When The Dust Has Settled
Today had been… strange, to say the least.
One minute Fluttershy was flouncing around with her friends in Twilight’s castle, and the next she knew she was waking up in a pile of green goo among rubble and tons of other ponies around her. She had only a faint recollection of the events that had supposedly unfolded beneath her, but it could have been a dream for all she knew. That is, if it hadn’t been confirmed by one of her best friends, the one and only Lord of Chaos, Discord.
She felt perplexed yet elated when she saw him between the crowd of confused ponies once Queen Chrysalis’s throne was destroyed, and how he reached out to her almost immediately. And later on, once they had arrived at her cottage, all Fluttershy felt was immense pride when Discord retold the exploits he, Starlight Glimmer, Trixie, and Thorax had gone through in order to save Equestria. How they came together and succeeded even without the help of magic.
And nothing could stop her face from flushing when he kept emphasizing how he went through it all to save her. Because he had no idea what fate had befallen her and he was not going to let her get hurt.
He finished the story as they ate dinner in the living room and, just like that, he was suddenly holding her for the second time that day. It was longer this time, and Fluttershy worried that she had overstepped a boundary, but Discord’s only response was a goofy grin.
She realized how terribly late it was, and so she bid him farewell. But Discord asked, rather seriously even, if he could stay in her little cottage to keep an eye out for any more dangers. Just so he knew for sure that she was safe. Her heart almost skipped a beat at the nature of his request but she gladly complied and said goodnight.
Sometimes Fluttershy had to wonder if something was changing between them, or if her adoration for him was just clouding her better judgement.
On more negative thoughts, she was also feeling absolutely terrified at how close the changelings had been to taking over everything. It’s by pure luck that Starlight managed to get through to some of them and save everypony from their slime cocoon of a prison. Not to mention that Queen Chrysalis was still out there, with the changeling army that had not been hiding out in the hive.
She had a feeling that they’d do something to stop magic again. Someway, somehow, rendering the princesses’ and Discord’s powers useless.
These thoughts could not stop circulating Fluttershy’s mind as she laid in her bed. How long had she been trying to sleep? For far too long. Her constant fidgeting was annoying Angel Bunny, who was trying to rest right beside her. Perhaps a cup of tea would calm her nerves.
And so she went down the stairs, trotting ever so slowly as to not to wake Discord, who was sleeping in the living room couch below.
Fluttershy careful heated up, drank her brew, and then headed once more upstairs. She left the kitchen once she was done with her obvious goal being to go back to bed. However, she couldn’t help but take a glance at the draconequus, who hadn’t moved from his spot. Discord was sleeping soundly, and Fluttershy noticed that her couch was slightly elongated in both width and length to further accommodate him. Despite him looking undisturbed, he didn’t have any blankets on him or any especially comfortable pillows. She felt guilty that she had forgotten all about them to begin with.
Wanting to make things right, Fluttershy headed towards one of the cupboards and picked out the largest blanket she had. She tried her hardest not to wake Discord as she lightly placed it on top of him. Though he did twitch slightly, he gratefully did not wake. She went back to look for any pillows that could provide more comfort, but it seemed that the rest of them were upstairs. Or, at least, not inhabited in the cupboard. Seeing no harm in looking for a bit, especially due to the fact that this was something she should have done from the beginning, she began the trek upstairs again. Except, just as she did, one of the steps made an especially loud creaking noise that made Fluttershy wince.
She turned back to the couch to make sure that the creak hadn’t disrupted Discord’s sleep. But much to her dismay, she saw that he was slowly blinking the sleep from his eyes.
Discord smiled tiredly when he saw her and murmured, “Fluttershy you know if you wanted to be my stalker, you could have just asked.”
Discord was one to wake up in a usually surprising and flamboyant fashion. It was almost as though his species didn’t even necessarily need sleep, yet he did so simply because he could. Which made it even more painful to see him so worn out.
He was so tired and she woke him up!
“Oh Celestia,” she said in alarm, slowly pacing towards him. “I’m sorry, I… I should… should have…”
She bowed her head in shame. What was wrong with her? Sure, Fluttershy wasn’t the most socially adept pony in Equestria, but she normally wasn’t this flustered.
Even Discord noticed, as he was staring at her rather strangely. “Fluttershy, you shouldn’t drink so late at night. Hangovers are dreadful, even for a creature such as myself.”
“W-what? I wasn’t- No!”
A smiled slowly uncurled from his face and he winked, clearly signifying that he was simply teasing. In a small burst of light, the draconequus that was lazily laying down on the couch a moment ago was standing next to her, stretching his spine. “But what woke you up, my dear? It’s quite late.”
