For the Sake of an Angel:
Chapter Thirteen: Equal
Review responses:
pepcvina: Really, though. The Doctor really put his foot in his mouth with that one, didn't he?
WizardingWhovian: I'm glad you agree! I actually am incredibly claustrophobic, so that part of Addie comes from me. All I can say about the next episode is that you should expect the unexpected ;) I somehow managed to cram that whole adventure into one chapter, too, so it will be pretty action-packed. Thanks for your review, again!
XxNimith531xX: Yay! Thank you! Since UNIT knows more about Addie than Addie, Martha, by extension, also knows more about Addie's past. It's going to be hard for Martha to keep it all from her. I hope you like this chapter, too! :)
Books-and-Cleverness-394: Amy is probably my second favorite. I really do adore her, but I don't know how much Addie will at first ;) My all time favorite is Clara - I imagine that she and I would be good friends. I know everybody hates her, but I just can't bring myself to. I liked Bill a fair amount, too, and I agree that she was gone far too quickly :( Man, it's going to be so tragic for Addie once she loses Donna - they've become so much closer than she and Martha ever were. Addie's really going to be torn apart, but, hey - at least she has the Doctor.
I'm glad you like FSA! I try to make the Adeta relationship as realistic as possible. I would say they started off as uneasy acquaintances at the very beginning, but they've definitely gotten way closer now. It's almost too cheesy for me to write, to be honest, which is why I agree with you on the angst part. She forgives him relatively quickly this time, but it won't be the last of their little spats, now that Addie's become more assured of herself. It will always be a struggle for Addie to understand that the Doctor cares for her, because she constantly compares herself to the other companions and assumes that she falls short. Needless to say, it will be a slow journey, as far as that goes.
Yes! The Stolen Earth episodes will be a major turning point for both Addie and the Doctor! I haven't written it out yet, but I have a huge plan and I'm so, so excited to lay it all out. It will be INTENSE. She is slowly making her way along the path towards bad-assery. Also, please, please don't ever feel bad about leaving long reviews! I really enjoy reading them and I give long responses back (I hope that's okay). Every time I get a review notification, I get incredibly excited. In fact, I ENCOURAGE you to write long reviews if you have the time. Thank you so, so much for your feedback, and I hope you like this chapter! :)))
ShadowTeir: I don't think so? It's definitely fun to write out the angsty dynamic between them, that's for sure. The Doctor is being too overprotective, and Addie is starting to feel smothered by his methods of 'caring' for her. In his eyes, Addie is strong, but he knows that she struggles with death and that she has a track record for risking her own life to save others. Yeah, he trusts her, but he can't help but take precaution. At this point in FSA, Addie is just starting to stand up to him. I would agree that Martha and the Doctor coddle her a bit; Martha more so because she knows how important Addie is/will be to the Doctor, and the Doctor because, well, he cares for her? Donna will for sure be on the receiving end of Addie's tongue, though probably not as harshly as the Doctor. Addie and Donna get along pretty well, minus that one time in Pompeii, so I don't foresee any huge angst between them.
Thank you so much! Addie has definitely got attitude, and it won't be going away. I'm such a grammar fanatic that I don't really need a beta XD Hope you like this chapter!
WhovianPotter: Yeah, I agree. The Doctor doesn't like not knowing things, and knowing that Addie knows his future is frustrating for him - especially when she decides to take advantage of her foreknowledge and risks her life to save others' in the process. But, he's learning to be respectful in asking for previews... Slowly but surely, he is learning. I'm glad you think I'm adding something to the original episodes, because that is always the goal :) I like making my chapters interesting enough for people to be drawn into, regardless of whether or not I have to reuse dialogue from DW. Hope you like this chapter, too!
DarkBalance: That is definitely true. I don't know if it's because he thinks he's smarter than everyone else, or what, but Addie figures out her own explanation for his behavior in this chapter. I imagine that when you're racing towards your death in a car, and your best friend won't listen to you, you'd get pretty stressed out.
Yes! Clara is my favorite, too! Amy is probably my second favorite, and then I don't know who would be third. Your analysis of Clara and Donna is so accurate XD I think that's why so many people dislike the both of them, unfortunately. People assume that they think they're better than the Doctor, but I think that they're simply a good match for him. If Clara existed in real life, I think that I would be the closest with her out of all the other companions. She's probably the most like me. Anyways, hope you like this chapter, and, as always, thank you for your review :)
MindlessBagOfChips: Wow! Thank you, thank you, thank you! I do my best! I hope you like this chapter, too! LOVE YOU!
bwburke94: Who doesn't love Jack, truthfully? He's not my favorite, but he's definitely up there :)
That's Balderdash: Thank you for both of your reviews! I'm glad you like FSA! :)
"What has he done?" Donna immediately demanded once she opened the door and saw Addie's stony expression. Just behind her, the Doctor was looking a bit like a kicked puppy as he stood several feet away.
