Here's more fun dog-ness! You'll finally find out what breed Ripley is by the end (hope you all like it, after all, I've got one at home and she's the bestest doggo ever!) And I've been trying to motivate myself to update some of your suggest fanfics but it is slow going and work at the moment is extremely sporadic. Like my schedule changed the other day three times within an hour kind of crazy.
Ahem, but please let me know what you think! And a small blood warning on this.
I shook my body in mild annoyance, eyeing the harness I now wore on my back labeling me as a service dog. Which is complete and utter bull, though I suppose my human understanding of most things could easily qualify me as one. I had no choice in the matter though, seeing as the Doctor couldn't sit still for even a second before pouncing on our latest problem. I'm just glad I healed so quickly. We only spent maybe two days in the Tardis, but my ribs healed up fast. I glanced at the Doctor from my spot on a chair beside his bed—him fiddling with a jello cup he'd been given with his hospital lunch. He said it probably had to do with whatever Yvonne had been doing, but we're waiting on test results or something for accurate conclusions.
I pushed the thought from my mind, turning away from him and eyeing the curtains around the bed, feeling the overwhelming sense of sorrow come over me once more. Just being in a hospital bothers me. I hope we're not staying much longer. I hadn't noticed the Doctor watching me while we were here, but I was certain he could tell I wasn't thrilled. I'd spent more than enough of my previous life trapped in a hospital undergoing tests and treatments, and I hated the memories it dragged up. I hadn't had a decent rest since we'd gotten here, other than when the Doctor could sneak me up onto his bed at night—something the nurses constantly disapproved of.
I let out a soft sigh only for a hand to rest on my head, drawing my gaze back to the Doctor.
"Only a bit longer, Ripley," he smiled, understanding that I wasn't feeling the greatest, which made me wonder just what he meant back in the Tardis.
He can feel my emotions… It didn't seem to be a constant thing, but I wasn't quite smart enough to figure out when he could feel them or what circumstances were needed to make it so he could. My best guess is touching heads like before, but I suppose it doesn't matter. I've been giving him physical cues as to how I'm feeling, and as long as he's not hearing my thoughts or anything, nothing's going to really change. I scratched at the vest in mild frustration—the thing was not comfortable to be honest—and nearly jumped out of my skin when the curtain was suddenly pulled aside.
Another fun aspect of being a traumatized dog in a hospital was getting used to strangers coming and going every so often to check up on the Doctor. Which begs the question, is he an actual doctor? He showed off some paper at reception for me to get allowed in and everything, but if he was an actual doctor, couldn't he investigate the hospital without being a patient? I gave him a glance as the group of nursing students headed over. Knowing him though, it's probably just what he calls himself to sound important.
"Now then, Mister Smith, a very good morning to you," the head doctor—Dr. Stoker—announced with a forced smile. "How are you today?"
"Oh, not bad. Still a bit, you know, blah," the Doctor replied, sticking his tongue out briefly that I rolled my eyes at.
"John Smith, admitted yesterday with severe abdominal pains. Jones, why don't you see what you can find? Amaze me," Stoker told one student, waving her forward and I resisted the urge to bristle.
More than one student was eyeing me in barely restrained interest—as most are want to do when a puppy is in the room—and Stoker was scrutinizing me in a way that informed me he was very much not a dog person. He was probably the only reason the Doctor was getting trouble about it regarding the paperwork. I sniffed haughtily at him, earning a frown from the man as Jones went about checking over the Doctor under my watchful eye.
She has a stethoscope pressed to the Doctor's chest and I watched curiously as she seemed to frown at something and move it to the other side, as though she couldn't find his heart. Wait. Isn't he alien? I don't know how I forgot that—though he looks human enough—so isn't him being in a hospital bad? I looked at the Doctor, shuffling in place in uncertainty, but he winked at Jones as though he was hiding a secret as Stoker called her out on her uncertainty.
"I weep for future generations. Are you having trouble locating the heart, Miss Jones?"
"Uh, I don't know," Jones replied, moving away from the Doctor and trying to wrap her head around that enigma while also remember what she was asked to do. "Stomach cramps?"
"That is a symptom, not a diagnosis. And you rather failed basic techniques by not consulting first with the patient's chart." Stoker reached for the chart only to be shocked by it, making my ears flick back at the sound of it clattering to the floor.
Honestly, these butterfingers. I hopped off the chair, ignoring the conversation about electricity and Benjamin Franklin, picking up the chart and offering it to Jones—someone I could tell was a decent person in comparison to Stoker. She smiled, taking the chart and hanging it back up, patting my head in praise before leaving with the others.
"Make a new friend?" The Doctor asked cheekily, making me huff at him from over my shoulder before he swung his legs out of bed. "Come on. Let's go for a wander."
My tail wagged back and forth, more than grateful to move out of the dreary room and I happily plodded at his side as we walked around our floor of the hospital after a quick trip outside for a toilet break.
"See, there's these plasma coils around this hospital that I noticed. It's the rain and lightning. And, well, you know me. Had to check it out," he explained, something I was grateful he'd started doing now that he knew I could understand him better than your average dog.
