"Aaaand that's mostly it."
In the TARDIS dining area the Doctor and Derpy sat at a table across from each other. Derpy's eyes were red and slightly puffy from a hard cry she had earlier. She seemed to be okay at the moment but somber. The Doctor finished his story.
"Then I lied to you over some muffins and we had that whole wrong way...backwards...thingy with Clockwork and Uptight Snootle."
The Doctor looked upwards, thinking of any detail he might have forgotten. Satisfied, he took a long drink of his now room temperature tea. Derpy looked at the bottom of her empty teacup. She also looked at a random point on the floor with the other eye.
"So," she started, "Pinkie Pie is my daughter."
"Yes. Weeeell, kinda. The physical pony that is Pinkie Pie is our daughter. Everything you know about Pinkie Pie and everything that is specifically Pinkie Pie is just a very good story."
"But what about her family?"
"The watch gave her new memories. Her family, her cutie mark, stories from her youth. They're all just memories built partly by the watch and partly by her imagination."
"But her sister came to Ponyville! Remember the pony that was obsessed with rocks? I had to lock you in the TARDIS because you kept having a giggle fit every time somepony made a rock pun."
"Oh yeeeeah," the Doctor chuckled at the memory.
The Doctor's smile slowly faded into a frown. He put a hoof to his chin, looking down to the table as he lost himself in thought.
A few moments passed in silence. The Doctor didn't move from his position. Derpy began to fidget in her seat, nervous of what the Doctor was thinking about. She finally decided to make the Doctor and herself some more tea.
She got out of her seat and retrieved the well-used kettle from the stove. She brought it over to the sink and began to fill it. She looked back at the Doctor and began to worry slightly. He still had yet to move an inch. Just as she put the kettle on the stove, the Doctor spoke.
"I have no idea."
"No idea of what?" asked Derpy, having completely forgotten her previous question.
"No idea as to how Pinkie's sister exists. I mean, I have explanations but none that would make sense. This is quite the puzzle."
The Doctor got up from his place at the table and walked over to the stove. He sat down next to Derpy, putting an arm around her and giving her a little squeeze.
"I guess we'll just have to ask when we visit."
Derpy's eyes grew wide.
"Visit?"
The kettle chose this specific time to begin whistling. The Doctor released Derpy and began the process of making tea.
"Yup," the Doctor said, "Visit. I told you that we were going to go see someone for Hearth's Warming that really missed you."
***
The TARDIS materialized on the side of a road that was surprisingly deserted. The sky was a thick sheet of clouds that mimicked the thick snow covering every surface. A light amount of snow was falling, caught in the slight breeze. Although the sun was blocked from view, the fading light made it obvious that it was about sunset and Princess Luna would soon take the throne of both Equestria and the dream world.
The doors of the TARDIS opened inwards, allowing the snow that was piled against it to fall in. Regardless, a brown earth pony with a green scarf trotted out into the snow. A grey pegasus with a matching yellow scarf flew out, closing the door behind her.
"Hearth's Warming Eve in Ponyville," said the Doctor turning to the hovering pegasus, "Just like I..."
The Doctor drifted off and looked around. He walked out into the road, looking up and down it.
"What's wrong, Doctor?" asked Derpy.
"Where is everyone?"
Derpy looked around to see that not a single pony was outside. There wasn't even any hoofprints in the snow.
"Maybe they're all inside. I mean it is pretty cold, Doctor. Plus, it's Hearth's Warming tomorrow. All the good fillies and colts are impatiently waiting for Santa Hooves."
"Cold Smold! Like you said, it's before Hearth's Warming. Everyone should be out getting last minute gifts. There also should be at least three snowball fights happening now. What's become of kids nowadays?"
"It is not a big deal and, more importantly, is not why we're here."
The Doctor took one last look around. He nodded and the two made their way to the snow-covered Sugarcube Corner. The Doctor pushed open the door, causing a little bell to jingle.
