Here's the next bit. Thanks to Samantha2074 and to drox for my first bit of fb on it. You inspired me to write the next part a little ahead of schedule. Chapter 3 will be a good bit longer than 1 and 2.
Chapter 2
It had known it was alive from the pain it had felt, for nothing that was dead could feel such agony, the searing pain of being ripped in two. Divided and weakened, it had been prepared to wait for centuries, passing down through time and memory until it could escape these earthly confines.
No longer.
If it had been anyone or anything else, it would have stayed hidden, kept itself in the darkest recess. It would have been content to lie in wait for a better chance.
But chance had presented itself much sooner than anticipated.
Working on instinct alone, it uncoiled itself, allowing itself to emerge from the depths, to ~become~ once again.
It was only small, only a fraction of what it had once been. But it only needed a fraction of itself to begin.
Soon it would grow and soon, it would have it's revenge on the Doctor.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"I'd forgotten you made such a lovely cup of tea." He lent over slightly, so he could see into the kitchen, where Tegan was making herself a cup of coffee. "You wouldn't happen to have any biccies in there, would you?"
"Hold up a sec."
Tegan took another steady breath. It seemed like she'd been taking more than her fair share of them since she'd run into the Doctor.
She picked up a spoon, stirring some sugar into her mug, listening to the voices coming from her living room.
There was no doubt about it. This man was undoubtedly the Doctor. Even if he hadn't confirmed it for her, she would have known deep down that he could have been no one else.
And she didn't know if seeing him again was a good or a bad thing.
Of course, she had thought about him over the years (how many has it been for him, she wondered to herself). Sometimes she had wondered if he was even still alive, having shared some of his adventures with him, she knew the kind of dangers he faced on a daily basis.
That day in London… So many people had died. She had once thought that even the death of one person would have been one too many for her. Yet she'd allowed herself to become 'desensitised' somehow. Death had become part of her life and it had hardly phased her in the slightest.
She'd realised it that day down at London Docks. Life with the Doctor no longer seemed like an adventure. Exploring the Universe, seeing more of it than she had a right to… it had stopped being fun.
Sure, it always seemed to be a life or death situation, but it had at least felt worth while; it had all felt like she was making a difference.
Then one day it just didn't feel that way any more.
She realised she was still stirring her mug, having zoned out on what she was thinking.
Opening a cupboard, she picked up a packet of chocolate digestives, then went back into the living room, and couldn't help but smile at the scene before her.
The Doctor was seated in front of the fire, both hands out, his fingers wrapped up in a complicated design of string, with Vanessa's hand hovering over a gap in it, laughing as she quickly placed her hand in only to get it caught in a web of string.
"Alright kids, playtimes over." She placed the packet down by the Doctor's feet. "Your biscuits, Doctor."
He smiled up at her, and she couldn't help but remember ~her~ Doctor and suddenly she just wanted to hug him. Her Doctor was gone. This man in front of her held that man now within himself somewhere and no matter how badly it had ended, it hadn't all been bad.
She sat down in a rather oversized armchair, catching Nessa keeping a close eye on their visitor.
"So then Doctor. How are you?"
He'd just dipped his biscuit into his tea, and the question distracted him from it. "Oh, can't really complain too much." The sound of a small splash grabbed everyone's attention, Nessa giggling as his digestive broke, the biscuit sinking to the bottom of his mug. Tegan couldn't help but grin either. Her Doctor would somehow have tried to have dunked his biscuit for just the correct amount of time so that it didn't do just that. He would have tried, but more than likely he wouldn't have succeeded. She didn't think this Doctor had given it a moments thought.
"How many regenerations has it been since I saw you last?"
"This is my eighth, believe it or not. The third since I-" For a fleeting moment, Tegan saw far too much pain behind those eyes of his. More than she had ever seen from him before. The pain in his eyes seemed solely reserved for her and it suddenly made her uncomfortable. "Since that day we parted in London. Tegan…"
He set his mug on the floor, reaching out his hands and taking hold of hers. "I'm so sorry about what happened."
Panic gripped her. What was he sorry for? Did he know? How could he know about that!?! She returned her attention to him.
"I've always regretted that we didn't part on better terms. I-"
She squeezed his hand, relief flooding through her. He didn't know then. Good. Some things where just too painful to share. Especially with a man who she could only ever remember having trouble dealing with real ~human~ emotions.
"It's alright Doctor." She smiled at him to reassure him. "Really. My life is good; I have a beautiful daughter and a life that I would never have dreamed of for myself."
She felt a little surprise that he was still holding her hands. After all, her Doctor hadn't exactly been the touchy-feely type at all. And again she realised that she was dealing with a different aspect of the same man. She couldn't really judge him on what she knew and she suddenly felt guilty that she had judged him incapable of dealing with her pain. Still, she didn't really want to think about that now. She forced herself to remain cheerful.
