A/N : Next chapter! Thanks for all the reviews.

School's started, so I won't be updating as often. Probably only every Sunday.

Melissa watches a surgery in this chapter. It's an intense emergency surgery, but I'm not getting very descriptive.

Chapter Four:

Melissa smiled across the table as she sipped her drink. This had not turned out as badly as she thought it would. "Thanks for bringing me here, Russell," she said.

Russell nodded, slightly embarrassed.

They had grown close ever since the trip to Indonesia. In fact, Melissa was even beginning to think of themselves as a couple. It had become official only a week ago. Before, she had looked at these days with trepidation, but now it was totally different. She had little to fear. She and Russell were together, and very little could tear them apart. She felt strongly for him. She wasn't sure if she was in love, but it was some sort of affection. A very loyal affection. After all, he adored her so much that the least she could do was return his feelings. The tiny details that concerned her before like when should they kiss, how often she was supposed to look at him, and what they should talk about took care of themselves. Well, Russell took care of them, and she let him. It was all too advanced for her. Surprisingly, what he did she did not consider too intrusive or overwhelming. They hadn't even kissed yet, which was good because she didn't know what she would do if that transpired.

"It's a nice little restaurant," Russell said. "My family knows the manager personally. We get a discount. And whoever we bring along with us." He winked at her. At least, she thought he winked.

He examined her closely. She was an interesting human specimen. So contradictory to society. If he wasn't on the mission, he may have pursued her as a friend. Not as a girlfriend, though. The part of his mind that was kept so he could mingle with the humans seamlessly recognized her as attractive, but not too attractive. Her hair was tied back into an elegant ponytail with a sparkly scrunchy, and she wore a pink blouse. She did look good in pink. Yellow, too, he had noticed.

He smiled, happy at his progress. She was so comfortable with him. He would find a way to recruit her very soon. She could help them find the Doctor. All they had to do was persuade her. That would be simple. A trail of destruction seemed to follow the Doctor. It wouldn't take many lies to make that evidence look damning.

-CR-

The phantoms of the past circled around him, taunting him. "You said you saved us, but you didn't. You failed. You're no good. Last of the Time Lords, what a laugh."

"I tried my best," he said. "There was nothing I could do."

One of them solidified in front of him. The shadows edged away to reveal light blonde hair. She was once a pretty girl, but the hate in her face disfigured her. "You abandoned me. I came back to you, but you abandoned me."

"Rose, I – I left you with him! He was me, pretty much." Suddenly, he was aware that he was lying down on some soft surface. A bed. This wasn't real, just a dream. With a great effort, he opened his eyes. He saw his apartment, a small, cheap room shrouded in thick steam. The napkin, or what was left of it, was in a pot on the stove. He did not have anything better than a pot to put it in. Well, he had done all he needed to do with it, and now he only had to compound the antidote.

He got to his feet slowly. His legs felt like they were made of sand. He had to lean on the counter for support. Already his head was reeling, threatening to plunge him back into that dark nightmare. He recognized the effects. He had seen it several times during the Time War. His own species dreaming, trapped in eternal torment. It wasn't so much a poison as it was a drug, a torture tool. He looked at the pot. Even now, in its diluted form, it was powerful enough to affect him strongly. He may have never woken up until the landlord came looking for his rent. Or until the apartment burned down.

Still, he knew how to counteract the effects somewhat. There was a simple stimulant, a Time Lord steroid, that could help him live normally with this chemical floating around. It wouldn't do much with the pure, concentrated form, but it would help him get away while there was still time. It was a simple enough recipe. He had made it before in the days of the Academy. Diluted, it helped especially with the stressful nights before big exams. He had taken the pure form before, on a dare. Perhaps it was Romana who suggested it. Anyway, he did not want to do that again. Being banned from three galaxies was enough for one day. Well, since then one had repealed its decision. However, this was a time when it was absolutely necessary. The human race would forgive him. Besides, a hyper Time Lord was better than an army of dubious men in dark sunglasses.

Many of the ingredients were available in this apartment. The others he improvised on. In several minutes it was done. He sat back down on the couch with the mug. Goodness, he was as weak as a feather! He could hardly string two thoughts together, either. A simple cup of liquid was all he had to show for his exhausting efforts. Well, let's see just what kind of effect it would have.

Almost immediately on drinking it he felt his energy return. He leaped off of the couch. "Alright, out with you!" he shouted to the pot. "Allons-y!" The contents of the pot were spilled on the ground many yards below, startling an alley cat. The steam began to creep out the window. "Ah, that's so much better! I feel like a new man!" Frowning, he stopped himself. "Well, not exactly. Now, time to make more of that stuff! The effect only lasts so long…"

-CR-

Melissa's wonderful night had drawn to a close. She and Russell were now standing outside her house. She looked at the house, and then smiled at him. Time to say goodbye. "I had a fantastic time, Russell. You're the first boyfriend I have ever had. I-I think I'm getting used to dating."

He put an arm around her shoulder. "I sure hope you are. For me it never took any getting used to."

