Perhaps Death

by WritingSpirit

The Trottingham Ghoul: Finale - Mother Of Mine

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Are you still here?
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That's good, that.
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Have you noticed it yet? Have you seen it?
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Keep paying attention.
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Pay close attention

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---

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1008 AC, First Fall, 7, 01:27:45

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"Gwendolen Blacknail, I presume?"

Funny pair of words, really. 'I presume'. By definition, when a pony is 'presuming' something, you know them to be making an assumption. I do quite like assumptions. In fact, I quite like making them as well, though they were all just pretend. Chances are, when somebody ever utters the words 'I presume', they're pretty sure it's the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Or they're really just presuming. You'll never know, ponies are a funny bunch.

"Do I..." Gwendolen wheezed. "Do I know you?"

"No," I answered. Not yet, I wanted to add, but eh. "Your father sent me."

"Da did?" she groaned weakly as she heaved herself upright on her bed. "By Grover's talons, I thought he never received my letters."

"He didn't, but he knew something happened." I trotted towards her, giving her spindly form a quick glance, even as she shimmied further into her sheets. "It's just a question of what exactly."

"He's here to help, Nanny," Caroline spoke up, casting an uneasy glance back at me. "Said he's the Doctor, but not a... doctor? I don't really get it."

"Believe me, I don't know sometimes too," I quipped with a grin. Gwendolen's stare only grew heavier, and for a moment the memory of her father's threatening words ran over me. "I'm just here to help. That's it, I'm just your average Doctor to handle all things timey-wimey. Well, not all of it, I might've been getting ahead of myself there, but I know this: I know something's happening in this mansion on the hill. I know it has something to do with you lot disappearing. More importantly, I know you've seen it."

"Really now?" she chirred gruffly. "Why would you say that?"

"Because I know that look," I stated firmly. "I know when it is when somepony, or some-gryphon in this case, has a secret that she really, really, really has to tell, because that secret may very well stop something from happening, and it can very well do that. I know when she is afraid to tell that secret because she knows that if she did, her life and the lives of everyone she knows would be in danger."

"Well, you seem pretty sure of yourself, ain't ya?"

"You look in the mirror more than a couple of times, you start seeing the same face everywhere else." Stifling a sigh, I trotted over to a single, circular pothole of a window, glancing out at the sleeping town beyond the gates. "But sooner or later, there will always be someone who will lose something because of that secret. There will always be someone who will get hurt. I'm pretty sure of myself because I've seen that happen before, and I know it's happening right now."

"And why should I trust you, eh? How would I know that you're not lying to all of us here?"

"Oh, you don't have any reason to trust me, really!" came my gleeful response. "I'm just a pony with a bowtie and a blue box, after all. Prancing in, just seeing what's about, nothing more. You, however? You're Gwendolen Blacknail, daughter of Geronimo or whatever his name is— I really don't get you gryphons and your names, but still, if you're anything like him, and you definitely are, you know that ponies like me are hard to come by, and I'm not talking about wearing a bowtie here. Ooh, that's clever sounding, I like that. You like that, Caroline?"

The long, uncertain pause that followed was a little too long for my taste. I could be doing something else, really. I could be talking to Twilight, perhaps, or I could be painting, just like that famous painter fellow. I could trot all the way back and give a little rub on Herbert's belly. Always wondered how fairy bellies felt like. Maybe not that fairy exactly. You never know, it might not even like belly rubs! What to do with you, Herbert, the fairy who does not like a good ol' belly rub?

Nevertheless, despite my malaise, time and trust often go hoof in hoof.

"There's something underneath the house," Gwendolen began, her uncertain stare wavering between me and Caroline. "Something... something not of this world. No one knows what it was and how it got here. My guess is it might even already be down there long before Trottingham was built."

"What does it look like?"

"I... don't know. No one does. Last I saw it, it's still deep underground, waiting for us to find it."

"And you somehow know it's there?"

"It's been making a signal."

A signal, eh? Funny things, signals. Always coming up with new ways to make machines go beeps and bloop, no matter what. Seeing as it's still buried underground, it must be a pretty strong signal that the usual pony and gryphon can just suddenly pick it up on their tea kettles and whatnot. That is, unless they're not using something far more than tea kettles.

"How did you all trace it? The signal, how did you lot find it?"

"Uh, the butler, Saxon? He had this... device... thing..." Gwendolen muttered, scratching her head. "Come to think of it, never saw anything like that before... anyways, he had this device that picks up the signal."

"And how does that sound like?"

"It's always just four beeps. That's it, it just keeps on repeating every time. It gets a little louder the closer you get to it, I think, which by then he would order the rest of us to dig in that general direction."

"Dig?" I muttered, nonplussed. "Wait, you mentioned the rest. So, the rest of you, digging underneath the house, and by the rest, I could only think of all the townsfolk who have vanished, and that means—" I paused, turning to Caroline, though her solemn look confirmed the worst of my fears among them all. "You already knew, don't you?"

The filly's meager nod was enough of an answer.

"You knew your mother was involved."

"She was in charge until Saxon came along," Caroline mumbled. "All the ponies and gryphons they were looking for were sent down there to dig underneath the house. I don't know why Mamma wants to look for it, but they found it already. Now they're busy digging the rest of it up."

"Really now? What is it?"

"Some sort of craft," Gwendolen answered. "I don't know, I might be wrong, but it looked like a ship of some sorts. Really sleek, shaped like a funnel, pale as a sheet... it's nothing I've ever seen before."

That's pretty much how it is with everything. Pony or griffon, always treating every new thing as something to poke and prod at, sometimes with amazing results. Curiosity remains abound on this lovely little planet and it will stay that way forever, if I could help it. "So, the tremors underneath the house," I asked.

"Explosives," Gwendolen bestowed a somber answer. "Controlled ones. They were trying to blow a hole into the side of the ship. You know, to see what's inside."

"Ah, you lot and your creative ways of opening doors. Still, that's a little peculiar, isn't it? What does Floria Hearthsgrove hope to gain from an ancient spaceship?"

"It's Saxon!" Caroline hissed. "He promised something to Mamma and she just simply listened to him! Even made sure the whole town kept quiet about it! Said to everyone that they wouldn't see all the ponies and gryphons here again if any of this gets out to the world."

"Saxon, eh?" Shame. Loved the bowtie. "Now that all makes sense. Was wondering why everyone else in Trottingham so strung out about it. So he's made a promise with your mother to get whatever's in that spaceship. Could be money, could be power, could be a bowl of custard — ooh, haven't had a bowl of custard in days myself — but whatever it is that he promised, it's something your mother must really want."

"What she really wants?"

"Well, why else would she do this? Why else would Floria Hearthsgrove slowly abduct all of Trottingham, one by one, just to dig up a spaceship?"

