Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The Doctor laid Rose down as softly as he could onto the Tardis floor, groaning as he did before standing back up.

Walking over towards the doors, he closed them and took a moment, leaning his head against the cold wood and relishing the contrasting sensation to the burning heat coursing beneath his skin.

If only he could stay here, right here and not have to worry about anything, just enjoying the cool.

…If only.

Turning back towards the console, he walked over, slow steps that seemed to drag on and on till he was beside the controls. Hastily, he began to set a course but faltered while inputting the right settings.

Fatigue was taking over.

No, it wasn’t mere tiredness that was slowing him down, he knew that. He knew what was going to happen the moment he absorbed the energy of the Time Vortex from Rose. But he’d saved her, that was enough…

A life for a life it seemed. 

Not that he’d had a life, or much of one that is. He’d only just begun, so many things still left on his to-do list…

But this body hadn’t been meant to last it seemed. 

Maybe it was fitting, despite his best attempts this version of himself had still been entrenched in death, in battle and bloodshed, despite not being the same version who’d fought in the Time War, he’d been the one who stepped out of it. The one who’d walked away while his last self had done the unthinkable…

He’d stopped the War, but he hadn’t won it. There had been no winners, but that was typical, that was a textbook.

There’d been a few survivors, the Autons and Gelth and even the Daleks somehow (although, Rose, or was it the Bad Wolf … well, whoever or whatever it was she’d momentarily become, they had put an end to that now).

And who knew what else had escaped the destruction. But they weren’t winners , they were just survivors , the lucky few that got out of the way of the fire.

He never imagined he’d be the one to fire the final shot, to be the one to put an end to it all…

He’d fought, he’d lost, he’d sacrificed and given everything he could. But he still never imagined he would have been the one to stop it…or the cost of having had to make that choice.

But in the end, he hadn’t seen any other way. No other choice could be made…lest he risk the whole of Time and Space.

Despite the war being over, despite the countless battles now long past, locked away where he could never...would never return to.

He hadn't escaped the Time War, not really, it had hung over him like a wraith, dragged behind him like an apparition cloaked in unbreakable chains like something out of a Dickens novel.

Charlie would be proud about that one, even if they had gotten off to a rocky start.

...Maybe it was time to stop.

Maybe…

What else did he have to give the universe but pain. Enemies coming out of the woodwork left and right to hunt him, old grudges resurfaced.

His own questionable and shakable morals and ethics which were prime to bending and flexing like bamboo in the breeze.

Lurching forward suddenly, his hands gripped the console as he let out a shuddering laboured breath, his eyes clenched shut as he tried desperately to work through the pain.

He didn't have to go on… did he even want to go on?

If he was being honest, truly honest with himself, then he had to admit that even before the War he had been turning into something rather ugly. Something darker, something a little more Un-Doctor like. When had that started? His Sixth self? Even earlier than that? His First Self had done things that in retrospect he wouldn’t have done today at times.

By his Seventh, certainly. 

Oh, his Seventh had been the Doctor, all of them were - well, nearly all of them.

But his Seventh life had been one full of manipulations, of puppetry, of making pawns and enacting chess moves with people, and keeping secrets even when the truth was better, if not wiser. 

Rose had been a brief throwback to the old days, travelling the stars and seeing new places, fighting the odd monster and quashing a world ending threat every other day.

Had this been his next act, or simply a throwback tour.... One last hurrah like the good old days before he decided to pack it all in?

Letting out another groan of pain, he slipped down to his knees, clutching his stomach as the pain continued to flare up.

He wondered if anyone else had been stupid enough in the past to absorb the heart of the time vortex?

If they had, he bet they'd regretted it immediately after.

Taking another shaky breath, his eyes opened and his vision was blurry and unfocussed as he saw the sight of Rose lying on the floor, unconscious and blissfully ignorant of what was happening.

He envied her at that moment.

Should he go on? It was a question he’d pondered, mostly in his First life and a scattering few thoughts over the centuries. Should he continue to regenerate?

Most Time Lords asked themselves that question, or at least ones not obsessed with preserving their life or living forever. 

The Doctor had been thinking about it a lot, ever since…

Ever since the War had ended.

He’d pondered the point of it all, whether it was worth continuing into his next life?

...Would it really change anything? Would him dying, choosing to die completely that is, really change much? 

There were others in the universe who could pick up the slack, surely. All it took was one good person to stand up and do what was right, there were plenty of people out there that fit the bill in that regard.

They didn't need some tired old man like him running around.

And he'd made so many mistakes, so many choices he wouldn't if he could go back and do it all over again.

It was ironic, even with a time machine, he still couldn't go back and fix the mistakes of his past. 

'...Did I make the right choices....' he thought.

'What did I leave undone?...What didn't I finish?...What about Rose?'

She'd get over him, it might take time, but she'd find a way to push on. She'd be better off forging her own life, a safer life.

He knew they'd part ways eventually, and it looked like now might be it.

All he had to do was not regenerate. 

Not an easy feat, at least for him. But then again, he'd never been the best at controlling the process. 

Stopping it wasn't something he'd properly done before, held it off a bit or delayed it, but stopping it completely?

