//------------------------------// // Ch. 2 Lazy Eye // Story: Ride On Shooting Star // by Closer-To-The-Sun //------------------------------// Chapter 2: Lazy Eye The pegasus flew the Doctor to a small cottage on the edge of the forest. The landing was a bit rough for the Doctor's taste, but he had become accustomed to such landings due to his piloting skills of the TARDIS. Derpy landed herself and stared at the Doctor for a few moments. He panicked a bit as he felt her eyes on her. "Eh? Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked, noticing that one of her eyes began to trail off on it's own. Pointing, Derpy replied, "You have a weird cutie mark. What's it for?" "Cutie mark?" The Doctor asked. This time, the pegasus pointed to her flank, "On your bottom." The brown pony looked at his flank to see an hourglass. He was startled to see the image on his body. Before he could think of anything to say, the grey pony interrupted his thoughts. "What special talent do you have?" she asked curiously and with a tilted head. "I….uh….don't know?" The Doctor spoke nervously. Derpy smiled, "It's okay! I don't know what my cutie mark means either, but I still love everything that I get to do." The Doctor watched as the pony displayed her flank right in front of her. He saw seven bubbles on her bottom. He looked at it for a few moments as his head tried to think of what possible reasons cutie marks exist. However, both of the ponies were interrupted by a familiar growl. It was the Doctor's stomach. "Oh, right! We still need to get muffins!" Derpy proclaimed. "Muffins?" the Doctor inquired. Derpy trotted behind the Doctor and used her head to push the brown earth pony into her home. The Doctor, while trying to avoid being forced, entered the small cottage. The pegasus continued to push him until they were both in the kitchen of the house. Once he was seated at the table, Derpy was quick to get to her pantry. "Would you like some carrots?" she asked, holding up a bushel of carrots for him to see. "N-No thank you, Derpy….it's quite alright. You don't have to-" he was cut off. "How about some chocolate muffins? Or blueberry?" she offered. "Uh, thank you, no," the Doctor declined again, "But really, I would like it if I could get back to-" "Banana muffin?" she asked with a tilt of her head. After a pause, the Doctor answered, "Yes….in fact, I would like two….please," he added last part quickly as to not be rude. A bright smile came across Derpy's face when he finally accepted. She set the two muffins on the table. The brown stallion carefully took a bite of one. To him, it tasted nostalgic and wonderful. The euphoric experience of the taste was cut short by a simple question. "So, who are you?" the innocent voice asked. The Doctor froze in fear. There was no way he could tell her he was a Time Lord that took the form of a horse after crash landing on her planet. Even if it was the truth, it sounded ridiculous. In fact, he didn't personally believe it. "M-My friends j-just call me the Doctor," he managed to say with a mouthful. "And where are you from, doc?" Derpy asked with a warm smile directed right at the Doctor. "Please, dear, don't call me 'doc'. Just the Doctor," he corrected before lied about his origins, "and I'm from….heh….around." "Then do you know about that blue box thingy in the forest? It was really big inside," Derpy stretched her hooves apart to express the size. "You went inside the TARDIS?" The Doctor panicked slightly. Derpy had a confused look on her face as on of her eyes drifted to the side, "Thar….dhis?" 'Oh goodness….you certainly have done it now,' the Doctor thought to himself. "Is that what the box thingy is called?" Derpy blinked, causing her eyes to line back up to look at the Doctor. "Um….yes. I know it sounds weird, but that 'box thingy' as you call it, is my time machine," he began to explain. "Time machine? I don't get it…." the pegasus was puzzled. "It's kind of a long story. But to put it simply, dear, I'm an alien that has taken the form of one of the species of this planet. That's all I have really gathered, to be honest because you found me shortly after I woke up," the brown pony finished by taking a bite of the muffin. The taste helped him relax a little after explaining himself. The blonde pony smiled. She placed a hoof on the earth pony's spiky mane and roughed it up a little, "I don't care if you're an alien! I like you as you are!" "What?" the Doctor was confused at her words. "I like ya, Mr. Doctor! You seem like a fun pony to be around!" Derpy said grabbing the extra muffin that the Doctor had yet to get to and began eating it. "Uh, just the Doctor, is fine," the Doctor interjected quickly still surprised that the pegasus was completely okay with the fact she was told that pony she had just invited into her home was a time traveling alien. Derpy spoke while eating, "I'm happy to have a new friend here! Most ponies don't want to be around me." This caused the Doctor's interest to be sparked, "Now why is that? You are quite a lovely gal- I mean mare, and very kind to have brought me here without knowing me." Derpy looked sad momentarily, "Someponies say that I'm bad luck or that my eyes are weird." "Your eyes?" the Doctor looked towards the pegasus. "Yeah, sometimes my eyes act on their own. The nurse said something called 'lazy eye', but I don't get it," Derpy said as one of her eyes began to move on it's own again. "Hmm," the Doctor said looking at her eyes, "seems you have a mild form of strabismic amblyopia. Nothing too serious. I think it looks quite cute." He added a smile at the end of his statement to liven the mood. And it was true that he found it a cute trait for Derpy. Derpy blushed at his words, "Aww, thank you. You remind me a lot of my little muffin." "Little muffin?" the Doctor asked. "Yeah, my daughter, Dinky. She's at school right now, but I do hope you can stay to meet her," Derpy explained with a smile. "A daughter? Huh. Don't take this the wrong why, but I never would have thought that you would be a mother," the Doctor admitted, blushing slightly. Derpy waved her hooves in front of her, "Oh, no, no. I'm more of an adoptive mother. You see, I was saw her at the orphanage a few times and how she was made fun of. I felt sorry for her because she reminded me of myself and….well, we kind of became a little family ever since." The Doctor warmly smiled, "You certainly are quite a wonderful individual, Derpy." Derpy blushed again, one of her hooves rubbing the back of her neck. She was disrupted by the front door opening, "That must be my little muffin now! I must introduce you to her, Mr. Doctor!" She dashed off the front door, edging the Doctor to follow her. The Doctor smiled as he began to follow the excited pegasus, "Alright, but please, just the Doctor is fine." In the back of the Time Lord's mind, he began talking to himself 'Well, seems I've made a new friend. I know for a fact that this will be quite a….unique trip. Besides, a change from Earth might be good for me. And I must admit, she is quite cute.'