Problems

Twilight yawned as she sat up in bed. She stretched, feeling good about the day ahead. And what a day it was! She looked out the window and saw Celestia’s sun shining on Ponyville. She smiled and got up from bed, getting a closer look. The ponies of Ponyville were out and about, in the middle of their morning routines. Some ponies were opening shops, some were entering shops, some were glancing up at the town’s clock tower-

Wait.

Twilight blinked and looked at the clock tower. She blinked again, certain she was seeing things. She rubbed her eyes. And looked again.

11:30.

The time was 11:30.

She was supposed to be awake hours ago! Twilight gasped as she quickly moved from the window. “Spike!” she called as she ran downstairs. “Spike!”

Spike looked up from where he was dusting the books. “Morning Twilight!” he greeted. “Want some breakfast? Or lunch, I guess?”

Twilight rushed towards Spike. She stopped right in front of him and put her face near his. “Spike! I was supposed to be up hours ago to get the library ready! Why didn’t you wake me?!”

Spike nervously took a step back. “W-well…you were hanging out with the others last night and didn’t come home until it was late. I figured you’d want to sleep in…”

“B-but…” began Twilight. “What about the chores I had to do this morning? Some of that needed to be done before the library opened!”

“I know!” said Spike. “That’s why I did them for you!”

“You…did?” asked Twilight. She looked around. The library did seem to be cleaner and more organized than it did when she got home yesterday. “You did everything by yourself?” asked Twilight.

“Yeah!” said Spike. He walked towards a nearby table and picked up a checklist. “Everything on your ‘Things To Do Before the Library Opens’ list.”

Twilight looked at the list and back at the library. She took note of each item on the list and gazed at the areas that needed cleaning or organization. From what she could see, Spike had done everything almost perfectly. There were a few books out of place, but nothing to get upset about.

“Wow.” said Twilight. She smiled at Spike and said, “I’m sorry for freaking out, Spike.” She pulled him into a hug. “I should have known you had everything handled.”

Spike chuckled sheepishly. He pulled away from the hug and said, “Could you wake up early tomorrow, though? There’s a lot of stuff to do on that list…”

Twilight smiled and nodded. “Sure. It is a lot of chores for only one pony… or dragon in this case.”

Spike smiled gratefully. “Thank goodness.” He pointed towards the kitchen. “Do you still want me to make you some lunch?”

“Sure.” Twilight said. “While you do that, I’ll take care of any customers that come in.” She smiled. “In fact, after you do that you can have the day off. You’ve done a lot this morning.”

“Really?” asked Spike excitedly.

“Really.” confirmed Twilight. “Maybe you could even go visit Rari-”

The door to the library slammed open and Rarity rushed in. “Twilight!” she yelled. Her frantic gaze locked onto Twilight and she rushed over to her. “Darling, you need to come quickly! It’s an emergency!”

“E-emergency?” asked Twilight. “What kind of emergency?!”

Rarity rushed behind Twilight and started pushing her towards the door. “There’s no time to explain! We simply must head back to the boutique right now!”

“Ok, let’s go!” said Twilight. She looked at Spike, who had a crestfallen look on his face. “I’m sorry Spike! I’ll be back as soon as I can!”

Spike looked at Twilight and grinned, the crestfallen look disappearing. “I know you will! Now go deal with this emergency for…Rarity…” he sighed longingly at the white unicorn.

Twilight rolled her eyes and headed outside with Rarity. They rushed through Ponyville and soon arrived at Rarity’s store. Rarity rushed in and Twilight followed close behind.

“What’s this emer…gen…cy…” she trailed off as she looked at the mess that used to be Rarity’s boutique. Scraps of fabric, gems, thread, crumpled designs, and many other objects littered the floor of the boutique. “What happened to this place?!” she asked as she tried not to step on anything.

“My design process.” said Rarity. She rummaged through the mess, her head disappearing underneath a large piece of cloth. “Where are they…” she muttered. After a few minutes, Twilight heard Rarity go, “Aha!”, and watched her friend reappear. She was holding two designs in her hooves. “I need your opinion on something, darling.” Rarity set the designs down on a cluttered table.

