Disclaimer: O fpm'y pem Fpvypt Ejp.
Author's Note: I found this story sitting in my waste bin and realized it's cute enough to be a oneshot and that it deserved to be uploaded. Enjoy.
Mistaken Identity
As soon as the Doctor stepped foot out of the TARDIS, he knew something was wrong. Nothing looked any different, but the air seemed strange and the atmosphere wasn't quite right. He felt like he should step back in the TARDIS and take off. Like this place was forbidden.
He grinned and shrugged into his overcoat, strolling down the sidewalk.
"Excuse me," he heard someone say from behind him. He turned around to see a young girl with a short blonde ponytail and a pink dress.
He knelt down to eye level. "Hello, and what might your name be?" he asked.
"I'm Angela," she said, holding her hands behind her back and wiggling.
"Well, hello, I'm the Doctor. Glad to meet you."
Angela waved, even though they were a foot apart. "Hi. Are you okay?"
"Sure I am, why wouldn't I be?"
"Well, since Donna had to leave you and all, I thought you might be hurt." She patted his shoulder as his smile disappeared. "Like you were with Rose."
"How d'you know about that?" he asked softly.
"I saw it on the telly." She gestured at her house, a few doors down. He realized he was in a suburban neighborhood.
"The..." He looked toward her house, an eyebrow raised. "The telly?"
"Yeah." Angela grabbed his hand. "I'll show you." She started leading him to her door.
"Are your mummy and daddy around?" the Doctor asked.
"Daddy's at work, but Mum's home. She's doing the dishes. But it'll be okay, she watches Doctor Who, too."
He looked down at her. "Doctor what?"
"Doctor Who, your TV show." She pulled open the door. "Mummy!" she called, "It's the Doctor!"
The Doctor looked up to see a blonde woman, about twenty-five, turning around from the sink and drying her hands with a dishtowel. As soon as she saw him, the towel dropped and she rushed over.
"Oh, my - Mr. Tennant! I'm sorry, I really am, I apologize for my daughter's behavior, Mr. Tennant, she's not old enough to understand telly shows-"
"Am too!" Angela called, dropping the Doctor's hand.
"-and you really should get back to what you were doing, were you shooting around here?" She began to blush. "For the next series? Can I watch?"
The Doctor took advantage of her pause. "I'm sorry, what... what is it you were calling me?" he asked.
It looked like that was the last thing Angela's mother expected to hear. "Mr... David Tennant?" she said slowly.
The Doctor looked confusedly at her. "I'm afraid I don't know who you're talking about," he responded at an identical speed.
"It's the Doctor, mummy!" Angela piped up. Her mother broke her gaze with the Doctor. "It's the Doctor, it is, look!" She pointed at the Time Lord.
"What's your name again?" the Doctor asked.
"Penny," Angela's mum breathed.
"Right, then, Penny, let's have a seat." He motioned toward the couch, and the woman obeyed.
The Doctor took a seat next to her. "Your daughter keeps talking about a telly show?" he asked.
Penny nodded. "Doctor Who," she replied.
"What's that about, then?"
She looked at him confusedly. "It's about your character, the Doctor," she said slowly. "You're the lead actor, David Tennant, right?"
The Doctor thought for a second. "Telly show," he mumbled, "Who would have thought."
"Pardon me?" Penny asked, heart pounding as she looked up at him.
He met her gaze. "Right. That's me, David Tennant. Pleased to meet you." He offered a hand.
Penny smiled and sighed a little, wondering what she had been thinking and glad that whatever it had been was wrong. She accepted his handshake. "Likewise," she said, and swallowed.
"So, how long have you been watching my show?" he asked.
She grinned. "Since it restarted. I saw some of the Eccleston ones, then I went back and saw some of the classic episodes, mainly Tom Baker because they said he was the best, until you I mean," she said quickly and blushed as she did so.
"Classic?" the Doctor asked.
