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Sympathy Series Side Stories

by Ckat_Myla

Chapter 1: Twilight Gets Kidnapped by Changelings

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Author's Notes:

This one you may have seen before in an April Fool's day chapter that I deleted.

I wanted to find a way to showcase a time when Discord would have to leave his literal comfort zone and play the hero, plus this was right after A Canterlot Wedding when every body was doing Changeling stories.

Never could find a good place to put it so it I isn't technically canon to the Sympathy Series. I just like the cute stuff between Discord and Twilight plus my use of the term, "changeling flypaper burrito".

He was only able to follow them up to a few miles from wherever it was that they called home. Discord couldn’t flash any closer, not a good sign. That coupled with the low shock he received when he tried to take only one step closer told him that his already problematic punishment spell was still in affect, and apparently the home of the Changelings counted as a ‘populated pony area’.

It was only a small jolt of pain that shocked his foot as he stepped within the invisible parameter, but Discord knew from experience that the closer he got to a center for ponies or pony-like creatures, the more painful these shocks would become. Discord had resented the arrangement at first, but Twilight had been the one who had proposed it, and the one who cast it. She would have made sure that there were no loopholes…and now that might just be what doomed her.

Thinking back on when he had tried to check on her at her in Ponyville, Discord remembered just how much pain he would be in for if he tried to flash directly inside. Here though, it wasn’t as bad. Perhaps if he went slowly, he could build up some immunity to the pain.

He tentatively took another step, and nearly lost what little progress he had gained for the lightning that coursed up his foot. Well, there was also hovering, he hopped into the air to give his now sizzling feet a rest, but that turned out to be an even worse idea. Now instead of just his feet, his whole body felt the pain in great waves as he gained another foot of distance.

Landing back on his feet and giving an involuntary ‘Gah!’ as they hit the ground again, Discord looked behind him to see his progress. Surely that had to have been a good twenty feet…no, more like five.

“Oh, come on!” He shouted to no pony in-particular. “These jokers shouldn’t even count! Sure they’re sentient and sort of related to ponies…but come on! I don’t think we’re even still in Equestria anymore, that should nullify this accursed curse!”

Discord was panting now, out of anger and from the effects of the spell. Shouldn’t he at least get a reprieve under these circumstances? He was actually trying to save some pony, for crying out loud.

We will definitely need to have a talk about the limits of this punishment, Discord thought as he rallied his strength once again. There was nothing for it, without Twilight her friends couldn’t use those silly Elements, and even if they could they most likely couldn’t get to her in time. If it was up to Discord, he would just have to grit his teeth and push forward.

Taking a deep breath, that’s exactly what Discord did. He closed his eyes and literally pushed as if in a strong wind, trying to bear the growing agony that radiated up his body.

Soon though, he finally could see the place where those changelings originated, and Discord’s first thoughts upon seeing it were; boy, she sure has a theme going.

He knew that these creatures existed in a hive-like society, but he didn’t expect them to live in an actual hive. It seemed to grow out of the side of a mountain, swelling from the rock in a rounded sloping arch. Perhaps ‘hive’ wasn’t the right word, it was more like a hornet’s nest. Ugly but functional, and full of little drones that were ready to defend their queen with their lives.

As much as the appearance of the gigantic structure unnerved him, more so was the sound Discord heard, or the lack thereof. Instead of the droning hum of a thousand or more insect-like wings, there was an eerie silence that had fallen. The draconequus only realized now that it had been getting quieter the closer he got to the hive.

Wasn’t there anyone home, or had they expected him, and were simply waiting for the right time to strike? Well, Discord didn’t know what was stopping them; he was an easy target here in the open, weakened by the waves of pain that wracked his body with every step.

So, he had lost the element of surprise. Throwing caution to the wind and bracing himself for the world of pain that was about to befall him, Discord decided to go ahead and try to flash in. He was close enough now that he could see near the very top of the structure what might be the entrance to the main hub…or something. He was starting to feel pretty delirious from all the shocks to his system.

Attempting to clear his mind, Discord tried to hone in on Twilight, and to appear wherever she was being held in there. He probably should have taken a breath before teleporting, because once he did all the wind was knocked from him as the blow of pain seemed to fry every nerve in his frame.

