Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who, any of the characters, places or alien species; those belong to their respective owners. I only own my OC Selene.
23. Blink
"Have you got the arrows, Martha?" the Doctor asked frantically, adjusting the bow slung across his back, the string pressing diagonally across his chest. Martha lifted the quiver so he could see that she'd held onto it without a single arrow being lost. "And Selene you've got the neutralizing goo?"
"As long as there isn't a more scientific name, yes I do," she confirmed, lifting the cannister of viscous, gel-like goo she'd been put in charge of.
"Great! Oh! Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop!" the Doctor ordered the cab driver. The car rolled to a stop by the side of the road as the Doctor, flinched, realizing he'd forgotten something important. "Uh… either of you got cash?"
"Um… no," Martha said with a grimace. Rolling her eyes, Selene dug out some pound notes from her jacket pocket and tossed them into the front seat.
"Shall we go then?"
The Doctor pushed out of the cab with Selene and Martha following, jogging across the street with urgency in their steps. Just as they were halfway across the road, someone began calling after them.
"Doctor!" the voice shouted. "Doctor! Doctor!" Spinning round with wide eyes, the Doctor spotted a woman with sleek blond hair and a lovely smile calling out to him with recognition plain on her face.
"Hello. Sorry, bit of a rush. There's a sort of… thing happening. Fairly important we stop it," he rambled, gesturing over his shoulder.
"My god, it's you. It's really you," the woman laughed. Then her smile fell slightly as she watched the man just… stare at her blankly. "Oh, you don't remember me, do you?" Martha and Selene came jogging back over, nodding down the street with urgency. A smile twitched at the woman's lips when she saw them. They were there; they might not recognize her, but they were there.
"Doctor, we haven't got time for this," Martha prompted. Selene looked at the watch she'd attached to her wrist before they left the TARDIS.
"The migration is starting," she pointed out with a nervous sing-song tone to her voice. The Doctor looked back to the blond woman with a regretful wince.
"Look, sorry, I've got a bit of a complex life. Things don't always happen to me in quite the right order. Gets a bit confusing at times, especially at weddings. I'm rubbish at weddings, especially my own," the Doctor rattled off in explanation. Selene wanted to deny that her eyes had snapped towards him on the mention of 'his wedding,' but she would have been lying to herself. The woman he'd been talking to laughed in realization.
"Oh, my god, of course. You're a time traveler! It hasn't happened to you yet; none of it. It's still in your future," the woman pieced together. The Doctor's brows slowly creased and his lips puckered together in interest.
"What hasn't happened?"
"Doctor, please, twenty minutes till red hatching!" Martha intoned impatiently, shifting the quiver on her shoulder.
"It was me. Oh, for God's sake, it was me all along. You got it all from me…" the woman murmured with a smile.
"Got what?" the Doctor inquired.
"Okay, listen. One day you're going to get trapped in nineteen-sixty-nine. Make sure you've got this with you. You're going to need it."
"Got what?" The woman held out a clear plastic folder with papers and pictures inside, which he then took with interest, a crease between the brows.
"Doctor!" Selene said, gesturing down the street with the hand that held the jar of goo.
"Yeah, listen, listen, gotta dash. Things happening. Well, four things. Well, four things and a lizard," the Doctor amended, thinking on the current situation they found themselves in. The woman smiled happily and nodded, a weight having been clearly lifted off of her shoulders.
"Okay. No worries. On you go. See you around some day."
"What was your name?"
"Sally Sparrow," Sally said proudly.
"Good to meet you, Sally Sparrow," the Doctor said with a faint smile as a man with shaggy hair stopped beside her, eyes wide with shock. Sally took the man's hand and nodded.
"Goodbye, Doctor."
Turning on his heel, the Doctor took off at a sprint with Selene and Martha following.
"What was that about?" Martha asked as they ran.
"Someone I haven't helped yet, apparently!" he said. "Now give me an arrow, I think we're running a bit late to this whole fiasco." When he got the arrow, he handed it to Selene, who screwed the jar-top off and dipped the arrowhead into the goo before handing it back. They skidded to a stop when they saw a large lizard begin to creep down the next street over, long, pink tongue flicking out of its mouth. "Give it to me, give it to me!" The Doctor snatched the arrow back, notched it, drew the string back and aimed. "Well… here goes nothing."
OOOO
The three time travelers slouched back into the TARDIS with slime streaking their faces, their clothes a bit torn, and their hair an utter mess. They all collapsed up by the console, tossing down cracked arrows and kicking out their sore legs. Turned out there hadn't been one giant space lizard, there had been three and that did nothing to improve the situation of trying to shoot down the giant space birds that were hatching off the roof of a local cathedral. Selene wiped lizard-slime off her hand and onto the leg of her jeans, a grimace firmly set on her lips as she groaned.
"Can we agree that we will never hunt down phoenix-like creatures again?" Selene asked. The Doctor snickered and ran both hands over his face.
"Trust me, phoenixes are much more dangerous, much hotter to deal with," he said. Snorting, Selene's eyes fell shut, shaking her head tiredly.
"Of course you've fought a phoenix…"
"Not as fun as you would think."
"How would fighting a bird with feathers made of fire be fun?" Martha asked, tossing the quiver aside. The three shared a laugh as the Doctor flung an arm upwards, palm slapping at a button, fingers tugging at a switch or two, sending the TARDIS whirring into action. "Well, I am going to take a nice, long, shower and see how much of this slime and goo I can get out of my hair."
Martha stood herself up and climbed the ladder, disappearing into the TARDIS corridors. Selene shut her eyes and sucked in a deep breath, letting it out in a sigh. She felt as though her legs were made of cement from all of the running, leaping, and falling she had done in the last hour or so. It nearly felt like she had done the mile-run at school three times over. When she opened her eyes, she saw the Doctor had managed to pull himself up, and he was now offering her his hands.
"Need some help?" he asked with a smile. Accepting his offer with a smile of her own, she let the Time Lord haul her upwards so she was standing again. When she was upright again, however, she didn't let go of his hands. In fact, it seemed as though he'd shifted the way he was grasping them so that he could just hold them. With the smile still resting on her lips, Selene stared up at him and watched as his eyes flicked downwards, staring at a spot low on her face. "You've got, um… you've got some… goo…" He released one of her hands to place it against her jaw, swiping his thumb along her bottom lip slowly, rubbing away a streak of goo and slime that he had spotted. The Doctor watched as a vibrant pink blush appeared on her cheeks and felt her fingers tighten on the hand he was still holding. "There you, uh… there you go."
"Th-thanks…" she murmured, staring up at him when he didn't remove the hand from her cheek. Ever since they left nineteen-thirteen behind, such moments as the one that had just occurred happened with increasing frequency. There were moments where a kiss nearly ensued, a peck on the cheek was received, or just a quiet blush appeared after a hand was taken in the other's grasp. Neither did anything to stop such things from happening; in fact, they seemed rather open to having their hands brush or land in a situation where a kiss may be probable. Though they didn't understand why they were so complacent with such moments. It only frustrated them more or amped up the tension. Selene smiled at the Doctor, who returned it readily. "I should, um, go wash all this slime off."
"Right, yeah…" the Doctor said with a nod. They stood there for another moment before Selene withdrew her hands from his slowly and made for the ladder. She nearly slipped once or twice on her way up, but she eventually made it to the top before she made for the corridor. The Doctor leaned sideways against the console, watching as he left with a soft smile on his lips. As he crossed his left ankle over his right, a large splotch of goo on the sole of his shoe caused him to fall; and he fell hard.
OOOO
The TARDIS doors creaked open to reveal that they'd landed… in a basement. It was a shadowy room that smelled of mildew and wet cardboard, and a single lightbulb––that wasn't even turned on––dangled from the ceiling. The Doctor was the first to step into the damp room, his face scrunched up in confusion. He spun around a few times, coat tails flying as he tried to place just where exactly they were in some poor chap's basement.
"What…" he muttered, turning to face the TARDIS as Selene and Martha stepped out. He placed a hand flat against the time machine's door and rubbed gently, staring up at the light atop the box. "Is something wrong?" The Doctor pressed his ear against the door beside his hand, as though he were listening to the internal workings of his beloved machine… and he probably was. "No… no, everything's in check…" He reeled back and narrowed his eyes at the machine before turning back around to peer into the darkness around them. "Then why've you parked us in a basement?"
