What Makes A Good Man?
Summary: Castiel and the Eighth Doctor go off on an adventure.
Disclaimer: I own neither Supernatural nor Doctor Who.
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At first glance, it would appear as though the Victorian parlor were having an earthquake. Books were shaking or falling off the shelves, candles were throwing wax everywhere, threatening to light the tables and papers on fire. A glass bowl filled with jelly babies teetered on the edge of a table, just barely hanging on for dear life.
All the while, a tall man with brown, slightly curled hair dressed in a set of jeans and a dark blue leather jacket bounced all around a tall structure with buttons, switches and a large column that stood near the center of the room, fidgeting with said buttons and switches in a vein effort to keep the machine steady.
"We, of course, have several options at our disposal," The Time Lord known as The Doctor was saying as he struggled to keep his balance, "We could go to Woman Wept! What a lovely planet, so peaceful and artful. We could try Pryon or Pyrovilia, the people there are quite interesting, rock creatures. Or we could go home, to Gallifrey-"
The Doctor paused in his thoughts, clinging to the console as his TARDIS shook through the vortex, completely stunned as he witnessed something that challenged everything he had ever seen.
An equally tall man stood in a dark suit with a blue tie and a trench coat...stood, as in completely still, like a statue. Even as the world around him shook mercilessly in a way that would put everyone on edge, this man was calmly, serenely staring at the console, a look of mild fascination masking his face.
"Doctor?" the being known as Castiel called out.
The Time Lord blinked, recovering from his shock long enough to simply hit a button, "Right, well, I've decided to simply set it on random. No point in knowing where you're going all the time, not that I do. Howww are you doing that?"
Castiel spared him an odd look, "Doing what?"
"The time vortex is one of the most harrowing paths a man can take," The Doctor stated, "Yet you stand here, a veritable rock stood at the shores of the squall. No one can do that."
Castiel blinked, "Um..."
"Who are you, Castiel? Dean was a human, and you appear human, but no human could do what you do."
Castiel scanned the room for a moment, as though he were considering his answer before he simply sighed and said, "Spoilers."
The Doctor quirked an eyebrow, "Spoilers? What do you mean by that?"
"It means that if I tell you, bad things will happen," Castiel explained, "At least, that's what Dean says."
"Oh, yes, the laws of time and all that," The Doctor waved it away, "Funnily enough, I've never been much for following the law!"
Castiel quirked a small smile, "Your face may change, Doctor, but evidently you do not."
The Doctor laughed, "I should hope not. Why break something that isn't fixed?"
Castiel blinked, "I'm not sure that's-"
The shaking came to a sudden end, slamming The Doctor violently into the console. Castiel, of course, remained unmoved.
The Time Lord rose to his feet quickly, fiddling with several of the dials and producing an image on his screen. It was what appeared to be a town square with several species of aliens and humanoid beings moving about.
"Oh, wonderful," The Doctor smiled, "We're on Dronid! I love Dronid."
"Drornid," Castiel corrected idly, looking at the screen in fascination, "There was a misprint in Bartholomew's Planetary Gazetteer that-"
"Yes, I'm aware," The Doctor interrupted, a little miffed at the correction, "How do you know that?"
"I was stationed here for a while," Castiel explained, "A nice reprieve from Earth."
The Doctor spared him another odd look before nodding, "Well, if you've been here before, surely you can find your way around without me for a moment."
"Where are you going?" Castiel asked as The Doctor turned and made his way towards the back of the ship.
"Well, I look quite the fright, now don't I?" The Doctor stated, "Can't put in an appearance on a Gallifreyan colony looking like this. I'll be back in a minute."
Castiel nodded, turning and making his way for the double doors. He paused when he reached them. To the angel, it was very odd to be in the TARDIS and not have the doors look like the outside of a police box, but each Doctor had their own style, after all. He did find himself missing The Doctor they knew best. That Doctor had so much hardship in his life. He'd survived the Time War, the war that the man he was currently traveling with would one day in his future find himself fighting. He'd survived losing Rose, survived losing his home, though he clearly suffered greatly for this loss. He didn't show it all that much, but The Doctor was in pain every day, separated from his only true companion. His clothes had grown a bit darker, his face a little leaner and with a fair amount of scruff. This Doctor was put together well, clearly at ease. It did the angel good to see his friend like this, even if he wasn't quite his friend yet.
Putting aside thoughts of his troubles, Castiel opened the doors and stepped outside. It was snowing, but Castiel could easily see that it was engineered snow, designed to coincide with a festival of some sort. The street very much so resembled something from England's Victorian era, with cobblestone roads and fancifully decorated houses, though the flying cars and various species gathered on the streets dispelled such thoughts. Some of the houses were bronze metal or concrete, but a large number were a jade green crystal. The street lights were hovering in the air, brilliant orbs of light that did very well to illuminate the night. Banners with the Seal of Rassilon fluttered from every lamp post, flying high in the breeze. Time Lords and Ladies walked amongst the aliens and Gallifreyans regally, dressed in their crimson robes which bade others to let them by. It humbled the angel to realize that, soon enough, these people would no longer be.
