Disclaimer: I don't own "Doctor Who" or "Twilight", and the essential details of the original concept of this fic came from a video posted on YouTube by heroesdwtw- which has unfortunately now been taken off YouTube- and is used with their permission
Feedback: Much appreciated
New Dawn
"It takes quite a bit to surprise Marcus," Aro said, looking between the Doctor and I in particular. "And the idea that you have a connection to him when he has never met you before…"
"That is a very complicated story that we'll share with you in our own time," the Doctor said, frivolity forgotten as he stood in a room of an enhanced version of his peoples' most ancient enemy.
"And it is hardly the only thing difficult to comprehend in this situation," Aro noted, glancing at Edward in particular now. "How can you stand so close to her like that?"
"It takes an effort," Edward replied simply.
"But still- la tua cantante! What a waste!"
"I look at it more as a price," Edward said with a humourless chuckle, that did little to help me feel better about my thoughts for the future.
"A very high price."
"Opportunity cost."
Aro laughed. "If I hadn't smelled her through your memories, I wouldn't have believed the call of anyone's blood could be so strong. I've never felt anything like it myself. Most of us would trade much for such a gift, and yet-"
"Can you stop talking about me like I'm a rare wine Edward keeps to brag about?" I cut in, looking at Aro in particular.
"Of course," Aro said, looking at me with what I would have taken as apology if it came from anyone else. "You must excuse me; I suppose I became caught up in talking with young Edward here when learning what had become of my friend Carlisle since we last spoke."
"You know Carlisle Cullen?" the Doctor looked at Aro curiously.
"You know him?"
"Only what Bella told me about him," the Doctor said briefly, still studying the vampire leader with an inquiring expression. "Sorry if I'm blunt, but considering your… dietary preferences…"
"Oh, contrary to what you might believe, I find Carlisle's self-control extremely admirable," Aro replied. "Thanks to Edward's memories, I am grateful and astonished to succeed in his unorthodox path. I expected that he would waste, weaken with time, and scoffed at his plan to find others who would share his peculiar vision… yet, somehow, I'm happy to be wrong."
The Doctor and Edward simply stared at him in silence at this statement, refusing to give him an answer.
"But your restraint!" Aro sighed. "I did not know such strength was possible. To inure yourself against such a siren call, not just once but again and again… if I had not felt it myself, I would not have believed!"
Glancing over at Edward, I noted that he wasn't showing anything openly, but there was something in his eyes that I felt suggested at something beneath the surface.
"Just remember how she appeals to you…" Aro chuckled. "It makes me thirsty."
"If you harm Bella-" the Doctor began.
"I have no intention of doing any such thing, Doctor," Aro smiled reassuringly. "However, I am curious about one thing in particular… may I?"
"You want to test your powers on me?" I asked, looking uncertainly at the vampire's raised finger.
"Precisely," Aro smiled. "I am fascinated that you are the one exception to Edward's impressive talent; so very interesting that such a thing should occur! I was wondering, since our talents are similar in so many ways, if you would be so kind as to allow me to try and see if you are an exception for me as well?"
Glancing over at the Doctor, for a moment, I didn't see any sign that he thought it would be dangerous, and even Edward didn't give any indication that he objected to this, even if that was probably because he thought there was no choice. I wasn't comfortable at the thought of allowing this vampire to touch me, but there were a perverse curiosity in feeling his strange skin. Taking a deep breath, I raised my hand slowly in front of me, waiting as Aro glided up to me and took my hand, his skin hard but brittle in a manner that reminded me of cold shale.
"So very interesting," he said, stepping back with his initial confidence now replaced by subtle incredulity until he gained his original friendly expression, studying us for a moment before he looked at the Doctor. "May I?"
"I wouldn't," the Doctor said, his hands in his pockets as he stared back at the vampire.
"Not even if I asked politely?"
"I prefer to keep my secrets."
"If you insist," Aro shrugged, looking as though the issue didn't bother him before he glanced back at me. "I wonder if you would be immune to other talents as well… Jane?"
"No!" Edward stepped forwards, snarling even as Alice grabbed his arm.
"Yes, Master?" Jane asked politely, ignoring Edward as he snarled in rage at the small vampire.
"I was wondering, my dear," Aro explained, "if Bella is immune to you?"
