I had SO much fun with this chapter. Mainly because writing Marion and Aliya ripping into each other is a lot more amusing than it probably should be. I blame Marion.
Thanks so much for all your feedback so far!
When all of this was over, Aliya would be more than happy to never visit the 43rd century again. Ever.
Due to the loss of Ood slavery in the 42nd century, by the time the 43rd century came around, most species had devolved into using slaves of almost any species, opening up a new intergalactic slave market on a scale that was as huge as it was sickening.
Certainly not where one wanted to find their daughter.
It also didn't help that the only defining physical characteristics they had to tell other people was red hair and "probably" hazel eyes. The two hearts thing was fine to mention if they were sure whoever they were talking to could be trusted, but telling dodgier parties how to identify one of the only Gallifreyans left in the universe was not something they wanted to be doing.
"What if she's not in the regeneration that Jenny met her in, though?" Aliya found herself asking the Doctor more than once. "What if she's still a child and we're looking for the wrong person?"
"It's possible," he replied, "But we'll still know her when we see her."
With any parties they could trust, they left Mariaka's physical and biological description and the number for Aliya's phone, which had the universal upgrade which meant wherever they were in the 43rd century (or anywhere in space and time), they could reach her.
The real problem was the scale of their searching ground. Which was the entire universe across an entire century. They could have been three decades and two galaxies away from wherever Mariaka was or they have could missed her by a minute at any given time when they left for somewhere new.
Even worse – she could be on the move too, and they could be going in circles around each other. There was no way to know.
"This isn't working."
The Doctor and Aliya had trudged into the TARDIS after a disappointing visit to one of the more markedly criminal areas of the Horsehead Nebula. Covered in more substances than they wanted to name or even think about, they had met eyes and shared in a tired sigh.
Intergalactic gangs like the one they had been visiting – the Doctor had saved several of their members including their leader on a previous misadventure with Amy and therefore had their friendship – had some of the biggest reaches when it came to information and influence. It had been a good plan.
Unfortunately, the Stallions, as they called themselves, had not seen or heard of any young Gallifreyan, child or redhead or otherwise.
After two months of intensive searching, the Time Lords were starting to lose hope. Not entirely, of course, not with the reassurance that never left the safety of the Doctor's pocket. But enough to feel disheartened and worry even more about what state their daughter might be in when they found her.
Aliya had imagined everything from being chained to the floor in a dungeon to being brainwashed into leading an army of clerics to being strapped to a table and prodded by human scientists.
The Doctor, thankfully, did his best to notice when her imagination was hitting overdrive and made sure that she stopped torturing herself. Such thoughts weren't good for either of them.
"I told Jenny we would let her help us once we'd looked in the more unsavoury places," Aliya said to him as they headed through the corridors to a bathroom that had a shower big enough for both of them.
One perk of two months having passed was that Aliya's body had had the time to heal more efficiently, meaning she could easily walk, stand, and even run. Though the latter only for short periods of time. Her lower body was still healing even if Kovarian's medics had done a reasonably good job of fixing her up.
"I suppose we have checked most of them by now," the Doctor admitted, "At this point we could use her optimism."
"We're both optimists."
"Yes, but even optimists like us can get dragged down sometimes," he said, bopping her nose with his finger, "And that's when we need to be refreshed by someone like Jenny."
"I've definitely missed her through all this," Aliya agreed as they entered the bathroom, "It's practically impossible to be sad when she's smiling at you."
"I know." The Doctor flicked his eyes over her. "Now let's get you out of those clothes."
Aliya's eyebrow shot up and she grinned. "Well, if you say so."
"Doctor's orders."
She snorted while he stripped her of her grimy clothing. Once it was on the floor, she helped him discard his own. There was an incineration chute in the wall and together they threw the clothes into it. There was no need for them to ever have to see or smell them ever again.
Aliya grabbed the Doctor's hand and pulled him into the steaming hot shower. Both of them let out contented sighs at the feel of the scalding water washing all the dirt from their hair and the very pores of their skin.
"One day, you're going to tell me exactly how you made friends with the Stallions," she said to him as she ran her hands through her hair, "And why the hell you didn't tell them the benefits of making their headquarters somewhere that isn't fucking disgusting and covered with literal mounds of shit that are practically impossible to avoid stepping in."
He laughed. "One day." He grabbed the shampoo bottle while she went for the soap, and with the power of teamwork their bodies and hair were clean rather quickly.
"That feels so good," Aliya murmured, shutting her eyes and smiling. It had felt like she was never going to be clean again.
The Doctor, who was at that point standing behind her, wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back against him so that he could kiss the top of her shoulder.
"I never thought I would see the day when I considered showering alone boring, but it really, really is in comparison," he said into her skin.
