Doctor Who

Raxicoricofallapatorians in Rugby

Rugby School, 1823.

His stomach grumbled. But he couldn't get out of bed, now – it was way too late. He looked at the clock. It was coming up to midnight. Sighing, he got out of bed and snuck to the door. Sneaking barefoot down the quiet corridor, he passed other doors with sleeping students in. As he walked past a window, which looked out over the school grounds, he noticed a stream of smoke coming up from a hole in the earth.

Before he could investigate further, a voice called from down the hall. It made him turn his head and miss the next sight – a large figure streaking across the grounds and out of sight.

" Webb Ellis! What're you doing out of bed?"

It was one of the Prefects. Before Webb could make a run for it, another prefect – this one slightly bigger-built – grabbed him.

" Wait 'til the headmaster hears you've been out during curfew." Said the gorilla-built prefect.

And, with both the prefect having smug smiles on their faces, they led Webb Ellis down the corridor and past a crest with the words Orlando Laborando underneath it.

Rugby School, 2010.

" Orlando Laborando. Means 'by praying, by working.' So, what d'ya think?"

The Doctor and Jenny were standing in the corridor where the student known as Webb Ellis had been taken to see the headmaster.

Every now and then, a student would give The Doctor and Jenny a fleeting glimpse before heading off to their next lesson.

" I'ts alright, I suppose." Shrugged Jenny, as she looked at the thousands of students walking past them. " So, why is this place important, then?"

" Oh, Jenny." Replied The Doctor. " Didn't you read that History of Rugby I got for you? Loads of famous people came from Rugby? Arthur Bostrum, best known for 'Allo, 'Allo. 'Good Moaning.'" The Doctor cracked up before taking one look at Jenny's non-plussed face and calmed down. " No, doesn't ring any bells? How about James Morrison?"

" I'm sorry, Doctor." Replied Jenny. " I've only just got round travelling in Time and Space. Not to mention that..."

" The TARDIS is bigger on the inside than the outside." They said together. The Doctor shook his head. " How can no-one understand that? Rose never understood it, Martha was surprised when she entered the TARDIS and Donna got used to it on the second time around." He noticed a student talking to a teacher and escorted Jenny towards the exit. " We'd better skedaddle. Before we end up getting the cane..." He rubbed his hand, as if he had just been hit with one. "...and believe me, it's not a pleasent experience."

A short trip later, The Doctor and Jenny arrived in Rugby Town Centre. The Doctor scratched the back of his head as he looked around.

" It would have to be Market Day." He patted the TARDIS and smiled. " Another of this machine's little miracles – it has a perception filter. No-one bats an eyelid and you can mingle in amongst the crowd."

Instead of taking her through the market, The Doctor led Jenny into the Clock Tower Shopping Precicnt.

" So, what was this place before it was turned into a shopping centre?" Smiled Jenny, thinking she'd trip The Doctor up with a tricky question.

" Much bigger market place." Sniffed The Doctor. " Even sold cows and bulls, too. Ooh, look, Carphone Warehouse."

He directed Jenny into the mobile shop and they searched what was on offer.

" Oh, of course. You don't have a mobile phone, do you?" Said The Doctor. " Rose and Martha had one and I...ahem...did a slight bit of Jiggery-Pokery and they had a Universal Roaming option on their mobile. Could phone anyone they knew from any time or any planet – well, as long as they had their number."

Jenny turned on the charm.

" Could I have one please, Dad?"

" What?" The Doctor was actually surprised at Jenny calling him 'Dad'.

It was only due to soldiers from the planet Messaline extracting some of his DNA and creating a female soldier from his DNA. The soldiers was fighting against creatures called the Hath. They were fighting for 'The Source', a terraforming device.

The Doctor had put an end to the war but – in retaliation – Cobb, the general, attempted to shoot The Doctor. Jenny stept in front and had taken the bullet. The Doctor, believing Jenny to have died, left Kline to arrange a memorial for her.

Except, Jenny hadn't died.

Due to her having The Doctor's DNA, Jenny had two hearts and had inhaled part of the Source, reviving her.

Kline had sent out a SOS to The Doctor, who had taken Kline on as a companion. They had bumped into old enemies (Racnoss, The Trickster, Autons and had a run-in with an old enemy he had thought had died – The Editor) as well as meeting new threats to the Universe. Finally, they had found Jenny, who had been captured by pirates.

Kline had left the TARDIS soon after, promising to see The Doctor and Jenny again, soon.

" Can I help you?" Said the sales assistant. He had dark brown hair, gelled up and was wearing a black shirt, black trousers and black shoes.

" Yeah." Said The Doctor, smiling. " Which mobile would you suggest for my daughter? It's a present for passing her driving test."

This was technically true. Like with Donna, The Doctor had taught Jenny to pilot the TARDIS and she seemed to be doing well.

" Well, the popular mobile at the moment seems to be the Dial-X..."

" The what?" Interupted The Doctor, believing the sales assistant to have said the name of one of his enemies – the Daleks. He looked behind him and noticed the words Dial-X. " Oh, Dial-X. I thought you said...never mind."

" Ooh, look." Smiled Jenny. " I'll have this Rose one."

She gave the smallest of small winks to The Doctor, who smiled back at her.

The Doctor reached into his transdental pocket and managed to pull out the desired amount, made the right transaction and smiled as all was sorted.

" Well, thank you..." He leant in and read the name on the sales assistant's badge. " 'Deano'. Take care of yourself."

Jenny smiled at him and also said her thanks before leaving the shop with their purchace. Outside the shop, The Doctor reached into his pocket and, after rooting around, pulled out a chip, removed the Earth-made one and slotted the Universal Roaming chip.