“You just wanted my opinion on your dresses?” asked Twilight incredulously. “That’s the big emergency?”

“It is a big emergency!” exclaimed Rarity. She spun around and faced Twilight. “I have a very important client expecting something new and original in a few days! I’ve managed to work out two fabulous designs for her, but I can’t decide which one to make!” Rarity put a hoof to her head and sighed. “What is an attractive yet indecisive fashion designer to do?!”

Twilight sighed. “Ok, ok.” She gave what she hoped was a friendly, not-at-all-annoyed smile at her friend, “What designs are they?”

Rarity smiled and lifted up one of the designs. “This one is, I feel, sleek and elegant. It has a simple, somewhat understated elegance to it. I have all the material I need for it, and yet I feel as though it’s a little dull.”

“Ok…” said Twilight, looking at the design. It was simply an elegant looking dress in one solid red color.

“And then there’s this!” said Rarity, holding up the other design. This one looked like a dress Discord would find appealing. It had frills and ruffles, and was a mix of bright colors. “This one is part of an all new look that is all the rage now. It’s chaotic mix appeals to ponies’ sense of individuality and eccentricity, although I can’t help but feel like it is too flashy.” Rarity held up both designs and looked pleadingly at Twilight. “Which one should I go with?”

“Well…” said Twilight. She looked at both designs again. “Um…maybe…”

“Yes?” asked Rarity.

Twilight paused. She looked at both of the designs again. “Maybe…you should…”

“Yes?!” said Rarity.

Twilight sighed. “Maybe you should decide?”

“…” Rarity stared at Twilight for a moment. “Run that by me again, darling?”

Twilight pointed to the designs. “I mean, they both have their strong qualities so it’s hard for me to decide which one’s better. And you know much more about fashion than I do, so maybe the decision should be left to you.”

Rarity sighed. “Well, I suppose so. I just hoped you could do something to help me decide.”

Twilight winced. “Sorry! But I really don’t know.”

Rarity nodded distractedly. She went to the table with the designs and stared at them, deep in thought.

“So…” said Twilight. She started heading towards the door. “I guess I’ll just leave you to it, then?” She waited for Rarity to respond, but the other pony was silent. “Ok…bye.” Twilight walked out of Rarity’s shop and shut the door behind her.

She sighed. “I wish I could have helped, but I don’t know anything about fashion.” She looked at the clock tower. The time was one o’clock. “I can still make it back to the library in time to give Spike a day off.” Twilight said. She started making her way back.

“Twilight!” yelled a voice.

Twilight looked around, and was tackled by a pink blur. The wind was knocked out of Twilight and she looked around wildly. “What-?” she wheezed. She looked up and saw Pinkie Pie looking down at her.

“Oops.” giggled Pinkie. She helped Twilight up. “Sorry Twilight.”

“Hi Pinkie.” said Twilight, looking at her friend. “Why did you tackle me?”

“I just wanted to get your attention!” said Pinkie. “I need you to come with me!”

Twilight paused and looked at the clock tower again. “Can it wait? I really need to-”

“Please Twilight?” pleaded Pinkie, her bottom lip quivering. “It’s an emergency!”

Twilight sighed and said, “Ok Pinkie. Lead the way.”

Pinkie smiled and grabbed onto Twilight’s hoof. She led Twilight through Ponyville and, soon, they arrived at Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie rushed in, practically dragging Twilight inside with her.

“Did ya find Twilight, Sugarcube?” asked a familiar voice. Twilight looked up and saw Applejack walking out of the kitchen.

“Uh huh!” said Pinkie happily. She turned towards Twilight and asked seriously, “So what do you think, Ms. Sparkle?”

“Um…” began Twilight. “What do I think about what, exactly?”

“Did you fill her in on our problem?” asked Applejack.

