The Dread of Tomorrow and Yesterday – Chapter 37
Disclaimer: Any recognisable characters from Doctor Who belong to their respective owners. Unfortunately, none of these are mine. However, Rhea and certain elements of the plot do belong to me.
A/N: And we have the second part of The Lazarus Experiment. And we have some revelations about Rhea's past in this chapter. Not big ones, but still revelations. And some angsting and some sexy times and some worrying over who Mr Saxon is. Anyway, hope you all like the chapter! Oh, and if you're looking for my reply to your review, it's at the bottom, underneath the author's note at the end. I'm thinking of putting it at the bottom from now on, so people who don't want to read the replies don't have to go through them.
Warnings: Intense sexual innuendo, sexual content (PLEASE TAKE NOTE OF THIS AND IGNORE THE CONTENT IF IT OFFENDS YOU) and swearing. Oh, and tell me if I should change the rating after this chapter.
The Lazarus Experiment: The Hollow Men
Tish stilled when she heard the sound of growling. She slowly turned her head, her mouth dropping in shock and horror when she saw what Lazarus had become. He had transformed into what seemed to be the cross between a human skeleton and a scorpion at least ten feet tall. It reared up, raising and bearing its claws at them.
The Doctor's eyes widened, his hand on the small of Rhea's back, pushing her behind him and in the direction of the stairs. "Run!" He shouted.
The Doctor, Rhea, Martha and Tish raced back inside and Rhea slammed the door shut behind them, the Doctor sealing the lock with his sonic screwdriver. Martha, hurriedly, jammed the call button for the elevator.
"Are you okay?" Martha asked Tish, worriedly, looking her sister over for any injuries.
Tish swallowed hard. "I was gonna snog him." She stammered, not sure of what to say in this situation.
"Well, you should be glad we came and stopped that from happening." Rhea patted Tish on the shoulder, sympathetically.
Lazarus began to bang on the door, alerting the building's automatic security. Sirens began to go off and a computerised warning came over the intercom.
"Security breach. Security breach. Security beach."
Martha looked around. "What's happening?" She asked, confused.
"Uh, an intrusion. It triggers a security lockdown. Kills most of the power. Stops the lifts. Seals the exits." Tish explained.
The Doctor and Rhea exchanged a look. "He must be breaking through that door." Rhea said, with oncoming dread.
"The stairs, come on!" The Doctor shouted.
As they ran down the flight of stairs, they heard the door crash open.
"He's inside!" Martha shouted.
"There's an exit in the corner, but it'll be locked now."
The Doctor tossed the sonic screwdriver to Rhea. "Rhea, setting 54. Hurry."
Rhea ran off, followed by Martha and Tish. The Doctor jumped onto the platform in front of Lazarus' machine.
"Listen to me! Your people are in serious danger! You need to get out of here right now!" The Doctor shouted at the panicking crowd.
"Don't be ridiculous." A woman scoffed. "The biggest danger here is choking on an olive."
Rhea rolled her eyes. "There's always one, isn't there?" She said, shaking her head. No one ever wants to listen to him.
Glass shattered and Lazarus appeared on the landing above before leaping down to the reception floor. Rhea, Martha and Tish rushed to open the door for everyone as they ran for the exists.
Rhea shoved the doors open. "Over here! This way! Everyone downstairs now! Hurry!" Rhea shouted.
Lazarus closed in on the woman who wouldn't believe the Doctor and the woman just stood there, shell-shocked by what was before her.
"No! Get away from her!" The Doctor shouted, but his warning was unheeded.
Everyone flinched when they heard the sound of her being sucked dry before her shell falls to the floor. Francine was with Leo who slowly came to as Lazarus approached.
The Doctor paled when he saw Lazarus approach them. "Lazarus! Leave them alone!"
Martha came to help Leo.
"Martha." Francine said, with relief, when Martha sank to her knees beside her brother.
"C'mon, stay with me." Martha whispered, furiously, to Leo, and then helped her mother carry Leo to safety out of the doors that Rhea and Tish were holding open.
"What's the point if you can't control it? The mutation's too strong. Killing those people won't help you. You're a fool, Lazarus, a vain old man who thought he could defy Nature. Only Nature got her own back, didn't she? You're a joke, Lazarus!" The Doctor crowed, gleefully. "A footnote in the history of failure!" The Doctor shouted at Lazarus, before running away from the reception hall and up through the hallways, hoping that his taunts were enough for Lazarus to follow him.
Martha was examining Leo. "Leo, look at me, focus on me." She ordered, her hands on his face.
"What are they doing?" Tish asked Martha. "The Doctor and Rhea."
"They're trying to buy us some time." Martha said, hurriedly. "Let's not waste it. Leo, look at me. Let me see your eyes." She turned to her mother. "He's got concussion. You'll need to help him downstairs." She went over to an ice bucket and put some ice in a napkin, which she then give to Francine. "This'll keep the swelling down. Go!" Martha shouted, ushering her family away. "I'll be right behind you! Tish, move! We need to get out of here!"
The Doctor ran into a service hall filled with all sorts of pipes. He crept through, quickly, so that Lazarus would not be able to detect where he was.
"It's no good, Doctor. You can't stop me." Lazarus hissed.
The Doctor snorted. "Is that the same arrogance you had when you swore nothing had gone wrong with your device?" He asked, sarcastically.
"The arrogance is yours. You can't stand in the way of progress."
The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "You call feeding on innocent people progress? You're delusional!"
"It is a necessary sacrifice." Lazarus argued.
"That's not your decision to make." The Doctor growled.
All of the partygoers were running down the stairs to the main entrance, Rhea, Martha and Tish bringing up the rear, but they all careened to a halt when they hit the doors, since they were locked.
"We can't get out! We're trapped!" Tish exclaimed.
Rhea cursed and looked around, desperately. "There's gotta be an override switch. Where's the security desk?" She turned to Tish, snapping her fingers in her face. "Tish!"
Tish swallowed and pointed to a little alcove off the side of the entrance hall. "Right there."
Rhea ran over to the desk. She hiked her dress up and took two jumps, one step onto the desk and the other off onto the other side of the alcove. Her fingers grazed the control panel before noticing a panel of switches on a nearby wall. She yanked open the lid and ran the sonic screwdriver over all of the switches. The power came back on, the doors opened and everyone managed to escape, Rhea half-laughing as she jumped over the security desk back into the entrance hall.
