Brief Reunion

Once she watched Twilight Sparkle and her five friends depart the castle, Celestia headed to the library, intent on finding as much information as she could so that the kingdom would once again stand a chance against Discord. The hours went by as she worked and studied diligently, dedicating all her concentration to the books and notes around her.

A worn and weary violet unicorn limped into the library. She supported herself against the door as she pushed it open. She had a cutie mark of several stars, dark sapphire mane with streaks of brilliant rose and violet, and violet eyes. She limped further into the room with struggle. Her mane and tail were a mess, and she had scratches and bruises over her legs and body. "Prin-Princess... Princess Celestia...!" She whispered alarmingly to her teacher.

Celestia turned to face the door, then gasped as she looked at her student. "T-Twilight Sparkle. What... What happened?!" She quickly stood up to tend to the young mare.

Twilight Sparkle collapsed on the floor. The magic around her horn faded out. She groaned as she pushed her head up to look at Celestia. "I-I'm very sorry, Princess... We tried... We really did... D-Discord... He... He prepared a trap for us... I just made it out... I d-don't know about the others... Princess... Th-There's something I... need to tell you...!"

Celestia now stood right before Twilight. Her expression was completely alarmed. "What is it? Twilight, you need a doctor." She looked around quickly, glancing back down at Twilight. "Don't worry, my student. It will be fine. I will just-"

Before Celestia could walk away, Twilight lifted her hoof weakly and called the Sun Princess towards her. "No... Just... Please come closer... Who knows who might be spying for Discord, o-only you must know, Princess... P-Please come... closer..."

"Twilight, you really need to rest..." Celestia leaned closer to help her stand up. She spoke to her with great concern. "What you need to tell me can wait until you have been-" She grunted a bit as Twilight slid down from her, forcing the princess to kneel down on her front knees to look at her.

"P-Princess... I..." She moved her head closer to the princess'. "I... I..."

Celestia turned to look at her again. She blinked and gave the young unicorn a confused look as Twilight pulled herself closer to her. "Twilight?"

Once she was close enough, Twilight closed her eyes and licked her teacher's nose upwards, then proceeded to giggle on the floor.

Celestia gasped and stared at her with wide eyes. "T-Twilight Sparkle! What...?!" She stammered, stunned as she watched Twilight roll around the floor, laughing hysterically while she did.

Twilight smiled at Celestia. She batted her eyelashes at her. "I've always wanted to do that, teacher. Forget Discord, let me by your side tonight, princess."

Celestia jumped to her feet as she stared at her in shock. "This... What kind of mockery is this...?!"

Twilight dashed next to the princess. "Princess, let me explain. It's just that... Well, your charm is so irresistible, your way of being is so desirable. Please, princess, say you'll let me spend the rest of my mortal life with you... I'll be whatever you want me to be, faithful as ever. Only even closer!" She knelt before Celestia and held one of her hooves as she looked up at her with a smirk.

Celestia kept looking at her. She pulled her hoof away and shook her head quickly. "This isn't right. There's something wrong with you, Twilight Sparkle. But I don't understand, what could Discord possibly have done that would bring this? You're... You're supposed to be out there searching for the Elements of Harmony!" She looked back at Twilight and noticed that the unicorn was ignoring her completely, still flirting with her instead. Which of course put the princess in a really awkward and uncomfortable position. She frowned as she thought. Her mind raced all around as she tried to come up with a solution, and most importantly, a cause for Twilight's strange and awkward behavior. Probably his hypnosis... I mean, he could definitely do something like this... That... no-good...

Twilight fell back on the floor. She held her sides with her hooves as she laughed. "Did you like my little act there, Celestia?" She looked at Celestia smugly as she spoke, but the voice was a much different, much older tone. It was that of a male that Celestia certainly knew and would recognize anywhere.

Celestia blinked, then glared at the impostor. "Discord! I should have known it was you from the start!" She closed her eyes as her her horn glowed. She shot a magic spell at the Twilight impostor, effectively removing Discord's disguise. "What do you dare do back here?! In the palace, no less!"

Discord smiled as he summoned random books from the shelves with the snap of his fingers. "Ah, this place sure brings back some... hazy memories..." He looked around at the library with an uninterested gaze. "It sure hasn't changed. Yet somehow it still brings me some headache that I also find quite familiar-"

Celestia interrupted her with a very serious tone in her voice. "I asked you a question." She still stood on guard as she glared at Discord, for she would not fall for his trickery and 'casual conversation' facade. She had learned the hard way that he tended to lay his traps by initiating random conversation out of nowhere, and he sprung them up when he manipulated the conversation however he wished.

Discord scoffed and gave her an offended look. "Cutting my conversation short like that? Tsk, tsk, tsk. How rude of you, Celestia. And you pride yourself of being a princess?"

