It's Bigger on the Inside

Chapters

Chapter 1: Doctor, I Don't Think We're on Gallifrey Anymore
Chapter 2: Madpony with a Box
Chapter 3: Just a Possibility
Chapter 4: I Most Certainly Can
Chapter 5: Home in Time for Lunch
Chapter 6: The Wrong Order
Chapter 7: Origins
Chapter 8: My Little Time Travelers
Author's Note: The Why of Things

Chapter 1: Doctor, I Don't Think We're on Gallifrey Anymore

It’s Bigger on the Inside

Chapter 1: Doctor, I Don’t Think We’re On Gallifrey Anymore

Twilight Sparkle usually spent her time cooped up in her tree of a library. Or is it a library of a tree? I’m not quite sure, but I digress. She usually spends her time studying in her library, however, today she cantered about Ponyville mindlessly window shopping. It was another bright and sunny day in a week filled with bright and sunny days and she was determined to not let this one slip by.

That night the weather ponies had scheduled clear skies. There was a meteor shower happening just before midnight and who other than Twilight to be the pony most looking forward to the event. The purple unicorn cantered about for about an hour. Once the clock struck twelve she decided it was time for some lunch. Twilight craved something sweet and savory, and there was only one place in Ponyville that served quality pastries. Sugarcube Corner. As Twilight entered the shop the resounding jingle of bells filled the air, joining in with the smell of freshly baked muffins. Pinkie Pie popped up from behind the counter, a bright smile on her face as always.

“Hiya Twilight! Are you here for a tasty snack? How about a muffin, or a bear claw? Why do they call it a bear claw anyways? Bear’s aren’t involved in the recipe at all! Why isn’t it called a-.“

Pinkie was interpreted by Twilight who obviously noticed Pinkie about to go on rambling pointlessly about bear claws.

“Uh, Pinkie, kind of off-topic don’t you think?”

Pinkie giggled. “Sorry Twilight! What can I get cha’?”

“I’ll take a muffin please, they smell heavenly.”

“One muffin, comin’ up!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

Pinkie Pie bounced about the kitchen, grabbing, bagging, and ringing up Twilight’s order. Once she finished she handed the steaming hot muffin to Twilight and Twilight hoofed up the corresponding amount of bits.

“Thanks Pinkie! Have a good day!” Twilight said as she trotted out of the pastry shop. “Oh! Before I go, there’s a meteor shower tonight! Are you gonna come watch it?”

“No. Mr. and Mrs. Cake need my help installing a new oven. I blew up the last one.” Pinkie said, her voice losing its enthusiasm, but still being enthusiastic by most ponies standards.

“Oh, all right then!” Twilight called out, “I guess I’ll see you later then!”

“Bye Twilight!” Pinkie shouted as the door to Sugarcube Corner closed with a decisive ringing. Suddenly a beeping could be heard from the Kitchen. Ms. Cake shouted from the other room.

“Pinkie, don’t tell me you broke the oven again!”

You could smell the smoke throughout the shop.

********

Twilight Sparkle continued to waltz around the market for a while, deciding that she had a few hours before she had to prepare for the meteor shower. After a few minutes of perusing various mercantile stalls she came across the Apple Family’s usual apple stand. At the cart stood Applejack and Rainbow Dash who were in the midst of a purchase. The scholarly pony approached the stall as Rainbow Dash finished paying for a bag of apples.

“Howdy there, Twilight, what can I do you for?” Applejack asked with the same country accent as always.

“Hi Applejack,” She said turning to face Rainbow Dash, “Hi Rainbow.” She turned back to Applejack.

“I think I’ll take a dozen apples.” Twilight requested, figuring she’d need a snack while she was star-gazing. Applejack began to gather up Twilight’s order, and after a few moments it was finished. Applejack handed Twilight a bag of twelve apples and the stripe maned unicorn, reminiscently of earlier that afternoon, placed the correct amount of bits on the table. Applejack took a little more than half of the bits, and nudged the rest back at Twilight.

“I’ll give em’ to ya’ at a discount, we're friend's after all.” Applejack stated matter-of-factly.

“Thanks Applejack.” Twilight said enthusiastically.

“Are you and Rainbow going to see the meteor shower tonight?”

“Nah,” said Rainbow after remaining silent for most of the exchange, “I gotta catch some Z’s. Since the weather team arranged clear skies for the meteor shower most of us have to get up early tomorrow to schedule a light downpour before everypony wakes up.”

“And I’m plum tuckered out from workin’ the orchard today.” Applejack added. “I’m plannin’ on hittin’ th’ hay soon as I finish up here.”

“Oh, that’s too bad.” Twilight griped. “I wonder if Rarity is going.”

“I sure as sugar don’t know, but I saw her headed into that fabric store a minute ago.” Applejack responded pointing out the store with her left forehoof.

“Thanks Applejack! Bye girls!” Twilight hollered as she strode off to find Rarity.

Twilight once more entered a shop. Surprisingly, taking into account that Ponyville was a relatively small town, she had never entered this shop before. Luckily, Rarity was near the entrance, eying a roll of brown stylish fabric with a plaid design.

“Hey Rarity!” Twilight beckoned as she approached Rarity.

“Hello there Twilight!” Rarity exclaimed, “What brings you into this store?” Rarity questioned, as Twilight Sparkle in a fabric store was somewhat of an uncommon sight.

“I just wanted to ask you something and Applejack said she had seen you come in here.”

“Oh, well what is it you wanted to ask me?” Rarity inquired.

“I was just wondering if you were going to watch the meteor shower from our usual spot tonight.”

“Oh, well no, and if you were wondering Fluttershy won’t be attending either. She still had a few contacts with some ponies from being a model and she was able to get me an audience with some very important ponies. We’re going to meet them tonight and won’t be back until extremely late.” Rarity explained.

“All right then, I don’t mind star-gazing by myself. If you girls came along I’d probably just bore you all to death talking about stars and meteors and the like.”

“That’s quite all right dear. I do enjoy your lessons, sometimes.” Rarity mused.

The clock struck three and Twilight hurried herself out of the shop. “I’ve gotta go prepare, see you later Rarity! I hope your meeting goes well!”

“Bye to you too Twilight!”

Twilight left the shop and cantered home arriving in just a few minutes. She packed the necessities and skimmed a few books she had already read jotting down a few quick notes. Once completely packed she looked at the time. The clock read four-eighteen. Seeing as she had a few hours before the meteor shower was scheduled to take place Twilight decided to take a short nap. After all she didn’t want to be tired during a rare meteor shower such as that one.

********

Twilight awoke around ten-thirty and grabbed her things. She headed out the front door, being careful as to not wake Spike. She cantered out to her usual hill for star gazing and began to lay everything out using her magic. A purple glow enveloped her saddlebags and everything was laid out neatly. She sat down on her blanket and looked up to the sky to gaze at the stars before the meteors began to fall.

An hour later the first meteor began to fall. Twilight carefully inspected every detail of it with her telescope, jotting down notes as it fell. Soon hundreds of meteors were falling, too many to keep track of one specific meteor to study. Twilight simply sat there bathing in the beautiful light from the moon and meteors, admiring the magnificence of the shower. After a minute the number of meteors began to decrease a few stragglers came in around twelve-forty and Twilight took a few notes on those. During that time however she noticed a very strange meteor. This meteor was smaller than the rest and its trajectory was a huge outlier from the majority of the other meteors. In fact, its trajectory was well, aimed directly at Twilight.

Twilight galloped out of the way of the meteor. She noticed just before it crashed it looked oddly like a large, blue box. The meteor crashed just a few feet away from where Twilight’s stuff was strewn across the grass. When the dust cleared Twilight noticed that indeed the meteor was a large, blue box. It read “Police Public Call Box” on the side.

“What in the hay is this?” Twilight pondered as she inspected the UFO. As she got closer the door opened and a bright yellow light emitted from the box. Once the light subsided a soaking wet brown earth pony climbed out, waving his hoof around in the air trying to clear the smoke. He coughed a few times and began to inspect his surroundings, completely unaware of Twilight.

“Four legs?” The pony questioned in an accent obviously from Great Breton. “Why that’s odd I seem to be-“ The pony said scratching his head. “Gah!” he exclaimed upon noticing his hoof. “I have a hoof!” He began to examine the rest of his body. “Hmm, definitely equine. Maybe a pony of some sort?”

“Umm excuse me?” Twilight asked, not wanting to interrupt whatever was going on.

“Just hold on a minute.” The strange colt said as he examined the rest of his body. “Would you look at that. An hourglass tattoo. Never had a tattoo before.” He continued.

