• Published 6th May 2013
  • 3,062 Views, 102 Comments

Time and Space with other traits - DetMan



The twenty fifth birthday of two women marks the day when they both begin to change into two familiar equines from Friendship is Magic, though one of them finds something more in their transformation.

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Ch. 5: Perception

Ugh...

This can’t be right...

I’m on my side, in a surprisingly warm and fluffy bed. I have several thoughts flowing through my head in a messy frenzy, and I try to organize them so I could think clearly.

...When was the last time I had a nice poppy flower sandwich? Those are always tasty, but oh! Ham? No, that’s not the proper diet, I would vomit. In fact, I don’t think it would go down far enough to actually hit stomach acid. Maybe just grass, or daffodils? Could work, grass doesn’t taste all that great anyway.

I guess I’m hungry. Though I seem to have rather odd cravings, I don’t think I will act on them unless I was in a survival situation. Then again... horses do eat that stuff, right? No, I’m not a horse, just very similar. A pony, to be exact.

Wait... ugh, my head is pounding. I need to get walking.

I push myself up from the inviting comforts of the clean sheets and take a look around. I was in a very different place, from the looks of it. It looks like a decently sized dome, with ports in the walls for light sources. There isn’t much in here besides my bed, a wardrobe, and a large mirror next to it.

I slide out of bed, and balance on my legs. For a second, I wobbled there uncontrollably, and finally I fall over onto all fours...

Wait...

I tap the hard ground with my hand to experime-

*clop*

Huh...

*clop, clop*

I finally decide to look down on myself. What I saw really didn’t surprise me at all, but still gave me quite the shock.

I had hooves instead of hands. My entire body was now covered in light brown fur, and the hourglass on my butt was complete perfection. My tail stuck out at the end, though short, it still looked fine. I finally processed the fact that I seemed to shrink down a couple of sizes...

And that my head felt really big. I need a mirror, right now.

I try to get back up on my legs, but even trying to walk on them proved to be a challenge for me. I kept falling over, knocking into my bed and almost into the mirror.

I looked into the mirror.

That isn’t my face. That isn’t even human. What I saw instead of my usual face was a huge, light brown head, with very large blue eyes. It had darker brown hair that was blown back and spiked as it traveled all the way down its neck. It had a muzzle, too. Though it looked rather... square. Where the nostrils are, the ends take a new path abruptly, making a seemingly sharp end to the muzzle.

I was looking right at the face of Doctor Whooves. Me.

I’m a full on pony.

I raise my right forehoof to touch my new face. I could feel the hard surface of the hoof on it, proving to me that this was indeed real. I poke my hair, hover my hoof over my eyes, and touch the mirror in front of me, the reversed copy of Doctor Whooves mimicking my actions.

To top off the picture, and adding to the surrealism, the green tie with the white neck collar was attached to my neck. It was the same one I wore when I was... humanoid.

I sit on my haunches, taking in the detail in the mirror. Hah, I had withers! And a flank! Hah, this is new! Hooves, tie... let’s see, legs, check, though not really human legs, but check. Hourglass... huh, fitting. Blue eyes are odd, but oh well!

For some really weird reason, I was laughing. I was laughing at myself for how interesting I looked. After all those other regenerations, the tenth was the most intriguing...

I flinched, expecting a surge of pain from my head, but none came. Instead, more ideas and thoughts fly on by, never ending, never ceasing for just one moment.

I could feel my heartbeat as I smiled widely at myself in the mirror.

Heartbeats.

*bum bum bum BUM, bum bum bum BUM*

The two hearts in my chest were beating away in sync. Never have I noticed until now how different I am. Dana would never feel this, she’s turning into something else entirely. We only... look the same...

Oh no, I forgot completely about Dana! Ditzy? Dana! No, Ditzy! Which one!?

I grow aware of my surroundings, and take another look around. This does not look like any conventional bedroom. The walls are made of a metal, only found on Gallopfrey...

Huh. That’s a funny name.

Before I go into another adventure into my mind, I get moving on all fours this time. It gets easy, over time. All I have to do is when I move one leg, I move the exact opposite after. For example, when I move my left hind leg, I then move my right foreleg. Then the opposite. Easy.

At least for me.

