Welcome to Discordtopia

by Foal Star

Chapter Eight: A House made of Plastic

It was early in the morning, with the sun's rays just starting to shine through the stained glass windows of Trixie's grand hall. The former magician-turned-alicorn was sitting atop her throne, drowning her anger with a bottle of wine. She didn't even bother getting a glass, chugging it down recklessly.

While it was hardly a dignified look, she didn't care; it wasn't like she had many subjects to judge her.

Trixie's grand castle was empty, most of her soldiers and servants having abandoned her during the escape by seemingly another Twilight Sparkle and the former princesses. Their success had emboldened others to flee, and with virtually no true loyalty from her subjects, she hadn't the horsepower to bring them back.

In less than a day, Trixie was utterly alone and forced to care for herself, which proved a lost cause, being unable to cook for herself or even keep her home clean. Thus, she'd settled for cleaning out her wine cellar, though only after being forced to contact her hated rival for help with the current situation.

The very thought of allying with her oldest rival only caused her to angrily drink even further, growling despite the burning alcohol in her throat. This quickly halted when the bottle's contents were drained, prompting her to toss the empty bottle against the wall and levitate over a new one.

She was just in the process of uncorking it when hoovesteps caused her gaze to shift to the entrance of her hall. Even in an inebriated state, she could make out a familiar purple shape, which caused her eyes to narrow.

"Good Morning, Trixie." Twilight greeted formally while taking her top hat off.

"Twilight, I was beginning to worry you wouldn't make it! And it's Princess Trixie," Trixie snapped as she sat up on her throne, putting the wine bottle beside her chair.

At the mention of her title, Twilight merely chuckled. "Oh yes, please forgive my manners Princess."

Trixie's anger rose, causing the bottle she was trying to open to crack, though she paid it little mind.

Twilight teleported towards her and then replied with a smirk. "So, I heard you had the former princesses right in your hooves and let them escape."

"Yes, no thanks to your brother. Not only did he stab me in the back, but he also took most of my soldiers with him!" Tririxe shouted, pointing her horn at her. "Perhaps I should be torturing your parents; they probably helped him with his coup."

Surprisingly, despite the threat against her family, Twilight didn't react, barely looking bothered by the idea.

"While I'm sure that would likely prove useful, I can't allow you to lay a hoof on either of them," Twilight replied with a sigh with a bored expression on her face as she looked around the empty room and then asked, "So, outside of mulling over your own failure, why did you call me here?"

Still glaring at her enemy, Trixie tossed the still-floating bottle behind her as she approached. "Because we need to talk about our next plan of action and discuss the elephant in the room."

"And that will be?"

"Discord hasn't been seen in over a month."

"And?"

The casual indifference in Twilight's tone caused Trixie's blood to boil as she got right into her rival's face. "Aren't you supposed to be smart!? We both know Discord, and we've seen how bored he's been getting lately. Obviously, he doesn't care what happens to Equestria and has gone to entertain himself somewhere else."

That did seem to merit a slight reaction from Twilight, a single raise of the eyebrow in little interest.

"The thought had crossed my mind. But what exactly are you proposing?"

Trixie, levitating another bottle and uncorking it, poured her a glass of wine and levitated it to her. "It's simple: we betray Discord and split Equestria."

Twilight blinked before almost immediately snapping. "Are you crazy? And what do we do if Disord returns? We can't possibly hope to stop him."

Trixie surprisingly remained calm, taking a sip from the bottle. "If Discord returns, you'll cling to him like a security blanket, and he'll pass the whole thing off as a bad joke; he probably doesn't even remember I exist."

Taking another moment to take another long swing from the bottle, she continued. "Let's be completely honest; Discord doesn't care about us or this kingdom; we're just toys for his amusement. He only keeps us around because we suck up to him. We're so beneath his notice he likely won't even care if he does return, assuming he's not busy tormenting the thousands of other creatures on this poor, doomed continent."

Twilight looked to argue, mulled over what Trixie had said, and took her sip from her glass. "That's a pretty logical look at things; I'm impressed. But let's say we betray him and take over Equestria. What exactly do we do then?"

"We fix Equestria, of course?! I'm not saying we make it how it was before. I have my tastes, after all, as do you. But with our prowess in Chaos Magic, you could finally get rid of that ridiculous circus and turn Canterlott into whatever you want. Then we go on to every other part of Equestria and fix things or improve whatever Discord's magic changed."