With the power back on, the lights in the service hall switched on and the Doctor was no longer hidden as he once was. He pursed his lips, looking around, desperately. Thanks for that, Rhea. He thought, sarcastically.
"Peek-a-boo." The Doctor heard a hiss and he looked up to see Lazarus on the ceiling.
He swallowed, hard. "Oh, hello." He breathed and made a run for it, heading for the door on his left.
Rhea made a move to rush back up the stairs and to find the Doctor when a strong hand gripped her wrist, swinging her around. "What is it, Martha?" She asked, impatiently.
"You can't go back, Lazarus will kill you." Martha said, worriedly.
"I've got to go back, Martha. He needs me." She said, gently. "I've gotta give him back this." She held up the sonic screwdriver. "He's useless without it." She looked over at Francine's disapproving gaze. "Stay with your family. Help your brother. They need you more." She ordered, before rushing over and storming back up the flight of stairs.
Martha made to go after her, but Francine pulled her back. "I've got to go back." Martha insisted.
"You can't!" Francine protested. "You saw what that thing did. It'll kill you."
"I don't care." Martha shook her head. "I have to go."
"It's that Doctor and his girlfriend, isn't it?" Francine hissed, angrily. "That's what's happened to you. That's why you've changed."
Tish stepped forward, hearing what Rhea had told Martha before she left to go after the Doctor. "He was buying us time, Martha. Time for you to get out, too." Tish reached out and gripped Martha's arm. "Rhea told you to stay with us. Listen to her, at least."
Martha clucked her tongue, looking back at the staircase and then at her family, realising Rhea was right. Leo had a concussion and she knew Rhea, she was probably trying to make sure there were only two casualties instead of three. She knew Rhea could take care of the Doctor better than anyone. She'd protect him with her life if it came down to it. And the Doctor would die before letting anything to Rhea on his watch. They were safe with each other.
"Fine." Martha said, shortly, the unhappiness reflected in her tone, and she helped her mother lead Leo outside onto the steps so that she could attend to him.
The Doctor ran into a lab, looking around desperately for something that could allow him to at least stall Lazarus, if not do away with him completely. His eyes lit up when he saw the light fixture on a pillar, an idea coming to him. He jumped onto a table and fiddled with the fixture, breaking off the case and leaving the wires exposed. He cursed when he heard the banging on the doors, realising that Lazarus was trying to get in. He pulled a few wires and ducked down behind one of the lab tables when Lazarus finally broken it.
He bit his lower lip and sneakily slid his hand across the table to turn on the gas knobs on the table.
"More hide-and-seek, Doctor? How disappointing. Why don't you come out and face me?" Lazarus growled.
The Doctor snorted. "Have you looked in the mirror lately?" He stood, drawing Lazarus' attention to himself. "Why would I wanna face that, hmm?" He smirked and ran from the room, flicking a switch as he left, causing the room to explode behind him, hoping that was enough to stop Lazarus.
Rhea narrowed her eyes when she heard the explosion, guessing that the Doctor was the cause of it, and changed her direction.
They both crashed right into each other, the Doctor dipping her, accidentally, as he stopped her from falling.
"What are you doing here?" The Doctor asked, confused.
Rhea scowled at him. "Do I look like a ditchable prom date to you?" She asked, her hands on her hips and glaring at him, furiously.
"Well, no…" The Doctor stammered. "Of course not."
"And, please," Rhea rolled her eyes. "You pretty much suck without this." She held up the sonic screwdriver, tossing it to him. "And I figured I might as well help you at the same time."
"How did you-?" The Doctor confusion remained.
Rhea raised an eyebrow. "I heard the explosion. The odds were you were behind the pyrotechnic show."
"I blasted Lazarus." The Doctor explained.
Rhea frowned. "Did you kill him?"
Suddenly, they heard a large crash coming around from the corner and they both looked, seeing Lazarus hurtling towards them.
"More sort of annoyed him, I'd say." The Doctor said, sheepishly, grabbing Rhea's hand and pulling her along with him as they sprinted down the corridor, away from Lazarus.
The Doctor and Rhea ran back into the reception room.
"What now?" Rhea asked, desperately, looking for another exit. "We just went around in a freaking circle!"
Suddenly, Lazarus burst into the hall and the Doctor grabbed her hand, heading for the device.
"We can't lead him outside. Come on, get in." The Doctor said and they both slid into the device, where there wasn't enough room to breathe let alone move around.
The Doctor and Rhea both had their backs pressed against the device, but there was hardly enough room to fidget. Her chin was shoved into his chest and she swore she stepped on his foot more than once.
"Are we hiding?" Rhea asked.
"No, he knows we're here. But this is his masterpiece. I'm betting he won't destroy it, not even to get at us." The Doctor managed to say.
"But we're trapped." Rhea said, slowly.
"Well," The Doctor drawled. "Yeah, that's a slight problem."
"Slight problem. Slight problem." Rhea muttered to herself. "Please tell me you've got a plan."
"Well, the plan was to get inside here!" The Doctor said, defensively.
"Yeah, and then what?" Rhea hissed.
"Well…" He trailed off. "Then, I'd come up with another plan."
"Oh, well, by all means, take your time." Rhea said, sarcastically, and then fell silent, wondering what Lazarus was up to outside the machine.
In the tight corners, the Doctor struggled to reach his pocket and pull out the sonic screwdriver. His fingers curled around something curvy and soft and covered with lace.
"Honey, I can assure you, that is not your screwdriver." She laughed, breathily. His thumb dragged across her breast and she whimpered, her head tipping back to allow him more access. "Jerk." She whispered.
"Oh, sorry." He said, sheepishly, and abruptly pulled his hands away, beginning the sonic screwdriver anew.
"No problem at all, honey." She leaned in. "Just not here." She whispered, huskily, in his ear and pulled back, a searing hunger evident in her gaze.
The Doctor flushed, brightly, resisting the urge to pull her into his arms and sink into her, making her scream his name in rapture. He managed to finally extract his sonic screwdriver from his pocket. "Here we are." He said, triumphantly.
Rhea narrowed her eyes. "What are you going to do with that?"
"Improvise." The Doctor said.
