Hello everyone!
I know I'm late (again) sorry! Life is just hectic at the minute but will hopefully relax in a week or two. I'm still trying to update each week, I might just be a day or to late occasionally depending on my schedule but I'm glad you're all enjoying the story!
So this week you all chose Pilot (although Partners in Crime got quite a few votes too, poor Boom Town only got a few). So hope it lives up to your expectations!
Next week we get into the River Song arc with A Good Man Goes to War, then after than is Let's Kill Hitler. After that I might do the Silence in the Library arc as well if you want?
Anyway - what do you want to happen in this break (at end of chapter) - who do you want the Doctor to talk to? Is there any companion conversations you want to hear? Let me know!
As always, thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy!
Please let me know what you think! I love your comments.
Robyn
The group watched as the screen turned black and the title of the next video was revealed. As seemed to be the way with the recent video titles the group looked around each other, trying to see if anyone had any clue about what the video would be about.
"The Pilot? That's very vague." Donna snorted.
"Does it mean a pilot like someone who flies a plane, or a pilot like the first episode of a tv series?" Martha asked, head tilted to the side in thought.
"That's a good point, this all does seem like a tv show." Mickey nodded at his wife's theory.
"Any ideas Doctor?" Jack asked, eyes focussed on the Doctor whose face was scrunched up (adorably) in thought.
"None at the minute. I've met a lot of pilots over the years, ooh, did I tell you about the time I met -."
"Not the time, Sweetie." River interrupted before the Doctor could jump into an elaborate story.
The Doctor pouted but sighed in agreement, "Guess we'll just have to watch and see then."
With that the group turned to the screen eager to see what they would be watching this time. The last video had been a fairly nice video with not much emotional trauma and drama compared to some of the videos they'd watched before. They were quite excited to learn more about the Doctor (and each other) preferably with less trauma for a while, there was only so much emotional trauma you could deal with before needing a break.
[Office]
(A symmetrical wood-panelled room. Over the mantelpiece hangs a 1661 Rembrandt self-portrait. The clock on it ticks away as shuffling footsteps approach, then Nardole enters through the left hand door from our point of view, followed by a sulky girl of dark complexion with a touch of the River Song about her.
The group turned to Bill as one, recognising the young woman who had appeared on screen.
As soon as the pair recognised the room, Bill and the Doctor shared a glance.
"Do you think this is about Heather?" Bill asked the Doctor eager to see her girlfriend on screen.
"I think that would be a good guess." The Doctor nodded, trying to think back to her first meeting with Bill and then the drama with Heather, had she mentioned Missy? She knew no one was likely to take the vault well and she was really hoping to avoid that mess as long as she could. She purposely didn't look at the Master (as much as she wanted to) knowing that someone was likely to pick up on that.
"Heather?" Rory asked looking like he was dreading the answer.
Both Bill and the Doctor shared another glance before answering at the same time.
"My girlfriend."
"Puddle girl."
"I have so many more questions now." Amy muttered looking between the pair who had gone back to staring at each other.
Nardole's arm squeaks mechanically as he gestures for her to sit in front of the desk, then a bolt falls off. He smiles and kicks it behind him, then backs out and closes the door.
The group turned to look at Nardole who looked back trying to look innocent.
"Oh yeah, real unsuspicious." Bill snorted; she'd noticed his actions back then but tried not to think about it at the time (too worried about why she was in the Doctor's office).
"Really?"
"No."
The girl investigates the Police Telephone Box parked in the corner by a window. It has an 'Out of Order' sign hanging on the door. The desk has photographs of Susan Foreman and Melody Pond aka River Song on it.
River turned and smiled softly at her wife; Bill had already mentioned the Doctor had photos of her on her desk but it was a different matter seeing it. The Doctor smiled back softly, carefully taking her wife's hand to reassure herself. Both were thinking of their departure after Darillium, they'd been reluctant (the Doctor more than River as she knew River's fate) and known that was supposed to be the last time they spent together properly, bit this time together was an unexpected gift, one they would enjoy for as long as they could. (Plus, the Doctor still had her suspicions about where River was in her timeline, but River kept avoiding the subject whenever she asked).
The clock chimes. Bill is reaching for the pot that contains not pencils or pens, but sonic screwdrivers, when suddenly the peace is ripped apart by an electric guitar playing Beethoven's Fifth.)
"Oh, it's definitely Eyebrows with that guitar." Clara announced, smiling despite her annoyed tone. She was excited to see her Doctor on screen again and was pleading to the universe that it wouldn't end up being as traumatic as the last time they'd seen him (when they'd separated after the mess on Gallifrey).
BILL: Ahem!
(Silence, then rock star Doctor puts his head out of the right hand door, then back in again. There is the whir of a sonic screwdriver and a bit of amplifier feedback, then he comes out again.)
DOCTOR: Potts?
BILL: Yeah.
DOCTOR: Bill Potts.
BILL: You wanted to see me.
"Ooh, you're in trouble." Jack grinned at the younger girl who grinned back mischievously.
"Not really." Bill shrugged, she couldn't deny she was excited to see where everything started for her, especially from this kind of perspective.
DOCTOR: Er, you're not a student at this university.
BILL: Nah, I work in the canteen.
DOCTOR: Yeah, but you come to my lectures.
BILL: No, I don't. I never do that.
"Totally believable lie." Martha laughed, good heartedly earning a sheepish smile from Bill.
DOCTOR: I've seen you.
BILL: Love your lectures. They're totally awesome.
The group laughed at that. "Complete backtrack and go for the compliments, nice tactic." Clara grinned, sharing a knowing look with Bil. They both had the advantage of having travelled with this Doctor.
DOCTOR: Why'd you come to my lectures when you're not a student?
"Your lectures? Is this when you were working at that university? Which one was it again?" Rose asked, eyebrows furrowed as she tried to remember the name of the university.
"St Luke's University, yes." The Doctor smiled, reminiscing over her years at the university. There was a good reason she's chosen the twentieth and twenty first centuries on Earth to start what was supposed to be a 1000-year stay – it gave her the chance to meet up with many of her former companions without them ever being the wiser.
"I still can't imagine you as a lecturer." Amy shook her head in disbelief.
Bill was the one to answer, smiling as the rest of the group snickered. "They weren't exactly the most typical lecturer." Her words drew some questioning looks but the young woman offered no further answers.
BILL: Okay, so my first day here, in the canteen, I was on chips. There was this girl. Student. Beautiful. Like a model, only with talking and thinking. She looked at you and you perved. Every time, automatic, like physics. Eye contact, perversion. So I gave her extra chips. Every time, extra chips. Like a reward for all the perversion. Every day, got myself on chips, rewarded her. Then finally, finally, she looked at me, like she'd noticed, actually noticed, all the extra chips. Do you know what I realised? She was fat. I'd fatted her. But that's life, innit? Beauty or chips. I like chips.
So did she. So that's okay.
The group was grinning at Bill's story, enraptured with the dynamic between the pair already. Bill was nodding along with herself; she'd almost forgotten about all that with everything else that happened (plus it had been a while ago for her).
DOCTOR: And how does that in any way explain why you keep coming to my lectures?
BILL: Yeah, it doesn't really, does it? I was hoping something would develop.
"That's Doctor level of procrastination speeches." Mickey snickered.
"I don't know whether that's a compliment or an insult." Bill pointed at Mickey, who shrugged – he didn't know either.
"Hey!"
What's that? A police telephone box?
DOCTOR: Yeah.
BILL: Did you build it from a kit?
DOCTOR: No, it came like that.
BILL: Then how did you get it in here? The door's too small and so are the windows.
"You're very observant." River said, looking at Bill with a considering glance. It was easy to underestimate the young girl based on what she said, but she was undeniably clever and noticed things most people didn't question. She could see why the Doctor liked the young woman. That very skill helped make the Doctro as dangerous as they were.
DOCTOR: I had the window and a part of the wall taken out and it was lifted in.
BILL: What, with a crane?
DOCTOR: Yeah, with a crane. It's heavier than it looks. Why do you keep coming to my lectures?
"You're trying to move away from that line of questioning." Rory said; so far, he was enjoying watching the Doctor try to keep up with Bill's endless questions.
"It wasn't like I could actually explain the truth." The Doctor grumbled as the rest of he group watched her with grins.
BILL: Because I like them. Everybody likes them. They're amazing. Why me?
"Thanks Bill." The Doctor muttered; she hadn't done so at the time but Bill deserved a thank you for her comment about the lectures.
"It's the truth." Bill smiled back, she did miss those days of being the Doctor's student and attending their lectures (alongside the adventure in space and time). But she had enjoyed her time with Heather so far, but she did plan to go back eventually (though it would be weird without the Doctor).
DOCTOR: Why you what?
BILL: Well, plenty of people come to your lectures that aren't supposed to. Why pick on me?
DOCTOR: Well, I noticed you.
BILL: Yeah, but why?
DOCTOR: Well, most people when don' t understand something, they frown. You smile.
The room was watching the interaction curious, all thinking back to their first meeting of the Doctor and trying to think back to how they had been noticed. Some of them like Amy, Yaz, Graham, and Ryan had met them straight after regeneration; others they'd run into during a dangerous situation with no one else around like Rose and Donna; some came alongside others like Rory and Mickey, and a few of them were only one of many but stood out, like Martha and Bill. Clara, Jack, Nardole and River were a bit more unique in circumstances.
BILL: I'll tell you what I don't understand. You've been lecturing here for a long time. Like, fifty years, some people say. Nabeela in the office says over seventy.
DOCTOR: Yeah, and you're thinking, 'Well, he doesn't look old enough'.
BILL: No.
The group burst out into loud laughter upon hearing that comment and seeing the Doctor's resulting expression.
"Sometimes I think you forget you've regenerated." River shook her head in fond exasperation at the Doctor, who shrugged. It wasn't necessarily the case (at least not all the time), it was more the fact she didn't already understand human ageing (in terms of appearance), but she had been fairly young for the last few faces so looking older was harder to remember.
I'm wondering what you're supposed to be lecturing on. It's like the university let you do whatever you like. One time, you were going to give a lecture on quantum physics. You talked about poetry.
"I see what you mean about not being a typical lecturer." Mickey whistled.
"So, what are you supposed to lecture on?" Bill asked, turning to look at the Doctor, remembering how he had dodged her question the first time.
"Does it matter?" The Doctor asked, faking nonchalance.
"You can't remember, can you?" Jack realised, smile almost breaking his face. The fact that the Doctor started avoiding meeting anyone's eyes told the group the answer. It only made them start laughing at her.
DOCTOR: Poetry, physics, same thing.
BILL: How is it the same?
DOCTOR: Because of the rhymes. What are you doing at this university?
"They don't rhyme?" Ryan pointed out; eyes furrowed in confusion.
"Everything rhymes if you try hard enough." The Doctor answered cryptically. The group glanced at her with doubtful looks but made no comments.
BILL: I always wanted to come here.
DOCTOR: Yeah, to serve chips?