"Just a minnnnnnute~" called a voice from the kitchen.
The Sugarcube Corner was warm and the smell of fresh gingerbread filled the air. Every seat was empty and there was nopony attending the register. The Doctor and Derpy approached the counter.
From the behind the counter rose a pink mare with a fluffy mane and a smile on her face.
"Hiya, Time Turner! Welcome to Sugarcube Corner!" Pinkie greeted excitedly. She then turned to Derpy, her face scrunching up in confusion, "Have we met before? You look super duper familiar, but I just can't quite put my hoof on it. Oh! I know! You're Derpy's Mom! You must be in town for Hearth's Warming. She looks so much like you! I'm Pinkie Pie!"
There was a fall in Derpy's smile, but only for a moment.
"I'm so happy you two came in! I haven't had a single customer all day!"
This caught the Doctor's attention.
"Hmm. That is strange. Not one pony all day?" he asked in his something-is-terribly-wrong-and-we-need-to-fix-it tone.
This got him an elbow to the side from Derpy.
"Nope," said Pinkie, slightly sad, "All the gingerbread and hot chocolate is gonna go to waste. Oh! I know! We can have an All-The-Gingerbread-And-Hot-Chocolate-Is-Going-To-Waste Party! It'll be so fun!"
Derpy elbowed the Doctor again and gave him a look of 'Get on with it.'
"Actually, Pinkie," said the Doctor, pulling a pocket watch from under his scarf, "We were wondering if you could open this."
"Of course I can!"
Pinkie snatched the pocket watch and pushed a button on the top to open it. A glowing light began to flow out like a fog towards Pinkie's face. Once it had ended, her face scrunched up like she had smelled something terrible. She picked up a small trash can behind the counter and spat into it.
"Oatmeal mints?! Are you kidding me?!" she said, still spitting, "If you weren't me, Pinkie Pie, I would slap you."
She grabbed a brownie from the display and shoved it into her mouth, sighing in relief. After swallowing the chocolate-y comfort she looked up at the Doctor.
"Dad? What are you doing here?"
"Hi Dinky. You said I should come back and visit during Hearth's Warming," the Doctor said with a smile, "It took me about 19 years but I finally decided to take you up on that offer. I also brought a guest."
The Doctor nodded to his left. Dinky looked left of the Doctor at the pony she ignored initially. She stared at this pony, overcome with familiarity. She knew this pony, but she hadn't seen her for some time. An unknown warmth filled her heart. Her pupils shrank as the realization hit her. Before Derpy could react, Dinky had jumped across the counter and was hugging Derpy tight.
Derpy was surprised, yet she returned the hug. She began to feel parts of her coat dampen as tears fell.
"I'm so sorry, Mom," Dinky sobbed into Derpy's shoulder, "I was so selfish and stupid for leaving you like that. I just...I just wasn't thinking straight. I was so angry....I...I...I missed you so muuuuuuch!"
Dinky pressed her face into her mother's fur as she let out 200 years of tears. Derpy's eyes began to tear up as she stroked Dinky's mane. The Doctor joined the hug, smiling warmly.
After 20 minutes, Dinky had managed to get ahold of herself. The three of them sat at one of the many empty tables, a mug of hot chocolate in each of their hooves.
"So this whole time you've actually been Dinky?" Derpy asked.
"Mmhmm!" answered Dinky sipping her drink, "I've been a Dinky in a pink Pinkie!"
"So every time I brought you in here as a filly, you were also here as a mare?"
"Yes indeedy! I've actually met myself loads of times as Pinkie Pie. It's like some kind of weird deja vu. Like I even planned one of my own birthday parties. How weird it that? Well...I guess I didn't do it, Pinkie did and I watched. It was still really odd. Super duper timey wimey."
Derpy looked at the Doctor, her face a mixture of confusion and concern. The Doctor had no idea what response she was looking for so he just sipped his hot chocolate. Derpy turned her gaze back to her daughter, her right eye drifting upwards.
