A/N: Now this chapter takes place during 'The Long Game' episode, but I really dislike this episode (apart from the fact that it had Simon Pegg in it) so instead I made my own filler chapter. I hope you like it, because it reveals what's up with Katy!

I do not own Doctor Who. All I own is this story and my OC.

Please review and no flaming will be tolerated! Thanks :)

SECRETS

"So, tell me what you want to hear.
Something that will light those ears.
I'm sick of all the insincere.
So I'm gonna give all my secrets away.
This time don't need another perfect lie.
Don't care if critics ever jump in line.
I'm gonna give all my secrets away."
– OneRepublic: 'Secrets' (Waking Up [2009])

The TARDIS

Katy woke up, listening to the most beautiful melody she had ever heard in her life, almost like a lullaby. Somehow it was familiar to her. Katy sat up, then instantly regretted it when the room immediately started spinning like she was on an out-of-control carnival ride and lay back down on the very soft pillow behind her head. She groaned, and slowly opened her eyes, raising a hand to her head and came in contact with something that was attached to the back of her hand. It was an IV line, which was connected to a bag of something clear, dangling from a stand.

The room was dimmed, presumably to protect her eyes should she open them – of which she was grateful – and realised that she was in the TARDIS's infirmary. Everything was white; the walls, bed linens, the floor, the privacy curtain that was pushed off to the side around the bed she was recovering on, and everything sterilised within an inch of its life: a germ would never dare grow in here. There was also a cabinet filled with every known medical equipment, some other weird futuristic stuff she wouldn't even begin to know what they were, and sterile first-aid supplies like bandages, syringes, scissors, and medical tape.

"You're awake." Katy tilted her head towards the familiar female's voice and frowned when she couldn't see the person … until it registered with her: It was the TARDIS; telepathically speaking to her like the first time she had stepped into her during the Nestene Consciousness dilemma. "You gave the Doctor and your sister a fright, little one." The TARDIS continued, and Katy winced.

"Where is everyone?" Katy spoke out loud, "Why do I feel so terrible?"

"You've been unconscious for some time now. The Doctor asked me to watch over you, while he, Rose and that boy Adam went exploring." The TARDIS explained. "He checked you over the second you all got back from Van Statten's alien museum. Your sister Rose was really concerned."

"And what's the diagnosis?" Katy wheezed, wanting to know the answer before she went back to sleep. The TARDIS didn't respond straight away, which made Katy a little nervous, especially when she sidestepped her question and mentioned something else.

"You better rest, Katy-girl. You'll recover faster that way—"

"You didn't answer my question." Katy interrupted her, pointedly. "Is there something wrong with me?"

"The Doctor wanted to talk with you about it personally." The TARDIS eventually revealed, and Katy frowned in confusion.

"Why didn't you say so in the first place?" She asked, yawning. "Is it really that bad?"

"No. He said that you're fine apart from being a little dehydrated. That's why he didn't bring you along; he wanted you to rest." The TARDIS explained.

"That explains the IV." Katy realised, raising her arm into the air, before another large yawn came out of her mouth.

"You need to sleep, young one."

"When I wake up, can I go exploring? Or am I restricted?" Katy mumbled, sleepily.

"Of course. For now, rest, young one." The TARDIS enticed, speaking with a soothing voice, that lulled Katy deeper and deeper into the throes of sleep. She absently clutched at her locket, which started emitting a soft golden glow.

Katy's eyes snapped open.

Even though she was positive that she was definitely asleep in the TARDIS's infirmary, she found herself standing in an unfamiliar room. It was rustic, and being the history student she was, it reminded her of what a medieval bedroom would've probably looked like in a 12th century noble's estate. The roof above her head was thatched with thick pieces of wood stretched across the ceiling, presumably designed to help hold up the roof, and there was a beautiful four-poster bed with heavy pale-yellow curtains, and white sheets. There were other bedroom basics like a wardrobe which was made of oak, as well as an oak desk and chair, and a large chest at the foot of the bed, which Katy nearly caught her toe on when she wondered around the room, taking in its obvious splendor.

A door behind her slams open and she spins and sees an older woman wearing heavy red medieval style robes with gold embroidery standing in the doorway, panting like she had done a ten-mile run.

"Come child, we must leave. Quickly!"

The woman comes forward, seizes Katy's wrist, and pulls her from the room, drawing Katy's eyes to her arm, which had a white cotton and leather sleeve, covering it from upper arm to fingertips. Puzzled, she glances down at the rest of herself and her eyes widen when she takes in the blood red medieval-style dress she was wearing, with a black corset tied around her waist. A quick glance at a mirror they passed by revealed that her hair had been pulled back into a half-up, half-down style with a strange headdress, consisting of large and small metal coins. Some of which were also draped around her neck in a necklace.

Katy and the familiar and yet unfamiliar older woman, rush out onto the landing of a tall wooden staircase, which had a magnificent view of a lodging of obvious wealth and prestige, with other men and women, assumed to be servants, darting about on the ground floor, looking frantic and worried.

"Milady, are the rumours true? Surely the Lord President wouldn't do something as drastic as what he is claiming to do to finish this dreadful war?" One of the servants, asks the older woman standing beside Katy.

"I'm afraid so, dear. We must prepare ourselves. Only a miracle can save us now." But she turns and looks at Katy with a fierce determination on her face. "But maybe there can still be hope for you, ******."

