Chapters Twilight falls, tired and worn out. For the past few hours she has been trying to turn an apple into an orange, and though she did this once she has yet to replicate it. "Ok, one more time." Her horn glows purple and the apple is encased by purple moving string. It slowly glows white but then back to red as she falls and stumbles down the stairs. "Why can't I do this?" She asks, ready to sleep.
Spike walks in, sweeping the floor. "Hey Twilight, are you ok?"
"Remember when I turned the apple to an orange? Well I can't seem to do that again. Any suggestions?"
"Well, I could go through your old books and try to find the spell."
"Thanks but no, I don't want to over work you. I'll give it one last shot and that'll be it." She gets up and walks back to her room, knowing she should have asked him to look. She does the spell, hoping it'll work. The window blows open and Fluttershy flies into the room.
"Twilight, please, we need your-" A strong wind picks up and sucks Fluttershy in. Twilight realizes this and tries to stop the spell, but it's too late. The wind sucks in Twilight and turns into a small tornado that encases the entire room. The tornado turns white and a bright flash goes off throughout the entire house. Spike runs in, rubbing his eyes.
"Twilight? Are you ok?" He looks at the room, shocked. Twilight stands up swaying and dizzy. "Twilight, thank goodness. I was worried."
"Spike? I'm not Twilight, I'm-" She stops herself frozen.
"Um, Twilight, are you feeling ok?" He looks over and sees Fluttershy standing up. "Fluttershy are you alright?"
"Spike, what are talking about, I'm Twilight..." Her face drops. "Wait, why do I sound like Fluttershy?" She looks over and sees her own body looking back, wide eyed and shaking.
"Ok, I'm a little freaked out." Spike says, filling the silent air.
"T-Twilight?" Fluttershy asks to her body. Her voice, her horn, her wings, her eyes, everything about her is Twilight except for the fact that it is really Fluttershy speaking.
"Ok, wait a minute." Fluttershy's voice says even though it's Twilight in Fluttershy's body. "Fluttershy, what happened?"
"I-I don't know, I flew in to ask for help but, but I, why am I..."
"Well, I'm you. I think. When you flew in you could have messed up the spell and it made us switch bodies. But, I don't get how..." Twilight trails off.
Spike slowly walks towards the door. "Ooook, well, I'm going to go back to cleaning. Call me if you need me, hehe." He runs down the stairs. Twilight and Fluttershy stare at each other, confused and scared.
"Alright. Fluttershy, I have an idea. I'll cast a spell and-"
"Um, Twilight, not to interrupt but you don't have a horn." Twilight's voice says, Fluttershy saying the words.
"Oh, right. Well I doubt you know how to use magic, so maybe we could use some help."
"We could ask the princesses, see if they-"
"No!" Twilight yells, though being Fluttershy's voice it isn't all too loud. "We can't, Celestia will be disappointed in me, or mad, or both. She wouldn't be happy, not one bit. We can't go to them." They stand there thinking, when suddenly a flash goes off in between them.
"Well well well, seems like we have a slight dilemma here now don't we?" Discord asks, showing up after the light goes away.
Twilight steams with anger. "Discord! How do you know what happened?"
"Because, simple Twilight, I am still the lord of chaos and I know what happens when something goes awry. Now then, onto the purpose of my visit. I could help you, but I need two things."
"Anything!" Fluttershy yells. She scares herself with how loud she is and jumps back, hitting a clock down and onto the cage of Owlicious. The owl flies out and lands on her hoof, angrily and tiredly staring at her. "Sorry." She whispers. The owl flies back into it's cage and locks the door with it's wing.
Discord turns serious. "That would be number one, time. I need to have time to figure out how to fix this little issue of ours."
"And number two?" Twilight asks.
"Just an IOU from the both of you." He smiles.
"I will never accept that."
"Um, Twilight, I don't think we have an option." Fluttershy says.
"Of course we do, I teach you how to use magic and then solve this problem."
"But it took you all these years to just do this. Unless we are willing to be like this for even more years than that, I don't think that we have another way out."
Twilight scowls. "Fine, we'll do it."
"Oh joy! Now, give me some time and I'll be back to cure you both. Have fun Twishy and Fluttersparkle, haha!" Discord pops away.
"So, now what?" Fluttershy asks.
"Let's try to act like the other person for the time being, I don't think that it's worth having our friends both worried and confused about this."
"But what if they find out in their own?"
Twilight doesn't have an answer. "Just trust me Fluttershy, I'm sure this will all work out."
"I hope you know what you're doing Twilight."
Twilight sighs. "I do too."
