Twilight was now truly the leader of Equestria, crowned as the High Princess of the kingdom. Though her coronation had been a...frankly terrible ceremony. At least it would be memorable.
But afterward, Twilight and her friends had been able to laugh it off, and she had decided, as her first act as ruler, to appoint them as a council of friendship. While there would still be details for them to iron out, they all collectively decided to wait to settle those, and enjoy the royal celebration that followed the coronation in the castle courtyard.
Fluttershy was now standing at the edge of the courtyard, watching as the crowd milled about. Most were ponies, but there were several other species that had been invited. Many of her friends were busy talking to their friends from other lands and cities.
She was debating sneaking away from the celebration for a bit to spend time in the gardens. But she wanted to support Twilight, and was hoping to see—
“Fluttershy!” a familiar and welcome voice cried, her heart leaping in response. She beamed and turned to its source.
Discord, her best friend, was weaving his way through the crowd and right toward her. He received a few looks, but no one would dare say anything bad to him. Not after Twilight herself had personally invited him to the coronation.
“Discord!” Fluttershy said, flying up to hug him as soon as he was close enough. He returned the gesture in full, pulling her close to his chest and holding her there. “I'm glad to see you.”
“Well, I couldn't miss out on viewing such a momentous occasion, could I?” he said, giving her one last squeeze before releasing her. He suddenly looked serious. “But, I have to say…”
“Y-Yes…?”
"That was a wonderfully chaotic coronation!" Discord said, breaking into a wide grin and giving a chef's kiss. "Bravissimo!"
"...thanks?" Fluttershy said, deciding to take the compliment. She knew that's what he meant it as, at least. "It was...an accident. A lot of accidents, really."
"Oh, even better!" Discord began to applaud. "Accidents are perfect, don't you know? Especially when they lead to such beautiful, harmless chaos."
Fluttershy smiled. Even if he had lowered his voice, probably for his 'reputation', she had still caught his full sentence. "At least you're happy," she said. “Twilight…and the rest of us, I think we've laughed it off well enough. But…”
“Ah, don't worry about what anyone else thinks,” Discord said, patting her head. “All the other important leaders already know exactly how competent Princess Sparklepants is, and so should most of Equestria. Any naysayers will be eating their own words within the first year of her rule.”
“…you really think so?” She gave him a relieved smile.
“If I'm wrong, you will have full bragging rights over me,” he said, making an X over his heart. “And so will Twilight.”
“Thank you,” she said, stepping closer and leaning against him. “If you tell Twilight, too, I'm sure she'd appreciate it.”
“Eh…maybe later. And maybe not face-to-face. She seems to enjoy letters better anyway, right?”
Fluttershy giggled, and the two of them continued to watch the celebration around them…mostly an open buffet with an area for everyone to gather and talk. It wasn’t long before Discord sighed, then yawned loudly.
“This is duller than I was expecting such a big, royal celebration to be,” he huffed. “…surely no one would mind if I livened things up a bit?” He held his fingers in a snapping position, giving Fluttershy a toothy grin.
“Maybe not,” she said. “Unless you can think of something to do that won't affect everyone else too much.”
“Hmm.” Discord stroked his beard for a moment before a lava lamp appeared above his head. He turned around and stood in front of her, a wide grin on his face.
"Care for a dance, milady?" He bowed deep at the waist, holding a hand out to her.
"But...no one else is dancing," she pointed out. "And there's no music."
"We can change that," he said, twirling in a circle, hand staying perfectly still and stretched out to her. "Besides, a little jig or two will liven this party up, won't it?"
Fluttershy glanced around. Right now, most creatures were simply mingling, talking, and enjoying the refreshments. It was calm and nice, but not really much of a party.
It vaguely reminded her of her first Grand Galloping Gala.
"I...suppose one dance can't hurt," she mused. "But what are you going to do for music?"
Discord grinned, raising his eyebrows at her. "I'm so glad you asked!" He snapped his fingers, and Fluttershy was momentarily blinded by a flash of light.
Once it faded, five creatures were standing in front of her—Spike, Shining Armor, Big Mac, the Smooze, and an alternate Discord who was wearing glasses. Spike was holding a guitar, Shining Armor a keytar, and the alternate Discord a tambourine. A drumset fell into place in front of Smooze, and a microphone in front of Big Mac.
“Discord?” Fluttershy said as the impromptu band blinked spots out of their eyes.
“Don't worry, I did ask if they wanted to be in a band,” the Discord next to her said.
“We've considered a gig like this for a while,” added the spectacled Discord. “And now, the Sowers of Chaos will make their debut!”
“Still not a fan of that name,” Shining Armor said, playing a few scales on his instrument.
“So, what do you say?” Discord said, holding his hand out to Fluttershy again.
She paused for just a moment, thinking about it…and placed her hoof in his palm. “I'd love to dance with you.”