Overall, it sounded like an enticing plan, reasonably well thought out, and theoretically, it could work.

Yet, rather than consider it or even hint at consideration, Twilight laughed with a twisted smile. "Sorry to disappoint you, Trixie, but I'm one step ahead of you."

She whistled, and two massive dragons strolled into the grand hall, covered in black scales with white underbellies, and strangely were wearing bow ties. With a smirk, they both came right up behind Twilight.

"I've been dabbling with my powers over the years, secretly turning ponies into all kinds of magical creatures. I knew one-day Discord would also abandon Equestria, and I have been preparing an army to take full control of the kingdom. Sorry for keeping that act up for so long."

Upon hearing what Twilight said, Trixie gulped and started to feel sweat coming down her brow. "I see…"

The mare yawned as she poured the remaining wine onto the rug. "So, since we're clear on the power dynamic before I leave, I'm assuming you had one more proposal to make?"

"Yes," Trixie squeaked as she tried to regain some modicum of goodwill with her rival. "We need to take down the rebels hiding in the Everfree Forest."

That at least piqued Twilight's interest. "I heard those rumors, so that's where my brother and the other traitors are hiding?"

"Yes, along with, I assume, anypony that Discord's Chaos Magic hasn't influenced. It's also a safe bet that's where the missing princesses are hiding." Trixie, still eying the dragons wearily. "However, to ensure they never threaten our rule, we must ensure their capture. Once we start dismantling Discord's magic, they will try to assert dominance."

"I'm already on it; we'll have them before the week is through." With a quick flash of magic, the mare then produced a more elaborate-looking bottle of wine, which she happily poured for herself. "Let's toast then; we work together to restore Equestria and capture the princesses. After we take down these rebels, we can discuss how we'll cut up our dominion."

"I'm glad you agree," Trixie muttered with a false smile while internally seething at being outplayed again. The pair tapped their glasses and drank before Twilight turned and headed for the exit, massive dragons lumbering behind her, causing the entire castle to shake as they left.

When they were gone, Trixie, with a distraught look, collapsed onto her throne, slammed a hoof over her face, and whispered to herself, "I need to build an army fast! If I can't, Twilight will destroy me for sure!"

---

Meanwhile, the princesses and their Twilight traveled across the Everfree Forest, doing their best to avoid anything especially unwelcoming or potentially hostile, particularly the ponds with the transformation water.

Miraculously, they made it out of the forest without any hiccups compared to before and finally reached the edge of the woods. However, there, they came to a train station that looked much like one built for a toy with a road made of plastic and a full-sized toy train awaiting a toy stallion with a uniform.

Much like the station, train, and tracks, the stallion looked just as plastic as the rest, with a rather creepy painted-on smile. The group jumped in fright when he lifted one of his arms rather suddenly, and a robotic-sounding voice came out of him.

"If you're heading to The Big Toy Box, please get on board."

The three mares were more than a little suspicious of the train; it was more Chaos Magic. Regardless, they took the bull by the horns, slowly trotted onto the train, and sat across from each other in cramped, plastic seats.

"Well, barring anything else happening, this train should take us to Manehatten," Twilight stated as she tried to adjust her position to gain some level of comfort.

"Ok, but what should we expect to find there?" Luna felt even more on edge, not helped by her larger body, leaving her with less room to move.

Before any answer was given, the train started to move and chug, though with considerably less noise due to its lighter and less metallic frame. It certainly made Twilight's following sentence easier to hear.

"The entire city looks like a massive foal's toy room, and most ponies there have been turned into life-sized but otherwise harmless dolls. But the plan we need to follow is us finding Applejack."

While that earned a round of nods from those present, Celestia couldn't help but look a little embarrassed. "And, I'm sorry, Twilight, who is Applejack again?

"She's an orange-coated earth pony. In my world, she was an apple farmer in Ponyville. She typically had a more rustic attitude, but in this timeline, she acts more like Rarity."

The two blinked, "You mean like a maid?"

"No, my Rarity, she used to be a fashionista and a drama queen but…you know, a bit stuck up and sort of snobbish."

"Oh, so, like your average citizen of Canterlot?" Luna answered, a lightbulb seemingly appearing over her head. Celestia looked a little less than amused.

"Now, sister, I agree Canterlot's citizens could use a lesson or two in humility, but they aren't all that bad."