Fluttershy walks down a path trying to figure out how to act like Twilight. She knows Twilight isn't as kind as her, or at least doesn't say sorry as much, but she is still caring. She loves books and often treats strangers as friends, and on top of it all is a princess. "Twilight!" A flash of rainbows swirl around her, making Fluttershy dizzy. It stops and Rainbow Dash is in front of her, a huge grin on her face. "They announced it!"
"Um, I'm sorry but I forgot, they announced what exactly?"
"Daring Do and the Griffon Overlord! It's the next title in the series!"
"Oh, um, excellent Dashie. I can't wait to read it with you, hehe." Fluttershy becomes nervous.
"Yeah, anyways, I read the synopsis of it in the Equestria Daily newspaper and in it, Daring Do has to find the long lost eighth wonder of the world that is made out of crystal in order stop a gigantic meteor sent by aliens that is about to crash into the planet! Isn't that awesome?!"
"Uh, yeah! That is totally not scary or frightening in any way, it'll be great!" She puts on a fake smile.
"Uh hu, are you feeling ok Twilight?"
"Of course! Never better. Sorry if I seem a bit odd though, late night last night. Angel had a stomach ache."
"Angle? Were you at Fluttershy's?"
"I mean Spike! Yeah, Spike! He was sick so I made him some corn."
"Corn?" Rainbow asks, a flat tone in her voice.
"He likes corn. Right?"
"Well, I guess, he's your assistant so why are you asking me?"
"I, I uh, um, look out!" She points behind Rainbow.
"What?!" She turns and sees nothing. She looks back but nopony is there. "Twilight?" She walks down the road. "Twilight, where are you? I swear, something is not well in that mare's head." Rainbow flies off.
"Oh thank Celestia, I almost gave it up." She walks out of the thin ally but is stopped by a foal. It's eyes are huge and it's tail wages. In it's mouth is a picture of Twilight and a pen in it's hoof. "Oh, well, ok, I guess I could sign it." She signs the paper as Twilight Sparkle. The foal looks at it confused. "What's wrong?" It holds a picture signed by Twilight after the Rainbow Falls trading fair. It is signed Twilight, no last name. Also it is in cursive as supposed to Fluttershy's printing. "Oh. Um, well, you see, I, I had, um, I had changed my signature now. Yeah, I no longer sign in cursive and only first name, now it's both names and print." The foal blankly stares at her. It suddenly drops it's mouth and widens it's eyes, frozen with fright. Fluttershy feels something on her back and it slithers around her neck. It's a snake.
Rainbow Dash flies back. "Twilight! More news about-" she stops. Fluttershy smiles and pretends to be nervous as she is still Fluttershy and doesn't have an issue with animals. She slowly reaches around and puts the snake on the ground, though it immediately goes back to her hooves. "That snake really likes you, Twilight. So much so that it won't leave your side, sounds like a certain other pony I know, one that wouldn't be on top of all Daring Do news." Fluttershy looks at Rainow Dash, her teeth clattering and and eyes moving constantly.
"Dashie, I have no idea what you're talking-"
"And Twilight never called me Dashie! What have you done with her Chrysalis?!"
"C-Chrysialis? I'm not, how could, I was, what?"
"Oh don't play dumb with me you lousy Changeling, I know all about you and your kind, now I'll ask once and only once where is Twilight?" Suddenly a loud bang is heard throughout the square. They all turn to look while Fluttershy flies away when it happens. "You won't get far." Rainbow takes off like a bullet, chasing after her. Fluttershy realizes this and heads to her cottage, barley able to stay out of Rainbow's sight.
"Twilight!"
"In here!" Fluttershy flies up to her room and sees Twilight looking through her stuff. "I figured I would need to know what is in here if I am to act like you, but what is this?" She holds up a brush and pan.
"I use it to clean up after my animals, but please listen, Rainbow Dash thinks I'm Queen Chrysalis."
"Chrysalis? As in changeling Chrysalis?"
"It's a long story, but-" knocking at the door starts. "Go and act like me please, I can't let her see me." Twilight walks down to the door and breaths, opening it.
"Fluttershy! Chrysalis is pretending to be Twilight, she will probably have an army by next week and take over if we don't stop her now."
"Oh no, that's terrible, I'm so sorry to hear it. Go let the others know, I'll stay here and make a plan." Rainbow stares at her.
"How many animals do you have?" Twilight freezes. She remembers the pan and how it had the number twenty-five on it.
"Twenty-five." Rainbow stares at her.
"Fine, but I have my eye on you. I'll go tell the others, I'm watching you." She flies off. Twilight let's out a sigh.
"Fluttershy! She's gone!" Fluttershy trots down, a scared look on her face.
"Um, Twilight, I need your help." Twilight follows her back upstairs. "It happened randomly, I'm not used to magic. It was an accident, I swear, I'm so so sorry."
