There's nothing better than getting up early to shop before anyone else goes, Fluttershy thought, picking up whatever she needed from the Ponyville market.

She went to various stores with the little filly. Her young helper had light purple fur, a purple and white mane to match her eyes, and a propeller cap.

Fluttershy was given baby Screwball for the day because Discord suddenly had an "important meeting". She loved spending time with her, even if the little one was a bit crazy. As they walked, the filly yawned slightly.

- Are we done, Mrs. Fluttershy?

"Almost, love, we just need to pick up the cupcakes," Fluttershy replied. - Only then will we be able to go home.

- I hope. I'm still tired from getting up so early, Screwball said, yawning again.

- Okay, let's go.

They left the quiet market square and headed towards the Sugar Corner. Once inside, they were greeted by an ongoing party. They saw fillies and colts running around, laughing and having fun.

"Oh, I forgot Pinkie's having a birthday party today," Fluttershy told herself as they pushed forward.

- Birthday party? Screwball asked, looking confused.

She looked around at this so-called "birthday party." There were colorful balloons everywhere. She saw fillies and colts playing games she had never seen before. She saw a table piled high with large and small boxes wrapped in strange colored paper with bows on top. She looked over them and saw a banner that read "Happy Birthday Golden Wing!"

Screwball tugged lightly on Fluttershy's mane to quietly gain her attention.

- Mrs. Fluttershy, what are they doing?

"It's a party to celebrate the day the pony was born," she replied with a gentle smile.

Screwball looked around at this so-called birthday party and saw all the fillies and colts gather around a smiling blue pegasus with a dirty blond mane. Next to him was an orange stallion with a scarlet mane, smiling back.

"Happy birthday, son," said the older pegasus, tugging at the younger man's mane.

"Thanks, Dad," the other replied with a happy laugh.

A one-horned mare with a dark mane approached them, magically handing the colt a large cake.

"Happy birthday, Golden Wing," she said to him with a smile.

"Thanks, Mom," he said, blowing out the candles while the other ponies stamped their hooves.

"Birthday?" Screwball told herself.

She had no idea what the thing called "birthdays" was. In fact, she had never heard of them before. Then Pinkie Pie, without warning, jumped from behind the counter and began bouncing past Fluttershy.

"Very alive today, Pinkie Pie," Fluttershy said softly as the pink party pony circled her and Screwball.

- Sure, Fluttershy! I have these special delicious cupcakes you ordered! Pinkie replied, pulling a small box from her mane.

Fluttershy laughed slightly as she took the bag of pastries.

"Thank you, Pinkie," she said with a smile.

She looked at Screwball and realized her growing curiosity and confusion about what was happening.

- Screwball, did something happen?

- Huh? The little girl broke out of her light trance and looked at the mare before she replied, "It's nothing, can we go now?"

"Okay, I'll see you later, Pinkie," Fluttershy said, waving goodbye to her friend.

- I'll see you later, Fluttershy. Hope the cupcakes taste good! Pinkie replied, jumping back to the kitchen.

Fluttershy and Screwball started to leave, but a little birthday boy approaching them stopped them.

"Hey," he said in a friendly tone that matched the mood of the party.

- Em ... hello? Screwball replied with obvious puzzlement in her voice.

"Please," he said, handing over a piece of cake. "You look like a nice filly, so I wanted to share the cake."

Screwball didn't know what to do. She had never been in this situation before. She looked at Fluttershy, her eyes asking what she should do.

"Come on, honey, this nice colt gives it to you," the mare said gently.

Screwball looked again at the foal with the piece of cake in front of her.

"Er ... thank you," she replied nervously, taking the cake.

"Hope it tastes good," he said before returning to his party.

Fluttershy and Screwball silently left the noisy bakery and walked out into the now quiet and quieter streets of Ponyville.

"That was nice of him," Fluttershy said softly, relieved that she no longer had to be in the crowded room. All the stress it caused was slowly fading away.

"Mrs. Fluttershy, what does" birthday party "really mean? Screwball asked suddenly.

"It's a birthday party," Fluttershy replied. - You already had some, right?

The little filly winced slowly at the question.

- To be honest… -

She paused and took a deep breath before continuing, "I've never celebrated that… birthday party you're talking about." My daddy made me to enjoy my job a long time ago… so I don't think I ever really thought about it.

"Oh, sweetie…" Fluttershy held her breath.

She couldn't believe what she just heard. Her beloved Screwball never celebrated her day of birth. Suddenly the yellow pegasus had an idea.

"What would you say if we throw you a birthday party?" I mean, if you don't mind ...

Screwball thought for a moment if it was a good idea to throw a birthday party, but then she made a tragic discovery.

- I don't think that's a good idea. I don't know exactly when I was born or arose. And I don't think my daddy remembers.

They both walked on without saying a word. When they got to Fluttershy's hut, they just walked inside. Screwball slowly set the piece of cake down on the living room table and began sluggishly up the stairs.

"If you need me, I'm in my room," she said in a low, slightly sad tone.

