Footsteps. Men's shoes; size ten. 6 foot tall. Irregular gait. Loose clothing.
Hesitating. He knows I'm in here.
Footsteps. Slow. In no hurry. What does he want? What is his goal?
Who is "The Doctor"
All these thoughts ran through Sara Lance's head as The Doctor grew closer to the cargo hold where she was sharpening her knives, preparing incase their mission in ancient Rome turned violent. (As almost all of their missions did) Her gray brick-like whetstone in one hand, the other ran the side of the knife down the middle of the stone.
Move it forwards, pull it towards you, flip the blade, repeat.
The Doctor came in and leaned comfortably against the hard metal door of the ship. Sara didn't look up or acknowledge him, her mind whirring methodically through the simple actions. However, The Doctor was observing her- and in a deeper way than Sara would have expected.
"We will never forgo the trust, We will fight through the pain and hunger..."
Sara stopped sharpening her knife.
"...Every arrow, every knife."
Sara put her knife back in it's spot in the White Canary case.
"And we will never give the hope up, Of a proud and honest life."
"Shakespeare?" Sara asked.
"Billy Elliot, but I've met Shakespeare too."
After giving Sara time to grab another knife, The Doctor gathered enough courage to ask, "You know, out of all the people on this ship, you may be my favorite."
"Aw, that's sweet. But I'm not into bow-ties."
The Doctor shook his head with a smile and said, "No, no it's not that. You just remind me of someone."
"Someone you lost?"
"Not quite; someone I will lose."
Sara put her knife back in it's case (still dull) and stood, "Well in my experience the only way you can lose someone is if you forget them. Until then, a small piece of them will always be with you."
With that said, Sara walked past The Doctor towards her personal quarters. The Doctor turned and said, "It's your eyes, actually."
Sara froze. Her mind whirring but no thought went through her head as the possibilities were infinite and the situation unreadable even for her.
"I see the same look in her eyes when she thinks I'm not paying attention, when she thinks no one is looking. I see her in pain, and I sometimes I can even see a thirst to cause pain but I also see her channeling it to do good and I can see that in your eyes too, Sara."
The Doctor paused, thinking of River. How River bravely and quietly struggled because of Kovarian. How, despite being brainwashed into the perfect psychopath and assassin, River became a loving and kind woman who has saved countless lives.
"Don't think that because you are in pain and can enjoy causing it that you cannot be loved. If someone has hope, and kindness, and love, and compassion… they always deserve to be happy. Despite whatever they may have done in the past."
Without turning around, Sara said slowly, "She- She must be something special."
The Doctor smiled and began walking towards Sara, "Yes. I have lived for over a thousand years, Sara Lance." The Doctor walked around to face Sara and took her shoulders in his hands, somehow seeming taller and much older than her than when he first arrived. "Sara, I walked away from a war as the only survivor of my species. I witnessed the birth and death of the multiverse until I was the only thing left. I have seen and lost things no one will ever understand, but you- you and River Song have experienced things I can never understand. You live a life I will never be able to comprehend, and are somehow able to fight not only your own dark side but others who have given into their own evil. Despite all the knowledge as I have amassed during my long long life, I can not save her. I can't save you either."
Sara wiped an unshed tear from her face, and was trying to prevent others from falling.
The Doctor said, "I accepted my demons long ago, and once River accepted her's she was happier. We were happier, because she knew she could happy and deserved as much as she could get. When I found out I was going to lose her, I began denying myself the right to be happy with her.
Don't make the same mistakes I made, Sara. Know that you deserve happiness. Please."
Sara nodded, wiping her eyes again. The Doctor patted her shoulders before putting his hands in his pockets as he turned back towards the cargo hold. As he walked off he yelled, "And for the record… bow ties are cool!"
Sara, for the first time in what felt like forever, broke into a spontaneous grin and openly laughed before disappearing into the corridor.
The Doctor smiled; he missed hearing River laugh like that…
As soon as we take care of this abberation, The Ponds and I are going home.
