Ditzy was at the helm of the TARDIS, steering it through time and space, letting the laws of physics warp in her wake. She didn’t actually know how to fly the TARDIS, but that didn’t matter. In dreams, you may do anything you like, and never even realize how impossible it is. It was liberating, never being tied to any place or time for longer than you wanted, and she felt like she could just fly on into infinity…
And then she saw the little red light, blinking away on top of the console. Why was it there? There had never been a little red light there before. What did it want with her?
Deep gongs began to ring in the background, echoing through the Ship, and the console shook with the reverberations. Ditzy held on to the console for dear life, trying frantically to land. But already it was too late. The block-transfer equations that comprised the TARDIS’s interior dimensions were all being eaten away piecemeal by the blow she had been dealt, reducing her to the dimensions of a broom closet and the stability of a tin can. As she was pressed up against the console, the constriction crushing her ribs, she looked up at the monitor for an explanation.
Reflected in it was a face she did not recognize, a baleful, pale face that she had never seen before. And yet, she knew whose face it was. Those eyes were unmistakably the Doctor’s. And the face was laughing.
Ditzy sat up with a jolt, blinking in the dim light of early morning. Beside her, the Doctor whined in his sleep and rolled over onto his back. Ditzy watched him for a long moment, then gently ran a hoof through his mane. At first, he grew more restless, but only for a minute. Then, he slipped back into a doze, relaxing under Ditzy’s mindful ministrations. She sighed deeply. This was hardly the first time she’d shared a dream with the Doctor, accidentally or not. Every other night they wound up sharing a fantasy world.
This wasn’t the worst nightmare they’d ever shared, either. The days after Dinky got her cutie mark were particularly traumatic. Lately, though, the nightmares had been growing ever more prevalent in their nightly adventures; dreams where the Doctor wasn’t in time to stop the Daleks, where they had seen their companions converted into Cybermen, where they had suffered a terrible fate in the Time War, or where they had never left Gallifrey at all. Those last ones were the worst of them; Ditzy felt as though she were suffocating for all eternity, right up until the Sontarans came and razed Gallifrey to the ground.
The destruction of the TARDIS wasn’t a new one, either. It, like all of the others, had been going on for months. But every time she went through it, the pain cut a little deeper than it had before. The fear was worse, the anguish more painful. She could only imagine how it must feel for the Doctor.
She kissed his forehead, wishing she could do more, and rolled out of bed. She wasn’t going to sleep anytime soon after that. In the doorway, she paused and looked back over her shoulder. Perhaps she couldn’t do anything more. But she knew somepony who could…
As Ditzy prepared to set off for a long flight, she didn’t notice the red, glowing face of the alarm clock. There was a burst of bright light, and it was gone.
When Dinky went down to the kitchen the next morning, she found it in a state of disarray bordering on the disastrous. “Doctor?” she grumbled, rubbing sleep from her eyes. “Why are you cooking?”
“Why shouldn’t I be?” the Doctor asked, glancing over from where he had been staring intently at the toaster.
Dinky looked around the room. There was egg yolk and shell all over the floor. The aborted remains of an attempt at making pancakes coated the counter. A skillet, covered in grease and burnt hay bacon, smoked quietly in the sink. “I couldn’t possibly say,” Dinky replied.
“Oh, come have some toast,” the Doctor said crossly. No sooner had he spoken than the toast launched itself from the toaster. One slice hit the ceiling and stuck there, and the other went out the window. The Doctor stared at the piece on the ceiling. “Ah. Perhaps I tightened the springs a little too much…”
“Gee, ya think?” Dinky asked.
The Doctor huffed a little. “Here, have a banana,” he said, pulling one off of a bunch and tossing it to her.
They both stood there, eating their breakfast bananas in silence. Eventually, Dinky couldn’t take it anymore. “So where’s mom?”
“She left a note, something about a delivery to Canterlot.”
“Did she say when she’d be back?”
“No, ‘fraid not.” The Doctor glanced around the kitchen. “You’d better clean all this up before she comes home, though.”
Dinky straightened up, indignant. “What? Why me?”
“Well. I’ve got work to do today.”
