DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything Doctor Who related but Alix and any mentions of Carrie are MINE!
So updates are going to be faster during the weekend but i might update a chapter or to during the week. Once summer break starts, I'll be able to update much more frequently.
Chapter 3: Queen Victoria! And a werewolf…
Alix POV
"Will it do?" asked Rose gesturing towards her outfit. She was wearing a pair of short overalls with a pink t-shirt. I was wearing a pair of dark skinny jeans and a neon purple t-shirt with a panda on it. With a pair of Converse the same shade as my shirt I was ready to run from my first monster.
"It's the 1970s Rose, you'd be better off in a bin bag. Hold on listen to this!" the Doctor said and put something onto the console and started rattling off facts about the song.
I looked at Rose. "It'll do fine. Never really matters unless you go back far enough that showing ankles was scandalous."
"Thanks Alix," Rose responded with a smile.
"You're a punk!" Rose said laughing while the Doctor sang along, "You're a big ol' punk with a bit of rocker thrown in."
"Wanna go see them?" the Doctor asked with a grin.
"How do you mean, at a concert?"Rose asked with her mouth agape.
"What else is the TARDIS for? I can take you to the Battle of Gaphalga, the First Anti-Gravity Olympics-"
I cut him off, "IF he can manage to fly her correctly and land her where he intends to go for once."
"Hey! It doesn't happen that often," He protested.
"I can't count how many times you've landed wrong. 1869 Cardiff instead of 1860 Naples. You brought Rose home twelve months late. Just to name a couple. And I have a feeling that you're not going to land correctly this time either."
"I'll get us there! Hold on tight!" he cried as he threw down a lever, sending the TARDIS through the Vortex.
I watched as he banged on the TARDIS console with a hammer. We landed with a sudden jerk throwing the three of us to the floor by the console, laughing.
The Doctor walked towards the door and grabbed his coat with Rose and I following "1979! Hell of a year! China invades Vietnam, the Muppet movie - I love that film- Margret Thatcher…urgh…Skylab falls to Earth, with a little help from me…nearly took off my thumb."
"I like my thumb," he continues as he steps out the door, "I need my thumb. I'm very attached to…"he trailed off as we stepped out of the TARDIS only to come in contact with guns being pointed at our heads.
"…my thumb," He finished as we all held up our hands.
I couldn't help but grin. I'd always thought that Tooth and Claw had been a good episode. Rose and the Doctor glanced at me as I grinned.
"1879. Same difference," He said shrugging.
"I told you that you can't land her right,"I said with a slight smirk. He just gave me a look that said "Shut it!"
"You will explain your presence and the nakedness of these girls." The leader of the group told ordered.
I glanced down at myself. Rose could be labeled naked, since she was wearing shorts, but me? I guess I'd have to be wearing a dress not to be labeled "naked".
"Are we in Scotland?" the Doctor asked in a sudden Scottish accent. I bit back a fan-girl giggle. This was one of the reasons I loved the episode. That damn sexy Scottish accent...
"How can you be ignorant of that?" the leader asked.
"Oh, I um, I'm dazed and confused. I've been chasing these wee naked children over hill and over dale. Ain't that right you timorous beasties? "He said.
I merely nodded with a big grin on my face as Rose said, "Oh Ya, I've been o't and abo't."
"Don't do that," I whispered to her. She opened her mouth to protest, but was cut off.
"Will you identify yourself sir?" the leader demanded impatiently.
"I'm Doctor James McCrimmon. From the…Township of Balamory. Eh…I have my credentials, if I may…" the leader nodded and the Doctor pulled out his psychic paper and showed it to the soldiers.
"As you can see, a Doctorate from the University of Edinburgh. I trained under Doctor Bell himself."
"Let them approach," said a voice from the carriage, which I knew to be Queen Victoria.
"I don't think that's wise ma'am," The leader said, not taking his eyes off us.
"Let them approach," The Queen said with more insistency.
"You will approach the carriage. And show all due deference," The leader said. The Doctor gave him a small salute, and I tried to keep from laughing.
The footman opened the carriage doors, and Rose's jaw dropped when she saw Queen Victoria.
"Rose, Alix, might I introduce Her Majesty Queen Victoria, Empress of India and Defender of the Faith," The Doctor said with respect.
"Alix Rae and Rose Tyler ma'am. We do apologize for our nakedness," I said, talking as though embarrassed.
"I've had five daughters. Nakedness is nothing to me," Rose and I smiled at her with involuntary curling smiles, "But you Doctor, show me these credentials."
The Doctor hands her the psychic paper and she reads them for a moment.
"Why didn't you say so immediately?" Queen Victoria said with more animation in her voice. "It states clearly here, that you have been appointed by the Lord Provost as my protector."
"Does it? Yes it does, good. Good, then let me ask, why is your Majesty travelling by road when there's a train all the way to Aberdeen?" the Doctor asked in that Scottish accent. I thought my insides were going to start melting. With a glance at Rose, I could tell I wasn't the only one who felt like that.
"A tree on the line," the Queen responded.
"An accident?" I questioned.
"I am the queen of The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Everything around me tends to be planned," The Queen said.
"An assassination attempt?" the Doctor questioned.
"What, seriously? There's people out to kill ya?" Rose asked shocked. I gave her a look that she didn't catch. Great first words Rose! That's definetley helpful. She's the Queen of a powerful country, of COURSE people are going to try and kill her!
"I'm quite used to staring down the barrel of a gun," The Queen said, giving Rose a disapproving look.
"Sir Robert MacLeish lives but ten miles hence. We'll send word ahead, he'll shelter us for tonight, then we can reach Balmoral tomorrow," the Captain said.
"This Doctor and his 'timorous beasties' will come with us," The Queen said with a slight small and a light-hearted tone.
"Yes ma'am. We better get moving, it's almost nightfall," The Captain said.
