Heads or Tales
Find a bit that’s stuck in the muck,
Clean it up, to have good luck!
Pinkie cheerily sang to herself as she plucked the slightly muddy coin out of the street. “Or was it, to run amok?” she furrowed her brow, tapping her chin with a hoof. “You can never be sure with rhyming prophecies, they like to change on you.” The extra second she spent in contemplation ended with a shrug as she retrieved a small handkerchief from the gravity defying pink curls that passed for her mane.
“Either way, both can be fun!” Pinkie giggled, wiping away the grime to reveal the aged golden piece. A faint glimmer shone from the small green stone set in the face of the coin as it caught the light. “Although,” she pondered again, “I am already pretty lucky. It would be a waste to keep it all to myself.”
Pinkie stared at the embossed currency, her blue eyes silently tracing the alicorn figures of the diarchy encircling the sun and moon. The smile that quickly followed occupied so much facial real estate that it entered the next tax bracket.
“And I know just the pony who could use a little fiscal fortune!” Pinkie beamed, bouncing in place before stopping suddenly, “Not that she needs more money, it’s just a term to describe luck gained from it.” Having sufficiently explained herself to herself, the party-minded mare resumed her springing gait in the direction of the Golden Oaks Library.
Ponyville was as busy as you’d expect for a Tuesday. Residents were setting up their shops for the busy day ahead while smiles and other pleasantries were being exchanged between neighbors. Pinkie’s ever present effervescence made the morning all the more bright and cheerful for anypony swept up in her tidal wave of enthusiasm. Well, except for one cerulean coated dentist who glared at her in the same manner one would regard their nemesis, but that’s another story.
After numerous greetings, smiles, waves, and a considerable amount of bouncing, Pinkie finally bounded up to the door of the great tree. Now, unfortunately, the word ‘knocked’ doesn’t do justice to the rhythmic ritual she performed on the library’s wooden portal, but seeing as attempting to explain it any further would be like describing the aroma of the color red, it will have to suffice. The silence that followed in the wake of her plywood percussion didn’t last long.
“Spike, can you get that?” Twilight’s voice filtered through the door. “Spike?”
“Just five more minutes…”
“Really. You sleep more than a hibernating ursa.” A violet shimmer encased the upper half of the door before it swung open. “Hello, what can I … Pinkie?” Twilight blinked.
“Heya, Twilight!” the heir to the house of Pie giggled, hooking her forelegs over the unopened section of the entryway.
“I should have guessed,” Twilight sighed, shaking her head slowly as a knowing smile grew. “Anyway, what brings you over here this early? Some kind of ‘cookbook emergency’?” She couldn’t help but let out a chuckle.
“Those are no laughing matter!” Pinkie replied, her countenance mirroring the seriousness of her tone. “We lost many good confections in the summer blitz… Some mornings I can still smell the scorched sugar.”
Twilight’s smile wavered as her left eyebrow arched. “Seriously?”
Pinkie, to her credit, managed to hold in her laughter for a good 2.8 seconds before the look on Twilight’s face brought on a giggling fit. That’s a full tenth of a second longer than her previous best involving Rainbow Dash, a piano, and a ten second long flat. Rolling her eyes, she answered, “No! I mean the sugar thing is mostly true. You can’t just pile it on there before baking, believe me, I’ve tried it with blueberry muffins, apple muffins, cranberry muffin-bits, strawberry pie, strawberry cake, just strawberries-”
“Pinkie!” Twilight shouted, her wings slightly flaring.
Her hyperactive friend stopped and blinked twice. “What?”
Twilight sighed, covering her eyes with a hoof. “Why are you here?”
“Oh!” Pinkie’s face lit up as she tilted it to the left. Bringing her right hoof up she gave a series of quick thumps to the side of her head. On the third strike, a glittering coin popped out from behind her ear which she caught in her other hoof.
“A … bit?”
“Not just any bit! A lucky bit to make you a bit lucky!” Without waiting for her to respond, Pinkie quickly pressed the change into Twilight’s upturned hoof. “There! That should help.” She nodded sagely.
