Chapter 13: Bad Jokes at Bad Times
Sunstreak had spent a majority of the night helping Spike arrange the new books along the shelves, the walls, and moving a few boxes into the basement. He continued to do so long after the dragon had went to sleep and there were still a rather large amount of books that needed to be moved.
When Sunstreak woke up, he was lying on the floor with his back against a wall with a pounding headache.
The sun was just beginning to poke its head above the horizon when Sunstreak woke up, both confused and feeling very strange. It felt as though half of his body was strangely stiff, but he just chalked it up to weird sleeping position.
He sleepily walked over to a mirror to check and make sure nothing was sticking up weird, but when he raised his head to look at himself, he screamed from surprise, waking up Spike.
“What happened?” said Spike as he briskly walked down the stairs to look into the room. “Uh…Sunstreak…?” The red Pegasus wasn’t in the room. “Where’d you go?”
“In here…” Sunstreak replied from the basement door. Spike walked over to it.
“What are you doing in there?” The little dragon asked as he reached for the brass handle, but as he began to pull it open the door slammed back shut.
“NO! Don’t come in here!” Sunstreak replied a strange distortion was in his voice.
“What’s going on?” Spike asked as he tried to listen through the door.
“Just…do me a favor and get Tornado Dust…” Sunstreak said through the door. “And tell him to bring a cloak…”
“Why would he need a-?”
“Please, Spike.” Sunstreak replied before the dragon could finish. “Just get Tornado Dust…”
“Okay…” Spike replied clearly still confused. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“Please hurry…” Sunstreak said as Spike ran out of the door.
Darkblaze had just woken up when a very rapid knocking came from his front door. “Who could it be at this hour?” He asked himself as he donned his Pegasus disguise and walked downstairs. The knocking continuing at the same rapid pace. “I’m coming!” He said loudly as he let out a little yawn.
When he opened the door he didn’t even get a chance to ask who it was before Spike started to speak through heavy breaths, apparently he had run from the library. “Sun…streak…Basement…Cloak…”
“Spike…are you alright?” Tornado Dust asked looking at the small dragon. “Do you need something? A glass of water maybe?”
“That…would be nice…” He said placing his claws on his knees.
“Alright, just…give me a second.” Tornado Dust walked into the kitchen and returned with a glass of water held in one of his wings. “Now what happened?”
“Thanks…” The dragon said as he downed the water in one go. “Sunstreak locked himself in the basement of the Library and he said he wanted you to come see him.”
“Why was he in the basement?” Tornado asked, confused.
“Your guess is as good as mine.” Spike said shrugging.
“What’s with all the knocking…?” Sweetie Belle had woken up and was walking down the stairs. “Spike? What are you doing here?”
“Sunstreak is apparently having a problem at the Library.” Tornado Dust explained. “He locked himself in the basement and is refusing to come out.” He turned back to Spike. “Did he say anything that would give us an idea as to what’s wrong?”
“No…” The Dragon replied. “I just heard him scream and then he was locked in the basement. He really didn’t want to come out. He sounded kind of sick too.”
“Did he say anything else?” Tornado Dust asked.
Spike shook his head. “Oh wait. He did tell me to bring a cloak for him.”
“Well, I’ve got that.” Tornado Dust said, flying up to the top of a coat rack and grabbing a cloak. “Sweetie Belle, make sure you get to school on time.”
Sweetie Belle rubbed her eye lightly before nodding her head.
“Spike, let’s go.” Tornado Dust said, throwing the cloak over his back and walking out the door.
“Just no more running, okay.” Spike said before quickly following behind.
“No promises!” Tornado called back.
When the two of them got back to the library, Spike was already breathing heavy despite only having run a short distance. “You really need to do some exercise, Spike.” Tornado said as he pushed the door open. “Maybe all that book keeping is ruining your endurance.”
“I’m…Fine…Just…tired…” Spike said walking over to a chair and sitting down in it.
“Suit yourself…” Tornado Dust replied before walking over to the brown door leading to the basement. “Snake Eye?”
“Tornado!” Sunstreak’s voice came from the other side of the door, but it sounded strange, it definitely wasn’t as bad as if he was a Changeling, but it was still noticeable. “Oh, thank God you’re here.”
“Snake Eye, what’s going on?” Tornado Dust asked getting closer to the door. “Why are you hiding in there?”
Tornado Dust could hear a sigh coming from the other side of the door. “You remember how I told you everyone in town thought that I was a changeling because of my eye?”
“Yeah…” Tornado Dust replied. It was true that Sunstreak had told him about his first few days, and about how a lot of ponies jumped to conclusions because of his eye. Granted they were right but they still jumped to conclusions.
Another sigh. “Well…” The door opened slowly, as Sunstreak stepped out of it. Tornado Dust had to prevent himself from laughing.
In front of him stood a half-Changeling version of Sunstreak, his right eye was still the same, but his left looked Changeling along with the left side of his face, he had a single fang jutting from his mouth, his left wing had turned into a Changeling wing, and on his forehead was a small curved horn, only about a fourth the size of a normal Changeling horn. His mane and tail were still there but had holes through them, and his two front legs looked Changeling. Around his body in seemingly random places, Chitin was showing instead of his normal coat.
