A dark shadow lies beneath...
"Fluttershy, I'm here for our afternoon tea!" Discord exclaimed, entering Fluttershy's house, arriving from the store with bags in his hands. "You will not believe what I had to do just to get my regular ginseng tea! The clerk actually asked me to show my ID, and I was just like, do I look like I just got out of high school?"
Discord dropped the bags and clicked his claws to dress himself in a Hawaiian shirt and summer shorts and make a flask filled with gin appear in his hands.
"I mean, I know I've made the ginseng sing before, but have you ever seen me swing before?" Discord remarked as he drank from the flask and pretended to pass out on the floor.
"Hee hee hee hee hee…" Fluttershy giggled, which Discord could hear from upstairs.
"Hmm hmm…" Discord chuckled to himself. "Good to know that just me being here keeps her entertai-"
"Ha ha ha ha ha!" a haughty laugh that Discord recognized from upstairs gave him chills.
"What's this?" he asked himself nervously as he slowly ascended the stairs, Fluttershy's giggling and whoever was accompanying her's laugh giving him jitters every step of the way.
"And they wonder why I like ginseng…" Discord joked to himself in thought to try and calm himself as he headed to the source of the growing sound of the laughter, Fluttershy's bedroom.
This wasn't enough for adequate mental preparation, however, for when Discord opened the door to Fluttershy's bedroom, what he saw sent his mind spiraling into a world of chaos…
Fluttershy and King Sombra were sitting by a table having a tea party together. Discord came in right when Sombra was playfully putting a used tea bag in Fluttershy's cup, which already had a used tea bag in it. Turning to face Discord, having heard him come in, the three exchanged deadpan looks.
"Uh...I can explain." King Sombra said bashfully.
"Y-y-y-y-y-you…" an unhinged Discord stammered. "The-the-the-the...the tea…"
"The tree?" Fluttershy asked, confusing his words. "Oh yeah, you see, Sombra was able to come back because of-"
"I DON'T CARE HOW HE CAME BACK HERE!" Discord snapped and began to yell. "I WANT TO KNOW WHY HE'S HERE HAVING A TEA PARTY WITH YOU INSTEAD OF ME! YOUR REAL FRIEND! THE ONE WHO GOT BLASTED TRYING TO PROTECT YOU FROM THIS MALEVOLENT TYRANT WHO TRIED TO KILL YOU!"
Fluttershy started crying and clutching Sombra for comfort, greater influencing the anger and contempt for Discord's attitude that he had already possessed.
"Fluttershy just told me all about how you faked being hurt by me…" Sombra responded to Discord angrily, staring him down, scowling. "At the time, we thought it was funny, but not so much now as it appears to be a reflection of something deeply wrong with you…"
"Oh ho, shame on me." Discord retorted sarcastically, staring Sombra down even more indignantly. "So what gives you the right to judge me, Mr. Fascist Dictator? Being able to say more than just "CCCRRRYYYSSSTTTAAALLLSSS"?"
"STOP!" Fluttershy bellowed, stomping her hooves on the table, unable to take any more drama. "Both of you! This is ridiculous! Discord, I know who Sombra was! But I can tell he wants to change and there's nothing wrong with me trying to sit down with him and help him! He's just like how you used to be!"
"Pfft, I'm offended!" Discord whined. "The Lord of Chaos has nothing in common with that king in name only! Besides, how do you know this isn't some kind of a trick?!"
"..." a long pause preceded Sombra and Fluttershy gulping while they both nervously glared at Discord.
"Well, I'm out of here!" Sombra exclaimed, turning into shadow and wisely disappearing through the walls.
"Ha ha ha ha ha!" Discord cackled with triumph. "The coward shows his true colors!"
"No, that's not why he fled, Discord…" Fluttershy said solemnly, trying to pluck up courage. "The reason I know he's truly committed to changing his ways is because…"
Fluttershy got down from the chair. Once Discord got a full view of her, both his jaw and his heart sank to the floor.
"He and I are engaged." Fluttershy finished, revealing a large mass beneath her belly. "I'm pregnant with our child."
