Doctor Whooves: Remembrance

[%]Getting over a Hangover[%]

DONG

The Doctor rolled over, the sound echoing in his dreams, screams echoing through it as well.

Doctor?

He muttered something, someones name. Clara.

Help me! Please!

        He cried out in his sleep, “I’m so sorry!” tears running down his face as he slept.

Tick Tock, Goes the clock...

        He awoke gasping, looking around the room to familiarize himself once more. After a few moments he sighed and stood up and walked into Ditzy’s room to check on her. She was still asleep but she looked alright. He smiled and stepped into the kitchen to prepare something. That something just ended up being a slice of bread, some cheese, some lettuce, and an apple. He ate the odd mix of food as he moved outside, where he found a bundle of paper. He used his mouth to pick it up and carry it inside and, with effort open it. The front page was mostly talking about boring things. a nearby elementary school had a talent show, some pony in another town bragging about his amazing life, and the Apple Families orchard and how well it will do this year. But one portion caught his eye.

Pony reported missing;

Yesterday afternoon around Four, a pegasus vanished without a trace. No leads yet as to this disappearance or the previous three, though the guard believes they are related. No other information has been disclosed, but if you see this mare, please contact the Royal Guard.

        Below the statement was an image of a mare, red mane, yellow body, green eyes, nothing particularly special about the missing pony, other than being missing. He yawned lightly before going to check on Ditzy again, who was just groggily crawling out of bed.

        “Ugggh... My heeead Hurts soo bad...” she groaned, rubbing her temples with her wings. She glanced around slowly, her eyes squinted to block out the little light in the room. She eyed the Doctor sleepily and smiled.

        “Hey Mister, what happened last night? It was all so... Blurry,” she asked, rubbing her eyes softly and blinking to adjust.

        “Ah nothing, really. You went to bed, I went to bed. And I broke a lamp, sorry about that!” he explained with a minuscule fake smile. He felt horrible for lying but he felt like it would be better off if she didn't remember the events of the previous night.

        “Oh, I was worried I did something crazy! But that’s a relief to hear,” She smiled and laughed for a moment before groaning again,

        “Laughing hurts... Think you might have any mystery cure for hangovers? Maybe you used to be some kind of Doctor,” she said with a hopeful smile, he chuckled and added on, “Or a drunk, I think I know something that might work, come on, to the kitchen!”

        Ditzy took another bite of the banana and another sip of apple juice, the Doctor sitting across from her with a light smile on his face.

        “This is amazing! Bananas and apple juice? Why does it make the headache go away?” she asked, honest curiosity in her eyes.

        “Ah... Well, I think it’s something about hydration and potassium. The apple juice hydrates your body to wash out the alcohol, like a Detox, and the Potassium does something, can’t remember what... But it’s delicious so I wouldn't think you’d mind,” they both laughed quietly, her cheeks turning a quick shade of pink. Out of embarrassment, half her gaze switched to the table while the other half held his.

        “Ah, well anyways, where is that pocket watch you mentioned yesterday? You said it wouldn't open and I’d love to give it a go,” he queried to break the silence,

        “It’s in the shelf by your bed but... Stay here I’ll go get it for you!” she offered, before he could object she jumped up and raced off into the guest bedroom, returning with a small Silver object with circular markings on it.

        “That’s weird, marks just like the keys... Anyways, let’s see what’s inside! If it’s locked it must be important,” the Doctor stated plainly as she set it down in front of him. He looked at it from several angles while tapping it softly, it making a small tink with each tap. After a few seconds he used his teeth and attempted to open the pocket watch by pressing the button, but to no avail.

        “Ditzy, do you have a hammer?” he asked, examining the Silver watch even closer. She nodded and walked off, coming back with a hammer a few minutes later.

        “Sorry it took so long, had to find it and I never use my tools so they’re all jumbly and-” she was cut short by him grabbing the hammer and slamming it down on the pocket watch, it bouncing off and nearly hitting him and after he dodged it, her.

