A/N: I am so sorry! It took me much longer than I wanted to get this chapter out...I have been drowning in homework, and on top of that, my internet has been flickering in and out the past few days. After a long conversation with AT&T, it should finally be fixed, so new chapters should appear more quickly! As always, thanks for reading, and please review!

In response to comments:

Didi715: thank you so much, I'm so glad that you are enjoying it! And no, I don't think Rose will be making an appearance as this is after Waters of Mars, so she is already back in the alternate universe with the Doctor metacrisis. You might however, see a different familiar face, although I won't say who yet. ;)

MsBitaboo: thank you, I was actually thinking the same, how nobody had made a dark Doctor story yet, but I really wanted to read one. I figured the best place for a realistically dark Doctor would be right after WoM, but when I looked on this site and found none, I was disappointed. I figured if I couldn't read one, then I would write one. Thanks for reading!

Chapter 5

The TARDIS jolted to a stop, and everyone except the Doctor and Jack fell to the floor. The Doctor landed in the captain's chair, and Jack was holding onto the metal railing attached to the console.

"Do you call that flying a spaceship?" a voice called out.

"Hey!" the Doctor shouted. "I fly her just fine thank you. She just likes to make things interesting!"

"She?" Ianto asked.

"The ship is sentient," Jack told him.

"What?"

"She's alive," the Doctor grinned, stroking his hand along one of the coral struts, "my oldest companion." The TARDIS let out a hum of approval, and Ianto's eyes widened.

The Doctor could tell that Ianto was impressed, and that he was angry that he was.

"Now then, you Torchwood team, you study aliens and alien planets. Are you ready to step out onto one?" the Doctor flashed everyone a wide grin, one he didn't have to fake. He walked over to the doors, pausing dramatically.

"Where are we?" Martha asked excitedly.

"I don't know. More fun that way!" the Doctor grinned.

"Is it safe? What if there isn't an atmosphere?" Ianto asked suspiciously.

The Doctor stuck his head outside the doors. "80 percent oxygen, holding atmosphere, beautiful ecosystem, I'm going out, stay here if you like," he smiled at them, before stepping out the doors. He was immediately followed by all but Ianto, until the man finally followed the rest out. The Doctor widened his psychic field so he could feel the minds of the people surrounding him. He felt Jack's admiration, Martha and Mickey's excitement, Gwen's amazement, but most of all, he felt awe with a twinge of jealousy from Ianto. It made him laugh.

"It's beautiful," Gwen breathed.

And it was. Tall, wide trees stretched high up into the sky, creating a canopy where only a few glimpses of deep blue sky could be seen. In the sky, two suns shined brilliantly, although their beams were not strong enough to pierce the leaf coverings. Between the trees and all along the floor of the forest, lush undergrowth was spread, with no discernible path. Birds sang loudly from the treetops, not visible to their eye, and a soft breeze carried their voices between the trees.

The Doctor took an absent-minded appearance, and walked forwards up next to Jack, before grabbing his hand, making it seem as if he had done it without thinking. He felt waves of anger roll off of Ianto as he immediately noticed, and jealousy at the fact Jack didn't pull away. In fact, Jack looked at the Doctor, and smiled at him, and even Ianto could see the love in the gaze.

"We are on the planet Nirala, in the galaxy of Venarile. I was here once before, but that was a while ago. Last time I saw it, they were being ruled by a dictator, until I stepped in. If I remember correctly, then the village is…" he licked his finger before sticking it in the air, "that way," he pointed, and pulled on Jack's hand to follow.

The Doctor felt Ianto's eyes glaring into the back of his skull as the girls oohed and awed at the scenery.

He smiled, and glanced at Jack, seeing the man's own smile, and feeling the slight layer of nervous sweat coming from Jack's hand; something that couldn't be faked. His grin grew wider.

Martha smiled fondly at Mickey, her hand in his. She loved the feeling of traveling with the Doctor; stepping out onto a new planet, breathing different air…She inhaled deeply, closing her eyes. The air here smelled of…peaches. Exotic, alien peaches. She looked up at the sky again, basking in the glow of the double suns. As she looked around the forest, her gaze turned forwards again, and she saw the Doctor glance at Jack nervously, and she noted the fact that they were still holding hands. Although she hadn't thought it possible, her smile grew wider, and her day just a bit brighter.