He’d never tried to actively prevent the change. 

'...I… It's over...' he thought as he tried to stand, his knees protesting and almost buckling as he struggled to get to his feet. '...isn't it?...isn't it over?'

It felt like it was.

“It's not over, not yet....”

The Doctor looked up, his eyes trying to focus as he looked around.

“Who? ...Who's there?”

His gaze came to rest on something standing across from him in the Tardis, it was standing across from Rose. 

It? No… Them?

It looked humanoid, but blurry, a white opaque looking being standing still, they were shorter than himself and Rose. 

He couldn't make out the figure exactly, but he could feel it.

Warmth…

Kindness...

The feeling of a smile...

Reassurance and comfort, the likes of which he hadn't felt in far too long. 

“It's going to be alright.”

A look of realisation dawned on his face as he continued to stare at the being. Knowing now who it was he was perceiving.

A small smile emerged on his face, acceptance overtaking him as he groaned out slightly, standing up fully with renewed strength.

“I see.” He said, his smile etching into a grin as he turned towards the console, beginning to plot his next course… their next course.

“Well then… Better be off… You’ve got a lot to do.” He said before meeting the figure's form as it began to fade. 

" We've got work to do ." Both voices said simultaneously as the Tardis entered the vortex, the Doctor seeing the figure fade completely as he smiled softly. 

‘Here we go again.’

The sound of the rotor’s above the console was the first thing she heard upon regaining consciousness. 

The first thing she felt however, was a splitting headache the likes of which she’d never had before. Though as her vision cleared, so did her head as she turned to see the Doctor hunched over the console.

“What happened?” she asked.

“Don’t you remember?” The Doctor replied, looking over at her as she slowly got up. 

“It’s like…there was this singing?” 

“That’s right. I sang a song and the Daleks ran away.” The Doctor said, a chipper edge to his voice as Rose turned her attention to him.

But that’s not right? 

That’s not what happened… or did it? She couldn’t remember exactly what happened. The last thing she did remember was-

“I was at home.” She said, now fully sat up as her eyes narrowed, trying to piece her most recent memories back together. “No… I wasn’t, I was in the Tardis… And there was this light…”

Rose was too focussed on her own recollection, if she hadn’t she may have picked up on the serious expression the Doctor had, glancing down at his hand.

“I can’t remember anything else.” She said with confusion etched onto her face. 

The Doctor glanced up at her after seeing the first appearances of the energy building up under his skin, the telltale signs of regeneration having begun, giving her a long look as he weighed his options, before he scoffed a little.

“Rose Tyler.” He uttered while smiling, though it was a smile filled with sadness and melancholy.  

“I was gonna take you to so many places. Barcelona. Not the city Barcelona, but the planet Barcelona, you’d love it. Fantastic place, they’ve got dogs with no noses.” He began before his words cut off into a laugh, the infectious kind that soon had Rose sharing a chuckle.

All the while he could feel it welling up inside.

He didn’t have long now.

“Imagine how many times a day you’d end up telling that joke, and it’s still funny.” He said.

“Then why can’t we go?” Rose asked, obviously not realising what was about to happen. He probably should have explained all this beforehand, but part of him hadn’t expected to regenerate anytime soon, nor that she’d be around long enough to see it.

Lesson learned in this case. Hopefully his next self would take it to hearts.

“Maybe you will, or maybe I will?” He said, turning back to the console briefly as he continued. “But not like this.”

The silence that lingered for a moment was enough for Rose to stand up, staring at him in confusion.

“You’re not makin’ sense?” 

“I might never make sense again, I might have two heads, or no head?” The Doctor rambled. He didn’t normally get so hyperverbal around regeneration.

Maybe a quirk of what was to come? 

Maybe he was trying to delay an explanation he knew was going to need to be given. 

Or maybe it was just that he was dying slowly for once. How many of his lives had ended abruptly? 

One had been a long time coming, all in all that had been of natural causes, not necessarily ‘quick’ but slow in the normal sense. He’d been with Ben and Polly, the two had watched as he’d exhausted himself, one too many adventures in his first body and he’d simply collapsed. 

Two had been…Well, he didn’t need nor want to think about his Second death.

To think about his murder . 

He’d been alone, not even his family had come to support him. But he wouldn’t have wanted anyone present for that one anyway.

Three had been abrupt and slow, but the painful kind of slow.

The Brigadier and Sarah Jane had been present, watching him die from the radiation poisoning of the Great One's Metebelis crystals, they knew what was happening and what was to come.

Four had fallen from the Radio Tower after that business on Logopolis, talk about abrupt. He’d been surrounded by Adric, Nyssa, and Tegan, they were present in his final moments before he’d breathed his last breath and then breathed his first. 

Five had suffered Spectrox poisoning, along with Peri. He could have saved himself however, having procured the necessary antidote to prevent the poisoning from being fatal, but he’d dropped one of the procured vials while getting back to the Tardis.

He’d chosen to instead go through with his regeneration, and gave Peri the remaining vial, not selfish or vain enough to save his then-present life while her only life hung in the balance. 