She squealed and covered herself with her wings, a sharp snap echoing through the room. The Doctor turned and saw the hammer on the ground, a small amount of blood on the claw end. A mere second later a drop of blood hit next to the hammer and he heard Ditzy whimper. Looking up a bit further he saw her wing was injured, it was gouged open with blood running down her feathers.

        “Oh no, I am so sorry Ditzy! I didn’t mean to...” he said while lurching up as his color quickly shifted to a grey tone, tears on the edge of his eyes. She lowered her wing slowly and moved it behind her. She smiled softly at him while tears ran down her cheeks.

        “It’s alright, I’ve done worse to myself on accident, do you think you could help me fix it?” she asked with pain in her voice, he hesitated for a moment before nodding. Ditzy turned to walk to the bathroom but before she could get far the Doctor slipped beneath her and lifted her off her hooves.

        “You’re injured missy, you need to rest! Let’s get you fixed up and then you’ll be a princess for a day. This is all my fault anyways,” he explained while he walked her into the bathroom.  He set her down softly on the mat and grabbed a towel which got placed beneath her injured wing. He then grabbed the medical aid kit from beneath the sink and opened it up.

        “Oh my... Uh, Ditzy, please tell me you know how to fix an injured wing because well... I have no idea,” he confessed, looking to her for help but guilt in his eyes for asking.

        “Yeah, it’s pretty easy really, first you need to clean it up,” she explained carefully, he quickly turns and get a towel wet to wash her wound. When he is finished she sighs, some of the pain fading.

        “Alright, good job! Now you’ll have to wrap it and cover it so it doesn’t get infected, be careful please?” she continued, encouraging him. His color slowly began to return, starting from his hooves and eyes like paint dripping along him, his greys mixing with the browns as he covered and wrapped her injured wing with extreme care.

        “H-How do you feel, Ditzy?” he asked, worry echoing in his eyes. She stood up and flexed her good wing and, with a nod, walked out of the bathroom.

        “It feels great! Thank you so much, and hey,” she turned to him and placed her hoof on his shoulder, “It isn’t your fault. Don’t be all down because a hammer bounced off some old pocket watch,” she smiled softly and gave him a weak hug. He returned it, careful to avoid her injured wing as he did. He sighed softly and the remaining grey in his coat faded to the regular light brown.

        “Want to go on a walk Mister? I never gave you a real tour or introduced you to anyone, and since I’ll be busy tomorrow, work and all, today seems like the best day!” she suggested with a smile, he hesitated for a moment but then agreed,

        “But under one condition,” she looked at him curiously when he paused,

        “No flying.” they both stared at each other before they cracked up laughing. She sighed and looked at him, her gaze locked on his watery blue eyes, both her eyes moving to stare into his.

        “Ah, before we go, I need to get something,” he explained, breaking the silence to Ditzy’s dismay. She nodded and he ran off, first to the kitchen then to his room. When he returned he was wearing a tie, a silver pocket watch, and the two keys around his neck.

        “Maybe they’ll help jog my memory, you never know!” he explained when she gave him an odd look. She giggled and shrugged before she headed to the door, the Doctor close in tow.

        “And this, is Twilight’s Library, her and her friends kind of saved the world a few times, and she’s nice. If you ever want a book though, she has it here!” she informed him while they walked by a massive tree with windows and a door. Before they passed the bottom part of the door swung open and a small purple and green dragon walked out, obviously in a hurry.

        “Ah, Ditzy. I got an idea,” the Doctor said while walking towards the front door. She turned to him with a puzzled look. Wondering what idea he had might involve a library.

        “Maybe, just maybe, she has a book that explains these symbols,” he stated, bringing a hoof to tap the small, silver pocket watch around his neck. Ditzy got bright-eyed at the idea and rushed ahead of him.

