Just a little something that a scene in The Eleventh Hour inspired.
Amy Pond was leaning against the console, chattering on about how crazy things had been with Winston Churchill when the Doctor suddenly swooped toward her and engulfed her in a warm hug. She laughed. "What's this for?" She hugged him back.
"Just a memory." He answered quietly, holding her close. He didn't let go of her for a good, long while. And when he did, they were both quiet, but smiling. Somehow to Amy, the Doctor's smile seemed a bit sad. She would have asked him about it, but something told her not to. "Well off we go to our next adventure." She said brightly, making his smile brighten along with it. But that didn't mean he forgot. He couldn't forget. A little memory that seemed so insignificant at the time of its happening.
A memory that haunted him...
The Tenth Doctor was bored, which didn't often happen. Donna had insisted on a retro trip. Well, retro by the Doctor's standards. Back to the early 2000s for a quick visit to one of her favorite little shops in Leadworth. A shop that had closed around 2005 so she wanted to make a final little shopping trip. Thus, leaving the Doctor leaning against a tree, long coat brushing the grass, arms folded over his chest, and converse covered feet crossed at the ankle. He was all for a peaceful trip, but Donna had been busy shopping in this nothing little town for nearly three hours now! He'd tinkered with the TARDIS, played with his sonic, and was now out of options other than exploring a town even Donna had admitted was a sleepy nothing town. He was ready to go find her and whine until she agreed to leave this boring place.
A group of young teens walked by. School must have just let out. He wouldn't even bother to notice them normally, but there was little else to focus on. Unless he continued to count leaves falling off of random trees. Three hundred and six so far.
"I still say she's not half mental, that one." One girl with mouse brown hair was saying to the others. She jerked a thumb over her shoulder. A chunky boy looked back and snickered as did a dark haired girl. "My friend Jeff says she still plays with dolls!" The chunky boy chimed in. "I wonder if her wall still talks to her." For some reason, this caused the group to break into giggles and laughs. All, but one boy, the Doctor observed. A tall, lanky looking boy was staring fiercely at the ground, his fists clenched at his sides.
"Leave her alone." He said quietly, shrugging as he glanced back over his shoulder. "You don't know her at all..."
The Doctor followed his gaze. A girl with shoulder length fire red hair and her head held high, was walking with a determined pace. She had a backpack slung over one shoulder and didn't look like any sort of outcast. She wore jeans and a white blouse that wasn't much different than the things the other girls were wearing. She looked like a typical teenager to the Doctor. He knew kids could be cruel to one another, but he couldn't imagine what she might have done to earn such treatment from her peers. He supposed that it had something to do with the torrent of hormones this age group endured. Or maybe the girl was immature for her age. Judging by the way the others talked about her she was either a bit immature or possibly psychotic. Possibly both. Either way, the Doctor didn't care for the way the kids looked down at the girl. He found that people who were made fun of had more to offer than their tormentors could ever possibly imagine. Still, this wasn't exactly an alien invasion so it wasn't his place to intervene. If the girl had looked upset or been crying, he might have started up a conversation with her to try to cheer her up, but she looked very self sufficient. Besides, she already had her own little champion.
The boy who defended her, stopped walking with the other teens and doubled back. He turned around and started walking backwards in front of the little red haired girl who couldn't have been more than fifteen, possibly younger. "Hi Amy! So, I was thinking...About the dance..."
Amy threw the boy a look. "Not now, Rory!" Ah. A Scottish accent. Perhaps that was why she didn't fit in. She dodged around Rory and happened to glance over at the Doctor. Rather than make eye contact, her eyes connected with his chest. He watched her as her face paled suddenly. He glanced down at his chest. Nothing unusual. Under his jacket he wore a white shirt and rather plain tie. He looked back at her and stared. She looked like she might be getting sick. Something was wrong.
She ignored the boy, Rory, and suddenly darted across the street and right up to the Doctor. She reached out and tugged at his neatly placed tie. "This! Where did you get it?" She had only ever seen one tie like it in her life.
The Doctor blinked. "Oh, that. I picked it up a few decades back. I kind of borrowed it from a friend. Do you like?" He said cheerfully, as the girl stroked his tie. He had never been complimented on the tie before. There wasn't really anything special about it. He'd stolen it off of the Brigadier long ago. Though technically he considered it borrowing since he could take it back any time he pleased.
