Chapter 1

The Wolf, The Girl, And The Blue Box

(A/N: This is a sort of rewrite of The Real Truth- I'm changing up the plot quite a bit, starting with how everyone met. You get to see that here, unlike in the original version. Also, the AM/PM times are approximate, as it isn't certain even when it comes to canonical show events what the exact time was- at least, not that I remember. Hope you like this introduction!)

Annapolis, Maryland

May 7th, 1971

3:30 AM

Crash!

That was the noise that roused Dana- the sudden loud thump in her backyard. She blinked open her eyes and sat up in bed slowly, carefully. Straining her ears, she listened for more sounds- footsteps, voices, anything to indicate a burglar. Or even her father- or maybe one of her siblings- getting up. When she did not hear any of those things, she pulled back the covers on her bed and tiptoed down the dark hallway.

Dana knew her house by heart, even in total darkness, so she made it to the back door with relatively no mishaps. She had to be careful to not wake up her parents or siblings. Apprehensively, she turned on the back porch light.

What she saw made absolutely no sense. A blue phone booth, tipped over on its side. Part of her wanted to go out and look at it, while the more sensible half of her told her to be careful. She placed her hand on the doorknob, but hesitated, her brow furrowing. Whatever it was, it could be dangerous. After a moment, though, her curiosity won out and she turned the knob.

The door creaked as she opened it, pushing it aside just enough for her to squeeze through. The moment she was outside, she spun around and closed the door with a soft click. Turning back around, she faced the capsized phone booth.

There were words engraved at the top. When Dana tilted her head to the side, she was able to decipher them. Police Public Call Box, it said. She had read about those once- phone booths you could use to call for help. But how had one ended up in her backyard?

She tiptoed closer, her breaths shaky. When she was about a foot away, she stopped, reaching out with her hand. Her whole arm trembled as she brought it closer.

Dana was only a heartbeat away from touching the wooden box when its doors flew open and she reeled backwards, toppling over.

A man's head suddenly popped up, almost like a jack-in-the-box. Dana opened her mouth, ready to scream or cry out for help, when he whirled to the side and caught sight of her.

He had a mop of dark brown hair, which was currently soaking wet and stuck to his forehead. He was wearing what appeared to be a dress shirt and tie, ripped and frayed in several places. They were also soaked. His eyes were an odd greenish color, and they seemed to be alight with excitement.

Suddenly he grinned at her. "Oh. Hello," he said brightly. "Can you tell me where I am, miss?"

Dana's mouth fell open, but no words came out. She started to stammer, and her breathing grew heavy. "I...I..."

His eyes widened and took on a soft expression. He held out his hand, palm spread out. A sign of peace. "No, no, no, don't be frightened. I'm the Doctor. I wound up here by accident," he explained.

Dana's mind reeled at that. There were so many things she wanted to ask him, like why he didn't have a proper name or how his phone booth ended up in her yard, tipped over, or why he had that accent. Finally, though, she spoke the first coherent thing that came into her head.

"Why are you all wet?"

This "Doctor" smirked at her. "Well, I fell into the library, but, unfortunately for me, so did the swimming pool," he murmured, chuckling. "Never mind that. Would you be so kind as to tell me where I am?"

"You're in my backyard," she said, confused. Raised a brow at him. In turn, he beamed.

"Lovely. But, ah...where is your backyard, exactly?"

Before she could answer, he grabbed onto the sides of the phone booth and hoisted himself up, tumbling out onto the grass. "That's better. Missed solid ground for a moment there. Now, where are we?"

Her eyes widened as she observed him, all skinny limbs and torn up clothes and a bright smile. Something about his presence was so intriguing to her that she was barely able to stammer out, "M-Maryland. Annapolis."

The Doctor grinned. "Capital city. Wonderful! Now-"

He sprung to his feet at such a speed that Dana's mouth fell open. He started walking towards her back door. "-I don't suppose there's any way you could- mmf!"

