A/N: Edit (17/03/25): Gave this chapter a big update. Felt the initial introduction was a bit childish and didn't seem to go into Kathy's trauma enough.

Physical description of Kathy: She has light brown hair and blue eyes.

My username on Ao3, and Wattpad are all the same while my Tumblr is legends-of-time

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552 AD/CE

Kathy, at 22 years old, sits by the fire, the flickering light casting long shadows across the small stone room. The scent of burning wood mingles with the dampness of the late summer evening. She pulls her knees closer to her chest, staring into the flames, her mind wandering once again to the strange, impossible thing she's come to realize about herself.

Two hearts. Two.

How is that even possible? It isn't something she can explain. Impossible, she thinks, even though the evidence is right there, buried deep in her ribs. The only other situation Kathy knows of a being having two hearts is in the TV show Doctor Who. Kathy was highly doubtful of that being real at first but she soon realised that having two hearts and seemingly having time travelled, was it really outside the realm of possibility? She questioned what this meant for her lifespan. If her father was a Time Lord, how Time Lord was she? Could she regenerate? Or was she a different species altogether? What did this mean for any children?

She runs her hand over the spot, her fingers brushing against the familiar rise of her chest, as if reassuring herself that the hearts are still there. She can't tell anyone about it—not in this time. People here, in this dusty, hard world of the 6th century, would think her cursed or possessed. The people of Amore-burh are good folk, but superstition runs thick through their veins like blood.

But Kathy isn't sure she even believes in the same things anymore. She doesn't really understand her place in the world. She has come from one life, and now she's living another. Kathy was born on the 14th of February 2000, and yes, she knows—Valentine's Day. Her name changed to Arantxa, which she later learnt meant thorn bush in old English. The name felt foreign, even as she got used to hearing it every day.

She has memories of a family, a house, a world full of technology and noise that she could barely hold on to now. And then—this. A new family, a new world, one where people worked the land and where children died far too soon. Payton. God, it still stung. The pain of watching her child slip away after only three short years was a pain that felt like a shadow hanging over her soul.

Kathy had married Barden, a man who, to anyone else in Amore-burh, seemed like just another face in the crowd—steady, reliable, hardworking. He was the kind of man who didn't speak much, preferring to let his actions do the talking. He had broad shoulders, hands that were rough from years of working the land, and eyes that seemed to see everything, yet said little.

Kathy had married him in the way most women did in this time: out of necessity, out of duty, but also a quiet hope. Her family had not been wealthy, and Barden was, at least, stable—a good provider. His father owned a modest plot of land near the village, and Barden would inherit it someday. Not much, but enough. Enough to keep a roof over their heads, enough to ensure their survival.

At first, their marriage had been a quiet affair. Kathy wasn't sure how to be a wife, how to fit herself into this role in a time that seemed so foreign. But when they had their first child, Payton, something shifted in him. He became softer, more protective, as if the weight of their little family was now something he wanted to keep safe, something he could hold together.

And then, when Payton died, Barden had been there. He didn't say the wrong things. He didn't try to make her feel better with empty words. He simply held her in the long, dark nights when the grief threatened to swallow her whole.

And her father? Kathy wasn't even sure what to make of him. He wasn't like other fathers she had known in her previous life. This one was distant, cold—had been since the moment she was born. She had learned about her true parentage in a hushed conversation between her mother and her aunt one night when Kathy was just old enough to understand. Her mother's affair with another man. A different man.

Her mind wanders back to her siblings—three older siblings and two more after her—who seem so ordinary to her now. But she is different to them. Not just because of the strange, alien sensation of two hearts beating in her chest, but because her father who doesn't treat her the same. Not like the others. And maybe, just maybe, it is because she isn't entirely his daughter.

A wave of emotion rolls over her—frustration, anger, and something else that feels like grief—but it is all so confusing. She doesn't know where she belongs anymore. She'd been born in 2000 in England to a mum and dad as well as two younger siblings, lived out her life pretty normally till she died just a few months after her 21st birthday. Well, Kathy thought she died, didn't really remember, bit fuzzy. Was she supposed to just accept this life?

