Watching the Doctor

by RedRobyn2

The Doctor is stranded in prison, dealing with the revelations of the Timeless Child and the memories of her time travelling, all alone. Until the Tardis decides enough is enough and gathers her and some of her more recent companions to help her deal with her past and make some amends by watching her adventures. Characters watch the show, set after Timeless Child/Pre-Resolution.

35. Midnight

Hi guys! I know, it's a miracle I finally updated, yay! Yeah, sorry about the delay - deadlines were kicking my butt.

Anyway, here's Midnight, I hope you enjoy!

Next up is the Five Doctors a classic who episode (that I have admittedly never seen, so this is going to be fun). No promises when it will be up as I am away then have exams then am away again, so we'll see I guess.

Well, hope you enjoy this chapter! Please let me know what you think!

Also keep your chapter suggestions coming in (and maybe why you want that episode, it's interesting to read people's reasoning and you may convince me to change my plan). I honestly thrive off of your comments.

As always, thank you for reading and hope you enjoyed!

Robyn

---

Amy and Rory dragged their daughter into their room, wanting a moment of privacy for the discussion that they needed to have. The pair settled on the edge of their bed, shoulders touching as a silent show of support to each other. River settled in a chair pulled over to face her waiting parents, feeling like a naughty child awaiting a scolding (a feeling she was intimately familiar with). Silence persisted in the room as the three struggled with what to say, unsure of how to start the conversation they all knew they had to have.

Rory eventually sighed, rubbing his forehead before taking a deep breath and breaking the silence. "How did you survive? I mean, we know you got out of the Library … you did get out, didn't you?"

River smiled fondly as her father fumbled his words slightly, though it was bittersweet with memories of their 'childhood' together and the knowledge of their fate. She'd been enjoying her extra time with them, and she wasn't sure how she was going to be able to deal with the pain of losing them again.

"Yes dad, I got out. How? I'm very clever and had access to a planet worth of knowledge. Stormcage couldn't contain me, what makes you think anything else could?" River smirked softly, avoiding the details for she knew that her parents didn't actually care about them as long as she was okay.

"Then why didn't you tell anyone?" Amy jumped in, impatient for answers. "It's been a long time since then for the Doctor, if anyone could track them down it would be you so why haven't you told her?"

At that question, River's expression saddened. "You both know what the Doctor's like. She was busy and it took me longer than I would have liked to escape. I wanted to rebuild my life a bit before getting involved in the chaos that encircles the Doctor. I think I always planned to tell her eventually but we both needed some time apart."

"And you weren't sure if she had moved on or not." Amy read through her daughter's fears far too easily. Neither of them was unaware of River's concerns regarding her relationship with the Doctor after some of the videos they'd seen but this was the first time they'd had an actual chance to address it. River just nodded reluctantly, stuck between glad her parents knew her and annoyed they could read her so easily.

"I'm glad you were taking some time River." Rory interjected. "You need your own life, but you also need friends and as … difficult … as the Doctor can be, she does love you." Rory and Amy shared a glance.

Amy continued her husband's sentence. "What Rory is trying to say is the two of you should have a talk, try and work out your relationship more."

"We did." River sighed, more frustrated with herself than her parents "We spent 24 years on Darillium working on it."

"Yes, but you didn't have the chance to address your death and both of you have changed since then, which isn't a bad thing. Communicating about your relationship isn't something you do once River, it's something you should always be doing." Rory continued.

"Even though we know communication is not the Doctor or your strongest point." Amy snorted. Rory just shook his head fondly at his wife.

"Regardless, we're here for you River. So, let's just enjoy this chance we've been given and spend some time together." Rory smiled softly at his wife and daughter, eager for a chance to properly spend time with them without imminent danger.

"Family bonding time." Amy declared with a wicked smile, causing Rory and River to share a fond, if not concerned, look for their fate. They'd be okay, it may take some time, but they'd get there.

---

Just down the hall in Donna's room sat the loud redhead herself and Martha. The pair had had a silent conversation as the last video ended, Donna being resigned to her fate and had led Martha to her room, thinking that if they were going to do this, they were at least going to be comfortable.

The pair sat in a semi awkward silence next to each other on the bed, neither sure where to start. Taking a deep breath, Martha finally decided enough was enough and the silence couldn't go on any longer. "Are you okay?" Arguably a stupid question, but they had to start somewhere.

Donna's initial response was a loud exhale followed by a clearly fake smile and a, "Why wouldn't I be?"

Martha just gave her a raised eyebrow, making Donna almost visibly deflate. "It was a while ago." Donna tried to argue.

"Maybe, but you're only just getting these memories back now and watching these videos can't be helping. I know there's a few things that I am hoping won't be shown from my adventures." Martha sighed, so far, she'd gotten away without featuring in these videos (aside from a quick appearance during Pinstripe's regeneration) and she couldn't say she was eager to experience some of their adventures again.

"I'm happy. I have a loving husband, my mum and grandad, and a descent job." Donna shook her head, trying desperately to convince myself. "I'm happy!"

"But you felt like you were missing something." Martha said kindly, shuffling closer to her friend.

Donna was unusually quiet, so Martha continued. "You're allowed to not be okay Donna, you're my friend and … I missed you." Martha's admission caused Donna to lift her eyes from the floor of the room where they'd been firmly locked for the last few moments.

"You're right." It was a quiet admission, but an honest one, "I think I knew something was missing but I tired so hard to ignore it … I missed you too, and I think some part of me did even without my memories. I miss my time with the Doctor because I didn't get to leave of my own choosing like you, it just suddenly stopped and I couldn't even remember everything I'd done. … I don't know if I can deal with losing those memories again.

Martha reached over to squeeze Donna's shoulder comfortingly. "You won't I promise. We'll figure something out. With everyone in the room we have thousands of years of knowledge and ideas we can try. It will be okay."

"I hope you're right."

"I am." Martha said confidently, "And when we get out of here, we'll make sure the Doctor visits even if we have to drag her, I know Wilf would love to see her again."

That made Donna snort, "I can just imagine mum's reaction to her."

Martha grinned, "I will pay to see that. Besides August needs to finally meet his aunty Donna." She nudged Donna lightly with her shoulder.

"I'd like that." Donna admitted. "Thank you."

Martha's smile softened, she knew exactly what Donna was trying to say, "Any time. We're friends Donna, I know you'd do the same for me."

Donna nodded as she stood, "Let's get back to the others."

"We may as well see what chaos is in store for us next." Martha stood up with her own grin, allowing Donna to lead the way out and down the corridor. They strolled along the corridor in a comfortable silence heading towards the kitchen where they could hear chatter.

They found the rest of the group congregated around one of the larger tables in the kitchen area, varying mugs of coffee and tea strewn around the table. The only people that were missing were Amy, Rory and River, as well as the Master but a quick glance of the room revealed him sulking a corner. The Doctor was in the midst of the group, smiling and enjoying being surrounded by her friends and family.

"What are you talking about?" Martha asked curiously, moving to stand behind her husband.

"The weirdest animals we've seen." Bill declared with a dramatic sip of her coffee. Martha and Donna shared a glance and then a shrug – that was on brand with their type of chaos. Everyone shuffled to allow the pair to join as the discussion continued, the group patiently waiting for Amy, Rory and River to finish in their own time.

It was only about fifteen minutes later (of heated debate – they'd seen some weird things during their travels), before the trio they'd been waiting on strolled in happily chatting (about what no one could tell). Stopping in what sounded like the middle of a sentence, Amy crossed her arms at the group and called out, "Well? Are we going to see what's in store for us next or sit around here all day?"

The Doctor smiled at the trio, "Guess that's our cue to move on out." As she spoke, she stood up from the table, everyone following her lead. It didn't take long for them all to shuffle back through to the viewing room and settle back into what had become their normal seats, all mentally preparing themselves for what was about to come.

They didn't have to wait long as moments after they all settled, as the screen turned black and the next title was shown.

"Midnight?" Yaz raised an eyebrow, "Short title." Like many of the group she was glancing around to see if anyone had nay ideas about what this video could be about.

The Doctor's face had gone white and Donna had startled as Yaz announced the title. Donna whipped round to glance concerned at the Doctor, they both had a very good guess of what this was likely to be about. It seemed the Tardis wasn't giving them a break after the emotional trauma of the last video. Despite herself Donna couldn't help but be a bit curious about the details – the Doctor had not been okay after this mess and she'd heard parts of it but she didn't know exactly what had happened.

Their reaction did not go unnoticed by the rest of the group. "I'm guessing its not a good one then." Jack grimaced.

"From the little I know, that's putting it lightly." Donna shared his expression, gaze still focussed on the Doctor who was only just starting to come back to the present with the help of River squeezing her hand and mumbling quietly to her.

"Great, looking forward to this one then." Bill declared sarcastically, eyeing the screen warily. With no further words, the video started.

[Spa]

(On a glittering alien world, an attendant brings a telephone to Donna. She is lounging by the pool, wearing a bathrobe.)

"Looks like a nice time." Rose said cautiously, they all knew looks could be deceiving.

Donna hummed at that, "I had a nice time, finally found somewhere I could just sunbathe by the pool. The Doctor however …" They could all finish the sentence, and they were all a bit curious as it sounds like the pair had been separated for the whole mess which was unusual.

DONNA: I said, no.

[Public telephone]

DOCTOR: Sapphire waterfall. It's a waterfall made of sapphires.

[Spa]

DOCTOR [OC]: This enormous jewel, the size of a glacier

[Public telephone]

DOCTOR: Reaches the Cliffs of Oblivion, and then shatters into sapphires at the edge. They fall a hundred thousand feet into a crystal ravine.

"Are you a tour guide now Doctor?" Amy teased but her smile fell at the way the Doctor flinched (at the mention of a tour guide unknown to Amy). To her credit, the Doctor tried to give Amy a smile although it was wobbly. She was not excited to experience this again.

[Spa]

DONNA: I bet you say that to all the girls.

[Public telephone]

DOCTOR: Oh, come on. They're boarding now. It's no fun if I see it on me own. Four hours, that's all it takes.
DONNA [OC]: No, that's four hours there and four hours back. That's like a school trip.

"Yeah, not selling it Doctor." Ryan muttered.

[Spa]

DONNA: I'd rather go sunbathing.
DOCTOR [OC]: You be careful, that's Xtonic sunlight.
DONNA: Oh, I'm safe. It says in the brochure this glass is fifteen feet thick.

"I think you've got the right idea about things Donna." Martha grinned at her friend.

Donna nodded, "Oh I did. Brilliant sun-bathing spot." The outside however, was another matter.

DOCTOR [OC]: All right, I give up.

[Public telephone]

DOCTOR: I'll be back for dinner. We'll try that anti-gravity restaurant. With bibs.
DONNA [OC]: That's a date.

[Spa]

DONNA: Well, not a date. Oh, you know what I mean. Oh, get off.

[Public telephone]

DOCTOR: See you later.
DONNA [OC]: Oi.

[Spa]

DONNA: And you be careful, all right?
DOCTOR [OC]: Nah.

The pair shared a glance, wishing the Doctor had never gone on that trip. The rest of the group was smiling despite their worry over what they were about to watch, they always enjoyed watching the dynamic duo of the Doctor and Donna – their friendship was amazing to witness.