The last word, presumably a name not meant to be known yet, was muffled out as the woman cups Katy's cheek affectionately, and dismisses the servant, before ushering Katy down the staircase and out the door, presenting her with a view of a war-torn land. Her eyes widened when she spotted the burnt orange sky with twin suns and patches of red coloured grass surrounding the large lodge-style house they had just come out of. "If only your brother had not abandoned his planet and his people so cavalierly." The woman huffed scornfully, before pulling Katy along the dirt footpath. "His help would've been most useful; he could've been on the frontlines of this wretched war."

'Where the hell am I?'

Katy couldn't help but think, despite this being a dream she was currently having. But was it really a dream? The older woman wordlessly starts leading Katy towards the large glass dome in the distance that made Katy's eyes widen once again when she recognised it from the memories the Dalek had forced upon her. The glass citadel before them was cracked in some parts, like a snow globe dropped from a great height. Rubble was everywhere, there was a mess wherever you stepped, and crowds of screaming children and civilians were running for cover or hiding, when soldiers and – to her horror – Daleks lay siege to the already destroyed landscape, raining blue or green laser blasts as they went. They eventually walk into a fortress-like building and into another room, where a strange device hung from the ceiling. To Katy, it looked like a strange bike helmet with odd attachments.

"This war will soon be over, and I fear for the safety of our people. You must survive at all costs, and if the only way to do this is to send you as far away from this planet as possible, then so be it." The woman declared and pushed Katy into a chair directly beneath where the 'helmet' dangled tauntingly, and walked over to what looked like an ancient version of the TARDIS's console; pushing random buttons and spinning and jerking knobs and levers. Katy wasn't exactly sure what was happening at that precise moment, except that apparently her survival was essential. But what she did understand was that she definitely did not want to put that 'helmet' on her head, and she could feel the familiar emotion of fear wash over her. The woman finished tinkering and turned towards Katy with a look of deep sorrow and regret, but also pride for what Katy was obviously about to endure.

To Katy, it was a horrifying thought. Just exactly what was about to happen?

"But know this, my heart, you have done your family proud. And you will always be loved and remembered, and I hope that when the time comes that you will remember us too." She leans forward and plants an affectionate kiss on Katy's forehead, wiping away some tears that had apparently been shed by Katy. "Farewell, dear one. Be safe, and one day we shall meet again." The helmet at that moment, lowers from where it dangled above Katy's head, and the woman secures it to her, before she pulls something small, silver, familiarly shaped and dangling from a chain from the confines of her robes and attaches it to the helmet; right where Katy's forehead was.

'My locket!?' But before Katy could think any further about this coincidence; the woman throws another lever, and then all Katy could think about was the red hot, excruciating and blinding pain ripping through her mind and every other atom in her body.

She screamed…

…And woke up screaming.

Katy jackknifed up right in bed, panting and drenched with sweat, which had transferred onto the bed sheets during her dreaming state. In her fear and confusion, Katy realised that she was still clutching onto her locket, which apparently had definite links to her past like was originally thought. And it was the only thing that convinced the brunette that what she had seen in her dreams was definitely real and not a fabricated delirium thought up while she had been recovering.

Trembling, Katy glanced up at the ceiling and called out to the TARDIS in a clear voice:

"Lights, please." Immediately, the dimmed lights brightened, and Katy grabbed the thin blanket that was covering her and pulled it aside so she could get up from the bed. She had momentarily forgotten that she had an IV line in her hand and looked down at it, only to blink in astonishment when she noticed it was not there anymore.

"I removed it while you were sleeping, young one." The TARDIS's familiar voice explained, and Katy nodded absently and got down from the elevated bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better, actually." Katy realised, to her pleasant surprise. The fluids the Doctor had been replacing into her system with the IV bag had obviously done the trick. Although, she immediately wrinkled her nose when she realised she now smelt of stale sweat, and she tugged her damp T-shirt away from her skin. "But I would really like to go and freshen up now."

"By all means. This way." The TARDIS replied, and Katy picked up her shoes from the infirmary floor and walked towards the door. Outside in the corridor, the TARDIS helpfully created a path of lights to help guide her back to her room, and she was grateful. The very last thing she wanted to do was get lost in the infinite, intelligent spaceship. The first time Katy had seen her room, she had been delighted with what she had seen. It had been an almost perfect replica of her bedroom back home, except that each companion had their own bathroom, with everything they needed without having to leave the room at all.

For starters, unlike Rose's room; which was like drowning in a sea of every shade of pink imaginable (Katy loathed pink with a passion), Katy's room was a light shade of lilac, with splashes of colour everywhere; from canvas paintings to pictures of family, friends from school and university, and random outings with Rose and Mickey. There was a king-sized bed with white sheets and a rainbow duvet set, bedside tables where lamps with cylindrical head shades perched, a bookshelf with replicas of her books back home, and a slightly cluttered desk where her laptop sat charging, with her desk chair tucked underneath neatly.

"Won't be a moment." Katy promised, making a beeline for her wardrobe, which the TARDIS kept replenishing with different clothing choices, apart from the one's she had brought with her from home.

