The circle of ponies tightened as the snow leopards circled around them, their blue eyes trained on them. By Obsidian's count there were at least eight of them, maybe nine if the mound he saw was another one of them forming. The leopards seemed to be deciding if they wanted to attack them or not. They started to slowly circle outwards when one of the unicorns he had hired as a spellbinder shot a blast and vaporized one of the snow leopards.
Instantly the seven remaining leopards charged, they're icy teeth and claws ready to stain the white snow red. Two of the leopards were vaporized before they could reach the circle, the five that made it however tried to tear their way through as many ponies as they could.
An earth pony smashed one of them with one of the carts collars. Another slashed the side of one of the earth ponies only to get smashed to pieces by a swooping pegasus. Another one sank its icy fangs into the side of one of the unicorns and Lecture vaporized it but the stallion began to freeze over from the leopard’s magic. The fourth attacked the cart and managed to splinter the spokes of one of the wheels before one of the earth ponies could stop it with one of the pickaxes they had brought. The Fifth one had green eyes and seemed confused by the Doctor and Starlight as it kept darting its head in between them. The ponies circled around it and it pounced at Starlight only to be shot by Obsidian.
The Leopard survived the shot however and with a sound of frustration melted back into the snow, its green eyes were the last to disappear. The Doctor was the first to walk to the spot where it had melted at and stamped on the snow several times, "It's gone" He declared to the relief of the other ponies.
The two injured ponies had been dragged to Tender, who, for all her medical expertise, could not help the poor unicorn who had been bitten. She had tried to stop the freezing with her magic but the leopard's magic was stronger.
"I'm sorry, I don't have the tools to help you" She said to the young unicorn who was laying on his side on a blanket in the snow.
"It's okay..." the unicorn said.
"NO it's not!" She said cutting him off.
The young stallion smiled weakly at her, "Yes it is, I knew what I was getting myself into. I've served the rightful Emperor and I'm at peace."
Tender looked down at the young stallion in total disbelief, he could not be more than seventeen and he was ready to die, the thought horrified Tender. The stallion froze over making him look like an ice sculpture and she knew he was gone, she sat there staring at the large chunk of ice that was a young unicorn and began to sob.
Lecture walked up behind her, "There was nothing you could do." He said simply.
She turned to him, "But he didn't have to die." she said her eyes tearing up. "If he hadn't come with us he'd have his whole life to live."
"He knew that, and he came because he was willing to take that risk." Lecture said trying to calm her.
Some tears escaped her eyes and fell on the snow below "Lecture, he was so young and I couldn't save him" She buried her face into his chest.
"It's okay. It's not your fault, it's the snow leopards." He said stroking her mane genitally.
She looked up at him and through tears asked, "Do you think the Doctor could save him, he has a time machine after all."
He gave a slight smile, "You could ask..."
Before he knew it she broke away from him and rushed over to the cart. The Doctor was helping the unicorns figure out how the shattered wood fit together, like a jigsaw puzzle, so they could repair the spokes. She taped the Doctor's shoulder and got a gruff, "Not now" from him.
She kept taping till he eventually turned towards her looking like he was about to yell, but when he saw the state Tender was in he calmed himself. "Yes, what do you need?"
She simply gestured with her head for him to follow, he did as she wanted. Once they were away from the caravan she began, "Doctor that stallion is dead." she stopped trying to stay calm.
"What of it?"
She breathed deeply and continued, "I want you to save him."
"How?" The Doctor asked.
"You have a time machine, you can go back and save him."
Her face was so full of hope that the Doctor actually felt bad for having to say, "No."
Her face dropped, "What do you mean 'no'?"
"I can't go back and prevent his death."
"Why?" She asked her voice cold as it could be.
He spoke seriously "If I went back to save him then you'd never ask me to save him and I wouldn't go back to save him. It's a paradox, one that would make us end up right back in this situation. The only way his life could be saved is if another time traveler stopped him from coming without knowing that he'd die otherwise. If he did know he'd die and tried to stop it then you'd end up with the exact same paradox." He walked back to the cart before she could say anything else.
Tender decided that it wasn't going to be a good idea to press the matter, for now. Once the wagon wheel was fixed and the body was buried the caravan moved on.
