At last I would be caught up with my Doctor, at least for now.
I jumped to my mum's after leaving the Doctor.
I had a good cry in our arms before I was ready to go to my next destination.
Winter 2008, one of my favourite Doctor Who adventures was about to take place. I had prepared for it ahead of time.
I reached out for my sister and her song came and greeted me. She told me they were leaving again, entering the time vortex, I jumped. A fissure pulled me in, purple light surrounding me as my sister brought me into her embrace. My feet landed on the platform surrounding the console.
An unusual phenomenon captured the Doctor's attention, his past self stood in front of him.
White fedora, question marked vest, this had to be the 7th Doctor.
7 stood before my Doctor with his head tilted to the side.
My Doctor leaned over the console as Sexy's alarm sounded.
"Where are you now?" My Doctor asked.
The 7th seemed to ponder an answer before, "I came from London 1992, the Gantacs invasion. Helped a man by the name of Leapy, which all led to dropping off a gift for a child, Marion. Odd thing the TARDIS seemed to not want to leave."
I waited to see what my Doctor would say in return.
"Oh, you'll meet her someday. A bit different from expected but absolutely brilliant. Dearest Marion…"
I stepped around the console so I was now in his eyesight, "Did someone call my name?"
My Doctor's eyes widened and his smile gave him almost dimples.
I walked past him to lean forward and give 7 a kiss on the cheek, "Doctor I've always wanted to thank you for your gift."
I could feel my Doctor's stare like a physical thing.
7 marvelled, "What a ripple you must be."
I laughed, "You have no idea."
The 7th Doctor began to fade.
My Doctor stepped forward, slipping his hand in mine.
As 7 faded, his vest with the question marks the only thing left behind, his voice echoed around the room, "Oh Doctor don't forget to put your shields up."
My Doctor turned toward me with a bright grin, "So…"
His other hand slipped into mine. "All caught up yet, here to stay?"
The TARDIS rocked as something slammed into it from the outside. A large horn sounded, the only warning before the bow of a ship slammed through Sexy's walls causing us to fall to the ground. The Doctor took most of the impact as he'd fallen back with me in his arms. We sat up and the Doctor looked wide eyed at the nose of the ship peaking through the TARDIS's walls.
"What?"
I looked at our feet handing what I saw to the Doctor with a chuckle.
He looked at it in confusion, "What?"
In his hands was a lifesaver with the words "TITANIC" written in thick bold.
The Doctor looked at my early 20th century wears as we stepped through Sexy's doors, "You are prepared."
I smiled at the Doctor, "You have no idea."
This adventure I had all mapped out. I had always loved the Van Hoffs when I'd watched the show. It was one of the few times I'd cried watching a TV show back then.
I would not let the two lovebirds perish.
In my bag I had a spare burner phone with Jack and I as contacts, and added to the speed dial. A bank card for an account I'd set up with a solid sum for them to get started. Jack teasingly called the bank account, 'The Foundlings' Trust'. It was accurate though.
The Doctor offered his TARDIS blue clad arm; I took it as we ventured out of the cupboard the TARDIS had landed in.
Christmas music played overhead. Rich oak panel hallways were reminiscent of a certain tragic ship. When we entered the ballroom from the grand staircase, we found the guests to be a combination of humanoid and alien.
I eyed the golden angels warily that lined the sides of the grand room. I looked back to the Doctor to find him looking out a circular window.
"Oh." The Doctor's eyebrows rose as we looked at the view of outer space and the Earth below.
An announcer's voice from above spoke, "ATTENTION ALL PASSENGERS. THE TITANIC IS NOW IN ORBIT ABOVE SOL 3, ALSO KNOWN AS EARTH. POPULATION, HUMAN. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN WELCOME TO CHRISTMAS."
"What kind of adventure will this be?" The Doctor's head turned toward mine.
My smile dropped, "The standard running. Others are running away and screaming, and us running toward the trouble."
The Doctor looked at me from the corner of his brown eye, "And how many can we save?"
My breath caught, this part never got easier.
"If we act quickly after the catalyst, perhaps not as many as other timelines will be lost."
His eyebrow rose at my wording.
"I'm going to check their systems."
Meaning he was going to sonic things.
I pointed toward the buffet, "I'm going to replenish my energy real quick."
He nodded, and we parted.
I went over to the long tables filled with food. Some of the food was familiar, while others were odd representations of Earth food that missed the mark. I filled my plate with the least messy options, some fried chicken and potato salad. As I turned from the food, I searched out the pair.
My eyes rested on a pair of bright purple 'western' wears a smile pulling at my lips as I moved toward their table.
"May I sit?"
They were enjoying the array of food as well, and gestured to the seat across from them. They glanced at each other's eyes bright with curiosity. The woman raised a playful eyebrow.
My smile brightened before I grabbed onto a fried chicken leg and ate as quickly as one could in polite company.
"Oh you poor thing, you look famished." The woman smiled before gesturing to a silver platter full of red sauce covered chicken, "Have a buffalo wing. Those buffalo must be enormous to have such big wings."
I had finished my food. I was satisfied, so I shook my head wiping my greasy fingertips on my cloth napkin.