"Alright, we can fix this, just do, well, GAH!" She flops onto Fluttershy's bed. "I can't even yell in your voice."
"Ok, one more time." Twilight coaches Fluttershy on how to cast a spell. The horn glows and a flash goes off. It clears and the bookshelf is cut in half. "Why couldn't you have been a unicorn?"
"I'm sorry, I'm trying my best, I don't know how you do it."
"And I don't know how you do it either." Twilight pulls a mouse off her ear. "We can't leave her like this, we need help." In front of them is a knocked out, pinned under a broken bed, bruised and hurt Rainbow Dash.
"Well, we could ask-"
"Discord?" He pops into the room. "I say, you two are having a horrible time aren't you?"
"Now listen here Discord, I want this fixed and I want it fixed now!" Twilight quietly yells.
"Of course you do, but trust me, I'm almost done. Rainbow on the other hand..."
"Don't you touch her." Twilight jumps inbetween Discord and Rainbow Dash.
Fluttershy walks over. "Twilight, please, we need him." Twilight sighs.
"Rrrrr, fine! What do you want this time Discord?"
"Simple, an IOU." Twilight is silent and moves out of the way. "I'll take that as a yes." He snaps his fingers and Rainbow Dash disappears. "There, our friend Rainbow Dash is happily sleeping in her home once again, and the bed and bookshelf are fixed, that was for free."
"Thank you." Fluttershy says.
"Now then, I'd like to turn in one of my IOUs. Twilight, I need you to tell Lyra all about your trip to Earth." Twilight freezes.
"That's it?"
"What? Would you like something more difficult?" He smiles.
"Ok, I can do that." Discord pops away. "Well, I'll do that as soon as I get a chance. What could go wrong about it anyway?"
...
"Lyra!" Twilight try's to pry a hammer out of her hoof. "If you could just please let me finish." She says through her teeth. It goes flying and gets stuck in the roof. "Listen to me Lyra, I am Twilight. Twilight! Not Fluttershy. And this fake hand of yours is a waste of time because humans never existed in Equestria's history, ever! I lied, there happy?" Lyra sits there, staring at and shaking a picture of a hand. Twilight slips out before she notices and walks down a path. "That mare is not well."
"Why howdy Fluttershy." Applejack greets, meeting her in the cross section of the paths.
"Here we go. Hi Applejack, how are you?"
"I'm doin' dandy, thank you. Apple bucking season is plentiful as ever. How are you Fluttershy?"
"Oh, I'm good thanks. I had taken care of my animals yesterday and oh boy, we ate good."
"You uh, you what?"
"I took care of my animals, especially the sick ones. They were so sick, I couldn't even handle it. But it all worked out." Applejack stares at her, not moving or talking, just staring. "What?" Applejack starts to walk away.
"It's always the quiet ones." Twilight sits there, thinking until she gets it.
"No! Wait! Not like that! As in make better, make them not sick anymore and feed them! Not, oh forget it." She walks some more until she is greeted by Rainbow Dash.
"Hey Fluttershy, how are you?" She asks holding one hoof to her head.
"I'm fine, thank you. How are you, uh, um, Dashie?"
"I've been better, woke up today with a splitting headache. Don't know why."
"Ohhhhh, that's what he did."
"What?"
"N-nothing. So, how's Tank been?"
"Tank? He's fine I guess. I made him a new propeller so he is having fun with that. Hey, did you hear about the new... oh yeah, you're not into Daring Do." Twilight's face lights up.
"Are you kidding?! I love Daring Do! And the next one, Griffon Overlord, oh Celestia that will be, just, like, amazing! The meteor and crystal and just, everything! Especially the eighth wonder of the world, I wonder if it has to do with the rings. Maybe Ahuizotl is in it! Wait, even better, her father! Yes! It all makes sense now!" Rainbow is wide eyed. "What?"
"Wow Fluttershy, I didn't expect you to be this into Daring Do. Now you can come over to Twilight's and read it with us." Twilight face-hoofs.
"Hey uh, look over there!" Rainbow turns. THUD
...
"Did you really have to knock her out?" Fluttershy asks, looking at the sleeping Rainbow on the bed.
"I didn't know what else to do, I was me and not you for a minute."
"You know, I wouldn't mind going over and reading with you two." Twilight just angrily looks at Fluttershy. "Sorry." Discord walks in.
"Really? I enjoy these IOUs, but this was dark, even for you Twishy." Discord looks over Rainbow.
"My name is Twilight, and please, you'll get an IOU if you fix this." Discord snaps his fingers.
