Invasion of the Unexpected

AN: Hmm, 5 story alerts but only one review. Come on, more than one person clearly likes it. So please, you must review; it keeps me writing, as well as improves it. Plus I don't like to write to no one; so no reviews, no more chapters. P Thanks nogoodnamesleft though for reviewing. Hope you like this chapter everyone. Enjoy…

…

"Where were they?" asked the Doctor as they passed laughing children, whilst walking through the park. He was at least six feet ahead of Rose, speeding in front as he looked around.

"Over here," said Rose, catching up and leading him off in the right direction. She led him to a patch of grass and leaves by the slide. "You won't find anything else," she added. "I looked."

The doctor bent down anyway and began to rub his hands across the grass. He nodded, "I can feel it – can you feel it? – all that energy. Still here, hovering!"

Rose was hardly listening though, her attention was caught by something else; a teenager was standing nearby and staring at her as if he had never seen anything like her before. She stared back steadily, but unsure. She smiled as best she could, but still nerved by the look on the boy's face. Taking it no longer, she spoke to him, "Are you okay? Is there anything wrong?"

The boy spoke quietly in a northern accent, "You 'ad the magic coins, you did."

Rose gave a nervous titter, "Not quite magic."

The Doctor looked up from the ground, eying the boy for a moment, "Hello there!" he grinned at the youth, who merely glanced at the Doctor. "Magic coins, now there's a name! Tell me, do you know who put the 'magic coins' here?" the Doctor asked.

The boy shook his head. "No."

Looking disgruntled, the Doctor went on, "Oh, well what about anything odd happening? Any sudden deaths? People acting… odd at all?"

This time the boy hesitated. "Well…" he said quietly. "There is my friend. Mick, is name is. He 'ad a bit of a… odd time, few days ago."

"What kind of odd time?" asked Rose.

"I dunno, he said he saw somethin'… but he wouldn't say what, and he hasn't been the same since."

The Doctor suddenly went very pale. "What did he say?" he asked and his voice was quiet. When the boy didn't reply, the doctor went on, much more frantically, "Are you sure he didn't mention anything about what he saw? Anything at all?!" He walked up to the boy.

"No," he replied, quite shocked at the Doctor's reaction.

"What's your name?" asked the Doctor.

"George," he said.

"Right then, George, we're going to need to see your friend."

….

"He's in 'ere, but I'm telling you though, he barely talks a word o' sense," George had led Rose and the Doctor into his friend's house, not far from the park. "He went out fer milk couple o' days ago 'n' just came back like this."

The place was small and dingy, cluttered with mess as if the place hadn't been cleaned in weeks. In amongst the clutter, in the living room, was a man in his early twenties sitting on the settee, staring at the wall opposite as he mumbled to himself in a kind of trance. The Doctor and Rose couldn't help but stare at him as they entered. He didn't seem to realise they were there.

"Mick?" Rose questioned, sitting next to him. "Mick?"

"He won't talk," said George. "He never used ter shut up, now all he does is talk quietly abou' nothin' to 'imself."

The Doctor sat on Mick's other side and looked at him, a frown in place. Rose opened her mouth to speak but he stopped her and they stayed silent, so all could be heard was Mick's mumbling. "Need to," Mick was muttering, his eyes unfocused. "Need to see it again. Can't not. Have to. So amazing. Nothin' else like it." He continued the same sentences over and over.

The Doctor sat back, nodding but still very pale. He rubbed his face with his hands, closing his eyes for a moment. Rose looked at him, "Doctor, what -?"

The Doctor looked up sharply at Rose, shook his head and turned to Mick, "You need to stay here. Stay with him. All the time, understand? He must not leave, you have to look after him!"

Mick shook his head, confused. "I can't stay 'ere. I'm just visitin' 'im. I have to go back later!"

"No!" the Doctor ordered. "It's important you stay with him. You – or someone, anyone – has to stay with him... and, make sure he's okay" The doctor stood up to leave.

"I can't!" the teenager protested. "I gotta go back later, my mam'll be wonderin' where I am. You gotta be jokin', I can't stay!"

"He's not joking," said Rose standing up. "He's a doctor." This, she decided, wasn't exactly a lie; he was the Doctor after all. "He knows what he's talking about." The Doctor smiled thankfully at her and headed for the door, with Rose just behind.

"Well, what 'am supposed ter do wif 'im?" asked George, following them to the front door and staring out at them as they made to leave.

The Doctor hesitated, "Just… try and get some sense out of him! And make sure he doesn't go near anything… dangerous. We'll be back tomorrow."

"What d'you mean, dangerous?" George asked.

The Doctor didn't answer his question. "We'll be back tomorrow." With that, he and Rose left George on his friend's doorstep, staring after them.

Rose and the Doctor set off back home, but before they had got very far Rose was quick to ask, "So, do know what's wrong with him then? With Mick?"

"Well…" began the Doctor, a small frown in place. "It's definitely the Atopili. Though I've no idea how they got down here – but then I had no idea they were real !" He shook his head desperately. "How? I mean how in the world did they come from nowhere – from apparent hiding – to earth?!"

"But…" said Rose quietly. "Mick… what happened to him? Why is he… why's he like that?"

The Doctor looked at her sharply, he took a deep breath, his eyes staring steadily at her as if preparing his answer. "He looked into one, into an Atopili," he then said gently, but simply.

"Looked -? Looked into one?" Rose said amazed. The Doctor nodded, but offered no other explanation, so she went on, "What do you mean? What happens when you look at one?"

The Doctor sighed gently, "I mean he looked into an Atopili, he looked at one, and what he saw was… beautiful."

"Beautiful?" Rose said astounded.

"Yes," said the Doctor as they walked. "There is a myth – an old legend – of the Atopili. They hold incredible energy, incredible powers, powers we can't even dream of -"

Rose laughed, "We can't dream of? You're a timelord, I think you could dream of a few…"

"I'm part timelord," corrected the Doctor. "Part human."

"Yeah, but you still have his memories, his knowledge," said Rose softly. She called the real Doctor 'he ', unable to call him Doctor, too afraid to. They stared at one another, and for a moment it was almost as if a large barrier were standing in between them; as if the real doctor were standing in the way… and Rose had no idea why.

"Yes!" said the Doctor quickly and pulling Rose out of her trance. "Anyway, the point is! The Atopili; they have an incredible load of energy and power surrounding them, and Mick looked at it! It's enough to drive anyone mad, but that – that – is not the half of it!" He stared at her as if daring her to guess the rest of it, but when she didn't he said loudly, "There's a curse!"

"A curse?" Rose said. They walked quietly along the deserted street; Rose was paying wrapt attention to the Doctor.

"So they say… they say that, after the sun has set for the third time, following someone looking into an Atopili… it happens." The Doctor was staring straight ahead, walking very slowly and hardly aware of where he was going.

"What happens?" asked Rose. He didn't answer, but she persisted, "Doctor, what happens to them after three days?"

He looked at her, grave, and said sadly, "They die."

…

AN: Okay, how was that? Good? Bad? I'm begging you; please review!! Lol!