He then slid down to the floor, the front of his body pressed against every inch of Rhea's delightfully sinful body and his back pressed against the wall of the machine, and popped open a panel on the floor.
"Your mouth or your hands go where they're not supposed to go, I'm punching you." They both exchanged a look, both knowing that she didn't really mean the threat. Rhea clucked her tongue and shoved her shoulder to the side, turning away from his . "I still don't understand where that thing came from. Is he an alien?" She asked.
"No, for once, he's strictly human in origin." The Doctor said, the surprise clear in his voice. He used the sonic screwdriver on the wires attached to the panel and almost lost his balance what with the uncomfortable position he found himself in. When he steadied himself, he was able to see exactly what level he found himself in. When he looked up, he flushed again, noticing the knowing look in Rhea's eyes.
"If only we weren't being chased by Dr. Frankenstein out there." Rhea sighed, mournfully. And she really meant it. She wasn't an idiot, nor was she completely oblivious. She was definitely attracted to the Doctor. She had shown that on so many occasions, she had lost count. A part of her was ashamed that she had lost her self-control for the alien kneeling in front of her. But it was a strong itch that she guessed only the Doctor could scratch. She didn't have many options in front of her. She could continue to ignore it and hope it would go away or she could do what she did best and drag the Doctor into her bed for some fun and kick him out in the morning. But could she treat him like one of the guys she used to pick up at the bar and screw in the alley? He meant something different to her. She didn't know what and she couldn't figure that out now, but he did.
Rhea shook her head. "Human? Are you completely sure about that?" She asked, unsurely.
"Probably from dormant genes in Lazarus's DNA. The energy field in this thing must have reactivated them. And it looks like they're becoming dominant." The Doctor said, looking up at her, briefly.
Rhea swallowed hard, when she looked down at the Doctor to see him working on the panel. Between my legs. She thought, wickedly. She could feel him, intimately, against her. His nose brushed her inner thigh through the practically non-existent lace every now and then, making her fidget and shove down ragged moans. "You jerk." She hissed at him, knowing that he knew what he was doing to her.
The Doctor smirked up at the leggy brunette in front of him. His hand teasingly ran up her leg and rested on her hip.
Rhea hummed. "A little to the left, honey." She said, huskily, her hips undulating in his direction.
The Doctor let out a low growl at that. "You tease." A devilish smile spread across his face. "You just wait, Dimples." The promise was clear in his eyes.
"Promises, promises." A low, breathy laugh escaped her. She cleared her throat. "So it's a throwback." She said, referring to the DNA reaction.
The Doctor turned his attention back to the panel of wires. He fidgeted, slightly, stamping down the rush of hormones that had infiltrated his brain because of the gorgeous woman standing above him. "Some option that evolution rejected for you millions of years ago," He muttered, his eyes focused on the wiring. "But the potential is still there. Locked away in your genes, forgotten about until Lazarus unlocked it by mistake."
"Like Pandora's box?" She tried.
"Exactly." His eyes were drawn to the nude pumps she was wearing. "Nice shoes, by the way." He said, imagining those heels digging into his back, her legs thrown over his shoulders as she pulled him on top of her while they were lying on the bed.
Rhea smirked, picturing a very similar image in her head.
Suddenly, a bright blue light started to fill the cabinet they were stuck in.
Rhea's eyes widened. "Doctor, what's happening?" She asked, panicking.
"Sounds like he's switched the machine on." The Doctor mused, not taking his eyes off the wiring.
Rhea glared at him. "Weren't you expecting him to do that eventually?" She shrieked.
"Well, I was hoping it was gonna take him a little bit longer to work that out." The Doctor said, defensively.
Rhea could feel the machine start to spin around them, her nails digging desperately in the walls around them. "I'm not trying to hurry you up or anything, but-"
"I know, I know." The Doctor said, furious at himself for not being able to do this quicker. "Nearly done."
"What are you doing?" Rhea hissed, her eyes searching for Lazarus through the minute window in the cabinet.
"Trying to set the capsule to reflect energy rather than receive it."
"Please tell me that'll kill him." Rhea begged.
"When he transforms, he's three times his size, cellular triplication, so he's spreading himself thin."
The machine started to whir louder and stronger around them and the light only grew bright. In her desperation, Rhea began to bang on the walls with her curled fists, cursing herself for not bringing her gun along with her. She should have known something like this would happen. Something like this always happened with the Doctor. If she had brought her gun, she could have shot Lazarus on the roof or in the reception hall before and none of this would have happened.
"We're going to end up like him!" Rhea shouted.
"Just one more!" The Doctor growled in frustration, pulling a wire, and the energy field changed. They could both feel the energy being concentrated in the opposite direction, knocking Lazarus away from the machine.
After a few moments, the Doctor slid back to his feet, his hands on her waist. Rhea raised an eyebrow, pointedly looking at his hands.
"Right, sorry." He said, sheepishly, pulling his hand away. He took Rhea's hand and opened the door of the machine, stepping back outside into the reception room, him taking up the front and Rhea the rear.
"You sure are handsy, how many do you have?" Rhea purred, mischievously, in his ear, making the Doctor growl at her. Ooh, now that's what I call a sexy growl.
Rhea whistled when she stepped outside. "I thought were going to become Alien extras then."
"Really shouldn't take that long just to reverse the polarity. I must be a bit out of practice." The Doctor commented, grimacing.
Rhea snorted. "Yeah, that's what it was." She said, sarcastically, rolling her eyes.
They spotted Lazarus lying on the floor in his human form, completely naked. They strode up to him.
Rhea blinked. "Oh, God." Her hand dragged down her face. "He seems so…human again. It's actually kind of pitiful."
"Eliot saw that, too. 'This is the way the world ends,'" The Doctor trailed off.
"'Not with a bang, but with a whimper.'" Rhea finished, reaching out between them and taking the Doctor's hand in her own, entwining their fingers, his fingers stroking her rings.
The Doctor and Rhea walked down the steps, wearily, watching as the medical services came to take out the body, carrying it out on a gurney in a body bag.
"Over there." Tish hissed to Martha, whose eyes widened once she saw the Doctor and Rhea.
"They're here. Oh, they're all right." Martha whispered and rushed over to throw her arms around both the Doctor and Rhea.
