((Okay, so I reviewed my idea and realised the violence is literally just for the sake of violence. I'll try and restrain it to a paragraph of insensitivity, but I still feel bad! After all, in the end, MLP is a children's show. I always feel weird putting such things in stories like this. Um... Enjoy, I guess! :D This is my longest chapter, just so you know! Oh, guess whose about to ruin more weddings than George R.R. Martin?))

A/N: So Discord has been sulking all day. He won't let me ask why, so I might just start writing now. If he turns up for the end, hey. Great. If he doesn't... Oh well.

'The Ace', Part II

Weird not being interrupted. Hmm... Okay, I guess I'll start writing.

Pinkie Pie bounced happily down the path, a huge grin plastered to her face. Her mane bounced along with her, like cotton candy. The pink mare was leading the group of mares to a very special event that was supposed to start soon. Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Applejack followed the party-pony down the pathway, their own emotions clear on their face. The general mood was beyond happy. Rarity and Fluttershy both looked a little teary-eyed, though that was most-likely from happiness. Each pony wore dresses that expressed their personalities- similar to their Gala gowns, but not identical.
Pinkie paused and glanced behind her at the group of mares.
"C'mon, slowpokes! We don't wanna keep everypony waiting, do we?" She giggled. The other ponies just rolled their eyes at Pinkie- she was a great mare, but usually very impatient. Still, they each had their concerns for the upcoming ceremony.

As the five ponies turned a bend, they spotted a clearing just inside the Everfree Forest, lit up by Celestia's sun. The edges of the Everfree were decorated by strings of fairylights, made up of fireflies in jars. The glowing bugs had been more than happy to provide lighting when Fluttershy had asked. The jars had open tops, obviously, so they could swap shifts.
The clearing was filled with ponies of every shape and size, each familiar and chatting excitedly. The area was decorated beautifully. The mares couldn't help but think it was perfect.
Three ponies present were getting a whole lot more attention than the rest. Princesses Celestia, Cadance and Luna were talking casually with a group of stallions and mares, who looked a little starstruck.

When the five ponies made their way into the clearing, the three Alicorns turned and walked over to them. The mares bowed in respect to the rulers of their land.
"I assume Princess Twilight is close behind you?" Princess Luna asked, eyes following the trail up to the bend, watching with a glimmer in her eyes.
"Well, last I saw, she was having another panic attack in the library, but I'm sure she'll be here soon!" Pinkie spoke cheerfully. Princess Celestia glanced worriedly at the pink pony.
"Oh, that sounds like her." Princess Cadance smiled.
"I hope Twilight isn't too nervous. This is supposed to be a happy occasion, but it can be stressful for some ponies." The elder Princess sighed, following Luna's gaze.
"Especially if the bride is Twilight Sparkle, the poor dear." Rarity blinked in sympathy.
"Ah only wish we coulda stayed longer t' help cheer her up. She did look a lil' terrified." Applejack pawed at the ground with her hoof regretfully.
"Twilight'll be fine, guys! She's one tough egg-head." Rainbow Dash smirked. "I'm more worried about Ace-y over there. He looks like he's gonna faint!"
"Oh, I hope he doesn't! He might get hurt if he faints, and Twilight would be devastated if he got hurt." Fluttershy glanced worriedly at the groom.

Ace's crimson mane was extra spikey for the event. His light blue fur was covered by a small black jacket, coupled with a white shirt and red bowtie. Soft blue eyes peered out nervously from behind strands of red. They were always so full of kindness and warmth, never angry for more than a second. Even when he was annoyed, Ace was always so polite. His manners rivalled royalty. He was always organised- to an extent, but enough so that Twilight could put up with him. The two ponies were very similar, yet very different. In a way he held a part of each element within him. Ace was kind, honest, loyal, generous, fun and had a way with magic. It was no wonder Twilight had fallen for him.

The ponies gathered in the clearing let their chatter die out as they took their places, separating onto either side of a strip of lilac fabric. Celestia and Luna stood at the edge of the Everfree, facing the gathering of ponies. To the right of the end of the fabric, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack and Pinkie Pie stood in a line. On the other side, Ace waited nervously. He brushed down one side of his suit jacket gently with a hoof and attempted to fix his crazy mess of a mane, to no avail. His groomscolts stood behind him- Spike and Shining Armor in tuxedos.

