• Published 5th Feb 2013
  • 4,803 Views, 95 Comments

Fillyswap - hawthornbunny



The Mane Six wake to find themselves having swapped bodies with various fillies.

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6
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 4,803

Fluttershy

An enormous pillar of swirling air loomed in front of Fluttershy as she stood before it, eyes shielded by her flight goggles as her pink mane flapped in the roaring wind. Two dozen pegasi were contained within the cylindrical vortex, their combined motion and wingpower the only things sustaining it. It had to hold. They had to transport an entire reservoir of water to the cloud factory in Cloudsdale, a full vertical furlong away, and they had to do it in one single shot. Only a tornado could provide the necessary lifting power.

But it was failing. Two dozen pegasi was simply too few. The vortex was sputtering and thinning, the mass of water stubbornly refusing to climb. In moments it would be all over; the water would crash back into the reservoir; the pegasi would be too exhausted to try again; Cloudsdale would be unable to manufacture any new clouds, and the crops of the earth ponies would fail to receive their precious rainwater.

Worst of all, Rainbow Dash would be devastated. She'd put her heart and soul into this operation; now all her hard work would be for nothing.

"Fluttershy, you have to get in there!" Twilight yelled, the purple unicorn standing well back next to her wind-measuring equipment.

"I can't!" Fluttershy whimpered. "It won't make a difference!"

"We have every confidence in you!" yelled Princess Luna, scooping a hoofful of popcorn from the large box perched on her belly.

"They need you!" said Twilight, looking slightly puzzled at the Princess, who was reclining on a large, synthetic leather bean bag. "You have to try, Fluttershy, if not for them then for yourself!"

Fluttershy glanced back at her. She could see the fear in Twilight's eyes. And in that moment, she understood. Twilight wasn't afraid that she was going to fail. Twilight was afraid that she wasn't going to try. That she would run away again and live in the pain of not knowing whether she could have made a difference.

No. I'm not going to run away from this. Not this time. Win or lose, I'm going to be there for you, Dashie. She stiffened and turned back to the roiling mass in front of her, glaring defiantly. "You're... you're right, Twilight. I can do this!"

"Yay, Fluttershy! Woo hoo!" Luna cheered, securing her popcorn in her telekinetic grip as she extended an enormous foam appendage that she was wearing on her hoof. It had 'FLUTTERSHY #1' printed on it in large, bold letters.

"Princess Luna... I know it's not my place to suggest such a thing, but you could help too," said Twilight, frowning at the night alicorn. "Your wingpower must be at least the equal of a pegasus, right?"

"Our wingpower defies measure," Luna replied lazily. "But we are afraid we must decline. This is Fluttershy's moment, not ours. Popcorn?" she said, offering the box to Twilight.

"No, thank you," said Twilight disapprovingly, although Spike eagerly grabbed a few clawfuls as Luna proffered the box to him. "Hey, where... where did Fluttershy go?"

"She has entered the tempest," said Luna, munching. "Pay attention, Twilight Sparkle. You will miss the good bits."

"Well, it's kind of hard to see what's going on," said Twilight. "Is she making a difference? The anenometer still says 795."

"One moment," said Luna, her horn shining briefly; a glowing rectangular window opened before the trio, floating in mid-air. The rectangle began to magically display an image of the tornado's swirling interior, tracking Fluttershy as she tried to find her place among the circling pegasi.

"Oooh, nice resolution," Spike praised, stuffing another clawful of popcorn into his snout. "Go Fluttershy! Look, she's totally doing it!" he said, watching the tiny Fluttershy on the screen begin to match pace with the rest of the pegasi. "That's got to be enough, right?"

"No!" Twilight said worriedly, glancing back at the windspeed meter. "798! That's her highest wingpower yet, but it's still not enough!"

"Keep watching," Luna grinned. "We love this bit."

Spike clutched his face with a tensed paw as the yellow pegasus began to falter, her wingbeats falling out of rhythm as she became distracted. "I can't watch! She's falling apart!"

"Have faith in your friends, Spike," said Luna prudently.

Twilight forced herself to keep watching the magic window as Fluttershy struggled to gain speed, the pegasus apparently fighting the torments of some painful memory.

"Nooo!" screamed the Fluttershy on the screen, a primal surge of power running through her body as she suddenly took off like a lightning bolt, spurred on by an unexpected burst of determination.

"YES!" Twilight and Spike cheered as she shot past the other bewildered pegasi. "Yeeeeeeeees! She's done it! Eight hundred wingpower!" Twilight yelled ecstatically. They hushed in awe as the column of water from the reservoir began to ascend, climbing to the top of the tornado before erupting forth and soaring in a great arc over the land, making a perfect splashdown in the Cloudsdale containment pool several furlongs away.

Luna giggled. "Told you!" She watched and yawned with a sleepy smile as the tornado broke apart, the pegasi regrouping on the ground and chanting Fluttershy's name. "We must retire for the morning," she said, floating the remainder of the popcorn over to Spike, and magically shrinking her bean bag to the size of a pea before it popped out of existence. "Go and celebrate with your companions, Twilight Sparkle."

