Memories.
Sometimes they were even more painful than what the voice was inflicting on her. Celestia stared blankly at the medical magic books in front of her and soon found herself drawn into her memories. Memories she wished she could forget.
Celestia trotted through the castle of the two sisters. Back when it wasn't destroyed and left in ruin. She looked around, making sure that no pony was following her. Then she travelled deeper into the forest until she reached a large dark cave.
She hesitantly stepped into the cave. Her hoofsteps echoed across the walls.
"Dizzy?" She called out into the darkness.
A pair of yellow and red eyes opened deep in the cave. Staring back at her with a toothy smile. Celestia smiled once she recognized the eyes and trotted forwards without fear.
"Dizzy! I am so happy to see you!" She said as the Draconequus wrapped himself around her body playfully. Starting to play with her pink mane, much to her annoyance. "Dizzy! Cut it out!"
He started laughing, snapping his fingers, and appearing above her with a pink cloud. Pouring chocolate milk onto her white fur and pink mane.
"Oh, come now, Tia. Enjoy this!" He said with a big smile. Celestia rolled her eyes and attempted to move away but the cloud followed her movements.
"Discord!" Celestia spat out in growing irritation. "I need to be at the Galloping Gala in an hour! I really can't come in looking like...THIS!" She insisted. Shaking her body to try and fix her fur. Discord snapped away from the cloud and then twisted in a circle around her body. He gave her a pouting look.
"Aw, the Sun Princess isn't fun anymore!" Discord taunted as Celestia laid down and Discord cuddled closer to her.
"Look, it isn't that I am boring. It is just that I am trying to make sure I don't get in trouble with Father for coming in and looking like...Like..." Celestia insisted, starting to lose her train of thought.
"Like?" Discord asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Well...I would rather not say." She concluded with a weak smile. Discord chuckled and wagged his lion finger at her.
"Like a peasant, you mean?" He suggested. Celestia blushed in embarrassment and looked away.
"W-Well, no! No!" Celestia lied as she lit up her horn to dry her body and mane. He laughed again, clenching his chest as if it was the funniest thing she had ever said.
"You are a terrible liar!"
"Anyway," Celestia said loudly. Trying to distract his attention to another subject. "I am here for an important reason! I was wondering if you would like to come to the Gala as my...ahh...Date."
Silence.
Discord stared back at her in shock. She had never seen him look so insecure and uncertain before.
"Well?" Celestia asked.
"Doesn't your Father and Mother hate me?"
"Yes, that is true. But, you are my friend! Friends hang out no matter what!" Celestia insisted. Discord looked away from her as if mentioning that they were friends was a bad thing. "Dizzy?"
"Celestia...I..." He uncurled himself from her and floated into the air. Unable to look at her eyes as he blushed. "I would like to be something more to you. More than a friend."
Celestia was having trouble processing this. She was a sheltered Alicorn at the age of 25. She didn't really have experience with being anything more than a friend. She blinked a couple of times. She was having trouble trying to figure out if this was a sick prank or not. It was true that she wanted to be more than friends with Discord but...The uncertainty of it all scared her.
"Did you-Do you mean you want to be...Wait." Celestia stammered in shock. Staring at him suspiciously. "Are you joking?"
The look on Discord's face told her all she needed to know.
"You aren't joking...Oh, sweet Faust. This is happening. You want to be...my partner?"
He nodded silently, looking down in embarrassment. Celestia was silent for a while. Considering the pros and cons but came to the conclusion that it didn't matter. She felt the same as him. That is all that mattered.
"Yes." She said confidently with her head held high. "I agree."
---
This was officially the worst day of her life. She watched as the bodies of her parents laid in a pool of their own blood in the middle of the throne room. Candy canes were sticking out of their eyes, ears, stomach and mouths. She screamed in horror and pain. This was her felt. She had been dating Discord for more than two years. She was very close to him. She should have seen this coming!
She blocked out the chaos outside and the screams of the guards and innocent ponies to mourn her parents. She heard a gasp from behind her and turned her head slightly to see her little sister staring at their parents' dead bodies.
"Mommy?" Luna whimpered. Stepping closer to their bodies. "Daddy?"
Celestia used her magic to hold Luna back as she rushed forward and desperately pleaded for them to wake up. To get up. To do anything. She pulled the crying filly into her chest, shielding her vision of their parents with her wings surrounding her body.
"I am so sorry, Luna. I am so sorry."
Her ears perked up at the sound of a familiar taunting laugh. In a flash of light, Discord appeared on a throne of his own creation. Replacing the thrones at the front of the room and floating in the air. He snapped his fingers again and started to lift their parents' bodies. Causing them to dance around the Princesses with a bright smile despite the horror that their mangled bodies had become. Celestia held onto her sister with a tighter grip as she glared up at pure hatred at the creature she loved. The creature she mistakingly loved.
"Why!?" She screamed. "They accepted you and you have just thrown it back in every ponies' face!"
"Accepted?" He spat out in disgust. "You call, the King and Queen planning my execution, being accepted!?"
Luna jumped out of her sister's embrace.
"YOU LIE!" Luna screamed. "YOU LIE! YOU LIE! YOU LIE!"
Discord snapped his fingers, lifted Celestia towards him. Much to Luna's protests. They ignored her as Celestia struggled to get out of his magic but it was useless.
"Do you hate me?" He said in a surprisingly soft tone. She stopped struggling and stared at him with shock. Did she hate him? He was running Equestria. He killed her parents yet...Why did she still love him? Why did she not hate him?
"I. Don't. Know." Celestia replied coldly. Discord gave her a smug smile and caused a crown to appear next to him.