“Are you alright?” Twilight asked.

“Alright? I’m fine, just had a bit of a fall. Into the swimming pool, again.”

“Swimming pool? How could you fit a swimming pool in a-“ the purple unicorn was cut short by the brown earth pony

“I’ll explain later. Now-.“ The earth pony cringed and fell to the floor, wincing in pain.

“Are you sure you’re alright?”

“Quite alright. This is perfectly-.“ The earth pony coughed again and a bright yellow dust expelled from his mouth and floated off into the clear, night sky. The same yellow aura radiated from his body for a few seconds and then dissipated.

“I’ve never seen magic like that.” Twilight said in amazement, not even entirely sure what it did. “Who are you?”

“Me? Well I’m The Doctor.”

Chapter 2: Madpony with a Box

It’s Bigger on the Inside

Chapter 2: Madpony with a Box

Twilight Sparkle stood there, dumbfounded, that was a first. She stood absent mindedly. A doctor pony falling from the sky in a large blue box, it seemed downright preposterous. Yet, here she was staring him in the face, and that face that had a cocky, confident grin.

“I’m sorry. This all must be a bit frightening.” The self-proclaimed Doctor said, hopping back onto his hooves.

“Not really,” Twilight said, “Mostly just odd.”

“I’ve never seen magic like that though. How did you do it? What does it do?” Twilight asked. She had so many questions being the scholarly pony she was.

“Technically speaking,” The Doctor answered, walking around the box. “It’s not magic. Though, I’ll leave it at that to save you a long explanation.” The Doctor stopped pacing around the box. “Now, would you be kind enough to help me with this?” The Doctor said, attempting to grab the box with his newly found hooves to no avail.

“With what?” Twilight questioned.

“With getting my TARDIS standing upright again of course!”

“You mean the box?” Twilight asked, attempting to clarify.

“Yes the bloody box. Come on then!” The Doctor exclaimed, still trying to lift the box awkwardly with his hooves. He stepped back from the box and looked at his hooves. “My, this’ll take some getting used to.”

“Allow me.” Twilight said, lifting the box with her magic and setting it upright.

“Ah! Well done, now if you’ll excuse me.” The Doctor said, opening the door to the box and stepping inside. He emerged from the box, carrying a suit in his mouth that looked like it did not fit a pony. He rummaged through the pockets for a bit apparently looking for something. “Aha!” He exclaimed, removing his head from the pile of clothes. In his mouth was a silver and brown instrument with a green light at the end. He set it down and looked at the pile of clothes, then at the purple unicorn before him, and then at the instrument again. “Well, looks like I’ll be needing a new suit.” He declared. The Doctor then picked up the instrument again and attempted to place it somewhere on his person. He then realized he had no pockets, not without his suit anyways. He set it down again and looked at Twilight.

“How do you people, err ponies, get on without pockets? It’s mad!”

“Well to be honest most of us don’t even wear clothes that often.” Twilight replied. “What did you call that box anyways?” she continued.

“It’s a TARDIS.” The Doctor answered.

“TAR-what?” Twilight wondered.

“A TARDIS,” The Doctor articulated, “It stands for Time and Relative Dimensions in Space.”

“Well whatever it is it seems extremely advanced. What sort of magic allowed you to fit a swimming pool inside something so small?” Twilight marveled being the scholarly pony she is.

“Like I said it’s not magic, but that’s not important right now. What’s important is that I need pockets.” The Doctor said. Suddenly, his stomach growled. “I’m apparently starving too.”

“Well, we could always go to my house. I have plenty of food there.”

“Come on then, let’s go.” The Doctor agreed. “Speaking of which, what’s your name?” He asked.

“Me? I’m Twilight Sparkle.”

“Onward then Twilight Sparkle!” He said, pointing with his hoof and picking up his strange instrument in his mouth.

The two ponies cantered off down the hill after Twilight packed her things. Once they arrived down the hill The Doctor began to inspect his surroundings. At one point along the way to Twilight’s house The Doctor began waving around his instrument as it made a whirring sound. When he finished the light turned off and the tip popped up. The Doctor attempted to hold it with his hooves and began examining it closely.

“What is that thing?” Twilight asked.

“This,” The Doctor answered. “Is a sonic screwdriver.”

“What does it do?”

“Basically? Everything.” The Doctor replied, picking the screwdriver up with his mouth again and continued to follow Twilight. Twilight shrugged off this explanation as she was starting to get tired, so tired in fact that she was starting to consider just letting this strange pony stay in her library and help himself to her food. The two of them soon arrived at Twilight’s library.

“Listen, I’m tired, feel free to stay the night here, you can sleep on the couch. Help yourself to whatever’s in the fridge. Goodnight.” Twilight said, climbing up the stairs to her loft. She slid into the covers and her head was out before it touched the pillow.

The Doctor however made his way towards Twilight’s totally non-canon kitchen and opened her totally non-canon refrigerator. He rummaged through it and found exactly what he was looking for, custard. Sadly, he could not find any fish fingers. As he rummaged some more he found some daisies.

“Well, I am a pony now, this’ll have to do.” The Doctor began to chow down on daisy custard, his new invention. After finishing his food he trotted down to the basement and literally passed out on the couch.

********

Twilight awoke the next morning to the smell of daisy pancakes and eggs. Spike was still sleeping as always. Twilight pulled herself out of bed and plodded her way downstairs the sweet aroma of food drawing her closer and closer. Once she entered the kitchen she was greeted by a disheveled looking pony wearing her apron and cooking eggs. That pony was wearing the same cocky, confident smile as last night

“Good morning!” The Doctor sang. “Care for some breakfast?”

Twilight stood there, dumbfounded again. She shook it off. “Sure! That sounds great maybe you could answer a few of my questions over it.”

“Fair enough.” The Doctor replied.

The two of them sat down and Twilight began to interrogate The Doctor.

“So this TARDIS, what does it do exactly?”

“Well to put it simply,” The Doctor said, mouth full, “It travels through space and time.”

“I see, and you said it wasn’t magic? Then what is it?” Twilight asked.

“Well I assume you people, err ponies, I’ve got to get used to that. Anyways, I assume you have science and technology. That’s exactly what it is, highly advanced technology, from the future.” The Doctor took in another mouthful. “Basically, my science is your magic.”

“I see, and you are?” Twilight asked.

“I already told you I’m The Doctor.”

“No I mean, you’re obviously not a pony, well you are now. But what were you before?”

“Well I was a Time Lord, still am, just a pony one.” The Doctor said, setting down his fork, picking up his sonic screwdriver in his mouth and standing up.

“Come on then! I’ve got to get the TARDIS fixed up.” He said, talking through the screwdriver.

“Wait what?” Twilight said, getting dragged out of the house. The door shut with a decisive slam which woke the reptile upstairs. He trudged downstairs to see a half-eaten breakfast and a messy kitchen.

“Twilight?” He called.

“Twilight?” He called again, drawing it out this time. The dragon shrugged and climbed back up the stairs to sleep a couple hours more.

********

“First things first I’m going to need pockets.” He said, barely audible through the screwdriver.

“Well Rarity could-.” Twilight began to say.

“Good, this Rarity, where is she?”

“Umm this way.” Twilight said, beginning to lead the Doctor towards Rarity’s boutique.

The two ponies entered Rarity’s shop minutes later. Rarity was working so intensely that she hardly even noticed them come in.

“Umm, Rarity?” Twilight asked, trying not to interrupt.

“Yes Twilight?” Rarity replied, not looking away from her work.

“I was wondering if you could make an outfit for me.”

As soon as Twilight said this Rarity totally forgot about her work at hand.

“Oh! This is great. What’s the occasion? Formal or casual? Complex or simple? Frou-frou or sophisticated?” Rarity couldn’t stop asking questions.

“Actually it’s for him.” Twilight said stopping Rarity’s rambling. Rarity looked over towards where Twilight pointed to find a brown earth pony with a brown mane. He noticed her and gave a cocky grin.

“Who’s this?” Rarity asked.

“I’m The Doctor,” The pony replied, “And I can speak for myself thank you. Now, I’ll need a nice suit, not too loose but not too tight. But most importantly I need pockets!”

“Pockets?” Rarity puzzled.

“Yes, pockets. I can’t live without them.”

Rarity looked at The Doctor, dumbfounded. He has that effect on people, err ponies. After The Doctor explained to Rarity what he was looking for she set off to work. Rarity, being the amazing fashionista that she is, had The Doctor’s suit finished in minutes. It was a brown suit with a white undercoat, and a red bowtie, because bowties are cool. The Doctor slipped it on and put his sonic screwdriver in the inside coat pocket.