BILL: So anyway, am I nearly done?
"You can't get on at me for avoiding questions." The Doctor grumbled, but offered a small smile at Bill, understanding her reasonings now for both avoiding the question and wanting to attend St Luke's.
DOCTOR: Do you want to be?
BILL: See ya.
DOCTOR: You ever get less than a first, then it's over.
BILL: You what?
DOCTOR: A first. Every time, or I stop immediately.
BILL: Stop what?
DOCTOR: Being your personal tutor.
BILL: But I'm not a student. I'm not part of the university. I never even applied.
DOCTOR: We'll sort all that out later.
The group started grinning eager to see how everything was developing. The dynamic between the pair on screen was certainly unique but very earnest and entertaining to watch.
Bill was grinning at the Doctor, very glad for that meeting despite her initial apprehensions upon finding out about the meeting.
BILL: You kinda have to sort that out earlier.
DOCTOR: Leave it with me. I'm assuming that it's a yes.
BILL: Yes.
DOCTOR: I'll see you at 6pm every weekday. I don't care who's dying, never, ever be late. I'm very particular about time.
"Yet you are rarely, if ever, on time yourself." Donna raised an eyebrow at the Doctor who put on her most innocent expression (which fooled no one).
BILL: Oh, er. People just call you the Doctor? What do I call you?
DOCTOR: The Doctor.
BILL: But Doctor's not a name. I can't just call you Doctor. Doctor what?
The group was practically cackling upon seeing the Doctor's expression at Bill's comment, the Doctor looked slightly (more than slightly actually) maniacal at the question. Bill and Nardole were both giving the Doctor side-eyes, thinking about Missy's comment about his name being Doctor Who.
The Doctor was again, purposely avoiding making eye-contact. There was a collection of things she loved upon meeting new companions – their reaction to the Tardis, their first adventure in time and/or space, their reaction to the sonic, and them being able to handle themselves as they grow in confidence - were a few and the question of 'Doctor Who?' as Madam Vastra had once pointed out, was another. Bill was one of a few of her companions who had circumvented that question in favour of Doctor What.
[Lecture hall]
(Intercut with Bill waking up, cooking chips in the canteen, and serving big portions to a well-built woman and winking at her.)
DOCTOR: Time! Time doesn't pass. The passage of time is an illusion, and life is the magician. Because life only lets you see one day at a time. You remember being alive yesterday, you hope you're going to be alive tomorrow, so it feels like you're travelling from one to the other. But nobody's moving anywhere. Movies don't really move.
(Six o'clock.)
DOCTOR: They're just pictures, lots and lots of pictures. All of them still, none of them moving. Just frozen moments.
(Bill is at the door, ready to knock.)
DOCTOR: But if you experience those pictures one after the other, then everything comes alive.
The group watched the screen in fascination, Bill was grinning in remembrance of the actual lecture from what felt like so long ago. The Doctor was nodding along with herself on screen and watching entertained by the way the video was put together, she'd enjoyed her time at the university – giving lectures to students and getting to share some of her knowledge, the marking hadn't been any fun though.
"I really see why you enjoyed the lectures." Martha muttered, she was one of only a couple people in the group to actually attend university and wished she'd had a lecturer like the Doctor at hers. The group all nodded along still in some sort of awe of the Doctor's lecture, it was very on point with their style.
"You've picked up some of my tricks I see." River smiled softly at her wife, happy to see the Doctor had managed to find some peace after their separation – tutoring Bill had really helped them get back into their normal rhythm and being at the university seemed to have been a welcome break.
"How could I not? My wife is an amazing professor after all." The Doctor smiled back. There were several reasons she'd chosen to work at a university – a way to remember her wife had been one of several reasons she'd never admitted out loud to anyone.
"And don't you forget it, Sweetie."
[Office]
(The door swings open.)
BILL: Am I on time?
DOCTOR: That's a very big question.
(He throws her a book.)
"If you are, you're doing better than them." Jack grinned cheekily at the Doctor who just sighed in exasperation at his antics- they were never going to stop teasing her about her time keeping skills no matter how many times she tried to explain how hard it was to hit the right time.
[Bill's home]
(Looking through graded papers - The Cosmic Far Ultraviolet Background 97%, Quantum Statistics of Light 88%, Laser cooling of ions: atomic clocks and quantum jumps 92%)
BILL: You know you're my foster mum? He's like my foster tutor.
MOIRA: Am I going to have to break every bone in his body?
"I'm glad she's so willing to defend you." Graham remarked.
"Yeah, that's Moira." Bill muttered; she knew her foster mother cared about her even if she wasn't sure she understood her. She hadn't ever explained that she liked women instead of men as she wasn't sure how Moira would take it.
BILL: It's not like that.
MOIRA: You need to keep your eye on men.
BILL: (sotto) Men aren't where I keep my eye, actually.
A few members of the group nodded sympathetically, coming out to friends/family could certainly be interesting.
[Lecture hall]
DOCTOR: Imagine if time all happened at once. Every moment of your life laid out around you like a city. Streets full of buildings made of days. The day you were born, the day you die. The day you fall in love, the day that love ends. A whole city built from triumph and heartbreak and boredom and laughter and cutting your toenails. It's the best place you will ever be.
The cut back to the lecture grabbed the attention of the room again as they all turned to watch, still fascinated by the Doctor's presentation. They could certainly understand why so many people went to their lectures if they were all like that.
[Bar]
(Bill's eyes meet those of another woman across a crowded bar.)
Bill smiled upon seeing pre-Pilot Heather, it was always nice to see her girlfriend and the video was certainly presenting their meeting in an interesting fashion. The Doctor just raised an eye at the pair's meeting, she was curious to see the interactions that had led to Heather chasing them across the universe.
DOCTOR [OC]: Time is a structure relative to ourselves.
BILL: I'll get them in.
DOCTOR: [OC]: Time is the space made by our lives where we stand together, forever.
[Lecture hall]
DOCTOR: Time And Relative Dimension In Space. It means life.
The group grinned upon seeing the familiar acronym spelled out for the oblivious students. Bill was watching the lecture entranced – it certainly held a whole new layer of meaning once you understood who the Doctor was and what they did.
(Transcriber's note. Although this is the original derivation of Tardis, it wasn't long until Dimensions became plural. Is this what Mr Moffat meant when he said that this season 'begins the show again'? Because there's an awful lot of self-referencing going on that new watchers will not get. Argh!)
[Canteen]
BILL: Just chips, yeah?
WOMAN: Please.
"Now I'm getting hungry for chips." Rose moaned, gaining a few nods of agreement from several people in the group.
The Doctor smiled at that, "How about we break for some food and sleep after this video?"
"That sounds like a good plan for once, well done Sweetie."
"River!" The Doctor whined.
(In the quadrangle, Bill watches the Doctor and Nardole scurry around the corner of the building, Nardole turning the wrong way originally. She follows them to a cellar door which opens for her.)
"You were following us?" Nardole squeaked and was promptly ignored.
"Well, if you didn't act suspicious, I wouldn't have." Bill crossed her arms, giving the pair a pointed look. It was only the three (four if you include the Master) who knew what they'd been up to back then.
"What were you up too?" Clara asked, eyes narrowed in suspicion. There wasn't much they could be up to as the Tardis was in his office and he didn't have much else to hide let alone big enough to hide in a hidden basement.
The Doctor, Nardole and Bill shared a glance none of them really wanted to tell the group about Missy and the vault. The Master, however, was smirking with chaos swirling in his eyes.
The Master opened his mouth to start exposing the Doctor but didn't actually manage to get any words out before a pillow hit him in the face, turning his expression from an eager madness to bewildered fury. "How dare you –." The Master exclaimed staring at the Doctor who just glared at him.
"Okay, now I'm not even sure if I want to know." Amy announced, eyeing the pair of them warily. It was rarely a good thing when the Master and Doctor interacted like this. The whole group eyes the pair with suspicion but ultimately decided whatever was going on wasn't worth the pain at the moment – if the Tardis thought they needed to know they would find out.
[Cellar]
NARDOLE [OC]: So you're tutoring her, then?
DOCTOR [OC]: Yes, I am.
NARDOLE [OC]: Why?
DOCTOR [OC]: Why not?
NARDOLE [OC]: You're not supposed to get involved. What are you teaching her, anyway?
DOCTOR [OC]: Everything.
NARDOLE [OC] Well, how can you teach anyone everything?
DOCTOR [OC]: Because everything rhymes. Links apple and alpha, synchronous and diverging. Descending multiples.
"Literally none of those things rhyme." Yaz said, glancing at the Doctor who shrugged, that was hardly the point.
(Beep.)
NARDOLE [OC]: Yeah, you want to turn that.
(More beeps.)
NARDOLE [OC]: You want to rotate it.
(Sonic whir, then a big clatter. She hides. The Doctor and Nardole are by a huge metal vault door. The name board of the Marie Celeste is down here too.)
"Why is there a huge vault hidden beneath the university!" Donna exclaimed, eyeing the Doctor with suspicion.
The Doctor looked around the group only to be met with curious and concerned expressions. She sighed but decided they wouldn't be satisfied without some kind of answer this time, "The Vault is the reason I stayed at the university for so long. I'm sure we'll see more later." She purposely avoided what (or rather who) was in the vault for the moment. The group narrowed their eyes at the vague answer but let it go for now.
DOCTOR: The door upstairs, how did you set the security?
NARDOLE: Friends only.
The Doctor groaned, understanding all too well how Bill had managed to follow them now. The rest of the group was too busy snickering at the screen to notice how the Doctor glanced at the Master.
(How very Facebook. Bill starts to sneak away.)
NARDOLE [OC]: So turn it, and then it'll
DOCTOR [OC]: I'm turning it, aren't I?
The group snickered at the pair's interaction, while River just sighed exasperated with her wife – she'd left Nardole with the Doctor for a reason and it wasn't (entirely) to antagonise them.
[Quadrangle]
(Bill comes across the woman from the bar sitting on a bench.)
BILL: You okay?
HEATHER: Yeah, I'm fine.
BILL: Sorry, can I ask? What's that in your eye?
HEATHER: It's just a defect in the iris.
BILL: Looks like a star.
HEATHER: Well, it's a defect.
"She's defensive." Amy remarked.
Bill shrugged, "It probably gets annoying with everyone asking about it."
"That's true." Rory surrendered for his wife.
BILL: At least it's a defect that looks like a star.
HEATHER: I'm getting it fixed.
BILL: Okay. Sorry, none of my business, but are you freaking out about something?
HEATHER: Please. You can say no. Would you come with me? Can I show you something?
BILL: God, yes!
"You have a crush." Jack sang teasingly, Bill just stuck her tongue out at him (it was true but he didn't need to tease her about it).
"I'm more worried about what she wants to show Bill." Yaz said, eyes narrowed at the screen. Unlike in the rest of the videos an 'enemy' or disastrous situation hadn't presented itself yet and knowing the Doctor, it wasn't likely to stay that way.
