Journey Amongst the Stars
By Lumendea
Chapter Eighteen: Girl in the Fireplace: Questions Posed
Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.
AN: Once again, thank you for the massive response to this episode. I'd say a lot of you have been waiting for me to rewrite Girl in the Fireplace.
…
"Okay," Rose said. "So, they're stalking a historical figure. We still don't know why."
"No." The Doctor glared at the remains of the console. "The computer is fired. With how fast time is passing on the other side, we can't spend time trying to repair it for an answer."
"Yes, but-"
The sound of something large moving outside made both Rose and the Doctor stop and fall silent. They looked towards the door and heard clip-clops against metal. Glancing at the Doctor, Rose found that he looked just as confused as she felt. It certainly didn't sound like machinery. The nodded to each other and crept towards the door. Rose summoned her sword, and the Doctor pulled open the door. On the other side of the door in the hallway was a white horse. It looked over at her and huffed.
"A horse," Rose said. "There's a horse on a spaceship." She blinked and lowered her sword, letting it revert to bracelet form. "A horse."
"18th century Franc is on a spaceship."
"Yes, but I don't think the horse came through the fireplace," Rose said. She tentatively reached for the horse and smiled when it didn't move away. A startled laugh escaped Rose. Being a city girl, she'd never spent much or any time around large mammals. "Doesn't seem spooked, so I don't think that the droid was trying to harvest parts." She rubbed the horse's neck carefully. "So where did it come from?"
"Good question." The Doctor slipped past her and the horse. "There must be more time portals. That's probably where the droids are."
"To a stable?"
"French gardens were very large."
"I suppose that's true." Rose patted the horse again and moved to follow the Doctor. A moment later, the horse was following her. "Uh?"
"Made a friend, Rose?"
"I guess so."
"You can't keep him. The TARDIS has a lot of things, but not a stable."
"Just so long as we get him back to France," Rose agreed. "I won't leave the poor thing here."
"We will, but we need to find-"
They turned a corner and found what appeared to be a window. It had an ornate frame, and Rose realized that it was a one-way mirror. On the other side was an elegant small hall that was completely empty. She was able to speak when Reinette appeared, dressed in a stunning ballgown with her hair piled up on her head and decorated with ribbons. Reinette walked straight to the mirror and studied her reflection.
"Another window," the Doctor said. He pointed as a small handle in the frame that would open the mirror. "There must be more, scattered throughout the ship."
"And all of them for watching her?"
"I imagine so. Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson, known to her friends as Reinette."
"You said that she was the King's mistress." Rose frowned, not liking the idea even as part of her, conceded that there weren't a lot of political posts for women in the past.
"She was."
Another figure walked into the small room; a man dressed in a golden suit right out of the history books. Reinette bowed to him as servants crowded in around the man. All the sounds were muffled, and Rose noted the man's clear interest.
"This might be the night she and the king meet," the Doctor said. "The night of the Yew Tree ball. She'll become his official mistress soon and be given the title Madame de Pompadour."
"The King's mistress, the Queen can't have liked that."
"Actually, while the Queen obviously didn't like the fact that he had a mistress, she would say 'if there must be a mistress, better her than any other.' They were cordial with each other. Reinette was actually the first person ever to send Queen Marie flowers."
"Uh… wow," Rose chuckled. "Bit surprising, but decent, I suppose."
She considered the young woman through the mirror. It still felt wrong to see the little girl she'd saved all grown up and a mistress to a king. She wasn't a prude, at least she didn't think so, but it still felt a bit wrong. Then again, the only romantic relationship she'd ever had was with the man standing beside. Then again, he was an alien which probably counted for something. And their relationship was in his personal future. Maybe she didn't have any room to judge.
"Well Queen Marie did ban the King from her bedroom in 1738," the Doctor remarked with a widening grin at Rose's surprised expression. "Too many pregnancies and the last one almost killed her." He gestured towards the window. "This is 1745, so the King and the Queen aren't romantic anymore, but Reinette respected their public position and encouraged the king to have a stronger relationship with his legitimate children. She never insulted Queen Marie and respected her position, which given how one of her predecessors acted the Queen appreciated."
"Very decent then," Rose agreed. "But why are robots using up all the power of their engines to stalk her through history."