I trot up to a big, grey, metal door. It slides open immediately to allow me to pass into a hallway that is close to pure white, with similar portholes that have lights inside to illuminate the hallway clearly. Support beams with small circles in them hold up the ceiling from both sides of the hallway, heading up in a slight slant.

I continue down the hall, looking left and right as I went. I saw doorways that led to closets, old control rooms, screwdriver storage, bathrooms, a library with a pool in it (I checked that one out for a bit) and finally a big door leading into a large chamber, with wires and circuits exposed under a platform in the center.

On the dead center of the platform was an extremely familiar console that wraps itself in a circle around a glass cylinder that heads all the way up to the top of the dome shaped room. The console has buttons, levers, switches, keyboards, and a few things I can’t even name without going into vague descriptions, like “colorful circle thing” or “a car dashboard.”

The room emits a soft humming sound of electronics returning to life as I enter. It looked like the room has been neglected for years. Dust covers every surface, and I could see a couple cobwebs in a few of the lights.

I smile for a start, then say to no one in particular: “I’m back, Sexy.”

I guess I said that to the console, as it begins to ‘wirr’ in response and the whole room returns to full power, blowing a huge blast of air everywhere, blowing away the dust and webs into vents to who knows where.

My tie flies up to my face in the air blast, and I blow it away after the room decides to stop. A quiet *clack* emits from the ground below me, and I notice that my sonic screwdriver fell out of a pocket in the back of my tie. I go to pick it up with a hoof, then realize it is physically impossible. I smack myself for being an idiot, and lean over to pick it up with my new herbivore teeth. At least I know where the bite marks come from now.

I keep holding it in my mouth, and walk up to the console. A red, flashing light comes from a small button near my face, and I push it in with a hoof.

A monitor clicks on, revealing a bunch of fancy circles overlapping each other. Surprisingly, I could read it. It turns out the circles actually mean something, and it says:

“Holographic Recording, last recorded: Twenty five years and four days.”

I raise an eyebrow, though one didn’t exactly exist. I place the screwdriver back inside the pocket in my tie, and stand up on my hind legs, using the console in front of me to keep balance. I click “PLAY” on the monitor, and a hologram emits from seemingly nowhere right next to me.

It’s me, or rather Doctor Whooves. He’s standing there on all fours, wearing the exact same tie I was wearing. I jump a bit when he starts talking:

“Hello, I’m the Doctor! Weeell, you should know that by now, at least. I’m making this recording to tell whomever may see it because I need one for... security reasons.”

I could hear a bit of shuffling from the speakers all over the room, telling me that the recording isn’t alone. The past me (I’d assume) doesn’t seem to notice, and continues.

“I really should explain, as you're probably wondering why you are in a very different place from before. You see, this security procedure is to teleport me back to the TARDIS if I do not return in under a day. It’s a bit flawed, though, as I designed it to teleport any equine shaped entity in the universe that has similar DNA to myself. I don’t know how to program it so it can match my DNA exactly without having to kill me right now.”

I could see something slowly descending from the top limit of the hologram, which is being held by grey hooves. The quiet flaps of wings emit from the speakers as the past me speaks.

“If you are not me, the scanner that will... eh, scan you in about a few seconds will send you back to wherever you were before, and wipe your recent memory of the entire ordeal. Very sorry about that.”

Soon enough, a small arm extends from the console, and a cone shaped blue light emits from the end of it, the light flowing over my body. It does this for a few moments, then retreats back into the console.

The holographic object that was descending slowly turns out to be a very oddly shaped muffin, and before it touches the holographic me’s head, he looks up and grins. “Ditzy, that doesn’t work on me, you know.”

A high pitched giggling sound hits my ears, filling me with a growing sense of nostalgia. The muffin quickly retreats, followed by a few flaps of wings, then a face appears where the muffin used to be.

It’s Ditzy, or Derpy, or... okay, fine, I’ll call her Ditzy. Her eyes are very close to flow away from each other, and she frowns at me. “Doctor, what are you doing?”

The hologram me responds “I’m installing the Bad Timber Wolf program, a security measure if I.. never return to the TARDIS. Now shh, I need to finish it.”

She scrunches up her face, then says “Ooookaaaay~” and flies off into nothingness.

