Daring Do & All of the Time in the World

by The Princess Rarity


So let your heart, sweet heart, be your compass when you're lost...

Daring Do & All of the Time in the World

by The Princess Rarity


"Curse you, Daring Do!"

The famous cry echoed throughout the thick brush of the Everfree Forest, and the heroine mentioned let out a loud, victorious laugh as she slipped the treasure under her hat and continued to soar across the horizon effortlessly, about as free as a bird.

Yet again, another artifact was saved and Equestria was as it should be.

Adventure sure was a beautiful thing.

Letting out a relieved and relaxed sigh of content, Daring glided through the wind and towards the ground to take a rest, only before a certain sight caught her eye.

A flash of light, followed by blue and white, right on the border of the Forest...

It couldn't be - could it?

She squinted, and stopped mid-flight to look.

There it was, to much of her disbelief.

The adventurer smiled, and held onto her hat as she zipped towards the figure near the woody area, moving so fast that any passerby would've just mistaken her grey coat for a mist of fog floating by, so within the blink of an eye, she hit the figure...

...and swung open a door, finding herself in a brand new world as akin to her usual wildlife surroundings when it came time to explore.

Flashy little lights, various thingamabobs and several buzzing technological yet also unexplainable trinkets decorated the steel walls and other structures inside. On the outside, what Daring had seen, it was but a simple phone box. But if one were to look inside, what an amazing sight they would see - the type that would take away anypony's breath and put them in a state of bliss mixed with a boatload of confusion.

However, Daring's satisfied expression was quickly disturbed as a sudden yell alarmed her, and she quickly turned around to see a threatening, blinking light right in front of her face, with a certain somepony handling it.

"Oh, frightfully sorry. I had thought you were somepony else."

With a chuckle, the bold pegasus took a step back. "Afternoon to you, Doctor," she said, with a smile as she took off her hat, revealing the treasure she had retrieved. "My mission is complete."

"You have it?"

"Does it look fake to you?" she smirked, holding the valued scroll out. "It's the genuine Fillydelphian manuscript of King Solaris's revolution."

Snatching out of her grasp happily, the stallion before her smiled wide as he gently opened it and nodded approvingly. "Thank you yet again, Daring," he praised. "I definitely owe you this time around. After all, without this speech, we'd be living in a democracy. Imagine how vile that'd be."

"You don't owe me anything," she declared, placing her hat back on and returning the grin. "Just take me to dinner and we're good."

"Of course," he replied, with a chuckle. "Maris or Roam?"

"Surprise me," she retorted, playfully winking.

One thing she didn't include in her books was this wonderful lad and the various favors she did for him. After all, giving Daring Do a male companion? She had seen what fans had done with her and Ahuizotl - and those were the center of her nightmares. She didn't dare bring this fellow up.

Now, this fine dashing stallion was no regular pony - he was more than that.

His name was The Doctor, or Time Turner (to fit among other ponies), and he was about as adventurous as Daring was, if not more. However, unlike her, he didn't showcase it off. Not that she could blame him, though. He had a secret identity to keep, just like her, but it wasn't easy for him to hide like she could.

So he ran.

And he kept running.

Through time and space and who knows where else.

Fortunately, Daring always knew where he was.

Unfortunately, she couldn't follow.

Releasing a sigh, she gently flapped her wings, rising inches up off the ground and about to zip out as her exit, only before his voice summoned her to stop.

"Would you like to stay for a bit?" he asked. "I'd hate to see you go so soon."

With an arched eyebrow, Daring looked back to him, slightly hesitating. "Why?" she said, in a soft manner. "Isn't this how it's always been? You find me, tell me stories, give me a mission, I go on my quest, and then there's this part."

He laughed, shaking his head in disbelief. "I hate this part," he replied.

"You're not the only one," she muttered.

"So, take my offer then," The Doctor said simply. "Stay for a bit. I still you owe dinner from the last mission anyhow. We could even go on an adventure - together."

Suddenly, Daring looked at him seriously for a moment, and his simple nod assured her of her unspoken question. For once, the ending of their seemingly endless story was going to change. For the first time in a long time, she wouldn't be alone in her hut, tapping the night away on her typewriter, creating the next book that was her secret autobiography. She'd be having endless fun, like she had always hoped for.

Giving her a smile, Time Turner looked over her for a moment. "You haven't changed a bit, have you?" he mused.

She tipped her hat, and winked. "Couldn't if I tried," she responded.

"Wonderful," he declared. "Then get comfortable. We're going on a trip. Buckle up."

"You know, you never let me drive this," she teased, with a cute little pout.

Time Turner chuckled, and yanked on one of the many pulleys to summon his vehicle to start moving. "Need I remind you about the Changeling War?" he mused.

Daring gave a half-hearted shrug, blowing her mane out of her face as she looked across the way to her Doctor. "If I'm being honest, that was actually sort of fun," she said simply. "You and I on the battlefield, wiping out a few aliens, kicking some mutant flank together, and then makin' out afterwards. That was probably one of the best dates we've been on."

"I reeked of Changeling blood for a week afterwards," Time Turner said blankly.

"Hey, every adventure's got a price," she defended. "You just need to know how to handle it."

"Of course I do, my dear," he murmured, with a smile as he finally made his full circle around the controls to get his gigantic gizmo moving. "After all, I'm not who I am for nothing."

Letting a brief chuckle slip past her lips, Daring swiftly landed on the steel floor of the scientific time machine that had begun to jerk through time frames, and reached forward, grabbing Time Turner to kiss him sweetly in that wild and feisty manner she couldn't control. Besides, it was tradition - if they traveled, then she'd kiss him, to always remember every adventure they ever had together. It was a rarity to be close, what with their unbelievably fast lives, so making memories was essential.

Shooting her a playful wink, The Doctor breathlessly laughed. "Missed me, did you?" he whispered.

"Shut up," she muttered, with a small smirk.

"Oh, you definitely did," he teased.

"Just tell me where we're going," she declared, refusing to give in to his truthful statements.

Yes, she did miss him. More than anything.

She loved the way he laughed at her, or how his starry blue eyes sparkled, the feeling of when his two hearts would swell as they held one another, how he'd kiss her in that awkward manner that made her chuckle, but most of all she just missed seeing him for more than five minutes.

This was a beautiful occasion, and she most definitely was not going to waste it, or her name wasn't Daring Do.

"It's a surprise," he said simply. "However, if you say that you missed me-"

"-that's not fair," she argued, taking him by his tie and pulling him in closer.

"Life isn't fair, Darling," he defended.

She groaned at the term he used towards her, and rolled her eyes... even if she secretly liked it. And to think, it had all started because he misread her name.

With a defeated sigh, she kissed him softly once more, and shook her head. "Fine," she muttered under her breath, only before she piped up. "But I drive on our next adventure!"

"Fair enough," Time Turner admitted, with a teasing smile.

Daring returned the grin, and even if the time-traveling machine had stopped long ago during their conversation, they refused to budge. Whatever world was out there for them could wait for now. This really was a moment that couldn't be replicated or replaced, and they wanted to cherish it. After all, it wasn't everyday that they were this close or together for this long.

Normally, Ahuizotl would be wanting to kill her or countless enemies would be after The Doctor, but today was different.

And they'd both be damned if they let it go.

~ la fin ~