It was a quiet day in Ponyville, and most ponies were trotting about town, going about their typical day to day lives. For one pony in particular, though, this day would change her life forever.
Fluttershy felt her cheeks reddening against her butterscotch fur. She gasped slightly as Discord stood in front of her.
“My darling and dearest Fluttershy. I simply cannot hide it any longer. I want us to be together. Would you...want me as your special somepony?” asked Discord, as a slight drop of sweat casually slid down his face. He waited patiently, hovering in the air, eyes wide with anticipation. Surely she’d say yes?
“Oh my. I never even thought about that. Um...I don’t know what to say honestly. I’m very flattered you’d ask me. Can I think about it?” she asked as she felt her heart rate rising rapidly, and her breathing quickening. What should she do?
“Take as long as you need, my dear Fluttershy. I will be back here at the cottage when you have decided. I do hope you will say yes.” he said, as he vanished in a puff of magic.
Fluttershy felt nervous. Her whole body shook. She considered Discord a very good friend, but what if dating him changed that? She didn’t want that to happen. She had to ask some pony for advice, and if there was one pony she knew that knew about dating, it was Rarity. After all, Rarity had been dating Fancy Pants for quite a while now. She recalled how upset every pony had been at first. She remembered it vividly.
“What do you mean you’re dating Fancy Pants? Isn’t he with Fleur? You can’t just date some pony, somepony else is dating!” said Twilight, as she freaked out, and immediately took a deep breath to calm herself.
“Darling, yes, Fancy Pants and Fleur are an item, and I assure you, Fleur is completely fine with the arrangement. There is no need to trifle yourself over something so simple. The world is always changing Twilight, and with change, we grow. Don’t you think that?” asked Rarity, as she batted her long eyelashes at Twilight, as the others seemed to scuff and shuffle.
“I reckon we can’t tell you what ya’ can and can’t do now, but it just ain’t feel no kind of right for two ponies to just add another to their...relationship,” said Applejack. She sighed heavily, as she shook her head. Ultimately, there was nothing they could do. Rarity was free to make her own choices, even if she disagreed with them.
“Rarity, I think it’s lovely that you are happy, and I wish you the best.” Fluttershy smiled, scraping one foreleg against the other as she fidgeted slightly.
“COME ON! Really? Fancy Pants? Why him? What’s so special about him, anyways? Seems to me like you’re just going for some pony whose pockets are loaded,” said Rainbow Dash, with a huff.
“Rainbow! Have a little bit of respect now. Fancy Pants is an important pony in Canterlot, and we are not here to judge who Rarity dates, and who she doesn’t. Now can we all calm down for a minute?” asked Twilight as she facehoofed. How in the world was she going to get this all under control? Surely, there had to be a solution. One that didn’t involve magic.
“I think it’s great that Rarity and Fancy Pants are dating. Think of all the excuses she’ll have to visit Canterlot! She’ll be able to sell more dresses for her shop, and have even more success! I can’t see how this would ever be like a super totally not good thing. Right, girls?” asked Pinkie Pie, as she giggled, and gave Rarity a snuggle of affection.
“Oh Pinkie Pie, you are so sweet, and you too, Fluttershy. I knew at least you two would understand. Now, what about the rest of you? I would hate for my status as a taken mare to affect our friendship,” said Rarity, a genuine look of concern in her blue eyes, a slight shine to them as she spoke to the others.
“Oh, course it won’t change our friendship. Why ever would ya even think such a thing? I might not like it, but I ain’t gonna tell ya how to live your life. Be happy, and enjoy the ride,” said Applejack.
Rainbow Dash crossed her forelegs across her chest as she hovered in the air, a grumpy look on her face.
“Rainbow, please stop fighting. We’re all friends, remember?” said Fluttershy, concerned about their friendship changing.
Surely, a relationship wouldn’t change their bond, right? Surely, everything would work out like it always did, with the six of them as friends.