Pinkie smiled sheepishly. “I might have forgot to…”

Applejack rolled her eyes and gestured to Twilight to follow her. She led Twilight into the kitchen, which Twilight noted was unusually warm.

“Me and Pinkie have been bakin’ all day, so the ovens have made this place pretty warm.” explained Applejack, answering Twilight’s unspoken question. Applejack pointed to the counter, where dozens of pies, cakes, muffins, and cupcakes were sitting. “Pinkie asked me to help make stuff for Sugarcube Corner’s big bake sale.” explained Applejack. “We got most of the stuff done, but-”

“But we need a super-special-awesome treat to be the feature of the sale and really get ponies excited!” said Pinkie.

“Ok…” said Twilight. She forced herself to ignore her stomach growling as she looked at the mountain of food on the counter. She turned towards the two ponies and asked, “So what’s the problem?”

“We each have a different idea about what to bake.” explained Applejack. “Ah think we should make the Apple Family’s Super Special Cinnamon Apple Pie.”

“A pie?” asked Twilight.

“A big pie!” said Applejack, spreading her hooves to emphasize her point. “It’s easy to make and tastes like nothin’ you’ve ever had before!”

“And I think we should make Pinkie Pie’s Perfect Pineapple Upside-down Cake!” exclaimed Pinkie. She leaned in and whispered to Twilight, “It’s a cake…that’s upside-down.”

“I got that.” said Twilight.

“Oh.” said Pinkie. “It is a little hard to make, but it tastes really yummy and it would be perfect for the sale’s featured treat!”

“Ah still say we should make the pie!” said Applejack, glaring at Pinkie.

“And I say let them eat cake!” replied Pinkie, returning Applejack’s glare.

“Pie!”

“Cake!”

“Pie!

“Cake!”

“Pie!”

“Pie!”

“Cake!”

“Ha!” laughed Pinkie. “I fooled you!”

Applejack groaned and looked desperately at Twilight. “Can you help us out, Sugarcube? Which would you rather eat? Dry, tasteless cake? Or warm, sweet, delicious pie?”

“Or would you rather eat soggy, sour tasting pie?” asked Pinkie. “Or soft, tasty cake?”

Twilight thought for a moment. “To tell you the truth, girls,” she began, “I prefer ice cream to either of those.”

Applejack and Pinkie stared at Twilight. Applejack shook her head and grinned, “That’s cuz you need a refresher on how good an slice of apple pie can taste, Sugarcube!” She pushed Twilight towards the counter and put a pie in front of her.

Pinkie rushed forward and put a cake near Twilight’s pie. “And when you choke that pie down, you can eat a really tasty piece of cake!”

Twilight stared at the two desserts in front of her and then at the bickering ponies. “Oh boy…” she said.

Twilight left Sugarcube Corner sometime later. Her stomach was stuffed and fit to burst. She shuddered as she recalled Applejack and Pinkie shoving dessert after dessert in front of her. “They seemed disappointed that I couldn’t decide for them.” said Twilight as she slowly walked back to the library. “I hope it isn’t too late…” She looked at the clock tower and gasped as she looked at the time. It was 5 o’clock. “I need to get back and let Spike take a break!” she said. “Maybe I’ll let him have tomorrow off too; he’s been working alone all day.” She stepped up her pace and started to head back.

“TWILIGHT!” yelled a voice.

Twilight looked up and saw Rainbow Dash flying towards her. “Rainbow?” asked Twilight. “What are you-”

“No time!” said Rainbow Dash, picking Twilight up and flying off with her. “You, me, Flutteshy’s! Now! It’s an-”

“Emergency,” finished Twilight, “I know.”

Rainbow Dash carried her to Fluttershy’s home. The animals looked on with curiosity as Rainbow set Twilight down. She started to knock on the door. “Fluttershy! I got Twilight!”

The door opened slowly and Fluttershy poked her head out. “Oh, she didn’t have to come. We could have-”

“Yeah, yeah,” said Rainbow, pushing past Fluttershy and walking into the house, “She didn’t have to come, we could have solved it on our own, you’re still shy, we get it.”