"Take your time." The TARDIS reassured, probably warning her to take it easy, despite having fully recovered from her ordeal. After a soothing ten-minute shower, Katy immerged feeling refreshed and certainly smelling better than she had before. She had opted to leave her naturally wavy brown hair down instead of putting it in her usual high ponytail, and quickly stowed her soiled clothing in her hamper before heading out into the corridor, ready to go exploring the TARDIS.

"Lead on, MacDuff." Katy called out to the TARDIS, who merely hummed in response and lit up the hallway with lights, encouraging Katy to start exploring. She travelled down the labyrinth of corridors, and the first door she came upon turned out to be a room that was completely empty, but just as infinite as the TARDIS was. We're talking wall to ceiling white all around her, like a blank canvas; making Katy feel slightly uncomfortable and a bit claustrophobic.

"This is the Sanctuary Room," The TARDIS answered Katy's unasked question. "The Doctor designed it to allow the user to use their imagination; create any world they can think of that comforts, inspires, motivates them with a single thought." Katy immediately beamed with delight.

"So, say for example I wanted to imagine myself sitting in a beautiful garden; all I'd have to do is close my eyes and picture it in my head?" Katy theorised, and the TARDIS hummed in approval.

"That is the general idea, yes." The TARDIS confirmed. "Go ahead, give it a try." She encouraged, and Katy cautiously let go of the doorknob she was holding onto and walked deeper into the room. She stopped in the centre of the white floor and closed her eyes, trying to imagine exactly what she had first suggested to the TARDIS. There was silence for a few moments, before a warm wind started blowing all around her; throwing Katy off a little because it was so unexpected and then suddenly, the brunette was able to smell the scents of different types of flowers: roses, lavender, honeysuckle, freshly cut grass… just to name a few.

She opened her eyes and gasped in stunned surprise.

Katy found herself standing in the most beautiful garden she had ever seen in her life. Surrounding her were trees, neatly manicured hedges and bushes, sprays of brightly coloured flowers of every kind you could imagine, and a simple white stone pathway that glinted from the sunshine, which when Katy looked up to locate the source of the sunshine, she saw a periwinkle blue sky with clouds blowing by the wind, looking like strips of fairy floss that had been torn from the original clump.

"Wow! My imagination is better than I thought." Katy marvelled a little sheepishly, before she took off down the stone pathway, to see what else she could find in her little fantasy garden she had created. She eventually came upon a man-made timber foot bridge; you'd only find in a landscaped garden in somebody's backyard. Curious, Katy stepped on it and followed, before coming across a private little outdoor lounging spot with a natural waterfall flowing into a creek below. It had outdoor wicker couches with plushy cushioned seats to sit on; decorated with bright yellow, orange and red throw cushions, and a matching armchair, a wicker coffee table with a trendy centrepiece in the middle of it, a firepit with a neatly piled stack of timber idling nearby and ready for use, and what Katy viewed as her favourite piece of furniture ever: a hanging egg-style swing with more colourful throw pillows and a blanket to keep yourself warm, sitting in it ready for use.

It was peaceful.

It was impossible.

"This is so cool!" Katy gushed, cupping her hands over her mouth in her delight.

"And you are more than welcome to come in here whenever you wish." The TARDIS promised her, and Katy felt grateful tears welling up in her eyes.

"Thank you, so much!"

"You're most welcome, young one. Shall we continue exploring?"

Some more exploring later, and Katy managed to find her way into the TARDIS's rather spacious kitchen.

It was a decent size, had exposed ceiling beams that gave the kitchen a sort of loft-like appeal, if the TARDIS happened to be an industrial loft-style apartment instead of a sentient spaceship with no windows, except for the four windows on the double door entrance. The interior had dark wood panelling, an island bench with a white benchtop and a built-in sink, with bar stool chairs tucked underneath. Behind it was a commercial-style stove top and oven with a brick splashback wall. On the left of this was a large black double door fridge, and the right side was a pantry. There were cupboards above the fridge, stove area and underneath the island bench. The floor underneath her feet were non-slip floorboards that were brown stained.

The kitchen was very clean, which meant that the Doctor probably very rarely used it, and Katy made note to both show Rose this kitchen and also to make a few home-cooked meals every once and awhile for herself, the Doctor and Rose. She wasn't fantastic at cooking, but she knew enough to survive if she needed to. There was a bowl of fresh fruit on the island bench that Katy noticed out the corner of her eye, and on cue her stomach growled. Flushing in embarrassment, Katy wondered over to it and went over her choices. She eventually settled upon a nice shiny red apple and a ripe yellow banana which she put into the pocket of her green cardigan for later on.

Walking out of the kitchen, Katy shined the apple on her jeans before taking a large bite out of the skin, which made a satisfying crackling sound when her incisors tore through the apple's flesh, revealing the snow-white centre. She hummed with satisfaction as the juice dripped a little down her chin. Turning down another corridor, she came across a set of double doors, which she didn't hesitate to go and investigate; and what she found was every kid and teenager's biggest dream: an Olympic-sized swimming pool that took up the entire room.

"I guess the Doctor really is a kid at heart." Katy mused, slightly puzzled, as she walked into the warm, slightly steamy room that smelt heavily of chlorine.

But the pool wasn't the best part of the room. The best part was the massive TARDIS blue waterslide that coiled around a golden spiral staircase. It was currently turned off because nobody was using it. But if it were on, it would flow directly into the pool. Some pool toys were neatly stored away in a bin, not too far away from some deck chairs, and directly above the pool itself was a skylight from which Katy would be able to see space and all the stars contained in it. Katy presumed that it was an illusion, because as far as she could remember, the TARDIS did not have a glass roof.