I don't like this. You'd think after this conversation, I would get all the answers in the world by now, but in the end, you'll just get supplementary questions, like some sort of funny little pop quiz. So, to sum it all up, there's a spaceship buried underneath the mansion on the hill. The missing townsfolk are all down there digging it up and the rumbling earthquake is from the explosions used to break into it. Floria Hearthsgrove seems to know what this is all about, but I'm guessing the mastermind behind everything is down to Saxon, the butler with the cool bowtie. Now all I have to know is what's in the spaceship, what both Floria and Saxon want from it, and how Herbert, the fairy who may or may not like belly rubs, have anything to do with each of them. Blimey, that's a lot of questions.

"What are you going to do now?" Gwendolen asked.

"Have to go back and get the rest, then find this spaceship of yours," I said. "Probably have a little chat with Floria and my fellow friend Saxon as well, if they're down there." I turned to the filly. "Caroline, why don't you head back first?"

"Okay... but you'll come later, wouldn't you?"

"Righto."

"Okay. Bye, Nanny G."

Gwendolen gave her a weak grin from her bed. "Bye. Remember to take care of your sister, Caroline."

With an eager nod, Caroline Hearthsgrove soon darted out of the door, pattering hoofsteps fading into distance. When I'm certain she wouldn't suddenly just jump back inside and scare us inside out, I shut the door and strode back to Gwendolen's side, her distant stare falling outside the window and into the night skies beyond.

"You've been sick."

A vacant laugh. "Glad you noticed."

"How long?"

"Quite some time. Maybe several months or so now," she said. "Funny how the world works, you know. Day before you start working on your new job, you suddenly catch a bit of the plague to bring it along with you." Her talon gently clasped my hoof. "Da's always busy drinking his haunches off every day since he's been axed from his job, so I thought if one of us has to earn the coin, it would be me. Saw the offer from the Hearthsgrove and wrote in as fast as I could. Wouldn't you know it, a day later I was skipping off to this very place."

"They must've been quite hard to handle," I teasingly remarked.

"Oh, certainly a little bit much on the grayer days," Gwedolen beamed. "But they're good fillies, Caroline and Nadine. Always acting above their age, those two. They're really the only reason why I still stayed here, even after everything I've been through. Their mother's always down there, yelling and shouting and pushing us around, so I thought somepony has to take care of the fillies, don't they? I thought maybe I should do the job I walked in for. Only I forgot that there's still me that needs taking care of as well." A strenuous chuckle. "You can imagine how mad the missus was when she found out. Think about it: a sick lass hanging around her fillies she cared so much about... and ever since then, I've been locked in here. If it weren't for Caroline and Nadine risking themselves by bringing food and water up here, I would've kicked the bucket a long time ago."

"You'll be fine."

"Always sure of yourself, ain't ya?"

"I'm always sure. I am the Doctor, after all," I remarked with a grin. "Plus, I promised your father that if I found you, I'll bring you back to him, and in the name of the Doctor I will."

Gwendolen withheld the need to speak, though the twinkle in her tired eyes told me all I needed to know. Without a moment's rest, I straightened my bowtie and strutted towards the door, stopping myself only to shoot one final glance back at the gryphoness, who was now wearing a little smile.

"Sorry, I... just wanted to say that what you did for Caroline and Nadine, even when you're sick... what you did was great. You didn't have to do that."

"Oh, just go on already, you chump!"

"Right, right, of course!" I stuttered sheepishly, giving her a quick, farewell nod of my head. "Now, just wait right here. I'll be back before you can say 'where's he got to now'."

"Where's he got to now?"

"Ah! Cheeky, ain't we?" That quip earned a laugh from her, and a much-needed one at that. "I'm not that fast — no one is — but still... pretty fast."

The feeble shake of her head sent me off. Once again, I was galloping down the hallways of this stately place back to the others, every bit of eagerness and excitement within me boiling over at the prospect of seeing whatever this whopper of a secret was being hidden underground. As the night nears its end, I gave one last gander at the distant moon beyond the tunnel of clouds, giving it nothing more than an absent whisper.

"Where's he got to now, eh?"
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1008 AC, First Fall, 7, 02:10:57

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Well now, aren't we quite the crowd?

The Doctor leads the way, of course. Always does, bowtie and all. Following right behind him, perhaps a little closer than he would've liked, was none other than the brilliant Twilight Sparkle, who was as giddy as she always was on our little discoveries. Gingerly behind her was the esteemed Caramel of High Horn Gulch, sauntering at an odd pace if only because right behind him was our very own Herbert the Trottingham Ghoul, warbling and gargling all the time as it slithered onward with its wriggly limbs. Finally, hitching a ride on our resident fairy's bubbly and briny back was none other than the twins themselves, Caroline and Nadine, the two of them fighting to keep themselves awake by pinching each other silly. Such was our merry band, marching down the hallways and descending down a set of spiral stairs, knowing nothing of what might be waiting for us at the very bottom.

That's the spirit, Trottingham!

"This is crazy. Absolutely crazy."

Caramel's the only one in the group who doesn't share our adventuring sentiments. You can't really blame him, with him being a novice at real adventures and all that. The last one we had something like this was almost a week before coming here, when we were helping out some sewer workers with an infestation of some space dridercorns, which were essentially these unicorns with the furry bodies of a large spider. Always the running away one, that fellow! Twilight always said I should be patient with him, but really, how could she expect me to do that? Patience is for wimps!

"You've been saying that for the fourth time already, Caramel."

"Doctor, I don't think this is a great idea," he continued stuttering anyway. "I-I mean, we're just going down there, then what? We just tell them to stop? We can't possibly hurt them, can we?"

"You know that Caroline and Nadine can hear you, right?" Twilight hissed at him with a scowl, glancing back at the palpably worried fillies. Note to self, even her share of patience can run thin sometimes. "We'll figure it out once we get there. Won't we, Doctor?"

"We will," I affirmed, for the sake of everyone here, Gwendolen and the many others working down there included. "Though I might need to do a little bit of talking. Always liked the talking bit."

"Of course you do," my companions groaned in unison.

A few giggles came from behind us; seems we've lightened the mood somehow, which is always a good thing to do before a confrontation and certainly what a pair of fillies needed before facing their own mother. The Hearthsgrove twins are really something, to be able to brave through all of this with that composure even with everything thrown at them. Really, name another foal that would shelter a sick gryphoness against their parent's wishes and wrangle some alien fairy-ghoul to be their little pet, not to mention the fact that one of them had some troublesome complications of her own to handle with. It's astounding!

"We're here," Caroline spoke up, pointing meagerly at a dusty old door. "It's right behind there."

A strong rumble rocked the place once more, sending all of us stumbling and flailing for balance— we were definitely close. I stepped forward and tentatively gave the door a gentle push, watching as it swing to the side to reveal the pit of darkness before me. I didn't even need to open my mouth before a ball of violet light popped out from nowhere and floated ahead of me, courtesy of the ever brilliant Twilight Sparkle, who flashed a grin when I shot a glance back and uttered a single word in a low voice.