No one missed the look Bill and the Doctor shared, it left the group more on edge knowing there would in fact be something dangerous appearing shortly, because that was just their luck.
[Pedestrian walkway]
BILL: I love this place, don't you?
HEATHER: I hate it.
BILL: Why?
HEATHER: I don't know. I just do. Everywhere I go I just want to leave.
BILL: Can I come too?
Bill and the Doctor shared another look, having a silent conversation. The conversation hadn't been particularly significant in Bill's mind until Heather had become the Pilot, and the Doctor was just interested to get a better idea of why Heather was chasing Bill to start with. The rest of the group (bar Nardole who had made an 'ahaoh' kind of noise of realisation) didn't notice the exchange and were just happy watching Bill's crush on Heather, although they were a bit apprehensive of what Heather wanted to show Bill.
[Service area]
(They come to a concrete service area between large buildings, with temporary fencing and storage units.)
HEATHER: Maybe. There's a puddle over there, but it hasn't rained for a week.
"Okay, that's pretty weird but there are lots of logical explanations for that." Martha said, face scrunched up in thought.
"Like someone spilt some water from a bottle or a burst pipe." Mickey offered logically.
"Yes, but how often is there a logical explanation when it comes to this one." Donna snorted, pointing towards the Doctor who adopted an offended expression.
"Hey!"
BILL: Yeah, but, well, you know, half the students here are blokes.
"That's another explanation, just not a nice one." Rose nodded; face crinkled in disgust at the thought.
HEATHER: Go and look in it.
BILL: You want me to look in a puddle?
HEATHER: Please.
(Bill goes over to the puddle.)
BILL: Okay, I'm looking. What am I looking at?
HEATHER: Your reflection.
BILL: Yep. There it is.
Bill and the Doctor shared yet another glance, it was easier for them to notice what was wrong now that they knew. Bill stared at the screen assessing her reflection, it was weird to think about all the trouble she'd gotten into, how she had got to travel with the Doctor because of a puddle (a puddle of mysterious space oil but still a puddle).
HEATHER: Do you see what's wrong with it?
(Yes, her hair parting is on the wrong side for a reflection.)
Now the whole group was analysing the screen in an attempt to notice what was wrong, glancing every so often at Bill for refrence. In his corner, the Master smirked having noticed what no one else in the room had but he wasn't about to share that information with them.
"Okay, I give up! What's wrong with the reflection?" Amy demanded after several minutes of the group silently staring at the screen.
Bill and the Doctor glanced at each other trying to figure out how much to say without spoiling everything but enough to satisfy the group. Bill decided to take charge for once, "I think it's best to just watch, it's kinda important." Most of the room looked like they wanted to argue that but upon seeing the determined faces of both Bill and the Doctor let it go for the moment - they'd get their answers one way or another.
BILL: My name's Bill, by the way.
HEATHER: I'm Heather. Can you see what's wrong?
BILL: Nothing. It just looks like me. Oh! What is that? That's me, that's my face, but it's wrong.
(Heather is walking away.)
BILL: Hey!
HEATHER: Sorry. Some other time.
BILL: Promise?
Bill felt the sudden urge to hit herself - she'd noticed that something was wrong with her face she just hadn't been able to pinpoint it in that moment (admittedly, partially due to the distraction of a pretty girl that she wanted to impress aka Heather). The Doctor watched Bill carefully, this was another part of why Heather had chased them, she'd promised (or more accurately, Bill had asked her to promise). She couldn't deny she was enjoying this video - it certainly wasn't as intense or high stakes as many of the other videos they'd seen (or many of her other adventures they hadn't seen (yet)), plus she got to relieve some of her time at the university and relieve her meeting with Bill again.
ALIEN VOICE [OC]: Pilot is located. Link is established.
(The view from the puddle is streaming down into somewhere, then it freezes over.)
"Okay. That is not a puddle!" Graham exclaimed, eyeing the puddle warily. Why couldn't anything in their lives just be normal?
"What is it?" Ryan leaned forward a bit, eyes focussed more on the burn patches near the puddle - that looked semi-familiar but he couldn't connect it.
"Whatever it is, it doesn't sound very friendly and it wants - Heather, I'm guessing?" Yaz glanced at Bill for confirmation; out of the two of them who were there and from what they knew about both of them, Heather seemed the more likely target.
"The Doctor and Bill glanced at each other before turning to the room at large and answering in sync, "You'll see."
[Office]
(We discover that we are supposed to be at St Luke's University Bristol. Snow has fallen. Somewhere a choir sings Jingle Bells. Bill is carrying a long round present for her tutor.)
"We've jumped in time." Clara said, glancing at Bill and the Doctor for confirmation. It wasn't the first time the video had done that but she was curious how long the Doctor had been Bill's tutor before finding out about the time travelling alien part.
Seemingly reading her mind or, the more likely option, reading between the lines, Bill answered Clara, "He'd been my tutor since just after the start of term so it had been a couple of months at this point, I think. Term started September and he started tutoring me about the last week of September so, yeah." She glanced at the Doctor to see if she contested it but the Doctor was just nodding along - honestly, she was convinced it was a miracle that Bill hadn't noticed anything too weird before this point.
DOCTOR: It's a rug. Haven't got you anything.
BILL: It's okay, it was cheap.
"You got him a rug?" Martha asked, not unkindly just curious and maybe a bit entertained by the sweet sight.
Bill nodded with a shrug, "Felt right to get him something but I'm a university student so inherently poor."
"Mood." Yaz snorted, it hadn't been that long ago she'd been a college/university student either and she knew that pain.
CHOIR [OC]:
Oh, what fun it is to ride in a one-horse open sleigh.
(Later, wearing Christmas Cracker paper hats, and with plates of nibbles on the desk.)
BILL: Going anywhere for Christmas?
DOCTOR; I never go anywhere.
"Blatant lies." Jack teased the Doctor who just rolled her eyes at his antics.
"What was I supposed to say? 'Oh, yes I usually travel in time and space but for reasons I can't share I am sticking around 21st century Earth for the moment'?" The Doctor countered, earning a mock surrender from Jack who hadn't missed that she still wasn't saying why she'd been hanging round the university - all he knew was it had something to do with the vault and she wasn't telling them as she knew they wouldn't like it - which wasn't reassuring by any definition.
BILL: That's not true. You go places, I can tell. My mum always said, 'With some people you can smell the wind in their clothes.'
DOCTOR: Oh. She sounds nice.
BILL: She died when I was a baby.
DOCTOR: Oh.
BILL: Yeah.
DOCTOR: If she died when you were a baby, when did she say that?
"Doctor!" Rose exclaimed, "Insensitive."
"Don't tell me you're not curious too." The Doctor shot back but her expression revealed that she did feel a bit guilty about it, the way she war glancing at Bill.
"It's okay. Bill shrugged, it wasn't like she'd ever properly known her mum and it was a long time ago - she'd come to peace with it as they say. Plus, in some way it only felt fair to have to share private things about themselves given how much of the Doctor's privacy they were invading (not that she was going to volunteer them - she meant more if they came up in the videos like they had been."
The Doctor's expression was troubled, "Still, I'm sorry Bill." The young woman just shot her a small smile and another shrug.
BILL: In my head. I'm supposed to look like her, but I don't really know. There's hardly any photographs. She hated having her picture taken. But if someone's gone, do pictures really help?
(He glances at the photographs on his desk.)
"You have an idea." River smiled at her wife, having a feeling she knew what they were about to do. She liked Bill and was glad the Doctor had found Bill and moved on after losing her, it was healthy (plus they were time travellers, who was to say Darillium was really their last meeting?).
Bill had shot up in her seat, suddenly remembering what exactly had happened - she's had her suspicions at the time but had dismissed they because it was ridiculous, but now she knew it was true. She gave the Doctor such an earnest, thankful smile that the Doctor shifted uncomfortable in her seat at the positive attention but managed to shoot a small smile back. All she could think about (at the time) was how much Susan and River's photos had helped her (plus all the other photos of her family and companions over her life that she kept in the Tardis) and knew she'd had to help Bill out.
[Bill's home]
MOIRA: I thought you'd enjoy choosing something for yourself, as you're always passing judgments.
(Bill's present is two £10 notes, Moira's is a scarf.)
MOIRA: I hope you didn't spend too much on this.
BILL: Nah. This should cover it. What's that?
MOIRA: Oh, I found that at the back of the cupboard with all your old stuff. Just photographs of your mum. I didn't know we had 'em.
(Bill opens the cardboard box. There are dozens if not hundreds of photographs, and she is moved to tears. Then she spots a reflection in a mirror of the Doctor taking the picture in one of the photographs.)
"Doctor-." Someone started, she wasn't sure who instead she was focussed more on Bill. Bill had jumped up from her seat upon seeing the Doctor in the photo again, leaping towards the Doctor and pulling her into a tight hug. She started chanting "thank you, thank you, thank you," over and over again while the Doctor just patted her back slightly awkwardly (she still wasn't exactly a hugger).
Several minutes later, Bill finally pulled back and moved to sit back down, but her gaze was still locked on the Doctor curiosity taking the place of thankfulness. "Did you know my mum then? That's a lot of photos and I doubt she'd let anyone just photograph her."
The Doctor smiled softly at the young woman; aware the whole room's eyes were eagerly watching them. "Your mother went to the university but she wasn't one of my students, I asked her to help with an imaginary art/photography project I told her I was working on, I only knew her a couple of months but you are every like her from what I saw." It went unsaid that she'd gone back in time to do this - it hadn't been that hard to enlist the help of her younger self (actually it had taken some convincing to take photos of a random student that wasn't even one of hers but that wasn't important). Of course, the mixing of time lines prevented her remembering until now and she'd managed to do a bit more time travelling to hide them in the cupboard until they could be noticed at the right time.
Bill's eyes were shining with unshed tears, but she composed herself enough to say a last thank you. Show over, the group turned back to the screen. The only person not looking at the screen was River who smiled softly at her wife, muttering "I'm proud of you." Before kissing the Doctor's forehead gently and turning back to the screen, missing the Doctor's lovestruck/grieving expression.
[Office]
(As the clock chimes six.)
BILL: Happy new term!
DOCTOR: With you in a moment.
(Bill sees that the Tardis is partly sitting on her gift rug.)
BILL: You said you needed a crane to lift your box.
DOCTOR [OC]: Sorry, what did you say?
"I was right!" Bill cheered. Of course, she'd know she was right after the Doctor's reveal but she took some pleasure in being able to announce it like this.
"Right about what?" Rory asked the young woman. She understood her confusion over the rug and Tardis but she hadn't made any declaration or theories.
"Well not right. I just thought it was weird and I already knew the Doctor was weird but that just made him weirder." Bill back tracked a bit; she may have gotten excited.
"Very true." Amy snorted, enjoying any chance to tease the Doctor.
[Service area]
(Warmer weather, Bill is in short sleeves. She returns to the site of the puddle and sees Heather standing there.)
BILL: Hey! Still making eyes at a puddle?
