Tuesday, 10.55pm – The Skyhorse Bar
Fluttershy was feeling more than a little tipsy as she let Rarity pull her onto the heaving dance floor. Normally she didn't like crowds, but everyone here seemed so happy that she stopped worrying and just let herself sway along with them and with Rarity, who winked at her.
Still, she kept on glancing over at the table where Discord was talking to Spike "I suppose it's selfish, but I just want him to pay attention to me! If I can't talk to him, at least we can go on having fun dancing together. He's gone to all this trouble to get me out here and then isn't even going to come and dance with me?" She shook her head, feeling unusually assertive after the unaccustomed alcohol "I'm going to get him!"
She turned, intent on dragging him onto the dance floor, when she felt a hoof on her shoulder.
"Hey sweet stuff! Wanna dance?" A pale yellow unicorn with an orange mane was standing much too close to her.
"No thank you." Fluttershy said. She wasn't sure he heard her over the music because he didn't move away but kept pulling her close. She tried to push him off but without much effect.
"Come on girls, let us show you a good time!" His friend, a blue unicorn with an orange mane, leaned over Rarity.
"We were already having a perfectly good time before you so rudely barged in!" The unicorn mare retorted angrily.
"Aw don't be like that sugar flank," Laughed the stallion "Why don't you come and party with us?"
"Can you take your hooves off me please?" Fluttershy snapped. The words came out louder and more aggressive than she meant them to – though she had to be loud to be heard over the music – but still he didn't release her.
"Chill sweet stuff, the night's just getting started!"
"Oh no," Said a voice behind them "For you two I think the night is most definitely over!"
The two stallions turned to find themselves staring into the fiery eyes of the enraged God of Chaos, magic crawling over his skin like electricity. Both of them gulped nervously.
"You clowns heard what she said," Discord snarled "Am-scray!"
His snapped his fingers and both of them were suddenly dressed in full circus getup; thick clown makeup, multi-coloured wigs, baggy pants and enormous shoes. They looked at each other, screamed and ran, falling over their honking shoes and each other in their haste to get away.
As the comical squeaking of the shoes faded, he turned "Are you alright Flitterflutter?"
"I am here too, you know!" Rarity said, acidly.
"I'm fine," Fluttershy smiled "Thank you."
"Don't mention it my dear, actually it was rather enjoyable. 'Chill? Sweet stuff?' Ugh, how crass! I was going to turn them into ice cream cones just for that, but I thought it might be rather messy, not to mention slippery – "
He stopped dead as she reached up and planted a kiss on his cheek. Then she looked in the direction the two stallions had gone, seemingly unaware Discord's mouth was hanging open in stupefaction.
"Oh, I hope they'll be alright." She said vaguely.
"Never mind them darling!" Cried Rarity "You're looking a little pale!"
"Well, I would like to go get some air," The Pegasus admitted "It's so warm in here!"
Discord watched them go. The twinkling mist was everywhere, swamping the dance floor.
"Must be the booze catching up with me," He told himself "Definitely the booze."
Wednesday, 3pm – Poolside, The Four Stallions
"Wow," Twilight stretched lazily in the heat of the Las Pegasus sun "I feel so-o-o much better for taking some time out to recharge."
"Told ya you were wound way too tight." Rainbow said, from the adjacent sun lounger.
The Alicorn smiled "Dash, let's just not go there again!" She yawned "I'd better go start getting ready for tonight."
"Ah, skip it!" The Pegasus yawned "Is Celestia really going to care if you miss one boring event? You already went to the summit."
"I wish I could Rainbow, but I'm representing the royal family!"
"Hey, maybe it'll be fun," Said Pinkie, who was in the pool nearby, sitting in a giant rubber ring. She sipped her Manehatten "It is a party after all!"
"Pinkie has a point Twi," Said Dash "All you gotta do is be nice to a few big shots, eat some very small food and keep Discord in line. How bad can it be?"
Twilight made a face "Oh yeah, 'cos that's the job I dreamed of having when I was a filly!" She sighed "Speaking of Discord, did you two think he was acting weird this morning?"
Dash laughed. When Twilight didn't laugh with her she sat up "Oh, you're serious?" She looked at the Princess over the top of her sunglasses "You wanna know if Discord was acting weird? You mean like, weirder than usual?"