"Maybe we're under some sort of space station," Martha offered as Selene stretched up onto her toes and tugged at the chain that dangled by the light bulb. It flickered to life, giving off a dull, yellow glow that illuminated only a small portion of the room around the TARDIS. There wasn't much to see anyway. The basement was completely empty. There were a few pools of water here and there, but that seemed to be about it. The Doctor, brows pinched, shook his head at Martha's suggestion.
"No, the air smells of soil; distinctly earth's soil. It's more… earthy," he explained. Selene arched an eyebrow and tugged her jacket sleeves over her fingers to fight of the chill.
"Do different planets have different soil scents?" she inquired. The Doctor nodded vigorously.
"Oh, yeah! For example, Mars smells more of copper and iron. Deniz smells of salt. I could go on but I don't want to bore you; anyway, the only way to find out where we are…" the Doctor smiled cheekily and began backing up towards a set of creaky stairs, "is to go exploring."
As they climbed the stairs, Selene couldn't up but feel a thrill run down her spine. It tingled and made her shiver, as though a cold breeze had run across the back of her neck. Pausing ever-so-slightly, she cast a glance over her shoulder, searching the darkness behind her for… something. But when all she saw were little dust motes drifting about, kicked up from them walking up the stairs, she shook her head. Maybe she was just being paranoid; dark, unfamiliar places always made people uncomfortable. This was no different than that.
They appeared in an entrance hall, the door to the basement having been set under a set of stairs; Martha resisted the urge to make a Harry Potter joke. The house might have once been beautiful and lively when it hadn't been so… decrepit. It appeared that it had been abandoned years ago. The floors creaked and shifted underfoot and it appeared that plaster had begun to crack away from the ceiling and dust the ground in a fine powder. It smelled the way all old buildings did––slightly musty, yet somehow comforting in its own, odd sense. Broken windows allowed cool air to drift through in rather large drafts, and the wallpaper was beginning to peel in numerous places.
"Oh. Well, this is interesting," the Doctor said, pursing his lips.
"It's… just an old house," Martha pointed out with a laugh, shifting a chunk of plaster to the side with her foot.
"But old houses are filled with history, memories," Selene replied, running her fingers over a discolored patch on the wall, where she assumed a picture, painting, or mirror had once hung. "We think abandoned houses are empty when, in reality, they're impossibly full." She noticed the Doctor beaming at her brightly, his hands shoved in his trouser pockets.
"Couldn't have said it better myself." Selene returned the smile and shrugged, feeling a blush rise to her cheeks. Martha shifted uncomfortably and crossed the space between the two, breaking their eye contact. She gestured around the foyer.
"We should give the place a good look around before we leave, don't you think?" she asked. "Make sure no one's in trouble and what not."
"Good suggestion!" the Doctor complimented. He then got a goofy look on his face as he grinned toothily and bounced on his toes. "Well, I say we split up and search for clues!" Selene snorted and began to move towards the stares. As she passed the Doctor she patted his shoulder.
"If you act like we're in Scooby Doo, I think we're more likely to run into something sinister," she teased. "Alright, gang, call out if you find anything."
Selene began to jog up the steps as Martha headed towards the sunroom and the Doctor went to investigate the sitting room. As she crested the landing, Selene paused as she felt that chill wiggle down her spin again. Turning around, she observed the now empty foyer. Again, she passed it off as paranoia and shook her head. Just above her head the ceiling creaked heavily, as if something on the second floor had shifted. Her head flicked back to stare at the spot the sound had come from. It sounded like someone had pushed a large rock a couple of feet from where it had been sitting.
"Old houses make strange sounds all the time…" she reminded herself. "Like Hartwell Tavern…"
Selene finished climbing the rest of the stairs, her toe catching on the last one. She swore quietly and glanced down, noticing her maroon colored Converse had come untied. Putting her exploring on hold, Selene crouched down and quickly reknotted the laces on her right foot. When she stood up again, a thrill of panic and horror rushed through her body as she found herself staring at a statue. In that moment, the name of the creature before her came rushing back to familiarity, a door in her mind flying open. Weeping Angel. That was why she had been feeling so put-off by the house. The statue stood in the semblance of a delicate, crying angel, its hands placed over its face. Selene stared at it with wide fearful eyes, knowing that the moment she blinked, she was done for.
"Doctor…" she called out in a quavering voice. There was no response, so she backed up a step, feeling her heel teeter off the edge of the stair. Feeling herself begin to fall, Selene caught herself but made the mistake of looking down. When her head snapped back up and her gaze was locked on the Angel again, she saw its soft, emotionless features, its hands outstretched towards her. "Martha!"
"Yeah, give me a minute!" came her response from downstairs. Selene's heart was pounding in her chest, her pulse slowly becoming the only thing that she could hear. Swallowing thickly, and turned her head slightly with her eyes still fixated on the living statue.
"Doctor, I think I'm beginning to remember something!" she called out urgently.
"I'll be up in just a tick!" the Doctor called back. Selene exhaled sharply in disbelief. Of course the one time she really needed him to run as fast as his long legs could take him, he wanted to take his time observing something that was definitely highly irrelevant in the current situation. Her eyes were beginning to water, a very inconvenient draft brushing across her face. Her eyelids twitched as she held a staring contest with the Weeping Angel; somewhere deep in her chest, Selene understood this was a fight she couldn't win. One way or another, she would have to give in. Still grasping the bannister, Selene shifted her other foot backwards, hoping that maybe she could start inching her way down the stairs. Unfortunately there was a loud crack as the floor caved slightly, sending her reeling off balance. Her eyes flew shut on instinct as her hands shot out to grab onto the railings.
There was a cold rush of air just as her eyes snapped open; she was now leaning precariously over the steps, and the Weeping Angel was looming over her. Its features were now twisted and curved in a monstrous snarl, its mouth gaping open to reveal animalistic teeth. One of its clawed hands was tightly grasping the string that held the TARDIS key around her neck. Selene was breathing heavily and she felt as though her heart might burst through her chest at any second. The Angel seemed to be holding her up by her necklace, though she knew that it wasn't there to spare her. She could feel her fingers beginning to slip against the banister and knew that the moment she leg to, she would be gone.
"Doctor!" she screamed.
"Selene?" His voice was frightened and she could hear skittering across the ground floor that could only mean that the Time Lord and Martha were scrambling towards the stairs. Selene stared into the lifeless eyes of the Angel as her hands slipped and she jerked backwards. Damning instinct as her feet slipped, Selene's eyes flew shut to prepare for impact with the stairs. But it never came. She felt a whoosh of cold, like she'd been pushed into the ocean, she heard a tearing sound, and then she was falling through nothing.
By the time the Doctor thundered up the steps with Martha behind him, Selene was gone. The Doctor froze near the top of the steps when he spotted the Angel. One of it's hands was outstretched with a single finger pointing outwards, and the other was clenched in a fist, from which Selene's TARDIS key necklace swung. The Time Lord threw an arm out to stop Martha from running into his back.
"Martha, don't blink. Whatever you do, do not blink," he instructed firmly, his eyes fixed on the Weeping Angel in front of them. Startled by the instruction, Martha stared at the statue with confusion etched across her features.
"W-why not?"
"This isn't a statue; this is a Weeping Angel, the nicest killer in the universe. The minute you look away for one second and its stone form becomes fluid. The moment they touch you, you're sent back in time to live out the rest of your life. Therefore, the moment you blink…" the Doctor trailed off. Martha's eyes widened and she swallowed thickly, catching his drift.
"You're gone," she finished for him. He gave a slight nod. "So… Selene's…?"
"Gone. It's sent her back to who knows when."
"Can we save her?"
"Only if we get out of this… only if we don't blink."
OOOO
With a splash, Selene hit the ground hard. She groaned and coughed, feeling every muscle in her body aching. It felt as though she had been twisted, turned, folded, stretched, and scrunched up; her stomach was gurgling unpleasantly and her head pounded something awful. She supposed that was what being sent through the Time Vortex without some sort of protection did to you. She rolled onto her stomach with an arm wrapped around her middle, feeling as though she might actually be sick. Pushing herself up onto her knees, Selene realized she had fallen right out of the Time Vortex and into a puddle. Her jacket and sweater were soaked and her jeans hadn't fared that well either.