HEATHER: Did you ever work out what was wrong with your reflection?
BILL: Nah.
HEATHER: Come round. I'll show you.
BILL: Promise you won't go?
HEATHER: Promise.
Bill frowned at that, she'd finally gotten the promise she'd asked for form Heather but that was the last time she'd seen her before Heather had become the Pilot. Arguably that was the moment that things had really changed for her - maybe she could have gone her whole university career without finding out about the Doctor or maybe not but here was where she had gotten herself into a situation that required her to learn about the Doctor.
The group was just smiling at the blossoming young relation, although a bit apprehensive about the sudden reappearance of Heather and the puddle after the touching Christmas scenes. They didn't notice the Doctor watching Bill, or Bill's troubled expression.
(But when Bill gets around the fencing, Heather is gone.)
BILL: Okay. Yeah, no worries.
"Where'd she go?" Mickey asked worried. There weren't exactly many places she could have gone in such a short time since they'd last seen her and he was getting a bad feeling about that 'puddle'. No one missed the frowns Bill and the Doctor exchanged.
(She leaves, not having seen Heather's screaming face in the puddle.)
ALIEN VOICE [OC]: Pilot confirmed. Pilot engaged.
The group watched in shock at seeing Heather's screaming face in the puddle. Even the Doctor and Bill who knew what had happened hadn't seen the details of Heather becoming the pilot, and it didn't look pleasant - no wonder she hadn't been entirely put together when chasing them compared to when Bill saw her after the colony ship.
"What happened to her?" Rose asked concerned.
"She became the pilot." The Doctor answered, expression blank. The trouble was only just starting.
"But what does that mean?" Donna shouted frustrated.
"Just watch, please." Several people shot the Doctor glares for the evasive answer but did as they were told for the moment.
[Study]
(Bill enters as the Doctor is writing.)
DOCTOR: What's wrong?
"Tell him." Martha muttered, knowing the Doctor was Bill's best chance with the puddle.
(A little later.)
BILL: She said it was a defect, but what kind of defect puts a star in your eye? But that doesn't even matter because she was right. There was something wrong when you looked in the puddle. That was definitely my face. I see my face all the time. I've never liked it, it's all over the place. It's always doing expressions when I'm trying to be enigmatic. I know my face, and there was something wrong with my face in the puddle. What could be wrong with your own face?
(She looks out of the window to see the Doctor running along the path outside.)
The group burst out laughing upon seeing the Doctor running across the courtyard, not even waiting for Bill. The situation was tense and getting more anxiety inducing but as ever, the Doctor was very capable of comedic intervention even when they didn't intend to. Even Bill was chuckling, more relaxed than most of the group as she knew what had happened and how everything ended. She still wasn't sure how she'd been so distracted that she didn't hear him leaving.
[Quadrangle]
BILL: Doctor!
(She gives chase.)
BILL: Doctor!
"Oh, you already know what happens during travels with the Doctor then." Clara grinned alongside the rest of the room at the familiar scene. Even without knowing who the Doctor was, and without being in (too much) danger there was still the ever-present running (and shouted 'Doctor!').
[Service area]
(The Doctor is looking into the puddle. We get to look up at him, with bubbles rising.)
"I don't think you should be that close to the not-puddle." Graham said nervously eyeing the screen as if waiting for it to jump at the pair. The Doctor just shrugged unrepentant.
BILL: Why do you run like that?
DOCTOR: Like what?
BILL: Like a penguin with its arse on fire.
The group burst out laughing again at the (accurate) description of the twelfth Doctor's run. Even the Doctor was chuckling - she couldn't deny it, especially after seeing it from an outside perspective like this.
DOCTOR: Ergonomics. That's my face, yeah?
BILL: You seem a bit flexible on the subject.
DOCTOR: Oh, you've no idea.
"I absolutely had no idea." Bill declared with a sly smile, that was an understatement if there ever was one.
BILL: Maybe it's got to do with that thing in her eye.
DOCTOR: How?
BILL: Maybe she's like, affected by something.
DOCTOR: By what?
BILL: I don't know. Look, I know you know lots of stuff about, well, basically everything, but do you know any sci-fi?
(The Doctor straightens up.)
That made the group start chuckling again, while Bill just groaned - perspective really was annoying sometimes.
"The Doctor is sci-fi." Amy announced. "A dork and an idiot, but a sci-fi one."
"Yea- Hey!"
DOCTOR: Go on.
BILL: Well, what if she's possessed. Something like that.
DOCTOR: Possessed by what?
BILL: I don't know. I saw this thing on Netflix. Lizards in people's brains.
DOCTOR: Right. So, you meet a girl with a discoloured iris and your first thought is she might have a lizard in her brain? I can see I'm going to have to up my game. Oh.
The group snickered at both Bill's proposed explanation and the Doctor's reaction to it. The Doctor just shook her head fondly at the young woman, she'd made them watch any films during their travels and she still didn't understand half of them, but that explanation was particularly weird.
"Honestly, it wouldn't be the weirdest thing any of us had seen." Rose defended, gaining a few nods of agreement as the snickers died out.
BILL: What?
DOCTOR: Oh!
BILL: What is it, what?
DOCTOR: Oh, I get it. I see it. It was easy for your friend because of her eye.
BILL: What, because it gives her special powers?
"Please tell me that is not the answer." Rory asked with a sigh. The Doctor grinned but waved to the screen instead of answering, earning another sigh from Rory (Which was exactly why she did it).
DOCTOR: No! Because her face isn't symmetrical. Look! Look into the puddle. Your face looks wrong, because it looks right. What's the one thing you never see when you look at a reflection? Your face. You never see your face the right way round. Right. Look for a freckle or a funny tooth. Something that's not symmetrical.
BILL: My badge!
DOCTOR: See, your friend saw it straightaway because of her eye.
The group all muttered 'oh' as their expressions showed the dawning realisation as the Doctor explained. Then their expressions turned even more concerned as that revelation (while nice to have answers) was worrying - f it wasn't a puddle reflecting them then what was it and what was it doing?
BILL: But, it's moving like a reflection.
DOCTOR: It's not reflecting you. It's mimicking you. There's something in the water pretending to be you.
If possible, the group tensed up further, becoming more nervous at the confirmation of their theories. Bill and the Doctor shared another glance, having a silent conversation - things were only about to get worse.
(He scoops some up into a test tube, and puts a cork in it.)
DOCTOR: Of course. It isn't water. Now what are these? Let's have a look.
BILL: What are they?
DOCTOR: Scorch marks. Interesting.
(Possibly an octagon shape, not sure.)
DOCTOR: Right, you. Let's get you on the bus.
"You've figured something out and don't want her involved." River deduced, eyeing the Doctor. She had her own theories about what the puddle was, especially having noticed the pattern of the scorch marks.
The Doctor nodded, "I was trying to stay out of trouble but it seemed to find me anyway. I didn't want to drag Bill into trouble."
"For once, I think Bill was the one to drag you into trouble." Jack countered, giving the Doctor a pointed look - they knew the Doctor tried to keep them out of trouble half the time but they usually weren't successful and it was usually against the wishes of the person they were trying to protect.
BILL: The what? The bus?
DOCTOR: Tutorial's over, take the night off. It's all cancelled. Go and be a proper student. Texts, snogging, a vegan wrap.
BILL: But what about the puddle?
DOCTOR: Oh, it's just some freak optical effect. I'm bored already.
"You really weren't convincing that everything was normal." Bill said to the Doctor.
"You still went home." The Doctor shot back.
"Not that that went very well." Bill snorted, thinking back to how 'Heather'/the Pilot arrived at her house. The rest of the group watched the conversation getting more worried at Bill's comment but neither of the pair looked like they were going to offer answers if they asked.
ALIEN VOICE [OC]: Passenger selected. Pursuit engaged.
(The puddle moves.)
"It's chasing you. Why do they always chase us?" Mickey bemoaned; expression concerned for Bill but also annoyed with how their lives worked at this point. The whole group was watching, eyes locked to the screen in concern - things were certainly heating up.
[Bill's home]
(Water is running in the bathroom. She knocks on the door.)
BILL: Hey. I'll make you a cuppa for the bath.
(She goes to the kitchen and her mobile phone rings.)
BILL: Hey.
MOIRA [OC]: Sorry I'm not there, love, but I think we both know it's time I treated myself.
(Moira is at the bar.)
BILL: Are you with Neville?
MOIRA [OC]: Why would I be back with Neville after last time?
"If that's not her in the shower, then –." Rose said, worried. She didn't finish her sentence but everyone was thinking the same thing.
"Talk of horror movie vibes." Yaz muttered which got a small grimace out of Bill. It was never nice to compare your life to a horror movie.
[Bar]
MOIRA: Why do you think I'm such an idiot?
[Bill's home]
(Checking the caller ID.)
BILL: Well, you're calling from his phone. Is there someone staying here in the flat?
"You caught her there." Nardole chuckled but everyone ignored him in favour of keeping their eyes locked to the screen not wanting to miss anything as things became tenser.
MOIRA [OC]: Of course not, no. What are you talking about?
BILL: Er, nothing. Never mind. I'll see you tomorrow.
"That's really not good." Ryan declared, glancing between Bill and the screen.
(The water stops running, and now sounds like someone taking a bath.)
BILL: Hello? Is someone in there? Is that Barry? Because she's with Neville, and it's not my fault.
(Squelch of wet feet. Bill grabs an umbrella.)
BILL: Sorry, I need to know who's in there. I'm coming in. Do you hear me? Make yourself decent.
"I love how you think there is a stranger in the house but you still ask them to be descent." Mickey shook his head.
Bill shrugged, "I didn't exactly want to see anything no matter how nervous I was about who was in there."
"But why go in there at all? People that do that die first in horror films." Clara asked, nervous about how the situation was unfolding.
"I didn't exactly know the weird puddle was chasing me. I just thought it was one of Moira's ex-boyfriends." Bill explained, frowning at the screen. She really was getting horror vibes and even though she knew what was going to happen it was still giving her the creeps.
"True." Yaz sighed.
(She goes into the bathroom. The bath is empty, the last drops gurgling down the plughole. There is a shadowy shape behind the shower curtain.)
BILL: If that's Barry, let's not make this worse. Just say it's you.
(She pulls the curtain aside, as the last of the water drains away. Then Heather's eye looks up at her from the drain hole. She gasps and falls backwards, then runs out of the flat.)
"Get out of there." Martha announced. "Go find the Doctor."
Bill smiled at the concern on the groups faces. "He'd been acting weird and he'd like the only person I figured might believe me. So, yeah I went to find the Doctor." A few people let out sighs of relief at that declaration. Even though they knew Bill was okay (and even seemed to like Heather) it was still scary to see her in so much danger.
[Shopping centre]
(Bumping into people walking the other way.)
MAN: Hey!
[Quadrangle]
(Bill sees the Doctor is up in his office. Heather is standing nearby, with the sound of trickling water.)
BILL: Hello.
HEATHER: Hello.