“FINE. I suppose it’s fine. I mean, it’s whatever. I don’t even know why I cared in the first place.” Rainbow Dash snorted, and huffed. She didn’t like it, but she knew she couldn’t change it either. She just had to get used to the fact Rarity was dating now, and that irked her.
“Alright, every pony, now that we have that matter settled, there is another reason I called you all here today,” Twilight began.
Each of the five ponies gathered around the crystal map to see what important mission they might all have this time.
Twilight took the central seat, and Spike sat there by her side.
“Hey Spike, how did the muffins come out?” asked Twilight as he held out a tray towards her. She took one in her foreleg, and felt the heat of the freshly baked goodness sinking into her hooves. She immediately let go of it, shouting.
“They came out delicious like they always do.” replied Spike, with a proud grin plastered all over his face.
“HOT!” yelled Twilight, as she quickly blew on her forehoof, and blushed slightly as the others stared at her, waiting for her
to finish what she was going to tell them.
“They’re fresh out of the oven, silly Twilight. You gotta let them cool down a bit,” giggled Pinkie Pie, as she took a muffin from Spike and swallowed it whole, licking her lips, and savoring the taste.
“Mmmphm. Quite tasty, Spike. You sure do make some really great baked goods. Almost as good as mine!” Pinkie Pie smiled, and looked back towards Twilight.
“Now, as I was saying, the map has called us once more.” Twilight pointed to a spot on the map.
“Oh dear...I wonder if it’ll be dangerous,” said Fluttershy, a bit concerned.
“You’ll be fine. You have us. What else could you need?” said Rainbow Dash.
“Courage?” asked Fluttershy.
Fluttershy remembered that day like it was yesterday. It felt like so long ago now. The mission had gone well, but that wasn’t what was important right now. What was important was Discord’s question, and how she’d respond. What if she dated Discord, and it changed her relationship with the others? What if she wasn’t good enough to be Discord’s special somepony? She felt so uneasy. She nervously tapped on Rarity’s door. If any pony could help her, it was Rarity.
Rarity heard the door, and got up from her seat, and turned her machine off, as she answered the door, to see Fluttershy standing there, looking rather, well...bewildered.
“Darling, how can I help you today?” asked Rarity, pulling her friend in snugly against her frame as the two embraced. Fluttershy let out a squeak as she tried to cover her bright red cheeks with her pink locks.
“It’s...um, about Discord,” she began.
Rarity pulled her inside and closed the door, as she surveyed over Fluttershy to make sure she was unharmed.
“What did he do this time?” asked Rarity, with a huff, as she crossed her forelegs. “If that draconequus did anything to harm you, I’ll…”
“Rarity, Discord didn’t hurt me. Actually, he didn’t do anything wrong at all.”
“Well, that’s refreshing to hear. Then what about Discord, darling?” asked Rarity.
“He asked me to be his special somepony,” admitted Fluttershy, her cheeks flushing deeply, as red as fresh tomatoes on a cool autumn’s day.
“Oh...well, um, is that something you want? Do you like Discord like that? I mean, I know the two of you are rather close and all, but he’s a, well...Discord.”
“Oh, Rarity.” Fluttershy chuckled. “I admit I’ve thought about it a lot. I never said anything. I didn’t want to push him. After all, getting him to befriend me was quite a headache at first, but he’s really come a long way. And...well I think I do really like him a lot…”
“If you feel that way, then why did you come here to talk to me?” asked Rarity, starting to put the pieces together. Nervousness? She was clearly afraid of something, but what?
“I’m nervous. I remember when you got with Fancy and Fleur how the others responded to it, and well I don’t want anything to change,” said Fluttershy, her head lowering slightly as she stared at the floor beneath her hooves.
Rarity put a hoof under her chin, and lifted it up so their eyes were meeting one another’s gaze.