"Take care, Princess!" said Twilight, bowing to the moon goddess as she flapped away and vanished in a swirl of space and light. The purple unicorn ran over to the throng of pegasi who were holding an extremely bashful-looking Fluttershy aloft, cheering their champion. "That was amazing, Fluttershy!" said Twilight. "You more than doubled your wingpower! I don't even know how that's possible!"

Fluttershy excused herself from the crowd, giving hoofbumps as she flapped over her fellows, before alighting next to Twilight. "I... I don't know how I did it! I just couldn't let Rainbow Dash down - oooof!" she squeaked, as the rainbow pegasus barrelled into her with a rib-cracking hug. "Oh... D-Dash!" she gasped, patting her back.

"I don't even have the words to thank you," said Rainbow Dash, her eyes burning with suppressed tears as she removed her goggles. "I knew you could do it, Fluttershy, I always knew."

"It... it was nothing, really Dashie..." Fluttershy gasped, falling back on her hooves as Dash released her.

"Well, this calls for a celebration!" said Twilight, smiling happily. "I guess you'll be wanting to hang with the pegasi for a while, but how about we treat you both to dinner this evening?"

"Oh, that sounds wonderful," said Fluttershy with a smile. "You don't have to do that for us, really Twilight."

"Yeah, not unless you want to treat the whole weather team as well," said Rainbow, before chuckling at the look on Twilight's face. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Sounds -----, I'll be there! Meet you at -----?"

Fluttershy rubbed her ear with a hoof. The roar of the tornado was still rushing in her ears, she was having trouble hearing the conversation.

"Better make it -----, I've got to ----- this all back to ----- -----." said Twilight, gesturing at her instruments.

"Need any ----- ----- that? I'm sure the ----- will be ----- to ----- once they've had ----- -----." said Rainbow, her mane fluttering in the breeze. "Fluttershy, you -----?"

Fluttershy's head was tilted to the ground as she patted her ear with a hoof. The roaring noise was even louder now, she could barely make out a word anypony was saying.

The three of them looked at her worriedly. "I'm fine," she said. "I'm fine," she repeated more loudly, "just feeling a little deafened. Don't worry about me."

"----- sure?" said Twilight with concern, her mane flapping in the wind.

Fluttershy opened her mouth to respond, but her mane blew wildly over her face and muffled her for a moment. She turned around to try to find out what was causing it, and saw something that made her coat flush with a chill.

A tornado. Identical to the one she had just helped produce.

"----- we just get rid of that?" said Spike, looking alarmed.

"----- not possible!" said Rainbow, leaping into the air and hovering as she stared at the vortex in shock. It was beginning to move, causing the grounded pegasi to panic into flight. There was nopony that could possibly be producing the tornado; it was somehow sustaining itself. And heading in their direction, fast.

"Move! Move!" bellowed Rainbow. "Fluttershy, take Spike!"

Fluttershy swooped in and clutched the little dragon as Rainbow Dash did the same with Twilight, hoisting the unicorn into her arms as the pair took off as fast as they could. Spike shivered in terror as the tornado tore behind the zooming pegasi, shredding earth and swallowing trees with little impediment.

"How is this happening?" Fluttershy cried, but she couldn't even hear herself. Nothing they did seemed to sway their course from the tornado's - it was always directly behind them, and gaining. She could see Rainbow Dash breathing heavily in panic - the two pegasi were absolutely exhausted after all they'd been through. This was the worst time for them to be trying to outfly a force of nature.

She felt tiny tendrils of wind tug back at her mane, the outer slipstream of the tornado enveloping her like a cool blanket. Her forward momentum dulled. "Daaaash!" she squealed, as the tornado began to suck her inside.

"FLUTTERSHY!"

Her body convulsed; she jerked awake with a gasp.

***

"Oh," she sighed with a swell of relief, as the roar of the tornado was replaced by the harmless whirr of an ordinary vacuum cleaner. "It was just a dream. Just a dream."

She took several deep breaths and wiped her sweaty brow with a short, pink hoof. There was nothing to be worried about. Dreams were just dreams, they didn't have any bearing on... real...ity...

Fluttershy stared at her hoof. Then her other hoof, which was equally diminutive, and the same shade of pink. Both were sporting an extremely fine hooficure, which pretty much ruled them out immediately as being her own hooves.

This was certainly not normal. She wondered if she should panic, but after her terrifying dream she was somehow unable to muster her usual reserves of fear. Right now, she was more stunned than anything.

Not only was her body the wrong size and colour, but she was also in the wrong place. She was sitting up in an extremely comfortable four-poster bed, a pink cloth canopy suspended above her. Beyond the open drapes of the four-poster, she could see a spacious, spotlessly tidy bedroom; beyond that, an open door revealed an oak-panelled landing. The sound of the vacuum cleaner was echoing in through the doorway.

