The Father

by DragonOverlord2012

Chapters

Father of a Monster
Beholding Chaos
A Generous Aid

Father of a Monster

Chapter 1

Father of a Monster

“HEY! YOU’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE IN HERE!” the lead guard roared at the stallion. He merely groaned in annoyance.

“I’ll have you know that I can be wherever I wish, and it is here that I wish to be,” he informed the group of guards thusly. “Such amazing architecture,” the stallion thought to himself, “Celestia truly does know how to live.”

“I SAID GET OUT, OR I’LL MAKE YOU GET OUT!” the guard yelled again.

“Perhaps a demonstration is in order,” the stallion sighed. His horn lit up briefly in a bright flash, when it dissipated the stallion was nowhere to be seen.

“Well that takes care of that,” the guard muttered.

“Just because I’m not seen doesn’t mean I’m not here,” the stallion told them, his voice reverberating off the walls, “I do so loathe violence of all kinds, despite it’s constant necessity in my rather strange life, and would ask you stand down before this gets embarrassing for you all.”

“Show yourself!” the guard demanded, to no avail, “That was your last warning, now I’m taking you in!”

The stallion’s sigh was heard throughout the room. He didn’t waste any time bucking the lead guard in the nose as he reappeared, then repeatedly disappeared, reappeared, and just beat the guards into submission one strike at a time as he did. As the last guard fell to the floor the stallion appeared and finally stayed in sight. The stallion ignored their collective groans of pain as he trotted about the room for the next several minutes, still admiring the architecture.

“What’s going on here?” the powerful female voice asked. The stallion looked over to see a midnight blue alicorn—princess Luna of course—looking at the near unconscious bodies of her guards, then himself.

“I was merely admiring the elegance of the room until these ruffians barged in ordering me to leave until my hoof was forced,” he explained to the well known lunar princess, “I’ve had my fill of eye candy now and was just about to take my leave.” As he attempted to trot past Luna extended a wing, blocking his path.

“Who are you?” she demanded.

“My dear, it’s not about who I am, it’s about what I was,” he explained as he stepped back and bowed, “You and I and aren’t too different, both individuals powerful beyond reckoning. Mortals fear what’s more powerful them than them, often they say that it’s evil, that it needs to be destroyed. What I am, at least now, is a stallion of wealth, a creature of culture, and unfathomable power.” He remained just as regal a stance as the princess herself.

“What is your name?” she demanded. The stallion smiled softly, careful not to offend the princess of the night during her domain of all times.

“I’m sorry, but before I answer that question, you must first ask the correct questions,” he told her softly

. Luna was about to demand an answer to her question, but quickly decided that it might be easier to play along when a thought occurred to her. This thought, if voiced correctly, may very well be the question the stallion before her wanted her to ask. “You…you’re not a pony are you?” Luna asked curiously.

He smiled brightly in response, as if she’d lived up to his expectations. “Yes, and no,” he answered cryptically, “Truly it is a matter of perspective, as it is with you my dear. However I cannot say the same of all beings on our level, but I digress. I am a pony in body and heart, but in mind and soul, perhaps we could be considered something else. Though that isn’t to say you and I are the same, despite the fact that I could easily will it to be so.” The cryptic answer confused Luna further, raising more questions than it answered, though at least she was getting somewhere. The last statement stood out however.

“What do you mean you could will it to be so?” she asked.

He shook his head. “All in due time, but for now you must ask the correct questions,” he answered with his soft smile. Luna thought about it a moment longer.

“What is your purpose?” she asked finally. He lit up again, even more brightly this time.

“That my dear: is the correct question.” He tilted his head mischievously forward ever so slightly, “However it is not the time to be answering that question. I am sorry.” He hung his head. “but before I answer certain conditions must be met. In the meantime…” He trailed off and trotted off.

Luna once again stopped him to his confusion. “Where do you think you’re going?” she demanded.

“I told you already: I will answer the question when the time and conditions are met,” he repeated with a frown, “I am sorry for the delay.”

Luna narrowed her eyes. “You have broken into my castle, my home, and attacked my guards,” she informed him, “I hereby place you under arrest.” The stallion looked at her and merely sighed.

***

“He just went with you?” the guard asked his princess. She nodded.

“He said he was displeased with the situation, but would comply out of respect for me,” the princess explained to the many guards that the new prisoner had incapacitated, “A strange stallion indeed, but I thought you should be informed on the situation due to your involvement.” The guards nodded as she left.

Luna couldn’t have been more confused on the whole situation. As she trotted back to his cell she wondered why he had insisted upon being there to begin with. Did he truly just enjoy the sights of the castle? There were much easier ways to gain access, rather than breaking and entering.

“Luna?” the cell guard addressed her, “He’s gone.”

Her blood ran cold. “What?!” she demanded as her eyes glowed.

“H-he said to tell you he apologizes for the indiscretion, but there were things he wanted to attend to,” the guard explained quickly, “He also said he’d see both you and Celestia soon enough, and that he wanted you to, well, repeat everything you two said to her. I think that means he wants her in the loop or something.” Luna mentally sighed at the modern slang “in the loop”. She thought it was just easier to say “keep informed”, not to mention less vague. She mentally fumed while she thanked the guard for the message.

***

“Then he escaped while I explained to the guards what happened,” Luna finished explaining to her sister, “Apparently he plans to answer my question when the both of us are present.”

Celestia gave a small “hm” in thought. “What did he look like exactly?” Celestia asked her younger sister. Luna closed her eyes and thought back.

“He was a…moderately sized unicorn stallion, small build, light tan coat, jet black mane tied back in a small ponytail like some nobles, and blue eyes that…” she momentarily trailed off, but finished before Celestia could prod her, “blue eyes that seemed to momentarily shine like crystal.” Celestia thought about it for a moment herself, picturing the stallion in her mind.

“The flash of his eyes is what tipped you off correct?” Celestia inquired.

Luna nodded. “It seems as though he has a distaste for the guards, yet a greater distaste for violence. His patients is hard to gauge however,” Luna continued, “What puzzles me is that he said he respected me. It was not like the respect of a subject though, rather it seemed to be on a personal level.”

“This is all rather unsettling, although hardly cause for alarm,” Celestia thought aloud while Luna nodded in agreement, “He is powerful, though it does not seem is if he is a threat to Equestria or the castle specifically. He’s also stated that he plans to see us in the future, near I would assume.” As she spoke she looked out over the city, while setting the sun into its daily schedule.