Though I have no idea what a plasma coil is or does, but he doesn't seem to mind. Most people wouldn't be talking normally to a dog in public anyway. Though the Doctor just said he knew Benjamin Franklin in front of a bunch of nursing students. He just doesn't care how crazy he looks, I suppose. I paused then, catching a whiff of something foul and I frowned, nose raised and searching the air. Whatever it was, it was gone, probably someone passing by with something on their shoe or in their pocket. It drew the Doctor's attention though.
"Something wrong, Ripley?" He asked, kneeling down and laying a hand on my head. "You're worried about something, eh? Confused?"
Definitely has to touch my head then, to feel my emotions. Good to know. I grumbled a little, sneezing once to clear my nose of the annoying scent before the Doctor stood back up and we headed back for our room.
"I really should rely on you a bit more, huh? Your nose has already proven helpful so, maybe—" The Doctor was cut off as the building began to quake, sending my ears back and quickly making me tuck myself as close to the Doctor as I could for stability. "There, there, Ripley. It's okay," the Doctor soothed as the hospital stopped.
I thought dogs were supposed to be able to sense earthquakes. And since when did Britain have such big ones? I thought in a panic, sticking close to the Doctor with my tail tucked under me as he poked his head out of the curtain to see people panicking and Jones rushing past.
"All right now, everyone back to bed, we've got an emergency, but we'll sort it out. Don't worry," she ordered, calming no one really, but I had to admit that I liked her a bit more for being able to keep her head considering the situation.
The Doctor pulled the curtains shut then, confusing me as he began hastily unbuttoning his shirt and digging through the closet to find his coat. Oh, no. I'm not watching this. I turned away stubbornly, eyes drifting to the ceiling as I waited for him to change. It doesn't matter that he's good looking, and I'll keep telling myself that till the end of the earth if it'll keep me sane. Not like anything can come of us what with me being a dog and him being… well, him. A hand pat my head, making me lift my gaze to the Doctor as he smiled and yanked back the curtain.
"Very good point! Brilliant, in fact. What was your name?" He blurted out as I hastily bounded after him.
Non-stop moron. Can't sit down for two seconds before he's rushing off again, I mentally complained as I tried to figure out what was going on. I propped my paws up on the windowsill to take a look and see what all the insanity was about, only for my mouth to drop open in shock. Well, fuck me sideways… Are we on the moon? I turned to the Doctor, still gaping—which I'm sure was a hilarious look on a dog—and he winked. We're on the God Damn moon!
"Well, then, Martha Jones, the question is, how are we still breathing?"
You're telling me! Holy shit! How the hell did we—I paused, mouth closing as I stared outside with narrowed eyes. Oh. This is some more weird alien nonsense, isn't it? I turned to the Doctor barking once with a grumble. Did you do this?
"Oi! Don't look at me like that!" He complained, earning another grumble in return. "It wasn't me!"
Sure, it wasn't, I scoffed, earning a suspicious look from Martha as she watched us both.
"Y-You're mad," one of the other med students breathed, and the Doctor rolled his eyes.
"Come on. Not her, she'd hold us up." He waved off, leaving the room. "Ripley!"
I sighed, picking up the pace, and rushing off after him to the patient's lounge. Martha was on our tail as well and we all stepped out onto the patio with a breath of relief.
"We've got air," Martha murmured. "How does that work?"
"Just be glad it does," the Doctor mused, looking out at the expanse of space as I struggled to see over the wall. "Oh, come here. I'll give you a lift."
He picked me up and sat me on the wall, allowing me to stare out at the Earth oh-so far away while he held my harness to prevent me from accidentally slipping off the edge. Wow. What a view. It's like… like those pictures on the covers of textbooks, except… real.
"You okay?" The Doctor asked Martha, who'd mentioned something about a party before choking up.
"Yeah."
"Sure?"
"Yeah."
Liar. I gave the woman a glance, before leaning over and licking the back of her hand, getting a soft smile for the minute comfort.
"You're worrying Ripley," the Doctor commented.
"Sorry. I mean, we could die any minute, but all the same, it's beautiful."
"Do you think?"
That made me glance at the Doctor, who looked a little confused. Does he… He's alien, so maybe he's seen this sort of view all the time and it just… doesn't faze him anymore? I looked back out and frowned. But… it's gorgeous.
"What do you think happened?" Martha asked then, returning me to the conversation as my own question was hopefully going to be answered.
"What do you think?"
Seriously? I huffed, getting a sheepish look from the Doctor and a pat on the head.
"Extraterrestrial. It's got to be. I don't know, a few years ago that would have sounded mad, but these days? That spaceship flying into Big Ben, Christmas, those Cybermen things." Martha grew more solemn. "I had a cousin. Adeola. She worked at Canary Wharf. She never came home."
Oh… Oh, I thought she looked familiar… That woman was… I whined a little, feeling bad for not having been able to help her cousin, and the Doctor scooped me up into his arms with a sigh.