[Public telephone]

DOCTOR: Taking a big space truck with a bunch of strangers across a diamond planet called Midnight? What could possibly go wrong?
He hangs the phone up.

"You know better Doctor." Rory sighed as he berated the Doctor, if anyone knew better than to test their luck like that it was the Doctor. The Doctor winced; she really had jinxed herself.

"Oh! So, the planet's called Midnight?" Bill said, "Makes sense for the title."

[Shuttle]

(The Doctor has taken his seat in the passenger compartment of the bus cum aeroplane. Other passengers are still boarding.)
HOSTESS: Complimentary juice pack and complimentary peanuts.
SKY: Just the headphones, please.
HOSTESS: There you go.
(The hostess leaves the woman in the blue suit and goes to the Doctor.)

Everyone one watches the normal interactions tense, waiting for a danger they knew would appear but hoping desperately it wouldn't. They couldn't help but glance at the Doctor who was clearly on edge, eyes darting between people on screen warily. The few that looked closely noticed her sad expression upon seeing the hostess, which wasn't a good sign.

HOSTESS: That's the headphones for channels one to thirty six. Modem link for 3D vidgames. Complimentary earplugs. Complimentary slippers. Complimentary juice pack and complimentary peanuts. I must warn you some products may contain nuts.

"Gee, I wonder where the nuts are." Rose rolled her eyes.

DOCTOR: That'll be the peanuts.
HOSTESS: Enjoy your trip.
DOCTOR: Oh, I can't wait. Allons-y.

Martha, Mickey, Rose and Donna – those that had travelled with Pinstripes – couldn't help but smile fondly at the familiar turn of phrase from the Doctor. No one was liking how the Doctor was on their own, they'd already seen that it often didn't end well when they did – though thankfully on this occasion, at least Donna would be around for the aftermath.

HOSTESS: I'm sorry?
DOCTOR: It's French, for let's go.
HOSTESS: Fascinating.
(The Second Doctor's son, David Troughton, and his petite Indian assistant have taken the seats behind the Doctor.)
HOSTESS: Headphones for channels one to thirty six.
HOBBES: Oh no, thank you, not for us.
DEE DEE: Earplugs, please.
HOSTESS: There you go.
HOBBES: They call it the Sapphire Waterfall, but it's no such thing. Sapphire's an aluminium oxide, but the glacier is just compound silica with iron pigmentation.

"Don't ruin the immersion mate." Graham said.

(The hostess moves on to a couple, man and woman.)
HOSTESS: Complimentary juice pack and complimentary peanuts.
VAL: Thank you.
HOBBES: Have you got that pillow for my neck?
DEE DEE: Yes, sir.
HOBBES: And the pills?
DEE DEE: Yes, all measured out for you. There you go.
(Hobbes leans over to meet the Doctor.)
HOBBES: Hobbes. Professor Winfold Hobbes.

"I'm not getting great vibes from him." Yaz tilted her head with a thrown, she didn't like how he was treating Dee Dee. Bill nodded in agreement even as a few of the older members of the group raised eyebrows at the phrasing.

DOCTOR: I'm the Doctor. Hello.
HOBBES: It's my fourteenth time.
DOCTOR: Oh. My first.
DEE DEE: And I'm Dee Dee, Dee Dee Blasco.
HOBBES: Don't bother the man. Where's my water bottle?

"Oh yeah, that's not a great partnership." Martha grimaced, "Let me guess an intern or assistant?" The Doctor nodded in confirmation. It wasn't great that she could guess that based on how he he'd acted so far and treated Dee Dee, it would have been nice to see things change in the future but apparently some things hadn't yet.

HOSTESS: Complimentary slippers, complimentary juice pack, and complimentary peanuts. I must warn you some products may contain nuts.
(A teenage boy is sitting across the aisle from his parents.)
VAL: Don't be silly. Come and sit with us. Look, we get slippers.
BIFF: Jethro. Do what your mother says.
JETHRO: I'm sitting here.

"Ah, awkward teenager dragged along on a family trip." Mickey shook his head.

BIFF: Oh, he's ashamed of us, but he doesn't mind us paying, does he?
VAL: Oh, don't you two start. Should I save the juice pack or have it now? Look, peach and clementine.
(Boarding is complete.)

"That is an interesting collection of people on a trip." Amy remarked, it really was an odd amalgamation of characters to share a four-hour journey with.

Nardole shrugged, "Tourists."

HOSTESS: Ladies and gentlemen, and variations thereupon, welcome on board the Crusader Fifty. If you would fasten your seatbelts, we'll be leaving any moment. Doors.
(The doors close.)
HOSTESS: Shields down.

"Shields?" Rory asked curious and wary, "Why do you need shields?"

"Just watch." The Doctor sighed, sinking down in her seat, her expression troubled – as it had been since the reveal of the title.

(The windows are shielded.)
HOSTESS: I'm afraid the view is shielded until we reach the Waterfall Palace. Also, a reminder. Midnight has no air, so please don't touch the exterior door seals. Fire exit at the rear, and should we need to use it, you first. Now I will hand you over to Driver Joe.

"That explains the shields." Rory sighed. It wasn't reassuring to know when they knew danger was going to appear at some point in some unknown form.

Only the Doctor noticed the concerned looks that Yaz, Graham and Ryan shared – all thinking back to their time on Orphan 55, some things were just a bit too similar for comfort. The Doctor managed to offer them a comforting smile and shake of her head – this wasn't like that.

JOE [OC]: Driver Joe at the wheel. There's been a diamondfall at the Winter Witch Canyon, so we'll be taking a slight detour, as you'll see on the map. The journey covers five hundred kliks to the Multifaceted Coast. Duration is estimated at four hours. Thank you for travelling with us, and as they used to say in the olden days, wagons roll.
(The shuttle shakes a bit.)

"And you're off." River muttered, she shuffled closer to her wife, squeezing the hand she still held. She was worried about what this video was going to show, from what Donna and the Doctor had said it hadn't been pleasant, and it seemed to have left a lasting negative impression.

HOSTESS: For your entertainment, we have the Music Channel playing retrovids of Earth classics.
(Dropdown screens show a pop video of some woman.)
HOSTESS: Also, the latest artistic installation from Ludovico Klein.
(Something holographic.)
HOSTESS: Plus, for the youngsters, a rare treat. The Animation Archives.
(A projection of Betty Boop onto a screen in front of the drivers cabin door.)
HOSTESS: Four hours of fun time. Enjoy.

"Hence the earplugs." Mickey nodded in understanding. That journey certainly didn't sound like four hours of fun even without the knowledge that at some point something was going to go drastically wrong.

(That is why she hands out earplugs. Sky looks up from her book, very unhappy. The Doctor powers up his sonic screwdriver and suddenly it goes quiet. The screens return to their docks.)
HOBBES: Well, that's a mercy.
HOSTESS: I do apologise, ladies and gentlemen, and variations thereupon. We seem to had a failure of the Entertainment System.

"What a tragedy." Jack grinned, glad to see the Doctor acting like their normal self so far.

DOCTOR: Oh.
VAL: But what do we do?
BIFF: We've got four hours of this? Four hours of just sitting here?
DOCTOR: Tell you what. We'll have to talk to each other instead.

"Novel idea." Bill muttered.

Graham nodded in approval, "Like the days before all this technology."

Ryan groaned, "Seriously grandad, we already know you're old."

"Oi!" Yaz snickered over Graham's protests.

[98 kliks later...]

(The idea has caught on. Everyone is listening to Val and Biff's stories.)
VAL: So Biff said, I'm going swimming.
BIFF: Oh, I was all ready. Trunks and everything. Nose plug.
VAL: He had this little nose plug. You should have seen him.
BIFF: And I went marching up to the lifeguard. And he was a Shamboni. You know, those big foreheads?
VAL: Great big forehead.
BIFF: And I said, where's the pool? And he said
BIFF + VAL: The pool is abstract.

The story earned a few grins and chuckles from the group, even those who had no idea what Shamboni was (which was the majority of them), but they were all too on edge waiting for the trouble to start to really enjoy the story.

(Jethro is bored to tears.)
VAL: It wasn't a real pool.
BIFF: It was a concept.
DOCTOR: And you were wearing a nose plug.
BIFF: I was like this. Ooo, where's the pool?

[150 kliks later...]

(The Doctor and Dee Dee are in the galley, getting drinks from a thermos jug.)
DEE DEE: I'm just a second-year student, but I wrote a paper on the Lost Moon of Poosh, Professor Hobbes read it, liked it, took me on as researcher, just for the holidays. Well, I say researcher. Most of the time he's got me fetching and carrying. But it's all good experience.

"An unpaid intern." Bill sympathised with Dee Dee, she'd seen a few situations like that during her time at ST Luke's.

No one noticed the long knowing look that the Doctor and Donna shared at the mention of the Lost Moon of Poosh – the clues had been all around them for a while.

DOCTOR: And did they ever find it?
DEE DEE: Find what?
DOCTOR: The Lost Moon of Poosh.
DEE DEE: Oh, no. Not yet.
DOCTOR: Well. Maybe that'll be your great discovery, one day. Here's to Poosh.
DEE DEE: Poosh.

"Has it been found?" Clara asked out of curiosity.

The Doctor glanced at Donna then at Martha, Mickey, Rose and Jack she'd also been involved in the mess, "You could say that."

[209 kliks later...]

(The Doctor is sitting with Sky as they unwrap their meals.)
DOCTOR: No, no, I'm with this friend of mine, Donna. She stayed behind in the Leisure Palace. You?

"Oh, gossiping about me?" Donna raised an eyebrow at the Doctor with teasing anger, curious to know he would say.

"How could I not mention you?" The Doctor grinned back fondly, snapped out of her troubled mood for the moment – Donna was good at that. After this whole mess, Donna had been a godsend and helped her cope with the nightmares and fears that had emerged from this situation.

SKY: No, it's just me.
DOCTOR: Oh, I've done plenty of that. Travelling on my own. I love it. Do what you want, go anywhere.

The Doctor purposely avoided all the doubtful and pointed looks the group sent her, they all knew that was a blatant lie the Doctor had just told Sky.

SKY: No, I'm still getting used to it. I've found myself single rather recently, not by choice.
DOCTOR: What happened?
SKY: Oh, the usual. She needed her own space, as they say. A different galaxy, in fact. I reckon that's enough space, don't you?

DOCTOR: Yeah. I had a friend who went to a different universe.

The Doctor and Rose made slightly awkward eye contact, though Rose couldn't help but perk up slightly at the indirect mention of herself – it was always nice to be reminded that the Doctor didn't just forget about them after they left.

A few people, those that didn't know the full story, sent that pair a questioning look at that statement – no one provided any answers.

SKY: Oh, what's this, chicken or beef?
DOCTOR: I think it's both.

[251 kliks later...]

(Professor Hobbes is giving an illustrated lecture. Even Jethro is interested.)
HOBBES: So, this is Midnight, do you see, bombarded by the sun. Xtonic rays, raw galvanic radiation. Dee Dee, next slide. It's my pet project. Actually, I'm the first person to research this. Because, you see, the history is fascinating. Because there is no history. There's no life in this entire system. There couldn't be. Before the Leisure Palace Company moved in, no one had come here in all eternity. No living thing.

"That feels unpleasantly foreboding." Amy muttered with a wary glance at the screen. The Doctor's panicked glance at the screen did noting to help that feeling either.