"Rose would go absolutely insane if she saw this." She decided to try and convince her sister to go swimming later on, when she got back from her adventure with the Doctor and Adam. Not that she'd probably have to do much to convince Rose; she absolutely loved waterparks.

It was around about the time Katy had found the TARDIS's library, that she decided she really needed some answers about why she was experiencing memories of a past that she had no memory of, and of a place, no planet, that strange woman from her dream/memory had told her. She knew that all she had to do was wait for the Doctor to return from his latest adventure with Rose and Adam. But her ever curious mind was restless and demanded to be satisfied with a believable answer to her questions.

Her biggest question being: who was she, and why was she sent to planet Earth if indeed there was such a purpose? Katy placed her hand flat on the smooth wood of the about to be discovered library door, and gently pushed inwards. Her mouth fell open the moment she stepped inside and felt exactly like Belle from Beauty and the Beast looked like when the Beast had shown her his extraordinary private library with every book imaginable. She was pretty sure that the library depicted in that Disney animated movie, was a pretty close approximation to what this library looked like. It was enormous; with multiple stacks that you needed a staircase to access them all. A bright golden light glowed from every wall, presumably so you could easily find the book you wanted. And there were long wooden study tables not far from where a spiral staircase was standing.

"This is fantastic!" Katy exclaimed with genuine wonder in her voice. "I've never seen so many books in all my life."

"My sisters and I have at least two libraries, each a different size." The TARDIS suddenly spoke telepathically in her head, making Katy jump a little out of surprise. Her eyes widened at this little fact.

"You've got TWO libraries?" Katy blurted out, shocked. "What the hell for?"

"Because our libraries are sorted by planet; each room getting its own planet." The TARDIS explained with a patient voice. "Inside each of these rooms, the books are sorted by subject, then planetary region, then year, then quarter years." Katy didn't even bother to pretend what the hell that meant. The fact that the TARDIS apparently had every book known to man or alien was quite enough for her to swallow already. "Our larger libraries take up dozens of rooms, and each of these rooms have two shelves, which are a couple of miles long and tall."

"Wow!" Katy was impressed, and maybe just slightly disturbed that there was that much information contained within the universe. She walked further into the centre of the room and tilted her head up to see exactly how many levels the library contained. If it was anything like the infinite wardrobe that she and Rose had gone through when they were about to visit 1869 Cardiff, it was bound to be just as endless. However, the TARDIS seemed to have picked up on her mood and made concerned humming noises that immediately grabbed the brunette's attention. "What's wrong? Has the Doctor come back?" Katy was quick to ask.

"No. My thief and your sister are dealing with their own dilemma at the moment." She reassures Katy, who nods then goes to idly examine some nearby tomes that looked quite old and well-preserved. "Quite like you are yourself." The TARDIS pointed out, sounding worried.

"Me? I don't know what you're talking about." Katy denies straight away, and the TARDIS let out a disapproving groan that shook the whole ship and caused Katy to look around nervously.

"Do not play me for a fool, young one. I am not to be trifled with." The TARDIS warned sternly, before immediately adopting a nurturing mother's tone; the kind Katy recognised Jackie using whenever she or Rose was upset or distracted by something bothering them. "I know what it is you saw..." She explained mysteriously, and Katy's eyes widened in alarm.

"I-I don't know what you mean." She tried denying once again.

"Oh, but you do. You cannot lie to me." The TARDIS insisted. "That locket around your neck, is no ordinary trinket that was given to you." Katy's hand wrapped around it instinctively. "I knew I had recognised it from somewhere."

"It's just a locket," Katy protested, perching on the side of one of the study tables looking confused. "What else could it be?"

"That unfortunately I cannot tell you. It is something my thief wishes to speak with you about when he returns. He will have the answers that you seek." The TARDIS confirms. The reality of her situation suddenly creeps up on Katy, and she couldn't help but well up with tears.

"Why is this happening to me?" She begged, feeling truly scared. "Why am I so special, I'm only nineteen-years-old and I'm a history student. Why am I being singled out and given all these so-called memories of a life I had no recollection of?" Suddenly angry, Katy gets to her feet and starts raging. "And why can't you give me a simple straight answer, except to tell me that only the Doctor can answer my questions?" She wipes her eyes and gestures furiously about the library. "Well, I'm apparently standing in one of two libraries containing all the books of the universe and different planets. If you can't tell me what my purpose here is, then recommend me books so I can figure it out for myself." Katy was adamant, and strides for the nearest bookshelf and starts searching. However, before Katy could even touch a single book, the TARDIS makes all the books suddenly vanish without a trace. The brunette lets out a yell of frustration.

"I can't tell you the answers. Like I said, only the Doctor can provide them." The TARDIS stubbornly insisted, which implied to Katy that she definitely knew the reason, but was sworn to secrecy, probably by the Doctor himself. Oh, she was going to give him what for! "However," Katy paused, impatient to hear what the sentient ship had to say next. "I wasn't told that I couldn't give you hints." And within seconds of saying this, the TARDIS allowed only two books to rematerialise on the shelves. Warily, Katy walked over to the shelf and picked up two very old, and very dusty books from the shelf, staggering slightly underneath the weight of both as she took them into her arms.

