Time Will Never Tell

by Bold Promise

Rating: teen
Tags: Alternate Universe, Doctor Whooves, Drama, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Mystery, Other, Romance, Adventure, Derpy Hooves, Crossover
Length: 132404

For how long would you run before you realized that you already lost the race? An ancient alien loses the race, and needs to face his sins. But, he has others who care for him, and will help him pick up the pieces and rise up stronger than ever.

The Doctor lies. That much is known quite well. Yet, how far do his lies stretch on for? How many of his lies does he himself believe? And how many of those lies would survive if he was suddenly forced to stop, think, and remember?

For most of his life it's been the same thing going over and over again. Run away. But what is he really running from?

For about a thousand years, there has only been one constant. Him, his Tardis and his travels. Companions come and go, but he could always count on another adventure to be waiting for him, and his ship to faithfully take him there.

He got hurt on his last travel, in more ways than his lies would allow him to admit to himself. It all comes crashing down on him once he realizes that in this new world, he doesn't know anything. He's helpless. He's suddenly more disconnected, more alone than he ever felt in his entire life.

He lost his Tardis. She was always faithful, always there for him. And when she needed his help, he couldn't do anything. She was out of his reach.

He was alone... save for one local.

Published 2012-01-01 18:07:19 UTC
Last updated 2015-05-12 15:18:40 UTC

Part 1: So what's new, Doctor Who?

Author's Note

Credit where it's due. Doctor Who to BBC, MLP FIM to Hasbro. Otherwise, this story in itself is credited to me, on account of the fact that I've put a lot of effort and ideas into it.

I will be honest with you. I did not take fixing this story nearly sufficiently seriously enough. I finally caught some sense, and fixed it up a bit. Just a bit, though. Originally, this whole chapter was 9000 words of uneventful, tedious, clumsy bullshit. I skigot to the point. Now it's a lot less... long. It's still uneventful. Man, I sucked when I first started out. Oh well, you live you learn.

Part 1: So what's new, Doctor Who?

So what's new, Doctor Who?

Time was tricky inside the TARDIS. How would one measure time inside a time machine? Well, to answer that question properly, it wasn't a matter of paradox, but of context. Of course time passed inside, otherwise everything there would've just been frozen in place. No, the issue was not with the flow of the vast ocean that was time, but with the exact nature of the small ark that made the Doctor's craft.

Here, seconds mixed with eons, lifetimes got split across eternities. Every time machine was where the universe met and unraveled. And the Tardis was no simple time machine.

It was nothing to scoff at. It was about as much of a one-way ticket through time as a Black Hole was just a sink drain... okay, maybe not that much. A tornado just a summer breeze? Meh, close enough.

This ship wasn't just plates and decks, it was part of the ocean as well. It wasn't an island, but an intelligent hurricane, interconnected with the many would-bes and what-ifs that made up more than just time, but the act of travel through time. And in this eternal twister, this never-ending whirlpool made up of the same stuff as stars and possibility, here the Doctor was at home.

On one such mismatch of temporal current, that is to say, on one faithful night, he received a distress signal. Not an S.O.S., this particular message in a bottle was specifically meant for him and his TARDIS' monitor. The Doctor put on his glasses unnecessarily to study the message, curiously, as well as wearily. The many, unreasonable images that appeared in sequence on the respective one of the many monitors present at the control panel were each telling their own tale in manners too quick and complex for any human eye.

He read tentatively through those symbols. Finally, he spoke out in a peeved, British accent, “So there's trouble? ...All right. I don’t have anything better to do right now anyway. Lending some help can't hurt, can it? Let’s see, the coordinates are… unregistered." He stopped for a while, then his tone turned into a more surprised one as he blurted out,"What? How are they unregistered? I was supposed to have the map of all of reality here, plus several extensions! It doesn't make sense!"

For a moment, it'd seemed he was waiting for someone to speak back. But there was no one else on board.

He was alone, he remembered. It had been a long night he just put behind him, and a couple of good-byes which he didn't much care to dwell on.

A choked huff. He resigned himself.

"Guess I could use a distraction. Okay then, message of unknown origin and intent." He went through the switches on his control panel, dramatically pausing through the last few. "...Let's... find you out."

He looked brighter as he said those last few words. Nothing like the promise of a new adventure to make you feel better.

Yes, he was anxious, but it just wouldn't be right to not make a small pause here and there when it mattered, just to take the moment in. This was, after all, what he lived for. He'd hate it if he noticed he started to live these risks down.

Contrary to his common sense, which the Doctor was already used to ignoring by now, he beat the commands into the control panel to send his ship to track down the source of the message. En route, however, something went wrong. No surprise.

The engine started pulsing erratically, eerily yet properly similar to an irregular heartbeat. The monitor which the message was displayed on started on lines upon lines of information, glitching through languages both ancient and yet unfounded, eventually ending with a phrase written in a dialect foreign for the ancient Time Lord, despite his knowledge of all languages that were ever written down.

He didn't have enough time to at least make a double take on the contradictory sight as a brilliant light filled the chamber, numbing all of his senses before he could figure out what was happening. He didn't even realize when he lost consciousness.

Or at least, that was how one would best describe what happened to him. If anything, it was as if he was stuck in the process of waking up, with the addition of his senses either flaring or shutting down. It was all just a little too real to be a dream, yet still not far off enough to deny the association. There was neither pain nor numbness. The only thing he could describe was the feeling of being in a really tight spot, as far as that went to explain anything.

It was eerily familiar to the process of regeneration, yet another surreal experience. It most certainly was not the same thing, however, which offered the Time Lord room to hope. He'd hated it if he died like this. All of a sudden, unremarkably.

Then there was falling, for the short while he had left as the remainder of his consciousness slipped away.

When he woke up, he found himself outside (somewhere), late at night, with the world spinning around in a mist he could barely see through. It was probably the remainder of the inhibition that had so dominated him previously. The reason he woke up at all was because he was being poked at by a very curious creature with a hard object. He couldn’t quite distinguish what the creature looked like, though.

“Dor aehe? Jorho di avi?” the creature spoke, with concern obvious in her tone. He could only guess it was a she from her voice. Beyond that, he knew nothing of the world around him. Furthermore, the fact that he couldn't understand what was being said only offered him more reason to feel out of his element and afraid. It was unlikely that he arrived anywhere he couldn't understand the local language.

All he could do was contemplate whether he messed up his head. He couldn't even give a decent answer beyond a few groans and a half-mouthed "what".

More concerned mutterings ensued. The Doctor didn't know what was going on. He was in no state to manage concrete thought processes either way. He merely managed a few tired mumblings before he lost consciousness again.

A kettle was whistling loudly in the other room. It seemed someone had forgotten the tea on. The sound was loud enough to wake the Doctor up. As he worked through his blurry vision, he found himself in a bed, in a brightly-colored room. Well, "bright" might not be the right choice of words.

It was as if, as the sunlight was flooding through the window, accompanied by warmth and bird song, it was all taken in by the matter around him. Like everything absorbed a sense of warmth. Everything was serene to the point of seeming surreal. He was pretty certain that this wasn't the kind of place where you're supposed to find yourself in after you answer a mysterious (and very likely dangerous) interdimensional ambush call.

'I do hope this isn't another Isolus drawing,' the Doctor’s mind automatically considered.

He tried to get up, then crashed back into his pillow as his head started spinning and his muscles refused to respond.

'I've never felt a bed this nice in my life. Certainly not a child's scribble... Or a hospital bed.' His eyes slowly focused and he got control of his motion. His entire body felt like it was made of an entirely different material. Everything felt far too… soft. And spicy.

At least his faculties weren’t affected. He made a few mathematical equations in his head to make certain his logic added up with his memories of what said equations were supposed to yield. They did, he noticed, much to his relief. However his next uttered words did come off the tongue rather... oddly, because he couldn’t recognize the words once they came out. He decided to just focus on the here and now.

He took the room in again. Yep, still pastel. But other than that, he could only assume that this was a normal household. There were a few wooden cupboards along one wall, a desk in the corner near the fireplace, and a nightstand near his bed. On the chair at the desk he found his coat, which was surprisingly offered quite graciously by his supposed kidnappers. There were a few drawn picture frames on the walls, though none digital and none of any people. Landscapes, mostly. Purely aesthetic, no glass casings.

There was a lack of a light bulb on the ceiling, nor any evidence of any other kind of technology, so he was left to assume he arrived in a world where light bulbs were not mass produced. There were a few books in a shelf, as well as candles, paper, inkwells and writing feathers.. All of those suggested that he arrived somewhere where they most likely didn't invent the television yet, since the books’ states of wear suggested they had been read regularly. It also appeared that the locals were still using flint and steel to get a fire started, evidenced by the two tools near the hearth. On the other hand, comfortable accommodations did not seem to be in much scarcity.

He took only a short few seconds to look around the room and lose interest altogether. By which time he decided to make himself noticed to whomever brought him here. Again finding the words coming out of his mouth notably alien and ill-fitted.

"Where am I? Hello?” he tried to shout out, despite still being tired.

It seemed to have been sufficient, as he could hear a friendly voice answering from another part of the household, “Oh, good! You're awake.”

He recognized the voice as being the same as the one he'd heard right before falling unconscious. Surprisingly enough, however, this time she was talking fluent English. Or at least that was how he registered and understood it.

“Yes, well, the smell of boiling tea sometimes has that effect on me. More importantly, where am I? (And, by all means, when?)” He tried to get up again, but yet to no positive result.

The voice’s source neared the room’s entrance. “You’re in the guest's quarters. I would’ve brought you to a doctor, but this was closer. Somepony did check you out, however, and said you were okay."

"How did you know I wasn't dangerous?" the Time Lord inquired.

"Trust me, I can handle myself." she answered confidently as she walked in, revealing who, and what she was.

He didn’t want to accept what he was seeing. He didn’t have any trouble conceiving the possibility, the Doctor just didn’t want to dignify his senses with admitting that they might possibly be working properly. Unfortunately, he checked, and found that his senses were indeed working right.

He was looking at a large, gray furred, golden maned and eyed pony, with wings attached which, according to all logic and reason, were far too small to be used for flight. The equine creature entered the room carrying a tea plate with her mouth, eyeing him with no small amount of reservation which she tried to hide. How nice of her, she was trying to be polite to the complete stranger. Also, she was intelligent, apparently.

Putting on hold how completely outlandish it all was, beyond that, what else seemed unusual to the thousand-year-old time travelling alien was how she was carrying the tea in her teeth. He would assume that an intelligent alien race could at least manipulate kitchen equipment in some semblance of… convenience, so he assumed that this was some kind of pet, or servant creature, for the actual leading species on the planet. It was not unreasonable to assume as much at all.

The second thing that drew the Time Lord’s attention was that the creature seemed to be having trouble focusing both eyes in any one direction. She was making a valiant effort, but her left eye was clearly intent on stubbornly wandering off. That offered the Doctor no shortage of discouraging ideas for conclusions.

His host continued where she'd left off, her eye starting to drift off before she forcefully realigned it. "At any rate, I understand you might be afraid of doctors, but…”

“Oh, no, it isn't that, it’s just, ugh..." he trailed off, surprised. "Huh. My voice seems to be a bit lighter."

He tried to clear his throat in his fist, with little success beyond noticing his hand was missing. He looked himself over and noticed his normal Gallifreyan body (which was humanoid for a certain reason or another) was now quite different. His skin was covered in chestnut brown fur, his hands were replaced with hooves and all things considered, he seemed to have been turned into one of the locals... Wherever he was.

This certainly seemed like an… odd method of kidnapping. However, it was effective. Turn him into the local subservient race? If only it was so convenient, or even possible for that matter. He actually had no idea how to fill that blank.

He eventually gathered his faculties into a semblance of recovery. "Ugh, what happened?" he asked, befuddled.

"I'd hoped you could explain that. I wasn't sure what I saw either. Anyway, how are you feeling?"

He pulled himself over to the side and on his haunches, heavily. Surprisingly, he finally was able to get used to his new body. "I've felt better," he said as he spun his head around, eliciting a satisfying crack from his neck.

There was only one thing he knew to do when faced with unknown situations. And that was to run his mouth. However, this particular setting made him shelve his go-to tactic, since it would prove a little silly to talk big from his position in bed, when instead he should've been focusing on fishing for information. If he was to talk the talk, he was at least going to wait for introductions first.

So, his best course of actions was to get up as soon as possible, fish for as much information as possible, then get out of dodge.

"So, hello. My name’s the Doctor. What’s yours? Also, is that chamomile tea?"

The strange host eyed him oddly. "The Doctor? That’s actually your name?"

"Yup. Pleasure! Don't wear it out.” He was studying her intently at this point. So far, she didn’t seem to exhibit any hint of ill intent. He was still getting a feel of his sleeping legs. “And about the tea again. Chamomile, right? Antiseptic and anti-inflammatory. Also savory. Good for any occasion. Nice choice, if I may say so myself. Thanks for the treat," he ranted.

The hostess seemed to have figured she could try to keep things as un-awkward as possible with returning the chatting.

"...So, Doctor," she uttered his supposed name, trying the words out similarly to how one would test the waters before going for a swim.

"That's my name." he affirmed, smiling at her and raising a cocky eyebrow.

The mare couldn't help but smile back. ‘He seems friendly enough…’ She got to pouring him a cup and leaving it to cool. "You're very welcome for the tea. I just didn't know what you'd like…” She trailed off, and questioned, “Anyway, what happened? I didn’t see much, but from what I could gather, it seemed like you took quite the fall.”

“That so? I don’t suppose you could show me where you found me, could you?” he pulled himself to the edge of the bed and steadily dropped off. “Also, you didn’t give me your name yed.”

“It’s Ditzy Doo.”

He chose that moment to get up, but his new legs, combined with hearing the unreasonable name, disoriented him enough to nearly fall on his face.

"Ditzy Doo?” He steadied himself, staring at the mare sceptically. “That's... that's a nice name," he finally managed to reply half-heartedly. He steadied himself, placed a few solid kicks in the floor to send shock to wake up his new nervous endings, and went over to the tea. He then realized that he had no hands.

He faced ‘Ditzy’ questioningly. “How do you drink this?”

Wonderful thing, chamomile. It actually managed to reach many a star. Can't imagine it being too hard for anyone to believe that good things find their way to being used by those so willing to use them.

However, there was no instance in history in which a world populated by a race of talking ponies ever got their hooves on the stuff.

The Doctor sat down for a talk with Ditzy, in the adjacent chamber, which was the dining room. There were quite a few things he found out, and none of them were reassuring. According to the mare, he had found himself in a world populated by many different intelligent creatures. He was in a country called… sigh… Equestria, which was populated mostly by ponies. In the town of Ponyville, near the capital city of Canterlot. Apparently there was a theme going on. And no, that theme wasn’t the abundance of horse metaphors, but the complete and utter lack of any sense. There were so many things that were going out of their way to not make any sense, that the Doctor was actually impressed, as well as notably overwhelmed.

Apparently he could drink tea by holding the cup in between his front hooves. It was manageable, once Ditzy showed him, although barely. It also appeared that his pants, shoes, shirt, undercoat and undergarments were missing. All that Ditzy found on him was his overcoat. Inside the overcoat’s pockets were all the things which he had left there, including his keys to his Tardis, his screwdriver, and a number of other miscellaneous things of varying life-saving or amusement usefulness.

She was an unassuming, average Jane. She worked as a mail-mare… which was a thing that existed. She used her ability to fly (another argument and a half) to deliver mail in a timely fashion across the country. A country which apparently held a respectably low total settlement area. It's under a hundred square miles, and under a tenth of the total territory, leaving out Everfree territory. And conveniently, they were square in the middle of said country, so she could manage getting to and back within the day. When she got back from her job, she found a star falling out of the sky in the distance. She approached in order to investigate, and the only thing she found was him, fading in and out of consciousness. She didn't want him to be picked off by wild animals from the nearby forest, so she brought him with her. But when the Doctor asked her why she didn’t just drop him off at the hospital, she seemed to be having trouble focusing on a sufficient answer. Like the information was eluding her somehow. Something which caught the Doctor’s attention.

“Is there something wrong?”

“No, it’s just… I ran into someone. I think he was a medic… he said that you were okay. I just…”

“And you trusted this person?” she returned a meek look. “Can you describe them?”

“…No.”

He regarded her carefully. She really didn’t remember. ‘Questions to ask later,’ he decided. He’d need to come back to her about this.

Surprisingly, he didn’t feel all that concerned of his not being ginger-haired. Or about the things called “cutie marks”, which was not at all flattering. What he was concerned by, was Ditzy’s name, which apparently was an acceptable means of referring to someone although it essentially describes her as a foolish klutz. Apparently her namesake somehow translated into her poor depth perception and ever-shifting sight range during flight. Somehow, fate’s cruelty thought ahead. However, she did not seem perturbed enough to change her name.

“Leaving aside my parents’ uninspired choice in names,” she asked, a surprisingly small hint of annoyance in her voice, “you haven’t explained to me, who are you? How can you not know any of this?”

“I’m not from around these parts.”

Now was Ditzy’s turn to stare at him. He shook his head, “When you saw that star falling out of the sky, that was most likely me entering the atmosphere.”

“Right…” She regarded him with renewed suspicion. “Or maybe you just hit your head, and I should’ve brought you to the hospital anyway.”

“I suppose I can’t expect you to assume any differently.” He got up from his seat, “Thanks for the tea, and everything. I truly appreciate it.”

“Where are you going?”

“No idea. Brand new world out there, but I’m pretty sure I can find my way.”

The mare could only stare at him as he reached the door and fumbled helplessly with the knob. She sighed, and got up from her seat.

“I suppose I can spare a couple of hours. I might as well show you around town.”

When fiction meets fairytale

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Average days

The kettle started whistling downstairs, alerting everyone in the house. It was like a rooster call. Ever since Whooves... Who... the Doctor took residence in Ditzy Doo’s home, he noticed it would go off in every morning, calling everyone to breakfast.

“Another average day.” the Doctor mumbled groggily as he got up. He slapped himself with the soft part of his hooves to get the night out of his head... then he crashed right back into bed. "...Just a few more minutes."

Technically, he could force himself awake. He could do that. It wouldn't even be hard. Not even a little bit. The only reason he didn't do it was, he just didn't want to. After all, it wasn't like he had anything useful or interesting to do today.

Doc was now staying at Ditzy's place for rent... well, sort-of rent, since he'd yet to get his hooves on some money to pay for his stay and meals... Which he actually didn't need that much of, but apparently Ditzy had a different opinion on the matter. Something about wanting the others to get to know him better, and listing the requirement that he'd at least join the rest for meals.

The Doctor decided it'd be best to forgo the inn, try someplace less... public. Keep as low a profile as possible. The last thing he wanted was to attract undue attention, in a world where... in a place like this.

Being stranded in an entirely different world, within an entirely different body, in a society that was apparently content to just rely on their betters to decide their fate to such a disturbing point, that they had no qualms with having their social roles branded to their sides like animals, and they were all so unnaturally happy... None of these things were enough to freak him out. The fact that he didn't know where his ship was, which was a conscious, living, feeling creature, and the creeping feeling at the back of his neck that told him that he was supposed to be scared for her, he could handle that as well. None of that was even the worst of it.

There was even worse than all of that. A travesty to sanity which he saw with the changing from day to night. To see the sky being pulled across the horizon like drapes. To find such a fundamental fallacy be created by magic. To desperately try to find a logical explanation, but only find insanity as an answer...

The only reason why Ditzy allowed him to stay in her house that night, in the same house as her sister and daughter, was because he had nowhere else to go, and because of how... broken he looked. Because despite his strangeness, he was still a fellow pony, and one that really needed a friend right now...

At least that was what she thought at first. As time passed, however, it became abundantly clear that he was not a normal pony.

He'd recovered by the next day enough to go out, but he tried to keep his socializing to a bare minimum. He never felt so afraid in his life, he didn't have any desire to socialize whatsoever until he finally got his bearings, out of fear of being found out. If he wasn't at the library, asking for orders on books he'd hoped might still help him understand this world better, or silently looking through dumpsters at night in order to scavenge parts to make a detector to locate his Tardis(*), or upgrade parts for said detector once the previous version didn't work, or some other contraption (like a recharging station for his screwdriver, or an electric razor, or even a telescope), then he was tinkering away in his room, trying to unlock the workings of magic. Unfortunately, he was stranded, forced to poke around in the dark.

Eventually Ditzy needed to buy him a few things he just couldn't scavenge or manufacture with his tools. Including a toothbrush. With the money from his practically worthless gems. The gold was entirely worthless in their economy, they were actually using magically reinforced bits which couldn't be magically counterfeited or teleported out of your purse. Also, they were easier to manipulate with hooves, apparently. Some sort of magnetic effect taking place on their 'unconventional magic'.

Apparently using gems, which essentially amounted to truffles in both role and scarcity, did not catch on as well as it did in our world.

It wasn't exactly easy for Ditzy's family at first, but they were understanding. They figured that he was friendly enough, and if Ditzy trusted him, then they could trust her judgment.

For the Doctor in particular, it was... okay. It was definitely better than being hungry on the road or sleeping under the clear sky (**). Still, it was far too average and slow for his liking.

He always told himself he would enjoy a little downtime like this. Away from the all too frequent life-and-death situations. But now that he finally did get a break, he was afraid that the universe might implode because he hadn’t been checking on it anymore.

This forced vacation was not to his liking at all.

Ditzy knocked at his door, waking him from his brooding and telling him to get out of bed. She knew he would probably try to sleep in again.

“Hurry up out of bed, or there won’t be anything left!”

“I hardly think that’s the case." he yawned at her. "You always make more than you lot would eat. I’ll just make due with the leftovers… Might catch a few more minutes…” as he doze off.

“Alright, you asked for it. Dinky!” she called towards up-stairs.

Soon enough, a cheery little voice responded, “Yeah, mom!”

“The Doctor needs help waking up again!”

“Okay, mom!”

A few moments later, a little purple unicorn with a blond mane rushes down the stairs, giggling, with a bucket of water levitating close by as she went straight through the respective door.

There was the sound of splashing, followed by the words, "I suppose I won't be needing a shower today."

With all the ruckus, the last occupant of the household thought she’d make herself noticed as well. A purple colored, blond maned earth pony, same as her niece, but otherwise the spitting image of her sister. Same golden eyes, same hair, only much longer and kept down, covering her forehead as opposed to Ditzy's straight style. Other than that, there was the magically preserved lily she always wore in her hair.

“It’s a wonder he didn’t learn his lesson by now, isn’t it?” Doseydotes started in a playful tone.

"Is it?" her wally-eyed sister asked back. Ditzy caught that she was getting at something, just not what though.

The younger sibling gave her a knowing smirk, satisfied that the older took the bait. "I can't know, maybe you can tell me?"

The pegasus mare was about to answer, but as she noticed the familiar gaze, she realized what her little sister was hinting at. A small, innocent assumption, that she might've only taken him in because she had the hots for him. Dotes' sly grin was what disgruntled the mother more than the accusation itself, though. The only reason she started blushing was because she was caught by surprise, her bad eye drifting a bit from the surprise. As she usually reacted to such situations, she tilted her head and covered her bad eye under the cover of her hair, the other eye looking away until she regathered herself.

"How well do you know him, dear sister?" the younger sibling asked innocently.

Ditzy rolled her eyes. "Just get down for breakfast already..."

An average day. Luckily it’s far from uneventful.

The Doctor didn't even need to sleep as much as an average pony did. A couple hours were more than enough, he could go on for a few weeks in a row without rest, even though doing so would still put a damper on his mental capacities and health after a certain point. However, that didn't mean he was any good with mornings regardless. He often spent all day fussing about not being active enough, and the only time when that was not an issue, he needed to cut it short. You're darned right he wanted to take his sweet time waking up.

The Doctor hated going to sleep, but he didn't mind continuing to sleep once he was already in the process of doing so. In other words, you could say he was just a spoiled manchild like that, and you wouldn't be wrong in stating as such. He wouldn't even deny it.

As he got up and ready, all he could think about was the night sky. He couldn't think of anything else for the last week, and he couldn't figure out anything he wanted. The entire sky was dragged across like a canvas. The moon, the sun... Was it all part of some projection? He certainly hoped so. He shuddered at the thought that this world would be the only one on this plane of existence! The very thought made him run around crazily in the dark last night.

No, it was out of the question. There were a handful (hoofful) of other explanations for this. The rest of the universe was simply not visible. The planet was somehow separated, so the locals had to make their own cupola, together with their own sun for warmth, and moon for controlling the tides. They had magic, they had the means... but how would something like that come to pass? How could they become isolated, and what exactly was beyond that fake cupola?

The Doctor then realized that he was still at the table. He woke up from his little daydream and noticed the others were staring intently at him.

“I’m sorry, did you say something?” he asked, shaking out of his reverie.

Funny, he wasn't used to finding himself so immersed in thought so often. Then again, neither was he used to having such few distractions to keep him busy, such little adrenaline in his blood for such prolonged periods of time. Maybe it was just getting to him?

Dinky giggled at the weird looks on the mares' faces. She didn't seem to have a decent view, since the Doctor was thankfully looking away from the foal, out the window.

“No, it’s not that." Ditzy answered him. "It’s just that you sometimes seem so... distant, when you’re thinking. To say the least...”

“Really? Sorry about that...“

Yeah, really. By that, she actually meant he looked like some introspective sociopath or something... Why did she let him stay here again? Either way, it wasn't like he was trying to go out of his way to appear as troubled as possible. Besides ponies' general eye for detail and impressionableness, their facial features were a lot more prominent than human ones. Those big eyes and floppy ears would barely leave any room for lies and the such. Which would've been a problem for someone who didn't have a brain lobe dedicated to bodily functions...

Oh, wait. That only helps him be thoroughly aware of the state of his internal organs and bodily functions. Not facial expressions unconsciously caused by anxiety and the like. Well, darn. Guess he's stuck being an open book then. (***)

“It’s pretty rare for you to stay silent for so long,” Dotes cut in, focusing on her meal rather than on him.

“...Anyway, what were you planning to do today?” her sister cut in, apparently more patient with his indiscretions.

“I dunno. See if I can find a job?” he answered in a slightly ragged tone.

“And not get fired for once?” Dotes, trying to lighten up the situation.

“Hey, I can't help it! I have plenty of amazing skills, it's just that no one is looking for them.”

“Well, that’s one way of viewing it,” the younger sibling spoke again, culturing a soft chuckle.

“It is, isn’t it?”

Dinky started in, “What job did you do before you came here, Doctor?”

“Well, I can’t say I was being paid for what I did. I was like a… detective, in a way.”

“What’s a detective?” the foal followed.

“Well, when someone can’t figure something out, something that’s very important, or maybe someone is doing something bad. I had to fix things. I was Mister Fix-it.”

“Then why won’t you be a detective here too? There’s loads of things you can fix here.”

“Well, other than a few roofs and cupboards, there isn’t really that much I can fix around here.”

Ditzy was less than sympathetic to his plight. "At any rate, you could still ask around town. Who knows? Maybe you’ll find something fun.”

“Doubt it,” Doc proclaimed nonchalantly, sorting through his peas with his hoof-strapped fork.

"...Okay then, you can instead look for a job you can't stand. I'm still expecting that rent."

"By all means, not like I have a choice," as a hint of frustration surfaced in his tone. "Thanks for the meal, I've had enough. I'll just be off now."

After he left, Dotes called out, “Wow. Really, sis?”

“Well, I'm still expecting that rent.”

“Oh come on. It’s not like he didn’t pay for himself after all the work he did around the house. Plus, don’t you remember how long it took me to find a job?”

“Please, don’t remind me. You’ve tried out all over town until you settled at a shop...”

“As an assistant. And no, I didn’t settle with this job, I’m still looking for something I like.”

“Have you got a better idea of what that would be?”

“Oh, you know. Something that involves…”

“…travelling?”

“Aren’t you carefree! You already got to see all over Equestria, and now you won’t even listen to what I have to say!”

“Sorry, sorry,“ the mailmare tried to pacify her sister. Rivalry between peers is one thing, making borderline snide remarks regarding one's inability to do what she wants in life is already plain mean.

Dotes even knew a few other languages, since before wanting to travel. She would’ve tried being a mailmare herself, if only they’d send earth ponies out of town for deliveries. But they would only send pegasi, in order to make the delivery on time.

The conversations went on for a few more minutes, until Dinky interrupted. “Hey, what day of the month is today?”

The two mares made a gradual halt. They knew what Dinky was referring to.

"I... think I'll go check on him. Make sure he doesn't get lost or anything." Ditzy then quickly got up and dashed out of the house. The other two didn’t really have time to say anything.

Meanwhile, the Doctor was taking a stroll through town, trying to gather his thoughts. It was pretty deserted in the market. Usually, there are ponies around, but not even the shops were open this time. For a moment, the Doc thought he saw a hooded pony around the corner of his eye, but he didn’t notice it until it went around the corner of a building. He didn’t give it much attention, though, so he just went on his way.

The library was closed when he got there. It looked like Twilight and Spike were off somewhere. Oh well, suppose he’ll have to check back some other time.

“What am I going to do now?” he asked himself, looking for some other reason to delay the inevitable. He couldn't find one, and dropped his head in defeat, sighing heavily. "I suppose I should look for that job..."

So far, he had had enough time at his disposal to get completely used to his new limbs. Apparently this unconventional magic was very useful. It would've certainly been useful enough to bypass the need for opposable thumbs.

If you thought he was a major geek before, now he was a general. Before, he'd unwittingly go on tangents that would leave his listeners reeling in confusion. Now, he would still do that, but he seemed to make a habit of no longer limiting himself to either the fields of technology or temporal theory.

He wondered if his physical appearance wasn't the only thing that had changed.

He also seemed to have become more serious and solemn now, as opposed to his former, normally childish attitude. Quite the ironic contrast, considering his current surroundings. Thought maybe it was just the stress speaking.

He wasn't even simply grumpy or anything. He was just... off. Maybe the sudden change of pace was just wearing down on him more than he thought?

"Can't remember the last time I've been so inactive."

He also made a habit of talking to himself when he was alone.

As he went on, he started thinking about what he could do next. Of course, getting a job was the last thing on his list right now. Who cared about something as boring as a job, when you had a cross-dimensional dilemma to figure out?

"Let's see, there's new, there's unusual... and then there's this. A place where the very laws of physics are different. Something you only find in different realities..."

A different dimension. Where the very laws of physics were different. It was his first assumption. The fact that there were no records of a planet populated by ponies ever existing in our own universe suggested that much, at any rate. But why were they speaking English? They called it Equish, but it was still plain as day... then again, he did distinctly remember not being able to understand Ditzy in the beginning. Maybe his mind was changed as well, to understand the language as well. He didn't like that idea very much. Then again, he didn't like a lot of things around here.

No planetary movement, possibly no position in the cosmos either... He wasn't certain whether this place even truly existed. He was expecting the ground from under his feet to vanish at any given moment. He had half a mind to just suppose he went crazy. Or maybe he just hit his head too hard in the Tardis and was now witnessing a very odd coma. His mind trying to trick him into believing this world was real, by making it too impossible to understand at first glance, but which did make some twisted kind of sense in the grand picture. Like a reversal of finding out the things that didn't add up in a world designed to look normal, this one was a world where the Doctor needed to find things that actually did add up where nothing made sense.

Simply, it was so bad that it was good. He actually came to the conclusion that this really had to be a different universe, with its own personalized additions to its basic rules integrated seamlessly and balanced out. He'd studied his old universe, now he was looking at a completely different set of laws of physics, pretty much what a different dimension would entail. Like a dog coming across seeing the rest of the rainbow's colors, or a human being able to distinguish ultraviolet light.

He sighed, rubbing his temple. “They’re really something, these people here. That's for certain. Controlling the elements, using… magic, apparently. Apparently they evolved not with surviving and adapting in mind, but with maintaining the less natural... relatively speaking... forces of this world under balance. It does explain why they didn't have very many wars. They're not competitive creatures, they're designed to be caring and responsible ones. And they're in some sort of magical/natural harmony with the other races, which each have their own responsibilities. It's like a large organism. It's actually... kind of wonderful.”

He was heading towards town square to check for job offers, when he suddenly got hit by a pony. Hard.

“Did someone get the number on that car?” Doc asked, dizzily.

Ditzy didn't have trouble dealing with the aftermath of the collision. Suppose she had enough practice with crashes. She immediately got to dragging him back on his feet and shaking the stars and sluggishness out of him. “No time for cars, Doctor! I’ve been looking all over for you! Where have you been?”

“Oh, hello to you too," the Doctor offered with mild annoyance but a lot of humor. "I was around town, why? What’s the matter?”

”Around town?! Didn’t you meet… Ze-Zecora?” she spoke as she looked around them wearily.

“...Who?”

“Zecora! It’s this really weird pony that comes to town once every month! And today is that day!”

The reason why Ditzy was so panicky was completely lost on the Time Lord. He just stared at her, studying her as one would study a mathematical problem. “So, what exactly is the fuss about? What’s so scary about this Zecora?”

The mailmare shifted nervously. She looked like she was speaking some terrible secret. “Well, she wears a cloak… You can barely see her face, and her eyes look like they’re glowing! Pretty creepy… Everyone in town is afraid of her…”

The Doctor drew back, a bit surprised and very off-put. “Excuse me? Let me get this straight: you let a stranger live in your house, but your whole town is too afraid to approach a newcomer?”

“That’s different! You…”

“No, that’s not different. That’s rude! You’re all very rude to do this! Have you even considered you might hurt her feelings?”

“I…”

The Time Lord didn't even wait for her to reply. “Come on, we’re going to look for her.”

“What? Why?”

“To apologize. Plus, I might be interested in knowing her. Where do you think she is?”

His landlady turned to lead him back home, not at all liking the idea of what the Doctor was saying. She spoke nervously, “She probably went back home already. You can’t find her in town, so let’s just…”

“Ditzy.”

Seeing that her attempt failed, she stopped, gulped as she turned around to face him. Her tenant’s serious and borderline disappointed attitude, combined with her sense of guilt, convinced her to give up on even trying to argue with him.

“Do we really have to?” was all that the mare managed out nervously.

“Yes. Now where does she live?”

“In the Everfree Forest,” she sighed in defeat.

“Do you know where exactly?”

“…I’d get a bird's eye view of her hut during my deliveries(1). A brief one, cause of how thick the thicket is, but... I know how to get there.”

“Okay, then. Off we go.” The Doctor started on his way to the edge of town.

“What? Now? Just like that?”

“Yes, I suppose you’re right. I think we should bring a present of some sort. It’s the neighborly thing to do, if I’m not mistaken… What do you bring to greet a new neighbor?”

“I don’t know… A fresh pie?”

“Great! Let’s check if the bakery is open yet.”

There was no trouble on the way, except for the fact that the Doctor seemed to be a little short on coin. Big surprise. Luckily, one of them was a working mailmare. Still, she afforded to draw his attention, “This is going on your tab.”

It was about half past nine, when the two equines found themselves facing the Everfree Forest.

Ditzy was having second thoughts. “Uhm, maybe we could do this another time?”

“Of course we could. But we won’t.”

The mailmare groaned. “Why does she have to live in the Everfree Forest, anyway? It’s dangerous out there!”

"I don’t know. Maybe because everyone in Ponyville is afraid of her?”

“Oh… “

“All alone, in the forest. Far away from her kin…”

“Okay, okay, I got it!”

“Huh? Got what?” Seriously, he was just trying to make conversation, he wasn’t trying to make her feel bad on purpose.

So they went in.

It was dark. The canopy was so thick, there would scarcely be a few rays of light protruding through every few dozen feet. The trees themselves were ancient, towering high above.

Considering Town Hall was about fifty feet tall, and on average, every tree here was going further up by far, you could only imagine how tall the vegetation here was. Of course, you couldn't possibly determine on first glance.

"This one is three hundred and sixty feet high. Give or take."

...Right.

"Why feet?" the mare beside the Time Lord inquired of him.

"Why feet?... Oh! Sorry, I thought you used the Imperial System, since..." since Equestria presented so many similarities to America. "... yeah, sorry, never mind. What do you use, then? Strides?"

She wasn't sure what to respond to that. She just gave him a look for a few seconds. "..Yeah. We measure in strides. Which is the Equestrian system. Don't know about any Imperial one."

"And you shouldn't! It's a few planets away."

"Right... Maybe we should be focusing on where we're going? It's pretty easy to get lost in here."

"No problem. You could fly and see where we are, couldn't you?"

"I guess."

"You guess? You mean you're not sure yourself?"

"No, no, I mean... The canopy is pretty thick, but I think I can manage to climb through it. It's just... that being here at all is kind of unnerving."

They spent almost two hours in that forest, going through quite a few twists and turns. There were oscillations in the ground's level (hills that were too steep, sometimes even ravines, tiresome hills) and dead ends caused by the thick canopy and massive trees' roots. At one point the two equines went the long way around a particularly thick section of the forest where they couldn't see two strides ahead of them, not wanting to deal with any potentially dangerous creatures laying in ambush. Ditzy needed to fly up a total of seven times in order for them to redirect themselves.

After an hour, Ditzy was much less preoccupied by what might be skulking in the shadows, beyond their ability to perceive them, and more bothered by the fact that they spent much more time than they should have in that damnable forest. Somehow, she figured that since she accompanied the insane stallion that far, she might as well help him all the way. She could always book it if anything happened anyway. After all, you don't need to be able to outrun the manticore on your trail, only the slowest member of your group. She was just curious if the Doctor REALLY had reason to be as confident as he was.

There were no pathways, no dirt roads and no signs. If there ever was a stone road, or even a town here, then the forest had had ample time to claim it. Empires fall within hours, storms bring down houses. Here, these massive trees grew unhindered by the petty masonries of housing that weren't even designed to withstand anything but pegasus-made storms. A thousand years, and the magics that governed here led nature to absolute dominion.

Eventually, they managed through. No beasties appeared to have decided to show themselves, which Ditzy found rather curious. Relieving, but still odd. Although she could've sworn she saw something moving behind some of the trees. But as they got closer, there wasn't anything there. The mailmare just decided it to have been her nerves playing tricks on her. Yeah, that had to be it.

It was certainly reassuring to see the Doctor acting more serious in their current circumstances. Though he did sometimes seem a little too... intense, from time to time.

The cottage itself was a tree. One that was rather on the gnarled side, with several potions and poultices hanging from the branches, giving off strong scents. Suppose those kept the predators away. There also seemed to be a couple weird masks, which she first assumed were there to scare ponies. But then the Doctor told her otherwise. Supposedly they were actually there for the sake of greeting visitors...?

Other cultures are weird.

"Come on, let's go and say hello,” the time stallion took the initiative.

“After you,” Ditzy responded, not sharing his excitement.

She was still not looking forward to this encounter. Still, here they are. Best hope the Doctor was right. She stays close behind him as he knocks at the door. When it finally opens, she cowers behind him, so you could hardly even see her.

“Hello there. I’m the Doctor, and this is Ditzy Doo. We wanted to pay you a visit.” he said in his typical, joyous tone.

Before them stood quite a peculiar view for our dear pegasi, but not for the Doc. Ditzy never saw anyone like that. The Doc, however, already saw people of black, green, blue or any other color, shape or size many times before.

The zebra started speaking, whimsically, “Oh? You came to visit me?... How is it you come here, so willingly?”

“Well, we just thought we’d be neighborly." he returned the favor.

Zecora chuckled, being quite glad for the visitors. “And what of your acquaintance? She seems restless.”

“Oh, don’t worry, she’s just slightly nervous. Say hi to the nice lady, Ditzy.”

“Uhm… hi. Are you rhyming?”

The zebra responded with a warm laugh. Everything went better than expected.

They went in, chatted, had pie with some blueberry tea, laughed... Zecora really had some intriguing things to offer in terms of small talk. Several brushes with danger in the Everfree, though nothing she couldn't handle. Several wonders that only she could witness here. She also spoke about the Zebraconian Isles with great fervor, the two guests couldn't bare to interrupt her.

Unfortunately, eventually, the Doctor decided to drop the bomb, “So Zecora, why are you here? All alone, in the wild… You’re pretty far from your homeland as well. I can only guess you're not here for the scenery.”

The hermit's smile diminished.
“You are right to wonder these things, my friend. Indeed, to live here I did not fully intend.
Alas, I’ve come to make sure the herbs here are attended, and see to it that they might be used, whenever they might be needed.
A cause which does actually prove wholesome, even if at times it might feel lonesome..."

"Oh, an herbalist then? Well isn't that interesting." Doc nodded.

"Also, there was a message which I’ve been only recently asked to forward; a premonition that our Elders foretold. One which includes you, Time Lord...”

“Me?" the Doctor verified, not too surprised. "How do your elders know about me?”

Ditzy Doo felt a bit left out of the conversation. “What is she talking about, Doctor? What’s a Time Lord?”

“Let's just say it’s what the hourglass on my side was probably meant to represent. It's not a talent in spinning hourglasses or keeping time. Rather, a representation of my identity in a way."

"So what would that identity be? Who are you, really?"

Zecora's inquiry gave him pause.

"Right now? I don't know yet. Until recently, I knew myself to be someone who travels around, helping people who needed help on my way, fixing problems which no one else could solve... Which most often had to deal with time travel or other such outrageous happenings...
But now, well, your guess is as good as mine. I just didn't have the chance to test myself yet, and I've certainly not been very helpful ever since I arrived."

The zebra looked as though she would've had something to add in reply.

"Anyway," the Doctor continued, walking closer towards the zebra, "I presume you know about my identity from your esteemed elders?" he went on, pacing around in front and between the two mares. "Knowledge which, I'll just make a wild guess and say that, they wanted you to use in order to gain a bit of leverage on me. To gain my trust. What exactly is it that you need my trust for?"

Zecora got up to pace in front of them.
"I will admit, this premonition might prove... unseemly.
It would undoubtedly fall the crest of a lesser pony,
But you mistake my intentions, assuming too many.
I am not one to resort to such manner of trickery."
She paused to look back in his eyes.
"...At any rate, you might not believe me either way.“

“Try me,” was the Doctor's simple return.

Without a word, she proceeded towards the fireplace, with a bag of powders in her mouth. She poured a few over the flames, afterwards chanting something in a foreign language. Then the flames grew blue and bright, and images started to manifest within the smoke. Terrible images, shapes of ponies cowering in agony.

“There’s a terrible plight that the Elders foresee! One that threatens all! Be they beast or pony:
Be them small or grand,
From sea, sky or land;
All of them creatures will cower and cry; when Woven Misfortunes will pass through the sky.”

“Woven... Misfortunes?” he interrupted.

“If you wouldn’t mind…”

“Oh, sorry.”

“As I was sayin’, the dark day be comin’
But it can be prevented, for the prophecy stated:
That for this all to unfold, is required a heart - ages old
To be chained and broken; and the Doctor forgotten.
So be careful, old one; you must tread lightly
For if you fall, we follow shortly.”

And... pause for about 5 seconds, until the smoke finally dissipates completely. During which both Ditzy and the Doctor were looking intently at her, hoping her to eventually say she was kidding or something.

She was not kidding.

The two guests then took turns, starting with the Time Lord, “Oh……kaay. No pressure then.”

“Nope.”

“None.”

“Uh-uh.”

“None whatsoever…”

Talk about bad first impressions. If they were to believe what the raving hermit was saying, it appeared that they had something pretty bad that was going to happen in the future. And all they had to go on was a shoddy prophecy: Woven Misfortunes in the sky, the Doctor forgotten… and the elements explaining the massive are of effect. And, of course, there wasn't a bloody clue as to what could actually help stop the bloody thing. Just as typical for premonitions. They couldn't contain spoilers, otherwise they'd affect the outcome. It wasn't cheating, it was just not fair...

They were still trying to figure out just what they were told. Ditzy thought to attempt at a comparison in order to get a better idea.

“Let me ask you this, Zecora: is this going to be anything like the Last War?”

“I’m sorry, my dear, but I cannot say; the message was in too much disarray."

The Doctor was more skeptical in his interruption. "All I've seen was a light show. I might not know very much about the magics in these lands, but I hold a bit of a doubt regarding the validity of your story. What do you have to back up your claims?"

There wasn't much they could expect as proof to back up her tale, other than the information she apparently had access to about them. Still, the Doctor had to wonder how she knew where she could find the right character.

“For what it's worth, old one, I must offer my apologies; Such grave knowledge, I would not wish upon my enemies;
But this knowledge I must disclose. As it's for your sake, it is for ours.
It is as I said, as I've been shown and told. It is for the sake of many, this distress you must hold.
I've held nothing back, as I've been lead. I now only hope that my message doesn't fall dead.”

“It's a wild tale..." he muttered her way. Zecora didn't seem to have much response ready. He sighed. "So suppose I do believe you. You were sent here by your elders. And you knew how to find me. All you had to do was to simply wait for me to arrive at your hut?"

"I came here out of personal reasons...
Only recently have I received these instructions.
And as for this fortunate turn of events,
I assure you it was beyond my expectations.
Today, I searched for signs of your presence
But suffice to say, I was not helped by my appearance..."

Ditzy's ears drooped further when she heard that last bit. Zecora was evading eye contact.

She considered saying something. An apology in the name of everyone in town... But that would've been a bit... dishonest.

"Mind lending me a few minutes with your source, then?" the time stallion asked, still eying her with reserved doubt.

The hermit eyed him evenly in return.
"You will receive that honor sooner than you'd expect.
Just bear my revelations in mind, and when your proof you meet
Remember to hold your hope close and your resolve tight,
As for your rightful travels you will most likely have to fight."

He stared at her. It seemed that was all she was going to tell him. He sighed and got up from his seat. "Sooner than I'd expect then. Thanks, that certainly narrows it down. If you don't have any other mysterious warnings and blaring lack of proof, I believe I'll go outside for a breath of air."

He looked towards Ditzy once before closing the door. She seemed she had further questions. "So... is it true then?"

Zecora sighed.
"It does not matter, I have given my warning. I have no proof, only ill tiding.
I wished not for your agreeing, but for the Doctor's forward knowing."

"But you did wait to tell us. I imagine you were fully aware of how we'd react."

She nodded sadly in return. Ditzy looked out the window, found the Doctor pacing angrily outside.

"Why him? What's so special about the Doctor?"

"Why don't you ask him? He's the one who needed to leave the room.
Do you not wonder why he needed time alone?"

"Maybe... I should talk to him."

"Indeed.
But before you leave,
There is something you could heed."

"...You want to tell me something?" was Ditzy's confused reaction.

Zecora fixed her with her best attempt at an impartial expression.
"The Doctor no doubt does many secrets own.
Leaving far more things unknown than known."
She got up and went for a bookshelf. She looked over the titles as she continued.
"But once you do finally know the truth,
About his past; About his path."
She found what she was looking for, and took the book in her fetlock and started searching for the right page.
"...Suppose you were to believe my omen,
What would you decide to do then?"

"What are you looking for?"

"History is not only written by victors, but also by certain kinds of travelers.
Tell me, Ditzy. Do you recall the story of The Unicorn's Folly?"

The zebra showed her the page she was looking for, depicting a pony's tale which was only meant to serve as a warning for irresponsible unicorns. Ditzy couldn't remember all of the details, but it went somewhat like this:

Once, an unnamed unicorn tried to use her magic to go back in time to undo a terrible mistake, but in doing so she only succeeded in causing things to grow worse. She continued to try again and again, until she finally grew mad. The end.

This used to be the best kind of tale one could find a few hundred years ago. Nowadays, there still are such tales, and no one bothered to rework them. There was also the tale that taught about the dangers of using love potions, the one about the colt who cried timberwolf, the one about the filly and colt siblings who didn't go to bed on time and were eaten by Nightmare Moon...

Ditzy would try to tell her own daughter abridged versions. Not because they were that scary... well, not only. But because it was so hard to pick up anything useful from such careless writing. They were more likely to cause reverse psychology on foals instead, or sometimes even worse. They would leave room for misinterpretation and offer ideas to, say, actually try using dangerous potions, even offering instructions on how to make said potion/poison.

The mailmare was perplexed. Why was she being reminded of this tale? Well, she didn't need to wait long before Zecora continued.

"Did the Doctor tell tales of traveling through time?
Perhaps you found them and truth to chime?"

Ditzy only bothered to nod her head in return. "They do seem a bit consistent at times..."

"And did you ever wonder what's on his mind?
Why he seems afraid of what you might find?
What could possibly cause him such distress?
What lies under his mask of happiness?"

"...Do you know?"

Zecora smiled briefly, before continuing solemnly again.
"There are certain things that no pony should try
For down that road only madness does lie.
Just like the lesson failed in the Unicorn's Folly,
There are some things not meant for the mind of a pony.
However, listen closely, for this is fact,
What I say next is truth and exact.
Beyond such madness lies something far worse.
An understanding which is the Doctor's curse."

Ditzy couldn't look away from the zebra. She wasn't flinching, there didn't appear to be a chip of lies hidden within those rhymes.

Zecora sighed and looked back out the window, finding the Doctor in the eye as he just started trying to read their lips. He moved away and got back to his pacing and berating, then the zebra continued.
"I am saying that his heart and soul are incredibly heavy,
And that he is afraid to confide in another pony.
They say that in his heart, ancient loneliness does nest.
If only there were somepony willing to help him rest..."

Ditzy's ears perked up as she heard those last words. Her eyes snapped away from the window to Zecora, who was now smiling warmly, as well as knowingly. She blushed in response and deadpanned, to which the zebra chuckled.

The mailmare let off and sighed. "He's not exactly that easy to get through, but okay. I suppose I can try being a little more persuasive."

"I'm happy to hear it, though I suppose you should be going.
I doubt we'd want to further keep him waiting.
I will try to be more hospitable next time,
As I hope there will indeed be a next time."

As the mailmare exited the hut, she overheard the Doctor mumbling to himself. It was apparent that he was even less happy now about what he's come to know than when he got out. Actually, he seemed affected quite profoundly.
"...Not again! I won't be responsible for the downfall of yet another civilization...”

"What did you say?"

"Oh! Ditzy... I didn't hear you coming out, ugh..."

Her look was pleading for an explanation, but his gaze was looking to avoid. He started for the path back to town.

"We should probably be on our way. It's a long trek through the woods, and I don't know how well the evening sunlight might be able to travel through these dense foliage..."

She wasn't going to insist. At least not in the middle of the wilderness, where any manner of dangerous beasts could be stalking nearby. That is, she didn't want to insist, but the whole thing stunk too much for her to be able to ignore it for very long.

They knew which way to go, but that only offered their journey to be shortened by half an hour. Twenty minutes in, Ditzy couldn't take it any more. "I know something's wrong, Doctor. You're way too quiet. What's the problem?"

He was expecting this. He didn't take long at all to react, "My problem is mine. Mine alone. I don't need you to worry about me. You've got your own life to worry about. I don't even know why you came with me."

"Why I came... You dragged me into this!"

"Oh, let's not make it sound like something it clearly isn't. I asked you to show me where it is. You didn't need to humor me, you could've just given me a map! Who goes venturing in the woods with some stranger they met a week ago?"

"And who even lets him live under the same roof as their daughter?!"

They stopped walking. Ditzy was surprised. She didn't even realize what she was saying until after she said it.

The answer here was, that the Doctor simply has that effect on people. Usually. He only gives them a small taste of all the wonders the universe has to offer, and then holds them as prisoners of their own deathly curiosity and thirst for travel and adventure. He abducts them, as stray pets. Loyalty would come later. He fiddles around in other people's minds. Figures out how they tick, then makes them tock by his own design. If it isn't intentional, then it is by accident. Maybe even unconscious.

Now, however, was not the case. Now, he was simply charming enough to convince her to go this far. Confident enough to make his will intriguing enough to accept. Interested and good-willed, she took pity of him and felt responsible for his well-being. But mostly, she was charmed. She truly felt compelled to follow this enigmatic man, whose every word would only hint at untold, boundless knowledge.

He doesn't have a history, he doesn't have any contacts anywhere else in Equestria. He's a stranger without an agenda. No one would take him in. Ponyville has an inn, but he doesn't have any money to lodge there.

Only she knew anything about him. And as fate would have it, she was also among the only few who would consider believing any of those impossibilities that were his realities. Everypony else would hide every time Zecora would visit... even her. She didn't even realize that she was just another victim of ill-found rumors...

Rumors. Right... it sounds so harmless.

Ditzy wanted to tell him a lot of things, but she doubted he'd appreciate any of them. Or at least take them seriously enough. Instead, she just put a pin on the issue and took light of everything. "Wow. That escalated quickly."

"Yeah, sorry about that. I usually drive the people around me insane."

Chuckles, then she went again, "What was I supposed to do when you came to my house looking for somewhere to stay?"

He didn't answer. She followed shortly, "The reason why I trust you not to be a psychopath is because, despite all that you do, despite how strange you go out of your way to make yourself out to appear. Despite all of the little annoyances you cause and questionable things you say, you're actually a very nice person. Despite how hard you're trying to push everyone around you away, you're still a good pony. That, and I knew that if you had even a bit of common sense, you would want to act as low profile as possible, and avoid upsetting me since you kind of need me. We both know how anyone else would react if they heard half the stuff you told me..."

"So if you can't trust me to be a decent person, you can at least trust me to have enough common sense to want to act the part? Very well. But what if I don't actually have that much common sense?"

"I really doubt anyone would be capable of always acting as sensitive and good-willed as you are and not mean it."

"...You should know better."

Ditzy stopped again. The Doctor did the same as he noticed precisely two moments after, his reaction time being just that good.

He smiled his aloof, fake smile at her again and spoke, "Just because someone is a good person, doesn't mean they're good for you, Ditzy. Whether I'm a good person would be subject to interpretation, but I most certainly am not the kind of person that's healthy to be around."

After a few moments of just staring at each other, the Doctor attentive for the smallest detail, the mare surprised and worried. Eventually he finally had had enough and turned around.

Ditzy grabbed him by the fetlock. He didn't look back. He just waited. A short delay longer and Ditzy finally spoke, carefully. "I don't know what's going on in your head, but I can figure out on my own that it's not healthy. You need to tell me what's wrong."

Another silent pause later, he finally answered, "Maybe later."

Author's Note

Just putting this out there, the Royal Canterlot Voice should actually be called the Royal Equestrian Voice.

(*) Like he did in the episode called the Lodger.

(**) Even if he could apparently last longer than a normal pony, there were still diminishing returns (take that, Tardis Index!).

(***) Which wasn't a problem for me in the slightest. I'm all for making his life as miserable as possible, within common sense, of course. Yes, I'm very much jealous over his superior biology and presence in Magic freaking Ponyland. But I'm not about to ruin the story by making ponies act stupidly cruel to him for the sake of cheap laughs.

Either way, he better earn his gifts, or I might be forced to throw a few tragedies his way. That seems to be the go-to tactic, right? He never dies, although he faces deadly enemies at a regular basis. He keeps escaping by a hair's length, despite all the background characters that keep dying, otherwise how are we to take those bloodthirsty monsters seriously?... Okay, I'll stop ranting.

(1) When she'd take shortcuts over the Everfree to get to other towns and cities. Because otherwise she'd have to spend half an hour to go around it. The risk is barely even there, she could always just rest on a cloud on the way... either way, she has two reasons why she'd prefer if her boss didn't find out.

By now, you might've noticed the amount of variables I deal with.
It's also pretty hard to make Zecora rhyme and make the appropriate sense at the same time.

Was I too blunt with the whole alone-in-the-Universe rant? Maybe I should've taken my time and integrated that into a decent conversation...
Nah, buck it. This story is dragging along for far too long anyway.

For Doseydotes' picture, go here http://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_ponies/Earth_ponies , then hold ctrl+f, then type out her name to find her more easily.
You might be wondering about her cutie mark, which is conveniently missing from the picture. That's on purpose. She resembles Ditzy and Dinky, plus she doesn't have a canon emblem. A blank slate, perfect!
I took the liberty of having her trademark lily appear on her sides, only breaking off and blowing in the wind. It's not supposed to signify that she's jealous of her sister for being able to fly, but that like her sister, she has a gentle touch. Get your mind out of the gutter.
Again, she didn't have any reason to feel jealous. Her older sister doesn't even have anything to gain from her talent beside being sort-of uniquely qualified during Winter Wrap Up despite her disability.

Dusty books and dirty secrets

Doseydotes and Dinky didn't learn anything about what happened the day Zecora visited town. Ditzy thought it would be best if she just told them they were off looking for a job for the Doctor.

"All day?" the younger sister asked, rightfully doubting the explanation.

It wasn't the best possible answer she could offer, but Ditzy never was the best liar. Carrot Top's words were chewing at the back of her head, even though it's been a week since . "Well, we couldn't do anything about it. Either they weren't looking for help, or the Doctor just didn't meet their expectations."

The Time Lord in question was in an even less state to answer. If it weren't for his ever-present cheery facade, Dotes could almost swear she noticed he was distressed for some reason. As in, genuinely, not just child-being-scolded-by-teacher distressed.

"At any rate," he went, "it was anything but a productive day. Sorry I wasted your day off like that, Ditzy."

Okay, them missing all day was one thing, but the Doctor was not apologetic by nature. They were used to having him act more hyperactive than this, as if he'd have something urgent he had to get to as soon as he was done doing what he was doing. Now, he just seemed so tired. Both him and Ditzy were acting quite suspicious.

"Well, I'm off to bed. See you girls tomorrow." he said, with a bit of fake drowsiness for emphasis. Ditzy followed suit.

"Same here. Good night."

Both of them skipping dinner, moreover the otherwise energetic Doctor going to bed early? Something serious happened today!

"Well?" the foal asked her aunt, with an expression on her face suggesting she was suspicious as well. For a little filly, she certainly was clever.

"Well, we can't bother them now, they're obviously too tired for dinner, let alone an interrogation. We'll talk to them tomorrow."

They agreed it would be best if they left the subject for the morning. It was pretty late anyway, so they thought they'd go to bed as well. They each have their own room, so they did not disturb each other. Eventually they both fell asleep, although still worried about what happened.

It was late at night and the house was still, except for the lonely yet dependable tick-tock which the clock on the kitchen/dining room wall would constantly send out. Eventually, those ticks were no longer alone. Ditzy's hoofsteps sounded silently down the stairs, lit by the moonlight protruding through the window. The steps lead towards the Doctor's chamber, not a single creek in the woodwork. She had his handywork to thank for that. The door slowly opened, showing the Doctor going through a few notes at candlelight. He did not really look to check who it was before he said, "You're early."

A few hours ago, when they finally got out of the forest and were looking forward to arriving home, Ditzy decided to stop for a little break. 'Now that we're safe, I'd rather rest a little.' she thought as she lay herself on a nearby bench. Her troublesome tenant took a seat next to her without any thought.

"It's been quite a day, hasn't it?" the Time Lord asked from beside her.

"Yeah."

They didn't take as long on their way back, but it still took about an hour. The clock in Town Square showed them at a little ways left towards four o'clock. Welp, there went most of the day.

She started to recall what had happened. What Zecora had told them.

"Can you believe what Zecora said?"

"Well, how unheard of are prophecies on this world?" Doc questioned back curiously.

"They're not entirely unheard of. Nightmare Moon was only a legend until recently."

"Yeah, well, that was probably just Celestia leaving clues for others to not be left completely with their guard down when it all finally went down. Much like what Zecora was apparently doing for me."

"So..." the mare trailed off uncertainly "how likely is this to be true?"

"If you want to put a number on it, say, sixty? Seventy percent? It happened to me before, even without the addition of "magic" in the mix. At any rate, we can only wait and see how her story checks out. I should be taken in for questioning within the next few days. I doubt they'd forward a warning too early."

"I don't know. She was all alone out there. And she was talking in rhymes! Who even does that?"

"Someone very intelligent. As opposed to a crazy person who only rhymes what comes to mind, she was first considering her answer then unnecessarily wording it into rhymes. That's not crazy, that's just brilliant! Even if a bit disconcerting... Whatever reason she might have to subject herself to such conditioning. A game, maybe? Penance?"

Ditzy considered his words pensively. "What do you mean penance?"

"Who knows? Why did she seclude herself out there? Maybe she needs to find herself, maybe she needs to make sure those herbs are available the next time someone really needs them. Not just for making light shows for the sake of emphasizing prophecies."

He took it all very lightly. Kind of objectively, if not a little annoyed. It made Ditzy wonder what was going on in his head. You would think that the concept of someone becoming a hermit out of any reason would be at least somewhat disconcerting to the otherwise apathetic tenant.

"It's nice to take a break like this sometimes," he changed the subject with a sigh, the tone of his voice more distant.

"Well, we did wander around for about three hours through that forest. I suppose it might've been pretty tiresome!"

"No, that's not it. What I meant was that I'm not used to taking breaks like this. Ever since I arrived here, pretty much everything was just one big break." he says, tilting his head so he can get a better view of the sky. Not a cloud in sight, as per usual. "Nothing interesting happened."

"Is that so? Please do tell, oh adventurous Time Master, what was your life like before you got here?"

"It's Time Lord," the Doctor corrected.

"What's the difference?"

"Well, a master only holds mastery over something, while a Lord has authority over it instead. They're two quite different things."

"Some difference." She relented, remembering she knew better than to argue with him. She was too tired for that anyway. "Anyway, you didn't answer my question."

"What question?" he asked, still looking up.

"About you!" She accused tiredly, facing him from above, arms in a judgmental pose at her sides. "About your life before you came here! You always avoid the subject whenever it comes up!"

"No I don't. I talk about my life all the time," he says, getting up and looking around, trying to come up with another excuse to change the subject.

"Okay then, tell me. Nothing's keeping you now."

"Yes there is something keeping me. I cannot tell you just yet because, uh... we're... going out!"

She lagged a bit at that sudden proposal. It was so surprising that her eye even failed to remember to wader off once she lost attention of it. All she managed was an honest, befuddled, unadulterated "...What?"

"You heard me. We should go out. Look, the weather's so nice, the stars are coming out any minute now, how long has it been since you've went on a date, anyway?"

"A... date-date?" after a while with her mouth agape.

"Yes!..." the Doctor pursued, finally feeling he was gaining the upper hand. Now was the time to turn the tables and pull the rug from under her hooves...

He's got nothing.

'Come on, old chap! Surely you can figure something out, right?... Right?'

Ditzy seemed to have sensed his dawning fear, and started to smile.

'Uh oh.'

He pulled his forehooves in front of him defensively, panic rising into the red area. "On second thought, why don't we just go back home? Come to think of it, I think I smell a few storm clouds coming this way. Yep, we should probably just go back home."

The landlady's smile grew into a predatory smirk, her eyes sizing him up malevolently. Then she looked away, tapping her hoof against her chin thoughtfully. "I dunno, it has been a while since I went out. And I really don't know what you're talking about, the weather seems so nice... Yeah, I think I could use a little time out. Maybe I can change your opinion of this town being boring while I'm at it?"

"Nah, you don't want to do that. I just remembered I don't have any money anyways so..."

"No problem, it'll be my treat then, mister penny-less Lord. Allons'y!"

The alien could do nothing but watch her walk away, leading him to a situation he knew was not going to end well for anyone. 'What have I done...' he asked himself... then paused a bit before running off after her, protesting in a fit. "Hey, that's my line!"

A café terrace. A couple alfalfa pales and a plate of Prench fries. Nothing phenomenal, just two equines on an evening date. Of course, the owner of the shop was smiling intently at them when she thought they weren't looking. Along with mostly everyone else there. Everyone who wasn't gawking incredulously and, possibly, mean spiritedly.

"They do know I can see them, don't they?" the Doctor asked in a very noticeably annoyed tone.

The mare was sympathetic to his point of view. "Let's just ignore them, okay? Try and enjoy your drink."

"Oh well. Suppose you're right. I'm just not used to dates is all... Haven't been on one in a few centuries. I'm more of a party person. Though now that you mention it, I don't think I've ever actually drunk a hay-based drink before. Who knew it would be this good if your diet was based on it?"

"And you turn the conversation alien again..." Ditzy half-sighed, though she was actually finding this entertaining.

"Did I? Sorry, still getting used to colloquial speech. You ponies are quite hard to understand, actually."

"Glad to hear it, the feeling's mutual," she offered before indulging in another mouth of fries.

"A lonely traveler, snapped out of his home, thrown through the ethers into another, strange land..."

"Drama queen," the mailmare offered humorously.

"It's true though. As keen and peaceful as you ponies are, there are still a few things I find a bit out of place. Namely regarding you particularly, Ditzy. No offense..."

"Some taken."

"...I just can't quite place you. I get you're herbivores, but there are still a few things that don't add up. Your society is just..." He trailed off, thinking his words carefully. A lot of things went through his mind, the more he thought about it the more disconcerted he seemed. "...As if someone plastered an idyll pastel over something else. I need to see the bigger picture."

Ditzy finally discarded her humoring, if slightly patronizing demeanor in favor of one of concern.

"Today, you mentioned a war," the Time Lord continued.

Now was the mailmare's turn to try to change the subject. "Maybe I'll tell you some time. Maybe after I actually get to know you enough."

He could put something on the table to raise her interest, but it wouldn't be entirely a good idea. It would offer the mare some leeway, give her some ideas he's not entirely sure he'd be able to dodge. It would be to her like blood would be to a shark... maybe even worse. Then again, if he was right, then this was his first lead ever since he arrived in this backwater town. There just wasn't anything he could do beyond leaving the town, or taking on suspicious behavior he could not afford, if his suspicions regarding the leaders here were correct. Both were gambles which he just wasn't confident in taking yet. Compared to those, this idea was actually tame.

Oh, bother. What's the worst that could happen?

"...If we're going to talk about any of this, we should do it in private. Can you come to my room at eleven tonight?"

"Sure. But didn't you promise me a date first?" she continued.

"As long as you're still willing to put up with me," the Doctor offered with a wry smile, that gave some way for concern. "And as long as you don't mind your sister waiting on you."

It was something the mare did take into consideration. She'd been gone all day. But right now? She was tired, and it actually seemed like the Doctor was finally starting to open up to her. That, and she really hadn't gone out in a while.

"...Right. Just a little longer, then."

Back home, when everyone went to sleep and Ditzy snuck in his room, she found him with quite the concerned look on his face.

"I came, didn't I? I don't think you should be concerned about how early I did..."

"That's not the problem," the Doctor retorted. "It's just that I'm not done preparing yet."

"For what?... Wait." She came to figure something out on her own. He's not thinking of that, is he?

"For a little procedure I intended for tonight."

"What?" her voice gaining a bit more surprise.

"You see, it's not really something I could do in public..."

"What?" her surprise turning to dread.

"And, quite frankly, it is a little too intimate..."

"What?!" she finally burst out, all but forgetting about her need to keep quiet.

"Not so loud!" the Time Lord shushed his landlady, finally setting his notebook aside as he did so. "You might wake up the others!"

"Just what exactly are you talking about, Doctor?!"

"A telepathic linkage."

"...What?"

"It's something Time Lords can do when they need to transfer information directly into and fro someone else's cerebral cortex. I try not to do it unless circumstances demand it."

"Uh-huh..."

"You didn't understand a thing I said, did you?"

"Not really."

The Doctor gave her a tame enough glare. "It's this thing where we read each other's minds..."

"Oh! Whew... I thought you were referring to something else, but it turns out you were just going on about some alien thing..."

"Why, what did you think I was talking about?"

"Oh, nothing..." as she blushed and looked away, hiding half of her face under her mane. "Anyway, what exactly are you planning on doing?"

He got up from his seat. "Well, you wanted to find out about me, didn't you? Now is your chance. Have a seat." he said, jesting towards the bed. Rousing Ditzy's suspicion again.

"What? Why?"

"Because I don't know how long this is going to take, so I thought we could at least be comfortable."

"Okay..." Ditzy relented, staring intently at him as she sat down.

Doc lay in bed in front of her. "Now, close your eyes."

"I don't think..."

"Ditzy, trust me. There's nothing to be worried about."

She did as he asked, then she felt the Doctor's hooves holding her head. As she started to become nervous again, she opened her eyes to find herself in a semi-lit library instead of her guest room. She could still feel her body back where she left it, in the same position, but her eyes found her in here.

There were lanterns and lamps all around, offering a bare minimum of visibility in the window-less room. She was in a reading area, with three story high bookcases surrounding all sides, wherever they didn't break and open into hallways going on for fields on end before they'd stop at a lantern-lit intersection. She kept turning around, taking her new surroundings in, until she heard the Doctor's voice from behind her. "Nice collection, don't you think?"

She turned around to find him, but he was not as she knew him. Her first reaction upon seeing the strange new creature appear out of nowhere was to scream, but then she noticed something. That thing, that tall, slender biped. It seemed familiar.

It was just standing there, still. Brown outfit over what appeared to be a lack of fur. Tiny eyes on an elongated head, but with the kindest smile it could muster. She knew that sad smile.

"Hello!" he spoke in the Doctor's typical, joyous tone, though in a noticeably thicker voice. Ditzy was baffled and, well, pretty terrified.

"...Doctor?"

"In the mental projection!" he offered with a small bow.

"...What are you?"

"A Time Lord. I told you before." He took a step closer, she took one back. He faltered, but then summoned the kindest smile he could. "Ditzy. It's me. You knew I wasn't from around the place." He pulled out his hands and spun around, presenting himself. "See? I'm not so scary, am I?"

The mailmare only continued to stare at him, her body pulling at her to flee despite herself. "Prove it."

He faced her, looking funny as he scratched the side of his head and though, "Well, remember the time I told you I'm an omnivore? Or the time I told you I didn't have hooves before?" He fluttered the ends of his new, claw-like anterior members at her, making a few oddly musical snapping sounds as they hit his palms.

"Ditzy." he said warmly, crouching to his haunches, his constant, sad, silly smile on his face. "It's me."

She was beyond freaked out now. She was at that stage where she moved on from being freaked out and started trying to freak her freak-out out, to confuse it. She moved closer, slowly, studying her tenant more carefully. "What are those? They look like claws, but..."

"They're hands." the Doctor presented one of them to her, palm-face up. "They're what I used before... well, before I was changed into one of your own."

She traced her forehooves over his hand, still getting used to what she was seeing. "They look... handy?" she blurted out, not really knowing what she was saying.

"I know, right?"

She continued to study the bones and joints carefully. The Doctor didn't seem to have any objections as he continued to smile warmly. "What exactly are we here for?" she asked, deciding to change the subject. She was still getting used to what was going on, though. "And where's here, for that matter? We were in your room a few minutes ago."

"I'm glad you asked. Tell me, what can you tell me about the equine brain?"

"It's... where we keep our memories?"

He grabbed her hoof in his hand and placed his other hand above it, taking her by surprise. It felt... personal. She wondered how it would feel, to fit her own fingers through his...

He didn't seem impressed at the act. He just continued to smile carelessly at her as he often did. Eagerly. Cluelessly.

"Exactly." He drew away and got back on his hindlegs, easily. He looked like he was a giant to her. A very childish giant, as he started waving his 'hands' around, gesturing to the side of his head with one of his claw-like digits. "Besides a great number of responsibilities, it is also the place where we keep our memories." He stretched his anterior limbs out, gesturing all around them. "Like a library, for instance. And as we live, we keep adding books in it all the time."

Ditzy just looked on, still feeling a bit lost. "So, this library is your mind?"

"No, this is your mind."

"What?"

He walked over to one of the bookcases in long strides that seemed somehow partway between a declaration and a circus act. "Check one of the books. It's bound to hold one of your memories." He hovered his digit along a shelf, then picked one he thought looked more appealing. "Here, this looks like some sweet memories. Let's see what I picked?"

Ditzy took the book and muzzles through the pages. Soon enough, she closes it violently and looked to the side.

"I take it I stumbled upon something you'd rather forget? Sorry about that..."

"No, it's okay. It was just something embarrassing..." Something which the mind often finds ample time to remind you of. Only and only if it's embarrassing, and only at the worst of times as well. "I suppose I'll just have to believe you now. Why are we here?"

"Because you couldn't remember what happened when you met me. You see, some memories might not always make it to the shelves, like this one down here. It either didn't fit in the shelf or you didn't want to put it in. Others die out eventually, when the dust claims them. Some of them, however, might be hidden in a separate section." He said these as he walked around, out of her sight. "Like here, for instance," he finished behind her. She turned around, and was taken aback at what she found.

Before them stood a barred gate, beyond which was a darkened section of the library. Ditzy felt dreaded of what was inside, as the Doctor expected to notice.

"Doctor, what is this?"

"Beyond these gates are your darkest, most unstable memories. Most of them being held there by your choice, some of them sent there to keep the rest of your library safe. They tend to... burn the nearby books. Anyway, I believe that there's just one memory that doesn't belong there. Something out of place, something that someone else hid in here. I can sense traces of tampering leading into there, also I'm concerned this might be where a rather important memory was hidden."

"I hope you're not expecting me to go in there. I don't know about bad memories or tampering with them, but that place is really giving me the creeps!"

"It's either this or going on with our lives, knowing that there's someone potentially dangerous out there that's messing around with other ponies' heads."

"Wait, what?"

He ignored her. "Trust me, I wouldn't want you to go in there either and I wouldn't ask you to do this unless we didn't have a choice."

She eyed him pensively, then relented with a sigh. "Is there really nothing else we can do?" Ditzy asked defeated.

"Not really, no. Though this was the second plan I came up with. At first I tried to check if I could unlock the hidden memory on my own, but there's some manner of failsafe that kept me from..."

"Okay, okay, a simple no would've been enough. Honestly, don't you ever get tired of talking?"

"Fine," he replied simply enough, with finality.

After a while, gulping down, Ditzy finally questions, "Okay, we do know what we're looking for, right?"

"We'll know when we see it."

She held back a glare, instead deciding to just roll her eyes. Which still looked funny. "Alright then, lead the way."

Doc scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "Sorry, you need to find it on your own. I'm only here as a guide."

"Seriously? What exactly am I looking for, then?"

The gates open. The Doctor answers, "Just focus on what happened that night when we met and the path should show itself."

"So, all I have to do is walk down a hallway with my worst nightmares lurking behind every shadow. Great..."

"Pretty much, yeah. But, there is one upside."

"What," she asked in aggravation.

The Time Lord drew nearer and offered the most heartwarming smile he could. "I'll be with you every step of the way. That's gotta count for something, right?"

She regarded him thoughtfully for a few moments. "Now that you mention it, could you do me just one favor before we go in?" she pleaded.

"Name it."

"Could you turn back into the way I know you? I mean, I don't want you to think anything wrong, but..."

"Hey, don't worry about it." He snapped his fingers and turned back into a pony, while saying the follows, "...Though usually in cases like these, it would be best to hold hands. There, better now?"

The mare visibly relaxed. "Thanks. And I don't know about holding hands, but us hooded folk are pretty good with just sticking close to each other."

"Huh. Okay then, your loss. Allons'y?"

"Allons'y!... Wait, what do you mean our loss?"[...]

It was dark inside. If it weren't for a few candles placed regularly at each row of bookshelves, they couldn't see anything at all. For our dear pegasus mare, the atmosphere was dreary enough, more so as they would pass by each one shelf compared to the last.

"How can we find anything in this place?" she questioned nervously.

"It'd be best if you couldn't see around. There are things here that you're afraid of ever since you were born, remnants of the fears your forefathers left you. You don't need to see them, you just have to focus on what we're looking for."

"Okay..."

"You found me in the field. What did you do next?"

Ditzy focused on recalling those events. "I... Asked you if you were okay. You looked like you were fading in and out, but when I mentioned taking you to a doctor, you burst out, saying you were too afraid to go..."

"I did not!"

"Hey, do you want me to remember or not?... Actually, I think I've found it," she said as she stopped in front of a small cupboard.

"Are you sure? Oh! ...Okay, discouragement field. Phew! It reeks! Yep, this must be it."