Addie heaved a sigh. The walk over had been filled with a tense silence as she followed the GPS on her phone to Donna's house, and her anger and hurt had only abided slightly. "Nothing new."
The ATMOS incident had only been the tip of the iceberg. There had been plenty of times where the Doctor had insisted that he was right, and had refused to accept Addie's help for the sheer sake of his ego: with the damaged Host on the Titanic, all the individual lives he had refused to save in Pompeii (namely, Caecilius' family), and now, the ATMOS. For the past few minutes, she had been trying to analyze exactly why he continually refused her help, but all she could come up with was the fact that it was a typical case of male pride. This was most likely amplified by him being, well, him. Did anything else really need to be said?
"... Right." Donna observed her and stepped outside, closing the front door as she did so. "Want me to smack him for you?"
A small smile came on Addie's face, but it disappeared as quickly as it had come. "No, that's alright. We actually have a bigger problem. Come on."
She turned around and brushed past the Doctor, feeling a childish sense of pride when he wordlessly moved out of her way. Before she even considered forgiving him, the Doctor would have to, at the very least, explain his actions. Addie didn't need an apology; she needed a promise that he would listen to her in the future.
Her converse-clad feet stopped in front of Donna's car expectantly, and Donna came up beside her. "Why are we standing by my car?"
"The Doctor would like to borrow a vehicle for us to drive to UNIT." Addie pointedly didn't look at the man who had joined them. Ross, too, was standing by the Doctor, and Donna took advantage of the opportunity to look him up and down again flirtatiously. "One without ATMOS, which, unfortunately, your car already has."
"Are you sure?" The Doctor dared to speak up.
"Would you even believe me if I told you?" Addie retorted, glaring at his reflection in the car window. He looked back at her from the glass, and Addie cast her gaze downwards, not being able to take the hurt in his eyes.
"Absolutely." He said softly, and Addie pushed away her distress for the time being.
"Good." Addie finally met his eyes as she turned around. "That saves us some time, then."
Ross chose that moment to enter himself in the conversation. "I'll requisition us a vehicle."
"Anything without ATMOS." The Doctor swallowed, then added as an afterthought, "And don't point your gun at people."
Ross nodded, gave the two of them one last unsure glance, then took off. Donna watched him wistfully, wishing that she could follow him instead of being caught in the middle of the Doctor and Addie's lover's spat. Hearing the front door open again, Donna exhaled as Wilf exited and halted in shock - good, now there was a welcome distraction.
"Is it him?" Wilf asked excitedly, and Addie turned her attention towards him. "Is that her? Is it the Doctor and Addie?" The portly man hurried to where they were beside the car and his eyes widened as he pointed a finger at the Doctor. "Ah, it's you!"
"Who?" The Doctor inquired confusedly, and then it hit him. "Oh, it's you."
"What, have you met before?" Donna was bewildered. "Addie, have you actually met him?"
"No." She admitted bitterly, shooting the Doctor an irritated look. "Someone left me behind on the Titanic while he went and met Wilf without me on Christmas Eve."
Wilf nodded quickly. "Yes, that's it! He disappeared right in front of me, Christmas Eve!"
Donna gazed at him blankly. "And you never said?"
"Well, you never said." Wilf replied accusatorily before shaking the Doctor's hand. "Wilf, sir. Wilfred Mott. You must be one of them aliens."
"Yeah, but don't shout it out." The Doctor admonished teasingly. "Nice to meet you properly, Wilf." Out of habit, he gestured at Addie, and began to say, "This is my - "
"My name is Addie." She interrupted him in annoyance. "And I speak for myself. I've been looking forward to meeting you, Wilf." She considered him for a moment and then wrapped him up in a hug. Wilf stiffened in shock, then returned the favor, patting her back warmly.
"Donna told me about you." Wilf chuckled as he let her go. "You used me as a cover when she first ran into you on the street."
"Yeah, well," Addie shrugged, her mood lightening as she finally got to talk with the man whom she had been wanting to meet for months, "you know Donna."
"Ha ha, that I do." Wilf guffawed again. "Although I think you've been spending more time with her lately than I have. How's she been?"
Addie grinned. "Oh, fantastic. Absolutely wonderful. She keeps the Doctor in check."
"I thought that was your job." Wilf pointed out knowingly, and Addie burst out in laughter. The Doctor, who was on the phone, glanced over at the sound and relaxed marginally. He knew that he would have to talk to her about their argument, but he was waiting until she was in a better mood. It seemed that Wilf was doing a great job at helping her to do exactly that.
He closed the flip phone and placed it back in Donna's hand after passing a message on to Colonel Mace, then turned his attention to Donna's car. While they couldn't drive it, they could certainly investigate the ATMOS inside while they waited for Ross to return with a vehicle. Lifting the hood of the car, the Doctor snooped around inside as he nonchalantly listened in on Addie and Wilf's conversation. Unfortunately, everyone noticed what he was doing and all talking ceased.