“I absolutely love it.” The Doctor said shaking Rarity’s hoof. “How much do I owe you? Ooh wait I’m not sure I have any of this place’s currency.”

“Nonsense, its fine, any friend of Twilight’s is a friend of mine. Enjoy your pockets.” Rarity replied, as generous as ever.

“Thanks Rarity! Have a good day!” Twilight called as they exited the boutique.

“Now that I’ve got pockets we’re ready to fix up the TARDIS. Come along, Sparkle.” The Doctor said, hurrying up the hill from the last night.

Twilight and The Doctor arrived at the same hill as the night before. The TARDIS was in the exact same spot. The Doctor opened the door and stepped inside. However, Twilight stood there, wondering what was going on. Seconds later The Doctor stepped out and beckoned Twilight inside. She stepped inside, wondering how both she and The Doctor were going to fit inside such a small box. And what does everybody say when they step in the TARDIS?

“It’s bigger on the inside.”

Chapter 3: Just a Possibility

It’s Bigger on the Inside

Chapter 3: Just a Possibility

Twilight Sparkle couldn’t believe her eyes. She had once stated she would not believe in anything she could not explain. She could not explain this, yet here it was, plain as day. Clear-cut as clear-cut could be. Right before her very eyes. The inside of this box, this TARDIS, was bigger than the outside implied.

“Yes, yes I know.” The Doctor said, anticipating such a response. He rushed around a control panel switching things on and off, cranking cranks, leveling levers, winding winders, and things of that nature. Sparks flew from everywhere and noises filled the air. Suddenly then entire box began to shake. The Doctor pulled a lever and everything came to an abrupt halt.

“What was that?” Twilight questioned while getting back on her hooves.

“That was the TARDIS stabilizing.” The Doctor replied straightening his coat. “Now that that’s out of the way I think I’ll be staying in- what’s this place called again?”

“Ponyville.”

“Right, I think I’ll be staying in Ponyville a while longer, the TARDIS will take a bit to recover from last night’s crash.”

With that the two ponies returned to Twilight’s library. On the way back they ran into a certain pink party pony.

“Hiya Twilight! Who’s your friend? He’s new isn’t he, I can tell because I know every pony in Ponyville! And I mean every pony.” Pinkie rambled on. She then approached the new pony in Ponyville.

“Hi there, what’s your name?” Pinkie said enthusiastically, getting a bit in The Doctor’s face.

The Doctor backed up. “Most…” He paused for a minute catching himself “…ponies call me The Doctor.”

“Oooh. What a neeto name!” Pinkie gasped. “If you’re new that means we have to throw you a party!”

“A party?” The Doctor asked.

“Ooh! Wait, forget I said anything, it has to be a surprise party.”

The Doctor gave Pinkie a blank stare.

This pony is mad! He thought to himself as the pink party pony hopped off to prepare a not so surprise party.

“That’s just Pinkie being… well Pinkie.” Twilight said, as if reading The Doctor’s thoughts. “Come on; let’s go back to the library.” Twilight said, beginning to make her way home once more. Within a few minutes the pair of ponies arrived at Twilight’s library. The sun was high in the sky and it was nearing twelve o’ clock. Twilight entered the house to find their mess from breakfast cleaned and Spike lounging about.

“Hey Twilight! Where’ve you been?” Spike said hopping off of his chair and ambling over to Twilight. He soon noticed the brown earth pony standing behind her. “Who’s this guy?” Spike said in a hushed tone.

Twilight conjured up an excuse. “Spike, this is The Doctor. He’s going to be staying here a while. He’s an associate of the Princesses’ and he’s here to do a bit of studying.”

Spike stared for a second at The Doctor before extending his claw. “Nice to meet you Doctor!” Spike answered enthusiastically.

********

“TARDIS MATERIALIZATION DETECTED.” Articulated a robot voice.

“PINPOINTING THE LOCATION AT WHICH THE TARDIS MATERIALIZED.” Another responded, almost impossible to tell the difference between the two.

“THE DOCTOR IS A POSSIBILITY.” The first voice replied.

“FIND THE DOCTOR.” A third said.

“EXTERMINATE THE DOCTOR.” Spoke a fourth.

********

“So, you said you were from where?” Twilight asked over lunch.

“I’m from Gallifrey, that’s where all the time lords came from.”

“And you said you travel through space and time.” Twilight confirmed.

“Yes.” The Doctor answered.

“So my question is: do you know if anything followed you?”

“Of course not, that’s preposterous, although something being here already isn’t all that unlikely. It is a level three civilization after all.”

“Huh?” Twilight questioned.

“Oh, nothing.”

Twilight and The Doctor finished their lunch when Twilight mentioned she had to study. The Doctor left her to her vices and decided to explore this new land of… whatever it was called. He made a mental note to ask Twilight. Again.

The Doctor, feeling a sense of renewal, stepped out into the crisp cool winter air. He awkwardly straightened his coat with his hoof and began to trot about the town. He eventually made his way to the market and looked around. He had no money of course, but it couldn’t hurt to evaluate this civilization. It was so similar to earth. They had tools and machines that looked like they should be operated by hands instead of hooves. Something was bothering The Doctor however. Not about Ponyville or even Equestria for that matter. No, The Doctor was worried about the cause of the TARDIS’s crash.

Before he had arrived in Ponyville The Doctor was battling his greatest enemy. The Daleks. He had been trapped on a Dalek ship. His TARDIS was there, but all he had to do was escape. Being clever, as The Doctor has always been, he was able to trick the Daleks and escape. Before he could make it to the TARDIS however a Dalek shot him in the back with its gunstick. The Dalek towered over The Doctor in triumph, but The Doctor wasn’t giving up. He pulled his sonic screwdriver from his coat pocket and disabled the Dalek’s weapons. He climbed aboard the TARDIS and made an emergency dematerialization, not caring for time or place as long as it was safe. The TARDIS materialized in the sky of Equestria as The Doctor finished his regeneration. He crash landed and here he was. A pony.

The Doctor feared that the Daleks were able to get a lock on him. He feared they would follow him to Equestria. He told a little white lie to Twilight to keep her calm, he would fend off the Daleks when and if the time comes. For now he planned to enjoy the afternoon. The Doctor soon found an orange female pony selling apples with a much larger red stallion. The Doctor looked at the apples. He suddenly loved apples. All he could think about was apples. This wasn’t like his last regeneration however. This time he could feel that he would just love apples.

“Howdy there!” The orange pony called. “You must be Twilight’s new friend. Pinkie can’t stop talking about you. The Doctor, if’n I’m recalling right.” The orange pony extended her hoof. “I’m Applejack, welcome to Ponyville.”

“Nice to make your acquaintance Applejack.” The Doctor said, shaking hooves with Applejack.

Applejack swiftly grabbed a bright red apple from her cart and tossed it to The Doctor. The Doctor caught it and fumbled a bit almost dropping it. “Saw ya’ eyein’ my apples. Have it on the house, any friend of Twilight’s is a friend o’ mine.”

“Thank you very much Applejack.” The Doctor responded. “I’ve to be off now, things to see, places to go.”

“I understand. Have a nice day ya’ hear?”

“You too, Applejack.” The Doctor responded, trotting off in a random direction once more. This place was interesting enough. The Doctor just sincerely hoped the kind citizens of Ponyville didn’t have to face a threat as frightening as the Daleks. At least he could control his hooves so he could properly use his sonic screwdriver. The Doctor continued to aimlessly wander around Ponyville. Everypony seemed to say hello to him however. They all knew who he was and they all mentioned a certain pink pony telling them he was new in town. A few of them told him to head to a place called Sugarcube Corner for something, wherever that was. Eventually The Doctor accidentally stumbled upon the exact place he was supposed to be going. He opened the door to the confectionary shop and the ringing of bells was cut off by a plethora of ponies screaming.

“SURPRISE!”

The Doctor jumped back in surprise as ponies popped up from their hiding places. The lights were promptly switched on as Pinkie Pie approached him with five other ponies in tow.

“So Doctor are you surprised? Are ya? Huh? Are ya? Are ya?” Pinkie Pie spoke at the speed of light and bounced around The Doctor as if gravity was lower on this planet. The Doctor made a mental note to check the size of this planet relative to Earth.

“I was extremely surprised. I knew you mentioned a party but I didn’t expect you to invite every pony in town.” The Doctor explained.

