Keep Calm and Flutter On
Pony's Log Number 310: They say there's good in everypony. Would that include a looney-tooney draconequus?
It was beautiful day as Rarity, Rainbow, Twilight, Mario, and Spike were in the outskirts of Ponyville waiting impatiently for Princess Celestia to arrive. Twilight, Mario, and Spike were pacing about in a small circle as Rarity was busy applying some perform at the annoyance of Rainbow, who was sitting nearby. Just then, Pinkie bounce up to them.
"I love it when Princess Celestia comes to Ponyville!" said Pinkie excitedly, "I got my hooves shined just like Rarity's for the occasion. Ya like?" Pinkie lifted a fore-hoof to show how shiny it was. Rarity found Pinkie's fore-hoof was so shiny that she could see her reflection in it.
"I certainly do!" said Rarity with a smirk as she gazed at her reflection. Twilight just looked worried.
"Don't worry, sweetheart," said Mario, "I'm sure Mom will be coming soon."
"I'm surprised she's not here yet," said Twilight.
"I wonder what's taking so long?" Spike wondered aloud as he sighed to himself.
"And where are Applejack and Fluttershy?" Twilight asked with concern.
"Fluttershy's detained helping Applejack with a mishap at Sweet Apple Acres," Rarity answered as she continued to admire her reflection and standing on her hind legs, "They'll be along." Twilight just looked at Rarity annoyingly as Spike continued to look worried.
"But, I still don't get why the Princess would be so late," said Spike.
"She's bringing an important visitor," Twilight explained, "That could be part of it."
"Maybe she isn't late at all," said Mario in a formal tone, "we're just fashionably early." Twilight looked annoyed as Rarity giggled to herself.
"You really do act like Rarity sometimes," Twilight remarked.
"I've never hidden it from you," said Mario as a matter of fact. Twilight just rolled her eyes at him but then smiled and kissed his cheek, making Mario blush.
"Either way," said Rainbow as she hovered between them, "It's a visitor who's important and slow." She then moved over to the side where Spike was standing.
"Not everypony likes to do things as fast as possible Dashie," said Mario, "So chill."
"Maybe it's somepony so terribly important, she still had many more terribly important things to do before she got here," Rarity suggested.
"I don't think so," said Mario, "Mom's like my sweetie here. She plans all the details ahead of time, only deviating from her plan when absolutely necessary. She makes sure the visitor follows her schedule one way or another." Twilight smiled as Spike looked up at the sky and saw a horrifying sight.
"Maybe the visitor has a deer antler, a goat leg, a bat wing, and a snake tail!" Spike suggested as he tugged Twilight's tail.
"Yeah, right," Twilight remarked with an eye roll, "That's Discord."
"Why in the wide, wide world of Equestria would Princess Celestia bring along someone like that?" Rarity added with her own eye roll.
"Pffft! My Mom would never be insane enough to bring him for a visit!" Mario added with a chuckle.
"M-m-maybe you should ask...her!" Spike said fearfully as he pointed towards a gold chariot being pulled by four Pegasi guards with Princess Celestia. Another gold chariot appeared with the statue of Discord inside of it. All the ponies and Spike were in shock.
"My Mom has gone insane," said Mario drearily.
(Main Theme)
Princess Celestia stood before the ponies as Twilight approached cautiously with Mario right beside her.
"With all due respect, Princess Celestia," said Twilight calmly before shouting, "how could you bring Discord here?!" Twilight then covered her mouth with wide eyes and cleared her throat.
"Your majesty," said Twilight and a polite bow.
"Just what are you up to Mom?" Mario asked skeptically.
"I'm fully aware that the last time Discord was here," said Princess Celestia, "he created serious havoc." As she spoke, four Pegasi guards pulled the Discord statue from the chariot and set it before the group.
"If by "serious havoc" you mean "turning Ponyville into the chaos capital of the world"..." Rainbow pointed out.
"...and tricking us all into being the opposite of our true selves..." Rarity added.
"And making yummy delicious chocolate milk rain all over the place without a single dollop of whipped cream to go with it anywhere in sight," Pinkie added as she got in front of Rarity and Rainbow, "Not a single dollop!"
"Let not forget that he turned me into an emo, grumpy, hateful pony who allowed all that to happen," Mario added before adding sadly, "and made me so bitter that I broke my marefriend's heart and nearly made her give up the fight. Plus I think I traumatized Applejack..."
"Applejack's fine," said Rainbow, "I haven't seen her have a nervous breakdown over being reminded of her father in months."
"I still was pretty awful," Mario continued as Twilight held him close, "It was weeks before I could even forgive myself...even after everypony else did..."
"Yes, I understand," said Princess Celestia as she looked at Discord with a smirk on her face, "But I have a use for Discord's magic if it can be reformed to serve good instead of evil. This is why I've brought Discord here, because I believe that you are the ponies who can help him do just that." Mario blinked.
"Permission to speak freely, Mom," Mario requested in a rather blunt tone.
"Go ahead," Princess Celestia replied but gave an eye roll.
"Are you crazy?!" Mario bellowed as he waved his fore-legs about, "This will never work! Oh Mommy dearest you've been inside of your castle talking to yourself for too long! You're brain is in the clouds!" Mario then crossed his fore-legs and pouted. The others were in deep shock. They couldn't believe Mario had spoke to Princess Celestia in such a manner! However, Princess Celestia just looked unamused.
"Anything else?" Princess Celestia asked in a deadpan tone. Mario snorted through his nose.
"I don't think this is going to work," Mario replied calmly, "but...I do trust you. I hope you know what you are doing."
"Don't I always?" Princess Celestia replied with confident smile on her face. Mario smirked.
"Sometimes, I'm not so sure," Mario remarked, earning a playful shoulder swipe by Princess Celestia's wing as they shared a chuckle with each other. It seemed to lighten the mood for everypony present, but Spike was still panicking.
"This will never work," said Spike frantically, "This is a disaster! How will we ever control him?! We're doomed!"
"Need I remind you that you are the ponies who turned him back into stone like this in the first place?" said Princess Celestia as she looked at the statue again. All the ponies smiled.
"I supposed we can just use the Elements of Harmony again if it gets out of hand," said Twilight.
"No objections to a safety net," Mario added.
"Uh, w-w-we probably need a volunteer to run away from here right away to get them," Spike offered nervously as he tried to run off and retrieve them, "I'll do it!"
"No need, Spike," said Princess Celestia as two Pegasi guards placed a gold chest beside her, "I have them right here, and I've cast a spell so Discord can't take them and hide them again."
"Good to know," said Mario, "But...I don't know if I can be of much help..."
"Mario, remember what you learned about forgiving Trixie?" Princess Celestia told him, "You need to forgive Discord. Even if he doesn't ever apologize or show any remorse, I need you to assist whomever I have chosen to reform him. You may have love magic at your disposal Mario, but its magic and your element will be weakened and possibly even useless if you don't cleanse the bitterness in your heart." Mario just stared at his hooves, knowing what Princess Celestia said was true.
"I understand," said Mario with a nod.
"Now where's Fluttershy?" Princess Celestia asked as she stepped forward a bit, "I believe she may know best how to begin reforming Discord."
"Fluttershy?" said Rainbow in disbelief as she hovered beside the Princess, "Really?"
