As the Second group of Elements retired to their rooms in The Prancing Ponyville Inn, graciously provided to them for the duration of their stay, Second Twilight felt relief to finally be alone. It had been a long day, and her fascination at being in another universe had somewhat ebbed.
A look around the room proved satisfying. Most notably, it held a decent-sized bed and fluffy sheets and pillows. The dresser and other odds and ends were also pleasant, but not nearly as inviting. Truth be told, she was glad to have a break from the questions she had been subjected to by First Twilight.
Not that she blamed her — it was hardly unlike herself — but the unicorn was weary and had secrets to hide. That was never a safe combination.
-----------
"So, you have parents, right?"
"Um… yes."
"Right, right, and what are they like? Are they the same as mine?"
"How should I know—"
"Right, of course. Heh, silly me. What about Spike? Did you hatch him in an entrance exam for the judges at Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns immediately after Rainbow Dash set off her sonic rainboom and turn your parents into a potted cactus and agave while-"
Second Twilight sat very still and quiet at the large table in the library’s dining area, partially thankful for the amount of info her mirror self was divulging, but also regretting the insight into what others might consider her more annoying tendencies. The dedicated student wondered if she always sounded this... exuberant.
"—thus becoming Celestia's personal protege?"
The guest Twilight blinked, having faded out for a moment. She attributed that to the lack of sleep over the past few nights, having been prepared for… a very different day than expected. Cursed draconequus. Luckily, she caught the gist of the question pretty well.
"Yes. That sounds very much like how that night went. How did your first trip to Ponyville go?" The more she could keep the other one doing the talking, the less likely she could say something incriminating. Plus, she was learning about several differences between this world and hers, such as the low crime rate and lack of crystalvision and stratoscreen technology.
Pausing, she spent a moment wondering about a possible correlation. It was something to investigate when she returned home.
"—do you think?"
Second Twilight looked at the first blankly, who was waiting expectantly. Unfortunately, she had tuned out for a moment, again, and had no idea what the other was waiting on. Panicked, she just nodded. "Right."
A frown slowly formed on First Twilight's face. "Did you tune me out?"
"Uh…" Why couldn’t she have been more skilled in lying? It was bad enough under normal circumstances. Now, she had to deal with sleep deprivation, alternate universes, Discord, two chattering Pinkies, and an eye-twitch that blinded her right eye every seven seconds! All of that was while hiding who she was from herself. It was no wonder she was starting to get flustered as the mirror image stared hard at her.
Luckily, she still managed to be calm. Relatively. She could fake it, in any case. There was that much going for her, at least.
Having grown impatient with her doppelganger's non-responsiveness, First Twilight groaned and covered her head with her hooves. "Oh, I should have known I'd get overexcited! I'm even scaring off myself!"
"Hey, it’s no big deal! I'm listening; I just zoned out for a moment when a thought distracted me." Had she always been like this, herself? It was almost starting to wear on her how rambunctious the other Twilight was acting.
First pulled herself back up, sheepishly. Her face grew half grateful, half mock-glare at the other. "Why are you so calm?"
With a shrug, Second looked away and tried to bypass the question as quickly as possible. "I guess I've just matured a bit more than you have, so far. Maybe our worlds are out of temporal sync or some other semi-logical, fully theoretical explanation?"
Her look-alike's eyes widened. "You think? That could be the case… and I think I read something similar in a book before. Something about foals and a wardrobe?"
She shrugged again. All that mattered was that she had deflected attention away from herself.
"Shouldn't you be worried about your friends aging rapidly while you're away, in case it's more than just out of sync?"
Grimacing, Second's eyes started shifting about. The other scholar wasn't supposed to ask that! She should be concerned about temporal physics right now! In all honesty, she couldn't find it in her to care about anyone back there, just her duties.
Should I act confused? Should I act surprised? I can't force myself to care, but can I fake it on short notice? I hadn't thought about that question, so what kind of horror should my face contort to show? Should I make a run for it? No, that's stupid, stop-
"Twilight?"
She jerked, realizing she had again fallen into her thoughts. Panicking, she-
Panic! Shock! Of course!