Rory carefully stepped up beside her, watching Amy worriedly. "What is it?" He was facing her completely, not really caring much about the Doctor. The group of teenagers had stopped a few feet away and were watching curiously.
"This tie..." Amy's gaze dipped up to the brown haired and eyed man's face searchingly. If the Doctor didn't know better, he would have sworn she was trying to find something familiar. "Its not yours!" Certainly the tie was cleaner and neater than she remembered it, but it was absolutely the raggedy Doctor's tie. The idea of it was just overwhelming and there was no way she would let this guy get away with walking off with the Doctor's tie without telling her how he got it! "Where is he?" She demanded, choosing to ignore Rory's question as well as the Doctor's 'Do you like?' question.
The Doctor scowled and attempted to gently tug the tie free of her grasp, but she stubbornly clung to it. "Eh, oh well do you know the Brigadier?" He questioned. "Well. It was his. But he wouldn't mind my having it. Not after all I've done for him, now if you don't mind." He tried to tug it free again, but the girl just tugged back, even harder. Perhaps the child truly was mentally disturbed. He couldn't imagine any reason why his tie would cause anyone so much distress. "I'll remove it if you like." He offered, glancing over at Rory for help.
Young Rory blinked at the Doctor briefly, then gently reached out to grab onto Amy's arm. "Amy...Lets go home, yeah? We can watch tele and eat chips. We can draw." He added, knowing that Amy would only be satisfied if she were drawing or making little structures of the raggedy Doctor, herself, that blue police box, and possibly Santa.
But Amy was having none of it. "Where did you get this tie?" She wouldn't believe anything about some Brigadier. She knew exactly where he'd gotten it. No one had this tie, but one man. And this wasn't the man. "Tell me where he is! Now!" She was yanking on the man's tie now, causing his head to bow down slightly at each yank.
The group of teens nearby were gawking and Rory glanced warily at them. This would only give them more fodder. He didn't care about being teased for being nerdy or for hanging with the weirdo girl, but he did care that they picked on her. He couldn't stand it. His heart broke a little more each time a cruel word or gesture was thrown her way. She had such a pure heart. Sure, she was hung up on some childhood imaginary friend, but after her traumatic childhood who could blame her? "I-I'll go get Gran..." He murmured more to himself than to assure the Doctor that help would come. He ran off quickly, unsure what else to do. Gran wasn't his, but she was pretty much Gran to every child in the neighborhood. She was the babysitter, the biscuit maker, and the one quick with a hug when they were small. She was technically Jeff's grandmother, but that didn't matter. She was a very caring woman and seemed to be able to calm Amy when she got upset.
The elderly woman was the only one who encouraged Amy's imagination and didn't put her down or accuse her of lying or making up stories when she spoke of her raggedy Doctor.
The Doctor was flabbergasted that this young girl was so insistent about his tie. "I'm afraid I'm not sure where the Brigadier has gotten off to just now." The Doctor didn't try to pull away from her fierce grasp, fearing more about damaging the child's clearly fragile psyche than her physically being able to harm him. "Is he a friend of yours, Amy?" He used the name the boy had used, hoping to calm the girl a bit.
"Who are you?" She asked, loosening her hold on the tie, which was thankful because all that pulling was chaffing his neck. He reached up and rubbed the back of his neck, staring at her.
"I'm the Doctor." He stated matter-of-factly. Where was Donna anyway? He could handle evil aliens, mysterious military operations, and the next apocalypse. A psychologically disturbed human teenager was something else. Sure, he understood much about human psychology and could see the child had some seriously deeply embedded issues. He was positive were he to spend some time with her and learning about her, he could get to the root of her problems. But a psychiatrist he wasn't.
Amy's eyes darkened at his answer. His eyes widened. The girl might be in a psychotic state. She might even be capable of violence! She suddenly let go of his tie completely, and then shoved him brutally backwards. The Doctor stumbled and grabbed at a nearby tree to catch himself and steady his balance. He stared at her with shock written all over his face. What had he ever done to her?
"I can see I've upset you. Well. I'll just be leaving then. Not to worry. I'll not bother you again." He started to slowly slink away, but the girl was upon him, grabbing his tie again. What was with her and ties? He needed to get away from her! He wouldn't have minded staying and helping her, but seeing as how he was the cause of her irritation, he felt that wasn't a wise decision.
"Liar! You. Are. A. Liar. You're not him! What did you do to him?" She was raging! Her voice raising, her hands clutching at his tie so tightly her knuckles were turning white.
