Chapter 7 Part 2
A/N: Okay, here I am again, I have finals next week so I figured I'd just quickly post this before I walk through the gates of hell and straight to my doom...
But about the story, I'm just going to keep at it until I find a fitting end, because it's not going to be anytime soon, I realized. But Anan is a nice new addition to the team, ehehehe. Basically...
...The Doctor isn't all that happy about his choice anymore and he desperately tries to keep the consequences to a minimum.
"Welcome back." I yawned as Anan finally opened his eyes.
"Whu?" I pulled up a brow at the strange word and saw that he was just as confused as me.
"Sorry, I meant, where am I?"
"Of course, how could I not understand that… You're in the TARDIS, the ship. How're you feeling?"
"Not bad. Tired. Different."
"I can imagine. You had a tail." He let out a laugh.
"I hope I did not keep you up?"
"Nah, don't worry about it. I'm still getting used to the Time Lord rhythms anyway." He rested his head on the pillow again and stared at the ceiling.
"There really is no turning back, is there?"
"I told you that." I sighed. "Is there anyone we have to notify of this? Foster parents, friends, anyone?" He shook his head.
"I do not have any."
"Of either?"
"I raised myself here." He suddenly sat up. "I feel a lot more in place now, though. Is that normal?"
"Well, I think so. I guess I felt something similar. But you should stay down until you're fully rested. Give it another night and you'll feel a lot better." He did as asked and lay back down.
"You have my thanks, Haylee, for looking after me. I owe you a great deal."
"Don't worry about it. I didn't really do anything but sit here."
"You stayed and watched over me. That is more than I could ever wish for." He insisted.
"Alright then, no problem. I did step out for tea once though." We laughed.
"Still. This time, you do not have to stay. If you would not mind, I wish to be alone for a while. To… to think things over. Is that okay?" I stood.
"Of course." I pointed to a button on the wall. "Just press that if you need anything." He nodded.
"Thank you again."
"No problem, again."
"Had fun?" The Doctor asked as soon as I entered the control room.
"You were the one who was watching." He looked up in surprise.
"I did no such thing."
"Of course you didn't." I grinned.
"I'm starting to see what you meant though." I frowned.
"About hoarding?" He nodded.
"I've been looking for vacant planets and I must say there are quite a few suitable ones."
"Just assuming that they're suitable isn't sufficient, you know."
"I was going to go look!" He objected.
"I know, honestly. Have we taken off yet?" He shook his head.
"You wanted to wait to let him say goodbye, didn't you?"
"I did, but he said there was no one." I walked up to him and gave him a hug. "Thanks for waiting." He shrugged.
"Can we go now?"
"We can. Where to?"
"The original plan?"
"Sounds good." I smiled as I watched him turn back to the console to enter the coordinates. This was a life I could get used to. Traveling, meeting all sorts of people, doing all sorts of things. That sounded like a perfect life to me.
"What're you smiling about?" I looked up, realizing I'd dozed off for a moment. The Doctor couldn't keep a smirk off his face.
"What were you dreaming about?" He asked curiously as I sat up.
"Don't remember…" I yawned. "But if I was smiling it must've been something good." I looked around, the TARDIS was completely still.
"We've arrived?"
"A while ago, I didn't want to wake you yet." He walked up to the doors and turned to me. "Prepare to see one of the most beautiful sights in the universe." I jumped to my feet and ran up to him.
"I'm ready."
"Then open the doors." He sounded as if he was completing a ritual, but I was more than happy to partake and nodded before slowly opening the doors.
It was ice cold, but my mouth fell open when I saw the immense snow-covered mountains. I slowly walked out, my feet sinking away to my ankles in the snow.
"This is amazing…' I whispered at last as I touched the fresh snow. A coat was draped over my shoulders and I gratefully looked at the Doctor.
"Thank you." He smiled.
"You're welcome. This is something you have to see at least once." I stepped further into the landscape as I pulled the coat closer around me.
"Something tells me I'm going to see this more than once."
"Quite right." He nodded.
"I've always wanted to try this." I said as I spread my arms and let myself fall face first into the snow. The coolness was nice for a few minutes, but then turned into a nasty sting and I was forced to retreat to the warmth of the TARDIS.
"That looked incredibly silly." He grinned. I raised my shivering shoulders.
"C-Couldn't l-leave it." I stuttered. My teeth were chattering and I was shivering all over, even with the thick coat around me.
"Come here, I'll help." I stood and he instantly eveloped me in a hug. His warmth seemed to help more than the coat would ever be able to. I laid my head against his chest and just listened to the rhythm of his heartbeats. His grip suddenly tightened and I looked up at him, seeing him glancing at the hallway. Looking over my shoulder, I could see Anan standing in the opening, shuffling around uncomfortably. I gently pushed the Doctor away, he reluctantly released me and sniffed.
"Thanks, I feel a lot warmer now." I took the coat off and draped it over the railing. I turned to Anan.
"You all healthy and fit again?" I asked as I bounced up to him.
"I feel better, yes, thank you."
"And you remember things?" He looked around.
"A TARDIS, right?" I nodded.
"That's right! Very good. Anything else?"
"Yeah… I actually want to go home. To Gallifrey." I took a step backwards. I'd completely forgotten about that.
"Anan, Gallifrey-'
"Gallifrey is gone." I rolled my eyes at how sensitively he brought it. Anan's eyes widened.
"It was lost in the Time War. We're the only living Time Lords left." He turned to me, a frightened look on his face.
"It's true. You can feel it too, can't you?" He turned his eyes to the ground and let out a deep breath.
"I can." He muttered to the ground. "I can." I stood beside him and patted his back.
"But you know what's good? We've found out that there's more people like you. If we can find them, then we're just going to start all over again. The important thing is that we're all still here." He took a deep breath, looked up and nodded as he let it out.