The librarian quirked her eyebrow for the second time in under a minute as she stared at the minted gold. “Science hasn’t yet confirmed the existence of ‘luck’ yet, Pinkie.”
“It hasn’t proven it doesn’t exist,” Pinkie quipped, now on the same side of the door as Twilight. Springing around her friend in a circle, she added, “Besides, would you rather believe in something that might not exist, or not believe in something that might exist?”
“A-aren’t those the same thing?” Twilight stammered, trying her best to follow the leaps of both logic and leg.
“Not quite, it all depends on how you approach-”
The sharp ringing of a bell echoed throughout the library stopping both Pinkie and Twilight in their tracks.
“AUGH! I’m up! I’m-” Spike’s panicked voice carried down the stairs before ending in a muffled thump and a groan.
“The cupcakes!” Pinkie cried, yanking an egg-timer out of her curls, “I almost forgot! I’ve got to go, Twilight. See you later!” The mare vanished in a haze of pink mist before reappearing once in the doorway. “And good luck!” Then she was gone.
“Hmm,” Twilight mumbled to herself as she gave the coin a once over. With a shrug, she levitated the bit over to rest on the table just as her number one assistant gingerly descended the staircase.
“Ow…” Spike moaned, wincing as he rubbed the back of his head. “Remind me never to sleep on that shelf again. It’s cozy and all, but that first step’s a doozy.”
Twilight smiled, “Morning, Spike. I’ve got a busy day ahead. Think you can run me a few errands?”
Pinkie wiped her brow as she panted slightly. The countertops and tables of Sugarcube Corner were packed full of hundreds of tasty treats. Cupcakes covered every available surface from the kitchen out into the storefront. It had taken her nearly all day, but she was finally done with the monumental order the Cakes had received yesterday.
“And one for me,” she grinned, hefting a fully loaded, sprinkle coated, and crème filled strawberry short-cupcake. The delectable dessert inched closer and closer toward its inevitable fate. The gaping maw of the devourer approached, ready to take the noble confectionery warrior to cupcake valhalla.
Except something wasn’t right.
“Get … in … mouth!” Pinkie commanded, extending her tongue out and trying to coax the sweet in closer. It, and the rest of her foreleg, had stopped moving entirely. “Come on, hoof! Now’s not the time to-”
A shiver arced through her spine as her left ear began spasticly flopping. Turning her head, Pinkie caught sight of her tail hair standing up straight before a creeping itch invaded her nose causing two rapidfire sneezes. Her eyes went wide.
“Stiff leg, spine shiver, ear flop, starch tail, double sneeze ... This one’s new,” she whispered before collapsing onto the floor.
The clock only ticked once and tocked twice before her body started to move again.
“Ow, ow, ow,” Pinkie grumbled, “What just happened?” She carefully shook her head from side to side as if to dislodge something foreign. Her eyes were having trouble focusing, but at least her legs weren’t giving her any trouble as she stood back up.
“Spike?” she called out, “Are you-” Pinkie’s head snapped back suddenly at the sound of her voice. Her brow furrowed as she rubbed invisible stuffing out of her ear. “That’s strange,” she muttered, clearing her throat when it still didn’t match her expected tone.
“Is everything alright in here?” Mrs. Cake ventured, stepping into the customer area from the kitchen, careful not to disturb any of the spongy sweets. “I heard something fall.”
“Mrs… Cake?” Pinkie blinked, rubbing her eyes as the bright cerulean pastry chef pulled into focus along with the rest of Sugarcube Corner. “How did I get here?”
“You’ve been baking nonstop since this morning, don’t you remember?” Mrs. Cake nervously chewed on the inside of her cheek before gasping in shock. “Oh dear, did you work yourself into exhaustion again? I’ve told you it’s ok to take a break now and then! We appreciate the enthusiasm, Pinkie, but don’t hurt yourself.” She had worked her way around the counter as she spoke, giving Pinkie a motherly hug.
“Pinkie?” the cotton candy colored mare stood dumbfounded, “But I’m Twilight.”