As Edward slipped free of Alice's grasp, he moved forward to place himself between Jane and I, but then leapt towards Jane as she took a step towards me. I barely had time to yell out at what he was doing- whatever my feelings about him right now, I knew that I didn't want him dead- before he was on the ground, writhing in agony from no obvious source.
"Hold on…" the Doctor said, looking between Edward and Jane before he stepped forwards, moving between my ex and the strange girl glaring at him. As he gritted his teeth and flinched, Edward suddenly ceased writhing in agony, but I only spared him a moment's glance before I focused on the Doctor, realising what Jane's power must be.
If she could induce that level of agony in a vampire, what could she do to the Doctor…?
It only took a moment, however, for me to realise that my friend wasn't screaming like Edward. He was certainly uncomfortable, judging by the clear tension in his shoulders and the way his legs shook as though it was an effort to keep himself upright, but he didn't look like he was about to start screaming like Edward had.
"What?" Jane asked, staring incredulously at the Doctor even as her expression remained focused. "How did… you can…?"
"You're not… actually burning me… you just… make me think… you are," the Doctor said, his eyes narrowed in intense concentration as he looked at the small vampire. "Takes focus… but my senses… have been fooled… by experts… and you… just specialise…"
"Jane, cease," Aro commanded, prompting Jane to take a step back with a sulky expression on her face as Aro walked up to the Doctor with a thoughtful smile. "That was indeed… impressive, Doctor."
"Just a matter of mind over matter and long experience; I've travelled quite broadly," the Doctor replied, trying to appear nonchalant despite the awkward expression in his eyes making it clear that he realised he might have just made a mistake.
"I would hardly call resisting Jane's power something that can just be done that easily; I once asked her to use that power on me to satisfy my own curiosity, and the results were… well, interesting," Aro said, looking at my friend for a moment before he reached out and grabbed the Doctor's hand before the Time Lord could get away. For a moment I wondered if I should do something, but then Aro released his grip with a yell of shock, staggering backwards while staring at the Doctor and his hand like a man who'd just had his limb cut off.
"I did warn you not to do that," the Doctor said, looking coldly at the vampire. "There is a lot going on in my head, and even I don't try and dig into that unless I have to."
"You-!" Jane began, glaring at the Doctor before I moved to stand between him and the smaller vampire once again. For a moment, Jane simply stared at me, her jaw clenching in frustration and her smile vanishing as she focused, but it soon became clear that her power was having no effect on me where the Doctor had at least been aware of what she was doing.
"Fascinating…" Aro said, his tone weak as he carefully got to his feet, looking between the Doctor and I with a smile. "A girl who can completely throw off three of the most potent abilities I have ever encountered without even trying… and a man who can resist them all through… training?"
"Training and experience," the Doctor corrected, looking pointedly at Aro. "And I didn't resist your ability entirely; you just can't cope with what I've experienced."
"A vampire cannot cope with a human's experience?" Caius asked with a mocking laugh. "You jest-"
"He does not," Aro said, looking grimly at Caius before looking at the Doctor. "Although I confess to wondering how you did that; I felt as though I was experiencing multiple variations of the same event at once…"
"Let's just say there are many aspects to my mind, and you just aren't equipped to handle them," the Doctor said coolly. Jane hissed in a warning tone, but fell silent as Aro held up a hand while he studied the Doctor and I.
"You confound me far more than I expected, Doctor," he said at last. "And the mysteries of Miss Swan's ability… I confess, I find myself wondering what to do with you both now."
Edward and Alice stiffened, although the Doctor only showed a slight tension in his shoulders; I hadn't known much about these vampires, but I'd told him everything I knew after we saved Esme, and the key point was how the Cullens had broken several rules by leaving me human while knowing their secret.
"I don't suppose there's any chance that you've changed your mind?" Aro asked Edward hopefully. "Your talent would be an excellent addition to our little company."
"I'd… rather… not," Edward said, hesitating before he spoke, each word carefully measured.
"Alice?" Aro asked, still hopeful. "Would you be interested in joining us?"
"No thank you," Alice replied.
"And you, Bella?" Aro raised his eyebrows.
"No," I said firmly.
"And I second Bella's opinion," the Doctor added, stepping up to stand beside me.