Suddenly remembering how to act, Second Twilight took advantage of her own freakout. "I- I hadn't thought about that." Putting a hoof to her chin, as if in thought, she let her eyes jump around and focus on various objects for a split second, faking a continuing panic. "I've been so tired over the last few days, it never occurred to me. I hope they're all okay."
First bit her lip in guilt for bringing up the tragic idea. "Uh… heh, um… I know! Why don't we discuss how we'll separate the group when we reach Smite's hideout, presuming its big enough to warrant such a tactic? I've got a graph with all of our strengths and weaknesses, we could all go over that and see if there are any other differences between us and our doubles!"
Feeling deeply relieved at her stalling technique pulling through, Second put on her distracted face and allowed herself to look forgetful in light of this new suggestion.
First Twilight got up and left to retrieve her research material from the basement, breathing a sigh of relief at the subject change.
Second Twilight watched her twin sharply, withholding a sigh of relief at the subject change.
-----------
It had been a close one. Not a big deal in the small scale, but a detail like a lack of genuine care for her friends could set the seeds for distrust. If anypony decided to snoop into Twilight's affairs, it would not end well… for them. She would have to be very careful.
Especially with such an unusual friend accompanying her.
As Second Twilight continued unpacking her things, she pulled an apple out of her knapsack and tossed it into the air behind her. It stopped in midair and floated around a bit, before a bite was suddenly taken from it and disappeared.
"Mmmm… apples."
Twilight turned around and, from her perspective, looked upon a frightful creature. Pale and misshapen, he had yellow eyes and a spiked black mane. There were wings, but they were nothing like those of a pegasus; far too short and with a sickly texture. His mouth stretched across his face with wickedly sharp teeth. His breath smelled of fruit. "Byuk," Twilight started quietly, catching the strange being's attention, "enjoy that apple. We don't know what kind of observation we'll be under, nor how much time we'll have to spend around the others. I don't want you garnering any attention while we're here."
Byuk's face didn't change, but his flight drooped a little. "Why does it matter? We're not here to stay, right?"
Twilight glared at him. "I want this trip to go smooth and simple. I have a few tests I want to attempt while here, because being in another universe is too good an opportunity to pass up. Aside from that, we're going to behave and keep things under control. There's too many variables about this place… and those ponies that came with us." As she said this, she gave a hard stare at the door of her room, as if she could see beyond it to the other alternate ponies.
Byuk gave her a look. "You don't trust them?"
Twilight didn't visually dignify that with even a glance, eyes still fixed on the doorway. After a moment, however, she did respond, "I don't think we can trust anyone. Discord chose us for a reason. Why would he have brought six different mares from six different universes if we're all friends and already working together in each?"
Raising a talon, Byuk pointed out, "Well, except yours. You killed Rarity and Pinkie Pie, remember?"
Her eyes widened and she jerked towards him in a snarl. "That… that's not the point!"
Byuk shrugged.
Twilight turned back toward the door, almost challenging it to bring forth one of her 'friends.' "Discord brought me here, and I'm dangerous. I wouldn't hurt anyone who didn't deserve it, but how can I know the same about them? I won't believe that whatever he had in mind for me, he doesn't have a similar plan about the others. I can't trust any of them."
_________
Second Applejack set the picture of Applebloom, Big Mac, Granny, and herself on the dresser provided by the hotel room. She adjusted the frame's position a few times before nodding satisfactorily to herself.
The farm pony smiled sadly, thinking about her family. She could almost smell her granny's apple pie. It occurred to her that she could visit their doubles on this world and treat them as her own family, but… that felt like it wouldn't be proper.
This odd visit to another universe wasn't exactly her cup of tea. Neither was trusting Discord, although he was a bit more than she could handle by herself. He had cornered her while she was away from her friends and family, offering her this opportunity rather forcefully. Without much of a choice in the matter she relented, especially after hearing these alternate friends of hers could use her help. There wasn't anything special about her, she knew. Just one of the team: Applejack, the Honest.
Although, if everypony in this group was untrusting of each other, Applejack wasn't sure what kind of a team there was to be had. She frowned while thinking about earlier, when her other self was watching her strangely.
--------
As First Twilight finished handing out the snacks, First Applejack pulled her aside. She brought her out of earshot of the rest of the room, though still in sight of the others.