"That's because you have the attention span of a puppy," she retorted, "Actually, you just are a puppy. Period." At that, he lifted his head and licked a stripe up her cheek, making her squeal and push away from him. "What is wrong with you?" She couldn't bring herself to sound angry because she was too busy laughing her head off. "That wasn't an invitation!"
"But you still think I'm cute," he said, a little smugly.
Aliya just rolled her eyes and lifted herself onto her tiptoes to kiss him lightly. "Maybe. Against my better judgement."
He just grinned. "You love me really."
"Also against my better judgement."
He kissed her this time, with both hands at the top of her neck so that he could tilt her head up to better align with his. "Shhh. You're spoiling it," he whispered, his lips ghosting over hers before trailing up and across her jaw. Warmth spread through her entire body and the physical need she hadn't let cloud her mind since before Demon's Run became to thrum through her.
So Aliya took charge and kissed him more forcefully while tugging him back so that her back was against the tiled shower wall. He went along with it as more of a reflex, but when she hooked her leg around his, his eyes flew open as he realised her intent.
She got in before he could say anything, choosing to reply to what he had said to her. "Spoil me back, then," she suggested, smirking. He swallowed. Hard.
"Aliya, are you sure?" He asked, frowning. She understood his hesitation. They hadn't been overly physical with each other since Demon's Run, for two reasons. The first being that the number one priority was finding Mariaka. The second reason was due to Aliya's still healing body and neither of them wanting to do anything that might set her back at all. But her body was mostly fine now and Aliya was most definitely sure about what she currently wanted.
So in response, she just nodded and pulled him into another kiss. This time, he didn't argue.
Landing in Torchwood was somehow both a serious affair and a joyous one. Serious because everyone there knew that their visit was due to a lack of success, but joyous because the Doctor and Aliya had missed Jenny terribly and were glad to be able to wrap her in a large group hug.
"No luck, then?" Jack asked as he entered the workstation area after hearing the blue box materialise.
"Virtually none," the Doctor replied, "But it's a big universe. At least she was able to give us any clue at all, or we'd have an even harder job."
"At least we're not really getting any older," the immortal joked, and the Time Lords shook their heads at the bad joke.
"And I'm fine," Hart interjected, coming up from a trip to the basement, "Not that anyone's bothered to ask. Thank god Bitch On Legs knows her medicine."
"More like thank god Bitch On Legs would have gotten fired if she had refused to treat you," a nearby Marion said flatly, "Or else you might have been in real trouble." Her eyes flicked to Aliya. "Thanks for not getting any of my teammates killed."
Aliya narrowed her eyes. "I honestly can't tell if that is supposed to be sarcasm is not."
"Of course you can't," Marion muttered, shaking her head before sitting down at her computer and promptly ignoring them as she got back to work.
"How long has it been for you two since Demon's Run?" Jenny asked her parents.
"About two months, and we've found nothing," Aliya replied, trying not to look as disappointed as she felt, "Which is why we're here. I said you could help once we looked in some of the dodgier places. Do you still want to come?"
The girl nodded excitedly. "More than anything. She's my little sister. I want to help."
"Well, we definitely need it," the Doctor told her, "We need all the help we can get."
Jenny definitely seemed pleased by the comment about them needing her. "Okay. Jack, I can go, right? You don't need me?"
Jack smiled at her. "No, Jen, they need you more right now. Just grab your latest reports and bring them to me in my office and you're good to go."
Jenny made a squealing noise and hurried to do just that while Jack headed back in the direction of his office. Hart similarly went off to do whatever it was that he did at Torchwood, which Aliya realised she had no clue about other than his general knowledge of aliens and fighting techniques.
Marion watched Jenny rushing towards Jack's office, a thoughtful expression on the brunette's face. A moment later she got up from her chair and made to follow. The Doctor and Aliya, who had both noticed this, shared slightly puzzled looks. Still, there wasn't much to do but quietly plan some of the places they planned to search next.
They had gone to the children's home in America, of course, but it had been deserted. Given older Mariaka's helpful hint of which time zone to search, it hadn't been surprising to know that her younger self had been immediately removed from any environment where they might know where to find her. After all, the 43rd century had never held any significance for either them or Aliya's captors as far as they knew, the Doctor's travels to the Ood sphere aside. So it actually made sense that their daughter was there since the objective was likely to keep her away from their influence.
They had considered a while back that if Mariaka had been bred for war, some of the 43rd century's war zones might be their best bet. Of course, they weren't particularly keen on entering active war zones either, and so had not. The other option was to search the most desolate places, if the point had been to hide her.
Now they had to factor Jenny into the decision. On one hand, her soldier skills would be useful in a war zone, but neither of them liked the idea of putting her in so much danger.