Groaning as her muscles protested, Selene crawled out of the puddle and towards the alley wall so she could lean against it. Her eyes were directed skyward, and she decided to focus on something simple till she felt less ill. Judging on the lavender color of the sky, it was evening wherever she was. Stars were beginning to appear and wispy clouds drifted across a purple backdrop. She supposed the next thing she would have to do was figure out where––and when––she was. There was suddenly a flash of light that blinded her for a brief moment, accompanied by the sound of flesh hitting the pavement. Then there was a second flash and another thud. Head lolling downwards, Selene saw the Doctor and Martha sprawled across the damp pavement; though, neither of them had actually landed in a puddle. As they rolled over, looking just as pained and ill as she did, Selene offered a half-hearted wave.
"Hey, guys… you didn't last long against the Angel, did you?"
It took them more than a few minutes to feel up to moving more than a few feet. But when their strength seemed to have returned enough to allow them to walk, they moved towards the mouth of the alley to see what they could deduce about their current situation. The Doctor had given Selene his coat, seeing as she was drenched and shivering, and its warmth made her feel even better. Standing on the edge of a sidewalk, the Doctor inhaled deeply and let out a breath.
"Well, it's definitely earth," he announced. He sniffed again and let his brows furrow. "Hair gel… motor oil… cigarette smoke… and just a touch of hairspray. I'd say… sixties? Late sixties…"
"The sixties?" Martha blanched. "How are we gonna get back?" The Doctor opened his mouth to speak, but paused, not sure if he had an answer. Then, Selene perked up, remembering something that had slipped back into memory.
"Sally Sparrow," she said. Her two friends looked at her curiously. "That woman we met, what was it, three weeks ago? When we were dealing with the red hatching? Doctor, she handed you a folder and said that… that one day you would get trapped in––"
"Nineteen-sixty-nine," he said thoughtfully, piecing it all together. He began to root around in his pockets before he drew out the purple plastic folder Sally had given him. "And I think this time 'round, I'll allow us a cheat sheet."
OOOO
They had, in fact, been sent back to London in nineteen-sixty-nine, just as Sally had Told them. According to her meticulously kept files, the house the TARDIS had brought them to was called Wester Drumlins; and, in its current nineteen-sixties state, it was up for rent. So after the Doctor charmed the landlady––who was rather stiff lipped––they were allowed to rent the large, brick house. But now that they were renting a residence they were going to need rent money. Seeing as the Doctor knew very little about actually working, it was up to Martha and Selene to get jobs. Martha found one in a department store and Selene snagged one at a very small record shop; neither was glamorous, but they were just searching for a way to make ends meet, something Selene was no stranger to.
While they were at work the Doctor analyzed each of the pictures and papers Sally included carefully. He determined that there were certain things that they were going to need to do, such as find the exact wallpaper that hid their message to Sally. Oh, and they had to make the video that some fellow named Billy Shipton was going to hide on VHS tapes and, eventually, DVDs. They would have to say everything word for word, otherwise the fabric of time and space could, potentially rip. He also spent his days making what he lovingly dubbed the 'Timey-Wimey Detector.' The Time Lord assured the women that, when it was done, it will 'go ding when there's stuff.'
On a particularly drizzling Wednesday evening, Selene found herself winding her way through the shop with a pile of records pressed into her hip. She was one of few employees that worked at the shop, and was currently the only one on shift. The song Space Oddity by David Bowie played quietly in the background as she slipped albums back into their proper places; without music playing when she was the only one around, Selene felt uncomfortably alone. So, with the shop owners permission, Selene began the habit of having a record playing during store hours.
The bell over the door tinkled and a man strode in wearing a damp green coat.
"William, where are you? I've been waiting by the pub for forty minutes!" he called out sharply, clearly annoyed. William was one of the few other shop employees, a rather chipper man who had a taste for drink. The man who'd strode into the shop began to survey the rest of the store when he didn't spy William behind the register. Selene smiled at him kindly when their eyes met. "Oh. Sorry, I was, um, looking for William? William Devons?"
"I gathered. He called in sick earlier," Selene said as she slipped a Jimmy Hendrix album into the correct spot. The man in the green coat sighed and slipped a hand through his hair.
"Great. Just great…" he muttered, slapping his rain-soaked cap onto the counter. He looked back towards Selene as she moved back towards the front of the store. He realized he didn't recognize her, and he thought he knew everyone who worked at the shop. "I'm afraid I haven't seen you around here before."
"I've only worked here for about two weeks," she explained, setting the record stack down on the counter. The man offered a hand.
"Ben Chapel," he introduced. Selene smiled and shook his hand.
"Selene Thomas." The smile that slipped onto his face told her exactly what kind of man he was. He was charming and probably used to getting exactly what he wanted. It didn't mean that he wasn't a good person, a nice person… but that sly little quirk of his lips spoke wonders.
"American," he pointed out. She tilted her head and arched an eyebrow.
"Northern," she shot back, having noticed the broader lilt of his accent. He chuckled and leaned up against the register's counter. The front of his coat had slouched open to reveal a well-kept suit jacket and a neatly pressed button-up.
"North-West," Ben corrected. "Though good on you for picking that up." Selene laughed quietly and stepped round to the other side of the counter, nodding to the phone that was set up back there.
"You could give him a call if you'd like." Ben snorted and waved a hand dismissively as though the frustration he'd been wearing plain on his sleeve when he walked in was now irrelevant. "Then maybe you'd like to have a look around?"
"Oh, I don't know, I'm looking at something pretty nice right now," he told her, still smiling that sly, charming smile. Both of Selene's brows jumped upward and she busied herself with organizing the records on the countertops alphabetically so she wouldn't be bouncing around the shop like a madwoman. No one had flirted with her so blatantly since she'd met Hal. "But I could have a look around, I suppose. Maybe something new's come in since last I was here. Would you recommend anything, Selene? I'm sure you must have impeccable taste in music." Selene gave a marginal shake of her head with a slight smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth. Looking up and leaned forwards across the counter, she nodded to the first row of records.
"Abbey Road has just come out. It's one of my favorite Beatles albums… so far." She was sure to peg the last bit on as casually as possible. Ben snapped and pointed at her as he backed towards the square compartment that read 'A.'
"Should've known you were a Beatles sort of girl." He spun around and flipped through the album before drawing it out. The iconic cover was bared to light and Ben flipped it over to read down the song selections. Nodding, he returned to the counter and fished around in his pockets. He playfully narrowed his eyes at her. "Should I take your word on its quality?"
"That depends; how much are you willing to trust a woman you've just met?" she replied, crossing her arms. With a chuckle, Ben withdrew his wallet.
"I'll take it then."
As he tugged out the pound notes he needed to purchase the record, Martha pushed through the door with her jacket tugged over her head. Selene smiled over at her and held up a finger to signal 'one minute.' Ben paid for the record and Selene gave him his receipt.
"Be careful not to get it wet," she told him as he pulled his cap back on. He grinned at her and tucked the album underneath his coat.
"Don't worry, I won't. But maybe if it does get a bit damp it'll give me an excuse to come back and see you." Ben winked her way and tilted the brim of his flat cap. Then he was out the door and down the street. Martha pointed at him as he left.
"Who was that?" she asked. Selene shrugged and moved towards the shop's backroom.
"Some guy named Ben; a right flirt, too." She leaned through the doorway and snagged her coat, nodding to the girl who had the next shift. "I'm heading out, Kitty."
"Alright. See you tomorrow," Kitty replied with a sigh, setting her magazine down. Selene smiled her way and pulled her thick, tan coat on.
"See you." She turned back to Martha as they headed out the shop front. "So how was your day?"
"Um… clearly not as eventful as yours," Martha laughed, pulling her collar up around her ears. The rain had lessened to a drizzle, but it had decided to just be unpleasantly cold as well. Selene rolled her eyes and avoided stepping in a puddle. Her Oxford style shoes were already damp and she didn't want to risk ruining them. What money she'd had on her when they arrived and half of her first paycheck went into getting her some period clothing; if there was one thing that she and Martha had learned in nineteen-thirteen, it was that clothes made the disguise.