When the little filly was out of sight, Fluttershy sighed heavily. The sight of the sad child hurt her.

- Poor thing ...

*

As night fell in Equestria, Fluttershy sat by the fireplace with Discord at her side, sipping weak tea. At least he had been with her at first, for now his body was wrapped loosely around her like a great, sensitive snake. They both enjoyed a peaceful silence, staring at the crackling embers.

"Discord, I need to ask you something ..." Fluttershy said, breaking the silence. - Why didn't little Screwball never have a birthday party?

- Birthday party, you say? Discord repeated, raising an eyebrow and slowly tapping his chin. - As you mentioned it, she never actually did. We never had time for such a celebration, we were too busy spreading chaos.

Then he started drinking his tea.

"Well ... I think it might be a good idea to arrange one for her," Fluttershy said softly. - If u do not mind.

"Er ..." he muttered, slowly stroking his chin.

Then it rose into the air, pondering the idea. As he was absorbed in thought, he suddenly realized something.

"Why are you so desperate to throw my little bastard a birthday party?

Fluttershy looked away slowly, then replied.

- Er, it's just ...

Before she could finish, she paused to take a deep breath. Then she began to play with her mane.

- Well, she's like a daughter to me. I just have that motherly need to do something nice for her.

Upon her explanation, she heard a low chuckle from Discord. When she turned around, she saw him grinning at her.

- A mother's needs, Fluttershy? You seem to want to do this more for her, I guess, "Discord said, taking her in his arms. - You wanted to give this to her as her mother, didn't you?

She blushed a little at that.

- Oh, no, it's not like that. I don't think she thinks of anyone as her mother. I just want her to be happy.

"Okay, tomorrow I will go out with her for a while, so you can meet Pinkie Pie to get everything ready," he said warmly, stroking her head. - You know what? I think this may be the goodness that you are so famous for.

"Well, that's my Element, after all," Fluttershy said softly, blushing slightly.

"Not to mention being too wonderful to resist you," Discord muttered to himself.

- What did you say?

"Oh, nothing, love," he laughed as he sipped his tea.

The shy pegasus began to think about what to do for her first birthday party for her special filly.

*

The next afternoon came quickly, and Pinkie and Fluttershy were just finishing up preparations for a surprise birthday party. Everything was there, they just had to wait for Angel to inform them that Discord and Screwball were returning. Earlier, the draconequus had told her something about taking his daughter somewhere for some "special" fun. And now she heard her rabbit friend give her the signal.

"Oh, they're here," Fluttershy said, a bit nervous. - Thanks, Angel, go hide with the others.

Angel nodded and jumped down to his hideout.

- Don't worry, Fluttershy. Everything will be fine. She'll love the party, Fluttershy told herself. - It will be fine. Everything will be…

- We're back! Screwball exclaimed, appearing behind her.

Fluttershy jumped by surprise.

"… Good," she finished the sentence, hovering in the air.

Then a miniature Screwball appeared on her face.

"Sorry to scare you, Mrs. Fluttershy," she said apologetically. - I'm just so turned on. I had so much fun with my dad today.

She showed her excitement, making her propeller spin rapidly. Then she put her cap back on.

"That's… nice," Fluttershy said, still a bit shaky. - I have something for you that you may like.

She pointed downstairs. Screwball followed her hoof to see all her animal friends coming out of their hiding places wearing party hats and throwing confetti.

- Hope you like your birthday party.

- My birthday party?

Fluttershy nodded with a gentle smile. Screwball teleported them both to the floor. Once there, it returned to its normal size.

- Do you like it? Fluttershy asked.

The filly looked around the room with an expression of surprise and intimidation. The scene in front of her was similar to what she had seen the day before in Sugar's Corner, but this time it was different. She wasn't watching someone's party from the other side of the room. This time it was all for her. She entered the room and became the target of the confetti being fired. Angel somehow climbed onto the chandelier and she was just within reach.

The Chaos daughter looked at it all again and smiled. She wasn't sure what it was supposed to be, but what mattered was knowing that it had been made for her, by those for whom it was important. She wiped away a lone tear while shaking the confetti off her mane to hide that she was crying at all.

- Did you do it for me when Daddy was spending the day with me? She asked softly, sliding a hoof over her face a second time.

"Of course I am, love," the gentle pegasus replied.

The filly turned to look at her father, who was already wearing a party hat. He was holding a strange, rolled-up thing like a straw in his hand, and he raised it to his mouth. He blew and the object unrolled in a high-pitched whistle and lightly poked her nose. She laughed to herself and scratched her nose as the thing receded. The bizarre thing vanished into a small burst of pink smoke, and Screwball looked around again.

- So what should I do? She asked, twirling the propeller on her cap to get the rest of the confetti out of her mane.

"Anything you want, Screwball," her father replied with a broad smile. - This is your special day and we have thousands of years behind. You deserve it.