A surge of laughter came from the table over, the guests not discreet in their making fun of the occupants at our table. My eyes narrowed at the guests, catching a couple of their eyes and giving them a searing glare. Only a few died down while the others got louder.
I looked back at the couple to find them smiling at me.
One chortle was especially loud. I had enough. I decided to steal a future Doctor move.
I soniced the opposing tables champagne bottle so that it burst, coating the bullies in sticky champagne foam.
"Oh, that was brilliant!" The man in front of me exclaimed.
"Morvin and Foon Van Hoff, nice to meet you."
He reached out, and I shook his hand before turning toward Foon, who'd also offered her hand and shaking hers too.
Foon leaned forward. "How did you manage it?"'
"Oh, if I hadn't my…" I looked around trying to catch a look at my Doctor, "Where is he?"
I almost jumped as I felt the presence of another right behind me, but the song that flooded my systems was familiar. The scent of amber and sweet honey and oud relaxed my shoulders.
A hand came to rest on my shoulder blade, and I heard a familiar voice in my ear.
"And what have you been up to, Rose?"
"Oh, you know the usual."
The Doctor sat down in the seat available to my left before turning his attention to the Van Hoffs.
"Hello, I'm the Doctor."
The Van Hoffs introduced themselves and explained how they'd won the tickets.
"But we are not good enough for that lot…" Morvin pointed his thumb back at the rich still wiping down the mess from behind us.
The PA sounded above us, "ATTENTION, PLEASE. SHORE LEAVE TICKETS RED 6-7 NOW ACTIVATED."
"Oh, that's us!" Foon gestured at the ceiling. She looked over at the Doctor and I. "Are you Red 6-7?"
"Might as well be!" The Doctor replied with a grin.
Morvin smiled at the both of us. "Come along then. We are going to Earth."
On the way to where the guide was, the Doctor grabbed the hold of a blonde in a maid costume. I raised an eyebrow.
The Doctor leaned toward the guide with his psychic paper,
"Come along then, Red 6-7 plus...one." He looked at the psychic paper in confusion, only to look at me and see me pull a Red 6-7 ticket from my bag. "Clever girl, my Rose."
The blonde looked between the two of us. "Are you…?"
The guide interrupted, "Quickly, please take your teleport bracelets if you would."
I grabbed mine, even if it was slightly redundant with my abilities.
I looked at the blonde who looked unsure, "Come along with us Astrid."
"How did you know my name?"
The Doctor chuckled, "Oh Rose does that on occasion."
I smiled, "I'm Rose. Nice to meet you."
After looking between the two of us again, Astrid put her teleport cuff on.
The older gentleman, Mr Copper, who was our guide, began to tell the gruesome tales of Earth's Christmas. The Doctor and I waggled our eyebrows at each other, covering our giggles with our hands like children.
"Wait for me!" My second favourite ran up to us. An alien with bright burgundy spikes all over his head and face, with vibrant blue eyes, joined the group.
The Doctor tried to be tactful as he expounded on how Bannakaffalatta would stick out amongst all the busy London.
Mr Copper, our guide, pressed a button on the podium and we all shimmered as they beamed us onto the Earth's surface.
I walked immediately to Wilfred's newsstand.
"Hello Mr Mott."
His eyes grew wide. "You know me?"
"I know Donna." Small fib, I would know her. "Could you tell her for me if she hasn't found what she's looking for to call this number?" I handed him my Lovett contact details with my cell number on it.
He squinted at the card's details and lifted a white eyebrow.
"Mr Mott, could you do me a favour?" I smiled when I saw his eyes narrow in suspicion. "It would help some people in need."
"Buy a newspaper and I'll think about it."
I nodded before taking out 30p from my purse and handed it over to Wilfred. I grabbed the newspaper and placed it under my arm.
"Well, what is it?" The older gentleman looked over at me.
I pointed toward the Van Hoffs. "Those two will be looking rather lost in a couple of minutes." I handed him over a small parcel with what they needed from my bag.
"There's a business card in there and a phone. They might need help to figure out how to work it."
His eyes were still narrowed. "What are you up to, missy?"
"Trying to save some lives, sir."
"Since you know Donna, I'll do it. This time."
I nodded with a smile. "Thank you, sir."
The Doctor came over asking some questions, and I winked at Astrid before making my way to the Van Hoffs. With my sonic, I made their cuffs fall to the ground.
"What happened to my bracelet?" Foon looked around.
I had picked the cuffs off the ground when the rest of us were teleported back. I placed the newspaper on a nearby table. I'd need my hands free.
"I was in mid-sentence." The Doctor nearly pouted before looking over at Mr Copper, who looked apologetically at the rest of us.
"Yes, sorry about that. The system had a bit of a problem. If you could hand over your braces."
I placed mine and the Van Hoffs' bracelets back in their charging stations before walking over to the Doctor's side.
One of the ship's officers came forward.
"I apologise ladies and gentleman and Bannakaffalatta we had a power fluctuation." After the officer finished his short explanation, he offered the guests free drinks.
The Doctor stepped forward. "What power fluctuation?"