Dinky rolled her eyes. “Oh, sure, messing around in the TARDIS for tonight.”
“I’m not messing around!” the Doctor protested. “I’m trying to diagnose a serious--”
“Yeah, well, I’m going to see Apple Bloom and Scootaloo in an hour, and you made the mess, so as far as I’m concerned it’s your problem.”
“I--” the Doctor cut himself off. “Scootaloo, you say? Is she back as well?”
For the first time that morning, Dinky smiled. “Yeah. Finally. It’s nice that I got out of college at about the same time she did.”
“Benefits of doing twenty-odd credit hours every semester?”
“Benefits of having a vortex manipulator.”
The Doctor grinned. “You’re welcome.”
Dinky rolled her eyes, but didn’t stop smiling. “Yeah, yeah, thanks.” She paused. “I’m still not cleaning the kitchen.”
The Doctor glanced around the room. Jam had started oozing down the walls. “Yeah, fair enough.”
Dinky levitated a ball cap out from the hall closet and shoved it on her head. “Bye, Doctor.”
He frowned. “Where are you going? I thought you weren’t meeting them for--”
“I’m gonna visit Sugarcube Corner.” She glanced over her shoulder. “For some actual breakfast.”
“How sharper than a serpent’s tooth,” the Doctor said, half-joking. But only half. “Oh, don’t forget, we’re having that get-together later tonight.”
“The party,” Dinky corrected.
“Well, I wouldn’t say--”
“Is Pinkie coming?”
“Well, yes.”
“Then it’s a party.”
“Right. Okay then! Have a nice day, Dinky!”
He heard the click of the door closing, and his face fell. “I love you.”
He stared at his banana peel for a long moment, and then with a sigh, he went to go get the hose.
Up at Sweet Apple Acres, Applejack was making breakfast herself; Germane apple pancakes with maple syrup, eggs sunny-side-up, and some tofu sausage links. Granny was sitting at the table, doing her crossword. Rainbow was hunched over her morning coffee, having stayed the night in the guest room. Mac hadn’t come down yet. Apple Bloom was drawing something on a napkin.
“Doodlin’, Bloom?”
“Sketchin’,” the filly-- the young mare, Applejack forcefully reminded herself-- corrected. “Just some ideas Ah had.”
“That so?” Applejack started flipping over her flapjacks. “Anything we could use on th’ farm?”
“Not really. Well--” Bloom considered. “No, nothin’ you’d be interested in.”
Applejack smiled. “Aw, c’mon, Bloom. Ah’m always happy t’ hear what’s cookin’ in that brain o’ yours.”
Something always was, these days. Ever since Bloom had started working at the Doc’s fix-it shop, she’d gotten a voracious appetite for learning new skills. Apprenticing with Zecora, taking painting lessons, studying with Twilight… the list went on and on. Applejack was proud to say that she was the big sister of an honest-to-goodness Renaissance mare.
“Well, alright,” Bloom said reluctantly. “Ah’m tryin’ to figger out a way to make a mechanized cart, so we can transport apples more easily.”
Applejack frowned deeply. “Like that rattletrap contraption them Flim-Flams drove ‘round in?”
“Well, ‘cept for the part where it’s about twenty times more stable, ‘bout a quarter of the size, and won’t stink like a flamin’ outhouse, kinda.”
Applejack’s lips quirked up into a smile. “Heh. It did smell like that, didn’t it?”
“And rotting apples,” Dash put in. Applejack was surprised. Rainbow wasn’t usually sapient until after her second cup of joe.
“An’ burnt rubber,” Granny added. “‘Bout th’ only good part o’ that whole shebing.”
“Shebang, Granny,” Apple Bloom corrected.
Granny looked up. “Eh? Who’d she bang?” She frowned at Rainbow. “There’s a reason we put ye in the guest room.”
Applejack went almost fluorescent with how hard she blushed. “Granny!”
Dash just cocked her head and smiled vaguely. Applejack rolled her eyes. Clearly, the comment about fermenting apples had just been a fluke. “‘Nother coffee Dash?”
“Yesssssss,” the pegasus moaned, letting her head bounce off the table.