"I'm new to this," Melissa said. "You may have had lots of practice, but I haven't. It won't stay new for long, though."

"Is that okay with you? Not staying new?"

Melissa smiled. "In some ways it's better. It'll always be new in a way. None of our dates will be exactly the same. But I'll get experienced with it, know what to do, what to feel. All I feel is… awkwardness, but that's going away."

"Just take your time. I'll be there."

"I know you will." She hesitated, and then she hugged him. "Goodbye, Russell." She walked up the driveway. Suddenly, a figure jumped out in front of her. "Miss Meagan! What are you doing out here?"

"Is Russell here?" the woman asked abruptly.

"Yeah, I think so."

The woman smiled brightly at her. "I'll talk to him for a moment. Your dad just had me over for dinner."

"You're staying awful late."

"We got to talking. Russell! Wait up!" She ran towards him, panting slightly when she reached him just as he climbed into his car. "How was Melissa tonight?"

"Wonderful," Russell said enthusiastically. "I think she's warming up to me."

"Oh, that's good, that's really good. She does have some issues. Most of her life she's been alone, all that loss, and now the Doctor…"

"The Doctor?" Russell asked. "The Doctor?"

Miss Meagan nodded, startled. "You know him?"

Russell slammed his fists onto his steering wheel. "No, thank goodness, but I know all about him. He's dangerous, Miss Meagan. A deadly enemy."

"I knew it," Miss Meagan muttered.

"How does Melissa know?"

"She saw him at one of her clinical. He took her hostage. But she's being all weird with it."

"The Doctor is tricky. He's known to travel with assistants. Women, mostly. I guess he's good with the ladies. They don't last long, though. Just more lives to add to the list of those he ruined."

"Well, we mustn't let that happen to Melissa. She's such a darling. I don't want her to be taken advantage of… ruined."

"My dad works for an organization that's trying to track him down and do justice to him. Perhaps we can help her… and she can help us." He handed her a business card. "Feel free to schedule an appointment. I'll tell him all about you."

Miss Meagan took the card. "Thanks, Russell. I'm sure she'll be grateful, too. Are you really going to drive in the dark with those sunglasses on?"

Russell shrugged. "I'm used to it."

Miss Meagan waved as he drove off. She looked at the card in her hands. Melissa would definitely be tired after her eventful night. She would wait until morning to approach her with this news.

-CR-

"Stay calm, sir. We have surgeons at the hospital who can save you."

The patient was sweating heavily and breathing desperately. His skin was turning bluish as the EMTs rushed him into the ER.

"What do we have?" a nurse asked, walking towards them.

"Sudden, severe abdominal pain accompanied by hypotension. He's in hypovolemic shock now, blood pressure's dropping. We think he's hemorrhaging internally."

"I'll call OR stat. I've seen many patients like this. There's not much time to lose. Dr. Johnson will take a look at him, but I doubt he will want to procrastinate. Does he have a history?"

"Yes. Significant for hypertension and an abdominal aortic aneurysm."

The nurse nodded. "We have an endovascular repair surgeon here right now. I'll notify him."

Within minutes, the patient was being wheeled into the OR.

"Do we have a type and cross yet?" Dr. Johnson asked.

"It has just been completed," the accompanying nurse said. "A unit of blood is on its way, and there are several more on standby."

"Good. He's not in terminal shock yet."

Melissa was quivering with excitement. She was about to see her first operation! There were no surgeries scheduled on Saturdays, so the students usually had to wait for emergency surgeries, like this one. A dissecting abdominal aortic aneurysm could be fatal within an hour. This poor man had had a close call. She had just made it to the OR when the patient was brought in.

She could tell that he was not in good shape at her first glance. Air hunger, cyanosis, and sheer terror were signs of moderate shock. If they did not fix the problem soon, it was only a matter of time until he passed. Fortunately, a nurse was already setting up a transfusion line.

"Hello, have we met?" a familiar British voice said.

Melissa gasped. "Dr. Johnson! What are you – is this your patient?"

"Yes, well, I met him in the ER," Dr. Johnson said. "Excited?"

"Yes! It is exciting. I don't think it's that scary. I mean, I'm okay with blood and guts, otherwise I'm in the wrong profession. But I'm not fond of people dying. It looks like he has a fair chance, though."

"The surgeon has been notified," a nurse said. "Do we have the anesthetist here?"

"Just arrived," a man said, introducing himself to the patient. "Let's get him prepped stat."

"Melissa, just stick with me, okay?" Miss Carmen, the circulating nurse, said. "Things are going to be moving awful fast now."

"Right," Melissa said.

"I'm going to prepare the OR. Be sure to wear your mask when you're in there. And I'm warning you, it's freezing in there!"

Dr. Johnson smiled at her. "So, see you later?"

Melissa nodded. "Yeah, maybe." She dashed after Miss Carmen.