They open the cupboard to reveal a small notebook inside. The Doctor picks it up, with his hoof this time, then handed it over to his companion. "Touching it should be enough this time." As she lays her own hoof on it, she instantly got pulled into its events.

She found herself where she was back then. Late in the evening, on her way to town, carrying the unconscious Doctor on her back. She was living it all in first person, but she didn't have any control over what was happening.

"It's okay, let it play out. You can talk to me normally, but your body won't show it. It will still do as it did back then."

"How can I talk without my own mouth?"

"Well, technically, this is not your mouth. Your mouth is back in my room."

"Oh, right. And this isn't you I'm carrying, though you're definitely weighting down on my back..."

She was showing some difficulty carrying him. And she then noticed how chilly the air was, the fatigue from the long travel to Fillydelphia, and then how scared she was. Scared for the unconscious pony she found, why did she see him fall? Did that fog do something to him? Was it from the Everfree Forest? They were pretty near its outskirts...

They were nearing town, when a stallion crossed her path. She didn't have any idea why he was there.

He was wearing a raggedy gray cloak and... what seemed like tinted pilot goggles around his forehead, with a small crack at one of the lenses. Ditzy couldn't notice any distinguishable details about him. Was he a pegasus? The shape of the cowl gave off that impression. It was too dark for her to see his face, and no matter how hard she tried to make anything out, her vision just blurred and her head ached harder.

"Who's that?" the current Ditzy asked.

"You tell me. You're the one that remembers all of this."

"It looks like he's talking to me... though concerning what exactly he's saying, well, my guess is as good as yours. Why can't I remember any of this?"

"I dunno. Let's just let this play out."

She was explaining what happened to the robed stranger. That she just found the Doctor, and was on her way to drop him off at the hospital. After a few more words and gestures from him... she was certain he said something... she let the Doctor on the ground. The stranger then produced something from under his cowl, and used it to shine some light over the unconscious Doctor's open eyes.

The source of the produced light was blurry like the rest of him, but it sort of looked like a light pen that doctors would tend to use.

Upon getting a closer look at it, the current Doctor let out a curious hum.

"What is it?" Ditzy asked.

"Shush! Talk later, listen now."

'Ooooo-kay...' the mare relented.

Trouble was, she couldn't exactly tell what happened between her and the mysterious stranger from that point forward. All she could recall was them walking towards town together. She could remember her mouth forming sentences, but she couldn't remember anything she said to him. What were they talking about?

Current Ditzy squinted her eyes at the strange stallion. Trying to protrude through whatever it was that kept his identity hidden. Trying to recall even the smallest detail regarding his appearance, his behavior...

Nothing. The more she tried, the harder it was to lock on to the stranger. It was as if her mind was actively fighting against the recollection. Like the information intentionally kept ahead of her at the same pace as she was advancing, like it was always maintaining the same distance out of reach.

Nothing really happened along the road. She just led him to her house, and helped him carry the Doctor inside. The figure then dropped him in the bed in the guests' quarters, and left. No more than maybe three words offered beforehoof.

Then everything faded away, and the two found themselves back in the Doctor's room. As soon as they did, the Doctor started pacing around, looking around, thinking.

The candle did not advance too far down along the wax. They didn't spend much time at all. Still, Ditzy was feeling a bit disappointed. She was actually expecting something more conclusive to have come from this venture. "What exactly happened?"

"Nothing useful," he retorted thoughtfully. "Do you remember when he checked me up with that light pen?"

"Oh yeah, you kinda reacted to that," she recalled with a look of realization. "Was that important?"

"You didn't notice anything strange about the little light he checked my eyes with?"

"No, not really..."

"Are you sure? Was there nothing out of the ordinary about it?"

She rubbed her head harder, with no difference in results. "I don't think so... It looked like any other doctor's light pen. Why?"

Doc snapped away and started rummaging through some drawers. He eventually scooped out a mirror and his sonic and trotted back to her.
"And so is my screwdriver, sort of like a doctor's pen, wouldn't you agree?"

"...No, not really."

He gave a defeated gesture, then started using his screwdriver on himself whilst looking in the mirror. She continued, "It looked just like any doctor's light pen..."

Doc stumbled in his steps around the room, then snorted, then sneezed while she was talking.

"...He just seemed like a medic trying to figure out if there was anything wrong with you."

"He was a stranger wearing rags. Why did you believe anything he said?"

"I... don't know," was her dragged-out answer.

The Doctor sighed, as he finally gave up on trying to find any traces of tampering and dropped his items back on the drawer next to the bed. "You don't know... Which is something that doesn't seem to bother you all that much." He relented forlornly, then started on another idea. "You said you remember what I was saying, but I honestly can't remember what language you were speaking at first. If we both couldn't understand what the other was saying, then I could just assume that this guy just made it so I could speak your language. All I can suppose was his intention was to only keep me out of the hospital, which he apparently talked you out of."

He started pacing again, this time more distant and focused. "There's still the matter of you not being able to remember him. Normally, under this kind of intensive meditation, you were supposed to see him just fine. Not even a mental block was supposed to halt his image from just popping up. It was as if you couldn't accept that he was there... Perception filter, maybe? Had to be, right? But then it can't account for how he messed with your head."

His pacing grew stronger, he became more focused. Ditzy could almost see the gears grinding in his head.

"Obviously, the only reason he would be there was to convince you to not bring me to the hospital, otherwise why just leave me here? How do you fit into all of this?" He regarded her questioningly, but the mare only blinked and offered a look of confusion. "There had to have be a reason why he left me in your care, otherwise why didn't he just collect me himself?" Before Ditzy could retort, he already concluded, "Well, it's actually pretty obvious. Either he didn't want to hold on to me, or he knew that he couldn't hold me even if he tried. If he wanted me here, maybe he knew I wasn't going to leave. Somehow..."

He got back to pacing again as he started, "So he just wanted to cover for me, make sure I wouldn't interfere with the timeline by being brought in to the hospital. It would've caused some serious damage... So, therefore, chances are that he's at least somewhat aware of timeline interrelations and wanted to prevent a catastrophe."

Ditzy followed as best she could. She didn't like that last part. "What do you mean? What would've happened?"

"Long story short, if the local authorities got a hold of a sample of my blood, it would've sent you all on an irreversible spiral towards advancements in medicinal and anatomical breakthroughs." 'Also, chances are that they would've dissected me in order to figure out how I ticked, but that was beside the point.'

"And how does preventing all of that from happening make this weirdo a hero?"

Doc stopped in place to explain, "There's a time and a circumstance for everything, Ditzy. Should anything happen to disrupt that balance, the consequences are unintelligible and dire. To compare it to anything, it's like giving a scholar the results to a test before he takes it. He passes that test with a great grade, but he subsequently fails the exam later in his life!"

"Oh. Huh..."

"If your people managed to get treatment to, I don't know, pony pox, it would've been great in the first few years/decades/etc. But later on, there might've appeared a mutation of the disease, far worse than its predecessor, immune to the previously discovered treatment. And you wouldn't have been able to figure out anything to do about it because you didn't even manage the first treatment! That is, to put it extremely simplified."

"Oh..." Ditzy went a bit pale at the prospect. She tried to joke it off, "I suppose it'd be a bad idea for you to donate blood in the near future then, huh?"

"And weird. My blood isn't even the same color," the Doctor retorted as he went back to pacing.

"Come again?"

"Now, the question remains," he ignored her confusion, then continued nonchalantly with, "Why was that character there to prevent you from potentially dooming your entire race..."

Ditzy went a little more pale. "...What?"

"Hehe, don't worry. I'm certain advanced cutie pox wouldn't be lethal. Well, mostly certain... Fifty-fifty? Anyway. Any ideas why he might've been there in the first place?"

After shaking the queasiness off, she started, "...I guess that he knew you were going to be interned and wanted to prevent it...?"

"Precisely! But how does one go about knowing the future?..."

After a few seconds, he came up with several answers. The Ood had divination, he himself had time travel... So yeah, either the mysterious stranger had access to some manner of oracle sight, or a tip from an oracle. Similarly, Zecora apparently had received a tip as well. Who would have access to such forward knowledge? Guess he'll figure that out eventually, if what Zecora said was true.

So far, he'd established that this mysterious character... he would need to figure out a name for him eventually. Cloaked Pony? Nah, that's rubbish... Anyway. Besides access to forward knowledge, Cloaky also seemed to possess the ability to somehow mask his presence, suspiciously similar to his Tardis' cloaking technology. He also had a pen. Again, suspiciously similar to his own technology. Most importantly, however, he seemed to have been able to gain Ditzy's trust somehow... So, psychic abilities. The Doctor did not like where this evidence pointed.

Five seconds of pacing... A minute of pacing... Five minutes of pacing...

Aaaaand kaput.

He crashed back in bed alongside Ditzy. "I've got nothing. Maybe if we sleep on it, something will come up?"

All this time Ditzy was staring at him expectantly. She didn't seem to care much for his reveal. "Well, that was anticlimactic. That's it?"

"I've got no more ideas, so yeah, that seems to be it."

"Not just that, Doctor. You just jumped in my head, showed me how you really look like, made me go through the nightmare section of my head, to find what? Nothing?"

"Well, not exactly. We've found a suspect. And now that we've gone through all of that, if you ever encounter this... Hooded Pony again, you will recognize him on the spot. Then again, the chances of him showing himself to us might not be in our favor. He will most certainly not show himself until he believes he's ready... Which would beg the question, ready for what?"

Things were starting to gather up. First a doomsday prophecy, then an elusive new character with memory bending abilities... that seems to be related to the Doctor and his arrival here. The coincidence were too big to ignore. All these questions were begging the Doctor for answers.

At the same time, though, he himself presented many such questions for someone else that night. Ditzy just discovered the tip of the iceberg that was his person, and she was not going to stay idle and wonder any longer.

The Doctor was just laying there in bed, eyes closed. She thought that maybe, since he could do it one way, she could too. So she tried. Unfortunately, it didn't quite work.

"Uhm, what exactly are you doing?" he asked, perplexed.

"Trying the thing you did with me. You did say it was both ways, didn't you?"

"I did, but I need to establish a connection first. That is, unless pegasi have telepathic abilities that I didn't know about. Why do you want to do it anyway?"

"Because you left a lot of questions I want answered, Doctor. You went through my head, so I'm pretty sure I deserve the same courtesy."

"Questions?Heh heh..." he burst out a soft laughter, much to the mare's displeasure.

"I'm serious, Doc!"

"No, I'm so sorry, it's just that there I was, scratching my head trying to figure out the questions I had, and I didn't notice that in the meantime, I'd given you a share of headaches as well. Sorry, you're so right, you deserve a few answers."

This sudden outburst caught Ditzy off guard. "Where did this come from? You were so reluctant to talk about yourself before, now you're laughing about it?"

"That's because there are a lot of things about me that you might not take lightly. Still, I did go through your head, so now you deserve the same courtesy..."

Ditzy's face lit up. "Really?"

"...although I'll have to warn you, you might get lost in the maze of libraries I've got. But yeah, really. A few centuries worth of travels and adventures, I'd be happy to share them with someone that's interested. Although I'll have to ask you not to wander too far."

"Sure, no problem!"

"...And please ask before you read any of the books. There's still a thing called privacy."

"Of course."

"And finally, concerning the dust I told you about before..."

"Doctor, I'm pretty sure you shouldn't be worrying so much. Can we please just go already?"

"Alright, since you insist." it was easy to read the excitement in the mare's eyes. "Whenever you're ready then."

Author's Note

No, no Vashta Nerada. It would've been pretty obvious to do that, but it couldn't have presented any urgency. At most, it would've pulled her out.

In war and peace...

Author's Note

Disclaimer. Big Ben isn't really the name of the clock tower. That would be the Elizabeth tower. Big Ben is actually the nickname of the big bell inside the Elizabeth tower.

The last two chapters were where the Romance tag became apparent. This chapter, however, is where a whole new level of touchiness gets reached.

I am sad to confess that this version of Equestria had some seemingly dumb wars going on. All I can say to my defense, however, is that most of this violence was due to outside influence. I can't say much more than that without risking to spoil anything. Let's just say that the Hooded Pony (man, that name sucks...) isn't the only character working unseen currents.

Ponies are a minor part of this world. They're one of the more peaceful species. Essentially, herbivores.
There are carnivores here, and carnivore societies. And those aren't even the worst things to ever grace this world.

There are things that make dragons look like cute little puppies. Things that go bump in the night, and things that make those latter things seem like minor nuisances. There are also things that enslave your soul, or drive you insane just by gracing you with their presence... Remember my mentioning a place called Dagon Fel? You get three tries to guess who fell there.

Shit, I already said too much... On an unrelated note, yes, I used another mental link. Sorry, was not my intention to make a cop out. It was initially just the most logical thing that happened. Doc's a powerful psychic, Ditzy has questions, it was less something I intended and more the logical outcome. What happened in Foal Necromancer was a complete coincidence. I promise never to use this sort of thing again.

Regarding the Mare Do Well episode, which was the only episode in which an electric dam appeared, I strongly support that that episode was not canon, given how bad it was. I'd rather think it was just the result of Cutie Mark Crusaders' attempt at gaining writer/publisher marks. Foal of the Forest's Moguera had the right idea. Anyway, taking that into consideration and remembering that this story has the "alternate universe" tag checked, one can argue that I'm in my right to believe that this world doesn't have electricity, or any explicit technology beyond the steam engine, or the eprouvette.

In war and peace...

It was nearing midnight. The two ponies upstairs were sound asleep, it seemed. It was a good thing, thought the other two downstairs, preferring either not to be caught in such an intimate circumstance, or not to have such a delicate procedure interrupted. Ditzy and the Doctor were facing each other, forehead to forehead, eyes closed, trying to manage a 'conversation'. The Doctor owed her a few explanations, and since they've found such a convenient means of sharing information, why not use it?

To answer that question, there's the matter of the personal nature of what they were doing. There was a reason why the Time Lord didn't make a habit of resorting to this means of communication.

It wasn't an urgent reason that convinced him to make a compromise, just a combination of convenience and common courtesy. He owed Ditzy a few answers. Where he was from to ever explain why he was such an odd person, why and how he came to arriving on this world, what he really was... Ditzy barely knew the superficial explanation, and she didn't like it. She'd had enough and wasn't about to take no for an answer. That was just the kind of person she was, something which the Doctor had learned to recognize and admire by now.

She knew nothing short of him being an alien from beyond this world. It wasn't a satisfactory answer by far, only a means of coming to the agreement that the tale would've just been too long and nuanced to be given justice with forced answers. But now? Well, now she was offered a chance she couldn't pass off. She was more than a little curious about the eccentric alien she'd let take residence in her house, especially now that she saw what he used to look like before.

Also, there actually was another thing that only happened recently which was now pressing on her. What he had said in Zecora's hut, what was he talking about? He led to the downfall of another race? He couldn't be serious, could he?

Nah, it was probably just another one of his alien oddities. He couldn't possibly have meant it...

She could force him to make her understand now. Not that she believed that he could hurt anyone, just... she just wanted to make sure. After all, she did have that possibility. She could find out pretty much anything she wanted. The mere thought made the mailmare feel as anxious as a filly on Heart's Warming. She was just simply giddy, and the position she was in was not helping.

Ditzy burst into laughter. Again. She couldn't help it, the situation was just so awkward that it was long since beyond simply feeling embarrassed. She would've needed to be either incredibly stupid or prudish to not find it all amusing, especially since the Doctor was actually trying his best to behave seriously for a change.

"Oh, come now. Bear with me for just a few more seconds, will you?"

Reverting a calm person into a meditative state, then visiting her mind is something a Time Lord can do relatively easily. Arranging his own complex mind so it can support visitors without risking to give them brain damage is something pretty different. First off, the integration process might take a few moments, as he scans and adapts his mental state to accommodate. Secondly it presents a little difficulty when the person (or pony) in question is not, in fact, that psychically advanced. He had to revert his own mind into a secure, passive state, which meant disabling some of his natural defensive systems and sorting his more dangerous memories out of reach. Then he had to guide Ditzy into actually taking the initiative herself. Manageable, if only a bit tricky. Regardless, it was the only way he could finally get it all over with.

It was all a bit too personal for him. Still, it would've been best to just get it all out of the way. He realized that he was going to need her full support, so it would be in his best interest to not hold back on offering her the answers she needs. It would also be best to make her understand a few certain things about himself. He owed it to her to tell her the kind of place he'd come from, in case his fears of his old life following him into this world would turn out to become a reality.

When they finally established what they intended, it was similar to last time. There were bookcases, a whole lot of them, though they seemed more the kind of furniture you'd find in a laboratory or a shop, rather than a library. Also, among the books were the occasional trinkets and baubles.

It was just as dark as her library. There were no windows, a lot of lamps and candles were necessary to offer light. And there was also something... else. Something reminiscent of the sound of ticking. It was very familiar to a break between a clock's tick-tock, somehow stretched on into an indefinite pause. She was waiting for the sound to start again, but it didn't.

"You like it?" the Doctor asked from beside her, to the slightly lesser surprise of the mailmare this time.

"It's... nice, but what's with the Hearts Warming globes?"

"Too much knowledge, I had to compress some of it by category."

"...Inside crystal globes?"

"Do you have a better design in mind?" He shrugged at her, then walked over to one of said globes. Colorful lights shone from the babule's interior, like an aurora, knitting into images above it that changed too quickly to be perceived. "It's actually very usable technology for me. No need to waste time flipping pages." He then mumbled distractedly as the lights cut off. "No, this isn't the right one..."

He put the globe back and tried another one. Ditzy witnessed what was happening bemusedly, barely even questioning anything anymore. 'Sure, why not.' While her guide was distracted, she tried to pick out the sound of that clock she was only somehow aware was there.

"And what's with that... feeling? It's like looking into a broken clock, trying to figure out what's wrong with it."

He stopped his... scrying, put the odd object back in its place and faced her, concerned. "Oh. You can still pick that up? Sorry about that. I tried putting that little bit of Time Lord consciousness away, but I suppose we're still a bit close to its source here. Are you feeling alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just a little distracting is all."

He nodded in return. "Well, if you start feeling confused or, say, like you're going insane, be sure to tell me, okay? Let's just try to find someplace safer, nonetheless."

The Doctor took her hoof and led her to a gold and brown doorway. He opened it, then Ditzy's vision was flooded with light. The next thing she knew, she was on a hill overlooking an actual city of bookcases, a lawn table nearby made of the same crystal as the globes. From where they were, with the weird lamps and candles offering for lighting, looking either like rounded, hanging tree branches, or those things she'd heard of. Coral, was it? Colors of tan-brown and deep blue, Ditzy experienced what it was to overlook a city at night, something which she only ever had the chance to see, once...

With Finn, back before what happened to Neigh Orleans...

She snapped her head back to the present.

"Where were we earlier?" Ditzy asked, suspecting she missed something. She was right, and the Doctor smiled at her astuteness.

"The archives. This is the west section of the virtualization of my memories, where we are now. But earlier, we were just looking through the "you are here" section." He offered, walking her to take a seat at the table.

She couldn't help but pick out the major landmarks in the distance. It wasn't something she could ignore although she was trying. A ferris wheel in one place, a spire tower in another distant corner, a glass pyramid behind her, a few windmills in the far distance, and even further away there was a large clock tower. Somehow, that clock caught her eye the most. It seemed...

"Try not to look at the clock tower too much. I'm using it to focalize my connection to the time stream. We should be far enough away to avoid any ill effects, however it was never a good idea to stare directly at the sun."

He trailed off when he saw what she actually found more interesting than the tower of madness. Apparently she was taking exception to the presence of a swimming pool rather close to their location... one of many of its like. She glared at him, only being able to ask him, "...Why?", rather demoralized by the sheer oddity of the sight.

"Why not?" was the Doctor's playful answer, a sly smile on his face. She conceded with a sigh. "Feeling better?" he asked afterwards, a fair bit of concern evident in his voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about me." she shifted in her seat, feeling uncomfortable at her surroundings despite how amazing it all was. She tried to soldier on, "This place is amazing."

"Thanks. I had it decorated for a more homely atmosphere. Reminds me of my Tardis... well, the base theme anyway. As you might've noticed, there are a few landmarks. They're dedicated to certain places I've been to. Helps me sort my memories out."

Ditzy could only offer him a sheepish grin in return. "Uh huh... Sorry, I'm sure this was important, but what was the Tardis again? I remember you explaining it to me before but..."

"The Tardis." He cut her off longingly. "My Tardis. Stands for Time And Relative Dimension in Space. It's my ship... and my home. It's the blue police box I would sometimes mention from time to time."

"Oh right, the police box!"

"I'll show it to you tonight... together with a few other things." he explained, looking ahead.

"Yeah, which reminds me. I hope this won't last too long, I have work to get to in the morning."

"Don't worry, we have plenty of time."

The mailmare rose an eyebrow at him accusingly. The Time Lord relented and rubbed his chin in thought. "Do you know how time flows slower when you're dreaming? No? Well, it does. While we're in this meditative state, it's pretty much the same thing. Essentially, your mind is actually able to process a lot faster than reality usually allows. It's actually so fast that you don't even have time to sort everything into your memory. Luckily you also have me to help you along, if only as far as making sure you don't forget anything, like one would do with most dreams and dream-like states. An hour spent here equals to a few seconds in normal time. So... it's not going to be a matter of running out of time, but a matter of fatiguing from the connection instead."

She'd yet to fully shed her doubt, if her still persisting glare was anything to go by.

"Not buying it?"

"Nope."

"You should. I'm in the time business after all. Plus, I don't recall ever lying to you."

"Of course you don't..." she sighed.

"Anyway, here we are. We have all of my memories to pick from. What should we start with? We don't have to make due with just storytelling anymore, we can jump in the event itself! How's that sound?"

He dragged his hooves across the crystal table, and a colorful projection emerged from its center. Above appeared a slideshow of blurry pictures, which he cycled through faster than Ditzy could make anything of them. "I've got so many memories, it's hard sorting through them sometimes. How about this." He stopped at a particular picture which enlarged to engulf the mare's vision. Her surroundings changed to those of a spectacular scene. She could feel the light blue sand under her hooves and the glistening clear water beating across it, she could hear the beautiful, alien creatures in the distance. "What do you think? The blue beaches of Selena 5?" Then her surroundings changed again. "Or maybe the Floating Islands of Valora?" and again, "...The Medusa Cascade...?"

Ditzy was trying pretty hard to hold her mouth from falling open. The name of the last one was fitting, in a way. The cloud giants were so beautiful you couldn't move, you were practically stone as you greedily took in the many details of the view. Focusing and living the image, wanting nothing more than to keep looking for just a few more moments.

This time, she expected the Time Lord to be beside her, just out of sight again. She faced him, just a tad emotional from the sights. "...Those all look great, Doctor. Maybe we'll visit them some other time. But right now, I wanted to know a little more about the alien living in my guests' room, not vacation resorts. So... How about your home?"

He shifted awkwardly in place. "Well..."

"Come on, Doctor. I'm sure your home is wonderful."

"Oh, but it was... It's just that, well..."

'Was?' Ditzy's eyes widened, then saddened.

He didn't really know what to say. It wasn't any problem at all to actually bring out the pictures from his dusty old album, but it hurt. It hurt every time he remembered his old home. The kind of melancholy he felt was like his hearts were about to give out at any moment. And to actually see it, through the eyes of the mind...

"Doctor?... You don't have to show me if you really don't want to."

"A trade." he offered suddenly.

"...Huh?"

"I'll show you how it was. My home. My first home. The place that I tried to leave behind. In exchange, I want to know about the Last War."

"...Seriously?"

"Yeah. What do you say?"

As always, either he failed to notice when he said something wrong, or he noticed too late and just kept charging in full-speed. Ditzy didn't really care much for him attempt to save face.

"Look. I know that right now, it's in your best interest to learn as much as possible about this world. And given that the local library offers next to nothing on what you're looking for, you need to go looking for alternative sources. But asking to go into someone else's mind just for what? For this?! Were you actually planning on this?"

"What? No!"

She disappeared before he even finished.

Back to reality, she picked herself back up out of bed and started towards the door.

"Ditzy, wait. Just let me explain!"

She snapped back at him, irate over the situation. "Look. When I asked you and you said it was alright for me to go poking in your mind, all I wanted was to know who you are! You don't want to remember your home, I get that. I don't like remembering about Neigh Orleans either, but I'm sure as Tartarus not going to use my own memories as bargaining chips!"

Her voice managed to remain low this time, her eyes focused for every and any small detail. She wasn't letting her bad disposition take hold of her, she was using it to bore holes in her antagonist's skull.

She continued, "I didn't think it would be that big of a deal! It just seemed so convenient; just conversing in private, showing things we can't just describe with words, or fail to understand... and for once we didn't have to worry whether the other was telling the truth or not!"

She took a short break to gather her thoughts. "...Look. You're a nice guy. Really. It's just that, I've just now learned that there's actually a lot more to you than I had originally thought. Besides the whole doomsday scenario prophecy, despite what you really are... You're incredible, but I've only realized today how much you haven't told me. "

"What I wanted..." he eventually managed to interrupt, "...was to pay you back for what you did for me until now. Which I've yet to be able to fully compensate. It's not that I feel indebted, or that I don't want you to think I don't appreciate your support. It's just that, you bared with me all the way. You took me in, suffered my eccentricities, and by all means you deserved to know more about me. My offer might've been a bit unsavory, but I give you my word that there were no hidden agendas. You were free to decline, I just thought that it would've been easier that way... As things are now, any knowledge would, indeed, be useful to me. So, what I wanted was for you to have access to the same courtesy that I received. I just thought it would be fair this way."

She was past being angry with him now. She was just weary, like the first time they'd met. Which was appropriate, since she felt she didn't even know him anymore. "...I don't want to know about your war. Mine was more than enough."

"Very well. But I still insist on showing you a few other sights... "

"I'm not finished talking. What I wanted to say was, that I really don't want to know about your war. But I do still need to know what you meant outside Zecora's hut. What you said was that you caused the downfall of another race. So... what exactly was your role in your war? Is there something I should know?"

A new day, a new sunrise. The teapot was whistling downstairs, calling everyone to breakfast. Dinky and her aunt were going to try to find out what happened the day before. However, it seems that by the time everyone else woke up, the Doctor was already gone. Oh well, no matter. They knew better than to try to force something out of the Doctor anyway. Every time they'd ask anything he didn't want to talk about, he'd manage to evade quite effectively. Dinky seemed willing to overlook this, but Dotes' ability to tolerate him slowly wore down.

They just decided they'd only ask Ditzy instead. For some reason, though, the mailmare wasn't really in a talkative mood either. She managed to convince Dinky there wasn't anything to worry about, that it was just a long and dull day and they were both very tired. She didn't convince Dotes, though. After her niece went to school, she confronted her sister again.

"Good job keeping her from worrying. You were more convincing that time." the younger sibling offered pensively, her head on her hooves on the table, not-so-vaguely reminiscent of a pouncing position.

"And I guess you're still expecting an explanation, right?"

Dotes got up. "You pretty much stormed out of the house yesterday. You left us to worry all day and only arrived after sunset!" she glared.

The mailmare's ears drooped. She looked around the room, trying to figure out what to say to her sister.

Dotes resumed, laying her head back forlornly as she looked away, "I was just lucky Dinky didn't know how worried she was supposed to be, otherwise I would've probably needed to convince her all day that you both were still okay. And then, when you finally came back home, it seems you did it right after a few drinks... Honestly, Ditzy, what were you thinking?"

At this point, Dosey looked of a slight red tint in her cheeks. She kept this inside over the night, waiting for her niece to leave for school. So, of course she might've been a little upset when she said these things. She was going to confront the so-called Doctor as well, just to see what kind of person he was under pressure.

"Well?"

"Well, I guess you do need to hear what happened yesterday after all."

"Well, gee, I don't know. I certainly don't think I need to know everything. Just, of course, maybe what you were thinking. Last night. In his room... Yelling his name."

The mailmare went a shade crimson, but didn't have time to say anything as her younger sibling continued, "And honestly, I didn't think you'd be that violent, sis! No wonder the Doctor ran away this morning."

"Wait, what? NO! It wasn't like that!... Wait. He ran away?"

"Yeah, he did. Probably like the last guy that..." She stopped short. She realized what she was saying a bit too late. It wasn't even like that, why did she even bring it up?

Ditzy got up and walked into another room. She didn't need to hear that.

"Oh Celestia... Me and my big snout. Ditzy, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it..." She followed after.

"Dosey, nothing happened last night. Honest!"

"Okay then, what did?"

"All we did yesterday was talk. That's all! I'm sorry for making you worry, but we might've made a stop on our way back from Zecora's hut..."

"From WHERE?!"

"...Which, by the way, actually turned out to be a very decent pony, once you bother to know her! We visited her because the Doctor was worried about her! Can you imagine, living all alone in the middle of the forest? And to think that the whole town was treating her like some kind of freak..."

Dotes gave her a suspicious look at first, which gave way to a bit of guilt. "Okay. Fine, but that doesn't explain why the Doctor was having trouble looking me straight in the eye last night. I mean, what did you do? Got him drunk so you could take advantage of him?"

Ditzy burst out into a short fit of laughter. "What? Dosey, we didn't do anything last night!"

"Then why could I hear you shouting at him from his room?"

"Unbelievable... Dosey, do I really give that idea?"

"No, but you're not that far off. For all I know, deep down inside my sister could be a Casaneighva! I can't know, you never go out!"

The mailmare shook her head to the side, a humoring smile on her face. "Dosey, we talked. That's all we did yesterday. I might've stumbled across a few of his memories that I shouldn't have... but I don't think they were enough to have him run away."

"Uh huh..." the younger sister rang off thoughtfully. Her curiosity was piqued, but she didn't want to give anything away. "Care to tell what exactly you've gotten out of him?"

"Well, I guess I could tell you, but there might be a few things you might find a little hard to believe."

"About the Doctor? No way."

Well, what could she do? She deserved an explanation, so might as well have her tell the whole thing. She really needed to talk to someone else about this as well. She needed an objective judge to understand the whole thing, since it was all insane enough anyway. And who else to talk to about it than her dear sister?

She's always been there at her side. They both shared everything, their accomplishments, their troubles, their house... They didn't really have anyone else besides each other and Dinky. She was more than family, she was just simply there for her. And she did her best to be the same for her younger sibling. Unfortunately, it seems she would all too often wind up on the receiving end.

So there she was, our dear wally-eyed mare. She was looking at her little sister, wanting so hard to tell her. But she couldn't.
How could she? It was all just simply insane. She couldn't possibly try her that way.

While she was deliberating, Doseydotes started to worry about what could possibly be heavy enough to deserve this long pause. "...Sis?"

"Oh, well... It's actually a long story. He has a lot he'd wish to forget. From the war."

"That's it? Well, honestly, he might want to wait in line... Either way, shouldn't we go looking for him?"

"...No, I'm sure he's fine. He'll show up eventually, it seems he doesn't really have anywhere else to go anyway."

"Alright, if you say so." Dotes relented. "But just for the record, try not to scare him like that next time, will you? Celestia knows, we could use his rent."

"I'm never going to hear the end of this, am I?"

"Not until one of us drops dead."

This is going to be a long day... Fortunately though, it seems she wasn't that tired this morning. Looks like the Doctor was telling the truth about the time flow after all. Fancy that.

This morning, from the Doctor's perspective.

He couldn't sleep last night. He managed a second conversation, they both had found out everything they needed to know. By the end of it all, Ditzy faded out, it seems she fell asleep. The rest of the night, he had to serve the role of a pillow.

"Poor thing, her war took her everything she had."

It's hard to believe what tragedies such peaceful creatures might hide. It seems she lost loved ones.

It wasn't as bad as galactic genocide, but it was bad enough. Neither tales were easy to tell, but they did offer precious insight he needed, as well as apparently offered him respite from her incessant prodding. A whole week he managed to avoid unnecessary subjects, but tonight he let her smell blood. And it wasn't a wonder that she was so compelling. After what she went through, she actually turned out amazingly well.

Some managed to save themselves from the damage more than others. One of them denied any of it ever happened. She is also currently housed in the local hospital, barking like a dog.
Another one picked up drinking. Others got away through other means...
The local librarian, for instance, managed to escape her nightmares by dreaming about the distant lands described in her books. She went on an excursion with a friend, soon followed by her ex husband. None of them were ever heard of again.

Dotes was never the same after that day. Not really.

There were others as well, from two smaller towns and a farm village. Surprisingly, those were apparently a lot less affected. Similarly surprising, the respective survivors were much less prone to manifesting such severe cases of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. It became apparent that Ditzy's bad eye might be a symptom of that, of some sort. Regarding Dotes, however, he didn't notice anything out of the ordinary about her. Perhaps she would be a bit overbearing at times, or she'd stare at him critically at other times when she thought he didn't notice. But so far, nothing appeared wrong with her.

The Doctor thought back to what Ditzy asked Zecora in her hut. Whether her prophecy was describing anything similar to what happened then.

She was crying in her sleep. The Doctor just laid there, on his back. Considering variables.

Letting his mind wander for a while.

He decided he'd had enough at some point, and needed some fresh air. "It seems like the start of a nice day, anyway, if you don't count the few black clouds that gathered. Funny finally seeing storm clouds, I guess even fairy tales have darker days.

He started talking to himself. It wasn't like he could do anything about the fact that he didn't have anyone to listen to him. He just needed to better sort his thoughts.

"I could use a short stop at the local bakery, though I don't have any money on me. Or any pockets.

"Guess I should've gotten a job by now? Yeah, I guess. I don't know why I have so much trouble finding a job, I usually have great social abilities. It's just that everyone here is so skittish. Now, at least, I know why. Even so, it seems my lack of experience in a normal social setting is finally giving me trouble as well.

"Who knew the schedule was so important to keep? It seems I shouldn't be so late for work... For a time traveler, it seems surprisingly hard to arrive on time. Pity, I was looking forward to trying out as a waiter.

"And then there was that time at the flower shop. What is with this body, with such strong cravings for weeds? I didn't even notice as I gulped down half the stock. Poor lad, the manager fainted when he saw what I did.

"Who would've thought. The Doctor, defender of all of time and space; He saved the Universe more times than anyone could count, but he can't keep a bloody job. A normal life never was my thing, not since I started traveling anyway...
I need to find a way to get some pocket change. I need to find something I can actually do for a living. Not easy thinking on an empty stomach, though...

"This grass looks pretty tasty... Oh well, I am a horse, sort of, so I suppose there's no harm in helping myself."

Just as he started (and it was actually rather tasty, you know how food always seems better when you're hungry), he heard a rather high-pitched gasp from inside a nearby bakery. He turned to look, only to see something of a hot pink color dash out the door, straight towards him. It was rather surprising, he felt his hearts stop as it looked as if the pink haze was going to knock right into him, only to stop suddenly in front of him. If that didn't make him fall on his flank, then the tide of words that suddenly erupted right onto him was surely going to change that.

"Ohmygosh! Why are you having grass for breakfast? Is it that you're new here and you don't have enough bits for a decent meal because you couldn't find a decent job yet? Which reminds me, you're not from around here, are you?[...]"

The sheer surge of possibilities, axing around the hyperactive, loud-mouthed pink pony in front of him just made his mane stand on end. Everything about her just screamed of paradoxes and broken laws of physics. How did he not notice this by now?

"[...]likes muffins. Do you like muffins? Oh, but where are my manners, I didn't tell you my name. Hi, I'm Pinkie Pie! What's your name?"

"Uh... The Doctor...?" he manages to give out, despite his massive confusion. He's not used to being confused, but he managed to hold down his typical "what" that he'd ask every one time he felt that way. This instance was a bit overwhelming the way it already was.

"No, silly, I'm Pinkie Pie, not the doctor. Say, if you were looking for a doctor, then I can take you to..."

"No, I meant my name is the Doctor. It's what people call me. I answer to that title... I, uh... am, actually, not from around these parts, so you're right about that. Say, could you talk a bit slower? No offense, I'm quite the talker myself, but you're rather hard to keep up with. (with all the paradox energy around...)"

"Oh, you mean I was talking too fast again? Sorry, I kind of do that whenever I meet someone new. You see, I know everypony, and I mean everypony in Ponyville, and whenever i meet somepony new in town, I get really excited like I did now! Anyways, why are you eating grass for breakfast, mister Doctor? Does it have to do with some medicine you prescribed? I suppose eating greens is healthy, but why would you follow a prescription you'd prescribe to somepony else?..."

"It's not a prescription, I was just hungry. And you can prescribe something to yourself. Usually, anyway."

"(dramatic gasp) So I was right! You can't afford a decent breakfast, can you?"

"Well, yes, I guess I can't..."

"That does it then!" she spoke with an extremely determined tone of voice. Then, before he knew it, she managed to pull him all the way back in the bakery, at a table.

"What will it be? We have éclairs, cupcakes, poundcakes, shortcakes, tallcakes, widecakes, whichever-cakes!" she says as she shows him through the menu, as he starts to drool. He didn't even need to know how good the sweets really were, his taste buds were already uprising in his mouth.

"I know!" as she vanishes in a cloud of dust, only to reappear seconds later with a covered plate. "I present to you... (dramatic drum beat in the background, as she uncovers the object in question)... my very own, Patented Pink 'Surprise'!" It was a rather large slice of fruit pie covered with frosting, icing and sprinkles, all pink. If the Doctor could talk past his mouthful, he would. For to his growling stomach's dismay, it looked, it smelled, it virtually existed in such an appetizing way, he could feel his mouth at the brink of bursting. Just then, he'd hear the pink mare say something that seemed to resound in his ears for the longest time. "And it's on the house!"

That slice of pie never stood a chance.

"Wow, you were really hungry, weren't you?" the pink pony offered nonplussed, despite his horrid table manners. Honestly, it looked like a walrus eating a child.

"Yeah... sorry about that. I'm a sucker for jimmies and frosting... But why was it called "Surprise"?"

"Well, that's because I like to throw in a few more surprising ingredients from time to time. In this one, I tried a silly strawberry-pear combo! It's silly because of the silly texture they give the pie, and you're pretty silly too, so I thought wow, I'm sure he'll just LOVE it! It's like that one time when I told..." she went on.

He didn't really catch anything past the word "pear". He never did suffer that fruit, and now he felt he was reverting into another meditation state. He does manage to hear Pinkie stop talking, in a rather concerning way.

"Doc, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay... Uhm, did you just say... pear?"

"Uh... yeah. You didn't like it?"

"Regularly, I'd throw a fit if I accidentally ate a pear, but now... I'm a bit at odds with myself. I mean that pie was delicious... So, yeah. I dunno. I guess I liked it, yeah." He then finally forces a smile, even though he feels as if a part of him had just died.

"You really are silly, Doc!" she offered, her contagious cheerfulness never faltering for a moment.

"Yeah, I suppose I am." he chuckled. "But you. You're quite something as well, aren't you?"

"Well, duh, I can't be nothing, now can I? I have to be something otherwise I wouldn't be anything at all! Then I wouldn't be Pinkie Pie either..."

She's nice. She's very, very... interesting. She's also pretty exhausting, but at least she's not running away from him. He'd love to stay and talk, but right now, he wasn't capable of handling her. He was tired and he needed to gather his thoughts. But he couldn't just up and leave now, could he?

"Thanks for the meal, really appreciate it. It's not often I get pie on the house (even if it was pear...). Anyway, I gotta go now, see ya again sometime."

"Bye! Come by some time when you're not broke anymore, won't ya?"

"You can count on it!" Evidently, we didn't take into consideration the fact that he's the Doctor. He can do anything he wants in a cool and neat fashion. Even defeat fart monsters with a jar of vinegar.

He went through the park, listening to the birds singing. It's nice to listen to Equestrian birds. Like Earth, Equestria has birds. It has a lot of things that Earth has as well, which would lead him to believe that either one of them is a replica of the other (which would be ridiculous), or this is a parallel dimension. No problem, he had absolutely nothing against that particular theory. He was just glad he didn't wind up in the version where the dominant species were still dinosaurs. Or any other bitey creature.

Technically, this wasn't an exact replica of Earth either. For instance, the birds were similar, but not the same. Something in the way they sang... Small differences.

On every planet, in every area they wind up in, the birds had their own song. On Earth, they'd usually sing something stubborn or determined. Here, it was rather jolly in comparison. Of course they'd be influenced by the leading species. It was obvious that they would sing about those more wondrous creatures. It's true, both humans and ponies were each wondrous in their own unique way.

What they were actually saying in that song of theirs...

The Doctor wondered. If he were to ask them, could they possibly know his answers? Did even they know what they were singing about? What their song encompassed. It was meant to describe not only the people that lived here, or the lands they dwelt on. But an all encompassing bird's eye view of the act of living here. The pastel which was on the surface. But maybe they saw a glimpse of whatever was underneath?

There was something he was missing, something grim staring him right in the face... well, something unrelated to what he had figured out that first night. Something different, a chilling hunch which tonight yielded him with his first lead. His instincts were screaming at him that he needed to find that hooded pony, and what attunement he had to the time of this reality felt like it was choking him towards pursuing this urge as well.

There were unseen currents. Things that didn't fit. Truly, war had absolutely no place in this world. Everything about it felt wrong. There had to be something else, some unseen element to make way for the things that happened twelve years ago. Something ugly to allow for such an abomination.

He needed to think this through. Perhaps consider all that he'd learned more objectively, consider something he might've missed.

Calm before the storm

Birds sang joyously, sun shone high in the sky, wind blew through the leaves... It was another wonderful day in Ponyville, save for a few sneaky little storm clouds here and there. It seemed they were trying to start some trouble, but the weather ponies kept ruining their plans. No matter how hard they tried, the sky would still end up as wide and blue as it's been ever since he's gotten here.

The Doctor thought he'd take advantage of this nice weather and take a short rest under a tree. A break, after all the headache he had caused himself all day, quite literally. A Time Lord can only do so far before his head starts to suffer feedback. The fact that he didn't even get a decent one-or-two-hour sleep the night before wasn't helping either.

"Hopefully here I won't have to worry about having a bucket of water poured over my head..." he sighed, as he recalled the little incident from yesterday morning. "Plus, maybe if I try to sleep on the matter at hand... or hoof, I guess..."

Talking to himself again. He does that a lot lately. It seems he might just have a lot on his mind is all. You can't just let things fester at the back of your head, it's not healthy. So, best talk about it. It was the one thing that he was always best at, after all. Be it talk himself out of sticky situations, or amaze others with the ideas he'd bounce off them, or just simply run his mouth and confuse everyone. Oh, but he would love bouncing his ideas off of others over mostly all else. He almost loved doing it as much as he loved his travels, or the people he would meet on said travels. All those brilliant people that graced him with their friendships and stood by his side despite unimaginable threats, and in the end, saved his life when he himself needed it.

Unfortunately, those same people would often grow ready to put their own lives, and all the same, the lives of others on the line in order to protect him. He never wanted that, but it just seems that things wouldn't want to go the way he'd want. Was it just too much to ask, to let him have a break from all the running and death, and just settle down?

"...Yeah, that was unlikely from the beginning." he mumbled, still upset over what he'd learned last night.

It wouldn't be all that bad to have a friend to talk to right now. To listen to him, to help him resolve the matters that'd been keeping him in a hazy state of wake up till now.

Beside the matter of the mysterious stranger he'd finally found out about, there was also the prophecy he received. There was something really, really bad that was going to happen here in the near future, and it was all going to be his fault. Unfortunately, such a thing wasn't really something he could ask any random pedestrian about, much less anyone from a fairytale land where one didn't even have to worry about the weather.

He only wished he could do something about it, anything, but these kind of things never were in his ability to prevent. Something so big, so monumental, it was simply set to happen. It was fixed, and the fact that it actually got a prophecy to announce it only proved just how strong it was and how much stronger it would affect their society. Like a rock falling in a pond, it created ripples. If you saw the ripples, then it was too late to stop the rock from falling in the water.

He could try to return to his dimension, that way he wouldn't be here to cause any problems, but he couldn't even hope of doing that until he got back to his Tardis. No, the best thing he could do now was to lay low and hope that he wouldn't get found. Just wait and hope for the best...

There had to be something he'd missed. He already had so many pieces of the puzzle. What was he missing?

His head started throbbing again, as if he was suffering a minor seizure. Apparently thinking wasn't a recommended activity either... Hopefully he'd have a better view of things after some sleep. It was not like he had anything better to do right now.

Best just rest for a while. Listen to the birds singing... Wait. What did they just call him?

Back in town, Ditzy was out at work. There were a few shipments that were brought in from Phillydelphia the day before, that she needed to bring to their corresponding address. Nothing too hard, thankfully, since not unlike our dear Doctor, she wasn't feeling all that bright today either. It was no surprise, after last night.

It was anything but a dinner conversation.

And now that she thought back, she was wondering why they had to have that talk in the first place. Why they had to put aside their personal anxieties and share their most personal memories...

Oh, right. It was because she just had to know more about her tenant. That was what she told herself. She needed to know why he was so strange all the time. She needed to understand this outstanding person that, so far, had been bewildering her beyond belief...

Of course, she could just kick him out, but that would've been just a bit too cruel. He was stranded, and he could make new friends beside her. He could ask Carrot Top to take him in, have her take care of him. But there was just one thing.

She didn't need a reason to kick him out. By all means, she could do it quite easily should she want to, and it wouldn't be something anyone judge her twice for doing. But why? In the end, he was just a stranded traveler. He was alone, save for her. By all means, he should've been able to make new friends. He was sociable and outgoing, and despite how brash and overwhelming he might've been, he was incredibly friendly and fun to be around. But for whatever reason, everyone in town was scared of him. And she couldn't blame them.

They were saying that there was something... off about him. Even Pinkie failed to sense him when he first arrived, and that was something unheard of. It was as if he didn't belong here. That there was something wrong about his being here. He just seemed... disembodied.

Ditzy noticed it as well, but she seemed to be the only one to actually notice something else as well. There was something familiar about him that she couldn't put her hoof on. Like a memory at the back of her head, or an answer at the tip of her tongue. She had hoped that tonight she could find out what that maddeningly elusive something was, and for a moment, she thought she did. When she looked at that clock tower, she felt like she was remembering something... which gradually made her feel more and more disturbed. A knot grew tighter and tighter around her heart, and it just kept growing, until she snapped away desperately looking for something else to occupy her attention.

She needed him as much as he needed her. But still, she didn't really have to go through with what happened in the end. It had just become apparent now that she could just let him be, leave him to his indiscretions. Instead, she insisted on finding out more about him. She didn't want to ignore him. She had to find him.

And what she found was quite the wonder. His story was something that would make the greatest dramatist shiver.

The red hills, the domed tower-city, the passion with which he looked at it all... And then there was the war. The feeling in the air, so tense you couldn't move. Like the very sky was about to fall down on you at any moment. She knew it all too well.

He didn't show her anything from the battlefield. Neither wanted to force that out. It wasn't like they needed to anyway. She already found out everything she needed to know about him, so instead, he showed her some of his more fond memories. His Tardis, the places he'd visit in all of his travels, closing with his second home, Earth. And unwillingly, his friends which he'd left behind when he managed to leave his dimension...

She might or might not have reacted a bit emotionally.

What he could say about how he arrived on this plane of existence, was both overwhelming and underwhelming at the same time. Overwhelming was the part where he saved all of reality from a weapon made up of multiple disappeared worlds, then dragged the Earth across what she learned to be the Universe, an apparently ceaseless expanses of space in which countless worlds could fit. For a moment, she got a taste of what the Doctor's world was like...

And then, the underwhelming part was what happened next. He just dropped his friends off at their homes. That amazing moment just ended and gave way to what made for normalcy, something that felt so alien to the Doctor.

'Maybe that's why he always feels so out of place. He can't help but feel that way himself, and some of that feeling slips out into us. I was the only one who met him before this feeling overwhelmed him, so maybe that's why I'm the only one who didn't run away as soon as he opened his mouth.'

...It might be best to just focus on flying right now. It's hard enough as it is, with her bad eye noticeably drifting off more persistently now than usual.

She sighed her heart out, then forced a smile on her face. "Okay! First things first. We have a package destined for Sugar Cube Corner. Hey, that's where Pinkie lives! Sweet!"

As she entered the shop and rang the bell on the counter to signal her presence, she was greeted by the well-known, cheerful and hyperactive pink pony... though only this time with a noticeable difference. She seemed concerned. She was still smiling, though it didn't exactly seem as joyous as it would usually be.

"Hey Derpy! Nice to see you!"

Derpy was her nickname around town. It was all in good fun, a reference to her silly eye wandering off. To the townsfolk, it was nothing more than that one thing they loved about her. To most of them, anyway...

The mailmare greeted back, then hoofed her package over.

"Thanks! It must be the extra special party ornaments I've ordered a few days ago. I've been wondering when they'd arrive!"

Usually about now she'd go on a rant about how she would normally just buy her materials in town square, or maybe she would start on explaining what exactly was so extra special about these ornaments, only to get distracted by some other, fleeting idea that she'd stumble upon at the moment. Now, however, not so much apparently.

"Yeah, you never know when orders arrive... Sign here, please."

"You couldn't have brought them at a better time, too! I was going to throw a party for the new pony in town, and I needed some extra special decorations if I was going to arrange an extra special party for him."

"New pony?" Ditzy asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah. Now if I can only figure out where he's staying..."

"...Say, Pinkie, this new pony. Is he by any chance a chestnut-colored stallion with a Trottingham accent?"

"Yeah. How did you know?"

"Well..."

Fancy that coincidence.

"WHAT? You mean he's been around for a WEEK and I didn't even notice him?! Now I'm sure he was upset with me!" the pink pony panicked.

"Pinkie..."

"I really hope he's not upset with me. Though I think he is..."

"Pinkie."

"...After all, I did mess up when I gave him pear! And he left pretty early. What if he was secretly allergic..."

"PINKIE!"

"Yeah?"

Just as suddenly as she started spraying her what-ifs, Pinkie stopped, looking as calm and jolly as she did but a few seconds ago. Just so very... Pinkie Pie, as always.

"...Listen. What do you mean upset? Why are you so worried?"

"Well... gosh, I dunno." she offered genuinely, a pink hoof to her pink chin. "I guess I was just worried about him for some reason. He just seemed so upset when he left. You could tell from his smile!"

"His smile?"

"Yeah! You know, I've seen a lot of smiles in my day, but his was... I dunno, just kinda sad looking. Like when you laugh right after you've been crying. Not that I'm implying that he's been crying, of course. That wouldn't be okay for a stallion. Even though it isn't that bad, actually. Why do you think they make such a big deal over it, anyway?..."

Her assumption did sound about right. And now that Ditzy thought about it, she realized that if anyone would know about these things, it would be Pinkie Pie. Leaving aside the fact that making others smile is her general thing, it just seemed like she knew about these matters more than she'd let on.

"So, how about we throw him a surprise welcoming party tonight to cheer him up?"

Ditzy pondered this proposition more carefully. "Well actually, I'm not sure how he'd react if we did it tonight. Though I think he said he's a party person. Tell you what. We can arrange a party for him as soon as I get more details on how he'd like it to be like."

"That sounds great! I actually wasn't sure about the theme anyway. Good thing I got you to find out for me! Though I think I could ask him myself, if he wouldn't be in such a hurry next time I meet him. Or if he didn't act as silly... he's not your usual customer, is he?"

Ditzy laughed knowingly at that. She really hit the nail on the head.

"You got that right. He's actually as far from the usual customer as you get." She said to the likes of Pinkie Pie. After a small lull, she spoke again, "Oh well, I guess I should be going. This mail isn't going to deliver itself."

"Okay. Just let me fetch you something for lunch break."

"Pinkie, you know you don't have to do that..." Of course, the pink mare ignored her and threw the paper bag containing freshly-baked muffins in her backpack.

I know, but I also know how much you and Dinky like these treats. So I guess I can just do it anyway."

How thoughtful. She remembered she'd take her lunch break with Dinky later. And she just had to go out of her way and get them a treat... again. Honestly, you'd wonder how come she didn't drive the bakery into bankruptcy by now. Then again, the author doesn't actually know that much about how economy works in this world, except that it obviously does because, duh.

"There. I've picked the blueberry ones, just the way you both like them."

"Gee, I don't know what to say."

"How about saying hi to Dinky for me?"

"...Okay. Thanks."

"Catch ya later!"

Back to the stallion that everyone is talking about. He was actually trying to rest, and was failing miserably. It seemed he was just too worried.
And there was also the fact that a few birds in the area seemed to have found it amusing to tease him for trying to sleep. That didn't help.
...And neither did the fact that there was someone sneaking around behind him. People all day today...

"You can come out at any time," he said, without even looking up.

He was answered by a barely audible squeak. Afterwards, silence.

"Come on now. It's not like I'm going to pounce and eat you up once I see your face."

After that, he could hear the pony in question jump in surprise and take a few steps back. Persuading the Time Lord to open his eyes and rise his head.

"I mean... Cause that would be just ridiculous, right? Who would do something like that? Heh heh..." he starts again, not wanting to scare the stalker any more than he already did. Doctor Whooves, this better not be because you need someone to talk to...

"Really now," as he finally got up, slowly."I'd just like to know what the pony that's been sneaking around my back looks like is all. It's not too much to ask for, is it?"

Then he turns around, only to knock right into the pony in question.

"Oof! So sorry, that was completely my f-..."

In front of him lied an amazingly striking cream-coated pegasus mare, her pink mane shining in the early noon sun.

"...Fault." What was he seeing? Come on, Doc, snap out of it! "Right! Please, let me help you up..."

Her answer was rather silent, but he could hear it. Barely.

"Thanks..."

She generally avoided eye contact, as if she was afraid of him. Being shy is one thing, but this is rather exaggerated.

"So... mind telling me your name, miss?"

"Uhm...It's Fluttershy..."

"I beg your pardon?"

"...I said... my name is Fluttershy," this time, it was even more silent. Not even his in-equine hearing helped him.

"Uhm... Okay..."

During the following moments of silence, a little bird landed on her head and chirped once, "Awkwaaaaard..."

"Oh, shut up." the Doc retorted.

At that, the mare finally faced him more openly, curious as to his sudden outburst.

"Oi! I don't need to take that from you!" the bird barked back.

"And I suppose you think rather highly of yourself, don't you, little feller? Didn't you mother teach you any manners?"

"Leave my mother out of this, wise guy!" was the bird's childish retort.

"Oh, please. Language!" offered the Doctor a bit too keenly.

"So you can talk to animals too?" the mare then burst out in excitement, her eyes shining like rubies for whatever reason, which caught the Doctor's attention. Oh, and she scared the bird away.

He was rather startled by her sudden outburst. "Uh, yeah? I can...?"(*)

"Oh, that's so wonderful! I've never met anypony else that can talk to animals too! Can you talk to any other kind of animal, or is it just birds by chance?"

"Well, actually, I can speak in any language period. Bird, bear, platypus, you name it!"

"Oh, really? How wonderful!"

"So you say..." He said thoughtfully, before starting to invade on her personal space. "Mind you, how did you do that earlier?" He scrutinized the mare a little too closely, causing her to back off a few steps.

"Ugh... do what?" The shy creature shrank.

"That thing with the eyes. They just shined earlier like they had stars in them or something. And honestly, your stars were actually a lot better than the real thing."

"I...what?" Fluttershy said, the choice of words and the close proximity of their faces causing her to blush.

He tapped his sides as he looked her far too closely in the eyes, remembering and regretting that he didn't have his coat with him. he could've used his screwdriver to run a more thorough diagnostic. He sighed and took a few steps away. "Okay, try not to get scared."

"...Why? Wha-"

The Doctor then decided to jump her, pinning her on her back. She looked at him in shock, who gazed deep into her eyes, like he was searching for her core. The sun positioned right behind him, she felt rather helpless under him.

"There don't seem to be any debris inside your eyes." he said, as he finally managed to get a good look once the lighting wasn't causing him trouble. He lay his hoof on her forehead, "You don't seem to be having a fever, so infection can't be the case either. Are starry eyes normal for ponies?" he asked her as he got off her and started to pace.

She was obviously not able to give him a proper response. The stallion didn't seem to give her much thought, apparently too focused on whatever he was so excited about. "This is fascinating! I thought I saw Dinky's eyes glimmer like this a couple times before, but I never followed up on it. There's nothing wrong with your eyes, and there didn't seem to be any obvious, natural reason for them to behave that way. But if it's not natural, then... Oh. Heh heh..." He started to shake in excitement.

"... Are you alright?" The pegasus asked, her fright giving way for concern.

"I'm fine! I'm better than fine!" He faced her, the excitement causing his own eyes to glimmer. "I think I just found a lead into studying pony magic!"

"You... did?"

"Yes! Isn't it exciting? Oh, this makes so much sense! The eyes are the gateway to the soul, after all! If my suspicions are correct, then the energies that ponies harness in order to manifest their supernatural abilities have to be somehow linked to the states of their emotions and mind! I might've even found a lead into proving the existence of the soul too... Huh. By the way, mind telling me your name again? I'm afraid these old ears of mine might have missed the first two times you said it."

"It's Fluttershy..." she finally said audibly, right now too confused to remember to be afraid of him.

"Brilliant. Very nice to meet you, Fluttershy! I'm the Doctor." He offered joyfully as he took her hoof and shook it, surprisingly gently.

"Uhm... Likewise?" She did wonder about the name he'd introduced himself under, but she wasn't really going to insist on asking about it. She didn't want to impose, after all.

"Anyway... Mind telling me why you were sneaking around behind me?"

It seemed she didn't take that well to the accusation, as she snapped back and regained some of her nervousness. "I wasn't sneaking around... I was just...uhm... passing by when I..." She would soon enough lower her volume to a whisper, once again.

"Very well, never mind then." he answered, slightly peeved.

As it seemed, this conversation was not going anywhere very soon. He figured he might as well just sit back down.

"I wonder though. You said you can talk to animals. Is that uncommon?" he asked the mare.

"...Yes."

"I see. Then I'm just guessing it's one of those personal trait things, the ones that get shown on your side. Am I right?"

"Uhm, you mean my cutie mark?"

"Yeah, that. I just wasn't wholly certain about it. It does sound rather childish to call it that... not to mention the whole idea of branding your fate on your side."

"Well, you can call it an emblem too... if you want."

"An emblem? Huh..."

"But I have to ask... if you don't mind..."

There she went again. Why did she have to act like this? The Time Lord felt so sorry every time she would act so docile. He was barely holding in his indignation.

"...How is it that you don't know about these things?"

"Well, that would be because I'm not from around these parts. Honestly, there really was no way for me to know about these things until just a few days ago..."

After all, just few days ago he was humanoid. We can't blame him for not detaining basic Equestrian knowledge. The denizens of this new universe, though, can. Fluttershy for one, was caught a bit off-guard.

"...But where were you before? How can you not know about cutie marks?"

"Let's just say I've come from very very... very far away. I've been traveling... well, everywhere, actually (not to mention every-time), every one place was all the more amazing than the last. This one is the most amazing so far. All of the implications are fascinating..."

A simple smile crept on his face as he told her these things. It's funny, he knew so many languages, but none were better than the language of the face. It also appeared to be the best kind of disease, as it was contagious enough for the nervous mare to get some of it herself.

"I'm happy that you like it here." She sat down in front of him, favoring a face-to-face position over sitting next to him for now.

The Doc let out a little yawn. "Yeah, well, I didn't really take to the place immediately. At first I thought it was so odd, nothing was making any sense! I kind of felt a little isolated. Still do, actually."

"...Really?"

"Yeah, really. I was a newcomer in a strange new world, everything was so different, the world seemed so big. Too big."

The coincidental choice of words seemed to ring with the mare. She leaned forward, "Weren't you scared?"

"Pfft. I was terrified! But I didn't let it pull me down. I was going to see this world, all of it, if it was the last thing I did! ...At least, that was what I told myself at first. But then..."

With baited breath, the canary-colored mare asked him, "But then what?"

She waited for a little while for the answer, then a little while longer until all she could hear was his steady breathing.

'...Did he just fall asleep?'

He did. He was sleeping peacefully. Arms behind his head. A calm, if somewhat sad look on his face. He left the mare to wonder what to do next.

For a while, she was content to just watch him sleep. Then she got up and approached him. Face right next to his, she gave him her own bit of intense scrutiny.

'Why do I have the feeling I've met you before?...'

It was already well in the afternoon now. Ditzy managed to deliver most of the mail. All she had left was a freshly printed book, after which she could finally call it a day.

Unfortunately, she didn't know where the tome was destined to. The part of the wrappings with the address was torn off, probably when she flew into that tree a few minutes ago. Not much she could do about it, it was rather difficult for her to tell distances on a good day, which today was not.

The mother wasn't one to give up, however. It couldn't be too hard to deliver this book. Considering it logically, she figure that if it wasn't destined for the library, then chances were that whomever ordered it probably checked there first, to see if they had it in store or to ask what title would be best to order. So that was where she was heading now.

Upon arrival at the large tree building in the middle of the town, she immediately knocked at the door. Conveniently enough, Twilight didn't take too long to answer, "Why, hello, Mrs. Doo. What may I help you with?"

"Hello Twilight. I hope I'm not dropping in at a bad time. I was just wondering if you, by any chance, ordered this book?"

The unicorn levitated the cover over to her for a better look of the title. "'Of monsters and magic'? That's familiar all right... Weren't you going to help pruning the trees in the park today?"

"Yeah, well, I would gladly lend a hoof, but a job's a job. What can you do?"

"I guess you're right. Concerning this book you were delivering. I'm not the one who ordered it, but I do think I know who did."

"Really?" The mailmare asked hopefully.

"It's not any of the books I advised her to order, but I think it's destined to Fluttershy. She came by a few days ago, asking about anything I might have on strange animal behavior. There wasn't much I could help with, since it seemed she had already read all of the books we have here. So I gave her a catalog to order her pick. After that, I just had Spike mail the order. Though I was rather surprised by her choice."

"Thanks! I don't know what I would've done without you!"

"Don't mention it..." The librarian then chanced a concerned look out towards the overcast sky. "But you might wanna hurry if you're delivering it now, it doesn't seem like it's going to be long before they start the storm. And considering how they kept all those last few days so sunny, it's probably going to be pretty strong."

"Okay, thanks. I'll just be off then... Oh, but before I forget again; Tell me, did the Doctor come by today?"

"No, he didn't. Why?"

"No reason." Ditzy smiled awkwardly in reply. "I was just wondering if you'd seen him. After all, it seems he's been coming by quite often ever since he arrived here. I hope he wasn't too much of a bother..."

"Oh no! Don't worry, he's always welcome to visit here anytime. It just gives me the chance to figure out what he's hiding..."

"What was that?"

"Nothing!" The librarian burst out. "I'll... see you later then?"

Nice. It seems he might've sprung Twilight's interest as well. It might not be the best combination of events. Hopefully, this won't lead the situation out of hand (hoof, whatever).

You already know that the Doctor's been at the library a few times, twice he couldn't find the resident mare. You might also remember me mentioning how he would often come visit, searching for whatever help he could gain in order to understand magic. He would say that he merely needed to check and ask about any more history material, but he always made sure to squeeze as much information out of Twilight as he possibly could.

However, after the first visit, information was no longer the only reason he would come by. It appeared that he developed a liking for Twilight and Spike's company. They wouldn't mind, save for the shroud of mystery he constantly kept around himself that'd been making Twilight feel a little ticked, which eventually caused her assistant a bit of headache as well. Like that wasn't enough, he also appeared to know every single thing contained in the library's collection, and even worse still, he also seemed able to read an entire, brand new volume of Equestrian philosophy, fresh out of the publisher's desk, in only a few seconds! (**)

She would often try to make him confess his secret, and fail. Eventually, she decided to respect his wish of keeping things to himself. From the way things were going, she was going to do something she'd regret before he'd break the ice anyway. Still, even if she stopped asking him directly, it didn't mean she was going to leave the matter of his ridiculous talents undisclosed.

For you see, Twilight was a girl that was well known for her short temper and her need to be able to understand whatever mystery came her way. She was a scholar by heart, through and through. She couldn't turn a blind eye to such circumstances. Of course, there was one explanation for this particular mystery, but it was just too... shoddy. That is that, simply, the Doctor was a genius. As in, a really, really genius one.

And she was right, even if maybe just halfway. He was a genius, though his ingenuity didn't have anything to do with his heritage at all. He might've been a pioneer among his own people once, a savant even. But when it came down to it, that was not really what was so brilliant about him, now was it?

Despite the Time Lord's knack for messing with the poor girl, either intentionally or not, he would still be very much welcome at the library. He'd always have some interesting and far-fetched tale to tell which they'd enjoy. He'd go on about far-off lands that he'd supposedly been to, battling great evils and saving the day every time.

Spike was actually really fond of them. He loves to hear about such adventures. Everything would always be so original and lively, not like most of the uninspired, childish, unimpressive stumps in the library. The Doctor's tales were brilliant, and his talent in telling them was what really got the little dragon whelp hooked.

The childish stallion was a bit of a bother sometimes, but he never meant anything bad.

Ditzy knew all of this all too well, but now she knew why it was so. Why the alien preferred to keep to himself. Twilight, however, had yet to find out. Which could lead to some unwanted situations... She would have to figure out a way to take care of this problem eventually. After she was done with today's shift.

A couple early raindrops found their way on her head. It was already too dangerous to fly, what with lightning just waiting to happen. Plus, she's been flying all day. Her wings are tired. Walking to her last destination sounds a lot more promising.

She arrives in the town's market district. She looked at the clock, hung above from a nearby lamppost. Half past four.

She could see her sister waving at her from Carrot Top's shop. They were packing up, like all the other merchants there. She waved back, then went on her way. They all had to finish what they had to do quickly. This storm looked like it wasn't going to wait for anyone.

It's quite impressive, actually. Being able to bend the forces of nature the way they do. It's in the norm for the weather to go by the ponies' schedule, only rarely do they witness any unexpected weather phenomenon. It's a good thing, too, because all to the average reader's surprise, their weather is a lot more dangerous than you'd think.
... What, you didn't know? Okay, allow me to elaborate.

You see, as you might well know, their world is a lot different from ours. For one thing, the sun and moon seem to be orbiting around their planet, rather than any other way. Or rather, they're being held in an artificially-sustained state of revolution. Like a curtain being pulled and kept spinning. It's not even certain what they are, exactly. But evidently, the ponies don't seem to give it much thought. They're merely satisfied with knowing that it's the way things have always been... but it isn't. Clearly, ponies weren't always around to control the world's workings, were they? And if they weren't, then how was it back then? (***)

That is a matter to be delved into at another time. For now, let's just guess. What would happen if they stopped their daily toils to keep the skies under control? Would they all stop? Would the sun and the moon stop dead in their tracks? Would the cycle of water stop as well, or would they run rampant and cause maelstroms and deserts? Why can't they all just work on their own, like they managed to do on Earth? The answer is this.

What do they have that we don't?

In a world where the laws of physics are constantly intertwining with those of magic and other supernatural forces, the weather, the cycles of day and night, the very color of the sky, everything is actually quite unstable. That is why it all needs to be kept under regulation. A task which needed to be fulfilled by the many nations of this world.

For the ponies of Equestria, it's up to Cloudsdale to prevent the weather from going askew. And they do it all as well as they can. Gryphons maintain the wildlife, making sure no magical beings lay ruin to any other. Diamond dogs gather food for the Dragons, the guardians of the world. Minotaurs stand guard inside mountains, Zebras oversee the balance within the Dreamtime and the Buffaloes maintain the balance of the spiritual elements.

Finally, the ponies in general seem to be the ones that often take care of everything else.

Unicorns always strive for advancements in their technologies, implementing not only the principles by which pegasi manage to fly and control weather, but also any base support from any other respective knowledge centers from across the continent, including but not limited to the many schools of magic in Canterlot.

Still, they have their job cut out for them, being charged with controlling precipitation in the land, among other things. It might not be so surprising to see that they might miss a few predictions. For example, this storm was planned in the last few hours. It seems there were a few unexpected influences that needed taking care of. The official excuse is that they simply needed to cover up the effects of an unexpectedly strong dry season. So, in order to prevent any unwanted side effects, they were just going to arrange a thorough shower.

Of course, that means they're going to need to make a "jet" strong enough to cover the whole thing. Which, of course, might be too much for some of the flora to handle, but what can you do? Better have a few flowers drown than have most of the area suffer from thirst, right?

It was a decent excuse. A clever cover.

Ditzy managed to arrive at Fluttershy's cottage just as the downpour started. It seemed she would have to wait it out inside. Well, at least she wouldn't have to worry about the time on Fluttershy's signature...

She could also keep her company, at least. It was pretty obvious just how much this would actually mean to her canary-colored friend, considering that, well, despite her choice of location and lifestyle, she wasn't really the bravest of ponies. Ignore technicalities.(1)

After knocking, she is greeted by a little white rabbit which, for some reason, was sporting a strainer on his head and a spatula as some kind of improvised weapon. He seemed a bit... ecstatic, and was looking at her quite suspiciously, making her feel rather uncomfortable. Finally, he decided he could let her in, as he jests with his spatula-spade.

"Okay, what was that about?" the mailmare questioned no one in particular as she proceeded inside.

As she proceed into the rather dark main chamber, she was greeted by the many animals that thought would try to shelter themselves from the now-bursting downfall as well. The only problem was, these animals were looking a little ecstatic as well.

Now, imagine a bunch of woodland creatures, one of them being a bear, another a hawk, all staring at you menacingly. Yeah, you can guess what was on the mare's mind. Fortunately though, Fluttershy came in to calm down the spirits.

"It's okay, everyone. She's a friend!"

Now, imagine a bear, a hawk, and half a room full of critters and birds all calming down, stepping aside and looking admirably and lovingly at the cream-colored mare, as she snuggles them and approaches the visitor.

At this point, the audience is encouraged to fawn and feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

"I'm sorry, it's just that all the animals in the forest have been acting nervous for the last few days.(2) This storm isn't helping much, either." At that exact moment, a lightning strike decided to support her claim. It got everyone in the room growling fiercely, like they were all doing their best to ward off some unseen threat. Surprisingly enough, among them all was Fluttershy who, despite trembling pretty hard herself, was trying to keep a brave face on to calm everyone else down.

As everyone quieted down, Ditzy couldn't help but stagger. It was all a little surreal, and a lot uncomfortable and scary. She considered whether she should've just left the book and tried her luck with the storm.

"Uhm... did I come at a bad time, Fluttershy?"

"Oh, not at all. Don't worry about them, they wouldn't hurt a fly."

At that moment, a frog on a nearby desk looked awkwardly around the room. The rabbit just shrugged at him.

"Let me treat you with some warm tea. It's so nice to see you, Derpy." (wait for it...)

"Yeah..."

They know each other for a long time. Back in Flight Camp, they used to hang out together with a couple others. Suffice to say they got close enough, since they've been together through something like that...

As they got to the dining area, Fluttershy started all flustered, "Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it! It just came out..." (there)

"Uhm... what?"

"Your name. I'm sorry, I know I should've been more thoughtful about calling you that way. It's just not nice to call someone after her fault..."

Ditzy's brain required a few seconds to register. "Wait, that's what you're so upset about? ... Fluttershy, please, I've already told you before, it's fine... I actually kind of like my nickname better than my regular name anyway. It's not the name itself that bothers me, but the way ponies use it."

Fluttershy just nodded and refilled her teacup. Annoying, how concerned she always is about upsetting everyone else, all the while getting herself all upset in the process. It certainly didn't bode well with the mailmare.

"Here. I believe this is addressed to you?" she tried to change the subject

She takes the book out of her bag with her mouth, then shows the cover. Fluttershy immediately brightens up as she takes it in her hooves.

"Oh, it arrived! I'm so glad! Maybe now I can figure out what's been bothering all my animals so much. I was thinking maybe it was a seasonal thing, but I couldn't find anything it the town library, so I asked Twilight to try and find something for me... Oh, but you came to deliver it on this weather? You're so brave!"

"Yeah, that's me. Brave ol' Derpy. You need to be, if you have someone you need to take care of. But I think you might already know that."

She goes red in response. "Me? I'm not brave at all..."

"Trust me, I haven't met a braver pony in my life."

That made her look at her funny. "Are you trying to joke? Because I didn't really get it."

As a response, the mailmare found it appropriate to give off a giggle. She stands up from the couch, in order to offer a satisfactory speech. "Fluttershy, I'm being completely serious! Ever since I've known you, you've gone out of your way for others, despite being afraid. And even after you moved here, it just seems you've taken it upon yourself to do it even harder! With all the animals you always take care of, for which, by the way, you settled alone in a cottage, right outside the Everfree Forest of all places! All the while, and pardon me for saying, but you're afraid of your own shadow! Tell me who else would do that!"

Fluttershy could only manage a long, quiet "uhm" in answer.

"Exactly!" Ditzy quickly resumed. "You can't even think of anyone. Maybe because there might not even be anyone. There might, but I sure don't know about any of them. Therefore, you are the bravest pony I know of!"(3)

She made her burst into laughter. Finally, she thought, she managed to make her friend lighten up. Never an easy feat, but all the more worth the trouble.

Eventually the caretaker calmed down. "I guess you're right... except for the part where you said I'm alone."

"Oh, right. Forgot about your animal friends..."

They look over to the other side of the room, where it seemed that Angel was inspecting a military line-up. He was probably scolding his unit for their poor show of self control so far, apparently focusing on the bear for his incessant growling. After a few unintelligible gestures, the white rodent threw his spatula on the floor and went up the stairs, rather peeved. The others didn't break formation, though they did seem to start whispering to each other, which the rabbit seemed to have noticed when he turned around to give them a grim glare. He wasn't kidding around, that one.

"Can't you talk to them? They're obviously riled up over something."

"I tried, but they just won't tell me. All they said was not to worry, but how can I when they're so upset?"

Next, they heard moaning from up-stairs, followed by a surprised yell and a bump in the ceiling. The voice then gave off more aggravated moans, then they could hear hoofsteps coming towards the door.

"You had company?" Ditzy asked.

"Why, yes. It was this pony I met today. He was pretty tired, so I let him rest here for a little."

"He? As in, a stallion?"

"...Yeah, why?"

A stallion, sleeping in her quarters? Could it be, she finally got a special somepony for herself? This was actually brilliant news. Who was it?

The familiar voice of the Doctor coming down the stairs soon answered her question. "(Yawn) Nothing like a nice rest. By the way, how did I get in that bed?"

Ditzy was dumbstruck. "What." she somehow managed, glaring some new, previously undiscovered combination of horror and skepticism.

Author's Note

(*) Well, technically speaking, he's probably just supporting a simple psychic connection to understand what it was saying. That is, unless the unreasonably long list of languages he knows includes bird. You know, besides all of those languages from all the different planets in the known universe. And baby. And horse. And, uhm... some kind of hypersonic frequency which electronic entities use to communicate, as far as I've heard.

(**) He did notice her presence, he just wanted to mess with her. He came to know her, and realized she was safe to be around, despite her apparent affiliation to the royalty he suspected of being tyrannical. And from Twilight's describing her mentor, the Doctor figured the librarian might've been subtly brainwashed... until he got to know her, at which point he realized she was just an eager, naive child that would gobble up just about any information she was fed. The royal didn't need to affect this brilliant mind, she only needed to play her cards right. And considering the fact that she had been playing this entire kingdom for thousands of years of complete, undisputed control... She had to have been quite the master manipulator.

Either that, or his suspicions were unfounded. But that wasn't any fun.

(***) In the very beginning? Before the creatures that kept balance? It was chaotic. It was a horrible pandemonium. On one half, an inferno, a boiling kettle where Elder Dragons and Elementals managed to develop. On the other, a frozen ocean wasteland where only Primal Windigos and Nightwalkers took form... I could go on, but I'm not giving anything else away.

(1) I'll get to that in a minute.

(2) Well, not ALL of them. Just the regulars.