“Bloom, would’ja--”
“On it.” Apple Bloom pried the mug from Dash’s wings and poured another half-cup of rich, dark coffee into it. “How d’you want it?”
“Dark as my soul,” Dash muttered.
“Half-cuppa cream, five sugars. Got it.”
“Don’t forget honey.”
“Don’t forget what, sugarcube?” Applejack asked.
Granny snorted with laughter at that, and Rainbow rolled onto her side. “Ayyy-Jayyy, it’s too early to be making puns like that.”
“Oh, just ‘cause you sleep in--”
“I think you woke up before Princess Celestia did. Granny, make AJ stop being such a morning person!”
Applejack rolled her eyes. “Breakfast’s almost ready.”
Dash hummed as she slugged her second cuppa. “Hey, what time is it?”
“‘Bout seven. Why?”
“I’ve got a very important meeting to attend,” Dash said, making an attempt to sound like a pompous Canterlot noble and failing utterly. “An ambassador will be in attendance!”
Apple Bloom frowned. “What in tarnation are you talkin’ about?”
“Oh, that’s today, is it?” Applejack asked. “Well, ‘ccordin’ to Twilight, you ain’t gonna meet her ‘til ten, so you can jes’ sit an’ eat your breakfast.”
“Yeah, yeah, alright.”
When Applejack had looked away, Dash turned to Bloom, rolled her eyes, and mouthed, ‘Yes, mom.’
Bloom stifled a snicker as Applejack turned to set the pancakes on the table. She looked at the sole undisturbed chair and scowled. “Big Macintosh! Iffin y’all want yer breakfast, you’d better get yer flank in gear and in this chair!”
There was a sudden thumping sound from above as four hooves came thumping down the staircase. Moments later, an even-redder-than-usual Big Macintosh came into view. “Sorry AJ. Lost tracka time.”
Everypony stared. “Mac,” Applejack began.
Dash cut across her. “Why are you wearing that dress?”
Mac gave her a look like it was obvious. “Needed something t’ wear fer th’ party t’night.”
“Yeah, but why are you wearing that dress?”
“Cause today’s a ‘she’ day.”
“Right, yeah, I get that. Genderfluid and stuff, changes all the time, but why are you--”
“Why are y’all wearin’ mah old Gala dress?”
“Oh,” said Mac. “That’s just ‘cause it’s purty.”
“It’s also ‘bout three sizes too small for you. How did you even fit in there, sis?”
“Well, it ain’t like I got that many options,” Mac huffed. “It’s either this or goin’ through th’ attic fer hoof-me-downs.”
“Then go through the gol-darn attic!” Applejack said. “If you rip that thing, Ah’m makin’ sure Rarity knows it’s your hide she wants to tan.”
Mac’s shoulders sagged as she absorbed the weight of that. “Ah jus’ wanted t’ look nice fer tonight,” she said. “Had a tie all picked out’n everythin’ yesterday, an’ this mornin’ Ah wake up an' Ah'm a mare.”
Granny Smith rubbed her chin. “Hm. Why don’tcha take yer ma’s ol’ green sundress? Might not be big enough, but Ah reckon that friend of AJ’s, er…”
“Rarity,” Dash supplied.
“Yes, Austerity might be able t’ let it out.”
“Whatcha wanna look fancy for anyhow, Mac?” Bloom asked. “Ain’t no fancy party, just a bunch of us from town.”
Applejack grinned. “An’ Ah bet that’s why.”
Bloom looked confused, then broke into a wide grin. “Oh, right. Twilight’s comin’, ain’t she?”
Mac stared straight ahead. “Dunno whatcher talkin’ bout,” she said calmly.
“Sure ya don’t,” Bloom said smugly.
Mac frowned. “Maybe Ah jes’ wanna look nice fer mahself. Jes’ ‘cause you tie yer braids with copper wire--”
“Alright, enough’s enough,” Applejack said, waving a hoof. “We’re all gonna sit down an’ eat breakfast an’ be nice.” She paused. “Except you, Mac. If you get syrup on that dress--”
“Alright, alright, Ah’ll change,” Mac grumbled, storming back up the stairs.
Dash frowned at Applejack. “What was that about Twilight?”
