The next morning, Midnight woke with the rooster, straightening his back as he sat up from the couch. He’d actually spent the night in the library, waiting for Twilight to come back.
I must’ve fallen asleep, he thought groggily to himself when he noticed the door open and in walked Twilight, looking a little bedraggled.

At that moment, Spike came downstairs and they both greeted her.
“Hey Twilight!” said Spike.
“How’d it go with Cerberus?” asked Midnight.

“He’s back where he belongs,” Twilight was glad to report, “and no evil creatures escaped in his absence.”

*BELCH*

A scroll burst from Spike’s mouth, hitting Twilight in the face.

“You okay, Twi?” Midnight asked, sitting up on the sofa.

“Oh sure I’m-” Twilight’s eyes suddenly popped as she reached up to her face. “Oh no!”

She hurried over to a mirror, Spike saying, “What? It’s just a lost dog poster; the princess probably doesn’t know you got Cerberus back for her yet.”

“It’s not that, Spike, it’s this!” Twilight pointed out a cut below her left eye.

“A paper cut?” Midnight asked with a raised brow. “Twilight, just wash it out and you’ll be fine.”

“No, this cut is exactly the same as the scar I saw on Future Twilight’s cheek!” Twilight scrutinized it to be sure until she came to a bitter conclusion.
“We haven’t changed the future at all, the disaster is still coming!”

Midnight and Spike shared a look while Twilight began to pace about the library.

“If the disaster wasn‘t caused by Cerberus getting loose, then what could it possibly be?!” Twilight puzzled as she paced, Midnight and Spike watching wearily

“I dunno, but maybe you oughta give the pacing a rest,” Spike laughed.

“I think he’s right, Twi,” Midnight agreed. “You’ve worn a groove into the floor”

She had. Twilight had been pacing a circle around the center table of the library, and had worn a perfect circle-shaped groove so deep it came up to her barrel.
“I don’t have time for another of your lectures, guys, this is serious!”

“Our lectures?” Spike gave her the stink eye, Midnight shaking his head with a sigh.

“I did everything I could think of to change the future but it didn’t work!” Twilight worried.

“Twilight, remember what I said? No matter what you do, you can’t prepare for every possible outcome.” reminded Midnight.

Twilight suddenly perked, “So maybe it’s not what I do…. But what I don’t do!”

“Say what?” Midnight deadpanned as Twilight teleported to the other side of the room.

“If I stand right here and don’t move a muscle until next Tuesday, I can’t possibly do whatever it is that Future Twilight wanted to warn me not to do!”

She suddenly stiffened and had gone still as a statue.

“Really? So… No matter what happens you’re not gonna move a muscle, huh?” Spike asked with a sneaky look.

“Twilight you’re being ridiculous,” Midnight said but Spike gave him a sharp shush.

"Don't ruin this for me!" Readdressing Twilight, Spike said, “Then maybe you won’t mind if I…” – Zip! – “eat an entire tub of ice cream!”

Twilight’s eyes peered his way but she didn’t move. Midnight just sighed and went over to sit on the couch to take in the show, knowing full well this wouldn’t go as Twilight hoped.

As Spike pigged out, he made sure Twilight had a good view of him eating the ice cream and couldn’t resist poking the sleeping bear with a stick as he mmm’d and said “So good!”

Though she technically, didn’t move, Twilight was sweating and angrily growling lightly but stuck to her guns. Even so, she spoke through clenched teeth, “Spike, stop! Think of the stomachache!”

“Stomachache, huh? That’s Future Spike’s problem,” Spike scoffed, Midnight smirking at that comment, knowing Spike would live to regret it.

*Knock, knock, knock*

The door opened and in walked Soarin, “Yo Twilight! Another pegasus gave the all clear after she got back from Baltimare and-”

He noticed how odd things looks, Spike pigging out and pouring the remainder of the ice cream into his mouth, Twilight standing stiff as a board, Midnight sitting on the couch and taking it all in.
“Uh… What’s up? Aren’t either of you gonna stop him?”

“She sure isn’t,” Spike pointed Twilight out. “In fact, she’s not gonna move till next Tuesday!”

“She think by doing nothing it will prevent the disaster from happening, “Midnight couldn’t help but chuckle as the situation was starting to get to him and Soarin and Spike laughed as well.

“Oh, it would be a crime to not milk this…!” Soarin said with an evil smirk. “Look out, Twilight, there’s a mouse behind you!”

Twilight flinched but didn’t move from her spot, much to the boys' amusement as they burst with laughter at her split-reaction.

“Wait-wait-wait, lemme try!” Spike took a quill from the desk and started tickling Twilight. Having had enough, she telekinetically grabbed him and threw him aside, causing Spike to accidentally let out a burst of fire that got her.

“Oh boy!” Soarin flinched as the guys all grimaced at the sight of Twilight.

“What happened?” Twilight asked sternly.

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to!” Spike apologized. “It was a total accident!”

“Show me.”

“Uh, Twilight, maybe it’s not-” Midnight tried to say.

“Show me!” she insisted.

Sighing, he levitated a mirror to Twilight and she gasped at the sight of her hair!
“This is the same manecut as Future Twilight!”

“Oh Twilight, I’m sure Rarity or even the Spa Ponies could fix it right up,” Midnight assured her.

