The Boy That Time Remembered

ML: Are you absolutely sure that you're done with this chapter?

ML, I swear to the little gods, if you don't get off my back-!

Disclaimer: I think all of you already know that I don't own Doctor Who. The BBC would never allow it.

Chapter 6: One More Reunion

"You don't mean to have him keep wearing that, do you?"

The Doctor turned one eye to Donna who was giving him a disgusted look from across the kitchen table. "Wearing what?" he asked, keeping most of his focus on the circuit board in front of him, screwdriver in hand.

"That! He looks like he should still be in primary school, with how he's swimming in those clothes!"

Oh. The Doctor glanced over to where Donna was gesturing at. On the other side of the sliding glass doors, he could see Adric and Wilfred Mott having a spirited discussion in the backyard. At first, the younger male didn't have much interest in speaking with Wilfred, not until the subject of astronomy was brought up. Now the two of them were heavily debating the use of algebra and calculus to determine the positions of stars and constellations.

The Doctor felt a warm thrum in his hearts as he observed the scene. It's been one day and he still couldn't quite believe what his eyes were telling him.

When he had woken up that morning the Doctor had believed, for one horrible moment, that it had all been a dream. That his mind had finally buckled under centuries of violence, grief and heartbreak, causing him to hallucinate that one of his greatest failures had somehow resolved itself, that he was living in a false reality where he was given something back by the uncaring universe. The crash of the freighter onto the surface of ancient Earth and the shattered remains of a star badge flashed within the bowels of his mind.

Thankfully, when he threw himself off the couch he perched on the previous night, he was met with Donna meandering into the kitchen. She told him that she was going to set up breakfast soon, so he and the Star Boy better wake themselves up if they wanted it fresh.

The Doctor froze for a solid second before he composed himself, locking away the turbulent emotions building up inside him, as he always does, before turning his full attention to Donna. He plastered a smile onto his face and asked her where Adric was sleeping.

Donna gave him an odd stare (which the Doctor pretended he didn't notice) and pointed him upstairs to one of the guest bedrooms.

"He was pretty much knackered from yesterday, both of you were," Donna said. "Pretty much passed out in there, haven't heard a peep from him since."

The Doctor barely managed to acknowledge her sentence before he was climbing the stairs, doing his best not to appear as if he was staving off a panic attack by the skin of his teeth. It was only when he opened the door to the guest room, that he saw the slight form of Adric quietly slumbering beneath a thick quilt, did the Doctor feel like he could breathe normally again.

He wasn't sure how long he stood there watching the slow breathing of his young companion (that was a lie, ten minutes and thirty-seven seconds), counting the slow rise and fall of his chest (fifteen breaths for every minute) as he rested. The Doctor was preternaturally focused in observing the signs of life, so immersed in it, that it took a concentrated effort for him to force himself out of the trance he unknowingly spiraled into. It was even harder to move himself out of the bedroom, walk down the staircase and assure Donna that he was going to let Adric sleep in for a little while longer.

"The poor lad had a rough go yesterday, all of us did really, I'm going to let him rest a bit more."

With that done, he made his way to the backyard where the TARDIS had been parked, ignoring the standing invitation for breakfast. He was walking away so fast that he hardly noticed how his hands shook grasping the screen door.

When he closed the doors of the ship, encased in the soothing hum of the TARDIS' engine, the Doctor felt his thinly-held composure begin to shatter. The Doctor roughly slid down onto the metal grating of the walkway, fingers digging roughly into his forehead, pulling at his hair.

The Doctor wasn't an individual who was comfortable expressing his emotions. Oh some of his previous regenerations were more open in telling people exactly what they thought about something or someone, politeness and conformity be damned. But no matter what, there was always a part of him that held back. An unaccounted-for portion of his brain that reminded him that no matter how close he bonded to his companions, no matter how much he wanted to fit in, he would always outlive them and they would always leave him. It was better to keep a certain amount of himself locked away.

