"Hey, Twilight."
Twilight looked up from her book to look at the Cutie Mark Crusaders.
"Hey you three," she said in a hushed. "You're up early," she remarked, looking across the enormous living room at the other sleeping colts and fillies.
"Well, you are too," said Scootaloo.
"I know, but I can't help it," responded Twilight. "I'm used to getting up very early every morning so I can go to the palace at an early hour for Princess Celestia's lessons. That lasts until noon, and then the Princess has to attend to other things."
"I suppose that makes sense," said Scootaloo. "Although, we're supposed to be used to getting up for school in the mornings too, but that hasn't been happening, has it?"
"Not really," said Twilight. "Everypony is staying up well past midnight just because there is nopony to stop them from doing so, but then you're all just waking up late in the morning to make up for it. You're not actually staying up any later than you usually do."
"Yeah," agreed Sweetie Belle. "But not today! Today we're going to go crusading!"
"Crusading?"
"Yeah, because we're the Cutie Mark Crusaders, remember?"
"Oh! I should have realized what you were talking about! So, you're going to hunt for your cutie marks today?"
"Yep!" answered Sweetie Belle. "And we have all day to do it too!"
"What would actually even happen if you do manage to find your cutie marks?" wondered Twilight.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"I mean, after the thirty days are over and we go back to the real Equestria, you're all going to find yourselves exactly in the same spot you were in before this all started. And physically unchanged. So, if you get your cutie marks here, will you have them in the real Equestria too?"
"Huh," said Sweetie Belle. "I don't know! But we're going to still going to try. Anyway, could you let everypony else know where we've went when they wake up?"
"Sure thing," answered Twilight. "Have fun!"
The next pony to wake up was Diamond Tiara.
I guess I should let her know where the Crusaders are, thought Twilight. She sighed and put her book down. And I guess while I'm at it, I'll see what she knows about what Discord was talking about yesterday.
Twilight approached Diamond Tiara. "Hey, Diamond Tiara?"
Diamond looked at Twilight in surprise. "Um... Yes, Twilight...?"
"I... I was wondering if I could, have a word with you?"
"You want to talk to me?" asked Diamond in disbelief.
"Yes?"
"Is something wrong?" asked Diamond. "Did something break, or something?"
"No, nothing's broken," assured Twilight. "I was just supposed to tell you that the Cutie Mark Crusaders left the house earlier to go have fun by themselves."
"Oh," said Diamond. "Well, good for them?"
"But that wasn't all," continued Twilight. "I wanted to ask you about something."
"Why me?" asked Diamond. She looked around the room. "Why not Rainbow Dash, or Rarity, or one of them?"
"Look," said Twilight in a slightly frustrated tone. "I know that I'm supposed to be friends with them, but just knowing that fact makes it awkward when I try to talk with them."
"So, you want to talk to me instead?"
"Is there something wrong with that?" asked Twilight, confused.
"No! I... Would you like to go to the kitchen? We can grab a drink, or something?"
"Okay."
Twilight followed Diamond into the kitchen.
"Do you want some of that apple juice that the Apples made?" suggested Diamond.
"Sure," answered Twilight. "And I may as well have one of these too."
Twilight popped the lid of of a large tin on a counter and withdrew a snicker-doodle.
"I can't believe you actually like those things," said Diamond as she poured out two glasses of juice.
She looked at the dining table and hesitated. The table was huge. There were far more seats than were usually necessary, but they were occasionally used when her father hosted meals for groups of important ponies.
If she placed the juice cups on opposite ends of the table, she would be so far away from Twilight that their conversation would be awkward and embarrassing.
If she placed the cups in front of chairs that were side by side, it would look like she was suggesting that she was Twilight's friend.
Which was not the case.
"Here," said Diamond, giving the cup directly to Twilight. "So, what did you want to ask me about?"
"It's just something that Discord said to me yesterday," said Twilight.
Meanwhile, Diamond Tiara let out an internal sigh of relief that Twilight didn't seem to be offended at having the discussion while standing.
"It's silly, really," continued Twilight awkwardly. "It can't possibly be true, but... I had to make sure."
"So... what is it?"
"Discord says that Equestria faces disasters all the time. And he said that the only reason that everything always turns out alright is thanks to just a few ponies. But that can't be true! Can it?"
Diamond moaned and put her free hoof to her face. "Discord told you about that?" she said.
"So it's true?" asked Twilight in shock.
"Um, sort of...?"
"Sort of?"
"Alright!" cried Diamond. "It's one hundred percent true! Look, I was told that I wasn't supposed to talk about this!"
"Why not?" asked Twilight. "Are these ponies undercover or something like that?"
"No! Not at all! Everypony knows about them!"
"I don't know anything about them!" protested Twilight. "Why won't you just tell me?"
"Because, one of those ponies... is you!"
Twilight froze. "... Me?" she whispered eventually.
"Yes! There, I said it!" cried Diamond Tiara. "It's not that surprising, is it? I mean, you're only Princess Celestia's personal student!"
"..."
"And the others? Rainbow Dash! Pinkie Pie! Rarity! Applejack! Fluttershy!"
