Shadow to My Sorrows
Intro: In the bottom of Pandora's box, there was Hope. In the darkest moments of the Doctor's life, there is…Her.
Description: an in-between-adventures tale across 9th/10th/11th/12th Doctors' timeline. There be some angst, friendship and comfort, and an inordinate amount of tea.
Disclaimer: Not mine. So BBC's. Definitely, the brain-child of the story-telling genius Stephen Moffat, and all of his predecessors. I just couldn't resist and wanted to play in this sandbox too.
Enjoy ; )
The Lone Time-Lord
The Doctor entered the La Bella Donna, the best kept secret Italian restaurant and a favorite of his Sixth self, and glanced around checking all exits, assessing all threats.
Old habits die hard, even when you die and are born anew apparently.
The sandy-haired hostess eyed him suspiciously, and he recalled that she had yet to meet this new face. When he flashed her his psychic paper, which displayed his membership card, her cool smile became much more welcoming.
"Table for one, sir?"
Before he could answer, a brisk female voice declared from behind him, "Make that a table for two, Lisa."
The Doctor whipped around too shocked at the audacity of this unwelcome chit to correct Lisa and laid eyes on a short, curly-haired brunette. Approximate age: just short of 30? She looked to be in the average post-graduate age range. She had tanned (or was it called mocha-tinted these days?) skin, big hazel brown eyes, and a placid yet determined expression.
He didn't know which was more outrageous – her brazen trespassing on his quiet solitary luncheon or the quiet confidence she had in herself while drowning in a too-large-for-her leather bomber jacket, which was doing a poor job of concealing her cocktail/night dress thing.
"Oh, you're the one that they all say has such big ears," this mysterious woman concluded after her own assessing perusal.
Yeah, that was the most outrageous thing.
Resisting the urge to check the size of the lobes in question, he spluttered, "What? I'd rather not, Li- Big ears?! Who?"
'Lisa' ignored him, and the mystery chit ignored him, choosing instead to follow after the hostess. It was only after they were halfway across the restaurant that she turned around and called impatiently over her shoulder, "Come along, Doctor."
Despite his annoyance at her high-handed manner, his curiosity got the better of him as always, and he followed them out to the patio – but not without assessing for hidden confederates who might ambush him. And he sat, but not without scanning for traps, pressure-plated bombs and the like.
As soon as their hostess left, he leaned forward and hissed, "Who are you?"
Setting her menu down, she cocked her head to the side, like a little bird doing her own curious examination. Finally, she mused, "Hmm…when you answer that, Doctor, they either look baffled and ask more questions or react in accordance with whatever preconceived notion or prior experience they have of you."
"As you are not baffled, I take it you have some sort of 'preconceived notion' of who I am?"
She snorted and then enigmatically declared, "I take it that we have not met yet."
Before he could respond to this, she continued with that infuriating calmness, "As it seems we have not, my name alone will not suffice to reassure you of my intentions. So what would you like to know? My race? My era of birth? My personality traits and quirks? How I relate to you and the grand scheme of things? My career and credentials? How I take my tea?"
"A name for starters. Your intentions for another. And how you know me, when I can't say I have had the pleasure of meeting you – if it is a pleasure," he bit out, not enjoying being toyed with.
Her big brown eyes darkened at his caustic tone. Her smile slid into a more natural – well, 'bittersweet grimace' was the best that he could come up with – and her voice softened, losing its brittle briskness, as she said, "Well, for that last bit, our relationship is timey-wimey in its chronological order."
While he mouthed disgustedly 'timey-wimey', she elaborated thoughtfully, "It is rather surprising really that this has not occurred to you more often, considering how much you jump around." She shrugged and added, "As a result, someone once called me your 'Alys' to my 'Mad Doctor in the Blue Box'."
"So your name is Alice?" he prodded.
"Alys. A-l-y-s," she corrected, "and it's a name of mine. Although if you were to use that story as an analogy for us, I would say that right now I am Alice of the Looking Glass meeting Hatter even before the Adventures of Wonderland."
"Ooh! I love those books!" chirped their server at his elbow.
He didn't bother looking at her, before giving his order, and he impatiently waited while A-l-y-s chatted with the woman about the house wine.