Mrs. Cake pulled back before looking her up and down. “I see,” she whispered as a smile formed beneath a roll of her eyes, “Sorry, I didn’t recognize you under all that … Pinkie.” She chuckled, “Anyway, you’ve done enough work today, so just take it easy, ok?” Pinkie watched in silence as Mrs. Cake contentedly trotted back into the kitchen leaving her alone.
She blinked.
“What?”
Pinkie lifted a hoof in front of her face as her breath quickened. Evidently, the soft pink fur wasn’t what she was expecting as her heart raced. Her eyes shot up, straining against their lids to see anything beyond the mass of dark pink curls.
“This can’t be happening…” Pinkie mumbled, nervously prancing as she scanned the confectionary. “I must be dreaming. Yeah, that’s it. I fell asleep reading again and I’m just having a very vivid dream.” Her eyes wandered onto the glass windows where her reflection was clearly visible against the bright lettering.
Pinkie stared back at her, slightly disheveled, with a light dusting of flour in a few spots. The cutie mark was spot on, as was the rest of her form save how she held herself. However, that wasn’t what had drawn her attention, but rather the reversed signage in the window.
She could read it.
“You can’t... you’re not supposed to be able to… read… in… dreams,” Pinkie swallowed hard as the realization dawned. “This is real.” Her reflection mouthed the words along with her.
“I’m in Pinkie’s body.”
“I know I said this can’t be happening, and it obviously is, but… this can’t be happening!” Twilight’s mind raced as she urged her friend’s legs into a gallop. She was getting plenty of curious stares and an equal amount of cordial smiles while barreling through the streets of ponyville. It would seem that Pinkie Pie running at full tilt and muttering to herself wasn’t far enough out of the ordinary to warrant concern.
“I’ve got to find my body, hopefully with Pinkie in it,” she momentarily blanched, shaking her head as she kept moving forward. “That’s not something I ever thought I’d say.”
The leafy oak pulled into view as she rounded the final corner. Pinkie smiled, or at least her body did as it was currently under new management.
“Please be inside. Please be inside. Please, oh please be there!” Her mantra built as she closed the distance to the front door, not slowing down in the slightest. A fact that only registered for her too late.
Before there was a chance for an intimate meeting between face and wood, the entry swung open.
“Heya, Twilight!” her doppelganger grinned moments before the unavoidable collision sent them both tumbling over the hardwood and into the library proper. Knocking over a small round table in the process, they rolled to a stop against the far wall amidst a shower of falling books.
“Again!” Twilight’s body giggled, pinned as it was under the heavily breathing mass of pink and more pink.
“Pinkie!” she snapped, “What are you doing in my body? What am I doing in YOUR body?”
“Beats me,” Pinkie answered rubbing her head carefully to avoid the novel lavender protrusion. “I was just about to eat the most scrumptious cupcake, when BAM!” she spread her feathers wide for effect, “I woke up on your floor, halfway across the room, and not a single dessert in sight.”
Twilight sighed as she climbed off … herself. “I’ll be sure to keep some around for the next time we accidentally trade hooves,” she muttered sarcastically.
“It never hurts to be prepared,” Pinkie nodded, dusting her borrowed purple coat while standing up. “Though this was fun, I think I’m ready to switch back.” Closing her eyes, Pinkie tilted her head back. “Fire away!”
“What?”
Pinkie cracked one eye open, “The counterspell? You can go ahead and cast it now.”
“First,” Twilight began, rubbing her temple, “I didn’t cast any spell, much less know of one that does this, so I don’t HAVE a counterspell for it. And second,” she continued, driving her point home by flicking the horn atop the head to which Pinkie currently held the reins.
“Ow! Hey, that … ohhhh,” Pinkie deflated with growing comprehension, “Oh! I’ll just cast one then!” she added, perking up instantly.
“What?!” Twilight stammered as Pinkie scrunched up Twilight’s face in concentration. “H-hold on!”
Angry sparks snapped from the tip of her horn as the lights flickered. Her tongue crept out absently from the side of her mouth while her brow furrowed further.
“Pinkie, stop!” Twilight pleaded, grabbing onto the overturned table as loose fixtures and books began to vibrate of their own accord. She covered her head in preparation for the veritable explosion Pinkie was undoubtedly building towards. Just when she thought the magical reverberation had reached its peak, it just as abruptly stopped.