(The Doctor almost broke that rule with Rose. He had become so comfortable with her and had even contemplated the idea of living a life with her on Sanctuary Base 6 if they couldn't find the TARDIS ,without a hint of resentment or anger. They had become so close to each other, he was willing to throw away everything for her…)

The Doctor took a deep breath, nearly choking on it from how tight his chest was feeling. Everything was finally catching up to him. Both the Daleks and the Cybermen being brought back, the battle at Canary Wharf, Rose being lost forever in another universe, Adric's revival, the entire situation with Donna, dealing with the Racnoss Queen. He had been lucky that he didn't have a bigger breakdown earlier, just simply let himself sink into numbness to avoid the anguish flooding his hearts.

(Time Lords do not have messy, emotional breakdowns. They are better than that, they are superior in regulating their behavior than the other sapient species across the universe.)

(You're the only Time Lord left, doesn't that mean you are the one with any authority on what Time Lords can and can't do?)

He didn't want to think about it anymore. He wished that he was capable of shutting down his mind when everything became too much for him. But he couldn't. He couldn't so he was left to huddle on the cold metal floor, pulse pounding in his ears with only the soft weezing of the TARDIS engine to comfort him.

"Oi, Martian!" Donna's strident voice, along with a slap to the shoulder, brought the Doctor out of his brief visit down memory lane. "Are you even paying attention?"

"Sorry, sorry," The Doctor rubbed at the back of his head. "We were talking about clothes, right?"

Donna let out such an exasperated sigh that the Doctor felt somewhat offended by it. "Yes, you absolute numpty! I was telling you that Star Boy needs something better to wear than what he's got on now."

The Doctor took another glance at Adric. He could see where Donna was coming from. The T-shirt was rather oversized on him, the hems flapping as he gestured to Wilfred, their discussion likely becoming more energetic. The Doctor knew that it wouldn't devolve into an argument, Wilfred was too amiable to really get into it, especially with a teenager. Adric's torso was practically swallowed in his clothing, the pants not doing much better to his legs. The only things that actually fit him somewhat well were the sock and shoes.

"Yeah, you're probably right," The Doctor admitted, putting down the tool he was holding.

"Of course I'm right," Donna stated haughtily. "So, are you going to take him to a shop to buy some new things? Not all of them will be open, especially after what happened yesterday."

"Hm?" The Doctor stood up from the table and made his way over to the glass sliding door. "Oh, no, that's not needed. The TARDIS has a wardrobe room we can look through." He kept moving even as Donna paused from where she was getting up as well.

"Wait? A wardrobe room?!"

The Doctor chuckled at the disbelief plain in her voice. It was always amusing to hear people so shocked when he talked about just what the TARDIS held inside her. He would love to see her face when she took it in, if he could actually get Donna inside the TARDIS again.

"Adric!" The Doctor strolled outside, interrupting what looked like an attempt by Adric in designing something that looked like a heavily modified telescope on a piece of scrap paper. He would have to see if the idea was viable later. "I've just been reminded that you are in need of a change in clothes."

Adric paused in his sketching and looked down at his current outfit. "Ah. Yes, I suppose I do need something else to wear. These ones are…" He took a quick sniff of the shirt collar, nose wrinkling in disgust. "...becoming a little worn in."

"Well, we can have that fixed soon enough," The Doctor stated, clapping his hands together in anticipation. "I'm sure the wardrobe room will have something good for you. Hey, you might even find your old outfit in there."

"Wait, wait, wait a bloody minute!" Donna waved an arm around as she joined everyone else outside. "You're saying that there's more inside that spaceship besides that control room?"

Wilfred's eyes lit up with interest. "That sounds right amazing," he said, looking towards the disguised space ship with an excited gleam in his eyes.

The Doctor felt his lips pull into an anticipatory grin, only growing wider when he saw Adric roll his eyes from the periphery of his gaze. The young male knew exactly how dramatic the Doctor could present himself, especially from his fourth incarnation.

"Well then, Wilfred, prepare to have your mind utterly blown once you take a look inside the old girl." The Doctor began striding towards the disguised police call box, the others following behind them. He grasped the door handles and pulled them wide open, allowing the ones behind him to peak into the console room. The Doctor heard the loud gasp Wilfred let out and resisted the urge to preen a little. It was always nice to see people impressed by his old girl, as was her due.