"But, you tried sonicing it before." Donna protested as they gathered around the car. "You didn't find anything."
"Yeah, but now I know it's Sontaran, I know what I'm looking for." The Doctor muttered, putting his brainy specs on. Addie felt her heartbeat quicken and got mad at herself for her hormones; she was still mad at him, dangit! Although, Addie eyed him guiltily, perhaps she could put aside her anger for the moment in order to save the Earth.
"The thing is, Doctor, that Donna is my only grandchild. You got to promise me you're going to take care of her." Wilf pleaded, the reality of the situation hitting him. His granddaughter was about to fight aliens, and she could die. He didn't want that; he never wanted that.
"She takes care of me." The Doctor corrected distractedly.
"Don't worry." Addie interjected, squeezing Wilf in a side hug. "We'll keep an eye on her."
The Doctor gave her a side glance and agreed. "The three of us make a good team, after all."
Understanding that he was offering her a subtle apology, Addie nodded once, and the Doctor felt the rest of the anxiety leave his body. "We do. We help each other out, and we always listen to one another when we have something to say." She added warningly as she brushed up against his coat to get closer to the car. "Right, Doctor?"
"Right." The Doctor affirmed, jumping back slightly in alarm as spikes sprouted out from the ATMOS. Again, his arm pushed Addie away of its own accord from the potentially dangerous object. "Whoa. It's a temporal pocket. I knew there was something else in there. It's hidden just a second out of sync with real time."
Donna, feeling grateful that the two had somewhat resolved their issues (whatever they had been), leaned forward. "But what's it hiding?"
"I don't know, men and their cars. Sometimes I think if I was a car…" A voice spoke from behind them, and Addie started in surprise. She turned around to see Donna's mother, Sylvia, whom Donna had ranted about to her many a time, and resisted the urge to correct her grammar. She was sure that wouldn't go over well, considering the fact that the woman was Donna's mother. Sylvia came closer to inspect the strange man rooting about inside the front of her car and suddenly realized who he was. "Oh, it's you. Doctor what was it?"
Said man didn't even bother turning around. "Yeah, that's me."
"What, have you met him as well?" Wilf frowned incredulously.
"Dad, it's the man from the wedding." Sylvia moaned. "When you were laid up with Spanish flu. I'm warning you, last time that man turned up it was a disaster."
"It always is with him." Addie couldn't help but point out, even as the spikes on the ATMOS started emitting gas. She immediately backed away from the toxic chemical. "Everyone, get back. It's poisonous."
All of the humans obeyed her order after hearing the word, 'poisonous.' However, instead of backing off, the Doctor did the opposite. If what Addie said was true, and he knew it was, than he had to disable the fumes. He directed the sonic screwdriver at the ATMOS and was relieved when the gas stopped with a flurry of sparks. "That'll stop it."
"I told you. He's blown up the car! Who is he, anyway? What sort of doctor blows up cars?" Sylvia protested, already thinking about what the repair would cost.
"Oh, not now, Mum." Donna groaned.
Offended, Sylvia threw her arms in the air. "What, should I make an appointment?"
Seeking no further response, the woman turned around and stomped back into the house. None of them were too upset to see her go.
"That wasn't just exhaust fumes. It was some sort of gas. Artificial gas." The Doctor observed darkly.
"And it's aliens, is it? Aliens?" Wilf gasped.
Meanwhile, Donna had come to her own conclusions. "But if it's poisonous, then they've got poisonous gas in every car on Earth."
She and the Doctor stared at each other in alarm at the implications of their situation. They didn't see Wilf hurry over to the driver's seat of the car, nor Addie determinedly running around the other side to cut him off.
"You are not getting in that car." She ordered to Wilf's dismay.
"But it's not safe!" Wilf pleaded, not understanding why she was standing in his way. He tried to fake her out by shifting to one side, but Addie was immovable. "I've got to get it off the street!"
"Then, you'll be in danger." Addie elucidated for him, realizing that this was how the Doctor must have felt when she had stayed behind with Caecilius' family in Pompeii. In a slightly softer tone, boosted by her own experience, she finished. "And that won't help anyone if we're all worrying about you."
Wilf slumped down and accepted defeat. "You're right."
"Now," Addie said warily, "if I move away from this door, can you promise that you won't try to get in the car again?"
"Promise." Wilf agreed regretfully.
Addie backed away from the car just in time. The poisonous gas started back up again, and Addie knew that the invasion had begun. At least she had prevented Wilf from nearly suffocating inside the car. The elderly man was currently scanning the cars around them, jaw agape in shock.
"We need to get inside." Addie proclaimed, grabbing onto his hand. The gas around them was turning into more of a fog, now, and she knew it was only a matter of time before it would become difficult to breathe.
"Addie?" The Doctor's voice shouted worriedly from behind the car. He didn't know where she had disappeared to; one minute she had been there, and the next, she was gone.