"Indeed," Queen Victoria said, "And there are stories of wolves in these parts. Fanciful tales intended to scare the children. But good for the blood, I think. Drive on!"
"If you call me a 'timorous beastie' ever again, you will die a most painful death. Twice," I threatened the Doctor as we moved along with the soldiers.
"Duly noted." He said, dropping the Scottish accent, with a sheepish smile on his face.
"It's funny though, 'cause you say 'assassination' and you think of Kennedy and stuff. Not her," Rose said thoughtfully a few minutes later.
"1879 she's had, oh…six attempts on her life? And I'll tell you something else: We just met Queen Victoria!" he finished excitedly.
"I know!" Rose and I cried quietly at the same time.
"What a laugh!"
"She was just sittin' there," Rose said excitedly.
"Like a stamp!" I added.
"I want her to say 'we are not amused'," Rose said in an upper-classed voice. "I bet you both five quid that I can make her say it."
"That's probably not a good idea, Rose." I said with a laugh, and threw a wink at Rose to tell her I thought it was an exceptionally hilarious idea.
"Well, if I gambled on that, it'd be an abuse of my privileges of a traveler in time," the Doctor answered.
Rose and I glanced at each other before she said, "Ten quid?"
"Done." The Doctor replied grinning.
"Most definetley. How much is ten quid in American dollars?" I asked.
They both turned to stare for a moment before laughing at me. "What? I don't actually know!"
"I almost forgot you that you were American," the Doctor said still chuckling quietly.
Shortly after, we approached the house. It was dark, damp and downright chilling to look at. I glanced at Rose and the Doctor, who seemed to have gotten the same impression.
"And it begins…" I murmured quietly to myself, earning myself a look from the two time-travelers.
"Was this an episode?" the Doctor asked in a whisper tone as we entered the courtyard.
"Yup. And I'm not telling you a single thing." I whispered back. I looked and saw a pout on his face, so I added, "It'll be more fun for you that way."
At this he relented with a nod and we turned our attention to a man entering the courtyard. "Your Majesty." Sir Robert said with a bow.
"Sir Robert," returned the Queen, "my apologizes for the emergency. And how is Lady Isabel?" the Queen inquired.
"She's…indisposed, I'm afraid. She's gone to Edinburgh for the season. And…she's taken the cook with her, the kitchen is barely stocked! I wouldn't blame your Majesty if you wanted to ride on." Sir Robert said.
"He's not a very good liar, is he?" I commented to my friends.
The Doctor nodded. "He's obviously hiding something." He agreed.
"Not at all. I've had quite enough carriage exercise, and this is…charming. If rustic. It's my first visit to this house. My late husband spoke of it often. The Torchwood estate." Queen Victoria said.
My hand flew up to hide my gaping mouth. I'd forgotten that bit…This is the beginning of Torchwood!
The Doctor watched me curiously. "You recognize the name?" he asked.
"You don't?" I responded before remembering that Rose was standing right next to me, "Never mind, to early in your time-stream for you to understand."
Before he could answer the Queen continued, "Now, shall we go inside? And please excuse the naked girls."
"Sorry," Rose and I said at the same time.
"They're feral children. I bought them for six pence each at Old London Town. It was them or the Elephant Man, so…" the Doctor said before trailing off at the harsh glare in my eyes, wincing as he remembered my threat.
"Thinks he's funny, but I'm so not amused. What do you think ma'am?" Rose said trying hard. I gave a quiet groan and put my head in my hands.
"It hardly matters," she responded before turning back to Sir Robert, "Shall we proceed?"
Sir Robert nodded, slightly shaky, before leading the group into the house.
"So close." Rose muttered to the Doctor and I.
"But not close enough." I responded.
"Makerson and Ramsey, you will escort the Property. Hurry up," said the Captain.
"Yes sir," both soldiers responded.
"What's in there then?" the Doctor asked while staring at the small wooden box the soldiers were taking from the carriage to the house.
"Property of the Crown. You will dismiss any further thought, sir," the Captain answered.
The Doctor made a face and Rose chuckled quietly while I just grinned. He turned to me and said, "Do you know what's in there, Alix?"
"Yup." I answered, not elaborating any further.
"The rest of you go to the rear of the house," the Captain ordered, "Assume your designated positions."
"You heard the orders. Positions, sir," one soldier said.
Rose and I followed the Doctor and the others as they headed into the house. We followed the Queen, Sir Robert and a few of the priest men into the Observatory. I looked around in awe at the beautiful, ridiculously large telescope in the middle of the room.
"This, I take it, is the famous 'Endeavor'?" the Queen questioned.
"All my father's work. Built by his hand in his final years. Became something of an obsession- he spent his money on this rather than caring for the house or himself."
"I wish I'd met him, I like him. That thing's beautiful, can I um..." the Doctor asked with his curiosity blazing.
"Help yourself." Sir Robert answered.
I ran a hand gently over the telescope. It was beautiful, even more so than it had looked in the show.
"What did he model it on?" the Doctor asked.
"I know nothing about it, to be honest. Most of us thought him a little…shall we say, eccentric."
The Doctor gave a dopey sounding laugh and continued looking at the telescope as Sir Robert continued, "I wish now that I'd spent more time with him. And listened to his stories."
"It's a bit rubbish." The Doctor commented. I bit back a grin. It was almost always hilarious when was being rude.
"How many prisms has it got? Way too many. The magnification's gone right over the top, that's a stupid kind of a- am I being rude again?" he asked turning to Rose and I who were staring at him with identical tolerant smiles on our faces.
"Yup." Rose said the same second I said, "Quite a bit!"
"But it's pretty! It's very," he paused for a moment nodding his head up and down quickly, "pretty." I was having trouble not laughing at him as he grasped at straws to hide his insults.