From around the bend, Twilight Sparkle emerged, wearing a long white gown, decorated with accents of purple. The crowd of ponies cooed collectively. Rarity sniffled as she saw her creation move flawlessly towards the clearing, accompanied by Twilight's father. The lilac alicorn's mane was tied up into a bun and had a cute white hairpiece encrusted with clear gems fitted nicely in the bun itself. It looked very similar to Twilight's cutie mark.
Near to the entrance, Lyra Heartstrings began playing a gentle melody on her lyre. It was beautiful and matched Twilight's pace perfectly. Everything about the moment was perfect. It had to be- it was organised by none other than Twilight herself.

The Princess could do nothing to hide her blush as she and her dad made their way up the aisle, along the lilac fabric. Between the sea of ponies. Towards the one stallion she couldn't wait to spend her life with.
Twilight glanced at the crowd. Almost everypony she knew was there somewhere. Some of the more notable faces were Twilight's mother, Princess Cadence and Trixie. Each smiled at Twilight in return. The purple alicorn soon met her brother's eyes, who winked back. Spike had the cutest smile on his face when she glanced at him.
Twilight's five best friends watched her walk down the aisle. Each of them were trying varying levels of hiding their tears. Fluttershy and Rarity were the only ones letting the tears roll down their cheeks. Applejack and Rainbow Dash were fighting back their tears as best as they could. Pinkie was on the verge of crying, but had yet to feel the liquid run down her face. Her mouth wobbled cartoonishly.

The Princess of the Sun and Princess of the Moon were both watching Twilight's approach with smiles. They would be leading the ceremony.
Finally, Twilight let her gaze fix on the red-maned stallion staring back nervously. He smiled softly at his bride, melting the alicorn's heart. She couldn't tear her eyes away from the handsome unicorn for a second. That was, until she was forced to leave her father's side and make her way towards Ace by herself. Then she took a second to stare at the ground. She faced her soon-to-be husband before Celestia and Luna, and before the crowd. When she glanced up again, she felt herself fall for the stallion all over again. His soft, kind eyes gripped at what was left of her melted heart and caressed it. Twilight couldn't possibly be happier. He was her perfect match in every way.

Celestia stepped forward. She glanced at both Twilight and Ace with a warm smile. Then, addressing the crowd, the Sun Princess began to speak.
"Mares and gentlecolts, fillies and foals. Before us today stand two very special ponies. Princess Twilight Sparkle, my former student, and Ace Hooves, current student of Twilight. These two ponies share a special bond- more than just mentor and student. They are best friends. They love each other very much. It is very rare that two ponies are as suited for each other as Twilight and Ace, which is why it makes me so very happy to welcome everypony to their wedding. I believe they have both written vows." Celestia finished her introduction and stepped back beside Luna. Silence followed this as the attention turned to the purple alicorn.
Twilight cleared her throat. With a quick glance to her mother for support, she began her vows.

Princess Luna stepped forward this time. She extended her wings as far as they would go.
"May you forever keep the promises you made here today and may you both live long and happy lives." Luna announced formally. Then, with a small smile, she took on a more informal tone. "It gives me the highest form of happiness to announce that these ponies are wed. Ace Hooves and Twilight Sparkle, you may kiss."
Ace smiled at his new wife and leaned in to kiss Twilight.
The crowd cheered and clapped approvingly, congratulating the married couple. Flower petals were thrown by Twilight's friends as a small group of butterflies fluttered from the ground and out into the sky.

The moon was high in the sky when the music being blasted out was lowered in volume. Most of the ponies had left already, including the other three Princesses. All who remained dancing were simply swaying to the music. These ponies included-

You started writing without me?!

Discord! You're back!

Of course I'm back. More importantly, you started without me! This is unforgivable!

Oh, okay. Hey, are you gonna tell me why you left? I told the readers you were sulking cause you weren't there to stop me.

You did what?!

Nevermind. Why did you leave?

I had to think some stuff over. Important stuff. Stuff you most certainly don't need to worry about. On the bright side, I have an announcement for everypony!

Hey, could it wait until I finish the chapter?

Ugh, really? But it's such good news!

Yes, and it'll be better news if we wait. Please, there's just a bit left.

You wrote most of the story without me?

Oh, don't sound so betrayed. Most of the time you don't even read them.

Don't be stupid! Of course I read them! How else would I get ideas for... things. That you don't need to worry about. Ignore me. Just get back to your story.

Um... okay.

-These ponies included Twilight and Ace. The newly married couple were resting their heads on the others' shoulders, swaying gently. Twilight was so happy. She couldn't stop going over everything they'd been through together. Her mood changed as she recalled their most recent perdicament.