The hologram me looks back towards me. “Now, if you are still here, that means that the scan has found me. Welcome back, Doctor! The controls are now unlocked, ready for use. If for some reason you can’t remember anything, just open up the fob watch. Should all flow back to you.”

The hologram ends, and I frown at the space the hologram was. What fob watch? I pat my tie, finding nothing but the screwdriver. I don’t have a fob watch...

The hologram abruptly returns, and I jump out of my skin, letting out a high pitched ‘yelp’

It speaks “Oh, one more thing, you have to find the Elements, they are the only way you can return to your Equestria. I’d bet right now they are trying to group together. Only they can stop Discord, Doctor, so hurry up! I’ve already set the coordinates of the TARDIS to find their unique magical aura, thanks to the Elements of Harmony. I hope you don’t have too much trouble, good luck!”

The hologram ends for the second time, and I stand there in shock. The mane six? Here? That’s... wonderful! Possibly very, very bad, but wonderful at the same time! They are actually real! Who knew?!

I laugh at myself, turning away from the space the hologram was, and trot around the console.

I stop laughing. I go wide eyed when I realize:

“Where.. am I?”

I look over at a set of white double doors, and trot over to it. The door has a latch in the middle to lock it, and I push it out of the way with a hoof. I bite down on the knob, and pull it inward.

I immediately close the door when I saw what was outside. I expected the air to rush out of the entire room, but nothing happened. So, I open the door again, more cautiously.

After I was assured the air would remain where it was, I look out into space.

Goddamn space.

All I could see in front of me was pure black, with far away stars twinkling in the blackness. I could see a far off galaxy spinning away, and a bit closer a whole different planet that I never had ever heard of before.

I stood there with my mouth agape, and just then I remember what happened before I woke up in this place.

My fantasy was broken, and my eyes turn into pinpricks when I remember just exactly what happened. I got back to the apartment, Jack was there... then...

I fall flat on my back, and look down at myself. I was even more shocked when I saw nothing but a thin line where... it... was.

Then I realize, thanks to my very limited knowledge of horses, that it was actually not gone, but INSIDE ME.

In case you didn’t know, and I hope that you didn’t, horse... yeah, can go back inside when... not in use, okay this is getting awkward. Consider the topic closed.

I raise both my forehooves to my face, and take in a long, anxiety filled breath. The realization that I just became a pony ever so much aware to me, but also that I was a stallion. The most interesting stallion in the whole universe, at that, but still a stallion.

That also means that Dana is Ditzy, now.

Right, that too. She is with that human Doctor right now, I think. I can only imagine how much she is geeking out right now. The thought makes me chuckle in the almost dead silence of the chamber, with the doors still wide open to outer space.

Dana has to be Ditzy by now, so does that mean that she has wings? Lucky! I get nothing besides increased stamina, and she gets to fly! Of course, she might have to relearn how to fly all over again, but it still counts to flying.

Flying would be the most useful thing in really bad situations, too.

I get back up, and close the doors. Even if the air doesn’t get sucked out of the room and my lungs, I don’t want to risk it. I walk over to the console, and look at all the complicated controls.

Oh no, how do I even fly this thing?

I audibly express my distress by yelling out “Graaaaaah!” and slamming a hoof down on the console. It replies by mentally giving me a slap, and I am once again surprised, for out of nowhere it feels like information is being streamed straight into my head. I listen to the inaudible directions, and pull back on a really large lever.

The coordinates were already set, so I had no need to type them in. The whole room begins to shake violently as a loud ‘VWOOOORP’ emits from the glass cylinder in the center of the console, with pistons moving up and down inside it. My work isn’t done yet, because I have to navigate something called the Time Vortex without falling out of it. If I do, I end up in a random location. That is bad.

So, I regain balance and begin to turn knobs, push buttons, turn wheels, and hammer in small spots with a wooden hammer attached to the top of the console. I could hear lightning outside of the machine, and a few times it hits spot on, causing sparks to fly everywhere.

More of the fancy circles pop up in the monitor, telling me that I was close to my destination. I prepare for the landing by slowing the vehicle down, so we don’t hit the ground at mach 100000 continued, or so. Once we hit the spot, I push the big lever that started all this back up, and the pistons start to slow down gradually. The vworp sound begins to fade away, leaving behind a high pitched, surreal screeching sound that did too fade away, leaving me in silence.