"And the imagination of it should be applauded." Queen Victoria added. I nodded my head in agreement.
"Well you might disapprove, Your Majesty. Stargazing. Isn't that a bit fanciful?" Rose questioned in another desperate attempt.
The Queen made no comment and just gave Rose a slight glare as I shook my head and muttered curses in my head.
"This device displays the infinite works of God," Queen Victoria said with a small amount of snippiness in her tone. I grinned. The Queen was good with comebacks.
"What could be finer? Sir Robert's father was an example to us all. A polymath. Steeped in astronomy and sciences, yet equally well versed in folklore and fairytales." She continued.
"Stars and magic. I like him more and more," the Doctor commented as he went to look around the telescope, with myself following him.
"Oh, my late husband enjoyed his company," Queen Victoria said, turning to Rose, "Prince Albert himself was acquainted with many rural superstitions, coming as he did from Saxe Cobourg."
"That's Bavaria," the Doctor whispered in my ear, causing me to shiver slightly.
"Like I know where that is anyway," I responded.
"When Albert was told about our local wolf he was transported." The Queen said. I tensed slightly. I hated how no one –not even the Doctor- noticed all this talk of wolves and it's been a week or two at most since Bad Wolf!
The Doctor noticed and looked at me mouthing, "Bad Wolf?" I shook my head in response. He nodded, relieved slightly.
"So, what's this wolf then?" the Doctor asked.
"It's just a story." Sir Robert replied nervously.
"Then tell it." I told him.
Sir Robert looked at one of the priests before saying, "It's said that-"
"Excuse me, sir," the head priest interrupted, "Perhaps Her Majesty's party could repair to their rooms. It's almost dark."
"Of course," Sir Robert answered, trying to hide his terror, "Yes, of course."
"And then supper," the Queen said, "And could we find some clothes for Miss Rae and Miss Tyler. I'm tired of nakedness.
Rose opened her mouth to say something about it not being amusing, but I put my hand over her mouth.
"Sir Robert, your wife must've left some clothes. See to it. We shall dine at seven and talk some more of this wolf. After all…there is a full moon tonight." Queen Victoria said crisply.
"So there is ma'am." Sir Robert said before bowing as we walked out of the room.
Rose and I were led to separate bedrooms. I dug through the wardrobe for a moment before finding a dark green dress that looked like it would fit. Remembering what had happened in The Runaway Bride, I laughed as I noticed that the dress had a couple of hidden pockets.
I disposed of my shirt before pulling on the dress, leaving my jeans and shoes as they were. I couldn't do much with my short hair, so I tugged the dress till it looked perfect, and walked out into the hall.
Glancing down the hall, I saw two of the monk-priest men dragging Rose away. Unfortunately, they noticed me as well and before I could say a thing I felt something hard connect with my head.
"Alix. Alix, come on, wake up." I heard Rose say frantically. I groaned and blinked my eyes open to see myself in a dungeon with a number of other people who I knew to be the staff and lady of the house.
"Good," she said, "I thought you weren't going to wake up."
"Worry about me later," I said quickly, sitting up straight, "Worry about the werewolf in the cage now."
"What?" she asked shocked.
"Hush, don't make a sound. They said if we scream or shout he will slaughter us, "a terrified middle–aged woman whispered.
"He's in a cage," Rose whispered back, "He's a prisoner, he's the same as us."
"He's nothing like us. That creature is not mortal," Lady Isabel whispered.
The werewolf opened his eyes which were so black that there was only a little bit of white around the edges.
I stood and looked towards the creature. Isabel looked terrified and begged, "Don't child."
I stepped towards it as far as the shackles on my wrist would allow, with Rose right beside me. "Who are you?" Rose asked him.
"Blood and Rage." He answered.
"Where are you from? You're not from Earth. What planet are you from?" Rose questioned further.
"Oh… intelligence." he breathed.
"Where are you from?" I asked him.
His eyes flickered to me, "This body…a weakling, heartsick boy…Stolen away at night by the brethren from my cultivation. I carved out his soul and sat in his heart."
"All right…so the body's human, but what about you, the being inside?" I asked it.
"So far from home," it answered.
"If you wanna get back home, we can help," Rose told the being.
"Why would I leave this place? A world of industry and workforce and warfare. I could turn it to such purpose."
"And how do ya plan on doing that?" I asked it.
"I would migrate to the Holy Monarch," it answered.
"You mean Queen Victoria?" Rose asked horrified.
"With one bite, I would pass into her blood. And then it begins. The Empire of the Wolf! You who have so many questions stand next to one who knows all answers…" it said, its gaze flickering to me.
Rose jumped back in terror as it leaned forward with a snarl, but I didn't do more than flinch. I looked it in the eye from where I stood as it spoke, "Look! Inside the flower's eyes! She's seen it too! But you," it said turning to me, "you are it that prowls through time and races through stars."
"Seen what?" Rose asked at the same moment I asked, "I'm what?"
"The Wolf! There is something of the Wolf about you! And you are the Lioness!" it cried.
I could only gawk at it. It couldn't possible know...
"I don't know what you mean." Rose said shakily while I stared.
"You burnt like the sun, but all I require is the moon!" it hissed.
The cellar door suddenly flung open and moonlight streamed over the Wolf. "Moonlight," it breathed with satisfaction. Bracing its arms against the cage, the Wolf tossed its cloak down and began to howl with the pain of transformation.
"All of you! Stop looking at it! Flora," Rose cried looking at a serving girl, "don't look. Listen to me! Grab the chains and pull." Rose yelled causing everyone except Lady Isabel to stand up and pull.
"C'mon!" I yelled at her, "Pull!" There were growling noises from the cage but Rose and I ignored them and focused on getting everyone to pull at once.
"Pull!" I cried as the chains finally came loose from the walls. I glanced behind me and noticed that the creature wasn't a man any longer, but a classic werewolf.
