Rearranged

by Touch the Sky

Cut-and-Paste Ponies

The very moment a sparkling-clean Applejack saw that Rainbow had her cutie mark back, she was back out getting muddy in the orchard before I could say a word. She worked up the orange glow again in no time flat, and I clasped the pink apple-shaped Element of Honesty around her neck. Within a couple of seconds, three red apples sparkled on her flank, and the apple-shaped gem was orange once more.

We returned to the library after that, and Applejack and Rainbow watched- or rather Applejack watched; Rainbow's nose was firmly embedded in the latest issue of Daring Do- as Rarity coached me on using my magic. It was a very slow process, and it would be a while until I could get my own cutie mark back.

Fluttershy had come to join us during this time, and after she and Applejack chuckled drily about their matching cutie marks, she begged to be allowed to go back to her animals. So we walked across to her/Pinkie's house, but when we got there, all the animals were gone. Pinkie had apparently cleared out every last critter.

"Oh no!" squeaked Fluttershy, after we explained the reason. "Those poor animals- having to move so quickly, especially when they have little ones..."
"But if they have little ones, surely they can't have gone far." Rarity pointed out. Rainbow nodded.
"I'll catch her!" the cyan pegasus proclaimed, preparing to zoom away in aimless pursuit.
Rarity shook her head. "No, Rainbow. She's so unpredictable right now that you'd be putting yourself at possible risk. We'll find her together."

Rainbow argued so fiercely, though, that at last Rarity relented and gave permission for Rainbow to fly up very high to see if she could spot the pink pegasus. Rainbow zoomed upwards, higher and higher, and spun around, scanning the horizon. After a minute or so, she tilted into a vertical nosedive. I saw her hooves reach out in front of her, saw the cone of force, and yelled,
"Rainbow, NO!" in unison with the other three. But Rainbow either didn't hear or ignored us, and a Sonic Rainboom swept across the sky. Rainbow landed with a self-satisfied smirk on her face, but we all charged at her and quickly wiped the grin from her features.

"Rainbow, why did you do that?" I snapped.
"Yeah, do ya realise what ya've just done?" said Applejack crossly.
Rainbow looked at the four of us. "What are you talking about? It was a bit of fun, that's all."
"A bit of fun which just showed Pinkie exactly where we are." growled Rarity darkly.
Rainbow's face sunk into horror as she realised the truth in Rarity's words. "Oh, sweet Celestia... I'm so sorry, guys!"

I turned away, sighing. "It's too late now. I suppose Fluttershy will just have to wait for her cutie mark a little longer."
"Not necessarily." said Applejack, waving a hoof to where Fluttershy stood gazing up at a little bird, a wren, perched in a tree above her head; Pinkie had apparently missed this one.
Fluttershy engaged in quiet conversation with the bird, who twittered back at her. Slowly, Fluttershy began to glow with pale pink light. I carefully levitated the blue butterfly-shaped Element of Kindness out of the chest, but as I did a pink blur swept from the sky to seize it. I cried out to Rainbow as Pinkie soared away with the Element clutched in her hooves.

Rainbow gave chase, but as she flew, a group of flying squirrels- as in, squirrels with wings- converged on her, chittering and squeaking, as we on the ground were trampled by a group of bunnies with ridiculously long legs. By the time Rainbow had fought free of the squirrels, Pinkie was gone. I picked myself off the ground, staring after the long-legged rabbits as they stampeded away into the forest. I growled.
"Discord."

"Well at least we know where the animals went." Rainbow muttered, gliding slightly shakily back to the ground, her cyan fur scribbled with scratches. Above us, the flying squirrels hovered in a cloud, their beady eyes on us in case we tried to move.
Rarity huffed, sweeping her rather flattened curls back into place. "Discord! I'd forgotten about him. He must have decided to come and visit Pinkie, and he's always willing to help her. She's his 'special friend.'

"Right on, my dear Rarity!" came a voice from a nearby tree; the grinning face of the mischievous draconequus plastered on every leaf.There was a snap of claws and Discord stood before us in all his chaotic glory, taller now because he was standing on Fluttershy's back.
"Discord!" snapped Fluttershy. "This isn't nice! Stop it, right now!"
But Discord just yawned, and stepped down from her back. He stretched out one of her wings with his lion paw and examined it. Fluttershy snapped her wing closed. "Discord!"

Discord ignored her, strolling over to Rainbow and pulling out one of her cyan wings for inspection. Rainbow snarled at him, preparing to leap up and apply a large amount of pressure, via her hoof, to his face, but the draconequus sensed the danger and in a flash, reappeared, balanced delicately on tiptoe, on Rarity's horn. Rarity glared up at him as he pirouetted around on the tip of her white horn. Then Discord turned his attention to me.

He prodded my horn experimentally. I sent a wave of electrical magic sweeping through his body, and he yowled crossly. All of a sudden, my horn was gone, and he waved it at me cheerfully before causing it to vanish. I almost flew at him, but Rainbow and Applejack got there first. Discord zapped out of the way before grabbing Rainbow's wings and removing them smoothly from her back. There was no blood; Rainbow was just an earth pony, with no sign her wings had ever been there.

Rainbow screeched in fury and tried to snatch the wings back, but Discord was gone again. He stood in a tree, and with a snap of his fingers the wings turned orange. He then swept down and seamlessly fixed them to Applejack's back. He produced my purple horn from nowhere, recoloured it cyan and stuck it onto Rainbow's forehead.

I watched, aghast; he was undoing all of the last few weeks' events. But Rainbow's lightning bolt and Applejack's apples stayed in place, and they continued to shout angrily at the draconequus, Applejack rising unsteadily into the air on her new wings while Rainbow screwed up her eyes in an attempt to use her magic; nothing happened.She had no idea how to use magic, and judging by the way Applejack hit her wing on a tree branch and fell down seconds later, Applejack had no idea how to use her wings.

By now Discord was switching manes and tails, too, and even Fluttershy was yelling at him. I found myself with a spiky rainbow-coloured tail, while my own indigo and purple tail was visible across the clearing; Applejack was wearing it. But when we were all muddled up, Discord bored of this game and, flying over to Applejack, began to peel Applejack's cutie mark off her flank as if it was a sticker.

But then Discord stopped as Pinkie landed in a tree beside him. The Element of Kindness was clasped around her neck, but something had changed deep inside her blue eyes- there was something dark, even malevolent, about her gaze. As I watched, thick shadowy smoke began to wreath around her. All of us fell silent and watched with anxious trepidation.

Pinkie's mouth opened, and the smoke poured in. Then Pinkie spoke in many voices at once.
"We are Pinkamena Diane Pie."

Author's Note:

Two chapters until the finale!

Be prepared.

Comments

[Shpoople96]

My name is Pinkamena Diane Pie, for We are many.

[Nolongerposting]

We are Pinkamena Diane Pie. Do not move and do not attempt to use magic We will add your biological and magical distinctiveness to our own. You will adapt to service us. Resistance is futile.
Alright Star Trek references aside great chapter and I can't wait for the next two, although I'm going to be sad when this epic story is over. And this certainly is a twist now that Discord has showed up and is having fun in Photoshop and right now Pinkie is acting a little weird and seems to be going all Borg on them. I hope that you get the last two chapters out soon. Can't wait to read them.

[Authora97]

it says you just updated, explain.

[Threedog96]

things just went from i am burning to death dark to cupcakes dark

[TrueBlueTardis]

Why do I feel like this is a prank chapter? Like, something done for April Fools Day?