Wow, that was fun.

I suddenly feel exhausted, and pant heavily while I fall back onto my haunches. Fun... but physically exhausting. I guess I really should be an earth pony for this job...

I get up after a moment, and trot over to the door. I pull it open with my teeth, and I meet an empty street. It’s night, but thanks to me feeling a bit jet lagged, I don’t think it was the exact same time I got separated from everyone. It looks like whatever I used to get here landed in a very dark alley, so I step out of the doors, and into the concrete path.

I turn around to see a short, and cartoony looking TARDIS.

It looked a lot like the human Doctor’s but a bit shorter, and more... lighter. Instead of it saying “POLICE PUBLIC CALL BOX” It said in the exact same font “PONY PUBLIC CALL BOX”.

Well, if you thought I thought it was stupid, you’d be wrong. I actually really liked the look of... my TARDIS. All mine. Heh.

I guess the sound of it materializing didn’t wake up anyone, because the streets and windows were empty and black. I close the TARDIS doors, and notice a gold glimmer appear in front of me.

I just then realize that the key Jack gave me was in the lock. I move my face in to get a better look, and it was faintly glowing golden inside it. I lock the doors by biting down on the key, and turning my head sideways once, then back again to pull it out. Once I do it, the key stops glowing, and returns to its silver, ordinary shine.

I place the key in my tie pocket with the screwdriver, and turn to face the street. Most of the street lights were still on, so I follow a sidewalk down the road.

More information begins to stream into my head again, telling me about something called a ‘perception filter’. A perception filter makes an invisible field around it in 3D, allowing whatever it is inside the field to be unnoticeable. You are not invisible, but no one will pay any mind of you, when inside it.

And apparently my key was a perception filter.

As long as I have it with me, no one will notice me unless they are looking for me really hard, or already know I am there. Interesting, could be useful.

I could hear the faint sounds of hoof on concrete up ahead, and my ears perk up at the sound. Is it Ditzy? I cast away any sense of staying quiet (though it wouldn’t matter) and rush down the street.

I come up behind an apartment complex, of which all the lights are currently out besides the hallway window. I make my way around the building up to the front, and immediately stop in my tracks.

There in front of me, was the most unlikely characters I would ever think I would meet. I saw Rainbow Dash and Big MacIntosh.

I quietly back up to hide behind the corner, the perception filter doing its work to make sure I can’t be noticed. They are quietly whispering to each other, and eventually Rainbow, to my surprise, actually lifts herself off the ground using her wings, and flies up to an open window.

I could hardly contain my excitement to finally see these two in the flesh. I lift up a hoof to my muzzle to stop me from making a very un-stallion like squeal that would probably catch their attention. Rainbow Dash seemed to be having trouble flying up to the window, however, and it looked like she stumbled through it clumsily. I didn’t hear them talk to each other, as I was entrapped by how impossible it is for something so big to fly. I think Big Mac said something about Dash being... something.

A few moments of speculating how something so big with smaller wings achieve flight effortlessly, I begin to hear the slurred laughter of two men walking my way. I remain perfectly still, hoping to whatever galactic being that watches over me that the perception filter wasn’t a devious lie. Two men walk by me, without even noticing my presence, and head right inside the door where Big Mac was recently standing. He must have hid somewhere. One of the men stops near me, though, and yep, decided to vomit right next to me. Soon after, he wipes away what’s left of the nights drinks and follows his friend inside.

I let out a quiet breath. Looks like these things work like a charm, even if it leads to awkward situations. I lean back out of my dark corner, and notice the big red come out of the bushes near the door. I could hear the muffled voices of the two men, and the shuttering of the elevator going down, then back up after a moments pause.

Events seem to fly by so fast, as I continue to sit there, waiting for something to happen. The door opens, finally, and Dash has returned to the door to let in Big Mac.

They’re heading inside, I have to follow them in, and figure out where the other... important characters are.

Oh, that was rude.

Shut up, me.

Thanks to my internal monologue, the security door closed before I could catch it. I roll my eyes, and pull out my handy dandy sonic screwdriver. I set the frequency to unlock electric locks, and press down the button with my tongue to turn on the sonic.