"Stay. It's nearly Christmas. We'd love to have you over for the holidays."
His eyes lit up, a huge grin on his face. "You wouldn't mind me intruding?"
Tegan shook her head. "Don't be silly Doctor. You're family to me. And I'd love it if you could get to know Vanessa here a bit better."
Vanessa had sat quietly throughout the entire conversation, but as her mother and the Doctor turned to look at her, they both saw the rather large smile on her face.
"Well then, I guess that's settled." said the Doctor.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
The Doctor had seen the pain in Tegan's eyes. There but for the briefest of moments. But now was not the time. It may never be time for her to share whatever it was he had seen there, he thought to himself.
Meanwhile, he was being led around the house by Vanessa, who was currently showing him his room for his visit.
"Sometimes Suzie likes to sleep in this room, but you don't mind cats, do you?"
"No. I don't mind cats at all. In fact, me and cats get along rather well."
He let go of her hand to stand and look out of the bedroom window. It was a rather pleasant view. He was upstairs in the back room, from which he could see the war memorial. Or rather the very top of it.
"What's your home like then?"
The Doctor turned, having heard a very curious tone to the girls voice. "What exactly has your mother told you about me?"
Vanessa hopped up onto the bed, sitting there looking every inch like her mother. "Just some stories. That's what my mum does. She writes stories."
"You mean she writes books? About what?"
"Oh," said Vanessa, "All sorts of things." She shrugged. "I'm not allowed to read them yet. She thinks I'm too young."
The Doctor sat down on the bed with her. "Bet you've had a bit of a peek though, am I right?"
The grin on the girls face answered his question. "There's aliens in them, I know that much."
"Really? Well, I must have a read of them, see if I recognise anyone I know."
"What about your home then? Is it really a spaceship?"
The Doctor nodded, unable to help catching a little of the enthusiasm he could sense from the child. "Well, it's a little bit more than that, but if you can keep it a secret, and if you mum says it's ok, I can take you over to see it if you like. I wouldn't mind getting one or two things if I'm going to be staying here over Christmas."
"Really? You mean it?"
Opps, thought the Doctor. He should really have mentioned something about this to Tegan first.
"Only if your mum says it's alright."
"Only if her mum says what's alright?"
Both Vanessa and the Doctor turned to find Tegan at the doorway, and she couldn't help but notice the same mischievous 'caught in the act' grin that they were both trying to hide.
"I was just going to pop over to the TARDIS and pick up a couple of things, and I was wondering…"
At the moment, Tegan didn't want to go anywhere near the TARDIS. Seeing her old home as well as running into the Doctor was too much for one day.
"You're not on the run from any monsters or anything, are you?" she asked.
"No. No monsters today. I'm on holiday, remember?"
She looked at her daughter. This was more than any other child her age would ever get to experience. And besides, what harm could come of it?
As soon as she thought that, she moaned inwardly. Many an adventure had started out over less.
But she trusted the Doctor. She knew that he'd rather die than let anything happen to her child. Sighing, putting on her long suffering look, she nodded her agreement. "Alright. Off you go. By the time you get back, I'll have dinner ready."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
This was better than it had ever expected. It had grown stronger than it could possibly have imagined in so short a space. All it had to do was reach out and it would be free. Free to do as it pleased. Free to plot the Doctor's destruction.
But timing was everything.
Soon. Very soon.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
It had been a long day, surprisingly. P.C. Graham Campbell was only a local bobby, but as Royston was such a small little town, he was basically the only law there was here.
And it was such a quiet little place. Hardly anything really exciting happened here. Cat's stuck up tree's seemed to be the highlight of his year, sadly.
What I wouldn't give for a good-old fashioned car chase, he thought to himself, as he trudged on his way back home from work.
The only thing that gave him any hope that this day might get any better was one Tegan Jovanka.
He'd made friendly with the local author a couple of months ago, but despite everything, he didn't get the feeling that she returned the same level of interest in him.
If only she would realise that they where meant to be together, then his life would at least have something in it to make up for his job.
And to think that when he'd joined up he'd thought that police work was going to be exciting.
He was going to call round to Tegan's later on, see if she maybe wanted to go out for a Christmas drink some night through the week. After all, it would only be the third time he would have asked her out. She had to cave in eventually. Who else was there around here that was even half as interesting as him?
He was just about to cross through the town square when he saw Vanessa Jovanka, heading off towards the outskirts of town with some strange man.
Immediately his suspicions where up. There was nothing out there except a small wood and a stream, plus the outskirts of some farm land owned by Ted Billings. Nothing out there to interest anyone. Why even go out that way when it was starting to get dark?
