Chapter Two: You with the Stars in Your Eyes

Flesh connecting with flesh. The sound of rain hitting dusty ground. The little girl would forever tie the two together in her little head. And her little head was telling her now, that she should disobey. Like the Man in the Cage. The man Daddy didn't know was talking to her.

The Doctor.

Daddy had never been one to separate work and family time. He didn't believe in it, as he so often said.

But the day she first met the Man in the Cage, the Doctor, she'd known.

She just hadn't realized what until the next time they'd spoken to each other without words.

And it hadn't been words really, because he was too weak. Too old. It wasn't right, him being old, somehow. Well it was, but it wasn't. But his pretty eyes, like chocolate and sunshine, they always smiled down at her, their warm light filling her brain with all the hugs and flowers and toys and books in the world, and she wasn't afraid.

So when he looked at her one day, and didn't smile, merely tossed burned chocolate eyes red with tears toward her mother's room, Lucia knew she had to go and look.

Two guards tried to keep Lucia distracted with some of the expensive gifts her father had gotten her, but they knew all too well it would never work.
"Come on Lucia, your parents are busy right now. Come play with us!" they said to her calmly, showing no emotion as they kept their eyes on the doors.

"I don't wanna. I wanna play with Mummy and Daddy. What are they doing?" Lucia asked the two guards, picking up a pink teddy bear that said "Daddy Loves You" on its t-shirt.

"Luuuuuciiiiiiaaaaaaaaa!" The poor creature in the cage cried out her name, desperate to get her attention.

Lucia turned and the two guards pointed their guns at the tiny frail thing.

"Put the weapons down." commanded Lucia. "Let the creature speak. He won't hurt me."

The two guards looked at each other then put their weapons down on the floor, watching as Lucia advanced towards the creature.

The frail little thing reached out through the bars, touching Lucia's cold hands.
"Lucia, listen to me. Run, run as fast as you can. Don't stop. Just get out of here"

Lucia didn't really understand. Run from what, her family?

"I-I don't understand" she replied.

Fear struck the little man's eyes and as he shifted himself to a standing position he raised his hands to her face, his wrinkly old skin was rough feeling against Lucia's own soft pale skin so it wasn't a surprise to him when she flinched and then let him touch her face once more.

"Lucia…your father….."
The explanation never came; it never could escape his mouth because he knew all too well that she would soon see it for herself. And he was right, because a few minutes later the bedroom got noisier – with voices hissing and people cursing.

"You listen to me Lucy, I helped you get to where you are now- don't you dare make me angry. You don't like me when I'm angry, remember?" hissed her father, the commotion behind the door getting louder.

"Our daughter out there is your flesh and blood, are you going to hurt her like you hurt me?" came her mother's reply.

An angry growl came from behind their door, then a few moments later there was a smash, a gasp… and then Lucia ran towards the noise.

"I would never hurt her.", spat her father.

"Mummy, Daddy?" asked Lucia, knocking on her parents door.

There was no answer, so little Lucia pushed with all her might at one of the huge grand doors. Then she saw them.

Her father was standing over her cowering mother.

Her mother seemed to be okay when Lucia looked at her, but then she noticed the trail of blood running down her face and onto her already red lips. Lucia didn't know anymore if it was lipstick or blood, but she was shocked at what she witnessed.

"Daddy!" Lucia gasped, backing away from the door. "Mummy, what…what's going on? Why did you….why did you let him do that to you? HOW COULD YOU DADDY?"

Her father turned, fear and anger crossing his face as he realised his daughter had seen everything.

"Harry, she saw us!" Mommy just kept hissing it, over and over.

The next thing he heard was the sound of his daughter's feet slamming against the marble floor as she ran to her room. Her wailing echoed through the many halls, through the prison blocks and through the many libraries. There was only the Doctor, sad-faced... a helpless little creature in his cage. He sat there, shaking his little head, and his eyes, eyes that had filled her, sprang a leak. He was looking at Daddy. A good man, and an evil man. He was looking at Daddy.
No words were said, no physical contact made between them- there were only his own eyes, emptying of light. But the madness in Daddy's eyes didn't seem to be leaving, and suddenly it was just them, only them in the entire universe, the man leaking hope, and the man lost in his own insanity.

"Harry, she saw us. She saw us!" came Mommy's terrified voice

He said nothing; the images of his daughter running away from him were stuck in his head on an endless replay. Then the drums started to play their rhythm once more and as he walked past the poor caged creature to follow his daughter's wails, the drums gradually got louder and louder. The never-ending pounding of the drums stuck in his head, louder and louder they grew until he thought the imaginary drums would burst out of his mind to prance around in front of his eyes, to dance on the cold marble floor.