He lay on the floor of wherever he had ended up, gasping and writhing and just trying to wait out the affects. Amazingly, it did begin to subside, if only a little. Now instead of immobilize-inly painful it was just excruciatingly painful. His ‘wading in’ plan must have actually helped. All miss-matched limbs were working, and he was still conscious. Score one for the spirit of chaos.

Once he was able to stand however, a new shock caused him to stop in his tracks, eyes wide. Thankfully though, this one wasn’t painful.

“Discord?” a voice called, sounding puzzled but relieved. It was this voice that had stopped him this time, which had sent a twinge of hope through him, hope and amazement that he’d actually managed to do it.

He turned to see Twilight, nearly buried in what Discord hoped was mostly dirt. Strangely enough the sight of her seemed to balm his aching self.

“You were expecting some pony else?” he asked her in an attempt at his usual teasing manner. He hoped that his face wasn’t giving him away. Just because he was actually worried about her didn’t mean she had to know that.

He knelt down to where she was trapped; the substance that held her was deceptively strong.

“Your friends only just found out that you were missing, that copy of you was convincing, I’ll give them that. I was certain that they wouldn’t be able to find you as fast as I could. They didn’t listen, still aren’t that fond of me.”

“Well, thank Celestia you got here. Now hurry, help me get out of here before the queen comes back!”

Discord nodded, and tried to change the casing into something more pliable. Snapping his talons, he pictured the stuff around her turning into a sleeping bag, but it didn’t work. He snapped them again, and again, yet still nothing.

They then heard a pounding on the wall closest to them, a steady sound that meant something was attempting to break through.

Discord concentrated harder, and tried not to look at her eyes, filled with desperation as she seemed to realize what was happening.

“Your magic doesn’t work on this either, does it?” she asked in an oddly quiet way. Was she giving up already?

Instead of answering, Discord furrowed his brow and began to claw at the dirt-and-other-stuff cocoon. He dug in with his claws and tried to pry it open.

The pounding was now joined by a cracking, whatever it was was about to come through, Discord could see the wall breaking apart now.

He turned back to Twilight, her eyes wide but looking strangely peaceful, perhaps resigning herself to their fate.

She placed her hoof on the large paw that was still trying to free her, which made him halt mid-swipe.

Usually he enjoyed when they touched, she almost never flinched or showed those signs of discomfort that she used to, but there was something different about this time…he didn’t think she’d ever touched him to comfort him before…

His eyes darted from her face to the hoof. “N-now, don’t give up just yet, I have a few tricks up my sleeve still.”

Then the wall finally gave way with a crash, sending debris and dust flying into the air, causing them to cough and squint at the frame silhouetted in the newly made hole.

When the dust cleared and Discord could finally see, he was met with yet another surprise.

Twilight stood before him, climbing through the hole and looking angrily down at the other Twilight who still held his paw.

“Discord, this is a trap! It was originally for my friends, but then I heard the changelings holding me say that you’d arrived. So I knew I had to try and escape. To warn you.”

Discord looked from the Twilight in the cocoon to the Twilight standing before them, and back again.

“Don’t listen to her, that’s the Changeling Queen Chrysalis. She trapped me here to lure the ponies who cared most for me to their dooms.” The Twilight still encased said.

“No, I’m the real Twilight. I escaped by trapping her here when she made the mistake of turning into me and explaining her whole plan to her minions!”

Discord didn’t know what to do; he probably should have anticipated something like this happening. This was the hive of the changelings, after all. It was almost clichéd that this was happening.

“Leave her there and come with me, quickly!” The free Twilight ordered. “She’ll sick her drones on us whether or not you stay.”

“No, free me, before she traps you too!” the captive Twilight cried, now holding his paw with both hooves.

Both looked frightened, and both appeared desperate to escape with him. Whichever one was the real one, Discord was a bit flattered. He didn’t think she cared so much. Of course, a few months ago he wouldn’t have thought he would be risking his own life to save her, either. No matter how fascinating she was, even way back on that night when she came so bravely to find him…all on her own.

He then thought of something, something only the real Twilight Sparkle would know.

“Twilight…either Twilight,” he addressed them both. “What was the one part of our first meeting after my last escape that you never told Celestia, or really most of your friends?”

