Splitting aMid the Night

Ngh, so heated.

Maybe it'd be better if you weren't rubbing up against yourself like that.

Good point. Just how did that even happen?

As if we had any idea.

Midnight untangled herself and dropped to the ground. This day was not starting well and it could only get worse. She went downstairs and began with a cold shower to get to her senses, ignoring those sitting in the kitchen with puzzled looks at her appearance.

That's a lot better. Okay, I can do this. Just get through the day somehow. Everything'll be fine.

Behold my limitless power!

So the pipsqueak gets free reign while my mind is on a far lower purpose. Great.

Midnight was tempted to search the bathroom cabinet for fitting medication for the task as she was fighting the urge to just throw up into the sink as a reaction to her situation. Two performers in the house, surely there had to be something.

Nothing. Nothing at all. Kind of expectable, considering there were two of them. She didn't need it, anyway. Utilizing her mind discipline, Midnight was sure to pass the day unharmed. Not that she could possibly get herself into any harm. She wasn't at Canterlot anymore, after all.

She sighed and went to add a third pony to the breakfast table.

With all but one of her personal needs tended to, the last one being properly repressed, Midnight stepped out into the fresh morning air. With the day looking like it did, she wondered why things had turned out like that for her.

Cold.

Two hundred and fifty Kelvin, to be exact.

How the hay do I know that?

There's a thermometer in the edge of our vision. Now get going already.

Reluctantly, Midnight set off from the doorstep of her house for another day at work, as much as she'd love to skip it.

What a wonder of nature, isn't it?

I swear I'll run into three ponies at the very least on my way there with my head in a cloud like that.

Easier done than thought, Midnight collided with somepony else literally two seconds later, slowing her speed down from a trot to something that could be more accurately described as her face having a date with the ground.

"Why hello there. What brings you out on a fine day like this one?"

Of course her tripping stone had to have been that one pony out of all in Ponyville.

"Maybe trying to go to work, darling?"

Darling? That's it, I just want to go home and sleep it all off. She... doesn't seem to care. Well, whatever.

"Oh yeah. Just how do we keep bumping into each other?"

Midnight noticed that lying on the ground was at least supposed to be uncomfortable and picked herself up.

"Given the circumstances, could you blame me? I guess it'll get better once the heat picks up."

"Or you could use a fleshlight spell like me. That really helps."

Midnight sputtered at her friend's confession, but quickly caught herself, assuming the best from the best of friends. "That's spelled with a, in the sense of light, yes?"

"Of course! What else?"

Wow. Has this filly ever seen the world at all?

"Nothing really. Well, there's one problem with it. Take a look at that," Midnight said, bringing her flank into good view.

"Pretty!" Sparkle exclaimed with a smile far too adorable for her own good.

She just called... nevermind, she's just teasing. She never stops doing that. I hope she can't...

Midnight's thoughts trailed off as her tail swished nervously, making sure to rest in the lowest position possible. "Um, the point is, there's nothing about light on it. So how am I supposed to conjure a flashlight to help me pierce this fog?"

Out of the white sky, an Earth Pony mare dropped, landing on Midnight's head with the weight of a feather. "Oh hey! Just checking, you two have been talking about the weather the entire time, yes?"

"Uh, yes?" Midnight had been told to not even try and apply logic to Pinkie Pie, but that was plain irrational.

"Good. Gotta keep Ponyville safe for the foals, y'know!" she said before bouncing up and out of sight again.

Yeah, we have been... great. The weather. Cliché bad conversation topic number one. Hey, she started it!

"Hey, mind if we get going? We can keep talking, but I don't want to be late."

"No, of course not. You kept track of your direction, right? You can't see farther than ten paces... else, do you know Cardinal Guidance?"

"Somepony who has a whole series of books about her, who looks just like a recolor of one of your friends and who goes around giving ponies directions?"

"No, silly. A handy little spell that lets you quickly find North... oh yeah. You don't, of course."

Midnight began walking off, not out of rudeness, but simply to arrive at the clinic in time. Twilight soon rushed back to her side.

"Hey, I think that's where I come from..." Sparkle stated with a seemingly sad expression.