Celestia walked closer to him. Her horn glowed menacingly when he raised his paw, about to probably turn the library upside-down, knowing him. As soon as he caught a glimpse of her stern look and her glowing horn, he lowered his paw back to his side. She huffed a bit. "Do forgive my lack of manners, Discord. But I now know that I must cut to the chase and be on my guard at all times, if I am in the presence of... someone like you."

"Celestia, 'someone like me'? Surely you jest. You say it as contemptuously as you would describe the lowest of low in Equestria. Do you really feel that way about me now?"

Celestia glanced at him from over her shoulder. "Is it that noticeable?" She quickly stood away from him as he came closer.

Discord chuckled. "Ah, yes. I understand now. You think I'm going to hypnotize you again, don't you? Maybe I should try that, it was simply delightful back at the time..." He started to float closer to her again.

Celestia's horn glowed a brighter gold. "Discord, don't you dare even think about it!" She stomped her hoof on the ground angrily to show her threat would not be an empty one.

Discord snickered and appeared back in his place. "But I do not like repetition. I simply dropped by to say hello. You didn't answer my question, back when I met your 'new' Elements of Harmony. Did you miss me?" He made the summoned books form themselves into a bed and laid casually on it.

Celestia spoke to him with a very serious tone again and never took her eyes off him. She did not want to keep too much eye contact with him, but was prepared to resist his hypnotic spells if he attempted them. "No. How could I? You only wanted to destroy not only my kingdom, but my sister and me. What Luna and I sealed away was nothing but evil, Discord. You were only evil, how could I have missed that? I have trained for years. I have taught disciples through the centuries in the ways of good magic. I have strengthened my kingdom. All to keep something like you from occurring again. And to end it quickly, shall evil rise again."

"Oh, Celestia, you've offended me!" Discord appeared a box of tissues and fake-teared an act. "I've been SO LONELY! You're absolutely right, I am a terrible monster." He sarcastically sobbed continuously, then looked at her after he took a break. "You should use those elements now, and turn me back to stone." He stretched out his arms and awaited the spell of the Elements of Harmony with a resigned expression. "It is the only thing to be done for a disgraceful, evil thing like me."

Celestia narrowed her eyes and glared at him more intensely. "I really don't appreciate your..."

Discord's bed of books was vanished by cobalt blue magic. He would have fallen on the floor from the sudden lack of support, had he not remained floating in the air.

Celestia turned aside to see Luna walk into the room. She smiled a little at her little sister, relieved to see as much determination in her eyes as she herself had in hers.

Luna walked up to them and glared at Discord once she stopped in front of him. "We thought thou wouldst be back at the labyrinth, as thou indicated in thy riddle."

"Hm, are my little hints really becoming this obvious? Oh, my, I need to do some retouches... Not quite entertaining this way, is it..." Discord muttered to himself as he looked up in thought. He chuckled at some thought before he looked back at Luna, who was still glaring at him.

"What happened? Didst thou get scared, Discord?" She looked even more serious and colder towards him than Celestia did, and of shorter patience as well.

Celestia looked at Luna, then back at Discord. "I suggest you no longer play around with us, Discord."

Discord feigned enthusiasm as he looked at the younger princess. "Oh, enters again our sweet Princess of the Night! Or do you go by 'Nightmare Moon' now?"

Luna narrowed her eyes and quickly tried to attack him with a magic blast, which he skillfully dodged to mock her further. She growled a bit. "Thou art...!"

"Not so sweet anymore though, are you?" He turned back to Celestia. "Come on, Celestia. Let's not waste time! Summon your Elements and let's get into action, like we did more than a thousand years ago." He jumped excitedly, then turned to them with a mocking grin. "Unless, of course... The elements are now really out of YOU, and in those new little ponies that I met, as I predicted earlier! Am I wrong?"

Celestia shook her head a bit as she stared calmly at him. "We don't need the Elements of Harmony right here with us to give you a good fight, Discord. Like I said earlier, we have trained and have gotten much stronger, while you remained a statue for all this time."

Luna looked at Celestia with an annoyed expression. She let out an exasperated sigh and walked past her sister. "Sister, forget talking, thou knoweth quite well that 'talking' dost not work with him. He ist only stalling!" Her horn glowed again as she opened her wings and flew forward to attack Discord.

"Luna, wait!"

Luna glared at Discord as she approached at full speed. "We wilt not give thee the chance to-"

Discord levitated Luna with the snap of his fingers. He chuckled as he watched her struggle. "Ah, this is getting rather old... But it's so much fun nonetheless. Wouldn't you say, little Luna?"

"Discord! Put us down!" Luna got ready to use her magic again, but screamed as Discord shook his claw a few times and in turn shook her in the air. She lost her concentration from the shaking and ended up dizzy.

