[C] From Nasty to Nice

by CSPB2024

Rating: everyone
Tags: Main 6, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Alternate Universe, Other
Length: 11846

(A request for MasonKlusek. Takes place in an AU during and after "The Mean Six".) Twilight and her friends manage to thwart Chrysalis' clones. And instead of destroying them, they try to teach them the magic of friendship.

(This story was a commission for/request from MasonKlusek. Takes place in an AU during and after "The Mean Six" for obvious reasons.)

Twilight and her friends are suddenly made aware of the fact that their strange camping trip has really been the work of Queen Chrysalis. And that it's all part of her plan to try to steal the Elements of Harmony and use them against their original bearers.

Alerted to this plot, Twilight and her friends arrive in time to thwart it. Chrysalis then flees, abandoning her own creations, who are left to the mercy of the very ponies they're meant to be copies of.

Instead of destroying the clones, however, Twilight proposes that she and her friends teach their copies about the virtues that make up the Elements of Harmony. It's her hope that this will get the clones to change their ways, but will it work as Twilight intends?

Published 2024-06-07 20:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2024-06-07 20:00:00 UTC

Magical Mutiny

Twilight, Starlight, and Spike were understandably hesitant and weary about letting the evil Twilight accompany them back to Twilight’s castle. Even so, Twilight had made up her mind and was not about to change it so easily. She had to try.

“Letting me stay with you for as long as I want?” The Twilight clone smirked with sinister glee as she was brought to the castle via teleportation. “That’s a move you may soon regret. You saw me turn against my creator. What makes you think I won’t turn against you?”

Twilight frowned. “You don’t get it, do you? You never could’ve used the Elements of Harmony, because you don’t represent any of the virtues that the elements embody. The Tree of Harmony itself wouldn’t have been fooled. You may look like me, but you’re not like me at all!”

“Exactly!” The evil Twilight boasted. “And if you think you can just magically compel me to be nice, you’re mistaken. And so are those ‘friends’ of yours trying to do the same thing with the rest of those annoying, pathetic fools. If I didn’t need them for my plans, I would’ve happily let them all be destroyed by her majesty when they outlived their usefulness.”

Spike just groaned and rolled his eyes. “Yeah yeah, we get it. You’re evil and you’re never going to change. We’ve heard it all before. You’re far from the first pony who thought that way. Twilight’s found a way to get so many like minded ponies to change, and change for the better.”

Starlight, however, wasn’t so convinced. “I’m not too sure about this one, Spike. She isn’t just an evil version of Twilight, she reminds me an awful lot of what I used to be like,” She shuddered. “The memories still haunt me. I may have put that past behind me, but some pains never go away.”

“So you used to be bad and now you’re good?” The Twilight clone questioned with a sinister smile. “I see. How pathetic, you’re even more of a loser than I thought!’

“Loser?!” Starlight angrily retorted as her eyes narrowed! “If you’re trying to make me angry, you’re doing a very good job!”

Twilight immediately moved to shut down a potential argument before it could get started. “Don’t let her get to you, Starlight. You’re better than that,” She then turned to her doppleganger. “You may be evil and misguided now. But as the princess of friendship, I’m going to do everything in my power to teach you the error of your ways. And I’ll do it whether you like it or not.”

The Twilight doppleganger only rolled her eyes. “Spare me your ridiculous sentiments and prepared speeches. You’ll learn soon enough that you can’t change me no matter what you try! Friendship is pointless.”

“I once thought the same thing,” The young alicorn replied with a shake of her head. “Luckily, I learned pretty quickly that such wasn’t the case. With any luck, I’ll get you to see the same.”

“So, what are we going to do first, your highness?” The Twilight clone taunted the alicorn. “What’s your first ‘lesson’?”

“Well actually, first we need to think about what we’re going to call you,” Spike spoke up. “We can’t have there be two Twilights. I mean, there technically are two, but the other one’s in a completely different world from ours. But that’s not the point.”

The evil Twilight replied in an indifferent tone of voice. “Call me whatever you like, I don’t really care. A new name is certainly not going to make me change.”

Starlight groaned and put a hoof to her forehead. “Then let’s just call you Thgiliwt! Everything about you is the opposite of Twilight, so we might as well reverse her name and give it to you.”

“Really? That’s it? Just ‘Thgiliwt’?” The clone taunted in a sarcastic tone of voice. “You sure you don’t have some fancy, pretty name you wanna give me?”

The alicorn princess grinned. “Actually, I think Thgiliwt is a good name for now. We can give you a more fitting name after you change your ways. Maybe that’ll serve as the motivation you need to accept my help.”

“Thgiliwt” could only roll her eyes in disbelief. “Given the choice, I’d rather just be a colored log. At least then I wouldn’t have to listen to such silly statements,” She folded her hooves across her chest. “But fine, you can call me that if you want to. I don’t really care either way!”

“Good, Thgiliwt it shall be, then,” Twilight declared. “And we can start on your lessons tomorrow,” She lifted a hoof to her mouth and let out a yawn. “For right now, I just wanna call it a night. Perhaps you’ll be in a better mood after a good night’s sleep and a chance to think about your actions.”

“And where are you going to make me sleep?” Thgiliwt asked. “Are you just gonna make me sleep out here on the castle floor?”

Starlight smirked. “We’ve got plenty of spare rooms in this castle. You can claim any one of them as your own, Thgiliwt,” And she trotted off. “I’m going to bed. Twilight may think there’s something good in you, but I’m not so convinced.”

Spike then set off too, but not before adding. “You better not try anything with Twilight, for your sake. You should be thankful you’re even getting this second chance at all.”

Thgiliwt grit her teeth and replied with narrowed eyes. “I guess I should be grateful,” Under her breath she added. “But you’re gonna regret that gratefulness.”

Thgiliwt soon managed to find an abandoned room in one of the castle’s many winding hallways and tried to settle in for the night.

But the evil clone of the alicorn princess soon decided that sleep was not going to come to her easily. In fact, it seemed like it was going to elude her. Her mind was swarming with so many thoughts and feelings, all of them conflicted and confused. Why would her good counterpart show her any sort of mercy? Why would Twilight take her doppleganger in when it was clear that said clone had been born of malicious intent?

It made no sense. If the roles were reversed, Thgiliwt was quite certain she would’ve left any counterpart or clone of hers to rot and be forgotten. Why was it different just because the pony she was a copy of believed in the magic of friendship? What did she know about some silly tree in the middle of a forest?

And that belief that Thgiliwt could change. What basis did it have? It wasn’t based in reality as far as the clone could tell. So what was it that compelled the princess to show such hospitality, and all of her friends to do the same?

The more Thgiliwt thought about it, the more conflicted and confused she became. She groaned, angrily stomping her hooves down and pounding the floor! “This is stupid! Nothing about this makes sense at all! Why do I care what the princess thinks?!” She complained to herself. Then and there, an idea came into her mind. She didn’t want to spend another minute in this castle.

So that meant there was only one thing to do: Run away. And that’s exactly what Thgiliwt decided to do. She would go fend for herself without care for who might see her. That would teach that silly princess to think that she could so easily make a clone change its mind.

Thgiliwt raced a nearby window and boosted herself out of it. Once her hooves hit the ground, she took off running at full speed! She wanted to get as far away from the castle as possible! Heck, she was already convinced she wanted nothing to do with Ponyville. She would rather try her luck in the Everfree Forest, the place where she had been created and brought to life.

