Who On Earth…? A Doctor Who Story 13 – Changes And Complications
Hi guys, sorry about taking so long to write this chapter – I just have so much other work to do – namely coursework, but tests / GCSE's as well – it's so annoying!
On the other hand, my grades have been better recently so hopefully I'll be allowed on the computer for longer – I'm so happy :D I got an A on my French Listening, and 1 mark off an A* on my French Reading and I didn't even study! :) Anyway, sorry again – especially to Leticia, who I pretty much abandoned – I'm sorry, but things should be better from now on. I'll get to write the next chapter up soon.
Till then ~ TheMastersDaughter
The Doctor's Point Of View:
The Doctor moved restlessly around the TARDIS console, repeatedly running a hand through his hair in agitation.
Twiddling the dials, he set a destination, then changed his mind before rescheduling it again, until he finally slumped despondently to the floor, wearily leaning his back against the console.
The Doctor held his head between his hands miserably, he was supposed to be a Time Lord, he should know what to do in any situation, but this one girl had made him uncertain of everything he had once believed in. Now he had been reduced to a perplexed, ambiguously lost wanderer.
"What happens now…?" He asked the TARDIS; his one, constant friend.
The ship hummed comfortingly in response, reassuring the exasperated, perturbed Time Lord.
Brenda's Point Of View:
Brenda gloomily watched the wave-less, endless sea, her cheeks glittering wet with tears. The beautiful silver beach now resembling a shiny mirror of despair.
'How could he?' she thought in fury. Her temper worsened as she remembered how this one of the only people she had ever trusted, 'And what did he do? – Abandon me on some god-forsaken planet!'
Quickly, Brenda rubbed her reddened eyes in an attempt to prevent more salty tears from leaking out.
Brenda's angry thoughts were abruptly disturbed by a low, feral, threatening growl originating from somewhere behind her.
"You destroyed our ship – our home!" the same deep voice rasped, causing Brenda to look back in alarm.
The Chlyron which resembled her father towered over her with an intimidating expression. Brenda frowned, realising in vague surprise that the Chylron had grown in size, its shadow completely covered her, sending unpleasantly cold shivers down her spine.
"You're most certainly not my father," she stated obviously, "You're one of those Chlyrons."
The Chlyron hissed angrily and without warning, it suddenly reached out to grab the unsuspecting Brenda.
Its icy cold grip closed none too gently on her wrist, sending goose-pimples spreading up her slim arm.
"You have done this – you have condemned us to this place," the Chylron told her with an inhuman, merciless fury. "For that you must die."
Brenda rolled her eyes with fearless sarcasm.
"Like that wouldn't have happened anyway." She retorted arrogantly.
The Chlyron roared in response to Brenda's provocative comment, then started to flicker slightly, gradually growing even larger like some sort of terrifying vision.
Swiftly taking advantage of the Chlyron's rage, Brenda snatched her arm away from its iron grip, causing the infuriated creature to lift its upper lip in an animalistic snarl, showing numerous, razor-sharp pointed teeth.
She backed away warily, watching as the shape-shifter slowly became less human and more monstrous.
Glancing around for some cover, Brenda started to panic as she found herself helplessly alone and exposed on the brilliant silver sand.
The Chylron advanced closer to the girl, its form still growing rapidly. It swelled threateningly, proving the girl utterly powerless before its colossal size.
Suddenly, Brenda stumbled and fell back onto the soft sand, adrenaline pumping as the creature closed the distance between them, towering over her.
Jumping to her feet as fast as she could, Brenda refused to submit, fierce determination burning in her eyes. But before she had time to react, the Chylron moved with inhuman speed and grasped her arms into an unbreakable hold.
Desperately squirming and writhing, Brenda struggled futilely against the creatures' overpowering grip as it drew her closer, squeezing the breath from her lungs.
"No!" Shouted a voice, which was accompanied by a comfortingly familiar, buzzing sound.
The Chlyron paused in its attempt to suffocate Brenda, glancing around enquiringly to try and identify the location of the ominous voice.
Realising that the creature had relaxed its grip for a moment, Brenda agilely wriggled from its grip, not hesitating to sprint away from her captor.
Looking over her shoulder briefly, she froze in horror as she saw the Chlyrons massive, motionless form slowly turn transparent, blue veins lacing artistically through what previously was skin, but was now clear, pink-tinted glass.