Discord, with his jaw now literally on the floor, began to cough something up like a cat would. Eventually, from his mouth, he threw his heart up on the floor. An aghast Fluttershy winced in fear, prompting Discord to raise his claw and say…
"Would you excuse me for a moment?"
...before he clicked his fingers and teleported himself to his house in his personal realm of chaos. There, he gripped both his hands firmly and turned a multitude of colors like a chameleon in an unbridled rage. His magic caused all the faucets in his house to turn on and flood the place. Soon, the water flooded the entire house, reaching the roof before Discord's rage turned all the water to steam, shouting at the top of his lungs as he literally blew the roof of the house off…
"YYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR THIS SOMBRAAAAAAAAAA!"
Later, at an Equestrian courthouse…
*BANG* *BANG*
"Judge Jolly here, presiding!" a judge, a middle-aged purple earth pony who wore reading glasses and had a gray mane, named as aforementioned exclaimed cheerfully as she banged her gavel. "Mr. Dictator!"
"Discord!" Discord, who was now covered in bandages from the third-degree burns the steam gave him, retorted angrily at the bench he was sitting at. King Sombra, sitting at an adjacent bench with Fluttershy, chuckled, remembering how Discord insulted him earlier.
"I must ask for some extra clarification before we can move forward with your form of protest." the judge requested as she held a document in her hooves to read out to the courtroom. "Is it true that you are refusing to pay child support to the defendant, Fluttershy, under the grounds that she was...extremely somber behind your back? As in she was concealing the fact that she had crippling depression from you?"
"NO!" an irate Discord yelled, slamming his hands down on his desk. "I am not protesting my request for payment because she was extremely somber and didn't tell me! I'm protesting it because she was fucking Sombra behind my back!"
"Wait…" Judge Jolly replied as she adjusted her glasses to get a better look at Fluttershy and Sombra. "That kind mare is the evil king I keep hearing about? I guess looks can be deceiving after all."
Discord tried to keep his cool despite the hysterical laughter he heard from King Sombra and the cheeky giggling he heard from Fluttershy at the bench.
"Your Honor…" Discord said bluntly as he pressed the tip of a pencil against his thumb in frustration. "Could you please just get straight to the point? Will my protest be approved or not?"
"I'm afraid I can not confirm that." Judge Jolly answered. "There are a number of factors that could affect the decision, most notably your lawsuit for compensation for your injuries. If you're looking to simplify the issue and speed up the process, you could always attempt to settle with the defendant outside of court..."
"No way!" Discord refused outright.
"No sweat!" Sombra taunted. "Do you really believe you have a chance of winning this case? You're trying to sue me and a pregnant mare! The one carrying your kid!"
"Don't you mean your kid?!" Discord retorted snidely.
"If you would just listen to me, you would understand…" Fluttershy interjected before she got cut off by Discord's bemoaning.
"I don't have to listen to anything you have to say since you stabbed me in the back!"
Discord then turned around to show a literal knife in his back.
"And yes, I'm suing for that too!" he proclaimed with animosity as he made his flask of gin appear and began to drink from it. "Arrivederci!"
He then teleported away, leaving Sombra smirking with triumph, Judge Jolly scratching her head in confusion, and Fluttershy huffing, upset.
"What a mule!" Fluttershy berated Discord for his stubborn refusal to listen to reason. "Doesn't he remember what he did that started all this?"
"Not that it's totally unfair to blame some of this on me," intervened Sombra, taking a compromising stance, "but if he doesn't want to blame himself for any of this, he can at least blame the rest on the alcohol. I mean, look at me! Not to knock your friends too much, but they shouldn't have outright murdered me. Yet you don't see me playing the victim and pressing charges."
"Excuse this hapless middle-aged lady for not being at her peak happiness, but can you help me understand something?" Judge Jolly asked. She felt like Pinkie Pie, normally very happy and easily confounded, but also possessing a stronger sixth sense than most. "If you've been outright murdered, wouldn't that make you some kind of ghost? And in that case, how could you bear children?"
Sombra couldn't fight a chuckle.
"At least there's someone who has more of a clue of what's going on than Discord here…" Sombra joked before he began to laugh ominously. "Ha ha ha ha ha…"
Outside the courthouse...