"Geronimo."

It wasn't easy sprinting through the system of caves. Craggy floors, stalagmites and all that. The sounds of chipped rock amid grunts and groans only grew louder and louder until, after making a turn, we were faced with a flood of light rushing in from a gaping opening in the floor. The distinct shouts and calls coming from it lured us to its edge, where we knelt down and took a gander through this window into a large cavern below.

As I expected, working tirelessly and fruitlessly at the bottom were the lost folks of Trottingham, all of them wielding pickaxes to chip away at a rocky mound stubbornly encapsulating what seemed to be a cone-shaped craft with its bottom fashioned into three neat spirals of sorts. Though that was neat and all, what really caught my attention were these hooded figures standing behind them, whips and flogs at the ready. They were thin as a branch and standing on their hind... paws, it seems. Being hooded and all, I can't really see their faces, though every lurch of their joints into the light as they cracked a whip revealed to me that their skin, as sleek and silvery as the ship in the middle, were similar to us ponies, perhaps a bit crustier, with glass-like claws as thin and long as needles.

"What are they?"

"Good question," was my response to Twilight. "Five of them in total. Best guess I can think of is that they came with the ship, though that is highly unlikely. Second best guess, they were here to get whatever's inside the ship as well and had been brought here by someone else."

"Saxon," Caramel voiced my thoughts exactly.

The low growl of Herbert — though it was more of a mix of a high, choral-like aah and a gravelly, swirling gurgle — was enough of a warning sign. Caroline and Nadine visibly shivered when they saw those figures, only to gasp loudly when they spotted, pacing among them, none other than the familiar, flustered face of their mother, Floria Hearthsgrove herself, with Saxon sternly and steadily accompanying her as she surveyed the site, the two of them deep in conversation.

"What's she saying?" Nadine piped in.

"Probably having some doubts about whatever's inside the ship," I concurred. "Though I do think Saxon's keeping your mother on quite a tight leash somehow."

"Saxon has to go," Caroline scowled. "He just has to. Maybe... ooh, maybe Herbert can do something about him!"

"Now, now, don't say that. He has a neat bowtie, you know? Bowties are cool."

"But he keeps on pushing Mamma to do all these bad things!"

"Yes, he is," I answered. "But he's still another pony, like you and me. Well, you, but that's besides the point. Point is, Saxon has the right to live as any one of us. He might not think that if he sees us up here, but it doesn't matter. What matters is the difference between sparing a life and taking one would make to you. You're still young, Caroline, and you as well, Nadine. Do you really want to spend the rest of your life regretting a decision you'll be making now?"

The twisted frown I've seen Caroline don back when she and Herbert were still chasing me momentarily flashed before my eyes, though that quickly dissolved as her disgruntled stare fell through the floor. "No..." she muttered with a fidget of her hooves. "But you'll stop him, won't you? You'll help Mamma out, right?"

"Yes I will," I said with a grin. "Right, you wait here with your sister and your fairy here now. We'll handle everything from here."

Ah, that felt wonderful! Always wanted to say that to somepony...

Scurrying deeper into the caves, we soon found a sloped path leading straight into the lion's den, not that there were any lions in Trottingham. Don't think there is any. Anyways, we were crisscrossing underneath the shadow of the caverns, hiding behind any rock jutting from the ground large enough to conceal all three of us. Before we knew it, we were just several hoofsteps away from Floria and Saxon, their flurry of voices finally brought to our fore.

"...but you need to know that this lot here wouldn't just forget everything that happened, Saxon! You know they won't! Once they get out of here when everything's done, once they're free, you think... you think there wouldn't be a witch hunt for my daughters and I? You think they wouldn't all come storming back, pitchforks and all?"

"You need not worry your pretty little head about it, deary. I've already made preparations to make sure that none of what we're seeing here shall ever see the light of day the moment it's all done. It'll just be another ordinary day in Trottingham."

"And how do you expect to do that? How do you expect to make sure every single pony and gryphon working for us down here to stay silent for the rest of their lives?"

"I have my methods, Miss Hearthsgrove. They can be rather unorthodox, however. Even obtuse, at times— a little beyond the comprehension of normal ponies. Isn't that right, Doctor?"

The very mention of me made my hairs stand up on end. The wide eyes of my fellow companions stared right at me, as if persuading me to stay low, though I knew that if I did it would risk them being discovered as well. And so, I sheepishly popped my head out from my hiding spot and gave a glance around, every face in this grandiose cavern now turned towards me, hooded figures included. Patching up something of a smile, I sauntered out into the open and let out a nervous laugh at Floria's flabbergasted expression and Saxon's steely glare, ignoring the sweat crawling down my neck and soaking my bowtie.

"Ah! Hello! Yes, Doctor here," I uttered. "I was uh... looking for the um... bathroom, yes, but uh, sorry, it seems I've, uh, gotten a little... lost, heh, yes. Lost. Th-This... this isn't actually the bathroom, is it?"

"What are you doing here?" Floria feverishly questioned. "H-how do you know about this place?"

"I'm a... travelling pony! Yes! I travel! A lot!"

"Oh, for the love of the universe, spare your lies, Doctor," Saxon scowled. Or sneered. Or both. "There's no need to hide who you really are. Same goes for your companions back there."

Two muffled gasps broke through the silence, before Twilight and Caramel both shimmied out from their little hiding spot, crestfallen with a hoof raised in surrender and an apologetic stare. Almost immediately, a trio of hooded figures slid up to their sides, all of them wielding curved rapiers and holding them up against my companions. The butler's snide grin at that was a little off-putting, and for a moment I was tempted to open my mouth to talk it off his face, though I held myself back.

"The more the merrier, I see," Saxon remarked at the sight, his words tinged with mockery. "The infamous Doctor, standing right before me with his..." he stops to glance disdainfully at my two friends. "Tsk. Baggage. You think I never realized who you were the moment I answered the door, Doctor?"

"Y-You know this pony, Saxon?"

"Anyone who's anyone in this universe knows who this pony is, Floria Hearthsgrove," he declared without hesitation. "The Doctor without a name, always hopping madly about time and space in his little blue box, his presence always sending shivers down the spines of the alicorns even. You must've heard a story or two, no?"

Floria merely shivered as she shook her head, her fearful gaze still stuck on me. Ignoring her silence, I put on my best frown and turned to face the hawkish Saxon, his intimidating smirk rife with a dangerous amount of confidence. "Come with me if you will," he gestured as he stepped to the side, only to turn around when he realized I wasn't following. "Come on now! Just a word with you, if you don't mind. You do want to know what's happening, don't you?"