"You seem so different, Dinky."
"Well, duh!" Dinky said, as if it were the second most obvious thing in the universe, "I didn't just get put in the washing machine with a red shirt, I regenerated! I know how to juggle now and I can finally whistle!"
Dinky demonstrated this by whistling the chorus of 'Winter Wrap Up.'
Derpy looked down at her hot chocolate. She swirled the steaming liquid absentmindedly. She was quiet but her face reflected how hard she was thinking.
"It's just gonna take some getting used to, I guess."
Dinky looked at her mother and then to her father. Her eyes asking if she had done something wrong. The Doctor got up and moved his seat next to Derpy. He sat down and wrapped and arm around her.
"Don't worry about it too much, Derpy," he said, "She's still our daughter."
"She's our daughter," Derpy agreed, "But she's also one of my best friends...or was...I'm sorry, it's just a lot to think about. I've had a bit of a crazy day."
"Yeeeah, I can see that now. Maybe we should get some rest. I'm sure things will seem clearer after a good sleep."
Derpy slowly nodded, eyes still focused on her drink.
"Oh, you two can sleep in the guest room!" said Dinky excitedly, "The Cakes are in Manehatten, so they won't mind. They wanted the twins to spend Hearth's Warming with the extended family. Come on, follow me!"
Dinky hopped away in genuine Pinkie Pie fashion. The Doctor led a quiet Derpy in Dinky's wake.
***
The clock let out three deep chimes as its pendulum continued to swing. Despite the hour, the kitchen of Sugarcube Corner was brightly lit and alive. The ovens exhaled deep breaths of heat and delightful scents. Pots and pans crafted a symphony of sounds as foods cooked in them. Holding a wooden spoon as she would a silver baton, the pink conductor of this concert looked up at the clock and frowned.
Hanging from the pendulum was a tiny version of herself that looked back at her with an angry look.
What are you doing up this late?! The little pony screamed, At this rate you'll be exhausted during Hearth's Warming and won't be able to participate in the Ponyville-wide snowball fight! Do you really want Rainbow Dash to win?
Dinky frowned further at the pony. She had heard this voice the first time her Dad woke her up. She ignored it given the fact that there were more pressing matters at hoof. This time, however, she got well acquainted with the pony while she was cooking alone. She had given it the name Mini-Pinkie. Dinky began to stir the contents of the pot infront of her. She blinked and the pony stood on surface of soup she was stirring, still glaring. Dinky sighed.
"Pinkie Pie," she addressed the little her, "Much like I explained an hour ago and the hour before, I don't need that much sleep. I'm not a normal pony."
Oh yeeeeeah, Mini-Pinkie responded, I forgot that you're Thyme Lord.
Dinky picked up the tiny pony from the surface of the soup, placing her on the counter as she resumed stirring.
"T-I-M-E. Time Lord. I know they sound the same, but its the ticky-tocky kind not the spice."
Oooooh. That makes sense. Hold on, if they sound the sound the same how did you know which word I used?
"Because I know you, you Loco Coco!"
Hey! You're the one with the Coco!
Mini-Pinkie pointed at her accusingly. Dinky simply rolled her eyes as she walked over to the sink and began to scrub a pot. She blinked and Mini-Pinkie was sitting on an inner tube that was floating on the soapy water.
Hey! I saw you roll your eyes! When am I going to have a turn with my body?
Dinky splashed water at Mini-Pinkie causing her inner tube to capsized. She resurfaced with a dramatic gasp.
"Your body?" Dinky giggled, "This isn't your body, silly billy, its mine."
Fine its your body, when am I going to have my turn? Being a pony without a body is booooooring.
Mini-Pinkie fell back and floated in the water, trying to look as bored as possible.
"You can have it back as soon as Mom and Dad leave, sheesh."
Mini-Pinkie sat up and sunk under the water. Dinky blinked and her entire vision was full of Mini-Pinkie.
