//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: Under the Lunar Light // Story: Making A Switch // by Its a Birdy //------------------------------// I felt something move my shoulder, disturbing my sleep and earning a grunt of annoyance from me. The motion persisted, so I rolled away from it with a growl. “Trixie, wake up!” a voice shouted in my ear. It sounded like my voice, but it couldn’t have been my voice. My voice belonged to me, right? A surreal feeling wrapped itself around my mind before I realized that it was my voice I’d just heard. A cold sweat gripped my body as I sat up with a jolt and stared at myself. “Aaaahhh!” I fell off the opposite side of the bed and smacked the back of my head against the wall, rattling the windows. “Trixie! Are you okay?” Rubbing my head I stood up, “I... I think I... forgot that we switched bodies.” “And that’s why you screamed?” “Well yeah, It’s weird for Trixie to look at herself when she’s forgotten that she isn’t herself. It spooked me a little,” I said rubbing the back of my head. “How long was I asleep?” “About four or five hours. That leaves us another fourteen hours with this body switch,” Twilight smiled. “Pinkie Pie and Applejack are downstairs, looking for you. They’ve already talked to Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash.” I sprang out of Twilight’s bed and shook my head. I ran across the room, and focused my magic on the brush that sat in front of the mirror, but it transformed into a squirrel and disappeared out an open window. “Oh, horsefeathers… wait, the sun’s already down?” Twilight chuckled, “Don’t worry, I have a spare, here.” Twilight used her magic to open a drawer and levitate a brush. Using it to straighten my mane, making it look normal. I smiled, “Thanks, Twilight.” “It’s alright. Although I think you might want to avoid using my magic. It’s more powerful than what you’re used to.” “Only because you’re a princess now,” I mumbled under my breath. “What was that?” “Oh, I… uh… I was just saying how nice it is to have you brush my mane.” “Well technically, it’s my mane I’m brushing,” said Twilight. She smiled and sat the brush down in front of the mirror. “Ready to go downstairs?” she asked. “Trixie’s always ready!” I said triumphantly. “Seriously, quit that!” she laughed, starting down the stairs. Following Twilight down the stairs, I saw Pinkie Pie and Applejack sitting next to each other. Spike was just walking back into the room with nothing else than a stack of pancakes. I just stared at him, feeling my hunger rising again. “What?” he asked. “Nothing, I’m just hungry. Haven’t eaten today.” “Well, I can make you some pancakes if you want,” he offered, giving me a weary smile before looking down at his plate. “Actually, why don’t you just take these. I can make myself some more.” “I can wait. It’s not a big deal. But thank you, Spike.” Applejack stood and walked to the bottom of the stairs. “Hey partner, listen. Ah wanna apologize for how ah was behavin’ earlier when y’all dropped by. Ah shouldn’t've over-reacted like ah had.” “Thanks for coming around. I really do want to change, you know?” I walked over to the table where Spike had left his pancakes. He pushed the plate in front of me before leaving for the kitchen. “Just eat it already! Unless, do you want me to eat it for you?! Spike makes the bestest pancakes ever! Especially with the Cake’s special recipe.” Pinkie leaned in and whispered into my ear, “I helped make it!” I leaned forward and gently used my magic to levitate the fork, I smiled to myself feeling a little proud as the fork began to glow purple. Cutting a bite-sized slice off the stack, I ate it and it tasted like heaven in a flower-filled cake of clouds! Dropping the fork and using my hooves, I quickly began stuffing my face. When I finally straightened out and looked at the ponies around me, I felt a little embarrassed. They were all just staring at me! I shyed away from them and glanced out a nearby window. The moon was still low in the sky. The stars that dotted the night sky were so thick it felt like I was looking at a beautiful tapestry that hung gently over the world. “Wow,” said Pinkie Pie. “I… I’ll go clean up real quick.” I stood and slipped into the kitchen, almost bumping into Spike who had a fresh plate of pancakes. I danced to one side while he fell backwards, trying to keep his pancakes on their plate. Luckily for him, they didn’t fall. He let loose a sigh of relief and glared at me. I watched as he carefully stood and continued into the other room. I went ahead and cleaned my hooves and face off before following Spike. Twilight turned to me as I entered, “Trixie, I’ve sent Pinkie Pie to find Fluttershy. Hopefully, Pinkie can convince her to come over.” “Thanks, Twilight. So what are the plans? Someone fill me in. Applejack?” “Well, Pinkie and ah went and talked to Fluttershy