Thirteen's first episode is tonight! I can't wait!
This ficlet was inspired by a few seconds of the series trailer, specifically when the Doctor walked into a big, white, round room and Graham stands up on the right hand side. The shot is barely a second long but my brain latched onto it.
Part 3 of 3 is nearly finished - ending version 1 is complete, ending version 2 I hope to finish before the new episode and hopefully will be posted sometime this evening.


Graham rose from his chair as the Doctor appeared at the doorway of the rather futuristic (to be fair, it was literally the future) hospital waiting room. His movement caught the attention of Yaz and Ryan, who were quietly chatting in the corner, and of the Doctor, who made her way towards them.

She stumbled a few steps then seemed to manage to get her feet mostly under control, careening a drunken path across the room.

Graham steaded her with a hand to her elbow as she stopped next to the small group, flashing them a carefree smile even as she started to list to one side.

"Doctor, we were so worried," said Yaz, flinging her arms around the Doctor's neck. The hug quickly turned into steadying the Time Lord as she started to loose her balance under the human's weight.
"Yeah, they wouldn't tell us anything," said Ryan as he propped up her other elbow.

"I'm fine," the Doctor replied, brushing off all the hands that were steadying her. She immediately started to wobble. "Woah, is the gravity fluctuating? They really should fix that."
"We're on a planet, Doctor," replied Ryan, reinstating his hold on her arm. "I don't think gravity works that way.

The Doctor ignored the comment and looked at her three companions.

"Ready to go?"
"Are you sure you should be leaving?" Graham asked, concerned. "You were unconscious an hour ago."
"Yes, yes, stop faffing. People to see, planets to save." And with that the Doctor stepped out of Ryan's reach and started walking down the corridor away from them, bumping into a wall corner on the way past.
"Are we really going to let her walk out of here?" Asked Yaz to Ryan as they watched Graham hover behind the Time Lord. "By the way she is walking she looks like she is really drunk."

"Yaz, do you think that she is going to let us stop her doing anything? She the Doctor. We've just got to keep an eye on her and make sure she doesn't do anything reckless." He thinks for a second. "Well, more reckless than usual."

Yaz sighed.

"I guess you're right. We'd better catch them up before we get left behind and lost in here. We may be a few thousand years in the future and on a completely different planet but this hospital is just as confusing as the ones at home."

They skirted past a group of blue tentacled aliens dawdling in the corridor on their way to the Doctor. The Time Lord was impatiently waiting for them at a bank of lifts.

"I'm fine Graham, please stop worrying. It'll take more than that to put an end to this body. And you two," she said as they reached her side, "had better not be fussing too." As she was talking she was waving her hands in the air in her usual exuberant way. Ryan noticed a dark mark on the underside of her left wrist. It looked like a barcode. He grabbed it as the Doctor's hand sailed past his face.

"What's that on your wrist?" He asked, pushing her sleeve up and rubbing a thumb across the marks there. "Is that a tattoo?"
"It's nano ink, standard patient identification in this time period. Unless kept within the magnetic field of the hospital the ink particles degrade until they are attacked by the immune system. It should fade in 48 hours." There was a chime as the lift doors in front of them opened. "Let's get out of here." The Doctor stepped onto the lift and the others followed.

They rode their way down in silence, the Doctor discreetly holding the wall for balance.

The lift doors opened with another chime and the Doctor stepped out.

"Doctor….." Yaz held out a hand to try and stall her progress but the Doctor just brushed it off.

"Nope. Don't want to hear it."

The three humans stood there, stunned at the Doctor's suddenly brisk manner, watching her striding determinedly down the corridor on two slightly unsteady legs. Yaz had to admit that her balance seemed to have improved in the few minutes since she had first appeared a few floors above. She looked less drunk and more like her usual baby deer, just a little more wobbly.

"Why are you so averse to hospitals?" Asked Graham when they caught back up. "They are supposed to help you."
"Last but one time I was a patient they killed me," the Doctor replied. "And waking up in the mortuary is just as terrible as it sounds."
"Wait," said Ryan, shocked. Yaz and Graham looked at each other, wide eyed. "Did you just say mortuary?!"

"Yep. And I don't fancy being a lab specimen either, Time Lords are a rather rare commodity in the universe and there are loads of organisations that would love to take a good long look at my biology."

"No wonder you are so keen to get out of here then."

"Correct. And before you bring it up again, I am fine. Fast healing is a benefit of the aforementioned Time Lord biology."

She seemed to cheer up as they crossed the hospital lobby, slinging an arm across Yaz and Graham's shoulders.

"I'm flattered you were worried but you really shouldn't have been. But I know you meant well, so thanks for looking out for me."

She dropped her arms and headed to the doors, striding confidently outside. The humans had to slow as their eyes adjusted to the relative dimness created by the surrounding tall building blocking out the sunshine compared to the brightness of the inside of the hospital.

The Doctor seemed to be heading for a specific destination so they followed, admiring the spectacular architecture that they hadn't been able to enjoy earlier.

They passed down streets and along raised walkways until they were thoroughly lost. All three humans didn't care where the Doctor was taking them, they were just happy that her gait contained all her usual awkward grace and none of the earlier unsteadiness.

They passed under an ornate arch after a while, stepping from tarmac to grass. They also stepped out of the shadows and into bright sunlight.

Yaz, Graham and Ryan shielded their eyes with their hands until they had adjusted to the brightness, hoping not to bump into anyone during their temporary blindness.

They stopped when the Doctor stopped in the middle of the grassy park and waited for her to say something. Instead she just stood there, eyes closed and head thrown back, basking in the warmth of the sun.

After an anxious few hours it was heartwarming to see the same old Doctor again, hands tucked deep in her trouser pockets and hair gleaming gold in the warm sunshine.