Chapter CIV

Mira

They found him in the console room, hands in his pockets, staring through the console into space.

"Hey," she said softly, "I heard that Martha left. I'm sorry. It's because of me, isn't it?"

"Nah," he replied without looking up. "She had... Things to do. So!" he yelled, making her jump. "Where to next? Henry the eighth? You said you wanted to meet him, didn't you?"

"Did I?"

"Well, probably not said it, but at least you thought about him once," he replied, jumping around the console. "Or the Ocean of Stars in the Criluthionia Galaxy, or- That's it, you'll love it! The Living Dunes of Seryialzchi!" He pulled a lever – the handbrake as far as she knew by now.

Next thing she realised was her landing on top of him as the TARDIS suddenly spun and shook violently. The column in the centre of the console gleamed in a bright turquoise and the shrill sound of an alarm made the chaos perfect, numbing her ears. The Doctor lifted her up and put her back on her feet before she could even try to do so on her own, seemingly effortless and with an ease that would never fail to surprise her – even though she knew he was stronger than a human could ever be.

"What's wrong?" she asked, holding on to the handrail, seeing movement out of the corner of her eyes. It wasn't the Doctor or Jack, as they were both holding onto the console, so who...?

He looked human, but he wasn't. He was wearing a strange outfit, looking like something one would wear for sport – golf? - and was moving around the console backwards, mumbling to himself and flipping switches, just as the Doctor. And before she could say a word to warn him, they bumped into each other's back.

"So sorry," the man said, the Doctor mumbled something similar and they moved past each other.

A moment later they both flung around, facing each other.

"What?" the Doctor said.

It was then when she was certain that he wasn't just alien but a Time Lord.

"What?" the man repeated the Doctor's word.

"Who are you?" the man asked.

"Oh, brilliant," the Doctor said with a big grin, eyeing the other man up and down. "I mean, totally wrong. Bit emergency, universe goes bang in five minutes, but, brilliant!"

She saw out of the corner of her eye that Jack, who was standing next to her, had his hand under his coat where is revolver was.

She put her hand on his arm, saying, "Don't. I have a sneaking suspicion that I know who that is."

"Who is it then?" Jack asked.

"I'm the Doctor," the man said to the Doctors face before she could start to explain. "And who are you?"

"And here we go again," she whispered.

"It's him? One of his other regenerations?" Jack asked.

"Yup," she replied, turning her attention back to the two Doctors.

"Is there something wrong with you?" his previous regeneration just asked the current version of himself.

But the Doctor didn't reply, just stared at himself in awe and huge smile on his face.

At least she assumed it was his previous regeneration, as the Doctor knew him, but he obviously didn't recognise the Doctor.

"Mira!" the previous Doctor had spotted her and walked over to her, a smile on his face. "What are you doing here? Could you please explain me what's going on? Who is this? Oh, and tell him to leave me alone, I have most important things to do."

"You're not supposed to know me!" she said and furrowed her brows.

"But I do," his previous regeneration said, the smile turning into a frown again. "It feels wrong, but I do."

"Oh, there it goes, the frowny face," the Doctor said. "I remember that one. Mind you, bit saggier than I ought to be," he rubbed the other man's cheeks, "Hair's a bit greyer. That's because of me, though. The two of us together has shorted out the time differential. Guess that's also why you remember her. You two met. Well, not you you, but your previous regeneration. Actually, we've met as well. Wonder why you don't remember me then, only her. Anyways, should all snap back in place when we get you home." He pulled at his previous regeneration's coat, trying to close it over his belly, but it was too small. "Be able to close that coat again. But never mind that. Look at you! The coat, the crickety cricket stuff, the stick of celery. Yeah. Brave choice, celery, but fair play to you. Not a lot of men can carry off a decorative vegetable."

Cricket, of course, she thought. Not golf.

"What's the celery for?" she asked in lack of anything better to say.

The previous Doctor went over to her, looked her sternly in the eyes and grabbed her by her shoulders, "I told you, there's more at stake right now, Mira. Would you get him off my back now, please?"

"It's not him," she replied. "It's you!"

"Who?" he asked and pointed at Jack. "He?"

"No, that's Jack," she sighed and nodded over to the Doctor, continuing before Jack could start his usual introduction. "He! It's you, your future self. And frankly, as often as this seems to happen you should be used to it by now and bloody recognise yourself!"

"Excuse me? I appreciate your jokes Mira, much more than your language, but there's no time for that right now. There is something very wrong with my TARDIS, and I've got to do something about it very, very quickly, and it would help," he took off his hat and started to yell, "It really would help if there wasn't some skinny idiot," he pointed at the Doctor, "Ranting in my face about every single thing that happens to be in front of him!" With that said he slammed his hat on the console.

"Oh," the Doctor said, trying his best to appear serious again. "Okay. Sorry. Doctor."

