The Time Lord stood wide-eyed at the hole where Eva's foot should have been.
"Stop staring at me!" yelled Eva as she yanked her foot from the hole in the floor. "Just stop it!"
He quickly fixed his baffled gaze onto her face. There was so much anger written in her facial expression, and so much rage in her voice. Within that rage, he also felt that there was a hint of shame. For a moment he continued to stare at her, saying nothing.
Was she really strong enough to break through the floor? He wondered. Or was the floor simply weak from the damage caused by the recent battle?
He observed her features. She had white skin, long black hair, blue eyes, and an athletic body build. She certainly looked like a human, and she was definitely not a Time Lord. Perhaps the floor was just weak then. Just to be safe, however, he decided to ask her.
"What are you?"
Eva tilted her head in confusion. "What do you mean what am I?"
"You said earlier that you could hear me talking. Prove it. What did I say?"
"Um, y-you said that there was some kind of void." She began, nervously. "And that there were all kinds of different realities or something. I don't remember it all."
"Oh I think you do." Said the Doctor, intrigued. "You're right about what I said. I think you heard more than just that, though."
"I don't know." She replied, irritated. "But I heard you. Maybe you were just loud, or I was just hallucinating."
The Doctor decided to change questions. It was quite evident that he was frightening her. He was quick to notice her short temper that she seemed to display earlier. The last thing he wanted to do was to provoke her, especially if she really was as strong as he suspected her to be.
"So where are you from?" he asked with a smile and a light hearted tone in his voice.
The change in subject came as a relief. "I-I'm from Kansas." Said Eva. "Although I suppose I'm a long way from home right now, aren't I?"
He nodded. "I thought you sounded American. Tell me, how did you end up in London? School? Job? Just wanted to explore?"
Eva shook her head. "No. I was teleported here."
The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "Really? Go on." He said.
"You probably think I'm crazy." She chuckled nervously. "I was teleported by somebody, but I don't know who. He just grabbed me, pushed a yellow button on some device he was holding, dropped me off in London and ran."
There was a moment of awkward silence. The Doctor was curious as to who this mysterious person was, whereas Eva was embarrassed to say anything more. Inside his head, he was piecing together everything that he had witnessed. She claims that she was being sucked in by the breach, meaning that she's travelled between parallel worlds. She also appears to be human, and seems to believe that she is as well. He couldn't stop wondering who could have grabbed her and dropped her off here in London. The yellow button that this girl described sounded a lot like the devices that Mickey and Pete used to teleport between universes. Aside from Pete's World's version of Torchwood, who else had that kind of technology and why?
"And you have no idea who it was?" asked the Doctor.
"Not a clue."
"Tell you what. What's your name?" he asked.
"Eva." She replied. "Eva Knott."
"Eva Knott." he repeated to remember the name. "Where do you live?"
"Why would I tell you that?" she asked.
The Doctor held out his hand. Although he was not simply going to leave her mystery alone, he did want to help this frightened young woman return to where she belonged. "I can take you home, but you have to trust me."
"I don't even know you're name." she said, suspicious of this strange man who she just met.
"I'm the Doctor." He said to her calmly. "And I want to take you home."
She nodded, and took his hand.
"Alright. I'll tell you my street at least." She said.
Perhaps she could place a little of her trust in him. After all, he was her only chance to return home, and he didn't seem to run away from her yet.
They finally managed to reach the basement of Canary Wharf, or rather what was left of it. In the middle of all the wreckage stood a blue police box. The Doctor casually walked to the door, opened it, and stepped inside. After a few seconds he poked his head out and waved at Eva.
"Come on." He said cheerfully. "It's alright."
Eva stepped cautiously closer to the police box, making sure not to lose eye contact with the Doctor, in fear of him trying something. After all, she had still just met him. As she stepped inside, she quickly noticed how massive this box was. The spectacular lights flashing from the main console, combined with the beautiful architecture and size of it all was simply breathtaking.
"Do you like it?" the Doctor asked as he began setting the coordinates. "Beauty isn't she?"
"It's-" Eva stuttered. "It's bigger than out there."
The Doctor smirked and turned to look at her. "Bigger on the inside, you mean? Oh yes."
"But, that…" her voice trailed off as she felt her vision start to fade.
"Eva?" he said, concerned as she began to swoon. "Are you alright?"
She fell to the floor with a loud thud. The Doctor rushed to her aid and pulled out his sonic screwdriver. As he was scanning her vitals, he noticed that her knuckles were red and in some places, broken open. Furthermore, he noticed a tiny silver colored piece of metal poking out of one of them. From the looks of it, it seemed that her knuckles were wounded from a fist fight.
Interesting. He said to himself.
Her vitals were fine, much to his relief, so he reasoned that she simply fainted from the shock of seeing the inside of the TARDIS. After all, it was unlikely for the average human to be on the inside of a dimensionally transcendent ship that could travel through time and space. At least she would be awake by the time they landed back in Kansas. He thought that in the meantime, he would find a spare room for her to be comfortable in. With a series of grunts and groans, the Doctor heaved Eva's unconscious body onto his back, staggering to keep his balance.
The TARDIS quickly hummed, guiding the Doctor to the nearest spare room. As he stomped down the hallway he passed by Rose's room, trying hard not to shed any tears while doing so. He had to keep moving, not get caught up in memories. He continued to huff towards the room right next to Rose's. It was completely empty, save for a bed that was neatly prepared. The Doctor smiled, sensing that the TARDIS had something to do with that, and laid Eva down to rest on top of the bed. Soon she would be back in her own home, and he might have some answers.
