The Ordinary One Part Six
Notes: Time to say goodbye to the Strawberry Stowaway! Awww, I'm quite sad to see her go! I am now planning an Epilogue, which should give the story another little twist and maybe…well, I'm not going to say top much about that. Just that I'm a sucker for sequels.
Crawdie: Hell yeah. She takes any excuse to turn something into a series.
A note to my oh-so kind reviewers:
Melbo18: My first ack! Man I love that word. Hope you enjoy this chappie.
Shangri-la-gypsy: Really? Hmmm. Never heard that one. Lol, huge and dangerous. I could give it a try. Like I said, I'm a sucker for sequels. I'm definitely bringing Jack in though, purely for the fun of sparking off some StellaJack shipping! I know you've all been thinking it, don't deny it! Thanks for your continued support. Makes me feel all smiley!
Tear22: Ahhh, my lovely Tear. I'm so glad you like Stella. You understand one of my fics? Man, I thought that was nigh on impossible! But I bet my briefing helped, right? Just think of the good Doctor and Rose as a real life Jessie and James, and you'll understand everything I write! Thanks for being so nice!
YamiKITG: Interesting name you got there…explain it to me! Yeah, I think the chapters probably get better as they go on, purely because this was my first fic and I'm just starting to get into all this writing for the Doctor and Rose…they're hard characters to cope with for me because they're not cartoons. When I write for the Pokemon characters it's very easy because you don't have to explain where the mallet came from or how they got down from there or how someone's hair grew back, etc etc. You know the kind of thing.
Morph: Yay, she's won some sympathy! Thanks for your praise, I intend to keep this going, don't worry! Oooops…spilled the beans there, didn't I?
Tai: Lol, I know, I've been at home feeling ill so I've had plenty of time for writing. Yes, the end is nigh. I love that word, nigh. Nigh, nigh, nigh! I've really kept them in character? Yay! I was so worried I hadn't! More praise for my Stella…I feel like she's almost real! She's the kind of friend I would have, that's for sure. I don't want to leave her behind or change her…which is going to make this chapter and the Epilogue so much harder! Send me that synopsis! I wouldn't post it again, you might get banned from posting fics or something. They're really cracking down on stuff like that since they changed the Log-In junk.
Jessie Wings: Heh, heh…no romance…right…Well, there isn't much in this chapter, so I hope you like it! I should technically be doing Chem homework, but what's new? Nice and funny. The best words you could have used. That's exactly what I'm trying to do. Thanks for reviewing! I checked out your bio…you should check out my other stories! I love comedy too. This is a new territory for me because humour is what I do best and will always do best. Check out my fics. I can guarantee they'll make you at least chortle.
And now, gentle readers, take my hand. That's right. Pretend I'm wearing a leather jacket and fake ears. Now, the last chapter! You too Crawdie, come on! Let's go!
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This room was a hospital room. You could tell. Everything was white or yellow or orange…'happy', 'cheerful' colours. It had that sort of apple-pie smelling disinfectant that Stella remembered all too well. But she'd never seen tools like that in a hospital before.
"Are you sure you can't just…put a bandage on or something?" she asked nervously as the Doctor advanced with something that looked like a bulldog clip.
"Stella, you broke your nose, not bumped it," said the Doctor irritably. "Now do you want it fixed or not? Because I'm quite happy to leave you looking like a rugby player." Stella gasped and her hand flew to her swollen nose.
"I do NOT look like a rugby player, you cruel…THING, you!" she said angrily.
"Fine. I won't fix it then," said the Doctor, preparing to leave.
"I didn't say…oh just fix it will you?" she sighed.
"Magic word?"
"Oh stop teasing her," said Rose from a corner, folding up her magazine. "Fix her bloody nose already."
"This won't hurt much," said the Doctor, in the voice we all know really means "Actually, it will hurt but I don't want to have to call security." He clipped the device over her nose.
"Liar!" said Stella, trying to tug it off. "What the heck is it doing?"
"Just shut up and let it heal you," said the Doctor, grabbing her hand to stop her pulling.
"But it HURTS!" roared Stella. "Aren't you supposed to knock me out first!"
"Would you be quieter that way?"
"Doctor," said Rose warningly, rolling up her magazine and slapping it against her palm. The Doctor released Stella's fist and put up his hands.
"OK, OK, I'm going," he said. "No gratitude, some people. Leave it on for three minutes then check if it's healed. I'm going to fix the TARDIS." As he reached the door he couldn't help but give one last remark. "At least she's quiet." He dodged the magazine flying his way and ran down the corridor, the gold necklace clinking in his pocket.
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He set to work quite happily, using the bountiful tools and great big furnace on the TARDIS to melt down the gold necklace, taking special care to save the jewel encrusted part. Playing with fire. Man's simplest pleasure.
"I'm so clever," he boasted smugly. "They don't have a clue."
Gold wire wasn't the only thing he made.
Then it was back to the control room. He lifted a panel of the TARDIS easily, sliding underneath to repair the broken systems.
All in all, it took under an hour.
"Good girl," he said affectionately, stroking the replaced panel. "That feels much better doesn't it?" He rubbed his hands together. "Oh, I am SO clever," he said gleefully as he logged onto the Internet.
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Stella touched her nose with one hand as Rose cleaned her wrist. She gazed into the mirror. The swelling and blood had gone, and her nose was as straight and freckled as it always had been.
"That's incredible!" she said. "It looks exactly the same as it used to!"
"He may be a pompous git sometimes, but he's good," agreed Rose. "Other hand." Stella looked at her left wrist whilst Rose cleaned up her right. Completely healed.