JETHRO: But how do you know? I mean, if no one can go outside.
VAL: Oh, his imagination. Here we go.

"No that's a good point." Rory shook his head in disagreement with Val on screen.

DOCTOR: He's got a point, though.
HOBBES: Exactly. We look upon this world through glass, safe inside our metal box. Even the Leisure Palace was lowered down from orbit. And here we are now, crossing Midnight, but never touching it.
(Crunch, rattle, grind.)

"I feel like there is probably a very good reason for that." Mickey declared nervously.

"One we don't want to find out about." Rose agreed, though based off the sounds of the bus thing they weren't going to get a choice in the matter.

VAL: We've stopped. Have we stopped?
BIFF: Are we there?
DEE DEE: We can't be, it's too soon.
HOBBES: They don't stop. Crusader vehicles never stop.

Some how the group only managed to grow tenser. They'd been expecting trouble from the start and a sinking feeling in the pit of their stomachs told them it had finally arrived. The Doctor attempting to sink down further in her seat and hide herself away only helped that idea.

HOSTESS: If you could just return to your seats. It's just a small delay.

"You have to admire her ability to stay calm." Martha said, "Somethings wrong but she's professional enough to try and stop anybody panicking."

Jack hummed in agreement, "In situations like this the last thing you want is panic, it only ever makes things worse." Only those closest noticed how the Doctor flinched at Jack's words.

(The hostess goes to the intercom phone.)
BIFF: Maybe just a pit stop.
HOSTESS: What's going on?
HOBBES: There's no pit to stop in. I've been on this expedition fourteen times. They never stop.

"Really helping the situation mate, well done." Graham announced sarcastically.

SKY: Well, evidently we have stopped, so there's no point in denying it.
JETHRO: We've broken down.
VAL: Thanks, Jethro.
JETHRO: In the middle of nowhere.
BIFF: That's enough. Now stop it.
HOSTESS: Ladies and gentlemen, and variations thereupon. We're just experiencing a short delay. The driver needs to stabilise the engine feeds. It's perfectly routine, so if you could just stay in your seats.

"Something tells me nothing about this is 'perfectly routine'." Rory said.

Amy snorted, "I wonder what gave you that idea." Rory just rolled his eyes at his wife.

(The Doctor walks towards the driver's door.)
HOSTESS: No, I'm sorry, sir, I. Could you please?
(The Doctor flashes his psychic paper.)
DOCTOR: There you go. Engine expert. Two ticks.

"Not much of a stretch for once." River reluctantly gave the Doctor a semi-compliment hoping for some response that she never received.

(The Doctor opens the driver's door.)
HOSTESS: I'm sorry, sir. if you could just sit down. You're not supposed to be in there.

"Seriously Doctor, don't make her life harder!" Donna sighed, normally she'd berate them harder but knowing what she knew she couldn't bring herself to do so for once. The Doctor winced a bit, face sad as the Hostess's fate played on repeat in her mind.

[Cockpit]

(There are two men in the compartment.)
JOE: Sorry. If you could return to your seat, sir.
DOCTOR: Company insurance. Let's see if we can get an early assessment. So, what's the problem, Driver Joe?
JOE: We're stabilising the engine feeds. Won't take long.

"I may not know much about future technology but I'm pretty sure that's not the engine feed." Ryan pointed out; he didn't even need to have any technological knowledge to guess that though based off how the whole crew was acting – something was seriously wrong but no one wanted to admit it.

DOCTOR: Er, no, because that's the engine feed, that line there, and it's fine. And it's a micropetrol engine, so stabilising doesn't really make sense, does it? Sorry. I'm the Doctor, I'm very clever. So, what's wrong?
CLAUDE: We just stopped. Look, all systems fine, everything's working, but we're not moving.

"If it isn't the tech that is faulty and caused you to stop …" Yaz started nervously.

"Then something else made you stop." Clara finished, eyeing the screen warily. And on a planet with no supposed life, that was a terrifying thought.

(The Doctor scans with his screwdriver.)
DOCTOR: Yeah, you're right. No faults. And who are you?
CLAUDE: Claude. I'm the mechanic. Trainee.
DOCTOR: Nice to meet you.
JOE: I've sent a distress signal. They should dispatch a rescue truck, top speed.

"But you're about half way through a four-hour journey. Even at top speed it must take a rescue truck an hour to get o you at least." Rose protested, fingers twitching as the feeling of helplessness settled in. It was becoming an unfortunately familiar friend to everyone in the room.

"And that's a lot of time for something to go wrong." Nardole mused. "Ow!" Bill had leaned over to punch him (fairly gently) in the arm for that comment.

"You don't need to say it Nardole!"

"We were all thinking it!" He protested.

"Doesn't mean you verbalise it!"

DOCTOR: How long till they get here?
JOE: About an hour.
DOCTOR: Well, since we're waiting, shall we take a look outside? Just lift the screens a bit?

Everyone turned to the Doctor with a mix of horrified and 'really?' looks, it was times like this that they really questioned the Doctor's life decision making skills.

"You're a right idiot, Spaceman." Donna sighed, "This is why you need someone to babysit you constantly." The Doctor spluttered in response to that as the rest of the group snickered at Donna's comment.

JOE: It's a hundred percent Xtonic out there. We'd be vaporised.
DOCTOR: Nah. Those windows are Finitoglass. They'd give you a couple of minutes. Go on, live a little.
JOE: Well.
(He raises the front screen.)

"I can not express how terrible of an idea this is Doctor." River shook her head at her wife, "but I will admit that is a beautiful view."

"Please, we both know you'd do exactly the same."

"I will deny all accusations regarding the truth of that statement."

JOE: Wow.
DOCTOR: Oh, that is beautiful.
CLAUDE: Look at all those diamonds. Poisoned by the sun. No-one can ever touch them.
DOCTOR: Joe, you said we took a detour?
JOE: Just about forty kliks to the west.
DOCTOR: Is that a recognised path?
JOE: No, it's a new one. The computer worked it out on automatic.

"So, you're in uncharted territory." Clara summed up with a grimace. No one would deny the view was beautiful but they were all far too on edge with the oncoming danger to truly appreciate it, "Waiting on a rescue team that won't arrive for an hour," She continued, "And you have no idea what is out there."

The Doctor matched her expression with a nod, "That about sums it up unfortunately."

DOCTOR: So we're the first. This piece of ground. No one's ever been here before. Not in the whole of recorded history.
CLAUDE: Did you just? No, sorry, it's nothing.

"I have a bad feeling its not 'nothing'." Bill muttered, she was getting lots of horror movie vibes from the video so far and personally she was not here for that. It was a very different experience to watch actual horror movies and know they weren't real as compared to watching videos of your friends in very real trouble.

DOCTOR: What did you see?
CLAUDE: Just there. That ridge. Like, like a shadow. Just, just for a second.
DOCTOR: What sort of shadow?
(Beep, beep, beep)
JOE: Xtonic rising. Shields down.

"Worst timing Joe." Rose said. She, like the majority of the group, was eager for the shields to be lowered in an attempt to offer some sort of protection but she couldn't deny the curiosity that pulled at her to know what was out there.

CLAUDE: Look, look. There it is, there it is. Look, there.
DOCTOR: Where? What was it?
(The shields close.)
CLAUDE: Like just something shifting. Something sort of dark, like it was running.

"There's something out there." Rory declared determinedly. It didn't matter if there wasn't supposed to be any life on the planet, there very clearly was and it was not sounding friendly.

"Which way is it running?" Jack asked tense and serious. His words only made the pit in the stomachs of everyone watching sink lower – that was a very good question and if the answer was what they thought it was, then things were only going to get worse.

DOCTOR: Running which way?
CLAUDE: Towards us.
JOE: Right, Doctor, back to your seat. And, er, not a word. Rescue's on its way. If you could close the door. Thank you.

Martha nodded in approval, "That's really not something you want spreading to the others. You don't want to cause anymore panic than you need to, especially as you aren't really in a situation to be able to do anything about it."

[Shuttle]

(Sky is waiting by the door as the Doctor comes out.)
SKY: What did they say? Did they tell you? What is it? What's wrong?
DOCTOR: Oh, just stabilising. Happens all the time.

Several members of the group sighed in relief as the Doctor carried on the lie to try and keep everyone calm. You never knew how the Doctor was going to react in these kinds of situations but for once they seemed to agree that everyone knowing the truth would be bad, especially as the truth was that no one had any idea what was going on.

SKY: I don't need this. I'm on a schedule. This is completely unnecessary.
HOSTESS: Back to your seats, thank you.
(The hostess goes into the cockpit.)
DEE DEE: Excuse me, Doctor, but they're micropetrol engines, aren't they?

"She's a smart one. Good under normal circumstances but not right now when everyone else can hear." River shook her head with a sigh.

HOBBES: Now, don't bother the man.
DEE DEE: My father was a mechanic. Micropetrol doesn't stabilise. What does stabilise mean?

"Time for a bit of creative lying here Doctor." Amy muttered concerned, things seemed to be quickly derailing in a way that nobody wanted them too.

DOCTOR: Well. Bit of flim-flam. Don't worry, they're sorting it out.
HOBBES: So it's not the engines?
DOCTOR: It's just a little pause, that's all.
HOBBES: How much air have we got?

"And that's going to make everyone panic now, great." Clara sighed, closing her eyes tight in a wince. Like Jack had said earlier, it was never good when people started to panic – they were prone to making drastic decisions they wouldn't make normally.

DOCTOR: Professor, it's fine.
VAL: What did he say?
DOCTOR: Nothing.
VAL: Are we running out of air?
(The hostess reenters the compartment.)
HOBBES: I was just speculating.

"Speculate quieter where you can't panic the rest of the people on the bus." Yaz crossed her arms giving the screen a disapproving look.

BIFF: Is that right, miss? Are we running out of air?
VAL: Is that what the Captain said?
HOSTESS: If you could all just remain calm.

"That's not an answer." Rose grimaced, "They're not going to react well despite her best intentions."

VAL: How much air have we got?
JETHRO: Mum, just stop it.
HOSTESS: I assure you, everything is under control.
BIFF: Well, doesn't look like it to me.
VAL: Well, he said it.
DEE DEE: It's fine. The air is on a circular filter.

"And Dee Dee and Jethro win prizes for being the most calm and sensible." Bill muttered to herself, it was just shame no one was really listening to them (and the hostess who was just trying to do her job while not panicking herself).

VAL: He started it
(General hubbub.)
DOCTOR: Everyone! Quiet! Thank you. Now, if you'd care to listen to my good friend Dee Dee.
DEE DEE: Oh. Er, it's just that, well, the air's on a circular filter, so we could stay breathing for ten years.

A few people let out a breath of relief, despite their disapproval of everyone's panic and response to the situation it had been a real concern weighing on their minds.

"At least that's one issue you don't have to worry about." Mickey said. It still left a long list of other problems but it was nice to scratch, an arguably very important, one off the list

DOCTOR: There you go. And I've spoken to the Captain. I can guarantee you everything's fine.
(Thump, thump.)

Several members of the group jumped at the thudding, a few even going so far as to look at the ceiling above them before realising it was on screen. Everyone tensed further.