"Oh, right, and you're telling me that guy who works in the mens department doesn't fancy you?" Selene asked slyly with a broad smile. Martha ducked her head to hide the embarrassed smile that appeared on her face.
"He's just really nice," Martha dismissed.
"You've only known him for two weeks and he's bought you lunch three times; and you told me he knows how to make coffee just the way you like it."
"Not like it matters; we've got to leave sometime." Selene sighed and shrugged as the rounded the corner that would bring them to their street. She smiled over at her friend.
"We don't know how long we'll be here; I'm just saying, it wouldn't kill you to maybe go out for a drink with him," Selene suggested. "Between friends, of course."
Selene pushed the gate of Wester Drumlins open and ducked down the walk as Martha said she'd be back after taking a quick run up to the corner store. The interior of the grand looking brick building was certainly brighter and more impressive than it had been when they'd first encountered it. The walls weren't cracking, the wallpaper was different, and, most notably, there was a distinct lack of Weeping Angels. Shrugging her coat off, Selene hung it up in the closet just as she heard a crack, a splat, and an exclamation of,
"Whoa!"
Making her way towards the kitchen as she kicked off her shoes, Selene stopped dead in her tracks at what she saw. The Doctor stood on the opposite end of the kitchen with the Timey Wimey Detector in hand, a phone receiver pressed to his ear. His mouth was gaping, his eyes squinted shut and his face and suit covered in egg yolk. In fact… most of the kitchen was covered in both egg yolk and shell. The Time Lord slowly opened his eyes as a glob of egg white dripped off the ceiling. He met Selene's gaze from across the room and slowly lowered the telephone receiver and placed it back atop the Timey Wimey Detector.
"What…?" was all she uttered, her hands held out to gesture to the mess. Clearing his throat, he set the Detector on the counter and wiped at the gooey substance ran into his eyes.
"So, um, turns out that the Timey Wimey Detector can make eggs explode," he announced. Selene nodded and placed both hands on her hips as she observed the damage she would probably help him clean up later.
"I can see that. Were you looking to see if it made eggs explode? Because that is a specific I would not have thought to look for; nor would I think it was relevant," she said.
"Oh, no I wasn't. I was going to make quiche so the eggs were on the counter. I tried out the Detector to see if it was working and, um… splat," the Doctor explained, edging his way around the splatters on the floor to get to the doorway. Selene put a hand over her mouth and shook her head.
"You do know you're cleaning this up, right?"
"Yeah."
"Good…"
The Doctor ended up getting the kitchen cleaned in about forty or so minutes, looking rather displeased about the smell that was now clinging to his clothes. Selene, who had been reading and listening to the radio in the sitting room, looked up as he shuffled out of the kitchen, peeling his jacket off. She smiled at him and nodded towards the foyer.
"Put your clothes in the downstairs bathroom. I'll bring them to the dry-cleaners tomorrow," she said. The Doctor paused and blinked, mouth forming words that had no sound. He pointed to his shirt, which was spattered in drying egg-white.
"I… I only have the one…"
"The one suit, I know, and you wash it every night in the bath. But I am your savior, dear Doctor, because I bought you some clothes when I last went shopping," Selene said with a cheeky smile, snatching the pin-striped jacket from his hand. He followed her, hopping on one foot as he pulled off his shoes and tossed them aside in the hall; it was honestly a miracle the house stayed clean at all. The Doctor threw things around and Martha and Selene did the same––they just happened to be the only two who picked it all up when they had the energy.
"Y-you got me clothes," the Doctor repeated, sounding surprised and just a tad bit touched. She couldn't have foreseen that he would be covered in egg, but she still spent some of her money––which she spent hours earning––on him. Selene stopped in the middle of the entry hall as his second shoe hit the floor and smiled back at him.
"Yeah. Can't say you'll like it, but it's clothes none the less," Selene told him. Maybe she'd tell him that the only clothes that would fit him came in the patterns that she got him; and maybe the truth of it was the fact that this might be the only chance to see the Doctor in something as outlandish as paisley and plaid. The Time Lord smiled down at her, brown eyes glittering.
"Thank you." Selene reached up and took hold of his sticky, slimy tie and tugged at the knot in the length of silk. Smiling up at him as she undid the tie, she replied with,
"You're welcome. Now take the rest of this," she gestured to his suit, "off before you track egg yolk everywhere." He chuckled and shook his head, moving towards the ground floor bathroom, fingers working at his shirt buttons. Selene watched him leave, biting her lip as she watched him shrug off his button-up. She turned away with a faint pink blush on her cheeks, resolving to go up to her room and fetch the Doctor's new outfit.
OOOO
"I am never allowing you to dress me again!" the Doctor called out the next morning as he stared at his reflection in the mirror. Selene was waiting on the other side of his bedroom door, undoubtedly eager to see him in the outfit she'd chosen for him. He had seen it the night before and begged not to wear it, but Selene cheekily told him that his usual suit was already half-washed and still smelled heavily of raw egg.
"It's period! You're a stickler for keeping things in period!" Selene laughed from the hall. The Doctor grumbled something under his breath, tucking the hem of his shirt into his high-waisted trousers. The trousers were plaid. Orange plaid; and the shirt was a yellow-tan paisley, a pattern which he decided to detest. And the two together… he shuddered as he grimaced unhappily. It would have to do, he supposed; Selene was going to the laundromat after her shift. Sighing and ruffling his hair in resolve, the Time Lord opened the door and stepped out.
Selene, who was leaning against the banister she would one day, in the future, grab onto for dear life, grinned when she saw him. Both her hands flew up to cover her mouth, but the pleased laughter was apparent in her blue eyes. The Doctor sighed and a joking twirl, letting her view her clothing creation from each angle.
"You can pull it off, I promise! On anyone else, it wouldn't work, but on you… the pattern combination isn't so garish!" Selene giggled. The Doctor rolled his eyes, unable to not smile at her undying enthusiasm. He gestured to what she was wearing.
"You look like a Mod," he told her. Selene smoothed her hands against her bright yellow dress with a smile; her hair had been tugged into a high-ponytail and she'd even done the make-up up to the current style.
"Thanks; I don't think the hair is up to par, but I can't really fix that without cutting it," she said. She checked a small watch on her wrist and hissed at the time. "Oh, damn, I'll be late." Looking back up at the Time Lord, who shifted uncomfortably, she grinned again. "I promise you look great! I wouldn't have chosen it otherwise!"
She began to skip down the stairs and the Doctor leaned over the railing to call out,
"The trousers are tight!"
"That isn't a bad thing!" she laughed, pausing on the landing. She winked up at him before skipping down the last set of stairs.
"It's more seventies than late sixties!"
"Then you should've been compliant and gone shopping with me!"
The Doctor shook his head with a fond smile playing on his lips. He then descended the stairs and paused half-way down to watch Selene hop around the foyer tugging her shoes on; he chuckled as she practically fell into the closet to grab her coat in her rush to get out the door. She breezed across the hall to grab her keys, hair fluttering around her face. The Doctor sat himself down on the stairs and leaned his cheek in his hand as she left, thinking back to his time as John Smith. As much as he might have said otherwise, he remembered it as vividly as if he'd been the one doing the things the teacher had done. He could recall the cool misty air of the country village, the way his classroom always smelled of chalk and old books, and he recalled the kisses.
If he shut his eyes and thought hard enough, he could have sworn he felt the heat of her lips against his, remember how soft they were. So, sitting on the staircase in Wester Drumlin, he did just that. In his mind John Smith would stir and his voice would faintly shout 'for god's sake, kiss her!' Dragging a hand over his face, the Doctor sighed gently. He had kissed her as John… and he couldn't help but want to kiss her as himself. Have a vivid memory of his own, because if there was anything he'd realized in the time since the adventure in Herefordshire, it was that denying how he felt about and around Selene would do him no good. He had slowly been getting himself to come to realize just what those feelings meant… and now, having lived with her in such close quarters with tension building daily, the Time Lord couldn't leave it lie anymore.