“You look…” Tornado had said trying to stop himself from laughing. “great…”
“Yeah? And you’re a unicorn.” Sunstreak replied. Looking over at Spike, the little dragon was holding his claws up to his mouth trying not to laugh. Sunstreak sighed. “Go ahead…”
Both of them began to laugh due to the sheer ridiculousness of the appearance. The two of them continued to laugh for around two minutes straight before Sunstreak had walked back into the basement.
“Oh come on, Snake Eye” Tornado said, holding back a tear. “It’s not that bad…”
“What are you talking about?” Spike said, still rolling on the ground. “It’s hilarious!”
“Thanks for your support, guys…” Sunstreak said through the door. “That is exactly what I wanted…”
“So what are you planning on doing?” Tornado Dust asked composing himself. “Are you planning on staying in there forever?”
“Forever or until this wears off whichever comes first.” Sunstreak replied.
“Alright we can figure this out, Snake Eye.” Tornado Dust said, looking towards the still laughing dragon. “Spike! Knock it off!”
The Dragon laughed for a few seconds before getting to his feet. “I’m good…I’m good.”
“Now what happened?”
“I woke up…and I found myself looking like this.” Sunstreak replied.
“You said you went into Everfree yesterday right?” Tornado Dust asked.
“What was he doing in Everfree?” Spike asked.
“Later.” Tornado Dust said to the dragon.
“Yes...” Sunstreak replied. “I was…I don’t see why that explains why I look like a science experiment gone wrong.”
“Did you touch any blue flowers?” Tornado Dust asked. “Look kind of like a bell?”
Sunstreak thought about this for a second. “I think so… I ran through them when I was looking for that Changeling.”
“What Changeling?” Spike asked looking towards Tornado Dust.
“Later.” Tornado replied. “I think I know what’s wrong with you, Poison Joke.”
“Poison what?” Sunstreak asked, completely confused.
“It’s a flower that plays a nasty prank on you if you get the spores on you.” Tornado explained. “Usually it isn’t anything like what you have.”
“Is there a cure?” Sunstreak asked, opening the door a little.
“Yeah we just have to head down to the Spa and get the special treatment they have.” Tornado explained. “It’s just an herb bath.”
Sunstreak opened the door again. “Fine… If it fixes whatever this is I’m fine with it.”
Tornado Dust handed the cloak to Sunstreak who quickly put it on, making sure it covered all the abnormalities. “Wouldn’t want you to cause a riot.”
“What do you mean you’re out of the cure?” Tornado shouted to the pink spa pony. She had a light blue mane with a small white hairband and a lotus flower for a cutie mark. Sunstreak stayed in the corner while Tornado Dust handled everything else.
“We are sorry.” Aloe replied in a slightly French accent. “But we had a large crowd of ponies who were affected by Poison Joke. We had to use the rest of both ours and Zecora’s supplies.”
“Well,” Tornado Dust said. “When is the next shipment due?”
“In four days…” Aloe replied.
“Four days!” Tornado was shouting now. “Where in Equestria are these plants coming from where it takes over four days to get them here?”
“Tornado calm down…” Sunstreak had walked up. “It’ll be fine. It’s not like I can’t explain myself. I just have to get used to ponies looking at me funny for a while.”
“Do you at least know what caused the outbreak?” Tornado asked Aloe.
“No, but we do think it had something to do with a catapult, a cloud, and a Hand glider.” Aloe had replied. Her voice never once changing from that slightly soothing tone.
“Thanks, let us know when the first shipment comes in…” Sunstreak said as he half pulled, half carried Tornado Dust away from Aloe. “I’m sorry for his behavior…usually he’s not like this…”
When both of them were outside the Spa, Sunstreak took the time to fix the cloak that was hiding most of his Changeling appearance. “Four days my left wing.” Tornado Dust said.
“Yeah well…there’s nothing we can do about it.” Sunstreak said, using the small horn he had to hold the hood in place so it wouldn’t fall. “Why are you being the aggressive one? I’m the one who can’t look at anypony without them freaking out.”
“Yeah but this could be bad if they tell the Royal Guard about you.” Tornado Dust said, luckily the streets were still mostly empty so very few ponies could hear them. “They might throw both of us in there.”
“Well…for the meantime, I guess I’ll just hang out at Twilight’s house. Maybe try and find a way to reverse it without the cure.”
“Can’t you just transform?” Tornado Dust asked.
“Tried that already…” Sunstreak replied. “It made a horn pop out of my head, and holes to form in my hooves.” He lifted his front right leg for emphasis. “So pardon me if I don’t really want to try it again.”
“It was just a suggestion…” Tornado Dust replied. “So…this may be slightly more important…what are you going to tell the Cakes?”
“I’ll figure something out…” Sunstreak replied. “Hopefully it won’t involve me showing them…”
“Well…I’ve got to get to Fluttershy’s and check on the animals before dealing with the weather.” Tornado said opening his wings. “I’ll stop by the Library later. Help you figure something out.” He took off from the ground and began to fly towards Everfree.