She stood on the bed, the blanket slipping off her body as she tried to get a grip on the situation. She stared at her own flank, finding not her beloved trio of pink butterflies, but something rather more stark and artificial; an intricate construct that resembled a wiry crown. It was regal looking and attractive in its own way, but certainly not any kind of symbol that meant anything to her. This isn't... me. What's happened to me?

Her darting eyes swept over a silver hand-mirror laid next to a manebrush on her nightstand, and she quickly scooped it up, clutching it between her hooves as she gazed into the reflective surface.

A bright-blue-eyed filly stared back at her, her two-toned mane falling over her pinched face in elegantly curled and twisted locks.

She screamed and let go of the mirror, her flailing hooves knocking it to the floor, where it shattered into splinters of silvery glass.

The vacuum cleaner outside her room switched itself off. Seconds later, an almond-coloured unicorn mare came cantering in, wearing a smart maid's apron and looking concerned. "Is something the matter, Miss Tiara?" Her eyes surveyed the wreckage. "Don't move; I'll get that cleared up for you at once."

"Oh, no, it's quite all right," said Fluttershy softly, her eyes wide with equal concern as she hopped down off the bed. "I was just s-startled, that's all, I'm very sorry to have caused such a mess! Do you have a dustpan and brush I could borrow?"

The maid stared at her, aghast. Then she screamed and bolted from the room.

Fluttershy blinked. That wasn't the reaction she had expected. "H-Hello?" she said nervously, trotting around the broken mirror to the doorway.

Her first view of the landing took her breath away. It stretched out on either side of her, fenced by a wooden balustrade that curled down into a panelled cavern of a room that looked to descend for at least two more levels. The exquisite balusters alone each looked to be worth more than her entire cottage. This is... this is a mansion! Why am I here?

The maid's agitated voice was twittering from downstairs, tempered with interjections from a deeper, chuckling stallion's voice. Fluttershy retreated back into the bedroom as she heard heavy footsteps ascend the staircase.

A brown coated, slick-maned stallion poked his head in at the doorway, looking down on her with amusement.

"Oh!" squeaked Fluttershy. "Mr Rich!"

She knew this stallion - not personally, but she knew he was a business associate of Applejack's. Apparently he'd helped her out of a tight legal spot more than once; Applejack didn't have much of a head for the finer details of litigation.

Mr Rich laughed heartily, trotting into the room and pulling a cord with his mouth to open the wide curtains. Light swept across the room. "I gotta hoof it to you, it's a magnificent effort. Poor Feather is convinced you've come down with a case of the crazies. But you're not getting out of school this time."

"Mr Rich, I need your help!" Fluttershy said softly. "I'm not where I'm supposed to be -"

"No, you're supposed to be getting to school," said Mr Rich, picking up an wiry tiara and placing it firmly on Fluttershy's head. "You're late as it is."

"No... please, this is really important..." Fluttershy begged, as she was ushered out of the bedroom with a designer saddlebag draped over her side. "I think there might be magic involved... some kind of spell that's gone wrong..." Her hooves slipped on the polished black marble of the staircase as she was backed onto it.

Mr Rich ignored the weak excuses of his daughter and continued to back her down the flights of stairs and toward the front door. The maid shot her a repulsed look as she passed the main lounge.

"Have a good day, my precious gem!" he said jovially as she found herself out on an expansive porch, a huge fountain in the yard casting a shadow onto the front of the mansion. "I might be home late tonight, so make sure you get to bed at a reasonable time, okay?"

"I..." Fluttershy blinked stupidly as the large door clunked shut, sealing her outside in the cool morning air.

She shook her head rapidly, trying to see if she could shake some sense into the world. Unfortunately, she remained just as filly-shaped as ever.

Tiara. The maid called me Tiara. I guess that's my name, Fluttershy thought, staring at her new cutie mark again. I'm Mr Rich's daughter! How did that happen? she wondered, as she trudged across the wide gravel yard to the front gate. She hadn't done anything out of the ordinary lately. The most recent event of any note had been her trip to the Crystal Empire as part of the welcoming committee for the Equestria Games inspector, a week ago. It was unlikely that had anything to do with this.

I need somepony's help, she thought, as she left the grounds and began walking toward town. Rarity... no, Twilight. This is exactly her kind of thing. She'll be able to figure out what's wrong with me. I don't know how I'm going to explain this to her though... I just hope she -

"Hey!" yelled a filly's voice, making her jump. She turned around to see a silver-maned grey filly standing there, looking at her incredulously through a large pair of silver glasses. "Didn't you see me?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," said Fluttershy quickly, although she wasn't sure what she'd done wrong. She'd walked past the filly, but that was all.

The filly raised a brow at this, but shrugged and trotted alongside her. Fluttershy looked at her nervously. Who is she?

After a minute or so, the filly spoke up, still looking puzzled. "You okay?"

"Um... well, not really," Fluttershy admitted. She must be a friend of 'Tiara'. "I've had a rather strange morning."

"Why, what's wrong?" said the silver filly with concern. "Nothing bad's happened has it?"