"I don't know," the Doctor muttered. His good humour was gone. "But you're right; we need to find that out."
The king and his servants left the room. Reinette returned to checking her appearance in the mirror. Her brow was furrowed slightly in thought, making Rose wonder how she was feeling and what she was thinking. Was she happy with the possible future laid out before her or nervous?
"She'll live an interesting life as his mistress," the Doctor said. "Last fourteen years of her life they weren't even lovers," the Doctor informed her. "She remained his official mistress though."
"Wait are we talking about the same Louis XV?" Rose asked in confusion. "Uh, the one really really famous for uh-"
"Yes, actually." The Doctor laughed. "They were only lovers for five years, but he was devoted to her for the rest of her life. They were friends; she was his advisor on some matters and did her best to lighten his load." The Doctor's voice had softened. "She was his best friend, someone he trusted in a court full of ambition and intrigue."
Rose suddenly had the feeling that the Doctor saw more than she did here. The urge to reassure him that she loved him romantically grew in her chest, but she held it back. Instead, she settled for shifting closer and taking his hand. His fingers tightened around hers.
"When she died her position as his Mistress wasn't the focus of her history," the Doctor continued. "By that point, she was famous for her brilliant mind and ran a salon where politics, literature, and philosophy were openly debated. She'd been such an influential patron of the arts and even some businesses. Even her enemies who disapproved of her admired her a little."
"Then why…." Rose trailed off, uncertain how to even begin to ask her question.
"In my experience, the males of your species are frightened by competent women," the Doctor replied with a sad chuckle. "Your past is full of them, but they are rarely remembered as they should be." He smiled a little and then sighed. "It's too bad that we can't go to one of those salon gatherings. It would be fun to join in the debates."
"That does sound fun, but we need to focus on the dangerous droids who are obsessed with stalking Reinette. Protect history and all that."
They shared a soft chuckle, and Rose was about to suggest they move on when Reinette tensed. Rose straightened up herself and watched as Reinette whirled away from the mirror and looked around the small room. She couldn't see Reinette's face, but her body language was nervous. Reaching for the doorknob, Rose was only stopped by the Doctor who gestured for her to wait.
"Could be nothing," he cautioned.
"How long have you been standing there? Show yourself!"
A figure moved out from behind a tapestry. It appeared to be a woman in an elegant gown, but the movement was all wrong. Rose grabbed the knob, and they rotated the mirror. Reinette jumped and looked back towards them in alarm.
"Lady Knight! Fireplace man!"
The Doctor nodded in greeting but hoisted the fire extinguisher. The droid lunged at them only to be hit with an intense spray of cold. Rose gently pulled Reinette back from the droid, feeling a wash of cold against her skin. Ice crystals or something very similar formed over the droid, locking it in place. The Doctor didn't smile like Rose expected and kept hold of the fire extinguisher.
"Be ready," the Doctor snapped. "It'll fight through the ice."
Summoning her sword, Rose shifted between Reinette and the droid. Sure enough, a moment later, the ice began to crack as the droid fought to move.
"Tell it to answer my questions," the Doctor said to Reinette.
"Why would it obey me?" Reinette asked. She was eyeing the droid in alarm, but not running.
"They are fixated on you; there's got to be a reason. Plus, it showed itself when you ordered."
"Doctor, I'm not sure-"
The droid started to move its arm as the ice melted. Reinette gasped in alarm but quickly recovered. "Answer his question. Answer any and all questions put to you."
"Identify yourself," the Doctor said.
"I am repair droid seven."
"What happened to the ship? What caused all that damage?" the Doctor asked.
"Ion storm. Eighty-two percent systems failure."
"What is taking you so long to replace the ship? You haven't moved in over a year?
"We did not have the parts."
"So you used the crew," Rose whispered. "You used them for parts?"
"We did not have the parts."
"There should have been at least fifty people on that ship," the Doctor pressed. "You used all of them?"
"Eighty-two percent systems failure," the droid repeated. "We did not have the parts."
Rose had known what happened, but her stomach still turned at the matter of fact words. She hoped that the droids had lowered the oxygen or something first, so the crew hadn't known that they were being hunted as parts. She shuddered at the very idea. It was straight out of a horror movie.