"Ah, Mrs Jones, we still haven't finished our chat." The Doctor said, cheerfully, but watching the approach of Francine with dread.
Francine stormed over to them and her hand swung in an arc. Rhea narrowed her eyes and her hand lashed out, gripping Francine's wrist just before her hand could come into contact with his face. She gripped it tighter, her fingers grinding into her bones, and shoved it away back at Francine.
"Seriously, don't," Rhea said, warningly. "The only reason I haven't punched you in the face for that is because you're Martha's mother. Don't ever try and hit him again." She growled. "You won't like the consequences."
"Keep away from my daughter." Francine snarled at both of them, a little shocked by Rhea's quick reflexes and vitriol spilling from her words.
"Mum, what are you doing?" Martha asked, aghast at the way her mother was acting.
Rhea turned to the Doctor. "Always the mothers, every time." He said, mournfully.
Rhea reached up and rubbed his cheek. "Aw, poor baby." She said, mockingly, and the Doctor batted her hand away.
"They are dangerous! I've been told things." Francine hissed at her daughter.
"What are you talking about?" Martha asked, confused. She had noticed a strange man come up to her mother while she had been attending to Leo and spoken to her very quietly about something. She hadn't been paying much attention to what was being said but she guessed it had something to do with the Doctor and Rhea.
"Look around you!" Francine shouted. "Nothing but death and destruction!"
Rhea glared at him, taking a step forward and moved in front of the Doctor, as if to act as a buffer. "You're going to blame him for this!" Rhea said, incredulously. "He saved all of our lives. Do you think half of us would even be alive if it weren't for him? Do you think you would be alive if he didn't save your sorry-"
"O-okay…" The Doctor drawled, covering Rhea's mouth with his hand, cutting her off. "Sorry about that, Mrs Jones, she's a bit of a firecracker."
"Besides, it was Tish who invited everyone to this thing in the first place. I'd say technically, it's her fault." Leo remarked, making Tish elbow him in the side.
Suddenly, they heard a crash coming from the direction of the ambulance and Rhea and the Doctor looked at Martha before running off. Martha made to follow them, hell-bent on not staying behind this time, when Francine pulled her back.
"Leave him." Francine begged, the concern for her daughter clear in her voice.
Martha bit her lip and shook her head, running after the Doctor and Rhea.
"Martha?" Tish called out and made to follow her sister, when she heard her mother's voice.
"Not you, too?" Francine said, wearily.
"Sorry." Tish offered.
Tish joined up with the Doctor, Rhea and Martha as they ran down the street, where they saw the ambulance, the doors open and the paramedics merely drained husks.
"Lazarus, back from the dead. Should've known, really." The Doctor commented.
Rhea snorted. "It was practically begging to happen, to be honest." She looked up. "The universe doesn't give up a chance to be ironic."
The Doctor took out his sonic screwdriver and searched for Lazarus, his sonic screwdriver spinning in a circle until it stopped, suddenly.
"Well, where is he?" Rhea asked, impatiently.
"That way. The church." The Doctor said, looking at the large church in the distance.
"Lazarus going to a church. Wonderful." Rhea huffed.
"Cathedral." Tish said, suddenly, making everyone's eyes turn to her. "It's Southwark Cathedral. He told me." She explained.
Inside the cathedral, they proceeded up the nave, the Doctor in front with the sonic screwdriver held out in front of him.
"Are you sure he's in here?" Rhea asked, looking around for some sign of Lazarus.
"Where would you go if you were looking for sanctuary?" The Doctor asked.
"The police station." Rhea said, immediately. Then, she paled, thinking about a time where the police hadn't helped her when she had needed help the most. "No, scratch that, I'd rather die than go to the police." She said, flatly. "And he has killed like three people tonight, the police probably wouldn't do much good."
They all moved forward through the empty cathedral to the open space behind the altar and underneath the bell tower. Lazarus was just sitting there, in the middle of the open space, gasping, a red blanket from the ambulance wrapped around him.
"I came here before. A lifetime ago. I thought I was going to die then. In fact, I was sure of it. I sat there, just a child…the sound of planes and bombs outside." Lazarus whispered.
The Doctor and Rhea moved so that they were standing in front of Lazarus, facing him. "The Blitz." They both answered at the same time.
"You've read about it."
Rhea snorted. "We were there." In fact, she had just come from there, with a little side trip to Scotland 1879.
"You're too young." Lazarus scoffed.
"So are you." The Doctor countered.
Lazarus laughed at that, but it soon turned to gasps of pain as he fought the mutation. "In the morning, the fires had died, and I was still alive. I swore I'd never face death like that again." He murmured.
The Doctor walked around Lazarus slowly, his eyes moving up to the bell tower above them. Rhea watched him, intently, knowing that he was planning something.
"So defenceless. I would arm myself, fight back, defeat it."
"That's what you were trying to do today." The Doctor guessed.
"That's what I did today." Lazarus corrected.
Rhea raised an eyebrow. "What about everyone else who died tonight because of your stupid sense of self-preservation?" She growled.
"They were nothing." Lazarus snarled. "I changed the course of history."
"Any of them might have done, too." The Doctor said, sharply. "You think history's only made with equations? Facing death is part of being human. You can't change that."
Lazarus glared at the Doctor. "No, Doctor. Avoiding death. That's being human. It's our strongest impulse, to cling to life with every fibre of being. I'm doing what everyone before me has tried to do. I've simply been more…successful."
Rhea snorted. "Speak for yourself." She said, sharply. "Death is a release from life." She murmured, making the Doctor look at her with narrowed eyes. She cleared her throat, addressing Lazarus. "It's called thanatophobia. Death anxiety. It can occur in old people who haven't led a meaningful life and thus feel despair and experience thoughts of the shortness of their life. It's an objective anxiety, you're instincts for self-preservation kicked in during the Blitz and overwhelmed the rest of your life. So you spent the rest of your life making that anxiety salient, trying to escape death even when you knew death was inevitable. Vulnerability is a basic instinct in all human beings. You just acted because you didn't want to be vulnerable." Rhea looked around, seeing that Martha, Tish and the Doctor were staring at her in surprise. "What?" She asked, defensively. "I have a doctorate in this stuff. I've gotta be able to talk about, don't you think?" She said, crossing her arms over her chest.