Both of them had helped defeat a power-crazed pony who had induced his own alicornhood. He'd gone on a murderous rampage before they'd taken him down. What had been really creepy about him was he seemed really upset, like he had no control over what he'd done. Of course, he'd been begging for forgiveness while his magic tore apart ponies right in front of their eyes. He literally ripped the poor creatures in half, so he was shown no mercy. After Ace tracked him down, the mane six had activated their Rainbow Powers to strip him of his magic and reduce him to a pegasus. What was left of the stallion was sent to a hospital to recover from the ordeal, but was pronounced dead after a day of recovery. The whole event had shaken everypony. They all hoped that maybe the stallion had been weak before starting his attacks. Otherwise, they had to think about the possibility that Rainbow Power was too strong for use against ponies.

Ace had tried to comfort Twilight afterwards. He claimed there was no way that the six ponies were responsible for the stallion's death. Twilight tried to tell herself that the stallion deserved it, but in reality he really didn't. Nopony deserved to die. Most ponies in Equestria knew that, which was why a serial killer was such a rare and horrendous thing. Poor Fluttershy had needed a few weeks of isolation to get over what she'd seen. The yellow pegasus had been extra sensitive recently, and nopony really knew why. Nothing had happened before the attacks to provoke such behavior, but nonetheless she had been in a very fragile state going into something so vile. In reality, even over a year afterward, there was still a haunted look in her eyes.

"Twilight?"
Ace's voice roused the Princess from her trip down memory lane. She realised they had stopped dancing, and Ace was watching Twilight with concern. "What's wrong, darling?" The unicorn asked.
"Oh, nothing." Twilight sighed, allowing a small smile to make its way onto her face. "I was just worrying about Fluttershy."
Ace frowned and glanced around until he spotted the pegasus.
"She seems alright today. In fact, she looks a little happier than she has in a long time." The corner of Ace's lip twitched downward for a second. "There's no reason to worry. I'm sure she's fine."
Twilight glanced at the yellow mare and sighed again.
"Yeah, you're probably right. You know me: always worrying!" The alicorn smiled, bringing a smile to Ace's face.

Fluttershy smiled to herself as she went over the note she received again in her head. The second it had arrived, she'd been so happy. It had been Discord's first communication to her for almost two years.
Dearest Fluttershy,
I do apologise for my absence, but my current perdicament means I can't write to you. This will be my first and last letter to you until I return, so I'm sorry it's so short. However, I can promise I'll be back very soon. I hope everypony will be happy to see me! Give my best to Twilight. The wedding is coming up! In fact, I think I'll be back just in time for the end. Save a dance for me, will you, my dear?
Discord
(PS, I want to make sure my appearance is a surprise, so don't tell anypony!)
Even if Discord was late, at least she had his word that he'd be back soon. He always kept his word.
Fluttershy frowned all of a sudden. When did she tell Discord about Twilight's wedding? She didn't think she did. It was a bit odd that he'd know that. Then again, it was a royal wedding. The talk of all of Canterlot and Ponyville, mainly. Perhaps he was in Canterlot? Either way, she was happy he was coming back. She had missed him dearly.

Ace whispered something in Twilight's ear and she nodded, taking a step back.
"Everypony!" Ace announced, a broad smile on his face. "I know the speeches are over and done with, but I figured one more wouldn't do any harm." Everypony still present turned toward the stallion to listen to his speech. Twilight watched him with a smile, but something on his flank caught her eye. Whatever it was was covered by the tails of his jacket, so she couldn't really see what it was. It looked like his cutie mark had been doubled, or something. She shook her head and turned her attention back to her husband. Wedding-planning must've tired her out or something.
"I know you all must be tired, so I'll make this short and sweet." Ace's horn glowed as he summoned an empty box to stand on. Twilight must've blinked, because she didn't see the box moving over to him. The Princess yawned.

Standing on his little raised platform, Ace was visible to all ponies present. He had the widest smile Twilight had ever seen him with, and she tried to smile along with him. Something about it alarmed her a little though, because in the shadows of the trees his mane seemed darker. It was a silly thing to notice, but in her eyes is mane was definitely darker. Even his coat seemed weird. She was going to point it out, but Twilight didn't want to disturb Ace's speech.
"Fluttershy." Ace announced suddenly, his eyes turning to stare at the yellow pegasus, the too-wide grin still on his face.
"M-me?" Fluttershy squeaked, taking a timid step forward.
"Yes, you." Ace purred. "I believe you're expecting somepony special around now-ish."
Fluttershy looked a little startled, but nodded.
"Oh- um, yes, actually. H-how did you know?" Fluttershy asked, looking up at the stallion who seemed to be a little taller than before. She noticed the dark of the night made his mane and fur darker.

