Chapter 10 The One with the Subject
Sorry this took so long! Somehow I've been way too busy for someone still in a pandemic! Hope you're all keeping safe and healthy!
I own nothing but Flo!
Florence and the Doctor let the ginger pair walk ahead of them, one of Vincent's arms held his easel while the other was wrapped around Amy's as they spoke to one another. The Doctor held onto the briefcase full of his fancy gizmo, swinging it as he walked next to Florence, who was taking in the french countryside around them. She exhaled deeply, redirecting her gaze to the two in front of them, finally asking the Doctor what she had noticed the past day or so since she jumped.
"So, what's up with Amy?" The Doctor jumped slightly at her sudden question, seemingly thrown by her observation.
"How do you mean?" He tried to act casual, but Florence noticed his previously casual swinging of the briefcase had ceased, and knew she was correct about Amy's mood.
"She looks… I don't know, sad. She seems sad."
The Doctor paused and moved his head from side to side, contemplating his next words. "Ah, well I guess that's, as you would say, spoilers." He gave her a cheeky smile, but she rolled her eyes.
"Wonderful," she sighed, "cheers, so helpful!"
"I'm sorry," he apologised, sincerely, "but I can't tell you what we've gone through until you've done it." He looked ahead at his companion, who was chatting innocently to Vincent. As much as he tried to hide it, part of the reason Florence knew something was wrong with Amy was thanks to his reactions to her. She had caught him looking at her sadly, or smiling when he saw her smile, as if he was expecting to never see it again. "How many times have you even met her? How well do you know Amelia Pond and her emotions, eh?" He didn't ask her to be cruel or dismissive, Florence knew he was both genuinely curious, and deflecting.
"I guess you're right." She admitted, before answering his question. "It's just been the one time, for both of you."
The Doctor seemed surprised by that, and a little disappointed. "Just once? Really? Oh."
"I'm sorry." She apologised this time, but he merely shook his head.
"No no, why would you be sorry?" She laughed uncomfortably, shaking her head and looking anywhere but him.
"For not being the Florence you know." He tried to interrupt but she held up a hand to stop him from saying anything. "No really, I'm sorry I'm not ready to jump head first into adventure and danger, I'm sorry I've been blowing hot and cold with you. I'm trying. To be better, to be braver. It's just…" She trailed off slightly, unsure how to tell him that she was both loving this time with him and worried about how little she was missing her home, and her friends.
"It's hard." He finished for her. "Don't worry. I don't." She felt his hand reach for her own and she shifted, trying to subtly pull away from him. It wasn't that she didn't want to touch him, or him to touch her. But him holding her hand always seemed so intimate, such a natural response from him caused by their time together, and it made her slightly nervous, if she was honest with herself. He accepted her hesitance for hand holding, he always did. He'd try, god knows he was a trier, and then wait for her to come to him, unless it was running, then he always grabbed and pulled her anyway. "I don't expect anything from you, Florence. It took me a while, I'll admit there were times you frustrated me and I'm sorry you'll have to go through that. But it took me a while to remember that this wasn't your choice." She finally turned her gaze to look at him. "Travelling with me, you're not like Martha was, or Amy is, they jumped at the chance for adventure, you've been stuck with it." He stopped them both, similarly to how he did the night before with the plaster application. Almost as if reading her mind, he brushed his thumb gently over the blue patch, before trailing his hand down to the back of her neck, letting his thumb linger slightly on her jaw. "And for as long as it takes you to trust me, I'll be waiting for you." He pulled his hand from her face and turned to interrupt Vincent and Amy's conversation, strolling ahead to catch up with the pair, leaving Florence to take a breath and calm her racing heart. "Okay. So, now, we must have a plan. When the creature returns-"
"Then we shall fight him again." Vincent cut in fiercely.
"Well, yes, tick. But last night we were lucky." He told them, seriously. "Amy could have been killed. So this time, for a start, we have to make sure I can see him too." Amy frowned at that.
"And how are we meant to do that, suddenly?" She asked, sceptically about his sudden power to see the invisible, but the Doctor held up his briefcase.
"The answer's in this box. I had an excellent, if smelly, godmother." He let his strange comment linger, trailing off as he saw a funeral procession heading in their direction. His three companions slowly joined them looking towards the slow group of mourners.
"Oh no, it's that poor girl from the village." Vincent told them, and the four of them stepped to the side when the procession approached them to allow them past, Vincent taking his hat off in respect as they observed the simple wooden coffin, a bouquet of sunflowers laid on top.
