It was a regular day before the Christmas season. Lights glowed from the houses on the main street of the town, indicating the warmth inside. Laughter and carols echoed around the area from the churchgoers racing back from Mass. Even the familiar smell of turkey and pudding wafted through the air. It was but an ordinary Christmas Eve's Eve outside Chiswick.
However, though everything looked normal on the surface, it was not a regular Christmas night. Nobody in town, all safe and happy at home, noticed the ancient blue police box standing at the edge of the leading street- so out of place compared to the white snow falling around it. Nobody noticed the man who stepped out of it either, straightening his bow tie and buttoning up his brown tweed jacket. Nobody even saw him start to walk down the lane, stopping about halfway to look around in a circle at the sight around him.
There was only one who noticed, in the shadows of an alleyway.
The strange man continued to stand frozen in the middle of the road, seeming to be locked into a memory he could not escape. Nonetheless, his eyes proceeded to wonder and observe the scene, eventually focusing on a lit window. And as he stared at the window panes, feeling the happiness and warmth radiating from inside, there was a sort of flicker in the kind, yet so old, worn eyes of the young man. A sort of hunger- as if he wished he could join in the festivities, having the memories of past Christmas nights with friends and family long since gone opening thought-to-be-healed wounds.
For several minutes he continued gazing at scenery. Finally though, he realized the futility of memory and continued to drag his feet through the snow. Walking to whom or what he did not know- but a flash of ginger hair, sarcastic remarks, and ever-present slaps and sassiness echoed through his mind. And, after strutting along for a few more steps, before he knew it, he was waving his sonic screwdriver all over, trying to exactly locate why the TARDIS had dropped him here, of all places.
Just then, something flashed in the corner of his vision. Scanning around, he located a bush under the window that he had just been looking in. He swore on the universe that he had just seen that bush move, like someone was hiding behind it. Woken out of remembering, the man looked around at what he thought he had saw. But the little green plant was just swaying in the cold wind. Shrugging what he had just seen off as an optical illusion, he started to walk even further down the street.
Rustling. This time the sound confirmed that the bush had moved. Suddenly, he noticed a shadow behind him, a shadow that had seemed to just come out of the plant. Though he wouldn't care to admit it, his hearts were pumping rapidly.
"Who's there?" the man pulled his coat closer into his chest. No sound, no movement, nothing. The bush was still, and as far as his senses told him, there was nothing. But his mind still insisted that someone was waiting for him.
He soon began to become impatient, twisting his hands around in that way of his. "It's all right to come out, you know! I don't bite!" he yelled over the bitter cold wind. No response.
He lingered for a few seconds before deciding that the TARDIS had just malfunctioned somewhere in the time vortex and that he was not needed where he was. The strange man twisted around, put his screwdriver back into his pocket, and started walking back down the road.
But what was that sound he heard behind him? After a few seconds lost in thought aimlessly walking, he remembered. Footsteps. Oh, yes, that's what he could hear! There was definitely someone behind him- someone that didn't want to be seen. The only question was how to lure them out of the shadows. How to bait the someone in and ask them what they wanted from him. But how?
The only answer he could come up with was to keep walking. So he stepped even farther down the street, hoping with all his essence that he would hear more footsteps behind him if he stopped again.
He got what he wanted. Sure enough, once he skidded to a halt near the end of the road, near the strange blue police box, there was yet again the unmistakable sound of a person, or at least something humanlike, behind him.
But what could this being possibly want from him?
The man's continued routine of walking and stopping soon became monotonous and boring. And though he was perspiring at the prospect of what could be behind him like he never had before, the strange man knew he would have to face his fears sooner or later. He counted down mentally in the depths of his head, readying himself.
Three, two, one...
And then out of the corner of his eyes he saw a shadow from behind him stretch and lengthen. He lifted up his foot to break into a full run when another toe somehow slipped in front of him and made him fall head-first into the chilly snow. And a hand, a hand in his jacket-
Complete and utter silence followed.
The Doctor stood up as fast as he could from the snow and scanned the area around him. Nothing! The shadow had left just as quickly as it had come. He reached into his pocket for his sonic screwdriver to check for any suspicious signs of life.
But there was nothing there. His screwdriver was missing.
The man muttered to himself, pacing back and forth, wondering exactly how he had lost it. Never, in almost a thousand years of travelling time and space, had he ever misplaced his sonic for this long! How, how could he have lost it?
He eventually came to a conclusion. The shadow. It had to be. The mysterious person behind him, the one in the shadows, had wanted his screwdriver! But whatever for? Looking down at the ground now for clues on the whereabouts of his shadowy friend, he spotted two pairs of little feet, freshly carved out in the snow, heading towards an alleyway. Sprinting, he followed the tracks.
His first act was to cough at the soot in the dirtiness of the alley. Bending down even further to look at the snow, he watched the tracks slowly become more and more hidden by dust and trash. Losing all hope of finding his sonic screwdriver, reminiscing about that time on Nexas and landing on the population's most sacred religious site... yeah, that hadn't been the best of ideas-
The Doctor suddenly heard scuffling. Near him. He must have backed his little shadow in an alleyway corner. How perfectly convenient! Glancing in every which way, his eyes came to rest on the image of a faint figure clustered near a dumpster. He'd found it! He was going to get his screwdriver after all!
Smiling to himself, he straightened his tweed jacket again and hoped that his bow tie looked spiffy. Clearing his throat, he began to speak.