Suddenly the door burst open and the first words out of Rose and I were, "Were the hell have you been!" We both looked at each other like "we've got to stop doing that".
"Oh that's beautiful." The Doctor said with wonder as everyone but Rose and I fled the room.
"It could be later, when it isn't trying to kill us! We need to go!" I yelled and dragged him by his arm from the room after making sure everyone else had left.
"Wait!" he yelled and locked the door using the sonic.
"Alix! What did it call you?" Rose asked as we ran, "I couldn't understand the language it was speaking but you obviously recognized it!"
"It was speaking English! And aren't you more concerned that it called you Wolf!" I yelled back.
"Now is not the time!" the Doctor yelled.
I heard howling over the roar of people and said, "Yup! Now let's go!"
We ran to the armory and the doctor began to sonic everyone loose. I ran to the Lady of the house. "The Wolf's allergic to mistletoe. Get as much of it as you can from the kitchens. Wear it around your necks; brew it in a pot anything. Just get as much as possible and throw it at the Wolf." I told her and she nodded before gathering the serving girls and running off.
I knew Sir Robert died tonight and hoped I could change that.
I heard Rose telling the Doctor what it wanted and added my thoughts, "It wants an Empire," I told him, "The Empire of the Wolf."
There was a loud sound from the hallway and the room went quiet. The Doctor, Rose and I went to look into the hallway. The Doctor locked eyes with it and the two appeared to have a stare-down while Rose from the room and I watched from his side.
The Wolf looked at me and gave an animalistic version of a laugh before saying, "I shall not kill the Lioness. I shall kill her Lord instead." It waited to see what I would do.
"Doctor," I said calmly.
"Alix," he responded, "What did it say?"
"It told me it's going to kill you," I answered, "so we should probably start running."
"Right…one question, Wolf," he said, "why can't I understand you? She can and she's just human. I know almost every language in the universe and my box translates what I don't understand."
"I know many languages. One of her people taught me her language. And now the cat knows not what she is, but holds the answers 'round her neck." It responded, before lunging at us.
We ran behind the line of gunmen, Rose following, and the Doctor asked me, "What does it mean, your people? You are human aren't you?"
"Last time I checked." I told him sarcastically.
"Wait," Rose asked, "It doesn't think you're human?"
"It might have something to do with the fact that I'm from a parallel world. I might not be as 'human' as these people comparatively." I suggested.
"I would agree with that, but why can you understand a language the TARDIS won't translate? That's two languages actually." He said.
I was saved from responding by the cease fire. "Alright, you men, we should retreat upstairs. Come with me." The Doctor said.
"I'll not retreat," the steward said, "The battle's done. There's no creature on God's Earth that could survive such an assault."
"It's not from Earth," I muttered as the Doctor angrily said "I'm telling you, come upstairs!"
"And I'm telling you, sir that I will sleep well tonight with that thing's hide upon my wall."
"Idiot," I muttered before turning to the Doctor and asking, "Why does no one ever listen to you?"
He gave me a look as the steward stepped forward and looked into the hallway and said, "Must've crawled away to die-" the poor steward was cut off as two huge paws reached out and grabbed him, eating him alive.
"There's nothing we can do!" the Doctor shouted angrily. He hated seeing someone die, when he could've prevented it.
We ran out of the room as the other armed men stayed behind and were ripped apart by the beast. We ran into the foyer by the stairs as Sir Robert called out, "Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"
"Sir Robert! What's happening?" the Queen questioned as she descended the stairs, "I heard such terrible noises!"
"Your Majesty, we've got to get out. What of Father Angelo, is he still here?" Sir Robert asked urgently.
"Captain Reynolds disposed of him," she lied some-what smoothly.
"Front door's no good, it's been boarded shut. Pardon me Your Majesty, but you'll have to leg it out of a window." The Doctor said with a gesture of his hand.
Our little group walked down a hallway quickly stopping before a window.
"Excuse my manners ma'am, but I shall go first, the better to assist Her Majesty's egress," Sir Robert said.
"A noble sentiment, my Sir Walter Raleigh," Queen Victoria said.
"Yeah, any chance you could hurry it up?" the Doctor asked impatiently. I smacked his arm and gave him a look.
Sir Robert attempted to crawl out the window, but was almost hit by bullets from the monks.
"I reckon the monkey boys want us to stay inside," the Doctor said quickly as he peered out the window.
"Do they know who I am?" asked Queen Victoria.
"Definitely," I said, nodding.
"That's why they want you," Rose elaborated, "The Wolf's lined you up for a…a biting."
"Now stop this talk. There can't be an actual wolf!" the Queen whispered and the moment she finished a loud howl sounded from nearby.
"What do we do?" asked Rose urgently.
"We…run." The Doctor responded.
"Is that it?" Rose asked disbelieving.
"Have you got a better idea?" I asked her.
"Have you got any silver bullets?" the Doctor questioned.
"Not on me, no!" Rose answered.
"Then we run. Your Majesty, as a doctor, I recommend a vigorous jog," which he demonstrated by jogging in place, "Good for the health. Come on!"
The Doctor grabbed the Queen Victoria's hand and our group began to run up the stairs. I thought my legs were going to fall off by the time we reached the top. Why is it so much harder to run up stairs, than it is to run in a straight line?
We ran down a hallway, with the Wolf close behind. The Wolf almost nabbed Sir Robert and Rose when Captain Reynolds shot at it, causing it to runback down the hallway.
We rested against the wall of the hallway, panting, as Captain Reynolds said, "I'll take this position and hold it. You keep moving! Your Majesty – I went to look for the property. It was taken. The chest was empty."
"I have it. It's safe," Queen Victoria said.