Discord smirked smugly at Luna as she shook and held her head. "Did you think it was going to be that easy?" He glanced at Celestia. "Did you think I wasn't concentrating for years while sealed in stone? I kept improving my magic skills while sealed in stone, you know."

Luna narrowed her eyes as she stared at him. "We art not impressed. For a creature that spent so many years cast away as thou hath, it dost not seem to us like thou hath gotten any stronger, Discord."

Discord smirked. "Well, you on the other hand... Looks like you've let your skills get rather dull and rusty. And that goes for both of you, girls. What a shame!" He laughed.

Luna's face turned serious. "Ngh..."

Celestia simply stared at Discord as he laughed at their expense. She closed her eyes a bit when he mocked Luna's and her powers, but did not give him the joy of watching her react rashly.

He crossed his arms after he stopped laughing. "You'd be surprised what dimensions you can encounter in the sealed realm, you know. Collective Unconscious, time dimensions, imaginative worlds, parallel universes, etc. They're quite tedious, sure, and most completely unreal, but good nonetheless, and entertaining in the sense that I was still able to grow stronger and better than ever."

Celestia didn't so much as raise an eyebrow. "Is that so? How thrilling for you. I'm glad that you discovered so much in your demented mind. It truly must have been quite a ride." She spoke with sarcasm in her nearly monotonous tone.

He only smirked and shrugged off her cutting lack of interest. "You know I can detect magic power amongst creatures, right? Well, imagine my surprise when the first thing I noticed, when I turned my attention back to this boring world, was how much YOUR power diminished since those six elements took physical form! Oh, it all started when you, Celestia, sealed Nightmare Moon away. Not to mention how weak you got, little Luna, ugh. You turned into quite a disaster, didn't you! With all your evil having consumed you and all." He waved his paw dismissively at them, then grinned again. "But I assure you... Unlike you spoiled princesses, I am as strong as ever, if not more so!"

Luna gritted her teeth as he started to laugh again. She had had enough of his boating and mockery, so she blasted him back to break away from his magic and fly on her own.

Celestia looked at Luna. She cautioned her to remain calm and not encourage Discord further with her temper. Once she saw that Luna flew back to her side, she faced Discord again. "Well, it really doesn't matter how much stronger you have become over this time, Discord. You will never be able to defeat the Elements of Harmony. Just like you will never be a match for Twilight Sparkle and her friends. I know their friendship will overcome your tricks, always."

Luna crouched a bit as Discord turned to look at her when she spoke. "Pray-tell, Discord... Why art thou still here, if thou hath grown so mighty and powerful? We believe thou should be defeating Twilight Sparkle and the others by now, with such power."

"Well, can't a guy have-"

Luna stepped forward in the air to interrupt him. She cut him off when she leaned towards him to confront him. She still had a defiant smile on her face. "Do face it, Discord. Thou truly art afraid of them."

Discord raised an eyebrow as he pushed her back. "Oh, please. Afraid of those little ponies? That's not even a good joke. Not that I didn't expect it, you're still as boring as you ever were." He rolled his eyes and leaned away from her. "I should turn you into something for that annoying comment, Luna. Perhaps a rock? You happen to be as interesting as one."

Luna remained unintimidated, still determined to give Discord a piece of her mind. "Thou must face the truth. We know that thou art not able to battle them with only thine own wicked power. Thy wicked intent would not stand a chance against the power of their friendship. So thou resorteth, like usual, to the power of thy lowly and deceiving tricks, to what dirty hidden cheap shots thou thinketh of. Predictable as ever."

Discord snickered at her as Luna was suddenly avalanched by books that fell down seemingly out of nowhere. "Okay, yes! Let's talk about low and deceiving tricks, shall we? Because your motives surely were SO much better."

Luna frowned and was about to protest before he lifted his paw to silence her.

He snapped his fingers and gave himself a helmet like Nightmare Moon's. He then mocked Luna in a childish voice. "Oh, sister, why can't We play with the ponies? We art cute too! Sister, sister, can't We play with the moon for ten more minutes? It's so pretty and shiny and nopony likes it! Why aren't We as popular as you, sister, We work hard, too! Sister, SISTER!" He burst out laughing.

"Stop it!" Both sisters snapped at him with a menacingly serious tone. They were upset by his mocking and were both going to remedy it if he did not stop it on his own.

He chuckled and disappeared the helmet. He got comfortable while laying on the air again. "I might be 'predictable', Luna, but at least I'm going to succeed in getting rid of them, just as I will get rid of you two. But unlike your pitiful methods, I am actually going to use effective tactics."

Luna growled as she pushed the fallen books out of her way with her magic. She started to make her way through the mess towards Discord. "Why, thou art the most despicable pissant We have ever-"

"Luna, watch your language."