"You do have a plan, don't you?" Amy asked quietly as they moved off, trying to ignore the deep feelings of guilt they all felt for the girl none of them could save.
"No. It's a thing." The Doctor said, unconvincingly. "It's like a plan, but with more greatness." Florence laughed slightly.
"You know when you take the lead… suddenly I feel fifty times more organised in my life." Amy smiled at her comment while the Doctor glared playfully at her. Vincent merely ambled behind them, glancing back at the funeral procession every now and then, the saddest of them all.
Vincent settled his easel into the ground and the tools of his trade at his side while the Doctor fretted around him in the churchyard. Amy and Florence merely watched the Doctor try to unconvincingly portray himself as calm and collected in the face of danger. With half a plan still going for him. He popped up behind the artist looking out towards the church windows. "So, you'll be sure to tell me if you see any, you know, monsters."
"Well hopefully just the one." Florence commented, making Amy snicker.
"Yes. While I may be mad, I'm not stupid." Vincent said plainly, and the Doctor patted his shoulder, stooping down to talk to him eye to eye.
"No. Quite." He told him. "And, to be honest, I'm not sure about mad either. It seems to me depression is a very complex-" Before the Doctor's attempt at therapy could even begin, Vincent started to shush him softly,
"Shush. I'm working." The Doctor nodded and stood from his position, but his two companions and the painter himself still recognised the care of the Time-Lord, each giving him soft smiles. Though Amy caught hers and turned away quickly.
"Well, yes. Paint. Do painting!" The Doctor ordered, and Florence watched in fascination as Vincent layered blues upon blues on the canvas in front of him, creating the perfect streaks of the fading evening blue sky. She frowned as the Doctor continued babbling on beside them, unable to sit still or quiet for two seconds. "I remember watching Michelangelo painting the Sistine Chapel. Wow!" He clapped his hands together, and Florence flinched slightly imagining what an annoyance he would be doing that when one was painting some crucial artistic detail. "What a whinger. I kept saying to him, look, if you're scared of heights, you shouldn't have taken the job then."
"Shush." Amy hissed at him, also watching the painter at work. Florence gave him a glare, watching him fidget around for a moment, shoving his hands into his pockets before pulling them out again and clenching his fists at his sides. His silence lasted until Vincent had managed to fill in the general sky's colouring before he launched into what France presumed was another artistic anecdote.
"And Picasso." Oh he wasn't even finished with the first one, Florence thought. "What a ghastly old goat. I kept telling him," he moved to stand behind Vincent, hands on his shoulders, "concentrate, Pablo. It's one eye, either side of the face." Vincent didn't seem too hoaxed by the distraction, but Amy and Florence surely were, considering the longer it took Vincent to paint the longer it would take him to get to painting the window with the face in it. Florence stood up straight and placed her hand over the Doctors mouth.
"No more." She told him. "Please. Shut up." He sulked and took her hand from his mouth, walking away from the trio and sitting on the ground in front of them. Florence kept an eye out for both eye catching displays: the vision of Vincent Van Gogh adding flourishes of greys, blacks, blues and browns to the canvas, slowly but steadily creating the image she and Amy would gawp at 130 years in the future was not one that she wanted to miss; and, well, the Doctor shredding grass in his hands and pulling up flowers muttering to himself in the churchyard, while sitting like a petulant child, was also not something she wanted to forget in a hurry. A couple of hours had past before he piped up again loudly enough for the rest of the group to hear him, Vincent had progressed further in his painting while Amy and Florence stood over his shoulders watching him intently. Florence voiced concerns about distracting him but the man simply told her that it was in fact a nice change to have someone take interest in his work.
"Is this how time normally passes? Really slowly." The Doctor drew the last word out as he rolled in the grass, getting to his feet with a flourish. "In the right order." He walked passed the trio, and the girls looked on at him curiously, his fidgety behaviour becoming concerning. "If there's one thing I can't stand, it's an unpunctual alien attack." Amy and Florence looked at each other before nodding and moving to follow him.
"Are you okay?" Amy asked. "You seem a bit, if I didn't know you better, I'd say nervous."
"Yes, there's something not right and I can't quite put my finger on it." The Doctor whispered to them, but just as Florence opened her mouth to question his further they were interrupted by Vincent's shout.
"There." They all turned to see the painter had paused and was pointing at the window in front of them. "He's at the window."