"Then remove yourself, ma'am. Doctor, you stand as Her Majesty's protector. And you, Sir Robert- you're a traitor to the Crown." Captain Reynolds said as he finished loading his gun and cocked it.
"Bullets can't stop it!" the Doctor said.
"They'll buy you time, now run!" the Captain said quickly.
He stepped into the hallway and we were about to run but I turned to him and whispered, "Thank you."
He nodded and I fled, chasing the others down. I had just caught up with them when I heard the first bullet fly. The Doctor pulled me into the library, but Rose was still standing in the hallway watching with a horrified expression on her face as she watched Captain Reynolds get ripped apart.
"Rose!" the Doctor called and he pulled her into the library.
"Barricade the door!" Sir Robert called after Rose was in. We took as much stuff as possible and shoved it in front of the door.
"Wait, wait, wait! Shh…"the Doctor trailed off listening as there was a quite howl and he put his head against the door. Whatever he heard reassured him as he said, "It's gone."
"Listen." Rose said with terror in her voice. She had just seen a man ripped apart by the Wolf. It gave her a just reason to be terrified. I took her hand and squeezed it lightly as reassurance. She nodded gratefully at me.
We all heard snarling and shuffling noises that moved slowly around the room. "Is this the only door?" the Doctor whispered.
"Yes…NO!" Sir Robert yelled and ran over to barricade another smaller door.
"Shh!" Rose said again, and again we all listened quietly to the Wolf. There was much creaking and shuffling and growling.
"I don't understand. What's stopping it?" Rose asked. She glanced at me to see if I knew. I gave a quick nod.
"Something inside this room. What is it? Why can't it get in?" the Doctor questioned.
"I'll tell you what though," Rose said.
"What?" he asked.
"Werewolf." Rose said with a grin.
"I know!" he said pulling Rose into a hug. He turned to me after a moment, "Are you alright, Alix? First adventure and all."
"I'm fine. When you said 1980s I knew where we were going." I responded casually.
"You knew the whole time?" he sounded a pit put out.
"I'm sorry ma'am," Sir Robert said mournfully before I could respond, "It's all my fault. Should've sent you away. I tried to suggest something was wrong, thought you might notice. Did you think there was nothing strange about my household staff?"
"Well, they were bald, athletic. You're wife's away, I just thought you were happy." The Doctor said, making a quick face.
"I'll tell you what though ma'am-"
"People have died, Rose. It's really not the time," I cut her off quietly. "You just saw a man ripped to shreds. You were horrified of the slightest movement only a minute ago. The library can't protect us forever. It will find a way in."
"How?" the Doctor asked me.
I didn't answer, instead choosing to gaze at the carving of mistletoe on the doors.
"Mistletoe," the Doctor said quietly, "Sir Robert, did your father put that there?"
"I don't know, though I suppose so," Sir Robert replied.
"The other door too…But a carving wouldn't be enough. I wonder," the Doctor said quietly and pressed his face to the wall and licking it. Rose looked disgusted, but I just grinned at his unusual methods. Instead of sniff the wall, I'll lick it! How does that sound?
"Viscum album," the Doctor continued, "the oil of the mistletoe- it's been worked into the wood like a varnish! How clever was your dad? I love him!" the Doctor rattled quickly, then turned to Rose and I and said, "Powerful stuff, mistletoe. Bursting with lectins and viscotoxins."
"And the Wolf's allergic to it?" Rose asked.
"Kind of," I said.
"Well, it thinks it is," the Doctor responded. "The monkey monk monks need a way of controlling the Wolf, maybe they trained it to react against certain things."
"Nevertheless, that creature won't give up, Doctor, and we still don't possess an actual weapon," Sir Robert said.
"Oh, your father got all the brains, didn't he?" the Doctor said rudely.
"I think he did," I agreed as I searched the shelves of books. Books could teach you anything, whether they were fantasy or non-fiction, all of them could teach you something.
"Oh, now you're both being rude," Rose complained.
"Good," the Doctor said, "I meant that one."
"You want weapons? We're in a library. Books!" he said animatedly.
"Best weapons in the world," I called over my shoulder as I searched the shelves for anything useful. I already had a large stack growing on the table.
The Doctor put on his glasses and I couldn't help but mentally swoon at how damn sexy he was. "This Room is the greatest arsenal we could have. Arm yourself." He said pulling a book out of a shelf I hadn't got to yet and throwing it at Rose. He looked like he was about to throw one at me, but glanced at the table where I had put down at least a dozen books that could be helpful.
After several minutes of looking through books, the Doctor said, "Oh, look what your old dad found. Something fell to Earth."
"A spaceship?" Rose guessed.
"A spaceship." I agreed.
"A shooting star," Sir Robert said as though it made a difference, "In the Year of Our Lord 1540, under the rule of King James the Fifth, an almighty fire did burn in the pit. That's the Glen of Saint Catherine, right by the monastery."
"But that's over three hundred years ago. What's it been waiting for?" Rose asked. I slight smile played on my face as I said their words with them in my head.
"Maybe just a single cell survived. Adapting slowly down the generations. It survived through the humans. Host after host after host…" the Doctor said.
"But why does it want the throne?" Sir Robert asked.
"That's what it wants. It said so, the…" Rose said, trying to remember what it called it.
"The Empire of the Wolf." I confirmed, nodding grimly.
"Imagine it…the Victorian Age accelerated…starships and missiles fueled by coal and driven by steam…leaving history devastated in its wake…"the Doctor said with an ominous tone of foreboding.
"Sir Robert!" Queen Victoria called quickly, standing suddenly, "If I am to die here…"
"Don't say that, Your Majesty," Sir Robert interrupted the Queen. I wondered idly how many people actually had done that.
"I would destroy myself, rather than let that creature infect me," she said firmly, "But that's no matter. I ask only that you find some place of safe keeping for something far older and more precious than myself," the Queen said, opening her purse.