"Yeah, you know, the episodes they played a long time ago, the original ones, though if you ask me the new version is much better."
"Mummy, it's the Doctor, it is, look, that's his TARDIS out there, Mum!" Angela pointed at the window to clarify.
The Doctor let out a laugh. "Yeah, that's the... uh, you know, the prop version that they use."
Penny brightened. "Are you shooting out here?" she asked.
He thought for a second. "Ah - eh - well, no. I, uh, borrowed - yes, that's it, borrowed - the TARDIS, from the set, because... Because I wanted to surprise my family." He chuckled.
"What are you doing out here, then?" she asked.
He took a breath. "Well, that's because, uh, that's because..." He scratched his head and glanced out of the window. Nothing he saw out there helped him. "Because... Because we got lost! Yes, that's it. We were trying to get to... ah," he tried to think of a random city, "Cardiff, and we got lost." He nodded.
She nodded. " 'Cause you shoot in Cardiff, right?" she asked seriously, leaning towards her coffee table where a notepad sat.
The Doctor lifted his eyebrows. What are the chances of such a coincidence? He let out a small laugh as he thought about how many of these coincidences make up his life.
Penny grabbed a pencil and started writing on the notepad. "Can I just ask one more question?" she asked.
"Shoot," he said, shrugging.
"Why is it you're in character?" she asked.
That was a hard one. "Because... I'm dressed like the Doctor because... I..." When nothing came to mind, Penny lifted a confused eyebrow at him.
"Ooh!" he exclaimed suddenly. "I'm still the Doctor because it was a dare from my family to be the Doctor for a full week." He smiled proudly.
"You're good at picking answers, Doctor," Angela remarked.
"Hush now, darling," Penny said, pulling the paper off of the notepad. "This is David Tennant, not the Doctor, remember?"
"No, but I know it's the Doctor, 'cause I was outside earlier and there wasn't anything there and then there was the whoosh whoosh whoosh and -"
"Thank you, so very much for the directions, Penny," the Doctor said quickly, taking the paper from Angela's mother. "And I'll be on my way just as soon as -"
"-And then there was the TARDIS and it wasn't there before - "
"Thank you for your time, madame, and your daughter is adorable."
"-And he came out and put on his coat and I saw the inside of it Mummy! - "
"I really must be going now." He stood up from the couch and Penny followed him to the door.
"You need any help with anything else?" Penny offered.
" - and it was huge, just like in the show, Mummy, I swear it was, and - "
"No, we'll be fine." he stepped out of the door. "Thank you, really, thanks."
"You're welcome. Mr. Tennant." She hesitated. "Where..."
" - And he asked me what my name was, and I said Angela - "
"Where is your car?" Penny continued.
"Oh, it's..." He motioned down the street. "It's down there a bit. Anyway, really, thank you for the help - "
" - and I asked if he was okay because of Donna and Rose and -"
"Ding! Ding! Ding!"
Angela found herself quiet while the Doctor pulled something out of his pocket. It looked much like a compass except that the directions along the outside were not north and south, and that the entire thing was flashing red.
"Really, thanks, I must get going." With that, he began briskly walking down the sidewalk and toward the TARDIS, looking down at the compass.
"Told you he was the Doctor, Mum, I told you!"
Penny watched as the Doctor reached the TARDIS and stepped inside, closing the door behind him.
"Let's follow him, Mummy!" Angela raced down the sidewalk.
"Angie, no!" Penny called, chasing after her daughter. "Come back here!"
The girl ran down the street towards the TARDIS, and Penny had no choice but to follow. "Angie!" she shouted, but her daughter paid her no mind. She would get a time-out for that later.
Penny caught up to her daughter, who was standing in front of the TARDIS, staring. She knelt by Angela and grabbed her arm. "Now, you know better than that, young lady -"
"Mummy, look!" Angela shouted, lifting an arm to point at the TARDIS. Penny, despite herself, looked, and was rendered speechless as the ship wheezed out of existence.