"Here!" She called, letting out a wheeze as the toxic air hit her lungs. The Doctor sprinted around the car to her side at the sound and saw that she was assisting Wilf. The elderly man, who evidently had a harder time handling the gas, was already coughing from the fumes. "We need to get in the house."
The Doctor groaned frustratedly. "I suppose that's all we can do."
Sylvia, who had seen the gas from inside, ran out to take her father, and Addie gladly passed him into her capable hands. "Get inside the house, and try and close off the doors and windows." She started, breaking off to cough again. "We'll do our best to stop the gas."
The woman nodded and beckoned Donna to come with them inside. Donna followed her hesitantly, then paused as a car pulled up to the front of the house. Ross rolled down the window and popped his head out.
"Doctor. This is all I could find that hasn't got ATMOS."
Without a second glance, Addie ran forward and threw herself into the far left side of the back seat. There was no way she was going to be squished in the middle again - not after her last mini-episode of claustrophobia in the UNIT car. The Doctor hurried to do the same, but stopped to hold the door open. "Donna, you coming?"
"Yeah." Donna called out after a brief moment.
The three family members had some sort of hushed argument, but Addie and the Doctor couldn't hear what was being said. He turned to her worriedly. "How are you doing?"
"I'm fine, Doctor." Addie was confused about why he was asking her now, of all times. "Why?"
"Well, the gas and the car." The Doctor explained, not really clarifying anything for her. At her bewildered expression, he added, "You don't have the best track record for taking in fumes or being in tight spaces."
Addie was touched by his concern. "I'll let you know if I stop breathing."
"Not exactly what I was hoping for." The Doctor admitted, scooting over as Donna entered the car. "I'm sorry."
"Now? We're doing this now?" Addie hissed. Ross started the car and took off at a rate that had to be over the speed limit; this was, after all, a residential neighborhood.
"I should have grabbed some popcorn." Donna mused, and the Doctor shot her a glare.
"Not helping, Donna."
"Fine, if we really are doing this now, you'll have to hurry it up." Addie tapped her wrist. "We'll be there in a couple of minutes if Ross keeps driving the way he is."
"My apologies." Ross called from the front seat, and the Doctor grit his teeth at the way everyone kept interrupting him.
"If everyone could just give us a bit of hush, thank you." He waited a few seconds to ensure that they would stay silent, then continued. "Addie, I'm sorry. I should have listened to you."
"Then why didn't you?" Addie pushed. She wasn't too upset anymore, now that the situation had passed and an adrenaline rush had taken over her system.
"Sometimes..." The Doctor didn't know how to explain himself. It was really hard to open up in front of all these people; perhaps he could have talked to Addie about it, but Ross and Donna weren't on the same level as her. It was particularly difficult to put his feelings into words, because he didn't even know why he struggled so much with accepting her previews. "Sometimes it's... hard, to, um."
"Let someone in?" Addie finished for him, and the Doctor suddenly felt like it was just the two of them in the car. Addie finally understood; it wasn't simply a case of the male ego. It was more the fact that allowing someone to help him would take down the intellectual barriers he had thrust up so highly since Rose had left. No one, not even Rattigan, could compete with his knowledge and his power and his immortality. Throwing around his intellect was his method of keeping everyone else at arm's length, and her foreknowledge threatened that. "Doctor, you may be the last of the Time Lords, but you don't have to be alone."
Of course, she was partially wrong. Most times, it was just him being prideful, but she knew that it went deeper than that, even if he didn't.
"All I want to do is help you." Addie tentatively reached for his hand. "Can't you just let me do that?"
The Doctor gazed down at their intertwined hands and marveled at the way her hand felt in his. He always grabbed his companions' hands, but that was usually to lead them away from some kind of danger. He hadn't purposefully initiated contact in a long time - not since Rose, and he felt a mixed ball of emotions rise up in his hearts. Now, he seemed to be reaching for Addie's hand more and more, and it wasn't just to drag her along somewhere; no, it was for comfort, and for pulling her closer to his side. And she almost always went along with it - even initiated it, too, sometimes.
There was something about Addie that felt different, and for the first time, the Doctor considered that she could be an equal. The only other person whom he had recently thought of as his equal was the Master, but he was dead, and Addie was here, with him. She understood the suffering he faced everyday from failing to save lives, she knew that he was flawed, and, most importantly, she shared his pain. Could he do that? Could he actually let her in, even if she was human, intellectually stunted (at least, compared to him), and irreversibly mortal?
His grasp on her hand tightened as he made the decision. "I promise." He vowed to himself. "I'll listen to you, from now on."
She searched his eyes and found nothing but the truth. "Good."
Addie let go of his hand, and just like that, the spell was broken.
"Ross, be careful." Addie had a feeling that something terrible would happen to him, but she wasn't sure. "Don't go off on your own, and remember that bullets don't work around the Sontarans."
They had just pulled up to the ATMOS factory and the other two of her friends had already exited the car.