Mom and Dad are coming?! Yay! I do hope they bring Maud!
Dinky frowned at the tiny pony. She jerked her head up and flung Mini-Pinkie back into the water. Mini-Pinkie surfaced with a pair of floaties and a snorkel.
"Not your Mom and Dad, my Mom and Dad."
Oh...
Both Mini-Pinkie's hair and floaties deflated as her expression saddened. It broke Dinky's heart.
"Look Pinkie, I really need to talk to you about your parents. They-"
Dinky was cut off by the sound of somepony teleporting into the store front. Mini-Pinkie turned into a balloon that exploded with the sound of a party blower. Dinky ran to the double doors separating the kitchen from the store and peeked her head out.
There stood the Princess of Friendship, Twilight Sparkle. She was out of breath and her mane reflected her crazed state. She looked up at Dinky and her expression softened a little.
"Pinkie Pie!" she said, sighing in relief, "Thank Celestia you're here! I need your help."
Author's Note
This is part one of the Dinky Who Christmas/Hearth's Warming Special. I couldn't finish the whole story before Christmas so I split it into two parts. I apologise. I promise that part two will be up soon. I do hope you enjoyed this introduction.
Derpy rolled over for the seventh time in the last half hour. She sat up and opened her eyes.
It was still mostly dark in the room. In the far corner there was a candle burning and also a very blurry shape. She blinked a few times and it came into focus. It was the Doctor reading a book by the candle's light. He wasn't speed reading, as he normally did, but read at a relatively normal pace.
The Doctor glanced up from his book and looked at Derpy, then went back to reading.
"Trouble sleeping, Derpy?" he asked, turning a page.
"Yeah," Derpy rubbed her eyes, "I just can't stop thinking about Pinkie Pi- I mean Dinky."
"It's norm-"
"I know. I know. It's normal for a Time Lord. It doesn't make it any less weird. One of my best friends is actually my daughter."
"Which I think is a good thin- you royal pain! Quit being so stubborn!" the Doctor shouted angrily.
"Doctor!" responded an offended and confused Derpy.
"Hm?" the Doctor kept his eyes on his book, "Oh, sorry Derpy. I'm reading A Christmas Carol. Scrooge is such a total grump. This story could use flying sharks. Like I was saying, it's a good thing. She's your best friend and daughter. You outta love her so much, Changlings in Saddle Arabia should feel a disturbance in the force."
"I know, but..."
Derpy paused long enough that Doctor turned the page again.
"She just..." Derpy started again, "She's just so different. She's not the Dinky I know, she has too much Pinkie Pie in her. She's not the Pinkie Pie I know, she's has too much Dinky in her. I just feel like she's a completely different pony."
The Doctor looked up from his book.
"I know. I know," Derpy said before he could speak, "She IS a completely different pony. You know what I mean. It just feels like Dinky is gone and Pinkie Pie is pretending to be her."
The Doctor put his book on the table next to the candle. He got up from his chair and approached Derpy's side of the bed, looking her directly in one of her eyes. His own eyes were warm and caring.
"Derpy," he began, "Her personally just had a bit of a reboot is all. She has the same memories and thoughts as the other Dinky, she's just a more hyper shade of pink. Trust me. Give it a little bit of time and she'll be your little muffin again."
Derpy sighed as she tilted her head downwards and closed her eyes.
"Maybe you're right."
The Doctor kissed Derpy's cheek.
"Get some sleep, Derpy."
The door slammed open and the lights turned on bright. Dinky stood in the doorway looking nervous and worried.
"...or nevermind," the Doctor mumbled under his breath. He turned to Dinky with a raised eyebrow, "What's wrong, Dinky?"
Dinky took a dramatically deep breath and began talking at break neck speeds.