"I... I don't know, exactly," said Fluttershy. "It's hard to explain... and I'm not sure if you'd believe me."

"Well... tell me, and I'll tell you if I believe you or not," she said shrewdly.

She doesn't trust me. I thought she was a friend... in fact, I can tell she is. But why would she think I'd lie to her?

Fluttershy took a breath, raising a hoof to steady the tiara that was wobbling on her head. "I'm not who you think I am. My name is Fluttershy, and I'm not really a filly... I'm actually a grown mare."

The silver filly stared at her for a moment. Then she smirked. "Okay."

Fluttershy looked relieved. "You believe me?"

"Yeah, sure," she replied, although Fluttershy didn't like the snarky tone in her voice. "Come on, Diamond, you don't think I'm that dumb, do you?"

Fluttershy groaned. Diamond? Oh, as in Diamond Tiara. Wait... I know that name! The Crusaders are always talking about her.

"I'm sorry," she said, bowing her head. "I don't know how I can convince you, exactly. I need to go see a friend of mine to see if she can help me."

The filly giggled. "Not buying it. Come on, Diamond, you've got to admit it's a bit transparent. You might fool Snips and Snails with that, but not me. I don't think even the Cutie Mark Cry-babies would fall for it."

"It's not a trick!"

"Prove it then." she said lazily.

Fluttershy faltered. "I... I can't."

The filly looked like she was about to make another snarky comment, but she just rolled her eyes and carried on walking alongside her, saddlebag bumping and jingling as the two kept pace.

Well, I guess I couldn't have expected that to work. I'll just walk with her to school and then go find somepony who can help.

She took a glance at the filly's cutie mark, an ornate silver demitasse spoon with a heart-shaped decoration. It was startlingly pretty. I wonder what her special talent is? I'd guess mine - well, this filly's - is making jewellery... I can't imagine what a spoon represents, though. A talent for making tea?

"Oh, look who it is," said the filly, with a sudden grin. "I thought she'd stopped coming this way to school."

Fluttershy squinted ahead, finding a greyish unicorn filly skipping along ahead of them, her straw-coloured mane bouncing with each happy trot. A schoolbag cleverly made from a spare mail sack was secured around her middle with a long piece of twine.

"Oh, I know her," said Fluttershy. "That's Ditzy Doo's daughter, Dinky. She's such a sweet little foal," she smiled.

Her colleague's eyes flickered at her briefly in bemusement. "Well? We're just going to let her go?"

Fluttershy looked puzzled. "Is she a friend of yours?"

"What... seriously, Diamond, did you hit your head or something?" said the filly in exasperation. "Hey! Stinky Doo!"

Dinky froze in mid hop, her joviality melting away in a second as she turned to face them. Her jaw was trembling in terror as she watched them approach.

"What's in the bag today, Stinky? Did your mother earn enough to buy you a lunch this week?" leered her schoolfriend as they trotted nonchalantly toward the shaking unicorn.

Fluttershy gasped. "N-now... that's not very nice!"

"Oh, it's nice for Stinky. It's probably the biggest compliment she'll get today," she said, loud enough for Dinky to hear. "Can you smell that, Diamond? Stinky Doo didn't wash her hooves again today."

"I d-did!" squeaked Dinky. "I mean, I always do!"

"Why are you being so mean?" Fluttershy said indignantly. "Can't you see she's afraid of you?"

The silver filly blinked. "What are you playing at?" she hissed angrily. "Are you trying to make me look like an idiot? Back me up here!"

"I'm not going to help you bully an innocent foal!" she hissed back.

The filly stared back, aghast. "Diamond, come on! Whatever kind of trick you're playing, it's not -"

SPLOOOOOSH!

A house-sized deluge of water fell out of the sky and smashed down upon them, soaking them both from mane to tail faster than they could blink. The water crashed and rolled outward in an enormous puddle, flooding off the sidewalk and into the road, leaving the two earth ponies dripping in bewilderment.

Well, at least that's only the second most surprising thing that's happened today, thought Fluttershy. Her colleague seemed rather less inclined to take it in stride; she was shaking her now-straggly mane in fury, glaring daggers at the completely dry Dinky.

"Did you... did you see what she just did?" she choked. "Nopony does that to us and gets away with it!" She broke into a run, her hooves flailing the first few steps as she slipped in the puddle.

Dinky squealed and galloped for her life as Fluttershy took chase after the furious silver filly.

"It wasn't her!" Fluttershy insisted. "She's only a foal, she couldn't cast a spell like that!" Her protests fell on deaf ears as she gallopped alongside her friend, panting with the effort. The silver filly was in better shape than she was, she couldn't keep up this pace for long. She did the best thing she could think of, and leapt upon her.

"I'll show her what happens to ponies who mess with - get off, Diamond!" she snarled, as Fluttershy tackled her. She gave a squeal as her legs tripped over each other and the two tumbled to the sidewalk, rolling to a halt. Dinky's terrified hoofsteps pattered into the distance as Fluttershy pinned the filly to the ground.

