There was one secret that Rainbow Dash had kept from her friends, that they might never believe. A secret that could give a villan a chance.
There was one secret that Rainbow Dash had kept from her friends, one that they could never believe. A secret that gives a certain villan a chance to destroy their friendship, and the elements.
What happens when somepony finds out about this secret?
Inspired by all Rainbow Dash changeling stories. <~ BIG spoiler that will be spoiled in the first chapter.
Takes place between Season 4 Finale and Season 5 Premiere.
Edit: Added the tag 'Alternate Universe' because the story ingnores the season 6 finale canons.
Edit 2: Ignores canons from the episode "Parental Glidance".
Rainbow Dash had just came back from work, her wings felt sore from the extra flying as she suggested on giving her overtime work so she could take the day (or week) off. Her bosses were not surprised about this as she had done this several times to take the day off the next time she was needed. The reason she needed the vacation was so that she could take a break from keeping 'it' up.
Rainbow opened her mailbox to see two letters and a newspaper, she grabbed the three items before entering her cloud mansion. She walked towards her kitchen and prepared a daisy sandwich which she quickly gulped down. She wasn't that hungry anyway. Dash read through the two letters she got by their envelopes. 'Letter from my dad, letter from Spitfire. Hmm, sounds interesting.
Dash teared open the envelope and read the letters contents.
Dear Rainbow Dash,
There will not be any new recruits coming in untill next month as registering has been closed. That means that we will not be training anypony then and you will be dismissed earlier than usual. We should also inform you that because of this, multiple schedules have been changed, yours included. The next time we need you, we'll send a note.
Captain of the Wonderbolts, Spitfire
'Cool, means I got more days to rest.' Dash thought. Even though she was just part of the reserves, they gave her the job to train the new recruits, after all, she already taught a princess how to fly. Rainbow giggled as she remembered the attempts her bookish friend did at flying. After she was done, she teared open the other envelope.
Dear Rainbow Dash,
How has it been for you in the Wonderbolts? I hope it's going well. But most importantly, how's Ponyville been for you? Your friends were really nice to me the last time I visited, Hopefully there won't be some power-crazed maniac trying to take over Equestria again.
Also remember to take a break every once and a while from your 'grip' on your form. I don't want anypony harming you because of that. Be safe Dashie!
Your father, Bow Hot Hoof
Dash smiled at the letter before going to the surprisingly large bathroom and looked at the mirror. She made sure nopony was looking before letting go of her hold. The figure in the mirror flashed green as it changed form. The rainbow coloured mane turned into a greyish colour, her cyan coat turned into a similar shade but darker, a slightly curved horn appeared on her head and her feathery wings turned into transparent blue ones with holes.
The thing opened its magenta eyes and looked at the reflection. She looked like a Changeling.
The next day, Rainbow woke up and rolled out of bed, though she would have preferred a more gentle way to wake up. She went to her kitchen. She didn't really feel the need to eat since she could feed off emotions, she could eat whenever she wanted to.
Since I don't have to work for the week, maybe I could see what my best pals are up to. I didn't really hang out with them with all this Wonderbolt stuff. Speaking of pals, where's Ta- Her thoughts were interrupted by something slamming into her head. "Gah!" Dash cried. She looked at the direction of her attacker to find Tank hovering at Dashs eye level and looking at her with a look that said, Can you give me something to eat?
"Oh, sure. I think there's food in the fridge, I'll go get it." Rainbow said, walking towards the fridge before she stopped and added, "And try not to give me a haircut with that propeller."
Rainbow went out to check on Applejack since she lived the nearest to Sweet Apple Acres. She flew over the field of apple trees, hoping to find her friend.
Applejack was hard at work. She was scheduled to buck the apple trees all morning. Phew, it sure is a nice day today. I wonder how mah friends are doin'. Applejack thought before a familiar voice broke her train of thoughts.
"Hey Applejack!" Rainbow greeted loudly, startling the farmer.
"Gah! Rainbow."
"Hehe, I'm just playing with ya. Sure is nice today, huh?"
"It sure is. You on your day off again?" Applejack teased.
