//------------------------------//
// Fade to White 
// Story: Dinky and Doctor 
// by Dream Volt 
//------------------------------//

	The universe was fading.  One little bit at time if faded into the great white.  And things were going so well too.  Momma and the Tardis were gone, probably back home, but maybe somewhere and somewhen else, but right now it didn't matter.  All that mattered was it was just the Doctor and me standing in a slowly shrinking grassy field.  I wanted to be confident as he was.  To stand tall and stare down the white void, daring the universe to end us.  But I was shaking.

"Dinky.  I will save us.  I don't know how but I will."	

"This…reminds me of a story."

"What?"

"The universe began in white, and I guess it ends in white too."

"Wait, is this a creation myth?"

I shook my head.  "No.  Luna and Celestia's momma told it to them, and it was passed down the whole line, but it really happened.  It all started with Galaxy the great artist."

"As in her name was Galaxy?"

"Probably.  Everypony knows her cutie mark is an inkwell, so some call her Eternal Well, but that's probably not her real name.  Galaxy might not be either, but Luna and Celestia think that's the right one.  She was a pretty alicorn with fur as white as the void around her, and red mane."

"Red, just red, nothing else?  Why red?"

"I dunno, it's just red.  She must have been born that way, or, whatever."

"So you have a creation myth that accepts your creator was somehow created herself?"

I nodded.  "Yea.  I mean everything has to be created somehow.  She was already a pony so she probably came from some other universe where whoever created ponies lives.  I dunno.  That's not part of the story.  She's just in the white void."

The doctor smiled, now standing in front of me, making it really easy to focus only on him.  "Creation stories are always good fun, and this one starts our really interesting.  So please, keep going.  What happens next?"

"She begins to draw of course.  She draws and draws and draws, and draws until finally the whole universe is full of her drawings.  There are so many interesting things, but she isn't happy.  She knows it needs more.  So then she starts to paint."

"The entire universe?"

I shook my head.  "Not at first.  Just one drawing at a time, bringing them to life.  Little creatures and plants first, then larger smarter ones until she gets to the first pony.  A creature drawn in her image, but without wings or a horn."

"And let me guess he asks for a mate and…"

"He?  Why would the first pony be a he?  She is lonely though, so the great artist brings more ponies to life and they start to talk.  She brings unicorns and pegasai and even sea ponies to life too so there's more variety.  They are happy and so is she."

"Oh now this is just something really special, isn't it?"

"But all that work is a lot for one pony, even one as amazing as Galaxy.  So she asks if anypony wants to help her finish making the universe.  Of course everypony wants to help, but things don't go so well and everypony is trying to do everything all at once, and somepony spills all the ink."

"Let me guess, each tribe blames another for it, don't they?"

I sighed and nodded.  "Pretty much, though the only versions that can be published now it's actually an alicorn that spills it, and that's why they have so much responsibility, to make up for the mistake of their ancestor."

"Though that's probably just Celestia making sure no one else has the blame."

I nodded.  "Uh huh.  I don't think it's really important.  The point is the whole universe was black now, and a lot of drawings got covered up.  The great artist could see them under the ink, but now only she could finish the job."

"Hmm, for a minute I thought she wasn't going to create all life there."

"Oh she didn't.  See she just realized that every pony should have a specific job, and it should also be something they're good and happy with.  That way no pony will ever make a mistake again."

"You do know that isn't right, correct?" he said

I laughed.  "Yea.  But it's still a nice thought, and it's how the story goes.  The next part is where most of the specific lessons are and vary from version to version.  There are ton of different jobs Galaxy came up with, and all sorts of problems they run into.  Slowly though they create everything in the whole entire universe.  From the tinniest noise, to the largest star system."

"I thought Luna did that?"

"No, that's just silly.  She's just in charge of the night, she didn't make it.  They make all the systems that make the universe work and put ponies in charge of them.  The story doesn't say if they're all alicorns, but it implies that."

"So what was Galaxy doing?"

"Well coloring all the rest of her drawing and bringing more creatures and other things into the world.  Like at first there weren't sweet things."

"Ah yes, that would be terrible, wouldn't it?"

I nodded quickly.  "So awful.  But she made everything, even the scary things for some reason, but all the great stuff too.  But she was really tired so she left the other ponies in charge and retired.  And that's how the universe was made."

The Doctor just stood there blinking for a good long while staring at the ground.  I don't get it, that was clear enough, wasn't it.

"Wait, so your creation myth includes your god, sorry, goddess, retiring?"

I nodded.  "Yea, I mean if you made a whole universe, wouldn’t you be tired too?  It's not always that word, but the idea is the same, she went somewhere else for a rest and left her helper ponies in charge."

"Well, that's certainly new.  I mean death, sure, but outright retirement?  Odd.  So Dinky, do you feel better?"

I nodded.  "Uh huh."

"Don't worry, I'd say we have a whole three minutes to get out of this situation.  That's plenty of time."

I laughed.  "It really isn't, is it?"

"Nonsense.  I've had less time and been in more hopeless situations.  Still, don't have a bloody clue how but we have time right?"

I laughed again, crying a little again too.  "Sure."

"Too bad you can't just teleport us out of here."

I fell over laughing.  All the worry faded away.  I knew what to do.  I stood up remembering I needed to hurry and tried to regain my composure.  The Doctor had looked concerned, but now he was smiling.

"Oh, you're just about to be brilliant, aren't you?  I know that face.  It's just like my about to brilliant face, but ten times cuter."

I laughed, and shook my head.  "Oh no, it's an absolutely terrible idea, but I bet it's going to work.  See Doctor you already know who my parents are, but I am a very special pony.  I was not only born on the Tardis in flight, but when it's very heart was open.  But most of all I'm a unicorn at my core.  That's what I missed most when I was human ya know."

"Wait.  Human, human, human.  Why can I say that?"  Then he blinked and looked around.  "Of course, there's barely a universe left, so the rules are out the window."

"So out the window I can actually pull this off, and once I do nothing can stop me from doing it again.  Because I am a very special muffin."

Then there was a bright flash and we were home.  Ponyville looked normal.  If we were really lucky it might even be the right year and not just close.  I then turned and saw exactly what I expected on my flank.  An hourglass cutie mark so like almost every other mark, except this one was blue instead of gold.  Rosey would never tell me how I got it, but I was never too worried about it.  On the other hoof now that it was actually here I felt I should reconsider my feelings on the subject.

"Whooooooohoooooo!"

"Did you just teleport us through time?"

I had thrown my hooves in the air in triumph and fallen to the ground.  It reminded me of the theory that all ponies descended from alicorns and that's why we did things that only made sense if we had wings or magic.  It completely ignored the traditional story, but lots of ponies did.  The idea of that just made me laugh even harder.  I got my cutie mark.