As soon as the server was gone, his mystery for-this-meal-only companion resumed her tale with:
"So, where would you like my story to start?"
"How about at the beginning?"
"But which beginning? When I first met you? Apparently that is still in your future," she challenged, and then more to herself, "When I first saw you? Hmmm…that will require some context."
"You'd think you would be a bit better prepared for this, if you've met me before."
"Hey, you only have your future self to blame for not giving me a heads up," she retorted, her eyes momentarily bright with her teasing before closing.
When they opened again, her gaze was steadfast, holding his captivated, as she began:
"Once upon a time, a long some-time both ago and many, many moons later, there was a girl cursed to be an Immortal, who traveled with a girl who was Forever Mortal – "
She paused to thank the server for her wine, and then continued, "'Forever Mortal' is not really an accurate description of her condition, but I am taking poetic license."
She paused yet again to try her wine, and when it seemed satisfactory, she finally resumed her tale for real, "Anyways, they traveled, just the two of them, all over time and space, having fantastic adventures, until one day, as a result of one of the Immortal's many trysts, a Child of the Vortex was conceived and born."
"A Child of the – ?"
"Shhh," she scolded, reaching up and tapping him on the nose.
Instinctively, he grabbed her arm, but she did not flinch. In fact, she simply stared at him unblinkingly, while with her free hand she picked up her glass of wine and sipped it. It was only until his grip loosened that she continued.
"These two women raised the girl together, telling her stories of their own adventures with the Last of the Time-Lords and his…wife." (He nearly spat out his water at the word, causing her to smirk, but not to pause). "The girl became so enamored with the Duo that she longed to witness their Beginning, and so she traveled to Gallifrey, brilliantly circumventing its time-lock, and integrated herself into their society, finding work at the TARDIS repair shop."
"And while she waited for this pivotal moment, she met and fell in love with her very own Time-Lord, and because of her unique relationship with the Vortex, their union was able to bear fruit, a daughter of their very own, who was also raised on the tales of the Doctor. And who innocently shared them with his once, future, and always wife."
This time all he did was wrinkle his nose at the word and scowl skeptically at her, not that she noticed, as her gaze had become vacant as she got lost in these alleged memories.
"The Vortex Lady and her little Time-lass did get to witness the historical event of when Echo introduced what some would call an infamous pair, and it gave them such hope on the eve of the Great Time War."
There was a bittersweet smile tugging at the corner of her lips, as she sat there savoring her wine and gazing out, but past, the street. She did not at all seem to notice his discomfort at the mention of the War.
The Doctor did not say anything but let her sift through her memories in peace. It wasn't until after their server had come with their food and gone, that he finally prompted her with, regretfully, both a hint of cynicism and dread:
"And what happened to the pair between then and now?"
She nibbled on her garlic toast before setting it aside, sighing, "The Vortex Lady shielded her daughter until she could no more, and the lass was sent to her immortal Grand-mum, like a London child in the time of the Blitz."
"I'm sorry."
His pity and guilt caught her attention, her head snapping up, so that her dark eyes could scrutinize him, "For what?"
He did not know which offended him more – her seeming honest surprise, which should not be, if her claim to know him was true, or for the fact that she was pressuring him to say it aloud.
When all he responded with was stony silence, she scoffed, "For ending the War? For making an impossible choice? The impossible choice?"
Her minimization of his sacrificing billions of children caused his stony silence to bubble up with rage, like red-hot lava in an awakening volcano.
Before he could erupt however, she shifted gears yet again, declaring, "Well, you asked why I was here. I believe I was sent to tell you this:
"I lost loved ones, yes, for what you did. But I can honestly tell you that neither they, nor I, resent you for it. While we might have wished that there had been another way, you did not fail us – for you saved the universe.
"You have been and always will be – the Doctor."
She then glanced down at her plate and sighed, "Such a waste of food, but you have a Nestene Consciousness to hunt down, while I – have other things to do."
And then in one swift fluid movement, she was standing up, leaning down, and kissing him on the cheek, "Until we meet again, Doctor."
And he did not know if that was a threat or a promise.
A/N: Questions, comments, thoughts? I would love to hear them : )
Next chapter: Brideless