"All right, I know you're here. I also know what you stole, and quite frankly, I'd like it returned. So, just come out- okay, I know you don't like to particularly do that, but I promise, I won't hurt you or anything. I just want my screwdriver back, that's it," he rambled, waiting for a response.
None came.
The man sighed and ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. "You want to play with me? Okay, I can play," he said as he stormed to the dumpster. The Doctor could practically hear it breathing now. He turned his face to look around the side of the object and was met with the face of a girl with a very shiny gun.
As he himself was goaded into another corner by the mysterious female, he got his first real look at the thief.
She couldn't be older than fifteen. Frizzy, wild, brownish red hair framed her pale face that held two almost frighteningly deep blue eyes. She wore a ratty white v-neck and blue jeans covered with soot and other muck- obviously she'd been getting dirty for quite a while. And he couldn't deny her .44 pistol was very, very shiny.
Gulping a bit and plastering a smile on his face, he looked at the girl and pointed at her gun. "Aren't you a little young to be carrying around a weapon?" he asked.
Clearly, this was not the best question to ask as the pistol was pushed further near his face. The girl spoke, her voice surprisingly calm. "I'm older than I look, mister," she said condescendingly. Her eyes scrunched up as she studied his face. "Who exactly are you? And why are you here?" the girl asked, still raising the gun straight towards his face.
The man grinned again. "First, I'm the Doctor. And second, well, particularly, when things are stolen from people, they run off and try to somehow find them and get them back. And you have a certain possession that, as I stated earlier, would like returned." He straightened his bowtie for good measure.
The girl narrowed her eyes and reached into a pocket of her jeans. Pulling out an object, she waved it in front of his face. "You mean this?"
The Doctor laughed as he saw his sonic, the thing lighted up and chittering about. Pointing at it with his almost ever-present smile, he looked at his little thief. "Exactly."
And the young girl grinned back at him- a very sly grin. Putting the pistol back in another pokcet of her pants, she seemed to be studying the screwdriver. Looking at the Doctor, she tapped the instrument up and down in the palms of her hand. Continuing to examine the device, she started talking.
"I'd say this would sell for a good amount of pounds, don't you think, Doctor? A couple of four course meals." The girl chuckled as she walked back and forth. "Looks like government technology not yet released to the public, if you ask me." She glanced at the man, locking eyes with him. "Pretty fascinating steal. How long've you been on the streets?" The girl then smiled, a hint of sadness on her lips. "Been here six months myself." She then looked back at him, expecting an answer.
Realizing he wasn't being cornered anymore, the Doctor leaped in the other direction. "Um, I'm actually not homeless- in your sense anyway, or "on the streets" for that matter. Though I did get into a car chase with the Mafia once, long story, another place and time for it," he answered. Staring at her, he asked, "What's your name?"
The girl looked up at him from where her eyes had been on the yucky snow below her. Narrowing her eyes yet again, her hands swinging behind her back, she finally responded. "Lily."
The strange man bent down next to her, putting his cold hands on her back. "Well, Lily- lovely name by the way, I knew another girl named Lily- by the looks of you, and please, don't be offended by this, I'd say you haven't eaten anything substantial in a few days." He glanced at her again. "Am I right?"
Lily looked into his eyes, an emotion he couldn't quite read on her face. She mumbled something unintelligible to the Doctor.
"Sorry?"
"Two weeks." she frowned and moved a bit away from him. "I haven't had anything but bread and carrots for two weeks."
It was the Doctor's turn to look down. Taking a moment of silence in respect for her hunger, he looked back up at the young girl. "You know Lily, if you drop the gun and give me back my screwdriver, I'll take you to my TARDIS and let you eat as much as you want." He studied her clothes. "I'll get you a new outfit too. Can't imagine that's too fashionable."
He grinned unwillingly as Lily laughed. But soon, her eyes became cold again. "No."
The Doctor looked at her in disbelief. Never in his life had he had someone refuse food and clothes. "What did you say?" he asked, just to make sure.
Lily stared at him. "I said no." Pulling her pistol back out again, she looked into the man's eyes in that way of hers. "I've got everything I need to make a living for myself on my own. I've been doing it quite a while, and let me tell you, I can keep on doing it." And, coming up closer into the Time Lord's face, she whispered, "And no one, ever, asks me to drop my gun." Then, as quick as a flash of lightning, she dashed off down the alleyway back into the middle of town. Yelling in exasperation, the Doctor ran after her.
He saw the patch of slick ice seconds before her mind registered she was about to fall. But his shouts of warning did not come quickly enough. THirty seconds later, a hungry, homeless, fiery redhead was passed out unconscious in an alleyway in Chiswick.
The Doctor sighed with annoyance as he imagined having to drag her back all the way to the TARDIS.
But he did it anyway.
Ugh. Why does this keep happening? Sorry for my disappearance from Fan Fiction again. I just get busy, or I'm stuck on what to write, or, just... ARGH.
So over the past month I have become absolutely obsessed with Doctor Who. Seriously, I've stayed up until like four in the morning trying to watch episodes. I've cried so much I'm actually a little embarrassed with myself. And, having severe writer's block on my existing stories, this idea just came to me, and I had the idea of sharing it with you all.
Also, hopefully, since school and finals are done in about two weeks, I will able to write so much more, and maybe even finish some stories! Well, at least I hope so.
Hope you enjoyed, as always, and feel free to alert, review, and favourite! Maybe I'll even be able to finish my upcoming Harry Potter/Doctor Who crossover and write new chapters for Learning to Stand and my Little Mermaid/Harry Potter crossover (yep, shameless self promoting).
Have a great Mother's Day!