"Hardly a time to worry about your valuables," the Doctor commented, glancing up.
"Thank you for your opinion. But there is nothing more valuable than this," Queen Victoria said, pulling the Koh-I-Noor from her bag.
"That's almost true," I said with a great big grin on my face as I looked at the beautiful, ridiculously large, flawless white diamond.
"Almost true?" the Doctor whispered to me.
"A life is infinitely more precious," I said firmly. He grinned at me and nodded.
"Is that the Koh-I-Noor?" Rose asked, amazement coloring her tone.
"Oh, yes…the greatest diamond in the world," the Doctor said. I walked towards Queen Victoria to get a closer look.
"Given to me as spoils of war," she said, "Perhaps now its legend is coming true. It is said that whoever owns it must surely die."
"That's true of anything if you own it long enough," I said off handedly, like we weren't taking about the most valuable thing on Earth.
"Can I…?" the Doctor asked the obvious question and the Queen placed the Koh-I-Noor in his hands.
He pulled his glasses down slightly and twisted the diamond left and right a bit before saying, "That is so beautiful," he murmured with a slight amount of awe in his voice.
"How much is that worth?" Rose asked the Doctor.
"They say…the wages of the entire planet for a whole week," he responded.
"Good thing my mum's not here," Rose said smiling slightly while I chuckled, "She'd be fighting the Wolf off with her bare hands for that thing."
"And she'd win," the Doctor and I said simultaneously.
"Where is the Wolf?" asked Sir Robert suddenly, "I don't trust this silence."
"Why do you travel with it?" the Doctor asked Queen Victoria, not hearing –or caring about- Sir Robert's question.
"My annual pilgrimage," the Queen answered, "I'm taking it to Helier and Carew. The Royal Jewelers at Hazelhead. The stone needs re-cutting."
"But it's perfect," Rose protested.
"My late husband never thought so."
"Now there's a fact," the Doctor said as he took off his glasses, "Prince Albert kept having the Koh-I-Noor cut down. It used to be forty percent bigger than this. But he was never happy. Kept cutting and cutting."
"He always said…the shine was not quite right, but he died with it still unfinished," Queen Victoria said.
"Unfinished…oh, yes!" the Doctor said excitedly, obviously connecting things in his head.
"What'd you realize, Doctor?" I asked casually as he tossed the diamond to Queen Victoria, who caught it looking startled.
"There's a lot of unfinished business in this house. His father's research- your husband, ma'am, he came here and he sought the perfect diamond-hold on, hold on- all these separate things, they're not separate at all, they're connected!" the Doctor rambled quickly.
"Ding ding ding, we have a winner!" I said with a grin to the Doctor, who grinned back, but turned back to Queen Victoria and continued speaking quickly.
"What if this house it's a trap for you, is that right ma'am?" he spat out quickly, running his hands through his hair over and over again, so it stood up even more.
"Obviously," the Queen said crisply.
"At least, least that's what the Wolf intended. But! What if there's a trap inside the trap?" the Doctor asked urgently.
"Explain yourself, Doctor," the Queen said quickly.
"What if his father and your husband weren't just telling each other stories," he said quickly.
"They dared to imagine it was true," I added.
"And they planned against it," he said nodding at me, "Laying the real trap not for you…but for the Wolf," the Doctor told them, but stopped when plaster dust began to fall on his face from the ceiling.
The entire group slowly looked up and saw the Wolf walking across the glass dome roof above them. The Wolf glanced down and growled, and I don't think anyone but me heard it say, "Run, cat, run!"
"That wolf there…"I said calmly, and then the glass under the Wolf started to crack.
"Out, out, out! Out!" cried the Doctor. We all threw down our books and ran towards the door. I pushed the Queen in front of myself to keep her as far from the Wolf as possible.
The Wolf crashed through the glass. We tossed all the stuff we had put in front of the door aside, and all of us made it through and the Doctor slammed the doors closed behind us.
"Gotta get to the observatory!" the Doctor shouted.
We ran around the corner and suddenly Rose was locked in a staring contest with the Wolf.
"Rose!" I yelled tugging her harshly to break her focus. The Wolf has about to jump when Lady Isabel appeared and tossed a bucket of mistletoe brew on the Wolf it howled and ran back down the corridor.
"Good shot!" the Doctor called.
"What did I tell you? It's allergic to mistletoe!" I told Isabel happily she just nodded.
"Isabel!" Sir Robert cried with relief and kissed her tenderly. I laughed quietly and started down the corridor. I made up my mind that when Sir Robert tried to take on the Wolf I would stop him. I knew it wouldn't kill me for reasons unknown.
"The observatory is this way!" Sir Robert yelled.
As we reached the observatory the Doctor noticed the doors. "No mistletoe on these doors. Your father wanted to let the Wolf inside!" the Doctor said quickly, "Get inside, but I just need time! Is there any way of barricading this?"
"Just do your work and I'll defend it," Sir Robert said.
"If we could bind them with rope or something!" The Doctor said, ignoring Sir Robert.
"I said I'd find you time, sir," Sir Robert said determined.
"And I say you won't," I said firmly, "It's not going to kill me for whatever reason it has, because it's told me it won't."
"It could be lying," the Doctor argued.
"It could, but it's my life to spend as I choose."
"A life is the most valuable thing in the world."
"It is. And mine, though valuable, is not as important as anyone else in this room's."
The Doctor opened his mouth to argue, but saw the look on my face and said, "You aren't going to change your mind."
"No, I'm not."
He hugged me quickly and said, "Be careful."
The door closed with the rest of our party relatively safe on the other side. I tugged my necklace out from its hiding place under the hem of the top of my dress. A glance at the stone showed me it had changed from gray-black to a darker blue-black.
I held it wrapped in my hand, and whispered quietly, "Whatever beings control fate, please don't let me die here tonight."