(3) Reader, technicality. Technicality, reader.

I know what you're thinking. Hurricane Fluttershy, right? But to be fair, the two instances in which Fluttershy and Ditzy took interest in the Doctor are isolated. It was just a minor coincidence.
Anyway. Making way for the upcoming conflict.
And man. Looking back, this all seems a tad forced... and tedious to go through.

He just seemed... disembodied.

It's related to the thing he found out when he first saw the stars in this world. He's disembodied from his own timeline here, as well as disembodied in another, more important way because of the world he's now in. It feels kind of, very not pleasant, to the power of dead family member. It's so unpleasant that he can't help but leak out some of his misery psychically, unintentionally. Sounds emo? Too bad. The Doctor's story is emo. He's the last of his race, he's lonely and sad. The reason we like him is because he soldiers on anyway, and even goes as far as plastering a fake smile over his face. Because that's what we do in life. We carry on for as long as we have legs to carry us.

New faces

The downpour broke heavily over the little town. Everyone had retreated to their homes, eventually taking their businesses inside if they had any. Not like they had to resign too much of their schedule, though. It wouldn't have been a couple of hours until closing time either way. If anything, it was just an early leave. Everypony was announced regarding the scheduled storm, not like they would wait till late to make their groceries if they could help it.

There was, however, the issue of some of the older trees around town. They presented the risk of having some rather large sections of their crowns broken off, endangering the town and its locals. To that end, a few ponies had volunteered to clean them up. Now, the locals could only wait and see how well they worked.

Dinky arrived home some time ago, long before any of the hustle and bustle broke out. As usual, she just helped herself with a snack. A couple apples and a hay sandwich. Not like she wouldn't be able to find her way around the kitchen on her own. What with both mares of the house usually away at work when she arrived home from school.

Then again, they did still keep the knives on the top shelves. Knives specifically designed to be better used with the mouth.

Eventually her aunt came home as well. Only, after the rain had set in. She decided to take a bath, leaving the filly to her own devices a while longer.

Dinky was at the window in her room. An apple and some homework at her side, waiting intently for the first flash of lightning. She heard her classmates talk about it throughout the entirety of the last course: finally, a storm was forecasted! An amazing, very fun, very new experience for her to bewilder upon. They didn't get storms all too often, since the weather department only ever needed to resort to this system very rarely, as a last means of keeping the weather under balance. They didn't need to use it for quite a while.

The last time they did resort to using this system was well before she could remember. She could barely recall a thing from that night. Ever since, all she got to go around were but a few summer showers. But now, well, now this was definitely not a summer shower. Now, it was the real deal. Sure, it was a little scary, but through the eyes of the young and ignorantly innocent, wonder tilts the balance way off.

It was like a circus performance, with flashes of light in the sky accompanied by brilliant, deafening drums. The otherwise cream-white clouds, now grave and washed-out, were blanketing the sky like a tent. The only light she received was from the occasional flashes of lightning and the thinned-out rays cast by the now setting reflector-like sun. It was an early evening dark, if only a damper and dejected version in comparison to what would've been now a late daytime. No progressive conversion from azure blue to starry obsidian. No fiery red from any pollution. No twilight hours. Just either azure daylight or cold night.

Despite the dim atmosphere, the excitement in the young foal's heart was beaming. That is to say, until the spectacle started full-throttle.

With the increasing volume of the approaching thunder, she started worrying about whoever might be caught out in such harsh weather. She decided to go join her aunt.

"Auntie! The storm is getting pretty strong! Do you think mom and the Doctor are going to be alright?"

"In here, sweetie." Dotes' voice shot out in response from the bathroom. "I'm sure they've found shelter by now.”

Doseydotes was in the tub, working foam in her mane, trying not to get any in her eyes. Still, she opened one of them to meet the filly coming in. She looked worried.

“They should be back once the weather calms down. Don’t worry too much, okay?"

"Okay... I guess you're right. But it does look kinda scary..."

"Yeah, they do always tend to be that way. I guess you were too little the last time we had one, huh?" She nodded to confirm. She was just an infant back then, after all. Dotes was wondering if she wasn't still too young even now. The fact that there were those two bright bulbs missing somewhere didn't bode well with them either.

Even the Doctor, who would always tell tales of dangerous excursions and how he'd defeat malefic creatures... Who was he kidding? Besides Dinky, that is...

Wanting to uplift the atmosphere, the mare blurted out a little wild idea, "Tell ya what. When the Doctor comes back, we can ask him why he went missing all day. I bet it was because he had to go off and save the town from whoever started the storm."

"I thought the weather department started it."

"Yeah, that's what they said. But do you know why they started it?"

The filly sat on her haunches, a hoof to her mouth in thought. "Huh. Good point."

The older mare only smiled sweetly at her gullible niece. She started again, no small amount of criticism in her tone, "He's probably tracking the bad guys down right now. I'd expect no less, after all the bragging he keeps doing."

"If that's the case... then I think it would explain a few things. Like, why he left without telling anyone this morning... Maybe he needed to get a head start on the bad guys!"

She's very creative. Very bright for her age.

Besides the fact that she's a little naive foal that would believe anything her adult caretakers would tell her as truth, there's also the fact that this is the first time she witnessed a storm. Maybe she wasn't really all that scared, but things were all a little out of the ordinary for her. A little strange. And technically, Dotes would lie if she were to say that nopony had ever been hurt by lightning from a storm. It was always a little dangerous for the weather ponies. A storm cloud was, understandably, a lot more dangerous than a white cloud... Maybe the mare was more worried than she wanted to let on.

"Who knows what adventures he'll have to tell once he gets back? But until then, I doubt either him or your mother wanted you to worry about them. They're both big ponies, they can take care of themselves, okay?"

"Okay!"

"Alright. Now, would you mind helping your aunt finish up here? Then you can decide what we're having for dinner tonight."

Just the two of them again, it seemed. Dotes didn't really know where the Doctor was, but she was at least somewhat relieved that she didn't spot him with Ditzy when she met her in town square today. Or when she saw Dinky during her lunch break, apparently. Where was he, anyway?... No matter. He could take care of himself.

Things certainly have been a bit more hectic ever since he moved here. Not in an explicitly bad way, mind, but not too far from it. Sure, it wasn't all so bad in the beginning. It was actually pretty fun having a new face around, even if she felt a bit unnerved when she saw him awake for the first time, as opposed to the time when Ditzy brought him in(2)... But after that first encounter, she found out pretty soon that the stallion was harmless. A little off the wall, maybe. But certainly not dangerous. He actually got along wondrously with her niece.

That, and there was also the not-so-minor fact that he finally fixed the creaking floor in the dining room... aside from most of the house. Crack in the wall? He re-sapped it. Creaky door? He oiled it to Fel. Loose closet shelf? He leveled it by micrometer. Wherever there was something to fix, he tracked it down and dispatched it ruthlessly and efficiently. He showed no mercy to either uneven floorboards or failing window sealing. He didn't stop!... Literally. He did not stop. Not even when there was nothing left to fix, he somehow kept finding something else to do.

All jokes aside, he was a very decent pony, if a bit creepy when he'd occasionally drift off into one of his mile-away stares. And she was willing to overlook his avoiding her questions, or almost setting the kitchen on fire, even if it ticked her off a bit. Not wanting to talk about what he used to do for a living before he arrived in Ponyville? Okay, fair enough. Avoid talking about his family and friends? Fine, maybe he had issues. Making up all of that crazy stuff, telling Dinky about murderous beasts and ungodly monsters?... stretching it, but okay. He wasn't hurting anyone. But not even giving his name? That raised a few questions. And what had happened yesterday did not bode well with her either.

And then there was Ditzy's behavior this morning. Gee, it was not like she was her sister or anything. It wasn't like they've been there for each other since, well, ever. It was obvious that Ditzy was holding back on details, but she couldn't bring herself to judge her own sister. What in Celestia's name could it have been that she couldn't tell her?

Dotes couldn't believe that her sister could ever be this irresponsible. It was like she was dating someone behind their parents' backs. She has too much respect for her older sister to consider this possibility anything else but infuriating.

She was upset with herself for thinking about this, and at Ditzy for causing this headache, AND at the Doctor... It was like he mesmerized her or something.

She would worry about these things later, though. Right now, there was a foal that needed cheering up, which would require a few splashes around and soap in the eyes. And the need for a mop later on.

Meanwhile, unknown to anyone in town, trouble was brewing. Shadows that no one could see were shifting in the heavens. Shadows that didn't quite belong.
Nothing life threatening, mind you. Just events that need to take place.

Back at Fluttershy's cottage, we left Ditzy with her mouth hanging.

It seemed she was taken aback by the Doctor's presence here. Aside from her, Fluttershy was just enjoying another cup of tea, spectating as the Doctor was looking around the room.

"Huh... Nice and cozy in here. I really like the fireplace."

No kidding. The hearth in the middle of the room seemed to be spreading more than just warmth throughout the chamber. It felt like it was pulsing a sense of security. Quite veritably the heart of the house.

He soon continued, "...What with all the smaller platforms to help the smaller guys move around... Hey, Ditzy! Fancy finding you here. You have any idea how I got here?"

"...Seriously? You're asking me?" the mailmare managed out through her inability to comprehend what was happening.

"Well, I remember falling asleep in the park, not here. Then again, it would seem that the weather outside wasn't all that good to sleep through. Thanks for the roof over my head, Fluttershy. I suppose you dragged me inside?"

"...Actually, you can thank Mister Bear for that." the canary pegasus gestured towards behind him.

He turned around to face the massive beast, only to find a thick wall of fur. "Huh..." He lifted his gaze and regarded the bear in the eye nonplussed. He lifted a hoof, gesturing a short greeting. Managing his surprise well, through a few nervous chortles.

His attention was then caught by the tentative looks from all of the animals beside said bear. They wanted to talk to him, which reminded him:
"...Your rabbit friend had something he wished to tell me?"

They nodded understandingly as well as slightly annoyingly, sort of a "tell me about it" look on their faces before they looked behind me curiously, then warningly at him.

Before he could react, he felt a sharp pain take hold of his ear, then a pulling at it that dragged him relentlessly along Ditzy's figure, back up the stairs.

"Ow! Ow, what did I do?"

Her answer which, by the way was surprisingly coherent through her mouthful of Horsey Time Lord ear, wasn't directed at him, but at the hostess which they were leaving behind.

"Please excuse us for a few minutes."

...Did they have a choice?

He managed a decent look at her. She was cross. Crosser than that one night he punched a hole in his bedroom wall in a fit of anger, boredom and anxiety. Not fun being blind to the universe around him. He just wanted to make sure his senses were still accurate.
He could determine the chemical consistency of the wall, so his test of its physical resilience was accurate. But he still couldn't figure out why everything was so colorful.

He didn't take long to figure out what she was so worked up about. A shiver ran down his spine.

"About last night..." he started before being interrupted.

"DON'T... worry about it." the mailmare barely managed to regain hold of her composure.

She wasn't looking at him, only in the direction of his bottom left with her one good eye. She was not comfortable with the situation, but continued nonetheless. "It was just a long day and I should've thought better. I was just worried about you, actually. With the way you left and all, I thought that maybe I've upset you."

The fact that she found him here, of all places, also made her worry that he might've decided to live here from now on instead. But that was silly! Why did she think that? She needed to get her thoughts straight already.

"I went too far last night." she continued. "I... just thought that you could use a hug, after what you showed me and then I..." 'might've gotten a little carried away.'

Yeah... Casaneighva. Dotes got her right all along.

"I'm really sorry if I offended you!" she blurted out, trying really hard to look him straight in the eye.

The Doctor regarded her sheepishly, talking quickly once she was done. "Don't worry about that. I wasn't offended, really, I was just... startled. I might've acted before thinking. Really didn't mean to put you to sleep that way."

"I... wait. You put me to sleep?" she asked surprised.

"...Yeah. Sorry. You didn't know that?"

"I really couldn't remember what happened next. I didn't really give it much thought... Just assumed I fell asleep on my own. You put me to sleep? Why'd you do that for?" She wasn't upset, just confused.

"I said, I was startled. There were a lot of emotions going on, I wasn't expecting you to... feel that way."

"Really?" she deadpanned.

"...Well... maybe I did consider it. I just didn't give it much thought."

"Uh huh... And, ugh... what do you say?" Ditzy let the words out gradually, nervously. She really wanted to know. (3)

What does he say? He looked at her wide-eyed for a few seconds, speechless. What does he say... He looked around the room in a panic, trying to find something. Anything. Fortunately for him, however, he didn't need to suffer for very long.

"You know what? Just... forget it. Sorry to force the issue. I just thought that... never mind."

After they joined back downstairs, Ditzy was trying to entertain a conversation with her friend. Something about how Flutters is taking care of her animals similarly to how she takes care of her own foal.

"Is everything alright?" the caretaker asked her friend concernedly.

"Oh? Well of course, why wouldn't it be?"

"Well, you kind of phased out for a few seconds earlier. And quite frankly, I really do think you look a little worse for wear."

"No really, I'm fine! I’m just a little under the weather. I guess I might just be coming down with something."

"What? Oh no, that's terrible! Let me go heat up some more lavender tea! It would be just dreadful if you caught a cold... Now, in which jug did I store it..."

She wasn't really feeling that bad. But, as long as she was given a break... maybe some more tea would make her feel better.

On the other side of the room, the Doctor was entertaining the animals. Him and Ditzy were facing away from each other.

He really didn't want to end the conversation like that. He was just... not looking to complicate things. He was capable to think about her like that, but at his age and after everything he'd gone through, he'd rather not.(4)

He addressed the animals. "...I kept you waiting, haven't I? I believe there was something you lot wanted me for?"

One of the badgers started shrieking and whatnot in his native language. The language of the forest, which transcends mostly all speech impediments and species differences by means of, you guessed it, the magic of harmony, friendship and all that good stuff.

I'm just going to go ahead and start translating.

"You're a doctor, right? Well, my throat hurts!" goes the badger.

The bear then chimed in, "I have a tummy ache!"

Then one of the birds, "I'm tired!"

One of the mice, "I'm not sure how much help I can be..."

And so on, and so on. The woodland creatures kept trying to talk over each other until they managed nothing more than to create a racket.

"Alright, alright, that's enough!" went the Doctor, somehow actually managing to bring order. Much to the sleep-denying rabbit's apparent surprise, as well as that of the two mares over to the other side of the room. He went on, "You know you're not fooling anyone, right?"

He looked the group of animals over nonplussed. They just shrank away a bit in guilt. He sighed. "Mind filling me in on what you guys are trying to excuse yourselves out of?"

They gave him a look, as if they couldn't believe he didn't know. The rabbit kicked him to gain his attention, then gestured for him to lower his head. One the stallion humored him, he then rose to whisper something in his ear, "There's a predator nearby."

The Time Lord eyed the little rodent, still nonplussed. "And that's supposed to be a secret, why?"

The rabbit lightly pointed to the canary-colored pegasus with his head, which was currently busy speaking to her wally-eyed friend. The Doctor understood and smiled. "You don't want to worry her? That's pretty selfless of you."

"Don't patronize me." went the rabbit, staring at him unimpressed.

The Doctor scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Alright..." He looked over to the hazardous line-up. "So, you were preparing for, what? A preventive strike? A last stand? Do you even know what you're up against?"

They looked around to each other for guidance, only managing to find the same doubt in their peers. Even the previously brash rabbit was now faltering.

"Do you even know how you know there's a predator nearby?"

"How can you not feel it?" the rabbit burst out indignantly. "That killing intent! There's something nearby that's thirsting for blood! A mad beast, a monster that's been stalking the area for a week! We don't know where, but it's way too close! How can none of you ponies not sense it?!"

The Doctor was about to question the little guy when he was interrupted by the sound of thunder.

Ditzy did not seem too lively, so her friend tried to cheer her up. Or, to at least figure out what the matter was.

"Did you two have a fight?"

"...We're not together."

"...Really? I just thought that, well, it just seemed like you two were close..."

"He's my tenant. He only lives with us, that's all." The mailmare noticed she inadvertently let through a hint of bitterness in her tone.

"Oh..." was the caretaker's singular acknowledgement, giving way for her friend to go on. If she wanted, of course.

"I know, it sounds like a stupid idea. I only accepted because he didn't have anywhere else to stay. His arrival here was unexpected and he needed a place to get started..."

"I didn't think it was a bad idea, I was just a little surprised. I'm... just glad he had a place to stay after all." The canary coated mare sounded out, seemingly a bit disappointed, which drew her friend's attention.

"...Tell me, how exactly did he wind up in your bedroom?"

"Oh my, I... we didn't do anything, I swear!" she broke out erratically, a wild blush forming.

"Calm down, Flutters. I didn't think that."

"Okay... "

She did seem a little panick-y when the idea occurred though. As if...

'...Fluttershy, old friend. Don't tell me you had a crush on him?'

"We just met at the edge of town. He... kind of fell asleep while we were talking. And, ugh... I might've thought he didn't have anywhere else to stay, so I asked Mr. Bear to carry him here."

"...You too?"

Confusion, then laughter.

It all seemed so ridiculous now. No man was worth all this grief...

That... was a bad choice of thought. 'Quickly! Change of subject!' thought the mailmare.

"So, what have you been up to this past week? Been on any more adventures with your new friends, or was the Nightmare Moon incident just a one-time thing?"

They settled into idle chatter. Fluttershy went on to talk about the new friends she'd made, and what shenanigans they'd roped her into. Nothing big, just a few outings from time to time. Turned out Rarity frequented the spa as well.

Outside, the storm seemed to have settled as well. There had been a lull in lightning for a while, until a thunder decided to break the calm. Without waiting for any lightning first, though it wasn't likely anyone noticed that. It was still distant, no pony or critter gave the menacing crack much attention... except for the Doctor. Then there was another thunder, this time closer. This one seemed to have garnered the fleeting attention of the inhabitants of the cottage. Then finally, a third and final, foreboding rumble, coming from straight above.

“Well, that was a little unnerving… It’s not even raining anymore.” went Ditzy, noticing there wasn't any more water hitting the windows anymore.

Luckily it was too dark outside for them to notice. The rain wasn't hitting the windows, but it didn't stop.

The Doctor quickly whispered to the critters "Keep them busy, I'll handle this..." as he then ran off before they could oppose in any way. "I'm going out for a bit... Which way's the privy?... Never mind, I'll find it."

"...On this weather?" the mailmare objected.

"Nature calls! Don't wait for me..."

Outside, he looked around anxiously, apparently expecting someone. Or something. Most likely the bloodthirsty beast he'd just been told of.

"I got your message. Now show yourself!"

No answer. He took a few more steps forward, making sure he was seeing properly. He wasn’t expecting this…

“Not every day you find yourself in the eye of the storm. Is it a thing around these parts?…”

All around, the rain poured in the night. But not here. A small area around the cottage was spared. Like a stage for what was to come.

“I'm right under your eye, apparently. Well, I like being the star of the show as much as the next guy, but I’d rather be able to see the public I’m to entertain.”

Nothing. Not even thunder.

“Great. Are you just going to be like that now? Kind of disappointing!”

At that, a flash of lightning erupted, only with no thunder to accompany it. Instead of thunder, they arrived. Shadowy figures, surrounding the Doc. Eyes and manes glowing ever-so-faintly, coldly, all facing him either more menacingly or wearily. The air was static, both figuratively and literally. His mane was standing on end, and for a few moments he couldn't move in shock.

Eventually, though, he came to his senses. As a wide, wild grin grew on his face.

"Well, this is more like it."

Author's Note

(2) And by a little, she means a lot. She only needed a passing glance at him as Ditzy walked him to his room to feel how completely messed up he was.

(3) This is a femtocracy. Get over it.

She might or might not have reacted a bit emotionally.

Remember when I said this little bit last chapter?
In all seriousness, Ditzy is kind of going through an emotional rollercoaster. She's not needy, she's not defying the unwritten law that all women abide by which states that only guys should ask the girls out. The only reason she stands a chance with the Doctor is if she mans up, ironically.

(4) Remember Jenny? She's just the tip of the iceberg.

Politics

Location,
Fortune Holds, somewhere above the Sky's Mirror ocean (which happens to be the ponyfied variant of the Pacific Ocean).
Inside an amphitheater which currently seems to be used as a meeting place for the Great and the Good of this world.

The Doctor was the defendant in a debate with stakes as high as they could get... and he couldn't have been feeling more giddy.

He was not unaware of the predicament he was in. He just found the nature of the two new arrivals distracting enough to forget about it for a few seconds.

One of them was a tall, majestic creature. A pearl white equine, with flowing aurora for hair, as fair and beautiful as the morning sunrise. From what he could tell, that was Princess Celestia, the undisputed alicorn ruler of Equestria. He at least found that out in the library. He felt a mixture of excitement and fear that made adrenaline seem like diet coke was to coffee.

The other one, however, was even more impressive. Standing a head and a half shorter, though much lengthier than her and just as noble. A mythical Kirin, representing the local empire. He was similar to the white-chrome locals, if only for a few features that seem to cross into equine.

His thinner stature, his smaller, less reptilian head compared to his fellows, and the two zigzagging horns he had on his slightly larger forehead. The horns were not positioned like a goat, the smaller of the two was in front of the other. The forehead was only slightly bigger in comparison to the other drakes, whose serpent-like heads were of a smaller forehead than a pony's.

The Doctor was really looking forward to meeting Celestia, after all he'd heard about her and all he suspected of her. It was like that urge you get at a ledge. You know it would be kind of a bad idea, but you'd still want to jump.

A benevolent ruler, loving of her subjects and loved back. With the power to move celestial bodies... like, literally. Something the entire nation was insisting to be true. He was... refraining from deciding on that fact's validity.

She was also supposed to be even older than him. Far older. Older than their limited history books were able to date, which didn't say much. Not that he was going to point out anything of the sort directly. He didn't know too much about equine etiquette, but he was fairly certain that asking a lady for her age might be frowned upon.

Oh, and he was also going to have to keep his suspicions to himself as well. Unless he had a deathwish, of course. And he might've been of debatable sanity, but he wasn't too intent on poking the hornet's nest without an out handy.

Despite all that, the creature beside the supposedly immortal deity managed to overshadow her in terms of how much giddyness they were making him feel. The legendary Kirin oh so happened to be one of his most favorite legendary creatures. A spirit of peace and a protector, they were supposedly so peaceful they couldn't even hurt the grass when they'd walk through.

The two leaders seemed immersed in their conversation when they entered, and were surprised to see him.

"Guess I wasn't that late after all." the Doctor spoke out from under the pressing claws of his guard.

"Let him go." said the noble arrival in acknowledged authority. "We're grateful you could join us on such short notice, Doctor, but some of us had business to attend to."

"Thank you. And might I inquire what that business..."

"...Nothing for you to be concerned with."

"Very well."

Celestia appeared surprised to see him for the first instance she saw him. Although she was well aware that he'd need to arrive. Maybe she didn't expect the soldiers to be able to bring him in? Not much to go on at the moment.

She didn't react much at all, though perhaps she took a little too long to gather her composure. Like she was hiding something. What went through her mind, one could only guess. But it appeared that she knew enough to recognize him on the spot. So, at least there was that much left certain. That this wasn't the first time they met from her perspective.

The two newly arrived royals passed by him on their way to their seats. Celestia seemed... glad to see him. Emphasis on seemed. Her poker face was difficult to make heads or tails of, even for the Doctor.

"Nervous?" She asked in a sweet tone.

"Heh! Do you even know me?" He retorted, deciding to play dumb.

You never know with royals. You can never be too careful. With Celestia, however... the Doctor was actually concerned not to start anything. It seemed outsmarting her was out of the question.

She crept a brief smile. "Maybe a little more than I'd prefer. Last time I saw you, you were a lot... older."

"Good news for me, then. I got back to traveling."

"Yes, I suppose..." She was not exulted.

"From Your perspective, I must still seem quite young..."

"Oh well, what's a few extra millennia to a lady that never grows older than a few decades?"

The Kirin gave them an awkward cough. Celestia got the hint.

"...Either way, there's a serious issue we're facing here, and I believe you'd want to hear the details."

"Oh, yes. Endangerment of countless innocents. I wouldn't want to seem as if I was unaffected by the revelation..."

The Kirin took the stage. "At any rate, we're all very concerned over what we've learned. An unknown factor which threatens the people which we have vowed to protect... We'd all very much like to know just what exactly is happening. As I'm certain you do as well."

"Yes... well, I don't really know anything. All I know is what I've been told by a certain zebra hermit barely more than a day ago..."

He found the Zebraconian sage's face. Wrinkles were abound, as expected from an elder who doesn't benefit from either immortality or... Time Lord physiology.

She started in a wizened, raspy voice.
"I'm glad to learn that Zecora succeeded in passing on our message.
I take it that which it entailed, you have had enough time to manage?"

"...Yes, I had." was the Time Lord's steadfast answer.

"And what say you, trickster, who looks so young, yet has eyes ages old?
What say you in your defense, regarding the plight which we've foretold?"

"Well... I did have a whole night to figure out what to do now. But... honestly? I've got nothing. What can you say in your defense, when you've already been pronounced guilty? Could I at least know why you're so certain of the source of your little prophecy?"

The kirin answered, "We're not. That's why you're still alive."

His ears visibly flattened at that. "Oh. Huh."

"The actual reason why we brought you here was because we could use your insight in order to better understand the situation. Anything at all would be helpful. What you were planning on doing in the near future before you learned of our summons, or anything else you might consider noteworthy."

"Sorry. There isn't much I can offer. I honestly didn't plan on leaving the village I'm staying at for at least a few more weeks. I didn't have anywhere in particular to travel to. I can't imagine how I might find myself in a situation which could potentially threaten the well-being of all living creatures on this world..."

Kirin acknowledged. "...Very well then. We appreciate your input, nonetheless. As far as what you say is true, we can at least rule out the matter of your own motives..."

"My motives? Well, pardon me! It wasn't even by my own choice that I arrived on this world!..." he trailed off, then started again. "Count to think of it, did you give a name to this planet?"

"Feyraltia."

"...Fey ral... mind repeating that?"

Celestia started in. "Feyraltia. It's from ancient times, its true meaning and origins are unknown. It's just something which we agreed sounded nice."

"Really? That's certainly interesting... At any rate, what was I saying? I didn't arrive on Feyraltia by my own free will. Someone dragged me here. Someone with a lot of power at his or her disposal..."

"Which leaves, who? Everyone in this room as suspects?" the lizard asked him back.

"Everyone in this room, as long as they might have intimate knowledge of space-time quantum mechanics... aside from initial knowledge of me, before I existed in your history. Unless, of course your "magic" can bypass even such complex issues as puncturing the very fabric of reality?"

The ones throughout the room looked around awkwardly.

"You're joking, right?" They looked at him, ranging from expectantly to awkwardly. "You're not joking..."

He allowed a long, drawn out sigh. One worthy of someone who had just realized that his entire life's professional knowledge and dedication amounted to nothing. "Okay then. What else do we know? The message containing the prophecy. How did you receive it?"

The draconic leader answered. "Five days ago. When you first arrived on Feyraltia. Everyone and anyone who were both strong and attuned enough sensed a change. The only thing that can be assumed would be that as soon as you arrived, the entire world had changed to accommodate your actions on the time stream. You being a time traveler and all, though whether those changes be for better or for worse...

"At any rate, besides the sense of dread and uncertainty among those previously mentioned to notice your arrival, there wasn't any conclusion which could be taken. Only the Zebraconian Dream Spinners and the Highborn of Dagon insisted that there was something more to it. So, they set to investigate...

"Two days ago, they came forward with this prophecy. That was when we decided to arranged for this meeting."

The Doctor listened intently, rubbing his chin in thought. "There are a few theories I can make around what you described about my arrival. However, I'm not confident in them, given the unpredictable nature of your.... magic. All I can deduce is that the timeline was changed, but by no orthodox means..."

"How so?"

"Well, try to consider it like this:

"Your world, the string of events that your entire dimension consists of at a temporal level... It was all fixed. It could be affected in many ways. Perturbed, certainly. But it would always fall at around the same approximate design as it were originally found before. My arrival here was supposed to be resisted to a certain degree. Like a pebble thrown into a pond. Ripples were supposed to appear, but the surface would eventually settle. Instead, from what you told me, it would seem that my arrival came with a great, overriding wave. Either that, or the laws of this reality are far more different than I'd initially estimated. Like it were a completely different breed..."

"Given your theory is sound, what exactly is your point, Doctor?" the Kirin asked again, growing impatient.

"My point is that until I can clarify my suspicion, there is a... relatively strong possibility that whomever brought me here had access to indiscernible comprehension of the time stream as a whole, as well as massive power and resources... Well, only slightly more than what you'd need to punch a hole in the universe, make a link to a different plane of reality and remote control someone else's time machine by means of spam mail containing a virus advanced enough to override a Tardis main-heart-frame and force it to overclock and... Well, suffice to say they're wicked smart. So smart, in fact, that I believe they might actually be well past the knowledge of the Time Lords... And that's a scary thought."

The Gryphon ambassador started impatiently in the conversation in a germanic accent. "So what are you saying? Are we dealing with an organization that gained access to futuristic technology? What's your basis beside this long shot?"

"Oh, I see we'll get along just fine..." the Doctor offered chidingly, to which the avian feline offered a sound somewhere between an eagle's screech and a lion's growl. He received the response coolly, before returning a glare that stopped the hybrid's manifestation dead in its tracks. "You don't have to take my word for it if you don't want to. You don't need to take me seriously, but I will say that the intuition of a Time Lord is nothing to scoff at. I'm conscious of things you could never imagine."

The Gryphon receded in his seat in defeat, much to the amusement of the Zebra. The Diamond Dog, on the other paw, was laughing heartily.

The Doctor continued. "Then again, there is one issue with my theory. As far as I've seen, you don't have that much technology to speak of, and considering what would be necessary for something like this... either there's an ancient civilization in this world with fusion power at their disposal, at least; or they're somehow disconnected from temporal causality... Then again, who knows? Maybe the requirements aren't really that big here? After all, there's this untapped potential which you have access to here, as opposed to in my own reality..."

"Which would be?" the Kirin inquired.

"Magic. It's still a growing science, but so far I've noticed that your magics promise unimaginable applications..." He trailed off, looking away irritatedly with his arms(*) crossed. "I just didn't expect it to be so unreasonably convenient." He gave the alicorn a reserved look before continuing. "...quite a bit of power at your disposal, if you ask me. Wouldn't want to know half the things any hapless unicorn might get a taste for, should he be left to take in unrestricted knowledge. Nice job censoring the local library's contents."

There were a mix of emotions running through the royal alicorn's head, but none of them surfaced. In a determined tone, she resigned herself. "As soon as I'm certain that my subjects are ready, I'll allow them knowledge more freely. Until then, I stand by my actions."

"Which is what you should." He was less than lively. "Your job is to make sure your followers are happy and healthy. I speak from experience when I'm saying that offering someone more power than they can handle often proves to be very unhealthy for them, as well as for those around..."

The old Diamond Dog Chieftain made himself noticed. "There be age as well as wisdom in your words, Doctor. Me be surprised you not join our meetings earlier. Might have made them much shorter, avoided bad decisions..."

"I've only arrived on this world a week ago..."

"From what me understand, that not be enough reason to stop you. You speak of travel into past. Undo mistakes?"

"...There's more to it than that. Even if I had my... traveling equipment with me, I still wouldn't be able to alter past events after they've already happened. That is, without risking to collapse a completely different timeline on top of the previous one. No one has the right to that kind of power."

The Griffin Mayor was spurred. "And yet, you yourself heedlessly dabble with such power. What right do you have to hold it?"

"I..."

"You don't need to answer that, Doctor." the alicorn took his side.

"Actually... I do.

"Firstly, I don't dabble heedlessly. The implications are enormously drastic if you do something that goes against the laws of time, and the laws are there for a reason. Consider if you will, that the Universe has its own defensive systems against those who would dabble recklessly. The laws are there not to maintain order, as much as to protect the traveler.

"Still, I hold no more of a right regardlessly. It's a privilege to be able to travel the Universe, to see it for all its splendor it has to offer. And I can't imagine never being able to travel again. The day I'd stop travelling would be the day the best part of my life would have ended."

The mayor didn't seem impressed. "That's very touching, Doctor. But you've yet to give us a good reason why we shouldn't just lock you away right now, despite what you might feel about it. How could we justify allowing you to roam freely after you've testified how dangerous you are?"

"Well... there would actually be just one thing that's keeping me from my travels. I don't have my time machine. For now, I'm grounded."

"...For now. You're planning on resuming your... excursions."

"As soon as I were to gain access to provisions and a good enough destination, I was thinking about traveling around this wondrous world of yours... Feyraltia. It's pretty catchy.

"However, that was before I came to realize what risks were involved in doing so. I don't know what else I can do, other than stay put for now.

"As for why you don't need to lock me up, that's all I've got. I'm not looking forward to this global crisis any more than any of you are... I'm actually terrified of it ever happening ag... and I honestly don't appreciate you dancing around the elephant in the room. You're just looking for a reason to propose I'd be locked up and supervised in order to possibly avoid the prophecy from ever happening. Well by all means, you have the right. You are all the elite of this world. The supreme authority!... What does my say even matter when there's an entire world at stake?..."

They all kept silent. The Doctor resumed. "...I'm glad I was helpful to you in understanding the situation we are all in. But could we please... just cut to the chase? What do you plan on doing with me, now that I've helped you?"

The Lord Kirin took the stage resolutely. "Now that you've proven yourself exceedingly helpful to us, and that you've also shared with us not only your innocence regarding your part in the situation but also how responsibly you're considering it... we are willing to offer you a choice. Either you can stay here, in Fortune Holds. The most secure fortress in Feyraltia... You would have access to all the knowledge we have at our disposal in order for you to more effectively aid us in our investigations, or..."

Celestia cut off, "...You could stay in Ponyville."

Her saying that appeared unbiased, if only for a small hint of glee in her tone. Just obvious enough for the Doctor to barely perceive it. "You're... trusting me?"

The Zebra Sage, "Understandably, our responsibilities demand that we be cautious. But that does not mean we need to trample another's rights... We are certainly not going to lock away such a free spirit as yours."

The Diamond Chief, "Not to mention, we could not keep you here even if we tried. After all the stories we hear about you, we know better than to force a collar around your neck."

Finally, the Lord Kirin. "After all we've heard of this merciful hero with no name nor home, we only needed to hear it from you in order to put our own worries to rest. But now, what will be your choice, Doctor?"

It would definitely make his stay a lot easier... if only he wasn't undoubtedly risking the possibility of being locked up and supervised if he were to agree to stay here. As much as he'd hate to admit it, though, that would definitely be for the best. Hey, they all seem hospitable enough...
And who knew? Maybe by agreeing to stay here, he might delay the inevitable. Or maybe he'd be putting a strain on the forces working this fate, causing a more violent reaction... hypothetically, of course.

Leaving aside baseless assumptions, yes, it would be safer. Therefore, it would definitely be a lot more boring to live here. That was enough for the Doctor. "I do appreciate the offer, Your Lordships, but I believe you already know my answer. As much as I might prove to be of assistance here, in a controlled environment, I believe I can be of greater help in Ponyville."

The mayor scoffed. "By all means. We wouldn't want you to feel too cooped up or unused..."

The Kirin decided to pretend he didn't hear the griffin. "Very well then. If that is your decision, then we can only respect our vow."

"Thanks." the Doctor said, though still expecting a "however" to cut in.

"However..." Tia offered, as she stepped off her platform.

On her way down towards him, she started focusing energy in her horn. Reading a cold stare on her face.

The guards grabbed the defendant and held him down again, in a kneeling position before her. If it weren't for the uncomfortable position, he'd burst out proudly saying "ah-ha!". Oh well, his love for drama can back down for now.

"We said we were going to allow you to choose where you would hide, but we weren't going to allow you completely out of our sight should you choose to stay in Ponyville. You were to choose between having either Lord Kirin Thorael to be your supervisor... or me."

"Just so happens that she prefers to keep a tighter leash than me." The Kirin cut in, earning a few chuckles from the old dog.

As the alicorn lowered her glowing horn on top of him, the Doctor felt it surge through him. His pelt was hot around the back of his neck, going down to his right wrist.

When the process was finished and the guards let go, he got the chance to have a decent look at himself. On his fur were golden, spiraling streaks running up his right front leg. Like the streaks of the sun insignia on her side. They disappeared before he could ask:

"...You gave me a tribal styled tattoo?"

Celestia was unphased by his choice of words. "It's a reminder of the responsibility you have. Also, a signature spell for you to be able to open the letters I might send you."

"Really? Well, I... appreciate the gesture."

"Don't thank me yet. I'm not done explaining. You see, that sigil is constantly fed by my presence, otherwise it would wane away. You might not be able to see it now, but it's still there. I'm aware of the energy it feeds off, as well as where that energy is going..."

"...So, it's also a tracer?"

"Yes."

"Okay, what happens if I were to move too far away from Ponyville?"

"You would answer to me. And if you wouldn't heed any of my warnings, or if you'd try to remove the seal, you would be met by my subjects, to be escorted to Canterlot."

"Fair enough. I did say I agreed with staying put for now. Anything else?"

"I will provide further instruction later, in writing. It's just that there are a few chores I was hoping you could do during your stay in Ponyville. Nothing too difficult, of course..."

"Alright, I'll take your word for it. I just don't understand what your colleague meant by you having a tighter leash than him..."

"Really?" the kirin justified himself. "You mean you don't recognize the sigils around your neck as such?"

"Oh, this? Well yes, not that I think about it. I suppose this is a tight fit. Skin tight, even... Or should I say pelt tight? Heh heh..."

As the Doctor was walking back to the porting area to return to Ponyville, he was escorted by Celestia and a couple of draconic guards aside from the pony centurions. Shusei said he'd like to escort them himself, but he needed to bring in a report for a job he did earlier today. The Doctor asked what it was, but was answered with another confidentiality request. As in, he was requesting for the Doctor to accept that what he was asking for was confidential information.

He let off. On the way, however, his curiosity was sated by Celestia. Apparently, before anyone could travel between Equestria and the Storm Kingdoms, there was an issue to be resolved first. This issue consisted of a Tempest, a kind of creature which happened to project storms around it. The kind of creature she didn't allow being told to her ponies because of how skittish they are.

Said elemental beast was drawing close to the pony kingdom, thus the peculiar weather. Ergo, the storm clouds that just wouldn't let off. It was a priority, of course. One that was within the jurisdiction of Odin members in both Fortune Holds and Canterlot. Celestia wasn't allowed to leave Canterlot until her elite squadron returned with a positive report. If it were a negative one, in the event of the situation being more serious than expected, then she was to ask for aid from the nearest allied Odin bases.

Obviously, they'd have measures to deal with the magical monsters that might pose a threat to their well being. Celestia's centurions aren't trained to fight other nations. They're trained to deal with critical situations involving hydras, rampaging dragons (although that never really happens), and many other such threats. ODIN is meant for... worse. As in, necromancers, plagueweavers, other such users of forbidden magic...

It's rare, but it happens. Say, once a century or so.

And of course, their training also covered dealing with giant monsters of remarkable power. Regarding this particular instance, they were overprepared. They would've been overprepared even against a throng of Tempests.

Casualties were nonexistent. The creature only had to be herded off, back into a particularly treacherous part of the ocean. So treacherous, in fact, that the ponies were asked to go back. Though that might have been less because of them being any less competent than their draconic peers, and more because of the odd way their magical flying abilities were affected in that general area. Either way, they were relieved to not have to go there. Who in their right mind would want to go into the Gaping Storm of the Bermudis district, even if it was an order from their commanding officer?

Now that he knew, and he was grateful to Celestia for being willing to share this knowledge with him, he was left to wonder about the animals knowing about this creature's visit a few days in advance. Then he was told, however, that Tempests are generally not carnivorous. They fed of unfiltered precipitation, and from the reports she'd received, this particular beast was anything but bloodthirsty. It was actually a baby.

'So, that wasn't it, huh?'

"Is something wrong, Doctor?" the princess asked him.

He was deep in thought. His equine facial features might've given off his distress a little too much again. "Oh, nothing, nothing... There are just a few things I need to take care of in Ponyville. A few... uncertainties that are bugging me."

"I'm happy to see you're keeping yourself busy during your stay. Perhaps I could offer some insight?"

The way she said that...

"There are just too many variables for now..." the Doctor decided to not give her anything specific. As far as she knew, he didn't know anything. Still, he could argue about things that were obvious. Things she probably figured out by now, and which she expected him to have figured out by now as well. Can't clam up, it would be too suspicious. "Sometimes it seems that there are secrets circling around me, hiding in the shadows. Who brought me here? For what reason? Why in Ponyville... Why aren't they making any move? Are they not ready? Is there something keeping them?"

"...Or maybe you've arrived here by chance?"

"Unlikely. Send a pony to Ponyville? I doubt my Tardis had any record of this universe, so someone had to have arranged for this excursion. Someone who didn't want me wherever my ship was initially brought to. So either the ones who brought me here were only after my craft and were afraid of me, which I find flattering but unlikely, or they wanted me, but something happened to put a wrench in their plans. And considering the fact that I'm supposedly a key of some sort to bringing a global calamity, I'm inclined to the latter."

"Are you referring to the third party you mentioned today?"

"I'm saying it's quite probable that whoever brought me here might be the same ones as the ones behind the prophecy. Not certain, just probable. It's also something you might want to consider as well."

"Very well. Thank you again for your aid, Doctor. I promise that this will all be dealt with as soon as possible."

"Good to know... I only hope it won't take too long, though. Who knows what they're doing to my Tardis as we speak..." He stopped in his tracks. He didn't even consider his words as he spoke them.

"Doctor... don't worry. Everything's going to be fine."

"I hope so."

Unknown time, undisclosed location.
A laboratory. Technology, undetermined.

It was dark. There were no windows. Only a few crystal light sources and monitors which revealed the barest equine features of a dark figure working at a control panel. His hooves sliding down levers and dials. The monitor in front of him showing a mainframe, with several different encryptions. Some of them Gallifreyan.

"Blast!" the figure let out, annoyingly.

"No luck?" another voice in the back.

"It's as we've feared. The security is unlike anything we've ever seen before! As soon as I get a general idea as to what needs to be done, somehow, the entire programming changes! It's impossible!"

"As is to be expected. It is alive, after all."

The second figure walked past the first, along a few wires leading out the control panel, towards a big, blue, box. He slid a dark hoof across its wooden surface, occasionally meeting chains or wires. Though the sound wasn't that of hoof scraping on wood. It seemed oddly metallic.

They managed to disable the Tardis' shields, but the door won't open.

"How can a machine be alive?" the first one asked indignantly. "It's a computer! A program, it can't think! It... it can't..."

"It can. How else can you explain it being able to change its programming when you start decrypting it? It's aware of its surroundings, its situation. How else could it have saved the Doctor?"

"Maybe it's just simply that advanced. Maybe the Doctor had installed security protocols. Maybe it defended itself against me with another virus."

"Do you honestly believe that?"

"...No. I admit that after working on it for so long, after looking at its data cores, I can't help but feel as though it's looking back at me. Either way, it presents a complexity and, well, elegance... that I've never seen before. It's electronic, it's a computer program, but..."

After stroking the wood, he hit it, as hard as he could. The impact resounded throughout the chamber. Metal on wood. The door itself didn't budge.

The shields were down, but there's still something keeping them out. Something stubbornly refusing to let them in.

The figure stood there for a few seconds, leaning against the wood. "So close... So close to our goal, only for it to slip away." The silence was electric, thick and sickening. "...No matter. It won't be long now."

He stepped back, staring intently at the craft.

"He will come for you. And when he does, we will be waiting."

Back at Fluttershy's hovel. The two mares only now started to notice he was away for quite a while.

"He's certainly taking his time." Ditzy started. "How long has he been out?"

Half an hour.

"...Maybe he had an upset stomach?" Her host answered.

"I dunno... I think I'll go check on him."

As she reaches for the entrance's handle, it opens to reveal none other than the criminal in question looking worse for wear.

"Sorry I took so long. I... had a little trouble finding the outhouse in the dark."

"Really?" the mailmare questioned suspiciously.

"Yeah. Should've brought a light with me."

Ditzy eyed around him. The Doc didn't seem very eager by this. "Funny... Seems like there's something changed about you..." she spoke out.

"... Does it?"

She meant that he didn't seem as disembodied as he did for the last few days. Not as immediately, anyway.

"Are you feeling sick?" she asked. "Stumbling in the rain definitely didn't help either."

"Might've been something I ate..." His stomach gurgles in protest. He remembered that he ate next to nothing today.

The mare smiled. "Come on, let's get you dried up by the fire. The carrot soup is almost done... You think you can stomach it?"

"Yeah... I'm pretty sure I'm home free..." He looked out the window, looking for something. "For now, at least."

By the time they finished dinner, silently, the storm let off. The two guests were ever so grateful for the shelter, and the host was ever so grateful for the company.

The Doctor looked over to the animals, which only looked back just as pensively as before. He was right. Apparently there was still a predator nearby. And he had a prime suspect. He pulled an aside as to make sure the girls wouldn't hear, and gave them his word that he'd take care of this himself. His promise seemed to have rung with them, as they became noticeably more reassured.

The Time Lord figured he'd need to make plans for a short trip to Zecora's during the next few days. Thank her for the forward notice, and ask about any strange sightings.

As they left, however, the animals eyed him worriedly. They hadn't told him, but there was a reason why they were ready to fight tonight to the last in order to protect their caretaker. That beast?... It was right outside the house tonight. Waiting in the shadows. And it was stalking prey.

Fluttershy wasn't the only one they didn't want to worry. At least they offered the Doctor a heads-up.

On their way back home, Ditzy and the Doctor both remained silent, up until they closed in on the town's outskirts.

Ditzy was the first to speak, "You know..."

His ears perked up towards her. He was attentive, but she couldn't find the words she wanted to let out. She shook her head. "I'm still having a hard time getting you. How can you be so alien, and so equine at the same time?"

"I don't know. How can you be so Time Lord and still be nothing like me at the same time? Same goes for humans..."

She giggled. There he is again, answering a question by raising a dozen others. Then she saddened. "Regarding what I asked you today..."

"...For instance," the Time Lord cut her off animately, "Gallifreyans do have normal lives like the kind you lead here. So do Time Lords. We have jobs, hobbies, we pay taxes... Have families. Care for each other."

He looked her way. Their eyes met for a few long, short, moments.

Then he broke off.

"Say I try and take things easy. Maybe get a farm, settle down, enjoy the sunset from the porch... maybe even get a nice wife to share that sunset with... I could technically give that another try, but..."

'Another try?... Questions for later.'

"But what?"

"But there's still so much to see. Even if I were to try, even if I were bound to one place by, say, a prophecy of worldwide disaster should I leave... I can't stay in one place for long."

"You really like those travels, don't you?" Ditzy asked sadly.

"I've shown you what I've seen. Planets made of crystal, people made of energy, places made of... stuff..."

Holding down a soft chuckle, she returned in good cheer, "Yeah, I suppose normal life does so pale in comparison to places made of stuff..."

"...And also, there's still our racial differences. Have I told you? Time Lords are extremely long lived."

"...And that's a problem?"

He didn't stop walking. He just explained like he was repeating something for the who knows how many times. "Well, yes. For me, at any rate. You see, you can live the rest of your life with me. We could be, an item. We could be the greatest item that ever was... but only for as long as you'd be alive."

She stopped in her tracks, soon followed by the alien beside her. "...Oh."

So many things finally made sense for her now. Why he was always so distant, the look in his eyes that he had from time to time... Why he was so adamant about leaving... It was because standing still had nothing to offer him. He really didn't have anything else.

The Doctor stopped her train of thought. "Tell me, why were you so adamant to suggest it anyway? I can't be that handsome, can I?"

"Well..." 'handsome, fun to be around, great with kids... darn it! Focus, Ditzy, focus!' "I'm not sure why you're saying that. How was I adamant?"

"Sorry, then. It's just that from what I recall, ladies never ask guys out directly. They usually just flash their eyelids and expect the male to be man enough to approach them in a way they deem fitting. When you noticed that I didn't respond to your initial invitations, you decided to clarify the situation yourself. Something I assumed to be a course of action which only someone adamant enough would take."

"Wow. You really thought this through, haven't you?"

"I take it that's sarcasm in your voice?"

She relented on her defensiveness. "I don't know about where you're from, but you'll find that the female part is a lot more adamant around these parts. We do have a Princess leading, after all."

"Fair enough."

The conversation quickly deteriorated from there on out. The Doctor would eventually say something to rouse her anger, then Ditzy would yell at him, then he'd say something to make her laugh, then they'd eventually both forget what they were talking about in the first place. Generic talk between a girl who's trying to attract the attention of a guy he likes, and a guy who's well aware of the girl's feelings for him, but just doesn't want to return the favor.

Author's Note

(*) It's a figure of speech. Don't let me see you being a smartass about it.

SO yeah. I just named the planet. I took that liberty.

It's controversial. I know. Big whoop. There is no cannon name, except for Equus (and I pronounce that name with every bit of disgust and horror as I can muster without puking on the spot), so I just got this joke name to throw in with all the other ridiculous names in this universe. Sue me.

I was, however, more concerned with the turn off I might've done with this whole course of events. Building up everything like that, with nothing happening? That really can't be right. Well, unfortunately, things are still unravelling. You've sill got a few packaging layers to rip off. Even the romance bit is mostly just filler to keep you distracted until you finally reach the cream.

Anyway. As for the Kirin, I imagined him to be a combination of this and this. He doesn't have hooves, but he's still solemn and sort-of similar to ponies. Not as bulky and serpentine as the second, not as horse/deer-like as the first. Just landing around the equine-ish territory.

Ponyville. Pension, or prison?

Another day, another breakfast. Another boring morning.

The Doctor slowly, sleepily chewed his buttered toast, daydreaming through the tediously normal setting around him. He didn't need to feel sleepy, he actually spent most of the night just forcing a meditative state because he didn't feel like doing anything anymore. Right now, he just didn't want to wake up.

He knew what this day entailed. No chance avoiding it any longer. This was the first day he'd spend actually trying to make an honest, normal living. As in, for real this time. No more goofing around. An honest lifestyle was the only option available. Celestia made it plenty clear that he could no longer leave, even if he wanted to. He was bound to this town. And sure, he agreed. He was aware of how fortunate he had really been last night. He had even been given the chance to choose what type of chain he'd prefer. Either royal gold, or static silver.

He knew what was at stake. He wouldn't like endangering anyone's lives. Celestia's precautions were understandable. He didn't blame her, he would've actually been upset if she didn't at least do as much as she did. Nonetheless, the shackles still weighed on him. It was not because he was a free spirit, although that was still a factor. What really bothered him was that he just didn't like being told what to do.

Oh well. There was nothing he could do about it. Nothing he was supposed to do about it. Best just make the best of things. Of normal life, as normal as he was ever going to have it.

Yeah, right.

For the sake of staying sane, he intended on finding the most fun job he could possibly find, possibly one involving looking for/causing trouble. He had no idea what that job was going to be yet, though, but it didn't matter. It was going to happen.

It had to.

"'Sigh...'"

'I'm going to lose my mind here, aren't I?'

Ditzy took notice of his down-trotted demeanor. She decided to try and lift his spirits. "So, Doctor. It came to my understanding that you like parties. What kind of parties do you prefer?"

"I dunno. Fun ones? Music, dancing, games, making friends..."

"Huh. And what about the music? Any explicit preferences?"

"Not really... why do you ask?" he questioned, thinking nothing of it.

"Oh, no reason. Just... making small talk. I take it you've been to a lot of parties before?"

"You could say that..." By that, he meant to say 'You have no idea. Just give me a banana, and I can turn any party into a rave.'

Ditzy looked intently at her sister, who actually gave a smile, despite intending on being cross at the two of them for today. He noticed the exchange from the corner of his seemingly, blurry eyes, while pretending to be too asleep and preoccupied with his meal.

'They're planning something, aren't they?'

If he didn't know his current standing in this household, he'd have initially thought that they were planning on throwing him a surprise party. Like he wasn't already mooching enough around here...

Somehow, surprisingly, Doseydotes seemed to have had enough good cheer to keep everything civil until the little one left. Breakfast was spent calmly, ordinarily. No conflict yet. A few exchanges of words, consisting mostly of what Dinky was going to do today and how she was getting along with other kids, what job offerings were available and what was the word on gossip and rumors. Apparently one of Doseydotes' friends, Prim Posy, got asked out on a date.

The conversations lasted for about a dozen more minutes (which felt like an eternity to the Time Lord) until Dinky finished her cereal and left for school. Finally, after waiting for the last couple of days, Dotes could confront them. And she wasn't going to let that chance get away.

Forelegs crossed, she shot daggers at them both, but otherwise kept her cool. Fashionably, she took her time to ask, "So... Is there anything you'd like to tell me?"

Silence.

"Cause it kind of looks like you two want to tell me something."

More silence, thought this time with a pinch of 'uh oh'.

The two interrogees didn't think this through. They only talked about telling her last night, not how they'd tell her. And apparently, the younger sibling was not going to make it easy on them.

They had two options. Either trying to convince her that everything was alright and normal, which it wasn't, or they could tell her the truth, which was doable, if only troublesome. Ditzy didn't want to subject her to such unreasonable hogwash, but she wanted even less to lead her on.

Could they let her in on their little secret? It would be for the best. Neither of them WANTED to, though. And not saying anything right now was only making everything so much worse.

The Doctor, through no small amount of nervousness pushed aside and buried in every bit of chutzpah he could manage, answered, "Well... you might've noticed how your sister and I have been acting a bit... odd lately."

"I might have."

That confused him a little. "You might have? So, you're not certain yourself?"

"...What we're trying to say is," Ditzy cut in, "that we might've forgotten to tell you a few things. And, we're very sorry about that. It's just that it was just a huge mess and we just didn't know how you'd react..."

'Oops...'

"React to what? To noticing that you're going out with some guy you just picked up off the street? That you've been seen at Appleseed Corner two nights ago, and that everyone in town is talking about it now? Or maybe you're talking about the fact that you're wandering alone in the Everfree with him?"

'Huh. Didn't think that one through either.' Ditzy thought.

Dotes went on. "Luckily, no one really knows anything about you other than the fact that you're new in town. So far, you're just that mysterious stranger that's living here on rent, not an eccentric weirdo who won't even tell his real name!"

Yeah... why does normal life just have to be so needlessly complicated? Can't a Time Lord settle down, find a job, lay low for a while without the threat of getting emotionally involved with anyone or put under a social microscope? Honestly...

"In all honesty... If I were to tell you my real name, you wouldn't even be able to pronounce it properly. Doctor's fine."

Ditzy's got his back. "And I thought we were settled regarding what happened yesterday. We weren't wandering, we were really worried about Zecora..."

"Yeah, well, sorry if I'm reserving a gram of suspicion regarding your recklessness!"

"Dosey..."

"No, you listen! Two nights ago, you left us alone to worry all day, then came back and acted like nothing happened! Last night, I've been alone with Dinky again. It was thundering outside and she was scared because you weren't home. I needed to tell her that you were okay, when I wasn't even sure myself! Are you really okay? You tell me, cause I honestly don't know."

Saying they're not together would be useless now. It might even be worse. Why else would Ditzy go out of her way to such extents?

"If I might intervene..." The Doctor went, "I honestly don't know what the big deal is. Sure, the forest might seem a tad gloomy at first sight. But is it really that dangerous? Cause if it is, then I really don't think it was such a great idea to settle a town here... Anyway, if it really is, and I knew it, then I wouldn't have taken her with me to begin with."

There, that should do it.

"Can it, Doctor. I've barely started with you."

...Well, it's still very important to stand your ground. But a man knows when he's beaten. Best to just count your losses and give up.
He sighed, and charged in head-first as a last ditch effort to maintain some control of this downward spiral. "Alright. Where would you like to start?"

Dotes fixed him with a glare. "For starters, how about that name of yours?"

'Maybe I should've said I had amnesia by now... What should I tell her?' "...I'd like to ask you, exactly what does it matter how you call me? Would it make me any less me? Any more someone else you would like more?"

"It would help to know that we're not dealing with some nut job that got out of the insane asylum in some other town!"

"Oh... Good point. So, you're going to search for my name then? Is that it?"

"If you're not going to tell us where you're from or why you're here, then I guess I don't have a choice!"

"Okay then, I suppose there's no use hiding it any more..."

He took a deep breath, just a few seconds to figure out what exactly he should tell her. What was it they decided they'd tell her again? Oh right, the truth. Better than to continue to lead her on like that.

Well, here goes...

"He can't remember his name." Ditzy stated before him.

They both looked at her, one more surprised than the other. Even Ditzy seemed a bit surprised about what she just said.

"What, you'd think I'd let a stranger under our house without even so much as knowing his name? I asked him the first day we met, but it turned out that not even he knew. He made me promise I wouldn't tell anyone else about it..."

Dotes looked at him expectantly. He looked like his words were stuck in his throat, right before getting out.

"So, what? Are you saying you have amnesia from the fall?"

He supposed he needed to play along now. If only his tongue would just unfurl and his brain would break out of its state of shock already.
"I... suppose." 'Come on, old man. You don't have anything better anyway. Just roll with it...' "I mean, I don't have any other explanation myself. What other reason would I have to not know my own name?"

Best way to lie is to seem like you're slightly annoyed by the question. Tiredly, as a certain poet and play writer had once put it. Just an already suppressed kind of annoyance. You'd still try to act civil even if you were revolted for real. So, answer like you knew for a fact that your version was truth. In his case, he didn't know what else could've possibly caused his "amnesia". So he shouldn't insist on the idea too much.

Dotes seemed to have given their explanation some benefit of a doubt. After all, she knew her sister would never openly lie to her. "I suppose that would be a good enough reason why you never talk about yourself... If only you didn't mention earlier that you do know what your name is, but that I couldn't pronounce it."

Darn.

"I... lied?"

"Did you, or are you lying now?"

He looked her in the eye, challenging her with the best tired, subdued annoyance he could.

She lasted a total of two seconds under his full-blown scrutiny. Looks like he finally took the safeties off. "I don't have a name, other than the one I gave you."

TENSION. Sweet, lovable old friend, oh how I've missed you not. Luckily, it seemed these answers were enough to appease her.

"Okay... but honestly though. You could've chosen a less conspicuous alias."

"Yeah, I could've. I just came up with it on the fly."

"And you don't plan on changing it?"

"Nope."

"..."

They went on that way for a while longer. Dotes insisted that he might want to consider changing his name, mostly to help him get a job. At which point she remembered she had a job to get to herself, and left. Ditzy then continued in her sister's stead. She managed to convince him with the fact that it would not only help him settle more easily, but also keep a low profile.

But then he countered that he already introduced himself this way to the locals. So this entire argument was a waste of time.
Oh, if only they had known beforehand... Oh well. Feyraltia was a nice planet while it lasted.

"So..." he stretched.

"...So what?" Ditzy retorted, leading them both out of the house.

"Why did you lie to her?"

"Look. I'd love to get this weight off my chest. I really would. But I'd much rather not tell her that the world might potentially end in the near future."

"I suppose that is a pretty heavy bomb to drop... Wouldn't much like being the target of its resulting frustrations either. Being the direct recipient and all. Still, though..."

They exited the house, and started on their way. Leaving the door unlocked... The Doctor didn't much like that fact.

Ditzy went on. "She doesn't manage very well under stressful situations. You might've noticed that she's a little testy when it comes to things that are out of her hooves."

"Well, you were acting rather strangely lately. Going out with some weird stallion who won't even offer a proper name..."

"Yeah, well, she was actually surprisingly lenient this time. You should've seen her during the Nightmare Moon incident."

"Why, what did she do?"

"Nothing much. She just almost bit the mayor's head off, when she didn't like her pleas for everypony to calm down and return to their homes. Made a ruckus, really. It was a wonder she didn't get locked up for what came out of her mouth."

"That's it?" The Doctor asked incredulously. "You were being threatened with eternal night. How exactly was that an overreaction."

"She tackled the mayor and threatened to feed her her own tail."

"Oh... huh." the Doctor stopped in his tracks for a few seconds to register that new knowledge, before catching back up to the mailmare.

"Honestly, I have no idea why she's so calm about this. I'm guessing it might have something to do with her coltfriend, but..."

"Moving on." The Doctor insisted. "You're saying the reason why you would rather lie to her now is because she has a temper?"

"The reason why I lied to her now was because she doesn't need to worry about you. Her temper was only further discouragement. And... she does kind of have a history of being a gossip."

"...Okay then. Let's just hope this doesn't come back to bite us later on."

She shook at that statement. If her sister ever finds out she'd lied about him, who knows how she'd react...

"Maybe I should tell her the truth eventually..."

"By all means, better late than never. You might as well wait for her to be in a good mood, for you to ruin it with this revelation."

"Gee. Thanks."

Ponyville seemed to be getting back to it's usual, perfect way of being. Save for a few mud puddles here and there. There was talk that the weather team would arrange for warm weather within the town'd radius, dry it up before noon. Oh well, it was only morning.

Quite honestly, the Doctor didn't see the harm in the change in scenery. How often do you get to see mud puddles around? Was it that much of an inconvenience?
For whatever reason, he felt like running through one such puddle, most likely splashing it everywhere. He didn't give into said odd temptation, though, because that would be childish and he needed to actually look presentable today. Job interviews and zebra interrogations and all that jazz.

The two equines reached an intersection. One way led to the post office, where Ditzy worked. Also, conveniently enough, the Doctor needed to take the same road towards town hall, where he was to check the message board in its front for job offers.

His view shifted to the road leading to Golden Oaks. Then it shifted to Ditzy. He imagined he might've seemed like he was pleading with her.

She sighed in resignation, smiling reassuringly. "Weren't you supposed to find a job?"

"Yeah, but I don't really need to go there immediately, do I? I mean I can manage the interview, don't worry about that. The job itself though... I might want to brush my Equestrian Etiquette. Luckily, Twilight has a book on that."

"Uh huh." She sounded thoroughly unconvinced. She just walked off with a knowing look on her face. "Alright then. Just don't take too long, okay?"

"I won't. Promise."

"Let's see... Say hello, concise yet concrete introduction, example..." He was browsing through a hefty tome in the library. Who knew there were so many rules to social interaction? No wonder he had so much trouble talking to the townsponies. "So, how was your old man?"

Yesterday, the reason why the library was closed was because Twilight went back home to come check on her dad. Apparently he had been hospitalized for cucumber allergies.

"He's okay, if a little itchy. Other than that, there was just a little wheezing. I'm more worried about the waiter who accidentally gave him the wrong order. Dad said he doesn't plan on suing, but I can't imagine the waiter's boss being very lenient with that kind of mistake. Or that it will look very well on his resume."

"Huh... note to self, double check order before placing it, should they ever reconsider hiring me at the local restaurant. Glad to hear he's okay." He continued browsing through his book.

"Thanks. And sorry again for having the library closed so often... Tell you what. If there's anything you might want from here, you could just go ahead and borrow it now."

"Oh, ugh..."

"...And don't worry about a library card. I can let it slide this time. Just return it before long, okay?"

"Wow. Really? You sure you don't mind?"

"Yes, I'm sure. But, again, only this time. Next time, I expect you to have already found a job."

"Roger that. I will make sure to return your books in tip top, and in a timely fashion."

"And?" Twilight asked expectantly, a semi-strict look on her face.

"... And, I'll be off in a little while to look for that job."

She nodded and smiled back. This was the second time he read this book. Only this time, he decided to give one of Twilight's previously given advices a try. She insisted that reading more slowly, paying attention to every detail, might prove a lot more fruitful than his usual implementation of his "photographic memory", as she'd assumed it to be.

Apparently she diagnosed him with Eidetic memory. A brain disorder which, in most cases, causes the patient to experience bouts of extreme depression, as well as trouble interacting in social environments.

Welp, she's not that far from the truth, I guess. And the Doctor certainly doesn't mind having an alibi.

Of course, she was wrong. And reading the book her way proved nothing more than a waste of time. Either he gulps the whole thing down, or clenches his teeth and sips it slowly, the end result doesn't change. It's just that in the latter case, every sip becomes more and more tedious to swallow. You can only savor a good book for so long, and this one wasn't explicitly savory to begin with.

"So..." she started. "Anything happened lately?"

Well, there's the zebra that told him about the end of the world. Of course, he'd rather not mention that.

"...No. Normal couple of days, save for the storm. You?"

"Well, I had my first slumber party last night."

"Really? Did you have fun?"

"Yeah..." She recalled the tree coming through her bedroom window. Good thing she had that repair spell handy. Hoofy. Handy. "It was... eventful."

He was trying to avoid going on his usual prattling he does with her. She's starting to know too much. Then again, it wasn't like it mattered anymore. His main reason to keep her in the dark was because he was afraid of how Celestia might react once she found out about him. Apparently, she reacted quite tamely. So now, the only reason he had left to keep her in the dark was because of the little detective game they had going on.

Every visit, they would talk about various scientific subjects, excluding magical theory. They would both love each other's company, but to be fair, there would be no small amount of poking and prodding. From Twilight, questions that didn't seem to mean anything at first glance, but which she wanted to use to force him into a corner. From the Doctor, tales that forced the librarian to think, and maybe question her loyalties. He also asked his own fair share of questions, checking if maybe there were certain elements of her judgment that didn't add up, which would point to the possibility that she was under the effects of mind control after all, even if he couldn't detect any tampering. Any cowboys.

He did meet Celestia, and he did emerge unscathed. But he had yet to be fully convinced of her character. Her behavior last night was just a little bit on the convenient side.

Subterfuge aside, the Time Lord and librarian got along wonderfully. In a nutshell, they were two eggheads engaging in debates either scientific, philosophical, sociological, historical, geographical, geological... mycological... anything. Anything but magical.

At any rate. She developed a unique respect for him, one which she never experienced before. Rivalry.

He had already proven himself to be quite skilled at lying. None of her psychology texts helped her corner him, none of her criminal investigation fiction gave her the required edge to breach through his walls of deceit. This pony was more than a challenge for her, or a learning experience. He was her respected rival. Her Mareiarty. Though, you know, only male, unlike the famous antagonist.

They'd often lose themselves in debates. On one occasion, the sun had reached setting before either even noticed. If it wasn't for Spike's pointing out the late hour, then the Doctor would've gotten in a bit of trouble. But that was only because what she had to say was, indeed, much, much more than interesting. She hadn't even mentioned that she was the Princess' protégé, or that she was the main wielder of some manner of mystical, ancient artifacts. No, those things he learned from Ditzy and Spike respectively. He'd asked the student to let him take a look at these famed, evil-pony-rehabilitating baubles before, but apparently they're back in Canterlot.

The only parts of their conversations, the parts he'd initially steer to intentionally then back up out of immediately and in great haste, would be the subjects of magic. He never liked her explanations with that in regard. That was why he asked for the Elements, to study them and figure out their exact workings and functionalities. And every time he asked, she'd refuse categorically, instead referring to her books on magic, every time certain that they were enough and that he was just being stubborn.

If unicorn horns acted as conduits, an amplifier like the Elements would offer him another field of knowledge to cross-reference with. Which he was certain would reveal a great deal. Heck, he might even be able to fashion a battery for this energy, for him to experiment with.

"Regarding your elements... Are you sure I couldn't have a gander at them?"

"For the last time." The unicorn rolled her eyes. "I doubt the Princess would consider having them for display at a museum, and I much less expect her to just let anypony have a look at them for no good reason."

"No good reason? I beg to differ, Twilight! You of all people must acknowledge the importance of research."

"It's ponies, not people. And of course I do! I just don't know what you'd hope to find out that isn't already covered in the books here. Maybe you should have a more thorough look through them?"

"Ugh... Must we do another quiz?"

"That's not what I meant. Although we still could..."

"Maybe later, dear, I have a headache. What did you mean, then?"

She didn't seem to notice his rather lewd jest. "I meant that I don't know what exactly you're looking for. You went through all the books we have here, and for whatever reason, you still weren't satisfied!"

"They were all scripts on practical research. What I want is a more thorough, theoretical description. Everyone here is content with just knowing that it works. All I want to know is why it works! Less how's and more why's!"

She put a hoof to her chin, then walked over to a certain shelf of the library. "...Then maybe you weren't looking in the right place."

After a short look over the titles, she pulled out two in particular with her magic, and passed them over to him.

"Starswirl's Dilemma, by Clover the Clever? Twin volumes?"

"You said you want to know why magic works. Starswirl tried to find that out, but failed. His disciple, Clover the Clever, tried to make an essay out of his master's notes and theories, but he didn't get that much farther either. This is as theoretical as it gets. Actually, Starswirl exhausted the theory part. Clover just tried looking for more information elsewhere. If you're really as fascinated as you're making it out to be, then these are what you're looking for."

"Why didn't I find these before?"

"Because they weren't in the magic section. They were in philosophy."

"...So..."

"I did say Clover looked in other places."

Oh well, might as well give it a try. He could use a good couple books for his following nights.

Then there was an extremely silent knock at the front door. The Doctor's ears perked up and faced the sound's source direction.

"I think there's someone at the door..." as he started going through the first volume.

"Really? I didn't hear anything.."

Opening the door, she found none other than a certain cream colored pegasus, who had already turned around to leave. Honestly. How does she manage anything at all, being so shy all the time?

"Fluttershy?" she inquired, gaining her attention.

"Oh! Ugh... hi."

"Come in! How are your animals?

"They're better, actually. Thanks to the Doctor."

"Really? What did he do?" She closed the door behind them.

From his table, he answered Twilight's question without even looking up from his book. "Nothing much, really. Just talked to them."

His retort was followed by a short pause.

"...You talked to her animals?" Twilight asked back, standing stock still in bewilderment.

"Yeah. They were... worried. About the..." he pondered a lie, "storm. Yeah, that's right." as he hid himself deeper into his book.

"...For about a week before it started?"

He shrugged. "I'm just as confused as you are. Maybe they smelled it beforeha... uhg, in advance. But as to why they were so agitated about it... your guess is as good as mine."

He'd very much rather not worry them unnecessarily with warnings of a bloodthirsty beast which was very likely of an equine variety. He already knew about a mysterious stranger working in the background. He suspected it might be him again, the Hooded Pony. But as for the reason why a bloodthirsty monster would help him out the night he arrived on this world, the Doctor was at a loss. Multiple Personality Disorder? Anyway. He didn't expect Fluttershy to be much help, even if he wanted to involve her further in these conspiracy theories. Nor did he want to waste the little rabbit's efforts to save her heart. Even if he was kind of a prick.

Twilight shook her head and decided to focus on her new guest as well. "Please, take a seat."

"Well, okay. As long as you don't mind..." She took off her saddlebag and settled across the table from the Doctor, which had closed his book in favor of paying her attention.

"Of course I don't mind, silly. I'd like to know more about what happened. There could've been any number of things to scare them... What exactly was it that they were doing?"

The Doctor was about to answer in Fluttershy's stead, even though he noticed the question being directed at her. But the cream pegasus decided to beat him to it on purpose.

"Uhm, they wouldn't tell me much either. They'd just act so scared and edgy for whatever reason... I'm actually really glad you came by when you did. My animals seemed to be even more worried last night than ever! And there wasn't anything I could do to calm them down..."

"They were expecting something to happen last night. Nothing did. They were worrying over nothing, and now they're probably embarrassed." He considered it best to finish this conversation before they find out something they don't have to.

His retort managed to pacify their curiosity. Now, he decided to focus their attention on something else. "What are you doing here, anyway?"

"Oh! I forgot..." as she went through her saddlebag, to produce a book. "I came here to give you this book, Twilight. I'm not using it anymore, anyway..."

Twi had a look and checked. It was her order that Ditzy showed her yesterday. "That's very... kind of you, Fluttershy. You sure you won't be needing it any more?"

"My shelves have plenty of books to pick from. This one was very interesting to read last night... before bed. Eep! Not that I found it tiresome or anything, it's just that, well, it might be a bit on the... advanced side for me? So many theories and elaborations... I never even knew about some of the creatures described in it before myself!"

"That's because most of them are either from far-off lands, or very rare. You won't find any wyverns or basilisks in the Everfree, those are in their respective lands, far away from Equestria."

"I wouldn't want to seem rude, but... I'm glad to know that they're so far away."

"Hehe, you and me both. Cockatrices might be their lesser cousins, but they're more than enough trouble on their own... Anyway, I don't know what to say, Fluttershy. Thank you. This will make a great addition to the library."

The Doctor was very attentive at what the two mares were saying. This book sounded quite interesting. "...Mind if I... take a look?"

Twi smirked. "Should I add this into your bag as well?"

He drooped his ears and head. "...If it's not too much trouble?" with a sheepish smile.

So that's four books. Should hold him for at least a night.

A few more minutes of conversation, mostly between the girls. He eventually had enough and decided to take his leave. "It's been fun, girls, really. But if I want to catch that job, I'd best be off. Thanks again for the books, Twilight."

"You're welcome, Doctor. Good luck!"

And he left, with a paper bag hanging around his neck.

He was thankful, really. Such a nice race, such friendly people! He'd wish he could repay them somehow. Maybe get a job as a tinkerer or something, replace their gas lamps with electric ones, or at least a few clockwork thingamagigs. But in order to do that, he'd need to buy a shop first. He already looked into their loan offers, and suffice to say their banking system is near to nonexistent. Thankfully...

Another good thing about this world, and that was the complete lack of bankers and lawyers. At least, as far as he'd noticed. It was a good compromise, something they'd apparently decided to go without just as well. He couldn't stress enough how much that relieved him.

Of course, one of those compromises included him not being able to start a job from scratch. Since, you know, no money readily available at any given moment. But it was no problem, he just needs to try harder. Find someone willing to see his potential and talents...

Unfortunately, no restaurant needed a waiter that could solve x in a twelfth grade equation. And his social skills always left something to be desired around here. Hopefully today he'd have more luck.

He was well within Ponyville proper by the time something odd happened. A pink blur rushed in front of him, together with a flustering headache, to his relative surprise. As soon as his eyes adjusted, he knew what was to blame.

The source of the visual disturbance was Pinkie Pie, and that of his physical discomfort was whatever it is about her that kept giving him a headache. He'd resorted to calling it paradox energy.

Pinkie was dragging some cart thing along with her. Which had a button. She pressed the button, and then...

And then a paradox punched him in the back of his face.

She started singing for whatever reason.

"Merry belated welcome! So far how was your stay?
You've been around for quite some time, I hope it was okay!
So sorry 'bout the delay! I guess it was a while!
But Pinkie's welcome wagon's here to welcome you to Ponyville!..."

...He was not sure, but between the party noisemakers, the party hat which she put on his head, and the countless flags waving around with the word "welcome" written on them, he believed that she might've been trying to welcome him to Ponyville, in song.

It was... catchy, at any rate. But he was curious as to why no one else was paying them any attention. The locals in his near proximity were just passing by, chatting, like this happened every other day. He didn't even earn more than a passing glance from two, maybe three ponies?

So, then, he was left to deal with this situation on his own.

The song continued for a few more verses, and it ended with her doing a power slide while stretching the last words.
"Welcome welcome welcome to Ponyville todaaaaaay... wait for it..."
And then confetti shot out of the cart's pipes, and a cake shot forward into his lap.
"Got it right that time!"

"Uh huh..."

Pinkie was ecstatic. The Doctor was... whelmed.

"Well? Did you like my song? I modified it a bit, because you're the first pony I've ever not notice when he/she arrived in town immediately, so I changed it to sing about how you've actually been in town for more than a week already!..."

"Uh huh..." He remembered her telling him last time they spoke, that she tends to run her mouth a lot around new ponies.

"...was extra careful to put the cake mix in the oven and the confetti in the confetti shooters this time! Which is kind of a big deal, though not that big a deal, but I do sometimes make the mistake of swapping the cake mix out with the confetti, and that's never fun. Although the mix is still tasty, but it's still not as good as when it'd..."

