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Flutterbat watched the moon descend in the distance and drew a deep breath. The grand orb that used to inspire fear had become a stalwart friend. It felt like only yesterday that she locked herself in her home to prevent herself from attacking anypony she cared about while under the sway of the beast within. Now she watched Luna’s ward slowly sink with a small regret. It wasn’t like she would never see it again but she silently wished for just a few more minutes of night. She stretched her wings and slowly ran a hoof along her swollen abdomen and smiled faintly. All her courage for the future came from the simplest of all natures miracles; and yet the moment of caressing her flesh meant more to her than all memories of being Fluttershy.
She continued to silently watch the sinking moon and could almost feel Luna’s gaze on her. Was it approval or disappointment in the Princess’s eyes? Would she face summons for her choice or would she be left to her wishes? Would her friends accept the change or would they shun her and fear the bat as they did the first time they saw her?
Did any of it even matter? In the grand scheme of things did it matter what they would think at first? Flutterbat smiled and drew another breath. They would always accept her. Even after making a necessary sacrifice.
She turned to glance at Discord and caught him looking down at her with a worried expression. She could see a measure of guilt and anxiety in his eyes. Normally his ocular orbs were full of life and the childlike notion that anything and everything was possible. Normally Discord was hard at work keeping every second of his life from being boring. Usually he only remained this still for this long when he was asleep. For the first time in their relationship she had managed to get him to sit still and be silent for hours without asking for it. She offered him a smile and received one in return.
“There’s no going back from this, Fluttershy.” Discord slowly said as he looked away from her and to the descending space rock. “If you remain a Bat Pony when the sun peeks up; it can never be undone.”
Flutterbat drew another deep breath. This was not the first time that it had been mentioned but this was the first time she was unmoved by the fact. The spell was cast. The sands of time were slipping away. The first day of the rest of her life was coming and she wanted to meet it head on. It was not hesitation that made her wish for more time. Rather she had now loved the moon the way she once loved the sun. There was an entirely different Equestria under Luna’s vigilant watch.
She let her mind wander away from the choice she made hours ago. She drifted to a simple Saturday of her usual routine. With a glance at the moon followed by one of her mate she thought of her final days as a Pegasus. Her own words echoed through her mind with the sane clarity that she had when the words were spoken.
“I’m pregnant.”
Terror and elation claimed hold over Discord when she shared the news. He held her close and fell backwards to the floor and nuzzled her mane. Flutterbat remembered laughing as that little gesture of affection is what led them there in the first place. One night of surrendering themselves to their feelings the same way they had done before only this time proof of their passion was growing inside her. She thought of her own joy at finally moving forward after months of trying. She remembered how he whispered sweet nothings into her ear as they laid in each other’s limbs.
Flutterbat also remembered the hour that followed. There were reasons why they had not had any success in the past.
Her husband Discord was a Draconequus. The natural level of magic flowing through his veins was greater than any Alicorn’s potential. Twilight could spend a thousand years practicing and studying and only reach one one-thousandth of his energy level. The body of a Pegasus was simply not built to conceive or carry the child of Discord. A Unicorn would have a taxing time and an Alicorn would fare slightly better but a Pegasus was incapable. Without being able to naturally harbor the power of Chaos it simply could not be done. Discord fell into a pit of hopelessness. Fluttershy only remained fixated on a single thought.
She already had Chaos magic flow through her once before. Her time spent growing closer to him had resulted in his energy ebbing into her. Fluttershy unknowingly had enough residual mana to be a catalyst for a spell. Twilight once accidentally activated it and for one night Fluttershy was replaced by Flutterbat. The fact that Twilight could not fully eliminate the energy was more proof that it started with Discord. In secret they had had shared many nights since then with her in a transformed state. Some were spent with Discord hiding in a closet from a hungry vampire who could not tell friend from food. Some were spent carefully helping her retain her mind when in the body of a hunter. Some were spent in the forest becoming one with nature and quite a few were used for wild passion. Several months before of experimenting with her newfound chaotic side had left her with a simple answer to their seemingly hopeless dilemma. Fluttershy could never hope to have a foal with Discord but Flutterbat could.
They still had a very real chance of keeping their foal; and she was more than willing to take the steps needed. After everything she had endured with the burden under the Element of Kindness, she refused to be deterred.
“If you go through with this…you can never go back. You do know that, right?” Discord asked as he carefully stroked her mane. “There is always another way. I know if we grind down we can find another answer. You don’t have to give up a part of you just to make me happy. You don’t have to spend the rest of your life as a Bat Pony.”
“The choice is mine to make and my mind is made up.” Flutterbat replied with a gentle smile as she leaned into his paw. “We’ve talked about this, Dizzy. After months of trying, I am determined to have this foal. Being a bat the rest of my life is something I can live with.”