"You could rule with me, you know. You could become...Queen Celestia of Chaos. Catchy isn't it, sweet Tia?"
"Never. I will save Equestria from a monster like you."
He growled and violently threw her back to the ground. She yelped in pain as she hit the ground, causing the stone floor under the torn carpet to crack. Discord let out evil laughter as Celestia stumbled up and used her wing to point at the front door.
"Luna, there is nothing we can do right now. We have to go! RUN!" She ordered. Luna obeyed without question and started galloping away. She took one last look at Discord before teleporting to her sister's location and guiding her through the chaos to reach a safe cave in the mountains that had yet to be touched by his chaos.
---
After two years of careful planning. Looking at all the possible ways the coming battle could go, Luna and Celestia marched into their former castle, which had been twisted and warped to Discord's delight. Celestia nudged Luna the moment they were inside the throne room to go find the Elements silently as she stepped forward to the distracted Lord of Chaos, who was currently watching his work through a large bubble while floating in his throne in the air.
"Discord."
Luna disappeared in the shadows on one of the hallways that were connected to the throne room. Discord let out a smug smile, focusing all his attention on his former love.
"Tia. Where is that darling sister of yours?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.
"You seem to know everything. You tell me." She challenged. He snarled at her.
"You know that I can't. I don't know how you are doing it, but I can't." He admitted. "I should have taken your pathetic wings and horn away when I had the chance."
"But you haven't and you won't." Celestia snapped back. "You won't."
"And why is that?"
"Because you care too much," Celestia revealed with a soft smile. He growled in growing agitation and anger as he floated near to where Celestia was standing with her head held high.
He snapped his fingers and the castle cleaned itself up to its former state. At least temporarily. Discord landed onto the ground as Celestia steadied herself to prepare her body for the final fight for her kingdom.
"Let's make a deal, Tia." Discord suggested. Snapping his fingers to make a contract appear with a quill in front of her. "If I win this little...'fight', I win Equestria. If you do. You win Equestria. But let's be honest. That isn't going to happen."
Celestia fired first as a response. He easily dodged it by splitting himself in half. Then used his own magic to activate her horn, causing it to overheat and threw her out the entrance of the castle to the garden just outside of it. Her body slammed against the fountain.
It crumbled from the impact and Celestia fell into the fountain. Her coat getting soaked with her pink mane. She stumbled out of the fountain, bruised and scratched from the impact as Discord's laughter echoed in her ears. She slowly lifted her head to see Discord floating over to her on a pink cloud. Occasionally munching on it.
"This is really just sad." Discord exclaimed. "You can't beat me, Tia."
Celestia growled at him.
"Y-You will not take Equestria from us. No matter what our relationship was." Celestia snapped. She galloped forward and flew into the air. Shotting multiple blasts at him, that Discord deflected with a simple wave of his paw. Celestia thought back to her lessons and she weaved and dodged past Discord's chaotic magic.
She was suddenly hit with a flock of aggressive birds with sharp beaks that cut her fur and mane. She yelped and flew to the ground to avoid them. Discord took that as a moment of opportunity to hit her with pure chaos magic. She screamed in pain as her body and temporarily was in a pure state of chaos before she returned to normal.
She laid on the ground, whimpering in pain as the magic finally began to wear off. Discord floated over to her with a smug smile as Luna emerged from the castle with the Elements being held up by her magic. Luna let out a little gasp at the sight of her injured sister on the ground which caught Discord's attention.
"Oh! Trying to use the Elements on me? Well, that isn't very fair!" He chuckled before looking back down at Celestia who was too much in pain to get up at that moment. That was until he started his way slowly towards a terrified little filly named Luna.
"Who said- ANYTHING- About this fight was FAIR!" Celestia yelled with renewed strength. She slowly started to push herself up. Using the most powerful magic she had in her possession. The dark magic.
Her eyes turned green and red as purple emitted from them in flowing streaks. She rushed towards Discord, who had given Luna his full attention. Celestia screamed as a dark force ripped through her mind. Corrupting her thoughts with darker ideas and feelings than she had ever experienced in her life.
Discord raised his eyebrow towards her as she flew into the air. Causing dark roots to erupt from the ground with dark spikes. Discord let out a surprised yelped as they wrapped themselves around his body. Causing some deep cuts that Discord desperately tried to dismiss.
She threw him to the ground, the dark roots appeared quicker than he could snap them away. The only thought on her mind was to kill him. Make him pay. Luna galloped towards her sister. Luna's cries snapped Celestia out of her madness and she stumbled back, breathing hard.
Celestia used the magical strength she had to activate the elements with Luna. This wasn't the final battle she had expected. She wanted it to end with him being good again. She wanted this to end with them being together again. Tears pooled down her face as she watched the rainbow hit Discord, the terror on his face was real as his body turned to stone.
Luna and Celestia were slowly lowered to the soft grass that had returned to normal. The chaos was disappearing across the land. Yet the dead, remained dead.
"Tia? W-What are we going to do now?" Luna softly asked as the birds flew above them and the sun started to set, guided by the sisters. Luna's eyes followed the birds that she dearly missed as Celestia's eyes couldn't look was from Discord.
"I-I don't know, Lulu."
Celestia snapped out of her thoughts and was brought back to her room in Canterlot. She glanced up at her phoenix. Who nuzzled her owner as she yawned and closed the medical book. She couldn't shake the feeling of hopelessness that she felt centuries ago. Sometimes she wasn't sure what she was fighting for anymore. She was almost sure that Equestria could do better with Luna in charge than her.
She rested her head on the pillows beneath her as her pet drifted to sleep. Tomorrow. She would deal with those thoughts tomorrow.
---End of Chapter Five---