"Hey, I need a break every once in a while." Dash defended.
"Yeah, but don't get too comfortable."
"Yeah, yeah. I know. I can see you're busy so I think I'm gonna check on everypony ok. Bye AJ." Rainbow said as she waved.
"See ya RD." Applejack waved back.
Rainbow flew to Fluttershys cottage next and knocked on the door. When it opened, she saw the annoyed face of Angel Bunny.
"Oh, uh. Hey Angel, have you seen Fluttershy around here?" Rainbow asked and as if on queue, Fluttershy walked up to the door to greet her guest.
"Oh, good morning Rainbow! Nice to see you." Fluttershy greeted.
'"Hey Fluttershy! How's it been?"
"It's been fine here in Ponyville, would you like to come inside?" Fluttershy asked as she stepped aside to let her friend in. "How's the Wonderbolts training coming along? I hope they're nice to you."
"Thanks, and the training's fine. It isn't that hard. They're letting me train the recruits at the academy, but since registration is closed for now, I can rest a little more." Rainbow explained.
"Oh, so that means you're on your leave?" Fluttershy asked.
"Yep."
"Oh, that's good. Would you like some tea?" She offered.
"Nah, tea's not really my thing. Plus, I'm not that thirsty."
"Oh, ok. How about a sandwich?"
"I just ate a sandwich for breakfast. Don't worry, I'm fine." Dash reassured.
"Oh, ok." Fluttershy smiled. Something tugged at her mane, she looked down to see Angel Bunny looking more annoyed than before. He pushed his bowl closer to her.
"Oh, I guess it's time for me to feed Angel. Bye Rainbow!" She waved.
"Ok, cya Fluttershy!" Dash waved from the door and strated her decent.
Rainbow flew over Ponyville and towards Sugar Cube Corner where she saw Pinkie looking out of the window on the second floor. She gazed up at Rainbow and the next second, she was gone. Rainbow was left confused by Pinkies action.
She eventually reached her destination and landed. She entered the building and saw Pinkie at the counter preparing some cupcakes.
"Oh, hi Pinkie! How's the bakery doing?" Rainbow asked cheerily.
"Hiya Dashie! The bakery's been going great! We just came up with a new recipe and its been a great seller! How's the Wonderbolt training going?"
"Fine, I'm on my break right now since registration's close for, well, I don't know how long exactly but it's a around a month."Rainbow rubbed the back of her head as she said the last part.
"Hmm, cool! Want a cupcake?" Pinkie asked as she pulled out a cupcake from nowhere.
"Uhh, I'm fine Pinkie, thanks anyway." Rainbow said as she waved away the hoof. Pinkie shrugged before stuffing the cupcake in her mouth. Rainbow just rolled her eyes at her friends random antics.
"Pinkie! Can you help me run an errand? We're out of milk!" Mr. Cake called from the kitchen.
"Coming!!" Pinkie shouted back." See ya Dashie!!"
"Bye Pinks!"
Rainbow was just a few feet over Carousal Boutique yet she could still hear shouting from the building. She landed at the door and knocked, nopony answered. She knocked again, still no reply. Getting a little annoyed, she opened the door gently to see a paint-covered Rarity and the whole inside of the boutique filled with hair dye, torn up clothes and other sewing materials.
"Uhh, Rarity?" Rainbow asked. Rarity tilted her head at Rainbow, her eye twitching.'Oh feathers, maybe it's best if I leave her for now...' Rainbow thought. " Umm, nevermind." She said before closing the door.
Rainbow walked to the Friendship Castle since it wasn't too far from the Boutique. She still wasn't used to the giant castle instead of the Golden Oaks Library, she was sure Twilight wasn't used to it as well. Rainbow walked up the crystal steps to the grand doors of the castle and knocked. The door opened revealing Spike behind it.
"Oh, hello Rainbow! What brings you here?" He asked politely.
"Hi Spike! I just wanted to see what you guys were up to." Rainbow replied.
"Spike, who is that?" Somepony cut in from the end of the main hall. Spike opened the door wider and Rainbow saw Twilight holding a quill and a really long checklist in her aura.