OOOO
"Hello, hello, hello!" the Doctor said cheerfully, waltzing into the record shop. Selene, who had been organizing a few albums, looked up and smiled broadly. She placed her hands on her hips and grinned across the shop at him. The day had been slow and she wasn't due to end her shift for another hour. Kitty hadn't even showed up to read in the back room yet. The Doctor seemed more comfortable in his new clothes if the smile and the cheerful tone of his voice said anything.
"About time you decided to show up," she teased lightly. "I've only been working here for two weeks."
"Well, I've had a Timey Wimey Detector to make. So, uh… Lively place, this." He nodded around the shop, indicating its lack of customers and employees alike. Selene laughed and blew some dust off a nearby shelf.
"It's a quiet little shop. There are a few regulars, but today seems to be slow," Selene explained and walked over to lean against the counter beside him.
The Doctor looked down at Selene and marveled at how well she wore sixties fashion. She indeed looked like a Mod, a style that had just gone into full swing. Even the color yellow complimented her skin while, on others, it would look frighteningly bright. She was a little flame in the misty, cloudy streets of London; and that made him smile. Directing his eyes back to the empty shop, he asked,
"So… you're alone all day then?"
"Yup," Selene agreed, popping the 'p.' She stretched her arms over her head and then yawned, the drizzle outside affecting her energy-level. The Doctor nudged her arm with his shoulder and nodded out to the rows of records in front of them.
"Well, how about you choose a record, we pop it on and liven this place up a bit? Hm?" He grinned as a smile broke out across her face. "Yeah? Well, go on! Go choose!"
"I'll choose the album, but you'll choose the song. Deal?" Selene asked, extending a hand. Accepting her terms, he shook her hand and watched gleefully as she headed towards a certain section of records.
Selene, then standing over the 'A' section, flipped through a few albums and then grinned. She pulled up a particular one and spun it around so the Doctor could see the cover art.
"Brand new Abbey Road album. I'm sure Mr. Peters won't mind me playing a record I intend on buying," she said, returning to the counter and passing it off to the Doctor. Chuckling at her enthusiasm, he browsed the song selection.
"I suppose that's the benefit of earning money," he mused softly. After selecting a song, the Doctor turned to the record player and set the circular piece of vinyl on the turntable. Setting the needle on a specific groove, the music began.
Ohh! Darling, please believe me…
"Oh, I love this song," she said hummed with a grin. The Doctor nodded knowingly, smirking cheekily.
"I know; you sometimes sing it when you make breakfast." She blushed at the thought he'd heard her sing it more than once and stared down at her heeled shoes for lack of anything better to do. The Doctor had the sweetest little smile on his face when she looked back up at him, and he extended a hand to her.
"Honor me with a dance?" the Time Lord questioned, raising his eyebrows. Blushing heavier, she nodded.
"The honor's all mine," she replied, taking his hand while stepping closer. Looping an arm around her waist, the Doctor held her against him as they began to slowly dance to the Beatles song. Selene had her arms wound around his neck and her cheek was pressed against his shoulder. As they swayed back and forth, she smiled, loving how perfect it felt; it was a far cry from the dance they'd shared at Donna's wedding. She could feel the Doctor's hands on her hips, feel the warmth of his body, and that made her want to stay that way forever. With her ear resting above his left heart, she could hear his unique heartbeat gently thrumming inside his chest.
The Doctor had his head tilted downwards so he could watch her as they swayed from side-to-side. Her head was rested against his shoulder sweetly, and the smile she wore was positively lovely. She hadn't been more beautiful than she was at that moment in his arms. One of his hands slid from her hip to her back, his fingers spreading themselves out. Selene lifted her head as they were drawn closer together, that sweet little smile still on her lips. One of the hands that rested on the back of his neck began to gently toy with his hair, her nails gently scratching against his skin. Their eyes met and it was as though everything else had become irrelevant; they'd stopped moving to the music, which seemed muffled and far away. If their thoughts were coherent enough to be turned into words, the words would have been jumbled and the eloquence wouldn't be there. The Doctor had placed a hand on her cheek, his thumb sweeping across the curve of her cheekbone.
Moving so slow it was achingly painful, the Doctor tilted his head to the side, and inched his lips closer to hers. Selene stretched up onto her toes, leaning forward till the distance between them was closed. Their lips met in a soft collision so gentle and sweet that it left them both breathless. There was a wholeheartedness in intimate action that hadn't been wholly present in the kisses in Herefordshire. It was such an overwhelming feeling of tenderness and caring that they both though, perhaps, they could drown in it; but they'd drown in it over and over again if it meant being so close to each other. The kiss was an admission. The sweetest, truest, firmest, admission that made hearts race.
The kiss broke for a brief moment and the Doctor brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, his eyes roaming her face. He smiled and placed his hand back on her cheek.
"I've been wanting to do that for quite some time," he told her. Selene laughed softly and looked up at him from under her lashes, an irrepressible smile appearing on her face.
"Really?" she asked breathily. The Doctor nodded, a grin still stretched across his lips. "Well, the feeling is mutual."
Then the Doctor kissed Selene again, his lips warm against hers. Her fingers curled themselves into the hair at the back of his head, returning the kiss with a tentative fervor she was unsure he would return. But much to her pleasure, she felt his arm curl around her waist, said fervor being returned. The kiss wasn't rushed. It wasn't wildly passionate; it was passionate in a gentle, exploratory way. When the second kiss broke, the Doctor spoke again.
"I should have done this that day in the TARDIS. Honestly, I think I was quite nervous about it," he chuckled. Selene's laughter intermingled with his, her fingers gently sweeping through his hair. "I, um… I'm not exactly sure what to… say." There was a thrill that she felt in that moment, amazed and undeniably delighted at what he'd said. She wasn't pushing for a poetic confession because his actions spoke louder than… well… words.
"Hear my soul speak:/The very instant that I saw you, did/My heart fly to your service," Selene spoke softly, her smile becoming small but sweet none the less. When in doubt, quote Shakespeare; that was one of her life mottos. That line, one of the few she remembered from that particular play, she supposed was a confession in itself.
"The Tempest," he pointed out appreciatively. "Not the most romantic of his plays."
"I'm unconventional like that."
Someone cleared their throat from the behind the Doctor, drawing the attention the enamoured duo towards the back room. They didn't jump away from each other as they might have been like to; they weren't embarrassed in the least bit. Instead they seemed more surprised that someone besides them had even been in the shop. Kitty stood in the back doorway with a decidedly interested look on her face, a sly smile tugging on her lips.
"Your shift's up," she told Selene. The Doctor took a step back from the woman he held in his arms, his hands hesitantly leaving her person. He shoved them into his trouser pockets and, with a goofy smile, he nodded towards the door.
"I should, uh, go," he told her, inching towards the door. Selene, matching the smile, nodded as her cheeks turned a fair shade of pink.
"I'll pick up your suit from the cleaners on the way back," she assured him.
"Great! Great, I'll see you back at home, Selene." With a nod her way, the Doctor pushed out the door and headed down the street with a spring in his step. The evening drizzle had stopped and the clouds were beginning to part to allow him a glimpse of the sky. Tilting his head back, he gazed up at the stars and began reciting their names in his head as he happily walked along. The day had gone from grumbling about poorly chosen clothing to sighing happily about a kiss that spoke dozens of times more than anything he could have ventured to say; and he wouldn't have had it any other way.
When he got back to Wester Drumlins with that goofy smile still on his face, the Doctor sat himself down in the sun room, where he'd previously been working on the Timey Wimey Detector. He skimmed through the photographs from Sally's folder that he'd laid out, and determined that when they filmed the easter-egg, they would have to be in their normal clothes, and they had to say everything word-for-word. Luckily, a transcript of said video––and the 'in time responses'––were included. It was like memorizing the script of a play.
"You'll never guess what I found at work today!" Martha exclaimed as she burst through the front door. The Doctor turned in his seat to see Martha grinning brightly, rolls of wallpaper in hand. "I found the wallpaper! The exact wallpaper that we need; and I got it on discount, so we have enough to cover the entire room."