They still hadn't reached a decision when Jenny came practically bouncing back into the workspace area with a huge grin on her face. Behind her, a cautious Marion followed, her hands in her pockets and her eyes even more guarded than usual.
"Guess what?" Jenny asked them when she got closer, looking between them with barely contained energy.
The Doctor glanced at Aliya before asking, "What?"
Jenny beamed. "Marion's offered to come with us! To help!" Both of the girl's parents felt their jaws drop and their eyes snap to Marion with paralleled shock.
"What?"
Marion, who was standing a little way behind Jenny, thankfully looked as uncomfortable as they became the moment they realised she hadn't denied it.
"Why?" Aliya asked, narrowing her eyes.
"I'm not doing it for you," Marion snapped, crossing her arms and glaring at them, "I'm doing it for her. These last two weeks she hasn't shut up about wanting to find her baby sister. I need some peace. If putting up with you two for a short while is what it takes to get it, then so be it."
"Plus, you know, she's never been into space or anything," Jenny added, clearly trying to build some common ground between the two parties, "It'll be experience enough that you wouldn't need to worry about owing her."
Marion shot Jenny a sharp look. "I'm capable of speaking for myself, princess." But then she frowned and looked at the Doctor and Aliya with a surprising awkwardness as she gave a tiny shrug. "But, well, that's essentially what I told her when I suggested it, so-"
"Thank you," the Doctor said, smiling at her. Aliya felt annoyance flicker through her. She wasn't so sure she wanted to agree to this, but the Doctor was both desperate and overly optimistic when it came to people's natures, so of course he was going to say yes. "We'd certainly appreciate it. Someone with your skill-"
"You're a real medical Doctor too," Aliya pointed out to him, aware of the bitterness in her voice but not particularly caring, "It's not like it's a skill set we don't already have-"
"They're likely to be different in some respects, actually," the Doctor said, frowning at her attitude.
"Also, I'm good in a fight," Marion reminded them.
The idea of a helpful Marion was so wrong that Aliya found an unexpected rage bursting out of her. "Yes, we're aware of that, you genocidal bitch-"
"Aliya!" The Doctor and Jenny exclaimed with horror. Marion meanwhile, hadn't even flinched.
"No," Aliya argued, "I don't trust her-"
"And fair enough," the brunette retorted, making the others go quiet with slight surprise, "But you don't need to. You just need to trust her." She nodded towards Jenny. "Because she trusts me."
"She's three-"
Jenny blinked. "Hey, that's really uncalled for." She frowned at her. "I'm not a stupid kid and don't you dare treat me like one just because of some totally unreasonable dislike you've got going on."
Aliya stared at her for a moment before realising just out of line she had been. She deflated and sighed. "I'm sorry, Jenny."
"If I'd said I was doing it for you, then you would have been an idiot to trust my intentions," Marion said quietly, her own potent dislike obvious in her voice and glare, "But I'm not doing it for you. It's not all about you or your opinion, and last time I checked it wasn't your ship." Her expression turned neutral as she shifted her eyes to the Doctor. "So, Doctor, do you want the help of the genocidal bitch?"
The Doctor shifted with discomfort as he held her gaze. "Er, yes. Please."
"Alright then."
Aliya remained silent, knowing that nothing she said would help the situation for better or worse, and that was likely a good thing. Marion and Jenny were both right, as loathe as she was to admit it even just to herself. Marion would be a valuable asset to their search party and they all knew it. She couldn't let a personal grudge get in the way of her youngest daughter's wellbeing.
"Then, er, shall we?" The Doctor suggested, nodding towards the TARDIS. "The 43rd century isn't getting any closer with us just standing out here." They all agreed and headed for the police box, but when they got there, Marion halted.
"Sorry," she said, frowning, and Aliya lifted an eyebrow at what she was fairly sure the first apology she had heard come out of her mouth, "I've forgotten something. I'll be back in a minute. Just leave the door open."
The Doctor nodded at her. She turned on her heel and walked briskly away while the rest of them piled into the box and headed for the console platform.
"Aliya, you have to be nice," Jenny said to her adoptive mother.
"Why? She won't be."
Jenny crossed her arms. "She's helping even though she really doesn't have to or even want to. And I know she said it was because she wanted me to stop talking about Mariaka but that's just her being defensive and stuff. She's doing it because she knows it's important to me. She'd just never say so out loud."
Aliya sighed and nodded. "Okay."
There was a lengthy awkward silence before Jenny quietly muttered, "And I'm nearly four."
It was the best thing that any of them could have said because the three of them stared at each other for a moment before bursting into laughter that was more genuine than any that they had experienced since before Demon's Run.