-CR-

In about an hour, Melissa was walking down the hallways, eyes shining. The surgery had been a remarkable success. The surgeon had reached the bulging blood vessel within minutes, and he soon plugged the leak with a special graft. The patient had remained stable throughout the operation, although still a little hypotensive. The transfused blood prevented his organs from shutting down from lack of oxygen. Upon awakening from the anesthetic, he had displayed much greater mental functions than in his confused, oxygen-deprived state. His family, a gentle, portly wife and a tall son, greeted him with tears and smiles. It had been a close shave.

She walked into the cafeteria and saw that only a few students remained with the instructor. Some had already left, having finished their lunch already. She was late because of the surgery, but it did not matter to her. She was hungry, but at least she saw it happen.

She was carrying her lunch to the table when she realized that they had an extra person at the table. She recognized Dr. Johnson's tousled brown hair. What was he doing there?

She sat down. "Hello again, Dr. Johnson."

"Hello, Melissa," he said, smiling. "I heard that the surgery went well."

"Yes, the surgeon is very optimistic about his recovery. Oh, Miss Molly, it was so exciting! Only a few minutes more and he would have had organ damage. In half an hour he would have been dead!"

"Yes, dissecting aortic aneurysms are very sudden," Mrs. Habrock said. "Many patients do not make it. Even if they get to the hospital in time, the staff isn't prepared for it. That's why it's so important for those patients with aneurysms to control their blood pressure."

"Well, everybody should control their blood pressure," Melissa said.

"Yep, that would cut down on a lot of our work," Dr Johnson agreed.

"And it would free up all our rehab centers," Mrs. Habrock said. "Fewer heart attacks and strokes."

"But the problem is no one really wants to change their lifestyle," Melissa added.

"Fried food is one of those things that are hard to give up," Dr. Johnson said mischievously.

Melissa blushed as she munched on a French fry. "It's a treat. I haven't had fries for about a month."

"Okay, I'll let that one go."

"How long have you been in Texas, Dr. Johnson?" Mrs. Habrock asked.

"Oh, a week or two, I suppose."

Mrs. Habrock's eyebrows went up. "Wow, you've really hit the ground running."

"Well, they were pretty impressed by my resume, I must admit. They were desperate."

"And you filled in the gap."

"Do you have any family, Dr. Johnson?" Melissa asked. "How did they deal with the move?"

Dr. Johnson sighed sadly. "I used to have a family, but they're gone. I'm on my own now."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Melissa said quietly.

He smiled at her. "Oh, that all happened a long time ago. I've had years to get over it."

"But you never do. It's always there, that hole in your heart. Something's always missing. It does get better, though. After a time, you hardly ever think of it. But at the beginning, it's like life can't go on anymore."

"You sound like you were there yourself."

"It doesn't really apply, Dr. Johnson," she said awkwardly. A sudden movement caught her eye. "Russell? What's he doing here?"

"Boyfriend?" another student asked.

"Overprotective boyfriend, I'm beginning to think," Melissa said, getting to her feet. However, Russell had already walked into the building and was walking towards her.

"Hello, sunshine," he said brightly. "I just thought, since I was dropping by… who is this?"

Melissa looked over her shoulder. "Oh, this is Dr. Johnson. He works in the ER. He likes chatting with us sometimes."

Russell extended his hand to shake, but his smile seemed forced. "Nice to meet you, sir," he said.

"Yes, and you too," Dr. Johnson said. "That was very thoughtful of you to stop in and check on your friend."

"It's a good thing I was in the OR today," Melissa said. "You would have missed me otherwise."

"You were in the OR?" Russell asked with obvious interest.

Melissa nodded. "Emergency case. It was quite dramatic. The outcome was good, though."

Russell smiled again.

"You know, I really should be going," Dr. Johnson said. "I just wanted to mingle with you students for a while. There's nothing like young, hungry minds. It reminds me of when I was a student."

"You must have been a clever one," Melissa commented.

"No, actually. I just picked up a lot of stuff on the way. Well, hopefully I'll see you again soon. Goodbye, Melissa R Brogan. What does the R stand for?"

"Rachel," Melissa said hastily.

"Really?"

"No! Why should you know my middle name? Is that going to save anyone's life?"

"Who knows?"

Melissa laughed. "You should leave now. I'm afraid that we aren't being too professional."

"Oh, so professional means you can't be friendly?"

"No, it means… I'm not sure what it means, actually."

Dr. Johnson smiled. "I don't think I'll be kicked out of this hospital for chatting with a nursing student, but, just to be on the safe side, see you later." He waved and walked briskly to the hospital entrance.

Russell tried to keep smiling, but it was difficult, even with his conditioning. His emotional side was reacting to this strongly. That man was most certainly the Doctor. And he had been talking to the girl like she was one of his companions! That was one mark of the Doctor; he could talk to anyone anywhere at any time. Still, the toxin should have worked on him. He should have been in a coma or at least collapsed in a heap at such close range. The Time Lord was stronger than he thought. He knew that there was a treatment for the drug, but at such close range he would still have been rendered helpless. He looked at Melissa's neck. It was bare.