Both sets of purple eyes looked away from him. He’d expected that, but he noticed that only the Twilight standing in front of him had begun to blush – even now – at the memory.

The Twilight below him in the casing had looked away too, in an almost perfect mirror-image of the other, but there was no recognition there.

It was all the proof he needed.

Looking back up to the real Twilight, Discord smiled. “I never understood why you didn’t tell them, I’d have loved to have seen Celestia’s face.”

The real Twilight Sparkle gave a relieved sigh, smiling though probably just as anxious to get out of there as he was. “I believe I also made you swear never to say anything either.”

“And I’ve kept that promise,” Discord answered her as he began to pull away from the fake unicorn and follow her. As he did though, the fake’s grip tightened on his paw, and more pain shot through him, this time from the changeling queen as her eyes glowed.

“Not so fast. You will free me!”

Yeah, so not going to happen, Discord thought. But he still couldn’t free himself, and he was finding it hard to control his paw, it was beginning to pry at her entrapment again, of its own accord.

Twilight came closer to where his paw was pinned, and her horn glowed as she tried to help him. “Just don’t look at her, remember which one of us is the real me!”

“It doesn’t matter now,” the queen Chrysalis cried with glee, dropping the facade completely by using her own voice rather than Twilight’s. “He may have seen through me, but I’ve been feeding off the bond you two have since he arrived. You are certainly powerful, spirit of Chaos, but apparently even you are not immune to those delicious emotions on which we feed!”

There was another crack - this time along the fake Twilight’s prison – and the changeling broke free, forcing Twilight back but keeping a tight grip on Discord. Now back to her usual self, Chrysalis smiled in evil triumph.

“And to think, you nearly went your entire existence without such a weakness. Well, I should almost thank this unicorn for that. I originally merely planned to obtain those troublesome Elements of Harmony, but now I can have all of Chaos at my command!”

Twilight was sent flying back through the hole she’d created, and Chrysalis appeared on the other side close to where she landed – still magically dragging Discord along.

He could see Twilight struggling to stand. They were now in a large, high-ceilinged chamber, and now Discord could see where the rest of the queen’s subjects had been hiding. The top of the room was nearly covered in scaly, hole-ridden black pony-like bodies and glowing green eyes.

The draconequus fought against her hold, still trying to access the power he hadn’t given up. He was really starting to regret that part of the deal as well. If only he’d had his ability to manipulate minds…but would that even work on this creature?

“You certainly are one special little pony, Twilight Sparkle, it makes me almost wish I had chosen to pose as you among your friends myself instead of sending one of my underlings,” the Changeling queen now taunted the unicorn, closing in on her.

“I knew your friendships were strong, but to have the confidence of both the rulers of Equestria and the heart of the embodiment of disharmony? “

Discord’s head shot up at those words, and he could see that Twilight was just as surprised as he was to hear what Chrysalis had said, even as she was being backed into a corner.

“W-wait, I have what now?” Twilight stammered, still filled with terror but chancing a bewildered glance at him. “No no no, you’ve got it all wrong. Our relationship…it’s not like that!”

The queen closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, exhaling with a sound between a hiss and a satisfied sigh. “Oh yes, my dear. I must admit that this bond of yours is different from any I have feasted upon before, but I can still taste it. There is a taste of that kind of love I am so very familiar with. Perhaps you did not know the extent of his feelings for you?”

Twilight gaped at the changeling, and then her eyes slid back to his. Discord tried his best again to not let his true emotions show, for the embarrassment he felt at that moment was just as startling to him as his worry for her had been.

He had felt it – some part of Discord had to have known what it meant – but it was one thing to have this affinity for his only friend…the thought of anything more he had always brushed off. Even when she’d been sick and her little dragon friend had remarked on his behavior towards her, he had dismissed it.

Discord’s heart hammered as the guilt fell upon him. This revelation of his feelings – even of something he had been denying himself of feeling – quite possibly had sealed their fate. If she could feed off of it, Chrysalis would use his bond with Twilight to fuel her attack, leading to their demise… and then who knows how many others’? He may not care for the other ponies of Equestria, but he knew that Twilight did.

His head lowered as he looked away from Twilight’s questioning eyes, which was most likely all the answer they required.


