I'm super sorry for the long wait for this chapter guys!
I just looked at the date of the last time I've updated this and it's been a solid 3 weeks. Ouch.
I've been alternating between this fic and my other fic, a chapter from one fic before I post a chapter of the other, but school has also started to heat up. I had a 20 page research paper due last week and to be honest it took me several days before I felt the urge to even look at anything else.
But now I'm back, and here's an update!
-RainingCoffee
We go on a few more adventures, one involving green slime that still causes the Doctor to bust out in laughter and Rose to flush bright pink when mentioned, when Rose gets a call.
Rose walks a few steps away and answers her phone. "Hello?"
Turning to the Doctor to give Rose her privacy, I wiggle my eyebrows at him.
Reaching out to tap me between the eyebrows, he laughs. "Your Delphon needs work."
"For a humanoid who's eyebrows are three times smaller than the Delphon race has, I think I do pretty well." I respond, pouting.
"Needs more expression." The Doctor shrugs, then proceeds to make his own eyebrows do the wave.
I gape at him. "One, I can't believe you just said that. Two, that movement shouldn't have been possible!"
He smirks, looking smug. "Skills."
Rose hangs up, coming over to us with a frown.
"What's wrong?" I ask immediately, studying her expression.
"Mickey just called. He said that there's these strange things happening at a school." Rose informs us.
The Doctor's eyes furrow. "What do you mean strange things?"
She shrugs. "Something about a new Headmaster coming in and three months later the children's test grades are skyrocketing." Pausing, Rose bites her lip. "And some of them are getting sick."
I scowl, and a look at the Doctor shows that he isn't pleased either.
"What's the name of the school?" The Doctor asks her.
"Deffery Vale High School." Rose replies.
He inputs coordinates, a frown of concentration on his face. "It's not all that far from where you live." His eyes flicker up to Rose's. "You mind if we park the Tardis there while we check out the school?"
"Course not." Rose tilts her head to the side. "Though it's probably best you stay out of mum's view while we're here. She's still not happy about what happened.."
The Doctor grimaces, but nods in agreement. My eyes flicker between the two of them. What did Rose mean what happened?
The Tardis takes off in flight so I grab onto the railing behind me casually to keep from falling. "How are we gonna to do this then?"
"I'm thinking a little bit of old fashioned reconnaissance." The Doctor responds, pulling his psychic paper out and waving it back and forth.
I hum. "So you two are going to get faculty positions and I'm going to go in as a student?"
He shakes his head. "I don't think it's a good idea for you to go in as a student if the students are getting sick. We have no idea why or how at this point."
Swallowing my urge to argue, I try and think about it logically. I really want to go, but he Doctor isn't wrong. "Yes, that's probably a smart idea."
We land, with Rose changing into something more professional than her jeans and t-shirt combo, and they head off to gather information.
Which leaves me in the Tardis, by myself.
It's stupid, but I'm already feeling a little lonely. The Tardis beeps, drawing my attention, then flashes her lights along the baseboard in an attempt to have me follow them. She leads me to the library, the one spot that generally makes me feel better no matter the occasion.
I grab a random mystery novel and sit down, but not a whole lot of actual reading happens. A whole lot of self-inspection on the other hand, does.
Living with the Doctor was pretty cool, and undoubtedly a privilege. He doesn't so much treat me as a child, in the way of overprotecting parental supervision, but as a person. Someone who was intelligent, who had their own ideas. I have no doubt that if I had pushed the issue the Doctor would have found another way for me to come into the school.
The problem was that he was right. It wouldn't be smart for me to go in as a student, especially with students getting sick.
And, well, I suppose the other problem was that I was so used to being with the Doctor that him going off with his companion without me made me feel..down.
Shaking my head sharply, I try and remove that thought from my head. Here I was, having a pity party over nothing. Him going off with his companion without me didn't mean that he wasn't going to do things with me anymore.
The last five years had skewed my perspective, sometimes I felt like the 15 year old I looked like, rather than the 22 year old I really was. I frown, thinking about the hormonal changes in human teenagers and wondering in they apply to Gallifreyan teenagers as well.
In any case, I made a mental note to not be as demanding of the Doctor's time in the future. I was far to old to be as clingy as I'd been acting.
Sometime later, must have been hours, the Doctor's voice jerks me out of an uneasy sleep.
"Hey, hey." The Doctor murmurs, running a hand across my hair. "It's okay, you're in the Tardis library."
I blink, mind trying to hold on to images of abandoned railway stations and mob bosses. He makes a comforting noise, brushing away the remnants of my dream with hardly any effort at all.
"That was a rough one." The Doctor states. His concern is like a bucket of salt on a cut.
Pulling away from the touch of his hand, I curl into a ball, not able to bring myself to say anything. He studies me for a few seconds before standing up and pulling his suit jacket off. He rolls his sleeves up, picking up the book that must have slipped off my lap while I was sleeping. Sitting down next to me, but not touching me, he starts to read.
Around 20 minutes into it, I'm able to relax enough to uncurl from my position. After 40 minutes, I feel safe enough to lean against his shoulder. The Doctor doesn't pause in his reading, though he does lean his head against mine for a brief second. Long enough for me to get a sense of his encouragement, and his willingness to help.
It calms the part of me that my dream had knocked back into the place, the one that was so unsure of her own place in the world that she felt safer staying away from it.
By the time he was finished with the book, I still wasn't able to bring myself to speak, but I wasn't as tense as I was when I first woke up.
The Doctor doesn't push the issue, which I'm grateful for in a vague, distant sort of way. Instead, he keeps up a steady stream of chatter, bustling me off to the kitchen for a late meal and then directing me down the hallway towards his room.
It's not a place I see very often, though to be honest it's not a place the Doctor goes to very often either.
He tucks me into his bed, taking a seat in an armchair next to it, starting up the epic of Omega. It's a long story that can take days to recite, and it's also incredibly boring to listen to. As he no doubt intended, it isn't long before I'm trying not to yawn.
I make a noise of frustration. Sleeping isn't something that I want to do right now, especially after the dream I had earlier. The Doctor raises an eyebrow, but doesn't stop. My eyelids get heavier, my blinks slower, and it gets harder to fight the pull.
Hesitant, I reach out and touch the Doctor's hand. Sharing my reasons for not wanting to sleep.
He latches on, a comforting presence blanketing my mind. His intention is clear, with him monitoring me like this he can stop nightmares before they even form.
My body relaxes. I feel so grateful that tears rise to my eyes. The Doctor shushes me, his voice lowering as he starts up a lullaby. I feel a vague sense of outrage at the speed it works, but that's smothered under the feeling of safety being blanketed like this brings.
I'm asleep in minutes.
xxxx
My first thought when I wake up the next morning is 'so much for not being as clingy as I had been'. The Doctor makes a sharp noise of disapproval, making me aware of the fact he's still blanketing my thoughts. I flush in embarrassment.
"You should be embarrassed." The Doctor states, still sounding faintly outraged. "Where did that thought come from?"
