• Published 25th Aug 2018
  • 2,578 Views, 192 Comments

A Magic Turn of Events - Comma Typer



The world of Canterlot High has changed drastically, everyone having turned into ponies or other magical Equestrian creatures. In the aftermath lie these not-so-chronological tales of new fates, of trying to live here again.

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When Clouds Broaden Horizons

Was it bragging if it’s true?

Rainbow Dash had a lot going for her. Being the leader of every sports team in Canterlot High, playing as the lead guitarist in a band whose name was inspired by hers, on friendly terms with a unicorn-turned-human, having traveled to the dimension where magic originated from, considered one of this world’s protectors against Equestrian evils, having a superfan in Scootaloo, able to run around at the speed of sound, capable of boundless flight with her new wings in her new pony form, and had rainbow-colored hair.

Her credentials? Numerous. Her feats? Abundant. Her coolness? Undeniable. No one could possibly be like her.

Except, of course, for that Rainbow Dash back in Equestria.

As the weeks progressed and as the initial shock of the catastrophe tapered off, former human Dash had a growing problem with always-a-pony Rainbow. Rainbow may not have been part of a band nor was she the leader of any sports team, but she could sing as well as her counterpart, was part of an elite aerial stunts organization called the Wonderbolts, and had helped save Equestria from half a dozen world-ending disasters.

Whenever Rainbow stopped by Earth once in a while to help out the local pegasi with their flying abilities, Dash did her best to not let it get into her head. In most cases, she succeeded. They got to know each other over small sandwich breaks, with the former giving her “super secret” flying tips to the latter over munches and mugs of cider. Dash would then follow through, giving Rainbow a bit of excitement over teaching her counterpart how to fly better. She even saw Dash arrange some clouds in the sky, taking the first step in weather control.

However, in the back of her mind, Dash envied Rainbow. Here this pony was, strutting her stuff. Off-hoof quips about herself slipped through for Dash’s ear to catch. Was she just like that, or was she telling Dash something? I’m better than you, perhaps? You think you’re cool ‘cause you’re part of a band and you know every sport? I was born an awesome pegasus! Don’t forget—you call your band the Rainbooms? I make the rainbooms!

Another thing to add to Rainbow’s list of credentials: Sonic rainbooms. It only made Dash seethe with jealousy.

But, maybe, there was a way out of this dilemma, a way so that Dash could come out on top and beat her other self to it. Sure, it’s another Rainbow Dash so that might cause a few complications—and she was her friend, so it wasn’t like there’s actual vengeance involved—but, in Dash’s mind, there’s only one pegasus above them all.

She wanted to be that pegasus, seriously or not.


Two and a half months after the catastrophe, Rainbow crossed the portal to help new pegasi once more. She carried a few first aid kits on her back, flying slow enough so that they wouldn’t fling into oblivion if she suddenly stopped.

She hovered above the sidewalks, above the front yards. Looking down from the morning sky, she saw the slow reconstruction of daily life—a group of Earth ponies wondering what to do with their seeds, a pegasus and a unicorn talking about how to deliver hay from the farm to the café in less than one minute—

She came across Derpy, holding a box with her hooves.

“I see you’re easing in!” Dash said, pointing at her. “I mean, you’re the Derpy from this world, right? Didn’t check my papers.”

“Mm-hmm!” as Derpy nodded, blushing at the compliment. “Thank you!”

She flew away, carrying the box to whoever the recipient was.

Ten minutes later in downtown, Dash reached the mall’s parking lot, the Sweet Snacks Café just across the pavement.

There was a notable lack of cars even at an early hour, doubtless because driving automobiles with four hooves was not a particularly simple undertaking. Despite whatever obstacles lay there, a truck made it to the lot, though that was mostly for the restaurant’s supplies.

“So, this is the café thing, huh?” she said to herself, drinking in the café’s exterior. Figures inside could be discerned, a dozen or so shifting about behind the windows. “I can see why this is a pretty chill place.”

Rainbow then flew inside.

The café had much of its style intact. The floor was still a checkerboard, conditioned air still permeated the place, and good food was still being served. Because many customers were now unable to digest beef or pork, though, the food now had meat off the menu save for the griffons and changelings who were visiting the diner. They gathered short glances of envy from a few ponies, green-eyed against those who could still savor tempting, delectable, luscious, exquisite, melt-in-your-mouth flavorful—

“Eh,” and Rainbow shrugged her shoulders while hovering farther inside.

Her simple Eh made the whole diner look her way. Food stayed in the air via hooves, wings, or levitation. Even the waiters, two Earth ponies who had fitting dresses and fitting rollerskates, looked her way, slowing diner operations to a freeze. All attention was directed at the one and only Rainbow Dash.