“Oh, she’s had a crush on the Princess fer awhile now,” Applejack said, grinning. “When she’s around, Mac can’t hardly say more than ‘eeyup’ and ‘nope’.”
There was a heavy stomp from above. “Ah heard that!” Mac said, her voice muffled by the floor.
Applejack winced. “Whoops! Heh, sorry, Mac. No offense!”
“Show you. Ah’ll go see her right this mornin’ after visitin’ Miz Rarity.”
“Mac, you really ain’t gotta--”
“Before Ah visit Miz Rarity!”
Applejack sighed. “Damn proud ol' -mutter-mutter-.”
Dash took a few pancakes from the plate. “Thanks for breakfast, AJ. I gotta go clean up at my place for the ambassador!”
“Now hold on one cotton-pickin’--”
But Dash was already gone. Bloom took a couple of tofu links and wrapped them up in a pancake. “Yeah, Ah better git goin’, too. Ah wanna see Winona afore Ah go off ta town. Bye!”
“Bloom, you git back here! Granny? Granny?”
Granny had taken the whole skillet of eggs and wandered off to the parlor. Applejack had been left alone. She sighed, slumping down in a chair, and took a pancake off the top of the pile. “More fer me,” she said sadly, pouring syrup over the top.
The light of the morning sun lit the dining chamber of the royal sisters. Very few ponies outside of the staff had ever been in that room. Even if they had, they probably wouldn't have recognized it as belonging to the Princesses of the Sun and Moon. It was too small, only about four hundred feet square. There was no gold, no gems, no decoration of any kind apart from a clock shaped like a cat and a few small photographs. The floor was tiled like a checkerboard, black and white. Most damningly of all, the table was square instead of a ludicrously long rectangle. The chairs were slightly wobbly, the pictures hung askew, and the bowl of fruit was far from artfully arranged.
It was Celestia's favorite room in the castle. She had overseen its construction personally. When Luna had returned, she wasn't sure whether to stay ten feet away from the room at all times, or to refuse to come out of it. The room was, you see, a perfect reconstruction of the TARDIS dining room from back when the sisters had traveled with the Doctor. To a certain degree, it still felt exactly like home.
The doors on either side of the room swung open at the same time. Luna trotted in from the north side, looking as fresh as a daisy. Celestia stumbled in, a comb stuck in her mane. "Good morning, sister," Luna said cordially.
"Coffee," Celestia replied.
A waiter quickly stepped forward with the requested beverage. It came in a mug emblazoned with the words 'Rise and Shine,' with a little cartoon sun on the other side. The sun was wearing sunglasses. Celestia drained the whole thing in a single gulp before throwing herself into her chair. Luna sat down at the other end of the table and poured herself a glass of red wine.
Celestia glanced up. "Long night?"
"Somewhat trying," Luna replied, swirling her glass. "There were a number of proposals that I recalled you telling me about at breakfast yesterday evening."
"Hm," Celestia said. "Points to them for perseverance?"
Luna made a disgusted noise at the back of her throat and Celestia smiled. "And the dream realm? Ticking along well?"
"As well as ever," Luna said noncommittally.
Two waiters came out from the kitchen. In front of Celestia, they placed a large omelette, a rasher of hay bacon, and a glass of orange juice. Luna received a plate of fettuccine in cream with asparagus.
"Delicious," Celestia murmured.
"You've only had the coffee so far."
"Your point?"
The light in the room flickered for a moment. Luna took a bite of her pasta and hummed her approval. "Anything especially interesting today, Tia?"
Celestia shook her head. "Not particularly, no. The new griffon ambassador is staying in Ponyville today, and won't arrive in Canterlot until Thursday. That's really the only event of note all this week."
"I look forward to meeting with her."
"As do I. The first meeting after a revolution is always so refreshing."
Luna sipped her wine. "Of course, if half of what I've heard of her is true, we may soon have another player in our prank war..."
"Only if she asks," Celestia warned.
"Of course, of course." Luna frowned. "What is going on out there?"
Both princesses looked out the window. The royal guards were chasing a pegasus around the courtyard. Their armor was slowing them down, though, and the object of their pursuit was remarkably good at evading them. She also looked rather familiar. Celestia squinted. "Is that who I think it is?"
