Vincent and the Angel: Empathy
"No!" the Doctor jumped up as well, racing out after Angel, his mind telling him he was worried because Amy had screamed and that might mean danger...his hearts painfully thumping in the protest that he was more worried because Angel had just run off towards a scream and might be in danger. He shook his head, letting out a breath of relief when he and Vincent ran outside to see Angel fine, kneeling beside Amy as the ginger girl gasped for breath, sitting on the ground.
"What happened?" Angel asked her, her hand on Amy's back as she looked around, tense, her other hand lightly resting on her own stomach, unable to help but feel like...she was being watched. Like there was something else there that she just couldn't see.
"I was having a look at the paintings out here when something hit me from behind," Amy panted.
"It's ok," the Doctor reassured her, "He's gone now and we're here."
Angel felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise up and stiffened, "I'm not quite sure it's gone..." she whispered.
Vincent looked around, feeling the same, and raised his hands in fright, his eyes wide as he saw something, "No!" he moved back, crying out.
"Take it easy," the Doctor called to him, trying to calm him down as the man grew even more frantic and jerky, "Take it easy!"
"What's happening?" Amy looked over, concerned, "What's he doing?"
Vincent had grabbed a large wooden stick, shaped like a 2-pronged fork, and held it out in front of him like a weapon...aimed right at them.
"I don't know," the Doctor shook his head when, with a shout, Vincent ran at them, "Oh, dear," he moved to push the girls to the side...when Vincent ran past them, making them frown, the Doctor and Amy in confusion while Angel just squinted, sensing something else was there but she just...it was invisible, it had to be.
But she knew it was there.
"Run!" Vincent shouted, once he'd made it past them, putting himself between them and whatever it was only he could see, "Run!"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's not a bad idea. Amy, Angel get back. He's having some kind of fit. I'll try to calm him down."
"I don't think it's a fit..." Angle shook her head as she helped Amy up, "We need to help him and..."
"I know," the Doctor turned to her, serious all of a sudden, "I will, I will. But I need you two safe," he told her, not wanting them to get hurt by Vincent if it turned out the man really was having some sort of episode. Not that he doubted Angel, not at all but...he couldn't risk her, and Amy, getting hurt, "Please."
She bit her lip, before nodding, leading Amy over to the doorway, not being able to see what was attacking them or why...she had to be carefuly, if...if she got hit in the stomach...she didn't even want to think about what that could mean. So she led Amy back, the two of them watching from behind a few paintings as Vincent lashed out at something. She frowned, trying to sense whatever it was that might be out there. Clearly Vincent was attacking something, he was looking in only one spot and swinging the stick around as though trying to fend something off. Not really attacking.
"Easy, Vincent, easy," the Doctor walked in front of him, which made Angel shake her head, he really was oblivious wasn't he? And while that was usually adorable (and quite heartbreaking) at times, now was not one of them, "Look, look. It's me, it's me, it's me," he held his hands out, "It's the Doctor, look. No one else is here. So, Vincent..."
"Look out!" Vincent pointed behind the Doctor as something slammed into the Time Lord, throwing him to the ground.
Something that sounded rather large roared and shredded one of the paintings in front of the girls, making three big claw marks through the canvas.
"I can't see anything!" Amy shouted, now realizing what Angel had, there really WAS something else out there, "What is it?"
Vincent though, apparently could see it and tried to fight it off, tried to press it back from the Doctor.
"That is a good question," the Doctor stood up and grabbed a stick of his own, rushing to join Vincent, "Let me help you."
"You can see him, too?" Vincent looked over...only to see the Doctor run to a completely different area of the yard and wave the stick around.
"Yes!" he called, "…ish. Well, no. Not really," he paused in his swinging, wondering just how helpful that might be for him to try and attack something he couldn't see...when the thing he couldn't see roared again and threw him back over a table that he rolled across, dropping at Vincent's feet.
"Doctor!" Angel gasped, running to his side, her hearts racing at seeing him get thrown about like that. Being knocked on his bum was one thing, but that had truly hurt, he'd flown through the air and hit a table!
"You couldn't see him?" Vincent looked down at the man.
