//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: Luna and the Doctor // by SubCinemaProductions //------------------------------// Luna was looking up at the sky. She could see Equestria from where she was standing. She had been staring at the same place for many years, never blinking. It was the one place she wanted to be most; home. She remembered what had transpired all of those years ago. She could never forget the feeling of regret she had ever since she was banished here, but at the same time she felt a seething anger for the two who had betrayed her: Celestia and the Doctor. She wanted them to forgive her, but at the same time she cursed them for what they had done to her. She felt split, right down the middle. She could never forget the adventures that she had with the Doctor and her sister. She remembered a lot of things that she wanted to forget. She remembered when she had met the Doctor. She remembered his eyes. Those ancient eyes... She blinked for the first time in twenty years. She both hated and loved those eyes. She lowered her head in solemn manner, wanting her punishment to end. She wanted to run into her sister’s arms again. She wanted to cry, but she had forgotten how. When she began to walk back to her spot where she often slept, a small bed like place that she made when she was first sent to the moon, she heard a sound; the sound that had haunted her every day since her banishment. The Doctor had returned. He stepped out of his newly materialized box and gazed at her. "You came back," she said. "That I did," he responded calmly. "I thought you swore to never return." "I did." "Then why are you here?" "I'm here for you of course," he said smiling. This made her angry. She shouted at him in her equestrian voice. "Do you think that you can just leave me here for almost one thousand years and expect me just to go with you again, like it's no big deal!?!?" She began to change into Nightmare Moon. She walked up to him until she was looking down on him intimidatingly. He didn't lose his cool. "I came here to apologize," he said. She was shocked. She looked down at the small (in comparison) brown stallion. He lowered his head. "I am sorry." She shook and faded back into Luna again. She collapsed on him and remembered how to cry. "It's okay. Ssshhhh. It'll be alright," he said in a parental way, tears flowing on him. "Let's get you inside." He led her into the box. It began to fade from the desolate wasteland that was the moon. It slowly blinked away. She looked about the TARDIS. It was the same as she remembered it being; just as beautiful, just as impossible. He led her to a chair by the console in the center. She sat down on it. The Doctor, after giving her a hug, walked about the console. He pressed a few buttons and flipped a few switches. Luna instinctually pushed a red button on the side of the console. The Doctor always forgot to press that one. He turned to her, seemingly unaware of the small correction she had made. "Okay, where do you want to go first?" he asked with a small fire in his eyes. She looked up at him. "Why are taking me with you once again? I thought the last time I'd be in here was when you would take me back to Equestria." The fire in his eyes dyed. "Well... Tia has been feeling horrible about what she did and made me do, so she wanted to try to apologize. This was her way of saying sorry." Anger built up in her again. She stood up and said "If she wanted to say sorry, she could have come here herself instead of sending you!" She stomped her right fore hoof. The Doctor paused for a moment. "I know just where we're going first." He quickly flipped more switches on the console and put his hoof on the main lever. "If you think anything you show me is going to make up for-" "Just give it a chance." With that, he threw the lever. The whole room shook as the TARDIS attempted to land wherever he set it to go. When the shaking stopped, he eagerly trotted to the door. He opened it. "After you," he said. She walked over to him. She gave him a furious look, and stepped outside. He smiled and followed her out. She looked about. It was a hilly field, nothing special. The sun was rising. It seemed so familiar. The cool breeze blew the soft grass against her hooves. It tickled her. The field was a part of an immensely large clearing in what appeared to be the woods. On the opposite side of the clearing, she saw something blue tucked behind a tree, and three figures standing near the blue thing. It looked like the TARDIS, but that couldn't be. It was just behind her. All of the ponies looked familiar, even thought they were to far away to see clearly. One of the figures was white, a unicorn with a colorful mane and a bit taller than the rest. The smallest was also a unicorn and was dark blue. The medium size figure was brown and an earth pony. Luna couldn't figure out who they were. This whole place looked familiar. It looked like a place she used to play with her sister at when- She suddenly realized who they were. That was her when she was a filly. That was Celestia. That was the Doctor. This was a place he had taken them to play. This was her best memory with the Doctor: a day of playing with her big sister, back when they traveled together. Luna's eyes began to water. "This is the forest of Anaxon. This was you, when we first met. This was the field you played with your sister, Celestia with. This is the day you two decided to come with me. This was the first night you saw the universe." Luna saw herself run around her older sister. She was so young. "But," Luna said, "What if they see us? Wouldn't that cause a paradox?" "I've already taken care of that little detail," he said, gesturing to a small notebook in his hoof. That, Luna knew, was the psychic paper. She looked at the younger Doctor. He pulled out his psychic paper and looked at it. "What does it say?" Luna