"Where?" The Doctor asked him quickly.
"There, on the right." The Doctor nodded and started to run towards the church,
"As I thought. Come on. I'm going in." Amy and Florence followed after him, as did Vincent, placing down his palette,
"Well I'm coming too." He told the Doctor, who stopped and held a hand up.
"No! You're Vincent Van Gogh." He told him under no circumstances. "No."
Vincent frowned at the decision. "But you're not armed." He pointed out, and Florence nodded.
"He's right, what's the plan?" The Doctor clutched his hastily acquired briefcase in his arms.
"I have a plan!" He assured her. "And I am armed!"
"With what? A glorified wing mirror!" She cried incredulously at him, and he patted the briefcase securely.
"Well yes that, and overconfidence, and a small screwdriver. I'm absolutely sorted." He smiled at Florence and she almost screamed in response to his bravado. "Just have to find the right crosactic setting and stun him with it. Sonic never fails. Anyway," he stepped towards them and pointed at the two women, "Amy, only one thought, one simple instruction. Don't follow me under any circumstances. Florence, don't let her." He made a 'watching you' motion at them and the two nodded.
"I won't." They told him at the same time, straight faced. He nodded and backed away from them, swaggering off into the church, briefcase in hand. Vincent sidled up to Florence and Amy,
"Will you follow him?" Florence looked at Amy and sighed,
"Unfortunately."
"Of course." Vincent looked at the ginger.
"I love you." He declared, making Florence smirk at his love struck expression. The three of them waited for a clear sign that the Doctor had made it into the church, or rather, Amy and Florence were waiting for Vincent to give them the go ahead.
"Has he moved?" Florence finally asked, and he shook his head.
"No. Just shifted to the next window." He looked curiously after the creature, before grabbing Florence's arm desperately. "But, wait! He's turning now." Florence took a deep breath,
"Okay, so it's noticed him, if he can just-" She was cut off by the sound of smashing and a yell from inside, Amy ran forward calling his name, Florence hot on her heels. "- stay out of trouble!"
The two women ran to the church doors, Florence vaguely heard the sound of Vincent messing with something back at their campsite. They pushed the heavy doors open and ran into the cold stone building, coming face to face with a startled Doctor.
"Argh!" He yelled as the three bumped into each other. "Florence! I thought I told you. Never mind. We'll talk about it later." He pushed them in the opposite direction and into a confessional booth, Amy in one section and the Doctor and Florence costly pressed up against each other in the other. "Quick, in here." There was silence except the occasional grunting of the Krafayis and the heavy panting of Amy and Florence, the Doctor placed a hand over Florence's mouth as he curled his arm around her waist to keep her tight against him. "Absolutely quiet." Florence could just about make out his strong jawline through the moonlit grating as he turned, opening the hatch to whisper to Amy. "Can you breathe a little quieter, please?"
"No." Amy whispered, annoyed. She lifted her own curtain silently and looked out, moving in tiny motions. "He's gone past."
"Shush." The Doctor whispered back, moving his hand from Florence's mouth and back to his side, it was tense for a few seconds while the three of them tried to remain as still as silent as possible. Before the wood next to Amy splintered and she screamed as a claw pushed through before retreating just as swiftly.
"I think he heard us." Florence heard movement outside their side of the confessional and pressed herself up against the Doctor as the creature began to attack the wood near her head. "That is impressive hearing he's got." The Doctor muttered, moving the two of them out of the way as a sharp claw burst through the wood right where his shoulder had been. "What's less impressive are our chances of survival." Florence whipped her head away from the attacking limbs and stared the Doctor down in the darkness.
"You think?!" She hissed at him. There was more scratching and clumsy thudding coming from outside before the three trapped time travellers heard their saving grace appear in the form of Vincent Van Gogh.
"Hey! Are you looking for me, sonny?" He called from just outside the booth. "Come on, over here. Because I'm right here waiting for you." The Doctor opened the door slightly for him and Florence to peer out and see the painter fending the Krafayis off with a wooden chair. He noticed them staring and waved his hand. "Come on. Quickly. Get behind me." The three of them sprinted out and fled behind him, the Doctor making an effort to wave his screwdriver around.
"Doing anything?" He asked, only for Vincent to shake his head while continuing to wave the chair around at the invisible attacker, Florence grabbed the Doctor's arm impatiently,
"Come on!" They backed out into a courtyard area of the church, Vincent still thrashing the chair around trying to kept the creature at bay.
