"How am I looking, Doctor?" Elisabeth emerged from her room, stepping into the TARDIS console room. She tugged on her white hat, hoping it would cover more of her hair, or whatever that was left of it.
"What have you done?" The Doctor asked, coming nearer and whipping off her hat, exposing her short, cropped hair, which she had done herself. Mentally, Elisabeth almost laughed at the shock on the Doctor's face. "You've cut nearly all your hair off!"
"Most of it was singed off in the first place. I did the best I could with whatever that was left. Honestly, I find this hairstyle an improvement over the last." Elisabeth proclaimed, reaching up to smooth her hair down. She snatched her hat back from the Doctor. "I'll have that back, if you please..."
"You're feeling a lot better, I presume?" The Doctor asked.
"I try not to dwell on such horrid matters." Elisabeth trembled, the image of Jay buried in the crushed layers of the underground still fresh and vivid in her mind. She turned away, pressing her fingers to her temples.
"I–I'm sorry." The Doctor apologised, wanting to reach out to her but he knew how she would respond. He had learnt to kept his distance, ever since they had left the underground.
"Hm. What are those?" The Doctor pointed to the glasses hanging from the collar of Elisabeth's shirt. He moved forward and removed the glasses gently, turning them over in his hands.
"They seem to work for me. I didn't know how Madam Arwen managed to find a set of glasses that suited me perfectly." Elisabeth admitted, watching intently as the Doctor inspected the glasses, peering through the lenses with a quizzical expression on his face.
"I've never seen anything like this before. Sensors that calculate the size and shape of your eyeball. Then according to that, it shifts the lenses at a microscopic scale to match your eyesight," The Doctor explained, sliding them back onto Elisabeth's face.
"Anyway." Elisabeth walked over to the console. "Where are we headed?"
"Earth, the 1940s. Yorkshire Dales. Quite a nice peaceful place for a getaway, I must say..." The Doctor trailed off. Elisabeth scanned the coordinates on the console screen. Strings of strings of numbers. How the Doctor managed to remember so much information was impossible.
"Doctor, how exactly does the TARDIS travel?" Elisabeth curiously inquired, propping up her head on her arm as she rested against the console.
"It's complicated technology. If I tried to explain it to you, you wouldn't get it. Not in the next hundred years, I suppose." The Doctor smiled. "In all its simplicity it is simply a machine that breaks the boundaries that bind time and space in a strict continuous manner."
"You said something about...Time Lords, the last time I asked?" Elisabeth squinted, wanting him to go on.
"Not from this world." The Doctor simply put it, brushing off her inquiry.
Elisabeth stopped herself before going on. "You. An alien."
"I thought you would've guessed it by now."
"I'm interested to know. You look so much like one of my kind...are there any qualities that distinguish your species from mine?"
"Most notably, two hearts." The Doctor threw out casually, as if it wasn't such a strange and otherworldly phenomenon.
Elisabeth's jaw dropped in shock. "You've got to be kidding me."
"When do I joke around with you?" The Doctor offered his hand. "Here, I'll show you."
Elisabeth hesitated before reaching out. The Doctor took her hand in his, and raised it to his throat. Taking her fingers, he guided them to rest over a main artery. There it was - the unmistakable beating of a double-pulse under her fingertips. She lingered for a moment before pulling away in amazement. "I don't know what to say." Elisabeth remarked. He was telling the truth. There was no way he could fake the double pulse she had just felt. She had doubted him before. But after her first adventure (or rather, near-death experience) with him, she didn't know what to believe in anymore. Whatever humans believed to be impossible - was this all because the humans couldn't accept the real truth behind the secrets of the universe?
The Doctor kept silent but turned to the console, reading over the coordinates. "Yes, this seems to be the right place," He confirmed, looking Elisabeth up and down. "You know, I think you should go and find something in the closet that's more appropriate for this time and place. You don't want to be scaring the locals."
"If you say so then," Elisabeth firmly replied, sweeping her hair over to cover the unsightly, unhuman stud that sat at her temple. Her smile slightly faded, as her hand went up to her temple. No, she told herself. She had to forget about what happened in the Underground. She directed her thoughts away as she wandered back into the TARDIS in search for the closet.
"Nice place," Elisabeth threw out as she stepped out of the TARDIS. The fresh, clean smell of the countryside air greeted her, and she was ever so happy to see the sunlight once again, after spending days in the Underground, isolated from the elements. Her feet kept wandering as she fixated on the lush, green scenery. Small, winding roads lined the rolling hills. Over the great fields, Elisabeth could see the farm animals grazing, so far away they seemed like little dots out in the distance.
Elisabeth didn't see the rock until she hit it. Her foot hitched, and she slipped forward, but she was fortunate enough not to fall face-first into the mud.
"Oof!" She went flying, crashing into a man in front of her, his back turned. Elisabeth picked herself off the ground, brushing the dirt from her pastel purple skirt. She shrugged - she didn't exactly like wearing this dress, or rather wearing dresses in general. "I'm sorry, sir." She made a hastily apology. "I didn't mean to bump into you - I swear..."
"Oh, were you talking to me?" Elisabeth heard a vaguely familiar voice. No. It couldn't be. The Doctor was back in the TARDIS. Elisabeth couldn't understand how this man could sound so much like the Doctor. An uncanny resemblance.
"I'm sorry. Just a minute." Elisabeth turned to the TARDIS, and she could feel the man turn and follow her gaze. She cupped a hand to use it to amplify her voice. "Hey, Doctor, maybe you'd like to take a look at this-"
The Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS, glancing around for a moment before addressing Elisabeth. "Anything wrong, Elise?" His expression changed immediately when he saw the man Elisabeth had bumped into. Elisabeth stepped back as the Doctor came forward, studying the man with great unbelief.