“Well of course I invited everypony in Ponyville. If you’re new it means you might not have any friend; and if you don’t have any friends you might be lonely.”

“Well thank you Pinkie, but I’m used to being alone.”

“That’s silly! Nopony should be alone. Never ever.”

The Doctor stood there and thought for a moment. Maybe this pink pony is right. Being alone isn’t necessarily a fun thing, but I can’t just drag one of these ponies along with me across the universe like I always do. There was a pause in The Doctor’s thought process as he watched Twilight pour herself a drink.

Or can I…?

Chapter 4: I Most Certainly Can

It's Bigger on the Inside

Chapter 4: I Most Certainly Can

The Doctor waltzed about the party that was ever so kindly thrown for him. Ponies conversed, obviously happy about seeing a new face around town. The Doctor, however, had some slightly more important things on his mind. Could he take Twilight from her home here? He had done so with so many others. Not necessarily take them however. He just gave them the offer. The only reason he referred to it as “taking” is because they always said yes. Who wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to see the universe and travel through time? The universe was amazing! You could go to the past and talk to the amazing people that are legendary in the future! Learn to cook from one of the greatest chefs in history! Watch history before you’re very eyes! Witness temporal tipping points and possibly even influence them! Visit far away galaxies and peoples! What wasn’t great about it? The Doctor was sure Twilight would not pass up the chance.

What about her friends though? She seemed to be really close with her friends. He couldn’t just take all of them. Or could he? The Doctor thought to himself about taking six ponies with him around the universe as the party continued around him. It might be too much to handle. He thought he could do it however. He decided to enjoy the party for the time being. He would bring it up in the morning with Twilight. The TARDIS would repair itself by mid-afternoon tomorrow and they could be off by sundown.

********

What The Doctor didn’t know however was that there was a certain something that required his more immediate attention. Somewhere in the middle of the fields of Sweet Apple Acres shone a bright light. A squad of large metal cylinders materialized in the middle of the field. They had two metal poles protruding from their midsection and one from the top of the cylinder that seemed to be their body.

“EX-TER-MINATE” the one in the front said.

“EX-TER-MINATE!” the other’s replied in unison.

The loud voices of the Kaled Mutants speaking through their armor woke Big Macintosh who decided not to attend the party. He looked out from his window drowsiness covering his face. The burly red stallion stared at the Daleks and rubbed his eyes as they rolled out of the orchard. His expression became washed with terror and he decided to seek out the only pony smart enough to know what these things were. Unknown to him, the purple unicorn scholar would have no clue what the Daleks were, but she was with somepony who would know. Big Mac quickly grabbed his camera and ran outside. He quickly snapped a picture and ran towards the party to find Twilight.

“FOL-LOW THAT LIFE-FORM.”

********

Twilight approached The Doctor, who didn’t seem to be enjoying the party. He actually seemed to be deep in thought. He was sitting on a chair placed in a corner of the room near the refreshment table, perplexity written all over his face. She cantered over and casually struck up a conversation.

“So are you enjoying the party?” She asked.

“Huh? Oh sure, love a good party.”

Twilight frowned and glared at him. “You seem preoccupied.”

“Yes. Yes I am.”

“Well, what with?”

The Doctor paused for a moment and looked up at Twilight, not quite sure how to put it. “Well I was wonder-”

Suddenly, The Doctor was interrupted by a large red stallion who bursted through the doors holding a Polaroid in his mouth. Everyone stopped talking as the stallion looked around and spotted Twilight. He rushed over and handed her the picture, to which she levitated in front of her.

“What is this Big Mac?” Twilight asked.

“There was a bright light in the middle of the orchard and these things just showed up! I was scared half to death! What are they Twilight?” Big Mac asked franticly.

“I’m not quite sure. It doesn’t look anything like I’ve ever seen.”

“Well whatever they are they don’t look friendly. I think they followed me here!”

The Doctor angled himself to see the picture better. He was curious about what “things” the two ponies were talking about, although he had a clue already. He stared at the image and saw what looked like three standard Daleks sliding along the ground out of an orchard. The picture was taken hastily and thus was blurry, but The Doctor could still make out the unmistakable shape. They had followed him.

“You may not know what those things are Twilight, but I sure do.”

“What are they?”

“They’re what killed my people.”

Twilight’s face was swept with fear. “What do we do?”

“You will run. I will stop them. Now go, get out of here.”

Twilight stood firm and her five friends approached from behind looking just as stubborn as the purple unicorn.

“No, this is my home and I’ll defend it with you. What do you need me to do?”

“We’ll do anything we can to help.” Rainbow Dash said, saluting The Doctor.

The brown maned pony looked at the six ponies standing before him, all with stern looks on their faces that said they would not back down. They were determined to help him.

“Alright then…” The Doctor said, grinning at the six of them.

The six of their faces brightened up as they were ready to help.

“Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and you,” he said, pointing at a yellow coated Pegasus. “Grab all the sweets you can and get ready to throw them. Aim for their eyestalk, here.” he said pointing at the picture of the Dalek.

“Okie dokey lokey!” Pinkie said, bouncing off to collect confectionaries with Rarity and Fluttershy.

“Twilight,” The Doctor said turning to face the stripe maned unicorn. “Once their eyestalks are obscured by Pinkie’s pastry assault, hold them still with your magic.” She nodded and readied herself.

“Applejack, Big Mac and you, the rainbow haired one-”

“That’s Rainbow Dash.”

“-right, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Big Mac. once Twilight has them immobilized try to knock loose the two things protruding from their armor.” He explained pointing at their gunsticks and manipulator arms.

“I’ll mess with their systems using this.” The Doctor said, drawing his sonic screwdriver.

“They should be here any minute. They must be weak otherwise they would have materialized closer to the cluster of life forms at this party. Get ready everyone.”

“Umm, Doctor?”

“Yes Twilight?”

“That’d be everypony.”

“Yes, right.” The Doctor said with a slight chuckle.

Just a few moments later the squad of three Dalek’s burst through

“EX-TER-MINATE!” they shouted about to take aim and fire their gunsticks.

The Doctor quickly and expertly aimed his sonic screwdriver at the Daleks, having gained proper control of his new hooves. He disrupted their systems as Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Fluttershy all launched confectionaries at their eyestalks. The now blind Daleks were held down by Twilight and Applejack, her brother, and Rainbow Dash all continually bucked at the gunsticks and manipulator arms. Soon they broke off and the Daleks we’re rendered useless. The Doctor’s plan of action worked perfectly.

“DOC-TOR.” one said as it was still held down by Twilight.

“Twilight can you electrocute them?” The Doctor asked, approaching them and scanning with his sonic screwdriver.

“Umm… I think so.” She said, closing her eyes and concentrating. The purple unicorn began to focus all her magical energy at the Daleks, sending massive amounts of electricity through their polycarbide armor. Although rendered useless The Doctor still deemed them a threat. He aimed his sonic screwdriver at their casing and concentrated, trying to invent some new setting that would override their controls and initiate a self-destruct sequence. Each time he failed he lightly tapped the screwdriver against his hoof, as if it would help. He tried a few more times while the ponies waited, trying to figure out what was going on. Eventually The Doctor got the setting right and he applied it to each Dalek.

“Twilight let go of them.” he said, stepping away and stowing his screwdriver in his ever so helpful pockets. The scholar did as she was told and released her magical grip on the mutants.

“WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO OUR SYS-TEMS?” one of the Daleks asked.

“Oh nothing at all,” The Doctor said smirking. “Except activate your self-destruct systems.”

“IM-POSS-IBLE.” the Dalek in the back answered.

“Really now? Because I love impossible.” The fifty-six orbs placed around the lower section of the Daleks floated around them forming a sphere around each Dalek. They exploded and the sphere contracted, rendering the explosion harmless.

The six ponies along with every other pony in the room, which was practically everypony in Ponyville stared at the spot where the Daleks used to be. After a brief moment of shock they all realized this new pony just saved their entire town from whatever those metal contraptions were. Cheering erupted and ponies surrounded The Doctor. After the cheering died down The Doctor explained to the six ponies that helped him what the Daleks were. Then, after the party the savior of Ponyville and Twilight proceeded to walk back to the library. Princess Celestia’s prized student took this opportunity to bring up their previous conversation.

“So what were you thinking about before all the commotion?” She asked.

The Doctor looked to her quizzically, trying to recall the events before the Daleks showed up. After realizing what she was talking about he responded with an “Oh!” he paused for a moment more trying to figure out how to put what he was about to say.