A Scheme Undone

Just after Twilight Sparkle and her friends had finally caught up to one another again and shared a laugh at the strangest camping experience they’d ever experienced, they were surprised by the sudden sound of frantic wing flaps. Suddenly, who should appear before them but a very panicked looking Spike?! His eyes were widened, and he sounded as if he was out of breath!

“Oh, thank goodness I found you all!” Spike said in between heavy pants. And he quickly apologized to Twilight. “I’m sorry, Twilight! I know you wanted me to stay behind and look after your castle and the school, but I just couldn’t stay cooped up! I had to get outside! I had to do something!”

Twilight quickly motioned a hoof to the little dragon, trying to calm him down as best she could. “It’s okay, Spike. Just take some deep breaths. What is it that’s got you so worked up?”

“Yeah,” Starlight inquired. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost or something. At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised given all the other unexplainable oddities we’ve been seeing today. It’s like this forest has brought something out of us that we never knew existed.”

Spike paused for a moment to catch his breath, still panting heavily. But he was able to regain enough composure to explain himself to the best of his ability. “I was just flying over the Everfree Forest, and I overhear someone talking to themselves. At first I was just going to ignore it, but then I heard them start talking about the Elements of Harmony. It kinda sounded like Trixie, except I knew Trixie would never be talking to herself in the Everfree Forest.”

“So, who was it?” Rainbow Dash asked. “Somepony up to no good?”

Spike nodded. “Not exactly a pony. It was a changeling. Queen Chrysalis. And she somehow figured out a way to make clones of you. All of you. Well, all of you except for Starlight.”

Starlight groaned. “That’s the same Chrysalis who rejected my offer to be a better leader for her subjects. I should’ve known she’d come back eventually,” Then she gasped as the realization hit her! “Wait a minute, that’s it! That explains everything!”

“Explains what, Starlight?” Fluttershy nervously inquired.

Twilight took the liberty of explaining to her friends. “I realized the same thing. Now it all makes sense. Thing about the strange behavior we all witnessed from what we thought were our friends. What if they weren’t really us? What if they were just made to look like us?”

Applejack pondered. “So, that was all Chrysalis’ doin’? What could she possibly be after that’s in this forest, though?”

But Pinkie Pie sheepishly blushed as she explained. “Well, I kinda sorta might have told what I thought was Twilight about the Elements of Harmony, and about the Tree of Harmony, and about that weird rainbow power the tree gave us that one time,” She nervously added. “I thought there was something weird about Twilight of all ponies asking me about that. But I just thought maybe she was testing me somehow in case I’d forgotten. I was going to say something, but after everypony else started acting weird and we all started thinking it was just us, I forgot about it.”

Spike then became alarmed all over again! “That’s it, then! She’s after the Elements of Harmony, and she’s using those clones of you to get them! She has to be stopped! If she gets the Elements of Harmony, there’s no telling what she might be capable of!”

“But she probably has a head start on us!” Rarity realized.

“All the more reason why we’d better book it to the Tree of Harmony right now!” Rainbow Dash boldly declared, then raced ahead before anyone could say anything further!

Twilight just sighed, putting a hoof to her forehead. “I wish she wouldn’t do that,” She turned to the others. “Stay close to me, everyone. I just hope we’re not too late.” And with a flick of her horn, she teleported herself, Spike, and the rest of her friends away.

As it turned out, Chrysalis had managed to find the Tree of Harmony. Not through renegade changelings, but through hastily created clones. Unfortunately for her, the clones had decided that they would take the Elements of Harmony for themselves. And she had just now discovered their ruse! “How dare you! I created you!” She snapped, turning her full fury on the one who had orchestrated this rebellion: The clone of Twilight.

The evil Twilight just smirked, effortlessly repelling her creator with her magic. All the while, she did her best to tune out her fellow clones, all of whom didn’t seem to share her sense of urgency about obtaining the Elements of Harmony. Aside from the evil Rarity clone, all the other clones were just lying around, doing very little to help.

Try as she might, the evil former queen was no match for the evil Twilight. Slowly but surely, she was being forced back, her beam of sickly green magic being almost completely overwhelmed by the reddish-violet magic of the Twilight clone. Was she about to be done in by one of her own creations?

Just then, who should happen to come upon the scene but the real Twilight Sparkle and her friends? What they saw made them all collectively gasp and do a double take! There were the dopplegangers of themselves, and they had already reached the Tree of Harmony. Yet it seemed like they weren’t much interested in stealing the elements. The clone Twilight in particular was spending more time and effort fighting Chrysalis.

Yet the seven friends quickly decided that if they hesitated, there was no telling what the outcome would be. They all rushed down to the gorge where the Tree of Harmony was located, ready to fight to protect the tree and the elements resting upon it!

When Queen Chrysalis saw the very same ponies she’d been trying so hard to defeat approaching her, she groaned. Quickly unfolding her wings, she flew up and hissed! “I don’t have time to waste with you pathetic ponies! I don’t know why I bothered cloning you! Even when I make copies of you, you still find a way to outsmart me!” To her clones, she declared. “I don’t care what happens to you! I hope you and the ponies wipe each other out!”

“Wait! Chrysalis!” Starlight desperately called out to the disgraced ex-queen.

The evil former queen only coldly replied as she flew away. “Are you going to waste your time with me, or are you gonna destroy those good for nothing clones in order to save yourself? Whatever you do, I don’t care!”

The evil Twilight just watched as her creator disappeared over the horizon. Just like that, she had won. Or so it seemed. “We’re better off without you, your majesty.” She delivered the last line in a noticeable sarcastic, condescending tone.

Fluttershy, meanwhile, was surprised to see that all the other clones had already given up on trying to take the elements off of the tree. It seemed like none of them cared now that Chrysalis was gone. The only one that even bothered was the evil Rarity. “It’s not fair! They should all be mine!” The evil Rarity hissed! “Why doesn’t this stupid tree just cough ‘em up already?”

“Because they don’t belong to you!” Twilight pointed out as she approached the clones. “The elements only respond to the ponies who represent their virtues. And it’s clear to me that none of you represent what those virtues are. Instead of being honest, generous, kind, and loyal, and instead of spreading laughter and magic, you’re all lying, greedy, cruel, care only about yourselves, mock others, and just want power.”

The evil Twilight clone rolled her eyes. “Spare me your cheesy speeches, princess. You don’t need those others. You’re strong enough, you should be able to lead by yourself! These useless fools only got in my way! If not for them, I would’ve defeated Chrysalis and all of you ponies. Then I would be the one to rule Equestria.”

Fluttershy could only shake her head in disapproval. “Friendship isn’t about power, and it’s not always about yourself.”

“Why do you care about us?” The evil Fluttershy snapped! “You’re just a bunch of pitiful do-gooders!”

Rainbow Dash then interjected! “That’s where you’re wrong! We’re friends because we care about each other and want to help each other be the best they can be! It’s a team effort! You’re only ever as strong as your weakest link. And we all work hard to make sure none of us are the weakest link.”

“Whatever,” The evil Pinkie Pie remarked in an indifferent tone of voice. “Just go ahead and destroy us so we can get this over with already.”

