Chapter two
Jessica wasted no time in getting down the stairs. The Doctor smiled at her as she stepped out into the garden, throwing on a jacket over her nightdress. "So…you came back." said Jessie, looking at the Doctor as she walked over.
"Yeah, I was just going…um…back in time…no sorry that doesn't make sense to you…I was…um…" the Doctor stammered, looking confused.
"Doctor, just spit it out for god sake." said Jessie impatiently.
"Ok…basically…I have a time machine." said the Doctor awkwardly. Jessie stared at him with wide eyes.
"You mean…that box is a time machine?" she asked in disbelief. The Doctor nodded. "Can I see inside it?" she said hopefully. The Doctor considered for a moment. "Fine, but you can't tell anyone about it." he said and he put his finger to his lips. Jessie put a finger to her lips, agreeing, and the Doctor opened the door wide of Jessie to enter. She didn't know what she was expecting, but she knew it would be something amazing. And she wasn't let down. She opened her eyes and stared around. The inside was huge, a giant control system standing in the middle. The floor was made of metal meshing, with another floor underneath. She walked up the ramp, holding on the bars and stared open mouthed. There was a giant screen in the corner and a small one on the controls. Reaching high up to the roof of the TARDIS, which seemed miles away, was a blue cylinder. The Doctor grinned and stepped in after her. He closed the door and ran up the steps. "Welcome to the TARDIS." he said, still grinning.
"It's…It's…" she began breathlessly."Bigger on the inside, yeah I know I noticed. It's another dimension." The Doctor said.
"What does it do?" asked Jessie.
"Everything. Now…what we need to do is find out what happened to that lady. I went back in time, but the TARDIS wouldn't land. So I took the information and stored it on the screen here. So…" he said, pressing some buttons and leavers. The screen behind Jessie suddenly lit up and she span around. There was the picture of the woman that she had seen dead. But now she was alive, in the same room, brushing her hair in front of the mirror. The doctor pressed some buttons and the screen focused on the mirror. "Look." he said. Jessie looked, but couldn't see anything strange. "What?" she asked, still staring at the screen.
"The reflection isn't moving. And yet…" he pressed a button and the screen zoomed back out. The woman was continuing to brush her hair, "She is." Jessie stared for a moment and then turned to the Doctor. "Perhaps the footage just stops if you zoom in. I mean, the woman didn't seem to realise she isn't moving in the mirror." she said.
"Yeah…that's weird. That she can't see that the reflection isn't moving, I mean." he said, half mumbling. He shook himself back into action after standing there thinking for a moment or two, and turned off the screen. "Perhaps there was a perception filter…but then we wouldn't notice it either…unless, it only looks like it's moving to the person who's looking into the mirror." he carried on, thinking aloud.
"But, how can that be possible? I mean…it's just not…real!" Jessie said breathlessly. She was regaining strength after the shock of the TARDIS being bigger on the inside, and stood beside the Doctor. "How do you know what all these buttons do?" she asked curiously, deciding to change the subject for a while.
"I…don't really. I just press what I think works, and it usually works." he replied, grinning. He ran a hand through his brown hair and stared at the screen on the controls, which showed a load of numbers and letters. "What does that all mean?" she asked.
"Coordinates!" said the Doctor.
"For where?"
"Your house." Jessie heard the whirring noise that she had heard twice before, this time louder, and then it stopped. She stepped out the door and was back home. "What are you going to do?" she asked.
"We need to go to that hall. Are your parents in?" asked the Doctor.
"No, they are at the hall cleaning up. They organised the party…so we'll have to be very quiet." she said
The Doctor nodded and strode on down the path and round the front of the house. They carried on walking down a quiet country lane.
"Where are we?" he asked."What?" Jessie questioned."Where are we…in England?"
"Um…we're in Oakwood…" she replied slowly.
"Right…never heard of it but I'm sure it's nice."
"Well, it's very quiet. Just a hamlet…few houses and the town hall. And only one shop, which sells everything we need, but not much." went on Jessie.
"Well, sounds like a good place to grow up." the Doctor said, smiling.
"Well, I guess…but I've always wanted to travel. As soon as I'm old enough I'm going to travel the world." she said.
"Well…you could do that before you grow up you know."
"What do you mean?"
"Well…you could come with me. Travelling. In the TARDIS. Anywhere." Jessie stopped short in her tracks. "What…really?" she asked breathlessly.
"Yeah…why not." said the Doctor, grinning again. Jessie could hardly believe it. The Doctor strode on, thinking to himself: Another companion yet again.