"Thank you!" his previous self said and turned to the console again.

Next moment the Doctor was behind him, staring at the back of his head. "Oh, the back of my head!"

She got to his side, mouthing, "Leave him alone," seeing the bald spot on the back of his previous regeneration's head as well.

"What?" he said and turned around.

"Sorry, sorry," the Doctor said, "It's not something you see every day, is it, the back of your own head. Mind you, I can see why you wear a hat. I don't want to seem vain, but could you keep that on?"

"What have you done to my TARDIS?" his former self accused him. "You've changed the desktop theme, haven't you. What's this one, coral?"

"Well..." the Doctor said.

"Wait, you can change her appearance? Desktop themes?" Jack asked.

"Who is he?" the previous Doctor asked, pointing at Jack. "Mira, would you mind explaining what all these people are doing in my TARDIS?"

"Captain Jack Harkness," Jack said with a smile and extended his hand.

"Stop it!" the Doctor said.

"I'm just saying hello!"

"It's worse than the leopard skin," the Doctor's former self murmured as he looked around, and then turned to Jack, "So, Jack, what are you doing in my TARDIS?"

"Well, nothing much," Jack replied. "Had a nap, practising sword fighting-"

"What?!" both Doctors said at once.

"Sword fighting? In my TARDIS? With whom?" the previous Doctor asked, hands on his hips.

Her eyes fell on the current Doctor who was standing beside him, looking at them in much the same way as his previous regeneration – only his arms were crossed in front of his chest. But the accusing look was just the same.

"With me," she said.

"Just don't do it again, would you?" the previous Doctor said. "Someone could get hurt. I thought you're a bit more sensible than that."

"Yes, indeed," the current Doctor added.

"Really?" she asked. "We were practising. Nothing happened. Besides, I thought there's a bit more at stake!"

"It is. If you would excuse me now," the previous Doctor said and put on specs.

"Oh, and out they come, the brainy specs!" her Doctor said with a high pitched voice. "You don't even need them. You just think they make you look a bit clever."

"Well, he's not the only one, is he?" she said but her last words were drowned in another alarm, louder than the previous one.

"That's an alert, level five, indicating a temporal collision," the previous Doctor said, watched by his current version who was leaning casually against the console. "It's like two TARDISes have merged, but there's definitely only one TARDIS present. It's like two time zones or more at the heart of the TARDIS. That's a paradox that could blow a hole in the space time continuum the size of..." The current Doctor turned the screen to him. He looked at it and continued, "Well, actually, the exact size of... Belgium. That's a bit undramatic, isn't it? Belgium?" He looked around then turned his attention back to the console.

The Doctor offered his Sonic Screwdriver, "Need this?"

"No, I'm fine."

"Oh no, of course, you liked to go hands free, didn't you, like: Hey, I'm the Doctor. I can save the universe using a kettle and some string. And look at me, I'm wearing a vegetable!" the Doctor said.

"Does this happen frequently?" Jack asked quietly.

"Well, I guess you could say so. It's the third time now."

She turned her head to the two Doctors again.

"Who are you?" his previous regeneration just asked, directly into his face.

"Take a look," the Doctor said, staring back.

And so his previous version did, realisation slowly dawning on his face. "Oh. Oh, no."

"Oh yes!"

"You're... Oh, no."

"He doesn't really like himself, does he?" Jack whispered beside her.

"They never really seem to like each other. They always find something to criticise," she replied. "Should have seen his last regeneration meeting him. Think that was probably the one you've first met? Leather jacket, all dark and gloomy?"

"Probably," Jack replied.

"A fan!" the previous Doctor just threw at the current one.

"He thinks he's a fan? What are we then? His fan club?" Jack asked, and she shrugged.

"Yeah," the Doctor said, smiling, but then stopped dead as the other's words sunk in. "What?!"

"This is bad," the previous Doctor murmured, focused on the console and ignoring his future self. "Two minutes to Belgium."

"What do you mean, a fan? I'm not just a fan, I'm you!" the Doctor said indignantly.

"Okay, you're my biggest fan," the previous Doctor said and waved dismissively. "Look, its perfectly understandable. I go zooming around space and time, saving planets, fighting monsters and being well, let's be honest, pretty sort of marvellous, so naturally now and then people notice me. Start up their little groups." He walked up to his future version and stopped right in front of him, staring at him suspiciously. "That LINDA lot. Are you one of them? How did you get in here? Can't have you lot knowing where I live." He turned around and continued flipping switches and pulling levers at the console.

"Listen to me," the Doctor said, following him, trying to catch his attention. "I'm you, I'm you. I'm you with a new face." He slapped his cheeks. "Check out this bone structure, Doctor, because one day you're going to be shaving it!"

"He really is you!" she tried to convince him as well.

