Reforming Spell

By that point, the sun was rising, and it was like night and day. Most of the more dangerous predators went to sleep during the day, and the ridiculously murderous plants were all brightly colored and visible. I still wouldn’t let your foals wander around in it, but the Everfree Forest during the day is… manageable.

We met up with the clone who’d escaped from Clump, and even caught up to the one who’d sprained her ankle, since we were heading back the way we’d come. After half an hour, we reached the river, and from there it was just a matter of following it downstream until we got to Froggy Bottom Bog.

There was supposed to be a hydra living there, but we didn’t run into it.

Number Two and Twilight Sparkle caught up to us in one of the open fields outside the forest, before we got to town.

Twilight scrunched her nose up a bit as she looked at the seven of us. “Where are the rest of the clones?” she asked.

“Dead,” Thirty said. “This was as many as we could save.”

Twilight stepped forwards and slapped her, hard. “You idiots! What were you thinking travelling through the Everfree Forest at night!”

“We were thinking that the mirror pool couldn’t be that far from Ponyville, if you had to put a giant rock on top of it to keep ponies out,” I said. “But it turns out that it takes a really, really long time to find Ponyville if you walk in the opposite direction.”

Twilight turned to look at me, and sniffed. “And why do you smell like dragon semen?”

I raised an eyebrow, and grinned. “Do you really want me to answer that?”

“But – what about you and Spike?”

“Spike’s Lyra’s,” I said. “I’m not Lyra. But I’ll get you Lyra back. Soon.”

Thirty started to explain. “We made a bunch of clones so that –“

Twilight interrupted. “I know, the other Lyra filled me in on the details. You’re sure that the next clone from the pool will be the real Lyra?”

“Well… no?” I said. “There’s no way to be sure... but I think she can pull it off.”

Twilight nodded. “And the rest of you are ready to go back to the pool?”

“Oh yes, please!” said one of the clones. “I don’t want to get eaten by a monster! It really doesn’t seem fun at all!”

It only took a few seconds for Twilight to zap the mindless clones. When she turned her horn on me, I held up a hoof.

“Wait!” I said. “Not me! You need me to make the clone that the real Lyra will be in!”

“No, do it,” Number Two said. “Zap her. You can clone any of us, and she’s a complete psychopath.”

“It’s not my fault!” I said. “I’m only what you made me, Twilight.”

“I made you as close to Lyra as I could,” Twilight said, keeping her horn charged. “From what your duplicate said, that was a terrible mistake. Lyra may have been a little obsessed with death and dragons, but she was never a murderer!”

“Yes! Lyra isn’t a murderer!” I shouted. I knew that I probably should have been making excuses and trying to de-escalate the situation, but I was just so tired and angry and I didn’t think that anything I said was going to make any difference in what Twilight did since she’d already decided I was a villain. “So if I am, it’s all your fault! You and your stupid Reforming Spell!”

She tried to zap me, at that point, but I saw the slight movement as she lowered her head to aim her horn, and that was enough warning to dodge. Then I turned and ran, putting Luna’s lessons in evasive maneuvering to good use – her next two shots went wide as well. By then, I’d made it to the edge of the forest, and vanished into the undergrowth. I expected her to be right on my tail, but the trees and bushes would give concealment and cover, and a slight hope of getting away.

It turned out that she wasn’t even chasing me. She’d been distracted.

===

“Cloud Kicker, what are you doing here?” Twilight asked.

“I just saw you with a couple of changelings, and wondered if they’d be interested in coming over to a private party at my place,” she replied, draping her front hooves over the edge of her napping-cloud.

“We’re not changelings,” Thirty told her. “We’re clones from the mirror pool.”

“Shh!” Twilight hissed, but it was too late. Cloud was already swooping down and standing very close to Thirty, virtually nose to nose.

“Really? Oh wow! I’ve heard stories, but I was never able to find it… can you imagine the fun I could have with a few more of me?”

“You know why that’s a terrible idea,” Twilight said. “Pinkie Pie’s clones almost destroyed Ponyville.”

Cloud Kicker waved a wing at the princess. “Please! At best they annoyed Ponyville. And I’d only make one.”

“You said ‘a few’,” Twilight pointed out.

“Since you’re so concerned, I’ll make one, okay? Just tell me where to find it!”

“You’ll make none!” Twilight said. “Just go home, and forget all about this. The mirror pool isn’t a toy, and neither are the clones it makes!”

“Fine,” the pegasus said, taking to the air. “Party pooper.” She stuck her tongue out and made a rude noise as she flew off.

“Now what do I do about you two?” Twilight asked, turning on the clones.

She really should have remembered to come chase me – or at least paid attention to which way Cloud Kicker was flying. I was still racing through the forest at top speed when the pegasus landed in front of me with a loud crash and a jaunty grin.

I had no idea what had just happened, so I assumed she was working with Twilight to catch me. Since most of my combat training was as a bat pony, my panicked reaction was to rear up and try to stab her with my spear… only I didn’t have a spear, so I just sort of kicked at her with my forehooves. She caught one of them in her teeth, and flipped me onto my back, pinning me to the leafy ground.

“Where is it?” she asked.

I stared at her. “What?”

“The mirror pool. Where is it.”

“I don’t know,” I said, still a bit confused. “It was night, and we were totally lost after leaving it. I guess you could just look for that weird patch of brambles? It’s in the middle of those.”

Cloud Kicker snorted. “’The twistiest of vines’. Yeah, I checked there years ago. Nothing there but a giant rock.”

“It’s under the rock,” I said. “Was under the rock. We moved the rock to get out.”

“Oh,” she said, then grinned, and gave me a kiss. “Thanks!”

I think you can see where this is going.