“Yeah…” Sunstreak said, lowering his head. “Unless I get thrown in jail before then…”
Simply walking to Sugar Cube Corner was a difficult task. He had to make sure that not very many ponies saw him walking or noticed anything was wrong with him. Especially when the Cakes appeared to have opened early and he needed to get to inside… Even when he was. a lot of the ponies gave him curious looks.
“Umm…Mr. Cake…” Sunstreak said as he found the tall yellow earth pony. “I have something I need to tell you…”
“Well what is it, Sunstreak?” Mr. Cake asked, looking at how Sunstreak was holding his head slightly lower.
“Can I tell you in private… If not then can I tell you somewhere less crowded?” He motioned to the large number of ponies inside.
“Oh sure. Come into the kitchen.” Mr. Cake led Sunstreak into the kitchen where his wife, a short blue earth pony with a pink mane was busy making sweets. “Well what is it?”
Sunstreak sighed. “Remember how when I first came here a lot of ponies thought I must have been a Changeling because my eye was weird?”
“Yes, but I don’t see why that would…”
“Well… While I was tending to some of Fluttershy’s animals I accidently touched a piece of Poison Joke.”
“Oh my, are you alright?”
“I’m fine it’s just… The Spa ran out of the herbs it needs…and I have to wait a few days…”
“Well what happened to you?” Mr. Cake asked.
Sunstreak sighed. “Promise me you won’t scream…”
“Why would we scream?” Mrs. Cake had overheard and walked over.
Sunstreak sighed and lowered his hood.
Mr. Cake fainted, while Mrs. Cake looked in shock.
“Well, at least he didn’t scream…” Sunstreak said as he covered his head with the hood again. “So…I don’t think I’ll be able to help until this is sorted out…”
“Oh, it’s no problem…” Mrs. Cake said through a loud gulp. “You just come back when you’re good and ready…” Sunstreak could tell that this could have been handled so much better, but this was the best way Sunstreak felt it should have been handled…straight to the point. Hopefully they wouldn’t call the guard…
Sunstreak decided that after that…horrible attempt to explain his situation, the best possible course of action would be to head back to the library. Not only because he needed to find a way to fix this, but also because he knew there was still plenty to do there to keep him occupied with very little chance of him actually getting seen.
Trying to avoid the looks of the various ponies that were out now was not the easiest thing to do, he had to go down various alleyways and passages he knew about from his various flyovers of Ponyville in an attempt to be completely unseen. When he managed to get back to the library, he let out a long sigh after closing the door.
“Hey, Sunstreak.” Spike called after noticing the Pegasus enter the room. “How was the Spa?”
“Terrible…” Sunstreak said, removing the cloak and hanging it up. “They didn’t have the herbs they needed. So I’m stuck like this for a few days.”
“Well that stinks.” Spike said, walking down the stairs. “So do you mind if I call you Sunshift?”
“Why?” Sunstreak asked.
“Well because you’re half changeling now. So I think you should be called Sunshift.”
“Well, I think that is a stupid idea.” Sunstreak said walking up to the baby dragon. “And if you call me that to my face you will see how much I dislike it.” The small horn began to glow. “Capiche?”
“You can’t use magic with that thing can you?” Spike said looking at the horn.
“I’ve got no idea…” Sunstreak said. “I don’t think either of us want to find out.”
“Got it…” Spike said. “So…why’d you come back?”
“Figured I would help with the rest of these books.” Sunstreak said, motioning the large piles they still had to sort. “Along with the fact that this place is more safe for me personally. As Sweetie Belle has already had two run-ins with Changelings I doubt she would be pleased with another.”
“Makes sense…” Spike looked at the mismatched wings on Sunstreak’s back. “Can you still fly with those?”
Sunstreak looked back at them himself. “I…have no idea…” Before he remembered something he had told Sweetie Belle. “Ugh…Why is stuff like this always getting in the way of me being a good friend?”
“What stuff?” Spike asked looking at Sunstreak.
“I told Sweetie Belle I would help her with another one of her harebrained schemes to get a Cutie Mark.”
“You actually agreed to do that?” Spike said looking at the half Changeling.
“I didn’t think this was going to happen.” Motions to his entire body. “I thought I could go one day here without some kind of incident taking place.”
“Good luck with that…” Spike said. He clearly had an idea of what normal was here.
“We might as well get to work…” Sunstreak replied looking towards the large piles.
The next few hours had simply been a test of Sunstreak’s wings trying to keep himself in the air for longer than two seconds. However almost every attempt at increasing altitude at ended with him flipping over to his left side as his right wing overpowered it. Eventually he figured out how to hover, keeping himself at one set altitude so long as he kept his wings moving. However any attempt to change altitude and he was sent careening to the ground.
“Hey, Spike!” Sunstreak said looking at the title of a book he had never heard of. “Where does ‘Tales of a Triple Tailed Trilobite’ go?”
“What’s it labeled under?” Spike shouted back.