“Well I was just wondering…”

Chapter 5: Home in Time for Lunch

It’s Bigger on the Inside

Chapter 5: Home in Time for Lunch

“Wondering what?” Twilight questioned after The Doctor trailed off into thought. Twilight thought to herself as The Doctor brewed up a response. This crazy colt fell out of the sky and just saved Ponyville, possibly Equestria. I’ve done it twice, it’s not an easy job, but this colt makes it look so.

Finally he just spit it out. “How would you and your friends like to accompany me around the universe?”

Twilight was completely taken aback by the brown colt’s sudden proposal. Accompany him? Around the universe? This was the academic opportunity of a lifetime. She couldn’t leave her friends behind, but he already solved that. All seven of them? Travelling the universe? Could everyone really take away time from their busy schedules to travel?

“Now you’re probably thinking: ‘Where in Equestria would I find the time to travel the universe?’” The Doctor smirked. “I’ve got that covered; you see the TARDIS is also a time machine. You could explore the entire universe and be back in time for lunch.” The Doctor grinned wider, knowing he had just about sold the scholarly mare on the offer.

“I’d love too but I’m not sure about the others…” Twilight trailed off into thought as they walked. “What do you say we ask them in the morning?”

“Fine by me.” The Doctor answered as the two of them entered the tree-brary and drifted off into the realm of dreams.

********

Sun peeked into the window of Twilight’s bedroom, waking her up slightly earlier than usual. She smelled what she guessed to be a generous breakfast cooked by The Doctor. The thought of the eccentric Time Lord brought his proposal back into her forethoughts. Today was the day. Everything had been moving so fast recently. It was crazy, but it presented a whole new world of opportunities. Twilight climbed down the stairs while rubbing sleep out of her eyes. She plopped herself at the breakfast table and The Doctor presented a plate with a hay omelet and toast with apple jam. The Doctor expertly slid ketchup across the table towards Twilight. He apparently had gotten used to his hooves. Twilight squirted a small amount of ketchup on her omelet and took a small bite. It was delicious.

“Where did you learn to cook?” Twilight asked after swallowing the most amazing mouthful of omelet she’d ever ingested.

“Paris, in the 18th century.”

“Well tell whoever taught you that I said thank you.”

“Why not tell him yourself?”

Twilight looked up with a forkful of food in her mouth. “Hmm?”

“Last night, my proposal. Come with me, we can go to 18th century Paris and thank Monsieur Antoine Carême yourself.”

“Like I said, we’ll go ask everypony else today.” Twilight got up from her seat and placed her plate in the sink. The Doctor finished up a few seconds afterwards. Twilight went upstairs and brushed her mane, and prepared to go see her friends.

********

Around mid-day everypony had showed up at Twilight’s library. All of them wondering what was going on. Twilight quieted them down. As soon as silence fell Rainbow Dash broke it with her questions.

“Why did you call us all here Twilight? Does the princess need us again?”

Twilight’s eyes widened. She had completely forgotten about informing the princess. She made a mental note to send her a letter.

“No, that’s not the reason.” Twilight answered. “I called the five of you here to extend an offer. The Doctor, as I’m sure you all know, is not from Equestria.” Twilight paused and collected herself for what she was about to say next. “Last night he made me an offer, which I am allowed to extend to all of you.” Everyone’s expressions were rigid as the tension increased. “The question is: Would all of you like to travel the universe with The Doctor and I?”

Questions immediately arose as most ponies weren’t familiar with the multiverse prospect. “Universe? What are you talking about Twi?” Applejack asked frantically.

“Well to put it simply let’s just say that we’re going to be traveling to different worlds, worlds completely different than ours.”

“And those things last night? Are those a common occurrence?” Dash added.

“Yes. But The Doctor guarantees our safety.”

“You’ve only just met him!” Rarity exclaimed.

“I trust him, he saved Ponyville last night.”

“Well what about all the work we have to do? How would we even find the time?” Fluttershy asked meekly.

This time The Doctor answered. “My ship is also time machine, I could have you all back here five minutes ago.”

Knowing how hard an offer this was to refuse Twilight silently hoped they would all agree.

Everyone’s expressions changed as they thought. After a few minutes Applejack stepped forward and spoke up.

“Well shoot, with that how can I refuse? I’ve been needing a vacation.”

“I’d love a good adventure.” Rainbow Dash added, stepping forward as well.

“I’d love to study fashion in different worlds.” Rarity stepped forward too.

“And I could throw parties in all kinds of places!” Pinkie pie exclaimed hopping forward to join the all the other ponies.

“Well… If everypony else is going…” Fluttershy said with her trademark meekness as she took small steps to join the group.

“Well that settles it. You’re all going.” The Doctor said. “Pack your bags by six o’ clock.”

********

Twilight made her way around her room, packing various books and things. She took with her a notepad and a quill. She would obviously be taking notes on these various new worlds. After packing all her things she walked downstairs to find Spike.

“Spike, take a letter.”

Dear Princess Celestia,

I am writing to inform you I will be traveling with the other Elements of Harmony and a new friend I have made. This is not a normal trip however. This new pony is not from Equestria and he plans to take us throughout the universe. However, rest assured he can have us back in no time at all. Literally, his inter-dimensional vessel is also a time machine. Please send a carriage to take Spike back to Canterlot. He can’t come, I don’t want to put him in harm’s way, he’s still young.

I know this all sounds absurd, but I hope that you understand my quest for knowledge. I will return frequently to report my findings. I await your swift response.

Your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle

Spike rolled up the letter and sent it on its way. He looked to Twilight with longing in his eyes. “I really can’t come Twilight? I promise I’ll stay out of the way.”

“That’s not the problem Spike, I can’t risk you getting hurt. You’re still just a kid.”

Spike sighed. After spending pretty much his entire life with Twilight he knew when she wouldn’t change her mind. Spike helped Twilight pack up her things. A few minutes later, whilst carrying a stack of books, the small dragon hiccupped. The books fell all over the floor and the sound of a belch filled the room, followed by the tell-tale sign of a fireline delivery: green fire. A scroll appeared and fell at Twilight’s hooves. She levitated the scroll and unraveled it, bringing it closer to read.

My faithful student,

I am excited to hear of your quest for knowledge; however I am uncertain of this pony you are traveling with. As you approach departure I would like to spend a bit of time with you discussing what’s out there in the vast expanses of the universe. I have done my fair share of traveling, well beyond Equestria. I want to warn you and your friends of the dangers.

If you are still convinced to leave after you spend some time in Canterlot, by all means, go. If you choose to go I await your return visits. Being a Princess I didn’t get to travel nearly as much as you will be able to. Please inform everypony of my invitation and leave as soon as possible.

Your loving mentor,

Princess Celestia

P.S. Luna wanted me to let you know it’s not such a smart idea to let strange stallions who fell from the sky into your home. Stop reading so many romance novels.

“How did she know I fell from the sky?” The Doctor asked, reading over Twilight shoulder. Twilight stepped back, startled. The Doctor changed subjects and continued speaking “Only two days and I’m meeting the supreme ruler of Equestria. I’m on a roll.”

“When did you-”

“So bit of a detour then? I’ve got to meet your mentor, who also happens to be the Princess; before I can take you six off though the universe?”

“That’s the plan.” Twilight said, deciding to just ignore The Doctor’s sudden materialization behind her while reading. The clock ticked away, only an hour and a half until departure time.

“Alright then, we leave at six!”

Chapter 6: The Wrong Order

It’s Bigger on the Inside

Chapter 6: The Wrong Order

The purple aura subsided from the respective bags of the six ponies boarding the royal train. Once the aura subsided, Twilight Sparkle joined her friends in the passenger carriage just as the train’s whistle went off, signaling their departure. Everypony was swarming The Doctor, practically dying to know more about him. One question stuck out in particular to both Twilight and The Doctor.

“What’s it like on your planet?” Silence fell as everypony else was wondering the same thing. They all waited for an answer from The Doctor.

“It was… beautiful. The skies were a deep auburn color; the tree’s had silver leaves that shone brightly in the moonlight. They used to call it the Shining World of the Seven Systems, and on the continent of Wild Endeavour, in the mountains of Solace and Solitude; there stood the Citadel of the Time Lords. A magnificent tower that was once a home to all Time Lords on Gallifrey, it reached far above the grey clouds, a glorious, transparent dome encompassing its entirety. It was so beautiful that the Time Lords recreated it eight times.” The Doctor trailed off, obviously reminiscing of home.

“How come you said that all in the past tense?” Pinkie Pie asked, curious as ever. The Doctor’s expression darkened. He seemed to be more serious than ever.

