So, it took me longer than I wanted to get this chapter up, and I wanted to make this part of the story all just in one chapter... but unfortunately I like shorter chapters and it doesn't help that I haven't been able to update in a while due to midterms... just thought I should go ahead and update with what I had and hope that I'll finish the butt half of it within the next day or so. Also doesn't hep that I've had a new plot bunny for another fic pop up... so I'l be working on that one off and on along with this one... *exhausted groan*
Chapter Twenty: Turtles
It wasn't difficult to find my room again, as it was more or less located where it had been the last time I'd stayed on board. The interior was basically the same, except the coffee table in front of the couch was wooden, instead of a glass top. The other significant difference was that while the apartment had looked lived in the last time I was here, this time it looked fresh and untouched. Which made sense, seeing as the last time I had been here hadn't happened yet for the TARDIS. In fact, to her and the Doctor, this was probably the first time I would use it. The Doctor only met me once before this, right? I hadn't exactly gotten the impression that future me had been welcome on the TARDIS, so the chances of her staying here before me were not very high.
I walked around the table to mess with the tv and nearly tripped over the bag. It was my bag, the one that I had been carrying when the Doctor had picked me up from D.C; I had almost forgotten about it, having had laid it to the side before stepping out again in London. How had it made its way in here? I'd left it in the console room.
I set the messenger style bag down on the coffee table and started to sift through it. Maybe the TARDIS moved it while we were away, like how it had moved Donna's luggage after the stuff with the Adipose. My laptop, charger, phone charger, sketchbook, and purse were the main contents. I laid the objects out on the table and dug through the bottom of the bag to retrieve the remaining pencils, pens, and coins that were left at the bottom.
My hand came into contact with something rubbery and I pulled out a small green turtle. I smiled at the object and pulled apart the two halves to examine the metal rectangle that protruded from the object's tail end. My flashdrive. I had forgotten about it. Usually if I needed to transfer documents, I used Google Drive. But it was still cute.
After joining the two halves back together to remake the full turtle, I dug out some clothes from the drawers in the bedroom and took a shower. Really I just wanted to sleep, but I felt too gross and sweaty to be comfortable curling up in the clean sheets.
"What the hell…?" I muttered as I undressed.
Huge dark reddish-blue bruises covered by chest and neck, spreading and molding together to form a single giant sash that wrapped from around the ribs on my right side, up between my breasts to curl around my neck at the left collarbone. I could even tell which of my ribs had been broken, the bruises already being the tell-tale dark purple and sprinkled with blood spots.
I winced at the sight. It was really going to hurt later. It would be hurting now, but the painkillers the Doctor had given me were still in my system.
I stepped into the shower with a sigh. Might as well hurry and get to sleep as fast as I could before the bruises proved to be too uncomfortable. Not that it would've made a difference; by now I was dead on my feet and nodding off standing. The warm water didn't help, just made me even more warm and drowsy.
Thankfully, I did make it to bed, and my last thoughts before losing consciousness was about what nickname I should give this Doctor so I could identify him from the others. Bowtie… Converse… and…?
. . .
When I woke, I did so slowly. I spent the first few groggy minutes of consciousness gazing around blearily, not entirely sure where I was.
I groaned and tried to sit up, which proved to be difficult due to the combination of half-awake-lack-of-balance and overall soreness. The painkillers had worn off, leaving the muscles anywhere near the afflicted area to the full aching might of the bruises. Stomach muscles included. Sit ups sucked. Even the 'trying to get out of bed' ones.
I gave up and flopped back down, half tempted to just go back to sleep. I almost did, but I was hungry, thirsty, and had to pee. I licked at my parched lips and tried to ignore my growling stomach, but it was no use. Instead of sitting up, I rolled to the edge of the bed and awkwardly lowered my legs to the floor so I could use my own body weight to slide into a standing position. I almost fell, but close enough.
After a groggy, stumbling trip to the bathroom I peered at myself in the mirror. I looked terrible. There were dark circles under my eyes and my hair was a tangly, matted mess… that's what I got for not putting it up after showering. I turned on the sink and caught some of the cold water in my hands. I took a few sips from my cupped hands and splashed the rest on my face.
There wasn't any food in my in-TARDIS apartment yet, so I would have to go to the kitchen. Clothes were required for that though, so I went to my closet, hoping that it didn't require filling as well.
Thankfully, it did have clothes in it, though the clothes were more random than last time, consisting of anything between leather pants, t-shirts, tube tops, and full length dresses… almost as if the TARDIS hadn't known what to fill it with, so had just gone with a little bit of everything.
I smiled to myself and patted the wall fondly, receiving a mental hum in return.