Hesitantly, I followed, though not before glancing back at my companions, who could at best flash me a pair of nervous smiles. All the wary gazes in the room followed us as the one who calls himself Saxon lead me onward, before finally stopping right in front of the mound where the ship was buried. Having now getting a good look, it was definitely alien. Most certainly ancient, though the technology's certainly more advanced than Equestria's. With a grunt, the butler heaved himself up onto the pile of rocks, clambering forward until he was close to the tip, his hoof giving one of the spirals a resonant tap.

"What do you think?" he asked.

I stared at him. "About what?" I asked a second later.

"I make a pretty good butler, don't I?" he chuckled heartily, giving the ship another tap. "Ah well, when you're at this age and wearing this outfit, you tend to be viewed as such. Rather discriminatory, if you ask me, but that is Equestria for you." Saxon then leaped off the mound and landed sloppily right in front of me, hooves flailing and all, prompting him to rasp at his blunder. "Kah, hooves aren't what they used to be. Never would be anymore, now that I think about it. Funny how these things work."

"What do you want?" I asked, furrowing my brows.

A scoff from him. "Impetuous as ever, aren't we now? By the way, don't ever ask questions you know the answer to. Really bad habit you have to fix."

A grimace from me. "What do you mean?"

"You know what I want," he said, before extending a hoof. "Give it to me."

I blinked. "Give what? What is it, what do you want?"

"Give it."

"I will, just tell me what is it that you want!"

"Oh, figure it out already!!" he yelled at the top of his lungs. "What happened to being the smartest one in the room?! By the stars, you look so young and yet you're at your slowest! Unbelievable!" A frazzled sigh drilled through his lips as he rubbed his temple. "Piece it together, come on! Spaceship! Explosions! Bowtie!"

Bowtie? Bow... oh... oh... so that's what he meant.

"Sonic screwdriver."

"Yes! Yes!! Gahh, always making things so... so... rghhh!! Frustrating!! It's silly, you know!" Saxon harrumphed, throwing his hooves in the air. "Oh, you are most fortunate that I'm a patient one right now. Too patient for my liking, in fact. Now then, if you're finished with your share of gawking, then come over, let's get this over with. My mistress can't stand the sight of blood and I would hate to have to carry her back to her room all because of a little... accident."

There was nothing skimpy about that threat, if his glare was of any indication. I glanced back at Twilight and Caramel, and though every part of me (and them, evidently) screamed no, one of my hooves shakily reached into the confines of my bowtie, flimsily unsheathing from it my lovely little device and presenting it to Saxon. Oh boy, the stare he bore when he saw it was unsettling! Like a young me salaciously savoring over candy! What's worse was that very stare drifted upwards to meet me, lingering upon the space between my eyes as the butler slowly shook his head.

"Well now, since you're here, I believe you should do the honors, Doctor."

Dry lips thin and taut, I meandered towards the craft, eyeing it closely before stopping myself in my tracks. "What's inside?"

"Ah, now that's the question, isn't it?" Saxon replied. "Couple of things, really. Floria has something she wants in there, as do I and my friends here." He gave a hearty laugh as he pat one of those robed creatures on the back. "Tell me, what do you think this craft is for, Doctor? You know already, don't you?"

"Well, what is it?" Floria prodded, apparently left in the dark with the rest of us. "Tell us."

The curious stares of my companions (despite their situation, I might add) propelled me onward. "It's some sort of vault," I answered, only to pause at an afterthought. "No, not that simple. No vault is this complex. No, there's something else about this ship, I know this. Come on, come on..."

"It's a lamp."

All eyes turned to Saxon's proclamation, and for a moment I wanted to walk up there and lecture him about becoming a little more sane for the sake of everypony else in the caves. It took a second when what he said finally sank in, and when it finally did, I was already staring wide-eyed at this lovely spaceship, utterly giddy with excitement. "No. No! No, no, can't be, can't be!" I gasped, almost breaking into a laugh. "I-It can't be! This is— this must be... ohhhhoho~! Blimey!"

"Doctor, what is it?" Twilight spoke up for everyone else, who could only provide me their unnerved stares.

"Ah, you see, this thing here... Equestria doesn't have a word for it. Only a handful of civilizations do but ponykind isn't one of them, unfortunately. But you lot have seen this before, or your ancestors, at least. Because you have unicorns and their aptitude for magic able to grant them whatever they wished, they never found any use for it, so this was somewhat of an aberration in their eyes, so with that arrogance in mind they never decided to call it anything, they just left it there to be nameless and forgotten." I paused as I circled around the craft, admiring it in all its splendor. "The closest word you lot have in your vocabulary to describe this thing was 'lamp', and it's a little bit off the definition, yes, but it's fitting."

"How is it fitting?!" Floria cried in bewilderment. "You're telling me we've abducted all these ponies and gryphons, did all this digging... all this... all this for a lamp?! How would any of this be fitting?!"

"Lamp," Saxon bellowed, drawing all gazes to him except mine. "As in genie's lamp. You know, the one where you rub it, genie comes out and grants you wishes."

"Just like a fairy tale," I added, looking past all the looks of awe to meet the butler's condescending gaze. "This ship, when opened, will grant wishes to those who opened it, but it's a lot more than that. The kicker here is that the magic ponykind possesses have their own laws and limitations. There are just some things that couldn't possibly exist. You know, wishes that magic alone can't possibly grant, but this vessel here? This vessel doesn't play by those rules. This vessel doesn't care. This vessel can grant anything you want. Anything—"

"Powerful, isn't it?"

"—which leads me to wonder, Saxon," My brows furrowed as I stepped forward. "Just what are you planning to use this for?"

"Hooves on buzzers then," he chuckled darkly, shaking his head. "Sorry about this, Doctor, but you'll have to wait and find out. I have big plans for this. Very big plans indeed. We don't want to ruin the surprise, would we? Now then, I just need you to give it a little blip of your screwdriver and we'll be off our merry way, hmm?"

I don't know what it was, but something about Saxon was a little... off, to put it nicely. The way he grins, the way he struts, not the way he dresses though, but certainly the way his eyes glint at every little show of frustration he makes. Something told me he knows a lot more than he made it seem. To him, this was just a game— no, not only that. No, this was just part of a much bigger game in his eyes and I had a really bad feeling that I might be giving him what he wants, no matter what I choose to do right here, right now.

That is, if I even had a choice in the first place.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Open it!"

"I can't."

A scoff. "What do you mean, you can't?"

"I just can't."

A scowl. "Don't lie to me, Doctor. I've examined the ship already; the door does not have any deadlock seals on. I must say, you're becoming quite a disappointment. Do you not realize what's at stake here? Or have you just decided to resort to petty little lies to save your companions' skin? It's insulting, you know, thinking I could be fooled like that."

"You wouldn't want me to open it, Saxon," I warned him. "You really wouldn't."

"And why is that?"

"Because you wouldn't get what you want." I turned to Floria. "The both of you wouldn't."

"What are you talking about?" the Hearthsgrove matriarch stuttered, stomping towards me with a glower. "Explain yourself, Doctor."