Sixth on the other hand, was another matter entirely. Radiation poisoning like his Third and Fifth self and in an act of self sacrifice again, but in doing so he’d staved off a far darker fate, for not just himself but for countless others…

How his Seventh life had ended was a little embarrassing, admittedly. Shot the second he’d stepped out of the Tardis, followed by medical malpractice and overly invasive human surgery that had nearly done him in for good. Him! The Doctor, almost truly dead because of doctors!

Though he didn’t blame Grace, not entirely, she’d done her job as best she could given the lack of information she’d had on hand, he’d long since forgiven her for her part in his Seventh self’s demise. 

His Eighth had been rather slow until it wasn’t, and then it was all over in seconds. Painful, yes, but not awfully so considering how violently the ship had crashed into Karn, where The Sisterhood of Karn, long since separated Gallifreyan colonisers whom he’d encountered sporadically over the years, had ‘assisted’ him in his regeneration.

Though it hadn’t dawned on him fully till afterwards their so called ‘potion’ and elixir had just been a fake, and had really been some form of ginger ale mixed with various bitter spices, horrible concoction from memory, but it had been just the right amount of placebo to enable his body to kick start the process.

He’d had to come to terms with it later on, that the version of himself that had fought in the War had been completely a result of his own desires, his darkest parts coming into the foreground of his mind and not hiding behind the provision of the Sisterhood’s science and elixirs. They knew what he needed to be, but he’d been the one to cross that barrier… to forsake the Doctor. 

…Thinking of it, he should probably check in on Karn sometime, maybe… If he remembered that is. 

And then his previous life had… had… how had he…

It was getting hard to think, to keep his thoughts straight. The dizziness that was overtaking him was due to the pain and after effects of the Vortex, the ebbing and flowing of it clashing with the healing already internally happening due to the regeneration. 

He really needed to go through with it, but..

What was he… what was he thinking about? Rose! Right, yes. Rose knew nothing of regeneration, she was utterly ignorant of the fact he was dead on his feet.

Literally!

“Imagine me with no ‘ead.” He laughed suddenly, seconds having felt like minutes as he momentarily had been lost in his thoughts.

“And don’t say that’s an improvement.” He said with a smile, glad to see Rose similarly in good cheer.

…Not for long he suspected.

“But it’s a bit dodgy, this process.” He explained, though it was probably too late to start giving her Regeneration 101 lessons right now. 

‘Better late th’n never, though, right?’

…Huh, that thought sounded a bit off, another echo of what was to come? 

“You’ll never know what you’ll end up with.”

‘Or should I say I never know.’

Before he could utter another word, or think another thought, his body lurched forward again as he clutched his stomach, a flash of golden amber flooding his body as he saw Rose flinch as he let out a groan.

“Doctor!” She cried, rushing towards him.

“Stay away!” He exclaimed, raising a hand and looking up at her as he tried to maintain his composure through the pain, trying and failing it seemed as he grit his teeth and clenched his eyes shut.

He didn’t want her getting hurt again, not if this was going to be as violent an affair as he suspected it would be. Who knew what could happen if she got blasted with pure, unfiltered regeneration energy?

“Doctor…” she whispered, he could see her staring at him with a mix of fear and concern. 

“Tell me what’s going on?”

“I absorbed all the energy of the Time Vortex.” He admitted, clearly seeing Rose still hadn’t remembered everything she’d done, or the ensuing actions he’d taken to ensure her survival.

“And no one’s meant to do that.” He added with a lighthearted air, one that did little to mask or mollify the situation.

The next few seconds of silence seemed to drag on as he fought to be able to form another sentence.

So little time, and so many words…

“Every cell in my body is dying.” He bluntly admitted into the silence. He didn’t have the time to do this any more gently, though this form had an affinity for bluntness so it was fitting in a way, he had mere heartbeats before he would regenerate.

“...C-Can’t you do somethin’?” Rose questioned, now more alarmed at the admission of his imminent death. 

He could see it in her eyes, the shock, fear, desperation. 

“I am, I’m doin’ it now.” He replied, trying to draw another breath. His lungs were starting to fail by the feel of it. Oh well, he’d have new ones soon enough, so that wouldn’t be a problem for much longer.

“Time lords have this little trick, it’s sorta a way of cheatin’ death.” He explained before his throat constricted again.

“Except…It means I’m gonna change.” He admitted simply.

There was no other way to put it. 

He could see the confusion once again overtaking her expression, internally kicking himself again for leaving it till he was literally stepping through death’s door to explain it.

She shook her head lightly, still unable to comprehend his words, but he didn’t have time to fully explain it.

Heh…A Time lord running out of time. 

Sounded like a joke he’d have told back in his youth. His Fourth self would have loved it.

“...And I’m not gonna see you again, not like this.” He said, smiling as he gestured to himself. “Not with this daft old face.”

What would his next self be, he wondered?

Kind, definitely, he’d felt that. 

Warm, of course.

Comforting? 

…Different, no doubt. Different was good, anything that felt that positive even from the echoes he’d felt couldn’t be a bad thing.