"Ah." It sounds like I've been gargling jacks, so I cough to clear my throat. "Self-introspection?"
He studies me, picking up far more than I should probably be letting him, but I can't bring myself to pull away from the comfort he's providing just yet. A furrow forms on his forehead. "I knew we should have waited to bring a full time companion on board."
I shake my head. "It's not Rose's fault."
"Not directly, no." The Doctor murmurs. "But you haven't had a nightmare like that in years."
"It doesn't have anything to do with her." I repeat. It's a struggle to get the words out. "I just..we've been very secluded here. It's been the two of us against the world."
I mean, yeah, we've taken on a companion or two but not for very long. Rose, on the other hand, is important.
"If this has something to do with you feeling as though I'm going to stop paying attention to you now that we have a companion on board, I want you to stop right there." He states.
Frowning, I look down at the blankets instead of his face. "I'm not going to lie and say that's not a part of it. But Doctor, I'm not actually 15 even though I might look like it. I'm old enough that I shouldn't be monopolizing your time the way I have been." I shake my head. "The nightmare was just a product of an irrational fear."
The Doctor reaches over and smacks his knuckle against my forehead. "You need to stop thinking by human standards. Gallifreyans are still considered children until they turn a century old." He scolds. "And what is that even supposed to mean? 'Old enough that you shouldn't be monopolizing my time the way you have been'."
Directing a sharp look to me, he cuts me off when I try to open my mouth to respond. "Not that it would matter how old you are anyways. You can't monopolize my time when it's freely given."
Huh.
"Huh is right." The Doctor responds, voice still irritated. "Silly girl."
I clear my throat awkwardly, fighting the blush that's wanting to rise. Knowing the Doctor cares for me is one thing, hearing it re-enforced is quite another.
"I would express it more often, but you always get embarrassed when I do." He states. The hum of his irritated emotions is starting to quiet down into something more like I'm used to.
"It is embarrassing." I mutter, throwing an arm over my face to hide its redness.
The Doctor laughs. He does one last mental survey, then pulls his hand back.
Deeming it safe to look at him, I peek out from under my arm. He's not looking at me, instead he's pretending to inspect the wall to give me some privacy.
I sit up, straightening out my clothes and running a hand through my hair. "So what did you guys find out yesterday?"
"For one thing, we both found ourselves a job." The Doctor says, glancing over before turning to face me properly. "One of the teachers will find themselves the recipient of a winning lottery ticket a week back or so and I'll be filling his position."
"That's cheating." I scold, biting back a smile.
His lips quirk up in response. "On the other hand, Rose got herself a job with the lunch crew."
I can't help but think that's unfair. "Isn't that a little mean?"
"Not when there was an intake of people in both the teachers and the lunch crew three months ago." The Doctor explains. "Best to keep an eye on both sides."
"Touché." I acknowledge. "You'll have to let me know what happens."
And he does. Each day he comes back to the Tardis, eyes bright, and tells me about his day. I knew from his reaction to teaching me, but this is a good reminder at how much the Doctor loves to share his knowledge. At least to people who actually pay attention.
It isn't until the third day that anything changes though. When the Doctor comes home from school this time, he has a sort of jittery energy around him and his face is weird.
"What happened to you?" I ask, confused.
"I met an old companion today." The Doctor murmurs, he still has that soppy look on his face.
Interested now, I turn away from the stove where I'd been making dinner. "Who?"
He lips quirk up into a smile, eyes finally focusing on me. "Sarah Jane Smith."
"No way!" I beam. "Sarah Jane Sm-" Light bursts from behind my eyes, the stars spin and my perception of the world opens up. Sarah Jane, Luke, the children that will grown up defending the world. So very important, and all of it stemming from one person.
Slowly, bit by bit, I reel myself in. Drawing my consciousness back into my body, anchoring it to reality. Hearing is the first thing I get back, and with it comes the sound of the Doctor singing a Gallifreyan nursery rhyme.
I swallow, trying to wet my dry throat and wince at the taste of blood. "I'm..good."
He continues, not pausing the song, but I get a burst of his disapproval. Shifting minutely, I understand his reaction. The Doctor has me cradled against his chest, arms overtop of mine to keep me from scratching at my face, which tends to happen when I get a particularly strong flash.
So instead of protesting anymore, I lean back into the embrace and relax. My Gallifreyan still isn't up to speakable standards, I can say words but when it comes to putting it all together and conjugating everything it turns to mush, but I can understand most of what he's saying. And the things that I don't' understand keep me busy as I try to figure out the root word and translate from there.
I'm not sure how long I sit there parsing nouns, but at some point my heartsrate evens out and my mind is drawn away from what I've seen.
The Doctor clears his throat. "That was stronger than usual." His voice sounds strange and flat, and it takes me a second to realize it's because he's switched back to English.
"There was a lot of information this time." My lips tilt up into a sad smile. "Sarah Jane is incredibly important."
I can feel his burning curiosity, but he doesn't ask about it, which is for the best.
"Do you think you're able to move?" The Doctor asks, voice careful.
"Of course I can move." I reply, annoyance making my body stiffen. It's stubborn determination that gets me to my feet. "See?"
He sends me a stern look.
I wave off his concern. Already I'm feeling better, and god forbid I mess up my chance to meet Sarah Jane Smith.
"Food." The Doctor states, getting up and pushing me towards the table. "Something high in carbs, give you back the energy you just expended. You're going to need it if you want to help us check out what's going on in the school."
"We're going tonight then?" I ask, letting him direct me. He always gets a little overprotective after I get a flash, and it was just easier to let him fuss then it was to argue.
Humming, he nods. "Yeah, we've done all we can the unobtrusive way, it's time to go behind the scenes." There's a pause. "And I have a feeling that Sarah Jane is going to be there tonight to investigate as well."
"She is." I murmur. That is something that stands out in a very distinct way in my memory.
His hands tighten on my back and he makes sure I'm seated before going to salvage the food on the stovetop.
xxxx
"Oh, it's weird seeing school at night." Rose comments as we exit the storage area the Doctor has parked us in. "It just feels wrong. When I was a kid, I used to think all the teachers slept in school."
"All right, team." The Doctor starts, then grimaces. "Oh, I hate people who say team. Er, gang. Er, comrades." I shake my head at him and he frowns. "Anyway, Rose, go to the kitchen. Get a sample of that oil. Mickey, the new staff are all Maths teachers. Go and check out the Maths department. Willa and I are going to look in Finch's office. Be back here in ten minutes."
He heads up the stairs, and I hurry after him. The Doctor has just indicated that we are getting close when a strange noise echoes down the corridor. Ducking into a classroom, I pull the Doctor along with me, and we listen as the sound of..something flapping reverberates down the corridor, hurried footsteps echoing right after.
The noise dies down, and the Doctor and I peek out. Nothing is there. I point down the hallway and mouth 'Tardis'. The Doctor frowns at me. 'Sarah Jane?' he mouths back. I nod.
