Celestia was interrupted from her daily paperwork as a gray unicorn in UNIT's blue and red uniform burst in to her stateroom. She immediately pushed the pile of papers aside when she saw him. UNIT business had a disturbing tendency to be the single most important business of any given day it came up. “What can I do for you, corporal?”

The corporal gave the princess a wide eyed stare that caused a pit of worry to form in her stomach. It took a lot to unnerve UNIT members. “It's... it's the Doctor.”

The impassive mask Celestia wore before her subjects slipped slightly. “What about the Doctor?”

The corporal shifted from one foot to the other nervously, both the news itself and the fact he had to deliver it to Celestia causing him considerable stress. “W-well, he's back at his lab. There was, a situation and, ah, radiation, and... he's dying.”

The corporal was next blinded by a brilliant flash of light as a quick cacophonous pop assailed his ears. When the spots cleared, the Princess of the Sun had vanished.

The Doctor coughed as he gazed fondly up at the red-maned mare standing above him. “A tear, Wordsmith?” he asked weakly as a small smile formed on his lips. “Don't cry. While there's life, there's...” The Doctor sighed mid sentence and fell silent.

That was when Celestia appeared in a brilliant flash of magic. The sight before her caused her throat to tighten. On the floor was the Doctor's unmoving body, his latest companion—a news reporter if memory served—and the Brigadier standing above him. The look on the young mare's face answered the question before Celestia could form it.

“Tell me. Why are you crying?” a sudden voice asked.

The three ponies turned to see a maroon earth pony in ridiculous robes sitting on the couch in front of the window. The Brigadier cocked an eyebrow. Unexpected though this was, it was hardly the strangest thing to happen with the Doctor around. “Who is that?” he asked.

“The... the Hermit,” Wordsmith mumbled in minor shock.

“Well that explains everything,” the Brigadier muttered as he rolled his eyes.

“He's still alive, you know,” the Hermit explained. “He's a Time Charger. He's in the process of regeneration. Soon he will awaken with a new form.” The strange pony turned to Celestia. “As you've well seen, Little Celestia.”

Celestia gazed upon this intruder shrewdly. The Doctor as he lay here never called her that. That was something the future Doctor of her past would say. The Hermit grinned a grin she recognized in herself—one of equal parts wisdom and mischief. The truth of what he was saying suddenly dawned on her. “So all the faces I've seen him with in the past, that means that, each time, he's... died?”

The Hermit nodded. “Yes. That is a particular trait of we Time Chargers. Though there is a limit, it extends our lives almost indefinitely.” The Hermit cast a sad look at the unmoving Doctor. “This will he his third regeneration,” he said with a sigh. “I fear that if he continues this way he will die very young indeed by Time Charger standards.”

“Why are you here?” Celestia asked.

The Hermit smiled again. “You are not the only friends of the Doctor. I owe him much, and am here to give his regeneration process a little... push. The radiation is interfering with the process a bit. Now, please stand back and be aware, this process does affect the brain cells along with the more obvious traits.”

The three ponies did as they were instructed and stepped back a few paces as the Hermit closed his eyes. They watched in awe as the Doctor began to glow with a golden light that slowly built itself brighter and brighter, then suddenly erupted in every direction. Even Celestia, who moved the very sun each day, had to avert her eyes. “Well, here we go again,” the Brigadier—who knew something of the radical changes the Doctor was about to undergo—muttered under his breath.

When the light died down, Celesta's eyes widened in surprise. She didn't even notice that the Hermit was gone. For lying there on the ground, looking almost paradoxical in the finery of the life he'd been living up to this point, was the Doctor. Her Doctor. All teeth and curls. Celestia lowered her head to his level. “Doctor?” she asked tentatively.

The Doctor's wild blue eyes shot open and darted around, looking in all directions. He raised his head, looked Celestia in the eye, said a random collection of words, numbers, and oddball sounds, belched a stream of golden energy in her face, and fell unconscious again.

All was quiet in the Doctor's lab when he finally managed to sneak back into it. He didn't really see what the big deal was that he should be confined to a bed. Regeneration was a dodgy process, true, but a few hours of sleep and he was right as rain. Why couldn't the (heh) doctors just see it? Oh well. At least he managed to get away from them. And there she was. The TARDIS herself. Oh, what a beauty. And so neglected for so long. He hadn't gotten nearly enough chances to take her out even after the Council rescinded his banishment.

Just as he managed to dig the key out from one of his old socks and open the door, a familiar voice interrupted him. “And just where do you think you are going?”

The Doctor turned to see Wordsmith glaring at him. The Doctor smiled a wide, wild smile. “Just out and about for a bit.”

“Doctor, you can't just up and leave.”

“Can't I?”

“Can't he?” another voice interrupted as Celestia entered the lab, a smile on her face.

The Doctor brightened when he saw her. “Ah, Celestia. Celestia who gave me a place when I needed it, who I will apparently share many adventures with, and who is just as long lived as I. Care to join me on a trip?”

Celestia shook her head. “You have no idea how tempting the offer is, Doctor, but I have too many responsibilities. I just came to see you off.”

The Doctor just shrugged. “Pity. And you, Wordsmith? You traveled with the old me for quite some time. Care to give the new me a try?”

At Wordsmith's hesitance, Celestia gave her a nudge toward the blue barn. “Well, go on. It's not like you don't want to,” she teased.

Wordsmith gave an annoyed look at Celestia before remembering who exactly it was that was annoying her, then turned to the Doctor. “Of course I will,” she said. “Any plans on where to go first?”

The Doctor grinned as he let her in the TARDIS. “Oh, I don't know. I thought I'd just hit a few random buttons and let the old girl decide.” Moments after he and his companion entered the TARDIS, the blue barn began to vanish with the now familiar screeching sound.

Just as it vanished from reality completely, the Brigadier galloped in. One glance at the room was all he needed to register what had happened. “Oh, where has he gone now?” he groused.

Celestia favored her old friend with a smile. “Anywhere and everywhere, my dear Brigadier.” She cast one last bittersweet look at the now empty space the TARDIS once occupied. “Goodbye, Doctor.”