"Where is he?" The Doctor asked, rather pointlessly Florence didn't want to mention, and Vincent agreed.
"Where do you think he is, you idiot? Use your head." The Doctor nodded and waved his screwdriver once more in the directions Vincent was aiming the chair in.
"Anything?"
"Nothing!" Vincent told him. "In fact, he seemed to rather enjoy it." That piqued the Doctor's interest,
"Ooo." He hummed, before ducking behind Vincent once more as the erratic man moved to wave his makeshift weapon at the creature once more.
"Duck!" The Doctor did so. "Left!" He did as he was told again, but was thrown into the stone wall but an invisible force. "Right, sorry. Your right, my left." Florence ran to help the Doctor up, running a hand through his hair to quickly check for blood.
"This is no good at all." He told them all, jumping to his feet with little help needed. "Run like crazy and regroup." Vincent three the chair to the side and Amy motioned them all to follow through the door behind her,
"Come on! In here!" The four ran through the door and into what Florence briefly saw was a crypt, all trying to close the door behind them but found themselves stopped by the creature's weight thrown against it. Vincent slammed his foot down where he was looking, and the door suddenly managed to wedge shut. They all leaned up against the door to take a moment to breathe, before the Doctor attempted to replan.
"Right. Okay. Here's the plan. Florence, Amy, Rory." Florence snapped her head towards him at the last name, and almost gave herself whiplash looking back at Amy at her next question.
"Who?"
"What?" The Doctor grabbed Florence's hand and squeezed it tightly in warning, but she ripped it from his grasp and gave him a look, there was something important he wasn't telling her about her future, his past. If he knew Rory then surely Amy must have met her future husband too? The Doctor quickly gave her a look at her reaction before turning to the painter beside him.
"Sorry, Vincent um…"
"What is the plan?" Amy asked him, trying to draw his focus back to the matter at hand, the Doctor seemed out of sorts still and was waving his sonic around slightly as he spoke.
"I don't know, actually. My only definite plan is that in future I'm definitely just using this screwdriver for screwing in screws."
"You won't." Florence muttered. Vincent looked at the three of them as he stepped away from the door,
"Give me a second. I'll be back." He ran off without another word and the remaining trio kept their backs to the door.
"I suppose we could try talking to him." The Doctor suggested, and Florence gave him an incredulous look,
"Talking to him? This isn't fucking therapy!"
"Well, no." The Doctor shrugged. "But might still be interesting to know his side of the story." There was a roar from behind the door. "Yes, though maybe he's not really in the mood for conversation right at this precise moment." The door jolted forward as the creature hammered against it. "Well, no harm trying. Listen. Listen!" Surprisingly, the thumping stopped. "I know you can understand me, even though I know you won't understand why you can understand me. I also know that no one's talked to you for a pretty long stretch, but please, listen. I also don't belong on this planet. I also am alone. If you trust me, I'm sure we can come to some kind of, you know, understanding. And then, and then, who knows?" For a split second Florence thought it may have worked, that was until the window next to them shattered, presumably bringing the Krafayis into the room with them.
"Over here, mate!" Vincent called, running back into the room with his easel in hand, pointing the sharp ends in the creature's direction, while the three time travellers crouched behind a stone tomb and watching the painter brandish his new weapon.
"What's it doing?" Florence asked when Vincent made no movement for a second.
"It's moving round the room. Feeling its way around." Vincent followed its movements, while the Doctor looked perplexed.
"What?" He wondered aloud.
"It's like it's trapped. It's moving round the edges of the room." Vincent confirmed for them, but the others were none the wiser what it was doing.
"I can't see a thing." Amy commented, and the Doctor wiped a hand over his face,
"Oh, I am really stupid." He murmured, and Amy shot him a scoff.
"Oh, get a grip! This is not a moment to re-evaluate your self-esteem." But he was hardly paying attention to her, looking genuinely distressed over his newfound revelation.
"No, I am really stupid, and I'm growing old. Why does it attack but never eat its victims? And why was it abandoned by its pack and left here to die?" He crouched back down next to them. "And why is it feeling its way helplessly around the walls of the room? It can't see. It's blind." Florence gasped, putting her hand to her mouth sadly. "Yes, and that explains why it has such perfect hearing!"
"Which unfortunately also explains why it is now turning around and heading straight for us." Vincent pointed out, standing and running out from their hiding place.