“Aww, I thought for sure I was doing something,” Pinkie sulked as she hung Twilight’s head low. “I guess magic’s out.”
“Maybe not all magic,” Twilight responded once her heart rate returned to a more natural level. Stepping away from the table she added, “We should ask Princess Celestia about it. Spike can send her a letter and-”
As if on cue, the short purple and green dragon shuffled into the common area on all fours, blinking away the dregs of the second nap of the day he had been certainly taking.
“Pinkie I can understand,” he began, voice reaching a slightly higher register than normal, “but you,Twilight, I would have thought you of all ponies would at least knock before entering a lady’s home. Now, darling, what’s so important that my essential beauty sleep had to be interrupted so rudely?”
Twilight and Pinkie shared nervous glances.
“Well?” Spike huffed, tapping his claws on the floor.
“R-rarity?” Twilight ventured.
“Yes, dear, now can we hurry this up? My spine feels all wrong, and my voice is just dreadful!”
Pinkie, meanwhile, was trying to hold back the mother of all laughing fits. Unfortunately, Twilight’s body didn’t have nearly the same level of giggle resistance hers does and succumbed rather quickly.
“That’s … because … it’s … not … your … voice!” she managed between guffaws.
Spike scolded her, “Really, Twilight, this is hardly a laughing matter!”
“No, I’m Twilight,” the pink mare chimed in, “Now, this is going to sound crazy, but we’ve somehow exchanged bodies. And I’m sorry, but it looks like you’ve gotten wrapped up in it too.”
“Pinkie, what in Equestria … are you …” his voice trailed off, eyes growing as they started really taking in his surroundings. “Wait, how did I end up in your library, and why are you both so much taller than me?!”
“You might want to take a look in a mirror,” Pinkie snickered, having given up trying to keep Twilight’s body from laughing.
“Oh dear, is there something on my face?” Spike quickly turned and scampered toward the first floor bathroom muttering along the way, “Of course, the one time I don’t check on my appearance is when something is out of place…”
Twilight could only stare aghast as Pinkie mouthed a silent countdown.
Three. That’s the number of residents in ponyville that didn’t manage to hear the resulting scream that echoed from Twilight’s library.
“You’re taking this rather well,” Twilight offered, turning Pinkie’s neck around to face Rarity who was currently perched on her back. “I mean, aside from the first part…”
“Please, umm, Twilight, a lady is nothing if not composed,” a hint of blush creeping across her borrowed scales, “regardless of what form she happens to take.”
“Still, I’m glad you decided to come along,” Twilight flashed her an honest smile as the trio made their way to Carousel Boutique.
“Spike’s a dear, but if anypony is out gallivanting about with my indigo tresses, I’m going to at least be around to see it.” She tossed Spike’s head back, teasing a curl of her non-existent mane.
“There it is!” Pinkie bounced, sending Twilight’s wings jostling before bolting for the door. Screeching to a halt, she placed one hoof on the elegant inlaid mahogany and rapped twice.
“Uhh, we’re- I mean, I’m not open at the moment, come back, ehh later?” Rarity’s voice wavered from inside.
“Spike? It’s us! You can come out now.” Pinkie called out with her foreign vocal chords.
The door creaked open a hair, “Twilight?” Rarity’s head poked out from behind it and instantly broke into a relieved smile.
“Thank Celestia!” she cried, pushing the entry open the rest of the way and throwing her hooves around ‘Twilight’s’ neck, “You’ve got to help me! I went to take my usual afternoon pre-dinner nap when all of a sudden I woke up here! In Rarity’s body! Quick, find a spell to reverse this before-”
Her sapphire eyes ringed with a gently smudged eyeliner danced across the still smiling face next to her as the color impossibly drained further from her ivory coat.
“You’re not Twilight, are you?”
“Nope!” Pinkie announced, her grin widening by another few inches.