"What do you mean really?" Mario protested, "Fluttershy is a great choice! Kindness, compassion, and empathy are very powerful tools. You'd be amazed how much they can melt even the iciest and most bitter of hearts. But to answer your question, Mom, Fluttershy is helping Applejack with a problem at Sweet Apple Acres. They should be here shortly."
"There time is up!" said Rainbow as she zoomed away before Mario could offer to get the two ponies himself.
Back at Sweet Apple Acres, Fluttershy was trying her to best to size up the situation. Apparently some beavers thought it'd be a good idea to build a dam over the stream that ran through Sweet Apple Acres and it was flooding part of the orchard. The beaver was chattering with Fluttershy.
"What's he goin' on about now?" Applejack asked as she glared at the beaver.
"Good news, Mr. Beaverton Beaverteeth has agreed to take his dam apart and move it," said Fluttershy.
"Well, it's about time," said Applejack irritably, "My apple trees are so waterlogged, I can practically hear them gargle!" The beaver began to chatter angrily some more.
"But he says first you'll have to apologize for calling him "a nuisance"," said Fluttershy.
"Apologize?" Applejack protested as she pointed a fore-hoof at the beaver, "He's lucky I didn't call him a varmint!" The beaver chattered loudly once more as they got into each other's faces. Fluttershy used her fore-legs to hold them apart, but then what the beaver said made Fluttershy gasp.
"Mr. Beaverton Beaverteeth!" said Fluttershy, "Such language!"
"Fine, fine, I apologize," said Applejack reluctantly. The beaver just blew a raspberry at her, making Applejack growl and try to charge at him. Fluttershy held her back and shook her head. The beaver then pondered before he pulled out a single twig that caused the dam to break open and release all the trapped water. Applejack sighed with relief.
"Thanks, Fluttershy," said Applejack, "Don't know what I would've done without you."
"Glad I could help," said Fluttershy when Rainbow suddenly zoomed in between the two.
"Hey, slackers!" Rainbow snapped impatiently, "Double time it on over to Ponyville, would ya?! We're all waiting on you!" Applejack and Fluttershy exchanged looks before heading over to where the rest of their friends were. It wasn't long before Fluttershy and Mario were standing before Princess Celestia.
"I realize that this is a tall order," said Princess Celestia, "But I wouldn't ask if I weren't confident you could get him to use his magic obediently of his own free will." Fluttershy looked nervous but then Princess Celestia tiled her chin up and gave her an assuring smile. Fluttershy blushed timidly and looked away.
"And...you really think I'll know best how to do that?" Fluttershy asked with uncertainty in her voice.
"Don't you mean we?" said Mario, "Mom asked me to assist you in whatever you decide to do."
"Well I do enjoy telling you what to do," Fluttershy remarked.
"Very funny," Mario retorted with an eye roll.
"To answer your question, Fluttershy," Princess Celestia answered with a chuckle, "I do. As I recall, you and Mario have worked together very well in the past."
"Well he always was a good minion," Fluttershy replied as she patted Mario's head.
"Banana!" Mario snapped before giving her a raspberry as the rest of the ponies snickered.
"Now I must return to Canterlot for Equestria's royal summit," said Princess Celestia as she hovered over to her chariot and took a seat, "You may release Discord when ready." The mane seven and Spike watched as the four Pegasi guards carried Princess Celestia off into the distance. Then Twilight grabbed the gold chest containing the Elements of Harmony.
"Okay, ponies, guess it's time to get started," said Twilight as she set the chest down and opened it, "Let's just hope this releasing spell works."
"Or...let's not," said Spike.
"I think I can speak for everypony here that we wouldn't be too disappointed if the spell failed," said Mario. They all just hummed in agreement as Twilight helped everypony equip their elements on.
"Still gotta try though," said Twilight.
"I know, sweetie," said Mario, "but I would like to say you do look like a princess with your Element on." Twilight giggled, but the rest just rolled their eyes.
"We'd best keep our elements on at all times 'til further notice," said Twilight.
"Check!" said the rest of the ponies as they gathered around the statue in a large circle.
"Do you need time to charge up, sweetie?" Twilight asked but got her answer as Mario leaped into the air, gave a light shout and started glowing.
"Wow...you usually need a few seconds to gather the energy from our elements to power up," said Twilight.
"Well, I did some research beforehand and my love magic lets me power my own element now," said Mario, "But I'm still dependent on the rest of your Elements being used with pure intent. Any impurity will shut my power down and possibly block me from even powering up. I also can only unleash my most powerful abilities when you all join the elements together. So..."
"Your love magic only lets you access just a little of its power on your own," Twilight concluded.
"Exactly," said Mario, "But enough about that, we've got a new friend to make. Right Flutters?"
"Right," said the yellow Pegasus with a nod. The others didn't exactly feel as confident, but Twilight then made her horn glow to activate her element. Soon the other elements began to make the ponies rise into the air as illuminated silhouettes of their elements shot out from there necklaces. Spike just watched in awe and fear as a rainbow ribbon then linked the elements together, finishing with Twilight's element. Then the rainbow ribbon shot upward into the air and crashed down on Mario, making his eyes glow white as he was charged up with the magic of the other six elements.
"FRIENDSHIP RESTORATION!" Mario shouted as he extended his forelegs to cause a massive of rainbow magic from his body that surrounded the statue. It wasn't long before the statue began to crack and released Discord from his stone-like prison. Discord gave a loud scream, which turned into a loud yawn as he stretched and wiggled about. Mario rolled his eyes as he made his landing and powered out of his "super" form.
"If he says anything about a kink in the neck, I'm going to scream," Mario muttered to himself.
"Oh! Ooh! Ooooh!" Discord groaned as he kept stretching about, "Well, it's about time somepony got me out of that prison block! What a relief!"
"Well, 'cuse me if you weren't on the VIP list," Mario remarked. Discord blinked at the sarcasm before discreetly snapping his fingers, which corrupted a nearby squirrel, making is bigger, muscular, and crankier. It also had a arrow-pierced heart tattoo with a ribbon underneath on one arm. The mane seven gasped as the squirrel broke off a branch and started chewing on it.
"What do you think you're doing?!" Twilight remarked sternly.
"Nnnnnnnnngh," Discord grunted as he continued stretching some more, "-Why, stretching of course. When you're a creature of chaos, stone bodysuits aren't your typical go-to fashion choice."
"But it makes posing for a camera without somepony blinking and ruining the moment easier," Mario remarked. Discord blinked again.
"What in tarnation are you doin'?" Applejack asked irritably.
"Uh...being sympathetic?" Mario proposed.
"And why, might I ask, would you do that?" Discord asked as he slithered over to the colt, "As I recall, I made you hurt your friends, broke the heart of the girl you had a crush on, at least according to your point of view, and you did traumatize Applejack!"
"I wasn't traumatized!" Applejack retorted.
"I am your father!" Rainbow said discreetly in a boyish tone.
"DADDY!" Applejack wailed before biting her lip and growling, "Doggone it! I thought I was over that!" Rainbow laughed as Applejack gave both her and Mario a death glare.
"Sorry," said Mario sheepishly as Discord just laughed.
"Never gets old," said Discord, "but still, Mario...why would you even want to be, as you say, sympathetic?"
