Unborn

"And that's what happened," finished Applejack.

Twilight rubbed her chin, her horn glowing on Applejack's swollen belly. "Okay, deep breath." As Applejack took a deep breath and held it, Twilight cast a few spells up her snatch. "And relax. I've made it so that she doesn't feel pain as long as she's in there. She can also refrain from breathing and be fine. For now, she's stable."

"Can you pull her out?" asked Applejack. "Ah can't be walkin' around pregnant all the time. Ponies are going to wonder first how it happened so fast, then who the daddy is, and then what happened to Apple Bloom. Ah can't just go around tellin' everypony."

"I'll look into it," promised Twilight. "For now, stay out of sight, as you have been."

"What if they ask about Apple Bloom? You know ah'm a bad liar!"

"She's inside, and can't come out right now," shrugged Twilight. "It's the truth, isn't it?"

Applejack pouted. "That's not helpful, Twi."

Twilight scrawled something down on a clipboard. "Well, I'm sorry. I don't have all of the answers. If I did, I would recommend something now, rather than telling you to wait until I've done some research. Who needs research when you already know the answer?"

Applejack sighed and shook her head. "Can't you just... Caesarean her out, or something?"

"We might be able to," nodded Twilight, not looking up, "but doing so would still require tests, prepwork and will absolutely require several more ponies be involved in the process. I'm your friend, and I love you, but I'm not a licensed surgeon."

"Okay, okay... Thanks, Twi."

Twilight cleared her throat. "There are some complications already, actually, so before I work on pulling her out, there are some things I need to figure out very quickly."

"Like what?"

"Well, I have spells that will make it so that she doesn't have to breathe for an extended period of time, but she's not going to survive long without food or water."

The door burst open, and Discord slithered through. "This is the part where I come in!" he shouted.

Spike ran in a moment later, huffing and puffing. "I told... You can't..." He bent over, his claws on his knees as he panted. He pulled out a brown paper bag and began breathing into it, trying to compose himself.

"Discord, you can't come in here!" shouted Twilight.

"Can't is such a strong word," waved Discord, leaning against the wall. "Shouldn't is probably more accurate. I shouldn't come in here."

"Leave," growled Twilight. "Now. Or should I tell Fluttershy?"

"Oh, very well," shrugged Discord. "I'll leave, and I'll take my spell that would keep little Apple Bloom fed and watered with me..." Slowly, Discord turned and walked away, smirking when he was sure they couldn't see him. "Perhaps she'll be wondering why I didn't use the spell I know that can make the little filly slip right out."

The door slammed shut in front of him, very clearly the result of Twilight's magic. "What spells?"

Discord's poker face returned as he spun around to face her. "Oh, you know, just a bit of chaos magic that will undoubtedly solve the problem, with only a few minor complications along the way."

"Complications you cause!"

Discord scoffed. "Oh, come now, Applejack. I don't use my chaos magic to cause anypony harm anymore."

"You're the reason she was able to fit inside of me to begin with!"

Discord folded his arms. "I saw my good friend Applejack about to break a few of her pelvic bones, and a few of her sister's teeth. I didn't want to see her injured, so I took preventative measures. For safety."

Twilight rubbed her temples. "Look, just tell us what you think your magic will do to Applejack."

"To Applejack?" smiled Discord. "Nothing. The spell I was going to cast won't do anything to her at all. She will be completely unharmed, I promise."

Twilight scowled and pushed her hoof forward. "Take my hoof."

Discord grabbed it, and it came clean off at the shoulder. "A very lovely hoof." He attached it under his right arm. "I don't know if it suits me, though."

"I'm being serious!"

"Okay, okay..." he snapped his claw, and it went right back to her shoulder. "Excuse me for my levity. The situation is so dour. Pinkie would have giggled, at least." He grabbed Twilight's hoof again. "Cast your spell, already."

Twilight's horn lit up, and some glowing chains surrounded their union. "Now, do you--"

"I promise," interrupted Discord, taking the initiative, "on my very being that the spell I'm about to cast will not cause any harm to my dear friend Applejack with any degree of intent. It is fully my purpose in casting these spells to make sure that Apple Bloom is safe, taken care of, and brought out alive and healthy, with no great harm to anypony. If I am proven to be false, may Fluttershy strike me down."

A magical padlock clicked on the chain before the whole thing disappeared. Discord folded his arms and smiled. "Is that to your satisfaction? I'm bound by that promise."

"What about my kin?" asked Applejack. "Is Apple Bloom gonna be alright?"

Discord raised his claw. "Applejack, you have my word. Apple Bloom will be unharmed, though she will shrink down. Any accidental harm that befalls her is not my intent, so don't go skydiving and think that's safe, but as long as you don't do anything inherently dangerous, she should be perfectly fine. I swear it."

Applejack sighed. "Okay, but I want you to make one more promise."

"What's that?"

Applejack pushed her hoof out. "I want you to promise that nopony else will hear about this."

Discord shook his head. "I can't make that promise."

Applejack scowled. "Discord..."

"How about this?" he offered. "Outside of you, Twilight, Fluttershy and Big Macintosh, I will say nothing about this. I'll even tell Fluttershy to keep it under her hat. She's very good at keeping secrets, you know. But you see, if Spike tells Rarity, that's a promise broken that I had nothing to do with. And of course, Rarity is far more talkative than Fluttershy."

Applejack sighed. "Why do you have to include Fluttershy and Big Mac?"

"Fluttershy is my handler. If I have to sneak off to make sure it's going right, she's going to wonder where I am, of course, like a good friend would. She doesn't want me causing trouble, after all. I must confide in her to make sure she doesn't worry about me. As for Big Mac, he's already involved, and is going to be making sure you and your sister are kept safe and healthy. Doesn't your big brother want to make sure you're okay?"

Applejack pushed her hoof out again. "Okay. Cast your spells."

Discord grabbed her hoof, and the chain came back and locked again. As soon as it disappeared, he snapped his claws. "Now, that wasn't so bad, was it?"