Chapter Two: A Crack in the Wall
The Tardis tumbled out of the control, making loud banging sounds. Emma held on tightly onto a railing, watched the Doctor trying to pull himself back inside. He was dangling from the threshold, sonic screwdriver between his teeth.
Realizing where they were heading, straight for the Parliament Clock tower, the Doctor managed to sonic the controls, changing their course just in time. He climbed back inside and shut the doors behind him, exhausted as the Tardis careered on its way.
Letting out a breath, Emma slid down to the ground, pulling her knees up to her chest as she wearily watched the new Doctor navigate the control panel. He was paying no attention to her, which hurt. Part of Emma knew that he was just trying to get the Tardis under control, but she was still disappointed. His tenth self-had just declared his feelings for her, then promptly regenerated. It wasn't fair. But then again, life never is.
So, she resigned herself to sitting on the ground, watching him dance around the console once more. He was grinning, talking quietly to the Tardis like always. Every regeneration unnerved her, but there was something about this Doctor that made her feel calm.
It was strange seeing a new face. It always was, but this one… This one was the strangest of them all. Young, tall, and gangly looking with brown fringy hair blown around from the wind. Almost exactly like the drawing she once had pinned to her bedroom in Gallifrey. What a strange coincidence.
{Amelia's Bedroom}
Like most nights, Amelia Pond found herself alone. She was a big girl, however. She was seven years old. That was too old to be afraid. But she was. So, she did what she always did when she was afraid. She prayed.
Kneeling beside her bed, Amelia folded her hands, bowed her head, and closed her eyes. Taking a deep breath, she began.
"Dear Santa. Thank you for the dolls and pencils and the fish. It's Easter now, so I hope I didn't wake you, but honest, it is an emergency. There's a crack in my wall."
She knew that opening her eyes while praying was wrong, but it took everything in her to keep from looking nervously at the large crack on her wall. Swallowing, she continued, trying to push the frightening image out of her mind. "Aunt Sharon says it's just an ordinary crack, but I know it's not, because at night, there's voices, so please, please, could you send someone to dix it? Or a policeman? Or a…"
From outside, she heard a loud noise. Her eyes popped open when there was a crash. "Back in a moment," she breathed out before jumping to her feet. She rushed to the window where a blue police box was lying on its side in her garden. "Thank you, Santa!" she cheered before racing downstairs.
{The Tardis}
Emma screamed as the Tardis flipped, sending them falling backwards. The Doctor grabbed her, wrapping his long arms around her waist. He held onto her tightly as they splashed into the pool. Which was in the library.
Surfacing, Emma spat pool water out of her mouth. She glanced up at the ceiling where the Tardis doors were opened outward. It was a long away from where they were. She frowned, looking to the Doctor.
For the moment, he was lying on his back, floating upon the water. His eyes were shut, almost in concentration. She hated to interrupt him, but they needed to get out. "Doctor," she called softly.
His eyes snapped open, and he turned his head, looking at her.
"We've got to get out," she prompted gently, kicking her legs to stay afloat. He followed her gaze up to the ceiling.
"Ah, yes," he agreed. "Probably right."
While he debated, she swam to the edge of the pool, pulling herself out. She sat on the edge, feet dangling in the water. She watched him again, practically seeing the wheels turning. She had quite forgotten that they had a pool, but she found it now, so maybe she'd use it later.
{The Garden}
Amelia watched from a safe distance as two sopping wet adults climbed out of the box. One of them was a woman, with red hair like hers. The other was a strange, raggedy looking man. He was talking to the woman, who seemed annoyed.
"Could I have an apple?" he was saying. "All I can think about. Apples. I love apples. Maybe I'm having a craving? That's new. Never had cravings before."
Sitting on the edge of the box, he looked down into it.
"Whoa. Look at that." Amelia couldn't keep in the shadows anymore. Besides, the woman seemed nice.
"Are you okay?" she questioned, stepping closer.
The woman startled, spinning to look at Amelia.
"We've just had a fall," she answered the girl. She had a Scottish accent, just like Amelia. It made Amelia trust her more.
"All the way down there," the man agreed. "Right down to the library. Hell of a climb back up."
"You're soaking wet," Amelia remarked.
"We were in the swimming pool," the woman said.
"He said you were in the library."
"So was the swimming pool," the man nodded.
Emma smiled at the little Scottish girl. She was inquisitive and apparently didn't like being lied too from the way she had quickly corrected them.
"Are you police?" the girl asked. The Doctor's head shot up.