"No. Oi!" the Doctor pointed a warning finger at the painter as Angel helped him up, he gave her a wink in thanks before he ran back to where he'd been and started batting the stick around with a shout while Vincent turned to where the beast actually was.
"No idea what he's doing, has he?" Amy whispered to Angel as she backed up to her again.
"Never does," Angel sighed, before pulling her gaze away from the Doctor and over to Vincent, gasping, "Vincent no!" she ran back out as Vincent seemingly hurt the creature, which let out a pained whimper and retreated from the yard, knocking over a few things as it ran.
Amy stepped cautiously out of her hiding spot and over to Angel and Vincent's side, the three of them looking over to see the Doctor still trying to fight it off.
"He's gone," Vincent called after a moment.
"Oh, right," the Doctor turned around, throwing the stick down, grinning as though he knew that, "Yes, of course."
~8~
"Right," the Doctor sat in the cottage that night, trying to work out what the creature was, if he knew what it was, for clearly it was an alien, he'd be able to tell how to stop it or subdue it and then try to help it, "So he's invisible? What did he look like?"
"I'll show you," Vincent picked up one of his paintings of irises and brushed thick white strokes over it.
"Oh, no, no, no!" the Doctor shouted as Amy gasped.
"What?"
"That was a beautiful painting Vincent," Angel told him, looking at it sadly.
"You liked that?" he scoffed.
Angel walked over to him and took the canvas, staring at what was now a white sheet, "I loved it," she told him, looking up at him, feeling familiarity.
The man truly couldn't see just how remarkable he was, how talented, how amazing, just because of how the villagers and others classified his work. It had to be hard to dedicate your life to something you loved and have others belittle it. In a way...Vincent reminded her very much of Mickey and Rory, they were all the most wonderful men, but just...didn't believe in themselves. But that was alright, she believed in them and she swore she'd get them to believe in themselves too. She didn't know if it was being psychic or intuitive or whatever the Doctor loved to call it but...she could always see more to the men in her life than they could. She saw what they didn't, she saw the strength within, the possibilities yet to come, the men they could be. And that was beautiful.
"You should trust yourself more," she told him gently, handing him back the painting, "You claim to love your art but...how can you expect others to treasure it if you don't?"
Vincent looked down at the blank canvas, blinking, a bit...startled she'd said that. He loved art, he loved it so much, it was his entire life...but she was right. He'd just taken a painting he'd worked so hard on, spent hours, days even, getting just right...and destroyed it. He'd just erased his own work, like he knew the villagers wished they could do. And there were times...more and more it seemed...where he almost thought they were right...that he was worth as much as his paintings, nothing.
"But the good thing about a blank canvas," Angel put her hand on his, making him look at her, "You can start again, make it better than before," she smiled, leaning in to whisper, "Don't let them win."
Vincent swallowed, not sure how she'd known what he'd been thinking, feeling, about his paintings. And she was right, if he kept doing this, treating his paintings like they were just paint on a canvas...they'd have won in making him think his paintings were nothing, when they were everything to him.
Angel squeezed his hand, "Go on," she encouraged, moving over to an armchair and sitting down. Amy smiled, seeing Vincent get right to work, sketching quickly and roughly with charcoal, and glanced at the Doctor...to see him staring at Angel, again. It wasn't all that odd, he'd been staring at her since they'd picked her up again, but...there was something...else...in the look. It was soft, it was a soft look, mixed with impression and awe and...something else. There was a gentle look in his eyes, but also...a disbelieving look, like...he wasn't sure Angel was real. Like he couldn't believe she was real.
She blinked though when he looked away suddenly as Angel glanced over, smirking a bit to herself when she saw a very faint blush start to creep up his neck though the Time Lady didn't seem to notice. It made her suspicious and a little confused as well. The Doctor claimed with every fiber of his being that there was nothing between him and Angel, that they were friends, the last of their kind, just good mates...though she didn't understand why he kept wincing at that word, it was weird. But then again, he was weird. Bowtie. Anyway, he claimed there was nothing but...she wasn't so sure.
