Rarity slumped onto a plastic mall bench, her head flopping onto Fluttershy's shoulder. Since there weren't any fainting couches nearby, that would have to do.

From the other side of Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash sighed. "No luck?"

"Not even close. She simply refuses to leave!" groaned Rarity.

"Is it safe to leave her alone in there?" Sunset asked. "At least one of us should probably keep an eye on her."

"Good point," said Rainbow. "You should go check on her."

"Maybe if we all go in, we can sorta herd her out," suggested Applejack.

Pinkie smiled and hopped up from her seat. "Come on, girls! Let's make this into a 'get Twilight out of The Container Store' party!"



"Oh, hi everypony!" Twilight said as her friends approached her. "Look at this one! Imagine all the things you could organize with this!" She reverently held up a clear plastic container with several small drawers in it, her hands visibly trembling.

"Yeah, that's a, um, cool box," Sunset fibbed, scrunching up her nose once Twilight turned back towards the neatly arranged shelves.

"I'll say! And it comes in twelve colors! I could organize these organizers! Hah!" Twilight declared, beaming.

"Twilight darling, is Spike going to be alright all by himself? You've been in our world for at least a few hours now." Rarity did her best to look concerned in case Twilight happened to tear her eyes away from the stackable makeup organizers.

"Nah, he's fine. Dragon-Spike is much more independent than dog-Spike. Besides, my friend Starlight Glimmer is there if he needs anything. I can stay all day!" Twilight continued excitedly browsing as Rainbow mimed strangling her.

Fluttershy gave Rainbow a scolding glare, then said, "What about friendship problems? What if something goes wrong in Ponyville today?"

"You guys worry as much as I do," Twilight laughed. "The pony versions of you are still in my world. If something bad happens, they can take care of it! Ooh, this one is beautiful.."

"That was a good try, sugar cube," Applejack whispered to Fluttershy as Twilight wandered towards a tall stack of plastic boxes.

Pinkie poked her head out from behind the display, snapping Twilight out of her admiration trance. "Hey, there's a super cool party store over by the food court! Want to come check it out with me?"

"But I haven't looked through the laundry section yet!" Twilight countered, pointing to the other side of the store.

"Laundry? You don't even wear clothes!" Rainbow blurted in exasperation. A nearby shopper turned to stare at Rainbow with raised eyebrows. "Er, hose. Pantyhose are uncomfortable, remember? Silly Twilight...heh.."

Applejack stepped closer to Twilight. "Speaking of the food court, that seems like a good place to do some observin', right? Wasn't the point of comin' through the portal to learn more about human behavior?"

"Well, yes, but the mall itself is also worth observing! Ponyville definitely needs a store like this. Malls are great! I mean, this box right here would be perfect for all my bookmarks! And just look at this one!" Twilight took a few steps to her left, stopping in front of an impressively large storage bin. "It's big enough to hold me!"

"Ooh, try to fit inside it!" urged Pinkie. Twilight rolled her eyes and giggled, continuing to gaze lovingly at various containers.

"Good thinking, Pinkie!" Rainbow said quietly. "Once she's inside, you guys hold it closed, I'll buy it, and we can carry her out of here!"

"Rainbow Dash!" hissed Rarity.

"What?" Rainbow said, holding up her hands. "We've tried everything else!"

"Actually, I have one last idea," Sunset admitted. "It won't be very fun for me, but it might get her to leave before the mall closes."

"Whatever it is, [i]please[/i] do it! I'm so sick of boxes!" begged Rainbow.

Sunset looked at Rainbow's pleading eyes, breathed deeply, then turned from her friends to scan the shelves for a few seconds. She picked up one of the containers and walked over to Twilight.

"That's a nice one! Are you going to buy it?" asked Twilight.

"Yeah, I just remembered that my pencils are a huge mess."

Twilight's eyes widened. "They are?"

"Mhmm. I should probably go home and organize them," said Sunset.

"O-organize?"

"Yep. Maybe I'll sort them by color.."

"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" cried Twilight, grabbing Sunset by the hand and pulling her towards the register.

"...Her bravery and sacrifice will be remembered," muttered Rainbow solemnly.