"Anyway." Twilight raised her voice slightly to get things back in focus. "I took that transformation water from the Everfree Forest due to a crucial detail. You see, Applejack regularly holds a tea party every day but only invites dolls…the idea is you can temporarily reassume the forms you took in the forest to hopefully get an invite, then convince her to come with us."

It was a sketchy plan. Still, the alicorns nodded in agreement as the train continued, the pair quickly catching sight of the city or the toy replica version it had become. The buildings were now massive stacks of wooden blocks on top of each other; the streets from afar seemed to have this plastic sheen with everything made of plastic. The Statue of Harmony herself, holding the torch over her head, was now a giant toy made of plastic bricks of some sort, which was now surrounded by the water, which now had white suds bubbling over the surface and smelled quite nice. A quick glance at some large rubber ducks floating in the water made it clear it was supposed to be bath water.

Chaos Magic really was as random as one could expect.

They eventually made it to the station, where, as they got off, only to were quickly surrounded, in a sense, by various ponies, now transformed into dolls. Curiously enough, all of them were engaged in some form of play. They were either kicking balls down the street, some playing hopscotch, or jumping rope. Despite their odd world, the ponies all seemed to be enjoying themselves.

"Sister, I'm very disturbed by this. I'm sure I once entered a nightmare like this." Luna shivered slightly at the many painted faces of the various dolls, with Celestia offering a calming pat with her wing.

"Before we continue…we need you two to put on your disguises," Twilight spoke up, levitating over two bottles of water.

The two alicorns gave annoyed sighs as they drank some of the enchanted water, and soon, their wings and horns disappeared. Rapidly, their manes and tails started to change, now tied up to resemble an older hairstyle, with their tails being knotted and the duo now clad in magical gowns. Celestia's clown suit became a bright yellow dress, while Luna had a gorgeous violet gown appear over her.

Twilight quickly joined them, downing some of the enchanted water herself, and the two others watched as her wings and horns disappeared; a beautiful blue dress appeared with frills at the edge of the skirt, and a tiara was plopped on her head.

"Hmm, somepony is a little more comfortable with this transformation than us." Luna eyed Twilight, who flinched a little under her gaze.

"Well, I disguised myself to get in here a couple of times in the past. It helped that everypony just assumed I was the evil version of me and never looked much into it."

Celestia quickly nudged her sister to cease with the question whilst eyeing the large toybox city before them. "Twilight, given your time in this city, is there anything important you feel we should know before we enter?"

"Mostly, we should keep your identities a secret. Even with how crazy everything is, we can't afford to trust anypony right now. Anyone of them could easily try to sell us out to Discord or my evil doppelganger."

"Right, we can think up some names," Celestia chirped. She then nuzzled her sister, who looked more annoyed. "Hopefully, this is the last time we have to turn into fairy tale princesses."

The three mares slowly trotted through the city, Celestia and Luna finding themselves gawking at the massive dollhouse-style buildings and various ponies in equally loud and brightly colored dresses. Eventually, they approached a particularly large building with a red roof, yellow walls, and a large apple on its face. At the front, two large doll ponies awaited them.

Hesitantly, Celestia stepped forward. "Hello, is this where Applejack is hosting her tea party?"

One of the doll's heads turned with a crack towards her. "Yes, and who are you two?"

The two both gave each other unsure glances before introducing themselves.

Celestia bowed and said, "I am Princess Sunny Sky! Or Princess Sunny, if you prefer!"

"Oh, that's a very pretty name." The doll spoke eerie, chipperly before turning its head to Luna. "And what's your name, little pony?"

The former princess of the night sighed. "I'm her sister, Princess Night Sky."

"Night Sky and Sunny Sky, what delightfully sweet-sounding names! I'll go to see if Applejack has room for two more guests!" The Doll turned about to enter, only for its head to turn 180 degrees around to look at Twilight. "And what about your friend?"

The two turned to Twilight, who gave a pre-rehearsed laugh. "Oh, I'm Princess Sparkle, and I sadly have a previous engagement. That is…. I'm due for a dress-up party with my friend Bon Bon."

"Oh, well, that's a shame that you have to miss the party." The doll shrugged and then trotted into the mansion. Celestia felt herself breathing with relief before eying Twilight. "Are you sure about this? Wouldn't it be better to have you with us inside?"

"I should stay outside and keep guard if anything happens; just let me know when you contact Applejack and find a way to be alone with her. Hopefully, you and Luna can get her to come with us."

Listening in on the conversation, Princess Luna whispered, "We're taking quite a gamble here, Twilight. Are you so certain we can pull this off?"