I wasn't feeling my usual button-up today, so I went with a green sweater; turtleneck, so as to fully cover the bruises. I paired the shirt with dark grey jeggings and a pair of stylized combat boots that came halfway up my calves. I wasn't feeling makeup either, not to mention that there was no helping my hair until I washed it again.
I was about to walk out the door when the turtle flash drive caught my eye again. It was a stupid thing to be curious about while I was on board a bigger-on-the-inside spaceship, but it was bugging me that I didn't know what was on it. I sighed inwardly before backtracking to scoop it and my laptop up. I could look at it while I was eating. I grabbed by phone charger as an afterthought; phones are useful… unless they're dead.
. . .
Twenty minutes later, I was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee and some peanut butter toast, absently detangling my hair with one hand while I browsed through the turtle's files with the other.
"Ah… finally up," a slightly surprised but friendly voice broke through the drowsy atmosphere. I didn't have to look up to know it was the Doctor. "You look terrible."
"Nice to see you, too," I returned dryly, still not taking my eyes away from the computer.
The Doctor walked around to the coffee pot to help himself to some of the coffee I had made. Out of the corner of my eye I watched him put an ungodly amount of sugar in it and stir it before taking a sip.
"Feeling any better?" He asked, leaning against the table rather than sitting down.
"Bit sore," I admitted as I clicked on a file labeled 'asdfghjkldhyqrgbx'.
"That's expected," he mused. "You slept for ages."
"How long's that?"
"About thirteen hours," he answered, taking another swig of coffee and wincing when it burned his tongue. "I don't know how you humans can stand sleeping half your lives away. Rose even had time to say goodbye to her mum and pack. I think she's asleep now, too."
I snorted. "I don't know about half. I've done way too many all-nighters for it to be half."
"I'm sure you make up for it sometime." He paused and wrinkled his brow, trying to peer around to see my computer screen. "What're you up to?"
"I found my old flash drive in the bottom of my bag. Decided to see what was on it."
"Ah," he said, leaning back again. "Anythin' interesting?"
"Nah. Bunch of cringy seventh grade essays and a few powerpoints."
The Doctor leaned over again and plucked up the front half of the rubber turtle, the back half being plugged into the computer. He stared at it quizzically for a few seconds.
"Your flash drive's a turtle?" He asked finally, sounding skeptical.
"What's wrong with my turtle?" I returned indignantly.
He chuckled softly and placed it back on the table. "Nothing, I suppose. Just a bit weird."
"Don't make fun of my turtle," I protested from around a bite of toast. "He got me through the middle school years."
"He?" The Doctor inquired, looking amused. "Has he got a name?"
"Of course he has a name! He's called Norbert."
Now the Doctor did laugh. "Norbert? Where'd you get that from?"
"I used to have a real turtle named Norbert… who was, of course, named after…"
"Let me guess," he interrupted, "the dragon from Harry Potter?"
"The best Norbert I ever knew," I confirmed solemnly. "Even though he was only six inches long, that noble little turtle had the heart of a Norwegian Ridgeback. Worthy of having a flash drive named in his honor."
The Doctor had been taking another drink of coffee when I said that. He snorted mid sip and choked, causing him to cough and me to laugh.
"What are you two on about?" Rose's voice drifted over from the door. The girl definitely looked like she had just woken up, bleary eyed and a bit disheveled.
"He's making fun of my turtle," I answered, pretending to look dejected while the Doctor struggled to regain his composure.
"Mental, you two are," Rose commented. "You gonna finish that?"
I held the plate with the remaining piece of peanut butter toast on it out to the blonde and she took it gratefully.
The Doctor tipped his coffee cup back and drained it. He then clapped it down on the table decisively. "Are we gonna just sit around all day chin waggin', or do you lot wanna go somewhere?"
"Can I at least finish my toast first?" Rose whined.
The Doctor was already bounding out into the corridor. "Eat it on the way."
I closed my laptop quickly and disconnected the flash drive. I pocketed the small turtle but left the computer where it was. I could always come back and get it later.
. . .
By the time Rose and I made it to the console room, the Doctor was already fidgeting around the controls. He looked up from where he was frantically spinning a small wheel that was poking out from between a lever and a dial.
"Right then, where to? Any suggestions?"
Rose mumbled something that indicated indifference around her full mouth.
The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Don't talk with your mouth full."
I chewed my bottom lip thoughtfully. "What about a different planet? I haven't been to another planet yet."
The Doctor beamed at the suggestion and began dashing around the console, pulling levers while Rose and I hung onto the railing for dear life.
. . .
The Doctor exited the console room first. I attempted to peer over his shoulder at the leafy green surroundings as he paused in the doorway to gaze around cautiously.
"Where are we?" Rose's voice demanded right beside my ear. I forced myself not to wince.
