A Discorded Love (My Little Pony/Discord)

CH-26: Fate

We are spinning our own fates, Good or Evil, never to be undone. 

                                                                                                                                       -William James 

***

A lone draconnequus curls up on her old bed, her eyes red and puffy from crying, her mane matted to the side of her head from the damp pillow.Though her eyes were shut, she was not asleep. Her mind kept replaying the scene that had taken place yesterday. At noon today, the portal would be open, and she would be able to go home. 

Her heart clenched as she recalled Discord's hurt look. She had taken his heart and ripped it apart. No matter how difficult it was to admit, she truly loved the draconnequus. Being torn between the people she deeply cared for, Maria Firestone couldn't decide whom to choose. 

A gentle knock sounded on the door of her shack, the same one she had redecorated when she first arrived to Ponyville, though she had redecorated the bedroom to keep the memory of her past life away. 

"Maria?" Fluttershy's meek voice called. Maria sat up, using a spell to make herself look decent, though her eyes were still rimmed with red and waiting to spill fresh tears at any moment. She opened the door, seeing that Fluttershy and the rest of her friends were waiting for her. 

"It's almost noon," Twilight said quietly. They now knew about Maria's plan to leave, but didn't bother to try to convince her to stay. An unspoken agreement laid between them, and they didn't push the subject. 

Maria glanced at her clock, seeing that it was an hour before noon. She heaved a sigh, eyes downcast. Nodding wordlessly, the group started towards the train station. 

***

In Discord's castle, he sat on the bed, sulking. He had cried for a little while, but couldn't find the strength to do anything else. His emotions were jumbled. 

"Why'd you let her leave?!" his reflection spat at him. 

"It was the right thing to do," he said quietly, his voice cracking. 

"I told you that she was a lost cause! But nooo, you didn't want to listen to yourself. That's the sad part, you know. You knew this whole time that Maria was going to leave no matter what you did, but you still tried. Why?" 

"Because...I love her," 

***

Maria leaned her head on the cool glass of the window, her eyes closed. She didn't want to talk, for fear that if she tried to speak, her eyes would leak again. 

It seemed that the passengers on board knew that she was upset, for all of the ponies were silent. The only sound was the roar of the train pushing along the tracks. It'd be another fifteen minutes or so before they would arrive at Canterlot, and another ten to get to the castle.

Maria sighed to herself, not knowing what to feel. In reality, she felt numb. No excitement for seeing her family again, no guilt for leaving Discord, just a dull feeling of nothingness. She tried to stir up her excitement with visions of her father, her bedroom, and even her pesky freckles. But she found no comfort in them. She simply couldn't feel anything. 

Maybe it was better that way. 

***

"Discord, you can't just lay here," his reflection said with genuine worry. "You tried. You know what they say, 'If you love something, let it go. If it comes back, it was meant to be.'"