Flash Sentry, a fellow peagsus seated in front of some hayburgers, raised his hoof. “Uh, which Rainbow Dash are you again?”

Rainbow rolled her eyes and groaned. “Equestria’s.” Then, relaxing a bit and hovering towards the rest of the pegasi huddled by the corner, “Alright, ponies! Who’s ready to make it rain? Literally?!”

This elicited some “Ooh!”’s and “‘Aah!”’s from this batch of pupils.

The winged celebrity approached them, then hyped up how awesome it is to control the weather on her own, how Canterlot would just be the start of some sort of weather movement in the world….

What she didn’t know was that Dash had quietly entered the diner, wearing a big-brimmed hat that shadowed her face from recognition plus a jacket to cover her rainbow tail and her cutie mark. She made an order of hayburgers in a gruff and gravely voice, completing the disguise.

From her spot, Dash observed the enemy from across the café.

Unnoticed.


“Attention!”

Everypony stood still, hooves planted on nothing but air as they floated in the sky, steadily flapping to do so. Following sound advice, they did not look at the ground that often no matter how welcoming a pillow would be right now; it was mostly out of focus and not out of fear. Besides that, they felt the full warmth of the sun, though Flash was still irked out about how the expression “Celestia’s sun” fully applied here.

Because having the sun owned and moved around by your principal wasn’t ordinary.

Rainbow hovered before the line, inspecting Canterlot weather team prospects as the wind flapped her mane. “You think you have what it takes to control the weather in your hometown? And before you say it, watching the videos won’t help you!”

Zephyr Breeze and Sour Sweet clung to each other in fear...before shrieking at the sight of the obnoxious ponies they’d clung to.

Rainbow crossed her forehooves. “If you don’t know, I’m the leader of the Ponyville weather team. What I’m about to tell you is tried, tested, true. No exceptions.”

Flash raised his hoof nervously, getting some looks from his weather mates. “Does that mean—”

Rainbow zoomed up, brought a cloud over, and put it back down for all of them to see. “See this cloud?”

All the pegasi were seeing that cloud, though they nodded just to be absolutely extra sure.

It was a white and fluffy cloud. Quite nondescript. Not much else to say.

“We’re going to have a rainy day today,” Rainbow declared. “This time, however, it’ll be the first rainy day exclusively made by you,” and pointed at them all, hearing a few gulps of suspense from the audience. “Not a single one of us will help you out. I want this to be done all by you to show how far you’ve grown...and also because—ahem!—it’d be great to see how good of a teacher am I—ahem! Ha-ha-ha—ahem!

Silence from the line. A cough.

A frown took over Rainbow’s face. “Seriously?” Then, rolling her eyes again, “OK, first off: let’s see if this cloud still has some zap.”

She turned around and bucked the cloud.

Kraw!

Agh!”

Zapped by it, her mane and tail now fried and smoking.

The new pegasi screamed, gathering together in a tight circle of wings and hooves banding them together under their safety.

Then, they peeked.

Saw Rainbow’s electrocuted self.

Rainbow rubbed her hair and brushed it back to normal with her hooves, grumbling through it. She punched her forehooves together, gawking at them with fuming eyes and ears. “Alright, who told you I was a prankster?!”

Me!” the cloud shouted.

Everypony gasped at the shouting cloud.

Then, Dash floated out of the cloud, wearing a smug smile on her face as the shocked gasps resurfaced. She touched Rainbow’s nose with a playful hoof, tried to hold back a giggle, and then: “Gotcha’!”

With a shake of her head to knock the confusion out of herself, Rainbow shouted back, “What is the meaning of this?! You’re n-not supposed to be here!”

“Well, I am here!” Dash yelled, then pointing at her other self, “And I challenge you to a contest!”

And everypony else gasped again.

Dash nodded, holding the cloud high above her head. “Yeah! A contest! You heard me right!”

Rainbow pursed her lips, trying to think of what to do next. “Cut to the chase here. What’s the contest about? Speed? Agility? Aerobatics? Daring Do speed reading?”

“Oh, it’s much better than all of them!” Dash said with a crazed laugh. “Even better than speed reading!”

For the fourth time in a row, everypony else gasped, though Flash was now sneezing instead. As expected, a few beside him moved away from the possibly-sick stallion.

Meanwhile, Rainbow was glancing to the left and to the right. “Did you say...pranking?”

