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The smell of freshly baked bread tickled her nose. A cold hand caressed her forehead to feel her temperature, and she opened her eyes.
Ace blinked, putting into focus the face of a stranger. She tried to prop herself up and she patted her sheets, looking for the knife she slept with.
- Your weapons are on the chair, - the stranger said, in a lighthearted tone. - Don’t worry. You won’t need them for the time being, but if they make you feel safer, bring them along. Just don’t stab anyone. That would be rather counterproductive and not nice in general.
Ace blinked, taking in their words, and as the gears in her brain resumed working, she remembered.
- You’re the Doctor, - she whispered.
- Correct, - they said, with a strange smile. - How do you feel?
They handed her a fine porcelain cup of tea, and she looked inside it with wide eyes, staring at her wobbly reflection. She didn’t really know how she felt. In spite of having slept all night, she was still exhausted.
- I’m not sure, - she murmured. - I’m cold.
As she said so, the Doctor took their coat off - a fancy coat indeed, white and soft, with golden shoulder-pads that reminded more of a dandy than of a pirate - and draped it over her shoulders. Ace felt embarrassed by their gesture, she didn’t want to make a fuss.
- You’ll feel better soon, - the Doctor said. They took a chair and spun it around. Before sitting on it, they handed Ace a tray covered in all sorts of food. Ace, used to sea biscuits and to have to give someone an elbow in the ribs just to get her ration of food, stared at it with a vacant expression. Then, as if to ask permission, she slowly extended her hand towards a piece of bread.
- Go ahead, - the Doctor encouraged her. - The TARDIS made this for you.
Ace hesitated for a moment, then she dug her claws into the bread and made it disappear. She was more than hungry, she was ravenous.
After consuming half of what was on the tray, leaving a trail of breadcrumbs and death after her passage, Ace tried to recover a semblance of politeness and she sipped the tea like she had seen the fancy marines do, lifting her pinkie.
That, for some reason, made the Doctor laugh. - I’m glad you liked the food.
- You said the TARDIS made it. What’s a TARDIS?
- It’s the name of my ship. Nice, isn’t it?
- Yes, I guess, - Ace nodded. - Wait. How can a ship make food? Don’t you have a cook on board?
- Nope. The TARDIS takes care of it. If you ever feel hungry, you only need to go to the kitchen and grab something. You will find that there’s always what you crave waiting for you on the table before you even open the door.
- Ah, - Ace said. She wasn’t sure what that implied. Maybe there was an army of mussels preparing food in the kitchen.
- She takes care of many things. As you can see, she took care of your room, too.
Ace realized that the room she was in wasn’t exactly how she remembered it from the night before. Her bed was bigger and the blankets were red, her favorite color; there was a desk against the right wall, with two chairs; a couple of lanterns were swaying gently on the walls, emitting a soft, orange light.
- The room changed, - Ace whispered.
- Do you like it? - the Doctor asked, strangely excited, as if they were asking her if she liked their favorite person.
- Um. Yes. It’s… very beautiful, - she said.
An irritated hum went through the ship, like a whale singing in the distance. It sounded offended.
- Don’t be like that. I’m sure Ace will be more enthusiastic with her praise in the future, - the Doctor said, looking at the ceiling.
The ship hummed again, even more peeved, and Ace could swear her bed had shrunk two sizes and the lights on the wall had dimmed.
The Doctor lifted their eyebrows. - Oh, dear. Ace, quick, say something nice.
- What?
- Like, I don’t know… that you really appreciate her work.
Ace looked at the ceiling too, trying to understand where those creaks and soft noises were coming from. They seemed to emanate from the wood itself.
- Um… I… - Ace mumbled. She wasn’t used to giving compliments. - Thank you for your job, um. It’s great. - The bed was now on its way to turn into a stool. - No, wait! I mean it! It’s just that… I’m not used to having nice things you know? This is a little bit much for me is all. Don’t be mad.
The shrinking stopped. Then, the bed slowly regained its shape, and Ace looked at the Doctor, who smiled to her, reassuring her she had said the right things.
- So. The ship is alive, - Ace said, after a moment of silence. - I’m not sure I can deal with that right now.
- It’s fine. There will be plenty of time for that. And you have enough on your plate as it is, Ace, - the Doctor said, relaxing on the chair. They too took a teacup and sipped some tea.
Ace noticed something shiny around their wrist, and she furrowed her eyebrows.
- What’s that? - she asked.
- What’s what? - The Doctor quickly hid whatever was up their sleeve, and gave her a dumbfounded look. - I have no idea what you’re talking about.
- The thing on your wrist. I saw it. I’m not stupid.
The Doctor sighed. - Of course you’re not.
- Then what is it?
- Curious, are we? - The Doctor produced a bracelet with four shiny marbles in it out of their sleeve. - My active contracts.
Ace swallowed. - Those are souls, then.