The Doctor was so discombobulated by this child, he had no clue what to say to her. He just kept staring at her with utter confusion and worry.
Rory came running back with an elderly woman in tow. She hurried over and gently took hold of Amy's hands. "Amelia." She said softly. "Its alright, love. Why don't you come back home with us. We'll have tea and biscuits."
Amy didn't like people calling her that. But she accepted it from the woman. Gran had been there for her like a true grandmother even though she wasn't hers. She was sort of the neighborhood grandmother. She had been there for Amy when no one else had. Amy let her remove her hands from the man's tie and nodded reluctantly, her eyes tearing up, but tears never falling.
"Is there anything I can do?" The Doctor asked politely, really not wanting to get involved at all, but feeling responsible for the child's current emotional state, none-the-less. But this was a matter for humans and their troubles. This was no place for a Time Lord. The woman shook her head kindly at him. "Thank you, we've got her now. I'm sorry if she's caused you any trouble. She's...Had a right hard time of things." Was her only explanation, but it was more than enough for the Doctor.
He held his hands up and shook his head. "Oh, no, no, no, don't worry about it. Really. I needed a good jolt. Much better than a cup of tea." He sounded like his cheery self again. He smiled.
Rory had slipped his hand around one of Amy's as Gran now had an arm around her shoulder's. They lead her away, but she glanced back at him for one last comment.
"He promised! He had a blue box and he promised!" She was practically pleading now, her eyes still shiny. She then let them lead her away and they disappeared down a nearby street.
The Doctor stared after them a long time. Long after the other teens had left, gossipping excitedly amongst themselves. Even after Donna appeared at his side, loading his arms up with bags and going on about how she'd found the perfect hat to go with her new blue dress.
"Doctor? Did you hear me? Lets go to that nice flying restaurant in the forty fifth century now that I've got the proper outfit for it!" She paused, seeing him staring down a street. He was clearly lost in thought. "Doctor, what is it?"
He finally mentally shook himself and looked back at her. "You know, Donna, sometimes I make promises I can't keep." He said quietly. For in all of that chaos, the one thing that struck him, was that the girl was searching for someone, and that someone had broken a promise. She wasn't disturbed after all. Or perhaps she was, but perhaps it was his fault. He knew the time line could get all wonky at times. She knew him. She just didn't know this him. He felt the urge to go to her and comfort her, to try to explain his crazy life so that she might feel better. But in the end, he decided it was best not to. He knew it wouldn't make things easier. Knowing this was him, but not the him she knew, wouldn't change the fact that whatever him she did know, had broken a promise. Obviously, an important promise. And he apparently liked this tie.
There was nothing he could do about this. If he did know her, he didn't know her until his future. He couldn't get involved in that now or he might make things even worse. He felt guilty anyway. He'd promised this girl something. Quietly, he turned and headed back to the TARDIS without another word. Leaving Donna to trail after him, curious as to what might be bothering him, but she didn't pry.
The Eleventh Doctor didn't realize the significance of this earlier meeting until Amy's neighbors Jeff, and Gran, recognized him. That was when he realized he recognized Gran.
"Are you the Doctor?" Jeff's question came out of nowhere, which startled the Doctor.
"He is, isn't it? He's the Doctor! The raggedy Doctor." Gran sounded positively delighted and surprised. The Doctor peered down at her, leaning a bit closer as he realized he had seen this woman before. She turned to an embarrassed Amy. "All those cartoons you did when you were little..."
He quickly looked down at his tie as the memory suddenly came flooding back. He then looked over at Amy with a deep scowl as dawning hit him.
"The raggedy Doctor. Its him!" Gran exclaimed. It was all a bit much for the Doctor, but he kept it to himself. And cartoons? What was up with that?
She was the disturbed young teen who had been so upset by his tie, and now he understood completely why. She was still full of anger and confusion and it was all his fault. He decided he wouldn't tell her of his memory because it would only add to her pain. To know he'd been so close, yet so completely wrong was almost like a template of his life. It had been too soon even if he was too late. His former life could not have known her and could not have taken her with him and she wouldn't have wanted to anyway. He hadn't been her Doctor. Not yet. But the memory stayed with her Doctor and he would not forget the small glimpse into the painful growing up years his companion had, had.
And that little meeting had been the reason.
The reason why he decided the bowtie was just the best and coolest invention ever. Not only would it not be easy to grab him by it, but it was also less traumatic for a young Scottish girl who lived in an English village.