Twilight walked inside and smiled at Fluttershy, “Hello Fluttershy. How are you?”

Fluttershy smiled. “Oh, I’m alright. Rainbow and I just-”

“Fluttershy won’t let me do my stunt!” cut in Rainbow Dash.

“Stunt?” asked Twilight, looking from Fluttershy to Rainbow Dash. “What stunt?”

“My new stunt!” said Rainbow Dash happily. She started to fly around the room. “It’s going to be the most awesome thing I’ve ever done!” She landed and glared at Fluttershy. “Or it would if someone let me use some of her animals for it.”

Fluttershy gulped, but stared Rainbow Dash down. “And I think that Rainbow is perfectly capable of being awesome without using my animals. They could get hurt.”

“Wait, wait.” said Twilight. “What type of stunt is it?”

Rainbow Dash smiled and said, “I’m glad you asked!” She grabbed a sheet of paper off of Fluttershy’s chair. She unfolded it, and said, “It starts with me doing a barrel roll with some of Fluttershy’s birds…”

Time passed as Rainbow went over her stunt. Twilight had to admit that it did sound awesome, but the various stages of the stunt involved putting Fluttershy’s animals into dangerous situations.

“…And then we fly towards the alligators and just barely miss getting eaten!” finished Rainbow Dash. She threw the paper behind her and grinned at Twilight. “Pretty cool, huh?”

“Well-” began Twilight.

“There is no way you’re doing that with my animals!” said Fluttershy loudly. She noticed the other two looking at her and she looked down. “…If that’s okay with you…” she continued quietly.

“Well, it’s not okay with me!” said Rainbow Dash. She got right in front of Fluttershy. “Come on, Fluttershy! This is probably the most awesome thing I’m ever going to do, ever!”

“I’m sorry,” said Fluttershy firmly, “But no.”

“You-”

“Girls!” said Twilight. “Arguing about this isn’t going to solve anything!”

Rainbow Dash turned towards Twilight and smiled, “You’re right, Twilight. So tell Fluttershy that my stunt won’t hurt her animals and she should let me use them.”

“Well-”

“Or,” cut in Fluttershy, “You could tell Rainbow Dash that her little stunt will definitely hurt my animals and she shouldn’t use them.”

“I-”

“Tell her!” said Rainbow Dash, pushing Twilight towards Fluttershy.

“No, please tell her!” said Fluttershy, pushing Twilight towards Rainbow Dash.

“Tell her!”

“Tell her!”

“Tell her!”

“Tell-”

“ENOUGH!” shouted Twilight. She stepped away and looked at the two shocked Pegasi. “Look girls, I know this is important to you. But I can’t think when you two are playing tug-of-war with me!” She sighed. “Look, I’ll give it some thought, ok? But Spike has been working at the library all day and I want to give him a break.” She walked towards Fluttershy’s door. “I’ll see you girls when I make my decision, alright?” She left, letting the other two to argue with each other.

Twilight left Fluttershy’s house and started walking back to the library. She sighed as she walked back into town. “First Rarity, then Applejack and Pinkie, and now Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. I couldn’t help any of them…” She looked up at the setting sun and then at the clock tower. The time was 7:30. “And Spike’s been working hard all day…”

Twilight arrived at the library and pushed open the door. The library was empty, but was a complete mess. Piles of books were on the floor, mysterious purple stains were everywhere, and Spike was standing in the middle of the room, a broom in his hands.

“Spike?” asked Twilight. A soft snore was her only response. She walked around Spike in order to see his face. Spike’s eyes were shut and his face was pressing against the broom handle. A trail of drool was hanging out of his mouth.

Twilight lifted Spike up with her magic and took him upstairs. She entered the bedroom and placed Spike on his basket. She attempted to pry the broom from Spike’s claws, but his grip was too tight. She sighed and walked back downstairs, leaving Spike to cuddle with the broom.

