise his unnaturally sluggish movements. Despite this slow-motion almost definitely meant to be being taken as a sign of alarm, Discord continued his advance upon the door, a feeling of anticipation welling up inside of him for all the wrong reasons. As he reached for the handle, the only thoughts he let pass through his head were of what he hoped Twilight’s reaction would be, just as he had made the mistake of doing earlier.

*sigh*, much better. Let the stress melt away with the water, as it cleanses both your body and mind… Twilight was thinking deeply and comfortably to herself as she basked in the delightfully refreshing walk-in shower she had within her luxury ensuite, or at least, she was thinking comfortably at first. she was still decoding her still cryptic memories from last night. She had had a little to drink after all; she had always been a light drinker. She remembered an interesting situation with Discord in the oddly lain-out dining room, and she had yet to decide upon what she made of Discord’s advances. She could not get her head around it, no chain of reasoning she could put together seemed to make complete and undisputed sense to her. It had been nagging in her mind for a while now, like a thorn rupturing the spleen of her sanity.

As Twilight was enjoying her well-earned shower, she suddenly remembered what had happened just before she had gone to bed the previous night. It had not stopped raining, and their little session together was over, and she had made off to her bedroom to hit the hay for the night. Not however, before offering for Discord to… Stay the night… Oh, horse-apples, he could have done any number of things to my castle! What if he plotted to put his plan into effect once he had my trust, and had me out of the way for the night?! What if… Twilight began to panic once again, her mind suddenly being yanked cruelly back into the realm of constant stress and worry by a long, shadowy, clawed limb. Its icy digits clasped around the remainder of what had been her slowly recovering mind, giving her a cold and fear inducing feeling, which brought her out in a non-temperature related sweat.

Twilight jumped out of the shower, which had all been for naught on account of her current state, both physically and mentally. She realised that she had forgotten to turn it off, and so she jumped back in again to turn the nozzle. As she reached for the knob, she heard the door of her ensuite click, and the handle turn. She jumped out of the shower again in order to cover herself; after all, in the land of Equestria, any time in a restroom was private time. It was poor etiquette to allow oneself to be seen exposed in such an environment. In an embarrassed follow-on of her manic state of panic, Twilight collapsed onto the floor, bringing her towel down with her. She had given up, and decided to lay there in exhaustion, as her towel had landed on top of her, just barely covering her now almost completely exposed body.

Discord opened the door, stepping into the room, with his cart in tow.

“Surprise!” Shouted Discord, bringing his arms up into a ‘Y’ shape above his head. He was a little let-down at first, as he had yet to receive a reaction. However, the reason for this soon became apparent, as his eyes landed upon a small, purple body, sprawled out across the soaked floor of what Discord had just discovered to be her bathroom. The panting mare was soaking wet through, in a rather undignified position on the tiles. Unfortunately for Discord, a towel had plotted against him, just barely covering up what he would really have liked to see. Curse you, towel, you will pay. I will be sure to make your life, and that of all your kin who follow, a living nightmare for the rest of eternity! Coming down off of his brief high of rage, Discord came to terms with what he was actually witnessing. A crimson blush spread from ear-to-ear across the draconequus’ face, as he could not tear his gaze away from the spectacle in front of him.

As if in shamelessly perverted trance, Discord continued to gawk, not breaking his gaze even to blink, as he committed this image to his permanent memory. He attempted to lean his gaze round the edges of the towel, but to no avail. Twilight was in just as much of a daze, as she slowly recuperated from her episode of panic and needless worry. She was the first of the two to realise what was happening, and matched Discord’s blushing expression. She gazed up at him from the floor, sitting up and covering her front with her arms, holding her towel up in a defensive position as part of a natural response. Discord gasped and reeled back in shock at his own actions, as Twilight’s eyes continued to grow wider with each passing fraction of a second. Please don’t scream, please don’t scream, please don’t scream… Discord was practically begging an unseen force to pluck him away from his current predicament.

“T-Twilight, I can explain!”

Author's Note

Gah! This one took a while once again! Sorry about that, :twilightsheepish: but this chapter took a lot more time and effort than all the ones previous. :twilightsmile:

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I will get right to work on the next one. Sorry these notes are brief, but I don't really have much to say at the moment, I may make some amendments if I come up with anything. :facehoof:

As always, Lots of Love from Lord Nito :heart:

Chapter 7 - The Silent Agreement

This time, Discord felt sure he was a goner.

After a stunt like this, there was no way in Tartarus that Twilight would be willing to even so much as look at him for the next week, at least. All Discord could hope for was some measure of understanding from Twilight: surely she would be able to deduce that this was just a simple mistake?

Bathroom time was private time in the land of Equestria, and thus any intrusion was a violation of one’s privacy, especially when caught as exposed as Discord had just found Twilight.

As Discord continued to await his moment of judgement, the one moment that could possibly break Discord’s one shot at a possible romantic relationship in his long and lonely life, he grew steadily more uncomfortable. He could feel his heart beating along rhythmically with the passing seconds, or at least, as rhythmically as is possible for such a chaotic heart. He had been praying, begging and hoping with all his will that something beyond himself would solve the current situation. But alas, nothing happened.

Twilight continued to stare, frozen in place. Her eyes had now grown impossibly large, and her breathing was rapid, when she suddenly stopped breathing entirely.

Discord’s extreme embarrassment and anxiousness disappeared in an instant, being replaced instead with worry and concern, as he could tell that something was wrong.

As Discord watched from the doorway, he saw the thawing Twilight begin to drop to the floor once more, her eyes rolling up into her head. Could she really be…? Oh dear, she is! Without a moment’s hesitation, Discord launched himself across the room in hopes of catching Twilight on her descent.

Discord wrapped his talon around her front, just as her head was about to collide with the tiled floor. After a brief moment to admire how fantastic his reflexes were, Discord gently held the violet alicorn to his torso in a protective embrace.

After a small and daring squeeze, and a short lived moment of pleasant satisfaction, Discord proceeded to hold his new-found stress-reliever out at arms’ length, and check if she is actually okay. It had occurred to Discord that this was very peculiar behaviour for Twilight. He understood the rule of general Equestrian etiquette when it came to bathrooms, but he was expecting something more along the lines of a screaming Twilight cursing at him, who then proceeds to give him a lecture about how terrible he is and how much she hates him.

For a brief quantum of time, Discord had a passing thought that made him feel a little queasy and excited. Perhaps she reacted that way because she was even more embarrassed about being seen bathing by me than she would be by anypony else? And if that were to be the case, could that possibly mean that…? No, of course not. That would be ridiculous. After just one successful, yet non-official date, there’s no way she could possibly see me that way. Especially after all I have done to this land and its ponies…

Feeling his excitement deflating as quickly as it arrived, Discord wrenched himself back to the matter at hand. Or, in this instance, paw and talon.

Twilight was passed out like a light, but it wasn't the first time Discord had made a mare faint. However, despite the fact they usually just fainted out of fear, Discord liked to think that it was his dashing good looks that did them in. In this case, Discord had deemed both of these possibilities unlikely, and instead decided that extreme embarrassment, confusion and shock had been the most likely culprits.

Unsure of what to do next, Discord supposed he should wrap the princess up in a towel, carry her out of the bathroom, and lay her down on her bed. Gently.

He carefully drew the bed covers up over her small frame, and after lowering his head to get a better look at her face, Discord suddenly felt a wave of some unknown emotion wash over his body. She was awake, definitely.

Twilight was laying on her bed, allowing Discord to tuck her in, after having just awoken from passing out. I can’t believe it… Does she honestly think that if she continues to close her eyes, I won’t notice the change in her breathing pattern? Why in Equestria would she even pretend to still be passed out? He suddenly felt that same uneasy feeling from earlier relapse. Could she possibly desire for me to tuck her in like this? Or is she just too embarrassed about the fact she passed out, and thus isn't willing to face me yet?

Allowing these thoughts to fade once again, Discord suddenly remembered the breakfast he had prepared for Twilight. Walking over to the trolley, he grabbed the handle and rolled it over to the bed. He decided he would leave Twilight the breakfast by her bed, and then react accordingly when she eventually got up, and came to find him.

He would prefer to spare her the embarrassment of telling her he knew she was awake, and pretend this never happened. He could only hope she would rather it be that way too, and thus avoid bringing it up. After all, Discord had plans, and those plans would be very difficult to carry out if there was to be an uneasy air between them. Upon this thought, Discord wafted his arms in the space between him and Twilight, dispersing the jumble of letters fluttering around within it. He felt rather frustrated that the only letters floating around were 'u', 'n', 'e', 'a', 's', and 'y'; that made far too much sense considering what was passing through his mind at the time.

With a frustrated huff, Discord then proceeded to leave the room, and after one long, backwards glance through the doorway, he walked down the spiral staircase in a completely usual fashion, and back into the living area. Discord found a comfortable looking sofa, and sprawled across it. His long, tufted tail trailed off the end of the expensive fabric padding, and then dangled upwards as the sofa began to levitate around the room.