There had been signs, loads of them really, she should have seen them, well...she DID see them, but she'd ignored them for quite a while. She didn't know why but she'd started to notice them just after they'd stopped the vampires in Venice. It was like she'd just...come away from that adventure different, more aware, with a different outlook on the Doctor. Seeing those aliens, hearing the Doctor tell them how the Signora had offered him a partnership of 'that' sort, how he'd refused (muttering something about cross-species breeding being impossible or something, ew), she'd just...the next thing she knew she was looking at him differently. She'd been attracted to him, yeah, dreamed about running away with him for ages, but...she'd just...didn't feel that anymore. Maybe it was finding out that cross-species thing, maybe it had reminded her too much that they really WERE different species, but whatever it was...she just...he was a friend now, and that was all, and that was better.
And now she could see it, all those little signs that had been there since she'd first met them. The way the Doctor acted around Angel when she was in danger, when they were separated, when she was dressed up. She'd noticed him sneak little glance at Angel in her period clothes. And she'd seen it just before, the little narrow-eyed looks at Vincent, how he kept cutting into the man talking to Angel, how he watched her...if he wasn't jealous, she wasn't ginger. It seemed the Time Lord might have a little crush on Angel but...that DID make her wonder though, River Song...if she was the Doctor's wife...how? Could Time Lords marry humans and be with them but it would just mean they had no children? Or was River a secret Time Lady? No, she doubted that, the Doctor and especially Angel would notice that. And, if River was his wife...what did that mean for Angel?
Her eyes widened, maybe THAT was it! Maybe THAT was why River was a bit snippy with Angel! How would any woman feel to have their husband travel the stars with another woman? But...SHE travelled with the Doctor too, why wasn't River cross with her? What about all the other women who he'd travelled with? Hmmm...maybe it had to do with Angel being a Time Lady, being the only person the Doctor could be with if he wanted a child. She didn't know, but whatever it was...she could tell the Doctor was in for one complicated life.
Vincent smiled, finishing the image of a bird-like creature with reptilian skin, "Ok," the Doctor nodded as Vincent handed over the sketch, Amy and Angel moving beside him to look at it.
Angel frowned, eyeing it...
'...sometimes one of them gets left behind and because they are a brutal race, the others never come back...'
...the creature appeared in the corner of a mirror...
'...it's like it's trapped. It's moving round the edges of the room...'
"Ok," the Doctor nodded, "Right. Amy, make Mr. Van Gogh comfortable. Don't let any invisible monsters in through the front door."
"But it could be outside, waiting," Amy said, working out that he was leaving, or that he and Angel were leaving as he hadn't told Angel to keep an eye on the man too. Well, it was either that or he'd forgotten Angel, but she REALLY doubted it was the second option, not after how he'd reacted while she'd been at Torchwood.
"Don't worry, I'll risk it. What's the worst that can happen?"
"You could get torn into pieces by a monster you can't see."
"I'll go with him," Angel stood up, "I should be able to sense it well enough to get us away from it in time."
Amy nodded, that had been her thought as well as to why the Doctor hadn't included her. To be honest...even if Angel had been completely ordinary, no psychic abilities at all, she was sure the Doctor would STILL take the Time Lady with him. He didn't seem fond of her being around Vincent, he would want to take her with him and not leave her wtih the man wouldn't he.
"See!" the Doctor grinned, "My good luck charm!" Amy frowned, seeing Angel wince just slightly at that, "Don't worry. I'll be back before you can say, 'Where's he got to now?'" and then the turned and left with Angel.
Amy had just turned back to face Vincent when the Doctor popped back in, "Not that fast!" making her jump, "But pretty fast. See you around," he laughed, leaving again.
He and Angel stepped out of the cottage, hearing soft growling noises before walking off quickly, Angel taking the lead and leading him down the alleys, right back to the TARDIS. They walked cautiously towards it, Angel glancing over her shoulder for a moment before picking up a bit of speed. The Doctor unlocked the box and stepped inside, Angel shutting the door behind them as the Doctor ran over to a chest in the back alcove and began throwing things away to move it.
"Right," he mumbled as he sifted through it, "You in here somewhere? I can't apologize enough. I thought you were just a useless gadget. I thought you were just an embarrassing present from a dull godmother with two heads and bad breath. Twice," he pulled out a device that looked like a mirror on a harness, "How wrong can a man be?" and then he looked at Angel, "Don't answer that."