Once she was downstairs, Twilight looked at the mess that used to be her library. “Why aren’t ponies this interested in books when I’m here?” she asked herself as she started lifting the books back onto the shelves with her magic. She looked at the purple stain on her floor. “Grape juice? Don’t they know that there’s no food or drink allowed in the library? If I were here, I would have made them drink it outside.” She sighed as she looked towards the stairs. “If I were here, Spike could have had his day off. And now all of the girls have problems that I don’t know what to do with.” As Twilight continued, she failed to notice a book drifting towards her head. “I wish that I was able to list the good and bad sides of each of the girls’ suggestions. I could figure out if the creativity of Rarity’s dress, Pinkie’s dessert, and Rainbow’s stunt would be more important than the practicality of Rarity’s other dress, Applejack’s dessert, and Fluttershy’s concerns about her animals.” She groaned as the book drifted closer and closer to her. “I’ve just got too much on my mind!”

The book hit her in the back of the head and fell to the floor.

“Ow!” said Twilight as she rubbed her head. She looked at the open book and read, “Got too much on your mind? Do you feel like your logic and creativity aren’t working together? Did you forget someone special because you were too busy trying to decide between creativity and practicality?” Twilight paused and muttered, “That’s…oddly specific…” She continued reading. “Try this spell on for size. It will separate the logical and creative sides of your brain. The two sides can work out their differences and come up with a solution. With this spell, you‘ll never waste time on a decision again!”

Twilight looked up. “I’m not sure about this…but…” she glanced at the stairs. “It might be the only way to come up to make everyone happy. If I come up with solutions for all of the girls’ problems, I could give Spike the day off he deserves!” Twilight smiled confidently. “That settles it! I’m doing this spell!”

She looked at the book and started to focus her magic…

Opportunities

Spike opened his eyes with a groan. He stretched as he sat up in his basket and yawned loudly. “Man…I’m beat…” he muttered, hopping out of his basket. He eyed the broom next to his bed and sighed, “I don’t think I managed to clean the library before I fell asleep…” he said to himself. He looked over at Twilight’s empty bed and mumbled, “I hope she won’t be too mad at me for leaving all that mess for her…” With a sigh, Spike turned and walked down the stairs, apologies and excuses running through his head.

“Twilight!” called Spike as he reached the bottom floor. “I’m so…so…” He trailed off as he observed the scene in front of him. “What happened down here?”

A massive pile of books lied in the center of the room, blocking the other half of the room from view. Only a few books were left on the shelves and they were in a completely different order than they were the previous day.

“I didn’t think I left this big of a mess down here…” mumbled Spike as he stepped away from the stairs. He watched as a book levitated up to the shelf, a purple glow around it. “Twilight? Is that you?”

Twilight’s head popped out from behind the pile, her body hidden from view. “Oh, you’re up. Good morning, Spike.”

“Uh…morning...” said Spike uncertainly. He shuffled his feet awkwardly and said, “I’m really sorry about the mess from yesterday. I didn’t mean to fall asleep…I just meant to rest my eyes for a second and-”

“Spike,” interrupted Twilight, a small smile on her face, “It’s alright. I shouldn’t have left you alone for as long as I did, so the blame lies with me. Besides, I was able to clean up the mess late last night.”

Spike let out a sigh of relief and wiped his forehead. “Man…” he chuckled, “I thought for sure you’d be furious with me.”

“What’s in the past is in the past,” said Twilight, turning her head back to the shelf. She set the book against the others and continued, “You made a mistake and I fixed it. What would be the point in getting upset now that everything’s taken care of?”

“Uh…ok?” said Spike, unsure if he was getting scolded or not. He looked around the room and said, “So…if you cleaned up the mess last night, then what’s all this?”

Twilight frowned as she looked back at Spike. She nodded her head to the other side of the pile and said, “You can thank her for that. Right as I finished cleaning up and decided to go to bed, she decided that the books weren’t organized correctly. Apparently, they weren’t set up in a ‘fun’ enough way.”