"Eva?" said the Doctor as he waved his hand above her face.
That didn't seem to work.
"Psst! Wake up!" he said a little louder, snapping his fingers repeatedly. "We're here! Eva!"
With a loud groan, she began to stir. Her left eye slowly opened to see that strange man in a pinstripe suit standing by her bed.
"Whoa!" Eva exclaimed as she jumped from the bed, startled.
The Doctor stepped backwards, putting his hands in front of him. "It's alright! It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you. Are you always this jittery?"
Eva looked around her room, confused.
"You passed out on the floor." He explained to her. "So I brought you here to rest while I flew you home. Speaking of which, we should get going."
She nodded at him. "Thank you." She said. "I'm sorry I fainted earlier. I-I just"
The Doctor motioned for her to stop talking. "Don't worry about it. Now come on! Your house is just outside! Well, your street is at least."
Without a moment's hesitation, Eva ran out of the door and into the control room. Fearing that she might faint again, the Doctor followed close behind her.
"This way!" he said as he ran toward the doors of the TARDIS.
Eva followed him, and dashed out into the street. There were remains of cars, trash all over the sidewalks and streets, and the bodies of those who did not survive the Cybermen invasion. The wreckage was heartbreaking, yet there was a sense of comfort in the fact that she was once again home. There were injured people walking on the sidewalks amongst the debris, most of them were looking around trying to find their loved ones. Eva looked down at her feet as she walked, not wanting to see the devastation anymore, and hoping that she could no longer hear the cries of people from miles away. They eventually found Eva's house, the door left wide open and the windows broken. Eva was the first to run in, the Doctor following close behind.
She ran up the stairs and into her parents' master bedroom. Then she ran to the bathroom across from it, and finally she checked her room. There was no one else there. She called for her mother and father as she ran down the stairs, past the Doctor, and into the kitchen. Nothing. She turned around, distraught, and noticed that the Doctor had not said a word. He was too busy staring at the Cyberman-shaped indention in the floor. It was there that he believed his suspicion was confirmed.
"What was this?" asked the Doctor, pointing at the indention.
Eva gulped. "It's nothing."
The Doctor was getting frustrated with her. She was so reluctant to be honest with him, always trying to hide something, but why? He let out a deep breath before deciding to be a bit more firm with his search for answers.
"You see this indention right here? That's in the shape of a Cyberman, Eva. Now I know you know more about it because I found a piece of high content metal in one of your knuckles, which by the way, were cut open from repeatedly punching something with a hard surface."
Eva started feeling nervous. There was no way to explain away what she had done any longer. He knew.
"Now that high content metal is specific to the Cybermen that just invaded." The Doctor walked closer toward her, confident that she was just nervous enough to be honest with him without snapping this time.
"I suspect, Eva," he continued in a sterner manner. "That you know that this isn't 'nothing'."
He stopped about three feet away from her, and looked her in the eyes. "You punched that Cyberman didn't you?"
Eva shook her head fiercely, her eyes tearing up. She was afraid, because he knew. He knew that she was a freak. A mutant of some sort.
"You must have not only punched it, you beat it to pieces."
"No!" she shouted at him. "Get away from me!"
"It's okay, Eva." He said calmly. "You don't have to lie to me."
He kept a close eye on her as she began to sob. She could snap at any time, and they both knew it. There was something she was revealing through all of her emotional reactions, and all her attempts to stay secretive. She was afraid not just of him, but of herself. She had the power to pummel a Cyberman, yet was ashamed of it. The sudden realization gave him the strength to risk prying further.
"Eva, look at me." He said, using his hand to gently raise her chin to meet his eye level. "You're strong, aren't you?"
She sniffled, then nodded.
"You don't need to be ashamed of that." He told her. "You don't need to be afraid."
"I do." She said. "I heard you from Kansas City, and I beat a Cyberman to death. Tell me how I'm not supposed to be afraid?!"
"When did you start being able to do this?"
She calmed down, took a moment to gather her thoughts and get herself together, and then replied. "About three months ago. It happens on and off. Until today I thought all the voices were inside my head. I never realized that they were real."
"You heard me all the way from the other side of the world. What about your strength?"
"That was today." She said. "I didn't mean to be so violent. I'm sorry."
The Doctor gathered his thoughts, trying to choose his next question very carefully so as to not anger her. It was quite obvious at this point that she was no ordinary human, or even a human at all. After a few seconds, he had found a way to ask her in a way that would not appear obvious. He needed to be subtle, so as to keep her calm.
"So what are you?" he asked.
Obviously, his attempt at subtlety had failed quite miserably.
Eva sighed, and managed to keep her composure. "I don't know." She answered. "I don't know what I am."
The Doctor smiled at her with compassion.
"Then come with me." He told her. "Let's find out."
Eva looked behind her. There was no sign of her parents, no sound of their voices, and nothing left for her anymore. She thought that at this point, there was nothing to lose.
"Okay." She said, managing to crack a smile.
The Doctor grabbed her by the hand.
"Right then! Allons-Y!"
Together they ran toward the TARDIS, and vanished into the great unknown.
A/N: Thanks for the reception! I am new to writing so any constructive criticism would be most welcome. There are probably still some questions, but I will reveal more in later chapters! Hope you enjoy. =)