"Nothing you could have done, Ripley," he murmured under his breath and then explaining to Martha. "We were there, in the battle."
Martha only seemed to grow more confident though. "I promise you, Mister Smith, we will find a way out. If we can travel to the moon, then we can travel back. There's got to be a way."
The Doctor smiled and I could tell he liked her attitude as he set me down on the floor. "It's not Smith. That's not my real name."
"Who are you then?"
"I'm the Doctor."
Martha scoffed. "Me too, if I can pass my exams. What is it then, Doctor Smith?"
"Just the Doctor."
"What, people call you the Doctor?" She questioned in disbelief.
"Yeah."
I barked in agreement as well, but Martha didn't look convinced.
"Well, I'm not. As far as I'm concerned, you've got to earn that title."
"Well, I better make a start then," he chirped, making me mentally groan.
Great. She just offered him a challenge. This is so not going to end well. The Doctor threw a rock, saying something about a forcefield keeping what limited air we had inside, just before there was a loud rumble of engines and I bristled. Ships descended down in front of the hospital and—despite not being able to see what came out of them—the look on the Doctor's face did not bode well.
"Judoon."
I scratched at my harness again, sitting beside the Doctor as he tried to deal with a computer, and I fought to understand what we'd seen down below. So, aliens can apparently look like rhinos, and they are apparently police mercenaries who took us to the moon to… find someone? Is that right? I glanced at the Doctor, momentarily forgetting he couldn't hear me, and I sighed. It was starting to get tiring, being a dog. Lonely, really, but I was the last person to admit something like that. It was just annoying to be trying to talk to someone only to know that no one would ever be able to listen.
"Hey, now. You all right, Ripley?" The Doctor asked, having been watching me at some point. "We'll get this sorted."
That's not what I'm worried about, I mentally sighed, but leaned against his leg for him to pat my head briefly before returning to using his sonic on the computer. I jerked straight when the door opened, but it was only Martha coming in to let us know where the Judoon were at.
"They've reached the third floor. What's that thing?"
"Sonic screwdriver," the Doctor replied, earning a snort.
"Well, if you're not going to answer me properly."
"No, really, it is. It's a screwdriver, and it's sonic. Look."
"What else have you got, a laser spanner?" She joked though the Doctor took it seriously.
"I did, but it was stolen by Emily Pankhurst, cheeky woman. Oh, this computer!" The Doctor snapped, smacking the screen and earning a grumble from me. "The Judoon must have locked it down. Judoon platoon upon the moon. Because I was just traveling past. I swear, I was just wandering. I wasn't looking for trouble, honestly, I wasn't, but I noticed these plasma coils around the hospital, and that lightning, that's a plasma coil. Been building up for two days now, so I checked in. I thought something was going on inside. It turns out the plasma coils were the Judoon up above."
"But what were they looking for?"
"Something that looks human, but isn't."
"Like you, apparently."
"Like me. But not me," the Doctor informed
"Haven't they got a photo?"
"Well, might be a shape-changer."
Martha looked a little disbelieving, but she seemed to run with it for now. "Whatever it is, can't you just leave the Judoon to find it?"
"If they declare the hospital guilty of harboring a fugitive, they'll sentence it to execution."
"All of us?"
"Oh yes. If I can find this thing first. Oh!" The Doctor shouted, making Martha and I both jump. "You see, they're thick! Judoon are thick! They are completely thick! They wiped the records. Oh, that's clever. Sorry, Ripley," he apologized, shooting me a smile as I huffed at him for spooking me.
"What are we looking for?" Martha asked.
"I don't know. Say, any patient admitted in the past week with unusual symptoms." He turned back to the computer. "Maybe there's a back-up."
"Just keep working. I'll go ask Mister Stoker. He might know."
"Oh, take Ripley with you. She might prove helpful. May have even caught a whiff of the creature earlier, though I can't be sure."
I barked once, hesitant but willing to separate from the Doctor's side if it meant helping. Anything to prove useful, really. The Doctor smiled, ruffling my fur and smiling at Martha.
"She's right clever, so keep an eye on her if she starts acting off."
"Right," Martha muttered, eyeing me uneasily, but accepting my help as I followed her out into the halls. She poked her head back into the room though. "Is she alien too?"
"Nah. Not that I know of anyway. Genetically altered, maybe, but that'd be it."
Martha opened her mouth, but closed it, deciding that now wasn't really the time to be asking him about me, and we headed out. "Sending me off with a dog," she muttered, making me frown.
Oi. I'm more than just a dog, you know.
"What is he thinking? How could a dog be helpful?"
I barked, annoyed with her despite knowing that she had a point. The action made her pause, anyway.
"All right, all right! Sorry."
I huffed, looking around the halls and using my nose as the Doctor had said. If I caught the scent of the alien before, I might be able to track it. That being said, I perked up only for my ears to lay back on my head at what I picked up instead. Death. I took off after the trail, Martha rushing after me and calling out until she grabbed a hold of the handle on the back of my harness and pulled me to a stop in front of an office door.