"Diamond, you jerk!" she seethed. "What in the name of the moon do you think you're -"

"HUSH!!"

The filly's protest died in her throat as she suddenly found herself staring up into an ocular abyss. The hard blue eyes of her friend had become wells of space in which time and distance had no meaning. She was a foal again, a newborn, an orphaned mind with no protection from the universe that now sought to unmake her, to pull her thread from thread until her every flaw was exposed. She was a celestial pyre of guilt, with no hope of redemption, no power to quell her own terrible turmoil, no voice to plead for mercy. She was nothing, an unworthy speck in the cosmos, with no greater right to exist than a grain of dust.

Fluttershy stopped glaring down at the stunned filly and blinked apologetically. She hadn't quite meant for that to happen.

"You're not Diamond," croaked the silver filly.

***

"So... how did this happen?" asked Silver Spoon. After the filly had recovered from the shock, the two had shaken themselves dry and properly introduced themselves to each other before continuing their walk to school.

"I have no idea," said Fluttershy. "I was having a strange nightmare, and then I woke up like this, in a mansion. It's a mystery to me."

"And... if you're here, then doesn't that mean that my friend is in your body right now?" asked Silver.

Fluttershy blinked. "Oh my! I didn't think of that! Will she be okay? I keep a lot of animals in my cottage, and I know some people can be... scared of being close to unfamiliar creatures."

"She'll be fine," Silver lied, knowing perfectly well that Diamond despised any animal whose lineage couldn't be traced back for more than six generations. "She loves animals. There aren't any dangerous ones, are there?"

"Oh, no, they're all quite harmless, although Angel Bunny can be quite a hoofful at times. Oh, I really think I should go and check on her, just to make sure she's okay..."

"You can't," said Silver. "Don't you know what'll happen if Diamond misses another day of school? Her papa said he'd take away her allowance for a month. And we've got a history test this morning, you can't miss that!"

"But... I'm not Diamond," Fluttershy pointed out.

"As far as everyone else is concerned you are," said Silver. "You don't want to make her papa angry, do you?"

"No, of course not..."

Silver giggled. "You know, this is really weird for me. You're so much... I don't know, gentler than Diamond. Except for that scary thing you did with your eyes."

"I'm sorry about that," Fluttershy said softly. "I didn't expect it to happen. But you were being awfully mean."

"I was angry!" Silver retorted. "I'm telling you, somepony made that rain on purpose. It didn't rain anywhere else except where we were standing. If it wasn't Stinky - sorry, Dinky - who was it?"

Fluttershy shrugged. "I'm sure it was an accident."

Silver harrumphed. "Well, whatever. I don't like it when ponies make a fool of me."

The wind vane and belltower of Ponyville School came into view as they began descending the shallow hill toward it.

"So, er..." began Silver. "If you're really a grown up, you went to school already, right?"

"Oh, yes," said Fluttershy. "I went to Funnel Cloud Elementary in Cloudsdale. It was very nice... although some of the foals were rather mean at times..."

"Wait, wait. Cloudsdale?" said Silver, puzzled. "You're a pegasus?"

"Well, I usually am," Fluttershy replied, looking back over her pink body and giving a strange wiggle that would have emphasised her wings, if she still had them. "Although I'm quite enjoying being an earth pony. It feels nice being so connected to the ground."

"Really? I'd love to be able to fly like a pegasus," said Silver. They joined the throng of fillies and colts at the entrance to the school, and made their way inside.

"Good morning, Silver Spoon! Good morning, Diamond Tiara!" said Cheerilee brightly as they entered. Fluttershy gave the teacher a polite smile as she entered, which produced a slightly bemused response from Cheerilee.

Fluttershy looked around the classroom, finding her spirits raised by the friendly, innocent setting. The classroom was filled with the scent of the fresh straw that lined the floor, and the walls were colourfully decorated with paintings, photographs, poetry and pupils' projects. She had a feeling she would have enjoyed studying here if she'd lived in Ponyville in her youth. Oh well, I'll enjoy this while I can, she thought.

Silver noticed her smile, and grinned back. "I've never seen Diamond that happy to be in this classroom. It's really weird!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Fluttershy apologised, taking the seat indicated by her friend. "This is just rather new... well, actually I guess rather old for me. It's strange to see Cheerilee up there too."

"Why... do you know her?" asked Silver, suddenly curious.

"Well, we have a chat now and then," said Fluttershy. "In fact I believe I even provided some blinkfrog spawn for your class once."

"Oh, that was you?" said Silver genially, deciding not to make any mention of any classroom disasters involving teleportation-capable amphibians. "Yes, that was... a fun project."

"Is something the matter, Twist?" asked Cheerilee, speaking to a lost-looking filly with a fuzzy orange mane at the front of the classroom. Silver Spoon eyed the new arrival curiously.

"There'th thomething I need to dithcuth with you, Cheer - Mith Cheerilee," said Twist.

"Well, we're about to start our lesson, can't it wait until break?"

