Discord looked down at the body before him. His business partner, Celestia was dead. Dead as a door nail. Heaving a sigh, Discord touched the white mare's hoof with an outstretched claw. I just can't believe that sickness took her so quickly...., he thought.
Saying his goodbyes to his dear friend, the draconequus left, his snakelike tail sliding out the door of the funeral home. As Discord walked, he found himself lost in thought, meddling with the button on his dark jacket. He almost ran into a gray mare, who was walking past with a small, purplish unicorn filly.
Discord whipped his head around and glared at the mare. "Hey, watch it!", he growled.
The mare stepped back, unfolding her wings. She returned Discord's glare with a fearful, cross-eyed stare. " I-I'm sorry, sir.", she stammered, then gathered up her filly and walked away at a fast trot. Discord watched the mare leave, then turned and continued to his destination. Still thinking, Discord snapped his tail, and a candy cane appeared in his talon. He put it in his mouth, biting the end ever so gently, as to not break it.
About ten minutes later, Discord looked at the small business that he and his now dead friend (Wow,that's a cruel rhyme..) had made together. Picturing that white alicorn in all her beauty once more made Discord wince. He looked up at the sign above the door. On one side, there was a picture of a brilliantly blazing sun, and on the opposite side, both Discord and Celestia's names were engraved in the fragile wood. Seeing that name made Discord fume with sudden rage, and he quickly stomped into the business building.
A slam on the door alerted the orange earth pony who was sitting at a desk, writing out papers, but shivering. She looked up from her work and walked up to where Discord stood.
"Discord, sir? Did the funeral go alright?", she asked in a hearty southern accent.
Discord looked at the earth pony, narrowing his eyes. He sighed and shot her a glare. " What do you think, Applejack?! My friend just died!", he replied in a dry, sarcastic tone.
"Yea, friend. Right....", the pony muttered to herself.
A growl rumbled in Discord's throat. "What did you just say?"
"Nothin' important."
Applejack said nothing else, and returned to her work without looking back at her supervisor. She shivered once again, folding her hooves and trying to warm herself. Applejack sighed.
"Discord, sir? I have somethin' ah need ta ask.", she said all of a sudden.
Discord walked up to Applejack, knowing what she was going to ask, since she asked the same thing every year. " You want off tomorrow, correct? ", he asked, letting out a groan.
Applejack perked up. " Yes, please, sir. My family, they...they need me this year. Ah'm never there get 'em when ah should be. Look, you don't even have to pay me. Just please, Discord. Ah'm beggin' ya."
Discord cocked an eyebrow. "Really..? Hmm....I still say no. Work's work, and time is money. You know this as well as I do."
Applejack flattened her ears. She looked down, sighing and headed back towards her desk, her expression now dull. She miserably looked outside, where snow was falling, and little fillies and colts were playing.
Discord felt a nagging inside him, but he couldn't place a word on it.Guilt? He shook away the thought. He looked again at Applejack, who still looked longingly outside. Not being able to bear it any longer, Discord walked up to Applejack.
"I think it's about time you went home...", he said in an awkward tone. He scratched his head with his paw, feeling odd. Applejack looked up and nodded.
"Alright." Applejack got up, putting on the hat that sat on her desk. She put on a green scarf that hung by the door, and walked out of the building, snow flurrying outside.
Watching Applejack leave, Discord went to his own desk, hanging up his hat and jacket. He'd always questioned his hat, since his horn and antler always got in the way of it. But then, where's the fun on making sense?, Discord thought to himself, puling out one of his own sayings.
A cheerful knock on the door made Discord jump, and with a snap of his talon, he was at the door. He opened the door to see his own niece, Pinkie Pie. She gave him a bright smile and bounced inside. Discord chuckled a bit, closing the still-open door. Pinkie took off her scarf and her earmuffs, and looked up at her uncle, Discord, with joyous blue eyes.
Discord tipped his head to the side. "What brings you here, Pinkie?", he asked in a calm, yet slightly irritated, voice.
Pinkie rolled her eyes. "To ask you to come to my Hearth's Warming party tonight, silly!", she replied, giggling.
Discord looked at the pink earth pony, confused as to how she had kept such a happy, care-free nature, after all these years. He heaved a sigh and shook his head.
"I can't, Pinkie Pie."
Pinkie cocked her head. "Why...why not?"
Discord looked at his 'niece'. "I have too much on my mind, and too much work to do."
Pinkie's mane flattened a bit and she hung her head. "Like every other year, Discord. You never come! Always work, or some other excuse you make up!" She narrowed her eyes at her uncle, giving him a baleful look.