“Oh no, no-no-no,” Rarity’s body fell limp, slumping down to the floor, “Now how are we going to fix this? This is the worst possible-”
“A-hem!” Rarity cleared her draconic throat from atop her pink seat. “Can we please move this inside? As odd as it sounds, I’d rather not watch myself make a scene in public.”
“Sorry … Rarity,” Spike mumbled, carefully picking himself up and leading the other three into the boutique.
“Ok!” Twilight paced Pinkie’s body in front of her friends as they sat on one of Rarity’s conveniently placed sofas. “So, we’re down two options to potentially fix this little mix-up. My magic is out, since I’m no longer the one in possession of my horn, and we’re lacking a way to message Celestia as our resident source of dragonfire is under new management...”
“Spike,” Rarity whispered under Twilight’s tirade and cupping his ear, “were you … crying?”
He hung the white unicorn’s head and slowly nodded. “I was alone, and scared, and I didn’t know what had happened to you or-”
“Shh,” she pressed a claw to his lips, “Everything’s going to be fine. Besides, I know my body’s in good hooves.”
Spike’s eyebrow arched slowly.
“Or did you think I didn’t notice the extra brushing my mane has gotten since I went to take a nap?”
Whatever he was expecting, it wasn’t that as his borrowed cheeks blossomed into a deep crimson.
“As I was saying,” Twilight stamped a hoof, drawing all eyes back to her once more. “We’re down to either making the trip to canterlot to see Celestia in person, or we track down what caused this in the first place.”
“Well, Discord’s not poked his face around, and we all know how much he likes to gloat, so I’m pretty sure it’s not him,” Pinkie replied in a surprisingly somber tone.
“And I don’t recall any cosmic events or alignments that were coming up, much less that could achieve something this bizarre. It has to be something outside our normal routine…”
“Oh, yeah, sorry about that coin Twilight,” Pinkie frowned, “I was really sure the luck would work for you too.”
“Pinkie, that’s it!” Twilight lept into the air, courtesy of her new spring loaded joints. “The coin must have done it, only it had a delay before it came into effect.” She popped her head up from behind the sofa, “Spike, you must have grabbed that coin off the table before running those errands, didn’t you?”
“Y-yeah, but Rarity never accepted any payment for touching up your dress.”
“Although … we were both touching it at the same time before you finally relented and kept your money, like a good friend.” Rarity nodded, a half-smirk playing across her features.
“If Rarity didn’t take it, then what did you do with the bit set with an emerald?” Twilight prodded as her foreleg started absently tapping at the floor.
“Uhh, I think I used it to buy a few apples from AJ’s stand.” Spike looked warily at Twilight in Pinkie’s body. “Hey … are you feeling alright?”
“Never better! But I can’t seem to keep your legs still, Pinkie.” Twilight puzzled, staring at the vibrating pink supports underneath her. “How much sugar did you eat?”
“Oh,” Pinkie cocked her head, “I had one cupcake between each baker’s dozen, times the number of full oven loads, equals 42 confections in various states of frosted completion.”
“F-fourty t-two?” Twilight’s eye twitched.
“Yeah, it’s nowhere near my usual since I was so busy.”
“Okay!” Twilight clapped her pink hooves together, “Let’s find that coin before my inability to spend Pinkie’s caloric abundance drives me insane.”
“Naw, I don’t have that particular coin anymore,” Applejack drawled in her particular style, “I sent tha’ early profits back with Apple Bloom to give to Big Mac.”
“Shoot,” Twilight gnawed on Pinkie’s lip, “We’d better hurry on over to Sweet Apple Acres.”
“You alright?” Applejack ventured, “What’s so special about a dang coin, anyways?”
“It’s, uhh, a collector’s piece!” Pinkie added nervously.
“We’ll be sure to tell you all about it later, but right now we’ve gotta run!” Twilight waved, urging everyone along as the group departed.
Applejack pushed her hat to the side as she scratched her head.
“We could have been there a half an hour ago if you didn’t insist on finding a suitable hat to wear,” Twilight fidgeted, bouncing back and forth between being in the lead, or bringing up the rear.