"But the potential…" Aro mused, looking at me in particular. "I haven't seen a prospective talent such as yours so promising since we found Jane and Alec; can you imagine the possibilities when you are one of us, and that is without considering what your mysterious friend may be capable of?"
"We aren't interested," I repeated firmly, surprised to find that I meant more than just the offer to join the Volturi.
It wasn't that I wanted to die, but after spending time with the Doctor, experiencing so many wonders as a normal human, I was starting to recognise that there was more to life than my past wish to be a vampire just to be with Edward…
"A shame," Aro sighed. "Such a waste…"
"Join or die, is that it?" Edward hissed. "I suspected as much when we were brought to this room. So much for your laws."
I wondered at Edward's tone; he sounded irate, but there was something deliberate about his delivery.
"Of course not," Aro blinked, astonished. "We were already convened here, Edward, awaiting Heidi's return, not for you."
"Aro," Caius hissed. "The law claims them."
"What, because Bella knows you exist and she told me about you?" the Doctor cut in. "She only did that because of exceptional circumstances where it was tell me you lot existed or someone Bella cared about would be dead or worse; she didn't just decide to tell me she knew vampires were real because she was bored, and I assured her that I would keep my word on the topic at the same time."
"And isn't that kind of attitude a bit hypocritical when you've got humans working for you here?" I cut in, remembering the receptionist we'd seen on the way in.
"True," Caius noted with an expression that could be a smile. "But when they are no longer useful to us, they will serve to sustain us. That is not your plan for this one. If she betrays our secrets, are you prepared to destroy her? I think not."
"I wouldn't-!" I began, only for Caius to silence me with an icy look.
"Nor do you intend to make her one of us," he continued, as though I hadn't spoken, shifting his gaze to address the Cullens as though the Doctor and I didn't matter. "Therefore, she is a vulnerability, as is this enigmatic Doctor. Though it is true, for this, only their lives are forfeit. You may leave if you wish."
"You really shouldn't have started talking."
"Excuse me?" Caius looked at the Doctor in surprise.
"Marcus I know for a fact has the potential to be better than he is now," the Doctor said, nonchalantly walking forward so that he was standing in front of Edward, Alice and I, the attention of all vampires in the room fixed on him. "And while I don't agree with Aro's choice of diet, he at least seemed friendly enough, but the fact that you feel that humans are only worth something when they're alive if they're useful to you… I don't particularly like that."
"And I should care about your opinion?" Caius asked.
"You should," the Doctor said firmly. "You say that the options are join you or die, but I have a third one to offer; you let Bella and I leave this room with the Cullens, totally unharmed, and trust we won't tell anyone anything they don't need to know."
"Excuse me?" Aro looked at the Doctor in surprise.
"Might seem like a risk to you, but you have to start having faith in people at some time; killing everyone who might be a risk must have gotten a bit boring after a while," the Doctor said, smiling briefly at Aro before his expression became colder. "Besides, it's better than the fourth option."
"Which is?" Caius asked with a slightly mocking smile.
"I kill you."
AN: To avoid any questions, I will clarify right now that the Doctor is not 'immune' to Edward, Aro and Jane's powers; he's just able to deal with them through training he's gone through on his travels.
In Edward's case, the Doctor has encountered enough telepathic races over the years to have learned methods of protecting his mind from any attempts to read it in such a manner, which are facilitated by the fact that Edward's powers can't really focus on one individual unless he actively concentrates.
For Aro, his attempt to read the Doctor's memories not only exposed him to some degree of the Doctor's awareness of Time and other dimensions, none of which Aro is biologically equipped to process even as a vampire, but he was also exposed to the Doctor's past incarnations in his subconscious, with the result that Aro is essentially getting multiple perspectives on several events at once, which is more than his powers were ever intended to process.
As for Jane… to be blunt, the Doctor's probably endured similar or more serious damage than just being burned alive- the Third Doctor died a long, slow death from radiation poisoning, the Fifth Doctor's death from spectrox toxaemia was unlikely to have been pleasant, and his current incarnation has that experience when he was possessed by a sentient sun before Martha saved his life, and that's just what I can think of off the top of my head- which allows him to see past Jane's attempt to create an illusion of pain by focusing on his memories of the reality of it