Even though she knew they were in very real danger, that she was cornered by the changeling queen with backup possibly a thousand minions strong, and that the queen had control over a being even more powerful than she, Twilight’s mind halted at the disclosure of Discord’s feelings made by their mutual foe. Sure, she had been slowly coming to terms with the fact that there might be something that had changed between them…but she never really allowed herself to dwell on it, let alone consider that he might be in the same boat.

She heard Chrysalis chuckle, clearly enjoying the affect this piece of information had on them. This broke her from her thoughts, bringing her attention back to the more pressing matter of their imminent peril.

Twilight wasn’t sure what she could do for Discord, but she wracked her brain as she leered at the queen who magically dragged him back to his feet.

The purple unicorn was surrounded on all sides, but she stood tall and lunged for the changeling queen, horn aglow.

The one advantage to being smaller than one’s enemy, you can run under their legs. Shooting between Chrysalis’s creepy hole-y hooves, the queen let out a groan of annoyance as her head swiveled to follow Twilight’s darting form.

“You’re going to try to run, really? Are you forgetting something?” She asked knowingly, and suddenly the walls were raining changelings as they swooped and lept for her, and Twilight kicked and bucked her way to the other side, but then turned around to make her way back to the queen.

She continued this evasion pattern, taking aim whenever she got close enough to them to hit the bonds holding Discord with a blast of magic. This idea was having the added bonus of getting the changelings to slam into their queen as they tried to pursue Twilight. The unicorn smirked as a particularly large changeling knocked Chrysalis to the ground.

Once she was down, Twilight made a beeline back to Discord, who seemed to still be struggling for control of his own powers. She only had one shot, resting a hoof on his paw and concentrating on the magical green rope-like thing that bound him, she touched her horn to them, and it glowed bright. Only a few seconds into her attempt though, a changeling dealt her a body blow, and she once again was thrown across the room.

Twilight couldn’t be sure if that had been enough to help. It hadn’t broken the bonds, but maybe the distraction had been enough to help Discord beat it himself.

She panted as she again got shakily to her feet. Unfortunately, Queen Chrysalis had risen to hers again as well.

“Now what did that sad little attempt accomplish? It only bought you time,” the queen scoffed, annoyed but still clearly feeling her triumph. “Bring her to me.”

The changeling that had knocked her off of Discord grasped her tightly and tried to force Twilight closer to the queen. Twilight in-turn – tried to dig in her hooves and weigh it down. She struggled all the way back over to them, while the rest of the changelings returned to their spots to wait. Without the roaring buzz of their wings, the chamber was eerily quiet once again.

She didn’t want to admit defeat just yet, even as she glared up into the withered, creepy, evil smile of the queen.

“So you’re not going to have your underlings dispatch me. Going to do your own dirty work?” Twilight growled, her horn still at the ready.

“Actually no, Twilight Sparkle. I’m going to leave that to your dear ‘friend’ Discord.” She answered.

Twilight’s heart sank with dread as the changeling queen’s freaky horn glowed green, and Discord was set free. His eyes were glowing too, all recognition of her appearing to vanish. He advanced on her slowly, actually looking far more menacing that she’d ever remembered. It would’ve been almost funny, were she not about to die.

Her resolve was staring to crumble, for Twilight knew that Discord was a force to be reckoned with, even if he never showed the horrific extents she knew he was capable of while she knew him. She also felt a pang of loss, for the Discord she had come to know – and actually care for – might have disappeared as surely as she was about to.

“Did you think that you might have changed him, Twilight? Well, you certainly softened him, made him weaker,” Chrysalis called to Twilight from safely behind the draconequus.

No, Twilight thought. No matter what, he’ll always be him, but I had hoped that I’d helped him somehow.

“Deep down however, Discord is still the same unstoppable force of chaos that I can use to fulfill my plans. Plus with you out of the way, he might even join me of his own free will. We could rule over Equestria together.”

Twilight looked back up into Discord’s face one last time, almost missing that infuriating smirk of his. This blank stare just wasn’t him. Taking a breath, she shut her eyes tight and prepared for the worst.

After a few seconds of nothing happening, she heard a loud pop. Opening one eye a fraction, she saw Discord had turned back towards the queen, now with a giant fly swatter in his hands.