“I’m sorry,” Rarity protested, “but my body’s not going to be unfashionable just because I’m not in it at the moment.” She took another approving glance at herself. “Spike, you’re doing a much better job keeping my legs straight, but don’t forget to bend the front hooves back just so between each step. Just like that, marvelous.”
Pinkie chuckled at Rarity’s ‘backseat driving’ from her position on her hindquarters.
“Finally!” Twilight exclaimed as the wide lettered entrance to Sweet Apple Acres pulled into view. The trees were in full bloom, harvest season wasn’t going to be long now. A bright yellow filly sat by the gate with a red bow on her head, and a monumentally bored expression on her face.
“Heya, Apple Bloom!” Twilight waved, doing an excellent Pinkie impression whether she wanted to or not.
“Nope.”
Three sets of faces stood agape as Twilight covered her face with a hoof.
“Big Mac?” she mumbled into her foreleg.
“Eeyup,” Apple Bloom replied, chewing a stem.
“You have got to be kidding me… ok, where’s Apple Bloom then?”
Mac raised a hoof and pointed across the field where he’d been staring. A familiar big red stallion was pacing in front of the unmistakable form of Rainbow Dash. As they watched, Rainbow began awkwardly flapping before inverting mid stride and landing on her back. Curious, and more than a little wary of what they might find, the troupe made their way over.
“I keep telling you, wings up and flap together, but I guess it’s no surprise you’re having trouble controlling all that awesome.” Big Mac’s burly frame rumbled as it spoke.
“Dash, Ah’m real glad you’re willin’ to help and all, but can’t we just go find … TWILIGHT!” Rainbow blurted out from her upturned position before rolling back upright. “Boy, are we sure glad ta’ see you!”
“I hope we’re getting closer to the coin, this is getting rather out of hoof,” Rarity mused.
“Coin?” Dash asked, adjusting her collar, “What’s this about a coin?”
“It’s what’s causing all … this!” Twilight gestured to the assembled group.
“Wait, you mean that you’re also-”
“Mixed-up? Quite so, darling,” Rarity piped up, standing rather elegantly for a baby dragon, “But it’s nothing we can’t handle.”
A growing rustle and approaching voices turned all heads as they listened.
“Come on! How long are you gonna mimic ol’ Mac? We’ve already tried getting our cutie marks in impersonation… though you’re a lot better at it now, I’ll admit.”
“Yeah, we’ve got to come up with something else to try, like cutie mark crusader barrel riders, or-”
“Nope.”
The trio of fillies emerged into the clearing, finding themselves the center of attention. Big Mac cleared Apple Bloom’s throat before looking up pleadingly.
“Oh man, Mac,” Dash snickered, “Looks like you’ve got an adventure in your future!”
Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo both looked at each other as if they were just handed a test they didn’t remember taking and yet did a passable job anyway. “Huh?” they both chimed in unison.
“Nevermind!” Twilight barked, “Apple Bloom, you brought some bits back from Applejack, and hoofed some over to Mac, right?”
“Y-yeah,” Bloom mumbled, cyan wings fidgeting under the scrutiny.
“Fantastic. Mac, I’m guessing you paid Rainbow for something?” the hyperactive pink librarian continued.
“Eeyup.”
“Yeah, he gave me some bits for helping to knock down an old barn a while back,” Dash added, uncertain what to do with the extra stares she was receiving from Sweetie and Scootaloo.
“Now, Dash, what did you do with the emerald studded bit he gave you?”
“Oh that? I dropped them off with Fluttershy for taking care of Tank last week when he was feeling under the weather.”
“Great,” Twilight threw up her hooves, “Now we have to hurry all the way over to Fluttershy’s cottage, but at least-”
“Although she was on her way into Ponyville to visit the market when I … left …” Dash swallowed around the growing lump in her throat as the rest shared horrified expressions.
“To the market!” Twilight yelled, spurring the group on at a gallop.
In the midst of the exodus Scootaloo kept stealing sideways glances at her fellow crusader.
“What?” Apple Bloom asked, finding it much easier to keep up with her improved stride.
“I can’t believe YOU got to joy ride in Rainbow Dash’s hooves,” Scootaloo huffed, “It’s totally not fair.”
