//------------------------------// // Christmas Eve // Story: Doctor Whooves Episode 15: The Christmas Ponies // by Doctor Perseus //------------------------------// Chapter 1: Christmas Eve Grounds of the Beckwithshaw Hotel, Outskirts of Harrogate, England, Earth, Winter, 2010 A.D. It seemed to grow colder as the Doctor, Twilight, and Derpy continued their stroll through the snow-covered English countryside. The Doctor took in a deep breath of air and exhaled happily. "It sure feels good to be back in my own universe," he said. "Nothing here feels very different from our own universe," Twilight stated. Just then, the sound of children laughing began echoing through through the air. The Doctor looked and could just make out the sight of children drawing near. "Quick! Behind this bush!" The three ponies crouched behind a bush as the two children ran past. "Come on, Scott! We need to get back to the hotel before Mum begins to worry!" said the girl. "Can we stay out here a bit longer? It's Christmas Eve and Mum's going to want to do all of her traditions and stuff," the boy known as Scott groaned in reply. "No! Now come on!" Scott groaned again before following his sister in the direction of the Beckwithshaw Hotel. The three ponies stood up and continued on their way. "So it's Christmas Eve! What a great coincidence!" the Doctor said with delight. "I remember you mentioning Christmas back in Ponyville," said Twilight. "Could you explain more about it?" "Certainly." As the Doctor began explaining the concept of Christmas to Twilight, Derpy's attention was pulled towards a frozen pond located a few feet away. Something seemed off about it. She turned towards the pond and began to approach it. Within seconds, she was staring into her own reflection in the frozen water. The ice glistened in the winter sun as Derpy examined her reflection. She smiled. "Ditzy," whispered a voice. Derpy jumped and nearly fell onto the icy pond in front of her. "What?!" asked a surprised Derpy. "Ditzy. Come to me." Derpy was beginning to shake in her boots. She partly felt that she was going insane. "Please come home." "Get out of my head!" "Derpy?" asked a concerned voice. Derpy jumped around and was relieved to see the Doctor and Twilight standing in front of her. "Is something wrong?" Twilight asked. Derpy turned back towards the pond and shook her head. "No. Nothing's wrong," Derpy replied. "Well...you want to come along then?" asked the Doctor. Derpy smiled and walked away from the pond as fast as her hooves could carry her. Twilight followed after Derpy while the Doctor took a quick glance at the pond. He shrugged his shoulders and continued on his merry way. Room 410 of the Beckwithshaw Hotel, Outskirts of Harrogate, England, Earth, Winter, 2010 A.D. "And here's your room," said Mr. Franks happily as he opened the door. Donna and Shaun smiled as they entered the room. It was a large suite that came with a marble bathroom, an HD television, a velvet carpet, a large king-sized bed, a mini refrigerator, and several other accessories. Their luggage had already been taken up to the room by the staff. "It's perfect. Thank you, Mr. Franks," said Shaun as he once again shook their host's hand. "Anytime. Anytime. Enjoy your stay." Mr. Franks smiled again as he closed the door. Donna ran over to the bed and fell onto her back. "Now this is how to take a vacation!" Donna exclaimed. Shaun sat on the edge of the bed, leaned over, and kissed Donna on the lips. "And it's all thanks to you," he said. "Nah. Not really. We have that lottery ticket to thank for it." "Speaking of the lottery ticket, did you ever find out who gave it to you?" Donna's face seemed to go blank for a moment. She sat up and exhaled softly. "No. I never did. I asked Mum and Granddad but all they said is that it was from a friend. I wish I could remember who it was." Donna turned to look out the window. The snowy grounds of the Beckwithshaw Hotel opened up into the wide English countryside. Donna stood up and approached the window. Her eyes were drawn towards a frozen pond that she could see in the distance. "She is returning," whispered a soft voice in Donna's ear. "Hmm?" Donna asked as she turned towards Shaun. "Did you say something?" "No," Shaun replied. Donna turned back towards the window. "They are returning," whispered the voice. "The lost child and the lost friend. They are returning." Donna froze in place. Her head seemed to grow hot. She grabbed her temple and caressed it slowly. She groaned in annoyance and Shaun proceeded to stand up, walk over to her, and begin massaging her shoulders. "Is something wrong, Donna?" "No, it's just...my head...I...I...I'm going for a walk!" she replied. "I'll come with you then." "I want to be alone right now!" Donna pulled her coat back on and began walking towards the door. "Donna? Is something wrong?" Donna turned back towards Shaun and smiled. "No. I just need to think about something." Shaun watched in confusion and Donna walked through the door without another word. Grounds of the Beckwithshaw Hotel, Outskirts of Harrogate, England, Earth, Winter, 2010 A.D. Derpy found a nice spot to sit under a large tree on a hill. She, the Doctor, and Twilight had already walked a good distance away from the hotel. The Doctor and Twilight sat together and continued to discuss Christmas. "That's really interesting! I can't wait to write the Princess about this," Twilight stated. "You go and do that then," said the Doctor with a smile. The chestnut stallion turned around to face Derpy. She appeared to be in deep thought, which was something that was not a usual activity of Derpy Hooves. As Twilight examined the scenery, the Doctor stood up and walked over to Derpy. "Hey. Are you okay?" "Huh? Oh...I'm fine," she replied. The Doctor sat down next to her. "Really?" "Yeah." "Derpy, you can tell me if there's anything going on. You trust me, don't you?" "Of course!" "Then, are you absolutely sure that there's nothing going on?" Derpy was silent for a moment. She scratched one of her ears, sighed, and stared out towards the bleak horizon. She took a mental note of how colorless the winter sky was. She thought back to the