"Hey Twi!" Rainbow greeted and saw the checklist. "I see you're quite... busy." She snickered. Twilight blushed which only made Dash laugh harder and made Spike join her.
"Har har, Rainbow." Twilight rolled her eyes. "Would you like to come in?" Twilight offered.
"Sure!" Dash said, calming down. Spike closed the door behind her.
"So, anything interesting you doing? Maybe some new spells?" Rainbow asked while flying up to Twilight.
Twilight raised a brow. "Why would you asked about spells?" She asked as she teleported the quill and checklist somewhere. Probably a drawer.
"Well, I've seen you do some interesting spells before. Like swaping a pony's cutie mark. Or how about that time when you went crazy with that attraction spell and made everypony go after your doll." Rainbow giggled a little at the memory.
"Ok, fist off, those were one of Starswirls spells. Second, that was an accident!" Twilight exclaimed.
"Yeah, I know, I'm just kidding."
"But about your question, I was practicing a, well, not a new spell but the advanced version of an original one." Twilight explained.
"Hmm, so, can I see it?"
"Of course!" Follow me." Twilight motioned Rainbow to follow her.
"What about me?" Spike asked them before they went off.
"I left a gem cupcake somewhere around the kitchen, you can eat it."
"Sweet, thanks Twilight!" With that, Spike went off to look for his prize while Twilight led Rainbow down tje hall.
"So, where are we going?" Rainbow asked.
"You'll see."
Twilight led Rainbow to a room that contained nothing, nothing except a changeling plush sitting on a short stool.
"And we're here because?" Rainbow asked slowly.
"I'm practicing a spell that can remove an items disguise or cover. The original one only works on ponies, this can work on items."
"Oh, cool! I'll just stand over here while you do it." Rainbow said a little nervously while standing away from Twilight and the plush toy.
Twillight lit her horn and aimed towards the changeling plush. When the spell fired and hit the plush toy, a ring expanded around it and Dash was just in its reach.
Dash felt weak and sick, she fell to the floor feeling the hold on her disguise let go. Just before passing out, she could have sworn she saw the changeling plush turn into an earth pony one.
'Ugh, my head... Rainbow Dash rubbed the back of her head and looked around her. She could only see stone walls and a secure metal door with a small window at around her hight. There also was a separate room on the other side of the door. 'Where am I? She asked herself. 'This looks like a cell of some sort. But, why am I here.'
Rainbow heard the door on the other side open, somepony else was here.
"W-Who are you?" Rainbow asked as she moved to her defensive stance, preparing herself for any unexpected attack. The pony unlocked the door to her cell and walked in. Rainbow shielded her eyes from the light that came from outside her cell and strained them to look at the shadow of the pony in front of her. It was a mare, she looked like she had wings and a little over Dashs own hight. Once she could bare the light, she removed her hoof from her head and saw that the figure had a horn.
'Wait, a horn and wings?! That means this is an alicorn. She's too short to be Celestia, her mane's supposed to be be flowing so, it couldn't be Luna. Her mane did not end lower than her head,it couldn't be Cadence... S-So, this means,' Rainbows eyes widened. "T-T-Twilight?" She whispered.
"Where is she?!" Twilight started to shout. "What did you do to her?!"
Rainbow was both confused and scared. "W-What do you mean?" She asked Twilight which, in return, fuelled her anger. 'Where is she? That might be one of the quests they would ask a changeli- wait...' Rainbow looked down at her hooves, front and back, to see grey, swiss-cheese hooves and she only noticed by now that her rear right hoof had been chained to the wall. 'Oh...' She thought and immediately regretted asking Twilight a question.
"What happened to Rainbow Dash?!" Twilight spat. "What did you do to my friend?!" She continued hurling questions at... the changeling.
"I-I don't know..." that was all she could muster as she was carried over to Twilight by a magenta aura. The changeling felt weak, they couldn't move her body. She also felt like Twilight was choking her.
"I will ask you one more time, where is Rainbow Dash?!" Twilights voice was stern and quieter than the last few times she shouted. Her voice seemed to frighten the changeling even more.