The officer shrugged the Doctor off.
The Doctor's brows were furrowed but his eyes drifted to mine. I gestured toward the screens with Max Capricorn on them.
The Doctor opened the frame and slipped his glasses up his nose as he examined inside the panel. After rewiring and sonicing a couple of things, the Doctor and I looked at the screen that rang with beeping. Bold capitalised letters read, "THE SHIELDS ARE OFFLINE!"
We looked out the window to see three approaching dots heading straight for the ship.
The Doctor soniced the screen and spoke straight through to the captain.
"You have a meteor storm coming in from the West 0 by North 2. Your shields are down."
I knew what was coming. I knew many would die. The catalyst happened in every timeline. Maybe, just maybe, I could save some more lives if I acted quickly. I abandoned the Doctor's side and made my way to the stage.
"Excuse me." I lightly pushed the crooning singer out of the way. "Attention all, there is a meteor storm coming your way. Please retreat to lower decks to enter emergency life ships. The shields are down. I repeat…"
A strong arm pulled me away, but I continued to shout, "Retreat if you want to live."
Someone yanked me down the stage, rejoining the Doctor who was also being carted off. The Doctor continued to try to convince the officers who were on either side of us, but they ignored him.
"Everyone get to the lifeboat ships!" The Doctor shouted.
Mr Copper and Astrid followed behind us.
"Sir, I can vouch for him." Astrid spoke up.
Whereas Mr Copper's brows were furrowed, "Sir, something is wrong. All the teleports are down."
The officer shouted back at them, "Not now!"
They brought us to the lower decks.
"The shields are down! We are going to get hit!" The Doctor continued, but I had fallen silent. It was happening the same. At least I saved the Van Hoffs.
An imperious voice shouted from behind us, "Oy! Steward! The shields are down!"
The Doctor responded, "Listen to him!"
As the ship was hit, I felt as the Doctor grabbed onto me with one arm and Astrid with the other.
We fell to the floor as an explosion came from behind, and everything shook.
When it settled, the Doctor stood. "Bad name for a ship." He helped the two of us up, "Shh…its stopping."
The Chief Steward tried to calm everyone down. The rich guy who'd come last shouted. Mr Copper sat on the floor looking confused due to a head injury and Astrid asked questions.
"If you could all stay here, I'll find out the exact situation."
I jumped over the fallen but alive Mr Copper and grabbed a hold of the Head Steward's arm.
"Don't you dare. You open that door and all could be sucked out. The outside hull has been compromised."
"Why should I listen to you?"
"Listen to the girl, Steward! I don't want to die for your lack of common sense." The rich guy spoke up.
The Doctor stepped forward, "Now if we can get to reception, I've got a space…" He metered out as I shook my head.
"She's landing near mum. She's already locked on to Earth."
The Doctor nodded before heading to the intercom. He called the helm, calming the midshipman on the other side.
"What's the state of the engines?"
"They're…" A shout of pain was heard and the sound of dragging, "Oh God, they are cycling down."
The Doctor rubbed his eye and grit his teeth, "That's a nuclear storm drive, right?"
"Yes, sir."
The Doctor leaned against the intercom, running a hand over the back of his head. "The moment they are gone, we lose orbit." The Doctor paused, glancing at me, "If we hit the planet, the nuclear storm will explode and wipe out all life on Earth."
He took a deep breath before looking back at the intercom. The Doctor directed the midshipman on the other end what to do next. Afterwards he stepped back, eyeing the Head Steward who looked still in denial but was staying away from any doors.
I went and kneeled before Mr Copper. I checked his head injury to see Astrid had taken care of him well. I glanced over at Bannakaffalatta, who nodded at me before I glanced at the rich dude. Rickston Slade, that was his name, always forgot it.
"How is everyone doing?"
Astrid looked at me from where she was kneeling beside Mr Copper. "I was able to stop the bleeding."
"Good."
Everyone's attention turned toward the Doctor when they heard him say, "Try to keep the engines going until I get to the bridge."
"Are we going to die?" Everyone but me started clamouring toward the Doctor.
He turned back toward them, his glasses back in his pocket and his game face on.
"Ok, first things first. 1 we are going to climb through this ship. B…no…2 we are going to reach the bridge. 3 or c we are going to save the Titanic! Right then, follow me!"
Rickston spoke up. "Hang on a minute. Why should we listen to you? Who the hell are you, anyway?"
The Doctor turned his head. Flames ignited from behind, lighting up his back, creating a soft glow in stark contrast with the set hard lines of his face.
"I'm the Doctor. I'm a Time Lord."
Sparks flew behind him, and he didn't even flinch. I looked around me to see everyone memorised for the moment.
"I'm from the planet Gallifrey in the constellation of Kasterborous. I'm 903 years old and I'm the man who's going to save your lives and all six billion on the Earth below."
I really needed to find a moment for such a good introduction one of these days. I shrugged, someday.
"Do you have a problem with that?" The Doctor's intense gaze alighted each individual in the room.
I watched his mouth a little too long cause I saw him catch me looking. He gave me a side wink.
"Alright then, allons-y!"