Even so, to Castiel, it was brilliant. Lucifer threatened not just Earth, but all of life itself. Humans, Daleks and Time Lords alike would share the same fate. Lucifer would destroy everything that was not angel, all to make a universe where he would rule. Even now, in a post-Time War universe, he could undo it all. But first, there would be Earth. They had to succeed there, before he could take his war out to the stars and end anything that he hated.
"Ah, here we are."
Castiel turned his head, finding The Doctor by his side. He was dressed in a pair of tan pants and a bronze vest, with brown Army boots and a green trench coat. He appeared every bit the Time Lord he was, regally dressed and, yet, in contrast to his crimson brethren. To complete his look, he had a blue ascot secured around his neck.
"I realize the blue doesn't quite work, but what can I say?" The Doctor lovingly patted the TARDIS, "Something borrowed, something blue, yes?"
Castiel blinked, "Isn't that for weddings?"
"Well, the old girl is very much so that, isn't she?" The Doctor remarked, taking his eyes off his home and examining the world around them, "Oh, blimey, all these banners. I apologize, Castiel, so many of my fellow Time Lords just act like we're already at war."
Castiel said nothing at all. He was too afraid of letting something slip.
"I must say, it is nice to be among my people but away from Gallifrey," The Doctor folded his hands behind his back and started strolling down the road with Castiel beside him.
"I've seen Gallifrey before," Castiel explained, "I found it very red and...shiny."
"We are a very colorful people, I suppose," The Doctor remarked, "Still-"
The two came to a sudden stop as a sound echoed out down an alleyway, followed immediately by a scream. The Doctor wasted no time in springing to action, sprinting towards the sound with Castiel right behind him. The angel was tempted to simply fly to the sound, but he didn't want to push The Doctor too far.
The duo navigated the complicated series of streets until they came to an empty side street, where The Doctor came to a stop.
"Blast," The Doctor panted slightly, "I know the sound was around here."
Castiel frowned, sniffing the air lightly, "Doctor?"
The Doctor took an experimental sniff and let loose a frown of his own, "No...it couldn't possibly-"
The same metallic sound echoed out, this time from nearby. The two ran towards it as fast as they could, arriving at a dead end where a smoldering hole in a crystal wall could be seen.
"So it was always like this with you," the angel commented as he and the Time Lord stood before the hole.
"You make me sound like such a bother," The Doctor shot back with a smile, withdrawing his sonic screwdriver and scanning the crystal wall.
Castiel cast him an odd look, "You're not going after it?"
"Not without some details, no," The Doctor explained, "Contrary to popular belief, I don't always go head first into the deep end."
The Doctor finished scanning the wall, a deep frown crossing his features. He stood up and cautiously entered the hole, with Castiel just behind him. The inside of the building appeared to be a large warehouse, filled with metal crates and loading equipment, each marked with the Seal of Rassilon and a second Gallifreyan symbol.
"That's the military's symbol," The Doctor muttered, "In a civilian section?"
Castiel cast his gaze around the warehouse for a moment before taking another sniff of the air. He moved off to the side as The Doctor began sonicing the nearest box attempting to open it.
"Wonderful," The Doctor sighed, "Ever since deadlock became popular, I've had a Hell of a time breaking locks."
"Doctor!"
The Time Lord rushed towards Castiel, slowing slightly at the sight of his companion. He was bent over the form of a Gallifreyan soldier, dressed in battle armor with a stazer rifle by his side. There was a hole that penetrated the armor at his midsection, as well as the soldier, all the way through to the other side.
"Blimey," The Doctor knelt down, examining the body, "That wasn't stazer fire."
"He's wearing the same Seal," Castiel noted.
"He's a soldier," The Doctor explained, "A lieutenant, if I'm not mistaken."
"FREEZE!"
The Doctor and Castiel rose as one, watching as a squadron of soldiers moved through the hole in the hall, rifles trailing along their bodies. They were each dressed in the same armor as the victim.
Castiel glanced at each one, easily determining ways to outmatch them, but The Doctor had another idea. He calmly folded his hands behind his back and approached the young soldier who appeared to be in command.
"Good afternoon, commander. We're just a pair of travelers wandering through and found ourselves in a spot of bother. Would you be so good as to escort us to your commanding officers?"
The commander gave him a odd glance, "Doctor, isn't it?"
"Right in one!" The Doctor agreed.
The commander nodded, lowering his weapon and turning away from them to open a communicator. Castiel eyed him warily as the The Doctor merely smiled, acting for all the world that everything was fine.
"What are we doing, Doctor? We should go."
"And miss this opportunity to be captured? Not on your life!"
"I've never found much tactical advantage in being captured, Doctor."
The Doctor smiled thinly, "It's called intelligence gathering, mate."
Comprehension dawned on Castiel as the commander returned to them, raising his weapon back up again.
"We're received orders to escort you to a more secure location," the commander sneered, "Come with us, Lord President."
"What, I don't get a limo?" The Doctor inquired, scoffing slightly, "Budget cuts, I apologize Castiel. By all means, good sir, lead on!"
The commander scoffed but turned and had his men surround the two men, escorting them out of the warehouse towards the street.
"Do you know what you are doing?" Castiel asked, idly noting that he had asked this question several times before.
"If we're lucky," The Doctor replied.