They traveled for at least two hours in a relative silence, most of the few conversations they did have were just a few lines. As night began to fall Obsidian announced, "Okay we're stopping for the night, start unloading the tents from the cart and get the fire crystals out." The ponies did as he said and soon enough they had three fires going.
The tents were circled around the fires, the Doctor, Tender, and Lecture were sitting around one of the crystals, Lecture recounted the one time he ever went camping before this, "My friend's parents, all earth ponies, would go camping at least once a month. Well when I was about fifteen she invited me to come along. I won't lie, I was smitten by her and that's the main reason I said 'yes'. I showed up at her parents’ house with a pack ready and we headed out down a path to the north of Canterlot Mountain. It was, by far, the worst weekend of my life, the bugs were everywhere, it was filthy, and more than once I tripped over the various roots..." he recounted more of the horrible experience.
"Did it ruin the relationship?" Tender asked once he was done complaining.
"I certainly never went camping again, but we still talk every once and a while."
While they chatted about their past Starlight laid a blanket looking up at the stars, Obsidian wondered nearby and asked, "Do you know the constellations?"
She turned he head in his direction, "Not here, no"
"Then may I show you?" He asked trying to make his red eyes look kind.
"Sure" She said gesturing to the spot on the blanket next to her.
He slid in beside her and pointed towards a cluster of stars that looked like a heart, "Let’s start with an easy one, The Crystal Heart, everypony in the Empire can identify it. It's said that the Heart is exactly over the empire, though I've found different."
"Oh? What do you mean?"
"Well the Heart looks like it's directly over you anywhere in the north." He traced another cluster of stars that looked like it could be a dragon, "Let's move on. Sniphe the frost dragon." Then he traced another cluster close to it that resembled a pony, "Diamond the Slayer, it’s said that a long time ago Sniphe terrorized the Empire, he attacked during the crystal fair and managed to steal the weakened Crystal Heart. After that Sniphe became even more powerful and demanded rule over the entire Frozen North. According to the tale Diamond found out where Sniphe's lair was and took her trusty sword Ruby Runner..." He pointed to a set of stars that were in a pretty strait line. "And fought Sniphe to the death, in the end the sword was stronger than Sniphe's scales and he fell the Heart immortalized him in the stars as an example. Diamond took the Heart back to the Empire unfortunately Diamonds wounds proved too deep and she collapsed dead after she placed the Heart back on the pedestal and was immortalized along with his greatest enemy to guard him forever more."
"Interesting story," Starlight batted her eyelashes a little, "Tell me another."
He pointed to the south towards another pony, "Gemstone, the first crystal pony. The story goes that he was an earth pony cartographer. He had managed to get a part of an expedition up here, and while the expedition was on the ridge of a mountain he lost his footing and fell. Miraculously, he survived the fall, he knew he needed shelter and accidentally discovered the crystal caverns. The stories differ depending who you ask here, some say he wasn't alone in the cave and another pony had fallen with him that pony became the heart and he became the first crystal pony. Others say the heart was protected by a guardian who turned him into a crystal pony. I was taught that he found the heart floating in the middle of the caverns and as he touched the heart transformed him into the first crystal pony. After whatever really happened, happened he took the heart and used its magic to create the Palace of the Empire."
"Interesting. Brrr, it's cold." She moved closer to him, "Hope you don't mind."
"I could get you another blanket." he said using his magic to get her one
"Thank you" She said, "Know any more?"
He pointed towards another constipation that resembled a Windigo, "The second to last Windigo."
"'Second to last'?" Starlight asked.
"Yes the Heart put it there to warn the last one to stay away. Basically after the Equestrians defeated the Windigos the last two came up here to recover, but they made the mistake of trying to feed off the Empire and that one was caught by the heart and sent to the stars. The other one, Wynn, escaped. Legend says it's still out there, somewhere."
He waited for her to say something but when he looked to her she had fallen asleep, he smiled warmly then yawned, between the fire crystal's heat and the day of walking he realized just how tired he really was. Briefly he thought he should get up and go to his tent, but he was too tired to actually do it.
