A/N: Happy New Years! I think I might just be spoiling you guys! But here I am, giving you all another chapter. I just want to take this time to talk to you, so I want to apologize in advance if this note gets a bit too long.
Now that it's 2014, I want to start writing more Fanfiction, and writing more in general. June will mark my 5 year anniversary on the site and I don't really have much to show for it. I did delete a lot of stories, but still. I'm aiming to have a lot more stories on this site in a lot of different categories. My goal for this story is to have 100 reviews by that time and for this to be a story that people will review on, say, chapter 5 when there's 11 chapters and such.
I just want to thank you all right now for making me want to keep writing this story. So, thank you.
. . .
The Doctor was woken from his sleep when he felt someone shaking his shoulder. Without thinking, he swatted his hand to hit whoever it was. The person hit him back twice as hard.
"Ow!" He yelled, eyes opening immediately. The Timelord began rubbing his arm where he had been slapped. Looking around to find who had smacked him, he couldn't see anyone else besides Charlie. It was unlikely that she had done it since she was unconscious.
"Serves you right," Amy growled in a whispered shout, walking over so he could see her. Now the Timelord understood why it had hurt so much.
Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, the Doctor yawned and stretched. He was about to ask why the redhead had woken him when the events of last night came rushing back. Standing up immediately, he blocked Amy out and checked on Charlie's status.
The machines told him everything he needed to know. They even told him a little more than he was asking for. The extra information wasn't reassuring though. Furrowing his eyebrows, the Timelord double-checked the equipment to make sure it was working properly.
"What's wrong Doctor?" Amy asked, noticing the Timelord's expression. It took him a minute to remember that Amy was still in the room and that she was talking to him.
"Nothing," He responded quickly, still fiddling with the equipment despite knowing that it was working perfectly fine.
"Okay," The woman replied, drawing out the room in confusion. Why was he checking the equipment if nothing was wrong? "Is Charlie going to be alright?"
The Doctor noticed that Amy sounded a bit farther away and turned around, smiling slightly at the sight. The woman had gone to stand at the teen's bedside, holding her hand. Amy ran a hand through her blonde curls, looking down at the girl with concern written all over her face.
"Yes, she'll be absolutely fine," He assured, walking over to the two. "She'll be a bit weak when she wakes up but otherwise unharmed," The alien added, letting her know before the girl woke.
"That's good," Amelia replied, sounding as if she wasn't really listening to the alien.
"Are you alright Amelia?" The Doctor asked. The use of her name snapped Amy out of her thoughts. She knew that whenever he used her name like that it meant that he was worried about her.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Amy answered, smiling slightly. Letting go of the teen's hand, she turned fully to look at the Timelord. "But we need to talk. Rory's waiting for us in the kitchen," The woman announced.
"Now?" The alien implored, looking down to the teen. He didn't want to just leave her here so she could wake up all alone. Charlie hadn't seen this room before. What if she panicked? What if she hurt herself in the process?
"Yes, now Doctor," Amy retorted before changing her tone to a softer one. "I know you want to stay here with her, but we really do need to talk," She insisted, putting a hand on her friend's shoulder. Amy felt his shoulders sag before he shrugged her off.
"Alright then," He replied dejectedly, giving in to the redhead. He agreed with her though; they really needed to talk. But he would prefer it if Charlie was there with them, helping to explain or come up with solutions when she could offer no explanation. The whole idea of talking about the teen without her present was still bothering him.
"Let's go then," Amy said quietly, leading the way. She looked over her shoulder a few times to make sure that he was walking behind her. She half expected the Timelord to run back to the teen as soon as she turned away from him.
Rory looked up as the two entered the kitchen and stood up immediately.
"Is she –"
"She's fine Rory, you can sit down," The Doctor stated, knowing what the man was going to ask. He didn't feel like explaining details for a second time within a ten minute span.
Rory simply nodded and poured two extra cups of tea before sitting down and taking a sip from his own. The others took their usual seats and for a moment, no one said anything. They just drank their tea in silence. Each was waiting for one of the others to initiate the conversation.