He let out a muffled cry of surprise when he walked smack into the tree closest to her house. He staggered backwards, before looking down at her with an embarrassed expression on his face. "Sorry about that. Early days, steering's a bit off." Clearing his throat, he turned his gaze back to the house. "I'm really hungry. Do you have an apple on hand, by any chance? I like apples."

Uncertainly, Dana trudged back to the house and opened the door slightly, pausing in front of it. "Do you wanna come in?"

The Doctor smiled at her. "That would be lovely. Although I seem to have forgotten my manners. What's your name, dear?"

"Dana," she murmured softly. "Dana Scully."

"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Dana Scully. Lovely name. How old are you?"

"Seven," she replied. "I'll be eight in February."

The Doctor grinned. "Really? Well, you seem very smart for your age. Are you...are you here by yourself?" he asked, tilting his head to the side.

She shook her head. "No. Mom and Daddy and my brothers and sister are here. They're asleep, though. So if you come in, you have to be quiet."

Her parents had once told her to never let anyone in if she didn't know who they were, but she wasn't alone. She could call for help if she needed to. And something told her that he meant no harm. He just needed help. Something to eat.

He nodded, tapping his finger to his lips. Dana held the door open for him as he stepped into the house, then followed him. She locked the door behind her and shut off the porch light while he turned the kitchen light on. When she crept over to him, he smiled at her reassuringly.

"I'll be quick," the Doctor said in a whisper, snatching a green apple from the fruit bowl. When he bit into it, though, he spit it right back out.

"Yuck! Apples are rubbish. I hate apples."

Now that really made no sense. "I thought you said you liked apples."

"New taste buds," he said nonchalantly. "Have you got any yogurt?"

He didn't enjoy that either. "It's like eating after cleaning your teeth, everything tastes wrong!" the Doctor exclaimed in frustration, and Dana had to shush him frantically. He promptly apologized.

After a bit of trial and error- he didn't seem to want ice cream or an orange either, and he was sorely disappointed when she told him they were out of bananas- she microwaved some fish sticks, and he seemed to like those. "Fish fingers", he called them. Weird.

She was also able to get him a bit of custard that was sitting in the fridge- no one planned on eating it anyway.

But when he took a fish stick and dipped it into the custard, Dana gagged. "Gross!" she hissed, and he shook his head. "No, it's not. Fish fingers and custard- absolutely delicious. You should try it."

She flat-out refused to do so, instead opting to just watch him while he ate at her family's kitchen table. After a bit of silence, she started asking him questions.

"If you're a doctor, then why does your phone booth say 'Police' on it?"

He shrugged, smirking. "That's just my name; I'm not that kind of doctor. And the phone box is just an exterior. It's not really a phone box."

"Phone booth," she corrected, and he shook his head.

"Right, I forgot, you're American. You wouldn't really call it a box, now would you?" he said, half to himself. Dana just smiled and shook her head. "How did you end up here?"

"I crash landed," he replied, manic grin shooting across his face. "The TARDIS was acting up."

Dana tilted her head in confusion. "The- what?"

The Doctor chuckled. "That's what she's called. The TARDIS. Time And Relative Dimensions In Space. She can travel through time as well as the stars." From the way he was grinning, it was clear he was proud of that. "She's bigger on the inside."

Dana narrowed her eyes at him. "I don't believe you."

He laughed softly, ran a hand through his hair. "Seems I've got a skeptic on my hands, hmm?" he said, smiling playfully at her. "Would you believe me if I told you I was an alien?"

She shook her head vigorously. "Nope. You don't look like an alien."

"How do you know what an alien looks like?" he argued, smirking as she thought that over. When she stayed silent, he said, "Tell you what- I'll prove it to you."

Leaning forward, he laid his arm out on the table and rolled up his sleeve. "Do you know how to take someone's pulse, Dana?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Daddy showed me how."

"Well, you can check mine, then." Dana raised an eyebrow at him, but didn't argue. She placed two fingers on his wrist, then frowned. Something wasn't right.

"Your pulse is funny," she declared, looking up at him. "It's too fast. And it doesn't feel right."

He smiled. "You sound like a doctor."