"Vincent. Vincent, what's happening?" The Doctor called out, as Vincent rushed forward.
"It's charging now. Get back. Get back!" He held his easel in front of him defensively before being lifted up into the air and suspended for a moment, he let go of the easel which seemed to float as the sound of pained screeching filled the crypt. Vincent stood over the mortally wounded figure only he could see, taking off his hat and looking down at it sadly. "He wasn't without mercy at all. He was without sight." He told them. "I didn't mean that to happen. I only meant to wound it, I never meant to…" The Doctor crouched next to the creature, feeling out for the flesh before laying his hand out softly on its side, while Florence placed a comforting hand on Vincent's arm.
"Shh, we know." She told him gently.
"He's trying to say something." The Doctor muttered. "I'm having trouble making it out, but I think he's saying.. I'm afraid. I'm afraid." He stroked the Krafayis' side as it let out its last shuddering breath. "There, there. Shush, shush. It's okay, it's okay. You'll be fine. Shush."
"He was frightened, and he lashed out." Vincent bowed his head sadly. "Like humans who lash out when they're frightened. Like the villagers who scream at me. Like the children who throw stones at me." Florence rubbed his arm lightly, and he let her comfort him.
The Doctor stood and moved back, he looked at the scene before him. "Sometimes winning, winning is no fun at all."
There was silence between the four as they made their way out of the dark and unforgiving crypt and back up into the fresh country air, Vincent stopped them before they got far and looked up at the sky above them, Florence saw the tension leave his hunched shoulders and he lowered himself onto the grassy floor, patting the ground next to him in invitation. The three travellers looked at the tortured artist softly before joining him on the ground, settling their heads near each other so that they made a circle, Florence settling in between Amy and the Doctor. They lay there for a moment, before Florence saw Vincent's hand extend towards the Doctor in the darkness. "Hold my hand, Doctor." He told him, and Florence smiled softly at the action. "Try to see what I see. We are so lucky we are still alive to see this beautiful world." Florence felt Amy shift to her right and gently grip her hand, giving Florence a smile as the brunette squeezed her hand in response, out of the corner of her eye she saw the Doctor's hand cautiously fall to the side. "Look at the sky. It's not dark and black and without character." They all looked up at the sky, trying desperately to see the beauty that Vincent saw. "The black is in fact deep blue. And over there, lighter blue." Florence slowly edged her hand closer to the Doctor's, feeling the grass tickling her fingertips before meeting his warm skin. She lightly brushed against the calluses of his fingers before laying her hand in his, interlacing her fingers with his own. She vaguely registered that this was the first time she had taken his hand without prompting, something had changed within her, perhaps it was seeing the beauty of the world through Vincent's eyes, or perhaps she was finally coming to terms with her weird and wonderful place in the Doctor's. Maybe she would never know what it was. "And blowing through the blueness and the blackness, the wind swirling through the air and then, shining, burning, bursting through! The stars!" He surged up slightly in his visions. "Can you see how they roar their light? Everywhere we look, the complex magic of nature blazes before our eyes." He lay back down next to them, and Florence stroked her thumb across the Doctor's knuckles.
"I've seen many things, my friend." The Doctor spoke quietly, voice hardly above a whisper. "But you're right. Nothing quite as wonderful as the things you see."
"I will miss you all terribly." Vincent told the travellers sadly.
By the time they made it back to Vincent's home the soft dawn light had breached the horizon and showered the, in its soft glow. Florence knew they couldn't linger for too long in the artist's life, and their adventure was coming to an end. The Doctor told them all as much after they had had one more cup of tea in the cosy art filled kitchen. Vincent was sad to see them go, but tried to impart a gift of one of his paintings on them to say goodbye.
"I only wish I had something of real value to give you." He told them, and Florence shook her head in disbelief that in the Doctor's hand was one of his self portraits, that he was so willing to part with.
"Oh Vincent, we couldn't possibly…" The Doctor pressed the canvas to the man's chest, agreeing with Florence's sentiment.
"We could never accept such an extraordinary gift."
Vincent shrugged and took the painting back, throwing it back onto the table next to him. "Very well. You're not the first to decline the offer." He seemed unbothered, stretching his arms out to the other ginger in the room. "Amy! The blessed, the wonderful." She grinned and kissed him on either cheek before hugging him tightly.
"Be good to yourself," she told him, pulling away and looking at him seriously, "and be kind to yourself."