This was one of two brief periods of the day when both princesses were awake, a time which was normally spent in the company of one another. This time was never interrupted under any circumstances, especially when discussing personal matters such as this. Luna joined her elder sister on the balcony, looking out upon the morning twilight. A moment of silence was spent in unspoken agreement of the sky’s beauty during that time, as it always was, as they always had for countless years, until they were interrupted by a pegasus guard.

“My apologies madams, but—“

“You dare interrupt our personal time?” Luna growled.

“You told us to tell you when the stallion came back, and he has requested your presence in the sculpture garden,” the guard explained before Luna had a chance to fry him with her readying magic, “We tried to bring him to you, but that didn’t work out well.” He winced as he thought of it. Luna had calmed herself begrudgingly. She couldn’t just punish him for following orders. She was the one who put it on top priority after all.

“You said that didn’t work out well,” Celestia repeated in mix of curiosity and slight nervousness, “What did you mean by that?”

The guard landed on the railing and shuffled nervously. “We, um… one of us is a baby duck,” he answered awkwardly. The princesses looked at one another sharing the same thought. Had the Lord of Chaos returned? The two decided to waste no time getting to the garden as soon as the thought crossed their minds.

***

“Ah, the sculpture gardens, so detailed, so elegant, so passionate!” the stallion breathed, taking in the glory around him until he stopped at Discord’s stone prison, “Far too good a place for you to spend your days.” He almost glared at the statue, but kept his stature intact.

“HALT!” he heard behind him, followed by the shuffle of many armored guards. He sighed as he turned to find many guards, ten of each breed to be specific. Earth ponies stood ready to charge, pegasi float in the air ready to do the same, and unicorns stood with magic at the ready.

“What is this for? Are the gardens not open to the public?” he asked his “captors”.

“We are under orders to bring you in, from princess Luna!” a unicorn told him.

He raised an eyebrow. “Were you actually ordered to bring me in, or were you ordered to inform her of my appearance?” he inquired.

“The latter, but tomato tomato,” the unicorn said the words in different pronunciations as he attempted to close the distance between himself and his target. The stallion shook his head as a warning, but was ignored.

“Perhaps a demonstration is in order,” he sighed. His horn flashed momentarily, blinding the guards. When the flash subsided where once stood an armored stallion now stood an armored baby duck.

“What the buck?!” several of the guards asked as they took a step back. They stared at the stallion in a mix of fear and disbelief. He glanced at the duck of a stallion he had created, then back to the rest of the guards.

“Next time I’ll put some imagination into it,” he warned them thusly, “I request a formal and private audience with the princesses of night and day respectively. It would be wise to comply rather than repeat your friend’s mistake. A situation I shall remedy on the fulfillment of my request.” One of the pegasi immediately flew off to get the princesses. The duckling/guard pulled at and ate some of the grass in the mere minute it took for his companion to return with Luna and Celestia.

“What is the meaning of this?” Celestia demanded.

The stallion smiled, now being in the presence of his desired audience. His horn flashed once again and the duckling took his correct form once again, albeit he quacked in confusion a few more times before regaining the correct state of mind. He looked at what he now considered his worst nightmare and scampered off. Nopony could blame him.

The stallion looked at the multitude of guards and frowned. “I would prefer my private audience be private,” he said sternly, “Your presence here is not required, welcomed, nor tolerated. Leave at once.” Several were going to protest, but were dismissed by a quick nod from Celestia and Luna both. Finally alone with the two mares he had wished to speak to, he picked up the conversation where it had been left off.

“Now that the time and conditions have been met, I shall answer,” he told them with his light smile, not at all unlike the one Celestia normally wore, “My purpose is simple: to make up for family history, ironically, made by the future generation.”

Luna had to suppress a groan. She had to convince herself that he would answer all the growing questions she had for him with each passing second. At the very least he had a kind demeanor.

“I believe I should ask the next question,” Celestia cut in, getting an encouraging nod from the confronted, “What family history do you speak of?”

The stallion’s smile faded, his head hung low in dismay. “That my dear, is the correct question,” he answered solemnly. He picked his head up to glare at the contained form of Discord, his irises shining like crystal, only to spit upon it, “A truly vile creature, undeserving to be put on display for all to see in a place of such pristine culture and beauty, with the company of refined ponies, and the sound of pleased and amused foals. Nay. Ye should be locked away in a dank and disgusting basement, with nothing but the company of diseased rats to keep you company, and only the maddening sound of leaking pipes for the countless ages to come.” He spat the venomous words at the monster that likely couldn’t even hear him with a spite unrivaled even by Celestia’s loathe for the creature, which served to shock and confuse both mares.

“I have never heard such unrivaled hatred,” Luna gasped, “Even from my sister or I! What could you possibly have against the Lord of Chaos so personally to have surpassed even our hatred of him?”

The stallion almost shot her a look, but reminded himself to treat her with respect as he gazed upon her. Although he smiled it was a solemn one. He was obviously holding back tears. “Both of your questions have a common answer,” he nearly sobbed, “My name is Chaos, and I of the true lord of it. Discord is my son.”

This new information answered everything, and to say it hit like a ton of bricks would be the understatement of all time. This dignified and respectful creature, no matter how powerful, was the true Lord of Chaos and father of Discord? It was preposterous!

“Inconceivable,” Celestia breathed. Luna narrowed her eyes and prepared to attack.

Chaos managed to calm himself, but still smiled solemnly. “That is truly futile and furthermore unnecessary I assure you princess,” he assured her softly, effectively convincing her to drop her magic, “This form I take is that of a mere mortal, true, but I myself have the sort of power that makes Discord look like the child he truly is.”

“That he is a child makes perfect sense,” Celestia nodded, “What of you though? What is your true form?”

Chaos shook his head. “Discord and I have no such ‘true from’,” Chaos corrected, “We merely decide upon a body of our liking and live out our days in it for as long as we please. My son merely chose the most hideous thing he could think of: a patchwork beast half consisting of carnivorous creatures. Why he chose the head of a donkey I’ll never know.” He shook his head in a mix of disgust and disappointment, all signs of sadness having disappeared.

Celestia eyed him carefully, constantly looking for any sign of hostility. “How do we know we can trust you?” Celestia asked simply.

“An apt question milady, with but a simple answer,” he smirked ever so slightly, “You don’t. After all why would you trust the father of your greatest enemy without ample reason? Dignified as I may be that still doesn’t amount to much on the grand scale of things now does it?” It made sense, but what was unnerving was that it made too much sense. What he said was exactly what they thought, almost word for word. If he was playing a game it was a very irritating game.

“You created Discord, no matter what the circumstances you cannot be trusted,” Luna agreed, “However…you carry yourself in an open light, remained calm and dignified, and have thusly been honest on all accounts so far. I cannot see ample reason to distrust you either.”

