First semester of college/university is officially over. Still can't believe it. Here's the shiny chapter!
When the jarring and shaking stopped, the Doctor stepped away from the console, looking pleased. "Now, then! Where do you want to go? We'll start with Earth, nothing too dangerous for your first go-round, I think. Past or future?"
Martha opened and closed her mouth like a fish for a few moments. "W-what? I have to pick?"
"Well, this is a thank-you gift. It's only fair you'd get to pick. Want to know the future of the Earth? Or is there something in the past you've always wished to see? All of Earth's past and future to choose from. Well," he amended, "as long as I don't risk bumping into myself. That isn't something you'd probably like to see."
"Why's that?" Rose asked curiously.
"We tend to argue. A lot." He scratched the back of his neck. "And, well, there's always a risk for a major paradox and the universe imploding. Though, I think I'm due to run into one of my past selves soon, actually…" he frowned, as if trying to remember something complex. "Ah, well, I'll remember it when it's time. So anyway! Past or future?"
Martha looked at Rose. "Where'd you pick for your first time?"
"Future," Rose said. "He wanted to impress me, took me to the actual end of the world."
"What, seriously?" Martha looked at the Doctor. "Your first date and you took her to watch the world die?"
"Yup," Rose said. "Sun expanded…Earth went boom. Better warn you now: he likes exploding things. First time I met him he blew up my job. Remember when 10 Downing Street blew up? That was him, too."
The Doctor cleared his throat. "Forgive me if I have to blow things up to save the world."
"What about that Christmas when all the people went to the roof?" Martha asked. "That ship blew up. Was that you, too?"
"No," the Doctor's mood darkened quicker than she would've believed possible. "That wasn't me. I'd convinced them to go in peace and never return. Torchwood blew them up anyway." He said the name with such venom, and Rose's expression darkened at it, so Martha figured it was a question best saved for later.
"And what about that shooting ship shaped like a star last Christmas?"
"Partially responsible, yes." Rose nodded.
"C'mon, now," the Doctor complained. "Past or future?"
"U-uh…um…I don't know! You pick!"
The Time Lord grinned. "As you wish, Miss Jones. Past it is, then!"
"Nowhere with dinosaurs." Rose said immediately.
"Rose," he sighed, "I told you—the ankylosaurus is an herbivore. It wasn't going to eat you."
"I don't care," she folded her arms. "It was big, it had teeth, it was lookin' at me, and it roared."
He sighed. "Can stare into the eyestalk of an angry Dalek but when faced with a docile dinosaur…"
"Shut up."
"Alright, I've set our course for anywhere before the year 2000 AD and after 2000 BC, with the exception of anywhere plague infested or in need of a young blonde sacrifice. We're in no hurry to repeat that particular incident."
"Thanks," Rose muttered.
Martha shook her head. "I've gone mad, haven't I?"
The Doctor pressed a few buttons on the console then frowned. "Hmm. There's something I need to adjust real quick before we land. Rose, why don't you take Martha to the wardrobe?"
Rose nodded. "Yep. C'mon, Martha."
Martha didn't move. "Wardrobe? You mean there's more than this?"
"Of course there is," the Doctor said as if it should have been obvious. "Do you think we eat and sleep in here? Well, we have a few times, but that's beside the point. There's hundreds of rooms inside this ship, most of them you'll never see, but if you're looking for something, you'll usually be able to find it."
Martha stared.
"Now, off you go. Oh, and should you happen to find the swimming pool, don't get in. I haven't gotten around to fixing the heater yet. Actually, if you find it, let me know where it is, would you? I haven't seen it for a few weeks."
"Swimming pool," she whispered.
Rose smiled at her sympathetically and motioned for her to come. "C'mon before he talks your ears off. Be back in a tick, Doctor!"
"Yeah, and where have I heard that before?" he grumbled.
"Shut up."
Martha followed Rose out of the console room into the hallway. The walls were a shade darker than beige and pieces of coral extended from the wall in several places, usually up to the ceiling; in other places, bits poked out at one part and went back in further down. The TARDIS hummed contently around them, inquiring in her own way about Martha. Apparently their new passenger was smart but not easily trusting, nor completely ready to believe everything her new friends were saying and would probably get upset when she learned that the TARDIS had already made a place in the back of Martha's mind.