"I'll try my best." He replied, and the Doctor and Florence looked on softly.
"And maybe give the beard a little trim before you next kiss someone." Amy added with a laugh, rubbing her cheek lightly.
"I will, I will." He laughed. "And if you tire of this Doctor of yours, return, and we will have children by the dozen." Amy's eyes widened at the declaration and she smiled and nodded awkwardly. Vincent turned to Florence with a grand hug and kisses to her cheeks,
"My dearest Florence. May you never tire of your Doctor, and may your artistic passion never dull." She smiled brightly at him and rubbed his shoulder as she up pulled away,
"And yours will live on, monsieur Van Gogh." He smiled back at her before moving on to clasp the Doctor's hand in a tight grip.
"Doctor, my friend. We have fought monsters together and we have won. On my own, I fear I may not do as well." The Doctor was at a loss for words, merely moving the handshake into a tight hug, patting him on the back.
The painter bid the trio farewell at the door before retreating up to his bedroom, unable to linger to say more goodbyes. Amy, Florence and the Doctor had only walked halfway down the path when the latter turned and asked, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
"I was thinking I may need some food or something before we leave." Amy responded, which made Florence laugh slightly.
"I'm thinking you're up to something." She told the Doctor, who tapped the side of his nose.
"Well then, no, you're not thinking exactly what I'm thinking, but you're close." He turned back to the house. "Vincent!" He called up, and the man in question appeared, now topless. "I've got something I'd like to show you. Maybe just tidy yourself up a bit first." The red headed man grinned and nodded his assent.
The Doctor excitedly led their new friend down the alleyway they had parked the TARDIS in what felt to Florence like weeks ago, though it had only been two nights. She hoped that after showing Vincent his legacy and dropping him back home she may be able to have a lie down at some point, having only had a couple of hours napping here and there. She supposed there must be bedrooms in the TARDIS, as manic as the Doctor was, she presumed Time-Lords did need some sort of rest, and hopefully that meant he understood the basic human need for a comfy bed of their own. As the Doctor rambled on about how many of his own rules he was breaking, she noticed that the TARDIS had been covered in advertising posters since they had last seen her. "Now, you know we've had quite a few chats about the possibility there might be more to life than normal people imagine?" The Doctor was telling Vincent, and groaned when he too saw the posters.
"Yes." Vincent replied warily, watching the Doctor walk up to the mysterious box and use his key to slice through the paper to open the doors.
"Well, brace yourself, Vinny." Florence and Amy gave each other the excitable look only people who knew what it was like in the TARDIS could give. The Doctor paused before pushing the door open, stepping aside and allowing Vincent to enter, Florence watching his surprised face lit up by the warm orange glow of the ship, stepping in and stepping out again, pressing his hands to the covered wood to check it was real, pacing around the outside to check it wasn't an illusion. All the while Florence, Amy and the Doctor stood there, giddy. He gave the three of them a look before stepping back into the box.
"How come I'm the crazy one, and you three have stayed sane?" He asked as they bounded in behind him, the Doctor whipping his straw hat from his head and placing it on the coat rack to the side. Vincent made a bee line for the console, much like Florence herself had done days before, but resisted the urge she had felt to run his fingers over the buttons. "What do all these things do?" The Doctor clapped his hands together and pressed the buttons nearest to him.
"Oh, a huge variety of things. This one here, for instance, plays soothing music." Classical music played from the speakers and he gave Florence a quick twirl before turning it off and reaching behind her to pull a lever, getting a nod of agreement from Amy. "While this one makes a huge amount of noise." The sounds of buzzing and pinging filled the room. "And this one makes everything go absolutely tonto." The Doctor pulled his usual final lever and the room began to shake and lights flickered as the ship jerked into flight mode, Florence grabbing on the side with a screech. Vincent stumbled around before grabbing hold of the handle under the monitor, pointing out a button next to him,
"And this one?" The Doctor ran forward to stop him from pressing it.
"That's a friction contrafibulator!" Vincent nodded as Florence gave him a 'beats me' shrug from behind the madman. Instead of asking more about the contrawhatsitcalled, he directed his attention to a red switch,
"And this?"
"That's ketchup." The Doctor answered, pointing to the yellow button adjacent. "And that one's mustard."
"Mmm, nice." Vincent gripped the shoulders of his friend happily. "Come on, back to the cafe and you can tell me about all the wonders of the universe." The Doctor nodded, but held his fingers up quickly, turning the painter around and instructed him to hold on again.