BILL: You scared me.
HEATHER: You scared me.
"It's mimicking you." Rory said.
"Just like it mimicked your reflection, it's mimicking your words." Amy evolved her husband's thoughts.
Bill shook her head at them, "She, not it. It took Heather a while to meld properly to become the pilot which is why she's only mimicking."
"But why is she chasing you?" Donna asked, already frustrated by the lack of answers presenting themselves. Bill smiled but waved to the screen for a proper explanation which only served to frustrate the group more.
(Bill steps forward and can see the water dribbling from Heather's mouth and running off her hands. In fact, it is pouring off her entire body.)
BILL: You're dead.
HEATHER: You're dead.
(Heather leaps foward.)
"I know she's your girlfriend and all, but that's undeniably creepy." Ryan declares, eye sing the screen warily.
Bill shrugged, "Yeah, it was very scary at the time, can't argue that."
[Office]
(Bill bursts in as the Doctor is analysing the liquid from the puddle. She jams a chair under the door handle. There is a loud sound of water.)
The group smiled upon seeing the Doctor analysing the liquid he'd collected. None of them had believed he thought the puddle was normal but it was good to see him actually trying to do something about it, even if it was a bit too late at this point.
DOCTOR: Hello, Bill.
BILL: Oh!
DOCTOR: What's that?
(The liquid starts to seep in under the door.)
BILL: I'll tell you what it isn't. It isn't a freak optical effect.
"What gave it away?" The Doctor asked Bill with a teasing grin.
"I don't know, the fact the puddle swallowed Heather and was chasing me?" Bill exclaimed, sarcasm practically dripping from her words. Her words only made the Doctor grin more, which served to relax the room a bit as the pair weren't too worried by the threat Heather seemed to pose on screen. Then again, the Doctor wasn't usually great with assessing threat levels and appropriate reactions to danger.
(Heather starts to form from the liquid.)
BILL: And it's following me. Oh.
(The Doctor starts to reach for Heather.)
BILL: No, no, what are you doing?
DOCTOR: I'll tell you what, let's just pop into my box.
"You're doing the same thing with her, that you did with me!" Rose announced, looking enlightened as she glanced between the Doctor and the screen.
"What do you mean?" The Doctor asked confused, thinking back both to their actual first meeting and the video of their meeting that they'd seen recently.
"You ignored the danger and tried to convince us to go in the Tardis without explaining anything." Rose answered with an accusing glare.
"Huh." The Doctor said, she hadn't even realised she'd done that. "Honestly though, would you have believed me if I tried to explain? And that's dependent on me having time to explain which I didn't really have in either case."
Rose glared at him for a second longer before sighing, "I guess that's fair." The accusing glare came back. "But don't for a second think we don't know you enjoy our reactions." The Doctor just smiled at that, unable to deny it.
BILL: Your box? What good is getting in your box going to do?
DOCTOR: What an extraordinarily long and involved answer this is going to be.
"That's an understatement." Amy snorted.
[Tardis]
(The Doctor shuts the door, then opens it again to grab the Out of Order sign, and shuts it.)
"Oh yes, because that's an important thing to do when you're in danger, remove the Out of Order sign." River sighed, shaking her head fondly at her wife's antics. The Doctor just grinned unrepentant.
BILL: How do we stop it getting in? We're trapped in here!
DOCTOR: Nothing gets through these doors.
BILL: But they're made of wood. They've got windows!
(The Doctor goes down the ramp and turns on the power. Bill doesn't turn around.)
"Bill makes a good point. How are you so sure, Doc?" Graham asked.
The Doctor immediately adopted an offended look (one that always appeared when someone doubted her or the Tardis), "The Tardis is a technological marvel, lightyears beyond human understanding. Very little can get through her doors." The group all shook their heads at her rant, far too used to it.
"It's still made of wood." Mickey backed up Graham, half to tease the Doctor and half a genuine question.
"It only looks like it is made of wood because of the Chameleon Circuit." The Doctor pouted, turning her offended look to Mickey. The rest of the group gave up and started laughing at them while the Doctor just looked perplexed about why they were all so entertained.
BILL: Look, this is all mad, I know, but that's the girl I told you about. Heather. Only I don't think it's really her. I know this is hard to believe. I know you're not exactly a sci-fi person
(Then she turns around.)
The group all grinned, enjoying Bill's almost constant remarks, her reaction and the brilliant view of the Tardis. There were a few snickers at Bill's last remark about not being a sci-fi person, it was very ironic in retrospect. The Doctor smiled at seeing her old control room and Bill's reaction to it again but she was waiting for Bill's up and coming comments – most people were amazed but Bill kept going for logical explanations and ignoring the impossibility of everything.
DOCTOR: Time And Relative Dimension In Space. TARDIS for short. You're safe in here. You're safe in here and you always will be. Any questions?
The group all smiled softly at the Doctor's remark, glancing between the screen and the Doctor. During their travels with the Doctor the Tardis had always been a safe space they could go to at the end, a kind of second home that was always welcoming (to most of them).
The Doctor, however, was frowning mind jumping to al the instances when the Tardis hadn't been the safe space she wanted for her companions. They'd seen the incident with House taking over the Tardis and torturing Amy and Rory, but there was also the time she couldn't really remember with Clara when the Tardis had been badly damaged. The Tardis was her home and one constant companion but she wasn't always as safe as she wanted her to be.
BILL: Is this a knock-through?
DOCTOR: Well, in a way, yes.
The group was grinning at the Doctor and Bill, starting to understand why the Doctor loved people's reactions to the Tardis and enjoying the dynamic between the pair. Bill was grinning unabashed for her comment at the Doctor who was shaking her head fondly at the younger girl. She'd heard a lot of comments over the millennia but Bill was, as always, had unique comments and questions.
BILL: Look at this place. It's like a
DOCTOR: Spaceship.
BILL: Kitchen.
The group was practically cackling at this point. Getting enjoyment out of both Bill's comments and the Doctor's reactions to them, the young woman seemed to keep taking away the Doctor's chance to show off and throwing him off his groove which was always enjoyable for them to watch.
DOCTOR: A what?
BILL: A really posh kitchen, all metal. What happened with the doors, though? Did you run out of money?
DOCTOR: What you are standing in is a technological marvel. It is science beyond magic. This is the gateway to everything that ever was, or ever can be.
The group grinned upon hearing the familiar words of defence about the Tardis, all of them had at some point said the wrong thing or asked the wrong question and gotten a long lecture about the Tardis. Bill was grinning at the Doctor; she loved the Tardis but she was also enjoying watching him get more bewildered by her comments.
"That is a brilliant reaction to the Tardis." Jack laughed, grinning widely at Bill while the Doctor just shook her head at the group.
BILL: Can I use the toilet?
DOCTOR: Pardon?
BILL: I've had a fright. I need the toilet.
DOCTOR: It's down there, first right, second left, past the macaroon dispenser.
A few people mouthed the words 'macaroon dispenser', it seemed every time they saw the Tardis, they discovered more hidden secrets which seemed to change with every version of it.
BILL: Thanks.
(Nardole is coming up the stairs as Bill heads down.)
NARDOLE: Oh, human! Human alert. Do you want me to repel her?
A few confused and curious looks were turned onto Nardole who looked back as if daring them to ask.
"How would you repel her?" Yaz asked, too curious not to ask.
Nardole moved to answer but the Doctor scrambled to answer first. "Nope." She beat Nardole to the punch. "You don't want to know, trust me." She got a few assessing glances, trying to work out how serious she was, they ultimately gave up the line of questioning noting the Doctor's grimace – they didn't want to know.
DOCTOR: She's just passing through. She wants to use the toilet.
NARDOLE: Oh. I'd er give it a minute, if I were you.
(Boom! The Tardis judders.)
"Heather." Martha declared, tension suddenly rising again in the room. They's all become a bit complacent as the group moved into the Tardis – there was very little that could break into the Tardis after all, and they'd gotten distracted by Bill's reaction to the Tardis.
"Guess you're not going to get to go to the toilet." Donna said. Bill just shook her head, thankfully she'd gotten distracted by Heather and their travels that she'd mostly forgotten.
NARDOLE: Ooo, what was that?
DOCTOR: We have an incursion on campus. Extra-terrestrial. We're under attack.
(Wet Heather is on the scanner.)
DOCTOR: Let's move.
(The Tardis dematerialises.)
BILL: Oh, my God! This isn't just a room, is it?
"Please tell me your about to make another amazing comment." Amy begged with a wide grin, as mother-in-law it was her duty to annoy her son/daughter/child-in-law, one she loved to carry out. Bill's answering grin and The Doctor's long-suffering sigh was all the answer she needed.
DOCTOR: No, it's not just a room.
BILL: This is a lift!
(The Tardis materialises.)
NARDOLE: Well, come on, then.
The group burst out laughing at that. Bill smiled, standing up and taking a mock bow, which only made the group laugh more as the Doctor watched on with a small smile – happy to see them all happy and enjoying themselves.
[Cellar]
DOCTOR: No interference here, as far as I can see. The vault's secure.
The Doctor got a few side eyes from the group when the vault was mentioned, whatever was in there the Doctor was desperate to protect and they were curious. But they knew they were not going to get any answers at the minute, no matter how much they wanted them. The Doctor's expression darkened at seeing the vault again, it held a collection of good and bad memories to say the least. She thought Missy, one of her oldest friends, was finally regretting her decisions but the time in the vault had been hard on all of them, especially at the beginning.
BILL: So your box can move? It can go anywhere it likes?
NARDOLE: Mmm. Good, innit?
BILL: Anywhere at all, in the whole university?
"Try the whole of space and time." Jack grinned, earning a small smile from Bill. Her day had been very weird between Heather-Pilot chasing her and then the Doctor's revelation, she was allowed to take her time with the Tardis and everything. It wasn't like most people's first thought was that a room would be a time machine or spaceship or anything either, she felt perfectly logical for her though process no matter what anyone said.
(The Doctor scans the vault door with his screwdriver.)
DOCTOR: Is it my imagination, or is this taking longer than normal?
"What? Do you time it normally?" Martha asked accusingly, arms crossed.
"No, but most of the time people freak out quicker than this." The Doctor shrugged, ignoring the accusing tone and earning rolled eyes from Martha.
(Bill looks back inside the Tardis.)
BILL: Hang on. The room's still inside the box. This isn't a knock-through.
DOCTOR: No.
BILL: Doctor! It's bigger on the inside than it is on the outside!
NARDOLE: Way-hey! We got there!
(Nardole and the Doctor shake hands.)
Bill leaned to the side to reach Nardole an punch him in the arm, earning a whine of pain, from him at his comment. She also shot a small glare at the Doctor who smiled back at her, having not really meant the glare it quickly fell apart upon meeting the Doctor's smile. The rest of the group chuckled at the normal comment, albeit a bit later then normal.
BILL: How is that possible? How do you do that?
NARDOLE: Well, first you have to imagine a very big box fitting inside a very small box.