        “Ah! Wait up will you! Not everyone is so used to running,” he groaned while rushing to catch up. Though he was confused how she could run so quickly with an injured wing. He opened the door and found Ditzy apologizing furiously to a purple mare,

        “I’m so sorry! I just ran in and I didn’t see you, and I didn’t mean to knock your books over, I can help if you want!” the purple mare just laughed and shook her head, her horn glowing softly as books floated into a stack.

        “it’s fine, Ditzy, don’t worry about it! Now what is it you need?” the Doctor walked up and spoke,

        “Actually, it’s what I need, I need to ask if you happen to have a book with symbols that are like what is on this pocket watch?” he tapped the silver locket and she looked intently at it.

        “I... I think so, but there must be some spell on it, it’s really difficult to focus on,” she turned around and began going through the books. Looking for something that reminded her of the symbols.

        “Ah! I think it’s in this one, talks about ancient heroes and ponies,” she says while flicking through it, “There! more circular symbols but... The rest of the page is torn out. All that’s left is this notecard, doesn’t have anything on it but maybe it’s magic!” the card floated out of the book and tucked itself into his collar, he bowed his head and thanked her before turning to walk out.

        “Hey, before you go,” Twilight said when he opened the door, he turned and looked to her and she was blank faced. Her normally violet eyes having a green and blue tint to them around her pupils.

        “How many can you save, Doctor?” she asked, her face spreading into a grin. She stared there for a moment before she collapsed and both the Doctor and Ditzy rushed to make sure she was alright.

        “Miss Sparkle, are you okay?” Ditzy asked, nudging her softly. Her eyes opened slowly and she coughed before nodding.

        “What? What happened? Did I miss something?” she asked looking around, clearly dazed.

        “Ah... Nothing really, you probably just forgot to breathe, sorry to bother you miss!” he apologized while standing up, Ditzy started to explain but he gave her a glance and she silenced herself. They said their goodbyes and walked out onto the street.

        “That was... Odd, is that normal around here?” he asked when the door was closed, Ditzy shook her head and looked around.

        “No, that’s really weird. Things happen around Ponyville a lot but... Never that weird. Well that Discord problem was weird but it wasn’t creepy!” she explained, shaking her head and spreading her wings quickly. The bandages ripping off her bad wing.

        “Ah! Careful you’ll make it wor-” he began before looking at her wing, which was completely fine. Not a drop of blood or a tear on it.

        “Oh! How did it... You must be an amazing doctor if you made it heal that fast!” she said with surprise in her voice, he stared at her wing and for a moment there was a soft golden glimmer around where the injury was. He shook his head and blinked before speaking,

        “Anyways, disregarding all weirdness of today, let’s go out for lunch! It’s around lunch time right?”

        They walked out of the decorated building, it looking like a massive gingerbread house. While a pink pony inside waved goodbye while thanking them for their business.

        “Thank Celestia Sugarcube Corner gives out free cupcakes on Sundays, or we’d be starving out here!” Ditzy said while laughing before biting into her cupcake. The Doctor eyed his cautiously.

        “So... This is a cupcake? And it’s sweet?” he asked her while glaring at the brightly colored pastry. She nodded and explained,

        “it’s like a muffin, but with sugar and icing! It’s good really, take a bite!” she said before taking another bite of hers. He groaned and slowly bit into it. He began to chew before shaking his head and with a groan, spat it out.

        “Ah, no thanks. It’s sweet yeah, but too sweet. No thanks I’ll stick to muffins and apples for now. Those don’t taste like rubbish,” Ditzy shrugged and took hold of his cupcake with her wing.

        “More for me then!” she said with a grin, he turned to her and glared for a moment before snatching it back.

        “it may taste horrible but I don’t intend to starve in the streets. Even if we are just a short walk from your house,” he quickly ate the cupcake and groaned. “The taste! Oh it’s horrible! It’s like I’m choking on sugar and whip cream!”  he stuck his tongue out and ran the side of his hoof on it, as if he was wiping the taste from his mouth. Ditzy laughed while he did,

        “Mister, it can’t be that bad! And you shouldn’t have eaten it so quickly, you’ll get a stomach ache later,”  she warned, he waved a hoof at her and continued walking.