"What'd you go and run off for? The Doctor told me to look after you and—Hold on. This is Mr. Stoker's office. How did you…"
I whined, pulling at the harness uselessly to try and reach the door before my mind kicked in. Oh, I'm an idiot. Harness wraps around the chest, belly, and back. So, getting out of it would be as easy as—I stopped pulling and backed up, ducking my head and easily sliding out of the harness as Martha yelped and I rushed into the office. I pulled to a stop when I caught sight of the corpse and the two figures dressed in motorcycle helmets. My tail tucked and my ears went back flat against my head as I bristled and growled—the scent of death mixing with the foul smell I'd caught earlier. An elderly woman with a straw poked her head up as Martha entered, catching sight of us before Martha quickly retreated.
"Kill her!" The woman ordered and I turned tail and bolted as well.
I caught up to Martha not long after she bumped into the Doctor and I barked loudly to alert him to the man coming after us just as he broke down a door.
"Run!" He shouted, grabbing Martha's hand and running with me following and easily catching up.
We hurried down some stairs, my paws skidding on the tile when we had to rush away from the Judoon coming up, but we were soon tucked away in an empty x-ray department room with the leather man pounding on the door.
"When I say now, press the button!" The Doctor ordered as Martha shouted back.
"But I don't know which one!"
"Then, find out!"
The Doctor sonicked the x-ray machine as Martha tried to figure out the controls. I was growling at the door though, ready to jump on the attacker to buy time if he got in the room before everything was set up. The door was soon knocked down and the Doctor shouted, just in time for Martha to find the button and the machine to go off. The leather man jerked to a stop, then fell over unmoving, allowing me to huff as though I'd stopped him. I helped…sort of.
"What did you do?" Martha asked, breathlessly.
"Increased the radiation by five thousand percent. Killed him dead," the Doctor hummed.
"But isn't that going to kill you? And what about Ripley?"
I blinked, suddenly realizing I should have probably been behind the protective glass like Martha instead of standing in the middle of the room defending the Doctor. I feel fine though, honestly.
"She seems all right and it's only roentgen radiation. We used to play with roentgen bricks in the nursery. It's safe for you to come out. I've absorbed it all. All I need to do is expel it. If I concentrate, I can shake the radiation out of my body and into one spot." The Doctor began to hop around. "It's in my left shoe. Here we go, here we go. Easy does it. Out, out, out, out, out. Out, out. Ah, ah, ah, ah! It is, it is, it is, it is hot. Hold on." He took off his shoe and chucked it into a radiation bin. "Done."
Martha eyed him uneasily. "You're completely mad."
"You're right. I look daft with one shoe." He removed his other and tossed it as well. "Barefoot on the moon."
Martha shook her head as the Doctor knelt down and ran a hand over my fur.
"And you're doing all right, it seems. Already expelled it yourself. Barely anything on you now. Yvonne really did a number on you, didn't she?" He murmured the last part with a hint of guilt, but I leaned up and licked his chin.
Don't feel guilty, you dunce. I already forgave you. He smiled at that as Martha began talking and he went ahead and checked up on his sonic that was still in the x-ray machine.
"So, what is that thing? And where's it from, the planet Zovirax?" She asked, inspecting the leather man.
"It's just a Slab. They're called Slabs. Basic slave drones. See? Solid leather, all the way through. Someone has got one hell of a fetish."
I grumbled at the joke, earning a grin from the Doctor as he pried out his sonic.
"But it was that woman, Miss Finnegan. It was working for her, just like a servant."
"My sonic screwdriver," the Doctor muttered, downtrodden as he held the fried piece of metal.
"She was one of the patients, but she has a straw like some kind of vampire."
"Oh, no. My Sonic screwdriver. I loved my sonic screwdriver," the Doctor continued to fuss, kneeling down and showing it to me as I whined along with him.
I hadn't even gotten to try it out myself. Could I even use it as a dog?
"Doctor?"
The Doctor jerked back up onto his feet, throwing the remnants of the sonic over his shoulder into a bin as we both turned to a disapproving Martha.
"Sorry." The Doctor smiled then. "You called me Doctor."
"Anyway?" Martha rolled her eyes. "Miss Finnegan is the alien. She was drinking Mister Stoker's blood."
"Funny time to take a snack. You'd think she'd be hiding… Unless. No. Yes, that's it. Wait a minute. Yes!" The Doctor shouted. "Shape-changer. Internal shape-changer. She wasn't drinking blood, she was assimilating it! If she can assimilate Mister Stoker's blood, mimic the biology, she'll register as human. We've got to find her and show the Judoon. Come on!"
And back to the running, I sighed, rushing off with them. I smelled the leather before they noticed, and pulled to a stop, startling the Doctor into stopping as well as I ducked around a corner and he pulled Martha with him to do the same.
"See? Always trust Ripley," he muttered to Martha as another Slab passed by. "Slabs always travel in pairs."
"What about you?" Martha asked.
"What about me, what?"