Silver watched with interest as Twist tried and failed to negotiate with her teacher, before giving in and storming moodily to her seat. "Huh. Wonder what's up with her."

"What books do I need for this lesson?" asked Fluttershy, leaning over. "I've got a bag full of books and a big velvet jewellery box."

"Firstly, that is not a bag," said Silver firmly. "That is a designer Cheval saddlepurse which costs more than everypony else's bags put together. You need the green exercise book for history class. The box is for Show-and-Tell this afternoon."

"What's in it?"

"Diamond's latest creation. I don't know what it is, she won't tell me." Silver's eyes widened. "Oooh, but you can show me! Let me see it!"

"I'm not sure if it's mine to open..."

"Oh, don't be a spoilsport. You're here, you're on Diamond's stool, you can look at her stuff. Come on, give it here!"

Fluttershy reluctantly began to slide the box out of her bag, but at that moment, Cheerilee began her introduction to the lesson. "Today, we're moving onto a new history topic..."

"Oh, les archets." Silver fumed, as they were forced to pay attention. "Show me at break."

"Yes, Twist?" said Cheerilee, as the cream-coloured filly's hoof shot into the air.

"The Potht-Unification Era referth to the period following the ditholution of the ancient pony kingdomth, the thubthequent contholidation of the three pony tribeth, and the founding of Equethtria ath a unified printhipality."

"Awww, she's so sweet," Fluttershy said, smiling.

"Ugh, you're really not Diamond," hissed Silver. "We can't stand her."

"Why not? Is she mean?"

"She's ugly. Look, she hasn't even brushed her mane."

"I think she looks nice," said Fluttershy. "What does it matter if a pony looks ugly or not? It's what's inside that counts."

"Oh, you would be one of those ponies, wouldn't you," Silver snorted.

Fluttershy listened with interest to the lesson, which was punctuated by Twist's occasional interruptions and corrections. I'd never have had the nerve to correct a teacher like that when I was her age, she noted. Cheerilee didn't seem to appreciate the filly's boldness, either; Fluttershy could see she was getting increasingly short with Twist. Finally, after a long interjection from Twist about something to do with ancient unicorns and Star Swirl the Bearded, she appeared to have had enough.

"I can't teach my lesson if you keep interrupting me, my dear," she said as diplomatically as she could. Silver giggled out loud as Twist's face fell.

"What a dork," Silver whispered across to Fluttershy. "Like she knows anything about -" she stopped, suddenly, fearful as she noticed Fluttershy's eyes hardening at her again. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean that."

"Good," said Fluttershy. "You know, she kind of reminds me of my friend Twilight Sparkle."

"Really?" said Silver, looking surprised. "I've met Miss Sparkle, and she doesn't look anything like that."

"I mean, she's really smart. And she uses long words. And she knows a lot about Star Swirl the Bearded. Twilight's always talking about him."

"Huh," said Silver. "Well, the funny thing is... Twist isn't smart. I'm not saying that to be mean!" she added hurriedly. "I just mean that she's not usually this... knowledgeable."

Fluttershy blinked as a faint possibility tickled at her mind. Could it be her? I mean, there's no reason why it would be Twilight, but then, there's no reason why I'm in a little filly's body at the moment either. She tried to catch the filly's eye as she turned around for a moment, but there didn't seem to be any recognition in her expression.

"I wonder if -"

"You're thinking she's your friend, aren't you?" said Silver. "So am I. We should ask her."

Fluttershy nodded her agreement, but unfortunately the opportunity to do so was lost, as Cheerilee announced that she was giving them a written history test. Even though they all knew it was coming, there was still a collective groan from the class.

Fluttershy felt a flutter of nerves. Although Cheerilee's lesson had jogged some of her old memories of history class, she was still totally unprepared for a test. Okay, calm down, Fluttershy. It's not your test. Just do the best you can.

"Good luck!" whispered Silver, as a little unicorn filly merrily hoofed out test papers around the class. "And don't worry, Diamond is terrible at history. You'll probably do even better than she would."

Fluttershy nodded appreciatively, trying to swallow her worry. After an age or two, Cheerilee called the beginning of the test, and she turned the paper over to read the questions.

Oh my... school hasn't got any easier since I was a filly. She looked down at the paper, trying vainly to remember everything she knew about the Ancient Kingdoms era. The question about fashion and apparel was easy; she'd dressed up to play a pre-Unification pegasus in the Canterlot Hearth's Warming pageant last year. When it came to questions about conflicts and wars and trade disputes, however, she was stumped. Oh... if only those ponies had gotten along a little better, this wouldn't be such a difficult test...

She struggled to the end of the paper, glad for the final question which was essentially just a recap of the Hearth's Warming story, and was glad when Cheerilee finally called an end to the test.

"Okay, pens down, everypony! If you could pass your tests to the front, please..."

Fluttershy breathed a sigh of relief, looking over at Silver Spoon with a nervous smile. She passed her test to the filly in front of her, before returning her attention to 'Twist'. Once again, she managed to catch her eye, but the filly seemed a little disgruntled by it, forcing Fluttershy to turn her gaze away.