Down the same flight of stairs we go, and into the storage area. Sarah Jane is backing out of the closet that the Tardis is parked in, staring at the door in shock.
The Doctor steps forward, waiting for her to turn around and I step farther into the shadow at his back. This is a reunion for the two of them.
Sarah turns around slowly, not even jumping at the sight of the Doctor standing there. "Hello Sarah Jane." He greets Sarah, voice soft.
"It's you." She breathes. "Oh, Doctor Oh, my God, it's you, isn't it. You've regenerated."
"Yeah. Half a dozen times since we last met." He tells her. I don't have to be looking at him to know that there's probably a goofy smile on his face.
"You look incredible." Sarah states.
The Doctor replies, entirely sincere. "So do you."
Sarah laughs bitterly. "Huh. I got old." She takes a few steps to the right and the Doctor turns to follow her. "What are you doing here?"
"Well, UFO sighting, school gets record results. I couldn't resist." He leans forward. "What about you?"
"The same." Sarah laughs, but then her face crumples. "I thought you'd died. I waited for you and you didn't come back, and I thought you must have died."
"I lived." The Doctor states, solemn. "Everyone else died. Well, almost everyone."
"What do you mean?" She sounds confused.
He steps aside, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Everyone else is dead, besides the two of us. Sarah, meet Willa. My adopted daughter."
I wave, feeling kind of awkward. "It's very nice to meet you, Sarah Jane Smith."
Sarah doesn't quite know what to make of that, and in the end it seems she chooses to ignore it. "I can't believe it's you."
Someone screams, high pitched and gratingly loud from somewhere else in the school.
"Okay, now I can!" She exclaims, and they exchange a smile before we all run off in the direction of the scream.
The sound of rapid footsteps approach and Rose comes out of a side hallway directly in front of us, whirling to face us as she hears our footsteps in return. "Did you hear that?" She directs to the Doctor before focusing on Sarah Jane. "Who's she?"
"Rose, Sarah Jane. Sarah Jane, Rose." The Doctor gestures between the two of them.
Sarah Janes smiles a saccharine smile. "Hiii. Nice to meet you." She looks at the Doctor. "You can tell you're getting older. Your assistants are getting younger."
Rose's eyes narrow in dislike. "I'm not his assistant."
"No?" Sarah raises an eyebrow. "Get you, tiger."
Woah, how did we get to here? I flick my eyes between the two of them, incredibly confused. The Doctor rubs a hand across the back of his head, grabs my arm and sort of gestures in the direction that the scream came from before taking off, pulling me with him.
Several hallways later, we round a corner to find Mickey scrambling to pick up what looks to be vacuum packed rats from off the floor.
Mickey sees us and flushes. "Sorry! Sorry, it was only me. You told me to investigate, so I started looking through some of these cupboards and all of these fell on me."
"Oh, my God, they're rats." Rose looks down at the rats, disgusted. "Dozens of rats. Vacuum packed rats."
"And you decided to scream." The Doctor asks, incredulous, leaning down to look at the rats himself.
"It took me by surprise!" Mickey says, taken aback.
The Doctor looks up from his investigation. "Like a little girl?"
I clear my throat. The Doctor has enough decency to look abashed, Mickey just looks confused. Turning to Mickey, I pat him on the arm. "Don't worry, your scream was very appropriate for a man, and for being covered in rats."
"Er, thanks." Mickey says, still looks confused.
"Hello, can we focus?" Rose's voice cuts in. "Does anyone notice anything strange about this? Rats in school?"
"Well, obviously they use them in Biology lessons. They dissect them." Sarah Jane murmurs, raising an eyebrow. "Or maybe you haven't reached that bit yet. How old are you?"
Rose narrows her eyes. "Excuse me, no one dissects rats in school anymore. They haven't done that for years. Where are you from, the dark ages?"
"I'd like to interrupt this regularly scheduled pissing contest with a comment." I interrupt before the two of them can keep going. "The rats might be used for dissection, but we found them in a closet in the Maths department. If they really were used in Biology lessons, then wouldn't they be closer to the Science department?"
"Good question." The Doctor murmurs, looking contemplative. "Everything started when Mister Finch arrived. I think it's time to go check what's in his office."
And there we go, back up the stairs, heading in the direction of the headmaster's office once again.
I can tell the moment everything boils over for Rose, not only because of the energy that surrounds her, but by the way her body stiffens.
"I don't mean to be rude or anything, but who exactly are you?" Rose asks Sarah Jane.
"Sarah Jane Smith." Sarah responds, glancing over her shoulder at the Doctor. "I used to travel with the Doctor."
"Oh. Well, he's never mentioned you." Rose states.
"Oh, I must've done." The Doctor chimes in. "Sarah Jane. Mention her all the time."
"Hold on." Rose pauses. "Sorry. Never." Going for the jugular, ouch.
"What, not even once? He didn't mention me even once?" Sarah asks, sounding hurt.
The Doctor slows his footsteps, and the two women continue down the hall. Mickey laughs. "Ho, ho, mate. The missus and the ex. Welcome to every man's worst nightmare."
"It's not like that." The Doctor states, frowning. It's clear that Mickey doesn't believe him.
"Now's not the time for this." I mutter, nodding down the hallway. "Let's get out of the school before the bickering attracts the attention of whatever it is we are here to look for."
By the time we reach Mr. Finch's office, Rose and Sarah are waiting for us. They each send a scowl in our direction, unnoticing or uncaring that it makes them look alike.
The Doctor pushes his way through, using the sonic and unlocking the door. He steps into the office, then stops, staring at the ceiling. "Maybe those rats were food."
"Food for what?" Rose asks, lowering her voice like the Doctor had.
"You know you used to think all the teachers slept in the school?" The Doctor asks, stepping aside so the rest of us can file in. "Well, they do."
I follow his gaze to the ceiling and have to stop myself from screaming at the sight of human sized bat like creatures hanging there.
"No way!" Mickey exclaims, turning on his heel and running.
The Doctor bustles us out, locking the door behind us, and we follow after Mickey at a more reasonable pace.
Mickey stops right outside of the school. "I am not going back in there. No way."
"Those were teachers." Rose breaths out in disbelief.
"When Finch arrived, he brought with him seven new teachers, four dinner ladies and a nurse. Thirteen. Thirteen big bat people." The Doctor turns on his heels to go back into the school. "Come on."
"Come on?" Mickey scoffs. "You've got to be kidding!"
"I need the Tardis. I've got to analyze that oil from the kitchen." The Doctor explains.
"I might be able to help you there." Sarah states, grabbing onto the Doctor's arm. "I've got something to show you."
She takes us over to her car and opens her trunk. The Doctor reaches in, pulling a blanket off of whatever is inside. His face lights up. "K9! Willa, look, it's K9!"
"No way!" I breath, coming up beside the Doctor and looking at the metal dog.
The Doctor looks back at his companions. "Rose Tyler, Mickey Smith, allow me to introduce K9. Well, K9 Mark Three to be precise."
"Why does he look so..disco?" Rose asks.