"Uh huh..." she's just going on and on... he feels like he should try to stop her, but then again it might be better to just let her get it all on the outside already, lest she'd just go on these tangents later on.

"...name is pretty funny. Though not funny in a fun way. Well, I guess it's a little funny. Especially if someone were to call out your name in a hospital! Doctor! Which one? "

"...Charming."

"Thanks! I don't think I've ever been called charming before. I've been called a lot of different things until now, though. I've been called loud, or tiresome, or sometimes even weird! But usually everypony just calls me Pinkie! They've even made a thing, where they decided to just explain my weird behavior in general with me just being Pinkie! And I never really understood why, I mean, aren't they making a tautology? Anyway, my name's pretty funny too, I guess. Isn't it funny that my entire family never really liked baking pies, but I love making them? You'd think that we'd be called something that would more accurately..."

At this point, the alien stallion started to genuinely wonder how she was managing to keep talking. How was she not running out of air?

...He supposed that maybe he should try to stop her before she hurt herself. Or before she got to how she got her cutesy-bum-mark. Whichever came first.

"...but then they didn't look too happy about it, but then they really WERE happy about it! And I was so happy that I managed to make my family happy with a party! And we all danced, and played games, and laughed..."

"Wait..."

"I don't think I've ever heard my ma and pa laugh like that before!"

"Hold it."

"...And I didn't even notice when my cutie mark appeared during the party! We were all having so much fun!"

"Hooold it!"

"Okay."

And just like that, she stopped everything she was doing. Completely anticlimactic on her part.

With a suppressed sigh, he ignored her curious actions. "Look. I appreciate the thought, and the effort. But I honestly don't mind you not noticing me arrive! I wasn't exactly trying to attract attention to myself either..."

Between him being paranoid of being found out by a creature which was widely considered to be a god, and going on extended intellectual discussions with said potentially tyrannical ruler's protege which most likely mentioned him in a couple letters by now...

"Anyway, your little show really was pretty... fun, to watch. If a little tiresome... But now I have something very important to ask you, Pinkie Pie. It is imperative that you answer me this question truthfully. Do you understand?"

"Okay. What is it?"

"What, is in this cake?"

She's a very friendly pony. To avoid saying anything else. She's actually too friendly for him to handle, and all of her friendliness and eagerness don't make up for the headache she's giving him.

Normally, time is his thing. He knows what smell the date has, he knows when someone's messing around with time, paradoxes radiate queasiness and anything that should not exist simply infuriates him. Like a bull seeing red. Whatever's wrong with Pinkie, though, has nothing to do with time. His headache is simply unlike anything he's ever felt before. He's not queasy, or angry, or dizzy... He just feels physically wrong. Although, he's seen a lot of wrong things in his life. Temporal paradoxes only offer a physical, spacial anomaly which he can't perceive, but he still knows it's wrong. Maybe it's by association, or he actually gained a sense regarding how meeting your future/past self is wrong.

Wrong, as in, being turned upside down on your head. It's not necessarily welcome, but it's not something you're necessarily going to go insane about in anger and indignation.

However, Pinkie is another story. If a paradox is like being turned upside down on your head, then having Pinkie Pie around is like being held in a cage, watching sharks swim nearby. You know you're safe, that there's no feasible way they could harm you, but that doesn't help your pounding heart much at all.

It's only a mare! One that's defying the laws of physics like in a childish cartoon. And for all he knows, something so reckless is never good. No. A paradox is reckless, this is just stupid!

I know, you might've expected him of all people to be more lenient regarding strange things. And he really is. He's only going to look at Pinkie and think that whatever helped ponykind develop so well just happens to be well within her ability to manipulate without any problem. It's just to what extent these talents can be used that simply terrifies him, and to what extent these abilities defy all rationality that he finds infuriating.

Heh. He never knew himself to be such a stick-in-the-mud before. Not even in his third incarnation... "Oh dear... I hope I'm not going through another midlife crisis again." he mumbles to himself.

"What's that, Doc?" Pinkie asked him back, idly bouncing by.

"Nothing."

"Again? Boy, you sure like saying nothing a lot, don't you, Doc?-"

"-And once more, I ask you. Mind not shortening my name like that?"

"Okie dokie, Lokie! Ugh, I mean Doctor! Hey, that's not a bad idea actually! Is it Loki?"

"No."

She's been trying to guess his name ever since they started walking towards Ditzy's place for him to drop off his books.

"Chestnut Hourglass?"

"No."

And she's yet to relent.

"Timmy Turner?"

"No."

Apparently, she has a wide array of ideas.

"Oakenstride? Minute Bark? Clockwork Brown?"

"No, no and no."

She had apparently gotten the idea that his entire identity must be decided around the fact that his fur is chestnut and he has an hourglass on his side. Honestly, how does this society even manage to work, let alone thrive? Are there certain ponies that develop a liking for shoveling recess out of outhouse pits? Do they pay farm pigs for that? It would explain their purpose, at least. That they actually are not grown for their meat, but they just like living in conglomerations. It's not unheard of for the Doctor.

"Sir Prancelot?"

"No... what? No! Look, I honestly don't know why you insist on finding out my name. I've already introduced myself as the Doctor, why do you need anything else?"

"I don't! And nopony else needs to know. But everypony is curious as to why you can't give your name. And it's kind of hard to trust somepony when he doesn't give you his real name. Why can't you give your name?"

"A number of reasons, actually..." he answered evenly.

He'd tell her what those reasons entail, but he remembered what 'cover' Ditzy had given him. He could tell Pinkie that his name, should it ever be revealed, could change the universe for far, far worse. At least his original universe. But instead, he decided to cover his landlady's back.

"What reasons?" her smile already faltered.

"Personal reasons." as the house came into view.

"Why are they personal?" a tint of annoyance in her voice.

"Because shut up."

"That's mean." she pouted.

"You're being nosy."

"I'm only trying to help you fit in!"

"Should I lie about my name being something normal to you folk, like Time Turner or Oakenstride? Would that be any better?"

"No! Well, not really... It's not nice to lie to ponies!"

As he opened the door and helped himself inside, getting his bag off. "Neither is forcing someone to say something he doesn't want to. Honestly, you're all making such a big fuss over nothing. Thirsty?" As he left for the kitchen.

"...Not really." she followed a couple feet behind.

"Okay." he went over, reached for an empty glass, then reconsidered halfway and grabbed the nearby wooden bowl instead. Which he filled up at the sink. "Don't mind me, then."

No, they don't have indoor plumbing. But every house has an individual water reserve.

She sneaked a peek at his books. 'Of Monsters and Magic', 'Starswirl's Dilemma'... she never pictured him for a bookworm. 'Equestrian Etiquette'?

"I'm having trouble getting along with the other townsponies." he surprised her.

He spoke from the doorway of the kitchen. He noticed her looking through his stuff. "Obviously, not being able to give anyone a satisfactory name might have something to do with that. It's certainly not making it any easier for me to get a job either."

"Oh. Ugh..."

"I really can't tell you my name. It's not that I don't want to, it's that I can't. Do you understand?"

Her hair was slightly deflated again upon hearing that. She looked away. "Okay then..."

He didn't like seeing her like that. Seeing her upset, it was just so wrong. Like, genuine wrong, not upside down wrong.

Before he could say anything, though, she started again. Hair puffed and beaming with joy as before. "Ooh! I can help you find a job!"

Again, he only managed to give her a bewildered look, before she pulled him by the hoof, out of the house, all the way into the middle of town square. In less that three seconds.

He felt like he'd just gone through a wormhole. His eyes were spinning around in their sockets.

"Normally, the townsponies are pretty reserved and shy around newcomers. But with me vouching for you, I'm sure we'll find you a job in no time!" the pink mare declared confidently.

"That... is actually very reassuring, Pinkie. Brilliantly so, even.." He shook his head a couple times, somehow that was quite effective at getting his eyes to settle. "Are you sure you're not too busy, though?"

"What? Of course not! I always have time to help a pony in need! Now let's see..."

She looked around. Stalls everywhere, ponies buying and selling their produce. Carrot Top with her carrots and tomatoes, of course she'd need help with her bustling business. But she already has someone helping her out.

"How about Roseluck?" the pink mare proposed, pointing towards the cream mare with rose hair.

"Oh... She sells flowers, right? I already tried that."

"Oh... That's right. You really upset Lucky Clover, didn't you?"

"I couldn't help it!" he burst out in a panic. "It was just taking so long, I was beyond bored! I had a lapse in judgment for only a few moments and before I knew it, I was already going through the produce I was supposed to sell." His demeanor got even worse as he recalled the event. "And the look on my employer's face when he saw what I was doing... No man should ever go through something like that..."

"Cheer up, Doc! I'm sure he already forgot all about it." Her attempts to calm him down were appreciated, to a degree. "...Anyway, I suppose that getting you a job as a salespony would be a bad idea, then?"

"I suppose. I really can't handle long periods of inactivity. I can't even handle short periods of inactivity!"

"Really? Me too!"

Yeah, well, at least they have something in common then. She can't stop bouncing around, most likely because of her heavily sweet diet. Similarly, he's also hyperactive, but out of other reasons.

You try being patient when your processing speed is ten times faster. To him, everything is going at an agonizingly slow pace. And that's not even considering his Time Lord awarenesses.

Also, fun fact. Gallifreyans have such a thing as a norm, a normal life. They're a society, they have farmers and teachers and brokers... But they also have their specific entertainment, enough to help even them unwind. Now, consider the fact that none of that was enough to satisfy him. That he needed to leave from there, to travel. Not because it was too slow for him. It's just that for whatever reason, he couldn't have a normal life even there.

Now you might have an idea as to why he's feeling like he's going insane around here.

He didn't comment on her retort. Instead, he found something more noteworthy to comment on. "...So his name is Lucky Clover? Any relation to Roseluck?"

"Oh, no! That would be silly! It would be like assuming that you and Derpy were married just because both your last names were kinda similar. Although you two do live together... Everypony in town knows you're just lending a room out, but you know..."

"Wait. Who's assuming what now?"

"Derpy Hooves, Doctor Whooves? It is kind of odd, don't you think?"

"Hold on..." even with his advanced brain, shock can still impede his ability to process especially surprising new data. How in the Blue Blazes(*) did this rumo... oh right. Rumors.

He's starting to get why Ditzy was so adamant on pointing out how unlikeable they can get.

"...People think we're married?" He deadpanned. "Seriously?!"

"Of course not, silly! No one really thinks that. Derpy is just a nickname, after all... and you've yet to share your name, so we just kind of made up a second name for you."

"Huh..."

"It's all in good fun, really. Everypony likes to gossip, and you two did leave a lot to gossip about, especially after you've been seen a couple nights ago on that date. It's just that, sometimes ponies get ahead of themselves, you know?"

"As in, they tend to make things up, and say they're true?"

"Well, when you put it that way..."

He was putting it that way. He was putting it the hell out of it that way. And it was wearing down on her good mood.

She doesn't like thinking badly about her friends (all of Ponyville's townsponies are her friends), but she does have to admit that there is a disturbing trend that they like to keep. That if somepony doesn't confirm or deny something right away, then their version is definitely true by default. Like, for instance, what they're doing with Zecora right now. Troubling, though, that some of the gossipers don't even bother to confirm their assumptions before spreading them.

...Like with Zecora. And with Ditzy, regarding her clumsiness and the origin of her eye problem.

"...They don't mean to hurt anypony."

"No, but they don't mind completely ignoring the fact that it's precisely what they're doing."

Her hair deflated again, as he expected. He didn't like making someone like Pinkie upset, but such topics weren't something he'd be able to ignore easily.

He sighed apologetically. "Oh well, suppose you can't help it."

Okay, apparently he's making a habit of turning conversations awkward. He needs to work on that...

"...How about that guy over there?" he points towards a stallion setting up his stand. He was pretty meager looking.

"Oh, you mean Caramel? I don't know. You want to try farm work?"

"Well, it'd certainly beat sitting at a stand all day."

"Okay then. Let's go ask him."

The caramel-coated pony was busy loading his produce on display. As soon as he loaded one of his crates, he noticed two ponies had suddenly appeared behind him, looking at him tentatively, smilingly.

He got startled, almost dropping the crate he was holding with his foreleg.

Pinkie started first. "Hey, Caramel!"

"Oh, hey Pinkie..." he tried to sound as cheerful and sociable as she was, over his own social anxiety. She decided not to pay heed to his shortcomings.

"I'd like you to meet the Doctor here! He's new in town and we were wondering if you might want to hire him for work on your farm!"

"Oh. Well, nice to meet you, Doctor." as he offered his hoof for a shake.

"Pleasure is mine." he answered, giving him a hoof bump instead, without a second thought. "I hope it doesn't seem like we're chiding you or anything, but I really could use something to do for a while. At least until I get my bearings. Nothing too outstanding, just enough to pay for rent and living expenses. As long as you would need the help, that is."

"Well, it does seem very reasonable, but I really don't need any help, or anything. At least not for now. Maybe during harvesting season, though, but that's not for another month... Maybe you could try at Applejack's? Her crop should be close to bearing its second series of fruit by now..."(**)

"...Okay then, apples it is. Thanks for the help... But now, where is this... Apple character you've mentioned?"

Pinkie was beaming beside him. Took him a while to notice, and by then he was already at the farm, reeling from another wormhole-ish experience.

When he came to, first thing he noticed was an orange-coated mare with blond hair and a Stetson hat, looking curiously at him, before he noticed his surroundings. He was in an apple orchard, a really big one. The apple trees bore big, red, savory fruit, ripe for the picking.

The orange mare addressed his pink friend first. "Hey there, Pinkie. Who's yer friend?" She had a country accent. Very charming.

"Hi, AJ! This is the Doctor!" Declared Pinkie.

The country mare reacted to that phrase in acknowledgement. "The Doctor? The one you've been mentionin' yesterday?"

"Mmm-hmm!" the pink mare nodded in response.

She then gave him a brief look over. "So, new in town?"

"For about a week now, yeah. I take it AJ stands for..." What was her name again? Apple... "Apple Hoist?"

"Jack, actually. It's Applejack. And from what Ah've heard, you're not really a medical doctor, are ya?"

"...Yes, that's just what people call me."

"Oh, really? And who would these people be, if ya don't mind my askin'?"

His first reaction was to look rather distressed, then irritated. He looked away and answered, "Plenty of people.", dejectedly.

"Heh! Okay then, Doc. So, what brings ya to this fine neck o' the woods? No doubt ya've heard of our famous apple farm and thought to take a look fer yerself?"

"Oh, well, actually..."

"We wanted to check if you might want to hire help for working on the farm!" Pinkie cut him off.

"That so?"

"Well, yes." The Doctor answered, fixing the hyperactive pink pony beside him with a look. "I've been looking around town for work ever since I've arrived, with not much luck."

"Hold on a sec. You've been lookin' for a week and haven't found anything? You sure you weren't just too lazy fer anypony else to wan ta hire ya?"

"No, it had nothing to do with laziness. All it had to do with was either my trouble interacting with the locals, or my inability to stay put all day as a storekeeper."

A smile crept on the farmpony's face. "Alrighty then. Let's see how well yer word's hold up 'gainst yer work."

"You mean you'll hire me?" A smile crept on his face.

"No, what Ah mean is that Ah'm gonna let ya show me that yer worth hirin'. We make a livin' off of applebuckin around here, and we're not gonna hire just any ol' slouch ta help us out."

"...Applebucking?"
You're dead serious.

Author's Note

Why, yes. She is, indeed, quite mortally earnest.

(*) Yes, it's a thing.
(**) Because only one harvesting season is bullshit. How are you going to feed an entire herbivorous civilization year-round with just one gain per crop? How are you going to sustain any kind of civilization with perishable fields that only yield once a year, and get eaten by bugs unless you spray them with toxic chemicals that hurt the environment and ruin the taste?

All work and no play...

It was the beginning of a wonderful day. Sunny sky, not a single cloud left from last night.

Now if only she were able to enjoy it outside.

Today, Ditzy has desk duty. Filing letters into stacks, in order of importance and distance required for delivery. Since there's only a finite number of workers, it's her job for today to make sure that her colleagues are well organized.

Normally, they have a unicorn doing this, since it's not that easy to sort letters with hooves. Levitation magic is always useful. But Paper Clip called in sick this morning, so they had Ditzy to somehow use her mouth to stand in his stead. It's certainly interesting how she manages so well without leaving any spit on the paper.

The building isn't that much to look at. In the corner of the room, on the wall behind her, there was a doorway leading into the area where the mail is collected by postponies. On the same wall, there's a single row of five wooden shelves along face level, last one reading "special orders". I'll get to those later. Anyway, those shelves are where Paperclip deposits the mail, and the actual mailponies collect them on the other side of the wall. Since said drawers have doors on either side.

Back to the general layout. Once the postponies fill their bags, the deliverers just walk outside the building through the welcoming desk, which is usually tended by a guardspony. Since the mail does, in fact, require a modicum of security.

Upstairs, there are also the dining room, the conference room and the boss' office.

The room Ditzy is in is Clip's office. It has two desks. One where he arranges mail, whilst the other is dedicated to number crunching and such. Salaries, taxes... it's also less troublesome to deal with special orders. The extra money gets processed as the order itself is sent out immediately.

It isn't cheap, of course. But the mailponies offer to deliver immediately to any other part of Equestria, as long as they have an address. Most locals are more than happy enough to just use the train service to send out their holiday cards. It's usually just the Mayor and Filthy Rich who request air mail. The latter more often, as he spares no expense in order to stay in the lead in the business world. He'd even buy a dragon, if they were for sale. Or hire. Or... at all available, for that matter.

Of course, the mail needs to be tended much more often and urgently than the economical management. Since the boss usually takes care of most of the financial matters, Clip only needs to deal with offering precise numbers on cashings, salaries, sick leaves, that sort of stuff. Which reminds her. Clip will still have to cut his own salary for taking today off. Ditzy appreciated the irony, as a short-lived snicker crept on her face. Underline short-lived.

She didn't feel very easygoing. Not since her little discussion with Dotes this morning. Or last night's talk with the Doctor. Count to think of it, the past few days really were a bit hectic.

It would seem that the number of unfavorable instances which he caused far outnumbered the favorable ones. But in the end, quality wins over. Any attempt at describing the show he offered during that night would fall flat on its face, and leave a 5 inch crater.

Ditzy's mind wandered. Looking out the window, just thinking back.

He really is something.
...And she really needs to get him out of her house already.

College drama and rhymed threats aside, it is unseemly to have some guy live under the same roof. A week to get his bearings was all well and good, but...

'I should ask around town, see if anyone needs a carpenter. Or a clown...' she thought to herself. 'And he will accept whatever job he gets. Beggars can't be choosers.'

She got up, finally having enough. 'I need a break.'

She went out of the room and headed for the water cooler a few feet away. Might at least stretch her legs.

You've seen it all before. Office workers sitting around the water cooler, talking. Pretending like they're actually talking about work, in case the boss comes around or something. It didn't take long for her to wait for someone to appear. And luckily, it wasn't coming from the staircase.

Through the entrance area appeared Sunshower Raindrops, one of her coworkers and best friends.

She was a pegasus pony with a jasmine coat, Tiffany blue mane and tail, medium turquoise eyes, and according to her namesake, a cutie mark of three raindrops. They knew each other since... since Raindrops took the job to work alongside her.

"Loitering, Ditzy?"

"Who, me?" she asked innocently, if somewhat tiredly.

They shared a chuckle, and a bit of chit-chat. About what shenanigans the local baker had been up to, which reminded Ditzy to invite Raindrops for tonight. In case Pinkie didn't already do it by now. Ditzy gave her the all clear this morning, on her way to work. Luckily the Doctor had decided not to join her. So then, the pink party planner had all morning to go around town and spread fliers.

"A surprise party?" Raindrops asked.

"Yeah. Well, you know Pinkie. She doesn't even need a real excuse to throw a party. Plus, I was looking forward to it too. Might even help him get accustomed to the other townsponies, maybe even get a job..."

"He's still unemployed?"

"I know."

"You know, at this rate you'll get unofficially proclaimed married by the village gossipers."

"I know! But I can't just kick him out, now can I?"

"Who said anything about kicking him out?" A wry smile grew on the sunny mare's face. One which Ditzy sees very often nowadays on ponies which are about to say something promiscuous regarding the Doctor.

"So the locals would assume that. Let them!"

"Raindrops..."

"...After all, I'm surprised you two didn't seal the deal by now anyway."

"Raindrops!"

"Ditzy!" she imitated her friend jokingly. "Honestly, since when were you such a drag?"

"I'm not being a drag!"

"Is there something wrong with him?"

"There's nothing wro..."

Ditzy gave her friend a stare in aggravation. She got the message.

"There's nothing wrong with him, it's just... complicated. He's not looking for a relationship right now."

"Oh... I get it now."

The 'oh' sounded kind of suspicious. Like she just realized/assumed something she finds interesting.

"What's there to get?"

"Tell me, Ditzy. Did it ever occur to you that maybe he's just not looking for a mare?"

"Heh. Don't worry, that's not the issue.."

"Problems downstairs then?"

"No, Raindrops, it's nothing like that!"

"How do you know?"

"Raindrops!"

"What is it then? You've been living together for the past week, I can't imagine you needing any more time to get to know each other."

"Why are you so persistent?"

"Well, I would've understood if you wouldn't have wanted to come on to him because he can't even hold a job. But you're saying it's actually him who doesn't want anything to do with a perfectly attractive mare, who might or might not be a little manstarved..."

"..."

"I was thinking about taking that last part back, but... this pause is just priceless."

"I swear to Celestia, Raindrops. One of these days, I will end you."

"You still didn't deny it, though."

She only got a little crimson around the cheeks in response.

"Oh well, it's not like we hadn't already established that. What with the whole Pokey Pierce fiasco. Guy's good with kids, and you're drooling like a school filly."

Ditzy let out a tired breath, then downed her cup of water.

"Anyway," her sunny friend continued to poke. "since your tenant isn't interested, I take it you're having trouble keeping your drool in check?"

Ditzy's retort was in the form of pouring herself another cup of water, facing away and taking a sip. Savoring the indulgent look she could feel boring at the back of her head, as well as the growing snicker on her friend's face.

After a while, though, she heard her sigh in sympathy. "When did you ask him?"

"...Last night."

"Really?" That was less in curiosity, and more critically. A little pause longer, then Raindrops declared, "We're going to need to get you hitched tonight."

"Right..." Ditzy sounded destitutely. "Sorry to bring it to you, but-"

"No buts! We're getting you hitched tonight, and that's final."

'Sigh... This is certainly going to get a whole lot worse before it gets any better.'

Elsewhere, on the Apple family orchard. The Doctor was doing his best to finally get some income. And so far, he hadn't managed too well.

Applejack made it look so easy. Just kick the tree and the apples fall off. Much to his chagrin. He was conscious of the whole magic thing, of the fact that there were things that he couldn't explain in this world. But he was still taken by surprise whenever something nonsensical took place.

Licking the trunk yielded little result, beside having the owner look at him oddly. There wasn't anything unusual about the trees, they were normal Malus Domesticae.

He hadn't been at it for too long, but by the look on Applejack's face, it seemed she was starting to have second thoughts regarding his ability to work for her. Aside from her, Pinkie was also waiting. He'd hate to let her down... He didn't notice Pinkie hoofing over a pink letter to Applejack and whispering something to her when he wasn't looking.

He eventually figured out that simply kicking couldn't possibly be enough. So maybe there was a trick to it. He assumed it had something to do with the unconventional magic that these folk had access to. So, he tried doing what he did that time he figured out how to use his hooves.

'Picture the apples falling off. Put aside your reason and suspend your disbelief. Just pretend that if you hit the tree hard enough, the apples fall off their branches.

'Breathe in, and...' kick!

Half a dozen apples fell down this time, as opposed to none. Although two of them failed to land in the baskets. Oh well, it's a start. Finally.

"There ya go!" Applejack lauded him. "And it only took ya little over a dozen tries!"

"Thanks..."

"At this rate, by the end of the day, ya might be able to do as well as mah little sister!"

He turned his head slowly, with a big glare, to face the now snickering farm pony.

Alright. Challenge accepted.

Kick!

Seven apples this time.

Kick!

An hour later, he got as far as managing to empty half the tree per strike.

It's been three hours now. He's tired and he can't get past eight.

It would seem that it still takes a minimum physical impact. His... willpower needs to be inversely proportional to the amount of force applied. The weaker his kick, the harder he needs to focus. Still, there are diminishing returns. There's only so far he can go with his newfound abilities.

'Whew! So far so good. I can only wonder how far I can go with this. Or what else I might be able to do...'

Wiping the sweat from his brow, he looked at his handywork. He managed to empty his fiftieth tree. 'Let's just put these apples in the pile, and maybe I can convince Applejack to let me take a break.'

Pinkie left as soon as she saw that he was managing on his own. Saying he was on good hooves and that he should try to have fun while working. After that, she just ~~dashed away in a pink blur~~ started skipping her way back to town at a leisurely pace.

He should remember to ask her how she manages to defeat the laws of physics some time. Actually, he should ask her if even she knows what she's doing, because he certainly doesn't think he understands it in the slightest.

Once he was done unloading his harvest, he didn't take long to find AJ. All he had to do was look for her in the section of harvested trees, and listen to the sound of kicking. Apparently she prefers the term "bucking". It's not hard to figure out why he'd rather avoid using the same term.

She saw him approaching. "Taking a break there, Doc?" her tone was somewhere mixed between sympathy and criticism.

"To be fair, I'm only working as efficiently as I can. To that respect, I thought it best to take a short break once I notice my performance is running lower."

"...Do you always talk so much?"

"You have no idea."

"Okay, well, go right ahead! It's like ya said, can't use a broken plow. Ahm actually kinda surprised ya managed so well so far."

He sat down under the tree she just finished harvesting. "I'm a fast learner."

"Heh, if ye say so." as she started off to unload her cargo. "Just don't forget to get up once yer done restin', ya hear?"

"You got it, boss."

"Very funny."

Wind blowing through the leaves, cool shade from the tree. It's noon and the sun is at its zenith. It's as hot as it's going to get all day.
He's surprised to notice how much a pony can sweat, considering the fact that it has fur. Normally fur and sweat glands don't mix on the evolutionary chain. Good thing there are Pegasi offering to fill up the water tanks of the local homes, similarly to the milkman or mailman. It can get pretty sticky after a certain point.

He wasn't feeling dirty. Just tired. He felt like he'd been running from a Slitheen for the past five minutes straight. Bloody buggers can really run fast.

For now, he spent about five minutes relaxing. He started wondering why his employer hadn't returned yet. He considered how if he got up before she came back to continue working, he might make a good impression... Nah, just a little while longer. Besides, it would seem that he has company.

He noticed some shuffling between the leaves in his tree. It didn't take long for the one responsible to say something.

"Who are you?" a feminine, if not boisterous voice asked, in a somewhat challenging tone.

He looked up to see a curious sight. A pegasus, with a rainbow mane.

'That's new...' he thought to himself.

She had a raised eyebrow as she flew off her branch and into his face. "Haven't seen you around town." Her expression turned suspicious quickly.

He got a better look at her. A multicolored lightning bold on her side and fiercely determined purple eyes. This must be the famed Rainbow Dash he's heard about.

Still, not going to say it right away.

"Well, what a coincidence! Neither have I seen you." he shined back.

He wasn't lying. Just making conversation...

"Funny guy, eh?" she flew off above him, hooves crossed, judging him. "You know this is private property you're napping on, right?"

"Yeah, I've gathered that much. Why, is it yours?"

"What? No, but..."

"...Then I suppose you're no more allowed on it that me, are you?"

"I, well... wait a minute! I'm friends with the owner, I'm welcomed here!"

"Oh, well my mistake then. I can't say I'm explicitly a friend of hers..."

"Ah-ha!..."

"...Just someone trying to earn a job from her."

"...Wait, what?"

She was definitely persistent, if not a little headstrong. He figured it might've been unwise to mess with her, buuut... well, he can't really help himself but poke a little fun at her.

"So, let me get this straight. You're applying to work for Applejack of all ponies?"

"Yes."

"And she said that she'll consider hiring you according to your performance?"

"...Yes?"

"And here you are, taking a break?"

"You can't rightly blame me! I'm not really used to farm work... though it does sound a bit lousy of me regardless."

"Right..."

He just figured that maaaaybe he should expect the possibility of failing to get the job.

"...Maybe I should get back to work."

"Ya think?"

Guess poking fun is out of the question now. What can ya do. When she's right, she's right.

He went back to work. Sure, he was still a bit wobbly, but this time he decided to try and pace himself a little. Strain his muscles less and focus more on flexing his newfound talents instead.

Unfortunately, some apples would refuse to fall off until he forced himself again.

Alongside him, the mare was holding down a chuckle. "Maybe you should try finding a different place to work."

He was far from amused. He could actually go as far as saying he was completely unamused. What could he say to that? 'Gee, thanks for the thoughtful opinion, I'll make note of it?'

" Unfortunately, I haven't had much success so far either way. This isn't the first place I've tried. I was actually okay with whatever salary she considered sufficient."

"Sounds fair enough. Maybe you can ask for a raise once you get a better hang of it?"

"I dunno. I was hoping I'd find something more befitting of my talents eventually. I do appreciate the workout, but this really isn't my thing..."

"And what would that be?" asked Applejack from behind them. Apparently she returned while they weren't looking.

"...Well, I kinda doubt there's anyone around town looking for a science wiz that's great with electronics..."

Or a private eye, or a historian of a completely different universe, or an eccentric medic, or a cheese maker, or a pastry cook (would hate to make competition for the locals, and he'd most certainly not want to make a rival out of Pinkie, of all ponies)...

Private eye in a town where nothing ever happens, and putting an add in the paper would be unwise. And concerning being a medic, he could do that. He could try to tone down on the eccentric act, get to know the locals better and make a cabinet as soon as he read up on pony physiology and diseases...

Yeah. That could work.

"Have you tried with Vinyl?" Rainbow asked.

"...Who?"

"Vinyl Scratch. She's a student from Canterlot working as a DJ for a local night club. She makes her own equipment, so maybe she could use a hoof?"

"That's actually very relevant information!"

"So then, Doctor. Ah'm guessin' yer gonna go try that out now?"

"... Nah. Maybe later. Bird in the hand and all that."

"...Bird in tha what now?" Applejack asked.

"...Wait. HE's the Doctor?" Rainbow Dash added.

He stuck around until the end. Would be rude to leave as soon as some other offer appeared. While he and AJ were working, Rainbow Dash had left back to her job. Apparently she was on her lunch break when she visited. She might or might not have been hoping to snag away a couple fresh apples.

He and the farmpony talked while working about a number of interesting facts. Apparently she and her brother handle the entire farm on their own. He wondered why their parents weren't around, but a deductive mind gave him a decent guess.

Her stetson was a couple sizes too big. But, she wore it well and proud.

He eventually came across the other members of the Apple family.

Big Macintosh, a bulky fellow with a red coat and blond hair. The reason why he wasn't helping his sister gather apples was because he was busy fixing the roof of their cows' barn after last night's storm. And when he finally finished, well, somepony had to cart yesterday's apples to market today.

The Doctor's first reaction to the realization that they have cows living in a barn was... dread. Apparently he was right regarding certain farm animals living in conglomerations, preferring to huddle together and not minding the lack of privacy. Okay, no issue there. There was, however, the matter of cows being raised there... For their milk...

Anyway. When the two stallions did meet, the Doctor was not left unimpressed. The man was twice his size, all muscle. A veritable work horse. They shaked, the bigger of the two giving him a curious look, sort of a "who are you there, pal?".

The Doctor might've felt a little nervous. And subconsciously, what he does when he feels threatened is, run his mouth. Or simply just run. But this time he ran his mouth.

"Well, hello there! You must be Big Macintosh. Your sister's told me a lot about you. I must say, I really admire how you two handle this entire farm on your own... Anyway, I'm the Doctor. Applejack was kind enough to have me work for you today to help around the farm! Nothing too big, don't worry. I'm not going to ask for any more than you've deemed worthy of my services, and you can be certain that as soon as I manage to start up a shop doing... something, not really sure what I'm going to do yet. Maybe a clock shop... Anyway, you can be certain that I'll make sure to offer you a premium service..."

He may have overdone it this time. Suppose he doesn't mind daleks as much as being a moocher.

The bigger stallion gave a reassuring nod, then moved up to his sister. "Mouthy one, ain't he?" he whispered to her.

"Eyup." she joked.

Later in the afternoon, he saw Applebloom. Though they didn't really talk, AJ just told her to go up and get started on her homework.

Applejack also mentioned they had a grandmother, but he didn't meet her. It'd been for the best, he guessed. Wouldn't want to upset another elderly lady. That zebraconian saw right through him, he'd rather not take his chances again.

In the end, it took a lot of work, but he and AJ managed to clear out the remaining apple trees. And there were a lot of them. As in, seriously. You could fit at least two neighborhoods in that orchard. Of course, he could accurately determine the size of the area if he wanted to. He just doesn't feel like associating a precise number to the amount of pain he's feeling in his legs.

He was just laying there in the shade, indulging in a rest before heading out.

"Well! I gotta hoof it to ya, Doc. You did a fine job today." Applejack complimented as she threw him a bag full of bits. "Here, this oughta cover yer first rent."

"I hope I wasn't too much trouble."

"Don't sweat it, Doc. Yer help was mighty useful, even though Ah coulda managed on mah own eventually."

"Well, if you'll need a grandfather clock repairing anytime soon, give me a call, okay? It'll be on me."

"Well, if it'll make ya feel better, Ah'll keep that in mind. Ah'll see ya later, then?"

"Surely! Pleasure doing business with you!"

He felt a bit insecure, carrying the bag of bits in his mouth through town. He tried to keep the rattling down to a minimum. All the while he imagined how he'd wished he had his coat's pockets. But the bloody thing is too big, and he's not sure whether he can afford to get it refitted AND compensate for his shelter so far.

Really, the thing was really big on him. The only reason why he could keep the bloody thing dragging only slightly along the floor was because his tail was in the way.

He could use a saddlebag instead. He'd even managed to outfit one with his trademark bigger-on-the-inside mechanism. But it gets kinda hot under it.

Huh. He'll probably need to figure out what to do about the overheating once he does get his coat refitted. He certainly can't wear it during summer...

Whoever designed ponies as a social, sapient race didn't think things through. He only found it refreshing the first few days of being something non-humanoid. Now he could really use his fingers back, and shedding off this fur coat already.

' I miss having pants...'

To be fair, it'd seem that he somehow has less trouble itching than you would have initially anticipated.

He gets home, and is greeted by its denizens. Ditzy was very pleased to find out his success of today. And apparently the money really wasn't a problem. His overcoat had priority, after all. It'd take a while for the thing to get finished. Although he didn't really plan on using it. It's still pretty warm. Meh, better early than late.

Took a quick shower first. Spending all day toiling in the sun might require that afterwards. Especially if he intends on going to get fitted afterwards. Ditzy offered to come along and show him where he could find a tailor, but he insisted on trying to find it himself. Just give him the general directions.

It took him a while, but he arrived at Carousel Boutique. A house which literally looked like a carousel.

He did not know what he was expecting. Oh well, let's meet this Rarity he'd been told about.

He called the classic "Shave and a haircut" with his knocking at her door.

"Coming!" a fabulous voice sang from inside. He didn't wait for long before she opened the door.

Pearl white fur, a styled mane of a deep purple and three gemstones on her side. Suppose it means that either she really likes to spruce up her created clothings with gems, or maybe it has something to do with her beaming personality.

"Oh, why hello! What can I help you with?" Her eyes shifted to the tucked up coat he was carrying on his back, over his saddlebag. She let him answer on his own, though.

"Hello, I've come to the understanding that you work as a tailor? I was wondering if you could refit this coat for me..."

"Of course!" she answered. "Come right in, and I'll have a gander at it right away."

The interior was as to be expected from a seamstress' shop. A lot of fabric rolls, scissors, threads and other utensils, a few separation screens, and a lot, a LOT of mirrors. Does she really need that many mirrors in one room?

He offered her his old coat, which she then proceeded to examine thoughtfully. "It might be a bit large, it, ugh... went through a magical... dimensional mishap. Long story. What can you do with it?"

"Really now? A dimensional mishap? Because from what I can see, this is actually very well designed, if only for a different creature. A female minotaur, perhaps... Just where did you get this coat, anyway?"

As he shook the image of a large utter-bearing humanoid creature out of his head, he finally answered. "A musician, actually. And an old friend... Though not a minotaur."

"Well, if you want to have it fit for a pony, then I'm afraid that I'll have to do a little more than refit the seams. The shoulder line is completely different, the chest area is disproportionate, the splitting in the back would look completely ridiculous on a pony... I'm afraid I'll have to tear it apart and resize each bit individually."

"I was afraid of that..."

"Oh, but don't worry. I'll make sure to take utmost care! After all, it's already such a shame to have to tamper with such fine artistry. I simply couldn't bare to leave it at any less than it already was before..."

"I'm happy to hear that."

"Now, if you'll just follow me to the measurement stand, ugh... I'm sorry, I don't believe I've caught your name."

"Oh! Right, my mistake. Name's the Doctor! Pleasure making the acquaintance, Rarity."

And yes, she's also heard of him.

They talked. A lot. It was mostly Rarity, rambling on her guesses and romantic theories regarding him. A mysterious stranger, new in town... suffice to say she'd heard a lot about him. He was a bit of a hot topic among gossipers, and although Rarity wouldn't openly admit it, she was a bit of a gossiper as well.

All she managed to get out of him was how he used to travel a lot. That, and his attire, gave her room to fantasize. Maybe he was a retired noir detective, who put down his hat and badge after he'd lost everything in some tragic accident! Or at least that's what the official verdict was. But after finding out the culprit and bringing him to justice, undoubtedly after a fierce flintlock fight, then a cart pursuit, culminating in a faithful final showdown on a bridge. After his loved ones were able to rest in peace, he started drifting from town to town, not really knowing what he was looking for...

Then again, the coat itself was very well kept. There certainly weren't any bullet holes or traces of tobacco on it. Oh well, so much for that idea, she figured forlornly.

Maybe he was a secret agent instead? It'd certainly be childish for her to even assume that, but one could only wonder. Rainbow Dash would certainly agree with her, if maybe a bit too quickly.

A loyal spy, in service of the crown... or some other faction. Maybe he had gadgets somewhere on his coat...?
Oh, but that would be just foalish. If that were the case, then under what presence of mind would he willingly expose himself like this? Surely there isn't anything wrong with the garment, save for its unreasonable size...

Just then, a very unladylike shout in surprise came from her mouth.

"What's wrong?" he inquired.

"What is wrong with your pockets?!"

"Didn't I already tell you? Dimensional mishap. They're bigger on the inside."

"You... huh?"

She recalled him saying it. She was not, however, expecting her hoof to disappear into the coat's pockets like that.

She took a while to decide how to react to that. During which he took the initiative. "Honestly, I did not find it that surprising. It's just a lot roomier than its size would let on. Certainly you've seen weirder things until now?"

"Oh, well... as a matter of fact...." Pinkie Pie still takes the cake. "...Maybe I did overreact a bit. But I would've certainly liked to know beforehoof! For a moment there I thought I lost half my leg!"

"Oh, ugh... sorry about that then."

No harm done, they were laughing about it later on. Hard.

Rarity later told him about how she was running a discount on men's wear. Buy one item, get any other item at half price. So, he took a deep blue shirt with silver trimming running along the sides of his back, and a dark brown zipper vest with similar golden trimming.

He honestly couldn't bring himself to decide what to pick on his own. He was torn between either the blue vest and red tie, or the gray vest and bow tie. Rarity insisted that wearing an unbuttoned shirt would be much more appealing than either. They came to a compromise.

His final look could be described as, generally, snazzy. Reserved, even a bit sophisticated, yet at the same time easygoing. Maybe the trims could've possibly seemed pretentious, but the Doctor pulled it off without a doubt. He liked it, and was assured that his overcoat would turn out to match the rest of his attire splendidly.
It wasn't too hot either.

When he left, the sun was near setting. He would've preferred looking for that famed Vinyl character he'd heard about today, buuut he reconsidered. It's been a long day for him, and coming around to ask her about a job at this hour would not be beneficial. One thing he'd learned by now, was that people are often less likely to kick you out of their office in the morning, before they woke up properly but were still energetic enough to bother to listen to what you'd have to say.

So he head straight for home, ready to put this day behind him. This unprecedentedly productive day.

Why was he having so much trouble so far? Because he was a fish out of water. This wasn't his element... no, that wasn't it. Was he simply not trying hard enough? No, that's not it either. Rather, he simply wasn't compelled to succeed. Understandably, trying to do something you genuinely are not enjoying can only end in failure, notwithstanding the disappointment of the effort he was trying to force himself to like doing despite himself.

Why was he going out of his way to be something other than what he was? Was there really no other alternative?

Things were finally starting to look up. So why was he upset about it?

As he arrived at Ditzy's, he was first greeted by Dotes. She did not seem in a very friendly mood. "My, don't you look stunning, Doctor!" she greeted him, a fair bit of edge to her tone. "I hope there's some money left for your rent."

"There's enough for my stay so far, if you're going to force the door on me. Plus, I think I might've gotten a lead on a few jobs I can actually do eventually." Just need to advertise his ability to fix clocks, and he'll get himself a clock shop in no time. Also there's Vinyl, and the whole physician idea for spares.

"I'll admit, it's reassuring to know that you're at least getting somewhere. But it's still too early to celebrate. You haven't found a decent, stable source of income just yet."

"Yeah, yeah, thanks for the reminder. I'll make sure to get a hold of a decent income and leave your house as soon as possible. After all, I've worn out my welcome already, haven't I?"

She didn't say anything else.

"Anyway, I'm beat. If you need me, I'll be in my room, resting."

That retort sprung a curious look on Dotes' face, but nothing more. It was the second time she'd ever heard him say he was tired. She supposed he really did do a workout at the farm.

Time Lord physiology aside, they still fatigue. Obviously. By design, any muscular system produces excess serotonin after prolonged physical exertion, which still requires time to clear out. It's actually a failsafe, keeping you from exerting your muscles too much and cause (micro)fractures (which are actually what cause muscle pains). He's neither human nor pony, but he still shares the same stuff which all creatures' musculature is made of. Apparently getting rid of those pains immediately by whatever creative improvement wasn't considered a worthwhile evolutionary endeavor. Not like it would've been unfair or unreasonable in any way...

And of course, the one time he actually felt tired enough to crash into bed was the time Ditzy came up to him and asked to go out on a meeting. That they had something important to discuss regarding their future relationship.

She didn't even give him a chance to change out of his outfit, or drop off his backpack. Not like he was about leaving them behind anyway. After all, with his luck, the Boogiemare or something might come and attack the town tonight. He didn't even need to know of a "bloodthirsty monster" in order to wish to be prepared. After all, there was no harm in having his screwdriver at arm's length.

It was pretty dark in town. The gas lamps shone murkily in the night, the moon shone brightly down on them, yet the Doctor still felt anxious.

"Why couldn't this wait until tomorrow again?" he asked the mare.

"Well, I really did need to get this off my chest." she decided to lie.

"...Which reminds me. Did you tell Dotes about me not having amnesia yet?"

"Oh yeah, about that. I just figured that it might be best to wait until you get a hold of a decent income. Then I won't feel too bad about kicking you out on your flank afterwards."

"Yeesh... good call."

"Yeah... Anyway, how was your day? All you said before you left again was how helpful Pinkie was."

"Again, we can talk about that in the morning. Where are we heading to anyway?"

"You'll see soon enough. It's not much further."

Twilight's library came into view. The lights were out. It seemed they've closed for the day, the Doctor thought. Which was why he was surprised when they stopped at its doorstep.

"Well, here we are." she spoke out in front of the entrance to the library.

"What, here? Isn't it closed?"

Ditzy crept a smile. "So you don't know anything after all. Good." As she opened the door and pulled him inside by his leg.

It was pitch black inside. Time Lord eyes are great with large distances, but they're not cat's eyes. He was about to protest, when the lights got turned on, momentarily disorienting him.

All around him, he heard people yell out in unison, "Surprise!"

Once his eyes adjusted, he found the culprits. Apparently the whole town had snuck in, waiting for people to walk in so they can scare them by yelling 'surprise' at them. For what reason, he's yet to figure out.

"Okay, so I'm surprised! Good job. But you really shouldn't yell so hard, this is a library after all."

The townsponies seemed a bit confused at his reaction. Did he do something to confuse them?

"Anyway, why are you all gathered here in the dark? It's a little late to read a book..."

He looked around to see more of their faces. They all seemed even more confused.

He also noticed confetti and streamers hanging around.

"And what's with all the decorations around? It almost looks like you're having a party here..."

Heard that? That's the sound of a light bulb finally turning on in the Doctor's head.

"This is a surprise party, isn't it?!" he chortled out. Everyone else seemed to cheer up at the sight. "Well blimey, that seems like fun! Who are we surprising?"

Everyone was dumbstruck. Ditzy poked on his shoulder, then pointed him upwards.

There was a huge banner right above and in front of him, with the words "Welcome to Ponyville, Doctor!" written across.

"Oooh." he finally sounded out in slow realization.

Everyone started laughing, and the music started singing. Some simple, default club music. Not at all outstanding. He'll have to change that. And he will, momentarily. As soon as he finds out why Pinkie just appeared in front of him this time.

"Hey, Doctor! Me and Ditzy arranged for this surprise party to welcome you to Ponyville! Were you surprised? Oh, but you did say you were surprised earlier. Heh, it was pretty funny how you took so long to figure out what just happened! You're pretty slow sometimes, aren't you Doctor?"

She looked his way again, only to notice him missing. Only Ditzy remained, waving awkwardly at her.

Then the music stopped. The two looked towards the DJ stand to find him beside Vinyl, with a microphone headpiece strapped on... which we can only assume was his.

Which he then proceeded to tap a few times with his hoof to check if it was working, then speak to everyone present.

"Good evening, every pony! I'm very happy to see that you've all gone out of your way to welcome me. It's all simply brilliant to see you all here to have fun! But unfortunately, I will have to inform you that tonight you will not be attending any party..." They all gasped in disappointment and Pinkie let out an indignant outburst, before he continued. "...No. You will not be attending just any normal party. Because when you invite the Doctor, you should very well be ready to have no ordinary party. And when you go out of your way to throw it just for him, well..."

He reached out to his saddlebag, which he placed aside the stand, and took out a flash drive which he proceeded to jack in and press a button on it. Soon, the speakers started up again, playing a song which he found most befitting to play to greet everyone. Or rather, the instrumental version. He filled in the voice.

I did say his voice became thinner.

He then reached out for his pack again, pulled out his old 3D glasses and got back to the microphone, where he finally continued, "...then you better expect to have a time of your life!"

The crowd cheered him on as he went ahead through them, making a b-line for Ditzy. "May I have this dance, madam?"

She blushed, but the crowd cheered her on. Not like she needed any more reason to humor him.

Fun times all around. The night is young, and the Doctor is jealously trying to show her what for!

"They ask me, Doctor Whoooooooo?
But I gotta be Doctor Whooooooo..."

Author's Note

When I saw Loop make out with the pink lollipop model I WAS thinking about the Doctor making out with Pinkie. But meh, it's all convoluted enough as is. Let's just unwind for now.

Please don't bother the guy who uploaded the music video. He's a hapless victim caught in the crossfire.

I won't spoil anything, but I'll say this much. Their relationship was meant as a side thing. I couldn't care less which direction it went. It could've gone nowhere, maintaining his stupid celibacy he was holding for whatever reason, or maybe the punch here could've been spiked and Ditzy could've decided to have a little fun, putting the Doctor in an awkward position. Anything could happen when you add a little alcohol in the mix. Even Marilyn Monroe.
I could also argue that Ditzy is motivated enough, but really, you don't need much motivation to do something stupid while drunk. Her last few days were a bit hectic, she was bound to want to have a little fun tonight...

...dulls down the Time Pony.

Author's Note

Honestly, the only reason I took this choice was because the other option would've turned their relationship into a childish, tripe, schoolyard romance. Beside how stupid that kind of genre is, it had also been done to death around this site. Not to mention it would ultimately be insulting and pathetic to subject the Doctor to something of the like, as well as multiple different shades of retarded to subject Ditzy to it.

(*) It could go either way. Between all the rehashes I did in this story, I don't even care anymore. Either Ditzy hospitalized Twilight, or she didn't. However, I wanted to make the point that this wasn't the base dimension. As you might've noticed, this version of the mailmare has a lot of further depth and baggage than a background character would ever have any right to have, let alone one from a frilly frou frou world like Equestria. There's also the matter of her having a specific reason for her eye problem, unlike how it's up to interpretation for the original background character.

The only reason I turned Equestria into Feyraltia, however, was because this wasn't exactly the same Equestria as the original. This was the version where the Doctor landed. It's like I said in the description. I made this tale as an intersection of two worlds, to that end I took the liberty of making it a little more war and death-filled, like the Doctor's universe. All for the sake of settling the Time Lord in a setting where we could explore him properly. If you wanted a silly little adventure where he saved the planet of Equus, look for any other tale in the Doctor Whooves section. My gimmick, however, is not stupid adventures. It's inner conflict. I wanted to make this story to explore both the ancient Time Lord, and the world of Fairy Tale.

(**) Yes, the same weeds that Discord planted a thousand years ago, with the intention of destroying the Tree of Harmony. Said tree managed to hold its own ever since, but I like to believe that some of the seeds actually had the presence of mind to give up after, say, a hundred years? And go eat something else. If you don't like this idea, then just imagine it's some other deadly plant that resides in the Everfree. There are plenty of wood and rock based creatures there anyway. Might as well have a Venus Fly Trap that's actually deadly.
I'm thinking something which was still part of the Venus Weed genus.

...dulls down the Time Pony.

Next day. Ditzy woke up early in the morning, with a splitting headache and feeling like a backed up toiled. She took a while to notice a hoof over her, and the Doctor under her head. She took a while to figure out what was happening. Why was he in her bed?

She looked at him as incredulously as she could in her groggy state. He didn't as much as shift his gaze when he greeted her. "Morning, dear."

She was dumbstruck. "We didn't..." her memories of last night coming back to her.

"We did." he retorted, still staring at the ceiling, face riddled with worry.

She laid her head back against him and started to study the ceiling as well. "So..." she interrupted the silence. "Now what?"

"Now, we wash. Then we're having breakfast."

Apparently she hadn't really drunk enough to black out, otherwise that would've been incredibly irresponsible of her. What happened last night? Well, all in all, it was all very clumsy. She didn't jump him, nor did he take advantage of her. They just...

They returned from the party, happy as can be. She was laughing liberally, her alcohol level allowing her to be a bit brazen.

"So, did you have fun tonight?" the Doctor asked her.

Next thing he knew, he was with his back against the wall beside the entrance to her home, with Ditzy all over him French style. His eyes opened wide, apparently not really having any trouble with the alcohol he'd had. Either he took it easy, or he'd just now broken down the alcohol in his blood out of shock and desire to figure out what was going on.

She broke away, slowly, looking him in the eye. She had no trouble focusing on him, she was calm and focused. She wasn't that drunk at all. She knew what she was doing. The Doctor returned an uncertain look, one which she was expecting. She sighed and asked him, "Tell me, Doctor. How long has it been since you've been with a woman?"

The look in his eye only continued to draw her back in. She wondered what was going on inside his head. He looked tired and alone, like he'd been running from something he couldn't even remember anymore, for longer than he could remember. Like he was dragging along the world on his shoulders. And she saw, he really wanted to love her back, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it.

She reached back in, and this time he didn't hold back.

She went second. When she got out of the shower, the Doctor had finished making breakfast.

Seasoned omelets with cheese, buttered toast, and oatcakes for desert. Plenty of freshly squeezed orange juice aside. As soon as she noticed the latter, she laid waste to it. The shower helped, but she still had to filter the alcohol out of her system. Coffee would've been good too.

Everything went on without incident. Dotes didn't seem to give her much thought. Which wasn't reassuring her all that much.

They talked about last night. How it was, whether they had fun. Whether Dinky behaved. Dotes remained home to foalsit, so she wouldn't know what the party was like. So she was happy to find out about how the two of them got along so well.

Wait.

"...Could you repeat that, Dosey?"

Her sister smiled at her. "I said that I'm glad to learn that you're happy together. Even if I might not completely agree with your choice, I suppose you could've picked a lot worse."

"...So, you're not mad at us any more?"

"Of course I'm still mad!" holding down a traitorous smile. "You did keep a secret from me... And I'm still expecting you to find a job, mister!" Dinky was giggling at her aunt's pretending to scold the other two. "And you're not going to finish up in time at that rate, missy!"

"Sorry, aunt Dosey." the child rang, faking a pout.

She gave her niece a quick muzzle before getting up to wash her own plate. "And you two still need to learn to keep it down." as she passed the other two.

"Maybe you should stop being such a light sleeper!" Ditzy retorted blushingly.

She was answered with a wink and a tongue out.

Ditzy didn't know if she was relieved that she didn't have to deal with her sister, or if she preferred a fight rather than deal with this now. She realized, the only reason why Dotes wasn't upset was because... well, she trusted her. She trusted her judgment, and saw that if she really loved him that much, then she needed to respect her decision.

Once they were alone again, there was an awkward silence. Ditzy sighed. "So... about this morning."

"Yeah, about that..." he stalled, gathering his thoughts. He wasn't managing very well. "Do you remember what I told you the night before? About becoming a couple not being a good idea?"

Her ears drooped. "Yes, I remember. Time Lord longevity, right? I can't exactly stick around as long as you can. So... what now?"

He looked away, finding the clock on the wall. "I think you should go to work. We can figure this out later."

He got up and walked out the door. Leaving her alone and confused. That was what he did best, after all. Cause a mess then run away.

In the afternoon. Ditzy was hard at work.

"Well?" Raindrops asked her eventually.

"Well what?" Ditzy asked back coldly, picking up a cardboard box from the pile.

"Are you going to tell me how it went last night?" the sunny mare asked as she picked up her own box.

The wally-eyed mare didn't appear in a gossiping mood. Her sunny friend decided she'd try to cheer her up. "It went... better than I'd hoped. We're going to talk about it later in the day."

They reached the air truck and unloaded their boxes on it, then Drops started again. "Seriously? What's holding you two back?"

"Nothing much. He's just afraid of becoming a widow again."

Now would be a good time to remind you that Ditzy is a little brash in her honesty. Suppose at least this way she makes sure there's no room for misinterpretation.

Raindrops missed a wingbeat registering what her friend just said. She stared at her, mouth opening and closing as she wanted to say a few things, but then thought better.

They both carried another pair of boxes to the moving truck, then looked back down to see the forestallion waving them over, aside from their other coworkers. It seemed that they were loading the couch next.

On their way down, Drops finally spoke. "You sure you're going to be okay?"

"I'm fine. Let's just focus on the job for now, okay? I could use a distraction."

The couch was reasonably heavy, but they all pulled their share. It certainly wasn't as heavy as the cart, though. Why did they need all of this transported through air truck, anyway? Were they really in that much of a hurry to recover their potted plants? Hopefully the pegasi on pulling duty would be able to keep the craft steady, though that wasn't Ditzy's worry. She noticed her eye was wandering off again.(*)

Elsewhere, shortly after his little banter with Ditzy this morning, the Doctor went on a short stride into the largely potentially dangerous Everfree Forest. He didn't know what he was doing. He just started to run as soon as he'd went through the doorway, straight for the thicket, with only a vague idea as to what he was planning.

He'd had enough. Enough waiting, enough pretending like he was normal, enough trying to ignore the shadows dancing around his peripherals. He was taking back the offensive.

He knew he was being watched. All this time he could sense a eyes on him, shying away just as he turned his gaze upon their owners. When the town was empty, he turned the corner. When he first went to visit Zecora, he was hiding in the bushes and behind tree trunks. When he was working in the apple orchard, this Hooded Pony was staring at him from the shadows of the Everfree.

He knew all along. He just wasn't as motivated as he was now to do something about it. Even if what he was doing was arguably one of the most stupid things he'd ever done in his entire life. Say, top 30 at least.

This Hooded Pony was directly involved with his arrival here. It worked from the shadows, watching him. It wanted something from him. But more than that, there was something else the Doctor deduced.

The only reason this stranger... let's call him Hoodie for now. The only reason Hoodie would've ever wanted to stop Ditzy from hospitalizing him was because it would hurt the timeline. The effects were only secondary, the fact that ponies would risk more than they gained was manageable in the long run! They could even continue to use his blood until they figured out the next remedy after the next remedy. The real thing at risk was that time tends to snap back around to its previous default state either one way or another. Ponies would die in order to maintain that balance, and a few other families would just have a few extra children to compensate and fill up the void. There would, however, be a backlash...

Yeah, long story short. Changing the timeline, bad. Very, very bad. Extremely so. That's item one. Item two is, that the Doctor was already destined to bring about whatever calamity in the near future. "To be chained and broken; and the Doctor forgotten." He'd need to be alive to allow for the timeline to do its thing, otherwise the repercussions would just keep on escalating indefinitely, potentially shattering time in the long run!

...So he's going to need to survive. And Hoodie will most likely want to make sure of that, as he already did that first night. Therefore, the Doctor's plan was to try and get himself killed...

Okay, maybe not 30. Top 40? 50? No? Yes? Maybe?

It had been far too long since the last time he had a good run. The sound of his twin hearts beating in his chest like drums, the pleasant high of adrenaline, the sweat on his back...
Okay, the sweaty fur was not that fun. He just bathed this morning.

Oh well. That should be the least of his worries for now.

'Let's see... timberwolves? Nah, too unpredictable. Ursa Major? Not entirely certain where its den is. Plunderweed?(**) Hmm...'

He knew about most of the local dangers from his studies, which gave him room to make backup plans in case Hoodie didn't show up. The Doctor did still consider the possibility of maybe forgetting some detail in his theory. With Plunderweed, he had more than enough leeway to run away should things go south. A close second was the Ursa Major, which he'd hoped he could evade, then the Gravel Python. What he didn't want to come across were timberwolves, any ambush spiders, or any cockatrices.

Unfortunately, however, that was exactly what he tripped over when he tried to vault over a larger tree root.

He was fairly certain that he saw what appeared to be a large serpent, as well as a white-feathered body of what he assumed to be a chicken head. He didn't take long to regain his footing, but he most certainly didn't have a second glance to check.

Honestly. He did not find the concept of being turned to stone very exciting.

Soon enough he started hearing some rather ominous beastial cry. The sound of a chicken clucking slowed down to an unearthly growling. Beside it sounding like your worst nightmare, it also sounded angry. Luckily, it didn't take much effort to outrun the slow fiend. Still, better safe than sorry. Let's just cover a little more ground before taking any chances and checking to see if he lost it.

He covered what seemed like the length of three football fields (soccer for those itching for a fight) before he slowed down. Then he laid down aside from a tree to rest and waited intently, listening carefully.

No clucking, no slithering. Good.

He looked himself over. Mud stains all over his legs and lower barrel, suppose the rainwater hadn't dried up entirely from a couple nights before. There were also a few places where he noticed his coat got ruffled and cut, but nothing outstanding. He's surprised to notice how well protected he is. A few thorns would've gone straight through his humanoid skin, but currently his coat kept most of it out, and his underlying skin was too think for anything to as much as scratch him.

As he studied himself, however, he noticed something else. A few golden markings appeared along his right foreleg. "Oh, right. I wasn't supposed to leave town..." was what he said, right before the markings started glowing bright and he heard a moderately peeved female voice ring in his head.

"Indeed, you were not."

"...Celestia?"

"I've interrupted a meeting to ask you why you're running through the Everfree Forest. I hope you have a good reason for it."

"Of course I do! I was running from a cockatrice!"

She chuckled. "You know what I mean."

"Alright alright... would you believe me if I said that I just wanted to go pay Zecora a visit?"

"Would it be true?"

"...Yes."

"Doctor, don't lie to me."

"Wait... is there a lie detector on this thing?"

"You might recall me mentioning at Fortune Holds how I've known you for a while now. Of course there's a lie detector."

"Fair enough..." He scratched the back of his head. "...Would it be enough if I just said I only wanted to clear my head and figure a few things out? A lot has happened lately and I just needed to get it all into perspective..."

"...From within a dangerous forest where one wrong step and you might find yourself in a manticore's den?"

"Hey! I haven't had a good workout since I've arrived here! I'm counting on stepping into a manticore's den!"

"I'm certain you could just as easily jog through town."

"You know what I mean." he repeated her, chidingly.

She sighed. "You do realize how much you're worrying me now, aren't you?"

'Not really. I can't see your face.' "It's not like you'd lose that much, though." He got up and started trotting through the brushes. "I die here, what's the worst thing that could happen?" He didn't expect her to know anyway. After all, time was his thing.

She sighed and relented. "I have every faith in you being able to get out of there should things go south..."

"Then what is it?"

"You just seem a bit distraught is all."

"Distraught? Me? Nah."

"You just said a lot of things happened lately. Perhaps you'd like to talk about them?"

"Oh, you don't need to worry about me." as he slid down a bit of ground. "I've just been feeling a bit cooped up, that's all."

"Doctor..."

"Alright alright, so that was a lie. Look, I don't want to talk about it, okay? I'm not even sure how I'm feeling about it myself..."

"Very well then. Just remember that you can talk to me if there's anything ailing you."

"...I can?" He asked surprised.

She chuckled again. "In mail. I've sent Twilight a letter explaining that you may ask Spike to send me messages should anything bother you, even if it's not anything life threatening."

He stopped for a moment. "That's pretty thoughtful of you."

"It really is no issue. After all, what are friends for?"

"I'm not sure. You're certain you're not going to start hating my guts eventually? Cause I seem to have an amazing knack for inspiring homicidal desires in royalty... or romantic desires. Or romantic desires soon followed by homicidal ones."

"I'm certain. Be careful out there." as the glowing finally faded.

'Okay, maaaaybe she isn't as bad as I suspected her to be...'

He might've had great senses, but he could still get lost in the ever-changing tide of plantlife just as easily as anyone else. He considered climbing a tree, but the trunks were too wide to brace around. Not that he'd be able to climb either way. He'd need some leverage of some sort.

He considered turning back. He was not entirely certain if he was still being watched by his would-be stalker or some hungry predators at this point. Not like he was explicitly expecting anything to appear just a few feet further into the thicket, besides maybe a pitfall or some giant spider nest. Or a giant spider nest at the bottom of a pitfall...

He decided to be more careful where he placed his steps, but turned left instead of furthering deeper into the forest. No sense in getting too far away from civilization.

Half an hour later, he came across a few vines. He figured he might as well take a small break and fashion a rope to climb one of the trees. He pulled the vine, which pulled back, then snapped back into the thicket. Before long, a couple of massive plants slithered back out and regarded him in a predatory manner. They were vaguely reminiscent of the Venus Fly Trap, only black, a lot bigger, moving with a lot more initiative, with clouds of powder emanating from their mouths, and shrieking something terrible. Yep, these most likely were the plants he'd been looking for.

"Only two of you?" he asked the plants in an almost disappointed tone.

Then a dozen more appeared, surrounding him.

"...Ambush tactics? Seems you're more intelligent than I thought. This should be interesting..."

There it is. Nothing quite like the sense of dread for life to get the blood flowing. He'd missed this.

Of course, this might just be where he died. Meh, they were just plants. They couldn't be that hard to handle, could they?

'Why did I think this was a good idea?' he asked himself as he was dangling from a canopy, bound tightly by one of the plants.

They gave up on trying to poison him with their powders a while ago, when they noticed that he could hold his breath for the last ten minutes without showing any issue. Time Lords could actually hold their breath for a lot longer than that, and this particular one had learned a technique a while back from some monks on an alien planet in the Perdallion district. He could save his breath for days if he had to, so long as he focused and stood still.

His plan was to play possum and wait for his stalker to make a move. Unfortunately, Cloakie didn't come out yet. Maybe he was waiting for the plants to finally get hungry enough to chow down. A concept which didn't bode well with the Doctor.

He had studied on their behavior. Apparently they didn't like to eat their prey fresh. They'd rather coat it in a powder which preserved it, both inside and out, for later preparation. Which meant covering it in the stuff and making sure it got in the inside. Somehow. The Doctor didn't really learn how they got it on the inside. He just assumed they would first want to pacifying him with the paralytic gas they've been currently using, and then he'd find out in an immobile state.

He was not paralyzed, but that didn't mean they were willing to wait for him to fall asleep either.

Soon enough another vine appeared. This one had a long, sharp syringe-like thorn at its tip. He saw enough.

He took a very fervent bite out of the vine holding him in place, stronger than his chompers would've agreed to in his current panicked state. That act not only loosened his captor's grasp, but it started to fling him around trying to get him off. At the current force, he reconsidered letting go, but he didn't really have much choice.

He got slammed against a large tree trunk. He could swear he heard the sound of cracking wood upon his impact, before he fell in the thicket below. He shook his head. As he came to, he noticed the Plunderweeds approaching him with what could be recognized as anger in their motions.

As they charged him, he decided he didn't really want to have anything to do with them any more..

Dodged the first two who slammed right into the bark where he was only a split second ago, expecting him to stick around and take their wrath. Took a roll and jumped a couple feet away. Headed for another hedge, but he knew they were working to intercept. He maintained his trajectory for precisely two more seconds before he made a sharp turn right. A moment later, he heard them smash into the ground where he would've been earlier. He estimated their primitive reaction time well. A few strides later and he got out of their range.
Lucky they're rooted.

Welp, that plan was a bust. Still, it was definitely fun. If not for the ribs he could've broken... oh wait. Earth pony magic. No wonder he only felt slightly bruised.

He continued at a slow trot for a few more feet, considering how he just missed his chance to find out where he is. Oh well, he probably would've just slipped on the rotting bark and sprayed his ankle anyway. No use berating himself over what could've been.

He didn't know why the locals were so afraid of approaching the forest. So far all he needed to do was be careful.

Half an hour later he could hear the sound of flowing water. As he followed the sound he reached a stream.
"Thank the heavens. I'm parched."

He contemplated how much of a bad habit it is to talk to himself as he took a few generous gulps, before he splashed his face.

It was near noon now, according to the sun barely visible through the canopy there. He was only slightly tired.

After he washed some of the dirt and poisonous powders off, he was troubled to notice a rather large cut under his right eye. Suppose earth pony magic can do wonders, but not miracles.

He recounts the map he read the first day he arrived. From what he can recall, and he can recall it perfectly, there is only one river running closest to Ponyville, added from the tributaries filtered from Froggy Bottom Bog. The other closest river would be a few miles off to the south, and he hasn't been running that far away.

Now he knows where to go. Up the stream, up to the swamp, then south-east. It shouldn't take him too long to find his way back to the path to Ponyville. This entire trip has proven to be a bust. Best to just cut his losses.

On his way, he encountered a certain sea serpent.

He was sort of surprised, but then he recalled Twilight telling him about the river guardian she and her friends helped during their little escapade to save Equestria from eternal night...

Not only would it be Feyraltia, not Equestria, but it would also be saving all life from a rather harsh diet of mushrooms, moss and night thistles, among other things. It would've been extremely harsh on most ponies, but he's rather confident that it wouldn't actually provoke the planet to freeze over...

Oh, he's getting sidetracked. The serpent was sporting a mullet, and a massive moustache fading into purple on one side. He was just idly swimming by the river in a serpentine, if not maybe flamboyant fashion, singing some tune to himself. He noticed him, and waved him heartily hello.

"Why hello there! It's not often that I come across ponies running around the forest. What brings you here?"

He cultivated a big, honest grin, with some rather impressive fangs. Wouldn't want to get on his bad side now...

"Oh, nothing much. Just got bored and went for a stroll was all. Change of scenery and all that..."

"Really? Well, I suppose I can understand you wanting to change the scenery, but I wouldn't exactly say that deciding to running alone through the Everfree would be the best of ideas..." the serpent looked concernedly at him.

"Yeah, well, nothing like a little danger looming in the shadows to get the blood flowing, I always say. I actually ran into a few of the less hospitable denizens earlier, but I honestly didn't have that much trouble getting away from them... Anyway, I was on my way back to town right now. Could you tell me how much further away it is?"

"Well, if you went straight at a constant trot, you could possibly manage it in, say, an hour? Maybe less if you hurry. But I would never suggest as much. Unless, of course, you knew the layout of the forest as well as Zecora does."

"You know Zecora?"

"Oh yes! She stops by daily to chat. Such a dear, and she always speaks in rhymes! How lovely is that? We just had tea not too long ago."

"I'm glad to hear you two get along. I was honestly worrying about her not having anyone else to talk to."

"I honestly don't know why she can't get along with the other locals. It's just such a terrible shame that she needs to live all alone in the middle of the woods like that..."

"Yeah, living on your own certainly isn't something to take lightly. What about you?"

"Me? Well, I really don't have that problem. Us river guardians keep in touch."

"You do?"

The serpent then demonstrated what he meant. He shook his tail a few times under the water, then a wave of foam went down the river.
"We have a kind of a messaging system. Of course, it takes a while to have an entire conversation, but we really don't have all that much else to do all day. The younger ones like to call them phoam messages, with a ph, for whatever reason..."
Bloody hipsters.

About half a minute had passed and another wave arrived back, stopping at the serpent's base. He chortled to himself. "Clarice says hi, by the way."

"Fascinating..."

"Zecora found it impressive as well. She might still be at the camp... Come on now!" as he grabbed him and placed him at the back of his head. "We might still find her."

They sped up the river quite quickly. A lot faster than he'd take on hoof, but not enough for him to worry about falling off.

"You were quite quick to offer this ride. Thank you earnestly, but I can't help but wonder if there weren't any strings attached..."

"What ever do you mean?" the guardian asked in badly faked shock.

"It just seemed as though you were looking forward to having me have a talk to her is all. A little too forward, maybe."

The serpent finally gave in, and offered with a blemish, "Well, I'd be lying if I said I was also a bit concerned regarding how lonely she might get... As you've also mentioned yourself..."

"Ah ha..." in a deadpan tone.

They were still a while away. The serpent thought he could still convince him.
"I'm most certainly not expecting you to go out of your way or anything. Just, you know... ride the wave for a while. See where it goes before you dismiss it!"

"I'll take your advice to heart." the Doctor placated, although certainly in no hurry to actually humor him.

Trying to get back on course was what he's been trying to do ever since he arrived on this bloody planet. He's most definitely not looking forward to getting pulled further at sea.

Eventually they reached the campfire. A rudimentary rock circle, close to a large, flat rock to act as a table. The fire was still running, but Zecora wasn't anywhere to be found. Suppose she had other things to do than stick around on her lonesome in the middle of the woods for too long a period.

"Which way to her hut?" the Doctor asked.

"Over there." the serpent pointed towards what appeared to be a slightly beaten patch of dirt. "I assume she wouldn't make her home too far away from the river without a reason, but if you'll go, I'll wait here in case she comes by."

"Thanks, I appreciate it."

"Don't worry about it. Just consider what I've told you, would you please? If not for Zecora's sake, then at least for yours."

"... I beg your pardon?"

The serpent gave a knowing smile, and converted from his so far carefree joy to something... unexpected. Something wise.

"I might not get many visitors, but I don't really need company as much as a pony might. River guardians don't need friends. However, I know when I see someone longing for something they can't bring themselves to reach out for. Zecora would be one. She came to these lands and denied herself a part of herself. She longs for home, that much is plain to see even by me. But you... you're on quite a different spectrum.
She talked about you lately. Someone even she does not envy. I see in your eyes what she was talking about."

The Doctor didn't have a response to that. He just stared, reeling back from comprehension.

Eventually he finally turned to leave. There were no words he could find fitting for a farewell at the moment. He couldn't face the serpent. He would've wanted to finally ask for its name, but right now... he didn't really want to know any more.

Where fates intersect

Author's Note

(*) What, you expect me to explain everything now? I'm giving you ample time to figure it out on your own until you reach the part where I explain everything.

(**) I'm considering calling them Stranglethorn vines instead, but it sounds a bit unoriginal.

This chapter, we take a look inside the Doctor's head. What his gripe with relationships is. As a general rule, he had been married four times, all deceased, (including River Song and Scarlette) and all of his children and grandchildren were missing and assumed dead, including Jenny. You can thank Clara Oswald for this data, from when she was lying to the Cybermen that she was the Doctor herself. So yes, the man has his hands full.

In order for his character to evolve, he needs to first gain something to lose, then face the risk of losing it.
This is especially difficult with regards to the Doctor. He's both too stubborn to change willingly, and too afraid of a relationship. He's also extremely tricky and complicated. I would rather not go as far as liking him to a mountain, but he's certainly no open ~~book~~pamphlet either.

Crossroads might seem rather like the stereotypical, mysterious hooded stranger, but he has a lot of roles which could not be left unmanned. He is required to tie the story together.

The origins of his technology/magic are to be revealed on part 2, together with an adequate explanation regarding what the animals said regarding a bloodthirsty animals. I haven't forgotten about that, but it won't be hard to guess by the end of this part. Still, as a preemptive explanation, I will explain that no, he doesn't have Mr. Hyde-itis.

Where fates intersect

The path led him deeper into the thicket. Everything appeared the same, there were no distinguishable landmarks to be spoken of. The Doctor tried to tell his position, but all he could focus on were the serpent's words. Go with the flow? It certainly seemed like something an aquatic creature would say, all irony put aside. Unfortunately, even if the serpent was right, from his own narrow perspective, he wasn't exactly deciding his debate, now was he? Just telling him to be aware of the woman in front of him.

He could say it wasn't that simple without it being a cheap excuse. He had that right. He lived long enough, he was not being thick about it. He was entirely aware of why he didn't want any further relationships.

First and fattest one was, his PTSD. After destroying Gallifrey, on which, might I add, were his entire race including his own children and grandchildren. After that, he felt a bit reluctant to ever pursue any kind of life which would essentially be the core of what a race meant. Family. He killed his family, and he did not want to allow himself the comfort and happiness of ever experiencing what he'd denied to such a grand scale.

Secondly, it was above and beyond just simply missing her. He could honestly live with that. It wasn't a pain that never went away, just something he'd have to deal with. Something he was forced to accept. Remembering those he missed would stop hurting as soon as he accepted that they were gone. Leaving aside the guilt, which would never go away. Grief, however, would eventually turn to melancholy and longing. He accepted that he would never see his loved ones again, and kept his past behind him.

That was what he was really running away from. From longing. It was quite understandable, actually. You miss someone, so you seek comfort. Most often, with that in mind, he would seek thrills in adventure. To feel alive for those who no longer could, whether he'd denied them or not.

He accepted that he was never going to see his loved ones again, because he had no choice. And with accepting came a hole. By giving up on ever seeing them again, holes appeared in his heart where he used to hold the those loved ones. Every lost friend or family member took a chunk of his heart with them. And again, he went on his travels in order to try to fill those openings. He sought to become high on life, to get as far away as possible, until he'd manage to cloud the bad and focus on the good. He refused to feel sad about the memories he had. He would never regret his accomplishments and relationships, but cherish and celebrate them.

As a general rule, he had been married three times so far, all deceased, (including Scarlette, also remember that he'd yet to meet River Song quite yet) and all of his children and grandchildren were missing and assumed dead, including Jenny. He refused to accept that those lives, and his time spent with them, were meaningless. He refused to believe that those memories were anything but wonderful. They were his world, after all. And that was what the world and life meant: That both the good, and the bad, come then go.

He accepted that fact... which made him disconnected to a degree. His accepting the losses as inevitabilities weren't making him afraid of future relationships, but doing so did do one thing. It made the idea of any further relationships seem unappealing fundamentally. It wasn't remorse, or fear. It was psychological. There was a part of him that went missing, and any attempt to re-fill that hole would never truly fit, no matter how much he were to try. That was, if he met someone that measured up.

