Yay! I made words! :D
So, it's the Super Bowl... what was your favorite commercial?
Clyde looked away from Jack as he finished explaining his story. The boy's eyes were dark, and he frowned, looking troubled. "Well then, what choice do I have... Jack? I have to let you go if you're telling the truth. But if you're not..." His dark expression went ever-blacker.
"He is telling the truth," Rani mumbled, coming in from the other room. She had Donna's wrist firmly gripped in her hand. "This one spilled the truth."
The Dalek snarled, made a half-hearted attempt to yank its wrist away, and then looked towards the wall, brooding. "We're sorry for any confusion," Martha sighed, giving Donna's body a nervous glance. "It's just... well, we didn't have much choice."
"I understand, I guess," Clyde consented. "But you promise Sarah Jane is safe?"
Jack raised his head. He looked at Clyde, but his eyes seemed far away. "Yes Clyde, I do. I think... I don't know, but I think I would know if she wasn't."
"Well, I suppose you'll need... this, then," Rani said, shooting Donna a wary glance. She too seemed troubled.
"Yes, that was the reason I'd come down here actually. Sorry about the ruddy timing Jack," Martha said, smiling sheepishly. "I guess we'll just-" At that moment, a cell phone in her pocket began ringing. She passed everyone a look and then picked it up.
"Yes, who is this? Doctor?" (Here Rani and Clyde sucked in a sharp breath and exchanged glances, but neither said anything.) "What is it? Who? Sorry, what are you talking about?" She paused for a moment, and very faintly the voice of the Doctor, sharp and urgent, could be heard. Jack's heart was pounding, knowing the Timelord was so close in that moment, but he was unable to pick out his words. "Amy's done what? Oh god, I'll be over as quick as I can. I know. Bye."
"What's going on?" Jack asked, seeing as Martha was now a blur, grabbing her coat, firmly wrapping her arm around Donna's, getting her things together.
"The crystal's struck again," she replied grimly. "He needs my help, I have to go."
"I'm coming with," he replied.
"What?" Martha was temporarily frozen. "No, Jack, I'm sorry but you can't. I can't deal with you, the Doctor, and this whole crystal business at the same time. I wouldn't be able to cover for you."
He shook his head. "Forget that, it doesn't matter anymore. What's important is that you guys get all the help you can, and I can help. I've dealt with a lot of alien stuff. I might be of use."
"As Sarah Jane?"
"Yes," he huffed. "I don't care what you say, Martha, I'm coming."
Her eyes traveled slowly across the room, and the Dalek watched her, his eyes narrow slits. She sighed. "Fine, Jack. But whatever happens isn't my fault."
"What about us?" Rani asked. She looked vaguely jealous.
Clyde gave her a knowing look before turning to the two of them. "Just say hi to the Doctor for us, alright?"
Martha slowed, and after a second smiled. "You've got it. Now c'mon Jack."
As she flew out the door, he lingered at the threshold for a moment, and turned to face the two kids. "Well, hopefully this'll be the last time you'll have to deal with me."
"Just... just bring Sarah Jane back in one piece, okay?" Clyde asked softly.
"Only if you keep this one safe," he gestured at Rani, passed Clyde a knowing wink, and was gone.
Most of the time, the run down old house was as quiet as death, but not today. As Donna sat, waiting in silence, she began to hear shouting from upstairs. It started with voices being raised on occasion, voices muffled through the wood, but gradually grew to full-blown shouting. After a while she heard a few screeches, and realized in dismay it was the bitter, anguished sound of a little boy crying his heart out. And still the yelling went on, an awful, pounding din.
At first Donna was just irritable she didn't know what was going on. She wished she could understand whatever problem was taking place, maybe even help. But the longer James's crying went on, the angrier she became. What right did these two insolent boys have to ruin their helpless, younger friend's life?
The yelling cut off, suddenly and abruptly with the sound of a door slamming, and pounding footsteps coming her way. Through the door came Reid, eyes narrowed and angry, a thin gray bag slung over his shoulder. He didn't lower his gaze, or look away at all. He met Donna's eyes with a fiery passion, a burning anger, and snapped, "If I let you go, will you leave us and never return?"
"Yes," she said automatically, not even thinking. It was like that word had been waiting on her tongue her whole life, waiting for this moment.
"Fine then," he stepped forward and began untying her, simultaneously calling, "James!"
More footsteps pounding overhead. "What happened?" Donna ventured.
He looked like he might snap at her, but finally said, "Cor got ideas that I don't like, ideas about you, and James was put in the middle. I decided not to stand for it."
"What sort of ideas about me?"
He didn't say anything until the ropes were fully untied, at which point he stepped back. "He wanted to sell you on the black market, or trash you. I disagreed. I thought we could do better with equipment like yours. He got... angry." The boy paused for a moment, then added, "I'm leaving."
"And you're just going... to let me go?" Donna was stunned.
Before he could answer, James appeared in the threshold. "I've got my stuff, Reid," he mumbled.
Reid nodded. "C'mon. Alien, can you move?"
"Yes," she said, unable to keep a pricking of irritation out of her voice. They made it to the front door – Donna and Reid were even outside – when Cor appeared at the top of the stairs. His eyes were dark, expression unreadable.
"You're taking it, too? Why?"
"I'm not," Reid said. "We're letting it go."
"What?" he thundered. "Why? That thing was our prize! We would 'ave lived easy using it, Reid? Why are you doing this?"