Someone giggled from the other side of the pile.

“Oh!” said Spike. He chuckled as he realized what Twilight was trying to say. “I get it,” he said as he walked over to the other side of the pile. “You should have told me that Pinkie was here.”

“…Pinkie?” repeated Twilight, sounding confused.

“Good morning, Pinkie!” said Spike as he reached the other end of the pile. “I didn’t know you and Twilight were having a sleepover last night. If I had, I would’ve made sure to clean up the library and-”

“Pinkie?!” said an excited voice. All of a sudden, Twilight’s head popped out of the pile of books. She looked around excitedly. “Where?! Is she here? This is going to be so much fun!”

“Twilight?” asked Spike. He pointed to the other side of the pile. “I thought you were organizing books over there?”

“I am organizing books over there!” said Twilight, raising a hoof out of the book pile to rub Spike’s head affectionately.

Spike raised an eyebrow. He slowly backed away from Twilight and walked to the other side of the book pile.

Twilight paused as she levitated another book on the shelf and turned to look at Spike. “Insufferable, isn’t she?” she asked.

Spike blinked and quickly walked over to the other side of the pile.

Twilight beamed at him as he came back into view. “That old stick-in-the-mud is so obsessed with her rules,” she stage-whispered to Spike. “She needs to live a little! She wanted to organize books based on the level of factual knowledge they contained, and I wanted to organize the books based on how much fun they are to read! I think I’ve made some great progress here!”

“You’re making no progress!” yelled Twilight’s voice from the other side of the pile. “You haven’t put a single book back on the shelves!”

“That’s because they’re all fun to read!” said the Twilight in front of Spike. “I haven’t found the book I like the most!”

Spike blinked and cleared his throat awkwardly. “Ok…so…will Twilight Sparkle please come out from behind or underneath the pile of books and stand in front of me?”

Twilight walked out from behind the pile of books, a book levitating near her head. At the same time, Twilight got up from the pile of books and stepped forwards so she was in front of Spike.

“What do you need, Spike?” asked both Twilights.

Spike stared at the two of them for a long while. He noticed that, instead of Twilight’s normal Cutie Mark, the number 1 was on the flanks of the Twilight levitating the book, while the Twilight in front of Spike had the number 2 on hers.

“…One moment, please,” said Spike. With that, he quickly turned around and ran out of the library, leaving the two Twilights alone.

“…He took that better than I thought he would,” said the Twilight with 2s on her flanks.

A few minutes later:

“Alright, Sugarcube,” said Applejack as she and the other girls stood in front of Spike, “Ah need you to explain it again. What’s goin’ on with Twilight?”

Spike sighed and said, “There are two Twilight Sparkles in the library and I don’t know why.”

“There’s only one Twilight Sparkle, silly!” said Pinkie, giggling.

“Look, I know it sounds crazy,” said Spike, “But there were two Twilights reorganizing books.”

“Well…” began Rarity hesitantly, “I don’t mean to doubt you, Spike…but…”

“Are you sure you weren’t just dreaming?” asked Fluttershy. “I know you wouldn’t lie about something like this, but you might have just been confused.”

“Maybe Twilight’s pranking you,” suggested Rainbow Dash, who was flying slightly above the group. “She could be using her magic to make you think there were two of her.”

“I know what I saw, alright?” said Spike. “You guys have to believe me!”

“Ah think we should go back with you to see what’s goin’ on,” said Applejack. “If there is more than one Twilight, we need to know why.”

“Maybe she fell into the Mirror Pool!” said Pinkie. “Or maybe she got replaced by a Changeling!”

“Why would she want to go to the Mirror Pool?” asked Rainbow Dash. “She sealed it up with that boulder after the trouble all those Pinkies caused.”

“And if it was one of those nasty Changelings, why would there be two?” asked Rarity.

“We’re not gonna get any answers sittin’ around,” said Applejack. She nodded her head at Spike and said, “Let’s head back to the library, Sugarcube.”

