Sink In Good Oblivion
It was three in the morning when she finally gave up on trying to get to sleep.
Two hours before she'd given up lying in the dark and had turned on the lights. An hour after that she'd given up on her book. And a hour after that she gave up on the internet and writing emails.
This was no nightmare related sleeplessness as she experienced before, this was good old-fashioned insomnia and she had no idea where it had sprung up from. She was the type of human who needed ten hours sleep a night to function properly.
She got out of bed, slipped into her dressing gown and out of the room. At night the lights of the TARDIS were dimmed, only a soft blue glow emanating from somewhere near her feet. The ship was hushed, almost eerie without the usual sounds of flight and the Doctor fixing something, probably singing at the top of his voice.
Her bare feet padded almost silently along the wooden floor, without direction. She didn't know what to do to help her sleep, or even clam her mind. Briefly, she thought of going to get a drink of water or possibly going to look outside the TARDIS doors and see where they were. The Doctor usually set them to orbit somewhere at night and she could sit in the doorway and watch the constellations. Neither option was particularly appealing, however, and she let her feet lead on.
She paused outside the library doors and, finally making a decision, went inside. She had always found the library a comforting, calming place. Quite apart from the heavy wooden furniture and quiet atmosphere, there was the feeling that, between the bound covers of hundreds of books, the characters and stories lay quiescent until they were opened and called to their duty.
Setting off down one of the aisles, she let her hand trail softly along the spines of the third row. She came to the end of the shelves and while pausing to make a decision between turning right and turning left, her attention was arrested by a small table in front of her on which sat a pile of books, with one lying open beside them. Picking up the open book she read the first part of the page.
"Chapter XVI. On a thyme-scented, bird-hatching morning in May - "
She recognised it instantly and quickly set the book back down again. Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbevilles. She'd read it before and never wanted to again, despite having enjoyed it on some level. Her romantic, faithful heart rebelled absolutely from the ending.
Casting an eye over the remaining pile she picked up one that had a book mark sticking out of it. She opened it at that page.
"Oblonsky was a straightforward man in dealing with himself."
Someone had the read the first chapter and never got any further, she could guess who that was. Dipping her head she inhaled the scent of the book, the dusty ancient scent that pervaded all good libraries. She glanced at the bookmark that she'd been flipping between her fingers and found it was half a ripped ticket for the original performance of Bach's Brandenburg Concerto. Smiling softly she flipped to the flyleaf and read the title.
"Anna Karenin. L. N. Tolstoy."
She was intrigued, it was one of those books that everyone knew the title of but very few had actually read. She turned to the first page, noting along the way that it was a first edition and signed by the author himself, thanking the Doctor for all his help. There was a story in there certainly.
"All happy families are alike but an unhappy family is unhappy after its own fashion."
That seemed as good a way to start as any, she continued. As she read, she began to walk. She briefly considered curling up in one of the deep leather chairs but her legs felt restless, despite all the running she had done earlier that day, and she kept moving.
Before she knew it she had left the library and walked some way down the hall. At the end of the second chapter, she glanced up and was surprised to see she was in a part of the TARDIS she didn't recognise. She'd been following inclination more than anything, trusting to the ship to keep her out of trouble.
The shoulder of her dressing gown slipped down her arm and she barely noticed. Rather welcomed it, despite the cool air of a night time TARDIS, as a relief from the odd, vaguely feverish heat felt by those deprived of sleep.
There was only one door in this stretch of the corridor and she was willing to bet she'd never been in that room before.
Yielding to a sudden, overwhelming impulse she reached out and turned the handle, letting the door swing inwards.
Immediately she became aware there was someone in the room. It was in deep darkness and all she could see was her own shadow, stretching away from the light of the door, but she knew there was someone there.
From her left, there suddenly came the rustling of bed covers and a table lamp was switched on.
"Ella?" came a sleepy, confused voice. It appeared the Doctor was a very light sleeper.
"Sorry," she apologised immediately, closing the door and walking towards his bed where he sat blinking, oblivious to his tousled hair and toplessness.
"S'alright." He replied, rubbing his eyes before squinting up at her. "Couldn't sleep?"
"No, I was just reading and ended up here." she still sounded apologetic but the Doctor merely directed a brief, wry look at the ceiling. He knew exactly how she'd happened to end up in his room. His ship continued to meddle with the pair of them as she had done from the start.
"Get in," he instructed, jerking his head to the other side of the bed. She clambered over his legs and settled onto the pillows, tucking her now icy toes under the quilt for warmth.
"What book did you get?" he asked, lying back down again.
"Anna Karenin." She replied, opening it up again at her page.
"Great first chapter," he declared, already half asleep, and she smiled as her suspicions were confirmed.
She spent an hour or so absorbed in the story before lying down beside him and finally getting to sleep herself, lulled by his steady breathing and the double beat of his hearts.
A/N: I bet you can guess I wrote this when I was trying to get sleep... Please review!! xx
Just had to repost to put in the comment -- gratuitous topless Doctor! Always is a good thing!
I feel very silly - this is the third time I've had to repost this chapter - this time because I got mixed up between Beethoven and Bach - in soooo much trouble :(