Aliya hugged Jenny to her. "Oh, my big girl, I've missed you," the older of the two said, and kissed the side of her head as they continued to laugh so hard that they were almost crying. Meanwhile the Doctor just leaned against the console and chuckled at them, a powerful love and affection in his eyes.
When they finally managed to calm down, the Doctor had apparently come to a decision about their destination.
"If we've got Marion, then now is probably our best chance to try the war zones," he said, bringing solemnity back to the conversation.
Aliya hesitated before nodding. "Alright. Can't exactly argue with that."
He nodded back and started to enter in coordinates. Aliya just kept her arm around Jenny because she had no reason to let go of her. She really had missed her.
After about another minute and a half, a slamming of the TARDIS exterior door alerted them to Marion's presence. The Torchwood doctor was standing with her back against the wooden panelling, her eyes wide and disbelieving.
"You alright, Marion?" Jenny asked.
Aliya noticed that Marion's hands were shaking. The brunette woman just swallowed slowly and ran a hand through her hair. Her mouth opened to reply but the words took a few more moments to come.
"I just entered a spaceship that's bigger on the inside and is apparently going to be taking me to the 43rd century," she said, frowning, "I can't take everything in stride, you know."
Jenny considered this and seemed to accept it. "I'm just used to you being so cool about everything."
Marion pushed away from the door to come and join them on the console platform. "You of all people should know I'm far from perfect, Jenny," she murmured, quiet enough that Aliya barely heard her. But she did, and she glanced at the Doctor to see him eyeing Marion curiously too, likely having heard as well.
Jenny just eyed Marion with a sort of understanding sympathy in her eyes that neither of them understood.
A voice coming through the scanner distracted them. "Marion!" It was Esther, apparently having entered the central area of the Hub. "Marion!"
The Doctor, Aliya and Jenny all turned their heads to look at Marion, who was frowning.
"Take off," she said so sharply that they just blinked at her. "Take off right now and don't let her inside."
"Why?" The Doctor asked.
Aliya crossed her arms. "What the hell have you done to her now?"
"Nothing important," Marion answered, annoyance in her tone, "And I doubt she'd think to look for me in here. But if she does it will result in a large and pointless delay."
"Why shouldn't I just leave you behind with her to sort whatever shit you've pulled?" Aliya said, glaring. "If you're using us to run away from-"
"You need me a lot more than I need you right now, Blondie, be very sure of that," Marion snapped, "And you'll leave right now because you want every pair of eyes and hands available to help you get your baby back. So shut up and drive."
Aliya and the Doctor looked at each other, then at the scanner which showed an out of breath Esther Drummond standing mere metres from the TARDIS and looking around.
"Let's go," Aliya said quietly, and he agreed before they both got to work on the controls. When the Doctor met Marion's eye in the process, she gave him a singular nod before standing by the rail and not saying another word.
Jenny meanwhile watched her friend with a mix of curiosity and concern. But it was impossible to tell whether she was concerned for Marion or Esther or possibly even both.
Not for the first time, Aliya became aware of just how little she knew of what went on at Torchwood these days. There was definitely more going on between Jenny and Marion and Esther than she would have guessed before today, but just what that could be, she had no idea. And perhaps it was none of her business.
"So where are we going?" Jenny eventually asked, breaking the tense silence in the control room after about twenty seconds of just watching her parents working to fly the box.
"Into hell," the Doctor replied, without taking his eyes off the scanner.
"What?"
He turned his head to look at her and frowned. "Sorry, not literally. Just, well, into the base of one of the most hated and feared dictators in all of human history."
"Who?"
"Erebus Daher."
Aliya paled. "Oh god. This was a much less daunting idea before we had actually decided to land."
"Speaking of, I need your help to land it with the shielding on. This is one time we don't want anyone getting curious about the big blue box in the hallway or closet." As the two Time Lords went about doing that, the other two in the room shifted uncomfortably.
"So how bad is this Erebus Daher?" Marion asked.
"Ooh…bad?" The Doctor almost laughed. "He makes Hitler look like a bunny rabbit who wanted world peace."
Jenny and Marion shared concerned looks, but the latter grit her teeth a moment later. "And you think his base is a good place to look for your baby?" Her confusion was plain.
"Well, she's probably not going to be a baby when we find her," Jenny told her, "Maybe a child, but we've been told by someone who met her in the future that it might be likely that she's fully grown or at least not a kid."
"But the base of a dictator?"
"He has extensive resources," the Doctor explained, "If our daughter is being used in a war in the 43rd century or has been before his time of power, his people and their records should be able to tell us. Because this man waged the only war, one so huge that it was the only one in their minds for almost the entire 43rd century."
"Plausible enough I suppose," Marion responded, "I imagine I'll only be useful serving as a medic slash hired muscle anyway."