asked. "It says 'Don't be alarmed and don't look about fifty-six degrees to your right'." Just then, the younger Doctor pivoted his head and looked right at them. He gave a small nod and went back to younger Celestia and Luna. "You were happier then, understandably of course," he said. "Wouldn't it be great to feel alive again? To know that you're still happy somewhere; and to bring that happiness into your heart adn soul again?" She looked at him, unsure of what he meant. "Hrm, maybe you don't yet. But you will. Stay here and see what I mean." Then he simply walked away, leaving here there still confused of what he meant. She tried to follow him with her eyes, but somehow he vanished into the forest. After continuing to look about the wooded area around her for about a minute, she directed her attention to her younger self. She watched herself skip and play with her older sister. They seemed so happy then. As the day rolled on, the Doctor had gotten out from inside the TARDIS a blue ball for which Luna and Celestia to play with. This had made Luna very happy. She tossed the ball high into the sky while humming: "A big blue ball bouncing beside me. I am but bemused because this big blue ball beside me is but my best ball." Each time the ball came down, she bounced it higher and higher until it finally bounced into the forest. "I'll get it!" she cried. The Doctor and Celestia shook their heads and smiled. Luna made her way to the edge of the forest. She looked up at the trees which towered over her. They scarred her a bit. "Do you want me to get it?" Celestia called out to her. "No! I've got it Tia!" Luna responded. Luna mustered up all of her courage that she could, and stepped into the forest. Luna watched as the blue ball bounced up and down next to her younger self. She remembered the small alliterative poem she came up with. She hummed it quietly to herself. "A big blue ball bouncing beside me. Heh, alliteration is so scarce so I shouldn't start it again." She chuckled to herself. She watched herself bounce the ball higher and higher, until it bounced into the forest, not too far away from where she was. Luna turned to go get it without thinking. She reached the ball and picked it up, and she realized what she had done: she would see herself and it would be all over. She had to find somewhere to hide before she could be seen; but it was too late. She heard a small filly approach her. "Excuse me but, um, who are you?" Young Luna wandered around the forest looking for her ball. She imagined the Doctor becoming angry if she had lost it, so she was determined to find it wherever it was hiding. "Gotta find it, gotta find it," she said to herself. She rounded a tree and saw somepony standing there. Who could it be, she thought. It doesn't look like Tia or the Doctor, so who could it be? She decided to ask; after all, that was the polite thing to do. "Excuse me but, um, who are you?" The pony she was talking to turned and faced her. She was tall and appeared to be an alicorn like her. She seemed familiar to Luna; that purple coat and that sparkling midnight mane. Wait, Luna thought, she looks just like me. "Oh, ah, here's your ball. I should be on my way now," the mare said as she set the ball down and began to walk away. "Wait," Luna called out, "Why do you look like me?" The mare stopped and slowly turned to face her. "Well, um... you see... I'm... oh this is complicated... I'm you from the future." This made sense to Luna. After all, she did look just like her and their voices souded a bit alike (even though the mare's was a bit deeper). "Oh, okay," Luna said as she picked up the ball, "Thank you me. I'll just get back to our sister. Tell her I said hi by the way." Luna began to walk off. "Wait!" older Luna called. "Yeah?" "Can you do me a favor?" "Yeah, anything for myself." She giggled. "Well, don't tell the doctor about this okay?" "Why not? This seems like something he'd be interested in." "Well, if you do it could bring about the end of the universe as we know it." "I see." "And plus, I didn't tell the Doctor when I was you, so therefore you shouldn't." "That seems reasonable. Okay, I'll see you later when I look in the mirror." She giggled again. She began to walk off towards the tree line, but stopped and looked at older Luna. "Can I ask you something?" Older Luna didn't see any harm as long as she was careful. "Will I have a good time with the Doctor?" Luna thought on this a moment. She had to admit to herself that she did have a good time with the Doctor, then a sudden realization hit her: she knew what the doctor meant earlier about being happy again. She walked up to her younger self and said to her, "You are going to have the best of times with that old stallion. Don't ever think twice about it. It will all be worth it in the end, believe me." "Okay." "Luna! Where are you?" they heard Celestia call in the distance. Filly Luna looked towards the tree line, and back at her bigger self. "It was nice meeting you. I'll see you around." With that, she ran off toward where her sister was calling from, ball with her. Luna watched herself run through the forest, when a voice came from behind her. "Well, do you see now?" She looked behind her and saw the Doctor standing there with the TARDIS right behind him. "Yes, I had forgotten what it was like to have a sense of happiness inside of me. I'll come with you." The Doctor smiled a wicked smile again. "Okay, now as I've said before, where do you want to go first?" Luna thought for a moment, and then said, "How about somewhere beautiful and dangerous, exiting and wonderful, strange and... well... timey-wimey." The Doctor turned and walked back to the TARDIS. "Thanks for narrowing it down for me," he said sarcastically. Luna chuckled and followed him into the TARDIS. It began to fade, leaving behind the sound of the universe behind it. To be continued in part two.