"Good idea. Although, actually, there's a little something I, we, would like to show you first." He went back to the console, entered a few details and flipped the lever once more, shaking the room for a few seconds, and then it was still. Florence smiled and jerked her head to the door as she walked passed Vincent,
"Come on then." She couldn't believe what they were actually about to do, it filled her heart knowing the slightest difference their actions could make to the painter's opinion of himself, if they could just give him the barest of hope that he would never be forgotten, then she would be content. They left the TARDIS and stepped out into the cold winter air of Paris, outside the d'Orsay once more.
"Where are we?" Vincent asked, looking around in wonder at the magnificent glass building attached to the museum, the Doctor turned and patted Vincent on the back.
"Paris, 2010 AD. And this is the mighty Musée D'Orsay…" Florence grinned and tilted her head.
"It's home to objectively some of the greatest paintings in history."
"Oh, that's wonderful." Vincent smiled back, but Florence knew he was still slightly confused as to why they bought him here, although more confused by the two men listening to a radio that walked past them. The Doctor waved his hand dismissively,
"Ignore that. I've got something more important to show you." The Doctor led him on the same path he had led his two companions on only days previously, through the ticket office, and the great hall, up the stairs, allowing Vincent a moment to look around and take in all the fantastic art surrounding him, and the new architectural advancements. They pushed through, dragging him away from the hall much like the Doctor had done with Florence, and into the special exhibition room. He didn't even noticed the sign with his own name on it, and it wasn't until they were standing in the middle of the dark room, a multitude of his own canvases staring back at him with spotlights on them, that Vincent realised why the Doctor had brought him here. Florence bit her lip as she watching him turn in a slow circle, looking at all his work being observed by so many people, it was moving. The Doctor held out his arms, and Florence suddenly saw him, she really truly saw him as a doctor, trying to heal people, trying his best to make every one of those precious moments of someone's life count. He stepped away and turned to the tour guide they had met before.
"Doctor Black, we met a few days ago." Florence saw him take the doctor away from his group and closer to them, while Amy maneuvered Vincent to a place to hear them speak. LI asked you about the church at Auvers."
"Oh, yes." Dr Black nodded. "Glad to be of help. You were nice about my tie."
"Yes. And today is another cracker if I may say so." The Doctor gestured the bow tie around his neck, before getting straight to the point. "But I just wondered, between you and me, in a hundred words, where do you think Van Gogh rates in the history of art?" Vincent turned as he listened, eyes shining with tears, red rimmed.
"Well, big question," Dr Black began, "but to me, Van Gogh is the finest painter of them all. Certainly, the most popular great painter of all time. The most beloved. His command of colour, the most magnificent. He transformed the pain of his tormented life into ecstatic beauty. Pain is easy to portray, but to use your passion and pain to portray the ecstasy and joy and magnificence of our world. No one had ever done it before. Perhaps no one ever will again. To my mind, that strange, wild man who roamed the fields of Provence was not only the world's greatest artist, but also one of the greatest men who ever lived." Florence watched, also brought to tears, as the man next to her sniffled and stifled his own, bringing a hand to cover his mouth. She grabbed the arm next to her in comfort, rubbing his jacket softly, the Doctor noticed and rushed towards them.
"Vincent. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." He apologised, pulling him into a hug. "Is it too much?"
"No. They are tears of joy." Vincent cried, turning and pulling Dr Balck into a hug, kissing him on either cheek. "Thank you, sir. Thank you." He stepped back and rubbed his face slightly. "Sorry about the beard." Dr Black nodded at the strange man before walking away, while the time travellers discreetly led Vincent from the gallery and back to the TARDIS, back home.
"This changes everything." Vincent told them as they landed the TARDIS in an olive grove back in Provence. "I'll step out tomorrow with my easel on my back a different man." Vincent laughed cheerily with them. "I still can't believe that one of the haystacks was in the museum. How embarrassing." The Doctor shook his hand once more and pulled him into another hug.
"It's been a great adventure and a great honour." Vincent wasn't finished showering the time rptravellr with praise,
"You've turned out to be the first doctor ever actually to make a difference to my life." The Doctor grasped Vincent by the back of the neck with a grin, before stepping aside to let Florence hug him one last time.
"I won't ever forget you." She whispered to him, and he lifted her off her feet.
"And me you." She followed the Doctor back into the TARDIS while Amy said goodbye, turning back to give one last waved before the ginger girl entered behind them.