Wouldn’t be a bad Doctor…

They’d be better than him, and he was happy to let go. Happy to sit back and let the next steps be taken by someone else, someone who would do better… do more…

Be more than Fantastic! 

He could hardly wait! His previous thoughts of stopping, of ending the cycle had been buried and replaced with hope and excitement. 

He loved this feeling, the feeling his past self, nor the one before, or even the one before him had a chance to feel when they’d died. 

It was a feeling he’d almost forgotten, the excitement of the unknown steps he was about to take. 

“And before I go-” He began, gritting his teeth briefly as another wave of pain wracked his body. Seconds, now. Less than sixty, certainly.

They were nearly here.

“Don’t say that!” Rose cut in, pain and confusion clear in her voice.

“Rose . Before I go,” he repeated insistently. “I just want to tell you, you were fantastic,” he said earnestly and with a smile.

It was a mistake he’d made in the past, more than once. He didn’t know what his next self would be like, not beyond the vague echoes that he’d felt before. But he wanted to be sure that Rose knew what he thought of her, of what this version of him had thought of her.

“Absolutely fantastic.” He promised before his expression morphed into one of curiosity, as a thought occurred to him. “And d’you know what?” He asked, causing Rose to look at him in confusion, coming across amidst the myriad of emotions she was no doubt experiencing, all combining into a minute shake of her head. 

However this only caused the Doctor to grin.

One last grin before he goes.

“So was I.” 

And then she smiled in return, a small and almost hopeful smile, as if maybe it wasn’t so bad, maybe he was wrong and he’d pull through?

And he would… but not like this.

Seeing that returned expression, that tiny smile etched onto her face, he knew it was time. There was no holding it back for another second longer.

‘Doctor… Goodbye.’ He thought before he couldn’t contain it anymore. And so it was with hope in his hearts that the Doctor, the ninth to bear the name, finally let go.

Throwing his hands to the side, he could feel it. The regeneration energy burst at the seams and flowed through his body, the internal process giving way to an exterior explosion of light and power.

‘...And hello.’ he thought in the last moments before crossing over.

The breath all but extinguished from their body as the change took place, a shifting of bones, muscles, skin, hair, and everything in between and inside. It wasn’t painful, it was just…change, every single cell was changing, shifting and becoming new . 

The old being stripped away as the Doctor began their next journey, their new body, their new future all raring to go.

Two hearts beating a million miles a minute as their vision set towards the ceiling blurred in a haze of yellow and amber, golden light pouring from every cell in their body.

It was like being born again.

It was being born again, in a sense.

Like a magnificent star burning brightly in the cosmos, until it wasn’t.

A blazing fire suddenly deprived of oxygen and in a few seconds it was gone.

He was gone.

And the Doctor looked up at Rose, panting slightly as they regained their breath.

‘New Lungs… Huh.’ They thought before turning to Rose fully. 

“‘Ello!” Their first word. Not just to Rose, but to the universe as a whole. “Ok-” they began before cutting themself off.

“Mmm…” Flicking their tongue around the inside of their mouth as their eyes narrowed. “New teeth… that’s weird, I mean the lungs’r strange enough, but that’s less exterial… Exterior? External? You can’t see ‘em… Anyway, where was I?”

The Doctor’s eyes narrowed in thought before they turned back to Rose, a smile stretching their new cheeks wide.

“Ah, that’s right!” They said happily, the thought coming back to them.

“Barcelona.”

Rose couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

What was she seeing!?

One minute she felt like she was burning up, for… some reason? She still couldn’t remember why or what had happened. What had she done? Or did the Doctor do something?

Then the Doctor was talking strange, stranger than normal mind you! 

And then all that talk about dying, and then there was an explosion! She couldn’t wrap her head around it, what happened!?

All she knew was the Doctor was gone, and someone else was standing where he’d been, wearing his clothes!

Had he been kidnapped, had the Daleks done something? Or some other alien race or-

Before Rose could say anymore the person standing there spoke up again, taking a step forward only to stumble in the Doctor’s clothes.

‘Of course she would, she’s a kid!’

Whoever they were, whoever… it? Was, was wearing the Doctor’s clothes, but was way too small for them. A brunette girl, looking like she was in her early teens was now waving at her. 

“Oi, Rose… can I ask you somethin’?” She began as she looked down at her waist.

“...” Rose couldn’t speak, couldn’t think of what to say even if she was able to, merely staring in shock.

“...My clothes didn’t get bigger, did they?” She asked seriously, turning her curious look on Rose.

It was refreshing. Confusing, yes, but that was part of the fun.

But all in all, refreshing, like chewing fresh chewing gum and your mouth gets full of minty freshness, except it was everywhere . 

They still weren’t fully ‘settled in’ and their brain was still a bit giddy, but nothing seemed to be missing or out of place.

Their clothes did feel a bit weird now? But that could be sorted out in due time. 

Time?

Something about time? 

No! Place… Space?

No, no place! They were going to take Rose somewhere, they vaguely remembered saying they’d go somewhere?

Barcelona! That’s right. 

Technically that was still space.

Clothes later, noseless dogs now! They were going to pat so many! And maybe a cuddle pile.