I couldn't hide my smug grin even if I wanted to. "You see, the problem with you lot is your tendency of skipping steps. Every step is small, yes, but you mustn't think for a second that they're not crucial. This vessel does not have any deadlock seals, but that's because it's protected by something greater. Something more powerful."

"Really?" Saxon sneered. "And what would that be?"

"You said it yourself, didn't you? This is a genie's lamp. Rub it a few times, genie pops out, that's how the tale goes. Except this one functions in an opposite manner, you see. The genie of this 'lamp' was never inside it in the first place. Instead, it's supposed to be guarding it. The genie is as much the protector of its own 'lamp' as it is the one that grants the wishes. If I opened it was without its... blessing, let's call it that, the vessel would just be another ordinary ship and nothing will happen. It'll all just be a waste."

"Liar."

"I'm telling the truth, Saxon, you know that."

The silence from him was foreboding. I could feel the weight of his stare pressing into me, prodding every cell and nerve in his desperate search, only to snort when he came up empty. Trotting away from me, Floria quickly took his place before I even realized it, her trembling hooves grappling with my form.

"That's not true!" she shakily cried, lost in desperation. "Tell me that's not true!"

"I'm not lying, Miss Hearthsgrove," I said what anyone would've said to her. "This is just how things are."

"No... this can't be it..."

"Then that settles it," Saxon proclaimed suddenly, strutting over to my companions, who immediately flinched in his presence. Before I could gallop over and stop him, he roughly grabbed Twilight by the hoof, dragging her to the fore even as she wring and twisted against his grip in vain, yelping and screeching out in protest all the way, stopping only when he snatched one of the blades from those hooded creatures and holding it up to her neck.

"Saxon," I rumbled, steadying my temper. "Let her go."

"Hear ye, dear Doctor," he simply continued, shaking his head disapprovingly. "Now then, since you've decided to cooperate this much already, I'm sure you won't mind giving a little more. Where is the genie?"

Once again, all the expectant eyes were on me, waiting for me to provide my most brilliant answer. Now listen, full disclosure, I do actually know where the genie is; I'm just a little less eager to blurt it out with my marefriend being held hostage like that. It wasn't only until I stepped closer that I noticed the butler wearing a small grin, which prompted me to finally realize it.

Saxon never cared about digging up the vessel.

No, what he wished for was already happening right before him. What he wished for was playing before his eyes, aided by the machinations of fate. What he wished for was happening, yet the reasoning behind such a wish still eluded me. As of that moment, Saxon knew more about me than I knew about him. Saxon was well aware of who I was the moment I complimented his bowtie at the front door. Having seen so many faces and remembered so many names, it's only fair that one or two of them slipped off the top of my head, some of whom belong to my enemies. Now, I've made many enemies in all my lives. You might say that every chronicle of my story is a new enemy to remember, though there will always be some who will mark their eventual return to make me rue the day I crossed them.

For the one who calls himself Saxon, that day has finally come.

"Let her go first and I'll tell you," I played along to his dandy little game.

"And if I don't?"

"You have two minutes to do that and then leave the residents of Trottingham, perhaps even Equestria, in peace," I simply continued, ignoring his question. "Now, you know me well, don't you Saxon? You seem to. You know how much I can do in a span of two minutes."

"Certainly."

"Then why don't you let her go?" I growled. "For the sake of you and your friends?"

"Doctor?" Twilight muttered fearfully at my tone.

"You know what else a pony can do in two minutes?" Saxon chimed. "Well, I can think of relieving what baggage you're carrying on your shoulders, for one. I'll have you choose though. Should I start with her or the other one?"

"Saxon, what are you saying?" Floria quivered, before turning to me. "Doctor, please, just tell us where the genie is! You know where it is, I know you do!"

"Then you can tell your butler friend to let her go! Saxon works for you now, doesn't he? You're the mistress of the Hearthsgrove estate, so why can't you act like it for once? Or are you just another of those unwitting accomplices?"

"I-I... Doctor, I... I don't want to spill any blood here, Doctor. I didn't want anyone getting hurt because of this, I never wanted that to happen, you have to believe me!"

"Then tell him to let her go!"

"You seem to really care for this one, Doctor," said butler cut in, stroking the hilt of the blade across Twilight's cheek with a cackle. "It feels like I've hit a nerve somewhere. Care to enlighten us, Doctor?"

"Let. Her. Go."

"Or what?"

"One minute," I declared firmly. "One minute, Saxon."

"Doctor, what are you doing?" Twilight whimpered.

"Saving you."

"How?" Saxon said in place of my marefriend, snickering at the rage swirling in my cheeks. "Oh, this is terribly exciting. The main event! Once again, the Doctor shall sweep us off all our hooves and save the day! Goodie, I can't wait to see how he's going to pull this off! Feast your eyes, fellow ponies. Show us how it's done. Oh wait, should I do the countdown for you?"

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"More than you know."

"Good," I rumbled. "Then you don't want to miss this."

I gave my sonic a quick flick, its signature whirring reverberating through the caves, which was quickly followed by a slow hum that gradually grew louder and louder, before suddenly dying out. All around, I could see baffled expressions, which quickly changed into one of horror when the ground started to shake. The low, jarring warbles coming from one of the many branching tunnels made me grin and turn around to face a cloud of smoke rushing towards us, accompanied by a pair of insistent voices.

"S-Slow down! Hey, slow down, you'll throw us off!"

"Herbert, wait! Stop, Herbert, stop!!"

With a gurgle, the esteemed Trottingham Ghoul-fairy-genie swerved violently to a halt, the two sisters gripping onto the beast's malformed back flailing along in its wild journey. Every pair of eyes were fixated on this visceral chimera, every jaw save for mine and that of my companions fell onto the floor in utter shock and revulsion, before Herbert let out a furious, gnarly screech, sending most of our senses reeling. Saxon's hooded friends, unfazed as they were, only drew their blades at its presence, to which it quickly noticed and gave a warning rumble.

"C-Caroline?! Nadine?!"

"Mama!" the twins chimed in unison, hopping off their fairy's back and scurrying into their mother's embrace as she blabbered and blubbered at them, utterly flabbergasted. Before she could glance up at me and speak, Herbert let out another putrid roar, crouching low and protectively circling the Hearthsgroves. Even with their blades, the hooded figures seemed wary of Herbert as well, always about to approach it but never quite reaching it. The same could not be said for Saxon however, who gave out the loudest, most boisterous laugh in the room.

"Well done, Doctor, well done!" he praised, clapping his hooves. "You see, Equestria, this... this is how it's done. This is how the Doctor decides to save the day. You know, for a moment there, I thought you were just going to blow us all up into oblivion! You know, do the one thing you're always good at, but once again, Doctor, once again..."

What he said next sent a tingle down my spine.

"You never fail to disappoint me."

