Non-Entity

Chapters

Autumn: The creature in the forest
Autumn: It's all in your head
Winter's Eve
Winter: Little Earthquakes
Spring: Come clean, dark thing
Spring: Impatiens balsamina
Summer: Journeys
Zecora's Vision
Summer: Plumage
Summer: You make me feel like a natural chaos god
Summer: Animal
Summer into Autumn
Autumn: Unwanted
Now you know, this is what it feels like
Epilogue: One Year Later
Prologue: The Hunters
Winter into Spring: Hunted again
Autumn: Don't believe the lie that your dragon needs slaying

Autumn: The creature in the forest

1000 years later

Fluttershy wasn't entirely sure why she had picked that particular day to go foraging for mushrooms. Maybe it was the crisp Autumn air, maybe she felt she had spent too much time indoors lately, but she had taken one look at the wicker basket she kept next to her boots by the front door and grabbed it.

Though it wasn't below freezing yet, she donned a thick scarf and sturdy footwear. The last thing she needed was to catch a chill when so many helpless animals depended on her to look after them. She had no solid reason to venture into the woods that day other than whimsy, and the prospect of something new and interesting for dinner later. Harry the bear, on the other hand, needed no such excuse. It was late October, and at this time of year Harry foraged as much as he could so he could build up his fat reserves before hibernating. Berries, mushrooms, fish and even field mice were fair game. He caught as many as he could at this time of year, but mushrooms were much easier to run down and ended up being the bulk of his diet. The bear snuffled the ground as he walked alongside the pegasus, hoping a tasty truffle would make itself known to his senses. He listened to Fluttershy as she walked beside him, and she barely made a sound with her footfall.

"I wonder if we'll find a giant puffball this time, Harry," she said, smiling as she thought of the mushroom. That would be lovely with olive oil and garlic. "Or maybe some Chanterelles. I could make an omlette."

Harry continued to sniff the ground. He did not partcularly care what type of mushrooms they happened to stumble across as long as they were the edible kind.

Twenty minutes into the walk, Harry had devoured all of the fungi that Fluttershy found.

"Oh dear," she sighed. She supposed she really couldn't begrudge the bear his pre-winter appetite. He needed the nourishment more than she did. Despite the temperature it was a lovely day, so Fluttershy decided to continue her walk even if her basket was empty so far. Further down the path the ground became steeper and Fluttershy began to climb upwards, seeking more stable ground. She preferred climbing to flying, though she had perfectly usable wings. Something about being closer to the ground comforted her, and she wondered --not for the first time--why she hadn't been born an earth pony.

Harry began to lag behind; The fungi was much more abundant on lower ground.

Fluttershy continued to climb. She hadn't been to this part of the woods before but she was pleased that she was trying something new and decided that she would see how far she could go before turning back. If at any point she felt lost she could always fly above the tree tops to work out where she was, and make her way back home from there. Maybe she would even be able to find some mushrooms before Harry did.

The pegasus ended up climbing the gentle slope for almost an hour before the ground eventually became even again and the plant life was much thicker up there. Perhaps something interesting for dinner wasn't a lost cause after all. She began to forage, and after only a few feet she spotted some penny buns growing on a dead log. Perfect. She placed her basket on the ground, removed her scarf (she felt much warmer after the climb) and crouched down to start to gently break the mushrooms off by the base of their stem, and that was when she noticed something. She couldn't hear any birds. That in itself was not unusual. Sometimes there were patches of wood where there weren't many birds flying or nesting, but the silence felt...off, almost as if it was the precurser to something else. She began to wonder if she had gone too far and was nearing the borders of the Everfree. She raised her head and...

It happened so fast she didn't even have time to scream. Instead, she inhaled sharply and a deep gasp filled her lungs and she briefly wondered if she had sucked in too much air, and wasn't getting enough at the same time as it felt like she had been punch in the side by a great weight. She also felt something like a strong puff of wind next to her air, and a snapping sound. Then she hit the ground with the weight on top of her and all the dream-like confusion became stark and terrifying reality: Something had her and wanted to make her its meal.

The realization made her adrenaline soar and she squirmed and kicked furiously, tears of panic already running down her face and blinding her so that she couldn't even see her attacker. All she could percieve was its crushing weight and hot breath and it was snarling and trying to hold her still while she kicked furiously, but she was weak and she knew she was going to die and she screamed.

Harry burst out of the trees at top speed and flung his full weight into Fluttershy's attacker. The creature did not see the bear coming and the bear's weight flung it against a nearby tree trunk. The creature yelped on impact and then slumped to the ground, still.

Harry whirled round to check on Fluttershy. The pegasus tried to stand up, but her legs felt like jelly. She was trembling and her face was streaked with tears and dirt.

"H-Harry..." was all she managed to sob.

The bear chuffed at her softly and nuzzled her cheek. She threw her arms around him and sobbed into his fur. After nearly fifteen minutes of taking great gulps of air and trying to cry the adrenaline out of herself, Fluttershy finally began to feel normal again. Harry was here, and the thing couldn't hurt her now.

The thing. What was the thing?

She peered round the bear's massive shoulder what she saw surprised her.

The creature was large, that was true, but she had expected a huge, hulking muscular beast with rows of sharp teeth, like a dragon or timber wolf. Instead she could see ribs lining a snake-like body covered in tattered feathers. But that was by far the least unusual thing about it. Its limbs were mismatched--all four of them. She could see the paw of a big cat and the talon of a large bird or prey, and on its head a deer antler and what looked like a twisted goat horn. Fluttershy was no stranger to chimerical beasts, but the ones she had encountered were usually made up of two animals at the most. Centaurs, griffons and manticores all had the features of two animals, but they were also symmetrical. If the right hind leg of a griffon was that of a lion, then so was the left one. The long, serpentine beast before her looked more like someone had taken an Eastern dragon and switches its limbs with anything going. Its head, however, wasn't very dragon-like. There was what looked like a very sharp fang protruding from its mouth, but the head was very goat-like. The fur on its head and neck looked mangy, and there were bare patches on the feathery parts of its body. It was a deeply unhealthy looking creature.

Fluttershy assessed the situation. The creature looked like it was starving, and it hadn't put up any kind of a fight with Harry. It was just before winter, and she knew starving animals would take bigger risks if they needed food to survive. That was likely what had happened here; she was food and that would have kept him going for a while longer and she had wandered into his territory. Now that the panic she had felt had subsided, her kindness took over and she felt sorry for the creature. It definitely seemed to need medical attention.

Throughout her life, Fluttershy had borne the unspoken criticism she knew was there-- that other ponies sometimes thought of her as naive, or worse, stupid. She could practically hear them now:

That thing attacked you, why would you want to help it?

One day you'll make a mistake and realize that kindness doesn't solve everything.

No, this was an animal like any other and it had done what it had needed to survive. She crouched downnext to the chimera. Harry grunted in alarm. She looked up at the bear and nodded.

Harry positioned himself over the creature so that the front part of its body was shielded from Fluttershy. Any teeth, claws or sharp antler had to make its way through a 200 kilogram bear before reaching her. She gently placed a hoof on the creature's side, feeling for any broken ribs. She was relieved that everything seemed intact, however she was still reluctant to attempt moving the creature without some sort of safeguard in place. It occured to her that she still wasn't sure how far they were from the Everfree, and she flew upwards to orientate herself.

Above the treetops she saw exactly what she had hoped to see: a column of smoke rising from the trees about a mile or so away.

"Harry!" she called, flying lower so that her voice would carry towards the bear. "I need you to wait here. I'll be back as quickly as I can. I need to get something from Zecora!"

The bear nodded.

She was exhausted. The flight there had seemed shorter from the site where Harry and the creature were based, but after about a quarter of a mile the muscles in her wings were beginning to ache. When she finally reached Zecora's hut her heart was pounding and her skin was flushed from exhaustion. She collapsed on the grassy area outside the hut, her wings flopping on either side of her as she tried to catch her breath. She really needed water too. The thought spurred her on, and she got to her hooves and knocked on the door. There was a pause, then she heard hoofsteps and the door swung open.

She was greeted by the striped, angular face of Zecora.

"Goodness, dear you look a fright! Come on in and we'll set things right!"

Fluttershy didn't argue but she did manage to croak the word "water" from somewhere in her parched throat. "Of course!" said the zebra. She went into a corner of the hut that served as both her kitchen and cauldron room. Magic and food were intertwined for a zebra. The room was where both kitchen activities and spells mingled, and the plants she used often had dual uses as flavourings and enchantments.

Zecora returned from the water pump with a cup of fresh water. She had added peppermint to make it more refreshing. Fluttershy took it gratefully and gulped it down.

"Now," said Zecora. "What has you in such a tizzy, to the point where you are dizzy?"

Fluttershy took a deep breath: "There's a creature in the woods about a mile from here, and it's starving, but I can't get it back without calming it somehow. It's in pain, but it's dangerous. Harry is with it. If we can sedate it I can get it back to my cottage and care for it."

One of the many things Fluttershy liked about Zecora was the witchdoctor never told her that what she was doing was naive or that she should have known better than to take predators in. Like herself, the zebra lived in solitude most of the time with nature as company, and like herself, she knew some ponies whispered behind their backs about Zecora, which only added to her desire to be introverted.

"What kind of creature, may I ask, is this beast for whom you've set this task?"

"I...I'm not sure. I've never seen anything like it before. It's a chimera, that I know, but all the chimeras I've seen are made up of two animals. This one is made up of lots of different ones. At least six."

"Oh?" said Zecora, who was listening, but had turned to pump a second glass of water for the bedraggled pegasus.

"It has a paw. A cat paw. One of the big cats, maybe a lion, and a hoof and a dragon claw on its hind legs. Oh! And it had an antler on its head along with a goat horn! I've never seen anything like that before!"

Zecora caught herself in time before she nearly dropped the cup.

It can't be.

The chaos god had been killed centuries ago. Its legend, along with the Quagga had nearly died out. Though the stories were still handed down from mother to foal in the last remaining Quagga tribes of Zebrica, they were nothing more than morality tales designed to teach foals how to be cunning, or how not to get too ahead of themselves; to be watchful that they never became too full of pride like the Ulaghai did. But she knew the Quagga tribes of old had also once worshipped the god as a physical, magical creature, and they feared it too.

"You say the creature is starving, true? Is it suffering from an injury too?"

"I don't know for certain, but he doesn't look healthy at all. That's why I hope I can get him back to the cottage so I can look him over. But he's in such a state. I'm worried that if he doesn't get some food and medical attention soon he could die!"

Zecora relaxed a little internally. Though the creature of legend had been killed in the tales, she had never heard of it wanting for food. Its cunning and magic always ensured it found a way. Maybe she was projecting the childhood tales she'd heard onto Fluttershy's description of the beast. Jackalope had antlers, didn't they? She had never seen jackalope before she had moved to Equestria, so it stood to reason that there were other antlered animals besides deer that she had not come across. She decided she would visit Fluttershy in a few days, just to be sure. She knew the pegasus was more than capable of handling large animals. She mainly wanted to visit to put her own mind at rest.

The witchdoctor got up from her chair and began crushing some herbs and a strong smelling root using a mortar and pestle. She then poured boiling water over the mixture from the kettle. Next she added some wild lettuce and muttered words Fluttershy couldn't understand under her breath. Finally the zebra carefully poured the mixture into a flash and covered it with a stopper.

"I have just the thing, just the drink. This should do the trick, I think."

"What is it?"

"A sedative, but it also kills the pain. Give t to him and in time his strength will gain."

Fluttershy threw her arms around Zecora. "Thank you" she exclaimed, then she blushed, feeling embarrassed at the display of emotion. "Um, thank you," she said quietly. The zebra laughed. "That's quite alright, my dear. Be sure to visit again, do you hear? Now go, there is no time to waste, and your friend is surely waiting, make haste!"

"I will visit again," promised the pegasus. Zecora smiled and nodded. She packed another flask of peppermint water to help Fluttershy recover when she reached her destination.

The pegasus was extremely grateful for this extra when she finally reached Harry again, and she gulped down the peppermint water as quickly as she could. There was suddenly no time to lose, as a change had come over the creature--it was growling.

Fluttershy understood the different types of growls animals made. There were threatening growls and then there were "please leave me alone, I'm in pain" growls and this creature was using the latter. It sounded like a cross between a wounded dog and a yowling, angry cat. She moved closer and the growling grew louder. She could practically feel the ground rumbling. The creature kept shifting its gaze back and forth between Harry and the pegasus depending on who was moving the most at the time. Fluttershy noticed for the first time that the burning red pupils, like the rest of the creature, were mismatched. She didn't know if this was because they normally looked like this or if it indicated some sort of brain damage. How was she going to get the sedative down his throat when it looked like he was ready to bite at any moment? Would the Stare work on an animal this frightened? Probably not. The Stare was mainly for a commanding tone, not a calming one.

"Harry, I'm going to need you to hold him down while I pour this liquid down his throat," she said. Though the bear did not understand the spoken language Fluttershy uttered, he instinctively knew what his pony friend intended to do, and he placed his huge paw on the creature's face. The chimera flailed in panic and anger and his claws sank into the side of Harry's leg, but the bear's pelt was thick and it barely fazed him. Fluttershy quickly pulled the stopper off the bottle and before her courage could fail her, shoved the bottle neck between the beast's sharp jaws. There was a lot of coughing and spluttering and snarling, but she managed to get some of the medicine into him.

She hated forcing a creature to do anything, and she felt tears sting her eyes. She hadn't asked Zecora how long the sedative would take to work, and she wasn't sure when she could give Harry the all clear, but the creature seemed to be looking groggier and groggier as time passed. The paw that had its claws firmly in the bear's leg began to fall, and eventually it slumped to the ground, claws back in their sheaths. Its eyes were having trouble staying open and its head eventually it slumped to the ground, claws back in their sheaths. The eyes struggled to remain open and the head joined the paw on the ground. Finally the red eyes closed and the creature began to breathe deeply. Fluttershy sighed with relief.

"I have one more favour to ask of you, Harry," said the pegasus. "I need you to carry him back to the cottage for me."

The bear pushed his snout under the chimera's long body. Fluttershy winced as she watched the ribs seem to make themselves even more prominent through the creature's feathery coat. With a gentle roll of his head,Harry managed to shift the unconcious creature onto his back. It hung there like a very sad and moth-eaten throw rug.

The journey back was slow. It was difficult walking down hill with a mostly cylindrical creature resting loosely on a bear's back, and soon Fluttershy was spending the majority of the return journey making sure it wouldn't roll too far one way or the other. At least she didn't have to worry about carrying the weight. Thank goodness she had a bear with her, for more reasons than one.

By the time they reached the cottage it was after sundown. Harry practically poured the creature's long, noodly body onto a large bean bag that Fluttershy had dragged in front of the fireplace, and gave a deep sigh as he seated himself in a corner of the room. Though Fluttershy was extremely tired, she wasted no time. She moved towards the creature and began to press her hooves on various parts of its body, feeling for anything out of the ordinary. She felt many patches of bare, rough skin, and dry scales that had peeled away. She felt the joints of its great paw, and was surprised to feel the tell tale signs of rheumatoid arthritis. She began feeling the bones in its long neck, the base of its skull its...wait. She felt behind its ear again to make sure. She had not been mistaken. There was something under the skin. It felt like it ended in a dull point. She wondered if it was another horn. She wondered how many horns and limbs this creature could grow.

Don't be silly she told herself. It has mismatched features but they all come in pairs.

She knew the only way she was going to find out what that lump was, was by taking the creature to a specialist. That would have to wait. For now she had to check him over, then she was going to have to figure out how to get food into him, then she had to tend to the other animals who were probably wondering why she was home late. Besides the ever demanding Angel Bunny she also currently had a barn owl, four chickens, two ferrets, one monitor lizard and a hamster in her care. They would all need feeding and watering. It was going to be a long night.

Far away, the creature could feel the pony's presence. It could feel her running her hooves over its ribs and neck, and behind its ears. Normally its instinct would have told it to run or bite, but at the moment it felt nothing but sweet relief. It felt like the bean bag was eating it up, in a good way. Normally its joints and muscles ached, especially in the cold, but at the moment it wanted nothing more than to rest and enjoy the sensation of painkillers running through its veins and the warmth of the fire. Even the pony's hooves felt good as they massaged and caressed the aching joints.

The creature could not remember the last time it had felt something good.

Fluttershy did not finish her chores until after midnight, and now she was bleeding. Things had gone well enough at first. She had gone into the cellar where she kept the salted fish she stored for the ferrets and Harry, and made a fish stew. She made two bowls. One of them was ordinary stew, and the other contained sedative. She hoped she would be able to tempt the animal into eating. If at any point it looked like it was getting more alert, she would give it the second bowl. Once he had food in him he needed to rest anyway. She definitely needed rest. In fact, this was demonstrated in a way she was still kicking herself for. Earlier, when she had given him the first bowl, he had happily gulped it down. As she turned her back to get the second bowl, she heard Harry bellow and she felt a swift, sharp sting rake across her shoulder. She swung round and shouted "No!" in the most commanding tone she could muster.

The creature's ears flattened against its head. It had just clawed at her, yet her raised voice made it uncertain. Even more perplexing was the fact that he couldn't smell any fear on her. She stood her ground, and eventually the chimera lay down on the ground, its paw and eagle talon in front of it so that it looked like a Anugyptian sphinx. Fluttershy walked backwards towards the kitchen, and ended up pushing the second bowl of stew towards the creature with a broom. She watched it eat the stew and didn't leave the kitchen until she saw the creature's eyes close and its body flop down on the bean bag once more.

She hurried to the bathroom and checked the wound. Three long gashes were bleeding in the mirror. They were not too deep, but she might need stitches for one of them. She cleaned them with hot water and put some anti-septic on them. Then she hurried into the back garden, fed the chickens, the ferrets, the owl and the hamsters. She fed Angel Bunny last and he was thoroughly ungrateful about it.

Now she was hurrying to the hospital. She really didn't want to go for a multitude of reasons, but she knew that it was better to check to wound. She really didn't want it becoming infected, even if it didn't look terribly serious. While she was taking her seat in the waiting room, she saw the very pony she had been hoping to avoid.

It wasn't that she disliked this particular pony. Far from it. She avoided him for a wholly different reason. She hid behind her mane, hoping he wouldn't recognize her and that she might be seen by a different professional, but he spotted her anyway.

"Fluttershy! What happened?" asked the copper coloured earth pony.

"Um, I'm afraid an animal got a bit out of hoof today."

"I'll say! Let's get you seen to!"

"Um, I don't want to be any trouble. If there are any ponies waiting that are in more need..."

"Are you kidding? It's been dead in here today. Sure, that's a good thing, but it can make the hours drag. Come with me. Let's see what we can do about those scratches."

Sethoscope and Fluttershy had dated about a year ago. Ever since their mutual breakup Fluttershy felt awkward around him. She wished she didn't, but it was palatable. He was everything that could make a mare swoon--strong, kind, handsome, with a good job and a friendly manner. And that should have been enough for Fluttershy, but for some reason it wasn't. After about a month of dating, things had gotten heavier and then she had broken it off. She didn't understand why, but despite what a devoted and decent stallion Seth was, she did not feel wholly attracted to him. She still felt incredibly guilty about it, despite the fact that Applejack had taken her aside and said:

"Ya can't go beatin' yourself up about it, Sugarcube. Sometimes that's just the way these things work. A stallion can be everything society wants him to be, but if your biology isn't feelin' it, aint nothing you can do."

Seth had been very understanding about the situation, and was friendly towards the pegasus whenever he saw her, but Fluttershy couldn't help but feel something was wrong with her. She hadn't been attracted to very many stallions, come to think of it. For a while she wondered if she was into mares, but nothing seemed to point in that direction either. Sometimes she lay awake at night wondering if she was defective.

"Now, let's see," chirped Seth brightly, breaking Fluttershy out of her ruminations. "Nothing some anti septic cream can't fix, but that first scratch will definitely need some stitches".

"Okay," said Fluttershy. She winced a little as Seth began the sutures.

"You sure you're okay?" he asked her as he worked. "What kind of creature was it anyway. Those look like big claw marks."

"Um, a wolf," Fluttershy lied. She hated lying but she really didn't feel like telling Seth the details because then he would offer to help out and she would feel even more awkward and guilty.

"Wow, good thing you've had shots," remarked Seth. Fluttershy relaxed a bit.

Seth bandaged up the pegasus's upper arm and gave her some painkillers. She guessed the mismatched creature wouldn't be the only one recovering tonight.

Perhaps that's a good name for him: Mismatch.

"Well, thank you," she said softly as Seth followed her out into the lobby. "I better get back and see how my animals are doing."

The stallion nodded. "It was good to see you again, Fluttershy," he said.

"Um, and you," she mumbled, hiding behind her mane.

She hurried out the door. Mismatch was sedated for now, but in a few hours he would be up again, and she knew what panicked and startled animals did when they were in an unfamiliar environment: they destroyed things.

Author's Note

"Ulaghai" is Swahili and translates as "guileful one." Quagga is a a now extinct form of zebra.
Those of you who have read Taxonomy know that Scriptum was an absolute horror pretending to be nice. This time with Seth I'm writing a stallion who actually is nice.

I've got job interview coming up next week, so the next chapter probably won't be up for another month.

Autumn: It's all in your head

Mismatch opened his eyes. He flexed his ears backwards and forwards, listening for any threatening sounds. He could hear the breathing of the bear across the room and it made his feathery hackles rise. He scented the air; the pony wasn't around --not that he could do much about that at the moment. His body was still heavy with the sedative and he had no energy to move his limbs. All he could do was rely on his nose, eyes and ears to tell him what was going on in the immediate vicinity.

The pony confused him. When he had first attacked her his senses had flooded with her fear. Then he had woken up in this place and she had given him food. He no longer smelled fear on her, even when he had clawed at her. This was hard for the creature to reconcile as nearly every being he had encountered had smelt of fear. He knew the smell well; it often emanated from his own pores.

His ear's flexed forward as he heard the door latch and he emitted a low growl.

Fluttershy removed her coat and walked towards the kitchen. She could hear Mismatch's growl but recognized it as a "don't come any closer, I'm being threatening but I'm really scared" growl. She climbed up onto one the stools and stared at the wooden kitchen countertop.

She was exhausted. She wasn't entirely sure what time it was, but it had to be past 2am at least. She hadn't even made herself dinner and now she felt too tired to cook anything. She decided to have cereal when her mind was more focused. Still staring at the countertop, she tried to assess the situation as best she could: She had a large, predatory animal in her house who needed to be sedated for the forseeable future. Without sedation he was likely to hurt other beings around him out of fear or possible hunger. She also didn't yet know what kind of animal Mismatch was and she needed to find out quickly. At the moment she had Harry as muscle to protect her, but in 2 weeks or less Harry would need to hibernate, so she was running on borrowed time. Mismatch was obviously ill and suffering. His ribs were clearly visible and she still didn't know if the bump on his head was an injury or part of his strange anatomy. She needed to find out as much possible about his species so she would best know how to care for him. She decided to go to the Golden Oaks library in the morning; Twilight had a small section on magical creatures in the library. Though Fluttershy had read through some of the books eagerly, she didn't frequent the library as often as she would have liked. There were still many more she hadn't touched, and perhaps there were some in the back room that were so old Twilight kept them off display.

She felt a little better now that she had a plan. She hopped off the stool and opened the cupboard. Cereal it was, then. She poured some oat flakes into a bowl and pulled the stopper out of a coconut she needed to use up. She poured the coconut milk over her late night meal and returned to the stool. Mismatch growled at the movement and noise. He could smell her injury, even though she had been stitched up and it sent mixed messages into his head. His growl became a soft whine.

"I'm sorry, Mismatch," said Fluttershy wearily, stirring her oat flakes with a spoon. "Tomorrow I'll find out more about you then I'll do the best I can, okay?"

That was the other thing that was confusing: He didn't understand a word she was saying but her voice...felt good. Soothing. Still, he knew ponies couldn't be trusted. He growled again.

"Mismatch?" said Fluttershy.

He whined automatically, her voice making his instincts drop. Fluttershy pushed herself off the kitchen stool and slowly began to move towards the bean bag. Harry continued to snore gently on the other side of the room, oblivious to everything going on around him. The pegasus hesitated as she reached the edge of the bean bag, then she looked down at the creature. He was awake, and was looking up at her with one mismatched eye, the rest of his face pressed into the bean bag. The feathers on the upper part of his body were fluffed up. She didn't know if that was from fear or the cold as the temperature had dropped considerably outside.

He let out an almost plaintive whine and before she knew what she was doing, she reached out with her hoof and stroked his mane gently.

Mismatch stiffened, but then he heard her voice: "There, there. It's okay. Tomorrow I'm going to see my friend Twilight. She knows everything about...everything. I'll found out all about you and then we'll help you and everything will be okay and you'll be able to go back to the forest and you'll be okay."

The creature began to relax and closed his eyes in pleasure at the feel of his mane being stroked. No one had ever touched him so tenderly. In fact, he was sure no one had ever touched him. Not unless he was trying to bite them and they were fending him off.

"It will be okay..." Fluttershy was saying. Though she had handled dangerous beasts before, she wasn't naive. She knew full well she wouldn't be able to do this if he was completely lucid and off Zecora's medicine.

"It will be okay..."

Mismatch whimpered softly. He could feel the pony's head resting on his neck now as her hoof stroked his bristly mane. He sighed contentedly and soon his breathing was deep and steady.

Unlike his waking life, his dreams were deep and lucid. In them he was hunting for something, but he wasn't sure what it was. There were also ponies in the distance. They were angry and shouted things at him he couldn't understand. He ignored them. He had to find whatever it was he was searching for. He was digging. His talons and lion claws scratched the earth; down, down he went until eventually his claws scraped against something that felt smooth, like glass. He kept digging, he had to get it out whatever it was. He had to get it out before the ponies reached him. The object had angular corners and these were stuck deep in the dirt. He continued scrabbling at the thing but it wouldn't budge. The voices of the ponies were louder now and he could smell them. Panic started to coarse through his veins, but he couldn't leave. He needed to get it out.

Then they were on him, beating him with sticks, shouting, screaming. One of them was cutting at his shoulder with a knife. He tried to fight it off but he was helpless. There were too many of them and they were overpowering him. The pony cut through tendon and bone and his lion arm was removed. He opened his mouth to scream but no sound emerged; he thrashed desperately. The ponies were attaching something to his shoulder now. Amazingly he wasn't bleeding to death. He stared dumbly at the object they brought forth. It was a griffon arm, like the one on the left side of his body. A pony swung a wooden pole at Mismatch and knocked his antler off. He knew what was coming now. They brought forth a goat horn and began sewing it onto his head. They continued to beat at his body relentlessly, breaking off parts of him and his mouth was open in a wordless scream. He had to get it out.

Mismatch whimpered in his sleep.

When Fluttershy awoke the next morning the first thing she was aware of was the surface she was laying on was not the flat, comfortable surface of her bed. The second thing she became aware of was that she had an enormous paw wrapped around her barrel. Fear swept through her as she realized the position she was in. Mismatch was still asleep but if she wasn't careful she might wake him up and the surprise might prompt him to snap in self-defense when he realized how close she was.

Very, very carefully she sucked in her stomach while trying not to breathe and wriggled backwards until she was free. Mismatch's paw hit the ground with a thud.

Fluttershy froze but he continued to breathe deeply.

The pegasus sighed with relief and chided herself. It occured to her just how exhausted she must have been last night. It wasn't like her to make such a mistake. Her stitches stung in the cold morning air and she applied a fresh dressing.

It was still somewhat chilly outside so she wrapped up in her scarf and put her boots on. In the dim light of the morning, she inspected the chicken hutch and pulled out six eggs. The chickens put up a ruckus until she fed them.

She gave one of the eggs to Harry, who used a claw to crack it then took his time savouring it, and scrambled the rest for Mismatch, since that was the best way to get him to eat the sedative without suspicion. She suspected that he was still hungry enough to gulp down anything that was put in front of him without question, but that would change with time.

The smell of the eggs frying woke Mismatch up and he looked at the pony expectantly. He seemed calmer now, but she wasn't about to let her guard down yet. The eggs were pushed across the room with the broom handle once more, and she watched as Mismatch greedily devoured them, licking the bowl clean. She really didn't want him to be on sedatives much longer, which was one of the main reasons she needed to see Twilight today.

Once Mismatch was asleep once more, Harry and her headed out the door; the bear to continue his pre-hiberation foraging and the pegasus to the Golden Oaks library.

Twilight was snout deep in a book about transformation magic when she heard the knock on the door.

"I'll get it!" yelled Spike eagerly. He pulled the door open to reveal a flustered Fluttershy with a windblown mane.

"Fluttershy! It's good to see you!" The dragon looked over her shoulder. "Is Rarity with you?"

Fluttershy smiled. "Not this time, Spike."

"Aw."

Twilight abandoned her book temporarily and walked over to give Fluttershy a hug. "Want some tea?"

"Yes please," replied the pegasus, "But I can't stay too long. I'm mainly here to do some research on an animal that came into my care last night."

"What kind of animal?"

"That's what I need to find out. I've never seen anything like it before!"

"Oh?" Twilight pit on the kettle to boil while Spike fetched the tea crockery.

"It's huge, and it's a chimera, but I've never seen a chimera like this!" She described Mismatch's physical features to the unicorn.

"That doesn't ring any bells," said Twilight, "but you're more than welcome to look through the section on magical creatures."

"Thank you," said Fluttershy. "That's the other thing. He's really sick. When I found him he was starving and..."

She trailed off as she noticed Twilight was staring at her shoulder. Somehow on the way her dressing had fallen off and the recent stitches she'd had were on full display.

"Is that what I think it is?"

"Um...yes. But he was scared. That's why he's now on sedatives until I figure out what to do."

Twilight backed off. Fluttershy knew much more about beast than she did, and while she did worry about the welfare of her friend, she didn't want to patronize her about something that was her field. Besides, Fluttershy was in front of her right now, sipping lemon tea and she clearly hadn't been eaten.

"Did you say the creature was part dragon?" asked Spike as he spooned some sugar into his tea.

"I think so. He looks kind of like an Eastern dragon but he's definitely not one. That much is obvious when you see his face, and the huge paw."

"Can I meet him?"

"Not yet, Spike," said Twilight. "First we have to figure out what he is and whether it's safe."

"My entire life is a series of denials!" moaned Spike.

Fluttershy snorted a little then hugged the little dragon. "I promise you'll get to meet Mismatch eventually," she said. "We just need more information on his species."

"Right," said Twilight, and she moved across the room and started pulling books off the shelves. She always got excited when one of her friends asked for recommendations. "You'll want to start with Vunkerhoof's Chimerical Creatures of Eastern Equestria and Whinnifred's Hybridization and Magic. Animals through the Ages by Cudlington is worth looking at too! Oh, and don't forget Scamander's Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them!"

Hours later Fluttershy sat at one of the library tables surrounded by books, some of which she already owned but had taken without mention to be polite since Twilight seemed so eager to help.

Fluttershy had looked frantically through the ones that were unfamiliar to her, but could see nothing resembling Mismatch's form. The closest things were Eastern dragons and though some of them had antlers, they were clearly not chimeras. She sighed deeply. She had already spent more time here than she had wanted to. She was about to ask Twilight whether she could borrow the remainder of the books and finish going through them at home, when she turned the page and read the very top line:

See: Equestria's Past Volume XIII by Hoofsteader. Pages 84-235.

Next to it was an image. The illustration was a black and white woodcut of a long-bodied beast with a beard, an antler and a horn. The rest of the illustration wasn't terribly detailed; the creature's body looked draconic rather than an amalgamation of various animal parts, but Fluttershy immediately asked Twilight for the history section.

"Oh, those are kept in the rare books room because some of them are pretty old and delicate," said the unicorn. She pushed the door to the rare books room open and the smell of old paper filled Fluttershy's nostrils. As her eyes adjusted to the dim light, she made out tomes of varying size; some were enormous, some were bound in vegetable leather so old it was flaking. In the middle of the room was a table on which sat a map of Equestria so old even Twilight was struggling to work out some of the more archaic place names so she could match them up with their modern counterparts.

"What's the title of the book you're looking for?" asked Twilight.

"Oh, um...here." Fluttershy pointed to the reference in Magical Creatures with her hoof.

"Oh, those aren't such an old set of books," said Twilight. "What are they doing in here?"

"There wasn't room in the main library when I arranged them," explained Spike.

"How many volumes of Equestria's Past are there?" enquired Fluttershy.

Spike let out a groan. "Too many," he said, placing his claw on the small of his back to illustrate his point. "Anyway, they're over here." He ran towards a darker corner of the room and began looking for the volume number. There were actually forty-two volumes, an appendix and an index. Spike spent about ten minutes looking at the titles printed on the book spines and even dragged out the index twice to flip through it.

"Well...?" said Twilight a little impatiently.

"Uh...I don't see it."

Twilight felt a pang in her chest at the idea of a missing book. "Are you sure? Look again!"

"I've looked! It's not here. Volume XIII, right? Fluttershy, can I see the reference again?"

The next hour was spent checking both the regular library shelves and those in the historical books room for the volume, but to no avail. Fluttershy was beginning to worry that she had spent too much time away from the cottage.

"We'll find it," Twilight was saying, her mane now dusty and dishevelled from looking and behind shelves in the dark room. "It's got to be here somewhere."

"Um...actually, I could come back," said the pegasus.

"Oh, I'm sure its here," Twilight laughed a little too hard.

"Twilight..." said Spike.

"Maybe I'll look behind here again..."

"Twilight!"

"Huh?" The unicorn's head peered out from behind a stack.

"I was just thinking," said the dragon. "Maybe we could ask Celestia if there's a copy of the book we can have on loan from Canterlot central library."

"An excellent idea, Spike!" said Twilight, visibly relaxing. The dragon puffed up his chest with pride and produced a quill and parchment from his pouch.

Twilight began to dictate: "Dear Princess Celestia..."

When the letter was finished, Twilight used a copy spell to attach the illustration and reference from Magical Creatures to the message. A facsimilie of the black and white woodcut appeared at the bottom of the parchment along with the page number.

"I...I'm sorry to be rude, but I really need to get going now," said Fluttershy. "I'm worried I've left Mismatch on his own for too long. He might be hungry." This wasn't the entire truth. It was true that he might be hungry, but he might also be destroying her house or he might have found the chicken coop. Guilt gnawed at her. She had spent far too long in the library.

"We'll let you know when the book arrives!" said Spike. "And you aren' being rude, right Twilight?"

"You're the least rude pony I know, Fluttershy," laughed Twilight. The pegasus smiled a little.

"Thank you so much, both of you for all your help." At least now she was one step closer to finding out more about the chimera.

"No problemo!" said Twilight. "If you ever need more info on the history of Equestria I'd be more than happy to help. I could talk about it for hours."

"Days..." muttered Spike.

Fluttershy began packing her notes into her saddlebag before Twilight decided she might start doing that anyway. "Thank you for the tea...and the help, once again. But I really do need to go."

"Anytime!" said Twilight. Fluttershy smiled once more and hurried out the door, already half-flying half-walking at a brisk trot.

Fluttershy was gone for 15 minutes before Spike blew out the first message:

My Dear Student,

May I ask why you are enquiring after that particular volume?

Princess Celestia.

The unicorn was surprised. Her mentor had never asked her why she needed to borrow a particular title. She assumed it might be because Celestia was interested in how far along in her studies she was, and dictated her reply to Spike:

Dear Princess Celestia,

Fluttershy came by today. She found a creature in the woods that may match the description in that book. She needs to know more about it in order to care for it properly.

Your Faithful Student,

Twilight Sparkle.

Spike burped green flame two minutes later:

Dear Twilight,

I need to speak to you, Fluttershy and the others immediately. Please come to Canterlot quickly.

Princess Celestia

Mismatch rolled over onto his back and opened his eyes. He sniffed the air reluctantly. No bear, no pony. Good. He relaxed a little. After a few minutes of trying to get comfortable he gave up and rolled his cylindrical form off the bean bag and onto the floor. He still felt weak, but his snake-like body held certain advantages when it came to moving across a wooden surface. He half-slithered, half-dragged himself towards the kitchem, his nose guiding him there, and he soon found the food cupboard. Most of it was stuff that wasn't terribly palatable to someone with his particular set of teeth, but he did manage to devour a small wheel of cheese and a bag of nuts. Oh, sweet bliss. He knocked over a bag of flour and nosed through some oats. The grains and powdery substance stuck to his muzzle and feathers but he didn't care. He was so hungry. He was always hungry, but the past few months had been especially bad, until the pony had found him and fed him.

The pony.

He froze and sniffed the air, looking furtively over his shoulder. She wasn't here, but she would be back soon. And then what? She had given him food, but why? Another thought occured to him and chilled his blood. What if she came back with stallions? Stallions were of greater threat to him than mares. He had learnt the hard way that not only were they physically stronger, but they seemed to carry a further streak of protectiveness (disregarding the caveat of a very angry mare protecting her foal.) With this urge to protect also came the urge to hurt or even try to kill the creature.

No, he couldn't take that risk. Now that his stomach was full again he could walk around on all fours instead of his belly. He felt less groggy.

The door.

He nosed open the latch and to his relief it swung wide open. Very few ponies put padlocks on their doors in modern-day Ponyville.

It was cold outside, but Mismatch resisted the urge to crawl back into the house. Better to be uncomfortable than potentially dead hours later. He started following the path across the bridge.

As soon as Fluttershy saw the open door and flour and oats scattered across the kitchen floor she knew what had happened. She became fearful for Mismatch instantly. She knew he wasn't well enough to go back into the forest yet. She had no idea if he was completely lacking in the interal injuries department, and he was definitely lacking when it came to nutrition. Luckily Mismatch partaking of the fruits of her pantry had covered him in enough flour to leave a trail, which she immediately began following.

She wandered for half an hour, where the trail abruptly disappeared into a wooded area. The sun was sinking below the horizon and Fluttershy began to wonder if she should be out alone looking for an eight foot long chimerical beast with sharp teeth. Despite this, she couldn't shake the feelings of concern for his well being. Yes, he was a predator, but so were lots of animals that she had cared for.

"Mismatch!" she called. He was unlikely to respond to a name she had only just given him, but she felt unsure of what else to do. She certainly couldn't wander into the woods after dark. She hadn't even brought a light with her. The idea that she had failed a creature in need brought tears to her large eyes.

While Fluttershy could not see in the dark, Mismatch, like most predators had been gifted with nocturnal vision. He watched the pony from the bushes, considering what to do. He had dragged himself overground for about an hour, but had felt the pain in his back, head and ribs returning and dragged himself into the bushes. On top of that, the open trail had smelt too heavily of pony for his liking. The urge to rub his head along the ground was stronger than ever and he had done so, dead leaves tangling in his mane and antler. Now the pony was no more than ten feet away from him and couldn't see him, but he could clearly see her. There were no stallions with her as he had expected. She was alone and vulnerable, like she had been in the woods a few days ago when he was stalking her, only this time there was no bear. If he had a bit more strength he might have been able to pounce and then it would be finished. Except this time it would be self-defense, not hunger that drove him.

"Mismatch!" she called out again. Then she began to cry. He could smell the salt of her tears and managed to stifle a growl.

Then she turned and began walking back up the path. Fluttershy wiped the tears from her cheeks. It was too dark. She would have to attempt a search for him tomorrow. Maybe she could get Harry to help her.

Mismatch waited. He didn't relax his guard until he could no longer smell pony. He sat in the undergrowth fidgeting. It was cold, and his bones ached even more with each passing minute. An owl hooted and his ears flexed at the sound. He thought of the warm fireplace back at the pony's cottage and his stomach growled at the thought of the place. With a deep sigh, he got up and began to follow the pony's trail.

Fluttershy was about a quarter of a mile away from her cottage when she noticed the light was on.

I don't remember leaving it on she thought. She was about to quicken her pace when she heard a twig snap. The fur on the back of her neck stood on end and she swung round to see Mismatch's snout inches from hers. A yelp died in her throat as she realized in time that any sudden sound or movement might set off his instinctive drive to pounce. His eyes glowed yellow in the dark as he sniffed at her. Fluttershy bit her lip and stood as still as a statue. His nose quivered over her mane and face as he tried to take in her smell. He still didn't know if she was to be trusted. Fluttershy began to relax as she realized he was scenting her with curiousity rather than because he was sizing her up as his next meal. The more she relaxed the more he relaxed. "I'm glad you're okay," she said softly.

Mismatch moved forwards suddenly, surprising the pegasus, but he only rubbed his head against her shoulder. She was reminded of the way lionesses greeted each other from pictures she'd seen in books. Very, very carefully, Fluttershy ran her hoof along his mane. The fur of his neck was matted, but there were still some patches that were silky. Mismatch made a chuffing sound.

"I bet you're hungry," said Fluttershy. "Let's see what we can do."

"Fluttershy!" Mismatch bolted instantly at the sound of her name being called.

"Wait!" cried the pegasus, but she couldn't see anything in the inky blackness. The light of the cottage was calling her home, as was the sound of her friend Rainbow Dash. She weighed up her options. Mismatch had followed her back here, so it was likely he would stick around. Rainbow Dash might be worried about her. She headed up the hill and over the bridge, occassionally looking over her shoulder hopefully.

"Fluttershy!" cried Rainbow Dash, once she was in view. "Celestia wants us in Canterlot!"

"Now?" asked the pegasus.

"Yes, like right now. It's super urgent. Twilight sent me to get you."

"Okay, I'll be two seconds," said the pegasus, and she ran downstairs, took some salted fish out the barrel, covered it with Zecora's potion and left it in the hallway. She left the cottage door wide open.

"I know enough by now not to ask you why," said Dash.

Hours later a much exhausted Fluttershy and her friends stood outside Celestia's throne room.

"What do you think it is this time?" asked Rainbow Dash excitedly. "A sea monster? A warlock?" She punched the air with her hooves. Fluttershy wondered where her friend managed to store all that energy, and wished she could borrow some. Her legs felt wobbly and she still felt distraught that Mismatch might still be alone in the woods. She had left an animal that needed her care on its own for far too long and it had managed to get itself lost.

"Whatever it is must be urgent," said Rarity and Fluttershy noticed the unicorn had a roller still attached to her otherwise perfectly coiffered mane.

What was so urgent? Whatever it was she wasn't looking forward to it.

She looked up at the sound of the heavy doors opening and a guard said "Princess Celestia will see you now."

They entered the throne room with its high ceilings and ornate glass windows. Celestia was not at her throne. Rather, she was pacing up and down.

"We came as quickly as we could Princess Celestia," said Twilight. "What's our mission?"

The alicorn looked down at her student. Twilight mused that she looked as tired as they all did, something she wasn't used to seeing in her mentor.

"Hopefully there won't need to be one," said the alicorn. "I've called you all here because of a letter you and Fluttershy sent me earlier this afternoon."

Twilight wondered if she had done something wrong by asking for the book. "I...I only asked for the book because we didn't have it in the library, Princess. If I had known I wasn't supposed to..."

Celestia smiled softly. "It's nothing like that, Twilight. There are parts of Equestria's past that I had hoped I wouldn't have to talk about, but if what has transpired is what I think it is, then I fear I must to keep my subjects safe. However, I will kindly ask that you all give me your word that what I am about to tell you does not leave these walls."

"Of course, Princess," said Rarity. The others nodded.

"Very well. Only a few copies of that particular volume of Equestria's Past exist because...well...I had them recalled. The later editions are missing that particular chapter anyway."

Twilight was shocked. It wasn't at all like her mentor to hide knowledge away. In fact. Celestia had been quite vocal about the fact that ponies in the past who destroyed access to knowledge often destroyed their way of life soon after.

"It is not what you think. I...I feared that seeing that particular part of my history would cause pain and anguish. Talking about it is hard..."

Twilight felt even more confused. Her history? There were things about Princess Celestia in that book? Clearly things she didn't want others to know about.

"We're here to listen without judgement, Princess," said Applejack.

The alicorn sighed and said "follow me." She led the ponies through a double door into a long corridor lined with more stained glass windows. Twilight didn't think she had seen this part of Canterlot castle before. Celestia hurried down the corridor, until she reached midway, then inclined her head upwards towards the stained glass window. "Is this him, Fluttershy?"

The pegasus felt her heart stop. The window depicted a harrowing scene: Ponies trying to hide from flames, ponies crying as the structures of their homes collapsed and flew into the air, ponies postrate and begging. And in the centre, as if it was dancing, was the creature she had been face to face with hours before, antler, goat horn and all.

"Yes," she squeaked. For a fraction of a second she could have sworn she saw a flash of fear in the alicorn's eyes, but it was quickly gone and Fluttershy wondered if she had imagined it. "What is he, Princess?"

The alicorn closed her eyes, and began her tale:

"This is Discord, the Spirit of Chaos and Disharmony, a creature known as a draconequus. Before Princess Luna and I took the throne, he was ruler of Equestria and it was a place of deep unrest. Discord did not allow any laws to exist. No groups could be organized and therefore there was no way to fight back against him."

"What do you mean by no groups could be organized?" asked Rainbow Dash. "Couldn't you kick his flank with magic?"

"Discord was a very powerful mage. Perhaps one of the most powerful to ever exist, I do not know for sure. His form of magic is raw and closer to nature than what we ponies can harness. He feeds off negative energy and he may be one of the oldest beings in existence, if indeed it is him who is still alive."

"I don't understand," said Twilight. "How did you become rulers of Equestria if he was unstoppable?"

"I'm getting to that. Shortly before mine and Luna's mutual rule, we discovered the Crystal Empire. Back then it wasn't the bustling and successful kingdom it is now. It was little more than a mining village, and of course the ponies there were mining for crystals. For whatever reason Discord hadn't turned his attention to this part of Equestria, perhaps because they weren't as aware as we were what was happening in the East. I imagine they probably heard whisperings, but if they had known the full extent of the pain Discord's reign wrought I imagine they either would have fled or tried to take to arms. Luckily they did neither, and their village was devoted to mining and cataloguing gems and crystals. I only later found out the true reason Discord stayed away from this hamlet. It was a place within the earth that was counter to what he needed to harness and control his magic. In short, the crystals weakened him."

"It was his kryptonite!" exclaimed Pinkie.

"His what?" said everyone.

"His kryptonite! You know, that one thing everything has that makes them weak. Like an achilles hoof?"

Twilight shook her head but resolved to look up the word "kryptonite" later in the dictionary.

Celestia continued: "Once we learnt of this my sister and I were able to formulate a plan. Word slowly trickled out of the hamlet by letter. Ponies were told to come one at a time and not too close together to avoid suspicion, and eventually, we amassed an army but we knew that in order to use a crystal on Discord the group we had to send it would be relatively small and scattered. The plan was not to kill him, but to immobilize him until we could figure out what to do next.I do not know what happened other than what was relayed to me by a pony called Commmodore. I heard that Discord had been shot in the head and killed. I was angry, but Commodore explained to me that it was an accident."

"There's something in his head," said Fluttershy. "I felt it. Something under the skin." Any lingering doubts Celestia had about Discord's identity vanished with that statement. "It's him," she said, her voice nearly breaking.

"What should we do, Princess?"

The alicorn composed herself then said, "Luna and I learnt that the Crystal Empire and the Tree of Harmony are connected and each has the power to immobilize the draconequus."

Fluttershy felt sick. "Princess Celestia...um...Mis...I mean, Discord is meant to be a magical creature from what you've told me, but he's never used magic."

"The crystal has stopped him from doing so."

"Yes, but I think it's stopped other things too. When I found him he was starving and I found it hard to communicate with him."

"Has he spoken with you?"

Fluttershy looked up sharply. She had simply meant communicate with tone of voice and body language. "He can speak?"

"Discord was a powerful mage, not just a magical beast. He could speak many tongues. Oh, he is a sapient being Fluttershy, and a dangerous one."

"He's not well," said the pegasus. "The crystal is hurting him." She thought of the way he had walked on all fours at all times and looked up at the window where he was depicted dancing on his hind legs.

Celestia nodded. "This is advantageous to us if he is indeed in a position where he is not able to use his powers, however, I do not wish for him to stay this way."

Rainbow Dash looked alarmed. "Why? If he gets better surely he'll attack Equestria again!"

"This is the part I did not wish to tell you, little ponies. Discord was once someone very dear to me, and to Luna. I will not go into detail at this point. I do not think I have the strength to tell you everything this evening, but I promise more will be known. For the moment, I am leaving him under the protection of Fluttershy and you will all need to be prepared to use the Elements to immobilize him if he regains his powers and decides to use them for ill."

"Me?!" squeaked Fluttershy. She had been able to cope with the idea of letting a predator with a set of sharp fangs into her home, but now she was terrified.

Celestia lifted up Fluttershy's chin with her hoof. "Fluttershy, I wish to extend the hoof of friendship to Discord. I am unable to do so myself because there is so much strife in our history he will be unlikely to trust me. However, I am also not about to let any of you get hurt, which is why you must also wield the Elements. If at any point you feel unsafe, use them. Discord will not be able to fight back."

"But...why, Princess?" asked Applejack.

"I have use of Discord's magic for good instead of evil, but I also believe every being deserves a chance at friendship." Her voice was beginning to crack again. "We will need to remove the crystal from his head. I imagine he will also need to be checked over in a hospital."

"Seth," whispered Rarity. Fluttershy felt her face go hot.

"Pardon me?" asked Celestia.

"Fluttershy...da...Fluttershy knows someone who works at the local hospital. We should be able to sneak Discord in there."

"Is he trustworthy?" asked Celestia.

"Yes," said Fluttershy, her face still red. She wasn't about to tell Celestia that this wasn't an idea she was entirely keen on. She was sure Celestia had better things to worry about than boyfriend troubles. She was sure someone as beautiful and regal as the alicorn of the sun never had any trouble with matters of the heart and she could love and be loved without guilt by any stallion.

"Excellent. Then if it is at all possible, he needs a health check and he needs the crystal removed. I will write out a letter with the royal seal if you run into any problems. But apart from Seth, I would rather that as few ponies as possible know about Discord's existence and none at all know about his history."

Fluttershy nodded.

"Thank you for coming, my little ponies. I would join you if I could, but I fear my presence might disturb Discord greatly..."

Fluttershy was lost deep in thought on the train ride back home. She no longer felt sleepy. On the contrary she was wide awake and her heart thud rapidly in her chest. Apart from Twilight, whose expression matched hers, the others were asleep.

"What else do you think Celestia isn't telling us?" whispered Fluttershy so she wouldn't wake the others.

"Best not to speculate," said Twilight. The pegasus nodded.

It was nearly morning when Fluttershy returned home. She walked up the bridge cautiously, Celestia's story still fresh in her mind. She had to remind herself that Discord was currently in a state that rendered his magic and even to some extent his intelligence useless.

When she reached the door her heart was pounding in her chest, but she let out a sigh of relief as she found Discord curled up on the bean bag. The fish were gone. The plan had worked. She quickly prepared a second meal for when he woke up. Tonight they would take him to the hospital.

Fluttershy nervously played with her mane in the hospital waiting room. She eyed the magazines on the coffee table in front of her. They were all about fashion and celebrities, neither of which interested her. Couldn't hospital waiting rooms ever have magazines about wildlife?

"You wanted to see me Fluttershy."

She looked up, startled, at her ex boyfriend. "Um...yes," she said, trying not to feel guilty for what felt like the umpteenth time about asking him for something when she had broken up with him. "But it's best if we talk about it in private." She had brought the letter with the royal seal on it with her.

Seth agreed to help almost instantly, as she knew he would.

Stop feeling guilty her inner voice growled at herself. If you didn't have a contact at the hospital this would be so much harder for Misma...this would be so much harder for Discord.

That was true. Where else would they have found a pony with medical training who was good at removal and sutures who could be trusted to keep quiet about the fact that there was a huge animal being seen in a hospital for ponies? The others were in the waiting room with her, all wearing their elements and looking furtive.

Hours later in the operating theatre, the hard, cruel-looking crystal fell with a clang into a metal bowl, its opaque red form stained brown with old blood. Discord's wound had been cleaned and stitched up and he slept, full of painkillers, and for the first time in centuries, void of any nightmares.

Winter's Eve

When Discord opened his eyes he was back in Fluttershy's cottage, but he wasn't on the bean bag. Instead, he was in a comfortable bed with a warm throw draped over his body. The middle of his body and his goat leg were bandaged and there was a strange sensation in his head.

Granted, there had always been a strange sensation in his head but this one felt different. Rather than being inside his head, this felt like it was on the surface of his scalp. He reached back around with his eage hand and felt another, smaller bandage there. He winced as the movement caused his ribs to give sharp protest and collapsed back down on the soft mattress. As long as he kept still, he felt like he was floating, happily. Any movement destroyed that illusion and the pain returned, so he lay there, happily basking in the warmth and post-anaesthetic haze. Yes--as long as he kept still he could die happy.

"You can't stay," Fluttershy was saying. "I'm very grateful for the offer, but if Discord wakes up I don't want him to be startled. He's only just getting used to me."

Discord had been moved from the hospital to her home in the early hours of the morning. Everyone was clearly tired and hungry but they were reluctant to her leave her alone with the draconequus.

"What if he wakes up and regains his powers?" asked Rainbow Dash. "How are we going to get to you in time?"

"Princess Celestia thought of that," spoke up a bleary-eyed Twilight. "There's a tracking spell on each of our Elements. If Fluttershy is in trouble we'll be able to Teleport to wherever she is as long as she's wearing her element." Twilight would have been much more excited about the advanced magic required to use this sort of spell, but right now she only wanted her bed. Or at least, Fluttershy's couch.

"Whoa, I've never teleported before!" exclaimed Rainbow Dash.

"Me either," said Twilight. "Apparently it takes some getting used to."

"An' there's no chance that one of us would end up only half there?" asked Applejack somewhat nervously. "I mean, like if our front ends ended up in Mexicolt while our back ends were still buckin' apples here in Equestria?"

"The Princess assured me it was perfectly safe," explained Twilight. "But I still think we should at least spend the first night with you, Fluttershy. Just to be on the safe side."

"You can't!" she repeated. She knew that if Discord sensed a bunch of ponies nearby he might panic or worse. "The less chance there is the better. After all, he's been through a lot already."

"It sounds like he put Equestria through a lot", said Rainbow Dash.

"We still don't know the full details of that," Fluttershy reminded her friend. "I think we should wait until Princess Celestia tells us more before we jump to conclusions, right Twilight?"

"Mmm?" the unicorn's head shot upright as she heard her name. "Yeah, yeah. Exactly."

Fluttershy looked at her friends sadly. They were all exhausted. She really didn't want them to stay awake any longer for her sake. "Honestly, I'll be okay," she said. "I promise if I ever feel unsafe I'll activate my element."

"Here are all his medical notes," said Seth, stepping forward and handling her a manilla envelope stuffed with documents. "Everything about what to expect should be in there, but if there are any problems please come and see me."

"Thank you," she said, taking the folder.

"Anytime, Fluttershy," he said, smiling softly at her. Her eyes met his and she quickly dropped her gaze as she felt a blush coming on. "I...I have to go," she said. "I'm sure you're all feeling as tired as I am."

After further half-hearted mumbling and offerings they took the hint and their leave.

As soon as the door was closed she broke down in tears. Why her? It wasn't as if she didn't want her friends around her, she just couldn't take that risk with him. She was scared, though. She had a dangerous creature in her house and she'd had no sleep for almost twenty-four hours. Why did Celestia give this task to her of all ponies? Twilight was the competent one!

A loud, metallic clanging sound rang out through the cottage and she nearly jumped out of her skin.

Angel Bunny bashed his dish against the cottage floor once more and looked at her pointedly.

"I'm sorry, Angel," she croaked. "I'll get you a salad right away."

Pull yourself together, Fluttershy. Other beings are relying on you.

She started chopping up vegetables at the kitchen counter. The normal every day task soothed her a little.

After she had put out feed for the other animals and checked on the chicken hutch, Fluttershy made herself a cup of tea and sat down on the couch with the manilla folder. She planned to have a long nap shortly after Discord's next feeding time, but for now she needed to know how best to proceed with regards to his condition. She pulled out the first sheet of the documents and read:

Patient: Discord
Race: Other (Draconequus)
Age: Unknown
Weight: 203 lbs
Length: 8'4"
Blood Type: Qa

The patient was admitted to hospital and is severely underweight and suffering from malnutrition. During examination via X-ray, both the patient's rib and hip bone were observed to contain fractures. A foreign object was also observed laying perpendicular to patient's brain. He is lucky to be alive.

It should be noted that post-surgery, patients that sustain these kind of head injuries do not always make a full recovery and the injury can result in temporary, or in rare cases, permanent memory loss. This memory loss can be partial or full and is impossible to predict.

It should also be noted that after taking a blood sample, the patient's blood type actually matches that of a pony, leading me to conclude that he must actually be at least partly pony. Since he is a chimera this is likely.

Post surgery bed rest should be observed until the patient is well enough to walk again without putting undue stress on his ribs and hip, and to avoid the risk of falling while his head injury is healing.

She read through the rest of the documents, carefully. One of them detailed the procedure but used lots of medical terminology that went over her head. One detailed his list of medications and how often he needed to take them. There were painkillers, antibiotics and soothers. She rested her chin on her hoof.

It was just after four in the afternoon when she woke up, and she realized she had nodded off on the couch. Great. She was probably going to have a crick in her neck now. She stretched her sore muscles and made her way up the stairs to check on Discord. Halfway down the hallway she paused. Wht was he going to be like when he woke up? She knew he would be too full of medicine to attack her, but would he realize where he was and what had happened to him? Would he remember Celestia? Would he be able to speak?

She pushed the bedroom door open carefully. Discord was on his side, facing away from her, his head mostly under the wool throw, with only his ears, antler and horn sticking out. His long tail did not fit under the throw, and hung over the edge of her bed. His breathing made the form under the throw rise and fall.

Fluttershy silently cursed the fact that he was not facing the door. The last thing she wanted to do was startle him, but she had to face the draconequus eventually.

"Um...hello?" said as softly as she could, which for Fluttershy meant barely perceptible, but amazingly his ears flexed and he caught the sound. He shifted on the bed with a groan and managed to raise his head a little to look over at her. Fluttershy moved closer and he watched her, his eyes never leaving hers. She moved until she was on his side of the bed.

"Um...how are you feeling?" asked the pegasus, trying not to tremble as she spoke. Discord's ears flexed again but he did not respond.

"I...I know this must all be very confusing. My name is Fluttershy. I'm looking after you because you're sick. You...you had something in your brain, but it was removed at the Ponyville General Hospital. Now you're in my home and you can rest until you're better."

That would do for now. She wasn't about to go into detail about his past and Celestia. She only knew what Celestia had told her so far anyway.

Discord's tail tuft twitched one, but he gave no sign that he understood her words. She wondered if he even remembered the past few days.

"Can you understand what I'm saying?"

He tilted his head at her and she knew then that the answer was most likely "no."

"Are you hungry?" she continued. "I can make us some soup." Another head tilt. "I have a can of tomato soup somewhere. I'll make us that." She hadn't had a chance to pick up groceries and the soup required minimal effort, not to mention it sounded very comforting right now.

A strong gust of wind rattled the windows of the cottage and Discord's ears flattened instinctively. Fluttershy wondered if a storm was on the way. She had forgotten to ask Dash for the forecast. Pegasi could keep an eye on most weather, but once in a while a storm blew through that was too dangerous to attempt to control. It was certainly the right time of the year for them. She decided to have the ferrets and chickens sleep in the living room tonight. The ferrets would behave themselves around the chickens if she told them to. The monitor lizard and Angel Bunny lived indoors anyway. The tortoises were already hibernating.

It was almost time for Discord's round of meds, so she smiled softly at him and began to walk towards the door. He turned to watch her go and grunted at the pain it caused him.

"You have to keep still," she told him, but she knew that if the words weren't sinking it that it was pointless. The only way he was going to keep still was with more sedatives. She gave him one last look before she closed the door and headed down the stairs.

Before she put the soup on the stove to heat, she went outside to collect the animals. The air definitely felt different now and there were cirrus clouds in the distance. When she had been a filly her mother had told her they were called "mare's tails."

For once she was glad she didn't have too many animals at her cottage this time of year, though she wondered how the wild birds were. Some species would have flown South to Mexicolt by now, but others spent the winter here. She made a mental note to fill up the bird feeder soon. The Autumnal berries and nuts would disappear soon.