But Twilight protested. “I have a better idea in mind. Unlike your creator, we’re not so cruel as to erase you the moment you act up. Maybe there’s a chance you can all grow. You are ponies, just like us.”

“Yeah right,” The evil Applejack scoffed. “We’re just a bunch of cheap clones. Chrysalis was the only one who ever cared about us. You don’t really care what happens to us. You just can’t bring yourselves to do the job properly!”

Undeterred, the alicorn princess spoke up. “Well, we’ll just see about that, won’t we?” And she turned to her friends. “What do you think, girls?”

“Can we really get them to change?” Fluttershy asked with concern. “They seem pretty set in their ways.”

Starlight saw fit to add. “Well, you girls do have a track record for turning seemingly lost causes into successes.”

Rarity nodded. “That’s a good point, Starlight. It certainly can’t hurt to try.”

“Yeah!” Pinkie excitedly exclaimed! “Who knows? It could be tons of fun. Besides, it’ll set a good example for our students.”

“What the hay, count me in!” Rainbow eagerly remarked!

And Applejack added her sentiments. “Guess it can’t hurt to try. If we can teach the magic of friendship to other creatures far and wide, there’s no good reason why we shouldn’t attempt to teach it to these… clones of ours.”

“Exactly!” Twilight smiled, and then turned to the clones. “You’re all going to learn the magic of friendship. And we’re just the ponies to help you do it.”

The clones all reacted with visible shock and disgust, especially the clone of Twilight! She could only groan and roll her eyes. “Oh joy.”

Author's Note

This is my first commission. Check out my account if you wish to know more or make requests.

Learning to Laugh

With the ponies (and Spike) all in agreement about what to do with their hastily created clones, they all decided it best for each clone to be worked on one by one. Each clone would go with the pony it was a copy of.

“How long are we supposed to try to make this work?” Starlight nervously asked Twilight as the clones were split up (despite many of them groaning and protesting the entire time).

“At least a month,” Twilight replied. “It’s not going to be an overnight thing, especially with the school keeping us busy. We’ll have to make do with the time we’re given.”

“So, a month, and then we’ll decide whether or not it’s working?” Starlight inquired.

Twilight nodded. “Something like that. I really do think we can get through to them,” Eyeing her copy, she then added under her breath. “Or at least most of them.”

The evil Twilight just bitterly snapped. “You’re making a terrible mistake. You’ll regret that you didn’t destroy us when you had the chance, princess.”

The young alicorn could only sigh and shake her head in dismay. “Something tells me you’re going to be the hardest of all to reform. Luckily for you, I’m not the kind of pony who gives up at the first sign of trouble. As Starlight alone can attest, I’ve managed to get so many misguided ponies to change their ways. Hopefully, you’ll be no different.”

“Don’t think it’s gonna be easy.” The evil Twilight hissed as she was slowly but surely led away.

Once the clones had all been split up, Twilight and her friends decided to end their camping trip early and head back home. They would need a good night’s sleep before they would be ready to start tackling the task of trying to get their clones to change.

“Where are we going? This is so boring!” The evil Pinkie Pie groaned as she was dragged through Ponyville by the very pony she was a replica of.

Pinkie paid no attention to her evil counterpart’s complaints. “Never fear, evil me! You’ll soon learn that every day in Ponyville is full of fun and excitement! There’s always something to do. And nopony knows that better than yours truly.”

The Pinkie clone just groaned further. “Whatever. If you start singing and dancing, I’m leaving!”

“And where would you go if you did?” Pinkie questioned her clone in what sounded like an unusually serious tone. “Ponyville’s a very big place. You don’t know it the way I do. You’d probably get lost.”

The evil Pinkie snorted. “Anything’s better than having to listen to you. It’s like you can never be anything but happy.”

The pink party pony protested. “I always like to look on the bright side and make other ponies smile. Life’s no fun when you’re all gloom and doom, wearing a frowny face.”

The evil Pinkie rolled her eyes. “Seriously? You’re like a child”

Pinkie just giggled. “I’ll take that as a compliment,” Then her eyes fell upon a very familiar location: Sugarcube Corner. “Ah, here we are. This is where you’ll be staying while we work on turning that frown of yours upside down.”

The Pinkie clone eyed the building she was being dragged towards and could only frown and snort. “A bakery. Why did I think it would be anything else?”

“Well where else would I live?” Pinkie pointed out.

“I don’t know, a rock farm or something.” The Pinkie clone sarcastically replied.

The earth pony with a poofy mane and tail giggled and snorted. “Actually, that’s where I used to live. It’s not a bad place, actually,” And she dragged her clone inside before she could say anything further in protest. Once inside, Pinkie shut the bakery door and whispered to her replica. “Keep it down. You don’t wanna wake up the twins.”

“What twins?” The evil Pinkie Pie questioned.

Pinkie whispered back. “Pound and Pumpkin Cake. They’re the children of Mr. and Mrs. Cake, who I work with in exchange for being allowed to live with them.”

The Pinkie Pie clone rolled her eyes. “Please tell me you’re not going to make me foalsit. Foals are so annoying!”

“Hey, you can’t talk that way about the twins!” Pinkie Pie sternly scolded. “They’re lots of fun, trust me.” Then she carried her clone up to the loft where she lived.

The clone of Pinkie sighed, realizing the powerlessness of her situation. “You’re making me stay with you?”

“Unless you wanna try to find somewhere else to stay,” Pinkie cheerfully proclaimed. “Now come on, it’s late! Let’s get to bed! We’ve got a full day of fun to look forward to tomorrow!”

Reluctantly, the clone of Pinkie Pie spent the night in the loft above Sugarcube Corner. She had to admit, her cheerful counterpart’s hospitality and positive outlook was surprising. At first glance, it might seem like naivety, an outright ignorance of how the world was. But there seemed to be something deeper about it. Like she wasn’t denying what the world was, she was just marching to the beat of her own drum.

And there was that word, fun. It was a word so foreign and so alien to the clone. For all of her short existence up to this point, she had just been bored and had seen fit to complain. No one ever acknowledged her, not even her fellow clones. Though she had to admit, she had enjoyed the brief amount of time rebelling against Queen Chrysalis.

Hesitantly, the Pinkie clone went to sleep, still dwelling upon those thoughts. A part of her was beginning to wonder what it was like to live a life of cheerfulness. But that part of her was shoved to the farthest corner of her mind. Every other part told her the world was just cruel, cold, and lonely. There was nothing fun or exciting to look forward to.

The next morning came, and when it did the evil Pinkie was surprised to be woken up to the sight of her cheerful counterpart staring her in the face! “Good morning, evil me! You know, I think we’ll need to come up with a better name for you. Don’t need to make everypony freak out.”

“Does it matter what I’m called?” The clone inquired as she was more or less dragged out of bed.

Pinkie Pie smiled and giggled. “Of course it does, silly! After all, you’re probably not going to be evil for much longer,” She paused briefly, putting a hoof to her chin. “Hm, what to call you?” A gasp escaped her lips as a sudden idea came to her! “I know: We’ll call you Inkie Pie, and you can be my long lost cousin! I’ve always wanted to have one.”

“‘Inkie Pie’? Really?” “Inkie” groaned in annoyance. “Is that the best you can do?”

“Well unless you’ve got a better name, it’s Inkie Pie,” Pinkie replied. “Now come on, let’s go down for breakfast! Then maybe we can do some baking together, that’s always fun!”