"I-I-I d-don't-t kn-" they couldn't even finish their sentence before they was thrown back against the wall behind her. The changeling began to cough blood and felt a sharp pain every time they did. Twilight left the cell immediately, feeling a little remorse for hurting the changeling.
Twilight walked towards the throne room to inform the Princesses about the changeling and her actions. She opened the door to her destination and saw the two of them discussing something in the center of the room. Luna spotted Twilight walking in.
"Oh, greetings Twilight. Have you gotten any information from the changeling?" The lunar princess asked.
"Not really, when it didn't say anything, I may have been a little harsh with it." Twilight replied, looking at her hooves in shame.
"In what way did you assault it?" Celestia asked.
"I threw it back against the wall and the impact was strong enough to make it cough out blood."
"Oh." Both the sisters said in unison.
"I'm sorry, if only I wasn't so harsh on the changeling..." Twilight whispered as she hung her head lower, almost touching the floor.
"It wasn't your fault Twilight, you were worried about Rainbow Dash. It is normal for you to be angry." Celestia said, trying to assure Twilight but failing to do so. "You know Twilight, there was a reason I picked you, of all ponies, to confront the changeling."
Twilight looked up at the Solar Princess as she spoke. It was true that Twilight didn't know why exactly the princesses had picked her to... interrogate the changeling.
"One of the reasons were because everypony else has something that could have affected either the changeling or the interrogator. For example; if your brother, Shining Armor, were to take your place, he would might as well kill it since, after all, its kind ruined his wedding." Celestia explained.
"The second reason was because you know how to deal with tough situations, like this. And you can control your emotions." Celestia continued.
"Most of the time." Luna added and looked at her sister with a sheepish smile.
"Right," Celestia flashed her sister a soft glare before continuing. "I think you should visit the changeling tomorrow and try again. Just, be more gentle with your ways. For now, you may talk with your other friends and get some rest."
"Alright, Celestia. I'll try." Twilight said before walking out of the room and to the hall where the guest rooms were.
"Do any of y'all know how long Rainbow's been replaced?" Applejack asked, slightly enraged.
"Hopefully it hasn't been that long ago, like maybe the time when we first met, or maybe the time she did the Sonic Rainboom, or the time Rainbow enrolled in flight school, or how about from when she was bor-mmpphh!" Pinkie was cut off by an orange hoof to her mouth.
"We get it Pinkie." The farmer replied simply.
"So, h-how do we find her?" Fluttershy asked in a whisper. "I-I mean, I understand i-if none of you know, uh, and I-I'm not saying none of you are smart. I'm sorry if I disturbed the peace, I'll be quiet now, I'm sorry!"
"It is all right Fluttershy, we're all just worried about Rainbow. Poor dear, I hope she's alright." Rarity said in a worrying tone.
As the mane six, excluding Rainbow Dash and Twilight, were discussing, the door to the room creaked open to reveal Twilight walking in with a worried and disappointing look. Just by that, the others could tell what basically happened.
After Twilight interrupted, the room fell silent. Nopony looked at each other in the eye, but they could tell that everypony in the room wore frown or worried look. Finally, for what seemed like hours, it was Pinkie who broke the silence.
"So, any good news..?" She asked hopefully, even if she knew the answer by Twilight's expression. Twilight looked up at the pink party pony, her mane was nearly deflated, she looked worried and exhausted at the same time which was quite rare for her. Twilight shook her head slowly in response, turning her head to look down once more. Twilight's ears dipped lower after she heard the sound of a certain pony in the room deflating completely. "Oh."
"But, we will find a way to get her back, right?" Rarity asked, looking up to see her friends.
"Yes, we have to." Applejack stepped forward, a determined look on her face. "Rainbow's always been there for us, now it's our turn to be there for er'."
"Yeah, we've dealt with challenges like this before! We can fix this too!" Pinkie joined in, her mane inflating again.
"And no matter what problem it is, we'll face it." Fluttershy said boldly with her own encouraging words. She turned to Twilight before finishing, "Together."
Twilight smiled, she was glad she had such good friends. "Wow, Fluttershy! I didn't know you could be that brave!" Pinkie exclaimed.