"Oi! Listen, in the year five thousand, this was cutting edge." The Doctor scolds, before turning to Sarah Jane. "What's happened to him?"
"Oh, one day, he just, nothing." Sarah explains.
"Well, didn't you try and get him repaired?" The Doctor frowns at her.
"Well, it's not like getting parts for a Mini Metro." Sarah responds. "Besides, the technology inside him could rewrite human science. I couldn't show him to anyone."
The Doctor reaches into the trunk and starts petting K9. "Ooh, what's the nasty lady done to you, eh?"
"Look, no offence, but could you two just stop petting for a minute?" Rose calls out. "Never mind the tin dog. We're busy."
"Right, let's go somewhere that I can repair K9." The Doctor shuts the truck, still smiling. "Do you mind Sarah Jane?"
"Of course not." Sarah gestures for people to get into the car. "I know a diner not far from here that won't mind so long as you buy something."
It's a tight fit, with five of us. The Doctor is up front with Sarah and I'm squished in between Rose and Mickey. By the time we get to the diner I'm almost vibrating from the tension that's arcing through the air.
The Doctor grabs K9 from the trunk, and we head inside. Sarah sits down next to him and I stay back with Rose and Mickey. Rose, who has a pissed off look on her face, orders a container of French fries at the counter.
Mickey nudges her, a smile on his own face. "You see, what's impressive is that it's been nearly an hour since we met her and I still haven't said I told you so."
"I'm not listening to this." Rose snaps.
"Although, I have prepared a little I was right dance that I can show you later." Mickey continues, undeterred.
The waitress returns, handing over the French fries and Rose pays her. Turning to a table and sitting down, Rose seems determined to not rise to the bait as Mickey and I follow suit.
"All this time you've been giving it, 'he's different'." Mickey leans in over the table. "When the truth is, he's just like any other bloke."
"You don't know what you're talking about." Rose mutters, shoving a chip into her mouth.
Mickey sits back, smug satisfaction in his expression. "Maybe not. But if I were you I'd go easy on the chips."
Okay, enough is enough. "And just what is that supposed to mean?"
His eyes flicker to mine, an expression on his face like he's forgotten I was there. "What?"
"Rose can eat as many 'chips' as she wants to." I scold him. "With the amount of running we do, it's incredibly unlikely she would gain any weight like you seem to be suggesting."
"Look, I didn't mean it that way." Mickey defends himself, raising his hands like a shield.
I raise in eyebrow in disbelief. "In what way did you mean it then?" He doesn't respond, looking down at the table. "Petty jealousy doesn't look good on anybody Mickey Smith, you are not an exception to that."
"Willa." Rose breathes, looking at me like she's seeing me for the first time.
I lean back, unconcerned and steal a French fry off of her. "Look Mickey, I think you're a genuinely nice guy when it comes down to it. But I don't like it when the people that I'm close with are put down in any way."
The table falls silent, which makes it incredibly easy for me to hear the conversation that Sarah and the Doctor are having at my back. To give them privacy, I focus on Rose and start a conversation up about the red grass on the last planet we visited.
"Oh hey. Now we're in business." The Doctor exclaims, exactly 15 minutes and 23 seconds later. Thank God. You can only make so much small talk and I was running out of topics.
The three of us glance over, and I note that K9 has been revived.
"Master." K9 says.
The Doctor beams, looking over his shoulder and searching until he finds me. "He recognizes me."
I smile at him indulgently. "Of course he does." Stepping forward, I scritch K9 behind an ear. "K9's a good dog, isn't he."
K9's tail starts wagging and his ears swivel forwards in response.
"Rose, give us the oil." The Doctor states, reaching out a hand. Rose digs through her pockets and hands him the sample.
"I wouldn't touch it, though." Rose cautions. "That dinner lady got all scorched."
"I'm no dinner lady." The Doctor replies, before seeming to realize just what it was that he said. "And I don't often say that." Reaching into the sample container, he smears some of the oil onto the probe on the front of K9's face. "Here we go. Come on, boy. Here we go."
"Oil. Ex ex ex extract. Ana ana analysing." K9 stutters his way through.
Mickey laughs. "Listen to him, man. That's a voice."
Sarah directs a sharp look in his direction. "Careful. That's my dog."
"Confirmation of analysis." K9 states. "Substance is Krillitane Oil."
A look of realization blooms across the Doctor's face. "They're Krillitanes."
"Is that bad?" Rose asks.
"Very." The Doctor states, realization fading into seriousness. "Think of how bad things could possibly be, and add another suitcase full of bad."
Sarah looks at him. "And what are Krillitanes?"
"They're a composite race. Just like your culture is a mixture of traditions from all sorts of countries, people you've invaded or have been invaded by." The Doctor explains, running his hand through his hair. "You've got bits of Viking, bits of France, bits of whatever. The Krillitanes are the same. An amalgam of the races they've conquered. But they take physical aspects as well. They cherry pick the best bits from the people they destroy."
He frowns, a look or chagrin on his face. "That's why I didn't recognize them. The last time I saw Krillitanes, they looked just like us except they had really long necks."
Rose shakes her head, looking confused. "What're they doing here?"
"It has to do with the children somehow." I speak up. "Otherwise why would they choose a school to infiltrate." My eyes flicker to the Doctor. "Even you said that some of the children were showing knowledge of things they shouldn't know. What if it has to do with the oil somehow. And it doesn't agree with everyone, that's why some of them were getting sick."
"I have a horrible feeling you're right." The Doctor murmurs, frown deepening.
"Well, no use sitting around here anymore." Sarah states, nodding decisively. "You're all welcome to stay the night at my house, we can make a move tomorrow."
I murmur my thanks, and Mickey offers to help carry K9 to the car. While Sarah and Mickey are busy, Rose turns to the Doctor with an intense look on her face.
"What?" He asks, taken aback.
She shakes her head, walking towards the door. The Doctor and I follow.
"No, that's something. I've been living with a teenage girl for over five years now, I know what something looks like." The Doctor states.
Rose whirls around right outside of the door. "How many of us have there been travelling with you?"
His brow furrows. "Does it matter?"
"Yeah, it does, if I'm just the latest in a long line." Rose states, looking increasingly upset.
There is a pause. "As opposed to what?"
"I thought you and me were." She hesitates, looking down at the ground. "I obviously got it wrong. I've been to the year five billion, right, but this? Now this is really seeing the future. You just leave us behind. Is that what you're going to do to me?"
The Doctor looks at her, really looks. "Everything has a time and place Rose, and everything ends."
"So that's it? You just drop us off one day and never come back?" Rose hisses.
"It's easier that way." He murmurs.
"On who? You?" Rose shakes her head, mouth trembling. "You already tried to do it to me once. Telling me I needed to spend time with mum. That was my send off wasn't it?"
The Doctor takes a deep breath, letting it out slowly. When he speaks, his voice is soft but unapologetic. "Yes."
"Wait, what?" I blurt out, bewildered. "What are you talking about?"