"Twilight, I got somethin' I need to talk to you about." The cowpony nervously rubbed her left foreleg with her right, obviously uncomfortable with the topic she was bringing up. She glanced at her counterpart before focusing back at the floor in front of herself.
Curious, the unicorn waited. "Yes?"
Applejack stole another glance at Second Applejack, who didn't seem to notice, before turning back to Twilight. "I think the other me is hiding something."
Her friend raised an eyebrow. "Ooookay. Any reason why?"
Biting her lip and looking down, Applejack took a moment to answer. "I… ah just do! Something about her eyes… it's sitting wrong with me."
Twilight blinked, unsure how to respond. "Umm…."
Applejack let out a snort of frustration at her own inability to communicate. "Look, ah know that sounds silly. But I'm telling ya, she's lying to us about something."
A grimace showed itself on her friend's face. "I'm sorry, Applejack, I just can't acce-"
"Ah ain't making it up, and it ain't my imagination! Ah don't trust a word coming out of her mouth. She's lying about something, and I won't stand for it!" The honest mare stomped a hoof on the ground in determination. Afterwards, she took a deep breath and calmed down, looking into her friend's eyes for a reaction.
Twilight stared at her blankly. "AJ, I've seen you lie."
The cowpony narrowed her eyes in thought. "Are you talking about when Discord did that personality-changing chaos mojo with us? I don't think that should count against me-"
The unicorn shook her head, interrupting. "No, Applejack, you're missing what I'm saying. I've seen you lie. You're a terrible liar." Applejack blinked in surprise. "It's not a bad thing," Twilight continued, "because you're the Element of Honesty, but I don't think you could successfully deceive somepony to save your life!"
Applejack stared at her friend, temporarily speechless. Nopony had told her she was a bad liar before, especially so strongly. Of course, she strived to be truthful in the first place, so it made sense. After a moment, the pony frowned and shook her head. Leaning towards Twilight in her frustration, she growled out, "She ain't me, Twi! There's something about her ah don't like."
Twilight again glanced at the other Applejack, who seemed to have noticed their conversation and was watching them, curiously. She turned back to her friend. "Well, you won't have to deal with her much longer. We're splitting into groups and I don't want anypony being with themselves; that way we can minimize confusion." Twilight shrugged as she added, "In the meantime, you can always just avoid her."
The orange earth pony looked warily at her double again. "I think now you're the one missing my point, Twi. Be careful around her."
---------------
The Second Applejack wasn't sure what they had been talking about, but she got the distinct impression that her counterpart didn't trust her. It wasn't hard to notice; the other Applejack was as easy to read as Winona at the dinner table. It was still a little insulting.
Taking a deep breath to calm herself, the farm pony let go of the frustration and continued unpacking. She didn't have much; she wasn't Rarity, that frilly filly.
Applejack snorted to herself at the nickname, deciding to call her that at a later date to see her reaction. She didn't tease ponies much, but Rarity was an exception who could give as good as she got. The fashionista was a little annoying at times, but they could get along.
Was this other Rarity the same? How much alike were these alternate ponies to her friends? Should she trust them?
Applejack frowned. She shouldn't be thinking like that. These ponies invited her in and here she was doubting their character. She could handle working with them; earn their trust.
It would be best if she could start by gaining the trust of her other self. Something like that would sound easy, but the other Applejack might take some convincing. Regardless, it was a necessary task if they were going to work together to stop Smite.
Besides, she was in a town full of ponies. If she met any bad apples among them, she'd need some late-night access to the Apple Orchard.
And a shovel.
____________
Although they were discouraged from leaving the inn — something about confusing the rest of Ponyville — Rainbow Dash was anxious to get outside and fly. In a new world, how could somepony just sit inside when there was exploration to be done?
After unpacking, Rainbow Dash began some simple exercises to warm up her muscles. She had a quick and simple routine, put together from different interview pieces of the members of the Wonderbolts. If it worked for them, Dash didn't see any reason not to follow in their hoofsteps; and she'd made it twenty percent more effective, too, as far as she was concerned.