Discord didn't even wince at her icy stare. "I'm not going. That's that. Now please, if you have nothing better to do, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
Pinkie gave her uncle a defeated look. She put her scarf and earmuffs back on and headed out the door.
"Happy Hearth's Warming!", she chimed cheerfully as she left, knowing it would anger Discord.
"Hearth's Warming....", he growled, spitting out the words through gritted teeth, "'Bah humbug' to that."
Discord heaved a sigh as Pinkie bounced out the door, her cheerful goodbye still ringing in his ears. I will never understand that pony...,he thought, putting his paw to his forehead. Discord looked up at the clock above the door, deciding it was time for him to make his leave as well. He put on his coat and hat, and headed out the door.
Discord walked along the streets, snow coming down lightly around him. Sure, he could be at his home with a snap of his finger, but he preferred to walk sometimes. Walking helped him think, and at this point, Discord had plenty on his mind. Turning a corner, he saw three fillies playing in the snow together. He sighed and marched past them at a fast walk. Looking around, Discord could see all sorts of lights and decorations, which made him narrow his eyes. Ponies waste their money, and on what?! Pointless holiday decorations?! They don't even have much to spare on it!, he thought, looking at the lights in disdain.
Eventually, Discord made it to his home. He looked up at the tall, castle-like mansion he lived in. He didn't envy other ponies for their small, slim cottages. Slipping a key out of his pocket, Discord walked up to the door and unlocked it, walking into his home. Hanging up his things yet again, Discord made his way to the living room, where a couch sat in front of a large fireplace. Lighting the fire with a quick flick of his claw, the draconequus flopped down onto the couch.
"It's nice to see you again, Discord.", a familiar voice sounded next to where Discord lay. He jumped up, looking around, and saw the form of Celestia sitting on the couch in front of him. She looked a bit different though; she was paler, and Discord could see the couch through her.
"T-Tia?! But..You're d-dead!", Discord gasped, backing into a chair.
The spirit sitting on the couch simply shrugged. "I may be dead, my old friend, but I was summoned here."
Discord tipped his head. "What?! How? And why?!"
"You need to be taught a lesson, my friend."
"Wh-what do you mean?"
Celestia stood up and walked up to Discord, facing him with a pale, but serious, stare. "Listen closely. You will be visited by three spirits tonight. Spirits of past, present, and future. They will tell you everything else you need to know..", the dead alicorn's voice trailed off, and she began to fade away.
Discord's eyes widened. "I still don't understand! Don't leave me, Tia!", he begged, sadness filling his gaze.
The spirit said nothing more, and faded away completely. Discord looked around cautiously, then sat back on the couch. He thought about the "ghosts" that Celestia had mentioned, doubts about them plaguing his mind. Ghosts? Please! That was probably just a prank by some stupid foals... After a while, Discord drifted into sleep.
Roughly an hour later, Discord woke up with a start. He'd dreamt a horrible nightmare; Discord remembered seeing his own tombstone, and other, horrible future images. He heaved a sigh. Tia's sudden visit must have frightened me. Nothing to worry about, Discord!, he thought, shaking his fears away. A cold hoof then planted itself on Discord's shoulder, making him shiver. He turned, trying to spot who was there, but he saw nopony. Celestia's voice whispered in his ear.
"Don't doubt us spirits, Discord.", she whispered in a icy voice.
Discord heaved an exaggerated sigh. "Doubt you?! Ha! You're not even real! Just some illusion!", he retorted to the voice in his ear. Discord puffed his chest and stared around in defiance.
Celestia's ghost appeared behind Discord. She lifted her hoof off of his shoulder, causing Discord to whip his head around. Something new was on the spirit that wasn't there before: chains. Each of Celestia's hooves were wrapped in cruel, metal chains. Something was different in her expression as well; her eyes were narrowed, and her lip was curled in a snarl. One of the chains rushed towards Discord, wrapping itself around his neck, slowly choking him.
Discord's eyes widened in terror. Celestia was face-to-face with him now, her muzzle almost touching his. She eyes blazed in fury, as the chain wrapped tighter, closing off Discord's lungs to air.
"Think this is just an "illusion" now?!", she growled in a terrifyingly quiet voice.
"N-no...I d...d-on't..", Discord croaked, hardly able to breathe.
The chain around Discord's neck quickly loosened. Celestia's form began to fade, for good, this time.
"That's what I thought.", she spat triumphantly.