"We protect Equestria from disasters?" asked Twilight in a whisper.
"Yes, you do! The first time, you rescued Princess Celestia's sister!"
"Princess Celestia has a sister!?"
"Yeah, the Mare in the Moon is Princess Celestia's sister!"
"... You're just pulling my leg right now, aren't you?"
"I'm sooooo not pulling your leg!" said Diamond in her most serious tone. "You and your friends are famous for everything that you've done! You've stopped a dragon from covering Equestria in smoke, saved Ponyville from eaten by parasprites, stopped a giant rampaging ursa minor the size of a house, and saved Canterlot from being overrun by bug ponies that can transform to look like other ponies!"
"... Parasprites? And ursa minor? Is that some kind of bear?"
"Parasprites are bugs that eat everything," said Diamond Tiara. She shuddered. "Trust me, it wasn't fun. And an ursa minor is this huge transparent bear thing."
Twilight didn't speak.
"That's why it's so... awkward, I guess, talking to you right now! You and your friends are national celebrities! You're larger than life!"
"I actually did all of that?"
"Yeah! I know! I saw some of it happen, and sometimes I can't believe everything you all go through myself!"
Diamond sighed.
"And that's why we didn't want to tell you about all of this," she continued. "I mean, now you know. You know about how much better than all of us you are. And now you won't want to hang around us."
This was enough to throw Twilight out of her state of shock.
"Hold on!" she cried. "I am not better than anypony! I would never think that!"
"But you are!" insisted Diamond Tiara. "You're the most incredible pony in Equestria! Scootaloo will try to tell you that Rainbow Dash is, but... To tell you the truth, you're kind of a role model to me..."
"A role model?" asked Twilight in astonishment.
"Everypony adores you! Everypony! That's what I want. I want to show Equestria that Diamond Tiara lives up to her name!"
"But I'm just a normal pony!" insisted Twilight. "I'm no different than anypony else!"
Diamond Tiara sighed again. "I know. I've watched you go shopping out in the market!"
Suddenly, Diamond began laughing.
"What's so funny?" asked Twilight, confused.
"I just realized," began Diamond. "I've been telling you why everypony acts nervous around you. And about how unapproachable you are."
"Not everypony has been acting nervous around me," said Twilight. "Yesterday, the colts were pelting me with snowballs without even thinking about it!"
"I know!" said Diamond in frustration. "I don't get it! And here I am, telling you everything. Why am I telling you all of this? There's just... something about you! Somehow, you are super successful... and everypony makes friends with you!"
Twilight didn't respond.
"Anyway," continued Diamond. "That's what's so funny. I would never be having this conversation with you if it wasn't for Discord's crazy bet."
Which I was partially responsible for... thought Twilight.
"Diamond Tiara," said Twilight suddenly, "I need your help."
"What?" asked Diamond suddenly in disbelief. "You need my help?"
"I know that you must think that I'm an amazing mare that can solve any problem, but I'm really not!" insisted Twilight. "Look, something's been nagging me ever since this whole ordeal began! Everypony keeps dropping hints about how I'm supposed to be best friends with Rainbow and Fluttershy and Pinkie and Applejack and Rarity, and it's making me feel... weird!"
"Because you're not actually friends with them right now?" asked Diamond.
"Yeah! And I feel like- I feel like after this is over, my adult self is going to look at me and be... disgusted, or something, because she'll think I've been treating everypony like dirt!"
"You haven't been treating anypony like dirt," said Diamond Tiara. "Trust me!"
"But these are supposed to be my friends!" cried Twilight. "I trust that my future self has good judgment when it comes to friends, right? So, I need to stop being such an introvert and actually try to make friends with them!"
"So, you're... asking me to help you make friends with your friends?"
"Well, it sounds weird when you put it like that, but yes!"
Diamond Tiara gaped at Twilight.
"Um, Twilight. You just might have asked the worst possible pony for help," she said.
"But I can't ask the others!" protested Twilight. "I can't ask the Crusaders for help! They're sisters with the ponies I'm trying to make friends with!"
"Actually, Scootaloo isn't really Rainbow Dash's sister. They just say that they're sisters."
"Really? Well, still! And I can't ask Spike! I just feel... so awkward asking Spike for help! And I can't ask the colts for help!"
"Why not?"
Twilight gave Diamond a funny look.
"Well, because... they're colts!"
"Don't worry, I get it," said Diamond with smirk.
"And I don't really know any of the others very well," continued Twilight. "Besides, you seem like a sensible pony! I'll bet you can help me if you try!"
"... You're really asking my help on this?"
"Yes! Please?"
"Well, okay. Okay. But I need some time!"
"That's fine," assured Twilight. "To be honest, I kind of need some time to think too. But please don't take too long!"
"Don't worry," said Diamond. "I'm not about to let Twilight Sparkle down."
"Are you just saying yes because I'm 'famous' ?" asked Twilight, upset.
"Uh- No! I'm just trying to help a friend! This does mean we're friends now, right?"
"I... I guess so."
Twilight let out a sigh. "I need a book. Calm my nerves."