Transfixed, Brenda watched with her mouth agape, amazed by the sudden transformation.
All of a sudden, the perfect glass statue became marred by a long, jagged crack splitting the crystalline creature into two perfect halves, not stopping as it spread through the rest of the shiny, shimmering surface.
"Get down!" The voice cried from behind her as she heard the owner's footsteps approaching rapidly, before a weight pushed her down face-forward into the silver sand.
Something fell on top of Brenda protectively, as she looked up just in time to see the solidified, glass Chlyron explode, the incredibly sharp, deadly shards flying on all sides, but the majority landing to harmlessly bury themselves into the shining sand.
'There can only be one person who would've saved me…' Brenda thought, turning around and gently pushing her saviour off.
"Doctor!" She cried, half in relief, half in anger. "You came back!"
The Doctor groaned in pain as he rolled onto the sand, landing on his back. Brenda shouted out in alarm, registering in panic, a large, knife-like shard deeply embedded in the left side of his chest.
"Oh no!" Brenda exclaimed feeling a wave of despair wash over her, "Doctor? Doctor! What can I do? I can't take it out else you'll lose too much blood… but I can't leave it in there either!" She bit her lip in exasperation.
The Doctor grabbed her slim arm and pulled her closer to him.
"I'm fine, don't worry, I'll just – AH!" He cried. Brenda watched with a horrified expression as the shard sank in a few more inches. Gradually, the whole fragment disappeared until none of it was left visible.
"Doctor? Are you ok? What's happened?" Brenda whispered, shaking him in concern when he remained still.
Worried, she bit her lip again and laid her ear against his chest in an attempt to find some trace of a heartbeat. Unable to hear anything, Brenda's eyes began to fill with tears, but she pushed them aside, telling herself to toughen up.
The Doctor remained motionless, whilst Brenda desperately scanned her mind, trying to remember how to resuscitate people.
Failing her efforts, she impetuously decided to thump his chest in a futile attempt to restart his heart, and to her great surprise, the Doctor suddenly jerked up and took in several deep breaths.
"Thank God." Brenda said weakly, before turning away as her eyes filled with tears of relief.
"No," The Doctor corrected, "Thank you." He smiled as he pulled the distressed Brenda into a comforting hug.
The two friends slowly began to calm down, the Doctor gradually evening his breathing, and Brenda sobbing quietly against his chest, realising just how frightened she had been.
After a few minutes, Brenda recovered and regained her composure, pulling away slightly from the Doctor, she looked up to meet his eyes.
"You have a strange heartbeat." She commented, frowning.
"Ah, well, that's because I have two hearts." The Doctor replied simplistically.
"Two hearts? Anything else I should know?" Brenda asked worriedly.
"Erm. I'm nine hundred years old…and – I'm sorry, I really am." He said sincerely, still not daring to meet Brenda's eyes.
"So you bloody should be!" Brenda exclaimed.
Cautiously, the Doctor glanced up in an attempt to read her expression, although, unfortunately for him, Brenda hadn't quite finished.
SLAP!
"Ouch!" The Doctor held his face where Brenda's hand had made swift, but violent contact with it.
"Ok, I guess I deserved that." He admitted in embarrassment.
Brenda nodded, and pulled herself elegantly to her feet.
"You did." She confirmed.
Rubbing the stinging, red area of his face, the Doctor smiled tentatively at Brenda, bracing himself for another slap. But to his relief, she just half-smiled back, a wary look shadowing her dark green eyes.
The Doctor realised that he must have hurt Brenda deeply by leaving her behind, and silently swore to make it up to her. Perhaps the girl saw the guilt and regret in his eyes, but if she did, she wasn't showing it.
"To the TARDIS?" The Doctor asked, meeting her eyes again, begging her to forgive him.
"To the TARDIS." Brenda confirmed, a frown briefly crossing her face before disappearing.
The Doctor held his hand out to her in an obvious sign of peace, Brenda stared at it for a moment, then accepted his hand before they gently made their way back to the TARDIS.
In The TARDIS:
Brenda sank down onto the chair, crossing her arms, then her legs, very tightly.
"I haven't unpacked yet." She stated as she watched the Doctor carelessly fling his long, brown coat onto the TARDIS's railings.