Suddenly the strange whistle was in his paw again. This time it aimed straight at Angel and reached further than last time. The little bunny barely dodged the impact and jumped down onto the couch. Normally Angel would have squealed and shook Discord with his forepaw, but he was remarkably composed right now. He just smiled and found a place for himself among the other animals.

Screwball thought for a moment. It was going to be a party, and there was only one thing she was absolutely sure of about parties. She took off her cap, put her entire front leg in it, and suddenly pulled out a large set of speakers that she had thrown at the corner of the room as if nothing had happened. Fluttershy squealed and prepared to cover her ears as they vibrated. The floor began to tremble as the vibrations of the speakers grew stronger, and Discord just stared at them, trying to guess their purpose.

What happened next, no one expected, although everyone should.

First there was a soft bass note that echoed throughout the room. Then nothing. And then the speakers exploded into a dense cloud of confetti that covered everything. Screwball chuckled as those in the room tried to regain their sense of direction. She could make out the contours of the animals that had previously covered her with small flakes of colored cloth. Now each had a layer of it on. She giggled again as she thought about Fluttershy's secret collaborator Pinkie Pie also suddenly buried under a cloud of confetti. The little chaos litter sat down and Discord ruffled her mane with her paw. The filly smiled and hugged her father, then looked at Fluttershy, who looked like a pile of confetti with eyes and a pink tail. Screwball released her father and hugged the mare tightly.

- Thank you so much, Mrs. Fluttershy.

"But please, Screwball," she replied, gently wrapping her now very colorful hoof around the filly.

Screwball spun her propeller and chaos reigned again as confetti flakes swirled around the room a second time. She glanced at the couch and noticed that Angel hadn't retreated underneath it in time, and now it looked like a small, colorful pile with ears. She smiled warmly, though she didn't quite know what else to do. With a wave of her hoofs, the confetti fell to the floor. Suddenly it was all gone, along with the damaged remnants of the speakers. As she turned, she saw Fluttershy calmly carrying a round cake, cream-colored in the colors of her mane, and an apparently wearing a hat, probably also made of dough.

Upon closer inspection, she saw that the propeller on the cake was on fire. She could have sworn it wasn't lit when she first saw it. Discord carefully took the cake and hung it in the air in front of her.

"I've given up trying to fit enough candles on the cake," he said shyly. - So I made a little flame instead.

Screwball stared in awe at the cake. She remembered what he had done there that colt the day before. She was about to try to blow the fire out when she heard Fluttershy's soft voice:

- Make a wish, darling.

Screwball stopped and held her breath. She wondered what to do now. Then over whether this cake can actually fulfill her wish somehow. What a mischief it would be to guarantee something like this to every colt and filly in the annual ritual of celebration that they were born. She smiled broadly. Such an opportunity to create chaos. She looked at the fire and her priorities and wishes swirled in her mind. After reaching what she wanted above all else, she looked at the fire like a falcon. She took a deep breath and let out a long whistle. A gust of air from her lungs hit the lit propeller, which began to accelerate. Over time, it created a vacuum that extinguished the fire. With a wish confirmed in her mind, she grinned at the place where the fire had been defeated before. She looked at Discord and Fluttershy, and her smile grew a little more mischievous. She looked behind them to the spot on the wall where her breath landed, and her eyes swirled slowly as she quickly cast a spell.

Fluttershy laughed nervously.

"So what did you want, Screwball?"

"Oh ... it's something I always wanted, even though I still had it." Something that is part of me and yet I can take it in hooves. Something precious and unique that almost everyone has. Something you can find anywhere in the world that is my whole world. Something… wonderful.

Fluttershy blinked, trying to figure out what she was actually saying. Discord was scratching his chin. He looked like he was thinking or doing some complex calculations in his head. Screwball just smiled at them and Discord gently spun her propeller.

"My own daughter just put together her own brilliant riddle," Discord said, a little trickle of condensed pride streaming out of his eye.

- What does that mean, Dizzy? Fluttershy asked, looking his way.

Discord turned his head to look back at him. As he opened his mouth to speak, a little chaos interrupted him. Fluttershy suddenly staggered and was lifted into the air. She kissed him gently, seeming as surprised as he was. Then she was back on the ground and they couldn't take their eyes off each other.

"Well ... that was nice, but I don't understand what a gift would have for me ..." He broke off and smiled as the light dawned on him.

Fluttershy blushed deeply. She turned to look at the grinning filly, and a few things settled in her head.

"Screwball ... you wished for ... a mother?"

Screwball said nothing. She just looked at Fluttershy and then at her father. Her broad smile slowly faded as she looked back at Fluttershy.

"Not such a bad idea for me," Discord said softly, as if imagining what the next days might bring.

"Well…" Fluttershy said gently, building up again. - I ... I think that I would love to ... not that I didn't think about it earlier ...

Screwball took no notice of what they said. Did she really do it? Did her wish really come true? She wiped her eyes again and suddenly jumped over the cake to hug them both. She felt a paw and a hoof hold her.

- The best birthday in the world! She whispered to herself.