"Why?" he asked, rather quickly. "Did you call a policeman?"
"Did you come about the crack in my wall?" she asked.
Frowning, the Doctor took a step forward.
"What crack?" His body suddenly spasmed, like it normally did when he was changing. "Argh!" he groaned, falling to the ground. The girl rushed forward.
"Are you all right, mister?"
Brushing her away, he stood on shaky legs.
"No, I'm fine. It's okay. This is all perfectly norm." Emma rolled her eyes as a breath of golden energy came from his mouth.
"Who are you?" the girl questioned.
"I don't know yet," he answered. "I'm still cooking. Does it scare you?"
Quicky, Amelia shook her head. What was this man talking about? 'Still cooking?' That didn't make any sense.
"No, it just looks a bit weird." She heard the woman stifled a giggle behind her.
"No, no, no," he disagreed. "The crack in your wall. Does it scare you?"
The small shiver the Doctor received was answer enough.
"Yes," she told him.
"Well then, no time to lose." He gave her a big grin, which she returned. "I'm the Doctor. This is Emma. Do everything I tell you, don't ask stupid questions, and don't wander off."
As he was giving his order, he rammed into a tree. Emma couldn't help the giggles that escaped from her mouth.
"Are you alright?" she asked when he sent her a look. He rolled his eyes at her amusement.
"Early days. Steering's a bit off."
{The Kitchen}
Leading them into the kitchen, Amelia scrambled to find towels. Aunt Sharon wouldn't be pleased if she came home and found water all over the ground. The woman, Emma, took a towel gratefully. She started drying her long hair, pulling it over her shoulder.
Cautiously, Amelia handed the Doctor an apple before sitting down at the kitchen table across from them.
"If you're a doctor, why does your box say Police?" The Doctor bit into an apple, then spat it out.
"That's disgusting. What is that?"
"An apple," Amelia answered. "Apple's rubbish. I hate apples."
"Apples aren't rubbish," Emma astonished. "Besides, you said you loved them."
"No, no, no. I like yoghurt. Yoghurt's my favourite. Give me yoghurt."
Looking in the fridge, Amelia pulled out a carton from the fridge. He poured it in his mouth then spit it out all over the table.
He grimaced, "I hate yoghurt. It's just stuff with bits in."
"You said it was your favourite," Amelia argued.
"New mouth. New rules. It's like eating after cleaning your teeth. Everything tastes wrong."
He twitched violently, groaning again.
"What is it?" Amelia panicked. "What's wrong with you?"
"Wrong with me?" the Doctor snapped. "It's not my fault. Why can't you give me any decent food?" He looked to Emma.
"You're both Scottish. Fry something."
Rolling her eyes at his childish behaviour, Emma stood, helping the girl fry up some bacon. The Doctor ignored their work as he dried his hair with his towel.
"Ah, bacon!" the Doctor exclaimed. He took a bite before making a face, spitting it out on his plate. "Bacon. That's bacon. Are you trying to poison me?"
Taking a deep breath, Emma tried to keep her temper down. She always had to deal with this. Why couldn't Rose be here to deal with him? She had far more patience. Or maybe, for once, couldn't he be agreeable?
The girls set a plate of beans in front of the doctor, which he took a bite of then spat it out before he even started chewing.
"Beans are evil," he hissed. "Bad, bad beans." From behind her, Emma grabbed a plate with a pre-made slice of bread and butter.
Watching him carefully, she set it in front of him.
"Bread and butter," he instantly cheered up. "Now you're talking!" And that promptly got tossed out the open door, bread, butter, and plate.
Scowling, Emma crossed her arms. She tilted her head up to the ceiling, deciding.
"Have you got fish fingers?" she asked the girl, who quickly nodded. "And custard?" Same response. "Good. Let's make that."
Finally, he found something he liked. He sat at the table, contentedly dipping the fish fingers into a bowl of custard. Amelia sat with a tub of ice-cream that she was eating with a spoon.
As he ate, Emma looked to Amelia.
"Is there a washroom?" she asked. Amelia nodded, pointing with her spoon.
"Last door down the hall," she said. Emma stood, strolling away. She didn't catch the Doctor's eyes following after her.
Closing the door to washroom, Emma slid down to the ground. She wrapped her arms around her knees, leaning her head on the door. She had forgotten how hard the Doctor was to deal with after regeneration. Frankly, she couldn't remember how much she hated it.
"Doctor," she whispered. "I need you."