“It’s a conundrum,” Chaos simplified as he smiled understandingly, “Might I suggest a third party opinion?”

Celestia’s thought were drawn to what she could only assume was what he wanted her to think, as well as the only logical answer. “I hereby banish you,” Celestia stated firmly.

“Oh? To where? Under what circumstances am I imprisoned?” Chaos asked slyly, already knowing the answer.

“To Ponyville,” Luna finished, picking up on her sister’s train of though, “If you and Discord are indeed the same than the presence of the Elements of Harmony should keep you in line should you have any malicious intent.”

“You shall not be allowed to leave Ponyville without one of the wielders of the Elements present with you, or the Elements will be turned upon you,” Celestia warned.

“Of course princesses, as you wish,” Chaos said with a small smile, obviously this was part of some plan, but what the two could not fathom, “After all: if you don’t trust me yourselves, what better to change your minds than the opinion of the six ponies you trust above all else?” That was the big plan? Certainly nothing diabolical, and soundly structured; a simple plot if it could be called one.

“That’s your big plan?” Luna deadpanned.

Chaos shook his head again. “My, my. You seem to be thinking of my unruly son,” he assured her with his normal smile, “I merely wish to gain your trust, and in time make good on my family history.” He smiled softly, without a trace of any intent other than what he said.

“If what you wanted was their trust in order to gain our trust, why come to us first?” Celestia inquired quizzically.

Chaos sighed happily. “You know, it’s nice having a civil conversation for once,” Chaos told them as he lost himself to the moment temporarily. He quickly regained himself, “The answer is simple: it was far easier to make myself known to the two mares I wanted peace with most, rather than the middle mares. In turn my being in Ponyville is an official order, due to which the six said mares will already know of my existence, connections, and purpose. This was far easier than trying to work this plan from the other end. The two introduce me to the six, rather than the six introduce me to the two. In short you were much easier to gather.” Once more it was sound reasoning, yet still with so little reason to trust him.

“What is the point to all this?” Luna demanded.

“I told you: it is merely to redeem my family history,” Chaos assured her with a meaningful smile, “In the mean time, I’ll be in Ponyville. I do hope you appreciate the gift I’ve left for you individually, and do send word to Twilight soon.” Chaos disappeared in a flash, no doubt headed for Ponyville, leaving two confused and worried sisters to figure out what his last statement intended.

“I suppose we should return to my chambers and send a letter to Twilight informing her and her friends of the situation,” Celestia suggested nervously. Luna nodded in agreement and followed her elder sister through the air to her room. As they landed in the room they noticed something on the bed: two bouquets of flowers, as well as two bottles of wine. One of the bouquets consisted of white roses, while the other consisted of deep violets. The bottles were white and grape wine respectively. A kind and thoughtful gift to be sure, which proved they were worried for nothing. The two shared a smile as they enjoyed the scent of the flowers as well as the taste of their wine before they sent word to Twilight. “Okay, maybe Chaos does deserve a sporting chance,” Celestia thought to herself, “After all, it’s hard to go wrong with flowers and wine.”

Beholding Chaos

Chapter 2

Beholding Chaos

“Ah!” Chaos exclaimed after inhaling deeply, “Sweet Apple Acres, such a simple place, yet filled with such refined and quality taste.” As he thought aloud he plucked an apple from a tree and took a bite out of it. “Both literally and figuratively,” he thought to himself. He heard a rustle from one of the trees and looked in its direction. He eyed it curiously for a moment before rolling his eyes. His horn flashed brightly and a rainbow maned pegasus appeared below its branches.

“Hey?! What the?!” she looked around before figuring out she had been teleported from her hiding place by the stallion before her, “Thief!” She pointed an accusative hoof at him.

Chaos rolled his eyes again, this time in annoyance. “I promise you I am nothing so vulgar,” he almost spat the word, “I fully intend to pay for this food once I find the appropriate owner, although if you don’t trust me you could follow me. Better yet, you’re Applejack’s friend, why don’t you lead me to her?” Rainbow looked at him dumbfounded, then shook her head furiously to make sure this was real.

“Oh great, another Rarity,” she groaned under her breath, “Whatever. AJ is probably just getting up. I’ll take you to her.” Chaos followed her faithfully, knowing full well she wouldn’t trust him as far as she could throw him in a few minutes.

“By the way Rainbow, why were you asleep in that tree so early in the morning rather than in your own cloud bed?” Chaos inquired curiously, “As I recall clouds are far more comfortable than trees.” Rainbow glanced back at him briefly.

“Well, AJ asked me to help her with some apple bucking yesterday, after that I was too tired to fly all the way home,” she explained, “So how do you know Applejack anyways? I mean, I know I’m too awesome not to, but AJ hasn’t made quite as big a name for herself.”

Chaos chuckled lightly. “You’re as arrogant as I thought you’d be, but all six of you are quite famous,” Chaos explained, “You won the young fliers competition with the Sonic Rainboom and have been shown to use it on cue. Pinkie Pie is slightly infamous for the fiasco she caused at the Gala a couple years ago, which I suppose is another type of fame in and of itself. Rarity has become a famous designer throughout Canterlot. Fluttershy was a famous model for some time, not to mention her part in the fiasco at the Gala as well. Applejack is a great athlete as all Canterlot remembers. Finally Twilight is the little sister of the captain of the royal guard, and personal student as well as niece-in-law to princess Celestia. Not to mention you’re all famed to have your own part in the royal wedding of Cadence and Shining Armor. In addition you’ve all saved the kingdom and world on two separate occasions, not to mention the Crystal Empire. I think the better question is: why wouldn’t some one know you?” Rainbow stopped and stared at him like he was insane. He raised an eyebrow.

“What are you stalking us?” she asked. Chaos couldn’t help but laugh, for once losing his normal composure. Rainbow stopped to glare at him, but he dismissed it as he regained his head.

“All will be explained soon enough, but you really shouldn’t be surprised that you’re all so well known,” Chaos chided playfully her before returning to his normal smile, “After all, you’re all very famous and good looking mares.” Rainbow stopped and Chaos trotted past her.

“Wait, what was that last part?” she asked with a small blush. He stopped to smiled at her, although this time it was obvious that he was trying to embarrass her.

“What?” he quipped quickly before trotting along again. Rainbow ran quickly for a moment to catch up.

“Well don’t get your hopes up,” she warned him in annoyance, “You’re just not my type I can already tell.” Chaos got a mischievous smile for a moment before his horn flashed. Rainbow stopped to check what she did and her jaw dropped when she saw none other than herself.

“What about now?” the duplicate said with her voice and cocky sneer.

