Author's Note:

Hiya! Welcome to my first ever Doctor Who story and my second ever fanfiction! Please let me know what you think, I do not have a Beta so there are likely to be some mistakes. I also may or may not get a bit overexcited to upload so there may or may not be a lack of proofreading. Anyway, I hope you enjoy, I've got a fairly good idea of where I want this to go - I've been very inspired some of the other authors on her recently.

- TheDoctor221

Disclaimer: I only own my OC


"Raggedy Man, goodnight."

Thena smiled sadly as the episode came to close. The regeneration of the Doctor always tugged at her heart no matter how many times she watched it. She remembered Ten describing it bitterly, how afterwards 'some new man goes sauntering away'. To Thena, it was a bittersweet change of the guards. Though each version of the Doctor was unique, at their hearts they remained the same person.

This comforted Thena through many years. She had a habit of needing to escape reality, be it in books, comics, films, or TV. The fantastical stories of people and beings greater than herself provided the level of escapism she needed. It kept her sane in her normal, uninspiring life. Sure, she was comfortable; She lived in a nice house with friends, had a nice job, and was working towards an interesting degree., But Thena had always felt it to be much too… Ordinary.

The Doctor had been there for her on her screen since she was young. Her Dad had excitedly told her how he had grown up watching the original series, hiding behind the sofa from the monsters as a boy until the Doctor saved the day. So when the show was revived in 2005, they watched it together. Thena had even been allowed to stay up far past her bedtime to see the conclusion of each episode - she could not sleep unless she knew the Doctor had saved the day.

Sighing, Thena closed her laptop and placed it on the floor beside her bed. Classes began tomorrow for her final year of university and she already knew she would be kicking herself in the morning for how late she had stayed awake. Pulling her duvet up over her shoulder, she fell back onto her pillow to sleep.

When looking back on this moment, Thena would swear she had been asleep before her head had even hit the pillow. She told herself that was why as she laid back she had felt as if she were falling… and falling and falling.

Eventually, she felt as if her back hit something cool, like water. Except she didn't feel wet. The sensation of falling gave way to something more akin to floating, the cool feeling on her back seeming to carry her. She opened her eyes, not sure when she had closed them, and gasped. All around her were stars. This is a good dream, she thought to herself. Thena willed herself to sit up, feeling whatever was lying on grow more solid beneath her as the thought crossed her mind. Pushing herself up onto her elbows she noticed that she was lying in what was almost water, except for the silky texture that rippled around her. The pool around her seemed to reflect the stars above her as if she were caught two skies reflecting each other.

Pushing herself into a sitting position, Thena reached a hand up to test if the stars above her held the same silky texture as the stars beneath her. As she stretched further upwards two skies seemed to tilt. It was as if they had swapped positions and where Thena had been sitting was now above as she reached for the ground. As this happened, Thena tipped forward towards the stars she was reaching for, falling towards her outstretched hand. Panic coursed through her as the sensation of falling through open space increased. Wind began to tear at Thena's hair and clothing as she fell. Was she actually falling? After a few minutes, Thena began to question which direction she was even moving in. If there is no up or down in space, how could she be falling down?

At this realisation, Thena felt her perception shift. Instead of the falling sensation, she now felt as though she were being thrust forward. She lost count of how many stars she moved past, seeming to be gravitating towards one in particular. Where so many of the stars around her were shades of yellow and red and blue, this one shone a clear bright white. As she got closer, she could see small tendrils of gold reaching out towards her, beckoning her in. The invisible force propelled her towards this bright star until it was the only thing she could see. Bright white and gold light blinded her, erasing the strange space she moved through.

Somehow, a black spot appeared in the middle of the light, cold and uninviting. Thena reached an arm in front of her. Instead of reaching for the blackness as she had done before, it was a defensive gesture, intended to shield her from the widening blackness. She squeezed her eyes shut as she finally collided with the blackness, feeling the wrist of her outstretched arm crack from the sudden impact.

The ground beneath Thena was cold and damp. When had she reached solid ground, she wondered? She curled onto her side, shivering, clutching her hurt wrist to her chest. I would very much like to wake up now, she thought to herself as she refused to open her eyes. She focused on breathing in an attempt to keep her anxiety at bay. In, 1, 2, 3, 4. Hold, 1, 2, 3, 4. Out, 1, 2, 3, 4. I'm getting panic attacks in my sleep now? Excellent, she thought sarcastically. As her breathing calmed, Thena began to relax, ready to wake in her bed and for this dream-turned-nightmare to be over. However, the calm and the quiet abruptly ended when one sound made Thena's eyes snap open.

"EXTERMINATE!"