Discord smiled as she turned to look back at the moon. Her nights of being a Bat Pony had left her much more confident and assertive. She was still the same Fluttershy he always knew; just now she had a much easier time making her presence and opinions known. She wasn’t trembling, she wasn’t panicking and she wasn’t at all hesitant about marching forward. For the first time he needed her courage. He did still feel a little guilty in the notion that she was doing it for him but her words made a single fact clear. She was doing it for the three of them. He watched her move her hoof over where their unborn slept.
“You do realize that this means our child will be a Bat Pony” Discord softly said as he faced Luna’s orb.
“As long as our child is healthy, that’s all that matters” Flutterbat replied as she continued to watch the sinking moon. “Please calm down, Dizzy. We’re in this together. If you can help me learn to keep my wits when I change, then I can go all the way.”
A lone ray of sunlight stretched over the land and Flutterbat tensed up. The spell that Discord prepared was about to fully cast. Now she could feel the eyes of both the sun and moon Monarchs on her, both watching to see if this was really going to happen. Her resolve remain unchanged as a tingling sensation came over her Cutie Mark. There was still time to go back. There was still a window of opportunity to walk away.
Her body was telling her to change back to Fluttershy. Her mind was telling her to stay as a bat. Discord’s spell was helping her resist changing. She brought her hoof back to her slowly growing foal.
Flutterbat remained still and in her vampire form. Discord remained at her side. The moon concluded its decent and the sun moved to replace it. Her mark stopped feeling odd and the growing light started to bring discomfort. Soon it would be too bright for her to see. Soon she would have to retreat to their cottage and she would rest. Flutterbat turned to face the rising star and offered a grin. It was in a way amusing that potentially Celestia might have another Discord on her hooves. Discord stepped around her to shield her from the growing light.
“No turning back now, Flutters” her mismatched mate said as he looked to the sun as if daring Celestia to make herself seen and heard.
“Ever onward is fine with me, Dizzy” the now fully Bat Pony replied as she stretched her wings and slowly rose off the grass.
The Draconequus turned and was greeted by a soft hug. He wrapped his arms around his wife and lightly kissed her. The die was cast. They were playing the cards dealt. They were going to start a family. Discord lightly whispered into her sharp ear as she nuzzled his chest.
“I’ll be at your side every step of the way. If you can manage to help me be a better Draconequus then I can keep helping you be a better bat.”
Flutterbat removed herself from his embrace and slowly started towards their home. With a yawn she established a steady pace and Discord remained at her side. Their bed was beckoning her and there was no moon to watch anymore. She left Fluttershy behind and the rest of her life belonged to Flutterbat and her family. There was no regrets in her mind but there was a small amount of worry. This would change a lot between her and her friends but she didn’t have to worry about that right away. A good day’s sleep was her main focus.
Discord picked up on her growing fatigue and carefully scooped her into his arms. Her wings stopped flapping and she settled into him. The vampire nuzzled his chest and squirmed to hide her eyes from the rising sun. The Draconequus accelerated with the dark mare secured in his limbs. A quick trip to the cottage and an equally swift glide through an open window and they were home. He set her down in their bed and closed the window. Recently bought heavy curtains replaced all the lighter ones in her house since she adapted a more active night life. Discord took a moment to smile to himself as he blocked out the light. It felt like only yesterday that Fluttershy asked him for help on controlling her other half; and now it was the only side she had left.
He had to admit that he was rather eager to peruse this new development. She would always be Fluttershy at heart. She was still the mare he fell in love with. She had just recently grown as a mare and very recently committed to a new life style. He was still almost stunned by her firm dedication to the choice she made. Even after an entire night of watching the moon and waiting for the spell to take hold he still had to stop and admire her resolve. Part of him was patiently waiting for her to change her mind but all of him was grateful she did not. So much time of trying to have a child and they just stared down the prospect of losing it. He grinned as he walked to the bed. Discord had absolutely no objections to having lots of sex until one plus one added up to three but he was instantly attached the moment she told him the news.
Discord crawled onto the bed next to the sleeping bat. She turned in her sleep and he could feel her heart beating against his. His paw slowly moved to her swollen womb. It was clear to him that she would make a stellar mother and he wondered if he had the caliber to be a worthy father. He breathed in the scent of her mane and started to let sleep take him. He figured that as long as he had her he would do fine. Discord started to wonder if his sleeping beauty knew how much he relied on her. She was always strong in her own way. She had grown stronger in other ways since they started working on controlling the bat underneath the Pegasus. He glanced at the obstructed window and yawned. He was tired but he was too excited to sleep. He spent hours watching and waiting and his brain wanted to play. Discord closed his eyes and slowly channeled some of his power.
Discord opened his eyed and saw himself in the same room. Flutterbat was wide awake and looking up at him.
“Did you wander into my dream again, Discord?”
Discord simply smiled and passionately kissed her.
“Just wanted to see if you were interesting in reminiscing on what got us in this mess” he replied with a grin after pulling back.
With a giggle she sunk her teeth into his chest and drew deeply.