“What the—but the—how did?” Rainbow sputtered. Her duplicate merely laughed—her laugh. A flash occurred again and Chaos was left still snickering.

“Just—as you say—yanking your chain,” Chaos teased as he cantered past her, “My name is Chaos by the way.”

“Hey wait a minute!” Rainbow said as she flew in front of him to cut him off, “Are you Discord?” She glared at him, and Chaos almost scowled back.

“I assure you that I am not that disgusting abomination of a chimera,” he said sternly. He continued to trot by going around her as she stared at him.

“How do I know your telling the truth?” Rainbow demanded as she gave chase.

“Because if I was I would have kissed you,” Chaos chided teasingly, “Isn’t that something that child would do in the spur of the moment?” Rainbow gagged at the thought, loudly. Chaos couldn’t blame her, “Sorry. Truly not the kind of face you think of in that lighting.”

“Yeah. I almost puked on that one,” Rainbow blurted out when she finished gagging.

They had arrived at Applejacks farm, only to find said mare trying to make sense of whatever it was a bouncing pink flash was saying.

“Hold on a minute,” Rainbow said before taking off to ground the pink blur, which was of course a pink mare with bright blue eyes and a mouth that almost never shut. “PINKIE PIE!” She finally stood still and stopped talking, but only for half a second.

“Ohmygosh Dashie Twilight got a letter about something that got her super duper ultra mega scared and now she’s going around getting super crazy and panicky and at first I thought it had something to do with her friendship report again so I tried to hide her smarty pants doll but instead she just teleported it to her when she couldn’t find it so that didn’t work but instead of putting a charm on it she started talking to it while she cuddled it and ranting on about something impossible about Discord which is weird cause I thought there was nothing impossible with Discord cause y’know he’s the Lord of Chaos and he turned us all gray which is still funny but what wasn’t funny is he had us all mad at each other and I think Fluttershy put it best when she called him a big meanie and—”

“PINKIE PIE!” all three of them yelled.

Chaos had already caught up to them some time during the incoherent rant. “Good grief,” Chaos said in exasperation, “Is she always like this?”

“Ah’ve been dealing with this fer seven minutes and Ah still ain’t gotten a lick of sense outta her,” Applejack explained, “All Ah managed to get so for is Twilight is going nuts over something about Discord and a letter, which has me worried.” Rainbow was about to say something, but Chaos cut her off.

“I should introduce myself to the two of you,” he cut in politely, “My name is Chaos, and the letter Twilight got was from Celestia and Luna. It was about me specifically and Pinkie was most likely sent to gather up the other four of you, which leaves Rarity and Fluttershy uninformed as of yet.”

“Thank you!” Applejack blurted out, “Pinkie, yer too random.”

“What do you mean it’s about you?” Rainbow demanded as she glared at Chaos suspiciously, “Are you connected to Discord?”

Chaos sighed. “This is getting ridiculous, and it would be far easier to explain to everypony at once,” Chaos chided her, “A warning: I’m teleporting us to Fluttershy’s cottage in three seconds, so you might be a little disoriented.” After three seconds—filled with a couple of panicked reactions and then steeled nerves—they teleported to Fluttershy’s cottage.

***

Fluttershy squeaked very loudly when she heard an abnormal, yet familiar magically created sound outside her door. A knock came and she very carefully opened the door to find Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie, accompanied by somepony she didn’t recognize.

“Do you want the long version or the short version?” Rainbow asked immediately.

“Short version,” she answered quietly.

“My name is Chaos,” the stallion answered, “There is a matter of which you and your five friends must attend to directly involving myself, and as such you are to gather at Twilight’s house so she can read to you the letter sent by the princesses regarding the subject. Understand?” Fluttershy nodded.

“So that just leaves Rarity,” Pinkie finished, “See you there!” She took off before anypony could say anything.

“Let her go,” Chaos said before they could give chase, “We are off to get Rarity next, and again I will teleport us there in three seconds. Prepare yourself Fluttershy.”

***

Rarity awoke from her pleasant dream with a start when a sudden noise filled the room from downstairs. She awoke to see Rainbow barging into her room.

“GET OUT!” she screamed as she threw her alarm clock at the pegasus.

“But Rarity I—“

“OUT!” she shrieked again. A vine flew in from outside the door, grabbing the intruding pegasus and dragging her out the door. Rarity heard voices from downstairs yelling at one another.

“Fer Pete’s sake Rainbow ya should know better than to wake Rarity up, and especially when she doesn’t have her make-up on,” Applejack scolded.

“Fine, but did you have to lasso me? And where did you get that vine, and where’d it go?” Rainbow asked.

An unfamiliar voice came this time, and it sounded as if it were traveling up the stairs. “That was I. Now just wait there for a moment,” the stallion responded. Rarity’s door shut on its own accord and there was a knock on it.

“Who is it?” Rarity asked oddly.

“My name is Chaos,” he responded politely, “I don’t mean to intrude, but there is a matter that you and your five friends need to attend to. It is an order from the princesses themselves and it directly involves me. Twilight has the letter, so when you’re ready I’ll teleport us all to her library. Now you’ll just be going with your normal look correct?”

Rarity trotted over to apply her make-up as he spoke. “Of course, unless of course the princesses themselves are at the library, in which case I’ll need some extra time to prepare myself accordingly,” she told him kindly, “And I thank you for your help with Rainbow Dash. Sometimes she’s just too brash and forgets how to show proper respect.”

Chaos sighed outside the door. “I’ve noticed that myself,” Chaos agreed empathically, “She’s quite loud as well. On a side note: I am very adept at magic, so if you’d like I could have you prepared on a moments notice.” Rarity thought about it for a moment. She had a horrid case of bed-head, her tail was not much better, it took forever to apply her make-up some days, and she had regrettably been tossing about a lot in bed and was in desperate need of a shower. All things considered she didn’t want to keep her friends waiting, but it sounded as if this could be a difficult spell to perform.

“I wouldn’t want to be a burden, but thank you,” she replied thoughtfully.

Chaos chuckled. “I assure you milady it is no trouble at all,” he told her with a substantial amount of respect in his voice, “It would be an honor to assist such a wonderful mare.” Rarity couldn’t help but smile.

What a charmer,” she thought. “Well if you insist,” Rarity said modestly.

After a brief warning a bright flash filled the room, and when it subsided Rarity felt rejuvenated. She looked in the mirror and found herself looking like her normal day to day self, in under a minute no less; nay, in under a second. She opened the door to greet the kind stallion, and was briefly mesmerized by his crystal-like eyes. They soon changed to be a normal pony’s eyes, a calming blue no less.