Rose bit her lip, glancing at the older woman. She'd accepted the alien stuff straight away, but it was the fact that the TARDIS got into her head that angered her, and that the Doctor had forgot to mention that. If she was going to stick around for any length of time, there were things she had to know, things Rose wished had been explained to her.
"What do you think?" Rose asked.
"It's…just…I don't even…" She trailed off. "Do all these doors have rooms behind them?"
"Yep," Rose said, popping the 'p'. "Some bigger than others. But you never really know what you're gonna find. I'm pretty close to the TARDIS so she usually lets me know when I'm where I want to be, but if you decide to stay with us for a bit, you might need to put a marker on your door."
"'She?'"
"What?"
"You called the ship a 'she.' I know they call boats 'she' but you said it like…like it's actually a she."
"She is," Rose said. "The TARDIS isn't just a ship. She's alive. She thinks and feels, not exactly like we do, but she's not jus' a hunk of metal."
"Look, you both have said a lot of mad things since we've met, but this…" Martha shook her head. "A sentient ship?"
Rose said a few words that she knew in the dominant language on one of the several asteroid markets they'd been to. "What did I just say?" she asked in English.
Martha sighed. "You asked me how much for my necklace. It's not for sale."
"I wasn't speaking English," Rose said as they rounded another corner. She was beginning to think the TARDIS was purposefully prolonging their journey so she could talk Martha through the basics.
"Then how did I understand you?"
"The TARDIS translates for you." Rose said. "Anything you hear and read will be in English since that's the language you know the most, and it's the same for anyone who hears you speak. Except swear words, she doesn't translate those."
"How's that?"
"She's telepathic." Rose tapped her head. "I could be talking in an alien language right now and you wouldn't know. Don't worry," she added quickly, "she doesn't read your innermost thoughts or make you think anything you don't want to, I promise. I was worried about that in the beginning. But she can help you find things you want or need, or if you want privacy, she can make sure you're never found." She brushed her hands along a thick patch of coral along the wall. "Right now, we need the wardrobe, but she knows I need to explain this to you, so we could probably open every single door and never find it."
Martha stopped waking and put her hands over her mouth, closing her eyes. "This is…this is just…"
"Too much?" Rose asked sympathetically.
Martha shook her head, unsurely at first, then more vigorously. "No. I'm fine. I just need time to process this. I went to the moon today, I helped a bunch of rhinos kill a vampire, I saved the lives of billions of people, and now I'm on a ship that's bigger on the inside; that can travel in space and apparently time; that's telepathic and alive, with an alien and a human…who acts like it's the most ordinary thing in the world."
Rose tilted her head. "Do you want to go back?"
"What?"
"Do you want to go home? Because you can, you know: go back. He won't ever force you to stay if you really want to leave. If all of this is too much for you, we can go back in there right now and tell the Doctor to land us back in that alley, or even in your flat if you want. And you'll never see us again and your life will go back to the way it was."
Martha considered this, her face a bit sad, but otherwise smooth. "You said earlier, in the hospital, that you're used to that kind of stuff."
Rose nodded.
"Does…that happen often? I mean, is that a normal day?"
"Well, I've never had Judoon pull me to the moon, but with the Doctor, there's no more normal days."
"Is it…worth it?"
"Oh yes," Rose whispered, her eyes shining. "The universe is full of evil and ugliness, just like Earth, but it's also beautiful. So many places and people and things beyond anything you can imagine. I could live for as long as the Doctor and never see it all. I would rather die than give this up."
"And you fancying the Doctor has nothing to do with it?"
"Maybe," she smiled. "Just a bit."
Martha took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly. "I'll give it a go," she decided. "I'm not sayin' I want to stay, but…I want to see this. I need to see this…or I'll always wonder, you know? A sentient ship, aliens, time travel…let's do it. "
Rose's smile broadened into a grin. "Well, come on, then. Let's go get changed."