"We don't have much of a choice…like I said, I'm not entirely sure if this Applejack will cooperate, so keep your cards close to your chest until you think it's alright to reveal who you really are to her."

The two princesses agreed silently, and then the doll returned from within the mansion. "Princess Sunny Sky and Night Sky, please come inside; your invitation to Applejack's tea party has been granted."

The two mares slowly trotted through the doll house's front entrance into the Applejack mansion.

---

The former princesses were quietly escorted through the mansion, which was, fittingly enough, decorated like a doll house with bright orange wallpaper, little pink apples, and a bright yellow rug leading throughout the dollhouse. Cute plastic furniture decorated the place, with various pictures of an orange-coated earth pony wearing various dresses and posing.

Eventually, they were led to a massive room where other dolls, like stallions and mares, all wearing gaudy outfits, were sitting around a giant circular table covered in an orange tablecloth with red apples printed on it, covered with dozens of empty cups and plates. The entire scene was somewhat awkward as the dolls were all drinking from them as if they had liquid inside. Some dolls didn't have mouths and silently nodded along to various conversations.

At the back of the table was Applejack, an orange-coated mare with a blonde mane, but her body was like the guards, being glass-like and shiny. Her body was clad in a frilly yellow dress, and a sun hat with a massive green emerald shaped like an apple sat around her neck.

To the princesses, the scene was a mixture of horrifying and somewhat embarrassing, as both knew all too well what they would have to do.

The tension quickly rose as Applejack's eyes finally met their own. "So we have two newcomers? Welcome to my tea party. Please introduce yourselves."

The two sisters gulped as they secretly wondered who would say something first, only for Luna not so subtly to push her sister forward. "Hello, I am Princess Sunny Sky."

Her sister followed suit, rising up and bowed. "And I am Princess Night Sky."

Everypony at the table flashed them smiles and whispered underneath their breaths, and Applejack gasped, "Princesses! Oh my! I had no idea I would be having royalty today!?"

She then clapped her hooves as two porcelain dolls came up behind them and poured the two cups of actual tea. Applejack lifted her cup and exclaimed, "Let's give our new guests a toast!"

They all held their plastic tea cups and placed them to their lips. Despite their own trepidation, Celestia and Luna did as well; despite the embarrassing nature of the scene being a tea party with a bunch of sentient dolls, it was as if they stumbled into a little filly's dream.

Then again, it was still a lot better than how they were treated back in Canterlot.

With the opening setting, Applejack settled into her chair with her many subjects following suit, Celestiand Luna included. "Now I have to ask, what brings you to my tea party?"

Celestia was uncertain about what to say, knowing this was a bit of a minefield to enter. Still, seeing that they had to pretend their mindless ponies, she flashed a practiced smile and said, "Oh, we just wish to see you, Applejack; we heard so much about your famous tea parties that my sister and I had to come to see them!"

"Yes, we traveled all the way from Trixieville to join this tea party," Luna added, trying to keep her eyes away from the many blank faces staring at them.

Many ponies gasped around the table as Applejack eyed them. "I see, Trixieville, you say?"

Celestia slightly nodded, then said, "Yes, we are from Trixieville…we escaped as we heard how much better Manehattan was."

Applejack's expression didn't change, though Celestia could sense some kind of change in her demeanor. "Well, that's rather flattering of you to say… however, I am afraid you will have to leave. You see, The Big Toy Box doesn't have any food, and you would starve if you stayed here."

Both Princesses quickly eyed each other, mentally trying to devise a way to keep the conversation going.

Luna then turned to face Applejack and gulped, "Yes, we knew that; in fact, we also came to ask if…we can become dolls ourselves?"

Celestia's eyes widened, surprised by Luna's response, while the plastic farm mare smirked. "Well, I didn't think you would ask."

Princess Celestia then felt her body stiff, as did Luna's, as they seemed unable to move as their flesh started to look plastic and gave off a sheen.

"Don't be scared; I promise it's totally painless, and once it's done, you won't have to worry about being hungry, getting old, or needing to go to the bathroom ever again. Isn't that just wonderful?"

All the dolls clapped in reverence towards Applejack as the two princesses quickly completed their second transformation of the day.

It wasn't long until the two sisters groaned, and they doubled over. Celestia felt her entire body turning from flesh into plastic, her mane and tail turning into fabric. She then looked over at Applejack, wanting nothing more than to send her flying for turning her into a plastic doll. But she regained her composure and, with a smile, replied, "Thank you, we look amazing."