"Apparently whatever was running, finally reached you." Jack announced quietly and seriously, throwing more and more concerned glances in the Doctor's direction. The situation on screen was in a delicate position that could easily go very badly regardless of how dangerous whatever the thing outside was.

VAL: What was that?
HOBBES: It must be the metal. We're cooling down. It's just settling.
DEE DEE: Rocks. It could be rocks falling.

"Yep, good answers. Totally what it is. No reason to try and think of anything else. Just keep calm." Bill nodded quickly, it wasn't good to jump ahead to the scary answers and panic everyone even if that was the most likely truth.

"And carry on." The Doctor muttered mostly to herself, unable to leave the start of the famous saying unfinished after Bill started it. It helped that it was fairly applicable in the situation at hand, except they'd done the opposite.

BIFF: What I want to know is, how long do we have to sit here.
(Thump, thump, on another part of the hull.)
SKY: What is that?
VAL: There's someone out there.
HOBBES: Now, don't be ridiculous.
DEE DEE: Like I said, it could be rocks.
HOSTESS: We're out in the open. Nothing could fall against the sides.

"So much for keeping everyone calm." Martha winced.

(Thump, thump.)
DOCTOR: Knock, knock.
JETHRO: Who's there?
SKY: Is there something out there? Well? Anyone?

"If it has stopped the vehicle and made threating thumps against the bus, do you really think all it wants is a nice chat?" Amy raised an eyebrow at the people on screen. She ignored her husband mouthing the words 'threatening thumps' to himself.

"One day that is all that it will be." The Doctor sighed almost dreamily, they really wished that things didn't turn out as dangerous as they normally did.

"You can dream Doctor." River sighed, "But with your luck that day is far off."

(Thump, thump).
SKY: What the hell is making that noise?
HOBBES: I'm sorry, but the light out there is Xtonic. That means it would destroy any living thing in a split second. It is impossible for someone to be outside.

"I mean, I get that it is impossible for humans and such to go out in it." Clara started, focus more on the Doctor, Jack and River who had the most knowledge of these things, "But the universe is a massive place, surely it is possible that something was able to adapt to deal with the Xtonic light?"

Jack, River and the Doctor shared a silent conversation told only through their changing facial expressions and a few hand motions before the Doctor turned to answer Clara. "It's not technically impossible, not many things actually are, but it's just very unlikely and no one had really put much thought into it seeing as they'd never seen anything before to suggest such a being could exist."

(Thump, thump.)
SKY: Well, what the hell is that, then?
HOSTESS: Sir, you really should get back to your seat.
(The Doctor uses his stethoscope on the hull.)

"Really Doctor?" Donna just shook her head at her to which she shrugged, what else was she supposed to do in that situation?

DOCTOR: Hello?
(Thump, thump. Quicker now.)
JETHRO: It's moving.
(The emergency exit rattles.)
VAL: It's trying the door.

"We really don't need the narration thank you." Rose grimaced.

HOBBES: There is no it. There's nothing out there. Can't be.

"Very close minded as much as I wish he was right." Mickey said, "There's clearly something out there, your next priority should be figuring out how to stay safe until rescue gets there."

(More trying of the emergency exit, then two thumps on the roof, and two more on the entrance door.)
VAL: That's the entrance. Can it get in?
DEE DEE: No. That door's on two hundred weight hydraulics.
HOBBES: Stop it. Don't encourage them.
DEE DEE: What do you think it is?
VAL: Biff, don't.
DOCTOR: Mister Cane. Better not.

"Please tell me he's not about to do what I think he is about to do?" Yaz grimaced, the Doctor's matching expression and wince told her everything she needed to know.

BIFF: Nah, it's cast iron, that door.
(Biff knocks three times, and gets three thumps in reply.)

"And so it begins." The Doctor's mumbled words went unheard by anyone else as she gripped her leg tightly with the hand not in River's grasp.

VAL: Three times. Did you hear that? It did it three times.
JETHRO: It answered.
VAL: It did it three times!

"So, whatever is out there isn't completely mindless." Rory grimaced. "It knows enough to be able to mimic."

"Really helpful and reassuring Rory." Amy hissed at her husband who winced at the realisation of how the room around him had tensed even further at his words. If everyone got any tenser someone was likely to snap.

DOCTOR: All right, all right, all right. Everyone calm down.
SKY: No, but it answered. It answered. Don't tell me that thing's not alive. It answered him.

"They really need to calm down before things spiral even further out of control." Graham said.

(Thump, thump, thump.)
HOSTESS: I really must insist you get back to your seats.
SKY: No, don't just stand there telling us the rules. You're the hostess. You're supposed to do something.

"I'm pretty sure there is nothing in her job description remotely close to dealing with unknown entity that attack the bus." Clara argued in a bit of disbelief with Sky's words. They all couldn't help but feel some sympathy for the poor hostess who was just trying to keep everyone calm.

(The Doctor knocks on the door four times. There is a long pause before he gets the four thumps in reply.)

"Doctor!" More than one person berated the Doctor as he engaged with the unknown entity on screen. The Doctor in the room with them just curled in on herself, as it to protect herself from some unseen danger, worrying River and Jack next to her even more.

SKY: What is it? What the hell's making that noise? She said she'd get me. Stop it. Make it stop. Somebody make it stop. Don't just stand there looking at me. It's not my fault. He started it with his stories.
(The hostess gets on the intercom.)
DEE DEE: Calm down!
SKY: And he made it worse!
VAL: You're not helping.

"No one is helping!" Rose threw her arms in the air out of frustration. "Everyone is panicking and making things worse!"

SKY: Why didn't you leave it alone? Stop staring at me. Just tell me what the hell it is.
DEE DEE: Calm down!
(The thumping starts again.)
SKY: It's coming for me. Oh, it's coming for me. It's coming for me. It's coming for me. It's coming for me.
(Sky backs up to the driver's door and screams.)

"She apparently has some unresolved issues, but now is really not a good time." Mickey grimaced.

Martha elbowed her husband in the side, "I agree it is a bad time but its not like she can really control it, she's having a panic attack." The doctor in her was coming out.

DOCTOR: Get out of there!
(Boom! The whole shuttle rocks from side to side and sparks fly. The entertainment system comes back online as the lights go out.)
BIFF: You all right? Okay.
DOCTOR: Arms, legs, neck, head, nose. I'm fine. Everyone else? How are we?

Everyone (aside from the Doctor) had flinched at the explosion, not having remotely expected anything like that to suddenly occur.

"That can't have been anything good." Ryan declared.

Yaz snorted, a very humourless sound, "Congrats Captain Obvious." Graham just sighed at the pair of them.

(The pop singer on the screen behind the Doctor is replaced by an image of Rose mouthing Doctor, Doctor, before it goes blank again.)

The group blinked in confusion at the sudden sight of Rose on the screen, turning to look at the person in question for answers. The Doctor, Donna, Rose and Mickey all shared a knowing look, having a quick silent conversation in order to try and decide what to explain to the rest of the group. Martha and Kack shared their own knowing look, both having a very good guess what that was all about.

Fed up with the silence (and eager for a distraction however temporarily), Amy raised an eyebrow at the group and crossed her arms, "What was that about? How was Rose on screen just then?"

With a few more ambiguous hand motions it was decided that Rose had been elected to speak apparently, "It's complicated and a bit of a long story." Seeing Amy open her mouth to argue more she quickly continued, "But basically me and Mickey were stuck on that other world and found out something that the Doctor needed to know, universe destroying kind of trouble, that was one of our attempts to get through to him which kept missing." They'd apparently had very bad timing in their attempts to contact the Doctor if this was anything to go off of.

The group still had lots of questions base don their expressions but they weren't allowed to share any of them before the video on screen continued.

DOCTOR: How are we? Everyone all right?
HOBBES: Earthquake. Must be.
DEE DEE: But that's impossible. The ground is fixed. It's solid.
HOSTESS: We've got torches. Everyone take a torch. They're in the back of the seats.
VAL: Oh, Jethro. Sweetheart, come here.
JETHRO: Never mind me. what about her?
(Sky is sitting amongst the remains of the front row.)

"What happened to the seats?" Nardole asked wide eyed only to receive no answer as no one knew outside of the Doctor and she wasn't sharing.

VAL: What happened to the seats?
BIFF: Who did that?
VAL: They've been ripped up.
DOCTOR: It's all right, it's all right, it's all right. It's over. We're still alive. Look, the wall's still intact. Do you see?
(Intact but dented inwards.)

A sudden horrible thought hit many of the group upon seeing the dented wall. "What about Joe and Claude?" Bill muttered barely more than a worried whisper.

HOSTESS: Joe? Claude?
DOCTOR: We're safe.
HOSTESS: Driver Joe, can you hear me? I'm not getting any response. The intercom must be down.
(The hostess opens the driver's door and bright light floods the cabin. An alarm sounds until she manages to close it again.)

"The cabin is completely gone." River realised, eyes widening in a mix of realisation, shock and horror. Whatever was out there had made itself several times more dangerous and threatening if it had the power to do whatever it had just done.

The group had a minute of silence for the pair, they'd barely had a chance to meet them but they certainly hadn't deserved to die like they had.

VAL: What happened? What was that?
BIFF: Is it the driver? Have we lost the driver?
HOSTESS: The cabin's gone.
HOBBES: Don't be ridiculous. It can't be gone. How can it be gone?
DEE DEE: Well, well, you saw it.
HOSTESS: There was nothing there, like it was ripped away.

"What is that thing?" Jack asked more to himself than anyone else. If it had the ability to rip away the cabin like that, why hadn't it just done the same to the main part of the bus? Why bother just thumping it? Nothing was making sense, to the group's frustration and concern.

BIFF: What are you doing?
(Biff aims his torchlight at the panel the Doctor is working on.)
DOCTOR: Ah, that's better. Little bit of light. Thank you. Molto bene.
VAL: Do you know what you're doing?

"They never do." Donna snorted fondly if not concerned, "But it doesn't stop them from doing something anyway."

BIFF: The cabin's gone. You'd better leave that wall alone.
HOBBES: The cabin can't be gone.
DOCTOR: No, it's safe. Any rupture would automatically seal itself.
(The Doctor removes the panel and looks at the wiring.)
DOCTOR: But something sliced it off. You're right, the cabin's gone.
HOSTESS: But if it gets separated?
DOCTOR: It loses integrity. I'm sorry, they've been reduced to dust. The driver and the mechanic. But they sent a distress signal. Help is on its way. They saved our lives. We are going to get out of here, I promise. We're still alive, and they are going to find us.

"God, everything about this situation is horrifying." Rose muttered with a grimace and shake of her head. They couldn't image what the poor hostess was going through – she probably knew the driver and mechanic, maybe not well, but they were still colleagues, and now she was alone with a group of tourists and an unknown dangerous entity waiting on a rescue.

JETHRO: Doctor, look at her.
(Sky hasn't moved.)

Martha was eyeing Sky carefully, gone in full doctor mode as she tried to assess what was wrong with the woman. "I don't think that's just shock. Something is seriously wrong with Sky."

"She's right, that's not normal." Rory agreed, his own nurse experience coming into play. The Doctor winced at their comments, knowing what was wrong with Sky and just what was about to happen.