The Doctor allowed Wilfred to shuffle past him, his head swiveling left and right as he tried to take in everything. Donna followed after her grandfather, warning him to be careful and not to touch anything weird-looking. She was still wary about being inside the TARDIS, not surprising considering how the previous day went for her. Adric walked inside with no issue, giving the TARDIS a fond pat once he passed the threshold. The Doctor resisted the impulse to bounce on his feet. This was going to be fun.

One hour later, the Doctor still thought they were all having a grand old time. The four of them were situated in the wardrobe room, the Time Lord seated on a lone chair. The rest were busying themselves with exploring the expansive space to their heart's content. Donna was flitting up and down the swirling staircase, letting out frequent sounds of amazement at whatever piece of clothing caught her interest. The Doctor had let both her and her grandfather know that they could pick out an outfit to keep as a sort of memento. Old Wilfred had quickly picked his out, a bright red fez with a golden tassel hanging down from the side. The elderly man was as jolly as Saint Nick himself with his new accessory, calling out compliments to Donna whenever she found something.

Donna hardly paid attention to her grandfather's words, too busy arguing with Adric over what constituted as a proper outfit for a teenage boy. The two of them had started bickering the moment Adric tried to wear his old outfit from his previous adventures. The ginger had taken one look at the mustard yellow of the tunic and immediately disparaged it for the ugliness she had to endure just from glancing at it. That got Adric going, he started on how completely impractical a wedding dress was to wear and, before the Doctor knew it, Donna was tossing various articles of clothing at Adric for him to try on.

Watching the two of them interact with each other, sniping about this and that, and listening to Wilfred chuckle softly at their antics, the Doctor couldn't help the fond curl of affection swirling in his chest.

He couldn't help but be reminded of the days in his ninth body, when it was him, Rose, Mickey and Jack (and on the rare occasions, Jackie). Back then, he didn't have the warmest relationship towards humanity (or any other species in the universe) and wasn't afraid to let them know it. But with these apes he became reluctantly (at first) attached to, the crushing weight of being the last of his kind didn't feel so heavy.

"They're right chummy with each other, aren't they?" The Doctor turned his attention onto Wilfred, who gave him a good natured smile. "I've never really seen Donna this stirred up with other people before. Not since she was in primary school, at least," the elderly man explained.

"Didn't get along well with the other kids?" The Doctor could relate to that. Goodness knows he was a little hell raiser as a child.

Wilfred nodded sadly. "Donna's always been a spitfire, even as a little girl. She wasn't afraid of giving her opinion, whether someone wanted to hear it or not. Got into a lot of arguments with other children, sometimes with the teachers as well. Got to the point that none of the other kids wanted anything to do with her." Wilfred shook his head at the memory. "Sad thing is, some of those times Donna was arguing, she was defending another child."

"That right?" The Doctor glanced briefly towards Donna, standing a floor above them, who was occupied with comparing a pair of blouses she found. One was a deep purple with slight ruffles around the collar while the other was short sleeved and blue with a floral pattern. He could see the image Wilfred was describing to him. A spunky lass growing up in London, a little firebrand who wasn't afraid to stand up for other children. He could also see how being repeatedly punished for trying to do the right thing shunned for it, had turned her into the abrasive woman she is today.

The Doctor was pushed away from his musing by the sounds of clothing racks being shoved aside and muttered curses. The Doctor and Wilfred tuned back into their surroundings just as Adric stepped out onto the platform.

"Much better!" Donna put the clothing she was inspecting away and trapezed down towards Adric. She gave the teenager a solid up-down. "You look more like a regular boy instead of a runaway who decided to climb around in a charity bin for clothes."

She was right, as blunt as she was. The Alzarian had switched out the oversized T-shirt for a more fitted long sleeved one with black stripes going from the elbow to the wrist. The baggy pants were replaced with dark blue jeans. The Doctor snorted a little when he saw the new footwear. A pair of Converse All Stars.

"Nice shoes," he commented. Adric wrinkled his nose, looking down at his feet.

"I suppose so."