"You're not wearing your necklace!"

Melissa looked at him, startled. "No, it's against dress code. I mean, do you really want a patient to grab onto it and nearly strangle me?"

"I'm sorry. It's just that … you look really pretty with it on, and seeing you wearing it reminds me that you're mine."

She smiled reassuringly. "I am yours, Russell. I wear it whenever I go out, sometimes even at home. It's very special to me. I don't want to bring it here, where it might get broken. Besides, it doesn't really match the uniform."

Russell was already formulating another plan. He had to get Melissa to the Doctor while she was still wearing the necklace. That would be easy, since he was disguising himself as an emergency room physician. A subtle poison should do the trick. It would disguise itself as an electrolyte imbalance, but it would create symptoms severe enough to require an ambulance. He was prepared for its worst effects, so she would not die from it. And then the Doctor would come and he would be helpless. Russell grinned. Yes, that would work.

-CR-

The Doctor was feeling rather pleased with himself. The treatment was working. Most of the time at his apartment he felt quite normal, almost back to his old self. And being with Melissa again only affected him about half as badly. He could manage now. He could find those creepy guys with the sunglasses and put an end to their plans. He wouldn't have to worry about falling unconscious without warning, unable to defend himself against those people. And so far he hadn't had enough to make him really off-the-wall hyper.

Still, there was something that was worrying him. Melissa's boyfriend. The guy was wearing sunglasses. Well, it didn't have to mean anything. It was a bright day outside. Perhaps he didn't want to bother with taking them off. However, it was a lot dimmer inside than outside. A person would be practically blind with sunglasses on. How did he manage? Or did he manage at all? Was he one of those people? He did act oddly, throwing a fit over a simple small necklace. And the way he looked at the Doctor didn't seem to be too trustworthy. It was as if he was waiting for him, as if he knew him.

The Doctor leaned back in his chair. This may go badly for Melissa. They seemed to think he was interested in her. Of course he was, because they seemed to have an interest in her. That was almost too convoluted to think about. They must think that Melissa was perfect to lure him out of hiding, the perfect bait in their trap. That was why she was heavily saturated with that chemical. She and many other people. Yes, Melissa was one of hundreds of "Doctor-traps" walking around. He was lucky enough not to meet any one of them up close and personal.

Still, Melissa was special. He could see that in her. From the time she first came into that prison cell – well, hospital room, actually – he had seen that she was different. She questioned authority if it went against what she thought was right. She saw a helpless person lying in a bed who needed comforting, not a list of rules to follow. She stood up to the consequences. Well, there was not much she could do about Dr. Smith yelling at her, but she held fast. She didn't look back. She would do great things. She didn't do things because she was told to. She did them because they were right. Well, most of the time. Of course, there must have been instances when she had behaved less than ideally. There always was.

If it had been earlier, before he had seen all of his companions snatched away, he may have taken her along. She was a smart girl, one fascinated by newness and knowledge. In fact, he saw a lot of himself in her. Well, a lot of what he was on his good days. Well, a lot of what he was once in a while. Well, a lot what he wished he could be. Sometimes he doubted. Was genocide really an option? Would Melissa have destroyed the daleks as ruthlessly as he once did? Would she have transformed people into weapons simply by having them with her?

That was another reason why he didn't want to travel with her. She was too pure. Anyone he took along with him became damaged, like he was. All those people on the Crucible, ready to die and take their worlds with them, quite possibly without their consent, without a second thought. And himself, running headlong from one adventure to the next, not looking back because he might see himself as what he was, what he had become.

The Doctor sighed. Since when had he become so brooding and self-deprecating? This regeneration seemed to be very sensitive to loss. Well, it had taken a lot to get him to this point. Rose had been the first, but he had moved on, taking on another companion afterwards. Of course, Martha only reminded him of what he had lost. And losing Donna was the final straw. He saw what he had done to them. He travelled on his own after that. And Adelaide, oh, Adelaide, that served to show him just what a monster he had become. He was no better than the creatures he defeated as they planned the destruction of another species.

Okay, stop this, Doctor, he told himself. You took on many formidable opponents. A few quiet moments with yourself shouldn't be so terrible.

-CR-

Melissa stepped out of the car gingerly. She felt apprehensive. "Okay, tell me again just what we're doing here."

"I'm going to show you just what the Doctor is," Russell said ominously.

Melissa scurried along beside him. There was an urgency in his footsteps that she had never seen before. It was like they were running out of time. "Yes, but why did we have to take a limo? And not just one limo but three limos!"

"Safety. The Doctor's a clever creature. We need to be just as wily as he is to keep ahead of him. And safe from him."

Melissa sighed. "I sure hope this is worth it. I keep worrying that someone will see me getting out of a limo and say 'What is that girl doing in a limo? She's not dressed all fancy. In fact, she looks drab!'"

Russell laughed. "Don't worry, you look fabulous, even when you're casual. Just let us spoil you for once."

"Oh, so I haven't been spoiled before?"