*GLUG* *GLUG* *GLUG*
"Ooooohhhhh!" Discord groaned, swooning after a heavy drink from his flask. "I've truly hit rock bottom this time!"
He then collapsed on a mount of rocks that he made appear with magic. Continually moaning by the road outside the courthouse, he was soon passed by a strolling Maud Pie, dressed in a white priest's robe, who stopped to examine the scene.
"Oh sinner, what can save you from Tartarus?" Maud remarked. "I'm serious, your comedy is that bad."
"Shove it!" Discord lashed out at her in response. "What gives you the right to judge me? That fancy robe?"
"It doesn't judge, it's a robe." Maud replied, misunderstanding what he meant. "It's the standard attire for a minister."
"And since when did you become a cleric?" Discord questioned.
"To show Mudbriar that I'm serious about our relationship through my commitment to the Rock of Ages." Maud explained. "One day, I want to personally join him and I in holy matrimony. I even have my marriage license already."
"Well, good for you then." Discord told her sarcastically before he continued to sulk. "I, on the other hand, got stuck in this rut all because Fluttershy decided to get into a relationship with King Sombra of all ponies! I hate him! I wish he would just die and stay dead!"
"Aside from my personal bias to the idea of him reforming instead," replied Maud, "I can not condone your way of thought. To hate anyone is wrong. You should talk things out with Fluttershy and Sombra and see if you can reach an understanding with them."
"Oh please, if only it were that easy." Discord continued to make snide rejoinders. "Besides, Sombra doesn't deserve to be compromised with. He's a monster who only deserves death and eternal suffering."
"..." Maud Pie blankly stared, apparently trying to keep her emotions under control as a dark flame flickered in her eyes.
"So what do you mean to do?" she asked. "He's already been killed, how could you make him suffer forever? To ensure the eternal damnation of his soul, you'd have to keep him permanently separated from anyone who could possibly reform him. He'd have to be trapped forever with someone who truly hates him from the bottom of their heart, but I don't think even you are capable of harboring that kind of enmity…"
"..." Discord blankly stared before his face contorted into a wide, sinister grin, an ingenious scheme forming in his head as his eyes, ears, horns, and fang turned to light bulbs.
"You know, you're absolutely right…" Discord said in a sickly sweet tone. "And I know the perfect way I can resolve this issue with love rather than hate now...but I'm going to need your help. You said you had your marriage license, correct?"
Later, at Twilight's castle…
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and King Sombra all laughed together as they sat in the resting room of the castle.
"Aw shucks," said Applejack, "I could never believe now that we actually killed you twice! Oh, how we laughed and laughed!"
"Except I wasn't laughing…" Sombra suddenly retorted in a grim monotone, wearing a sour look on his face...before he blurted out laughing and the rest followed.
"Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha, good one!" they complimented. After the laughter died down, Twilight chimed in with…
"You know, this reminds me of how we were after Discord turned over a new leaf...twice. Except this time, I'm not, well you know...Twilighting."
"On that subject," interjected Rarity, "I don't mean to put a damper on our good time, but I too am getting a sense of deja vu. I can't deny that it feels funny to be chortling with a former evil autocrat so soon after his redemption yet again."
"I like things that make me feel funny at first!" Pinkie exclaimed. "Hold on a second though, does that mean I like bad guys before they reform?"
"I second that, Rarity." Twilight agreed with her notion. "Though I mean no offense, I have to agree that it feels weird how quickly we've forgiven an enemy who just came back wanting to reform before we even gave them a chance to do anything to prove they had changed."
"Um, if you think about it, we almost literally never give them time to prove they've changed before we forgive them." Rainbow Dash threw in her two cents.
"That's as good a point as any." Twilight found herself forced to admit in a weary monotone, causing Fluttershy to chuckle in response.
"I'm sure we all understand that this will take some time to get used to." Fluttershy chimed in, trying to sum everything up. "But I'm just glad that you're all willing to give Sombra a chance. *sigh* Unlike somepony else I know…"
"Ah, Discord'll get over it!" Rainbow Dash reassured her. "Name one time he's not acted like a manchild diva over petty jealousy! Then name me a time he hasn't "learned his lesson" in the end!"
