(I'm surprised nobody thought of this before, given the similarities between the two).
"Have you ever thought about what it would be like to have a twin?" Arthur asked aloud. "Sometimes I think it might be cool. For example, I'd have someone just like me to do things with."
In Arthur's bedroom, two identical Arthurs were sitting on the floor playing checkers.
"King me" Arthur #1 said.
"That was a great game" replied Arthur #2 "can we play another one?"
"Of course" Arthur #1 replied.
"And going to school would be easy, cause only one of us would have to go."
"Now class, today we're going to learn about the mating habits of the praying mantis" Mr. Ratburn said.
While the rest of the class (including Arthur #2) groaned, over at the Elwood City library, Arthur #1 was happily reading a book.
"And watching TV wouldn't be such a hassle"
In the Read family living room, D.W. was watching Mary Moo Cow when Arthur #1 came in and grabbed the remote.
"Hey, give that back or I'll tell mom!" D.W said.
"Sorry D.W., but I want to watch Dark Bunny" Arthur #1 replied "but let's put it to a vote. Who wants to watch Mary Moo Cow?" D.W raised her hand, "and who wants to watch Dark Bunny?"
Suddenly, the second Arthur appeared "I do," he said, his hand raised.
"Sorry D.W., but you've been outvoted" Arthur #1 replied.
"Stupid democrazy" D.W. muttered as she left the room.
Arthur's twin fantasy ended and he returned to reality, standing in front of the mirror of the bathroom.
"Yeah, having a twin could be really fun" he said, "and last week, I kind of had one. And it was one of the strangest weeks of my life."
Then he looked in the mirror, only to see that instead of his normal reflection, a round headed boy with very little hair was looking back at him.
"Aaah!" Arthur screamed.
"Aaah!" screamed the boy.
Good Grief, Arthur!
---
It was a beautiful summer day in Elwood City and Arthur and friends were gathered together on the baseball field. The team today consisted of Arthur, Buster, Francine, Binky, Sue Ellen, Fern, Brain, & George.
"Good news everybody" Oliver Frensky eagerly addressed his team "I've enrolled us in the Summer Series baseball tournament."
"What's that?" Arthur asked.
"Basically, it's a tournament sponsored by the local towns" Mr. Frensky explained, "it allows down on their luck amateur teams, like ours, a chance to play against each other."
"We're not down on our luck" Francine replied.
"We lost 15 games to Mighty Mountain last season" Arthur told her.
"Well we would've won more if Buster could throw" Francine grumbled, "or if Fern could catch."
"Now Frankie, what have I said about insulting your fellow teammates?"
"Everyone on the team is important, regardless of how well they play" Francine replied, in a bored voice.
"That's right. Now then, another team will be arriving here tomorrow. Since the members won't have anywhere to stay, I've talked to your parents about letting them stay with some of you."
A collective groan went up from those assembled.
"Where is this team coming from?" Brain inquired.
"Not really sure on that one" Mr. Frensky replied, "I'll get back to you. Anyway, I hope all of you will open your homes to the players. See you tomorrow for practice."
As the kids walked off, Francine approached Arthur & Buster.
"So what do you think this new team is like?" she asked.
"I dunno" Arthur replied, "but if they're 'down on their luck', like us, it should be a very interesting game."
"And we might finally win for once" Francine added.
"Not unless they're a team of undercover alien agents, sent here to learn baseball as part of a scheme to undermine national security" Buster piped in.
"Oh brother" Francine groaned, "I hope these kids aren't like you."
---
Meanwhile, several towns away, the captain of the aforementioned team was preparing to leave. He was known as Charlie Brown, and he was excited to play against another team that was nearly as bad as his. But he had no idea what awaited him the next day.
"What's going on, big brother?" Sally Brown asked, as she watched him pack.
"My team got selected for the Summer Series" Charlie Brown explained "it allows amateur baseball teams, with bad records, to compete against each other."
"That's nice" Sally said, "who are you going to be competing against?"
"I'm not sure" Charlie Brown replied, "all I know is they live in a place called Elwood City."
"Why is it called that? Does it have lots of Elwoods?" Sally asked.
"I'm not sure" Charlie Brown replied. Having finished packing his bag, he made his out of his room "I'll send you a postcard when I get the chance."
"Goodbye big brother!" Sally shouted as he left, "and don't worry about your room, I'll take good care of it for you."
Outside in his doghouse, Snoopy was also packing the essentials.
Let's see, supper dish, 'Joe Cool' shirt, sunglasses, typewriter, Woodstock, yup that's everything he thought. From inside his bag he heard frantic chirping sounds. Don't blame me for the accommodations, you wanted to come and this was the only way.
The bus pulled up in front of Charlie Brown's house and he and Snoopy got aboard. Also on board were several of his teammates, including Linus & Lucy Van Pelt, and their little brother Rerun, plus Schroeder & Pig-Pen.
"Excited about the game Charlie Brown?" Linus asked.
"Kind of" Charlie Brown replied "I know this Elwood City team is supposed to be as bad as we are, but what if they beat us anyway?"
"If we lose, we lose" Linus replied, "such is life."
"That's the kind of thing I'd expect a loser to say" Lucy chimed in, "we'd better beat these kids, or we'll be the laughingstock of the city. Well, Charlie Brown will be, anyway."
"What do you suppose the kids there are like?" Linus asked, hoping to distract his captain from Lucy's earlier statement.
"Like us, I guess" Charlie Brown replied, "I guess we'll find out when we arrive."
Next time, Charlie Brown and friends get their first taste of Elwood City and it denizens. Then everyone gets split up and you'll never guess who Charlie & Snoopy get paired with (actually, based on the title, you probably will).