With a yelp, Twilight — and this is absolutely true — was heedlessly thrown from his grip and stumbled forward, prompting me to scurry ahead and catch her! The nerve of that little— oh, the things I wanted to do to him were so, so... gah! Enough, Doctor, snap out of it! Focus on the situation! Keep your head in the game! Do ponies still say that? Oh, why bother!

"This must be our genie," Saxon marveled, marching up to Herbert despite his thundering snarls. "Incredible..."

"He's a fairy!" Nadine yelled. "Stay away from him, he's ours!"

"Don't you worry your pretty little head about it. I would never hurt him as much as I would hurt you," he chuckled without even giving her a glance, his cheerful tone making the young filly shirk away into her sister's embrace. "Now then, genie, I know you understand me. You don't want it to come to that, do you? You care for these fillies, that bit's clear. All you have to do is just grant my wish."

All Herbert did was roar in the butler's face, flinging splatters of amber spit across the floor.

"And there it is! Good job, Doctor! Pat on the back for you!"

That announcement came from me, by the way. Don't want you lot thinking I'd let Saxon get away with it, of course! I made sure it rang loud and clear, once again attracting the attention of everyone in the cave to me. After all, what's the point of saying clever things if no one's listening to how clever you sound? That'd be, well, unclever! Ah, I'll never get tired of this: all the wild looks everypony's giving me. Oh, it's fascinating. You'd wish you were there to see them! Saxon's, especially! Boy, I wiped that little grin off his face until it's nowhere to be found!

"What," our butler gasped breathlessly, "Did you do?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"That's the truth, I did nothing," I said with a smirk. "Everything's been done already, everything that I needed to do, that I set out to do, it's all finished, every last bit of it. Even before I came here, Saxon with the neat bowtie, you were destined to fail."

"You seem rather sure of yourself, Doctor."

"Took me a while to catch up, but yes, I'm sure."

All I needed to convince him then was by asking a single question.

"Tell me, how do you think two fillies are able to wrangle something as large as the Trottingham Ghoul all by themselves?"

That must've finally lit the rusting light bulb in his head. "They've already made a wish," he concluded.

"Ding."

You could almost taste how sour he was. "So they did it. They made a single wish. A wish for his subservience."

"Wrong," I corrected sternly. "Caroline and Nadine, these two brilliant little twins, you can think of them any way you see fit, but do not think for a second that they could ever be as cruel as you, Saxon. They didn't wish for his subservience as you would. They wished for his freedom." I trotted over to give Herbert a little stroke on the back, though with how lumpy his back was, I'm sure he enjoyed it much more than I did. "Think about it: how this beast wandered the bog for centuries in search of granting a wish, always avoided but whispered in tales. How the whole of Trottingham spoke about it as if it was a ghost story. How it became the Trottingham Ghoul. Nevertheless, two sisters decided instead to search it out, to understand what it wants, and when they found it, they not only provided it companionship, but they also provided its freedom. The genie had been long freed of its chains, and with that freedom it decided to show its heartfelt gratitude. In the end, it may be frightening. Oh, it certainly does look terrifying when you look at him! Despite that, oh, despite all of that... he's no more of a monster than you are."

Saxon merely snorted at that, before he started to snicker. "I'll be honest, I find it funny," he began ominously, "that you have the pride to stand there and talk about what's wrong or right, especially with everything you've done. You know that nothing in this universe is ever that simple. You know there are some things that have to be done, however much you would say you never want it, and I've seen you done them."

"I'll never deny doing them. I wouldn't dream of it," I responded in turn. "Every day, I remind myself of all the things I've done, all the mistakes I've made, all the ponies I've failed to save, and I say 'not again'. I say 'never again'. I live with those mistakes, because I know that when another life hangs in the balance, those mistakes give me the strength to leap. To hold it tight and never let go. Because when it comes to choosing between life or death, I understand one thing: life matters most. Lives matter most."

A long, steady silence hung in the air. All eyes were on us, the Doctor and the butler, in our staring contest of the ages. The fury between us two was incomparable to anything I've felt before this. Well, there have been a few moments, though that's besides the point. In the end, Saxon conceded with a lithe smile and took a step back, before he pulled some sort of remote control from his bowtie, fitted with only a single red switch.

"Then I'm glad you find that my life matters as well."

Those parting words came as his hoof flicked the switch. With that, a distant boom rang from somewhere deep in the caves, shaking the ground and prompting the workers— well, former workers to scurry off to safety. The sound of something crashing and thrashing against rock grew louder and louder, before it came into view in the form of a gigantic tidal wave of mud swallowing everything in its path, including those hissing hooded figures. I would've turned around and yelled for Twilight, Caramel and everyone else to run, though I was too busy standing there, watching in disbelief as Saxon the butler still stood there, unwavering and staring right at me even as the waves were beginning to rush upon him from behind.

"Doctor!" I heard Twilight yell from behind me. "Doctor, come on!"

"Your dear companion's calling for you, you know," Saxon remarked, chuckling at my look of horror, only to snarl when I stepped forward and reached out a hoof to him. "I didn't ask for help, you know. Now, don't you start doing anything stupid, Doctor. I don't like it when you're being stupid."

"Wh... Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why are you doing this?" I managed to gasp.

The darkest grin enveloped his face.

"Because one life is all it takes to make you fall."

Before I knew it, I was being snatched away by the neck, courtesy of the Trottingham Ghoul. "No, wait, go back, go back!" I yelled, kicking and shrieking as Herbert slithered back up the cavern's spiral path just as the floodwaters slammed our butler onto the ground and swallowed him up along with the rest of his hooded friends. "No, we have to go back for him! Herbert, turn around, go and get him! Fetch him, Herbert! Herbert!"

"We can't go back!" Caroline shouted, clinging alongside Nadine and their mother on Herbert's back. "We have to get out of here!"

"But I need to—"

"We can't go back! We just... we just can't!"

At that point, I could only turn around and watch in horror as the roaring flood of mud swept through the cavern, all of it rushing down from the peat bogs above the ground. From within that horror stirred the fires of anger— no, not at Herbert or Floria or anyone else, for that matter. No, I was angry at myself for making this happen, for letting this happen. I was angry at myself for not being able to save him even if he doesn't want to be saved. I was angry because he was right, and it wouldn't be the first time he was right.
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"I didn't know what else I expected from you, Doctor."

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One life. Just save one life.

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"Leave me be before I do something I'll terribly regret."

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That's all you had to do.

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That's all you ever had to do.

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And yet here we are again.

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---

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1008 AC, First Fall, 7, 05:48:49

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"Was it worth it?"

Funny question, really. 'Was it worth it'. I mean, think about it, every time that question comes up, it always ends up being rhetorical. Really now, why bother asking that question when you already know the answer to it? Unless, of course, you lot don't actually know the answer to that, in which case it's alright to ask. I don't know, ponies are a funny bunch, but that's good, that. I'd spend time with a funny bunch over a funless, stone-faced statue any day, but that's besides the point.