Rose studies me, taking in my expression. "So you didn't know."
Placing a hand on top of my head, the Doctor cuts in. "No, she didn't know, it was my decision."
"Ever since she showed up you've been different." She tells him.
"My priorities changed." He responds, a hint of annoyance coloring his tone.
I bite my lip, wanting to intervene but knowing that this is something that they need to figure out for themselves.
Rose looks down. "I just..was there ever a chance?"
"In another world, maybe." The Doctor tells her. "You could have spent the rest of your life with me, but I couldn't have spent the rest of mine with you. That's not something that would have been fair to either of us." He pauses, voice softening. "Willa and I, we don't age. Not in a way that would be recognizable to you. A hundred years is just a blip."
"That's why you dropped Sarah off before that could happen." Rose says in realization. "And why you tried to do the same to me."
He nods. "When I drop you off, you stay in the one second of time from my perspective. There's always a chance I could go back and pick off where I left off. But if you see that person age and falter." The Doctor shakes his head sharply. "That's the consequence of being Gallifreyan while surrounded by humans."
A horrible screeching noise drowns out anyone's response and we all turn to look at the top of the building next to the café. A man is standing there and next to him is one of the Krillitanes we saw in the principals office. The Krillitane swoops down towards us, but the Doctor pulls both Rose and I away from it's grasping claws.
It doesn't come back for a second swipe, flying off instead. A glance back at the building shows that the man is gone as well.
"Was that a Krillitane?" Sarah asks, running over from her car. Mickey hot on her heels.
"But it didn't even touch anyone. It just flew off. What did it do that for?" Rose states, confused.
My stomach drops. "It was here to hurt anyone, it was here to gather information."
The Doctor purses his lips, bustling me over to Sarah's car. "Probably best to go to your place Sarah Jane." His eyes flicker to Sarah's. "If the offer is still open."
Sarah looks insulted. "Of course it is."
xxxx
The next morning, bright and early as no one wanted to stay in the house with the tension that had been building, we head out for the school. It's easy to slip in, as the children are just arriving for the day as well.
"Rose and Sarah, you go to the Maths room. Crack open those computers, I need to see the hardware inside." The Doctor states, pulling out his screwdriver and handing it to Sarah even though Rose is reaching out for it. Ouch. "Here, you might need this."
He looks at Mickey. "Mickey, surveillance. I want you outside."
Mickey gives him a dirty look. "Just stand outside?"
We start to walk towards the school, but Sarah turns around and throws Mickey her keys. "Here, take these, you can keep K9 company."
"Don't forget to leave the window open a crack." The Doctor raises his voice to be heard.
"But he's metal!" Mickey calls back.
The Doctor raises an eyebrow and leans over towards me. "I didn't mean for him."
I cover my mouth to hide my smile, but there's no hiding the laughter in my eyes.
Rose interrupts. "What're you going to do?"
"It's time we had a chat with Mr. Finch." The Doctor states.
We split off from the girls, and the Doctor winds through the children expertly. Stopping at the top of the staircase, he looks down at a man who I remember seeing on the building from last night.
Finch, at least I'm assuming that's Finch, pauses. He looks up at us, before spinning on his heels and walking off with a purpose.
"C'mon." The Doctor murmurs, placing a hand on my shoulder and directing me down a back stairway. He leads us to a swimming pool, the smell of harsh chemicals giving it away before we even open the door.
Finch is inside, waiting for us.
"Who are you?" The Doctor asks, careful to keep his body between Finch's and mine.
"My name is Brother Lassa." Finch says, straightening from his lean against the wall. "And you?"
"The Doctor." The Doctor replies. "Since when did Krillitanes have wings?"
Finch starts walking towards us. His tone is conversational. It's clear that he feels as though he has nothing to hide. "It's been our form for nearly ten generations now. Our ancestors invaded Bessan. The people there had some rather lovely wings. They made a million widows in one day. Just imagine."
"And now you're human shaped." The Doctor states.
"A personal favorite, that's all." Finch corrects, still smiling genially.
I'm not going to lie, it's starting to freak me out.
The Doctor tilts his head. "And the others?"
"My brothers remain bat form. What you see is a simple morphic illusion. Scratch the surface and the true Krillitane lies beneath." Finch explains, studying our reactions. "And what of the Gallifreyans, the Time Lords? I always thought of you as such a pompous race. Ancient, dusty senators, so frightened of change and chaos. And of course, they're all but extinct. Only the two of you. The last."
Finch's eyes land on me, greedy.
"This plan of yours. What is it?" The Doctor interrupts, shifting so that his body hides more of my own from Finch's view.
"You don't know." Finch states, realization crossing his face. He crosses the last few steps to come face to face with the Doctor.
The Doctor stares at him. "That's why I'm asking."
Finch smiles. "Well, show me how clever you are. Work it out."
"If I don't like it, then it will stop." The Doctor warns Finch, voice hard.
"Fascinating." Finch breathes, studying the Doctor closely. "Your people were peaceful to the point of indolence. You seem to be something new. Would you declare war on us, Doctor?"
"You don't push the Doctor when it comes to children." I tell Finch, stepping out from the Doctor's shadow to stand beside him. "He has a very low tolerance for it. And so, for that matter, do I."
"That was your one warning." The Doctor continues.
I can see the effect our combined words have on Finch. His eyes dart between the two of us before he straightens his back and firms his chin. "But we're not even enemies. Soon you will embrace us. The next time we meet, you will join with me. I promise you."
Half remembered laser fire and haunting screams serve as a counter point to his argument, so I ignore his words. The Doctor has no such reassurance, so he watches with solemn eyes as Finch walks off.
I wait till Finch is down the hallway, far enough that I can no longer hear his footsteps, before I turn to the Doctor. "Time to go help Rose and Sarah."
The Doctor nods, and off we go, towards the Maths department.
I can hear the laughter long before we get to the correct classroom.
'I'm like, do you two want to be alone?" Rose says, laughing.
Sarah joins in, and the two of them cackle together.
Not seeming to notice, the Doctor enters the room. "How's it going?"
Rose points at the Doctor, and it just sets to two of them off even more.
"What?" The Doctor asks, before shaking his head. "Listen, I need to find out what's programed inside these."
I have to hide a smile behind my hand when it only serves to make them laugh harder.
"What? Stop it!" The Doctor demands, frustration evident. I can't help but think that he liked it better when they weren't getting along.
A noise echoes through the hall, then an announcement, one that calls for the students to come back inside.
"He's moving his plans up." I look at the ceiling, pursing my lips in disapproval.
The Doctor nods, disappearing under the table and coming back with a box covered with wires.
The noise in the hall gets louder, and the door opens. Rose hurries over, turning the children away and directing them to another hall.
"I can't shift it." The Doctor states, running his screwdriver over the components.
"Deadlock seal?" I ask, looking over the box myself.
He nods. "There's got to be something inside here. What're they teaching those kids?" Bending over to check on something, he misses all the screens in the computer lab turning green.