The streets of Ponyville parted as the band raced toward the markets. When the Elements are on the move, you tend to stay out of the way. Nine pairs of eyes were scanning the dwindling crowds until-
“There she is!” Rainbow bellowed, putting Mac’s baritone to good use.
A quick glance in their direction elicited a gasp from the startled yellow pegasus before she dove under a nearby vendor stall.
“Fluttershy!” Twilight smiled, suddenly right beside her timid friend under the stall. “There you are. Quick, do you still have that coin Dash gave you with the green gem?”
“Pinkie?” Fluttershy whispered, “What’re you… No, I remember giving that one to Applejack. She said you girls were looking for it, though I’m no expert on-”
Fluttershy slumped to the ground next to Twilight. Her breathing was slow, but it came back quickly as she began to groan.
“Shoot, that’s the last time ah’ll ever skip lunch ta’ make a sale,” Fluttershy muttered, “Ah’m runnin’ on empty… Wait, Pinkie? Where am I? How long was I out?”
Twilight laid a hoof on her shoulder, “Don’t worry about it AJ, let’s just get back to your stand.”
“Argh!” Twilight fumed, “I don’t get it! There’s nothing on this blasted coin that says how to reverse it!”
“Couldn’t we just trade the coin between each other like we did before?” Pinkie offered, looking around the circle of ponies, little post-its stuck to their foreheads with their actual names on them.
“We could, but who knows how long that would take?!” Twilight moaned, “None of the switches have followed any noticeable timetable. We could be stuck waiting for hours, DAYS, before trading the coin again.”
“Easy there, Twi,” Applejack cautioned, adjusting her hat on top of her new head of pink hair. “We’re all eager to get back to normal, but there ain’t no reason to rush it.”
“You don’t understand!” Twilight pleaded, “I can’t keep it together! I’ve started seeing things, and not just that! Those labels I just handed out to everypony? I don’t know where I got them... I just thought they would be nice to have, and there they were!”
Nervous glances passed among the group, but nopony moved to speak.
“I’m done, I … I can’t,” Twilight snatched up the golden coin, flinging it into the center of the circle, “I’M DONE!” she yelled, jumping up and down on the disk of metal.
“Fix it, fix it, fix it, fixitfixitfixitFIXITFIXIT!”
On the 22nd bounce, a bright flash from underneath her knocked everyone in the market off their hooves. Vision was slow in returning, but something else was plainly evident.
Twilight Sparkle bolted upright, hooves tracing the familiar curves of her face as she looked around to see everyone else seemingly back to normal as well.
“Thank Celestia that’s over…” she sighed, falling back onto her side and letting her heartbeat finally calm down.
“Where’d the coin go?” Pinkie’s voice carried above the growing din.
“Don’t know, and right now, don’t care.” Twilight smiled.
The coin continued to roll, bouncing down the cobblestone alley between ‘Sofas and Quills’ and ‘Radio Barn’. With the characteristic ringing of metal on rock, it finally spun down to rest on a mottled paving stone. It wasn’t long before the emerald glint caught the red and yellow eyes of a certain draconequus.
“What have we here?” Discord quipped, stroking his beard with a lone talon. A quick snap launched the coin high into the air after the stone on which it sat traded existence with a high tensile spring system. He unfurled his claws just in time for the golden piece to land in his grasp. Tracing the curves of the abnormal bit with his other paw, he watched as years of tarnish melted away.
“The Coin of Ouroboros?” he scoffed, right eyebrow lifting clean off his face, “Why, I haven’t seen you in ages.” Discord smiled to himself as he fluidly rolled the coin between his digits. “Oh, what fun we had together!” His grin wavered for only a moment before easily doubling in size.
“You know, that reminds me.” His talons curled deftly underneath the coin before flipping it into the air with a clear ringing note.
“I wonder how the original Discord is doing these days?” he mused, snatching the spinning piece of change out of the air and slapping it onto the back of his paw. Carefully, he removed his talons to reveal the emerald set face of the coin.
“I should pay him a visit,” Discord smirked, and with a snap of his claw, disappeared.
Author's Note
Written for the body swap contest in the Transformations group.