Obsidian woke up with the sun in his eyes, as he put his hoof up to block it he realized that there was a pony beside him. He looked over to his side to see Starlight sleeping peacefully, and that she had curled up next to him. Panic crept into his mind as he realized what this would look like to any outside observers. He genitally scooted himself away from her and rolled onto the snow, as he got to his hooves and walked through the tents until the saw the Doctor sitting around one of the fire crystals.
Unfortunately for him the Doctor noticed him and beckoned him to come over and sit. Obsidian did so, hoping that the Doctor had just woken up.
His tensed up a little when the Doctor asked, "How did you sleep?"
Obsidian wasn't entirely sure if the Doctor knew how he had slept, "Well...I slept well."
"Good, just don't make a habit of it yet, the last thing she needs is to be a mother this early in her life. And I'm not too fond of being a great-grandfather yet."
He knows and he's not mad. Most of the stallions I know would try to kill me on the spot for falling asleep next to their daughters, or granddaughters, "We didn't do anything like that."
"Good, good." The Doctor looked around to the tents and smiled, "You'd better wake everypony up we should get moving if we want to get to the Crystal Caverns today."
Obsidian did as the Doctor suggested and within an hour the caravan was packed and on its way to the Caverns. As the Doctor pulled the cart he watched Obsidian and Starlight talk to each other, he also noticed that Lecture and Tender were walking together. Eventually they made their way into the valley that the Crystal caverns were located in. If the Doctor wasn't trying to read Starlight's and Obsidian's lips he would have seen the green eyes peering at him in the snow.
Having missed all the warnings is was a shock when the snow leopards jumped out of the snow and froze one of the unicorns solid. All the ponies were on the defensive as more and more snow leopards started to attack. It wasn't just a small group this time, it seemed that every time the ponies managed to destroy one, another would just appear.
Once the leopards had frozen several ponies Obsidian ordered the remaining ponies to run, and they did. Unfortunately for the ponies the leopards didn't let up and by the time they managed to escape the leopards they were down to seven ponies and no cart.
"It’s okay, it's okay." Lecture said to a frantic Tender who was crying on his chest.
"We're going to die, we're going to die! They'll come again!" one of the two remaining pegasus was shouting.
Obsidian slapped him, "Cut it out, you're a stallion not a filly. You knew the risks! Now stop crying." Before the slightly delirious pegasus could say anything Obsidian walked away.
Fortunately for the small group the Crystal Caverns weren't that far away and they managed to find them. Inside it were beautiful crystals the dim light from the entrance reflected throughout the crystalline entrance hall of the caverns. At the far side of the entrance was a statue of a crystal pony in full battle regale. The pegasus landed in front of the stature knocked on its head a few times. "Wonder what it's here for?" the pegasi asked.
The statues eyes opened it drew its sword and shouted "You are not worthy!", then it struck the pegasus only to have him turn to ash and blow away. The other pegasus charged the statue only to meet the same fate and Lecture would have shot if the Doctor hadn't moved in the way. The statue looked at the other ponies in the entrance hall and then focused on Obsidian, "Come forth, my prince, the Gauntlet awaits you." '
Obsidian stepped forward and shouted, "You didn't have to kill them!"
"Forgive me, my prince. I was unaware of your presence." The now completely alive crystal pony said bowing his head. "I am the Guardian and you must be here for the Crystal Heart."
"Yes we are."
"Good, but what do you know about your companions here, did you know that this now dead pegesi had killed several ponies before they came to the Crystal Empire. The male unicorn you travel with is a simple teacher that leads a relatively boring life in the capital to the south. The female one is a school nurse in the capital. Then there are the two wanderers you travel with, Susan and the nameless Doctor"
Starlight gasped at the mention of her real name and the Doctor's eyes narrowed as he started trying to block his mind from the 'pony' before them.
"They are a Lord and Lady, wondering and yet I find that one is greater than another and so many secrets are known by them. There is power as well, so much power. "
The Doctor addressed the Guardian, "Then fear the power you see and speak of it no more. He knows us now. Let us in."
"Does he?" The Guardian asked defiantly.
"I don't care about their past, I'm here for the heart."