earlier. She didn’ know what to think, but after we explained, she understands the position you’re in and I think she’s willin’ ta help. But ya need to talk to her first.” Applejack’s ear twitched just as a knock came from the door. “Spike, can you get the door?” asked Twilight. Spike nodded while chewing his pancakes as he swung the door open. On the other side of the door stood Rainbow Dash. “‘Sup? She up yet?” Rainbow asked, following Spike back into the main room. “I’m awake. So you already know?” I tried to smile as I spoke, but Rainbow’s reserved stance gave me the impression that she was still on the fence about all this craziness. “Yeah, I know.” Rainbow looked at Twilight then back to me. “So you’re Trixie, and she’s Twilight, right?” Twilight walked over to stand next to me and we both smiled at Rainbow. “Rainbow, I need to ask for your help. I need to learn more about friendship and I was hoping you could teach me something. Believe it or not, I have kept up with newspapers about what you all have been up to-” “Trixie, I’m not here to help you. I’m here to see if you’re trustworthy. From what Applejack tells me, you’re just trying to get into Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, but how are we supposed to know that you aren’t just acting like you want friends,” Rainbow paused for a brief moment. “Rainbow, I think you’re-” “Just let me finish, Twilight. How do we know you’re not just using us? How do we know you actually want to learn something?” Rainbow walked into the room and stood by Applejack. I didn’t know how to respond, but I couldn’t blame her for the accusations. I hadn’t left the best impression on them the last time they saw me. Thankfully, Twilight answered for me, “Rainbow, I know you want answers and all, but we are on a time limit. Instead of bombarding her with questions she can’t answer, why not just roll with it and make your decision when her time is up. At least that way, she has a little bit of time to more or less prove herself.” Rainbow Dash’s shoulders slacked and she sat down. “Okay, fine. But I’ll be keeping an eye on you and if I see anything suspicious…” “You’ll what, Rainbow Dash?” I squeezed my eyes closed and turned away from her in an attempt to calm myself down. I could feel my wings tensing at my sides, to the point that they started to ache. “What was that Trixie?” asked Rainbow, standing at her full height. I could feel the distrust and irritation pulsating off of her. This pony didn’t want anything to do with me. I sighed a deep breath and looked at her, pushing all my anger and frustrations down. “Sorry. I’m just, you know, stressed out. I really do want to change, but it will take longer than this twenty-four hour period to do so. So it’s your choice if you want to help me or not. I won’t beg for your help, but I do want to ask if you’re willing to, at least, give me a chance.” Rainbow’s whole body visibly relaxed and she floated into the air with such grace. “Hey, don’t worry about that right now.” She glanced at Twilight and smiled, “Eh Trixie, ever wanted to fly? You have wings that you probably won’t have again anytime soon.” “Wait, what about Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy? aren’t they on their way here?” The mere idea of flight terrified me. I’ve always wished I was a pegasus, but I’m glad I was born as a unicorn, like my mother. But what if I were to fall? If I were to fly I could easily fall… and from what heights? “Don’t worry about ‘em. They can wait ‘til you two come back,” said Applejack. I sighed and glanced at Twilight. The just nodded and so I followed Rainbow Dash out the door. She led us away from the library until we came to a small clearing in the middle of the park, not too far from where Twilight’s library was. Rainbow Dash turned towards me and landed gently on the ground. “Alright, let’s start. Trixie spread your wings.” I began stretching my wings out awkwardly. “Good, now move them up and then down, gently. You should feel the air push you up off the ground a little.” I did as she said, raising my wings upwards until their tips nearly touched each other before slowly bringing them back to the ground. As my wings became level with ears and eyes, I could feel my hooves lifting off the ground. But as my wings passed my knees, I felt that lift give way. “Good, did you feel the lift? If not, try again. Though, if you missed that kind of lift, you must be completely numb.” She not far off. I nodded my head and relaxed my wings a little, leaving them only partially open. “So Rainbow, why the sudden urge to give me a flight lesson?” “It’s simple. I love to fly, and you’ve never flown. Even if you’re in Twilight’s body, you’re bound to crash. As long as you don’t fall out of the sky and seriously hurt yourself, we shouldn’t have a problem. I don’t particularly like you, but I won’t let you hurt