"Oh, Martha, you're a star!" the Time Lord complimented enthusiastically, bounding out of his chair and giving his companion a tight hug. Martha laughed and gave him a curious look.
"Well, aren't you chipper," she pointed out. The Doctor shrugged, smiled, and tugged off his glasses. Her eyes then roamed over that days clothing and she resisted the urge to snort. "And I see Selene got you into those clothes."
"When in Rome," the Doctor chuckled, taking the wallpaper from Martha's arms. "You and Selene should take the day off soon so we can get this up in a timely manner… the sooner we get it done, the sooner we can go home."
When Selene arrived home with the Doctor's suit slung over her arm, the Doctor was furiously monitoring the Timey Wimey Detector, turning the dial of the radio that served as its main console. When she grabbed his attention, she held up the suit with a pointed look. He jumped out of his chair and took his typical clothing eagerly.
"Would you mind listening in on this while I change?" The Doctor handed her the phone receiver that was attached to the Detector. "Just… just call out if you hear any dinging!" He bounded forward a step, before exclaiming, "Oh!" He backed up and smiled at her. "Thank you." The Time Lord kissed the side of her head before bounding up the stairs to change. Selene smiled to herself and sat down, holding the receiver to her ear, listening to the gentle hiss of static.
She had felt entirely elated about the kiss her entire journey home. If she'd been even marginally excited about John kissing her, the Doctor's kiss had her wanting to skip all the way home with the largest grin on her face. As she had walked down the darkening streets, she had sung 'Oh! Darling' the entire time, feeling like she was living some movie cliché. But it was a cliché she was willing to accept. The Doctor was able to list off facts about the universe and many a species as easily as a professional actor said their lines. But when it came to emotions that made him feel vulnerable… it became harder for him to express. So the kiss was as much of a confession that Selene needed; unless, of course, he retracted what he'd done and said, something which she hoped he didn't do.
A faint pinging suddenly pushed through the hiss of static that had been playing through the receiver constantly. Selene's brows pinched and she took hold of the Timey Wimey Detector and stood up. The Detector picked up disturbances in the Time Vortex, and, according to the Doctor, the dinging would occur when there was 'stuff' and get stronger when it was pointed in the direction of said disturbance. Selen turned left and right till the dinging got louder.
"Doctor! Doctor, the Detector is dinging!" Selene called out. Footsteps came from upstairs and from the kitchen, the Doctor and Martha both slipping into the doorway in a manner that was far too comical. The Time Lord, once again dressed in his pin-striped suit, lurched forward and took the Timey Wimey Detector from her hands, grinning when he heard the dinging as well.
"Ah, yes! Girls, change back into the clothes you arrived here in; we've got a newcomer to welcome."
OOOO
It turned out that Billy Shipton had been dropped straight into nineteen-sixty-nine in the exact same alley that the time traveling trio had arrived in. The Doctor had set the Detector so the dinging was now audible without the use of the phone receiver––which he still had pressed to his ear––and it was now making a pinging sound like the blips on a radar screen.
"Hello!" the Doctor called out as the trio approached the man who'd just slipped down the alley wall. He was grimacing and looked very confused as to what had just happened to him.
"Where am I?" he groaned.
"Nineteen-sixty-nine. Not as bad as it goes, you've got the moon landing to look forward to," the Doctor assured him, sounding quite fond of said event.
"Oh, the moon landing's brilliant. We went four times back when we had transport," Martha said as she pointedly looked up at the Doctor. He rose his eyebrows and smirked in the slightest.
"Working on it."
"How did I get here?" Billy inquired.
"Same way we did," the Doctor responded, sitting down beside the dazed man. "The touch of an Angel; same one probably, since you ended up in the same year." Billy tried to stand, but the Time Lord patted him firmly on the shoulder. "No, no, no, don't get up. Time Travel without a capsule: nasty. Catch your breath, don't go swimming for an hour.
"I–I don't––"
"Fascinating race, the Weeping Angels. The only psychopaths in the universe to kill you nicely. No mess, no fuss, they just zap you into the past and let you live to death. The rest of your life used up and blown away in the blink of an eye. You die in the past, and in the present, they consume the energy of all the days you might have had––all your stolen moments." The Doctor dazed off for a moment before sniffing and continuing on. "They're creatures of the abstract. They live off potential energy." Billy gave him a look that clearly read as him thinking the Doctor was a lunatic.
"What in god's name are you talking about?"
"Trust me, just nod when he stops for breath," Martha tried to assure him. Selene smiled and shrugged.
"Or ask questions, he loves those," Selene assured.
"Tracked you down with this!" The Doctor held up his device. "This is my Timey Wimey Detector. It goes 'ding' when there's stuff. Also, it can boil an egg at thirty paces." Selene snorted. The Doctor gave her a look. "Whether you want it to or not, actually, so I've learned to stay away from hens. It's not pretty when they blow…"
"Wait, wait, wait; when––and where––did you cause a hen to explode?" Selene interjected with the frantic waving of a hand. "Did you sneak into our neighbor's yard? Mr. Haskins loves his chickens!"
"Can we stay on topic?"
"I don't understand. Where am I?" Billy demanded to know.
"It's nineteen-sixty-nine like he says," Martha said with a sympathetic tone.
"Normally I'd offer you a lift home, but somebody nicked my motor. So I need you to send a message to Sally Sparrow," the Doctor said, brows creasing with sympathy. "And I'm sorry, Billy. I am very, very sorry… It's gonna take you a while."
They had taken Billy back to Wester Drumlins and made him a nice cup of tea, telling him exactly what had happened, what would happen, and what his role in it all was. They gave him a spare room upstairs to rest, assuring him that he could stay with them till they left, which was when the landlady would probably kick him out. Once he went to lie down and let everything sink in, the Doctor said it was high-time that they filmed the video; and it just so happened that the Doctor had befriended a man who ran a local news channel.
OOOO
Wester Drumlins, with Sally Sparrow and Larry Nightingale
"It's the Doctor," Sally said, staring at the man in the pin-striped suit that had appeared on the screen of Larry's portable DVD player.
"Who's the Doctor?" Larry asked in confusion.
"He's the Doctor!" She pointed to the screen. The man in the glasses nodded as he said,
"Yup, that's me."
"Okay, that was scary…" Sally admitted, a bit of an excited thrill in her voice.
"No, it sounds like he's replying, but he always says that," Larry informed her.
"Yes, I do."
"And that."
"Yup, and this."
"He can hear us. Oh, my god, you can really hear us!" Sally laughed. Larry shook his head in dismissal, not believing where Sally was quite going with this. She had crouched down in front of the screen as though she were actually about to converse with the image of the strange 'Doctor' man.
"Of course he can't hear us! Look, I've got a transcript." Larry dug a floppy folder filled with papers out of his bag and brought it over. "See? Everything he says. 'Yup, that's me,' 'yes, I do,' 'yup, and this,' next it's––" The Doctor's face had scrunched up as Larry was talking as he said, at the same time as Larry,
"Are you going to read out the whole thing?" Larry looked at the screen as a shiver rolled down his spine. That… was suddenly much freakier than it usually was.
"Sorry…" he murmured.
"Who are you?" Sally asked curiously.
"I'm a time traveler. Or, I was. I'm stuck in nineteen-sixty-nine." A woman with a blue headband pushed her way into the shot.
"We're stuck. All of space and time, he promises me, now Selene and I have got jobs in shops and we've got to support him!" the woman exclaimed in frustration.
"Martha," the Doctor said, giving her a gentle, but pointed look. She looked to the camera apologetically.
"Sorry." And with that, it was only the Doctor again.
"I've seen this bit before," Sally told Larry, who was watching on wide-eyed.
"Quite possibly."
"Nineteen-sixty-nine? That's where you're talking from?"
"Afraid so."
"But you're replying to me! You can't know exactly what I'm going to say forty years before I say it!" Sally exclaimed.
"Thirty-eight," the Doctor replied.
"Doctor!" chided a woman's voice just off camera.
"I'm getting this down," Larry said excitedly, flipping open his folder and snatching a pen. "I'm writing down your bits."
"How? How is this possible?" Sally asked the Doctor. "Tell me."
"Not so fast!" The Doctor made a sound as he seemed to try to piece words together.