She laughed as he set it up on the console, hooking it up to the TARDIS for power. He looked at it a moment before pulling a confused Angel in front of him as the device dinged. He grinned and ran to the side where the TARDIS was printing out pictures of her in order of incarnation, naming her species and planet of origin, "So that's what you looked like before," he murmured, eyeing the faces that appeared, all 11 of them.
"Does that mean it's working?" Angel asked, walking over to look at her past.
But the Doctor was quiet, just...staring...
"Doctor?" Angel frowned, but he just kept staring, "Doctor?" and staring, "Doctor!" she nudged him.
"What?" he looked at her, blinking a bit, before shaking his head, "Right, yes, sorry," he glanced back at the sketches, he didn't know why but...something about holding the images of all her past faces just...struck something in him, they were...he didn't know what. Seeing her, all the other hers...it was...she was lovely. He shook his head again, this was not the time, and grabbed the sketch of Vincent's, "Now, see what you make of this," he held it up to the machine, "Who is that?"
"A parrot?" Angel frowned, glancing between the picture it displayed and the sketch.
"No, I know it's not that. There are thousands of them and you can see them plain as day..."
"I don't think it's a polar bear either," Angel remarked when a second image came up.
"No. Definitely not. This is the problem with the impressionists, not accurate enough. This would never happen with Gainsborough or one of those proper painters. Sorry, Vincent," he threw the sketch over his head, "You'll just have to draw something better."
~8~
The Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS in the daylight, not wanting to risk sneaking back to Vincent's in the dark, wearing the device, fixing it to his chest, while Angel shut the door...and froze, sensing the creature nearby. The Doctor aimed the mirror over his shoulder, not noticing it appear in the corner, "That's better," he grinned as the device beeped, "Time delay, but you always get it right in the end. Good. Let's find out who this is, then," the device displayed the results and Angel quickly looked over at them.
"Oh you poor thing," she breathed, her hearts breaking at the information of its species.
"You brutal, murderous, abandoned thing," the Doctor corrected, "I hope we meet again soon so I can take you home," Angel's eyes widened as the creature appeared in the mirror, "Maybe not that soon."
Angel grabbed his hand and led him through the alley, the Doctor knocking over tables and other items to slow it down as they ran, his hand on the small of her back to keep her ahead of him, him between her and the creature. She pulled him around a corner, both of them breathing heavily as they listened. The creature growled before giving up the chase and walking off.
The Doctor rested against the wall before moving to step away...only to notice that...his arm was wrapped rather tightly around Angel's waist, holding her pressed to him, her hands on his chest as they panted. He swallowed hard, fighting a shiver as he felt her warm breath tickle his neck, his entire body thrumming with a mixture of what he'd have to say was excitement, warmth, and delight, his hearts racing as he felt like he was about to lose his breath.
"I think he's gone," Angel whispered.
"Y-yes," he stuttered, trying to keep his voice from shaking at the feelings racing through him, feelings which concerned and confused him, he cleared his throat, "I think so too," he shifted, stepping back as he let go of Angel, that wasn't right, not at all, he just...he missed her, yes, that was it. The few days without her, he just...missed her, this was his mind's way of telling him that, that he was happy to have her back. That was it.
Wasn't it?
He shook his head and turned around the corner, only to see Amy standing there, making him jump back, "Never do that!" he shouted, "You scared the living daylights out of me."
Angel just laughed, she had a feeling that was going to happen.
"Sorry," Amy put a hand to her own chest, just as startled, "I got bored. As much as you admire his command of color and shape, it is hard to get fond of Vincent Van Gogh's snoring."
~8~
Vincent's bedroom was exactly like his painting, but with him in the bed, snoring away when the Doctor entered, "Wakey, wakey. Rise and shine! Breakfast is served in the courtyard!" he threw open a window, letting sunlight in, startling Vincent, "Whoa! What a morning," he clapped, "Come on," Vincent grudgingly got up, "And Amy's got a little surprise for you."
Vincent stumbled over to the window to see Amy sitting at a table below, sunflowers surrounding her, "I thought I'd brighten things up to thank you for saving me last night," she told him.
"Ah!" he nodded.
"I thought you might like, you know, possibly to perhaps paint them or something?" she glanced at the sunflowers as Angel and the Doctor joined her at the table with food, "Might be a thought."