"Oh, I-I'm sorry. Was it too much?" Fluttershy squeaked, inverting back to her timid self. As she finished her question, everypony in the room laughed with Fluttershy soon joining in.
'The changeling' sat in their cell, waiting for something to happen. It had been around 17 hours since Twilight's visit and she left the changeling in the cell for the next visit. If the changeling were to be honest, they were actually terrified for the next time Twilight visited, maybe even more scared than if Shining Armor were to interrogate them instead.
The changeling tilted their head to look at the window, it was the early morning. The changeling sighed. "How long am I gonna be stuck in here?" they whispered to themselves. Its ears perked up at the sound of hoof steps coming closer to its cell door. The changeling got up on all fours immediately but unsteadily. The door creaked open to reveal Twilight.
The changeling tensed up as they looked at her expression. It was different than the one she wore yesterday. Instead of the angry and inpatient look, it was a calm and a slightly worried one. The changeling would have been confused if it weren't for the fear and cautiousness in their being.
"G-good morning, did you sleep well?" Twilight asked in an awkward but kind voice which caught the changeling off guard.
"U-uhh, not really?" The changeling replied more in a question than an answer. This time, Twilight actually listened to their voice without being distracted by her anger, it sounded like Rainbow's voice except it was more discorded and had a little flanging effect to it.
"Oh, umm, I guess the cell isn't really too comfortable, is it?" Twilight said.
"Yea... I guess."
"Maybe I could ask the guards if they could install a mattress to your cell?"
"I-it's fine, really. I've gotten used to it by now."
"Really? It's been just over a day since you were place in this cell. How could you have you gotten used to it in such a short time?"
"I-I don't know. It could be that I c-can-" The changeling started but was interrupted by coughing. It wasn't a good sight for Twilight, the changeling was spluttering out bits of blood each time they coughed.
"Are you ok?" Twilight asked frantically.
"I-I'm fine. It's n-nothing major." The changeling whispered as the coughs calmed down.
"Oh no, was it from yesterday?! I'm so sorry!" Twilight blurted out guiltily.
"I told you, it's fine." The changeling spoke but was once again cut off by a series of coughs. "I-I take th-that back-k."
Twilight stood on the other end of the room watching with guilt and fear for the changeling. 'What should I do?! I can't take... it to a medical centre and I can't just stand here doing nothing while somepony- somebody's in pain.' Twilight looked back at the creature in the cell, they were curled up using their hooves to block the coughs that came out of its mouth. 'If I could get it to come closer...' Twilight thought before shaking her head.
"Uhh, is it alright for you to come a little closer to me?" Twilight asked gaining the changeling's attention. With some hesitation, they began to uncurl itself and got up shakily. Taking small, unsteady steps, they walked up to the cell bars and looked up to the lavender alicorn.
As soon as the changeling looked at her, she ignited her horn and focused her magic on the changeling. As they coated in the aura, fear began to take hold of them. They clenched their eyes shut, preparing to feel any sort of pain. Except, it never came. In fact, the pain seemed to have decreased. The changeling opened its eyes to see Twilight looking back at them giving them a kind and gentle smile. The changeling was stumped.
"Wha-? Why?"
"I'm sorry about yesterday, I really didn't want to hurt you, but I guess that's not an excuse. So, this is the least I could do for you." Twilight spoke in an apologetic and caring tone which made the the changeling smile.
"Heh, th-thanks."
"You're welcome... uhh. I didn't really get your name."
The changeling froze. 'What do I tell her? I don't want to bring up the Rainbow Dash situation.' "Uhh, my name is... err." The changeling stammered. Twilight continued to pay attention, waiting for them to answer. The changeling sighed. "Ok, to be honest, I don't really know..."
"Oh, it's fine." Twilight flashed the changeling a small smile as a thought was brought up in her mind. "But I guess I can't keep calling you 'the changeling', can I?" The changeling gave her a confused look.
"Huh?"
"How about 'Iris'?"
"What?"
"For your name, since you don't have one."