"They were the only pair of shoes his size that didn't look like they belonged to someone in the sixties," Donna explained to them. "Or some kind of jungle explorer traveling into the depths of Bolivia."

Adric mouthed 'Bolivia' to himself like it was a dirty word. It took the Time Lord a considerable amount of strength not to laugh.

"You look right handsome lad," Wilfred complimented, taking in the outfit as well. "Though I can't help but feel that it's missing something."

"I was thinking the same thing, Grandad. But I don't know what we can add here."

The two humans began trading ideas on accessories that could be added on to Adric's new outfit. Adric, meanwhile, looked more and more irritated with the suggestions thrown out into the open. The Doctor turned away from the fracas and took a minute to parse through the garments hanging off the racks.

The Doctor didn't remember exactly when the TARDIS began this collection of clothing but he knew that it has long since become an infinite source of outfits to choose from. He idly rifled among several selections in front of him, remembering fondly when he or a previous companion wore them.

'Oh, I wondered what happened to that Corduroy jumpsuit!' The Doctor pulled said ensemble off the rack and gave it a quick scan. He remembered fondly how he managed to convince Zoe to try it on in place of her regular spandex suit. She remarked on how soft and breathable it was. Even Jamie, proud Scot that he was and resistant to anything with English origins, wondered if he could have a kilt made out of the fabric.

A splotch of red in the corner of his eye caught his attention. The Doctor put the jumpsuit back on its rack and grabbed what had caught his attention. Looking at it closely, the Doctor saw it was a sleeveless puffer jacket colored a cheerful scarlet. The jacket was pretty short, appearing to be sized up for a teenager, and had a single black stripe covering the path of the zipper.

It was perfect. The Doctor pulled the jacket out and presented it to the group. "What about this?"

Donna stopped talking first and turned her attention to what the Doctor was holding. She tilted her head and made a considering noise. "That doesn't look half bad," she walked closer and took the jacket out of his hands. "Yeah, this is it! Quick, put it on!" She quickly made her way back to Adric.

Adric protested the manhandling of his person but Donna was not someone easily deterred. The Doctor knew that well now. Soon enough, the jacket was settled across Adric's chest and he had been pushed in front of a mirror.

"...Huh." Adric turned from side to side, observing how the fabric settled across his shoulders. "It doesn't look that bad, actually…"

"You look great!" Wilfred piped in.

"Much better look than what you had on earlier," Donna ran a critical eye over Adric. "Though you could stand to have your hair cut."

"Nobody is touching my hair."

Watching Adric and Donna devolve into another argument on what should be done to his hair (which was nothing, if he had any say), the Doctor felt his hearts swell up with fondness for the individuals in front of him. These past few days have been an absolute bombardment on his emotions, sending him across numerous highs and lows, it was a wonder that he didn't have a mental breakdown from it all.

(Well, excusing the minor ones that he had earlier.)

Yes, the Doctor thought. Despite it all, this Christmas… didn't turn out as horrible as he originally believed it would. He has made two new friends and was reunited with a dear companion he believed lost to him forever. A good old-fashioned Christmas miracle as the humans would say. And while he still grieved from the earlier loss he suffered (don't think about her or you might fall apart), he can say that he was… content after a fashion.

He turned his attention to Adric again.

Perhaps there is a need for another Christmas miracle as well…

"You know, some of the names you Australians have for your foods are rather entertaining."

Tegan looked at the other person next to her with a fond expression. "Oh really?"

"Yes. For example," The curly-haired woman gestured into the air. "Pigs in a blanket. You would think that, given the name, it would involve pork being wrapped into some kind of bread. But no, it's just meat wrapped up in more meat."

"Alright, I can give you that one." Tegan conceded. Even she could admit that name was a bit stupid.

"And fairy bread! It's simply bread covered with butter and sprinkles. There isn't anything about it that gives any connotations towards fairies."

"It's meant for little kids, Nyssa! They named it that because the sprinkles are meant to remind them of sparkles on little magic fairies, like Tinkerbell. Not like the tykes care what it's called anyway, they just care that it tastes good."