"Uh, yeah? I guess that's also part of the reason why we always meet so much, your house is directly on my way."

"I mean, I don't mind making a small detour to chat... with you."

Why why why, oh sweet mother of Celestia's left eyebrow, why does she have to be so cute? She's older than me, I'm the cute one for her! But... her face, her little smile, the way she swings her... tail.

"Stop it!"

That was bad. Midnight hadn't meant to cry that out loud as she had. Fortunately, if there were any ponies around them, they were swallowed by the endless mist, saving Midnight from their unforgiving eyes.

Twilight froze mid-step, "Huh? What's the matter?"

"There, uh, look, there's a hazardous... thing on the ground."

Midnight had to act fast. In the time between her friend looking away from her face and thus her horn and her seeing a harmless rock, she had to successfully create an illusion that changed it to something dangerous.

She couldn't explain it herself, but somehow, she pulled it off.

"Oh, wow. Thanks for the warning. I mean, not that there'd have been any serious problems with you on stage, right?" Twilight had moved out of the way and was now right next to Midnight, poking at her side.

"What do you mean? Uh, I mean... yeah, you know. I could probably have fixed that with my special talent."

"How?"

With a single word, Twilight awakened within Midnight the urge to speak a thousand times the more than a whole army could get out of her.

"Well, you know how every unicorn just knows a certain spell or arrangement of spells to help them with their cutie mark which they can cast without training or high effort?"

"That's about every spell in existence for me, 'cause I'm Magic, fiddly-foal."

Did she just call me a lesbian? Moreso, does this count as an advance?

Does it have to? The two of you are alone and she looks receptive. Might be your state twisting her head if she's one of our kind. Make a move!

"At least I'm modest because I'm so perfect."

"Yeah, sure you are."

"Um, back to what I was saying. I've gained a simple single-user teleportation spell I can cast in less than a second... if only I would've had that a few minutes before earning my mark... and some assorted stuff for the medical part. There's one special one I haven't seen anypony else use."

"Well, hopefully not."

"You know, I have within me the power to heal smaller wounds. No need to wait for it to heal, I can just fix it up."

"Like what?"

"Like so," Midnight said, conjuring a small orb of energy as she was walking. It wasn't too big, she had to save her power for later.

"Oooh, shiny light! I don't think even I know that one." Sparkle seemed genuinely amazed by the ethereal ball hopping up and down in front of her face. She could be so foalish at times that Midnight considered claiming an honorable two years of age to make her the older one.

"Yeah. Using this little friend, I can move dirt out of a wound, disinfect it, and also directly heal it if they can stand it."

"What do you mean, if they can stand it?" Twilight asked as they passed the shade of what looked like a giant tree. As it appeared, they were still on course, but time seemed to stretch out indefinitely while she was with Filly.

"Well, because the Flow neither gives nor takes, but only exchanges, repairing their physical body requires essence, y'know, like blood, but with their soul. That usually doesn't matter, but it prevents me from mending too complex injuries with it. Although I guess I might be able to substitute with my own if necessary..."

"But you won't do that..."

Was Twilight really acting concerned for Midnight?

"No, of course not. Magic Inertia would probably end up killing me. Not that anypony would care about me, anyway. Wouldn't you risk your own survival for somepony more important than you?"

"I'd do it for you..."

Woah. Did she really just say that? Is... this... reality?

Midnight realised how much the world around her looked like her unformed subconscious, only in white. She wished she was there, but then again, this was the moment she had been secretly hoping for for months.

I swear, I've got nothing to do with it... this time. Now is the time! Let me put the necessary words into our mouth.

Her rational mind inquired her to collect further clues about the situation. Noon commanded her to follow her heart's advice, which happened to match up with her demon's. Her flank demanded of her to just toss Sparkle to the ground.

"You know, Sparkle, I kinda like you..."

In that moment of space and time, around the world, many creatures the likes of which Equestria had never seen gasped and prepared to write comments expressing their joy at Midnight's actions and complaining about something called a 'cliffhanger'. Midnight had no idea why she knew that, she didn't even know what such a 'cliffhanger' was supposed to be.