The man outside might be the Doctor, but he wasn't her Doctor. Not yet at least. But who knew if he ever would be. His personality changed with each new face. A small sob escaped her before she could slap her hand over her mouth.
She couldn't cry. Last time she'd cried, he'd gotten upset. Who knew what this new Doctor would do if he found her crying this time. She sighed and closed her eyes; she needed the Doctor. Her Doctor.
It took a while for her to leave the washroom. She wanted to make sure her eyes weren't red. When she did finally leave, she found the Doctor finishing his bowl of custard, drinking the remains. She sat beside him again as he lowered the bowel, leaving a custard moustache on his face.
Amelia giggled, "Funny."
"Am I?" he grinned. "Good. Funny's good. What's your name?"
"Amelia Pond."
Emma smiled softly, "Oh, that's a brilliant name. Amelia Pond. Like a name in a fairy tale. Are we in Scotland, Amelia?"
Shaking his head, Amelia's face turned disappointed.
"No. We had to move to England. It's rubbish." Emma's smile dropped momentarily.
"I agree." The Doctor watched Emma from the corner of his eyes before looking at Amelia again.
"So, what about your mum and dad, then? Are they upstairs? Thought we'd have woken them by now."
"I don't have a mum and dad. Just an aunt."
"We don't even have an aunt."
"You're lucky."
"I know. So, your aunt, where is she?"
Tilting her head to the side, Amelia shrugged. "She's out." "And she left you all alone?" Emma asked worriedly. "I'm not scared," Amelia declared. "Course you're not," the Doctor agreed. "You're not scared of anything. Box falls out of the sky, man and woman fall out of box, man eats fish custard, and look at you, just sitting there. So, you know what I think…?" "What?" Amelia asked. He leaned forward, "Must be a hell of a scary crack in your wall."
{Staircase}
About midway up the stairs to Amelia's room, the Doctor stopped. He gestured for her to go on ahead.
"Amelia, go on up. I just have to speak with Emma for a minute." Amelia nodded, continuing up the stairs.
The Doctor waited until she'd disappeared before spinning around, arms crossed to look at Emma.
"All right, what's wrong?" he demanded. She went to open her mouth, but he stopped her. "And don't say nothing because obviously it's something."
"Doctor… it really is nothing. It's nothing I cannot handle and have not handled before."
"You're struggling with this."
He waved a hand up and down his body.
"You're struggling with the regeneration."
"No—"
"Don't lie."
"I always struggle with it. You just don't notice."
"I always notice, Emma."
Her green eyes met his.
"Pay attention to the task at hand, Doctor."
"I can't if you're sad." Sighing, Emma reached forward, touching his cheek. He leaned into her palm, eyes never leaving hers. "Amelia Pond needs our help and I think that we should help her first."
"Then we talk?"
"Then we talk."
{Amelia's Bedroom}
Emma stared at the wall in Amelia's room. It had a three foot slightly W shaped crack. She felt the ominous feeling and knew why Amelia was terrified. The Doctor whistled,
"You've had some cowboys in here… Not actual cowboys, thought that can happen."
Softly, Amelia put her hand in Emma's. She held out an apple with carvings drawn into it.
"I used to hate apples, so my mum put faces on them." Emma took the apple, putting it in her jacket pocket.
"Maybe I should try that," Emma said. "And your mum, she sounds nice."
The Doctor knocked on the wall, pursing his lips.
"This wall is solid, and the crack doesn't go all the way through it."
"Well, where's the draught coming from?" Emma asked him.
"That's the thing," the Doctor remarked.
Pulling out his sonic screwdriver, he scanned the crack.
"Wibby-wobby timey-wimey," he said. "You know what the crack is?"
"What?" Amelia asked.
"It's a crack." Emma rolled her eyes at him, and he smirked. "But I'll tell you something funny. If you knock this wall down, the crack will stay put, because the crack isn't in the wall."
Amelia looked up at Emma in confusion.
"Where is it then?" Emma didn't know so she looked to the Doctor.
"Everywhere!" the Doctor said. "In everything. It's a spilt in the skin of the world. Two parts of space and time that should never have touched, pressed together right here in the wall of your bedroom. Sometimes, can you hear?"
"A voice. Yes," Amelia nodded.
There was a quiet growling noise and the Doctor emptied Amelia's night-time glass of water and used it to listen to the crack. Listening carefully, the Doctor waved to the girls to be quiet.
"Prisoner Zero has escaped."
"Prisoner Zero?" the Doctor muttered.