She was just ushering in the last chicken when she saw a figure coming up the path.

Oh, no! The last thing I need right now is visitors!

Still, part of her felt concerned. The gusts of chill wind were getting stronger and the light was fading and she wondered what pony in their right mind would be out in this weather. As the figure came closer she noticed it wore a cloak.

"Zecora," she whispered.

"Indeed. I know I am late and there's no light in the sky, but I have come to check on you, Fluttershy."

"I'm...fine," she said, gritting her teeth. She didn't mind that Zecora was concerned for her, but she couldn't risk anypony coming into the house. "Di...Mismatch is just upstairs, sleeping."

She felt rude standing in the doorway, but she was still trying to think of a reason that Zecora couldn't stay. "I'm very sorry but now's not a good time," she said, and winced internally. That did sound rude.

Zecora removed her cloak and her blue eyes shone fiercely.

"He isn't giving you any trouble is he? If he is you can tell me."

Fluttershy balked. Zecora seemed to be looking at her with an almost knowing expression. As if there was something she was suspicious of.

"What? No. He's actually doing much better now. He even lets me pet him."

Zecora looked visibly relieved. "Good," she said simply, with a bit more cheer in her voice.

"Zecora," said Fluttershy. "You didn't walk all the way here from the Everfree just to check on me did you?"

The zebra smiled, but not with her eyes. "I did say I would check on you didn't I, Fluttershy?"

"But it's freezing out there! I...I'm really sorry but I can't offer you shelter. I can't have anypony in my house because it might startle Mismatch and he's only just beginning to trust me." There. That was more or less the truth.

"I have a place to spend the night, there is no need to be in such a fright."

"Really? Where?" She assumed Zecora was going to say with Twilight and Spike, but she was surprised when Zecora motioned behind her with her head and said "with him."

Fluttershy could just make out the large bulk of Harry's body in the dim light.

"It is close to the time when bears should be sleeping, surely. I will venture to Harry's cave and shelter. In the morning when the storm passes I will leave early."

This was not something Fluttershy was unfamilar with. The pegasus had done a similar thing when she was younger. In the morning she had tip-toed out of the cave and left the sleeping bear to continue the winter in a deep hiberation.

"I'm really sorry, Zecora," Fluttershy repeated. The zebra laughed.

"You apologize too much, girl."

"I'm so...I mean. I can make you a hot drink at least." Zecora smiled and nodded.

Within minutes Fluttershy had made a flask of tea for the zebra. "I wanted to thank you again for all your help the other day," said Fluttershy. "I don't know what I would have done if you didn't exist." She hugged Zecora and Harry bye and closed the door once more.

"Whew." She realized she had left the cold soup on the stove and forgotten about it, so she turned on the cooker. Soon the smell of hot soup filled the air. She lit the fire and the ferrets, chickens and Angel Bunny huddled around the warmth, then returned to the kitchen and took the soup off the stove. She ate hers while waiting for Discord's portion to cool slightly and his medication to dissolve within it. She added a spoon to his bowl.

While she had never given Discord utensils before, she now felt slightly confused about the situation. How much of his personhood was still in there? Fluttershy treated all creatures with respect, but she knew they all had different needs, and continuing to treat Discord like an animal who ate food out of a bowl without a knife, fork, or spoon seemed wrong somehow. He was a person, wasn't he? She finished her soup, placed Discord's portion on a tray and carried it up the stairs.

The room was dark and she turned on the lamp next to the bed. She didn't need to for his sake. He could see her coming in the darkness. The smell of tomato soup hit his nostrils and his mouth watered. He sat up slightly and winced. Fluttershy reminded herself that there was no way he was going to be able to eat and get painkillers down him unless he sat up. When he was propped up against the headboard, she gently placed the tray on his lap.

"Eat up, it's delicious," she said.

He wasted no time, but it was not at all what she had expected. Discord picked the bowl up, cradling it in his lion paw and eagle hand and began licking the soup out of the bowl. The spoon was completely ignored as he made slurping sounds and the soup dripped down onto the bedsheets. Oops.

Her heart sank slightly at this sight. While she was glad he had an appetite, the fact that he had not shown any signs that he was a sapient being was beginning to make her wonder if his memory would come back. On the other hoof, Seth's notes had said most memory loss was temporary. Maybe she just needed to be patient. But it still ate at her. If Discord never spoke again, or couldn't remember who he was then he was brain damaged and would need to be cared for in a hospital. But would a hospital understand? Or would they just see an animal? Would he be able to go back to Princess Celestia and be cared for in Canterlot? She couldn't release him back into the wild. Not when she knew that deep down he was a person.

"Shy."

Her head shot upwards. "Wh-what did you say?"

He looked up at her matter-of-factly and repeated: "Shy." He flicked his right ear back and forth.

Outside the wind howled.

It didn't occur to either of them that if Fluttershy hadn't found him in the woods days ago, this winter might have been his last.

Author's Note

Discord waking up from general anaesthetic and enjoying the feeling is based on my own experiences when waking up from surgery. I know everyone reacts to GA differently, and some people actually react very badly to it, but for me it was heaven on earth for about an hour (until it wore off and the pain returned that is). Seriously, if someone could bottle that feeling and market it safely I would be very happy. :P

Discord's blood type is an actual Equine blood type. At first I considered giving him a crazy blood type no one else had, but since he needed blood during surgery, I gave him regular pony stuff.

Winter: Little Earthquakes

Good times, for a change
See the luck I've had
Can make a good man turn bad
So please, please, please let me get what I want
Lord knows it would be the first time
-The Smiths

Zecora woke up with her nose buried in thick fur and it took her a few moments to remember where she was. She could no longer hear the howling wind that had at times screeched with the ferocity of a banshee.

The great bear was fast asleep, and would likely remain so for the rest of the winter unless something disturbed him, so she was careful to make her exit as quietly as possible.

Outside the cave, frost glistened on the morning landscape. The storm was over, and though it hadn't snowed, Zecora could see her breath and she wrapped her cloak tighter around her shoulders and secured her saddlebag. She wondered how Fluttershy and the creature had fared at the cottage. She hadn't told Fluttershy the entire truth about her visit. Though she had spent the night in the cave to shelter from the storm, she was planning on setting up camp nearby to keep an eye on the pegasus. She knew she'd only be able to do it for a couple of weeks before it got too cold to be out with only the warmth of a campfire and layers of clothing to stave off the temperature.

She needed to be sure about the creature.

Fluttershy opened her eyes. She was still curled up under about five layers of blanket and She'd even put socks on in the middle of the night because her hooves were cold. She'd also put a blanket on the bean bag for the chickens to nest on. The ferrets and Angel Bunny were under the quilt with her.

The silence after last night's storm was surprising and she gently pushed the layers off her so as not to disturb her co sleepers. How was Discord doing?

He hadn't uttered any other words since saying her name, and he had shortly gone to sleep after drinking the tomato soup laced with soothers and his medication, but she had gone to bed feeling slightly more positive that he was able to speak at all. She pushed open the bedroom door and found him sleeping soundly under the many layers of blankets she had given him. He was slightly curled up from the cold, which wasn't good for his ribs, but he looked peaceful at least.

"Discord," she said softly. It was time for his medication and she wanted to discuss that with him if she could. He didn't stir.

"Discord," she repeated.

"Mmph..." he said. His eyes opened gradually.

"Good morning," said Fluttershy. "I'm going to make us breakfast in a minute, but how did you sleep last night?" She was under no illusions that he wasn't likely respond with much more than "Shy" again but she was adamant that she was going to talk to him as if he understood everything she was saying. How else was he going to get better?

Discord rubbed his eyes. He felt incredibly groggy and his head was sore. As long as he didn't move around too much his goat leg felt okay.

Fluttershy pulled up a chair and sat next to him. "Would you like some eggs? Or maybe some toast?"

He stared at her, and she noticed something different about his eyes. While they still contained the same mismatched pupils, before they seemed to look at her in the same way a tortoise or dog expecting to be fed looked at her. Now he was looking at her with a sort of vague recognition. It was like he was trying to work things out.

She waited for an answer, and he opened his mouth. A rasping sound came out. His throat was dry. He was probably dehydrated from the medication. "W...where?" he said, with great difficulty.

Fluttershy's heart leapt. "You're in my cottage, in Ponyville," she said. "How are you feeling?"

"Head...hurts."

Fluttershy was trying hard to keep calm. On the one hand he was speaking, on the other Celestia had told him he was dangerous.

At the moment, however, he didn't look dangerous. He looked broken and tired.

"I can give you some painkillers in a minute, but do you think you can eat some eggs and toast?"

He thought for a second and nodded. Fluttershy was glad there was no resistence to the fact that she needed to give him medication. She had been worried about that.

"I'll go and make us some then," she said. She reached out and gently petted his paw, and he looked surprised, but otherwise did not react. He watched her leave the room and he lay back down again with exhaustion.

She returned with a tray of eggs, toast and orange juice. Even if Discord decided not to use utensils again at least those things could more or less be eaten without too much mess. He began devouring the eggs greedily, and stabbed the toast with his eagle talon while he took big bites out of it.

"Here," she said, handing him two pills."Drink these down."

He stared at her. "What...is?"

"It's your medication. You know, to stop the pain."

He looked genuinely confused.

"Here," said Fluttershy, and she crushed the pills into his orange juice. The confusion in his eyes disappeared and Fluttershy wondered if he had ever seen pills before. Maybe not. What use would he have had for them before? She handed him the glass, and to her relief he drank it.

"Tastes...funny," he said.

She noticed he was having trouble pronouncing the letter "T."

"I know," she said gently. "But it will make you feel better." She decided not to give him his soothers yet. She wanted to see if she could speak to him and find things out first. "Discord, can you remember anything?" she coaxed softly.

"Bout...bout what?"

She needed to be careful here. What was it Celestia had said? My presense would disturb him. That probably meant mentioning the Princess as well. "I mean, what's the last thing you can remember before last night?"

Discord narrowed his eyes. He seemed to be trying to think through a fog.

"Remember...the...the...chaos."

Fluttershy felt the back of her neck prickle. "The chaos?" she asked, trying not to give in to the fear that was suddenly threatening to take hold of her.

"Ice...cream...and...urtles..." and he smiled.

"Turtles?"

"'Urtles" he confirmed.

Fluttershy wondered if he was talking nonsense and she had pushed him a little too hard. "Here," she said, refilling his glass of orange juice and crushing the soothers and antibiotics inside. "This will help you sleep."

Over the next few weeks Discord said more and more, but she didn't try to bring up the past with him again. She figured it would be best if he came to it on his own. He still seemed to have trouble articulating certain words and sometimes had to think for more than a minute if she asked him a question that wasn't related to food or painkillers, but his physical injuries seemed to be mending rapidly.

In fact, one day after she had gone out to get groceries she found him at the top of the stairs on all fours.

"What are you doing?" she shrieked.

"Walking," he said, simply.

"We don't know if your hip is better yet! And if you fall down the stairs you could hurt your head again!" Indeed, his hip didn't seem to be better. It took her a second to realize he wasn't actually standing on all fours, but was instead taking the stance of a tripod. His goat leg wasn't touching the floor.

"Want to come down," he said.

"No!" she dropped her grocery bags. "You'll hurt yourself."

He actually snorted at her in defiance, a mannerism she might have been joyful at because it meant he was improving but instead she just felt terror as he put his paw on the upper step.

"Listen to me, Mister!" she said, trying her scolding voice and getting ready to bring out The Stare if necessary. "If you don't get back into bed right this instant...I'll...I'll..." She would what? What did she have to threaten him with?

He wasn't listening to her at any rate. He pressed down all his weight on his lion paw and dragon foot and brought his eagle talon down onto the second step from the top. He wobbled slightly as he made the transition. Fluttershy began to run towards him but his dragon foot had already left the ground. In that split second she saw his body begin to fall and with a loud scream of panic she flung the bean bag towards the bottom of the stairs. She watched him move through the air almost as if it was happening in slow motion, and she saw the fear in his eyes as he realized he'd made a terrible mistake. Then he hit the bean bag, mostly neck and face first.

She ran towards him, terrified his stitches had burst open, or worse, that he had broken his neck. "Discord, Discord! Are you okay?!"

He looked up at her from the bean bag and she could have sworn there was a glint in his eye.

Zecora chewed her oat bar thoughtfully as she stared at the fire. She knew Fluttershy had put herself and Discord into isolation deliberately, but that still didn't mean she wasn't worried. If the creature was indeed what she feared it was then it was likely to take advantage of Fluttershy's kindness and make life a living hell for her.

She picked up her staff. It was time to pay a visit to some of the others to see what information she could gather, and on the way back she would stop at the cottage just to be sure.

"My head hurts," said Discord. He was on her bed lying on his stomach. Getting him back up the stairs had been an ordeal. She couldn't support his weight, so he had to drag himself upwards.

Fluttershy removed the bandage and dressing on Discord's head. She was relieved that the stitches were still in place and there was no swelling. "It looks okay," she said.

"But it really hurts," he insisted.

"I think you might have a headache from taking painkillers for so long," she said.

"Makes no sense," he laughed.

"It does. You might be becoming dependent on them". He had finished his course of antibiotics and was now out of soothers. Seth had instructed her to try and get him off painkillers as soon as possible.

"How am I supposed to get rid of the pain if I don't take painkillers?" he asked her.

"You'll have to wean yourself off them" she said. "I can give you half a pill today, and you can have a quarter tomorrow."

"I want two whole pills."

"I'm sorry, Discord. But you can't. It's not good for you and it will make your headache worse in the long run.I can make you some chamomile tea to help you sleep."

"I want two pills."

"No."

He scowled at her, then smiled slyly and began digging his talons and lion claws into the bed, kneading the mattress like a cat. Fluttershy watched as the stuffing began to emerge from the holes his claws were making.

She gritted her teeth. She wasn't going to rise to it. She'd had badly behaved patients before. Angel Bunny was permanently like that. On the other hand, Angel Bunny didn't have enormously sharp fangs and claws. Discord may have improved in many ways, but he still behaved very much like an animal in others. He continued to knead at the mattress. She left the room.

"I want my painkillers! he shouted at her.

She trudged up the stairs angrily and handed him a glass of water and half a pill.

"I said two," he growled stroppily.

"That's all your getting," she said primly. "It's for your own good. Unless you want me to put it away again."

He growled again and took the glass from her. He put the pill on his tongue and swallowed it before he drank the water.

"I know this is boring," she said, softening her tone of voice. "But once you're better you won't need the pills and you'll feel fine, I promise."

He grunted at her like a teenage foal. Fluttershy sighed. She wanted to ask him if he remembered anything else, but now certainly wouldn't be the time. He was likely to be as cooperative as a giraffe who was told it needed to get into a pen with some lions. "You need to rest just a little longer."

"Don't want to rest."

"You just fell down the stairs. I know you want to move around but you need to rest a little bit longer. It should only be a few more days. How does your hip feel."

"It hurts. Everything hurts," he growled, though that wasn't entirely true. Yes, his hip did hurt but it was bearable. What was unbearable, was his throbbing headache and the blasted pony wasn't listening to him when he said he needed more pills.

"If it hurts then you should stay in bed."

He opened his mouth to reply but closed it again, but not before shooting her a death stare.

"I'm going to make us some dinner," she announced. She closed the door behind her with a click. Discord growled and dragged his body off the bed until he was standing on three legs again. He leaned his long body against the wall and reached up with his forelimbs, twisting the door knob. Nothing happened. He tried again. Nothing. The blasted pony had locked him in! He thought of every curse word imaginable with regards to the pegasus, which given his memory, wasn't as long a list as his usual vocabulary. He collapsed against the wall. He felt exhausted and though the pill had started to dull the pain a little his head still throbbed.

Stupid, stupid pony!

Fluttershy chopped up some green peppers and onions and fried them gently in a pan. She was glad she had something to keep her occupied for the moment. Though she had left the room in a calm manner, inside she was fuming. How dare he growl at her after all she had done for him! As she watched the vegetables frying and added some noodles she began to calm down.

He's frightened she told herself. He doesn't remember anything and he's acting out. She added some mushrooms to the stir fry. There was a gentle tap on the window and her ears flattened in fear. She quickly, relaxed, however when she saw the familiar face of the zebra witchdoctor.

"Just a sec!" she hissed and she took the pan off the stove and opened the front door.

"Yes?" she said, stepping outside and closing the door gently behind her.

"I am here to check on how you are, and fear not, Fluttershy I have not come from afar." The others had been surprisingly secretive about Fluttershy and had given the zebra very little information.

"Oh?" said the pegasus.

"Yes."

Fluttershy fidgeted and scuffed her hoof on the ground. "I'm fine," she said. "Discord's being a baby, but that's about it."

"Discord?" the zebra looked worried all of a sudden.

"Oh...oh dear. I wasn't supposed to tell you his name."

"Why ever not, young Fluttershy? What is this secret, tell me why."

The pegasus squirmed. "I've just been told not to tell anyone about it by someone higher up. But trust me, I do have everything under control."

"I. WANT. MY. PILLS." came a loud, angry voice from upstairs.

"Oh dear."

Zecora grabbed her by the shoulders. "Fluttershy, I must know, much more about this foe. Is the creature from up nigh, perhaps the creature Uglahai?"

"I...I don't know what that is," said Fluttershy truthfully.

"The trickster," said the zebra. "When I was a foal my mother spun us tales. Some of the spider Anansi, and some of incredible gales. But of all the stories I remember from days past, worst were the ones of the Spirit of Chaos."

Fluttershy's eyes widened. "You know who he is? And you didn't tell me?"

"I had my suspicions, but they weren't confirmed. And you seem like a mare that is well informed. But I still had worries, so I came to look, to make sure that you were not being used by a crook."

"I don't know much about him, Zecora. I only know what Celestia told me, which was that Discord used to be...someone very dear to her." She was sure the zebra wasn't the type to spread classified information about the Princess, but she still felt guilty telling her.

Zecora shook her head. "That makes no sense, the Uglahai, he has no friends. Not you, nor I."

"Then what could she mean?"

"I know not. Only Celestia can answer that." The zebra looked at her worriedly and Fluttershy took Zecora's hoof in her own.

"I promise you, I'm okay. He's being loud, but he's still in bed and healing. Princess Celestia wouldn't have given me this mission if she thought I could get hurt."

Zecora seemed to think for a moment then nodded.

"What you say is true, I just cannot help but worry about you."

Fluttershy smiled. "Thank you," she said. "But I'm fine, really I am. Would you like some tea for the road?"

"That would be lovely."

Fluttershy carried the meal up the stairs. If he was asleep she could always reheat it for later. She put the key in the lock and turned it carefully so as lot to wake him. "Discord," she said. "I'm sorry about earlier but maybe some food will make you feel bet..."

He wasn't in the room. Panic flooded her as she checked under the bed, inside the wardrobe, but there was no draconequus. That was when she noticed the open window. She poked her head out but he wasn't there.

Oh no!

This was the last thing she needed. She had just reassured Zecora she was doing fine and could handle things and this was like a slap in the face. Adrenaline spurring her on, she ran down the stairs and out the door.

"Discord!" she called frantically. He couldn't have gotten far with his goat leg the way it was. She lit an oil lamp and began frantically searching the path and bushes nearby. She was about ready to cry. This couldn't be happening, it just couldn't. Princess Celestia had trusted her to do the right thing and she had blown it. She called his name again and ran down the path. After almost an hour of searching, something occured to her. She didn't see any tracks on the path other than Zecora's or any indication that a body had dragged itself across the undergrowth. She turned and looked back at the light in her cottage and started running.

Discord lay on the bathroom floor, staring at the ceiling. Everything felt amazing. He purred and rubbed his face against the bathroom rug. He didn't care how many dirty hooves had previously been on it. It felt like heaven. Why hadn't he thought of this before? This would solve all his problems. Stupid pony trying to stop him from solving all his problems...

The door burst open. "Discord!"

He barely registered the sound of the terrified pegasus's voice. "I was looking everywhere for you! Do you know how much you scared me?!"

"Hmm?" he said, looking at her with a calm expression on his face. Then he started laughing. "Silly mare!" he cooed. His pupils were massive. Fluttershy looked up to see the bathroom cabinet was open, and when she checked it, all the painkillers she'd had in a jar were gone.

"No!"

"Nooooo!" trilled Discord happily.

"Discord, how many did you take?" she cried, grabbing his face.

"All of them!" he grinned happily. Fluttershy's blood went cold. There were about 30 pills in there, and they were the kind used for severe pain. Discord removed himself from her hooves and began rubbing his face along the rug again.

"Serves her right!" he laughed.

"This isn't funny!"

"It is! It's very funny! Serves Prissy Princess right." Then, to Fluttershy's surprise, he began half-laughing half-crying. "She left me! She left me!"

Fluttershy thought fast. She needed to get to Seth right away. She wasn't prepared to handle this on her own.

"Discord!" she said, taking his head in her arms again. "You need to stay awake, do you understand me?" She positioned his head under the shower and blasted cold water on his face. He shrieked, but it ended in wild laughter and sobbing again. Fluttershy knew she needed to hurry. She ran down the stairs, grabbed her coat and was out the door, running as fast as her legs could carry her.

She reached Seth's house twenty minutes later,and pounded on his door. She felt like her heart was going to burst. Seth opened the door to see a very red faced and out of breath pegasus.

"Fluttershy! What's wrong?"

When they returned to Fluttershy's cottage, Discord was unconscious. Fluttershy started crying.

"Shh, don't worry," said Seth. He began running a tube down the draconequus's long throat then he attached the end closest to him to a bottle of charcoal solution. The reaction was almost instantaneous and Discord lurched forward, vomiting onto the rug. Seth manouvered his head into the bathtub.

Discord didn't even seem aware of who was touching him. He just continued to retch into the tub. Fluttershy began pulling Seth towards the door.

"Hey, hey! What gives?" asked the earth pony.

"He doesn't know you," said the pegasus. "I'm afraid you'll startle him."

"Why the hell did he do that?" asked Seth.

"I...I don't know. He wanted painkillers and I was trying to wean him off them."

"The fool! Was he aware that thirty pills in one go could kill him?"

"I honestly don't know."

"Fluttershy, really, if you need an extra pair of hooves to help with this I'm happy to take some of my leave and..."

"No," she said suddenly. "I'm fine. I...I was just stupid because I didn't keep the cabinet locked."

Seth looked at her and sighed, shaking his head as Fluttershy wiped tears off her face with her hooves. Even when they had been together she had been this stubborn. It was hard not to like that about her.

"Will he be okay?" she asked.

"Yup. But he's going to have a mare of a headache in the morning."

Once she had convinced Seth to leave, Fluttershy checked on Discord. His breathing was raspy and he was leanin over the tub.

"Come on," she said. "Let's get you into bed."

It was a struggle moving the draconequus, but he managed to stumble along back to the bedroom with her help. She gave him a glass of water and tucked him in.

"I'm not going anywhere tonight," she told him softly. "I'll be right here if you need me."

She ran her hoof along his mane and he whimpered softly.. She'd worry about cleaning up the bathroom in the morning.

Fluttershy watched him as he slept, her mind full. She ended up eating cold stir fry in the bedroom as she guarded him. Why had he done that? Had he been aware that pills of such amounts could kill him? And what did he mean by "Prissy Princess" and "She left me?"

She sighed. She had to admit one thing to herself, and that was she couldn't do this alone with the scant information she had. She needed to get more information from Celestia. She left the bedroom briefly then went back upstairs with a quill and parchment and sat at the table near the window, occcassionally turning to check Discord was still snoozing peacefully.

Dear Princess Celestia, she wrote.

I am writing you this letter because I feel that I need more information about Discord in order to care for him properly. I'm a bit worried that he may be trying to hurt himself when I'm not watching him. I'm really sorry to ask, but could I read that book? If I could learn more about his history and the draconequii, maybe I would be better placed to care for him.

I'm really sorry. I know you must be disappointed in me, but I'm worried that without the full information I won't be able to do a good job.

Sincerely, Fluttershy.

She sighed deeply and put the quill down, then she folded the parchment and put it in an envelope. She'd ask the mailpony to take it to the Golden Oaks library so Twilight and Spike could send it to Princess Celestia directly. It would get to the Princess faster that way.

Shefelt exhausted. She looked over at Discord. He was peacefully sleeping for now but she knew his headache would be something to contend with in the morning. Seth had left soothers for her so that would help, at least. She felt too tired to crawl down to the sofa bed.

She crawled across the bed and curled up next to the draconequus.

When Discord awoke he was aware of a blinding pain behind his eyes. He was also aware of a pony in very close proximity to him. He opened his eyes, wincing the moment the light hit them and was confronted by a pink mane and the sleeping face of the pegasus. He opened his mouth to say something snarky and managed the word: "blleaargh." He felt like he had been hit by a cart. He was also very, very thirsty.

The noise he uttered woke Fluttershy. "Oh, how are you feeling?" she asked softly, getting to her hooves.

"Crappy," came the croaked reply.

"I'll get you some water and soothers," she said. "Do you think you can eat something?"

The thought of eating anything turned the draconequus' stomach. "No," he protested.

"How about some soup later."

He made a non-commital noise and she got the soothers for him, taking a few seconds while she was downstairs to put the letter into the mailbox for the mail mare to collect.

Discord swallowed the pills and collapsed back down on the mattress.

"Why does my head hurt so bad?" he moaned.

"You took thirty pills in one go!"

"So? I thought they were meant to stop pain."

"Discord, there's a reason I've only been giving you two pills at a time. Any more is dangerous, and thirty is deadly!"

He looked at her in genuine surprise. "You were giving me poison?"

"They're not poison! Not in small amounts. Ponies use them as medicine, but like anything if you have too much of it, they can kill you."

To her surprise, he chuckled. "Typical," he said. "All the things that feel good are 'bad' for you."

"In the future," she said. "Please trust me when I say I'm doing things for your own health."

"And why should I do that? I don't even know what I'm doing here."

She grit her teeth. "I've been asked to look after you."

"By who?"

"I...I can't reveal that information."

He laughed. "And you expect me to trust you?"

"I may be able to reveal that information in the future, but for now I've promised someone I wouldn't. But what I can promise you is this: I mean you no harm. All I want is to see you get better."

"Really."

"Discord, can you remember anything at all? I mean before you came to my cottage."

He knitted his brow, and after about half a minute he said: "I remember two ponies. They were pointing a crossbow at me."

"Yes?" said Fluttershy encouragingly, though she felt a chill go down her spine as he recounted the image.

"That's all."

"Really? You don't remember anything before then?"

He thought hard again and said: "I remember stars."

"Stars."

"Just stars."

She decided to not press him any further for the moment. Hopefully when Princess Celestia got her letter she would know more.

"I'm not going to lie to you," she said. "Today your head is going to hurt a whole lot because you overdosed on pills, but I'm going to try and make you as comfortable as possible. I think if you ate a little later, your headache would disappear faster. And I'll give you lots of water and soothers and we'll pull the blinds down so it's dark and doesn't hurt your eyes. Is that okay?"

He nodded. He wasn't about to argue with her after what had happened to him.

Later that day after she had finished cleaning charcoal out of her bathtub and washing the porcelin with hot water, she began running a bath. She couldn't imagine that Discord felt very comfortable when he was covered in dirt, scabs, dried food and regurgitated charcoal solution. When she entered the bedroom, however, he seemed timid.

"I smell lavender," he said.

"Yes, I'm running a bath," she said. "It should help you feel better."

He paused, then said "I'd like a bath, but I'd also like some privacy."

"I'm sorry Discord, but I can't allow that after what happened today. I need to help you, and the best way for me to do that is if I clean your wounds. I can also help you untangle some of your feathers and fur. It can't feel very comfortable to have them matted like that."

"It's not," he admitted. "But..."

She wondered what was bothering him. Like ponies, he went around naked so that couldn't have been the problem. Did he have a fear of water? Was he embarrassed about someone else washing him? She tried a different tact: "Discord, please. I only want to help you. And it might make your headache feel better." He hesitated. The lavender bubble bath did smell good, soothing even.

"'kay" he said, and hobbled out of bed and across the hallway into the bathroom.

Fluttershy checked the temperature of the water with her hoof and signalled to him that it was ready. Discord manouvered himself so that he was sitting on the edge of the bath tub, then turned his body so that he could sink into the water without hurting his goat hoof. As he sank lower into the water, he felt its warmth soak into and underneath his feathers and a low moan of satisfaction erupted from his throat.

"Oh, that does feel good," he said, tilting his head back and resting it against the side of the tub closest to the wall. His dragon foot and goat hoof stuck out above the water and his tail, which was too long to fit the length of the tub, hung out over the edge and onto the floor.

Fluttershy began lathering up some bubble bath and used a bowl to pour water over the fur on his neck. Discord sighed happily. "I may need to get dirty more often," he said. A blush spread across Fluttershy's face. Why had that sounded like a double entendre? She pushed the thought out of her mind quickly and began shampooing his mane. She felt less worried when she peered down at him, and suddenly realized why he might have felt embarrassed about having a bath. Discord didn't look like a guy who was making dirty jokes. He looked like a bird that had just been plucked. Like most birds who got their feathers soaked, Discord's body looked smaller than it actually was under all that fur and feather, and she was reminded of how near death he had been (twice) over the past few weeks.

She began to wash him off with the shower head, making sure that the water that came out was still warm. When that was done, she went to the airing cupboard and looked for the biggest, fluffiest towel she could find, which turned out to be beach towel and was big enough to wrap around most of Discord's body after he had dried his mane and feathers with it. He began to shiver once they left the warmth of the bathroom and she quickly helped him into bed. He refused to let go of the towel and wrapped it round himself like shawl.

Fluttershy actually stifled a giggle. He looked like a strange monk.

"Feeling better?" she asked. He nodded. "See," she said. "Wasn't that worth it?"

"You ask a lot of questions," he said, giving her a sidelong view, "but I don't believe you've told me much about yourself..."

Oh. "Well, my name's Fluttershy..." she began.

"Yes, we've ascertained that," he said in an acerbic tone of voice. "I want to know why specifically I've been given to you so that you can be my caretaker, but since you're not going to tell me that, perhaps we could start with the basics. What's a pegasus doing living on the ground? I don't believe your kind tend to spend much time mucking about in the dirt. That's for earth ponies."

"Oh, well that's a long story," she said, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable that the spotlight had been turned on her.

"Well, then," he said, grinning and showing rows of sharp teeth. "I have all the time in the world to listen."

She really didn't want to talk about this with him. It was her personal and private life and he really didn't have any right to know about it, but she knew that if she didn't open up a little to him that she would yet very little in return. She took a deep breath."My parents died when I was a filly," she said, throwing herself in at the deep end. If he wanted to say anything nasty then she might as well get it over with. Discord, however, was silent, and still looking at her from his towel tee pee. She continued. "They were on a train to Canterlot while I was at flight school, and it derailed. Th-They didn't have time to get out." She swallowed hard; she wasn't going to cry, dammit. "I wasn't the only filly who lost parents on that train. There were a few foals who ended up orphaned. The Crown was very good to us. Pri...they ending up providing for our education and recompensing us. That's how I ended up here, when I realized what my cutie mark was telling me to do."

"Look after animals? Or the sick and needy?"

"Well, both. But I'm better at looking after animals, I think. I think everyone needs kindness in their lives. It can help with a lot of painful things."

He was silent again.

"What about you, do you...did you have family?"

His eyes were suddenly cold and hard. "I don't remember," he said. "And I want to go to sleep now. My head still hurts a little."

Celestia's reply came within a day to the Golden Oaks Library, and Twilight was keen to read it, but Spike stopped her.

"Uh uh," he said. "It says it's for Fluttershy's eyes only."

"Oh," said the unicorn, feeling slightly crestfallen.

"Yeah," said Spike. "Can I deliver it?"

"I don't see why not. But remember to not disturb Fluttershy. She said that any strangers might disturb Discord."

The dragon nodded and stuffed the scroll into his pouch.

It was 2 weeks until Hearth's Warming, and the air was still chilly. Spike put on his ear muffs, boots and winter coat and headed down the path.

Lots of the townsponies were out doing last minute shopping for the holidays and Spike took longer than usual to arrive at Fluttershy's cottage while he was avoiding the footfall of hooves all around him.

He stuffed the letter into the mailbox and turned back to run the gauntlet again, unaware that he was being watched.

Discord's headache was finally gone. It had taken almost two days, but he had done as Fluttershy had asked and eaten his meals without complaint. He was finally beginning to fill out, and his ribs were no longer visible, though he still looked very thin, even for his long shape. Fluttershy was unprepared for his appetite when it came back full force.

"Can I have some cheese on toast?" he asked. "Can I have a bushel of apples? Can we have mashed potatoes with gravy tonight?"

She was glad he was eating, but it was hard to keep up. He ate almost as much as all her animals combined. His requests were becoming extremely varied and after a while she told him he needed to tone it down because she just didn't have the ingredients for "Black Forest Gateau Ravioli, not to mention the recipe.

"Can we have egg fried rice?" he asked her on that particular evening. She was actually relieved he had requested that. She could make a large batch and there would be enough for leftovers.

"I'll see what I can do," she said smiling. She made her way into the kitchen and as she looked out the window she saw the letter sticking out of the letter box. She dropped everything and ran out the door, tearing opening the envelope quickly.

Dearest Fluttershy,

After much thought, I have decided that yes, I will let you have the book for your information.

Please be aware that the information within it is for your eyes only and I trust you not to relay any of it to the others.

I am not disappointed in you. On the contrary, I know how difficult this must be and I am very proud of you for being brave enough to tackle this on your own.

Remember that if at any time you wish to back out, or feel unsafe, you are free to use the Elements.

I will be delivering the book within the next few days.

Sincerely,

Princess Celestia

The book arrived a day later, but not at all in the way Fluttershy was expecting. She had anticipated the mail mare bringing her a package, possibly labelled fragile, but instead a carriage pulled up outside the cottage late in the afternoon and a guard had knocked on her door.

"Fluttershy?" said the stallion, in such a brisk voice that Fluttershy couldn't help but feel a little intimidated.

"Yes, that's me."

"Delivery from Princess Celestia." He handed her an archival box which had been waxed with the royal seal."

"Th-Thank you," spluttered the pegasus. The guard nodded and then signalled to the others that it was time to go.

Fluttershy backed into the house and closed the door quietly. She looked up the stairs, as if expecting Discord to be standing at the top of them, then she made her way over to the couch and placed the archival box on the coffee table, looking at it furtively. She was dying to open the package, but at the same time she was worried about what she would find in there.

It's for Discord she reminded herself. The more you know the better you'll be able to help him.

She broke the royal seal and unwrapped the book which was covered with tissue paper. Like the other volumes she had seen in the Golden Oaks Library, the book was bound in blue vegetable leather. She dug around in her saddle bag for the note she had made weeks ago in the library and found the crumpled sheet of paper. She smoothed it out with her hoof and noted the page numbers: Equestria's Past Volume XIII by Hoofsteader. Pages 84-235

She opened the book and began to read:

Chapter XVI The Reign of Discord

Discord was a creature of the race Draconequui. Though believed to be a race in their own right, all that is known about the Draconequui is that at the time of his reign, there was only one living of their species. An attempt has been made to find evidence of other Draconequui and their customs, but to no avail.

From scrolls written by Starswirl the Bearded, it is apparent that Discord came to the Kingdom of Equestria as a nomad around the same time that King Jovian passed away. (See volume XII pages 267-350). Starswirl the Bearded apparently had something approaching a friendly relationship with the draconequus since they were both weilders of magic, and it was through the mage that Discord became known to Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.

The full extent of Discord's dealings with the royal family are unknown, but unfounded rumours spread throughout Equestria that Princess Celestia had taken him as a lover.

Fluttershy nearly dropped the book. Lover? She peered down again at the writing and continued reading:

These are, of course, silly rumours and as a historian it is my job to present the facts. What is more likely is that our glorious Princess found herself in a situation where Discord was difficult to manage. What is known is that during Princess Celestia's engagement to Prince Stellarium, Discord decided to betray the Princesses and Starswirl.

Until then, it was unclear just how much power the draconequus had. Discord was the Spirit of Chaos, and able to wield this power directly from nature.

After that there were descriptions of what Discord had done which Fluttershy found especially difficult to read. Her eyes flitted over phrases such as "famine...suffering...inverse gravity..." Her eyes filled with tears as she read more and more of the suffering a cruelty ponies had endured under Discord's reign. Why had he betrayed Celestia? Was that what he had intended to do all along? Had he simply been friendly with Starswirl to infiltrate the Crown?

Finally she got to the part about the Crystal Empire and the mining village. She had expected to read a passage about Princess Celestia being angry at Commodore for "killing" Discord, but instead she was surprised to see the words:

Brave Commodore, an Earth Pony from the mining village which is now the Crystal Empire, saved Equestria from the beast's long reign by shooting Discord in the head with a Crystal of Order. From that day forward, there has been peace in Equestria.

Fluttershy couldn't help but feel a little skeptical while reading the passages. For one thing, she was certain other forms of unrest had occured since then: Nightmare Moon for example. Perhaps this book had been written before Luna returned. After all, Celestia had been guarded about that whole affair as well, and with good reason.

But she did agree with the author that the rumours about Princess Celestia and Discord seemed rather gossipy and unfounded. But what of Prince Stellarium? Had Celestia ever married him? She hadn't heard any mention of Celestia marrying in any of the history books, and surely Twilight would have mentioned something like that by now.

She left me. The Prissy Princess left me.

She shook her head. She only had Discord's word to go on regarding that, and the author had said the rumours were unfounded. Maybe Discord had wanted the Princess for himself and got angry when she wanted to marry the stallion she loved. She couldn't imagine Princess Celestia with a partner who wasn't pony. The book seemed to be throwing up more questions rather than answering the ones she already had.

She put the book down on the coffee table. That had been a lot to take in and she was feeling overwhelmed. She decided to stick with her original plan, which was waiting until Discord told her what he could remember, if he ever did. She got up and hid the book behind the bookcase.

Later that night she was brushing Angel Bunny's fur when she heard a noise.

"Hey," said Discord. He was standing at the top of the stairs, this time on four legs.

She smiled softly. "Can you manage?" she asked.

"I think so."

She watched him carefully as he cautiously made his way down the stairs. Halfway there he paused to catch his breath. Fluttershy continued to watch him.

He stumbled the rest of the way down the stairs and she ran up to him quickly, cursing herself for letting him do that without assistance.

"I'm fine," he chuckled, pushing her away with his paw while she made a fuss. "Just not been on these stems for a while now. Bit rusty." She nodded. Despite his insistance that he needed no help, he seemed so fragile. The image before her seemed so at odds with what she had read in the book earlier. She tried not to think about the words famine and unrest.

Discord slowly made his way over to the fireplace and collapsed on the bean bag.

"Oh yeah," he purred. "That's the stuff."

She wondered if he remembered being on the bean bag when she had found him in the woods and first taken him in.

"I'm glad you're feeling better," she said, truthfully.

"So am I, Shy." he said, rolling over onto his back. "But you still haven't explained to me what I'm doing here and why I'm all bandaged up."

She caught her breath. "I...I found you in the woods," she said. "You were hurt, badly, so I brought you back here to look after you."

"And why would you do that?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Well," he said, putting his hands behind his head. "You don't know me, for one thing."

"I don't know a lot of the animals I take in and look after," she said.

He chuckled. "Is that what you think I am? An animal?"

She felt her face turn red. "No! That's not what I meant. I...just meant I'm used to caring for people. All kinds of people."

"I see."

He was looking at her curiously, in a way that implied he was still wary of her and she turned her gaze downwards, her face still hot. She remembered she hadn't checked the regular mail today in the excitement of the book arriving and used that as a way to excuse herself from his gaze.

There was a catalogue for small mammal feed in the mailbox, along with a letter from Rarity. Fluttershy felt joy when she recognized the hoofwriting. She opened the letter:

Dearest Fluttershy,

I do hope you are doing well. Spike and Twilight tell me that you have everything under control and have been in contact with the Princess and Zecora has informed us that you are managing everything just fine. I'm proud of you, dear. I know I would be shaking in my horseshoes if I had to look after that brute all by myself!

I am writing to let you know I am thinking of you, and also to let you know that with Hearth's Warming fast approaching, I want to offer you a free Haute couture commission from Carousel Boutique. I will make any outfit you ask, because you so deserve it, Fluttershy. We all need gorgeous things to keep us going! That's why I keep a picture of Trenderhoof on my dressing table!

Just name what you want, and I'll get to work. It should be ready for Hearth's Warming.

Thinking of you always.

Love, Rarity.

Hearth's Warming! She had nearly forgotten. She usually spent it with Rainbow Dash or the Apple Family, but this year that wasn't an option. She had Discord to look after. She folded up the letter sadly. She'd reply to it later.

When she entered the house again she expected to see Discord smirking at her from the beanbag, but to her surprise he was curled up on it in a donut shape and the ferrets had taken refuge in the hollow he had made with his body. His eyes were closed and he was breathing deeply. She laughed softly. He looked like a strange, deformed ferret mother and he was clearly cold. Perhaps the position of the bean bag near the fireplace was what he found so comforting about it. She covered him with a wool throw and started preparing her own bed on the sofa.

Snow didn't arrive until the eve before Hearth's Warming and Fluttershy started putting the dolls up on the mantlepiece. She had one made of felt of herself she'd kept from fillyhood that her mother had made her and a small knitted one she had made of Angel Bunny.

"What are those?" asked the draconequus as he entered the room. He occassionally stood on his hind legs now, but had to revert to being a quadruped because it tired him out being upright.

"Hearth's Warming dolls," said Fluttershy.

"That doesn't answer my question," said the draconequus. "Why do you put effigies of yourself above a fireplace? You planning on torching them later?"

The choice of words might have sounded creepy or threatening but he was smiling at her mischievously. Despite herself, she giggled. "No, silly. We put up dolls of ponies from our family to remind us of them and how much we love them."

Discord went quiet, then cleared his throat. "What is Hearth's Warming? Another silly pony tradition?"

"Um, I suppose the time of year has the same meaning as the dolls do. You spend it with ponies who mean a lot to you."

"And where are you spending it this year?"

"Oh, I'm not going anywhere this year," she said. "I'm staying here."

He seemed to relax a little at this, then said "Well, I guess I'm gonna hit the hay. If it's alright with you I'll take the beanbag again."

"That's fine." She had started sleeping in her own bed again. Discord had been offered the sofa bed but seemed to prefer the bean bag for some reason. "There's hot chocolate if you get cold at night," she said. "Good night, Discord. Happy Hearth's Warming Eve."

"Happy Strange and Weird Pony Tradition to you too," he grinned, lifting his head from the bean bag. She smiled and walked up the stairs, carrying her oil lamp.

He watched her and pool of light vanish up the stairs, then turned his head to look at the dolls on the mantlepiece.

"Their eyes follow you across the room," he muttered, and pulled the throw over his head so he wouldn't have to look at them.

In the morning Fluttershy came down the stairs. She was wearing a crown made of holly.

"No, no, no...wait. Let me guess," said the draconequus. "You're a tree, right?"

She laughed, and that was when he realized she was carrying a package wrapped in colourful paper.

"A tree hobo?" he offered.

"This is for you," she said, handing him the package.

He looked at her with narrowed eyes. "Why?"

"It's another Hearth's Warming tradition. We give gifts to each other."

"I didn't give you a gift."

"That's okay. You didn't know. Go on, open it."

He looked at her uncertainly then began tearing at the paper with his claws.

Fluttershy had hidden the letter from Rarity that had come with the package earlier.

"Know that I love you, Fluttershy, and it's for this reason alone that I have created this monstrosity for you!"

Discord pulled out what looked like a scarf, except it seemed to be hollow, like a giant legwarmer. It was striped, but all of the colours were mismatched. In fact the only thing they matched were the parts of his body.

"I know you get cold in the evenings sometimes."

"This is...for me?"

"Yes."

"But why?"

"Because you're my friend," she said simply.

Author's Note

Next: The antagonists are introduced. Plus Discord gets a lot mouthier.

The next chapter won't be up for a while now as I need to concentrate on other things, but hey, at least I got a lot of writing done during this streak!

I'll add more notes if I think of them as and when.

The chapter title is from a Tori Amos song. And I've forgotten to mention that the title of this fic comes from the NIN song of the same name which actually fits Discord (or Discord suffering depersonalisation) quite well.

Spring: Come clean, dark thing

“Hello? Anyone in there?” shouted Carmarella. She pounded her hoof on the oak door loudly, waited approximately five seconds then started pounding again.

The door flew open and Carmarella and Ox were faced with a tall, blue earth pony with greying hair. “Yes,” he said, clearly annoyed.

“Howdy!” said Carmarella brightly, completely oblivious to the earth pony's tone of voice. “Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Carmarella, and this here's my companion, Ox.” Ox grunted in greeting.

“I'm not interested in joining any societies, buying any kitchen gadgets, any subscriptions to any newspapers or magazines, buying Fillyscout Cookies or donating to the Ponyville Players.” He started to close the door after what sounded like a well researched speech. But Carmarella held it open with her hoof.

“Naw, it's nothin' life that,” she said. “Ox, show him.”

The centaur grunted and took a folder out of his bag and handed it to the stallion, who sighed. “If this is some sort of tactic to get me to sign something you can be sure I will put in a complaint.”

“You are Mr. Solkolsky Snare, right?” said Carmarella. “The game warden?”

“I am a game warden yes, but if you're after what I think you're after then you will be disappointed. I only issue permits to hunt if an animal is a danger to society because it has attacked someone or is carrying a fatal disease.” He began to open the folder.

“I understand you're also a historian,” said Carmarella, trying to build up some rapport. “Written some books, and the like?”

“Yes, when I have spare time.” Sokolsky wished he had more spare time. He was tired of doing this job. It felt beneath him. He opened the folder all the way and stared at the first photograph.

“What is this?” he said, looking up at them.

“I was hoping you could tell me,” said Carmarella.

Sokolsky left the door open and began to walk over to his desk with the folder. He hadn't motioned for the trappers to follow him, but they did anyway. Carmarella whistled as she passed bookshelves. All the books on them bore Sokolsky's pen name on their spines.
The game warden put the folder on his desk and removed a looking glass from a small compartment within it. Then he began to examine the photographs carefully.

The first few were of a series of animal tracks. At first glance it looked as if it had been made by different kinds of animals- bird, reptile and mammal, but on closer inspection he realized the tracks were repeating themselves. The next set of photos showed deeper prints in some mud.

“I should mention the next photo is...” began Carmarella, but Sokolsky had already seen it and gasped. It was a pony skeleton, half hidden under a log.

“Yeaaah,” said the mare. “It had crushed cervical verts too. We think it may be a mountain lion, but I was mainly wondering if you had ever come across tracks like these before.”

“If you leave these photos with me I can do some research and...”

“Nowww...wait a minute. If you want these photographs then you need to give us what we came for.”

“You want a permit.”

“I think I'm makin' a good case here,” continued Carmarella. “If there's something up there killing ponies then it needs to be hunted.”

Sokolsky turned to the mare with a sneer on his face. “Please. I know your type. You're not in this for the protection of ponykind, you're in it for the money. You rogue trappers are all the same. You sell what you kill to rich collectors on the black market.”

Carmarella feigned shock. “Why, is that what you think of us? Well, that's fine. We don't need to stand here and be insulted, do we, Ox?” Ox shook his head. Carmarella reached for the folder: “We'll just take our photographs and...”

“Wait,” said Sokolsky. “I...what kind of deal did you have in mind?”

“Permit. And if you like we can kill this thing...whatever it is for you as a bonus.”

“No,” said Sokolsky. “No, I want it alive.”

“Really? Is there something you're not telling us?”

“Do you want your permit or not?”

Carmarella shut up.

When the trappers had left Sokolsky moved towards his desk. He pulled out a folder and removed a photograph of a painting and a letter.

Dear Mr. Snare,

I hope this photograph is of use to you. Little is known about the draconequii, but since you are one of the leading scholars on this subject hopefully you can shed more light on the specimen. The painting is all that remains of the collection and was done in oils by Rhenish van Rijn. A few more paintings of his are in storage, if you would like to see them, though these are of portraits.

I'm sorry that as you know, the collection was destroyed in a fire, but at least some documentation was kept. I realize this is of little use you as a historian, as you would have gained more from seeing the mounts themselves, but these things rarely last and even so, given the sensitive nature of the material, if it still exists it would likely have to be repatriated, especially the dragon. Thankfully we live in such times where such horrific acts no longer occur.

If you need any more information do not hesitate to contact us,

Sincerely,

Silver Frames, Curator and Art Historian,
Stellarium Estate

He gazed at the painting. There was an articulated dragon skeleton, and bird dioramas, but most remarkable of all was the mount of what looked like a feathered draconical beast, its body dark, its terrifying face pushed back in a snarl, its horns sharp and twisted. He looked down at the photograph the trappers had given him. Repeating over and over were tracks of a lion, dragon, bird and goat. He hurried over to the bookshelf and pulled out volume 13 of Equestria's Past, one of the few first editions he'd been allowed to keep. He turned to the page he was looking for and looked at the illustration of the beast, grinning back at him with its four mismatched limbs.

If this was indeed what he thought it was, he had a chapter to rewrite. But he needed more information first.

The information he had smuggled out of the Canterlot library had been surprisingly easy to get. All he had to do was tell them the partial truth: That he was a historian, and writing a series of books.

Discord's memory dream was about his mother.

They were walking through the underbrush of the Everfree together and she was showing him different plants. Like all draconequus cubs, Discord did not have horns yet. They would come in later when he became sexually mature. His body was feathery (though more like a fluffy chick's, perhaps a cassowary or emu chick, complete with stripes for camouflage) like hers, and the coarser brown feathers were beginning to poke through his downy baby coat, making him look like a strange, scruffy bird.

Being a female, his mother also did not have horns, but she had the sleek face of all her draconequii ancestors and rows of sharp teeth. Her long body was covered with cream coloured feathers, speckled with rust, like the mottled pattern of an owl, and her dragon-like limbs ended in sharp talons. She would have been considered a beauty among her species, if there were any left. Her mate had certainly found her beautiful.

One day Discord's father did not come back from hunting, and she knew they had taken him. The cub would have been too young to remember what his father had even looked like. She might have exacted revenge on the hunters, but she had a cub to protect, and it was too risky.

Today she was showing her son how to use magic. All draconequii magic revolved around nature and the earth and she was able to harness some of it, but without her flock much knowledge was lost. She wished to pass on as much of it as she possibly could to her cub. If something happened to her she would need him to fend for himself.

“Pay attention,” she was telling Discord. “It's really important that you learn these skills now. It's much easier to hunt with magic than without it.”

“I don't want to hunt,” he whined. “I want to look for bugs.” He was more interested in pretending to race the shiny things than eat them.

She tried a different tact: “Magic might help you find bugs faster.”

“I'm listening!” he said quickly.

“Now,” said his mother. “There are two principle energies within the earth. One is destruction and the other is creation. One can do amazing things with both, but even the most amazing and skilled draconequii can rarely harness both at the same time”.

“Why?”

“No one knows. It might be that those energies are too powerful for mortal beings to contain. Nature doesn't give up her secrets easily.”

“Why?”

Oh great, here came the “whys.” At least he was paying attention now though. “Maybe she doesn't want people to abuse those powers,” she said.

“Why?”

“Because abusing power is wrong.”

“Why is it wrong?”

“Because you can end up hurting people with it.”

“Oh...” he was suddenly quiet and she was worried she had scared him a little.

“That would never happen though,” she said quickly. “As I said, only the most skilled were able to do it, and even then it didn't last long.”

She didn't add that in the stories she'd read it was because the power had ultimately destroyed the wielder. She wanted his attention, not to be woken at an early hour by her son having nightmares.

“Now,” she continued, pointing to a toadstool, “this is a mushroom that can make you sick if you eat it, but by using magic you can harness properties from it that can help you see into another world. You don't eat it, you just absorb what is there and magic can help you filter out the bad parts.”

Discord's attention was already drifting. “Mummy,” he said. “What can you harness from bugs?” She sighed, but humoured him. If she didn't, he was bound to find playing with centipedes more interesting than what she was trying to teach him.

“I think you might be able to see the world the way bugs do,” she said, noting in her mind that this seemed like a completely useless skill.

“Oooh! Does that mean if I harnessed a bird I could see like a bird?”

Now that they were getting somewhere. Draconequus vision was good, but not like that of an eagle or griffon's.

“Yes, exactly like that. But it's not just about animals. Magic can come from forces deep within the earth and high up in the heavens. But those forces are much harder to wield.”

Discord's gaze was drifting towards a rotten log and the thought of what treasures might lie within. Maybe tasty, fat grubs.

“Which is why it's important that you pay attention!” his mother shouted. His head snapped back up.

“I'm listening, mummy.”

“Good. Now, put your hand here on the ground. You should be able to feel some of the energies if you concentrate. She put her own claw on the ground and could feel it start to run through her veins, like a liquid current. Mages from previous flocks thousands of years ago when her kind had been able to feel almost everything when it came to that power, but she knew it had consumed them.

Discord put his much smaller claw next to his mother's. Then there was a wooshing sound and he heard his mother cry out.

His eyes flew open and he sat upright on the couch. The sunlight was streaming through into Fluttershy's living room.

Luna and Celestia sipped their tea. It wasn't often the two sisters both had a moment of peace together outside of their busy duties to talk, but when it came it was nearly always in that short space between the hours of sunrise and moonrise: dusk.

“That horrible book,” Celestia was saying. "At one point I considered letting it slide, but so much of it is lies. I had misgivings about sending it to Fluttershy, but not all of it is inaccurate, especially the parts that were obviously lifted directly from Starswirl's manuscripts. Fluttershy needs to know what she's dealing with. She needs to know what Discord is capable of.” The parts of the book that were inaccurate were the parts that were Celestia's problem, not Fluttershy's. The author had an agenda, she knew, and she wasn't going to give him leg room to squirm. Not after all the pain she had endured when she had been told her love was dead. Her love, that had hurt her so much without laying a finger on her. Perhaps she could have forgiven that, but she could not forgive what Discord's actions had meant for her subjects.

All of the old love and longing had welled up in her, however, when she had been told he was dead. She remembered all his warmth and humour, she remembered the pain on his face when she hadn't believed what he had told her. She had wanted him immobilized, so he would stop what he was doing, then the hunters had told her he had been killed, and it was an accident and she had been furious. In private though, she broke down and mourned him.

Some of the villagers had been furious with her for failing to give them what they felt they deserved- honour for slaying the beast that had caused so much heartache. She had made sure the village was well looked after and everyone had enough to eat, but there were some that wanted more—knighthood or higher accolades. She had refused.

Luna looked thoughtful.

“Do you still love him, Sister?”

Celestia smiled sadly. “I think part of me will always love him, but there's too much...history between us, Luna. What he needs is someone to care about him, and there's no way he's going to be amenable to such things from me now, after all that has happened. And...maybe that's for the best. I've grown, and I'm pretty sure there are parts of me that will struggle to forgive. But if somepony could care for him, and show him friendship, then maybe...part of the old Discord could come back at least.” Her eyes felt wet.

“So that's why you had Fluttershy continue to look after him.”

“Yes.”

“You always were one to act with your heart, Celestia.”

The white alicorn smiled. “Yes, sometimes I wish I was more like you. You were always someone who thought more with their head than their heart.”

Luna touched Celestia's shoulder gently and smiled wryly. “Not always...”

Celestia smiled back.

“Hey,” said Luna. “At least you didn't end up marrying that Prince.”

Celestia actually laughed. “Small mercies,” she said.

The birds returned in earnest by mid Spring. Tanagers, buntings, grosbeaks, orioles, vireos and thrushes reclaimed the old nests and tree hollows they had abandoned in favour of warmer conditions in Mexicolt and South Amareica months ago. The trees were filled with colourful blossoms and bumblebees began to collect nectar. Butterflies danced over the field behind Fluttershy's cottage. They looked like delicate petals in pale blue and bright orange. A cuckoo called out in the distance, the other birds completely unaware of its future intentions for their nests. On the whole, however, Spring made everything feel alive again.

The beetles had noticed the change in temperature outside, and were doing what most animals were now doing this time of year—mating.

Discord watched them with some amusement as the male beetle crawled on top of the female then began half scrabbling and half hitting the top of her head with his front legs and massaging her back with his palps. Discord raised his eyebrow at Fluttershy. “Kinky,” he drawled.

There it was again, the strange feeling that he was flirting with her in a way that was hidden in plain sight. She pushed it out of her head.

“It's normal behaviour, for beetles” she said. “It stimulates the female. She might lay eggs soon.” He watched her start to pack lunch for their walk, his eyes moving upwards again quickly when she was done. "Let's go," she said.

Discord's first attempts at walking on his hind legs were shaky at best, but he had the option of quadruped walking if things got too difficult. Still, as the days went on, he managed to go a little further on them. Fluttershy told him not to rush it. He'd been walking on four legs for a thousand years and it would take some time. He had stubbornly tried anyway and ended up stumbling several times. However, his stumbles often resulted in hysterical laughter from him and she realized he was just glad to be outdoors and moving again.

As they walked together she asked him a question she had been dying to ask him. “Discord, did you...see lots of interesting animals on your travels?”

His face lit up. “Shy, you wouldn't believe the amazing things I saw. What country do you what to ask about?”

She refrained from squealing “all of them!” though she was itching to do so. “Um...how about Nickeragua? Did you see things in the rainforest? Did you see jaguars, and coral snakes, and howler monkeys? Did you see giant moths and butterflies?” Discord grinned. He enjoyed it when Fluttershy came out of her shell and geeked out over her chosen subject. He also didn't feel so lost when she asked him about something only he knew rather than the other way around.. He felt so lost about so many things.

“I saw much more than that. I lived in a tree for a few months.” He had built a home for himself in the canopy using magic. Up there he had been free and at night he could look at the milky way splashed across the sky in all its glory. Spiralling chaos, millions of light years away, crashing and burning and being born.

To her surprised he put his paw and talon on her waist and lifted her up, then he placed her on a tree branch. “Now, let's see,” he said, now looking at her at eye level while he stood on his hind legs. Fluttershy could feel a blush coming on, but Discord was already looking away and gesticulating.

"I can think of a something that happened to me when I was younger, when my chaos wasn't as strong. I got to know the Monkey King quite well."

"The Monkey King?"

"He was in charge of the ruins in the area. At least he thought he was until I turned up. Monkeys can harness some earth magic the way draconequii can...and..."

"They can?!"

He grinned at her. "Well, only certain types of monkeys. The Atelids and the Lemurs, mostly. And as far as I know they can't nowadays."

"Lemurs aren't technically monkeys."

"Well, okay. Strange beasties with grabby hands, then, as is the technical term" said Discord, making a motion in the air to suit his description. "They're all weird anyway, that whole group of animals, and one of the weird things about them is how they can latch on to magic. It's a weaker form of chaos magic and damned if I know how they do it. Maybe if I get the rest of my memories back I'll know..." He was silent for a beat, then launched into his story again.

"One day they saw this spectacularly handsome creature in one of their trees, and they didn't like it."

She didn't have to be told who the creature was. She already knew and rolled her eyes, smiling.

"So there I was minding my own business when this big male threw a guava fruit at me. It hit me right in the stomach. Knocked the wind out of me--from both ends. And I swore this monkey was laughing at me. Laughing. Now, I could have quite easily finished the matter right there and then by putting up a barrier or something, but where's the fun in that? I chased the monkey through the canopy, and the whole time he was making this racket--you know how loud howler monkeys are--and I got tired of it so I made him sound like a goat instead. You should have seen the reaction from his friends. They all started laughing at him and all he could do was bleat at them."

Despite herself, Fluttershy was laughing. She managed to collect herself then said "So how do the monkeys use magic?"

"I'm getting to that. When the female monkeys had finished laughing at Mr. Bleat I turned myself the colour and pattern of the trees so they wouldn't notice me and followed them, and that's when I found the ruins. The Monkey King was pretty overweight. He liked taking all the choice portions for himself and the lesser males and females had to give up what they'd found first. None of the monkeys had the stomach to challenge him. He was bigger and heavier than all of them, and despite his weight he could move pretty fast and bite pretty hard. But he could also harness magic. If a monkey disobeyed him he'd have them twitching on the ground in seconds. He was a bit of a tyrant, really. Seems to be a thing in primates."

"Not gorillas. Or bonobos. They have pretty peaceful family units."