- They’re fragments, not whole souls, - the Doctor said, as if that made it any better. They still were a sea god who used souls as jewelry. And Ace’s had to be the freshly added one, slightly shinier than the others, who seemed older and a little dustier. If it was even possible for souls to get dusty.
- So, now I’m one of your crew, - Ace said, in a resigned tone. - What do I have to do?
- For the time being? I don’t know, I’m not the boss of you. Go do some human activities, I suppose.
Ace lifted an eyebrow. - What about Fenric?
The Doctor’s expression darkened. - They won’t bother you for the time being. I can be very persuasive, when I want to.
There were many implications in that sentence, and Ace preferred not to investigate too much - at least for now.
- Can I ask you something, Doctor?
- Sure. Permission to speak freely or whatever captains say.
That made Ace smile a little, but then she avoided their gaze. - Why did you help me?
- Because I felt like it, - the Doctor said, shrugging. - No particular reason.
Ace didn’t believe that for one second. No one did things without a reason, especially sea gods. There was always a motive behind their actions.
- So, you do things like this, on a whim?
- My previous self used to do that a lot. I thought I would give it a try too, just to remind myself how it feels, - the Doctor said, taking a ceramic jar. - Cookie?
Ace hesitated. They weren’t going to tell her the real motive, were they?
- Thanks, - she said, after grabbing a cookie. - And, um… thanks for taking me in, seriously. Even if you did it on a whim.
The Doctor’s expression softened, and they seemed a little sad. - You’re welcome, Ace. After getting to know you a bit, I knew I wanted you in my crew. Besides, it would have been cruel of me to send a kid back to Fenric, hm?
- I’m not a kid, - Ace said, slightly irritated. - But… yeah, um. Thank you.
The Doctor smiled. - Why don’t you go breathe some fresh air? You look rather pale. It will do you some good.
Ace normally would have been all for going out and exploring, but she still felt that weird emptiness and tiredness tugging at her. It was almost like her heart ached. A wound that wasn’t physical.
However, she agreed. Breathing some air was going to help, as much as she didn’t want to move.
The Doctor offered her their arm, and she slid her hand around it. She got up and wavered a little, before finding her equilibrium. Then, she followed the Doctor in a corridor that seemed to extend for a huge distance. Far bigger than what the ship was outside.
- How…? - Ace whispered, looking around, trying to find the trick.
The Doctor chuckled. - Something you might notice is that space and time don’t make a lot of sense aboard this ship.
Ace felt a slight headache settling in, trying to wrap her mind around the concept. Bigger on the inside.
The Doctor looked at her in the eye. They were almost the same height, which was strange, considering Ace remembered the Doctor to occupy a lot more space than this.
Ace nodded at the Doctor’s observation, and she focused on her wobbly feet, trying not to trip.
- Am I going to be like this for a long time? - she asked, frustrated by being stuck in her own body,
The Doctor gave her a smile that had a twinge of sadness to it. - No. You’ll get used to it pretty quickly, you’re still young. But it’s not every day that you give up a piece of your soul. You can’t expect to be up and running the day after. You need to get adjusted.
They emerged on the deck, and Ace squinted. It was a sunny day, even too sunny for her own taste. After traveling with Fenric for so long, she wasn’t used to warmth and light anymore.
The ship was fairly empty, except for Benny. She was examining an old map, lain on a table, a compass in a hand and a small notebook in the other.
- Um, Ace? - the Doctor whispered.
- Hmm? - she said, still a little drowsy.
- Why don’t you go and say hello to Mel? She’ll be happy to meet you.
Ace looked around. She didn’t see any Mels. The only people on the deck were her, the Doctor and Benny.
As if to answer her silent question, a clang came from somewhere on her left and, soon after, a wave of red curls appeared on the horizon. A wave of red curls and… what was that black stuff? Oil? She was covered in it.
- Hello, Doctor! I fixed everything, it shouldn’t be a problem anymore.
- Mel! - the Doctor exclaimed. - That’s excellent!
They gave her a pat on the shoulder, then they grimaced, when their hand got covered in black muck. They looked around, trying to find a place to clean themselves. They were about to pass their dirty hand on the blue wood of the ship, when a warning creaking sound went through the TARDIS. - Ah, fine! I’ll go to the bathroom, - the Doctor mumbled, dragging themselves back undercover. They kept arguing with the ship, as they went down the stairs.
Their head peeked from the door.
- Ah, by the way! Mel, I present you Ace. And Ace, I present you Mel. Show her around the ship or do whatever you want, really. Have fun.
And, with that, they disappeared into the depths of the TARDIS, leaving the two girls alone.
Ace felt slightly awkward and she avoided Mel’s gaze. She wasn’t very good at making new friends.
- So, um. I’m Ace, - she managed to say, holding the blanket tightly.