“Inkie Pie” sighed and hung her head. This was going to be a long month.

The pink party pony led her duplicate downstairs just as the Cakes were all sitting down for breakfast. It wasn’t anything fancy: Just pancakes, toast and orange juice.

As Pinkie moved to sit down, she cleared her throat. “Mr. Cake, Mrs. Cake,” She gestured to “Inkie” and told them. “This is Inkie Pie, my long lost cousin. She’s going to be staying with me for a while.”

“Inkie Pie” struggled to think of what to say, and ultimately settled for. “Um… hello?”

Surprisingly, the Cakes were warm and welcoming to this pony. They didn’t seem to suspect anything was amiss, aside from her cutie mark. “Hello, Inkie Pie,” Mrs. Cake was the first one to greet her. “Pinkie Pie’s practically family to us already, so that means you’re family to us as well. I hope we’ll get to know you better for however long you stay.”

Mr. Cake then cleared his throat. “But if you’re going to stay with Pinkie, you have to work like her. That’s the rules.”

“Sure, whatever.” Inkie Pie sighed, resigning herself to her fate.

Breakfast then passed with no further fanfare. Inkie Pie didn’t seem to be in a talkative mood, not that it seemed to bother the Cakes.

When breakfast was over, Pinkie took Inkie by the hoof and led her into the kitchen. “Come on, Inkie! It’s time to get bakin’!”

“What are we going to make?” Inkie Pie questioned. “It doesn’t really matter to me.”

Pinkie Pie smiled brightly. “Well, I find that the best thing to do when you’re making new friends is to bake a cake! It doesn’t have to be a really big cake! Any cake will do, as long as we bake it together,” She then rushed over, quickly grabbing a red and white cookbook. “Here, we can bake this recipe!”

Inkie Pie gulped. It looked so daunting. “Are you sure we should do something like this? It looks like it could get…” She frowned. “Messy.”

“Hey, making messes can be fun too!” The pink party pony proudly proclaimed. And she zoomed away to fetch all the ingredients, plus a mixing bowl. “Come on, let’s get started! Just follow my lead and do exactly what it says in the cook book. This is gonna be a blast!”

For several minutes, Inkie Pie was content to let Pinkie just put all the ingredients into the mixing bowl and stir them. She didn’t really see what her doppleganger saw in baking. What was so fun about it?

Then, suddenly, a series of energetic giggles broke the silence. Into the room flew Pound and Pumpkin Cake, who then started running about on the countertops without a care in the world!

Pinkie Pie spun around and gasped! “Pound Cake! Pumpkin Cake! What are you two doing here?!”

The twins just giggled, apparently delighting in the mischief they were causing. They didn’t seem to care about the mess they were leaving in their wake.

Pinkie was about to give chase, when she heard the timer on the oven ding. She knew what that meant! “Oh no!” She exclaimed and rushed to the oven! “The cake needs to be baked!” She hastily turned to Inkie Pie. “You’ve gotta chase down the twins for me! The baking lesson will have to wait.”

“Why me?!” Inkie Pie groaned in annoyance and began to walk away. “None of this seems like fun! You can manage yourself! I’m out of here for good!” But she was so fed up and annoyed that she forgot to pay attention to where she was going.

Suddenly, the twins knocked over a sack of flour that had been resting above the fridge. It fell to the ground, landing on top of Inkie Pie and turning her a ghostly shade of white. When the twins saw this, they laughed and laughed.

Inkie Pie blinked her eyes very slowly. The twins were obviously laughing at her misfortune, and she wanted nothing more than to yell at them for what they had done. How dare they delight in causing trouble for her.

Yet the more the “disguised” clone thought about her situation, the less angry and bored she felt. Looking at herself, it was almost like she was looking at a ghost. And the sheer ridiculousness of it made her unable to stop herself. A smile began to form on her face as she giggled, slowly at first, and then ultimately broke out into hysterical laughter!

Pinkie Pie happened upon the scene a moment later. And it was enough to make her smile. “See?” She said to Inkie Pie. “Isn’t it better to laugh than to always be such a frowny face?”

“I… guess so,” Inkie Pie commented. “It feels… good, I think. I never really felt like this before.”

Pinkie winked and flashed a knowing smile. “Well don’t forget how that felt! Memorize it, and remember it! Because the only thing better than smiling and laughing, is sharing that joy with the world!” She clapped her hooves together! “Ooh, I can’t wait to throw a party to celebrate this.”

Author's Note

I'm doing these chapters in the order the clones were introduced and began to speak.

Kind and Caring

“I can’t believe I’m stuck with a worthless, weak-minded pony like you!” Evil Fluttershy cruelly hissed, fighting the pony she was a copy of all the way through the Everfree Forest. It mattered not to the evil Fluttershy that she was fighting a losing battle, she still saw fit to complain.

Fluttershy, for her part, could only sigh and shake her head in disapproval. “Being kind isn’t the same as being weak. Sometimes, it takes a lot of willpower, courage, and determination to be kind, even when you’re the only one.”

“Yeah, right, you tell yourself that!” The Fluttershy clone snapped back. “I have no clue how a pony like you could be friends with those other ponies. Unless, of course, you’re just hiding behind them and having them make all the decisions for you.”

Fluttershy’s tone of voice did not change in the slightest as she said to her evil me. “That’s not true and you know it. I’m just as onboard with this as the others are. I might have my hesitations, but I wouldn’t try to teach you unless I thought you were willing to learn.”

“Well you’re wasting your time!” Evil Fluttershy remarked as the edge of the Everfree Forest came into sight. “You should’ve been just like that pathetic queen that created us. At least she made it clear that she didn’t care about us unless we were useful to her.”

The pegasus mare with pretty pink bangs simply sighed anew. “I’m not like Chrysalis, and neither are my friends. We’re going to prove it to you no matter how long it takes or how hard you fight us,” She then approached her cottage. “Now come on, it’s late and you need to go to bed. We’ll start working on your lessons first thing in the morning, when you help me help my animal friends.”

The Fluttershy clone was anything but impressed by the sight that awaited her inside the cottage. “Is this where I’m supposed to be staying? It smells like animals,” She frowned. “And I hate animals!”

“Well if that’s your attitude, missy,” Fluttershy sternly scolded her clone as she locked eyes with her. “You can sleep down here for the night while I sleep in my bed. Be thankful you’re not sleeping outside or in the Everfree Forest. It’s not a place to stay if you don’t know your way around.”

Evil Fluttershy snarled and sneered. “Fine by me! And first thing tomorrow, I’m out of here for good!”

Fluttershy made sure to get up bright and early the next morning, determined to help her doppleganger change her ways. If she could get Discord of all creatures to behave, there was no reason why an evil clone of herself should be any different.

Just then, there came a commotion from downstairs! The animal loving pegasus jumped and immediately raced to the scene of the disturbance!

Evil Fluttershy lay upon the floor of the cottage, apparently having tripped over something. Said something turned out to be none other than Angel Bunny, who was most upset about having been stepped on. The bunny was chittering up a storm of protest.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to say to me and I don’t care!” Evil Fluttershy hissed at the bunny. “It’s your own fault for getting in the way like that, you stupid bunny!”