Which left Ditzy at a rather serious disadvantage.

He felt he did stumble upon someone... above average. She was adamant, kind, (unhealthily) honest and remarkably brave. She was not unintelligent, proving to be quite perceptive and daring to think for herself. She was a caring and wonderful mother. She was not unattractive, for a creature from a different species entirely, which was a matter which the Time Lord was already used to looking past by now (as well as genders). He did think of other humans that way in the past as well ( Rose ), and during their communion a few nights ago, he found that this creature actually hid far more than one would expect inside her head.

Still. How long would they be able to be together? In the end, even a human lifetime would've been ultimately fleeting for him. He'd rather get back to his travels, than get attached to someone just because he felt lonely, and... so very, disconnected. So isolated.

He felt more alone than he'd ever felt in his entire life. What he saw that night in the sky... It was tearing him apart.

Only not really. That was just his excuse. It was pretty bad, but it wouldn't have been able to stop him quite how it did. He'd dealt with worse before, only not like now. Because what the Doctor does, and never fails to do, is push past his problems. Either by using them as motivation, or pushing them down and ignoring them, instead focusing on the task at hand. He ignored something else in favor of the Night Sky Revelation. He failed to push past the latter matter.

Rather than think of something he couldn't let himself accept, he ignored it in favor of focusing on something abhorrent. Rather than look for the wonder in this new world, he looked for reasons why it wasn't real. Rather than just go head-first as he always did, he stopped. He phased out in the train station, and for once in his life, let his fears and emotions defeat him and decide his actions.(*)

He was not one to pray. He never asked for the Universe to help him out, but ever since he arrived, all of his attempts at getting back on his travels only managed to do precisely nothing. Things could've certainly gone better.

Honestly, though, he couldn't quite believe that he was having so much trouble. For one thing, surely he should've managed his money problem by now?

As soon as he asked himself that question, he stopped in his tracks and put a hoof over his face, looking sheepish. He thought back to when the angels brought him back to 1969. He was lucky to have Martha to deal with the money problem. Similarly, he now relied on Ditzy to provide for him!

Normal life. Normal bloody life! Why did he have to lose his Tardis?!

He didn't usually make a habit of asking the Universe for help, but right now? He was pretty dissatisfied with himself. He was going around in circles, he noticed. Both figuratively and literally. To prove his point, a dead end decided to greet him. He only realized once he got through the last thicket. Honestly, the brushes here really were thick.

It was the foot of a steep slope. Far too steep to climb. It appeared his legs didn't take him the right way this time. That must be, what? Two out of three times his running worked out for him? First the cockatrice, carnivorous plants second, and third...

Well, he could hear growling now.

He had expected to have found Zecora's home by now. The serpent was right, she shouldn't have set up too far away from the river. He must have missed a turn in the pathway somewhere. Maybe if he didn't get lost, he wouldn't have landed in this mess now.

He was surrounded. He paid attention, and through the thickets appeared wolves, only made entirely out of wood, roots and moss.

"You must be timberwolves." he spoke to the beasts.

Their response came in the form of approaching him with feral hunger in their glowing eyes.

Running away from dogs had been a bad idea ever since the beginning of time. Facing them, however, would've been worse.

Maybe he could reason with them?

"...Before you do anything you might regret, may I point out that although my flesh might sustain you for, say, a few good weeks... it would actually be a very bad idea to attack me? After all, not only would my peers realize the threat that you possess and be more likely to hunt you all down..."

They seemed to acknowledge his words, as they stopped growling to let that thought sink in. For a few seconds before starting again.

Suppose he can't really blame them. Can't worry about what you'll have for dinner tomorrow when you're starving today. And by the looks in their eyes, he can assume that they are quite hungry indeed.

He continued. "...But I will most certainly not just lay down and give up without a fight. I assure you that I'm no pushover..." They only growled more fiercely at that, although approaching more cautiously now. "I'm a pacifist, so I will allow you to back away now." as he put up a face as certain as he could. Which is, to say, that he looked like he owned the place, and everything you were made of. "Although, whomever thinks he can take me will be sourly disappointed." They didn't look convinced, only weary of his prattling. "Alright. Perhaps a demonstration would be in order?"

They were taken aback in surprise. Now was his chance.

Before they could gain back a hold of their senses, he walked over to a particularly old tree close by. "I could fall this entire tree if I wanted to. Would doing that assuage your worries?"

They were dumbstruck. He supposed that was as good an invitation as he was going to get.

"Okay then. If you would all just move a little closer so you can be certain that you all see this clearly."

They humored him, eying him suspiciously.

"If you would all stand right there... brilliant." as they bunched up in front of him, only a few feet away. Close enough for them to jump him easily, should they decided to do so.

He looked the tree over attentively. Knocked his front hoof against the bark, listening to the sound it gave. Gave it a lick, which weirded the wolves out a bit.

"Okay then, here we go..."

He most certainly knew he wasn't strong enough to fall a tree. However, he did pick up a little trick yesterday on the farm...

He reeled in as far as his balance allowed, then hit the bark as hard as he could.

He then started jumping around on one hind hoof, bracing the other one and whimpering pathetically. It would appear that he didn't plan on favoring one hoof over the other.

The wolves noticed this and, smiling, decided that he was just biding for time. However, as they reeled in to pounce, they failed to notice the rather, large rotten tree branch headed straight for them.

They never saw it coming. They broke apart, the branches forming their legs snapping and their trunks cracking. They were caught mid-jump, a few inches away from his new position. It was like those pieces of wood were never alive in the first place. He didn't have time to regret what he did.

"Alright then." as he finally got back on all fours. "Those were six. Were they the only ones?'

Furious barking drew closer. He received his answer, and he started running like his tail was on fire.

'Guess not then! Sounds like at least seven more.'

One against three was a bad enough idea. All it took was for one of them to distract as the other two pounced and pinned him down. Running away from a dog would only encourage it, but right now he'd rather not just sit idly and get overwhelmed and systematically torn apart.

He started running beside the wall, and of course there was a lone timberwolf charging towards him. Looks like they covered all retreats.

Not much choice left, apparently. He will have to somehow breach the currently shrinking circle, then hope the law of averages didn't catch up to him quite yet.

He didn't have time to turn around and kick, every second standing in place would translate to as much as ten seconds running away, time in which he could figure out what to do next. He might be able to outrun Slitheen, but only because he could outsmart them around the corners.
Here, in the forest, it's the wolves' turf.

He decided to face the beast, clasp it under his front hoof and keep moving while it was recovering.

However, the wolf didn't exactly let itself get stomped on. It had enough common sense to know to avoid the hooves of an earth pony. It evaded his first stomp and threw itself into him to dig its sharp, wooden teeth into his pelt. It had aimed for his throat, but the Doctor threw his left foreleg in front instead, in a reactionary defense. It pierced through, went all the way in and started thrashing around. It would seem that it didn't have the patience to kill him before it wanted to tear a piece of flesh off of him.

The Doctor didn't have time for this. He bit down a yell whilst proceeding with another attempt to stomp, a decision which apparently surprised the wolf. Seems it had expected its prey would simply succumb to instinct and try to pull away from danger, not face it.

He would've been happy to just ground the mutt before, but now the Doctor was genuinely afraid for his life. Fear and adrenaline were starting to cloud even his judgment. He didn't hold back, and cracked the wood under his hoof.

If he wasn't busy right now, he'd be surprised by his own actions, or his own strength. He never really resorted to physical combat in far too long. Apparently instinct and fear pulled harder than over-confidence and conceit.

He was bleeding now, pretty hard. Suppose the beast touched an artery If it didn't just almost succeed in tearing a piece off of him, then it certainly felt like it. Then again, he never felt this kind of pain before, despite his many, diverse adventures.

Let's see how far his binary cardiovascular system can get him this time.

He bit through the pain and tried to get as much distance in as possible on three legs. Not to get away, no. But any precious extra second might be the one he'd needed to figure something out.

As the barking and howling drew closer, though, he eventually gave way to realization. He wasn't going to get out of this alive. At least not in his current form.

Why did he come out here, he asked himself as he saw the other wolves running to pounce on him. Far faster than he would've been able to run with all four, fully functioning legs.

Time slowed down as the Doctor started counting the milliseconds. Maybe he could face them somehow?... no, no more outsmarting would help here. If only he were a unicorn, maybe he could've teleported away. Maybe now he'll turn into a unicorn?

He closed his eyes and grit his teeth, choking on his regret over his mistake to come out here. He should've heeded the warnings of the locals. He should've realized that it was a long shot to force his follower out with this stunt. What did he expect him to do? Swoop down and fly him away like a comic book hero?

Why did he even consider this to be a good idea? Is he so afraid of a normal, peaceful life that he'd rather throw himself into danger like this?
He's not even certain if he still has his last regeneration. He only assumed that this transformation wasn't one because he didn't experience any of the respective after effects...

Maybe if he does get one final chance, he might have less reservations regarding giving normal life a shot. How bad could a few hundred years be, locked up in the safety of the royal library, remembering the good old days, instead of dying so violently in the middle of- oh, for Pete's sake. Why aren't they attacking?

He finally opened his eyes to notice the cursed fiends standing still, the closest ones hovering mid-air in front of him. He drew closer to investigate, still limping. He sat on his haunches and tapped on one of the wolves. It resisted, but gave way for little over an inch.

"What is happening?"

Time was distorted. That much he could distinguish all around him. It was as if he was swimming through molasses. Either the entire general area around him was slowed down, or he was sped up somehow. Considering which one of the two was harder to do, he went with the latter.
However. It was still selectively separating him from the entire time stream, then giving him a push to outrun the normal flow. It was still something so very sudden, so well controlled...

What is doing this?

Then something else made itself known. Like the unholy lovechild crossing the sound of nails on a chalkboard with the presence of cockroaches. He felt his skin crawl, and he knew where it was coming from.

The Doctor turned around, and there he was. Half a dozen feet away. The one he'd been looking for, the way he'd seen him in Ditzy's memory.

He understood now. That thing... that abomination. That nightmare. He understood who he was faced with. Who the animals were referring to. And he understood why they didn't tell him.

It was a pegasus, from the looks of it. Just staring at him from his raggedy old gray cloak. A pair of goggles strapped over his eyes, one of the lenses slightly cracked. And he couldn't make out anything else as he would feel nauseous looking at him. He could only guess that the figure's coat is supposed to be a bluish gray.

"Hello, Doctor." the figure spoke with numerous stifled echoes surrounding them both, running about in the background. As if it could only decide in the last moment where he wanted to sound from, covering out all the other sources with silent static.

He... it continued. In a soft, even voice.

"Sorry for keeping you waiting for so long. I was hoping I didn't need to intervene, but... I was disappointed."

The pegasus' voice was so gloomy that you would be wondering if he wasn't actually some ghost mourning its own death. Some revenant of misfortunes long since passed, unable to rest until they were set right.

Of course, that would only be one guess.

"What are you?" the Doctor finally let out through clenched teeth and tightened bowels.

The figure faced away from him before answering, again in an even voice. "Now that would be telling. And quite a long tale at that... Come. Let's just get you patched up for now. Zecora can take care of your wounds. She's not far."

The Doctor didn't really know whether he should trust him. Every fiber in his being was actually yelling at him to assume fight or flight.
This isn't standing on one's head. This is being covered in cockroaches. The only thing that's actually allowing him to still think straight is the few yards distance between the two of them.

"Don't worry," said the stranger, "you won't feel this badly for long. Just until we get far enough from the pack of hungry wolves. The sooner I get you to safety, the better for everyone... minus the wolves, of course. They will have to wait a while longer until they catch an ironhorn moss deer."

He started leading him away, and the Doctor grudgingly obliged.

He hobbled for fifteen minutes before Zecora's hut came into view. Turned out he really did make a wrong turn. It was a lot closer to the river than he'd initially anticipated.

That was when his skin stopped crawling, and he noticed the figure turn back towards him.

He could actually see him now. Not just look at him, but see him.

He was still gloomy, even though you couldn't see his eyes at all through the heavy tinting.

He started talking again, though this time normally for a change. No echoes, no static. Just a reserved monotone.

"Since we're going to be having quite a few conversations from now on, I believe I should offer a name. You may call me Crossroads."

"Crossroads?" the Doc asked confusedly.

"Yes. As in, that joke with the chicken. How did it go... Why did the chicken cross the road?"

"To... get to the other side?" he's at a loss.

"Exactly."

Silence. This got awkward pretty fast.

"Sorry, I haven't succeeded in telling a decent joke in a few centuries. I'm still working on it."

"Right... Wait, what?"

The door to Zecora's home opened. She rushed outside to join them. She was, understandably, looking worried as she was muttering something in her native language on her way out.

"Doctor, you're battered and bleeding! What happened to you?
Please come in and rest. For your pains I have just the brew."

He was still staring intently at Crossroads. A few centuries? The strange pegasus only offered a knowing, emotionless glare in response.

"Yes, yes... Thank you, Zecora. You're too kind."

"Hush now! Lay still and wait for just a moment.
I will not take long at all to ready you your treatment."

As the zebra fidgeted around the chamber, throwing the right ingredients into a small wooden bowl to mash into a paste, the Doctor was left to study his mysterious new friend whilst gripping his bleeding wound tighter.

All this time, he didn't offer a single emotion besides being somber. Like it would kill him to give a snide smirk, or anything, really. He just stood there, apparently just as content with either looking someone in the eye or looking at nothing at all.

"And Crossroads, please show some manners!
Take off your cowl whilst in my house."

They know each other?

"Sorry, Zecora, but I'm afraid I can't do that. The Doctor here is actually aware of the extent of my presence in the time stream. A problem for him, being a Time Lord and sensitive to these things. I imagine I would only make his skin crawl, if not worse."

"Worse, actually. It's about as bad as feeling the very rotting wound on the time stream which you are to it. Why exactly aren't you being hunted down by reapers right now?"

He answered with a stare. He knew what would satisfy his curiosity, it was obvious. He just didn't want to tell him.

"Reapers? What's a reap... oh. Okay, so you're asking why this universe is willing to suffer my presence. I can assure you that you don't really want to know the reason to that."

"Oh, well I suppose we have a conflict of beliefs there. See, I actually do want to know. Why are you convinced otherwise?"

"Because, Doctor, I can see it. You might think you want to know now, but I can only assure you that once you find out, you will eventually regret it dearly."

"What are you going on about?"

"What I'm going on about, Doctor, is your future. Your unavoidable fate, the way I see it at least. You see, there are many things which are uncertain, but quite enough are set in stone. I can do far more than just suspend time. My abilities are much more... subtle than that. Among the things I can do is the ability to see timelines, and I see them weaving around you like a storm waiting to happen.

"You want to know why you feel so horrible around me, Doctor? Why I can do what you've witnessed me do? Why every inch of your being insists that I should be destroyed on the spot?

"It's because I'm the kind of abomination which this universe would never, under any circumstance, allow to be created. Except for one.

"Are you still certain that you want to know, Doctor? Are you still willing to cast away your current peace of mind, and take a blind step into the darker side of this world?"

Grimly, the Doctor looked upon his desolate benefactor. He could only wonder what kind of person he was dealing with here.
"Of course." he responded, as if it were the most obvious answer in the world.

Crossroads, well... He still maintained his stony demeanor. "My story is a long one. Honestly, it doesn't concern you. At least not now. You still have better things to focus on for now. How about we just limit to how I've already implicated myself in your life, and your more immediate concerns instead? After all, I could tell you just about anything now. You're not even believing me to truly be able to see time."

The Doctor eyed him warily, taking his every word with a grain of salt. "Pardon if I find your explanations a little hard to believe. Let me just get it straight for now. You're saying that you can see timelines?"

"Aside other... oddities, yes."

The Doctor drew forward indignantly. "But that's ridiculous. What you're describing is something which could only drive you mad!"

"What makes you think I didn't grow mad?"

He drew back, surprised. It would offer a good explanation as to why the strange stallion was so emotionless. Maybe there truly was nothing left ~~human~~equine about him to speak of?

Before the Doctor could offer a retort, Zecora approached them with a bowl held in her fetlock joint.

"Here it is. A potent brew.
Drink it and your pains should subdue."

After she gave it to him, she went over to her cupboards and retrieved an empty jar and brush. He took a whiff before downing the concoction. Wouldn't want to be caught off-guard and require his hostess to make another batch, as well as clean up after him.

Contrary to how medicine usually tastes, this one wasn't half bad. And the effects were practically instant. He only noticed a slight warmth permeating through him and concentrating on his aches, soothing him and smothering them out. He poked and found that even the cut under his eye receded.

Not the most incredible thing he'd ever seen, but still manages to impress him nonetheless. He'd just love to inquire about how convenient this medicine is, but if he were to get sidetracked here, he wouldn't be able to do anything at all today.

He just tried to put his thoughts in order while she proceeded to brush some of the remaining Plunder Weed(*) dust from his back and shoulder area.

"Firstly," he started, "I'd like to ask how you two got to meet each other. Secondly, what you two have been plotting around my back. Then later we might discuss your presumed 'abilities' in more detail."

"By all means, we wouldn't have it any other way. After all, I assume that is why you've been running through the forest on your own, was it not? To gain my attention."

"You've done what?" Zecora inquired indignantly. Again, shedding her rhymes for the sake of driving her point more immediately. It somehow left a sense of dissonance.

"He ran through the Everfree to put himself in danger, in order to lure me into the open. If I were to guess, he most likely came by the understanding that I want him alive. Apparently he considered drawing me out worth risking his life on a half-baked theory."

"Don't flatter yourself. All I wanted was to finally know what's going on, and you skulking around in the shadows was not helping at all."

"You need to understand, Doctor, that you are quite the wanted man. I was merely making certain that you were safe, for my own peace of mind."

"Is it really for your own, or is it for someone else's?"

The aloof stallion stared at him. For a fleeting moment, he thought he sensed he'd hit a nerve with his last question. Crossroads continued merely a fraction of a second later than usual.

"If you're asking if I work for someone else, then no. I usually work alone..."

"-And why should I believe that?"

"I don't know, Doctor. Why should you believe anything I say? Why bother asking me anything to begin with? Why not just go back and continue your little vacation in the peaceful little village your Tardis sent you to, and let someone else take care of things for a change?"

That caught his attention.

"All right. I'm listening."

"If we're - that is to say, me and Zecora - going to tell you what happened, we might as well start from the beginning... Of course, you will have to understand that we'll skip a few things for now. You've forced our hoof with your little stunt, but we're not ready to divulge quite everything yet."

"Fair enough... as long as you get to the part where you found out about my Tardis."

"Don't worry, Doctor. By the time you leave here, all the questions you've asked yourself since you've arrived in Equestria will be more or less clarified. However, I can't guarantee for the ones that would rise in the process.

After a long, long conversation, the Doctor was led back to Ponyville. He had a lot to digest tonight.

Crossroads held his word. Most of his questions were answered, however in the process only rising more questions. Seems there's a theme of that going on.

For now, though, these will suffice. Seems there's a theme of that as well.

The only thing different is that this time, he received a name.

The name of the one who had most likely brought him to Equestria and is still in possession of his Tardis. A mysterious character that never showed his face, but made his mark. Celestia took to calling him Disdain, according to his trademark method of assault which he used in the Last War.

The reason why Crossroads knew this was left unsaid. The reason why he knew about his Tardis was, according to him, because he and his ship had already made quite the significant impact on history. The reason how he knew to find the Doctor when he first arrived was because the source of this history's being rewritten had originated from where he landed. The ripples originated where the universe had burst open to spit him out.

And Crossroads came to investigate.

So no, the Doctor's previous assumption that Cross was in some way linked to his arrival here was met with negative confessions. The cross cloak wearer insisted that he didn't know anything about what had actually happened to have brought him to this world. All he could explain was how he had reasons to track him down once his impact on history started taking place. The ripples in the timelines were an abundant marker for the site of his landing upon the realm of Feyraltia, one which could be traced down, but which only Crossroads could see clearly.

A keen eye, which made a point in hating to blink. He tracked down the source, then immediately took the liberty to try to suppress the side effects as much as he could. But why? Because the Doc's tamperings with time would cause ripples, which would expand and ultimately cause Cross discomfort.

According to the cloaked character, he found the old lord of time's messing around rather distracting and messy. That was the only answer he'd offer for now.

Noticing that was as much as he was going to get out of his cloaked benefactor for now, he decided to get back to the main course. How exactly was it that Cross got to knowing about his Tardis?

The hooded pony remained silent for a few seconds, motionless, before finally answering. "Tell me, Doctor. Exactly how strong is your psychic link to your ship?"

"Well, I could tell her location a continent away, or a few decades should we be separated on the temporal plane. But right now, for instance, I can't really tell where she is. I can only hear the faintest echoes from time to time... which leads me to believe that she's either very far away, either by distance or date, or isolated somehow... or very tired."

Crossroads nodded. "I can only assure you that she still has some control over her situation. She even managed to write a warning."

"...Say what now?"

He drew in closer. "Your craft is quite formidable, Doctor. Her presence in the time stream is simply breathtaking... although fleeting. She was the one who sent out the prophecy. I got a little more than the message, however. I've managed to track it back to its source."

"You know where she is?"

"Yes... and no. From what I could gather, she was outside of time, right outside of one of this reality's borders."

The Time Lord was losing his temper. "What's that supposed to mean?!"

"It means that she's beyond your reach, for now."

Doc was not having any of it. "Stop beating around the bush, Crossroads! Tell me where she is!"

"Doctor... Whenever you hear your Tardis, what is she telling you?"

"That doesn't matter! She's in danger! I can feel it! I can't just sit idly and do nothing!"

The cloaked character only remained silent in response. Apparently still waiting for his answer.

The Doctor eventually relented. "...That I would lose."

A lot of stubbornly going back and forth followed.

The Doctor was innately connected to time. Yet, he'd never felt a consciousness inside it. The very idea he found ridiculous.

According to Crossroads, apparently the only reason why he hadn't received any help or favors from the Universe lately was because he'd yet to prove his worth. No creating stable time loops out of nowhere with Sally Sparrow giving him a heads-up (he needed to meet her before she met him, not the other way around), no future version of himself sporting a fez and broom telling his friends what to do (what even was that anyway?), no inscribing Sontarans with ridiculous drawbacks, or Slitheen with explosiveness (which could not be natural), no infusing his companions with god powers or his enemies with stupidity (how many times did the Daleks not kill him when they had the chance?).

The only reason why the FeyVerse accepted him to the degree of rewriting time to accommodate, was because of his accomplishments during the incident involving Davros' reality bomb. And because it was desperate. Desperate enough to allow Crossroads to exist.

Before it would allow the Doctor to do anything, he would first need to prove himself to it. Which was why his Tardis had sent him to Ponyville, the little town where nothing ever happened before, but which was currently in the process of changing drastically in the near future.

At first, the Doctor was skeptical about the involvement of a universal will, but then Cross started untangling him with the many instances in which he should've lost, but always won. That was, after all, what he would boast about, wasn't it? Him being able to win wars with just words...

And of course, whenever words weren't enough, then someone else saved him. Occasions which weren't exactly rare.
When knowledge and good will wouldn't prove enough, someone else would always pay the price in his stead.

Rose, absorbing the time vortex.
Jack, dying to buy him enough time to destroy the Daleks, only for him to chicken out in the last second.
Martha, going on a year-round trip around a post apocalyptic Earth just so he could lure the Master into a false sense of security.
And of course there was the DoctorDonna incident...

"Alright, alright, I get it!"

"No, you don't get it, Doctor." Crossroads persisted in his constant monotone. "You don't realize how lucky you've always been. Didn't you consider that maybe your Tardis left you here for a reason? That maybe she knew that you couldn't possibly slip through the cracks this time, especially with no scape goat? And especially after what you've gone through before you've arrived here?"

"I don't know what you're talking about..." he denied.

"They saw you, Doctor. Your followers saw you for what you really are, and you've seen yourself back, through their eyes. You've been running all your life, but ever since the Last Great Time War, you've been running from yourself. That night, you've found yourself. You've seen what you were doing to the ones around you. That night, you remembered why you're always so alone."

"Enough..."

"It's because whatever you touch, wherever you go, everything around you turns to ash."

"I said enough!"

The rest of his visit went in silence. He just stood there, staring at his tea cup, for a few minutes before he got up to leave.

He had a lot to digest tonight.

However, the day wasn't over quite yet. It was only a small ways past noon. He still needed to speak to Vinyl about any way she could help him get started, talk to the owner of that one workshop which just got emptied today, which he found out about last night, and... talk to Ditzy about last night.

He's tired. Tired of thinking, tired of running into dead ends. And right now, he's tired of having to worry about how this encounter would go.

Plus side, he can't imagine things getting any worse between the two of them.

It was a long day, and it had only begun.

When she got back from her lunch, it appeared they didn't need her for the remainder of the day. Suppose there really wasn't that much on the schedule. Either that, or they just figured out how upset she had to be and decided to offer a leave.

She certainly hopes it wasn't the latter.

Let's just take it easy. Just make some muffins, enjoy them with some tea. Alone...

Only halfway through her snack did she remember that these muffins were Finn's family recipe. She used it so many times, she would rarely give it any thought. Only now did she find her mind wandering, and her mood slipping.

"Hello, Ditzy."

She didn't have enough time to gather herself by the time she heard him returning home.

"Hey, Doctor. Where have you..."

She turned around to face him, and went pale at the sight of him. "Is that blood?"

After a few moments of staring back at her confusedly, he looked himself over and noticed that he was, indeed, pretty dirty. He had some dried blood left from Zecora's cursory attempts at wiping it away, suppose she missed a few spots. He was also full of dried up mud and his disheveled mane even sported a few bits of vegetation.

"Oh, right. Yeah, I've had a little rough and tumble today with the Everfree wildlife while looking for the mysterious stranger who wiped your memory when you found me. Turns out he's a pretty decent guy, if a bit ominous and depressing."

She only stared at him blankly. "You've been through the Everfree?"

"Yeah."

"Alone?!"

"Well, not exactly. I suspected that Crossroads was watching, which was kind of what I was counting on... ugh, you're not getting anything, are you?"

"Please. Let's just get you cleaned up." She went on, leading him to the bathroom.

He'd noticed that she was upset when he came in. Nothing she tried to let on, but equine ears seemed to like to give you away.

Usually, under such circumstances, he'd try to make his companion laugh. This time around, however, it would seem that he would need to do something else. Something he usually tried to avoid.

Then again, it wouldn't really matter at this point, with her. He needed to help her let go before it became too much to bear.

He stopped her by the wrist in the doorway, making her turn around curiously. "We need to talk."

She didn't turn around. "You made me wait all day. You can wait a little while until you're done cleaning up."

Aspirin

Author's Note

Can't worry about what you'll have for dinner tomorrow when you're starving today.

Warning. This chapter contains obvious steamy scenes happening behind the scene's curtains. They're neither witnessed by anyone else directly, nor are they explicitly described, however, but you don't need a lot of imagination at all to put two and two together and figure out what's going on.

Aspirin

He finished washing the day’s grime away, then seated himself in front of her. Ditzy was holding her head over her hooves on the table while she was waiting for him, then straightened in her seat when he entered the room. Although she was trying to appear calm, her ears gave her nervousness away.

He sighed internally. 'Let’s just get this over with,' he thought.

”I would like to talk about a few things, if you don’t mind.”

”Yeah... same here.”

He nodded. ”Before anything else, I just wanted to assure you that no, I’m not...”, he stammered, ”rejecting you. I just don’t want to risk getting attached to anyone to that extent.”

She raised an eyebrow. ”Actually, I’m pretty sure what you’re doing kind of qualifies as a rejection.”

”Okay then, allow me to rephrase my statement. I am not refusing to accept a relationship with you because I find you unatractive in any way, because I don’t. I am refusing to accept it because it spells several different types of trouble for the both of us. Long-lasting in my case, potentially life-ruining in yours.”

She allowed that information to sink in, but she didn’t take long to reply, ”So... you don’t find me unatractive?” putting emphasis on the second negative.

He gave her a deadpan. She raised her eyebrow. He shifted in his seat, propped an elbow on one of the chair’s arms, put a hoof to his temple and sighed.

’The least I could do at this point would be to tell her that I didn’t just go to bed with her because she came on to me. That the feeling wasn’t really one sided... even if giving her this knowledge would work against me cutting this relationship down. But...'

It would be best to just lie. It's the one thing he's best at, when things go south. Lying to the ones that trust him, and lying to himself when he needs to soldier on. He became so good at it, he actually almost believes it whenever he promises that everything will be okay.

He'd seen looks that made his heart wrench harder to lie. He'd said worse things to people before. He'd downright crestfallen his companions for the sake of a strategic advantage in the past. So why wouldn't the words come out of his mouth now?

Simple, really. Back then, it was either to protect someone he held dear, or save his own life. Here, however, he had absolutely no imperative. All he wanted was to keep things uncomplicated, to maintain the norm he'd become so accustomed to all of these centuries. Here, however, he didn't have any excuse to say something he could never take back.

He'd rather cripple his objective with honesty, only to do it right. After all, the least he could do would be to be honest with her now. It's what she'd want.

He put his hoof back down and faced her. ”No, Ditzy. I don’t find you unattractive.” He layed his elbows on the table and propped himself on his forelegs, looking at her more closely, hooves interlocked and eyebrows raised. ”I also do not find you average or unexceptional in any way either.”

She returned a wide-eyed, but otherwise emotionless stare at him. She closed her eyes and walked away from the table. He sighed. Suppose she didn’t really appreciate his beating around the bush that time.

He leaned his head against a hoof. He needs to figure out how to apologize to her... for failing to apologize.

He didn’t even notice her until after she planted a peck on his cheek. Neither did he notice the draft from her wingbeats while she approached.

”I’ll take it.” She said with a smile, landing and folding back her wings against her back, and her arms against his shoulder.

’Oh, right. They can fly.’ He thought whilst just standing there, eyeing her cluelessly with a tinge of red in his cheeks.

”...You know we can’t keep going on like this, right?”

She walked back to her seat, sighing. ”Yes, I know. I just... don’t like it.”

”Ditzy. I’m sorry. I really am. You have no idea how much I’d like to humor this relationship...”

”Then why won’t you? So you’ll miss me later on. What can you do about it? Nothing’s ever certain, no one can really do anything about the future. How do you think everyone else lives? They just hope for the best...”

”...And expect the worst. No, Ditzy, that’s not really the only reason why I don’t want to give this a try. You’re asking me to stay here with you. To wait by, try and enjoy the time we’d spend together in this town. To take it easy and smell the lilies. But as much as I’ve tried these past few days, you have no idea how uneventful it was for me. Compared to how it was for me before, it was just... limited for me!”

”So you’re saying you’re just bored? Is that why we can’t be together?”

”...Tell me, dear. What’s the average lifespan of a pony?”

”It’s a little over two hundred years. Why?”

”Two hundred years..." The Doctor repeated meaningfully. "So a little under that amount of time for me, taking it easy, seeing the same sights and meeting the same ponies... While I could be out making a difference somewhere I’d actually be needed.”

She wasn’t happy with the way this conversation was going.

”I’d be okay with that.”

That caught her by surprise.

”Honestly, taking it easy for once wouldn’t be so bad. It would actually be a change of pace for me. Especially considering the company I’d have...”

He looked her way tenderly, she nursed a slight blush.

It felt good to be honest with someone about his woes.

”However. As the years would pass, what do you think it would be like for me to stand by and watch you grow old, while I’d barely show any more than ten years? What do you think it would be like, me counting your new wrinkles while you would be envying me staying young? It would be two hundred years of slowly leaving each other behind. The worst we needed to expect, would be gaining ground right before our eyes.”

The only thing that sounded out now was the ticking of the clock on the wall in front of the stairway.

”I’m sorry, Doctor. I didn’t know...”

He started on his muffin again. ”Yeah, don’t worry about it. You’re not the first to have made this mistake. You’re just the only one that made it so persistently.” He smiled. ”I never really stuck around long enough to get attached to a lonely, widowed mother before. Sure, there was the occasional queen or noblewoman... or travel companion. But I never really depended on anyone as much as I did with you. And I certainly never had anyone else take the reins like you did last night.”

She furrowed her brows. ”So what then? You’re just going to keep on drifting around the universe, dragging along friends like stray cats? Nowhere to belong, no one to warm up your colder nights? Just keep running until you finally meet a monster you can’t run away from or reason with?”

”I make a point not to think about where my life is leading... but yeah. That pretty much sums it up. Just keep running and helping wherever I can, until something stops me. That something being either me getting myself killed, or me becoming too old to be able to move my legs fast enough to have them all off the ground at the same time.”

”And what kind of life is that?”

”...It’s however you’d want to view it.”

She wanted to say something, but he cut her off with a gesture of his hoof.

”You could view it as dangerous, lonely, overwhelming... or you could view it as an adventure. A series of destinations, each one being something you could only have been able to picture in your dreams. And along the way, you would be so fortunate to find people who truly need your help, which you would only be so fortunate as to be able to help them. So much, so, that you might actually find yourself developing quite the ego.

"Sure, it’s scary sometimes. And of course it might prove to be incredibly lonely at others. But then there are times when you get to see things... Things of beauty and wonder beyond any possible comprehension. And then you remember just how lucky you are to be able to keep traveling like that.”

”But are you happy?”

Surprise caught him like a mouse in a trap. Her question echoed in his mind, continuously dispelling any remnant of the passion he’d had in his voice just a few moments ago.

Eventually he was left destitute.

”About as happy as the last member of his race can be.”

She studied him attentively, not giving away anything in particular. She stalked her way back to his seat around the table. ”You might like to call yourself a doctor, but you certainly don’t know how to take care of yourself.” She walked behind his chair. ”Tell me. When someone goes to an actual doctor’s office with a headache, what does the doctor prescribe?”

”...Aspirin?”

She spun his chair so he could better face her. ”Exactly. Aspirin. It’s not a cure for headaches, it’s a relief. You couldn’t exactly expect the doctor to just sit idly and let his patient suffer, now could you?"

His thoughts clicked. He eyed her evenly, studying her determination. Her current persistence.

”I’m not asking you to promise me we’ll live happily ever after. I honestly never expected that from you. It would be a cure that no one ever really receives, let alone you. I’m only asking you to make due with a relief instead, even if it’s not going to last.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned her forehead against his. Her eyes wide, pupils dilated. Heart beating quickly, pumping adrenaline.

He didn’t have any retort to offer. She took the initiative.

”Just tell me what you think about me. Without thinking about it.”

”...I can’t be held responsible for what happens afterwards.”

”I’ll take my chances.”

Outside those walls were only days as far away as Sisyphus' peak. The Doctor's fear for what might happen afterwards jabbed him in the back like the Corinthian king's demons speared their victim to keep him climbing. However, her eyes jabbed him even harder from the front.

He was so tired. Tired of thinking, tired of running into dead ends... Tired of pulling any further. Right now, for all that he cared, for all that he knew, the world started and ended with whatever the woman in front of him wanted.

Elsewhere in Ponyville, at this moment, Twilight was on her way to Ditzy’s home to inquire regarding the odd message she’d received from Princess Celestia this morning.

The reason why she didn’t set out earlier was because she was asleep when Spike produced the message. He read it before her, but didn’t know what to make of it either. He tried to wake her up once already. He wasn’t going to try again. He just left it on her nightstand.

After a hangover relief spell and brushing her mane, she finally read the letter herself.

Dear Twilight Sparkle.

I would like to ask a favor of you.
There’s an old friend of mine staying in Ponyville. He’s been staying there for a little over a week now, so I assume you might have already met him. He goes by the name of the Doctor.”

At that point, Twilight allowed herself a good half a minute to dwell on the last words.
No.
Way.

At first she thought this letter had to be a prank, but then she checked the royal seal adorning the envelope. It was genuine.
She continued reading.

I would very much appreciate it if you could ask Spike to forward any messages which the Doctor might have for me in the foreseeable future, and that you forward any messages I might have for him. We haven’t talked in a long time, and I was hoping we could keep in touch as much as we could before he’d have to leave again.

I understand all of this might be confusing for you at the moment, and I apologize for not offering any more information. All will be revealed in the future, although I cannot say when yet.

Please send him my regards, and try to humor his eccentricities. It’s much more fun to argue with him than you’d think.

I’m certain you would enjoy his company as much as I have.

Your loving teacher, Princess Celestia.

Well, it appeared the princess knew him. Twilight would lie if she said she didn’t enjoy every single dispute she had so far with the Doctor.

Everything else, however, didn’t add up. What was her mentor not telling her? Why all the secrecy? Were these state affairs? What did she mean by ’not talking in a long time’ and ’keeping in touch before he’d have to leave again’? Leave where?

Eventually she decided that no matter how many times she re-read the message, she wouldn’t gain any further insight on the situation. She just climbed down the stairs, had a belated breakfast and left Spike in charge of the library while she went on to ask the Doctor what was what.

In front of the mailmare’s home, though, she found Vinyl Scratch just arriving on the scene. Apparently, the DJ was also looking to speak to the residents of the house. Oddly enough, though, she didn’t enter. She only stopped her hoof inches away from knocking at the door, then leaned her ear against it, smiled wide, and walked away, meeting her on the way.

”Hey, Twilight. How’s it going?” said the DJ in her relatively gruff and loud voice, oddly reminiscent of a spinning song.

”Hello, Vinyl. I was just going to pay the Doctor a visit. I had a few questions for him...” she answered as she watched the DJ’s smile grow slightly bigger and escape a few giggles.

”You too, huh? Well, I suggest we come back another time. From the sounds of it, him and Ditzy are going to be a little busy for a while.”

At first, the librarian was having trouble understanding what she was getting at. ”Oh.”

Then, her eyes went wide in realization, after which she nursed a bright blush. ”Oooooooh...” At which the DJ only chuckled louder.

”Come on. I’m sure they’ll tire out after a couple hours.”

”A... couple hours?” as her blush gained ground on her face.

”Yeah... they sounded like they would take a while. Seriously though, Ditzy was louder than me, and I tend to lose track of time when I start screaming.”

”Too much information!” the once lavender, now bright, luminescent red unicorn burst out. At which the DJ only guffawed in response.

She took a breath to calm down and return to her normal color. Then she took a look at the town clock tower. It was past two o’clock. She felt like she was forgetting something.

The DJ followed her gaze and started staring at the clock as well. She asked her absentmindedly before long, ”Hey, didn’t Ditzy have a kid?”

Both their eyes went wide in panic as they heard the door to the house behind them creak open. In less than an instant, they appeared between the little filly and the house’s entrance, painfully awkward smiles plastered on their faces. The DJ held on to the doorknob in the filly’s grasp with her magic, and slammed it before it could open any further. Loudly. Followed by crashing from inside the room.

”Hey there, you must be Dinky Doo!” Twilight asked the now visibly confused child.

”...Hi. You’re Twilight Sparkle, aren’t you?”

”Yes! Yes, I’m your town’s new librarian.”

”Are you... gonna make me read a book?” Vinyl guffawed again, and Twilight annoyingly rolled her eyes.

”No... I’m not going to make you read a book. I’m just here to tell you that you’re not allowed to enter the house for now.”

”Why not?”

”Well, ugh...” Twilight looked towards Vinyl, desperate for an idea. She immediately regretted her request for help.

”Your mom has spring fever.”

”WHAT?! Dont tell her that!”

”What! It’s not like she knows anything she shouldn’t know about it...”

”Wait. You mean mom and the Doctor are hugging and kissing inside?”

Before Vinyl could say anything else, Twilight beat her to the punch. ”Yes! They’re hugging and kissing, and nothing else!”

”Does this mean the Doctor’s going to be my new daddy?” Asked the little filly with her mile wide smile.

The two mares were caught off guard at that. They both looked at each other just as sadly.

Luckily before they needed to say anything further, a shaky voice came from the other side of the door.

”Yes, Dinkuns, he is.”

”Really?”

”Really.” The mother answered the eager filly. ”Just... Twilight, would you mind if you watched her for a while? I’m kind of in the middle of something...”

Ignoring Vinyl’s suppressed chuckle, she answered. ”Of course! Just come by and pick her up when you’re... ugh... done.”

”Bwahahah!”

”Vinyl!”

”What, it’s funny!”

”Not from where we’re standing...” the Doctor offered, followed by a whimper from underneath him.

Vinyl went wide eyed under her glasses and offered a sheepish smile to Twilight, as if it were directed at Ditzy. ”Sorry.”

The lavender unicorn sighed. ”Let’s just leave already.”

”Okay...” the filly answered dejectedly.

Twilight offered her hoof, at which Dinky stared at for a few seconds, then at the closed door, then at the hoof again before taking it. She turned back to the door.

”...Are you really going to be my daddy, Doctor?”

No answer. Twilight just pulled her away before they waited for too long.

”Come on. You can ask him when he’s not busy later. Why don’t you tell me what you’d like for lunch?”

Back inside, the Doctor sighed heavily.

”Are you alright?” the mare asked.

”I... don't know what to tell her.”

Ditzy didn't feel like leaving it at that. So she persuaded, "Wanna talk about it?" She received a kind of answer to that. "...O-okay, maybe later."

Back at Zecora’s hut. A newly introduced, stereotypically mysterious and cloaked character stared out the window.

”Curious.” He let out flatly.

”What is?” a familiar Zebraconian asked from across the room, laid in a meditative position.

”The Doctor’s timelines shifted again.”

”Maybe because of your dispute with him?”

”No, this is separate. It was settling ever since he left for town. Something else is happening. Something drastic. Something I’ve missed...”

Zecora opened her eyes to regard her friend curiously. ”Perhaps it is an exterior influence. After all, you are not the only friend he has...”

”I’m not his friend,” the gloomy pony cut her short. ”A friend helps you when you’re in trouble. What I’m doing is more akin to manipulation.”

”...Maybe. And maybe someone who remembers what a friend is supposed to be, can still remember what it means to be a pony.”

There remained a few moments of silence. Zecora eventually sighed and walked over to her guest. ”Perhaps you may return to the realm of the living some day?”

”Perhaps. But not before my task is done. Until then, you will have to make due with the current me.”

She smiled sadly. ”I look forward to meeting the new you.”

He got back to his brooding. ’What did I miss... It’s not logical... Wait. Perhaps...’ ”Oh.”

Zecora’s ears perked up. ”What did your sight show?”

”You were right. It was an exterior influence. That mare that his Tardis brought him to. She’s... changing his priorities.”

No new rhymes. He turned from the window towards his hostess. The zebra only stared at him dumbstruck before laughing heartily. Crossroads only stared at her, at a loss. Which only fueled the zebra’s mirth.

”Sorry, my dear friend. It is just that sometimes, your gloom is far too precious. Some rather obvious things manage to evade your scrutinies.”

”Which is why I need you.”

She quieted down. He continued.

”Same way I’m too distracted to see what’s plain and obvious to you, so is the Doctor. He needs someone to bring his feet on the ground. Someone to present him with something to lose...”

”I do not think I like the words you chose to use...”

”Like it or not, that’s the Doctor’s life. If she wanted a peaceful life, she should’ve looked for someone else.”

He shifted his sight. Before he’d look at some distant point beyond the forest vegetation. Now, he's looking at the darkness laid by the canopy in the distance.

”Though for her sake, I hope she can handle the repercussions of her choice.”

Deeper into the Everfree Forest. Far deeper, in the shadows. Within the crumbling walls of the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters. No one knows what’s happening. No one but a certain, gloomy, foresightful stranger. He doesn’t need to be there to know what’s happening. All he needs to know is the history which had been made a little over a week ago, three nights before the Doctor’s arrival. Time could only flow one way after that.

There’s a part of the Night Mare left. Something which some would consider the source of Luna’s madness, and might be right to think so.
It was purged away by the blast of the Elements of Harmony, but it wasn’t destroyed.
No, it would not allow itself to die so easily. After all, it had done so much to survive. It... he, had sacrificed everything to be by her side.

”Luna...”

The shadows reverberated again. A distant echo from within the dark. A painful soul without a body. A parasite without a host.

”...I want your night to last forever.”

Things look up until they don't

It was the beginning of yet another sunny day in the lazy little Equestrian town of Ponyville. Another day, another boring morning...

”What cha reading?” a feminine voice rang groggily from the right side of his bed.

Another boring morning, but he could certainly imagine worse circumstances.

The Doctor met his landlady’s sleepy eyes with a smile. ”Morning, dear. I’m reading about the dilemma of a certain famous figure from your history. You know about Star Swirl?”

”I’ve heard of him.” She affirmed as she stretched, then coddled closer. ”Supposedly he had quite the impressive beard.”

”Leaving aside his outstanding facial hair, apparently he was also quite the savant. The greatest mind of his time, possibly of his era. He even tutored Celestia and Luna. Apparently they might’ve looked up to him.”

”Really?”

”According to this book, at least. And considering who wrote it, I can only assume that it’s true.” He popped the stiffness out of his neck, then propped his head against his left hoof. ”Which only leaves a few odd holes in your Hearts Warming Eve story. That is, more holes than there were already.”

”Oh, no! So they’re lying to us?” Ditzy gasped in mock shock. ”Should we start a coup because they probably just missed a few details during transcription?”

”Well, to be fair, I wouldn’t be surprised if Celestia would’ve preferred it if certain personal details were left out.”

”...Like her having a little sister which she was forced to banish to the moon?”

”Or anything that puts her in any kind of light beside divine. For a while I thought you folk were worshipping your leaders and just making stuff up about them in order to further your propaganda... Thanks again for the clarifications, by the by.”

”What would you do without me?”

”I dunno. Probably be locked up in a mental ward, or prison. Until I got out. That is, of course, unless I didn't just get eaten by wolves in my first few minutes since my arrival. Or I could’ve just sold some of my possessions at a pawn shop and jumpstarted life as a vagabond. It would've certainly been harder to get anything done that way...”

”Count to think of it, why didn’t you leave? If all your tales are anything to go by, you're not one to stick around one place for long. Not that I’m complaining, but...”

He set aside his book and laid back in bed, one arm behind his head while the other slipped under his companion. ”I dunno,” he answered. “I just thought I’d be careful for once. Maybe take it easy and get used to the local customs before heading headlong into an entirely different world that I’ve never heard of. I guess I just didn’t feel like doing anything brash if I didn’t have to.”

”Sounds reasonable enough.”

”Yeah. Me. Reasonable. What is the Multiverse coming to?”

He chuckled alone, while Ditzy remained a tad too quiet for his liking.

A pause, then she asked him, ”Was it because of what happened right before you got here? With the reality bomb?”

”...Maybe.”

She shifted her head to better face him, concern etched on her features. ”Wanna talk about it?”

He smiled sadly. ”Maybe some other time,” as he held her tight.

”Whenever you’re ready,” she gave back tenderly.

It was a normal morning. Dinky was chowing down merrily on the pancakes her aunt had made. Dotes was throwing a mischievous smile their way from time to time, having heard what had happened yesterday and also, commending them for keeping it down last night.

Today Dinky didn’t have school. Luckily for Cheerilee, there weren't that many different generations she needed to teach, the kids only arriving in a range of three to four years difference. There would also be the occasional child conceived outside... mating season, but those were few and far in between. Dinky didn't have that issue. She was in the sixth grade, but only because she managed to impress the teacher enough to earn entering the first generation, and oldest class.(*)

Which meant extra work for the filly. Work which she wasn't entirely keen on getting to. She was hoping she could spend some time with the Doctor today instead. Of course, Ditzy wasn't very keen on letting the child and manchild run off unsupervised, not like she had anything better to do today. She took the day off. She could do that. As long as she pulled her due by the end of the month, it was okay.

The three left for the post office to check for materials which the Doc would need to order, should he want to actually see that clock shop idea of his finally touching water at any point in the future. Vinyl accepted him as a business partner and allowed him to make a few clocks in their now shared lab with their now shared equipment, but he still needs glass, metal for cogs and springs, etcetera. Also, they can’t really earn anything until they present some project worth funding to her college, so he’d need to find some alternate means of gaining money in the meantime. After all, he’d rather not meddle with this world’s technological advancements too much. He’d just hate to deny this Universe’s version of Tesla the chance to actually discover his coil. For now, he just wanted to invent some kind of magic-powered alarm clock. No one really cares who invented the alarm clock in our universe anyway.

”...Ugh, where was I?” the Doctor asks the mother and child beside him.

”Long story short, you still need to get that clock shop running.” She answered, recapping again what the two were discussing.

”Right, right...” as the filly giggled. ”Wait, you actually followed me through my rant that time?”

”I’m starting to get used to keeping up with you.” She smiled as he pulled her in for an embrace and a kiss on her cheek, much to both the child’s and the author’s expressed dismay at witnessing the display of affection.

It was actually quite the accomplishment on her part. He talked so quickly, as was his usual tendency, that the filly gave up on trying to keep up. By the time he got to ”metal for cogs”, her mind was already overheated and smoking. If it weren’t for her mother’s recaps, she wouldn’t have understood anything at all.

They kept going on and on like that for the rest of the way to the post office, where they all decided that he could stand to tinker with whatever spare materials Vinyl could afford to share for now. Because the bloody things were expensive, and the only way he could make any money would be if he bought in bulk.

”Where to now?” asked the mailmare.

”Can we stop by Sugarcube Corner?” asked the child.

”Sure, sweetie. Why not.”

”Actually, maybe we could stop by the town’s taylor first? I want to check if my coat is done yet.”

”You mean at Rarity’s.”

”Yes, and I’m still a bit troubled by your choices in names.”

”We’ve been over this already, Doctor. Several times.”

”Have we?”

”Yes! And every single time you felt the need to go on this rant, you would offer counter-arguments on your own. You’d just go on about some different planet you’d have been to that was even weirder than this one.” She dwelled on that for a while. ”And oddly enough, every time you’d describe a different planet from the last.” She started again, sounding more accusing that time. Much to the Doctor’s confusion.

”Well, yeah. I did travel a lot.”

”You’ve traveled to fourteen different planets that are weirder than Equestria?”

”I... didn’t really count.”

Her eyebrows furrowed. ’I... guess that is something he’d usually do.’

”...Although I’d rather not call them weird. It sounds offensive. They’re just unique in their own way!”

Her head slumped and left ear twitched in irritation. ’Yeah, that is also something he’d normally say’

”Also, I do believe the planet’s called Feyraltia.”

She rolled her eyes. ’Note to self. Next time you want to question the Doctor’s stories, don’t.’ ”No one really uses that name outside an official environment.”

”So what? You call the entire planet by the name of your own continent?”

”Well... It’s just that the entire planet doesn’t normally come into non-official conversation. Sometimes we make that analogy.”

”Don’t you think that’s just a little pretentious?”

”It’s certainly not as pretentious as the name of the planet...”

”Really? Cause I don’t find it that pretentious. It’s certainly not as pretentious as how cutesy wootsy your names are.”

”...Wow. I walked right into that one, didn’t I?”

He chuckled.

”What’s so funny?”

”Bar jokes,” was his overly shortened answer, earning raised eyebrows from the filly and mother.

They arrived at Carousel Boutique. Doc knocked at the door. There was no answer.

”Looks like she’s away,” Ditzy inquired, receiving a thoughtful hum in reply. “We can check back after we visit Sugar Cube Corner,” she spoke again, already turning to leave.

The filly smiled wide at the prospect of receiving sweets. On the other hoof, the Doctor felt a shiver run down his spine at the prospect of risking to befoul his mouth with other pear-flavoured confectionaries. The trio kept themselves busy with talking about homework. The foal was lamenting about history being boring, despite there not being that much of it to begin with, and the Time Lord was promising to fix that issue with a determined smile, eliciting a kiss from the mother.

When they arrived at the bakery, they found an irregularity in the form of the line to the cash register being longer than usual. Quite a bit longer, actually, considering how there were ponies outside waiting to get in.

”Earlier late morning rush?” the Doctor inquired. The mare beside him only shrugged.

“I don’t wanna wait for that long!” the child whined. The Doctor answered.

“You have the right idea, kiddo. Waiting is nothing short of wasting your life little by little.” A scrutinizing look on his face, he put a thoughtful hoof to his mouth. “I could pose as a health inspector.”

“They know who you are, Doctor. They know you’re unemployed,” Ditzy shot him down.

“Ah. Well, how about I actually do cause a health hazard?”

“No, Doctor. No. Look, let’s just go somewhere else…”

“Wait. Look.”

The wally-eyed mare and her filly followed his gaze. Approaching the bakery was the Apple family, minus Applejack. They all looked upset, even their dog. The other ponies noticed them, and gave them space.

“What do you think happened?” asked the mailmare. The Doctor only looked more critically.

“Dunno. Let’s ask them.” He answered, following the family in the bakery just as the other customers filed out with worried looks on their faces. Just as Mr. Cake was about to close the door and flip the ‘open’ sign over, the Time Lord put a hoof in the way.

“Hello, Mister Cake. I hope I’m not intruding.”

“You are, actually,” the baker offered back forcefully.

The Doctor decided to drop the jolly attitude. “Are Pinkie and Applejack missing too?”

The baker faltered, then asked, “Who else is missing?”

That’s all the Doctor needed to know, as he invited himself in despite the baker’s better judgement, followed by the mare and child, and regarded everyone else in the room as he approached the staircase. “…Well, Rarity’s boutique was closed, Fluttershy would usually be busy buying groceries and Rainbow would usually be napping around the area of the bakery at around this hour. They’re both missing, and looking by the clouds, someone’s been missing from the weather team. Your bakery also seemed to have been missing a worker this morning, and by the worried looks on everyone’s faces here, I’d say neither Pinkie nor Applejack left notes before they left in the middle of the night?”

“…How did you-”

“Just playing the odds. I need to look like I know what I’m talking about if you’re going to let me go check Pinkie’s room for anything out of the ordinary. Ditzy, could you and Dinky wait here?”

No one had any time to say anything else as he started heading for the stairway. The Doctor didn’t get far, however, as Big Mac cut his way, looking down at him ominously.

The look on the farmer’s face told the Time Lord that he was one explanation away from being bucked out of the establishment.

Luckily, before he had the chance to say anything typically insensitive and stupid, Ditzy piped in to calm the spirits, “Uhm, Doctor? Maybe you should explain why they should give you the time of day right now?”

“An excellent point, dear. You see, everyone,” as he rounded around back to the other occupants of the room, “I’m the Doctor. I deal with problems of the dangerous variety, and if you ask me, six girls that are known to deal with dangerous situations, are very likely to attract more danger to themselves. It is my belief that their sudden disappearance in the middle of the night, without leaving as much as a note, is something to be taken seriously. I also believe that it’s in your best interest to let me see if I can help.”

Everyone else looked at him sceptically. Big Mac spoke up in a booming voice, “And why’s that?” The senior got her aching body from her seat and walked over to look the Doctor in the eye.

The Time Lord only looked her way for an instant, without reservation or hiding, before quickly putting his cocky façade back on and turning back to Big Mac. It was merely within the grace period of a moment of shock, so the older mare would be left asking herself what she just saw, rather than getting a heart attack. She stopped in the spot, as the Doctor intended.

“Because, Big Macintosh, I’m giving you my word that you’d rather not have anyone else trying to help you than me. You can send me off now if you want, but that won’t stop me from making sure the girls are safe.”

The farmer stared him down for a few more moments longer, before chuckling. “You got brass, Doc. Ah’ll give ya that. Alright, fine. You can help.”

“Excellent. Now if you’d just-” The Doctor didn’t have time to take more than three steps around the stallion towards the stairway before he felt a hoof bear down on his shoulder like lead.

“But you better not make me regret it. Fer yer own good.”

The Doctor turned to see him from the corner of his eye, his cocky smile only increasing. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Pinkie’s room looked just about the way you’d expect the pink party pony would decorate it. It looked like a tornado had done a few strategic strikes upon a few children’s birthday parties, then arrived in here and exploded. Twice.

The Doctor gave the room a cursory look. He was accompanied by Big Mac, Ditzy and Mr. Cake. He asked the baker, “I assume her room is usually this well organized?”

“Well, no. Sometimes she forgets to tidy up.”

The Doctor didn’t answer the joke. Instead, he walked over to the bed and studied it intently. ”That’s odd...”

”What is?” the mailmare asked.

”Nothing certain... It’s just odd how the bed sheets were left. It doesn’t look like anyone threw them to the side to get out. Rather, how it would look like when someone just vanished from underneath them. Could be a coincidence, though...”

He walked away from the bed and looked around the room again. He ignored the party decorations on the ceiling and party toys all over the floor, and went straight for the window.

”Big Macintosh. Do you remember if the window in Applejack’s room was open?” as he creaked it wider to study it more thoroughly, and sniff it.

”Yeah, it was. Why?”

”Oh, no reason.”

The Doctor would’ve used his screwdriver over the window if he had it. He’d have to remember to bring it with him when he goes to check the other girls’ houses.

"Did you find anything?" Ditzy inquired, being the only one not entirely left in the dark.

"Nothing certain. A lot of ideas, but I need my screwdriver to make sure. Does either of you remember either of the girls acting strangely last evening in any way?"

"Applejack was acting just fine. She was a might tired from workin' all day yesterday, but other n' that, well... not really."

"What about Pinkie?"

Mr. Cake looked at him funny for a moment before relenting. "Pinkie has always been odd. That aside, no. She didn't give off any reason for worry."

"Was there anything out of the ordinary that happened yesterday? Anything at all?"

The two shook their heads.

"Very well." he sighed. "Thank you for your time. I'll just check around the room one more time to make sure I didn't miss anything. You can go down and have some tea."

The two went down the stairs silently, leaving the Doctor and Ditzy alone.

”So, what do you think?”

”So far? It could be anything. The windows were open, but they weren’t forced open. They might’ve been forced magically, but then whoever did that needed to want to get through the window, so they’d need to either fly in, or use a ladder. But it was more likely that a unicorn was just riding on a pegasus’ back…”

“So you’re not even sure if Pinkie was really foalnapped?”

The Doctor looked at her curiously for a moment. “The girls seem to have gone missing. Chances are it wasn’t by their choice. However, there were no signs of a struggle. So, I am a little stumped.” He went to a drawer and opened it, finding a few balloons burst and float out. ”Why don't you go down and see how they others are holding up? I want to think about this for a bit longer.”

"Alright."

As soon as he was certain she couldn't hear him anymore, he spoke out. "Crossroads."

Soon enough, a familiar crawling sensation ran under the skin on his back.

A voice sounded out from behind him. "You rang?"

He turned around to meet the newly appeared cloaked stallion in the middle of the room, looking as idle and emotionless as last they’d met.

"Quite the genie in the bottle, aren't you? I thought you said you'd stop stalking me."

"I did. I can't help it if I've already seen everything that could've ever happened."

The Doctor didn't think he liked what that meant. "So, after I arrived home yesterday..." He was cut off before he needed to explain further.

"Nothing as graphic or perverse as that. It's more rather just an abstract sort of perception that I can translate into an idea."

"Then why did you explicitly say you've seen everything that could've ever possibly happened?"

"It's just a choice of words. You trust your eyes first and foremost, after all. I trust my "sight" even more. How else am I to refer to it? How do you refer to your perception of time?"

"...Okay. Good point." The Time Lord placated, pensively. "Now regarding why I've called you here..."

"I can't help you."

"I certainly can't say you take too long to answer. Why not?"

"Remember when you asked me how come there aren't any reapers hunting me down?"

"Yes?"

"I'm already threading on thin ice. I don't want to risk it breaking for no good reason."

"...You're willing to risk your life?"

"Yes." Cross answered with no reservations.

"So, if I understand correctly, you can pretty much see anything in the future, except for when you'd die?"

"Yes." the cloaked stranger answered again robotically.

The Doctor remained silent, unconvinced. Eventually Crossroads continued again, suddenly and without warning.

"I see every possible outcome. I see every possible 'what if'. I see the colors of resolve, fate and hope. I see nightmares and regrets tailing behind you, and ambition and desire carrying you forward. I see the wonder in your eyes, and the unspeakable horrors that hold them open so widely. And yet..." He took his cloak off his head and his goggles of his face. "...I'm blind."

His hair was alternating in streaks between dusty gold and pale silver. His eyes, however...

The Time Lord hunched over and puked. He tried to comprehend what he saw, what was there on the strange stallion's face, but he couldn't.

Just as he started to worry about what the Cakes would say, he was relieved to see nothing on the floor.

"...I don't think that was a dry heave."

"The only presence I'm allowed in reality is the one that doesn't affect it in any way. You never saw me. You never knew me. Otherwise, it would mean that I belong in this realm."

"And yet, here you are."

"Am I really?"

With a literal blink of the Doctor's eyes, Crossroads vanished. With only the sound of his voice coming from everywhere, and nowhere at the same time.

"Tell me, Doctor. What is a memory?"

He didn't feel sick anymore. "...It's a lot of things, really. Why?”

“Just answer the question.”

”Physically, it’s neural connections arranged elaborately in order to give out a series of electronic impulses which a different part of the brain can decode. The process of remembering is ions going through cables. But I don’t think that’s what you were asking.”

“Our memories are… our presence in the world. It's how we identify ourselves within the world, and how the world identifies us. We perceive reality, and give it meaning."

Silence. He walked back over to the window.

"Is that what you are? A dislocated memory in the tides of time?"

"A revenant of a time that never came. A remnant from a reality that should've never happened. A perversion of hope itself. There are things you wish to find out, but do not want to know, Doctor."

He sighed. "Remind me not to ask next time."

"We may continue this conversation later. For now, there are ponies that are supposed to be safe and sound at home right now. You need to go find them."

"Isn't there anything at all that you can tell me?"

"...Face your fears. Now, if ever."

Author's Note

Not my most clever title so far, but what can you do. They're not all going to be gems.

(*) Pretty sure I got the math right.

Tell me if I've gone too far with the theatrics when introducing Crossroads. I know I've gone pretty far, but I don't know if it would qualify as too far.

I know I've said I'd wait until I finished the rest of the arc, but, well... This is finished. And I've already planned out how the rest goes down. And I'm not expecting to come back to this chapter because I've already done everything I could've ever hoped to achieve.

Most importantly, Crossorads reveals his face! Hurray n' stuff...
Much to the Doctor's chagrin, either way. But hey, he asked for it.

"Also, the author has been complaining about me being too mysterious."

Lies! You'll never get me alive, copper!

"...You want to hear a joke?"

Your jokes are bad, and you should feel bad for suggesting that!

"Hello, pot."

Shut up!

Into the dark

Author's Note

I'm doing something a little... special in this chapter. There's a fight scene, with music, with linking approval from the composer.

I don't generally agree with music sequences. It's more troublesome to the reader than anything else. You simply can't pay attention to two things at the same time, so you're forced to either:
- compromise and make an effort to keep the song playing in the back of your head whilst reading, or
- read the whole thing once so you know what happened, and only THEN read a second time with the music playing.

Personally, I suggest the first option.

If anything, you can figure out the tension in the fight by listening to the song where I say the fighting starts, then going through with the combat sequence all pumped up and ready to go.

This is the link. Tell PsychGoth how awesome the song is so he stops shying it away from Youtube.

Anyway. During the fight, you'll figure out my personal opinion as to why the Iron Pony Competition was entirely biased. Need I remind you that Big Mac is capable of dragging an entire house no problem? I'm pretty sure that it's not just because of him being big enough to break a brick wall, should he ever forget to cover his mouth before sneezing. No creature that size should be able to do something like that without help.

Index of time in the song when stuff happen. In case anyone cared. They're censored for a reason.

0:00 Big Mac stops the giant tree branch.
Every beat at 0:03, 0:07, 0:10 etc are branches or roots hitting the ground, making it shake every time.
0:20 Big Mac opens a can of whoop-ass on the Everscreech.
0:35 Close-up on the army of the dead (apple trees) that are now marching forward.
0:42 Doc suddenly “kills” one of them. The others are none too happy about it.
0:49 He starts walking towards the mob, charging up his ~~weapon~~ cupboard repair tool.

0:56 They gradually start getting offed.
1:06 Doc almost gets crushed by a giant rope of roots
1:14 The Everscreech means for a change in tactics.
1:20 The trio start beating on the smaller eggs, which were still bigger than them.
1:28 Creeper punches Big Mac.

1:35 STALKer Shoryukens Big Mac.
1:42 Big Mac holds his ground, Doc talks, Climber does her thing. Doc and Ditzy need an adult.
1:49 Big Mac does an earth bend. There was salad everywhere.
1:52 He dodges and makes more salad everywhere. Does this count as gore?
The Everscream hatches…
2:00 …uncovering a Trojan Applejack.

2:07 She gives them all one last chance to surrender. Then she charges at the greatest threat.
2:21 Big Mac successfully Blocks.
2:28 They talk.
2:35 Big Mac uses Bitch Slap! It’s not very effective…
2:49 Trojan Applejack uses Widespread Strikes!
3:03 They charge each other and explode dust everywhere DBZ-style.

Into the dark

The door to Rarity’s boutique creaked open, letting in the morning sun’s light for the little time it took a certain brown time pony to trot inside.

“Unlocked. Why am I not surprised.”

He was wearing his saddlebags full of equipment. Which was saying something, considering they were bigger on the inside. Sure, it might’ve not been a good idea to go back home to retrieve them since he might’ve risked being found once Ditzy noticed he’d snuck out. Regardless, if he wanted to investigate what was happening, he’d need two things. His tools, mainly his screwdriver, and his coat.

You have to look the part when you’re saving the day, after all.

He looked around, finding the greeting area about the same as it was the last time he was here. There was nothing out of the ordinary, nothing out of place, and no sign of any kind of struggle.

“I wonder where she might have put my coat…”

He entered another room which presented another separation screen and a set of mirrors. It seemed to be a dressing room.

“If this is the dressing room, then why was there a separation screen in the other room? Count to think of it, why even have one? They’re always naked!”

He found a few drawers on one wall, and stopped to stare at them with an indecisive look on his face.

“I shouldn’t…”

No, he shouldn’t. However, he really wanted his coat now.

“…I’m certain she will understand.”

He opened a few doors and ruffled through a few clothes and fabrics until he started hearing a menacing cat’s rattling. Removing one final fabric, he uncovered a white furball which promptly jumped on his head and started scratching viciously all over. He frantically threw the ferocious feline off.

“What was that for?!”

Opalescence hissed in response.

“Yeouch! I’m not sure which one was worse; Your assault, or your manners!”

“Meow! Hiss!”

“Yes, I can understand you!” he contradicted in a hushed tone. “Now keep it down, or we’re going to have a problem!”

“…Mew?”

“Yes. How many times do I need to repeat myself?”

“Mew meow!”

“I know what this looks like, okay? I only wanted to retrieve my coat, if Rarity finished it, that is.”

She growled again.

“…Okay. Fair enough. But if…”

“Meow!”

“What? What do you mean you don’t care?”

“Meeow meow!”

“I’m busy!”

“Hiss!”

“Fine, where’s your bowl?” he sighed.

Turns out the cat was just grumpy because she hadn’t been fed today. She couldn’t care less about his suspicious circumstances.

“Opal.” he read the letters on the cat’s dish. “That your name, Opal?”

“Mew. Meow.”

This is getting ridiculous. Initiating translation.

“Gee, genius. Did you figure that out all by yourself?” Rarity's cat grumbled sarcastically.

“Well, it wasn’t really that hard to figure out.”

“…Are you really that stupid?”

“Are you hungry or not?”

“Alright. I take it back. Now feed me already!”

Needless to say, she did not sound honest in her apology. The Time Lord rolled his eyes and did what he was told.

He looked around the room some more. “I don’t suppose you could tell me where Rarity keeps her finished products, do you?”

“Upstairs, in her work room.” Opal answered before she returned to her food bowl. It was surprising to him that she even bothered stopping her meal for his sake.

He offered a short thanks before heading for the stairs, only to stop halfway. “Why were you hiding in the dresser, anyway?”

The cat stopped eating to give him a nervous look.

“Did something scare you?”

Nervousness intensified.

“…Last night?”

Silence for a while. Suppose the cat was just wishing she didn’t need to speak, as would usually be the case up until now. She eventually spoke up, “…I’m not sure what I saw.”

“Try to explain as well as you can.”

“I woke up when I heard the window creak open on its own. From seeing my keeper use it so much, I'll make a wild guess and say it was magic, since I couldn't see anyone. All I saw was a dark glow melding in with the already dark room, the only reason I could notice it was because it seemed to drink up any of the light that came from outside. Then, my keeper started to shift violently in her sleep as though she was having a nightmare. Or several at once. And then, she just vanished into the dark.”

“That’s it?”

“Yes.”

“She just vanished, just like that?”

“I said, yes!”

“And you ran away and hid in the drawer, because…”

“What! I didn’t want to risk dissolving into the dark as well! I still need my beauty sleep.”

“Uh huh…”

Not getting anything else out of the cat, he just went ahead upstairs

Once he did climb, he found several doorways. First one he tried went into what appeared to be a guest’s room. Second try was where he found his mark. He didn’t take long to find his coat. It was hung neatly from a hanger inside one of several drawers.

It would appear that Rarity took a few liberties with it. Some rather generous liberties. The buttons were made out of cut gems, the trimmings were also gold colored on the outside and silver on the inside.

"There seems to be a trend of that going on."

He changed, noticed how well fitted it was and put most of the stuff he previously had in his saddle into his coat’s pockets.

“Screwdriver first, psychic paper, although not likely I’d need it for now, toy mouse, rubber ball, yo-yo, compact umbrella, water assimlator, night vision goggles, spare toothbrush, glasses, emergency sandwich…” He took a while to finish transferring everything.

When he was done, he went to check on the remaining doorway. It led to Rarity’s bedroom.

He decided it’d be a good time to check around for clues, this time with proper equipment, since he’s already here.

He looked around. Again, the bed sheets were similarly left in their odd fashion. On the bedside, he found a family picture. Four ponies smiling from ear to ear in what seemed to be a trip to a city, a metal statue in the middle of a large expanse of water in the background.

“That must be Manehattan,” he figured.

The picture showed two adults, obviously Rarity’s parents, seeming to be truly enjoying themselves. The older of their two siblings, a white-maned filly with dark-purple styled hair (did she actually style it that early, or was it natural for her?), apparently around her teens. Aside from her, clinging to her mother’s side, was what seemed to be a little sister.

He looked at the picture for a while. Focusing on what he was doing.

Yes, it was, arguably, the most interesting thing that had happened to him ever since he arrived here. But still. The people… the ponies that are actually missing. They do have family and friends that are worried about them. He might like to distance himself from any emotion he might have that might interfere with his ability to resolve such circumstances, but that doesn’t mean he’s able to do so thoroughly, despite what he might sometimes try to let on.

He turned his head back towards the bed, pulling out his trusty sonic screwdriver. “No use, her magic left traces everywhere. Unless…”

He narrowed the settings on the tool in his mouth (surprising how well ponies can talk with things in their mouths), until he found what the most recent traces were.

“That’s certainly different from anything anywhere else in the house. A lot more bitter, at least, if not anything else.”

He traced his tool towards the window.

“So whoever did this did enter through the window after all… That’s odd.”

He tinkered with his sonic for a while, going through several functions.

“No heat residue, no molecules left over, nothing! Nothing except magic. That certainly is odd. It’s as if no body had actually been here.”

He pondered this oddity, then got back to tracing the magic. He locked on to its unique, although bitter and dark frequency, and pointed his tool upwards. Then eastwards.

“East. About… a few miles into the Everfree Forest. Two… five… at least seven sources. Well, there’s that, I guess. Seven, as many as the missing ponies and dragon respectively. Or at least I have a general area. It is rather blurry for whatever reason.

"Okay then! I have a lead. That’s certainly a welcomed change. Allons’…”

He was cut short by the image of a rather large, red furred stallion in the doorway on his way out.

“…Huh. Guess you figured out I snuck out, didn’t you?”

“Eyup,” was the large farmer's judging retort.

“Of course you did. Suppose you also had ample time to find me during the time I took to finish my fooling around here.”

“Eyup,” Big Mac repeated, just as judgingly.

“Good show. But I don’t suppose you also happen to know how I managed to sneak out, do you?” as he paced to the side.

“Nnope, not really.”

“Good, then. Let me show you. You see, what I did was,” as he opened the window, “use the window.”

The Time Lord jumped again in surprise during his attempt at exiting the stage, because somepony else barred his way. He recovered quickly enough.

“…Of course he couldn’t have found me on his own. Hello, dear,” the Doctor offered as he slumped his head slightly with a hint of a sheepish smile.

She flew in through the window and eyed him more closely. “Hello, Doc. Nice coat.”

“Thanks.” The Time Lord's eyes darted around the room nervously as he maintained his cool composure. Which Ditzy didn't have trouble seeing through.

“You weren’t trying to get away from me, were you?”

“Who, me? Of course not! I was just… ergh…”

The mailmare raised an eyebrow at him expectantly, forelegs crossed. If she could, she would be tapping her hind hoof.

He sighed when he drew a blank, and decided to just be honest. So he answered with a sigh, “…investigating. But only because there was no time to lose!”

She seemed somewhat surprised by his honesty. She faltered in her posture and sighed. “And you were going to go looking for them on your own, weren’t you?”

“…Maybe.”

“Maybe, or yes?” as she landed and drew closer to him aggressively.

The Doc gave in, not seeing any way around it. He sighed, “Yes.”

Give him a lie detector any day.

She sighed. “You know, I was kind of hoping we were closer than this. Sneaking around my back? Really?”

“You make it sound like I'm seeing someone else," he offered tentatively, leaning his head to the side.

"Doctor..." She left her words hanging expectantly.

He took a step forward aggressively. "Why was I supposed to tell you? Do I need to check in and ask for your permission for everything I do now?”

“No, but telling someone when you’re most likely about to go risk your life would be very appreciated!”

“What, I left a note, didn’t I?”

She sighed. In all honesty, finding a note saying he went to risk his life did not make her feel any better. She could swear he was dodging.

The Doctor started to push her along out of the door. ”Now if you could go back and, I don’t know, take Dinky to have some corn on the cob or something, I would very much appreciate it.”

Ditzy rolled her eyes. Which, of course, looked odd. “Sure. If you come with us.”

“Sorry, but no.”

She snapped her leg free. “Then I’ll have to say no too.”

Doc sighed. He was about to give another retort, but Ditzy cut him off with renewed vigor, “Why do you insist on wanting to go on your own?! The entire town would be willing to join you!”

“As much as I’d enjoy trying to organize a bunch of clueless bakers and gardeners how to not get killed by whatever might be behind all of this, I work best on my own.”

“Is that so? Well, sorry if we disagree. Someone needs to cover your sorry flank, and I’m sure as hay not going to let you out of my sight, especially not now. And you can also be sure that Big Mac isn’t going to just sit idly while his sister’s missing!”

“Why did you bring him along, anyway?”

“He noticed when you went missing, then followed me when I left, wanting to ask me what I knew. I couldn’t really not tell him, it wouldn’t be right!”

“Fair enough.” The Time Lord sighed, then he faced the farmer’s way. “I don’t think there’s anything that could possibly keep you from trying to find Applejack, is there?”

“Nope,” he glared back, his otherwise dull look hiding obvious fire within, eliciting a smile from the Doctor.

“Yeah, I didn’t think so either. And you,” Doc gave a cross look to the mailmare. “This is going to be dangerous. I don’t think I like the thought of endangering a mother’s life.”

“You know you're pretty selfish sometimes, you know that?”

“Believe me, I've gotten better..." he said, recalling how he'd often lead people he cared about into danger. "I won't be able to focus on what I have to do if I know you're in danger. Please.”

Again, she studied him with that bewildered, wide look on her face, focusing too much on looking in the same direction to bother giving any facial features obvious. She had grown to know him better by now, but she still had a ways to go.