Lazarus groaned in pain as his body tried to change into that large scorpion-like creature.
"Look at yourself! You're mutating! You've no control over it! You call that a success?" The Doctor asked, incredulously.
"I call it progress. I'm more now that I was. More than just an ordinary human."
The Doctor smiled, softly, looking over at Rhea. "There's no such thing as an ordinary human."
"He's gonna change again at any minute." Rhea muttered to the Doctor.
"I know. If I can get him up into the bell tower somehow, I've an idea that might work." The Doctor whispered back.
Martha and Rhea looked up. "Up there?" They both whispered to the Doctor.
The Doctor nodded at them.
"You're so sentimental, Doctor. Maybe you are older than you look." Lazarus hissed.
"I'm old enough to know that a longer life isn't always a better one. In the end, you just get tired. Tired of the struggle. Tired of losing everyone that matters to you." He looked up at Rhea and she swallowed. "Tired of watching everything turn to dust." He squatted beside Lazarus. "If you live long enough, Lazarus, the only certainty left is that you end up alone."
"That's a price worth paying." Lazarus protested.
"Is it?" The Doctor asked, incredulously.
Lazarus convulsed again. "I will feed soon." Whether he meant it as a warning or a threat, they didn't know.
"I'm not gonna let that happen." The Doctor shook his head.
"You've not been able to stop me so far."
Rhea came up behind Lazarus, opposite to the Doctor. "Leave him alone, Lazarus!" Rhea said, drawing his and the Doctor's attention. "He's old and bitter. Thought you had a taste for fresher meat." She purred, a smirk forming on her face.
"Rhea, don't you dare." The Doctor said, warningly.
Lazarus snarled and ran after her, Martha and Tish at Rhea's side.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Rhea hissed at Martha and Tish.
"Keeping you out of trouble!" Martha explained.
Rhea cursed. "Doctor! The tower!" She called out, letting him know what she was planning.
The three women ran up the narrow spiral staircase that led up to the upper level. Lazarus followed and stopped, suddenly, screaming in pain as he felt his body changing.
Rhea gripped the banister, suddenly, stilling when she heard Lazarus' screams and the sound of crunching bones, a feeling of dread rushing inside of her. Next to her, Martha and Tish panted.
"Did you hear that?" Tish asked.
Rhea swallowed. "He's changed again. We have to lead him up to the bell tower." She explained, looking up.
Down below, the Doctor looked around the cathedral, helplessly, for any sign where Rhea might have disappeared to with a homicidal mutated human after her.
"Where are they?" The Doctor muttered to himself. "Rhea?!" He shouted.
Rhea groaned and peered out of one of the archways in the upper level. "Doctor!" Rhea called out, attracting his attention. "The very top of the bell tower, yeah?"
The Doctor nodded. "Rhea, be careful." He warned.
Rhea turned to Martha and Tish. "Up to the top." She explained.
"Guys…" Tish trailed off and Rhea swore when she saw Lazarus, fully transformed, approaching them.
"Then what?" Martha called out to the Doctor.
"No time for that, girls." She grabbed Martha's and Tish's hands and they sprinted up the spiral staircase.
The Doctor ran to the large pipe organ in a little alcove and sat on the bench. He then pulled out his sonic screwdriver.
"Hypersonic sound waves. Inspired." The Doctor muttered to himself and jammed the sonic screwdriver into a slot in the organ and began to pull out all of the stops in the organ.
Rhea, Martha and Tish finally reached the top of the bell tower, which was a circular walkway with a wooden rail.
"There's nowhere to go! We're trapped!" Tish shouted, looking around, desperately.
"No, this is where the Doctor said to bring him." Rhea said, stubbornly, watching the entrance to the walkway for Lazarus' approach.
"All right, so we're not trapped. We're bait." Martha said, a little annoyed.
Rhea placed her hand on Martha's arm. "He knows what he's doing." She paused. "Okay, scratch that, he's the only chance we've got."
"Ladies." Lazarus hissed as he entered, blocking their only way of escape.
"You two," Rhea, quickly, turned to Martha and Tish. "You will stay behind me." She ordered. "If he gets to me, you make a run for it. Head down the stairs, you should have enough time."
"What, no-" Martha and Tish began to protest.
"No arguments, I mean it." Rhea snarled.
Lazarus argued, swinging down his tail in their direction.
Down at the organ, the Doctor could hear the commotion going on at the bell tower and looked up. He heard one of the girls scream.
"I hope it's good acoustic in here." The Doctor muttered.
The Doctor rolled up his sleeves and started to play.
Lazarus' tail swung in an arc and destroyed part of the wall and the walkway. Rhea was hit by his tail and toppled over the broken walkway, clinging with all of the strength she had to the edge.
"Rhea!" Martha shouted.
Lazarus leapt across to stand over Rhea.
"No, wait! Get away from her!" Martha and Tish shouted.
The Doctor played the organ more frantically but it was not having the effect he wanted it to. He pulled out the sonic screwdriver and reset the volume of the organ.
"We need to turn this up to 11." The Doctor muttered to himself and started to play all over again, the volume count rising with every note he played. Come on, come on, come on.
Up in the bell tower, Tish and Martha held their heads in agony as the sound waves from the organ resonated in the tight space. Lazarus began to writhe, clearly in pain from the sharpness of the waves. Rhea tried her hardest to hold on, fighting every reflex to cover her ears from the piercing waves. Lazarus, turned confused by the sound waves, toppled over the edge and fell to the floor below.
The Doctor stopped and looked down, seeing that Lazarus was lying on the ground, naked and in human form, just like he had when the Doctor had reversed the energy flow of his machine. His hands stilled on the organ.
Just as Rhea's fingers were about to slip from the edge, Martha and Tish grabbed her arms.
"We've got you. Hold on." Martha reassured her and the two sisters pulled with everything they had.
"Rhea?!" The Doctor shouted, desperately.
Rhea was pulled back onto the walkway and she hung her head in relief as the two sisters sobbed.
"I'm fine! We're fine! We're all okay! " Rhea called out to the Doctor, the absolute relief clear in her voice. She gifted the sisters with a tired smile. "Thanks for saving my life."
"It's your Doctor you should be thanking." Tish said, laughing.
Rhea sighed. "Told you he's our best shot at this."