"Haven't you got back-up? You must have a partner or something."
"Oh, humans," the Doctor drawled. "We're stuck on the moon running out of air with Judoon and a bloodsucking criminal, you're asking personal questions? I've got Ripley! Right, girl?"
I barked happily as we got up and started back down the hall.
"I like that. 'Humans.' I'm still not convinced you're an alien."
As if she'd jinxed it, we jerked to a stop in front of a number of Judoon—the Doctor getting scanned on accident. Well, shit.
"Non-human," the Judoon grunted.
"Oh, my God, you really are."
"And again," the Doctor sighed as we took off running, myself yelping as shots flew over my head and we ran around the corner. "Ripley, why didn't you warn us?"
I didn't know what they smelled like! I mentally argued, shooting him a look of annoyance that he just smiled at—not meaning any harm by his words. We made it to another floor where people had started to sit on the ground, and I panted as the Doctor relaxed.
"They've done this floor. Come on. The Judoon are logical and just a little bit thick. They won't go back to check a floor they've checked already. If we're lucky."
Martha slowed down though, checking in with the other nursing student and I barked quietly, making the Doctor double back before he could walk off. He seemed to like Martha, after all, I doubted he wanted to just leave her.
"We're going to run out," the other woman muttered, reminding us of the limited oxygen.
And with all our running around, we're going to be dealing with the backlash soon too, I mused, having already started to pant and looking around in worry.
"How are you feeling? Are you all right?" The Doctor asked Martha, who cracked a smile.
"I'm running on adrenaline."
"Welcome to my world."
"What about the Judoon?"
"Nah, great big lung reserves. It won't slow them down." The Doctor knelt back down to me then, running a hand through my fur. "Ripley's taking it a bit harder though, but I doubt she'll let me do this without her."
I grumbled, butting his hand with my head. You're damn right, I won't. He chuckled, undoubtedly feeling that I wouldn't allow him to leave me behind and he stood once more.
"Where's Mr. Stoker's office?"
"It's this way," Martha said, leading us back to where we'd first encountered the alien and her lackeys.
We crept back in, and I let out a whine upon finding Stoker's shriveled up corpse. The Doctor knelt down, giving my head a pat of comfort as he looked the man over, and Martha frowned.
"She's gone. She was here."
"Drained him dry," the Doctor muttered, eyeing the grey corpse. "Every last drop. Was right. She's a plasmavore."
"What's she doing on Earth?" Martha asked, and I resisted the urge to scoff.
It was pretty obvious, after all.
"Hiding. On the run. Like Ronald Biggs in Rio de Janeiro. What's she doing now? The Doctor rambled, talking to himself. "She's still not safe. The Judoon could execute us all. Come on."
"Wait a minute," Martha stopped us before we could bolt back into the halls, closing Stoker's eyes before we left.
"Think, think, think. If I was a plasmavore surrounded by police, what would I do?" The Doctor grumbled, ruffling his hair before he spotted something in the distance.
I looked as well, hoping to see what he did, but was only left with confusion until there was a crash and Judoon could be heard down the hall.
"Martha, stay here. I need time. You've got to hold them up," the Doctor ordered.
"How do I do that?"
"Just… forgive me for this. It could save a thousand lives. It means nothing. Honestly, nothing," he pressed before kissing her hard.
My eyes went wide and for a moment my chest felt tight before Martha was left standing there a bit dazed and the Doctor turned to me.
"Ripley, stay with her and don't attack the Judoon, no matter what. I can't risk you getting hurt."
Oh, no. You can't just kiss someone and then leave me behind! I'm not going through that again! I barked my complaints, but the Doctor wasn't having it and snapped.
"Ripley! I mean it! Stay put!"
I shrank back away from him, ears flat against my head and tail tucked before he took off running. Even if I wanted to now, I couldn't go after him. My paws wouldn't move as my body quivered. He'd never risen his voice like that at me. The only ones who had were Yvonne and my trainer. I knew he wouldn't be like them. Or, I hoped as much, but my body refused to budge. It knew what happened when you didn't listen. It remembered the pain.
I was startled out of my trance by the Judoon slamming Martha up against a wall, but I couldn't control my instincts—all of which demanded I run before the pain could come. I jerked away from the Judoon and ran down the hall, unknowingly following the scent I felt the most comfort in, even after what had just happened.
My mind was out of control though. I was trying to get myself to calm down, but it wasn't working. My instincts were screaming to run away, and my body was reacting on that, ignoring my human mentality trying to rein in the fear and uneasiness settling within me. Then, I reached where the scent was and skid into the room only for my heart to sink in my already tight chest. The coppery scent of blood filled my nose and an older woman lifted her head to look at me as she stopped drinking blood from her straw. The Doctor's blood.
Everything was too much. A machine buzzed with electricity, making my hair stand on end. The scent of leather burned my nose, reminding me of the slab not too far away. But it was the Doctor—blood, the scent filling my lungs, the smell of death hovering so close—that finally made me lose it.