"'Iris?'" The changeling asked more to themselves than to Twilight. After a moment of thought, the changeling smiled. "Hmm, I like the name." Twilight smiled back.
The silence remained for a while until a yawn broke the quietness. "Well, I guess I'll hit the hay for now. I didn't get any sleep since yesterday." Iris muttered drowsily.
"Yeah, and I need to get back to Celestia. She's gonna wonder about what happened to me." Twilight said while waving her hoof and walking slowly towards the prison door. "Sleep well, Iris." Once Twilight mentioned the name, Iris smiled and let their eyelids droop.
Twilight trotted out of the Chanterlot dungeon and to the royal dining area where Celestia, Luna and the rest of her friends were found eating pancakes. Twilight's presence caught the attention of everypony in the room
"Good morning, Twilight. How was the visit?" Celestia asked cheerfully. "I made sure to save some pancakes for you."
"Wheah! Am who mew fah pwrinsess waf a good cook!" Pinkie exclaimed with her mouth still full.
"Pinkie dear, please have some manners. I know that this is a breakfast buffet and all, but please!" Rarity gagged.
Twilight chuckled at both of her friend's antics. "The visit went fine, you could say. I didn't get any information on the whole Rainbow Dash situation, but I was able to, in a way, befriend it." As Twilight said the last part of the sentence, everypony reacted in their own ways.
Fluttershy cocked her head and looked at her, confused. Pinkie simply smiled at her. Applejack spewed and spilled her drink. Rarity gasped and fainted on her chair. Both The Princesses just stared at her as if they knew it would happen. Applejack was the first to recover.
"You what?!"
"I know, I know. Iris did replace Rainbow and all, but they're really not that bad!"
"It's a changeling, Twilight! An' we know better than tah' trust that- wait, 'Iris'?"
Twilight blushed lightly at her carelessness for not explaining first. "I kind of named the changeling 'Iris' since I wouldn't want to keep calling it that all the time."
"Twilight, dear. You do know that once you name something, you get more, ehh, how do I say this, attached to it." Rarity commented.
"Well I for one saw this coming and I must say that I'm quite delighted for her to have made a new friend." Celestia smiled at her former student. "It just shows that we must not be divided by our species. And that not to judge anypony, or changeling, by how they look."
"Yeah! Who knows, maybe Iris could help us look for Dashie!" Pinkie exclaimed and, for some reason, had gotten used to the name instantly.
"What?! That's crazy talk! The changeling could just lure us intah' a trap! We can't afford tah' trust em'." Applejack argued.
"Umm, I-I'm sorry to interrupt, but we don't even know where they took Rainbow, much less how to save her. Our only hope is the changeling. Or Iris, if you don't mind me using the name." Fluttershy explained.
"Yeah, what Fluttershy said! And by the way, what I said was not crazy talk. Cause I think it would sound more like; kabluhbluhbluh hablehblehble blehblehbleh holhohlholholhol-" Pinkie's 'crazy talk' example was interrupted by an orange hoof.
"We get it Pinkie." Applejack grumbled, clearly annoyed. She was replied by a muffled 'Sorry'.
"Anyway," Rarity said sharply. "I think we should go with Fluttershy's idea. They might know how to find The Changeling Hive and help us save Rainbow."
"I'm in!" Pinkie cried out as she jumped up about 7 feet in the air. Luckily the ceiling was high enough or Pinkie would've been stuck on the roof.
"Me too." Twilight declared.
"Yay." Fluttershy cheered then turned her head to look at Applejack who had a thoughtful look on her face. "What about you, Applejack?"
"Hmm," Applejack hummed as she held a hoof to her chin. She looked up at her friends, each one of them had hopeful expressions. After a while, she sighed. "Ah' guess ah'll have tah' go with yer' idea. S'not like ah' have a better one." At that, everypony smiled, including the Princesses.
"Good to hear. I shall arrange for each of you to visit 'Iris' and see how well you interact with them." Celestia announced.
"Oh, and one of you might want to ask what their gender is too." Twilight added with a sheepish smile.