BILL: Okay.
NARDOLE: Then you have to make one. It's the second part people normally get stuck on.
The whole group turned to look at Nardole with 'really?' expressions, earning a 'what?'
DOCTOR: Can we shut up, please? Busy, busy. I need to know if there's any interest in what's inside this vault.
BILL: Why, what's inside it?
DOCTOR: Something I don't want anyone being too curious about.
"So, you put it at a university with students who are inherently curious?" Rose asked with an accusing tone.
"That's a good point." The Doctor acquiesced after considering it for a second. Glad for the distraction from the Vault's contents.
BILL: So you put it in the middle of a university?
NARDOLE: Ooo, valid point. Yeah, nice.
DOCTOR: Either the creature came here specifically for what's in here, or it's just a coincidence.
BILL: It's just a coincidence.
"When is anything ever a coincidence?" Amy sighed, very few things in their lives were a coincidence.
"This, for once." The Doctor shrugged, smiling proudly at Bill for working it out before her.
DOCTOR: Well, we can't know that for sure.
BILL: Yeah, we can. It was here for ages before it did anything. If it had work to do, why would it lie around in a puddle?
DOCTOR: I don't know. Maybe it's a student?
"Ooh, burn." Jack clapped.
"Dude, so not cool." Ryan moaned Jack's attempt to use slang, it was almost as cringey as it was when Graham or the Doctor tried it.
NARDOLE: Oh, (laughs) banter. It's good, this. Your go again.
(Liquid is pouring down the cellar steps.)
"She's found you." Rory muttered, glancing concerned between the screen and the trio in the room.
DOCTOR: Nardole, we need to move away from the doors and towards the Tardis.
(Liquid pours down the steps, then Heather rises from the puddle at the bottom.)
NARDOLE: What if it attacks us?
DOCTOR: Well, that's the good news. It means it's not interested in what's inside the vault. It just wants to kill us.
"You know, small silver linings." Clara muttered sarcastically.
NARDOLE: Oh.
DOCTOR: Run!
(Heather screams.)
"And here's the running." Graham sighed, at least it was constant across all the videos and not just their adventures.
[Tardis]
DOCTOR: It's not interested in the vault, it's chasing us. Let's give it a proper challenge. Let's see how far she's prepared to go.
(The Tardis dematerialises.)
BILL: But what about my friend? What about Heather? Can you save her?
The group smiled softly at Bill's concern for Heather, they hadn't seen the pair together much on screen but they could all see how much Bill was crushing on her. Bill's declarations about Heather though did reassure them that they likely had managed to help Bill in some way.
(And materialises.)
DOCTOR: First things first. Let's see if we can survive her.
(The Doctor goes outside. Nardole shrugs.
"Surving is always a nice idea." Rory sighed, knowing full well that surviving sometimes was put on the back burner during adventures.
[Harbourside]
(Bright sunshine, seagulls, water and a modern cityscape on the other side. Passers-by completely ignoring the blue box.)
"Where did you go?" Martha asked, analysing the screen like many others of the group was doing. It looked like they were still on Earth but you could never tell with the Doctor. The Doctor just grinned in answer and waved to the screen, earning several eye rolls at the lack of answers.
BILL: But
DOCTOR: Yes.
BILL: We've moved again.
DOCTOR: We have.
BILL: It was night.
DOCTOR: Yep.
BILL: Now it's day.
DOCTOR: Definitely day.
BILL: Oh, my God! Have we travelled in time?
DOCTOR: No, of course not. We've travelled to Australia.
(He steps aside to reveal Sydney Opera House on the other side of the harbour. I guess we are supposed to be in Kirribilli, from the angle.)
"'No of course not' she says like the Tardis isn't totally a time machine too." Bill muttered, levelling the Doctor with a glare while the Doctor smiled unabashed.
"You weren't exactly handling the spaceship thing well and we hadn't even left Earth, I figured the time machine thing was a bit too much at the minute." The Doctor said pointedly. Bill considered that for a second before shrugging in vague agreement – the Doctor had a point annoyingly.
[Café restroom]
(Bill dashes in to splash her face with water.)
DOCTOR: How are you doing?
BILL: How do you think?
DOCTOR: Right. Um, how do I help?
"Oh, you did learn something from the cue cards. Only took you several billion years." Clara raised an eyebrow at the Doctor, a bit apprehensive about how the alluded comment to the Doctor's time in the confession dial would be taken but putting on a brave front.
The Doctor smiled, eyes twinkling with understanding of Clara's worries and reassurance it was okay at the minute. "Guess you left an impression." Her words left Clara speechless, unsure what to say to such a soft comment from the Doctor.
BILL: Can I ask you a personal question?
DOCTOR: No.
BILL: Can I anyway?
DOCTOR: Yes.
BILL: Are you from space?
DOCTOR: No, of course not. Nobody's from space. I'm from a planet like everybody else.
"Honestly, Spaceman!" Donna shook her head alongside half the room at his comment on screen. They could all see Bill was struggling with this a bit, he didn't need to make it worse.
"What?!"
BILL: This planet?
DOCTOR: No, not specifically this one.
BILL: Doesn't make sense, then.
DOCTOR: What doesn't?
"What does?" Amy asked with raised eyebrows. Travelling with the Doctor certainly altered your life views.
BILL: TARDIS. If you're from anothe rplanet, why would you name your box in English? Those initials wouldn't work in any other language!
DOCTOR: People don't generally bring that up.
"You didn't answer the question though." Bill turned on the Doctor with a determined expression, it had been bugging her for a while she's just never got an answer.
The Doctor's smile turned incredibly soft and wistful which made her almost regret asking – she had a sudden feeling the answer wasn't as simple as she had presumed it to be. "Susan came up with the acronym, the first time we had humans on board she decided that was what TARDIS stood for." She shrugged almost absentmindedly, "It stuck."
The room was silent at that revelation, all unsure what to say. They'd never considered the acronym but it did make sense but no one wanted to say anything as usual when the Doctor's family came up – it was too touchy of a topic for nay of them to feel comfortable asking more than the Doctor was willing to answer at the moment.
BILL: It looks like a phone box.
DOCTOR: Yes. Er, well, that's the cloaking device. It sort of hides itself.
BILL: It's hidden itself as a box with 'pull to enter' on the front?
DOCTOR: Uh-huh. It's stuck. It's supposed to blend in, but it's, it's broken.
"Not that you'd change it anyway. You both prefer it like that." River said pointedly, referring to both the Doctor and the Tardis's love for the police box appearance.
"You say that like you don't love it." The Doctor shot back with a grin; she knew how much her wife loved the Tardis too.
(Bill laughs, then the sink gurgles. Water appears on the mirror.)
BILL: Doctor...
"Heather, again." Jack said, tensing as the danger returned to interrupt the pair. "She's quick."
[Café]
DOCTOR: Out, out! Everybody out! Shark attack!
(Heather comes out of the restroom, screaming. Everybody flees.)
"Definitely creepy." Ryan shivered.
[Tardis]
(In flight)
BILL: Where are we going?
DOCTOR: As far as we can. She made Australia in a minute. Let's see what she can really do.
NARDOLE: Sir, we're leaving Earth. What about the vault?
DOCTOR: Oh, we're fine. If there's any trouble, I'll get a message on this.
(The psychic paper.)
A few people narrowed their eyes at the Doctor, there wasn't much that could leave messages on the psychic paper and the Doctor had just insinuated that whatever/whoever was in the vault could leave a message, significantly narrowing the options for occupants. Aware of the eyes on her, she tried to not glance at the Master no matter how much she wanted too.
DOCTOR: Let's see how long it takes her to get here.
(The Tardis materialises.)
BILL: Where are we?
DOCTOR: Other end of the universe. Twenty three million years in the future. Oh, yes, it's a time machine too.
"Such a casual comment." Clara sighed, poor Bill who's first time travelling was to escape her crush who'd merged with a puddle. It was only with the Doctor that you found yourself in those kinds of situations.
[Planet surface]
(Filmed in a quarry with extra lovely rock formations on top, all wind carved arches and glittering fluorspar crystals.)
BILL: So this is somewhere else? This is a different planet? Not Earth, a different one?
DOCTOR: That's the general idea.
A few of the group shook their heads at the Doctor's casual comments while Bill was clearly panicking about everything. It was such a weird reversal of the earlier dynamic.
BILL: That's different sky? Is it made of something different? What is sky made of?
DOCTOR: Lemon drops.
"Really?" Rose asked, face revaluing how dubious she was about that. The Doctor just grinned and waved at the screen.
BILL: Really?
DOCTOR: No, but wouldn't that be nice?
NARDOLE: You can be very silly sometimes, you know that? So how do we know this water thing is actually dangerous?
"She's very silly most of the time." Martha announced, gaining a slew of nods from the group and a pout from the Doctor.
"That's a good point about the water though. Why is it chasing you?" Mickey asked the room at large but his eyes were on the Doctor and Bill who smiled but refused to give up the answers.
DOCTOR: Ah, because most things are.
NARDOLE: Mmm, that's true.
BILL: Why? Is everything out here evil?
DOCTOR: Hardly anything is evil, but most things are hungry. Hunger looks very like evil from the wrong end of the cutlery. Or do you think that your bacon sandwich loves you back?
"Never mind, you learned nothing. I'll need to dig the cue cards out again." Clara sighed but everyone heard the fond tone.
NARDOLE: So what is it, and what was it doing on Earth?
DOCTOR: Well, there were scorch marks on the concrete where we found it. Could have been left by a shuttlecraft. The puddle, what did it look like? I mean, if that was a car, what would you say that was?
"Oh!" Ryan realised, eyes lighting up. He'd finally made the connection he'd been trying to get too earlier. Mickey's face revealed he'd also made the connection, both of them having the advantage of mechanic training.
BILL: An oil leak? So it's space engine oil?
DOCTOR: Intelligent oil. Super intelligent space oil. No, part of the ship itself. Shape-shifting fluid that becomes anything it needs to be.
"Our whole lives are weird but that is just bizarre." Rose declared.
"Sentient space oil, why not?" Rory sighed, it seemed life could always get weirder.
BILL: Seriously?
DOCTOR: But it spent ages laying around being a puddle. What changed? Your friend. She looked into it, didn't she? More than once.
BILL: So?
DOCTOR: Maybe it saw something it needed. What was she like, your friend? What did she want? What did she need?
HEATHER [memory]: Everywhere I go, I just want to leave.
BILL: I think she wanted to leave.
"So, the oil knew she wanted to leave, and what? Decided to help her?" Amy asked, something wasn't quite adding up.
The Doctor nodded her head for a second before shaking it. "Yes, no, Kind of? It's more that their intentions aligned. Heather wanted to leave and the oil wanted a pilot to help it leave. A quid pro quo you could say."
DOCTOR: You see?
NARDOLE: The puddle found a passenger.
DOCTOR: A left-behind droplet of a liquid spaceship. A single tear drop, alone in a strange world. Then, one day, it finds someone who wants to fly away.