DOCTOR: Right. Yes. Sorry. Have we got a medical kit?
JETHRO: Why won't she turn around?
DOCTOR: What's her name?
HOSTESS: Silvestry. Mrs Sky Silvestry.
DOCTOR: Sky? Can you hear me? Are you all right? Can you move, Sky? Just look at me.
JETHRO: That noise from outside. It's stopped.

That should have been reassuring to the group but it seemed to have the opposite affect as everyone tensed more, all sharing the same worried thought that no one wanted to voice out loud.

VAL: Well, thank God for that.
JETHRO: But what if it's not outside anymore? What if it's inside?

And there Jethro went voicing it anyway.

VAL: Inside? Where?
JETHRO: It was heading for her.
DOCTOR: Sky? It's all right, Sky. I just want you to turn around, face me.
(Sky turns slowly and stares into the torchlight.)
DOCTOR: Sky?
SKY: Sky?
DOCTOR: Are you all right?
SKY: Are you all right?
DOCTOR: Are you hurt?
SKY: Are you hurt?

"She's mimicking you." Amy stated almost breathlessly.

"Just like the thing was doing with the thumps." Rory continued his wife's train of thought.

Jack stared the screen down with a grimace, "Whatever it is has possessed her, hasn't it Doctor?"

The Doctor nodded ever so slightly; her own expression schooled but how pale she had gone revealed exactly her thoughts on the matter. They had all been expecting trouble, and bad trouble, from the start of the video but this wasn't remotely close to what they'd thought it would be. Donna just winced, knowing from the few bits and pieces she'd learned from the Doctor in the middle of the night after they'd had a nightmare or couldn't sleep, that the worst was yet to come.

DOCTOR: You don't have to talk.
SKY: You don't have to talk.

"I think we'd all prefer it if she didn't talk." Ryan muttered, eying the screen warily. The whole thing was giving him the creeps.

DOCTOR: I'm trying to help.
SKY: I'm trying to help.
DOCTOR: My name's the Doctor.
SKY: My name's the Doctor.
DOCTOR: Okay, can you stop?
SKY: Okay, can you stop?
DOCTOR: I'd like you to stop.
SKY: I'd like you to stop.

"We all would." Bill shivered; she was getting very unnerved by the whole situation. "But I don't think she can."

HOBBES: Why's she doing that?
SKY: Why's she doing that?
BIFF: She's gone mad.
SKY: She's gone mad.
VAL: Stop it.
SKY: Stop it.

"She's copying everyone." Clara remarked.

VAL: I said stop it.
SKY: I said stop it.
DEE DEE: I don't think she can.
SKY: I don't think she can.
HOBBES: All right now, stop it. This isn't funny.
SKY: All right now, stop it. This isn't funny.

"If she could stop it, she would. No one thinks its funny." Mickey said annoyed with the group on screen who kept talking and giving it something to copy.

DOCTOR: Shush, shush, shush, all of you.
SKY: Shush, shush, shush, all of you.
JETHRO: My name's Jethro.
SKY: My name's Jethro.
DOCTOR: Jethro, leave it. Just shut up.
SKY: Jethro, leave it. Just shut up.
DOCTOR: Why are you repeating?
SKY: Why are you repeating?
DOCTOR: What is that, learning?
SKY: What is that, learning?

"Learning?" Rose asked worried, the thought having not occurred to her until the Doctor mentioned it. "What like copying all your words to try and learn them so she can speak for herself?"

The Doctor shrugged one-heartedly, her eyes never leaving the screen as she watched the train wreck unfolding in front of her. Only River's hand in hers was keeping her grounded to reality at the moment.

DOCTOR: Copying?
SKY: Copying?
DOCTOR: Absorbing?
SKY: Absorbing?
DOCTOR: The square root of pi is 1.772453850905516027298167483341. Wow.
SKY: (overlapping) The square root of pi is 1.772453850905516027298167483341. Wow.

"How is she doing that?" River asked quietly, incredibly curious despite herself. It was horrifying, yes, but also fascinating in the way that this was potentially an unknown species. Though, she would have preferred it to remain unknown based on what it had done so far.

HOBBES: But that's impossible.
SKY: But that's impossible.
DEE DEE: She couldn't repeat all that.
SKY: She couldn't repeat all that.

"She very clearly can." Donna announced.

VAL: Tell her to stop.
SKY: Tell her to stop.
VAL: She's driving me mad.
SKY: She's driving me mad.
VAL: Just make her stop!
SKY: Just make her stop!
(People start talking over each other, with Sky still repeating their words.)

"This is horrible." Yaz decided, shaking her head, hands twitching up to her ears as if to cover them and hide form the chaos unfolding on screen.

VAL: Stop her staring at me. Shut her up.
SKY: Stop her staring at me. Shut her up.
HOSTESS: It's got to be a trick.
SKY: It's got to be a trick.
DEE DEE: That's impossible.
SKY: That's impossible.
BIFF: I'm telling you, whatever your name is.
SKY: I'm telling you, whatever your name is.
DOCTOR: Now, just stop it, all of you.
SKY: Now, just stop it all of you.

"None of them are helping! Haven't they learned they need to shut up?" Amy shook her head frantically, frustrated with everything happening.

HOBBES: Her eyes. What's wrong with her eyes?
SKY: Her eyes. What's wrong with her eyes?
JETHRO: She can copy anything.
SKY: She can copy anything.
VAL: Biff, don't just stand there, do something. Make her stop.
SKY: Biff, don't just stand there, do something. Make her stop

"What is he meant to do? What are any of them meant to do?" Martha shook her head in disbelief, the group was panicking more and more with every moment.

BIFF: You're scaring my wife.
SKY: You're scaring my wife.
HOSTESS: Mrs Silvestry.
SKY: Mrs Silvestry.
JETHRO: Six, six, six.
SKY: Six, six, six.

"Really unhelpful Jericho." Clara shook her head with a sigh, she knew best what teenagers were like and this really didn't surprise her as much as she disliked it.

VAL: She's different. She's something else. Do something. Make her stop.
SKY: Make her stop.
(The lights come back on, shutting everyone up.)
HOSTESS: That's the back up system.
BIFF: Well, that's a bit better.

"She's not copying everything anymore." Donna immediately noticed the difference, her exclamation unusually quiet.

"That's not good." Nardole declared.

VAL: What about the rescue? How long's it going to take?
HOSTESS: About sixty minutes, that's all.
HOBBES: Then I suggest we all calm down. This panic isn't helping. That poor woman is evidently in a state of

"Calming down is a good idea, but I don't think its going to last when they realise." Rory said with a frown, the group had been largely unobservant so far and not noticed the difference but it couldn't last long.

HOBBES + SKY: Self induced hysteria. We should leave her alone.

The group blanked at that. "That's not copying." Rose declared worried. Just when they thought things couldn't get much worse. It was one thing to mimic the but another to say exactly what they said as they said it, and how she knew what they were going to say was another whole terrifying spiral of thoughts.

JETHRO: Doctor.
DOCTOR: I know.

"Apparently not everyone is as oblivious." Rory noted.

HOBBES + SKY: Doctor, now step back. I think you should leave her. Alone. What's she doing?
VAL + SKY: How can she do that? She's talking with you. And with me. Oh, my God. Biff, what's she doing?
JETHRO + SKY: She's repeating, at exactly the same time.

"Can you even call it repeating if it's at the same time?" Ryan asked curiously.

"Not important at the moment, Ryan." Yaz shook her head fondly.

DEE DEE + SKY: That's impossible.
HOBBES + SKY: There's not even a delay.
JETHRO + SKY: Oh man, that is weird.
DOCTOR + SKY: I think you should all be very, very quiet. Have you got that?
VAL + SKY: How's she doing it?

"That is the opposite of quiet." Mickey declared sarcastically; Val was really starting to get on people's nerves as she spiralled further into panic which only had a chain reaction with the rest of the group.

DOCTOR + SKY: Mrs Cane, please be quiet.
VAL + SKY: How can she do that? She's got my voice! She's got my words!
BIFF + SKY: Come on, be quiet. Hush, now. Hush. She's doing it to me.
DOCTOR + SKY: Just stop it, all of you. Stop it, please. Now then, Sky. Are you Sky? Is Sky still in there? Mrs Silvestry? You know exactly what I'm going to say. How are you doing that? Roast beef. Bananas. The Medusa Cascade. Bang! Rose Tyler, Martha Jones, Donna Noble, Tardis. Shamble bobble dibble dooble. Oh, Doctor, you're so handsome. Yes, I am, thank you. A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O. First she repeats, then she catches up. What's the next stage?

Rose, Martha and Donna all flinched as their names were called out, unable to stop themselves glancing at the Doctor. They could understand Donna being one of the first things in his head to call out as she was currently traveling with him, but why did he call out the others?

The rest of the group was focused on the Doctor's chilling final words. "You don't think she'd going to start speaking before you do, do you?" Amy asked, her expression showed she was already pretty sure she knew the answer. As expected, the Doctor just grimaced, hands curling tighter around her trouser leg and River's hand.

"That's not good." Jack went still, "With this group and how they're panicking, they're likely to take that the wrong way and reach the wrong conclusions." The Doctor's inability to meet anyone's' eyes and minute flinch told Jack all the horrifying truths he didn't want to know. All they could do was brace as the video continued.

DEE DEE + SKY: Next stage of what?
JETHRO + SKY: That's not her, is it. That's not Mrs Silvestry any more.
DOCTOR + SKY: I don't think so, no. I think the more we talk, the more she learns. Now, I'm all for education, but in this case, maybe not. Let's just move back. Come on. Come with me. Everyone, get back. All of you, as far as you can.

"You need to stop speaking and cut off whatever is in her from learning more." River said seriously, her own hand an iron grip on the Doctor's in an attempt to comfort both of them. The feeling of helplessness clawed at her but she could no nothing but comfort the Doctor in the present.

VAL + SKY: Doctor, make her stop.
DOCTOR + SKY: Val, come with me. Come to the back. Stop looking at her. Come on, Jethro. You too. Everyone, come on. Fifty minutes, that's all we need. Fifty minutes till the rescue arrives. And she's not exactly strong. Look at her. All she's got is our voices.

"I think that's plenty strong Doctor." Martha argued, "And we all saw what it did to the drivers cabin."

"Yes, but the Doctor doesn't want to make the group panic any more than they already are." Clara countered in the Doctor's defence. Despite her words, they were all pretty sure they were past the point of the group just calming down and making rational decisions.

VAL + SKY: I can't, I can't look at her. It's those eyes.
DEE DEE + SKY: We must not look at goblin men.
BIFF + SKY: What's that supposed to mean?
DOCTOR + SKY: It's a poem. Christina Rossetti.
DEE DEE + SKY: We must not look at goblin men. We must not buy their fruits. Who knows upon what soil they fed Their hungry, thirsty roots?

"Not really helping there Dee Dee." Rose muttered.

DOCTOR + SKY: Actually, I don't think that's helping.
HOBBES + SKY: She's not a goblin, or a monster. She's just a very sick woman.

"Is he in denial or something? Because there is clearly something much more wrong than Sky just being unwell." Mickey gestured his hands in disbelief.

JETHRO + SKY: Maybe that's why it went for her.
HOBBES + SKY: There is no it.
JETHRO + SKY: Think about it though. That knocking went all the way round the bus until it found her. And she was the most scared out of all of us. Maybe that's what it needed. That's how it got in.