Were cuddle piles a thing on Barcelona? Would they invent them? Oh this was going to be fun!

And hey, they even had a good joke about the noseless dogs, they’d have to tell Rose it later.

“Right then!” the Doctor said, hopping back over to the console.

Literally hopping, as they were now barefoot, shoes and socks having been discarded on the floor.

Had they taken them off? 

No… Maybe? 

Reaching down, they quickly tightened up their belt, the pants were still too long but they were working with what they had.

And the jacket?! Was it always this big? 

After a few seconds of trying to adjust the long leather sleeves, they gave up and hastily removed the jacket and tossed it to the side. 

They’d have to get new clothes when they got to Barcelona, because this was just ridiculous.

Turning their attention back to the console, the Doctor began to input their flight plan. “Right, right… Six PM… Tuesday… let’s say October.” They listed off as they turned a dial on the console.

“Five Thousand and Six.” The Doctor announced as they turned back to Rose with a smile.

“Now then, how’d I look?” They asked eagerly. Maybe mirrors could be put in the console room?

Flight deck? 

The Doctor hadn’t referred to the console room as a ‘flight deck’ in a long time, maybe they could bring it back? 

Or bridge? Or command bridge?

No, not command bridge, sounded too militaristic and that part of their life was in the past… relatively speaking, time travel tenses were always a bit iffy.

But something was wrong.

Rose was standing there, behind one of the coral pillars and staring at them. Staring at them with a look of utter confusion, anxiety and… fear? 

Was that fear? 

No, it couldn’t be. Must have been awe? Wow, they must have looked good if she was speechless. 

“Wait! No! No no no!” They rattled off quickly, raising a hand to stop her. Were they smiling? It felt like they were smiling? Had they stopped smiling from earlier? “Don’ tell me! Lemme see!”

They looked down and again were reminded of the clothes issue. But again, there was time for that later. 

Bringing a hand up, they ran it across the side of their legs. 

“Hmm, not sure how good these’ll be for runnin’… Maybe I should go to the gym later, give the ol’ treadmill a go. Or just go somewhere outside, test these new lungs out with some good fresh air and a brisk jog.” They said before their hands came up to their face, sliding up and down their cheeks.

“Woah… my face…” They said slowly, eyes widening in glee. “It’s so soft! I don’t think I’ve ever had a face this soft since my first body! It’s like silk! Rose, come and feel my face!” 

Again Rose was still, unwavering as the Doctor was about to ask what was wrong.

Was something wrong?

No, couldn’t be, not when-

They gasped, the sudden exhale causing Rose to jump.

“My hair!” Their hands were now exploring their hair. “There’s so much’a it!! I mean, I’ve ‘ad hair that was long before, but not like this!”

“This is proper long!” They exclaimed, raking their fingers through it before stopping, the Tardis console lights were bathing everything in either an orange or green tinge.

‘Ginger? ...I can’t tell, eh I’ll look at it later.’ They thought. 

Their excited movement came to a halt as the Doctor stood still for a moment, turning to Rose and narrowing her eyes.

“Something’s wrong…” They said slowly.

“W-Wrong?” Rose uttered, the first word since the change, but the Doctor couldn’t quite narrow down the tone. They were too preoccupied with what was wrong.

“...Gravity. Are you feeling like your centre of gravity is off? Or is it just me… cause…” the Doctor said as they swayed back and forth and side to side.

“...Somethin’s throwin’ me off…. Eh, I’ll look into it later, like the hair. Love the hair, love the length, I’m gonna ‘ave to brush it later. Hey, could you help? It’s been awhile since I brushed hair this long, and never on m’self.”

The Doctor in other circumstances may not have thrown out such rapid requests and statements, but this was a whole new body, this was exciting! An experience, and far different from the last few.

…Least they hadn’t woken up in a morgue this time.

They did probably owe the morgue attendant an apology, he hadn’t exactly been expecting their Eight self to walk out like that… after knocking the metal door down.

They could stop in and see Grace too! 

“Ooh! And thinner.” They said, patting their stomach suddenly, their past self’s shirt now hanging off them in every direction. “A lot thinner! Heh, take some gettin’ used to but I’ll manage.” They said before continuing their exploration.

“And… Ohh, that’s interesting. Think I got a birthmark somewhere… Hm, will need t’check that out later, gonna be very busy with everythin’ I gotta check out. But, for now, whatcha think?” They said turning back to Rose in full, throwing their arms out expectantly.

Only for Rose to remain stock still where she had been for the past few minutes, looking at them with such…

Was it fear?

No, it couldn’t be-

“Who are you?” She asked, finally breaking the silence and causing the Doctor’s smile to droop along with their hands as they looked back in confusion.

“What do you mean?” They replied back, equally confused. Hadn’t they explained it?

“I’m the Doctor…”

They were confused? Which seemed to be spreading at the moment, but more importantly what did Rose mean? 

She’d witnessed the regeneration happen right in front of her eyes, their body had become anew and she was staring at them like they were a stranger. 

“No…” Rose denied, shaking her head and looking at them with fearful alarm. “Where is he?”

