What if? · 3:44am Jul 28th, 2012
Twilight Sparkle stepped forward, and was.
She blinked, both from the sudden light, and from surprise. It’s not every day, after all, that you suddenly find yourself existing. In fact, it was an entirely new experience for the young mare.
Or... was it? She shook her head, tossing her mane, trying to clear the fog from her mind. Facts seemed to appear as she searched for them, like a bridge building itself to meet her hooves, each one fitting itself into place just before she could find it missing and stumble into confusion.
I am Twilight Sparkle.
I am the personal protege of Princess Celestia of Equestria.
“It... worked?” A voice came from her left. She ignored it. This was important.
I live in the Ponyville Library with my assistant, Spike.
I have five wonderful friends.
“Um... hello?” The voice came again. It was annoyingly familiar, like something she should be able to recognize. It distracted her. She gritted her teeth, and started over.
I am Twilight Sparkle.
I am the personal protege of Princess Celestia of Equestria.
“Are... are you okay? Spike, help me find Advanced Mirror Magic. It should be in the pile somewhere.” Stupid distracting voice. Where was she? Spike, Spike... ah, right.
I live in the Ponyville Library with my assistant, Spike.
“Oh, where is it?” the voice groaned in frustration. “This isn’t good! If I can’t fix this this quickly, I won’t get to go stargazing, and I’ll be late to my friends’ party!” Yes. Friends.
I have five wonderful friends.
“Oh, here it is! Let’s see, page 253... oh no, did I write that rune backwards? That might put one of us in a catatonic state. But I’m sure I triple checked it at least once!” The voice grew closer again. “Hey, are you awake? Can you move, or talk?”
Twilight ground her teeth. There was no way she could concentrate with this constant noise. She turned her head to the side, preparing to berate--
Herself.
“Wh-wha?” she stammered. “Who are you?”
The other purple unicorn perked up, the worry disappearing from her face. “Oh, you’re okay! It did work! I’m you. I mean, you’re me. I mean, we’re... us. Ourselves. Who are each other.”
I am Twilight Sparkle.
Twilight stared blankly at her for a moment. “No you aren’t. I’m me. You’re... not me. Obviously. Because I’m me, and that means you can’t be me.”
The other mare shook her head. “We’re both me! Don’t you remember? I... we... created a spell that let us--I mean me--become us! So that one of me could watch the planets coming into near-perfect alignment, and the other could go to my friends’ party! Oh, Princess Celestia is going to be so proud of me when I show her...”
Twilight looked slowly around the room. There were three mirrors in the room, arranged in a triangular setup. The faint hint of ozone in the air spoke of a powerful spell having just been cast. But she couldn’t remember what it had been.
“Oh, there’s no time for this. Congratulations, you get to go stargazing!”
Twilight found herself suddenly lifted into the air with her own magic. She flailed her legs to no avail. A moment later, her hooves came into contact with her upper balcony. She stared down at her doppelganger.
“I’ve got to get going, or I’ll be late,” the other unicorn called up to her. “Have fun for me!”
I am Twilight Sparkle.
Then the other was gone, trotting out the door, pulling on a simple yellow dress as she went.
Twilight Sparkle stared after... herself. Then she turned and, in a daze, walked out to her telescope.
I am Twilight Sparkle.
The telescope sat unused before her. She knew something wasn’t right. She knew who she was. She knew who her parents were, and that she had a wonderful big brother. She knew they had a big home in Canterlot, and she knew that sometimes, Princess Cadence--the best foalsitter in the history of forever!--came to visit.
I am the personal protege of Princess Celestia of Equestria.
She knew that she had always loved learning and knowledge. She knew that she’d seen Princess Celestia at the Summer Sun Celebration, and instantly fallen in love with her beauty, majesty, and power. She knew that she’d swore on that day that she would grow up to be just like the Princess. She knew that her parents had enrolled her in Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. She knew that she had passed the entrance exam with flying colors, earning not only her cutie mark, but the personal attention of the Princess herself.
“Do you, uh... need anything? Before I go to bed?”