"I'm not so sure now..." she whispered to Silver. "She seems a little... grumpy."

"Oh, just ask her, the worst she can say is no," said Silver.

"Well done, everyone! I think you've earned yourself an early break, so go out and enjoy the sunshine!"

Fluttershy rose from her stool, straightening her tiara, as pupils flooded toward the door. She gave Cheerilee a polite nod, and exited into the corridor, followed by Silver.

"What should I say?" whispered Fluttershy. "It's going to sound kind of weird..."

"It doesn't matter, just talk to her!" hissed Silver. "Hey!" she yelled at Twist, who had almost made it out of the doors.

She gave Fluttershy a nudge as Twist turned to face them, a resigned look on her face.

"Can I help you?" asked Twist, looking uncertainly at them.

"We need to talk," said Fluttershy, feeling rather silly about this. "I mean, um, if that's okay with you..."

Twist's eyes widened. She tilted her head for a moment. "...Flutterthy?"

Fluttershy blinked, a swell of joy rising in her stomach. "What? Yes! Yes, it's me! Oh, please say that's you, Twilight."

"It ith! B-but... how did thith happen?" said Twilight, looking over the pink filly incredulously.

"I don't know..." said Fluttershy, "I was hoping you could help me."

"I can't help anyone until I get out of here," said Twilight. "Come on, before Cheerilee sees uth!"

"Oh... I-I can't," said Fluttershy. "I have to stay in school or I'll get in trouble."

Twilight rolled her borrowed eyes. "You'll only get in trouble if Cheerilee catcheth uth. We have to fixth thith!"

"Hey," said Silver, "Fluttershy. You go. I can cover for you."

"But... you said I'd be - I mean, Diamond would get in trouble?"

"Oh, I'm afraid Diamond got really sick at breaktime and had to go home. She's been feeling poorly all morning, ever since she got mysteriously drenched by a sudden downpour," smirked Silver. "I've got this. Just get my friend back, will you?"

Fluttershy smiled and nodded. "Thank you so much -"

"Go!" hissed Silver, keeping one eye on the classroom door.

"Thankth," said Twilight, as the pair made a run for it, bolting out of the doors and through the schoolyard, before stealing out through the gates. Twilight didn't dare to slow down until the school was completely out of sight around a corner.

They both panted as they regained their breath, Twilight leaning against a wall with one hoof.

"I have had... a bad morning," Twilight noted between wheezes. "But I thee I'm not the only one."

"Oh, well, my morning's been okay actually, except for the nightmare and the waking up as someone else and getting unexpectedly rained on and the sudden history exam," said Fluttershy. "Are we... are we all like this now?"

"You mean Applejack, Pinkie, Rainbow and Rarity? I have no idea, but I'm willing to bet that they're exthperienthing thomething thimilar. Before we do anything we need to go to my houthe, find whoever hath my real body, and then do thome rethearch into thith thituation. Thpike can thend a letter to keep Printheth Thelethtia informed and damn it all, I hate not being able to thpeak properly! I mith my thibilanth!"

Fluttershy put a gentle hoof on the fuming filly's shoulder. "It's okay, Twilight. I know you'll do everything you can to fix this."

Twilight took a deep breath and sighed. "Thankth, Flutterthy."

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Not unleth you can perform a frenulectomy in leth than a minute," said Twilight. "Jutht come with me, I'll need thome backup in cathe I run into trouble again. And keep an eye out for the otherth."

Fluttershy nodded and trotted alongside her as they set off again in the direction of Twilight's library.

"Nithe crown by the way," Twilight added.

Comments ( 61 )

2153522

Thanks! Oooh, a PonyEarthVerse writer. I was quite excited by that universe when I first heard about it, but I kinda lost track. I'm still meaning to read through those stories. ^^

Pity that the maid had a freak out when Diamond acted politely and respectfully towards her.

She could have finally got her hands on more badly needed lemon pledge if she kept her head on straight.

EDIT:
The fluttershy chapter. By far the best one.
That is all I have to say


...and the fluttershy chapter is amazing, by the way.

2153632

Thanks very much! This is actually the chapter I was least sure about, so I'm glad it turned out okay. :)

Wow, Fluttershy switched with Diamond Tiara? Unexpected, especially when Silver Spoon is kinda okay with this... AMAZING! :twistnerd:

""Our wingpower defies measure," Luna replied lazily."

I bet neither of the princesses is a particularly good flyer.

Then again, I also don't believe the whole "goddess" deal to begin with^^

2154601

That IS what I was thinking.

Now you are thinking of Diamond, in Fluttershy's body, trying to get past Consuela pony into her own house. Have fun with that.

2154663
Actually, I was imagining this.
DT: I seem to be missing twenty bits, you wouldn't happen to know where they are would you?
Consuela: I have.
DT: WHAT?! Well give them back!
Consuela: Come get, beetch.