"I just decided to forgive you," said Mario, "staying angry at you certainly isn't bothering you from what I can tell."
"True," said Discord plainly as he kept stretching, "You were kind of boring when you were bent on revenge. Nnngh..." Mario rolled his eyes as Discord continued to stretch some more, but then snapped his fingers again, corrupting a nearby bunny and turning it into a large and grouchy monster. Pinkie gasped.
"Make that bunny cute again! Now!" Pinkie demanded.
"Oh..." said Discord with a snigger as he rubbed the bunny under the chin, "He's adorable the way he is." The discorded bunny tried to bite his finger. Discord looked indignant before blowing a raspberry at it.
"You know what else is adorable?" Discord remarked, "You ponies truly believe you can reform me, and that you're putting your faith in this one to make it happen. As well as Mr. Sympathetic over there. Makes me wanna pitch your little horsey cheeks..." Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack glared as Fluttershy looked worried. Then Discord looked at her with a magnifying glass that made his yellow eye budge out, making the yellow Pegasus cringe as he gave a sly look at Mario and then started pinching Fluttershy's cheeks while dressed up like a cartoonish old mother hen attire.
"How'd you know about that?!" Twilight demanded.
"Being turned to stone doesn't keep me from hearing every word Celestia says," Discord replied as he got into Twilight's face, "Although I admit it makes rolling my eyes a challenge." Discord then let his eyes literally roll out of his sockets before they rolled into two holes in the ground as he made himself reappear in the same spot. Rarity and Applejack just watched his little trick quietly.
"My apologizes Discord," said Mario, "Guess we could have warned you that Mom likes to talk to herself...alot." Discord just blinked before snorting.
"That would have been a nice heads up," Discord replied indignantly.
"Well, unless you want us to turn you back to stone," Twilight warned, "you'll zap those animals back the way they were, pronto!"
"Oh, you wouldn't dare turn me back to stone and risk disappointing your precious princess," said Discord with a sly grin on his face.
"Discord, you should consider yourself lucky you're even free to begin with," Mario remarked, "but that freedom does come with a proviso. Either you learn to use your chaotic magic in a constructive manner or else. Unless...you'd prefer sitting as frozen stiff statue in a garden listening to Mom talk to herself for hours on end. I mean...it's your choice..." Mario just smirked as Discord looked indignant. He found it rather annoying that Mario was trying to beat him at his own game.
"I think I liked you better when you were cold and indifferent," Discord retorted.
"Touche," Mario replied bluntly, showing no emotion to his face, "I mean ponies change. Did you know what happened after you made me hurt Twilight like that?" Mario gave Twilight a wink and she smiled at what he was planning to do.
"Please enlighten me," said Discord annoyingly. Mario and Twilight approached each other and they puckered up for a kiss. Discord's jaw dropped all the way to the ground...literally.
"Oh, yuck! Disgusting!" Discord retorted, waving his claws in front of himself in protest, "You two seriously got together because of that?! UGH! That's enough to make me want to cause even more chaos. Unless you ponies think you can stop me?"
"Try us, "Dip-cord?!" Rainbow retorted back indignantly, showing they weren't going to fall for Discord's mind games this time.
"You think you can treat poor defenseless animals like that and get away with it?!" Fluttershy added sternly as she hovered over to the draconequus 's face.
"You go, Fluttershy!" Rainbow cheered, happy to see her best friend assert herself.
"You'd best watch your step, buster, or I'll give you...the Stare," said Fluttershy as she made an eye bulge into his own.
"YIPE!" Mario yelped as he rushed to the other side of Twilight to avoid being caught in the line of fire should Fluttershy use it. Discord looked unamused.
"The Stare?" said Discord sarcastically, but then Fluttershy started using her warning glare on him.
"Oh no, please, not that!" Discord pleaded, "Anything but your disapproving eyeballs!" Discord then started laughing as he flew in a upright circle.
"He's asking for it," Mario sing sang worriedly. Just then Fluttershy used The Stare on Discord.
"No, no, no, stop!" Discord pleaded again, this time acting like he was being strangled and made his eyes swirly as if Fluttershy was hypnotizing him, "I can't! Stop! I can't take it anymore! I'll do whatever you say! Because..." He then started laughing loudly once again. Mario just rolled his eyes.
"Even I knew that time he was just putting on an act," Mario remarked, "Still can't believe he's immune to The Stare."
"Care to see if you're immune, big brother?" Fluttershy challenged.
"Uhh...no! Unlike him, I have a brain!" Mario retorted. Fluttershy just gave Mario a bored look.
"You have a brain?" Fluttershy replied, "Guess you learn something new everyday."
"That's right you...hey!" Mario answered before giving her a death glare and Discord laughed.
"You two are hilarious!" Discord pointed out.
"Never mind!" Twilight snapped, "If it turns out we need to use our elements against you, I'm sure we can convince Princess Celestia it was for a good reason!"
"Mmm...I suppose that's correct," said Discord simply as he snapped his fingers to restore the squirrel, who ended up bonking itself in the head with the twig it had been carrying, and the bunny, who just hopped away. Nopony knew that Discord had discreetly used his tail to snap his fingers and corrupted the beavers at Sweet Apple Acres.
"Oopsy," Discord said to...the readers?! Oh never mind...
"Well, it looks like I know where I'll be crashing while I'm being "reformed"," said Discord before he made Fluttershy appear in his arms and hugged her, "With you, Fluttershy." Discord then laughed and noggied the yellow Pegasus's head. Fluttershy was left stunned that this was all really happening.
"Oh, dear," said Fluttershy with worry until she saw Mario snickering down below.
"Oh, Discord," said Fluttershy with a smirk, "You forgot somepony!" Mario's eyes shrunk until he found himself next to Fluttershy as Discord noggied his head and continued laughing. Fluttershy just smirked at Mario's discomfort as the colt gave her a death glare.
Back at Fluttershy's cottage, Fluttershy, with Mario's help, got the living room ready for their temporary house guest. The other five ponies just watched them.
"He may be horrible," said Fluttershy as she put a book away on a shelf and then placed a pot of flowers on a table, "but that doesn't mean we have to act the same way. We should at least try to be hospitable."
"If you say so, Flutters," said Mario as he tried dusting some shelve near her fireplace. Angel was just glaring at the yellow Pegasus.
"You don't mind giving up your favorite spot on the couch, do you Angel Bunny?" Fluttershy asked. Angel's reply was a high-pitched squeak as he tried to pull the currently reclining draconequus from the sofa. Fluttershy quickly pulled Angel off the sofa. The bunny just stomped away bitterly.
"Oh I'm sorry about Angel," said Fluttershy, "Are you alright?"
"Oh yes," said Discord, "thank you, Fluttershy, for your concern."
"Need anything? Extra pillow? A drink?" Mario offered, trying to be polite.
"I'm fine, but thank you for asking, Mario," said Discord, "If only your pony friends could be as considerate." The others glared.
"Don't listen to him, Fluttershy and Mario!" said Rainbow, "He's just trying to drive a wedge between us like he always does."
"Now why in the world would I ever try to do a thing like that?" Discord asked innocently.
"So we can't unite and use the Elements of Harmony against you," Rainbow retorted angrily as she hovered into his face, "that's why!"