"I believe so," Luna said, rising to her hooves. "You had best put an end to this."
"Agreed." Celestia threw open the window. "Guards! Halt!"
Every one of the guards stopped on a dime. The intruder didn't, and slammed into one head-first. "Good morning, Ditzy," Celestia called. "To what do we owe this pleasure?"
Ditzy looked up and waved. "Good morning, princess! I need to talk to you about the Doctor."
Celestia gestured that she should approach. She flew up. A few guards tried to block her, but Celestia cleared her throat and they quickly flew away.
"Won't you come inside?" Celestia offered. "Luna and I were just about to have breakfast."
"Dinner," Luna corrected.
"Breakfast," Celestia said firmly.
"Luna's here too? Good. I really needed to see her." Ditzy flew through the window and landed on the floor.
"How do you like your eggs?" Celestia asked.
"Sunny-side up, please."
Luna nodded to the waiters, who quickly returned to the kitchen.
Celestia sat down again and pulled up a chair for Ditzy. "Coffee?"
"Um, yes please," Ditzy said. "Cream, two sugars."
A mug appeared before her almost before she'd finished speaking. "Thank you," she said, nodding to the waiter. "Um, about the Doctor."
"Yes, of course," Luna said, setting down her fork. "I trust they are well?" She considered. "As well as they ever are, that is."
"Well, no. Actually, that's why I wanted to talk to you, your highness."
"No titles at the breakfast table," Celestia said firmly.
"Dinner table!"
"Breakfast table."
"Um, right. Your-- your--" she struggled, clearly distressed.
"Pax, pax, Dr. Doo!" Luna said. "If you truly struggle so to address us by our names, we can make an exception."
"Th-thank you, your highness. But, um, you don't need to call me Dr. Doo, just Ditzy is... fine..." She trailed off, looking from one smirking face to the other. "Oh. I see."
"Go on, Dr. Doo," Celestia said, waving her to continue.
Ditzy took a deep breath. "The Doctor's been having nightmares and passing them on to me and I keep seeing him in them, but it isn't him, it's evil! The Doctor's dreaming about himself being evil, and they're the worst dreams ever, and it's been more than a month and you haven't done anything about them!"
If Luna had looked concerned before. that was nothing compared to how she looked now. "Nightmares? The Doctor?"
Celestia frowned. "I'm more curious about how they get 'passed on' to you."
"Time Lords can share dreams through skin contact, apparently. It's usually really nice! We can go on adventures and explore distant planets all night long. But when it's a nightmare..."
Luna frowned deeply. "This is most disturbing. Particularly because I had no notion of these nightmares at all."
Celestia tapped her mug against her teeth thoughtfully. "Has the Doctor said anything about this?"
Ditzy scoffed. "Please. He could have a spear sticking out of his chest and he wouldn't complain. Of course, if the thermostat's one degree too low..."
"Proud fool," Luna grumbled, sitting back in her chair.
“I can understand why,” Ditzy said. “Some of those dreams… they were about us.”
Celestia cocked her head. “Us?”
“You two. Me. The Elements. The Crusaders. Every friend the Doctor has, in this world or any other -- wiped out. Sometimes it’s fast. Sometimes, it’s agonizingly slow. Sometimes, sometimes our bodies are taken over and we’re forced to attack him, and, and, and--” She broke off, tears overwhelming her.
She felt two soft, great wings wrap around her, and suddenly Celestia was cradling Ditzy to her chest, holding her tight and gentle in her embrace, whispering to her softly. They stayed like that for some several minutes -- Ditzy wasn’t quite sure how many. But once she had managed to calm down a little, Celestia let her go.
Ditzy pulled away and started to say something, but broke off, transfixed by the shiny ribbon of snot that now marred the princess’s chest. Celestia smiled at her. “Now that you’ve used me as a tissue, would it be too much to ask that you use my name?”
Despite herself, Ditzy let out a wet chuckle. “I guess not,” she decided. “So, um… where do we go from here?”
The princesses exchanged a solemn look. "Intervention?" Luna asked.