"Well, whatever," snorted the draconequus, stroking his beard. "His majesty certainly wasn't peaceful. Now, really it was none of my business what the monkeys did, but I actually can't ever stand to see blind devotion, and I could sense a delightful undercurrent of dissent. They were obeying because they had to, not because they wanted to. They were also under his protection. His magic kept them safe from jaguars and other predators. But oh, I could smell the delicious insubordination flowing through their veins. They just needed someone to show them it was possible.”

He rubbed his hands in glee and flashed his sharp, white teeth in smile. "All I had to do was convince them that they weren't powerless. That they could take that ridiculous lump if they wanted to. So I became a draconequus in monkey's clothing. I took the form of a female because that seemed easier. The king was more likely to want females around that males that could potentially challenge him, even if he did have the upper hand with his magic. So the whole offering of food went on as it usually did, with the monkeys giving him the choice bits and bowing before him, then skittering away with their meager scraps. Then it came to my turn. I had a huge bunch of bananas and two guavas I had found nearby. The greedy king licked his lips at me. I wasn't sure if he thought I was tasty or the fruit was. Maybe I had overdone it on the desirable female form I'd taken. At any rate, he went for the fruit first and that was when I pulled it away. The other monkeys gasped. You should have seen them, Fluttershy. Imagine shocked monkey faces. Anyway, His Majesty immediately tried to punish me, but he couldn’t. His magic wasn’t powerful enough to overcome mine. He howled with rage but I stood my ground. He ordered two of his males to seize me but they couldn’t move either. I’d pinned them to the ground. All they could do was watch.”

Fluttershy was now listening intently, her teal eyes shining. “Then what happened?”

“He gave up and went back to his throne. Then I ate my fill and slunk off back into the jungle. In the morning I took the form of a different monkey and did the same thing. Ate fruit in front of him, and he couldn’t get to me. Every day I did it, until I had taken the form of every monkey in that troop. And that was when they knew. They ran him out of the ruins, with disharmonic magic. Technically they didn't need to use it. By that point His Majesty was a beaten monkey, but it helped.”

“What happened to him?” asked Fluttershy.

Discord shrugged. “Who knows. But it was fun to watch him run.”

She was suddenly quiet. “It was kind of...mean.”

“Mean? Fluttershy he was a tyrant monkey king! I just took him down a peg.”

“No, I mean if he ran off into the jungle and didn’t have a troop…”

“What was I supposed to do, babysit him?”

“Could you not have found a way to show him that what he was doing was wrong while he was still able to live at the ruins? Maybe all the monkeys could have shared?”

“Where’s the fun in that?” He looked genuinely confused.

“Maybe he would have been lonely.”

“But then there would have been no rebellion!” said Discord, swishing his tail back and forth.

“Why does their need to be?”

He couldn't believe this. She had been laughing at his story only a moment before! “Forget it,” sighed Discord. “You clearly don’t understand.”

“What don’t I understand?”

“I said forget it,” he said, and walked ahead.

He was in a sullen mood for the rest of the walk and by the time they got back to the house, Fluttershy decided to give him some space. He curled up on the bean bag for about an hour, then he ended up flicking through her bookshelf, grumbling to himself. After dinner Fluttershy decided to start getting ready.

A few days ago she had recieved an invitation from Rarity to attend a party. She was normally interested in large social gatherings, but it would be the first time she had seen her friends in weeks. She showered quickly and began to put on her outfit and make up, making sure her tail extensions looked alright.

Discord did a double take as she came down the stairs. Her mane was tied up in a bun on her head and held in place with chopsticks, but ringlets of her mane stuck out over her face, framing it softly. She had chosen a turquoise blue robe embossed with a red and white flower pattern that also had the repeating image of delicate jellyfish. The garment swished as she moved and the jellyfish looked almost as if they were swimming in the aqua fabric. He was speechless for a moment, but collected himself in time and threw her a snarky comment: “You look like a sushi roll.”

He could have kicked himself. Why had he said that? Was he some kind of simpleton all of a sudden? It wasn't even witty.

“Very funny, Discord,” she said in a tone of voice that implied it was not funny at all.

“I'm...only teasing,” he said, and to his relief she smiled at him. She had been joking too.“What's the occasion?” he asked.

“Rarity is holding a party for her new Neighponese inspired collection. The dress code is Japonynese, hence the outfit.”

He put his book down. “You mean you're going out?”

“Well, yes. It'll be the first time I've seen my friends in weeks.” She occasionally ran into them at the market, but it wasn't often enough and she only had time for a quick chat before she had to get back to Discord.

“Will there...be stallions there?” he said. He wanted to stab his brain for making him say stupid things right now. He wanted to put a filter between his brain and his mouth, because there clearly wasn't one.

“I imagine so.” Then she seemed to remember something and said, “Discord, I told you. Stallions today aren't like the ones from the past. There's nothing to worry about.”

Somehow he found the words of little comfort. He didn't want her around stallions, even if they wouldn't hurt her. He just found the whole thing made him...uncomfortable. “I don't like stallions,” he muttered. This wasn't entirely true. In one of his dreams where he had travelled, it had not solely been ladies he had encountered, but he had somehow compartmentalized and justified it to himself when going to bed with someone was involved. He didn't have to like them the rest of the time.

“Yes, I know. But a stallion saved your life.”

“You saved my life.”

“Seth removed the crystal that was in your head, and he helped the night you took all those pills.”

“He was in the house?”

“Discord, calm down. Seth is a friend of mine. He's the stallion I told you about who used to be my coltfriend. He's a good guy. You have nothing to worry about.”

“I don't want you to go.”

Filter. Mouth. Mouth filter.

“I'll be back soon.” she said, a little impatiently. “When you're better you can meet Seth and my other friends.”

“And why would I need to do that?”

“Because I think it would be good for you to meet other ponies. You've been cooped up in here with me for too long and the point is that you get better and you won't be cooped up any more.”

He was inevitably going to have to meet people. Towards the end of Spring ponies would be bringing animals to her and she needed to converse with them to run her business. She should have foreseen this. He was completely reliant on her and had no one else to talk to.

“Discord, it's just for a few hours. Then I'll come back.”

“I know you're going to come back,” he spat. “I'm not a child.” She saw his claws sink into the couch. Oh for the love of...

“Well then, you'll be mature enough to understand that I can have a night out with my friends and shouldn't have to feel guilty about it."

She started walking out. He saw her leaving and panic welled up in his chest.“Fluttershy, wait! You...”

The door slammed in his face and he pressed his forehead against it. “You look nice,” he grumbled.

Fluttershy's annoyance with Discord had already started to dissipate as she neared the Carousel Boutique. She could already see mares and stallions in Japonynese garb chatting and sipping glasses of punch in the small garden outside. Rarity had strung fairy lights shaped like Neighponese lanterns over the doors of the boutique and in the nearby trees. Larger paper lanterns sat on tables , giving off a warm, welcoming glow.

She hadn't even reached the door yet when she heard Rarity's voice: “Fluttershy, darling! I'm so glad you could make it, come in!” She bustled the pegasus through the double doors into the din of the crowd. Fluttershy suddenly realized there were a lot of ponies there that she didn't recognize and she moved closer to Rarity, smiling sheepishly.

The unicorn handed her friend a glass of punch, which Fluttershy took gratefully, suddenly glad that she had something to hold onto and look occupied with. She looked around the room for more of her friends but she couldn't see over all the elaborate headdresses.

“Fluttershy, allow me to introduce, all the way from Neighpon, Ms. Lily of the Valley, one of the finest Japonynese designers working today,” said Rarity. She gestured towards a pegasus mare who bowed to Fluttershy.

“Oh...um...” Fluttershy bowed back, hoping she was doing it correctly. “It's a pleasure to meet you.”

“Fluttershy runs an animal adoption business,” Rarity explained.

Lily's eyes lit up. “Really? How lovely. It's so good to see that ponies are still doing things for the welfare of animals.”

“Thank you,” said Fluttershy. She was about to start gushing over the beetles she had just gotten from the Equestrian Entomological Society but Lily had started gushing over Fluttershy's robe.

“The pattern is simply divine!” said Lily, stroking the silk material.

Rarity giggled girlishly. “Oh thank you,” she said. “Fluttershy here has modelled a number of my creations.”

“I can't wait to see the others.”

Fluttershy was beginning to feel overwhelmed and uncomfortable. Now that the conversation had shifted to fashion and not animals she awkwardly tended to her drink, trying not to gulp it down as she had done at previous gatherings. Rarity and Lily were now chatting away eagerly, so she was immensely relieved when she spotted Twilight across the room looking equally awkward.

“Um...Rarity, I'm just going to go over and speak to Twilight,” she said.

“Oh, of course!” said Rarity. “Enjoy the evening!”

Fluttershy hurried over towards the librarian.

“You have no idea how glad I am to see you,” said Twilight. “I don't know anyone here apart from Rarity and one guy from the Historical Cartography Society I saw earlier and I haven't seen the others yet! They're probably here but I can't see anything over the crowd.”

“I know,” agreed the pegasus. “And I'm glad to see you too.I...hate these things. I'm just here to see you girls.”

“How's it going with you-know-who?” asked Twilight.

“Oh...he's um...well...”

“A hoof full?”

“I...”

“Twilight Sparkle! Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?” A tall blue stallion wearing a black and white robe strode forward towards the two mares.

“Oh, Mr. Snare. I didn't see you there. I got lost in the crowd again. This is my friend Fluttershy.” The pegasus held out her arm for a hoofshake.

Sokolsky was staring at Fluttershy intently. “Charmed,indeed!” he said, and he took her hoof and kissed it. Twilight noticed her friend had now turned the colour of a tomato, but Fluttershy reacted that way to most stallions.

“Um...thank you?” said Fluttershy, at once wondering whether it was rude to frame what she had just said in a questioning tone. It was just that she didn't feel sure herself.

“This is the guy from the Historical Cartography Society I was telling you about, Mr. Sokolsky Snare.”

“May I get you another drink?” said Sokolsky.

“Oh, um...”

“Your glass appears to be empty,” he pointed out as she gazed down into it. “I'll be right back.”

Fluttershy was relieved to watch him go. She lowered her voice at Twilight again. “Discord is a hoof full, yes, but...he's. He's actually really...”

“Really what?”

Sweet? Funny? Exciting to be around?

“...um, easier to tolerate than I expected,” she said.

“Well if he tries anything...” said Twilight, gritting her teeth and pounding one of her hooves into the other.

“Oh, it's nothing like that. Mostly I think he's scared, Twilight. Even before his memories started coming back he was acting out. He clawed my mattress open and things like that...that's the sign of a stressed animal.”

“Who are we talking about?” said Sokolsky. He had returned with two glasses of punch.

“My pet bunny,” said Fluttershy quickly.

“Well he must have quite a temper if he's strong enough to shred open a mattress with his little bunny teeth and claws!”

“You have no idea,” said Fluttershy softly.

Discord had tried returning to his book but his thoughts continued to drift towards Fluttershy. How dare she leave him here by himself! How dare she tell him he was immature! She wasn't the one suffering intense memory loss. She wasn't the one that had spent close to a thousand years in the woods doing buck-knows-what to survive. At least she knew who she was! At least she had friends!

He seethed at the latter thought.

At first he had considered following her and arguing his point, but she would have been cross with him, and even more daunting was the thought that there could be royal guards out there. He shuddered.

He was bored of the book. It had started off interestingly enough, but had descended into moralizing, and the character Discord had considered the hero was actually a villain and he knew without reading any further that he would probably be killed off in the next few chapters. He moved over to the bookcase. Fluttershy had to have something other than novels and zoology books. She would occasionally bring him books from the Golden Oaks library to read if he requested them, but he read so fast that she wasn't always able to keep up with his demands. This had only been a recent thing too, as prior to that his head had hurt too much to concentrate on reading. He pushed the book he had been reading back onto the bookshelf in an annoyed fashion and that was when he heard something slide downwards.
“Hello?” he said out loud, and manoeuvred his long neck so that his head was peering into the small gap between the bookshelf and the wall. Yes, he could see a book, and it was one he hadn't read. He secretly prayed to the ether that it wasn't another novel of the same ilk, pushed the shelf out a little with his stronger lion arm and reached inwards with his thinner griffon arm. His claws managed to gain purchase and he pulled it out.

It was a blue hardcover entitled The History of Equestria.

Now this was interesting. Maybe he would learn something about the past a thousand years. He briefly noted it was part of a series written by someone called Hoofsteader and he turned to the contents page. His eyes began to travel down the page quickly gathering the information, and precisely 0.5 seconds later he saw "The Reign of Discord.” His heart began to pound as he turned to the appropriate pages. Then he began to read.

Fluttershy felt exhausted. Applejack and Twilight had insisted on walking her home, but she told them they could go no further than the bridge. At some point she would introduce them to Discord, but she knew he had to be more emotionally stable for that, and right now he wasn't.

She couldn't help but feel slightly annoyed by how the evening had gone. She had hoped to spend it talking to Twilight but Sokolsky seemed to have monopolized the conversation. He had mostly talked about himself, and all the while he had kept looking at her in a way that made her want to stare at the floor.

Still, at least she was home now. She removed her horseshoes and the chop sticks from her mane and pushed the door open. It was late, but the kitchen light was on, and that was where she found Discord, who was sitting at the counter with the book open in front of him. He raised his head to look at her and from the look on his face she realized what he was reading before she clocked it.

She began to move forward.

"Don't come any closer," snarled the draconequus.

"Discord..."

“You're a liar!”

“I didn't lie to you!”

“What bunch of bull! You kept all this stuff from me and I'm supposed to trust you?”

“I don't even know if that book is accurate! It says right there that were unfounded rumours about you and Celestia!”

“Then why were you hiding it? If this is just harmless twaddle then why is it in a secret place?”

“B-because I'm not sure how much of it is inaccurate. And also because I was instructed to.”

He flung the book across the room and it hit the wall with a loud thwack.

“You're screwing with me,” he snarled. “I don't know how, or why this Princess Celestia is ordering you too, but if you take one more step towards me I can promise you you'll be sorry.” He looked furious. The feathers on his back were standing upright and his claws were all unsheathed. If anything he looked even more frightening than he did the day she encountered him in the woods. He now had strength and intelligence on his side.

Fluttershy froze. Words were her only chance.

“Discord, I wanted you to get your memories back on your own. If I had shown you that book, which could be lies, it might have...”

“Don't talk to me about LIES!”

There was a moment where the air seemed to suck out of the room and Fluttershy was vaguely aware that her ears had just popped, then there was an explosive sound and she was blown backwards by an unseen force.

She landed behind the couch, remarkably uninjured. She could feeling ringing in her ears and head and she quickly scrambled over to the couch, where her saddlebag was. The ringing was fading but her heart was pounding and she felt like she might faint at any moment. She fumbled in the bag for her Element frantically. Then she heard sobbing.

Gingerly, she peered out from behind the couch. She couldn't see Discord from where she was. He was hidden behind the kitchen counter. Fluttershy stood up on shaky legs and pricked her ears forward.

There was a retching sound then louder sobbing, and she followed the sound to behind the kitchen counter, where she found Discord, a terrified look on his face.

“What happened?” she asked. She was terrified as well, but he was crying.

“I don't...know. I just know I was so angry with you and all of a sudden this feeling just slammed into my chest and then slammed outward.”

Fluttershy looked at the kitchen floor. There was a crater there, but instead of blowing the floor open it had bent the wood in a way that looked physically impossible. It looked there were was a cracked bowl in her kitchen floor, and growing out of the cracks were green-leafed vines, that were still slowly spreading across the floor. Eventually they stopped, and ended in a bud, which flowered and deposited marbles which rolled across the floor and melted, leaving holes in the woodwork.

“What the buck?” shouted Discord, and began sobbing again.

Fluttershy tentatively moved towards him and put her hoof on his shoulder. He flinched, but then melted into her embrace and bawled into her shoulder. “Help me,” he said.

“Shh,” she said. “Shhhh.”

She didn't know what words to use to comfort him.

“Help me. Help me.” he was saying over and over. He was trembling and clinging to her robe, his head against her chest.

Fluttershy looked around the kitchen and the living room. The shock wave had thrown furniture and books everywhere. He didn't need to see this.

“Discord, come with me, you can sleep upstairs tonight.” She would sleep on the sofa bed and she would worry about tidying up later. He stood up on shaky legs, and leaned against her as they slowly made their way up the creaky stairs.

“Lie down,” she told him. He had sat on the edge of the bed as if in a stupor, and it was only when she spoke to him that he realized lying down would be the best course of action. She started covering him with the blanket, and was about to get some extra bedding out the wardrobe for herself when she felt his paw around her wrist.

“Stay with me,” he said. “Please.” She looked down at his face. His eyes were searching hers frantically and she nodded.

Discord slowly leaned back onto the bed. She could still feel him shaking. She removed her robe and lay down next to him, then put her arms and wings around him. He began to sob again.

“Shhh...”

“It was the chaos,” he was saying. “It was the chaos but it didn't feel good like in the dream...”

“I wanted to tell you about the book,” said Fluttershy, whose own eyes were now filling with tears. “I really did. But I was just doing what the Princess told me. I know Princess Celestia and she would never do anything evil. If she wanted it hidden, it was for a good reason. But now you know, so I guess I'm no longer bound by my promise to her.”

She felt his muzzle in her mane at the top of her head and his arms wrapped around her.

Discord's brain was screaming at him to run, run far away from these accursed ponies because how did he know they weren't using him? How did he know this wasn't all some kind of farce? But his heart was terrified and all he wanted more than anything right now was to hold onto someone and be reassured by them, because he was afraid that if he didn't have that, the roof might cave in, and then the floor, and he would be swallowed up by nothing and go insane, so he clung to her, because he had nothing else in the world right now.

“I think when things are a bit more relaxed,” she said softly, “You should meet my friends.”

He began to protest, but she said “Shhh. You don't have to decide now, it's just an idea,” and he relaxed again. Well, as relaxed as he could be when he had almost blown up her house.

Eventually his choked sobs gave way to softer, deeper breathing, and she knew he had fallen asleep, possibly from sheer exhaustion and feeling overwhelmed, and soon she joined him.

In the morning Fluttershy covered the bowl shape in the kitchen floor with a rug, and instructed everyone in the house to remember that they shouldn't step on it. She would have to repair it some other time. Discord helped her put furniture upright and reshelve the books that had flown across the room. When they were done Fluttershy suggested they sit outside and enjoy the sunshine.

"No walk today?" said Discord, sounding disappointed. Tidying the house up had been boring enough.

"I think you need to rest today," she said. He pouted, but she gave him a look that made him feel less sure about starting an argument. She was right anyway. He felt tired and drained after last night. His muscles ached, like they had been sapped of most of their strength and he flopped down on his back on the grass, weary at the heavy reminder. They watched as the ferrets wrestled in front of the house, sometimes chasing each other around the front garden. Suddenly one of them stopped, and sniffed the air and licked its lips as if it had smelt something delicious. And it had, to a ferret anyway.

Fluttershy could see Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom coming up the path and she panicked. Her immediate instinct was to herd Discord back into the house, but after what had happened last night, she didn’t want him to feel like any more of a freak than he probably already was. And she had wanted him to make friends, hadn’t she? At some point, someone would have turned up with a hurt animal, and that was exactly what was happening. She could see the bird on Apple Bloom’s back. Its eyes were half open and it was panting. The ferret stood on its hind legs. “No,” said Fluttershy primly. “You’ll get plenty of food later.” The ferret gave a disappointed snort and slunk into the house. Its companion followed.

Discord was watching as the foals came closer, and had actually stood up on his four legs. He felt unsure. These were ponies that were not Fluttershy, and he had no idea how they were going to react to him.

The pegasus ran to meet the fillies.

“We found him on the ground, Fluttershy. Did a cat get him?”

She checked the bird over carefully. “He’s dehydrated,” she said. “Let’s get him some water.” She picked the bird off Apple Bloom’s back and set it between her wings. The fillies began to move forward, then Fluttershy stopped them. “Girls, I have a guest staying with me. His name is Discord. Be polite. He’s recovering from...health issues.”

Discord waited in the background. He was trying to strike a stance that was between protective of himself and not too menacing. He looked like a big feathered snake.

“What kind of name is Discord?” mouthed Sweetie Belle.

But the other two fillies had already spotted him. “Whoa! Neato!” cried Scootaloo. He gazed with abject terror as the fillies ran towards him.

“Girls, wait!” shouted Fluttershy.

“You’re amazing!” cried Apple Bloom. “Look, he’s got a lion paw, and an eagle claw!”

“And look at his head! He’s got an antler and a horn!”

Discord grinned.

“Wow, look at those teeth!” shrieked Sweetie Belle, but it was a shriek of excitement. Fluttershy watched in amazement as the draconequus stretched his body, his claws unsheathing as he did so and the fillies continued to be amazed at all his animal characteristics.

“I’ve never seen an animal made up of so many...animals.” said Sweetie Belle.

Fluttershy worried momentarily that Discord might take issue with being called an animal, but instead he looked extremely proud of himself, he was even beginning to move around with some measure of swagger.

“What are you?” asked Scootaloo.

“I’m a draconequus,” he told them. “Well, I am The draconequus. There’s not another one like me.”

Instead of sounding sad, he seemed quite proud of this fact. He let the foals walk around him and examine his bat wing and dragon tail. Fluttershy was beginning to relax.

“Is Fluttershy looking after you?” asked Scootaloo.

He looked up at the mare, smirking. “Yes, I’m very sick,” he told them. He began rolling around on the ground clutching his stomach and groaning. Fluttershy almost rolled her eyes. “I think I may be suffering from ennui.” He lifted his head slightly and grinned at the pegasus, but she was now walking past him into the house to get the bird some water.

“From an-whatta?” said Apple Bloom. "Does that mean you have trouble going to the bathroom?"

The rest of the afternoon was one of the most pleasant in recent memory for Fluttershy. Discord ran around the garden happily with the fillies. He even forgot the pain his muscles. Fluttershy watched them happily. The Blue Jay that the girls had brought her was recovering nicely under the shade of her wing, and she sipped from a glass of lemonade she had made for everyone. The girls had declared war on the vicious beast, and were now making him surrender.

“Nooo!” he howled, clutching at his heart as Apple Bloom stabbed at his chest with a bulrush. He began going through fake death throes in a way that Fluttershy worried looked rather graphic. After a time he lay still. Then the three fillies shrieked with laughter as he let out a loud burp. He then chased them round the garden again, the beast coming back to life for revenge.

Then the light was fading and it was time for them to go.

“Can we come back and play with you and Discord another time, Fluttershy?”

She smiled and looked up at the draconequus. “I dunno…” he said, furrowing his brow and stroking his goatee.

“I think it could be the perfect cure for your ennui,” said Fluttershy, and sipped at her lemonade. She could see him smirking out of the corner of her eye, but she demurely continued to look at the ground as if she had said nothing.

“The doctor has spoken, girls,” he said to the fillies.

Fluttershy laughed. “Yes, of course you can. But ask your big sisters first.”

“We will!” promised the foals as they made their way across the bridge.

“What’s ennui?” asked Scootaloo when they were out of earshot.

That night he dreamt. He was surrounded by beautiful chaos, and it hugged him like a warm blanket, comforting him, whispering to him. In the final stages of his dream he was on his throne and a mare was before him. He was surrounded by other ponies. Some were massaging his shoulders as he lazily made the fabric of reality warp and bend before him. Piano keys floated past, each making an out of tune sound as they passed overhead. In the distance, whales and giant squid floated through the air, sometimes tussling violently with each other as they made low bellowing sounds. Occasionally a tornado of cats would rampage over the horizon, meowing loudly.

The mare was begging him for something. Begging him to use his magic. She had a bundle in her arms and she was begging him.

Then she showed him the contents of the bundle.

He was awake now, and running. He could hear Fluttershy calling his name behind him. Running out of bed, down the stairs, across the living room, the door burst open seemingly of its own free will and he was under the early morning sky and then it happened. The air seemed to billow before him then the trees burst into blue flame.

Fluttershy was now out the door and she cried out when she saw what had happened. Before he knew what was happening she was flying towards the flames.

“Shy!” he screamed. “Don't!” What was she doing?

“There are birds nesting in that tree!” she cried out. He couldn't hear what she was saying but he was terrified for her and began to run towards the tree. Fluttershy had wriggled into a hole in the trunk and there she found the terrified woodpecker and its eggs. The pegasus was already beginning to cough as she gathered them all up in her wings and arms. “I'm gonna...get you...out of...” she began to feel faint. There was so much smoke in the tree and it was climbing up her nostrils, into her throat making the delicate membrances within feel like they were suddenly being turned into dried up paper.

“No, no no!” Discord cried. He couldn't let someone die because of him again. He tried summoning his magic. He tried thinking of water, but nothing happened. He howled in frustration. Fine, so be it. Fire it was. He began climbing up the trunk, trying to avoid the flaming branches, some of which were falling past him.

Discord was angry with himself. Angry at everything, terrified he might never see Fluttershy alive again. His paw began to quiver he felt the anger and terror pool in his chest and explode outward and inward again. He managed to cling to the tree as rain, hail and wind pelted at him with the force of a hurricane. The extra blast of wind brought the fire to terrifying life momentarily.

“SHY!” screamed Discord. The flames were now beginning to vanish in the storm's onslaught but the smoke had increased in the process. Discord reached the knothole and began pulling her out as the wind died down. He climbed down the trunk with her on his shoulder. He took the frightened mother bird and her eggs as well, balancing them between Fluttershy and his body. The smoke was beginning to affect him too, and soon they were all on the ground, coughing and hacking. Discord's coughs turned to sobs and he lay on the wet ground as the rain continued to fall. He didn't want to get up and face reality.

But Fluttershy was already getting to her feet. “Where's the woodpecker?” she shouted. Discord lifted his pegasus wing to reveal the shaking bird and her eggs. “Let's get them inside,” she said.

“Take them,” he said. He just wanted to lie there. Fluttershy reluctantly gathered them up and hurried inside with them, out of the cold rain. Once she was sure the mother bird was comfortable with her eggs she ran back outside for Discord. She found him curled up in a ball and knelt down next to him, nuzzling his face. "Are you okay?" she whispered. He looked up at her and she gestured for him to place his head in her lap while she stroked his mane.

He bit his lip, trying not to cry, but the tears mixed with the pelting rain.

He wasn't going to tell her about his dream. She would surely never want to see him or help him again if he did. This was on a whole different level than the Monkey King story had been.

It was all true. The book was right. A kid starved because of him. And he hadn't cared. He hadn't cared because the chaos made him feel good and he needed it. He needed it because nothing else felt good any more. It wasn't his fault ponies were dying. They were just victims of circumstance. That's what he had told himself. He hadn't cared. A kid had died because of him, a kid! He remembered the little fillies he had met yesterday and how they hadn't been afraid of him and sobbed into Fluttershy's shoulder hysterically. He couldn't have even used the excuse that he “hadn't been in his right mind” like Fluttershy had when he worried he had eaten ponies. Maybe part of him hadn't been in his right mind, but it didn't matter.

“Let's go inside,” she said, helping him to his feet. He was shaking as she led him into her cottage. She ran upstairs and got a towel, and began drying his soaked feathers and fur off. When she started towelling off his mane he muttered something.

“Pardon?” said Fluttershy.

“I said, I'm sorry,” he whispered. Even though he meant it, the words felt empty and hollow after his dream. He felt as if a great weight was crushing him and he hung limply as she led him to the couch and sat him down and continued to towel him off. She even wiped the tears off his wet face. Nothing got past Fluttershy.

"I'm sorry too," she said. She felt his talon gingerly touch the top of her head then stroke her mane and she hugged him.

"What if..." he began. She looked up at him in the dim light to see his amber eyes staring back at her fearfully. "What if this is what I am?"

She knew he was talking about what he had read in the book, and she touched his lion paw gently with her hoof.

"That was then, this is now," she said softly.

Author's Note

By "repatriation" I mean the process by which museums and other cultural institutions transfer possession and control of remains, funerary objects, objects of cultural patrimony and sacred objects back to the culture of origin, sometimes for burial. In this case it would be the the remains of dragons, and if they had survived, the draconequii.

This is a cassowary chick, and is what I picture young draconequii feathers as being like:

So I've still found some way of working Discord's surrogate mother into this tale. As with my other tales, she's Nature and is of course the greatest source of chaos magic.

The title of the chapter comes from the song of the same name by Veruca Salt

Finally, I wrote this chapter while not feeling my best. So if anything looks "off" please let me know. Many thanks to Alara for looking over part of this for me.

Spring: Impatiens balsamina

It wasn't until a few days after the incident that Discord began to feel better. The smell of the burnt trees outside was an unfortunate reminder of what had transpired that morning, and Fluttershy really wanted the draconequus to get his mind off what had happened. At the same time, she knew she needed to do some further research on possible ways to help him.

It was market day, and Fluttershy was preparing her saddle bags for town. Discord's appetite was now enormous and Fluttershy's shopping list was much longer than usual. He ate the pony equivalent of six or seven meals a day and she had ended up cooking mostly one-pot meals for both of them so he could heat it up and help himself when he liked. The draconequus seemed to particularly like spicy food and there were several types of peppers listed on her scrap of parchment.

“Discord, I'm stopping off at the library on the way home. Are there any books you want me to get you?”

He perked up at that. Whenever Fluttershy was gone, or was busy he felt incredibly bored. Not only that but the thoughts of his terrible dream would start creeping back into his head, so he was hungry for the chance to have more reading material to occupy his mind.

“Something funny this time, Fluttershy. Or science fiction. That book about the rich idiot who throws parties to impress mares was boring. Even the twist at the end was boring. Twists don't mean much if I don't care about the characters.”

“The Galloping Gatsby?” asked Fluttershy.

“That's the one.”

“That was Twilight's recommendation. She said it was a classic.”

“A classic bore.”

The woodpecker was now nesting in one of the many wooden bird boxes Fluttershy had hung up in her cottage and it would occassionally poke its head out to watch Discord and Fluttershy talking.

“I'll ask her for something amusing,” said Fluttershy. “Anything else?” She sounded tired.

“A book about maps.”

“Maps?”

“Yeah...I'd...like to see how much of the world has changed since I've been living in the woods.”

Fluttershy added “book maps” to her list then turned to go, but then she remembered something.

“Discord,” she said. “I think it might be a good idea if Seth came over in a few days to check how you're getting on.”

“I'm fine. My head is fine and all my bones have healed. What does he need to check?”

She chose her words carefully. “Recovering from brain surgery isn't all about the physical,” she said.

“Fluttershy, are you scared of me?”

She looked up at him. “No, Discord, I'm scared for you.

“That could have been your cottage I set fire to.”

“Yes, I know, but I'm still not frightened of you. It was an accident, okay?”

“But what if it happens again?”

“That's why I think I should go and see Seth.” It was also why she was going to see Twilight today, to see if any books existed on how to use chaos magic. Maybe Discord would be able to benefit from the information within.

He grabbed her hooves in his paw and talon. “What are you going to tell him?” he said, an edge creeping into his voice.

“I won't go into detail, I promise,” she told him softly. “He can come over and you can tell him how you've been feeling.”

Discord tried not to growl as he thought of the stallion being near Fluttershy.

He flinched as he felt her small hoof on his back. “Did you have a bad memory dream, Discord? Is that what caused it?”

“I...don't really feel like talking about this right now, Fluttershy,” he admitted.

“I'm sorry,” she said softly, and began to gather up her things again. “I'll see you later for our walk? I shouldn't be more than an hour at the most.”He nodded. “Think about what I said about a check up, okay?” Then she closed the door gently behind her.

Fluttershy's walk to town was thankfully a pleasant one. She enjoyed the warmth on her wings and noted several new migratory birds that were arriving to nest over the Spring and Summer. Even the market didn't seem scary today. She bought several small bags of lentils and beans, chillies, cheese, vegetables and bird seed. It was a hefty load, but she was able to balance the weight between her saddlebags without it being uncomfortable.

She found Spike and Twilight eating their lunch on the grass outside when she reached the Golden Oaks library. Twilight's nose was in a book as she munched on her sandwich, being careful not to get any crumbs on the pages.

“Hello,” said Fluttershy, who was thankful for an opportunity to drop her saddle bags for a bit.

“Fluttershy!” said Spike. “Long time no see!” The pegasus nodded. “I know, I'm sorry. I've just been super busy this week, and I can only stop for a few minutes this time. And I wish we'd had more time to talk at Rarity's party before Mr. Snare turned up.”

Twilight laughed. “He does like to wax lyrical about his favourite subject doesn't he?”

“Himself,” said both mares in unison and they laughed.

Twilight's expression suddenly turned serious.“Is Discord giving you any trouble?” she asked.

“No more than Angel Bunny is” said Fluttershy. “But...there have been some issues. Which is part of the reason I'm here. I think now that Discord is getting healthier it...might be logical to assume his magic might come back.” She wasn't going to tell Twilight and Spike about the trees or her kitchen. She didn't want them to worry about her.

“Has anything happened?”

“N—no,” said Fluttershy. “I just think I should prepare in case it does.”

“Well that's why we have that spell on our Elements.”

“I don't want to hurt him! I want him to understand that just because he has magic doesn't mean he will use it against us.”
Twilight was surprised at the volume Fluttershy had used. She sounded defensive.

“So what did you have in mind?” asked the unicorn, who had now abandoned her sandwich, which was summarily snatched up by Spike.

“I was wondering if you have any books on chaos magic. Any at all.”

Twilight got to her feet and walked into the library. Fluttershy and Spike followed quickly and Twilight began checking the card index she and Spike had put together. “Hmmm, chaos, chaos,” she muttered as her horn glowed and the card flipped. “Hm. We don't appear to have any on index. We'll check the back room quickly.”

Fluttershy waited as Twilight and Spike spent twenty minutes looking through the tomes, but to no avail. “I can put in a request to the nearby Canterlot and Neigh Hampshire libraries,” said Twilight. “If there's anything it should be here within the week.”

“Thank you so much,” said Fluttershy.

“Anything else?”

“Oh...yes. Funny books have been requested this week.”

Spike hurried over to the humour section, grinning.

“And a book about maps? A modern one.”

Twilight's horn glowed and a thin brown book with a white spine floated over to the pegasus. “This is a pretty good one and I use it a lot,” said Twilight. Fluttershy read the title: “Atlas of Equestria, fourth edition. This is perfect, thanks!”

Spike staggered forward carrying a large stack of books. “This enough?” he asked.

Fluttershy giggled. “Um...I'll just take a few this time,” she said.

Carmarella grinned to herself as she and Ox lifted their rucksacks and started the trek to the Everfree. She would have a permit soon! They would be in the money soon and there wasn't a thing anyone could say about it. But first they'd have to catch this creature...whatever it was. She wondered why Sokolsky was so fixated on it. Did he want it for himself so he could make money from it? If so she wanted a cut, and she needed to think about how to make such a deal with him.

Worry about that later she told herself. First thing was first; Track the animal and trap it. If this thing was dangerous, it needed trapping for more reasons than one. She remembered the pony skeleton she had seen. Maybe that old zebra coot up the Everfree had seen signs of it. She decided once they were up there and had set up camp, she would pay old Zecora a visit.

After lunch Fluttershy and Discord headed out for their daily walk. This time they went beyond the field in the back and walked until they reached the edge of a wooded area. Discord was uncharacteristically quiet this time, and Fluttershy was worried that the mention of Seth had disturbed him, but she tried to cheer him up by pointing out various plants and insects she spotted along the way. He would nod or say one word, but seemed to not be interested in conversation.

She was beginning to worry that he was going into one of his sulks, and was about to suggest they turn back when there was a yelp from Discord.

She turned around quickly. “What's wro--” she began, and she was pelted in the face by tiny black things that looked like pellets.

“That plant just spat at me!” growled the draconequus. "And it hurt!"

“What?”

“I brushed against it and it threw something at me!”

Fluttershy moved forward to get a better look at what Discord was pointing at. When she saw it, it all became clear and she laughed.

“What's so funny?” he growled, rubbing his stung face.

“The plant! It didn't spit at you. It's Impatiens balsamina!”

“In Equestrian, please. I can't remember all the languages I've forgotten yet.”

“No, that's its scientific name. It's a kind of Balsam. It comes from Neighpal and Myanmare.”

“So what's it doing here, flinging things at me?”

“You brushed against the seed pods. Here, look.” She gently touched one of the pods hanging off the plant and it burst with a popping sound, the seeds dispersing several feet away. “It's how it spreads. It's not native to Equestria. In fact, lots of ponies have tried to stop it because it can out compete other plants. It grows and spreads so fast it's almost unstoppable.” She pointed to the bright pink flowers growing on its vines. “The flowers are good for pollinators though. See, here's a bee. She seems to be enjoying it.”

Discord flicked his tail back and forth. He was still looking at the plant suspiciously, as if it had done him a personal wickedness.

“The problem is the plant sometimes chokes other plants around it because it grows so fast and wild. It blocks out the light other slower growing plants might need to start sprouting and growing.” She gently touched the branch with the flowers on so she could get a better look at the bees flying in and out of the blooms. “But that's not the plant's fault,” she continued. “It didn't ask to belong here. Ponies brought it over from Myanmare and wanted it growing in their gardens as an ornamental. They underestimated it and it began to spread beyond the garden. Now it grows wild, like it should. It's only doing what it needs to survive. I think, for that reason, Impatiens balsamina is beautiful.” She sniffed at the flowers.

Discord watched her. He was suddenly still as he took in the image of the sunlight glinting off her mane. Her eyes were closed as she breathed in the scent of the flower. Bees buzzed happily around her, as if they were saying “Hello, Fluttershy. Good to see you. Isn't the nectar fine today?” She moved up to another flower and did the same thing, her eyes closing as she took in the scent. Then she moved back, and accidentally brushed against one of the plant's pods again. She yelped as the seeds popped everywhere, then laughed.

Discord was smiling at her wickedly.

“Oh, no! Don't you dare!” she cried, but she was laughing. Discord suddenly launched his body into the air and landed in the tangled patch of balsam. The pods burst everywhere, the seeds flying like botanical fireworks. Fluttershy shrieked with laughter.

Discord lifted his neck, so that only his head and tail were visible over the bushes. “Hey, Fluttershy, can we take one of these plants home with us?”

“Oh, I don't know. I don't think I'd want it covering the plants in the garden.”

“Then we'll keep it in the house. I can water it, and sing to it and whatever dumb stuff it is ponies do with plants to help them grow. Please?”

She smiled. “Well...okay. As long as it stays in the house.” She removed a small plant pot from her saddle bag and put it on the ground. Then she helped Discord carefully unearth one of the smaller Balsam plants and pack the soil around it as it was transferred to its new home.

Fluttershy began gathering some of the seeds in a small bag.

"What are you doing?" asked Discord.

"The seeds are edible," explained Fluttershy. "I can make bread or cookies with them." She dusted herself off and handed him the potted plant.

Discord carried it back in his arms almost possessively.

Sokolsky browsed the shelves of the Golden Oaks library with frustration and came to the conclusion that the book he needed wasn't there.
“Twilight,” he said. “Where is the Atlas of Equestria?”

“Oh, Fluttershy took that out a few hours before,” said Spike.

“Spike! You know we're not supposed to tell people who takes which book out,” scolded Twilight gently.

“Oh, yeah. Sorry.”

“That's quite alright, young dragon,” said Sokolsky, as if he was the one who had enforced the rule. “I'll just have to make do with the third edition for the Historical Cartographer's meeting later tonight. Fluttershy, you say? Twilight, wasn't she the lovely mare you introduced me to at Rarity's soiree?”

The unicorn squirmed. She wished she hadn't introduced them. While Sokolsky seemed to be a pleasant enough fellow, and she enjoyed his talks on historical maps, Fluttershy had seemed thoroughly uncomfortable throughout the encounter. It wasn't just that Sokolsky had talked about himself throughout most of it; It was that he seemed to assume that Fluttershy had been hanging on his every word.

“Yes, that's her,” replied the unicorn. “She's a very good friend of mine.”

“Didn't you say she runs an animal sanctuary of some sort?”

“It's the best!” said Spike. “She even looked after a giant anteater once!”

“Is that so? She sounds like a most admirable mare, devoting her time to help the needy.”

“Yeah she'll take in any animal that's hurt or sick,” said the little dragon. “And she was really interested in my species! She even wanted to know how dragon breath works, and why I have a crest.”

“So she knows a lot about animals?”

“She knows everything about them!”

“How lovely.” He picked up his umbrella and satchel. “Well, if the book isn't here I'll have to come back another time.”

“I can send you a letter once it's back,” said Twilight.

“No need. I'll make do at the moment. See you at the meeting later?”

Twilight nodded. “Looking forward to it, as always.”

Sokolsky bowed and closed the door behind him.

When they returned home the draconequus carefully placed the plant on the kitchen counter and gave it some water. “I'm going to name it Harold,” he said.

“Why Harold?” asked Fluttershy.

“Because it looks like a Harold,” said Discord, gently stroking its leaves. Fluttershy decided not to ask. She was just pleased that Discord's mood seemed to have improved considerably since encountering the plant.

“Why don't we sit in the garden while it's still warm?” she suggested. “I'll make us some tea.”

The weather was getting warmer by the day and there were plenty of sunny patches in the back garden. Discord selected one, and flopped over into it like an elongated cat, stretching his legs out and displaying his claws in the process. Fluttershy watched him as she put down the tea tray. Despite the draconequus getting his memories back and his relatively speedy recovery, he still moved and behaved very much like an animal in many ways. Yes, he was an animal, just like she was, but she knew sapient animals had lost certain mannerisms over time in civilised society. Discord still walked on all fours often and sometimes he would still sniff his food before eating it.

She watched as he sighed deeply and lay still on the grass, sunbathing. The chocolate brown feathers on his back looked thicker and healthier now, and the scales on his tail had a lovely iridescent sheen that was previously lacking. She opened her sketchbook and began to outline the feathers of his resting pegasus wing. Next she made a study of his tail scales and the tuft at the end of his tail. She became so engrossed in adding in the details that she nearly missed the knock at the door, but Discord's sensitive ears caught it and he froze.

“There's...there's someone at the door,” he said, lifting his head. Fluttershy could see the tension in his body.

“I'll get it,” she said. “You stay here, and don't worry. It's probably a delivery or something.”

She put down her sketchbook and walked through the house, then she peered through the window and smiled.

Discord waited, his body still tense, then Fluttershy reappeared. “You have visitors,” she said, smiling.

“Discord!” cried Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom. They burst out from behind Fluttershy, descended on him, and immediately began jumping all over the draconequus who was now laughing hard.

Fluttershy sat down next to the tea tray again and resumed her sketching. This time she did quick studies of the fillies and Discord playing in the garden. He moved like a huge, longer weasel, though he could occasionally coil almost like a snake, especially when he was trying to avoid being tickled.

“You can be the dragon!” Sweetie Belle was saying. “And I'll be the Princess who needs rescuing and Scootaloo and Apple Bloom can be the knights.”

Discord pouted at the filly. “Why can't I be the princess?” he asked. “One of you can be the dragon.” His voice suddenly turned high pitched and he cried “Oh save me! Save me from these dreadful beasts, Fluttershy!” There was much giggling and further rough-housing, then a look of delight suddenly appeared on Sweetie Belle's face as if something amazing had occurred to her and she peered over Discord's long body and said "Hey, Fluttershy, is Discord your coltfriend?"

Giggles came from the other two fillies. Discord suddenly rolled away from the girls, sideways across the grass like a giant rolling pin towards Fluttershy and rested his head in her lap, the back of it balancing on her legs so that his ears flopped over his antlers. "Yeah, Fluttershy," he said, grinning up at her beet red face as she clutched her sketchbook to her chest, "Am I your coltfriend?" He placed the back of his eagle hand on his forehead and said in an upper class Trottingham accent, "Because if so I want you to draw me like one of your Prench girls." Before she could respond he rolled back towards the fillies who were now shrieking with laughter.

Fluttershy realized she'd been holding her breath and she let it out again slowly so as not to draw attention to herself. The fillies had now forgotten their comment and were rough housing with Discord on the floor. She breathed a little easier. It had been a silly comment, nothing more.

He's in your care. Never forget that.

Eventually the light began to fade, and it was time for the fillies to go home again. They did put up some resistance to this at first, but Fluttershy explained that it wasn't good to be out late because it would make their sisters worry and they relented.

“We'll be victorious one day, Princess-Dragon!” called Scootaloo over her shoulder as they were leaving.

Fluttershy laughed and closed the door. Her eyes were bright with mirth and so were Discord's. The shift in mood was wonderful. “Would you like some stew?” asked the pegasus. “There's some leftover from last night.” The draconequus nodded eagerly. All the rough-housing had made him work up an appetite.

He watched as Fluttershy heated up the leftovers and spooned their dinners onto separate plates. She seemed to be moving with more liveliness now and during supper he kept sneaking glances at her when it seemed she wouldn't notice. Discord ended up eating three bowls of stew. He hadn't realized how hungry he was until now.

“Oh, I got those books you wanted,” she said, and moved towards her saddle bags. She placed the three titles on the kitchen counter. “Spike assured me those two were pretty funny. Something about a two-headed guy who was once President of the Galaxy or something. And I got you an atlas.”

Discord stared at the books, then looked up as Fluttershy cleared their plates and did the washing up. Then she moved towards him and said, “I had a really nice time today, Discord.” She placed her hoof on his lion arm, then she gave a little yawn. “Oh, excuse me!” she said, feeling embarrassed. “It was a fun day, but a long one, so I guess I'm really tired. I should probably have an early night.”

“Okay, Flutter Nutter,” said Discord. She turned to go upstairs.

“Hey, Fluttershy,” he said. She looked over her shoulder. “I...I had a good time today too.”

She smiled warmly at him and headed up the stairs.

Discord continued to sit at the kitchen counter with the books in front of him. Finally, he reached for the Atlas of Equestria and began to turn the pages.

“Gotta be here somewhere...” he muttered to himself. He flicked though until he found what he was looking for.

“Yes!” he whispered. There, in front of him was the road out of Ponyville, and on the facing page was a map of the Everfree Forest. His heart pounded as he tried to commit the map to memory.

He wouldn't go today, or tomorrow, but if anything went wrong then at least now he knew where he was and had a place to run to. But it wouldn't be now. He closed the book and looked fondly at Harold. Then he picked the plant pot up and walked over to his sleeping area. He placed Harold on the coffee table then climbed into bed, sighing happily. His muscles ached, but it was a good ache. The ache of someone who had exercised without overdoing it. He pulled the blanket over himself and yawned, then bid Harold goodnight as he drifted off. He didn't even care that the stupid doctor pony would be coming over in the next few days any more.

That night he didn't dream about bad chaos or good chaos. He didn't dream about awful things happening in the woods. He didn't dream about the stars. That night he dreamt about Fluttershy, her soft curves, her warm smile, her laughter, the way the sun had glinted off her mane.

Author's Note

A shorter, gentler chapter this time, though the next one will be longer and stuff's about to go down in it.

Impatiens balsamina is a real plant. You can see some in action here. The plant in the video is a slightly different species, but nearly all plants in the genus Impatiens have seed pods that pop.

Summer: Journeys

The great bear had been awake for several weeks now, but nutrition was his first priority. Harry spent the weeks following his awakening filling up on green Spring shoots, mushrooms and fish, and when he had eaten his fill, he made his way down the mountains towards Ponyville. His muscles still ached from being dormant in his cave for the winter, and Fluttershy was good at evening out the knots that formed on his back and neck.

Harry lumbered along the path at a leisurely pace, occasionally stopping to sniff the air and get his bearings. When he came to a junction on the path he paused. There was a strange smell here, and it was not familiar to him.
Warily, he turned and used the woodland path to Fluttershy's cottage instead.

Fluttershy was having difficulty that morning. Though Discord had been warned that Seth's visit was imminent, he continued to make excuses, saying perhaps he didn't feel up to visitors that day, or that he wanted to wait a bit longer before seeing anyone, or that he had a headache, but after a while it was clear the excuses were just that...excuses, and Fluttershy told him that if he was having headaches then that was all the more reason for Seth to visit. “Discord, it's for your own good. The more we know the faster you'll recover.”

“And what would he know? If I'm the only draconequus that has existed for over a thousand years then how would he know how to treat me? Are there draconequus anatomy charts hanging up in clinics across Equestria, hmm? Maybe draconequus skeletons in every medical school?” Though Discord had decided days ago that Seth's visit didn't really matter, waking up on the day it was happening made him feel differently. He suddenly didn't want the stallion near the house.

“He performed an operation to remove a foreign object from your brain,” Fluttershy reminded him. “I would think that asking you a few questions wouldn't be such an issue.”

“What's so great about this guy, anyway?”

“Discord, calm down. It's just a check up.”

He looked slightly relieved that she hadn't answered his question.“Er...so you used to date this guy, huh?”

“Yes. Seth was my first coltfriend. After flight school I moved to Ponyville, and I started growing up and...um...filling out. Then colts that had teased me at school were suddenly asking me out, but I didn't want to go out with them. I didn't like that ponies that had made fun of me as a filly seemed to think I would suddenly date them. I also wasn't sure if they were asking me out as a joke. For all I know it was...”
Discord was silent. He waited for her to continue her story.

“Anyway, Seth was the first stallion to treat me like a pony instead of...a joke. He was interested in what I did and what I thought. He asked me out, and I said yes. And we dated for about a year, and things began to get pretty serious...until...” Fluttershy suddenly looked sad. Discord's ears drooped at the sight.

“Hey,” he said gently. “'Sup, Shy?”

“I realized that even though he was really sweet, and intelligent and kind...he. I just wasn't that attracted to him. In fact, I wasn't that attracted to any stallions. I tried, but it was awkward, to say the least...”

“You realized you were attracted to griffons.”

“Yes.”

Fluttershy clutched her mug of tea and stared out the window.

“He was good about it, but you could see the hurt in his eyes. But still, he...he was good about it.” She bit her lower lip. “I've asked him for so many favours, including removing the crystal from your head.” She turned to the draconequus. “So you had better be nice to him when he visits, Discord.”

“So I have to be nice to him because you feel guilty?”

“Because he's my friend.”

“But also because you feel guilty.”

She shifted in her seat. “I do...feel a little bit guilty, yes.”

“Why? What could you possibly owe him?”

She shrugged gently, then her eyelids lifted as she looked at the draconequus. “I at least owe him a patient that's going to be polite and not cause trouble.”

“Oooh, well played, you sly Canary-Horse.”

Fluttershy finished her tea. “I'm going to check the mail,” she said, eager to change the subject in some way. She didn't want to think about this right now, and Discord was prying a little more than she would have liked. There was nothing of interest in the mailbox, just bills and a reminder to update her membership to the Equestrian Society for Preservation of Magical Creatures society, but she did get a pleasant surprise just the same.

“Harry!” she exclaimed in delight as she saw the bear lumbering up the path. She ran to meet him and embraced him, nuzzling his face. “I'm so glad to see you! Did you have a good Winter's sleep?” The bear grunted in affirmation and licked Fluttershy's cheek. She giggled.
“Discord!” she called out. “Come and say hello!”

Discord heard her call from inside the house and groaned. He opened the door and almost took a step back at the sight of the huge bear.
“I don't know if you remember Harry,” said Fluttershy, “But he helped me bring you here.” Discord watched as the petite pegasus petted the humongous bear. She clearly was not afraid of the thing, just as she wasn't afraid of him. “Come and say hello,” she smiled at him. The draconequus tentatively took a step forward.

Fluttershy laughed. “It's okay, don't be afraid.”

Discord puffed up the feathers on his chest. “Pssh. I'm not afraid,” he barked. He was of course, a little nervous. When he had encountered large ferocious beasts in his travels he'd always had magic to defend himself, and when he had been a cub he had been lucky enough to use his spryness and intelligence to avoid large predators. He did not know how he had avoided such things when he had lived as an animal in the Everfree. Perhaps he had been the thing other animals feared.

He reached out with his talon hand to pet the bear and Harry sniffed it suspiciously. Discord did not have the same smell he'd had when the bear had carried him down the mountain on his back. Back then, Discord had smelt of rankness and death. He was mostly bones and skin and if there were any other smells on him, it was the smell of stress and excess adrenaline. Now the draconequus smelt healthy and like the air after a rainstorm.

Discord ran his eagle hand through the coarse fur on Harry's back and even scratched behind the his ear. The bear made a chuffing sound, and Fluttershy was suddenly reminded of the night Discord had appeared in front of her out of the woods, his eyes glowing as he sniffed at her.

“I'm very sorry,” Fluttershy was telling the bear. “But I'm afraid you'll have to come back in just a few hours for your massage. You see, Discord has his doctor's visit today and we need to sort that out first. But you're very welcome to sunbathe in the garden or the field in the back until then.” The bear nodded and began to lumber towards the field. He gave Discord an understanding look as he passed by.

“Massage?” asked Discord, raising a fluffy eyebrow.

“Yes, every Spring Harry wakes up with terrible knots in his shoulders.”

A sudden image of the pegasus massaging Discord's own shoulders slipped unbidden into his mind. He shook it off, quickly.
They went back into the house for breakfast, and waited for the doctor.

Seth arrived shortly after 10am. After cautiously knocking on the door, he heard Fluttershy's voice telling him to come in. The earth pony pushed the door open, and was greeted by Fluttershy and Discord sitting at the kitchen counter. The first thing Seth noticed was the size of the draconequus. He was no longer the thin bag of bones he had been when Seth had last seen him lying on Fluttershy's bathroom floor. Instead he looked tall and formidable. Furthermore, Seth had never seen Discord's sapience in his eyes. Now it was reflected back at him in a way that seemed to threaten: “I'm aware now. So don't you dare get the wrong idea and think that I'm not.”

Seth definitely wasn't going to get the wrong idea. He knew he needed to tread carefully here. He was a stranger to Discord, despite the help he had given him.

“So,” he said. “Hello, Discord. Nice to see you again under better circumstances.”

“I don't believe we've met,” said the draconequus folding his arms. It was the first time Seth had heard Discord's voice. It was silky and sounded like a dangerous purr.

“Well no, you wouldn't have remembered me. But last time I saw you it was under rather stressful circumstances.”

“You mean when you pumped my stomach.”

Seth noted that Discord was very blunt. “Er...yes. But today I'm here for a much more benign reason. I'd like to see how you're doing.”

“I'm fine,” said Discord through gritted teeth.

“Well, I'm sure you are,” said Seth, using what he hoped was his most cheerful sounding tone of voice. “But just to be on the safe side let's have a listen to the ol' ticker.”

He removed his stethoscope from his doctor's bag and approached the draconequus. Fluttershy rested her hoof on Discord's paw. “It's okay,” she said softly.

“For goodness sakes, Fluttershy! I know it's okay, okay? I'm not two. I'm thousands of years old.” Seth looked up at Fluttershy, a quizzical look on his face. She shrugged and gave him a sheepish grin.

Whatever he thought. He placed the scope on Discord's chest and listened. The heartbeat was fast but seemed normal enough. He moved the stethoscope to Discord's back.

“Breath in and out for me,” he said.

Discord let out an exasperated sigh.

“Seems...normal,” said Seth. He checked the surgical site on Discord's head. “ All good there. Now, Discord. I'd just like to ask you a few questions. Not all recovery from brain surgery is completely physical. I'd just like to make sure everything's okay and you're feeling emotionally healthy. Okay?”

There was no response.

“Okay,” said Seth, deciding not to wait for one. “First question: How does your head feel? Any pain.”

“I'm fine,” repeated Discord in the same curt tone.

“Second question: Have you had any hearing loss?”

“I'm fine.”

“Third question: Any disturbing dreams?”

“I—yes, actually...”

“Okay, that's normal,” said Seth. “But I just want to make sure it's not affecting your mental health. Next question, which is related: any overwhelming feelings of sadness or anger due to these dreams?”

Discord got up from the kitchen stool and walked across the room with his hands clasped behind his back. “I don't see what good these questions are,” he said, facing away from Fluttershy and Seth. “So what if I feel anger or sadness? Doesn't everyone?”

“Of course,” replied the doctor. “But there are certain instances when emotions can be so overwhelming they can start to affect your physical health, and I just want to make sure that isn't the case here.”

Discord whirled round with a dark expression, and Seth almost took a step backwards at the look on the creature's face. It had surprised him, but he had caught himself in time. Being a herd animal, he'd had an instinctive reaction to the stare of a predator...or whatever Discord was. He seemed to be made up of both prey and predatory animals.

“So, doctor,” he drawled. “You want to know if I'm cuckoo, is that it?”

“Not at all. There's no shame in taking steps to look after your mental health.We don't use the term 'cuckoo' by the way. It's offensive.”

“I'll make a note of that,” said Discord, grinning and showing off his sharp teeth.

From the look on his face, Fluttershy wondered if the note he was making was about endeavouring to use the word more often. She also wondered if there had been any mental health options back when he had lived as a sapient being before his ordeal in the Everfree. The pegasus moved towards where Seth and Discord were standing. “Discord, the quicker the questions are answered the quicker this will be done,” she said softly.

“Okay, fine, fine,” said the draconequus waving his talon in the air. “Let's get it over with.”

Finally, progress thought Seth. He reached out and placed a hoof on the pegasus' shoulder. “Thank you, Fluttershy,” he said.

That had been a mistake. Before Seth knew what was happening he was flipped upside down and staring down at the angry face and bared teeth of Discord.

“What are you doing?” shouted Fluttershy.

Seth pedalled his limbs furiously at the realization that he was suspended ten feet above the floor. “Fl-Fluttershy!” he cried.

Discord narrowed his eyes. “I thought you were here to see me he said suspiciously.

“I am!” Seth blurted out. “Fluttershy what the heck is happening?” The pegasus stared open mouthed.

Discord walked in a circle around the earth pony, turning Seth in mid air so that the doctor was facing him at all times. “Really?” he said. “Because I think you're here for an ulterior motive?”

Fluttershy seemed to break out of her trance. “Discord!” she shouted. “Put him down!”

“If you insist.” The door flew open and Discord unceremoniously chucked Seth out onto the grass.

Fluttershy looked at the scene in mortification. She glared angrily at Discord, whose ears drooped instinctively at her furious expression, then she stormed out, slamming the door behind her.

“Seth, I'm so sorry! I had no idea that was going to happen!”

Seth rubbed his head. “You didn't tell me he was a magic user,” he said, grinning. Fluttershy felt relieved at his expression. “You're not hurt, are you?” she asked.

“Nope. Thankfully grass is kinda soft.”

“Good,” she said, sighing. “Well, now what?”

“I think I should go back in there and try to talk to him again.”

“Okay,” she began to follow the doctor.

“Oh, no,” said Seth. “I meant on my own.”

“Is that really wise?”

“I'll..I'll call for you if there's any trouble,” he replied. He slowly pushed the front door to the cottage open and was met with Discord's sour face. He closed the door behind him.

“Back for more, eh?” snarled the draconequus. Discord's hackles were up, and he was about to bare his sharp teeth at the pony when Seth caught him completely off guard. “She's cute isn't she?”

“What?” said Discord, his eyebrows shooting upwards before he could stop them.

“Fluttershy. She's cute. That's what this is about, isn't it?”

The draconequus spluttered. “What are you babbling on about?”

“It's okay, I get it. I mean, I used to feel the way you do now.”

Discord flicked his ears and blew air hotly through his nostrils.

“After all,” Seth continued, “She's kinda smart too. And her kindness goes without saying.”

“She's incredibly smart,” spat Discord. “You clearly know nothing.She knows all kinds of things about plants and animals. Most likely more than you know about surgery.”

Seth nodded. “Oh yes, I don't doubt that. It's almost a shame I've moved on.”

“You sure do love to talk about yourself, huh?” said Discord, who was clearly not getting the hint.

Guess I better be more blunt. thought Seth. It's like trying to wade through molasses.

“Discord, I better get going. I have a date tonight.”

“Why should I care?”

“It's not Fluttershy,” said the doctor, who noted with amusement the relief in his patient's eyes, however brief.

“Why should that matter?” said Discord quickly, his stare turning hard and cold again.

“Just making conversation,” said Seth. “Anyway, I best be off now. Got other patients to see before my date.” The earth pony made his way outside and closed the door, leaving a baffled draconequus behind him. He made his way over to Fluttershy, who looked relieved that Seth was still in one piece.

“H—how did it go?” she asked.

Seth chuckled. “He's jealous, Fluttershy.”

“Jealous?”

“Yeah, I think the guy might have a little crush on you or something.”