- And I’m Mel, - the girl said, with a wide smile, seemingly unbothered by Ace’s awkwardness.
She cleaned her hand on her trousers and offered it to Ace. She looked at it, unsure about what to do. Then, she extended one of her clawed hands and held it, trying not to hurt her.
- Wow. Are those claws? - Mel said, with wide eyes.
- Yes?
- Cool!
Ace blinked. That wasn’t the reaction she had expected. Usually people were scared of her.
Mel put the wrench she was holding back in a toolbox nearby, then she picked up a pink and white striped jacket and offered Ace her arm.
- I’ll show you around. You wouldn’t believe how many cool places there are on the TARDIS. This place is huge. Not even I have seen it all, and I’ve been here for a very long time!
Ace hesitated for a moment, then she held Mel’s arm, her cheeks flaring a little bit. She tried not to look at her in the face for too long, and she cleared her throat.
- Yeah, there’s this corridor that seems infinite. It’s really crazy.
- Oh, it’s not only the corridor. There’s so much more. So many rooms.
- Like? - Ace asked, as curiosity got the best of her.
Mel smiled. - Well. There’s the Doctor’s library, which is the biggest one I’ve ever seen - there are some lemon trees in there too! -, then there is the Aquarium, the Fields…
- Sorry, what? Did you just say ‘fields’?
- Do you want to check them out?
Ace nodded, even though she was convinced Mel was just pulling her leg.
They said hello to Benny, who was so absorbed by her work that she barely noticed them, and they went down the same road the Doctor had taken. They walked down the infinite corridor for quite a while, the exit getting further and further away, until they stopped in front of a green door.
It opened on its own, and Ace was left with her mouth agape.
- No. This isn’t…
- Possible? It always makes that effect, - Mel said, with a little chuckle. - I’ve seen this so many times I’ve lost count, and I still can’t wrap my mind around it. Come on!
Mel went inside the room, and a breeze of wind made her hat fly away.
- What are you doing? - she complained, as if she too were arguing with the TARDIS. - Give it back!
Ace looked at her run on the tall green grass, the hat being carried by a particularly cheeky wind current. She got inside the room too, and she lowered her gaze on her naked feet. They weren’t touching wood anymore, but the ground.
She hadn’t been on land since she was a kid.
Ace slowly followed Mel, her eyes fixed on the earth. If that could even be called earth.
In the distance, there were two suns slowly dancing in the sky.
Ace was beyond surprise, so all she did was accept what was going on and sit under an oak close to the field. Sometimes, Mel’s screams got closer and then further away, almost disappearing.
Ace looked at her recently wounded hand. All that was left of what had happened the night before was a small white scar under her thumb.
- I got you! - Mel screeched. She threw herself in the grass and she finally got hold of her hat, that was now reduced to a pancake. She held it triumphantly in the air, and then she placed it back on her head, making sure that it wouldn’t fly away again.
Somewhere, Ace had the impression someone was laughing.
Mel rolled her eyes and walked towards Ace. She sat at her side.
- So, what do you think? - she asked.
- I’m not sure, - Ace said, and it was the truth. She really had no idea what to say. - Everything is so… it’s almost too much.
- I know. But it’s not bad.
- No, it’s not. It’s just… a little weird.
- A little weird is good.
- Maybe more than a little weird.
Mel nodded. - Yeah.
They fell into a companionable silence, just staring at the grass dancing in the wind.
- So, - Ace said at some point. - I, um… gather you did the thing too, right?
- The thing? - Mel furrowed her eyebrows.
- The, you know… contract.
- Oh, that! - Mel showed Ace her hand. She had a scar identical to hers, albeit a little faded. - Yes. I met the Doctor some years ago, now. It’s been… a long time.
Mel’s expression darkened a little bit, as if a bad thought had crossed her mind. But her smile was back just as quickly.
- You know, the Doctor had a different face back then. And quite the different personality.
Ace lifted an eyebrow.
- I’m not joking. The Doctor can change their face. Maybe they have hinted it to you. They like to drop extremely important details in casual conversations… so that they can say they told you what you needed to know, it was just that you weren’t paying attention.
Ace snorted. - The Doctor sure is something. What do you think of them?
Mel fell silent, as if she were looking for the right words.
- They’re the kindest person I’ve ever known. Good. Incredibly so.
Ace lifted an eyebrow. - But? There’s a but, isn’t there.
Mel sighed. - Well. You know, they’re still a sea god. Sometimes, they can be a little scary. Or they can act in a way that’s not really comprehensible to us.
- I can handle scary, - Ace said. - To be honest, it’s kind that freaks me out.
Mel smiled a little. - Either way, for whatever reason the Doctor did it, I’m happy they saved you from Fenric’s ship.
Ace swallowed. Then, she smiled, or at least she tried to. She wasn’t very good at that either, but she could learn.
- Yeah. Me too.