In the middle of one-hooved push-ups, the pegasus heard a noise outside the window of her temporary room. Peeking out, she saw a couple of pegasi children, nearly old enough for the flight school's final exam, playing with a soccer ball.
Dash smirked, watching the light yellow filly kick towards the gray-blue colt. The speedster wondered how much longer their time together would last where she was from, considering the girl was in excellent health and the boy had a slight defect in his right wing. She had learned to tell that sort of thing over the years.
In her world, once the day of the test came, they would have been separated forever.
Sometimes Dash wondered why they didn't deal with the obvious ones early, instead of waiting for the exam. It would save their friends from the pain of a longer attachment. They could just quietly set up a transfer to a new school, or something, and after the few sad farewells… ship them to the Factory.
Rainbow Dash snorted at her own musings, turning away from the window. It wasn't her place to manage the system of choosing the foals. She just had her job to do. A duty, actually; one that she'd grown to love.
Maybe she could even help out her look-alike some while visiting this world?
After all, she had basically gotten confirmation from her other self about how the process worked on this side of the universal divide. From what was said, it sounded like they used an even more efficient system.
-----------
During a lull where their friends were preoccupied, First Rainbow Dash noticed her counterpart turn toward her to strike up a conversation. She was obviously trying — and failing — to look casual, so Dash wondered what she had on her mind.
"So…" the other drawled, "any notable ponies fail the exam recently?"
Dash blinked at her for a moment, before recalling that stupid test young pegasi used to take. "Oh, we stopped doing that exam thing awhile back."
Her double's eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"
"Yeah, it was just slowing us down." Dash snorted. "Sorting out the pack became a lot easier when we didn't have to bother doing it."
It was true enough; although, she left out the part about the protests. A lot of ponies didn't like having fillies and colts assigned to cities for work, instead of letting them choose their own route. The exam had been a way to select the best ponies for the right cities. Obviously, the other Dash's world was still going by that method.
Second Dash slowly nodded, like she was working out the pros and cons of letting all the young ponies choose their own way. Suddenly, she frowned and asked, "You don't just send them all to… uh, you know… the same place, do you?"
The local pegasus frowned, confused. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, there are still fillies and colts in Cloudsdale, right?"
Rainbow Dash laughed. "Well, yeah! It wouldn't be much of a city if there were none left!"
Second Dash laughed as well, realizing her own silliness. "Right. Of course."
Rainbow winked. "We've got to keep some of them for ourselves, am I right? Cloudsdale wouldn't make a good ghost town, even with rainbows everywhere." After all, what were they going to do? Send them all to Fillydelphia? This Rainbow Dash had a funny idea of how to handle young ponies.
The visitor grinned widely and lifted her drink in a toast. "To Cloudsdale!"
Her double mirrored her expression. "To the pegasi!"
The two comrades downed their drinks and slapped each other on the back as they relived some racing stories in front of their friends.
-----------
It was rather heartwarming to be accepted so easily by another universe's version of herself. It just went to show how awesome she really was. If only there were a way to pay it back, something she could do for her host.
Dash smirked. Now that she thought about it, she could help out with something. She was an expert in weeding out the weak, she knew. She could help Cloudsdale in whatever selecting process they'd created to provide fuel for the Factory.
Although… it was not her Cloudsdale.
Rainbow Dash frowned and contemplated whether there was a conflict in interest in serving two different Rainbow Factories. Was it disloyal to serve another Flock of Pegasi, even if it was just an alternate version of her own?
It was only a momentary dilemma for Dash before she shrugged off the thought. It didn't really matter which Cloudsdale it was for, nor what world she was on. This was a job which could serve either community. She was loyal to whomever needed her, whichever side would accept her help in doing what she'd come to consider her duty.
Elimination of the weak.
_________
Keep it calm.
It had become a mantra.
Keep it calm. You can do this.
The Rarity of yet another universe took a deep breath and tried to relax. She was laying on her back atop the bed, staring at the ceiling and hoping to cope with the situation.
She had been fine at first, the dimension hop hardly too much for her to handle. She and her friends had been through enough at this point. That was, she had been fine until it occurred to her what wasn't here. What place wasn't here, to be precise.
The basement. Her basement.