"Well, possibly," the Doctor said, shrugging, "But honestly, brain like yours, any ideas you've got we'd be glad to listen to."
"Noted."
"Now, everyone, big warning on this place," he said to the three women with him, "It's a new level of dangerous from anything you have likely experienced. Good news is that I looked into it a bit about a month ago and so know where we'll find his records. We need to look in the historical records as well as the records for his personal resources and staff."
"And you know where those are?" Aliya asked. "When did you do this research?" They had been doing practically everything together since Demon's Run, and it had surprised her to learn that he had been researching anything without her knowledge.
"You fell asleep on the jump seat one time, I figured it was best to leave you." The Doctor showed her the map on the scanner. "I have the layout of the palace from the archaeologist team who explored it nearly a millennia later."
"Thank you River Song," Aliya said with a grin, "I suppose marrying an archaeologist really did have some perks."
"I know, I was surprised too," he said, grinning back, "So, historical archives are here. Personal records here. Avoiding detection in here is going to be tricky, which is why I think we split up."
"My natural reaction to that is no," she replied, frowning, "But unfortunately you've got a point. Split up which way?"
"I think you and I need to be in separate parties. Which means the only logical way to pair off is if you go with Jenny to the historical archive and I go with Marion to the other one."
Everyone glanced at Marion, who just crossed her arms and let out a long breath.
"Well, it could be worse," she said reluctantly, her eyes flicking to Aliya, who just rolled hers.
"And then Aliya and Jenny can take the psychic paper in case of an emergency," the Doctor continued, pulling the paper from his pocket and handing it to Aliya, who wordlessly took it.
"Emergency being…?" Jenny inquired.
"Discovery by some official or guard, probably. Having a way to bluff about why you're there will reduce your likelihood to be, well, shot on sight," he said, making a face.
Marion narrowed her eyes at him. "And what about us? What's to stop us from being shot on sight?"
The Doctor smiled at her. "Well, I'm very good at talking myself out of tight situations. Was doing it for centuries before I got that bit of paper. And if that doesn't work, well, then you'll get a chance to prove just how good you are in a fight."
"Reassuring," she retorted.
"Let's just go," Aliya said, sighing and tucking the psychic paper into the pocket of her denim jacket, "The sooner we're out of here the better I'll feel." They all headed for the door, making arrangements to check their respective archives and then immediately return to the TARDIS to wait for the other pair.
When they stepped from the box, they found themselves in a small storage room with four different rows of shelves and only one visible door.
"Not bad parking, considering," the Doctor commented as he eyed how the police box was perfectly wedged between two of the rows. "Now, the archives are two floors apart so we're on the one in between. Historical is below, personal above. Like any self-respecting building, it has stairs and lifts. I'd say stairs are safer. Let's go team."
They slipped out of the door into an ornate hallway that everyone other than the Doctor gaped at. The ceiling towered above their heads and sported paintings of gorgeous landscapes while the floors were polished granite and the walls were decorated with various paintings and flat sculptures.
"You said this was a base," Jenny said, confused.
"Well, it's also Daher's private residence. So…base slash palace," her father replied, "There's a network of basement levels too, complete with a bunker in case of an attack. But the entire planet's protected by a barricade of his starships, so he's able to sit here pretty comfortably. Now, stairs heading down are that way, and the ones going up that way, so we'll catch you later."
They all bid each other farewell before the pairs turned and began hurrying off in opposite directions.
For the first time, the Doctor found himself well and truly alone with Marion Narke. He didn't exactly have time to savour it considering that they were busy hurrying along a corridor and then up a marble staircase, but it was something that registered in his mind as they were doing so.
"So, what did this Erebus Daher actually do?"
He was so surprised to have Marion address him without it being absolutely necessarily that for a second he just blinked at her and nearly tripped on the next step. "Sorry?"
"You said he made Hitler look like a bunny rabbit," she said flatly, frowning at him, "You can't say that and expect someone not to be curious."
The Doctor took a brief moment to wonder how the hell she managed to ascend the stairs so quickly and silently in her high heels before answering her. "Well, he wanted to live forever. He came from old money, so he hired as many of the best scientists he could. And, you know, it sort of worked. They augmented him enough that he certainly lived a lot longer than almost every human in all of history. But not long after his first successful augmentation, he realised that his scientists were such a powerful asset in their own right that he rather quickly became obsessed with how he could use them to rise even higher in the world."
"So the usual, then, when it comes down to it," Marion summarised.
"Well, most others of his sort didn't get their people to create an entire new species to serve as an army to conquer and oppress an entire galaxy in a twenty year war to rise to power. He wiped out entire planets just to make factories and labs to build more ships and grow more soldiers."
She lifted an eyebrow at him as they reached the top of the stairs. "Shit."