That question came to me as I stood in the meadow, accompanied by lizards, frogs, the growing strain of fatigue under my eyes, and a solemn Floria Hearthsgrove, her stare vehemently fixated upon, in place of what was once a lovely ol' peat bog, a crater of gargantuan, crumpled lumps of dirt and mud — the grave outcome of her butler's last stand. The Hearthsgrove matriarch meandered to the steep edge, knelt down and, with the very curve of her hoof, flicked a splotch of sand and peat across the basin of caked mud.

"Was it worth it?" she asked again.

A question meant for herself.

A question which I answered.

"Well, I'd say it's worth it if you learned something from it."

The scoff I got from her sounded bitter, though the lithe smile she wore told me otherwise. "I don't know what I was thinking," she sighed. "I thought he was helping me, but in the end, he just... went ahead and betrayed our trust. I tried to stop him, but then his fr-friends... those things— they just came in and held us all hostage down there. I tried getting the word out to the rest of the town, but Saxon, he... found out and... and he sent out a threat instead. A threat in the Hearthsgrove name. In my name..."

"How did you meet him?"

"Oh, the same way I met you. He just came up to my door one day, begging to come in. I wanted to redirect him back to town, but he then brought up about the spaceship and told me what was inside it and... well... I couldn't help but let him in. Brought in some of the townsfolk from Trottingham to help out too. For a moment, he was great at organizing everyone else and directing the rest of us on what to do, but as time went on... you know how that went..." Floria stopped to chuckle. "Now that I think about it, there might be one other reason why I decided to take him in."

"He reminded you of your husband."

Her look of awe and wonder sparkled within the first rays of blooming sunlight. "My, you certainly seem to know more than you're letting on."

"Lucky guess," I chuckled sheepishly. "But then again, I am a pretty good guesser."

"Well now, it's certainly something you don't mind flaunting, from the looks of it!" she remarked, the two of us laughing. "But yes, Saxon shared some similarities with my dearly departed husband. He was always the headstrong one too. Always knew how to help, always the one that ponies turned to and always, always succeeding in what he does. Even Caroline and Nadine would laugh when he's around them. As for me, all I could do was be there for him. Make him some tea, help him with organizing his papers, taking care of our daughters. I try my best to be useful to him and every time, he'd laugh his little laugh and say that I'm, well, 'trying too hard', as if he wasn't doing the same. That rascal."

Her gaze fell back to the crater. "When he was stolen from us, I... well, I didn't know what to do, really. All his things still remained here, his books, his paintings, everything. I always imagined that he would've figured out a way to return to us, like he would with everything else, so I thought it best to leave his things be. Odd, i-isn't it?" she stopped herself, her voice cracking. "If there's one thing I hated about him, it was how he had the audacity to leave his daughters and I behind so soon. In the end, I tried my best to finish everything he started, to handle all the burdens he carried, yet it never was the same. I'm not him, after all. I can't be him. I just... I want him back."

"That's the wish you wanted to make, isn't it?" I inquired, having came to that conclusion quite some time ago. "You wanted to bring your husband back from the dead."

"I know magic can't do that, and even if it could, it would've been forbidden. That's why when Saxon told me about the ship in the caves underneath our house, I didn't think it could be true! I didn't want to believe it! In the end, he was telling the truth, but he did it only for himself..." her voice drifted away, her mind presumably following suit, before she turned around and stared right at me. "Do you know Saxon? Do you know who he was?"

"No, unfortunately," I said, my lips straight and taut.

"But he knew who you were, didn't he? Very well too, from the looks of it. Seeing you two, I would've guessed you two were once friends or something."

"Knowing me, it's... complicated. I might've met him, might've not met him yet even. Probably even got the order of meeting him all messed up, considering all things timey-wimey and whatnot. Ooh, that might explain how he got lumped together with those funny-looking guards he got! Now, aren't they a peculiar lot? Where did they come from? What were they there for? Questions, questions, always with the questions, but no answers! Good golly, no answers at all!"

"I-I'm afraid I don't quite understand where this is all coming fro—"

"Oh, don't think too much about it! I do the thinking, you do the worrying, that's usually how it goes." I retorted, smiling from ear to ear. "Now then, Floria Hearthsgrove, shall we head back to the rest? We don't want to keep them waiting."

Her hesitation was apparent, though she and I know we can't stay here forever. Turning back to the mansion she had called home for so long, visibly shuddering from its windows leering down at her, she pulled herself towards it, with me by her side at every rickety step forward. "What now?" she muttered, unevenly trawling across the wispy stalks of sedge and spikerush.

"Well, we'll have to explain to everyone else that it wasn't your fault, though I do think they're well aware of that fact already—"

"No, I mean after all of that," she clarified, turning back to me. "After the dust has settled, what else can I do to bring him back? You know a lot of things, don't you, Doctor? Surely, there must be another way to bring him back, isn't there? There must be a way he could come back."

I stopped myself in my tracks, brows furrowing.

"Doctor, y-you... you know how to bring him back, don't you?" she pleaded, sauntering up to me. "Please, just... please, please, please... tell me how to bring him back."

"Sorry, I don't," I responded firmly. "And even if I do, I don't think I'd tell you."

"Why not?"

"Because every life is meant to last as long as it does. Every life has it's time. And sometimes, for some lives, that time comes too quickly and abruptly for us to do anything about it." My stern gaze wavered, drifting back to the crater. "That's just the way the universe works, Floria. That's just how things are."

"So that's it?" she quivered. "There's nothing I can do?"

"Not true," I said, grinning. "Life might seem fleeting for you ponies, but that just makes it all the more precious, doesn't it? Your husband might certainly be better than you in every way, he might, but he's not here right now... and I'm sorry, he'll never be here anymore. But that doesn't mean it's over for you, Floria. You see, what you needed was never your husband. What you needed was right in front of you the whole time."

My gaze drifted up the hillside, beckoning Floria to do the same, her eyes twinkling in the spreading sunshine. Right upon the grass on the hillside, its disjointed, twisting figure all coiled up into a bunch, laid the Trottingham Ghoul, whose anemone-tipped polyps protruding from its back were curled around the forms of Caroline and Nadine, sleeping soundly with their heads resting against the ghoul's crude body. Seeing as it was a long, exhausting and perhaps even terrifying night, it's a sleep well earned for these two fillies, braver than so many ponies, us even! Seriously, going up to the ghoul and naming it Herbert, of all the names they could pick? I can't even begin to wrap my head around it!

"All lives have their time," I uttered, my voice mellow. "Which is why we always make the most of our time left. Right now, I don't see the lovely widow of an honorable, gallivant stallion respected in all of Trottingham. No, right now, I see before me the mother of two exceptional fillies who, despite overcoming their greatest fears, still need her by their side. Now, there's something you can do, and I'm sure you can do well, Floria Hearthsgrove, wouldn't you agree?"