"Well, I was preparing Hearth Warming breakfast and talking to myself to pass the time. When, suddenly, I heard a magically noise from the other room. I went to check it out, and it was Twilight and she said she needed my help. So I was all like, 'What's up, Twi? Having a We-Woke-Up-Way-Too-Early-For-Hearth's-Warming party?' and she was like, 'No, the fate of Ponyville might be in the balance and I need all the help I can get.' Then I ran up here to get you, but you were all like, 'What's wrong, Dinky?' So I had to start explaining."
Dinky stopped talking and started gasping for air. Derpy looked completely lost which wasn't mirrored by the Doctor, he wore a smug smile.
"I knew it!" he said excitedly, "I knew Ponyville didn't look right! I knew I wasn't crazy!"
The look that both Derpy and Dinky gave him caused him to roll his eyes.
"Oh, shut up. Let's just go and see what the fuss it about, shall we?"
***
Dinky reappeared in the store front with the Doctor and Derpy in tow. Twilight had fixed her mane and seemed to have physically calmed down. Her eyes focused on each of them respectively, getting stuck on Derpy. Her expression went from calm to shocked in less than ten seconds.
"Ditzy!" Twilight said, approaching the mare and analyzing her, "What in Luna's name happened to you?"
Derpy smiled and shook her head.
"Don't worry, Twilight," Derpy assured the Princess, "I'm fine. I'm also not what's important here. Plus I'll explain later."
Derpy looked to the Doctor for confirmation of whether they would explain it later. The Doctor shrugged in a way that said 'Probably.'
"Anyway," Derpy continued, "What's going on?"
Twilight seemed reluctant to leave the issue, but did agree that there were more important problems at hoof. She made a mental note to press Ditzy for answers later...perhaps over tea and muffins.
"Well," began Twilight as she paced about, "Ponies have been disappearing over the last two days. I noticed it in the market when a few venders had refused to show up. I didn't think much of it, as ponies travel for the holidays. Then this morning there were almost no ponies walking around. So I wrote a letter to the Princesses noting this odd phenomenon. As I went to go send it, I noticed Spike was gone and I couldn't find him anywhere. I checked the Carousel Boutique but he wasn't inside. Not only that but Rarity and Sweetie Belle were also missing. I checked the rest of the other Bearers and found all of them to be missing. Even Applejack, who's as rooted to this town as her apple trees. I had almost given up hope when I teleported here and found you, Pinkie."
The Doctor put a hoof to his chin.
"So ponies are disappearing," he said, "Which explains the lack of them when we had first arrived. Any other clues?"
Twilight began looking uncomfortable, eyes tracing the wood grain on the floor.
"I did find one," Twilight said, a sadness saturating her tone, "Before I came here, I checked the Carousel Boutique again and I found something that...scared me."
Twilight visibly shivered at the last bit. Dinky walked over to Twilight and pulled her into a hug.
"Don't you worry your pretty little egghead, Twilight," Dinky said, trying her best to comfort the alicorn, "Dad is totally gonna fix this and we can all have hot chocolate after, okay?"
Twilight pushed out of Dinky's hug to fix her with a confused look.
"Dad?"
Dinky's pupils shrank as she tried to maintain her poker face. A pretty decent poker face for that matter. If she didn't have such a hard time holding playing cards, she'd make quite the living out in Las Pegasus.
Dinky took a few steps back until she was between the Doctor and Derpy. She wrapped a leg behind the Doctor's neck.
"This cool Daddy-O here, Twi," Dinky gestured to the Doctor, "Yo, this cat's so cool...he's radical...ya dig?"
Twilight looked Dinky up and down with a serious expression. She then rolled her eyes with a slight smile.
"Oh, Pinkie Pie, you're so eccentric," Twilight's smile dropped and her whole face seemed more grim, "Anyway, if you'll follow me."
Twilight walked out of the store and into the snow, beginning the short walk to Carousel Boutique.
Derpy chose to fly near Twilight, mimicking the alicorn's silence. The Doctor and Dinky lagged behind them, walking at the same pace.