Suddenly feeling like a policeman for the first time in months, Graham followed at a discreet distance, sure in the knowledge that he was about to become the hero of the hour.
tbc
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Chapter 2
It had known it was alive from the pain it had felt, for nothing that was dead could feel such agony, the searing pain of being ripped in two. Divided and weakened, it had been prepared to wait for centuries, passing down through time and memory until it could escape these earthly confines.
No longer.
If it had been anyone or anything else, it would have stayed hidden, kept itself in the darkest recess. It would have been content to lie in wait for a better chance.
But chance had presented itself much sooner than anticipated.
Working on instinct alone, it uncoiled itself, allowing itself to emerge from the depths, to ~become~ once again.
It was only small, only a fraction of what it had once been. But it only needed a fraction of itself to begin.
Soon it would grow and soon, it would have it's revenge on the Doctor.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"I'd forgotten you made such a lovely cup of tea." He lent over slightly, so he could see into the kitchen, where Tegan was making herself a cup of coffee. "You wouldn't happen to have any biccies in there, would you?"
"Hold up a sec."
Tegan took another steady breath. It seemed like she'd been taking more than her fair share of them since she'd run into the Doctor.
She picked up a spoon, stirring some sugar into her mug, listening to the voices coming from her living room.
There was no doubt about it. This man was undoubtedly the Doctor. Even if he hadn't confirmed it for her, she would have known deep down that he could have been no one else.
And she didn't know if seeing him again was a good or a bad thing.
Of course, she had thought about him over the years (how many has it been for him, she wondered to herself). Sometimes she had wondered if he was even still alive, having shared some of his adventures with him, she knew the kind of dangers he faced on a daily basis.
That day in London… So many people had died. She had once thought that even the death of one person would have been one too many for her. Yet she'd allowed herself to become 'desensitised' somehow. Death had become part of her life and it had hardly phased her in the slightest.
She'd realised it that day down at London Docks. Life with the Doctor no longer seemed like an adventure. Exploring the Universe, seeing more of it than she had a right to… it had stopped being fun.
Sure, it always seemed to be a life or death situation, but it had at least felt worth while; it had all felt like she was making a difference.
Then one day it just didn't feel that way any more.
She realised she was still stirring her mug, having zoned out on what she was thinking.
Opening a cupboard, she picked up a packet of chocolate digestives, then went back into the living room, and couldn't help but smile at the scene before her.
The Doctor was seated in front of the fire, both hands out, his fingers wrapped up in a complicated design of string, with Vanessa's hand hovering over a gap in it, laughing as she quickly placed her hand in only to get it caught in a web of string.
"Alright kids, playtimes over." She placed the packet down by the Doctor's feet. "Your biscuits, Doctor."
He smiled up at her, and she couldn't help but remember ~her~ Doctor and suddenly she just wanted to hug him. Her Doctor was gone. This man in front of her held that man now within himself somewhere and no matter how badly it had ended, it hadn't all been bad.
She sat down in a rather oversized armchair, catching Nessa keeping a close eye on their visitor.
"So then Doctor. How are you?"
He'd just dipped his biscuit into his tea, and the question distracted him from it. "Oh, can't really complain too much." The sound of a small splash grabbed everyone's attention, Nessa giggling as his digestive broke, the biscuit sinking to the bottom of his mug. Tegan couldn't help but grin either. Her Doctor would somehow have tried to have dunked his biscuit for just the correct amount of time so that it didn't do just that. He would have tried, but more than likely he wouldn't have succeeded. She didn't think this Doctor had given it a moments thought.
"How many regenerations has it been since I saw you last?"
"This is my eighth, believe it or not. The third since I-" For a fleeting moment, Tegan saw far too much pain behind those eyes of his. More than she had ever seen from him before. The pain in his eyes seemed solely reserved for her and it suddenly made her uncomfortable. "Since that day we parted in London. Tegan…"
He set his mug on the floor, reaching out his hands and taking hold of hers. "I'm so sorry about what happened."
Panic gripped her. What was he sorry for? Did he know? How could he know about that!?! She returned her attention to him.
"I've always regretted that we didn't part on better terms. I-"
She squeezed his hand, relief flooding through her. He didn't know then. Good. Some things where just too painful to share. Especially with a man who she could only ever remember having trouble dealing with real ~human~ emotions.
"It's alright Doctor." She smiled at him to reassure him. "Really. My life is good; I have a beautiful daughter and a life that I would never have dreamed of for myself."
She felt a little surprise that he was still holding her hands. After all, her Doctor hadn't exactly been the touchy-feely type at all. And again she realised that she was dealing with a different aspect of the same man. She couldn't really judge him on what she knew and she suddenly felt guilty that she had judged him incapable of dealing with her pain. Still, she didn't really want to think about that now. She forced herself to remain cheerful.