"Yes! I thought he seemed strange … suspicious." Her forehead puckered in a tiny line "In fact, now I come to think of it, both he and Fluttershy seemed a little off. All those in-jokes? If I didn't know better, I'd say they were hiding something."
"Come on!" Rainbow burst out "I mean Discord's a pal and he can be a laugh and all but he's so crooked even he doesn't know when he's lying. But Fluttershy? Seriously?"
"I know! I know! I'm being nuts!" Twilight said "Guess I'm just on edge about this whole mess with AJ and Spike and Rarity. Plus this thing tonight? I need it like I need a trot through Tartarus."
Pinkie paddled to the side of the pool "Aw Twilight, if you think it's gonna be that bad why don't we all come along with you?"
The Princess smiled at her "Y'know Pinkie, that would actually be great! To have all my friends there is just what I need."
"No problemo," Dash flipped her mane "We can step in if anything gets out of hoof!"
"Thanks, but I don't think that'll be necessary." Twilight took a deep breath "It'll just be nice to know you're all there to give me your support."
"Wheeee!" Pinkie spun herself round in the inflatable ring "And between us we oughtta be able to make this confab, confabuloso!"
Twilight gave her a worried look "Why am I already starting to regret this?!"
She stood up and hung her towel around her neck "I'm going back to my room," She said "I want to make sure I'm ready in plenty of time for the soiree. Meet you in the downstairs bar around 6.30?"
"Laters!" Dash stretched and settled down for a nap.
Wednesday 2.20pm – The EiFoal Tower Replica, Las Pegasus
The huge drop was the first thing Fluttershy saw when she came back to the present. The ground was hundreds of feet away. Only a metal grill separated her from a long fall.
"Eep!" She leapt backwards colliding violently with Discord; the pair of them would have gone over the edge if he hadn't grabbed hold of both the railing and her.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" She gasped, clutching at him like a life preserver "It's just so disorientating! I'm not sure I'll ever get used to those flashbacks!"
Discord couldn't reply; he just stood there clasping her to his chest in surprise.
"Discord?" She prompted "I said I'm sorry!"
He shook his head, snapping back to reality.
"Not at all my dear, I did promise to catch you." He said "In fact, feel free to leap into my arms anytime! In view of the circumstances, it'd be rude not to."
"But I nearly knocked us both over the railing!"
"Don't give it another thought," He grinned and hugged her tighter "If I had only known that defending your honour like a chest beating gorilla would have this effect, I'd have done it eons ago."
She looked around. Once again, the time sphere had disappeared without a trace and the replica Eifoal Tower was no longer a glowing beacon of light. Then she remembered what they had just seen.
"Who were those rude stallions at the bar?" She said "Haven't they ever heard of manners?"
"Hmm?" He seemed to have gone off into a little daydream "Oh, yes – them. Evidently not," He gave a self-satisfied smirk "Lucky I'm so chivalrous!"
"Discord this is serious!"
"I am being serious. Here was I, worried that I was going to come out of this as a villain, but it seems I'm the hero of the hour. Who knew I was so noble?"
Then he looked around and realised they were surrounded by a crowd of gawking tourists "And that concludes our performance for today,"He snapped "No more free entertainment; allez vous!" When the audience didn't move he growled "Beat it!!"
"But we still don't know why we got married." She said, as the small crowd reluctantly began to disperse "And you nearly got into a fight!"
"Well that's a bit harsh!" He exclaimed "There was no question of a fight my dear, those puny insects were no match for me. I was in complete control of the situation."
"But what you did to them… was it really necessary?"
"Well not necessary maybe, but you have to admit it was fun! I grant you what they really needed was a brief but brutal lesson in the difference between the words "No" and "Yes", but what I did was much more entertaining. I so seldom get to smite anypony these days."
"I just thought…" She sighed "Never mind, let's just go back to the hotel."
"Bien sur cherie."
"And you can put me down now. You know, um… if you like."
Wednesday, 3.35pm – Rarity's Room, The Four Stallions
Twilight called in on the other three on the way back to her room with the intention of inviting them to the soiree that evening. She found them all in Rarity's room, trying to console one another. Or rather, Applejack and Rarity were trying to console one another. Spike was sitting on the sofa, engrossed in a book as he munched his way through a selection of treats liberated from the room's minibar.
