Ch. 0 - An Unexpected Meeting by TheAmariaShadow < Submission

Keywords pony 102682, equine 34977, unicorn 29040, pegasus 20251, earth pony 12189, alicorn 10323, multiple characters 9745, my little pony: friendship is magic 5290, derpy hooves 1290, strawberry 1062, doctor who 274, doctor whooves 132, tardis 115, prodigy skyfire 15, time and space travel 1

Doctor Whooves and the Assistant: The Living Paradox

Ch. 0 – An Unexpected Meeting
Authored by TheAmariaShadow ( http://www.inkbunny.net/YamiSonic )

It’s been….almost three months since I came to live in Ponyville. So far, I have yet to figure out who I am or what my cutie mark stands. Even with the help of Ms. Twilight Sparkle and my assistant Strawberry, I have not penetrated the block that is my case of amnesia. What more, I am still looked at funny due to the HUGE mistake I made: I turned all the citizens of the entire planet into anthrofied versions of themselves.

“Prof. Prodigy!”, a small voice rang out.

Even so, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna both said to not think so badly about this mistake. Everypony will adapt to this new change, as they said….

“Prof. Prodigy!!!”, the voice rang out again.

I just wish there was a single clue other than my suspicion: that the Princesses know more about me than they let on….

“PROF. PRODIGY SKYFIRE!!! PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU ARE DOING!!”, the voice rang out again. I snapped to attention and saw my filly assistant Strawberry hiding behind a desk. “Huh? What the?”, I said out loud, looking down to see a chemical I was mixing blow up right in my face. I coughed slightly as I wiped away the soot on my glasses and said, “Well, that’s one way to get my attention. Strawberry, label this experiment as failed attempt #306-E.”
Strawberry did just that, and then heard me sigh softly. She looked over towards me and said, “Professor….is something wrong? You look rather bummed out.”

“I’m sorry….all this is just starting to seem pointless. I’m an alicorn with a broken horn, a positive label that I am an outcast here in Equestria….and I don’t even know what my cutie mark stands for….or who I am, for that matter.”, I said, adjusting my glasses on the bridge of my nose.

“You just need to relax and take a breather. Regaining your memory is no easy feat. I should know. Hmm….I have an idea! Let’s go to Sugarcube Corner to get some cupcakes! As Pinkie Pie says, ‘Can’t go wrong when your face is stuffed with cupcakes!’ So how ‘bout it?”, the pink filly said.

“Pinkie never said anything like that….”, I said calmly.

“I know, but I want a cupcake! Let’s go!”, Strawberry said, dragging me out of my lab and out of the house. I muttered softly as she skipped along the road ahead of me. “Don’t go too far ahead! Don’t need you getting yourself hurt!”, I said to her.

“I’ll be fine! Look, here we-OUCH!”, Strawberry yelped. I saw her fall back and a bunch of muffins surrounded her. I sighed and said, “See? This is what happens when you run too far ahead and you don’t look where you are going.”

“I’m sorry, Professor….”, Strawberry said, a few tears in her eyes. I patted the unicorn filly’s head and looked in front of her to see another pony on the ground, a gray Pegasus mare. “Miss Ditzy Doo?”, I said, looking over her. The mare opened her eyes, looking back up at me and said, “Oh, hi there, Prodigy! Umm….w-what did I hit?”

“You ran into Strawberry. My guess is that all these muffins on the ground is yours?”, I said, picking one up. Ditzy nodded as her eyes went to her usual wall-eyed expression. “Uh-huh! ….Oh no, my muffins! ….Now I gotta buy some more….”, she said sadly. I chuckled and said, “Don’t worry, I’ll pay for them. It’s the least I can do.” I used my magic to levitate the ruined muffins, then I noticed something: she had enough muffins for at least 3 months’ worth of stock.” …Umm…Ditzy, pardon my curiosity, but why did you have so many? I understand that you like muffins, but 3 months’ worth of muffins is just a bit too much, don’t you think?”

“What? Oh! These muffins aren’t just for me!”, Ditzy said, patting the dust off her clothes. “It’s for my friend too!”, she continued, walking back into bakery. Me and Strawberry followed her, watching her order even MORE muffins than she began with. “Ditzy….why so many? It’s almost like you are planning on going away for a while.”, I said, pulling out a sack of bits from my labcoat, placing the amount necessary for the muffins she bought on the counter.

“Me, go somewhere with the Doctor?! What makes you think that?! …..Uh-oh.”, Ditzy said, clapping her hand onto her mouth. My ears twitched when I heard mention of a doctor. “Doctor? What Doctor? Does he work at the hospital?”, I asked, picking up the crates of muffins for the mare.

“Umm…no, he doesn’t work at the hospital. He’s a Doctor and prefers being called the Doctor.”, Ditzy said nervously. ‘Hmm…why is she avoiding my questions? Is this Doctor pony really such a big deal? And again, WHY SO MANY MUFFINS?!’, I thought to myself, following Ditzy down the street with Strawberry following behind.