" Now, since I've done that little thing for you." Said The Doctor. " Do me one favour and come with me back to 1823."

" What happened in 1823?" Asked Jenny.

" The day William Webb Ellis changed the world of Sport."

" It's always sports with you men, isn't it?" Moaned Jenny, as they made their way back to the TARDIS.

" Oh, come on." Replied The Doctor. " I'll take you to a little place I know. Rugby School. It's – what - 9:55AM, now on May 2nd 2010. It's likely going to be a bank holiday in 1823. Even boarding-school kids visit their families. There's going to be hardly anyone there at all."

" Promise me there's going to be fun..."

" And plenty of running." They finished together with a smile as The Doctor set the controls to journey back in time.

Afte ten lashings with the cane over his hand, William Webb Ellis had been made to check the school grounds for rubbish and dog mess. He was fine with this because it meant he could actually investigate the crater.

However, as he made his way up there, he realized that there was no crater to examine.

" Huh." He scoffed. " I must've imagined it. There's nothing here."

As he turned to walk away, he got the sense he was being watched. He turned to look in the hedge and only caught a glimpse of a big black eye staring back at him.

As he stepped closer, he suddenly heard a female scream. He ran in the direction of it and stopped in front of a body. A dead body.

He felt last night's lunch journey upwards and just made it to the bushes to be sick. He had never seen anything like it. He wiped his mouth with his sleeve and staggered as he looked at the body, again.

What had done that to her? Was it still around?

William stepped away from the body and was just about to run back to the school when another event made him stop.

The leaves on the ground swept up into the air and the sounds of ancient engines echoed from every available area. Slowly but surely, the shape of a tall box materialized out of thin air. On top of the box was a flashing light.

William's eyes opened in amazement with the slightest flick of fear.

The door opened with a tall figure with a tan-coat , wearing footwear William had never seen before, with his back to him, talking to a figure who was still inside the box.

' Two people inside a box that size.' Thought William. ' That must be a bit...intimate.'

He caught what the tall gentleman was saying.

" There, safe and sound. And no-one's seen us...what're you looking at?" The Doctor turned to see a figure in a 1820's school uniform.

Before The Doctor could say a friendly 'hello', William collapsed from shock.

" Will you let me handle this?"

That was the first voice William heard upon awakening. His eyes opened to reveal the same man in the same tan coat and pin-stripe jacket and trousers. The female next to him was dressed in attire that would have shamed other girls of this period. But, not this girl. This girl was dressed in a white t-shirt with the image of a dragon on it. She also wore tight jeans and footwear like the man.

" Back with us, I see?" Smiled the man. His smile seemed to soothe William. " Now, why do you start by telling us your name?"

" W-William. William Webb Ellis." Replied the school-boy.

The man's smile, if at all possible, grew bigger as he looked at his female companion.

" Oh, Jenny. How lucky is that? We've only bumped into the genius that invented....that can wait. Now, William, you seemed slightly scared by something when you...ahem...bumped into us. What did you see?"

" A b-body. A girl's body...dead." William thought for a minute before adding. " And I saw something in the bushes. It..." He hesitated for a moment. Would they think him mad for what he was about to say? "...was looking back at me. It was a big, black eye."

William, until now, had not took in his surroundings. He looked around and noticed that they – he, the man and the girl – were in the horses stables.

The man, however, was thinking about something else. This thing – this black eye – and the murder of the girl wasn't just a coincidence.

Many of The Doctor's enemies had big, black eyes. He needed to – as his other self had once said – narrow it down.

" Tell me, this eye, was it connected to a face, a head or anything like that?" The Doctor added as an afterthought. " Could you smell anything?"

" Well, it seemed to be blending in with the leaves. It was hiding in the bushes." Said William, as The Doctor and Jenny shared a puzzled look. " As for smell, I don't - - well, I guess I could smell bad breath. It wasn't mine, though. I'd only just brushed. It seemed to be emerging from the bushes. I'm not too good with science."

" Well, that's not what you're going to be remembered for." Muttered Jenny, only to get a nudge in the ribs from The Doctor.

" Listen, William, do you believe in beyond this mortal coil?" Asked The Doctor. " You see stars above you at night? Is there life on mars?"

Jenny covered her face in the only way a daughter could do in company of an embarrasing father.

" I knew I wasn't going mad!" Exclaimed William. " Yesterday – last night, I mean – I saw a smouldering crater. But Prefects caught me before I could go out to investigate." He showed The Doctor and Jenny the marks from the cane. " They must have covered it, somehow. I'm sorry. Where are my manners? You didn't give me your names."

" I'm The Doctor." Beamed the man.

" And I'm Jenny." Added the blonde (hardly-covered) girl.

" So, tell me, Doctor." Said William. Now, he had seen a booth appear from nowhere and a smoking crater before, he was ready for whatever The Doctor told. " What sort of thing was hiding in the hedge?"

" Is Webby Ellis hiding and not doing his chores?" Cut in another voice from outside the stable doors. " That's 20 whips from the cane, you know?"

From the shadow it cast, William could tell it was the gorilla-built prefect that had caught him last night. He took The Doctor and Jenny to the hay loft and watched as the prefect entered the stables.

The Doctor could tell what Jenny was about to do and placed his hand on her shoulder to prevent her from dealing with the thug.

" We do not interfer." He looked at William. " But we won't let him get you either...and he's going for the pitchfork."

The three figures hid in the hay as Gorilla-boy made his way towards them, pitchfork in hand. The barn-door creaked open and another much larger – and inhuman – figure entered the horse stables.

The prefect turned to face the figure and a look of fear swept over his smug features.

In front of him, towering above him, covering him in shadow was a Slitheen.

It let out an inhuman roar before advancing on him.