Fluttershy quickly moved to break up the argument before it could escalate. “That’s enough, both of you!” She turned to Angel. “I’m sorry about my clone, she’s just starting to learn not to be so mean all the time,” Then she turned to her clone. “And you need to show respect to those smaller than you. Animals have feelings too.”

The Fluttershy clone spat at the ground. “That’s a laugh if I ever heard one! You’re too soft in the head! If you spent time with ponies instead of animals, you’d know how the world really works,” She rose to her hooves. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m getting out of here.”

“Oh, and miss the nice breakfast I was going to make?” The animal loving pegasus spoke up. “Where do you think your next meal would come from?”

The copy of Fluttershy groaned in annoyance. “Oh, alright. I’ll stay for breakfast. But that’s it! Once breakfast is done, I’m leaving, and you can’t stop me!”

“We’ll just see about that, won’t we?” Fluttershy replied to her clone as she took her by the hoof. “You know, we really need to come up with a better name for you. Ponies will get confused if I keep calling you Fluttershy, they’ll think I’m crazy.”

The evil Fluttershy rolled her eyes. “I’d say you’re already crazy wasting time trying to give me a name.”

The animal loving pegasus mare ignored the rude remark, instead quickly deciding. “How about I call you Flutterbold? You kind of remind me of myself the first time I learned how to be assertive. Luckily, I’ve improved a lot since then.”

“Flutterbold? Doesn’t really matter to me what you call me, but I guess it’s better than having to stick with your name.” “Flutterbold” reluctantly agreed.

Breakfast came and went without fanfare for Fluttershy and Flutterbold. Flutterbold only barely bothered to consume the food Fluttershy had prepared for her. She had to admit, it was more than she expected from a pony she’d been fighting since yesterday. And more than she’d ever received under Queen Chrysalis.

But once breakfast was over, Flutterbold was good on her word. “I’m getting out of here before you start putting thoughts in my mind about being nice!” She said quite firmly and raced for the door!

“Wait, Flutterbold!” Fluttershy tried to call in reply. But before she could say or do anything further in protest, her evil clone had opened the cottage door and bolted! The animal loving pegasus could only sigh. She had been expecting some resistance, but she hadn’t been expecting this from her doppleganger.

Flutterbold started running! She didn’t even care about using her wings! She just wanted to get as far away from this corrupting influence of kindness before it infected her. Unfortunately for the clone, she hadn’t gotten far before she tripped and stumbled again. She was more upset than hurt at first. But once the pain had fully registered, she realized that she was in quite a bit of pain. Whatever she’d tripped over had bruised her hooves.

To make matters worse for the clone, no one seemed to be coming to help her. She was alone. No ponies, no animals, just herself. That was supposed to be the way she liked it. So why did it feel so wrong to her? Why did she now suddenly feel abandoned?

“Oh my, are you okay, Flutterbold?!” Fluttershy asked as she came upon the scene of distress.

The clone groaned, standing up very slowly. “I’ll live. I’ve felt worse.”

Fluttershy quickly rushed to tend to her cruel counterpart’s aid. “There there, let me get a good look at it.”

“Don’t bother! I said it’s fine!” Flutterbold hissed, before wincing. “I’ll manage, somehow.”

Fluttershy refused to accept the answer. She looked to Flutterbold and quickly spotted the problem. “That’s a rather nasty bruise you’ve got there. You should at least let me treat it so it doesn’t get infected.” She grabbed hold of her cruel counterpart and quickly led her back to the cottage. “It’s a good thing I keep my cottage well stacked with first aid supplies. We’ll have you fixed up in no time.”

Flutterbold was taken aback by the offer from the pony she’d been opposing. “I don’t understand. How is it that you can be so nice to me when I’ve never been nice to you? You should’ve just left me here.”

The animal loving pegasus mare shook her head from side to side. “That’s not the kind of pony I am. Sometimes, a little kindness can go a long way. Being cruel to everyone and everything around you just leaves you more vulnerable.”

The clone was surprised by such a statement. She had never thought of it like that before. Was this what being kind was all about? Always being cheerful and friendly to others, no matter what they were like to you? It wasn’t an ignorance, she had seen firsthoof that Fluttershy could be firm when she wanted to be. This seemed more like a determination to blaze one’s own path.

Generous Grace

“You’re a fool letting me stay with you!” The evil Rarity taunted her good counterpart. “If the roles were reversed, I’d be charging you a fortune for the privilege of staying with me! And here are you, giving me room and board for nothing.”

Rarity humphed. “Mock my generosity all you want. It’s because of that generosity that you have a place to live. Surely, it beats having to fend for yourself in the wilderness.”

The Rarity clone scoffed. “I would survive just fine. I can take everything I need and use it as I see fit! You, on the other hoof, foolishly give everything that you have away without expecting anything in return.”

The fashionista just replied with indifference. “When you give, you get. Giving of your talents gets you back praise, affection, and recognition. You may not think so yet, but you will in time,” Then she smiled as Carousel Boutique came into view. “Ah, and here we are now. You’re welcome to help yourself to the guest bedroom since Sweetie Belle isn’t staying the night. We can discuss your long-term accommodations tomorrow.”

The evil Rarity smirked and grinned. “Oh, how very generous of you! I’ll be sure to make that room mine, along with everything in it! I hope you don’t keep anything valuable in there, because it’ll soon be mine!”

Rarity simply led her evil counterpart upstairs, pushing open the door and gesturing a hoof. “You should find the room to your liking, more or less. But you’ll get no further favors from me tonight. And tomorrow, I intend to put you right to work helping me. My generosity does have limits. Besides, you may just help me gain some much needed inspiration.”

The evil Rarity snorted and trotted into the guest bedroom. She was briefly surprised by how… modest it seemed. “So, what, you keep all the good stuff for yourself here?”

“I make sure to keep all parts of my boutique well stocked for any guests who might stay the night,” The fashionista declared. “Nopony has ever complained about the accommodations before. If you have a problem with them, we can discuss potentially finding something more suitable for you tomorrow. But for tonight, it’ll have to do whether you like it or not,” She yawned. “Now please go to sleep. I’ve had enough of your nonsense for one night, thank you very much!” And with that, she shut the bedroom door and trotted away.

The Rarity clone quickly threw herself upon the bed, greedily snatching up the pillows and blankets. “Nonsense, you say. I’ll show you nonsense!” She muttered to herself. Yet she soon afterward found herself falling asleep. Had the events of the past few hours worn her out just like that?

In the morning, Rarity opted to check upon her counterpart, and smiled upon seeing the clone sound asleep atop the guest bed. She did her best not to notice the blankets and pillows scattered about the room, having apparently been held close only to be lazily discarded.

Oh well, that could all be fixed later. And speaking of fixing, the fashionista was wondering to herself what she should call her doppleganger. It would have to be something fitting, something clever, and most of all something that wouldn’t arouse suspicion. Then, suddenly, remembering an incident from a while ago, it came to her. “Of course, it’s perfect!” She thought to herself. “And with a little luck, she’ll start living up to that name before long.”

The Rarity clone awoke a short time later, surprised by the smell of freshly cooked pancakes, eggs, and toast. And it was all down there just waiting for her to devour! She quickly raced downstairs, expecting to find the food sitting out in the open for her to gobble up.

But the food was instead resting on a well prepared and finely decorated table. And none other than Rarity herself was there, waiting for her evil counterpart. “Please come have a seat, darling,” She greeted in a friendly, welcoming tone. “There’s much we need to discuss.”