Ditzy looked around the Town Square and said, “Now where is he? Doctor said he would meet me right here near the fountain. Perhaps he went to go prepare the TARDIS….”

“TARDIS? What’s that?”, I asked, sitting down the crates to catch my breath. “Oh, uh, it’s nothing. Nothing important.”, Ditzy said, looking away from me nervously. “Hmm….anyway, Ditzy, I must take my leave of you here. I got a few things that must be taken care of before this day comes to an end.”, I said to her.

“Oh, ok! Bye, Prodigy!”, Ditzy said to me. “Let’s return to the lab, Strawberry. More work that must be done!”, I said, turning to the direction of my home before stopping. “Just as soon as I make a quick phone call. I’d like to check up on Ms. Sparkle.”

“Ok, Professor! Can I talk to Twilight too?”, Strawberry said, walking beside me towards the nearest phone booth. “Of course, Strawberry. Now, where is that phone booth? …Umm…it was right here yesterday…”, I said, standing in a spot where a phone booth used to stand at.

“Is that it?”, Strawberry said, pointing at a blue telephone booth in a nearby field. “Huh, that’s odd. What pony would put a phone booth way out there? Let’s check it out, Strawberry.”, I replied. We both jogged over to the phone booth, and I looked it over a bit. ‘Hmm….very odd. Why would a telephone booth be in the middle of this field? It’s completely out of the way.’, I thought to myself.

“What’s wrong with this door!? It says pull to open, yet it won’t open!”, Strawberry said, pulling on the door handle of the telephone booth. “Professor, it won’t open!”, she whined. I chuckled softly and said, “Here, let me do it.”, I said, pulling at the door handle. I frowned when the door didn’t budge an inch. I growled as I kept pulling and pulling, but to no avail, the door wouldn’t open. “Wow, you weren’t kidding! This thing won’t open! …..Unless…..unless if you don’t pull it, but push it open.”, I said to Strawberry, pushing the door for it to open wide. I blinked twice when I saw the inside of the telephone booth. “Whoa, what is this thing?!”, I exclaimed, seeing a lot of highly advanced technology surrounding us.

“It’s bigger on the inside than it is on the outside!”, Strawberry said, about to touch a lever on the wall. “Don’t touch it! You have no idea what it can do, assistant!”, I exclaimed to the filly, watching her snatch her hand back. “Sorry, Professor…”, she said softly. I walked around in the odd room, looking at everything I saw.

“Let’s see….flashing buttons, levers, dials and knobs….and the strong scent of muffins and butter? Hmm….”, I muttered softly, walking around observing everything. I stopped at the control panel and something caught my eye: a portrait of a stallion with a oh-so familiar gray mare.

“Strawberry, I think I found something. Looks like Ms. Ditzy Doo has a very peculiar friend.”, I said, looking at the picture. “Derpy, is that you? Thank goodness you’re back, I was practically starving myself in here!”, I heard a voice rang out. I looked around quickly and saw a door open on the far right of the room, and the exact same stallion walked into the room, wearing a sleeveless brown overcoat, a pair of blue jeans, bandages around his chest, a black headband, and a blue tie. “Wha…hang on. You’re not Derpy.”, the stallion said.

“Derpy?”, Strawberry said quietly, looking over towards me. “Derpy is the name most of the ponies in Ponyville called Ditzy Doo a while back.”, I replied to Strawberry. I turned my attention back on the stallion, only to see he was staring at me rather hard. “Uhh…is there something on my face?”, I asked him.

“….No….it can’t be….”, he muttered. He then looked directly on my black shirt, eyeing the symbol on it. “I take it that this is your cutie mark, Mr…”, the stallion said, before I said, “Professor. Prof. Prodigy Skyfire is my name. And who are you?”

“Me? I’m the Doctor.”, the stallion replied.

“The Doctor of what?”, I asked.

The Doctor chuckled softly and said, “Ditzy said the exact same thing when we met. It’s just the Doctor. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have this as my cutie mark.” He flashed an hourglass on his jacket, and I nodded in earnest. Then he looked back at me and said again, “So, this is your cutie mark, huh? Interesting symbol. I suppose you know what it means?”

“Unfortunately, I don’t. I get the feeling Princess Luna does, however.”, I replied. “Yes, and I can see why….you couldn’t be him....”, he muttered. “What was that?”, I asked.

“It’s nothing, my good fellow. Anyway, I’m guessing since you have seen the inside of this thing, you are gonna ask me questions on what this is.”, the Doctor replied.

I was just about to reply to his statement, but suddenly, Ditzy had walked inside the booth as well. “I’m back, Doc….Prodigy? Strawberry too?! How did they get inside the TARDIS?! Isn’t it impossible to do that, Doctor?!”, Ditzy said to the Doctor.

“Yes, it is quite impossible, unless you have a large amount of energy of course.”, the Doctor said. “Really? All I did was push the door.”, I replied. “You just….pushed the door?”, the Doctor asked. “That’s right. I only pushed it.”, I replied again.