"Would you like to unpack?" The Doctor asked, noticing the dangerous look on her face, he quickly sat down next to her to show that he was listening.
Brenda shrugged, pretending that she didn't care.
"Depends. Do you want me to stay with you?"
"Well, it's up to you really…" He trailed off, then, catching sight of Brenda's fearsome frown he added, "But if the question was directed at me… yes, I'd love you to stay."
Brenda gave him a small, shy smile, as she slowly began to trust him again.
The Doctor mercifully decided to change the subject to less awkward matters.
"Anyway! So! What now?" He said cheerfully.
"I don't really know… I mean, today has hardly been a 'normal' day, especially since I thought that you were… well, on the beach, I thought you were…" Brenda trailed off, biting her lip as she remembered the fear she had felt at the idea that the Doctor might have been dead…
The Doctor looked at Brenda as if trying to silently tell her something.
"What exactly happened to that piece of glass? Did you take it out in the end…?" He asked, trying to remember what had happened.
Brenda shook her head slowly.
"Well…one minute it was stuck there," She pointed to the left side of his chest, "And the next it just sort of…sunk in…"
"Oh." The Doctor said.
"Oh what?" Brenda queried.
"I think that I should have regenerated when it stabbed me – but I didn't – that's not happened before…" He trailed off thoughtfully.
"Regenerate?" Brenda asked in confusion. She watched as the Doctor rolled up his shirt to inspect his injury.
"Yep." He replied, moving his arm so Brenda could take a look. The girl's eyes widened in surprise when she saw the unblemished skin where the deadly glass fragment had appeared to sink into his heart. "Completely healed!" He exclaimed cheerfully, before continuing.
"When Time Lords are dying they regenerate – cheat death by changing everything about them just so they can keep on living-"
"-Wow! That's pretty useful," Brenda cut in. "So why didn't you change this time? I mean, you've healed…"
The Doctor shrugged. "Can't be sure, but maybe that fragment of Chylron crystal stopped me from changing, but not from healing." He concluded, ruffling his hair.
Brenda decided to stand up and stretch her legs after sitting down for so long, but as she rose to her feet, a sudden sharp pain shot down her side, reminding her of her injury she had obtained on the Chylron's ship.
"Ow…damn those Chylrons…" She cursed as she inspected the damage and found a purple-green bruise disfiguring her ribs.
"Looks like you need something for that." The Doctor told her, before bouncing off enthusiastically, then returning a few moments later with a tube of cream. "Just stick that on and it should heal within an hour – it's sort of like a fast-acting Arnica." He explained, grinning.
Brenda winced as she spread the cold cream on her skin. Smiling gratefully, she gave the tube back to the Doctor who tucked it away under the console for safe-keeping.
"Anyway! So, are you going to unpack?" He asked hopefully, once again using an irresistible smile.
"Hmm…" Brenda said thoughtfully, pretending to put her head on one side.
The Doctor looked slightly crestfallen at her indecision.
"Of course I'm staying!" Brenda smiled, pushing him playfully. "I wouldn't miss it for the world – although, I'm not so keen on getting stranded again, so I may just hide inside the TARDIS…"
"-Nah! That would spoil the fun!" The Doctor replied cheerfully, "Besides, I won't ever abandon you again." He drew closer to Brenda and gently laid his hands on her shoulders, looking into her eyes seriously. "That's a promise."
Brenda suddenly became aware of how close he was to her face; she could feel his warm breath on her forehead, the sweet gale blowing loose a few strands of her hair. Her pulse suddenly quickened with an emotion she couldn't quite place.
The Doctor leaned closer to the tense, nervous Brenda, then carefully tucked a few of the flyaway red and blonde hairs behind her ears.
"Can you forgive me?" He asked in a whisper.
At that moment, the TARDIS suddenly jerked violently causing the Doctor to let go of Brenda's shoulders and run over to the console, peering at the screen in concern.
As the Doctor released her, Brenda blushed a deep red and inspected the floor to disguise her deep embarrassment.
Attempting to brush the memory from her mind, she rapidly regained her composure.
'I do.' Brenda thought in a late response to his question, before glancing up and meeting the Doctor's gaze. Although she was trying to forget what had just happened, she couldn't help smirking slightly at a red tint that was also on the Doctor's cheeks – along with the slap mark!