“What?!”

“Is it really so surprising? At any rate, I'm sure you'll be able to handle it.”

“That's ridiculous! How can you have possibly gleaned that from the way he's behaved?”

Seth grinned. “Guys know these things,” he said. “Plus he's watching us from the window.” He inclined his head towards the cottage and Fluttershy looked up just in time to see the draconequus' antlers disappear from view. Seth's expression suddenly grew serious. “Be careful, Fluttershy. I trust you know what you're doing, you always have, but...that guy seems a mite...'overprotective' to put it mildly.”

“I suppose I can see that,” she replied, sighing deeply. “Discord doesn't know anyone else. Well...apart from the fillies. But in terms of adult friends, he hasn't got any besides me.”

“Any plans on how to remedy that?”

“Twilight is visiting next week.”

“Well let's hope her visit goes better than mine did.”

“Well Twilight is a magic wielder herself, so hopefully there'll be no trouble.”

“She's also a mare,” snorted Seth. “I suspect that matters to Discord. That and the fact you've never dated Twilight.”

Fluttershy said nothing, but looked at the ground.

“Anyway, I'll see you round, okay Shy? Take care of yourself.” He smiled warmly at her and began his walk back to Ponyville.

Fluttershy watched Seth go, then turned back to the cottage. Then she stormed up to the door and slammed it open.

“Discord!” she shouted. “We're going to talk. Right now!”

“Are we?” he asked.

“Yes! What was all that about?”

“Whatever do you mean?”

“Don't play dumb with me. You aren't dumb.”

“I think that's the nicest thing you've said to me all day,” replied the draconequus.

She grit her teeth in frustration. She wasn't going to let him turn this back on her. She had also decided she needed to be careful about how to address Discord's possible jealousy.

“The way you just behaved was incredibly rude. Seth was trying to help you!”

“Was he? Or was he trying to help himself to you.”

“That's ridiculous! He's my ex-coltfriend, and my friend.”

“I thought I was your friend.”

“You are! For goodness sakes, Discord. People are allowed to have more than one friend. The Cutie Mark Crusaders are your friends, aren't they?” His ears pricked up at that. She sighed, then her voice took on a much gentler turn. “I realize it's been hard for you here, and I'm the only pony your...well, not your age, but as near can be to talk to. But I'm hoping that will change. I know stallions make you nervous, but next week you can meet my friend Twilight if you want. Then, if you want, maybe she can be your friend too.”

After a beat, Discord said, “It's true I haven't had many social opportunities.”

“No, and it's getting towards peak season. Soon people will be wanting to adopt animals so there will be visitors stopping by the cottage. I want you to feel comfortable around them. And that means not chasing them off.”

“He was in a hurry to get away anyway, Fluttershy,” said Discord. “He had a date.”

She raised her eyebrows in surprise. “A date?” she asked.

“Yup,” said the draconequus, chuckling.

“That's wonderful!” exclaimed the pegasus. She was surprised by how light the words made her feel. If Seth was dating then surely that meant she no longer had to feel guilty? He'd moved on. She almost momentarily forgot to conversation she was meant to be having with Discord but collected herself in time. “Discord,” she said, her voice turning serious again. “I want you to promise me that you won't behave that way again when we have visitors, no matter who they are. Anyone I welcome into this house is a friend.”

He looked down at her angry pout and sighed. “Fine,” he grumbled.

She was about to head out the door to see if she could find Harry for his massage, when she felt Discord grab her arm gently.

“Fluttershy,” he said. “You would have both been miserable if you had grinned and borne it. You would have eventually resented him and he would have been left frustrated because he couldn't express his physical feelings for you by doing the horizontal mambo. It's not your fault.”

“I know it's not my fault, Discord, but you're being a little bit rude now. I don't really want to talk about my private life.”

“Then how come I always have to talk about mine? Why do I have to tell a complete and utter stranger how I'm feeling.”

“Because I can't do everything on my own, Discord. But you have to trust me when I say I'm trying to help you.” He watched her as she headed out the door.

That night he dreamt about her again. Only this time she was moving above him, and he was under her, exploring her soft fur with his hands. In the dream he couldn't help but feel amazed and slightly incredulous that this was happening. With each of her movements the bed they were on squeaked slightly. Discord tilted his head back against the pillow and closed his eyes in ecstasy.

“Discord...”

He looked up at her. The tone of her voice did not match her expression. It was almost as if she was asking him something urgently.

“Discord...”

“Yes, my dear?” he grinned, caressing the downy fur on her chest with his eagle talon, though he still felt thoroughly confused that her tone of voice did not seem to be one of passion.

“Discord!” His eyes flew open to see Fluttershy standing next to his bed in her bathrobe. He started, quickly making sure the blanket was covering his body, and pulled it up to his neck. He could still hear the bed squeaking in his mind. Wait—he was awake, so why could he still hear squeaking? He clutched the blanket to his chest and tried to adjust to no longer being in dreamland. The squeaks continued, interspersed with the sounds of braying donkeys and what sounded like a marimba being played.

“Discord! Do something!” To his horror and embarrassment, she climbed onto the sofa bed with him and he curled his tail and legs instinctively under him. He was secretly glad that the grey fur on his face was dark enough to hide how red it felt.

He sat upright to see what the commotion was and all thoughts of his erotic dream faded when he looked over the back of the sofa bed and saw where the sounds were coming from. The floor was covered with tiny instruments which were running around and occasionally bleating, braying and squeaking. A grand piano the size of a rabbit shot past, barking and chasing after what looked like a terrified trumpet that was hopping across the floor on its bell.

“I heard these noises and they woke me up,” cried Fluttershy. “Then I came downstairs and found this! It's chaos magic, right?”

An accordion flew past their heads, making a sound like a motorbike.

“How did this happen? Was it because of a dream? What were you dreaming about?”

Discord felt as if his face had ignited. “Erm...” he said. “I was dreaming about...about...”

They both ducked as a violin whizzed past, screeching horribly like an upset parrot.

“It doesn't matter!” said Fluttershy, covering her ears. “It's just...can we stop it?”

“I can try,” said the draconequus, who was relieved that she had changed the subject.

He held out his paw. “I command you to STOP!” he declared.

Nothing happened. The instruments continued to whizz and fly and slide across the floor. Fluttershy noticed Angel Bunny looking terrified in a corner of the room, and she ran towards him, gathering him up in her arms and wings as she dodged airborne missiles and flung herself back onto the sofa bed. A xylophone moving like an overexcited caterpillar chased after her but she managed to kick it away. It flew across the room with a squeak.

“Sorry!” cried Fluttershy.

“Don't apologize to them!” said Discord. He was trying to focus on how he was going to stop the din.

He closed his eyes and tried to concentrate, but his ears were filled with the cacophony of the offending instruments.
Only...only...it didn't sound bad.

If anything it sounded exciting. He climbed up onto the back of the sofa bed, balancing himself on his hind legs.
“Discord, what are you doing?” shouted Fluttershy. Discord focused and closed his eyes. The noise channelled into his ears, into his skull almost as if it was vibrating against his temporal bone. He could hear every instrument individually but at the same time each one was part of a lovely conglomeration. The noises babbled in his ears, calling to him, caressing him, even screaming to him. He didn't want this to stop. He began to laugh; it sounded wonderful.

The noise increased in volume and Fluttershy was shouting to make herself heard. Angel Bunny was biting her arm as if to say “Make it stop, mare!”

Through the squeaking, wailing and screaming Discord could make out a faint sound, but it seemed inconsequential compared to the lovely feeling enveloping his body. The room was beginning to spin and the faint sound grew further and further away.

Then he was swimming, and the water was aquamarine and there were sea turtles floating past him, only they had wings and necks like giraffes, and they glided through the water as they flew. Discord laughed. He could breathe underwater, he could swim. Clouds of bubbles floated past him; coral that seemed to glow passed under him as he travelled.

Then he felt the sensation of being pulled downwards. He tried swimming upwards to counter the effect, but that feeling of being dragged towards the sea bed persisted and grew stronger.

He began to panic, paddling his limbs frantically. The sounds were returning, growing stronger. They seemed to call his name.

Discord. Discord.

Then he was spinning. The turtles were flying past him and he was being sucked down, down into the depths. He tried to let out a scream but there was no sound and the only thing that emerged from his mouth were bubbles that quickly floated to the surface as he descended.

Discord.

“Discord!” Fluttershy was shaking him. He saw her looking down at him with a terrified expression on her face and he realized he was lying on her living room floor in a puddle of sea water. Nearby a fish flopped helplessly. He sat upright. The rest of the living room was completely dry and the noisy instruments had vanished.

“What happened?” he asked her.

“The living room filled up with water,” she said. “I was so scared but I could breathe the whole time and so could Angel Bunny. Then I saw you get sucked down into this giant whirlpool until you hit the floor, only the floor looked so far away. She buried her muzzle in Angel Bunny's fur and continued to look over at Discord in a fearful way that made him feel rotten.

Discord reached for her with his paw. “Flutters”, he whispered.

“You couldn't hear me,” she said. “You were laughing and the instruments grew louder. And the noise! The noise was horrible and then the water came.”

He was puzzled. Had she heard the same noise he had? It hadn't sounded horrible at all.

He touched her cheek with his paw and was horrified to see her flinch slightly. She set Angel Bunny down then moved towards the draconequus, throwing her arms around him. “I was so worried about you,” she said. He slowly returned her embrace, holding her gently. He had already forgotten the fact that she had momentarily pulled away from his paw. He realized his soaked feathers were getting her bathrobe wet but she didn't seem to care. She was clinging to him.

“It's okay, though,” she said softly. “It's going to be okay, because Twilight will visit soon and then we can figure out to control the chaos. She felt his body go stiff in her embrace. He pulled back so that he could look at her face.

“Control it?” he asked.

“Well, yes...” she said, sounding confused. “That night you set fire to the trees. Surely you want to stop that?”

“Well I certainly don't want to set fire to your cottage or the surrounding area, but...what are you saying? I thought Twilight was coming over to make friends with me?”

“She is, but I thought she could also help you with your magic. She's a gifted student of Princess Celestia and she knows a lot about friendship and...”

“Wait, wait, wait a minute!” He sounded angry now. “You want me to stop having chaos magic?”

“I don't understand. I thought it was upsetting you and causing you pain. Now you're saying you don't want help?”

“I don't need help!” he snarled. “Why would I want to get rid of what makes me who I am?”

“I'm not saying you should get rid of it. I just think we need to control it!”

Discord laughed. “Fluttershy, you can't possibly understand. Do you remember what I said the morning of our first walk in the woods? Chaos feels good.”

“But...the trees...you were crying.”

Discord was suddenly silent. It hadn't been the trees bursting into flames that had upset him, it had been the dream, and he was definitely not going to tell her about that. Not sweet, innocent Fluttershy who looked after bunny rabbits and bears alike. She would hate him; he was certain of it.

“Listen, Fluttershy, I'm not sure but I think chaos is tied to how I feel. If I feel good there's chaos. If I feel bad there's chaos. Because whatever I was feeling just now, it was like it was running through my veins.”

“But you can't predict how you're going to feel in a dream.”

“No, I can't.”

“Do you know if this has happened before? I mean...like before the Everfree.”

“Before I lived as an animal? Come on, Fluttershy just say it. We're all grown ups here. No, I don't remember anything like this.”

“So why is it happening?”

He thought for a minute. “Maybe it has to do with the fact that I don't have all my memories back yet.”

“I—I suppose that could be it.” She looked uncertain.

He contemplated her sadly. “You're scared of me, aren't you?” he said.

“I'm, um...a little bit scared of the chaos, but not of you.”

Discord felt something contort in his chest. Did she not get it? He was the chaos. He knew that now and did not feel a distinction between her being afraid of it and afraid of him.

She touched his face gently with the tip of her hoof. “You're soaked,” she said. “I'll get you a towel.”

Once Fluttershy was back upstairs and Discord was dry and back in his own bed, he lay awake with his arms behind his head, staring at the ceiling. Though the light was out the predatory aspects of Discord's anatomy meant he had the ability to see in the dark.

It was market day tomorrow and she would leave the house. He would do it then.

“I'm so glad you're feeling better now,” Fluttershy said, kissing Harry on the nose as the bear turned to leave. “Don't be a stranger!” She called, waving.

Discord watched the pegasus from the kitchen window and his heart ached.

It's okay he told himself. It's only for a few days and then you can come back.

He wondered why he even cared about coming back. Probably because he had no where else to go. He was a stranger in Equestria. Not only out of place but out of time. He was so lost in thought he didn't notice when the pegasus re-entered the house. “Right, I'm off to town,” she said cheerfully. “Any books you want me to get this time?”

“Er...yes,” he said. “The next two books in that delightfully funny science fiction series.”

“Okay,” she said. “I better take the other two back then. And the map one.”

Discord handed the books over, trying not to look nervous or directly at them. He sincerely hoped she wouldn't notice what he was worried about.

Fluttershy stuffed the books back in her saddle bag. No, she seemed completely oblivious.

“See you in about an hour!” she called over her shoulder.

“Sure,” said Discord, smiling his best smile.

He waited.

When he was sure that she was far down the path and out of sight, he pulled the folded piece of paper out from under his pegasus wing. He had torn it as carefully as he could from the book so that it wouldn't be too noticeable that a page was missing. He unfolded the map and started to plan his journey. He knew he had less than an hour's window before she realized he was missing and he needed to get up there before she could stop him. He found one of Fluttershy's rucksacks upstairs and filled it with food and a bottle of water.

He began to walk out the door, then stopped. As an afterthought he grabbed a quill and a spare scrap of paper from Fluttershy's desk and scribbled a quick note: “Back soon.” Then he turned and stepped out into the unknown, alone for the first time since living as a feral beast in the woods.

He hurried over the bridge, trying not to get distracted by the giddy feeling of being let off his leash, so to speak. He knew that the path to the woods was very open and while he and Fluttershy had sometimes spotted ponies approaching from a distance, he'd never had to deal with one on their walks close up. Thankfully he saw no one, and he eventually reached the turning into the woods. He knew this path well, because he and Fluttershy had walked here often, but they hadn't gone much further than the clearing they'd spotted the flowerpeckers in.
He climbed over dead trees and moved through the underbrush, sometimes reverting to walking on all fours so that his antlers wouldn't get caught in tangled vines and sharp, thorny branches. This went on for about an hour, and he was out of breath before he finally reached the turning to the Everfree. He cursed as he realized the path was uphill from there on.

Oh well, he thought. Maremmano wasn't won in a day. He began to climb, stopping every now and then to catch his breath. He found it difficult, and realized that apart from his walks with Fluttershy he hadn't had much exercise. But then, had he needed to exercise before the crystal was shot into his head? He wasn't sure. He had no memories of such things. In his dreams he used magic to do almost everything. He looked up at the path where it became steeper and sighed. He wished he was there already.

Almost instantly he was surrounded by a white flash and then he was losing his balance on the ground, nearly falling over as he realized he was now at the top of the path. He stared in wonder back at the place he had previously been standing, then looked up towards the rest of the path. “I want to go further,” he thought. The flash of light happened again and he was about one hundred yards further up the path. He laughed, and tried the same thing again, only this time he wasn't concentrating properly, and overshot the path by about two feet, where he fell into a small crevasse about five feet deep. Groaning, he picked himself up and climbed out, secretly thanking the ether that it had not been a cliff he had plunged off.

Twilight frowned. “Spike, did you check this book was intact before it got loaned out?” she asked the dragon.

“Um...no. I know I should have...but why? Are there tea stains on it?”

The unicorn shook her head. “No, it's worse than that. There's a page missing.”

Fluttershy looked alarmed. “I'm sorry,” she said. “I didn't think to check it when I took it home.”

“It's not your fault, Fluttershy,” said Twilight. “I know you look after books. However, would this be the sort of thing Discord would do?”

“I don't know. I've never seen him deface a book.”

“What if he tore it out because it was information he wanted to keep?” asked Spike.

Twilight snorted. “Then that's what copy spells are for, obviously, and he should have asked.” She looked down at the book forlornly.

“What page is missing?” asked Fluttershy.

“Erm...let's see. Pages 34 and 35.”

“What was on them?”

Twilight turned to the book's index. “Just a map of Ponyville and a map of the Everfree. Ugh! I hate it when people do this. We have perfectly good copy spells and as long as it's only a fifth of the book I could have made a copy for him.”

Fluttershy wasn't listening. Spike noticed the worried look on her face. “What's wrong, Fluttershy?”

“It's...It's probably nothing,” she said. “But a while back Discord said he wanted to go up to the Everfree.”

Twilight looked surprised. “Why would he want to go back up there? I would have thought that would be the last place he'd want to be after what he'd endured.”

Fluttershy was silent. She didn't think it would be a good idea to tell Twilight and Spike that the main reason Discord had wanted to venture up there was to check for evidence of his last probable meal. “I think I know,” she said carefully, “But if he has gone up there then he could be in danger.”

“He survived in the Everfree for a thousand years on his own,” pointed out Spike.

“Yes, but that was on animal instinct. I don't know if he can do it now,” said Fluttershy. “Anyway, I really should go now...” She was beginning to worry. Surely he hadn't gone up there alone? But then what other reason would he have to tear the map out of that book? And how long had he been planning this? He had clearly asked for the book for this specific reason.

“You sure you're okay?” asked Twilight.

“Oh yes,” replied the pegasus shakily. “I'm sure it's nothing. See you soon!” she called over her shoulder as she galloped off down the path.

“Do you think we should follow her?” asked Spike.

“Yup,” replied the unicorn. “Besides, if she finds Discord I want to give him a piece of my mind for what he's done to Atlas of Equestria.

When Fluttershy returned home her heart sank. As she had feared, Discord was no where to be seen. She had found his note: “back soon” but it brought her little comfort. He had never been out on his own before, and she had no idea how ponies were going to react to him if they saw him, or equally importantly, how he was going to react to them. At least she had a pretty good idea of where he was going. She turned and headed out the door again, and walked straight into the barrel of a stallion.

“Oh, goodness gracious me!” said the pony. “I'm so sorry Fluttershy. I was about to knock on your door but it seems you got to me before I could.”

The pegasus looked up, slightly dazed.

“Let me help you up,” said Sokolsky, offering the mare his hoof.

“Oh, th—thank you Mr. Snare,” she replied.

“There now,” said the stallion, pulling her upright. “No harm done.”

“Mr. Snare, um, I don't mean to be rude, but I'm afraid I'm kind of in a hurry.”

“Heading back to Ponyville? Perhaps we can chat on the way.”
“Oh, um. I don't think so, I'm not going to Ponyville.”

“Oh, well then where are you going?”

She squirmed slightly. “I—I'm meeting a friend. In the woods. We're going bird-watching.”

Sokolsky raised an eyebrow at her. “Oh, well. Perhaps we can talk some other time.”

“O—okay,” said Fluttershy, wondering briefly what he could possibly want to talk about. She hurried along the path.

“Bye!” called Sokolsky.

When Discord finally reached the top of the hill he sat down to eat his lunch. He had a good view from up here, and could see several small villages and towns. He could even see Ponyville, though he didn't recognize it. He hadn't been able to visit to see any of the landmarks. He sighed happily, momentarily forgetting why he had come up here. He felt so free. He was tired of being cooped up in the cottage.

He finished his meal, slung the rucksack on his back and began to walk into the Everfree. Maybe he wouldn't look for anything. Maybe he would just enjoy the day.

But the more he tried to tell himself that, the greater his morbid curiosity became. How had he survived up here? Had he sustained himself on fish or birds, or maybe even deer? Or was it something much worse? He had to know.

He trudged onward, hopping over felled trees and streams. Just as he leapt over what seemed like the umpteenth rotten log there was a snapping sound, then a whoosh and all of a sudden he was airborne as a net surrounded him and pulled him upwards.

Disord hung there for a few seconds in shock, then he realized the situation. He struggled, and tried biting the netting, but it was difficult to get a grip on it. It was made of nylon rather than cotton, and mostly slid off his teeth. He looked at the ground a few feet away and concentrated hard.

I want to go there he thought, but nothing happened. He tried again, desperately thinking all the conceivable words for “want” and “wish” but to no avail. Well this was just perfect. His first time out alone and he had gotten caught in a trap. He could almost imagine the “I told you so's” that were going to be coming from Fluttershy.

He was hanging there, plotting his next move when he heard a loud thwack and a cry of “Idiot!”
Then he hit the ground with a hard smack, his jaw reverberating as it connected with forest floor.

He groaned, and looked up to see the silhouette of a mare standing over him. When his vision came into focus again he notice she was a zebra.

“Well Ulaghai, we meet at last, though I didn't think you'd be out this fast. Are you up here on your own? What are you doing so far from home? And does Fluttershy know you climbed up here? Do you really mean to worry that mare?”

“First of all,” said Discord, who was slightly concerned that his voice sounded slurred after his hard landing, “who are you and how do you know who I am?”

The zebra's face took on a calm look. “Ah, I see. She has not told you about me. My name is Zecora.”

“You know Fluttershy?” asked Discord, rubbing his sore head. The zebra nodded.

“Well that explains that. Though I've not heard the name the Zebricans called me for a while. I have to say, on the whole, I prefer 'Discord.' The other word sounds too close to 'ugly' for my liking.”

“It means trickster, though it is a name we would whisper.”

“I know what it means.”

“I have not answered my question, and I hope you'll be quick. Does the pegasus know? She will be worried sick.”

“It's all fine. It's all good. I left her a note.”

“Why are you up here if everything's fine? And I saved you just now, from becoming entwined.”

“Yes, yes, I know you saved me. Uh...thanks. And the reason I'm up here is confidential.”

The zebra stared at him.

“Very well,” she said. “Then be more careful as you head out on your travels. There are trappers about, and more snares to unravel.”

“Yeah, thanks.”

She turned to go. “Hey, wait!” cried Discord suddenly. “You're a zebra.”

Zecora raised her eyebrows as if to say “Of course I'm a zebra you fool. What did you think I was? A giraffe?”

“No,” said Discord, noticing the expression on her face. “I mean...your people, they have that weird memory spell. The one involving dark magic.”

“What of it?”

“I...I need to use it.”

“For what aim? What is it you seek to claim?”

“Memories. I have some of them back, but I can't remember everything that happened before I lived in these woods. Heck, I can't even remember living in these woods. I suppose that's a good thing.”

“But I cannot give these memories back. It would be me that was seeing them, and your mind which will lack.”

“Yeah, but maybe you can tell me what my memories are once you see them. Then I might have a better idea of what's going on here.”

“And why would I wish to do that, Ulaghai?”

“Because my magic is coming back. But not all the way. And stuff keeps happening. Weird stuff. Stuff that I can't...that I can't control.” He grit his teeth as the said the last word.

Zecora was quiet for a moment. Then she said, “Very well. But you may not like what you hear. Sometimes forced memories are too painful to bear.”

“Yeah, yeah. Spooky warning, whatever.”

Zecora ignored him. “Follow me.”

Discord hobbled after her, his body still a bit sore from the landing. After about half a mile, they reached the shaman's hut and Zecora beckoned the draconequus inside.

“Sit,” she told him, pointing to a mat on the floor. Discord tried to make himself comfortable on the floor.

Zecora reached into her store cupboard and removed several bottles. Next she lit a fire and placed a skillet on top. Discord watched impatiently as she chanted and sprinkled the powder over the skillet. A sage-like smell filled the air.

Finally Zecora stopped chanting and poured the residual powder into a bottle filled with a milky white substance. She made her way over to Discord, pulled out a mat and sat opposite him. “Finally,” he muttered.

“I need some of your magic, to make this successful, and there isn't a need to be so disrespectful.”

“Sorry,” he muttered. He wanted to get this over with. Surely this was a better way to deal with the situation than finding the remains of a pony in the woods. Not that he wanted to come across that. But it was better to know, wasn't it?

She held out the bottle to him and he placed his paw over it, hoping that his magic worked this time. Thankfully he felt a tingling in his bloodstream and the potion glowed. He knew it had been successful.

“Remember this, I hope you hear, that memories may be something to fear. The past is always set in stone, but neither can it tell alone. The only memories I'll see are your point of view through me.”

Discord nodded.

Zecora tilted the bottle and gulped down the concoction. Then she took a few deep breaths and prepared herself for her journey. Discord watched as the zebra mare's eyes rolled back into her head, and glowed like otherwordly beacons.

Then her journey began.

Author's Note

Maremmano= My pony version of Rome, so named because the horses of Roman emperors were a distinct breed of the same name.

Zecora's Vision

1000 years ago

Celestia opened her eyes. She was positive a sound had woken her up, and she waited, bleary eyed until she heard her sister knocking hard on the door to her bedchambers. She pushed back the bed covers and groaned. What hour of the night was it? She knew her sister was more prone to sleepwalking and somnambulism but she didn't have to share everything with her!

The knocking persisted. “I'm coming” said Celestia. She pulled open the big oak door to see the face of her little sister. Luna looked troubled.

“What's the matter?”

“Sister, remember that story our nanny used to tell us about the poltergeist?”

Celestia sighed. Was this what she'd been woken up for? “Luna, we've been through this. There is no poltergeist. It's probably one of the kitchen boys playing a prank.”
“No it isn't! This time I saw it! I was in the library. I wanted to get a book out because I couldn't sleep again and then I saw books floating across the aisles.”

Celestia stared at her sister, deadpan. “So what? There are plenty of unicorns working at the palace. Surely it could have been one of them?”

“No, thou dost not understand! That's what I thought, until I followed the books round the corner and I planned to give the culprit a piece of my mind, except I was confronted by a dreadful face! It was like an imp or demon!”

“Luna, stop this nonsense. You're almost of age now. I know you are to be Princess of the Night but aren't you taking things a little far?”

“Then will'st thou come with me to the library? I can show thee!”

Celestia sighed. “If it means I can go to sleep soon, then yeah, I suppose so.”

They walked down the hallway, their horns glowing to light the way. Luna was shivering next to her sister, and Celestia wondered what had her so spooked. Maybe she'd had another nightmare? Luna seemed to be tormented by them lately. Starswirl had explained to them both that this was likely an adjustment period before Luna took on her full role as an alicorn and that they shouldn't worry about it too much, but it was beginning to get on Celestia's nerves.

They paused outside the library.

“Thou go first,” said Luna, pushing Celestia forward. She was trembling. Celestia grumbled. “Fine, I'll go first. It's not like there's anything there.” However, her brave words belied her current state of mind. Luna was beginning to freak her out and her fear was infectious. She pushed the door open and lit one of the oil lamps. The library filled with a warm, orange glow.

They moved forward, their withers close together, their eyes wide. Celestia checked each of the stacks as they walked. Suddenly there was a loud bang as a book fell off the shelf. Luna screamed, and then a rat bolted past them, almost slipping on the marble floor as it escaped out the library exit.

If looks could kill, Celestia probably would have had a dead sister. “So that's your demon,” she said. “Blasted Horsefeathers, Luna! I'm going to bed!”

A few weeks later Celestia was studying for her next exam in the library. She had several books in front of her including several volumes on Alchemy and Transfiguration. She wasn't at the level required to actually use this type of magic yet, but she hoped she would be in a few years. She was engrossed in a passage about how the author had metamorphosed into a phoenix and used the flames to light an army's way as they marched into battle, when she heard a noise.

Ugh, I hope the rat isn't back. Celestia wasn't fond of rats. They loved gnawing on things and last year she'd had a few garments destroyed by them.

She thought about calling someone to deal with it, but then remembered that she hated that kind of thing. She hated feeling completely dependent on others. Yes, she was a princess but there were limits. Father had said they were paid and that she needn't feel that way, but that wasn't so much the issue. She preferred to be alone sometimes.

She picked up one of the heavy books and cautiously tip-toed over to the source of the sound. It sounded like someone turning pages very quickly. Almost like they were flipping through a book, and then there was a loud bang. She steeled herself and peered round the corner, fully prepared to fling her book at the rat if she saw it.

Instead what she saw nearly made her heart stop. In the middle of the aisle was a tall tower of books. The books were not stacked neatly, and the tower was wobbling slighty, as if it might fall over at any minute. At the top of the stack sat a horned creature with a long snake-like body and red eyes. The demon! He was flipping through each book, his eyes moving over the pages quickly. When he got to the end he dropped the book and it slid under the stack, raising him higher. She realized the tower he was sitting on was being kept upright by magic.

Celestia's mouth fell open. She wasn't going to scream. She wouldn't scream. Instead, with all the bravado she could muster she said in her most commanding voice: “What are you doing in the library?”

The creature looked up at her, as if he had known she was there all along.

“Duhhhh,” he said. What do you think I'm doing. I'm reading.”

“No, I mean why are you in our library. And how did you even get in here?”

He put his hand on his hip and gave her a sassy look. “I've been using this library for a few weeks now. I need to catch up on a few things since I've been away and Canterlot Castle has one of the biggest libraries in Equestria. Not to mention several closed stacks.” He waggled his eyebrows at her at this last comment. He somehow looked less demonic now that he was speaking to her, and she realized he was a chimera.

“Since you've 'been away'?”

“Oh, yes,” he said, waving his paw at her. “I've been travelling the world. Seeing the sights and the people. But I've done that now, so I figured I'd come back and see how Equestria has changed in the past two centuries.”

“Centuries? Now I know you're throwing nonsense about. Only spirits and extremely powerful mages can live for centuries.”

“Mmm. That's true,” he said, grinning at her.

“You still haven't told me how you got in here.”

“Well your castle doesn't appear to have some sort of magical field around it and there aren't any powerful energies that can deflect basic intrusion magic. Really, you guys should look into that. Surely not all your enemies are going to be of the kind wielding spears and shields.”

“We have a mage among us,” said Celestia, who was still on edge. “He's our teacher.”

“Ah, so you're a student in the ways of magic too?”

“Trying to be. I'm going to be ruler of this kingdom and I want to be able to do it properly.” She looked up at Discord sharply. “And Starswirl is an amazingly proficient wizard, so don't get any ideas.”

“What sort of 'ideas' would those be?” asked Discord. “I'm just trying to read and I keep being interrupted by a mare who seems to have nothing interesting to say except that she's hot for teacher.” He buried his nose in his book again.

Celestia was furious. How dare he! Coming in here and telling her to be quiet in her own library as if she wasn't trying to study herself and he hadn't just waltzed in here and helped himself to books he didn't even own. “I am not 'hot for teacher' she said through gritted teeth. I'm betrothed if you must know, to a Prince.”

“Well, marriage is punishment for shoplifting in some countries,” said Discord, never taking his eyes off what he was reading.

“Do you have anything to say that doesn't involve being insulting?”

“Celestia, I'm trying to read. That's all. I don't want anything from you, or Starswirl or your 'betrothed' or anything along those lines. Just knowledge. Is that a crime?”

“No, but breaking into a palace is, and I can have the guards here in seconds.”

“So why haven't you yet?”

Why hadn't she? She thought about it. She was curious about the stranger, that was true. She had never seen anything like him before. It looked like there was some pony in his ancestry, but there was also dragon, and an amalgamation of other animals, though the former two stood out the most. His body was covered with brown feathers that were similar to those of a griffon, but his head and long neck were covered with grey fur. And he had seen the world! Celestia hadn't seen much of the world yet. She suspected she would once she was ruler and had to travel and cement treaties with neighbouring kingdoms, but for now she was a mare that had just come of age and most of her life involved learning royal customs. Studying magic was one of the few things in her day that interested and enthralled her.

“You're a mage?” she asked.

Discord put his hand on his hip again and gave her a look as if to say “Really. Can't anybody get any peace and quiet in here?” But then he smirked at her and said “Why are you asking?”

Celestia thought fast. “I want to know more about the magic you use.”

“Well you can't. It's not really something that you can learn in textbooks.”

“Yet you seem to be thoroughly interested in my textbooks,” Celestia pointed out.

“Was that a euphemism?”

“Be serious for just one second!”

“That would be painful,” he said, chuckling. “But I'll humour you. I'm intrigued. What could you possibly want to learn from little ol' me?”

“First of all...what are you? I've never seen a creature like you before. Not even in Asturcón's Bestiary.”
“Aren't bestiaries for non-sapient animals?” He licked his paw and slicked back his mane. “I'm a draconequus,” he said haughtily, pointing his snout in the air. “Clearly the most beautiful and graceful of Equestria's creatures.” As he was saying this he had leaned back and it had been too far. He plummeted off the top of the book stack, flapping his small wings furiously and hit the ground before he could react with magic. Celestia heard a groan. “Ow.”

Before she knew what she was doing she ran towards him. “Are you okay?” she asked. “Are...”

He suddenly vanished in a flash of white light.

Celestia didn't see the draconequus again for a few days. In fact, she had almost forgotten about him and was on her way to class with Starswirl after getting a book on crystal magic out of the library when she saw him come through the hallway walls and she shrieked.

“Shh! Are you trying to get me spotted?” he hissed.

“What are you doing here? This isn't the library.”

“Well spotted. I got bored and wanted to explore the rest of the grounds for a bit.”

“You shouldn't be here. How do I know you aren't trying to do something illegal?”

“Moi? Why I wouldn't dream of such a thing,” he said, placing the back of his paw over his forehead. “Unless your kitchen has some particularly tasty treats to pinch.”

“I can bring you some food after your lesson. Then you won't have to steal anything.”

He stared at her. “Why?”

Celestia shifted. Why was she planning on bringing him food? She wasn't sure herself. Was it because she still wanted to know more about him?

“If you wait for me after class I can get you some food.”

“And why would I do that when I could just take it from the kitchen myself?”

“Because...because if you wait we can talk, maybe?”

“Hmmm,” he said, looking at her intently. “I'll think about it,” and he vanished back into the wall.

Celestia found it hard to concentrate during Starswirl's lesson. Her thoughts kept drifting back to the patchwork stranger. Who was he and what did he want? He seemed harmless enough and had mostly restricted himself to the library, and at any rate if he was to try anything she had a spell that would alert the guards instantly. Then a field would go up and it would be difficult to escape. But of course, she hadn't told the draconequus that. Was he really simply here to “catch up on knowledge?”

“Celestia,” said Starswirl, clearing his throat.

“Oh! Um...yes?” She cursed herself for not paying attention.

“What are the main symbols for the three primes of an Alchemical spell?” He pointed to the blackboard with his hoof. “Um...” said Celestia. “Could you repeat the question?”

“What do these symbolize?” said Starswirl, trying again and pointing to the chalk writing.

Celestia looked at the symbols. “Oh!” she said. “Mercury, sulfur and salt!”

Starswirl sighed. “Very good Celestia. You have been studying after all. But perhaps we could have a little less daydreaming, hm?”
She nodded. It was so hard to pay attention to the rest of the class.

She found the draconequus in the kitchen, as expected, and he had already helped himself to various things from the pantry and was how building a humongous sandwich with several slices of bread, cheese, olives and various spreads. He used his telekinesis to piece it all together like a tower.

“I told you I could have gotten something for you,” she said.

“I know, but my stomach was growling and I couldn't wait,” he said to her. He pushed himself up on the kitchen counter and dangled his legs back and forth. “So...” he said. “You wanted to talk to me about something?”

“How can you be two hundred years old? You're not even wrinkly.”

“I think it's because of the chaos. I age very, very slowly. In fact, I guess physically I'm closer to your age.”

“Wait, the chaos?”

“It found me when I was little,” he told her. “It looked after me. It kept me safe. I don't know why it chose me, but hey,”--he motioned with his hands as if to say 'here I am'--“what you see is what you get.”

“I don't understand. You're a mage but you practice chaos magic?”

He glared at her. “Is there something you find objectionable about that, Miss Prissy Pants?”

“No, it's just...unusual. And don't call me that.”

He grinned. “It's magic in its rawest form.”

“Doesn't that make it harder to control?”

“I haven't had any trouble so far.” That wasn't strictly true. When he had been younger there had been incidents that had frightened him, but as he grew so did his hold on the power, and besides, he didn't want her to know that he once hadn't been competent; She was pretty.

She realized he knew her name, but she hadn't asked him what his was. “What's your name? I can't just keep calling you 'the draconequus.'”

“Well there is only one of me.”

“Really?”

“Far as I know.”

She waited.

“My name is Discord,” he said.

“Discord. That means “disagreement.”

“It means lots of things. And it's not the only thing I've been called, but on the whole I prefer this name over others.”

He used his magic to squish the impossibly tall sandwich down so he could fit it in his mouth, took a bite, chewed then said “So you're a princess, huh? What does your cutie mark mean then?”

“It means...wait! Are you looking at my flank?”
“How am I supposed to see your cutie mark without looking in...that direction?” he asked, but his face felt hot.

“Okay,” she said. “Well, I'm the Princess of the sun. It will be my royal duty when I'm queen to raise the sun every day for my subjects.”

“Is that all?” he said, taking another bite of his sandwich.

“It's a very important job! Without the sun no crops would grow and there would be no warmth and...”

He chuckled. “I'm only teasing, Celestia,” he said. He could see her blushing through her pale coat.

“I have to go for a dress fitting now,” said the Princess. “Will you be around tomorrow? I'd like to talk more.”

His sandwich was halfway to his mouth, and he stopped and looked at her. “You want to talk more?”

“That's what I said, are you deaf?” she grinned, pushing him playfully on the shoulder with her hoof. “See you outside the library at ten o' clock tomorrow?”

“Um, sure...but...I'm not too good with keeping to schedules.”

“I'll be studying in there for a while anyway.”

“O—okay,” he found himself saying.

“Great, see you then!” she turned and pranced out the door. He snuck a glance at her flank as she left.

The scene changed again in a silvery haze. Now Celestia, Luna and Discord were both giggling and running through the dimly lit hallways of the castle. In mid run Discord snapped his fingers and the floor turned into ice. Luna screamed with delight as she slid quickly down the hallway.

“Shhh! They'll hear us!” laughed Celestia.

“Nah, they won't,” said Discord as he skated past her on his hind legs. “I put up a silencing spell.” He began circling her “But...” he said, each time he completed a rotation… “If….you…really…want...me...to...I...can...take…it...off.” He skidded to a halt in front of her. “It's more fun that way!”

“Thou will get us in trouble!” called Luna, giggling as she fell on her flank.

“Why does she talk that way?” Discord asked Celestia.

“Luna takes tradition pretty seriously. And that includes keeping the tradition of the Royal Canterlot Speech alive.”

“Oh yes, she's totally full of tradition right now,” he said grinning, as he watched the blue alicorn rubbing her sore bottom.

“Stoppit, you,” said Celestia, and she nuzzled against his cheek.

The silvery haze passed over and the scene changed again. This time Celestia and Discord were in the hallway, but they were alone.

She kissed him, and he almost fell over from the shock of it, but quickly collected himself and kissed her back, his paw and talon slipping under her wings and caressing the soft fur there. There was awkward fumbling, and giggling, and then they stumbled into Celestia's bedroom, Discord almost tripping over the rug in the middle of the floor. Celestia flew over to her bed and watched him, laughing behind her hoof.

Discord looked up at her. Her big, violet eyes shone in the candlelight and her pink mane looked soft and framed her delicate face. Her smile made his heart twist in his chest and he realized something surprising—he was nervous.

“Um...you...sure you wanna do this?” he asked.

“Don't you?”

“Oh yes! I just wanted to make sure you did.” He wrung his paw and talon awkwardly, then looked up at her.

Her eyes took on a seductive, half-lidded look. “Come here and I'll show you,” she whispered. The feathers on Discord's back were standing upright with excitement. She was so different from all the people he had been with. She intimidated him. He wanted her approval and part of him was suddenly worried he wouldn't please her the right way. She was a princess. She could have anyone she wanted, really. She could have taken a secret lover from the Royal Guard, or maybe even another member of Royalty, but instead she had invited him into her bedchambers.

She smiled softly and her horn glowed, a tendril of magic reaching out to Discord and caressing his face. “Don't be afraid,” she said.

“I...I'm not afraid. I just...” The tendril of magic gently wrapped around his middle and he found himself being pulled towards her. She pressed her forehead against his and smiled at him, and he found himself relaxing a little and smiling back. He couldn't help but feel amazed. Celestia was relatively inexperienced and he was very experienced, yet he was the one who felt extremely nervous. What did that mean?

“You look like you've seen a ghost,” she giggled.

“I thought I was supposed to be the poltergeist,” he said, sprawling out next to her on the bed. She turned and faced him, resting her head on her hoof.

“So, you have to marry that Prince, huh?”

“Is that what this is about? Are you jealous?” she teased.

“N—no, I just...What's the point of it all? You both have lovers. I guess I just don't get the whole tradition thing.”

“Because Equestria needs a King and Queen.”

He snorted.

“Would you rather not do this?”

“No! I mean, yes! I mean...of course I want to do you..uh...I mean it...I mean...”

She giggled. He was so adorable when he was nervous. He usually gave off an aura of confidence, and she wondered if that was a shield. He was practically curled up into a ball. She wondered how alone he felt in the world, being the only one of his species. Is that why he always tried to appear cocky? He didn't look cocky now, far from it. He looked vulnerable.

“Discord,” she said softly. “What happened to all the draconequii?”

He looked at her warily for a long time, and she waited, not wanting to push him. “They were hunted,” he whispered.

She looked aghast. “That's awful!” she said. “Who hunted them?”

“Ponies,” he said, and Celestia felt a chill run down her spine. “I didn't want to come back here because of them. But...horsefeathers, I don't know why I came back. I guess I just wanted to know how things had changed.”

“Well they have changed,” she said softly. “Ponies don't hunt sapient species any more. I've never even heard of such a thing.”

“The thing is, Celestia. I still don't...I...except for you, Luna and Starswirl I'm not really comfortable around ponies and I'm still not even sure I like them.” He grinned. “Okay, maybe I only tolerate Starswirl.” In truth he did like the old wizard, but he still kept him and even to some extent Luna at paw's length. But Celestia was different. She wasn't like other ponies. She was kind and intelligent and listened to what he had to say.

“Do you regret coming back?” she asked him.

He reached out and stroked her mane with his paw. “Absolutely not,” he grinned, practically gobbling her up with his eyes.

“Hey...” she whispered softly, and she reached out and touched his cheek with her hoof. “No matter what happens, I love you.”

She watched his eyes relax and soften at this and she realized what was troubling him.

“I love you too,” he said, in a barely perceptible whisper. Then she leaned in to kiss him.

After they had made love for the first time, he curled up against her tenderly, his face buried in the nape of her neck. She turned to face him, a warm contented smile on her face, her cheeks rosy.

“You okay?” he whispered, looking at her in wonder.

She nodded, still smiling. He smiled back and buried his head in her shoulder. For the first time in ages he felt truly happy, needed and wanted. And strangely, protected.

The scene was a year later. Discord was in Celestia's bedroom again, but this time their voices were raised in argument.

“That wasn't funny, Discord,” she was saying.

“Oh come on, it was flipping hilarious!” he grinned, floating next to her. “Each time he tried to put food into his mouth it fell down his front.”

“Because you were controlling where the food went!”

“Well I never said I wasn't. Besides you were smirking.”

She blushed. She had smirked. She hadn't been able to help it, really. “Th—that's not the point,” she said, clearing her throat. “If that had happened to me at a royal dinner I would have been mortified.”

“Well I would never do that to you, would I?”

“That's not really the point. You shouldn't be doing things like that to Stellarium.”

Discord rolled his eyes. “It's not like you're in love with him, Celestia.” His ears pricked up slightly as he waited for her reply.

“It doesn't matter that I'm not in love with him, Discord,” she said, noting the draconequus' ears had relaxed slightly. “He's to be my husband and you really shouldn't be treating him this way. Neither of us asked for this. It's just the way things are when you're a royal.”

“So why don't you make it a law when you are Queen for things to not be this way?

“Because it isn't up to me. I'm doing it for my subjects. They expect a united couple to rule over the kingdom, even if that means our private lives are never really revealed to them.”

“He smells funny,” said Discord.

“Maybe that's all the food you spilt on him,” she said. He grinned at her. No, she wasn't going to let him get away with this. He always tried to get her to laugh when it came to this sort of thing and she often succumbed.

“Just, don't do that again, okay?” she said.

He sighed. “Okay, I won't,” he said. “But you have to admit it was priceless…”

Discord and Celestia were in the library, and this time they were arguing again.

“I can't believe you lied to me,” she hissed.

“I just...didn't want you thinking he's 'all that', Celestia. He's not perfect!”

“Neither are you. Neither am I, but you can't make stuff up about people. You could ruin his reputation! And that was a particularly nasty thing to say—that he was a changeling. What is wrong with you?”

The draconequus crossed his arms. “It's not like he's nice to me Celestia.”

“Well maybe that's because you were never very nice to him the first place.” Celestia had been up front with Stellarium that Discord was her lover. She knew the Prince had his own consorts and that it was all kept hush, hush. Royal Marriage wasn't cemented by romantic love. It could be, in rare cases, but over time ponies realized that it was just that—rare, and that they needed to be able to be free to love who they wanted, regardless of the outside persona they projected to their subjects.

“This is the fifth time you've lied to me in some way about him,” she said. “Do you have any respect for me at all? Can't you control your jealousy?”

“It—it's not jealousy!”

“Oh, really? Then what is it? Please tell me because I'm dying to know.”

He shifted his feet on the floor. “Okay, maybe I am a...little bit jealous. But can you blame me? You're a Princess marrying a Prince. What if you forget about me?”

She moved towards him. “I'm never going to forget about you, okay? Your home is here, with me, and Luna and Starswirl. But we need mutual trust in this relationship. You knew I was getting married to someone from the beginning.” He watched as her eyes looked up at him, wetly, and a wave of tenderness overcame him.

“Hey,” he said softly. “I—I'm sorry, Celestia.”

“No more lies, Discord. If you truly respect me then you won't do this any more.” He pulled her to his chest and embraced her. “You're right,” he whispered. He didn't like the idea of sharing her with anyone, but that wasn't her fault, was it? And he felt angry every time he thought of Stellarium, but he was going to have to get used to the idea. Besides, Celestia loved him not the Prince. He felt dampness on his feathers and he knew she was crying.

“Don't cry,” he whispered, feeling guilt wash over him. “Celestia...I...I promise I won't lie to you any more. I won't make any more stuff up.”

She looked up at him and smiled softly. “I'll hold you to that,” she said.

“As long as you hold me,” he grinned.

A week later Discord was surprised to find an invitation under his bedroom door. He opened it and was met with intricate handwriting:

Prince Stellarium requests your presence at his Estate. 2pm sharp two days from now.

Discord made a groaning sound. There was a knock at his door and he opened it.

“Celestia,” he said, his heart leaping. She always seemed to have that effect on him no matter how many times he saw her.

“Did you get the invitation?”

His eyebrows shot up. “This was your idea?”

She nodded. “I spoke to Stellarium and while I know he knows about our arrangement, I realize the two of you have never really gotten to know one another. Maybe you should have some guy time together.”

Discord groaned, and leaned against the door. “Celestia, must I?”

“Even if you only do it once, at least you know you've given it a try. Who knows, you could even become friends.”

“Really? And what would we talk about? Swapping bedroom tips? 101 ways to pleasure a princess?”

“Don't be such a guy!”

“I am a guy.”

“No, I mean, of course I don't expect you talk about that. But he's going to be living at the palace just like you and you are inevitably going to run into one another. You should at least learn to communicate. Also, I've heard the estate is quite beautiful.”

“You're not going to let me get away from this are you?”

She smiled warmly at him.

He sighed. Celestia always did know what was best, and he trusted her.

“I'll do it,” he said.

When the day finally arrived, Discord teleported outside the grounds to the estate at exactly 1:50pm . He figured if he was going to avoid the insufferable “2pm sharp” rule then it would look less rude to arrive early rather than late, and while normally he had no problem with being rude, he wanted to make sure all was well with him and Celestia.

He heard the sound of gravel crunching underhoof and looked up to see Prince Stellarium approaching him. The white unicorn smiled warmly. “Discord,” he said. “Good to see you! Come in!” The guards opened the gate and the draconequus stepped forward cautiously. Stellarium clapped Discord on the back in greeting, almost knocking the wind out of him. He hadn't been prepared for that, but he mustered a grin. “Hello,” he said.

“I've got lots planned,” said the unicorn. “We can walk in the gardens, and then retire to the recreation room for some drinks.”
“Uh...sounds...fun,” said Discord, who didn't think it sounded very interesting at all.

They walked along the gardens, Stellarium pointing out various statues, even one in the shape of a cocktrice. Discord nodded. Well, this was boring but it wasn't so bad. The Prince seemed nice enough.

“Tell me about yourself, Discord,” said Stellarium.

Okay, now this was difficult. There were many parts of his life he didn't wish to go into detail about with the Prince. He tried a non-direct approach. “I'm a mage,” he said. “Chaos magic, mostly. Well, pretty much exclusively chaos magic.”

“Fascinating,” said the Prince. “I am surprised one of your species is able to wield such powerful magic.” Discord shifted. That had sounded like an insult, but he couldn't be sure, and he didn't want to have an argument with Celestia's future husband. He was pretty sure when it came to a battle of sarcasm and underhanded comments, he could win it easily, but he had to be careful.

“I would say my species is built for it, Stelly Ol' boy,” he said, not able to resist a harmless dig at the Prince's name. “But I notice you said 'my species.' So you've heard of my kind?”

“Oh yes, my father used to tell me stories about the draconequii. I must admit I thought they had gone extinct, but you are evidence to the contrary.”

Discord puffed up the feathers on his chest. “I am indeed, one of a kind,” he said, grinning.

“Yet you do not look the way my father described them to me. He did not mention lion paws or bat wings in his stories.”

“Yeah, that has something to do with the chaos,” replied Discord. “I think it gives me the roguish charm girls find irresistible.”

“Yes, speaking of girls. I...I wanted to make sure we didn't get off on the wrong hoof. I know we've...had our differences. But I also know we both want what is best for Princess Celestia.”

Discord squirmed. Their 'differences' had involved Discord spreading rumours among the palace staff that Stellarium was a changeling that was trying to infiltrate the Crown and that he planned to lay eggs in their chests. That had certainly caused a lot of panic, until Starswirl told them they were all being ridiculous. Then there had been the incident when Discord had told Celestia that Stellarium actually wanted to outlaw education for mares. That rumour had been quashed much faster and she had seen through his jealousy quickly.

“So, I figured we should just...know where we are,” continued Stellarium. They had reached the castle, and Stellarium beckoned Discord into the recreation room. He started pouring them drinks.

“Where we are?” asked the draconequus. “We're fine, aren't we?”

Stellarium sipped his drink and smiled warmly at the draconequus. “Of course, Discord. But being a royal entails certain duties and of course one of those duties means putting an heir in Celestia.”

Discord tried not to gag. Did he really have to use the words “put” and “in?” Surely he could have said “had foals?”

Discord stirred his drink with his claw. He still hadn't taken a sip.

“I just want to make sure that there is no misunderstanding between us,” continued the Prince. “Celestia would of course be very disappointed if there were further...skirmishes.”

“Yeah, she would,” said Discord, looking at the ground.

“Indeed. And she has a reputation to uphold. As do I. So, I guess what I'm trying to say to you is make sure you're careful, okay?”

“Careful?”

“Yes, these are going to be my heirs, and I want to make sure they look like my heirs if you get my meaning.”

Discord stared at the unicorn. “You don't want them to be draconequii is what you mean.”

“Oh, perhaps I would have no problem with it as such, but I know the public would and Celestia loves her subjects dearly, doesn't she?”

Discord grit his teeth. It was so very hard for him to resist flinging the drink in the Prince's face, but the last thing he wanted was Celestia getting mad at him again. He gave the Prince a fake smile.

“Your highness!” a servant entered the room and whispered quietly in the Prince's ear.

“Oh bother...again?”

“Sorry your highness but it will only take a moment.”

Stellarium sighed. “Please excuse me”, he said to Discord, who now had a terrifying grin plastered on his face. “It seems that the servant boys have stolen food from the kitchen again. Most disagreeable. I'll only be a few minutes.”

Discord watched as Stellarium and the other pony left the room and walked down the garden path.

As soon as they were out of sight he poured his drink directly onto the Saddle Arabian rug on the floor. “Oops!” he said, in mock outrage, then he tip toed further into the room like a ballerina. Further on the recreation room divided into a hallway lined with books, and further on there was another door. Discord browsed the books. He wondered if there was anything here that he could use as dirt on Stellarium. Physical evidence of the Prince being a horsehole would be much more useful than his words.

After a while, he became bored, and decided to move into the room down the hallway. He floated along then pushed it open with his lion paw. A musty smell greeted him and he squinted in the dim light. His nocturnal vision quickly took over and he looked around the room.

There were stuffed birds in cases, and a few fish mounted on the wall, but what was most surprising was the long articulated skeleton of a dragon. Discord knew that in the past, dragons and ponies had been enemies, and that during war time, sometimes the body of a dragon was taken as a trophy, but that was very long ago, and he hadn't even been born at the time. He had only read of such accounts in books. He looked at the skeleton curiously. He wondered how old it was.

Then he turned the corner, and his jaw dropped.

He was face to face with a draconequus, and it took him a fraction of second to realize that what he was looking at was taxidermy. It was a skin, mounted over an armature and form. The pose was one of a predator, a draconequus about to attack. The lips were pulled back in a snarl and both sets of claws were extended. The gums were hard resin and the eyes were glass, but other than that he was looking at one of his people.

Shaking slightly, he reached out to stroke the dark feathers with his paw; Feathers so like his own. He ran his paw on them, going with the grain, then felt them give way. He pulled his paw back and looked at it. Feathers had come loose, along with frass and dust. The mount was being moth-eaten.

He felt his stomach turn and he ran down the hallway, past the recreation room outside, his heart pounding in his chest and he collapsed, only just holding himself upright with his paw leaned against the wall. He retched forcefully. After he had finished puking he had only a momentary respite before he began to feel nauseated and panicked again. He looked up to see a guard standing not too far away, smirking at him.

He felt sick and confused. Celestia had said this sort of thing didn't happen any more. On the other hand the mount could have been really old, but that didn't make Discord feel any better. It was still one of his kind, stuffed and positioned in an everlasting mockery of its life. He shivered. He had to tell Celestia. She would understand. She had told him this kind of thing was awful and unconscionable. He glanced up and growled at the nearby guard, who suddenly looked a lot more nervous and yelped in terror as his spear turned into a snake that hissed fiercely at him. He dropped the snake and fled around the corner.

Discord teleported straight into Celestia's room, making her jump. She was about to chide him gently when she realized he looked absolutely terrified. His eyes even looked bloodshot, and in a way that had nothing to do with his naturally red pupils.

“Discord, what's wrong?” she asked, running up to him and holding him. He whimpered into her shoulder.

“Stellarium,” he said. He felt her embrace go slightly more slack.

“Discord,” she warned. “We talked about this.”

“No, Celestia you don't understand! He's...he's a murderer! He has one of me in a room in his estate!”

She blinked at him. “You're not making sense.”

“He has one of my kind stuffed and mounted in his trophy room!” he snapped.

“Discord, that's not funny.”

“I'm not trying to be funny! There's a dead draconequus on his grounds! Stuffed!”

“That's enough! I told you to stop making up stories. This is going too far! You're basically accusing someone of a horrendous act and that's pretty sick!”

He grabbed her by the shoulder. “I'll...I'll show you! I can show you!” he said. “We can go there right now and...”

“And what?” she said. “You could just conjure up any number of visions to make me believe there's a dead draconequus in his house? Discord, this is all too much.” She suddenly looked sad. “I thought you had more respect for me. You must think I'm really stupid if you think this will work.”

“Celestia, I'm telling the truth. For the love of gods please believe me!”

He looked so desperate. He looked so small. But she was at the end of her tether with him. He had behaved more and more appallingly the closer it got to the wedding date. She was tired of his manipulating her emotions. She loved him, but she was beginning to doubt he loved her. He was constantly lying and trying to prevent her from doing her royal duties. She wanted to believe him...

“Celestia, I'm begging you, please listen to me. You can't marry him...he...”

“Enough! Discord, I can't do this any more. Is this what you're going to be like when I get married?”

“You're not listening to me!” he shouted.

“Maybe I'm not,” she whispered. “Not any more.”

“What?”

“I can't cope with this, Discord. I've got a lot on my plate.” She had tears running down her face now. “How dare you do this to me right now. It's not like I even wanted this. Your lies make me want to trust you but at the same time they are just that...lies. And it's messing with my head. I love you and you keep lying to me.”

“I'm not lying this time! I swear! I'll never lie again!”

“Get out,” she sobbed. “Just stop and get out. The fact that you would even try to use this against me. You clearly have no respect for my mind.”

He couldn't believe this. “Celestia...”

“Get out or I'll call the guards,” she whispered. She didn't want to. She really didn't, and she was pretty sure what she had just said was a bluff, but she needed him to leave or she'd probably run into his arms and the cycle would just begin again.

She didn't turn around to look at him, but if she had she would have seen his hurt face turn into one of anger. “You call your guards,” he said, in a voice that sounded void of any emotion. “You do that.” Then he vanished.

It took him a while to find the cave, but in the end he rediscovered it. It was partially overgrown with vines and overhanging tree branches, and he squeezed through the natural netting the plants had made.

The cave smelt musty, and there were bats roosting inside it, but Discord paid them no mind. He really couldn't pay anything any mind any more apart from the tumultuous churning in his stomach and heart. It felt like his insides were burning. Burning through him and itching to come out. He sat with his back against the wall of the cave. His heart beat felt irregular, and it felt like he couldn't breathe. He rested his elbows on his knees and buried his face in his hands and he could feel the dampness on them. He knew he was crying, he didn't care any more. He thought of the dead draconequus and felt sick again.

From deep within the cave came a noise that sounded like a whisper. Discord's ears pricked up and he peered into the darkness. “Who's there?” he called. There was only silence.

He continued trying to battle the nausea that overwhelmed him. Throughout Discord's life, he had struggled with emotion. However, he'd had no one to tell him that what he felt was much stronger than what other beings usually felt and obviously had therefore never tried to compare his emotions to anyone else's. Sometimes he had a ferocious temper and he had once burnt an acre of forest around him in a fit of rage when he had been frustrated that a meal he was roasting over the fire was taking ages. Other times he had become so enraptured with the chaos it felt like a glorious high caressing every part of him. And he had loved Celestia fiercely. He still loved her fiercely, but she had told him to leave. She hadn't believed him. She had left him. He felt a tremendous stab of pain in his heart.

And that was when he heard it again. The whisper. Only this time it didn't stop. It got louder and louder. It wasn't actually speaking in words. The language it spoke to him was purely metaphysical and a fresh wave of pain overtook his heart. The noise became louder and louder, until it was at the level of a hurricane blowing at full force. He glanced down at his eagle talon, and with the claws of his lion paw, began to scratch mercilessly at his wrist. He scratched until he bled. Everything was completely overwhelming and he felt like something was breaking inside him, yet at the same time it was a force he couldn't contain, and for some reason he felt that if he scratched he might be able to get it out. The noise was deafening. He scratched.

He was flying through the air, dodging blasts of magic heading his way. It was all a game to him though. Celestia was the most fun opponent to battle against. He loved the way she gritted her teeth at him, her now aurora-like mane flowing behind him as she dived for him. He could have easily destroyed her, but he would never do that to her. Despite everything he couldn't do that to her. But that didn't mean her subjects weren't fair game. After all, he had once been game to them.

He circled her and waved his paw, and all of a sudden her legs and wings were bound with magical ropes, but he didn't let her fall. She floated in mid air before him.

“You're beautiful when you're angry with me,” he said.

“Discord,” she growled. “Stop this now!”

“Or what? You'll 'call the guards?'”

He cupped her face in his paw and leaned in close, whispering. "Oh, Celestia. You don't get it do you? I have a love."

The alicorn struggled against her bonds. "If you mean the chaos then I don't think you realize what it's done to you."

"What it's done to me? Why, Celestia what an unusual thing to say. It's done nothing to me but make me happy, which is more than I can say for your kind."

"I didn't know! I thought you weren't telling the truth! If I had known we could have outlawed that kind of thing, and…"

Discord was laughing. "Outlaw it? It's a bit late for that. They're all dead, Celestia. For all I know that mount could have been my father." He pulled her closer. "And you did nothing he snarled.

“I'm sorry, I truly am, but this has gone too far Discord. Ponies are suffering.”

He laughed, again wiping mock-tears of mirth from his face. “You think I care that you're sorry? Oh, Celestia. You always knew how to make me smile.”