"People don't understand time. It's not what you think it is," he informed.
"Then what is it?"
"Complicated."
"Tell me," Sally pleaded in a softer voice.
"Very complicated." Sally made a face in response to the arched eyebrow the Doctor gave as if to say 'are you sure you'll be able to grasp it?'
"I'm clever and I'm listening and don't patronize me because people have died, and I'm not happy," she deadpanned. On screen the Doctor seemed to react to her strong statement, leaning back in his seat and fixing his jacket. "Tell me." He licked his lips and then began gesturing with his hands as he spoke.
"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, nonsubjective viewpoint, it's more like a… big ball of wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey… stuff," the Doctor explained. The first bit of that sentence had been rather intelligent, but the last half had seemed to descend to a place where it must have gotten complicated enough for him to have to invent words… that didn't quite make sense to the two sitting in the dilapidated sitting room.
"Yeah, I've seen this bit before. You said that sentence got away from you," Sally pointed out.
"It… got away from me, yeah…" the Doctor trailed off thoughtfully.
"Next thing you're gonna say is 'well, I can hear you.'" The Doctor pulled a face and nodded.
"Well, I can hear you." He had put emphasis on 'can' almost as though he were correcting her inflection, as though he had truly heard her. Sally shook her head as a disbelieving smile popped onto her face.
"This isn't possible!" she reiterated.
"No, it's brilliant!" Larry laughed as he scribbled things down. Back on the screen, the Doctor made a face and let his head twitch to the side as he made a mental amendment.
"Well, not hear you, exactly, but I know everything you're going to say."
"Always gives me the shivers that bit…" Larry admitted, looking up from his transcript.
"How can you know what I'm going to say?" Sally inquired firmly. The Doctor nodded to the left.
"Look to your left," the Doctor instructed. Larry made a sound as Sally looked his way.
"What does he mean by 'look to your left'? I've written tons of stuff about that on the forums. I think it's a political statement," Larry said smartly, clicking the top of his pen. Sally's face drew itself into a fond but exasperated look.
"He means you. What are you doing?" Sally asked standing and walking over to him so she could peer over his shoulder.
"I'm writing in your bits. That way, I've got a complete transcript of the whole conversation; wait until this hits the net, this will explode the Egg forums!"
Sally moved back over to the chair the DVD player sat on and knelt down again as the Doctor spoke.
"I've got a copy of the finished transcript. It's on my autocue. I've also got Selene there with the original copy, prompting me if I need it," the Doctor said, nodding off camera. There was a pause where a woman in a white sweater ducked onto screen, smiling brightly. She waved and held up the copy she was holding, one which were the blurred, slanted lines of someone's handwriting.
"Whoever wrote this should learn shorthand," the woman, Selene said. Larry looked up, realizing the woman on screen was actually talking about him. Selene disappeared behind the camera again.
"How can you have a copy of the finished transcript? It's still being written," Sally said.
"I told you, I'm a time traveler. I got it in the future."
"Okay, let me get my head round this. You're reading aloud from a transcript of a conversation you're still having?"
"Ahh, wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey…" He waved his hand in dismissal, sounding at a loss of how to explain it.
"Actually, never mind that." She caught sight of how Larry had taken to writing. "You actually can do shorthand?" Larry straightened up slightly.
"So?"
"Oh, good on you, transcript writer!" exclaimed Selene's voice. "You can do shorthand!"
"What matter is, we can communicate. We have got big problems now. They have the blue box, haven't they? The Angels have the phone box."
"'The Angels have the phone box,' that's my favorite––I've got that on a t-shirt," Larry said with a nerdy grin.
"What do you mean Angels?" She looked into the yard where she could see a stone statue. "You mean those statute things?"
"Creatures from another world," the Doctor warned seriously.
"But they're just statues."
'Only when you see them."
"What does that mean?"
"The Lonely Assassins, they used to be called… no one quite knows where they came from, but they're as old as the universe––or very nearly. And they have survived this long because they have the most perfect defense system ever evolved. They are quantum-locked. They don't exist when they're being observed. The moment they are seen by any other living creature, they freeze into rock. No choice. It's a fact of their biology. In the sight of any living thing, they literally turn to stone. And you can't kill a stone. Of course, a stone can't kill you either. But then you turn your head away, then you blink, and oh yes it can."
Sally's eyes snapped back to the Angel in the yard, the room suddenly becoming colder than it had a moment before. She felt the danger, then. How they'd been being watched the entire time they were there… and they hadn't know it.
"Don't take your eyes off that…" she instructed Larry, who looked over to the statue, utterly frightened.
"That's why they cover their eyes. They're not weeping. They can't risk looking at each other. Their greatest asset is their greatest curse. They can never be seen. The loneliest creatures in the universe. And I'm sorry. I am very, very sorry. It's up to you now," the Doctor apologized.
"What am I supposed to do?" Sally asked, looking back to the screen as something creaked in the hall.
"The blue-box––it's my time machine. There is a world of time energy in there they could feast on forever, but the damage they could do could switch off the sun. You have got to send it back to me."
"How? How?"
"And… that's it, I'm afraid. There's no more from you on the transcript, that's the last I've got. I don't know what stopped you talking, but I can guess. They're coming. The angels are coming for you. But listen, your life could depend on this. Don't blink. Don't even blink. Blink and you're dead. They are fast. Faster than you can believe. Don't turn your back, don't look away, and don't blink. Good luck."
OOOO
London, nineteen-sixty-nine
A few days after making the video, they'd fallen back into what had become their daily routine. Selene and Martha worked and the Doctor visited them on their lunch breaks. Selene, once again organizing records, hummed along to the song playing from the record player; it was I Can See For Miles by The Who. A couple of customers were browsing around, but she barely noticed when someone came to a close stop beside her.
"Hello there, Selene," came the voice of Ben. Sighing quietly, she put on a smile and looked over at him.
"Hello, Ben."
"You look lovely today."
Selene glanced down at her simple khaki colored skirt and white blouse. Honestly, she'd just tossed it on before running to work.
"Um… thanks, I didn't think it looked that good," she replied with a small laugh, taking a step to the left, putting some distance between them. He had been wearing an overpowering amount of cologne that assaulted her nose.
The Doctor stepped into the shop, eyes immediately sliding to Selene. But something was definitely off when he walked in. There was a man a little taller than Selene with thick dark hair and a silk button down shirt tucked into some jeans talking to the aforementioned woman. He had a broad and self-confident smile, his eyes trained directly on the American woman; and that didn't sit quite right with the Doctor.
"So you like The Who?" Ben asked Selene as he stepped closer to her again. Giving a small smile, she nodded and picked up another stack of unorganized records, ready to flit about and sort them; it would also give a way to try and avoid him. He had stopped in every day since he first ran into Selene there. It had been nearly a whole week of non-stop flirting and asking her out for drinks; in fact, the flowers in the back room were something that he'd bought her 'in thanks for suggesting the Abbey Road album.' And, quite honestly, Selene was getting tired of it all very quickly. "I like The Who as well; I love the song you chose."
"Yeah, I'm glad Mr. Peters lets me play music during store hours now; it was a bit too quiet before," Selene said truthfully, sticking an album in its proper place. Ben hummed in agreement and followed her as she darted across the room quickly. The Doctor stood in the doorway for another moment, watching as the young man in the silk shirt relentlessly flirted with her. The Time Lord––with what he could only call jealousy and annoyance bubbling up in his throat––made his way towards Selene. What really got him wasn't the flirting, it was the insistence the man was pushing upon her, making Selene look quite uncomfortable.
Plastering a bright grin on his face, the Time Lord slid an arm around her waist, feeling her jump in surprise..
"Good afternoon, sweetheart! I didn't get to see you before you left this morning; how's your day been going?" he rattled off, pressing a lingering kiss to her cheek. Ben stared on, blank faced, as Selene smiled up at the Doctor in relief.
"Oh… hi! Yeah, sorry, I was going to, uh, be late for work," she managed to get out, wrapping her arm around him. The Doctor chuckled and then looked at Ben, his eyes hardening slightly.
"And who's this?" His voice had an air of politeness while his eyes held none.