She sighed. “I actually never went to sleep. But I should have stayed in my room instead of scurrying around like a filly.”
“Ah!” His eyes glowed. “Insomnia. Why didn’t you say so?”
Discord disappeared in a puff of smoke and promptly reappeared beside her, wearing a bowtie, a top hat, and a slick, pinstriped suit. A cane then appeared in his paw as he lifted it in the air. The room darkened considerably and two stage lights popped into existence, shining brightly on Discord.
Well, at least his energy had returned.
“Now that you’re awake, I finally have the chance to show you the beauty of a late night in the city.” He moved around the living room zestfully, pointing his cane at random objects. “You’re going to love it there, dear! The overzealous crowd pumping Las Pegasus’ into a party frenzy!”
The thought of going back there, especially at such hour, was enough to make Fluttershy squirm.
Her panicked look did not go unnoticed by Discord, who laughed and pulled lightly at her hair. The stage lights disappeared as he spoke. “Tsk I’m only ever teasing, Flutters. After all, we can always dance the night away right here.” He grinned and offered her his claw.
Fluttershy giggled at the silliness of it all and tried to shake him away. “As much as I would love to stay up with you all night, I have to wake up early tomorrow for the animals. A goodnight sleep is essential for a job well done!”
“Bah!” He replied in mock disgust. “Too much of a goody two-shoes, as always.” The costume he was wearing disappeared as Discord snapped his claws and transported them into Fluttershy’s room.
Fluttershy saw Angel Bunny jump in surprise from his bed when she and Discord appeared instantaneously in the middle of her bedroom. The little rabbit actually hissed in annoyance, though this was mostly aimed at Discord.
“Angel.” She said warningly.
But Angel’s eyes were on Discord, giving him a glare. Discord met his gaze, unflinchingly.
“I will throw you out the window.” He growled.
“Discord!” She said in the same tone of voice.
“Oh I’m only kidding.” His voice lowered slightly, “…for the most part.”
Angel angrily chittered once more before hoping away and scurrying under Fluttershy’s bed.
Discord laughed despite the disapproving look Fluttershy was giving him. “C’mon! That was funny!”
She rolled her eyes good naturedly as she got under the covers and began adjusting the pillows around her.
Discord saw this and bowed in response, as he was always one with the melodramatics. “I shall take my leave, then.” With a smirk, he added, “Who knows? Maybe I’ll save Equestria all over again, just for the fun of it. Of course, you’ll be my priority if anything does happen.”
He said it so casually that Fluttershy had to seriously consider if he was playing with her on purpose.
She couldn’t even keep the stuttering out of her voice when she replied, “I-I’m flattered. But I’m not important enough to be a priority, if something like that were to happen.”
“You are to me.” He said it without missing a beat.
Fluttershy felt her cheeks redden in response and she couldn’t help thinking that of course, he’d be her priority too.
She wished that she only loved him as a friend because moments like these made her want to do something rash.
Her jumbled thoughts were cleared away once Discord spoke again.
“Well, I’ve kept you up far too long. Night, my dear.” Discord struck a pose before he lifted his paw, evidently about to teleport away. “Arrivederci!”
“Wait.” Fluttershy whispered.
She didn’t think that he had actually heard her but he turned back, looking confused. “Yes?”
“You should… stay.”
He chuckled. “Flutters, I didn’t say I was leaving. I’ll be downstairs.”
It was so hard for her to maintain eye contact with him considering what she was about to say next. Despite it, she managed to keep her voice relatively steady. “You should stay here. In my room.”
Discord tilted his head to the side. “I thought you were going to sleep.”
“I am.” Perhaps her request wasn’t making any sense. “And you can sleep here too. If you want. T-that’s what I’m asking.”
More like creepily suggesting.
A brief silence passed before a beautiful smile stretched across Discord’s face. “Anything for my Flutterbuddy!”
He disappeared and reappeared beside her on the bed, his arm already slung across her shoulder. An assortment of snacks were all suddenly strewn across her bed, ranging from cupcakes to saltine crackers.
“I said sleep, Discord.” She scolded. “Put the snacks away please.”
“It’s just a bit of food, is all.” Discord grabbed a cream colored cake from the collection and presented it to her. The chocolate icing on top was in the shape of Fluttershy’s and Discord’s head and the words ‘The Princess and her Knight’ was written in fancy cursive. “Besides, we still need to commemorate my daring rescue!”
“I thought you didn’t want me to stay up late.”
“Yes but now I’m so excited!” On command, a little yellow party hat appeared on Discord’s head. “You letting me stay here is like unlocking a new level on our friendship, so why shouldn’t I celebrate?”