As if on cue, the thick weaving of coral on the wall next to them shifted, twisting and sliding out of the way to reveal a simple door. Martha looked at Rose with wide eyes and Rose grinned back at her, tongue between her teeth, and inclined her head towards the door. Martha reached out and slowly turned the handle, pushed the door open, and stepped into the wardrobe.
There was a central platform that led to a narrow spiral staircase in the center of the room that led to the upper levels, as well as the ones below the platform. Clothes of all colors, sizes, and styles were hung from the many, many racks. It was like he'd stolen a bunch of costume rooms out of Hollywood or something and crammed the contents together.
"Oh my God," she breathed.
Rose walked past her to a coatrack where a big leather jacket hung. Martha couldn't see the blonde woman's face, but there was something solemn, almost wistful, about the way she reached out to touch it. She ran her fingertips along the back of it, her head cocked to the side.
"Whose is that?" Martha asked, stepping up behind her.
"It's the Doctor's," Rose murmured. "It's what he wore when I first met him…"
"Looks a bit big for him."
Rose smiled sadly. "He was a bit bigger then."
"How do you mean?"
She shook her head. "That's something he'll tell you on his own. He didn't even tell me about it until…well…" She licked her lips and bit her lower one, then she shook her head quickly and backed away from the leather jacket. "Right, let's get on with it."
"But," Martha looked around the room again. "How do we know what to choose from?"
Rose looked up at the ceiling expectantly then the lights on the left side of the third level flickered on and off. Rose pointed at it then dashed up the stairs.
A sentient ship that knew fashion. Oh, yes. She'd definitely gone mad. And, strangely, Martha Jones didn't care one bit.
Half an hour later, the Doctor leaned against the console, legs crossed, waiting impatiently for his companions to get back from the wardrobe. Humans—or, more specifically, human females—took ages to get ready.
He'd given up trying to drag Rose on an adventure first thing in the morning. She always had to wake up, then get dressed, fix her hair, put her makeup on, then go get her tea…took at least forty minutes. He'd taken to bringing her tea first thing if he wanted to go somewhere, just to speed things along. But she already had her tea and her makeup and she was wide-awake. By all accounts that should've cut the prep time by at least twenty-five minutes. Apparently not.
He exhaled loudly, his head falling back, and he resisted the urge to bang it against the rotor. He hated waiting. They'd learned early on that this body was not patient.
Can't you tell them to get a move on? He complained to his ship. But apparently she was on Rose's side again, because the rotor hummed once, short and curt, as close to a 'no' as he'd ever gotten from her.
He groaned in frustration.
Can you move the wardrobe door closer? He tried.
Sparks fizzed from the console near his hand and the Doctor jumped away, cradling his slightly singed hand protectively. "Oi!" he complained. "Stop it!"
He felt her amusement wash over him.
"Why can't you be on my side for once?"
Another wave of amusement.
He sighed and walked to the doorway that led deeper into the ship. "Ro-ose!" he called. "Martha! Hurry up! We're gonna be late!"
"Late for what?" Rose's voice came a moment later from not too far away. "We goin' somewhere particular?"
"No… not really…"
"Well, what's the rush, then?" She stepped around the corner and effectively robbed him of speech.
She was wearing a floor-length light brown dress, with a darker bodice that laced up the front, and sleeves that flared into bells at the elbow, all the way down to her hands, effectively hiding most of her cast. Around her neck was a simple black choker. Her hair was twisted into a single French braid in the back. The ensemble was simple, nothing about it screamed either nobility or peasantry, yet it flattered her curves in a way no simple commoner would dare. She was…Rose.
Rose was grinning, her tongue poking out, and a blush reddened her cheeks. "Doctor?"
"Huh?"
"You're doing it again."
"What?" he blinked. She inclined her head. "Oh. Oh, right! Sorry. You look beautiful."
She lifted up her skirts and poked her foot out, revealing a sturdy black boot instead of the appropriate footwear for the era. "Just in case," she said.
He grinned. "That's my girl. Where's Martha?" He craned his neck to peer over her shoulder. "Is she planning on making an appearance any time soon?"