“Now, you almost had me there,” Twilight’s ears perked up to hear Discord’s voice, eyes wide open again. “But at that last part, you lost me. I don’t like to share,” he said.

Then another loud pop echoed across the chamber, and Discord swung down on Queen Chrysalis with a mighty THWACK!

Twilight had to blink several times to be sure that she had just seen what she’d thought she’d seen. She heard Chrysalis scream as the fly swatter came down a second time.

“My subjects, attack!”

Her changelings however could not come to her aid, Twilight noticed. The walls and ceiling of the chamber were now covered in fly paper. Her mouth about as wide open as her eyes, the unicorn watched the changelings as they attempted to fly down to attack, only to be pulled back abruptly by the sticky glue of the walls.

The disbelief shifted into amusement the longer she watched all of them struggling over her head. Then she really had to try hard not to laugh as Discord began to chase Chrysalis around the room, still swatting her every now and then.

When she couldn’t hold it in any longer and burst out laughing, Discord looked over to her and gave her a wink.

“Please, please, stop! We’ll leave Equestria alone, we won’t even set foot in the land again, just please stop that!” the fierce queen of the changelings begged.

“Hmm, do you think that sounds sincere?” Discord asked Twilight as she strolled over to where Chrysalis lay huddled at Discord’s feet; one of her wings bent the wrong way.

“I think she’s had enough, at least.” Twilight said. She then looked back up to the ceiling and magically collected the fly paper from the surfaces, swirling all of the changelings into what looked like a very large, sticky scroll.

“Not too bad,” Discord evaluated her work. He then addressed the queen still below him. “Now, I believe you wanted to see the full extent of my power?”

Twilight could only see the fear in Queen Chrysalis’s eyes for a moment before she, the changeling flypaper burrito, and Discord disappeared.

It took a while, but Discord reappeared dusting off his hands dramatically.

“Well, that’s that.” He said, finally.

Twilight only looked confusedly up at him. “So, where’d you take them?”

“I think it’s better if you don’t know, but rest assured they won’t be coming back for a while…If at all.”

“Uh huh,” Twilight said, not entirely happy with that answer, but something else was also on her mind. “But, how did you escape from the queen’s control?”

“Hmm? Oh I’d broken out a good five minutes before she sicked me on you,” he said flippantly. “About the same time you were trying to free me, actually”

If she had been relieved that he was his old self again, that was gone now. Now she was back to feeling irked at his antics. “So, you lead me to believe that you were about to kill me, and it was all an act?”

“Pretty much, yeah,” he said, then smiled at her exasperated expression. “Don’t be offended, it all ended well, so relax.”

Twilight rolled her eyes and sighed. “I suppose you’re right.”

“I was pretty convincing though, I must say,” Discord complemented himself as they flashed to the outside of the hive.

“I see that you’re not hurting now, most likely because all of the changelings are gone.” Twilight noticed. She hadn’t anticipated a situation like this when she put the punishment spell on him, and she certainly didn’t think that he would willingly march into that horrible pain just to try and save her.

She looked up at him again, now concerned. “There wasn’t any permanent damage done by you coming here, was there? I’m sorry about that, maybe if I’d thought the spell over more carefully in the beginning I could have-“

He waved his hand nonchalantly and she paused, smiling maybe a bit sadly.

“Thank you as well, for coming to help me,” She added.

Discord shrugged, actually sitting on the ground to be at her eye level and – Twilight figured – rest his probably still aching frame. “Like I said to the other Twilight when I thought she was you, I knew your real friends wouldn’t have made it fast enough, and they didn’t trust me to come along with them.”

Putting a hoof on his paw again, she corrected him. “You are my real friend too, you know.”

There was a silence then between them, one that turned a bit awkward for Twilight as her mind landed back on the thing that the changeling queen had said. Now that the danger had passed, that might be something that needed to be discussed.

“Discord…” she began tentatively, not sure how to approach it. Discord seemed to be reading her mind – like it felt like sometimes – and it didn’t appear he was ready for that particular discussion.

“Yes Twilight, I am quite exhausted myself. Let’s get you back home and we can talk more at some other time,” he said, suddenly sounding a bit anxious.

Next Chapter: Trixie wants Discord's Power Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 29 Minutes
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