The Doctor sprang out of the doorway and spun around with a huge grin, evidently over whatever had been causing him to hesitate.
"Yacorniopia!" The Timelord beamed as Rose and I followed. "Fifth planet of the Ranyacanosian system. 'Bout half a galaxy away from Earth." He shoved his hands into his jacket pockets. "And roughly 600 years into your future."
I paced out and around him to stare around in wonder.
The TARDIS has landed just inside a small grassy clearing that was surrounded by dense forest. Everything was green. Very, extremely, unnaturally green. Greener than the healthiest forests and jungles on Earth. Despite green being the dominant color, the leaves and vines seemed to radiate teal light and glitter in the sun.
I looked up at the gap between the too-green-sparkling-kinda-blue trees to see that the sky consisted of shades of pink, ranging from Pepto-Bismol to cotton candy.
"Ooh," I heard Rose sigh. " 's beautiful."
I turned back to her and the Doctor, who was still rambling about the planet.
"Uninhabited, 'cept for a few lower life forms, birds and wildcats 'n stuff," he continued, staring around at the trees.
"Are any of them dangerous?" Rose inquired.
"Nah, not really. They don't really mind us," The Doctor reassured.
"If they're aliens, how can the be birds and wildcats or whatever?" I piped up. "Like, birds and wildcats come from Earth, so wouldn't they be completely different things here?"
"They aren't actually called what people from Earth would call them," the Doctor sighed "it's just what they look similar to on Earth."
"Ah."
"Come on then!" Rose had gotten over the initial awe enough to be excited. "Exploring an alien planet!" She skipped forward to loop her arm through the Doctor's and they made their way towards a gap in the lush foliage.
I smiled and started to follow, only to freeze when I caught movement out of the corner of my eye; but when I turned towards it, there were only leaves fluttering gently in the warm breeze. The hairs at the back of my neck tingled. I shivered and scrambled after my companions, trying to hide how hurried my steps were.
. . .
The planet was beautiful. The lush trees periodically broke into glorious clearings and fields, revealing crystal blue waterways and ponds.
The Doctor had been right to mention the alien birds, because they were everywhere, small, noisy, and alarming shades of pink and blue. They swooped at us from under bushes like screaming neon softballs. Rose and I ducked and dodged around them while the Doctor simply laughed. Or, at least until they got their revenge, which came in the form of a yellow liquid smear that dropped down from the trees overhead to splatter on the Timelord's shoulder. Then it was Rose and I who were laughing, and the birds seemed to be cackling along with us.
We escaped the aerial assaults by ducking into a spacious clearing. A beautiful, sparkling lake stretched out across, roughly the size of two football fields and surrounded by sand and even more extremely green grass.
Rose and I made a beeline for the water, where she removed her shoes to wade in while I sat down in the sun-warmed sand. A still-sulking Doctor slumped down beside me, where he attempted to wipe the splatter off of his jacket with a fistful of grass.
"There's fish!" Rose announced from her ankle-deep position.
"Of course there's fish," the Doctor retorted moodily. "If there's non-acidic water, there's usually someone in it."
Rose responded with an equally moody comment, which was then turned into a bickering ping-pong match.
I rolled my eyes at their antics and stood up. I stretched and began exploring the surrounding area. I walked a short distance along the treeline, careful to keep the Doctor and Rose in my peripheral vision. I smirked when Rose playfully kicked water at him, causing him to throw his wad of alien bird poo grass at her.
Then I froze. The warm spring like air suddenly seemed cold as the same anxious vibe that I had felt back at the TARDIS crept back up my spine.
I stood stock-still and listened keenly. Sounds of the Doctor and Rose's laughter filtered back to me, accompanied by the twittering of birds and the pounding of my own heart in my ears.
The tense tingling exploded into a flash of fear. I kept facing straight ahead, staring at the line between thick grass and dense forest while listening to the movement of something creeping through the trees, behind me but off to the side so that it could watch while remaining hidden by the foliage.
My mind raced for an explanation as it edged closer. Whatever it was, it was big. I didn't know what kind of fauna to expect on this world, but it moved smoothly through the undergrowth, without tripping or stumbling, something that had been impossible for me on the way to the lake.
But it was heavy. Two legs. All of its weight on two points.
My hands trembled as the unknown creature leveled with me.
So close that the leaves near my face trembled.
Warm breath tickled my ear.
I forced my hands to stop shaking and took a deep breath.
I turned to look into large, dark magenta eyes.
SO that's that part of this adventure... like I said, hopefully the rest will follow in the next couple days. So tell me what you think!
Also, I am trying to figure out what nickname Monet will give Nine. 10 and 11's are both based on their sense of style... but 'Leather Jacket' doesn't have a nice ring to it. Nor does 'Leather'. So I'm taking ideas. Halp.