Left alone with his thoughts, Discord let the many things nagging at his mind all come barrelling in at once, allowing a comfortable chaos to dull his impending migraine. Although the chaos was comforting, Discord noticed that this time, a chaotic mind wasn’t going to get him anywhere when it came to putting these matters to rest mentally. Begrudgingly, the Lord of Chaos began to attempt to order his thoughts, and tackle each problem one at a time. Oh, this ought to be fun…

Twilight waited patiently as the sound of footsteps grew increasingly distant, and when she knew for certain he was gone, she sat bolt upright, and began to feel a little overwhelmed. What just happened? Her mouth was left agape, as she stared at her bathroom door. That actually just happened, didn't it? Oh, I'm such an idiot… Why did I pretend to be passed out for so long…? Why did I even pass out? What’s wrong with me?! I've never read about this sort of thing; how was I supposed to react?!

Twilight’s mind was ablaze with emotion, confliction and confusion. She was a princess: the most faithful student of Princess Celestia, so why was she letting this bothersome draconequus get to her?

Twilight roughly ruffled her damp mane with her hooves, becoming increasingly frustrated with herself. She couldn't blame Discord for what had just taken place; it was obviously an accident. He must have been so worried… No. No he wasn't. I don’t care for him, and he doesn't care about me. He betrayed us, and serves to do nothing but play with a pony’s mind…

But if that were to be how I truly feel, then what’s this feeling in my stomach? I don’t understand…

Groaning with displeasure at her current state of mind, Twilight looked over to her bedside and noticed a trolley, upon which was a plate of pancakes. Hesitantly, Twilight picked up a pancake with her magic, and took a bite. Thankfully, it was still warm, and it didn't taste off in any way.

This certainly was strange for Discord, and so Twilight simply did not know what to think any more. Upon second thoughts, she supposed this was actually pretty normal for Discord, as being constantly and thus by nature chaotically different was supposed to be his speciality; being normal was actually quite chaotic for a chaotic being.

Twilight decided to spare her mind further torment over the paradox of chaos, and just accepted the situation as it was. She figured thinking about it too hard would only serve to give her a headache, which was probably what Discord wanted. Thus, Twilight sat in a blissful silence, her tumultuous thoughts dissolving a little more with each piece of surprisingly delicious pancake she ate.

Discord had given up hope of dealing with all his problematic thoughts in an orderly fashion. He had become too frustrated and flustered, and it simply wasn't his style. It was so much easier and less frustrating to let these thoughts just blow over, and he was good at that. So instead, he focused entirely upon making their day as successful as it could possibly be. No use dwelling on the past now, I suppose. If Twilight brings anything up I will simply improvise. Although, I deem that an unlikely event, of course.

The way she feels about me will become clearer the more time I spend around her, I’ll bet. And so, rather than thinking it through and driving myself insane, I think I’ll just go with the flow for now.

Satisfied with his decision, Discord lazily rolled himself off of the sofa, and slowly lowered himself back onto his legs again. He began to patrol the lower living areas of the castle, growing impatient due to Twilight’s absence. Discord certainly was not one for sitting still and waiting patiently, and although he wouldn't admit it, he was giddy with anxious anticipation.

Of course, Twilight was none-the-wiser concerning what Discord had planned, and thus Discord’s current plight was convincing her to spend the day with him. One careful step at a time, Discord. A bead of sweat began to run slowly down his cheek, and he wiped it off in haste.

Breathing steadily, Discord steeled himself in an attempt to calm his nerves. Oh dear, this is so unlike myself… Whatever happened to the determined, strong and reliable Discord I know and inherently love?

Discord summoned up a mirror and began to stroke his goatee in silent contemplation. All this worrying is ageing me. Whatever would I do if I developed crows’ feet?! My beautiful complexion would be ruined! I'm an immortal, so surely that can’t happen, right? Discord’s voice was strained and desperate. His reflection moved to reply, but Discord clamped its mouth shut, as he reached into the mirror with his talon. Nope, not talking to myself any more. We – I stopped doing that, remember?

Discord hurriedly snapped his talons and the mirror was gone. As he turned to his right to make for a door behind him, he caught sight of a mirror on the wall adjacent to the door he aimed for. Glancing into it for a moment with an irritated expression, Discord scoffed disapprovingly. I knew you were there, of course. I just prefer to use my own mirrors… Moving through door quickly, lest the mirror have a chance to snipe back, Discord heard the distant sound of hooves on tiles approaching him.

Suddenly standing to attention, Discord looked around the room frantically, as though looking for a place to hide. Upon realising that he was too late to take action (and that there really was no reason for any to be taken anyway), he casually leaned against the wall to his left, and grinned nervously at the door frame he suspected Twilight Sparkle was soon to trot through.

Act. Natural.

Twilight had gratefully finished the plate of pancakes, and decided to go downstairs and see if Discord had decided it was time for him to take his leave or not. After teleporting the trolley back to the kitchen, Twilight proceeded down her staircase, and began to patrol the lower living areas of the castle in search of Discord.

Twilight noticed one of her sofas had moved considerably and was facing a very out of place direction. She was on the right path.

After wandering around the adjacent rooms for a while, she had almost given up. She felt certain Discord had taken his leave. Drowsily, Twilight made for the one last room she hadn't checked yet: the seventh living room.

Walking through the doorway leading to the room, Twilight noticed Discord stood leaning against the right hand wall of the room, a stupid grin plastered across his face. She immediately became flustered,

“G-Good morning, Discord. I t-think we may have p-possibly met already this morning, b-but I was probably day-dreaming, right? I went to have a shower, clambered back into bed, fell asleep again, and you were kind enough to make me some pancakes and leave them for me when I woke up. That’s definitely w-what happened, I'm sure of it.”

Cursing herself for completely botching up her cover-up of what happened that morning, Twilight winced and closed her eyes as she awaited Discord’s response.

“Oh, yes, you must have been day-dreaming.” Discord waved his hand over his shoulder dismissively. “I have been busy all morning preparing those pancakes for you. Good thing I knew – I mean, managed to find my way around your kitchen, eh?” Careful, Discord. Think before you speak in future!

Twilight was incredibly thankful that Discord seemed to share her wishes that what had happened in the bathroom never be mentioned again, and so calmed down a little bit. She noticed Discord fiddling with his forearms as he looked hopefully into her eyes. There was a brief pause in conversation that did not go unnoticed by either party, and so Twilight decided she ought to speak up.

“Indeed it is! Thanks for the pancakes, by the way, they were delicious! Almost as good as Spike’s, in fact.”

“Oh, well, I don’t really know what to say…” Discord blushed and looked away. Twilight felt a tinge of that frustrating feeling come back, as she didn't know how to react to Discord’s actions. Is he really that glad I enjoyed his cooking, or is he just messing with me, as usual? Surely if he didn't care then he wouldn't have bothered to prepare the pancakes at all…? Discord had noticed Twilight staring off into nothingness for a moment, deep in thought.

“Twilight? Twilight! Snap out of it!”

“H-Huh? Oh, yeah. Um… You don’t have to say anything, Discord. In fact, I owe you a favour, especially after what you did for me last night. Is there anything you would like that I can do for you, in return for what you've done for me?” Twilight looked up at the draconequus, giving him her sweetest faux smile. I will find out your true intentions, Discord, just you watch me! Good or bad.

Discord blinked in surprise upon hearing those words. Twilight would do me a favour? What an opportunity! He put his paw to his chin as he thought through his options, and oh were there so many of them. Discord was now the one to be lost in thought, a smile creeping across his face as he basked in the wonders of his imagination.

“Err, Discord, you okay there?”

Snapping out of his stupor, Discord realised he must have been creeping Twilight out. Impeccable timing, Discord. Are you deliberately trying to drive her away?! Let your imagination go another time, not while you are stood right in front of the mare herself! With a frustrated grunt as Discord realised he was talking to himself again, he looked down and saw Twilight’s quizzical yet concerned expression, and so returned to the task at hand.

Answer wisely.

“Well, Twilight, I am honoured that you would offer me something like that so casually. I hope you don’t mind if I seize this opportunity right here and now?”

“Of course not, Discord.”

“Alright, all I ask is that you accompany me around Ponyville today. We can go wherever you like.” Discord said, and looked down at Twilight seriously, having regained his confidence.

“Oh, y-you mean, like a picnic or something? But we already ate together last night…”

“Oh, no! No! You have me wrong,” he held up a talon, “last night was an unofficial dinner date. Today, we can do whatever you'd like.”

“But, then, today is official because…?”

Discord’s eyes widened; as far as he was concerned, he had just asked her out on a second date, and this time, he had no explanation for why it could be unofficial. His confidence had buckled as he replied,

“W-Well, yes. Err, today is the day I… Uh…” Discord could not find his words, and looked as if he was having a miniature nervous breakdown. Twilight blushed lightly as she clearly realised what this meant.

“N-Never mind, Discord, you're working yourself up a bit too much. I will accompany you today, for whatever reason it is you have for it. I’ll go and get ready; you should wait here.”

As Twilight began to gallop away, Discord was left feeling a little incomplete. That had not gone how he had planned it to at all. He had messed everything up at the last moment. She had him figured out now, for sure, and he had no way of knowing how this would affect their day together.

Oh, poo.

As Twilight ran through the halls, and back up the staircase to her room, she could think of nothing but chaos and confusion. Discord’s act seemed so real! How am I meant to react to that?! A date? Is he pulling my leg, or is this the real deal? I just don’t know! Twilight bounded up to her bed and threw herself onto the pillows, she now regretted offering him a favour. She had done nothing but cause herself more grief, and for all she knew, she could have been playing right into his plans to ruin her.