“Darling, listen I know that you worry a lot, more so than the others. But, you being with Discord, it won’t change our friendship. We’ll still have our bond, and there’s nothing more I’d want than for you to be happy. Like I am, with my partners. Even if I don’t really care for Discord personally, I care about you, and I want to see you happy.”
Fluttershy’s blush darkened, as she felt a smile tugging at her lips. She let out a soft squeak of delight, and immediately tackled Rarity into another hug. As Rarity felt Fluttershy’s weight against her, she wrapped both forelegs around her, and simply held her. No matter what the future held, she would always be there for her friends. She had promised herself that when she had decided to ask Fancy Pants out. Now she was eager to see what Fluttershy’s future would hold.
“Thank you Rarity, this is just what I needed. I really should get going though. Discord’s waiting for my answer,” said Fluttershy, realizing she was keeping him waiting. That was rude of her. She turned around, waving back towards Rarity once more, a big smile plastered all over her cheeks. She then spread out her wingspan, and took to the sky.
She landed on the ground near her cottage, where she saw Discord waiting for her, by the butterfly bushes.
“Oh Fluttershy...how long I’ve waited. How long I’ve been good. I hope you can see that I’ve changed. I’m mostly good now…” he smirked as he pulled out another face, and spoke “I still love messing with Twilight though, that never gets old!”
Fluttershy landed in front of Discord, as she looked at him, and smiled.
“I’ve decided that I will accept and be your special somepony. That is, if you’d want me to be.”
Discord’s jaw dropped to the ground, and he stood there agasp. Did he hear what he thought he did? She said yes? Fluttershy said yes? He felt his whole chaotic self, feeling for the first time, what felt like love filling his heart. He stood there, silently, and then scooped Fluttershy up into his arms, and embraced her as tightly as he could, without hurting her.
“Oh Fluttershy, you don’t know how happy I am to hear that! Oh, I am just so overjoyed!” Discord shouted triumphantly as he swirled her around in a circle.
Fluttershy chuckled, and smiled, as she nuzzled her snout against Discord’s. She looked straight into his eyes, as she spoke.
“I promise to be loyal, to be faithful, but most importantly to be yours,” said Fluttershy.
“And I promise to only be chaotic some of the time, but totally not ALL the time,” he replied, as his other head spoke while she wasn’t aware, mostly. “But I’m still going to mess with Twilight, some chaos is just too hard to give up!”
Fluttershy wasn’t certain what the future held, she was sure that really no pony knew, but she felt in this moment here with him, the luckiest mare in all of Equestria. Being with some pony like him wouldn’t change her, and it wouldn’t change her friendships. If anything she felt they would grow even stronger than before. With that in mind, she took Discord by the arm, and smiled lovingly at him.
“Shall we go get something to eat to celebrate? I hear there’s a new place right in Canterlot. I think we ought to celebrate the occasion officially,” suggested Fluttershy.
Discord looked at Fluttershy, and pulled her close to him.
“Canterlot is great and all, but what I want is what I already have right here. Let’s just have a picnic by the river, and enjoy the beauty of nature.” Discord offered with a sly grin, and a subtle wink.
“Oh my...That sounds lovely.” replied Fluttershy, flushing once more. He knew she didn’t like crowds or a lot of noise. He was already thinking of what would make her comfortable. He was such a kind and considerate Draconequus.
She felt lighter than air, and felt her heart skipping a beat, as they walked together, with a basket in her mouth. Things changed, and ponies changed, but there was one thing that would always remain the same, her bond with others, and that wouldn't diminish just because she was dating Discord. Oh no...not at all.
Author's Note
This story was written for Ponyfest and the speedwrite hosted by Dreams of Ponies. It didn't place, nor win any awards, but...
I wrote this piece for my boyfriend, and was simply trying to express how happy being with him has changed my life, and that despite me being a taken mare, the friendships I have with you all won't change. I'm still Nailah. Just a happy Nailah. <3