"Repairs by any means necessary," the Doctor said. Dark angry had taken hold of his tone. "But then you punched a hole in time to come to 18th century France, why?"
"One more part is required."
The Doctor glanced at Reinette and stepped closer to her. "I need to check something, Madame. I won't hurt you."
"What do you seek?" Reinette asked. She shifted back from the Doctor and looked at Rose.
"It's okay," Rose promised. "He won't hurt you."
Reinette was still clearly shaken, but she nodded. The Doctor stepped forward and raised his hands to her temple. "I think they've been scanning your brain," the Doctor said. "I just need to check…" He stepped back, and his expression grew even darker. "You've been scanning her since she was a child! All these years, stalking her and playing in her brain! Why?"
"She is incomplete."
"What are you waiting for?" the Doctor demanded. He was running out of patience by the sound of his voice. Rose stepped closer to Reinette to calm her, putting a hand on Reinette's shoulder. "All these years, all this effort and energy, what are you waiting for?"
"She is incomplete."
"Why her?" Rose questioned calmly, staying near Reinette and keeping her hand on the woman's shoulder. The question earned her a look of surprise from the Doctor. "You've got all of time and space to choose from so why her?"
"We are the same," the droid answered mechanically.
"We are not the same!" Reinette snapped.
Rose tightened her grip on Reinette's shoulder in an attempt to calm her down even as she turned the droid's words over her head. It worked, and Reinette took a deep breath despite her gown and fell silent. Though she glared daggers at the droid while Rose turned the odd response over in her head. They'd taken hearts from the crew to replace pumping, eyes to replace cameras, livers for filters and the other horrific examples that she was certain were scattered about. Yet the computer remained damaged with no signs of repair work.
"What's the name of the ship?" Rose asked, shifting forward a little.
"Madame de Pompadour," the droid replied, drawing a horrified gasp from Reinette.
"So, you need her brain for the computer. Or at least you think you do." the Doctor said. He gave the droid a vicious glare. "Bad enough to kill the crew of the ship, but now you're messing with the past." He frowned as Rose kept a comforting hand on Reinette. "What are you waiting for?"
"She is incomplete," the droid answered.
"Incomplete," Rose repeated before nodding. "How old is the ship?"
"Thirty-seven years old."
"It thinks the computer needs to be the same age," the Doctor said. "That's why they're stalking you. They keep checking your age."
"And when I am thirty-seven?" Reinette demanded. "What is this computer you speak of? Does it want my brain? For what purpose?"
"When complete, the brain shall be harvested. The computer controls the ship functions," the droid answered dutifully. "Yes. To replace the damaged computer."
Reinette stepped back, fear taking over her anger even as she fought against it. Rose moved in front of her once again, blocking her view of the droid and taking Reinette's hands. She trusted the Doctor not to let the droid stab her in the back.
"Reinette, look at me," Rose snapped. To her relief, the other woman calmed down and obeyed her. "We are not going to let them hurt you. We know when they'll strike, and we'll keep you safe."
"You promise?" Reinette suddenly sounded very much like the small little girl she'd been less than an hour ago to Rose.
"I promise."
There was a brittle sound behind her and Rose spun around. The droid was free of the ice. The Doctor was preparing to blast it again, but it teleported out with a shimmer. Reinette gasped and swayed. Rose gripped her arms tightly to keep her upright and gently led her over to the nearest chair. Reinette sank into it gratefully while the Doctor grumbled behind them.
"Reinette, how old are you now?" Rose asked.
"Twenty-three." Reinette shook her head and swallowed. "How is this possible, Rose?"
"The universe is a strange place, a miraculous place," Rose answered. "But with those miracles come some monsters. But I promise you; I won't let them hurt you."
"Thirty-seven," Reinette sighed. "Am I just to live as if I don't know the danger?"
"Yes." Rose nodded. "That's all you can do, Reinette. Don't let them stop you from living the life you want. Try not to worry about them. After all, I'm a knight. It's my job to protect you. Let the Doctor and I worry about them, you live your life."
Reinette almost smiled at Rose's words and nodded. Her posture straightened and the scared little girl retreated under the grandeur of the future uncrowned Queen of France.
"And don't forget that the King is waiting for a dance," the Doctor added.
Now Reinette did smile.