"I never thought of that," said Discord with his innocent act.
"You big liar!" Rainbow shot back with her back turned against him.
"Now, look who's the liar," Discord replied as he sat on the sofa no bigger than Angel, "Anyone can plainly see that I'm not big at all." The bunny quickly went to sit on his favorite spot only to have Discord return to normal size and sent Angel crashing into something off screen. Discord then bumped the side table and knocked over Fluttershy's table lamp, smashing it in the process. Fluttershy gasped.
"Oops," said Discord and snapping his finger to instantly repair the lamp. Uhh...scratch that, he rebuilt the lamp into a mini statue of himself, "There, all better." As he spoke, Angel tried to get on the sofa again, only for Discord to crack his tail like a whip to send the bunny flying off of it.
"I can't watch..." Applejack groaned as she covered her face with her stenson hat.
"We'll be outside," Rainbow remarked with a glare as she and the rest of the ponies made their exit. All except for Twilight, who looked back.
"You are sure you two are okay with this?" Twilight asked as Fluttershy hovered over to her and Mario stood beside the yellow Pegasus.
"I know it's not gonna be easy," said Fluttershy, "but Princess Celestia's counting on me...and Mario."
"Thank you," said Mario with a grin.
"And...I think I actually know what we need to do," Fluttershy finished.
"You do?" Twilight asked. In the background behind Fluttershy and Mario, Discord was moving the sofa about the room as Angel angrily chased and squeaked at the draconequus.
"I think the key is to befriend him," said Fluttershy, "Mario's got the right idea in being a good hostess and trying empathize with Discord's feelings. Being kind to him and letting him be my house guest is probably the best way to do that."
"Sounds like a plan to me," said Mario, nodding in agreement.
"And you really think that'll work?" Twilight asked curiously as she rubbed her chin with her fore-hoof.
"I think it's worth a try," said Fluttershy with a smile, "right Big brother?" Mario went to agree before Twilight put a fore-hoof over his mouth.
"Don't just agree with her to save face, Mario," Twilight warned, "what do you honestly think of her idea?" Mario removed her fore-hoof from his mouth.
"I think it's a good idea," said Mario, "If we want him to embrace the magic of friendship, we first have to show that magic to him, even if he does get a little difficult and annoying."
"You're difficult and annoying, but we put up with you," Fluttershy remarked.
"Right back at ya, Flutter-brat," Mario replied. Twilight just rolled her eyes.
Those two really act like brother and sister she thought, and to think I was worried they had feelings for each other.
"Okay, but if you two need us, all you need to do is whisper "help" and we'll be here with our elements," said Twilight and then pointed a fore-hoof at Discord, "So watch that goat-shaped step of yours, pal!" At the moment, Discord was just dangling Angel in the air by one of his hind legs and was poking him.
"Wh-what?!" said Discord as he made himself wear some high-class attire as he and Angel sat in some tall sofas and holding a cup of tea, "Look at me! I'm practically reformed already." Fluttershy and Mario just gave Twilight a sheepish smile. The purple pony, who was now standing outside of the cottage just rolled her eyes and looked him skeptically.
"By the way, Discord," said Twilight and overly sweet tone before exploding, "if you hurt my coltfriend, I'll turn you into stone myself and smash you with a hammer!"
"Twilight, please," said Mario as he tried to calm his marefriend down, "Just trust us okay and let us deal with him. Fluttershy and I can make this work."
"But-"
"Please...for me," said Mario sweetly as he caressed Twilight's cheek. Twilight just sighed.
"Okay..." Twilight conceded...reluctantly. Fluttershy then closed the door to her house as Discord rolled his eyes.
"Overprotective aren't we?" Discord asked to nopony in particular.
"Well, ever heard the phrase hath no fury like a mare's scorned?" Mario asked him. Discord cringed.
"Oh that brings bad memories," Discord remarked under his breath.
"Wanna talk about it?" Fluttershy asked sweetly.
"I'd rather not," said Discord dismissively.
"Okay, but we're here if you wanna talk," said Mario as the two ponies went into the kitchen, not even noticing that Discord stuck his tongue at the two of them.
Outside, Twilight was with the rest of the group.
"She and Mario are really alright with him staying there?" Rarity asked concerned.
"That's what they said," said Twilight, "Mario wants me to trust him."
"Personally, I think we should come up with a backup plan, in case this whole "befriending" business doesn't work out," said Rainbow.
"Rainbow Dash is right," said Rarity, "This is Discord we are talking about, girls. It wouldn't be a bad idea to have another trick up our sleeves. Twilight?" Twilight just looked worried.
"As good as that sounds," said Twilight quietly, "I feel like I'm going behind Mario's back if we do this. He told me to trust him."
"Do you really want to leave your one true love at the mercy of Discord?" Rarity asked as Twilight whimpered before getting a determined smirk on her face.
"You're right, Rarity," said Twilight, "And I think I know just the trick."
Back inside of the cottage, Mario and Fluttershy were busy in the kitchen when they decided to peek inside of living room to check on their guest.
"Discord?" Fluttershy called out.
"Where are you?" Mario asked as well. They then found Discord just sitting on the sofa eating a bowl filled with paper?!
"Oh there you are," said Fluttershy as she walked up to him with Mario right behind her, "Listen, Discord, We just wanted to make sure you know that if there's anything we can do-" Fluttershy then saw what he was eating.
"Uh, umm, are you eating...paper?" Fluttershy asked. Discord just took another bite.
"Am I?" said Discord innocently as he swallowed, "Huh, how odd of me." He went to take another bite.
"Should we ask where he got that paper from?" Mario whispered to him.
"I think we'll find out soon enough," said Fluttershy, "He's just trying to get a rise out of us. So just play it cool." Mario nodded with smile.
"Well, um..." said Fluttershy as she tried to recompose herself, "Mario and I are just heading out, so you just make yourself at home while we're gone." Mario and Fluttershy then made their exit. They were just crossing the bridge when Discord poked out from the doorway, wearing bunny slippers, a pink bathrobe, and holding a coffee cup on one claw.
"Buh-bye, have a nice time!" said Discord as Fluttershy and Mario just smiled back, "Everything is fine here. Bye-bye...bye-bye..." Discord then slammed the door shut.
"You do know your home will probably be upside down when we get back right?" Mario asked Fluttershy as the yellow Pegasus just giggled to herself.
"I'm actually curious to see what he'll do with the place," Fluttershy replied.
"Never thought you were into chaotic decor," Mario remarked.
"Oh, there's alot you don't know about me," said Fluttershy smugly.
"I don't know whether to be excited, or absolutely terrified knowing that," said Mario with an eye roll. Back at the cottage, Angel found himself at the mercy of Discord.
"You like carrots, Angel?" Discord sneered as he pulled a carrot out of his ear and smacked the bunny with it, "I'm playing your owner and her brother for fools!" He then laughed as Angel recovered and picked up the carrot.
"How d'ya like them carrots?" the carrot asked with Discord's face on it. Angel screamed and tossed the carrot away from himself. Discord them caught it and turned the carrot back into his one fang and stuck it back into his mouth. He then snapped his figures to teleport back onto the sofa and continued eating his bowl of paper.