Twilight’s body.” She laughed as I growled. “Okay. Now that you understand how to lift yourself off the ground, I just want you to copy me.” Rainbow’s wings smoothly extended from her sides already at an angle over her head, about even with her ears. She moved them down to her knees before pulling them into her sides and extending them back up to their starting position. “Now you try it. This is the basic flight formula. It’s the first thing a pegasus learns besides walking and talking, of course.” I took a breath and copied her motions as closely as I could, though when I lowered my wings, I passed my knees and my wing tips touched the ground. I brought my wings to my sides before extending them back up into the air. Leaving them in this position, I glanced up at Rainbow Dash, “Like that?” “Yeah, though you don’t want your wings extending past your knees. After they’ve passed your knees you lose speed and control. It’s like straightening a back leg when you should be pulling it forward. It slows you down and throws off your balance. Get me?” “Yeah, so flying is like running but with wings.” I’m actually learning something here! Who knew Rainbow Dash, of all ponies, would be a suitable flight teacher. “Exactly. Now I want you to hover. This is probably going to take some practice, but you’re a quick learner, so just copy me.” Rainbow reproduced the form she had just shown me before repeating the motion over and over again in growing succession. After the third or fourth beat, she was floating above the ground with no more than a steady pace. I watched closed at how she held the rest of her body. She held the same stance a pony would hold if they were standing on their rear legs. Her front legs were tucked in, but not too tightly, and her rear legs were spread apart slightly. Her tail was also held out as if she were trying to keep balanced. “Your turn.” I copied her form by extending my wings up so they were even with my ears before bringing them down to my sides. I could feel the lift give way as my wings came to my knees, so I pulled them to my side and repeated the process again with increased speed. I glanced up at her and smiled, feeling my hooves lift off the ground for a split second before touching down again. I sped up my rotation and after the fourth beat of my wings, I began to float away from the ground. I was at eye level with Rainbow for a moment before I floated past her. “Wait, why am I still going up!?” I asked, feeling a bit panicked. Rainbow chuckled and flew up to me with such elegance; I couldn’t help but wish I could actually fly like her. “You just need to slow your wings to a steady pace. Just copy me.” I slowed my wings a little and could feel myself get heavier, just enough to stop flying upwards and hover there, even with Rainbow. “Okay, I think I got it. What’s next!?” I asked, blushing a little as I noticed just how eager I sounded. Rainbow just smiled at me, “Well, let’s fly. In order to move around while in the air, you need to angle your wings to push the air in different directions. See?” She demonstrated her explanation by moving forward. Her wings were moving backward on each beat. I noticed that her wings were still moving at a fairly consistent speed, yet the angles she was using had changed almost completely. “So... I just have to change the angles and hold this same speed, correct?” “Yes, but the more angle you use-” I flew past her too quickly, and with a squeak, I began losing altitude. Reversing my wings’ angle, I managed to slow my speed and my fall. I looked over my shoulder, “Um how do I… uh… turn around?” “Really?” Rainbow turned and flew down to me, stopping on a bit with a smile painted on her face. “Well, Trixie, I kinda want to see you figure this one out. Since you’re so eager to learn and all.” I grunted and looked at my wings. The air they were pushing off of was at a downward angle. Perhaps rotating one wing forward and one wing backwards ever-so-slightly would turn me around. I did just that. Turning one wing so air flow would move it forward while my other wing would push air flow forward and move that side backwards. My body smoothly rotated until I was facing the correct direction. I looked at Rainbow Dash with a huge grin on my face, in return, she softly chuckled in amusement. “Now what?