The familiar high pitched buzzing sound echoes in my ears, and the electric lock opens. I quickly catch the door before it falls back again, and pull it open haphazardly with my forehooves. Soon enough, I stumble inside right into the hallway. They must have took the elevator, because I could hear it once again head for one of the floors above me.

Well, I have two ideas on how to get up there.

One, I take the elevator. They would most definately hear me, and I would probably get caught in a bad position once I hit their level.

Two, I don’t take the elevator. Instead...

I trot over to the doors, and switch the frequency on the screwdriver that is still in my mouth. I point it at the edges of the door, and press down on the button once again with my tongue. I trace the entire outline of the elevator doors, and it opens up to the dusty, metal shaft.

Can I climb metal pistons with hooves? Let’s find out!

In hindsight, this was probably a really bad idea. Then again, an old motto I gave myself in a past life echoes in my head out of complete nowhere.

I’m just a mad pony with a box.

I wrap my hooves around one of the pistons that moves the elevator up and down, and start to shimmy my way up the piston.

What seemed like half an hour or so, I started to regret doing this.

I could have looked for stairs, I could have just used the damn elevator, screw if they hear it, they would probably just assume it was another all nighter coming back from a drinking party. I could have just sonic’d the pistons so they wouldn’t emit sound, if I was so worried about that. I could of--

*bonk*

“Ow! What in the-”

I hit my head against the roof of the lift. Well, I’m here, time to see if I can’t...

I look down. Really shouldn’t have done that. I mumble to myself: “Oh, that’s a very... very long fall.” and then I look back up to the bottom of the lift, looking for emergency hatches, or something that would get me inside.

No dice. These lifts are designed to have hatches on the top, not the bottom. I’d have to climb up the side of the box to get to the top. With no fingers. It’s like trying to bowl using only your pinkie.

Well, more like hooves. And your mouth.

I put together an even more stupid idea, and look over to find a metal cylinder traveling across the pit I’m hanging over. Welp, either that or wait for someone to come along and crush me with the lift.

I prepare myself to jump off the cylinder. I let go of the pipe with one hoof, and lean off of it towards the pipe. I could feel the not-so-dexterous hooves under me start to slip down the pipe, so I had to act quickly. I jump off the piston by kicking off of it with my hind legs, and I bite down on the pipe hanging off the side.

“Aaaahehehe! Ich werk’d!” I said with a mouth full of lead pipe. I was hanging off the wall in a hollow metal rectangle, with a box hanging just a bit off behind me. I could taste the old metal in my mouth, and if it weren’t for the fact that I was hanging for my life, I would have probably gagged and fell to my doom.

It was a service ladder, apparently. It was old, though, and missing many different rungs. There was more above me, so I repeated step two over and over again by hopping up the rungs and biting down on the dusty rungs. Soon enough, I was above the lift, and I jumped off of it onto the roof.

I gagged out all the dust and grime I tasted and inhaled. “Gaaah, *cough* that... wasn’t nice. Never doing that again- *gag*”

All that work was for something, however. There is indeed a hatch on top of the lift, so I bring out my screwdriver, and remove the padlock on the latch. I pull it open with my teeth, and jump down into a box full of mirrors.

Huh, this is familiar. This looks exactly like my apartments lift. There were mirrors all around me, reflecting a light brown earth pony with a sonic screwdriver in his mouth.

I notice my tie, even through all that, was pretty spotless. I guess even dust can’t notice me, at least my tie. Just to satiate my curiosity, I press down on the sonic on switch, and look at myself in the mirror with it glowing blue. To be honest, I actually thought I was looking pretty cool. Dangerously close to adorable, but cool.

I open the doors with my screwdriver, and walk into the hallway. It was pretty obvious which door they went through, thanks to the fact that the door was pretty beaten up. I could see a really impressive dent in the door, though when I took a closer look, the lock was messed up so much it hardly looked like it used to be a lock.

The door was placed back into its frame, though, but it probably would cause some kind of suspicion I was here, so I decide to just put my ear up to the door instead.

I could hear the two talking in there, in panicked tones of voice. Big Mac said something about a farm, and Dash said something about someone named Jack...

Evan yells out that this Jack isn’t answering his or her phone anymore, then a moment later I hear the sound of heavy hooves running...

Right at the door.

