A long time ago, there were only two races: the Alicorns, and the Dragons. Now, at the time, there wasn't Discord. He was only a lonely beast, born of the unbidden joining of an Alicorn and a Dragon. He was shunned from society, forced to live on the outskirts of civilization. People feared him because he was different, because he wasn't the same as them. He was chased from every large city and small village, forced to live in solitude.

One day, he was moping through the forest, when he noticed a young Alicorn. She was following a rabbit, cooing. He hid in the shadows, and with his curiosity piqued, he followed her.

It wasn't long until he realized that she knew he was following her. "Why do you not run from me? Do you not find me repulsive? Do I not frighten you?"

"No," she said, "Why would you scare me?"

"Aren't I hideous, repulsive?"

"I don't think so. I think you're actually very pretty!"

He blushed. He had never thought of himself as 'pretty'. He had always been told that he was disgusting, repulsive. He wondered…

"May I call you… my friend?"

"Sure!" She said, cheerily.

And so it went, every day, she'd come to visit him, and they'd talk, walking around the forest, playing with the animals and talking about their everyday lives. The Alicorn was named Celestia. "Such a pretty name." He commented.

"What's your name?" She asked.

"I… I don't have one."

"Well we'll just have to give you one, huh?"

So the young Alicorn set about trying to find him a name. Bob was too generic. Rick was too popular. Jack was nice, but the name already belonged to the rabbit.

"How about Harold?" She suggested.

He thought about this. Harold was a nice name, and it seemed to fit him.

"Harold it is."

They continued seeing each other until one day, one of Celestia's sisters saw her walking hand-in-hand with the beast.

….............

The next day, Harold waited for Celestia in the normal forest clearing. The sky was clear, the grass was a nice, deep green, and all in the forest was right. Except for one thing: Celestia was late. She was never late. He waited in that clearing for hours, until finally he saw her rainbow mane crest the hill. He was excited to see her, until he saw the forlorn look on her face.

"What's wrong? Why are you late?"

She just sat there, meditating on her thoughts. He sat down in front of her, sensing the turmoil inside her. After a couple minutes of waiting, she finally spoke.

"I'm not allowed to see you anymore."

"What, why?" he asked, afraid to lose his only friend.

"My sister saw us, and she told my parents about it. If I'm caught talking to you ever again, they'll hunt you down and hang your head on a pike! You need to leave and forget about me."

He just sat there, astounded. He had finally gained a bit of peace, a bit of happiness, and now it was being torn away from him, like a serrated knife tearing from his heart. He was falling into himself, sensing the chaos within.

"Wait! Come with me! I can't live alone again, especially now that I've known you. Please!"

Celestia contemplated this for a couple of minutes, responding with a sad shake of her head.

"Our worlds are too different. My father is the ruler of Equestria, whereas you're in exile from all civilization. It would never work."

Harold just sat there, unable to respond. Celestia took this as a silent acceptance, and she slowly made her way home.

"I love you…"  Harold whispered, just out of her hearing.