“I'm sorry, Doctor, but you're going to need someone to make sure you don’t do anything stupid.” She narrowed her eyes and got to an inch from his face. ”As soon as you find out what the problem is, you’re not going to stop until you solve it." Her reaction took him by surprise. She drew away, "And quite honestly, I’m worried how you managed to deal with any of the monsters from your travels so far. Our monsters don’t have stop buttons at the backs of their heads, or severe pickle allergies. And neither will you have any technology to use at your disposal here. No security to hack, no hidden doors to get you out when you’re surrounded and no convenient radio stations to spread obscure... what did you call them again? Delta waves?” (like the river landing area, not the Greek letter)

Her berating had apparently managed to put the Time Lord in his place. All he managed was a defeated, “…I really should stop talking so much, shouldn't I?”

Ditzy's unbridled momentum seemed to finally falter when she took note of the Doctor's sorry state. She drew in tenderly and smiled, “I don’t know. I certainly don't mind your talking.”

“…Really?” he asked, completely bewildered.

She wrapped around his neck. “Really.”

Big Mac proved to have enough common sense to interrupt their little moment. “”

Remembering they had an audience, as well as SOMETHING IMPORTANT THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO BE DOING, they drew away from each other awkwardly.

“Right. Sorry.” Were the Doctor’s words while Ditzy only brushed her hair in front of her eye. “Let’s, ugh… just be going.”

Ditzy smiled. “So you’re okay with us coming along?”

“Not really. I'd rather just leave you both here, but I imagine that if I were to do that, you'd just follow me anyway..." He eyed them judgingly, then shook his head and walked towards the exit of the room. "Dinky is going to be okay on her own, isn’t she?”

“Don’t worry. She’s not alone. And as I’ve already said, I can trust her to stay out of trouble as much as I can trust you to get into it.”

"I trust you both are going to follow my instructions exactly. When I say duck, you get down. Compris?" He turned around to find the other two nod in response. Satisfied, he lead the group out of the house. “Fair enough. Allons-y!”

While the trio approached the outskirts where the town meets the forest, Dinky was riding on her aunt's back in attending a town meeting. An older mare and her granddaughter to their right, two worried bakers to their left.

The meeting was held in order to organize a search party, once the mayor learned of the disappearances. She had earlier sent word for Canterlot to notify the Princess of her missing pupil.

The Everfree was as creepy and dark as it’s ever been. The trees were still wide apart, massive and towering high above; growing crowns that blotted out the sun. The air was still murky and feral. Yet for once, there were no longer the distant sounds of beasts echoing far away. Now, it was just quiet. Eerily quiet.

The group had been walking for an indeterminate period of time, following wherever the Doctor said his buzzing, pen-like tool was guiding them.

“We should be getting closer now,” he said, as it got darker and darker. A phenomenon which drew Doc’s attention. “This isn’t normal darkness,” he pointed out, looking around before tinkering with a few of the settings on his tool. “Radiation levels hadn’t changed, light rays shouldn’t have been any different from earlier. So why is it getting so dark?”

“What do you mean?” the mare asked, not appreciating being left out the way she was.

“I’m not certain myself. I only assume that it’s somehow linked to wherever we’re heading. The magical marks I'd found were rather blurry, but I got to suspecting a few things. For one, if this dark really does manifest the closer we get to our target, then maybe whatever or whomever we're after is doing this. The fact that it doesn't seem to be natural, or at all genuine darkness, works in my theory's favor as well.”

“You’re saying it’s magic?”

“I'm saying it's suspicious and possible. I don’t know for certain. I’ve studied all I could on your 'magic', and found your libraries lacking. Still, I suppose it would make sense in the end. It certainly explains the bitter taste.”

“…The taste?”

“Yeah," Doc offered simply. Ditzy decided to insist.

"Mind elaborating?"

"Well... do you know how unicorn horns glow different colors whenever they use magic?”

“Yes?”

"And do you know how sometimes, when a unicorn uses a lot of magic in a short period of time, then the air starts to smell a little fruity?"

"...No?"

“Well, it’s like that. Only instead of fruit, it's more a matter of whatever their magical auras turn out as. Which directly decides what color their auras are. It appears to be something to do with their decided magical proficiencies. It's a combination of atomic makeup and chemical density of the ethereal manifestations themselves. A unicorn with a knack for, say, playing music, would be likely to have a complex atomic makeup and light density in order to focus on finer yet elaborate tunes, while a unicorn that's good at some kind of simpler manual labor would have the opposite instead. Twilight seemed to have been an exception, in that her scales were both strong, and complex..."

"So... unicorn magic tastes fruity to you?"

"Kind of."

"...As in, their magic actually tastes like fruit?"

"That is what I said..." the Doctor half asked.

"What does Twilight taste like?"

"Lavender and grapes."

"But lavender isn't a fruit, though," Ditzy offered confusedly.

That caused the Doctor to stop in his tracks, a face of realization on his face. "Huh..." He then just got back to walking. "Suppose it isn't just fruit, then. No wonder I couldn't figure out what Vinyl tasted like. I think she might be Pina Colada... if a bit light."

The other two didn't know what to make of this new information. Ditzy already knew he had stronger senses, given his alien nature. She also happened to know about his skin smelling like honey... But the entire idea of unicorns' magic being fruit flavored made her head turn, despite her current circumstances. Looking over to Big Mac, he seemed to be just as conflicted as she was.

She whispered to the farmer, so as to not be overheard, "Do you think their horns taste different too?" Big Mac raised a questioning eyebrow in response. Ditzy drew back, "What? It's a serious question!"

"It sounds perverted." Mac answered.

"It does sound a bit on the perverted side, dear." Doc chimed in. "Also, we’re here.”

They took a while to register his last words. The two leaned forwards, studying the cliff ledge with nothing but darkness at the bottom.

“Here?” Ditzy asked.

“Yep.”

“You’re serious.”

“Mmm-hmm.”

“How far do you think it goes?”

He buzzed his screwdriver downwards for a while. “Dunno. I can’t pick up on any ground.”

Big Mac threw a rock over the edge. They didn’t hear it land.

“So… what now?” asked the mare.

“Well, it depends,” went the Doctor, stowing his tool away.

“Depends on what?”

“Depends on whether you trust my judgment. We jump.” Before she could say anything else, the Time Lord did just that.

“Doctor!”

He didn’t answer back from the dark. Afterwards were a few moments of quiet contemplation.

“Well?” the farmer inquired.

She could fly, but she knew better than to mess around with magic. And according to the Doctor's earlier lesson giving, she was most likely messing with exactly that. That, and mailmare was also afraid of what might happen should they follow at all.

She gulped, took a deep breath, closed her eyes and jumped.

She heard the rushing of wind around her ears, as well as the sensation of falling, then nothing. After a while of waiting for something to happen, she decided she could open her eyes again.

The darkness had subsided, only not completely. She wasn’t falling anymore, she was standing on the ground. She looked around, and took a double take. Then a triple take.

There were apple trees for as far as the eye could see. Dead apple trees.

A murky darkness permeated the area, concentrating into what appeared to be an thick mist around the ground which hid anything below their knees. Hopefully there wasn't anything hidden in there. Turning around, she met Big Mac, who had followed her.

“Where are we?” she asked. “These can’t be Sweet Apple Acres, can they?”

“They are,” the farmer answered somberly. “Ah recognize these trees.”

“You’re both right and wrong at the same time, both of you,” they heard the Doctor speak from behind them. He was facing away, looking at something very odd and very, very disturbing in the distance. “These are Sweet Apple Acres, just not the real ones. They’re a reproduction. Unless you had that right in the middle of your fields.” he pointed.

There were only a few yards away they could see clearly. Which made the sight of the massive dead tree in the distance all the more foreboding. Like a massive, twisted beast trying to hide away its form.

He pulled his screwdriver back out of his coat, scanned, gave it a look then slumped and sighed. “And of course the giant, evil tree is where our destination is,” he breathed out in annoyance. "No surprise there."

"I'm more worried why we didn't land. It was quite a fall..."

The Doctor looked around again. "A very good question, Ditzy dear. Tell me, can you fly back out of here?"

She tried, but she couldn't lift any higher than a couple feet(or strides) off the ground. She strained. "It's like I'm just beating in vain!"

"I was afraid of this. Whoever or whatever's responsible for creating this area doesn't seem to want us to leave. We're right where they want us..." He switched from foreboding to idle from the drop of a hat, "Oh well."

He started walking towards their target, the other two soon following.

As they got closer, they made out the monster’s features. It was about seven stories high, its bark was black, exposed in some places in star shapes to reveal stark white underneath. Branches twisting malevolently in all directions, spreading towards the sky like unholy blood vessels, as well as hanging low and clawing at the ground.

The claws had only one side where they would avoid growing. Like a sort of entrance, they led the three towards its base, where they found someone they almost didn’t recognize. Resting against its trunk was a pony, knocking her legs casually with her hat over her face.

“Hey there, big brother.” the figure spoke out without looking up, her words remaining in the air for just a little too long.

“…Little sis?” Big Mac was having trouble believing what he was seeing and hearing. It was Applejack’s voice, even if it was distorted. As for what he saw, it was even harder to recognize anything that resembled his sister either.

She was much larger now. A head taller than Big Mac, but even more slender than she was before. Her fur, once orange, and mane once blond, were the colors of ebony. Fur, sickly yellow. Hair and tail, as black as coal, flowing freely in their own invisible wind.

As for her eyes, they were just black voids. Twin abysses that threatened to swallow anything whole. “In the flesh n' ink.” She offered with an overcast smile. She put aside her hat on the ground next to her as she got up.

Walking in front of them, as to better present herself to everyone else. The apples on her sides were identical, orderly. All red, sparkling clean.
“Ah can’t say Ah’m surprised to see you here, Big Mac. After all, you’ve always been such a lovin’ brother. The other two, however, are unexpected. Doctor? Ditzy? What’re you two doing here?”

“Oh, you know. Nothing much. Just taking a walk into certain doom, trying to find out what’s happening so we can bring you and your friends back home.”

“Well ain’t that a surprise. Ya certainly didn’t seem the type to be ready to get yer hooves dirty." Her voice and words presumed surprise, but the only impression she gave was but an echo of arrogance. It was as if her head was floating. "Ya didn’t even know how to buck an apple tree the first time we met. It was like ya never even knew about telluric energy until we met.”

Big Mac cut in. “Would ya kindly explain why you’ve went n’ left like that last night?”

“It wasn’t really by mah choice, big brother. Ya see, Ah didn’t even realize what was happenin’ till it was too late.”

“A shadow came through the window." The Time Lord filled in. "That’s the extent of what I could guess. Care to verify?”

She gave him a cold, distant glare, before looking away. “Tell me, Big Mac. Do you remember when our parents died, an’ Ah wanted ta leave the farm?“

His head slumped to the side, upset at the memory. "Is this the best time tah talk about that?"

"We never really had a heart t' heart about it." as the sister started turning to walk away.

Behind her, the branches started to close up, cutting her off from the others.

"Ah suppose it weren't nopony's fault. After all, we were both too young to even understand what was goin' on." As she continued to walk away, becoming more and more hidden by branches and shadows. "How could we possibly be honest to one another, when we couldn't even be honest to ourselves?"

The great tree shook and creaked, like it was some great beast whining its woes at them. The ground shook as well, giving the three ponies reason to get away.

As they rushed, they could still hear Applejack quite clearly. "Last night, someone came to me in my dream. He showed me what Ah kept tryin' to ignore all my life. Life ain't fair."

The tree rose from the ground, supporting itself with its roots like myriad appendages.

"But it doesn't have ta be that way. He showed me that it can be different. That everypony can be happy, that nopony really needs to ever be sad again. Not like we were back then."

A grim face formed from split bark. White, glowing, malevolent Jack-o-Lantern eyes were staring at them.

"All Ah need to do is make everypony else see the same way. But before Ah can do that, Ah need to force them to open their eyes. Sometimes, the truth hurts more than they'd wish to bother with it."

A mouth formed, presenting razor teeth made of wood. It growled.

"Sometimes, it takes looking into yer worst nightmare to see the light."

The beast gave off an ungodly shriek as it started approaching them.

The group started to run away, finding it rather easy to outrun the new threat, but they soon noticed the surrounding trees starting to uproot and crack creepy faces on their trunks as well.

The Doctor stared back at the behemoth, as if he was trying to give an impression that he was holding his ground now.

"Okay then. List." he spoke, mostly for himself, but also so the other two could hear him.

"Running?" He noted the trees turning their way and starting to drag towards them. "Non option. Talking?" He regarded the wooden behemoth again. It was similarly heading towards them. "We just tried that. Fighting's no good either... I guess there's only one thing left for us to do."

The mailmare and farmpony regarded the Time Lord with wide eyes as he left back towards the great treant at a leisurely pace. He stopped a few feet away from it, facing it as it stared him down. "Alright then. You win. Show me my worst nightmare."

A branch headed straight for him. The Doctor saw it, but made no attempt to get out of its way.

(Initiating fight music)

A flash of movement, a red mass of muscle and fur appeared between him and the branch. Cracking like a great whip, it stopped where it met Big Mac’s left foreleg, only stopping an inch from his own head. It was trying to envelop him.

“Nope.”

The farmer lightly bucked away the Doctor, throwing him right next to the mailmare. Then he grabbed the branch tight in his teeth and gave it a sturdy yank, ripping it midway.

A pained shriek escaped the behemoth, soon changing into one of rage as it charged at him with new hatred. It attempted to whip and crush the farm pony, only for Big Mac to easily evade it’s extremely slow and telegraphed attacks, sometimes taking the liberty of either punching or bucking back, wood crunching under every retaliation, or bite down and rip another piece off.

Everyone witnessed Big Mac’s impressive display of strength. Ditzy barely believing what she was seeing, while the Time Lord was more irritated than anything else. “Looks like there’s nothing else we can do but fight now."

During all of this, the hordes upon hordes of monstrous apple trees behind them had stopped moving. The Doctor took note of their curious inactivity.

Big Mac continued to present a most determined pest for the nightmare-crossed Whomping Willow. He eventually was caught unable to dodge a rather massive bundle of roots, needing to grasp it and wrestle against it. Surprisingly, despite the fact that the great monster was putting most of its weight into that strike, it managed to sink the farmer’s hind legs rather far into the ground, and nothing else. With another strong yank, Mac managed to pull hard enough to make the monster lose its balance.

He intended on taking advantage of this.
(At the 20 second marker,) He jumped and dove for a buck with his front hoof, the bark cracking and some of it falling off. Soon followed several more piston-like thrusts, further removing small quantities on the large scale, but a lot more than the abomination would’ve liked. Its shriek was deafening, it shook and flailed wildly in order to remove the much smaller pest. Although slow, it was still very forceful and the farmer was thrown off. Big Mac rolled away a few feet, got up and started running back in.

(0:35) The other trees then simultaneously reawakened, all with the singular purpose of joining in the fight against the red menace. The Doctor noticed this.

“Huh. That’s odd. It was as if they weren’t even alive for a while there.”

The Time Lord pulled out his screwdriver and approached one of the trees dragging itself jerkily like a puppet, to assist in fighting the red-maned bane to their much larger peer's existence. The tree didn’t seem to acknowledge him at all as he buzzed and studied it.

He switched through two different frequencies, as Ditzy reproached him. “Doctor, I don’t think now is a good time to be playing scien-”

(0:42) …Once he went into a third frequency, the tree suddenly broke apart and collapsed in on itself, eventually turning into smoke, and the smoke melding into the mist all around them.
As suddenly as that happened, the other trees stopped in their tracks and turned to stare at him. Now they noticed him.

“Huh,” the Doctor let out sluggishly, looking around more awkwardly than anything else. “…Sorry?”

The Wooden Terrors simultaneously shifted their priority on him.

(0:49) The Time Lord started off to meet the mass of Mangy Malus. Tweaking at his tool until it started in the same frequency as it did moments before, only this time so strongly that it seemed to be glowing.

(0:56) Quickly, more and more of them dispersed into smoke, further and further away from the Doctor’s position, until the nearest ones left were a hundred strides away.

The Darkwood Minions seemed to have gotten the message, and stopped moving altogether.

The large Evershriek shook terribly in apparent pain. The Doctor turned around to see it bring down a large rope of roots right towards him.

(1:06) He jumped out of the way, covering his head as he was pelted by quite a few rocks projectiled out of the crash area. He was grateful for that magic Equestrian fur. If he was still humanoid, some of those rocks might’ve hurt him quite seriously.

When he focused his blurred vision, he found Ditzy at his side, pulling him further away from the massive menace.

Soon after they arrived a fair distance to relative safety, they heard a loud smack, and were greeted by a red projectile landing a few feet further away from the Abominable Tree-Monster than them.

(1:14) Finally getting some breathing room, the massive monstrosity took its chance to try changing its tactics. It dove halfway into the ground, leaving only a thorny dome exposed.

(1:20) It seemed that the tree was drawing in the dark mist around it, concentrating it within the confines of its own crown, eventually developing a luscious, black eggshell.

At the same time, around the new shape grew out three sprouts similarly enveloped in pitch black eggshell, similarly fastened with branches as a sort of exposed exterior spine.

No time to rest, apparently.

“That doesn’t look good for us.” The Doctor offered before sprinting off. “We need to stop whatever it is that they’re doing!”

The Doctor attempted the same method he used to stop the Darkwood Malus', while Big Mac and Ditzy went for a physical approach. The shells were holding fast to kicks, and neither was the Time Lord getting any results.

“I hope it’s not because of the wood…” He changed through frequencies, with little result. All he managed was to confuse and slow down the growth within. “Wait. Is it empty?”

He was distracted when he heard a large cracking sound from Big Mac's location. For a moment it seemed that the farmer had managed to break the egg he was working on, until it turned out that that wasn't the reason it was breaking apart. It wasn't shattered, it was hatching. Before the Doctor actually reacted in time to turn around, there was a startled cry and the farmer was sent flying a few feet away. Where he used to be, instead stood a very large creature covered in leaves, dripping with dark green sap, only vaguely reminiscent of a pony. If said pony was twice Big Mac’s size, with tree trunks for hooves and musculature reminiscent of a buffalo.

The figure looked their way with glowing white abysses hidden underneath a thick layer of vegetation, before turning to walk towards where the farmer had been thrown to. Black vines and roots dragging along.

Big Mac got up, rubbing his chin, staring daggers back at the one who hit him. The Creeper stared back eerily.

(1:35) Another quick cracking sound, then something burst out of Ditzy's egg, rushing towards the farmer. Before Big Mac knew it, he was seeing stars again. Then he finally registered a sharp pain at the side of his head and the thankfully unfamiliar sensation of having the wind punched out of his chest.

Suffice to say, being able to comprehend whilst one is unable to perform such a menial, yet important task such as breathing, is not a very pleasant experience.

Suffocating is not fun.

What had actually happened only took a few short moments. Moments which Mac was unable to register because he was on the receiving end of a blind-side sucker punch, then an uppercut in the jaw and buck in the stomach, propelling him even further away from the other two ponies by his sister’s “prison”.

Neither did he register the four times he skipped across the ground before stopping. Or Ditzy yelling his name.

He spent a few seconds on the ground before he finally managed to gasp a full breath of air, then got up shakily on his side looking for whatever hit him that time.

Looking for his assailant he found a second figure, standing still. Much smaller massed than his counterpart, but still much taller than the farm pony. It was also only vaguely equine in appearance. That was where the similarities ended.

It was sporting six long legs, bending at odd intervals like some sort of insect. The head was cone shaped, the body aerodynamic. Comprised entirely out of slick, sickly yellow bark. The dark green liquid covering him gave him an almost chitinous appearance.

In a flash, the Stalker rushed off again.

The Doctor and Ditzy could hardly believe how quickly it was moving from where they were standing. Big Mac only barely had time to lift his guard up before he felt a blow intended for his head again.

The farm pony braced himself that time, so he managed to hold his ground. But his aggressor didn’t give up. It just kept on delivering blow after blow. Assaulting shoulder, sides, back, legs, the back of his head…

Somehow, Big Mac managed to hold his own whilst on the ground.

(1:42) The mailmare attempted to go for the air to try to help, but found herself unable to lift herself. Her hooves were rooted. The Doctor noticed having the same predicament. He looked towards the last egg’s location. All he found was a hole in the ground. It already broke apart and crumbled back to the dark, thick mist which composed it. As he figured, whatever was inside escaped the Doctor's attempts and continued its development underground.

“Let me guess. We have the creeper plant, the one that can stand upright on its own, and now we have the climber one? Suppose we should be happy you forewent the carnivorous, thorny and poisonous varieties.”

Surely enough, they both felt something climb up their legs and around their barrels.

Ditzy gave a startled yelp.

“Okay, this is getting uncomfortable,“ the Time Lord offered with a grimace.

It was straddling them, forcing the screwdriver out of the Doctor's hoof. Once it was satisfied it was safe to show itself, the two prisoners could make out a vaguely female equine head, neck and upper body form where their vines interjoined in betwixt them, looking off impassively towards where Big Mac was trying to hold his ground.

Macintosh had managed to get back on his feet by now, as well as get a hold of his breathing. However, he was now also sporting quite a few darker patches of fur, as well as a few bloody scrapes. He stood fast nonetheless, still looking for some sort of opening.

There was also the Creeper, who was only a few feet away from him now. If he was going to do something, he needed to do it now.

He took in a deep breath, then hit the ground as hard as he could. The area around him split, creating fault lines and upturned rocks.

The Stalker tripped on a crag.

That was all he needed.

(1:49) Before his adversary could get back up, Big Mac brought down a thunder clap with his front hooves.
There were splinters and sap everywhere.

A low rumble escaped the Creeper in response. It was over Big Mac now, reeling back for a hammer strike with both forelimbs.
Big Mac dodged easily. Bits of rocks spraying everywhere. He turned around, reeled in and bucked.
(1:53) Now there were splinters, sap, weeds, rocks and more sap everywhere. As well as a few craters, cracks and fault lines in the ground.

The red farm worker was breathing heavily, whilst admiring his handywork. He was just glad that he finally got out of that bind.

A loud cracking resounded in the air. He looked towards the… egg, and witnessed helplessly as it opened. Its branches and the darkness that formed its shell fell away, dispersing and merging back into the mists near the ground.

The first thing that could be distinguished from the inside were a pair of eyes glowing white in the middle of the area (2:00). Before long, the rest of the figure could be made out from the rest of the darkness.

That is to say, she was left completely black. All jet black, save for her now completely white eyes, and a few lines running around and down her eyes, as well as making up her mouth and running down her legs, mostly straight.

She paced forward, looking around curiously, like an alien on a new world. She stopped for a few moments upon seeing the Doctor, almost as if she was only now recognizing him for the first time in a long time. Her gaze broke off towards Big Macingosh, only offering an echo of emotion for her battered brother.

Without opening her mouth, she spoke in a low whisper. Still, everyone present was able to hear her clearly. “This is your last chance to join us willingly.”

Their resolves didn’t falter. They weren’t going to give up, and Grimjack saw it. “Very well.”

The former farm pony dashed towards her brother, with speeds not as great as the Stalker’s, but still far beyond anything which any normal equine should ever have any right to exhibit. Unlike the Stalker, however, she would crumble and upturn the ground under her hooves.

She reached him within a couple heartbeats. The world seemed to slow down as she reached inches away from her target, about to strike diagonally from his upper left.

(2:21) The older sibling blocked her strike, the impact resulting in a shockwave that blew away the dust around them. He saw it coming. He had time to brace himself and draw whatever magical resources he had at his disposal, which was the only reason why he was still standing. He didn't have any specialized training, but like most earth ponies, as well as like the mythical Antaeus, he gained a subtle boost which he unconsciously tapped into in this time of need.

Now, if ever, he needed to live up to his name. So he imagined himself to be as big as a mountain. It was barely enough.

“Damn it, girl! Snap out of it! I don’t wan tah fight you!”

The only response he received was another strike, this one somehow harder than the first one. He grit his teeth upon blocking, skipping a few paces away.

“Applejack! This isn’t you! You have t-”

She cut him off. “You’re right. This ain’t Applejack. This is someone else. Someone better, without fear or regret.” She walked closer. “I only wan ta do the same for you, if only you’d let me. But you won’t, will you? You will struggle and fight for your preferred version of me.”

(2:35) She was cut off by a hoof strike right in the kisser, although she only offered an inch in response. The voids she had for eyes only offering for faltering surprise, before returning to her cold, impassive state. The previous bout of infuriating nonsense, together with his inability to reach out to his younger sister, only prompted despair in her brother. He leaned his hoof into her cheek with all he had, “If yer not her, then what’s keeping me from beating ya into a heap?”

She stared at him, lethargically, unimpressed for a while, intent on treating the discomfort with disinterest. On driving home that he couldn't beat her, no matter how much he wanted, no, he needed to. She then answered in kind, “How about this?”

(2:49) Before he knew it, she was punching him relentlessly all over, like a wide-spread jackhammer, terminating with a haymaker to his own cheek.

It felt like he’d chipped a tooth and broke a rib. Possibly two ribs. He couldn't determine that until after he stopped skipping off the ground though. He took a few stubborn breaths to adapt to his new pains, got up, shook his head and spit half a tooth out. It wasn't looking good for him... it was clear that there was no way he was going to win, save for some kind of miracle. But he couldn't give up. Even if there really was nothing he could do, he couldn't give up. He couldn't fail!

He steeled himself and jumped back in to deliver the last piece of fight he had in him. A regular charge, Applejack smacked him away easily. He actually had the chance to surprise her however, using the momentum to turn around and buck her in the chest. The younger sibling was as solid as a steel wall, but she still got pushed a few feet away. A small victory, but a pointless one. Applejack decided she had enough of dragging this along, and Mac recognized it. Every fiber of his being demanded he move, do something to save his sister, but... he couldn't fight his own sister any more.

(3:07) All he could do was stare her down as she rushed him for a final strike. He closed his eyes, then welcomed unconsciousness, praying to whatever gods there were that the Doctor would figure something out where he couldn't.

When the dust settled, Big Mac was unconscious at Grimjack’s hooves. She pulled him over her back and carried him over to the other two.

Ditzy’s mouth was left agape during most of what happened, now she dropped her head in fear as Applejack approached. Beside her, the Doctor had a dark look to him that, for a moment, seemed to have actually made the former farmer flinch.

She grit her teeth and got over it.

The farmer dropped her limp brother in front of them, where Climber started entangling him and forming an eggshell around him, leaving the two behind in the process.

Ditzy and the Doctor were no longer held as tightly as before. They had access to some degree of motion, but that was the extent of it. Finally being able to move, Ditzy slumped on her haunches, in an attempt to become as small and hard to see as possible.

The Doctor didn’t look away for the longest time, even after Applejack had taken a break from their stare-down.

Despite herself, Ditzy couldn’t help but try to confront Applejack, looking to understand what was happening around her.

“Why would you do this? He’s your brother! What could you possibly have to gain from any of this!?”

The dark mare regarded her earnestly with her hollow eyes. Nothing to hide at all. “Ah’m not gonna say Ah’m proud of what Ah did. All Ah’m gonna say is that it was fer the best.”

“Stop.”

One single word. The Doctor’s remark set the tension overhead, like a lead blanket.

“Just let me get this part out of the way. We’re going to argue that what you did was terrible, and that you should be ashamed of yourself. You’re going to insist that whatever the reason you’re doing this is a good one. It may even be a noble one.”

She didn’t object.

“…But honestly? You could be working to save lives, for all I care. The fact in the matter remains, that you’ve gone about achieving your goals through petty violence and manipulating others. That, I cannot abide.”

“Ah assume you’re tryin’ to address Nightmare?”

“I don’t know. Is that the name of whoever did this to you?”

The tone of her voice certainly was strange. As if the real Applejack was somehow being smothered, drunk on some external influence.
The Doctor didn’t know the extent of what was going on, neither did he need to know. She wasn’t being herself. Most likely since last night, when whoever this Nightmare is did whatever he did.

Finally, the Doctor was in no position to offer an ultimatum at the moment, however he didn’t need to do any such thing either way. It was clear from his posture and demeanor, despite the constant tugging of the vines around him, that he wasn’t going to relent no matter what.

“Either way, if this Nightmare’s listening, I’d like him to know one thing.”

“What would that be?”

“That whatever he has planned, he’s not going to succeed.”

“Bold words, Doc. Ah’m guessin’ you’re plannin’ on stopping us? All of us? Not only Nightmare, but me an’ mah friends s'well?”

“Yep.”

“Just the two of you?”

“Eyup.”

It seemed odd, almost unnatural, but she managed a smile out of surprise and admiration. “Ah said it already, an’ Ah’ll say it again. Ah honestly didn’t think you had it in ya. Ah certainly didn’t guess yah’d have this much spine a couple days ago."

Her smile faltered, and she walked over to a few inches in front of him. "Yah’ve seen what Ah’ve done to Big Mac, haven’t ya? Jus’ consider this much. Ah’ve been holding back. Imagine what Rainbow Dash, the fastest flyer in Equestria can do now. Let alone Twilight.”

He didn’t seem too impressed. "Yeah, I noticed as much from your fight. Specifically when you let him tire himself out by punching you, without even so much as blocking his blows.”

Then, she started to laugh. A sinister laugh if there ever was one. Ditzy felt a chill run down her spine every time Applejack shook in glee, walking around the Doctor, towards her.

Halfway through her manic shakes, a second voice started to accompany hers. A male one. A very unnerving, demanding, raspy one that seemed to make the very act of laughing so very cold.

That voice spoke out in a tone as uncaring as despair itself. “We’ll see how long your determination lasts you.”

Acting versus reacting

“Your move,” said Dinky to Applebloom.

The two fillies sat at a table in the library, playing chess. Across the room Granny Smith was looking out the window, worried. The red bowed girl wasn’t in much of a better disposition either. Her head over her crossed arms, she seemed content enough to just stare at the pieces in front of her.

The purple filly didn’t seem to notice. Or at least, didn’t seem to give any hint of noticing.

“…You know, there was supposed to be a time limit. You can’t take too long to make your move.”

No response.

“It isn’t really a problem, though. After all, we’re just playing for fun.”

Still nothing.

“I usually play on a time limit with the Doctor. Otherwise he’d get bored and wouldn’t stop giving hints… and I’d still lose.”

The slightest hint of frustration rose on her farmer friend’s face.

“…Then again, he’d still give hints either way. And he’d still win. It’s still fun, though.”

It eventually became obvious even to her that Applebloom was not, actually, enjoying these conversations.

“…I’m sure him, mom and Big Macintosh will find your sister and her friends.”

“How do you know? He won’t even give his real name. How can you trust him?”

Dinky only offered a knowing grin. “Because, it’s kind of hard to live with someone in the same house and not get to know him.”

“Ah still don’t get it. Why the Doctor? What kind of a name is that?” She eventually made her move.

Dinky smiled. “That wasn’t really the best move, but I can see where you were going with it.”

Applebloom only continued to pout. “Ah don’t suppose you could give me some hints too? After all, you do have more practice.”

“Practice losing? Sure. But I never really had that much fun winning before.”

“Ah don’t think Ah like this game…”

“Okay, okay. I’ll go easy on you. Unless you come up with anything else we could do to pass the time.”

“…We could play hide an’ seek?”

“Nope.” interjected the elder mare from across the room.

“Why not?” the farm filly pursued adamantly.

“B’cause we both know that by ‘hide n’ seek’, you mean go into the Everfree and look fer Applejack yerself.”

“Well, it’d still be better than sitting here, doin’ nothing!”

“Ah know, deary. But the entire town’s searching right now, an’ if they say they’ve got it all covered, then there ain’t anything else to it.”

Applebloom didn’t seem satisfied with leaving the conversation at that, but she wasn’t in any position to argue. All she could do now was wait, and play this stupid game…

Dinky took note of her friend’s demeanor. She considered trying to cheer her up. Maybe she could pass on one of the stories the Doctor told her?... Well, she could certainly try, but she wouldn’t be able to give them justice. Since she never really had that much practice telling stories…
Not like she understood half the things he’d say in them either way.

“We could read some of the books here, if the game’s bothering you that much.”

“Ah can read anything Ah want anytime. Right now, Ah’d like to know some more about the Doctor. You said him an’ your mom are out with mah brother lookin’ for Applejack. What do you think they’re doin’?”

The purple unicorn filly pondered this with a hoof to her mouth. “…Well, they didn’t tell me anything before they left. So I’m guessing it’s something dangerous, and they didn’t want to worry anyone by telling them about it.”

“Oh…”

“…Or, maybe they were just in a hurry?” Dinky started again, quickly noticing that Applebloom’s face and ears dropped again.

“Or maybe they were already caught by whoever or whatever was responsible for all of this, so they couldn’t warn anyone.”

“Let’s… just go with my first idea then.”

Applebloom deflated on the table, like a sighing balloon. “This is like Nightmare Moon all over again. At least she came out alright after that.”

“That’s the spirit! I’m sure everything will turn out just fine.”

“Sure.” the farm filly offered forlornly.

“Checkmate.”

“…Let’s do something else.”

It was dark in her library. That was the first thing Ditzy noticed.

The last time she was here, it was already pretty dark. As to be expected, since the large, cavernous area only had the few occasional standing lamp shades and candles for a bare requirement of light. No windows, since there weren't any walls to be seen. Only bookshelves, some of which's further corners were obscured. The place was as foggy as a dream even last time she was here. Now, however, it was worse.

It felt like someone was watching her.

She didn’t ask how she got here. After all, who ever wonders such things, from inside a dream? All she knew, almost like an alien, irrational thought, was that she was here to find something out. She didn’t know what, or where she needed to go to do so.

She didn’t question the alien thought. Even in reality you never question what's in your head until you receive conflicting information, much less inside a dream.

Well, what else could you be looking for inside a library, but information? Ditzy humored that curious thought that she couldn’t explain, if at least to give herself something to do. Something to take her mind off the lingering sense of uneasiness at what might be hiding just beyond her line of view.

She took out a book, and started flipping through the pages…

Suddenly, she was back home, in the dining room. She was helping Dinky eat her dinner, barely older than a year. Doseydotes was saying something or another from beside them, which elicited laughter from her.

Ditzy shut the book, blinking the reverie away. She remembered that memory, but why did it take her by such force? It was as if she was there, in the midst of it.

She took another book…

Dinky showed her a drawing of the library. Ditzy congratulated her with a hug, thoughts of having an artist in the family running through her head.

Another book. This one was a bit charred at the edges of its covers. It was foggier than the other two visions.
She was in the hospital, exhausted in every sense of the word. Cradling a sleeping child.
She looked so much like her father.

Ditzy shook. Tears falling on the pages.
She heard whispers from her right. She gasped and looked to their source. Nothing there. Just darkness further ahead.

Ditzy felt compelled to search further, but something just didn’t feel right about the next book. Its cover was black as charcoal.
She seemed to remember something at the edge of her memory. Something the Doctor said about how some books tend to burn the others… Why was that again?

She pulled it out. I had a lock on it… Odd. It was unlocked either way. She could read it, if she wanted.

One peek couldn’t-

She threw the book away, eyes watering and heart pounding. She didn’t even manage to open the bloody thing! What was wrong with her?

“Nothing’s wrong with you.” She recognized the same familiar voice whisper to her again. Where had she heard that voice before?

She looked around, still not finding anyone.

“Who’s there?” her voice cracked.

She could tell by the tone, whoever was talking to her was smiling.

“A friend.” The voice whispered right into her ear.

She swung her head around, searching, trembling.

“You could even say…” The volume would echo and alternate hauntingly all around… “...your closest friend.” …until it settled right behind her. Her heart caught in her throat. She was too terrified to turn around.

“Come on. Don’t be afraid, I would never hurt you.”

She wouldn’t dare move. The voice behind her sighed. “So you’re still not willing to see the truth.”

No answer.

“Alright. I understand.”

Ditzy felt the presence behind her leave.

“Take as long as you need,” came the stranger’s voice, growing ever more distant. "Just don't take so long that you might regret it."

When she was certain that she was alone, Ditzy finally turned to peek around. What she found in the distance was a familiar sight. A gate, fear emanating from beyond in thick wafts, threatening to drown her. She backtracked away, never taking her eyes off the murky lights of the lamps beyond, only barely managing a few inches into the darkness.

If she wasn’t scared before, she was terrified now. She wanted out of here.

“Ditzy! Ditzy, are you alright?”

“She can’t answer you now,” answered Applejack.

The Doctor was still entangled. His captor decided she could convert Ditzy at the same time she did Big Macintosh, since she wasn’t contributing enough to their banter anyway.

Also, because she caught on to the fact that the Doctor was essentially just daring her to convert him first.

“Don’t take it personally, Doctor. It’s just that the weaker your spirit is, the easier it is to manipulate, and eventually bend. She was the easier target, simple as that. And the longer you wait for your turn, the weaker you become as well.”

He would’ve preferred it if Applejack just went ahead and attempted converting him. That way, he could defeat her from the inside. It was his intention from the start, before Big Mac decided to make an unnecessary stand.

Instead, she saw right through his taunts. His plan backfired for now. He wanted to keep both of them safe. Instead, he was left bound, watching as Ditzy and Big Macintosh were broken and changed into something they were not.

‘Think, old man. Think…’

He could reinforce the muscles in his leg, technically, more than enough to snap the vines, reach for his screwdriver and just end this. If only it was still in his coat. He dropped it when he was entangled.

All he could do was glare at his tool on the ground a couple feet away. Luckily Applejack didn’t see it yet…

“What’s this?” said the dark mare, picking his screwdriver up.

'Crud.'

“It’s nothing, really. It’s just, ugh…”

“Is this what you used to burn my minions?”

“…Maybe.”

“Huh.” Applejack offered in an apathetic tone of voice as she snapped his tool in half with her unconventional magic, then dropped it on the ground.

Then stomped on it, breaking it into tiny pieces.

He sighed tiredly. “Of course you’d do that...”

“Ah have to say, Ah’m quite impressed. Ah’ve never heard of any technology bein’ able to influence magic. Ah wonder what other little gadgets you have…”

“…If I said that was my only tool, would you believe me?”

“No.”

“Didn’t think so,” he sighed out. “You can search me if you like. I… have nothing to hide.” All he needs is for her to get close enough to reach. He doesn’t need to reach his forehead towards hers, all he needs is for their skins to touch.

She hummed evenly at him. “Ah suppose it would be safer that way. Wouldn’t want ya waking up somehow, and having some other useful tools in that coat of yours.”

She reached her hoof out towards him. He tried to act natural, keeping even his eyelids from dilating. However, she stopped, and his hearts sank, when they both heard Ditzy whimper fearfully from inside her capsule.

“Doctor…”

Applejack retracted her hoof confusedly. “That… ain’t s’posed to happen.”

“What do you mean?”

“She’s supposed to be comatose.” She walked towards the egg, and laid a hoof over it. “She’s resistin’ somehow. Your friend’s mind ain’t letting up. Nightmare’s spell can’t get through to her. There’s somethin’ in the way…”

She looked towards the Doctor, who was trying his best to hide his smirk, but…

“What did you do?”

Damn these pony features. Why are they so expressive? Especially the eyes!

Oh well. Since the jig is up, no use trying to hold down his self satisfaction. He gave her a cocky smirk. “Now that would be telling.”

Applejack was having none of that. “Tell. Me.” She pressed on, stomping forward towards him.

“I’d rather not, actually. It’s kind of personal.”

“If ya won’t tell me willingly, Ah can just weaken you like Ah did mah brother.”

“What? Hit me when I’m bound and can’t fight back?”

“F’course. Ah don’t know what else you might have up your sleeve. Plus Ah somehow doubt you’d fight back even if Ah did let you go.” She pulled back a hoof.

He shook his head awkwardly. “Well...” Her hoof connected to his jaw. “I wouldn't go as far-” BAM “-as saying I would never-” BAM "-defend myself."

He needs a clear shot at her. At least a second, possibly two since there are two of them in her head. Unfortunately her strikes were lasting less than that, and the influx of pain keeps him from focusing the psychic command through his skin.

“Alright.” He offered nonplussed, moments before another hoof impacted with his face, harder than the other ones. He let his head hang.

She dragged his face back up by his chin inches away from her face, so she could see her in those hollow, empty eyes of hers. “Answer me.”

“…You don't need to ask me again.” He surprised her when he connected his forehead to hers. 'Finally. Let’s survey the damages.'

“I’m beginning to see a theme here.” The Doctor said, from within Applejack’s mind. “Why does everything have to be so dark? Would it kill Nightmare to install a few light bulbs around here?” He then began to ponder this. “…Reminder. See if I can use light to combat Nightmare. If it doesn’t vanquish him, then maybe it at least weakens him.”

He turned his head around. All he could see was darkness, as far as the eye could see. “Maybe there’s a light switch around here somewhere…”

He started walking. Where to? He just imagined he was going the right way, since that’s how the inner workings of the mind, well, work.

“Applejack said it was a spell that did this to her. If I were an evil, mind-bending maniac, where would I focus my efforts? Her memories? No, she remembered her brother perfectly well. Her emotion center? Maybe.”

He focused, trying to bend the space around him to form doorways towards whatever might be wrong. Surely enough, doors appeared in a circle around him, without any walls between them.

“Let’s see, behind door number one, we have…” A bunch of bookcases. “Her memories then?”

He took a cursory look. Then closed the door. Then opened it again. Instead of a library, there was a series of floating screens going on for miles, a cacophony of voices and noises going on. Another cursory look, then he closed the door again, muting the noise instantly.

“Doesn’t seem to be anything wrong here. And I’d rather not invade her privacy any further. Next door.”

Clockwork everywhere. Cogs and gears. “Logic? Nothing wrong here either.”

Behind the next door. “Ah…” he motioned pleasantly. “Imagination.”

To describe everything he saw would be difficult. Giant mushrooms, bloomed apple trees, ladybugs having tea with sunflowers. If he were to guess, he’d assume that this would be what Alice’s Wonderland would look like.

He indulged in the sight for a few seconds, then closed the door. “No time to dally,” he sighed. “Next.”

He walked in front of a locked door. “This must be emotion,” he mused, considering his next actions carefully. Invading her memories would’ve been a big no-no, but going in here?

He sighed tiredly. “Here’s to hoping I don’t actually need to search too thoroughly.”

He unlocked the door, and lo and behold. Darkness. He slumped his head, forcing down a swear. “…Let’s just get this over with.”

He entered, slamming the door behind him.

Moments passed.

Minutes.

After nearly half an hour, he rushed back out of the room, slammed the door shut and leaned against it with a look of genuine fear to him.

“Okay…” Something slammed on the other side of the door. “I’ve found the problem.” Another slam. One of the hinges broke off. “Now I need to figure out what I’m going to do about it.” How he was holding the door up at this point was a wonder.

“Think, think… This isn’t the best place to lead Nightmare’s defensive avatar, now that I think about it.” He looked around, quickly shuffling through his list. Surrender and communication would neither be likely to work, nor would it be ideal. He couldn’t run forever. Hiding wouldn’t do anyone any good, at least not for long. All he could do was fight…

His eyes rested on the room to Applejack’s imagination. 'At least he didn’t need to do so directly,' he thought.

The next moment, the door he was holding was destroyed and he was sent flying.

He shook the wood fragments off his head and looked back towards the darkened doorway.

Staring back at him was a figure eerily familiar to Applejack, only longer, thinner and entirely featureless. Undoubtedly some sort of avatar for the one responsible for Applejack’s conversion.

“If anything, you’re persistent with your theme. Though I’d at least prefer a face to look at during conversation.”

The formless, faceless, black antagonist approached him.

“Oh, right. You’re not much for talk.”

Which left him with no choice in the matter. Since he couldn’t convince the sentry to leave peacefully, he could only force it out.

He darted towards the imagination room. Followed by the figure close behind, as the Doctor was hoping. “Here’s hoping I can hack the system faster than him.”

The last thing Big Macintosh remembered was his younger sister, and what happened to her. He didn’t know how to explain what it was that happened to her, or why she attacked them the way she did. All that he knew was that he needed to stop her before she hurt anyone, herself included. Even if he’d need to knock some sense into her the hard way. He’d only hoped that he could sleep off the heartache of striking her later.

The fact that he had lost the fight made the pill easier to swallow. By the way he was only now waking up on the ground, he understood the outcome of their encounter. Neither did he feel any broken ribs either, but he didn’t have the attention to notice. He was too busy looking for Applejack, and finding her whimpering, kneeling in front of that Doctor character.

To say he saw red was an understatement. He was tired, pumped up on adrenaline, upset, scared and a number of other feelings. But seeing his sister in that position sent his emotions into overdrive.

“What’re you doing?”

No response. The Doctor wasn’t even moving, as if he was in some kind of trance.

“Ah said, what are you doin’ to Applejack?!”

He stomped towards the two, but was stopped by Ditzy. He didn’t even notice her beside them, looking worried in her own right.

“Don’t disturb them! Please, you have to understand! He’s trying to help her.”

“That so? Pardon, but s’ far as Ah can see, mah sister’s cryin’ for Celestia knows what reason. What is he doing to her?”
It was clear that he’d prefer yelling a lot harder than he was. Ditzy understood his position, however, and only continued trying to calm him down.

“He’s trying to reach out into her mind. You’ve seen how she was acting, didn’t you? After you lost the fight, we talked to her. We’ve found out that there’s someone else in her head that’s making her act like this. The Doctor’s trying to get him out.”

Luckily, he appeared to be listening. “He’s inside her head?”

“Yes. They both are.”

“…And he’s tryin’ to make her better?”

“He is. But I’m afraid what might happen if we were to separate them. Linking two minds is very delicate, and forcing them apart would be traumatic to both of them.”

“You seem to know a lot about it.”

“Yeah, well… it’s personal.” She trailed off, as a slight blush grew on her face.

Big Mac didn’t seem too interested in furthering this line of conversation. “So what, then? Are we supposed to just wait ‘ere?”

“Yeah.” A little while for her to gather her thoughts and the farmer to calm down, then she sighed and started again. “Sorry, all we can do now is, hold tight and hope the Doctor knows what he’s doing in there.”

He nodded, though still a bit begrudgingly. He looked back towards the two kneeling forehead to forehead. He finally had a good view of both their faces. Applejack didn’t seem to be in any pain, despite her whimpering. Suppose she’s not in any physical distress. The Doctor, however, was clenching his teeth and grimacing. Sometimes he was even grunting in effort.

“How long do ya think they’ll take?”

“Well, I don’t really know. It’s… complicated.”

“And personal?”

She retorted to his cheeky remark with a wry smirk, before going back to focusing on her thoughts. “…Sometimes, time goes by slower while you’re inside. Since you’re focusing on the things inside the dream, not on the outside world. Essentially you can go as fast as your mind can process the events that are happening. But, I honestly have no idea what’s actually going on inside there. For all I know, he could either be playing chess, or commanding an entire army, manipulating every single soldier’s movement. It all depends on who he’s going up against, I suppose.”

“Really?” he asked her incredulously. She nodded. “…Ah did think he had a big head, but not that big.”

She chuckled. “Yeah, you’d be surprised to find out how big his head is. I sure was.” He raised an eyebrow. She took a few seconds to realize what she just said. “…But don’t let him hear I said that. His head’s big enough as it already is.”

Big Mac smiled back. Before he could answer, someone else cut him off. “Oh, I heard you.”

They both did double takes when they heard those words. Yes, the Doctor did just talk.

He got up from his position in front of Applejack. As soon as he did, the farmer reeled back and stumbled in place. Before long, her fur and mane started to change back into the way they were before, in her ebony colors. The only difference this time was that her eyes now seemed to be back to normal, despite her obviously furious disposition.

“What did you do?” she asked menacingly.

“Oh, nothing much. I just removed the source of the problem.”

Ditzy’s relief at hearing that didn’t last long, however. She gasped when she got a good look at the Doctor. More specifically, at his now dark eyes, similar to what Applejack had before. He smirked back at her reassuringly.

“Don’t worry, I’m a lot harder to manipulate than Applejack. Maybe now I'll be able to communicate with Nightmare and see if I can't convince him to let the other girls go.”

“Fat chance,” the ebony mare spat in response, as she steadied herself off the ground, with ragged breaths, shaking like she was in a freezer.

“Oh, just watch me…” He lied down and closed his eyes. Ditzy was beside him before long. “Though I will need a few minutes. Mind talking some sense into your sister in the meantime, Big Mac? It should be possible now that no one’s actively messing with her head.”

Hearing his request, Applejack started laughing coldly. It didn’t help her at all regarding her current obvious discomfort, though. Through gritted teeth, she spoke to them. “Sorry to bring it to ya, Doc, but big brother’s never been that good at talking. Or listening, actually. All he was ever good at was workin’ the field.”

“That so? Well, I suppose now would be as good a time as any to change that, now wouldn’t it?”

“People don’t change, Doc. Not really. You can only squeeze so much out’ve a lemon.”

“Luckily we’re not dealing with lemons, then. Now do quiet down, my head’s full of garbage enough as it is without me hearing your ill-found dribble.”

The farm girl only rolled her eyes mockingly. “Please. If Ah’m gonna hav ta wait till Nightmare’s done with you n’ comes back, Ah’d rather you saved some dignity.”

“Applejack!”

She flinched, her ears dropping halfway when she heard her brother shout at her. His teeth gritted, his eyes narrowed. She narrowed hers in return. “What? Are you gonna try n’ scold me? Make me feel bad about what Ah did?”

He only stared at her, which only aggravated her further.

“Or maybe you’re just gonna stand there n’ look pretty?”

“That’s a lotta mouth you got there, but Ah don’t hear nothing useful coming out.”

“What’re you expectin’ me to say, then? That Ah’m sorry Ah beat the snot outa you? Well sorry, but Ah’m not really sorry.”

“Ah wasn’t necessarily expectin’ an apology. All Ah wanted was an explanation. Instead, here you are barkin’ up a storm since you can’t bite no more.”

“That’s cause you wouldn’t understand. You never listen! You don’t really wanna hear why Ah did what Ah did, you just wanna know how to argue with me that what Ah wanna do is wrong!”

“Isn’t it, though?”

His retort caught her off-guard. She was expecting him to yell, to tell her off about how their parents would be disappointed. How he was disappointed. Instead, he was asking her to question her own motives.

“…It's not.” She answered, less than entirely self-assured.

“Ah don’t know what you’ve been told, or what you’re actually thinking, so Ah’m just gonna point out how Ah see things ‘n you can tell me if Ah’m seein’ things wrong.”

She just looked to the side, gripping herself tightly again.

“First off. You assaulted us, stating that it was fer our own good. How did you put it? That we’d need to go through nightmares b’fore we could see the light? Ah dunno what light you’re seein’ in this wasteland, but it’s pretty dark all around wherever Ah look.”

“Are you askin’ me if Ah’m insane?”

“No, Ah’m only askin’ if you were thinkin’ straight, since there was someone else inside your head doin’ Celestia knows what.”

She let out a shudder and a teeth chattering.

“Look at yourself. You’re not well!” as he approached his suffering sister.

“Ah’m still well enough to beat you back into the dirt if Ah wanted to!” She lied. Truth was, she couldn't even get on her feet.

Her threat made him stop only for a moment.

“Let me go!” she struggled in his embrace. Harder and harder she tried to shake him off, striking and pushing, but even if she wasn't barely able to keep her head up at the time, Big Mac still wouldn't have let go.

Eventually she started crying as she was tiring out. After a few good minutes, she stopped altogether.

“You might not know it now, but you’re still mah sister. Ah’m not gonna let you hurt yourself.”

“...F’course you won’t.” She affirmed.

“Ah don’t know what’s going on in your head, an’ neither do you need to tell me since it would probably do no pony any good. Just know that whatever you think Ah won’t listen to, you’re wrong. If it’s this important to you, Ah’ll listen for however long it takes until you’re done.”

She just stood there, quiet.

“Okay?” he insisted.

For a long time, she just continued to stay there. Eventually though, she started to change, as did the area around. Her mane and fur returned to their normal blond and orange, the dead fields gave way for the Everfree Forest.

“Okay.” she whispered back, finally returning the hug.

Author's Note

And with this chapter, I've officially broken 100 000 words. Whoopee. I wonder how far I'll go.

Don't worry about what happened inside Applejack's head. You didn't miss anything. All Doc did was take a bit of liberty inside her imagination section. After all, hes a powerful psychic that can think in eight dimensions, or whatever.
However, if I were to explain what exactly it was that he did, then your mind would explode trying to understand.

So yes, I refuse to risk my sanity for your amusement, trying to figure out what he did. You selfish.

Seriously, this took way longer than any of you'd care to believe. A lesser man would've given up on this entire abomination of a story, but not me. I have proven superior to the challenge, and I may now bask in my victory!

Now for the other five girls...

The element of surprise

“Are you sure you’re both okay?”

“Yes!” The Doctor and Applejack answered Ditzy’s question in unison.

They were now walking through the forest towards the closest area that the Time Lord traced with his screwdriver. Before it got smashed to bits.

He kept what pieces he could salvage, but currently, he feared that he wouldn't be able to make a brand new one any time soon. Or at all, for that matter. At the very least, he would appear that he would need to cut a few corners.

Either way, it was a good thing that he had already spent so much time lost in these woods. He’d developing a feel for the general layout. It would've been far, far too easy for them to lose track of the direction they needed to take.

His eyes were no longer black, though their whites were now gray instead. He insisted that he was okay, and left it at that. However Ditzy took notice that he's been acting aloof ever since he got up. Or rather, more aloof than usual. He didn’t say anything, though, so she couldn’t insist.

Applejack was not that much more open either. She insisted that her actions seemed like they made sense at the time. However she couldn’t deny that once Nightmare had left her noggin, she started having some very pressing doubts. Gradually, she started regaining her senses as well as notice a few holes in her memory.

As they walked, the air got heavy with tension. The Doctor tried to start chatting, “Okay, so. This time, mind not fighting them, Big Mac? I’d like to try to take them on their own playing field.”

“Ah’m not sure Nightmare’ll fall for the same trick twice, Doc.” Applejack cut in.

“Oh, don’t worry. I still have a few other tricks left up my sleeve. A few gadgets as well.”

“Gadgets?”

“Yes. Like the one you smashed to bits.”

“Look, Ah already said Ah’m sorry!” She took a break and sighed. “Either way. Gadgets or no, Ah doubt mah friends’ll just let you stroll over to them ‘n just do your thing. An’ they each have their own way to fend us off, each one more deadly than the next.”

“Wait. What do you mean deadly?” the mailmare piped in.

“Ah mean what it sounds like Ah’m meaning. Since the Doctor’s an obvious threat to Nightmare’s plans, plus he appears t’ be more or less immune t’ his conversion, Ah’m guessin' he’ll have told the girls to go all out on him.”

“And you’d just listen to him?” The Time Lord inquired gravely.

The Doctor knew why he was supposed to be upset. He could feel the presence in his head, and knew exactly what it was capable of. He was aware of the precise amount of trouble this presence was causing him, and it was no small amount by far. However, indignation still held true with regards to the knowledge that anyone could just simply be talked into taking a life.

Could Nightmare truly be capable of turning off someone else's morality like that?

“He’s workin’ fer… what he believes to be a noble purpose. Ah’m not sure what it is, but from what Ah could gather, he’s not going to let anything get in his way. He already failed twice, he’s not going to do it a third time. Regarding us, well, t’weren’t really a matter of still having morals to keeps us from following such orders. Or, at least not the same morals anyway.”

“What do you mean?”

“Ah mean that regarding mah own case, Ah wasn’t really mahself. None of that was me… Ah can’t believe Ah actually hurt you like that…” She shook her head to clear her thoughts and calm down. “Ah don’t know what was goin’ on in my head.”

Big Mac brushed his head against her shoulder. She returned the affection. “It’s over now. Don’t worry ‘bout it.”

“…Ah’m not goin’ back to bein’ his toy. An’ Ah’m sure as Fel not gonna let ‘im keep mah friends!”

“I’m glad to hear that.” the Doctor offered with a smile. “I believe we’re getting close. You think you’re up to it?”

She smiled back wryly. “Does the rooster sing in the mornin’?”

He looked towards the others. Big Mac offered a confident nod. Ditzy smiled weakly. He furrowed his brows at her.

“It’s fine.” She nodded away. “I’m fine. We’re fine.”

“You sure?”

She had a number of things bothering her. The Doctor’s well-being, not only because of him exposing himself the way he was, but also what Applejack said. There was also the dream she had inside the egg…

“Yes, I’m sure.”

She might get hurt, but if what Applejack said was true, then she’s not taking the same risk the Doctor is taking. She needs to at least try to make sure he stays alright. If not, if she can’t do anything, then she needs to at least be there for him.

“Okay then,” he offered back. “Allons-y.”

“You know, that’s getting a little old.”

“Impossible!” he closed in a French accent.

It took them only a few steps before darkness enveloped everything in sight. With nothing to guide them, all they could do was stay close to each other and hope that there wasn’t another cliff anywhere in front of them.

They reached a clearing eventually. They were still in the forest, it appeared, but they knew better than to trust things to be as they seemed.
There were no bushes or weeds, just bare, oddly normal-looking trees, jutting from the forest floor adorned with odd, black flowers.

Of course they had to be black…

“What are these flowers?” asked Ditzy.

“I don’t think they’re natural in origin. Although I can’t really be certain without my screwdriver.”

“Ah said Ah’m sorry! Wait. What’re you…”

Applejack didn’t have time to finish her question before the Doctor stuck one of the flowers in his mouth. After a few chews, he ejected the vegetation and started making faces and sounds of disgust.

“Nope, certainly not natural. Haven’t tasted anything this sour in my life… Except maybe unsweetened baking chocolate.”

“…You’re not right in the head, you know that?”

“Don’t worry, he knows,” intervened Ditzy with an eye roll and half-hearted smile.

“Really. He could poison himself!” Applejack insisted.

“Right now, that would be the least of our worries,” he replied.

“Why?”

“As I’ve said, these flowers are not natural. What do you think made them?”

The group grew progressively more wary. Applejack eventually spoke out, “Nightmare?”

“And what do you think he’d have intended to do with them?”

“Nothin’ good, that’s fer sure.”

He nodded.

“An’ you just ate one of ‘em.”

“Precisely.” He then decided to collapse on the ground without any further ado.

“Doctor!” Ditzy screamed and rushed towards him.

The Doctor then decided to wake right back up. “Don’t shout! I’m right here...” He wobbled dizzily, holding his head, obvious annoyance in his tone. “Ugh… That had a bit more of a kick than I’d expected. On the flip side, I won't be needing any vitamin B1 for a while. Anyway, this stuff should be enough to knock out an elephant, let alone a pony. Try to avoid them.”

They just stared at him.

“…What?”

“Doctor,” Ditzy spoke, holding on to the end of her patience. “Do that again, and I will end you.”

“Do what?”

“Ow! What was that for?”

No one bothered to pay him any more attention after that stunt. They decided to just pay attention to their surroundings instead, as they progressed through the odd forest. The further reaches were shrouded in darkness, obviously. Wouldn’t want to mess up this fine system they’ve got going on. As far as they could see, though, the same black flowers decorated the forest floor.

It was all quiet. No creature in sight, pony or otherwise.

“What now?” Applejack asked.

“Well, we’re obviously just going to keep walking in the same predictable manner we were forced to go up till now, until we finally stumble into a trap.”

“How’s that a plan?” she deadpanned.

“It’s a plan since we don’t have any alternative. Might as well go on ahead and say it was what we wanted from the start, instead of focusing on the fact that we didn’t have a choice.”

“Great…”

“Just remember to avoid the flowers. No eating, smelling, making crowns...”

“Don't worry, Doc. We're not as crazy as you are.”

“And yet, you're hanging out with me.”

“Yeouch. Ya got me good with that one.” The farmer retorted with a wry smile. “Yer about as clever as a fox, aren't ya?”

“Can't know. I've never met one.”

They all chuckled, except for the Doctor who was actually serious.

The rest of the search was uneventful for the longest time. It took them a while to finally reach a wide clearing. In the middle of said clearing they saw something strange, understandably. Because the fact that they were in the midst of an evil artificial forest, in the middle of an evil enchanted forest wasn’t strange enough. No, we’d need to kick up the strangeness by just as few more levels.

Yards away, in the middle of the large clearing, was a conglomeration of sleeping animals of varying naturalness. Bears, squirrels, beavers, birds, snakes, cockatrices, timberwolves… and several other legendary creatures which the Doctor hadn’t seen in real life before. One of them appeared to be a rather massive lion, only with the addition of adequately large bat wings on its back and a scorpion tail instead of a regular lion's tail. That would be a manticore, from what the Doctor could recall from his studies.

That was where his knowledge of legendary creatures before arriving in this world stopped helping him. Most of all the other creatures seemed normal enough, if only changed drastically in appearance in order to be able to compete with the other creatures which didn’t have the courtesy to be natural (I’m looking at you, cockatrices and manticores).

One of them was an equally massive crocodile made entirely out of rock. Simple as that. Another one was a breed of goat the Doctor had never seen anything like before, until he read them up in the local library. This would be a volt goat(*), and there were several of it here.
These, along with several other kinds of creatures (**) were all sleeping soundly around a certain pegasus mare.

The group drew closer, mostly because the Doctor led them.

“Is that Fluttershy?” asked the mailmare once she managed a sufficient proximity to overcome her own lackluster depth perception.

Even so, she was quite uncertain. The hairstyle was the same, despite the difference in color. Her face was covered in from that angle. Her size and color schematic were entirely different, so all Ditzy could do was assume that that was more likely what Fluttershy would look like, rather than Rainbow Dash, considering how Applejack was changed when they first found her.

“That’s her, alright,” the farmpony in question clarified. “Relatively speaking, anyway. Don’t forget that she’s not herself any more than Ah was.”

“Right…” Ditzy looked to study her childhood friend more intently.

She was bigger now. Close to a lesser alicorn in shape, minus the horn of course. Her entire body was stark white, ending in black along the ends of her legs, wings, and her mane and tail. Reminiscent of a moth, if not a wraith. Her hair flowing in an unseen wind furthering the latter impression.

She was holding a similarly sleeping rabbit in her folds, cradling it like a small child. It looked like she was afraid that it might run off if she let go.

“I can’t decide,” the haunting mare spoke.

“Can’t decide what?” asked the Doctor, studying the sleeping animals around her. They were seated in such a way that they could approach her unimpeded, much like the branches in Applejack’s giant tree.

Said animals all had one feature in common. Apparently they each had a black butterfly drawn on their faces, covering their eyes and mouth, and springing dark tendrils that split away across their bodies.

“Whether or not I was ever happier than now. Whether or not I want to go through any other kind of day than one where me and my friends rest like this. Peacefully. Quietly. In safety.”

“Sounds boring,” the Doctor answered.

Fluttershy looked towards her visitors with pitch black eyes and a void expression. “Why do you have to make it so difficult?” with a slight echo in her voice, that belonged to someone else.

“It’s simple, really. We believe that life before Nightmare’s arrival was good, same way as you believe that his promises are worth the costs.”

She looked back down, and echoed again. “It wasn’t good for everyone.”

“Come now. It couldn’t have been that bad.” He reached out for her shoulder.

As soon as he made contact, he felt his mind under assault. He let go and bent over, almost forgetting to avoid the flowers.

“You wouldn’t know, would you? No, I guess you wouldn’t.” the caretaker spoke again, hauntingly, but only with one voice.

“Doctor!”
“Hey, Doc!”
The three went over to support their fallen friend as he went in and out of consciousness.

“None of you know how it is, to be too weak to stand in a world where you’re expected to fly. To be afraid and alone, with no one to truly hold on to.”

Her echo returned stronger than ever, as she and all of the creatures around them got up. “To feel alone inside a crowd, and to be expected to be happy about it. To have the whole world against you, no matter how hard you try to just make due. To be the one that everyone loves to hate, including yourself.”

“Fluttershy, please!”

Her childhood friend’s pleading caused her to falter in her advance, but it did not deter the other creatures that were currently under nightmare’s control.

“Pleading is worthless. Your motivations are pointless. You will see it our way, and you will remember why it’s better this way.” Flutterdark imposed as she eyed Applejack in particular, who was getting ready to pounce her.

Before any of them could do anything, however, it was already too late. Three flowers from the ground turned to butterflies, which flew straight towards their faces and knocked them out cold.

Fluttershy approached the Doctor, and brought a hoof to his forehead herself.

Nightmare spoke from within his mind. “You’re almost putting up as much of a fight as Celestia did. I find this fact unsettling. I wonder, where do you spring this much motivation?”

His coat turned darker under her touch, slowly spreading all over. Similarly, the gray in his eyes darkened further and further. He shook and struggled, but in his weakened state he barely managed to move. “You faced Celestia?” He gasped out. And yet he was holding his ground.

“I did.” The voice in his head answered. “Why?”

“Well…” He staggered, gathering air in his lungs to both talk and make sense through the pain. ”I was hoping you could offer me some pointers, in case I’d need to face against her as well.”

“…What?”

The Doctor was hoping that surprising him would cause him to let up on his psychic onslaught, but he wasn’t his idea to work so well. Nor was he expecting Fluttershy to be affected as well. They really are in sync, apparently.

This would’ve been a good time to jump inside her head. However, the presence of so many sharp fanged, clawed, tusked and horned beasts that were ready to pounce at him at a moment’s notice were more than enough deterrent. Instead, he took the liberty of pulling out of his coat one of the gadgets and survival equipment which he'd brought with him: a shield battery.

He needed something to do this past week. Between house repair, chess with Dinky, making meals that were half the time terrible and half the time wonderful(***), cleaning the house, repainting his room and bartering to repaint the other ones as well(1), repairing the roof(2), repairing the walls(3), aiding Dinky with maths, doing Dinky’s toy puzzles more than a hundred times and origami(4), he still had far too much time at his disposal to tinker around with the spare parts he had left around in his coat’s pockets(5) after his Tardis detector turned out to be a bust.

He even reinvented the mixer. Until it blew up.

Back to the story.(6)
The time lord reached for his coat, pulled out a thick disk with a button in the middle and several doohickeys all over, planted it on the ground and pressed its button.

What were they talking about earlier? Oh, right. Overthrowing Celestia. Unfortunately he didn’t have a smart comeback, because he didn’t want to risk giving Fluttershy the chance to evaporate into moths or something once she’d realized that that glistening all around was a nigh-impregnable, if temporary and usable only once, energy shield.(7)

She did take a step back when the Doctor dashed towards her, an act which she considered unfeasible, considering the amount of horrid pain she was causing him. Little did she know that he’d had worse.(8)

The first plunge into her consciousness was like falling head-first into a lake of needles, but he was ready this time.

He was in front of a fortress, under an overcast night sky. The stone made of years of loneliness and tears left unshed. This was Fluttershy’s safe haven. Her sanctuary from the world.

You’re supposed to be safe inside your own thoughts. Nightmare violated that sanctity. The Doctor followed suit in order to fix that mistake. To repair a broken, unwritten rule with a sledgehammer.

“I assume Nightmare allowed his puppets more leniency and presence of mind, to be able to face me properly on both physical and psychic plains.”

Of course she wouldn’t trust him. Of course he needs to find a way to get inside without her help.

The drawbridge was up. There was no moat, but a pit going endlessly into the void.

“How am I going to get inside? How did Nightmare get inside?”

Imaginary winds were blowing his overcoat in all directions. Like some giant sucking in air to swallow him whole, he was afraid he’d fall into the moat…

“Hmmm…” The Doctor mused, looking down into the shadowed depths. He scratched his chin. “It couldn’t possibly be that easy, could it?”

Nightmare would’ve probably wanted to suck him into an eternal void for him to go mad with sensory deprivation(9). The Doctor wasn’t entirely certain that even he could withstand that kind of torture for longer than five minutes.

Nonetheless, it was extremely tempting for him to use such a means to reach Nightmare’s avatar more quickly.

No, he was not a glutton for punishment. Or in this case, losing whatever sanity he had left. He just didn’t want to stay in here and cause Fluttershy any unneeded damage. He was stronger than her. He’d probably not get affected too much in comparison. Probably.

Maybe.

…Possibly?

Oh, to hell with it. She can just sleep it off and repair her castle in a few days of taking it easy. Which is to say, for her, spending time normally. Maybe she’ll even grow a bit of character if she doesn’t have this crutch to hinder her. He, on the other hand, can’t sleep intense psychological mangling off no matter how hard he’d hug Dinky’s plush toys and rock his upper body back and forth(10).

It took him a minimum amount of focus to imagine a ninja rope into existence (technically, it’s not cheating at all) for him to throw over the walls. It took him several tries to throw the darn thing over the walls, and several extra tries for the bloody thing to finally get caught on to something solid.

Luckily for his strong dentures, he didn’t fall into the chasm during the half a dozen times his grip slipped while climbing.

“Very gothic,” he complimented with a huff once he got up on the wall and studied the inside. “Well. Where should I look first? The throne room, or the armory?”

Considering the fact that Nightmare seemed neither too much of a megalomaniac, nor too violent, the Time Lord was having trouble deciding.

“He is a bit of a puppeteer, though. Suppose maybe he has at least a subtle thing for controlling others like a king.”

He went down an indeterminate amount of stairs, an unknown amount of strides across hallways, and quite a number of doors which were just there for decoration apparently. Like a doll house. There were also decorative, medieval, full-suit pony armor stands here and there.

And guess what. One of them awoke to life. Shadowy mist wafting out of its crevices and whatnot.

“I was hoping you’d be above petty violence, Nightmare. You've disappointed me.”

No answer as it approached.

“…Then again, you’re not really him, are you? Just an idea, a replica. An invasive parasite meant to recreate the host in your image, though somehow it’s still connected to the original.”

He only drew closer, undeterred.

”And also, it’s not like anyone could really die in here anyway, right?”

He dodged a spear thrust and held on to the weapon, their faces drawing inches away from one another.

“That’s what I thought.” His eyes and body darkened. His cocky smirk turning patronizing.

Ditzy was the first to wake up to the sound of a little rabbit feebly trying his best to bust a can of whoop-ass on the defenseless Doctor while he tried to free Fluttershy from the evil spirit's influence.

The flowers had all wilted, and in the distance, she couldn't quite make it out. What with her bad eye and the distortion from the shield. But the trees seemed a bit more... menacing.

She wondered where all the other possessed animals had went, then she noticed the protective bubble which was still active and protecting them.

“Ugh… What happened?” she heard Applejack wake up from beside her, together with her brother.

The mailmare walked over to Doctor and picked up the rabbit, keeping it from its futile attempts at assault, save for a few kicks in the shin which would've probably hurt if he was still conscious.

“It would seem that the Doctor took care of everything on his own again.”

Applejack spoke up, "He really can handle himself, can he? Almost makes it seem like we're just comin' along fer the ride."

"Yeah..." Ditzy answered with no small amount of disappointment in her tone.

The red apple farmer coughed. “Now what? We try ‘n get through to her like we did with mah sister?”

“That’d be my best guess.” The mailmare studied the Doctor nervously, noticing his fur had grown further dark brown, his mane almost black.
She wanted to do something. To help him somehow, find a way that doesn’t force the Doctor to take this thrash into his head. “I’m worried about what he’s doing to himself. He’s changing colors, like you and Fluttershy did. He said he can take it, but I’m not sure he's fully aware of what he's getting himself into.”

They remained quiet, listening to the roaring a few strides away from them. Focusing on the man putting a lot more on the line than he might believe. They didn’t notice the landscape change since they last fell unconscious. The flowers wilted, the trees died and grimaced in hideous ways.

Fluttershy started trembling for a few good moments before the Doctor let go, himself shaking a bit as well.

He didn’t open his eyes. He bundled up and held himself for warmth. However when he felt Ditzy draw around him, he shrugged her off. “I’m fine. She needs you more than I do right now.” His voice was collected, silent.

Ditzy bit her lip, looking between the Doctor and her childhood friend. He seemed to have sensed her indecision. “Go.” Just as quiet, though more authoritative.

She wanted to object, but the sound of her crying friend distracted her from her main focus.

She looked towards her friend, shivering on the ground. Holding her pet rabbit, Applejack holding her. “It’s so cold…”

“Ah know.” The younger Apple sibling drew her tighter. The gesture seemed to have helped a bit.

Ditzy decided to ignore his demands and did the same. He scowled in response, only causing the mailmare to hold tighter.

“You just said, you need me.”

He opened his mouth to speak, only to close it moments later and return the gesture. “You really are something, you know that?”

She watched his pelt return to its original color and sighed in relief. “Yeah, I’ve been told.”

Fluttershy didn't seem intent on causing too much more trouble. Once Nightmare's direct influence was removed, she didn't do anything but tremble and hold tightly onto Angel Bunny, silent tears streaming down her face.

"Hey. It's gon' be alrigh, okay?" Applejack tried to console her.

"No," the pegasus answered. "No, it's not."

Unbeknownst to anyone else but her, a large figure approached them, slowly, from the treeline which had by now turned to disfigured shapes.

"I'm sorry. It's not over yet, I wasn't the only one here."

Big Mac was the first to notice the figure's approach. Applejack followed, then Ditzy. "What is it?" The Doctor asked, not ready to open his eyes yet. He didn't receive a verbal response. The spike in Ditzy's heart rate told him why, however. She was terrified.

Something was slowly approaching them. A large, black, horribly distorted ogre-like creature made up of Nightmare's same trademark mist condensed into tar, dragging along a massive pick-axe with one limb. Gaping white abysses staring straight into their souls as it approached.

"Ugh... Doc?" Applejack finally managed out. "How strong is this shield of yers?"

To be fair, he had no idea. However he didn't feel like it might be a good idea to be a smartass at the moment.

"What is that thing?" Big Mac half spoke, half whispered.

Fluttershy shook tears away."It's Pinkie Pie."

Author's Note

The title's supposed to refer to what the Doctor used to gain the upper hand. And nothing else. Honest.

I'm feeling a bit awkward about the shield battery. It's a bit of a get-out-of-jail-free card. Kind of like all the trap doors and massive steel safehouse doors I kept complaining about. It would appear that this was where the Doctor's travels ended, unless he came prepared from the beginning.

Pay no attention to those last few lines behind the curtain. It's the finally. Unfortunately, these asterisks are placed strategically to fuck us all over without even considering to use lube.
Cursor over the blots only once you've read that far.

(*) Clearly not a reference to any creatures from any video games http://dont-starve-game.wikia.com/wiki/Volt_Goat

(**) Including ~~beefalos~~ woolymogs (I seem to recall the latter name vaguely, can't tell where from though), steeltalons (you don’t want to know what those metal menaces would do to your car if they got the chance), ironbeaks, stonetusks (So the names are taken. Sue me… jk, please don’t sue me).

(***) The local fire department had the chance to sample some pretty good soufflés and Ratatouilles.

(1) He was going to start painting on a second room regardless of permission. And he would’ve gotten away with it, too, if it weren’t for that meddling mailmare!

(2) No, the roof was fine. He was just bored.

(3) After he’d break holes in them. This was after he repainted.

(4) Paper hydras, eagles, dragons and hippogriffs everywhere.

(5) He’d always wondered where he left that ion battery.

(6) You might be upset that I tend to interrupt the story like this. I’m not. I hope it drives you batty.

(7) Impregnable as long as it still had energy left. It was a self-repairing protective bubble.

(8) He was playing possum.

(9) It doesn’t seem scary, but it actually does cause brain cells to suicide. You’re not capable of comprehending the serious face I’m having right now.

(10) He needed something to do whenever Ditzy grounded him. The fact that he was actually resorting to this coping method was only mildly disconcerting to him. Also mildly fun.

In case you were having trouble figuring it out, Fluttershy's upset not about what happened to her in Flight Camp, but about the view upon life that those experiences caused her to have. We're shaped by our experiences, despite what anyone would care to understand.
Note to self: have Ditzy and Fluttes have a heart to heart after all this crap is over.

That's 2 outa 6. Still a long way to go.