There's a green cube, and it's cycling through some type of code.
"You wanted the program?" Sarah asks. "There it is."
The Doctor pops up, eyebrows furrowing as he takes in the screens. "Some sort of code." He studies it, his eyes widening as he comes to some kind of realization. "No. No, that can't be."
A chill runs down my spine as I take in the dismay on his face. "What?"
"The Skasis Paradigm." The Doctor explains, looking down at me. "They're trying to crack the Skasis Paradigm."
Trying to remember where I've heard about that before, I frown. "Wasn't that the universal theory thing? The…the building blocks of the universe or something like that?"
He nods. "It's the God maker. Crack that program and bam. Time and space and matter, yours to control."
"What, and the kids are like a giant computer?" Rose asks.
"Yes." The Doctor replies, working it all out. "And their learning power is being accelerated by the oil. That oil from the kitchens, it works as a, as a conducting agent. Makes the kids cleverer."
"But that oil's on the chips." Rose states. "I've been eating them."
"What's fifty nine times thirty five?" The Doctor asks her sharply.
Rose answers immediately. "Two thousand and sixty five." She inhales, apprehension on her face. "Oh, my God."
"But why use children?" Sarah asks, confused. "Can't they use adults?"
The Doctor shakes his head. "No, it's got to be children. The God maker needs imagination to crack it. They're not just using the children's brains to break the code, they're using their souls."
Mr. Finch enters the room. "Let the lesson begin. Think of it, Doctor. With the Paradigm solved, reality becomes clay in our hands. We can shape the universe and improve it."
"Oh yeah?" The Doctor scoffs. "The whole of creation with the face of Mister Finch? Call me old fashioned, but I like things as they are."
"You act like such a radical, and yet all you want to do is preserve the old order?" Mr. Finch asks, he takes a step closer to the Doctor. "Think of the changes that could be made if this power was used for good."
The Doctor looks at Finch. "What, by someone like you?"
When he responds, Mr. Finches voice is soft. Persuasive. "No, someone like you. The Paradigm gives us power, but you could give us wisdom. Become a God at my side. Imagine what you could do. Think of the civilizations you could save. Perganon, Assinta. Your own people, Doctor, standing tall. The Time Lords reborn."
A cold sweat breaks out across my back. The chance to save his own people is something that the Doctor would be hard pressed to pass up. "Doctor, you know there's always a catch."
Finch's eyes flicker to mine. "And you, you could spearhead the program. A Gallifreyan child, your imagination could take us to greater heights." I narrow my eyes at him. His head turns in Sarah and Rose's direction. "And you could be with him throughout eternity. Young, fresh, never wither, never age, never die." Finch turns his attention back to the Doctor. "Their lives are so fleeting. So many goodbyes. How lonely you must be, Doctor. Join us."
"I could save everyone." The Doctor murmurs.
"Yes." Finch breathes.
Stepping closer to the Doctor I reach out and grab his hand. "Doctor, no."
The Doctor continues, as if in a fog. "I could stop the war."
Using everything that's he's ever taught me, I grab onto the edges of his mind and yank it so that he's pulled against mine. Pressing my pain, anger, fear. Reminding him that past experiences are a part of life. It was horrible what had happened, but it still had to happen.
At that moment Sarah speaks, voice clipped. "No. The universe has to move forward. Pain and loss, they define us as much as happiness or love. Whether it's a world, or a relationship, everything has its time. And everything ends."
Shaking his head, the Doctor's expression goes cold. He snarls, picking up and chair and throwing it into the biggest monitor. "Out!"
We clear the room quickly, leaving Finch behind. His sour expression promises that we will be seeing him soon though. Down the stairs we go, only to run into Mickey and a child.
"What is going on?" Mickey asks, breathing hard.
There are Krillitanes screeching in the distance, a distance that is rapidly closing in.
"Giant bat aliens, trying to kill us." I explain, taking a step back as several Krillitanes come around the corner.
"Run!" The Doctor orders, yanking on the shoulder of my jacket to get me to move.
We run to the cafeteria, and I place a chair under the door knob to attempt to buy us some time. The other exits seem to be locked, but before the Doctor can pull out his screwdriver to open them, Finch busts through the door, the chair I placed not even a small deterrent.
Well, at least I tried.
Several Krillitanes fly into the room as well, the high ceilings allowing them to use their wings to gain the higher ground.
"Are they my teachers?" The boy that came with Mickey asks.
"Yeah." The Doctor replies. "Sorry."
"We need the Doctor alive. And the girl." Finch states. Pompous as ever. "As for the others? You can feast."
The Krillitanes swoop down and I duck for cover, noticing the others doing the same. Grabbing a chair, I take post beside the boy thrusting it at any Krillitane that comes to close.
Suddenly, as laser beam comes out of nowhere and shoots one of the Krillitanes straight out of the air. Finch screeches, piercing and loud.
"K9!" Sarah exclaims.
"Suggest you engage running mode, mistress." K9 replies, determination in his voice.
"Come on!" The Doctor urges. "K9, hold them back!"
"Affirmative, master. Maximum defense mode." K9 states, providing cover fire. We manage to make our way across the cafeteria and back through the doors we originally came through in the first place.
Running down the hallway, the Doctor darts into another room off to the right, using his sonic to lock the door once everyone has gotten into the room. Wherever we are now, it looks like some sort of lab.
The Doctor leans against the table, looking at the ceiling. His eyes flicker as he tries to figure out what to do next.
I clap my hands, getting everyone's attention. "Okay, so what do we know?"
"What do you mean?" Sarah asks me.
"We know that we are dealing with Krillitanes, we know that the Krillitanes are using the children to crack the God program." I lay out. "We know they are increasing the children's intelligence through oil."
Rose looks confused. "I'm sorry, don't mean to be rude, but what does this have to do with anything?"
I ignore her. "What I don't get is why don't they use their own children?" Looking over at the Doctor, I find his staring at me in thought. "Unless they are unable to for some reason."
Realization bursts across the Doctor's face. "Oh! You are brilliant Willa!" He leans over, gesturing with his hand. "It's the oil. Krillitane life forms can't handle the oil. That's it! They've changed their physiology so often, even their own oil is toxic to them." Turning away from me, he looks at Rose. "How much was there in the kitchens?"
"Barrels of it." Rose replies.
The door creaks as something slams into it. Clearly the Krillitanes have found us.
"Okay, we need to get to the kitchens. Mickey-" The Doctor starts, but is cut off.
"What now, hold the coats?" Mickey asks bitterly.
"Get all the children unplugged and out of the school." The Doctor orders, ignoring the sass. "Now then, bats, bats, bats. How do we fight bats?"
The boy, who's still with us, shakes his head. He goes over and smashes the button for the fire alarm.
Huh, loud noises and sensitive bat ears. Smart kid.
We escape past the Krillitanes once again, and I'm not going to lie, this is starting to feel like a Scooby Doo episode. When it comes time to part ways, I head off with Mickey instead of the Doctor and the others.