"Ha!" Sombra guffawed. "If that's how things are with Discord, then you'll soon have no trouble trusting me! You burned the lesson of how friendship is magic into my brain! Literally!"
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" the gang shared another laugh together. "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha-"
"ENOUGH." Maud Pie bellowed in her trademark dull monotone, interrupting the laughter as she made an abrupt entrance with Discord at her side into the resting room.
The gang turned to Maud, still dressed in her priest's robe, and Discord, dressed in a tuxedo and carrying flowers, and gasped.
"Maud?" Pinkie asked. "What's going on?"
"We're conducting a wedding rehearsal to practice for tomorrow's ceremony." Maud answered. "Don't you know it's rude to laugh in the middle of a wedding?"
"Discord is getting married?!" Fluttershy asked, shocked and confused.
"Yes." Maud replied tersely. "By the power invested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."
"With pleasure." Discord responded gladly to Maud's direction as he slowly walked closer to Fluttershy.
An abashed Fluttershy blushed, getting up from the chair she was sitting at to approach Discord nervously. Discord took her hooves in hand as Fluttershy instinctively closed her eyes. Discord then leaned in to kiss her...or so it seemed before he pressed his finger against Fluttershy's snout.
"PSYCHE." he taunted, faking her out. "I'm not marrying you…"
Discord then teleported over to King Sombra, whom he grabbed and leaned in to kiss on the mouth.
"I'm marrying him." Discord revealed.
Everyone in the room besides Maud was beyond flabbergasted and gasped.
"Have you lost it completely?!" Sombra cried. "I couldn't marry you even if I wanted to! I'm engaged to Fluttershy! I have a responsibility to our child!"
"Come now," replied Discord slyly, "do you really believe after the way she reacted just now that she truly wants to wed you? On the other hand, if we marry, the child can be our responsibility to bear alone. If I'm the one who started all this, doesn't it make more sense that I take accountability while giving you the chance to prove you've changed without forcing a huge responsibility like motherhood onto Fluttershy?"
"I'm...honestly amazed at how well you've thought this out…" an astonished and suspicious Sombra complimented. "But Fluttershy deserves to have a say in this too. What if she actually wants to take care of her own child?"
Everyone's eyes turned to Fluttershy, who was more embarrassed, nervous, and conflicted than she had ever been.
"Well, Fluttershy?" Discord asked, snickering.
"...If being with Sombra is what will make you happy Discord, I will support your decision." she finally answered after a long pause.
"Oh, don't worry." Discord reassured happily, an aura of sadism surrounding his glee that made the rest of the Mane 6 and Maud suspicious. "I will be very happy to spend the rest of my life with Sombra...which may as well be eternity, considering what we are...hoo hoo ha ha ha…"
"Um, can you please excuse us for a moment?" Twilight asked as she teleported her friends and Maud into the map room to discuss things privately.
"Heh heh, as expected, they're suspicious and won't go along with this without a fuss…" Discord thought, not nervous at the prospect. "Unfortunately for them, I'm prepared…"
"You must think you're pretty slick, Discord…" Sombra said to himself in thought, his confidence also unwavering. "Unfortunately for you, you won't learn why your pitiful ploy for vengeance will fail before it's too late…"
Meanwhile, Twilight and her friends sat at the map table and started to converse…
"Something's definitely off here…" Twilight surmised as she rubbed her chin with her hoof.
"No kidding!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "Discord totally hates Sombra's guts and soul right now! Why in Equestria would he want to marry him?! That's like if I suddenly decided to marry Zephyr Breeze! No offense, Fluttershy."
"I plumb reckon…" Applejack concurred with not ganging up on Fluttershy, but paused as she prepared to give her two cents. "...but I have to say Fluttershy, why in tarnation would you approve of their wedding knowing there's no way Discord is doing this for the right reasons?"
"Same to you, Maud!" Pinkie proclaimed, turning to her sister. "I know love is love, but do you really expect me to bake a cake and throw a party for a clearly unhappy couple that hates each other?!"
"It's...hard to say…" Fluttershy said timidly, having trouble processing everything.