Too late, I didn’t dive out of the way quick enough, and I was thrown back by a rogue door being tackled by a very, very strong red stallion. Splinters fly everywhere, and a few cut into me. I was under what was left of the door when I saw the two running frantically, Dash trying to calm Big Mac down, then...

Seriously?! THERE WAS A STAIRWELL?! I did all that for NO REASON?! Where was my mind when I decided to climb the walls of the elevator shaft? There was a door leading to stairs RIGHT THERE...

In any case, they ran into the stairwell (bucking...) and I could hear the sound of people growing aware of the loud noises in all the rooms around me. As much as this really hurt, I had to get going. Perception filter or no, it would probably would be really bad to be under all this rubble. Like I said, I am only unnoticeable, not invisible. They could see me if they were looking in the area I was in.

So, I push the what-use-to-be-door off of me, and I chase after the two down the stairs. They said something about a farm, so I could definitely find such a place nearby with the TARDIS. That is, if I can actually figure out how...

I was outside by the time I finished that thought. Lights were turning on in the windows, and I could hear the two drunk men yelling out something I couldn’t comprehend. I lost the two ponies, so my only choice was to head back to the TARDIS.

I run towards where I remember I left it, and while I ran, I dug through my pocket tie for the key with my muzzle. I’m probably going to have a fun time getting used to this.

I bite into the familiar metal of the key, and it begins to glow golden like before. Great, key! Make me even more noticeable! I need that right now!

*FLASH*

There was a tall boy near me that I definitely did not see there before. Guess what? He took a picture of me. He looks at me with bewildered eyes, then says “Holy shit... Doctor Whooves?”

I didn’t have time to be a nice pony, so I bucked him in the stomach. He grunts, and flies backward quite far. After a moment to be impressed with myself, I ran up to the doors of the TARDIS, and slam the key into the lock, open it up with my hoof (somehow) and slam the doors closed once I got inside.

I yell at at the console in the middle of the room. “Okay! Time to get going, we need to get out of here RIGHT. NOW.”

I make my way to the console, and randomly set a whole new coordinate position. I do not know where in the universe this will take me, but it is much better than here. I pull back the heavy lever, and off I go.

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The TARDIS spun clockwise in the time storm as it flew at remarkable speeds through the Time Vortex. This did not last long, as a rogue lightning bolt hits the light bulb on top of the mighty ship, and sends it off course before Doctor Whooves could set it back on the right track.

A rip in the universe appears before the TARDIS. This anomaly is extremely rare in the Vortex, and if the TARDIS doesn’t go through, she and her Doctor would end up in a random point in time and space that very well could kill them both. So, she takes control and flies herself into the rip, hoping to save her thief and remain intact.

Of course, these rips can be very dangerous. They lead to alternate universes, which have ever so slight differences in time than other universes. Even the slightest change in the past can change the future drastically. Who knows where we could end up in this alternate Time Vortex?

So the TARDIS decides to go to the most familiar place in the whole universe that she knows would be safe for her, and her thief.

She’s not losing him again.

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I woke up with a start, sparks and emergency lights flashing in my sensitive eyes. At first, I thought I was back home, with my friends Dana and Jack, then I remember how much I didn’t really like Jack, then I remember that whole pony fiasco.

Right.

I’m a guy now, too.

That’s a start.

I get back up onto my haunches, and look around. The place looked positively wrecked, a few pylons were detached from the ceiling, and most of the lights were out. Wires hung (even more) loose all around me, and systems were failing. Also, poisonous gas was filling the room, forgot that detail.

Should probably exit the premises until the automatic repair systems take care of this mess. I get up, and cough at the first whiff of the gas. I stuff my muzzle into my fur, and make my way blindly to the door. I shove it open, and step out into sunlight.

Wait, wasn’t it night just a few moments ago? Did I switch time zones?

Ooh, did I travel through time? Or maybe back, considering all the trees and lack of smog.

“No, wait, the smell of the air is different, too different.” I saw out loud, and I sniff the air harshly, taking in the scents around me.

Definitely no humans here for a very long time, maybe even never. I could see a few... oddly shaped animals living in a tree close by. They looked a bit... cartoony...

“Where in the universe am I?”

“The Everfree, Doctor!”

I jump out of my skin, and turn around quickly to see a very familiar face that almost made me scream a bit.

Ditzy.