"Geez, this is almost as bad as the textbooks they make us read at University." Katy observed, crabbily.

"You wanted answers." The TARDIS pointed out, sounding rather concerned and just a tad tired for some unknown reason Katy couldn't decipher. But she nodded, still appreciative that the TARDIS was actually allowing her the choice to make her own discoveries. Katy carried, with some difficulty, the two books towards the study tables and after stumbling a little, accidentally let them fall with a loud thud onto the table; sending plumes of dust to fly up into her face, making her wrinkle her nose and cough. "Please, be careful!" the TARDIS warned her with alarm. "Those books are extremely old."

"I'm sorry." Katy acknowledged, before pulling out one of the chairs and sitting in it, pulling the first book towards her; feeling both excited and nervous about what she was likely to discover about her mysterious so-called past.

The title of the book at first glance, made Katy's eyes widen in horror: 'THE GREAT TIME WAR'. Almost immediately, Katy hesitated to actually read what was contained inside. She had seen how the Doctor even mentioning it visibly affected him, and she wasn't entirely sure he'd really appreciate her learning about something that he actually was a part of; probably fearing that he'd see shame, blame, or perhaps even worse, pity directed from her to him. If it were her in his shoes, pity would be the worst, as it is often associated with the ridiculous, and also being pitied is an insult and very humiliating. But at the same time, Katy really wanted to understand. It obviously had something to do with her past, or the TARDIS wouldn't have granted her permission to read it, let alone know about its existence. Screwing her courage to the sticking place, Katy pulled open the book to the first place and started reading the introduction, mentally preparing herself for what she was about to read and praying that she had not done the wrong thing.

'The Great Time War was the temporal war fought between the Time Lords and the Daleks, for the sake of all creation…' Katy read to herself. 'It lasted for about 400 years. Fought throughout the countless time periods and alternate timelines. However, it actually lasted an eternity as both sides fought across time and space, opening up new fronts as the Daleks seeded themselves in different epochs.'

"Holy shit. 400 years!?" Katy muttered in horror. Now there was no question that the Doctor was not exaggerating exactly how old he was, when he claimed he had fought during the Time War.

'At the heart of the war, millions were killed and brought back to life every second, due to both sides' manipulations.' Katy flinched when yet another flashback was forced into her mind from reading that line alone: It was similar to the dream she had just experienced, except that somehow, she had been separated from the older woman, and she was now caught in the middle of a shootout between a lone Dalek and a couple of Time Lord soldiers. Like a deer in headlights, she was frozen and unable to get out of the way in time. When suddenly a blur of a random Time Lord ran straight into her like a line-backer defending the play, knocking her safely away from the fight.

"Are you alright?" A gravelly, elegant voice questioned her, and Katy looked up to see an older man with greying dark brown hair, cut military-style, a full grey beard and bushy eyebrows, and brown eyes looking down at her with concern. This Time Lord was wearing dark tan trousers with charcoal leather gaiters over well-worn brown boots, a green-brown moleskin waistcoat with a fob watch, and a dark brown leather trench coat. A burgundy and ivory scarf in herringbone style, was wrapped securely around his neck. But it was his eyes that Katy recognised instantly; although they were younger and in a dark shade of brown instead of the baby blue she was so familiar with.

'Doctor?' Katy snapped out of the flashback, shocked. The Doctor knew her before their first meeting back when he blew up Rose's job at Henricks? So why hadn't he recognised her then? Presumably, it was after the Doctor had saved her that she was reunited with the older woman from her memory/dream, who had taken her to that room to take away her memories. Shaking her head, Katy forced her eyes back down to the page and continued reading the book.

'The Daleks murdered quintillions and fielded a fleet of ten million flying saucers. The Time Lords used over a million Battle TARDISes and other ships from their past…'

"Battle TARDISes?" Katy frowned in confusion, then glanced up at the ceiling to question the TARDIS. "Is there a difference?" She asked.

"I'm what is known as a Type 40 travel capsule. Battle TARDISes were used in the frontlines during the Time War. They were equipped with heavy armaments, and ready for battle at a moment's notice to be flown into hostile locations. My primary function is to travel through time for scientific research and exploration missions. And traditionally, six pilots are required to fly me smoothly."

"Huh. That actually explains so much." Katy mused thoughtfully.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, when the Doctor drives you, it's like being flung about on an out-of-control rollercoaster without any brakes." Katy explained feeling awkward about criticising the Doctor's driving skills.

"No. The Doctor just never passed his driving lessons." The TARDIS retorted flatly, defensive on the Doctor's behalf.

"Oh." Katy blushed and decided to continue reading instead of questioning the already testy time machine any further. '…throwing their own people into the suffering as disposable soldiers and pilots who would be resurrected from death to be sent back into the fray.'

"Sounds like fun." Katy mused with disgust.

'By the end of the war, the Daleks had pushed the Time Lords back to their home planet of Gallifrey and launched a full-scale assault on the planet. The Last Great Time War was marked by unprecedented destruction and carnage across time and space and culminated with the apparent destruction of Gallifrey and ruination of Skaro, seemingly leaving only three known Time Lords and a small number of Daleks as survivors.' Katy had to close the book. She couldn't read anymore. No wonder the Doctor was the way he was, and why that Dalek chose to destroy itself than continue existing. Ignoring the fact that Rose had apparently poisoned it with her DNA.

