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// Down To 2 Options (Super Store Beginning Arc) 
// Story: I Couldn't Become Nightmare Moon, So I Got A New Job! 
// by Ultimus Pendragon 
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Luna walked into Miniature Menagerie, mumbling to herself as she recalled the events of last week. Spike and Pinkie Pie's little. . .excursion with Braeburn certainly made a place in Luna's mind on what not to do when it concerned the two of them. With picking up her morning drink and leaving a tad bit earlier than what she would have been okay with, the former princess of the night felt. . .ok for the moment.

When she set her coat down and breathed a breath, that was the moment where things took a turn.

''Come on, one of you guys has to do this! The day can't go on unless it gets done!'' Moon Dancer stomped a hoof on the ground, pointing to Spike and Pinkie, who looked hesitant as Moon Dancer advanced on them. Luna rolled her eyes as she was sure as whatever it was the three of them were debating could be handled with enough time and talking.

''Well. . .why not get Luna to do it? She is still new,'' Pinkie said, noting the lack of their newest worker who Moon Dancer was sure that wanted to have the initiative to prove herself to the new job and possibly even get promoted. The possibilities were endless. ''Plus is still an Alicorn, so she could-'' Luna interrupted the Earth Pony as she had had enough of her name being mentioned when she was not immediately there.

''To do what exactly now? More errands to far off lands to do Celestia knows where for another ambiguous transaction of goods?'' Luna asked as she walked into the fray, Spike and Moon Dancer looking to the Alicorn as she waited to be briefed on what was set to occur.

''Well,'' Moon Dancer said, walking over to the counter and bringing some papers with her as she prepared to go over the day's schedule. ''We have a. . .issue concerning a rival store of ours, and believe me if we let them get the upper hoof on us, then it will not be a good day for any of us.''

''Why is that?'' Luna asked, looking at the papers that detailed the rival store in question and how much more productivity and otherwise sales in contrast to Miniature Menagerie. ''And how do you have this much information about this 'other store'?''

''Pinkie,'' Spike pointed to his fellow co-worker, noting her ability to get information on almost anypony with enough time. . .and confectionary assistance. ''It tells us that we are about 15% behind this rival store in terms of what they sell, how they sell it, and more importantly; their image.''

''And why was I not told about this?'' Luna asked. Spike shook his head as he thought back to the Appaloosa excursion where Luna was a bit under the weather to where she had two heads and the interaction between the two of them where she mouthed off plenty of different ideas that she herself was unsure enough about that the other would merely agree or disagree with to the point of being a possible second personality that was possible repressed due to her time being on the moon and the acclimation of the entirely different life she had to adjust to. ''I would think it important to tell me about this 'Super Store'.''

''We did, Luna! You were too woosy to pay attention!'' Pinkie remembered the night in all its glory or lack thereof. Rolling her eyes at that comment, the time for action prompted Luna to ask what exactly they would be doing. She was sure that no matter what they had to do, that it would end in the result that they wanted.

''Well, we're down to two options,'' Moon Dancer poofed up a whiteboard with a pink and green marker, drawing Spike and Pinkie Pie's names and putting a divider between the two as she began to write down the base point of what each one wanted to have happened. Spike's idea was more akin to a full-frontal assault to demand the secrets of their success versus Pinkie's idea of going undercover to find the secrets without being found out. ''Pinkie wants to go in undercover, though it'll take longer.''

''Aye,'' Luna nodded agreeing with the idea but turning to Pinkie as she spoke up. ''And what of you, Pinkie?''

''And I want to go into the store and find out by just asking, and they should just tell us,'' Spike said, hoping that the way he wanted to go about things would bring about a better result than Pinkie. ''They would probably tell us everything we want to know versus taking time.''

Luna cast a thought to herself about the two plans, and even though her head was a bit clouded still from having two heads, she had to admit that Spike's plan would still be better to go with Pinkie's of the guise of being part of the rival store. "I may still be a little under the effects of Poison Joke, but if we are to ascertain the means of how they are able to produce more revenue than us.''

''You know, they haven't been in this part of Canterlot for very long, so maybe the name of their brand carried some buying power here,'' Spike thought about one possibility as to how quickly the business was booming versus their own.

Moon Dancer also wanted to agree, but she had yet to tell Luna her part in the grand scheme of all things. ''Well, I guess since Spike, myself, and Luna are in agreement, then that is what we will do. But, there is something that you all should know, especially you, Luna.'' Moon Dancer said as she looked at her worker.

''Hah! How bad could it possibly be?''

''Trixie is the manager of the store.''

Luna's eyes narrowed, looking to Spike with a focused glare as he backpedaled a bit, noting the serious look that threatened to tear him in two if he was not careful. ''What's the address?''