Spike nodded back and led the girls back to the library. Along the way, they discussed more theories on why there would be two Twilights.

“You’re positive Twilight doesn’t a long-lost twin?” asked Pinkie.

“Yes!” yelled Spike. “Don’t you think she would have told you if she did or not?”

“To be fair, we didn’t know she had a brother until he sent her a wedding invitation,” pointed out Rainbow.

The group finally stopped at the front door to the library. Spike ran forward and tried to open the door, but found that it was locked.

“Why’d they lock the door?” asked Spike as he let go of the knob.

“Well, we gotta get in somehow,” said Applejack. She strode forward and knocked on the door. “Twilight? Are you in there, Sugarcube? We want to talk to you!”

The door opened and the Twilight with 1s on her flanks stood in front of them. “Good morning, girls,” she said with a smile. “Sorry, but I can’t hang out with you all today. I need to stay here and clean up the mess.”

“That’s fine, Twilight,” said Applejack. “We actually just wanted to come over to check on you.”

“On me?” asked Twilight. “Why?”

“Because Spike thinks there are two of you in there,” said Rainbow Dash. “But you were just playing a trick on him, right?”

Before Twilight could answer, the other Twilight’s voice could be heard from within the library. “Who’s at the door?”

“No one!” called the Twilight in front of them. “Just stay in the corner!”

“I don’t want to stay in the corner!” called the other Twilight. “I want to help put the books back on the shelves!”

“You can 'help' by staying out of my way!” yelled the Twilight in front of them.

“Ok Sugarcube,” said Applejack, “We’re comin' inside.”

Twilight backed up and let everyone enter the library. Everyone’s jaw dropped at the pile of books in the center of the room. “What happened in here?” asked Rarity.

“She did,” said Twilight, pointing to the corner of the room.

Everyone’s head turned to where Twilight was pointing. In the corner was the Twilight with 2s on her flanks, facing the wall like a child during time-out. The Twilight in the corner turned her head to look at everyone else. She smiled and waved enthusiastically.

“Twilight,” said Rarity, as Pinkie waved back to the unicorn in the corner, “What…why are there two of you?”

“Two ponies can get twice as much done compared to one pony,” explained the Twilight in front of them. She shot a glare at the Twilight in the corner. “In theory, anyway.”

“Hey!” yelled the Twilight in the corner.

“But…” began Spike. “How are there two of you?”

“Ah, that’s what you meant,” said Twilight. She pointed at the mountain of books on the floor. “Somewhere in that mess is a book that contains a spell. That spell allows a pony to split themselves into two separate body. One body,” she gestured to herself, “Retains the pony’s logic and practicality. The other,” she jerked her head towards the Twilight in the corner, “Retains the pony’s creative side and emotional nature.”

“Ok…” said Rainbow Dash slowly. “But why would you want to split yourself into two ponies?”

“Because I felt bad about yesterday!” said the Twilight by the corner. She walked forward and pulled Spike into a tight hug. “I couldn’t help any of you with your problems and I made Spike work all day!” She sniffed and pressed Spike against her chest. “I am just the worst…” she muttered morosely.

“Wait…that’s what this is about?” asked Spike, trying to get out of Twilight’s grasp. “I was just a little tired after working yesterday. I really don’t mind that-”

“Hold on one sec, Spike,” said Rainbow Dash, causing everyone to look at her. “This might actually be a good thing.”

“How?” asked Applejack, looking confused. “Don’t we want Twilight to undo the spell?”

“Eventually,” said Rainbow. “Think about it. Each of us had problems that we wanted Twilight’s help with, right?”

“Well…yes…” said Rarity slowly. “But how does this help any of us?”

“Because we have two Twilights now!” said Rainbow. “That means they can both focus on each side of our problems!” She turned to Fluttershy and said, “One of them can help me with my stunt while the other helps you keep your animals safe!”

“I suppose that might work…but…” began Fluttershy.