"Radical?" the Doctor mumbled loud enough for Dinky to hear, "Where did you learn that word?"
"Spoilers," Dinky giggled, "Pinkie learned them for some little bit she did for Rainbow Dash in her past and I'm assuming your future, Daddy. I'm not sure if she even used 'radical' but she sure should have."
The Doctor laughed softly, "I look forward to it, then."
"Doctor!" Derpy called from up ahead.
The Doctor and Dinky galloped around Carousel Boutique to where Derpy and Twilight were standing. In the snow before them stood a stone statue of a small dragon. His mouth open in an eternal scream.
"Wow," said Dinky, "I knew Spike liked Rarity and all but a stone likeness of himself is a bold gift."
"But that's just it," Twilight spoke up, "This isn't Spike's Hearth's Warming gift to Rarity. He made a pair of sapphire earrings for her. Also, the expression. Why would Spike, let alone anypony, make a statue that looks so...terrified?"
"Good point, my dear," the Doctor noted, fishing his Sonic out of his pocket, "Let's see if there's more to this statue."
The Doctor pressed his Sonic a few times looking for a specific frequency.
"What in the world is that, Time Turner?" Twilight asked, her student nature getting the better of her.
"Hmm? Oh this? It's a Sonic Screwdriver. Emits sonic waves to do loads of neat things: analyze stuff, unlock doors, assemble cabinets at ponies. You name it."
"Is it a tool you need often in your clock repairing?"
"Look," the Doctor began to scan the statue, "Since Derpy is a bit of a blabbermouth and is going to explain everything later, I'm gonna tell you right now that I don't repair clocks for a living. Trying to maintain the lie is exhausting and there are more important things to worry about."
Twilight made a slightly confused face at the Doctor, storing this information for her later talk with Derpy. The Doctor looked at the tip of his Screwdriver to confirm his suspicions.
"That statue there isn't a statue. It's Spike, but completely solidified. All of his insides are perfectly preserved but hard as a rock."
"Solid rock?" Twilight brought a hoof up to Spike's face and stroked it, "Do you think it might be the work of a Cockatrice, Time Turner? They have the power to turn things into stone."
"It's the Doctor, Time Turner is a pseudonym. To answer your question, it would make sense if this were just stone but this is something else. It's similar to a material that I'm familiar enough with to know we're in danger. Fortunately it seems to be remotely linked by some kind of arcane force."
"Linked to what?" asked Twilight.
"Let's go find out."
***
As the snow-covered road gave way to snow-covered snow, the group made their way out of Ponyville and towards the outskirts of the Everfree Forest. The Doctor slowly led the way waving his Sonic Screwdriver in front of him. The Screwdriver emitting various frequencies depending on the direction it pointed. The rest of the group walked a few yards behind the Doctor.
Twilight had a lot of important things on her mind. Each item important in its own right and needed to be dealt with. She shook her head as if to scramble the items on her mental To-Think List, rearranging them based on what she could acomplish more immediately. Reassessing the list, she turned her head to Derpy.
"So, Ditzy," the words stumbled awkwardly out of Twilight's mouth, "Since we have some time to talk. Maybe you could...you know....explain some...stuff."
Twilight punctuated her sentence with an awkward cough. Derpy frowned.
"I suppose," Derpy drug out the last syllable, "Twilight, I'm a time traveler. I-"
"Impossible," Twilight interrupted, falling into full egghead mode, "While time travel isn't completely impossible with the aid of a carefully crafted spell. The fact remains that you are a pegasus, so you would have no access to magic. While non-magic time travel methods have been theorized pretty extensively, even by Starswirl himself, no full scale prototypes have ever been constructed. Even building a 1/16th scale model of a non-magic time machine would require an amount of power equal to roughly three times the magic inside all the unicorns of Equestria combined."
There was a brief moment of silence as Twilight mentally fact-checked herself. Derpy cleared her throat loudly to get the alicorn's attention.