"You don't get it, Cor," he sighed. "I think I've figured out a few things now, and one of them is that this thing has a life just like us, and we should let it get back to that. I'm not letting you control us, or the alien."
"Damnit," he snapped, heading down the stairs.
Reid seemed to take this as his cue. He pushed past Donna, turning to the right, and glared at her. "Just go, please. This is your fault. I don't want to leave Cor on his own, but I have to now, because of you. Please, just please go."
She began to slink away as James came out the door. "Please don't do this, Cor. It's innocent, whatever it is. Don't hurt it." He turned to Donna and gave her a look like fire. "Thank you, but you have to go now. It's not safe anymore."
Thank you. It's innocent. His words rung quietly in Donna's ears. She gave a single nod of her eyestalk, then turned and hurried off as quickly as she could. She heard shouting behind her, mainly from the two older boys, but gradually it faded away with distance, and the world fell silent. Donna moved quickly, knowing she had to get to the safety of the TARDIS. Despite her pain, despite all she'd just seen, it was time she got back.
It was time to see the Doctor again.
Rose's vision blurred as she stared blankly at the ivory tree trunks surrounding her. She was exhausted and dazed after last night, and her mind felt pained and disorganized. Her thoughts were beginning to drift deeper into her subconscious when suddenly she heard leaves rustling behind her to her left. She turned and saw River, looking – for the first and only time Rose could ever think of – rather sheepish.
"What?" she asked. "How did you find me?"
River looked down guiltily. "I read your mind. Nice hiding place though. Very forest-y and nice, easy to get lost in. Rather far from the TARDIS. I like it."
"Well, thanks, I guess," she muttered, looking away. There was a moment of silence before River spoke. Hearing her own voice, speaking to her in a measured way, like an utterly different person, gave Rose an eerie feeling.
"You know, I didn't mean to cause all this trouble Rose. That wasn't my design at all. I suppose, to be honest, I wasn't really thinking."
I wasn't thinking. Rose was sent back to a moment that felt like ages ago, when the Doctor had spoken those same words to her, and it had made the ground beneath her feet shake. There was no such effect here – with River, it was different. She wasn't the same. She wasn't an ancient Timelord, an endless entity, the sort who didn't make mistakes and never stopped thinking. With River, the words were hollow. They meant nothing.
"If it helps," she said gently, reading Rose's mind. "I don't really mind whether you forgive me or not. It's just good to get it out."
Rose stood from the tree stump she'd been sitting on, crying out in shock. "You read my mind again! You saw me thinking about that! You saw that, when we were in the TARDIS... and, and we kissed..."
She backed away as River took a step forward. "I... well, it's not so much that I don't mind, but... With him, it's different. I can't blame either of you for that."
"But you read my mind, you saw that, that personal thing, you... you..." You did what I did, Rose thought, but she stopped speaking. What right did she, the girl who had broken all barriers of River's mind, have to yell at her?
"I'm sorry," she said, and Rose believed her. "It's... well, it's liberating, this power. To read anyone's mind, to know what they're thinking, what they've seen and done... That's huge. That's huge and dangerous, and powerful, and, well, sort of cool."
"I think I get it," she said, but wasn't so sure. Did she really? She hadn't truly used the power at all, except when River had instigated her, and not all the time even then. After a hesitant moment of silence, Rose reached forward and looked into River's mind.
There, see? Her voice said clearly in her head. It's not bad. My cards are on the table too. In a way, we're equals here.
But they weren't, and Rose knew it. She tried to hide her thoughts about last night, to put up a barrier between them and River. Struggling to focus, she spoke aloud, "I still don't like it. It's obtrusive. It- It makes people do things they'll regret."
"I agree," River said almost immediately. She felt her presence leave Rose's mind as well. "It's not a good thing, power like this. That's why the Doctor's trying to get rid of it."
She looked away. "What about him? What is it that makes you love him? Or... or the other way around?"
She laughed softly. "Oh, I don't know about him. Who knows if he even cares about me? But... Hmm, what makes me love him, you say..." She began a slow pace, and Rose subconsciously began to settle down onto her tree stump again. "I can't really place it. It's something about his power, I think. He's the type where the dominance in a relationship would never stay in one place between the two of us. It would go back and forth, no real control, like a dance. That's something I'd like in a man, I think. That he doesn't have to be in control all the time."
"For me, it goes the other way," she said, somewhat wryly. "He can take the control, too. And he's the type where I wouldn't know what to do if he wasn't in the lead."
"Sometimes I think that, too," she replied. "He's definitely much more clever than me. But you know... I'm not as young as I look. Certainly not as old as him, but... old enough to have lost count."
This was news to Rose. She stared at River – or rather River in her body – almost a bit uncertainly, wondering what other secrets the girl held. Of course she didn't wonder enough to try sneaking in her head again. Rose didn't think she'd ever try anything like that again. But she wondered enough to look at River in a different light now.
"I think he likes you," she said. "Just because you're so otherworldly. I... I think he likes it, because it makes him feel like he's closer to you. I don't have that. I'm just human."
River laughed loudly. "He takes humans with him wherever he goes! I'm certain he's found some appeal in them, Rose."
Rose was quiet for a moment, smiling. "You're right, River. And... I do accept your apology. It won't be that big of a deal anyways, when everything's straightened out. Thank you."
She stood and began walking back in the general direction of the TARDIS. River stood there for a moment, watching her disappear. "No, Rose. Thank you." She followed the blonde back into the tangle of trees.