"Of course, now that you're dolls, why don't we have a private discussion?" Applejack clapped her hooves as she rose, and every other doll did the same. Celestia and Luna rose up as well. "I apologize for cutting my tea party short, but there are some important matters I need to discuss with the newcomers. We will meet up tomorrow around the same time."

"Yes, Applejack!" many dolls exclaimed; they all clattered and clanged as they trotted off. Applejack smoothed out her dress and then turned her attention to the newly created dolls. "Now come along. I don't have all day."

The two mares followed Applejack, and Celestia squeaked, feeling the weight of her former body gone, leaving her stumbling due to the sudden lightness. Also, her movements were much stiffer, taking more effort to ensure she was balanced. Luna similarly struggled as they followed the mare through the mansion to her room.

It was as gaudy and plastic-like as the rest of the house. The only real difference was there was a massive canopy bed, and sitting above was a portrait of Applejack with a few other ponies, an elderly earth pony mare, a massive red-coated stallion who was holding an adorable little yellow-coated baby filly.

Once the doors shut, Applejack immediately faced them, her face managing to show a great deal of annoyance compared to before. "Alright, now start talking. Who exactly are you really? And don't bother lying further; I knew you were deceiving me the moment you entered."

Both sisters felt their hearts stop momentarily, not expecting to be found out so quickly. Still, it wasn't like they were in a position to do anything else at this point.

"Very well, my name is Celestia. And this is my younger sister Luna."

Applejack's eyes went wide, "I knew it, though I see you don't have your wings and horns. Likely some spell to get inside." She then regained her composure. "However, I have to ask why would you come here? Is it just so you can stay in Manehattan and play as dolls?"

The former princess of the sun shook her head. She hoped deep down Twilight's trust in Applejack would pay off. "We want you to come with us, and we need you to help us defeatDiscord."

Applejack's eyes again widened before she burst out in uproarious laughter. "Oh, me taking down Discord!? I don't think you've been paying attention; I'm a literal doll at this point. Part of the reason I never leave is because I'd crack under the slightest pressure."

Luna opted to switch in for her sister. "I understand, but we found a special water that can reverse the curses of the Chaos Magic here. We can turn you back to normal ponies."

Applejack held up a hoof and said, "Hold on now, why would I want that? I have everything I want and more! I was the Diva of Manehattan, and even now, I have more power and influence than ever! Why would I ever want to give that up?"

"Are you serious!? You're a bunch of toys playing tea party; don't you want your normal lives back!?" Luna shouted, stomping her hoof or attempting to with her limited mobility. "If we take down Discord, we can change things to how they were! Return Equestria to the peaceful land it once was."

The porcelain doll crossed the room and said, "You're assuming that everypony was happy with their lives before everything changed. But you two are even more stupid for coming here than I realized."

The two alicorns paused as they tried to move, but Luna gasped as she felt her body seeming unable to move. Celestia herself tried to get near her sister, only to find herself just as immobile. The princess gritted her teeth and tried to say something, but her face started to feel stiff, and her lips pressed together.

"That tea I gave you before was created from the waters of the river you crossed over. It can turn ponies into dolls, but I'm afraid it also makes you motionless. Pity."

The doors to the room opened, and two porcelain dolls brought in two massive boxes. The two were picked up and forced into a standup position as twist ties went around their limbs and strapped them, then a plastic see-through cover was placed over them.

Applejack then strode over them with a smile, "Good, now you two just stay put. I need to make a call."

---

As she walked away, Applejack couldn't help but feel a bit awful; she didn't want to harm the former princesses of Equestria; in fact, she was pretty happy they came to see her. But the truth is things have changed, and she had to do whatever it took to keep Manehattan from Discord and his minions.

Strengthened her resolve, she trotted across her room towards a glowing orb, tapping it and watching it glow with the image of Trixie appearing. The usually prideful alicorn was currently in the midst of downing another bottle of wine while lying flat across her bed.

Applejack almost looked at the mare with a hint of disgust and pity before tapping it again. "Uh, Trixie?"

The mare cried in shock, practically gagging on the wine she'd been drinking before finally noticing her viewer, "Oh, Applejack didn't expect to see you."

"Yes, well…uh, just wanted to let you know I have the former princesses with me."

Immediately, the mare's eyes lit up, and she excitedly squealed. "Excellent! Now things are heating up as Twilight, and I just made a pact."