The Doctor put a hand to his chin and muttered softly. Ditzy whispered to him, “Hey, Doctor. It is IMPOSSIBLE to get in here, isn’t it?” The Doctor nodded and said, “It is. That’s what has me worried. The TARDIS has been acting rather strange all day, and out of nowhere, this…uhh…is he a Pegasus or a unicorn?”

“He’s both, Doctor. He’s an alicorn.”, Ditzy said.

“Ah, right. This alicorn comes around and is able to get inside the TARDIS without a problem? Ditzy, I don’t think he is a pony.”, Doctor said. ‘Not to mention the fact his cutie mark seems familiar for some reason….’, the Doctor thought to himself.

I blinked at the Doctor and said, “You recognize my cutie mark, don’t you? WHO ARE YOU?” The Doctor looked back at me and said, “I’m the Doctor. The real question is: WHO ARE YOU, Prodigy Skyfire?”

“I don’t understand. What do you mean, ‘Who am I?’ If I knew that, I wouldn’t be a scientist.”, I assured to the Doctor. He muttered something and said, “Alright. Derpy….”

“Ditzy! My name is Ditzy Doo!”, Ditzy replied.

“Aw, come now. I thought we finally settled that it was ok for me to call you Derpy Hooves.”, the Doctor whined. Ditzy mumbled and said, “Fine. What is it, Doctor?”

“I need you to go back out and get some more muffins and butter. Also, help Prof. Prodigy bring some of his things back here to the TARDIS. He’s coming with us.”, the Doctor said. “WHAT?! I don’t even know what this thing is!”, I exclaimed.

“It’s a time machine, Prodigy. Now, answer this one question: do you want to regain your memory?”, the Doctor asked.

‘Regain my memory? He can actually help me? ….How can I refuse that statement!?’, I thought to myself, a wide grin appearing on my face. “Looks like the Professor has made his decision. Come on, Ms. Hooves. I’ll help you bring our things!”, Strawberry said.

“Was that a baby unicorn?!”, the Doctor said, watching Derpy and Strawberry walk out of the TARDIS. “Yeah, that’s right….WAIT. You said that this thing is a TIME MACHINE?! You’re joking, right?!”, I asked.

“No, I am not joking. TARDIS stands for Time And Relative Dimension in Space. It’s how this telephone booth is bigger on the inside than how it looks on the outside.”, the Doctor said. My eyes flashed when he said that. “Amazing! Finally, a piece of equipment I have yet to create myself! What else is in here that I need to know about? I must know everything!”, I said, running down a hallway.

“Careful, the indoor…”, the Doctor said before hearing a loud splash. “….Pool is down that way….”, he finished, seeing me come back towards him dripping wet. He smirked and chuckled loudly, I myself breaking out into a laugh as well. “An indoor pool, genius!”, I said.

After that, the Doctor took me on a tour of the TARDIS. It was amazing! There was so much technology within it, it had to take the Doctor YEARS to make it. I had asked him about it, and he told me he was a Time Lord, an alien with the ability of traveling through time and space. Remarkably, he also said he had an amazingly long life span, saying he was at least over 1000 years old. I didn’t ask for a specific age, but I was still impressed nonetheless. An hour passed by when…

“Ah, nothing soothes the spirit like a good cup of tea, eh Doctor?”, I said to the Doctor, sipping tea from a teacup. “I say, do I detect a British accent coming from you, Prodigy?”, the Doctor asked. “Uh, what’s British?”, I replied. “Nevermind…”, he said.

“Doctor, we’re back! I brought the muffins and butter!”, Derpy said. “Excellent, Ms. Hooves! I was starving!”, said the Doctor, unwrapping a stick of butter and eating it hungrily. My eyes widened when I saw that. “Uhh…you….eat butter….straight from the pack?”, I asked.

“What’s wrong with that? Butter is cream-covered salt! It’s good!”, the Doctor asked, finishing the stick of butter. “Forget I even asked. Uh, Ms. Hooves?”, I began, before she said, “Derpy is fine, Prodigy.”

“My mistake. Derpy, where is Strawberry?”, I asked. “Right here, Professor!”, Strawberry said, dragging in a huge trunk, despite her small size. “I got everything we need: pajamas, toothbrushes, toothpaste, clean clothes, an extra pair of glasses for you, your red wristbands and legbands, the potions cabinet, and I even brought my teddy bear!”, she finished, obviously winded from saying all of that.

“Excellent! The Doctor showed me our room, so I’ll take it there now.”, I said, picking up the trunk and walking down the hallway. “Alright, if everything is all set, let us be on our way!”, the Doctor said. “Derpy, if you would please start up the TARDIS.”

“Right away, Doctor!”, Derpy said, starting up the machine. A loud whirring noise was heard, and with that, we were gone.

If only I knew how things would turn out for me and Strawberry then. What awaits us on our journey with the Doctor and Derpy? Only time can tell. LITERALLY.

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