"And then he was in control for about thirty years before the galaxy assembled a rebellion force. We're currently five years into the twenty seven year war that came from that."
"Okay, futuristic big bad earned his title, I'm getting that now," she said as he indicated for her to follow him to a door that looked identical to all the other carved wooden ones lining the hallway. Identical except for a symbol carved into the top of the door frame, one which the Doctor knew from the future archaeological research was Daher's secret way of marking where he kept his information. One quick burst of the sonic had them able to walk inside and shut the door behind them.
Marion's small intake of breath next to him was the only indicator that she found the room as spectacular as he did.
In complete contrast to the neo-classical design of the hallways and stairwells, the personal records room really did look like it belonged in the 43rd century. It wasn't large because it didn't need to be. The majority of the space in the room was taken up by a single metallic console in the center that curved in a semi-circle towards them, but even that was only the size of Marion and the Doctor's combined arm spans at absolute maximum.
It was also dimly lit; the walls were pitch black and the only light was directly above the console, meaning the corners of the room were in total darkness.
"Good thing we chose this one," the Doctor muttered, "Aliya would have barely been able to concentrate. Still, plenty of workable light if you ask me."
He clapped his hands together before heading for the console and using the sonic to start it up without authorisation. Marion followed some way behind, her arms crossed and expression wary, but he saw an understandable curiosity in her that she couldn't quite hide. He would have been frankly disappointed if a Cambridge-taught doctor such as her had not expressed any scientific curiosity in the future technology.
"You'll like this," he promised her, and pressed the button that activated the holographic screen. A menu appeared in the air in front of them and he scrolled through it with his fingers, figuring out where he needed to go before digging in his pockets for the storage drive that was key to his plan. He plugged it into the console.
"What are you doing?" Marion asked.
"Why risk being in here for ages to look through his files when I can make copies and do it from the safety of the TARDIS?"
"But the others-"
"I put a storage drive inside the psychic paper when I gave it to Aliya," the Doctor said, grinning before realising that he was standing in front of one of the only people unlikely to find him impressive, "She'll figure it out. We won't need to be here long at all. Just need a minute to get it transferring."
He lifted his hands and let his fingers dance across the holographic screen in front of his face with the ease of someone who had hacked a lot more systems than he would ever admit. Within a minute the download of the entire system's contents had started and he was able to drop his hands and turn to face Marion, who had watched him silently.
"And now we wait," he said pleasantly, smiling at her, "Shouldn't take long."
"Good, I don't-" Whatever scathing comment Marion had been about to make was foiled by the cough that erupted from her throat. The Doctor winced at how rough it sounded while she dug in her pocket for the handkerchief he had seen her with the last time he had been at Torchwood. When her cough didn't cease, she covered her mouth with the handkerchief until it did.
"What's wrong with you?" The Doctor asked quietly, putting his hands in his trouser pockets.
"Other than the sociopathy, you mean?" Marion retorted, crumpling her handkerchief and putting it back in her pocket. He just held her gaze until she sighed. "It doesn't matter what's wrong with me."
"Of course it matters."
She frowned at him. "No, it doesn't. All that matters is that I'm on the best medicine I can get." While on that topic, she reached into her lab coat's other pocket for the pill bottle and swallowed one of the pills dry. When the Doctor reached his hand out for the bottle, she glared but handed it to him.
He turned it over in his hand and looked at the label only to be shocked and incredibly concerned by what he saw. "Marion, this is-"
"None of your business," she snapped, snatching the bottle back and pocketing it.
"But you're thirty, how could you-"
"My scholarship only paid for my tuition," she said, and he shut up when he realised that against all expectation she was telling him exactly what he wanted to know, "I needed money for accommodation and food and all the rest. So I took a year off and volunteered for experimental drug trials. Let's just say luck wasn't on my side."
Ah, yes. That would do it. The Doctor eyed her with sympathy. "I'm sorry. How long-"
"That's none of your business."
He frowned. "…alright. Does Jenny know?"
"Yes."
"I can't imagine that conversation went well."
Marion pulled a face. "One of the things I am not equipped to deal with is people crying. Especially her, given she's the only friend I have."
"It's my understanding that you limited your own options in that area."
"Yes, I did," she said, her glare making it very clear that she didn't want him pressing the subject before her expression changed to one of disgust. "Urgh. They have the most horrific aftertaste." When her hand came out of her pocket this time, the Doctor was surprised to see a Tic Tac box. She tipped one into her hand and popped it into her mouth before glancing at him and hesitating. A moment later, she sighed. "Do you want one?"
They were colourful and minty – of course he did. He spread his hands and smiled coyly at her. "Well, if you're offering."
She handed him the box. "Green ones only."