"Yes. They're not my favorite flower."
"YOU don't like sunflowers?"
"No, it's not that I don't like them. I find them complex. Always somewhere between living and dying," he touched one of the flowers by his window, "Half-human as they turn to the sun. A little disgusting. But, you know, they are a challenge."
"One I think you'll definitely master," Angel smiled.
"But, moving on, there's something I need to show you," the Doctor added.
~8~
Vincent sat down, looking at the printout of the creature the Doctor had given him, "That's him. And the eyes. Without mercy."
Angel frowned at that, she hadn't seen the actual creature, but...the printout...that wasn't the impression she'd gotten from its eyes.
"This is a creature called the Krafayis," the Doctor told him, "They travel in space, they travel as a pack. Scavenging across the Universe. Sometimes one of them gets left behind and because they are a brutal race, the others never come back. So, dotted all around the Universe are individual, utterly merciless, utterly abandoned Krafayis. And what they do is...well, kill, until they're killed. Which they usually aren't. Because other creatures can't see them."
"But I can."
"Yes. And that's why we are in a unique position today, my friend, to end this reign of terror. So, feeling like painting the church today?"
"What about the monster?"
"Take my word for it. If you paint it, he will come."
"Ok," Vincent got up, "I'll get my things."
"When you're ready," Angel called, sensing a shift in him.
"I promise you," the Doctor said, "We'll be out of your hair by this time tomorrow," Vincent hesitated in the doorway and looked at Amy before going on, the Doctor sighing, "This is risky."
"Riskier than normal?" Amy frowned.
The Doctor stood and checked if Vincent could hear, "Well, think about it. This is the middle of Vincent Van Gogh's greatest year of painting. If we're not careful, the result of our trip could be the brutal murder of the greatest artist who ever lived. Half the pictures on the wall of the Musee D'Orsay will disappear," he sighed and sat down in between Amy and Angel on the sofa, "And it will be our fault."
~8~
The Doctor knocked softly on the door to Vincent's bedroom, "Vincent? Vincent!" he checked his watch before opening the door to see Vincent lying on his bed, crying, face down, "Vincent, can I help?"
"It's so clear you cannot help," Vincent said as the Doctor came to crouch by the bed, "And when you leave, and everyone always leaves, I will be left once more with an empty heart and no hope," he rolled over to look at the Doctor.
"My experience and, well, Angel really, have proved to me that there is, you know, surprisingly, always hope."
"Then your experience is incomplete. I know how it will end, and it will not end well."
"Come on," he playfully slapped Vincent's back, trying to cheer him up, "Come out, let's go outside."
"Out! You get out!" he lashed out at him, "What are you doing here? What are you doing here?!"
"Very well," the Doctor backed out towards the door, "I'll leave. I'll leave you."
He shut the door behind him as Vincent curled into a fetal position and sobbed, looking over as Amy and Angel walked up the stairs, Angel with a sad, knowing look in her eye.
"What's happening?" Amy asked.
"We're leaving. Everyone knows he's a delicate man. Just months from now he'll...he'll take his own life," he pushed away from the door.
"Don't say that. Please…" but, without a word, the Doctor went down the stairs.
Angel watched as Amy ran off after him, pleading with him to try and change history. She paused a moment, biting her lip, turning to look at the door to Vincent's room before glancing down the stairs once more. She sighed and walked into the room, wincing at the sound of Vincent's strangled cries.
She walked over to the bed, sitting down on the chair beside it. The creaking made Vincent turn, his eyes red with tears as he glared at her, "What are you doing here!?" she just looked at him, "Get out!"
She hesitated a moment before speaking, "It feels like something's trying to tear your heart apart from the inside out," she said quietly. He rolled over onto his side, facing the wall, his back to her, ignoring her, "Like it's trying to take you over, blot out all the joy and good in life. And it...it hurts," her voice broke and he tensed, listening now, hearing something more in her words, "And you can't help but feel like it'll never get better, it'll continue on forever...and you can't bear that," she blinked, "And then you feel disgusted with yourself for feeling that way and you fight, as hard as you can, to rise above, to escape…" she smiled sadly, "And you succeed, and you're able to laugh and smile again and appreciate the joys of life," but it slowly fell, "But you know, in the back of your mind, that it won't last. It never does. That the pain and the hurt and the darkness is waiting for you. You know that the good days are growing fewer and more far between than before, that the bad days are lasting longer, that the pain just keeps increasing tenfold every time it happens. And you know, one day, you won't be able to fight your way out, one day the pain will be so great that you just...can't...anymore," she swallowed hard.