“Hold on…” He turned it on its side. “There’s nothing here!”
There was a knock on the door. “Spike! Door!” Sunstreak shouted towards the little dragon. While he hovered off the stairs looking at the top shelf, trying to find the ‘T’ section.
“Hello?” Spike said. Sunstreak didn’t hear the second participant in the conversation, he was busy focusing on finding a place where he could put Trilobite “Oh hey! What are you doing here?”
Tricycles…no…Tri-linear…No…Tips…No…Trillion…no…
“Well, come in. I thought you would still be in Canterlot.”
Trilobite…there it is.
“Hey, Sunstreak!”
“Yeah?” he said, focusing on keeping himself steady while he placed the book on the shelf between ‘The Trilobite Extinction’ and ‘Twenty Year Trilobite’.
“We have a visitor.” Spike said as a strong looking unicorn Stallion walked into the room, his mane had shades of both light and dark blue in it and his cutie mark appeared to be a purple shield. “This is Twilight’s brother.”
Sunstreak turned in the air so that he could actually see the unicorn. “Hi, I’m…” He stopped when he noticed the expression on the unicorn’s face. It looked like a mixture of hate and confusion. What a day for my emotion senses to not work...
He noticed that his horn was glowing purple. Sunstreak looked down at his hooves before looking back up at the unicorn. “I can explain…”
He didn’t get a chance, as a second later the unicorn had fired a purple beam from his horn, throwing Sunstreak into a wall and causing some of the books to fall off the shelves. When he could finally see straight, he felt a heavy hoof placed on his chest holding him against the wall. “Where is my sister?”
Having slammed head first into a wall, Sunstreak was confused at first. “What?”
“Where. Is. My. Sister.” He placed pressure on Sunstreak’s chest.
“I’m sorry…who’s your sister?” Sunstreak said as he looked up into the angry looking Unicorn’s face. His horn was glowing purple.
“Where is Twilight?” The Unicorn placed more pressure on Sunstreak’s chest.
Sunstreak was confused by the question for a second, but the small cracking sound quickly brought him to his senses. “She’s in Everfree.”
“What did you do to my sister?” Whoever this pony was, was holding him in a purple aura and lifting him up to eye level.
“Nothing!” Sunstreak said quickly. Not wanting to make the unicorn angrier than he already was.
The Unicorn slammed him into the opposite wall, causing more books to fall. “I don’t believe you, Changeling.”
“I’m not a Changeling!” Sunstreak said quickly.
“Lies!” The unicorn slammed him into the wall again.
“Spike!” Sunstreak said looking at the small purple dragon that was currently standing gawk eyed at the two of them. “HELP!”
“Shining, stop it.” Spike said running over to the two of them. “He’s not a Changeling.”
“Not a Changeling!” The unicorn said, looking at Spike as though he was crazy. “Then how do you explain that?” he gestured to Sunstreak’s left side.
“POSION JOKE!” Sunstreak shouted before he was injured anymore. “It made me look like this!”
“Of course it did!”
“Uh…what is…” Tornado Dust had just walked into the Library. “Snake Eye, what are you…?”
Sunstreak mouthed ‘Help me’ to the Pegasus in the doorway.
“Hey!” Tornado Dust shouted. “Put my roommate down!”
“You can vouch for him?” Shining Armor said. “Can you confirm his story?”
“Yes!” Tornado Dust replied. “He touched some Poison Joke near Everfree. He stayed the night here to help Spike sort through all these books, and when he woke up he looked like that. He dashed into the basement and hid himself.”
“Then what the buck is he doing here?”
“The buck?” Sunstreak repeated confused. “Oh…got it.”
“He wanted me to bring him a cloak so he could go out in public like that. I did, we went to the Spa, and they already ran out of the herbs they needed to make the cure. So he’s stuck like that for a few days.”
Sunstreak nodded in agreement.
“Then how do you know it is really him?” Shining Armor said to Tornado Dust. “And not just a Changeling who took his place.”
Tornado Dust rolled his eyes. “If you insist…” He flew up to be eye level with Sunstreak. “Where were you earlier this week, during the big thunderstorm we had here?”
“I was in Cloudsdale for my cousin Blade Carver’s wedding.” Sunstreak said quickly… he didn’t like the look on Shining Armor’s face. “I returned like two or three days ago.”
“What is Blade Carver doing now?” Tornado Dust asked.
“He’s one of the Blacksmiths for a Special Forces division in the Burning Fiords called the Flaming Specters.”
“That’s him.” Tornado Dust replied. “He only told me that after we were friends for a few years.”
“You sure?”
“Well there is always one way to tell…” Tornado Dust flew up to Sunstreak. “Rainbow Cookies.”
Shining Armor looked confused. But Tornado Dust pulled a small bag of rainbow colored cookies out of his saddle bag and put one into Sunstreak’s mouth.
“These are so good…” Sunstreak said after he swallowed it. Tornado Dust stared at him for a good ten seconds.
“That’s definitely him.” Tornado Dust replied. “Only him and Pinkie Pie can eat these things. And I’m pretty sure Pinkie Pie isn’t a Changeling.”