"Done. But if you will knock anypony else out, atleast keep poor Rainbow Dash out of it. I won't even ask for a new IOU. However, I'd like to turn in a second one. Fluttershy, please ask Pinkie Pie to make a batch of cupcakes and bring them here."
"Um, ok, I can do that."
"Wonderful!" He laughs and heads down stairs.
"Well, I should head down now. Twilight, shouldn't we just tell them we are switched? At least tell them when I head down?" Twilight sighs.
"Alright, let's tell them."
The Sleeping Cupcake
"You're what?!"
"How did this happen darlings?!"
"I knew y'all were actin' strange!"
"I still have the cupcakes!" Fluttershy and Twilight sit while the others all yell out what they think after learning that they have switched bodies.
Fluttershy gets up. "Girls, please, this should be an easy fix. We have discord-"
"Discord?!" Rainbow jumps foward, nose to nose with Fluttershy. "You have Discord working on this? Are you serious?!"
"Um, I, we, he-"
Rainbow steps back. "You don't know what you're doing, neither of you! You're making a big mistake."
"I'm sorry." Fluttershy sits back down, tears slowly streaming down her face. Rainbow goes to walk to her, but Applejack holds her back.
Twilight gets up. "Alright, look, I didn't like it at first either but she's right, Discord is the only way out of this. The only thing he asked for was a couple of IOUs."
Rarity walks next to Rainbow. "Well, I suppose it could be worse. At least they have a way out of this. You do have a way out of this, right Fluttershy? I mean, uh, Twilight? Or is it-"
"I'll stop you right there before you hurt yourself Rarity, yes they have a way out, Discord is going to fix it. But, sugarcube, why not go to the princesses?"
Twilight sits back. "I'm afraid that they'll be mad at me and banish me or Fluttershy, maybe both of us."
"Twi', we went through this, Big Mac still has Smarty Pants and still holds it at night when he falls asleep, nothin' will happen to you."
Pinkie pushes the cart of cupcakes forward. Rainbow grabs one and gives it to Fluttershy as an apology. "And even if they would, we wouldn't let anything happen to you. Pinkie and Cheese Sandwich would join forces and throw a party to sway them into giving you both back. Right Pinkie?"
"Nothing would stop me from doing that!" Pinkie yells cheerfully. Twilight smiles.
"Alright, I guess you're all right. Well, Fluttershy, let's go to Canterlot." She starts walking with the others, but Fluttershy is asleep on the couch. "Fluttershy." Twilight pushes her, she doesn't move. "Ok, this is a bit scary." Discord falls through the celling and into the room.
"Poor Fluttershy, all tuckered out. Well, really it was me and Pinkie that made her her sleep, but we can't blame anypony now can we?"
"You did what?!" Twilight yells at a high pitch.
"I didn't do anything, it was Rainbow who gave her the cupcake. And Pinkie didn't know I replaced the sugar with sleeping powder. Either way, she is asleep and will be for the next twenty-four hours. Until then you will be stuck like this, and wouldn't you guess I have just found out how to fix this small issue of ours. Oh well, tootaloo." He pops away.
"I can't believe this. Alright, so we have a day to wait." Twilight sits on a different chair than the one Fluttershy is on. "What now?"
"Well, I need to get going, Sweetie has a project to complete. Good luck darling." Rarity walks out the door.
"I need to get going too, Mrs. and Mr. Cake need me to baby sit, see you later!" Pinkie hops out.
"Granny needs me to fix up the barn door, call me if ya' need me." Applejack follows suit. Rainbow sits on a third chair.
"Don't you have somewhere to be Rainbow?"
"Nah, I'm off the clock today and Scoots is working on the project with the other two, so I've got no where to be." They sit, listening to nothing but the clock ticking. "So, what is it like?"
"What?"
"You know, being in a different body. Especially one that is always near animals."
"Oh. Well, I prefer to have magic, but Fluttershy's wings are pretty nice. They are clean and, not very shockingly, overly sensitive."
"How so?"
"Well a cat scratched it yesterday, I thought it fell off from the pain." They both laugh. "I don't understand. Why is Discord having all of these IOUs just random favors?"
"Trust me Twilight, he's up to something."
"I know, I just hate not knowing what it is."
"Carful what you wish for Twilight."
"You're right. Well, I should bring her to her place, it's been a long few days." Rainbow and her say goodbye and Twilight carries Fluttersy to her cottage. "I need to loose some pounds when I get back to normal." Walking in, Angel hops over and kicks at Twilight's feet. "Angel? I'm not Fluttershy, even though I sound and look exactly like her, I don't know what you want and where anything for you is." Twilight puts Fluttershy in her bed and lies on the couch. Angel looks at her and hops over to a bag. He kicks it over and food falls out. Twilight gets up and tries to pick the bag up, but it's so heavy she almost spills all of it. "Fluttershy does this every day? No wonder she was Saddle Ranger, she must be super strong on a daily basis."