They entered a tall, narrow building. Melissa stared up at it, feeling out of place. This belonged in a sci-fi spy movie, not a normal girl's life. Still, if the Doctor was real, then this place was also real. They entered the building, going through metal detectors and various other screening equipment that Melissa had never seen before. "She's with me," she heard Russell saying. "We have to tell her some things. It's about the Doctor. She's met him several times."

Russell was able to cheat the security scan with his ID card. On the other hand, Melissa had to deal with the whole thing. She was patted-down, blasted by air, and x-rayed until she was more than ready to give up and go home. At least they didn't ask her to strip or anything…

Russell lead her into a bright white classroom. It was small and semicircular, almost like the rooms at the college. It was full of people, all staring straight ahead, all bearing solemn faces, all wearing dark sunglasses. If Melissa had seen this group of men following her, she would have ducked into a corridor and waited until they all passed by. They were so intimidating. However, the most intimidating of them all was the man up front. She immediately recognized him as Dr. Smith. Her heart grew cold.

"Hello, Dad. Melissa, this is my dad," Russell said once the audience was dismissed.

Melissa gaped. "He's your dad?"

Dr. Smith smiled at her, all congeniality. "Hello, how are you? Russell's been telling me all about you."

Melissa timidly shook his hand. "Hi."

"She's really shy, so don't be too hard on her," Russell said. "She's here to hear about the Doctor."

Dr. Smith's smile faded to an expression of deep interest. "Why's that? Has my son been filling your brain with all his grand schemes of ridding the world of this pest?"

"No, Dad, I haven't. She already knows of the Doctor."

Dr. Smith openly stared at her.

"It was her dad's friend. She told me all about it. He took her hostage once."

"He took you hostage?" Dr. Smith exclaimed. "Was this at a hospital, by any chance?"

"It wasn't exactly a hospital," Melissa muttered. "Yes, it was me."

"You were that student! The one who released him!"

"Yes, I was. Please, don't be angry. I only did what was right. He really didn't need all that stuff."

"That was the only way we could keep him contained," Dr. Smith snarled.

"Why not a cell?"

"He might just escape from a cell! He's got alien technology that's vastly superior to ours."

"Still, he was terrified," Melissa said, crossing her arms.

"He was manipulating you."

"Dad, she doesn't know yet!" Russell pleaded. "She doesn't know all the details. I haven't been able to tell her yet. Once she knows, she may agree."

Dr. Smith looked at her closely. Melissa swallowed. She was terrified yet indignant. That man's cruel treatment of the Doctor was still vivid in her mind. Even if the Doctor was as bad as they said he was, surely there were better options.

"Okay, first thing, he's not from our world," Dr. Smith began.

"He's alien?" Melissa asked.

"Yes. Our universe is full of surprises. You have examined him, have you not?"

"Yeah."

"And you found that he has two hearts?"

"Yes. And a super low body temperature."

"His anatomy is not that of a human's. Neither is his physiology. In some ways he is superior to us. He's approximately 900 years old."

"Wow. That's old."

"His species undergoes a process termed 'regeneration' to preserve their longevity. You don't need to know much about that. He calls himself a Time Lord. His ship is something he calls a TARDIS. He can travel anywhere in time and space with it."

"Cool."

"We have it in our custody."

"Okay. I'd like to see Florence Nightingale, if you don't mind."

"This is not a joke, child. Do you remember that time when the planets appeared in the sky? Where those robots patrolled the streets?"

"Yes, I do remember," Melissa said. "My dad was very interested in the planets. We looked at them for a while. I do remember the robot things, too. We only saw a few of them. Mostly we hid inside."

"I see. Well, the Doctor was behind all of that. I'm sure he caused it."

"What if he was the good guy? What if he was trying to save us?"

Dr. Smith leaned close. "Miss Brogan, this man – this creature – is dangerous. Just remember how many people died in those days. Everywhere he goes destruction follows. We've done the research. Anyone who travels with him is either driven mad or killed. Whenever he arrives, disaster happens. He should not be allowed to traipse across the universe like he has been doing so far."

"Dr. Smith, I think you're just scared. You don't know this Doctor. You don't know who he is. You're afraid of him."

"Miss Brogan, he's the one you should fear. Don't you remember what he did to you? He took you hostage, threatened to kill you if we did not stand down. Then he blew up the place. And you have not been able to forget him since, right?"

Melissa was silent.

"Yes, I am right. I can see it. He's taking over your mind, trying to make you one of his pretty female assistants. Your life hasn't been all that satisfying since he came into it, right? All you want now is more of the Doctor."

"Are you saying that he has some sort of hypnotic control over me?"

"We're not sure, but so far you're the only one we've seen personally who's been exposed so much to him."

"I suspect that Dr. Sam Johnson at the hospital is the Doctor, Dad," Russell piped up. "And he does hang around her a lot."

"That's just ridiculous!" Melissa protested. "I'm not under mind control!"