“How does that prove anything?”
“You ever drink Rainbow Water?” Tornado Dust said. “That stuff could burn the taste buds off a dragon. Here try one if you don’t believe me.”
Skeptically, Shining Armor levitated one of the Rainbow Cookies up to his mouth and took a bite, almost immediately his face scrunched up from the spice. He opened his mouth and a small flame came out of his mouth. “Alright…I believe you.”
Sunstreak gave a relaxing sigh. Before landing with a chink on the wooden floor. “Aww man…” He looked at the library. “This is gonna take me forever to fix up.” The books he had placed on some of the higher shelves were scattered around the library.
“You figure out how to fly yet?” Tornado Dust asked Sunstreak.
“No…just how to hover…” Sunstreak said, flapping both of his wings at different rates and lifting his legs off the ground, leaving him hovering at his normal height.
“Well…it’s a start.” Tornado Dust replied.
“Something is still bothering me though.” Shining Armor said. “What is Twilight doing in the forest?”
Sunstreak and Tornado Dust both rubbed the back of their heads. “They’re looking for a foal…”
The next hour or so was just the three of them explaining to Shining Armor the last few days. With Sunstreak trying to stay as far away as possible from the White Unicorn, mostly because he didn’t want to be another punching bag.
“So you are saying they went to find a foalnapped filly, who was saved by the hybrid over here, then foalnapped again by different Changelings. And they’ve been gone for two days.”
“Pretty much…” Tornado Dust replied. Sunstreak was busy placing books back on the higher shelves, hoping to get a height difference from Shining Armor.
“I resent that hybrid comment.” Sunstreak said placing another book on the shelf. “I’m not an actual hybrid…ponies just got freaked out because of my eye.”
“I meant to ask about that.” Shining Armor said.
“I was born with it…” Sunstreak replied placing a book about Zebras on the top shelf. “I honestly was considering putting an eye patch on so that ponies would stop doing the ‘AH it’s a changeling’ routine.”
“Yeah…sorry about that…” Shining Armor said sheepishly to Sunstreak.
“Buy me a few drinks…Then I’ll think about it.” Sunstreak replied. While his chitin had taken most of the damage, there was still the fact that a crack had formed on his chest, and the fact that about three hours of hard work was now down the drain. “Either that or help me put some of these books back.”
Just then there was another knock on the door.
“Who could that be?” Tornado Dust said, walking over to the door. When he opened it, a rather disgruntled Sweetie Belle was standing there with mud and sticks in her mane. “Hello, Sweetie Belle…what are you doing here?”
“You seem to be asking that a lot.” Spike said to the Pegasus.
“Sunstreak!” Sweetie Belle whined while walking into the room. After hearing the filly, his left wing slowed its flapping just enough for him to fly into the nearest bookcase and fall to the ground with a small pile of books following him.
“ow…”
“You said you would help us today!” The little filly said to the pile of books. “Why didn’t you come and help. We had to do it without help, and we ran into a thundercloud!”
“Ow…” Sunstreak said under the pile of books. “Tornado Dust…”
The gray Pegasus flew over to where Sweetie Belle was scowling at the pile of books. “Sweetie Belle, Sunstreak is having a bit of trouble right now. He touched some Poison Joke and now he looks like a hybrid between a Changeling and a pony.”
Sweetie Belle looked at Tornado Dust with a raised eyebrow. “Do you expect me to believe-“
Sunstreak just pushed his front hoof through the pile, his black hole filled leg startled the filly at first. “I have been buried in books three times since coming here…” Sunstreak said. “I’m starting to think this place hates me.”
Sunstreak managed to crawl out of the pile, quickly checking on his insect wing for signs of damage, finding none he sighed. “And now I have to put these books up…again.”
“Why…why do you look like that?” Sweetie Belle stuttered watching as Sunstreak placed a few books on his back and hovered over to the stairs.
“I touched some Poison Joke, and since the town was all freaked out at first that I was a changeling, clearly it thought it would be funny to make me into one.” Sunstreak replied walking up the stairs and hovering over to the top shelf above the small pile of books.
“Then why don’t you just-“
“Tornado Dust, please explain.” Sunstreak replied, placing the books on the shelf while Spike was helping by handing him more of the books.
“The Spa doesn’t have any of the herbs they need to cure him, so he is stuck like that.”
“Don’t forget that I can’t fly.” Sunstreak replied, placing another few books on the top shelf before closing his wings and landing. “And before you ask, I can hover at a constant height…nothing more, nothing less.” He started walking back over to the stairs, but he felt something moving around inside his leg. Instinctively he pulled up on his leg, carrying with it Sweetie Belle.
“How did you do that?” Sweetie Belle said looking at the leg.
“Please…” Sunstreak said, he was not comfortable with anything living inside his leg. “Let go…That is very uncomfortable.”