He grinned back at her boyishly.
"Good." He remarked, before fixing the TARDIS's handbrake. "So! Unpacking!"
"Yup, ok, shouldn't take long!" Brenda called back over her shoulder as she walked towards her room.
'Wouldn't bet on that.' The Doctor thought to himself glumly.
"I heard that!" Brenda cried, pretending to take offence.
"Sorry, I-I didn't mean it," He apologised quickly, rather too aware that Brenda had to be regarded as a dangerous person to get angry.
"Good." Brenda echoed, smiling sweetly before stepping into the corridor.
Brenda's Room:
Brenda sang quietly under her breath as she carefully unpacked her bags and folded her clothes into the giant wardrobe.
"Ah! My MP4!" She said triumphantly upon rediscovering one of her most precious possessions. "I wonder if the TARDIS has any plug points…"
She laid it aside as she groped in the rucksack for the last few items hidden in the extra pockets.
With extreme care, she placed her ring and the necklace with a large pendant on the small desk, making them look strangely out of place compared to all the other items.
Sighing contentedly, Brenda walked over to the large bed and jumped onto it unceremoniously, lying back, she stretched happily.
A massive yawn reminded Brenda of how exhausted she felt. Shutting her eyes with only the intention of a quick doze, she soon found herself within a deep sleep.
Flashback:
Brenda was once again inside the hut, and so was that same, strangely familiar woman.
The woman was sat elegantly on a stool facing the furious, glowing flames of the ferocious fire.
Brenda could hear her humming as she sewed something, the silver needle flashing with the reflection of the dancing flames.
Curious to see what the mysterious woman was sewing, Brenda wobbled closer on uncertain, unreliable legs.
"Ow!" The woman's soft voice cursed quietly as a drop of blood fell like a red raindrop, landing softly on the material she was repairing.
The fabric was crimson, and as the droplet fell it merged with the material and became one.
The Doctor's Point Of View:
The Doctor knocked gently on Brenda's ajar door, she'd been 'unpacking' for over 5 hours – presumably asleep, unless of course her suitcase matched the TARDIS in size.
He rapped on the door again and receiving no answer he cautiously pushed it open.
The Doctor smiled at her sleeping form, but as he drew closer he was surprised to see a deep frown disfiguring her face.
Suddenly Brenda's eyes flickered open, her mouth opened slightly in shock and her eyebrows raised as she found the Doctor watching her.
"Erm – sorry, I was just…erm – checking you were ok – and I can see you are… so, erm – yes." The Doctor stuttered, embarrassed at being caught, he self-consciously backed towards the door.
Brenda's Point Of View:
"No, it's ok." Brenda smiled reassuringly, but couldn't stop a small, suspicious frown from crossing her face. Stepping elegantly off the bed, she joined the Doctor at the door.
"Oh, by the way, has the bruising cleared up yet?" The Doctor asked in concern.
"Yes thank you, it's a lot better." Brenda replied politely, still trying to figure out whether the Doctor really had been just 'checking she was ok'.
As they walked back to the TARDIS's control room, Brenda dismissed the thought and glanced at the central piston.
"So, where to now?" She asked the Doctor.
"Hmm, how about…a random trip – we could end up anywhere, anytime…" he mused enthusiastically.
"-Sounds great!" Brenda cut in cheerfully, taking advantage of the Doctor's pause. "Ok, so, are we going or what?"
"Yup! But first…this!" The Doctor said gleefully, producing a key from his pocket and throwing it to her.
Brenda stared at her hands, wide-eyed with amazement.
"Is this what I think it is…?" She asked incredulously.
"TARDIS key – now I definitely can't leave you behind!" The Doctor grinned at her cheekily and winked.
Brenda instinctively ran over to the Doctor and flung her arms around him.
"Thank you." She said, summarising her feelings within the two, simple words.
"That's quite alright." The Doctor replied, pleased, "would you like to help me fly the TARDIS?" He asked joyfully.
"I'd love to!" Brenda exclaimed happily.
"Right! Ok, so, hold down that," The Doctor gestured to a button, "Then pull that," He pointed to a lever, "After five seconds, let go of the button and put your elbow on that, then press that with your other hand…"
Eventually, Brenda managed to remember the instructions, and together they flew the TARDIS through the Vortex and into another world!