He lifted an eyebrow. "Why?"
Marion didn't blink when she said, "Because the yellow ones are poison." For a second he stared at her with shock before he re-examined one of his memories from ten seconds before. She had taken a yellow one. Oh. She's joking. Of course.
"Ah ha," he said, chuckling, "Very funny."
She rolled her eyes and smirked. "I can't stand the green ones."
He grinned and happily fiddled with the box until a green one fell into his palm and he was able to scoop it into his mouth. It tasted pleasantly of lime. "Hmm. Thanks." He handed her the box back. "What do you know, the infamous Marion Narke has a sense of humour."
"Tell anyone we had this conversation and I will end you," she said flatly, "And I'll deny everything. No one knows about these Tic Tacs. They're secret Tic Tacs, which means no one will ever believe you."
It took all of a second for the absurdity of it to make the Doctor laugh outright. Marion just shook her head, her expression as neutral as ever - but he thought he saw the ghost of a smile at the corner of her lips, just for a moment.
"Alright," he said, smiling, "Secret Tic Tac promise."
"Oh fuck off," she muttered, not even looking at him. He just grinned, used to her pattern of behaviour by now. She wasn't as bad as Aliya made out – as far as he could see she just acted as if she were due to wanting to keep everyone at a distance for some reason.
The download was almost done when the Doctor felt a flash of panic from Aliya.
"Come on," he told the console, knowing that it was probable they needed to move as quickly as possible. It was very likely that Aliya and Jenny had been found, meaning they were either going to need help or had at least put the guards on alert.
"Something wrong?" Marion asked.
"I think there might be on Aliya's end. But we can't leave without the information or this will have all been for nothing."
Just as the download finished, they heard the sounds of shouting and frantic footsteps out in the corridor. The Doctor swiped his storage drive and pocketed it before pushing Marion towards the door. Sure enough, when they poked their heads outside, Aliya and Jenny were running towards them with a dozen armed guards behind them.
"Sorry!" Aliya shouted.
Hiding in the records room wasn't an option because there was no way out. But the Doctor knew what was on the rest of the floor, and that one of those rooms would be more useful hideouts. So he tugged Marion out into the corridor so that they could join Aliya and Jenny in sprinting away from their assailants.
Marion pulled out her gun and managed to get on an angle where she could run and shoot back at their pursuers at the same time. Her aim was so accurate that by the time they reached the door at the end of the corridor, almost half of the men were dead on the floor.
The four of them crowded against the door while the Doctor tried to sonicked it open. It took a little longer than expected. He realised Jenny had her gun out too, and was worried until he heard Marion make a complaint about Jenny only shooting their kneecaps, which despite everything made him smile slightly.
Finally the door swung open, and not a moment too soon because more men had arrived at the end of the corridor and started firing.
The Doctor and Aliya rushed inside, but the other two barely moved.
"Get inside, princess!" Marion shouted, shifting her body so that it was in front of Jenny's and able to push her back into the room while she continued to fire. The men at the opposite end of the corridor started dropping like flies.
But there were also too many bullets coming their way for it to be safe for anyone. So Jenny yanked Marion inside too and they slammed the door shut.
"Barricade it," the Doctor said, and they dropped any weapons on the bed before scrambling to find furniture to provide even a bit more protection. "There, that'll probably do it. These doors are platinum, you know. They're not getting in here for a while."
"Why are they platinum?" Jenny asked.
"These are the concubine rooms," he explained, "So of course they can only have the best. They've even got their own parachutes in case of the palace's siege."
"Lord I hate that word now," Aliya muttered, wincing.
Jenny frowned at her. "Siege?"
"Concubine."
"Why?"
Aliya sighed. "Long story. We're not going into that. Just say mistresses or something."
The Doctor realised he probably should have foreseen such a reaction from her. "Yeah, mistresses. Daher has quite a few, that's why they take up an entire floor. Which is lucky for us under the circumstances."
"More like lucky that whoever's room this is happened to not be here."
He nodded and was about to move onto the next point of business - whether Aliya and Jenny had been able to download the historical records - when he saw something that made him freeze. "Jenny," he whispered, surprised his voice was even able to work after having spotted the sizeable patch of blood staining her blue t-shirt.
Aliya's hand flew to her mouth, her face pale. Jenny just frowned and looked down at her shirt.
"But-" Her hand touched it tentatively. "I'm not-"
"Oh shit."
Aliya had felt her hearts stop when she'd seen the blood on Jenny's shirt. But it wasn't Jenny who was injured.
Everyone in the room turned to the one who spoken.
Marion was staring at the spreading scarlet blossom on her grey blouse with a sort of detached annoyance. Or at least she was until she teetered and almost fell on the floor, stopped only by Jenny rushing forward and directing her to partially lie backward on the room's bed.