He rolled over, looking up at her with wide eyes, "You…"
She nodded, not needing him to speak more to understand, "I won't lie to you Vincent," she told him solemnly, "I won't lie and say the day is coming where the pain will go away," he nodded, expecting that, "Because it never will, will it?" she let out a sad laugh and looked down. No matter what she felt, no matter how good seeing her family again had been, how much better they'd made her feel...
The pain was still there, buried and hidden for the moment, dulled.
But it still hurt.
And it still got worse every time she felt it trying to break through.
He eyed her, seeing a kindred pain in her, not as violent as his, but just as trying to bear, "What can we do?" he asked hopelessly.
She looked up at him, moving off the chair to kneel at the side of his bed, "There are only two things. The first is that, when the good days come, live them as completely as you can, enjoy every single moment of it," she was doing it now. She knew, she knew that this trip...it was one of the good ones, one where she could spend time with the Doctor and Amy, help people, use her abilities to help.
But she also knew, it wouldn't last. River Song would always be waiting in the future, waiting to pop up and intrigue the Doctor, show to everyone how much better, how much more well equipped, how better suited she was for the Doctor than her.
And those days, those trips...those were the bad ones, those were the ones that killed her.
"And the second," she took a breath, but that was not right now, "When the bad days come, find someone who will hold your hand through it," she reached out and took his hand in hers, "Even if it doesn't help at all."
He blinked, his eyes full of tears, the pain receding just for the moment, "You truly are an angel, aren't you?" he whispered, a hint of awe filling his eyes and voice, "To bear your pain so silently and still manage words of comfort and strength and a smile to others."
"If only I were," she whispered back, her other hand lightly moving to brush his hair a moment, "I would take both our pains away."
He nodded to himself at how selfless she was. Here was a woman, suffering in silent agony, forcing herself to be strong, for him, and here he was, curled up in his bed while a monster only he could see was roaming free. He sniffled, taking a breath and nodding his head before getting up.
~8~
The Doctor took one last look at the paintings in the cottage before sighing, "Come on. We have to do this on our own. Go to the church at the right time and hope the monster still turns up."
Just then Vincent appeared in the doorway, coat and hat on, Angel just slightly behind him and to the side, "I'm ready. Let's go," he picked up his brush.
~8~
Amy walked beside Vincent, her arm tucked in his, as he carried his easel and palette in his hand. In her other hand Amy had his paint case and canvas, the Doctor and Angel walking on behind them, "I'm sorry you're so sad," Amy told him gently.
"But I'm not," Vincent gave her a wide grin, "Sometimes these moods torture me for weeks, for months. But I'm good now. If Amy Pond and Angel can soldier on, then so can Vincent Van Gogh."
"I'm not soldiering on. I'm fine."
"Oh, Amy, I hear the song of your sadness. You've lost someone I think," he glanced back at Angel, "You both have."
The Doctor looked at Angel sadly, understanding how she felt about losing the man she loved, that man on Gallifrey. While he could never admit that he loved his wife on Gallifrey, their marriage having been one of the unlucky arranged ones where they were lucky to find themselves civil with one another, he did miss her in his own way and their children.
"I'm not sad," Amy continued.
"They why are you crying?" Amy put a hand to her cheek and wiped away a tear, surprised as she hadn't even noticed, "It's alright. I understand."
"I'm not sure I do."
The Doctor looked over at Angel to see her smiling at Amy, "What is it?" he asked her quietly.
"Maybe she's remembering Rory," she breathed, hopeful.
The Doctor shook his head, "That's impossible."
"It's not impossible," Angel countered, "Just a bit unlikely."
The Doctor frowned suddenly, an image of Jenny appearing in his mind, calling out 'mum' at Angel before the woman passed out. He shook his head, blinking quickly, "Ok," he called out, "Ok! So, now, we must have a plan. When the creature returns..."