"I believe so. Ditzy, when is the soonest you can gather a number of the Doctor's closest friends and get them in a room together?"
"Um, tonight. The Doctor's unveiling his latest invention, an interface for the TARDIS."
"Excellent. When and where?"
"Our house at seven."
"We shall be there."
Ditzy jumped. "But what about the country?"
"The country is perfectly capable of looking after itself for an hour," Celestia said firmly. "We haven't got any meetings. Even if we had, this would take precedence."
"The Doctor is our oldest friend," Luna said. "He mentored us, helped us to become the rulers we are today. We would never betray that friendship. Not ever."
"Thank you pri-- Celestia. Thank you, Luna.." Ditzy looked lost for words. Thankfully, a waiter came out of the kitchen with her eggs. The mood lightened.
"Fear not, fair Ditzy," Luna said, digging into her pasta once more. "We shall do our utmost to solve this conundrum. You have our word."
Dinky pushed open the door to Sugarcube Corner and let it all wash over her. The fragile fragrances of sugar, fruit, and chocolate, the coolness of the air-conditioned room, the bright, pastel shades of the wall… It was impossible to imagine Pinkie Pie not living here.
Yet, it was not Pinkie Pie who was running the counter on this sunny day in early summer. Nor was it Mr. or Mrs. Cake. It was the slightly-younger of the Cake twins, Pumpkin, who stood at the register, while her brother swept the floor free of crumbs.
“Morning, Pumpkin. Pound.”
Pound looked up from his sweeping and blushed. “H-hi, Di-Dinky,” he said. “How, how are y-you this mor, this morning?”
Dinky considered this. “...Meh. Dad tried to make breakfast this morning while mom’s in Canterlot delivering a message.”
“So now you’re here for actual breakfast?” Pumpkin guessed.
“Stars above, yes. Got any doughnuts?”
“Only glazed.”
“Eh, pass. What else you got?”
Pumpkin spread her hooves wide. “Why don’t you take a look?”
Pound leaned over. “Puh, Pumpkin! Remem, ember what d-dad said about being a good, a good salespony!”
The filly sighed. “Right, right… may I interest you at all in our new lemon meringue fudge? Pinkie Pie just made it this morning before disappearing. Again. You could be the first pony in town to try it!”
“You mean you haven’t tried it yet?”
“You kidding? Just looking at it makes my teeth hurt.”
Pound sighed and turned back to his sweeping.
“I’ll just have a bagel.”
“Cream cheese?”
“And strawberry jam.”
“I’ll have the same,” a familiar male voice said.
Dinky spun around. “Rumble? What are you doing back in town?”
The stallion smirked. “You say that like you’re disappointed.”
“Deeply. So, did you come down with Scootaloo, or what?”
Rumble’s eyebrows shot up as he took his breakfast from the counter. “She’s back too?”
“Yeah, didn’t you know? We're meeting up with Bloom later.”
Rumble shook his head, taking a bite of the bagel. “‘S great, though,” he said through his mouthful. “Two-thirds of the Crusaders, back again.”
“Yeah, it‘s convenient,” Dinky agreed. “But seriously, what brings you back to Ponyville?”
Rumble shrugged. “I needed to get a reference letter from Rainbow,” he said. “I’ve got a job interview lined up for the weather patrol out in Windy City.”
“Windy City?” Dinky whistled. “Big city lights calling to you, bud?”
Rumble made a so-so gesture with a hoof. “It’s got a good salary, decent hours, solid benefits. I’m not crazy about going to a big city, really, but I’ll weather it.”
Dinky gave him a long, flat look. “That pun was bad, and you should feel bad.”
Rumble grinned at her. “So, you said Bloom and Scootaloo were back?”
“Yeah, we’re meeting up in about forty minutes. Wanna hang out until then?”
“Sounds good,” Rumble said, smiling. “You wanna get a table? I need to order some coffee.”
“Yeah, sure,” Dinky said, trotting towards the booths. As soon as she turned away, her smile fell. Rumble was going all the way to Windy City? That was halfway across Equestria! Still, at least he was the only one of the Crusaders traveling that far.
...Wasn’t he?