He beamed, pupils widening and sparkling. He gripped onto her hoof and pulled her into the air, whisking her into the crowd as the Sowers of Chaos (name pending) made their final preparations. The two of them stopped not quite in the middle of the courtyard. Fluttershy placed her free hoof on Discord's shoulder, and he rested his claw on her waist.
Smooze started the first song, the others joining in after a few beats. It was a ballad of some kind, the music slow and the rhythm easy to follow. Big Mac's voice echoed through the courtyard, but Fluttershy didn't pay much mind to the lyrics.
Discord began to spin in circles, swaying their bodies to the rhythm. Fluttershy couldn't do much, with her back hooves so high off the ground, but she still swayed along with Discord.
Though the crowd seemed confused by the band's sudden appearance, it wasn't long before others joined in and started dancing. There were small groups, single ponies dancing on their own…and Pinkie had already started a conga line five creatures long.
And she and Discord were surrounded by other couples, swaying to the music just like they were. Of course, once Discord noticed they were being copied, he dipped Fluttershy and began to sway in the opposite direction.
Fluttershy giggled. “This is fun…it was a good idea,” she said. “I didn't know you had started a band.”
“Very recent thing,” he said, twirling her. “I was hoping to surprise you…if I could manage to keep it to myself that long.”
She laughed again, then sighed and rested her chin on his shoulder. It had been a long day, and exhaustion was starting to catch up to her. Not a moment later, the claw on her waist rose to gently rub circles on her back.
“You alright?” he whispered into her ear.
“Yeah,” she sighed. “Just…let me stay like this? For a little bit?”
“For as long as you like.” He gently nuzzled her cheek.
She felt herself blush slightly, suddenly reminded of the feelings she had for him. She wasn't…scared about telling him! (Maybe she was.) But they had both been so busy, him putting together a plot and then the two of them having to defeat the villains because of it. (And maybe she had been putting off telling him.)
But right now, pressed so close to him, Big Mac singing something about truth and love…maybe now was the time to stop stalling.
“…Discord?” she whispered into his ear. “T-There's something I want to tell you. In private.”
He glanced at her face…and gave a small nod, twirling out of the crowd and to the edge of the courtyard. The stone bricks of the wall twitched and rolled back, letting them dance right into the gardens. The wall slid closed behind them, immediately muffling the music.
Discord let go of her, and she flapped her wings to stay at his eye level. “What is it, Shyfly?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.
The words she wanted to say swelled in her chest, but were caught in her throat. Okay, so she was a little scared about confessing. She fidgeted, rubbing her forehooves together.
“Could you…close your eyes, please?” she requested. Surely it would be easier if he wasn't watching her…and fortunately, he closed his eyes as soon as she asked.
She already felt a little more at ease. And if she closed her own eyes, leaning forward to speak in his ear, it felt even easier. She could forget her anxiety, instead focusing on how this was Discord. Her best friend, who would listen to whatever she had to say.
“Discord, you're my best friend,” she whispered. “And you'll always be my best friend, no matter what. But I…I love you. As more than a friend. I just…want you to know that.”
The Sowers of Chaos paused in between songs, leaving the two of them in silence. Fluttershy gulped, blood rushing in her ears as her heart threatened to burst out of her chest.
“…Fluttershy,” he said, making her slowly pull back, opening her eyes. His were still closed. “If you don't kiss me right now, I'm going to give you a sloppy, embarrassing, messy one. The absolute worst first kiss.”
Her heart leaped. She leaned up, brushing her lips against his. Discord's ears perked up, and only moments later, he returned the kiss. His hand snaked around the back of her head, his fingers weaving into her mane. They deepened the kiss, both of their hearts racing, even as chaste as it still was.
Eventually, though, they had to pull apart for air. Fluttershy panted, her face hot, and saw that Discord was just as flushed as her.
“…I love you, too, Flutternutter,” he said, tapping his nose against hers.
Even more heat rushed into her cheeks. “I'm…glad to hear you say that,” she whispered. “Does this mean we're, um, ‘official'? Marefriend and…draconequusfriend?”
“I’d that's what you want us to be,” he said. “I don't really mind what label you want to describe us with, as long as we're together.”
She smiled…and the band started a new, louder song, one that carried easily over to where they were standing. Discord smirked and held out his paw. “Care to seal our relationship upgrade with a dance?”
“I…don't think I’m ready to go back out yet.” Her heart was still racing, and she suspected that her face was still very red.
“That's alright,” he said. “We can have a private dance right here, if you want.”
She thought over it…and took his hand with a nod. They began to slow dance to a song that was too fast to be slow danced to, and butterflies of light appeared and began to dance around them, partnering with moths formed from drifting leaves.
Fluttershy smiled and closed her eyes, resting her head on her partner's chest, content as they danced.