The Guardian bowed his head and became a statue once again and the door behind him opened. "Shall we proceed?" Obsidian asked the ponies and they all walked into the next room and saw five paths in front of them.
The guardian's voice echoed around them, "You must face your pasts."
"I see." Obsidian said, "The trials are testing all of us." He said as he began to head down the central hallway and a crystal lowered to keep him from going back. The rest of the ponies fallowed his example and prepared for what they have to face.
Lecture walked into a grand Ballroom filled with ponies that were all dressed for a wedding, then he realized where he was, he was standing at the altar waiting for the mare to make her way down the aisle. But instead of a beautiful bride a frantic mare yelled from the opening, "She's gone!"
He felt stunned and time seemed to stop as the guardian dressed a black tuxedo began to speek, "What do you think would have happened if she had come down that aisle?"
"I'd be happily married maybe with a foal and another on the way."
"Would you really be happy?" The guardian asked.
"Yes I would be, I'd be very happy."
"Good, but why do you dwell on the past?"
"Because she left me at the altar." Lecture countered.
"Yes she did but now you treat every relationship you've been in like it will end just as bad as this one did. It got to the point that you don't really try anymore" The Guardian explained.
"And why do you think that's how I see my relationships."
"I could name at least half a dozen mares you've had relationship troubles with because that mare abandoned you."
"So"
"You need to move on, not all mares are like her."
"But that doesn't change what she did to me. She left me at the altar and then ran away with some rich pegasus in Baltimare."
"Yes but not all mares will break your heart like that, you still haven't moved on."
"And you expect me to move on right here, right now."
"No, I expect you to begin to. This day will always be in your mind, but it doesn't have to taint your life."
Lecture took a deep breath, "Fine, you win. I'll try to put this past me."
"That's all I needed to here." The Guardian said as a blinding light encased Lecture.
Tender found herself in a classroom, in front of her was a large packet of paper and a pencil. The packet was opened to about the midway point and it seemed to be filed out to about two thirds the way down the page. Then she read the question, it was a simple question, a pony is going into shock, what do you do
A. Call for help, Have the pony lie down, Make the pony comfortable, Check for signs of breathing, Check for vomiting and bleeding from the mouth, Administer treatment for injuries or blood loss
B. Call for help, Have the pony lie down, Check for signs of breathing, Make the pony comfortable, Check for vomiting and bleeding from the mouth, Administer treatment for injuries or blood loss
C. Call for help, Have the pony lie down, Check for signs of breathing, Make the pony comfortable, Administer treatment for injuries or blood loss
D. Call for help, Check for signs of breathing, Check for vomiting and bleeding from the mouth, Administer treatment for injuries or blood loss
She knew the answer, it was so easy B. But as she went to mark B she found her pencil going to mark A and as soon as the pencil circled it time seemed to stop. The Guardian walked up to her, he was dressed in the lab coat and glasses of the test administrator. "This is the moment you decided to not be the top of your class."
"So?" Tender began, "I decided not..."
"To be the top of your class! To get a cushy job for some rich old unicorn!" The Guardian yelled, interrupting her. "You intentionally failed several questions on this test and many more to make sure you didn't make yourself the top of your class."
"I had to, I didn't want to be known as the nerd who aced every test, and I wasn't going to go through what my brother went through!"
"The nerd who was bullied into near suicide because of his brilliance, unfortunately for you, you’re just a smart as he was. But you would never allow yourself to show the others just how smart you really are."
"It's doesn't matter now. I've made my choices and I'm happy with my life."
"Good, hold on to that." The Guardian said smiling "You've been doubting yourself recently, be happy with your choices. You ARE exactly where you need to be!"
Starlight found herself on a farm, her family’s farm. In the distance she saw the fields of alien plants her father loved to grow and over to her right she saw the little house she used to live in. She walked over to the house and entered it, the little three room house didn't have much in it. Just a few chairs, a bed, a table, and a desk and on it was a sheet of paper. She gave it a quick look and realized it was her application to the academy's magics branch.
"You really wanted to become a Time Wizard didn't you?" The Guardian asked as he faded into existence behind her. He wasn't wearing anything and the cracks that covered his body were clearly visible.
