"Right," the lady murmured in English as she adjusted her pack's straps over her shoulders. Her outfit, which consisted of a tight fitting black suit, was out of the ordinary for normal people, but it was conspicuous enough that people just ignored her. The backpack, although looking like any other bag, was part of the property at UNIT.
It was a new device, created by the scientists and other engineers in this notorious organization that was most known for dealing with otherworldly beings. Apparently, it was supposed to teleport her wherever she wanted without any particles missing from her genetic makeup and it was supposedly turbulence free. As long as she input in the right coordinates, she could theoretically jump from New York City to Cardiff in a matter of milliseconds. However, the main thing was it was a theory, it was still a thing in trial, hence the reason she was in Japan. The nerds at the desk told her in order to experiment with the thing, she needed to go to some far off place and try coming home to London. Initially, the lady was filled with fear, but soon regained her sense of adventure. Besides, she got to play around in the land where the sun rises! (…Besides anything was fine besides a Vortex Manipulator, those things packed a punch!)
That is, unless some alien ambushed her or something, which was highly unlikely, but still.
The black haired woman paused in her view of the city as she noticed someone sniffling on a park bench. Her dark almond eyes widened considerably before she hastened her once leisurely pace to confront the lady who was crying. Going along with her instincts, the doctor knew that the girl was not a threat, possibly wounded. Looking closer, she noticed that this was something that could not be cured with bandages and antiseptic. No, not the wounds gained form battles and brawls, but the emotional and mental ones that she herself was once subjected to. Only soothing words and comfort could help the lass.
A grim smile made its way on her face. Yes, if there was anything that she was accustomed to, it was the pain that she had to endure when she was on her travels with that man she will always love. Out of kindness and the need to make the world a brighter place, the woman did not hesitate, only started walking towards the girl.
Slowing her pace before directly interacting with the schoolgirl—heaven knows what would happen if the girl spotted her coming at her like a Sontaran!—the woman made sure that she looked nonthreatening. All right, the girl was still silently crying, her face was red, and her shoulders seemed to shrink with every gasp that came out of her mouth. A pang seemed to resound through her heart at the sight. Yup, she used to look like that whenever she let her emotions get the better of her.
"Hey," the dark haired lady admonished slowly, still evaluating the situation the girl was in—she was still getting used to the tongues that the people used in Japan, it was times like these that she wished she had a Translation Matrix handy. When the girl finally looked up at the newcomer, the lady was quick to realize that the girl was extremely beautiful. She was still young, but in time she would look stunning. The dark haired lady made an effort not to appear too astounded by the grace and innocence that the girl seemed to spew off of her in waves. "May I sit beside you? I have been busy all day and I haven't had time to stop." She offered a small smile that seemed to placate the girl's earlier bout of panic. However, there was still some embarrassment showing in the hazel eyes.
"A-ano, if you like to," the girl whispered as she hastily wiped her eyes on her sweater. "I will leave now if you like." Just as the girl was about to abscond away from the bench, the dark haired lady stopped her by placing a light hand on the girl's shoulder, effectively making the girl rethink her actions.
"Please, I am unfamiliar with Tokyo and the hustle and bustle I have to endure as a tourist," the black woman pleaded, her eyes showing some discomfort with that statement. "I would appreciate it if you show me how a person can relax around here." Although the woman was a Londoner herself, she still found it interesting how different cultures were even though they were still human in design and thought.
"How I relax," the girl whispered in surprise. Through her brief bout of surprise, she became bemused at the situation and decided to agree. Unknown to the woman of African descent, the girl sympathized with her because her father was a traveler and often recounted stories of having to encounter daily embarrassing encounters with the natives.
Martha hummed at the girl's lighthearted response, instantly reminded of the everyday miracles that people could still remain cheerful in the face of reality.
"That's right…"The woman almost slapped her face in exasperation; she almost forgot! "I am so sorry for being so rude! My name's Martha Jones!" From what she observed from people greeting each other, she took part in the custom and bowed her head. The girl on the other hand placed a hand on her mouth, silently in awe at the foreigner's mortification.
So, this is what papa must look like when he's in another country.
"Hinata Ema," the girl replied. However, a confused expression crossed her face. There was something different between the Western and Eastern culture concerning the value of names, right? "I-I mean Ema Hinata."
Martha only smiled at the cute Japanese native, taking note of how polite and cheery she became despite her early appearance. While her face was no longer basking in the salty trails of water, there was still evidence that something had terrible had happened. Since Martha was allowed access to the bench, she might as well indulge in something nice for the girl. Patting her pockets, she picked out a handkerchief that the girl might enjoy soothing her face. Without fanfare, the Londoner gently cupped the girl's face in a smooth, clinical gesture. The girl gasped, obviously not used to getting random gestures.
"There, much better," the lady observed as she tucked the cloth back into her jacket.
"Thank you," Ema muttered as she leaned against the back of the bench. There was still confusion in her eyes, but Martha felt that there was still trust in her gaze. That was good. That was really good.
"So…what do you around here," Martha asked as she observed couples lazing about and children running after one another. This was a scene that made her intensely happy because after seeing how the world turned to anarchy during that year she walked the earth. How all those people turned to her with little hope…She shook her head, not wanting to think things like that on her vacation and her attempt to solve the girls' unknown problem.
The girl shifted in her seat, looked up at the sky and back to Martha.
"Spending time at the library, studying to go a university of my choice, spending time with my brothers," her voice dropped at the very end. Almost immediately, she snapped her head back up and looked to the dark haired woman in fear of what she said. "Sorry, you probably don't want to hear me talk about my life, what about—"
Martha shushed her and asked what was the matter. This was probably not her place to pry, but Martha knew that if no one dug for answers, there wasn't going to be any foundation for any solutions. From experience, the Londoner knew that the problem was eating her soul out, and being a doctor, she knew it was her duty to help those in need.