"Stay. It's nearly Christmas. We'd love to have you over for the holidays."
His eyes lit up, a huge grin on his face. "You wouldn't mind me intruding?"
Tegan shook her head. "Don't be silly Doctor. You're family to me. And I'd love it if you could get to know Vanessa here a bit better."
Vanessa had sat quietly throughout the entire conversation, but as her mother and the Doctor turned to look at her, they both saw the rather large smile on her face.
"Well then, I guess that's settled." said the Doctor.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
The Doctor had seen the pain in Tegan's eyes. There but for the briefest of moments. But now was not the time. It may never be time for her to share whatever it was he had seen there, he thought to himself.
Meanwhile, he was being led around the house by Vanessa, who was currently showing him his room for his visit.
"Sometimes Suzie likes to sleep in this room, but you don't mind cats, do you?"
"No. I don't mind cats at all. In fact, me and cats get along rather well."
He let go of her hand to stand and look out of the bedroom window. It was a rather pleasant view. He was upstairs in the back room, from which he could see the war memorial. Or rather the very top of it.
"What's your home like then?"
The Doctor turned, having heard a very curious tone to the girls voice. "What exactly has your mother told you about me?"
Vanessa hopped up onto the bed, sitting there looking every inch like her mother. "Just some stories. That's what my mum does. She writes stories."
"You mean she writes books? About what?"
"Oh," said Vanessa, "All sorts of things." She shrugged. "I'm not allowed to read them yet. She thinks I'm too young."
The Doctor sat down on the bed with her. "Bet you've had a bit of a peek though, am I right?"
The grin on the girls face answered his question. "There's aliens in them, I know that much."
"Really? Well, I must have a read of them, see if I recognise anyone I know."
"What about your home then? Is it really a spaceship?"
The Doctor nodded, unable to help catching a little of the enthusiasm he could sense from the child. "Well, it's a little bit more than that, but if you can keep it a secret, and if you mum says it's ok, I can take you over to see it if you like. I wouldn't mind getting one or two things if I'm going to be staying here over Christmas."
"Really? You mean it?"
Opps, thought the Doctor. He should really have mentioned something about this to Tegan first.
"Only if your mum says it's alright."
"Only if her mum says what's alright?"
Both Vanessa and the Doctor turned to find Tegan at the doorway, and she couldn't help but notice the same mischievous 'caught in the act' grin that they were both trying to hide.
"I was just going to pop over to the TARDIS and pick up a couple of things, and I was wondering…"
At the moment, Tegan didn't want to go anywhere near the TARDIS. Seeing her old home as well as running into the Doctor was too much for one day.
"You're not on the run from any monsters or anything, are you?" she asked.
"No. No monsters today. I'm on holiday, remember?"
She looked at her daughter. This was more than any other child her age would ever get to experience. And besides, what harm could come of it?
As soon as she thought that, she moaned inwardly. Many an adventure had started out over less.
But she trusted the Doctor. She knew that he'd rather die than let anything happen to her child. Sighing, putting on her long suffering look, she nodded her agreement. "Alright. Off you go. By the time you get back, I'll have dinner ready."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
This was better than it had ever expected. It had grown stronger than it could possibly have imagined in so short a space. All it had to do was reach out and it would be free. Free to do as it pleased. Free to plot the Doctor's destruction.
But timing was everything.
Soon. Very soon.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
It had been a long day, surprisingly. P.C. Graham Campbell was only a local bobby, but as Royston was such a small little town, he was basically the only law there was here.
And it was such a quiet little place. Hardly anything really exciting happened here. Cat's stuck up tree's seemed to be the highlight of his year, sadly.
What I wouldn't give for a good-old fashioned car chase, he thought to himself, as he trudged on his way back home from work.
The only thing that gave him any hope that this day might get any better was one Tegan Jovanka.
He'd made friendly with the local author a couple of months ago, but despite everything, he didn't get the feeling that she returned the same level of interest in him.
If only she would realise that they where meant to be together, then his life would at least have something in it to make up for his job.
And to think that when he'd joined up he'd thought that police work was going to be exciting.
He was going to call round to Tegan's later on, see if she maybe wanted to go out for a Christmas drink some night through the week. After all, it would only be the third time he would have asked her out. She had to cave in eventually. Who else was there around here that was even half as interesting as him?
He was just about to cross through the town square when he saw Vanessa Jovanka, heading off towards the outskirts of town with some strange man.
Immediately his suspicions where up. There was nothing out there except a small wood and a stream, plus the outskirts of some farm land owned by Ted Billings. Nothing out there to interest anyone. Why even go out that way when it was starting to get dark?
Suddenly feeling like a policeman for the first time in months, Graham followed at a discreet distance, sure in the knowledge that he was about to become the hero of the hour.
tbc
~ ~ ~ ~ ~