"I could use some of those wipes," she said. "This place has everything!"
"Better than Earth pharmacies," said Rose. "Done." Stella's face fell.
"I was hoping it would take longer…what about my fleece? It was covered in blood," Stella said suddenly, looking down at her 'Little Miss Naughty' top. Rose grabbed something from a plastic bag.
"Good as new!" she said, chucking Stella her fleece. It was spotlessly clean and smelled…well, like the TARDIS. She bit her lip.
"Is this it then?" she asked, cuddling the blue fluffy material. Rose tried to smile.
"Come on Stella, you must understand now why we can't take you," she said in a motherly voice. The younger girl nodded dejectedly and didn't try to argue.
"It's been fun," she said, giving Rose a weak smile. "Thanks for having me." There as a knock on the door before the Doctor burst in, grinning all over his face.
"I re-wired the system. We're good to go!" he said, looking ridiculously happy. Stella wondered, like all teenagers do, if he was happy because she was leaving, then wiped it from her mind. Of course that wasn't it. He was happy because his beloved ship was working again, and that meant he was free. He loved freedom more than…more than Americans, thought Stella as he hugged Rose. So she was happy for him.
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The TARDIS whirred into existence on the corner of Regent Close. Mrs Bates curtains twitched as she looked out to see the source of the noise. All she could see from her window, however, was that awful Brinley girl talking to someone just out of sight. Thank God she wasn't wearing those horrid skates, but a battered pair of trainers that looked two sizes too big for her.
"Thanks for the…uh…interesting footwear Rose," said Stella. Rose laughed and hugged her.
"I'll be in touch. I promise!" she said. She nudged the Doctor. "You can get her email for me, right?" The Doctor blinked. He hadn't been paying attention. He wasn't good at goodbyes.
"Huh?"
"Never mind," said Rose, rolling her eyes. Stella waved and began the walk to her house.
"Bye Doctor!" she yelled, to the intense irritation of Mrs Bates.
"Bye Strawberry!" he replied. Stella watched the door close.
"See you in my dreams," whispered the girl. She felt the strong breeze on her face and newly healed nose as the TARDIS faded away.
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"Where to now then?" asked the Doctor, running to the control panel. Rose shrugged.
"Somewhere quiet," she said.
"Your wish is my command," he replied, bowing. He pulled the relevant levers and pressed the relevant buttons. "Lucrita, the first millennium," he announced. "An unspoilt paradise."
"Thanks."
"Don't mention it," he said as they walked out into the glow of the evening suns, of which there were three. They had landed on a hilltop, above a valley. A strangely pink river flowed below them. In the distance, Rose could see a small village.
"It looks like England," she noted.
"Sorry," said the Doctor hastily. Rose shook her head.
"I like England. I lived there, didn't I?" The Doctor looked strangely uneasy and nervous. "What's wrong? We're not about to get attacked are we?"
"Of course not!" said the Doctor. "When has that ever happened?" Rose didn't bother answering. He fumbled in his pockets and brought out a ring. A gold ring. A gold ring set with a lot of tiny rubies. Rose gasped as he presented it to her.
"Did you…make this?" she said, gazing at it.
"Hey, don't act so surprised!" he said, looking offended. "I'm full of hidden talents, me."
"Yeah, but most of them are blowing things up then fixing them," she teased.
"I can have it back if you don't like it," said the Doctor uncomfortably, jamming his hands into his pockets.
"No way!" said Rose firmly, quickly putting it on her finger. "This is mine." She paused, not quite sure what to say next. "Thank you. It's beautiful."
"The best for the best," he replied, reminding Rose of the time he'd kicked Adam out of the ship. She hugged him then kissed his cheek as the three suns sank below the horizon.
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They never found out how the gold had shattered in the first place. Outloud, the Doctor suggested it could have been the Portian.
"Portians are trouble makers, Rose," he'd said. "It's the kind of thing they'd do." Rose just laughed and took his hand, and pointed out all of his trouble-making moments.
Secretly, he wondered if it had been the TARDIS. It was the kind of thing she'd do as well. Breaking into Stella's mind, learning that she wanted to stay, and helping her to do just that.
But for once, he was happy not knowing for sure.
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It was two weeks since the TARDIS had dematerialised.
Stella had noticed that life around her had gone on exactly as it always had. School, homework, swimming. No skating though. She'd told her parents that they'd been stolen from her locker, knowing full well that they couldn't afford to buy her new ones.
She felt strange. Stuck in a time zone that went slower than everything else around her. Slow motion. It was the same-old, same-old, all the time, every day. Real life was dull and boring. Life with them was danger and excitement.
One step forwards, two steps backwards. The Stella Brinley dance. One that she'd been dancing alone since they'd gone.
A package had arrived for her that morning from an Internet shop. Attached to it was a note from him. 'Happy Un-Birthday, Strawberry Girl. The Doctor.'
New skates. Ten times better than hers. That made her happy.
The note just made her sad.
Life kept going the same as it always had. And later rather than sooner, Stella Brinley was finally ready to move on.
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Sort of bitter sweet, right? Well, that's the last full chapter…but hang around for the Epilogue, because this is not the end of Stella! It would have been but…she begged so hard that I couldn't help it! Hope you enjoyed it.
(puts on Dalek voice again)
REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW!
Crawdie: I think the Daleks are quite insecure, you know. They have to repeat things to feel powerful and good about themselves. They need therapy.
REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW, TINY HUMANS, OR BE POLLINATED!
Crawdie: I think I know someone else who needs therapy.