"So, what exactly did you want to talk about?" The Doctor inquired, putting his hands in front of him. He noticed as the couple shared a look before Rory spoke up.
"About Charlie," He said, fiddling with his cup a bit. "We want to know what you know about her situation at home and at school, but that can wait." He paused, choosing his next words carefully before exhaling and continuing. "What we all need to talk about is what happened last night."
The table went silent. No one was quite sure what to say. Not even the Doctor had the faintest idea of what had happened to the girl to put her in the state she was in now. It wasn't like he didn't put any thought into it – when did he have the time to? – but he had been preoccupied with other things.
"I really don't know anything about the details," The Timelord sighed before continuing, "but I do know that she made a prophesy. Well, she didn't make it, only passed it on," He added as an afterthought.
"'The two seen first will be lost to you, taken by stony hands. A stolen child will face unbearable pain, hiding behind a stony mask. The one that you seek to protect will die by your hand, or shall destroy all that you sacrificed everything to save,'" Amy relayed, repeated what Charlie had said before.
"What does that even mean?" She asked, looking at the two.
"I have no idea," Rory replied, shaking his head. None of it had made sense to him. Maybe it was because it wasn't supposed to make sense to him, but to someone else. He turned to look at the Doctor. "Have any ideas?" He asked.
The Doctor remained silent for a bit, thoughts racing through his head more than usual. He had a faint clue about the first line, but the majority of it was lost to him.
"You both were the first two faces my current face saw," The Timelord finally said, looking up at the couple. He watched as the information sunk in quickly. His companions both proceeded to look a little panicked – which they had every right to be.
"But it says 'will be lost to you,'" Amy spoke up quickly, searching her best friend's face for an answer. "What does it mean lost? Doctor?" She asked, getting more worried the longer he kept silent.
"I don't know!" The Timelord barked, finally saying something.
He didn't mean to shout and startle the two, but the Timelord couldn't help it. The words were much too familiar and he knew very well what they meant. The Doctor didn't want it to be true. Looking at both Amy and Rory in turn, he felt ashamed and decided to instead turn his gaze onto his hands.
Not a single word was uttered for the next few moments after the alien's outburst and the three simply sat there in silence. Each was left to interpret the words with their new piece of information in mind. Finally, Rory spoke up once more, knowing that Amy wouldn't speak and the Doctor certainly wasn't going to say anything.
"What about the second line?" The man asked, avoiding the remainder of the first. He looked at the others, hoping for an answer. "Who's the stolen child?"
"Maybe Charlie?" Amy suggested half-heartedly. "Wasn't she adopted?" She asked, glancing at the Doctor for confirmation. He nodded his head.
"Yes, Charlie was adopted," The Doctor affirmed, pushing his half-full cup away. "But I wouldn't consider adoption being the same as stolen," He countered, leaning back in the chair.
"I've got to agree with him," Rory said.
"Alright, fair enough," Amy admitted before continuing. "But then who's the child? I don't know any kids."
"Neither do I," Rory added, turning his gaze to the Timelord. "Doctor?"
"I don't either," He replied after searching his memory a bit. None of them could make any sort of guess on who that line was referring to. "What about the next line then?"
"You tell us," Amy replied simply, looking at him carefully. "'The one that you seek to protect will die by your hand, or shall destroy all that you sacrificed everything to save.' That has to be referring to you," She explained.
"Well, I don't want to talk about it," The Doctor said, crossing his arms, trying not to let his guilt consume him. He understood perfectly well what that line meant.
"You're going to have to Doctor, you brought it up," Rory pushed, trying to get the stubborn alien to explain.
"That's because I didn't remember the line," The Timelord defended, trying his best to avoid the subject.
"What did you sacrifice everything to save?"
The Timelord remained silent, pushing all of his thoughts into a corner of his mind before they took control. Amy noticed the conflict going on inside his head and put a hand over his.
"You can tell us Doctor," She said softly. He took his hand away and stood up, leaving the kitchen completely. The couple was left to watch him storm out of the room.