His smile had no warmth in it.

He floated in front of her, tilting himself until he was upside down but level with her face. “I've figured it all out you know,” he said, grinning at her and displaying his rows of sharp teeth.

“Have you,” she said in a voice that implied she was humouring a madman.

“Yes. I don't need anybody, really. What had always kept me safe? It was the chaos. It wasn't people. That's where I made a mistake….you see...”

He was suddenly hit in the back with a blast of magic and he plummeted sixty feet down until he managed to collect himself and looked up at Luna, who was practically giving him daggers.

“Foul wretch!” she snarled. “Traitor! To think I ever thought of thee as someone who loved my sister!”

“I'm puzzled about it myself, Luna,” he growled.

Celestia had managed to release herself from her bonds and both alicorns swooped down and charged at him. He grinned and leapt to one side, holding a red cape and donning a matador's outfit. “Torro, torro!” he shouted. Then he felt his tail being pulled up and he went into a free fall spin. He snapped his fingers and teleported above them to see what had happened, and spotted Starswirl glaring at him below.

“Dirty trick, old man! Using my own spell against me. Well, it's a pretty remedial one. Maybe I should teach you something more fun.”

They clashed again, and so it went on for years.

The draconequus rose up out of the ground on a cloud of chittering, purple locusts. He was prone, with his chin resting on his balled up talon and a bored look on his face. He reached down for one of the insects and seemed to examine it.

"Any reason you wanna tell me why you're bothering me?" He was looking at the insect, but his words were directed at Commodore. "Not that I don't love it when you ponies try to fight back. I suppose it makes it more interesting, but you're always so easy to defeat. It would be nice to have a challenge for once…"

Commodore aimed the crossbow at Discord's head. It was now or never. Cleo and the rest be damned.

Discord sat up and laughed.

"Ha! It's like you…"

There was a dull "thunk" sound, then everything went white.

Discord peered at Zecora. She was drooling, and he was beginning to feel uncomfortable looking at the way her eyes were rolled back in her head, but then she shuddered and collapsed on the floor in front of him.

He shifted and moved across the floor towards her. He placed his paw on her back and shook her. “Hey,” he said. “Wakey, wakey!”

She lifted her head and looked at him. Her face was streaked with tears and she looked exhausted.

“So...” said Discord. “What did you see?”

Zecora was silent. Discord mused that maybe she just needed a few minutes to collect herself. She got to her feet, shakily and moved towards her water pump. Discord waited while she drank several cups.

He was beginning to get fidgety. He really wanted to know what the situation was.

“Did...you...did you see any of my memories.”

Zecora looked at him silently, then finally she said. “I did, Discord but I'm afraid I fear, I cannot tell you what I saw there.”

“What? Why the hell not? They're my memories. Surely if anyone has a right to know what's in them it's me?”

“Of this it's true, I do agree, but I think you need to listen to me. I only have your point of view, I need the stories of others too. Without them your memories are incomplete, and for now I will have to be discreet.”

“Others? What others?”

“Others that were there at the time, and...”

Suddenly there was a knocking at Zecora's door.

“Hey, Zebra lady?” came a familiar female voice. “You in there? Because we need to talk.”

Zecora whirled round. “Hide!” she hissed at Discord.

“Why?”

“Just hide!”

He looked around her small hut. “Where?” he hissed back.

She motioned to the huge cauldron in the middle of the room, thanking the gods that she hadn't been in the middle of brewing anything.

Discord clambered into the huge iron bowl, coiling himself so that he'd fit more neatly, and waited.

Zecora pulled the door open. “You wish to talk, but please be swift, I have a lot of herbs to shift.”

“Good day to you too,” said Carmarella, tipping her hat. “Not to worry, I don't really wanna linger myself. But I'm wondering if you knew anything about a trap I put out yesterday. You see, it seems someone has cut it down.”

“I know not of what you speak, I think perhaps it is someone else you seek.”

She began to gently shut the door but Carmarella propped it open with her hoof. “You think I'm playing games here, Ms. Zecora, but I assure you I ain't. There's a dangerous creature in these woods and we have a permit to shoot it on sight.”

“Creature?” asked Zecora.

“Yeah. Guy we're working for says it's a draconequus or something like that. It's super rare. He wants it alive but if that thing takes a dive for me, I'm firing.” She didn't say that she would likely be firing tranquilizer darts. She wasn't about to lose her share of money that easily. “We gotta be real careful. We're dealing with an apex predator here. And if you're messing with us, you're putting the lives of ponies in danger. We've found...remains out in these woods.”

Zecora's eyes went wide. “Remains?”

Discord held his breath inside the cauldron, trying not to give any any sounds. The great iron cauldron magnified sound.

“Yeah,” said Carmarella. “They look pretty old. Just skeletal now, but if it's any indication of what this thing is capable of, then we have a situation on our hands. So you better not be lyin' to us.”

“I have no idea of what you say, now if you'll excuse me, I must get on with my day.” She closed the door.

“If you see anything you'll be sure to contact us, won't you?” called Carmarella.

Zecora opened her window and smiled. “Oh, of course!” she said sweetly.

“Ah...good. Sorry, hope we didn't get off on the wrong hoof an' all. Just under a lot of stress, you know?”

The zebra nodded, and waited until Carmarella was out of sight.

“You can come out. She is no longer about.”

Discord's head burst out of the cauldron. “What the hell was that, Zecora? I'm being hunted?

“I told you there were trappers in these woods, and that you must go home, like you should.”

“You didn't tell me it was me they were trying to trap!”

“I wasn't sure, but there is no doubt any more.”

A horrific thought suddenly occurred to Discord. “So...there are the remains of ponies. Is that what you saw in my memories?”

Zecora shook her head. “I saw nothing of the kind. I saw a different time in your mind.”

“And you're not going to tell me about it.”

“One day soon, perhaps I might. But for now we should wait until cover at night. It will be easier to get you home to Fluttershy if darkness hides both you and I.”

Fluttershy was in tears. “I can't believe I lost him, Twilight!” she cried. “I was supposed to take care of him! That was what Princess Celestia asked me to do and I failed completely.”

Spike patted the pegasus on the withers. “Come on, Fluttershy. Don't beat yourself up. Discord left of his own free will and he said he was coming back. It's not your fault.”

“What if he doesn't come back? What if he fell somewhere and is hurt and he's broken something, what if...”

“Shhh,” said Twilight. “Look, we've been looking for hours and it's pitch black now. We aren't going to make much headway in the dark. Why don't we go back to the cottage and we'll search again at first light.”

Fluttershy whimpered softly. She knew her friend was right. Pony eyes weren't designed to see the dark and Twilight's horn didn't give them a very big pool of light.

“Hey,” said Spike, looking up suddenly.

In the distance, they could see an orange light dancing around. “Wh—what is that?” said Spike fearfully. He remembered last Nightmare Night and the story Applejack had told him about the will-o'-the-wisp and how it led travellers to their doom. Twilight had scoffed at that and explained to him that the light was caused by decaying plant matter and the emissions created the ignis fatuus. Spike hadn't been sure what that meant, but he hadn't slept well that night anyway. He felt a chill go down his spine as the light came closer and was ready to run as far away as his short little legs could carry him, when Twilight placed a hoof on his shoulder. “It's them,” she said.

The tall form of the draconequus and striped form of the zebra were more visible now, as was the lantern Zecora was carrying.

“Discord! Cried Fluttershy. She ran forward and embraced him, then she looked up at him and said in a cross voice “I told you not to wander off on your own!”

To her surprise he sounded equally cross. “ And now I know why! Fluttershy, you told me that ponies didn't hunt sapient animals any more.”

“They—they don't!”

“Then why are there a pair of trappers looking for me up in the Everfree?”

Fluttershy looked up at Zecora, who nodded. “I'm afraid it is true, and on me you can quote. I am confused, did you not get my note?”

“Note?” asked the pegasus. “What note?”

“I left a note for you earlier this year, warning you to be aware. There are trappers further up the peak, and it is the draconequus they seek.”

“I didn't get a note! You don't think...it could have been stolen?”

“I know not. But that is a thought.”

“Look, I don't know about you guys,” said Discord, looking around furtively, “But I'd rather not get shot in the head right now. Can we get a move on?” They were far from the Everfree now, but Discord had been on edge the entire time the zebra had led him out of the woods.

“Yes, of course!” said Fluttershy. “Oh, this is my friend I was telling you about, Twilight Sparkle. And this is Spike.” Discord nodded to them but he wasn't really interested in greetings right now. At any moment he worried an arrow was going to come flying through the air at his chest or head. As they walked along quickly, Discord got a better look at the unicorn mare and the small dragon resting on her back. He seemed to be completely comfortable with the pony and even laughed a little as she spoke to him. But someone was out there looking for him. Fluttershy had said ponies no longer hunted sapient animals, but maybe they didn't realize he was sapient? Twilight and her dragon looked like they were friends. Surely draconequii could be friends with ponies? He looked down at Fluttershy, to see tears dancing in her eyes.

“Shy?” he asked.

“I was so worried about you!”

He picked at the skin around his talon. “You were?”

“I thought something had happened to you.”

“I left a note.”

“But you didn't even say where you were going!”

“Oh. Yeah, I didn't...”

“Discord, I promise you eventually you'll be able to move around freely but you have to listen to me when I say the time isn't right yet. For one thing I had no idea you were being hunted!”

“Well, me either. Do you think they've been looking for me since I lived up there all those years?” he asked.

“I don't know. But it's a possibility. If they thought you were still living as an animal, hunting for food, then maybe.” He nodded quietly.

Discord was extremely relieved when they finally reached the cottage, and even more so when Fluttershy opened the door and turned on the lights. Home. He was safe. He collapsed on the sofa, flopping his long body over the arm rests.

Zecora turned to Twilight. “If it is ameanable to you, and it's alright, I need somewhere to spend the night.”

“Of course, Zecora,” replied Twilight. “Spike and I would be happy to have you as our house guest, wouldn't we Spike?”

The little dragon nodded. “Just...no ghost stories, okay?” Zecora smiled. “I promise you, hoof on heart that there will be nothing that will make you start. As a matter of fact, if we need to disperse, it is with Twilight I wish to converse.”

“You're leaving?” asked Fluttershy. Zecora nodded. “I will check on you both soon, perhaps even as early tomorrow at noon.”

“Ugh, make her stop rhyming,” groaned Discord from the couch. Zecora smiled and shook her head. She smiled at Twilight and Spike. “Let us go,” she said. They waved goodbye to Fluttershy, and headed into the night.

Discord watched as the small pegasus positioned herself in front of him so that she was staring straight at his face.

“I sense you are mad at me.”

“A little,” she admitted. “I want there to be trust between us. We talked about that.”

“But...the trappers...”

“I didn't know about that! And there must be something about that I'm missing. I'm pretty sure trappers shouldn't be up there unless it's for a good reason. Parts of the Everfree are protected areas. I'll try to get in contact with the local gamekeeper. I'll bet he'll have something to say about unlicensed hunting in the woods! And I won't let anyone hurt my friends!”

Discord looked at her with tired eyes. She looked angry still, but not at him. Instead it was a fierce, protective anger. She climbed up onto the sofa with him and hugged him. He coiled his body closer to her, and used his tail to pull a wool throw over them both. “I was so worried,” she whispered, burying her muzzle in his feathers.

Discord looked around at the warmth of the cottage. The familiar fireplace, the birdhouses on the walls, the bean bag. He was safe now, he was home, and Fluttershy didn't hurt animals, she looked after them and kept them safe. He sighed with relief and wrapped his arms around the pegsus, nuzzling her mane. He was safe with her.

Author's Note

"Marriage is punishment for shoplifting in some countries" is a quote from the movie Wayne's World.

I use the phrase "1000 years ago" but don't necessarily mean it to a tee. In the show, Celestia often tells of incidents that happened "1000 years ago" but she's used the same phrase for Nightmare Moon, Tirek and Discord's backstories and they couldn't have possibly all happened at the same time, so I interpret that as "roughly" 1000 years ago with decades/centuries on either side.

Zecora's travel through Discord's memories are mainly meant to be his point of view, but I added some of Celestia's so that the narrative would flow better. Besides, when Twilight uses the Flashback Potion in "Princess Twilight Sparkle" she's immersed in the scene overall.

As in all of my fics, Discord feels all emotions much, much more strongly than a normal person would. This is because of the chaos, which amplifies everything. I partly drew this from my own experiences with Bipolar Disorder, in which it doesn't matter how much logic you use to convince yourself otherwise, the emotion will overwhelm you because the chemicals in your brain are amplifying them, whether it's a good or bad emotion, and as such your behaviour is highly influenced by it. Except with Discord I've cranked this up to 11. When he's angry, he's ballistic. When he's happy it's like a wonderful drug, and when he falls in love with Celestia, he REALLY falls in love with her, so having his heart broken while simultaneously having to accept that there's the mounted skin of one of his people in the house of someone she's going to marry is something he just cannot cope with.

Summer: Plumage

Dear Princess Celestia,

My friend Zecora and I request an audience with you at your earliest convenience. It concerns Discord. I have finally met the draconequus, albiet briefly and from the quick interactions I have observed between him and Fluttershy he seems to have developed some kind of bond with her. I do not know yet if this is friendship, but he seems to respect her enough. I only hope this is not because he is completely reliant on her and using her in some way. You mentioned he was someone very dear to you once, so I am, however reluctantly, inclined to believe the former explanation. Only time will tell.

As for our requesting a meeting, Zecora seems to have information on Discord that we don't. She has declined to tell me what that information is, only saying that it is "for Princess Celestia's ears only."

I...I wish I knew more about what was going on but I must admit to feeling somewhat "in the dark" about all this. I realize your private life is your own, but...should I have reason to worry? Fluttershy is alone with Discord much of the time and I do sometimes fret about her safety.

At any rate, if we could meet with you, that might clear a few things up for all concerned. I only want what's best for everyone and I'm worried that's beyond my reach.

Sincerely,

Your Faithful Student,

Twilight Sparkle.

When Discord woke up he realized his snout was buried in pink mane and that Fluttershy had spent the entire night on the sofa with him. He hadn't bothered to pull the couch out to make his bed before falling asleep, it had remained a sofa and she had still managed to curl up against him without falling off. Then again he thought, chuckling softly she's pretty small. She was facing away from him, breathing softly and he carefully reached up with a talon and pushed her mane out of her face and tucked it behind her ear.

"Wakey, wakey Canary-Horse," he whispered. The pegasus shifted. "Mmmfph...what time is it?" she said, trying to get her bleary eyes to adjust, and realizing with surprise that her wings were pressed up against Discord's chest. She blushed. She'd slept next to him before, but he'd been delerious or sick. Still, he had been pretty upset last night, so she supposed it was no different. So why did it feel different? "It's after eight," he said. She felt his voice rumble through her and after a beat he continued: "You came to look for me."

"Of course I did. I thought something terrible had happened to you."

He smiled into her mane. "You worry a lot, don't you?" he said, his paw tightening its embrace around her.

"Um...yes?" She was blushing in waves now at their close proximity.

Discord stopped himself from purring the words "I like it when you worry about me" in her ear in time. He couldn't be too forward. Not yet. But she had cared and that wasn't something he was altogether used to. Or at least not altogether used to accepting. His peaceful mood dampered a bit as he remembered what he had overheard when he had hidden in Zecora's cauldron: There were pony remains in the Everfree.

"W—would you like some breakfast?" asked Fluttershy. Her question was followed by the sound of a metal dish clanging which both made them jump.

"Well somebody does," said Discord, sitting up and inclining his head towards Angel.

"And you?" Fluttershy asked Discord as she moved towards the rabbit.

Discord was surprised that he didn't feel all that hungry, especially after a day of being active. As he began to get to his feet he realized his muscles felt quite sore.

"Just some water, please, Fluttershy."

"Are you okay?"

Discord bit his lower lip and his eyes fixed on a spot on the floor. "Maybe...not?"

"What's wrong?" asked Fluttershy. She quickly put some carrots and cucumber slices in a bowl for Angel and moved towards the draconequus.

"Fluttershy--I--I have to tell you something." He dropped down closer to her level so that he was on all fours.

"Yes?" she asked softly, making sure her voice sounded as welcoming and open as possible.

"You know the reason I went up to the Everfree. Well, I...I was right. There are bones up there." He saw a flicker of doubt or fear in her eyes and hoped that it wasn't because she was scared of him.

"Did you see them?" she asked.

"Well, no...but I overheard the trappers talking about it when I was hiding in Zecora's cauldron. They said they looked old and had been up there for a while. But there are remains!"

"That doesn't mean that it was you," she said. "It could have been a timberwolf or..."

"But if it was me, if it was...”

Fluttershy's eyes softed. “We discussed this Discord. You were living on survival instincts.”

“The thought that I could have eaten pony makes me feel sick, Fluttershy. I've only just gotten used to eating fish and crabs.” Though the draconequus had turned his nose up at the idea at first, he had eventually relented when he realized his body needed the extra protein. He did have sharp canines, after all.
She leaned against him, nuzzling his shoulder. “Don't think about it,” she whispered. “Today I'll go and speak to the gamekeeper and we'll sort all this out.”

A shiver shot down Discord's spine. “Wait...you're...you're not going to tell him about the pony remains are you?”

“I was going to tell him everything we know.”

“But what if he decides I'm dangerous and wants me killed!” he cried, grabbing her by the shoulders.

“That's not what gamekeepers are for. They were originally for keeping and hunting a stock of animals, but not in modern day Equestria. Now they are only responsible for shooting animals that are beyond hope or a threat to someone's life. Not that I like that either, but I understand why it's done.”

“And eating ponies isn't a threat to someone's life?”

“You're a sapient being. If someone shot you it would be a crime. It would be murder. I'm going to speak to gamekeeper and explain that you're under Princess Celestia's protection. And besides, there's absolutely no proof that you were the cause of the remains.”

Discord's eyes searched hers. They looked fearful and unsure. She placed her hoof in the crook of his elbow.

“I...I'd rather you stayed today,” he said, in an almost imperceptible whisper.
“But it's urgent that I go and explain that...”

“I don't disagree! But, Fluttershy...I...I...”

He looked embarrassed about something, and then he mouthed “I don't feel safe right now. There's no lock on the door or anything. I know there was no reason for one before, but there seems to be now.” She realized from the position of her hoof on his arm that he was extremely tense. “So, please. Please stay with me, just one more day?”

She couldn't refuse him. He looked so lost and terrified. Maybe even more so than the day he'd first spoken to her.“I'll stay,” she whispered. “Come and sit in the back garden with me. It's a nice day.” She felt him relax slightly. “I'll just check the mail first.”

She returned a minute later holding a large, brown package.

“More beetles?” asked Discord.

She shook her head. “This is a book I ordered.”

“Love on the High Seas Part 2?”

She stuck her tongue out at him and blew a raspberry, a motion he found irresistibly adorable for some reason. “It's a book on plumage and the comparison of feathers between different animal groups. Because I pre-ordered it I got it before the official publication date.” She tore open the package and removed the hardcover. Embossed on the red vegetable leather was the illustration of a phoenix. “I'll make us some tea then we can look at it together.”

He was about to make a sarcastic crack about how he “couldn't imagine anything he'd rather do,” when he suddenly realized there was nothing sarcastic about it. He wanted to lay down on the grass next to Fluttershy as she read. He wanted to just be next to her. Okay, there were lots of other things his mind wished he and Fluttershy could do together, but he wasn't about to tell her that. His dream life had become a lot more interesting.

He wondered if it was because he barely knew other ponies and she was the one who spent the most time with him. That would make sense; it had been a while, hadn't it? She was an attractive pony and he had been in a regressed state for over a thousand years. His mind was clearly latching on to the only creature available as a visual outlet. Yeah, that was it.

She carried the tea tray outside and poured them both a cup, then she lay on the ground with the book open in front of her. Discord lay down next to her with his paw and talon in front of him balancing his tea cup and looked over her shoulder as she turned the pages.

There were illustrations of the different feather types on the first few pages. “Here are the feathers of an ostrich,” said Fluttershy. “They're called semi-plumes. They kind of look like they fall inbetween contour feathers and down feathers, but most of the Ratites have unusual feathers like this.” She turned the page again and an illustration of a spread songbird wing came into view. “But these are contour feathers. And these are the kind that most birds have and they enable them to fly, just like the wings of a pegasus or griffon.” She spread her own wing for comparison. She turned the page again. There was a drawing of a male Blue Bird-of-Paradise on the left page and a drawing of a phoenix with spread wings on the right. “And these are feathers that have developed for most specialist reasons. In the case of Paradisaea rudolphi it's to impress the female, and in the case of the phoenix it's so the feathers are resistant to fire.”

Discord grinned at the Bird of Paradise illustration. The male was hanging upside down from a branch with his chest feathers spread out proudly. The female peered down at him from a branch, as if she was deciding whether the goods were satisfactory or not.

“Wonder what draconequii feathers were for,” he said out loud.

Fluttershy looked up from her book, suddenly worried she had upset him, but he simply looked curious and took another sip from his tea cup.

“Oh, well...maybe we can find out from looking at the structure,” she said. “You have a pegasus wing, so those are contour feathers.”

“Yes, but I can't actually lift off the ground with it. Believe me, I have tried. I have had dreams where I could fly, but I'm guessing that was magic rather than feathers. Plus the other wing has no feathers at all so it wouldn't exactly balance out.”

“Hmm,” she said, her hoof on her chin. She decided to concentrate on the feathers of his body instead. “I'm guessing the brown feathers on you are probably for temperature regulation or communication.”

“Communication?”

“Yes, I've noticed when you're upset or excited the feathers on your back stand upright. That's probably a holdover from when draconequii couldn't speak and had to communicate through body language instead.”

“So my ancestors were once rather animalistic after all.”

“Well, everybody's were.”

“True. Your ancestors were three-toed plains horses and pony culture didn't come in until about 500,000 years back when the first cave paintings were found.”

“How did you know that?”

He grinned and patted her on the head with his paw. “I read too, Canary-Horse.”

Her face turned red. “Oh, of course.”

He chuckled and waited for her to continue. She turned the page again. This time there were lots of misshapen feathers on the page and diagrams explaining various pathologies. She pointed to the long plume of a rooster. “Look here,” she said, and Discord instinctively felt his back feathers raise as he listened to the sound of her soft voice. “This feather displays shock marking.” She pointed to a faint, horizontal line running across the tail feather. “That means this rooster had a hard time at some point. Maybe it couldn't get enough food one year and suffered nutritional deficiency. Every line of a shock marking represents a difficult period.”

Discord was silent. “And...how many shock markings do I have?” She looked up at him. “Oh, I didn't mean to...I um… I'm sorry.”

He shook his head and smiled. “I'm fine, Shy. Just curious.”

She nodded and he spread his blue pegasus wing. It was the same colour as the chest feathers of the Paradisaea in the book.

She examined his wing carefully, gently cradling it in her hooves and moving her head so that the direction of light revealed more. Discord shivered slightly. Fluttershy had touched him before, but never on a place as sensitive as his wing. She continued to examine him and noticed the first shock mark at the end of one of his primaries. She started counting backwards. Seven. That was just one feather. How many moults had he gone through before that? She didn't want to think about how difficult things had been for him.

“Shy?”

She looked up at him. “There are...um...a lot. Seven, actually.” She felt tears forming in her eyes. She felt so angry that he'd had to endure such suffering for centuries. Had that been seven incidences when he was close to starving? Or when he had suffered incredible stress? Or when he had developed injuries? She wondered if some of the markings had even developed while he had been living with her. The incident with the burning trees had certainly been one that had disturbed him.

Discord noticed the waterworks coming on.

“Oh, Fluttershy, don't cry. I was only curious. I'm finding this stuff fascinating actually.” He really was, though at the same time he probably could have listened to her reading a list of hardware products and he would have been happy.

Happy. Was he happy? He wasn't sure. Yes, there was still fear in the periphery of his mind when he thought about the revelations of yesterday, but that seemed so far away now that he was in the warm garden sitting next to his friend.

“You are?” asked Fluttershy.

He nodded. She beamed at him and settled down to read the book again. The next page was on feather colour, and he listened to her read: “Blues, greens and purples in plumage are the result of the refraction and reflection of light from physical structures in the cuticle; sometimes in combination with colouring in the cortex.”

Discord's toes curled. He could have listened to her for hours. He should have been frighted. He should have been worried. He usually had a very short attention span. Even while reading books he was incredibly quick. He could plow through one hundred pages in five minutes. But listening to her read at a normal pace made him feel incredibly calm.

After they had finished their tea, Fluttershy went out the feed the chickens and ferrets and Discord couldn't help but feel disappointed. They couldn't go for a walk today, for obvious reasons so boredom now threatened to overtake him.

He watered Harold three times that day, before realizing that if he didn't stop he was probably going to drown the plant. He tried racing the beetles against each other on the hardwood floor, but they just ended up mating again, their sharp claws scrabbling on the floor.

“Alright for some people,” he told them bitterly. He couldn't believe this. He wasn't really feeling envious of a pair beetles, was he? That really was pathetic.

But he couldn't help but feel a pang in his chest. He wondered when the last time he had experienced physical intimacy with someone had been. He wondered when he had last had someone run their hands or talons or hooves over his body or when the last time he had been kissed was. His ears drooped.

“What are you doing?” asked Fluttershy as she came through the door. His head shot up as he realized how odd the situation looked. “Er...” he began.

She walked over to where he was sitting and looked down at the insects. “Oh, they're mating again,” she said. “The first batch of grubs haven't even cocooned yet! I hope I can find homes for all of them once they're adults.”

He relaxed. She didn't seem to think it was weird that he was sitting cross-legged on the floor while two beetles went at it in front of him. Of course she didn't. Fluttershy knew it was a natural process. She'd seen this sort of thing countless times.

“I won't move them back into the enclosure until they're done,” she said. “I don't want to disturb them.”

The scrabbling continued and Fluttershy began preparing lunch.

Dear Twilight Sparkle,

I can see you as early as tomorrow. Please make sure that you and Zecora are alone when you visit. I am pleased to hear that it sounds like Fluttershy is making progress with Discord, but if remember that if she ever feels unsafe the option of using the Elements of Harmony is there.

Discord is a creature of chaos and Harmony would immobilise him. However, I do hope that you will all choose to use this capability only when it is necessary to do so. I will be contacting Fluttershy in due course to discuss Discord's progress in further detail.

If you and Zecora could let me know if tomorrow is amenable to you then I will make preparations and see you then. I await your reply, my dear student.

Yours Sincerely,

Princess Celestia

Author's Note

Here is an image of the Blue Bird-of-Pardise displaying and here is an image of shock markings.

Next chapter will be further away (possibly in a month's time) as though I am still waiting on paperwork for my new job, I have other things of import to be getting on with. Thank you very much for reading so far and hope you enjoy the rest which I'll try to get up as soon as I can.

Summer: You make me feel like a natural chaos god

Author's note: Yeah, I know I said this would be a month from now but I just keep writing! So, I guess you get the chapters when you get them. They may be close together or they may be far apart and I'm not promising any time frame because it just works better that way. :) Longer author's notes at the bottom.

Fluttershy knew Discord was depressed. The shock of learning that he was being hunted, whatever the reason, and the fact that he was now restricted to being indoors made him maudlin, and she noted he was reluctant to be in a separate room from her at any time. So it was imperative that she visit the gamekeeper today to set his mind—and hers—at ease. Discord, however, was still trying to convince her to stay.

"You said one more day, and then I would go, Discord."

"I know, but..." He tried to think of a decent argument for her to remain at the cottage but all he could come up with was: "...I don't want you to."

She knew he was afraid. "Discord, I'll be back very soon. You can stay in my room if it makes you feel better and I will get a lock while I'm in town, but I'm sure this is all just a big misunderstanding."

The thought of being restricted not just to one cottage, but to one room made Discord's skin crawl, but he reluctantly agreed. "Just, hurry back, okay?" He buried his head in her shoulder.

"I will. I know it's hard, but try to relax. You don't want to stress yourself out again." She patted him awkwardly on the back. "Besides, Zecora said she might come and check up on us later. So don't worry if there are any knocks on the door. For one thing the hunters still think you're living wild in the Everfree."

He hadn't thought of it that way, but she felt him relax slightly in her arms.

"I'll be back before you know it," she said smiling, and before she knew what she was doing, she kissed him on the cheek. She had meant it as a comforting gesture; She'd often kissed her friend's cheeks when they were feeling down, or when she was saying goodbye to them, but the instance her lips touched Discord's fur she wondered if she should have. She had never done that with Discord before and she didn't want him to get the wrong idea, but he was merely smiling at her and he nodded and said "see you later, then, Canary-Horse." She smiled back and began walking down the path, over the bridge and Discord waved until she was out of sight then gently closed the door.

His heart was beating like a jackhammer. It had taken all his willpower not to pull her into an embrace when she had kissed him. He suddenly felt a million times lighter and that was when he realized his feet weren't touching the floor. He was floating. He grinned, then tried turning his body in mid air and did so with ease. And that was when he started turning somersaults across the room, laughing happily all the while. "She kissed me, Harold!" he told the plant. Harold responded by popping a seed pod. He floated over to the plant and petted its leaves affectionately.

Fluttershy knocked on the Gamekeeper's door and waited nervously, playing with strands of her mane. She hoped she would be able to tell Solkolsky what the situation was and then leave quickly so she could get back to Discord. Her mind had been preoccupied with the fact that she had kissed him this morning. Yes, it had been a chaste kiss but she couldn't help feeling slightly ashamed. Had she wanted to kiss him in a different way? She wondered if she was over analysing things, but she also knew she needed to be careful—she was entrusted with Discord's safety, and that also meant his emotional safety.

The door opened, wrenching her from her thoughts. “H—hello!” she said, playing with her mane again and looking at the ground.

Sokolsky blinked for a second. He hadn't expected her of all ponies to show up on his doorstep.

“Well, hello, Fluttershy! What brings you here? Are you wanting to catch up on our meeting the other day?”

Fluttershy thought for a moment. It seemed rude to just say “no.”

“Um, I did wonder why you had showed up at the cottage, but there's something else I need to talk to you about as well.”

“Come in!” gestured Sokolsky and Fluttershy reluctantly stepped into his home. Sokolsky motioned for her to sit down and she did so, demurely tucking her tail in as she did so. Sokolsky took his own seat next to her.

“Now then,” he said, leaning back in his chair, “What brings you here?”

“Well, it's kind of complicated,” said the pegasus.

“I have all the time in the world for you, my dear,” said Snare, and Fluttershy blushed and decided to ignore the statement.

“It concerns a friend of mine,” she continued. “I—I think he's being wrongfully hunted as an animal.”

“Actually my dear, it was your knowledge of animals I wished to speak to you about.”

“Um, can we talk about it afterwards. I don't mean to be rude, Mr. Snare but this is quite important.”

“Of course, do go on,” said Sokolsky. He wondered what was so important. He'd heard plenty of things about Fluttershy; that she was something of a hermit, that she often treated animals the way she treated sapient creatures, so he was sure whatever she was about to tell him concerned being overly-sentimental about a rabbit or squirrel someone had shot.

“This friend of mine, he—he used to live out in the woods as an animal, but he's not an animal. Not in the sense people usually refer to animals. He barely scraped by day to day. He was living that way because he was brain damaged. He wasn't in possession of all his mental faculties, and he suffered greatly. I took him into my home and cared for him, and eventually he was able to speak to me and tell me what had happened to him. Now he's doing a lot better. He's a sapient being, Mr. Snare, not an animal, and I'm afraid that there are trappers up in the woods hunting him because they still think he is one.”

Sokolsky was now listening to her intently, but he made sure that his expression gave nothing away.

“I don't think those trappers should be up there,” continued Fluttershy. “I'm pretty sure they're hunting up there illegally. I haven't heard of anypony being attacked and as far as I know there's no disease spreading around at the moment...”

Sokolsky felt relief. She didn't realize he had authorized the trappers to be up there.

“How awful,” he said. “I'll get my people to look into it as soon as possible.”

“Would you? Oh, thank you! My friend has been understandably nervous about this whole thing...”

“Yes. Your...friend. It seems strange that as a sapient creature he was mistaken for an animal. Most sapient species are easily recognisable. Griffons, centaurs, dragons...”

“Oh, he...he's not any of those.”

“What is he?” asked Sokolsky, as if he didn't know. But he wanted to hear it from her own lips. He wanted confirmation.

“He—he's a creature called a draconequus. Apparently his people have long been extinct, but he managed to survive all these years.” Her ears drooped and she looked at the ground. “But he might have not made it this winter if I hadn't found him. He was starving, and injured.”

“I will have my people see that the trappers are apprehended as soon as they find them,” promised Sokolsky.

“Thank you,” she said. She remembered there was something Snare wanted to speak to her about and she politely lingered.

“Ah, yes. The...reason I called at your cottage the other day. I was wondering if you would like to go out for coffee at some point.”

“Oh...um. I'm very busy at the moment. Discord's doing better but he's still a bit of a hoof ful.”

“Discord?”

“My friend,” she said. “That's his name.”

“Ah, I see. But surely your friend would understand if you took time out of your busy schedule...after all, you've come to see me.”

“Er...yes...but...” But what? Yes, Discord was still in need of her care, but she could come and go as she pleased. In truth, she was using Discord as an excuse. She knew Sokolsky was asking her out on a date, but she simply wasn't interested.

“I really am very busy,” she said, finally. “In fact I need to get back very soon.”

“Of course,” said the stallion. “I'll see you out.”

Fluttershy followed him to the door, and clocked the books on his shelf. He had quite a collection. She noticed several volumes of the History of Equestria by Hoofsteader. She wondered if Twilight had been to see his library.

“Do let me know if you change your mind,” said Sokolsky. “I know this charming little place on Stirrup Street.”

“Um, okay...thank you,” said Fluttershy, who wanted to leave as soon as she possibly could and began making her way down the path. She turned, quickly. “Thank you again for your help!”she remembered to shout. He nodded at her, and watched her hurry off.

He closed his door, walked across the parlour and took a seat behind his desk. He chuckled to himself. All this work and the draconequus had been right under his nose, here in Ponyville the whole time. He had a feeling he'd be seeing more of Fluttershy anyway.

Princess Celestia listened intently as Zecora finished her tale. She was silent for almost a minute, as the zebra and Twilight waited for her input. Eventually the princess sighed, and Twilight noted it was a sound that seemed weighed by years of grief and memories.

Twilight was shocked. Her mentor, the princess, the ruler of Equestria and Discord, the Lord of Chaos that had brought Equestria to its knees had once been lovers. She looked up and was surprised to see tears in the corner of Celestia's eyes, but the alicorn quickly regained her composure. Centuries of mastering control of her emotions had made Celestia quick to put on the façade of someone who was not overwhelmed by grief or heartbreak or sadness.

“I found the room Discord had told me about, but by then it was too late. He was insane. I didn't realize how fragile his mental state had been until then. It was probably on a knife-edge the whole time and I didn't know it, but he was hell-bent on making us all pay for what we had done to his people. Or at least, that's what it was at first. I think after a while he didn't even care about that. He no longer needed a reason. He just wanted there to be pandemonium and it didn't matter who got in his way.”

“Princess Celestia,” said Twilight, “I know you once loved Discord, but I can't help but feel surprised that you would let him walk around freely after what you've told me. I mean, this is a creature that committed atrocities on your subjects! And forgive me for saying this, but I'm surprised that you would hide that information from them.”

Celestia nodded. “I understand your concerns, however, my intention was not to censor the history but to make sure that no misinformation about it was published.”

“Misinformation?”

“The author of that book made several errors when he wrote that chapter, and I'm sure a few of them were intentional.”

“I don't understand.”

“Hoofsteader's ancestry goes back to the Reign of Discord. His most famous ancestor was a stallion called Commodore. That pony was the one who shot Discord in the head. He came to me afterwards and claimed Discord was dead. I felt a mixture of grief and relief. I knew that his reign had come to an end, but I hadn't wanted it like...like it turned out. Our plan was to immobilize Discord with the crystal, not end his life. I refused to give Commodore the recognition and accolades he expected for killing the Lord of Chaos. I compensated him and his family well, but...it hurt too much to do anything more. In public I put on the persona of a victorious Princess. In private I mourned the stallion that had once made me happy. Only Luna knew of this. As for the book, I had commissioned an author to publish everything about Discord's reign in a factual and neutral manner, but then Fluttershy found him in the woods. For obvious reasons I would rather not release any information about Discord until we can be sure he is worth trusting.”

“Can we trust him, Princess?

Celestia walked over to one of the palace's great windows and looked out over her kingdom. “I don't know at this point. That's why you wield the Elements. However, it would have been unacceptable to allow Discord to continue suffering as he had been in the Everfree. I am not a vengeful pony. I care about what's best for my subjects. If Discord turns out to be dangerous, we will use the Elements and they will trap him in stone. However, I am hoping that through Fluttershy's kindness, Discord will remember what it was like to be someone who had people who cared about him. I have no wish to rekindle our relationship after all that has happened, but I do hope Discord can learn and change. Everyone deserves friendship, Twilight. If Discord is willing to change then we should be accepting. If he isn't, then as I have reiterated, the option of immobilizing him is there.”

Twilight nodded. She was sorry she had doubted her mentor. Celestia was obviously in control of the situation. From the unicorn's brief meeting with Discord, she had ascertained that the draconequus seemed to have respect for the pegasus. “Is there anything I can do, Princess Celestia?”

The alicorn turned to her student and smiled. “I believe as you said, you and Zecora have a meeting with Fluttershy."

The pegasus hurried over the bridge. She had managed to purchase a padlock and was pleased that her meeting with Sokolsky, however uncomfortable, had yielded the desired effect. She hoped Discord wasn't too stressed out. She had taken a bit longer than she would have liked and she didn't want him to worry.

She had also decided it might now be time for Discord to finally socialize a bit more. She had an idea she wanted to float to him but first she needed to know he was okay.

She pushed open the door. “I'm home, Discord, I...” Her mouth fell open at the scene before her. Pots and pans drifted past her into the kitchen and there was the sound of a radio playing. Except she didn't have a radio. The inside of the cottage had been completely transformed into a forest. Plants climbed up the walls and she could hear tree frogs. Sounds of dishes clattering came from the kitchen, and she made her way into it, reluctantly and somewhat on edge.

“Discord?” she squeaked.

The draconequus looked up at her. He was wearing an apron and chefs hat. “Fluttershy!” he beamed, and he floated over to her and embraced her. “My chaos is back!” Fluttershy looked over Discord's shoulder in shock. He had been making lunch but had some help. There were live lobsters chopping vegetables with their claws, sautéing onions, slicing bread, washing dishes.

Discord pulled back from the pegasus, still grinning at her. “Isn't it great?” he shouted, as Fluttershy watched what looked like an elephant on stilts walk past them into the forest in her living room. Discord's face fell as he noticed Fluttershy's ears were flattened against her head and she had a terrified look in her eyes.

“Shy?” he asked. “What's wrong?

She whimpered. “The—the chaos. It's...I'm not used to it. I don't know what's going to happen next.”

“Isn't it great?” he said. “That's the best part about it!”

“But...if you don't know what's going to happen next, then how do you know anything bad isn't going to happen?” She was trembling.

Discord knelt down next to her. “Hey, I'm not going to let anything bad happen,” he said.
“But...a few nights ago you couldn't control it.”

“Yeah, something's different now,” he said. “I can make it do whatever I want. Well, almost anything. There are some things I can't conjure up, but that just involves them not happening. There's nothing to worry about.”

She still looked like she wanted to curl into a ball.

“Fluttershy? I thought you'd be happy. I even made lunch!”

“I—I really appreciate that. It's just...I'm sorry Discord. I'm just a little scared because of what happened before.”

He couldn't help but feel slightly hurt by her confession. “Would you rather I get rid of it?” he asked, sadly.

“No! I...” She really didn't want to hurt his feelings. After all the stress he'd endured it was nice to see him happy. “I just need to get used to it, that's all,” she said.

“Well, maybe lunch will help with that.” He clapped his hands. “Gaston! Ferdinand! please bring through the first course. Come on, Fluttershy we'll sit in the living room.” He led the way while Fluttershy watched two of the lobsters follow them holding a plate of salad and sandwiches.

Discord sat cross-legged in the middle of the room, which had now become a forest floor and he patted the ground next to him encouragingly. The pegasus sat down next to him and the lobsters set the plates down.

Now that Fluttershy was sitting in her living room, she began to appreciate just how beautiful the forest Discord had created looked. There were heliconius butterflies flying above her, and the huge buttresses of the trees had lizards scampering up and down them. She noticed with surprise that Angel Bunny had made a makeshift hammock out of one of the vines and was snoozing happily in it.

Discord watched the look of wonder on her face, happily. “Try a sandwich,” he said, excitedly. Fluttershy reached for one and took a bite. She was surprised that even though the sandwich she had chosen looked like it was cheese and pickle, that it tasted of marshmallows. However, even though the cognitive dissonance was surprising, the taste was not unpleasant and she found she enjoyed it. She was beginning to relax. Discord snapped his fingers and a monkey dropped down from the tree carrying a tray of lemonade.

“Oh, thank you Mr. Monkey,” said Fluttershy, scratching him behind his ear and taking a glass. “You're just so adorable! Yes you are!”

The monkey puffed up its chest and climbed back up into the tree, chittering happily. Fluttershy was so engrossed in the whole thing that she had almost forgotten her good news.

“Oh, Discord! I spoke to the gamekeeper.”

He put down his drink. “And?”

“And it turns out it was all a big misunderstanding after all! The trappers shouldn't be up there, and he's going to put a stop to it.”

She watched as he visibly sighed with relief.

“I still got a lock to put your mind at ease though.”

“Good to know,” he said, grinning. He stabbed at a sandwich with his claw, took a bite and chewed happily. Fluttershy sipped from her glass of lemonade and he watched her intently as he swallowed his food. He wanted to ask her about the kiss. He wanted to ask her what she had meant by it. He took a deep breath and gathered up his courage. “Hey, Fluttershy...you know earlier when you...”

There was a knock at the door. Fluttershy nearly choked on her lemonade. “The forest!” she whispered.

Discord snapped his fingers and to Fluttershy's amazement, everything vanished. Discord watched as she made her way to the door. He hoped whoever it was would leave soon. He could easily bring the forest and the food back, but he wanted to be alone with Fluttershy.

The pegasus pulled the door open an inch and peered out. “Oh! Zecora! Twilight! Please, come in.”

Discord stood up. He didn't want company but he was relieved that they were at least ponies he had already interacted with. He noted he felt somewhat disappointed that the little dragon wasn't with them.

“Hello, Discord,” said Twilight, when she noticed the draconequus standing behind her friend. She couldn't help but find his height imposing.

“Hello, Twilight,” came the response. He was looking warily at her.

Fluttershy smiled. “Discord, it's okay. Like I said, Twilight is a friend.”

Twilight, however, seemed equally wary. She couldn't help but think about what Discord had been capable of in the past. Fluttershy, however, seemed unafraid of him.

There was awkward silence, then Discord spoke first. “So you're the one who recommended the Galloping Gatsby eh? That was a major snoozefest.”

Twilight looked affronted. “Even if you didn't like it, surely you can appreciate the classics!”

“Nah. I don't understand why it is a classic. Shouldn't a classic be something that is judged over a period of time to be of the highest quality and outstanding of its kind?”

“But it is!”

“According to who? Literature snobs?”

Fluttershy squirmed. Whether he had intended to or not, Discord had just called her friend a snob. That really hadn't been the icebreaker she had been hoping for.

“Academics aren't snobs. They study their chosen subject their entire lives and they are the most qualified to make a judgement on it. And I know books.”

“Well that's too bad,” said Discord. “But it's cheering to hear you have another subject to fall back on. I hear you're also a student a magic.”

“Yes. I'm studying under the guidance of Princess Celestia,” said Twilight, who had chosen to ignore Discord's backhanded comment.

“And what is your field?”

“Friendship,” said Twilight.

“Is that a field now?” Discord asked with a sneer.

“It's one that hasn't been explored much until now. At least not in the realm of magic.”

Discord snorted. Fluttershy began to feel uncomfortable. “Um, listen...” she said softly. “I think...I think it would be a good idea if we...we all went out to dinner!”

Everyone in the room turned to stare at her as if she'd grown a second head.

“Dinner?” asked Twilight.

“Um, yes. I think we'd all feel a lot more comfortable if we got to know each other in a nice setting. No where fancy. Maybe that Haytalian place on Bridle Lane?”

“Great,” muttered Discord. “I get to spend the evening in the presence of a snob.”

Twilight grit her teeth and Discord smirked behind his hand.

“Enough!” shouted the pegasus, whirling on Discord. “There's no need to be so rude! You like different things—is that really so much of a problem?”

“Er...well...” began the flustered draconequus.

“Good. Then it's settled. We'll all meet at seven at Trottiano's. Zecora?”

The zebra shook her head. “Thank you for the offer, but I must decline. Perhaps some other time we shall dine. For now I need to return to my hut, to make sure everything is at its best.”

“It was good to see you Zecora,” said Fluttershy. She hugged the zebra goodbye. Zecora nodded to Discord and Twilight and took her leave.
“Now,” said Fluttershy. “I suggest we all get on with our day then get ready for this evening.”

“Can the dragon join us?” asked Discord.

Fluttershy looked over at Twilight.

The unicorn sighed. “I don't see why not.” She made a mental note that she would verbally tear Discord a new one if he was as rude to Spike as he had been to her.

“Yay!” said Discord, grinning and clapping his hands eagerly like a colt who had just been told he was about to get an especially interesting toy for Hearth's Warming.

“See you at seven,” said Fluttershy as she hugged Twilight goodbye. She whispered softly, “Thank you for doing this. I know he comes across as a bit of a hoof ful but he really is very sweet, and I think that all he needs is to socialize a bit more. He's been cooped up in the cottage for so long with only me and my animals, and he's not had much reason to trust other ponies.”

Twilight sighed. “You're right. I hadn't thought of it that way. Spike and I will be there at seven on the dot.”

Fluttershy smiled. “Thank you,” she whispered.

Discord was surprisingly cheerful for the rest of the day. Fluttershy was surprised at how eager he seemed to go out for dinner. He had been cowering in the house in fear of his life only hours before and now he was busy using his chaos magic to try and pick out an outfit. She wondered what had lifted his mood. Had it been her news about the trappers, or was it the fact that some of his magic had returned? Perhaps it was a little of both.

“Hm...” said Discord as various clothing flashed on and off his body. A lime green suit with sequins running down the sides was considered. “Nah, too...sequiny,” he said. Fluttershy felt a little relieved. He changed to a black tux. “Ew, no. Way too formal,” he said. He changed again. This time he was wearing little more than a barrel held up with suspenders. “Too over Neighagra Falls,” he admitted.

Fluttershy touched his lion arm. “You just need to wear something casual,” she said, as he looked down at her. “The place we're going too isn't upmarket or anything. But the food is really good and the staff are friendly.”

He considered this for a bit, then snapped his fingers. He was now wearing a cord jacket covered with a repeating rubber ducky pattern. Fluttershy couldn't help but giggle behind her hoof and Discord felt the feathers on his back rise at the sound. “Too casual or not casual enough?” he asked her.

“You can wear what you like,” she said. She ran her hoof over the cord material. “The rubber duckies are really cute.”

He smiled at her.

“Ah, wait,” he said. “The finishing touch.” He pointed to the breast pocket of his jacket and Fluttershy noticed a flower poking out of it.

“That's pretty...” she started to say, then ten bees suddenly shot out and buzzed around her head.

“Whaddya think?” said Discord. “You like, bees, right?”

“Um, I do,” said Fluttershy, as the insects settled comfortably in her mane, “But maybe we shouldn't use that one in the restaurant.”

Discord sat on the couch, waiting for Fluttershy and nervously checking a wrist watch he had conjured up every now and then. She had been up in her bedroom getting ready for quite some time. It wasn't that he was worried about being late. Being punctual had never really been something that had concerned him. He was just feel impatient. Why did girls always take so long to get ready?

Finally he heard her bedroom door open and shut and she came down the stairs. She was wearing a simple blue dress and her mane was styled in a wavy hairdo.

He blinked at her. She giggled when he noticed his mouth was hanging open. “Are you ready?” she asked.

“Uh...yes!” he said, quickly regaining his composure. “Let's go!”

Trottiano's was a cheerfully lit place with chequered tablecloths and black and white photos of famous ponies adorning the walls. The clientèle was mostly made up of couples and friends who wanted an evening off from work. Spike held up his menu, mouth watering. “I wish they would get here soon,” he said. “My stomach is starting to growl.”

Twilight didn't need to be told that. She could hear it.

She sipped her water and tried not to listen to its rumblings. Finally, when half past seven rolled round, she saw Discord and Fluttershy enter the restaurant.

Some pony heads turned to look at the draconequus, but they quickly turned back again and resumed their conversation.

“Spike!” said Discord, grinning broadly and pulling out a chair to take a seat and shook the dragon's hand warmly “Good to see you again, Old Chap.” He nodded towards the unicorn. “Twilight,” he said. He grinned as he noticed a flash of annoyance in the unicorn's eyes.

“Hello to you too, Discord,” she said icily.

Fluttershy took her seat and reached for a menu. “Oh my,” she said. “There are so many items. It's going to take me a while to choose.”

Discord scanned the menu quickly. “They don't have momos,” he said, sounding disappointed.

“Well of course they don't,” said Twilight. “This is a Haytalian place, not Neighpalese.”

“I want momos,” said Discord, pouting.

“There's lots of other yummy stuff on the menu,” said Fluttershy. “How about lasagne?”

“I suppose I could have that,” he said. He motioned to a waitress before anyone else had decided what they were going to eat.”

The mare made her way over to the table. “What can I get ya, hun?” she asked, though she couldn't help but stare at the draconequus. “I would liiikkke,” said Discord, drawing out the word as he looked down at the menu again. “Hm. You know,” he said, putting the menu down and clasping his hands in front of him. “I think I would like one of everything.”

“Everything?” said the waitress, raising an eyebrow.

“You can't have everything, Discord,” whispered Fluttershy.

“Why not?”

“Because we're splitting the bill,” she said. “It wouldn't be fair.”

“Very well,” he said. “I'll have the Anchovy Surprise.”

“We haven't got an 'Anchovy Surprise',” replied the waitress, who was beginning to sound tired.

“I'll have the mushroom pasta,” said Twilight quickly, hoping to deflect any bad feeling that was beginning to arise.

“That I can do. And you, little dragon?”

“I'll have the seafood risotto,” said Spike. The waitress jotted everything down on her notepad.

“You, hun?” she asked Fluttershy. “I'll have the mushroom pasta too.”

The waitress made a note again, then, trying not to sigh with exasperation, looked up at Discord.

“I'll have the Neighapoliton pizza covered with the seafood risotto,” he said.

“Whatever,” said the waitress, and she jotted it down, took their drink orders and left.

“I can always conjure up some momos anyway,” muttered the draconequus.

“What's a momo?” asked Spike.

“They are delightful little dumplings filled with pure yum and joy,” said Discord. He sighed dreamily as he thought of them. “I first had them when I encountered a Yak tribe in Neighpal.”

“You've been to Neighpal?” asked Twilight.

“I've been pretty much everywhere in the world,” bragged the draconequus. “From Zebrica to Horsestralia to the Cantarctic. Of course, those are the names of places you ponies give them. They're called other things by other species.”

“I'm aware of that,” said Twilight patiently. “I know Zebrica is known as the Bark Continent by the jackals.”

“Ah, so you are quite learned after all,” said Discord, resting his head on the back of his hands. Makes a change from F. Trott Fitzgerald.”

“Twilight used to live in Canterlot,” said Fluttershy, trying to deflect the subject onto something less controversial.

“Ooh, a posh gal, eh?”

“Not really,” replied the unicorn. My family are middle class but we've worked really hard for what we've got.”

“Mmhmm,” said Discord, as if he didn't believe her at all. He turned to Spike. “So, what is it that you do, other than be a dragon? If I may say so, dragons are soooo much more fun than ponies. I mean, other than dear, dear Fluttershy here.”

“I help Twilight,” said Spike. “I'm her assistant at the library.”

“That can't be much fun.”

“I enjoy it!” said the dragon. “Though...heh. It's not always fun, especially when I have to stack books. Discord turned to face Twilight and grinned as he took in her annoyed visage. Oh, this unicorn was so much fun. So easy to provoke.

Fluttershy was relieved to see their dishes and drinks arriving. “Here you go, hun,” she said to Spike. She placed Twilight and Fluttershy's meals before them then turned to Discord. “And...one Neighapoliton pizza, covered with seafood risotto.”

Discord made a squealing sound of excitement then began to tuck in. The waitress shook her head and turned to go back to the kitchen. Weirdo she thought.

After shovelling a few forkfuls into his mouth, Discord snapped his fingers and a plate of momos appeared at the centre of the table. Twilight started at how suddenly they appeared.

“Now you can all try them,” said the draconequus. “But make sure to leave me at least fifteen of them.”

Fluttershy began to eat her pasta, and that was when she noticed Discord's drink had a live fish swimming in it.

“Um, Discord?”

“Yes, my dear,” he said, grinning down at her.

“Will that fish be okay in there? I mean, that's not a very big glass.”

“The fish will be fine, Canary-Horse. I've made sure he can breathe throughout the whole evening. He took a sip of his drink and Twilight watched in horror as the fish tilted down towards Discord's mouth. He put the glass down and the fish resumed swimming in circles and looking highly confused.

Discord reached for Fluttershy and ran a talon through her mane. “I know you like animals, Fluttershy. So you have my word the fish is safe. Uh...even though I am kind of eating seafood right now.”

Twilight didn't even bother to ask why Discord had a fish in his drink. She had a feeling logical questions were not something to get into with him. She had also noticed the way Discord had touched Fluttershy's mane. He had done so tenderly, lovingly as if...No, that couldn't be the case. Besides, Fluttershy seemed entirely comfortable with it. Perhaps that was all it was, a friendly gesture.

However, as the evening went on, the unicorn's suspicions rose again. Discord seemed to relish in making Fluttershy laugh. He was doing his damnedest to annoy her, but doing his best to amuse the pegasus.

“And then I literally lost my head!” he shouted, loudly enough for patrons to turn and look at him. “I mean it rolled off the mountainside and I spent ages looking for it. It took a while, because I...didn't have a head so I couldn't see where I was going. I tried shouting at my body but that didn't work either because my ears were attached to my head as well, of course. In the end, I flung my body off the mountain too and as luck would have it, landed next to my handsome face. It told my body it was very disappointed in me, and that I would have to sleep on the couch for a week.”

Fluttershy was laughing so hard that tears were running down her face. Even Spike was chuckling a bit. Twilight looked at him. “Come on, Twilight,” you have to admit that is a little funny,” he said, tugging at the sleeve of the unicorn's dress. She shook her head and smiled, then chuckled along with them. Perhaps it was, a little. She sipped her second glass of wine. Discord was on his fifth and getting louder. He leaned back in his chair.

“Then there was the time I lost another part of my body by sticking it in a tree,” he said.

“Uh...I think we should get the bill,” said Twilight quickly.

“The bill?” slurred Discord. “I'll get the bill.” He snapped his fingers and a huge pelican swooped down towards them. Some of the restaurant's patrons screamed in surprised.

“Whatsamatta?” said Discord, looking at them and blinking his eyes out of sync. “It's not like he pooped on your food or anything.”

“What are doing, Discord?” hissed Twilight through gritted teeth.

“You said get the bill,” giggled Discord, and he pointed to the pelican's beak.

Twilight groaned. That was all she needed—someone who was into bad puns.

Fluttershy giggled. “He's so cute,” she said, petting the bird. Suddenly the pelican dived for Discord's drink.

“The fish!” cried Fluttershy. “Oh no, don't let him eat it!” The pelican flapped wildly, it's huge wings knocking plates and cutlery off the floor where they smashed. Discord clutched his drink to his chest. “Not now!” he slurred at the bird.

He vaguely registered someone yelling in the background. It was the restaurant owner.

“You can't have an animal in here!” he shouted. “Do you know what the Health Inspectors will say if they find out about this?”

“No,” said Discord truthfully, shaking his head. The pelican dived for the glass again and ponies began to scream and run.

“Get out!” shouted the owner. “And take your filthy bird with you!”

“Oh...but we haven't paid the bill,” said Fluttershy.

“I don't care!” said the restaurateur, throwing his hooves up in the air. “Just get out.”

“Woohoo! Free food!” yelled Discord.

“Well, that could have gone better,” said Spike once they were out in the night air. The pelican had flown off to find a river that would doubtless contain larger fish and Fluttershy was holding Discord's drink and saying comforting words to the terrified fish within. “He's gone now,” she was saying. “No one is going to eat you.”

Discord slapped his knee and cackled. “Oh, Sparky,” he said to Twilight. “You should have seen your face. I really had you going, eh?”

“What?” said the unicorn. She noticed that Discord's speech no longer sounded slurred.

“I've got a ridiculously high tolerance for alcohol,” grinned the draconequus. “I can drink like...well, like a fish,” he said, nodding his head towards the one swimming in the glass.

“You were faking it?!”

“But of course. Wasn't it hilarious?”

“But we can never go there again!” shouted Twilight, stamping her hoof on the ground.

“Meh. I've had better food,” said Discord. “And besides, they didn't serve momos.”

“Um, Discord,” said Fluttershy. He looked down at her and she could see the doubt creeping into his eyes. She really didn't want to hurt his feelings by telling him his chaos magic had scared ponies, but she also didn't want him to think that he should get away with what he'd done. She considered her words carefully. “I had a lovely night, but I think you need to be a little more considerate when you're around other people. I know you were just trying to make us laugh, but the ponies in the restaurant didn't, and the restaurant owner certainly didn't.”

“Well maybe they need to live a little,” said Discord, placing his hands on his hips.

“You could be right,” said Fluttershy patiently, “But I think...if you don't know someone it's hard to be in on the joke.”

“You got that right,” mouthed Twilight.

Fluttershy mouthed the word 'sorry' silently at her.

Discord sighed. “You could be right, Shy. But, we all had a good time, didn't we?”

Spike chuckled behind his claw.

Twilight sighed. “Before being kicked out, yeah. It was a little fun,” she admitted. “Come on Spike, let's get you home. It's way past your bedtime.”

“Aw.”

Fluttershy poured the fish into a glass bowl filled with water when they returned home. So, Discord had been out for the first time among ponies since she had found him. Though he had behaved rather rudely to Twilight and the restaurant staff, she was reluctant to chide him, and that was because in some respects she was proud of him. He had gone out among ponies and he had been willing to talk to her friends, something he would have found unthinkable and terrifying only months before. It certainly hadn't been perfect, but she needed to accept it would come in small steps. She had enjoyed parts of the evening. She noticed a change in Discord. He seemed bouncier and he was definitely funny.

“Thank you for coming out with us tonight,” she told Discord., sitting next to him on the couch."I know today was hard for you, but I'm really proud of you," she said softly, touching his lion arm. "When I'm afraid to do things it takes a lot for me to feel comfortable with the situation, so I do understand."

"Yeah...I...I know you're just trying to help me," he said, running his talon awkwardly over a cushion. He glanced up at her. She looked so nice in her outfit. Well, she always looked nice, but there was something about tonight that was spurring him on.

Say it. Say it.

"Fluttershy, you...you look..."

Beautiful? Magical? Amazing?

"...tired. I'm tired too. Maybe we should have some cocoa and go to bed. In our own beds, I mean. I mean we should go to bed separately. Apart. Like we do every evening because we sleep in separate beds."

The silence was deafening. Outside an owl hooted.

"Ookay...I could make us some cocoa," she said.

"Wibble," said Discord in a strangled voice, still trying to overcome his embarrassment. Fluttershy gave him another confused look and made her way into the kitchen. He watched her go.

Buuuuuccck!!! What in the hay was that? Discord couldn't believe this. His memories of himself as a younger draconequus did not indicate that he was anything like this with females. Or for that matter, males. If he wanted someone he'd make it known, boldly and brashly, and his partners had liked that about him. But did he want from Fluttershy solely what he had wanted with his brief trysts as he'd travelled the world? He liked her, and she wasn't that kind of mare. He couldn't just take her to bed, no matter how much he wanted to. She would expect someone to court her first, and it wasn't like she'd given him any signs that she was interested. Plus she was his friend and he'd never had a friend before. What if he told her how he felt and she hated him for it? Where would he go? He lived in her cottage.