“Don’t act dumb!” Dash blew her long colorful bangs away from her face. “I know you’re just trying to buy time...but I also know you’re good. Maybe you thought this up. Maybe you already knew I was trying to prank you.” Pointing to the batch of pegasi, “Maybe they’re in on it and they’re not telling me! They promised to keep it hidden from me, didn’t they?!”

“That’s not true!” Soarin testified.
Betrayal perched on Dash’s head as her ears retracted. “You’re not helping!”

Soarin then slapped a grin on his face, resorted to happy thoughts, and made sure his smiling facade didn’t falter. Another slip, and then….

Anyway—Dash rubbed her forehooves, ready to meet her match as she flew closer to her opponent. “Let me tell you something! You know I know you know, but I know you know I know you know...you know.”

Rainbow raised her brow and leaned an ear forward. “Come again?”

“I knew you were going to prank me before I even arrived!” Dash flicked her tail, hoping to get a reaction from Rainbow but didn’t. Pressing further, “I knew it because I was there!”

“You were where?” Rainbow asked, looking puzzled.

“Trying to play the long con with playing dumb, huh?” Dash smiled, dismissing the strategy as worthless. “That won’t work on me! You know where! Sweet Snacks Café!” Hovering around her, “I was watching you, taking note of your every move, analyzing them so I could create the perfect prank for you!” and lunged at her, stopping mere inches from her face.

Rainbow crossed her forehooves again. “You’re really bad at keeping pranks a secret, aren’t you?”

Dash flipped her mane about, letting her hair whip in the air. “How do you know I’m not just stalling for time?”

“Aren’t we supposed to make it rain?” Soarin asked with a raised hoof of his own, trying to curb the escalating prank tension.

“Pfft!” and Dash stuck her tongue out. “You can have your rain later, Soar!” then glared at Rainbow... “right after I show her who’s boss!”

Rainbow made a deep, bold laugh. “Yeah?”

Then, knowing that the time had come, Dash took out her secret weapon.

A plate of pie.

Soarin’s eyes widened at that, his stomach rumbling in spite of a hearty meal less than an hour ago. “I-Is that…?”

Rainbow gulped, lifting a shaky hoof to weakly point at the harmless pastry. “Wh-What is that?”

“OK, now I know you’re playing dumb.” Dash held the pie up in the air. She threw it high, only to catch it with the plate. No crumbs. “I mean, didn’t you see the mysterious pony ordering huge stacks of pie from the café?”

“...isn’t that what the bakery’s for?” Rainbow asked, cocking her head to the side.

“It’s not the only place to buy pie here, you know.”

Sweat poured down Rainbow’s face, eyeing the pie at hoof.

“This is cream pie,” Dash explained. “One whole cream pie. One delicious, mouth-watering, breath-taking heapful serving of cream pie.”

She licked her lips.

Rainbow shuddered, slowly backing away from the pie—surely a nefarious device of evil. “B-But, a-aren’t you m-me? Y-You’re not supposed to like pie! I’m n-not supposed to like pie!”

“Good thing we’re different!” Dash said.

She sharpened her brows, narrowed her eyes, gazed upon that frightened expression with shrunken eyes and sweaty forehead.

“‘Cause you know what?”

Lurched her pie-holding forehoof back, ready to deliver.

“I love pies.”

Threw it—splat! on Rainbow’s face.

Covered in crust and white cream.

Gotcha’!” Dash howled before performing a loop-de-loop in the air. She landed right before a dumbfound Rainbow whose face was buried in tasty cream. “Hah! How’re ya’ gonna top that?!”

“Hi, Dash!”

Agh!” she screamed as she saw Pinkie floating beside her, a dozen balloons tied around the Earth pony’s torso.

Everypony at the line gasped for the fifth time, wondering how Pinkie was able to drop in unnoticed at a hundred meters from the ground.

“Pinkie?!” Dash shouted, eyeing the balloons, astonished at the pink pony’s silly way of flight. “What’re you doing here?!”

“Just telling you Rainbow can’t attend today,” Pinkie said so matter-of-factly, undaunted by heights. “There’s an emergency meeting at Wonderbolts HQ, and she needs to be there.”

The weather team prospects were confused, scratching their heads as they looked at the pied Rainbow. Flash even yelled, “But she’s here!”

Pinkie looked at Rainbow, breathed a sigh of relief. She cracked her wrists, stretched her forehooves out, and rested her head on them like a pillow. “Now I know why those two changelings were having a fight.”

“Changelings?” everyone else asked.

Everyone else but Rainbow herself who grinned and giggled nervously before glowing.
When the glow faded, a soft-spoken changeling in green chitin had taken the pegasus’s place. “Whoops?”