"She was right behind me," Rose stepped around him into the console room, then lowered her voice. "I told her about the TARDIS bein' telepathic and all that."
He stuck his hands in his pockets. "Ooh. How'd she take it?"
"Could've been worse. It was a bit much for her, though."
"She want to go home?"
"Not yet. She wants proof before she makes any decisions."
"What, and the TARDIS wasn't enough?" He muttered. "Oh, here she is!"
"Okay, I'm coming in!" Martha stepped into the console room looking decidedly embarrassed. She had on a long-sleeved deep red dress with a white undershirt visible beneath the bodice. "Don't laugh!"
"Now where have I heard that before?" the Doctor grinned at Rose. "Don't worry, Martha, you look amazing. Really."
"It's not too much?" she turned from side to side, looking down at herself.
"I told you, you look fine." Rose said. "So, we landed yet?"
"Nope!" The Doctor danced over to the console. "But we will now! You ready?" He gripped the lever that would send them through the Vortex. Martha's eyes widened. "Hold on—here we go! Allons-y!" he shouted and pulled the lever down.
The TARDIS gave a violent lurch and Martha screamed as she was knocked to the floor. Rose managed to steady herself on the console but didn't dare let go to help Martha up. Loudly declaring that the Doctor was mad and that the bloody ship was determined to knock her about, Martha struggled to her feet by holding onto the railing and somehow managed to not bust her chin open.
The Doctor practically climbed onto the console to press multiple buttons at once. "Rose! That small lever, push it up, then press the middle button over there." Rose did, moving around the console with ease despite the bucking of the ship. "Hold on!"
"I AM!" Martha screamed.
With one final jerk, the Doctor was thrown off the console, catching himself on a coral, Rose landed back in the seat, and Martha very nearly fell, but she managed to stay upright, gripping the railing for dear life. The Doctor pushed himself up, grinning happily, and offered a hand to Rose.
"Blimey!" Martha gasped, letting go of the rail. "Do you have to pass a test to fly this thing?"
"Yep, and I failed." The Doctor said cheerfully, pulling on his coat.
"Aren't you gonna change?" Martha hitched up her skirt and ran across the console room.
"Why? What's wrong with my suit?" He stopped in front of the door and turned to face them: "Ladies, outside this door…brave new world."
"Where are we?"
"Take a look." The Doctor opened the door and inclined his head. "Ladies first."
"First timers privilege," Rose stepped aside and motioned for Martha to go before her. Martha bit her lip, glancing at Rose with an eager grin, then walked past the two time travelers and stepped out of the TARDIS. She didn't look at the ground or take a tentative step like Rose did, possibly because she didn't quite believe in the whole time travel thing just yet, but when she made it outside she took a few steps and froze. The Doctor and Rose followed her out.
Rose breathed in and her nose flared at the smell of animals, unwashed bodies, mud, waste, and other things she didn't want to think about. But over that she could smell the warm night air, the aroma of baking food, and something she could never quite describe but had always considered it to be the smell of Earth. No other planet had that scent, though New Earth was close.
A group of children with dirty faces ran past. Teenagers and adults milled about, talking or completing tasks for the evening. Wagons, barrels, hay, and the occasional stall were situated in front of the double-story houses that lined the street, which was lit by torches along the walls.
"Oh you're kidding me. You are so kidding me. Oh, my God!" Martha exclaimed. "We did it! We traveled in time."
"Of course we did," the Doctor said. "Come on, Martha, do you think we'd go through the trouble of getting you all pretty just to drop you back in the twenty-first century?"
Martha didn't answer him, still gazing around in disbelief. "Where are we? No, sorry," she held up her hand. "Got to get used to this whole new language. When are we?"
The Doctor started and grabbed both girls' arms, pulling them back. "Mind out!" he warned just as someone above them hollered something that sounded suspiciously like 'loo' and a bucketful of waste was dumped onto the spot they'd been standing just seconds ago.
"Somewhere…before the invention of the toilet," the Doctor said, nose wrinkled. "Sorry about that."
Martha waved it off. "I've seen worse. I've worked the late-night shift, A&E."