Martha heard a noise coming from the side, and she turned quickly, but saw nothing but moving underbrush, swaying gently in a breeze. She shook her head. She was just imagining things. After traveling to with the Doctor to so many planets that were inhabited by people wanting to do them harm, it was difficult not to jump at shadows. The Doctor had said he had freed this planet from a dictator, so things should be peaceful.

The bushes ruffled again, and her training kicked in, causing her to crouch and listen for any slight movement, other than the others talking. Mickey immediately noticed something was wrong, and followed her lead, both Gwen and Ianto following soon after. The Doctor turned around, realizing they had stopped speaking, and paused whatever he had been saying to Jack, who had now pulled out his gun while the Doctor glared at it.

Another rustle and Martha strained her ears. "What is it?" she asked under her breath.

She watched the Doctor's face as he closed his eyes for a moment, before he broke out in a smile.

"It's the locals!" he laughed. "It is okay," he held his hands up. "We are friends."

Martha looked around, but saw no one, until several shadows peeled themselves away from the trees, all wearing dark cloaks with hoods that seemed to ripple and move like living shadows. She opened her mouth in shock when she saw they were actually surrounded by many people where previously there had been none.

"Doctor?" she heard a shy voice call out.

Martha turned towards it, and saw a young woman with dark skin and blue hair. Her eyes were also the deep blue of the sky, and her full lips were also the shade of blue. Her hood was down and the cloak parted, so Martha could see that she was in a low-cut dress made of black leather, and wore calf high boots of the same material.

"Eya!" the Doctor called out happily, bounding over to her and pulling her into a hug she quickly returned.

"Everybody," the Doctor turned back towards them, "this is Eyalozadi, she's my friend from before. It was with her help that I was able to save this planet. Eya, this is Martha and Mickey Smith, Gwen Cooper, Ianto Jones, and Captain Jack Harkness. It's amazing to see you again," he smiled at her again.

"Martha? Martha Jones?" Eya asked.

"Smith now," Martha replied, holding up her ring finger. "You know about me?"

"You were my favorite of the stories the Doctor told me," she gave her a small smile. "Sorry, Mickey the idiot," she winked.

"Oi!" he shouted, and Martha giggled.

"What about me?" Jack asked, showing mock offense.

Eya giggled.

Then one of the still-cloaked people shouted something that Martha didn't understand, and she looked up at the Doctor questioningly, but he just shook his head.

Eya replied in the same manner, and the others unmasked themselves. All had dark skin like Eya, and then brightly colored hair that matched their eyes and lips. There were greens and yellows, pinks and purples, more blues, reds, oranges, and a few colors she had never seen before. The females were dressed much like Eya, and the males were in pants and t-shirts made of the same material, and were also wearing boots.

"It is good to meet you, Doctor," a man with lime green hair stepped forward. "We have heard much from our lady."

"Lady?" the Doctor asked.

Eya blushed, but instead of red, it was also blue. "After you saved us, they needed someone to lead…They figured that since I had helped you, I would be the best choice."

"Well, no arguments from me! Congratulations!" the Doctor grinned widely, pulling her into another hug.

Martha glanced at Jack, and saw that he had a holding smile, but with slight tenseness underneath. She wondered if he thought the Doctor and the Eya girl had some past romance. It made her wonder too…they seemed awfully close.

"Let me lead you back to our town. You can see how it has grown!" Eya said happily.

"We'd love to, thanks," the Doctor smiled, stepping up beside her. "So then, Lady, how have things been since I was last here?"

The Doctor walked alongside Eya, but his mind was elsewhere. He was glad they had landed here and not elsewhere, where he had done more damage. He had come here only a few days after Mars, but this place had been in flux, so he had many options of what he could do. He met Eya when she was only 12, a child, but she had still managed to help him rebel against the dictator, to lead her people in a revolution. She had been amazing even at such a young age. He was proud of her, one of his greatest accomplishments.

He stretched his mind out slightly, and smiled a bit when the first thing he felt was jealousy rolling towards him in waves, from none other than Jack. There was some from Ianto too, but he had grown used to that. Jack's was overpowering, to the point where he had to partially block it. Martha was amazed, and slightly self-conscious that Eya knew her, Mickey was proud that Eya did, and Gwen was still completely amazed by everything.

The man from before walked up to Eya again and spoke to her in the coded tongue, which he smiled at. The coded language the two of them had made up so the dictator's spies wouldn't know of their plans.

"I must walk ahead, with my people, I will see you up at our city," she smiled at him.