        “Been here for two days and the worst I’ve had is a long fall and a headache, I can take a stomach ache!”

        Ditzy stood outside the bathroom, sick noises audible inside past the door, she turned and called in,

        “You alright in there, mister?” from inside the Doctor took a deep breath and called back reassuringly.

        “Yeah, that thing tasted worse coming back than it did going down! Blimey how does that work?!” he asked through the door before returning to cleaning himself from the inside out of food.

        “I told you, you’d get a stomach ache,” Ditzy informed, shaking her head softly

        “You said a stomach ache not an attack of the evil cupcake! This isn’t an ache it’s a stomach apocalypse!” he shouted through the door, gasping for air. He wiped his mouth and turned to the mirror. making sure he didn’t look too horrible. He checked his sides and examined himself.

        “Oh, well then, aren’t you handsome..?” He uttered to himself, admiring his mane and tail.

        “You done in there?” Ditzy called, he jumped a bit and called back,

        “yeah, be right out! Just cleaning up,”  he looked to the door and froze. From the corner of his eye he saw a golden shimmer around him in the mirror. Like a fog that was barely visible. He turned to see it head on but it vanished the moment he turned his eyes towards it.

        “Ah... Must be a trick of the light...” he muttered softly before opening the door, Ditzy smiled at him and asked with a soft voice,

        “Feeling better now mister?” when he nodded she continued, “Alright, but I think you’ll need some water, just flushed everything out and you didn’t even get a choice!” she explained. He nodded again and she walked off to the Kitchen while he turned and went into the guest bedroom.  He plopped onto the bed and stared at the ceiling, not even noticing when Ditzy walked in and set a glass by him. So of course he jumped when she spoke.

        “Hey, Are you sure I didn’t do anything dumb last night? I feel like I did something I shouldn’t have and you’re hiding it from me,” he turned and stared at her for a moment, wondering if she knew he was truly lying or if it really just was a feeling for her.

        “Ah, I’m sure, unless you did something while you were asleep but I don’t think you left that room after I took you to bed,” he explained quickly. She looked into his eyes and he shuffled. A feeling washing through him, like she could see right through him.

        “Alright, any plans for tonight?” she asked awkwardly. shuffling her hooves quietly while her gaze kept level with the floor.

        “Ah, I don’t have any no. Something you’d like to do?” he asked while he rolled over onto his belly. She smiled softly and nodded.

        “I wanted to know if you would erm... Want to go to the marketplace and then after maybe to a nice restaurant?” she suggested, her voice cracking a bit while she spoke. He laughed softly and hugged her.

        “Sure, Ditzy. Shall we go now?” he asked when the hug ended. She nodded firmly and he popped off the bed. She gazed at him as he walked by, both her eyes focusing on him.

        “You coming, Ditzy? Marketplace isn’t open all day, I don’t think,” he turned and asked, she blinked quickly and shook her head before rushing up next to him. They smiled softly at each other and headed out the door.

        “Pajamas! Yes I need Pajamas! Mister what kind of Pajamas are you selling?” the Doctor asked with an excited tone, flipping through the stacks of folded clothing. The sales-colt watched him curiously and then shrugged,

        “All of ‘em, I suppose. Any kind you’d like I suspect, I actually just got this sleeping top set, no pony seems to want it but I think it’d fit you perfect,” he suggested while reaching under the counter. The Doctor glanced around to make sure Ditzy was still near and found her two stalls over bartering for strawberries. It seemed to be going badly.  The sales-colt popped up with a stack of green tops, each of them having a symbol scattered across it, an hourglass. The Doctor stared at it before rubbing the side of his head softly.

        “Ah... Sorry, how much will it cost?” he asked, counting the small golden coins Ditzy gave him, he only had five.

        “Well for you bud, it’ll be free. Nopony else seems to want ‘em so, you can have one! Maybe if somepony sees you get them they’ll be more likely to come and buy!” he explained, giving the Doctor a shirt off the top of the pile with a small laugh.