"Addie, come on." The Doctor urged, not understanding why she was lingering. "Ross, look after yourself. Get inside the building."
Ross spared him a glance and turned back to reassure Addie. "I'll remember what you told me, don't worry about me, okay?" Addie swallowed hard and got out of the car as he brought the walkie-talkie up to his lips. "Greyhound Forty to Trap One. I have just returned the Doctor to base safe and sound. Over."
Ross sent her one last smile and then took off, leaving Addie behind with Donna and the Doctor.
"The air is disgusting." Donna commented, waving her hand in front of her face.
"It's not so bad for me." The Doctor answered offhandedly as an idea struck him. "Go on, get inside the TARDIS, you two." Addie sent him a withering glare, and the Doctor pointedly ignored her in favor of addressing an issue he had been thinking about lately. "Oh, I've never given you a key, Donna. Keep that. Go on, that's yours. Quite a big moment really."
Although Donna felt a surge of exhilaration at the fact that she now had a key to the TARDIS, she had to keep up character. "Yeah, maybe we can get sentimental after the world's finished choking to death." She grasped the key tightly in her hand. "Not that it stopped you two in the car on the way over."
Addie cleared her throat. "Okay, moving on. Where are you going, and why can't we come with you?"
"You two can hardly breathe in this air." The Doctor pointed out. "Let alone be running around in it, trying to stop a war."
Oh, if only he knew. Addie smirked, but hid it well under a reluctant eye roll. "Okay, we'll see you in a bit, then."
The Doctor nodded cautiously. She had taken that awfully well, which meant that she had an ulterior motive. But, he didn't have the time to address that now; besides, Donna and Addie had already started to walk away. Shooting them one last calculating look, the Doctor spun around and sprinted towards the ATMOS factory with no time to lose.
"Why did the TARDIS just move?"
Donna had barely gotten out of a cough attack when the TARDIS had started shaking. She was used to it, of course, but this was a different sort of movement. It felt less like they were flying, and more like they had been physically transported by… something.
"The Sontarans took the TARDIS." Addie explained, lounging in the beat-up chair by the console. "And we just happened to be in it."
A look of realization came over Donna's face. "So that's why you wanted to stay with me. Of course! You would never leave the Doctor's side for anything other than if someone was in danger." A more alarmed look formed on her face. "Am I in danger? Am I going to die?"
"No." Addie hurriedly assured Donna. "Really, no. The air wasn't agreeing with me, and I wanted to help with this task he's about to assign us."
"What task?"
Before them, the screen lit up with a blonde woman's face, and Addie froze before she could reply. That was Rose. Was the universe falling apart, even now? Her mouth opened silently, and Addie squinted at the word she was trying to communicate. Again, she was absolutely terrible at reading lips, but was she mouthing, 'Doctor'?
"What are you looking at?" Donna inquired suspiciously, then followed her eyes to the screen, which had changed to show the Doctor and Colonel Mace. "Oh, look, it's your man."
"He's not my anything." Addie instantly rebutted, shaking off any worries she had over Rose's appearance. The former companion would return when she would return, and that was that.
"This is the Doctor." He spoke up, presumably to the Sontarans.
"He can't hear us." Addie told Donna, who had started to panic. "But he knows we're on the ship."
Then, a Sontaran's voice rang out from some hidden speaker in the TARDIS, and the two of them glanced around to try and find the source. "Doctor, breathing your last?"
"My God, they're like trolls." Colonel Mace breathed, earning a scathing look from both Addie and the Doctor (even if it was true).
"Yeah, loving the diplomacy, thanks." The Doctor wandered further down into the room and slid into a comfy chair. "So, tell me, General Staal, since when did you lot become cowards?"
"Ah, so he's the same one from before." Addie mused as she leaned on the console. "I really can't tell them apart."
Staal was enraged. "Doctor, you impugn my honour."
"Yeah, I'm really glad you didn't say belittle, because then I'd have a field day." The Doctor commented offhandedly, and Addie took the time to appreciate his pun. "But, poison gas? That's the weapon of a coward and you know it. Staal, you could blast this planet out of the sky, and yet you're sitting up above watching it die. Where's the fight in that? Where's the honour? Or," He paused curiously, "are you lot planning something else, because this isn't normal Sontaran warfare. What are you lot up to?"
Staal stalled. "A general would be unwise to reveal his strategy to the opposing forces."
The Doctor grinned as he leaned back in his chair. "Ah, the war's not going so well, then. Losing, are we?"
Addie let out a fond laugh at his clear arrogance. "He thinks he knows everything."
"Well," Donna snorted, "I hate to admit it, but he usually does."
The strawberry blonde couldn't help but smile at her friend's admission as Staal argued defensively, "Such a suggestion is impossible."
Colonel Mace was not following. "What war?"
"The war between the Sontarans and the Rutans. It's been raging, far out in the stars, for fifty thousand years. Fifty thousand years of bloodshed, and for what?" The Doctor quirked an eyebrow.