“Where’s the Doctor, what have you done to him!” She exclaimed, almost causing the Doctor to take a step back if they hadn’t been so rooted in place.

…The long trouser legs weren’t helping the matter either.

“You… You saw me, though?” The Doctor said pointing over their shoulder with a thumb, as if the events of the last few minutes were literally behind them. “I changed, it happened right in front of you.”

“I saw him sort of… explode, and then you replaced him, like a… teleport or a transmat or a body swap somethin’”

If the Doctor had been confused before, they were completely lost now.

Did Rose seriously think what had happened was a teleport? A random teleport from within The Tardis was laughable, not to say damn near impossible. That the only races that were capable of doing that were either dead or so far away from here in both space and time that it didn’t matter just made the very idea of such a thing ridiculous.

And body swapping?

The Doctor’s eyes settled on Rose as they realised she wasn’t joking, and a second passed before she finally let go of the coral pillar and began walking over to them. the Doctor was still dizzy and their thoughts were fleeting and all over the place, but as Rose stepped closer they could almost swear she was looking up at her.

But of course that would be ridiculous, they were taller than her.

“You’re not foolin’ me.” Rose said firmly, pushing the Doctor’s shoulder, almost causing them to trip if they hadn’t grabbed hold of the console at the last moment. New legs, always so unsteady to start, not to mention whatever was wrong with their centre of gravity.

“I’ve seen all sorts of things.” Rose declared. Adopting an air of wisdom that was very much out of place with what she began to rattle off.

“Nanogenes, Gelth… Slitheen.” She added, leaning in as if to emphasise her point as the Doctor continued to stare at her in a combination of confusion and disbelief.

Nanogenes, admittedly the colour of them did have a passing resemblance to the untrained eye to a fleeting appearance of regeneration energy, but that was about all that actually made any degree of sense with what Rose was saying.

And Gelth? Or Slitheen?

How did anything she’d just seen indicate any of those things? The Doctor momentarily moved their hand up to their forehead, before dragging their hand down their face.

…did they seriously just check for a zipper?

They knew they weren’t a Slitheen, but Rose’s comment made their brain short circuit for a moment… or at least they thought it was Rose’s comment?

Was the room always this swirling?

Wait, it could be down to the gravity issue from earlier, that must be it. Blinking a few times, they brought their attention back to Rose. 

“Oh my… Are you Slitheen?!” Rose asked, and again the Doctor fought the urge to bring their hand to their forehead, though this time to slap themselves.

“Aight, so… first of all, I’m far too skinny to be a Slitheen, so thanks for that.” Was that offence that they were feeling? 

For some reason they felt like it was offensive, they hadn’t felt offended about their weight being called out before.

...Although, then again none of their former bodies or selves had ever been ‘rotund’, to put it delicately.

Two wouldn’t have put it delicately, he’d been more than ready to point out one of the bodies the Council Members were going to…

What the council was going to do, would have made him ‘too fat’.

But in Two’s defence the whole situation had been very stressful and frightening, not to mention stripped of choice and agency and given the illusion of choice.

But back to the present! Yes, the present… and Rose’s utter misunderstanding of the situation.

Wait, that had been the point before that tangent, hadn’t it?

Yes, right, Rose thought that they were replaced, that was it!

“Send him back!” Rose demanded. “I’m warning you, send the Doctor back right now!” 

Had her voice always made a ringing noise in their ears? For a moment the room felt like it was spinning again, and the Doctor made sure to glance down and check that they actually weren’t spinning around.

For a second they thought of that Kylie Minogue song, maybe they should put it on late-

No!

Focus!

One thing at a time, music later. Rose first, then the noseless dogs, and then some music. That was the order of things.

And then maybe a cuppa. Rose, noseless dogs, music, cuppa. That was the order of things.

“Rose!” They interrupted, gesturing to their body. “It’s me! Honestly, it’s me.” 

They didn’t have this issue with any of their former friends or companions, did they?

Well… The Brigadier had been a bit sceptical, but there was that whole mess with the Autons going on, couldn’t blame the Brig for being a bit hesitant to believe. 

“I was dyin’, remember? I told you, every cell in my body is dying , that’s what I said. Every bit of me.” That was a rubbish impression of their past self, wasn’t it? They’d need to work on that, because it was just terrible.

“The only way I could save my life was to change, it’s a thing my people can do… but it’s still me .” They said firmly, looking into her eyes and hoping for understanding.

But Rose only looked back in disbelief, shaking her head as the Doctor was caught between the urge to sigh or feel sad.

“You can’t be…” Rose insisted quietly.

“Aight, aight, I can prove it!” The Doctor insisted, holding up a finger. “First time we met, autons in the basement, you were trapped. I opened the door, and I grabbed your hand, and I said just one word, you remember?” As the Doctor spoke, they moved closer, slowly as if not to spook her.

Reaching over she took hold of Rose’s hand which…wow, Rose’s hands had gotten bigger. Or had theirs gotten smaller? That was probably more likely, seeing as they were the one that got a new body. 