“Thank you kind sir,” Rarity smiled, “Now, you said we were off to Twilight’s house?”

“Yes of course.” The two trotted down the stairs to find that the rest of the group.

“What took you so long?” Pinkie asked.

“I’m surprised it didn’t take longer,” Rainbow grumbled.

“I still can’t figure out how Pinkie got here before us,” Chaos pointed out, “Nonetheless. Same drill: in three seconds I’ll teleport us there—Pinkie sit.” Chaos narrowed his eyes and stamped his hoof down as he ended. Pinkie stopped in mid take-off and obediently sat, oddly enough. After a brief moment of preparation they were off to Twilight’s house.

***

“Spike what am I going to do?” Twilight asked the poor confused baby dragon as she squeezed him to the point just short of crushing him, something Spike didn’t think she had the strength to do.

“Twilight normally I’d ask if you’re overreacting but I really do think you’re right to freak out this time,” Spike said after he took a lungful of precious oxygen, “I mean, why don’t we just use the Elements of Harmony on him and be done with it?”

Twilight flipped him around and held him in the air by his cheeks, smooshing his face. “That’s just what I wanted to do Spike, but one: the Elements aren’t here, two: the princesses—both of them—said not to use them unless he A: leaves Ponyville without us, or B: gives us reason to believe he’s evil.” The violet mare stated hyperventilating after she let Spike go.

“You need to calm down Twilight,” Spike put a hand on her shoulder, “I mean, we should be able to keep him in line by making him think we have the Elements here. At least long enough for them to actually get here. I mean, after that if he even looks at somepony funny we can blast him and be done with it.” Twilight perked up.

“You’re right Spike,” Twilight exclaimed happily, “All I have to do is stall until he messes up and WHAM!” Twilight smashed one hoof into another to emphasize her point. The scatter-brained unicorn then proceeded to jump several feet in the air with a yelp when she heard a knock at the door.

“Twilight dear, we’re all here,” Rarity said in singsong.

“Come on in everypony.” They all piled in and gathered in front of her. When the final pony entered the room her eyes shrank to pinpricks.

“What’s wrong sugarcube?” Applejack asked in concern for her friends ever so often fleeting sanity, “Ya look like yer buggin out.” The stallion sat down with her friends and gave a small smile, not unlike the one Celestia normally gave. His blue eyes stared at her with unreadable intentions.

“A pleasure to meet the famed Twilight Sparkle,” he said softly, “My name is Chaos.”

Twilight shrieked and zipped upstairs at a speed that made Rainbow’s jaw drop. Rarity raised an eyebrow at Chaos while Fluttershy and Applejack exchanged confused glances. At the same time Pinkie Pie bounced up the stairs after Twilight along with Spike.

“Well that was just plain rude,” Chaos muttered; feeling personally insulted. Rarity nodded in agreement.

“NO WAY! I AM NOT GOING DOWN THERE WITH THAT MONSTER IN THERE!” they heard Twilight shriek at Pinkie and Spike.

“Aw come on Twilight,” Pinkie in reassurance, “He’s really kind of nice, not to mention he gathered us all up for the news you sent me to gather everypony for. I tell ya: I was trying to tell Applejack forever, but she just wasn’t getting any of it.”

“That’s because you make no sense when telling us about normal things,” Spike reminded her, “This is insane. You have any idea what it’s like to listen to you describing something insane?”

“Also rude,” Rarity and Chaos said at the same time.

“Sweet Celestia, now there’s two of ‘em,” Applejack groaned. Rarity shot Applejack a look.

“Just let it go,” Chaos chided softly, without a trace of anything in his voice to indicate he felt insulted, “When you’ve been around as long as I have you learn to deal with such remarks.” Rarity sighed and conceded.

Chaos got up and trotted up the stairs after Twilight, only for her to shriek again upon seeing him, which was oddly cut off halfway through. Not like somepony shoved a hoof in her mouth, but rather the sound ceased as if somepony had paused the music with no reason.

“My apologies, but I like my eardrums intact,” Chaos shot at her, which resulted in an undignified groan and probably a scowl from Twilight, as well as a snicker from Rainbow Dash, “Just come downstairs and read the letter the princesses sent you. That way we can all be on our merry ways and you can go back to plotting ways to make me look like the monster you think I am so you have a viable excuse to imprison me. And yes: I did hear you.”

“I do not trust you!” Twilight yelled at him.

Chaos though about it for the briefest moment, and the answer of exactly how to get her to comply was simple enough: play on her hate for him as well as her loyalty to her friends. “I don’t expect you to,” Chaos replied simply, “After all: you read the letter, you know who I am. Why not share that with your friends, or don’t they deserve to know?”

“Of course they deserve to know! And I’m going to tell them right now!” Twilight marched back down the stairs with Celestia and Luna’s letter in tow, along with Spike, Chaos, and Pinkie. Pinkie sat back down between Applejack and Rainbow—who was on the far right—while Chaos took his place on the far left next to Rarity.

“This is a letter from not just Celestia, but Luna as well,” Twilight explained, “In it is a description of a certain—quote unquote—pony who is not a pony at all, but rather a terrible monster! I speak of course of this creature!” She pointed an accusative hoof at Chaos.

“Stick to the script Twilight,” he deadpanned in annoyance and loss of patients, “In other words: read the letter.”

“For goodness sake Twilight I’d like to hear what the princesses actually had to say, not another delusional rant about a pony who’s evil,” Rarity chided, “Granted the last time you were right, but still.”

“Yeah, yeah we all know she was half-right about Cadence bein’ evil, can we get on with it?” Applejack badgered.

“Ahem!” Twilight coughed to get their attention as she scowled at Chaos, “Dear Twilight and friends, we have come across a very peculiar stallion this night, and he has revealed to us that he is not a normal stallion. He has shown dignified stature, a calm demeanor, and a great respect for the both of us. We cannot however trust him due to the information he has revealed to us, which would not have been believable had he not turned one of our armored guards into an armored baby duck.” Rainbow burst out laughing along with Pinkie Pie.

“I didn’t think it was that funny,” Chaos muttered to himself. Twilight coughed again.

“This stallion revealed that his power was in fact inherited by his son: Discord,” Twilight continued, causing all of them to pay very close attention, “He has agreed to be banished to Ponyville under the watch of you six. The Elements of Harmony will be delivered to you. If he shows any signs of being evil, or leaves Ponyville without the company of one of you, than you are to find him and use the Elements on him as you would with Discord, but not a moment sooner.

“We do not have reason to trust him, but at the same time we do not have enough reason to distrust him either. He will likely have arrived on his own accord by the time this letter arrives. He is a moderately sized unicorn stallion, small build, light tan coat, jet-black mane tied back in a small ponytail, and blue eyes. He has identified himself as a being named: Chaos.