Sweetie Belle pulled her hoof out of Sunstreak’s leg, who shivered from the strange feeling. “Never do that again…”
“This is so cool!” Sweetie Belle said with a small squeak at the end. “This is the first time I’ve been able to look at a Changeling without it trying to hurt me in some way. Scootaloo and Apple Bloom are going to-“
“NO!” Sunstreak said interrupting Sweetie Belle. “Promise me you will not tell anyone about this.” The last thing I need is pitchforks and torches when I can’t fly. “Not your friends. Not Rarity. Don’t even tell Celestia about this.”
“Don’t you think you are freaking out a bit about this?” Tornado Dust asked rolling his eyes.
Sunstreak took a deep breath. “Okay, yes I may be freaking out a little with Celestia and Rarity. But you have to promise me you won’t tell any of your friends. I don’t want a mob of foals or adults trying to get my attention. I just want to be left alone for a few days.” Sunstreak sighed, “Or at least until I can fix this…” His stomach rumbled…
Tornado Dust rolled his eyes “You’ve been in here all day, haven’t you?” Before Sunstreak could respond, Tornado Dust had grabbed the cloak by the door and threw it over to Sunstreak. “Come on you two.” He said looking towards Sweetie Belle. “Let’s get something to eat, my treat.”
After making sure his cloak covered up a majority of his Changeling body parts, Sunstreak followed after the two of them, leaving Shining Armor and Spike alone in the Library.
“I’ve never seen the effects of Poison Joke.” Shining Armor said to Spike. “Have you?” He asked Spike, who turned back to him with a smile.
“Oh, yes I have.”
About half an hour later, Sunstreak, Tornado Dust, and Sweetie Belle were sitting outside eating off of a table that looked like a large purple mushroom. Sunstreak had ordered a Daisy and Daffodil Sandwich. Which given that he never really thought eating grass was a smart idea, or very good for you, was pleasantly surprised at actually enjoying it.
“…So when we launched off the cloud it caused us to tumble down into a tree…” Sweetie Belle was busy telling them about the most recent attempt at getting their Cutie Marks. While Sunstreak was busily trying to keep the Changeling half of his face covered. “We fell into a mud puddle and the Hand glider broke.”
“Well knowing you three, that won’t stop you…” Tornado Dust replied. “How are you holding up, Snake Eye?”
“I still have no idea how Changelings can eat physical food with these things…” He said gesturing to the single fang he had jutting from his mouth. “It keeps getting in the way…”
“They probably got used to it…” Tornado Dust replied. “Most of them probably only eat when disguised anyway.”
“Hey, Sweetie Belle!”
Sunstreak looked over towards the source of the call to see Apple Bloom walking up to them. He quickly tried to move the hood to cover up his left side.
“Hey, Apple Bloom. What’s up?”
Please don’t come over here…
The little yellow filly came up to the three of them and sat down across from Sweetie Belle. “Ah just wanted to tell ya that the Pegasi don’t want us usin’ the catapult for a few days, somethin’ bout a safety hazard.”
“I warned you three about using that thing too many times.” Tornado Dust replied looking at the yellow filly. “And look what happens.”
“Well how were we supposed to know that cloud had lightning in it?” Apple Bloom retorted. “None of us are Weather Ponies.”
“You don’t need to be a weather pony to tell the difference between a storm cloud and a normal one.” Tornado Dust said, this appeared to be an older attempt. “Why were you even trying to get a ‘Cloud busting’ Cutie Mark if none of you can tell the difference?”
“We were tryin’ new things.” Apple Bloom replied, “It was Scoot’s idea.”
“Well I’m still feeling the backlash from that attempt. That’s why Derpy had to help Rainbow during AJ’s Rodeo sendoff.”
“Well Ah didn’t put that into…” She was looking toward Sunstreak. “Well howdy, mister.”
Sunstreak just waved at her, being careful the cloak didn’t fall off his hoof.
“Apple Bloom, that’s Sunstreak…he’s having a bad day.” Tornado Dust said, hoping it explained everything.
“How so?” Apple Bloom asked.
Sweetie Belle leaned in to Apple Bloom, “Poison Joke.”
“Well Ah don’t see why that’s a problem.” The filly continued, oblivious to the fact that Sunstreak didn’t want to talk. “The Spa has the remedy for it and Zecora would be more than-“
“They ran out of supplies.” Sunstreak said, trying hard to stop the distortion effect in his voice from being noticeable. “Neither of them have any.”
“Well Ah’m sure it can’t be that bad.” Apple Bloom continued. “Why when my big Sis got hit with it she shrunk down to the size of a chickadee.”
“His is a bit more…” Tornado Dust rolled his hoof around. “Serious… Specifically with a certain recent event in Canterlot.”
“It can’t be worse than Rarity.” Apple Bloom continued to press on the subject. “She looked like one of those fancy…”
“You aren’t going to let this go are you?” Sunstreak replied, not even caring about the distortion.
“Nope.” Apple Bloom replied. “Ah mean Ah’m just curious how bad it could be that yah would need a-“ Sunstreak looked towards her.
“It’s pretty bad…” He said as the light from the lowering sun caught on his fang. Sighing, he slightly lowered his hood so that Apple Bloom could see his face.