Martha laughed. "He cut it a bit fine there, didn't he?"
"Oh, he always does. It's more fun that way, in his eyes at least." Rhea muttered.
"Who are you?" Tish asked, earnestly.
"We're…" Rhea trailed off.
"They're… they're the Doctor and Rhea." Martha said, with a smile lighting up her face.
The Doctor knelt beside Lazarus' body. He reached out and closed Lazarus' eyes, the man becoming old again as he did so. He just couldn't help it, the guilt just needled at him. He heard footsteps and jumped to his feet, rushing over to the stairs, where he caught Rhea as she threw herself in his arms, his arms locking around her, tightly, kissing her forehead and spinning her around.
They broke apart and the Doctor hugged Martha, glad that she was also safe.
Rhea noticed the dark look on the Doctor's face and chanced a quick look at Lazarus, biting her lower lip. She reached up. "It wasn't your fault, honey. You couldn't have done anything to prevent this. This was his choice." She whispered in his ear. She cupped his face in one hand and maintained their eye contact just so he could see her sincerity.
"I didn't know you could play?" Martha said, marvelling that the constant talents the Doctor seemed to produce.
"Oh, well," The Doctor shrugged. "You know, if you hang around with Beethoven, you're bound to pick a few things up."
Rhea hummed. "Especially about playing loud." She said, slyly, winking at Martha and Tish.
The Doctor's brows furrowed and he stared at her with confused. "Sorry?"
Rhea, Martha and Tish laughed.
Martha, Rhea and the Doctor were standing in front of the TARDIS in Martha's flat.
"Something else that just kind of escalated, then." The Doctor said, rubbing the back of his neck.
"I can see a pattern developing. You should take more care in the future. And the past, and whatever other time period you find yourself in." Martha chuckled.
Rhea snorted. "Don't think that's ever gonna happen." She said, nudging the Doctor in the side with her elbow.
A smile broke out on the Doctor's face. "It's good fun, though, isn't it?"
Martha smiled at them. "Yeah."
"So…" The Doctor began, a little hesitantly. "What d'you say, one more trip?"
Martha paused. She bit her lip, as if the words she were about to say were extremely hard to say. "No. Sorry."
The Doctor frowned. "What do you mean? I thought you liked it." He said, confused by Martha's refusal.
Martha pursed her lips. "I do, but I can't go on like this. "One more trip." It's not fair."
Rhea nodded at her. "You're right, it's not." She said, quietly.
"What're you talking about?" The Doctor asked, looking between Rhea and Martha.
"I don't want to be just a passenger anymore. Someone you take along for a treat. If that's how you still see me, well, I'd rather stay here." Martha huffed, turning her back on the Doctor and Rhea.
"Okay, then. If that's what you want." The Doctor said, mournfully. He waited, expecting Martha to turn around and join them.
"Right. But we've already said good-bye once today so it's really best if you just go." Martha said, sharply, before walking away from the TARDIS. When the Doctor or Rhea didn't say a word, she looked over her shoulder. "What is it?" She asked, suspiciously.
"What? I said okay." The Doctor said, confused all over again.
Rhea just stared at the two of them and sighed. When are they both going to get their heads out of their asses?
"Sorry?" Martha blinked.
"Okay." The Doctor said, slowly, nodding his head at the TARDIS.
Martha beamed at them, a large smile forming on her face. "Oh, thank you! Thank you!" She threw her arms around both the Doctor and Rhea and laughed, happily.
"Well, you were never really just a passenger, were you?" The Doctor said, his eyes bright.
The three entered the TARDIS and the familiar wheezing and groaning sounded as Rhea pressed down the buttons for dematerialisation.
Martha watched Rhea, who was just curled up in the captain's chair, while the Doctor played with some of the controls.
"You okay, Rhea?" Martha asked, carefully. She knew Rhea could be volatile, what with all the jumping she did. The Doctor never knew what Rhea he was going to get. Poor Doctor… and poor Rhea, I suppose. It's gotta be hard, not living your life with the Doctor in order.
Rhea looked up, only half-hearing her question. "Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine." She said, quietly, turning her attention back to the rings on her fingers, fiddling with them, absentmindedly.
The Doctor looked up from the time rotor, finally noticing the serious expression on Rhea's face. She had been quiet ever since they had picked Martha up from her apartment. Only a few hours had passed since the whole debacle with Lazarus.
"No, you're not." The Doctor said and Rhea looked at him, confused. "That's your 'I'm worrying about something' face."
Rhea glared at him and then softened. "Is no one worrying about the fact I was on the guest list tonight?"
Martha frowned. "Why should we be worried about that?"
Rhea clucked her tongue. "Wrong answer." She turned to the Doctor. "You got any ideas."
"I'm drawing a blank."
Rhea sighed and rolled her eyes. "Okay, so this mysterious investor named Mr. Saxon wanted me at that gala. Why?" She threw the question to the Doctor and Martha.
"Mr. Saxon. You mean, Harold Saxon." Martha's eyes widened.
Rhea sat up in her seat and focused her attention on Martha. "Yeah, who is he?"
"Well, he's campaigning to become the Prime Minister." Martha explained. "He's probably got the best shot out of all of the candidates."
Rhea frowned. "Why would he want me to be there?"
The Doctor sighed. "Rhea, you might just be thinking into this too much."
"No, I'm not." Rhea protested. "If it was just Sunehri Adwani, I wouldn't even have a problem. He might've been a friend of my dad's or something. But Tish said 'Doctor Sunehri Adwani + 1'." Rhea said, earnestly.
"Why is that so weird?" Martha asked, her eyebrows furrowing.
Rhea's hands rubbed her face. "What year is it, Martha?"
"2008, why?"
Rhea laughed, harshly. She ran a hand through her hair. "Do you know what I was doing in 2008?"
"What?" Martha asked, carefully, sensing the change in Rhea's tone.
"I was lying in a hospital bed, broken beyond repair, and seriously considering taking my own life." Rhea said, flatly, making the Doctor flinch, unnoticeably. "So, it's obvious, whoever this Harold Saxon is, he's not interested in her. He's interested in me. Which means," She looked up at the Doctor, noticing his suddenly tense posture. That was quite a bomb I dropped. However, considering everything else he seems to know about me, he probably knew that as well. "He's interested in you."
