Fluttershy hadn't been too worried before the mission.
Oh, she had been nervous—she always was whenever a villain or dangerous adventure popped up. She was even a little scared when Twilight described who they would be facing.
"Inferno," Twilight had described. "A kirin who learned a few moons ago how to tap into and fully control all the powers of their nirik form. They've left the Perilous Peaks, and Rain Shine contacted us out of worry that they're going to attack."
Fortunately, Twilight had also had a plan. She used a spell to find where Inferno was. They would sneak into their set-up lair, split up, and find what Inferno's plan was, confiscating any artifacts they happened to be using to fulfill it.
What hadn't been part of the plan was five of them being found and cornered by Inferno while Twilight was busy elsewhere, searching their library.
"Ah, the Protectors of Equestria!" Inferno said, grinning widely enough to show off all their fangs. "Welcome, welcome. Here to stop me, I presume?" Small fires were left in their wake as they paced.
"That's right!" Applejack said, taking a fighting stance.
"Don't think you can win," Rainbow boasted. "I mean, we've faced tougher baddies than you."
"And we'll always win, as long as we're together!" Pinkie cheered.
"So just surrender now, you...you drab decorator!" Rarity said, gesturing at the walls of the lair, which were colored black and ash grey.
"Um...please," Fluttershy finished.
Inferno inhaled sharply through their nose. "I see that even you fail to see my full power," they said. "Well, you will see it, and soon enough! All of Equestria will once it's wreathed in raging fire!" They reared their head back and cackled, their mane and tail flaring up.
The five of them just looked at him, unimpressed. "I see a demonstration is in order," they said. "Let's see. How...about...you!?"
They lowered their head and shot a stream of fire from their horn...right towards Fluttershy. They all gasped, and Fluttershy cringed back, throwing up her wing to shield herself.
But the painful burning feeling she had been expecting never came.
"Fluttershy, are you alright?"
She slowly opened her eyes. That voice...warm, comforting, gentle...she knew it. Her best and closest friend, Discord, was standing in front of her and looking at her with concern. His eagle claw was held in front of him, and they were all surrounded by a magical shield that shifted and shimmered with every color one could imagine.
"...you didn't lose your hearing, did you?" he asked. With a gasp, he said, "Did that vile villain steal your tongue!? I'll teach them a lesson in chaos if they did!"
"No, no, Discord, I'm fine," she said quickly. "But...what are you doing here? I thought you were with Twilight..."
"I was, but Princess Sparklebutt can handle herself for a few minutes," he said. "Besides..."
He leaned down to press his forehead against hers. "I'll always be here to protect you, my dear Fluttershy." She gasped, heat rising in her face.
"Excuse me!" Inferno said. "Are you trying to ruin my conquering with a sweet moment like that!? How dare—!"
"Oh, who cares what you have to say?" Discord said, standing up and waving them off. "You're just another two-bit villain of the week who's about to be defeated by the power of friendship. More posturing and posing does not make you a more successful conqueror, newbie!"
"You...!"
"And let me just say, making a being much more powerful than you angry? Terrible way to start," Discord said, now behind them. The shield was still up around Fluttershy and her friends.
"I have no quarrel with you, Chaos Lord," Inferno said. "Leave this place, and..."
"Leave!?" Discord said, bursting into laughter. "I'm no neutral party, bucko. Believe it or not, I'm a force for good. Most of the time, anyway."
Inferno growled and fired a blast of flame at his head. Discord waved his paw and turned it into ice cream. "Now, going rogue and setting up a sweet lair? Sure, I'd help Twilight keep you from being a threat, but I probably wouldn't do much more than that."
He roller-skated to the side to dodge Inferno's next blast, which put a hole in the lair of their wall. "Attack Equestria, like you've been plotting? I'd fight back, but from the background. Let Twilight and her friends take care of most of it."
"Gee, thanks," Rainbow said dryly.
Smoke was starting to pour out of Inferno's ears. With a loud roar, the flames of their mane and tail flared up, and fire burst from their mouth and horn towards Discord.
"But attacking my Fluttershy? The sweetest, kindest pony in the world, the one I care most about!?" Discord roared, easily dodging the blast.
There wasn't even a flash of light when he teleported behind Inferno. "Big mistake."
"What—!" Inferno whirled around, horn flaring with magic. But a metal cone was slapped onto it, redirecting all of their blasts upwards. They roared in frustration and tried to aim their attack.
Discord snapped his fingers, creating handcuffs on both their front and back hooves, then dumped a bucket of water onto them, dousing their flames. "And that is the end of you," he said casually. "That's also how you're supposed to showboat and win, by the way."