"I'll just give it to you straight." Maud prepared to come right out, unlike Fluttershy. "Discord is threatening me. He said that if I didn't agree to arrange this marriage, he would use his magic to manipulate my fellow priests into going against me and testifying to the head elder about me being a homophobe. Since I'm from a progressive congregation, I'd be fired on the spot and made a pariah."
"WHAT?!" the gang screamed in unison.
"That can't be!" Twilight exclaimed as Fluttershy started to cry while the others comforted her. "That's not the way Discord is anymore...that's just downright evil!"
"Fluttershy, please darling," pleaded Rarity, "I know it's hard, but you have to tell us! What is going on with Discord?"
"Discord, he...he…" Fluttershy responded somberly, struggling to get the words out. "He's been different since that night he came home drunk...and got me pregnant…"
"WHAT?!" the gang cried in unison again. "But I thought you were carrying Sombra's child!"
"No…" Fluttershy refuted their misconception. "I said it was our child. Discord and Sombra are both my child's father."
"...What?" Fluttershy's dumbfounded friends replied. "HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE?!"
"It's hard to explain...to say the least." Fluttershy empathized with their bewilderment. "Even I don't know all the details...but what I do know is that the reason Discord has been acting this way has to be the work of dark magic. I was drunk myself too that night he slept with me and even I could tell something wasn't right...as I hugged Discord, I could feel this creeping shadow coming over me..."
"..." the gang paused to think.
"When did Discord and Sombra…*gasp*" Twilight caught on to something as she remembered how Discord took Sombra's blast for Fluttershy. "Hold on...I think I finally know what happened here…"
The next day, at Maud Pie's church…
Discord was in a dressing room getting himself ready for the wedding.
"Nothing like grooming the groom, ha ha!" he joked to himself cheekily as he adjusted the bow tie for his tuxedo, looking at himself in the mirror with an evil smirk on his face. "Oh, this day is going to be perfect. The kind of day of which I've dreamed since yesterday! They have no clue that I've fooled them all. Even thinking about Sombra playing around with those worthless saps makes me tingle…"
In the auditorium where Sombra was standing in wait for the groom, he was having some fun with Shining Armor, cheekily waving at him where he sat with his wife, Cadence, and child, Flurry Heart, all of them feeling very uneasy. Shining began to sweat, knowing that even after Sombra assaulted his homeland, he couldn't question Sombra and Discord's marriage because of the backlash he'd get from the progressive members of Maud's church. Thus, he kept himself calm by singing to himself.
"It's a new world, after all!" he hummed to himself. "It's a new world, after all!"
"Not that it makes me hate him any less…" Discord continued, his tone growing more malicious. "No, I do not love the bride, only contempt in me abides. But he must be all mine, for only I should have the right to abuse him and put him through a horrible marriage for the rest of eternity…"
"I see…" Twilight said indignantly. "So not only is this marriage a sham, you have the most ill ulterior intentions behind it imaginable."
"And what are you going to do about it, Twilight?" Discord boasted as he turned around to face her. "Surely you've considered-oh!"
Discord turned around to not only see the rest of the Mane 6, but also Braeburn, Lyra, Bon-Bon, and Scootaloo's lesbian aunts, Lofty and Holiday.
"The repercussions?" Braeburn finished his sentence, taunting him.
"We are not your shield!" Lyra exclaimed in protest.
"We're proud to be loving, not hateful!" Bon-Bon chimed in.
"You are not setting a bad example for our nephew!" Scootaloo's Aunt Lofty proclaimed firmly.
"And we don't care if you call us "bad allies", we're allies of what's right before anything!" Scootaloo's Aunt Holiday exclaimed.
"Oh, and by the way," taunted Rainbow Dash, "don't even think about flaunting our racist and homophobic tweets from ten years ago. We made sure to delete them all. No time for screenshots."
She and Applejack brohoofed. Discord, however, only began to chuckle sinisterly.
"Your laughable, laughable naivete." he mocked. "Do you truly believe this will save you from what I have prepared? Oh boys! Come here, my hoods!"
With a snap of Discord's fingers, smoke surrounded Twilight and her friends and the clattering of objects falling to the ground could be heard. Soon, five hooded stallions picked up what fell on the floor and one of them could be heard saying…
"You called?"