"N-no. Please, no."
"Fluttershy?" Twilight trots up to her.
"No, please stay away, please." Angel goes over and slaps her, but nothing happens. Twilight goes over and shakes her.
"Fluttershy, wake up! Fluttershy!"
...
Fluttershy backs into a corner, shadows walking towards her. She is still in Twilight's body and still has her voice. "S-stay away, please don't hurt me, please!"
"We won't hurt you." A demented voice calls out. "We just want your body."
"No please!"
...
"Fluttershy!" A purple hoof flies up and hits Twilight in the jaw, knocking her onto the floor. The horn begins to glow and animals begin to fly around the room. "This isn't good, this isn't good at all." Discord walks upstairs. "Help me Discord!"
"As long as you promise to lock your door as my last IOU."
"Ok! Fine, just help her!" Discord snaps his fingers and Fluttershy quiets down. "Thank you. Now, what did you want?"
Twilight opens her eyes, taking a blanket off and sitting up. She fluffs her wings and walks outside, barley remembering the night before. "Fluttershy!" Rainbow yells, flying towards her. "Oh, sorry Twilight, forgot about your, your uh, place swap?"
"Oh it's fine Dashie, how are you?"
"I'm well, not good, Scootaloo taught me that saying I'm good is wrong and honestly, I prefer well. Makes me smarter sounding." Twilight chuckles. "What?"
"Oh nothing. Would you like to-" She stops herself.
"Uh, Twilight? You there?"
"Look at that. A male northern cardinal, it looks like a canicaudus Chapman sub-species. They were named in 1891 you know, one of the last sub-species for northern cardinals. And you can tell it's a male because of the red coat, the female is usually tan." Rainbow stares at her. "What?"
"Twilight, are you feeling ok?"
"Of course Dashie, why?"
"Hm, who created the Wonderbolts?"
"Um, I-I don't know, who?"
"General Firefly, you should know that, you're the one who taught me it." Twilight swings her hoof, looking at the ground. "I think we should get you changed back fast." Twilight nods and they head to Fluttershy's cottage, locking the door bend them.
Discord greets them. "Why hello there Rainbow Dash and Twilight, Fluttershy is awake and ready for the spell." He says while grinning.
"Oh goody, I can't wait to be back to normal." Fluttershy heads down stairs and stands next to Twilight. Discord claps and pops away. Both mares fall over and loose balance, unable to stay upright.
"Did it work?" Rainbow asks.
"Yes! I'm back to normal!" Fluttershy yells. "That could have gone terrible, but we did it together."
"Yay." Twilight faintly yells.
"Ok, what's going on here?" Rainbow asks, confused and upset. "You're both back to normal and fixed, but why are you guys acting like the other one? Here, Fluttershy, what animal is cutesy and wootsie and quick as can be?"
"Uh, a cat?"
"No! A bunny!"
"Well how was I supposed to know that?"
Twilight lowers and backs away a bit. "Girls."
"And you're not supposed to be upset about us arguing, what happened to you two?!" There is a bang at the door. "What was that?" The banging continues.
"Hands, I know you have them Sparkle, and I want them. Please, give me your hands!"
Rainbow walks behind a chair. "Twilight, what is this pony talking about?"
"I-I don't know, I hope she isn't mad about something." The door is ripped off the hinges, the lock shattering and falling to pieces.
"Give, me, your, hands!" Lyra has a wooden, fully functional, perfectly replicated hand over a hoof.
"Lyra! We don't even know what hands are, calm down. I bet Discord put you up to this, didn't he?"
"No, I want my hands."
"Here, you'll grow hands if you eat this." Rainbow holds out a cupcake. Lyra snatches it and chows it down. "Good, now then, I... I want, I, I want my, your..." She falls over asleep. Rainbow stares at her, not moving or talking.
"Um, Dashie? I think you should go home, you need your rest." Twilight says.
Fluttershy pushes her. "Let's give her some space, she'll be fine." They walk out of the room. "Why was she so inquisitive about us? And why was Lyra trying to break my house?"
"Um, I may have told her about my trip to Earth, Discord asked it for an IOU."
"Oh, ok, well if this is what he was trying to achieve, then what was the point of it?" Fluttershy stands still, staring at the room Rainbow is in. "Come on Twilight, let's go talk to Rainbow Dash." They walk in the room to a twitching, smiling, still Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow?"
"I have spent the last three days confused and hopeless for you two. Now, after this, I'm not sure if I should even be allowed to talk anymore."
"Look, Dash, I know you're scared but there is a simple explanation to all of this."
