Hey guys! So, this is my first Doctor Who fanfic and the first fanfic on this account, and I'm kind of excited about it since I am completely obsessed with Doctor Who (Doctor, not Dr). I've been studying up on the history of Doctor Who and the Time Lords and everything the past few weeks, so I'm hoping I don't mess anything up.
Anyways, I really hope you guys enjoy it, and reviews would be FANTASTIC. I have to get better somehow, you know? So constructive criticism is greatly appreciated! Plus reviews are a great form of encouragement. And, much like bow ties, reviews are cool...so...enjoy. ;)
...
"Doctor!" a boy's voice cried from outside the TARDIS doors. Without hesitation, the Doctor bounded over and threw the doors open, wind ripping into the ship.
"Help me!"
The Doctor looked around at the dark blue atmosphere surrounding the ship, the wind completely stilled. He studied the time vortex, searching for the owner of the voice. Just in reach of the TARDIS, a young boy floated in time, reaching out towards the Doctor. The boy's mouth was agape in a silent cry, fingers outstretched and body falling back away from the ship. His dark green eyes were wide and full of terror.
"Jelpax…" The Doctor stared in disbelief, holding onto the side of the TARDS so he can extend his hand out towards Jelpax, their fingers barely brushing. The Doctor pushed himself against the edge of the TARDIS towards the young boy, barely able to latch onto the young one's hand.
"Hold on!" The Doctor told the frightened child. But as soon as he grabbed onto the child's hand, the boy's face began to change, his dark hair lightening and growing, his body morphing entirely. Soon enough, at the end of his arm was no longer the little boy he was trying to save, but rather the familiar face of a blonde he knew so well. His most recent companion, someone he had traveled throughout the universe and time with, someone who has helped him through so much.
"Rose!" he cried out. Her brown eyes were wide like the boy's, her lips parted and trembling.
"Don't let me go…" she begged, though the Doctor could feel them being pulled apart, even as she clung onto him for dear life. He tightened his grip on her hand, but she was still slipping away as the vortex tugged Rose further away from the TARDIS.
"I don't want to lose you," he admitted painfully. Her fingers slipped out of his and she opened her mouth to scream as she fell through time. The vortex ate away at her, darkness engulfing her until she was lost completely. The Doctor had failed to save her. As he watched her disappear, his legs became like rubber and he just caught himself before he fell, staring into the darkness, horrified.
'I couldn't save her… I…'
Then from the darkness, emerged another face, one still very familiar, one he had not been hoping for. And the Doctor stood in the TARDIS, staring at a younger version of himself. The Doctor's chest clenched at the vacant look in his child replica's eyes.
The younger image raised his hand towards the Doctor, his expression forever broken and emotionless. The Doctor didn't budge; he made no attempt to save himself.
"Don't let me die!"
The Doctor refused to help, knowing it was all just a dream; a trap.
"Doctor!" his kid self screamed angrily at him. "Don't let me die! Don't abandon me like you did them! You can save me!"
"There is no hope for you," the weary Time Lord whispered, dropping to his knees. And as he said this, his child self let out a horrendous scream and lunged for the TARDIS, knocking the Doctor onto his back as he became overwhelmed by the force. As he hit the floor, a multitude of voices began to fill his head and thousands of Time Lords past filled his vision, all screaming at him at once. He could still understand parts of what they were saying, and it sent chills shooting through his body.
"How dare you," one cried, "Because of you, we are all dead."
"Traitor."
The Doctor looked around at all the surrounding faces, familiar faces that he tried so hard not to remember so he didn't have to bear the pain of losing them all. Then the first boy appeared in front of him, and though he said nothing, his eyes were colder than before. And next to him, Rose was pale and there was no sign of the warmth she always projected.
"I know what you did," her voice was darker and more hollow; the Doctor almost didn't recognize her. "You are no better than those you fight against. You are pathetic."
The first little boy glowered at the Doctor, his eyes darkening and his appearance becoming disfigured.
"We trusted you. And you killed us."
The voices started shouting at him all at once again, and it was almost too much for him to handle. His child self reappeared outside the TARDIS as the Doctor struggled to sit up. He reached out to his young self, but the child made no returning gesture. Instead, the kid turned away and moved further into the vortex, being consumed entirely by time and space.
It was then that the Doctor lost his soul to the throes of time.
...
His eyes fluttered open to be greeted by the somewhat acquainted sight of his room in the home of Rose Tyler. It was mostly quiet throughout the flat, with the exception of the occasional shuffling and the sound of a frying pan hitting the counter in a nearby room. Rose was awake.
The Doctor pushed himself up from his elbows, swinging his legs over the side of the bed, feet hitting the cold floor. His shoulders slumped and he pinched the bridge of his nose while letting out a deep sigh. The voices still echoed in his mind, haunting him in the world beyond his dreams.
"Pathetic."
"We trusted you."
"I know what you did."
"You killed us."
A cold shiver ran down the Doctor's back and he couldn't help but remember that one fateful day, so many years ago. It still seemed so recent. Had all this time really passed since then?
His concentration was broken when someone knocked twice on his door.
"Doctor?" the sweet voice carried through the room as the door cracked open. The Doctor straightened as Rose's face appeared in the doorway, her cheeks pink and golden hair glowing. This was the Rose he knew; warm, kind, alive. He greated her with a large, enthusiastic smile.
"Good morning!" He stood up and walked over to her, opening the door the rest of the way to let her in. She smiled slightly up at him, but her eyes flashed with concern and she couldn't hold it for long. Then her smile was gone.
"Are you alright?" she asked cautiously, her hand still rested on the handle. "I heard some strange noises coming from your room last night. Almost as if…"
The Doctor waited for her to continue, watching her expression carefully. Her eyelids fluttered and she looked down at her hand on the doorknob, tightening her grip. She didn't say anything more.
"As if what, Rose?" he questioned when she didn't continue. She didn't look at him right away, looking past the door as if figuring out what she was going to say.
"Almost as if you were…crying." Her eyes locked onto his as she spoke, holding her soft, caring eyes with his own weary ones. He knew she was searching his face for an answer, something that could help her understand what was going on in the mind of the man she had no reason to trust even when she did with the utmost dedication. He set his hand on her arm and squeezed the muscle lightly, letting the smile overtake his face again, almost completely genuine.
"Rose Tyler, don't you worry about me. We've got a busy day ahead of us!" he exclaimed, quickly changing the subject. He released her and pulled her out into the hallway, waving his hand extravagantly in front of them as he did when he got excited. "Or should I say, 67,000 years in the future today. Let's get prepared!"
Rose's small smile reappeared as her eyes dropped to the floor momentarily, biting her lower lip. The Doctor pretended not to notice it. He didn't want to alarm her with the fact that he had been having night terrors almost every night the past week. She had much more important things to concentrate on.
The moment of doubt passed quickly, though, and he watched as she perked up when they walked out the door and made their way to the TARDIS. With just a quick "goodbye" to her mum and Mickey, they were aboard the TARDIS and ready to go. The Doctor watched as Rose held onto a horizontal bar for balance. Her face lit up with the usual gleam of eagerness for adventure. He chuckled to himself as they were thrust into the waves of time.
The nightmares would have to wait.
...
Again, I hope you guys enjoyed it and I look forward to writing more for next week! :) I'm going to try to come out every Monday until the end of the story. Reviews are super encouraging, so please please PLEASE if you like (or even if you don't), let me know what you think.
Thanks so much!
~ Nerdi