If this other Rarity had been like her, then it may have been there, under Carousel Boutique. Her counterpart wasn't a killer, though; at least not the same as herself. She had carefully tested for that.
-----------
"Are you a serial killer?"
The words were fast and blurred, but clear enough to just be understood by the identical unicorn next to her. That Rarity choked on the water she had been drinking, spitting out part of it and coughing up the rest. "I'm sorry, what?"
Watching the honest confusion on her double's face, the Rarity from another world lifted from her purse a baggie of tiny marshmallows, her face completely blank. "I asked if you wanted some cereal filler?"
The other Rarity blinked before shaking her head. "It's the strangest thing, but I could have sworn you said something else." After a moment of staring in space, she frowned. "I'm sorry, why 'cereal filler'? I'm not even eating any cereal."
The visiting Rarity shrugged, stuffing the bag away. "No reason."
-----------
Upon the memory, the killer grimaced. Perhaps she could have used a touch more subtlety.
Honestly, she didn't know why she was feeling so panicked. It would only be three more days until she could go back home, and she'd certainly gone longer without… indulging.
Looking down, she noticed her rear legs jittering about. Jumping up from the bed, Rarity paced for a moment or two, before deciding it was tiring. She lay back down with a groan, on her stomach this time, crossing her forehooves and dropping her chin on top.
It wouldn't be right to act against somepony in this world, anyway. It wasn't hers. These weren't her streets to clean up. Her special area out in the forest would belong to somepony else. Nopony's body had been torn open by her hooves, and with so little time, it would be unwise to start.
This inability to act, though… it made it all the harder to stop herself. It was especially difficult when the thought would occur to her that whoever she would kill, if she could keep it hidden for only a few days, there would be no consequences. Nopony from her world would know, and none from this world could come and arrest her. The situation made for an all-too-tempting fantasy.
Rarity smiled and relaxed. She could enjoy herself here. Sitting back, making plans for after returning to her world, imagining new methods of… studying her victims. Of course, anything she tried would have to remain in the small basement, away from prying eyes and ears. Especially her little sister.
Sweetie Belle.
The thought froze her in place. Her little sister, who lived with her and counted on her, was all alone. Discord said very little time would pass while here, but any time at all could be enough for something horrendous to happen. It's a scary world back there!
She would know, as one of the monsters in the shadows.
Rarity shook that thought from her mind. She couldn't help herself. Who she was… it couldn't be helped. It wasn't her fault.
It was their fault. Sweetie Belle was stuck in a world of filth, and her big sister wasn't there to protect her. Rarity had promised her she wouldn't let anything happen to her; she’d sworn to protect her sister!
What about all the ponies she’d killed that had family? Friends? Debt collectors? She wasn't there to keep a lid on her secret, so what if their friends, family, anyone found out about her? They could want revenge! Sweetie Belle could be in danger right now!
Rarity started hyperventilating, sitting up on her haunches. She had to get home. She had to get back to Sweetie Belle! She had to clear this world of that scumbag, Smite, so she could get back to her own. For Sweetie Belle!
Rarity realized she was panicking and took some deep breaths. It would be fine. She could get this done, she just needed to keep a clear head.
Keep it calm.
_________
"Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear, oh dear-" the other-dimensional Fluttershy chanted, pacing back and forth on the hardwood floor. Her eyes were wide and movements jittery, as she traced a path not quite a line but too crooked for an oval.
Thumping a forehoof against the nearest of her bed's posts, she gasped out a whimper and jerked into a sitting position, wringing her hooves.
"My poor little baby! She's all alone. She must be so scared! She won't be able to take care of herself! Oh, if only I could find a foalsitter who would understand!" Her worried face immediately jolted into a snarl. "That Discord! He did this!"
The yellow pegasus realized how mean she had just sounded, gasping and rearing back. Her shocked face quickly fell back into concern.
He put me in such a bad position. He wouldn't let me say no without giving a good reason! I can't risk anyone finding my baby! What would they do to her?
Taking in a deep breath, Fluttershy tried to recover some semblance of calm. It would not be long that they would stay here. She tried thinking back to Twilight's estimate.
-----------
"Another three days."