The group nodded along with the Doctor's on-screen explanation which matched up with what she's said in person. They were glad to finally be getting some explanations, but it still didn't explain why 'Heather' was chasing them.
(Bill finds a puddle of liquid amongst the rocks.)
DOCTOR: Not just a passenger. More than a passenger, it found a pilot, so it ate her.
"Ate her?" Martha asked alarmed, that did not sound pleasant.
The Doctor winced slightly, "I doubt Heather wanted to merge with sentient oil to start with, or even knew what was going on." Bill frowned, making a mental note to try and ask her girlfriend about that.
NARDOLE: So why is it chasing this one?
DOCTOR: Everything wants, everything needs.
NARDOLE: But why does it want her?
DOCTOR: I don't know. I don't know everything, Nardole. I don't have it all written down.
"You finally admit it." Donna grinned alongside most of the group while the Doctor rolled her eyes, it wasn't her fault she knew a lot more than most of them – it was part of being so old and a different species.
NARDOLE: You act like you do.
DOCTOR: I act like I do, because I don't.
A few people blinked at the comment, the Doctor didn't often make such honest comments like that in tense moments like this. Actually, they did, but the dangerous situation usually meant they didn't get to really take it in.
NARDOLE: It must be looking for something.
(Bill bends down over the puddle, and Heather rises up slowly to the surface.)
"Er, maybe you should say something Bill?" Yaz said, eyeing the screen warily. They still hadn't worked out why Heather wanted Bill and knowing their luck it wasn't for a good reason.
DOCTOR: Of course it is, everything is.
NARDOLE: But what?
DOCTOR: What, in the end, are any of us looking for? We're looking for someone who's looking for us.
BILL [memory]: Hey, still making eyes at a puddle?
(Then Heather screams, grabs Bill's face, and tries to pull her down.)
DOCTOR: Bill! Bill! Quick!
(The Doctor and Nardole pull Bill free.)
DOCTOR: Back to the Tardis!
(A geyser erupts from the puddle and forms a face.)
The group let out a sigh of relief at seeing the group escape Heather.
"She promised she wouldn't leave without you." Clara announced, she'd realised it half way through the last conversation but their escape from Heather had distracted her.
Bill nodded in confirmation, not worried about spoiling it now that most of the answers were up in the air.
[Tardis]
DOCTOR: Okay, it's fast. It time travels. It never gives up.
(The Tardis zooms through space.)
DOCTOR: Plan! Basic sterilisation. We're going to run that thing through the deadliest fire in the universe.
NARDOLE: Yes, that sounds excellent. The deadliest fire in the universe. That's definitely good.
"Deadliest fire in the universe. Why am I not liking the sound of that?" Rory asked.
"Probably because knowing the Doctor they'll have to go through it first as Heather is chasing them." Amy answered with a concerned, but resigned, expression.
BILL: How do we do that?
DOCTOR: The only way we can. We run through it first.
"Told you." Amy declared with a sigh; she'd really wanted to be wrong.
NARDOLE: Less good now.
"Mood." Yaz muttered.
(The Tardis shakes. Nardole looks at the scanner.)
NARDOLE: No, not there. I don't like it there!
"That's not promising." Jack sighed, really not liking where everything was going.
(The Doctor grabs a sonic screwdriver.)
DOCTOR: Nardole!
NARDOLE: I don't like there.
(The Doctor throws the sonic screwdriver to Nardole, who catches it.)
DOCTOR: I want you running interference. Can you do that?
NARDOLE: Can I say no, sir?
DOCTOR: No.
NARDOLE: Yes, then.
The group snickered at the dynamic between the Doctor and Nardole although they were all a bit too tense and apprehensive about this fire to really enjoy it.
DOCTOR: Thank you.
NARDOLE: But no really.
BILL: Where are we?
DOCTOR: Well, we're basically in the middle of a war. No, but, well, it's a war zone, and this is just your basic skirmish. And it's not as bad as it sounds, I promise you. Come on, I've got friends here, old friends.
NARDOLE: Oh...
"A war zone? That's definitely something to worry about." Graham said, worry clear in his voice.
"When you say friends, I'm guessing you mean enemies?" Clara levelled the Doctor with a knowing look to which she shrugged with a smile.
"Same thing."
"No, it's really not, Sweetie." River sighed.
"You'd know." The Doctor shot back.
[Spacecraft]
(A metal ribbed corridor.)
DOCTOR: I say friends.
DALEK [OC]: The Doctor is detected. Seek. Locate. Destroy.
The room went silent for a second before exploding in protests.
"Daleks!"
"Doctor, really?!"
"They are the opposite of friends!"
Protests and exclamations were thrown across the room while the Doctor just waited patiently for them to all finish before she even tried to explain. It took several minutes but the group eventually did quiet down.
"You done?" The Doctor asked, not caring if they weren't. "Like I said, we need to test what Heather can do and the Daleks are one of the few things I can guarantee a place and time and have the ability and willingness to attack her."
"It's a dumb plan." Jack declared, eyes hardened and serious as he always was when it came to the safety of someone he cared about.
"It was necessary and we were as safe as we could be." The Doctor argued, "And, as you can see, we are fine."
"Your definition of fine is skewed." River countered, scanning the Doctor as if searching for injuries. "But most of your plans are dumb and we can't do anything about it now, so we'll let it go for the moment." Several people looked like they wanted to argue with that but River held up a hand to silence them, daring them to argue. The Doctor was well aware that River would add this to the mental list of discussion topics she was absolutely keeping for later.
(Nardole is close to tears. The Doctor and Bill run through explosions.)
BILL: Are we still in the future?
DOCTOR: No. This is the past.
BILL: Doesn't, doesn't look like the past. Are we safe here?
"We're in a different part of the universe, of course the past looks different." The Doctor said to Bill's comment. Bill held up her hands in mock surrender.
"No one is safe when it comes to the Daleks." Martha muttered, thinking back to her experiences with them.
DOCTOR: Well, that's up to Nardole, so probably not.
"Good to know you have so much faith in me." Nardole muttered, to which the Doctor (and rest of the room) ignored him.
(Nardole's job is to sonic control boxes, making them go bang. He keeps whimpering as he runs.)
NARDOLE: Oh! Oh, another. Oh! Oh, another. Keep moving, Doctor!
BILL: Where are we going?
DOCTOR: Into the fire. Come on.
"I hate this plan." Rose muttered, glancing worriedly between the group on screen and in person as if checking they were still there.
"We all hate this plan." Jack said, tone hard.
(Shouts and screams getting louder.)
MOVELLAN: Move! Move! Move!
BILL: Who are those guys?
DOCTOR: Never mind them, it's who they're firing at.
(Big explosions, Movellans thrown against the bulkheads. And behind them, wet Heather.)
"At least Heather's found you." Amy sighed, glad for that small silver lining. If Heather hadn't shown up or had been late there was a high chance of them getting hurt or even killed.
DOCTOR: Come on.
(The Doctor and Bill run around a corner and stop at the sight of a giant pepperpot on wheels armed with a gun and a very aggressive looking sinkplunger.)
BILL: What's that?
DOCTOR: The deadliest fire in the universe.
"Your so dramatic." Bill announced.
"But was I wrong?" The Doctor grinned back.
DALEK: Identify. Intruder. Identify.
DOCTOR: (holding out screwdriver) Scan this device and identify me!
DALEK: You are the Doctor. You are an enemy of the Daleks!
"You're seriously telling them who you are?" Yaz asked in disbelief, her own experience with a dalek had not been pleasant at all.
"I needed to for the plan, I needed them to attack us." The Doctor shrugged.
River narrowed her eyes at her wife. "The Daleks would likely attack you no matter who you are, you just put yourself in more danger than necessary." The Doctor's expression remained blank as she stayed silent knowing that was the safest option here to avoid River's wrath for the moment.
DOCTOR: Oh, yes, I am!
DALEK: Exterminate!
(The Doctor drags Bill out of the way as the Dalek fires. Its weapons fire goes straight through Heather.)
HEATHER: Exterminate.
DALEK: Exterminate!
HEATHER: Exterminate.
"I didn't think anything could make her creepier." Ryan said, "But her mimicking the dalek somehow accomplished the impossible."
(Meanwhile, Nardole is trying to blow up another panel.)
NARDOLE: Come on.
DALEK 2: Exterminate!
NARDOLE: Ah!
(Nardole runs, dodging Dalek fire.)
BILL: What was that thing?
DOCTOR: A Dalek.
BILL: A what?
DOCTOR: A Dalek.
BILL: What's a Dalek?
"Not a good intro to the whole of space and time." Clara said, not that any of their intros were particularly safe or pleasant, but Daleks were a whole new level of dangerous introductions.
DOCTOR: Never mind. It's a Dalek.
"Because that explains so much." Bill muttered, she'd gotten an explanation out of the Doctor later and was very glad she'd had minimal interactions with them during her travels.
"It's not like we had much time." The Doctor protested.
(They run.)
DALEK [OC]: Exterminate!
(They stop as a blast whizzes straight between them and sets the corridor ahead on fire, then turn.)
DALEK: (slowing down) Exterminate.
"Something's wrong with that Dalek." Jack said, leaning forward in his seat and narrowing his eyes at the screen. The Doctor smiled with a nod, glad that her plan had worked (they would have been in some serious trouble if it hadn't).
DOCTOR: That's wrong. I know my Daleks, and that's wrong. Oh, I see.
BILL: You see what?
(The Doctor is staring into the Dalek's eye stalk.)
NARDOLE: I've sealed the area. All the Daleks are quarantined. Except that one.
DOCTOR: It's okay. This isn't a Dalek. Look. Look at the eye.
(A human eye with a five-pointed star pattern on the iris.)
"It's Heather." Clara realised. "But is she in the Dalek or mimicking it?" The Doctor and Bill shared a glance before waving to the screen in sync.
BILL: Heather.
(Water starts to pour off the Dalek, then it dissolves, and Heather stands up.)
"Well, that answers that." Clara muttered to herself, eyes never leaving the screen as things heated up again.
HEATHER: Heather.
(The Doctor walks around Heather, so she has to turn away from Bill.)
DOCTOR: Interesting. You had a gun but you didn't use it. Why? You've already taken one person from the Earth. I'm going to let that pass, because I have to, but I will not let you take another. Go. Just go now. Fly away. Why won't you just go?
The group smiled at hearing the Doctor do their patented 'protector of the Earth and innocence' speech. Then the smiles widened, glad to know they'd already worked out why heather hadn't left – for once they had the answers.
(Heather turns back to Bill, and Bill remembers why.)
BILL [memory]: Promise you won't go?
HEATHER [memory]: Promise.
BILL: Oh, my God. I understand.
"It took you a while." The Master muttered mockingly from his corner where the group had mostly forgotten he was. They shot several glares at him before going back to ignoring him, it was the best for the moment.
NARDOLE: You what?
BILL: The last thing she said to me. She promised she wouldn't leave without me.