She came through with the cocoa. "Here you go," she said.

"Thanks," he said, taking the mug from her and warming his paw and talon with it.

"Well, goodnight," she said softly, carrying her own mug of cocoa upstairs with her.

"Good night," he croaked.

The lights went out as she ascended the staircase. He heard her door close and he pulled his blanket up to his chin. He thought of the evening, and how musical and lovely her laughter had sounded. He whimpered softly. His heart ached. He didn't want to admit it to himself, but he knew he was falling for her. What a situation to be in. There was a popping sound, and Harold flung seeds over Discord's bed, causing him to jump. "Yeah, not sure that's the best course of action, Buddy," he told the plant. "Fluttershy's the type of girl that doesn't like surprises."

Why the hell was he interested in her? She was meek and afraid of things and a bit of a homebody.

But she was also delightfully odd, and warm and understanding of so many things...

And she had saved his life. He lay there for a long time, trying to sleep but his mind had other plans.

He thought of earlier, when she had kissed him on the cheek, and he wondered what her lips would taste like against his own. The thought sent a jolt of desire down his long body. He buried his face in his pillow and growled. The room suddenly felt far too hot.

Maybe some fresh air would help? He tip toed across the living room so as not to wake Fluttershy, and gently eased the back door open. Further on he could see the fireflies dancing over the field. He scaled the fence, and landed in the long grass, breathing in the warm night air. He began walking down the path he and Fluttershy often took, but veered off it after a few minutes. Then he lay down in the long grass with his arms behind his head, looking up at the night sky. Yes, all he needed was some fresh air.

Except if anything that just made him feel more excited. His mind began conjuring up images of him and Fluttershy in the field together and he shivered.

"You like this girl, eh?"

Discord turned his head to the right to see a miniature version of himself peering back at him through the tall grass. "Don't blame you," said the mini Discord, narrowing his eyes and giving him a lecherous smile. "I totally would."

Discord whimpered and blew air through his nostrils.

"I concur with Shoulder Devil #1," said a voice behind him, and he turned to see a second miniature version of himself sitting in an armchair. It had a pipe in its mouth and wore a bathrobe and slippers while it read the paper. "She is indeed a babe," it continued, pointing the pipe towards Discord. It held up the paper and began reading again, and Discord noticed the headline was: DISCORD ASKS PAW FOR HAND IN MARRIAGE.

He groaned. "Oh, dammit."

Both miniature versions of himself snickered. He knew it was inevitable.

His paw began travelling down his neck, onto his chest feathers. He closed his eyes.

"Shy," he whispered.

"Yes!" shouted both Shoulder Devils, and they high-fived in mid air above him before vanishing in a shower of light.

The next morning the sun bathed the field in golden light and dragonflies darted in and out of the long blades of grass and wildflowers.

Discord groaned, and realized he was lying on the ground with a crick in his neck. He also had several snails crawling over his body. “Ew, get lost,” he said, shaking himself and flinging them off. He looked around and suddenly realized where he was. Fluttershy was going to be so worried when she realized he wasn't there! He began running back to the cottage, panting heavily. He leapt over the fence quickly, slammed the back door open and ran into the living room only to hear...the shower. She was having a shower, which meant she had just woken up and hadn't even come downstairs yet. He sighed with relief and flopped down on the couch, chuckling. He felt lighter today, like a great weight had been lifted from his chest and soul. His magic was back and he felt less run down.

He floated over to the kitchen and began to make tea.

Author's Note

It's probably best if I don't explain the whole "I lost my body part when I stuck it in a tree" thing. All I'm going to say is that it's a Native American Coyote trickster tale. :)

Summer: Animal

Fluttershy knew adoption day would soon be in full swing. A short while ago it had seemed ages away, but in just a few hours ponies would be arriving looking for a new pet. She hoped most of the ones currently in her charge would be able to find loving homes today. Since Discord's arrival she had taken in six tortoises, one monitor lizard, one owl, two ferrets, one dog, three rabbits and two beetles, which had now bred and produced 20 more beetles. It was also a big day for Discord. He would be meeting some of the ponies that had come to adopt animals. Fluttershy had asked some of her friends to come by too, mainly because Discord might feel more comfortable about meeting ponies that were her friends rather than complete strangers.

"If things get too much you're welcome to go into the back garden or upstairs," she said.

Discord scoffed at that. "I'm not a baby, Shy. I went out to the restaurant, didn't I?"

"Um...yes," she said, remembering the chaos that had ensued at Trottiano's. "But remember what I said about magic and ponies who don't know you very well."

He sighed in exasperation. "Yes, complete sticks-in-the-mud. If they let a bit of fun into their lives then they might no be so scared of everything that was different."

She petted his lion paw with her hoof. "Once they see how sweet you really are then you'll be able to use magic."

"You make me sound like a piece of confectionery," he said, looking down at her and grinning.

"I better start getting ready," said the pegasus, and she pulled the wax and brush equipment for making the tortoise's shells shiny. Discord followed her outside.

It was a fine summer's day and there a light warm breeze to offset the heat. The tortoises were already lined up, happily awaiting having their shells shined and basking in the morning sunshine. Discord sat down on the grass as he watched the pegasus.

"You know," he said, "I could use magic to help you with that."

She smiled at him. "Thank you, Discord but I enjoy doing it."

"Oh, okay," he said, trying not to sound disappointed. He was beginning to feel bored again. He waved his claw and produced some sunglasses and a deck chair with a huge sun umbrella, and leaned back as Fluttershy worked in the heat. Hm...perhaps that was a little much. She had said she didn't need his help but that didn't mean he had to sit there and watch her. He began flicking invisible pieces of carrot at Angel Bunny, confusing the lagomorph greatly as he could smell them but not see them. Fluttershy caught him in the act.

"Discord!"

"Whaaaat?"

"Look, if you're really bored you can check the chicken hutch for eggs. I didn't get a chance to this morning."

Discord disappeared in a flash and reappeared outside the hutch. He crouched down and looked inside. A broody hen made a warning noise at him and he reluctantly reached in with his talon. She pecked him almost instantly.

"Ugh, fine, have it your way then," he said, and he lifted the chicken with his magic and rolled the eggs down the walkway. He continued to roll them along the ground as he made his way back to Fluttershy, but he froze when he noticed two ponies that were now smiling and laughing and pointing to the tortoises. Fluttershy looked over her shoulder and smiled at him, and any fear he felt quickly dissipated. It would be fine. She would make sure that no one would be nasty to him. And if they were he'd give them a piece of his mind anyway! No...Fluttershy wouldn't like that. He leaned down and picked the eggs up.

"This is my friend, Discord," said Fluttershy, beaming.

"Howdy," said one of the ponies, tipping his hat. He was looking at Discord curiously, but not in an unfriendly manner.

"Howdy back," said Discord, waving his talon hand in greeting. "So you're looking to adopt a tortoise today?"

"Hopin' too," replied the earth pony. "Just having a hard time deciding which one."

Before Discord had even stopped to think he had suddenly summoned a car salesman's outfit, complete with greasy looking wig and chequered jacket. "Well now," he said, walking in circles around the tortoises and not noticing that Fluttershy was now staring at him with great trepidation. "This here's a two year model," he said, pointing a talon at one of the smaller reptiles. "But if you're looking for something that's a bit more reliable, I'd go with the Gallopagos tortoise, myself."

"You do really think so?" asked the earth pony.

"I know so," said Discord. "Less high maintenance." He took a cigar out of his jacket pocket, followed by what looked like a plastic drinking bird. He held it up his cigar and a gas flame emerged from its beak. "So whaddya say? Do we have a deal?" said Discord.

"Well...I dunno," said the pony. "He looks really big."

"That's his main feature!" exclaimed the draconequus. "How else are you supposed to get a saddle on his back and ride him?"

"Um, Discord..." began Fluttershy.

"You could even attach a steering wheel. Plus there's lots of storage space in a shell that size."

"I...just want a pet," said the earth pony.

"Ah, well, that works too," said Discord.

"Um..." said Fluttershy.

The earth pony stroked his chin. The tortoise looked up at him with big, kind eyes.

"You know what, you've convinced me."

"Good man!" said Discord, shaking the pony's hoof. "That'll be twenty bits for the adoption fee."

The pony handed them over, and left very, very slowly with the tortoise. He hadn't thought to bring a wagon.

Fluttershy's mouth was hanging open. "How did you...?"

"Eh?" said Discord, blowing cigar smoke out his nostrils. Except it looked neon blue rather than smoky.

The rest of the morning went by spectacularly. Discord was a natural showman, and he managed to convince ponies young and old that pets were worth adopting. Fluttershy was beginning to relax. Angel Bunny watched the spectacle in a thoroughly unimpressed manner while gnawing on a carrot, until his ears pricked up and Fluttershy noticed Applejack and Big Mac walking up the path.

"Hello!" she called, a flew over to them.

"Wow, looks like things are pretty busy round here," observed Applejack.

"Eyup," agreed her big brother.

"I'm so glad you could come," said the pegasus. "I can't wait for Discord to meet you."

Applejack scuffed her hoof on the ground. "Yeah, well. I just hope that varmint's treating you right and not causing any trouble. After what Princess Celestia told us and what Twilight and Spike said about the restaurant I can't say I trust him completely."

"Oh, but he's really sweet, Applejack," said Fluttershy. "I've gotten to know him quite well and he's very trustworthy." She waved to the draconequus, who grinned and waved back, still in his seedy looking car salesman outfit.

"Uh...yeah," said Applejack. "He looks plenty trustworthy."

"Enope," said Big Mac, bluntly.

"Look, can you just give him a chance? He's trying really hard and making great progress and I don't want him to feel like he isn't."

Applejack sighed. "Awright, Sugarcube. Let's go meet him."

The three ponies made their way over to the draconequus, who was currently talking to a couple with foals about a chocolate coloured bunny rabbit. One of the foals pointed to the pair of ferrets tussling in the background. "I want one of those!" said the filly.

"Yes, well. You can't have 'one of those,'" said the draconequus. "They only come as a pair."

"Then we'll take both of them," said the filly's mother.

"You can't," said Discord.

"Heavens, why ever not?"

"Because I've already adopted them," said Discord. "They're mine, I'm afraid, and I've grown quite attached to them, even if they do sometimes hide dead rodents in my bedsheets." The filly's mother suddenly looked a little green.

"I think we'll take the bunny rabbit after all," she said.

"That's the spirit," said Discord.

After the couple had paid the adoption fee and the foals carried away their new pet, Discord turned to Fluttershy and the Apple siblings.

"Howdy," said Applejack. "I'm Applejack, and this here's Big Mac." Discord eyed the stallion somewhat warily.

"You don't know us of course, but ya know my sister. Her name's Apple Bloom."

Discord suddenly brightened. "Oh yes! Those foals are delightfully chaotic. Did you know just last week they dyed Angel Bunny's fur green?"

"They did what?" cried Fluttershy.

"Oh, I didn't tell you? Anyway, I turned his fur back to its natural colour again, but I think green suited him better."

"Er...yeah," said Applejack. "Well, it was good to meet you Mr. Discord, but Big Mac and I came for another reason as well. I'm lookin' for a farm dog. One that'll help me round up the pigs when they escape from the pen. Little varmints always seem to be able to get under that fence."

"Oh, we do have a dog, actually," said Fluttershy. "She's adorable, and her name is Winona."

"Winona. That's a fine name," said Applejack. "Can I see her?"

"Right this way," said Fluttershy.

The first set of ponies had disappeared with their respective pets, so Discord flashed his car salesman outfit away again. He snapped his fingers, and conjured up a submarine sandwich, which he impaled on his claw and ate like a giant cocktail sausage. After a while he noticed a stallion coming up the path.

Chill, Discord. It's just a guy. It's not like he's going to bite your face off. He had to admit that Fluttershy had been right so far. Stallions in modern day Equestria seemed as harmless as mares did. No one had attacked him or threatened him with a spear. As the pony got closer Discord noted he had a greying mane and tail and wore a smart looking jacket. He floated down the path to greet him. "Salutations good sir," said the draconequus. "Are you here today to purchase an adorable pup? Or maybe a terrific terrapin?"

The stallion seemed startled at the huge snake-like beast floating in front of him, but quickly regained some of his composure.

"I'm here to see Fluttershy, actually," said the stallion, though he couldn't stop staring at Discord--his sharp fang, the antler and horn on his head. His mismatched wings flapping though it seemed to be something else entirely that was keeping him aloft.

"Oh?" said Discord, trying not to let the pang of suspicion take flight.

"Yes, I need to speak to her about...an animal."

"Ah! Right this way, good sir," said the draconequus, floating ahead of the pony. "Fluttershy," said Discord excitedly. "You've got another punter!"

She looked up, smiling and getting ready to greet the pony, and her face fell. It was Sokolsky.

Oh, no she groaned internally. Now, now, Fluttershy. Maybe he has good news and the hunters have been captured.

"Fluttershy," said Sokolsky and he bent down and took her hoof. Discord watched with gritted teeth as the gamekeeper planted a quick kiss on it. "It's good to see you again," said the stallion, who seemed to be oblivious to the sound of a steam kettle coming out of Discord's ears and the grinding of the draconequus' teeth.

"Um, and you," she said politely. "What brings you here?"

"Well, I came to see if I could adopt an adorable pet," said Sokolsky, but I'm very surprised to see you have this magnificent beast here. He motioned to Discord.

"Eh?" said the draconequus, one of his ears flopping downwards while the other pricked upwards.

"I never thought I'd see the day where I'd be face to face with a living, breathing draconequus."

"Well I am pretty sexy," said Discord, flexing his arm muscles and kissing the biceps of his lion arm. "Though I'm not sure I like being termed a 'beast.'"

"But you're the last of your kind!" exclaimed Sokolsky. "From an extinct race of exotic creatures. Why, studying you could wield a wealth of information that we previously never knew about your kind."

Sokolsky had used the wrong terminology. Asking Discord for an interview would likely have stroked the chimera's ego, but upon hearing the word "study" Discord's hackles rose.

"I'm a person," he said. "I'm not there to be studied."

"Of course," said Sokolsky. "I didn't mean it that way. I merely meant that as the last of your kind you could likely tell us things about your race."

"Even I can't remember most things about my race," responded the draconequus.

"But what you could remember..." began Sokolsky, but Fluttershy cut him off.

"Mr. Snare, have you heard anything more about the situation in the Everfree."

"Hm? Oh, nothing yet. But rest assured I'm sure we will catch those culprits soon. I have my very best stallions working on it."

"That's good to hear," said the pegasus.

"Yes," nodded Sokolsky. "Though I must admit I'm here for another reason. I was wondering if you had a chance to think about coffee?"

"Oh..." her ears flattened against her head. "I'm sorry if I gave you the wrong impression..." she began.

"She's not interested," said Discord quickly.

"Well, I think the lady should speak for herself," replied Sokolsky.

"Um, that's very kind of you Mr. Snare, but I'm afraid I'm..."

"Hey!" shouted a male voice behind them. "Isn't that the creature from the restaurant?"

"Oh, that foul beast!" cried a mare. "He created such a mess! There was bird poop everywhere!"

"That's a lie!" snapped Discord. "Horace was toilet trained!"

A crowd of ponies had gathered now, and were all whispering and pointing at the draconequus. Discord began to feel very uncomfortable.

"Why is that nice girl housed up with such a dreadful beast?"

"I'm not a beast!" snapped the draconequus. "And I can hear you, you know. I'm standing right here for goodness sakes."

"Fine, you're an animal then!" The other ponies laughed, then a mare said. "Maybe she keeps him around because she likes animals, if you know what I mean. She's always holed up in her cottage, living up here like a hermit."

"Isn't she one of the Elements of Harmony?" asked another pony.

"Yeah, so what's she doing with him?"

Fluttershy was horrified. They were talking about her and Discord as if the pair of them were not people.

"Heck if I know," said a tall, thin unicorn. "Pretty mare like that shouldn't be getting her hooves dirty, and certainly shouldn't be hanging around monsters like that thing."

Discord growled. Suddenly the ground rushed up towards the crowd of ponies as if it was a wave.

"Look out!" screamed a mare, and the group scurried to escape, some tripping over their own hooves and each other. The wave hit, and the ponies fell over like a bunch of bowling pins.

"Sttttrrrrriiiikkke!" shouted Discord.

He watched the ponies run down the path as fast as their legs could carry them.

"Oh dear," said Fluttershy. While the ponies had certainly been mean, she was now worried that Discord had made things worse with his retaliation. Rumours spread fast in a small town like Ponyville, and she was sure they were already talking about the incident at the restaurant.

"So, about that coffee..." Sokolsky was saying.

Fluttershy snapped to attention. "I'm very sorry, Mr. Snare, but I'm afraid you'll have to leave now."

"Erm...is there a reason?"

"Yes, I'm afraid we're closing and I have to give this dog a bath before my friend adopts her."

Discord looked down at the stallion darkly, his eyes gleaming. "You heard the mare," he whispered.

"Of course," said the earth pony. "But it was splendid to meet you, Mr. Discord. I hope we can talk again soon."

"Yeah, not likely," muttered the draconequus. His fists were balled at his sides.

"They just thought of me as an animal, Shy! Especially that Snare guy. He's the Gamekeeper?"

"That's him," said the pegasus. She didn't want to think about Snare right now. She was more concerned about Discord's emotional state. She had tried to tell him that before Snare and the last crowd had showed up, he had been doing very well among other ponies, but he seemed fixated on the negative.

"They talked about me like I was a beast! A thing! An animal!" She could see the signs of stress in the draconequus. His ears were flattened, his eyes wild and his hackles rose. He sounded angry but she knew he felt frightened as well.

She moved towards him and brushed her hoof against his cheek gently. "You're a beautiful animal," she said softly. He felt his feathers react to her words and his emotions tussled but he looked into her eyes to see nothing but warmth there. On the one hand she had just called him an animal, but on the other, he knew the word 'animal' wasn't thought of as an insult to Fluttershy; she loved and cared for animals every day. They were all different and had different needs and she tried to do her best for all of them. And she and him were animals, after all. Just sapient ones. His paw came up and covered her small hoof, and he held it to his face.

Fluttershy noticed how intently he was looking at her,his eyes full of ardour, and her gaze dropped as she felt her blush came on. "Um, I really do need to go and give that dog a bath before her new owner picks her up," she said. She removed her hoof from his face and cleared her throat. She really hoped she had been mistaken when she saw a momentary flash of pain in his eyes. "Maybe we can go for a walk in the field afterwards?" she suggested.

He brightened at this. "Sounds delightful," he grinned. "I'll wear my best outfit." He swung his paw in a circle and he was suddenly wearing a long gown and bonnet. He held a parasol over his shoulder and giggled. "But it's so hot outside. Be gentle with me, dearest Fluttershy. I may swoon from the temperature."He pressed the back of his paw to his head then suddenly lost his balance and fell over the side of the couch. Fluttershy giggled at the sight of Discord's legs sticking out over the back of the sofa. His dress had turned upside down and was now covering his head.

"I'll be quick," she said.

It was the peak of summertime and the sun stayed out late. Summer was when Celestia worked overtime and the fiery globe sat low in the sky in the evenings, as if it was late afternoon. Discord and Fluttershy walked through the field. It looked golden and lacewings and butterflies danced over the tall grass, trying to make the most of the extended hours of light. Discord walked on his hind legs, occasionally glancing down at the pegasus next to him. The evening sun made her mane look almost ethereal, and occasionally lacewings would alight on her mane and tail. No matter what she did she always looked like she was at one with the things of the wild. She even had a bit of mud on her hooves from giving the dog a bath, but she didn't seem to care. He smiled.

The ferrets ran ahead of them, playing and wrestling and dooking in the wildflowers. Fluttershy veered off the path and walked into the tall grass, following a sphinx moth that had been disturbed by the ferrets. Discord followed her silently.

He didn't know what to say to her. She made him feel giddy and euphoric, but also comforted and warm. She laughed at his chaos, but it wasn't a mean laugh, it was an accepting one. He knew his attraction to her had gone far beyond simple physical appreciation and he felt both elated and terrified. He wanted desperately to tell her how he felt; that he was feeling like he couldn't contain his giddy emotions and that he was scared out of his wits.

"It's a Walnut Sphinx," she said, as she identified the moth that had settled on a wildflower stem, and she sat down. Here the grass was shorter, and bees happily took their fill as they alighted on the flora. Discord sat down next to her to look at the moth. There was a light breeze and the scent of Fluttershy's mane tickled his nostrils. The moth, sensing the advantage of the breeze took flight across the field.

Fluttershy sighed happily and lay down on the bed of shorter grass. "It's such a beautiful evening," she said, closing her eyes, and after a moment's hesitation Discord lay down next to her. He looked up at the sky. "Hey, Shy," he said, grinning.

"Mmm?"

"Check out that cloud. It kind of looks like a lady dragon's bottom."

"It does not!" she said, giggling, even though she could kind of see the resemblance.

"It does. Kind of like when a lady dragon lifts her tail."

She burst out laughing and shoved his lion arm with her hoof. He looked at her with half lidded eyes. He loved listening to her laugh.

"That's rude, Discord," she said, trying to keep a straight face.

"And yet the mare finds it utterly hilarious," he said. "One would almost think you secretly liked bawdy humour."

She smirked a little behind her hoof. "When me and Rainbow Dash were younger, we used to giggle at that kind of stuff," she admitted. "Seems ages ago now." She giggled again. "Rarity certainly finds it 'uncouth'."

"Really, I would have thought mares waxed lyrical about this stuff when no stallions were around. Especially when it involves stallions."

"Um...not really. Well, at least I didn't, or don't. Because I don't have much...experience." She looked almost embarrassed now.

"There's nothing wrong with that," he whispered, and he reached out and tucked a strand of mane behind her ear with his talon. She smiled softly at him. "Just like there's nothing wrong with laughing at cloudy dragon bottoms," he grinned.

She burst into peals of laughter again and rested her head on his neck, trying to catch her breath. That was when she realized how close they were. She felt his talon come up and work its way into her mane, and his muzzle resting on top of her head. She felt her heart beating hard in her chest. Discord shifted so that his face was level with hers, but he continued to stroke her mane softly. She realized their muzzles were mere centimetres apart.

The logical part of her brain kicked in. What am I doing? She sat up quickly. "Discord...I--I can't!"

He looked up at her quizzically. "Can't what?"

She wasn't fooled. She knew he was trying to protect his pride by pretending his motions had been completely platonic. "Discord, we need to talk," she said.

"That's a phrase I never like," he mumbled.

"I know, but we do," she said. The light was fading now and pinks and purples splashed across the sky.

He waited, his heart twisting in his chest as he nervously played with a blade of grass.

Fluttershy took a deep breath and began. "I understand that...we've spent a lot of time together. We're living in the same house, after all. And while you are beginning to socialize with other ponies I know that I'm you're only friend so far."

"And?"

"So...if...if you're developing feelings for me that's completely understandable, but I can't get involved with those feelings."

"Let's say, purely hypothetically, you understand," he said, as he continued to play with the blade of grass, "that I do have feelings for you. Why would that be a bad thing?"

"I didn't say it was a bad thing. But you're in my care. It would be wrong of me to...to enter into a relationship with you."

"So you do have feelings for me?"

"It has nothing to do with whether I have feelings for you or not. It's unethical. Hypo--hypothetically I would be taking advantage of you."

"What if I wanted you to take advantage of me?"

"You're not in a position to make that decision."

"I'm not?" he laughed. "I'm a grown draconequus, Fluttershy. An adult male. Surely I can make that decision on my own. I'm a person."

"I...just...can't. It wouldn't be right."

He was silent now, and the cheery façade he had put up was gone. "It's because you think of me as an animal, isn't it?" he said quietly.

"No, Discord. That has nothing to do with it." She felt like a liar. It did have something to do with it, but not in the way he was perceiving it. She had looked after him since finding him in the woods, and to find out he was a sapient animal had been a great surprise to her. He was her patient and in her charge, and he hadn't gotten all of his memories back yet. If she entered into a relationship with him and things went wrong he would likely feel extremely hurt and confused, and he would have to continue living in the same house as her until Princess Celestia deemed him fit to re-enter society as an independent citizen of Equestria. No, she couldn't do that to him.

"Look," she sighed. "If you have feelings for me, whether hypothetical or otherwise there's nothing wrong with that. It's natural to sometimes want a greater bond with a friend. But I hope you realize I am still your friend, no matter what, and I care about you and I hope you still want to be my friend."

"Why wouldn't I?" he asked, genuinely confused.

"Oh, well...sometimes stallions don't want to be friends with mares anymore when they can't be in a relationship with them."

"You mean a hypothetical relationship," he said, forcing a weak grin at her. He didn't want her to know that his heart was twisting in his chest in a state of confusion. He was happy that she was his friend, but he also felt disappointed that she had just laid out in no uncertain terms that she didn't want to enter into a relationship with him.

She nodded. "Of course, purely hypothetical," she said, smiling softly. She let out a long sigh. It was now almost dark and the first stars were beginning to appear in the sky. "Shall we head back to the cottage for tea?"

He nodded and whistled for the ferrets. They came bounding through the undergrowth. One of them was carrying a dead field mouse.

"Don't you dare drop that on my bed," said Discord. "I found the last one stuffed inside my pillow. I wondered why it was lumpy for days. While I of all people can appreciate a good prank, it becomes less funny when it's kind of stinky." He shuddered and Fluttershy giggled softly, feeling somewhat relieved that the subject had changed to one that was less tense.

Discord seemed affable enough during dinner, even cracking the occasional joke as he stirred his soup with his telekinesis, but he said he felt tired and was probably going to turn in early. As if to illustrate the point he spread out his arms and was suddenly clothed in a fluffy bath robe and slippers.

"Oh, okay," said Fluttershy. "I suppose I should turn in too. It's been a long day and my arms are tired from scrubbing all the mud out of that dog's fur."

She got up from the table and walked over to him. She nearly hugged him, but thought better of it. After their conversation in the field it probably wasn't the best idea. She'd hug him again when things had settled down slightly. Instead she touched his lion arm. "Good night, Discord."

"Night, night Fluttershy," he said softly, and he gave her a toothy smile.

She made her way up the stairs and the hallway light went out as she closed her door.

Discord stood in the middle of the room for a few minutes, then he made his way over to the sofa bed and sat down on it. The ferrets were now asleep on their bean bag, one resting its head lovingly on the other. Discord rubbed the back of his head and switched his lamp off. He removed his slippers and slid under his blankets.

He lay there staring at the ceiling for a very long time, then finally, he turned on his side, grabbed a cushion and hugged it as if his life depended on it. He curled his body and tail inward. He made no sound, but he could feel the tears as they streamed down his face and onto his muzzle.

Author's Note

I know this chapter ended on a kind of bittersweet down note, but of course, the story isn't over yet.

"Dooking" is the noise ferrets make when they're excited. I think ferrets would make a way better pet that Discord's clownfish from the G.M. Berrow book. Fish don't do much. But ferrets? They're chaos incarnate. :)

Summer into Autumn

Sokolsky waited for the trappers. He had left a note for them at the Hippocampus Arms asking them to meet him at his residence at 9pm sharp, but they were running late. He was getting impatient.

Seeing the draconequus up close had made him hungrier. He never thought he'd see a once presumed extinct animal up close, and he never imagined that the draconequus would be Discord himself, but he had seen him with his own eyes. It was all there, just like in the engravings: lion paw, bat wing, antler, goat horn, eagle talon.

He steepled his hooves and considered the situation. Clearly trying to get closer to the creature by wooing the pegasus wasn't going to work. He couldn't pursue that avenue without ponies becoming suspicious, and the creature was clearly protective of her. She was pretty, but she wasn't worth that much trouble. But if he could get the creature to talk to him, he'd have all the information he needed. He'd be able to write a monograph on the draconequii and then maybe, at last, he'd have the recognition he deserved. He'd broken his back writing History of Equestria, and initially it had been well received, until one reviewer had noted that he'd used a lot of secondary sources, then other reviewers followed suit as they often did. He considered it ironic that they had accused him of lack of originality there.
A tapping on the window broke him out of his reverie, and he moved across the room and swung the door open to reveal the trappers.

“You wanted to see us. Mr. Snare?” asked Carmarella.

“You got my note, didn't you? Come in, there's been a change of plan.”

Carmarella whirled round. “Hang on a minute, we were promised money and...”

“Relax! You'll still get your money. It's simply that the task I need you to do has changed. It seems the animal is no longer in the Everfree.”

“It—it isn't? Then where is it?”

“Right here in Ponyville.”

The colour drained from Carmarella's face. “You mean a dangerous animal is walking around town?” Ox made a sound like a frightened whinny.

“Not exactly. He's living in a nearby cottage with a pegasus mare.”

“I don't understand.”

“It seems our friend the dangerous predator is quite sapient.”

“Sapient? But we can't hunt an animal that's sapient! That's against the law!”

Sokolsky snorted with laughter. “When has that ever stopped you?”

“I just mean...there could be repercussions if we were caught, Mr. Snare. That's nothing short of murder.”

“I thought you still wanted your money.”

“Well yeah...but...”

“I'll double it,” said the stallion. “Triple it upon receipt of the creature.”

Carmarella and Ox were silent. “I'm listening...” said the mare. “Do you want us to capture it while it's asleep in the cottage?”

“No, that's the problem. The creature can wield magic. If you tried to capture him you'd likely be turned into mashed potatoes.”

Carmarella raised an eyebrow.

“Trust me on this,” said Sokolsky.

“So what are we meant to do?”

“Well you didn't think I'd call you here without a plan, did you? This creature does have a weakness. Indeed it's the one that brought him to his knees many centuries ago.”

“Centuries?” Carmarella began to wonder if Snare had been drinking.

“The creature is the draconequus of legend,” said Sokolsky. He pulled volume thirteen of History of Equestria off his bookshelf and turned to to appropriate page. “Look here. This beast ruled over Equestria for decades until a secret weapon took him down.”

Carmarella gazed at the woodcut of the creature, with it's sharp talons and wicked smile.

“What was the weapon?”

“A crystal. Either a crystal of harmony of order, I'm not entirely sure which, but that doesn't matter. It was shot into his head by my ancestor, Commodore Hoofsteader, almost a thousand years ago. Since then Discord has been living in the woods as an animal. We probably could have had him by now, but the pegasus got to him first.”

“So what are we gonna do? What happened to the crystal?”

“It was removed from his head. I'm assuming at the local hospital. I very much doubt an animal caretaker has the appropriate skills to perform brain surgery. I need you to go get it for me.”

“How will we know where to look?”

“Well, I don't know, do I? That's your job. Find it and you'll get your money. Come back to me and whine that you 'couldn't find it' and you won't. Does that sound appropriate?”

Ox grunted.

“Double upon receipt of the crystal. Triple once we capture the draconequus,” said Sokolsky.

Carmarella held out her hoof and they shook on it. “Deal,” said the mare.

When Fluttershy came down the stairs she was surprised to see Discord was still in bed. While he occasionally slept in, more often than not he was awake before her. She watched him. His head was resting on his paw and he was deeply asleep. The ferrets had crawled on him in the night and were resting on his long neck, sometimes making squeaky noises as they snored. He looked almost as if he was a strange ferret parent. His body was a similar shape to theirs.

Fluttershy hoped that Discord hadn't felt too hurt by their discussion yesterday. She knew his comments about the “hypothetical” were a front, and he had taken it surprisingly well, but at the same time she knew Discord liked to hide behind humour. She sighed and went to put the kettle on. She brushed her mane and tail as she waited for it to boil. She thought about yesterday. She knew she had done the right thing, but at the same time she felt a little disappointed. He had looked so intently at her, and not in the way that stallions in the street sometimes did. He had looked at her like she meant everything in the universe to him.

She sighed. That was the problem of course. She couldn't be everything in the universe to him. It wasn't fair on either of them. She remembered what he had asked her in the field, about whether or not she had feelings for him, and her face felt hot.

She couldn't help but find him interesting. He was knowledgeable about so many things. He was funny. She couldn't remember laughing as hard as she did around him in years. He didn't care that she wasn't experienced and he hadn't judged her when he had found out she was attracted to griffons.

Griffons. She blushed as she realized that recently, when she had read her romance novels, the dashing griffon pirate had sometimes morphed into the draconequus in her mind. The griffon's feathery body replaced with Discord's own.

But that was alright, wasn't it? It was just fantasy, and fantasy couldn't hurt anyone. She bit her lip as she realized she'd not thought about griffons per se for a while now.

He was strong. It had been a while since she'd found him starving and thin like a willow stick. Now she could feel the strength of his lion arm and long body as he held her close to it. Since his chaos had returned he seemed full of life and vigour. Mischief.

But still, her heart ached. She had to do the right thing, and the right thing wasn't always the most pleasurable thing. She had to be a friend to Discord as well as be his protector.

She heard Discord stirring and the ferrets chirruped in surprise as he sat upright.

“There better not be anything in my bed,” he warned them.

Fluttershy spoke. “It occurs to me that you haven't even given your adoptees names yet.”

“I most certainly have!” said the draconequus, making his way over to the kitchen. “I just haven't told you what they are yet.”

“What are they?”

Discord scooped up one of the ferrets as it ran past them. “This one is called Ricardo,” he said, grinning. He pointed to the other one with a sharp talon. “And that one is called Mortimer.”

Fluttershy blinked. “But, Mortimer is female.”

“And?” said Discord.

“No, you're right. It doesn't matter,” laughed Fluttershy. “Mortimer's a great name.”

Discord grinned and nuzzled Ricardo. The ferret growled in protest at the public display of affection. “Fine, you weird meat cigar,” said Discord, and he placed the ferret on the ground where it promptly began to wrestle with its partner.

“Would you like some tea?” asked the pegasus.

“I'm gagging for some,” replied the draconequus. He held out his cup as Fluttershy poured him some and added some milk.

For a time, they sat there sipping quietly, until Discord ran his talon along the rim of his mug and sighed.

Fluttershy looked up. “Discord?”

“Mmm?”

“We—we're okay, aren't we?”

“What do you mean?”

“We are still friends, aren't we?”

“Of course we are, Fluttershy. I told you that yesterday evening.”

She nodded. “Good.” She took another sip of her tea then said, “I was worried that after yesterday you wouldn't be amenable to making more friends.”

Discord set his tea cup down. “Well...” he began.

“Those ponies yesterday were mean,” said Fluttershy. “But not all ponies are like that. Applejack and Big Mac were nice to you, and the ponies before that crowd turned up weren't afraid of you.”

“Maybe that was an error of mine. Letting my guard down.”

“Your guard doesn't need to be up all the time. Some ponies are worth knowing and some aren't. I would really love it if you could meet the rest of my friends.”

“You expect me to not be wary after yesterday? I mean, Sparky's fun and Spike's interesting to talk to, but...I don't think they like me all that much.”

“If they get to know you like I have I'm sure they will like you, Discord. But that can't happen unless we meet with them.”
He sighed. “I don't know...”

“I promise it will only be my friends. No other ponies. No strangers from town.”

Discord picked at the skin around his talon. He did need to get his mind off the ache in his heart. Perhaps speaking to other ponies—and a dragon—would help.

“What did you have in mind?” he asked.

“Well...it's my birthday next week...”

It was a glorious day for a picnic. Late summer often yielded the hottest days of the year and ponies took full advantage of the heat while they could. Autumn would be around the corner soon, then the cold embrace of snow and frost.

Pinkie Pie bounced up and down cheerily, donning star shaped sunglasses and balancing a picnic basket on her back. Rarity followed behind, decked out in a marvellous sun dress and decorated straw hat. Spike followed behind her hurriedly, carrying a tray of hors d'oeuvres.

“I must say, I was having second thoughts about this meeting,” said Rarity, checking her make up in a pocket mirror, “But both you and Fluttershy have told me he is a funny fellow.”

“He really is,” said Spike, grinning as he remembered the incident with the pelican.

“I trust your judgement, Spikey Wikey,” replied the unicorn. “It's just after what Princess Celestia told us about the past it's hard to reconcile the idea of a...a friendly Discord.”

Twilight Sparkle nodded. “I wouldn't say Discord is always a delight to be around, but we aren't going to be anywhere near a restaurant this time. Besides, he seems to really respect and listen to Fluttershy.”

“Maybe she used the Stare on him,” said Rainbow Dash. “I wouldn't be surprised. She used it on the manticore.”

“The manticore only had a splinter in its paw,” Applejack reminded the pegasus.

“Well Discord did have a crystal in his head,” said Spike. “That sounds a lot worse.”

“Shhh!” said Pinkie, turning around to stare at them with eyes that looked like saucers. “My pinkie senses are tingling.” Her tail stood upright and her ears pricked up. “Oh, no wait. That's just my sense of hearing!” she exclaimed. “I can hear laughter!”

The others could hear it too. One of the voices was definitely Fluttershy, and the other was a male voice.

“Come on, girls,” said Twilight. “It's time to make a new friend. Or...at least try...”

They made their way towards the voices, which were behind a small hedge, and the group of mares peered over the top while Spike tried to look over by jumping up and down.

Discord and Fluttershy were laughing together. A tea pot floated in the air and poured the hot drink into Fluttershy's cup. Angel Bunny sat nearby on the picnic blanket gnawing a piece of celery, lazily. A pair of ferrets rolled around on the grass nearby. Fluttershy wore a straw hat to keep the sun out of her face, but Discord held a gigantic leaf over his head with his tail as shade. Occasionally the leaf would drop a fine mist of water on the draconequus to cool him off.

“Well that seems cosy enough,” said Applejack.

Fluttershy glanced up at the sound of her friend's voice. “Girls! It's good to see you. Come and join us!” Discord glanced nervously at the mares and the dragon. Though he had met Applejack, Twilight and Spike before, he had no idea how the others were going to react to him. The memory of adoption day was still fresh in his mind.

The ponies began to move towards Fluttershy and the draconequus, and Fluttershy shifted over to give them space on the blanket. Discord's tail instinctively curled inwards towards his body, and he dropped the leaf, drenching Angel Bunny in water.

“Hey Discord!” said Spike, running up and taking his place next to the draconequus.

“Hey there, fellow token non-pony,” grinned Discord, patting the little dragon on the head with his paw. “How's the library work going? Unimaginably dull, I gather?” He snuck a glance at Twilight as he said this, but she was deliberately ignoring him.

“Happy Birthday, Fluttershy!” exclaimed Pinkie Pie, and she dove into the picnic basket, disappearing completely. After several minutes of waiting she re-emerged holding a frosted sponge cake.

Discord's right eye popped out of his socket in surprise and rolled towards Rainbow Dash, who made an uncharacteristic shrieking sound.

“Oh, sorry,” said Discord, reaching for his eyeball. “It's just...Pinkie, is it? I've never seen a pony do something like that.”

“Something like what?” replied the earth pony. “Frosted sponge cake? I can give you the recipe if you like!”

“No, I mean. You climbed into that picnic basket.”

“Of course I did, Silly! How else was I supposed to get Fluttershy's birthday cake out of there?”

“Pinkie, are you a chaos user?”

Fluttershy looked up in surprise. She had never thought of Pinkie that way, but after living with Discord for almost a year she was now shocked that she had never made the connection. The way Pinkie seemed to pull things out of thin air and her mannerisms which often defied the laws of physics despite the fact that she was not in possession of a unicorn horn were now something Fluttershy was very used to and she hadn't ever considered the possibility that Pinkie's magic was chaos.

“I don't use anything, Mister,” said Pinkie, glowering at Discord. “I'm completely clean!”

“Heh, that's not quite what I meant,” said the draconequus. “I mean, how do you do that? Climb into the picnic basket?” He knew full well how it was done, but he wanted to hear it from the earth pony.

“I dunno,” said Pinkie truthfully. “I just feel like doing something and it happens. But if I think about it too much then it becomes difficult.”

“Is it more of a feeling?” asked Discord.

“Yeah, that's it! And then my Pinkie Senses start tingling!”

“Yup,” chuckled Discord not bothering to ask what 'Pinkie sense' was and leaning back on his elbows. “She's a chaos user.”

“But...she's an Element of Harmony,” said Twilight. “Chaos is supposed to be inherently disharmonic.”

“Not necessarily,” said the draconequus, who was now slicing into the sponge cake with his talon. He hadn't bothered to ask anyone if they wanted some first. “It's just non-linear. It doesn't think in straight lines, if you will. Most pony magic is based on learning a spell, memorizing it then doing it. In rare cases your kind can transfer magic to one user from another, but most of the time you spend time racking your little brains and horns over whatever incantation it is you're trying to learn.” He pressed the tip of one of the pads of his lion paw against the tip of Twilight's horn as he said this and she looked as if she might bite his hand off.

“A common misconception people have is that chaos never repeats,” he continued. “That's not true. It does, but it just doesn't repeat in exactly the same way.”

“That makes absolutely no sense,” replied Twilight. Discord chuckled.

“If you didn't memorize everything you know, then how did you learn your magic?”

“I didn't say I never memorized anything, Twilight. My magic is simply much more accessible than yours. Well, I say accessible, but only certain beings are privy to it, and its choices are completely random. Take Pinkie here.”

The pink pony's face was smeared with icing. “MMM, good!” she trilled cheerfully.

“So Pinkie's a chaos mage?” asked Applejack.

“Not exactly. A mage is one who devotes his or her life to magic. Pinkie seems to have devoted her life to cake.”

“Mmmhmm!” replied Pinkie, her mouth full. “And parties!”

“Still,” said Discord, stroking his beard. "It is unusual that you called her...what was it? An 'Element of Harmony'. I've never heard of such a thing, personally.”

Fluttershy suddenly grit her teeth as she remembered what the Elements were supposed to do to Discord.

“I'm the Element of Laughter!” said Pinkie, licking icing off her hooves.

“Ah, it all becomes clear,” said the draconequus.

“It does?” asked Twilight.

“Yes, laughter is one of my domains, after all.”

Twilight wanted to rub her temple with her hoof. Half of what he was saying didn't seem to make any logical sense. How could anyone master magic simply because they were chosen? Yes, sometimes these things were genetic. For example, most magic wielders were unicorns and alicorns, but they still needed to hone their skills.

Fluttershy was staring at Discord in fascination. She'd never really him talk about his magic this way before.

“I think the reason chaos magic isn't something ponies are taught is because of it's wild unpredictability,” said Twilight. “It would be much harder to control and extremely dangerous if the wielder wasn't competent.”

“What makes it harder to control?” asked Spike.

“Er...Fluttershy...” said Discord. “Could you pass me some lemonade?” She sensed that Discord wanted to change to subject to something else.

“Please tuck in, girls,” she said. There's sandwiches, and lemonade and cake. Discord made the salad.”

“Is that why it...looks like it has a piece of bandage in it?” asked Rarity, picking at it warily.

“Oh, that's the dressing,” explained Discord. He handed her a bowl with more cotton bandages pouring out the sides. “More?”

“Thank you, dear. But I think this is enough,” said Rarity politely, as she poked through the salad with her fork to make sure the first bite she took was entirely made up of vegetable matter. “Oh, I nearly forgot, Fluttershy. Here's your gift.” She handed the pegasus a small wrapped box.

“Thank you, Rarity,” said the pegasus.

“Go, on! Open it!” said the unicorn excitedly.

“Um...okay.” Fluttershy carefully began tearing the paper back. Inside was a jewellery box. She hoped Rarity hadn't bought her something ridiculously expensive. She wouldn't put it past the Element of Generosity to do so. She lifted the lid and almost sighed with relief. Inside was a carved, wooden pendant shaped like a rabbit. “It's lovely, Rarity,” she said, smiling at her friend. “So cute! And it looks just like Angel Bunny.”

Angel ignored them all and continued to gnaw on his celery.

One by one the others gave Fluttershy their gifts and she opened them. There was a Daring Do book from Rainbow Dash (again), a book on animal tracks from Twilight and Spike, miniature apple strudels from Applejack and more cake from Pinkie.

“What did you get Fluttershy, Discord?” asked Spike.

The draconequus shifted. “Er...well...”

“It's okay, Discord, you didn't need to get me anything,” said Fluttershy.

“That's...not it,” he replied. He had indeed gotten her something but wanted to wait until they were in private to give it to her.

“You didn't get her, anything, did you?” said Rainbow Dash. “Geeze, after everything that Fluttershy has done for you, you could at least show a little appreciation!”

“Dashie!” scolded Fluttershy. “Leave him alone. He really didn't need to get me anything.”

“But I...” began the draconequus.

“It's just one day a year and he could have least...”

“Dash!” shouted Fluttershy and Rarity in unison.

“Sorry,” muttered the blue pegasus.

“It just so happens, I did get something for Fluttershy", said the draconequus, his hands on his hips. “I...just can't show it to you here.”

Pinkie giggled. “Oooh! Is it something romantic?”

Fluttershy suddenly felt as if her face was roasting.

“Pinkie, it's something amazing if I do say so myself,” replied the draconequus.

“Exciting!” cried the Element of Laughter.

“Presuming this thing exists,” muttered Rainbow Dash, taking a bite of cake.

Fluttershy sought to change the subject again. “Oh, did I tell you girls? Discord adopted the ferrets. They're now in his care.”
Twilight looked up at this. Fluttershy was entrusting Discord with the care of two animals. It was highly unlikely Fluttershy would have done this with just anyone. Even when she held adoption days she insisted that ponies have references before taking an animal away, and she always asked them to bring them back after a month for a health and well-being check up. If she trusted Discord with animals, it meant she trusted Discord, and if Fluttershy trusted Discord, then maybe she could trust him too. He seemed to know a lot, despite his arrogance and abrasiveness.

“Did ya name 'em yet?” asked Applejack.

“Oh, yes,” said the draconequus, and he put two fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly for them. The ferrets came bounding out of the undergrowth and barrelled towards him, biting him and crawling all over him while he giggled. “This one is Ricardo, and this is Mortimer.”

“Interestin' names,” said Applejack, raising an eyebrow.

Discord was suddenly still. Despite the seemingly relaxed atmosphere he knew the ponies were still wary of him, and that made him feel wary. He put down Ricardo gently and his ears flattened against his head. Then he felt something soft around his middle, and he realized Fluttershy was hugging him. “You're doing great,” she whispered. He put his eagle arm around her and mouthed 'thank you' silently.

It was late afternoon when Discord, Fluttershy, the ferrets and Angel Bunny returned to the cottage. At this time of year the sun was now lower over the horizon and the setting sun bathed the trunks of trees in orange.

“You'll have to wait a few more hours for your present,” said Discord.

“Oh?” she replied, feeling somewhat confused by this statement.
“Yes, it's not midnight yet.”

“Why does it have to be midnight?” asked the pegasus.

“Because that's peak hours,” said the draconequus mysteriously.

She tilted her head at him in an almost exact copy of the way he had done so when she had been caring for him as an animal.

“You'll have to wait and see,” he grinned. “No peeking until then.”

Fluttershy couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation throughout dinner, not just from herself but also from Discord. Whatever it was he wanted to give her seemed to be something he'd been planning for a while. She hoped, however, than he hadn't taken an animal from the wild for her. If that turned out to be the case she would have a hard time explaining that while she was grateful for the gift, it wasn't exactly the right course of action to take.

Discord played with the ferrets after dinner while Fluttershy took a shower. Then they both settled down on the sofa with mugs of cocoa.

“Five minutes until midnight,” said Discord, looking at a wristwatch that had suddenly materialized on his eagle wrist. “I'm really not usually this fastidious with time, but I did want it to be at its peak.”

Fluttershy waited patiently. Finally midnight rolled round and she looked up at Discord, who got to his feet and walked in the direction of the fireplace. An elegant looking rope suddenly dropped down from the ceiling and Discord grabbed hold of it with his paw and talon. “Ready?” he asked her.

She nodded, though she felt thoroughly confused. Then Discord pulled on the rope and the ether rippled, and her living room fell away to reveal a beach at nighttime. At first she felt confused because it looked as if the image was upside down, but then she gasped as she realized what she was looking at.

She walked towards the beach, a look of wonder on her face.

There, in the water, were thousands upon thousands of glowing and sparkling stars. The blue light reflected on her mane and face and she reached out with a hoof to touch one of them. The water rippled and the light spread as if it was alive.

But of course that was because it was alive.

“Discord,” she said breathlessly. “Is this the Sea of Stars in the Maldhoove Islands?”

He grinned. “Well spotted, Canary-Horse. Well, we're not actually there. I mean, you can touch it and sit on the beach but it's mostly an image. I still don't have the ability to actually go to the place or bring it here completely. I'm still working on that.”

“It's amazing!” shouted Fluttershy. “I never thought I'd see this! I've only seen photographs in books! They don't even do it justice!”She looked down at the tiny creatures, glowing and floating. Some of them washing up on the beach but still maintaining their bioluminescence.

“How did you...” she began. Then she shook her head and smiled. “Chaos magic. I mean I know how you did it I just didn't expect it to...”

“Look like this?” he grinned. “Everything you're looking at is a form of chaos. From all the tiny protists causing the light to the grains of sand on the beach. That's what I meant when I said chaos chooses completely randomly. It goes with the flow. It doesn't have to be logical, it just has to work.”

“It's beautiful,” said the pegasus, gliding her hoof over the water again to see the effect. She shrieked as Discord suddenly dived into the sea, bioluminesence exploding outward and everywhere. He sat up with the star-like objects clinging to his fur and feathers. “Sorry,” he grinned. “I couldn't resist.” Fluttershy laughed. She felt so light. She sat down on the beach and looked up at the night sky and then the starry water. It was hard to know where the sky ended and the sea began.

Discord shook himself off like a dog then sat next to her. “Happy Strange-Pony-Custom day, Shy,” he said. "You didn't think I'd get you a dozen roses or anything lame like that did you?"

She wrapped her arms around his middle. “Thank you,” she whispered. She nuzzled his chest feathers and he tentatively placed his eagle arm around her then pulled her closer, then he rested his head on top of hers.

The ferrets ran through the shallow water, causing ripples of illumination.

Author's Note

You didn't think Discord would give up that easily, did you? :) He's far too stubborn.

The Sea of Stars is an actual place in the Maldives in which thousands of tiny phytoplankton gather in shallow waters and produce the light when their cell membranes react with Oxygen. Some of these creatures can be toxic, but my versions are not, because reasons. :P

Here's a pic of the natural phenomenon.

Autumn: Unwanted

The next morning Fluttershy checked the mail box before making breakfast. The only thing inside it was a single, white envelope with a royal seal on it.
She opened the envelope carefully and began to read the letter. It detailed everything Zecora had told her about Discord's memories, including her discovery of the mount. Fluttershy absorbed the words breathlessly. At the bottom of the letter, Celestia. had written:

Discord must regain his memories without you telling him of this. Zecora was right to not lay out everything for him in second person. It is imperative that we do not plant any false memories, however, it is also imperative that when he regains them, that you are there to talk to him and explain what really happened to him. I am sure it will come as a shock to him, but I have every faith in you, Fluttershy.

Sincerely,
Princess Celestia

She took a deep breath, folded the letter up and tucked it under her wing. She wasn't sure about the Princess having 'every faith in her' but she knew she couldn't let her down. She couldn't let Discord down. She would need to sit him down and explain everything carefully to him, and he would likely find parts of it painful, but she would help him through it.

She found Discord in the kitchen, reaching into a bag and pulling out tiny clocks, which he promptly chomped down on and chewed. Fluttershy could hear the sound of tiny springs and cogs coming undone. She didn't bother to ask him why he was eating clocks. She was used to his idiosyncrasies by now.

He looked up at her and grinned, a piece of spring sticking out from between his teeth.

He was utterly ridiculous, but she had come to realize she liked ridiculous. She thought of last night and the glowing lights floating in the water.

It doesn't have to be logical. It only has to be.

“Hey, Shy?” he said, breaking her from her reverie. “What was with that thing Pinkie was talking about yesterday? The Elements of Harmony?”

She tried not to squirm. Once again this was a subject she had to be careful with. Though she and her friends represented the Elements, the actual physical gems were a threat to Discord, and he didn't realize that. On the other hand, she was becoming more and more positive that they would never have to use them against him. She definitely didn't want to use them against him.

“Well...” she began. Each of us represents an Element. For example, as you found out yesterday Pinkie represents the Element of Laughter. I'm the Element of Kindness, Rarity is the Element of Generosity, Rainbow is the Element of Loyalty and Applejack is the Element of Honesty.”

“I bet I could get her to cheat at cards,” said Discord, who was pretty sure that honesty had never been one of his strong points. He also wasn't sure if he had ever really been loyal towards anybody. And he squirmed as he thought of how unkind he had been to others in his nightmares. Fluttershy epitomised everything he was not. He tried not to think about it.

“What about Sparky?” he asked.

“Her Element is Magic,” said the pegasus.

“Magic?” exclaimed the draconequus, his tail standing straight up towards the ceiling. Even the fluffy tip stood upright. “You mean to tell me that she is meant to epitomize something as powerful as that?”

“Yes. She's incredibly, unbelievably smart. She was top of her class at the School of Gifted Unicorns. She graduated with Royal honours, and managed to hatch a dragon egg when she was only eight years old. That's Spike, by the way.”

“Hmm,” said the draconequus. Perhaps he had underestimated the unicorn. A being that represented magic of all things was not something to be taken lightly. His thoughts quickly turned back to Fluttershy.
“So you're the Element of Kindness,” he said. “Are you sure you're not the Element of Weird Chicks that Walk Around with Huge Spiders in their Hair?”

She giggled. “That's Mr Fuzzy-Legs.'Weird Chick'”?

“You should know by now that I mean that in the nicest possible way. I enjoy weird. Things that aren't weird are usually mind-numbingly dull. Been there, seen that. Weird is far more interesting. It's surprising.” Fluttershy had never thought of herself as interesting and surprising before, and she was surprised that the Spirit of Chaos had just described her that way. Was he surprised that she was his friend? That she liked being his friend?

“A penny for your thoughts?” said the draconequus.

She looked up, her face red. She had been thinking about last night again and the way the sea had sparkled, and the way she had happily leant against him.

What is wrong with you, Fluttershy? You know you can't get involved with him. He doesn't even have all of his memories back.

“Thank you for last night,” she said, simply.

“You're very welcome,” he purred, and she noticed he was looking at her intently again.

“I—better go and check on the chickens,” she squeaked, using the first excuse that came to her head. Discord nodded nonchalantly, tilted his head back and threw a clock into his mouth.

When Fluttershy reached the chicken hutch, she went through the usual motions of searching for eggs, but she knew she wasn't really paying attention to what she was doing. Her mind was on Discord. She felt guilty. It was like the situation with Seth, except she was actually attracted to Discord.

“Horse feathers,” she muttered. She was going to have to get over it. Yes, Discord was an adult but he was a vulnerable one, surely. Except he didn't seem that vulnerable...he was very powerful and intelligent, and funny...and for goodness sakes, girl, get a hold of yourself! You're like a daydreaming teenage filly with a crush!

She sighed and began carrying the eggs back to the house.

It wasn't hard for Carmarella and Ox to disguise themselves as doctors. Carmarella found it almost laughable. Storage cupboards with surgical scrubs, gloves and face masks were left unlocked throughout the hospital, and she even found an abandoned trolley. She pushed it down the hallway, trying to look busy as other medical personnel walked past her. Some nodded to her as if they knew her.

Idiots she thought. Now came the hard part. She needed to find out where the crystal was kept. It occurred to her that it might not even be at the hospital. Perhaps it had even been disposed of, but if she didn't at least look for it then she definitely wouldn't get her money. Her mouth watered as she thought of the amount she stood to gain.

She began searching in the most obvious section—neurology. If there was a place where foreign objects were removed from patients it would surely be here. She continued checking cupboards. The trolley was the perfect cover for this. It just looked like she was searching for more bandages or syringes instead of trying to find the thing that had once brought the Chaos King to his knees.

She moved down the hallway, systematically checking every door and cupboard. She knew walking into the operating theatre was too risky. If she was to check in there it would have to be when she was certain no doctors were around, and there was probably a lot of security around there as well. She decided that would be plan B. She knew Ox was checking the other side of the hospital. It was unlikely the object would be kept there but she wanted to cover all bases on the off chance it was.

She moved through another set of double doors, nodding to a pair of nurses who smiled at her. She turned the corner and was alone again. There were more storage facilities further on, and she moved to search them.

Halfway down the hallway her head turned to the right and she noticed a glass window that looked into what looked like laboratory space. On the shelves sat anatomical models of different sections of the brain. Carmarella realized she was looking at a teaching area. She peered through the window to make sure no one was inside the laboratory and gently pushed the door open. She left the trolley outside.

There were plenty of cupboards to look through here; under the sinks, the counters, even on the walls, but they yielded nothing of interest. There were mostly surgical instruments, lab coats and notebooks. Then she turned and looked to her left, and spotted a glass cupboard filled with jars of liquid.

Upon closer inspection (and smell) she realized the jars held formaldehyde and alcohol, and within them floated objects of various shapes and sizes. There was a rusty looking nail, a piece of wire, even a knife. The reason for the alcohol was a grisly one. Some of the objects still had flesh attached to them. They were specimens for students to study. After going through the top shelf, and moving jars aside to reveal ones behind them, she moved to the next one.

It didn't take her long. Only four jars in and she found it. It was red, and looked sharp and menacing. She grabbed the jar and left the room.

She moved through the hospital with the jar secreted within a batch of paper towels as she pushed the trolley down the hallway and whistled merrily.

The first signs of Autumn were beginning to make themselves known. Leaves were reddening and dropping, and Harry was ardently snuffling through them in search of tasty grubs, fungus and truffles. It had been almost a year since Fluttershy had found Discord in the woods. It was late in the afternoon and some birds were already beginning to choose their roosting spots.

Harry spotted Fluttershy walking up the path with her basket. “Hello!” she told the bear and nuzzled his face. “I was wondering if you'd mind if I joined you? Stuffed mushrooms for dinner would be lovely.”

Harry nodded but made a confused sound.

“Oh, Discord? He's at home. I told him I just needed a walk on my own to clear my head. I may as well make the most of the time and find something to eat.”

The bear chuffed and returned his attentions to the leaf litter. Fluttershy began searching too, by crouching down and moving the leaves aside with her hooves. After a while, she sighed.
“But the truth is, Harry,” she said softly. “That's not the only reason I'm out here. I—I needed some time alone, to think.”

A quizzical sound came from the bear, but he did not abandon his hunt for tasty treats.

“It's Discord,” said the pegasus. “He's...he's. I don't know what he is. But he's been occupying my thoughts a lot lately, and that isn't right of me. It isn't proper. He's supposed to be in my care. I feel like a weak person for...thinking of him as something more. I'm supposed to be responsible for him. Princess Celestia would be disappointed in me if I messed things up. It's so confusing, Harry.”

The bear slobbered greedily as he found and devoured a patch of bolete mushrooms.

“So I guess I'm out here because I feel guilty. I feel guilty for being weak. I've always been weak. I'm scared of so many things.” She sat down and drew her knees up, resting her head on them.

This time the bear nuzzled her face affectionately.

Sokolsky flung the door open as soon as he heard the knocking.

“We got it!” hissed Carmarella excitedly.

“Quick, get inside,” said Sokolsky. The pair of trappers followed him inside and he looked furtively around outside before closing the door. “Well...where is it?”

“Hang on, I want to see our money first,” said the mare.

“Fine,” said Sokolsky. “You can see it but you don't get it until I see the damn thing.”

“Sounds fair.”

Snare made his way over to a locked drawer and pulled out a leather satchel. He placed it on his desk, undid the buckles and opened it for the trappers.

Carmarella's eyes nearly popped out of her head at the amount.

“Remember, you get triple the amount if you capture the draconequus for me. Now, where is the crystal?”

“Right here,” said Carmarella. She could hardly contain her excitement at the sight of the money. She pulled the jar out of her saddlebag and held it up the light, and Sokolsky could see the ruby-coloured mineral glinting and floating.

“Amazing,” said the stallion in an awestruck voice. He took the jar from Carmarella and placed it on his desk, then he carefully opened the seal. The smell of alcohol filled the room. Sokolsky poured the liquid into a bowl and carefully cleaned the crystal off with a cloth. Next he wrapped it in a dry cloth, and before Carmarella could protest, he brought a hammer down on it, hard. The sound of glass shattering filled the room.

“Mr. Snare, no!! What are you doing?” she screamed.

He unfolded the cloth to reveal the smashed bits of crystal.