Applejack's eyes went wide. "Wait, you and Twilight made peace!? What about Discord!?"

"What about him? We all know he hasn't been around for a month! Besides, we have the best claim and the power to take over. But I can't trust Twilight. She'll probably backstab me the first chance she gets."

Applejack regretted calling the former magician, simply wanting to resolve this and keep her head down. Now, it seemed she'd stumbled into a coup.

"So, uh, what are you going to be doing in the meantime?"

Trixie sighed, coming down off her prior high. "I…I actually need you to sit tight. First, I need to recruit ponies from here and Manehattan to create an army."

"An army!? You promised that Manehattan would remain neutral as long as we don't align with Twilight!"

"I'm sorry, but I have to break that promise." Despite appearances, Trixie did seem genuine in her regret. "Twilight is creating an army herself. I fear she'll crush me if I don't make my own."

Applejack paused, then asked, "You promised you'll turn me back to a pony when you arrive."

"Of course,"

"And my family? Are they ok?"

"They'll be safe."

"Does that include Big Macintosh? I heard he left with Shining Armor."

Trixie sighed annoyedly, "Yes, even Big Macintosh; even though he betrayed me, we still have a deal, and unlike Twilight, I always honor my agreements."

Applejack glared at Trixie, then snapped, "You better make good on that deal; if I hear that you did anything to my family, I-"

"You'll do what!? Remember that I still possess Chaos Magic while you're just an easily breakable doll. You'd do well to remember that dear Applejack."

Applejack paused; knowing her place and position, she grumbled, "Fine."

"You better keep the former princesses secure; if I hear you let them escape, I can't promise your family's safety."

Applejack slammed the ball back onto the plastic table and angrily cried out. She was seething, knowing Trixie was strong-arming her, and worse, she didn't know if Big Mac or anypony from her old farm was safe.

The mare looked out with the sun setting over the toy city and wondered if she was making the right decision. The mare collapsed onto her bed, which was also made of plastic, and just lay there missing, being able to feel or sense the world around her; outside of sight and sound, she couldn't smell, taste, or touch anything.

Despite her grandstanding and attitude, the mare just wanted to return to normal and, if it indeed were possible, would've happily accepted the former princess's offer. Yet, that was not to be; thus, she would play Trixie's game for now.

---

Later that evening, Twilight was trotting back and forth outside the mansion as the moon rose. She knew that the princesses should have come back by now. Granted, she'd contemplated the possibility of things going wrong. Still, given Applejack's more haughty attitude, she assumed the worst would be her kicking them out ...unless she was working with evil Twilight or Trixie.

She quickly slammed a hoof to her face. "How can I be so stupid!? I just got the princesses captured!"

Now, with few options, she, using her magic to levitate, snuck into the mansion through one of the open windows and carefully trotted through the estate; to her surprise, the place was primarily empty outside of the gaudy furniture.

Walking further inward, Twilight eventually came to Applejack's room and found the princesses in the boxes of all things. She used magic to open the plastic see-through openings and remove the twisted ties around their bodies without missing a beat. Quickly, she pulled out the enchanted water and sprinkled it on top of them both, and then slowly, the two transformed back to their flesh and blood bodies once more, the pair looking positively relieved.

Luna rubbed her red rubber nose with a hoof and grumbled, "Thank you, Twilight; I apologize this plan didn't work out as well as I hoped."

Twilight shook her head as she was ashamed and said, "No, this is my fault. I should've expected that Applejack was working with Trixie or Evil Twilight. So who was she working for?"

"Trixie." The two sisters grumbled in unison.

Luna turned to Twilight, "I'm sorry about your friend, but I believe it might be best to leave and cut our losses."

"No, we can't leave; look, this Applejack isn't the one I knew, but deep down, I know we can convince her to help us. We have to try something."

"But how can we convince her? Whatever leverage Trixie has against Applejack was clearly enough to sway her. She'll never agree unless we somehow figure out what it is and deal with it. We should get out of her before we alert her guards."

Twilight looked utterly downtrodden at the idea but agreed nonetheless. "I guess you're right, but how can we get out of here?"

Celestia turned to the packaging they were trapped in a few minutes ago and smirked, "I have an idea."

---

The following day, Applejack found herself tied up in a box; upon realizing she was strapped in a box, she kicked and cried, but her glass-like body made it difficult to really do anything to escape. She then spotted the two clown princesses who were smiling at her as Trixie had before

"Release me at once!"