There was no more need for words then, only a thankful smile to signal the end. As the sun began peeking out the horizon, Floria Hearthsgrove strode towards her daughters and, underneath the wary gaze of Herbert the Alert, gently stirred them from their slumber to help them back inside. She even went so far as to give Herbert a nice belly rub! Ah, now there's the greatest mystery of them all! Whether our resident ghoul actually likes his belly rubs!

"Doctor!"

Turning around, I couldn't help but smile as the gryphon whose name I couldn't even begin to pronounce — we'll call him Geronimo, for now — clambered up to me, looking a little less frazzled and a little more drunk. "They're throwin' quite the shindig down at the tavern! Yer missin' out!"

"Just having a little chat with the Hearthsgroves," I explained myself, chuckling as he teetered to and fro. "You're awfully chipper, aren't ya?"

"Why wouldn't I be? You brought me lass back! 'Course I'd be chipper!" he bellowed, laughter howling past the clouds. "Yer companions havin' a good time there too! The stubby lad can really hold his liquor for his size, eh? Lass is a little shy, but they always are before a good ol' pint!"

"Ah, she's not much of a drinker," I said, inadvertently saving Twilight's gut, or perhaps even her dignity. "What are you doing all the way out here anyway?"

"Lookin' fer ya, of course! Ain't right celebratin' without the one that saved the day! But since we're all the way out here already, might as well do it." He lumbered drunkenly towards me, his talons flailing about in a blind search before finally landing on my shoulder. His eyes, a little unfocused from the alcohol stinging his nerves, tottered up to meet mine, before he finally continued: "Thank you. For everythin' you did, whatever it may be. Just... thank you... for savin' everyone... and for keepin' yer promise. Thank you, just thank you..."

My grin was paltry, with good reason. Seeing how drunk he was, I'm sure he wouldn't have noticed it anyway, which is good, that. I didn't want him to think he was wrong when he's in such a good mood, even though he certainly was wrong. I couldn't save everyone, that part was clear to me, sticking out among everything else like a sore hoof. Sure, Saxon played the part of the villain, but that didn't mean his life wasn't worth saving. That's not to mention all the questions I had for him: who he really was, where he came from, how did he know about me. All those answers went to the grave with our butler, and they wouldn't have if I just went ahead and grab his hoof at the time.

I didn't know why I couldn't. I didn't know why I hesitated at the very last second. Perhaps it was his warning, or perhaps it was what he done. Or perhaps... perhaps it was me. Perhaps, having thought of him as a monster, I had treated him like one. Perhaps I couldn't save him merely because I didn't want to. That's not something the Doctor does now, does he? That's not something I do, and yet... when I think about it, long and hard, there was no doubt that this wasn't the first time either. I have seen so many perish before me in all my lives and I'm fortunate that it never gets easier with every life lost, yet... it's always around me. Sometimes, it's even because of me. What does that mean to see life come and go at such a frenetic pace? What does it mean to be the Doctor?

What does it mean to be me?

"Gwyfthion, I... well..." I muttered in a low, firm voice, my brows furrowing at the question I'm about to ask. "Am I a—"

"Oh, there you are! Was wonderin' where you two flew off!"

Looking over the gryphon's shoulder, I catch a glimpse of Gwendolen swooping down from the air, landing perfectly and approaching us before she let out a groan. "Oi, da, get off him already! You're gonna crush him at this rate, ya know!"

I shot a glance back down at her father, only to stifle a snicker. "I think he fell asleep."

"He fell asl— gahh! Always drinking his haunches off and making everyone else miserable huh, da of mine?!" Gwendolen sighed in frustration, talon rubbing her temple. "Typical of him, leavin' his lass to do the dirty work, even when she's under the weather. Ach, we'll have to carry his lazy arse back to the tavern. Sorry I have to ask, but can you give me a hoof here, Doc? I know it's been a long night for you, but just help me with this stupid gryphon, one last time, please?"

"Well now, since you've asked nicely."

The rest of the morning was spent with me helping Gwendolen carry her father all the way back to the town of Trottingham. Pretty uneventful as things go, yet it's nothing too much. Sure, I can be a bit iffy when all the nothings in the universe comes rushing to me, but sometimes, a little dose of nothing can be nice, especially if it means helping someone out. Plus, her father mumbled the funniest things in his sleep (much to her unwanted embarrassment) so it wasn't exactly boring, to say the least. Nevertheless, the earlier question still stayed in my head, swirling like a brewing hurricane until finally, I relented.

"Gwendolen?" I called out, earning her attention. "Am I... am I a good pony?"

For the longest time, Gwendolen blankly stared at me, before she cleared her throat. "I think so. Probably are. I-I mean, you didn't have to do whatever you did back there, don't ya? Yet you went ahead and did them anyway, saved all our flanks," she stammered, as perplexed as she was grateful. "Why bother asking this anyhow?"

"I just... wanted to make sure, I guess."

"Well, if you ain't sure, then I'll make it perfectly clear to you," she chirped with a steely glare, staring right into my soul before breaking out a grin most sincere. "You're a good pony, Doctor. Remember that."

I don't know why, but those words, coupled with that stare, green as the most gorgeous of emeralds, stuck with me, even long after I've said goodbye to her and left Trottingham with Twilight and Caramel. Perhaps it was her conviction that came with those words, burning strong as if she really believed them, that stirred me. Still, never thought I'd have a gryphon tell that to me, that's for sure, but it was something I needed to hear after that whopper of a night. Of course, the fact that I was dopily grinning throughout our return journey did prompt some questions from a visibly-concerned Twilight Sparkle, but otherwise, it set me back on track once again.

We really could've been anywhere, but I'm thankful that I had the chance to be here in Trottingham.

I'm thankful I had the chance to be here with my fellow companions

Having the time of my life.
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---

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Are you still here?
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Are you paying attention?
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Pay attention now, come on!
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You know what happens if you don't pay attention!
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Don't you now, Doctor?

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Author's Note:

This was a long time coming, wasn't it. Even got delayed a bit when I promised it'll be out about three weeks ago, though I misjudged just how complicated this was going to be.

I'm as glad to see this back up and running as you guys are. Hopefully, the next chapter wouldn't take as long as this one did! Keeping my fingers crossed!

Good to be back.

Comments

[The Cryptic Cipher]

Found this gem yesterday, read the whole thing and I thoroughly enjoyed it, personally I think it deserves more attention than what it has gotten so far.
Anyway keep up the good work buddy.

[WritingSpirit]

8397410
Glad you enjoyed it so much, you read it in one seating.

Updates usually come and go with me (note the release dates of chapters 27 and 28) but I'll be getting the next one out soon. Probably something more of a SoL vibe instead of the usual adventure mishmash, which is more or less up my alley, I think. I don't know, depends on how I'm feeling that day, I guess.