"But that's just it Fluttershy, there isn't. You are acting exactly like Twilight, and Twilight is acting exactly like you but neither of you notice. It doesn't make any sense. And then this happens because of Discord, I don't know what to think about that. Then to top it all off, Twilight will definitely not be willing to go to the princesses now that she is like this."
Twilight steps foward. "I'm sorry, but they could be just so mad, they wouldn't have any mercy on any of us."
"No Flutter- I mean Twilight, it isn't your fault. I just don't think we have any hope to fix this anymore." Rainbow walks out of the house.
"Rainbow wait! Oh forget it. I don't understand what she means by us acting different, I am perfectly normal and so aren't you, right Twilight?"
"Well, I think so. I mean, if I'm acting like you then you should be acting like me but you aren't so how am I acting like... my head hurts."
"I think we need to speak with Discord." The floor opens.
"Did someone call my name?" Fluttershy steps forward.
"Rainbow Dash keeps saying we aren't acting like ourselves, what did you do?"
"I can not believe this, are we really switched again?" Fluttershy asks, getting more and more frustrated by the minute.
"I fixed the issue and the side affects had taken place without any fair warning, what else do you want?" Discord asks.
"Oh I don't know, try being normal maybe?"
"You are normal, just different." Fluttershy ignores him.
"Um, Fluttershy, shouldn't we just be patient? Fluttershy?" She walks past Twilight. "Where are you going?"
"To Applejack's."
"But, shouldn't we work this out?"
"We will, just without him near us and with a nice, cold, refreshing cider in my hooves." She opens the door. "Coming?"
...
"Applejack, give me some cider please." Fluttershy says, sitting across from her at a round table.
"Sure thing sugar cube, I'll take it Discord didn't fix the spell yet?"
"Oh no, he did."
"Oh, uh, well ok, one cider comin' up." The barn doors open and Rarity trots in.
"Oh Applejack darling, I have your... I see you're busy."
"Not now Rarity, another time." Applejack says through her teeth.
"Very well, I don't say I blame you." She walks out.
"Applejack, what was that about?" Twilight asks.
"Something that shouldn't worry y'all a bit. Now then, the cider." Applejack hands Fluttershy the cider, but watches her drink it down.
"Another please."
"Uh, I wouldn't recommend that but, if you're sure." She hands her another and the same happens.
"Ugh, why isn't it working? The princess says it helps her all the time with stress." Fluttershy spins the cup.
"Oh, oh! Oh no, you're done if that's your plan sugarcube, ain't no way that's happening here." Applejack closes the barrel.
"Hm, fine."
"Um, Fluttershy, shouldn't you look for-"
"Oh Celestia!" Applejack yells. "Your cutie marks!" Fluttershy and Twilight look at their flanks, only to find that their cutie marks have switched. Fluttershy's cutie mark is Twilight's and Twilight's is Fluttershy's.
"Oh no, this is bad, really bad. Ok, Twilight, I need you to-"
"Ahhhh!"
"Ok, don't panic, that's number one. Number two, since Discord fixed us, we can go to the princesses and have them fix his fixing, or something. Ok twilight, I thik we can do this. to the train station!"
Applejack walks to the door, closing it. "Fluttershy, the train is broken down. You could both fly there but I don't think you'd be able to last that long in the air, even with breaks. Trust me, the best choice right now is to wait." Fluttershy slumps into her chair. "Oh, and uh, your eyes." Applejack hands them a mirror, showing their eye colors have swapped as well.
"Ok, you're right, so what do we do about this?"
"Ah' don't know, but what ever you do, don't get Discord involved. He is slick and manipulative, don't trust him. You hear that Twilight? Twilight? Where'd she go?"
"I don't know, she was here a second ago. Wait, you don't think-"
"She wouldn't."
"I hope not."
...
"And I was kind of wondering if you would um, well, fix this please." Twilight asks Discord, sitting across from him in Fluttershy's cottage.
"Oh Twilight, I prefer the new you to your old self. You're so much more calm and peaceful. I will help you, but for a small, simple price."
"Yes?"
"I'd like a chair in your new house. One near Fluttershy's."
"Ok, I can do that."
"Wonderful! Now, give me some time and I'll get back to you on this cure. Chow for now." Discord pops away.
"Twilight! Please tell me I'm not too late." Fluttershy says, barging in her own home.
"Oh, hi Fluttershy. Too late for what?"
"You know what."
"Um, well I just talked with Discord, he's working on a cure."
"That's what! Why would you ask The Lord of chaos to fix something chaotic?"
"Because, um, well, I guess it makes sense in my mind." Twilight backs up a bit.