"Good analysis, he's a smart kid." River remarked, "But now really isn't the time to try and figure out why it chose Sky. Now you need to stop it from doing anything else."

HOBBES + SKY: For the last time. Nothing can live on the surface of Midnight.
DOCTOR + SKY: Professor, I'm glad you've got an absolute definition of life in the universe, but perhaps the universe has got ideas of its own, hmm? Now trust me, I've got previous. I think there might well be some consciousness inside Mrs Silvestry, but maybe she's still in there. And it's our job to help her.

"Tell him Doctor!" Bill couldn't help but cheer a bit for the Doctor, glad to see Hobbes put in his place a bit.

BIFF + SKY: Well, you can help her. I'm not going near.
DOCTOR + SKY: No, I've got to stay back, because if she's copying us, then maybe the final stage is becoming us. I don't want her becoming me, or things could get a whole lot worse.

"That would be terrible." As sarcastic as it sounded, they all knew Jack's words were incredibly serious. A few people couldn't help but glance at the Master who was sitting in his chair acting nonchalant about the whole matter. Those that knew him (aka the Doctor) could see how tense he really was despite the façade but she knew better to comment on it – she didn't have the emotional capacity or energy to deal with the ensuing comments or argument.

VAL + SKY: Oh, like you're so special.
DOCTOR + SKY: As it happens, yes, I am. So that's decided. We stay back, and we wait. When the rescue ship comes, we can get her to hospital.
HOSTESS + SKY: We should throw her out.

"Have they officially gone insane?" Yaz asked.

"Not to play devil's advocate or anything, but do you really think you want to bring whatever that is back to other people?" Donna argued, "But throwing her out is a horrible idea, one that requires actually going near it, which sounds like a bad idea." Everyone seemed split on that matter – they hated the principle of it all but Donna had raised a good point, it was not smart to bring that thing back around other people. Ideally, they would get it out of Sky and then get out of there.

HOBBES + SKY: I beg your pardon?
VAL + SKY: Can we do that?
DOCTOR + SKY: Don't be ridiculous.
HOSTESS + SKY: That thing, whatever it is, killed the driver, and the mechanic, and I don't think she's finished yet.

Those chilling words left the group even more divided, all unable to deny that they'd been getting the same feeling.

DOCTOR + SKY: She can't even move.

"For now." Nardole muttered, earning another elbow to the side from Bill.

HOSTESS + SKY: Look at her. Look at her eyes. She killed Joe, and she killed Claude, and we're next.
BIFF + SKY: She's still doing it. Just stop it. Stop talking. Stop it!
VAL + SKY: Biff, don't, sweetheart.
BIFF + SKY: But she won't stop. We can't throw her out, though. We can't even open the doors.

"They've given in to the panic." Rory frowned, "No one is going to make any rational decisions, are they?" His question was clearly rhetorical as they all knew the answer was a resounding no.

DOCTOR + SKY: No one is getting thrown out.
DEE DEE + SKY: Yes, we can. Because there's an air pressure seal. Like when you opened the cabin door, you weren't pulled out. You had a couple of seconds, because it takes the pressure wall about six seconds to collapse. Well, six seconds exactly. That's enough time to throw someone out.

"Really not helping Dee Dee." Bill muttered.

DOCTOR + SKY: Thanks, Dee Dee. Just what we needed.
VAL: Would it kill her outside?

"It was able to survive before, but maybe not now that its possessing Sky?" Amy considered, "Or would it juts destroy Sky and it would go back to whatever form it had before?" Either way it would no longer be in the ship threatening them or bale to be moved closer to other people.

DEE DEE + SKY: I don't know. But she's got a body now. It would certainly kill the physical form.
DOCTOR + SKY: No one is killing anyone.
HOSTESS + SKY: I wouldn't risk the cabin door twice, but we've got that one. All we need to do is grab hold of her and throw her out.

"They're not going to listen to you Doctor." Martha said, eyes staring straight into the Doctor solemnly.

For the first time in a while the Doctor's eyes left the screen to meet Martha's, "I know." And they were haunting and haunted eyes, there was still more to come and it had truly shaken the Doctor in a way they rarely saw.

DOCTOR + SKY: Now, listen, all of you. For all we know that's a brand new life form over there. And if it's come inside to discover us, than what's it found? This little bunch of humans. What do you amount to, murder? Because this is where you decide. You decide who you are. Could you actually murder her? Any of you? Really? Or are you better than that?

"That's great in theory Doctor." Jack tried to explain, able to understand the Doctor's point of view but also the group in the bus better than most. "But its already shown itself to be dangerous. It's not chosen to come in and be friendly, its chose to kill people and posses someone and who knows what else it wants. Maybe it doesn't understand but that doesn't mean it hasn't done those things and it isn't a danger to the rest of the world if allowed to be brought back."

The Doctor didn't meet his eyes, her own going straight back t the screen. Her own feelings on the matter had changed somewhat after the whole experience and time since then. Although she would never agree just chucking Sky out of the bus was a good idea, she couldn't deny letting it stay and return with them when the rescue team found them could have been disastrous. Sometimes there were just days where there was no right, where no one really won.

HOSTESS + SKY: I'd do it.
BIFF + SKY: So would I.
VAL + SKY: And me.
DEE DEE + SKY: I think we should.

"Great everyone's down to commit murder." Ryan mumbled sarcastically mostly to himself.

DOCTOR + SKY: What?
DEE DEE + SKY: I want her out.
DOCTOR + SKY: You can't say that.
DEE DEE + SKY: I'm sorry, but you said it yourself, Doctor. She is growing in strength.
DOCTOR + SKY: That's not what I said.

"I mean it kinda is?" Yaz gave the Doctor a sheepish shrug.

DEE DEE + SKY: I want to go home. I'm sorry. I want to be safe.
DOCTOR + SKY: You'll be safe any minute now. The rescue truck is on its way.
HOSTESS + SKY: But what happens then, Doctor? If it takes that thing back to the Leisure Palace, if that thing reaches civilisation. What if it spreads?
DOCTOR + SKY: No, because when we get back to the base, I'll be there to contain it.

"I'm sorry Doctor, but what would you do? You haven't been able to do anything now and you're outnumbered so much that I don't think you're going to get a choice either way." Amy sighed, sometimes the Doctor was just so stubborn that it was detrimental to herself. These people were never going to listen to her and if she wasn't careful than they were also going to get chucked out with Sky.

"I had to try." The Doctor couldn't help but sigh.

"We know Sweeties, but sometimes people can't be helped and this time there was no winning." River squeezed her hand tightly.

VAL + SKY: You haven't done much so far.
BIFF + SKY: You're just standing in the back with the rest of us.
HOSTESS + SKY: She's dangerous. It's my job to see that this vessel is safe, and we should get rid of her.
HOBBES + SKY: Now, hang on. I think perhaps we're all going a little bit too far.

"So, the group is split." Rose said, "This isn't going to go well."

Mickey nodded, "And the whole time Sky is still in the background saying everything everyone else is."

DOCTOR + SKY: At last. Thank you.
HOSTESS + SKY: Two people are dead.
DOCTOR + SKY: Don't make it a third. Jethro, what do you say?
JETHRO + SKY: I'm not killing anyone.
DOCTOR + SKY: Thank you.
VAL + SKY: He's just a boy.
JETHRO + SKY: What, so I don't get a vote?

"True democracy at its finest." Rory grimaced.

DOCTOR + SKY: There isn't a vote. It's not happening. Ever. If you try to throw her out that door, you'll have to get past me first.

"Doctor!" Came a mix of exclamations and groans. The Doctor apparently couldn't read the room to see that a lot f the passengers would be very happy to do just that.

HOSTESS + SKY: Okay.
BIFF + SKY: Fine by me.
DOCTOR + SKY: Oh, now you're being stupid. Just think about it. Could you actually take hold of someone and throw them out of that door?

"Don't make it a challenge!" Clara groaned, "All they're going to do is turn on you! For once Doctor, think about yourself!"

"You know I can't." The Doctor ignored the concerned glance she got from Donna. Donna had been quieter than usual during the chaos, taking it in and using it to put together all the puzzle pieces of the situation she'd already known about together. She knew better than anyone (outside of the Doctor) how this was going to end.

BIFF + SKY: Calling me a coward?
VAL + SKY: Who put you in charge, anyway?
HOBBES + SKY: I'm sorry, but you're a Doctor of what, exactly?
HOSTESS + SKY: He wasn't even booked in. The rest of you, tickets in advance. He just turned up out of the blue.

"This is not good." Bill declared. It seemed to be their favourite phrase of the day, but it said a lot in very few words. The group was on edge as they watched the passengers slowly turn on the Doctor while they could only sit and watch. They knew the Doctor was trying to help, but no one there knew anything.

VAL + SKY: Where from?
DOCTOR + SKY: I'm just travelling. I'm a traveller, that's all.
VAL + SKY: Like an immigrant?

"Is immigration still an issue in this future? Cause it is looking less and less appealing." Ryan crossed his arms.

HOSTESS + SKY: Who were you talking to? Before you got on board, you were talking to someone. Who was that?
DOCTOR + SKY: Just Donna. Just my friend.
BIFF + SKY: And what were you saying to her?

"And why is that any of your business?" Donna exclaimed defensively at Biff on screen. Their private conversations were no one's business but theirs. Unfortunately, she could see why this incident had (and still did apparently) haunt the Doctor so much.

VAL + SKY: He hasn't even told us his name.

"Oh, that's nothing personal. He neve does that." Amy tried to joke, but even she didn't smile at it.

JETHRO + SKY: The thing is though, Doctor, you've been loving this.
DOCTOR + SKY: Oh, Jethro, not you.
JETHRO + SKY: No, but ever since all the trouble started, you've been loving it.
HOBBES + SKY: It has to be said, you do seem to have a certain glee.

"I always told you that could get you in trouble one day Sweetie." River sighed, a weird mixture of concern, frustration and fondness coating her words.

"I know, but you can hardly talk."

"What can I say? I picked up bad habits from you."

DOCTOR + SKY: All right, I'm interested. Yes, I can't help it. Because whatever's inside her, it's brand new, and that's fascinating.
VAL + SKY: What, you wanted this to happen?

"And now they're putting words in your mouth." Graham frowned worried.

Yaz grimaced, "And Sky is still at it."

DOCTOR + SKY: No.
BIFF + SKY: And you were talking to her, all on your own, before all the trouble. Right at the front, you were talking to that Sky woman, the two of you together. I saw you.
VAL + SKY: We all did.
HOSTESS + SKY: And you went into the cabin.
BIFF + SKY: What were you saying to her?
DOCTOR: I was just talking.
BIFF + SKY: Saying what?
JETHRO + SKY: You called us humans like you're not one of us.

"What kind of future is this? They're in space of course there are aliens around, what's wrong with that?" Martha asked angrily. The whole group was getting defensive of the Doctor and very scared about how things were quickly spiralling vastly out of control and out of the Doctor's favour.

VAL + SKY: He did. That's what he said.
DEE DEE + SKY: And the wiring. He went into that panel and opened up the wiring.
DOCTOR + SKY: That was after.
BIFF + SKY: But how did you know what to do?
DOCTOR + SKY: Because I'm clever!

"Doctor, they're going to take that the wrong way." Mickey winced. "They're panicking they're going to take everything you say the wrong way."