The Doctor shoots me a look and I shake my head. I'll be more use helping Mickey then I will be just tagging along with them.
"Alright, lets get these kids out of here." I murmur, heading into the classroom to the right, while Mickey does the same on the left.
It quickly becomes apparent that the children aren't responding to any outward stimuli. For a brief second I wish I had the Doctor's screwdriver so I could turn off the power to the monitors, before I smack myself in the head at the thought.
I don't need his screwdriver, I can just unplug the damn power cord. Which is what I do. The monitors turn off and the children look up in confusion.
"Alright, may I have your attention please!" I raise my voice to be heard. "The school is evacuating, head toward the front of the building as quickly as possible."
Nothing happens.
"Now!" I bark, which gets them moving.
Then it all becomes a blur of checking classrooms, and makings sure no one stays inside the building. I meet up with Mickey at the end of the third hallway.
"I think that's everyone." He states, sounding confident.
"Then it's time to get out ourselves." I murmur back, following him as he leads us back towards the exit.
It's not a moment to soon either. As soon as we clear the building, it explodes. The children go nuts, cheering as paper floats down on us.
I spin around, hearts beating fast as I attempt to locate the Doctor. It would be just like him to blow himself up.
A flash of brown catches my attention. There he is, near the back of the crowd, holding Sarah who looks as though she's crying.
My heartsrate slows down, and I turn to face the school to give them privacy. Closing my eyes gives me a flash, just a small one, of K9's last stand. Of Finch calling K9 a bad dog, and K9 responding with a cheeky affirmative before everything goes up in flames.
Finch was wrong, K9 was a very good dog. No wonder Sarah was upset. K9 had been with her for a very long time, had been her companion long after the Doctor had dropped her off.
Maybe there was something we'd be able to repair in the wreckage?
Sirens go off in the distance, someone finally cluing into the fact that the school had exploded and informed the proper authorities. Which also meant that it was a good idea to grab the Tardis and leave. Another glance towards the Doctor shows that Sarah is in no condition to drive, let alone remove herself from the scene. I nudge Mickey.
"Why don't you drive them back to Sarah house?" I prompt.
I can see that Mickey doesn't understand at first, but he pauses before anything can come out of his mouth. He glances back at Sarah, before turning to me and nodding.
Looking at Rose, I jerk my head towards the building. "It's probably a good idea to get back to the Tardis before the authorities get here."
She frowns. "What about the Doctor?"
"He's busy right now." I respond, already heading for the building.
There's a pause, then Rose's hurried footsteps as she catches up with me.
"Yeah, I see what you mean." She murmurs, content to follow me for the time being.
I make a detour to the kitchens, it's not hard to find, all I had to do was follow the area of destruction.
There are bits of Krillitanes on the walls, but I ignore that as best I can, stepping over what I'm going to assume is Finch's body and kneeling next to the remains of K9. He's bent and scorched, but at least there's something left. Removing my jacket, I wrap it around the metal casing and pick him up.
"Can we go now?" Rose asks, sounding queasy.
"Yeah." I murmur, trying my best to ignore the smell.
It doesn't take long for us to get to the Tardis, and we are just in time too, I can hear loud voices echoing down the hallways. Once inside, I make my excuses to Rose and head down to the workshop.
Sitting on the table waiting for me are three different books. One is a book on 51st century cybernetics, another is a book on omniflexible hyperlinks, and the third is an invaluable resource. It looks to be a handwritten journal on all the updates and repair work the Doctor has ever done on this version of K9, and well, all the others versions of K9 as well, which I only know because of the illustrations. It's in Circular Gallifreyan, which makes it almost useless to me, but I'm sure I could pull the Doctor into the project.
I start reading the one on 51st century cybernetics. By the time I'm halfway through it, it becomes clear that this is a project that I'm definitely going to need the Doctor's help with, or something I'm going to need more than one book on.
It's around that point, when I'm nearly tearing my hair out over the fact that there's no pictures, even the Doctor's journal had pictures, that my phone rings.
I accept the call and bring it up to my ear. "Hello?"
'Willa, are you in the Tardis?' The Doctor asks.
"Yep, thought it'd be a good idea to disappear before the authorities got here." I explain, half of my attention still on the book in front of me.
'Good, Good.' He murmurs. 'We've tried getting back in but they have it pretty well guarded.'
A brief jolt of confusion runs through me. Even if they had the place locked down he still should have been able to get in. Unless.. "Psychic paper didn't work?"
The Doctor grumbles. 'No, the guy said he didn't see anything at all. Do you know how little imagination you have to have for that to happen?'
"Did they kick you out?" I ask, biting back a smile.
'It's not funny Willa.' He scolds, but it's a mild scold at best.
Clearing my throat, I get to the reason he really called in the first place. "You want us to meet you somewhere?"
'Yeah.' The Doctor murmurs. 'There's a park not far from where Sarah lives. Called 'Belle Vue Park'. Think you can get the Tardis there?'
"Wait, you want me to fly the Tardis there?" I ask, alarmed. When I asked if he wanted us to meet him I figured we would just slip past the guards.
There's a pause. 'Don't be nervous, you've done it before.' Muffled voices come over the connection, like he's talking with someone else. 'We should be back in that area soon. Give it a solid 20 minutes to make it easier on yourself.'
"Okay, I'll see you there." I say, mostly on auto pilot, and pull the phone away from my ear to hang up.
'Willa.' The Doctor calls out, voice warm.
I pause, bringing the phone back up to my ear. "Yeah."
'You can do this.' He asserts, then hangs up before I can say anything.
'I can do this' huh. I stare at the phone with a mixture of annoyance and apprehension.
The Tardis burbles, flashing her lights at me.
"I know, I know." I grumble, getting up from the table and walking down the hallway towards the console room.
She chimes, the tone distinctly scolding.
Sighing, I drop the attitude. "Sorry..I'm just nervous."
If anything, her tone of disapproval gets deeper.
"I know, I've done this a hundred times." I explain. "But every time the Doctor has been there to make sure I don't mess up." Pausing, I re-think my statement. "Well almost every time, but that was an emergency!"
A gust of wind blows down the hallway and pushes me into the console room that I've been hesitating outside of.
"Okay Willa." I say to myself, looking at my hands. "Stop being a baby about this."
My hands follow through with the motions, it's something that they've been well versed in. One quick moment to verify the coordinates and the time differential, another to make sure we won't end up in Constantinople or something, and then we are off.
The Tardis shakes, though not as much as when the Doctor drives, and I fling myself around the console. Adjusting this button, and tweaking that lever.
Rose comes running out of the hallway. "Doctor, are we-" But she cuts herself off when she sees that's it's me instead of the Doctor and alarm spreads over her face. "What are you doing?"
For some reason her obvious alarm in the face of me doing something that I wasn't quite certain of doing in the first place makes me more confident. "Flying the Tardis."
"Are you-Are you supposed to be doing that?" She asks, starting to look like she's regretting following me onto the Tardis.
I sigh. "Yes."
And then we land.