“Because it’s late.” Despite her blunt tone, Fluttershy knew that she was beaming at what he had said.
Discord heaved a heavy sigh and waved his claw around in the air. She thought he was just using this gesture to show off his grumpiness, but suddenly the whole room seemed to shift. The treats disappeared. Despite the light being on only a moment ago, everything had turned a dangerous pitch of black. Fluttershy’s hooves immediately clamped on Discord’s arm when she realized that she could hardly see. She was about to mention this fact to him when something caught her eye.
Something shiny in the back of her room, like one of Rarity’s beautiful jewels had been placed in her home. Except she could no longer see her furniture. It gave her the illusion that she was staring into some sort of dark void, except a tiny fragment of light managed to survive and live on it. Another one appeared not too far away from the first, shining even brighter.
Fluttershy turned to Discord even though she could hardly see him. She could only imagine the mischievous look on his face as he said, “If we’re going to sleep, might as well make it fun.”
The room was no longer black. In a way, it felt like it was expanding in both size and color. The bright twinkling lights grew in numbers and sizes until there was an insane amount of these beauties plastered everywhere. They were evidently stars, making the background the dark night sky.
But it wasn’t just black, as it usually was. Swirls and spirals of dark blue and purple hues decorated the space around the stars. Fluttershy had seen pictures of certain areas of space through the observatory long ago, but nothing compared it to what she was seeing right then. There was even a faint hum in the distance, and all sounds coming from outside the cottage were blocked out.
“D-Discord…” She was at a loss for words.
He chuckled as she felt him snuggle closer. “I used to do this hundreds upon hundreds of years ago, when I needed something… different, to keep my mind focused on. And one of the most chaotic things to look at was the sky, after all.”
And also the most entrancing. Fluttershy felt oddly relaxed in the presence of such a wonder. “It’s amazing. Thank you.”
“You're welcome! Now you can sleep peacefully and I won’t be bored out of my mind.”
“You should try sleeping too.” She was finally getting tired, which was perhaps what was clouding her mind. Because of this, Fluttershy leaned forward and rested her neck on Discord’s shoulder with little thought. She soon felt his claw stroking her mane in response.
There were moments where she definitely thought that Discord reciprocated her feelings, and this was one of them. But Fluttershy also had to keep in mind that he was still new at building and keeping relationships. Though some of his actions could be perceived as romantic and even flirtatious, there’s no way to tell if that is precisely his intention unless he outright stated it as so. Who knows? Maybe when he becomes better friends with Spike, Big Mac, and even her other friends, he’ll start treating them in a similar fashion.
And how selfishly she dreaded that possibility.
She was so lost in thought that she hadn’t even heard Discord’s reply. But due to the fact that he was now currently resting his head on hers and closing the remaining distance between them, it was safe to say that he was following her advice.
They were like that for quite a while, though Fluttershy’s heart continued to palpitate without rest. The colors and atmosphere of the space show were still truly captivating, yet her eyes kept closing on their own accord. Tiredness over today’s events were really starting to take a toll on her. She thought that Discord must have surely fallen asleep because he was so still and quiet, which of course did not correspond to his usual demeanor. Although perhaps that was an unfair assumption as he could also be so gentle and sweet…
It took everything in her to stay still when he began to move away from her. Fluttershy wanted to pull him back to her to relish in his warmth again, but no amount of confidence was going to make her do something so daring. She was definitely going to miss his presence but if he wanted to move then she had no right to tell him not to. She wasn’t a filly after all and-
All possible thoughts died the minute she felt his lips brush her forehead. There was no attempt on his part to be subtle about it either, as the lips stayed there for quite a while before he moved back into his original position.
And he wasn’t moving away from her. That was the best part, being able to feel his deep breathing.
Did he know that I’m still awake?
She felt so light that a gust of wind could send her flying. After minutes of just pondering, waiting for some other action on Discord’s part, Fluttershy tentatively opened her eyes. She’d hope to get a glance at the draconequus but he had continued to rest his head on top of hers. Even if he wasn’t, the spirals of light on her wall and ceiling were not enough to illuminate him.
Fluttershy bit down the urge to ask him, or to tell him that she hadn’t been sleeping yet. Because maybe she didn’t need to figure out the enigma that was Discord, at least at the moment. Her eccentric, beautiful best friend. The one who teased her incessantly and turned her life upside down. The one who could kiss her forehead in such a gentle manner.
That was who he was, and one of the reasons why she liked him so much.
Still, she knew that it would be nice, very nice, if he could kiss her again. Perhaps not just on the forehead. And with those last thoughts, serenity overcame Fluttershy and she drifted to sleep.