"You coward!" Inferno shouted. Discord just tapped them with his goat hoof, tipping them over. "Fight me head-on, unless you're scared you'll lose."
Discord turned to them, his expression hidden from where Fluttershy was. "You just tried to hurt my best friend," he said coldly. "If we fought for real, I wouldn't hold back. And if I don't hold back..."
He pointed at the wall of the lair. He didn't even snap, but it turned into sand and crumbled away...as did the wall behind it, and the wall behind it, until there was just a huge hole to the outside, filled with a puddle of sand.
Inferno's face went pale, and their black fur slowly shifted into a dark orange as they returned to their Kirin form, wet brown mane falling over their face. "I see we have an understanding," Discord said.
He then turned around, a bright smile on his face as though nothing big had happened. "Good thing you all invited me along, huh?" he said, walking over and popping their shield like a bubble. "I mean, I would have been here anyway as soon as they made the mistake of trying to hurt Fluttershy, but being here already saved me a few milliseconds of teleportation."
"Discord...you just saved us," Fluttershy said in amazement. "And Equestria!"
"Equestria? You mean from them?" he said, pointing at the shivering, wet villain on the floor. "Trust me, you all probably could have handled them...goodness, before Twilight even became a princess."
He leaned down and patted Fluttershy's head. "I'm glad I was able to keep you safe, though," he murmured, his voice that warm and rich tone he reserved just for her.
She gasped, her breath stolen from her as her eyes locked on his. Was he always this…amazing? Of course, she knew that Discord was amazing, but this…
“Ahem,” Applejack said. “The rest of us are still here.”
Discord blushed, quickly standing up straight. “Yes, yes, glad to help you all as well, of course,” he said. “You're welcome, by the way. Just don't turn looking to me for solutions into a habit, mmkay?”
Rainbow and Applejack rolled their eyes, though they were still smiling. Rarity was looking at him and Fluttershy with a knowing gleam in her eye, and Pinkie had already gone over to talk to Inferno about welcome-back parties and congratulations-on-being-reformed parties.
Twilight teleported into the room, a book held in her magic. “Discord, there you are!” she exclaimed. “By the time I got the Titan Tome out from the traps, you were gone! What…?” She looked over the scene, her eyes lingering longest on the captured and shaken kirin.
“Discord came here to keep us safe, after we ran into them unexpectedly,” Fluttershy supplied.
“Correction—mostly keeping Fluttershy safe,” Discord added. “Let's just say I sensed she was in danger and figured getting here first was more pressing than stopping to tell you.”
“That's…perfectly understandable, Discord,” Twilight said with a smile. “Thank you again for your help. Would you mind…?”
“Helping escort Inferno to their village and transporting the Tome to the safe Canterlot archives?” he finished. With a snap of his fingers, both subjects disappeared in a flash of light. “Done and done. Do we still share celebratory shakes and desserts after minor wannabe villains like that?”
“Of course!” Pinkie said. “No adventure is complete without them!”
“Then let's head home, shall we?” Twilight said. “And…how about taking the scenic route? This area isn't so bad.” She walked through the hole in the lair and into the lush forest.
“Ugh, they couldn't even keep a theme going,” Discord complained to Fluttershy as the whole group headed out. “If they're so obsessed with fire, why is their lair in a forest?”
“Well…it's a very nice forest,” she said. “Maybe they wanted to…gather kindling?”
“You're giving them far too much credit, dear,” he said, sighing and shaking his head. Her heart skipped a beat, and he walked a little more slowly, and asked in a low tone, “I did come in time, right? You really aren't hurt at all?”
She shook her head. “You came at just the right time.”
“Good. And I always will,” he declared, continuing to walk forward. He didn't seem to notice that she had slowed down, a new mixture of emotions plaguing her mind.
Her heart beat a little faster when she looked at Discord. He had been just like a knight in shining armor, earlier...ready to drop everything and jump to her aid when she needed him most. Her face started to heat up, and a part of her mind urged her to get closer to him, to cuddle close and snuggle into his fur. These feelings...felt a little more than platonic.
Oh dear, she thought, her blush growing a little hotter when she realized what that meant. What would she say to Discord...?
Discord glanced over his shoulder at her. "You okay back there?" he asked.
"Fine!" she said, quickly trotting to catch up with him. "Just thinking about a few things is all..."
"Well, if you ever need help, I'm always here," he said.
"...you'll always be there to protect me," she said with a soft smile. Whether they were friends or might turn into something more...it was good to know he'd always be there for her.
He beamed, holding his hand out to her as they continued on their way back home. As they walked hand in hoof, her feelings settled slightly. Even with these new feelings, which she vowed to tell him about soon...she knew she could always rely on Discord as her friend and protector.