"You can put that book back. I don't want to read it anymore." Katy muttered, quietly. The book disappeared almost immediately, and Katy looked nervously at the next book the TARDIS had offered to her for answers to her questions. Only to frown slightly in confusion. 'GREAT HOUSES OF GALLIFREY' was printed in big block letters, followed by a strange symbol underneath the title that looked like figures with long cloaks standing in a circle. Curiosity gripped her and she instantly flipped to the introduction page and started reading.

'Great houses were a bloodline or Family of Time Lords. Each house used its own Looms to create new members." Katy looked up from the book to look up at the ceiling once again, fixing it with a perplexed expression.

"Why did you give me this book?" Katy asked. "And what the hell are looms? Do you mean those massive weaving machines that were used to make things like rugs or tapestries?" The TARDIS started humming, which Katy believed to be the equivalent of laughing, possibly at what she had just said.

"Not exactly. But you're on the right track. Looms or breeding-engines were used by Great Houses of the Time Lords to repopulate their race after the Great Schism. The Looms were used to 'weave' new life from base matter and biodata. So, in that aspect, yes, it is sort of like that primitive tapestry machine." The TARDIS explained. "As for why I've given you this book, well, it will make more sense when the Doctor answers your questions."

Katy was convinced that the TARDIS was being vague for a reason, and she didn't like being kept in the dark. She just hoped that the Doctor would be arriving back soon from this current adventure, and that he'd be a bit more forthcoming when it came time for her to grill him for answers. Picking up the book, Katy stood up from the table and tucked in the chair before she went to leave the library, eager to check out the console room without the Doctor hovering around her, making her both nervous and like she had been caught doing something she shouldn't have been doing; even if all she was doing was looking at all the buttons, knobs, and levers with interest.

But the allure of the book the TARDIS was loaning to her was too enticing to stop reading, so mid-way down the corridor towards the console room, Katy reopened the book and started walking and reading at the same time. A slightly dangerous move, but one that Katy had done many times before both at home, at the public library and at university in between classes, using her peripheral vision as a guide. Katy eventually turned a corner and heard the familiar idling humming sound of a stationary TARDIS and looked up from the book briefly to ascend the steps and onto the main platform of the console, without tripping in the same process.

Katy made a beeline for the jump seat and sat down on it, crossing her legs, and settling the slightly heavy book on her lap. She then remembered the banana she had saved for later in the pocket of her cardigan and pulled it out, absently peeling away the yellow peel and biting into it while continuing to read. She had just gotten to the chapter concerning the names of the different 'Great Houses' when one of the double doors of the TARDIS suddenly creaked forward, admitting Adam who practically stumbled in – probably as a result of being shoved inside, followed by a very angry looking Doctor and a solemn, blank-faced Rose.

Katy tilted on the jump seat, still munching on her banana snack and trying to look around the translucent cylindrical flue thing in front of her that was blocking the view of the TARDIS double doors; frowning at the obvious tension that filled the room. The jump seat squeaked a little, drawing the attention of the Doctor, who glanced over with a very dark expression on his face that softened instantly when he saw a confused and concerned Katy sitting at the jump seat and looking back at him.

"Oh, Katy-girl! You're looking much better." The Doctor complimented her, and Katy nodded in acknowledgement, her mouth still full of the yellow herb. "Won't be a mo. Just gotta take care of something." The Doctor punches in a few buttons and throws a switch, causing the TARDIS to jerk violently, nearly throwing Katy off the seat and sending Rose to the floor; had the blonde not grabbed the console just in the nick of time. Once the TARDIS had stabilised a little, Rose came over and perched next to her sister on the jump seat, looking disappointed.

Katy swallowed her mouthful.

"What's going on?" She questioned Rose, who was glaring in the direction of a shamefaced Adam, making Katy question what he had done to earn the cold shoulder from Rose and a look of cold fury from the Doctor. "Correction: what's happened?" Katy corrected herself, and Rose let out a sigh.

"Adam broke the rules. The Doctor's sending him home." Rose explained, then looked curiously at the book in Katy's lap. "Where'd you get that?" She asked, closing the book a little to get a glance at the title of the book.

"The library." Katy responded, promptly. Rose blinked in surprise.

"The TARDIS has a library?"

"Two apparently." Katy confirmed, reopening the book, and continuing where she had left off before being distracted by the return of the Doctor, Rose, and Adam. She took another bite from her snack.

"How'd you know that?" Rose frowned.

"The TARDIS told me." Katy responded, shielding her mouth from Rose to avoid her sister looking at the masticated food inside her mouth. "She speaks to me telepathically. I know, I was just as surprised as you are when she first did it." Katy answers Rose's shocked look and unasked question simultaneously.

The TARDIS comes to a rough stop, and the Doctor immediately strides over to Adam, grabs him by the scruff of the neck and pulls him towards the doors. Rose abandons her sister and quickly follows them, and Katy, interested in finding out what Adam had done to piss off the Doctor, marks her place in the book and sets it aside, before getting up from the jump seat and walking over, still munching on the banana.

Adam's Home

Katy stands on the threshold of the TARDIS's double doors and sees that she had landed in the hallway of a modest looking home. The Doctor and Rose were standing outside staring at Adam, looking pissed.