"What's wrong with your brothers?" She furrowed her eyes in suspicion on how the girl stiffened and tears seemed to form in her eyes. This girl was trying to strong to be brave, but her attempt was clearly failing. The doctor moved closer to the girl, close enough to share body heat between the two females. Neither of the two seemed to take notice of the sudden closeness that Martha had initiated.
The girl shook her head, her face glued to looking at the ground.
"It's not what's wrong with them…it's what's wrong with me." While Martha was confused, she did not push further into the topic, letting the girl explore further into the subject. The ponytailed girl looked at her at the corner of her eye, a silent plead that she continue. Giving her permission, the older woman nodded her head, curious. "You see, I have thirteen stepbrothers after my father remarried, so there's not blood relations or anything."
"Really," Martha laughed, thinking of her own dysfunctional family. Comparing the two, she could see who got the shorter end of the stick. "Must be a pain getting the shower and who has to the dishes."
The petite brunette shared in the older woman's mirth, but sobered up almost immediately.
"If only it was that easy." At Martha's confused expression, the girl began to elaborate. "Since we're not related, it would be okay to…" The girl muttered something unintelligible under her breath, concealing information from her expectant audience.
Ever curious, Martha Jones soothed circles into Ema's back, taking care as to not appear as a pervert and asked to repeat what she said.
"It would be okay to date me, but it's not one of them who is interested…More like most of them are," the girl sighed sadly. Pale fingers slipped a lock of her hair underneath one of her ears and looked directly into Martha's eyes imploringly. "I tried my hardest to be fair to them and treat them equally like siblings, but they still like me in that way and I don't know what to do!" Fresh tears made rivulets go down her fair complexion once again. "Today, one of them, Tsubaki confessed in front of everyone and-and—" The girl hiccupped and Martha, out of instinct, held her close and rocked her to her chest.
"Hush now…you don't need to talk anymore," Martha whispered as she held the girl. "From what I can tell, you're a smart girl. Very pretty, very sweet. I can only guess that some of them love you in a more platonic way and will come to terms with that sooner or later." Martha paused as she stroked the girl's ponytail, noticing the immediate calming effect it had on the girl. "However, some of them will continue loving you and you will continue to lead them on." Martha stopped her maternal ministrations, causing the girl to look at her in confusion. "I know what it's like to be lead on, to feel loved one moment and to be snubbed the next." Martha paused before considering the fact that the girl must be trustworthy with the information that she was going to give her. "I once knew a brilliant man. He took me to see the stars, whole new worlds…He was so nice." A far off look glazed Martha's penetrating gaze for a second, leaving the young Hinata to digest the new information.
"What makes you so sad then? What happened?" Curious, the Japanese teen seemed to forget her previously shy disposition.
"We went on many adventures and I fell in love every second I spent with him. But…he was still in love with a girl that he met long ago." Martha seemed to stop and listen to the children who were playing off into the vast fields of the park. "Every day I would wake up and delude myself into thinking that he would actually look at me, not see the girl he once had… To have that hope that one day he'll look at me," her voice hardened, but cracked," It's not a nice feeling to have, to not have closure to a relationship that may or not have ended…or have even begun."
"W-what are you saying?" The girl asked in fear. She knew that was coming, but the thought of another solution reared it's head.
"I'm saying that you need to be more clear in your actions. Actions that clearly state that you don't want to have a relationship with any of them, right?" Martha asked.
"But...I don't want to hurt their feelings," Ema whispered as she fingered the hem of her blouse.
"Sometimes…sometimes it's merciful to be cold to those we love. Do you want them to harbor unrequited feelings for as long as you live with them?" Martha asked. "My friend, he never put me out of my misery and it wasn't until I decided that I'll do myself the favor and just go. Even though we just met and will probably never meet again, I just want you to know that—" Her phone rang in the midst of her speech, a curse already on it's way out of her mouth. Checking the caller id, she realized that it was her boss calling for her. Sighing, she turned to the girl and smiled gently.
"Sorry bout that, but my point still stands. You have to show them how you really feel because love…" she furrowed her brows for a good analogy and laughed as she jumped to her feet. "Love is a big ball of wibbly wobbly timey lovey dovey stuff! Got it?"
"Er…" Ema smiled unsurely at what the lady was getting at—Oh! Was there motors coming out of her pack! The Japanese girl rubbed her eyes as if to question why her backpack was so high-tech.
Martha looked at the girl with a sense of longing to continue their conversation, but the exhilaration at trying out the new technology outweighed her concerns for the girl. Ema Hinata looked smart and from her reactions at the advice she had given her, there was still hope that she would take action and arrive at a conclusion. Then again, men were stupid and one could only hope for a happy ending for the hearts that have been broken and will be torn apart.
"Thanks for the chat," she said apologetically, "but it looks like I'm going to have to resort to a magic trick to end this pleasant conversation." Ema could only stare in confusion as she saw the lady type in something on her backpack keyboard and the image of the lady becoming steadily blurry.
"What's happening," the girl asked, afraid for Martha.
"Good luck with your brothers," Martha yelled as she felt her particles leave this plane of existence and embracing the dreariness of Cardiff.
Ema could only stare dumbfounded at where the lady once stood before laughing aloud.
If the girl could disappear like that, then she could surely put down all of her brothers gently.
Smiling determinedly, the girl walked out of the park, eager to confront everyone at Sunrise Residence.
Did you guys watch the Time of the Doctor? Cried at the last ten minutes of the episode and had a sob-fest an hour later. Can you believe that Matt's gone? I hope Capaldi is a great Doctor, or I'm gonna kill Moffat.