Discord was still laughing when they arrived at their destination. Fluttershy gazed up at the floating dark castle. Cotton candy clouds surrounded it, raining chocolate milk.
"Like what I've done with the place?" the draconequus asked her.
"It's..." she stammered, "lovely."
"Wait until you see the inside!"
He carried her to the door and opened it up. Fluttershy's eyes widened at the interior. It was like looking at a drawing by M.C. Escher, with stairs leading to nowhere and doors hanging sideways.
"Welcome to my humble abode!" Discord said proudly. "Or should I say our humble abode? What do you think?"
She put a hoof to her head. "I think I'm getting dizzy."
He chuckled. "You'll get used to it, my dear. After all, this is your new home."
"My...my..."
Overwhelmed with it all, Fluttershy fainted in his arms. He summoned a daybed and set her down gently. He gazed in triumph at his prize. So innocent, he thought. Well, we'll soon fix that.
"She sacrificed herself for us?" Cadence asked in wonder.
"She thought she was the only one who could do it," Applejack explained solemnly.
"He told us what our freedom would have cost, but I never would have thought Fluttershy..."
She buried her face in her husband's shoulder.
"That creature has gone too far this time!" Luna bellowed, using her traditional Canterlot voice. "We motion that we go to that castle and demand he return the pegasus at once!"
Celestia put a wing around her. "No, sister. If the agreement made is broken, Discord could unleash his chaos again."
"But..." she stammered. "You can't expect us to allow such an innocent soul to be tied to that monster!"
"This is all my fault," Twilight whimpered. "I'm sorry, Princess Celestia. I've failed you."
Celestia raised an eyebrow. "How have you failed me?"
"You left me in charge of Equestria, and it was put in danger because I didn't take precaution. And...I let one of my best friends accept a fate worse than death!" She hid her face in her hooves. "I'm a terrible ruler!"
She stopped crying as her mentor lifted her chin. "Being a ruler means one has to make difficult decisions for the good of her subjects. There was nothing else to be done."
"It should have been me then! I could have handled him, I could have..."
"I am as distressed as you are, but this was her choice. Discord may do terrible things, but believe me when I say he won't bring Fluttershy any physical harm."
"How do you know that?"
"His nature is to corrupt what is orderly, not to inflict pain. Some creatures...are not as evil as they seem."
"So," Pinkie Pie sniffed, "what do we do now?"
"All we can do now is pray that Fluttershy will be safe and move on with our lives."
When Fluttershy had gained consciousness, she was lying on a couch. She glanced at her surroundings and the ring around her neck, realizing that the events of the day hadn't been a dream. She sighed heavily. She had accepted Discord's proposal, saved the princesses, lost her friends and freedom all in one day. Now she was engaged to the Lord of Chaos with no escape. Speaking of which, where was Discord?