I live in the Ponyville Library with my assistant, Spike.
Her silence answered the baby dragon, and he left her alone without another word.
She knew that Spike had been put under her care as she grew older. She knew that she had become Princess Celestia’s faithful student, earning her mentor’s respect and confidence. She knew that she’d been sent to Ponyville, under the pretense of checking on the preparation for that year’s Summer Sun Celebration, to harness the power of the Elements of Harmony and bring about the defeat of Nightmare Moon.
I have five wonderful friends.
She knew that she’d met Applejack, the honest and hardworking cowpony. She knew that she’d met Rainbow Dash, the loyal and athletic weather pegasus. She knew that she’d met Rarity, the generous and noble seamstress. She knew that she’d met Fluttershy, the kind and gentle caretaker of animals. She knew that she’d met Pinkie Pie, the lighthearted and energetic baker. She knew that she’d saved Equestria with those five at her side.
So why couldn’t she remember any of it? Her mind was a void, a great blank expanse of missing memories, and she traveled across it with only the thin bridges of knowledge to support her unsteady hooves, searching for the faintest scrap of recollection. Trying to remember anything that had happened before she stepped into the world.
I am Twilight Sparkle.
“Special delivery for Twilight Sparkle!”
“GAH!” Twilight jumped, whipping around to face her attacker.
A blond, grey-coated pegasus mare hovered in the air before her, with a package and a slightly apologetic look. She knew it was Derpy. She didn’t remember how she knew.
“I am Twilight Sparkle,” she snapped, with a bit more force than she intended. The pegasus simply grinned.
“Of course you are! So this package is for you. Please sign.” A clipboard was produced from the mare’s saddlebag after Twilight took the package in her magic. Twilight lifted one of her quills from beside the telescope before realizing that she didn’t have any ink.
“Argh. Just a moment.” She closed her eyes, preparing a simple spell to teleport her inkwell to herself. She had left it...
She couldn’t remember.
A spark of anger flared to life inside her. Her eyes snapped open and she lashed out with her magic. A gash appeared across the paper before her, the edges of the tear curling outward and smouldering red with the heat.
Derpy fell back, landing on the balcony with a thump. The clipboard landed with a sharp crack, dropped from her mouth.
“Go away!” Twilight shouted.
Shock and hurt registered on the other mare’s face. Then Twilight lit her horn again, and the emotions were replaced by naked fear. With a cry, the hapless pegasus took to the air, her unsteady, weaving flight taking her quickly away from the library.
Twilight Sparkle lay down in the cold, empty night to sulk. And to try to remember.
Just a little thought that's been bouncing around in my head awhile: What if Twilight had created an evil twin? Or, because "evil" such a shallow, boring concept, what if the twin wasn't evil, just... angry, hurt, and confused? What if, in her denial of her nature and her desire to reclaim "her" identity, she was driven to destroy Twilight and everything she previously held dear? I think it'd make for a pretty good Dark/Tragedy, myself.
It's really a shame I can't write all the stories. Anyway, back to the path I chose! It's getting a little overgrown again.
If you ask nicely, maybe someone else will write it. And then you can mutually plug each other's stories all you want.
Twilight A would be really disappointed after they merged again if Twilight B hadn't gone stargazing...
This would have been an interesting idea, especially since it would have gone in such an obviously opposite direction than the original.
Wow.
Clearly you must duplicate yourself via advanced mirror-based magic and write two times the fiction.
An evil twin could have worked. It would have made remedial tutoring the most epic of hate fucks.
this is basically "problems with cloning.txt"
...This would be an interesting alternate universe for Perfect For Me. Maybe when you're finished with that, you could explore what would happen if something went wrong with the spell? I'd probably read it.
A very dark, and very believable twist on your own story. I'm fairly curious now how things might have worked out differently up until now if the story had gone down this route - that either the Twilight doppelganger might have refused to return to her to become one person, or that by recombining Twilight would give herself a dark alter-ego, a Jeckle and Hyde mentality.
What if .... Banana Muffins!
Awesome.