"I know." The Doctor whispered hoarsely, eyes never leaving the screen. It truly had been an experience she'd never forgotten; it hadn't stopped her much in the future but it had given her an insight into the crowd mentality with humans, one she wished she'd never had to have like this.

HOBBES + SKY: I see. Well, that makes things clear.
BIFF + SKY: And what are we, then? Idiots?
DOCTOR + SKY: That's not what I meant.
DEE DEE + SKY: If you're clever, then what are we?
VAL + SKY: You've been looking down on us from the moment we walked in.

"This is just spiralling." Rory muttered. They all knew it and were all just witing for the terrible words where one of them declared the Doctor's fate to be the same as Sky's proposed one.

HOSTESS + SKY: Even if he goes, he's practically volunteered.
DOCTOR + SKY: Oh come on, just listen to yourself, please.
BIFF + SKY: Do you mean we throw him out as well?
HOSTESS + SKY: If we have to.

The group was twitching, tense and on the edge of their seats. They all knew it had been coming but the feeling of helplessness still tried to drag them down into its depths. How the Doctor had gotten out of this one alone like this they didn't know but right now they desperately wanted to. They wanted this video to all be over.

DOCTOR + SKY: Look, just. Right, sorry, yes, hold on, just. I know you're scared, and so am I. Look at me, I am. But we have all got to calm down and cool off and think.
HOBBES + SKY: Perhaps you could tell us your name.

"That's going to be a bit of a problem." Clara winced. That was one thing the Doctor really couldn't tell them and with how high strung they all were they were likely to notice any lies he attempted to tell.

DOCTOR + SKY: What does it matter?
HOSTESS + SKY: Then tell us.
DOCTOR + SKY: John Smith.
HOBBES + SKY: Your real name.
BIFF + SKY: He's lying. Look at his face.
VAL + SKY: His eyes are the same as hers.
JETHRO + SKY: Why won't you tell us?
DEE DEE + SKY: It's a simple enough question.

"In the Doctor's case, it really isn't." Amy muttered, maybe a bit more bitterly than she intended based on the concerned glances she got from her husband, daughter and the Doctor.

VAL + SKY: He's been lying to us right from the start.
HOSTESS + SKY: What's your name?
BIFF + SKY: No one's called John Smith. Come off it.
DOCTOR + SKY: Now listen to me. Listen to me right now, because you need me, all of you. If we are going to get out of this, then you need me.
HOBBES: So you keep saying. You've been repeating yourself more than her.
VAL: If anyone's in charge, it should be the Professor. He's the expert.

"I think he's one of the least qualified. A fancy title in his case doesn't necessarily mean much." Bill argued.

JETHRO: Mum, stop. Just look.
BIFF: You keep out of this, Jethro.
JETHRO: Look at her!
DEE DEE: She's stopped.

The group had been so caught up in the danger the Doctor was in that they hadn't noticed until Jethro pointed it out. But now that he had it was all they could think about, all of them scared what it could mean exactly.

DOCTOR + SKY: When did she? No, she hasn't. She's still doing it.
VAL: She looks the same to me. No, she's stopped. Look, I'm talking, and she's not.
BIFF: What about me, is she? Look. Look at that. She's not doing me. She's let me go.
HOSTESS: Mrs Silvestry? Nor me. Nothing.
DOCTOR + SKY: Sky, what are you doing?

"She's only copying you." Rose realised; eyes wide in horror.

"That's not good. That's really not good." Yaz declared, it was going to do nothing to help alleviate the passenger's fears over the Doctor's presence and intentions.

DEE DEE: She's still doing him.
HOBBES: Doctor, it's you. She's only copying you.
DOCTOR + SKY: Why me? Why are you doing this?
DEE DEE: She won't leave him alone.
VAL: Do you see? I said so. She's with him.
BIFF: They're together.
HOBBES: How do you explain it, Doctor, if you're so clever?

"Because they've orchestrated him, the thing chose him as its next target." Rory tried to reason.

Amy shook her head, "No. It's trying to make them think it is going to chose the Doctor and get him thrown out so it can survive."

DOCTOR + SKY: I don't know. Sky, stop it. I said stop it. Just stop it.
VAL: Look at the two of them.
DOCTOR + SKY: Mrs Silvestry, I'm trying to understand. You've captured my speech. What for? What do you need? You need my voice in particular. The cleverest voice in the room. Why? Because I'm the only one who can help? Oh, I'd love that to be true, but your eyes, they're saying something else. Listen to me. Whatever you want, if it's life, or form, or consciousness, or voice, you don't have to steal it. You can find it without hurting anyone. And I'll help you. That's a promise. So, what do you think?

"Maybe stop tying to make deals with the entity possessing someone in front of a group of scared humans that already want to kill you." Jack protested, his own hands twitching to join River in holding the Doctor, but unsure whether his comfort would be accepted in the moment.

SKY: Do we have a deal?
DOCTOR: Do we have a deal?

"Did she …"

"She can't have …"

"She spoke first." Martha finally verbalised what others had tried and failed to. "Because the situation couldn't get any worse." The group grimaced; they could easily see why the Doctor hated this so much.

DEE DEE: Hold on, did she?
JETHRO: She spoke first.
VAL: She can't have.
HOBBES: She did.
JETHRO: She spoke first.
SKY: Oh, look at that. I'm ahead of you.
DOCTOR: Oh, look at that. I'm ahead of you.
HOBBES: Did you see? She spoke before he did. Definitely.
JETHRO: He's copying her.

"No, no, no Jethro, don't." Bill shook her head frantically; this was exactly what they didn't want to happen.

HOBBES: Doctor, what's happening?
SKY: I think it's moved.
DOCTOR: I think it's moved.

The room went dead silent as those words registered. Everyone tensed, eyes darting desperately between the screen and the Doctor in the room. River gripped the Doctor's hand even tighter and Jack gave up any worries and took the Doctor's other hand.

"She's speaking through the Doctor." Donna finally verbalised their thoughts, sounding far more defeated than anything. That was too be expected though, she knew it would come to this at some point no mater how much she hoped it wouldn't.

SKY: I think it's letting me go.
DOCTOR: I think it's letting me go.
DEE DEE: What do you mean? Letting you go from what?
BIFF: But he's repeating now. He's the one doing it. It's him.

"It's playing them. Doing exactly what Amy said it was." Jack breathed out, the hand holding the Doctor's squeezing to tight to comfort both of them. No wonder the Doctor had had such a bad first reaction to the title. He wasn't sure what he would do in this situation and would be grateful to never find out.

JETHRO: They're separating.
HOBBES: Mrs Silvestry, is that you?
SKY: Yes. Yes, it's me.
DOCTOR: Yes. Yes, it's me.
SKY: I'm coming back. Listen.
DOCTOR: I'm coming back
SKY: It's me.
DOCTOR: Listen. It's me.
JETHRO: Like it's passed into the Doctor. It's transferred. Whatever it is, it's gone inside him.

"That's just what it wants you to think!" Yaz pleaded desperately with the screen, the feeling of helplessness a claw around her heart as they could only watch the horror unfold in front of them. The Doctor wasn't even watching the screen at this point, her eyes locked on the floor and the only sign she was even present was the occasional twitch or squeeze of her hands in River and Jack's.

DEE DEE: No, that's not what happened.

"Tell them Dee Dee, please." Clara muttered hopefully.

VAL: But look at her.
SKY: Look at me, I can move.
DOCTOR: Look at me.
SKY: I can feel again.
DOCTOR: I can move. I can feel again.
SKY: I'm coming back to life.
DOCTOR: I'm coming back to life.
SKY: And look at him. He can't move.
DOCTOR: And look at him. He can't move.

"Stop it. Just stop this all. Please." Rose shook her head frantically; she wasn't sure she could watch much more of this happen to her friend. She couldn't imagine what the Doctor had gone through, being paralysed as someone used him like a puppet to speak, knowing that at any moment something could snap and they would throw him out to die and being able to do nothing to protest it.

SKY: Help me.
DOCTOR: Help me.
SKY: Professor?
DOCTOR: Professor?
SKY: Get me away from him.
DOCTOR: Get me away from him.
SKY: Please.
DOCTOR: Please.
(Hobbes takes Sky's hands and helps her up.)

"No, no, no." You're giving it what it wants." Mickey said, eyes only leaving the screen to shoot concerned glances at the Doctor. Everyone else was doing the same, all trying to reassure themselves of the Doctor's safe presence amongst them.

SKY: Oh, thank you.
DOCTOR: Oh, thank you.
JETHRO: They've completely separated.
BIFF: It's in him. Do you see? I said it was him all the time.
VAL: She's free. She's been saved.

"They're playing right into its trap." River declared seriously, "It certainly learnt something about humanity in its time aboard the vehicle."

SKY: Oh, it was so cold.
DOCTOR: Oh, it was so cold.
SKY: I couldn't breathe.
DOCTOR: I couldn't breathe.

No one wanted to mention how there was a very good chance that was how the Doctor was currently feeling, unable to do anything as everything else unfolded around him.

SKY: I'm sorry.
DOCTOR: I'm sorry.
SKY: I must have scared you so much.
DOCTOR: I must have scared you so much.
VAL: No, no, it's all right. I've got you. Ooo, there you are, my love. It's gone. Everything's all right now.
DEE DEE: I wouldn't touch her.

"Come on Dee Dee. You're smart, work out that something is very wrong, please." Amy almost pleaded; the whole group's hopes now lay on Dee Dee.

BIFF: But it's gone. She's clean. It passed into him.
DEE DEE: That's not what happened.
HOBBES: Thank you for your opinion, Dee, but clearly Mrs Silvestry has been released.
DEE DEE: No.

"You have to stand up to him Dee Dee, don't let them kill the Doctor." Martha said, everyone's focus lay on her they just had to hope that she actually could do it and stop them doing something horrible. And something must have happened otherwise the Doctor wouldn't have been here. To Donna that was an especially horrifying thought, she was juts sunbathing and wouldn't have known anything was wrong until much too late and then it would have been brought back to the rest of the centre with no one the wiser or able to stop it.

VAL: Just leave her alone. She's safe, isn't she? Jethro, it's let her go, hasn't it?
JETHRO: I think so, yeah. Looks like it. Professor?
HOBBES: I'd say, from observation, the Doctor can't move. And when she was possessed, she couldn't move, so
BIFF: Well, there we are then. Now the only problem we've got is this Doctor.

"You have it all wrong." Rory sighed; he wasn't sure how much longer he could cope with this. They all just wanted it to stop and for the Doctor to get back to Donna so they could leave andnever come back.

SKY: It's inside his head.
DOCTOR: It's inside his head.
SKY: It killed the driver.
DOCTOR: It killed the driver.
SKY: And the mechanic.
DOCTOR: And the mechanic
SKY: And now it wants us.
DOCTOR: And now it wants us.

"She's telling them exactly what they want to hear so they think they've dealt with the threat." Graham said, and the worst thing was that it was working far too well.

VAL: I said so.
SKY: He's waited so long.
DOCTOR: He's waited so long.
SKY: In the dark.
DOCTOR: In the dark.
SKY: And the cold.
DOCTOR: And the cold.
SKY: And the diamonds.
DOCTOR: And the diamonds.
SKY: Until you came.
DOCTOR: Until you came.
SKY: Bodies so hot.
DOCTOR: Bodies so hot.
SKY: With blood.
DOCTOR: With blood.
SKY: And pain.
DOCTOR: And pain.