"For victory." Staal declared. He then started to hit his hand with a staff, leading a war chant. "Sontar-ha. Sontar-ha. Sontar-ha."
The screen turned black and white as the Doctor disrupted the transmission, and Donna immediately stressed out. "Where's he gone? What happened?"
Addie frowned. "I think he's giving them time to stop chanting." The screen returned to show the Doctor's face, and the two girls relaxed. "Oh, there he is."
"Finished?" The Doctor asked calmly.
Staal, on the other hand, was not so calm. "You will not be so quick to ridicule when you'll see our prize. Behold; we are the first Sontarans in history to capture a TARDIS."
The Doctor's face remained carefully impassive as he said, "Well, as prizes go, that's noble. As they say in Latin, Donna nobis pacem."
Donna instantly lit up. "That's me. I'm here."
"Did you never wonder about its design? It's a phone box. It contains a phone. A telephonic device for communication. Sort of symbolic. Like, if only we could communicate, you and I." The Doctor gestured between himself and the screen. "Add a lady, too, why not?"
"Was that the best he could come up with?" Addie remarked amusedly.
"All you have communicated is your distress, Doctor." Staal spat as Donna scrambled for a phone.
"Here, I've got one." Addie pulled her cell out of her pocket and handed it to Donna.
"But who do we phone?" Donna looked pleadingly at Addie, and she didn't really have an answer for that.
"To be honest," Addie grumbled, "I don't know. We need to have a talk about him getting a cell; it's really inconvenient in times like these."
Donna eyed her strangely as the screen shut off. "You know, you're being very calm about all of this."
"Well, we're safe in the TARDIS, for now, but just you wait." Addie let out a startled squeak, clutching onto the armrests as the TARDIS was transported by the Sontarans again. "The real fun starts when the Doctor has us do some espionage."
"What?" Donna screeched and Addie winced. Perhaps she hadn't handled that as well as she could have. Donna shook her head and sat down hard on the mesh floor despondently. "I'm going to call my mum."
Addie nodded. Feeling like she was intruding, she mumbled a quick excuse and made her way to her room. Once she entered, she stared at her bed, and then fell forward onto it. These 'adventures' were really quite exhausting, and sometimes, Addie wondered how she managed to stay sane.
Relishing in the comfort and security of her bed, Addie let herself sink face-down into the cushions until a confused voice sounded from behind her.
"Addie, are you alright?"
Then, there was a slightly more panicked voice that crackled right after. "Did something happen to her? Is she hurt?"
Addie rolled over and got to her feet, making her way to Donna. "No, no, I'm fine. Just taking a little break." She called into the speaker.
"Good." The Doctor sighed from the phoneline. The last thing he needed was to be worrying about her well-being during a war, and here he was, doing it again. "I'm sorry, but I need you both to go outside."
"But there's Sonteruns out there." Donna immediately protested, to which both the Doctor and Addie corrected, "Sontarans."
"But they'll all be on battle stations right now. They don't exactly walk about having coffee. I can talk you through it." And Addie could just imagine his eyes rolling as he added, "Besides, I'm sure that Addie knew this would happen, so she knows what needs to be done."
Addie shifted uncomfortably, suddenly feeling a bit unsure of herself. "Well, that's not exactly true… You know my memories of the show are flawed."
There was another sigh from the Doctor's side. "I normally wouldn't ask, but there's nothing else I can do. The whole planet is choking."
Donna and Addie exchanged hardened glances and made an unspoken decision. "What do you need us to do?" Donna kept her eyes on Addie's as she asked, doing her best to keep her voice steady even though she was terrified out of her wits.
"The Sontarans are inside the factory, which means they've got a teleport link with the ship, but they'll have deadlocked it. I need one of you to reopen the link."
"But I can't even mend a fuse." Donna blurted despairingly. "Addie, this is all you."
The Doctor's hearts skipped a beat against his will, and before he knew it, he had already accidentally stated, "Donna, stop talking about yourself like that. You can do this."
"No," Addie interjected, "we're doing this together. Donna, I've got your back."
Donna looked visibly relieved at her verbal affirmation and managed to pull herself together. "Okay, here goes nothing."
They kept the Doctor on the line as they hurried back down the hallway to the console room. Their feet came to a stop in front of the doors, and it was with a heavy feeling of trepidation that Donna pushed one open a crack. Sure enough, there was a Sontaran standing just outside the TARDIS with his back to them, and he was armed. Donna slowly pulled the door back shut and hissed into the phone, "There's a Sonterun." Addie nudged her and she adjusted her pronunciation. "Sontaran."
"Did he see you?" The Doctor inquired fearfully.
"No, he's got his back to us." Donna admitted, watching confusedly as Addie scrambled over to the console. She appeared to be searching for something rather intently, and so Donna covered the receptor of the phone, not wanting the Doctor to overreact again. "Addie, what are you doing?"