Vincent stopped and turned to him, "Then we shall fight him again."
"Well, yes, tick. But last night we were lucky. Amy could have been killed. So this time, for a start, we have to make sure I can see him, too."
"And how are we meant to do that, suddenly?" Amy frowned.
"The answer's in this box," he tapped the case he was carrying, "I had an excellent, if smelly, godmother."
"The poor girl," Angel whispered. They looked at her to see her watching the funerary procession for the girl that had been murdered walking past them, sunflowers resting on the coffin.
"Oh," Vincent took his hat off, "It's that poor girl from the village."
"You do have a plan, don't you?" Amy looked at the Doctor as the procession passed.
"No," he started walking again, "It's a thing, it's like a plan, but with more greatness."
"Which will undeniably get us into far more trouble than going in with an actual plan," Angel remarked with a sigh.
Amy rolled her eyes, "Doctor!" she trekked after him, "What's the 'thing' then?"
Angel and Vincent shook their heads before following after the other two, "I understand how you feel about sunflowers," Angel murmured.
"Do you?" he looked at her.
"I have a garden," she smiled, "A little thing, with flowers from...all over...it was planted in death."
"What do you mean?" he frowned.
"I nearly died, a long time ago, I was dying, really very ill," she sighed, "I wanted a garden, something full of life that I could begin, that..." she glanced at the Doctor, Vincent catching the move, brief though it was, "That someone else could continue when I had gone. To remind them I was there, even when I had died. I got better, obviously, but...it's still there. Oh you should see it Vincent, all those flowers, every color, every kind of plant...but no sunflowers actually," she shrugged, "I thought they were a bit...too bright, hurt my eyes back then I suppose."
Vincent let out a little chuckle, "Ironic isn't it?"
She glanced at him, "What is?"
"I can see the colors of the world Angel," he smiled at her, "Nothing I have ever seen, shines more brightly than you," he reached out and took her hand, squeezing it, "You blind me."
She slowly started to smile at that, not seeing the Doctor glancing back at her, frowning and looking at their held hands.
~8~
Vincent set up his easel and sat down to paint the church as the Doctor bent over, putting his hands on Vincent's shoulders, "And you'll be sure to tell me if you see any, you know, monsters?"
"Creatures," Angel corrected, the idea of calling it a 'monster' not sitting right with her.
"Yes," Vincent nodded, "While I may be mad, I'm not stupid."
"No, quite," the Doctor agreed before squatting beside him, "And, to be honest...not sure about mad either. It seems to me depression is a very complex..."
"Shh," Vincent held up a finger at him, not taking his eyes off the church, "I'm working."
"Well, yes. Paint. Do painting!"
~8~
Vincent had outlined the top of the church and was painting the sky while the Doctor talked, "I remember watching Michelangelo painting the Sistine Chapel. Do you remember that Angel? Wow! What a whiner. I said to him, 'If you're scared of heights, you shouldn't have taken the job.'"
"Shh!" Amy shushed him.
~8~
Detail had been added to the church, though Vincent was still working on the sky, "And Picasso!" the Doctor continued, "What a ghastly old goat. I kept telling him, 'Concentrate, Pablo, it's one eye, either side of the face.'"
"Doctor…quiet," Angel pleaded.
~8~
Amy stood by Vincent as he continued to paint while the Doctor squatted on the ground, bored out of his mind, Angel amusedly glancing between him and Vincent though her gaze kept getting pulled to the church, "Is this how time normally passes?" he asked, "Really slowly. In the right order," he got up, "If there's one thing I can't stand, it's an unpunctual alien attack," he walked behind Vincent, facing back the way they'd come.
"Are you ok?" Amy glanced at Angel, who was looking at the church intently now, stiff, "You seem a bit tense."
"There's something not right," she replied, "And I can't quite put my finger on it even with my abilities."
"There!" Vincent yelled, "He's at the window!"
A/N: Angel can empathize with Vincent, which may or may not be a good thing given how he feels and what he eventually does :( We won't find out for certain just how bad she was, is, or might get till The Girl Who Waited. I sort of interpret Angel's bouts of confidence and strength to be like Vincent's good days, something happens and she finds herself better able to cope with it and feels happy and better about herself...and then something comes along and sets her back again :( But with each set back, I think she'll get stronger and stronger :) I wanted this chapter to be a little bit about Angel/Vincent bonding but it still had a little bit of jealous Doctor here too ;)
And did you like the little mention of Jenny :) Not quite a memory-flash, but the Doctor remembered something at least briefly :)
Some notes on reviews...
