Chapter Twenty-Two: Dream versus Time

The Doctor cannot remember ever leaving Granny's house, but he somehow did and ended up back in the snow-covered enchanted forest in the morning; he was not wearing the cloak that River gave him – and she was not accompanying him either. He knew something was completely off about his whereabouts other than his absent cloak and companion. As he wandered amongst the gigantic white trees, he finally spotted a familiar sight: the TARDIS – parked exactly where he left it.

Not hesitating whatsoever, the Doctor ran for the majestic blue beauty and stepped inside…only find empty, confined space. It was just a regular police box to the Doctor's horror. "No…this can't be."

"It isn't, Doctor."

A different yet familiar voice spoke from behind.

"You."

Turning to face the speaker, the Doctor found himself face-to-face with the one and only Dream Lord, looking the same as he did when he first encountered him. "Surprise!" The little man exclaimed. "Didn't expect to see me any time soon, did you?"

"You being here only means that I am dreaming…and the TARDIS is still back in the real forest."

The Dream Lord nodded. "Yes, it is. But it's just as useless to you there as it is here. You can keep bouncing around the timeline of this world to return to that pathetic excuse of a planet called Earth, but you will never make out of here."

"I will eventually."

The Dream Lord already knew what the Doctor was thinking before he could say it aloud. "Ah, yes. The oncoming death…in Utah." He uttered the state name with a scornful tongue. "Of all the places to die, why that place?"

"We'll found out as soon as we've escaped this place."

"Why escape, Doctor? Why can't you just admit you're happy that you're stuck here? No more having to worry about death, no more running, no more feeling lonely…well, that last one you've pretty much damned away with Red Riding Hood. Maybe you'll have better luck with the Queen of Hearts or Cinderella's evil stepmother. They all eventually become old hags in the end, don't they?"

"I don't belong here!" The Doctor snapped in anger and frustration. "There is a curse coming to this place, and if I get caught in it, then I'll meet a fate much worse than death!"

"So you'll be an ordinary man…a schoolteacher, if you're lucky. Physically, you'll still be alive."

"But I won't be mentally…and where does that leave you? The all-powerful Dream Lord? You'll be as dead as me if that curse were to get a hold of me. No more Time Lord head tricks or whatever you prefer to call it."

"Oh, we know that isn't true, Doctor. No matter who or what you are, I'll always be right…here." He reached forward and lightly tapped the Doctor's forehead. The Doctor felt a powerful jolt overcome his body and howled in agony.

The Doctor's body jolted in the pile of hay that he slept in during his night in the chicken coup. In doing so, he startled a hooded woman who was there with him, holding two eggs that she had taken from one of the chickens. While gathering himself and seeing where his current location was, the Doctor looked to the woman there with him and discovered her to be Snow White.

"I'm sorry." He managed to say to her as he picked himself out of the hay.

"A-Are you hiding, too?" Snow nervously asked.

"Me? No." The Doctor answered with a chuckle. "Red ordered me to sleep out here. I'm just a guest." He extended his hand out to her and smiled as he added, "Name's the Doctor."

Snow's eyes grew wide. "You're the Doctor?"

Seeing the surprise on her face, the Doctor's smile immediately faded. "You've heard of me?" He shook his head negatively. "No…that's impossible. There's no way you could have heard of me."

"Many have spoken of a man with a blue box that vanishes out of thin air…a man who calls himself a doctor." Snow explained. "You are that man!"

The Doctor stood speechless before Snow White just as she did before him. It was not until Red entered the chicken coup in alarm. "I heard a scream. What have you done now, Doctor?" She quickly saw the other party in the coup. "Are you…stealing our eggs?"

Realizing she had been caught, Snow sheepishly looked to Red. "Not a lot." She then attempted to hand over the eggs to her. "Here you go. Take them."

"Hey, it's…it's alright." Red insisted.

"Thank you." Snow acknowledged the girl's gratitude. "It was just that…last night, there was something out there. There was howling and I…I heard it…and it was so cold, so…"

"A wolf." The Doctor uttered.

Looking back at him, Snow inquired, "What did you say?"

"It was a wolf you heard." The Doctor repeated. "Apparently, there's around the forest from what I've overheard. In fact, I've figured River and I would stay longer to investigate."

This news was met with some negation from Red. "What?"

"Oh, come now, Red. You knew I was never gonna leave after hearing your Granny mention that wolf. You want me to leave, but you know that my help is truly needed in the most desperate moment of your life. You still hate me for leaving you back then, and I cannot blame you…but you do need my help now, and I'm not leaving until I've made things up between us."

After making this declaration, the Doctor exited the chicken coup with the aggravated Red watching him depart. Meanwhile, Snow was smiling immensely, walking up to Red and telling her, "That's the Doctor!"

Red looked upon her with surprise. "You know him?"

"Yes." Snow answered. "And I'm hoping he'll help me with my own problem."