Nyssa gave a little snort into her glass of Malbec. The two of them were relaxing in their sitting room after finishing a late dinner. Boxing day had been a busy affair, people milling about the shopping centers for deals brought out after the Christmas holidays. Tegan wasn't too interested in it but Nyssa found the tradition so fascinating that Tegan found herself being dragged around Westfield Chermside, looking at funny little items on sale.

There were still a few days until New Year's and the inevitable festival that will end in a shower of fireworks lighting up the night sky. Until then, the night was calm and the two of them simply enjoyed each other's presence, cuddled up on their couch.

"And it's not like you haven't seen other places where people gave their food utterly ridiculous names as well?"

"You have me there." Nyssa took a small sip of her wine. "There were times I wondered about the nomenclature of several planets that led to some of their naming choices."

Tegan smiled, probably a little too dopey, but what could she do about it? She just found it so cute when she went off on tangents about other societies, whether they were from Earth or not.

"What do you think we should do for New Year's Eve?" Tegan turned the conversation away from food. "We could make the trip to Sydney and watch the fireworks from one of the bridges. Or do you want to stay close to home?"

Nyssa hummed, curling closer to Tegan. Even after a year into their relationship, Tegan was still left with butterflies dancing in her stomach just from having her hand held by the woman next to her. She had never imagined that she could have the type of connection she shared with Nyssa now. It seemed like such a far-off possibility, especially after her numerous failed relationships. But look at her now.

"I'm not sure," Nyssa said. "But I have this feeling…the New Year is going to end up very different this year."

Tegan raised an eyebrow at the comment. Comments like that tend to lead to no good."A feeling?"

"Hmm. Just a feeling. It could mean nothing."

"Alright. Speaking of nothing, did you hear about what happened to the Thames in London? The entire river was drained completely into the ground, the coppers aren't saying what happened."

Nyssa frowned and put down her glass on the low table in front of them. "I have heard of that, yes. There were quite a number of conversations I heard at the shopping center concerning it."

"Yeah, I heard some of them too. A lot of them were telling how they were sure it was aliens ago, like last year."

There was a brief silence, both of them thinking about the implications of aliens possibly causing problems in Britain. They knew intimately that if there was something odd, something unexplainable, happening in the world, there was no way that the madman traveling in a blue box wasn't far from the scene.

"Do you think he was there?" Nyssa questioned, her voice holding a sort of melancholy tone.

Tegan snorted, though her heart gave a slight pang. Even though they hadn't parted on the best of terms, she still worried for that nutty bloke. "Of course he was. That man can't help but stick his nose into anything that looks weird or interesting."

"Right, right. I simply worry for him. You know how he gets when he is trying to help somebody."

"Relax, love. That man has been getting out of trouble long before he met either of us. And he's going to keep on doing so, likely till the end of time. I really wouldn't be surprised if he decided to pop up right now, smug as can be."

As if in response to her last words, the atmosphere inside the room suddenly shifted. Tegan didn't know what exactly changed but she could feel the little hairs on her arms stand up. Faint buzzing, like a disturbed colony of bees, picked up inside of her brain. A soft humming began to permeate the air which transformed into a groaning and wheezing sound.

Tegan felt her heart nearly stop in its tracks. She knew that sound. She's dreamed of the sound, had nightmares that would always end with this noise coming in at the last second, offering her the chance of salvation.

It was the sound of the universe. It was the most beautiful sound in the world. It was somebody leaving the brakes off their car on. It was the signal that a mad man was coming.

"Is that…?" Nyssa stood alongside her. Tegan barely noticed that she had leapt off the couch, staring at the spot near the wall that was slowly gaining a bright glow. Nyssa grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly. A light wind started to pick up inside of the house, tousling their hair and causing forgotten papers to scatter about.

Tegan swallowed and squeezed back. "I think it is," she answered. How long has it been since she had heard that mechanical melody? When she had last seen the being who piloted the ship responsible for it?

Tegan couldn't think about it anymore as, soon enough, the luminous patch by the wall converted into a completely different shape. The sound grew louder and clearer as its origin finally manifested. A bright blue wooden box, a pair of lights flashing at the top. A set of doors stood in front of them, with the words 'Police Call Box' emblazoned on the sign above them.