"Yes, now all of you are free to do your own things, except you Twilight. I want to inform you about something." Celestia explained. Twilight just looked at her, confused. Once everypony but her, Celestia and Luna left the room, Celestia started. "My sister, Luna, believes to have spotted two suspicious ponies wandering Chanterlot. They might be a danger to you and your friends. So I advise you to be cautious."
"Suspicious? What gave you the idea that they were suspicious?" Twilight asked.
"I don't know how to explain it, yesterday, during my nightly patrols, I saw a bright green flash of light from one of the ally ways. I flew towards the source and saw two ponies. I tried to catch them, but they were too fast." Luna stated.
"Oh, do you know how they looked like?"
"Not really, one had a white coat and grey eyes, the other had a grey coat with blue eyes. I didn't see their manes."
"Nothing else? How about their race?"
"Oh, the white one was a pegasus, the grey one was an earth pony."
"How about their cutie marks?"
"I was not able to see them."
"Ok, thank you, Luna." Twilight spoke. Luna simply nodded in response.
"Once again, I advise you and your friends to be cautious at all times. That is all we wanted to inform about. You may go rejoin your friends." Celestia smiled as Twilight nodded and left the room.
Four ponies were trotting through the hallways having a conversation. As they talked, they noticed that the hallways seemed more guarded ever since Rainbow's 'disappearance'.
"What reason do ya'll think the Princesses held Twilight back?" Applejack asked in her usual southern accent.
"Maybe she just wanted to inform the dear about something. There could be more changelings throughout Ponyville or Chanterlot." Rarity suggested.
"But wouldn't they have attacked by now? Ah' mean, we're outta Ponyville and tha' Princesses have just know about this for two days. Ah'm goin' against yer' idea." Applejack stated, Rarity just huffed in response.
"You may never know what may happen."
"Girls! Wait for me!" An all too familiar voice called out. The four ponies turned to look behind them to see Twilight expectedly running to them.
"Twilight!" They all shouted in unison. "What did Celestia inform you about?" Applejack asked.
"She warned us to stay cautious around Chanterlot. She said that Luna saw two ponies yesterday night that might be a danger to us and other innocent ponies." As Twilight finished, Rarity flashed Applejack a smirk which drew out a groan from the farmer, Twilight wore a confused expression as she looked at her two friends. "What's going on with you two?"
"Oh, nothing you should be worried about dear." Rarity insisted while stifling a giggle. Pinkie heard the conversation and laughed uproariously with Fluttershy giggling along.
Iris awoke to the sound of hooves on concrete and the cell door opening. She opened her eyes to greet the dim light that came from outside her cell. At first, she thought it was Twilight coming to visit again, but the figure was shorter and had a buttery yellow coat. At that, Iris realised who it was.
"U-um, hello there. My name is Fluttershy." Her suspicions were confirmed. It was indeed her childhood friend.
Rainbow Dash wanted to greet Fluttershy in how Rainbow would normaly, but then she remembered. She wasn't Rainbow Dash, she was Iris. So, she greeted her as if she and Fluttershy had never met. "Oh, hello Fluttershy."
After that, there was an awkward silence as Fluttershy averted her gaze to the ground. Fluttershy was never the one to start a conversation, Dash knew that all too well. She wanted to encourage her to be a little more assertive, but that might come off as confusing to her since she doesn't know that this changeling was Rainbow Dash. Then there was that question at the back of her mind and decided to bring it forth.
"So, why are you down here? I was expecting Twilight since I didn't think anypony else would want to talk to me." Iris started.
Fluttershy looked back at the creature in the cell, lifting her head. "O-oh, i-if you want, I can go get Twilight now. It was The Princess's idea for us to... get to know you better. But i-it's fine if you don't want to." Fluttershy said as she turned to leave.
"No!" Iris exclaimed. After realising the tone of her voice, she started again. "No, you can stay. I-I... would like to get to know you too." Though it sounded more like a question than answer. It was a good thing that changelings had been born to put up an act better than ponies. Even half-changelings.
Fluttershy turned back to Iris who smiled lightly which elected a smile from Fluttershy. "Okay, I'll stay if you want."
Iris sighed in relief. "Great. It has been a little..." She trailed off, looking for the right word.