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. “Let’s try flying forward again. Now, try not to angle your wings so much this time, and once you’ve gained some speed, you can slow down. You know, save energy? After you reach a decent speed, you will feel your body lose almost all its weight. You’ll feel lighter than air, meaning you can glide.” Rainbow’s expression hardened, but her eyes held a strange playfulness to them. “Sure, let’s give it a try,” I said with an excited nod. At this point, I wasn’t even trying to hide my excitement about flying. Considering how high we were, I was surprised that I didn’t feel my usual fear of heights. I couldn’t help but feel excitement tingling in my wings and hooves. Flying was just too much fun! I gave Rainbow an evil smirk before taking off, passing just over her shoulder and off into the distance. Glancing over my shoulder, I could see Rainbow catching up very quickly. Stretching my wings out even with my shoulders, I leaned to my right and glided at an angle into a massive collection of clouds. I came to a stop and turned back towards Rainbow before diving back out of the cloud, passing right under her as I did so. I slowed down again and landed on a cloud. My lungs were on fire and my wings were starting to ache a little. Rainbow landed next to me. “Great job, Trixie! I’m really glad to see this from ya.” “How come?” I asked, lying down on the cloud. It was soft and wet, yet comfortable and soothing. “I wish I were a pegasus. These clouds are so... I could sleep for years right here.” “Yeah, clouds are comfortable. I couldn’t wish to be anything besides a pegasus. I can’t imagine what it’s like to be grounded all the time.” Rainbow Dash smiled over at me and I looked from her up to the moon. It had risen quite a bit in the time we had been flying. How much time do I have left? “We should head back to the library. I don’t know how much time I have left, but I imagine me and Twilight will be switching back soon,” I said as I felt my eyes starting to sting and my heart felt heavy in my chest. “Are you crying?” the rainbow-maned mare asked me. “No.” I rubbed my eyes against the back of my hoof. “I just… I... I’m happy for the first time in a long time, and it’s thanks to you, Twilight, and the others. For giving me this chance, for giving me wings… Even if I only have them for this short time. This... this is special.” “Trixie…” “Don’t worry, Trixie’s fine. I’ve always wanted to fly. I always wanted wings of my very own. I know I’ll never have them, but I can’t thank you and Twilight enough for making this happen.” I stood up with my eyes closed and my nose pointed towards the moon. I could feel the light breeze blowing through my mane and over my wings. “Come on, let's head back to the library.” Rainbow just nodded. Her features were softer than they were before. “Well. You’re a good flier, that’s for sure.” “Only because you’re a good teacher.” Her face went red and she dove off the cloud, heading towards Twilight’s library. I rolled my eyes and followed Rainbow Dash. Twilight was waiting inside with Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Fluttershy. Spike was nowhere to be seen, but it was getting to be pretty late. “Welcome back you two. How’d it go?” Twilight asked, looking specifically at Rainbow Dash. “It went great! She learned how to fly so much faster than you did! I can tell that she’s determined, she’s definitely changed from the last time she was here.” Rainbow grinned as she noticed me blushing a little. Twilight coughed, attracting everyone's attention. “Fluttershy, I believe you wanted to talk to Trixie when she returned, right?” Fluttershy nodded her head, “Yes. Umm… Well, I wanted to let you know… I’m willing to help you.” My heart jumped into my throat with joy.”Thank you for your kindness, Fluttershy. I promise that I’ll repay you for your help.” I looked at the rest of them, but something seemed off. “Twilight? What’s wrong?” “Well… we tried getting Rarity to come here and talk with you, but the moment she heard you were in town, she locked herself in her boutique, ranting about how she had to protect her mane.” Twilight sighed, “I don’t think we’re going to get through to her. Even Pinkie Pie couldn’t get her to come around, and that’s something.” “Yeah, we’ve tried everything. Ah even offered her a lifetime supply of apple cider, but she said no. She ain’t wantin’ a thing to do with ya.” “But… If I can’t even talk to Rarity, how would I ever get back into Celestia’s school? Without Rarity’s friendship, I wouldn’t be able to rejoin the school. I… I’d have to start traveling again, being homeless and having no purpose.” Warm tears rolled through the fur of my cheeks and fell from my chin. I felt two sets of hooves wrap around me. On one side was Pinkie Pie, and on the other was Applejack. Twilight quickly joined in the group hug, and finally, Rainbow joined in. After we all separated, Twilight tilted her head and looked at me. “Even if you don’t manage to earn Rarity’s trust while in my body, it doesn’t mean you will never earn it. After we switch back, you’re welcome to stay with me here at the library.” “Really? You would let me live here with you?” “Of course, you can. I can help you study until you get back into the school! Oh, it’ll be so much fun having a student!” I jumped forward and hugged her as tight as I could. “Trixie can’t thank you enough,” I whispered into her ear.