He stared back and forth between her and his future version. Just as he opened the mouth to say something, a bell tolled.

"What's that?" Jack asked.

"The cloister bell!" the previous Doctor breathed.

"Right on time. That's my cue!" the current Doctor said, and suddenly both of them started to throw levers and flipping switches, working together as if they had practised it a thousand times before.

"In a minute we're going to create a black hole strong enough to swallow the entire universe!" the previous Doctor said.

"Yeah, that's my fault, actually. I was rebuilding the TARDIS, forgot to put the shields back up. Your TARDIS and my TARDIS, well the same TARDIS at different points in its own time-stream collided and whoo, there you go, end of the universe, butterfingers. But don't worry, I know exactly how this all works out. Watch. Venting the thermobuffer, drawing the Helmic regulator, and just to finish off, let's fry those Zeiton crystals."

The central pillar was glowing again in a blindingly bright turquoise.

"You'll blow up the TARDIS!" the previous Doctor said to his future self, pulling his arms away from the console.

"No, I won't. I haven't."

"Who told you that?"

"You told me that!" the current Doctor said, freed his hand and pushed a button.

Then her world went black. Next thing she felt was a soft, cool hand patting hers.

"Supernova and black hole at the exact same instant," the previous Doctor's voice sounded close to her. She opened her eyes and found herself sitting on the jump seat, the previous Doctor holding and patting her hand. "You're all right?" he asked.

"Yeah, I guess so," she replied. "What happened?"

"He just said it," the current Doctor replied. "The explosion cancels out the implosion. There were still some small disturbances in time and space – mind you, you're getting more and more sensitive to this stuff, do you?"

"No I don't," she replied and now it was on her to sound indignant. "Black hole and Supernova together? Guess that's more than small disturbances."

She got up together with the previous Doctor who stepped to the console and looked at the screen. "Pressure remains constant."

"It's brilliant," the current Doctor said, looking at the screen as well.

"Far too brilliant. I've never met anyone else who could fly the TARDIS like that," the previous Doctor said.

"Sorry, mate, you still haven't."

"You didn't have time to work all that out. Even I couldn't do it."

"I didn't work it out. I didn't have to."

"You remembered," the previous Doctor said, looking amazed at his future version.

"Because you will remember."

"You remembered being me watching you doing that. You already knew what to do because I saw you do it!"

"Wibbly wobbly," the current Doctor said and smiled at his past version and then they both finished, "Timey wimey!" The current Doctor through up his hand in a high-five gesture, but his previous version totally missed it, just staring at him blankly.

"Right, TARDISes are separating," the current Doctor said. "Sorry, Doctor, time's up. Back to long ago. Where are you now? Nyssa and Tegan? Cybermen and Mara and Time Lords in funny hats and the Master? Oh, he just showed up again, same as ever."

How could he talk about that in such a casual way? After he had just burned his corpse?

"Oh no, really? Does he still have that rubbish beard?" the previous Doctor asked.

"No, no beard this time. Well, a wife."

"Oh, I seem to be off," the previous Doctor replied. "What can I say? Thank you, Doctor. And Mira. And Jack. Can't wait to see you again."

"Thank you," the current Doctor said.

"I'm very welcome," his previous version replied and slowly vanished – but the current Doctor flipped some switches, making him return again. He had forgotten his hat.

"You know, I loved being you," the current Doctor said, handing him his hat. "Back when I first started at the very beginning, I was always trying to be old and grumpy and important, like you do when you're young. And then I was you, and it was all dashing about and playing cricket and my voice going all squeaky when I shouted." He smiled. "I still do that, the voice thing. I got that from you. Oh, and the trainers," he put his feet on the console, showing his shoe, "And," he put his specs on, "Snap."

"Said it," she said. "You don't need them either, do you?"

"Nah," he said and grinned.

"To days to come," his previous version said and smiled.

"All my love to long ago."

His previous version vanished, only his voice could be heard, "Oh, Doctor, remember to put your shields up!"

He pressed a button on the console, and then looked up again, his face all innocent. "What?"

"Cricket?" Jack said.

"Celery?" she asked.

"Yeah, what's wrong with that?"

"Nothing," she said and walked around the console, stopping next to him. "Do you know why my room is locked?"

"Is it?" he asked, fiddling about with the console.

"Yes it is."

"Maybe she was redecorating." He looked up and their eyes met. "But I think she's done. Why don't you have a look?"


a/n: Yes, I'll do the Titanic episode, but a bit later on.

mxn1fan, E-man-dy-S, NicoleR85, OneWhoReadsTooMuch, bored411, Type40TARDIS, Guest: Thanks for leaving a review :-)

time-twilight: Haven't thought of that yet (sonic device and teaching her Gallifreyan), well thought occasionally, but haven't made up my mind so far, so maybe, maybe not ;-)