Luna glared back at Celestia. "Sister! He ist-"

Celestia looked at Discord cautiously again. "What 'tactics' would those would be, Discord? Something dirty and low, I'm sure. You don't know anything else or better." She focused on holding Luna back to keep her from physically attacking him. She knew it would not end well.

Discord smiled mockingly as he unleashed his sarcasm on her. "Of course, Celestia! Let me tell you my plan so that you can inform your precious little student and have her ready! Not that it would really matter if I actually did tell you. Either way, I'm not about to fall for that."

Celestia lowered her head as she glared at Discord. "Whatever it is you are planning, Discord, I should warn you that it will not have good results for you. It won't-"

He looked out the window and spotted the Mane Six as they approached the labyrinth.Wow, everything is coming along so nicely... Hardly even had to lift a claw or paw. He turned back to the princesses. "Well! Not that this conversation wasn't entertaining, but much chaos awaits, with very little time. Arrivederci, ladies!"

Celestia and Luna looked away from the blast of white light that enveloped the whole library room as he vanished from their sight.

~~~

Celestia looked out the window and gasped when she spotted Discord. He had teleported right above the Mane Six and remained unnoticed as he took away their horns and wings.

"Oh, no. It's a trap, I know it! He, he's just going to toy with them and entertain himself before getting serious. So he's gotten arrogant and overconfident as well..." She stood away and remembered Discord's riddle. "C'mon... Think, Celestia... There must be more to it... 'Twists and turns are my master plan. Then find the Elements back where you began'."

Luna looked at Celestia as she paced in front of her. "We do not have much time, sister. We have other things to do. Canterlot is also-"

"Yes, I know. Let's do what we can to help the Royal Guard, but we also have to think about what he said, Luna." She nodded her head forward and led Luna out of the library.

~~~

They walked through the palace and tried to calm down the panicking servants that were tormented by Discord's magic.

Celestia sighed as she looked at the city. "Unbelievable... He's done it again..."

Luna gasped as she finally figured out the meaning of Discord's riddle. "Sister, the twists and turns do not mean the labyrinth!"

Celestia nodded in agreement and turned to pace around the throne room. She was deep in thought again. "No, they mean the tricks and deceit that he uses. But... Twilight and the others haven't figured that out yet, they're heading straight into the labyrinth as we speak..."

"And the Elements, Celestia... They art not... Not in..." Luna shook her head as she struggled to finish her sentence. "They art not in the labyrinth. Twilight Sparkle and her friends did not start there, they... Oh, We have to tell them!" She quickly flew out through the open window and headed towards the labyrinth herself.

"Good luck, Luna... I hope you reach them in time..." Celestia tried to get a better view of the labyrinth, but no matter how hard she tried, she could no longer spot Twilight or any of her friends. "It's started... Oh, Luna, please hurry..."

She moved away from the window and continued to think to herself. "What if Luna's not enough...? There must be something I can do, he'll most likely use the worst of his magic, so I have to find a powerful way to dispel it. But how...? Let's see..."

She sighed and looked up at the painted window glass pieces, which all told the story of fateful events through Equestria's history. "...I know that Twilight and her friends won't lose to Discord in the end. But if their friendship were to..." She continued thinking for a bit as she closed her eyes to concentrate. That's what he would seek to destroy, because that is what he fears.

She opened her eyes and looked up as realization hit her. She smiled triumphantly. "Their friendship! Of course!" She hurried towards the special study room that she kept exclusively for Twilight's Friendship Letters. I have a feeling that there will definitely be use for those. Their friendship is the ultimate weapon to count and rely on. Twilight Sparkle, Elements of Harmony... Girls, I won't let you all fail!

Hm, this chapter wasn't really too exciting to work on... But I guess it's necessary! And it wasn't really that bad. Discord's trolling. XD Of course he would do that. What else! All the mocking is a must, too.

So this explains a bit of what happened while the labyrinth game for the Mane Six took place. That sneaky Discord.

Yes, my partner and I borrowed bits and pieces from both The Return of Harmony episodes for this, I think it gave a good base for the present part of the story. Taking place in a canon event. And what better event for Discord's introduction than The Return of Harmony! We didn't do the whole episodes, though, no worries. And, as you can see, they're incorporated through different points of view and angles of the episodes.

Celestia and Luna are quite smart! Figuring out something that took Twilight two episodes. Well, then again, they're the awesome princesses of Equestria, have thousand years' of experience over the little Mane Six.

I love how Discord keeps teasing Luna. I really like our take on their relationship. Sibling-like, pretty much, except for the times when Discord tries to kill her through one method of suffocation or another. You'll see. ^^

Thank you for your great support and interest, it really means a lot! Feedback comments will ALWAYS be appreciated, work hard to obtain those!