"Looking for a hammer."
Donna nodded, not bothering to question her further. "Right, okay. Always good to have a weapon handy while on a spaceship full of war-loving potato aliens." She then brought the phone back up to her ear, only to hear the Doctor already speaking.
"On the back of his neck on his collar there's a sort of plug, like a hole. The Probic vent. One blow to the Probic vent knocks them out."
Donna glanced over at Addie, who had let out a triumphant cry at finding the mallet the Doctor always used on the TARDIS. "Ah, that makes more sense now."
"Pardon?" The Doctor asked as Addie came back over to the phone.
"Let's just say I got us a little self-defense." Addie spoke into the phone, and the Doctor felt a small wave of reassurance. They were both capable women; they would be fine. Luckily, they were together, at least, and neither one of them had to go out alone. "Project Potato is a go."
Donna let out a chuckle at that, and it was with a sense of encouragement that they ventured outside to infiltrate the Sontaran ship. Addie swallowed as she crept up behind the Sontaran, raised the mallet, and swung at the back of his neck. Instantly, he fell over with a groan, and a grin spread across Addie's face. "I did it!" She whispered excitedly to Donna, who high-fived her in return, and then pulled the phone out of her pocket.
"Back of the neck." Donna said smugly.
"Now then, you got to find the external junction feed to the teleport." The Doctor continued. He didn't like having either of them on the ship, and he wanted to get them out as fast as possible.
Donna looked over helplessly at Addie, the high from their small victory fading in light of the new task. "What, what's it look like?"
"A circular panel on the wall." The Doctor answered as the two girls snuck hesitantly around the corner. "Big symbol on the front, like a, like a letter T with a horizontal line through it. Or, or, two Fs back to back."
Ahead of them, a metal door stood at the end of the hall. "We found a door." Addie gingerly took the phone from Donna's hands. "There's a switch on the side."
"But it's Sontaran-shaped." Donna added. "You need three fingers."
There was a short pause, and then, "You've got three fingers."
"Oh, yeah." Donna realized breathlessly. She approached the switch and filled in the gaps with her fingers, and, sure enough, the door slid open. Addie darted through before it had a chance to shut, and Donna hustled after her. "We are through!"
The Doctor was pleased. "Oh, you two are brilliant, you are."
"Shut up." Donna ordered, clearly thinking that this was not the time. "Right; T with a line through it."
A thud sounded on the other side of the line. "Got to go. Keep the line open." The Doctor ordered hurriedly, and then the sound of fabric brushing against the speaker was heard as he shoved the phone in his pocket. Donna stared at the phone in Addie's hand in disbelief, then froze as footsteps echoed from further down the hallway.
Heart nearly bursting out of her chest, Addie blurted, "Hide!"
She pressed herself behind a beam, and, not knowing where else to go, Donna crouched by her feet. The two of them stayed stock-still, doing their very best not to breathe as about twenty Sontarans marched past them. If only the aliens had chosen to look to their right, they would have been exposed, right then and there; however, some sort of deity was looking down on them with favor, and so, they remained safe (for the time being). The door slid shut behind the Sontarans, and Addie's hands trembled as she lowered them from where they had been covering her mouth. Her breathing had been a little too loud for comfort, and so she had tried to muffle the sounds.
Warily stepping out into the hallway, Addie let out a shuddering breath of relief when she saw that it was clear. Donna followed her example, but whacked her lightly on the shoulder. "What happened to not being in danger?"
"I may have been mistaken." Addie admitted shakily. As always, she reflected on how real everything felt in reality now that she was in the show, as opposed to watching it on a screen. On TV, this moment hadn't seemed risky at all, but having just lived through it, she would fight anyone who claimed otherwise. "So, panel?"
"Panel." Donna affirmed after giving her a long, searching look. She turned and led them forward, then to the right. A few times, they had to throw themselves behind beams to hide from Sontaran soldiers, but Addie could only assume that their vision was flawed when they had their helmets on, because not once were they spotted.
After what felt like eons later, Addie brightened. "Look, there it is!"
The T with a line through it was displayed proudly on the wall ahead of them, and Addie redialed the number the Doctor had been on. Almost instantly, he picked up. "Hello?"
"We found it." Addie declared.
"Okay," The Doctor started, and Addie put him on speaker, "take off the covering. All the blue switches inside - flick them up like a fuse box, and that should get the teleport working."
"Got it."
There were only three switches, and so Donna was easily able to complete the task - just as two Sontarans rounded the corner. Addie reached out and grabbed Donna's hand, the cell phone in her other hand, and backed away from the threat. "On the bright side, the blue switches are done." Addie swallowed as the Sontarans pointed their guns at them. "But, on the slightly darker side, we're about to be killed by Sontarans."
Addie could see the red light building up inside their guns, and her grip on Donna's hand tightened intensely. Then, everything went fuzzy, and they appeared in some sort of laboratory. She blinked twice, and let go of Donna's hand, stunned.