*WAPOW*
"Nice swing, Titus!" Discord lauded one of the white-coated stallions wearing a white hood, the same coat and attire his companions had, eager at how he had just knocked out Twilight Sparkle with a swift blow to the back of her head. The rest of the Mane 6 gasped in terror as they saw that not only had their friend been given a concussion, but that the gay ponies who stood up for them had been transformed into bats, bats that Discord's lackeys were caressing menacingly.
"Did you honestly believe we cared about the gays?" the lackey named Paul derided.
"All we see them as is tools to beat down those who get in our way." the lackey named Tim proudly admitted.
"None of us follow the stupid laws we make to keep you slaves in line behind closed doors." the lackey named Moe said.
"This world has no saints, only intelligent animals like us who have mastered the act." the lackey named Peter bragged. "We'll teach you to stop actually believing you're "nice"..."
"Mwa ha ha ha ha!" Discord laughed maniacally as Twilight's friends started crying. "Beat them! Punish them for standing up for the truth! Show them the fun in making sense!"
"Yes, we'll make them submit to us, their masters!" Titus proclaimed as he and the other goons beat Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie with the bats who were once their comrades, leaving them bleeding and bruised on the floor.
"AAAIIIEEE!" Fluttershy shrieked, falling to the ground, crying and wetting herself.
Outside, two stallions who just got back from the restroom heard Fluttershy's cry, looked at the piss coming down from the door of the groom's room, and even heard the sound of Fluttershy getting whacked with a bat...but looking at themselves grimly, they simply walked into the auditorium and took their seats. Both neglected to do the right thing because of the same fearful thought…
"We can't risk our reputation just to get accused of something we didn't do…"
Inside the room, Fluttershy laid on the floor hyperventilating, the one having hit her with a bat being Discord. Smirking sadistically, he mocked her, telling her…
"Remember when I made the ginseng sing? Well, now I'm going to swing...and make that bastard child of yours sing its swan song…"
"DISCORD!" Fluttershy yelled as he raised the bat to strike her womb. "IT'S YOUR BA-"
*BAM*
"Hmm mmh hmm…" Discord hummed to himself innocently, coming out of the dressing room, acting like he had done nothing wrong. He clicked his fingers to restore the original form of the bat-turned ponies, who laid unconscious on the floor with the Mane 6. Discord's henchmen stayed inside the room to keep watch, locking it so no one came in. Fluttershy continued to hyperventilate in the room, feeling growing pains down beneath as a puddle formed on the floor and a shadowy aura surrounded her belly…
Meanwhile, Discord strolled down the red carpet nonchalantly with Sombra by his side to the podium where Maud Pie stood. As Maud gave her speech, he thought of nothing but what he was going to do with Sombra, even as he and Sombra recited their vows on command.
"THE PAIN!" Fluttershy screamed, crying. "GUWAH! SOMEPONY, HELP!"
"Hmm?" Sombra reacted to a strange feeling suddenly coursing through him. Looking at his forelegs, he saw them begin to fade.
"Oh shit...it's time already…"
Looking at Discord's smug expression after Maud proclaimed…
"You may now kiss the bride."
...he himself smirked smugly as he got an idea.
"Well, since the jig is up anyways…"
With Sombra's forelegs in hand, Discord leaned in to kiss him...only for Sombra to spit on his face and say…
"PSYCHE."
...before he vanished, fading away.
Everyone gasped in complete disbelief. After staring, flabbergasted, into space for a while, Discord brought his claw to the spit on his face, wiped it, then examined it to see that it was glowing green.
"Ectoplasm?" he said dumbfoundedly. "Was he...a ghost? He was dead that entire time and I didn't know?!"
"Weak." a Bruce Willis lookalike pony remarked.
"AAAAAIIIIIEEEEE!" a shriek of terror was then heard from Discord's men in the dressing room before they could be heard falling to the floor.
"Hey, that was the elders!" one of the stallions who had ignored Fluttershy earlier declared. "We have to help them!"
Running to the door, they tried to open it, only to find it was locked.
"Break 'er in!" the other stallion exclaimed as they rammed against the door together to break the lock and bust in. They found the five elders passed out on the floor, their eyes rolled up and their souls coming out of their mouths. When they saw what had caused the elders to scream and faint, they screamed and fainted as well.