"This is Ben Chapel; he's a regular here," Selene introduced, keeping her side pressed to the Doctor's. Said man extended a stiff hand to Ben.
"John Smith," he said. Ben nodded and cleared his throat uncomfortably.
"Nice to meet you. So are you… are you Selene's…" Ben asked awkwardly, gesturing between them. The Doctor beamed down at Selene and let his hold on her tighten in the slightest.
"New development, but yeah. When you live with somebody in such close quarters for a while, feelings just sort of… evolve. Especially when they're special to you," the Doctor said, his tone soft, his words no longer just a defense against Ben. Selene blushed as he said 'special,' seeing a glimmer in the warmth of his brown eyes.
"I, um, I think I'll just have a quick look around," Ben said, beginning to back off. "I'm on my lunch break. I hope you have a good day, Selene; and it was a, uh, pleasure to meet you, John." As he walked away, the Doctor's expression hardened some, watching him till he popped back out the door.
"Does he come in much?" the Doctor inquired. Selene nodded with a sigh brushing hair out of her face.
"Yeah. It's been an interesting week; I've dealt with guys like him before. You know, used to getting what they want and the such. You meet a lot of those kinds of people when you waitress, trust me… I thought he'd take a hint, but… I guess I couldn't handle him," Selene told the Doctor, turning her head to look up at him. He was watching her, eyes roaming her face, a serious crease set between his brows.
"You could've told me he was bothering you," he reminded.
"I'm stubborn like that," she laughed. As she began to mindlessly flip through albums, a playful little smirk appeared on her face. "So… this 'new development' you spoke of…" She looked up at him sweetly. "Just to confirm… is it a new development? Are we… is this…" Selene vaguely gestured between them. The Doctor looked as though he were giving it some thought, leaning back against the bin of records with his arms crossed. He pursed his lips and let his brows scrunch together before he looked to her, his expression smoothing out into a lovely grin.
"Yes, I believe so."
OOOO
That evening, the Doctor, Selene, and Martha all sat tiredly in the sitting room, which was now newly wallpapered with the message 'Beware the Weeping Angel. Oh, and duck! No, really, duck! Sally Sparrow, duck now. Love, the Doctor, 1969' underneath. They were covered in splotches of paste and small strips of wallpaper. It was nearing midnight and they'd gotten take-out for dinner, which now sat forgotten about on their kitchen table. The sitting room was officially the way it would look in the future, with the dark wallpaper that would one day peel and help save Sally Sparrow's life.
"Oh, I'm knackered…" Martha muttered, rubbing at her eyes. Selene let her head fall back against the wall, her hair messily slumping out of her bun. The quiet strains of jazz music drifted from their radio, and she felt as though she might fall asleep. Her eyes fell shut and, through the music, she heard something wheeze. Her brows slowly drew together as the sound got louder; then her eyes shot open as she recognized the wheezing, whirring, grinding sound.
"The TARDIS…" she muttered. The Doctor was already on his feet and tripping towards the basement stairs. Martha and Selene soon followed, the trio nearly toppling over each other as they jumped off the last step. The blue phone box materialized before their eyes, the door half-open. The Time Lord, grinning wider than he ever had, bounded forward once it fully materialized, and pushed inside; he was so excited at its reappearance Selene was half-convinced he would hug and kiss the console.
"Oh, yes! Sally Sparrow, you're a star!" he shouted into the ceiling as the blond woman could hear him thirty-eight years into the future. "We can leave as soon as we like! Though, I do think it would be courteous to leave our landlady the rent… and a note."
Martha and Selene scraped their most recent paychecks together in order to pay rent and grabbed what things they'd procured in the three weeks they'd spent at Wester Drumlins. Selene stepped into the TARDIS with a bag that was filled with the few outfits she'd purchased, all of which would go into the massive TARDIS wardrobe. The Doctor was checking the monitors and twisting and pulling switches.
"I found this in the lock," the Doctor said with a smile, holding up Selene's TARDIS key. She grinned and took it from him, looping it around her neck.
"Never again will I let a Weeping Angel steal it," she said with a sigh, tucking it underneath the neck of her sweater. The Doctor chuckled and raised an eyebrow.
"Do we meet them again?" he asked. Selene paused and gave it an honest thought. A tingle worked its way down her spine, and she took that as residual memory giving her an answer. She nodded and tugged her hair out of the failing bun she'd pushed it into.
"Yeah. I think we do," she admitted. Her eyes spotted a bit of paste dripping down his forehead, inching towards his eye. She laughed and pointed at it. "You've got paste dripping down your forehead. Um… here, close your eyes, I'll get it."
The Doctor shut his eyes and let Selene swipe her thumb across his forehead; she bit her lip and her hand fell to rest on his cheek. She stretched up onto her toes and gave him a kiss. It was lingering and soft, and once she drew away, the Doctor kept his eyes shut for a moment. When they flicked open, he saw Selene climbing up the ladder with her bag slung over her shoulder, a cheeky smile on her face. He shook his head fondly and laughed, turning to the console controls. The TARDIS made a humming sound in response to the moment that had just passed, which drew his attention up to the ceiling. The Doctor snorted and crossed his arms and posed a question to his beloved machine.
"Why are you so satisfied, hm?"
Afterword: What's this? I got this chapter up within a week of posting the last one? A miracle! I felt inspired and had a LOT of free time this week. And here we go! There are spots of this I really like and spots of this I'm not so sure of (like the ending).
By the way, if any of you have seen the Decoy Bride… that one outfit David wears after his clothes get soaked? Yeah, that was essentially what he was wearing in this chapter ;)
Also, f anyone is interested I face-casted Ben as Lee Ingleby.
Review replies!
grapejuice101: I hope that you enjoyed reading this chapter all pieced together! Thanks for helping me come up with little moments to write into this; hope you enjoyed! Thanks again!
ShadowTeir: Another miracle has been granted! I've updated again! HUZZAH! I hope that you enjoyed this chapter as much as the last; I had a blast writing it. Thanks again!
masterdude94: So they've kinda admitted their feelings. Though, not in words yet. That comes later :) I was so happy to hear you liked the way I wrote and expanded on John; I loved those episodes and David acted the Family of Blood episode with such mastery I felt like I couldn't make John just another secondary character. I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks again!
dreaming of mermaids: I'm so happy that you enjoyed reading last chapter! Writing John was a blast and I had fun trying to figure out new ways to explore David's characterization of John Smith. And I'm glad Selene is believable, I often worry that she isn't. And I just have to edit all the chapters together before I send it off so I can have my own personal hard-copy of this story; I'm touched that you would want a copy of it too :D Thanks again! Hop eyou enjoyed the chapter!
The Yoshinator: The TARDIS was just being touch-y; at the end of this one she seems rather satisfied with herself, doesn't she? xD I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks again!
Squidtastik: I'm glad you enjoyed last chapter! I had a blast writing it. Hope you had fun reading this one! Thanks again!
LuckyD: Seems like the waiting game was short, eh? Hope you enjoyed the chapter and thanks again!
NicoleR85: I updated soon! I feel really good about that; thanks again! I hope you enjoyed the chapter!
TheDysfunctional: Oh, I'm so excited for Donna too! Her and Selene together… ahh, that'll be quite an experience for the Doctor, won't it? And the Master appears… next chapter *gasp!* I hope you stick around to read more! Thanks again!
10th Squad 3rd Seat: The feels were strong with last chapter. And it looks like the Doctor finally got that kiss. I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks again!
MaximumNerd46: I'm touched to hear you adore the story! And the feels were strong with the last two chapter! I hope you enjoyed! Thanks again!
time-twilight: Oh, I have plans for Selene… I have plans. I did name the story 'An Eternity Among the Stars' for a reason ;) I hope you enjoyed; thanks again!
andreams512: I hope your glad to see another update! Hope you enjoyed and thanks again!
And thank you to those who have added this story to their favorites/follows; it means a lot to me!
Anyway, that's it till next time. And next time… We meet Jack and the Master; what an episode that will be! Wow, we're almost done with season 3… then it's on to 4, then the specials… then we get to the 11th Doctor! I have such plans… such, such plans…
Hope to see you all next time! Thanks again!
Remember… Don't blink.
~Mary