Twilight sat up, and steadied herself. She was going to go on this date and find out his true intentions no matter what. When I find out, I can finally set my mind at rest. But, if by any chance he is being serious… do I feel the same way? Twilight shook her head; she would cross that bridge when, or if she even comes to it. For the time being, she had to focus on playing detective during this date, and in turn attempt to expose the true intentions of the Lord of Chaos.

Author's Note

Hey there everybody! :twilightsmile: It's been a while, I know. But I have been going through some extremely rough times with school in real life, and it has restricted my writing drive somewhat. However, I finally got to this chapter, and worked pretty damned hard on it. I hope you enjoy it, but I may be a little rusty...

I changed the format somewhat in this chapter, I'm a naughty writer! :twilightoops: I just thought that since they parted ways so many times that it was a good idea to give each scene the perspectives of both parties. It helped give me a more defined structure to work with. I may not be able to do it next chapter, because they will most likely be together for most of it, but we'll see.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed. I am still here to stay, it just took a little longer than usual, sorry! :twilightsheepish:

Lots of Love from Lord Nito :heart:

Edit: The foreshadowing in that last line about me being here to stay hurts me deep in my soul after my unannounced hiatus. :twilightblush:

Chapter 8 - Winging It

Discord had been stood waiting by the front door of the castle for what felt to him like an eternity. What is taking her so damned long to get ready?! Why does it feel like I'm anticipating an apocalypse? Discord anxiously pulled his talons through his beard, eliciting a harsh scratching as he did so, which sounded like a violinist trying to kill off the neighbour's dog. His patience slowly dwindling, Discord set about entertaining himself with thoughts of just what Twilight might have them doing today; he had asked her to figure something out for them, after all.

Pushing away thoughts of concern which claimed that he had put too much pressure on her, Discord's mind wandered to all of the incredible activities in which she could have the two of them participating in the far reaches of Pony... ville. The dreamy smile on Discord's face slowly drooped into a flat grimace as he realised how little they had to work with in this bustling little village.

After lifting his arm to perform an auto-face-lift, Discord chanced a glance over towards the mirror on his left. Looking good, you old devil! he chuckled, as he brushed his blue tie with a talon, causing it to giggle softly. Discord had decided that he would wear the same outfit as he had worn last night, as Twilight at the very least seemed not to dislike it. Better safe than sorry... he mused sagely, as he heard the clip-clopping of hooves approaching from the hallway to the back of the room. Straightening himself up, and with a bead of sweat dripping down his brow, Discord scrunched up his face in an attempt to loosen it up before he glazed over with his signature, half-lidded, arrogant smirk of an expression.

Twilight Sparkle was sat in her over-sized bedroom, staring blankly into the mirror at her dressing table, unsure of what to do with herself. Her mind was a tabula rasa; she could not for the life of her decide what to do next... Where should I take Discord today? I have no idea what sorts of things he enjoys doing, what sorts of things I would like to do, or what would be best for uncovering his motives... Oh, Celestia help me, I just don't know! In a bout of frustration, she ruffled her hooves through her mane, whining in a desperate manner as she did so.

As an extra punch to the gut, she realised that she had actually just considered moulding her decision with Discord's preferences in mind, and sank her hooves even deeper into her head, rubbing until she felt her scalp was going raw. I don't care what that Mad God wants! Why am I such an idiot for even offering to do him a favour?! Twilight halted her thoughts, and with a slow breath in and out, she flexed her hoof from her chest and outward, in an attempt to calm herself.

Just breathe, Twilight... Let's just go with the flow today; no plans, no lists, just act natural and gain his trust. I'm used to winging it now after all the trials and tribulations of becoming an alicorn, right? Right?! Twilight sighed explosively before rolling her head around softly in an attempt to freshen up her mind and relax her body; fixating her sights upon the reflection in front of her, she set to fixing herself up for the day ahead, starting with her freshly-frizzled mane.

Clearing his throat with a fist to his muzzle, Discord heartily greeted the apple of his eye,

"Hello there, Twilight, my dea-UGH!?" Discord sputtered as an over-sized apple walked around the corner and into the room, before settling into the carpet. To Discord's horror, the apple then proceeded to speak to him in a voice identical to that of the apple... of his... eye...

"Umm, Discord, are you alright?!" The apple squeaked in alarm, as it began to slowly back away.

Discord's face once again slowly drooped into a familiar grimace, before he reluctantly turned towards the mirror on his left once more; looking back at him was a giggling draconequus with its arms folded across its chest. "That's not funny. It's not even remotely funny. At all." he said to the smug-looking reflection.

Clearing her throat nervously, Twilight winced as she looked up at Discord from the corner of her eye and said, "Erm, Discord... Who are you talking to...?"

Gasping in alarm, Discord looked back towards the mare in the centre of the room and upon seeing the familiar face of Twilight Sparkle worriedly staring up at him, he chuckled nervously, "Oh, no one, my dear, just practicing my lines for the upcoming performance," he said, as a curtain descended between the two of them, before quickly coming back up to reveal Discord balanced upon a giant inflatable ball, looking down towards a cardboard cut-out pony as he addressed it with the same lines he uttered towards the mirror.

To the relief of Discord, after a few seconds of astonishment flew across Twilight's face, she seemed to simply accept this as being normal for Discord on account of his nature. She then proceeded to smile sweetly up at him and cheerfully sang,

"So, shall we get going?"

"Gladly, my dear," he said dreamily, as Twilight's voice was like honey to his ea-... Discord managed to catch himself before another disaster occurred on account of his metaphorical musings... Note to self: No more metaphors. Satisfied with this, Discord slid the note into his mouth, and opened the door for the princess, allowing her passage into the warm air outside. Looking back into the mirror, Discord pulled two talons up to his eyes, before pointing them back towards those of his reflection. He glared angrily at himself once more before he tore himself away from the mirror, nervously straightened his tie once again, and followed Twilight outside into the jolly little town of Ponyville.

"So," he mused, as he snapped his fingers to give himself a pair of sunglasses with no lenses, which perched on the end of his snout. "Whatever will you have us doing today, then, I wonder..." Discord said as he looked down at the nervous-looking mare in front of him; she was staring off into the distance with a glazed look over her eyes. Upon noticing she had been asked a question, she replied,

"Well..."

Author's Note

Well... Here is a new chapter! Finally... Hehehehehe :twilightblush:
Sorry for the wait, folks, but hopefully the wait was worth it. Not sure if I have retained my talent or if this is total bogus, but, I tried my best. :twilightsmile:

Lots of love from Lord Nito :heart:

Chapter 9 - Complications

"Well..." Twilight mused carefully as she brought her little hoof to her muzzle in contemplation, scrunching her face up adorably as she searched for a golden thread in the blizzard of her mind.

"Well...?" Discord reciprocated, raising an eyebrow in expectation,

"I was thinking we could maybe just go for a walk around Ponyville and go visit some of m - our friends!" Twilight beamed hopefully up towards the draconequus. "After all, since we're all made up now after the Tirek incident, I think it would be good for you to spend some time bonding with some familiar ponies."

Twilight nodded her head as she looked away from Discord, seemingly pleased with her decision, as it was for the betterment of everyone that Discord furthered his reformation. Plus, some time around the elements of honesty and kindness in particular may help in uncovering what Discord is currently scheming with all these advances... Twilight, you're a genius! Twilight's blank expression warped into a slight grin, rubbing her hooves together as she basked in the satisfaction of finally having a somewhat concrete plan.

Discord's eyebrow continued to rise as he looked down at his favourite mare in bewilderment. Just before his eyebrow made it out of the stratosphere, Discord shrugged off Twilight's strange behaviour and allowed her proposal for their day together to dawn on him. Discord visibly shrank and slumped as fantasies of various private romantic outings skittered out of his ears and across the floor; they looked like nothing other than crystal balls of a misty hue, revealing their contents only to those who understood the perspective of their owner. Reaching slowly down to retrieve them, Discord tentatively placed his favourite ones into his new knapsack that had the words "shattered hopes" written across the front of it, sniffling exaggeratedly as he did so.

Having recovered from her own bout of madness in record time, Twilight watched the draconequus with a bemused expression, before carefully saying, "Okaaay then..." as she slowly rolled her eyes over to her left, turning away from the Mad God before setting off towards the town centre at a hurried pace.

Snapping back to reality with a crack of his neck, Discord twisted to his left and set off in pursuit of Twilight, easily matching her brisk pace as he dejectedly mumbled to himself about the things he does for these blasted pastel ponies.

After less than a minute of walking, Twilight spied a familiar rainbow coloured streak coming to rest on a cloud nearby, "Rainbow! Over here!" Twilight shouted excitedly as she flagged down her friend, waving her hooves with a conviction that only a mare on a mission could muster.

"Hey, Twilight, what's up?" Rainbow Dash asked as she quickly zipped down towards Twilight, landing on the ground with a soft *thump*.

"Well, Rainbow; Discord and I were just going for a little walk and decided to stop you and say hi!" Twilight grinned nervously, glancing up at her chaotic companion in hopes that he was actually displaying some interest in the situation at hand. Discord was holding his talons in front of his muzzle, polishing them with his own breath while holding a half-lidded expression on his face.

"Why are you hanging out with him?" Rainbow asked venomously, glaring at the draconequus.

Looking back towards her rainbow-coloured friend, Twilight could have sworn she heard a snapping noise somewhere nearby, but quickly shook it off and regained her focus.