"Impossible." The Doctor remarked. "What are you, one of those androids? What are you up to, stealing my face and walking around looking just like me?"
"'Androids'? You've got to be insane. I suppose you've got a bit too much to drink?" The man smiled, and Elisabeth could understand the Doctor's shock. She couldn't understand how the two of them were so close in resemblance. The same face, the same height and build...the same voice...the man might as well could have been the Doctor's twin. Except for the only distinguishing physical feature - the length of their hair. The Doctor's hair was certainly longer and floppier - while the other man had his hair styled in a shorter, neater cut.
"Who are you?" The Doctor narrowed his eyes, continuing to scrutinize the other man.
The other man smiled, a wide-toothed grin. He offered a handshake. "Tristan Farnon. I'm surprised you've never heard of me." He taunted, before turning to Elisabeth. "You're not from around here, aren't you?"
"Where I'm from is none of your business, sir," Elisabeth snapped, making him back up.
The Doctor sighed, offering an apology. "I'm sorry. I'm the Doctor, and this is my companion, Elisabeth."
"Your companion? I was thinking she was your...girlfriend or something." Tristan teased, chuckling a little as he reached into the pocket of his coat to retrieve a box of cigarettes.
"No, I'm not his 'girlfriend or something'." Elisabeth firmly stated, and she could almost feel herself turn a bit red. The very thought of people thinking they were together honestly appalled her.
"Anyway," The Doctor cut in, sparing Elisabeth from the tension. "You know of any cricket matches played nearby?"
"Doctor-" Elisabeth started, but Tristan cut her off.
"Just down the road there, that field." Tristan turned to point. "I'm supposed to be playing - or at least my brother thinks I'm playing out there. Maybe you could do as a stand-in for me, considering how much we resemble each other. If he turns up he won't be able to tell the difference. I promise, he won't. Oh, it'd be interesting, the two of us. I still don't understand how I could meet someone who resembles myself so closely. Would be great in dealing with my brother, you know," Tristan leaned on the fence, clamping the cigarette between his teeth. "Just go, they'll be welcome to have you." He offered, a bit too warmly for Elisabeth's taste.
"Is that so?" The Doctor exclaimed, clearly amused by his lookalike.
Elisabeth stepped forward. "Doctor, are you sure this is a good idea?"
"I don't see why not. Elise, why don't you tag along?" The Doctor suggested.
Elisabeth bit the inside of her mouth. "I think I'd rather stay here, back at the TARDIS."
"I'll stay perhaps, to look after your blue box or something." Tristan started, "Or I could come and watch you." He turned to the Doctor. "It's funny, watching yourself from another person's perspective."
"Go with him, then. I'm pretty sure the TARDIS doesn't need protecting, does it, Doctor? I'll be fine here. On my own."
"Are you sure?" The Doctor confirmed. "I'd prefer to have you within my frame of sight." He addressed her, putting his hands on his shoulders. Elisabeth knew that he only meant to give her an affectionate gesture of friendship, but she still felt irked nonetheless. Slowly, she reached up and tugged at his sleeve.
"Doctor, I'd appreciate it if you..." She prompted, and the Doctor seemed to understand. He removed his hands from her shoulders, flicking his coat back as he put his hands in his pockets. A habit of his, Elisabeth seemed to observe.
"Sorry for that. It's just," He lowered his voice. "After the Underground, I think it's better that you follow me around. If a threat arises we'll be better off sticking together."
Elisabeth shook her head. "I'd prefer to stay right here, in the TARDIS."
"Alright." The Doctor agreed. "But you've got to promise me not to leave the TARDIS and go running about."
"I'll stay right here." Elisabeth promised, stepping back to the TARDIS. "But you've got to come back for me." She reminded, as she saw the Doctor and Tristan walk away. She wasn't sure how much she could trust the both of them – Tristan seemed to have a trick up his sleeve.
Elisabeth heard the knocking on the TARDIS doors some time later. To be honest, she didn't even know exactly what time it was. Just being in the TARDIS, even when it was not in motion, was mesmerizing and seemed to take her out of focus. She could just spend all day on the floor of this contraption, listening to the sounds that whizzed through the circuits and watch the buttons and lights as they flickered on and off, enjoying the artistic design of the console. It helped to take her mind off past events, and she would ponder about her life, her forgotten life before the Doctor. She would occasionally go off into the corridors, but she never really liked the winding corridors. They seemed to cave in on her, and they seemed to remind her too much of her experiences in the Underground. She dragged herself off the floor, gripping tight to the console, slipping once, let down by her numb legs. She must've been alone for quite a while.
"You're back." Elisabeth said, leaning on the doorframe of the TARDIS door as she opened it. To her delight, it was the Doctor, all scruffy and muddy after his cricket match. Elisabeth made a face as she looked him up and down. "You're a mess, Doctor. How did the game go?"
"It was brilliant." The Doctor smiled. "Oh, Tristan's invited us around to his place for tea. I think you should come along."
"Aren't you going to get yourself cleaned up?" Elisabeth raised an eyebrow. "Your sweater's all muddy. Don't you think you should be having a wash first, before going over for tea?"
"Tristan says he's got it all sorted out." The Doctor assured. "Come on, let's be off. It's not a long walk from here."
A/N: Hi! It's the author here again... I'd just like to say thanks for the reads! I'd like to hear from you guys and how you feel about my story, and how I can improve on it. I'm sorry this part took such a long time - school has really been busy for me. I'll still try to update at least once a week, maybe twice if I'm lucky.