Meanwhile, Twilight was in the library busily shuffling through various books trying to find something, but having no luck. Part of her felt guilty for doing this behind Mario's back, but she quickly shrugged it off.
"That's weird," said Twilight, "the spell I had in mind isn't in here. Spike, where are the other books I asked you to pull?"
"Right here, Twilight," said Spike as he was carry a very tall stack of books with him. Twilight then used her magic to shuffle through all the books at once as Spike watched.
"I'm surprised you haven't tried to stop me since Mario asked me to trust him and here I am going over his head," said Twilight, letting the words escape her mouth before she could stop them.
"Normally, I would," said Spike, "but this is Discord we're talking about! Even Mario isn't invincible to his magic."
"I know," said Twilight as she continued to shuffle through her books, "That's why I really want to have a reforming spell up and running pronto."
"But what if he makes the Elements of Harmony disappear like he did the last time?" Spike asked worried with his arms spread out.
"Princess Celestia cast a spell protecting them, remember?" Twilight reminded him when a dreadful thought came to mind, "Uh-oh." Twilight then dropped all the books into the floor.
"What's wrong?" Spike asked concerned.
"Princess Celestia didn't case a spell protecting our books!" said Twilight as she picked up one of the dropped books and shuffled through it, "Everywhere I thought I'd find the reforming spell..." Twilight then gasped when she saw that a page from the book had been torn off.
Back at the cottage, Discord had certainly made himself at home. Mario and Fluttershy would be lying if they didn't say that they saw something like this coming, but they were still surprised to see that Discord was making Fluttershy's house rotate clockwise in the air. Fluttershy simply hovered in the air to avoid being spun about. Mario simply used an anti-gravity spell to keep himself a float and because Fluttershy had to nerve to say he was too fat to carry.
"Are you sure this isn't overdoing it?" said Discord as he wiped his mouth with a napkin and ate it. He was still eating the bowl of paper while the house continued to spin around and around, "You said to make yourself at home while you were gone, but I wouldn't want to overstep my bounds." It was then a tall lamp nearly tumbled onto Fluttershy but she barely missed it as it bumped her from behind.
"Well Fluttershy?" said Mario, "Did he overstep his bounds?" Fluttershy nearly glared but then saw that Mario was sincerely waiting for Fluttershy's call on how to react. She just smiled and gave a sheepish chuckle. It was a bit much, but she wasn't going to give Discord any satisfaction and get upset.
"Nngh...I did say that, so..." said Fluttershy sheepishly as she barely missed some frying pans from crashing down on her, "if this makes you more comfortable...by all means, please feel free."
"Oh. Well, it does, very much so," said Discord as he got between the two ponies and put an arm around each of them, "You two are so very kind, my dear Fluttershy and Mario. I always knew you two were the understanding ones, not like those nasty friends of yours." It was then Angel gave a Wilhelm scream as he continued to tumble about the rotating house. Fluttershy and Mario gasped.
"My friends aren't nasty!" said Fluttershy, clearly offended as she shoved Discord away.
"It's like you said before, Discord," Mario added, not hiding the fact he was offended as well, "They're just a tad overprotective of us."
"Well, of course you two would say that," said Discord as he reappeared behind them and put a claw on each other's shoulder before teleporting back to the sofa, "It just goes to show how understanding you truly are. You know, I think Princess Celestia is right when she singled you two out as the ones who could reform me. You're off to such a good start, I'm seriously considering actually being reformed." As Discord spoke, he made a face appear behind his back and blew a raspberry. Angel was still running for his life until he was run over by a large blue stripped ball.
Does he really think we didn't see that he's being a literal two face right now? Mario thought, Well, no matter. Let him think we're dumb enough to believe him.
"This decor reminds me of that book I read as a foal. It was one about the filly that tumbles into that land where the illogical is logical," said Mario, trying to change the subject.
"Ho-ho-ho! My favorite story!" said Discord, "If you ignore the crabby queen that is. That is exactly what I was going for!"
"Well, you totally nailed it," said Mario as Fluttershy smiled in agreement.
"Fluttershy! Mario! Fluttershy, Mario, can you hear me?" said a voice from outside. They easily recognized who it was.
"Goodness!" said Fluttershy, "I hear Twilight!"
"My sweetie!" said Mario excitedly as he floated towards the front door. Fluttershy just rolled her eyes and went to follow, but then came back to catch Angel in her fore-hooves.
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! UGH!"
And then Mario forgot that his anti-gravity spell only worked indoors or contained spaces as he landed before the purple pony and the dragon with a thud.
"Are you okay, Sweetie?" Twilight asked as Mario sat up looking rather dazed.
"I'm okay! I'm fluffy!" Mario remarked in a dorky voice and then shook his head, "Brrbrrbrrbrrbrr! Ugh...yeah, I'm okay." Fluttershy landed beside him.
"Fluttershy, what's going on?" Twilight asked worried, "Are you okay?!" Fluttershy helped Mario to his hooves before answering.
"We're fine," said Fluttershy as she sat Angel down, "Everything's going great. Isn't it, Angel?" Angel just chattered and wobbled about before he decided to just hop away. Mario and Fluttershy didn't bother to stop him either.
"We've come to get you away from Discord!" said Twilight, "He's just terrible and, from the looks of it, completely out of control!" Spike just glared at the two with his arms crossed in agreement. Mario looked at Twilight sternly.
"Didn't I ask you to trust me?" Mario replied as he got close to Twilight's face.
"B-b-b-but..." Twilight stuttered, "Just look at the cottage! It's complete chaos!"
"Oh, but you're wrong!" said Fluttershy, "We're making great progress!"
"Mm-hmm," Mario replied in agreement, but still kept his glare at the purple pony.
"Seriously?!" said Twilight and Spike together in disbelief as they kept looking at the rotating house.
"We're earning his trust by giving him a little space to be himself," Fluttershy replied.
"Yeah, what so destructive and evil about a rotating house anyway?" said Mario.
"You fell out and landed on your head, hard," Twilight pointed out. Mario just shrugged his shoulder dismissively.
"Hate to break it to ya," said Spike as he showed Fluttershy and Mario the book with the torn out pages from it, "but he used that "space to be himself" to tear out all the reforming spells from the library!"
"That does explain the paper eating..." Fluttershy remarked.
"He ate them?!" Twilight exclaimed as she slapped a fore-hoof on her forehead, "Ugggghhhh!"
"Relax, sweetie," said Mario, "It was probably for the best anyway."
"WHAT?!" Twilight shrieked in shock.
"Mario's right," said Fluttershy, "We aren't going to need a spell. He's already really considering being reformed. He said so."
"And you believed him?" Twilight interjected in disbelief. In truth, Fluttershy and Mario didn't trust him as much as they were claiming. After seeing how much Twilight and Spike didn't trust them, they were determined to prove them wrong.
"If we're going to be his friend," said Fluttershy, "We have to start by giving him the benefit of the doubt! Tell you what. Bring all the ponies over for a dinner party this evening, and I'll bet his manners will have really improved by then. We'll even get him to put the cottage back on the ground first." Twilight just glared but then saw that Mario was indeed upset with her. She hated when he was angry with her and sighed. Fluttershy then flew up to where her door was and headed inside. Mario just kept glaring at her.