"Oh, cool. Now tell me something I don't know, egghead," Rainbow spat coldly, as Twilight felt all the warmth drain from her cheeks.

"O-Oh, well, uh..." Twilight's ears flattened against her head, taken aback by her friend's less than friendly greeting, before she noticed that Rainbow's coat had lost a little of its usual vibrancy. No, it can't be... Upon this realisation, Twilight felt her fury bubble up like an overflowing kettle, as she turned towards her companion with pure murder written across her face.

"DISCORD!!! Haven't you learned your lesson about manipulating ponies?! How dare you control Rainbow Dash like that again?!" Twilight's horn pulsed and shone with the wrath of a thousand armies threatening to erupt from its tip at any moment.

On impulse, Discord snapped his talons as he looked at the mare in shock. Her horn disappeared in an instant, and every bit of threat she had posed to him was now gone. "I don't know what you're talking about, Twilight, my dear! Honest! It was just a little joke; nothing serious!" Discord pleaded, unable to meet her glare as he held up his arms in an attempt at feigning helplessness.

"Woah, woah, hold up now, guys, what's going on here?" Rainbow asked, wincing as she placed herself between the pair, the colour having returned to her cyan coat.

Twilight continued to glare at Discord, before sighing sadly and looking at the draconequus with what could only be described as intense disappointment.

"You know, I was hoping I would actually be wrong about you for once..." Twilight muttered, as she turned and began to walk away, hanging her head towards the floor as she did so.

"Twilight, you know I can't simply mind control ponies like that! It takes time to corrupt someone; you know this!" Discord pleaded, which caused Twilight to slow her pace and eventually come to a stop as she lent him an ear.

"Okay, I'm done with whatever this is; you guys have fun, alrighty? I've got to practice, uh, flying stuff!" With this, Rainbow excused herself hurriedly, barely sparing a backwards glance at the mismatched pair.

An uncomfortable silence lingered between the two, and as Twilight finally turned to Discord after what made his millennia trapped in stone feel like a mere minute, Discord felt his discordant heart split in two as he was greeted by a set of dead eyes that regarded him with nothing but contempt.

"I'm listening." Twilight deadpanned, before tapping a hoof to her forehead in a demanding manner. One quick snap of some talons, and the trusty appendage reappeared on her head.

"Okay, I admit it, I may have influenced Rainbow a little bit just to see your reaction... I swear on my beautiful beard that I did not take control over Rainbow, as that would be impossible. I just gave her a tiny little push with some unpleasant imagery, is all..." Discord felt torrential waves of regret pulsing through his veins in this moment, as what he had genuinely intended to be a quipping joke had turned into an unholy mess of anger from the pent up princess. Good going, Discord, you really know how to please the ladies! What a perfect way to start off your day together with your favourite pony; high five! Discord sarcastically berated himself as the curse of his own personality set him back to where he started once again.

If it weren't for him being the way he was, he would have never had even the slightest issue ruling this entire world by now; how would the pastel ponies fight back when he is able to strip them bare of their magic: the only thing they have against him? Yet his arrogance caused him to play games, set self-restrictive rules, and always honour a disadvantageous agreement, even if it was in his power to avoid doing so. Much like this current situation in which he found himself, he always ended up losing as a consequence. What happened to the suave charms I've spent millennia honing when I need them most?! Why must I always play games?!

As Discord grated his teeth together angrily to himself, Twilight simply continued to watch in silence, as white flakes began to fall from his mouth. With an exasperated sigh, Twilight stood up to her hooves,

"I'm sorry for overreacting, Discord. Just please, don't do things like that; it's not smart considering what has happened recently."

"Oh no, don't be sorry, my dear. Although your reaction was mildly amusing, I should not have done such a silly thing. She doesn't remember the incident anyway, thanks to yours truly. You are r-r... r-r-r," Discord was struggling to say what he felt it was appropriate to say, all things considered, "r-right... You are right, Twilight."

Twilight's eyes once again lit up as she saw genuine remorse written across the draconequus' face. Well, I suppose he'll always still be Discord... With a more contented sigh, Twilight accepted the apology; it wasn't an 'I'm sorry', but it was good enough for her coming from Discord.

"So, I suppose we should get going. You hungry? I guess we could pay Sugarcube Corner a visit next, if you'd like?" Twilight asked, her usual sparkle back in her demeanour.

Discord looked towards the mare with hope in his eyes, and with his cheeks tugging at the corners of his mouth, he teasingly said,

"Oh, if we must..."

Chapter 10 - Checkpoint Bravo

Discord and Twilight held to a gentle pace as they made their way towards Sugarcube Corner, uttering not a word to one another in the afterglow of recent events. Feeling utterly baffled by his inability to figure out how Twilight was feeling in response to said events, Discord internally screamed in dismay at the resulting lack of control he held over the situation. Twilight awkwardly glanced over in his direction, before swiftly turning her head elsewhere, lest he catch her in the act. Unbeknownst to the purple mare, Discord had in fact noticed this, and reflexively began to tug on an invisible collar as he broke out in a nervous sweat.

Discord underestimated his own strength, as the collar broke off of his neck, causing him to jolt and almost topple over onto his date. Luckily for him, Twilight didn't notice this, and so he safely disposed of the collar to the floor on his right, as its invisibility makes doing as such inconsequential. The journey continued on in silence, causing Discord's mind to desperately journey elsewhere for a brief moment of respite from the agonising trek across town.

Why in Equestria is Sugarcube Corner attributed to the Element of Irritation, when its name suggests it should instead be associated with the orange farm pony, on account of her speech patterns...? After considering whether his nicknames for the elements are a little harsh, he decided that was not the case, yet figured it would be safer to never use the terms in person with said ponies. Then, holding a claw to his chin in the deepest of profound thoughts, Discord screwed up his face in frustration over the issue of Sugarcube Corner before he was suddenly hit by an epiphany,

"Aha! I understan-" he shouted, as he simultaneously collided with the front door of Sugarcube Corner, stumbling and falling onto his back, scaring the purple alicorn to his left out of her wits as a result. He had aimlessly been following Twilight on their expedition and not noticed they had already arrived at their destination. Getting back upright, he turned on the Element of Autism with unprecedented vigour, spewing his rampaging thoughts in a sloppy, yet sophisticated slurry, "I got it! There's no sense in the naming of this place in the context of characteristic attribution, yet that's what makes it so endearing and chaotic! The pink catastrophe belongs around her sugary treats, yet the issue with the name's explicit content pointing elsewhere is of little consequence!" After a moment of silence, Twilight looked at Discord in shock, not fully understanding what he said, but desiring to give him a sense of closure lest he lash out or something of the sort,

"Umm... Okay?" Twilight carefully questioned, lifting a hoof and pulling away slightly in an adorable display of apprehension,

"Oh... Ahem, forgive me, my mind was elsewhere for a moment there..." Discord flushed, nervously rubbing the back of his neck with a paw, regretting his outburst,

"No, no, it's okay, Discord... Should we, erm...?" Twilight delicately pointed a lavender hoof towards the building they had been approaching, her facial features holding a similar flush of red beneath her coat,

"Should we...?" Discord's eyes followed the direction of Twilight's hoof, as he froze for a moment before perking up in realisation, "oh! Yes, of course; we should hurry along inside now, methinks..." The pair then turned back to the door, and instead of being greeted by the mechanism they are used to, they instead are met with a hyperactive bundle of pink,

"Aww! Aren't you two just the cutest together! I know just how to celebrate your relationship... A party!" Shouted the Element of Irritation as she reared back on her hind legs while an inexplicable explosion of confetti masked her frame, causing all nearby ponies to at least point their ears towards all the commotion,

"Pinkie! What are you talking about?!" Twilight whined in embarrassment, "we're just here for some food on our dat- day out!!!" Twilight practically screamed her correction immediately, and after a few seconds of silence she looked around at the stunned ponies, shrinking to the floor and covering her head with her hooves in shame at her outburst. Twilight felt as though she could just die right where she was, however the pony spectators soon resumed their activities, mumbling quietly to each other as they did so. Pinkie was a little taken aback by her friend's reaction to her teasing, before a knowing smirk crossed her muzzle for the briefest of moments,

"I'm sorry, Twilight, I misunderstood! But that doesn't mean we can't still have a party!!!" A considerably smaller explosion accompanied this second outburst, as Discord looked on in a stunned stupor at the situation that had just unfolded in front of him. Eventually, Discord decided he had best come to his date's aid, lest she be scarred from this experience, which could well foil his chances with her forever,

"Well, we all know Pinkie Pie is always on the lookout for an excuse to host a party, my dear," said Discord, as the purple alicorn looked hesitantly up at him from her little bundle on the floor, "I'm sure this party needs as much reason to exist as any of her other parties: for the sake of having a party." Discord smirked at Twilight with his usual mannerisms, which seemed to encourage her recovery as she stood up and dusted herself off with a wing, attempting to act natural after her outburst,

"Yes, well, let's get going, then. I don't know about you, but I'm still pretty hungry," Twilight chirped, lifting her chin and closing her eyes in a feigning of confidence as she trotted into the establishment ahead of the other two. Discord smiled softly before following her inside and settling down at one of the tables alongside his favourite mare. Pinkie closed the door before bounding over to the immortals, her usual bubbly nature brightening the mood instantly,

"Sooo, what can I get for you?" Pinkie sang, gently bobbing up and down as she awaited a response,