"That could've gone worse," Rory sighed, picking up the dishes. Walking over to the sink, he started to wash them. "Should we go after him?" He asked, looking back at his fiancée.
"No," She replied, getting up to help him. "He's going to need some time to himself," Amy explained, drying the cups before putting them away.
"Do you have any idea what he did?" Rory asked, glancing over to the redhead. She shook her head, eyebrows furrowed in concentration.
"I don't. He never mentioned anything like that. None that I can recall anyways," She remarked, shrugging her shoulders slightly. What did he do that made him hide it from everyone? How bad could it be? Why did he hide it from her?
Amy remembered their experience with the 'Dream Lord' who had actually been part of the Doctor. He had teased her on her belief that she was the one the Doctor trusted, that he told her everything. She realized now more than ever that this wasn't the case.
"Maybe he'll tell us once he's cooled down," Rory suggested, noticing that the woman looked a bit distressed. She nodded slightly, seeming as though she wasn't really paying attention.
"Yeah, maybe," She replied, though she highly doubted it. When the Doctor wanted to hide something, what were the chances that they would make him reveal it?
Very, very slim.
. . .
She was back in the same building, sitting across from the one person she hated more than anything; Alistair Isherwood. Charlie's arms and legs were strapped down so she couldn't move. More specifically, so she couldn't smack the man.
"What do you want this time Isherwood?" The teen inquired, trying to keep her temper down. After the last meeting, she didn't want him to have the satisfaction of knowing he had made her frustrated.
"You manners have improved greatly," Alistair commented, sipping his cup of tea before setting it aside. "We simply want to help you remember. Do you recall that?"
"I do now," Charlie replied, realizing that when she had woken up, she couldn't remember a single detail of the meeting. "Why do you find it necessary to wipe my memory when I wake up?"
"It stops you from telling the Doctor what happens here," Isherwood answered, giving the teen his attention for now. "I could say anything I want and you wouldn't be able to tell the Timelord," He explained further, a smirk on his face. The girl really didn't have any power in their situation.
"That simply proves that you're scared of him," Charlie stated, keeping her voice level. So far, she had done a good job to contain any emotion she felt. It was tested when the man laughed, but there was no expression on her face.
"Not scared silly girl," He laughed and the teen's hand twitched slightly. "I don't want him meddling until we're done and it's too late for him to find another way. It's much easier and will be much more fun to watch him struggle when the moment arrives."
"And what moment is that exactly?" She questioned, trying to keep him talking for as long as she could. Charlie was well aware of what would happen after they were done having their chat. She really was in no rush to go through that again.
"Wouldn't you like to know," Isherwood smirked. It was clear that he wouldn't make the mistake of telling her any vital information.
"Why not just tell me?" Charlie pressed. "After all, you said that I would remember nothing when I wake up. There really is no risk," She pointed out before realizing something. She leaned forward, a smirk firmly placed on her face. "Unless that isn't quite true. Is it?" She asked, though the teen already knew the answer to that question.
"I can see why he keeps you around," Alistair commented. "You really are a clever one."
"Oh you haven't seen nothing yet Isherwood," Charlie remarked, leaning back in the chair to get as comfortable as she could. Which was difficult considering that it was a metal chair. "So I could potentially remember what happens during these. . .chats if something triggers my subconscious memory," The teen said aloud, more for her own benefit – to hear her thoughts – rather than to get confirmation from the man in front of her.
She was starting to enjoy their little dance a bit after all.
"In theory," The Victorian man replied, "but I wouldn't suggest doing that. Not with us messing around in your head as well."
"Why not?" She interrogated. "If something triggers it and the Doctor finds out, he'll put an end to this and you'll have to think of something else. Good luck with that, because, well, it's the Doctor," She finished with a smirk.
"That's what you think," Isherwood commented, glancing at the girl. "Do you really have that much faith in him?"
"Yes," The teen replied firmly without any hesitation. "Now, don't change the subject. Why should I not try to trigger my memory?"