"Alright, dinner it is," said Twilight.
"See you tonight then," said Mario plainly, "Hey, Discord! Prepare the invisible elevator!"
"The what?!" Twilight and Spike asked in shock when Mario pressed what looked like just thin air.
BUZZ!
The sound of something moving was heard followed by the sound of some doors opening. Mario then took a step forward and then lifted a fore-leg to look like he was pressing air again.
BUZZ!
Mario then was lifted into the air by what Twilight and Spike saw as nothing at all. The purple pony and dragon watched with large eyes and hanging jaws when they heard the sound of doors opening again. Mario then took a few steps forward and jumped through the front door when it came with in range. Twilight and Spike just exchanged stunned looks with each other. They were left speechless.
Later that evening, the rest of the ponies and Spike made their way back to Fluttershy's cottage.
"Ugh, I can't believe we're having a dinner party with Discord!" Rainbow complained.
"This evening is sure to be a disaster," Rarity remarked as she looked at her purple dress with pink gem-studded lacing on it, "Glad I didn't bother wearing my fanciest outfit."
"Fluttershy and Mario think this is the way to reform Discord and asked us to give it a chance," Twilight pointed out, "Mario was pretty angry that I tried to come up with a reform spell. He even justified the fact Discord was the one who took the spells away from all my books."
"Seriously?!" Rainbow spluttered, "I bet Discord already turned him against us again!"
"But...Mario wasn't faded or grayed out," Spike pointed out. It was then the door opened presenting Discord dressed up as a fancy waiter's outfit.
"Oh, our pony guests!" said Discord in an upper class voice as he clicked his tongue to make it roll out like a red carpet. He then reappeared at the end of it, "We're so delightful that you've come. Please do come in." The group walked inside to see that decor to the living room had been changed to that of a rather fancy dinner hall, with a touch of a "Mad hatter tea party" vibe to it.
"See what a beautiful job he did helping?" said Fluttershy proudly, "Discord set the entire table himself. I'm so proud." The group just looked shocked and worried.
"What is this?" Rainbow exclaimed as she examined the decor, "Some kind of fun house?"
"Why? Having fun?" Mario asked bluntly as he stood beside the yellow Pegasus. Rainbow and the others glared as Discord appeared beside Twilight.
"May I take your...hats, ladies?" Discord asked as he deliberately tried to snatch Twilight's Element tiara from her head, but she dodged out of his reach.
"Hang on to your elements, girls," said Twilight, "It's gonna be a bumpy night."
"Just try to relax and Fluttershy and I will make sure Discord behaves," said Mario, "Now come on, we've so much time and so little food...WAIT! Strike that, reverse it, thank you." Mario smirked at his own joke but the others were not amused.
"What did Discord do to him?" Applejack asked rhetorically.
"He brainwashed me so now all I think about is aliens and fuzzy pickles," Mario replied bluntly.
"I knew it!" said Pinkie as the rest of the group glared at her, "Oh! Right...he just sassed us didn't he?"
"Pretty much..." Twilight remarked annoyingly. Discord snickered.
"Fuzzy pickles..." he chortled, "Say...that would make a good shout out next time I want to photo-bomb somepony for a picture." Soon everypony was sitting at the table and, for the most part, the meal had been rather quiet with no real mishaps what-so-ever. It should be noted that Discord was seated between Mario and Fluttershy. Mario may have been seated next to Twilight, but he didn't want to speak to her. Mostly because she just kept glaring at Discord, making no effort to try any casual conversation with him like he and Fluttershy had been doing.
"As you all know, Princess Celestia hoped we'd help Discord use his magic for good instead of evil," said Fluttershy and Discord just nodded in agreement.
"And tonight's dinner has been very successful so far," Mario added as Fluttershy nodded in agreement. The others just said nothing as Pinkie faceplanted her muzzle into her mashed potatoes.
"Pinkie Pie, care for some gravy?" Fluttershy asked.
"You bet!" Pinkie Pie replied.
"Allow me," said Discord as he made the gravy boat come to life. The gravy boat approached Pinkie and panted like a dog.
"Oh, what a cute little gravy boat you are!" said Pinkie as she pet it, "Yes you are! Yes you are!" The gravy boat then gave Pinkie a generous serving of gravy.
"That's one creepy little gravy boat if you ask me," Rainbow remarked.
"Oh come on, Dashie," said Fluttershy sternly, "You're not even giving this a chance."
"Nopony is," said Mario, glaring especially at his marefriend, "Seriously, what's so creepy about a gravy boat that acts like a dog?" It was then the gravy dog came up to Rainbow and pour gravy into her lap.
"Hey! That's hot!" Rainbow jumped as she hovered in the air.
"Whoops!" said Discord chuckled, even Mario was snickering, "I'm so sorry!" Fluttershy actually glared at the two.
"He did that on purpose!" Rainbow protested.
"Oh, well, I don't know about that," said Discord as Fluttershy kept glaring at him, "Mistakes happen."
"True," said Mario, "But you had to admit, Dashie had that coming." He and Discord then shared a fist/hoof bump. Fluttershy just smiled while the others were deeply shocked.
"He is just...hoof-bump Discord?!" said Applejack. Twilight was too stunned to speak.
"Oh look, everypony, dancing candles!" Discord pointed out as he brought the dinner candles to life. Pinkie just smiled and enjoyed the show. Spike did as well. Twilight was still rather skeptical. Then the candles finished their dancing routine by putting themselves out.
"I'm not falling for that!" said Rainbow, "Discord's just trying to distract us from-" It was then the candles started using their holders to constantly poke Rainbow.
"Hey! Knock it off!" Rainbow grunted, "I supposed that's another "mistake"?"
"No, I think you just made them mad," Discord replied.
"He's right," said Mario, "You're just being a party pooper, Dashie. Besides, you're the one crying like a baby foal because three candles are simply poking at you." Rainbow snarled as the candles kept poking her and had her pinned down at the moment.
"There's something fishy going on," said Twilight when a nearby fish shaped soup tureen came to life and squirted some soup at Twilight's and Spike's face.
"Discord?" Fluttershy asked worried.
"I don't mind the animated objects," said Mario, "but they do need to behave themselves."
"Well, it's hardly my fault if the soup tureen finds the term "something fishy" offensive," Discord remarked.
"Not the dress! Not the dress!" Rarity pleaded for dear life as the soup tureen squirted soup at her and made the marshmallow pony tumble out of her chair. It then squired soup at Applejack.
"The tureen's only doin' what you're makin' it do!" Applejack called out. While Discord snickered to make it seem like he was guilty, Fluttershy and Mario came to his defense.
"Now let's not jump to any conclusions," said Fluttershy.
"Yeah, his animation spell can't control an object's behavior or sensitivity to insults!" Mario added. Rainbow had heard enough. Even Twilight couldn't believe she heard her own coltfriend defend Discord...again!
"Fluttershy! Mario! Can't you see what he's doing?" Rainbow snapped angrily, "He's playing innocent with you two so you'll never agree to use the Elements of Harmony against him!" It was then the tureen squirted soup at her face.
"Oh, well, that's a bit harsh, isn't it?" said Discord bluntly as the tureen continued to squirt the other ponies until Rainbow slammed a dinner dome over it and stood on top of the dome.