“Whoa…ya’ll weren’t kiddin bout it bein bad…” Apple Bloom replied as she looked at the half Changeling face. “But if it’s just yer face than-“ She caught a glimpse at Sunstreak’s legs. “Oh…”
“And I’m stuck like this for the next four days.” Sunstreak explained. “And over the course of today alone, I’ve been attacked by the Captain of the Royal Guard, had to restart a total of around four hours of work, and have only left the Library twice.” He placed his face in his hooves. “I’m starting to think this town just hates me…”
“Aww, don’t be so hard on yerself.” Apple Bloom said, attempting to comfort him. “It’s not like ya helped in the invasion or anythin’.”
Sunstreak just slammed his head into the table. While Tornado Dust rubbed the back of his neck. “But be honest…” Sunstreak said, trying to recover from the obvious ‘guilty’ move he had just done. “If Tornado Dust hadn’t come to the Library when he did, I doubt Shining Armor would have stopped his ‘Interrogation’.” He then looked at Apple Bloom. “And how could this day get any worse?”
Sunstreak very quickly noticed the words he just said and slapped himself in the forehead, “I just jinxed it didn’t I?”
All three of the others nodded in agreement. As a wisp of green flame surrounded Sunstreak.
“What just changed?” Sunstreak said, not wanting to look up. “I know something just changed. So what was it?”
“You um…” Tornado Dust said. “You…look like Twilight.”
“I WHAT?” He said, looking up, only now noticing that his voice had changed as well. He looked down at himself, sure enough, he looked a lot like Twilight, his coat had changed to lavender, his mane had changed styles, and the small horn on his head had changed shape to look like a small unicorn horn. His fang was still there as were the holes in his mane and hooves, and going from the fact he could still feel them, his wings were still there, so at least there was something familiar. But he looked like Twilight in almost every other way.
“No. no. no no no no nononononononono!” Sunstreak said quickly, looking around at the confused looks around him.
Tornado Dust looked at him. “Well…Run.” Sunstreak didn’t need to be told twice; he quickly bolted from the seat and ran as fast as he could back to the large library. Not stopping once to look at any of the confused ponies around him. Once he got to the door, he quickly pushed it open before slamming it closed.
“Spike!” He said with Twilight’s voice. “We have a problem!”
The little dragon ran down the stairs. “Twilight?”
“No! It’s me, Sunstreak.” He said locking the door and backing away from it.
“Sunstreak?” Spike repeated. “But you look-“
“I know how I look! And how I sound! But I don’t know why!” He was pacing around the center of the room, only slightly aware that the cloak had fallen off when he entered the door. “This is bad….this is very bad…”
“Sunstreak, what happened?” Spike asked, trying to calm him down.
“I was talking with Apple Bloom, then there was this wisp of green fire and now I look and sound like Twilight!” His heart was beating loudly. “Then I ran all the way here and I’m certain more than a few ponies saw me.” He ran over and grabbed Spike. “What am I going to do?”
“Are you sure you aren’t Twilight?” Spike said. “Because this is what she is like when she’s nervous.”
“Spike!” Sunstreak said shaking him “This is serious! I don’t want to look like this! There’s no telling when the real Twilight will come back and I don’t even want to think about what she will do when she sees two of herself!”
Shining Armor was walking down the stairs. “What’s all the commotion?”
“Sunstreak’s symptoms got worse.” Spike explained while both of Sunstreak’s purple insect wings began beating. Lifting him into the air. “And…he can fly…”
“I can what?” Sunstreak replied, looking back at his wings, both of which were flapping on their own accord. They only stopped after Sunstreak had hit the ceiling. “I am so dead…so very dead…!”
“Hey! No pony is going to die here.” Shining Armor said.
“Are you kidding me?” Sunstreak said looking at the Unicorn. “Look at me! I look like a changeling version of Twilight!” He did, the wings on his back were both the same shade of lavender as the rest of him, his eyes had both turned purple, and his left eye actually looked like a pony eye.
“Calm down.” Shining Armor said. “Nopony is going to kill anypony.”
“Really?” Sunstreak began to shout. “Because this is going to be pretty fucking hard to explain!” Opening his wings for emphasis. “For all they know, Twilight is being held captive by a Changeling hive and I’m just one of their drones sent in to scrape up what love I can find. So please. Do tell. HOW ARE WE GOING TO EXPLAIN THIS!?”
Shining Armor clearly didn’t expect to be asked this, and given it was coming from his sister’s voice didn’t help. He was confused on how to go about this. He knew that this wasn’t a Changeling, but the evidence against him was too high. “How many ponies do you know saw you as a Changeling?”
Sunstreak thought about this for a moment. It was getting dark, so likely many ponies were off the street, and the cloak had managed to stay on for most of the time…at most a few of them saw him and they could just chalk it up to a spell if they were really desperate…that would work right? “I don’t know if any of them really saw me… At most it had to be twelve that got a good look at the transformation…or whatever happened to me.”
“Alright, so it isn’t too bad.” Shining Armor replied. “So long as they don’t start spreading the rumor around we should be fine.”