Princess Celestia hopped over and said, "Not until you answer some questions."

"Fine! Ask away, but I'm not telling you anything."

The shift in personality was quite drastic. It reminded The princess of how Fluttershy and Rarity acted, seeing their lives were horrible even before everything went to hell. Applejack's life must not be as glamorous as she was letting on.

"How about we learn about you first? Tell me what happened in your former life?" Celestia's tone shifted, becoming more soft and compassionate, akin to how she'd addressed her subjects before Discord's reign.

Applejack futilely struggled again for a moment before sighing in defeat. "Well, I used to live in Ponyville, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to stay on my family's farm for the rest of my life. So I moved to Manehattan and stayed with my aunt and uncle. Now, I had to admit I wasn't thrilled with my life and, at one point, looking for a sign to see if I should stay. That sign never came, so I stayed and lived my life here. I went to parties and learned to be sophisticated, talking to Equestria's rich and powerful ponies. Still, no matter what I did, I never received my cutie mark and remained nothing more than a rich bachelorette. Then this Chaos Magic changed everything, turning me into this porcelain doll and my mansion a doll house. And now, thanks to that, everypony wants to come and attend my tea parties; I'm the most popular pony in Manehattan. It ain't perfect, but it's not terrible either."

Luna, however, needed to look more convinced. "Because it sounds like you were never happy and clinging to a false version of yourself? If you had a chance to return to your farm in time, would you?"

Applejack looked down and growled, "Maybe…"

Celestia sighed, "My sister and I have a fairly good idea of what's happening. Trixie, she's holding your family hostage, isn't she?"

"Yeah, and if you don't stay here, she will turn them into slaves!" Applejack screamed, almost lurching forward in desperation. "If you cared about me, you'd release me and remain here without any issue."

Both Celestia and Luna looked at the desperate plea with sympathy. "I apologize, but she cannot capture us. If we do, I fear we'll be used as hostages to keep the citizens of Equestria from rebelling while she continues to control them. She may even turn us over to Twilight to be tortured."

Luna shivered at the thought and whispered, "I would rather die than go back to that."

Their answer caused the porcelain Applejack to shake, her face seemingly shifting as she cried. "Don't you two get it! If I don't turn you over, that'll happen to me and my family too! How can yah expect me to choose between mah Family and Ya'lll?"

Applejack blinked momentarily and blushed, releasing in her distress that she'd briefly fallen back into her original accent.

There was a long, somber pause as the three thought over what to say next. Luna then looked up and asked, "Have you ever wondered why you never received your cutie mark?"

"No, and I don't see how that's relevant?"

Celestia looked up, catching onto what her sister said, then continued. "Applejack, listen, Discord has somehow distorted our world's timeline, maybe even altered how things should have been for you. That's why your life has been nothing but misery, and your cutie mark never appeared. This is our chance to change things and save our world. If you help us defeat Discord, I promise we will ensure your family is safe forever."

"How do you expect us to defeat Discord?! How do we even match his power!?"

Luna smirked. "That's funny you should ask, but I think you might be one who can help us defeat him."

"Me How!? Before, I was just a snobbish Earth Pony, and now I'm just a porcelain doll! What could I possibly do!?"

Celestia eyed a door nearby and used her magic to pull it open, revealing Twilight to Applejack, whose painted eyes widened.

"Don't be alarmed, Applejack. This isn't the Twilight you're familiar with; rather, she's a Twilight from an alternate timeline, one she says is free of tyranny and where everypony, you included, lives in peace."

"Sounds like a load of horse crap to me!" Her harsh tone and language caused Twilight to wince while Luna opted to keep talking. "Even I was skeptical, but she and this Starlight Glimmer she came with seem to be telling the truth; something went wrong, and our timeline has been altered. And it seems you're one of the six who can wield the Elements of Harmony and restore Equestria to how it was."

"Besides, you can't trust this, Trixie," Celestia spoke, eyes narrowing at the mention of the magician. "She's desperate to cling to her power, and with Discord seeming to have abandoned Equestria, Evil Twilight is likely taking steps to usurp Trixie and will likely not think twice about harming you or your family."

Applejack was still hesitant, but she looked up, "Ok, you two made valid points…before we continue, can you untie me? I promise I won't run."

They did as she asked and took her out of the box as Applejack continued, "Listen, there's another reason why I decided to work for Trixie: she promised us to keep Manehattan neutral. We may be toys, but it's much better than what I heard the poor folks living in Canterlot are dealing with, not to mention the rest of Equestria."