"I tend to know these things." Ace stated matter-of-factly, closing his eyes and lifting his face to the sky. "So, could you please name the pony you're expecting?"
"Well, um... he's not technically a pony." Fluttershy explained. Around her, ponies began to mutter amongst themselves. Most knew who she was referring to and weren't all too pleased to hear about him joining them.
"Yes, yes!" Ace snapped impatiently, which shocked the crowd into silence. His voice had sounded weird, and he was still facing the night sky. His mane looked almost black now, somehow. "Just tell us who he is already!"
"Oh, right. Um, Discord." Fluttershy spoke, a little alarmed at Ace's irritation.
"You called?" Fluttershy found herself staring into the red and yellow eyes of the draconequus she called her friend as his face was suddenly right in front of her. Fluttershy was startled, but smiled at his arrival. All around her, however, ponies were crying out in horror. Fluttershy frowned and glanced around, looking for the cause of the disturbance. Finally, she realised ponies were staring up in horror at where Ace was standing.
That's when Fluttershy screamed.

Ace's body was still standing on the empty box, but the cause of everypony's fear was that he seemed to be... headless.
"Oh, why is everypony upset? I thought my entrance was wonderful!" Discord smirked. And that's when Fluttershy realised Discord was no more than a floating head. He disappeared in a flash and reappeared on Ace's neck, fusing the two together. The weird combination of Discord's head on a suited pony's body was disturbing, to say the least.
In another flash, Ace's body transformed into the mismatched, crazy form of Discord, completing his arrival.
"I'm back, everypony!" Discord cried, letting out a laugh.
"Discord!" Twilight appeared by his feet, angry and more than a little upset. "What've you done with my husband?"

There was a pause as Discord watched the Princess for a moment.
"Oh- oh, you thought- oh this is priceless!" Discord cackled. He wiped a tear away from his eye and looked at Twilight again. "Huh. It seems my poker face was too good. Twiley, dear, I'm afraid there is no such pony as Ace Hooves. He was me. I've finally shown my hand. And guess what?" Discord teleported beside Twilight with a grin. "They're all aces!" He whispered.
Twilight stared at Discord angrily.
"Stop playing games, Discord. Where is Ace?" She stomped her hoof demandingly.
"Princess, I'm not playing games. I'm just about to win this one." The Spirit of Chaos snickered at his comment.

"Y'see, when I first noticed your craving for romance, I knew I had an ace up my sleeve. My original idea was to infiltrate your defences and take down the system from the inside. Like a royal flushing, if you will. My gameplan changed when I realised I could just figure out how your Rainbow Power works and pull the plug. I've already done that, by the way. I could've ended the match then, but I do love a touch of drama. I proposed and got us to be married simply because I've never been married before. Besides, I wanted it to create as big a ripple as possible and really destroy you when I came back and ruined your big day. I'm sorry it was so abrupt. I wanted the Princesses to be here too, but I suppose you can't win every game." Discord smirked.

"Oh, Fluttershy... if it's all the same, I'll have that dance now."

What was that?!

Um... that was a story.

Yes, but what?

'What', what?

'What?', as in what in Equestria were you thinking?

Umm.. what?

There is nowere near enough of me! Also, why did I have to marry Twilight? Eugh. You even made me kiss her! That is not okay!

Well, at least you made a lot of cardgame puns.

Nowhere near enough!

Oh, didn't you have an announcement?

Right, yes. So, everypony and everybody. Fillies and gentlemen; colts and girls... I may have a spell that could get me into your world!

Wow, really? Already?

Yes, really. I found something in a book. Though, I didn't really look at it. It said something about it opening a door, something something. Blah blah blah, 'doors can go both ways', blah blah.

Wait, what?

Oh, some gibberish on how it could backfire.

Uh...

Now, why aren't you sleeping? You have a big day tomorrow, what with me taking over your world. I'll allow you one more night of non-chaotic sleep until I wreak insanity on Earth.

How kind.

A/N: Well, it seems this is our last day of sanity. I'm so sorry, everybody. This is my fault, and I brought this on us all.

((Heh, I figured out what I'll be doing with this story ending-wise. I was originally gonna leave it up to you guys, but I'm mean, so you guys get no say in it! Hahaaa! ...Ahem, that's Discord's influence.))