DOCTOR: Her last conscious thought, driving her across the universe. Never underestimate a crush.
"The power of love." Martha smiled at her husband, who smiled back softly.
NARDOLE: Oh, you don't have to tell me.
BILL: What do we do?
DOCTOR: I don't know. She's not chasing you, she's inviting you. Release her. Release her from her promise.
BILL: You have to let me go.
HEATHER: You have to let me go.
BILL: I will.
HEATHER: I will.
BILL: I really liked you.
HEATHER: I really liked you.
"Ooh." Rose smiled, despite the whole swallowed-by-sentient-space-oil thing Heather and Bill's crush was very cute to see develop. Though something else must have happened for her to become Bill's girlfriend.
(Heather reaches out to Bill, and Bill raises her hand too.)
DOCTOR: Bill, don't. Don't!
NARDOLE: Don't do that. Listen, please, just listen to him.
DOCTOR: Don't. Don't! Bill, let go!
"Please don't." Donna said, glancing at Bill, both to check she was there safe and to see if she had. Bill's sheepish smile was all the answer she needed, and Donna sighed.
(Bill and Heather clasp hands, and Bill is shown endless worlds, their meeting in bar.)
The group watched in awe as Heather showed Bill everything, but their concern was over powering everything else. Even if Heather liked Bill and wanted her to go with her, she'd still been swallowed by space oil and they didn't know the consequences of that.
DOCTOR [OC]: Bill, listen to me. Whatever she's showing you, whatever she's letting you see. It's a lure, it's a trap. She's making you part of her, and you can never come back.
BILL [OC]: I see what you see. It's beautiful.
DOCTOR: Bill, let go! You have to let go! She is not human any more.
BILL: Goodbye, Heather.
HEATHER: Goodbye, Bill.
(Bill lets go. The Doctor pulls her away from Heather.)
The group let out a breath they didn't know they'd been holding upon seeing Bill let go of Heather and the Doctor pull her to safety. That had been far too close for anybody to be comfortable. The Doctor's gaze was locked on Bill in the room, she'd been watching the screen with an almost bittersweet expression. Bill didn't regret not going with Heather, she'd gotten to travel and explore with the Doctor after all, but Heather was better now so maybe she could see where things went.
DOCTOR: Bill!
(Heather dissolves into a puddle.)
DOCTOR: You all right?
BILL: Yeah, I think so.
NARDOLE: You don't look all right.
DOCTOR: She's fine.
The group glanced unsure between the Doctor, Bill and the screen. The Doctor was sometimes very obtuse to emotions and other times very observant (there was no in-between). This case could easily be read as him ignoring hers but they had a feeling it was more the case of the Doctor knowing Bill wasn't okay but wanted some privacy.
NARDOLE: That's the Doctor for you. Never notices the tears.
BILL: I don't think they're mine.
The group glanced at the Bill with questioning and confused expressions prominent, they figured she meant Heather but they weren't sure why Bill was smiling so sadly at the screen. They all assumed she was thinking about Heather leaving her, when in fact she was thinking about Heather coming back for her – after all where there was teras there was hope.
[Office]
(Bill is sitting by the desk as the Doctor comes out of the Tardis.)
"Well, that's a sudden change of pace." Martha sighed, glad for the break from the tension. She had the feeling there wasn't much of the video left but it seemed the danger had largely passed for the moment. Hopefully Bill would get a better explanation of everything now.
DOCTOR: The vault alarm went off, but it was nothing. A student was sick outside and it registered as a biological attack. (laughs)
"The joys of university." Clara smiled, thinking back to her own time at university.
BILL: I saw it all for a moment. Everything out there. She was going to let me fly with her. She was inviting me. I was too scared.
DOCTOR: Scared is good. Scared is rational. She wasn't human any more.
"You aren't human either." Rose pointed out, as the room turned to look at the Doctor.
"So?" The Doctor blinked not seeing what Rose was getting at.
"Your point is that Heather wasn't human, but neither are you Doctor." Donna took over from Rose.
The Doctor nodded, realisation lighting up in her eyes. "Ah, I meant more that Heather was a complete unknown. We don't know what she'd do or what the merge would do to her. Not being human doesn't mean bad, but scared also doesn't equal bad." The group nodded accepting that for the moment even though several of them saw holes in that explanation.
BILL: Will we see her again?
DOCTOR: I don't see how.
Bill and the Doctor glanced at each other, having a silent conversation. They had seen Heather again, or rather Bill saw Heather again, and she'd helped them when they really needed it.
(Bill looks across at the Tardis.)
DOCTOR: No, no, no, no. No, no. You have to forget about that.
"That's kind of a big request." Yaz said, she couldn't even imagine forgetting the Doctor. She'd been struggling with her own separation from the Doctor after Gallifrey after all.
BILL: I don't see how I can.
DOCTOR: I do. Come here, Bill.
(She stands in front of him.)
BILL: What's up?
DOCTOR: I just want to fix something.
(He reaches for her head.)
"Don't you dare!" Donna spat, eyes blazing as she turned to glare at the Doctor as soon as she realised what the Doctor had planned to do. The Doctor had pulled themselves further back on her seat, curling in on herself in preparation of what she knew was coming. She met Donna's gaze with sad eyes which seemed to take some of the wind out of her sails. "Don't you dare." Donna muttered again, looking more haunted than anything.
"Just watch, please." The Doctor begged softly, eyes never leaving Donna. Donna narrowed her eyes assessing her for several minutes as the rest of the group watched on in silence, slowly she nodded her agreement – only because she knew Bill had her memories of this.
BILL: Whoa! What are you doing?
DOCTOR: Don't worry. This won't hurt at all.
"That's not the worrying part." Donna muttered, not meeting anyone's gaze this time.
BILL: No, but tell me.
DOCTOR: Nothing.
BILL: Yeah, because I think you're going to wipe my memory. I'm not stupid, you know. That's the trouble with you. You don't think anyone's ever seen a movie. I know what a mind-wipe looks like!
The Doctor smiled softly at the young woman, even when about to have her memories wiped, she was still herself and referencing movies.
DOCTOR: I have no choice. I'm here for a reason. I am in disguise. I have promises to keep. No one can know about me.
BILL: This is the most exciting thing that's ever happened to me in my life. The only exciting thing!
DOCTOR: I'm sorry.
BILL: Okay, let me remember just for a week. Just a week. Okay, well, just for tonight. Just one night. Come on, let me have some good dreams for once. Okay. Do what you've got to do. But imagine, just imagine how it would feel if someone did this to you.
The group watched the exchange in silence, unsure what to say as Bill descended close to pleading territory. Her last words, however, hit the group hard all know understanding how the Doctor had a rocky relationship with memories to say the least.
Bill winced, she'd never understood properly why the Doctor had suddenly stopped, but knowing now about what had happened with Clara shone a whole new light on that exchange and she couldn't help but feel a bit guilty for bringing that up. The Doctor's gaze was focussed on the floor, back then she still couldn't remember Clara and Bill's words had hit far too close to home for comfortable, her guilt towards Donna's situation alongside her other former companions with missing memories like Zoe and Jamie had also contributed to letting Bill go. Not wiping Bill's memories was not something she regretted, she'd loved her travels with Bill – the young woman was amazing (all her companions were amazing in their own way) and she wouldn't have missed them for the world no matter how they'd ended.
Bill managed to grab the Doctor's attention after several minutes of trying, mouthing a 'sorry'. The Doctor smiled softly, before shrugging and mouthing her own sorry back.
(Big pause as Bill braces herself with her eyes closed, then he taps her on the chin.)
DOCTOR: Get out.
BILL: What?
DOCTOR: You can keep your memories. Now get out before I change my mind! Don't speak, don't start, just run! Now. Go!
The group stayed silent as Bill ran from the room, memories in tack. None of the had been expecting that after all the drama with Heather and they weren't sure how to deal with the emotions it had aroused, especially after all they'd seen in the other videos so far. Though they were all relived to see Bill keep her memories, they'd figured she'd had too otherwise she wouldn't have been with them in the room but it was something else to see that kind of situation.
(Bill runs out of the room. The Doctor sees the picture of Susan.)
DOCTOR: Shut up. You shut up as well.
(Melody Pond. A small time rotor noise from the Tardis.)
DOCTOR: Will you all please just leave me alone? I can't do that any more. I promised!
River grabbed the Doctor's hand, squeezing it as a reminder that she was there, that they were there together. She was glad to know that even when she wasn't there, she was still affecting the Doctor. The rest of the group smiled at seeing the trio seemingly team up against the Doctor, happy to know the Doctor was trying to deal with their feelings and history though it was tinged with sadness for the Doctor's words.
(Outside, Bill checks that she can still remember Heather, and smiles.)
[Quadrangle]
DOCTOR: It's a big universe, but maybe one day we'll find her.
(The Doctor is standing next to the Tardis.)
The atmosphere in the room immediately changed, excitement building as they all realised what was occurring. Bill smiled widely, happy to relive what was arguably the best part of the night and the start of her adventures in the Tardis.
BILL: What changed your mind?
DOCTOR: Time.
BILL: Time?
DOCTOR: And Relative Dimension In Space.
(He clicks his fingers and the Tardis door opens.)
DOCTOR: It means, what the hell?
(Bill joins him in the Tardis.)
The group all grinned at the Doctor's final words, glad to see he was healing after the time in the confession dial and losing River after Darillium. As Bill ran into the Tardis the screen turned blank and the group turned to the Doctor.
"Well, that's that." The Doctor smiled in attempt to appear okay, it was a weak smile that most saw through but no one said anything, willing to let her pretend for the moment. "How about we have that break, I think we could all do with some food and sleep."
The room all nodded, before moving to get up, stretching and chatting as they all gradually left the room in small groups. It had been a while since their last break and it was certainly needed, there was several conversations to be had.
The Doctor hung back as the room emptied out, needing a quiet moment to herself to collect her thoughts and put on a better front. She could feel Jack and River watching her, but their quiet conversation helped soothe her. Ten minutes after the last people had left the room, she felt composed enough to try and pull herself to her feet, noting out of the corner of her eyes, Jack and River follow her lead.
"Come on Sweetie, I definitely need something to eat." River smiled, taking one of the Doctor's hands in hers as if to lead her down the corridor. She appreciated her wife ignoring her more fragile state, the last few videos had been a rollercoaster of emotions (they had all been actually) and she'd needed the time to sort herself out.
Jack grabbed her other hand, helping River lead her down the corridor. He put his other hand to his mouth and faked a huge yawn, "And I could certainly do with a nap. Let's go Doc."
"Don't call me Doc." The Doctor grumbled, stomach fluttering as she was reminded how much she loved the pair for being exactly what she needed at the moment.
"You let Silver Fox call you Doc." Jack protested dramatically.
"Well, I actually like him." The Doctor smiled, glad for the distraction as they moved slowly down the corridor to the kitchen where she could hear voices.
"Are you trying to say something, Doc?"
"Jack!"
"Can't hear you Doc, you're too small."
"Jack!"