“Because it’s gone; all of it gone, my people, my home, all destroyed. I’m the last Time Lord.” The frantic questioning stopped after this solemn moment. Everyone remained silent for a while, even Pinkie Pie. About halfway through the trip the conversation slowly started up again. Twilight, being curious as to how his people recreated an entire planet, struck up a conversation with The Doctor.

“How did the Time Lords recreate an entire planet.” Twilight asked, not wanting to bring up the bad memories The Doctor had of his homeworld. The Doctor looked up at Twilight and paused a moment before speaking.

“They used a process called Crypto-forming. I’m not really sure how it works, but it changes another planet so much that it becomes exactly like you want it to be. They created the Nine Homeworlds as a form of protection and strategy. A cunning ruse if I’ve ever seen one.”

“That’s amazing.” Twilight replied at a complete loss for words. A moment later the train came to a halt in front of Canterlot station. The seven ponies exited the train and acquired their luggage. They loaded it onto a taxi carriage and made their way towards Canterlot castle. The Doctor admired the castle built into a mountainside as the carriage bounced along the road.

“Building into the side of a mountain, why didn’t we think of that? It’s brilliant.”

Soon the taxi arrived outside of Canterlot castle. The royal guards at the gate recognized Twilight and her associated friends and let them through. They were then escorted to the throne room by a couple more guards. Once the seven ponies arrived at the towering doors to the throne room, they were ushered in by a few guards.

“Twilight Sparkle, my most faithful student, it’s so good to see you.” Twilight approached the princess and leaned into her.

“It’s good to see you too Princess.” Twilight responded, backing away from the princess to stand at an appropriate speaking distance. Princess Celestia looked up from Twilight to the group of six ponies. Her eyes fell upon a brown colt with an hourglass cutie mark. She puzzled for a moment, trying to recall who this pony resembled.

“Doctor, Is that really you? You’re the pony that invited Twilight to travel the universe?” The Doctor looked around wondering if the Princess was addressing him. He finally realized this was the case and responded accordingly.

“I’m sorry have we met before? Being a time traveler and all, things tend to happen in the wrong order.” The Doctor replied almost methodically as this situation seemed to pop up often.

“Oh. I see, well then, I hope you’ll see the past me soon.”

“Likewise.” The Doctor answered.

“Well Twilight, seeing as I already know this pony, I think it’d be more than acceptable to have you travel with The Doctor, I trust him completely.”

“If you don’t mind me asking Celestia how do you know him?” Twilight asked her mentor with those eyes, eyes seeking knowledge. Celestia couldn’t refuse.

“It’s highly classified information, but I suppose I could tell you ponies.” she said just before waving the guards out of the room. Once they had left and the door was shut she began to tell the story of how she and Luna knew The Doctor.

“Well you see, the Griffins aren’t actually from this planet.” she paused, thinking about what to say next. “About one-thousand two hundred years ago the last of the Griffin’s appeared on Equestria, The Doctor was close behind. The Griffin’s were actually once a highly advanced society who lived on a planet very far from Equestria. They were almost destroyed by a race known as the Daleks, and when they arrived they were extremely hostile towards us ponies, seeing themselves superior to us. They attempted to take over Equestria and rebuild their society. However, The Doctor stopped them and diffused hostilities. The Griffins were integrated into our society and we have been living peacefully ever since.”

“Wow. I had no idea.” Twilight said, slightly astounded that such a big piece of history was missing from the books.

“Good, you were supposed to.” The Princess said, winking at Twilight.

“In your letter you mentioned you used to travel the universe. How? You don’t seem to have the technology capable of intergalactic travel.” The Doctor asked, wondering how Celestia had traveled the universe without a Time-Space Vessel.

“Well yes, I did, after you helped with the Griffins you took Luna and I on a couple trips.” Celestia responded.

“I hate when things happen in the wrong order.” Everypony laughed and conversed for a while more, before heading off to the rooms that Celestia had prepared.

********

The Doctor awoke in the middle of the night; he couldn’t sleep a wink. He remembered Twilight mentioning an observatory in the castle, so he asked some of the night guards where he might find it, and they were hesitant until they received word that he was with Twilight and the other Elements of Harmony. When the guards mentioned the term “Elements of Harmony” The Doctor made a mental note to ask Twilight what they were. Within a few minutes The Doctor arrived at the observatory to find another alicorn, much like Princess Celestia. She possessed a dark grey-blue coat and a flowing mane, also akin to Celestia’s, that seemed to hold the night sky itself within it. He approached silently, not wanting to disturb the mare, who seemed to be studying the night sky.

“You don’t have to be so quiet.” the mare said as The Doctor watched from the entrance. She set down her quill and turned. As her eyes fell on The Doctor her expression changed. A smile spread across her face and her eyes seemed to beam with the light of a supernova. “It’s been so long since I’ve seen you Doctor…”

“Well I’m sorry to inform you, I’ve never met you before. I’m sure you understand that as a time traveler things tend to happen in the wrong order.”

“Well in that case I’m Princess Luna, please forgo the title, I find it too formal.” The Princess said as the Doctor approached the table where she was working. He eyed her notes on approach, noticing her study of a constellation that he knew could be seen from this planet. This constellation in particular was the Kasterborous constellation.

“You seem to be studying constellations. Any reason in particular you were studying this one?” The Doctor questioned, placing his hoof on a diagram the mare had drawn.

“Oh this? I was just thinking of naming it. Being Celestia’s co-ruler, I have command over the moon and night, which in this case also includes stars and constellations. Most astronomers ask me to name their discoveries.

“Might I suggest a name?” The Doctor puzzled, anticipating a response from Luna.

“Why the sudden interest in this constellation?” Luna responded, answering The Doctor’s question with a question. The brown earth pony paused a moment and looked down at his hooves. It was always a touchy subject; he was always wondering how to put it.

“Well, you see Luna, this constellation is where my home planet resided. The Time Lords already have a name for it. It’s called Kasterborous.”

“When you say resided do you mean that your home planet does not reside there anymore? What happened to it?”

“It was destroyed in a great war, The Last Great Time War. I’m the last of my people.” The Doctor answered for what seemed like the tenth time that day; each time as solemn as the last.

“I’m so sorry Doctor. What kept you from telling me such a thing when we traveled together?” Luna questioned.

“Like I said, wrong order, I had already told you; just now.”

“Right.” Luna returned, affirming her understanding of the situation. “So what brings you to the observatory at such a time? The only ponies usually awake at such an hour are the night guards, scholars studying late into the night, and myself.”

“I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to stargaze. This planet is – interesting - I wanted to study it.”

Luna thought for a moment before deciding to put forth a proposition. “Well I could give you a crash course if you’d like. I rarely ever get any company during the night, and the guards are such bores. Always ‘Your Majesty’ this and ‘Princess’ that, never any relaxation it seems.” The Doctor pondered her offer for a moment before giving an answer.

“That sounds quite alright.” Luna and The Doctor looked into the night sky for hours, sharing their knowledge about the universe. Eventually The Doctor grew drowsy and retired to his room. The Doctor would need his sleep. They departed tomorrow.

Chapter 7: Origins

It’s Bigger on the Inside

Chapter 7: Origins

Celestia’s beautiful sun rose from the horizon as The Doctor looked out over his room’s balcony. The shades of yellow and orange filled the sky, almost mimicking the skies of Gallifrey. He felt a sudden pang of nostalgia, which caused him to return indoors. His coat slipped easily on as he cantered out of his room to find his six new traveling buddies.

Four distinct raps on the door of Twilight’s room woke her up from her peaceful slumber, her dreams of the night fading away along with any memory of them. She slowly rose to a sitting position, her bed-mane still present. She slowly climbed out of her bed and made her way to her dresser. Picking up a brush, turning towards the door and shouting “Just a minute!” She then returned to the task of straightening her bed mane, which she accomplished easily enough with the assistance of her magic. Now feeling presentable, she advanced towards the door and opened it with her purple aura of telekinesis. Before her stood a brown earth colt wearing a brown tweed suit and a red bowtie. “Good morning Doctor.”

“Morning to you too Twilight. Is everyone ready to leave? Early bird catches the worm as they say. Do they say that on this planet?”

Twilight chuckled a bit at The Doctor’s minimal knowledge of Equestria. “Yes. Yes they do. Now come on, I’m sure everypony’s waiting.” The two ponies traveled around the castle, finding everypony’s room somewhat near each other. They awoke the five other mares from their sleep and requested that they ready their bags. After everypony was awoken they headed down for breakfast with the Princesses. Everypony conversed around the table except for The Doctor. Eventually, the talking was reduced to a low murmur as everypony set about to actually consuming their food.