I'm scared to think who Pinkie might have swapped with! XD

Very well written, by the way... Is Pinkie Pie pipsqueak? Or is she an OC? Those are the only explanations that make sense.

:twilightsmile:

Comment posted by Kyle_67 deleted Apr 14th, 2013

2154727
2157388

Pinkie is still undecided - I do have a pony in mind for her, but I'm trying to figure out how to work her into the story. I think my lack of planning is going to backfire on me very shortly. XD

2154663

Hah! I totally didn't think of that, actually. I may have to steal that idea. ^^

2154043

Spoony is my favourite filly, so it was good to find a big role for her. Originally I had considered making Silver Spoon one of the fillyswaps - in fact, she was going to be Fluttershy's swap, but then I realised that Fluttershy as Diamond Tiara is much funnier. ^^

Also, Diamond would not be as understanding or nice as Spoon was.

Are you continuing this? I've noticed that updates have been taking longer, and I was worried that you'd lost interest in the story. I do hope to read more soon, though. You're a great writer! :twilightsmile:

2246257

Thanks! Yes, I am continuing; I've just been incredibly busy at work for the last month. I'm also trying to work out where to take the story next - I haven't had time to come up with any ideas. I have started the next chapter, but I can't say at this time when it will be finished.

This is soooo good!!!! need more!!! :flutterrage:

2276196

Thanks very much! I'm making my best effort on the next chapter, although it's getting really difficult without planning ahead - it's hard to find ways to keep twelve ponies busy! :raritywink:

2662194

I am, yes :) I'm considering putting this story on hiatus - while I don't want to abandon it, I'm kinda stuck until I plan better. I do actually have a good plan for the ending, but the in between events, less so :)

2662271 I have that situation constantly.

Please don't be a dead story. I want to read more!

2690929

I hope to get it back on track!

Well, the fillies that Pinkie could be have been narrowed down a lot.

Twist, DT, SS, the CMC, and Dinky have all been ruled out.

While there's no guarantee that whatever happened only affected the Mane Six and six fillies at this point, Cheerilee, Big McIntosh, Granny Smith, Pearl, and Filthy Rich were unaffected. There's an obvious correlation between the CMC and their "sisters," however not so much between Fluttershy/Diamond Tiara and Twilight/Twist (except Rule of Funny). Considering that the tribal ratio has been thrown off as well (three earth ponies, one unicorn, one pegasus), there's no guarantee who Pinkie Pie will swap with, although the odds point in favor of a filly, at least.

Speculation points to Pumpkin Cake or Alula, unless she ended up swapped with *gasp* a colt... :pinkiegasp:

Please wright more I love this

3491328

Thanks! I know, I know it's neglected, I am still writing, I plan to update it soon :)

That's a AWESOME body swift Story.

I wonder how else get swifted...
Maybe Cheerilee is in reality body swifted with Celestia.

If not, somepony please write a Story about that.

PLEASE wright more! I'm begging you!!!!!!!

3510056

The reason I stopped was because I hadn't actually planned this far ahead. ^^ I only have vague swirly ideas at the moment that I need to make solid :)

I'm new to this site and I can't figure out how to add to favorites but just so you know, THIS IS THE BEST STORY EVER!!!!!!!!

3535280

You can favourite a story by clicking the star at the top. Although I do appreciate the praise very much, this certainly isn't the best story on the site, there are many better ones!

This is good please wright more. Please? :'( Jk Jk no really please wright more

Happy new year

hmm this isnt so bad, but it stops here which stink I:

The culprit: pinkie pie.... Anyone notice how she's the only one who hasn't appeared... It may be an old story... But its still on my favorites list, and I'm pretty sure pinkie has SOMETHING to do with it...

Can't wait for the next chapter

Do you ever plan on updating this?

4347967 - yes, but I can't make that promise at this point. I suppose I should put it on hiatus. It's annoying because I do have a plan for where the story will end up, but I just can't get myself into a good frame to write it.

4348223 If you ever need help let me know, we sort of have a writing group on Skype.

This is a REALLY good story! Keep it goin'!!!:pinkiehappy:

4537315

you guys. :) Thanks for all your support and kind comments. I do mean to get back to this story, people have been poking me about it, but I just haven't been able to push ahead with it.

DAY 685:

It's been forever, supplies are running low, and still no update for Fillyswap.
Was my journey all a lie? I thought I would see the end of it, I sacrificed everything for this dream... was it all for nothing?
I must not loose hope; as long as the sun shines, there is hope.

oh my such a lovely story can't waite to read more of it. :raritystarry:

5024827 - unfortunately I can't make promises on this story any more. The problem is, I suffer from pretty crippling anxiety that limits what I can do, and combined with the fact that I never had a direction for this story, it's made it really difficult to get back to it. :( But I thank you for your support.

5027324 tis alright i'm sure it will come in time :twilightsmile:

Well, this has been interesting. Hope to see it get updated eventually.

5649307 - I keep saying it, but it is on my radar and I've been thinking that it's time to get back to it, as part of working through my life problems. So who knows, maybe. :)

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