• Published 28th Feb 2014
  • 1,032 Views, 65 Comments

Coming to terms - The Infinity Doctor



Side story to 'The Weeping Angel' collab with The Planyx. Human male sent to Equestria as a Time Lord.

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Close Calls and Little Lyra

"What? How is that- nevermind...where are you?"
"Weren't you listening?"
"Oh, right, well- what's your name?"
"That depends, what do you want to call me?"
"Wait, you don't have one?"
"Not that I know of..."
"Oh"

'Have to think of one later...'

"So, why is everything so...broken?"

"That information is not in my files"

"Oh great...then can you at least tell me how long it'll take to get everything repaired?"

"Twenty-four hours"

"Alright...so what do I do until then?"
"Keep yourself occupied, I don't know- take what you need though, I'm locking the doors"

"Good to know- alright, I'll be back later" I said, making sure I had my Screwdriver and key while heading to the doors. I pulled open one door and glanced at the paint job.

'Huh, so it's green, not blue- interesting...'

She gave a wave and the screen fizzled to static as I left- the landscape was nice around here, not as nice as it was in Ponyville, but nice nonetheless, rolling green fields and lush foliage. It looked like it was somewhere between the Everfree and the borders of
Ponyville, not quite the perfect angles of the town, and not quite the chaotic and overflowing mess of foliage of the forest.
I walked as quick as I could to Lyra's house, as it was almost daylight and I risked being spotted by passing ponies, especially worrying about the pegasi overhead. Thankfully I managed to get to her house without any earth-shattering consequences and knocked on the door, she yawned as she opened it, rubbing her eyes.

"Hello?" she asked, followed by another yawn.
"Lyra, it's me" I said.

Her eyes nearly popped out of her head, and looked worriedly into the house.

"You? What are you doing here?" she whispered.
"Technical difficulty- listen, can I stay here for a bit?"
"You can't! My parents are home!"
"Well- do you have anywhere I can stay?"

Lyra hummed in thought.

"There's a door to the cellar in the back of the house, how about there?"
"That'll work, see you later" I said, walking towards the back of the house.
"Bye" she said, closing the door.

I went to a large door in the ground and opened it, I crawled in and closed the door behind me.

X X X X X X X

'What is he doing here?' I thought, heading to the kitchen table.

Mom and Dad were waiting, Mom sipping a cup of coffee as she and Dad sat down with their breakfast.
"Who was that, sweetie?" Mom asked.
"Nopony, a mare looking for directions" I lied.
"Oh? Where was she going?" Dad asked.
"Town Hall" I replied.
"Ah, wonder why"
"MmMmm"
"Well hurry up and finish your breakfast Lyra, school starts soon"
"It's Saturday, Dad" I giggled.
"So it is-" he responded, ruffling my mane.
I wolfed down my breakfast and set my bowl in the sink, I took my saddlebags and trotted to
the back door.
"I'm going to play outside!" I called.
"Alright- watch out for Timberwolves, dear"
"Yes mom..."
I left the house and headed into the cellar.

"Honey" Lyra's father said "Have you seen my lantern? I could've sworn I left it the living room..."

X X X X X X X

"Tho what are humath like?" I asked, holding a pencil between my teeth, ready to take notes.
"Just like ponies, I guess, but ponies are definitely nicer if you ask me" the biped
responded, toying with what he called his 'screwdriver'.
"Do all humanth look like you?"
"No, some are short, some are tall, some are...large, some are skinny, different colored
hair, that sort of thing- we have different genders just like you, of course"
"Oh- what wath that green box out there?"
"My house, in a sense"
"How did you fit tho much in there? That place was enormous"
He coughed into his...what was the word? Hand- that was it, he coughed into his hand.
"Do you have any other questions?" he asked.
He still didn't answer my question, but I decided to drop the subject. I spit out the pencil
and put my notebook in my saddlebags.
"No, not right now..."
"So how long's it been?"
"A few minutes"
He groaned and sat against the wall.
"What's your name? You somehow knew mine, what's yours?"
It was still pretty confusing how he knew my name, I'd never met him before, and I don't
think Mom and Dad did either...