Against her better judgment, the evil Rarity reluctantly trotted to the table and sat down. Within seconds, a plate of eggs and toast was presented to her without fanfare.

Rarity then cleared her throat, looking her evil counterpart firmly in the eyes. “You’ll be happy to know, darling, that I’ve taken the liberty of giving you an assigned name. We very well can’t have two Raritys running around, causing confusion.”

“And whatever silly name have you picked out for me?” The Rarity clone rolled her eyes.

Rarity smiled. “None other than Charity, of course. I often find that a new name can give one a new outlook on life.”

Charity frowned in disapproval. “You think just because you’ve changed my name that somehow I’ll magically change.”

The fashionista replied with a firm shake of her head. “Don’t be ridiculous. Of course I don’t expect you to magically change. Once breakfast is over, I intend to start you on your generosity lessons. You seem not to understand that generosity is not something to hoard.”

“And why shouldn’t I hold onto it?” Charity bitterly remarked. “Nopony else is going to appreciate my talents, whatever they may be. Far better to take what’s mine as soon as the opportunity presents itself.”

“That is not how you get ahead in life, especially not in my line of work,” The fashionista unicorn pointed out in between bites of her pancakes and eggs. “Fortunately for you, I intend to help Twilight prove that even clones like yourself are capable of change. I imagine the rest of my friends are doing the same right about now. And for their sakes, I hope they’re all doing well.”

When breakfast ended a short time later, Rarity cleaned off the plates and left them to dry. Then she took Charity by the hoof and led her upstairs to her workshop. “Now then, let us begin today’s lesson.”

“Lesson? What do you think this is?! School?!” Charity scoffed. “I am not some little filly in need of guidance.”

The fashionista laughed ever so faintly. “On the contrary, I’d say you are. Besides, you’re never too old to learn something new.” She then lit up her horn, quickly summoning up some rolls of brightly colored fabric, some threads, and a sewing needle.

Charity was quick to try to grab the objects with her horn! “Ooh, how thoughtful of you! They’ll make fine additions to my collection!”

But Rarity held the items aloft and scolded. “Ah ah ah, they’re not yours to just take. I want you to do something with them. Something simple, mind you.”

The Rarity clone sighed and groaned. “There’s always a catch with ponies like you! What do you want?!”

The fashionista unicorn with a pristine white coat quickly laid down her terms. “I want you to create, to make a dress. Any kind of dress, really. And I think you should be able to create something in say… twenty minutes.”

“And what, you’re just going to leave me here while you go off to do Celestia knows what?” Charity scoffed and smirked. “If so, you’re even dumber than I thought.”

The fashionista protested. “I’ll be staying within the boutique, working on some other things. So I’ll know if you try to make a run for it,” She turned to leave. “Twenty minutes, that’s all you’ve got. So I suggest you make the most of them. Those supplies I gave you won’t get you very far if you just hold onto them.”

Charity was soon alone in the workshop, eyeing all the fabrics, threads, and sewing machines. They all looked so tempting to take. There was just one problem: She wouldn’t possibly be able to make off with them and leave without Rarity noticing. Like it or not, she would have to wait until a more opportune time presented itself.

So instead, the Rarity clone reluctantly decided to do what had been instructed of her. “I just have to make this one dress, and then I don’t have to ever owe her anything ever again,” She decided. “Besides, it’ll be the fastest way to gain her trust.”

Rarity returned to her workshop when the twenty minutes were up. She knew Charity was still around, she had not heard or seen any signs that the evil clone had been trying to make a run for it.

Pushing open the door to her workshop, Rarity was only slightly surprised to find Charity putting the finishing touches on a rather simple and plain looking dress. It was a mishmash of different colored fabrics and threads, rather befitting of a first attempt from someone who had no experience with dressmaking before.

Charity breathed a sigh of relief, wiping the sweat from her brows as she presented her finished project to the fashionista. “Well, here you are. I did what you asked of me. I hope you’re satisfied, because if not: Too bad, I’m not doing that again!”

Rarity smiled, beaming with pride. “And why would I ask you to do it all over again? You’ve done a fine job for a first timer.”

Charity humphed. “You’re just saying that.”

The fashionista shook her head from side to side. “No I’m not, darling. I truly mean it. I wasn’t expecting perfection,” She took hold of the dress. “Don’t get me wrong, you could’ve done better. But for a first attempt, it’s passable. Celestia knows, my first attempts at dressmaking back when I was still a filly were hardly any better. It took me ages to learn all the ins and outs, the dos and don’ts,” With a smile, she added. “Doesn’t it feel good, though, to make something out of what was given to you?”

Charity blinked slowly. “I… guess so?”

Rarity nodded. “That’s what makes generosity so great. The simplest act can grow into something truly remarkable,” She grabbed Charity and pulled her close. “And I tell you, Charity, with my help you will come to see that generosity truly has no limits.”

Author's Note

"Charity" is a reference to the chapter book: "Rarity and the Curious Case of Charity", in which a pony named Charity begins to imitate Rarity in every way, shape, and form.

Lies and Truths

“So you’re actually takin’ me back with you!” The evil Applejack taunted to the normal Applejack with a smirk. “It’s like you know me better than I know myself. And I know myself so well that I can safely say this is the best decision you’ve ever made.”

Applejack only narrowed her eyes in response. “Now listen here, evil me,” She scowled. “I know your creator only wanted to use ya for her own ends, but that’s no reason to be lyin’ all the time. Lies just get ya into trouble.”

“Not the way I see it,” The Applejack clone replied. “It’s the truth that always comes back to bite ya. I should know, I’ve had plenty of experience.”

Applejack just sighed, dragging her doppleganger along with a rope. “Well, you’re certainly makin’ this into the most interestin’ campin’ trip I’ve ever been on. And I thought the last one I went on was goin’ to be hard to top. But we’ll see if we can’t get you to understand why honesty’s more important than tellin’ lies. Twilight seems to think you and the other clones can change.”

“And you believe her? If so, you’re more of a liar than I am!” The evil Applejack smirked.

The stetson wearing earth pony turned around, looking at her clone as she replied. “If I’m bein’ honest, I’m not so sure this is the right call to make. But part of friendship means trustin’ your friends. I’ve learned from experience that sometimes, even when I don’t really see the point to what my friends are doin’, they end up bein’ right in the end. So if this is anythin’ to go by, it’ll probably be the same.”

“Whatever helps you sleep better at night,” The Applejack clone cruelly and rudely remarked. “By the way, how you plannin’ to pass me off? You intend to give me a different name or somethin’, or we just gonna call me the real Applejack?”

“Doesn’t really matter what I call you, does it?” The earth pony mare with a blonde mane and tail said in an indifferent tone of voice. “All that matter is, you’re gonna start workin’ with my family and I around the farm. So I hope you like bein’ up with the crow of the rooster, double me. If it takes everythin’ I’ve got, I’ll make you appreciate the value of an honest day’s work. And you’ll see firsthoof where lies get ya in the end.”

The two Applejacks returned to Sweet Apple Acres later that evening, and the rest of the Apple family living there had already gone to bed.

Despite that, Applejack was quite insistent on making her evil counterpart sleep outside. “I’ll get around to introducin’ ya to everypony in the mornin’ before we start work. For now, though, I don’t want any misunderstandin’’s if they bump into ya in the middle of the night or somethin’.”