“PS tell him the gift was in fact appreciated.” Twilight threw the letter on the ground and glared at him. The five other mares looked at him in shock.

“Oh come now, is it really that shocking?” he asked in a disappointed tone of voice, “Then again that…” he did something between a shudder and a disgusted groan, “thing, that paraded around in my absence truly would leave a bad taste regarding my bloodline.”

“That ‘thing’ is a monster!” Rainbow yelled at him, “Do you have any idea how much misery he’s caused?” Chaos stared daggers at the rainbow maned pegasus.

“None know better than I what a disgusting worm that abomination of reality is,” Chaos seethed in suppressed rage, “That motherless freak is the most disrespectful, vile, manipulative, evil wretch I have ever had the extreme displeasure of having known!” It was expected that he start throwing his head around to the point were his hair-tie came loose and his mane fell all over his face while he roared in anger, making him somewhat reminiscent of the monster he apparently spawned. Rather he remained dignified and merely stamped his front hoof down at the end of his rant, closing his eyes and turning his head with his nose in the air. Each of them were taken aback by the sheer anger they felt rolling off him at the mention of his son.

“My, what…language,” Rarity said carefully.

Chaos opened his eyes and looked down at his hooves, somewhat ashamed of what he’d done. “I’m sorry you had to hear that,” he muttered barely loud enough for them to hear, “It’s my problem, I’ll deal with it.”

“Okey dokie loki,” Pinkie said slowly and nervously. He gave a small, undignified frown to each of them. If he was trying to play the sympathy card he was doing a good job.

“Oh deary it’s okay,” Rarity smiled softly in reassurance, “I’m sure we can help you through it.” He wasn’t convinced.

“If any one of you was a changeling you would have choked to death. No ifs ands or buts, I’ve actually done that,” he didn’t as much say the words as he did breathe them like winter’s night air. Each of them flinched as they thought of the sight. He sighed, “Like I said it’s my problem I’ll deal with it.”

“How do we trust you?” Spike asked, “Y’know, outside of the whole ‘wretch’ thing about Discord.”

Chaos tsked. “My boy the fact that we have a common displeasure is no reason to trust me in the least,” Chaos chided the baby dragon, “As for the question I’ll tell you again: you don’t. That’s why the princesses want me here after all.”

“We’re gonna need something to go off of if ya don’t want us to blast ya when the Elements get here,” Applejack warned.

Chaos scoffed at her in feigned shock. “You would go against the direct order of the two most beloved and respected mares in Equestria?” he gasped, all in order to openly mock her, “I am simply appalled by your blatant lack of respect for those two wonderful mares. Good day madam!” He stamped his hoof on the ground and threw his nose in the air again.

“Ah didn’t mean—“

“I said good day!” Chaos said again. Rarity shot Applejack a look.

“While even more overdramatic than I’d have liked he has a solid point, Applejack,” Rarity reminded her, “The princesses directly stated not to use the Elements unless he leaves town without us or does something intentionally evil. We are now soldiers and we have our orders.” Applejack groaned, but eventually conceded.

“Thank you Rarity,” Chaos said warmly, dropping his feigned shock, “It is of course of great importance to remember your loyalties above all else. Right Rainbow Dash?” He narrowed his eyes at the pegasus before she could say anything. She grunted and sat back down.

“By the way what did you give the princesses?” Pinkie finally asked; it had been the only thing on her mind since the argument began, “I mean, I’ve been thinking really really hard to figure it out, but I can’t figure out what somepony like you would give somepony like them. I mean at first I thought you might have left a prank cause of the whole you know thing that I’m not gonna say cause I don’t wanna get you upset, but then I thought why would they thank you for a prank, so it had to be something at least kinda nice, unless they were being sarcastic, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard princess Luna and princess Celestia say something sarcastic, although—“

“PINKIE PIE!” all six ponies and dragon shouted.

“To answer your earlier question: yes, she is always like this,” Rainbow told Chaos snidely.

“Anyways,” Chaos said ignoring his growing headache, “I left them both a different set of flowers and a bottle of fine wine both aged for one hundred years. Good to know they appreciated it.”

“Why?” Twilight asked.

“I wouldn’t want to leave on a bad note,” he said as if it were obvious, “That’s just rude. Wine is after all a proper pony’s drink of choice for any special occasion. The flowers were of course a gentlecolt’s gift for a fine lady.”

“Of course,” Rarity agreed, getting annoyed looks from all her friends, “What?”

“Regardless,” Chaos stood up and started for the door, “You’ve all been told the situation, so I’ll be on my way.” Rainbow cut him off to his annoyance.

“Oh no you don’t. You’re not going anywhere!” His horn flashed again and Rainbow found herself next to Applejack again with her wings unwilling to respond.

“That will wear off in thirty seconds,” Chaos informed her as he just trotted out the door, “Almost forgot: for the apple.” His horn lit up again and five bits appeared before Applejack. Chaos himself had disappeared.

“Now what do we do?” Fluttershy asked.

“We find him, and keep an eye on him, just like we were told to do,” Twilight answered obviously, “Go on everypony!” They dispersed, but they were more concerned with breakfast rather than finding Chaos.

Rarity in particular was looking forward to it, having been woken so early and so rudely by Rainbow Dash. Going from her to the surprisingly refined father of Discord was a pleasant change, although she’d rather not admit it.

As she trotted through the dining room on the way to the kitchen she found something on the table: a bouquet of red roses and a bottle of cherry wine with a note. She picked it up, already sure of where it came from, and it read: To a mare who also appreciates the finer things in life, fair Rarity, From Chaos.

A Generous Aid

Chapter 3

A Generous Aid

Rarity was hard at work on another dress for Sapphire Shores. When she got the letter she got to work immediately. She’d have had Spike come over to help, but he was busy trying to ease Twilight out of her recent mental breakdown involving Chaos. She’d have had Sweetie Belle help, but she was of course crusading again. She’d have had Fluttershy help, but she was having her own nervous breakdown involving Chaos. That was surprising, since she seemed so gathered standing right in front of him. Perhaps it was a delayed reaction. Nonetheless Rarity was on her own, only stopping when she heard a light knock on the front door.

“Coming!” Rarity tried to keep her refined tone of voice, but in her panic she failed. She opened the door and gasped.

“I’d have come in to chat, but the sign said closed,” Chaos said warmly, taking a quick look inside, “Might I come in for tea?” He sounded surprisingly unsure of himself, given Rarity’s previous interactions with him.