"Miss Brogan, he's an alien," Dr. Smith said. "We don't even know what he wants and what he's capable of. We should tread cautiously."

"Well, if we extend the hand of friendship, perhaps we –"

"You don't shake hands with someone who's holding a gun. You're an idealist, Miss Brogan, but the world's full of mistakes, and the solutions for those mistakes aren't always the best. Destroying the Doctor would be better for mankind."

"But he's a sentient being! We should—"

"Miss Brogan, you know hardly anything next to me. I'm the expert here, the adult. Listen to me. I speak from experience."

Melissa sighed. "I suppose you're right. Okay, what do you have in mind?"

-CR-

The Doctor strode through the halls. A couple of nurses who were exchanging notes smiled at him. He smiled back. Oh dear, he seemed to be getting quite popular here. That may pose some problems when it became time for him to leave.

The ER had not been that busy that night. A man came in with chest pain that turned out to be pericarditis, so he was prescribed some antibiotics and admitted into the hospital for a short stay. A little boy needed some stitches, and a teenager had a broken arm, but otherwise it had been quite quiet. Of course, none of the staff would dare to say so. There was a superstition in medicine that as soon as one mentioned the "Q" word things would quickly become chaotic. That and order Chinese food.

Suddenly, he was struck by a sudden bout of dizziness. He leaned against the wall to catch his balance. This hadn't happened in a while. For a moment the corridor in front of him swam and he forgot where he was. Then he regained his sense of balance and his orientation. He made his way to the doctor's lounge where he kept his special energy drink. He took a sip out of the metallic water bottle. He instantly felt the fatigue drain away. Now, what had happened to make him experience those symptoms again? He had felt it periodically. He assumed that it was because he was near someone who had the poison. Someone in the ER must have it, then. Well, he would have to lay low for a bit, claim to feel unwell, and take more of his makeshift treatment until the trouble had passed. Yes, that would be the best plan, except that things don't always go according to plan.

"Dr. Johnson, there's someone in the ER waiting for you," a nurse said. "It's a patient."

"Ask Dr. Killian to take care of it," the Doctor said. "I'm not feeling well at the moment."

"I'm sorry, Dr. Johnson, but the woman wants to see you specifically. She knows you personally."

The Doctor stood up. "I guess I'm well enough to do one case," he said. Now, who could it be? "What exactly happened?"

"A young woman brought in by ambulance only minutes ago with sudden onset of chest pain, light-headedness, and an irregular pulse. Twelve lead ECG confirms her rhythm as ventricular tachycardia. So far she's stable, still conscious. It's not responding well to medications, and they tried cardioversion with limited success. Lab's been notified and they're screening for potential toxicity."

By the time she was finished they had reached the corridor. The Doctor's symptoms were returning, almost as severe as they had been in that delivery room when he had met Melissa again. The poison must be in that room. However, before he could warn the nurse, she had opened the door. The effect was nearly instantaneous. The Doctor felt all his energy drain out of him, like someone had flicjed a switch. He collapsed in a heap, his senses reeling. Blurred figures spun above him and muffled voices spoke. He didn't know when, where, or who he was. Then the phantoms came. At first they were dark shadows, then he himself was plunged into darkness and they took form. All of them, gaining faces, horrible, disfigured, hateful faces. Faces that he had once knew, now so twisted by hate that he could hardly recognize them. But he did, he always did.

"How do you like travelling alone, Doctor?" a blonde woman sneered. "Are you enjoying it? Not as fun as you thought now, was it?"

"Who are you again?" he asked, his voice weak.

"You don't remember me? Oh, of course you don't remember me. All you cared about was that thing living inside of me, that brand new thing that took my life and almost took yours."

"Listen, Skye, if it had all gone according to plan, I would have taken you to a safe place. I would have found out more about that thing, and maybe I could have saved you. But… things went wrong."

"Oh, of course. Things always go wrong."

"Is that your only excuse?" another woman said, stepping beside Skye. She looked a lot like a tree. "Things going wrong? I wouldn't have sacrificed myself if things might just 'go wrong'."

"Nor I," a third woman said. She had chocolate brown skin and smooth black hair. "I saved you that day. I saved the world. You were completely helpless, completely useless. What's the use of you, I wonder? Too many people die."

"Too many people die," a man said. He was dressed in a uniform. "That's all I've seen, people dying because of you, for you. People dying because they knew you, and you had inspired them. You had inspired them to give their lives, to die for others. But is it all worth it?"

"Oh, so you would have preferred to be drowned in a toxic atmosphere so a brutal alien race can breed their clones here?" the Doctor snapped.

"I would have liked to live."

"And so would many other people! So many others! What about those who are coming after you? Shouldn't they have a peaceful, prosperous planet like you've known most of your life? That's worth dying for!"

"They wouldn't have done it if it wasn't for you. They shouldn't need to do it. You're the Doctor. You fix problems, not make them worse."

"I try, I honestly do."

"But isn't death and mourning a problem? How are you going to fix that?"