"Prisoner Zero has escaped," Amelia said. "That's what I heard. What does it mean?"
"Prisoner Zero has escaped," the voice echoed again.
Frowning, the Doctor stared at the crack.
"It means that on the other side of his wall, there's a prison and they've lost a prisoner. And you know what that means?"
"What?" Emma asked suspiciously.
"You need a better wall," the Doctor told Amelia cheerfully. "The only way to close the breach is to open it all the way. The forces will invert, and it'll snap itself shut. Or…"
Swallowing, Amelia looked at him nervously.
"What?"
"You know when grown-ups tell you everything's going to be fine, and you think they're probably lying to make you feel better?"
"Yes."
"Everything's going to be fine," Emma said, pulling Amelia back.
The Doctor took a step forward, to stand in front of Emma, putting his body between hers and the wall. Using his sonic screwdriver at the crack, he watched as the crack widened, flooding the bedroom with bright light.
"Prisoner Zero has escaped. Prisoner Zero has escaped."
"Hello?" the Doctor called. "Hello?"
A giant blue eye looked at them through the crack. Emma reached up, gripping the back of the Doctor's shirt.
"What's that?" Amelia asked. A bolt of light hit the Doctor and he doubled over as the crack closed again.
Straightening, the Doctor stared at the wall for a moment before grinning.
"There, you see. Told you it would close. Good as new."
"What was that?" Emma asked.
"Was that Prisoner Zero?"
The Doctor shook his head, "No. I think that was Prisoner Zero's guard. Whatever it was, it sent me a message. Psychic paper. Takes a lovely little message." He quoted what the eye said. "Prisoner Zero has escaped. But why tell us? Unless…"
"Unless what?" Amelia asked.
"Unless Prisoner Zero escaped through here?"
Emma frowned, "But he couldn't have. We'd have known."
Sighing, the Doctor raised a hand to his forehead.
"It's difficult. Brand new me. Nothing works yet. But there's something I'm missing. In the corner of my eye." Emma's eyes turned concerned for him.
Their head's shot up at the sound of the Tardis Cloister Bell. The Doctor's eyes shot up.
"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!" the Doctor shouted. He took off running down the stairs. Amelia followed with Emma trailing behind.
{The Garden}
Reaching the Tardis, the Doctor spun around to address Amelia.
"I've got to get back in there. The engines are phasing. It's going to burn!"
"But… it's just a box. How can a box have engines?" Amelia asked.
"It's not a box," the Doctor chided. "It's a time machine."
"What, a real one?" Amelia asked. "You've got a real time machine?"
"Not for much longer if I can't get her stabilized. Five-minute hop into the future should do it."
Amelia's eyes brightened in excitement.
"Can I come?"
"Not safe in here," the doctor answered. "Not yet. Five minutes. Give me five minutes, I'll be right back." The excitement in Amelia's eyes dulled.
"People always say that," she grumbled.
"Am I people?" the Doctor asked. "Do I even look like people?"
Shaking her head, a small smile appeared.
"Trust me. I'm the Doctor." He jumped down in the Tardis. "Geronimo!" he yelled. Emma glanced at the Tardis before kneeling to be at Amelia's height.
"He says five minutes," she began. "But time never goes as we want. We might be a little late."
She grinned at the girl before sitting on the Tardis edge.
"See you soon, Amelia." Amelia gave her a wave before Emma jumped down. The doors shut and the Tardis dematerialized before Amelia's very eyes.
Smiling, she ran back to her room, pulling a suitcase out from underneath her bed. She packed it with warm clothes before dressing in a duffel coat and woolly hat. Carrying her suitcase down the steps and through the kitchen, she set it in the grass. Plopping down on it, she waited eagerly for the Doctor and Emma's return.
{The Tardis}
Expecting the pool, Emma was pleasantly surprised when she landed on a fluffy bed instead. Sitting up, she hugged a pillow to chest as she caught sight of the Doctor. He was messing with the control again.
Getting to her feet, she walked up behind him. Carefully, she wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her cheek on his back.
"Hmmm?" the Doctor asked.
"Nothing," she answered as the Tardis made some noises.
Humming, the Doctor squirmed in her arms, twisting 'til he was facing her.
"Amelia will make a good companion," he remarked. She moved her arms, putting them around his neck as his hands moved to her hips.
"Yes… When she's a bit older. It would be like kidnapping if we took her now."
The Doctor grinned, "Kidnapping… probably right."
"Always am," she teased.