“Um, yes fine come in, but I’m far too busy for tea,” Rarity said as she hustled back to her mannequin, “Large order from a rich pony, must work, work, work.” Chaos trotted in casually, spawning into existence a top hat just to put on the hat rack beside the door. Rarity watched him do so and rolled her eyes at the ridiculousness and pointlessness of the action.

“You mustn’t fluster yourself so, especially when working so hard,” Chaos said with a somewhat fatherly tone, “You may be young, but I’ve seen younger still suffer from stress induced heart attacks. Perfectly healthy too, also very sad.” Rarity felt her heart sink as she heard Chaos’ do the same just from the sad tone of his voice.

“Oh my,” she said quietly.

“One should never dwell upon such sad pasts either,” he said solemnly, “Such is the life an immortal leads. We see souls come and go, such is life.” Rarity gave a small nod, not wanting to dwell upon such a topic any more than he did. She quickly got back to the fabric she was pinning together, so she could sew it together and be done with that step. As she pinned the skirt to the rest of the fabric the collar and sleeves began to fall apart.

“Oh no!” Rarity tried to grab it with her magic, but dropped the half pinned skirt. Just as everything began to fall apart, everything froze with a flash. Rarity looked at the half destroyed progress and back at Chaos, who was proceeding to put things back in place.

“I’m surprised nopony jumped at the opportunity to help you,” Chaos said as he reset the pins, “I take it the candidates were all busy with other projects?” Rarity smiled at his concern and chivalry.

“Unfortunately yes,” she sighed, “But I suppose you’re here now, and I thank you for that. I still can’t believe what Twilight told us about you.”

Chaos’ expression softened to a melancholy smile. “I’d rather not talk about such a…it would be better if I didn’t start,” he changed quickly, “Once I get started…” He gave a small shrug. Rarity understood to some degree.

“Actually…I am curious,” she admitted carefully, “If…why do you hate him so much? I can plainly see the differences between the two of you, but there must be something personal.” Rarity didn’t know how right she was. The pins had all been reset, and she was checking it over before bringing it to the sewing machine.

The melancholy smile remained on Chaos’ face. “Discord was…to be my greatest accomplishment,” his smile faded, and the pain became audible in his voice, “A symbol of what I stood for, to take my place in my absence. Instead…” He nearly growled the last word. “I’m sorry, but I really shouldn’t say any more, lest I spoil the evening.” Rarity nodded and apologized. If anything she’d have a better chance to ask later.

“Where have you been all these years anyhow?” she asked curiously, “You had to have been somewhere.”

Chaos thought about it for a moment, as he looked her designs over, thinking how to best put it. “I’ve been many places,” he finally answered, “I was not but a nomad. No land’s colt if you will. I did nothing but travel for many centuries, always on my own, contemplating the nature of things. At the same time I enjoyed many a glass of fine wine, champagne, attended social gatherings, sometimes even taking a direct approach to the problems of others.

“There was one time in particular where a couple was arguing over something so trivial, that I felt something needed to be done. I stirred up a little problem, and at the end they realized just how irrelevant the argument was.”

Rarity stopped momentarily “Stirred up a little chaos you mean?” She eyed him suspiciously, but not judgmentally.

Chaos gave an obviously fake smile. “The world needs chaos Rarity, some essence of disorganization to, say, spark an idea,” he gave a coy smile, “I believe you of all ponies should know what I mean by that.”

“Organized chaos,” Rarity breathed with a small smile. He was right: that she understood. “What does chaos have to do with solving romantic problems though?” She seriously wanted to know his reasoning behind this one. A logical reason for why an illogical thing needed to happen to spark a questionable outcome.

“A test of faith of course,” he answered simply, “How many times has your faith for your friends been tested? How many times have you come through still friends? How much stronger have those bonds you’ve kept become, because of those tests? You see, tests of faith are not only that, but also ways to strengthen that faith. In a way, it’s like pulling at Chinese hoof-cuffs: the harder you pull…” He looked to her to finish.

“The harder you pull, the more securely fastened it becomes.” She closed her eyes and smiled in realization. Every hurdle she and her friends had overcome had made their friendship stronger, learning how to help one another, discovering their personal limits, helping one another surpass their fears; all of them grew closer and closer each time. Chaos could almost see her thinking when she stopped stitching.

“When you’ve been around as long as I, you see the truth within the truth,” he explained to her insightfully, “You either learn and gain virtues, or you go mad.” His eyes widened and his tone changed to sound ever so slightly deranged himself. Rarity gave a small chuckle at that.

“Well I already know two immortals that went mad,” Rarity chimed in, “The difference is one came back and is now one of the most well respected ponies I know.”

“Of course, quite beautiful as well wouldn’t you say?” Being put on the spot that way was a little unexpected, but Rarity nodded in agreement anyways. It was Luna they were talking about after all. She was a princess; they’re supposed to be beautiful.

“Well of course,” Rarity agreed, “They’re princesses after all. I’m sure they have many groomers to make sure they always look their best.”

“Perhaps, but I prefer a mare who can do as such herself and look beautiful everyday,” Chaos told her thoughtfully, “That’s what you manage to do after all, but of course it’s nice to have oneself pampered once in a while, yes?

He really knows how to flatter a lady.

“I agree wholeheartedly, and thank you,” she beamed, “By the way…I was wondering about something.”

“What’s on your mind?” he asked curiously. It was something that had been on her mind since she met him.

“When I first saw you…your irises looked like…” she trailed off wondering if she’d just imagined it.

“Crystals right?” Rarity looked at him in shock. “I didn’t imagine that?” she asked. He smiled, except this time he also giving off a small embarrassed blush. Pseudo or not, he still had the body of a mortal stallion.

“Well…you see I…it’s a tick,” he said finally. Rarity raised an eyebrow. “Using my power I often do that involuntarily due to old habits involving them.” Rarity took that as a sufficient explanation.

“If you don’t mind my asking, where do you think he got his…sense of humor from?” Rarity asked moving on to the next piece of the dress. Chaos knew whom she was talking about, and didn’t even bat an eye at the question.

“From me, naturally,” he answered to her confusion, “I can be mischievous when I want to be, and quite creative believe me.” Rarity almost shot him a look, but kept her eyes focused on the task in front of her instead.

“You can be, but you simply don’t then.” Chaos nodded with a slight “mhm”.

“Such as…” Rarity could almost hear the wheels turning in his head when Sweetie Belle finally got back from playing with her friends. Rarity looked at her and almost burst out laughing from the absurdity.

“Why are you wearing clown make-up?” Rarity snickered.

“I’m not wearing clown make-up,” Sweetie said as a red nose appeared on her on. Chaos gave the nose a squeeze with his magic, getting exactly what you’d expect.