"Well, I think I'll have a daisy cupcake, please," said Twilight quietly, using her hoof to fiddle with the grooves of the table in front of her as she did so,

"Oki doki loki, Twi! And how about you, Discord?" asked Pinkie, her bobbing refusing to cease, ever to the irritation of the Lord of Chaos,

"I'll have the same, please," said Discord, glancing over to see twilight's reaction to this, which he was immediately rewarded for, as her face contorted slightly in confusion,

"Alrighty, done and done! I'll be right back!" Pinkie blurted before dashing off towards the kitchen in a trail of pink. The two sat in silence for a minute or two before Twilight finally spoke up,

"Why did you order the same as me? I'd have expected you to pick the most unusual thing you could find, in any unusual number, with any amount of unusual requests accompanying it..." Twilight almost sounded disappointed that Discord had acted seemingly against his, as Twilight considered it, exceedingly interesting albeit frustrating nature. In response to this, Discord smirked and chuckled quietly before snapping his claws and summoning a book that read 'Draconequus Basics for Purple Dummies' across the title, featuring a caricature of Twilight's face on its cover. Twilight frowned at him for that, although she did see the humour in it. Pretending to flip through to a relevant page, Discord pointed a claw towards the page he landed on and sagely began,

"Well, Twilight, in order to answer your question, let me first ask you this: something unusual is what you expected from me, correct?" Twilight nodded, holding a deadpan expression as she did so, "and thus you would surely consider it usual for me to be so unusual?" Twilight nodded again, although a little more slowly this time, her eyes lighting up slightly in gradual realisation, "well then, my dear, would it not therefore be more unusual for me to adhere to your standards of usual instead?" Twilight gasped as the pieces clicked into place, the resulting puzzle being a recurring issue she had encountered concerning the paradox of chaos, its frustrating nature being endlessly endearing to her logical mind. After all, what was more logically discordant than a paradox? Twilight looked up towards the draconequus with a hoof to her mouth, wanting to say something without knowing what it was she wanted to say. Discord chuckled once again at her reaction, before their conversation was interrupted by a pink maelstrom returning to their table with a couple of fresh cupcakes held on a tray across her back,

"Here ya go! Can I get you anything else?" Asked Pinkie, who was skipping in place happily,

"No thank you, Pinkie, we're fine," replied Twilight, giving the pink mare a warm smile,

"Alrighty, well, enjoy!" Shouted Pinkie, before she bounded off back towards the kitchen once more.

Discord looked down at the cupcake in front of him, wondering awkwardly how to approach its consumption in front of the mare he loves. Next to him, said mare was dealing with a similar dilemma, however instead she was concerned with what exactly she should talk about with him as they ate. The resulting situation had twilight munching away on her cupcake with her hoof to her chin in thought, looking down at the table as though searching for an answer, while Discord continued to simply stare at the cupcake as though it might bolt at any second. After a few moments, Twilight stopped eating and looked over at Discord, noticing his wide-eyed stare and shrinking into herself as a result; she had never seen such a focused expression on his face before, and it was a little intimidating to be around.

Eventually, Discord reached out his paw and picked up the cupcake, continuing to stare at it as though it had just murdered his family. Now... Do I eat it from the top down to the bottom, or from the corner and inwards? Perhaps I should unwrap it? Maybe I should just bring the wrapper slowly down as I eat it from the side... No, no, twilight would think I'm eating like a pig... Do I unwrap it fully before I begin eating and then eat it from the bottom upwards, saving the icing and daisies for last? Discord felt overwhelmed by the number of possibilities, agonising over which approach would be best. Should I just eat it the same way she does? He glances over, noticing she isn't eating it anymore, but missing the terrified look on her face at the same time. Well, maybe I should just wait until she begins eating again and observe her strategy... Wait, should I even eat it in a 'normal' way? She might not be expecting the chaotic approach this time, since I flipped the paradox on her last time... But then again, that line of thought follows a sense of logic, and therefore that might be what she's thinking I'll do, and will thus be unimpressed if I do so? Or maybe she'd be surprised by me doing what she expects because that would be the chaotic thing to do?! Discord began quaking with anticipation and frustration over his musings, before realising he is getting helplessly tangled within his own characteristic paradox. No, Discord, don't worry yourself with that; just eat it in a 'normal' way. That's surely the safest option... Right?!

Sensing Discord was doing nothing anytime soon, Twilight looks away from the train wreck written across her date's face and begins eating her own cupcake once more, leaning away from Discord in case he frightens her with an outburst. Finishing her cupcake with a satisfied sigh, she once again chanced a glance at Discord. She was rather taken aback by the look on his face; he looked exhausted, and looked towards her slowly before smiling weakly. Twilight gave him a broken, nervous smile in return before the draconequus turned his attention towards the kitchen,

"Excuse me, Miss Pie?" Discord said loudly, his voice cracking at the end of the sentence,

"Yeeeeeees?" chimed Pinkie happily as she poked her head around the corner of the door behind the counter. Discord's face slowly formed into an awkward, exaggerated smile as he hesitantly said,

"Would I, by any chance, be able to take this cupcake to go?"

Author's Note

Well, here you go! A slightly longer chapter than normal, and I actually wanted to make this even longer, but... I dunno; do you guys like the idea of longer chapters, or should I keep them short and sweet? Anyway, let me know what you think! I hope this story is going in a direction you find entertaining... It's tough to make the story somewhat realistic yet keep a cutesy tone at the same time, but I love cutesy things, so I'll try my best to make it work!

I have a new story coming out soon, so look forward to that!

Love from Lord Nito,

Chapter 11 - Rooted in Sentiment

Twilight and Discord were now on their way to Carousel Boutique, slowly making their way down the path from Sugarcube Corner in another awkward bout of silence. Discord was munching on his cupcake in whatever way came naturally to him, mentally berating himself for making such a fuss over a damned cupcake; he held a defeated look on his face that could put even Fluttershy to shame. He couldn't help but think to himself, all it took was a cute little purple alicorn and a simple cupcake to bring down the Lord of Chaos...

Lifting himself out of his rut, Discord looked over towards his companion as her gaze was locked straight ahead of the two, seemingly lost in her own thoughts. Twilight was very clearly making an effort to keep a little distance between the two of them, which Discord ashamedly figured was likely due to his behaviour in Sugarcube Corner.

Ever the opportunist, Discord decided to make the most out of this unfavourable situation to take in Twilight's beauty first-hand, marvelling at the sleek contours of her body, and the way in which she naturally carried herself with a certain level of grace that he felt was befitting for a Princess. Twilight was practically glowing in Discord's eyes, from the tip of her short, yet slender snout, to the glossy orbs of her eyes and all the way down to the round of her rump. Twilight seemed to notice this glow, stopping in place and shaking off for a second, subsequently shaking Discord out of his stupor as she did so, before shivering slightly in confusion and resuming her steady trot, not sparing Discord so much as a glance as far as he could tell.

Cursing himself for inadvertently affecting her with his fawning, yet breathing a sigh of belief upon her apparent lack of suspicion, Discord began to feel uncomfortable staring at her in this way, as she had no idea he was doing it. As a result, Discord forced himself to look elsewhere for the time being.

The silence was killing him, so he continued to let his mind wander in order to fill the void; he had always found mares physically attractive as far as he could remember, however he had always told himself that an objective recognition of beauty was only natural. Yet, at this very moment, although he did not doubt that Twilight was objectively beautiful; was his recognition for Twilight's beauty purely objective, or was it something more personal?

Maybe I just have a thing for bangs...? Discord chuckled to himself, feeling his stress concerning the issue slowly melt away as he did so. However, his mind once again began to cloud, as he noticed that he had naturally gravitated towards Twilight during his musings; although, he took it as a good sign that she had made no further attempts to keep her distance from him. Just what exactly is it that is drawing me to this little bookworm? Discord's mind was picking up debris as it began to swirl around this issue in a chaotic typhoon of confusion. Once he heard Twilight yelp as a twig swirled past her head and towards his, he finally decided to take a leaf out of Twilight's book and order his thoughts. It's not really my style, but it'll be for just a moment, so as to put this issue to rest for the time being... He thought reluctantly to himself, as he put the leaf into a newly-formed pocket in his side, causing the swirling tempest around his head to subside as he did so.

Twilight looked down at her hooves as she slowly made her way towards Carousel Boutique; she had been giving Discord the silent treatment ever since they left Sugarcube Corner, as she honestly couldn't think of anything to say to him, as things stood. It felt strange to her, as Discord was one of the few entities in Equestria that she considered genuinely intriguing in a sense she couldn't quite put her hooves on. After a few moments of thought, the closest thing she could compare it to would be her fascination for Pinkie Pie, as both were equally enigmatic in their adherence to logic, or lack thereof. But, for whatever reason, that conclusion just did not sit right with her... There was something else, something endearing about this draconequus that she could not for the life of her name. With a gentle sigh, she decided to drop the issue for now, instead reminding herself that she had come out on this trip for the purpose of exposing Discord for his usual scheming, and nothing more.

Swivelling her ears towards her companion, Twilight could sense he was somewhat preoccupied at the current moment, likely with his own thoughts, just as she was. Twilight was fine with this for now, as it meant she could wait for conversation to flourish between them naturally; although, she felt committed to keeping her distance from him for a little while as well, as she feared he was still not in his right mind since the cupcake incident. After all, although she was a supremely powerful alicorn princess, she knew her limits when facing a Mad God with the power to leave her stripped of her powers with a snap of his talons, and so would rather not be on the receiving end of his temper.