"Come on." She urged them. "Let's go back to the gallery right now."
It was as though Florence was living in Groundhog Day, as she followed Amy back into the museum, through the hall, passed the sculpture of Theseus and towards the exhibition room. "Time can be re-written." Amy told the two of them. "I know it can. Come on!" She bounced up the stairs "Oh, the long life of Vincent Van Gogh. There'll be hundreds of new paintings." The Doctor and Florence were less speedy than their friends, Florence herself was worried about the outcome. While the Doctor just seemed reluctant to watch Amy's disappointment.
"I'm not sure there will."
They entered the all too familiar dark room, and to Florence, everything looked as it should. She stood off to the side with the Doctor, watching Amy's hopeful eyes scan the room. Unfortunately for her, Dr Black's commentary sounded from nearby. "We have here the last work of Vincent Van Gogh, who committed suicide at only thirty seven." Florence saw her friend's face fall at the fact, and sidled up next to her, reaching up slightly to place a hand on her shoulder.
"Amy, I'm sorry, depression, and mental illness… it's just not easy." She nodded slightly.
"So you were right. No new paintings. We didn't make a difference at all." The Doctor shook his head, stepping closer to the two of them.
"I wouldn't say that." He told her. "The way I see it, every life is a pile of good things and bad things. Hey." He pulled the three of them into a group hug, letting Amy sniffle into his shoulder. "The good things don't always soften the bad things, but vice versa, the bad things don't necessarily spoil the good things or make them unimportant. And we definitely added to his pile of good things." He stroked the fiery orange hair of his dear friend before dragging her off to another painting. "And, if you look carefully, maybe we did indeed make a couple of little changes." Florence followed and the three observed the Krafayis free window of The Church at Auvers.
"No Krafayis." Amy said, and Florence nodded.
"Just how we like it." Amy turned away from the painting, hesitating as something caught her eye before Florence saw her moving slowly towards it. She tugged the Doctor's sleeve and they followed her to come to a standstill next to the famous sunflower painting they had all tried to egg Vincent to paint in the first place. Florence huffed out a laugh when she saw the note painted on the vase saying 'For Amy, Vincent',
"Amy, the blessed, the wonderful." She nudged the girls shoulder with her own, and Amy gave her a watery smile.
"If we had got married, our kids would have had very, very red hair." She informed the Doctor and Florence, who both laughed.
"The ultimate ginger." The Doctor smiled.
"The ultimate ginge." Amy whispered. "Brighter than sunflowers."
Amy had retreated to her room shortly after the trio returned to the TARDIS (Florence was thankfully informed she had her own) citing her exhaustion from the past few days as a reason why she was demanding a rest day or night or however time worked from adventuring. Florence bid her farewell, unsure whether she would still be there when the ginger finally emerged, and it was the two of them once more. The Doctor spun on his heel and began to flick switches and press buttons, eager to find a pit stop for the two to discover while their companion slept.
"So! Where to? Atrio 17 - where the drinks are served in shish-like smoke machines? Or! Earth 2132 where our mate Queen Vicky's great great great great great great grandson finally lifts our exile? Or! How about-" He was cut off when Florence appeared next to him and wrapped her arms tightly around his waist, burying her head in his chest and breathing in his strong, calming scent. "Well, what's all this?" He looped his arms around her and she looked up at him, propping her chin on his chest smiling softly. "What?"
"You're just… you're just wonderful." She told him softly, voice barely above a whisper despite being the only ones in the console room, he stroked her hair, having finally taken her beret off. "This whole trip, you just never give up on making people smile. I don't know what happened before, with Rory or whatever that situation is." She tightened her grip on him. "But you just care, so much. And I want you to know I'm happier now, too." She turned her head back into his chest, allowing him to hug her tightly in turn, happy to feel safe and at home with this madman and his blue box.
End of chapter ten! This is my absolute favourite episode of Smith's era and probs top five storylines all together and I really hope my take on it with the addition of our Flo did it justice! I was torn between making this an old Florence or new Florence but in the end thought it was the perfect opportunity for her to explore her relationship with the Doctor and develop her lil crussssh on him… I love Tennant but Smith is just so easy for me to bring in allll the fancying feels, dw though Florence will still have her moments with 10 (and even 9/12/13)
ANYWAY let me know what you think and how you're finding the story so far! I appreciate every review, fave and follow!
See you for chapter eleven! xo