And then, the Doctor was there, and Donna was hugging him, and Addie dazedly went and stood next to Martha and her dead clone. She noticed that Martha was only clothed in a patient's gown and the Doctor's coat, and shook herself out of her reverie. "How are you feeling?"
Martha laughed. "I feel like I should be asking you that question."
Standing there, dressed in the Doctor's coat, and looking pretty vulnerable, Addie felt a surge of relief that this was their Martha, and not some militant version of her, and impulsively squeezed her in a hug. Shocked, Martha wrapped her arms around her in return, only to be stopped by the sound of an alarm coming from her pocket. Addie let her go, and Martha squinted at her phone screen. "Doctor, what should I do about this nuclear launch thing?"
Addie looked over at the man who was currently inside the teleport, and found that he was already staring at her. He cleared his throat and broke eye contact, not wanting to admit that he wished Addie had been the one to hug him instead of Donna. "Just keep pressing N. We want to keep those missiles on the ground. Are you two coming?"
"Yeah, we're coming." Addie said decisively, entering the teleport again. Just then, Donna finally noticed what had been there all along.
"There's two of them." Donna stated, glancing between Martha and her dead clone.
Addie sighed. "That's why I wanted to stay with Martha. Maybe I could have helped her, somehow."
The Doctor gave her a sharp look, and she suddenly regretted saying anything. "Anyways." A brilliant grin took over his face as he scanned each of their faces. "Here we go. The old team, back together. Well, the new team."
He started to push some buttons, and Donna instantly panicked. "We're not going back on that ship!"
"No, no, no. No. I needed to get the teleport working so that we could get to - " The Doctor paused as they were transported to the Rattigan Academy. " - here. The Rattigan Academy, owned by - "
Rattigan, himself, stood in front of them with a gun aimed right for their heads, and Addie finished, "This idiot, here."
Rattigan licked his lips nervously, and Addie observed the thin sheen of sweat covering his rat-like face. "Don't tell anyone what I did. It wasn't my fault, the Sontarans lied to me, they - "
The Doctor strode forward and plucked the weapon out of his hands, tossing it to the side. "If I see one more gun…" He trailed off, gritting his teeth. Addie hated to admit it, but she felt a shiver run down her spine at the way he had easily disarmed the boy. She couldn't tell if it was fear or attraction that made her heart beat faster, but it was definitely caused by him, and him, alone.
"Bet you wish you were the one with his coat on, huh, Addie?" Donna whispered in her ear, and she stiffened momentarily before hurrying after the Doctor. Donna shook her head and exchanged a glance with Martha. "It really is too easy. But, you know, that coat sort of works."
The two remaining strolled past Rattigan. "I feel like a kid in my dad's clothes." Martha admitted conversationally, going towards where Addie and the Doctor were stood by some scientific equipment.
"Oh, well, if you're calling him dad, you're definitely getting over him." Donna teased. "Just in time, too."
"Just in time for what?" Addie questioned, looking up from what she was doing, the Doctor doing the same.
"Nothing." Martha focused on the diamond ring on her left hand. "It's nothing."
Hello!
Addie and the Doctor have resolved their issues! I don't know how many of you are actually happy about that, but Addie had a point when she said that it wasn't the time to be having an argument. I imagine that emotions go up and down a lot when you're traveling with the Doctor because of all the risky endeavors they undertake. It doesn't leave them with a lot of wiggle room when it comes to quarreling with one another. But, to be fair, the Doctor realized something very important: that he and Addie are very similar and understand one another on a deeper level than any of his other companions ever could. This is a revelation for him, because he's so used to being alone (particularly since Rose left) and it's going to be a difficult process for him to fully consider her as an equal in the upcoming chapters, even if he has acknowledged it to himself.
Also - please, please don't apologize for leaving long reviews! They make me very happy! I encourage you to write paragraphs upon paragraphs, if you can. I will give you a lengthy response, too! I don't know how annoying it is for you all to scroll past the long reviews, so I do apologize for that.
New question: who is your favorite Doctor, and why?
Thank you all for your wonderful reviews, and for favoriting and following FSA! Have a lovely week :)
- Entitea
Preview of the next chapter:
"You're saying goodbye."
"Sontarans are never defeated. They'll be getting ready for war." The Doctor explained, taking a step back. "And, well, you know, I've recalibrated this for Sontaran air, so…"
"You're going to ignite them." Martha realized in horror, her grip tightening on Addie's arm. Now she understood why he hadn't wanted Addie to go with him.
Donna considered letting Addie go. If anyone could prevent this, it was her. "You'll kill yourself."
"Just send that thing up on it's own." Martha begged desperately. "I don't know. Put it on a delay."
"I can't."
"Why not?" Donna pushed, releasing her grasp on Addie.
Addie wrenched her other arm out of Martha's hands. "Because he's got to give them a choice."