"You are right. It is the future that must be thought of." The Doctor grimaced. His hands were deep in his pockets and his posture was threatening.
"And then what? Forget what happened in the past?"
"I implied no such thing."
"Good, because I won't forget what I saw. I won't forget all the lives I've seen fade right before my eyes."
"And you don't have to. Those things have to be remembered, that's important. As someone I knew always said "Keep one foot in the past, but always be ready to step into the future.". I want to honor what that person said."
"Did she say that?" The Doctor asked. I nodded.
"We should all heed that advice."
"We should head on." The Doctor murmured as he sipped his tea. Indeed, he was right, we looked like a bunch of old ladies the way we were all having tea and scones.
"You're right!" I said as I stood. "Where to?"
"We could start looking at the list of planets." He suggested.
"Sounds like a good plan to me. I like having the idea of having a permanent home." The Doctor looked slightly offended.
"And the TARDIS isn't?"
"Well, it's more like a very very luxurious caravan. I mean like a real home on a planet to which you can return every now and then, you know?"
"No… This is home." He sounded like a child and Anan snickered in response.
"I have to agree with Haylee. A permanent home would be nice."
"Right? So, let's go look at planets." With that I grabbed a scone, turned and marched out of the kitchen.
"You can't blame us for wanting something permanent." I said in reply to the Doctor's angry mutters.
"Why not?"
"We've lived in one place for quite some time. I guess that just stayed somehow." He growled, admitting that I had a point.
"That is a good explanation." Anan complimented me as he walked beside me. "I had not even looked at it that way." I looked at him and smiled.
"Well, I've had more time to get used to this than you. But thank you." I accepted the compliment, just as Cass had taught me when we were 13.
I'd always just stared in disbelief when someone complimented me on something, so she thought it was necessary to teach me the proper way of accepting a compliment.
"In what kind of place would you like to live?" I asked Anan as we entered the control room. He thought for a moment.
"I prefer warm climates, I think. And some water nearby would be enjoyable. How about yourself?"
"Hmm, I guess I don't really mind. Something warm would be nice. And mountains, mountains would be amazing. But then again, anything's fine, really. I'm not picky."
"Lucky you." The Doctor said as he rushed past us and started tinkering with the controls. "I've found a place that matches that description exactly."
"Really?" I asked excitedly.
"Really."
When the whirring of the TARDIS stopped, I slowly walked up to the doors, then back over my shoulder to wait for permission. Both the men nodded at me and I slowly opened the doors. My mouth dropped open out of sheer amazement. I was staring at a valley from the top of a mountain. In the lush, green valley below ran a river with azure blue water. I stepped outside and stood at the edge of the mountain, carefully looking down. It was a long way down and I quickly stepped back.
"Do you like it?" I looked over my shoulder and nodded before turning back to the view, determined not to miss a moment of it.
"Then why are you crying?" I brought up my hand to my eyes and realized that he was right.
"It's just so beautiful…" I felt an arm around me and smiled at the Doctor.
"So you could live here?"
"Definitely." I wiped the tears away and turned back to the TARDIS to see Anan having a similar reaction to mine.
"But Anan wanted a warm climate with water. We shouldn't rule out everything else yet, right?" Anan blinked a few times and nodded.
"Yes, right." He quickly said.
"Alright, if you wish. Let's go to the next one." The Doctor said on a heavy tone as he took his arm away and quickly walked back into the TARDIS.
The next planet was covered in dense wooded areas, almost like a jungle.
"I'm not quite sure about this." I muttered as I poked my head out the door, instantly seeing something slither away into the darkness.
"Neither am I." Anan agreed as he stood behind me.
"Why not? Don't like a little nature around you?" The Doctor joined us. "You could build your homes in the trees." I stared at him over my shoulder, the smile on his face was immense. I couldn't help but laugh.
"It sounds cool, but I'm not sure if I want something to crawl into my bed at night." He opened his mouth to say something, but quickly closed it again before walking back to the control panel. We quickly closed the door and patiently waited for the next stop.
"This is…" I shivered. "I think it's a little too cold." I stepped out into the snow and looked around. It was quite flat, nothing like the Ood-Sphere we'd visited before.
"I thought you'd say that." The Doctor said as he beckoned me back inside.
"That was it, actually." He said as he randomly pushed a few buttons.
"Well, I think that's not such a difficult choice, right?"
"I agree." Anan nodded.
"The first one then?" We both nodded.
"The first one."
We headed back to the first planet and stepped out onto the mountain again.
"What's it called actually?" I wondered out loud as I looked around.
"Officially it's called Galarada Five." The Doctor stated. I frowned.
"Galarada?"
"Five." He added. "But as it's uninhabited, you could always rename it." He walked closer and smiled.
"Consider it a gift."
"I can name it?" I asked surprised. He nodded.
"Really? I can name a planet?' I asked excitedly.
"It's not official, but-"
"Oh, thank you!" I impulsively threw my arms around him and hugged him tightly. This was such a privilege, I couldn't even grasp it. I let go and looked back to Anan.
"But we're all going to live here. You guys have to be okay with it too."
"I'm okay with anything." The Doctor said as he raised his shoulders.
"The same goes for me. It is your choice." Anan nodded.
"Okay… What about… Euthymia?" They both stared at me, waiting for an explanation.
"It's Greek for good spirits or joy."
"I like it, it sounds nice." Anan commented.
"Doctor? Is it okay with you?" He was still staring blankly at me. Then blinked a few times when I called his name.
"Yeah, it's amazing. I knew you'd pick a beautiful name." He quickly said.
"Alright, it's decided then?" They both nodded.
"Welcome home, welcome to Euthymia."