Great Idea I like it. We need a name for her evil twin like, "Twilight Darkle" or something.
Okay admittedly that was terrible but, meh.
Carry On
Hmmm, this really is a neat idea. I'm going to agree with a previous comment and say that I would definitely read this if you were to go back and write it after you finish Perfect for Me, or if someone else were to write it.
I'm sure you could still make it a romance. Weave in some Twixie, make Trixie the target of Dark Twilight's anger, and end on a happy lesbian threesome (except that it's really two people, there's just two of one of them. Two-and-a-halfsome?) HAVE ALL THE THINGS!
254716
Huh. I should try that some time.
On an unrelated note, having just finished writing that first chapter in A Mare and Her Mirror, "mutual plugging" sounds far more exciting than it is.
254744
I know, right? They say stories always have a bit of their author in them...
254751
Kind of is, isn't it? One of the reasons I played Perfect For Me the way I did was just that, actually. I'd already seen the conflicts that arise from having an original and a clone covered pretty well in other stories (and movies). Two equal copies gave me an opportunity to make up my own story, and not feel like I'm just copying stuff I've seen.
This'd make a great starting point if I wanted to join the "Twilight Goes Evil and Kills Her Friends" grimdark crowd, though.
254767
I hadn't thought about the possibility of her successfully combining again. That could be fun too.
254826
I've always thought that "Nightfall" is a good Evil Twilight word. Something with "Nightfall" in it.
254885
I don't think I could write Twixie. I just don't see any spark between the two.
...Dammit. When I say it that way, it sounds like a challenge. "Twixie" is now somewhere around #50 on my "things I wish I had time to write some day" list.
>It's really a shame I can't write all the stories
You can write all the stories! a.deviantart.net/avatars/x/a/xalltheyplz.png
254938
You really don't see anything between them? I'm not judging or anything, I'm just surprised.
My headcanon has always been Trixie spent her time after the incident at Ponyville first bitter at Twilight. She'd see Twilight as a rival, an opponent to be beaten, and she'd plan to do it by becoming a more powerful magician. She'd try and try to train herself to Twilight's level, but then she'd hear of something new that Twilight accomplished that dwarfed her show of power with the Ursa (likely the Discord incident. I could justify this as being the only thing she's really done on that scale that went public because the Changeling thing wasn't solved by her, and the Nightmare Moon thing was probably covered up to an extent so as not to cause a panic and to ease the transition for Luna) and Trixie would realize she'd never be as powerful as Twilight. She's intelligent, though. Left to her own devices, and given all of Season 2 to think, she'd come around. She'd realize the only way to become as great as Twilight would be to learn from Twilight. She'd swallow her pride and show up, likely discretely, to apologize to Twilight and Twilight alone. The two would become friends, and the 6 becomes 7 after Twilight has her apologize to the others.
The thing about the dynamic between the mane 6 is that every character shares some sort of interest or hobby with at least one other, with one exception. Twilight has no one in the group that shares ANY of her interests, and that's always bothered me, because it means that just about any pairing between her and any of her friends would be either forced or short lived, at least realistically. They're fantastic friends, but romantically they just wouldn't work. That's one of the reasons I like your story so much, because things left as they are, that clone is one of the only ways Twilight could HAVE a romantic partner that fits her and still remain in touch with her friends.
Now, introduce Trixie to the mix, and everything changes. Now Twilight has someone to do magic with, and she'd probably spend more time with her than any of her other friends, especially if she offered to let Trixie stay at the library. With Trixie now being the only one she can share an interest with, things would escalate pretty quickly. I don't know, I just find the idea of Twixie very believable, if not the only believable ship with Twilight. (well, Celestia, Luna, and Twilight are all good matches for Twilight, so there's that)
...wow, I'm so sorry, I did not mean to write a freakin book here
I got really carried away. Spent all this time on this response, though, may a swell submit it, as embarrassing as that is.
TL;DR Twixie works. Here is an essay I wrote to prove why.
Wow, I really like this Idea! I find it really fun seeing through the eyes of the other twilght and her thought process, but instead of "know and remmebering" who she is, she only knows, but can't remember how or why. This Idea would make a fantastic story, sort of like an alternate universe.