There was a knock on the door. Sunstreak immediately dashed for the basement, closing the door behind him and locking it. “I’m not here!” He said from behind the door.
“Wow…” Shining Armor said when Sunstreak was behind the door. “He’s fast…”
“Well, he was a Pegasus.” Spike said.
“AM a Pegasus!” Sunstreak corrected.
There was another knock. “Snake Eye? Spike? Let me in.” It was Tornado Dust. “There’s nopony with me I swear to Celestia.”
“Should I let him in?” Spike asked towards Shining Armor.
“Spike! Let me in or I’ll fly in through the window!” Tornado Dust said impatiently.
“Alright…” Spike walked over and opened the door; Tornado Dust flew in and slammed the door closed with his hind leg as he passed it. “Snake Eye?”
“Here…” Came Twilight’s voice from the basement.
“Really, Snake Eye?” Tornado Dust said walking over to the door, “I thought we got you to come out of the basement already?”
“Well…now that I am one: A mare, Two: a Unicorn, and Three: scared shitless, those times have changed.”
Tornado Dust rolled his eyes again. “I followed you after you ran down the busiest street in town, Good job by the way…you emulated what Twilight would have done in that situation. And a lot of them just figured it was some kind of Celestia problem. Only about three of them genuinely thought you were a Changeling.”
There was a green flash from behind the door. And instead of Twilight’s voice, Fluttershy’s came from behind the door. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. I checked myself besides now you aren’t even Twi-“
There was a small shrieking sound as Sunstreak realized he was now Fluttershy. “Why does this keep happening to me?”
Spike walked up. “Hey it could be wor-“ Tornado Dust jammed his hoof into the dragon’s mouth before he could finish and shook his head.
“I don’t know…” Fluttershy’s voice came from the door.
“Hey, you do Fluttershy really well.” Spike said, “What do you look like?”
The door slowly squeaked open. And all three of them looked in to see what Sunstreak looked like now.
He looked much closer to Fluttershy than Twilight, owing to the fact that his now pink mane covered the small curved horn on his head. His insect wings were replaced by yellow Pegasus wings and most of his body had the same yellow coat as Fluttershy, his right eye was still a slit. However, his left eye was solid blue, and his mouth had two fangs jutting out of his mouth. Where Fluttershy’s usual Cutie Mark was, there was an image of green fire. His front legs still had a few holes in them, but it was a lot less than he had before.
“You actually don’t look too bad.” Tornado Dust replied, “You actually look like Fluttershy…except with fangs, a bad eye and holes in your legs.”
“Really?” Sunstreak said.
“Yeah, you even have the shyness down.” Tornado Dust said as Sunstreak slowly walked out of the basement.
“This may be worse than I originally thought…” Shining Armor commented rubbing the back of his neck.
“How so?” Spike asked.
“Well… Since the invasion… Any possible Changeling threat needs to be eliminated…” Sunstreak squeaked before backing into the basement. “But the problem is…we are considering a Changeling any pony that shows shape shifting properties.” Sunstreak had already closed the door. “At first it didn’t seem like I would have to convict him, since he showed no ability to change shape, but now…”
“Hold up!” Tornado Dust flew in front of Shining Armor. “You can’t just throw him in jail because of this! He’s done nothing wrong!”
“That may be true…” Shining armor replied. “But what is to say he won’t do something?”
“I won’t…I promise…” Came from the door.
“What if we watch over him?” Tornado Dust replied. “What’s to say this isn’t like having custody of him?”
“Yeah” Spike chimed in. “There’s no other way to get into the basement except the main door. If he never leaves…it would be kind of like police custody.”
Shining Armor rubbed his chin. “I suppose that could work… Alright.” Shining Armor said. “So long as he stays in the Library, I suppose it could work.”
Sunstreak had opened the door a little to peak out. “Really?”
“I suppose… but if I hear even a whisper about any Changeling attack, I won’t be so hospitable.”
“Got it…” Sunstreak said before pulling himself back into the basement.
“Only three more days….” Tornado Dust said.
Stats
Page generated in 0.045 seconds
Total duration
1,078 users online
1,914,859 hits today, 2,571,732 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Shining armor, you jerk.
I do hope that by "eliminated" be means arrested.
7144221 the 'Threats' he is referring to is any possibility of a Changelings breaching security or possible leak. 'Eliminate' refers to the stoppage of that leak/ patch in security. Essentially it is a way to say that they don't want security risks and want to separate them. so yes. He meant locking them up.
Who?
harebrained
hang glider
recent
Armor
Wow, that is some nasty Poison Joak.
Also: house arrest.
hmm, lemme guess...
Lily
Roseluck
and one other... minuette?
correct me if i'm wrong...
(1:36-1:51)
That's not good and just dumb your dumb Shining
7144221
Agrees, ponies pretty much don't consider killing an option as far as I can tell, even for the worst for
Enemies (banishment to tartare may be a euphemism though)
Tell me what your wannt but at this point Discord must be laugthing so hard hes in danger of dehydratation from crying