“Relax. You are still getting your money,” he said, and he handed over the satchel. “But we're going to catch this creature, and we need more than one chance at doing so.”

“I still don't see how we're going to get away with this.”

“Simple. We make it justifiable,” said Sokolsky. He didn't care how they did it, as long as they caught him. Then he could get all the information he needed, and it didn't matter what the trappers decided to do with him afterwards. They could make him into a pelt for all he cared, the way the thing should have been centuries ago. “Plus I have another task for you. How are you at presentations?”

It was beginning to get dark when Fluttershy returned to the house with a basket full of chanterelle mushrooms. The light was on in the cottage, but she was surprised to see a pony shape moving outside by the door.

“Who is that she called?”

“Fluttershy!” said Rarity. “I was about to knock on the door. I didn't know you weren't home.”

“Well I am now. What's up?”

“Mayor Mare has called an emergency meeting at the town hall,” said the unicorn breathlessly.

“An emergency? What about?”

“She didn't say. She just said it was very important that all ponies attend if they could.”

“Oh my. We better tell Discord.”

The two mares pushed the door to the cottage open. “Discord, there's an emergency meeting at the town hall. All ponies need to attend.”

The draconequus made a face. “Must I, Fluttershy? Meetings are so boring. What is it about?”

“We don't know,” said Rarity.

“Well that doesn't really make me any more excited,” said the draconequus. “For all I know they could be discussing tax brackets.”

“Well, Rarity and I are going. I just thought I'd give you the option.”

“Nah. Besides, it said all ponies need to attend. It didn't mention anything about draconequui.”

“I'm pretty sure they meant all citizens of Equestria, Discord, but if you don't want to go then of course you can stay at home.”

He felt disappointed that Fluttershy was going out again when she had just gotten home, but he didn't want to try and persuade her to stay with another pony present. “I'll stay here and read,” he said.

“If—if you're sure,” said the pegasus. She grabbed her coat. Now that it was evening the air was much cooler.

“We better get going, darling,” said Rarity. The meeting's in less than half an hour.

The town hall was buzzing with conversation. It seemed no one knew why the meeting had been called or what kind of emergency was going to be announced. Some ponies were even skeptical that it even was an 'emergency' meeting.

Fluttershy and Rarity spotted the others sitting near the front.

“We're here,” said Rarity.

“What's going on, girls?” asked Fluttershy.

“No idea,” said Applejack. “It can't be that much of an emergency though. It if was then surely Princess Celestia would have contacted us.”
“Maybe a water main burst or something,” said Rainbow Dash.

“That's a mighty weird thing to call a town meeting for,” said Applejack. Surely the mayor would have contacted the council's maintenance department instead?”

Suddenly there was a hush over the crowd as Mayor Mare took the podium. “Ladies and Gentlecolts,” she said in her authoritative voice, “Thank you all for coming. I have called you here as some respected citizens of Equestria have called attention to something which I feel may be a threat.”

Fearful murmurings spread among the crowd.

“Do not panic!” called out the Mayor. “It is imperative that we deal with this in a calm and orderly fashion. I do not wish for this to become a witch hunt. This presentation is for your safety. As for the problem, my council and I will discuss what needs to be done, but we need to be on our guard.”

“Sounds pretty important,” whispered Fluttershy.

“Now, without further ado, here is the local gamekeeper, Sokolsky Snare to give the presentation.”

Fluttershy looked up. The meeting had to be about the hunters! Snare must have caught them! She began to relax slightly.

Sokolsky took the stage. “Good evening, Ladies and Gentlecolts,” he said. “And thank you to my two colleagues for setting up the slides for this presentation. Mayor Mare is correct. The reason I am here is that you all need to be aware and informed of a threat right here in Ponyville.

There were more murmurings and in the back row a foal began to cry loudly.

Snare clicked onto the first slide on the projection screen. It showed a photo of the Everfree forest.

“About a year ago trappers in these woods identified a threat to the safety of ponykind. It's well known that most dangerous animals stay in the Everfree and don't come down to Ponyville. Indeed, a lot of animals that are considered dangerous aren't even a threat especially to ponies. However, once in a while...”

Fluttershy was beginning to feel a knot growing in her stomach.
No...

Sokolsky looked out into the audience, who were now rapt and silent.

“I must warn those you with a sensitive disposition, or those of you with foals that the next slide contains disturbing imagery,” he continued. “I would advise you to cover the eyes of your little ones if this concerns you.”

He clicked the button on the projector and the photograph of the pony skeleton half hidden under the log flooded the screen.

No...

There were gasps from the audience.

“Is there a pony-eater out there?” cried a stallion in the back. The crowd broke out into fearful chattering.

“Ladies and gentlecolts, please, please,” said Snare. “Let's remain calm. The aim of this presentation is to inform not cause mass hysteria.”

The crowd quietened down and Sokolsky continued his presentation. “Now, we come to the crux of the situation,” he said. “Before now the identity of this animal was a mystery. But new information has come to light. I'm afraid the creature that dispatched this poor soul was...” he sighed deeply as if it was a great weight he was unbearing… “is the draconequus.”

Fluttershy stood up. “That's a lie!” she screamed angrily. “There's absolutely no proof that the remains of that pony are because of Discord!”

“That's right!” Applejack chimed in. “Discord may be strange, but he's harmless enough. Not to mention he's a sapient being.”

“Then that just makes him even more dangerous, then, doesn't it?” said Sokolsky.

“I bought of tortoise from that guy,” said a voice in the back. “He didn't seem dangerous!”

The girls were now smirking at Snare. He didn't have a leg to stand on really.

“That's right!” said Fluttershy. “Without proof this is libellous!”

Sokolsky looked right at her, and she felt his eyes burning into her. The look in his eyes was one of smugness and defiance. Then he clicked the button and the next picture came into view.

Screams and cries of fear filled the room. Fluttershy felt her heart sink.

There was a picture of another pony skeleton, only this time, surrounding it were the tracks of an animal. At first it looked like multiple animals had circled the body and left their mark, but on closer inspection it was evident who the tracks had belonged to.

“Lion paw, eagle talon, dragon foot and goat hoof. Now, who do we know that has that exact combination?” said Snare.

“He's a killer!” cried a mare in the back. “To think I let my foals within a foot of that beast!”

“Ponies, ponies!” called Sokolsky. They eventually quietened down, mostly because they wanted a solution to the problem that had now been presented to them, and Sokolsky seemed to be the stallion to deliver it.

“Listen!” shouted Fluttershy before Sokolsky could continue speaking. “If—if Discord was the culprit then it wasn't his fault!”

“What on earth are you blabbering about, mare?” called a stallion from the pews.

“That's what I'm trying to explain,” said the pegasus. Her heart was pounding in her ears. Talking to huge crowds was one of her biggest fears, but she needed to get through this, for Discord. “If Discord...did this, then it was at a time when he wasn't in his right mind. He was living in the Everfree as an animal. I found him and nursed him back to health, and that was when we realized he was sapient. He has no memory of his time living in the Everfree. He suffered brain damage. He didn't know what he was doing. He was only trying to survive.”

There were more murmurings.

“But the creature has magic!” said a voice in the back. “And I've seen it work. He destroyed an entire restaurant.”

“Yes!” called another voice. “I was there and saw it with my own eyes!”

“How can we trust him? He could use his magic against us!”

“But he hasn't,” said Fluttershy. “He's my friend.”

Mean sounding laughter echoed through the crowd, and she blushed as she realized she was probably the current subject for the town gossips.

Sokolsky “As I said, dear, we do have a solution to this problem. We are not inhumane creatures. But we do need to look after the safety of this town.” He looked down at the pegasus. “That is why I am giving you a week to get the draconequus to leave.”

“Leave? Leave where?”

“He needs to go back into the wilderness. Far away from ponykind. We simply can't trust him to not be dangerous when we know next to nothing about him. I feel this is the best course of action.”

“And if he refuses to leave?” asked a pony in the back.

Sokolsky bowed his head. “Then regretfully, we may need to take...harsher measures.”

Fluttershy felt like she was about to faint. The room suddenly felt hot and she swooned. Rainbow Dash caught her in time and she whimpered. The horrible news, the menacing crowd, the terror she felt for Discord. It was all too much.

“Let's get her outside,” said Twilight. They dragged the pegasus out into the cool night air. Sokolsky was still speaking to the crowd as they left.

Fluttershy began to feel better as the night air hit her senses. She opened her eyes to see five mares staring down at her with concerned faces.

“Darling, are you alright?” asked Rarity. “Maybe I should get some water...”

“I'm fine,” said Fluttershy softly. “I just need a minute.” She began to get to her feet. Her legs felt wobbly.

“What the heck just happened?” cried Rainbow Dash. “Discord eats people?”

“We all knew this was a possibility,” said Fluttershy.

“Yeah but I never thought I'd see actual evidence of it!”

Fluttershy's stare was hard and cold. “What are you saying, Dashie?”

The pegasus suddenly looked shamefaced. “I—I'm sorry, Fluttershy, it's just, kind of shocking.”

Fluttershy looked at the rest of her friends, who all wore similar expressions. “You do realize there's a difference between what Discord was then and what he is now?” she said.

“Of course we do, Fluttershy. It's just hard to take in.” admitted Twilight.

To their surprise the pegasus burst into tears. “What am I supposed to do now?” she wailed. Then she turned and fled.

“Fluttershy, wait!” cried Pinkie, running after her, but Applejack had grabbed hold of her tail and she Pinkie scrabbled until she wore a hole in the ground. “Let her go, Sugarcube. She needs to tell Discord the news.”

“But we should go after her! She's upset!” protested Pinkie.

“I think Fluttershy would best be served by us if we went in there and argued Discord's case against Snare,” said Twilight. She was already beginning to feel guilt for how she had reacted to the photograph, they all were.

“Twilight's right,” said Applejack. “Come on, it's time to give Snare a piece of our minds!”

Unfortunately for the friends, while they had been outside Sokolsky had dropped the biggest untruth of all during his presentation: “Rest assured that Princess Celestia has been informed of this.”

Fluttershy ran, her coat and tail billowing behind her as she fought against the wind. Her lungs felt like they were going to burst and the tears on her face cooled almost instantly in the night air. She had to get to Discord. She had to make sure she was there for him.

Author's Note

Will try to get the next chapter up this evening, but depends how quickly I tire out!

Now you know, this is what it feels like

Twilight was exhausted and her head hurt. They had spent hours trying to convince the crowd that Discord was not a creature to be feared or shunned, but they soon realized that while they had gotten to know Discord and knew of Fluttershy's plan to have him reformed, the crowd did not the same context. All they saw was the remains of a pony on the screen—probably someone's grandmother or husband that had disappeared decades ago, and with that in mind Twilight knew that it was would impossible to persuade the crowd over to the side of logic. In a way, she couldn't blame them. If she had a missing relative and Discord was a possible cause for their disappearance she most likely would not have been able to think logically either.

Snare was a master at working the crowd into a hysterical frenzy and he spoke as if he had all the answers.

The unicorn pushed the door to the Golden Oaks library open and Spike looked up from his bed.

“You're not asleep?” she asked.

“I couldn't. After you said there was an emergency meeting at the town hall I was too excited to sleep and wanted to sit up so I could find out what it was.”

“It's...not good news, Spike.”

“What happened?”

“The town wants Discord gone in a week. There's photographic evidence against him. He may have preyed on ponies while living as an animal in the woods.”

“Th—that's awful,” said the little dragon, though he wasn't entirely sure which part of what Twilight had told him was more awful.

“We need to tell Princess Celestia that this has happened. Take a message.”

Spike leapt out of his bed, ran over to the desk and reached for his quill.

Seth was in a hurry to get the current group of medical students out of the laboratory. He had been doing a short talk with them before his next late night shift and had opened the cupboard to show them some examples of foreign objects removed during surgery. It was halfway through the lesson, when he returned the jars to the cupboard that he realized Discord's specimen was missing from the second shelf. He shuffled through the jars quickly, just in case he had been mistaken or had placed it on the wrong shelf, but it definitely was not there.

He grit his teeth. He had to cut the lesson short. He ushered the students out of the laboratory.
This wasn't good. Where was it? Why was it missing?

He wondered if Fluttershy was home by now. He knew about the emergency meeting that had been called, but he had been unable to go due to his busy workload. He checked the clock. He still had an hour before his shift started. Twilight's home was closer to him than Fluttershy's. Perhaps he would stop there first.

Discord clung to the petite pony pressed against his feathers. He wanted to tell her so many things—that he was amazed that she had come back for him, that she was here with him now, that he was sorry he had ever doubted her, that he was glad she had ever wanted to be his friend, let alone a lover. Unfortunately right now there were more pressing issues.

His leg was still in agony, and as time passed he was beginning to feel nauseated and weak. He'd lost a lot of blood, but he knew that wasn't the main issue. There was a thing inside him that was eroding his magic bit by bit.

He started poking at it with his talon again, hissing at the stinging and throbbing this caused.

“Let me try something,” said Fluttershy. “This may hurt,” she warned him. He nodded.

She squeezed the flesh of his dragon leg on either side so that the shard of the crystal was much more prominent. Discord winced, but went to work with his talons again. This time he was able to get a much better grip on it, but it was still stubbornly deep inside his muscle.

“Try again,” he told her. She did.

“Pull no punches,” said the draconequus. He grinned. “I'm a big boy, I can take it.”

She whinnied but did as she was told and squeezed the muscle with as much force as she could muster. Discord bit back a scream and dug deep with his talon. He felt agony surge through him and a distant part of his brain wondered how other parts of his body could be hurting so fiercely when the shard was in his leg. He felt tears streaming down his face, but he forced himself to continue, then with horrible urgency but equally horrible slowness he pulled the shard free. It clattered on the cage floor. He slumped back with a huge sigh.

Fluttershy hugged him once more. He lay there for a few minutes, trying to reassure his mind and body that the pain wasn't going to return and it was okay to move, then tentatively sat up.

“Now what?” whispered Fluttershy.
“Now we find a way out of here,” said the draconequus.

“But how? The door is booby trapped.”

Discord focused on the outside. Damn, no dice. His magic still wasn't working. He switched to thinking of a physical plan. “Snare said the catch was on the underside of the cage.” His eagle talon was the thinnest part of his body, and he pushed it through one of the holes at the bottom of the cage closest to the door.

“Be careful,” said the pegasus. She looked fearfully up at the shards pointing towards her. They wouldn't affect her magically, but they were still physical missiles that could do a lot of damage. They would do even worse to Discord.

Discord stretched his arm as far as it would go, feeling carefully under the platform with his hand. There was nothing but flat surface. There had to be a button or a catch somewhere. He stretched his hands so that his claws would graze over more surface area, but it was to no avail. He tried on the other sides of the cage but could feel nothing. His entire tail wasn't going to fit through the cage's latticework because it got progressively thicker the closer to his body it was.

“Argh!” he growled in frustration and slumped back down again, his tail swishing back and forth angrily.

He felt her soft arms embrace him from behind and his heart sank. “I'm sorry, Fluttershy,” he whispered. “There doesn't seem to be a way out. I screwed up.”

“Don't talk like that. We can't give up now.”

He couldn't help but smile, and he reached up to place his paw over one of her hooves. He didn't want her trapped in this cage with him, but at the same time his heart was glad she was here and he wasn't alone. He could feel her pressed against his bat and pegasus wings.

“Wings! That's it!”

Twilight and Seth were out the door mere minutes after he reached Golden Oaks library and relayed the news to her.

As usual Spike had wanted to follow, but Twilight argued that it was well past his bedtime. He sighed as he sat down at the desk. She always seemed to have an excuse handy.

Well, at least he could be useful in one way at least. He took out a fresh piece of parchment, dipped his quill in ink and began his message:

Dear Princess Celestia,

Twilight has gone to Fluttershy's cottage. Discord's crystal is missing from the hospital. Please write back soon.

Spike.

The scroll disappeared in his green flames.

There. At least he hadn't been a passive bystander. He was beginning to worry that he'd had no response to the first letter he and Twilight had sent. He wondered if both she and Luna were busy. Still, it was getting pretty late. He sat at the desk and looked at his bed. He knew he wasn't going to get any sleep with all the excitement.

Seth and Twilight were alarmed to see Fluttershy's door wide open and slamming back and forth in the wind. “Fluttershy?” called the unicorn tentatively. The cottage was dark, and there was no answer. She switched the light on. “Fluttershy? Discord?” She cautiously made her way up the stairs.

“Be careful!” said Seth.

Twilight pushed the bedroom door open as if something was about to leap out at her and bite her face off. She trembled as she heard the door give an unnerving creak and peered into the darkness.

She called down the stairs. “They don't seem to...” She screamed as her words were cut short and a pair of beady eyes and sharp teeth lunged for her.

“Twilight! I'm coming!” Seth rocketed up the stairs, his heart pounding. He found Twilight panting heavily, a look of relief on her face, and he clocked the ferret on her back.

“Geeze. I thought something had attacked you.”

“Well it kind of did,” she said, with a hint of annoyance. She switched the bedroom light on. Nobody.

Her eyes were drawn to the floor and she saw Fluttershy's Element.

“I don't like this,” said the stallion.

The second ferret was now nipping at his fetlocks. “Not now! He told it.

Ricardo hissed at him, and promptly began running up and down the stairs. When he reached the bottom he would stand on his hind legs.

“Wait,” said the unicorn. “Maybe they know where Discord and Fluttershy have gone.”

Ricardo ran in circles as if to respond in the affirmative, then he ran towards the door.

“Show us!” cried Twilight, and Mortimer leapt off her back to join her mate as they both ran out into the night. Ricardo began sniffing the ground, and he pointed with his nose over the bridge.

“Wait,” said Twilight, and she pressed her Element. Immediately four surprised ponies appeared before her.

“Twilight! Is it Discord? What's happened?” exclaimed Rarity. She was willing to forego the fact that Twilight had summoned them all while her mane was still a mess.

“Fluttershy and Discord are missing, I'll explain on the way.”

“Where are we going?” asked Rainbow.

“Follow those ferrets!”

“I'm just saying Mister Snare. We've caught the creature and yet I still don't see any money in my hooves.” Carmarella poked the embers of the camp fire sulkily with a twig.

“I told you, you'll get your money upon its capture.”

“We have captured it.” Ox nodded.

“I won't consider it captured until its safely out of Ponyville.”
“And then what? What are we supposed to do with the mare. If we let her go she'll just run back and blab to the townsfolk.”

“No. That is absolutely not an option. She has to stay in the cage with the draconequus. She's the bargaining chip. He'll talk if he thinks she's in danger.”

“But after he talks, then what?”

“Then do what you like to get rid of them. I don't care. And you can make the draconequus into a pelt and sell it on the black market for even more money. Does that sound acceptable? Because if it does I expect you to quit whining.” Ox walked off in a huff. He didn't have to sit here and listen to this pony pontificate.

The trappers were ruining Sokolsky's mood. He was excited. He had finally captured a rare, thought to be extinct animal that could yield untold amounts of information that only he had access to. And if the draconequus disappeared no one would care. Ponyville would breathe a sigh of relief and assume that the creature had done as the town council requested—simply left to go elsewhere.

He was already obsessively planning the monograph in his mind. He'd even be able to have detailed anatomical illustrations. Photographs were not an option—it would be too obvious and harder to explain, but everything else was falling into place. He almost started humming.

Discord had picked most of his primary feathers off his wing, peeled away the barbs, and had constructed what looked like a long stick out of the remaining shafts by slotting them into one another. Having dexterous fingers was never something he had ever regretted in his life and he certainly wasn't about to start now.

The makeshift stick added over half a foot to his arm, but it wasn't very sturdy. He wondered if it would have enough give to press the button or catch.

“I'm worried it's not heavy duty enough,” he told the pegasus, and she began plucking her own primary feathers out.

“Thanks,” he said, slicing off the barbs, and building another stick and this time he opened one of the shafts and tore it into thin strips with one of his talons. He used one of the strips to tie the sticks together, so that the stick was sturdier. Then he carefully reached through one of the cage holes again and felt around under it. He poked this way and that with the feather shaft until he felt something give way slightly.

“Aw, yeah. That's what I'm talking about,” he said, grinning. He stretched as far as he could and pushed all his weight against the catch. The door was now no longer booby trapped.

Next he picked the lock with his talon, a process that was much easier since in his long life he had much experience doing such things. Again, dexterous fingers.

After about five minutes of his talon poking around he heard a click and the door swung open.

“Yes!” cried Fluttershy.

“Didn't I tell you I was amazing Fluttershy?” he boasted. “Let's go, you first.” She quickly scrambled forwards towards the opening, and began lowering herself down to the ground. Discord saw the centaur coming out of the darkness towards her. “Shy! RUN!” She whirled round to see Ox who slammed the door shut on Discord's face and reached for her. She tensed herself, ready to take flight at any second but to her horror she felt a tug on her tail. “No!” she cried, feeling tears welling up in her eyes.

The draconequus flung himself forward with all his might against the cage door and it slammed open, but he was suddenly face to face with the trapper mare, pointing her crossbow at him again. “If you think I'm about to lose my money that easily you're mistaken. Get back in the cage.” Discord growled as he saw Fluttershy struggling with the centaur. Something deep and primal within him was compelling him to rip the centaur's face off.

Fluttershy pulled and squirmed desperately, and suddenly she felt her tail give way and she shot into the air. She had never been so relieved that she wore tail extensions in her life.

“Yes! Haha! Fly, Fluttershy, fly!” cried Discord gleefully as he watched the yellow streak ascend quickly into the air in a somewhat lopsided manner He was glad they had started stripping his wing of feathers first or she might not have been able to have any lift. Discord turned his head slowly and looked at the trappers, his sharp teeth in a grin, his eyes bright and wicked.

“Yeah, you may think it's amusing,” said Carmarella. But we're not going anywhere this time. We're gonna sit here all night if we have to and watch you. Seems you're a bit of a Hoofdini.”

Discord paced around on all fours, his hackles spiked up and his teeth bared. Still, he was hopeful. Fluttershy was free, and if she was free then she could work on a plan to get him out.

“Sister! Awaken!”

Princess Celestia groaned and wondered what hour of the night it was. When she and Luna had been younger, her nocturnal sister had often knocked on her door to complain of nightmares...or poltergeists.

She sat upright. Luna was Princess of the Night now, and it was unlikely that she was knocking on her door for that reason. She threw back the bed covers and ran to the door.

“What is it, Luna?”

“Discord. I sensed one of his dreams. It...I think he's remembered.” She looked sad. “There was so much pain,” she said.

“Are the others safe?” asked Celestia. Luna pulled out the scrolls Twilight and Spike had delivered to Celestia's throne room. “I think we should get moving, Sister,” she said.

Fluttershy landed in a nearby tall tree out of sight of her attackers and tried to catch her breath. It had taken all of her strength to push herself into the air, and she was certain with her lopsided wings that it had been mostly adrenaline that had spurred her on.

A fine drizzle was in the air, and she tried to see if she could spot the camp from her vantage point. Yes, she could see the soft glow of the fire, and she knew from its position where the cage was. For a moment she considered sneaking up to the camp fire so she could use it to set fire to something, but the air and ground were far too damp for that.

Think, Fluttershy, think.

She was torn from her thoughts when she heard shrieking. Carmarella was yelling, screaming. Fluttershy's heart leapt. Had Discord escaped? Was he able to get away from them? With a deep breath she threw herself off the tree, plummeting down twenty feet and whinnying in terror as the ground rushed up towards her, but at the last minute she arced in mid air and was able to gain lift. She flew towards the sounds.

Ricardo's teeth sunk into Carmarella's leg again and again. “Get them off me Ox! Their teeth! So sharp! Arrrgh!” Mortimer was pulling at her mane and chattering.

It took Discord a few seconds to realize what was happening, but when he did he was almost overcome with joy. “That's right, my babies! Do it for your noodle daddy! Daddy's so proud!”

Carmarella was flailing wildly and Ox looked at a loss as the mustelids bit and scratched at his partner.

Discord saw his chance and quickly shoved his talon and the feather stick through the cage. He found the trigger easily this time and the cage swung open.

Ox never saw him coming. One minute he was staring dumbfoundedly at the whirling mess of mare and ferret before him, the next a set of eagle talons, lion claws and the weight of the draconequus smashed into his chest, bowling him over.

He and Discord rolled over on the ground, the draconequus' snake-like body twisting as they tussled. Then Ox realized Discord was coiled around him and was squeezing.

Carmarella kicked Ricardo into the undergrowth. The ferret yelped in pain. The mare also managed to tear Mortimer loose from her mane and she threw the female into the bushes.

With a growl she surged forwards, pointing the cross bow at Discord.

“I would let him go if I were you,” she said, nodding towards Ox.

Discord stared darkly at her as if she was nothing but detritus in a vast galaxy, but he began to uncoil.

“Good, good,” said Carmarella. She was bleeding but she didn't care. As long as she had Discord in her cross hairs.

Suddenly she felt something smash into the back of her skull, as Fluttershy brought her hooves down on the trapper's head. Carmarella cried out and fell forward into the dirt.

“Nobody hurts my friends!” bristled the pegasus.

Discord beamed at her. Fluttershy quickly ran over to the cross bow and pointed it at Ox while Discord uncoiled himself and moved away from the evil looking shard of crystal. Even though he knew Fluttershy wouldn't hurt him, just the sight of the thing made his teeth stand on edge. Even though the shard in his leg had been removed there was still pain and he felt weak from exertion. He also still had no grasp on his magic. The centaur held up his hands as he surrendered to Fluttershy.

Mortimer and Ricardo ran towards Discord, chittering as they clambered all over him. “Aww,” Discord cooed. “Just for that I'm gonna let you hide one dead rodent in my bed. But only once.”

“Get up,” said Fluttershy to Carmarella, and she motioned towards Ox. She needed them close together.

The dazed earth pony mare crawled towards her partner.

“Don't hurt us!” she wailed. “We were only in it for the money! It's Snare you want! He's the guy. He—he forced us!”

Discord snorted. “Oh yeah, your hooves certainly looked tied.”

Ricardo snarled at Carmarella, his back fur standing upright.

“We need something to tie them together,” said Fluttershy. “Rope or something.”

“I'm on it,” said the draconequus, and he began looking around the steam tractor.

“Maybe there's something nearer the camp,” said Fluttershy. Discord nodded and headed off in the fire's direction.

The draconequus knew he had to be careful of Sokolsky's whereabouts. He kept his body low to the ground, moving like he used to as an animal through the undergrowth and keeping to the shadows. He could smell the pony, but it was faint. Snare was somewhere else. Probably holed up in his tent. The draconequus systematically moved through the camp, searching high and low for some rope or twine. There was nothing. What kind of hunters were these? Idiots.

Fluttershy glanced nervously in the direction of the camp fire. Discord had been gone for a while. She quickly turned back to the hunters. She had to stay focused so that there was no chance of them escaping. And that was when she felt the breath in her air and the knife against her throat.

“Scream and you won't scream again,” said the stallion. She dropped the crossbow.

Discord had found some long vines hanging down from a tree. They were somewhat woody but they would have to do. These idiots had certainly come unprepared. He had at least expected netting of some kind. He limped back towards the location of the steam tractor and moved into the clearing.

“Fluttershy, I...”

They were all gone. The crossbow was on the ground and there was no sign of Ox, Carmarella or Fluttershy, but he only cared about one of those things. Panic welled up in him as he realized he now had no idea where she was and there was forest in every direction. He was about to bolt in a random direction when Ox's muscular arms closed around his neck in a chokehold. Discord thrashed, trying to coil his body around the centaur's again, but he was weakening.

No. No, he had to find Fluttershy. He couldn't let this happen after all they had worked for. He loved her.

But he could feel himself slipping away as his lungs fought for air.

There was a roaring sound, a huge shape plunged out of the woods.

“Yeeeeeeeehawww!” screamed Pinkie from Harry's back as the bear barrelled towards the centaur, and with one great rise of his head, knocked Ox unconscious.

Discord took in great gasps of air, and looked up in wonder.

“Did ya miss us, Discord?” said Pinkie cheerfully. He saw the others arriving behind her and Harry.

“You have no idea,” he breathed.

“Where's Fluttershy?” asked Seth.
“I don't know,” said Discord, wringing his hands. He wanted to scream. He wanted to kick himself. He should never have let her out of his sight. “We need to spread out and find her. One of them has her. Either Snare or Carmarella.”

Seth noticed Discord was limping.

“Hang on,” he said. “This isn't really what I would consider best practice, but given the circumstances...” He removed a syringe and needle from his saddlebag. “Hold out your leg.”

“What's that for?”

“It's localized anaesthetic.”

“You carry anaesthetic with you...just because?”

“I don't usually, but I figured tonight was special.”

“Get it over with,” said Discord, as he looked away. He felt a pinprick and then the area around his injury went numb. He could move his leg now without pain. He was probably still doing it damage as he walked around, but he didn't care. “Let's go,” he said, eager to find Fluttershy.

The pegasus whimpered as Snare forced her to walk further into the woods.

“Why?” she moaned.

“Because you're my bargaining chip. I know you two had a 'thing' and he's going to come for you. He won't harm a hair on my head as long as he knows I might harm yours.”

“You're crazy,” she said.

“I just want what my family was owed.”

“You're still crazy,” she said. “That happened long ago and you're completely fixated on it.”

He ignored her. Soon he knew the draconequus would come, and then he'd drag the mare all the way back to the cage with a knife to her throat if he had too. He knew the creature, with no magic would have no choice but to follow.

Rainbow Dash had opted to take to the skies. She had theorized that she could cover more ground that way, and she was lucky. It was Autumn, and most of the leaves had fallen off the trees. Her heart leapt as she spotted a pony running through the undergrowth and she swooped down for a closer look. It was a mare.

She knew she was looking at one of the hunters, and she was fleeing the scene. She sped down towards Carmarella, ready to knock her off her feet but someone got to her first. Applejack's hind hooves connected to the mare's jaw and she crumpled.

“This just ain't your night,” said Applejack to the trapper.

“That was awesome,” said Rainbow Dash, and Applejack grinned at her.

Discord had split up from the others completely. His heart was pounding as he ran, sometimes stopping to sniff the air. He had picked up Fluttershy's scent. He knew it well now. It was embedded in his pores and senses now that he had shared everything with her and he felt fresh terror in his heart at the thought that she might be injured...or worse.

But then there was another smell, and he realized with horror that Fluttershy wasn't with Carmarella. It was Sokolsky. He began to rocket through the bushes, filled with anger as well as terror now. That primal feeling was back again and he knew if he found the stallion he might not be able to contain his rage. He was feeling pretty enraged already. It felt as if it was going to burst out of him, all over the trees, onto the ground, the forest drenched in his anger.

And that was when he felt everything give way and he knew his old friend was back.

Sokolsky waited. He knew it was only a matter of time before the draconequus came. He dragged Fluttershy over to a log and sat down on it, still holding the knife close to her throat.

The forest was silent except for the sound of crickets.

Then they fell silent.

There was a humming sound, and Sokolsky's mouth fell open as he saw the air ripple before him.

He fell backwards as a lightning bolt crashed down only ten feet away. Fluttershy was also knocked off her feet. Her ears rang, but cleared almost instantly.
A growl reverberated through the forest as the draconequus spoke.

“DO YOU DARE ANGER THE LORD OF CHAOS?”

Sokolsky whimpered. The voice seemed to be coming from all directions. After looking about wildly he bolted in a random direction.

Laughter followed him, and as he sped through the forest, he turned his head to the right, and to his horror, saw the draconequus flying alongside him almost effortlessly, as if he was gliding through water with the speed of a dolphin, his tail streaming behind him.

“Do you know what you've done to anger me?” snarled the draconequus.

Sokolsky whimpered, tears now streaming from his eyes, and he screamed as the ground opened up and gave way beneath him to reveal what looked like a whirlpool filled with snapping piranhas. He shrieked in terror, trying to stop himself from falling. Just as he was about to hit the water he was alone in the forest again, as if nothing had happened.

He looked around in confusion. He felt as if he had just gone mad. It was completely silent. Had he lost the draconequus? He had to get out of the woods. He began to hurry in a different direction and suddenly the forest melted before him and he was suddenly surrounded by pony skeletons.

Only they were running alongside him. He shrieked again, continuing to speed along out of pure, unadulterated fear. A skeleton snapped it's teeth at him and whinnied almost as if it was laughing at him.

Discord's voice again: “I SAID, DO YOU KNOW WHY YOU'VE ANGERED ME?”

“No, nooo,” whimpered Snare.

“YOU DO!” said Discord, and he cackled, but it was an unearthly sound, almost as if it was made up of multiple voices laughing and fading into the background.

“I—I...”

A skeleton nipped at his flank.

“It's because I put you in a cage!” cried out the stallion. He knew he was running now out of pure terror and would probably hit a tree trunk soon.

“Close,” said Discord's voice, as if it was right by his ear. Sokolsky turned his head and through his streams of tears one of the grinning pony skulls seemed to wink at him with its eye socket. Even through his terror he was puzzled to see a flower crown on its head. “You are so very close,” it said in Discord's voice. “And it's true, I am not happy about that. NOT HAPPY AT ALL, but I'm afraid that isn't the main reason.”

The forest was melting around Sokolsky as he felt bony teeth nipping at his haunches and the skeletal figures giggling at him.

“I don't know! I don't know!” he cried.

“Do you want me to tell you?” asked Discord.

“Yes! Yes! Just please don't hurt me.”

“It's a secret,” giggled Discord in a whisper.

Sokolsky felt as if he was losing his grip on his sanity. “Tell me!” he wailed.

The whisper in his ear turned into a vicious growl mid sentence: “It's because you touched what was MINE.”

The forest crackled and the world melted around Sokolsky. He shrieked in terror as a void opened up in front of him. He could see galaxies and stars swirlling in the middle of the vast, inky blackness of space and he knew what the draconequus had planned for him.

“No! Noooo!”

“Oh, very yes.”

“I'll do anything! Anything you say!”

“Too late!” said the draconequus as if he was informing someone that tickets for a pop concert had sold out, and he threw Sokolsky into the void.

Snare screamed, and his scream seemed to go on forever. He was still screaming when he opened his eyes and realized he was inside a cage in the middle of the forest clearing.

Pinkie and Harry stared back at him. Pinkie had a smug little smile on her face. “Don't even try anything, Mister. If you tamper with those things above your head, they'll fire. If you mess with the lock, they'll fire. And they look like they could give some serious ouchies.”

Snare wept with relief.

Discord chuckled to himself. No one could ever say he was predictable. He teleported back to where he had last seen Fluttershy.

She was not near the log, but he had expected that. She would have moved off, and he felt for her. She was a quarter of a mile from him and then he was walking beside her.

She jumped, startled, then flew into his arms, sobbing with relief.

“Shhh,” he said. He was trying not to sob himself. The relief washing over him was overwhelming. For a terrifying half hour he was afraid he had lost her forever. “Fluttershy,” he whispered, and he held her close and inhaled the scent of her mane while she buried her face in his feathers. He snapped his fingers.

“Wha?” said Twilight as she appeared next to the cage.

“Well, that was novel,” said Rarity. One minute she and Seth had been combing the forest, the next they had appeared in the clearing again. Carmarella, bound and gagged, struggled on the ground in confusion.

“It's just Discord, you sillies,” said Pinkie.

Indeed, the draconequus and Fluttershy emerged from the woods.

“You're alright!” cried Rarity. The others ran towards them and suddenly Discord was being hugged from all angles, along with Fluttershy. He bit his lip as he felt it wobble slightly.

Applejack pulled back. “I think we should get her and her cowboy into that cage,” she said.

“Already way ahead of you,” said Discord, and he snapped his fingers. Carmarella and Ox landed on Snare, who yelped.

Pinkie strode over to the cage. “Now,” she began. “If you try to mess with the thingies above your head...”

“Well, that was a memorable weekend to say the least,” said Rarity, pulling twigs and leaves out of her mane as she and the others rested around the remains of the camp fire. Light was beginning to creep over the horizon.

“I'm sooo tired,” said Twilight. She hadn't felt this exhausted since cramming for her Transfiguration exam. “I'm going to sleep for weeks.”

“Hey, where are Discord and Fluttershy?” said Pinkie.

Applejack pointed with her hoof. The draconequus and pegasus were sitting away from the group on a leaf pile.

“I guess they need some time alone together to discuss things,” said Rarity. “They've just been through an awful lot.” She watched the pair, as they sat together, and she suddenly noticed their tails were intertwined. She managed to stifle a tight-lipped whinny of excitement as she realized what she was looking at.

Discord buried his muzzle in Fluttershy's mane as he wrapped his arms tightly around the mare.

“Are you okay?” she said softly.

He chuckled. “Always thinking about others over yourself. I guess you can't help it, Miss Element of Kindness.”

Her face suddenly felt hot. “Um...about that. I—I really meant it when I said I would never use it on you. There were times before, when I didn't know you very well and I was scared, and I thought I should have used it, but I never wanted to.”

“I know, Shy.” His fingers ran over her face, over her mane.

“Whoa! Three O' Clock!” said Applejack as she looked up.

“It's more like 6am,” said Seth.

“No, I mean look in that direction.” The others turned their heads to see the swanlike yin and yang of the princesses' wingspans gliding down towards them.

“Princess Celestia! Princess Luna!”

The alicorns landed gracefully, almost soundlessly, and Twilight noticed her library assistant and ward on Luna's back.

“Heh, I couldn't sleep,” said the little dragon, though he certainly looked like he wanted to. Twilight smiled. She suspected they'd both be snoozing for most of the day.

“Are you all alright?” asked Princess Celestia. The ponies all nodded.

“And Discord and Fluttershy?” asked Luna.

“They're...um,” said Rarity. “They're over there,” and she smirked and inclined her head towards the pair who were holding each other.

“Oh, my, Sister,” said Luna. “Shall we go and say hello, once more?”

“Yes,” said Celestia. “Let's.”

The alicorns strode towards the draconequus and pegasus and Discord happened to look up at that very moment. He recognized them both, and he was suddenly filled with a mix of fear and a sensation that was not altogether unpleasant. He had once considered these mares something like family, but it was the white alicorn that filled him with the most trepidation.

“Hello, Discord,” she said.

“Hi,” he croaked. Fluttershy turned at the sound of Princess Celestia's voice.

“Princess!”

“Hello, Fluttershy. I see you have done wonders.”

“I—I have?”

Princess Celestia smiled. “You have done much more. I sense a big change in Discord,” she whispered.

“It's not polite to do that,” said Discord, and to his surprise, the Princess chuckled.

“Where are the traitors?” commanded Princess Luna. Discord pointed with a claw towards the cage.

“Excellent,” said Luna. “All ready to be judged before a jury of their peers.”

Discord grinned. He was sure nothing could surpass the trial he had just put Snare through.

Celestia turned back to Fluttershy and Discord. “I see you have made friends,” said the Princess. “Friends who are more than willing to give everything to save you, to pledge loyalty to you.” She looked at Fluttershy tenderly. “Friends who are kind.”

The next look she gave Discord was harder, but not completely without warmth. “Do not forget this,” she told the draconequus.

He nodded, pressing his muzzle against Fluttershy's mane and looking at the ground.

“So how are we going to get these miscreants back to Canterlot?” asked Luna, looking at the trappers. Discord snapped his fingers. “Ah, yes. I forgot you could do that,” said the alicorn.

“Really? You forgot that?” He rolled his eyes at Luna.

“I did not forget the fright you first gave me in the library!”

He grinned at her. “You're not talking in the Traditional Royal Canterlot Voice.”

She shrugged. “I am trying to blend in.”

“That's a tad hard for an alicorn.”

Spike yawned loudly as he clung to Luna's wing feathers. “Ah, it seems it is past someone's bedtime. Sister, shall we depart? It's almost my bedtime. And you have a job to do.”

“I'll do it on the way,” laughed Celestia.

“Goodbye my little ponies,” she said to everyone. “Until we meet again.”

The midnight blue and pure white alicorns ascended into the air as the crowd below watched them.

Celestia felt the wind in her wings, as she pulled the fiery orb into the sky. It rose slowly above the horizon as she and her sister flew towards it, silhouetted in its light.

“So, Sister,” said Luna, as they flew. “Will you be living vicariously through a certain mare and draconequus?”

Celestia chuckled. “Maybe. But thank heavens for suitors, eh?”

“Oh yes, even if we have to keep them secret. That dashing unicorn noblestallion who came to the last Gala has really got my feathers ruffling.”

They laughed together, as only sisters could.

Spike snored on, happily oblivious.

Epilogue: One Year Later

Fluttershy was in the kitchen when the letter appeared in front of her in a silvery flash. She smiled to herself. She no longer needed to check the mailbox or even the envelope to know when she recieved a letter from Discord. She poured herself a cup of tea and took it out into the garden. She sat down in the sunshine while Angel Bunny grazed nearby.

Dearest Fluttershy,

An update!

Our 'honeymoon suite' is almost ready.

I know we aren't really married, but that's kind of what I like about you. You know that I don't need a contract or some traditional ceremony to know that I love you, and you love me, Canary-Horse, especially since I'm so handsome and witty and charming. Honestly, how did you resist a sexy creature like me for so long?

But I do want to do something special for you.

Wait until you see it! It took me ages to find the right tree, but it's got the perfect branch to sit on that looks out over the Nickeraguan rainforest. The tree house sits nicely in the canopy and the walls are covered with all this pretty glowing fungus. At night there are all kinds of moths and cicadas and their sound fills the air.I don't know if the monkeys living around here are the Monkey King's descendants, but they're still pretty noisy. I know you will love it, you nature dork. The bed is mostly made up of leaves, but I've made sure it's comfy with a quilt and pillows. I mean, sometimes weird bugs crawl out of the leaves. Stuff like beetles and centipedes, and things even I think have far too many legs, but Ricardo and Mortimer just eat them. Besides, I know stuff like that doesn't bother you.

But, if I may be serious for a moment (oh, my! Me being serious. Perhaps I have a temperature!) But, no...I wanted to say to you...

I...I want to thank you, Fluttershy. Thank you for being my friend, for being my protector, for being my mate. Without you I wouldn't be standing here, looking out over the trees and breathing in the fresh air. I wouldn't have friends. I wouldn't have the freedom to come and go as I please.

I wouldn't have my chaos magic back. I wouldn't be me. I'd be a non-entity.

All my love,
Discord.

Author's Note

Whew! Thank you all so, so, so much if you've made it this far and all your lovely comments. I had a blast writing this and didn't expect it to be as popular as it was! You are all amazing. Taking a bit of a break from writing now but I had fun!

All the Best,

Woolly

P.S. Have some moosic.

Prologue: The Hunters

The two ponies sat near the giant rock pile; it was one of the few sheltered places to hide and there was no telling where the beast was going to come from next, or what form of attack it had planned for them. Commodore was under no illusions that it would try something. As a hardened battle-worn stallion he'd seen his fair share of enemies. Things had been terrifying under King Sombra and it had taken months of fighting to regain peace.

But this...this was a different kind of horror. There was never any of telling what kind reality one might wake up to. The loss of control was terrifying. The sky was a different colour every day. Gravity would often disappear, and ponies would be flung upwards, until they hit a barrier in space and had to come back down again. Then there was the time no one could go outside without stepping into a dimension full of angry flying sharks. And all the while the beast laughed.

He turned to the grey, dark maned mare next to him. "I don't understand why we have to go to all this trouble. It would be easier to just kill him while he's down."

"You know we can't. Celestia wants him back alive."

"She's too soft hearted, that's why. For goodness sakes, how long has this been going on for now? We can't let it continue. There's no order, no society. No law. I don't want my foals to grow up in a world like that. Do you?"

Cleo shook her head. "'Course not. But we're under orders."

"Sometimes you have to question authority."

"Isn't that what started this whole mess?"

"Quite. But...this time we have the crystal."

Then the ground began to shake.

"Buck!" exclaimed Commodore.

Commodore aimed the crossbow at Discord's head. It was now or never. Cleo and the rest be damned.

Discord sat up and laughed.

"Ha! It's like you..."

There was a dull "thunk" sound, then everything went white.

Discord flailed in confusion, thrashing his snakelike body viciously. He fell of his locust cloud with a thump and scrambled to his feet. He couldn't see or smell or feel anything except the blinding pain in his head. Confusion quickly gave way to terror, and he put his arms out in front of him instinctively to fight off whatever might be heading towards him and to feel where he was going. He could hear the mare shouting something at her partner. He didn't even care.

Another object whizzed by him , grazing the fur on his neck and he yelped in terror, stumbling forwards. His lizard foot caught on a tree root and before he could reach out to grab anything he could feel himself falling. He hit the ground and felt sharp sticks and roots poking into his body, then he began to roll uncontrollably down what he could only guess was a hill. He hoped beyond anything that it was merely a hill, and didn't end in a cliff. On the way down his feathers seemed to be picking up pieces of plant matter that were painful- things like thorns and brambles and the ends of broken roots that would be harmless enough on their own, but with the force his body was travelling at they may as well have been shot at him. When his journey finally ended, it was because he slammed into the base of a tree.

Discord winced in agony. The trunk had hit him straight in the ribs and the pain in his side suddenly felt sharp and evil. He hoped nothing was broken.

Broken? Wait, how could he be broken? He laughed a little then instantly regretted it when he felt the sharp pain wash over him once more.

When it subsided a little he concentrated his mental energy on healing himself, reaching for the comforting, swirling chaos that was always there for him. Nothing happened.

"C'mon..." he growled desperately.

He tried pooling his magic towards the source of his pain, but once again he couldn't get a grip on his power. Panic started to grip him.

"Okay...okay. Let's not jump to conclusions..."

He decided less talking was in order, as that hurt very much and perhaps laying still for a bit while he recouped would be the best course of action. He lay there, breathing as softly as he could. He realized with horror that he hadn't felt pain since he had been a colt. That had been before he had managed to harness and control the chaos, which he felt was a contradiction in terms. Chaos wasn't exactly something that took to being controlled, and it was actually less that he controlled it and more that he was it. Either way, the chaos had kept things like physical pain at bay, until now. Then he felt a metallic taste in his mouth and realized that he still couldn't see, and he started crying. He instantly regretted that too. He couldn't even curl up to make himself smaller because of the way his ribs were hurting him. He knew the ponies were still close, even though he couldn't smell them, and he flattened himself against the ground, hoping desperately that they wouldn't find him when he was down. If they had shot something into his head then who knows what else they were planning for him, so he kept very, very still until he felt the air start to change and become cooler, which could only mean night was falling.

He whimpered as the cold made his pain worse. It felt as if it was creeping into his marrow and he gritted his teeth, trying desperately to resist the urge to curl up into a ball. He picked the cruel, sharp splinters he had gathered on the way down out of his feathery body, almost welcoming the relief the lesser pain gave him as it dragged his attention away from his ribs. He moaned and rubbed his antlered head against the ground, sobbing when he couldn't be silent anymore. Eventually, his agony gave way to exhaustion, and he was still.

He didn't know how long he lay there, and it didn't matter, because after a few hours he couldn't even remember who he was or how he had gotten there.

Winter into Spring: Hunted again

Quick note: I had anticipated updating this chapter about a month from now, but I suddenly caught the writing bug and just went for it. Strike while the iron's hot, I say! I don't know when I'll have a writing streak like this again, so I may as well go with it! Longer author's notes at the bottom of the chapter.

Zecora eventually returned to her home when the snow came, and it was not a moment too soon, for the night brought a heavy snowstorm which made parts of the Everfree impassible to anyone who didn't possess wings. She kept her hut warm with the cauldron boiling and the log fireplace. She melted snow everyday to get water and she lived off supplies she had gathered in the summer months; roots and wild nuts and berries and some things from Ponyville. Like Fluttershy, she occasionally used eggs to supplement her diet but Zecora collected them from wild geese and ducks, making sure not to take more than she needed and leaving a nest alone entirely if there were only one or two eggs.

The eggs were running low. She kept them in a pot of ash and dirt to preserve them for longer, but soon a diet of roots and nuts would be all she had until the snow melted and she could walk into Ponyville. She was just beginning to unearth the last egg for supper when she heard a distinct knocking at the door through the wind.

“What on earth? Who could that be. In this cold they'd surely freeze!”

She moved over to the door. “Who goes there?” she called cautiously.

“I'm a trapper!” came the reply. “We were tracking an animal in the woods and the storm hit. Can you let us in?”

Zecora balked. She wasn't fond of trappers. They still existed, she realize, but she questioned their reasons for doing so. Trapping was originally done to protect Equestrians from large and dangerous creatures, and that had been back when villages were very close to the wild. In fact, most ponies had once lived the way Zecora did, living off the land and not taking more than they needed to survive, but when dangerous wild animals such as timber wolves had started invading their camps, trappers and hunters were suddenly popular occupations. Modern day trappers sometimes had legitimate reasons for bringing down an animal. It could be carrying a deadly disease or had developed a taste for pony, but more often than not trapping was an excuse for poaching. Sometimes animals were sold abroad on the black market or worse, killed as curios. At one point in Equestrian history, snakeoil ponies claimed that manticore claws were an aphrodisiac and the demand boomed. It was only through conservation efforts that the manticore bounced back from extinction.

Despite all this, the zebra didn't feel she could refuse anyone shelter in this storm. She just hoped they hadn't caught anything and had it with them. She slowly opened the door a crack, keeping it on the latch so the wind wouldn't burst it open. She was met with a shivering mare and an even colder looking centaur.

“You may come in, this weather's foul. It is no good for folk to prowl.”

“Thank you!” said the mare, as Zecora opened the door, trying not to let it slam. “That's really good of you, lady!” As Zecora closed the door against the wind and locked it, she got a better look at the mare and her companion. They were both wearing snow boots and the mare removed her hood and moved closer to the fire.

“M'names Carmarella,” she said. “This here's Ox.” The zebra looked them over. Carmarella had a jet black mane, and her white coat was dappled with grey. Ox seemed a stoic sort of fellow, and like most centaurs was of stocky build.

“My name is Zecora,” she replied. “Why were you out in such bad conditions? What were you after, and what is your mission?” She spooned out some of the soup in her cauldron and handed the bowls to the weary travellers.

“You talk kind of funny, you know that?” grinned Carmarella, then she held up her hooves. “I mean no offense by that, y'understand. It's just unfamiliar to my ears. Since you ask, we were tracked a beast somewhere about a mile from here. We haven't spotted it yet but Ox here spotted its tracks in some mud about 2 months ago. At first we thought they were the tracks of multiple animals, because the way they looked didn't make much sense. But then we realized they repeated, and always in the same way. Anyways, storms came through, and the tracks are wiped out, but it was really strange. It was like a big cat, eagle, dragon and goat or sheep had all decided to stitch themselves together on one animal. Weird, huh?”

Zecora's blood had already run cold midway through Carmarella's story. Ox was quiet, except for the slurping sounds as he drank his soup.

“We think we may be dealing with some kind of chimera,” continued the earth pony. “Must be a pretty rare beast, since most chimera are kinda hybrid-like. Hey! Since you live around here you wouldn't happen to have seen anything...unusual, have ya?”

Zecora shook her head. “I have not seen of what you speak, and I have been holed up a week.”

“Yeah, well, if you happen to spot anything, we're currently based in Ponyville. Once the storm passes and we can be on our way, we'd really appreciate it if you brought any information on this to us if you happen to see anything.”

Zecora nodded, though she had no intention of doing so. Once the path back to Ponyville cleared and she could go to Ponyville for supplies, she would tell Fluttershy of this matter. Perhaps it was nothing to worry about. After all, they didn't seem to know who made the tracks.

“I have never heard of such a beast, not even from my home in the East. What is the danger to us folk, is the creature likely a joke?”

“You mean, like foals and stuff playing practical jokes? Nah, we don't think so. The prints were too neat. Besides, what foal would be out here on its own? Unless it had nutty parents. We're just checking the tracks out. If it's a new creature then we have to be sure it isn't dangerous to the residents of Ponyville.”

Zecora refrained from pointing out that the Everfree was a long distance from Ponyville, and that the creatures that lived here had more of a right to walk freely than any ponies that entered it. She was worried she might draw suspicion. Instead, she poured her own bowl of soup and added the egg, then said: “You are very welcome to spend the night, or until the storm clears and all is bright.”

“Thank ya, kindly!” said Carmarella and she and Ox began unwrapping their rucksacks and laying out sleeping bags. Zecora was thankful for an excuse to retire to her own bed, but she lay awake worrying as her impromptu visitors snored.

Fluttershy watched the snow fall down. The flakes seemed massive, and the white blanket outside continued to pile up, foot after foot. She was very thankful for a log fire and warm blankets and hot cocoa.

So was Discord, and he loved to add chili to his own mug of the sweet drink. He sipped the delicious mixture and stared out the window along with Fluttershy. He wasn't sure what she was thinking about, but she seemed to be staring into space as well as the snow.

It was boring. Being stuck in the cottage was boring. He still wasn't well enough to walk around on his hind legs, and his bones ached, especially in cold weather, which is what they were doing at that very moment. They felt hollow, and raw and sometimes the pain felt like it was pulsating.

He was very fond of the body sock Fluttershy had given him for Hearth's Warming for this very reason. That and it was all sorts of colours, none of which seemed to go together.

Discord's memory wasn't any better with regards to large and life-changing events, but he could remember general information. He knew what ponies were, and he knew his name, and he knew what things were. But beyond that he had to admit he didn't know much about himself, other than the pegasus had found him starving in the woods with a head injury, and he still didn't understand why she had taken it upon herself to look after him rather than depositing him with a doctor. There were other things he didn't remember. For example, he had been extremely surprised when Fluttershy showed him how to use a camera. He was convinced that some sort of magic was involved with producing the picture, but she had explaining to him it was merely technology, and then she had looked slightly uncomfortable. He also didn't know what Hearth's Warming was, and he wasn't sure if that was merely a pony custom that he was unfamiliar with or if it had been wiped from his memory entirely.

Unfortunately, he did feel extremely empty. Some days there would be an overall feeling of emotional numbness, and at first he had chalked it up to boredom, but after a while he began to realize it was something deep and intangible. He really did need to know more about why he was here.

He slithered over to the armchair Fluttershy was perched on and said “boo” quietly as his head popped up next to hers. Even though he had been really quiet, she still started. He grinned.

“What's up, Discord?”

“Welll….” he said, running the word off his tongue delicately, “I was hoping we could...talk.”

Fluttershy put her mug on the coffee table. “What would you like to talk about?”

“I think you know.”

She sighed. “Look, Discord, there are still some things I can't tell you, but what I will do is tell you as much as a possibly can, okay? You seem well enough now to discuss them.”

“Will you ever tell me the things you're keeping secret as well?”

“I...I hope I'll be able to.”

“I see.” It sounded like she wanted to but had no say in the matter herself. That was interesting. “Okay,” he folded his arms. “I'm listening.”

“Well...where to begin? Um, Harry and I found you in the woods.”

“Wait...who the heck is Harry?”
“Oh! Harry is a brown bear. He's hibernating now.”

“Oh.” Discord relaxed a little.

“Yes, without him I wouldn't have been able to carry you back. When we found you, you were starving to death…” She trailed off because she wasn't sure she wanted to mention the fact that Discord had attacked her at this point. Instead she continued, “when I got you to the cottage I checked you over and you had some injuries, so you were taken to the hospital and we removed the object from your head.”

“What was the object?”

Fluttershy squirmed. “It...it was some kind of crystal.”

“Interesting. Do go on.” She looked at him. His expression didn't look sarcastic, as she had feared, but instead he was now rapt. “After your surgery you were brought back here so I could look after you, but the doctors at the hospital said that it was likely you were going to suffer memory loss. Most ponies...most beings suffer from temporary amnesia, but very rarely, some can have their memories lost forever. I—I'm hoping that you are in the former category.”

He was silent for a moment, then said “How did the crystal get into my head?”

“You told me one of your memories involved a crossbow and two ponies. Is it possible that's what happened?” She hoped to coax the memory out of him rather than planting it there. She didn't want to patch together a story that could end up being false and have him think he was remembering stuff correctly when he really wasn't. It wasn't her place to do that.

“Hmm. It's possible. But I don't know who those ponies were, let alone why they would shoot me in the head.” He stroked his beard with his paw and thought for a bit. “Would I be able to see this crystal?”

“Maybe. It's still at the hospital. I could ask.”

“Now,” he said, “If you can't tell me who asked you to continue to look after me, then can you at least tell me why said person did?”

What was it Princess Celestia had said? She wasn't to mention her name because it might disturb Discord. But she hadn't said that she couldn't relay other information. “She told me that you used to be someone very dear to her.”

Discord knitted his brow and Fluttershy leaned forward hopefully in case he remembered anything else. “So this person is female.” Fluttershy wondered if she should have revealed the gender of the mystery pony, but decided that was vague enough and nodded.

“If I'm someone very dear to her, or, at least used to be, then why I am I being kept here instead of with her?”

“I---I honestly don't know,” said Fluttershy, telling the truth. “I wish I did.”

“And you didn't think to question her?”

“I didn't think I could!”

“Aha!” said Discord, rubbing his hands together with glee. “Clearly this is a person in a position of authority, otherwise you wouldn't feel so embarrassed about asking.” Fluttershy gawked. Despite Discord's amnesia he seemed to be analysing everything she said very intently and trying to put the pieces together like some sort of intricate puzzle.

“So, this person in authority used to care about me, or in her words I was 'someone very dear to her' and you don't feel like questioning them because you feel you have to do this.”

“I don't just have to do this. I want to do this!”

“Mmmhmm. And what happens to me after I can walk properly again? Or I regain my memories?”

“Well, that depends...”

“On what, exactly?”

“On how you feel about the situation.”

“Fluttershy, am I a prisoner here?”

She looked up suddenly. “N—no!”

“So I can just walk out that door any time I feel like it?”

“Well, um, I hope you wouldn't?” She pulled at her mane nervously. It was a habit she'd never grown out of.

“And why is that?”

“You're not well for one thing, and it's very cold outside and...”

“So when the snow goes away, and it's warmer and I can walk, you'll let me go on my merry way?”

She was silent.

“Didn't think so.”

“You aren't a prisoner, Discord. When it's Spring we'll go for a walk. Some fresh air would do us both good and you'll need to exercise your limbs to improve your health.

“But what if I want to go for a walk by myself, Fluttershy?”

“Um, I'm not sure about that. Obviously I would want you to be able to, but...”

“But Miss High and Mighty probably wouldn't allow it. Goodness. It sounds like the person in charge is some kind of Lord or Lady.”

“I'm just scared you'll get lost or hurt yourself,” squeaked Fluttershy.

He laughed. “Well, I'm not one-hundred percent now, but I'm pretty sure once I'm healthy I won't need a little pegasus too look after me. Besides...” his voice grew low, like a soft purr… “If I want to walk out that door in the future, how are you going to stop me?”

Fluttershy thought fast. If she admitted to him that there was a way to stop him, then he inevitably would feel like he was being kept here against his will. On the other hoof, if she said he was free to go, he might vanish and never come back. And if he regained his powers things would get even more complicated.

“Discord, I'm hoping that you'll choose to stay here with me,” she said. “Especially since you can't remember many things. I'd like to help you. Like I said, I'm your friend, and I hope you consider me your friend too.”

“I wouldn't know. As far as I know I might have never had any friends.”

“I'm sure that's not true.”

But he had already changed the subject. “How long did I have that thing in my head for before you found me?”

Okay, now this was a difficult question to answer, and she didn't know how to word it without risking a lot, or outright lying to him. On the other hoof, he seemed to remember so little that surely it wouldn't hurt to tell him? She tried to weigh up the options quickly in her mind.

“Fluttershy?”

“Over a thousand years,” she said.

Discord laughed. “Very funny, now tell me how long I was in that forest for before you found me. Or at least give me an estimate. I know you weren't there the whole time, but I know there are ways to figure this out.”

“That's the correct number of years,” she said. “Or near enough.”

“What? Are you nuts, mare? Nobody lives for over a thousand years except for powerful magic wielders and spirits. It's utterly impossible.”

“It isn't.” She decided she needed to tell him the truth and steeled herself. “You are the Spirit of Chaos.”

He stared at her, then burst into hysterical laughter. “Oh, Fluttershy!” he cried, wiping tears of mirth away from his eyes as he held his ribs. “You looked so serious when you said that! Almost as if you believed it! Oh man, where's the camera?” He began looking around the room for it. “I need to get that expression before the moments gone...”

“But I'm not joking! You are the Spirit of Chaos! You've been missing for thousands of years! Ponies thought you were dead but you were living in the woods with brain damage.”