"Yeah, whatever that thing is, it is not remotely friendly." Bill declared with a grimace at that description and glance into the creature's motives.

"I don't think anyone if going to disagree with you there." Yaz nodded along.

VAL: Stop. Oh, my God, make him stop. Someone make him stop.
DEE DEE: But she's saying it.
VAL: And you can shut up.
DEE DEE: But it's not him, it's her. He's just repeating.

"Listen to Dee Dee!" Several people nearly begged the group on screen.

BIFF: But that's what the thing does, it repeats.
HOSTESS: Just let her talk.
BIFF: What do you know? Fat lot of good you've been.

"She stayed calmer than just about anyone else." Rose argued.

"Apart from the whole throwing Sky out the vehicle thing, but we can accredit that to the grief of losing her colleagues." Mickey weighed in.

HOSTESS: Just let her explain.
DEE DEE: I think. I mean, from what I've seen, it repeats, then it synchronises, then it goes on to the next stage and that's exactly what the Doctor said would happen.
BIFF: What, and you're on his side?
DEE DEE: No.
JETHRO: The voice is the thing.
DEE DEE: And she's the voice. She stole it. Look at her. It's not possessing him, it's draining him.

"Don't like that phrasing. Do not like that phrasing one bit." Bill shook her head; those were not good thoughts.

HOSTESS: She's got his voice.
VAL: But that's not true, because it can't. Because I saw it pass into him. I saw it with my own eyes.
BIFF: So did I.
DEE DEE: You didn't.
VAL: It went from her, to him. You saw it, didn't you?
JETHRO: I don't know.

"Come on Jethro, you've already shown yourself to be more sensible than your parents. Dee Dee needs someone else on her side." Clara said, she was hoping for Jethro to help Dee Dee as if it was just Dee Dee no one was likely to listen to her and they'd be in trouble all over again.

VAL: Oh, don't be stupid, Jethro. Of course you did.
JETHRO: I suppose he was right next to her.
BIFF: Everyone saw it. Everyone.
DEE DEE: You didn't. You're just making it up. I know what I saw, and I saw her stealing his voice.
VAL: She's as bad as him. Someone shut her up.
HOBBES: I think you should be quiet, Dee.
DEE DEE: Well, I'm only saying
HOBBES: And that's an order! You're making a fool of yourself, pretending you're an expert in mechanics and hydraulics, when I can tell you, you are nothing more than average at best. Now shut up.

"Really don't like Hobbes right now. Dee Dee clearly knows more than him about all that but because he's older and ha a title, everyone will listen to him." Yaz grimaced.

"That's how the world works sometimes sadly." Ryan sighed.

"Thanks, I hate it."

SKY: That's how he does it.
DOCTOR: That's how he does it.
SKY: He makes you fight.
DOCTOR: He makes you fight.
SKY: Creeps into your head.
DOCTOR: Creeps into your head.
SKY: And whispers.
DOCTOR: And whispers.
SKY: Listen.
DOCTOR: Listen.

"Let's not." Rory muttered.

SKY: Just listen.
DOCTOR: Just listen.
SKY: That's him.
DOCTOR: That's him.
SKY: Inside.
DOCTOR: Inside.
BIFF: Throw him out.

The group tensed up immediately as the inevitable suggestion came back to the forefront of the panicked passengers' minds. Here it was, Dee Dee or someone needed to speak up now or something else dramatic had to happen or the Doctor was dead.

VAL: Get him out of my head.
BIFF: Yeah, we should throw him out.
VAL: Don't just talk about it, just. You're useless. Do something.
BIFF: I will. You watch me. I'm going to throw him out.
SKY: Yes.
DOCTOR: Yes.
SKY: Throw him out.
DOCTOR: Throw him out.

"Don't do it!" Martha snapped. "You're giving it exactly what it wants!" She was preaching to the choir, but sadly the people who the words were meant for couldn't hear her. No one could do anything but watch.

SKY: Get rid of him.
DOCTOR: Get rid of him.
SKY: Now.
DOCTOR: Now.
(Biff takes hold of the Doctor from behind.)

River and Jack both tightened their hold on the Doctor, a solid reminder that she was there safe with them even as her own attention seemed to be anywhere but the screen. The pair were a bit like cats, ready to hiss at anyone they deemed a danger that tried to come close to the Doctor.

Unnoticed by the group, the Master's nails were digging into the arms of his armchair in his own fury and concern over the Doctor's current situation on screen.

DEE DEE: Don't!
VAL: It'll be you next.
HOSTESS: Don't think we should do this.
BIFF: It was your idea. Professor, help me.
HOBBES: I can't. I'm not.

"All just words. He doesn't have the guts to actually go through with it." Mickey shook his head.

"Thankfully! It means the only real problems are Biff and Val, but Val isn't going to touch him." Martha said.

BIFF: What sort of a man are you? Come on.
VAL: Throw him out.
BIFF: Come on.
VAL: Just do it. Throw him out.
BIFF: Help. Professor, help me.
(The Doctor manages to hook his foot onto a seat.)

"Come on." Donna muttered, "Someone do something and stop this!" If she'd known the details of what had befallen the Doctor before they'd left Midnight, she'd have given these people more than a piece of her mind.

VAL: Get him out.
BIFF: Grab hold of him. Not like that. Are you stupid?
SKY: Cast him out.
DOCTOR: Cast him out.
SKY: Into the sun.
DOCTOR: Into the sun.
VAL: I want him out.
SKY: And the night.
DOCTOR: And the night.

"I can't watch." Rose muttered, despite her words her eyes never wavered from the screen. No one was sure how much longer they could take of this.

VAL: Get him out.
BIFF: Come on. Don't just stand there. Do something.
VAL: Get him out.
SKY: Do it.
DOCTOR: Do it.
SKY: Do it now.
DOCTOR: Do it now.
SKY: Faster.
DOCTOR: Faster.
VAL: Just do it!
SKY: That's the way.
DOCTOR: That's the way.

No one was quite sure what to say, only watching in horror as no one did anything to stop Biff trying to throw the Doctor out of the vehicle. They couldn't imagine what was going though his mind in those moments. Nobody wanted to say anything to delay them finding out how the Doctor had survived and the video being over either, they all just wanted it to be done.

SKY: You can do it.
DOCTOR: You can do it.
SKY: Molto bene.
VAL: Throw him out.
DOCTOR: Molto bene.

A few people narrowed their eyes at that, it was a very un-Sky thing to say from all her words so far but a very Doctor-thing to say. Maybe Sky wasn't as in control as they thought she was, maybe the Doctor had a chance.

VAL: Get him out.
SKY: Allons-y.
DOCTOR: Allons-y.
HOSTESS: That's his voice.

"She's noticed." Amy said, hope blooming in the pit of her stomach to combat the rising dread.

"Now she just has to do something about it." Rory muttered, and that was the harder part. It was one thing to say something and another to do something about it.

SKY: The starlight waits.
HOSTESS: She's taken his voice.
DOCTOR: The starlight waits.
SKY: The emptiness.
DOCTOR: The emptiness.
VAL: Get him out.
SKY: The Midnight sky.
DOCTOR: The Midnight sky.

The room was reminded of the title of the video which held a whole new meaning to it after this. The Doctor's reaction seemed reasonable now, knowing this was what she'd had to suffer alone and surrounded by strangers who wanted to hurt her for trying to help.

HOSTESS: It's her.
VAL: Throw him out.
HOSTESS: She's taken his voice!
(The hostess grabs Sky and rushes her towards the entrance door. She presses the button and everyone screams as the bright light floods in.)
HOSTESS: One, two, three, four, five, six.
(The pressure wall collapses. The hostess and Sky are sucked out and the door closes. The men drop the Doctor.)

"Oh my god, oh my god." Donna muttered shocked but unbelievably thankful that Sky was gone. The whole room was silent out of shock as they tried to take in what had just occurred. Everything had seemed so helpless but the Doctor had managed to claw back enough control for someone to notice and help him. They hadn't expected the help to be so drastic.

The Tardis only gave them a few minutes of silence to try and comprehend what had just happened before the video continued.

DOCTOR: It's gone. It's gone. It's gone, it's gone, it's gone, it's gone. It's gone. It's gone. It's gone, it's gone, it's gone. It's gone, it's gone, it's gone.

The Doctor in the room was mumbling the same thing to herself quietly, both River and Jack quickly joined in on reassuring her, hands held tight to remind them of their presence and her safety. The others avoided eye contact out of respect, choosing instead to focus on the video as it finally came to its end.

VAL: I said it was her.

"That's all she can say …" Rose scowled angrily. After the hostess sacrificed herself and the Doctor was almost killed, and that was all she could say. It was things like that that made them hate their own species some times.

[20 minutes later...]

(Everyone is sitting quietly.)
VOICE [OC]: Repeat. Crusader Fifty rescue vehicle coming alongside in three minutes. Door seals set to automatic. Prepare for boarding. Repeat. Prepare for boarding.

"Finally." Clara sighed. Rescue was here but far too late for Joe, Claude, Sky and the hostess.

DOCTOR: The hostess. What was her name?
HOBBES: I don't know.

And that was the worst part, no one knew her name and likely never would, yet she'd saved their lives through the sacrifice of her own.

[Spa]

(Donna greets the Doctor with a hug.)

The group all let out breaths of relief at seeing the Doctor safe and reunited with Donna. As interesting as their relationship was, they both cared about each other and Donna would look after the Doctor. They just had to leave and get far away from that damned place.

DONNA: What do you think it was?
DOCTOR: No idea.
DONNA: Do you think it's still out there? (silence) Well, you'd better tell them. This lot.
DOCTOR: Yeah. They can build a Leisure Palace somewhere else. Let this planet keep on turning round an Xtonic star, in silence.

"Please tell me the whole place was shut down." Martha turned to the Doctor who had been calmed down with the help of River and Jack, and apart from a few almost unnoticeable tear tracks that no one was going to mention, she seemed more herself now that the reminder of the incident wasn't immediately on screen.

The Doctor nodded her voice a bit hoarse as she answered, "Yes. Shut down for good. Moved operations and a big plan on any activity on planet was set. No one is going near that place anytime soon." The group nodded in relief, thankful for that but wishing that such an accident hadn't needed to have happened for it to occur.

DONNA: Can't imagine you without a voice.
DOCTOR: Molto bene.
DONNA: Molto bene.
DOCTOR: No, don't do that. Don't. Don't.

Donna winced at that, she hadn't known the full extent of the situation but that was arguably the worst thing she could have said there, "God, I'm sorry Doctor."

The Doctor just shook her head and attempted a reassuring smile that only wobbled slightly. "You didn't know." She glanced around the room, "That was … that. Let's move on swiftly now, shan't we?"

No one wanted to argue, all very ready to be done with the emotional trauma that video had caused. It wasn't healthy for the Doctor to just brush past and ignore it, but now also wasn't the time to deal with it. It seemed they would have plenty of time to unpack all the Doctor's trauma if the Tardis wanted to keep them here that long, the matter could be left till they were less emotionally battered. For now, they would move on and hope desperately that the next video was less emotionally challenging or heart attack inducing.