"I just don't know darling," Rarity had said, carefully peeling the slices of cucumber from her eyelids "I'm not sure if I can bear to show my face in public now that I'm a.. a… jailbird!" Her bottom lip trembled.
"Rarity ya can't be a 'jailbird' after just one night in the cells!" Snorted Applejack.
"Anyway, nopony at the summit will know anything about that, Rarity!" Twilight reassured her "And going out might help take your mind off things."
"Amen to that!" Said Spike through a mouthful of complimentary biscuits, not looking up from his book "I can't think of anything worse than sitting here worrying."
Twilight smiled "Pinkie and Rainbow Dash have already agreed. Discord's coming anyway and I'm going to ask Fluttershy too. It'd be really nice if we could all be there." She paused "It's at a very prestigious venue; the Las Pegasus Equine. And there'll be lots of very important ponies there!"
"Just like you to know my Achilles fetlock!" Pouted the Unicorn, spooning up ice-cream from one of the tubs in the mini bar "Oh well, I suppose I can't let everypony down. But I don't want any mention at all of that horrid business from yesterday evening, promise?"
The other three shared an amused grin "We promise!"
Wednesday 5pm – Twilight's Room, The Four Stallions
Later on Twilight stood back in her own room, inspecting herself in the mirror. After a long hot bath she felt almost normal again.
"Not bad," She thought "Considering only a few hours ago I looked like death warmed up, not bad at all!"
She was wearing a full-length formal gown, a piece of Rarity couture; black tulle with cerise and silver spangles; like a cityscape at night. She also had a necklace of sparkling diamond stars and more stars in her mane.
As she trotted down the hallway, Twilight suddenly realised that she had not yet extended her invitation to Fluttershy. She had tried her door right after leaving Rarity's room earlier, but the Pegasus didn't answer. Now she tried knocking again.
"Still not in, huh?" Twilight thought for a moment and then carried on round the corner to Discord's room. If Fluttershy wasn't in her own room, that was the next best place to try.
"Discord?" She tried knocking on the door. To her surprise it swung inwards a fraction "Weird, he must have left it open."
"Discord?" She pushed the door open a little further "Fluttershy? Are you in there?"
Twilight gazed around at the bizarre and improbable tropical paradise, much too large to fit inside the confines of the actual space that was here. She supposed this must really be some sort of other dimension he had created in order to fit all this stuff in "That's a whole lot of effort just to upgrade your hotel room!" Twilight chuckled to herself, shaking her head.
She pulled the door shut and moved towards the terrace, telling herself that she was looking for her friends but conscious that there was a part of her that just wanted to be nosy. After all, how many chances would she have to poke around one of the Chaos God's alternate dimensions?
As she passed the bed she noticed the nightstand was one of the few items here that looked like it matched the rest of the furniture in the hotel.
Various things were piled on it in an appropriately haphazard fashion: empty champagne glasses; some long, floaty, white feathers; some chips from the casino they had been to; an orange; a couple of stray pearls; an iguana (which was asleep) and some sort of weird stress toy shaped like Twilight herself. She picked it up. When she squeezed it, miniature Twilight squeaked and her eyes bulged out grotesquely.
"Hey!" She said in annoyance.
As she stood there, holding mini-Twilight, her eye was drawn inexorably to the piece of paper which had been underneath the toy. It looked like an official document of some kind.
Curiosity overcame her. Holding her breath and aware that she really should not be doing this, she used her magic to grip the corner of the paper and pulled gently so as not to disturb the other things on the table. It slid silkily out from under the detritus and fluttered to the floor. Setting aside mini-Twilight, she snatched it up, scanning the paper rapidly.
It was a marriage certificate.
Twilight gasped in horror as she read the venue, the date and both of the names on it.
She froze as she heard voices in the corridor outside ""Omigosh! I have to get out of here!"
Panic gripped her. Without hesitation she shoved the certificate back on the table, powered up her horn and disappeared in a burst of pink energy. She reappeared outside the room but further down the hallway and around the corner.
To her intense relief, she heard the door to Discord's room slam shut.