"You don't belong," the Hostess said. "Your planet is gone, your race is gone, all you have is an absurd little spaceship. Oh, and your delusions of grandeur. 'Hello, I'm the Doctor, Last of the Time Lords, here to fix your problems.'"

"I know, I know!" the Doctor shouted. "I've failed you! I've failed you all!"

"Doctor!"

Oh, that phrase was so familiar…

"Doctor!"

"I've failed you all," he croaked.

"Dr. Johnson, can you hear me?"

Oh.

Okay, that was a little different.

He opened his eyes to a bright white light and a black silhouette right in front of him. He moaned. "What do you want from me?"

"Name, year, and location," the face said.

The Doctor sat straight up, moaning at the light-headedness. "That's an unusual thing to ask in a… oh, hello, I'm not where I thought I was."

"You collapsed in the hallway," the nurse said. "We brought you in here so no patients would freak out. The patients are the sick ones, not the doctors. Anyway, we've been checking on you, but we can't find any reason for your sudden loss of consciousness."

He laid back down on the bed. "How long was I out for?"

"Fifteen minutes."

"Fifteen minutes!" he shouted, leaping straight off the bed and staggering as he hit the floor. "What about – what about the patient I was about to see?"

"She was discharged. A simple electrolyte imbalance. Hypokalemia. Must have eaten a funky diet or something."

"Yes, that explains the V tach," the Doctor said. "What was her name?"

"Melissa Brogan. Her boyfriend was with her. He was the one who asked for you."

The Doctor stared at her. Uh oh, this was not good. If Russell was asking for him, then now he knew that he was sensitive to whatever he gave to Melissa. Russell now knew that he was the Doctor. Oh dear, this meant trouble.

"Are you all right, Dr. Johnson? You look a little upset."

"Oh, it's just… I've met Miss Brogan a few times during her clinicals here. She's almost a friend of mine. It was quite a shock, that's all."

"Okay. Are you feeling okay enough to go ahead and work?"

The Doctor nodded. "I'll be fine." He was already feeling quite better. All he needed was another sip of his restorative, then he'd be right as rain. "Come on. Allons-y!"

"And another thing, Dr. Johnson," the nurse said, leaning out of the doorway. "We've all failed somebody. I don't know how many patients I've lost. I used to question myself all the time, wondering if I could have saved them if I had done something differently. What's done is done. Don't blame yourself."

The Doctor smiled. "Thanks for that advice." He waved and then moved on down the hallway.

-CR-

"What did you do again?" Melissa demanded.

"It wasn't poison," Russell defended. "It was… a drug. I had to get you sick enough to go to the ER, but you wouldn't have died."

"Russell, I'm learning this stuff! Hypokalemia is a deadly condition! V tach can be fatal! I could have gone into cardiac arrest! They even shocked me!"

Russell sighed. "Melissa, we had to do it. We had to find out if he was the Doctor. And he is! So, mission accomplished, you won't have to do anything like that again."

"You poisoned me," Melissa stated.

"I saved the world!"

"You slipped a chemical into my drink that may have killed me. And I knew nothing about it. That's poisoning. That's murder."

"I couldn't have told you! You never would have consented!"

"I would have if you were reasonable! You say that the Doctor is dangerous and disregards human life. Well, what does that make you, if you would have gladly killed me to have him in your clutches? You're as bad as he is."

Russell bowed his head. "I know, Melissa, I'm sorry. I guess I was just trying to make myself not feel as bad about it. I didn't want to do it. It was Dad's idea. It was something we had thrown around before I even knew you. It—I—We never used you. You're special. You're my girl."

"No," Melissa said, pulling away. "I'm not your girl. Not until you get the Doctor. Or get your head on straight. I want to date a man, not an obsession."

"I know. That's why we get this over with tonight. You know what to do."

Melissa looked around. It was dark, and the only light came from the lamp nearby. She shivered. She had heard all the stories about the greenbelt at night, about all the creeps and psychos who lurked in the shadows. "Are you sure he'll be here?"

"Yep. He wants you, Melissa. He's going to come for you tonight, and he knows that you'll be here. Don't worry, I won't let him get you. He won't even touch you."

Melissa nodded. "It-It's not the Doctor I'm really worried about."

"Ha, well, I have a gun for the rest of the other people."

"So, this is it? The final round?"

"Yep. Oh, I'll need your necklace."

Melissa took it off. "Keep it safe," she said.

"I will," he said, taking it in his hand. "Don't worry. I'll keep you safe. You just keep him talking. He should be coming right along pretty soon."

Melissa watched him as he disappeared into the bushes. As always, he was wearing his dark sunglasses. "Russell, why did everyone at your dad's research place wear sunglasses?"

"It's a defect."

"The same defect? Everyone has the same defect?"

"I don't know, but we think it's some kind of toxin. Maybe it's from the Doctor's space ship!"

"Okay," Melissa said quietly. Now for the wait.