This chapter, I have no excuse. Except for the one that I couldn't stand bothering to write about how courageously the Doctor would dodge the animated armor stands' spears, how he'd oh so skillfully caused them all to fucking STRIKE THEMSELVES... huff huff huff... yes, he really is that smart. But it's freaking exasperating to think about for me nonetheless, let alone write.

Oh, and there would be one last armor bigger than all the other ones that Doc would cause to trip and fall through a window into the moat, then spring out like a massive, primordial, malefic spirit of darkness and now-you-fucked-up-ness which the Doctor would defeat with the power of his deus-ex-machina-imagination-imbued spear which he collected from one of the lesser armorstands.

I will include this shit at a later date should there be demand. Until then, I have quite enough on my plate to bother with something that didn't even happen in the real world.

The Doctor wins. The Doctor always fucking wins. Wow, such spoiler. Much surprise. Many I DON'T GIVE A FUCKING SHI-

Shadows dancing in the light

He knew by now that the Princesses were approaching the castle. He knew from the moment he lost contact with Fluttershy’s pet rabbit. There was too little chance for error for him to consider anything else.

He needed to deal with the Doctor quickly. Perhaps his insight and intellect, which were so far beyond Nightmare’s reach, would offer a way to reach out to Luna. Convince her that they still had a chance... Even if he himself didn’t expect they had much of a chance against someone who commanded the very power of the sun. Especially considering the fact that light and him don’t really mix that well. Still, Doc is usually pretty talented at weaseling his way into an advantageous position. And honestly, Night really didn’t have any better ideas at the moment.

While he was contemplating these things, Twilight was busy telekinetically flinging the Doctor against the floor, walls and ceiling. All to no avail. The guy was built like a truck.

A truck made of adamantium.

Actually, forget the truck. Between earth pony magic unwillingly enhanced by Nightmare’s presence and his already hardy Gallifreyan physiology (remember, kids, he could jump out of a flying spaceship, through a skylight, on solid marble, and still be able to point a gun at the Master), he could get thrown around all day and only feel a bit worse than after a bad workout session in the next morning. Mind you, though. None of that meant that he didn’t feel a thing. He felt it, all right. Which was why he was groaning in aggravation when Twilight was approaching him, sprawled on the ground.

“We don’t have time for this,” announced Nightmare through Twilight, little patience left.

“Oh! Pardon me, then!” the Doctor reacted indignantly, rolling on his back. “I’ll try to bruise more easily next time you slam me against the ceiling, You know, because you asked me so nicely!”

His eyes widened when he noticed the unicorn’s horn glowing at a suspicious intensity.

“Uh oh.”

The next thing he knew, he was at the other side of the room, with a bruise nursing on his side. He looked back towards the black unicorn, and dodged out of the way of another magical projectile. The stone he left behind cracking and breaking upon impact.

Then he dodged a similar beam from Rarity. It seemed they switched to concussive blasts. More effective, but also something which he could actually evade.

He recognized the same levitation spell being taken over by Rarity. Before she could finish the spell, he picked up a piece of rock and threw it towards her horn. It stopped the channeling, and Rarity rubbed her hurt horn with a hoof. He tried the same trick with Twilight, but she managed to hit his projectile before it landed.

He grabbed a couple more rocks and went to tackle Rarity. He dodged one beam, then another, then threw his rocks one after the other towards the former lavender mare. They were both stopped in mid-air, and returned to sender.

Hard.

If he were any other species, then those strikes would’ve caused a concussion no problem. However, he was not any other species, and just powered through the minor nuisance.

And then a gust of wind knocked him back to the wall. It appeared that Rainbow Dash had a few new abilities.

Nightmare knew what he needed to do. Keep him away from them so he can’t suck his presence out of them. And the Doctor was dealing with the three of the girls best suited for doing just that. Two unicorns with levitation spells, and a Pegasus that could not only fly, but also control the elements of nature.

A change in tactics would appear to be in order. However, Nightmare had no intention of letting him regain his tempo. Before the Doc even got the chance to get back up on his feet, he felt the ground moving away from him.

Rarity was none too pleased by what he had just pulled, by how close he was to getting her. Rainbow Dash was now running electrical current through her body. Twilight’s horn was glowing as though a distant star had decided to have a closer look at him.

“This is going to hurt, isn’t it?”

A few minutes of continuous assault later, the girls were now getting tired. The Doctor, however, had smoke wafting off of him. His reddish black coat had turned bluish in some places, bloody in others. Somehow, though, there wasn’t nearly as much singed fur as there was supposed to be (if you would please recall that one time when he took a lightning bolt through his body on top of the Empire State Building). Yet, he wasn’t sure how much more he could take.

He couldn’t think of anything. Not while Nightmare was sabotaging his mental efforts from the inside and electrical interference was being supplied from the outside.

He tried what he could through a mixture of meditation, adrenaline and shock therapy. In so doing he managed to reach indescribable levels of mental activity at some time, and at other times, to a lesser extent, sudden emotional peaks and lows. Suppose the whole Nightmare still vying for control of his psyche was also being affected. He was certain that he figured out the workings of the seventh dimension at some point during this time, but soon had a short circuit and started thinking about the dandelion and cheese sandwich he’d left in his coat.
He then realized that he had been running and fighting all day, but he was not hungry. Odd.

Another kinetic blast, this one punching the wind out of him. Then another shock, causing his already spasming diaphragm to spasm harder, painfully.

Yep. It certainly hurt.

He still managed to tell how long they’ve been at it, though. Time Lord and all that, Big Ben in his head. Seven minutes and elenven seconds of straight, outright torture. Now that takes him back… Focus. He needs to figure something out. He’s not sure if he can remain conscious for much longer.

It would seem that the girls are powering up for a coup de grace. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

And then, time slowed down.

He opened his eyes. The lightning and shock blast had stopped in the middle of the air.

“Would you require more time to think?” a familiar voice sounded off from the side.

An odd development. The Doctor didn’t take long at all to cough out an answer, “Hello Crossroads.” He turned his head to find the cloaked figure sitting aside the stairway. Looking at the scene in front of him impassively.

Only in his case, his demeanor wasn’t that of any feeling being smothered out by what was now known to be whatever parts Nightmare had implanted in the girls. In the cloaked character’s case, he just didn’t seem to care to begin with. Like the very concept of caring was too alien for him to comprehend, let alone manifest.

“I thought I might be able to afford to intervene with a bit of insight.”

Doc remembered his last conversation they had. That intervening in the ~~plotline~~ timeline would be rather dangerous for him. “…You sure you’re okay with doing this?”

“You were going to figure this out one way or the other. Since the first one was becoming an inevitability, I was just curious regarding what the other could’ve been. It seems to be slipping my sight.”

In other words, he’s just here to stall the outcome, because him and his curiosity felt like it.

“ How very thoughtful of you.” Understandably, the Doctor's throat was a little dry. You know, from having a large amount of the water in his body evaporating. Because of the electric shocks. Which probably hurt like hell. Spasms, burns, pain… I could go on.

“What do you mean by slipping out of your sight? Aren’t you supposed to be able to read the time stream like some kind of a metaphysical motion picture?”

“In a matter of speaking.” Crossroads walked closer, only for the logical sake of ensuring their window of communication would be optimal. “Though now would not be the time to go into detail. I imagine you’d have other concerns at the moment.”

The Doc looked back towards the possessed girls a few feet away, and the two bolts of pain frozen in place about halfway towards him. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“I will only distract your mind enough to compensate for the fatigue which I’m dispelling. Now, regarding that outcome I’ve been curious about. Is there anything which you could think of, that might not only prove a sufficient answer for your current dilemma? Supposedly something which might somehow affect the time stream?”

“…Not really. Care to elaborate further?”

Cross studied a different part of the room. More, something catching his eye than anything else. “Consider this much. Your physical capabilities have been enhanced by the magic of these lands. Have you ever considered that maybe some of your latent Time Lord abilities might’ve also been affected?”

“You mean if Nightmare made me able to stop time?”

”Nothing as blatant. And most certainly not anything due to Nightmare’s tampering.”

“..Which reminds me. He’s kind of in my head right now. Won’t he remember you?”

“So what if he does?”

Like I said. The man gives zero fucks.

“Even if he did read your mind once my time field wore off, I doubt he’d be able to either do anything about it, or even acknowledge the information. My presence within reality is funny that way.”

Doc’s mind wandered back to the night he arrived in this world.

“Ditzy didn’t forget about me naturally, and I didn’t do anything to cover my tracks. It just so happens that my existence isn’t even compatible with memories.

And before you ask, you remember me because you’re a complex entity within time and space. Which was why I considered the possibility that this quality of yours might’ve been somehow affected by the energies of these lands. And Zecora can remember me only because of her shamanistic capabilities.”

Cross looked back towards him. The Doctor paused in contemplation.

“…So, in your joke about the chicken, you were literally referring to…”

“Yes.”

“So you really are a gh-”

“No.”

“But why-”

“I just don’t have a better term for it.”

“Stop that.”

“Very well. I didn’t have anything else to ask anyway.” Crossy-no-pants started to turn to leave.

“Wait. That’s it?!”

“I apologize for interrupting your time flow, but I really wanted to investigate my blind spot. It’s only one of several which have been appearing lately.”

“Even so, aren’t you going to help at all? There has to be something you can do. And I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but my day has most certainly not been going swimmingly.”

“Oh, yes.” Chris-cross commented and turned to full attention again. “You’ve made quite the spectacle today, haven’t you? Letting someone undermine your morals, almost killing that creature… I would have thought better of you, Doctor. Don’t tell me your emotions are finally getting the better of you.”

“I’ve…” he trailed off for about ten good seconds. “…Had a really bad day.”

“Is that so?” CR pondered, trailing off as well.

“…What are you thinking?” Doc asked suspiciously.

“Tell me. Does this have anything to do with what happened the day Davros returned for the last time?”

That’s twice he’s been asked that question. And twice he couldn’t bring himself to answer it.

For a moment, Crossroads actually seemed to feel sorry for asking. Or maybe the Doctor was just seeing things.

He finally turned to leave. “I suggest you’d check the catacombs some time. There’s something there which I believe you’ll find interesting.”

A few more steps. He turned around, noticed the Time Lord was in an even worse state of mind than he’d found him. This wasn’t good. Looks like he’ll have to help him come up with the solution to his problem now, lest he’d die here. He would’ve figured it out on his own if he was a little more tired, but with a clearer head.

“Nightmare merged his fragments within the girls so they could heal. You would’ve figure out that those fragments could never grow back to the way they were originally. All they could do was to slowly replicate the essences of their hosts.”

One thought led to another. A logical conclusion was made. A glimmer inside the Doctor’s eyes appeared for a moment, and a small smile appeared on his lips.

“Take a deep breath,” Crossroads concluded.

He took in a number of breaths, trying to prepare himself again for the incoming pain. One last breath, he braced himself as hard as he could.

He was still not ready.

His entire world was pain, and the world just kept coming. The girls seemed to be going all out, not stopping until he stopped screaming.

When he did stop, however, it wasn’t because he had passed out.

The girls were thrown back in a pulse of electrical energy.

They looked to where the Doctor was struggling to get on his feet, gasping and grunting, before standing tall, staring daggers from his twin voids.

Around his back appeared a pair of wings.

“My turn now…”

Now was not the time for second chances. Now was not the time to allow them to reorganize and figure out a suitable strategy to adapt to the new development. He was more or less immune to electricity now. He still needed to worry about being held in place and blasted with magic.
So, he targeted the bigger threat of the two.

Since tackling would most likely end in him being held in place telekinetically, all he could do was throw more lightning. It was logical that Twilight wouldn’t be able to deflect electricity with her magic, since electronic charges are rather hard to mentally focus on. She might’ve had some kind of shield spell, though.

Only one way to find out if she was holding out on him.

There was, indeed, a shield spell. However, it seemed unable to deflect electricity. It must only be able to hold off physical shapes, or maybe even magic.

It would seem that Twilight is great at planning and deducing, but not as good at quickly re-adapting her plans, or thinking on the fly. She’s too dependent on her checklists covering every single detail.

Rainbow Dash cried out the now unconscious girl’s name, and seemed to be struggling. It appeared as though she wanted to tackle the Doctor, but was only barely stopped by Nightmare. Twilight would be alright, Nightmare had protected against the blunt of it, and will heal her the way he did Big Mac. Still, the Doctor was not proud of what he’d done.

One down, two to go.

A kinetic blast struck him on the side of his head, dazing him for a few seconds. Rarity was furiously building up for another shot, but the Doctor dodged easily. He then dove to tackle her, but was instead rammed by Rainbow Dash, projectiled into the far-away wall. The stunt devil then proceeded to dash away carrying the other two mares.

The Doctor got to his hooves from within the hole in the stone wall, rubbing his head as debris fell off. "I need to take on a different approach."

The girls arrived within seconds in a different part of the castle altogether. The same place they'd found the Elements.

“…What happened?” asked the student as she came to.

“You got hit by lightning,” Was the answer she received from Rainbow. “It looks like your shield spell wasn't worth squat.”

“It wasn't designed to stop electrical current! I wasn't expecting him to sprout wings...”

“How did he do that, anyway?” asked Rarity.

To which Nightmare answered, “I'd assume my fragment from within Fluttershy had assimilated more of her essence than I'd thought. Apparently it was enough to allow the Doctor to reshape his body with pegasus attributes.”

“So, no point in trying to shock him, then,” completed RD.

“So it would seem.”

“What about Celestia?” Twilight asked.

“Her and the others are drawing very close. Our last sentry just fell.” Twilight chanced a look out one of the windows. The sun was only a small ways left from setting. Nightmare continued, “It would also seem that Celestia had planned on arriving as soon as night fell. It would certainly prove advantageous to us, however pointless. She probably convinced Luna to not fight her by offering to spare my life, instead merely imprisoning me.”

"Do you think she would hold her word?" asked Rarity.

"No." An awkward pause, then the shade went again, "We need to focus on dealing with the Doctor for now. We can worry about Celestia afterwards."

The mares stayed silent for a while, looking towards one another worriedly.

"Should we wake up Spike?" asked Rarity.

“No. We can handle the stallion on our own. We... I... need Spike to be ready for Celestia. He needs to prepare for as long as possible.”

“You're not alone, Night. We're in this together!” added RD.

“As long as you're still under my influence, you mean.”

That put a damper on the girls' determination.

Twilight decided to take the stage. “Nightmare. You know what Rainbow Dash meant. We really do care what happens to you. Maybe we'd forget about you if you left our minds. Maybe we wouldn't. That doesn't make any of what we believe now any less true!”

“Honestly, dear. You should stop being so hard on yourself. You might be part of a different species, but being pessimistic still just doesn't suit you at all.”

“Yeah! We're not going to leave you hanging! Sunbutt's gonna have to get through us before she can get to you!”

There was no visible way of determining it, but Nightmare was indeed moved by the girls' kind words. “Thank you,” was his eventual heartfelt answer.

The Doctor arrived in the room soon afterwards. He stood in the doorway, studying his surroundings.

The three girls were situated in key positions. Twilight in the far back, Rarity near the pedestal in the middle and Rainbow in front. Near Twilight, behind the two thrones, was a curious sight. A large egg. About as big as his torso, otherwise mostly normal aestetically. It still presented certain commonalities with the morphing chambers Applejack used, but it was otherwise normal-looking nonetheless.

The Time Lord set the information aside for now. He had more immediate concerns.

It had become completely obvious to him that a direct assault could never bear fruit. Not only because Nightmare had grown wise to his tricks, and cautious of any new possible surprises, but also because quite honestly, his hearts were not in it for an all-out fight. Even with the torture session he'd been subjected to.

“What do I need to do, to have you leave the girls alone?” he asked.

After enough time to decide that his question was honest, the shade's voice answered in kind. “The honest answer? What it would take would be for Celestia and Luna to be equal rulers, for the younger sister to no longer be a symbol of profanity and the occult for the people she loves with all of her heart, for her sister to respect her as much as she claims to love her, and for me to not worry for my life. Then I would subject myself to whatever justice a fair trial would deem fitting for me.”

He immediately set to processing this information. How could Celestia do these things? The Time Lord didn’t know her that well from their meeting in Fortune Holds. And her messaging him yesterday didn’t count for anything, since he couldn’t see her face.

Not that seeing her face helped that much in the first instance either. She held onto her poker face tightly. Almost as if she were afraid anyone would see what was underneath.

He didn’t know her. Not really. He’s yet to see how she’d react in an environment chaotic enough for her to not be able to hold any guise.

“What do you mean by that? How is Celestia not respecting her sister?”

“Why not ask her directly? She should arrive shortly.” As he said that, the sun set on one side, and the moon rose on the other.

Then there was a stillness in the air. Like the whole world was bracing itself for an incoming concussive blast paired with a lightning bolt. Twilight recognized it as being the magical energies building up a teleportation spell. She started running towards Spike’s egg to try to safeguard it somehow.

A crackle of divine light disoriented her. Twilight was rendered blind, and had no way of stopping herself from knocking into a large white body which had suddenly materialized in front of her. Through her bleary, still recovering sight, she managed to recognize the princess of the sun looking down on her, a warm smile plastered on her face. Six figures of varying size behind the sovereign.

“Twilight. My fateful student. I’m so glad to see you are well.”

At one time, the girl would’ve believed that warm smile wholeheartedly, and revel and bask in its glow. Now, however, she saw it very differently.

All the student could think of was the egg stashed behind the thrones. Vulnerable. For now she’d have to distract the princess as much as she could, lest she’d risk having the princess do something unspeakable.

“Your Highness. I wish I could say the same.”

“I see Nightmare’s corruption has clouded your mind. Not to worry, I have come to cleanse his corruption, once and for all.”

“And by that, I presume you mean kill him, right?”

The princess’ smile had yet to falter, but a faint shadow had managed to creep its way on her features. Her tone giving way for cold.

“Oh, Twilight. Do not worry. Nightmare does not really live, or feel pain like the rest of us. All he does is cause pain to us. You will come to understand soon enough. Now, please hand him over.”

Twilight stepped back, as did her friends behind Celestia. Rainbow and Rarity approached to join the student in defiance.

Celestia finally dropped her smile in favor of a snarl. “You dare disobey me?”

The three girls felt so very small. Like ants being stared down at by a god. It took them all they had to stand their ground, and not run for the hills. Yet under the unrelenting stare Celestia offered, they weren’t going to last very long at all. They would’ve started running, if the Doctor didn’t walk past them to face the princess himself. On his own.

They couldn’t see his face, but they could see his posture. Proud, confident, stalwart. If he still had eyes, then maybe Celestia would’ve recognized an even fiercer stare being returned to her. Instead, he offered a void look as cold as the vacuum of space.

Funny thing about pony facial features. They’re so very expressive. But when there’s a distinct lack of them, and there are clear signs of their absence, then the chilling expression is only accentuated. It most certainly convinced the others moving away from the princess to stop in their tracks, staring. Like they were afraid that if they even moved, they’d be swallowed whole by those voids.

The two titans kept up their conflict for mere seconds, though it felt like days for the others. The unrelenting silence, maddening in the fear it brought in roughs.

“Doctor. Step aside.” Celestia finally cracked first.

He only continued staring.

“This does not concern you.” She allowed a little more sentiment that time. Infinitesimal, but it was there.

It brought a smile on his face. 'So there really still is someone in there.'

“I’m afraid I’ll have to disagree with you on that respect. You made it my concern when you confessed to planning on murdering someone.”

“What murder? Nightmare isn’t a pony! He doesn’t even belong in this world! He’s just a pestilence for this land, a parasite! He doesn’t deserve to live!”

“Really? I was unaware that a sovereign in this world would also take it upon themselves to decide who gets to live and who gets to die. Or anyone, really.”

“Don’t you DARE patronize me, time lord! You’ve never dirtied your hands with blood in a war that could not be won! You didn’t fail an entire race trying to save it from a mad tyrant! You didn’t spend a thousand years alone, rebuilding a nation of short-lived, child-minded fools, that would crumble without you controlling their every move!”

“Which is why you should’ve retired a long time ago.”

She remained still, not believing him actually say those words. After a few long breaths, a grim, cold laugh resounded through the entire castle.

Silently, an egg finished breaking in the background, and dark mists emanated from it.

The air trembled with Celestia’s every quake. Thousands of years, maybe even tens of thousands of years of complete, unhindered, unquestioned power had finally decided to show their effects. Not even Luna knew about this. Celestia had turned far more for worse during her imprisonment than she realized. What had happened to her during that time?

Celestia eventually calmed down. “So is that what this is? A coup?”

“Don’t flatter yourself,” the Doctor challenged, completely unimpressed. “I only want to convince you to step down.”

“And what if I refuse?”

“Well, then I suppose I’ll have to force you to do it.”

The smoke from the egg started to spin in a vortex. Celestia finally took notice of it, only too late.

Inside the vortex formed a shape. Scales darker than the deepest night, wings glistening in the light of the moon, luminescent white eyes searing with untold warmth of heart.

“That is, me and everyone else here.”

Celestia was not impressed. It only furthered her boundless indignation.

Eventually she put up a different smile. One full of cruelty and bile. “It would seem that I must dirty my hooves again.” She started powering up her horn.

Immediately afterwards, flame, lightning and magic converged at her position. The Doctor hadn’t moved. He was only looking forward patiently.

When the smoke settled, it revealed a horn still charging up, slowly, and Celestia to be unharmed. She didn’t have a scratch on her. She hadn’t even moved. She hadn’t even flinched.

“Is that all you’ve got?” she challeged. She was satisfied with the lack of a comeback. Even the Doctor was afraid now. “Good.” She continued, turning around to face the dragon.

“No!” the Doctor shouted, horrified.

A beam of solar plasma pierced the dragon, the wall behind him, and a large area of the forest. The wall crumbled. The forest was burning where it hadn’t been vaporised.

Spike had a large, gaping cavity where his front limb, shoulder, wing and the entire right side of his chest used to be.

Twilight screamed in horror.

The dragon crashed with a resounding thud. A crying girl arrived at his side, calling out his name. Spike's heart was visible, regenerating, struggling to keep going. Nightmare was working as fast as he could.

The dragon wasn’t responding, but he seemed to be alive, somehow. Spike was shrinking in size, as the dark substance making up his integrity was being repurposed to regenerate as rapidly as possible.

“Remind me again, Doctor. How was it that you planned on forcing me to step down?”

The Time Lord held his ground, despite finally knowing the extent of the danger he was in. Celestia found his stubbornness slightly annoying, though so very amusing.

He saw her coming, but couldn't do anything to react. The others didn't even notice what was happening until Celestia was holding him by the neck in her fetlock. Air current rushing by, the stone floor crumbling like cardboard under her every step.

The power of a third tier alicorn. Unicorn, pegasus and earth pony magic all accentuated at unimaginable levels, further enhanced by the power of the sun. This was what they were dealing with now.

Ditzy wanted to run towards them, to do something. Big Mac and Applejack stopped her.

“You do realize how easy it would be for me to snap your neck right now, don't you? I've done far worse twelve years ago.”

His answer was to continue his staring.

“ And still, you resist. You're every bit as stubborn as when we last met. I think I'll enjoy disciplining you. Maybe I’ll even have you as a pet...”

“Let him go!” demanded Rainbow as she went for a tackle, but was brushed off with a wing and thrown through the further wall.

She did let him go afterwards, though. With a sigh. The Doctor coughed and wheezed, taking in air again.

“It seems I'll have to re-educate all of you after today. I can't have the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony being against me, now can I? Tell me, Luna. You've always been the more talented regarding hypnotic magics. What would you propose?”

Luna felt like the whole world was crumbling before her. She wasn’t answering fast enough.

“Might I remind you why you’re here, sister? I’ve only allowed you to come here tonight in order to prove your loyalty to me, and in exchange I’d let you seal Nightmare away instead of having me purge his presence from the world.”

“…Emerald Clover’s controlled dream spell should be sufficient.”

“Thank you.”

Celestia picked the time lord up in her magic, then slammed him into the floor. It cracked heavily, but didn’t give way. Yet.

“You should learn from Luna, Doctor.” She slammed him again, harder. “She learned that it’s best to respect my authority.” Again. Harder still. “Why won’t you just spare yourself the unnecessary suffering, and finally acknowledge when you’ve lost?” She picked him up again, only this time to reach eye level. “I thought you agreed with my methods. After all, didn’t you yourself admit that my ponies need protecting from their own folly? They don’t know what to think, they’re like kittens walking foolishly into the wolf’s den. I thought you’d known that!” He left a crater in the floor. “…I thought you actually understood what I’m going through.”

“I do.” He grunted.

She let him pick himself up out of the hole.

“I’ve had to look over children as well over my centuries. I know how it feels to have them wander off foolishly into danger. I’d always tell them not to, that they didn’t know what lied out there. And yet they always did.”

“So why don’t you see it my way?”

“I do. I just don’t think you realize that we’re not supposed to keep them out of danger. We can’t protect them forever. All we can do is prepare them as much as we can, and hope that they can manage on their own. They need to live their own lives.”

“…Maybe you’re right. Still, there is only so much they seem to be able to do on their own, and this world…” She picked him up again.

Twilight let out a strike as strong as she could. It didn’t even prove enough reason for Celestia to look away. She accumulated the energy into a ball and returned it to sender.

The child was out cold.

“…It doesn’t hold back.”

A pincer-sharp projectile of concentrated arcane matter was shot at her by Rarity. It met a shield that appeared as it was only millimeters away, shattering on impact. The shield then expanded outward and swatted the unicorn against the floor, knocking her out and causing a massive gash.

“What could they do in a world where even the weather refuses to allow them to grow crops unless forced?”

A massive sonic blast echoed from outside. Unbeknownst to everyone inside, Rainbow Dash had been working up a storm and combining its energies with a sonic rainboom.

She came dashing inside faster than she ever thought herself possible… and was deflected with another strike of the Princess’s wing, this time into the ground. Causing a ditch ten strides long in the stone floor before she stopped.

The Doctor’s hearts felt heavier with every time the girls tried their best, and failed regardlessly. “They’re not slaves. They need to grow, or you’ll smother them.”

“They will survive without growing. As long as they trust me to know what’s best for them, they will be happy. I only wish they didn’t need to perceive Luna as a villain from contrast, though. Alas, such are the consequences of faith.”

One final time, she slammed him into the floor. This time, he breached the stone and landed in the chambers below.

“Oh, right. I forgot the catacombs stretched below here.”

She was not aware of the shadows pouring through the cracks in the floor, leaving behind three perfectly healthy young ponies, as well as a perfectly healthy dragon whelp.

She only noticed this too late, as Nightmare had already carried the Doctor further away in the labyrinthine underground.

Author's Note

I would've liked to go into further detail regarding RD's new abilities, but I couldn't quite fit an explanation very well.

Honestly though, I could go for a rather long thesis here explaining the nature of each pony breed's magical capabilities. I've actually covered 13 lines before I managed to finish explaining Telluric magic, let alone the similarities it has with the magic used by the other two types of common ponies.

I didn't even cover the other breeds of ponies that branched out (sea ponies, crystal ponies, thestrals and zebras), let alone the other types of pseudomagical energies (seithr, chakra, ink and madness fuel).

If you want to hear me ramble and explain the exact nature of magic which I've set up for this world I've dreamed up, give a shoutout in the comments section and I'll add a discussion between Twi and the Doc some time after this whole venture blows over.

For now, though, suffice to say RD could just produce her own elemental precipitation directly, her current anatomy being unstable now. Don't think electric eel, think having her magical gland things running along her wings being affected to create lightning and wind currents directly, rather than tethering the magical energies embedded within the air to do that stuff indirectly.

Also, as a general little tidbit, "tetherind" is something all ponies can do. It's how earth ponies can pull trains and pegasi can pull sky carriages. I also think that the unicorns' magical auras are actually a derivative of their act of tethering which their particular breed have specialized into a whole different kind of awesomesauce.

Animus vox

Author's Note

Welp. This thing has officially been finished. It was quite the ride. Here's to the rest of the way.
As a general idea. When you read this chapter, don't think Naruto like I did. Think the DBZ fight Twilight had with Tirek. Or at least remember what was drawn in the Light and Dark comic I linked a few chapters ago. We're dealing with powers of the magnitude that created Sunfall Glade.

Yes. Shit's going down exactly like that. Accompanied by the song which this chapter was named after. Namely, this song.
Which I've linked without permission.
Please keep your discretion in the comments section. For my own paranoia's sake.

Don't expect the Doc to resort to violence too often in this story, though. This was a fluke.
At least I hope it was...

Disclaimer. Nightmare's species was called that of Inklings, while the other ones were called Star Children. It has NO link to the shitty game Nintendo released a few weeks after I introduced these races without actually naming them. Honestly, fuck this shit.

I have the feeling that there could've been revisions done to the aftermath section. Not sure if I'm just imagining things, though. Any opinions? I'm not intending on steering away from what happened in the last chapter, however.

Animus vox

0:00 He fell through the stone ceiling. He managed to man through all that she threw at him, and was reeling. Tired. Barely conscious. Then, he felt something pull him away. A rush of power. A presence looming all over.

Twists and turns through lightless tunnels. Neither the Doctor nor Nightmare knew where they were going, all that they knew was that they needed to get as far away as they could. Having a shared mind, a shared tar-black body with white voids for eyes, their logic center processed information from the both of them simultaneously. Nightmare couldn’t understand the origin of the information, but the Doctor knew that if there was anything at all that they could do, then they needed to find something within the catacombs.

So, they were off.

0:24 Celestia’s screaming managed to create a shockwave where they’d left. Dust fell out of the ceiling of the underground. The very stars appeared to tremble in fear in the sky.

Celly was none too happy about what happened.

Then, she recalled her binding spell that she enchanted the Doctor with. She should be able to find him immediately, even teleport him back.

However, it appeared that there was interference being cast…

“Luna.”

0:43 The voice she used to speak her sister’s name was grotesque. The younger sibling felt unclean just by having her name spoken in that manner.

She stepped forward, not wanting to be too close to anyone else should her sister decide she no longer wished to hold back.

“You said you would let Nightmare live, and the others go free, if only without any memory of today’s events. But what you plan for the Doctor… I cannot allow it.”

“I will only ask you once. Release your interference, or you will regret it.”

The younger sibling’s answer was in the form of charging her horn and flaring her wings out.

They faced each other, daring the other to act first. Luna would prefer to at least try to counter her sister’s first move, rather than have to end up the same way the three girls as well as Spike did earlier. She wasn’t expecting to be able to win this fight. She only wanted to buy as much time as possible.

1:02 She only barely managed to raise a barrier in time to mitigate some of the damage from Celestia’s opening attack. Her head was spinning, her neck and head aching, but she eventually came to, finding herself outside in the woods.

She looked back towards the castle, and saw her sister flying out, high above, then beating her wings once, yet still hard enough to cause a breach in the magical barrier mere meters from her starting point.

1:11 She came crashing into her younger sister before any sound arrived. Striking with her horn like one would with a blade.

Luna didn’t use any magic this time. She let her instincts guide her and parried. Then dodged. Then parried again. She focused every bit of her mind on nothing but reacting as quickly as she could.

Celestia had enough of holding back. The plasma bolt only barely qualified as a decent strike for her. Ever since, she’d been swatting flies. Still, she was not willing to endanger any equine lives with a decent show of force.

Maybe a bit of melee would be sufficient to remind Luna of her place. That, and she hadn’t stretched her muscles in far too long. Luna was only barely managing to parry in time. She could easily overpower her, but let’s not. Let’s remind her that it’s no use fighting her. Let Luna pour every drop of pride, anger, anarchy and conceit, and then let it dawn upon her how utterly pointless it all was.

Celestia did not want to have to fight her own sister ever again. Let this be her final rebellion.

She saw her little sister draw energy into her horn, and saw her trying to find an opening for a point blank. Celestia obliged.

1:31 As the earth trembled with every show of rage, the Doctor and Nightmare pressed forward.

It wasn’t like they were going to do anything besides wander aimlessly through these tunnels regardlessly. Cross had honestly done nothing but assuage some worries. Good guy.

Still. Unknown to anyone, the goal which they were seeking out had a will of its own. It sought balance, harmony. It sought to protect the creatures living upon its soil.

It had its roots grown around fate itself, causing the two faithless runners to blunder into its grove regardless of random chance. The two were seeking out hope, and that was what sought them out as well.

The duo of one had found a light in the distance, and sought it out.

1:42 The smoke settled, uncovering Celestia to be no worse for wear whatsoever. It was Luna’s best shot, and it hadn’t done a thing.

The princess of the night had yet to give up, though. Every second presented a fleeting hope that the Doctor and Nightmare would somehow, against all reason, reach outside of Celestia’s grasp.

She charged in again.

1:52 The two reached the clearing, and were captivated by what appeared in front of them.

The shade trembled in fear, but the Doctor trembled in excitement. They’ve stumbled upon no ordinary tree. Nonetheless, they both felt compelled to walk forward.

They approached the tree. Roots sprouted round their shared limbs. The Doctor assuaged Nightmare’s worries. They were running on borrowed time anyway. This could either prove their salvation, or their already certain downfall.

The roots entangled around their neck, and their head. Eventually, the Doctor’s now white, void eyes shone brighter, as he came into contact with something beyond himself. Beyond his imagining. Something much more akin to his Tardis.

Boundless. Infinite. Powerful, yet…

2:02 Luna slid backwards across the dirt, rebounding from an especially forceful strike from her peer.

Celestia was getting tired of her own cruelty. She had grown cold over the millennia, but this was her sister. Her only constant throughout her ceaseless existence. Seeing her hurt like this even made her own stony heart ache.

She prepared for a final blow, to end this debacle. She decided to find some other way to discipline her sibling tomorrow. Maybe she’d find it in her heart to bind Nightmare to the moon herself, even if it would go against the lesson she was trying to teach…

No, she couldn’t afford leaving that loose end. She might’ve been stronger now, but she still couldn’t afford another Nightmare Moon.
Luna will just have to get over it.

She gathered power in her horn, focusing to knock her unconscious.

2:12 The Tree of Harmony, it was called. Sown during times beyond history’s reach. Its conscience stretching across the whole world. Its wisdom boundless, yet woefully lacking. The Doctor finally caught a taste of the true meaning of magic, and demanded, and was refused, to share some of his own wisdom.

He was corrupt. Nightmare was corruption. It was the same darkness that had disfigured not only the princess of the night, but also Harmony as well. The Everfree bearing testament to the madness that had befallen it during its thousand years of keeping the shade sealed. Though it could’ve also just been a side effect of its artifacts being misused. Sibling turning against sibling, beast preying upon beast. It’s almost poetic.

Harmony tried to have him extinguished once already. It would've just had Nightmare erased before, kill both him and Luna, rather than deal with the madness which ensued. Yet, that wasn't to be. Nightmare Moon was sealed away, and all that Harmony could do was to slowly eliminate the corruption through the environment. However, it failed. The Nightmare survived, through the grace of a mad elder one, more vicious than viciousness itself, more insane that the spirit of chaos...

The shade persevered and surfaced gain, to continue its ways. Harmony demanded the shade’s death…

The Doctor’s protest almost remade the lands around.

The tree calmed down. It was convinced to see things another way. Maybe, just maybe, the Doctor was right? Maybe there really was a place in the land for everyone? Maybe there truly was hope for the Nightmare.

...Maybe there was a way after all.

The second princess had returned, but the first one had since been corrupted by another source. The Mad Lord, yet again. Harmony had offered itself to other bearers, but those are being threatened by Celestia. The growth of the realm was also threatened all the same.

The fallen demigod of the sun needed to be stopped.

Harmony decided.

For a moment, the Doctor saw glimpses of the entire world. Arid deserts, perilous mountains, lush rainforests and treacherous hurricanes. But that was but a glimpse which he himself had greedily stolen away as the Tree of Harmony communicated what he needed to do now.

He had a chance.

Six gems appeared in the sockets in the tree’s bark. Summoned back, from the possession of the fallen princess. He needed to take them to the bearers, so that they could finish this once and for all.

2:22 Before he could reach for the relics, however, his leg started to glow. The runes activated, and he found himself back in Celestia’s presence, in the woods. Luna unconscious not too far away.

Celestia was none too happy to find out where he had been.

“How did you know about the Tree of Harmony?”

“Does it matter? You pulled me out before I could do anything. And now I assume you’re going to finish the job.”

She didn’t offer a word. Her horn started glowing.

The Doctor remembered some of Twilight’s knowledge of magic, and decided to try a shield himself. A white, crescent horn appeared on his forehead, and it started glowing white.

2:31 It was promptly telekinetically torn off.

Ever have a jaw tooth removed? It was like that, only without any kind of painkiller, and instead of a single tooth, it was his entire jaw. Chin bone and all.

He wasn’t done writhing in shock and pain, as Celestia held him down with one hoof, and…

2:41 She tore off his right wing, 2:46 and his left wing.

You can only imagine how losing a limb might feel.

2:50 And yet, it was nothing compared to the feeling of having Nightmare being purged away. It was damaging his very soul.

With Pinkie, what he did was more akin to assimilating the already weakly rooted splinter, connected only via thin veins. It was mostly painless. This was like experiencing the pain of having your skin burned away, in every single cell in his body.

Nightmare was screaming as he felt himself being consumed in holy fire. The Doctor was screaming with him. Twin voices rang out in unison in the night, appearing as those of primal beasts.

2:55 Her eyes widened and her pupils dilated as her hoof seemed to slip through the shape underneath, and a single, glowing, runed hoof struck her on the side of her head, too quickly even for her to evade, and she was sent flying.

It was only primal strength that could manage to break Celestia’s hold on them. A cocktail of rage, pride, joy, fear, everything that the Doctor was. Everything that Nightmare remembered from the six mares. All of his own memories, all of his love for Luna. All added to the shade’s overriding instinct for survival, and the Doctor’s unyielding refusal to let another life be lost under his care. The fear associated to every single face of his own kind, as well as the knowledge of all the dead and ruin caused by his need to stop a disease from consuming all of time and space.

No more. Not a single life will ever be lost again.

They merged.

Celestia got up and shook her head. She couldn't believe what had happened. She looked ahead and staggered at what she saw. "...What?" realization dawned on her quickly, together with a hint of dread and despair. She had no idea how strong he was now.

He reached to her own height, his general size being subject to guess as it's hard seeing anything in there at all. His eyes shined like twin moons somehow compressed into singularities. The darkness wafting off of him like smoke, even reaching her, twenty strides away.

When she faced Nightmare Moon, she was only second tier, like her sister. Nightmare fed off emotions and translated them into power, only barely managing to surpass her own power gained from the sun. Now, the Doctor not only had access to power from his own emotions, but also from the girls who had previously nurtured the shade. He actually stood a chance in opposing her, and the realization drove her over the edge.

All notion of safety lost, she prepared another plasma beam…

3:05 …but the Doctor almost instantly closed the gap between them and clocked her over the head, interrupting her and sending her flying deep into the forest.

In another flurry of inky smoke, he picked Luna off the ground and reached the crumbled wall of the castle outside of which the others had gathered to look on at what was transpiring.

He was a full two heads taller now. White-edged wings on his back, a crescent white horn on his forehead, trails of white pulsing along his pitch-black body. The group found his new appearance disconcerting, but didn't have the presence of mind to give it the proper consideration.

“Look for the Elements of Harmony. They’re in the tunnels below,” he quickly offered without missing a beat, in twin, resonating voices, as shadowy mists lay Luna gently on the ground in front of them.

No one even had time for a double-take before they felt the distinct smell of ozone.

3:13 The Doctor's form quickly spun around in a flurry of mist, and slammed his front legs ahead, eliciting distant, muted echoes all around. Massive pillars of dark avalanched forth all around in front of him, a veritable mountain of shadows all concentrating in the middle area, successfully blocking an oncoming solar plasma beam.

There was nothing left of the wall the group had previously come out through. They remained silent afterwards. Stunned.

“Go,” the Dark Time Lord demanded. “I can fight her, but I can’t beat her. You need to find the Elements under the castle. It's our only option.”

They all looked forward, watched Celestia emerge gradually from burning vegetation, the fire itself appearing tame in comparison to the godly wrath in he eyes.

”You’re the only ones who can stop her.”

“Doctor, we can’t let you go in alone!” Ditzy countered. He smiled, and responded in a kind, warm voice that managed to shine through the darkness cloaking him.

“Yes you can. I have faith in all of you.”

Ditzy would’ve said something else, but he continued, “Besides, we need you to take care of Luna. Me and Nightmare need to know that you're both safe. Go with the others. Get to the Tree of Harmony. Promise us you’ll be safe.”

She nodded her head, then he turned back around and headed out towards the Self-Righteous Sovereign. Behind him, the others all filed down the hole in the ground, Big Mac carrying Luna and Twilight carrying Spike.

3:33 The darkness wafting from the Doctor started pulsing, emanating strongly once again, as he continuously accelerated his stride.

Twilight led everyone through the tunnels, her horn glowing as she detected a very strong source of magical power in the distance. They weaved through the crisscrossing tunnels, rushing towards the source.

Celestia had since taken to the air, locking in on her target with another devastating blast. The Dark Time Lord had grown merely shrugged it off with a beat of his wing. Another strike, stronger this time, and the light consumed his flesh, only for him to grow it back from the avalanche of inky black quickly spreading throughout the Everfree.

3:53 A blast of pure light, the Doctor didn't bother to dodge. He only regenerated. Another blast, then another, and the same happened.

Every time he was struck, he only drew from the darkness around to remake himself out of scratch. The duo's inky mist had already spread throughout the landscape like an oil spill, binding into the ground, choking out the flames and drawing in Nightmare’s essence dispersed by the Tree of Harmony during his and Luna's imprisonment, in an attempt to purge him like a disease. The same essence which Nightmare was trying to recover, when he spread the girls so far across throughout the forest.

Through the Doctor’s strength of spirit, the shade managed to achieve something he never considered possible. He could feel the entire forest. Most of its denizens had hidden or fled far away. Wise creatures. This was going to get ugly.

The night itself had decided to rebel against the day. Where one was cold and unyielding, the other was scorching and merciless. A sea of dark reaching out for a star flying low, wanting to extinguish the fires of heaven itself.

As dawn was being concentrated in the tip of Celestia’s horn, the Doctor and Nightmare burst up to deliver their own just answer.

4:13 A diameter of a quarter mile was leveled by gray light, the sound and flash could be noticed throughout the entire continent. Somehow the castle still stood, sans a few walls and towers here and there. It stood for so long, and it seems that it will keep on standing for generations yet. Underneath, the others had reached the Tree of Harmony’s grove, but the tunnel collapsed behind them.

4:22 Once the light died down, Celestia was shown flying low in the middle of the clearing, magical energy dispersing to reveal her only to have exerted herself a modicum amount. The Doctor materialized nearby, brand new.

This was going to take a while.

4:30 They clashed again. Half the sky went bright as day, the other half overcasting void over the light of the stars and moon. The Doctor’s flesh was regenerating more quickly than it was being cast away. Being part of Nightmare made him just as susceptible to light, but just as insensitive as well as unimaginably strong.

He felt pain, but he was no longer bothered by it.

4:40 Dark shapes started gathering in the distance. Inklings. Tall bipeds made of darkness and idea, with white voids looking on from the far horizon.

4:50 In contrast, in the sky appeared shining, white shapes with wings flowing as if liquid, black line markings making out closed eyes. The spirits of the stars themselves, the Star Children, had taken notice of what was happening.

5:00 In another dark corner, beyond the world’s reaches, Disdain himself was looking on intently. As were other dark forces undoubtedly doing as well.

The bearers had approached the tree, and all their eyes started glowing.

5:14 A rainbow burst out through the opening in the chamber’s ceiling, slowly at first, but accelerating rapidly towards their targets

Being in the midst of fighting in the sky, Celestia was too busy to notice what was coming. The Doctor and Nightmare, however, maintained a collected mind.

The two surged forward and engulfed the princess. She almost realized too late what he was doing, as her magic was being rendered useless. She tried to fly away, but the two were holding fast.

She screamed in protest as the three of them were struck by the beam of energy.

5:33 In a final act of desperation, she surged out divine fire, sustaining a sphere of energy to purge just enough room around her, creating a miniature sun. Then she cast a unique arcane command upon the rainbow of energy still barraging on her, her own knowledge of the relics’ workings causing her to be more than capable to not only hold the reforming energy back, but to actually bridle it under her own will.

5:43 A smile crept on her face as the energies drew back and funneled into her horn. With this much power at her disposal, she'd be able to purge Nightmare away without even a drop of sweat.

The dark time lord noticed this. If he didn't stop her now, all would be lost. But the heavenly fire burned him away, he couldn't approach her!

This couldn't stand! Think, old man! Think!!

There was only one option. They both agreed.

5:53 He reverted himself back to being flesh and bone, then he burst through the scorching miniature sun. He tackled the alicorn from behind, hindering her wings, and wrapping his runed arm around her horn.

She was surprised by this development. She threw her head around trying to throw him off, disbelief and terror gradually growing to overcome her judgment. She struggled and struck wildly, and seared with her magic, but all to no avail.

He was burning. His flesh was being burned away and healed back by both the now freed Elements and Nightmare all at once. It was even worse than what he felt when this exact same experience was happening to the shade only minutes prior.

He had all the strength he needed, and was being supplied with more. All he needed to do was hold on.

The Elements managed to get a decent hold of them this time. It pulled them in and remade them according to the Bearers’ wishes.

There was white noise, at first. A ceaseless ringing in his ears and a misty blear where he'd try to look. Eventually he found Ditzy cradling him, talking to him, though he couldn't make out what she was saying. She was probably asking him if he was okay, he thought.

"...My coat looks good on you," he managed out, warranting a hug and a kiss.

He looked around. First thing he saw was the ring of ponies and dragon circling around him and two other figures on the ground.

...Wait.

One of them he recognized from Nightmare's memories. This seemed to be Celestia, only she was no longer as large and imposing as she was only moments before. She was the size of Luna, which was not too far away, just standing there, looking confused as a lost puppy, trying to figure out what to make of the new turn of events.

Her mane was no longer its former aurora. It was only a flowing, uniform pink similar to her sister's starry, dark blue. Guess that's one out of the way. They're both on equal grounds now. It only leaves her personality, and maybe Nightmare can finally give his...

He gave himself a passing glance. Yep. Chestnut. He could no longer feel Nightmare's presence. His size was back to normal. No wings, no horn.

He looked to the last figure on the ground. Apparently the other figure Luna was staring at, not just her sister.

Between him and Celestia lay an odd sight. It almost looked equine in appearance, though he might as well could be mistaken for some strange breed of dragon... or maybe even a demon.

He seemed equine in appearance, only slightly taller than the Doctor. He had cloven hooves, though he didn't have either fur or scales. Just a smooth black tissue without any determining features. His mane and tail were more a mist than anything else, flowing out like some especially thick smoke.

The spikes at the sides of his head could just as easily be either ears, spines or horns. His face's general shape seemed too smooth for a pony, and too small for a dragon. Lord Kirin, in comparison, only presented features from both species that knit together seamlessly. This one didn't seem to be able to decide on whether it'd want features from either species.

The bump in front of his face was as small as a pony's snout, but given the lack of fur it seemed to belong to a dragon instead. Essentially, one could go as far as to assume that he was mostly a blank slate, waiting for either race to be imposed upon him.

His eyes slowly opened, blearily, revealing draconic slits, his irises a silvery gray. He opened his serrated mouth, revealing razor sharp teeth.

"...Nightmare?" asked Luna.

His spikes certainly did act like ears. Tracing the source of the sound, then drooping in concern and fear.

He noticed Luna's reservation, which only had him lower his head further than it already was.
He did manage out, though, "I'm happy to see you're alright."

"Is it really you?"

He seemed confused for a moment, not thinking to check and learn of his new appearance. He only answered simply, "I've forgotten many things when we were parted, but I still remember you, if that's what you're asking." His head rose again, hope in his features. "Do you still remember me?"

She dashed forward to embrace him, tears of joy in her eyes. "You silly foal! Of course I remember you!"

He appeared surprised by the gesture, though he was mostly surprised by the new sensations he was experiencing.

"I feel..."

She drew back, noticing his puzzlement.

"Is this what warmth feels like?"

Up until then, he had only felt the warmth of the sun scorching his flesh. He never felt the warmth of someone else's touch.

Luna let out a single chuckle of joy, almost a sob, then held him tighter than she ever held anyone before. The former shade took a while before he took the initiative and returned the favor.

The others would've wanted to share their joy, but were distracted by the third pony brought by the Elements of Harmony finally waking up as well.

"...Luna? What are we doing here?"

They broke the hug and studied the fallen alicorn carefully. She seemed confused. Lost.

Celestia looked to her sister for guidance, no sign of anger or pride at all.

She seemed much younger. Her voice was much lighter, her features much gentler than she'd ever previously attempted to appear. In contrast, her younger sibling, as well as everyone else in the group, were looking at her fearfully. Even Luna was estranging her.

"What's wrong?" Celestia asked sincerely.

Luna wasn't ready for all of this happening at once. Nightmare was okay! Her black knight was safe and sound, and a pony no less! But her sister being the way she used to as well? It's all far too good to be true...

She held Knight tighter, scared by the simple idea that this was all just a simple dream. She didn't want things to go back! If this was a dream, she didn't want to wake up ever again!

She only took a deep breath, braced herself and asked away, voice trembling, "Who are you?"

Celestia drew away as if struck upon hearing that question. "What do you mean who I am? Luna, I'm your sister! Is this one of your silly pranks? Because it's in horrible taste!"

She soon recognized that the look of mistrust in Luna's eyes was anything but mirthful or cunning. She was serious. She was crying.

"Luna. It's me."

The doubt was cracking, but it was still far too heavy to dispel so easily.

"Were you crying? What happened?"

Her tears broke out with renewed vigor. Could it really be true? Could she really dare to believe this to be true?

"...Luna. Please." tears welling up in Celestia's own eyes. "What's going on?"

She threw herself with Knight in tow to add her sister to the embrace. Openly sobbing now. "My sister! I have my sister back as well!"

Tia didn't seem to understand what was going on, but was more than willing to comfort her sibling. "What got into you? You know I would never let anything separate us."

The wails only intensified. Tears were shared. Celestia, the girls, Big Mac and Spike, even Knight and the Doctor let the moment wash over them all.

The others decided to give the three their space. Understandably, they had a lot to catch up on and deserved their privacy.

There were many, notably strong feelings shared throughout the group. Relief that the danger had passed, thankfulness that things had turned out for the best, as well as admiration and gratitude towards the Doctor for all that he had done to make it all possible.

Pinkie tackle-glomped the wind out of him as soon as she found him vulnerable to her surprise attack, earning looks of surprise from the group, which turned to warm smiles on everyone else except Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Applejack. Those three instead chose to share a mischievous smile, and soon joined the pink mare, despite the Time Lord's half-hearted protests.

He was utterly buried under questions within the lines of "Since when were you so cool?!", swoons in the form of "You were so brave and dashing!", admirations similar to "You made blizzards look like ice cubes in a summer day with the way you faced the princess like that!" and unrelenting promises of the biggest, most legendary party in all of Equestria, so legendary that the very word 'legendary' would take days to finish trying to describe how legendary it was. Also, she said she hoped he wasn't lactose intolerant, for whatever reason.

The Doctor, however, was not in the mood for fooling around at the moment. He was immensely relieved that it was all over, but even more so, he was tired.

Today, he was almost crushed by a giant Nightmare Whomping Willow, got beaten up whilst bound by Applejack, had what felt like hundreds of needles being pushed into his head, had his very mind taken away from him, faced against being turned to stone and witnessing his close ones receiving the same fate, then finally, he was forced to come to his senses in the midst of going against every oath he promised to uphold as the Doctor.

And that's not even mentioning the kinetic and shock therapy the three remaining girls put him through, then what he went through in Celestia's miniature sun.

However, worst of all, the realization of what he actually did dawned upon him.

He rose his arm. He was cornered into a state where his fear decided for him. He needed to choose between losing those that he swore to himself that he would protect, and losing his right to bear his title as the Doctor.

Always, until then, there was someone else who would make a stand in his stead. Though never a surgeon to his medicine. Always... always just someone else to either dirty their hands in his stead, or pay the price for his cowardice. It was something he had told himself that he understood what it meant, but finally getting his hands dirty offered for insight he did not want. He felt his heart breaking again, like when he first saw the night sky, when he was beaten into the decision that he couldn't travel anymore.

He refused to let another life be lost. He rose his hand...

His link to Nightmare was holding back his emotions, as they were being turned to power instead. When he woke up, all of those emotions came flooding in, and he was doing well enough holding them back.
Until now, however.

The touching moment from before managed to fissure the dam, yet he managed to keep himself under control. He still managed, but there was only so much he could hold back.

"...Doctor? You okay?"

Applejack's question cut off the rest of the cheering.

"Yes. Why wouldn't I be?" he asked, smiling, pretending that nothing was wrong.

The girls only grew more concerned, taking a few steps back, finally deciding to give him a bit of breathing room.

"Cause yer cryin'."

He traced a hoof up to his face. Surely enough, there were tears running freely now.

"Huh. So I am..." he choked.

"What's wrong?" asked Ditzy.

He only smiled back, tiredly, despite his tears and growing sobbing. "I guess it was just a long day," he lied, looking past her towards the trio a few feet away. "I'm just glad it all turned out for the best."

What time will never tell

Somewhere else, within the confines of a different plane of existence, Disdain watched a techmaturgically generated window towards the realm of Feyraltia, regarding what had happened tonight.

"An interesting outcome." Said the dark figure, laying at his desk in front of the screen with multiple plans and schematics strewn about underneath his head and forelimbs, and a half full glass of hard liquor beside its bottle a small ways in the corner of the platform. Multiple empty bottles strewn about throughout the room.

He was laying his head between his front hooves, one of them replaced with a robotic limb. The right side of his face replaced with cybernetic augmentations.

If his features weren’t hidden in the dark room, then his positively wretched disposition would’ve been clear.

He didn't need to search for the energies now spiking abundantly across all radars, nor did he need to check the history books as they were being rewritten this very moment. All he needed to do was to trace the Tardis's psychic link back to the Doctor.

He's been fully aware of what's been happening so far. He just had no means of taking any kind of action without risking everything. Without risking to be found by the Mad Lord.

He didn't owe carefulness to himself, but to his goal. He owed taking a more responsible approach for his followers' sake. They trusted him to become their leader for a reason, and he was not about to betray that trust.

"It would seem that we need to re-adapt our original plan."

He got up and closed the screen. Then he brushed a few papers away, and uncovered and pressed a button on his intercom.

“Please tell Wavelength he has the all-clear for his proposal. He may do with the Tardis as he wishes.”

The cold night air was silent. The citizens of Ponyville had received word of none other than the Princesses’ intervention, and were asked to return to their homes and rest peacefully, as all would be taken care of with due diligence.

The Equestrian politicians had yet to be offered any reason to start their inevitable, mad and wild fussing, as they’ve yet to find out about Celestia’s attitude adjustment.

It was going to be a nightmare for them to not only adjust every single decree and order for the newly, severely downgraded sovereign, since it was clearly the end of the world that their lead representative was now a couple heads shorter. But also, it was undoubtedly going to cause all and utter pandemonium within the common folk, unless they managed to somehow spin the facts according to their liking, and keep them subdued under the impression that Tia was still, indeed, their idol of perfection, leaving Luna with her well-deserved mark of Cain…

Yeah, Celestia did not take well to the nobleponies even suggesting that.

It was far too long since the sun princess had used the Royal Equestrian Voice anyway. Suffice to say, they needed to redecorate the meeting room afterwards. And a few of the politicians needed to take a few days off for hospitalization.

Because fuck politicians, everything they’re made of and everything remotely akin to them.

Luna gave her sister the biggest hug ever, after all of that had been dealt with.

As of yet, however, Luna still hadn’t received answer to the request for a chariot to return her, her sister and her Black Knight to Canterlot. For now, they were still only a small ways left from arriving to Ponyville, accompanying the rest of the ones involved in today’s events.

A fact which she and her sister were more than happy about. Any extra moment spent with their old mentor and friend, the Doctor, was a treasured one, even if they were both unable to tell him anything regarding his future.

Spoilers, after all.

They were more than content with just seeing him be happy with the mare he’d decided to choose as his significant other, as well as with getting to know the current Bearers of the Elements of Harmony.

Twilight, Celestia’s former apprentice who had until lately been looking up to her mentor with unbridled reverence and admiration, was understandably the one who needed a talk with them the most at the moment.

While she did so, however, the others were doing their own thing.

“How you holding up?” The Doctor asked the former shade.

“…I never needed to walk before.”

Yes, the poor sucker was, indeed, tired from walking for about twenty minutes.

“You?” Knight asked back.

The time lord lightly brushed against the mare at his side and answered. He had since managed to regain hold of his emotions, now fondly looking forward to finally getting the chance to lay to rest. “I’ve certainly had worse than today during my time, but I’m also most certainly still alive, so I can’t complain.”

“What do you mean?” The shade asked confusedly.

“…Long story. Or rather, stories.”

“Hmm. I did notice quite the mass of memories in your mind. I can’t say I quite enjoyed moving through most of the ones I did.” A tentative pause, but the shade couldn’t help it. He needed to know. “How do you manage…”

The Doctor interrupted him before he could finish, however. “Say, how about we meet up sometime? Chat a bit, chew the fat, maybe even play some poker?”

“Chew the… fat? What is poker?”

Luna decided to eavesdrop upon hearing the last question. “I do hope you’re not thinking about corrupting Knight now, Doctor!”

The Time Lord rolled his eyes. “You ladies do know you don’t own us, right?”

They laughed, relief from today’s happenings only causing everyone to indulge more heartily. Knight, on the other hand, was clearly having trouble keeping up with what was being said as Luna clasped her head tenderly under his. He could only oblige.

Ditzy decided to intervene into the conversation. “I was wondering, though. What were you and Celestia talking about before you managed to get away into the catacombs? It kind of seemed like you two had already met.”

Noose tightening. “I…ugh…”

“…Doctor? Is there something you forgot to tell me?”

“…Maybe?”

The group laughed again, harder. Most of them, anyway.

Celestia, for one, seemed distracted by something. She stopped, studying the Doctor’s leg intently.

“Tell me, Doctor. During our meeting, was there a spell which I’ve cast on you?”

He stopped as well, followed by the others. “Oh, right. You did cast a tracking spell on me. Supposedly a failsafe making sure I behave and keep a low profile, however I assume there’s not much point in doing that anymore, right?”

“I suppose not…” Tia agreed, glowing her horn and causing the runes on his arm to appear. Attracting the attention of everyone else, and drawing the fascination of the student.

“Those are dragon runes!”

“Very good, Twilight,” Celestia smiled. “I see you truly are as diligent as I’ve expected. These are indeed dragon runes. Though I don’t think I like the formula they’re forming…”

Luna read the runes as well, biting her lower lip. Celestia was growing more and more perturbed the more she read.

“Did I really write these?” the sun princess asked, crestfallen.

“You were in a dark place, Tia. Please don’t think about it too much.”

Before her sister could answer, the princess of the night decided to take the initiative in adding her own touch to the runes. She walked forward, bowed down and lay her shining horn against the Doctor’s shoulder, shining silver light in the forest clearing.

Once she was done, new bluish-silver markings had appeared on his left arm, intertwining with the golden ones along his shoulder and upper arm area. The golden sun markings had also changed in the process and became identical, much to Luna’s satisfaction and Celestia’s reserved relief.

“You’ve given unto me more than I could ever possibly give back, Doctor. Please let me and my sister be there whenever you might need our help. All you need to do is speak our names in sequence, and we will answer.”

He studied his new tattoos curiously, before deciding to test that promise. “Celestia. Luna.”

Surely enough, his markings started shining, and the sovereigns’ voices could be heard from within. “Yes?” the sisters asked in unison.

It elicited a small smile from the Time Lord. “Could we please go home? I’m tired.”

They all said their goodbyes. Fluttershy running off with Angel tucked under her wing, concerned because she hadn’t renewed the chickens’ feed, although it was sufficient for another week.

The two sisters and former shade climbing onto a carriage which had been waiting for them in front of town hall.

Applejack and Big Mac rejoining with their worried family back on the farm. Pinkie quickly calming the Cakes’ worries. Twilight tucking her already asleep assistant in.

Rainbow, in contrast, was just happy to crash into her bed after everything that happened today. She was intent on sleeping most of the days following, on the clouds, in the sun, for the following week.

Ditzy wanted to talk to the Doctor, but he seemed far too tired. She just opened the door to their house, and was greeted by her sister waiting anxiously at the dining room table.

“Dotes, you’re still awake?”

She didn’t receive a verbal answer, though. Her own younger sister was busy walking towards them tiredly, and before she realized what she was thinking of doing, she reeled back and delivered the Doctor a haymaker.

“Doseydotes!”

“Where have you been!?”

“I can’t believe this.” Ditzy answered, exasperated, beside the still crouching Time Lord. “The Doctor went through Fel today to get the missing girls back! He fought Celestia herself and won! And here you are, hitting him when he’s tired and weak!”

Dotes looked confused. What was her sister on about? Nothing she was saying made any sense…

“I’m going to bed.” the Doctor offered as he got up.

His path was cut off by the younger sibling, however.

“I don’t know what happened today, but I don’t want you in our house anymore!”

Her eyes were wide in surprise. Why did her sister hit her?

She looked back to her sibling, only finding a sad and disappointed glare in return. She was speechless.

Only then did she finally look to find the Doctor in the eye.

He looked like he was dead.

He didn’t wait for her to move aside. He just brushed past. Dotes’ mouth was left hanging, trying to find some way to get back on top of the fleeting confrontation. Her sister brushed past as well, without a word.

She was left alone, nothing but questions and betrayal for company.

He crashed in his bed, wanting never to wake up again.

He heard the door silently close and lock behind him, and managed to look up to see Ditzy look back at him.

She walked over and lied beside him in bed. “What’s going through your head right now?” she asked him quietly, brushing through his hair. “And please don’t try to lie to me.”

He would’ve smiled at the last remark. She'd really grown to know him, hasn’t she?

He wrapped an arm around her head, and drew her head forward. Their lips met, their kiss flowing for a millennia across their now shared woes.

She had asked him to tell her what he thought about her at one point. Repeating exactly what it was that he’d said would never come close to expressing their connection at the time.

What was she to him? What was the world to him? He had told someone once, what his life is like.

“We’re falling…”

“I know.”

He could feel the ground under his feet spinning around the planet’s axis, around the Sun, through the cold, unrelenting void of space within the Milky Way in our universe. An unending expanse of nothingness, with only a few planets and stars to tell the tale of infinity’s mercilessness. Furthermore, slipping through time like the blink of an eye to a star’s lifespan.

Now, however, he felt nothing. No Coriolis, no Sun, no Milky Way… This wasn’t his timeline either. He was an estranged cell on the tissue of an alien being.

That was what he was. Yet, now he needed someone to hold on to for dear life.

He was an intruder, he didn't belong where he was. What was worse, he wasn't falling through space anymore. He was falling through void.

“I’m scared.”

“I’m here.”

At least before, he could safely rely on who he was. He was who he wanted to be.

Needing a new name, he called himself the Doctor. The man who makes people better. Who fixes problems and always finds a peaceful solution. Ideal, right? You could even call it childish.

However, there comes a time when you need to grow up. Ironically, though, it had to happen in the lands of fairy tale.

Maybe that's what it took. Maybe that's what it always took. For him to look around, to see how unreal his life is. The irony reflecting the world he'd found himself in. In a world where the sun always shines and the colors are always bright, there's always so much grief. Quite simply, it's too good to be true.

He'd grown up a long time ago. He just regressed after the Time War. However, memories never remain buried for long. Especially the bad ones.

"Please. Make me forget."

What happened the night the Earth had been stolen, reminded him. That the Doctor was just something he made up. Maybe in time, others believed it to be true, but that was only by those hopeless and desperate enough to need that hope to hold on to.

He even bought his own lie, in his own desperation. But what happened then reminded him...

'The man who abhors violence, never carrying a gun. But this is the truth, Doctor. You take ordinary people and fashion them into weapons.'

...that there's a reason why he himself had once started running.

He looked into time itself, and got scared. Not because of how vast it was, no. But by what he learned from it.

It was a maelstrom. No order to it. No mercy. Just a force that couldn't be controlled.

And he was in it.

He was a drop of rain in the winds of a Black Hole. No way to control where he lead. Nothing for him to do but accept wherever he'd be lead.
He refused to admit that fact.

He wanted to outrun time. To outrun the winds that carried him, and gain the chance to move on his own path. He didn't want to... he refused to let time decide for him! To decide his fate!

...But such are the laws of the world. How do you know if you're truly ahead of the current, or if your own initiative is not just another kind of wind? Just another shackle to the laws of causality?

How did he know if he really had freedom, or if he was bound by fate without him knowing?

That's why he always refused to follow the norm. To be the exception. To be the only Time Lord who actually dared to dream that he was free.

Why he refused to resort to violence whenever it was his only option.

He never carried a weapon because in doing so he went against all the laws of the universe! Where they'd demand 'be or be killed', he rebelled and demanded a third option! Where they'd deny another's right to live, not only were they rendering their own right to the wind, but they were giving in to fate! They were admitting that fate could decide when another's time had come!!

He refused. He refused because he believed that he could fight it...

But that night, he started having doubts.

All of his actions were for the sake of saving lives, for the sake of proving his freedom. But it turned out that he had inadvertently turned his followers and friends into killers. It turned out that by sparing Davros long ago, hoping that he could save him, all he did was supply the Universe with the one who started the Last Great Time War.

He thought he could change something, if only he could be the Doctor enough times again. Tonight, however, he failed.

Turns out he had been dancing to an unheard song all along.

He wanted to forget. He wanted to lose himself in his significant other.

“We're both here.” his lover continued to soothe him. "We're safe. That's all that matters."

Dinky was sleeping soundly in her room. She might've shifted when her mother and aunt were fighting, but otherwise, didn't wake up.

Doseydotes, however, was not going to stay in that house any longer.

She packed her bags and left.

She walked through the moonlit night up to a rather wealthy-looking house, up a hill overlooking the town. Quite large, it seemed like an estate compared to the other houses. However, no one really knew what happened behind those walls...

It appeared that the owner was still awake, having one of the rooms lit up with arcane lamps. No cheap venture, mind you.

She knocked at the door and waited for a unicorn stallion to answer.

"Dotes? What's wrong?"

She threw herself at him for comfort, tired and sad.

"I just don't understand!" she cried. "My sister's boyfriend is brainwashing her. She just doesn't care about what he's doing to her anymore!"

"Shh shh... it's okay. Everything's going to be fine."

He directed her inside, and went to carry her luggage. His blue coat and blond mane shining in the moonlight, an hourglass with two drumsticks on his sides.

He looked around carefully, his placid guise momentarily giving way for a mad smile hiding malevolent intent. He was looking on, satisfied, down the houses of the town.

He put his façade back on, turning back around and leading Doseydotes into his lair.

"Trust me, I'll take care of everything. I already have a plan in the works."

Author's Note

To be continued in the next part.

New places

Two of the creatures stepped forward. One of them had the common courtesy to pull a torch out of his backpack. The other one seemed to be the superior officer, going by his larger, more elaborately decorated chain and plate armor made of some unknown material. It glowed and the light shifted, the energy apparently pulsing throughout the surface of the armor.

They were similar to the folkloric Chinese dragons in general appearance. The head appeared similar to that of a lion, however unlike the myths he'd heard of, these creatures' limbs were actually of a dignified size... mostly. Their bodies were about thrice his size and five times his length. They had scales ranging from chrome to pearl white, their manes were flowing like fire... or plasma. You know, the actual aggregation state of fire. The stuff that 99% of the bloody universe is made of? What do they teach you in school...

The Doctor was impressed. He certainly didn't read anything about Chinese dragons in the library.

The superior among them addressed the stallion, with a very oriental accent, and a slight, electric echo. Possibly Japanese.

"Are you him? The one called 'The Doctor'?"

The Doctor found no reason to shy away now. He'd seen bigger. "That would be me, yes. And who might you be?"

"We are agents of the Organized Defense Initiative Network, branched in our great city of Fortune Holds. We have been sent to apprehend you, forcefully in necessary.

"...That being said, I would like to express how grateful I am for your decision to come out willingly."

Tactful. The Doctor appreciated it. He smiled a little wider. "...Well, yeah. To be fair, I'd very much prefer to leave the others out of this... I'm thankful that you've embedded your warnings into the sound waves of thunders, rather than just barge in, tie me down and drag me out... As authorities often seem to take liberty of doing.

"Anyway, it really was a lovely method of communication. Psychic Morse Code, perfect for use from within noisy storms and the such. Ugh...
Why exactly were you sent to apprehend me?"

"We know who you are, Doctor. As I've said, we were sent to take you in, in response to the threat you present."

"...Could you elaborate? No, wait, I remember. It's about that prophecy, isn't it?"

"You've learned of it?"

"...Yeah. A hermit told me yesterday."

The officer's head tilted and sagged, his eyebrow raising. "Well. Did this hermit also explain how you're supposed to be responsible for a calamity at a global scale?"

"Yes, yes, I know. Ridiculous, isn't it?"

The drake took half a step forward. "Ridiculous as it may seem, you've been called to attend a discussion in its regard."

"Understandable. I wouldn't allow my entire race to be threatened by the existence of just one person if I were in charge either... Who is in charge, again?"

"That would be, the leaders of the very world you're endangering. All of them."

"...All of them?"

"All of them." the officer nodded.

All the leaders.

"Oh. Well..." The Time Lord glanced around to the other drakes present before looking away, eyebrows raised lazily. "I didn't even need to do anything yet and I'm already this world's most wanted. Go me."

A few chuckles in the background, then the lizard started again, holding down a chuckle himself. "Yes... If you would please put this on, we can be on our way." He gestured to his subordinate, which produced a small talisman from his pack.

The Doc obliged, not wanting to keep the leaders of the world waiting... Though it would be a lie if he were to say that he didn't take a look back to the house first.

The lizard sent a charge through the small bauble, after which it started glowing and pulsing with energy, floating away from the stallion's neck. The wearer later realized that he was starting to float similarly, as some sort of static shroud would creep out and enveloped him. The phenomenon culminated to a short flash, then he was gone. Leaving nothing but the talisman behind still floating on its own.

Which proceeded to dart off high into the sky, then shoot off into the distance. Followed by the draconic creatures at their own similar pace.

As they arrived, they left. In a flash of lightning.

Within the impossible star traveling through the sky at enough speed to easily shatter Einstein’s good composure, the Doctor was uneasy. He was self aware, and aware of the time and space that passed him by. And it was quite bothersome, since both of those things had always presented an awful itch that kept him running around, keeping himself distracted so he wouldn't go insane.

Inside the gem, his consciousness was meant to be locked and his body frozen. Yet, it takes more than this kind of basic stasis to take full hold of a Time Lord. His mind prevailed, thankfully just enough for him to realize just how dangerous it would be to fight the stasis in the first place. It was only there to keep him alive through traveling a quarter’s way across the planet, in a few seconds.

Teleportation was one thing. Being transferred instantly across untold distances, that was tricky. Since beaming someone as a radio signal provided multiple gross issues, the only feasible way to teleport was by punching a hole through reality. Which was a component of time travel, with or without a capsule.

This was not that kind of travel. It was something he never really experienced until now. Somehow, he got stashed away inside the talisman. Kept safe so he could get transported to a homing device he knew was pulling him away. He was broken down at a subatomic level by that static field earlier, then converted into a kind of energy he could not recognize and stashed away, the talisman acting as a battery. It was insane...

…Well, maybe not really insane, if you thought about it. Just unheard of. It was just another use for magic, a concept which was making the Doctor all fidgety as a kid before Christmas. At least he would, if he wasn't feeling like he was going insane because he couldn't take his attention away from his... issues. They should've warned him. He had no choice but to shut down the part of him that felt this discomfort, and just give in. Which would've been okay in his own timeline, but here, it was just... wrong.

When he finally got released, after the eternity that was an entire minute, it took him a little while until he could get a proper hold of his senses. He was greeted by the same draconic commander from before, a mixture of no-nonsense and humor in his expression.

The area he woke up in seemed to be what would happen if a docking area were crossed with a Chinese monastery, then taken apart and redecorated by an interior designer obsessed with taking Feng Shui just a little bit further.

There were multiple noteworthy elements to point out. The actual structure he was in was a massive oblate spheroid shape (or maybe just a rounded out cylinder with convex sides) with several floors. The floor he was on seemed to be along a quarter's way from the bottom, a ceiling mirroring it around thirty stories high above. The two surfaces were made of an unusual kind of stone, which would pulse upon touch like a plasma screen, similarly to the draconic officer's armor. Said stone would continue along the convex walls in sharp triangles, then interrupt and be replaced with transparent crystal, which made up most of the walls, as well as most of the stairways and interior balconies built along said walls.

On said balcony floors were several containers of varying sizes, stored apparently. He looked over to two noteworthy crystal pylons within the room(I'll get to those in a moment) which other draconic creatures were either busily maintaining some sort of ritual, or harnessing smaller shards from and loading them into the previously mentioned containers. The Time Lord even saw a couple of the drakes throw the crystals into their mouths and chewing them. This must be their agriculture, apparently.

Now, regarding why the place looked like a Feng Shui monastery, the entire floor the Doctor was on was one big Yin Yang symbol. He was just resting on the benches along a large pagoda running like a support pillar through the middle of the large spheroid (it was like a saucer building from our world, only with rounded walls. Because they can.). On the half of the floor he was on, there were base colors of dark blue and black decorated light blue and silver. There were also phoenix pictures and statues along the stone of the walls, crawling along the stone of the ceiling over to the pillars along the edge of the first balcony floor, at the tips of the triangles-shaped stone sections mentioned earlier, which happened to continue along respective balcony floors. There was also a large crystal pylon (yes, like the ones from Starcraft) in the middle of the coldly-colored area, heavily decorated with depictions of the fiery bird.

The other half of the room was decorated noticeably differently. It turned out the halves complemented each other, as to be expected. Here, the colors were gold and red finishings over brown and black. The statues and depictions along the walls, pillars and the area's own pylon, were those of snake-like serpents...

It was something the Doctor found noteworthy to consider. In Chinese folklore, the Yin Yang were designed to symbolize two halves of the whole. The dark and the light respectively. However, each side had a designated creature of myth associated. Supposedly, the Fenghuang, or Phoenix, was considered of Yin (dark) (and complements) and the dragon was Yang.(*) And honestly, those serpents along the walls were anything but dragons... Then again, the Phoenix was considered to be originally inspired from the Egyptian Bennu, which so happened to be chased by the serpent Aapep. Similarly, in Norse, there were a certain pair of wolves that chased after the moon and sun respectively...

The Doctor decided to stop before his head exploded. It wasn't like his sanity had recently taken a blow or anything. He just settled for attracting the attention of the two officers left to guard him until he woke up. But by the time he finally got to doing so, however, they seemed to have already called for their superior via their psychically-enhanced hypersonic growl... or whatever the Doctor said they typically used to communicate.

As it stood, their captain just arrived in a flash of lightning.

“Oh, good, you’re awake. We were worried you might've suffered side effects from our magic.”(**)

"No kidding... I'd take time travel without a capsule over that any day."

…He could go on and on expressing his many reasons for disapproval, but there was something waaaay more interesting he needed to pay attention to.

Previously he only paid attention to the interior of the busy building he was in. Now, he took a passing glance out the crystal windows. As soon as he did, he got to his feet and hurried over for a better look.

He traveled to the home of their wondrous race, and the sight was breathtaking.

Pearl clouds high above and below, with great quicksilver buildings emerging as spires, sometimes joining into pillars. Where two such structures were to meet, instead they split outward and formed either spheres like Christmas globes or spheroids like the one he was in, finished with semitransparent crystal along the middle letting in light from the now setting sun. Also like the walls of the building he was in.