        “Thank you sir, now if you excuse me I have something to do,” the Doctor said quickly while he stuffed the shirt into the bag across his back. He turned and rushed over to Ditzy who looked like she was fixing to lose the barter quickly. He ran up and quickly asked,

        “What’s the price? I don’t care what it is I’ll pay,” Ditzy stared at him for a moment before the shop owner responded.

        “I’m selling a dozen strawberries for six bits, but this bird brained mare only has four and refuses to pay up!” the unicorn shop owner glared at Ditzy, who stepped back slightly. The Doctor glared back and walked up and handed five bits on the table.

        “I’ll pay five. Five or nothing,” he demanded, staring at the shop mare who stared right back with ferocious greed.

        “I’m only accepting six bits and if you don’t have it, you can go back to your mud pits and make some more till you do!” she nearly shouted, drawing the attention of a few nearby ponies.

        “Now miss, I believe you’ve been making some racial slurs towards my friend here and myself, and unless you want a good amount of ponies to get very upset and you to be removed from the market for causing a public disturbance, five bits,” he whispered, lowering his head and pushing the five golden coins forward. She grimaced and mumbled something under her breath before nearly tossing the strawberries at him. He gathered them and put them in Ditzy’s bag before turning to walk off. She stared between the shop owner and him for a moment before stumbling to catch up.

        “How did you..? Nopony ever sticks up to her, she’s mean and everypony knows it but you... You made her do what you said, that was incredible!” she exclaimed, eyes wide with surprise and intrigue. He dismissed her compliment with a wave of his hoof and sighed,

        “She wants to make a living and this is the only way she can, not her fault she was brought up in a family that made it clear in her mind to make fun of others. But I didn’t want to really have to exploit it, honestly i just saved her from being out of a job,” she stared at him as he looked ahead, his color slightly dimmer than it was moments before. She kept her gaze on the side of his face, his eye shimmering between icy blue and watery blue like rippled in a pond.

        “Something wrong?” he asked while turning to catch her gaze. She jumped and turned her head forward quickly. She could feel her cheeks glowing pink.

        “A-ah! No! Nothing’s wrong!” she exclaimed, her eye shifting to look at him every few moments.

        “Hm, alright then...” he muttered with almost a somber tone before laughing loudly.

        “What! Did I do something wrong?” she exclaimed while turning to see him. He shook his head while laughing and managed to stop. he smiled at her and spoke softly,

        “Nothing at all, Ditzy. Shall we go to dinner?”

        They walked into the small restaurant in the town square, walking straight to the front desk to get a table.

        “Hi er... Can we get a table for two please?” Ditzy asked awkwardly, the Doctor smiled softly at the unicorn waiter standing on the other side of the table.

        “Yes of course miss...?” he began, “Doo,” she said quickly with a soft smile,

        “Ah, Miss Doo, right this way,” he finished, using magic to grab two menus while guiding them to an open table. They sat down and the waiter bowed his head softly and walked off.

        “Any clue what you’ll be eating, Ditzy?” the Doctor asked, opening his menu and reading the options.

        “Yeah, what about you?” he laughed softly and shook his head.

        “Not a clue, I’ll just have whatever it is you will be having, if that’s alright?” she giggled quietly and asked,

        “Are you sure, mister? What if I pick something really odd?” he grinned and leaned forward.

        “Then I’ll eat whatever it is, no matter how weird it may be,” he whispered to her, challenge in his voice.  She stared back, grinning softly before they both broke out into a quiet laughter. The laughing ended with them staring at eachother with a small smile on their faces.