Dana looked very pleased at that remark. "I'm gonna be a doctor when I grow up," she murmured, grinning.

He nodded in understanding, then chuckled. "I don't doubt it. Now, let me show you something."

The Doctor took her small hand in his own, guiding it to the left side of his wrist, then the right. Her eyes widened, and he beamed at her. She stammered, "What...what's that?"

"Two heartbeats," he murmured. "I've got two hearts. Do you believe me now?"

Dana froze, stayed silent for a long moment. Then she nodded.

"Yeah. I guess so."

The questions started up again a moment later.

"What planet are you from?"

He sighed, and for a moment, Dana thought he looked sad. "My home planet was called Gallifrey. It was a lot bigger than Earth, too. And...well, it was very beautiful."

"Can you take me there? Are there other people like you?"

He sighed again and shook his head. "I wish I could, Dana Scully. But it's gone now. And even if it wasn't, I couldn't take you with me. You're too little. And your mum and dad would miss you. I'm sure your brothers and sisters would, too."

Dana wanted to argue, but then she saw that sadness again. He didn't want to talk about it anymore, that much she could tell. So she changed the subject.

"What happened to your clothes? Did they get messed up because you crashed?"

He shrugged. "More or less. What about it?"

She shrugged in an imitation of him. "I dunno. Just makes you look all..." She paused, brow creasing as she tried to find the right word to describe him. "Ragged. Raggedy." Raggedy man, she thought to herself, laughing inwardly. That's what I'll call him.

The Doctor grinned again. "Well, you're not wrong, I suppose. I...have a question for you, actually. What's the date?"

"May 7th," she replied. In turn, he asked, "And what year is it?" When she opened her mouth to question him, he explained, "Time travel, remember? That's flexible."

That satisfied her, so she answered, "1971."

The Doctor stood up then, still grinning. "Ah. Interesting year. Of course, I suppose all of them are." Then, he walked towards the back door. "I bet this'll be a great year for you, Dana," he murmured, his expression turning serious.

Once again, Dana noticed his eyes looked sad. Before she could ask him what was wrong, he whispered, "Well, I should probably go. Don't want to wake anyone up."

"But you just got here!" she protested, and he held up a hand to silence her.

"Remember how I said you were too young to go with me?" She nodded rapidly.

"Well, how about I come back when you're old enough? Then I'll take you anywhere you want. Any year in history, any star in the universe. What do you say?" He concluded this statement with a broad smile, and she nodded again.

"Yes please!" Dana said enthusiastically as she jumped up, still trying to keep her voice down. "Please let me come with you when I get bigger, Doctor!"

He chuckled softly. "Alright, alright. Now, I don't know exactly when it will be, but I promise you I'll come back. I promise."

Dana smiled. "I'll wait for you, then."

"Good. See you soon," he murmured, before slipping outside and shutting the door.

As Dana went to turn off the kitchen light and sneak back into bed, she heard an odd sound. A harsh wheezing and groaning- like the engine on her daddy's car when it died, but different.

After a few seconds, all became quiet, save for the chirps of crickets and the occasional call of an owl. "See you soon, Raggedy Man," she whispered to the stillness.

Martha's Vineyard (Massachusetts)

November 27th, 1973

8:30 PM

"Samantha! Samantha!"

She was...gone. His sister had vanished. Disappeared in a beam of light. And no matter how frantically he looked for her or how loudly he called her name, he couldn't find her.

Now, Fox Mulder was standing in his front yard, breathing heavily. The night air was searing cold, the sky black and nearly void of stars. Crickets chirped and owls let out soft hoots. The weight of what had just happened began to sink in, and he sank to his knees. Tears clouded his vision. He murmured her name once more, then shut his eyes.

He forced himself to breathe in and out. After he had drawn in and exhaled several shuddering breaths, he blinked his eyes back open. When he saw the figure in front of him, he let out a startled cry.

A tall blonde woman with amber eyes, giving him a worried look. She crouched down in front of him and held out her hand. "S'all right. 'M not gonna hurt you," she murmured, then gave him a tiny smile. "I'm harmless, I promise."