The Doctor grinned, looping his arm through Rose's, and they started off. Martha reached out. "Wait! Are we safe? I mean, can we move around and stuff?"
"Of course we can," the Doctor assured her. "Why do you ask?"
Martha gave him a look. "It's like in the films. You step on a butterfly, you change the future of the human race."
"I'll tell you what, then, don't…step on any butterflies. What have butterflies ever done to you?"
"Oh, stop," Rose chided. He smiled, unabashed, and started off again. This time Martha followed, but she wasn't done yet.
"But what if—I don't know. What if I kill my grandfather?"
The Doctor turned. "Are you planning to?"
She laughed. "No."
"Well then." He held his other arm out and she took it. They continued along the street, looking around at the people and buildings. Out of the TARDIS's perception filter, people began to notice them. Some nodded, some tipped their hats respectfully, and everyone was careful to get out of their way. Nice clothes tended to have that effect on the locals.
"And this is London?" Martha asked.
"I think so." The Doctor craned his neck, looking for any identifiable landmarks that would give him a clue.
Rose grinned cheekily. "Which probably means we're somewhere like Naples."
"Oi! My driving is not that bad," he protested.
"Our landing says otherwise," Martha grumbled. "And you failed your test, which means your driving is bad."
"That was well over seven hundred years ago. I've gotten a lot better since then."
"Oh then, I'm really glad I didn't meet you until now."
"Martha Jones, I'd like to see you try flying a ship meant to have six pilots on your own—with the occasional help." He nodded to Rose.
"No thanks," she grumbled.
"What year are we in?" Rose asked. "Or do I need to go find a newspaper?"
"Well, judging from the architecture and the local decorum," he glanced down at Rose. "And what the TARDIS showed you to wear…I'd say right about, um, ooh, 1599. Feels like 1599, too."
"Oh, but hold on. Am I all right? I'm not gonna get carted off as a slave, am I?" Martha asked.
The Doctor looked dumbstruck. "Why would they do that?"
"Not exactly white, in case you haven't noticed."
"I'm not even human." He pointed out. "Just walk about like you own the place. Always works for me."
Rose leaned forward so Martha could see her. "Plus, you look like a proper Lady. They won't dare touch you."
"Besides," the Doctor said, "Apart from some obvious things, Elizabethan England, not so different from your time. Look over there." He inclined his head at a man behind them shoveling manure. "You've got recycling."
Martha wrinkled her nose a bit.
"A water cooler moment," he nodded at two men talking around a water barrel.
"—in poison, and the trumpets will sound, heralding the Kingdom of God!" A man in black turned this way and that, one hand in the air, preaching to everyone that passed. He angled his body so he was facing the Doctor, Rose, and Martha. "And the Earth will be consumed by flame!" He cried.
The Doctor laughed once, "Global warming." The moved on, leaving the preacher with a stunned look on his face.
"Oh yes, and…entertainment!" He grinned. "Popular entertainment for the masses! …If I'm right, we're just down the river by Southwark…" He picked up speed, forcing the girls to run to keep up with him. "Right next to—!"
They rounded a corner and stopped, the Doctor with an excited grin on his face. "Oh yes! The Globe Theatre!" He said with relish. "Brand new, just opened. Though, strictly speaking, it's not a globe; it's a tetradecagon, fourteen sides, containing the man himself!"
"Whoa you don't mean…" Martha looked at him, eyes and mouth stretched wide. "Is Shakespeare in there?"
"Oh, yes!" He exclaimed. "You met him once, Rose. Remember?"
She laughed once, exasperated. "How could I forget?"
He grinned at her. "Ah, good one. Well, Miss Tyler, Miss Jones, would you lovely ladies accompany me to the theater?"
"I do believe I will, Mr. Smith." Rose said, tongue between her teeth. She leaned her head against his shoulder contently for a moment.
"And just think, Martha, when you get back, you can tell everyone you've seen Shakespeare."
Martha nodded. "Ooh, yeah. Then I could get sectioned!"
Review. Don't make me beg, darling, I won't do it! ...Please? :D