"No," the blonde girl said as she watched her brunette friend groan and press down on her wound to stop the bleeding. "No!"
"Jenny, let me through," the Doctor said urgently, rushing forward, "Marion, it's going to be okay-"
"No it's not, you blundering imbecile," Marion seethed, glaring at him, "I've been shot before and this isn't remotely the same. This is not a 21st century bullet and even if it had been I'd probably have been dead anyway."
"Don't you dare say that," Jenny told her, tears already starting to fill her eyes, "You're Marion, you can survive anything."
Marion let out a humourless laugh that was noticeably weaker than her usual ones. "And it's almost adorable that you think so."
Aliya was relieved that Jenny was unhurt, but Marion going down instead wasn't what she had wanted. Hating the woman didn't mean she wanted her dead. Especially not now that she had been helping them and had likely saved Jenny's life just now.
Still, it didn't mean there were any words she thought she could say that would help. What the hell did you say when the person you hated was dying?
"Tell me about the bullet, Doctor," Marion murmured, "I want to know why it feels like a whole new level of hell."
"Er-" The Doctor scratched his face awkwardly. "Well, the bullets they use are designed to penetrate the body as efficiently as possible, because they detonate once inside, meaning the deeper they can get in the better."
"Explains why I didn't feel it right away."
"Well, yes. But it releases toxins and-"
"I get the idea."
The Doctor stared at her with sadness in his green eyes, clearly lost and unsure of how to act because there wasn't anything to be done. "You helped us. I won't ever forget that."
"That thing about taking a bullet for me was supposed to be a joke," Jenny told Marion, a sob escaping her. Her words seemed to be a reference to a past conversation between them.
Marion just winced as another wave of pain hit her. "I don't do jokes."
Jenny only held onto her tighter. "You can't just die-"
"I can do whatever I damn well please."
The generated anomaly, despite still being very upset, choked on an odd laugh. "Why do you have to be so impossible even now?"
"That's why you like me."
Jenny eyed her with a melancholic curiosity. "What happened with Esther?"
This time it was Marion who laughed, even if it came out sounding more like a twisted cough or hiccup. "Wouldn't you like to know."
Aliya couldn't handle it anymore – she had to turn away. The whole thing was just something she would never have envisioned happening. After all, Marion had always come across as some kind of invincible force. A thoroughly unpleasant one, but that was beside the point.
"And Blondie hasn't got anything to say to the dead woman. Unsurprising. She'd have to admit I'd done something good for once."
"Shut up," Aliya snapped without turning around. Jenny and the Doctor made noises of protest but Marion just chuckled.
"That's better."
The Doctor came to stand next to Aliya, giving Marion and Jenny some privacy by also turning his back. "She saved Jenny's life while trying to help us. You could say thank you," he said to her quietly.
"I don't need to say anything," Aliya replied, frowning at the wall instead of looking at him, "She already knows anything I could possibly tell her. That I'm grateful, that I would never have wished this on her regardless of our differences…it doesn't matter. I'm improving her final moments by staying out of them. Trust me."
Things behind them had gone silent except for Jenny's crying. The two Time Lords were able to guess what that meant but decided with a single shared look to give her a few moments to herself before turning around.
Jenny abruptly went quiet. "Um, you guys-" They both turned around before she got another word out, only to freeze in unison when they saw that Marion was sitting up on the edge of the bed, very much not yet dead.
"But-" Aliya lost any words she might have had when her eyes landed on Marion's blood-soaked hands.
They were starting to glow.
The brunette was without any sarcastic comment for once, instead quiet and apathetic as she held her hands in front of her and watched the golden light grow more potent. The others meanwhile could see the golden energy starting to illuminate every pore of her skin, creeping up her neck until it was almost at her face.
"No," the Doctor breathed from beside Aliya.
That wasn't an accurate enough understatement of everything currently going through Aliya's brain. It wasn't possible. It was one of those things that simply couldn't be true. And yet even as she completely rejected the sight before her eyes, pieces clicked into place.
Pieces of a puzzle that had been scattered around them before the puzzle had even been created. A puzzle so simple that it had been hiding in plain sight.
Marion Laura Narke.
Mariakanerolunar.
Aliya was fairly sure she was going to be sick.
*peeks out from between fingers* I'm expecting some pitchforks now. Though, credit to TheWholockLover for actually GUESSING this before it happened, I didn't think anyone would (though most of your reasoning in your initial guess wasn't quite right haha)! Also to JackJenFan who wondered about it in your review last chapter.
Let me know what you thought, given that this is a plot twist I've been planning and sitting on for AGES aka around/before Marion first turned up!
Love you all, hope you still love me (lol),
-MayFairy :)