“Not my best work, but you get the point,” Chaos said as the make-up and outfit disappeared.

“Wait a minute who’s he?” Sweetie asked as she checked the mirror, which suddenly sprayed her in the face with water.

Chaos smirked. “Sorry, my mind was still stuck in circus mode,” Chaos snickered. Rarity rolled her eyes, but smiled regardless.

“Yeah, hilarious,” Sweetie muttered, “That’s supposed to come out of a flower you know.”

“But you’d be expecting that,” Chaos countered.

“Touché,” Rarity added, “Sweetie Belle this is Chaos, Chaos this is my little sister Sweetie Belle.”

With a small flash Sweetie was dry again. “How do you do that?” she asked.

“I’ve been able to do that longer than even I can remember, which is longer than your princesses have been alive I assure you,” he shrugged, “It’s hereditary is all it is.”

“So what you’re Discord’s son?” Sweetie rolled her eyes. She was kidding of course.

“Other way around actually,” he corrected. Sweetie got a terrified look in her eye all of a sudden.

“Why must everypony do that?” he wondered aloud with an arched eyebrow.

“Sweetie Belle, dear, listen very closely,” Rarity demanded softly, “Celestia and Luna ordered that Chaos be watched by my friends and I, to make sure he’s not a threat.” Sweetie nodded cautiously with a nervous smile and she backed away.

“I’m going to go play upstairs now,” she said before zipping away.

“I’m starting to think that I should have an announcement of my existence made to the town,” Chaos stated thoughtfully, “Just to avoid having this conversation countless times over.”

“That might not be a good idea,” Rarity interjected firmly, “You’re Discord’s father. The more ponies that know that, the more ponies that will despise and distrust you. It would be better to keep your true existence a secret from everypony. That should be easy for you, since you’ve done so for many years already.”

Chaos sighed, but nodded in agreement nonetheless. “Perhaps so,” he mumbled, “I just hope I’ll be free someday. It almost feels as if I’m a bird trapped in a cage at times, hiding my power as I do.”

Rarity stopped her sowing suddenly to stare at him. The look on his face…so solemn, so pained. Rarity actually pitied the Lord of Chaos. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. His melancholy smile returned with a soft gaze.

“Don’t apologize,” he told her warmly, “It is to admit to an error you made. You have nothing to do with me hiding my power. It’s not your fault; so don’t burden yourself with it. After all, you look so much more beautiful when you smile, and so cute when you blush like that.” Rarity couldn’t help but blush faintly at his compliment yet again.

“Don’t take the focus off yourself by flattering me like that,” she told him, “And if it’s any consolation…I wouldn’t mind of you used your power in any way around me. I’d honestly prefer it if you just be yourself.”

His smile brightened slightly. “Thank you.” His eyes took their crystalline appearance again, “Would you mind if I kept my eyes this way? It…it feels natural is all it is.”

Rarity smiled and nodded. “I wouldn’t mind at all. It’s rather elegant actually.”

Chaos thought back and smiled. “You’re not the first one to say that,” he whispered.

Rarity barely heard him. “What do you mean by that?” she asked curiously. He gave a quiet, somewhat melancholy chuckle. From the sound of it Rarity knew it was a touchy subject, but he answered before she could withdraw her question.

“My girlfriend actually,” Chaos explained, “She was an amazing mare. Set me straight on a few things during a bad part of my life that I, well, I’d rather not get into it, but it went into a happy time.” Rarity could feel his happiness at the thought of her, but something seemed off.

“Did you ever get married?” she asked.

Chaos shook his head. “We were engaged, but…”

“What happened?”

“We were at the alter, and I got the message that she’d been kidnapped by gargoyles.”

“Oh my!” Rarity gasped, “Then what happened?”

“Then…then she died.” His heart practically flat lined. Rarity couldn’t see or feel any emotion in or on him. Even his still crystal eyes seemed lifeless, without any color of sparkle to them.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—“

“Don’t worry about it,” he said kindly, “It was so long ago…I’ve come to terms with it.” He was still visibly saddened, but Rarity understood. All wounds heal with time to a point. If he came to terms with it then it would be wrong to pry any further.

“You know I had a crush on Celestia’s nephew, until I met him,” Rarity’s eye twitched once, “He was nothing but a pompous oaf.”

Chaos tapped his chin thoughtfully. “Did you even know anything about him prior, or did you simply expect him to fall head over hooves for you?” Chaos asked. Rarity stopped to look at him oddly, so Chaos knew the answer. “How many mares do you think have tried to do the same thing per party he’s gone to?” Rarity’s ears drooped, and Chaos nodded. “I’m sure many mares have fancied the young prince, and many of them have tried to take advantage of his status. It only seems proper that he would develop a persona to appall such mares, although I’m sure you were merely looking for a fairy tale ending and ended up with the wrong kind of prince.”

Rarity’s heart sank slightly. “I suppose you’re right,” she sighed.

“Don’t fret over it my dear,” Chaos said with a warm smile, “I’ve only met you earlier today, and I can tell your prince charming will come along someday. I’ll tell you this though: fairy tale ending are highly overrated.” He rolled his eyes. “Never lasts, and I do mean never. After the puppy love phase it falls to shambles.”

“Good to know,” Rarity muttered, “That’s actually rather disappointing.”

“Perhaps it is a disappointment, but better to know that then to suffer the disappointment of a seemingly perfect love falling to shambles in the end.”

Rarity stared at him after she finished stitching the dress together. “Something I can’t figure out,” she said to him, “Are you a glass half full, or half empty type?”

Chaos chuckled. “It varies. It all depends on a multitude of things: my current mood, the situation, those involved, subject matter, etcetera. Did you really expect me to be consistent?” he asked slyly.

Rarity rolled her eyes. “Pardon me, but I forgot who I was talking to. Oh, that’s right, I hardly know you,” she shot back playfully.

Chaos chuckled warmly. “Well that’s why I’m here today,” he told her, “I’d prefer us be friends than enemies if possible. Though perhaps it would be better to get to know each other when you’re not so busy. In the meantime I’ll help you any way I can.”

“That would be a better idea, I really can’t be distracted today, and I thank you for your offer to help.” She got to adding the assorted crystals of all kinds to the dress.

“Perhaps we could talk over tea sometime,” Chaos offered, somewhat nervously, although Rarity was absorbed enough in her work that she didn’t notice. “Would Saturday afternoon be a good time?”

Rarity mentally shifted through her schedule. “Mm, yes I’m free Saturday. Now I need the emeralds, would you get them for me?”

Chaos smiled. “Emeralds, yes of course. Coming right up.”