A few voices in the room whined or groaned. The Rainbow Dashes whined while the other world's Applejack groaned. The local Applejack and most everypony else mostly frowned or grimaced, although Second Rarity looked pale.
Then again, when didn't she?
Second Fluttershy hesitantly raised a hoof. "Couldn't we- um… do it sooner?" She smiled widely in hope, a small squeak escaping. It was a somewhat alarming false smile, and the Rarity next to her shifted away a little.
First Twilight shook her head. "Sorry, Fluttershy." The purple pony's eyes narrowed, as if trying to distinguish to which version she was speaking. "Uh… Second, right?"
Oddly, one of the Pinkies nodded for her and answered, "And straight on 'til morning!"
Nopony paid the nonsense any mind. Whatever the universe, the pink pony was eternally random.
Second Twilight continued where the first let off. "My counterpart and I have worked out the optimal schedule, taking into account variables such as guard shift duty of Smite's lair, number of robotic minions, lair navigation, finding its location…"
As she waved a hoof around, trying to think of what her sleep-lacking brain was missing, First Rainbow realized what was just said and leaped up, hovering while she blurted out, "Whoa, wait! We don't even know where it is?!"
Both Twilights looked at her strangely and shook their heads, identically timed.
Rainbow blinked. "Okay, that's creepy. But aside from that, how do we know all that other stuff about his lair if we don't even know where it is?"
First Twilight smiled. "Well, that's where you two Dashes come in!"
Both Rainbow Dashes blinked now, replying as one, "Say what now?"
Second Twilight nodded her head. "Tomorrow, you're both going to the general area Smite is known to have escaped to, then find his lair and collect data for us!"
Her twin agreed. "We estimate that we'll have the necessary data tomorrow night, and can then use the third day to interpret the exact time we should confront him!"
Both colorful pegasi had open mouths, though nothing was coming out.
The guest Fluttershy raised her hoof once more. Her voice came out soft and meek, but forceful as she asked. "Could I vote that the Dashes quickly take care of Smite while there? Um… if they think they can, that is?"
First Dash grinned and did a quick flip. "Yeah! Totally with my girl Flutters on that one! Thanks for sticking up for me!"
While the sky blue pegasi were thanking her, everypony else was looking at her in shock. Eventually, First Fluttershy leaned over and asked, "Uh… pardon me? Um… wouldn't that be- uh… kind of…" her voice started drifting down into nearly inaudible tones, "you know… not very… nice?" She almost flinched back as she said the last word, already afraid she might have insulted her other self.
Although the yellow-coated guest could see her point, and would normally agree, she couldn't let anyone know there was a reason she needed to get back now! "What do you mean?"
"What she means," First Applejack almost bit out, "is that you just suggested sending both Rainbow Dashes into a dangerous pit with a rattlesnake that may have friends in the dark corners. Ignoring the fact that the Dashes would be more likely to have to hurt Smite to get out of there without the rest of us backing them, they'd be in a mite of danger themselves in the best of circumstances!"
Fluttershy looked up at Rainbow Dash. Suddenly, she saw a different rainbow-maned pony looking down to her from a crib. She was so different, and yet so very alike.
Resisting the urge to whimper, Second Fluttershy looked down sadly and, with real regret in her voice, muttered in a partial lie, "Oh. I hadn't thought of that."
Applejack looked a little chagrined with herself at hurting the sensitive pegasus. "Right. We know you didn't mean no harm, sugarcube. Sorry for being so short with ya."
Fluttershy nodded and smiled back, to show no harm was done. She faded out as the discussion got back on track, too focused on her thoughts to listen.
-----------
Four days. That included today.
Somewhere out there, beyond her reach, was a mind-warped blue pegasus who just needed somepony to watch out for her. What if somepony found her? What if they hurt her? Even worse than that, what if they took her?
What if her little Dashie went back to being an adult again, and Fluttershy would be left all alone?
Unacceptable. Rainbow Dash needed Fluttershy. Even if she had to break her baby's wings and legs, Dash belonged with her. Forever.
If she could only get back.
The yellow pegasus sighed and lay down, trying to keep her worry from pressing down on her. "Oh, dear."