        “Ahem, would you two be ready to order?” the waiter, who had gone unnoticed, asked. Ditzy nodded and said simply,

        “I’ll have the chefs special, if that is alright?” the waiter nodded and, using magic, wrote it down on a notecard. He then looked to the doctor, who shrugged and stated,

        “Same as her, I suppose,” he turned to her and grinned. The waiter nodded and said with a mild monotone,

        “Your food will be ready soon, enjoy your night,” he walked away with a swift step, vanishing into the depths of the restaurant in a blend of other waiters. The Doctor rested his front right leg on the side of the table, leaning forward on it before speaking,

        “So I suppose this dinner is an adventure for both of us, eh? No idea what’s going to end up on our plates, or have you eaten here before?” she smiled and shook her head, her face turning a light shade of pink.

        “N-No, not once, I’ve just heard a lot about it so I decided we’d go here,” she confessed, rubbing the back of her head with a hoof. He chuckled quietly before they sat in silence for several minutes. Both of them looking around awkwardly and opening their mouths to start conversation, only to close it before anything actually got said. The waiter was the one to break the silence.

        “Sir, miss, your meal, please do enjoy,” he said while two dishes floated down in front of them. Both of them being nearly identical gourmet salads. The Doctor stared at it for a moment, clearly unimpressed. The waiter walked away silently and Ditzy spoke up,

        “If this is the chef’s special, I’d hate to try anything else,” the Doctor laughed as quietly as he could and she started laughing as well. But they returned to silence as they ate. The Doctor this time, broke the silence after a few minutes that felt like hours.

        “Ditzy, I know so little really about you, so if you don’t mind me asking, what is your history?” he said, looking up from the salad. She glanced up at him and finished her bite,

        “Huh? What do you mean? Like, where I was born and raised and all that stuff?” he nodded then went on,

        “I want to know more about you, I’d tell you about me if I knew what was to tell but... I promise when I remember I’ll tell you first thing.” She thought for a moment then began to speak, leaning a bit forward as she did.

        “Well, I was born and raised here in Ponyville, like most ponies here. Never really knew my dad and I didn’t see my mom much, she was always busy. I went to the same school as pretty much everypony in town,” the Doctor quickly interrupted to ask,

“Did they tease you back then, like they do now?”  she paused for a moment before nodding,

“It hurt more, because I was young, but it really wasn’t as bad. Just kids making fun of eachother honestly...” she sighed and glanced down at the tiled floor.

“It never felt like that though, did it? It still hurts, doesn’t it? The names and the comments?” he asked, she glanced up for a moment and nodded softly. He leaned back and sighed,

“Well it shouldn’t, really,” he began, her ears perked up and she raised her head to ask why, but he continued before she could.

“It’s great to be different, I think it’s a wonderful thing. To be exactly who you are, an odd cutie mark, eyes a bit askew, it’s all perfect honestly,” he explained, Ditzy dropped her head again and closed her eyes, a few tears falling silently.

“I think if you accepted it all; that you are you and no one is better at it. That no matter how hard life hits you you’re strong enough to get back up, you’ll do great things,” he finished. She looked up and he gasped quietly, surprised to see that she was crying with a smile. Tears of happiness.

“Mister... Maybe you did help people, when you had your memory. Maybe that’s what you did...” she whispered softly across the table. He perked his ears up and she continued.

“Because you’ve helped me so much. My life was only really going downhill but then you fell from the sky. You saved me, really,” he chuckled softly before adding,

“Says the mare who found this dumb old colt in the middle of the woods and saved his flank because she’s that nice,” he smiled at her kindly and stood up.

“Anyways, it is getting quite late, so we should get home. I’ll go get the waiter so we can pay,” he explained before walking off. Ditzy stayed sitting there and looked up to the ceiling, looking through it to the stars that were beyond. She whispered “Thank you,” before standing up quietly. The Doctor came back with a soft smile and they walked out silently, they’re tails occasionally brushing together.

        He laid awake in his brand new pajama shirt, staring at the ceiling and thinking to himself.

What will I go back to..? If I remember...

He shook his head and rolled over onto his side and dismissed the thought. He decided no matter what, even if he gets his memory back, he will stay here. Not for himself, but for her. She needs him and he needs her. He smiled and closed his eyes, drifting into a dream-filled sleep.