"Ok, this is fine, it's ok, he shouldn't have asked for anything too bad. Maybe another IOU, or a new sink, what did he ask for exactly?"
"A chair in my house. One near you."
"A chair? There's a catch, there has to be. He wouldn't ask for something so easy, so modest, he's up to something again, and I don't like it."
Discord walks down stairs. "No catches Fluttershy. No tricks, no favors, no late fees, nothing but a chair."
"Why don't I believe you?" Fluttershy asks, taking care of Angel.
"Because you shouldn't."
"What are you going to do Discord?"
"Has it really come down to a trust-less friendship? I fixed your little problem and I have yet to earn your trust?"
"Yes!"
"Oh, well ok then." He smile and walks outside.
"Well great, once again we are in his claw things. Twilight, next time you decide to do something like that, please inform me prior to doing it."
"Ok, sorry Fluttershy." Twilight walks upstairs and pulls out the pan from earlier. "Well, I guess I need to get started."
Explanations and nightmares
Opening her eyes, Twilight sits up and yawns. She gets out of bed and remakes it, then takes care of Angle and three birds that were already in her room. She walks out of the room and over to the bathroom to wash her face to wake up. She looks in the mirror and shrugs, seeing a yellow coated, hornless Pegasus looking back. Her mane is longer than she remembers and is now pink along with the tail. "Good morning Twilight."
"Good morning Discord." Twilight says, though her voice is much higher in pitch than she remembers.
"Oh my, the side affects really work fast."
"What do you mean?" Twilight asks, putting away Bird food.
"Oh nothing. Where is Fluttershy?" A mare runs in the room. She is purple and has a short, purple mane and tail.
"Right here." Fluttershy says. She has a horn with wings, her coat is purple and her voice is different. "Twilight, we need to go."
"Where?"
"Canterlot. The train station is fixed and we must hurry, we don't have much time."
"Oh, well if you're sure I'd hate to argue."
"Wait a minute you two." Discord says. "Neither of you are allowed to seek the princesses help, it was part of our deal."
Fluttershy gets mad. "No it wasn't, and yes we are. No matter what you say you can not stop us from going to the princess. Come on Twilight." They head out of the house.
Discord smiles as the door closes. "Perfect."
...
They arrive at the train station looking around. There are ponies swarming the station and trying to get on the current train. Twilight and Fluttershy barley manage to squeeze in. "Why is it so busy here today?" Fluttershy asks.
"I don't know, but just take half-breathes and try to stay still."
"Ms. Sparkle? May I have your auto graph?" A filly asks.
"I'm not Twilight, I'm Fluttershy."
"But, isn't this you?" It holds up a photo of Twilight.
"Oh no. Oh no no no, Twilight, prepare for a confusing talk." They manage to last the entire ride to Canterlot. They get out of the train and head straight to the castle. "Princess!" Fluttershy yells, barging into the royal room.
"Ms. Shy, how nice of you to join us." Celestia walks out from a door in the front.
"Princess, what happened to us? Why are we different? So far all of our friends have told us that we aren't normal, what's happening to us?"
"Fluttershy, you must understand that spells created by StarSwirl the Bearded have to be tested every few millennia."
"Tested?" The floor turns black and white lines begin to connect.
"You see, Discord may be The Lord of chaos, but you are the element of magic. Magic isn't always reliable, we very well know that. But it is easy to manipulate and this little test of ours proves that. I had perpously made you mess up your spell in order to see if an old spell still works. Now although we have proved it does, I'm afraid that it has produced some extra side affects to go along with it." The floor stops and shows a picture of Twilight's and Fluttershy's cutie mark.
"But, why me? If you wanted to test the spell, couldn't you have done it on Discord?"
"Magic is inside of you Fluttershy, and although you are Fluttershy at the moment, I am really talking to Twilight. Magic will forever be who you are, it will forever be what makes you you and others them. I messed up your spell to prove this, to prove that magic is always unique, no matter who you are. And the element of magic is the best way to have others understand this." the floor goes back to normal.
"And what about me?" Twilight asks.
"Oh don't worry, you'll be fine. In a minute you will both be back to normal, my little experiment is done for now. But the reason I chose you two specifically is that out of the seven elements, kindness is the only one that truly goes with any other. Loyalty, magic, honesty, generosity, laughter, and... well, you'll see. But kindness will never put up a fight that isn't winnable unless friends are at stake. So I apologize for any trouble, but it was well worth it, trust me."
"So what now princess?"
"Now you must return to normal. If you don't then the world will plunge into absolute anarchy and rebellions and fights will begin, you need to get your old selves back."
"But how?" They both ask.
"Let me take care of that." Celestia's horn glows yellow and she rises into the air with a smile. Twilight and Fluttershy begin spinning around the room until they hit into eachother, being knocked out.