Nervously, Twilight instinctively lowered herself in an attempt to look as small as possible before glancing up at Discord, in the hopes that his facial expressions would seem a little more at ease than they were at the bakery. As her eyes rose, they met his, and she quickly cringed away, feeling embarrassed to be caught looking up at him. However, he said nothing, and upon second glance, Twilight noticed that he had not actually registered her attention at all, and seemed instead to be staring at her intently, with a lost look on his face that portrayed so many emotions at once that it actually conveyed absolutely none of them to her. Twilight flushed under his gaze, eventually returning her eyes to the floor and wondering why he was staring so intently at her; she had never noticed before today that he had a habit of staring at things for extended periods of time, although she eventually figured that it was just par for the course when Discord was concerned.

Noticing her hooves were glowing for some unknown reason, Twilight stopped dead in her tracks in fright and shook herself in an attempt to fix the glowing. It seemed to work, as the glowing was gone; she shivered in confusion before setting off again, figuring it was simply a seeping of Discord's chaotic magic. Moments later, a twig flew past her head, making her yelp and duck for cover; upon returning to her hooves, she glanced in Discord's direction and noticed he had moved closer to her at some point. However, the tormented look he held in the bakery seemed to have been replaced by a much less sinister one since then, so she allowed the closed distance. Sighing softly, she continued on towards their destination, now feeling much more willing to make conversation with her companion, yet still deciding to wait and allow him to make the first move.

Discord shuffled his thoughts around, deciding to start at the roots and work his way up. For starters, he just decided to bite the bullet and explicitly tell himself that he had fallen for Twilight Sparkle; he had fallen for her like a colt crushing on a filly. With that done, Discord muscled through his spreading blush and its accompanying warm, fuzzy feeling before trying to pinpoint exactly when he had fallen for her; however, said task proved itself to be quite difficult, for as far as he could tell, his falling was characteristically chaotic.

He supposed he had admired her sense of forgiveness, as if he had been in her place, he certainly would not have given a former enemy another chance after spitting in the face of forgiveness the first time with an act of betrayal... But then again, that only happened recently, and he knew for certain that his feelings for this mare stretched back further than that, so he could not simply boil it down to an admiration of virtue.

Scratching at his beard in contemplation, he decided to delve deeper into the vague and sentimental, an area where feelings prevail and things merely have to be accepted without logical explanation. Twilight held a certain aura of order around her that he had had endless fun poking fun at in the past, and although he still did enjoy doing that to an extent, he supposed that said aura served as a draw for him... This order was endlessly endearing to him, despite the fact that he had been sneering and wary of her at first. She was practically his antithesis, and so upon experiencing her distaste for him, it merely egged him on further in his patronising pursuits. However, Discord had come to realise ever so slowly that these pursuits of his may have mutated to become not so antagonistic as he originally considered them to be.

Despite the fact that he, as far as he was concerned, was the most powerful and devilishly cunning being in existence, he couldn't help but admire Twilight's ability to handle herself in times of strife; he had experienced this in its purest form as he witnessed her defeat of Tirek. He liked to imagine that she was fighting for him, in order to save her dearest prince in his regrettable moment of weakness; however, he knew this simply was not the case. I can dream...

Discord thought for a moment of his friend Fluttershy; he thought very highly of her and considered her a very kind friend who would always be there for him. However, what he felt for Fluttershy could in no way compare to his feelings for Twilight; Fluttershy was like a motherly figure to him, as she was to everyone else who she considered her friends or just a being in need. It was for this reason that Discord did not feel special upon receiving Fluttershy's attention, as she was like that towards all of her non-pony friends, and she offered it liberally.

As he saw it, Fluttershy was a friend to confide in and talk to about your problems, while Twilight was like her attractive friend that constantly avoided you and made you want to follow her to find out more... She was like an enigma that constantly alluded him, drawing him towards her mystery like a banquet just waiting to be explored, yet he did not know where to start. Upon this realisation, he wondered just how far down the table he would have to work before he reached the meat and substance of it...

To put it simply, he liked to imagine that she was playing hard to get. Although, he knew deep down that this was not the case, and it was most likely that Twilight simply continued to look at him as nothing more than a nuisance, just like she always had.

With a downcast look and a long sigh, Discord felt content he had picked apart his feelings for Twilight as best he could, yet unintentionally dipped his feet into the freezing cold pool of a lack of reciprocation. He noticed Twilight stop in her tracks, and so impulsively followed suit, continuing to glare at the floor in gloomy dejection.

"...-cord? Discord? Discord?!" Twilight shouted,

"Wha... What? Oh, Twilight, my dear, I apologise; I was lost in thought there. Are you alright?" Discord stammered, picking himself up and smiling at Twilight in an attempt to save face,

"Yes, don't worry, I'm fine. I was just trying to tell you we're here," Twilight chirped cheerfully, "at least you didn't walk into the door this time!" Twilight held up a hoof in a suppressed giggle as she said this, which Discord returned in kind,

"Well, at least I'm not consistent in that, eh?" Discord's laugh escalated, which seemed to spread back to twilight once more. The two laughed together for a little while, feeling all of the previous awkwardness peel away as they began to feel comfortable in each other's presence. Twilight's laughing eventually died out along with Discord's, leaving a glowing, yet slightly goofy smile behind on her face in the afterglow of their mirth; Discord noticed this, and couldn't help but blush slightly upon seeing it, having to suppress an outward expression of his approval of her a-dork-ableness. In reaction to his blushing, Twilight's mouth formed into an 'o' shape and she let out a high-pitched squeak, which Discord felt sure she had meant to be a gasp; her goofy smile was then replaced with a shy, embarrassed one as she turned her face away and began to fiddle with her hooves,

"We should, umm..." Twilight mewled in her best impression of Fluttershy, as Discord noticed her sudden fascination with the ground. Discord had noticed a pattern forming in their date, and as much of a pain as it was to take so long to get through the door of each establishment, Discord did not mind in the slightest if it meant he got to witness one of these adorable displays every time they did so. However, he could not help but feel concerned that his heart would not be able to handle this level of cuteness for much longer. Well, it sure seems I've softened with age... Since when does the word 'cute' even enter the vocabulary of the Lord of Chaos...?! Actually... I'm fine with this.

"Yes, we should, my dear," Discord replied, as he knocked on the door and they waited for an answer,

"Come in," a dignified, feminine voice answered, before the door was surrounded in a blue aura and gently opened. Discord held out his arm, signalling towards the door, before he put on his signature grin and said in a deep, gravelly voice,

"Ladies first, my dear,"

"Oh, th-thank you..." Twilight once again muttered, finally ceasing her fiddling and trotting swiftly past Discord, still looking flushed and being unable to meet his gaze. Discord waited for a moment before he followed her inside; he actually considered this a step in the right direction, as he was able to get such a pleasant reaction out of his favourite mare, despite her moment of comfortableness immediately returning to awkwardness. This kind of awkwardness was much more comfortable, and was definitely going in a better direction than the one he was heading upon exiting Sugarcube Corner.

Upon entering, the pair were greeted by Rarity, carrying herself with her usual elegance and grace; she pushed her mane over to one side with a hoof and flickered her long eyelashes before starting,

"My, my, my... How unusual to see you two together," she looked between the two with a hoof to her lips in thought before continuing, "well, I've seen stranger things, I suppose. So, what can I do for you today?"

Author's Note

Well, how exactly do you think Rarity will go about sticking her nose into their bonding time? Find out in the next episode of... "An Unprecedented Advancement"! Yeah, that doesn't sound right... Dangit...

Chapter 12 - Fashionistas and Marshmallows

Discord and Twilight remained in the foyer of the building for a moment as they took a moment to gather their thoughts, neither of them realising they were leaving Rarity hanging after her greeting.

"Erm... Are you two alright?" Rarity hesitantly asked, noticing the relative silence between the pair. Twilight suddenly perked up upon hearing this, wheeling her gaze from the tiling of the floor over in Rarity's direction.

"O-Oh, yes. We're fine, Rarity; thank you for asking," Twilight sputtered, her head still partially remaining in the immediate past. "We were just stopping by to see you, since Discord here has agreed to go out with me today to-" Twilight caught herself, coughing awkwardly before continuing, "I-I mean, he has agreed to come out to spend some time with his friends in my company, as he still feels bad for the Tirek incident and wants to continue his making of amends." Twilight nodded to herself upon giving this explanation, as she felt satisfied with her half-truth; however, this merely masked her true reason for coming here in that she needed an excuse to prolong the date, as she currently felt no closer to figuring out Discord's intentions than when they first set out.

Discord was putting up a good fight, that was for sure; Twilight felt relieved that he had chosen to attempt to use her as leverage in whatever scheme he was planning, as she was sure that any of her other friends would have fallen for his charms by now. There was simply not a chance that Discord could genuinely hold positive feelings for her, and even if he did, there was even less of a chance that she would ever consider reciprocating said feelings for a precarious individual such as Discord ... Right?

Discord looked at his seemingly satisfied companion with a curious glance and a downtrodden look that followed it. It seemed that he had still not gotten through to her; she still holds suspicion of him, and this upset Discord very much. What's it going to take...? Discord sighed sadly, holding his arms up to his chest as he looked off forlornly into the boutique, causing him to miss Twilight's unsure expression as she mulled something over in her head.