'Maybe he had a magic portal that he used to watch what we were doing? Na, that's not it...'

He bit his lip as his eyes roamed around the basement.

"Uh, Zero, my name's Zero" he said, seeming to be content with his answer.
"How did you know my name?"
"I thought you said you didn't have anymore questions"
My eyebrows shot up and I backed away, thinking I'd angered him.
"What's wrong with you?"
"Ar-are you mad?"
"No, why would I be?"
"Nothing...but- how did you know?"
"Like I said, lucky guess..."
I shrugged and slipped on my saddlebags.

"I have to go upstairs for a few minutes, I'll be right back"
"Okay, I'll be here" he said.
I walked up the stairs and into the yard.

X X X X X X X

I sat in the basement, bored, as I waited for Lyra to return. The little filly seemed really interested in humans- that won't affect her later in life will it? Na, probably not...

I lost my train of thought as a set of hooves clambered down the stairs. At first I thought it was Lyra, but the large shadow on the floor was at least twice her size- I ducked behind the furnace as a blue earth pony trotted into the basement.

'That must be Lyra's dad' I thought, watching the stallion search for something.

My anxiety grew as he progressively wandered closer to the furnace; I hoped he would find whatever he was looking for and leave, not even daring to imagine the consequences of what would happen if he found me. I let loose a silent shout of joy as Lyra came to my rescue.

"Whatcha lookin' for, dad?" she asked.
"My lantern, I can't find it anywhere" he said, rummaging through a box.

'Good luck, I left it in the Tardis'

"I think I saw it in the attic"
"What were you doing in the attic?"
"Nothing..."
"Well, I'll go and look up there, thanks honey"

The sound of his hooves against the stairs faded as he headed back outside, leaving Lyra and I alone.

"Is it safe?" I asked quietly.
"Yeah, he's gone" she replied.
I got up from my hiding spot and glanced to the stairs.

"He's not coming back is he?"
"No, at least I don't think he is..."
"What's so special about that lamp?"
"Dad said his grandfather always carried it around with him as a good luck charm, I guess Dad never wanted to throw it away"
"Ah, that explains it"
"Yeah...so what should we do now?"
"I think your parents might get suspicious if they think you're down here playing by yourself"
"But what will you do if I leave?"
"I don't know, I'll entertain myself, take a nap, whatever"

She looked unsure, then shrugged as she trotted to the stairs.

"Okay, I'll see you later, Zero"
"Bye Lyra" I said, sitting on the floor out of the way of the staircase.

She went up, and it was silent in the basement as I sat back and stared at the cieling.

'I'm going to lose my mind...'

X X X X X X X

Several agonizing hours later, I sat cross-legged on the basement floor across from Lyra, a deck of cards between us. I was currently in the middle of teaching her 'Go Fish', at first she didn't want to play based on the name alone, but had convinced her to play after
promising to tell her more about humans.

"Got any fives?" I asked.
"Nope, Go- ugh- Fish"
I picked up a card off the top of the deck.
"Got any kings?" Lyra asked.
"How did you know?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow as I laid down the king of spades and the
king of diamonds.
"I didn't, you just told me"
"Foiled again..."
"Got any...twos?"
"Uh-huh"
She slapped down three twos.
"Okay, how about-"

She was interuppted as my Screwdriver went off. I set down my cards and pulled it out, it was glowing silently.

'This can only mean one thing...'

"What's happening?" Lyra asked.
"I think the Tardis is done repairing itself" I answered, standing up "I need to go check it
out, I'll be back soon, Lyra"
"Okay...bye"

I quietly walked up the stairs and into Lyra's backyard, I snuck around the house to avoid detection by Lyra's parents as I bolted for the Tardis.

Author's Note:

Edited version to come.
Please check out 'The Weeping Angel' if you haven't already.
Don't forget to R&R.