"No, you're not."
"Yes I am."
"No."
"Yes."
"Oh, all right." The Doctor had learned long ago that Emma was usually always right. He might be the clever one, but she was the smart one.
She smiled as he leaned his forehead against hers. However, she hesitated as his lips neared hers.
"But we can't keep her waiting," she quickly reminded him. She pulled away, letting him get back to work.
Inwardly, she cursed herself as she made her way through the Tardis. She found her bedroom and opened the door. From the console, the Doctor heard a door open then close. Using a monitor, he called up Emma, seeing her in her bedroom.
With Emma on the screens, the Doctor started punching buttons. Although, as he did so, he couldn't help but think about Prisoner Zero. Who or what was it? Clearly a prisoner. But how did he… or it escape?
Then came the beeping. Rapid emergency beeping. His eyes snapped to the screen. Colour drained from his face, and he raced down the halls to Emma's room. He knocked once and Emma instantly answered.
"Amelia's in danger," he told her. Her eyes widened and she grabbed her jacket before following him out of the room.
{The Garden}
The Tardis landed in Amelia's Garden and the Doctor raced out, Emma close on his heels. It was daytime and Amelia was nowhere to be seen.
"Amelia! Amelia, I worked out what it was. I know what I was missing! You've got to get out of there!"
Running upstairs, Emma stopped at the top. She heard a creak and turned slightly. She caught a flash of red hair before something hard and firm hit her head. She collapsed on the wooden floor, almost falling down the stairs.
The Doctor barely registered the thump of a body hitting the ground as he looked frantically around for Amelia.
"Amelia? Amelia, are you all right? Are you there?"
"Prisoner Zero's here. Prisoner Zero is here! Prisoner Zero is here! Do you understand me?" Realizing Emma wasn't with him, he turned, only to be hit with a cricket bat.
{Royal Leadworth Hospital}
At the Royal Leadworth Hospital, Doctor Ramsden walked with one of her nurses, Rory Williams, into the Coma Ward.
"So, they all called out at once, that's what you're saying?" she snapped. "All of them? All the coma patients? You understand that these people are comatose, don't you? They can't speak!"
"Yes, Doctor Ramsden."
Doctor Ramsden was on her last edge with Rory. He was a bright man to be sure. But this was just ridiculous. People in coma's did not cry out all at once. They couldn't move. They were stuck where they were.
The woman looked at him.
"Why are you wasting my time?"
Rory blinked, "Because they called for you."
"Me," she stated. She turned her head as a voice spoke.
"Doctor." The male coma patient behind them was speaking. "Doctor. Doctor." The rest of the patients started chanting, much to the confusion of Doctor Ramsden.
{Pond Residence}
With the tweeting of birds, the Doctor slowly revived to see a young lady in a micro-skirted police uniform using her radio.
"White male, mid-twenties, breaking and entering," she said. "Send me back-up. I've got him restrained."
Moving his head painfully to the side, he saw Emma tied up beside him. She was still unconscious, slumped in an uncomfortable position. He started to struggle against the restraints around his hands.
"Oi!" the woman snapped. "You sit still."
Turning to the woman, he tried to recall what happened.
"Cricket bat. I'm getting cricket bat."
"You were breaking and entering," the woman said.
"Well, that's much better," he said sarcastically. "Brand new me. Whack on the head, just what I needed."
Remembering Emma, his eyes turned dark.
"If you've hurt her…"
"Do you want to shut up now? I've got back up on the way." He wanted to retort, but then he realized what she was wearing.
"Hang on, no, wait. You're a policewoman."
"And you're breaking and entering. You see how this works?"
The Doctor was confused. Wasn't this Amelia Pond's house? He could have sworn it was. And he had promised five minutes. Five-minute hop and then he'd come back.
"What are you doing here?" he asked. "Where's Amelia?"
For a moment, the woman looked confused.
"Amelia Pond?"
"Yeah, Amelia," the Doctor nodded. "Little Scottish girl. Where is she? I promised her five minutes, but the engines were phasing. I suppose I might have gone a bit far. Has something happened to her?"
"Amelia Pond hasn't lived her in a very long time," the woman informed him.
"How long?"
"Six months."
Dread coursed through the Doctor's veins.
"No. No. No! I can't be six months late. I said five minutes. I promised. What happened to her? What happened to Amelia Pond?" The woman turned her back slightly, lifting her radio to her mouth.
"Sarge, it's me again. Hurry it up. This guy knows something about Amelia Pond."
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