But... as appealing as it it, you got to stick to your guns. I have three stories planned out, and every soften I get the urge to start one of the other two, but I know if I do, it will only delay my current story. Making it twice as long untill its finished.
One thing at a time.
255013
that's a great idea and justification, I'd love to read a story like that, and i'm not even a Twixie fan.
That concept is almost as stupid as the idea that Twilight and her identical doppelganger would fall in love and have a weird narcissistic love affair... wait...
your already fantastic, different, and unique concept may take another, crazier, turn.
all you have to do is find someone good enough and nice enough to write it.
you spoil me, because now i want to have this written.
Alright, you had your fun. You've made a clopfic and a What-if-my-fic-I'm-currently-working-on-went-like-this-instead? Fic. Time to stop goofing around and update "perfect for me"!!
Though, I still enjoyed the clopfic and this!
255013
Interesting. We see Trixie differently in a couple of ways. (Not surprising, since she only had the one episode. A lot of her personality is up for interpretation.)
1. I have difficulty seeing her swallowing her pride like that. This mostly comes down to me not bothering to look beyond the "Great and Powerful" mask she wore. She seemed pretty attached to the persona she'd built up, even returning to it after her initial admission that she hadn't actually taken out an Ursa Major. (She was pretty adorable in that vulnerable moment, though, I'll give her that.)
2. I don't see that much intersection between their interests. Trixie doesn't seem (to me) to be drawn to knowledge for its own sake, or a student of magic as more than a means to an end. Rather, her interests center around showmareship, and achieving fame. So while Twilight might find her a willing student, I don't see them having any particularly deep discussions about the theories or history behind the magic she's trying to learn.
All that aside, I definitely see what you mean about lack of shared interests with her other friends. I end up liking a lot of TwiDash fics, mostly because they're freaking adorable together. But despite having same kind of drive to be the best they can (if with substantially different apparent motivations), and Dash getting into reading a bit, even most of those stories just don't manage to convince me that it'd last after the initial flame burned down.
256853
But... but... awh. Fine.
257936
As she is, no, Trixie wouldn't have any interest in it, but I think she would if she became motivated to learn. If she was a willing student, she'd naturally have to take at least some interest in the material. It wouldn't be an overnight thing, but like i said, she'd come around. you're absolutely right about there being multiple takes on her character, though, so I dunno. I guess it's all a matter of whether people are willing to see past her mask.
I still think it'd be a cool fic to see, where Twi writes Celestia reports on her progress with her own pupil. The student becomes the master and all that fun stuff.
258474
Just the act of recognizing that Twilight would be able to teach her would be a step towards Trixie becoming a better pony. From there it's a gradual change. Full acceptance of not being the best unicorn around leads on to a gradual acceptance that other ponies have talents to offer. And you're guaranteed a willing student. At first, she wants to get better, no matter the cost. As she changes, she still want's to be better, but her drive to learn is also increased due to an increasing drive to impress her teacher.
257936
You can always look at her Great and Powerful mask as just that. The mask is her stage persona, her vulnerable moment was a slip up. Once she's not on display, there's no need for masks as her lively hood (impressing ponies so they throw money at her) isn't at stake. Everything we see in that episode is her pandering to the crowd/audience to win over the most fans. Although yes, she needs to be taught the difference between showing up others and humiliating/inciting others.
Her interests center around showmanship and fame, which, if she's actually really interested in it, will include the fundamentals of how to make her magic work easier for her. She SHOULD be willing to learn as much as she can about her areas of magic, as well as being eager to theorize on magic topics in the hopes of learning something else that will help her, as who knows what random discussion and thinking will bring up? The main problem with this however is that she probably wont be up to Sparkles level of theoretical magic, so whilst she'd be capable of discussing low to mid level things, I doubt she'd join Twilight in an all night study session on the viability of turning the planet inside out and how the polarized magical fields would react to it and what the repercussions would be at a magical molecular level (why that? Well, had to pick something and why the hell not).