"I know," he grinned back involuntarily. "I remember."

She laughed loudly, and ran up ahead into the mix of people.

"Why didn't the language translate? I thought the TARDIS translated everything," Martha said, stepping up beside him now that Eya was gone.

"She does. That isn't technically a language. It's a code that Eya and I made up," the Doctor replied.

"You guys made a language together?" Jack asked.

"Isn't that a bit childish?" Ianto asked, worming his way forwards and into the conversation.

"She was just a kid when we made it. I'm guessing you want to know the story?" he asked, looking around at the groups enthusiastic nods. Even Ianto looked intrigued. "Of course you do. This planet was ruled by a dictator that everyone feared. When I first arrived here, things were terrible, the forest didn't look like this; everything was darker. I met Eya when she was 12, tossed out on the streets because her parents had been murdered. After a while, I finally got her to open up to me by bringing her food, and talking to her of all my adventures. With her help, we helped the people gain enough spirit and will to defeat the dictator. She looks what, around 25 now? It must be around 13 years since I was last here, I can't wait to see what they've achieved since."

"So you're basically like her best friend?" Jack asked. "Nothing more?"

The Doctor laughed. He knew that was what was expected of him when Jack said it. Inside, he also felt pleasure, but more at the fact that he had fooled Jack completely than because Jack sounded so relieved when he said it.

"Don't worry Jack, I'm more like an older brother or a father than a lover," he winked, making Jack blush. He walked closer to Jack, slipping his hand into the other man's again. "Besides," he said, his voice going slightly lower, "you know I only have eyes for one person," he leaned in closer to Jack, and lightly brushed his lips against Jack's. He felt Ianto turn red with anger behind him, but he only saw Jack's immense happiness, and how he seemed to glow once more. He gauged the group's reactions, excluding Ianto, and felt how pleased Martha was, amusement from Gwen, and shock from Mickey.

It was so easy to fool these humans; he wondered why he ever thought he would have trouble. His smirk grew unnoticed by all, except to Ianto, who definitely felt something was wrong now, more wrong than the Time Lord stealing Jack from him so easily.

The Doctor wandered down the dark path, trying desperately to find his way. His mind was still on Mars, although it had been a few days since the events. He gave an exasperated sigh and had decided to leave this planet and go to a different one instead, when he heard a soft sniveling sound. He turned in the direction, and saw a small flash of blue.

"Hello?" he said softly.

Watery terrified eyes looked up into his own, and the Doctor felt his hearts break. There was a small, thin girl laying in the gutter. She looked half-dead, and unquestionably starving. He wanted to help this girl, so he dug around in his pocket until he came across the object he was looking for. He held out a bright yellow banana to the girl. She looked at him suspiciously. "It's food," he said, but she shrank away at his voice. "I could leave it here and back away," he offered, and she nodded. He backed away from her as she slowly inched towards the banana, grabbed it, and then practically sprinted back to her spot on the side walk. "You peel it open," he mimed opening a banana, and he watched with a smile on his face as she closed her eyes and savored the taste of the food. He wondered how long it had been since she had last eaten.

For the next week, he brought her food, leaving it near her, before backing up so she could get it. Although she hadn't said a word to him yet, he told her of his many adventures, and all the friends he made along the way.

On this day, he sat down again, but this time instead of backing away from the food, he left the meal sitting right next to him on the sidewalk, and started talking again. This time, he told her about being the last of his kind, the destruction of his planet. He pretended not to notice when she crept up next to him silently.

She sat next to him, and chewed thoughtfully for a moment, before saying one word that made his day, and all the other days he sat there, worth it. "Sorry," she muttered, finishing the last of her food and then moving away again.

Within another week, she never moved away from him again, and spoke to him a bit more. By the next, she was talking to him more than he originally thought possible, asking him questions about all kinds of things. Within just a bit later, she told him about her life, her name, and what she knew of the planet. It was then that he convinced her to help him save it.

He looked down at this young girl, who had come farther than he ever thought she would, from a kid wasting away in an alley, to this energetic girl who talked a thousand words a minute and ate more than he thought was physically possible. They often joked that just like his pockets, her stomach was bigger on the inside. She was like a daughter to him, and while it hurt to feel that way again, it also felt strangely good. He felt immeasurable joy at seeing her grow, and especially when she picked up a few of his own traits. He couldn't wait to save her planet so that he could take her away into the stars with him, and show her the universe.