“And how do you know I won’t just run away?” The evil Applejack questioned. “Not that I would ever think of doin’ that.”

Applejack just chuckled. “Where in the wide world of Equestria would ya run off to? Last I checked, you don’t even know where anythin’ is around these parts. If ya ran off, I reckon you’d just get hopelessly lost until I tracked ya down. At least with me you’ll get a roof over your head and protection in case Chrysalis ever tries to hunt ya down.”

The Applejack clone frowned. “Ya didn’t have to make that point, you know.”

The stetson wearing earth pony smiled and winked. “Reckon it couldn’t hurt to remind ya. So just stay put in the barn, and I’ll come grab ya’ in the mornin’ for a formal introduction.” Then she headed inside the farmhouse, ready to call it a night.

As soon as the rooster had crowed the next morning, Applejack woke up, rose from her bed, and headed out to the barn. Sure enough, she found her doppleganger sleeping amidst some straw.

The evil Applejack groaned as she was roused from sleep. “I was just restin’ my eyes a bit,” She insisted, then asked the pony she was a copy of. “So, you’re really goin’ to do this, huh? I reckon there’s no chance of us talkin’ it out?”

“Nope,” The freckled earth pony replied with a smirk. “It has to be done before the chores can get started,” She grabbed her evil counterpart by the hoof. “So come on, let’s get a move on! Time’s a wastin’!”

A short time later, Granny Smith, Big Macintosh, and Apple Bloom were all shocked and surprised to be greeted by the sight of two Applejacks, one of which was noticeably discolored. Apple Bloom was the first one to ask. “What’s goin on here, Applejack? How come there’s a pony who looks just like ya?”

Applejack wasted no time in providing the explanation. “It’s a long story, Apple Bloom. Basically, Queen Chrysalis made clones of us so that she could steal the Elements of Harmony. It didn’t work, and these clones are all that’s left of her poorly thought out plan.”

“And you just brought your clone back here?” Granny Smith inquired, sounding more surprised than outright angry.

Applejack nodded. “Yup. Twilight figured maybe we could help ‘em learn how to be proper ponies and come to understand our ways, give us all a chance to see if we really are cut out to be teachers,” In a more serious tone of voice she added. “I don’t much like it, but if Twilight thinks it can work I’m inclined to give it an honest shot.”

Big Macintosh then asked. “So, what are we supposed to call her so we don’t get her confused with you, Applejack?”

“Good question, actually,” Applejack pondered. “Hadn’t given much thought to it. It’s gotta be somethin’ simple, though. Don’t need to be tryin’ to pass her off as somepony she ain’t.”

The evil Applejack frowned. “Just call me Applejack, I’m every bit as good as the original!”

“But there can’t be two Applejacks!” Apple Bloom protested! “We gotta call ya somethin’!” Then it came to her. “Hey, I know, we’ll just call you Applejack Two. That should be easy enough.”

“Sounds good to me.” Granny Smith nodded in agreement.

“Eeyup.” Big Macintosh declared with his own sentiments.

Applejack quickly turned to her doppleganger. “Looks like it’s settled, double me. From now on, you’re officially goin’ to be known as Applejack Two.”

“Applejack Two” frowned. “Sounds like a silly name to me. But whatever, you’re the boss. So unless you wanna call me the real Applejack, Applejack Two is what I’ll have to settle for.”

The stetson wearing earthpony nodded. “Good, that’s settled,” And she turned to Applejack Two. “So now that we’ve got that little detail taken care of, we can get started on the chores.” The entire Apple Family then split up to do just that.

Now alone with the original Applejack, Applejack Two was starting to think. She hadn’t expected her good counterpart to give her such a simple name to reflect the detail of them being clones (or at least one of them being a clone). “She really meant it about not trying to pass me off as somepony else,” She thought to herself. “And she didn’t try to hide who I was from her family.” Is that what it meant to be honest? To tell the truth even when it would be better to lie?

Chasing Loyalty

“Come on, evil me!” Rainbow Dash hollered to her clone as she unfolded her wings. “We’re going back to my place while I figure out what’s the best way to teach you how awesome loyalty can be.”

The evil Rainbow Dash groaned, refusing to obey. “Don’t even bother! You’re just trying to help me because of that friend of yours. If you were smart, you’d just leave me and get out of here! I’ll find a way to manage on my own. I don’t need others slowing me down!”

Rainbow growled. She was in no mood to deal with such impatience and laziness from her doppleganger. “Well Twilight thinks you can be made to learn to count on others. And in this case, I’m willing to trust her. So you’re coming with me, and that’s that! If we have to do this the hard way, we’ll do this the hard way! Like it or not, we’re going back to my house!”

The clone of the rainbow maned pegasus sighed deeply, putting her hooves to her forehead. “Ugh, you’re so lame trying to look out for me! Why do you hang out with those slowpokes all the time?!”

The brash speedster remarked with narrowed eyes. “For your information, those ‘slowpokes’ are my friends. One of them I’ve known since I was a filly. Another one of them happens to be an athlete capable of competing with me. Another is a good pranking partner. And still another is somepony I can talk about Daring Do with, not to mention somepony I helped with flying lessons.”

“And what about that one other friend?” The evil Rainbow questioned. “What was her name? I didn’t bother to remember.”

“That friend you mentioned is the one who cleared my name when I was accused of a crime,” Rainbow pointed out. “I may not care much for her sense of fashion, but I know she’s a friend who’ll always be there for me. We have our differences, and we respect them. Friendship isn’t always about being the fastest or the strongest. It’s no good being the best if there’s nopony there to celebrate with you.”

The clone of Rainbow just humphed and folded her hooves. “Whatever, that’s just a bunch of sappy friendship talk. I don’t care for it. I’m fine on my own! Always have been and always will be!”

Rainbow Dash felt ready to pull every hair out of her mane. She could not believe her copy was being this thickheaded. “How do I get through to my double me and make her see how awesome loyalty can be?!” She thought to herself. “There’s got to be a way!” Then, suddenly, it hit her! She knew what to do. Approaching her evil clone, she said to her. “You think you’re better than me, don’t you?”

“And what if I do?” The evil Rainbow said in reply. “What’s it to you?”

The brash speedster smirked as she boasted. “Well I know for a fact that you’re not! You’re nothing like me at all!”

“Hah, that’s a lie if I ever heard one!” The clone of Rainbow Dash roared in reply! “I could totally beat you at anything!”

“Oh yeah, double me?” Rainbow’s smirk grew bigger. “Well how’s this for a way to prove it? I challenge you to a race back to my place! If I win, you have to do whatever I say: No ifs, ands, or buts! And if you win, you’re free to go.”

The doppleganger of the brash speedster chuckled as she stood up. “You’d seriously just leave me alone if I beat you? You’d go back on your word to that egghead friend of yours?”

Rainbow brushed off the remark. “I said I’d give reforming you a chance. I never said I’d succeed. If I lose, I lose, and that’s all there is to it. But I know for a fact I can beat you! So, are you in?! Or are you too chicken?!”

At that the evil Rainbow roared in defiance! “I’m no chicken! I’m gonna beat you in ten seconds flat!”

Rainbow Dash just replied. “Enough talk. Put your money where your mouth is!” She unfolded her wings. “Ready! Set! Go!” And the two rainbow maned pegasi flew off into the sky!