"It doesn't matter anymore, I ran away. Rough Time Ladies don't get into the academy."
"And you regret this?" The Guardian asked sitting in one of the two chairs.
"No, what I regret is that my grandfather thinks I sent this application in and was accepted and that he thinks I'm learning about magic to prepare myself for the next stage of my learning!" Starlight said clearly frustrated.
"You lied to him? I did not know that." The Guardian said, "Perhaps I should have brought you to that decision."
"No. I'm going to tell him once you let me out of here."
The Doctor found himself as a young stallion again, he was at the academy and was walking with a few of his friends when he realized on of them was missing. He looked around for him but he wasn't anywhere near, he left his friends and in no time was at the dormitories. He knocked at his friends door and got an abrupt, "Go away!"
"What's wrong?" the Doctor asked, "Why weren't you in class today?"
"Just leave me alone!" The stallion shouted through the door.
The Doctor was about to walk away when time stopped and the Guardian walked up behind the Doctor wearing the red flowing robe of an academy professor, "This is the first time you left him in his time of need."
"He told me to leave." The Doctor said to justify his actions.
"Yes he did. But that's not why we're here..." The Guardian smiled knowingly, "We're here because you blame yourself for his disappearance right after you two graduated. This is the earliest memory you link with his disappearance and you keep thinking that if you had stayed it would have been different."
"Is that what you want? Me to admit that I could have stopped whatever happened to him before it began?" The Doctor said coldly.
"NO! I want you to let go and see that you had nothing to do with his disappearance."
"And if I don't?"
"You need to let this part of your past go." The Guardian insisted
"I can't, he was my best friend and I couldn't help him. It's actually funny, my failure here is one of the reason's I'm here now." The Doctor said, the remorse evident on his face.
"I see. You shouldn't have built such strong mental blocks."
Obsidian was just a colt now, he didn't even have his 'crystal' cutie mark yet. His mother had insisted that he join her and come to this boring ceremony to welcome the new prince to the Empire.
There was the sound of the Crystal Kingdom's anthem played on the flugelhorns as the Empress carried the young colt to the Emperor. As she handed the newborn to her husband and Obsidian felt a twinge of hatred creep into his heart. Then the Emperor smiled at his second son and lifted the colt for the entire Empire to see.
Time stopped and the Guardian was standing next to the colt Obsidian and asked, "Why do you hate your brother?"
"He's not my bwother!" The colt yelled and went cross-eyed, "What did wou to my woice?"
"Nothing. That is how you talked when you were five. But back to the question, why do you hate that foal?" The Guardian pointed to the colt Obsidian's father was holding.
"I hate him because he's his mwothers son. He tweets us soft skinws like we're dirt" Obsidian justified.
"That's not why you hated him at this time, you didn't know he'll end up like that, you also didn't go through that horrid night yet. So, I ask you again. Why do you hate him?"
"Because he's pwoof my father didn't want me!" Obsidian shouted realizing the truth as he said it. "He's pwoof."
All the ponies stumbled out of their respective hallways into a room where the hallways conjoined again. It was a large room with crystal walls and a hulking beast in the center, a dragon.
It rose from its slumber and looked at them, in a deep, raspy voice it said, "What goes round the house and in the house but never touches the house?"
"Your time to shine Doc" Obsidian said gesturing to the Doctor.
The Doctor thought for a moment and then said, "The sun."
The dragon smiled a toothy smile and said "Correct... There are four brothers in this world that were all born together. The first runs and never wearies. The second eats and is never full. The third drinks and is always thirsty. The fourth sings a song that is never good. Who are they?"
The Doctor took another few seconds to think, then he smiled, "The brothers are Water, Fire, Earth, and Air"
The Dragon sighed, "Correct...Crying tears is what I do, during the day, but at night too. I can give you a bang and light up your life, one minute you're great, the next you're in strife! But I can also bring color and make your life warm, without me, there would be nothing, not much would be born! I ask you what am I?"
The Doctor thought for a moment then quickly turned back to the others, "I'm going to need some help on this one." He said in a hushed tone.
Tender looked up and said, "Could it be a newborn foal?"
"Maybe..." Starlight said, "It does make sense."