The door opens immediately, and the Doctor's beaming face pops into view. He rushes up the ramp and pulls me into a hug, twirling me around. "22 minutes on the dot! Great job Willa!" He sets me down and smiles at me.
I can't help but smile back, giddy at my success. "I did it!"
The Doctor's smile softens. "Yes, you did." His finger taps me on the nose. "I told you that you could."
Rose clears her throat, the look on her face not pleasant at all. "Excuse me, is anyone allowed to drive the Tardis now?"
"Of course not." The Doctor responds, sending Rose a stern look. "Willa is allowed to do so because I've taught her how."
"Taught her.." Rose trails off, looking at the ground. "You said five years earlier."
"Huh?" I ask, but I already know what's she's talking about.
"It might have been three months for me, but it was 5 years for you guys." Rose clarifies, glancing up from under her lashes.
I reach out, and hidden from sight by his coat, pinch the Doctor in the side.
"Yes." The Doctor answers, swaying away from my hand. "You didn't really think that Willa could have grown that much is a short amount of time, did you?"
"No." She admits. "I just didn't want to think about it."
Feeling awkward, I take a step back. "So, I think the two of you need to talk a bit more."
The Doctor looks at Rose with an inscrutable expression. "Yes, I think we do as well."
Before I leave though, I reach out and touch the Doctor's arm to get his attention. "After you're talk, if you have time, there's a project I'm working on that I need some help with." He nods, distracted. So I head towards the corridor. "Oh! And don't move the Tardis just yet!"
"Willa." The Doctor sends me a look. One that very clearly says, 'you were the one who told us we needed to talk, so let us talk.'
"Yep! Bye!" I call out, hurrying down the corridor.
Getting back to the workshop is easy, the Tardis must be in a good mood because she hadn't changed any corridors around. By the time I get there, a sort of determination has filled me. I may not understand everything in the books I read, but that doesn't mean I can't do what I can.
And I did read enough to understand how to try and salvage individual parts.
So, carefully and with more confidence the longer I work at it, I start to remove components from K9 and set them down on the mat next to me.
I'm so absorbed in the work that I don't hear the Doctor come in. In fact, it isn't until he places a hand on my shoulder that I come out of the hyper-focused fog that I've spiraled down into.
"K9 huh?" He asks me.
I blink at him, before nodding. "Yeah, I couldn't leave him there." Biting my lip, I shake my head. "The intention was to fix him, but K9 took a lot of damage.."
The Doctor grabs a chair from the other table and sit down, giving me his full attention. "What do you have so far?"
"I'm still in the process of seeing what all I can salvage." I explain, fondness rushing through me at his actions. He could see very clearly what I'd already done, but since I asked for his help and not for him to take over the project, he was letting me fumble through it myself. "The fact that his side panel was open when everything exploded didn't help."
"But, so long as his primary data chip is okay-" I murmur, picking up a pair of needle nose pliers and gently pulling said card from the opening I'd spent the last 20 minutes creating. It's undamaged, perfect. "Then we should be able to re-build him and have him retain knowledge of Sarah Jane."
"You're planning on giving him back to Sarah then?" The Doctor asks.
"Of course." I reply, giving him a look. "This K9 was Sarah's. It's only right that she gets him back if we manage to repair him."
His lips twitch in amusement. "You seem to have all this figured out, what did you need my help for?"
Gently placing the chip on the mat, I blow out an exasperated sigh. "The Tardis left me all the books I would need to fix him, but reading isn't always enough. I don't have the practical skills to know what half of the terms mean." My face descends into sulk territory. "And none of them have pictures."
Perking up, I widen my eyes and give the Doctor my best 'please, please' face. "That's where you come in! Plus you've fixed K9's before."
The Doctor grumbles, putting his hand over my eyes and pushing me gently away. "Put those eyes away, you already knew I was going to help you."
I laugh at him, but stop my puppy dogs eyes nonetheless. "I know that, I just couldn't resist."
His pretend grumpiness lasts all of 5 minutes before he's back to his normal self. He even digs up several replacement parts for K9 from..somewhere, including a new frame.
After everything was all said and done, and K9 sparkled while we were covered in grease, I was tired but satisfied.
The Doctor takes K9 through a couple of basic exercises, but it seemed like everything was working properly and the primary data chip did its job. K9 remembers Sarah and is pleased to be going back to her.
I hug the Doctor, giddy from the two success's of the day. He laughs, returning the hug, before pushing me away with a theatrical sniff. "Go, take a shower. I'll take K9 out to Sarah. She should be getting here soon anyways."
I raise an eyebrow. "I'm guessing that even if I hadn't picked K9 up, you would have gone back for him anyways."
"You would most likely be right." The Doctor admits without shame.
Shaking my head at him fondly, I head off to take that shower. By the time I'm done, Sarah has been given K9 and somehow Mickey has joined us.
I raise an eyebrow at the Doctor in response to that, but he just shrugs.
Rose eventually excuses herself, as well as Mickey, and goes to take him on a tour. She seems pleased to see Mickey, which is a nice turn around from the grumpiness that she was showing him earlier.
The Doctor excuses himself as well, citing the need of a shower of his own.
xxxx
Several hours pass, and here I am, silently walking through the darkness towards the Doctor's door.
The door opens before I even properly get to it, and I peer into the darkness. The Tardis raises the lights, just enough for me to see the Doctor lying in bed. He doesn't look like he's having pleasant dreams. Which was what I had been afraid of. Feeling more certain of myself now, I climb into the armchair next to his bed.
Getting myself situated, I reach over and gently place my hand on top of the wrist that's made its way out of the covers. The Doctor's face immediately calms.
Nightmares. Not surprising. Finch had brought up a lot of memories of the Time War, giving the Doctor hope that he could bring everyone back. In fact, I was surprised that other than nightmares the Doctor hadn't reacted quite as badly as I'd feared he would.
I pull out the book I had brought with me, a huge book on 51st century medical practices. It's a boring thing, guaranteed to put anyone to sleep. I'm hoping the bored feeling it gives me will translate over to the Doctor and keep him relaxed enough to properly rest.
Eventually, the events of the day start to catch up to me as well. My head bobs, up and down, and I try to fight the sleep it's telling me to get. I remember when I could spend days awake but living here and following a semi reliable sleeping schedule has spoiled me.
I'm asleep before I have a chance to realize it.
Arashi – IV of VI – You spiraled up all sort of ideas, but those are things that will probably take a long time to get to plot wise. -insert evil cackling here-
Rosealyn – I'm glad you liked the side story, I did read your review but Fanfic has a strange review system when it comes to replies (Or maybe I just can't figure out how to do it properly, that's equally as likely) so I couldn't reply to you over there unless I create a new chapter. (Or edit the original one.)
I'm glad you like what I'm doing here! I've stepped things up a bit in this chapter, moved it a bit more away from canon then it had been, so now we're firmly on our way down the rabbit hole!
Aranel Nenharma (On chapter 1) – Don't worry, the new chapter is here!