“Oh yeah? Prove it.”

“I can't! But if your memories return then maybe you'll be able to tell me more about it, because apart from the identity of the person who used to know you, I've told you everything I know! Except of course about the part where you attacked me.

He was still.

“You're really convinced about this, aren't you?”

“I know it's a lot to take in,” said Fluttershy. “I was reluctant to tell you because I wasn't sure how you would react to it.”

“Okay, well answer me this Miss Flutter Nutter. If I am indeed some powerful Master of Chaos, then how come I don't have any magic, hmm?”

“I think...that may have been part of the brain damage.”

Now he looked angry. “How do I know you're not just trying to screw with me?” he growled.

“Why on earth would I do that?”

“I wouldn't know. I don't know who you're working for or what your motives are.”

“I honestly don't have any motives other than wanting to see you get better, and hopefully that you'll value my friendship.”

“Because that's what you do.”

“Because that's what I do.”

“Look, Discord,” she said. “I know this is hard, and I haven't given you much of a reason to trust me, but can you honestly say I've given you much of a reason to distrust me? Is there anything I've done to you to hurt you or cajole you into making you uncomfortable?”

He stared at the floor and sighed. “No...I guess not. There was that time with the pills...but...but you were just trying to help me.”

She moved off the armchair and walked over to him, placing her hoof gently on his lion paw. “I know this seems confusing and frightening,” she said to him. “I'd feel exactly the same way if I was in your position and I think you're doing marvellously.”

“I am?”

“Yes,” she said softly. “I don't know what I'd do if I had to go through what you're going through. I'm not as brave as you are. I—I'm scared of lots of things.”

He looked down at her, and slowly turned her small hoof in his paw, so that he was holding it, then knelt down to her level. “But you're not scared of me, and I'm supposedly the Spirit of Chaos.”

Fluttershy looked up at him. She found the image of the broken and scared draconequus before her hard to reconcile with what she'd read in the history book. She wondered again how much of it was accurate, and made a mental note to see if she could discuss any of it with Celestia. She'd have to ask Twilight; she felt nervous about asking the princess personally.

Discord gently let go of her hoof, then leaned across towards the coffee table. “Heh, my cocoa has gone cold,” he said. She smiled softly.

“I can heat it up again, if you like.”

“Oh, would you? I like it to be hot and hot at the same time. You know, like spicy hot with the chili and temperature hot? And maybe with marshmallows?”

She giggled. “I know,” she said.

They spent the rest of the evening in front of the fireplace, with Fluttershy reading on the armchair and Discord curled up on the bean bag. He felt a lot calmer.

Eventually he heard gentle snores coming from Fluttershy's direction and he knew she was asleep. He put another log on the fire and the ferrets chirruped in pleasure at the burst of heat. Then he padded over to the armchair and stood on his hind legs to get a better look at the pegasus. She had fallen asleep with the book on her chest. He read the title: Nesting Birds of the Shetlands by Barra McColtsky and chuckled. Fluttershy sure was into animals.

Despite topping up the log fire, there was still a chill in the room and he looked about for a throw or blanket. There was one on the sofa bed that he rarely slept on, and he dragged it over to the armchair, gently draping it over the sleeping pegasus. Almost without thinking, he pushed a strand of mane out of her face with his talon.

“I guess you saved my life, kiddo,” he said, then he stood there for a bit, and after noticing that Angel Bunny was giving him the stinkeye he retired to the bean bag and drifted off to sleep.

Unfortunately the night was not a peaceful one for the draconequus. His brain burned with feverish dreams; the first nightmares he'd had since the crystal was removed from his head.

He was in what looked like a forest, and he was running, but his legs were small and stumpy, and not the length they were now. He was reasonably sure he couldn't run in his modern state anyway, but the short legs exacerbated the problem. He was running on all fours, and the branches of the underbrush were hitting him in the face as he ran as fast as his legs could carry him. Then the scene changed. He was laying next to an animal that was larger than him, and crying. His paws and face and the fur of the animal were covered in blood and he kept burying his face in the larger animals fur and crying some more, until he heard the sound of a twig snap and turned and ran again.

Discord woke up screaming. The ferrets took flight up the stairs at the sound of the draconequus's terrifying cry. Fluttershy woke up with a yelp and pedalled her legs in the air like a bicycle, causing her to lose her balance and fall off the armchair. “Discord!” she shouted, when she had gotten her bearings. “Discord! Wake up! You're having a bad dream!” She ran over to him and shook him. “Wake up!” His eyes suddenly flew open and he stopped crying out, but his breathing was shallow. As he realized he was in Fluttershy's living room he sighed with relief.

“Are you okay?” asked Fluttershy. He looked up at her concerned face and said “I think I remembered something.” The pegasus felt like her heart was in her mouth, but she said “Yes?”

“Yeah, I was in the woods, and...and there was blood.” Fluttershy felt her breath hitch. “I was running from something, and...there was this kid. I think he was me, and there was another animal that looked sort of like me, only she was dead. She was dead, Fluttershy!” To her surprise he began weeping. “It was horrible. So much blood.”

“Shhh,” said Fluttershy, stroking his back. “You're safe now. It was just a bad dream.”

“Was it, though?” he sobbed. “Or was it a memory?”

“I—don't know for certain,” she replied. If it was a memory, she was surprised by it. She had expected his first longer memories to be of his time as ruler of Equestria or when he knew Starswirl and the princesses. This sounded like it went back much further than that. She sat down next to him on the bean bag.

A thought suddenly occurred to the draconequus. “Are there others like me, Fluttershy?”

“No,” she whispered. “At least...not now.”

“They killed her,” he whispered. “Stallions killed her. They came, with crossbows and they fired at us and I escaped. I escaped, but they tried to look for me but I hid in a tree. Then…then...” he broke down sobbing again.

Fluttershy hugged him and whispered reassuring words next to his ear. Discord couldn't bring himself to tell the pegasus the rest. He had watched them tie the dead draconequus by her hands and feet to a pole, and carry her off with them. He wanted to cry out to her but they would have heard him, so instead he sat in the tree and cried. The dream was so horrible. He could feel and smell everything as if it was real as being awake. “I don't ever want to be near stallions, Fluttershy,” he croaked.

“I know that dream was horrible, and I'm very sorry that happened to you, but not all stallions are bad ponies,” she whispered.

“They shot her.”

“Ponies are peaceful in modern day Equestria,” said Fluttershy. “We don't go around killing sapient creatures- or most non-sapient creatures for that matter, though some ponies eat fish and crayfish.”

“You eat fish?” he seemed disgusted by the idea.

“Well, I don't. But I do have some in storage to feed some of the animals. The ferrets need protein.” She decided not to tell him that he had happily gobbled up fish when she had brought him back to the cottage in a feral state.

As if on cue, the ferrets returned to the living room and resumed their warm spots on the bean bag next to Discord.

Fluttershy continued. “What happened over a thousand years ago wouldn't happen today. Over centuries equines have learnt to live in peace with other races and work together. In fact, someone I know is friends with a baby dragon!”

Discord began to relax a little and Fluttershy could feel his body slowly melting into the bean bag, but he was still wide awake. “I—I don't think I want to go back to sleep, Fluttershy. Can I have some cocoa?”

She patted him on the back and told him of course he could.

Zecora had the trappers with her for almost a week. It was a strain on the zebra. She was a loner, and used to doing things her way in isolation. Doing things alone helped her concentrate on spellwork and she found that difficult with the trappers constantly wanting to talk and eat. She ended up cooking for three daily instead of one, so she was relieved when the deep snow finally began to melt and the air became slightly warmer.

The trappers seemed relieved too. She grinned. She had a feeling they would get tired of eating nuts and roots every day.

“Thank ya kindly for letting us stay, Miss Zecora,” said Carmarella. “Now that the storm's cleared we'll be back to tracking that animal and making sure it's not a threat.”

I need to tell Fluttershy, and soon, but I will wait until the time is opportune. She wanted to make sure the trappers were long gone before she headed into Ponyville to gather supplies and talk to the pony. She watched them disappear down the path, then made herself some breakfast.

“Whaddya think of that ol' witch Ox?” Carmarella was saying to her companion as they trudged along the path. Ox grunted.

“Yeah, I agree,” said Carmarella. “She was kinda weird. But seemed nice enough and at least we got food and shelter out of it, but that cauldron stuff was freaky. Doesn't seem one-hundred percent natural if you what I mean. Not like when unicorns do their stuff.”

“Hmm,” said Ox.

“Anyway, let's see if we can spot any more of these tracks. Hopefully the melting snow hasn't wiped them all out. Shame it was so deep. The creature might have left tracks in the snow. Hey...what's that?”

Ox looked up to where his companion was pointing. There was a log in sight, and some of the snow hadn't completely melted around and on top of it, but there was also something off-white poking out from under the felled tree.

Carmarella began digging at the snow and was surprised to discover there was a pocket under the log. She continued to move snow out of the way and then found what she was looking for.

“Will you look at that,” she said, grimly. “These remains look pretty old, but someone's been feasting on pony. Check here...the cervical vertebrae have been crushed; that must have taken some force. Kind of the calling card of a top predator, to go for the neck like that. Maybe a mountain lion.” Ox nodded.

“There's probably not mountain lions any more in the Everfree so that's another clue this happened some time ago. Poor fella or gal. Probably never saw it coming.”

“Fluttershy, it's all melty and slushy outside!”

“I know it is, but we can't go very far.”

Discord didn't care. He was practically wagging his tail at the thought of leaving the house for the first time since starting his recovery.

“We'll walk round the back. There's a field there, and the pond has frozen over but we might still be able to see some birds.” Discord didn't particularly care about seeing birds. He just wanted to be outside.

Though Fluttershy didn't have any boots that fit Discord, she had been able to knit him some fingerless gloves. She had considered not providing the latter option, until she realized his claws and talons would have probably rendered an entire mitten moot. She had also bought him an extra long scarf from the market

“Hurry up, Fluttershy!” he called.

She laughed. “Just a minute, Discord. She was struggling with her boots but eventually managed to get them on. Then they were out the door.

The field behind Fluttershy's cottage went on for a few miles. It was one of the reasons she had moved to the place. Apart from being quiet, plenty of birds and mammals nested there, and in the Spring, newts spawned in the nearby pond. Insects such as rare butterflies and moths made the field their breeding grounds and in the summertime, the amazing sight of hundreds of dancing fireflies could be seen during the evenings. It was also an ideal place to exercise animals, as long as she kept an eye on them, which was just what she intended to do with Discord.

They walked along together. Discord was silent for the first half a mile, padding along beside her. Then finally he said “I can smell the warmth.” and sighed happily. Fluttershy beamed at his reaction. They reached the pond. Most of the ice had melted but there were still a few thin shards floating on the surface. Fluttershy was about to push back the ice with a stick, to see if she could find any pond life, when Discord suddenly bounded forward. There was a loud shrieking and several wading birds took off into the air.

He laughed. A genuine laugh. A sound she had not heard from him in a while. Usually when he made that sound it sounded sarcastic, like an auditory shield. Discord watched the birds fly off and grinned. “Is there other stuff hiding in the grass?” he asked her.

“Um...there might be...but...”

“Great!” He bounded off ahead of her. While he wasn't quite running at full speed it was amazing to see. He had filled out and his ribs no longer poked through his feathery coat. His long body moved like a weasel's as he bounded through the grass. Suddenly he pressed his body low to the ground, and she saw his shoulders twitch. Then with a loud shriek of joy he jumped forward and six rabbits bolted out of hiding.

She wanted to scold him. She didn't like seeing animals being scared, but at the same time similar sorts of things had happened when she walked dogs behind her house. They had the instinct to chase, but very few of them actually meant to attack the birds and small mammals. Discord still seemed to be retaining some of those instincts from his time in the woods and she had to admit that she liked seeing him happy. She sat down in the long grass and watched him.

When Zecora reached the cottage she knocked on the door and waited. There was no reply. She knocked and waited again but once again there was no response. It seemed Fluttershy wasn't in. That was alright, she could leave her a note. She put down her bags of supplies, pulled a piece of parchment from her saddle bag and quickly scribbled a note:

His tracks were spotted in the woods. Be on your guard. I don't think they know what he is, but I just felt you should know.

Zecora

She stuffed the note into Fluttershy's mailbox, hefted the bag of supplies back onto her back and made her way back up the path to the Everfree. She saw the mail mare coming up the path around the same time and nodded her hello to the grey pegasus who smiled back.

When Muffins reached Fluttershy's cottage she pulled out a medium-sized brown package and pushed it into the mailbox. It just about fit without her having to squash it, which was just as well as the package had “FRAGILE” marked on its surface with a red sticker. As she closed the mailbox and turned back up the path, she hadn't noticed that a small piece of parchment had fallen to the ground and was now blowing away on the breeze.

When Fluttershy and Discord returned to the cottage, he was grinning like a loon. To anyone who didn't know him it might have been a terrifying sight to see the rows of sharp teeth on display, but Fluttershy knew it was because he was happy.

“Can we go out again tomorrow?” he asked.

“I don't see why not! But right now I'd better let the chickens and ferrets out. They've been cooped up for a while too and I bet the chickens are dying to scratch at the dirt. Discord nodded, enjoying the breeze on his fur. He didn't care that it was still a little cold. Seeing the wide expanse of sky and the field had made him feel a lot better. Fluttershy let the chickens out and fed the ferrets and was just about to turn to go back into the cottage with Discord when she spotted the brown paper package sticking out of her mailbox.

“Oh my goodness!” she shouted, when she saw the address the package had been sent from. She quickly grabbed the parcel and carried it into the house quickly.

“What's got you so flustered?” asked Discord, who was now sitting at the kitchen counter and waiting for water to boil so they could have tea.

“This really shouldn't be out in the cold!”

He looked at her, deadpan. “Fluttershy, it's a box.”

“It's not the box, it's what's inside it! She closed the door behind her and joined Discord at the kitchen counter, sitting on a stool opposite him. She tore open the package and pulled out two pots. Though they had sealed lids, there were small holes punched in them. She peeled back the lids to reveal pots filled with moss.

Discord looked up at her with the same deadpan expression. “Fascinating,” he drawled. “Dead plant matter. Really, Fluttershy, I knew you were a bit odd but this is a whole new echelon.”

“It's not the moss, that's just to protect them.” He raised an eyebrow at her then turned his gaze down to look at the pots again. Then he noticed something was...moving inside them. A shiny almost chrome looking object poked through the bed of moss, followed by a small beady eye and a leg. Then the creature pulled itself out completely. It was about three inches long and a metallic green colour. Its head sported what looked like a horn that was almost as long as its body. It began to walk across the table on its six legs towards Discord.

“They're rhino beetles!” said Fluttershy happily. “And this is the female.” She moved the moss from the other pot gently and a smaller beetle crawled out. She still had a shiny, metallic green body but she lacked the horn of her male counterpart. “I'm glad they're moving,” said the pegasus. “It seems pretty cold for insects to be sitting outside in a box in this weather.”

Discord smirked. He decided that despite his misgivings, he quite liked how strange this girl was. He could have been saddled with a carer that was into doing taxes or interior decorating.

“What are you planning on doing with them?” he asked. “Are they abandoned pets?”

“Oh, no,” said Fluttershy. “These are from the Equestrian Entomological Society. They sent them to me because I wanted to study them.”

“So you don't just care for animals. You find things out about them?”

“Well one is very important to the other,” she explained. “The more I know about an animal the more I can find out how to care for a particular species.” Both beetles were pootling across the table now and seemed to be searching for something.

“I bet they're hungry,” said the pegasus. “I'll get them some fruit.”

After she had chopped some banana up and the tea was ready, she and Discord sat sipping from their mugs and watching the beetles eat happily. They were indeed hungry and the male even flexed his wings while taking chunks out of the fruit.

Discord had stopped looking at the beetles. He was looking into his cup of tea and running the tip of one of his furry fingers in circles over the kitchen counter top. “Hey, Fluttershy,” he said. “Can...can I come with you to the market next time?”

She looked up at him sharply. “Oh...um. I don't know if that's such a good idea,” she said.

“Why?”

“Well, um. Ponies might not be used to seeing...you.” She cringed as the words left her mouth. They sounded so awful.

“But I thought you said modern day ponies were fine with living alongside other creatures?”

“I did say that...but I...I'm not sure I'm allowed to take you to town.”

“Then why didn't you say that in the first place instead of claiming it was about how other ponies see me?” He looked angry now.

“I'm sorry,” she said. “I...I just meant that you're the only draconequus they will have seen in centuries, and I don't know how they're going to react to that, and I want to make sure that I can protect you.”

He laughed, but this time it was his sarcastic one.

“You, protect me? You're not even half my size!”

That hadn't been what she meant. She wanted to protect him emotionally. It was true that she had no idea how other ponies were going to react at the sight of Discord and if they frightened him or disturbed him it could lead to him being even more distrustful.

“I just mean...it might not be good for you at this point. Maybe later.”

He seemed to calm down a little. “So, eventually I can go to town with you?”

“I...I'd need to ask, but I want you to, don't get me wrong. I just think for the moment it might be good to have our walks nearby in the woods and field.”

Discord blew air hotly through his nostrils, then he got up from the chair, walked over to the front door and opened it. “You can't stop me from walking out this door.”

Fluttershy's heart felt like it was going to stop. Using the Elements now would be a disaster. Besides, she wasn't in danger, Discord was and if she called upon the others to use them then he might never trust her again. She chose her next words carefully. “Y—you're right, I can't, but I need you to trust me right now. I don't think this is the right time. I'll try my very best to get Pri—to get the person who told me to look after you to let you walk around freely when you're better. But you need to get more memories back first, Discord.”

He closed the door. At first she thought it was her speech that had gotten him to do so, but he was looking at her intently. “Pri…?” he asked her. “Were you by any chance about to say the word 'princess'?”

Oops. Her tongue appeared to have betrayed her several times over the past few months.

“Um, maybe?”

He chuckled. “So it's royalty that's keeping me here. No wonder you're afraid of questioning them.”

He thought for a moment. If he left the house and went to town, would he be arrested? Was Fluttershy keeping that information from him? The thought of being surrounded by heavily armoured stallions wielding spears sent a chill down his long spine and he gave the pegasus a wary look.

Fluttershy felt very frustrated that the peaceful mood had taken a turn for the opposite. She wanted more than anything to reassure him that he wasn't a prisoner in her home, but she was finding it difficult. Technically he was under guard, and she had been instructed that if Discord were to ever turn dangerous again that she had the right to protect herself and others, but she hadn't seen any evidence yet that he was dangerous post-surgery. She knew he hadn't gotten all his memories back yet, and that when that happened, he might have a different opinion of her. She hoped that her offer of friendship was enough to mitigate that.

“Fluttershy, I get that there are things you're not telling me and that you're probably under Royal Order, but I'm finding it pretty difficult to do as you asked me to and trust you.”

“I know,” she said softly. “As I said, I promise I'll do my best to change things. Remember, you were someone very dear to the Princess.”

He grunted non-committally at her, removed his scarf and mittens and flung them on the floor. “I'm going to bed,” he said. Then to her surprise he trudged up the stairs and into the bedroom, slamming the door. She sighed with frustration, rubbing her hooves on her temples. Discord had just locked himself in her bedroom and had decided he was going to sleep in her bed. Fine, if he wanted to behave like a stroppy teenage colt two could play at that game. She had nothing to be sorry for and there was no way he was going to let her feel guilty. She drank the rest of her tea, then placed the moss in a glass bowl along with the leftover fruit and pair of beetles.

Discord flung himself hard onto the bed. He was furious with the pegasus, but he was also angry that his brain wasn't working fast enough to recoup his memories. He felt like a scared and lost child, and the only memory he could recall was of being a scared and lost child. He sat up and looked around the room. He wanted to kick something, or shred the mattress again. He spotted the wardrobe. Maybe he would run his claws down it and enjoy the satisfactory feeling of shard of wood peeling back. He began walking over to it, but made the mistake of trying to do so on his hind legs and tripped. He hit the wardrobe head first and papers and books rained down on him from above.

He rubbed his sore head and groaned, then looked down at the documents surrounding him. He spotted his name at the top of one of the sheets of paper and began reading. It was his medical record. There was nothing untoward in the report. No mention of guards or royalty or being kept prisoner. All it detailed was stuff Fluttershy had already told him.

He peered down at the books that had hit him and a sudden grin spread across his face. “Well, well,” he chuckled. He was also amused to see there was a magazine along with them. After flicking through it, he picked up one of the books and brushed it off. The embossed title read: Love on the High Seas by Passion Promise.

He turned to a random page and read the words:

He pulled her close to his keel and she felt his feathery body embrace her as his beak groomed her mane.

'Oh, Gerard,' she whispered. 'I never knew it could be like this.'

'Nothing could keep us apart, my lady. I will do anything to make sure of that. It's why I became a pirate.'

Discord snickered. This was so badly written. Is this what mares were reading nowadays? He lay back down on the bed and turned to another page.

'My love,' said Gerard. 'Your mane shines as bright as the sun and you make my heart soar higher than any wings could hope to take me. Will you be my wife?'

'But no community would ever marry us!'

'We don't need a community. We will get married on the high seas and I will guard you until the end of time, my dear heart.'

Discord made gagging noises and tossed the book aside. He felt very tired all of a sudden and remembered that he had come up here to nap. Though reading the medical records and the amusingly trashy books had cheered him up somewhat, he still felt a little down. He decided not to think about it for the moment. The fresh air had likely tired him out and soon he had drifted off to sleep.

That evening the first warm front blew through Ponyville. The pegasi had been working hard to clear the remaining winter clouds and the warm winds were a very welcome addition to their work. Discord had left the window in Fluttershy's room open just a crack to let some air in, and when the front began to blow through he sighed in his sleep. The smell of Spring approaching calmed his head and soothed his soul and he began to dream.

Fluttershy was surprised to find Discord in the kitchen the morning, and she was even more surprised to see he had a smile on his face. She had expected him to still be angry with her, and had even worked herself up preparing to have an argument. So it was both welcome and confusing when Discord turned to her with a grin and flipped a pancake in mid-air.

“You're awake!” he said happily. “I made breakfast!”

“I—I can see that.”

“Have we got any more bananas? They'd be good with the maple syrup. And marshmallows if we have any. And maybe some hot sauce.”

She didn't question his odd tastes any more, and she climbed up onto the stool. “Pancakes would be lovely,” she said, “but...um...no hot sauce or marshmallows for me, please.”

He flashed a smile at her and began spooning out the pancakes. He even put some banana to one side for the beetles.

After a moment of chewing and swallowing happily, the draconequus said: “I had another dream last night. I think they are more memories! Only this time they were good ones!”

“Discord, that's wonderful! What was the dream about?”

“Chaos,” he said, grinning. Fluttershy's fork stopped midway to her mouth.

“Oh?” she said.

“Yes, and Fluttershy it was beautiful. You can't even imagine. I felt it running through my veins and it was like I was part of the stars, and the earth and everything.” His eyes were bright and alive. She didn't think she had ever seen them look so full of life. “I was actually able to run among the stars and move them across the sky. And then I floated back down to earth and landed in a swimming pool that was miles across, only it was filled with Neighapoliton ice cream instead of water! I swam up and down the different flavour stripes, only I was in a race against super fast turtles and then I lay on my back and looked up at the sky and a giant crocodile floated across it and ate the moon! It was glorious!”

Fluttershy shifted in her chair. She wasn't sure she would describe what had just happened as glorious. Seeing a huge monster eat the moon was likely to frighten most ponies, including herself, but she didn't say so. He looked so happy.
“But it was the feeling more than anything,” said Discord, stuffing another forkful of pancake drenched in hot sauce into his mouth. “Oh, and I was travelling all over the world! I could go wherever I wanted. And...” he leaned towards her and waggled his eyebrows. “There were ladies...”

Fluttershy felt a blush spread across her face, but she giggled nonetheless. “Ladies?” she asked, suddenly fascinated at what Discord was telling her.

“Oh yes. All sorts of ladies. One of them even became ruler of Anugypt.”

“Was she a jackal princess?”

“Oh, goodness, no! She was a many-tailed cat, and very beautiful.” He grinned at the pegasus. He had noticed the blush on her face. She didn't ask him if he'd had...encounters with any of these ladies.

“But, Fluttershy! It was amazing, and I'm so excited about getting the rest of my memories back! I can't wait!”

The pegasus was surprised. Discord had dreamt about chaos, and though it sounded kind of scary, there was no mention of the horrible things described in the history book. Was it simply that he hadn't gotten those particular memories back or was the book wrong?

Discord finished his pancakes, licking a mixture of maple syrup and hot sauce off his plate. “Fluttershy, it's really warm outside. Can we go for a walk today? I know we can't go to the market but can we go somewhere different, like the woods?”

“I don't see why not,” she said, smiling at him. She was glad that he seemed happy enough today to let the business with the market and the princess go. “I just need to feed the animals first then we can go.”

The weather was warm enough to walk without winter gear, and Discord and Fluttershy started down the trail. At first the pegasus was nervous that they might run into somepony on the way, but they managed to walk along the path of the open trail without seeing anyone before they turned into the wooded area.

There were quite a few birds singing already, announcing their joy at the sudden warmth. Some of the trees had buds growing on them, and some types of plants had even started blossoming. Along the way, Discord continued chatting eagerly about his chaotic dream.

“There was a river made of melted mozzarella,” he said. “And on the river were anchovy boats, where the anchovies had a hollow in their back and mice could sit in them and steer them, but the anchovies were alive and they even smelt of anchovy. The air was filled with the smell of cheese and anchovy!”

Fluttershy didn't think that sounded like a very pleasant smell but she smiled anyway.

Eventually they came to a clearing in the woods, where the sun shone through. There were even wildflowers beginning to grow in the clearing, hardy plants that seemed to be able to endure the colder spells.

Discord began bounding around, the way he had done in the field.

He ran around on all fours, not seeming to care that months earlier he couldn't stand on his hind legs.

"Hey, Fluttershy!" he yelled over and over and each time she looked up he flung his body into the wild flower patch and cloud of pollen rose up into the air.

She laughed at his silly display, and laughed even harder when the pollen started making him sneeze.

Suddenly she saw a flash of colour fly over her head, then another and another. The colours stopped moving and landed on the nearby branch of a tree overhead.

“Flowerpeckers!” said Fluttershy.

“What?” said Discord, who thought he had heard Fluttershy say a rude word and he stuck a finger in his ear and rubbed it around to clean it in case he had misheard.

“Flowerpeckers,” explained the pegasus. “They're rare birds. I've only seen them a few times. They drink from flowers but I've never been able to get them as close as hummingbirds. I can get hummingbirds to sit on my shoulders, but Flowerpeckers are skittish. They must have just come back from their winter home in Mexicolt.”

“Hmm,” said Discord, looking up at the colourful birds. Their beaks were long, but unlike a hummingbird, slightly curved. “Hang on, let me try something. Come here.” He shook the pollen from his feathers, prompting another sneeze and beckoned to her. At the sound of his sneezing the Flowerpeckers flew upwards then resumed their spots on the tree branch.

Discord began plucking the flowers off the bushes and she felt his paw and talon begin delicately working them into her mane. She blushed, thankful that he couldn't see her face from where he was sitting. He continued to place flowers in her tresses. It tickled a little. She was surprised at such close contact from a male. Was he flirting with her?

Don't be stupid, Fluttershy. He's in your care, you shouldn't even be thinking such things, even if they're not from your end.

It was stupid to think it came from his end too, though. He was only putting flowers in her hair. Wait...why was he putting flowers in her hair? He didn't think that…

"There," said Discord, standing back to admire his handiwork. "Now, just wait a moment. Keep still,” he said. “I'll wait in the bushes.” He walked into a more wooded area and watched. She looked up at him and he nodded to her and gave her a thumbs up.

“Wha...” She felt a soft poke near her ear then noticed a flash of colour near it. Then another. Then suddenly she was surrounded by five birds and they were all drinking nectar from the blossoms in her mane. She laughed. Why hadn't she thought of this before? And how did Discord know this trick? She wondered if he'd encountered Flowerpeckers before on his travels. Suddenly he bounded out of the woods and the birds scattered.

“Hey!” said Fluttershy, but she couldn't help smiling.

“Sorry,” he grinned, in a way that implied he wasn't sorry, “but it was difficult to resist.” He lay down on his back and folded his paw and eagle talon over his chest. She didn't think she had ever seen him look so relaxed. He wiggled the toes of his dragon foot and twitched his tail back and forth contentedly. He sighed, enjoying the warmth flooding over his feathers and fur. He turned his gaze to the pegasus sitting alongside him. She was looking back up at the tree branches to see if the Flowerpeckers were still around. Her mane pushed to the right of her body and her shoulder was exposed. Discord turned onto his side. “Hey,” he said, “there's some sort of mark on your upper leg, just here,” he reached out with his paw to run his fingers down the scars and she turned at looked at him. Discord was just stretching out his fingers as if to show her what he meant when he saw them line up with the three lines dug into her skin. She watched as the carefree smile on his face changed to an expression of horror and she realized that he had figured it out.

He sat up quickly.

“Discord...” she began.

“Why didn't you tell me?” he growled.

“It doesn't matter,” she said.

“Really? It doesn't matter enough for you to hide it from me that I attacked you?”

“You weren't in your right mind! You were starving!”

“Is that supposed to make me feel any better? The fact that I was starving? That means I tried to kill and eat you, and if I was starving for that long who else did I eat?”

“There's no proof you ate anyone!” she shouted.

He looked sick, then he started talking rapidly: “Fluttershy, we have to go up to the Everfree. Take me to the Everfree. We can go up there today, the weather's good. I need to go.”

She knew what he wanted to look for and shook her head. “We can't go up there today. It'll be dark in a few hours and it would be hard to find our way back.” She didn't want to go up there. She didn't want to upset him further. He was bafflingly mercurial and she wondered if his moods were unstable because of the injury he had suffered to his head.

“But I need to,” he said.

“We'll go up there eventually,” she said. “I have a friend who lives up there, but it's too late today, and I want you to calm down a little before we do go.”

“Can we go tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow's too soon. I need you to be calmer.”

“I'm calm,” he insisted. “I'm very calm. I've never been so calm in my life.”

She knew he was lying. His voice sounded rapid and clipped and he looked like he was shaking.

“We should go home,” she said, picking the flowers out of her mane. “I don't want you worrying about this. It isn't good for your recovery.”

He flopped down on his belly. “I feel sick Fluttershy.”

She moved closer to him and spread a wing over his back.

“Shhh,” she said. “It's okay.”

“Is it?”

She rested her head on his neck. “We'll make sure it's okay,” she said softly.

The light was beginning to fade when they arrived back at the cottage. Angel Bunny clanged his tin plate against the floor angrily.
“You'll have to wait,” said Fluttershy firmly. She was in no mood for anyone's nonsense right now. She watched Discord carefully as he entered the house. He almost seemed to be dragging his body behind him. He curled up on the bean bag and closed his eyes, his ears flat against his head. She moved across to sit next to him.

“Listen, Discord,” she said. “Whatever happened, you were only doing what your instincts were telling you to survive.”

“So you're totally okay with sapient creatures killing other sapient creatures.”

“I'm not, but this is a different situation entirely. I look after all sorts of creatures in my adoption business. Some of them eat things no pony would eat, but I understand they have different needs. Sometimes I have to be careful, like if I'm looking after an owl and I have pet mice at the same time, but there's no way any of those creatures are evil. They're just doing what they need to.”

“But none of them killed anything sapient,” Discord pointed out.

“Well, no. But as far as we know, neither did you.”

He ran his paw across his face and sighed. “Can I have some time to myself?”

“Sure,” she said softly. She got up to prepare the feed for Angel Bunny and the rest of the animals.

Discord was quiet for most of the evening, but she stayed near him. She had gotten the beetles out of their enclosure and had a sketchbook in front of her. The female beetle was busy eating the remaining banana, which had turned to mush, and the male walked back and forth across the floor. Fluttershy worked quickly each time the beetle did a circuit.

“Um, excuse me, Mr. Beetle sir,” she said softly. “But if it's alright with you I'd quite like to draw your mesosternum. Would it be possible to turn onto your back for just a teeny tiny second?”

The beetle paused, then tossed its horn haughtily and walked away from her.

“Oh, okay then. That's okay...” said the pegasus.

Suddenly Discord was on his feet and he quickly picked up the insect and turned it on its back in front of the pegasus.

“Discord, no!” she cried.

“Why not? Isn't that what you wanted?” he asked her. “You're going to let an insect be that upstart towards you?”

“I don't care if he's upstart towards me. I only want to study him, not frighten him!” The beetle scrabbled, waving its six legs in the air desperately.

“I'm sorry, Mr. Rhino Beetle!” she said, and tipped him over so that he was on his feet again. The beetle spread its wings and took off across the room, away from the draconequus. Its wings made a sound like a motorbike. The female followed soon after.

“There was no need to do that,” Fluttershy told Discord.

“It's just a bug,” said the draconequus.

“It's a beetle, actually. Bugs have sucking mouth parts and beetles have jaws and elytra.”

“Whatever. A bug, a beetle. It's just an insect so what's the big deal. I turned it on its back because you wanted to draw it.”

“But you can't force a creature to do something it doesn't want to do! How would you feel if I made you do something that made you extremely uncomfortable?”

“Oh, Fluttershy, what would you know about being uncomfortable?” he spat.

“A...a lot, actually...”

He suddenly remembered what she had told him about her parents. “I—I'm sorry,” he mumbled.

“It's okay,” she said softly. “But maybe you should apologize to Mr. Rhino Beetle instead of me.”

“Oh...um. Okay.” He walked across the room to where the beetles were clinging to the window blinds. “Uh...bug. I mean, beetle, I'm sorry I turned you on your back. No hard feelings?”

The beetle squirted banana fluid at the draconequus. “Oh, for the love of...” he wiped his face but looked up sharply at the sound of a snort. Fluttershy's face was read.

“Sorry!” she squeaked, “It's just..." She smirked and snorted again and then laughed outright.

“Oh, very funny,” said the draconequus, placing his hands on his hips. “I do the polite thing and apologize to your vertically challenged friend here and he repays me by emptying the contents of his digestive system on my face. And you seem to find this hilarious!”

“I'm sorry,” she said again, trying to cover her mouth with her hoof, “I can't help it.”

“Oh? So you want to laugh eh?” he said, grinning. “Well wait right here!” He ran up the stairs. She watched, puzzled and wondered if he was going to lock himself in her room again. Instead, to her utter horror, he came down the stairs carrying one of her romance novels and the magazine she usually kept hidden away.

“Discord, no!”

He laughed at her. “Shall we start with a passage from this fine novel?” he said, opening Love on the High Seas. He cleared his throat and began to read:

'Jasmine, you make me as happy as a songbird, but your lovely flank makes me feel like a rooster on the prowl!'

Fluttershy's face was burning.

Discord changed his voice to one that more feminine sounding:

'Oh, Gerard,' blushed Jasmine, 'Take me now, under the moon and stars while the Easterly wind is blowing!'

Discord switched to a masculine voice again:

'That won't be the only thing that--

“Stop!” shouted Fluttershy. She was sure her face was the colour of a ripe tomato now.

“But I'm not done!” laughed Discord, and he dropped the book on the floor and opened the magazine. Fluttershy suddenly wished that the floor would open up and swallow her.

"Ooh! Lookie here!" he grinned, turning the magazine sideways to a page with a male griffon. "He's got a pretty big wingspan, hasn't he...among other things."

"Give it back!" she shrieked in mortification.

Discord laughed. "But I haven't gotten to the end yet! I..." he glanced down at the pegasus and the grin on his face faded.
She was in floods of tears.

She screamed at him wordlessly in anger and fled to her room. Discord dropped the magazine, looking fearful and perplexed.

He didn't understand; she was just a normal girl as far as he was concerned. Why was the magazine such a big deal? He needed to know.
The bedroom was in darkness and he reluctantly pushed the door open a crack. The light from the hallway showed a pegasus sobbing with her muzzle buried in her pillow.

"Fluttershy, I was only teasing. Like with the bunnies. I..I didn't realize this was going to upset you that much."

She sobbed harder, her shoulders shaking.

He stood in the doorway awkwardly. He really didn't want her angry with him, but the crying made him feel even worse. Reluctantly, he made his way over to her and knelt by her bedside. He wanted to reach out to her with a comforting paw but thought better of it.
"Fluttershy," he said. "I...I honestly don't know what I did to upset you, but if you tell me I can make sure not to do it again?"

She took a deep breath and sniffled. "You...you think I'm a pervert," she said.

His ears pricked up in surprise and alarm. "No! What? Because you have some romance novels and a magazine? I just thought the writing was bad!"

"Because they're not about ponies," she whispered.

"So?" Discord was genuinely confused. “Ponies and other species live and work alongside each other, don't they?”

"I don't know anyone else who has an interspecies attraction," she said.

"Yes you do."

"I do?"

"You're talkin' to him."

She rolled over to face him. Her face was streaked with tears.

"Now, somehow I think I missed the memo, but in MY eon, interspecies relationships weren't a rare thing at all. Probably because there were a lot more races and species. Now there seem to be mostly ponies...so I'm guessing it's not as common a thing now?"

She nodded. "I...I guess so."

"Why does it not being common make it wrong?"

Her face turned scarlet. "I...I don't know." She was torn between wanting to talk about this with him, and still being angry with him that he had gone through her private things. He seemed to have a lot of wordly wisdom despite his childishness. He was a plethora of paradoxes.
"Have you ever told anyone about this?"

She shook her head. "I...I'm afraid about what other ponies would think."

"Ever met any hunky griffons?" said Discord teasingly, batting his eyelashes. "Maybe a big strong bird like King Grover?" Despite herself, she giggled. "Um...no," she said, smiling. "I...I don't go to bars or anything like that."

"Ah, I see," he said, remembering the romance novels. It was more likely that was the type of thing she was seeking. "I'm probably not to best person to ask for advice on the relationship side of things. What I can tell you, however, is that you're a normal, healthy girl who has needs and you aren't hurting anyone, so why the shame?"

She shook her head and shrugged. "I had a coltfriend but, it...didn't work out. I'm just not that attracted to stallions. We broke up. I'm worried I hurt him and that makes me a bad pony."

This time Discord did reach out to her and patted her back reassuringly. "Fluttershy you are not a bad pony, trust me on this. No one can choose who they're attracted to. It's a very....chaotic thing," he finished with a grin. "Also, if interspecies relationships are as rare as you say in modern day Equestria, then it's very likely anyone else who feels similar kinds of attraction keeps it hidden too. That's why the bars exist, but they might not always be safe for a mare on her own. My point is I'm sure there are others like you out there, but they're just as afraid to talk about it. But hey, if you ever do wanna talk about it, I consider myself the authority on such things." He raised his antlered head haughtily.

She snort-giggled at his bragging and his smug face. Discord could be so silly looking sometimes. He raised his eyebrow at her in confusion which made her laugh harder.

He was about to ask her what was so funny when he felt her arms wrap around his middle and her head rest against his chest. "Thank you, Discord," she whispered.

"Erm...you're welcome?" he said. At least she wasn't crying anymore. She let go and sank back onto the bed. "I...I'm really tired," she said. She decided she would calmly explain why going through someone's personal things was considered rude tomorrow. Right now she wanted to go to sleep with the comforting notion that someone understood her a little.

He nodded.

"Good night, Discord. And thank you."

"Good night, Fluttershy," he said softly as he pulled the door shut.

He walked down the hallway and stairs to his own bed made up on the sofa. He pulled the blanket over himself and sighed. He was pretty tired too. He placed his talon and lion arm on his chest and stared up at the ceiling. Then he held up his forelimbs and stared at them. Yes, they were very griffon-like and he did share some features with griffons, the talons especially. He had a feathery body and—why was he even thinking this?

He turned onto his side and placed his hands under his head.

Whatever, he thought. It had been a while, that was all. He'd dreamt about beautiful ladies he'd met on his travels the night before and he was getting stronger every day so it was only natural that his mind was travelling in that direction. When he had been an animal in the woods, he had rarely thought about his needs in that particular regard because he had been too unhealthy or desperate for food for it to be a priority. Now he was healthy, and growing healthier by the day. He pushed the thoughts out his his mind and curled up, pulling his limbs and tail close to his body and making himself as small as possible. Maybe the chaos would return when he walked in dreamland.

Carmarella and Ox arrived back at Ponyville that evening.

“We're gonna have to tell the authorities about that skeleton,” said the mare to her companion. “I dunno how long it's been up there but if we've got an even better reason to be up there trapping then I'm gonna take it.”

They were staying at an inn called the Hippocampus Arms. As they walked into the lower floor of the inn that served as a pub, the other patrons turned to look at them and mumbled amongst themselves. Carmarella ignored them. She walked up to the bar and sat down on one of the high stools.

“Some cider for me and my buddy here,” she said to the bartender, tossing some bits on the counter, then she leaned forward and dropped her voice so that the others wouldn't hear. “I'll give ya extra if you can do me a favour.”

The bartender was silent, until he saw the mare push more bits towards him. “I'm listening,” he said.

"I'm trying to get in contact with a guy called Sokolsky Snare. You heard of him?"

The bartender was silent. Carmarella sighed and pushed more bits across the bartop.

"Come back when it's quieter," he said. She nodded and sipped at her drink, but inside she was filled with glee.

Author's Note

Usually when I write about Discord's childhood his mother is literally Mother Nature and is more of a force than a corporeal being. In this story Discord actually had a draconequus mom. I'm not going to go too deeply into this because I think Alara Rogers has already done a much better job than I could ever do with regards to draconequus society and family units (see her stories The Last Draconequus and parts of Not The Hero.) What happened with Discord and the female draconequus are important to his psychology in this story though.

A keel is the breastbone of a bird, and is only found on birds that can fly. It's not a euphemism!

Flowerpeckers are real birds, but I'm kind of writing them as an imaginary Equestrian species. For one thing, actual Flowerpeckers are native to Australia and thus live nowhere near the pony equivalent to America. Also my versions have longer beaks and can fly in a way similar to hummingbirds.

Now I really don't know when the next chapter will be up--whenever the writing bug hits me again I suppose, but it shouldn't be for more than a month at the longest.

Autumn: Don't believe the lie that your dragon needs slaying

Don't tell me a woman did this to you

Cause your wild card Boy needs playing
Don't believe the lie
Your Dragon needs slaying
Won't you lay here with me
And I will bring
Kisses for the beast

Lay here with me

-Tori Amos

Discord was on his fifth library book. It was a volume on fractals. He was completely absorbed in it. It illuminated quite a few things even he had questions about. He was about to turn the page when the door burst open revealing a wild eyed and windblown Fluttershy. Discord stood up. "Hey, hey, Shy! What—what's wrong?” He led her over to the couch while she tried to catch her breath. Discord waited until Fluttershy was able to talk again. He had come to realize he hated seeing her upset, no matter what the reason.

“S'matter, Shy?” he asked, taking one of her small hooves in his paw.

Her ears were flattened against her head. “Snare,” she said, letting out a deep breath. “He has photos of the remains of ponies and your tracks are next to them.”

He looked at her in horror. “So...I did kill ponies?” He felt bile rise in his throat.

“I don't care!” she shouted. “I told you I knew this was a possibility. You weren't in your right mind, and that's what I told them.”

“So that's what the meeting was about? I'm the emergency?”

She nodded sadly. “The mayor has given you a week to leave.”

“Leave?! Leave and go where?”

“The Everfree. Maybe further. I don't know.”

“I'm not leaving.”

“Discord, listen to me. We tried to convince the townsponies you weren't a threat but I don't think they're going to listen to us. Snare has them swayed with the photos. He's creating hysteria. Maybe you could go to Canterlot Palace and Princess Celestia could put you under her protection there.”

“And then what? I live as a pariah in some stuffy castle?”

“Once the Princess finds out what has happened I'm sure she'll put a stop to this.”

“I'm not leaving. Everything good in my life is here. Right here.” He ran his talon through her mane. “Besides, I have magic to protect me.”

“Discord, please! Listen to me. I don't know what they're going to do after a week. We have to go to Canterlot. At least there we can figure things out. And if you use your magic they'll just use it as another excuse against you. Please please listen to me.” She was crying now.
He looked at the ground and finally sighed. “Okay, Shy. I'll go.”

“You will?” she sniffled.

“Yeah. I don't want to but you always seem to know what's best for me. I mean, I'd rather stay and tie pony's tails in knots then tie them together and swing them from a tree like a tetherball but I have a feeling you'll dissuade me from that.” He chuckled.

She hugged him in relief. “We'll leave tomorrow,” she said.

He looked at the floor again. “Did you really stand up in front of a bunch of ponies and argue my case?” asked Discord.

“Uh huh,” said the pegasus, still sniffling. Discord thought of her standing in front of the crowd, a fiery look in the mare's eyes as she defended him. He knew Fluttershy was afraid of many things, including crowds, and the thought of her standing up for him sent a fierce wave of amazement and tenderness through him. He pulled back to look at her, and was dismayed to see that she was now sobbing.

“I'm a failure!" she wailed. She was crying in sharp, convulsive gasps now and seemed inconsolable. "I tried to convince them but I'm a screw up, I'll always be a screw up! I can't do anything right, I..."

He was kissing her and it was only afterwards that she realized just how good at it he was. When his lips pressed against hers and he worked his talon into her mane, she felt a shiver shoot down her spine and pool into the lower part of her body, making her blush hard. His talon moved to her face and he cupped it in both hands as his tongue begged for permission against her lips. She parted them and he tasted her, their tongues intertwining. She forgot about her tears as the feeling at the base of her spine started to uncoil. Discord came up for air and buried his face in her shoulder, his talon moving back to her mane. "You are not a screw up, Fluttershy," he breathed into her neck. "Take it from the world authority on that subject, you are the furthest thing from screw up I have ever seen."

Part of the reason he had his face buried in her shoulder was he was afraid. He had just thrown all caution to the wind and kissed her. There was no going back now. Yes, she had kissed him back but she could change her mind at any time. Maybe she was being polite. Maybe he had just crossed a line.

But any worries he had on that front were quickly vanquished when she delicately touched his cheek with her hoof. He looked up at her, the tears on her face were drying. Her heart was beating rapidly. He was a person. Discord was a person. A person who cared about her.

Her soft lips met his again, this time at her commencement. Discord's heart leapt and his tongue wasted no time in exploring her sweet mouth again. Aw, god. She tastes so good.

Fluttershy was beginning to wriggle out of her coat, and Discord's eagle hand moved to the soft exposed fur and skin on her chest. He wanted to go further, but this wasn't some roll in the hay. He needed to be sure. He swallowed hard, hoping the words he said next weren't going to sound like he was croaking and had a dry throat. He was relieved that they didn't: "You're an amazing mare, Fluttershy, and if you'll let me, I would very much like to make love to you."

"Yes."

"Wh-what?" he said, feeling like an idiot once the word had left his lips.

"Yes, Discord." Her coat was on the floor now and she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him once more. Dammit, this was her life and she was going to enjoy it.

She had kissed him hard, surprising him, and his eagle hand began to move over her soft fur again. She moaned at his touch and the sound made his feathers rise a little. Feathers. Feathers like a griffon, limbs like a griffon, but he was not a griffon and he was part pony and she found him, very, very attractive.

Suddenly his paw and talon hand slid under her carriage and he lifted her up in his arms. She sighed happily and rested her head against his chest and he floated across the living room and up the stairs with her. He kicked the bedroom door open with his dragon foot and they fell into bed together.

Afterwards they lay together in the dim light catching their breath. Discord felt rubbery, as if all the tension had left his body as he enjoyed his afterglow. Fluttershy's hoof rested on his chest and he placed his paw over it, his talon arm holding her tight against him and his muzzle nuzzling her mane. Discord had lain with many beings, male and female, pony and non-pony, but the feel of Fluttershy's body pressed against his own felt so sweet and he wondered if he had ever felt this way about anyone else. He unconciously ran the tip of his eagle talon across the scars on her withers. She sighed happily and soon she was snoring gently, and after a moment he joined her.

Some hours later he felt her nuzzling his neck and he knew she wanted him again. He shifted and his lips found hers once more. The draconequus lost himself in her again and again, completely surrendering himself to bliss and pleasure until she cried out and they collapsed against each other breathlessly.

This time sleep came to him a lot faster, and that was when he began to dream.

The emotions he felt were both blissful and terrifying in equal measure. The images passed behind his eyes, faster and faster until the thundering roar took him, and in that moment, he remembered who he was.

He remembered everything.

He came awake with a start and almost panicked when he saw the pink mane draped over his body. He stumbled backwards out of the bed, his heart pounding, his palms sweaty, his breath almost reaching a state of hyperventilation.

She was still asleep, and he walked backwards, stumbling against the door. He heard the clink of metal hitting the floor and he realized his back had brushed against Fluttershy's saddlebag hanging on the door hook. He looked down at the object dumbly. It looked like a metal necklace. In the centre something glinted back at him. He bent down and picked it up and promptly dropped it again when he realized what he was looking at. It felt like he had been stung.

He heard Fluttershy shifting on the bed and she sat up and looked at him with bleary eyes. “Discord, what...”

“Don't come any closer!” he snarled.

She looked at him, wide eyed in confusion. “Discord, what's wrong? What's the matter?”

“You know very well what the matter is,” he growled. “You—you were working for her! All along! And that whole thing about trying to get me to Canterlot Palace. What an idiot I was!”

“I don't know what you're talking about!” said Fluttershy truthfully. She was beginning to feel frightened.

“Still playing the 'innocent mare' card I see,” said Discord, his hackles rising. “When were you and your friends going to use those things on me. Tell me the truth.”

“We never wanted to,” said Fluttershy, who was now trying not to cry. “I definitely never wanted to. They were just for protection. We didn't know you then.”

“Bull!” screamed the draconequus. How could he have been so stupid as to trust a pony? He'd done it before with Celestia and look how that had turned out. Celestia. She clearly wanted to immobilize him, maybe even destroy him. His heart ached as he looked at the pegasus mare in front of him. She had felt so good.Her huge blue eyes were tearing away at him even now. How could have he ever thought she had feelings for him? He had laid Equestria to waste and she—she was meant to be kindness. Except she just wanted him captured and trapped, under the orders of a Princess. He should have grabbed her mane and held a talon to her throat. But he couldn't.

He couldn't.

He growled in pain and turned away from her.

“Discord,” she was trying so hard not to cry. “Did your memories come back?”

“You weren't counting on that, were you?”

“I was! I need to explain!”

“Too late for that,” he said quietly. “Don't you dare come near me again.”

Then he ran towards the wall and through it.

“Discord!” cried Fluttershy. She ran to the window and saw his form moving swiftly across the bridge. He was running on all fours like an animal. She sped down the stairs, leaving her Element behind her.

Discord ran and ran. He still couldn't teleport long distances, and that didn't really matter to him at this point. He preferred to run, run while the brush and undergrowth scratched at his feathery body and furry neck. He needed to run. There was so much energy building up in him and he felt it crackling around him as he sped through the foliage. His heart twinged and twisted in agony and he knew things were disintegrating and becoming unravelled around him. Trees broke into slices as he ran past them and toppled like towers made of blocks; bushes burst into blue flames; wind and rain slammed into him.

Then he felt a sharp pain in his dragon leg and he fell hard, his jaw slamming into the ground and his body twisting as he plummeted through the undergrowth. He came to a standstill in a ditch and lay there for a few seconds, feeling dazed.

That was when he realized his dragon leg was still experiencing blinding pain. He twisted his long neck and turned his body so he could look at it. He was bleeding, and there was something that looked like a piece of glass sticking out of his leg. He hissed at the pain, and immediately focused on his magic so he could remove it. Nothing happened. He tried again and instead a wave of nausea overcame him.

Whimpering loudly, he tried using his eagle talon to pick the object out of his flesh, but he couldn't get a decent grip on it. He heard the crunch of hooves on the leaves, and glanced up to see a mare standing over him, aiming a crossbow at his head. Something glinted in the weapons flight groove and he suddenly realized what was in his leg.

“Get up or you'll feel a lot more than a little splinter in the leg,” said Carmarella firmly. The draconequus got to his feet slowly, but he only manage to balance himself on three legs. His dragon leg was killing him with pain.
“That'll do,” said the mare. “Now walk slowly in front of me.”

Discord wondered if he could make a break for it on three legs. Maybe if he grit his teeth and sprinted and just endured a few seconds of pain.

“Don't get any ideas,” said Carmarella, as if she had just read his mind. “If you so much as flinch in the wrong direction I'll put this through your skull.”

Discord walked as he was told. “How much is Princess Celestia paying you then?” he hissed at her, and Carmarella was almost taken aback at hearing the creature speak.

“How long have you been planning this?” asked Discord.

“The—the Princess?” spluttered Carmarella, and she laughed. “Is that what you think?”

“Who else would want me dead or immobilized? I'm assuming immobilized because you haven't put that thing through my skull yet.”

“If you don't shut up I will.”

“And idle threat if ever I heard one,” spat the draconequus, but he kept straight to the path as instructed.

After walking for nearly an hour, Carmarella instructed the draconequus to turn into the forest. Discord knew this path well. It was the dirt road to the Everfree. He limped, gritting his teeth as the sharp pain continued to throb in his leg. They eventually came to a clearing and Discord's back feathers stood on end with disgust and fear. In front of him was cage, attached to a steam tractor. A large beefy looking centaur stood next to it, waiting with the door wide open. Discord's brain worked fast. Maybe if he was able to bolt in just the right direction, the mare would fire and take out the centaur instead of him. It was a long shot, especially with his injury, but the alternative was to be trapped and then he'd be well and truly scuppered.

He tensed his body preparing to jump, but then felt something sharp poking into his spine.

“If you even think about it I'll pull the trigger,” hissed Carmarella. “You're gonna walk into that cage, and I'm going to follow you all the way with this on your back until you're locked away. Do you understand me?”

“No need to shout, you contemptible shrew,” snapped Discord.

“In,” said Carmarella calmly. Discord began to limp towards the cage. With great difficulty, he hoisted himself up into its entrance, completely aware of the crystal poking into his back the whole time. Then he was pushed forward, and the cage door slammed. He swung round to look at his captors. Ox pushed a button on the underside of the cage.

“Now, you're going to be a good little draconequus, aren't you?” cooed Carmarella. Discord growled at her. He was already trying to work out a weakness in the cage.

“You might wanna look up,” said Carmarella, gesturing with the crossbow. Discord did so and saw what looked like sharp points facing towards him at different angles. They were shards of crystal.

“If you mess with them. If you even try to touch them with magic they'll fire. If you try to open the door, or mess with the lock, they will fire. Don't get any ideas. Ox! Go tell the boss we have him.”

The centaur grunted in the affirmative.

Fluttershy ran along the path panting heavily, her cheeks red with exertion. She was only guessing that Discord was headed for the Everfree, but she didn't have many other options as to where he would flee to. It was raining now and though the water was something of a relief to her overheated body, it was starting to make visibility worse.

Eventually she smelt burning, and she turned and saw a blaze of destruction cut through the forest. “Discord,” she whispered. Her heart leapt and with a surge of adrenaline she galloped towards the trees.

Sokolsky wasted no time getting to the clearing. His heart was pounding. Finally, the draconequus had been captured. For one terrible moment he was afraid the trappers were lying to him or might have caught the wrong creature, but his fears were quickly quelled when he walked up to the cage. Discord got to his uninjured feet, curved his back and hissed at Sokolsky.

“Magnificent,” said Sokolsky. “I knew you were when I first saw you, but now that I have you. Oh, the things I could learn from you.”

Discord threw himself against the cage door and grabbed the lattices of the cage with his claws and talons. “What makes you think you're going to learn anything from me? What makes you think I want to teach you?”

“It's not about what you're going to teach me. It's about what you're going to tell me. I want to know everything about your species. I want to know everything about your time as ruler of Equestria.”

“Why don't you just ask your crony Celestia? I'm sure she can tell you.”

Sokolsky laughed. “If only. Seems the cow is quite adamant that certain parts of history should be censored and there's no way she's going to tell me about it. So you're going to have to do it for me. And then I can write about it, and my family will finally be vindicated. She never gave them what they were owed when they shot you all those centuries ago.” Ox made a disapproving sound at the word “cow.”

“Oh? So you're related to the guy who shot me?” asked Discord, moving closer.

“I am indeed,” said Sokolsky, moving closer too.

Discord spat hard in Snare's face.

Sokolsky closed his eyes slowly, and wiped the spit from his face with a handkerchief.

“You're going to talk one way or another,” said the stallion.

“Or what?” laughed Discord.

“Or we'll fire those things above your head and then you can go back to being a drooling imbecile. Then we'll study you anyway. Though I would much prefer if you talked. I'd get more out of it.”

“So you want me to talk, but if I don't you'll shoot me in the head, thus mitigating your chances of actually getting me to say anything? Brilliant plan.”

Sokolsky didn't miss the acid tone in Discord's voice, and he turned on his heel. “You'll talk eventually,” he said. “Ox, bring me the mare.”

The centaur came forward with the struggling pegasus.

“Fluttershy!” cried Discord. Despite the anger and pain he felt earlier his heart skipped a beat at the sight of her. No. No, he couldn't think of her that way. She had deceived him.

Carmarella moved in front of the cage again, her crossbow aimed at Discord's head. “Move back,” she told the draconequus. He gave her a death stare then retreated to the back of the cage.

Sokolsky pressed the button at the underside of the cage again, the door swung open and the centaur tossed Fluttershy's small frame into the cage. The door slammed shut again.

Discord was baffled. No...no, this didn't make sense. Why was Fluttershy in the cage with him? Why would they put her in here with him?

Fluttershy flung herself against the cage door, bristling with rage at Sokolsky. “You animal!” she shouted at him, but it was not a compliment. “How could you do this?”

“Oh, please,” replied the stallion. “Surely as a lover of the natural world yourself you understand that sometimes certain measures need to be taken to study creatures.”

“He's a person!” she shouted angrily.

“Really? Because just hours before you were arguing that he 'wasn't in his right mind' when he ate all those ponies. So, which is it? Is he sapient or not? You can't have it both ways.”

“You'll wish you'd never done this! When Princess Celestia finds out what you've done to someone under her protection she'll...”

“Oh, Princess Celestia? You mean the one who ordered ponies to kill Discord in the first place? Yes, I'm sure she'll care.”

“She didn't want him killed! She wanted him immobilized. She was heartbroken when she thought he was dead!”

Sokolsky scoffed at the pegasus' words. “Oh, please. You really expect me to believe the Princess ever loved that thing? That she mourned its supposed passing? After the atrocities it brought down on Equestria? No one could love that thing.”

"I do!" she screamed at Sokolsky, throwing her small frame against the cage door again. She had never felt such rage. She wanted to kick Snare's face off.

Snare stared at her as if she was crazy, then laughed. “Oh, so it's like that is it? Well, whatever gets you off, you twisted mare. I'm not one for inter-species relations myself but since you two are locked up together you'll have all the time in the world to experiment.”

Snare turned to the hunters. “We'll have to set up camp,” he said. “It'll be light soon and we can't travel the road in daylight without being spotted.”

“Goodnight, love birds,” he grinned at the caged pair. The pegasus watched them move off beyond the trees, and she sunk to her knees. She couldn't even summon Twilight and the others. She had left her Element back at the cottage. She turned and looked warily at Discord, expecting to see an angry or terrified face. Instead he was looking her with a mixture of astonishment and hesitancy. Then he moved towards her.

She felt fear rise in her as the draconequus approached and reached for her with his paw. Then he moved back in the cage with his arm around her and pulled her to his chest in a tight embrace. She felt his paw run through her mane and the tip of one of his eagle fingers run along the back of her soft, velvet ear. "The feeling is mutual, Canary-Horse," he whispered.

Author's Note

A couple of things:

First, if you've made it this far in the story, here's the outline by alarajrogers this fic was based on. I figure any potential spoilers, however minor have all been shown by now.

Second, as you've gathered from the top of this page the title of this chapter is from a lyric in the Tori Amos song Dragon. If ever there was a song that epitomized Fluttercord, I would say this is it. If you at the very least, look up the lyrics you'll see what I mean. Though whoever chose the thumbnail for that youtube link missed the point. :P The song's about not slaying the dragon.

Now...there's only one more chapter and the epilogue to go! Just so there's no confusion, I'm going to publish them both at the same time. Probably Thursday or Friday evening.