Rhea sighed and hung up the lovely dress she had word tonight back in the wardrobe.
"Thanks for the dress, gorgeous." She said, placing her hand on the wall. She took the answering hum as a question of whether she was alright. "I'm…" She hesitated. "Okay. It's not really a time in my life I like to reminded of."
The TARDIS soothing and reassuring music filled her head, making her smile in reply. The melody was truly wonderful, easing every hurt and uncertainty that had risen in the time she had spent with the Doctor. She would have fallen onto the bed had she not heard a sound coming from outside. She frowned and took slow, careful steps to the door, opening it, carefully, and looking outside.
She laughed when she saw the Doctor lying, sprawled out, on the floor. "Did you trip?" She asked, teasingly.
"She unlevelled the ground on purpose. Right outside your room too." The Doctor grumbled, making Rhea laugh all over again.
"Don't be mean. Gorgeous isn't conniving like that, are you, honey?" Rhea crooned, stroking the wall and grinning when the TARDIS started to glow, as if preening.
"She always takes your side, anyway. She always did like you better." He grumbled, staring at her with soft eyes, not actually meaning his words. He looked her over for a second. "The TARDIS told me you weren't feeling well."
Rhea smiled at him. "I'm fine." At the Doctor's doubtful look, she sighed. "Really," She reached out and squeezed his hand. "I'm fine." She said, earnestly.
The Doctor rubbed the back of his neck. "There was something I wanted to talk to you about, actually."
"What is it?" Rhea asked, quietly.
"About what happened in Lazarus' machine… well, we sort of… I just wanted…" The Doctor let out a frustrated sigh. "I realised I may have taken liberties and I just wanted to apologise."
Rhea grinned and took a step forward. She reached out and scratched his sideburns. "Why are you apologising? Didn't you mean any of it?" She asked, playfully, knowing she was playing with fire.
"Of course I did!" The Doctor blustered, a flush rising in his cheeks and going down to his throat. "It's just… I realised you may not have wanted it."
Rhea took another step forward so that she was practically inches away from him. She trailed a hand down his chest and stopped low on his stomach and looked up at him, an unreadable look on his face. "Did I sound like I didn't want it?" Rhea asked him, a strange tone in her voice as she smiled up at him.
The Doctor growled and surged forwards, crushing his mouth against hers. Rhea made her surprised sound against his lips, but sank into his embrace finally, her arms sliding around his neck, while his wrapped around her waist. In a show of strength, he gripped, tightly, and lifted her up, Rhea curling her legs around his waist, as he pinned her against the wall. She threw her head back, when his lips left hers and his teeth found her throat, nipping at the skin, gently. Oh, you are so going to leave a hickey, aren't you, you bad boy. A wicked thought occurred to her and she rocked her hips just where he wanted it, a strangled groan leaving his throat from the pressure.
"Naughty girl." He growled against her throat. He pulled down the sleeve of her shirt to give himself more access to her silky, sun-kissed skin, pressing kisses along her shoulder. Rhea whimpered and her hands slid from his neck up into his hair, where her nails dug into his scalp, the Doctor hissing from the delightful mixture of pleasure and pain.
"Make that sound again." The Doctor demanded in a dark, rough voice, completely different to the normally high-pitched tone he took when he was excited.
She whimpered again and she felt herself gush at his answering growl, writhing against him to relieve the pressure between her thighs.
"No," The Doctor growled. During their encounter, the Doctor's hands had somehow left her waist and were now twisted in her hair, yanking gently. "You will come at my hand, no one else's."
"Kinky son of a…" She managed to mutter. She gave him a wicked smile. "You do have a fetish for my hair." She crowed. Her gloating fell back into pleasure, when the Doctor's thumb stroked across her nipple in a purposeful fashion, sending her into trembles. The Doctor smirked, dimly registering that she wasn't wearing anything under that sorry, transparent excuse of a top.
She tugged on his hair, his wonderful, fuck-me hair, dragging his mouth back to hers, feeling a wild rush of pleasure at his ministrations and his authoritative words, pleasure she had never allowed herself to feel and had only ever felt with one other man and that was so long ago. She arched herself into him, her hips pressing neatly against the evidence of his own arousal. The Doctor's mouth swallowed her moans as he ground into her, the friction becoming exquisite.
A furious hunger and a desire to regain control of the situation debilitated and emboldened her and she broke away from him with a gasp. Her teeth moved to the juncture of his neck and his shoulder and she bit down, harshly, the Doctor laving her throat as his voice whispered nonsensical words in his lyrical mother tongue against his skin. Her hands slid from his hair down to his back, gripping his shoulder blades as her nails raked his back. That's definitely going to leave a mark.
It was only when the Doctor's hand began to slide up behind her thigh, his fingers grazing the raised skin of a scar that had torn at her for years, that she felt as if a bucket of ice cold water had been dumped all over and she was standing, alone, as the wet, cold water seeped into her bones.
She broke away from him, abruptly, extracting herself from his embrace and throwing herself to the opposite wall. She panted, heavily, and tried her hardest to regain control of her limbs and her hormones, her hands digging into her hair.
The Doctor reached for her, his face a picture of worry. "Rhea…"
She dodged his arms and slid away, flinching at the look of hurt on his face. "Oh, god, that shouldn't have happened." She whispered.
"Rhea, I'm sorry." The Doctor whispered.
"No!" She exclaimed and then quietened. "It's not your fault. Entirely mine." She smacked her forehead with her palm. "That can't ever happen. Can't ever happen again." She whispered, repeatedly, not knowing who she was trying to explain that to, the Doctor or herself.
"Rhea…" The Doctor's arms came for her again.
"No!" A wrecked sound left her throat as her back fell against the wall. "Can't ever happen. Don't deserve it. Can't ever deserve it. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid." She muttered, furiously, her hands twisting in her hair and the heels of her hand rubbing her eyes.
"It's okay, Rhea." The Doctor tried to say, reassuringly.
She had the urge to sink her nails into the skin on her face and rip it off. "No, it isn't, you see. You say that now, but I'll do something and I'll screw this up and I'll hurt you. I know I will." She hesitated. "And you'll turn your back on me like everyone else did." She whispered.
"I won't, Rhea. I won't." The Doctor growled.