After breakfast the seven departing travelers, joined by the Princesses, made their way to Ponyville and up the hill that the TARDIS crashed into that fateful night. The native Equestrians waved goodbye to Princess Celestia and Luna, and they waved back as they stepped inside the TARDIS. Everypony except for Twilight was awe struck at the sight of the inside of the TARDIS.

“Its bi-” Applejack started to say, when The Doctor interrupted her.

“Bigger on the inside, yes, everyone says that.”

The distinctive whirring of the TARDIS could be heard inside and out as it dematerialized from the hill on which it first landed. This sound was music to The Doctor’s newly found pony ears. With six new companions aboard his stolen Time-Space Vessel he set off for the most logical destination for their first trip; Earth. The TARDIS lurched and thrashed about as it spiraled through the red, yellow, blue and black auras of the time vortex, its light fading in and out as it went. Inside the big blue box seven ponies stumbled around as the TARDIS shook during flight. Suddenly the wavering TARDIS stabilized. It had landed in the year one of the Equestrian calendar, just a mile or so away from the first settlement in Equestria. All seven of the ponies, save for The Doctor collected themselves after such an abrupt and hard landing. The Doctor trotted over to the doors of the TARDIS and opened them with an air of presentation.

Flakes of snow blew violently around as far as the eye could see, which wasn’t very far mind you. The blizzard clouded any field of view. Everypony stepped out of the TARDIS, wrapped tightly in clothes which Twilight enchanted to generate heat using their movement.

“Where are we? More importantly why are we here?” Applejack asked as the trudged through the deep layers of snow.

“I was busy plotting a course for a planet called Earth when I received a distress signal from this point in time and space. I can see why they would be in distress. This is a nasty blizzard.”

“Well can we get on with it? Even in these magical coats I’m freezing my wings off over here.” Rainbow Dash added.

“As soon as I find the ship transmitting the distress signal.”

The seven ponies mulled on through the snow as their moods began to sour. It didn’t seem like a very good first trip to them. The cold was beginning to get to them.

“It’s beginning to get a bit too chilly.” Rarity complained. The Doctor stopped and spun around on his hooves. Using the newly found ability of effectively using hooves to wield a sonic screwdriver, he amplified the heat output of all their outfits. The heat radiated through their bodies as they continued along.

“Doctor? Aren’t you cold at all?” Twilight asked as The Doctor trotted along, using his sonic screwdriver to lock onto the source of the distress signal.

“Not at all. I’ve got this coat and two hearts pumping warm blood through my veins. It would take about 30 degrees less for it to get chilly for me.”

“Two hearts? You’re kidding us right?” Fluttershy asked, still trying to comprehend a pony with two hearts.

“Not kidding one bit. Listen for yourself if you want.” The Doctor said, stopping and turning towards Fluttershy who meekly approached him and pressed her ear to his chest to listen for a heart. She heard the obvious thud, thud, thud of a heart, but could hear another set of thuds nearby.

“Wow! You’re telling the truth! Two hearts, amazing.” Fluttershy said, stepping back in amazement. They continued on for quite a while, until coming upon what seemed like a large steel capsule lying in a crater, a white, cold mist emanating from the upturned end. The Doctor began to run his sonic screwdriver all over the capsule, scanning to find out what type of ship it was.

“Cryogenic Engine. More specifically, and erupted cryogenic engine. This must be where the sudden blizzard came from. Oooh… what species uses a Cryogenic Engine?” The Doctor racked his brain, trying to delve into the fast reserves of alien knowledge he kept stored within. He rapped himself on the head a few times to emphasize his thinking. He looked over the capsule, one more time, studying it intensely as the six ponies stood by, wondering what in the hay he was talking about.

“That’s it! Coryzatiles!”

“Whatcha-tiles?” Pinkie Pie asked, attempting to understand the unfamiliar term used by The Doctor.

“Coryzatiles. There a race of equine-wraith creatures who live on an Ice Planet, which explains the cryogenic engines.”

“Equine-wraiths? You mean like Windigos?” Twilight clarified.

“So Equestrians have encountered them before? I fear we may be at a temporal turning point in Equestria’s history. Quick, Twilight, you’re the most Equestrian history savvy, what point in time could we be at?”

Twilight looked at the five other ponies she had invited to come with her. She knew every one of them had gathered when and where they were, it was Hearth’s Warming Day; the founding of Equestria.

********

After a brief explanation of the celebration and story of Hearth’s Warming Eve, The Doctor fully understood. The Coryzatiles were harnessing the released cold energy to attempt to repair their cryogenic engine and continue their journey. It had failed mid-flight and they had to crash land in Equestria. Causing the blizzard that caused controversy for the three pony species. Sadly, the Coryzatile’s method of repair would fail. The Doctor had to help them repair their ship. They couldn’t stay in Equestria forever, the blizzard would destroy everything. According to Twilight the Coryzatiles left when the three pony races settled their differences, giving them no anger to feed on. However The Doctor had figured it out. They didn’t leave because they had nothing to feed off of, they left because their ship was repaired, by him. The Doctor explained the situation to the six ponies that had only recently joined him in his travels. He began babbling incoherently, his mode of choice for formulating a plan. After babbling for a minute or two he finally gave a direct instruction.

“Rainbow Dash, fly around a bit and try to find the Coryzatiles, they’re most likely close to their ship trying to harvest the residual cryogenic energy. Once you find them, tell them to return to their ship, they're an extremely peaceful race, and just tell them it’s being repaired by a capable traveler and to return as soon as possible.”

“I’m on it!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, before rocketing off to find the aliens.

“Everypony else your with me, I’m gonna need your help fixing this ship.”

So the ponies scrambled about the crash site, assisting The Doctor in rewiring the Coryzatile ship in order to reverse the output of the cryogenic engine and feed it into the fuel tank, effectively harnessing all the residual energy, which The Doctor said would be enough to get them back to their home planet. Wires were spliced, split and soldered to the right places using the trusty sonic screwdriver. Eventually, The Doctor deemed it sufficiently rewired and now they awaited Rainbow Dashes return. She showed up not long from completion time with the Coryzatiles, who oddly enough, looked extremely hostile. Upon approach one of them gasped in a raspy, windy voice.

“It’s The Doctor! Seize him!”

Three of the Coryzatiles rushed at The Doctor as panic spread across his face. He had to think of a solution quickly. He drew his sonic screwdriver, pointed it at the engine and shouted “Wait!” Everyone froze. Excuse the pun. “One more move and I reverse everything I’ve just done, causing the engine to absorb all residual energy from the cryogenic fallout and overload the engine causing this planet to be frozen solid.”

“Do it then Doctor. You’d be doing us a favor. Our home was destroyed in your Time War. We sought refuge across the galaxy, only to happen across this planet. Only just beginning and perfect for cryogenic terraformation.”

“But look at this place! It’s only just beginning but I have seen what they have accomplished. They’re going places. You can’t just destroy their planet like that.”

“Well then where do you suggest we go, Time Lord?” The leader of the Coryzatiles stated, hate in his voice as he said Time Lord. “Our world was destroyed, and now we’ve crash landed here. With no hope of leaving, we can only rebuild.”

“Well then rebuild somewhere else. I’ve fixed your engine.”

“That’s impossible! We’ve been working on that forsaken thing for months now!”

“Well Time Lords are far more advanced than the Coryzatiles. Now go on, there’s a nice uninhabited Ice Planet not too far from here.”

“Maybe you Time Lords are not as bad as us Coryzatiles had thought. Thank you Doctor.”

The Doctor activated his sonic screwdriver, the green light casting over the open engine casing, causing it to begin to move and absorb the nearest part of the storm. In an instant the entire storm was cleared, sucked into the cryogenic engine of the Coryzatile ship and starting their systems. The equine apparitions boarded their ship and launched into the atmosphere, leaving the budding planet behind. The Doctor and his companions returned to the TARDIS in the now clear and sunny day, taking in the sights of Equestria before its time, and so the TARDIS let out its cliché whirring sound, signaling dematerialization, as the Equestrians actually left their homeplanet’s gravity well for the first time ever. One small step for mare, one giant leap for ponykind.