It wasn't a prayer or a demand. It felt like making a wish on a shooting star: Silly, yet hopeful for some odd reason. The Wolf came around the corner.
"The cat has stopped running," It said with a growl. I hid my fear and stood up tall, letting the stone fall loose against my dress.
"I have. Now tell me," I said, feigning causality, "Why did you call me the Lioness?"
"Because it is your name," it said, pacing back and forth at the end of the hall, its eyes never leaving me.
"My name is Alix Rae. Not Lioness or whatever else you come up with."
"It is the name the Eternals gave you when you were born from the Vortex. Then they gave you a human name and hid your true name in the heart of the Medusa Cascade, along with another's.
"When the stone turns gold, it shall crack and time shall rip, for the Lioness must die and be born anew," It growled out, but the way the Wolf said it made it sound like a well known nursery-rhyme.
"Why haven't you killed me yet?" I asked it.
"Because it is impossible to kill that which has never lived," it said before lunging at me and I fell into darkness with a scream tearing its way from my throat.
Doctor POV
We heard her scream.
It spoke of terror and pain and rage, as though she were upset by the fact that she was going to die.
But it held its terrifying note for no more than a second before cutting off suddenly. Thu-dump, thu-dump. Then the door burst open and the Wolf came in, carrying her limp body by the back of her dress with an ancient anobiids stone around her neck. I would focus on how and why Alix had one later, but more importantly the fact that she was breathing.
The beam of moonlight reflected onto the Wolf, which caused it to drop Alix.
"Rose," I said gesturing to Alix with my hand. She came and tugged Alix lout of the way. The Wolf transformed back into human form
"Why didn't you kill her?" I asked it. It had killed all that attacked it or confronted it, except her.
"You cannot kill that which has not lived," it growled, "Make it brighter. Let me go."
It almost sounded like it was begging and so I walked over to the telescope and turned up the brightness, causing the Wolf to be consumed by moonlight and vaporize into light particles with a howl.
"Your Majesty?" I asked, concerned. She was examining her wrist closely. "Did it bite you?"
"No, it's…it's a cut." She responded carefully.
"If that thing bit you…"
"It was a splinter of wood when the door came apart," Queen Victoria answered.
"Let me see," I insisted, taking her wrist lightly
"It is nothing," The Queen repeated, pulling her wrist sharply away before I could properly look.
"Doctor!" Rose called, leaning over Alix, "I think she's saying something but I don't recognize the language, which means the TARDIS isn't translating."
I stared as the beautiful young woman in front of me began murmuring a Gallifreyan lullaby in her sleep.
"What's she saying?" Rose asked me. I didn't respond, instead choosing to carefully pick Alix up bridal style, and hum the tune along with her as we walked out of the observatory.
Alix POV
After I woke up in one of the bedrooms of the house, with the Doctor sitting in a chair beside the bed and Rose lying next to me sleeping, I felt like my fellow time travelers wouldn't stop staring at me.
I had gotten rid of the dress, and replaced it with my purple panda t-shirt. I sat in a chair in the parlor. It was very quiet and I heard a whispered conversation between Rose and the Doctor through the door.
"She was speaking what?" Rose whisper screeched in shock.
"A lullaby, to be specific. If she isn't human, she's either lying or she's unaware. We can't just accuse her of being an alien when she's believed herself to be human her entire life," the Doctor whispered back.
I felt wronged, for some reason and my face burned with shame. I didn't know what I was ashamed for though. I groaned quietly and buried my head in my hands, adopting the position I had taken yesterday in my living room back home.
The door opened suddenly, with a long, low, squeak of rust.
"Alix? Are you alright?" the Doctor asked gently.
I looked up, and I'm not quite sure what my face looked like, because the Doctor's look of mild concern became a very big look of worry and Rose's face turned from suspicion to pity.
"I should be dead," I whispered, "but the only reason I'm not is because I never lived. If I never lived then how am I here? And it knew, oh it knew…" I trailed of in horrified wonder. How did it know? My mother called me her lioness when I was little. It was her pet name for me. I'd never thought anything of it, but now…
"Knew what?" Rose asked gently.
"It knew my name. One of them, at least."
Before either of them could respond the Queen entered the room. We all stood up and watched her.
"Kneel," she commanded. We did so.
A soldier handed her a ceremonial sword and she tapped the Doctor on both shoulders while saying, "By the power invested in me by the Church and the State I dub thee: Sir Doctor of TARDIS."
She tapped Rose over both soldiers and said, "By the power invested in me by the Church and the State, I dub thee: Dame Rose of the Powell Estate."
She turned and tapped me on the shoulders before saying, "By the power invested in me by the Church and the State, I dub thee: Dame Alix of Virginia."
"You will stand," she ordered.
We stood.
"Many thanks ma'am," the Doctor said with a grin.
"They're never going to believe this back home," Rose breathed excitedly.
"When do they believe anything?" I whispered to her and she grinned.
"Your Majesty," the Doctor stated, "you said last night about receiving a message from the great beyond; I think your husband cut that diamond to save your life. He's protecting you even now, ma'am, from beyond the grave."
"Indeed," Queen Victoria said and I grinned, remembering what happens next, "Then you may think on this, also: that I am not amused."
The Doctor groaned and asked me, "Why did you let me make a bet I was going to lose?"
I merely grinned at Rose and looked back to the Queen who was saying, "Not remotely amused."
Rose was trying very hard to get rid of her smirk and the Doctor continued to look disappointed.
"And henceforth…I banish you," Queen Victoria said.
"I'm sorry…?" the Doctor asked with confused shock. Rose was staring at the Queen with disbelief, but I was trying very, very hard not to start laughing.