"Hey," said Sweetie Belle. "Hold on for a second."
Scootaloo skid her scooter to a stop, causing the wagon that she was towing with Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom inside tap the scooter.
"It's Twilight!" said Sweetie Belle. "I wonder what she wants?"
They waited for Twilight to approach.
"Hi, you three," said Twilight. "What are you up to?"
"Not much, yet," answered Apple Bloom. "We were just headed to a place called Barnyard Bargains. Diamond Tiara's dad actually owns the place. They sell all kinds of stuff there. A lot of it is usually rather expensive."
"Usually," answered Twilight knowingly. "Well, it's noon..."
"It is?" said Apple Bloom. "Whoa. Why does time always fly by so fast?"
"Time is perceived at an accelerated rate when there are more activities to fill one's day," explained Twilight. "Anyway, I brought you all some lunch. It's not much, just three sandwiches."
"Thanks a bunch, Twi!" said Apple Bloom. The three crusaders each took a wrapped sandwich from Twilight's magical grasp.
"Hey," said Scootaloo. "You want to come with us, Twilight?" Scootaloo turned toward her fellow Crusaders. "You two won't mind, will you?"
"Of course not," answered both fillies.
"I guess I could come," said Twilight. "What exactly are you going to be doing? You're not planning on ransacking that store you were talking about, were you?" she finished suspiciously.
"No!" said Scootaloo. "We would never do something like that! After we eat these, we'll show you!"
"Behold!" announced Scootaloo, waving a hoof in front of her.
Twilight looked at the objects in front of her in surprise.
"Unicycles? This place sells unicycles?"
"They have all kinds of stuff here!" said Scootaloo. "You can find all sorts of things you might not expect for sale here in Ponyville!"
"Only," said Apple Bloom, "we couldn't afford to buy a unicycle to try for our unicycling cutie marks before. But, here, we don't have to buy them!"
"Unicycling cutie marks?" said Twilight, surprised.
"We've been trying for a really long time," explained Apple Bloom.
"So," said Scootaloo. "You want to give it a try?"
"Sure!"
"Twilight," complained Apple Bloom, "stop cheating!"
"This isn't cheating!" insisted Twilight, her glowing horn preventing the purple unicycle that she had picked out from toppling over, or even moving in the slightest.
"Whoa!" cried Scootaloo as her latest attempt at riding her unicycle ended with her falling forward.
"This is way harder than riding a scooter," she remarked as she pulled herself off of the Barnyard Bargains floor and got to her hooves."
"Agh!" cried Apple Bloom as she met a similar fate. "Well, at least I lasted a few seconds that time."
"Don't feel bad," said Twilight. "You can't expect to be masters at this the moment you try. It takes practice!"
"We would be able to unicycle if it was supposed to be our cutie mark," said Sweetie Belle. "And I don't see you practicing!"
"Alright, alright!" said Twilight in an annoyed voice. She dropped her magic and attempted to stay upright.
"Whoa!"
Twilight's horn lit up again as she caught herself and the unicycle in mid-fall.
"Lucky," said Apple Bloom. "Alright girls," she continued, turning to her fellow crusaders. "I think it's safe to call this one a bust."
"You're leaving?" asked Twilight. "But we've barely started trying!"
"Well," said Apple Bloom. "We obviously aren't destined to have unicycling cutie marks."
"But I was just starting to have fun! I want to stay and keep trying!"
"Well..." said Apple Bloom hesitantly. She looked at the other two, who shrugged.
"I guess we can keep trying for a little while. We can always find our cutie marks tomorrow."
"When did you get interested in unicycles all of the sudden anyway?" asked Scootaloo. "I couldn't imagine adult Twilight wanting to learn how to ride a unicycle."
"Well," began Twilight, "you three have taught me something."
"We did?"
"Yep! I may not be able to further my magical studies, but that doesn't mean that I have to goof off all month long! We're basically getting a whole extra month added onto our lives for free, and it would be a shame to waste it like that!"
"Whoa," said Apple Bloom. "Holy pineapples. You're right! That's crazy!"
"Of course I'm right!" said Twilight with a smile, which quickly faltered as she lost control of her unicycle again. She caught herself just before hitting the ground.
"So, you're saying that learning to ride a unicycle is a wise use of time?" asked Apple Bloom.
"Well, I figured that riding a unicycle was probably something that adult-me can't do," answered Twilight. "And Scootaloo actually just confirmed that I can't. So, I've decided to try learning things that are less... intellectual. And, besides, I'm curious to find out whether or not I will suddenly be able to ride a unicycle when this is all over. Wouldn't that be interesting?"
"I suppose so."
"Whoa!"
Suddenly there was a sound of thousands of tiny things spilling into the floor. Everypony looked in alarm toward Sweetie Belle, who had fallen off of her unicycle. Her front half was currently buried underneath a mountain of marbles that were rapidly spilling out of an enormous sideways box, scattering all over the floor.
"The middle of the store may not be the best place to practice," suggested Twilight. "Especially now. Let's go outside and I'll clear away a section of the street instead."