Not saying lol :) But it's a little on purpose yup :)
That's true, age wouldn't really mean much to them :) I think it's just that it would be awkward and irritating to them to have to defend/explain their relationship if around humans who see a man that much older than her being intimate (and I can't see the Doctor not being touchy/feely with Proffy in any incarnation lol). Sort of like how that police officer questioned Rose and 9 when she returned after a year because of (in my mind) the age difference. We'll have to see though :) And thanks! I'm glad you're liking the stories so far :) I'll definitely do my best to keep it up :)
Lol, little bit of a shock that Angel can relate on that level to Vincent }:) I love jealous Doctor too especially since he's so confused as to why he's jealous :) Hmmm...I think, if I were trying to take over the world, I'd go with loyal followers, lol, like a little army :) Just because I think you're all much more important than frenemies or acquaintances and you've all been so amazing and supportive whenever plagiarism comes up :)
I'm glad you liked the chapter :) I think he'll be noticing her more and more as we go. Sort of like he couldn't help but notice how she wasn't there that, now that she is, he's noticing much more about her :) The next part might be a bit angsty yup :) But I think he'll just keep noticing things about her as he goes :) I agree, the two Doctor/Angel-lite episodes make me want them to be together the rest of the series, no major separation :)
I think Vincent might suspect more, but I think he respects her right to her body and wouldn't say anything if he knew for sure. Like...the way the Doctor and Amy act around her, the things they let her do, would clue him in that they don't know or that Angel hasn't told them :) I think, especially after this chapter, that he'd keep her secrets :) Amy will be in more yup, it's like he's friends with Angel but has a crush on Amy :)
I don't think it's weird, I think a few people were hoping for the next Doctor to be young like Matt. I hope he's a bit playful but dangerous too :) I think all the Time Ladies would be about the same age if they regenerate around the same time :) I'm SO glad he's not a woman, I really don't want to have to gender swap my OCs :) I'd be a bit wary to follow and older man into a phone box yeah. I think it might depend on his personality and outfit too, like if he gives off the 'trust me, I'm a grandfather' vibe or something :) I think that it'll take everyone a few episodes to get used to him, but I think the true fans of the show will still watch even if he's not young and hot but I agree, hopefully it'll keep the relationships platonic :) Though it makes me curious as to what they'll do with Clara since, to me, it seemed like they were building up some sort of relationship between her and 11...hmm... :)
I think they haven't been playing a big role to prepare us for something big yup :) I'm not sure about the Weeping Angels, I think they've been in practically every series of 11 so they might be in 12's, or they might give them a rest for Series 8 :) The same with the Sontarans since Strax appears so much :) It throws off some plans yeah :( I have to rework Proffy's potential 12th incarnation and change a bit I had planned for Angel and a tiny bit for Evy, but I think I can do it :) It sort of works for the Academic Series since I built up a grandfather/granddaughter relationship with Clara to start :) I think they have to have a line like that about him not being ginger, lol, maybe he'll be ginger in his 'last' body :) I think a robot animal companion could be cool to add to a human one, if it moves faster than K9, he struck me as a bit slow. He might have better fashion sense than 11, maybe a bit mature or something :) I'll miss the bowtie if they go without it :) But I doubt Jack will see 12, just because he'd probably pull a gun on the man he thinks is John Frobisher from Children of Earth and that would just be weird and hard to explain to people who haven't seen (or have seen) Torchwood. I think 10 visited Jack, he was in the alien bar when he regenerated, but, I think, by then, the crew (in the show) was dead and it was just Jack and Gwen and he didn't really know Gwen :)
Lol, I can say I have something written up about whether or not the Doctor remembers/doesn't, but I won't say what it is or when it happens :)
It might be to expose you to French culture/dialects or different sorts of sounding names. I had to take Spanish once when I was younger and the teacher insisted on giving us Spanish versions of our names. It might be to make the French stick more :)