"You see what I'm saying, right, Fluttershy? Mario?" Rainbow asked as the two ponies just looked at her blankly, "Fluttershy! Mario!"
"You know what Mario and I see?" Fluttershy answered as she and Mario stood up with their fore-hooves on the table as Discord just smiled innocently, "I see that Discord's far from perfect, but I also see none of you are giving him a chance!"
"And I see a bunch of friends who aren't even making any effort to trust us!" Mario added sternly. The others just began to complain and grumble in protest.
"What's gotten into you two?!" Rainbow retorted angrily, "Why do you two keep cutting him so much slack?!"
To prove we are right and YOU are ALL wrong! But Mario kept that part to himself.
"Because that's what friends do," said Fluttershy as she gave him a hug from the side. She then gestured for Mario to do the same. While he did, he kept glaring at the others to hide the extensive amount of discomfort he felt hugging the draconequus.
Friend or not, I'm going to have to shower for a week after this! Mario thought to himself. Discord then blinked in surprise.
"We're friends?" said Discord in surprise.
"Why, of course!" Fluttershy replied as she hovered around him, "I can't remember my house even being this lively before you came along."
"She's right," said Mario, "Before you showed up, Fluttershy was rather boring." Fluttershy then threw a spoon at Mario's head, which he blocked and chuckled to himself.
"Oh...Well, I've...never really had a friend before," said Discord, still looking rather baffled. Fluttershy then held one of his claws.
"Well, now you do!" said Fluttershy sweetly.
"Make that two, buddy!" Mario added as he patted Discord's back. Discord smiled. The rest of the group looked like they had their minds blown. It was then a window opened and Angel appeared as he began to chatter to get some attention.
"Now is not a good time, Angel," said Fluttershy, "We're have a dinner party."
"Or at least trying to," Mario remarked. It was then Angel tried to talk to the others.
"Hold up!" said Applejack, "I-I think he's trying to tell us somethin'!" Angel then dumped a glass of water over himself and faked struggling to swim. Then he picked up an apple and held it.
"Apple!" All the ponies but Fluttershy and Mario called out. Angel then pointed at the orange pony.
"Applejack!" Rainbow, Pinkie, Twilight, and Rarity shouted. Angel then slapped his fore-head before pulling over a large pitcher of juice and dropped the apple into it.
"Oh, oh, oh, Sweet Apple Acres?" Rarity asked and Angel nodded.
"Flooding at Sweet Apple Acres!" Rainbow said as she figured it out, "And we all know who's behind that now, don't we?"
"Who, me?" Discord replied innocently as he made a halo appeared above his head.
"Oh give it rest!" said Rainbow angrily, "What do you think of your "friend" now, Fluttershy and Mario?" Fluttershy just looked worried, Mario rolled his eyes, as Discord just shrugged his shoulders.
"Unreasonable or not," said Mario after a brief silence, "We better go make sure Applejack's home isn't too damaged and such."
"True," said Fluttershy, "Let's go!" Together the two ponies made their exit. Discord just snickered deviously before teleporting out of the house.
Back at Sweet Apple Acres, Applejack was surveying the damage.
"I've never seen floodin' this bad!" said Applejack, "They've built dams 'round here before, but never like this! What's goin' on?" Applejack was right. The water was so high that Big Mac, Apple Bloom, and Granny Smith had to float on large buckets to fish out apples in the water. Plus the beavers had made another dam, but this one was far bigger than the last one. Rainbow, Mario and Fluttershy were with the beavers as one angrily chattered at the yellow Pegasus. Mario and Fluttershy gasped.
"Such language!" Fluttershy exclaimed.
"You can say that again!" Mario remarked as he and Fluttershy made their way to dry land to join the others.
"It's no use," said Fluttershy with a sigh, "They won't listen to a word I say!"
"You see Discord's behind all this, right?" Rainbow Dash asked as a matter of fact.
"No, duh!" Mario remarked angrily as Fluttershy glared at her and the others.
"Oh, of course I do!" Fluttershy replied, "Do you all really think we're silly, gullible fools?"
"Only in the sense of being silly and gullible..."
"...Um, well..."
"Uh...uh, no, not exactly..." said the group rather sheepishly, unable to make eye contact with her.
"We've just been trying to gain his friendship any way we can," said Fluttershy as Mario nodded in agreement, "so he'd come to trust and to listen to us!"
"Hey there, Fluttershy, Mario, you want a turn?" Discord called out as he used to animated tureens to go water skiing over the water, skiing upright and then on his head. Fluttershy and Mario glared at him.
"Time to see if it worked," said Fluttershy.
"I'm ready if you are, Sis," said Mario as Discord landed ashore.
"Fluttershy, Mario, oh, there you are," said Discord, "A sight for sore eyes."
"As you can see, there's a big mess down here at Sweet Apple Acres," Fluttershy explained.
"Oh, yes. Awful business, that. Mm," Discord remarked dismissively.
"It is awful," Fluttershy replied as Mario glared at the draconequus, "This is Applejack's home, and it's being destroyed by innocent creatures who would never be acting this way if it weren't for your reckless behavior. You need to fix this!" Fluttershy hovered over Discord as she spoke and the draconequus just used a towel to dry himself off.
"And the sooner, the better, Discord," said Mario as he and Fluttershy turned their backs against him, "Some of us prefer our apples not to be waterlogged."
"Oh, yes, very well," Discord pondered, "I will fix it. I only ask one thing in return."
Oh...here we go... Mario thought to himself.
"Yes?" Fluttershy and Mario asked, both having a pretty good idea of what he was going to request.
"I ask that you two never use your Elements of Harmony against me," said Discord, "as a sign of our friendship." Fluttershy and Mario looked at their friends, who all made their necks squeak as they frantically shook their heads. The two ponies then looked at each other before they had determined, and rather stern, looks on their faces as they both unequipped their elements.
"I will never use my Element of Harmony against you," said Fluttershy and Mario boldly before tossing their elements away. Spike caught Fluttershy's while Rarity caught Mario's. Twilight was left speechless.
"Excellent!" said Discord and snapped his fingers. A bright light appeared and soon dissipated. Fluttershy and Mario smiled until they gasped at the sight. Discord had frozen both the water and the surrounding area, creating an ice rink with the flooded water.
"There, much better!" said Discord as he skated along the ice, "I do prefer ice skating to water skiing. Don't you?" Discord hummed to himself as he showed off his skating skills. He then passed a judge's panel, which had three copies of himself, as they gave him all 10s for his performance and non-existent crowd cheering was heard. Fluttershy and Mario were shocked before they looked at each other. Together, they both had had enough as they openly showed that they were now very angry.
"Discord!" Fluttershy shouted in a rather loud tone, "That's not fixing it!"
"All we asked was that you do one simple thing!" Mario yelled as the two charged at Discord. Discord just skated about casually as they approached.
"Why, I oughta..." Fluttershy ranted before she and Mario struggled to stop their moment on the ice.
"Where are you going?" Discord asked as the two ponies finally stopped their momentum. They both growled at Discord as they struggled to stand up and keep still.
"What's wrong, pals?" Discord asked.
"Don't call me your pal!" Fluttershy snapped.
"We asked you restore Sweet Apple Acres," Mario retorted angrily, "Not turn it into your personal winter playground!"