pond and the voice she had heard. What the voice had said scared her. She felt as if she knew the voice, and yet she didn't. She didn't want to think about it. Her mind slipped away from the thought of the voice and back to the Doctor. She turned towards the Doctor and shook her head. "I'm fine. Nothing's wrong." The Doctor was silent for a moment. He examined Derpy closely with his ancient eyes. Derpy was panicking on the inside. There was no way the Doctor would be able to see through her façade. She expected him to question her further but he simply nodded and turned towards Twilight and the horizon. "A winter in England in something to cherish. I can remember all of the peaceful moments I shared with my companions in this country." A sad smile appeared on the stallion's face as he proceeded to let out a chuckle. "It's funny." "What is?" Derpy asked. "I used to never be one for looking back. Ever since my regeneration I've had this endless need to look back. On everything I've done. Everyone I've met. All the things that have happened, are happening, and have yet to happen. My past: scattered throughout the whole of the universe and those far away." The Doctor leaned his head back against the trunk of the tree and closed his eyes. Derpy smiled and turned towards Twilight, who was still busy examining the English countryside. Derpy stood up and walked over towards the edge of the hill they were on. She looked towards the Beckwithshaw Hotel. The cluster of trees concealing the invisible TARDIS was the first thing she focused on aside from the hotel itself. Her eyes then drifted over towards the pond that she had been standing over a little while earlier. There was something about that pond. Derpy knew that there was something different about that pond. Something lurked inside it. Something...conflicted. "Come home, Ditzy," Derpy heard the mysterious voice whisper. Derpy's heart began to beat like a quick drum. "Come home to me. Come home to us. I, we, have waited for so...so long." "Get out of my head," Derpy said angrily under her breath. "Get out of my head, whatever you are!" "She is coming. The Lady Time-Lord is returning." Derpy couldn't help it. Her eyes were pulled in the direction of the pond. Then, in the blink of an eye, Derpy was floating underneath the surface of the pond. She wasn't physically in the pond, for she could breathe and was in a spiritual state, but she could still feel the icy water brushing against her coat. The light of the winter day shone through the ice above her. Derpy looked below to see an endless abyss stretch down into infinity. She looked up just in time to see the figure of a woman appear on the side of the pond. Derpy couldn't identify who the woman was. The woman knelt down on the side of the pond and tapped the ice. "Come to us. Come to me." Derpy looked down and saw an army of blue eyes rising from the depths of the pond. Derpy didn't want to find out what was coming up. She swam towards the surface but couldn't break through. The creatures were swimming up faster and faster. "LET ME OUT!" Derpy cried as she banged against the ice. "LET ME OUT OF HERE!" The woman on the side of the pond didn't seem to hear her cries. Derpy looked down to see one creature rising towards her. "LET ME OUT!" The creature phased through her body and smashed into the icy surface of the pond. A large crack appeared in the surface of the pond and the woman jumped back. Derpy gasped and found herself standing back on top of the hill. Twilight was approaching her with a curious look on her face. "Are you okay, Derpy? You sort of froze there for a moment," she said. Derpy turned towards the Doctor, who was still leaning his head back on the tree trunk, and then turned to look at Twilight. "She's coming, Twilight," said Derpy with an emotionless face. "Who is?" "The Lady Time-Lord is coming." Derpy turned away from Twilight and looked out towards the horizon. "Derpy, what are you talking about?" Derpy smiled nervously and chuckled. "I have no idea." Outside the Beckwithshaw Hotel, Outskirts of Harrogate, England, Earth, Winter, 2010 A.D. Donna stepped through the front doors and into the cold outdoors. She placed her hands in her coat pockets as she made her way across the white grounds of the hotel. The air felt blunt and cold against her face and her eyes burned with each breeze. Donna wished to head back inside and cuddle up with Shaun in her suite, but she had something to check out first. It didn't take her long to find the frozen pond that she had spotted from her window. It didn't look that special. It looked like any other frozen pond. And yet, Donna felt as if there were something...off about it. Every part of her body was telling her that something was wrong, but she couldn't figure out what it was. She knelt down on the edge of the pond and tapped her fingers on the surface. She waited a few seconds. Nothing happened. Donna rolled her eyes and sighed. "Figures," she stated with disappointment. She stood up and was about to head back to the hotel when, suddenly, the ice cracked. Donna jumped back as a large crack suddenly formed on the surface of the pond. "What the hell?" "She is returning," whispered the cold voice. Donna froze in her place. The inside of her brain grew hot as the voice whispered to her. "She is returning. The lost child is returning. You are returning." Donna felt her muscles tighten and her breaths grow raspier. "You are returning and it shall die. You are returning, Donna Noble." "SHUT UP!" Donna screamed as she backed away from the pond. For a moment, she could see a pair of blue eyes glaring up at her. Donna grabbed her head. The image of a giant wasp as well as an erupting volcano flashed in her mind. She backed away from the pond and began running back towards the hotel. "GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" By the time she had gotten back to the hotel, Donna had forgotten about the eyes, the wasp, and the volcano; and her head had stopped feeling hot. However, she still remembered the voice. "You are returning, Donna Noble," it had said. By the time Donna got back to her room, she had forgotten about the voice entirely.