_________
Pinkie was buzzing around her room in excitement. It was so fascinating being in another world! The dresser looked just like it would where she was from! The bed had a similar mattress to what she slept on back home! Even the mirror showed the same reflection!
She giggled and started bouncing on her tail for a moment before grabbing her bag from the doorway. She found a nice, open area in the room and set it in the center, opening it up. Pinkie pulled out a plate with a slice of cake on it and gobbled it up, before tossing the plate aside and pulling out a kitchen knife which she set on the bed. Then she dropped a rolling pin, butter, and a candy apple next to it.
After a moment's hesitation, she bit off half the candy apple and stuck the rest on the dresser for later consumption. The sugar would help the pretty pink party popper pony prepare the room for her stay. It might not be a long stay, but she had to make the best of it while she was here! There's no telling what fun could be had on a whole other world!
Pinkie gasped happily and began setting up her room. As she pulled her favorite six-foot lamp out of her two-foot bag — setting it next to the oven that she'd had to remove to get to it — she wondered what all that fuss had been about earlier regarding everypony's look-alike. Did her friends seriously have such a hard time distinguishing themselves from each other?
-----------
"Raspberry!"
"Blueberry!"
"Strawberry!"
"Cherry!"
"Spicy gumdrops!"
One of the Applejacks leaned away and whispered, "What are they doing?"
The Rainbow Dash next to her shrugged, then started scratching her head while trying to make out what game, or interrogation, the two Pinkies were engaged in.
"Soccer balls!"
"Lampshades!"
Rainbow Dash shook her head; there was still no sense. "To be honest, I can't even tell which one's which."
Applejack looked at her curiously. "Uh, no offense, sugarcube, but which one were you, again?"
Dash looked at her in mock suspicion. "You first."
Twilight had been watching them and spoke up, knowing whom was who. "Applejack."
"Yes, Twi?"
The purple unicorn jerked forward and nearly tripped over herself. That Applejack's voice had come from behind her, right over her shoulder. Twilight pinched the bridge of her nose with a hoof. "Don't do that, AJ!"
"Do what, Twi?" the previous Applejack chimed in, her attention having been caught that time.
Twilight groaned. "Not you, AJ. I was talking to her."
She pointed her hoof in the other direction at the same time she turned, but the Applejack behind her had already moved on.
"Oh? You were?" Fluttershy shrunk back a little at the hoof that now pointed at her. "I'm sorry."
Twilight blinked. "What? No, Fluttershy!" Her voice was exasperated.
"Oh, my, I'm sorry." The other Fluttershy. "I didn't mean to make you upset."
Twilight didn't bother responding, just sat down at the table. Now she really had lost track of who everypony was. And there was one set of ponies that were pushing that nerve the extra mile. "Pinkie!"
"Yes, Twilight?" Stereo. Great.
"Just… both of you, calm down for a few minutes. Okay?"
Both pink ponies nodded their heads vigorously, perfectly synchronized in opposite directions; when one head was up, the other was down.
"Thank you." Twilight took in a deep breath. "I just need to concentrate."
She caught First Rarity passing her from the kitchen in the corner of her eye. "Rarity."
The fashion mare stopped and turned around, giving her attention.
"Listen, Rarity, you know that book you borrowed from me? The Etymology of Equestrian Names? The cover had that picture of an ancient headdress you were interested in?"
Rarity stared at her for a moment. "I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. However, I suppose it shouldn't be surprising, since I've never known you, specifically, before today." She smirked and continued on her way to the seat at the other end of the table.
Twilight frowned. She took another deep breath, then slumped over the table. Everypony had stopped talking and stared at her, but she didn't care.
Finally, she said, "This is going to get more confusing visually than audibly, I think. Would anypony happen to have an idea on how to fix that?"
One of the Pinkies widened her eyes and started waving her hoof in the air, drawing attention as she began making excited noises. "Oh! Oh! I know! I have just the solution!"
Twilight, without care, waved her hoof lazily as a signal for Pinkie to share her idea.
The rest of the room watched as Pinkie Pie reached down and searched for something — though nopony could see from where — before turning around and messing with her face. When she faced the group again, and settled into a relaxed pose, puzzled glances were exchanged regarding the goatee now decorating the pink pony's face.