"Yes, you will. Yes, you will." She whispered and looked down at herself, noticing the slowly darkening bruise on her neck, the ache in her hair and her unbuttoned shirt. She wrapped the shirt, tightly, around herself and spun on her feet, walking back into her room and shutting the door behind her.
She didn't see the Doctor fall slack, his back against the wall he had just moments before been pinning her up against, and slid down to the floor, his hands clutched his hair, utterly confused and defeated.
He didn't see her slide down the door and bury her face in her knees, her entire body shaking, not from tears but from pain. What makes you think you could ever deserve someone like him? You're a broken down shell of a woman who never used to mean much before anyway. He deserves better than your damaged goods, you stupid slut.
A/N: Wow… that ended even more angstier than I was expecting it to. I really didn't mean for it to be that bad, honest. Rhea really does have bad self-esteem, doesn't she? This isn't the first time she's called herself a slut and I can assure you it was definitely someone else who put that idea in her head. She's very scared of the Doctor and the power he has on her. She doesn't want him to turn out into another disappointing part of her life. It was originally just going to be more of Rhea pulling away, but that sounded quite final, didn't it? Is that the end for the Doctor and Rhea? Who knows?
I hope you all liked my rendition of The Lazarus Experiment. Rhea did realise how odd it was that Saxon had put her on the guest list, especially with the added "Doctor". We even got a bit of inside into Rhea's past. Now we know she was in hospital for some reason in 2008 and she was contemplating suicide. What could have possibly happened for her to consider suicide?
I hope everyone liked the first dose of smut in this story. I thought it was entirely too early for them to have sex, so I made it more of foreplay than anything. I do know when Rhea and the Doctor will have sex for the first time and I can say it's in the near future. We found out that Rhea has a tendency to be promiscuous and she doesn't want to turn the Doctor into another notch in her bedpost. He does mean a lot to her, she's just scared of getting hurt again and she's scared of hurting him as well. I wonder why she was affected so much by the scar?
Question: Your OTP (one true pairing) and OT3 (one true threesome) in Doctor Who and why?
Oh, and the poll for the Doctor and Rhea's pairing name is up, don't forget to vote! I'll keep it up until Chapter 41. I think Rheta's going to be my back-up just in case.
Hope you all liked the chapter and don't forget to review.
Replies to Reviews:
DoctorWho9: I think everyone's for Donna travelling with the Ninth Doctor. I actually have a story planned for that particular plot bunny, where Donna meets the Doctor instead of Rose. I'm a die hard Doctor/Donna shipper :) And River would be lovely in Season 1, I wish she had gotten the chance to meet the Ninth Doctor and more adventures with the Tenth Doctor.
grapejuice101: I hope this chapter satisfied your need for a Doctor/Rhea moment, we definitely got a few of them in this chapter.
Kristina'sMyName: Nine and Donna would be lovely. I'm planning on doing a story around that actually. I think River and Nine would have gotten along like a house on fire, but it would have been fun, seeing him get used to her. I think he would have fallen for her after a point.
Tokala: I'm so glad you like Rhea the way she is. I know people have started to criticise her but I am reluctant to change her at this point.
Guest 1: Thanks so much!
Guest 2: I'm so glad you like the story!
Guest 3: Wow, that's high praise! I'm so glad you like it so far :)
MoonLitSky262: I'm so glad you think Rhea's not typical, I was aiming for that :) Don't forget to vote in the poll, 'Drhea' is definitely in the list :)
NicoleR85: I hope you liked Rhea's reaction to Francine slapping the Doctor. I feel like they make it a point to suggest that slapping men in this show is a good thing, even if there's no great reason. First with Jackie, Francine, Donna, Amy, River. Donna would be the best choice to travel with the Doctor, I agree.
Thegirlwholives: I'm so glad you like the story and I'm happy you think I'm updating frequently. I used to do it a lot more frequently, unfortunately, uni's caught up with me. Hopefully the Doctor and Rhea can get together soon, I do know what episode it will be, but there's quite a few in between this one and that one. I love writing Rhea has hard and vulnerable and distant and flirty, I love the oxymorons with her. Donna and Nine is the most voted for pair, I think. I plan on writing a Donna/Nine, Donna/Ten story. The summary's on my profile, I think. Ooh, School Reunion and The Girl in the Fireplace... School Reunion's coming up soon, I promise. I think it's around chapter 60 or so. I think we might get a definite answer whether Rhea's been with the Doctor since the beginning or not. The Girl in the Fireplace is still far away, unfortunately, and I don't want to give too much away for that chapter. It's going to be difficult, don't worry. As for Father's Day, I have mixed feelings for Rose in that episode, I'm angry at what she did but I also understand why. Unfortunately, I think Rhea's going to be on Rose's side for that. It'll be explained in that actual chapter. But my Time Lady story will have a pissed off Time Lady at Rose.
Miss Lizziebeth: That's an interesting name, I have put it up on the poll. Actually, SUN-ehri is pronounced like the 'u' in June, so it's really SOON-ehri, just say the 'oo' quick. Oh, don't worry, I've been waiting to write sexy times for the Doctor and Rhea for awhile, hope you liked the one in this chapter ;)
lostiesgirl: Thank you so much :) I've put up your suggestion in the poll, it doesn't sound too bad. I think Donna would definitely be an interesting companion for Nine. I can't wait to write it :)
Aka-Baka Hoshi: Oh, I hope the ending to this chapter helps you out with why the Master added Rhea's name to the guest list. I wonder if he knows her? I only know New Who too, but I am planning a story where Nine meets Sarah Jane again. Donna is definitely the favourite to travel with the Doctor. As for my first Time Lady story, I'm going to see if I can post it by end of June, because that's when my exams finish and my 18th birthday is around then. But, unfortunately, that's all dependent on whether I can finish the first story in the series by then. I'm on Chapter 6 right now and I think there should be around 15-20 chapters in it. So, it's all dependent on whether I can finish it by then. We'll have to see :) But, when I hit 300000 words, I'll post another snippet.
Marmalade1512: Hope you liked the ending and the somewhat explanation. I haven't quite decided what to do with River in this story. She won't be the Doctor's wife in this story, which should be explained in the next chapter, which is The Time of Angels. But, we don't know, maybe she's Rhea's wife?