The man sighed and sat up a bit straighter. "You trigger those memories and there's no telling what will happen to you," He said coolly.
"You're lying," The teen replied, observing the man's movements carefully. He raised an eyebrow, a slight smile on his face.
"Do you really want to take the chance?" He challenged the girl. It was safe to say he was slightly surprised when the girl smirked.
"Oh yes. I would," Charlie replied.
"You would die."
"You need me," She pointed out with a slight shrug.
"You are just as useful dead," Isherwood countered.
"But you're not just interested in me to simply sell off to an enemy. There's a grand scheme going on here," The teen returned, grinning slightly.
"What would give you that idea?" The man inquired, slightly curious as to how the girl had come to that conclusion.
"Why would you awaken hidden memories if I would be equally as useful dead?" Charlie retorted, raising her eyebrow in challenge. She was sure that the subject would be changed now that she had stumped Mr. Alistair Isherwood.
"Very good Ms. Jackson," Alistair commented, "but that still doesn't prove that I'm lying," He pointed out.
"Yes, it does," Charlie replied before explaining. "Why would you challenge me to try when it's clear that you need me alive for an extended amount of time? It seems rather foolish, especially if there was a chance that I would accept your challenge. You would have lost your prize and destroyed any work that you did."
"Time can be rewritten."
"But why waste the time? It makes no sense, especially considering who you are," The teen remarked, really starting to get into the conversation.
"By all means, continue child," Isherwood said once the girl had stopped talking.
"You wouldn't take the risk of losing time by telling me the truth. If I had done it, everything would be for waste. Therefore, by telling me a lie, you save yourself from anything going wrong," Charlie finished, feeling rather pleased with herself.
Instead of acknowledging a word of what the teen had said, Alistair Isherwood simply snapped his fingers and the man from last time walked into the room.
"Do your work," Isherwood ordered simply before walking out of the room. Leaving Charlie to endure the pain once more.
. . .
The TARDIS realized that the Doctor wanted to be alone after he stormed off and made sure to rearrange herself whenever his companions started looking for him. It was clear that he needed some time to himself – even more than what the humans thought he needed – so she allowed him to have that time.
He simply roamed the halls, avoiding certain places – such as the library – that would remind him of what he was trying to forget. In the end, the Doctor ended up in the art gallery, barely paying attention to the works of art surrounding him.
The Doctor was a bit disappointed in himself for storming out of the kitchen, but what else could he do? He never wanted to speak about what he had done – what he had sacrificed – to save the universe. Thinking about it felt like someone was crushing his hearts, and even that didn't cover the feeling.
Despite almost always thinking about that certain event in his life, he managed to stop it from consuming him the majority of the time.
Now was not one of those times.
How could he explain it to his companions? How could he make them see that what he did was necessary? How could he make them understand the pain he had to live with every single day of his cursed existence?!
The TARDIS hummed quietly, trying to comfort her Timelord the best she could. All the Doctor wanted was for someone to understand what he was going through, not just sympathize with his situation.
"Doctor!"
The Timelord stopped walking and turned around, wondering if he had heard correctly or if his mind was playing tricks on him.
"DOCTOR!"
This time the Timelord knew that he wasn't imagining things and realized that the voice belonged to none other than Charlie. A panicking Charlie. The Doctor began sprinting towards the medical bay; the TARDIS helping him out by making him take the shortest route possible before changing herself to her normal layout.
Finally the Doctor ran into the room just as Charlie began to calm down enough to look around at the machines she was hooked up to. The teen looked ready to scream again before she caught sight of the Timelord in the doorway. She closed her mouth quickly and the Doctor couldn't help but laugh.
"Oh, hush up and help me," Charlie said, but there was a joking tone accompanying her words.
"Someone's in a hurry," He commented with a grin. He shut off the machines before unhooking the teen and helping her sit up before taking a seat at her bedside.
"How're you feeling?" The Doctor asked, feeling her forehead. She smiled slightly and moved out of the way of the hand.
"I'm fine. A bit tired though," Charlie mused, yawning slightly. The Timelord made a move to stand up.