"Maybe it's the weather." Lecture suggested.
"I think it's a storm" Obsidian said.
"Okay three ideas and one of them is stupid." The Doctor said thinking. "Weather, storm, or foal?"
"I grow impatient." The dragon threatened.
The Doctor turned around to face the dragon and quickly said, "You are weather."
There was a moment of silence as the dragons eyes narrowed and smoke lofted out of its nostrils, "You are correct" It curled back up into a ball and went back to sleep allowing the small party to pass.
They entered the next room, it was a semicircle, there were three large crystals resting evenly spaced against the walls. They walked to the center of the room and as Obsidian reached the center of the room and the center crystal glowed and with a feminine voice said, "You've made it."
The crystal on the right glowed and a more cheerful female voice said, "Yeeeaaaahhhh. You're finally here."
A condescending male voice said, "I was so hoping the dragon would get you, it doesn't eat often enough."
"Oh leave the poor colt alone. He's gone through so much to get here." the first voice said.
"What do you think he's here for?" The joyful voice asked the other two crystals.
"Clearly he's here for the gift moron." the male voice said clearly annoyed.
"Why do you feel the need to insult her" The first voice asked.
"Ahum" Obsidian cleared his throat to get their attention.
"So he wants our attention?" The male voice said slightly annoyed by the interruption.
"Yes I do! I'm here for the Crystal Heart!" Obsidian said taking on a sterner stance.
"Ooooohhhh, I like him." The cheerful voice said. "Do you really want the Crystal Heart though? Why not the Crystal Brain, or the Crystal Stomach, or the Crystal Pancreas..."
She was interrupted by the male voice, "You know perfectly well that we only give out the Crystal Heart you complete idiot."
The main voice addressed Obsidian, "You have the blood of the Crystal Emperors, which means you are able to fulfill your part of the original pact. Who amongst your party will sacrifice their heart to allow us to create the new Crystal Heart?"
"What! I never heard anything about a sacrifice!" Obsidian objected.
The main female voice responded, "It is the way, a friend's heart is given for the protection of your Empire."
"I could never ask any pony to do that. Take mine." Obsidian offered.
The male voice gave a dark chuckle, "What good would the Heart be if you were dead?"
"I'll do it" Starlight said calmly.
"What! I can't ask you to do that!" Obsidian objected.
"You can't" Tender added.
"I simply won't allow it."
The Doctor grabbed her shoulder and guided her away and began a psychic conversation with her, "I cannot allow you to do that. I won't allow you to do this to yourself!"
"Why not? It's not like I won't survive."
"Because I'm the adult here" The Doctor thoughts paused to gather his thoughts, "And I can't allow you to risk your life when I'm perfectly capable of doing it myself."
"Grandfather, you don't have to do that. It's not like I'll die, at worst I'll just have to take life a little easier."
"Take life a little easier!" the Doctor shouted aloud then winced when he realized he had done so. "I'm the older of the two of us. If either of us is going to do this, than I should not you."
"Grandfather I want to do this."
"Why would you want to get rid of your heart. You're young..."
"And if you did it you'd die! I have a better chance of surviving this than you do." Starlight pleaded with her grandfather.
"I've lived a longer life! I'd never forgive myself if you didn't survive."
"Yeah well..." Starlight turned back towards the others and announced, "I'm doing it!"
"No you’re not." The Doctor said flustered.
But it was too late and she had ran up next to Obsidian and said, "I'm ready."
"I can't let you do that!" Obsidian objected.
She turned towards him, "I know what I'm doing! Just trust me on this." She pleaded.
"I can't let you..." He stopped talking when she grabbed his hoof and placed it to her chest. He was throne aback by what he felt, "What?"
The Doctor knocked his hoof down and glared at Starlight for a moment, then he said, "Two hearts, we both have two hearts. And like I told you Starlight I'm going to do this not you."
"No!"
"Yes!"
"Fine!" Obsidian shouted and the two of them looked at him with confusion. "If you want to give a heart then fine, we need the Crystal Heart and if you want to donate one then go ahead."
The Doctor looked slightly confused, "Which one of us?"
"Either one of you."
"Then I'll..."
"ENOUGH!!!" The Crystals said in unison.