Or maybe they just needed glasses? That’d be interesting, it’d been a bit since they’d needed glasses for anything. Bit disappointing, maybe, could be interesting, certainly a change from the norm.

“I said ‘run’.” The Doctor said softly.

And in that moment, Rose’s eyes widened, uncertainty giving way to disbelief… before the Doctor saw belief begin to flood her expression.

“...Doctor?” 

“‘Ello.” The Doctor replied, smiling.

“Oh woah…” Rose said with a breathless air about her as the Doctor turned back and began rushing around the console.

Or tried, they almost tripped and fell on their face due to the long legs of their trousers, raising an index finger and raising it towards Rose. “Hold on… just let me..” 

The Doctor paused to roll up their trouser legs, standing up again triumphantly as they began to rush around the console with a renewed sense of eagerness.

“And we never stopped, did we? All those places, all those things we did, all across the universe!” Taking a few stops to hit a few controls on the console before pointing to Rose.

“And what about that time we had to hop?” They asked before looking down once again at their trouser legs.

“...Yeah, okay best we just leave that one in our memories for now. I dunno if I could stand more hopping… Oh, was that a pun? Did I make a pun?” The Doctor asked, looking back to Rose with a wide smile. Did they make puns now? Was that who they were?

Only she was standing back against the coral pillar now, her expression no longer of disbelief, but of… something else.

“What is it?”

“...Can you change back?”

The question silenced the Doctor, and internally their brain came crashing to a halt. It was a combination of that same dizzy feeling from before, followed by…

What was this? Disappointment? Not in themselves, no that’s not it… in Rose?

“No.” The Doctor said firmly, cutting off the idea immediately. 

Regeneration was one thing, but what Rose was talking about…

Well, if they had been on Gallifrey, then maybe it would have been possible, or maybe if they were on Karn. But neither of those were options anymore. Well, Karn may have been, come to think of it…

“What?” Rose replied.

“No, Rose. I can’t change back.” The Doctor proclaimed firmly. “...I’m sorry.”

Were they?

They weren’t supposed to be sorry, weren’t supposed to ‘feel’ sorry?

They hadn’t apologised to any of their other friends or companions in the past…why did it feel wrong to do so, why were they doing it now?

“Do you…Do you want to leave?” The Doctor asked.

It seemed like the next logical thing to ask, the change was clearly something that Rose seemed to have taken… oddly.

Was this an issue? Would it be an issue? The Doctor wasn’t sure, this was whole new territory for them. None of their former companions had reacted like this.

Not even Ben and Polly after everything had been explained.

So why now? 

“Do you want me to leave?” Rose replied, and this momentarily stumped the Doctor.

Did they? Rose wasn’t… she wasn’t reacting badly , as such. But the reaction in and of itself was giving the Doctor pause.

So they simply re-stated their words.

“Do you want to leave?” The Doctor repeated, emphasising it more so. “I can’t make you stay, so if you wanna go ‘ome, then…”

“I mean… not really?” Rose replied slowly.

Not really?

Well… that was a response, not exactly a clear one but-

“Cancel Bareclona, if you want? We can go later.” The Doctor said, moving across to the console and beginning to change the flight plan. 

“Maybe we should take a day or two… two…” The Doctor began before their voice hitched, their expression shifted slightly as their hands froze up on the controls.

It felt like the same dizziness from before descending over them, but something else?

It almost felt like trapped gas? Like their lungs were malfunctioning, issue with the respiratory bypass?

And they’d liked the lungs, they seemed like good lungs, but maybe-

“Doctor?” Rose inquired.

“‘Ow’s about… London, the Powell Estate.” The Doctor said after a moment, finally taking in a breath and reaching over to begin inputting their destination, as they did their vision began to blur again as the dizziness only got worse.

“And let’s make it a Christmas present, why not?!” 

Something was wrong, wasn’t it? The regeneration… 

“So… We’re going back to my place?” Rose asked, for a second it took the Doctor to even register she’d said anything, their attention firmly rooted on the time rotor.

“Twenty-Fourth of December, Two Thousand and-” 

Seven? Three? No, no it was- “Six.”

Oh, no this was definitely something serious. Post regeneration sickness maybe? No… something else, something more…

“Doctor, are we going home?” Rose asked again.

“Yours, at least, yeah. Christmas time, plenty of food, oh and Christmas lunch! Turkey… Though, knowin’ Jackie, nut loaf would probably be a good bet, eh?”

The Doctor was almost going to comment on seeing the smile emerge on Rose’s face before feeling the dizziness descend again.

They needed to land, and fast!

Something was going on and they didn’t know what, but knew it was probably going to get worse. Their synapses were firing in irregular instances, the regeneration energy was brimming at the seams under their skin…

They felt like they were floating, but falling at the same time…

Rose could have been right beside them or a million miles away right now and the Doctor wouldn’t have been able to tell the difference.

“Look, does the change really-” The Doctor began, in an effort to ground themselves, before letting out a loud cry, lurching forward and clutching the console.

“Doctor!?” Rose exclaimed, concerned. 

“What is it?” 

“I said-” the Doctor tried to speak before gasping. “...Uh oh…”

“What-” Rose tried to say only to cut herself off as the Doctor let out what looked like a… glowing yellow burp?