Martha hurried after the Judoon as they stormed into the MRI room, only to gasp and cover her mouth at what she saw. The blue-tiled floors were splattered with blood and the familiar scruffy grey dog who'd been by the Doctor's side now looking like a completely different creature. Ripley's hair was bristled, making the small pup look twice as large and her eyes were crazed as blood dripped from her jaws. The slab hadn't a chance to try and go after the dog apparently, lying on the floor useless without its master, who now had glazed eyes of shock and blood soaking the top of her robe.
A Judoon scanned the corpse, earning a snarling growl from Ripley, before nodding.
"Confirmation, deceased. Plasmavore charged with crime of murdering the child princess of Patrival Regency Nine. Sentence, execution. Case closed."
The Judoon turned, easily moving past Martha who wasn't sure what to do. The Doctor lay on the ground, unmoving and quite possibly dead. The doctor in her saying she could do something, but the snarling dog hovering near him was making her hesitate. Ripley had seemed like such a small, quiet dog, if not quite amazingly intelligent. But now, it was like a switch had been flipped. Small though she was, Martha could tell that Ripley would hurt her if she made the wrong move.
Martha shook her head, clearing her mind of that for now, and doing what she could. She had to try, because of the Doctor was alive, she was his only chance. So, she slowly started closer, hands up in peace as she eyed Ripley's snarling, blood-covered jaws—wishing her mind would stop conjuring up how much it would hurt if Ripley got a hold of her.
"Ripley, I just want to help the Doctor, okay?" She said quietly, calmly, hoping that by treating the smart dog as a scared, traumatized person it would help. "I want to help save him."
Ripley was still baring her teeth, but her eyes were changing. Martha wasn't sure how she missed it before. Ripley had deep blue eyes before, but now they were a bright icy shade of blue. Something was definitely not normal about this dog. Martha reached out towards the Doctor's arm, flinching but not retracting her hand as Ripley turned more towards her and hovered slightly over him.
"I want to save him, Ripley. At least let me try."
It took a second more for Ripley to calm down, blinking hard as her eyes darkened once more. Martha was worried for her too, giving a glance at the mangled corpse nearby, before moving to start CPR on the Doctor. She hoped beyond hope that he wasn't actually dead, or that she could help bring him back if he was. But as she continued, her strength began to falter. She'd forgotten about the lacking oxygen. A whine drew her gaze to Ripley though, who suddenly looked scared.
"R-Ripley?"
The dog flinched, ducking back away from her and eyes flickering to the bloody corpse nearby. Martha wanted to help, really, but she couldn't breathe and as she gave the last of her air to the Doctor, she could only hope he would. The man gasped, coughing as she sank to the ground.
"Scanner… she did something…" she breathed before passing out, leaving the Doctor to try and heave himself up to his feet.
His hand slipped and he frowned, looking at the blood and giving the corpse nearby a stunned look. His eyes shifted to Ripley then, who was stumbling away from him looking scared and confused. Oh, Ripley… He turned away from the dog though, pulling himself up and reaching for his sonic only to grimace. He'd forgotten he'd fried it. So, he took a chance and jerked a cable out, shutting down the machine. He let out a soft sigh of relief before turning and heading for Ripley.
The frightened dog jerked away, trying to run while panting and only succeeding in tripping over her own legs and sinking to the ground.
"Ripley."
She flinched, clenching her eyes shut with her tail tucked, ears laid back, and curled in as small of a ball as she could. Her tongue licked her chops and when he finally touched her fur, he winced when she let out a screeching yelp like she'd been burned. He hadn't hurt her. She was just that frightened. She was expecting pain, and she flinched and jerked away with whines escaping her.
The Doctor felt terrible. This had been his fault. He's shouted earlier, left her behind in a place she wasn't comfortable to begin with, and ended up traumatizing her into attacking someone. And now, she was expecting retribution for what she'd done because that's the only kind of training she'd ever known. And that had also been his fault. She'd only known pain and suffering for her mistakes. Shouting had brought her back to that, and now someone was dead because of it.
He slowly reached out, placing his hand on her head and he clenched his eyes shut to hold back the tears that welled up.
Sorry, sorry, sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm sorry. So sorry.
"No. I'm sorry, Ripley," he murmured, picking her up and cradling her close as she whined and cried. "I didn't… I hadn't thought… I'm so sorry."
I was in a bit of shock, I suppose. I hadn't gone anywhere near the Doctor since we'd returned to the Tardis and simply laid curled up in the dark, tucked away in the back of one of the Doctor's storage rooms. I couldn't stop thinking about it. What I'd done. I'd never killed anyone before—not that I ever would have, if given the option—but this brought about a whole new set of problems. This went beyond lashing out because of fear. I'd completely lost control and someone had died because of it.
Blood. So much blood. In my fur, in my mouth, on the floor. I did that. I killed someone. Their death is on my hands.