"DEMON BABY!" they let out before they passed out.
Discord, terrified along with the rest of the church, teleported himself to the dressing room, wondering what he had done. When he saw what was on the floor next to a still hyperventilating Fluttershy, he gasped.
"SOMBRA?!" he cried as he saw a newborn infant who looked just like Sombra snickering at him. "I thought you were dead! I killed the child! She should've miscarried!"
"Impossible…" the precocious infant replied, capable of speech and mature thought as a product of dark magic. "All you caused was my premature birth. You can't kill the offspring of pure shadow...AND PURE CHAOS."
The infant then transformed into a baby who looked just like Discord, confounding him further.
"HOW?!" Discord bellowed. "Are you a being of pure energy?!"
"I am King Sombra's reincarnation." the baby explained. "My father made sure to leave a piece of his magic inside of your body with that magic blast before he was killed. You're a being of pure magic, so not only did the magic settle inside you well, it corrupted you and led you to play right into my father's hands. Unwittingly, you impregnated Fluttershy with that magic, and so she got pregnant with a child of both pure chaos and pure darkness. My father knew that losing some of his evil energy would make him kinder and more likable, while making you crueler and more detestable. Leading you down the path of revenge was only part of his calculations…"
"You mean…" an utterly mortified Discord realized the truth. "I lost myself in hatred for nothing? I was being used like a pawn while attacking a ghost the whole time?"
"Indeed…" the baby replied sinisterly. "And now, for your sins, you shall pay the penance…"
Discord began to hyperventilate just like Fluttershy as the baby's eyes turned green and poured out a purple haze. A dark flame flickered in Discord's eyes before his eyes turned green as well, pouring out a purple mist that took the shape of Sombra and grabbed him, licking his lips. Discord let out one last yelp before the figure of Sombra pulled him in and kissed him on the mouth, causing a blast of rainbow-colored magic to erupt from their lips and turn them both into stone.
One week later…
The Mane 6, after they had gotten out of the hospital, a week having been spent there for their injuries to heal, had gathered outside Maud's church to see what had become of Discord. Although anger still lingered in their hearts, they also took pity on him and felt a better sense of understanding as they reflected on the situation with what they knew now.
"He may have been pretty rotten…" Applejack admitted.
"But it was largely the fault of the dark magic that took control of him." Rarity chimed in. "I'm the last that gets to judge regarding that…"
"At least Maud is keeping him company." Pinkie pointed out. "Along with our students."
As the statue of Discord and Sombra making out stood outside the church as a testimony to all kinds of love being acceptable, stated on its plaque giving it the name, Angel's Rock, Maud recited Discord poetry while the Student 6, Gallus, Ocellus, Yona, Silverstream, Smolder, and Sandbar, came over.
"Rock, you are a rock." she told Discord, knowing he could hear her. "Gay, you are gay."
The students snickered to themselves upon observing the statue.
"I guess that's what they call...pfft...black sausage!" Gallus gawked at the scene, leading the rest of them in laughter and putting a devious smirk on Maud's face.
"Now that's good comedy…" she said, eyeing the statue eerily.
Meanwhile, the Mane 6 were astonished.
"Can someone tell me how we forgot to delete their racist and homophobic tweets?" Rainbow asked curiously.
"I'm...sure Discord won't have to suffer too much longer." Twilight remarked. "It's a shame we can't just bring him back with the Elements now that the Tree is gone. He should eventually be able to break free though once he forgives himself for what he did and lets go of the hate keeping him hostage. One mystery still lingers though...what's going on with Sombra and this child of his?"
Everyone turned to Fluttershy, the only one who hadn't spoken yet, carrying the sleeping child of Sombra on a pouch strapped to her waist.
"I hope too that Discord will come back soon…" Fluttershy shared her condolences. "...but there are also some things that trouble me about what happened to Sombra. He told me when he first came back that the way he was able to return was because of...the Tree of Harmony…"
"Huh?" Fluttershy's friends replied, confused. It was then that they heard Sombra talking in his sleep, leaving them on one last foreshadowing note…
"Ah...mhmm...yes...I would like to be a tree…"