Celestia and Luna both couldn't help but agree with her silently with slight nods.

Applejack looked down and growled, "You two made your proposition, but I want to put your word where your mouth is. Can you really change us back to normal?"

"I thought you would never ask," Twilight then came forward, and Applejack glared at her, taking a step back. "I still don't trust you; for all I know, you're just the same old spiteful Twilight as always."?"

"No wa-"

Before Celestia could say anything, Twilight took a spray bottle and gave her a few squirts. They watched as her glass-like body turned into warm flesh, growing heavier and dense, and she started to breathe and felt the air in her lungs; she could feel the plastic beneath her hooves.

"Oh, my Faust!? It worked! You turned me back into a pony again!"

"Yes, and like they said, I'm a different Twilight from another timeline, and we need you to come with us."

Applejack blinked, being somewhat surprised, but shrugged. "Alright, seeing you're not trying to torture Celestia or shatter me for working for Trixie, I'm assuming you're telling the truth."

She turned to the two princesses, "Now, I can't leave just yet; if Trixie finds out, there's no telling what she'll do. I need to trick her into thinking I still have you captured…I can't leave until she's defeated to ensure the safety of Manehattan and my family."

"Sadly, I'm afraid we don't have the numbers to defeat Trixie as we are," Celestia muttered, annoyed at yet another roadblock.

"Well, how much of that disenchantment water do you have?"

Twilight raised the flask and said, "It doesn't seem like a lot, but it seems always to refill so that it could be infinite.

Applejack trotted back and forth, then she sighed, "OK, well, I have a plan to save the ponies of Manehattan and stop Trixie…but I'm gonna need the pegasi from Cloudesdale."

Twilight replied, "Wait!? But how will we get to them!? And what is your plan!"

Applejack turned to Twilight. "Come now, ain't it obvious? That water you have seems to negate the effects of Chaos Magic. If we can get that water on Trixie, she'll turn back into a showboating, mostly powerless unicorn. But the problem is she's going to have her defenses up. So we'll need the pegasi of Cloudesdale to rain that water down on Manehattan, along with Ponyville, just to be safe. Heck, you might even be able to use that to defeat Evil Twilight as well. But you need to go now; Trixie's gonna be here any minute."

The trio looked ready to panic, with Luna already looking for the window Twilight used to enter with Celestia following, while Twilight stayed behind for a minute to speak with her friend.

"We can't just leave you here; the second she sees you aren't a doll anymore, she'll know something is up."

Applejack, showing a bit of her former stubborn pride, stomped up to Twilight and started pushing her in the direction of the princesses. "Let me worry about that; if you and the princesses get caught, we're all done for."

Twilight planted her hooves firmly and used her magic to pull Applejack back. "I can't just abandon you like this. I'll stay with you to help keep Trixie distracted. With any luck, I can convince her I'm the Evil Twilight to help explain why you're not a doll anymore."

As she mentioned her plan, Celestia entered again, only to find the flask floating in front of her face, with Twilight looking at her.

"I have no idea what to expect in Cloudesdale, but from now on, you two will focus on getting the pegasi to rain this water on everything, then find Rainbow Dash. We'll stall Trixie."

Celestia looked ready to protest but knew there was little time to do so and relented. "Alright, Twilight, this might be the only plan we have. We'll return here once we get the pegasi to rain this disenchanting water on Equestria."

Luna popped in after her sister, nodding in agreement. "I…I do not completely agree with leaving you two to deal with Trixie, but seeing her arrogance, I doubt you'll have little trouble stalling her."

The three hugged each other one last time, and then the two sisters unfurled their wings and flew out the window; the two were now flying over the city of toys with the sun just breaking over them. Celestia looked back and, with a sad smile, said, "This is it; no more time to waste."

"Yes, it seems so, but the next time we return, this city will be like it was before Discord's Chaos Magic changed it."

"I hope that is the case, sister; I hope once we leave Cloudesdale, most of Equestria will be like how it was…"

Comments

[Starlight Nova]

This story takes place during the events in the episodes Cutie Re-mark Parts 1 and 2

Are you going to do all of alternate timelines displayed in those episodes, or are you just going to stop at the Discord timeline?

[Foal Star]

11713716
Honestly at this moment in time I don't have plans to write a story about every timeline. It would take to long. Maybe in the future I would do the Chrysalis takes over timeline.