After a long moment, Twilight asked, "Pinkie? Why is there hair on your face?"
Pinkie rolled her eyes. "Where else would you put a beard, huh?"
"That's… not what I meant."
One of the Raritys coughed, though it was a polite, attention-seeking sound. Twilight thought she recognized her as her own Rarity, but couldn't be sure. Everypony looked her way as she stood and put forth her solution. "Perhaps I could offer assistance in this area, as well as my other self, if she is up to the task?" She turned to said self and waited as she stood as well, giving a look that the first knew to mean she had figured out what was being offered and was in agreement.
The other Rarity put in, "Yes, we would be delighted to offer our services to subtly differentiate everypony from… themselves, so to speak. A hat here, an earring there, perhaps even a scarf in Rainbow Dash's case."
The first nodded. "It would really do wonders for our identities while working together, if I may be so bold. We'll give everypony a look exclusively spiffy in no time at all!"
Twilight smiled. "That would be wonderful, thank you… both!" The two fashionistas smiled and sat down again.
As the ponies were nodding and agreeing, with the Applejacks already trying to come up with an idea regarding their hats, the Pinkies turned to each other. The one with no facial hair was unhappy.
"Hey, I'm the evil mirror version, so I should get the beard, right?"
The first Pinkie stuck her tongue out in good fun, while the other pouted.
Twilight hadn't missed out on the comment, though. "Wait, what do you mean evil, Pinkie?"
Both Pinkies looked at her, blinking in confusion. The bearded one responded, "Duh! Any time there's a mirror version of somepony, one of them has to be evil!"
The other nodded her head in agreement. "Yeah, it's like a law or a trope, or some other kind of official rule."
The first one nodded as well. "Yeah, you don't want to break a trope, Twilight!"
The double pinged right back, "Definitely not!"
With both of them nodding sagely at her, the purple unicorn turned to her own "twin" in the hope of finding understanding, but her other self was just as lost and shrugged back. Frowning again, Twilight dropped her head to her hoof and moaned, "Ugh! There's two of them!"
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The killer pink party pony pranced up to a board with dozens of sheets tacked in, set up in one corner of the room across from a pony-sized table with straps. The sheets were of various materials and showed graphs, equations, formulas, pony-flavored pastry recipes, her portrayal of a turnip granted superpowers, census records, and a mailing list stolen from Derpy, all of which she planned to use to remake her numbering system; except for the turnip.
With this type of inter-dimensional event, it was like the world was refreshed. More ponies that she couldn't get to before! Maybe after this, they could have more adventures in other worlds! Dealing with this type of stuff was complicated, of course, so the new system would be necessary. The only question was what it would be based on.
Pinkie frowned and held a hoof to her chin, trying to think. Unfortunately, all she could concentrate on was a song her other self had been humming earlier, which she recognized but couldn't recall the lyrics. It was on the tip of her memory, if she could just… reach it.
Sighing in frustration, she pulled a banana out of a notebook, peeled it, and started munching on it while thinking. It helped to pull her focus back to the numbers.
As she thought about it, she grew excited. She loved taking ponies into her care and transforming them into delicious pastries. Her little cakes were an especially delectable complement to the tangy taste of a usual pony. Pinkie could barely contain her joy as she thought about the possible difference of taste an alternate universe pony would have! What would be the best sugary confection to make them into? What if she tried dabbling in something a little different for her special recipe? She knew one pony that would love to try a brand new set of muffins, after all.
Feeling her hooves leave the ground, Pinkie realized she had started bouncing. She smiled and laughed, before rushing to take down notes and put together her number system. The sooner she could pull a new number, the better.
She could almost hear the screams in her head now. The begging for mercy. The pleading for a swift end. The curious tone they first had, which shifted into fearful stuttering when they realized what was around them in the basement… and what it meant for them.
It was laughter to her ears.
She giggled, recalling the chopping of wings. She chuckled at the memory of sawing off horns. She chortled at that one joke with the orangutan, giraffe, and zebra in the bar. Zebras couldn't fly!
Then Pinkie smiled real wide as she thought about what it was all about; the purpose for dragging ponies away from their lives. Who could forget the end result, the part nopony could resist?
Cupcakes!