"I rewarded you, Sir Doctor. And now you are exiled from this empire, never to return. I don't know what you are, the three of you," she said, her gaze lingering on me, "or where you're from, but I know that you consort with stars and magic and think it fun. But your world is steeped in blasphemy and death and I will not allow it! You will leave these shores and you will reflect, I hope, on how you managed to stray so far from all that is good. And how much longer you will survive this…terrible life."
Our trio did their best to look properly abashed. It was like a toddler being scolded by their parent's and they don't understand what they did wrong.
"Now leave my world, and never return," the Queen finished.
We quickly walked from the room, but before we could, I was confronted by Lady Isabel.
"I don't care who or what you are," she told me, "you saved my husband's life. Take this in thanks."
Lady Isabel handed me a small ring with the Torchwood Estate coat of arms on it. I smiled at her. "Thank you," I told her and our group turned and left.
A few minutes later we came across a man with a cart who offered to let us ride until we reached our destination, or he reached his.
It was quiet as we rode and I leaned against the edge of the cart and dozed, hearing Rose and the Doctor's whispered voices, but not well enough to make out what they were saying.
Eventually, the Doctor shook my shoulder and we jumped off the cart. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes as the Doctor called to the driver, "Cheers Dougal!"
"You know, the funny thing is," the Doctor said as we walked back to the TARDIS, "Queen Victoria did actually suffer from a mutation of the blood! It's a historical record. She was hemophiliac. It used to be called the Royal Disease! But it's always been a mystery because she didn't inherit it. Her mum didn't have it her dad didn't have it- it came from nowhere!"
"What, you're saying that's a wolf bite?" Rose asked with disbelief.
"Or a scratch," I added.
"Well, maybe hemophilia is just a Victorian euphemism," the Doctor responded.
"For werewolf?" Rose questioned.
"Could be!" the Doctor answered.
"Queen Victoria's a werewolf?" Rose asked with shock.
"Could be! And, her children had the Royal Disease. Maybe she gave them a quick nip," the Doctor said.
"So, Royal Family are werewolves?" Rose asked in disbelief.
"Well, maybe not yet. I mean a single wolf cell could take…a hundred years to mature…might be ready by, ooh…" he said, thinking.
"Early 21st century?" I commented.
"Nah! That's just ridiculous! Mind you…Princess Anne…!" Rose said.
"I'll say no more," the Doctor said.
"And if you think about it, they're very private. They plan everything in advance," I added my thoughts.
"They- they could schedule themselves around the moon! We'd never know!" Rose exclaimed.
The Doctor laughed and opened the TARDIS doors, ushering us inside. I sighed quietly. I almost thought I was dreaming, but there was no way my mind could have come up with this. I wasn't that creative.
"They like hunting!" Rose continued, "They love blood sports!"
The Doctor and I were laughing at Rose by now and as the Doctor flipped some switches and the TARDIS started to dematerialize.
"Oh my GOD, they're werewolves!" Rose cried as the TARDIS entered the Vortex.
Later, after Rose had gone to bed and the Doctor had disappeared, I was sitting by the TARDIS doors, with my feet hanging out as we floated through space.
"That's the Andromeda Galaxy," I heard the Doctor say from behind me.
"It's beautiful," I told him.
He sat down next to me. It was quiet for a few moments, before he asked, "Having trouble sleeping? I thought you'd be out like a light be now."
"I always have trouble sleeping."
"When's the last time you slept?" he asked with concern.
"Umm…two days? Two and a half?"
"I thought humans slept more than that," he said.
"I might not be human."
"What are you then?"
"I don't know. Whatever I am, it kept the Wolf from killing me. Funny thing, though, is that it said when I was born the Eternals gave me a name and hid my true name. Alix is to me as John is to you then."
"The Eternals?" He questioned with shock, "The Wolf said the Eternals gave you a name? But you're human! An ordinary human!"
"There's no such thing as an ordinary human," quoting him even though he hasn't actually said it yet.
"Good point," he relented. "Did he tell you the name the Eternals gave you?"
"Yes," I answered.
"What was it?"
"It was my mother's nickname for me. Some parents call their kids 'sweetie' or 'dear' or 'pumpkin'. My mother called me her lioness."
"The Lioness? It called you, the Lioness? And your mum called you that as well, which implies that she knew… We could go ask her why." He said.
"You can't. She's gone. Not dead, but gone. I wake up one morning and all records of her had been erased. The only way people knew she even existed was in memory."
"And your dad?"
"Never knew him. I don't even know his name."
It was quite for a few moments after that before the Doctor asked, "Do you know what type of stone your necklace is made out of?"
"Obsidian. My mother gave it to me when I turned twelve." I answered, tugging it out from under my shirt.
"Ugh, this is so weird!" I exclaimed as I looked at it. "It changed again! I looked at it a few hours ago and it was black as the night sky, and now it's bright blue!"
"It's an anobiids stone. They could only be found on Gallifrey, and even there, they were rare. If someone had one, it had probably been given to them by an Eternal. Otherwise it was almost impossible to find them. It was said the stone changes as the owner does. The true owner, mind you. If you stole it then it would change to an ugly shade of dull gray and stay that way till it found its way back to its owner." He rambled quickly.
"So I have a stone from Gallifrey, I can speak two languages that the TARDIS won't translate, and the Eternals named me the Lioness. What am I?" I asked him.
"I don't know," he said, standing up, "But I promise to help you find out. I think you should go and sleep. Do you need help to finding your room?"
He offered his hand to me and I took it, pulling myself up. "What room?" I asked him jokingly.
He chuckled lightly and led me down the halls to an oak door with a gleaming brass handle. He smiled and nodded at me before turning back down the halls to the console room.
I opened the door and didn't bother to look around, instead choosing to collapse on the bed and sleep peacefully for the first time in days.
Ok so I'm not quite sure how necessary that last part was, but I felt like adding it for some reason. If it sucked, review! If it didn't suck, still review!
On to the next!