The main one continued, "We have the consent we need to begin." With that the three crystals shot purple and pink beams at Starlight and lifted her into the air. Her heart phased out of the right side of her chest and Starlight passed out, all three of the beams were now focused on it. Starlight slowly drifted down to the ground and Obsidian caught her. Crystal began to form around the heart, and eventually formed the classic shape of a heart. The newly formed Crystal Heart gently floated down to about a foot above the ground right in front of Obsidian and Starlight.
"IT IS DONE!" They announced in unison, "NOW BEGONE!!!" With that light engulfed all of the ponies and they were teleported to the outskirts of the Crystal Empire.
Starlight's eyes fluttered open and she looked up, and smiled at Obsidian then her face contorted into absolute pain. Everypony was instantly focused on her, Obsidian asked, "What's wrong?!"
The Doctor rolled his eyes, "She's missing a heart!" The he looked Starlight in the eye and focused, "Starlight! You need to be strong now! Don't give in! Don't you dare!"
She smiled through her tears, "I don't plan to."
Tender piped up, "We need to get her to a Doctor!"
"And tell him what? ’There's something really wrong with my granddaughter! She's only got one heart!'" The Doctor said.
"He's got a point." Lecture agreed.
"She's my granddaughter, she'll survive."
Starlight smiled and forced herself to her feet then promptly fell onto Tender, who caught her and helped her to stand.
Obsidian remembered the Crystal Heart, "I'll be back, there's something I have to do. Please forgive me for leaving you in your time of need, but the Empire needs this" He grabbed the Crystal Heart in his magic and began to swiftly run with it to the Palace. As he ran the various crystal ponies he passed began to chase after him. Finally when he made it to the Crystal Palace the various guards that were stationed out there saw him and prepared to stop him from nearing the palace until they noticed the heart floating above him.
Once he got under the Palace and the pedestal the Heart was supposed to float above appeared, he place the Heart above it and everypony around him bowed as a wave of magic flowed over them all. Obsidian addressed them, "I have brought the Crystal Heart back to the Empire and it has chosen me to lead!" There wasn't a signal objection as everypony from the nobility and the commoners began to cheer his name.
The sun was setting as the Doctor and company managed to make their way to the TARDIS, they almost made it too. Just as the Doctor was about to open the door to it they heard Obsidian's voice calling as he sprinted up to them. Once he was close he said, "Are you going to come to the celebration?"
"What celebration?" Lecture asked.
"The one in my honor for returning the Crystal Heart."
"That's nice, but it's been a long day" The Doctor insisted.
"Actually I was wondering if I could stay." Starlight said knowing it was here last chance.
"What? No! Out of the question!" The Doctor said sternly. "You still have classes you need to..."
"I'm not going to be a Time Wizard! I never sent in the application." She blurted out again.
The Doctor was silent for a moment, "How would you plan to get home?"
"Grandfather, are you mad." Starlight said a little scared of her grandfather's reaction.
"I asked, 'How do you plan to get home?' please answer the question." the Doctor said not quite sure himself.
"I have my Hypercube."
"Okay, I'm going to need some time to process this, all of you go to the party. Just be back to the TARDIS before sunup." There was an awkward silence before the Doctor made a shooing motion at them, "Go!!!" and went inside the TARDIS.
Lecture, Tender, Obsidian, and Starlight walked back to the TARDIS. Lecture and Tender went inside and Starlight stayed outside for a moment. Then there was a distinctive click as the doors locked behind Lecture, Starlight didn't move away from Obsidian.
The Doctor's voice emanated from the box, "I've been thinking for the last few hours, and you're right." Starlight smiled, "You're not a child anymore, you've become a young mare and I understand why you may want to stay."
"You do grandfather!?" She had expected some sort of a fight, but was relieved by his apparent calm.
"Yes, I was once young you know. You have a Hypercube so you can call for somepony to get you out of here if things go sour."
"Thank you Grandfather." She said happily.
"Obsidian!" The Doctor's voice was sharp and Obsidian jumped a little.
"Yes sir?"
"Take good care of her, or I shall come back. Yes, I shall come back." He said and the TARDIS began to fade in and out.