...
"Twilight!" Rainbow Dash and the others run up to her.
"Hey girls, what's going on?"
"We, we thought you were dead." Rarity stutters.
"Dead?"
"The news article, they said you were lost for four months, but you're back!" Applejack yells. Suddenly, they are lifted into the air and then disappear, leaving Twilight alone in the dark. A light appears below her and she falls into it.
"Perfect." Discord sits on the couch as Twilight and Fluttershy walk out. "They'll never suspect it, won't they be in shock when they learn?" He pats a cat until he turns into Rainbow Dash.
"Daring Do and the Griffon Overlord! Isn't that awesome?!" Rainbow yells.
"Uh, yeah! That is totally not scary or frightening in any way, it'll be great!" Fluttershy fakes a smile. She then falls through the ground, once again leaving Twikight in darkness.
"Woah, woah!" She starts falling. The more she falls, the brighter it gets. It goes all white then immediately to pitch black.
...
"Unity..."
Opening her eyes, Twilight stands and groans from pain. "Well, I could go through your old books and try to find the spell."
"W-what?" She looks up and sees Spike standing over her.
"The book. For the spell, the spell that you're trying to do."
"Spell? What spell?" Spike looks at her confused. "Wait, where's Fluttershy?"
"She's at her cottage, why?"
"I'll be back." Twilight runs upstairs. The window blows open and Fluttershy flies in. "Twilight! We're back to normal!" They hug in the room.
"I guess the princess really came through for us." Twilight says. Discord walks in.
"Well well well, it seems as though our little issue is resolved."
"Yes it is, but no thanks to you. We didn't even know we were changing."
"Twilight, do you really expect me to do something this evil by my deciding?" He asks, a halo popping up over his head.
"You're the one who knew about the side affects before they even happened."
"Guilty as charged." The door opens and Celestia walks into the room.
"Hello everypony, how are we?" She asks.
"We're well princess, but may I ask what is happening with Discord? Why is he even involved in our issue?" Celestia levitates the box containing the elements into the room.
"Discord helped you defeat Tirek. He was reformed at your expense. He has been part of your friends ever since he met you, and I believe it is about time that we give him what he deserves." The box opens and a necklace floats in mid-air. It looks just like the others, but the symbol in the middle is a world. "The element of Unity. He has brought you six together more than once, and he deserves it for the work he has done."
"Why Celestia, thank you." Discord says, holding it. It then levitates and snaps on around his neck. The other elements begin to glow, Twilight's levitating around her neck and Fluttershy's following suite. They begin to glow, shooting different colored beams at eachother. A bright light goes off.
"I-is everyone ok?" Fluttershy asks.
"You." Twilight walks over to her, forcing her to back up. "If you weren't such a cry baby about what ever you needed help with then none of this would have happened!"
"Twilight Sparkle! This is not like you!"
"I-I'm sorry!" Fluttershy quietly yells.
Celestia walks to Discord. "Discord, your element, it was meant for you for a reason." Discord nods and stands tall. He walks over but is hit in the leg by four mares who are bickering while running into the house. He stands up on one leg and floats into the air.
Rainbow Dash walks under him. "What are you doing here?! Come down here and fight me like a colt!"
"You wouldn't last a minute." Applejack tells her.
"We should throw a party for Discord when he wins." Pinkie mocks.
"Oh yes darling, wonderful idea, now if you could please let me handle the decorations when you do, you're sense of beauty is all but good." Rarity laughs out.
"At least I can get friends without making them something to be my friend, or something."
Fluttershy backs up. "Girls?" Discord's element glows the colors of the rainbow. The colors then turn into a floating dot then explodes throughout the room.
Twilight looks around rubbing her head. "Girls? What happened?"
Celestia walks up. "Discord saved you all."
"He did? But why did we act different?"
"Because after you and Fluttershy returned to normal, the balance of harmony had not. The elements were divided, confused and mixed when you two switched bodies. They needed to be reunited and fixed, and that's where Discord comes in." Celestia smiles.
"Discord, it's true, you really are the element of Unity." Twilight walks up to him. "Thank you."
"You're welcome. I will leave my element with you Twilight Sparkle, you have the others anyway."
"Thank you Discord." He winks and walks out. The princess nods and pops away.
"Wow, I'm surprised he actually did that." Rainbow Dash exclaims, a sense of surprise meant in her voice.
"He can be nice, you just need to get to know him." Fluttershy exclaims.
"Well, I'm glad that's all over. I believe there is a lesson to be learned here for all of us." Twilight proclaims. "But, I think we can just be grateful for being where we ended up. Now then, what did you need help with Fluttershy?"