“I don’t care how it looks!” Twilight exclaimed, “It’s just another sign that the future hasn’t changed! Not doing anything didn’t work either! If only there was a way to find out what was gonna happen so I could stop it!”

“You wanna see the future?” Spike asked with a smirk. “I think I know somepony who can help.”

“Count us out, come on, Soar,” Midnight left the library, followed by Soarin.

At Pepper Pony’s, Midnight spoke with the guys, “It’s driving her up the wall, guys! Twilight obsessing with the future, it’s not good for her health!”

“Well, come on, dude,” Thunderlane brought up, “Twilight is a borderline OCD! Combine with her neurotic need for perfection, yeesh!”

“Twilight has always been this way,” Blueblood brought up. “Back when we were classmates in my aunt’s School for Gifted Unicorns, Twilight always set the bar high in whatever she did, partly because she wanted to live up to being Celestia’s personal protégée, partly because she felt it was expected of her from other ponies.”

“Well, the way she’s going, I fear she’s in for some premature grays,” Soarin said as he took a bite of his slice.

“Eeyup,” Big Mac agreed.

“Well Spike just took her to go see ‘Madame Pinkie Pie’,” Midnight informed them. “I think we all know that’s gonna be a dead-end.”

“Oh yeah.”
“Indeed.”
“Preaching to the choir.”
“Amen t’ that.”

“La, la-la, la-la, la-la,” Pinkie bounced up the library. “Gosh, I haven’t seen Twilight since the flowerpot incident. Hope she still isn’t mad.”

She entered and went upstairs only to let her jaw drop at what she saw. All around the room were stacks of paper, graphs, various instruments, and three or four telescopes peering out the windows, Twilight just looking through one. Spike was enjoying some ice cream and Midnight was wearily holding up a chart.
“Off by .02 from yesterday. Carry the 15… Negative azimuth and the 14th moon…”

“Hi Pinkie,” Spike said casually while Midnight mouthed ‘Help me!’

“Twilight’s real serious about finding out that birthday present isn’t she?” Pinkie marveled at everything.

“Who cares, so long as I get to keep eating ice cream,” Spike took another spoonful. “Sorry Future Spike! Mmm!”

Pinkie went over to Twilight, asking, “Are you okay?”

“Ah Pinkie, I’m glad you’re here,” Twilight said in an oddly polite manner, bags under her eyes. “Can you help me recalibrate the apertures on the 9 ¼ catadioptric telescopes?”

“Sure!” Pinkie agreed but then Midnight groaned.

“Don’t encourage her, Pinkie!”

“Ignore him,” Twilight waved him off. “So I was thinking – After I came to see Madame Pinkie and the flowerpot landed on my head – See the bandage? Just like the bandage from the future.”

“Another sign of crazy!” Midnight barked but was ignored.

“I had an epiphany after that flowerpot,” Twilight went on. “Doing things didn’t work, not doing things didn’t work, and I couldn’t predict the future either. So I had only one other choice… Monitor everything!”

“Makes sense to me,” Pinkie shrugged.
To you maybe! Midnight groaned mentally.

“That way, no matter what happens in the future, I’ll be ready,” Twilight looked into another telescope. “I thought I saw something last night in the Horsehead Nebula. But after staring at it for three hours straight, I realized I was wrong!”

“Three hours, when did you sleep?” Pinkie worried.

“She DIDN'T!” Midnight couldn’t take it anymore! “She hasn’t slept a wink since she said she saw Future Twilight, which I’m starting to think was nothing more than a dream!”

“Midnight!” Twilight snapped. “I know what I saw, I’m not crazy!”

The fact she said that with a facial expression that could definitely be interpreted as ‘crazy’ did not help her case.

“Twilight, as your friend, I say this because I care about you…” Midnight took a deep breath. “YOU'RE TURNING AN ANTHILL INTO A MOUNTAIN, AS ALWAYS! What do you expect to do, stay awake, monitor everything, until Tuesday morning?! You could work with an entire science division and be unable to accomplish that! Besides, in your insane omni-monitoring, you’ve lost track of time!”

“He’s right, Twilight,” Pinkie said. “Tuesday’s tomorrow.”

Gasping, Twilight Flashed to a telescope and peered through, asking, “Pinkie, did you finish recalibrating the apertures of the 9 ¼ catadioptric telescopes?”

“I have no idea!” Pinkie said giggly, while Midnight sank to his belly in a groan.

“Aah! My eye!”

Midnight looked up and saw Twilight covering her eye while Pinkie went over to the fireplace, “Don’t worry, Twilight! I have eyepatches stashed all over Ponyville!”

She went over and placed it onto Twilight’s right eye.
“In case of eye patch emergencies.”

“Of course,” Midnight muttered while Twilight gasped at her reflection from the mirror Pinkie pulled up.

“Now you look like a pirate, a sleepy pirate with a really weird manecut.”

“The eyepatch, another sign!” Twilight went through papers, “Nearly all the signs have come true! I haven’t done a thing to prevent the catastrophe!”

She hurried over to a chalkboard covered with equations.
“If Tuesday’s tomorrow and the disaster happens by Tuesday morning, then there’s but one solution – I must… stop time!”

Does anyone else think Twilight should see someone about her neurosis?