"I'm just a passenger, Twilight. I travel with my husband, the Doctor. He uses his alien space-time ship-machine called the TARDIS. I look different from the last time you've seen me both because I'm from the future, and because I've spent so much time traveling through time that I'm older than I should be."
Twilight stopped dead in her tracks causing Derpy and Dinky to also stop. Her face was an odd mixture of expressions ranging from shocked to confused to worried.
"Wait a minute, let me get this straight," Twilight's eyes were locked on Derpy as she tried desperately to process the information, "You're married to Time Turner, whose real name is the Doctor, a space alien who you've been traveling through time with for Celestia knows how long, and you're also from the close future. Did I miss anything?"
Stands of Twilight's mane sprung out of place until she looked as crazy as when she had teleported into Sugar Cube Corner. Derpy and Dinky were silent, staring at Twilight.
"We also travel through space," a voice behind her said.
Twilight screamed and shot up into the air with a quick flap of her wings. She quickly righted herself and turned toward the direction of the voice.
The Doctor held a hoof over his mouth to try and contain his giggles. Her cleared his throat and addressed the panicked princess.
"Sorry, my dear, didn't mean to hehe spook you. To answer your question before you ask it, no we can not prove it at the current moment. Unless you happen to have a stethoscope for all stethoscope-related emergencies."
Twilight flapped lightly until her hooves touched the ground. Folding her wings and fixing her hair, she faced the Doctor again.
"Stethoscope?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yes! The type of alien I am, Timelord, are known for having a binary circulatory system."
"Binary circulatory system? Do you mean you have two hearts?"
"Bingo! Two hearts! So if I-"
The Doctor was cut off on account of being wrapped in a lavender field of magic, the same as the one around Twilight's horn.
Derpy's eyes went wide.
"Twilight! What the Tartarus are you doing?!"
"Scanning him to check if he has..."
The field vanished and Twilight stumbled back a few steps. Derpy immediately rushed to the Doctor's side. The Doctor smiled at her to show that he was fine.
"...T-two hearts....Two hearts...he has two hearts."
Twilight looked up at the Doctor.
"You're an alien?"
"I'm an alien."
"That travels through time?"
"And space."
"Wow...can I ask you a few questions about-?"
"Yes, AFTER we save all of Ponyville and Equestria."
Twilight's face took on a look of determination.
"Right."
"Good," the Doctor said as he walked away, "There's a cave right up ahead. Do keep up this time."
The group began moving again, tailing the Doctor. Twilight giggled to herself.
"I can't believe I never knew there was an alien living in Ponyville. I'll have to scan ponies more often to make sure we haven't been completely invaded."
Dinky's smile fell slightly.
***
The inside of the cave was completely dark. Twilight lit her horn and led the rest of the group deeper underground. The path was linear and seemed to tilt ever so slightly down. Every few minutes, the Doctor would use his Sonic Screwdriver to check how close the source of the arcane force.
"How much longer, Doctor?" Derpy asked, trying her best to keep the exhaustion out of her voice, "My hooves are killing me."
"Not much farther, Derpy," the Doctor replied, scanning again, "Should be just up ahead."
The cave began to become increasingly lit up as they continued walking. The light seemed to be coming from further into the cave. The cave walls and ceiling seemed to close in until it formed a space as big as a doorway. Beyond the doorway, the cave opened into a huge room. The ceiling reached up to 40 feet at it's highest as it curved to meet the walls. In the center of the room stood a pedestal with a glowing green amulet floating on it. Four identical stone alicorns stood around the pedestal facing outwards, their faces in their hooves.
This isn't what caught the group's attention. Around the room stood a myriad of other stone ponies. No one pony looked exactly the same, but they all shared the same theme. They were residents of Ponyville.
Author's Note
I didn't want to cut the story here but I seem to have lost the other really long half of this chapter.
Save often, kids.
Regardless, here's this part and I'll try to rewrite the next part into its own chapter.