-CR-

The Doctor was strolling along casually, comfortable in the night silence. He wore his familiar brown coat, and a slight breeze caught it at the corners. He was going to pay Melissa a visit. He could detect the drug from a distance with a small handheld device he had just made that afternoon. It helped narrow down her location. Well, he knew where she lived, so he knew her basic whereabouts. He was surprised when he saw that she was apparently on the greenbelt. He saw a figure in the distance and walked towards it. Now was the time all questions were answered. He had to know who Russell was. She had to know who he was so she could trust him and help him. It was reckless of him, he knew, but it was his best chance at nailing that strange Russell person.

"Hello, Melissa R Brogan," he said when he had come near enough. He tried to sound as friendly as possible. Goodness, it must be terrifying to be approached by some stranger on the greenbelt at night. "Haven't seen you for a while."

She jumped. "Doctor, is that you?"

He came into the light so she could see his face. He smiled. "Yep. I understand that that was you in that room in the ER today."

Her face clouded. "Yeah."

"What happened?"

"He poisoned me," she said bitterly.

"What do you mean he poisoned you? Who's he?"

"Russell. My boyfriend." Then it all came spilling out. "It was all part of a plan to catch you. He thinks you're evil! You're not evil, are you?"

"No, I don't suppose I am. Very few things are."

"Then what are you?"

"I try to be good, I try to save people, fix planets, but it doesn't always work out."

"So Russell only knows those times when it doesn't work out," she mused.

"Who is this boyfriend of yours?"

"Russell Smith. Dr. Smith's his dad. They all wear sunglasses. Every one of them in his research center."

"Wow, you seem to have gotten right into the center of this whole problem."

"I suppose I have," she said regretfully. "Doctor, he's using me as bait."

"What?"

"He wants me to stand here and talk to you while he does something to catch you."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"I'm not sure what to think," she said. "Russell's my boyfriend. I've never had a boyfriend. But… he's with Dr. Smith, and Dr. Smith's the one who tied you up."

He grabbed her hand and started to walk at a brisk pace. "No no no, that doesn't matter now. What does matter is that we get out of here. Allons-y, let's get running. I do love running. I seem to do a lot of it. Then we can find my ship. Would you like to help me?" Suddenly, the world began to spin. "Oh no," he moaned.

"Doctor, what is it?"

"Melissa!" Russell's distant voice shouted. "Stay back!"

"Russell! Whatever you're doing, please stop!"

The Doctor resumed walking. "Come on, I can still make it. Hurry!"

"Stop this instant, creature!" Russell hollered.

The Doctor stopped, but not because he was told to. His legs trembled, and then they gave way. "Melissa, get away!"

Melissa glanced up helplessly at Russell's approaching form. "What are you doing?"

"It's a drug. It weakens me." The Doctor shut his eyes tight. Everything was a blur; time, vision, memory, everything. Even with his eyes closed, he could still feel his body whirling about as if it were in a vortex.

"Russell, stop it!"

"Melissa," the Doctor said. It took him a great deal of effort to speak. "He's not…Russell. He's… something else. Run."

Russell had now reached them. He held his hands behind his back. "Melissa, I told you, he's dangerous."

"Russell, you might be wrong. Please, let's just listen to him!"

"Melissa, why would he tell the truth?"

The Doctor had managed to raise himself up off the ground slightly. He felt around for a firm, solid surface to lean against. Ah, a tree trunk, perfect. He rested against it, only barely conscious. "So, why don't you just tell us who you are? After all, you're going to finish me off or something, aren't you?"

Russell grinned evilly. "That's for later. I'm just the delivery boy. No, I think you'll get the whole explanation before the final deed is done." He held out his hands, the necklace dangling from one of his fingers.

The Doctor gasped. At the sight of that thing he lost control of his body. He became too weak to do anything. His head whirled around and he lost all sense of… anything really. All his memories were gone. His awareness of himself was gone. He no longer knew if he had a body. He could no longer feel it. His awareness of time and all his knowledge was gone. Everything was gone. All he was aware of was that someone was advancing towards him with a weapon in his hand, and everything in his being rebelled against that thing drawing close to him. Then, when it was near enough that he could actually see what it was, his vision began to go black. Voices, those same old voices, began to torment him again. The faces came along, too. He was nearly in that awful dream world again. However, he still saw that man advancing towards him. He felt his being drift away, sucked out as if through a straw. Then he knew nothing except for torment and regret.

-CR-

Melissa watched, horrified, as Russell put the necklace on the Doctor's neck. As he neared him, the Doctor's body sagged and his eyes rolled back. Then he became absolutely lifeless. "What is that thing?"

"It's your necklace," Russell said. "I did it to protect you. He wouldn't have been able to come near you without this happening."

"No, you weren't trying to protect me," she said. "You were trying to capture him! That's all you care about!"

"Melissa, many things need to be explained. Come with me." He put an arm around her shoulder, but she shrugged it off. Still, she followed him out of the forest as several other men materialized out of the darkness to carry off the Doctor's inert form.

A/N : Oh no, they got the Doctor! What's going to happen now? Stay tuned for next week!