Fox stayed absolutely still, breathing heavily in panic while he studied her. She was wearing jeans, a deep pink hoodie, and black converse. Her blonde hair was clearly dyed and pulled back into a high ponytail. Large silver hoops dangled from her ears. All in all, she seemed normal. Except-

"-You just appeared," Fox blurted out. "Like you teleported or something."

The woman smiled softly at him. "You could say that. Where am I, exactly?"

"Martha's Vineyard," he said quickly. "Massachusetts. My front yard."

She chuckled. "Well, I didn't mean to frighten you." Then she extended her hand to him. "What's your name? I'm Rose."

"Fox," he replied, before carefully grabbing hold of the offered hand. "Fox Mulder."

She smiled at him. "Lovely to meet you, Fox. Now, could you-"

"-Can you help me?" he asked suddenly, before he could stop himself. "It's my sister, Samantha- she disappeared."

Rose nodded. "Of course. Did you see where she went?"

Fox shook his head rapidly. "This is gonna sound crazy, but...I think she was abducted."

Rose tilted her head in confusion. "Abducted? You mean like...kidnapped? Someone took her?"

"No," he replied, shaking his head again. "I think it was aliens. A UFO." When she gave him a shocked look, he started to protest. "The whole house started shaking, and there was this bright light. I tried to get my dad's gun, but I couldn't grab it in time. They just picked her up and took her. Please, you have to believe me!"

"I believe you," she whispered, squeezing his hand. "I believe you. I'll help you find your sister, Fox; I promise. But I need you to do something for me."

He nodded. "Anything. What do you need?"

"Can you tell me the date? Including the year?"

Even he knew that was a strange request, but Fox needed to get Samantha back, so he agreed. "Yeah. It's November 27th, 1973." Then he frowned and tilted his head to the side. "Did you hit your head or something?"

Rose shook her head. "'S complicated. Can we go inside? I might be able to find some clues in your house."

Fox nodded in agreement, standing up. "Come on," he instructed, leading her by the hand.

When they had crossed the threshold into the house, Rose started analyzing the mess. The upturned furniture, his father's pistol where it lay discarded on the floor, the cracked photographs that had fallen off of the walls. "Something definitely happened here," she murmured. "Oh, if only that idiot had given me my own sonic screwdriver," she said to herself, frustrated. Fox knew better than to ask.

Then she turned to look at Fox. "Where are your parents?"

"Next door," he replied, sighing. "Who are you?"

She smiled. "I told you, I'm Rose. And I'll help you find Samantha. That's all that matters right now."

"But where did you come from?" he protested. "How did you just appear in my yard? And why didn't you know what year it is?" Then, he froze, his eyes widening. "Are you...are you a time traveler?"

Rose grinned. "Of a sort. Very perceptive of you, Fox." Suddenly, a soft beep sounded. Rose looked down at her wrist, rolling back her sleeve to reveal a small bracelet-like device. "Oh, dear," she murmured.

Sighing, she whispered, "Fox, I have to go. But I'll be back as soon as I can, I swear. And there are two things I need you to remember."

Too distracted by the urgency in her voice to argue, he nodded. "Okay. What are they?"

"First things first, my name. Rose Tyler." She paused. "Secondly, a message. A very ancient message with power behind it- if you know what it means, that is. Just two words. If you see them, you'll know I'm close." Rose cleared her throat before murmuring, "Bad Wolf. Remember that."

Suddenly, a loud pop could be heard, and Rose Tyler vanished- as if she were a ghost.

Fox blinked rapidly, hardly daring to try and understand everything that had taken place. And those words...they seemed familiar. Almost like deja vu.

He turned around and started walking towards the stairs, putting it out of his mind. All he knew for sure was that Samantha was gone.

As he climbed up towards his room, he noticed something carved into the railing. It had been there since they moved in, his mother had told him. He paused, ran his fingers over the scrawl. In a moment, it suddenly made sense. There were two words etched into the wood railing, that Fox now knew possessed power.

Bad Wolf.