Rainbow turned to Rarity and said, “You had two dresses, right? Why not let the Twilights design their own dresses in both styles? You could see which one you like better.”

“Perhaps…” said Rarity, thinking about it.

“And Twilight can help me and Applejack decide what dessert to make!” said Pinkie excitedly. “Good idea!”

“Ah don’t know, darlin’,” said Applejack. “Seems silly to think we need a second Twilight just to make a decision. She can just put herself back together and-”

“No!” cried the Twilight with 2s on her flanks. “This is exactly why I split myself into two ponies! I want to help you guys with your problems!”

“It’s not like it hurts us to be apart from each other,” said the Twilight with 1s on her flanks. “In fact, I think it’s beneficial for the two of us to think for ourselves for once.”

“Well…if ya really want to help, Ah won’t say no,” said Applejack.

“But what about the library?” asked Fluttershy, pointing at the pile of books. “Who’s going to take care of it?”

Spike sighed and pulled away from the Twilight with 2s on her flanks. “I guess I’ll take care of it. You girls go have fun.”

“Are you sure, darling?” asked Rarity, looking at the pile guiltily. “It seems like an awful amount of work for you to clean all by yourself.”

“It’s fine,” said Spike. “I’ll just tell ponies that the library is closed today while we reorganize the shelves.” He walked over to the pile and started grabbing books to put away.

“Well,” said Rainbow Dash, grabbing one of the Twilights and pushing them towards the door, “Since it was my idea, I think me and Fluttershy should get help from the Twilights first.” She squealed and said, “With their help, my stunt is gonna be so awesome!”

Fluttershy smiled at the Twilight next to her. “I’m sure you’ll help us find a way to keep my animals safe, Twilight.”

“I’ll try,” said both Twilights.

Rainbow paused in her attempts to push one of the Twilight’s out of the door. “Wait…” she said, looking back and forth between the two. “How are we supposed to tell you apart? If we say ‘Twilight’, you both answer.”

“I’ve got it!” said Pinkie. She pointed at the Twilight by Fluttershy, who had the 1s on her flanks. “You’ll be Twi-One…” She pointed at the other Twilight, who had 2s on her flank, “And we’ll call you Twi-Two!”

“How come she gets to be number one?” asked Twi-Two, pointing at Twi-One.

“Because of my Cutie Mark, remember?” replied Twi-One. She smirked and said, “Of course, it could just be that I’m better than you.”

“What?!” shouted Twi-Two. “You are not! I’ll prove it!” She grabbed Rainbow Dash with her magic and flew out the door with her.

“Fool,” muttered Twi-One. She turned to Fluttershy and said, “Let’s go fix your problem so she’ll see I’m the better Twilight.”

“Oh…uh…ok?” said Fluttershy. She quietly followed Twi-One out the door.

“Well,” said Rarity, “I suppose we better get things ready for the Twilights to help each of us.”

“Right!” said Pinkie. She ran for the door, saying, “I’ll get things ready for my cake!”

“And Ah’ll get things ready to bake mah pie!” said Applejack, running after Pinkie.

Rarity turned back to Spike, who was still putting the books back on the shelves. “Will you be alright by yourself, Spike?”

“I-I’ll be fine, Rarity,” said Spike, a little alarmed to see that he was alone with his crush. He cleared his throat and said, “I just have to reorganize the shelves…again. It’s nothing I can’t handle.”

“Well…if you’re sure…” said Rarity, uncertainly.

“I am,” said Spike. He laughed and said, “Two Twilights, huh? How crazy is that?”

“It is a bit odd,” said Rarity. “At least it doesn’t seem to be like when there were dozens of Pinkie Pies running amok all over town.”

“Yeah,” agreed Spike, “Those two just seem to want to argue with each other.”

“I’m sure they’ll put their differences aside while they help us,” said Rarity. “They’re both Twilight, after all. Now,” she said, moving to the door, “I’m going to go get my designs ready for them.”

“Good luck!” called Spike.

Rarity laughed. “Oh, darling. What could possibly go wrong?”