Rarity, ever on the prowl for gossip or drama, had been watching the minute expressions flowing across her friends' faces with a burning intensity upon sensing a weight hanging in the air, trying her damnedest to figure out just what was going through their heads in relation to one another. A sudden realisation hit her like a freight train upon witnessing the pair of awkward expressions, causing her to gasp explosively, which drew the attention of her friends before she coughed politely and apologised.

"My apologies, darlings, I just remembered I have some supplies to arrange in my office that are quite urgent; please, make yourselves at home on those couches over there, and I'll be back through in just a moment!" rarity dashed off and up into her office once this was said, locking the door behind her as she made her way over to her work desk. My, my, my, isn't this exciting! Rarity began giggling and dancing in place, I simply can't believe what I'm seeing here! I'd know those looks anywhere! Letting her excitement die down so that she could return to her friends post-haste, rarity decided she might have a little bit of fun with this situation, as it seemed clear that neither one of them had any idea what the other was thinking. Don't you worry, darlings; Rarity the matchmaker is here to help you out!

Rarity sighed dreamily, the sweet, reluctantly affectionate emotions the two clearly had in common making her squee with delight. She vowed to perhaps try to help push things along, yet still remain careful as to allow things to develop naturally, lest she risk being shown to be meddling where she had no right to be doing so. Nodding to herself enthusiastically, Rarity cleared her throat before pushing her way back out of her office and towards the living space where her two guests were now seated in silence.

Rarity let out a small, satisfied sigh as she ruffled her mane with a hoof upon approaching the pair. "Right, darlings, all done! So, what would you have us do to pass the time?" Rarity proposed, taking a seat across from the pair as she folded her rear legs up onto the comfortable couch and awaited a response with a cheerful expression written across her fair features.

Twilight looked slightly befuddled for a moment, most likely as a response to her period of silence spent with Discord, before she composed herself and matched Rarity's expression. "Well, I guess we could start by allowing you and Discord to get to know each other a little more! After all, you two don't really talk all that much, and I'm sure Discord would be fascinated to hear all about your work and... S-Stuff!" Twilight's smile grew a little forced, as her tone threatened to break towards the end of the sentence. She nudged Discord in the side as she finished, glancing awkwardly up towards the Draconequus perched on the couch beside her.

Discord looked downtrodden, with his left elbow leaning on the arm of the seat and his chin resting in the palm of his talon as he looked out of a window and into the marketplace in a daze. Upon receiving the nudge to his side, Discord reluctantly returned his attention to the situation at hand, choosing to ignore the angry glare he was receiving from Twilight and the scolding remarks she was muttering under her breath to him. Rarity's face had remained a mask of a joyous nature, her composure not cracking in the slightest as she observed the interaction with a keen sense. After what seemed like a millennium, Discord finally decided to respond to Twilight's pressuring suggestion. "Yes, well, as 'fascinated' as I would likely be, I'm sure Miss Rarity spends plenty of time spouting about her life to enough ponies already," Discord chided, pausing to smooth his beard out with a claw as a grin returned to his face. As he did this, Rarity did not crumble in the slightest, intent on hearing Discord out until he had given his piece in full. She also breathed a small sigh of relief, as she silently agreed that sharing life stories would perhaps be a little dull. Twilight, on the other hand, looked like she was ready to explode, distraught by how rude Discord was currently being to the pony who had given up her time to humour them in her own home. "And so, I would propose that we partake in something a little more... Interesting..."

Upon hearing this, Twilight seemed to cool down a little, seemingly glad that he had not simply decided to ignore their friend; however, she remained on high alert, as a suggestion from Discord was a potentially dangerous situation to get tangled up in. Rarity, with her interest having been piqued, tilted her head towards Discord so as to encourage him to continue. "Oh? And what would that be, darling?"

"Is your little sister around by any chance, my dear?" Discord asked, strumming his talons across the arm of the couch as he looked down at rarity from the corner of his eyes. Rarity looked a little taken aback by the question, before quickly recovering and replying with a steady, unsure tone.

"W-Well, she has been out with her friends for today, actually; she comes and goes as she pleases on weekends, so she could be back any time..." Rarity paused for a moment, lifting a hoof to her lips as she looked thoroughly confused and slightly concerned as to why the Lord of Chaos would request an audience with her darling little sister, of all the things he could have suggested. "Why do you ask...?"

Twilight matched Rarity's expression as she began to feel her alarm bells ringing. "Yeah, what would you require Sweetie Belle for that we can't do by ourselves?" Twilight asked, raising an eyebrow in Discord's direction.

Discord brought his paw to his mouth for a moment in a silent chuckle, as he felt his mischievous side begin to take over and drown out all his emotional concerns, like a drug passing through his veins. "Oh, I just figured that for what I have in mind, it would be the more the merrier. Never mind, though, she is not particularly important for it, but she might regret missing out..."

As if on queue, the door to the boutique swung open towards the end of Discord's sentence, eliciting a bubbly response from the excitable little filly who made her way into the foyer. "Missing out on what?! Did you mean me?! I wanna join! I wanna join!" Immediately, Discord felt his mood sour a little at the filly's screeching little voice, wincing for a moment before turning and addressing her directly.

"Oh... Well, I don't know if you would want to join in with this game; it's for big ponies only..." Discord said in a patronising tone, watching with mirth as the little filly excitedly slammed the door and snapped on the bait he never even needed to cast in the first place.

"I am a big pony!" Sweetie Belle shouted, puffing up her little chest as she stood as tall as she possibly could. Discord had been dangling a fish hook in front of her face as she did this, dressed in a full set of fishing gear. Upon receiving accusatory glances from the two mares and a confused head tilt from the little filly, Discord deadpanned before snapping his talons and leaving himself bereft of all clothing and accessories once more, leaning back into the couch and folding his arms behind his head as he relented.

"Alright, alright, no need to shout, little one. However, you should beware, as what I have in mind is only suitable for those with a strong stomach, and an even stronger mind..." Discord said in a hushed tone, leaning down from his pose and waving his arms towards the ponies in his presence as he did so, as though he were a magician about to reveal his secrets. In response, the three ponies naturally gravitated towards him, leaning forwards as their interest reached its peak.

Silence hung in the air as the three eagerly awaited the big reveal; scarcely a breath was taken between them, as Discord left them hanging as long as he could get away with. He raised a talon and took a breath as if to begin an explanation, before suddenly pausing and feigning an unsure expression, holding his talons across his chin as if in deep thought. "Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Discord warned, raising an eyebrow towards the trio as one of them finally snapped.

"Ugh! Just tell us already!" Twilight pleaded, throwing up her hooves in exasperation as the other two remained intently focused upon their tormentor, with eyes sparkling in silent agreement.

Discord smirked at his precious, purple little crush before he finally relented, interlocking his talons with the fingers of his paws and pushing them out in front oh him, causing them to crack in unison. As he let his arms fall back to his sides, he cracked his neck slightly before taking in an exaggeratedly deep breath and slowly saying,

"Well..."

Author's Note

Discord's a troll at heart.

Chapter 13 - Inter-dimensional Adventure

"Well... I was thinking we could go on a little adventure for our game..." Discord cocked an eyebrow at his tiny equine companions as he gauged their reactions. Sweetie Belle started bouncing up and down excitedly, her eyes twinkling globes of wondrous anticipation.

Twilight looked slightly concerned, yet more so confused. Her reply was slow and careful. "Um, an adventure...? What kind of adventure?"

Discord began to chuckle to himself for a moment as Rarity spoke up. "I do hope you're not planning on leading my darling little sister anywhere dangerous, Discord!"

"Oh, no, no, no. We'll be remaining right here! Well, sort of... Perhaps I should just demonstrate?" Discord readied his talons for a snap, looking towards Twilight for the go-ahead.

"First, I'll need to know what you have in mind exactly before I agree to this." Twilight pressed, still suspicious of Discord's 'games'.

Discord huffed in exasperation. "Fine. I had in mind that I create a dimension for us to have an adventure all to ourselves, without the risk of disturbance or real danger towards either of you or this little marshmallow!" Discord reached down and pulled on Sweetie Belle's cheek, who began to swat at his paw in retaliation.

"Hey! I'm not a marshmallow!"

"Yes, yes, of course you aren't," Discord wafted his paw at her in dismissal, stifling a chuckle as the filly did not notice her sudden change in physicality upon his wafting of chaos magic. She instead stood there with a defiant pout written across her face, while her head and legs stuck out of a plushy, cylindrical marshmallow body. "so, Twilight, Rarity, what do you think? I think I need not ask for the marsh- I mean, for Sweetie Belle's answer." Sweetie's grin returned in force upon hearing this, yet fell moments later as she noticed her new body.

"Wah! What's happened to my-?! Aaaaah!!!" Discord swiftly snapped his talons, returning the filly to her natural form, while choosing to ignore the scolding expressions of the two mares.

"Of course, I will let any of you return the moment you request it. A snap of my talons and you return here, or wherever else you might want to go."

Twilight put a hoof to her mouth for a moment in contemplation, before looking over at Rarity for a moment, who merely returned her uncertain gaze. "A-Alright, Discord. I suppose that could be fun. I'm in."

"As are we, darling." Rarity lay a hoof across that of her friend with a comforting smile.