Chapter 8: My Little Time Travelers

It’s Bigger on the Inside

Chapter 8: My Little Time Travelers

The ever so distinctive whirring of the TARDIS diminished as the blue police box waned into existence. A loud drum beat once and echoed as the TARDIS became fully opaque. The doors swung open and a brown earth pony stepped out into the open air followed by a purple unicorn. Moments later five other ponies exited the TARDIS. Humans bustled about the busy street, which could be seen by the seven ponies that were hiding in the shadows of the alleyway. Everyone walked along, paying no mind to the figures in the alleyway, they were all too busy. The Doctor spun around to face his passengers.

“Welcome, my little time travelers, to planet Earth!” he announced grandly. The ponies were unfazed by the towering structures before them, they had buildings like this in Manehatten after all. What they were interested in, were the creatures of legend before them. Humans, only a myth in Equestria, stood before their very eyes. Rainbow Dash spoke up.

“Are these H-humans?”

“Yes they are Rainbow Dash.” The Doctor paused “And this,” he said gesturing to the surrounding area “is London! Capital of the United Kingdom! Decades upon decades before Equestria even existed London was getting its start as a small village, smaller than Ponyville, and here we are. Year 473 of the Equestrian calendar and look at them! Millions of humans live in this city alone! Billions on this planet and growing rapidly. Amazing, no?”

“I’ll say…” Rarity answered, still gawking at the humans.

“So, they’re real? Really-really real?” Pinkie Pie asked, gawking as well.

“As real as you and I.” The Doctor said pointing at Pinkie and then back at himself. “Now then, if you want to go exploring you’ll need these.” The Doctor said, running into the TARDIS and running underneath the main control station. He navigated through the wires and grabbed onto a latch in the floor with a label on it. It was labeled P. He opened it and threw things out, naming them as he went. He finally stopped on an item which was round and metallic, it was about the size of a marble and each one hung on a chain. He pulled out seven of them and tossed one to each pony.

“These,” he paused, gesturing to the object in his hoof. “Are perception filters, they’ll disguise you as humans. Can’t rightly have horses walking about and talking. That would just be odd.”

Each pony hung the filter around their neck, causing their equine form to distort and wave about as if someone had smeared a watercolor painting before it finished drawing. Finally their forms began to settle into place. A new unfamiliar place, everypony looked human. The Doctor slipped his on as well, after taking a good look at everypony to ensure their perception filters were working properly. The Doctor’s form began to shape itself into a human much like the Equestrians. He was tall, about 5’11”, with slightly broad shoulders. The problem however came to his attention that he was still not ginger. He was wearing the same suit that he wore as a pony, but it was now tailored to a human form. He straightened his bowtie and did a little spin for the now human ponies before him. “How do I look?”

“Human.” Twilight answered.

“Wrong, I look Time Lord. I set my perception filter to Time Lord.”

“But you look just like them!” Twilight exclaimed.

“I get that a lot, however you’re wrong. They look Time Lord. We came first.” The Doctor shut the doors to the TARDIS and spun around once more, skipping out of the alleyway in his new human appearance. “Come along then everyone! London’s a big city, and we’ve got all the time in the world to explore it. Literally!” Everyone followed without hesitation into the streets of London. “Look around everyone, look at this amazing planet and all its accomplished. Stylish fashions!” The Doctor said, gesturing to Rarity. “Amazing literature!” he added, gesturing to Twilight. He then began to gesture to Fluttershy, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie in turn, mentioning something of interest to them that the humans improved. “Domestication of animals, new methods of agriculture, new, faster, methods of travel, and so, so many types of confectionaries!”

“It is quite amazing.” Rarity affirmed as they walked along the busy streets.

The Doctor and his companions saw every sight London had to offer, they enjoyed lunch together and had a blast. The Doctor was beginning to think this would be the first trip with his companions that would ever go as planned. As the day went on however, he was soon proven wrong. He caught glimpses of something odd dashing through alleyways and backstreets as they walked, but never enough to convince him to go after it. After all London was a bustling city. The seven tourists continued about London, without a care in the world. Literally, all their cares were on a different planet. They spent hours upon hours in shops that pertained to each ponies interests. Rainbow Dash practically had to drag Fluttershy out of a pet shop, and Rarity had to drag Twilight past the massive London Library. Eventually, night began to encroach upon London.

The group of time travelers continued about their tour of Earth. A street light flickered on behind The Doctor, who was walking backwards, who was now rambling about human traditions, talking about the holiday of Valentine’s Day, which according to him was due to happen soon.

“Equestria’s got a holiday like that! It’s called Heart’s and Hooves Day! Last year mah sister tried to hook up her teacher with our brother.” Applejack added, chuckling a bit and attempting to further conversation.

“That was so funny!” Pinkie Pie giggled. “I still remember the look on Rarity’s face when she found the gaping hole left in her boutique after Cherilee had her way with it.” Pinkie Pie who was bouncing along behind The Doctor, collided into him as he stopped, staring at the wall before him. Written on the wall, in large white spray paint were two words, two words that The Doctor hadn’t seen in a long time. BAD WOLF.

Everyone stopped and looked at The Doctor, wondering why he was staring at something as common as graffiti. Unbeknownst to them, these words struck meaning in The Doctor’s hearts. His head swiveled quickly left and right, looking for clues as to why these words were appearing here. He noticed a flash of movement and set of sprinting. The six ponies followed him, wondering what was going on.

“Doctor!” Twilight shouted as they ran after him. “What’s going on? What do those words mean?”

The Doctor ignored Twilight and continued chasing the figure, only catching glimpses as it rounded the corners of the dark alleyways. Finally, he cornered his prey. The Doctor approached slowly, so he could see the creature, the six ponies caught up moments later to find The Doctor studying the beast. Applejack recognized the creature and called it out.

“A Timberwolf? What’s it doing on Earth? Don’t tell me they’re aliens too!” a few seconds after Applejack finished her outburst The Doctor spoke to his companions.

“No, it’s most definitely of Equestrian origin. You’re exactly right Applejack. Why is it on Earth? What can you tell me about these Timberwolves?”

“Well, I know they’re scared of pots bangin’ around.”

“Anything else?”

Applejack tapped her hand to her chin, thinking about everything Granny Smith had told her over the years. “I remember Granny Smith once said that they never showed up in town, they never left the Everfree Forest.” The Doctor turned back to the beast and studied it.

“If it’s supposed to be scared of pots banging around, what’s it doing in the big city? Shouldn’t it be scarred of all the noise?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Maybe that’s why it was running. It was scared.” Fluttershy said, sympathizing with the animal. The Doctor continued to think. Trillions of years of history flooding through his mind as he attempted to determine why and how this primitive Equestrian creature had left Equestria and come to Earth.

“Well we can’t have this thing terrorizing the humans.” The Doctor stated.

“What are we going to do then?” Twilight asked.

“We could take it to the forest.” Fluttershy suggested. Being good with animals, she approached the Timberwolf and stroked its fur. It instantly loved Fluttershy, like every other animal. The group of time travelers had no problems taking the beast to the edge of town and setting it free. After which, they returned to the TARDIS after a long day of sightseeing. The Equestrians returned their perception filters to The Doctor and went off to their rooms, which he had shown them beforehand. As they all retreated up the stairs to pass out on their beds Twilight noticed The Doctor still at the helm of his ship.

“Aren’t you going to sleep Doctor?” The Doctor, deep in thought, glanced up at Twilight and then turned back to stare at the controls of the TARDIS.

“No, I need to think.” The Doctor answered, the phrase BAD WOLF and the Timberwolf still troubling his mind.

Twilight’s hooves clacked down the metal stairs as she approached the TARDIS console. She stood next to The Doctor and placed a hoof on the shoulder of the absent minded Time Lord.

“I’m good at thinking you know.”

Author's Note: The Why of Things

It's Bigger on the Inside

Author's Note: The Why of Things

In case someponies haven't noticed, the status of this fanfiction was changed from Incomplete, to Canceled. I regret to inform you that I took this project upon myself for sheer practice and fun, and hoped that in posting it here on FiMFiction that someponies could enjoy it as well. I started this fiction with no ending or particular goal in mind. I wrote aimlessly and mindlessly, throwing in whatever references and jokes seemed good at the time.

As it went on, I realized I had no way to wrap this story up with a nice neat little bow. As hard as I thought about it, I could not find a way to end this story that would fit within my standards. So I canceled writing this fiction.

I hope you all enjoyed the ride, but it's over now. My apologies.

However, not to advertise for myself per say, but more over to recommend something I'm working on that has a more thought out plot then this haphazard mess of a fan fiction. I highly recommend you check out my new fan fiction Artificial Assistance. I have more of a goal for this one, so I will definitely not cancel this one.

Best timey wimey spacey wacey wishes to all of you,

H.P.