"Is there something else you want to tell me?" the Doctor was demanding Adam, who looked at him with a confused look.

"No. What do you mean?" Adam responded, looking puzzled. But Katy could tell he was faking it, as he kept giving side glances at an answering machine sitting on a table nearby with a cordless phone. The Doctor instantly picks it up, pulling free his sonic screwdriver.

"The archive of Satellite Five." He prompted Adam, coldly. "One second of that message could've changed the world." He uses the screwdriver on the answering machine, which crackles and explodes. "That's it, then. See you." The Doctor turns and heads back towards the doors, followed by Rose. Adam steps forward, now genuinely confused.

"How do you mean, see you?"

"As in goodbye." The Doctor elaborates. Adam's eyes widen in horror, causing Katy's eyebrow to furrow. What the hell happened while she was resting and exploring the TARDIS?

"But what about me? You can't just go. I've got my head. I've got a chip type two. My head opens." He stated frantically.

"What, like this?" The Doctor clicks his fingers, and instantly a hole mechanically opens up in the middle of Adam's forehead, alarming Katy.

"What the hell?" Katy blurted out in horrified shock, taking an automatic step away from him.

"Don't." Adam scowls at the Doctor and clicks his fingers. The hole closes up.

"Don't do what?" The Doctor clicks his fingers again, and the hole reopens.

"Stop it!" It closes. Rose wades in, putting a hand on the Doctor's arm and scowls at him reproachfully.

"All right now, Doctor, that's enough. Stop it." Rose chides him. Adam smiles gratefully at her.

"Thank you." But then Rose smirks in amusement and clicks her fingers, causing the hole to open again. Adam scowls at her with annoyance. "Oi!" Rose giggles.

"Sorry, I couldn't resist." She admits and Adam clicks his fingers again to close the hole in his forehead once more. The Doctor shakes his head at him with disgust.

"The whole of history could have changed because of you." He doesn't hesitate to tell Adam, who looks a little guilty.

"I just wanted to help."

"You were helping yourself." The Doctor corrects him. Adam steps towards him, gesturing placatingly.

"And I'm sorry," He insists, sounding a little desperate. "I've said I'm sorry, and I am, I really am, but you can't just leave me like this." Adam points out, and the Doctor just sneers at him, unsympathetically.

"Yes, I can." He retorted. "'Cause if you show that head to anyone, they'll dissect you in seconds. You'll have to live a very quiet life. Keep out of trouble. Be average, unseen." Adam's face goes white, now realising the consequences of his actions. The Doctor smirks maliciously at him. "Good luck."

"But I want to come with you." Adam still protests. The Doctor turns and gives him one more scathing look.

"I only take the best. I've got Rose…" He pauses and looks over at Katy, who was still staring at Adam in horror. The Doctor reaches over and takes her hand, grabbing her attention off Adam and onto him. She smiles warmly. "…and I've got Katy." He adds, returning the smile before walking into the TARDIS, pulling Katy along with him without another glance at Adam. A door opens in another room, making Adam's eyes widen in alarm as he looks at Rose pleadingly.

"Rose, Rose. Oh, my God." Adam panics, and Rose just looks at him blankly.

"Who's that?" An older woman's voice calls out. "Geoff, is that you?" Adam swallows down his anxiety and answers the woman's greeting.

"It's me, mum. Don't come in. Wait there a minute." Adam states, still looking at Rose pleadingly.

"Oh, my Lord. You never told me you were coming home!" Adam's mother yells back, sounding excited. "Hold on, I'll just take my coat off. You should've told me you were coming home. I would've got your favourite tea in."

"Rose, take me with you." Adam appeals to Rose one more time, but the blonde merely looks at him unsympathetically and with condemnation before turning and going back inside the TARDIS, which promptly dematerialises away from Adam's sight.

The Console Room

Katy allowed the Doctor to lead her back inside the TARDIS, but immediately let's go of his hand; much to the Doctor's objection, to pick up the book. The Doctor's eyes focus on the book, and he frowns instantly.

"Where'd you get that?" He demanded, a little sternly. Katy straightened up, recognising the tone the Doctor was using, but knowing that she wasn't in the wrong. She looked at him in defiance.

"The TARDIS loaned it to me." She explained. "This book apparently has some answers to some questions I have." Katy elaborated, tapping the leather book cover for emphasis, and the Doctor's frown deepened when he read the title, wondering what reason his ship had in giving his companion a book about the Great Houses of Gallifrey. What exactly did she know about his companion?

Katy looked at the Doctor with a piercing stare. "She also told me that you'd give me some answers too when you returned from this latest adventure." She looked between Rose and him, seeing nearly matching looks on their faces. "Which apparently did not go so well, if what I just saw now with Adam happened." Katy indicated to her own forehead as an indication to her own train of thought.

The Doctor made a sour expression.

"My gut instincts about him from the start were spot on. Your sister just needed to know that." Rose scowled at him for the comment.

"Alright, you've made your point." She grouses as the Doctor gave her a stern 'I told you so' glare. Katy finished eating her banana, as the Doctor directs his attention back to her.

"May I have a word?" He requests, and Katy nodded, knowing that this was the moment the Doctor wanted to talk about what had happened to her during the ordeal with the Dalek at Van Statten's alien museum. Rose quickly took the hint that this was a private conversation.