Discord grinned mischievously and rubbed his paw and talon together with a throaty chuckle. "Okay, then... Off we go!" Discord finally snapped his talons, yet unlike the usual sound it produced, it instead boomed like a volcanic eruption, as they were sucked in on themselves and disappeared in a blinding flash of light.

Just as suddenly as it had begun, it was all over, as the group flashed into their newly-founded destination. Twilight lay flat on her stomach, panting, while Rarity stood bolt upright with shallow breaths and a quivering filly grasping her foreleg. Discord, meanwhile, looked unperturbed as he gazed over his newest creation with satisfaction. A whole new world for him to warp and bend as he pleased without the downside of upsetting any inhabitants, as he had created this world without any. Besides the four now present, of course.

After a moment, Discord realised the distress of his companions. "Oh, come on, ladies, it's just like any other teleportation." He resisted the urge to aid Twilight to her hooves. She would likely take offence to being babied as such.

"N-No, that was not like standard teleportation!" Twilight blanched breathlessly. "It didn't hurt, but it's certainly made me queasy..."

"Y-You don't say, Darling..." Rarity began to brush her little sister's mane. "Are you alright, Sweetie?"

Sweetie steadied her shaking and took a step away from her sister with a nod. After a moment, she suddenly realised how... Colourful this new world was. "Wooooaaaaah..."

"Well, let's be off, then, ladies. That ancient gemstone isn't going to visit itself!" Discord chided as he set off in a random direction, all too aware of the fashionista's impending reaction. Not that it matters which way we go, my little ponies... I generate this world however and whenever I see fit. I'll be rid of you two pesky, pasty ponies soon enough, so I can have some time alone with my dear Twilight...

"Gemstone? Did you say 'gemstone'?! It will be mine-!" Rarity caught herself promptly. "I-I mean, um... Yes, let us be off, then." Rarity then trotted off to catch up to Discord, her head held high. Sweetie galloped after her excitedly.

Twilight stayed behind for a moment, remaining unsure as she observed the new world she was in. Although she was unsurprised, it nonetheless remained disconcerting to the eye. The ground was uneven and rocky, yet throbbed with a light violet glow. Islands floated in the air above them, dripping green waterfalls against gravity up towards the heavens. Plants sprouted seemingly at random, bearing fruit of speckled complexions in all colours of the rainbow. It was unnatural, yet everything seemed naturally chaotic, with none of the various structures of landmass looking as though they were created by an intelligent being.

After a moment, Twilight realised the colour of the ground matched her coat almost identically, yet brushed it off as mere coincidence. She set off after the trio, but not before reminding herself to keep her guard up around Discord. "Wait up!"

Discord glanced over his shoulder at Twilight for a moment with a smile. He stopped in his tracks suddenly and pointed over to the left of the group. "There! You see that ominous looking temple? Perhaps our precious gemstone is in there..."

Twilight perked up, glancing nervously towards the structure. It looked like an ancient ponish temple, yet seemed warped and twisted, as though someone had stuck a fork in the top of it and attempted to scoop it up like spaghetti. "Why exactly do we want to visit this gemstone? What's so special about its role in our 'adventure'?"

Rarity sputtered upon hearing this. "Oh, pfftsk, Twilight, what does it matter? It's a gemstone! Of course we want to see it!"

"Well, sure, I suppose it may be quite pretty, but that doesn't mean we should have no contextual reasoning for wanting to see it."

Sweetie had recently grown quiet, looking towards the dark, gloomy temple anxiously. Discord noticed this, and uncharacteristically felt a pang of empathy for the tiny equine. What have you done to me, Twilight Sparkle...? Discord clutched at his chest, feeling his heart continue to beat and pulse as it had been doing recently for the first time in millennia. Perhaps having other ponies around too isn't so bad...

As Twilight and Rarity continued to bicker over the need to set the scene for their adventure, Discord snapped his talons behind his back, not taking his eyes away from the filly for even a moment. The temple brightened slightly, with the faintest of feminine, melodious humming encroaching from its depths.

Very quickly, Sweetie's expression brightened, and her gleeful smile returned once again as she closed her eyes and bathed in the beautiful tune. After a moment, she began to question the sudden change, and glanced up towards Discord, who caught her gaze for a fraction of a second before he tore his eyes from the filly and walked slowly over to the still bickering mares. Moments after Discord passed by Sweetie, he missed the filly's grin soften into a gentle smile as she briefly acknowledged his small act of kindness.

"Ladies, please. I do believe I can please both of you simultaneously." Rarity gasped and shivered with a grimace, running over to her little sister in an effort to cover her ears.

Twilight, Discord and Sweetie looked equally confused, as Rarity recognised her misinterpretation and righted herself, clearing her throat. "M-My apologies, Discord. Do go on."

"As I was saying... I believe I can settle this little dispute post-haste. The gemstone is indeed marvellously beautiful, yet we do also have reason to wish to visit it." Discord pulled on his beard, causing it to pop off of his chin as he stretched it out to look like a straw boat and teleported the group to be seated in it. The three stuck their tongues out with mock retching sounds. Discord rolled his eyes for a moment before continuing. "Yes, yes, haha, very funny. Anyway, long ago, there was once a young inhabitant of this land named Ishtahkenn," Discord snapped his talons again and suddenly their boat was sat floating in a blood-red river, "he left his home village in a small boat and set off down the River Sanguis in an effort to prove his independence to his family, as he was now in his early 20's. He knew not where he was going, and ignored the protests and cries of his parents as he rowed away from them. They reached out to him from the shore, but he pretended they did not exist at all."

With a snap, their makeshift boat began floating down the river. "His eyes glittered with determination, as he was sick of being sheltered his whole life, and was secretly doing this more for himself than anyone else, although he would never admit that to anyone. He wanted to explore the world, and would do so even if it killed him." Another snap rang out, and suddenly the group were teleported back to the temple, where they saw a ghostly apparition stood by its entrance of a distinctly equine form. The two mares and the filly were fascinated, their mouths hanging slightly open and their eyes wide as they looked towards the ghostly figure and waited for Discord to continue. The soft melody of the temple served as a backdrop for the rest of the story.

"After many days of survival in the wilderness, he arrived at this very temple, allured by its aged beauty and harmonious humming. He thought nothing of all he had to lose, or all he had left behind. All he could think about was reaching the source of that wonderful melody." The group watched as the apparition made its way into the temple and out of their view.

"Needless to say, he never returned." The trio gasped upon hearing this, suddenly looking very sad, yet somewhat frightened. "But, rumour has it he lived a happy life there, laying dormant and clutching a small gemstone until the end of his life, which had fed and preserved his body until his physical form perished. Yet, it allowed him to drift off into an endless dream filled with happiness, his soul to be contained within that precious gemstone until the end of time itself." The trio looked bittersweet, with Twilight even shedding a single tear as she held the faintest of smiles. Discord stopped to watch the tear roll down her cheek for a moment before continuing.

"He believed he had a change of heart and went home to his family, living in his small village forever, where everyone had miraculously become immortal. He knew not that he had in fact been imprisoned within that small gemstone upon touching it; but, as far as his interests are concerned, he may as well have in fact gone home to his family as he believed was the case." Discord kneeled down and finished his tale in a deep, yet hushed tone, his face mere inches from that of his audience.

"In the real world, his family had searched for him, but come up short. They mourned his loss and yet recovered, continuing the rest of their lives in peace." Sweetie Belle broke upon hearing this, clutching at her older sister's foreleg. Rarity comforted her sister, yet struggled to keep her own composure. "The temple was discovered millennia later by some of his family's descendants, equally drawn in by the eternal melody exuding from the gemstone within its depths. However, they came out unscathed, instead spreading the news and knowledge of the temple to the rest of this world. Rumour has it, upon getting close to the remains of Ishtahkenn, still clutching the tiny gemstone, the feminine melody is instead replaced with a deeper, smoother melody. We can only theorise as to what this means, but I like to believe it is the sound of Ishtahkenn's soul singing of its eternal happiness to those willing to hear it."

A long silence fell over the group as Discord's story hung over them, with nothing but the melody of the temple pulsing through the air. Twilight looked up at Discord with fresh eyes. She could not believe that such a beautiful story had come from someone so dastardly as Discord. Perhaps she was wrong about him... Maybe he'd truly had a change of heart. She made a mental note to thank Fluttershy for this later on. Discord suddenly bolted back upright and spoke cheerfully.

"So, how's about we go and take a look for ourselves, eh?"

"Yes, let's." Twilight smiled up at Discord, and his heart fluttered once again. Her smile seemed... Genuine. Heartfelt. Discord smiled back and Rarity squee'd at the display, being careful not to smudge her mascara as she wiped her eyes daintily. They had somewhat filled with tears following the story. Sweetie sniffled and looked up at her sister in confusion, which was mirrored on the faces of Twilight and Discord as they looked in Rarity's direction.

"Ahem... My apologies, darlings. Something in my throat. Let us be off! Your story has me so very excited to see this gemstone. It must be simply divine." Rarity was now content she would not need to interfere at all in the romantic affairs of these two. A wave of happiness washed over the mare as she skipped off ahead of the group towards the temple, genuinely glad her two friends seemed to be finding the happiness they deserved in each other.

Discord, Twilight and Sweetie glanced at each other in suspicion for a moment before shrugging and following Rarity's lead into the depths of the temple.

Author's Note

Welp, after a really long wait, it's finally here! I hope this chapter was worth the wait. :twilightsmile:

Love,

Lord Nito <3