"Lonely?" Fluttershy offered.
Iris shrugged. "Close enough. Speaking of which, don't you ever get lonely sometimes?"
Fluttershy looked at her quizzically. "What do you mean? I mean, sure I get lonely sometimes during the winter," Rainbow winced at an unpleasant memory. "but I still have my friends. They even invite me for sleepovers without me asking. Everytime I doubt myself, the kindness my friends have shown me have made me more confident in myself."
Iris took over once more. "Wow, friends are really that great huh?" She asked. Some part of her knew the answer, yet she wanted to know what Fluttershy thought. Her initial answer was, "I'm glad you've become more confident in yourself. Our friends are awesome." Although, that was Rainbow's response.
"Oh, yes. I don't know where I would be without them. I've learned so much ever since we became the Elements of Harmony. It's brought me and my friends closer." Fluttershy said, lost in the memories.
"So, how did you meet them? Those five ponies?" Iris asked, pretending not to know.
Fluttershy thought for a moment, bringing a hoof to her muzzle. "Well, I met Twilight on the day before the 1000th Summer Sun Celebration. Umm, you know about that event, right?" Iris nodded. "Oh, ok. I met her while I was rehearsing for the celebration and I met Applejack and Rarity during the celebration. When I met Pinkie Pie, I had just moved to Ponyville. I was buying the cottage near the Everfree Forest when she saw me and threw a party in my honor. I was so surprised and frightened, I left when the party barely started. Though, it was very nice of her to do such a thing, I feel bad for not staying after the work she put into planning it." Fluttershy paused.
"Then there was Rainbow Dash." Iris flinched visibly which was caught by Fluttershy. "Maybe they do regret what they did." Fluttershy thought before apologising. "I-I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable."
"It's fine. I guess, you could say I'm used to it." Rainbow said, looking down.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Fluttershy asked.
Iris thought for a while but decided against it. She shook her head a few moments later. "No. I don't." Fluttershy nodded.
"It's alright." Silence followed. Fluttershy thought about what the changeling had said. What happened to them in the past that hurt them that bad. Did it have something to do with replacing Rainbow Dash? She wanted to ask again so badly, but she knew better than to disturb somepony, or changeling's, privacy. She also wanted to ask about what happened to Rainbow Dash, where they had taken her. But seeing that just bringing up the mare's name had harmed the changeling that bad, bringing up the reason she was in the cell to begin with may not be the best way to approach.
"Umm, i-is it alright if we can be friends?" Fluttershy asked steadily. Iris looked at her with a slight mix of shock and joy.
"Why would you be friends with me? After all, I was the one who..." Iris couldn't finish. Fluttershy looked at her as if she was expecting it.
"Yes, that may be true. But throughout the whole time I talked with you, you have shown no sign of wanting to harm or any aggression towards me or my friends. And plus, you have that regretful look in your eyes. Whether or not you regret replacing our friend or maybe something else, it has to have something to do with this incident." Fluttershy explained then looked at Iris with a forgiving expression. "I think that you, at least, deserve a second chance."
Iris, nor Rainbow, knew how to react. So, she just stood there in shock, a small smile threatening to form. "Y-you wa-nt to give me a s-second chance?" She was able to splutter out. Fluttershy nodded sincerely. Iris's smile broke out into a big grin. If it wasn't for the iron bar door, Fluttershy would be in for a big hug. Instead, she was able to choke out a 'Thank you' as a tear ran down her face.
"You're welcome, Iris." Fluttershy said. She swore Iris's smile grew at the mention of the name. Fluttershy giggled before a thought entered her mind. "Oh, by the way, what is you gender? No offence, but my friends are curious." She asked sheepishly.
Iris put a hoof to her muzzle. What should she say? She knew fully that she was female, but the whole being a changeling thing made it slightly confusing. She would be lying if she said male so that was out of the question. Being called a 'they' or 'it' didn't feel right either so she decided to be honest. "Female. I kinda get confused with it too."
"Oh, ok. I hope I'll see you again." Fluttershy smiled. "This was quite the experience, befriending a changeling. Oh, uh, no offence."