Before they could do anything more, the doors burst open and a man stepped out of the box.

"Tegan! Nyssa! I knew you two would be here!" The man was tall and, to Tegan, looked like he was capable of giving someone a papercut, he was so thin. He was dressed in a brown suit covered with blue pinstripes, with a white shirt and red tie underneath it. His hair and eyes matched the color of his suit, a wide grin showing off white teeth.

Nyssa took a few stuttering steps forward, Tegan pulled along by the grip she still had on her hand. Tegan watched her partner's mouth open and close, several times, before she managed to stammer out a hesitant "Doctor..?"

The Doctor's grin became larger, reminding Tegan of the first one she met with the mad eyes and curls. Then the two of them were pulled into a crushing hug.

"It's so good to see both of you are doing well," The Doctor said, pulling back after hugging them for several moments. Tegan was shocked by the action and she knew Nyssa was too. The Doctor had never been a physically affectionate individual when they traveled with him. The most he had ever given was holding one of their hands.

"Doctor, what are you doing here?" Tegan abruptly asked. Nyssa jabbed an elbow into her side. "Not that it isn't good to see that you're still alive after all this time. But you're really not the type to pop in for a visit."

"It is splendid to see you doing well, Doctor," Nyssa jumped in. "What has brought you to our little home, so late in the evening?"

"Right." The Doctor clapped his hands in a decisive manner. "I come bearing a late Christmas present, for the both of you!"

"A present?" Please don't be a doomsday device, please don't be a doomsday device-

"Yes! Well, actually," The male alien made a gesturing motion towards the open doors of the TARDIS. "You can classify it as more of a Christmas miracle. I know I believed myself to be hallucinating when I first set my eyes on him. And I couldn't wait to show you both." In a hushed voice, one Tegan could compare to a woodsman calling out to a frightened deer, the Doctor said "You can come out now."

"Who are you talki-?" The rest of Tegan's sentence was cut short when she caught sight of what the Doctor had spoken to. Who he had spoken to.

Tegan Jovanka wasn't someone who was unaware how the universe could both bring you to the greatest heights before crushing you under its heel. Most of the time it was an even keel between good and bad times. Sometimes it just takes and takes and takes, with no rhyme or reason, leaving you grasping at the shattered pieces of your world around you. That was why she had stopped her travels across space, tired of seeing so much bloodshed the moment she stepped foot onto a new planet.

A slight figure stepped out of the shadow of the TARDIS. It was a teenage boy, one who was staring at the two women with intense focus.

But sometimes…sometimes the universe possessed a smidgen of mercy. It gave something back to you, filled you with the hope that it's possible for things to get better.

Even with the new outfit he was dressed in, there was nothing that could make Tegan forget that snub nose, the faint freckles across the bridge of his nose, the dark eyes that always held an eagerness to learn everything about the world around him. At her side, Nyssa let out a noise like she was choking, staring at the scene in front of her. Tegan felt her eyes gain a wet sheen, she wasn't afraid to admit, knowing everyone else in the room was in the same situation as her.

"Tegan. Nyssa." Adric of Alzarius, the only one of his kind in all of space, and all around swotty little nerd, greeted the two of them. His nose wrinkled a little bit as he took them in. "The both of you have gotten rather older."

If she had been two decades younger and filled with less restraint, she would have already started on Adric with a diatribe of insults regarding his intellect and person. She would have continued with a rant that would have given homage to the reason she was called a 'mouth on legs'. But she didn't do any of that.

Instead, she reached out to the boy, the one she believed lost to her forever, and brought him close in a crushing hug. Tegan truly began crying when Adric hardly hesitated in putting his arms around her as well. Nyssa racing forward to initiate her own hug with a harsh sob leaving her, the Doctor reaching out to envelop all three of them in his arms, settled something deep inside of Tegan. Like a part of her soul, one she had assumed would never recover everything, finally began to heal.

Sometimes the universe, vast and mysterious as it was, cared enough to bring out a miracle.