"Arantxa, child, come," her mother calls from the door, her voice warm despite the cold of the evening.

Kathy blinks, startled from her thoughts. Her mother's face appears in the doorway, her features softened by the low light of the fire.

"I need your help with the washing, child. And your father—he wants to speak with you."

Kathy nods, pushing herself to her feet. Her legs feel heavy, like the weight of a thousand unanswered questions is tied around her ankles. As she walks toward the door, she pauses, one last thought flickering through her mind.

She steps outside, the chill of the night air biting at her skin. Maybe she will never fully understand what has happened to her. Maybe she will never know who—or what—she truly is. Kathy wonders if she is ever meant to be just human at all.

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555 AD/CE

Kathy stumbles over a fallen branch as she makes her way through the woods, her hands resting on her growing belly. At 25 weeks pregnant with Carlyle, her second child and son, the weight of it all feels heavier with each passing step. She's out here collecting firewood, the cool air biting at her skin as she breathes in the quiet of the forest. It's a peaceful morning—until something breaks the silence.

A sound—something deep, familiar, almost mechanical—cuts through the stillness. A whoosh. It's so distinct, it sends a shiver down Kathy's spine. Her head jerks up, eyes darting around. For a moment, she wonders if she's just imagining it, the early stages of pregnancy playing tricks on her mind. But then, she sees it.

A blue box. It's sitting there, in the middle of the woods, as though it had always been there. Its tall shape is unmistakable, with the words "Police box" emblazoned across the top. Kathy's heart skips a beat. She's seen this before—on a screen, in stories, in fiction—but never in real life. She blinks rapidly, convinced she's hallucinating. She can't be seeing this.

The box is real. It's here. And it's... making that sound again.

As the box lands with a soft thud, she feels an odd tug at her mind, as though something is trying to make a connection—a presence, distant but undeniable.

Kathy freezes. She can't look away.

The door swings open. Wrong way, she thinks briefly, but that thought quickly fades as a man steps out. He looks... exactly like the 10th Doctor. Beside him, a woman steps out, and Kathy's heart lurches. She looks like Rose Tyler. Exactly like Rose Tyler.

Kathy blinks again, unable to process what's happening. She's sure she's dreaming. She must be.

The man spots her almost immediately, his eyes widening as he grins from ear to ear. He's staring at her like he's seen her a thousand times before, his excitement bubbling over.

"Kathy!" he calls.

Her breath catches in her throat. How does he know my name?

"When are we?" he continues, his voice speeding up. "Have you been to platform one yet? Wait, no—can't be right, not the right time. Or maybe—"

He's rambling. A rapid-fire stream of questions that make absolutely no sense. Kathy's mind struggles to catch up, but it's impossible. She's pregnant, tired, and utterly confused. This can't be happening.

The woman, who she reluctantly calls Rose in her head, gives a sharp, exasperated sigh and slaps the man's arm. "Doctor!" she says, her tone cutting through his babbling like a knife. The man stops mid-sentence, blinking as though he's just realized he's been talking too much.

The Doctor looks at Kathy with a sudden realization dawning on his face, his eyes scanning her from head to toe. His smile falters for just a second, but then it's back. "Oh," he says, his voice softer now. "Oh, you're so young, aren't you? You haven't met any of me, have you?"

Kathy blinks, her mind spinning, trying to make sense of the nonsense spilling from his mouth. Her chest tightens, and before she can stop herself, she lets out a sharp, incredulous scream.

"What?!"

The Doctor looks at her with a mix of sympathy and amusement, as though her reaction is entirely expected. "Yeah, don't suppose you have," he replies casually.

And just like that, it all begins.

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A/N: Let me know if I should go into more detail about Kathy's life before meeting the Doctor. I felt I should get a brief feel about who she is first in a quick prologue then go into her with the Doctor. There could possibly be snippets of her life added now and again.