I felt sick, tongue running over my lips uneasily and making me wince at the phantom taste of copper. I couldn't stop tasting it or catching the scent of it. I'd run from the Doctor the second I was in the Tardis, so the blood still clung to my fur, adding to the sick twisting of my stomach. I wasn't sure what to do. My mind spun, knowing that what I'd done was in no way right—no matter how terrible the alien was—and the thought that I'd done it made me scared.
If I couldn't control my instincts as a dog, then it could happen again. And what does that mean for me? A-Am I becoming more dog than human now? I can't… I-I don't want… God, I want to be human again. Tears fell from my eyes and I dragged a paw over my face with a whine. I'd been all right with being a dog, but this incident made me realize that it would never actually be okay. My humanity would never allow it to be and having killed someone made me feel even less like a human than before. And I was scared. Not only of myself but also because of the Doctor.
He'd apologized, as though this were his fault, but I knew it wasn't him. It was me and I was still waiting for a punishment. A scolding, pain, anything. I'd done something terrible and it felt like I wasn't getting in trouble for it because I was just a dog. It wasn't right. I killed someone! And he'd just apologized… What if I did it again? What if I couldn't control myself again? What then? He wouldn't apologize a second time. I knew that which was why I just wanted him to do what he wanted to and—
I jerked, cowering away from the light coming from the door as the Doctor stepped in with a sigh.
"Ripley, I'm not going to punish you."
But you should! I killed her!
"Please come out," he practically begged, and I flinched when I spotted his shoes in front of my hiding spot. "I… I know you're upset about what happened, but it's not your fault."
It is! I-I did that! I mauled her! L-Like a-an animal!... I-I'm a monster…
"Ripley."
I winced when the familiar weight of the Doctor's hand landed on my head. I must have let out a whine and alerted him to where I was tucked away. He was lying on the floor, running his fingers through my fur as I whined and fussed.
"You're a good dog, Ripley."
I'm not. I'm terrible.
"You were only trying to keep me safe."
No. I killed her because I was angry and scared.
"Ripley, please stop crying and come out. Please. I'm not blaming you for what happened. I know you were scared and upset. I should have told you what I had planned."
You died!
He winced a little, hand retreating some, but I crawled after it, nipping at his fingers with a whine.
I was so scared. I-I thought…
"Oh, Ripley. I would've been okay. You can't keep me safe from everything and my species… we've got a way of cheating death. We regenerate. Everything we are changes into another person, but we're still the same. I wouldn't have died. Not really."
No. No, I don't care about some, some alien trick. You were dead. Even if you change, you were dead!
He sighed again, pushing himself into a sitting position and picking me up, holding me close in his lap and brushing a thumb over my snout to wipe away the tears. "I'm sorry you had to go through that. I'm sorry I put you in that position… Do you want to get cleaned up? Maybe have something to eat?"
I wasn't really feeling up to it, but he took me away to bathe me and offered me a bowl of food that I just sort of stared at—not feeling hungry when even the thought of putting something in my mouth made me think of her. The Doctor seemed to realize this too, letting out a soft sigh and taking the food away for now. I expected him to take me to my bed in the console room then but was confused when we headed another way.
He pushed open a door to a bedroom that looked mostly unused and I looked up at him in confusion before he set me down on the bed and pulled off his coat and shoes. I was surprised when he flopped back onto the bed as well, getting to my feet and looking at the door as I understood what was happening. Why? Why does he even want to be near me after what I did? His hand pressed down on my head once more and I begrudgingly laid back down in uncertainty. After a bit though, I began to relax. The Doctor tucked me close to him and ran a hand through my fur comfortingly, allowing all that tension from before to roll off, even though we both knew it would haunt me for a while.
I woke up with a start, practically on my feet after the nightmare I'd had, only to relax as the deep red of the blanket stopped looking like a puddle of blood and I realized the Doctor was gone. I sighed softly, still not feeling great after what happened, but choosing to do my best to move past it for the Doctor's sake. I had no doubt he'd get overly concerned if I continued to mope about. Not that I'd be 100% right away, but I couldn't stay downtrodden as I ducked into the console room to see him beaming away and a feminine gasp of awe had drawn it out of him. I wish I could amaze him like that…
"How does it do that? It's wood. It's like a box with that room just rammed in. It's bigger on the inside," Martha gasped.
"Is it? I hadn't noticed," the Doctor lied, closing the Tardis doors and heading for the console. "Let me just wake up Ripley and—Oh! Never mind. She's already up."
I plodded over to him, wincing when I saw Martha eye me in uncertainty, but the Doctor's hand settled on my head as he smiled softly.
"Feeling better?"
I… suppose. I leaned into his touch a bit more, glad that if I had to deal with the aftermath of what I'd done, at least I wasn't alone.
"Is she…"
"Oh, she's fine," the Doctor informed Martha, standing with a smile. "She was just scared before. I… She's only got me."
Martha still looked hesitant, even as I bowed my head in shame. "She can't just ki—do that to someone because she's scared."
The Doctor rubbed the back of his neck with a hum. "True, but I'm not about to punish her when it was partially my fault she went and did that."
I shot him a look at that, grumbling a little for him blaming himself, and he shot me a small smile at my usual sass.