"What did you say your city is called again?"

"Fortune Holds."

It stretched on for miles, cutting off into a drop to what he assumed was the Sky's Mirror ocean. The sun's light poured and flooded everything, but it didn't blind. The crystal walls weren't entirely transparent, it seemed, as it was thicker and more opaque on the side of the sunset. On the other half of the city, opposite to the sun halted in its setting, the town appeared more colorful. There were crystals decorating throughout the city, emanating faintly colored light. And on the eastern horizon was the moon, similarly frozen in its effort to rise.

Fortune Holds, the cloud keep that bordered between night and day, Yin and Yang. In a world where twilight does not exist. Only balance without compromise.

“…Incredible.” the Doc cast awestruck.

“You think so?" the drake answered. "You should come for the Aurora Festivals.”

“Tell me about your people.” the Time Lord was practically ready to beg to learn more. His entire life he dedicated to seeing as much of the Universe as possible, and seeing this would've been a wonder even for someone who didn't share his passions.

The drake chuckled. "I suppose we have a little time to waste before we arrive to the meeting hall. What would you like to know?"

"Everything. How you made this place, your culture, your history..."

"That would take all day." the lizard teased, eliciting a pleading look from the stallion. He chuckled. "I suppose we could stall a little."

"Yay." was the Time Lord's silent reply.

There were a number of interesting things that he'd learned. The gist of it was, Fortune Holds was only the capital of these draconic creatures. There were other smaller settlements over the ocean, each with its own "agriculture" system. Two other noteworthy ones were placed strategically not far away. Apparently, their decisions in location were largely dependent on local precipitation, which was uniquely enhanced here magically.

Most of their culture was marginally borrowed from the kingdoms to the west, a conglomeration called the Mosaic Kingdoms. A mass of different races living in close proximity, intertwining peacefully... mostly. Creatures of varying magical power and civility, apparently the local ponies had their work cut out for them keeping harmony among the many, very different creatures. Supposedly the Monkey Clan would always pick fights with the Tiger Tribe, the wide-spread Foxes would always pursue some form of agenda, and the Naga Kingdom would always find something to complain about. The Pandarians(***) were nice, though.

Luckily for the local ponies, the Loong dragons were willing to lend a claw whenever the hammer would need dropping. By the way, supposedly the Storm Drakes had some familial relation to the local Loong dragons.

There were many different variations of the draconic race. The Equestrian Firecrown Dragon, the Continental Mountain Drake, the Sea Serpents and River Guardians, the Deep Drakes, the Plains Drakes, even the rare Sand Dragons. There were even tales of Ancient Ones, sleeping deep within mountain mazes, active volcanoes and frozen seas. It was even considered that some of them used their magic to change shape and hide among the local populace.

The Doctor paid attention with baited breath. There was so much he didn't know about this world still! He'd heard of some of the dragon types in Twilight's books, but there were certainly no mentions of Naga or Tigers. Equestria was so unbelievably sheltered...

He was being escorted down a hallway, spiraling upwards through a fortress, made of livestone™, inside a cloud. A storm cloud fortress. Need I say more?

The stone, seeming alive and all, would light up as anyone stepped on it. So, no need for lighting. But they set up the lights anyway, which were the same fluorescent crystals as the ones outside on the night side.

It would also seem that they didn't need windows beyond a few sections of transparent crystal. At this altitude, windows would only leave a vicious draft inside, which the Doctor was lucky enough to notice they did not hinder the drakes in their lightning form. However, there was the matter of air pressure and temperature, slight discomforts which the Doctor had no issue dealing with.

"...Is something wrong?" the drake stopped his storytelling to ask, noticing the stallion shake and grin disturbingly.

The Doc was holding a hoof to his stomach, convulsing from sheer joy before he finally started to laugh maniacally, making the other two officers accompanying him and the captain more than uncomfortable.

"Sorry, sorry. It's just that, I just keep thinking about how absolutely brilliant you folk are! I mean look at all of what you did! Look at you! I've never seen anything like you!"

"..Thanks." the leader proclaimed.

“Mind giving me your name? I mean, at least one of you."

“Well, I believe I can just continue to speak for everyone else. My title is Shusei.”

“Shusei. Nice name… Really nice.”

“Definitely better than the Doctor.” Shusei joked.

“Oi! Don't dis the name...” the stallion returned in good fun.

“From what intelligence we could gather, that’s the only name you’ve ever been called, has it?”

“Until now. There’s still time for people to start calling me different things. Before I arrived on this plane of existence, I used to be called plenty of things. Prick, Brit, Cheek Bones, Get-Off-My-Planet... I'm only waiting to hear what I'll be called around here. So far, people seem to like calling me Doc...”

“I take it you don't appreciate that much?”

"It's like calling a police officer a cop. Which is short for copper, a slang started because of what their badges were made of. It's not necessarily rude, it's just denying the honorary title... Sorry if I'm rambling."

“No issue, we've still a small ways ahead of us."

"While we still had time, there were a few more pressing questions I had." the Doctor asked him.

"I will answer whatever I am allowed to. There is still such a thing as state secrecy.”

"I wouldn't have it any other way. First thing I wanted to ask was... What can you tell me about the Last War?"

The captain remained silent for a short while. It was a gravid silence, as one would offer their respects. "...I am not one to answer such a question. And I would advise against asking such things very lightly. No one enjoys remembering it..."

"I can tell. There wasn't anything on it in the local library in the town I've been staying so far. I can only assume that it didn't make it into history class for a reason."

“History is preserved so we may learn from it. About the Last War, we didn’t have anything to learn. Especially not Equestria.”

“I see…”

After a while of walking, he started feeling more and more nauseous. He knew it was neither the change in air pressure nor goosebumps. He reminded himself that he was dealing with telepathic creatures. He could recognize when someone was trying to forcefully read his mind.
And this wasn't that either.

Sure, these particular kinds of architecture have always managed to creep him out. Too gothic. Then again, maybe Time Lords are allergic to livestone?

Whatever it was, it went away before long.

Finally, they were faced with what seemed like the entrance to the courtroom. Two grand doors decorated by symmetrically-styled lines.

“Well then, here we are. Hope you're ready.” Shusei encouraged.

“I'm not worried. It's only bargaining for my life.” He made it sound like it was just Tuesday... and technically, it was.

There it was again. The nauseating feeling he had. Something coming from behind those doors.

There didn’t seem to be any keyholes present, or handles. Instead, there were the complex decorations. Two guards stationed in front, complete with glowing armor and spears decorated in a similar fashion.

They placed their claws over two symmetrically-placed spirals on the doors. The lines and styles started to shine with power, progressing to the outer edges, then the doors slid open to the sides.

“Just what is there that you can’t do with your claws?... That didn’t come out right either.”

The air coming from inside was riddled with the many invisible colors of weariness and reverence. These were no psychic abilities, the leaders of this world present phenomenal power still unknown to him.

The room was an amphitheater, and they were meant to look down on him. No issue, he just swaggered forward, to the center of the stage. All of the creatures looking over to him seemed torn from fairytales. On one side, there was a gryphon sporting a mayoral outfit and his entourage. Another had an old zebra mare dressed in all manner of exuberant attire. Opposite side was some a kind of humanoid dog, gray and hunched, but intimidating for the many scars he has and the coldness in his one eye.

There were four seats left unoccupied, including the front-most one. It would seem that he was not the only person left to join.

"Sorry, did I keep you all waiting?"

Smug bastard. If only there was someone to force him down in a kneeling position..

Oh, look. One of Shusei's subordinates took that initiative. But only because the judge had arrived in the hall. Which happened to also be the head of the state of Fortune Holds. He was accompanied by a couple other drakes in heavy armor, followed afterwards by the last attendant left to join the proceeding, accompanied by Her own steadfast pony centurions.

Author's Note

(*) Yes, they associated the Dark with a creature that symbolized the sun. I have no idea either. Supposedly it has something to do with complementation.
Don't try to think too much about it, however. It gets worse.

(**) The only reason they used this system to transport him was because of its convenience. Kind of like unicorn magic. It has multiple miscellaneous uses based on alchemy and base matter manipulation. It was only coincidental that they fed off the residual matter produced during their rituals. Regarding how they managed to bring the Doctor here in the first place, it was kind of how the huon matter inside Donna brought her to the Tardis. Pencil in a cup.

Currently, they were aware that the Doctor was a Time Lord, which was why the good captain had set for the infirmary in case he was affected somehow. The other officers were either dismissed or sent to report in first, since they didn't appear to be needed anymore.

Also, the way they brought the Doctor back out of his light gem was by eating said gem then blowing him out, similar to how Spike blows out letters. If you want, you can think of how the Primordial Serpents would swallow your character in Dark Souls then spit him out somewhere else. It's nothing like that, but it's hilarious to remember how they did it.

(***) Totally no relation to the Pandarens. Honest.

"All it takes is one bad day..."

“Be honest with us, Doc.”

“How bucked are we?”

“…Doctor?”

He would’ve said something cheeky in response. Perhaps something within the lines of ‘Language, Ditzy. But yes, we’re pretty bucked.’
However, he didn’t hear her.

He realized that he no longer had time to allow his now third guest in his head to settle in his own calm, safe, enclosed little corner, and would need to handle a crash course instead. That was, if he intended on opening his eyes to analyze whatever threat they were faced with at the time.

When he opened his eyes, he felt like he was suffocating. That’s how heavily the darkness had hit him.

All the regrets and tears the caretaker had never been able to truly bring on the outside. All of her grudges, her spites and remorses. Every single dissatisfaction that had ever weighed down on her was rushing over him.

He had no small share of personal demons himself, which he had grown accustomed to, to an extent. It wouldn’t have taken him long at all to sort through these new shadows, if only he had the chance. However, thus was not meant to be. He wasn’t allowed to rationalize any of the new emotions invading his mind, and he was risking to lose himself.

He opened his eyes in order to be able to see the problem he was faced with, but in doing so he lost his ability to think at all.

“…Doctor?”

He could no longer hear her. The whole world had gone silent.

As far as he knew, there was nothing left in the world but the beast that was threatening him and all that he held dear, though he could no longer recall what those things were. All he knew was the indignation, and unending fury that he’d kept subsided ever since the Last Great Time War.

If he were to try to pry even an inch of attention away, he wouldn’t have noticed the tears suddenly pouring out of Ditzy’s eyes, or the look of sheer terror on the others’ faces, or the deafening clangs against the faltering shield. The first thing he might’ve been able to notice would be the whispers inside his head, as Nightmare had had enough time to figure out a way to finally take root in his mind. Should the shadow not have secured so much of his mind already, the Doctor would’ve noticed the thoughts of reason and care being extinguished before they even formed, and the never-ending, accelerated, accentuated thoughts of self-righteous violence flooding through instead.

There used to be a shield in his path. The Doctor had found strength in both his new body, as well as its magical affinity, enhanced by none other than the one person he was directing his anger towards.

The shield shattered.

There was a terrible warcry, a promise for blood and gore the likes of which ponykind hasn’t heard since times forgotten and erased. Ditzy couldn’t believe her senses when she finally came to realize that such a terrible sound could come out of the Doctor. At the same time, an ungodly shriek of pain and panic escaped the second monster. The pickaxe fell to the ground, soon to melt away into the same black sludge composing the beast’s integrity.

Before long, the Doctor had reached the heart and forcibly stolen the tar and misery for himself.

Then he ran off, leaving on the ground an unconscious white mare with red and black stripes in her long, subdued hair. And another, crying for not being able to prevent this from happening.

Ditzy and the others would watch on as the fallen Time Lord left their line of view, unaware of the multitude of eyes staring back at them from all other directions.

Nightmare did not anticipate any of these events to transpire the way they did.

If he had a hand, or a forehoof of his own, he’d rub the latter trying to better understand the situation. Instead, he opted to have Twilight do it for him, from the folds of the Castle of the Royal Sisters.

He didn’t have the audacity to have Twilight seat herself on the single throne in Luna's tower. Power never was his ambition, so he never saw any allure to the act. Instead, he allowed his mind to wander aimlessly as he searched through the cold stone walls, recalling what it was like, before things went out of hand.

He wondered if Twilight could see what he saw through her eyes. The once majestic ballrooms and courts, now only rubble and ruin.

Eventually, they seated themselves at a balcony doorway, in Luna’s old chambers. The balcony itself long since broken and fallen by the elements. After a thousand years of wind and rain, not to mention what might’ve happened that fateful eclipse, he was surprised that even this much still stood.

The duo sat there for hours, still. Unmoving. Twilight had been changed here in appearance. Her black fur only ever shifted in its own wind, her white eyes studying the distance.

Yes, Nightmare assumed they were quite well acquainted by now. After all, he was using her mind to store his own memories, both sorrowful and fond. At least, what little of them remained.

He wondered, though. If he were to allow the student under his control to wander with her own mind, would she remember? What she was seeing now? What drove him, what kept him going? Or would she forget immediately, like her friends had so far?

He had intended to take advantage of the Doctor’s moment of emotional vulnerability by using the anger sprung from seeing what had been done to Pinkie Pie. He only managed to render the strange interloper into a state of tunnel vision, drawn out by both rage the likes of which he himself hadn’t known since he merged with Luna; as well as simply, being tired.

Tired of caring. Tired of trying to reason with others. It would seem that the Doctor had quite a few shadows in his own past.

So far, Nightmare had only scratched at the Time Lord’s boundless mind. With the sudden influx of power from Pinkie Pie, he only barely managed to secure his influence. He needed it, since by no longer having an immediate target to his rage, the Doctor risked coming to his senses. Luckily it appeared that he had no real desire to remain in place to begin with.

The fallen lord of time's anger quickly got joined by his sorrow and shame. They bolstered the shade’s power barely enough to nudge him to continue his warpath. To continue opposing him.

At least this way Night could try to somewhat predict and control the Doctor’s actions.

It seemed very unlikely at this point, but he might even be able to succeed in gaining the Doctor as an ally before the day was over. That was, as long as he didn’t risk becoming vulnerable to the Elements of Harmony in the process.
He was not certain what he might do, should it come to the point where he would have to choose between the Doctor and Twilight.

“I suppose it cannot be helped,” the duo sighed in unison. “At least we’re about to retrieve three of them now, plus two more.”

He shifted his consciousness towards the area where the Doctor had just left. Nightmare ordered the animals previously under Fluttershy’s dominion to retrieve their caretaker, and the others.

He was no longer phased when he noticed that things hadn’t gone according to plan. Again. Even if this certain instance seemed rather… unusual.

Fluttershy had a way with animals. Whoever had ever met the mare knew this much well enough.

It was quite possible that there might've been a magical origin to this phenomenon, though unfortunately, as is with all things magical in nature, it was unclear at best, and utterly impossible to compose an adequate question at worst.

It’s… relatively safe to assume that the caretaker’s abilities were by no means natural. Ponies are actually mostly unnatural. They don't just rely on their magic, they are magic as well. Some of them ever more than usual... which is one way of explaining Pinkie as a whole. She's as much part magic as she was part darkness in her Tar Ogre form.

So there they were. Ditzy was leaking from the eyes despite repeated wiping and Applejack was trying to shake Pinkie Pie awake when suddenly, Big Mac brought their attention to what was going on in their surroundings. They’ve found the entire area swamped with beasts of varying size and sharpness. Every single one sporting the same vacant expression on their face, aside from the butterflies embedded on their faces like some kind of evil childish face paint.

Noticing that they had no chance of fighting them all, the group of would-be heroes decided they should try to run away. So Applejack threw the downed party mare over her back and called for her brother to make a path.

No such luck.

He was big, he managed to send a cragadile and woolymong flying over the crowd, but the natural predators were better at waiting for an opening. The manticore had pinned him down, stared at him and growled deafeningly in his face like the farmer owed it money, until Fluttershy finally decided to make herself noticed.

And boy, did she offer them all a scolding…

“I have never met anyone acting this way! I’ve dealt with some temperamental critters in my life, but I’ve NEVER met someone trying to hurt someone else just because they’ve been told to do it! You’re not even hungry, you’re not even angry at us! You’re just doing this because you don’t want to upset a bully?! What kind of a lion are you?!”

A large bramblesnake (like a rattlesnake, only made out of brambles) decided to try to sneak up on her while she was distracted. It was not meant to be.

“And just what do you think YOU'RE doing, mister?!”

The snake coiled back and gulped under her unrelenting stare.

“What, you think that just because you’re bigger and stronger than us, you’re allowed to just do what you please?”

“Well…”

“Well what? You think you get to find an excuse? After what you’re all been trying to do?!”

Deep down inside, they’re all just little kids. Aren’t we all…

They grouped up, instinctively, trying to find some security in numbers. It didn’t help. The angry lady wasn’t done with them.

“You were going to hurt us, for no reason but because that selfish meanie wants us to serve him too! Well I’m sorry, but I’m not going back to being his plaything, and none of you should stand for it either!...”

“Should we do somethin’?” whispered Big Mac to his sister.

“Ah think Flutters’ got it covered.”

“Ah wasn’t worried about her…”

“…of yourselves! You’re not willing to stand up to him, but you’re more than willing to pick on innocent ponies that only want to get their friends back! I only hope your mothers don’t find out about what you’ve been up to, because I’m sure they’d want to bury their faces in embarrassment!”

All of the animals were now hanging their heads low, some of them pawing at the dirt in shame, the face paint long since erased.

“…Point taken.” whispered the apple sibling back.

“Now, I want to hear some apologies.”

Grunting, hissing, mewing and bleating all sounded in unison, extremely half-heartedly. “Sorry…”

“I didn’t hear you!”

They repeated themselves louder, as requested. “We’re very sorry, ma’am.”

“That’s better. Now I want you all to go back home and keep out of trouble from now on. Make sure you don’t get mixed up with baddies like Nightmare.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

They all turned tail and left their own separate ways. At the same time, it appeared Nightmare had decided that it was over, and allowed the area to finally turn back to normal.

Fluttershy let out a sigh in frustration and turned back towards her friends, searching where Ditzy was beside Pinkie Pie.

“How is she?” the caretaker asked the mailmare.

“I don’t know. She’s resting, and her mane and fur started to turn back to normal, so I suppose that’s a plus.”

Ditzy didn’t look very well either. She managed to stop crying, and decided she didn’t have time to wallow in heartache at the moment.

“Are you okay?” Asked the caretaker, laying a hoof over hers.

“No, not really. But I will be as soon as we stop Nightmare and get the Doctor and the others back.”

It wouldn’t have been hard for him to bring Pinkie back without resorting to violence. The tar surrounding her was self-replenishing, but if he just stopped to think for a moment, he might’ve been able to remember what he said to himself inside Applejack’s head. That maybe it was susceptible to light.

He had a flashlight handy. He also had the necessary tools to enhance the power output of said flashlight as much as he might ever need. Maybe Pinkie would’ve fought back. Maybe him, Big Mac, Applejack, or even Ditzy of Fluttershy would’ve gotten hurt. Maybe even badly, by that pickaxe…

No. As long as there was at least a fragment of the friendly, loving, selfless party pony left inside, no such thing would’ve ever come to pass.

Things could’ve most certainly gone better. However, they didn’t.

It wouldn’t have been out of the question to assume that the Doctor would fight back. However, it just so happened that at that single point in time, he had finally found his match. He himself had finally caught the short end of the deal that had been dealt to every single one of his adversaries so far.

Every single time, they would be caught either off-guard, surprised, or even out-smarted by the Doctor. This time, however, he found someone that would get under his skin, and for once, use the chance to drive for goal.

No more companions sacrificing themselves so he could be saved.

No more gloating, or stalling, or distracting.

No more slipping away through trap-doors, deadlocks, wolfsbane or teleporters.

This time, he was the one to pay. This time, he was the one who would get to be analyzed, dissected, watched for an opening. The Time Lord was still far from converted, but Nightmare was as patient and unrelenting as the darkness inside any, and every, nook and cranny.

The Doctor would need to pull a very impressive hat trick to tip the scales back in his favor.

Nightmare's influence had been bolstered when the Doctor had relieved Pinkie of her suffering. The shade was certain that all of that darkness would’ve been more than enough. However it would seem that he was wrong. The Doctor was far more resilient that he would deem conceivable.

The Time Lord’s pelt and mane had been completely overrun by the tar, but it all subdued and vanished with nary a problem. He was much stronger willed than Nightmare would’ve ever dared to imagine. The shade decided it would be in his best interest to focus on this interloper as much as he could.

The Doctor was not an average foe, but he was not invulnerable. His hair and coat presented a reddish tint now. The whites of his eyes turned completely black. There was the persistent presence of his irises. The blue circles in the now concentrating black which was now threatening to swallow them regardless.

The Doctor refused to give in, but he wasn’t gaining any ground either.

As it seemed, this stalemate wouldn’t last. He was headed towards his next target, where it was very likely that he'd lose himself.

Nightmare had nothing to do now but think. Think of what was to come, what needed to happen, and what would most likely happen instead. Twilight's intelect offered him quite the edge, making her the obvious choice for a strategist and main host. Even so, there were so many variables. The odds were even, from this point on, it could go either way.

It was difficult for him to recall many things, however, so he relied mostly on Twilight's knowledge and strategic mind. When he would try to search through his own memories, it was like trying to make sense of what was left of a burned book. Yet he knew more than enough. He managed to save the most important parts.

It wasn't like he wanted things to go the way they did. Violence was never in his kind's nature. He was actually a peaceful race. They had never harmed anyone else throughout the millennia.

...Not intentionally, at any rate.

Even so, he had always found himself... different. Where his peers would be content with eternity watching from the shadows, doing nothing but observe, he felt... out of place.

It was only later when he'd found out that the feeling he had was loneliness. A feeling which drew him to someone else sharing his grief.

How does it feel, to drift through shadows and dreams for years at an end without meeting another one of your peers, but when you would all conglomerate during processions(*) and ceremonies(**), you would feel even more alone than you've ever felt throughout all of those solitary years combined?
How does it feel, to find yourself attending a ball supposedly dedicated to both princesses, but feeling only love for your sister? Like you weren't even there? It was more than just being ignored. She was not just being overshadowed. The whole thing was nothing but a sham.

He eventually grew to hate the dark.
She eventually grew to hate the light.

It was only by chance that he came across her one day, after finding the most radiant being he'd only seen memories and dreams about.
It was just another night. Alone. Everyone else either asleep or on night shifts. Every single pony who had finally finished their rounds of the night saying a single common thing upon arriving home. That they were so happy to be able to sleep.

He found her on a balcony. Alone. Upset. Yet... alone, in the dark. Like himself.
"What is the matter?"

Author's Note

The title is a quote from the Joker. In case it wasn't obvious enough.

(*) You don't want to know.
(**) You REALLY don't want to know.
Different cultures and all that. It's pretty damn disturbing.

Remember that one chapter, where the Doctor met Fluttershy and almost traumatized her by looking a little too closely into her eyes? Eyes are the window to the soul, pony magic is directly linked to their moods, ponies constitute around 60% magic, bla bla bla. I could go down this line of explanation to explain why Fluttershy's stare is plausible, but I don't feel like it. It's magic. End of conversation.

Doc regained some of his senses when his rage died down, and before you go on saying that someone as Marty Stu as him would never let himself be controlled like that...
BURN WITH ME, MARTHA!
...I'm actually going to go a little more into detail regarding his current predicament in the next chapter.

Pinkie took a lot less time than the other ones...
I'm not apologizing. How much it took, it took. I'm not lengthening it. I'm-

DAMNIT!

Oh well... I've linked a video at the end of the chapter. I hold no rights over it, or the comic which it interpreted. I solemnly declare that I find both authors infinitely awesome and sexy and whatever and that I'm not making any money off of stealing their shit or linking to them.

Also, it would appear that I'm modifying a few details. For one thing, Nightmare isn't as alone and ambiguous here. He's part of a race (like a certain draconequus), which I'll go into detail at some point in the future which I've yet to decide.

Divide and conquer

For the longest time after she woke up, Pinkie didn’t say anything. She just stood there, spacing out on Big Mac’s back until Fluttershy finally noticed she had awoken. It was quite heart wrenching to find the normally bubbly pink pony acting so mopey.

“Oh, Pinkie. You’re awake. How are you feeling?” The tenderness in the caretaker's voice was palpable, as her concern for her friends was always a priority

“I’m okay… but I’m not having any fun.”

“Do you remember anything that happened?”

She took a while, but she eventually nodded her head in response.

Applejack and Ditzy shared a look of concern. The former approached from the other side and offered a hoof.

“It’s okay to be sad from time to time, sugarcube. Just remember that we’re here for ya.”

She nodded in response again.

The only reason why they knew they were heading the right way was because the path The Doctor had taken was the same one the Elements took when they faced Nightmare Moon. Putting two and two together, it was easy to figure out that maybe he’d want to go back to the scene of the event.

They were now nearing the edge of the area where Pinkie had sung her song to ward off the night sovereign’s fright spell. The pink mare in question only seemed to pay her surroundings a passing glance. “I just can’t believe what happened. I mean, the way the Doctor screamed at me! He was like, 'RRROOOOOOOAAAAAAAARRR'… It’s not like I blame him, though. I’m pretty sure that if I’d have some huge jerk come up and threaten me and my friends with a pickaxe like that, I’d be upset too! Just… Not like that.”

“Yer not a jerk.” Chimed in Applejack. “You jus’ weren’t thinkin’ straight.” Applejack then faced towards the mailmare expectantly. “Still, even if the Doc was in the same boat, he did react a bit extremely.”

“…We all have parts of ourselves we’d rather not show on the outside. Might I remind you that he did very well after he took the weight off the shoulders of one of you?”

“What, d’ya mean that black stuff adds up?”

“I’m only saying that he’d always had a lot on his plate, and he’d always handled it before we met.”

“But is he dangerous now?” Big Mac decided to finally ask what everyone was thinking.

“…I’m not sure. I don’t know how much of that stuff he can take. I know he’d never in good conscience hurt anyone, but…”

“But Nightmare makes ya forget about yer conscience in favor of his own gain.” Applejack reminded.

"It seems that way." Ditzy sighed.

Pinkie seemed confused at the turn of the conversation. She wasn’t entirely certain she was following. “He wouldn’t really hurt us, would he?” she asked.

Ditzy lowered her head in thought for a few moments. She really didn’t want to think that way about the Doctor, but the way he reacted only minutes ago shook her quite deeply.

Would he even recognize her if they reached him?

“Would you have hurt us earlier? Or was that pickaxe just for show?”

“Seriously? I just wanted to break the shield! I wasn’t going to use it on you!”

They all suddenly stopped walking, their ears perked up.

“Okay, maybe it was also to scare you guys a little, but I wasn’t going to hurt anypony! I mean, come on! It’s me! Did you really think that some bozo with hipnosisez would be enough to convince me to hurt my friends?”

“…You mean you could still resist him?”

“Duh! It’s hypnosis one by one! He can’t control you like a puppet, he can only suggest things for you to do. You can still say no if he asks too much from you! He can make you walk like a chicken or sing Giggle at the Ghosties, but he can’t make you jump off a roof!(*) Didn’t you know already?” the party pony asked the others. Upon noticing their confusion, she turned towards Applejack and Fluttershy. “You did tell them, didn’t you?”

The two other Elements staggered in disbelief upon hearing the words come out of the pink pony’s mouth. Big Mac and Ditzy only eyed them curiously.

“He convinced us to hurt our friends! Why would we care how he did it?”

“Applejack,” her brother inquired quietly. “Were you bein’ forced to act against yer will, or were you just doin’ things you thought were right at th’ time?”

“He tricked me! He made me believe Ah was beatin’ you up fer your own good!”

“So he wasn’t controllin’ you.”

“...No.”

“Fluttershy?” inquired the mailmare.

The caretaker considered her words carefully. “It was all fuzzy, like in a dream.”

“More like a nightmare, t’ suit the culprit.”

“Applejack, please let her finish.” Ditzy nodded for the caretaker to go ahead.

“Well, I don’t remember what exactly he told me, all I can remember is him being very convincing.”

“As if he kept sayin’ just the right things, right?”

“Y-yes! Only, he really seemed to believe that he was telling the truth. I don’t think he was lying.”

“Only pokin’ around in our heads so he knew what to say to distract us! To trick us into thinkin’ he’s on our side, an’ everyone else is against us!”

“I don’t think I remember him saying anything to make me believe that.”

“Me neither!” Pinkie affirmed.

It appeared that they were giving different stories now. Ditzy figured she wasn’t getting anywhere and decided to just ask what mattered at the time.

“Just tell me if you all agree. Does Nightmare control your actions, or does he just trick you into thinking you want to do what he wants you to do?”

“Ah’m gon’ hav ta go with the second.”

“Me too.” Fluttershy agreed.

Pinkie only shifted and pouted. She didn’t seem very keen on answering.

It didn’t matter for now. Ditzy felt a bit of the weight on her shoulders fall off.

She started back on the road. “If that’s the case, then I can say that as long as he has any say in it, then no. I believe that the Doctor isn’t dangerous. To anyone, really. There’s no way anyone could make him forget about what he believes in.”

“Then why’d he act the way he did earlier?”

She stopped again, to turn to face the younger of the two Apple siblings. “Look, no one asked you why you beat the tar out of your brother! Why don’t you just give it a rest already?”

Silence. Fluttershy coughed awkwardly.

Ditzy shook her head. “I’m sorry. Let’s… please, let’s just get going.”

They walked in silence for another fifteen minutes until they came across another dark arena. She took a deep breath, then Ditzy led the group inside.

The most predominant attribute of Rarity’s domain wasn’t the dark, but the cold. Make no mistake, it was still dark enough to be bothersome. It’s just that at this point, it’s not something you’d pay attention to anymore.

It was a frozen cave. Reflective walls somehow carrying the light from a few glowing crystals here and there. So, there was at least some visibility. Just enough to keep him moving.

The actual surroundings were changed, but other than that, the situation was the same. Our protagonist kept heading into the unknown, unseen dangers laid ahead especially for him.

“This again?” would be what the Doctor would ask himself, if he still had all of his faculties.

It was difficult to determine how his head was working at this point. The laziest way of describing it would be like in a dream. The most pretentious way would be that he was currently waging a tug-of-war with the dark villain, his mind being at stake. Regardless, through it all, he could still recognize and take offense to what was clear in front of him.

It was the same strategy over and over again. Like with Applejack's trees, like with Fluttershy's animals. Who knows what’s waiting for the Doctor in ambush again. And this time he’s out of tricks up his sleeve.

He had a few more gadgets at his disposal, but nothing he could really use. And even with his clouded judgment, he knew better than to use the same type of trick twice.

For now, it was safest to be reckless for a little while, and indulge in a bit of violence.

A part of him, deep under layers upon layers of despair and bitterness, was utterly disgusted with himself for allowing such a decision to ever be made. The rest, however, is either too busy struggling to hold together, or actively forcing the rest into servitude.

The sound of ice shattering echoed through the maze that Rarity and Nightmare had arranged. A great use for the seamstress’ ingenuity, notwithstanding the purpose for which it was designed.

He had already covered a few hundred yards, but he didn't even reach halfway through to where he sensed his target's presence.

He would sometimes find thin areas in the ice. He was hoping he’d finish before the others caught up to him.

‘You persistence is admirable.’

Oh, and he finally started hearing Nightmare in his head. Whoopee.

He had gotten used to the slippery floor, only thankful that there weren't many slopes to climb, and so far none he couldn't get past with a running start. There were also paths leading towards dead ends, which he couldn't distinguish until he got close enough to find his...

...reflection.

It was like he was bragging. Nightmare didn’t even have to do anything and he was winning. Being faced with what was happening to him only made it harder for the Doctor to maintain his composure, for every time he saw himself in such a state, a little bit of the front was lost. A little bit of his composure, of his sanity was claimed.

He knew which way to crash a path through, but it didn’t matter. He wasn’t getting there fast enough.

It seemed as though Nightmare had won. He had forced the waiting game when the Doctor had no time to wait.

Wait...

Maybe he could wait.

He sat down, trying as best he could to calm down.

‘Find your center, then work outwards from there. Every problem has an answer. There’s nothing you can’t overcome with enough time and determination.’

Slowly, it was working. It continued to work, though even slower, when Nightmare started talking again.

“I can’t understand. You say you have no allegiance to Celestia. Why do you oppose me?”

As long as the time lord wasn't doing anything, he thought he might as well indulge the bastard. “None of this has anything to do with Celestia. I’m not fighting for her, I’m fighting for the girls you kidnapped. I’ve already told you that.”

“You did. You’ve also made it very clear that you have no desire to hear why I’m doing all of this.”

A faint echo ran through the maze. One which the Doctor had decided to ignore.

“I’m not interested in hearing your excuses. Unless, maybe, if you came to face me directly. Though even so, please don’t insult me by assuming I didn’t figure out what you're trying to do now. Deciding to try to talk now, when it would suit you best! This is just you distracting me now.”

“No insult was intended. I only assumed that you were aware of our current standing. We are at war, Doctor.”

“Even so, there’s such a thing as a ceasefire during parlays.”

“I’m not taking the offensive. I’m merely defending my advancement so far. You’re the one who’s been attempting to undo all of my work, and yet I shrugged it off. You’re the one who’s currently advancing on your sanity, however I was willing to ignore that as well.”

Ungodly sounds drew apparent in the cold draft.

“I was even going to keep my minions from assaulting you until we finished. They’re currently waiting on my word on all exits.”

“All exits?”

“All of them. Even the ones you’re considering to make right now.”

“…So, now all I can do is either fight, or talk.”

“I never wanted to fight you, Doctor. You’re the one who insisted on fighting me. I do not wish to hurt you if I don’t have to.”

“Just one question. Is there any way I could convince you to let the girls go?”

“…No.”

“Then there’s nothing we have to discuss.”

He got up to face whatever might be coming his way. The sound of ice scraping against ice drawing closer from all around.

The girls, plus oversized farm worker and rabbit, took in their new surroundings upon entering the icy cavern.

Not much to see. Reflective surfaces all around, a low ceiling...

"RRROOOAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!"

And the sound of the Doctor screaming his lungs out somewhere in the distance.

Without as much as a word or a second glance towards the rest of the group, Ditzy decided to run ahead towards the source of the noise.

"Ditzy! Wait up!" Applejack tried to keep up, followed by the others.

As they turned the corner, however, they noticed that they've lost her.

"Where did she go?" Turning around, Applejack and Big Mac found the remaining two of the party missing as well.(**)

"...THEY WERE RIGHT BEHIND US! HOW IN TARNATION-"

The reason why the caretaker and party pony had gone missing was because a certain rabbit, still under Nightmare’s influence, decided to cover Fluttershy’s eyes and cause her to stop abruptly, slipping on the floor and bumping into Pinkie. They both slid quite a ways down a hidden side path.

Ditzy didn’t slip. She failed to distinguish the distance to a rock, and tripped.

Yes, Nightmare made sure to place them in a node of passages, and the Doctor as far away from the center as possible.
Because why not.

“…WITH A SUN DARNED PIG!”

“…You done?” asked Big Mac, waiting patiently for his sister to vent her frustration.

“ Yeah… yeah.”

“Ah s’pose we at least know now that wherever Nightmare’d sent the others, they couldn’t hear ya havin yer little tantrum.”

“Go plow a field.”

He took his younger sister’s childish retort in stride.

”Come now. Ah know ya don’t handle well when things don’t go ‘courdin to plan, but we need a clear head to deal with this.”

“It’s not just that. Ah just can’t stand the idea of losin’ Pinkie and Fluttershy to that creep again!”

“Well then, we’d best get a move on findin’ them, right?”

“Ya don’t have to tell me again.”

“Owie…”

Somewhere a few feet beneath and to the side, Fluttershy was setting her previously spinning world, and Pinkie was counting stars.

“There’s eight of them! No, wait! Nine!”

They could also hear some echoes of Applejack's shouting. If they paid attention. And stopped breathing, because even the sound of their breathing was louder.

“Uhm, Pinkie? We just lost the others.”

“We did?” The pink mare looked up the narrow slope that lead them where they are. “Huh. I guess we need to find them again.”

Fluttershy looked around. There were several pathways up ahead, but none of them lead back up.

“Why did you stop, anyway?”

“I… didn’t mean to.” The caretaker looked around to find her rabbit was no longer around. ”Angel covered my eyes.”

Pinkie pondered this predicament, poking her chin with a hoof in thought. “You did help him get rid of the freaky ghost guy in his head, didn’t you?”

Realization came, Fluttershy covered her face with her overgrown hair as she suffered a self-berating upon her already low self-esteem. “No, I… forgot.”

“It’s okay. We’ll probably find him before we get outa here. Then you can scold him!”

“I don’t think…”

“Come on!” As she grabbed her by the fetlock and dashed off in exactly the worst direction they could take.

“Eeep!”

Then they ran bal into the opposite direction, a large, black serpent with a chicken head hot on their trail, clucking menacingly. A lot more menacingly than any clucking ever had any right to sound, ever.

The Doctor didn’t need his eyes to fend the scaled hybrids off. They were actually a lot easier to take down than you’d think, although some of them were up to four times his size.

He knew better than to try the same trick Perseus did with his shield. It would’ve been disgustingly easy to use all the reflective surfaces to see where they were. It was more likely that they could turn him to stone through reflection just as easily as directly, otherwise what was the point of putting them here, of all places?

The serpents tried to entangle him, and force him to look them in the eyes. He was too strong in his current state. One good smack against each chicken head and they were out like a light.

He was pissy, but he would still never take a life.

“Kyaaaagh!”

Unless, maybe, if they were threatening someone he cared about.

Eyes blazing, he followed the origin of Ditzy’s voice. Considering if maybe she’d like a leather purse.

As was previously explained, Ditzy tripped. Falling into a side entrance, much like Fluttershy and Pinkie. She gathered her bearings and noticed that she was alone.

“…Guys? Are you there?”

She could only faintly make out Applejack's voice echoing. She suddenly realized that her panicked gallop might’ve possibly caused her and her friends quite the problem.

“Can you hear me?” she shouted back through the passage she fell though. No response.

Glassy slithering sounded nearby. She decided she didn’t feel like sticking around any longer.

She turned around to fly back up the way she fell, only to find herself entangled by a leathery creature.

“Kyaaaagh!”

She got dragged away from the entrance and drawn to gaze into a couple of extremely menacing, hypnotic eyes.

She couldn’t look away. She couldn’t move. All she could do was stand still, and feel a cold stiffness run up her body.

Just as she started blacking out, a reddish-black haze tackled whatever was holding her in place.

A flurry of movement, though her vision was blurry and only barely being recovered to its normal, imperfect state. Vicious snarls and hideous growls came from her aggressor, but nothing from whoever came to save her.

As she came to, she got up to find the Doctor causing cracks along the black, glassy surface of a cockatrice the size of her house and so long it barely fit in the chamber. All the while he didn't even have a single scratch on him. His pelt had now turned reddish black, his mane and tail maroon. He moved in a blur, never striking in the same place twice.

It was a fortune that he arrived when he did. He broke through two walls and a ceiling, but he did.

Now, however, there was the matter of him not being able to stop himself.

He already drew blood. The cracks dripping heavily, the monster already slowing down its strikes and just trying to get away. It wasn’t going to get far, though.

He rammed the beast into a wall, succeeding in cracking its crystallized ribs. Then he grabbed its tail in his teeth, slammed it across the floor, and threw it across to the other side of the chamber.

Ditzy managed to hear the sickly sound of more ribs breaking.

And still. With the wretched creature only barely managing to drag itself away, he still wasn’t satisfied. The burning behind his now almost completely black eyes had yet to falter the least bit, only increase.

“Doctor, stop!”

He stopped moving. He stopped breathing. His hearts stopped beating for the longest time. He had completely forgotten that she was there. That she was seeing him like this.

He didn’t dare look towards her.
She trotted over to him.
He started shaking.
She approached.
His shaking increased.
He felt her embrace him.
He was now convulsing, collapsing in her folds.

“It’s okay. I’m okay. You don’t need to fight anymore.”

He started sobbing. What had he done?

He didn’t let himself stagger. He tried to get up, but he felt his legs give way under his weight. He wasn’t that tired earlier…

He reached for his pocket, but couldn’t manage to even lift his leg towards it.

“…Pocket.”

She looked at him inquisitively. She saw where he was pointing, and fished out an array of devices. A glistening roll of some smooth kind of canvas with holes in it that she had never seen before(***), and a few boxes, the fourth one unlike the other identical three.

He picked up one of the boxes and opened it with a snapping sound. Inside was a large injection. He handed it to her.

“Use it… on the creature. It might save it.”

She nodded and did as she was asked. It didn’t take her long, the beast had already fallen unconscious.

Its ragged breathing calmed down after a few short moments. By the time a couple minutes had passed, its bleeding had ceased as well.

“What was in that thing?” As she got back to smothering him.

“Nanoserum. It’s… a bit of the brand of magic my world has. I’ve been saving it for a bad day.”

“It can save you from nearly dying?”

“It’s not as special as it seems, from where I’m from. Though I only have two more left.” He was still shaking, but not as hard. It wasn’t just the stress of what he was doing, but also the cold. He felt so very cold.

He was holding onto his landlady like she were a lifeline.

“I didn’t want you to see me like that.” As he faded into sleep from exhaustion.

“It’s okay. We all have our off days.”

Slithering sounded from the entrances. She looked up to find that they were surrounded by another couple dozen cockatrices. She held him as tightly as she could.

She couldn’t believe it when the beasts left peacefully.

She dared to let out a sigh of relief. Was Nightmare really giving them a break?

...Maybe he's not so bad?

The Apple siblings were trying, and failing to find their way. So far, they’ve yet to find any monsters. Nightmare probably wanted to focus on the greater threat which happened to be in a weaker state.

“These tunnels circle ‘round fer miles!” whined Applejack.

“We could talk t’ help pass the time.” Offered Big Macintosh.

“Ah’m not really in a talkin’ mood.”

“Prolly cause you know what Ah wanna talk about.”

“Probably right. You probably wan talk about the particulars regardin’ what was going on inside mah head when we were fighting. Am I right?”

“Ah was jus’ curious, was all. Ah jus’ wanted t’ know what reason you might’ve had to go down that road.”

“Ah already said, Ah wasn’t thinkin’ straight.”

“If that’s so, then why’d you keep bringing up this same question to Ditzy? Why the Doc acted the way he did when he was in the same situation, quite literally twice over? Hadn’t that poor girl gone through enough without you pestering her?”

She stopped walking while considering the question. “…Would ya believe me if Ah told you that Ah wasn’t just asking her that, but mahself s’well?”

He waited for his sister to clarify, not entirely following where she was going with that.

“The reason Ah kept insistin’ on that question wasn’t just because Ah was curious. It was because Ah really don’t know the answer mahself, and it’s drivin’ me batty.”

“Ya really can’t remember, can you?”

“It’s like Ah have the picture in front of me, but Ah still can’t make heads or tails out of it. At first Ah thought that was because it was a mess in mah head after Nightmare went n’ did what he did, but after what Shy an’ Pinkie said, Ah really don’t know what t' believe anymore.”

A not entirely awkward silence followed, until Big Mac came up with a comeback. “…Maybe we could ask Nightmare some questions when we finally find ‘im. Preferably after we’ve tied him up nice n’ tight like a hog. ”

The promise of unnecessary violence managed to bring his sister’s spirits up a bit. “Then we could decide whether or not to tell Pinkie he’s actually full of candy.”

“Ah’m not sure Ah like this violent side of you, sis.”

“Ah was only jokin’!”

“Were you now?”

“…Fifty fifty.”

“After this is done, yer takin’ a few days off.”

”Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa…”

“After me beatin’ you up, Ah’d say that might not be… what in tarnation is that noise?”

They were not entirely certain what to make of the piercing, uninterrupted shriek coming their way. They just decided that whatever it was, they weren’t going to go easy on it.

They were only mildly surprised to find a pink mare dragging along a trembling Pegasus come by.

“…aaaaaaaaaaaaahey, AJ! Hey Big Mac!” She stopped suddenly in front of them, utterly anticlimactic as per usual.

“Ugh… hey, Pinkie.” Applejack humored her. “What’re you…”

The party pony didn’t have the patience to let her finish her oblivious question before answering it. “I’m doing great! Considering the fact that I’m being followed by about a dozen huge, freaky chicken monsters. Fluttershy’s catatonic, though.”

”C-c-c…cockatrices.”

“Whatever. You might want to follow my lead and scream wildly whilst running away from the cockadoodlemagises(1) too!”

The farmers gave each other a wry, if comical, look. Then their ears perked up to hear the freakiest, most disturbing clucking you’ve never dared to cook up in your worst nightmares. Approaching. Their confused looks turned to scared sufficiently quickly.

“…Sure, Pinkie. Why not.”

“Awesome! Aaaaaaaaaaaaa…”

Somewhere inside the dreamscape, Nightmare was rubbing his face and lamenting his plans going awry. He had initially wanted to just guide the pink mare and caretaker further in the labyrinth, where he could use his powers to psychologically try them and bring them back over to his side without risking the interference of the others. Using the dark and mirrors to his advantage, as it were. However, the party pony seems much more trouble than she’s worth.

The fact that the actual attempt was denied didn’t bother him that much. It was the ridiculous way it did.

He even had a crisis of conscience before sending his minions to finish off the Doctor and his friend earlier. One he is now regretting dearly.

He continues to supervise the events as they unfold. They ran for quite a bit longer than he’d have preferred. He wasn’t sure of exactly how much stamina earth ponies had. He got an answer, though. It would seem as though they have as much of it as their situation requires of them.

In other words, he would be at this all night. And he honestly didn’t feel like wasting his, or anyone else’s, time. Instead he led them towards where Ditzy and the Doctor were. There, he’d allow the chips to fall however they would.

The Doctor was asleep, however he was still keeping out of reach somehow. He seems fel-bent on stopping him no matter what.

Nightmare doesn’t have much choice anymore. Worst seemed to be getting to worst without any detour, despite his efforts. Maybe he forced the worst out of the Doctor, but he was still not sure if he wanted to go down the same road himself.

He could only hope that Rarity would finally end this.

He looked peaceful while asleep. Ditzy could only worry that he’d catch something sleeping on the cold, frozen floor like this. She didn’t really have a blanket, so all she really could do was to hold him as closely as she could.
Also, she took his coat off and used it as an impromptu blanket.
Understandably, her position warranted a few choice looks from the pink pony, caretaker and younger apple farmer which all came screaming her way. The older brother had the common courtesy to look away embarrassedly.

Blushing a bit, she rolled her eyes, which, again, looked silly with her bad eye.
“He fell unconscious. I couldn’t just let him freeze in this cold, could I?”

“No! No, f’course not. Ugh… Pinkie?”

“What? It looked cozy.”

Yes. She just joined them. Lucky bastard. OH COME ON! Pffff… And then Fluttershy joined in as well.

“…Shy?” Applejack deadpanned in exasperation.

“It’s dangerous to sleep in this cold. He could catch a really bad fever!”

“ ’Course he could.”

This pony pile-up only succeeded in causing the mailmare to blush even harder. However the other two were looking Applejack’s way expectantly.

“Oh-oh-ooooh no. You’re not ropin’ me in too.”

Fluttershy and Pinkie decided to pull out the big guns. “But Aj! He might catch a cold!” went Pinkie. They both offered some ridiculously adorably sad puppy eyes.

“No!”

Begging intensifies.

“Ah said no!”

Begging intensifies further.

“Consarn it!”

In the end, Applejack would succumb to the undeniable power of pony puppy eyes. However, she wouldn’t go down alone. She insisted that Big Mac would prop them all up underneath.

“This is ridiculous…” Ditzy let out, now only annoyed rather than embarrassed.

“You started it.” Applejack threw back, equally annoyed, though not holding back from snuggling against her brother’s back, like she used to when they were younger. Drawing out an eye roll from the older farmer as well, as well as half a smile.

All the while, Nightmare was watching what had happened with a look on his face that actually read ‘What the fel. What the actual, sundered fel am I looking at.’

It’s noteworthy to remind you that this is a spirit of order, sleep, apathy, and to a lesser extent, void. Which made the surfacing of such confusion and discomfort all the more hilarious.

Poor guy didn’t even know if he was supposed to send Rarity in yet or not.

He just told her what was up.

“…They’re doing what now?”

“Just turn them to stone already.”

Pinkie decided to do some small talk. “Hey, Derpy. What’s with the giant whatchamagise statue in the corner?(2)”

Before she finished, the sound of cracking started up around them. “…What’s cracking?”(3)

The sound of cracking accentuated. They eventually noticed that what was cracking was actually the floor underneath them.
There wasn’t much they could do, though, as they all started freefalling through the dark.

Then there was numbness, similar to what they’d felt whilst traversing the (Dark Souls) fog gates into Nightmare’s domains.
When they came to, their surroundings had changed.

They were in a large cavern, surrounded on all sides by walls with cave openings in them. This seemed to be the center of the maze.
The floor was a frozen lake, reflecting the clear night sky above.

It was slippery as hell.(4) In the middle was a large, dark, crystalline, four-headed abomination of the magically natural world, with large shining stars where their eyes would be.

“Hey, I know you! We met you in the swamp a few days ago!” Pinkie offered.

“Not now, Pinkie,” interrupted AJ.

“Rarity?” asked Fluttershy, looking for who was sitting on top of the beast.

The others saw where she was looking and recognized her as well. Though she looked changed.

Bluish charcoal coat; long, starry, waving mane colored in different shades of purple; and three brighter light-blue stars surrounded by other lesser stars for Emblems.

And black voids for eyes.

“Hello, girls. Do you like my new look?”

Despite the cheeky nature of her choice of words, aesthetically they lacked feeling. She only succeeded in sounding tired.

Her friends couldn’t offer any sufficient answer.

The hydra's heads rose in a position to strike the cluster of ponies.

Big Mac did not want to risk his back and legs against something like that. Applejack pulled Fluttershy by the hoof out of the way. Ditzy and Pinkie managed to act quickly enough, carrying the Doctor out of the way of the heads all slamming in the same place with enough force to cause crags and cracks across the surface of the ice.

The hydra’s heads rose back up, fully ready for another strike.

Instead of moving forward within reach, however, they reeled back and spat out a gooey substance, ensnaring the group.

Rarity spoke over their expressed disagreements. “I’m not allowing any more chances for you to slip away. You’ve managed to cheat Nightmare out of achieving his goals for far more times than was already acceptable. This is the end of the road.”

They all struggled, but to no avail. The slime was holding tight.

“You only have one choice now.”

Slithering creatures emerged from the entrances in the walls all around.

“…Either you allow the cockatrices to petrify you, by which way Nightmare will be able to convert you… or my four-headed friend will show you his insides, where the end result will be the same, only through more painful means.”

“How could you let Nightmare convince you to do this?” protested Applejack.

She disappeared in sparkling mists, then reappeared in front of them.

“He didn’t convince me to do anything. He needs me to do this, so I’m doing it. Had you not been so troublesome, we wouldn’t have needed to arrive to such drastic measures. Now, please do everyone a favor and look the creatures in the eyes.”

She placed a hoof against the substance, and it immediately started to harden. The mythical amalgamations approached and entangled them, but none of the group would open their eyes.

“Last chance.” She turned around to walk back to the hydra.

“How about a third option?”

Rarity stopped still, void eyes widened only slightly. She turned around, to find the Doctor looking back at her with equally black eyes.
The cockatrices also retreated.

“What did you have in mind?”

“Not much, at the moment. I’m actually having trouble focusing on any of my own thoughts. However, there’s only one thing I could assure you of.”

He broke out of the hardened bindings like they were paper mâché, and stopped only inches from her face.

“We both know how strong I am. We also both know that so far, I’ve proven to be too stubborn for Nightmare to handle."

He broke away from the stare-down upon deciding the seamstress had shed enough sweat, instead opting to circle her like a shark.

"He also witnessed what I did to one of his creatures after it dared to try to hurt Ditzy. Now, I want you both to consider very carefully, should you want to unleash all of these monsters on her and her friends again. Do you really want to find out what I’d do to you afterwards? Does Nightmare really want to find out what I’d do to him once I’ve finally found him? And I will find him, make no mistake.”

She stared on, not knowing what to do.

“I’m beyond his reach. I can’t be stopped either. I believe it’s become clear. It might’ve also become clear that I’m only getting stronger with every one of you I release from his grasp. You don’t want me to fight you, because you know that I’d only win and move on to the next strongest one among you, then the next, and then it would just be me and Nightmare. So here’s my offer.”

He turned around, knelt down and started freeing Pinkie.

“I want to finish this, but I don’t want my friends getting hurt. You want to finish this, but you don’t want me to become any stronger than I already am. How about you let them go, safely. And I'll go with you to fight one against three. Does that sound acceptable?”

Everyone else all started to object loudly. He looked back to them and gave them a stern look.

“I do what I want. You might disagree with me getting hurt, but how is me seeing you get hurt because of me any better?”

“How is any of this because of you?” asked Applejack indignantly.

“Because I had the choice at my disposal. If I didn’t take it, I was responsible for the outcome.”

“How in th’ hay is that…”

“Applejack, please. Try to understand. This is me trying to take control of a situation which had long since passed beyond anyone's control. It’s the only thing I can do to keep you from getting hurt.”

She was about to start again, but was cut off by someone else. “It’s what he believes in, Applejack.”

She turned around to Ditzy. “What’s that s’posed to mean?”

“Remember when you asked me if the Doctor was dangerous? What did I answer?”

Her eyes flashed as she recalled her exact words: "If that’s the case, then I can say that as long as he has any say in it, then no. I believe that the Doctor isn’t dangerous. To anyone, really. There’s no way anyone could make him forget about what he believes in."

Applejack couldn't find anything else to say. All she could do was look at the Doctor disbelievingly as he finished with her binds as well.

“This is what I was trying to explain,” said Ditzy as he finally got to her. “…He can’t help it. He doesn’t want to see others get hurt, no matter what he’d need to do to prevent it.”

“What’s your answer, Rarity?”

“…We accept.”

A smile crept on his face, while tears started dripping on his shoulder.

“…Ditzy? I’m coming back.”

She went in for an embrace. “You better.”

She didn't seem like she was going to finish crying any time soon. He didn't want to keep the bastard waiting.

He got up, wrapped his arms around her head and... for a few moments, there was solace.

"I promise. I'm coming back."

But then that moment had to end. He got up and walked away.

He stepped aside from the goth seamstress, then they both disappeared.

The surroundings, together with the mythical monsters, faded away as well, and the group found themselves at the outskirts of the forest near town.

Author's Note

(*) She meant one-oh-one. And yes, the reference was intended.

I was even going to hum “The lion sleeps tonight” on the road afterwards, too! But then AJ had to upset Derpy even more than she already was. She can really be too honest for her own good sometimes…

Pinkie, get back in the story.

Okay!

(**) Yes, kind of like what Discord did in his debut.
This was the ideal place where Nightmare would've decided to try to regain control of his pawns and potential Achille's Heel.
Applejack had the orchard, Fluttershy her animals, Pinkie her days on the rock farm and Rarity has mirrors. What better way to frustrate the Doctor than with a labyrinthine cavern with slippery walls and reflective dead ends?
Seriously, why did she have so many mirrors in her shop? Why does she have two separation screens? Why does she have any separation screens? We will never know.

(***)Those same bandages were used in the classic series, when the First Doctor had bumped his head inside the Tardis one time.
Man, does Nightmare Doc have lungs. He seems to have been able to outshout Applejack's tantrum.

(1)Try saying that five times fast.

(2) The house-sized cockatrice didn’t die. That’s just how they recover from horrible injuries. As well as how they hibernate during winter. It’s a state in which it wouldn’t have managed to turn itself into if the Doctor hadn’t actually stopped its internal bleeding, however. The corresponding organs that allowed it to do so were damaged too severely to allow the initiation of recovery otherwise.
Kind of like a Time Lord's regeneration, only not as elaborate.

(3) Crackalakin’

(4) I reserve the right to use swear words.

Important. Any relation to any biblical instances is entirely accidental.

Perspective redefines perception

It was dawn. They had been out all day now.

No one knew what to do at the moment. They were all just sitting around uneasily.

Pinkie and Big Mac seemed to be taking it the best. Applejack was the one who was reeling back, trying to comprehend what the Doctor had just done. Ditzy was… situated somewhere in the general vicinity of where her body was. Holding the Doc's overcoat closely.

They all wanted, in varying degrees and intensity, to ask the others what they should do now. They reined that urge in, though. Even Pinkie had more sense than to pester the subject any further by asking something that everyone would want to know, but no one does.

Fluttershy decided to try to comfort her childhood friend. “Are you okay?”

She shook her head. The look on her face reinforced her answer. She was not going to be okay any time soon. Probably ever, if he doesn't keep his promise.

“…There has to be something we can do. We can’t just sit here!”

“That’s just it.” Applejack cut in. “Nightmare ain’t foolin’ around. He’s not holdin’ back fer anything. He made Nightmare Moon look like she was playin’ hide an’ seek with us. He wasn’t afraid of gettin’ his hooves dirty.”

“He doesn’t play fair!” Pinkie interjected. “Why does he have to be such a meanie? I’m sure not going to throw him a party any time soon!”

These disputes only elicited frustration upon the mailmare. “So what, then? You’re saying this is it?”

“Be reasonable, girl. What could we do?”

“Exactly! What could we do? Maybe if we asked ourselves that question earlier, then we might not have stumbled in and forced the Doctor to make that stupid deal in the first place!”

She had a lot of steam to let out. They noticed that they couldn’t do anything but let her go through with her meltdown.

“What did we expect to do to Nightmare? Get our flanks handed to us? Scold him? The Doctor was doing fine on his own! Why did we even tag along?!” She looked around, daring for an answer. Lacking a target and tired, her rage died down. “I thought that we could help him. I thought that the Elements of Harmony could help him. After all, you managed to defeat Nightmare Moon. So why couldn’t you…”

She collapsed to the ground. “…Why couldn’t I help him?”

She was openly crying now. Only this time he wasn’t there to cry into. Fluttershy meant to comfort her, but a hoof on her shoulder from Applejack held her back.

Then there was the sound of wing beats. Then, a silent landing.

They looked to their source, and walked back in surprise and… reverence.

Ditzy was oblivious. She was too caught up in her crying. She didn’t even notice when someone approached, leaned down and embraced her.
A large body on one side, a large alabaster wing on the other.

She gasped once she finally opened her eyes to find Princess Celestia holding her tight, like a loving mother.

“Hello, my little pony. You must be Ditzy Doo.”

“…Princess Celestia? What… are you doing here so late?” she blurted out, a flurry of thoughts and emotions going around in her head.

Celestia smiled tenderly in response as she got up. “You’re right to be wondering that, my little pony. I’m afraid I couldn’t do anything until now, lest Nightmare would detect me and decide to do something brash. Even now, you were being watched by one of his splinters.”

They looked in confusion towards where her highness had turned her attention. Out of the bushes appeared her younger sister, princess of the night, approaching them at a casual trot whilst holding a rabbit less-than-gently by the ears in a fetlock.

“Angel!” burst out Fluttershy, more concerned for her rabbit and the way it was being mistreated than anything else.

“It is good to see you are all in good health,” the lunar princess offered, unceremoniously throwing the rodent in the caretaker’s embrace. “The spy was taken care of.”

“Princess Luna!” Applejack bowed. “Are we glad to see both of you! We could really use yer help right about now. The Doc-”

She was cut off by Celestia, with a gesture of her hoof. “My sister and I are aware of what has been happening. Rest assured that everything will be taken care of.”

“I don’t understand. Why didn’t you do anything before now?”

“Because, fair Ditzy, we couldn’t risk having Nightmare running away once he saw us coming. We needed to resolve this carefully, and only the Doctor was the key to doing so.”

“He’s not the key to anything! He’s alone out there, facing off against Rarity, Rainbow Dash and Twilight, all empowered with whatever Nightmare did to them…”

“As well as Spike.” Celestia answered with little regard for the mailmare's disposition. It was almost playful. “You forgot that Twilight’s assistant had also been taken away. He is most likely much more dangerous now as well.”

The addition of a dragon in the equation had, understandably, not helped the mailmare with her worries. The princess was only getting started, however.

“Do not worry. Despite the impression that he might’ve given, Nightmare will not stoop to hurting him severely."

'You mean killing him...' Ditzy thought.

"He will continue trying to fight the way he did all day, even if he does realize he might fail. And as long as he doesn't give up, he won't fail.”

Somehow, Ditzy was less than reassured by these baseless assumptions. Even if it was Princess Celestia herself saying these things, her worry for the Doctor outstaged her faith by a landslide. "How long can the Doctor reasonably last against him?”

“I believe that if there’s anyone who knows the answer to that, it’s you. After all, you know him better than any of us, don’t you?”

Prissy wasn’t lying. Though she knew the answer already, it wasn’t her who needed a little faith at the moment.

Ditzy mulled things over, looking at the garment in her hooves like it presented the answer. “As long as it takes,” she eventually admitted Celestia's earlier claim, begrudgingly.

It really got late. It started getting cold. The mailmare felt a bit of reservation, but decided to pull the coat over herself nonetheless.

She'd be lying if she said that she didn't find it snug and reassuring wearing the Doctor's coat. Like he wasn't really that far away anymore. The act itself drew a bit of surprise from the others, Celestia and Luna most of all, but she just shrugged it off.

“But still, why do we have to let him go at it alone?”

Celestia turned to frown in concern. “I'm sorry, Ditzy. But one lesson which you need to learn is that sometimes, some ponies are simply beyond your ability to help.”

That particular choice of words didn’t seem to please her younger sibling much. “That does not mean she should stop trying, sister. Maybe there truly isn't much she could do, but now is not the time to abandon him!"

Concern gave way for annoyance. "And you, sister, need to learn when the right time is for you to speak your mind."

Luna, it would seem, only grew more furious. "It would seem that thou hast forgotten thou manners. I would ask you what you recall happened last time someone was left alone, with nothing but darkness to keep them company, but clearly I would be wasting my breath. Maybe I should ask you instead, if I should join Nightmare's side again after all?”

The others looked wide-eyed in response. Celestia's eye seemed to twitch for a moment, before her composure quickly changed from anger to nervousness.

“…Surely you’re joking… right?”

Luna went over beside Ditzy, right in Sunbutt’s face. “Watch me.” She then scooped the mailmare up in one hoof, with only a startled yelp in response, and proceeded towards the castle. “Well? Are thou coming or not?”

Her royal high-horse-ness sighed and shook her nervousness away. “Honestly, Luna. One of these days you’ll be the death of me.”

“We both know that such a day would be a long time coming, Tia. Come, now. I‘d rather not imagine what the boys are doing while we’re idling about.” Her royal gothness went on ahead, not looking back any longer.

Most of the group was still processing the information they’d all received. Pinkie seemed to have gotten bored and started looking at a couple early fireflies playing with each other. Big Mac seemed less than impressed.

“Siblings, right?” he joked.

The sun princess didn't bother acknowledging him. She was too busy nursing a deathglare.

Ahead of the rest of the group, once Luna made sure she was outside earshot, she proceeded to let her abductee walk on her own and spoke to her. “I do wish to apologize if I insulted you by carrying you earlier, Ditzy Doo. As well as for subjecting you and the others to our... dispute.”

“It’s no big deal.” Ditzy managed out somewhat calmly, considering she was addressing someone who could imprison her for as much as a bad tone of voice. ”I have a sister myself, I guess I can sympathize… But regarding what you said earlier. You were joking about joining Nightmare again, weren’t you?”

There was a pause, reinforcing the mailmare’s already consistent state of uneasiness.

“…Your majesty?”

“I don’t suppose it would’ve been readily apparent, especially from your perspective so far.”

Another short pause.

“Tell me, Ditzy. Did it ever occur to you during today’s events that despite all of the troubles and grief that he’d caused you, maybe there is more to Nightmare than just an unimpressive, simple evildoer?”(*)

It would’ve been easy for the mailmare to feign ignorance. Yet following that question, all she could think of was how those cockatrices had surrounded her and the Doctor when they were vulnerable, and yet, instead of taking advantage of the situation, they just… left.

These thoughts flooded her mind, 'He was responsible for everything that had happened today… wasn’t he? I mean, he could’ve decided not to kidnap anyone last night, and then fight back when they were trying to render his efforts pointless…'

“Well?” Luna insisted, noticing the conflict in the other’s expressions.

“I honestly don’t know. We’ve gone through so much today. The Doctor more than anyone… but…” She stopped walking and sighed. “Just what is it that Nightmare’s trying to accomplish?”

Luna offered a faint smile.

“He’s trying to save me.”

Ditzy was baffled by the response. It just came out of nowhere.

They could hear hoofsteps approaching.

“It’s a long story, and I doubt my sister would allow me to offer my own point of view without addendum from her part.”

They didn’t move, offering the others chance to catch up.

“What were you talking about?” the culprit asked the two as she lead the group to join.

“Oh, nothing,” Luna resumed her walking, ignoring her sister. ”I was just trying to offer a bit of perspective, was all.”

The older sister only rose an eyebrow suspiciously in response, walking back in her field of view. Luna rolled her eyes, exasperated, and finally gave in. She faced her sibling challengingly.

“Tell me, sister. How would you describe Nightmare? Besides as a bane to all of ponykind that should’ve never been born, that is.”

“You know that isn’t what I believe, Luna.” Celestia offered quickly in response, drawing closer tentatively.

“Yet you would dissolve him in light with a smile on your face.”

That had the solar princess stop and stare in bewilderment.

“I can’t imagine how painful it must’ve been for him." Luna continued. "Being slowly melted away, not even getting the chance to finish his sentence. I imagine that if he were designed to scream when in pain, then it would’ve been much harder for you to hide behind petty half-truths now.”

She wasn’t holding down a smile now. Luna was staring intently at her sister, which, in turn, would refuse to give an inch. As always.
It was always her sister’s way, or her own downfall. Even if both would eventually translate into a loss for her.

Luna could see it in her eyes. Celestia was on the brink. The sun princess was not expecting this here.

Good.

“Oh, don’t give me that look. It wasn’t as if having the crown all for yourself wasn’t your intention all alo-”

Let her subjects see her for once. Beyond her perfect, plastic smile and faultless façade. Beyond the illusion of godhood and conveniently offered idolisation.

“A thousand years, and you haven’t changed at all.”

“That’s enough, Luna!”

She was always the ponies’ favorite. Their model of perfection. Leaving her on the other end of the counter. In the dark.

An antithesis. A symbol for the occult, since Celestia is all that is good, pure and holy in the world. How could she represent anything but the exact opposite?

It’s as simple as the difference between day and night.

Ponies always prefer keeping it simple. Keeping everything in black and white. Either you’re good, or you’re evil. And it only takes a preference, or sometimes even just a word, to be drafted into the latter.

They needed someone to tell bedtime stories about. Who else, but Celestia’s less than perfect sister, could parents use as a boogieman to scare the foals into finally calming down and going to sleep? Who else could they make Nightmare Night about?

“As you wish, Your Highness.”

They were never really equal. Luna never really had any say in the matter when Celestia had come, triumphantly, after a thousand years of planning, to offer a kind, benevolent hoof. To forgive her for her transgressions.

Celestia did love her. As she was the only constant thing in her eternal life. She loved her because she was family. But familial love takes many forms.

She bowed her head, stoic and subdued. As was always expected of her.

Celestia’s anger died down and she started leading the way. Making sure her disobedient sibling was close behind.

A thousand years, and she only grew worse.

Luna was never her sister’s equal. She was her younger sister. And now, after she’d been defeated twice and lost a tier of demigodhood, her sister gaining one instead(**), Luna almost felt like a pet.

The others were conflicted. Maybe they just caught them in a bad day? Ditzy, however, started on her road to finding the truth.

Luna's words repeated in her head. "He’s trying to save me." She didn’t need to know all the details. She only needed to know what was right in front of her eyes.

Luna was miserable. Celestia was… not what she seemed.

Elsewhere. The Doctor and Rarity materialize out of thin air, in front of the crumbled castle of the royal sisters.

Behind them, was a moat, and a fallen bridge. This time cut from the other side, hanging along the chasm wall, on their side.

It would’ve certainly proven problematic to get across without magic or flying.

“Hey, Doc.”

…While also dealing with Rainbow Dash, no doubt.

It appeared that the former weather manager was there, waiting for them. Or possibly just him, since it had only been a few seconds since the Time Lord had made the deal, and she was already set and confortable on top of a low-hanging cloud when he arrived. It would appear that this was the location she was made to hold until he came by.

He’d assumed they were only set up to meet him one by one because it was difficult for Nightmare to properly and fully control more than one pony directly. The animals and shambling trees were magically tethered to follow simple commands. Plus, with every one of them which he’d meet, it appeared that his hold on them was growing stronger. Maybe they were growing stronger over time, maybe there were simply less ponies to share power between. However, it didn’t explain how come Rainbow was so expressive.

“Hello, Rainbow Dash,” the Doctor returned the courtesy.

He met the smirking, converted pegasus’s gaze. Her waving mane ranging in streaks from light purple to darker, to deep blue, to black. Her coat a dark gray. Both colors turning darker along her hooves, and her hair’s and tail’s outlines. Her size, of course, being a solid head taller than normal, like the others. Her eyes, of course, being a bottomless black, like the others.

Her smirk didn’t present anything malicious to it. It was purely playful. Yet, given her overall aspect, the already weary and on-guard Doctor could only perceive it as threatening.

She spoke again before too long a pause, “Nice way to prove Nightmare’s efforts pointless, by the way.”

“How do you mean?”

“Oh, you know. Besides foiling his every attempt to recover the others back on his side. Even his last try to split your group up turned out to be a bust. And to rub it in, you came here of your own free will afterwards. Heck, the only reason you agreed to come here was because Night-man failed to split you guys up in the first place.”

“Really now? And I should care, because…?”

She got off and landed in front of him. “No point in being rude, man. You’ll be on our side soon enough.”

“You seem to be under the impression that I’ve come here because I surrendered. I haven’t lost yet. And actually…” He took a few steps towards the other one of the two girls. “I’ve yet to be given any evidence that you’ve held your end of the bargain. How do I know you haven’t ambushed the others as soon as I’ve left?”

Rarity placed a hoof against his forehead, and his vision flashed with images of the others at the edge of the forest. Talking, though mostly trying to calm Ditzy down.

“Is that good enough?”

The Time Lord blinked his void eyes a few times to re-adjust. “Yes, I suppose. It seemed to be in real-time.”

“Then let’s be on our way.”

He obliged, and allowed Rainbow to lead him inside. “Since we have nothing better to do right now, I was curious about a few details.”

“Ask away.”

“Why did Nightmare Moon offer you such trifling obstacles when she returned? It’s obvious that even Nightmare alone had the ability to change the very fabric of reality, somehow merge it with the dream world. Surely him empowering an alicorn would be more than enough to deal with you without breaking a sweat?”

“It would, if Her Highness wasn’t weakened from escaping her prison, then confronting Celestia and sealing her into the sun. At the time when she was facing us, she just didn’t perceive us as a threat. All she wanted was to destroy the Elements so they could never be used against her again.”

“Then why didn’t she?”

“There was nothing to destroy. It turned out that the artifacts had died, and the element of magic was missing altogether. They couldn’t be used again even if the remaining pieces were repaired somehow. Without the catalyst, they were as useful as dead stone.”

“And then we came and kicked her butt!” exclaimed Rainbow Dash.

“…Come again?” the Doctor offered in confusion.

“What! Twi managed to repair the elements, and we used them to zap the corruption out of Luna.”

“…And you’re glad about that, why?”

Rarity got to clarifying, “Believe it or not, Doctor, but Nightmare never wanted Luna to be a part of him. And the contact, it… damaged them both. Especially over a thousand years of being the same person. What we did, Nightmare was very grateful for it. Even if they only healed Luna and left him to…”

The Time Lord needed no time at all to understand where the seamstress was going with that line.

“So, you’re saying that even though the process of splitting them apart hurt him. Almost even killed him…?” They didn’t correct him. Good grief… “…He was even thankful for it?”

“Thankful would be a strong word,” a voice offered from within his head.

Seems Nighty boy wanted to make his presence known. Suppose he didn’t like the fact that the conversation was going as though he wasn’t even there.

“Okay then. What word would you use instead?”

They entered the reception area. A large room, ragged tapestries and rotten carpets adorning throughout.

“Relief,” the shade finally answered. “Despite what happened, I was relieved to find out that Luna was herself again.”

Now was the Doctor’s turn to decide whether he should give his words any credit. It seemed too far fetched for him. Nightmare’s story and his actions simply did not fit.

“If you really are as brave and selfless as you makes yourself out to be, then why have girls fight for you? I thought that someone who could stand being torn asunder would have a little more pride.”

“We feel pain differently from each other, Doctor. When you would scream, instinct demanding for self preservation, there would be no point for me to react the same. At least, not usually. Usually, I would be nigh invulnerable. However, with the Elements treating me like nothing more than a disease, there was barely anything left of me to come back afterwards. And after being a part of someone else for so long, I could no longer fully recover. I had lost too much, I was vulnerable. Like a parasite, without a host I would die."

"Then how did you survive?"

"I... cannot say. I had a deal with my savior. Rest assured, however. He said he would introduce himself to you, when the time will be right."

The Doctor only took his words to heart. More secrets...

"How soon would that be?"

No answer. The Doctor sneered.

They exited the reception area a while back, and were now weaving through crisscrossing corridors. All the while listening to Nightmare's tale.

"I did have a grudge at the elements at the time. I was much less than I would’ve preferred back then, when after so many days of regaining my strength, I was finally able to seek out my would-be killers. Yet when I’ve finally found them, and I searched through their memories, I’ve found that Luna was… freed from me. That things were better. And for a moment, I even believed that when Celestia offered her hoof in acceptance to her, that the look of joy on Luna’s face was genuine.

But I knew better. I might’ve lost so much when the Elements struck me, but I still remembered more than enough to know that Luna wasn’t shedding tears of joy then.”

The Doctor cut in and finished, “She was evading further punishment. You’ve lost, there was nothing else she could do.”

They had just finished going through the last stretch of the hallways. There were so many passages and turns in the castle still remaining after so long. They finally arrived at the foot of a long stairway.

And so they started climbing.

“So, Doctor? What do you say now?” Nightmare finally asked.

What could he say? He waited for the information to settle, and an adequate response to be decided upon. Nothing he could say, but…

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know. I didn’t even let you explain yourself.”

No, he did not. He wasn’t even willing to bother to care. Even if it was understandable considering everything that happened, he was still not absolved from kicking himself in the head and feeling responsible for not being able to better adapt to the situation.

There was no excuse for the way he acted. For the way he forgot about his morals and beliefs.

“And yet, you still want to oppose me,” Nightmare completed.

“The girls didn’t accept to help you this way. You’ve forced them. I want to help you in their stead, but I doubt you can accept my help because it would mean the Elements would be free and a threat to you again.”

“You want to promise to me that I would be safe in your hands, but we both know how much your promises are worth.”

The Doctor reached the top of the stairs, and entered Luna’s throne room. He knew where to find Twilight and the last part of Nightmare. The latter looked back from aside a fallen part of the room.

The Doctor walked forward, towards the center of the room, and steeled himself. “I doubt we can resolve this peacefully.”

Twilight got up and approached, accumulating magic in her horn. Rarity and Rainbow Dash flanked him on either side.

“No, we can't.”

The Time Lord only offered a sad look in return. He had fought already. Might as well keep fighting to the end. “Very well. May the best man win.”

Author's Note

(*) Yeah, yeah, I’ve been going on and on about Nightmare’s point of view and how he’s not really such a bad guy, but this is where someone finally sides with him and defends him.

(**) Sunbutt received the lightshow hair after she’d stolen Luna's rank by become the only ruler of the realm.