"I'll be in my room if anyone needs me." Rose announced before pushing off the banister around the console and disappearing downstairs. They listened to the sound of Rose's retreating footsteps, but the Doctor didn't say a word for several minutes. Probably making sure that Rose was well out of earshot before beginning the conversation.

"How are you feeling?" the Doctor questioned with his back to Katy as he got the TARDIS to float about in the middle of the Time Vortex somewhere. She leant against the console, eying him warily, as it was obvious that he was in a mood. However, when he turned around to face her, the angry expression on his face had disappeared, replaced with his cheerful one. But Katy wasn't fooled; she knew a mask when she saw one.

"Much better, thank you." She replied, smiling back at him a little but keeping her guard up. The Doctor nodded approvingly, folding his arms across his chest. Then the cheerful smile dropped a little, and his blue eyes became serious.

"Can you explain to me exactly what happened when you first saw that Dalek?" He requested, and Katy frowned; not exactly thrilled about having to relive this particular experience. But if she wanted answers, she needed to just deal with her insecurities and just tell the one person who would know.

"It was like a sudden headache." Katy explained after a few moments. "Then I started getting flashbacks."

"Flashbacks? To what?" the Doctor asked, frowning slightly.

"Well, that's just it. What I've been seeing has been both familiar and yet unfamiliar to me, like a long-forgotten memory that's only starting to resurface. But I can't place where." Katy looked frustrated.

"What did you see?" He asked, gently.

"There were just snippets: quick snapshots of a strange place, strange people." Katy shrugged. She tried explaining as best as she could. "I remember seeing a burnt orange sky…" the Doctor froze, and his eyes widened in shock. "Red grass and mountains capped in snow. People running and screaming. A strange looking city encased inside a glass globe. Blue and green lasers—" Katy cut herself off when she noticed the stunned expression on the Doctor's face, and she immediately felt stricken with worry. "What is it, Doctor? Is it bad?"

"Have there been others like these images?" the Doctor asked, urgently.

"Uh, yeah." Katy confirmed. "When I was recovering in the infirmary, I had a nightmare. But it felt like I was seeing somebody's memories. It was awful." Katy shuddered at the memory of how she felt sitting up screaming from her nightmare. The Doctor immediately straightened up and came over to her, a look of urgent determination on his face.

"Show me!" He demanded, causing Katy to take an instinctive step backwards from him because of the look on his face, and the tone of his voice.

"How?"

"Through telepathic contact." The Doctor stated, reigning in himself when he realised that he had scared Katy a little when he came forward the way he did. He smiles reassuringly at her. "It's an ability my people have that allows us to form a telepathic link between multiple minds for conversation and decision-making." He explained. "It can also be used to erase memories, and also locate them. Once contact is made, knowledge is immediately shared between both minds."

Katy nodded, understanding.

"Okay. What do I do?" She asked, giving permission and the Doctor approached and stood in front of her.

"You don't have to do anything. I do. It will probably feel a little strange, but I promise you it won't be painful." He reassures Katy, who nods again and the Doctor raises both his hands towards her temples. "Close your eyes." She does so, as does the Doctor, and she feels his lukewarm fingers gently touching her temples. "Now, I'm going to search through your memories. If there is something you don't want me to see, just imagine a door and close it. I won't look. But what I want you to do first is try and think back to what you saw in your nightmare, I'll take care of the rest." The Doctor instructed.

Instantly Katy was back inside her mind; only this time the Doctor was traveling through it with her. He was right; it did feel a little weird, but the Doctor was gentle as he probed her mind for images of her 'nightmare'. It took several minutes, and a couple of 'closed doors' before the Doctor finally located what he was looking for. Contact was suddenly severed, and the Doctor took a step away from Katy, looking shocked.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Katy was confused, looking pleadingly at the Doctor for any answers he could give her. The Doctor didn't respond. Instead, his blue eyes dropped down to Katy's heart locket. He stepped forward and carefully picked it up, flipping it so that the back of it faced him and he dropped it like a hot potato. "Doctor?" Katy tried again, concerned about the stunned expression on the Time Lord's face.

His blue eyes locked onto her brown ones.

"It's not possible…" He murmured, still in shock.

"What's not possible?" Katy asked. The Doctor turned away and headed back towards the console, looking visibly agitated. "Doctor, please answer my question." Katy was starting to get a bit annoyed.

"That 'nightmare' you had, Katy, it wasn't a nightmare. It was a memory; your memory." The Doctor explained.

"My memory? But how can it be my memory, I've never seen that planet before in my life." She protested, but the Doctor came forward; an almost elated and excited grin on his face as he took in Katy, looking at her like she was a miracle, like he couldn't believe she was standing before him. It was kind of starting to freak her out.

"Oh, but you have. At least not in this body."

"This body? Doctor, you're not making any sense. What is going on? Is there something wrong with me?" Katy demanded, getting irritated with him.

"No, there's nothing wrong with you." The Doctor reassures her. "In fact, what I'm about to tell you might be difficult for you to understand or maybe even accept. You're not human, Katy." Her eyes widened. "You're a Time Lord. You're one of my people."

And that was the very last thing, Katy expected the Doctor to reveal.

A/N: That's a wrap! Hope you like this and that it wasn't too obvious. Remember, please review. TTFN :)