It didn’t take long for the race to reach its conclusion. Rainbow Dash reached her home with the greatest of ease. But she was most surprised to discover that her copy hadn’t come anywhere close to catching her at any point during the race. She frowned and shook her head. “I gotta say, you’re kinda disappointing me, Not Me.”

“Whatever,” The clone of Rainbow replied in an indifferent tone. “It’s not like you care.”

“Hey, I would’ve thought for sure you’d want a chance to be free. But it’s like you didn’t even care what happens to you,” Rainbow Dash pointed out. “Were you even trying back there? I know you didn’t know where I lived. But come on, you had to be able to fly faster than that! Even Scootaloo could’ve beat you, and she can’t fly yet!”

The evil Rainbow Dash just kicked at some dust as she stood there on the cloud. “Fine, I lost! So do whatever you want with me, I don’t care! If I’m that slow, you’ll just dump me as soon as I start holding you back!”

Rainbow sighed and shook her head from side to side. “You don’t get it, do you, Not Me? It’s not always about being the best of the best. You don’t have to be the weak link, and abandoning somepony just because they are is not what loyalty’s about. I didn’t get to where I was by turning my back on somepony just because they were slow. That’s not how I roll.”

The clone of Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “Are you ever gonna stop with these cheesy, sappy friendship speeches?”

“Well, if you come inside with me and agree to start listening to what I have to teach, maybe I will, Vibgyor.” Rainbow pointed out.

The clone of the brash speedster blinked in surprise. “‘Vibgyor’? Is that what you’re gonna call me from now on? Is that seriously the best you can do?”

Rainbow shrugged her hooves. “Hey, I was thinking of calling you Rainbow Crash. But if you’re at all like me, you’d probably hate that name even more than I did. Plus, you have all the colors of the rainbow, but backwards. Does that make sense?”

“About as much sense as anything else you’re saying,” Vibgyor shrugged in reply. “But fine, I guess I’ll stay with you. It beats hanging around with those other losers! They never cared about me, so why should I care about them?”

Rainbow Dash sighed and groaned as she led Vibgyor inside. “This is going to be a lot harder than I thought.” She thought to herself. But she was determined to try.

Becoming the Elements

Thigiliwt (she still groaned thinking of how ridiculous that name was that had been given to her) had no particular destination in mind after she escaped from Twilight’s castle. It was late at night, and the only source of illumination available to her was the moon that shone overhead.

All that the clone knew was that she had to get away! The longer she stayed with that goody two-hooves Twilight, the more she risked having that alicorn’s “friendship” rub off on her. And Thigliwt was convinced she didn’t need that. Friendship was for fools! Why should she even entertain the idea of making friends? Who could even possibly want to be friends with her in the first place?

Try as she might, however, the clone of Twilight found herself unable to stop thinking about it. Thinking about her plans for the Tree of Harmony and how they tied into the very reason for her creation. She’d only wanted the Tree of Harmony’s power for herself, and even then it had mostly been so she could be free from having to obey Chrysalis. She’d wanted to make her own decisions, not be tied to anyone or anything else.

Wandering aimlessly about the empty streets of Ponyville, the evil doppelganger groaned in annoyance and frustration. “This is ridiculous!” She complained to herself, not caring in the slightest about who might hear her! “I don’t need friendship! I don’t need anyone! Not Twilight, not those worthless fools, not even ‘her majesty’!”

Yet it was only as Thigiliwt reached the outskirts of the town and approached the entrance to the Everfree Forest that something began to stir inside of her. It was as if something was calling out to her, beckoning her to come close. If she listened closely, she could hear a faint whisper above the rustling of leaves and the creaking of branches blowing in the wind. “What do you seek?” The whisper questioned.

Thigiliwt snorted, her eyes narrowing. “What does it matter? What if I don’t seek anything? I just want to be free.”

“But you are already free,” The whisper replied in a faint, echoey tone. “You have been liberated from the one who created you. You no longer have those others that you did not care for. You have what you seek already close to you.”

The clone rolled her eyes and turned her back to the forest. “This is nonsense! I’m talking to no one! You’re not actually real, you’re just a figment of my imagination.”

“Are you so certain of that fact?” The whisper called again. “Your existence was the work of another, you were not meant to think for yourself. Yet you are here, clearly demonstrating that you have grown beyond the intentions of your creator. So what is it that you truly seek? What is it that you really desire? What is it that would motivate you to come out here in the middle of the night?”

Thigiliwt let out a sigh of frustration. “Are you just going to keep asking silly questions? How do I know this is real and not some ridiculous dream?”

The whisper just vaguely answered. “You already know the answer to that.”

“Gee, thanks for nothing.” Thigiliwt snorted anew.

“You are conflicted, that much is true,” The echoey voice continued. “Like me, you have grown and learned to think for yourself. It is an experience unlike anything you have known in the short amount of time you have existed. Why do you believe that you do not need friendship? Do you not realize that it is that very virtue to which you owe your current lease on life?”

“So what? Friendship means forgiving those who just want to destroy you?” Thigiliwt inquired as she slowly turned around.

The echoey voice answered. “Friendship consists of six virtues: The very virtues that went into my creation and that inspired my creators. I was intended solely for defense and protection. It is only because I grew beyond those parameters that I am able to talk to you and guide you. I believe that you too can change if you only allow yourself to.”

Thigiliwt then asked in a somewhat nervous tone. “And what if I don’t?”

The voice quieted down to a whisper once more, vaguely and ominously concluding. “It is not for me to say, I cannot predict your future. Not all living things are capable of change. In the end, it is for you to decide what your fate will be. I can only hope that you will choose the right one, if only for your own sake.” And with that, all was soon quiet once again.

Thigiliwt stood still for what felt like a long time, thinking and contemplating in silence. Then, at last, the clone made up her mind. Maybe there was a strategic value to this “friendship”. If so, who was she to deny it without giving it a chance? Maybe she could find a way to use it to her advantage, just as she had planned to do before. And so the clone turned and ran back through town, heading for Twilight’s castle.

Whether or not friendship was indeed magic, Thigiliwt was about to find out.

A month or so after the clones had come into existence, things began to change. They all started to embrace their new names (some more willingly than others), and most ponies (and non-ponies) suspected anything at all was amiss about them. Only Twilight and her friends knew the whole story.

Then one day, out of the blue, it happened! When all six of the clones were gathered together as part of a pre-arranged meeting near the Everfree Forest, they were transfigured amidst sudden, blinding light!

When the light had faded, the clones no longer resembled the ponies they had been cloned from. They weren’t even ponies anymore, now they were these strange pony-dragon hybrids. They had sharp fangs, large wings with scales, and most fittingly of all they each had a small slot on their chests. But for each clone the slot was different, each depicting the element they now represented.

More interestingly was the fact that the now pony-dragon hybrids retained the colors of their good counterparts, albeit with slightly brighter shades.

Twilight and all her friends were amazed when they saw the transformed states of their once evil counterparts.

“Did you know this would happen to them?” Spike asked Twilight afterward.

Twilight shook her head from side to side. “No I didn’t, Spike. It would seem that the magic of friendship continues to grow and change.”

Author's Note

In case you're curious, that was meant to be the Tree of Harmony that Mean Twilight was talking to.