Her eyes glinted as the sun rose slowly on the horizon. Her ever-faithful companion, a mutt in its prime, stood resolute at her side. Her long jacket fluttered slightly in the morning breeze and her light brown hair danced slightly with the wind.
She was waiting—for what she wasn't entirely sure—but she was waiting all the same. It would only come to her once whatever it was arrived.
And so The Traveler waited with Mutt, watching the sun rise.
XxXxX
Meanwhile, a man in a bowtie and some ridiculous hat was careening throughout time and space in his TARDIS.
"Why can't you just go where I want to go for once?" he shouted at the console, smacking it harshly. After a moment of thought, he patted it gently.
"Sorry, Sexy."
This man had just lost two close friends. No matter what he'd tried, everyone he loved, everyone he showed the wonders of the universe to… they were all lost in the end. Some simply went back to their old lives, but others were away from his reach ever again. Such was it with the Ponds.
A sudden crashing sound caused him to break out of his reverie.
The Doctor had landed.
XxXxX
She looked up, her eyes widening at the sight. Even with the disguise, there was no mistaking the thing that had just crash-landed before her. A genuine TARDIS—she hadn't seen one since hers gave out two years ago. She stretched out a hand to touch it, but shrunk back as the door opened. It's probably as well, she thought in the moment before the man stepped out. This TARDIS seems to have seen a lot of action.
"Now where am I?" he grumbled in frustration. Mutt began barking at the strange man, but The Traveler hid by the side of the man's TARDIS. He seemed lost, but not in the sense that he didn't know where he was and was scared. He was lost in the sense that he was angry, confused, and deeply sad. He was lost in the sense that she was lost. Except she had Mutt. He didn't seem to have anyone.
"A dog. Seems Earth enough," he muttered, reaching down to try and pet Mutt. The dog began to growl but didn't snap at the man's hand. "Fine then. I won't pet you." The Traveler stepped out from behind the TARDIS (she had been cautious not to touch it) and motioned for Mutt to come to her side.
"Time Lord," she stated, not looking at the man. His eyes widened and he sputtered as he tried to form sentences.
"Where did you come from?" he finally managed.
"Gallifrey, same as you I imagine," she retorted.
"N-no, I mean, yes that, but, where did you come from… just now? And who is this?" he pointed to Mutt as he looked closely at the Traveler.
"You crashed in front of me, so I snuck around the side of your TARDIS to take a look. And this is my dog, Mutt." She motioned to her companion, who cocked his head at the stranger. "And who might you be?"
"I'd rather not say." She frowned.
"Nice meeting you, Time Lord. Nice to know there are more of us out there." She turned to leave, Mutt trotting at her heels.
"Wait!" he said, following her. "Maybe we could talk about you know, everything? How we both got here, how you've managed to survive, all of that?" He looked at her, pleading. His recent loss was so fresh in his face that, despite her better judgment, she nodded.
"We can go to my place. It's safe there. Just follow me."
XxXxX
She led him to a small place in the woods—it was rundown enough to look like no one lived there, but not dangerous enough for pesky kids to be poking their noses in where they shouldn't be.
"You live here?" he asked uncomfortably. She glared at him as Mutt led the way. "It's hardly large enough for one person to live comfortably, let alone someone and their dog…"
"It's bigger on the inside," she snapped, successfully shutting him up for the time being. "And it's far enough away from society that I don't stand out as 'alien.'" He followed behind her as she reached the house and opened the door, revealing a cozy and clean space.
"Well this is nice."
"I set the Chameleon Circuit to blend in like this house on both the inside and the outside when we landed for the last time." She began to mumble some technological jargon that even the Doctor had trouble following.
"Sorry?" She stared at him blankly.
"Forget it. I'm sure you'll ask me again later," she said, still unsure about having him around. He sat down, and she headed into the small kitchen to make some tea. As it brewed, Mutt walked over to the Doctor and allowed him to gently pet him on the head.
"So, tell me your story," she said, pouring some tea. "Not about Gallifrey… but after. Obviously you escaped the War, but what did you do after that?" The Doctor took the cup, making sure not to touch her hand as she had requested.
"I wandered, basically," he said. "It's been a long time… and a lot of," he choked up and paused for a moment, "a lot of wonderful companions." The Traveler closed her eyes; trying not to think of those she had called companions, those she had shown the wonders of the universe to.
"Tell me about them," she whispered.
"There were so many of them, you know… All of them wonderful to the very end…" He seemed to be transported into his past; he hardly even noticed where he was. His focus was on recalling those wonderful people he had travelled with.
"Um? Excuse me?"
"Sorry, I uh… just lost some of them… I've been through a lot lately. Daleks, Cybermen, Weeping Angels, so many others…" The Traveler's eyes widened in shock.
"Daleks?" she asked, masking the twinge of fear with a calm exterior.
"Yeah. Thought they were gone, but apparently not. Then again, I thought I was the last of the Time Lords…" He looked up at her.
"I suppose."
He sat there, awkwardly moving his hands. The Traveler saw she had made him uncomfortable and endeavored to remedy the situation.
"Look, um, I guess if you want to rest up a bit—you seem like you've been through a lot recently—you can stay here. I can make up a bed on the couch and-" She broke off when she saw the Doctor's confused face.
"I'm sorry; I'm not used to… time passing regularly." She laughed.
"I know the feeling. It's just for the night. I'm not going to convert you to my sedentary ways." He smiled slightly.
"Um, thanks, then."