"Oh, pfft," said Discord as he made two pairs of skates appear and dangled them before the two ponies, "come skating with me, and we'll let bygones be bygones." The two ponies just glared at the skates as Spike slid up to them on the ice, holding both their elements in his claws.
"Here you go, Fluttershy and Mario!" said Spike, "Game on!"
"He fixes this or he goes back to being stone!" Twilight added as she shouted at the two ponies from the edge of the newly created ice rink, "Princess Celestia will understand!" Fluttershy and Mario shifted their heads between their elements and the ice skates a couple of times. There was a suspenseful pause. As angry as they were with Discord for double-crossing them...
...they were determined not to give up.
...or admit that their friends were right. Both ponies nodded to each other and took a deep breath.
"We made a promise not to use our elements against him," Fluttershy said definitely, "and we're going to keep it." Fluttershy then picked up the ice skates and walked away with nose in the air. Mario grabbed the other pair with his magic and walked beside her in the same manner. Twilight's jaw dropped, Rarity slapped her fore-head, Pinkie gasped, Applejack covered her face with her stenson hat, and Rainbow groaned loudly. Discord laughed in triumph as he appeared before the other five ponies.
"Hahah! You see?" Discord gloated, "They want to have fun with me because we're friends. They can't use their elements against me because we're friends. I'm free forever!" Discord just laughed. As he spoke, Mario and Fluttershy were growling at him. Their patience and tolerance of the draconequus had hit its limit.
"We can handle being disrespected, manipulated, and even double-crossed, but we're nopony's doormat!" Mario snarled, his voice getting louder as he spoke before softening once more, "So let us make this perfectly clear..."
"Not. Your. FRIEND!" Fluttershy and Mario screamed as they slammed their skates down and stomped off.
"Who cares?" said Discord dismissively as he teleported and hovered over the two ponies, who both paid him no attention, "I can do whatever I want, whenever I want. I'm Discord, the master of chaos! You think you can boss Discord around? You think I'm just going to turn all this back because you two say so? Because if I don't, I'll lose the two friends I ever had?" Discord suddenly froze as his eyes shrank. He suddenly looked at the two sets of skates left on the ice with no one to occupy them. For the first time in his life, Discord felt alone.
"Oh. Oh," said Discord as his eyes watered a little bit, "Well played, Fluttershy and Mario. Well, played." Discord then took a seat on a nearby apple tree that was not covered in snow and pressed his claws against his chest. He gave off a bright light that removed all the snow and ice, which made Apple Bloom, Big Mac, and Granny Smith tumbled a few feet back to the ground. The bright light also purified the discorded beavers and removed the dam as well. Fluttershy and Mario were rather stunned. They couldn't believe what had happened! They didn't have much time to settle their minds when the rest of the group cheered for them.
"I can't believe you two actually did it," said Applejack.
"But you did and we're very proud of the both of you," said Twilight before looking at them sadly, "We're all sorry we didn't trust you. We didn't mean to be so defensive...it's just..."
"Did you really think we were going to let him turn us against you?" Mario asked, "We were onto his tricks the whole time. It was only when he crossed the line that we put our hooves down like we did."
"We saw that," said Rarity, "but it doesn't excuse the fact that we didn't give you guys a chance to do things your way before trying to think something else."
"Just know that its only because we care," said Twilight, "and not because we think your silly or gullible." The others commented in agreement.
"We forgive you," said Fluttershy, "right Mario?"
"Of course," said Mario, "We know your hearts were in the right place. I mean Discord did almost defeat us once. We can understand why you all were on your guard." Twilight smiled as she hugged her coltfriend happily and soon they all shared a group hug with each other. As they shared smiles with each other, Discord reappeared. He had been waiting for the group to break up before approaching.
"I like it better my way, but...I guess when you're friends," said Discord sheepishly, "you can't always have your way all the time, eh?" Mario then used his magic to make a graduation hat appear on his head as well as a diploma in his claw.
"That's right, he can be taught!" Mario declared as everypony laughed, including Discord.
Later on, the group stood before Princess Celestia in the center of town. Discord stood front in center before the alicorn princess. Fluttershy and Mario had also re-equipped their elements.
"Yes, Princess, I'm ready to use my magic for good instead of evil," said Discord with a bow before adding under his breath, "Most of the time."
"Congratulations on your success, ponies," said Princess Celestia, "I definitely sense a big change in Discord." She then leaned her head toward Twilight and Mario, whom the later was being held by the former.
"I'll leave the Elements of Harmony with you, Twilight and Mario," Celestia whispered, "Just in case." Mario and Twilight nods as Discord just blinked.
"You were right when you said Fluttershy and Mario would be the ones to find a way to reform Discord," said Twilight as she walked past the two ponies, "By treating Discord as a friend, and showing him compassion and empathy, they got him to realize that friendship was actually important to him. And something that once he had, he didn't want to lose." Fluttershy just blushed at the praise, especially as Mario gave her a little applause. Discord smiled as well until Mario and Fluttershy nudged his side.
"Go on. Say it..." Fluttershy said persuasively.
"It'll only hurt your pride for a second," Mario added. Discord just groaned.
"Alright," he replied before saying quickly, "Friendship is magic." Fluttershy then grabbed his claw.
"See? He can be a real sweetheart once you get to know him," said Fluttershy. Everypony else just gave some sheepish and uneasily smiles.
"If you say so, Sis," said Mario wearily, "Wait til Shenran hears about this."
"Who, in the name of Ponyville, is a Shenran?" Discord asked.
"He's my long distance boyfriend," Fluttershy answered, making Discord flinch.
"Boyfriend huh?" said Discord skeptically before muttering darkly, "Looks like I'll have to take care of that one."
"You leave my precious stallion alone or I'll give it to you!" Fluttershy warned as she hovered into his face.
"Fluttershy, as you know I would never do anything that could cost us our friendship," Discord remarked, "What could you possibly do to me to keep from having a little fun with the guy?" Fluttershy just looked at him with a smug smile on her face.
"Oh Mario," said Fluttershy in an overly sweet tone. Mario smiled slyly and made his horn glow.
"Wuh..."
THUD!
It was then a large wagon loaded with hay ran right over Discord, making him flat as a pancake. The others cringed at the impact as Discord peeled his head off the ground.
"Look Mom! I'm road kill! HA-HA-HA!" he said in a dazed and dorky tone.
"That should teach him to never double-cross us again," said Mario as he and Fluttershy shared a fist bump. The others just started in shock before they all laughed. Discord just remained dazed until long after their laughter had died down.
There you have it. Ironically, I found Discord difficult to enjoy as a character since most of the time he would just get on my nerves. There's an episode next season where he really gets under my skin, but either way. It was fun having Mario actually be in Fluttershy's side trying to be his friend so I hope you enjoyed it too.
Kudos if you caught the Lion King II, Willy Wonka, and The Mask jokes in this chapter! In addition an inside joke about the game Earthbound!
Next two episodes are the first time I'll be writing side by side adventures. So be nice if some dialogue is a tad inconsistent in some places. After all, I'm doing Spike's side first, which is light with Mario content, and then The Main Six side next chapter, which will have alot of Mario in it.
Peace Pony Fans!