X is a Changeling

It was a dark and stormy night.

“Of course it was,” Twilight said, rolling her eyes. She sighed and continued reading until the book was snatched away from her. “What in—oh, Sweetie Belle. When did you get here?”

“Just now,” she said, flipping through the pages of Twilight’s book. “Is this the one Rarity returned this morning?”

“No, I got that one for my personal collection. It got some really good reviews and—”

Sweetie Belle tossed it over her shoulder.

“Hey!” Twilight caught it in her magic. “Sweetie Belle, what’s gotten in to you?”

“You should be more worried about what got into the book.” Sweetie shouldered her way past Twilight and paced around the room.

“Okay... did Rarity spill something on it? I can’t imagine she would return something when it’s dirty.”

“She didn’t. Where is it, anyway?”

Twilight sighed and lay back down. “It’s on top of that stack to your left. If you’d like to check it out...” She trailed off as Sweetie began to madly flip the pages. “Just be careful with it, okay? It’s kind of—”

“Found him!” Sweetie’s horn lit with a sudden intensity, and her head jerked down. “Gah!” She spread her hooves and pulled back, struggling to move.

“S-Sweetie! What are you doing?!” Twilight rushed to her side and grabbed hold of her with a spell. She yanked the filly away, only for another force to pull her back—and Twilight with her. “Whoa! Sweetie, let it go!”

“No! Not again! Pull, Twilight! Pull!”

Twilight pulled. She pulled with every drop of power she had, and with a mighty CRASH, something popped out of the book, sailed over her head, and struck the shelf of books behind her.

The black insectoid creature looked back at her with wide-open blue eyes.

“Changeling!” Sweetie shouted. “I knew it! Get him!”

“But...” Twilight blinked. “How did you find—?”

“I said get him!” Sweetie Belle leapt forward.

The changeling kicked the shelves, and a pile of books fell on top of him.

Sweetie Belle crashed on the pile, and she flung books left and right, but the changeling was gone. “No! Where is he?! Which one?!” She thrust a hoof accusingly at Twilight. “And where were you?! We had him right there!”

“Sweetie Belle, calm down, and take a—”

“X is a changeling, Twilight! He could be in any one of these books!” She flipped one open and scanned its pages. “It was sheer dumb luck I spotted him last night, but Rarity didn’t believe me. Typo my flank!” She slammed the book shut and grabbed another one. “And now we have to find him all over again!”

“Look, Sweetie, I promise you I’ll find him—”

“Wait!” Sweetie’s head snapped up, and she stared straight ahead. “Is X the changeling or is the changeling X? If X is the changeling... Twilight, grab the air!”

Twilight opened her mouth. Closed it. Opened it again. “Excuse me?”

“Grab the air. Do your levitation thingy without levitating anything.”

“Like... like this?” Twilight did as she asked, creating a small, violet sphere floating in mid-air. “I’m not sure what good this is—”

Sweetie Belle leaned in, her muzzle just inches away from Twilight’s magic. “X!”

The sphere instantly filled with the changeling’s head and one of his hooves.

Twilight shrieked and jumped back as the changeling jerked and twisted and wrestled free of her grip. Sweetie charged, but he was too fast for her and sprinted down the stairs.

“No! Again?!” She raced after him, but trudged back up the stairs a moment later. “He’s gone. The books downstairs weren’t even touched, but he’s gone. How fast is he?” Sweetie Belle stomped her forelegs. “Step it up, Twilight! You had a sworn enemy of Equestria right in front of you! Twice!”

“Me? I—” Twilight shook her head. “How did you even know saying the letter was going to work?”

“Well...” Sweetie shrugged. “It was worth a shot. But I wasn’t the one that let go of him!”

“Well, I’ve never seen magic work like that before! Cut me some slack!” Twilight sighed and rubbed her temple. “Look, he won’t get far. I promise you, I’ll stop him from hurting anypony. Just go home, and don’t mention this to anyone. We don’t want to start a panic.”

“I... I... I... guess you’re right.” Sweetie Belle sighed and bowed her head. “It’s just that he could be anywhere now, you know? I mean, if a changeling could be an X, how could any of us be safe again? What else could he be?”

“Oh, Sweetie.” Twilight stroked her mane. “We’ll all just have to take a little more care in minding our P’s and Q’s.”

Sweetie Belle narrowed her eyes. “Not funny, Twilight.”

Twilight smiled. “It was a little funny.”

Sweetie slapped her hoof away and stormed down the stairs.

“Well good-bye,” Twilight huffed. She walked to the window, watched Sweetie Belle leave, and turned back to the staircase. “She’s gone.”

The changeling dropped from above, landing on the stairs. “Persistent little thing, isn’t she?”

“You have no idea. How did she find you?”

He grinned sheepishly, rubbing his head. “I, uh, just thought I’d play a joke on her. I heard the two of them arguing about words, so when her sister let her read the book for a bit, I changed shape for a minute.” He shrugged. “Got to hear them go at it for another half hour about whether or not ‘Encuse’ is a word. That was fun. The little one actually pulled out a dictionary.”

Twilight sighed. “You can’t risk that. What if—”

“Okay, no more. I promise.” He waved a hoof in front of his chest. “Cross my heart and hope to fly and that last bit I can’t remember. Your friend loved that book though. What’s next for me?”

She studied him for a moment, then pulled over a book from the mess he and Sweetie had made. “Fluttershy asked for this one. Talking kittens band together to save the pair of ponies that take care of them from losing their house.”

He trembled. “Ooh, I can feel the love already.”

“You don’t need to stretch your legs or anything first?”

“Nope, I’m good.” He placed a hoof on the page, and it sank in, shrinking away to nothing. “It’s better than growing fur all over your body. That stuff itches.” All four of his hooves had vanished in the page, and he eased himself in like a pony in a tub until only his head remained. He puckered his lips. “How ‘bout some love for the road?”

Twilight slammed the cover shut and turned back to her book.

Another changeling’s head popped out of it. “You’re not going to let this slide, are you? That’s the third time this month somepony mentioned a typo!”

“Fluttershy won’t be coming into town for a couple days at least, and all the others are due back tomorrow. We’ll have a staff meeting with everyone about all this then.” She curled up on her favorite pillow. “Right now, I’m a little more concerned about this story. That’s kind of a cliché opening, don’t you think?”

The changeling smiled and sank back down. “Wait ‘till chapter three.”

Twilight pulled the book closer, and her eyes danced across the page.

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