"Maybe I should let you rest. . . " He trailed off, feeling inconsiderate. He should have known the girl would feel tired, and he did know that she would be feeling weak for a while, yet he still sat down. Those thoughts were banished when she grabbed the sleeve of his tweed jacket.
"I really don't feel like being alone right now," The teen admitted, looking up at him. "Please stay."
The Doctor smiled and nodded. Charlie seemed to make him smile so easily, even after all the moping he had been doing today. "Alright, I guess I'll stay," He agreed, taking his seat once more. Charlie grinned when he did.
"So, what did I miss while I was knocked out?" She asked, curious as to what the others had done. "What even happened to me?" Charlie inquired, finding that she couldn't remember why she was here in the first place.
The Doctor sighed internally, but didn't let the teen see that he was dreading answering her questions. But that's what he did. For the next half an hour he told the teen about everything that had happened, starting from the time she had collapsed to when he ran into the room. Once he was finished, Charlie looked at if she was going to faint again.
"Repeat what I said again. Please," Charlotte requested, needing to hear it once more.
"'The two seen first will be lost to you, taken by stony hands. A stolen child will face unbearable pain, hiding behind a stony mask. The one that you seek to protect will die by your hand, or shall destroy all that you sacrificed everything to save,'" The Doctor repeated for the girl.
She listened carefully, trying to pick at the prophesy and figure out what it meant. No matter what she came up with, it didn't fit quite right. The teen knew that she wouldn't be able to figure this out without everyone else's help. Especially the Timelord's.
"Just forget about it Charlie," The Doctor said softly, noticing her expression and how pale she got in the past minute. "You're still healing. We'll talk about it later, alright?"
Charlie was about to protest when her own yawn engulfed her words. The Doctor laughed, ruffling the girl's hair gently.
"How about we get you something to eat before you go back to sleep, hmm?" He asked, just as her stomach growled.
"Food sounds great," She replied with a sheepish smile. Charlie made a move to stand up, but her legs wobbled too much for her to take a step. "Now I know how you felt while skating yesterday," She commented, holding the bed for support.
"Not much fun, is it?" He teased before getting up and picking the teen up bridal style. She grabbed his jacket tightly, just waiting for the Timelord to drop her. Instead, he laughed. "Just trust me," The Doctor said, repeating her words from yesterday.
"Ha ha, very funny," Charlie said dryly, smacking him lightly. she shrieked when he faked dropping her and grabbed the jacket even tighter.
"Sorry, were you saying something?" The Doctor asked, feigning innocence. The teen simply scowled at him.
"Just get me to the kitchen," She muttered.
"Your wish is my command."
. . .
Upon reaching the kitchen, they discovered that their dinner was sitting on the table, cold. Amy and Rory must have waited for them for a while, but after too much time had passed they had eaten and headed to their rooms.
"Will you all be alright in the morning?" Charlie asked, sitting at the table while the Timelord heated up their food. He paused and turned around to face the girl.
"I'm not sure," The Doctor admitted, sighing. "I hope we are."
Charlie smiled slightly, noticing how depressed the man seemed to be thinking about what had happened. "Don't worry Doctor. I have a feeling everything will be forgotten after a good night's sleep."
"I'm counting on you being right," The Timelord grinned slightly at the teen's confidence. "Now, dinner is served!" He announced, putting the plates of spaghetti down with a flourish.
So the two talked throughout their dinner, avoiding the touchy subjects of the day. They saved them in the back of their minds to discuss another time. For now they had to enjoy whatever little time they had before that time came.
Knowing their luck, it would come all too soon.
But for now, their only worry was burning their mouths with steaming spaghetti.
. . .
Sorry that there wasn't much action in this chapter. It was a filler more than anything but I promise that things will be much more interesting.
I have a challenge for all of you though. I would like it if you went to your favourite chapter and left a review, telling me what you liked about it so much. Or you could review on this chapter and say what you're looking forward to seeing/what you would like to see.
Now, I'm going to go get some much needed sleep.