A Message from the Author: Picture, if you will, all your favourite characters from the known Whoniverse; past, present, future and parallel. Now, for the sake of sanity, imagine the premise of the show to have changed: The Doctor, no longer a space and time traveller, no longer a Timelord but just a regular ol' human with a keen, almost Sherlock Holmes-esque eye upon the world. Now for the bombshell: Picture this all happening in Victorian Era Britain. What have you got? Well, read on…
Disclaimer: No matter how much I wish it, I do not own 'Doctor Who' or any of the characters hereby associated.
The horse trotted to a stop outside of the front gate to an odd-looking house. The rider, black robe covering their figure, jumped from the horses' back without word or concern of the neighbourhood and pushed open the gate with speed, ignoring the primary squeak as they ran up the garden path to the front door of the house. The peeling blue paintwork which only covered the door was shaken as the figure rapped with urgency upon the woodwork, ignoring the faded golden letters of the word 'Detective' while waiting impatiently as a man in a patchwork-blue suit answered the door.
Nudging aside the doorman's greeting – and the figure himself – in the process, the cloaked figure sprinted up the old wide staircase to the first door in front and frantically pushed it open, not even bothering to get anyone's attention as they spoke with urgency: "It's Saxon; we have a survivor!"
A man was sitting directed to the door, a desk covered with paperwork and a quill in hand, he didn't even look up from his work as he muttered, "And good morning to you, Ms Pond."
Sighing, the figure removed the black hood of her robe to reveal a rosy complexion and mass of curly blond hair. She moved towards the desk where she laid her palms upon the only seemingly-free part of the woodwork. "We have no time for pleasantries, John; Saxon has been sloppy and left a survivor."
"He hasn't been sloppy." Still the man, John, didn't look up, continuing scrawling upon the paper as if the interruption wasn't happening, "It just so happens that this woman is still alive now, whereas the survivors he's left thus far have died before anyone could get the information from them. Please get your facts right."
"Does it really matter John? And how do you even know…?" Surprised though she was, Ms Pond didn't move, indeed she glared even deeply onto the hair on Mr Smith's head – that being the only part of the head she could identify with while his nose was still in danger of smearing his own work – as if trying to see how it worked within.
"I have my methods, but still, the urgency is there within your vocals so I suppose I better have a peek at what has so rattled you so." Finally he looked up, a grin upon his surprisingly young face, a boyish glint in his dark blue eyes and an ink smudge upon his nose, he continued, "So whom found the woman, when, and what is her current condition?"
Unfathomed by his sudden change and glad to actually be talking about it, Pond began to pace as she recalled all the facts, noting that Smith himself was taking notes on fresh paper while not even removing his eyes from her – a skill she was still trying to perfect.
"It was my niece, well her husband actually. As you know the Williams Hospital is located on the outskirts of town and Ruari and my Amelia were taking a stroll down the beaten track on the edge of the woods when he heard the scream, I believe he told Amelia to get his father while he went in to find the source and cause of the disturbance. By the time my Amelia had returned to her husband's side it was to discover an upturned carriage, two dead horsemen and a woman with a gunshot wound to her chest."
"And yet she lives… Tell me what was the woman's name? In fact, where were the carriage's horses? Spooked maybe?" Still not looking down, Smith was scrawling with speed.
"She lives, yes. The Williams' are the best doctors in Southern England; he had the bullet removed within the hour and with my Amelia a nurse…"
"What was the name, Melody?" Smith asked a little urgently, causing Pond to look to him with raised eyebrows and a smirk upon her face.
"Temper-temper now, John…" she teased, used to the man's odd behaviour now thanks to the past few months of partnering with him, watching as Smith looked upon her with a scowl and an impatient sigh."Okay, okay, Lady Perpugilliam Brown of the United States… She was over here visiting relatives who live nearby… very rich."
"Lady Peri?" Smith stood suddenly, abandoning his notes as he walked around the desk, heading straight to the door, Melody instantly preparing herself to follow, instead being surprised to see him close the door on them, spinning round to face her as he stated quickly and urgently, "Peri is a close and personal friend of my father's, she was even in the country during his last term as constable before retirement, she helped him solve the case of those two missing boys – it was all over the papers if you remember?"
"Indeed" Melody muttered, not needing to progress further as Smith rounded back to sit at his desk once more, although this time not picking up the quill as he leant back in his chair, dangerously balancing himself upon the back two legs. "Mestor and Saxon; do you think they're connected?" Melody added with caution – Mestor being the one behind the kidnapping of the two boys some years ago.
"No" Smith answered a little too quickly as he fell back down on all four wooden legs before standing once more on his own two. Removing a tweed jacket from the back of the chair and slipping it on quickly, he indicated for Melody to get the door before tearing down the staircase immediately and calling for the doorman, who was his actual and only servant. It wasn't until the man left did Smith turn to face Melody, "With Lady Brown aside, it seems like Saxon is on the move. Before this very moment it seemed his only intent was to rob random targets but with Sir Turlough last month and now Lady Brown, it looks like he has a new goal, shall we say, besides stealing money."
"Don't tell me, he's after you?" Melody asked almost sarcastically as the servant returned with a pair of gloves and the information that John's horse was now waiting outside with Melody's. It wasn't until the two were outside themselves did Smith finally address her question.
"Actually not just me, but my family, and by damn will I let him harm them!" With a final determined look, Smith set his horse in motion, immediately speeding down the road with Melody momentarily following suit.