There was now buzzing behind the line of prospects.

They looked back, seeing two more changelings approaching—or, rather, a blue hat-wearing changeling dragging a yellow one by the ear.

“...and, really, Humerus?! You used pie to lure Alarm’s wife away?”

“How else c-could I get her out?!” Humerus complained, raising his forehoo—”Ow! Nastic, you’re pulling too hard!”

“It’s bad enough that she’s trying out this diet craze,” he shouted gruffly, “but to prank Alarm like that? He’s going to think she’s been kidnapped!—yeah, Symphyla!” waving at her, making her look. “We’re going back to Equestria!”

Symphyla nodded. “Yeah. Sorry!”

“Nah, it’s not your fault,” Nastic said, lightening up for her. “We all need sugar. Can’t blame you—just remember that not everything in those health brochures are true.” Inspecting her face, “You aren’t hurt or anything?”

Symphyla shook her head, some of the cream and the crust falling from her face to the green grass below.

“Well, you’re alive,” Nastic said, finishing off with a tip of the hat to her. Turning to Humerus, however, he darkened his features, showing off his fangs. “As for you, no sweets until the day’s done!”

“We’re not even part of the same—”

“No sweets!”

“I’m a grown—”

No sweets!”

And Humerus was towed away by a surly Nastic, Symphyla floating with them as she wiped her face clean from pie.

Leaving the pegasi and the only Earth pony there in the sky, their mouths open in shock.

Dash’s lips were trembling, the envious mare seeing her chance at beating Rainbow slipping away. “B-B-B-But...my pr-pranking c-contest….” She grabbed a large nearby cloud and held it close. “I-I was...I was this close to showing her who’s the boss and—” squeezed it in anger.

“Hey!” shouted the cloud

Agh!” screamed Dash as she jumped away from the talking cloud.

Then, Rainbow floated out of the cloud, smiling a smug smile and crossing her forehooves.

And Dash and everyone else gasped.

Everyone except Pinkie. “Hah! Knew it’d work, RD!”

Rainbow flew over to Pinkie and bumped her hoof. “Yeah! Had to wing it when I saw two of myself, but I’m not complaining. Everyone’s here, we enjoyed a crazy prank, and,” ears folding back in awe, “actually, that Symphyla took the words out of my mouth.”

She turned to the line of eager weather team wannabes who weren’t sure if they wanna stay here any longer.

With a spread of her forehooves, “You’re having your first Canterlot-made rainy day today, with the help of yours truly!” and bowed.

Dash looked on in shock as they clapped their hooves. Some laughed at how ridiculous the prank had gone but most applauded because the whole ordeal felt like the perfect prelude for a bombastic mare like Rainbow.

Felt a pat on her back, saw it was Pinkie who did it.

“Hey, don’t take it seriously,” Pinkie said, her upbeat going down a little, her gorgeous grin waning into a subtle smile. “I guess it’s a bother to have another you doing all these awesome things. Yeah, she makes sunny days and neat moves for a living.”

Then, Pinkie untied one of her balloons and hoofed it to Dash who was puzzled at the sudden gift.

“But, you can do awesome things that she doesn’t do! I heard you can still ride those motorcycle thingies, be the leader of a band that can sing literally magic songs, and a professional in all those sports teams!”

Leaned in to whisper,

“And you saved the world a few times already!”

She floated away from the hovering pegasus still listening.

“Learning from each other, sharing talents and hobbies, and—what’s most important of ‘em all—having fun!” Poking her on the shoulder and smirking, “Anyway, I admire you taking the high road and going for a prank-off.”

Dash smiled. “Yeah. I guess that’s better.” Turning to Rainbow who was ordering her weather novices instructions and positions, she looked on.

Flew to her and tapped the mare on the shoulder.

Rainbow jolted at the tap, then smiled when she saw who it was. “Oh, uh, sorry for what happened. We’re good?”

“We’re always good!” shouted Dash. “Even if it meant some bumps on the road.”

Making Pinkie smile, Rainbow and Dash laughed together, their identical voices blending in. “So, what is it? You want a real prank contest tonight? I got nothing better to do.”

“I have a better idea,” Dash replied, gesturing towards all the pegasi in line. “What about I help out with your rainy day?”

Rainbow slapped her on the back and tugged her in a half-embrace. “Why not? And, hey, since you got my ‘super secret’ tips, I’ll have you lead the pack and I’ll supervise from afar. Deal?”

“Count me in!”

And everyone cheered as both Rainbow Dashes soared to the sky. They left behind parallel rainbow trails as they began gathering scattered clouds for the rain later on.