"Ah! That reminds me!"
Martha raised a brow and we watched as he went around the console and hummed. I started to follow, but he held up a hand giving me a firm "stay." I didn't want to listen, but he was smiling so I begrudgingly sat and waited for him to come back around. His grin grew as he held something behind his back, kneeling down as a chime came to my ears and he looped something around my neck. He pulled back as something settled on my chest and he brought out a small mirror. Tears welled up in my eyes and my chest felt tight at the simple Tardis-blue collar with a tag hanging from it with my name.
"What do you think?" The Doctor asked, only to yelp when I jumped on him and slobbered all over his face.
I'm happy, you big moron!
"All right! All right! You're still big, for a pup, you know!" The Doctor said through laughter, pushing me lightly off him with a big grin of his own. "Glad I could cheer you up, Ripley. It's official now, after all." He tapped the silver metal tag on my chain. "You're the Tardis's official pet and companion."
I put my paws on his knees once more, pressing my forehead to his and shoving as much joy and gratefulness as I could towards him. His hands curled around the fur on my neck, and he kissed the top of my head before pulling back.
"And you're my companion too, after all."
Martha leaned over then. "So, she's not just a service dog then?"
"Nope!" The Doctor chirped. "I mean, she's never taken the exam, but I'm sure it'd be far too easy for her to pass if she did. I got her off the street. She was hurt and I took her in. Made a bit of a mistake letting her go, but she's forgiven me and is stuck with me, right?"
I barked in agreement, earning a snort from Martha.
"I know people do this, but you talk to her like she actually knows what you're saying."
"Well, because she does," he said, head tipped in an innocent look.
"Yeah, right."
"No really! Ask her something."
Martha looked to me dubiously, and I sat with a raised brow and a cocky tilt of my head. "So, if you understand me, then… what's two minus one?"
Seriously? A math problem? I barked once and her eyes narrowed.
"And one plus two?"
I barked three times.
"Spin in a circle."
I did.
"Shake."
I offered my paw.
Martha looked to the Doctor, still suspicious. "You're pulling my leg, right? You taught her all these tricks."
I rolled my eyes, pulling my paw from her hand and turning around with a huff, sitting with my back to her and chin held up in the air.
"Oh, you've done it now. You've offended her," the Doctor teased, knowing I was playing it up to mess with her. "You better apologize, or she won't help you on our next adventure."
"What, seriously?" Martha looked to me, but I huffed again and turned my head the other way. "Oh, all right! I'm sorry!"
I peered an eye open, looking at her from over my shoulder before my tongue dropped out of my mouth and I turned around with a chirpy bark and wag of my tail, making Martha shake her head.
"You're impossible. What kind of dog is she, anyway?"
"Ah! Actually, I ran a couple of tests, and the results should be just about done." The Doctor pulled over a monitor and looked at the results. "Oh. Well, that'll be interesting."
"What's it say?"
"Other than her being far more improved than I thought regarding strength and healing capabilities, she's going to be big."
"Big? How big? Like Labrador big?"
The Doctor shook his head. "Like Great Dane big. Like bigger than big. I mean, her paws say as much, but I didn't quite expect this."
I put my paws up on the console, letting out a little grumble and "awoo" of annoyance, wishing he'd just get on with it. I'd like to know too, after all.
"Well… you're a bit of a mix, though I suppose that's a given considering what those scientists did."
"Hold on. Scientists?" Martha interjected, earning a complaint from me as the Doctor simplified my initial incident.
"I made the mistake of assuming she wanted to be back on her own and left her. She got caught by a… group who understood she was different than typical dogs—she was always a bit smart, see—and they ran experiments and attempted to train her and make her the perfect guard dog."
I grumbled again, ears flicked back at the remembrance of what happened, and the Doctor dropped a hand on my head.
"So, my guess is, the little bits of German Shepard, Belgian Malinois and Doberman are from them, since the amount is so small—Less than 10%. And there's no way the one-third wolf is possible without human intervention since wolves haven't been in Britain in the early 1900s."
"Awoo, aw," I complained, earning a chuckle from Martha.
"I think she wants you to just get on with it."
"Well, she's over 60% Irish Wolfhound. Which is odd, mind you. There are breeders all over the place, but the thought of someone dumping a dog of that breed is almost insane. There's nothing wrong with her after all. She would've been worth a decent amount—"
"Groo," I grumbled, earning a sheepish look from the Doctor.
"Right. Though, I suppose it's a good thing! Wouldn't have met you otherwise, eh, Ripley?"
"And how big do these dogs get?"
"They're the tallest of all dog breeds, but with the one-third wolf that they added in, she could get even bigger."
"That's… wow."
I puffed up proudly, earning a chuckle from the Doctor as he pet my head.
"Don't let it get to your head there, Ripley."
I huffed. As if. I'm not that self-centered. I just think it's cool I get to be a humongous dog! Like a lion, but cuddly! Oh, I'm gonna scare so many people.
"Right then. Let's get going!"
And then, we were off once more.