Not the most eloquent way of putting it, but the Doctor stared at the glowing tail of energy with alarm.

“The change… it’s going a bit wrong, I’m-” the Doctor began before lurching forward again. Yep, that was definitely something going wrong!

“Look… Why don’t we go back, we could find Captain Jack and he might know what to do-”

The Doctor, if they’d been in their right faculties would have laughed. Jack may have known more than the average Twenty-First Century human, but a full and extensive knowledge of Gallifreyan and Time Lord biology?

Not likely.

Besides, the Doctor couldn’t face him… Couldn’t physically stand to be near him right now, not after what Rose had done…

“Ah! He’s busy.” The Doctor remarked, waving off the suggestion. “‘He’s got plenty to do, busy busy busy, that’s our Jack! Rebuildin’ the earth already, I’m sure a’ it.”

Before Rose could respond, the Doctor noticed a particular switch that was right in front of their face. “Oh? I haven’t used this one in years .” They laughed before giving it a flick, before the Tardis lurched slightly, sending both of them stumbling back.

What were they talking about?

Something about food? 

…Or nuts?

They were going somewhere, was it somewhere fun? The Doctor wanted to have some fun, and they couldn’t do it going so slowly, this was a New Doctor, no time to lounge around and take things slow.

“Faster.” Yeah, yeah that’s what they needed. They needed to be- “Faster!”

“What are you doing!?” Rose asked in alarm. 

“Just puttin’ on a bit’a speed, that’s it!” The Doctor responded, flicking switches and buttons as fast as they could. “We need to go faster! Y’know what that means, Rose? It means more fast! ”

“Oh yeah! My beautiful ship. Haven’t called y’that in ages, ‘ave I? But you are, yes you are.” The Doctor said, running their hand along a dial before pulling the dial around and suddenly they lurched forward again.

 “Come on, Rose! What should I press next, your choice?” 

“Let’s break the time limit! It’s like the speed limit, but more fun!” They were pretty sure that was a real thing, they felt like they learned about that in the Academy once. Or maybe it was something else? Some kind of limit, at least, they certainly learned about limits at least once while they were at the Academy.

“Doctor, stop it!” Rose cried out, rushing over to try and stop them only for the Doctor to let out another pained groan, their arms coming up to grab hold of Rose.

What was-

No! No this wasn’t right!

Clarity, just a brief moment seemed to bleed through the confusion and the manic energy they were feeling as the Doctor looked into Rose’s eyes.

“Rose! I…I…Urgh, the Regeneration’s goin’ wrong.” They said, calmness in the face of danger shone through before the Doctor clenched their eyes shut and let out another groan before slamming their hand down on a large button and sending Rose almost stumbling back into one of the pillars.

“Or is it going right ? Haha! I haven’t felt this good in years.” The Doctor said before they were sent reeling back from the speed and unsteady footing.

The Doctor let out an exhale as all the air was pushed from their lungs as they hit the pillar, momentarily they stopped.

Their eyes were fixed on the rotor before narrowing and letting out a groan, bringing their hand back to stroke their back.

“Urghh, my back… back… back?”

“Doctor…” Rose said anxiously, keeping her distance while the Doctor looked around, confusion plain on their face before they looked down slightly.

“...One day…One day, I shall come back. Yes, I shall come-” The Doctor began before stopping, clamping their mouth down shut as they squeezed their eyes closed.

“No!...” They exclaimed. “No no no! No… I… I didn’t…I’m sorry!”

“Doctor, what is it? What’s-”

“I left… I thought I was helping…Thought I was doing the right thing…” The Doctor said, a sob erupting from their throat, stray tears falling as they clutched at the side of their head.

“I… the War and-Urghh! Susan!” The Doctor cried out, covering their eyes as they slumped to the ground before scrambling forward, gripping the console and pulling themselves up.

“Doctor, just sit down for a minute, you’re not-”

“No no no!” The Doctor said suddenly, turning back to the girl with a look of exasperation, which didn’t mesh well with the tears running down their cheeks.

“I can’t sit down, no no, no far too much to do, don’t you see Vicki.” The Doctor said with a shake of their head.

“Vicki? Who’s Vicki, Doctor you’re not making any sense!” 

“You’re Vicki, I knew you were confused but this is serious, dear child.” 

“No, no.” The Doctor continued after a moment, narrowing their eyes as they stepped closer.

“You’re… the other one… Jaime? Or… no, Jaime left…” It was all a blur, names and places and times and people. Their lives blurred together like a kaleidoscope, impossible to tell where one began and the other ended.

Why couldn’t they remember…

Everything was spinning…

“You’re not…” The Doctor said, struggling to hold onto a thought, let alone hold onto the console as they lost their balance again, gripping it tightly to stay upright.

“...I can’t…I…” the Doctor strained out, clutching at their head again.

“Ro… Ro-”

“Yes, Doctor?”

“Romana? Is that-” The Doctor tried to speak, their eyes almost shut and only getting blurry figures coming through.

“No… you’re… no you can’t be…where’s your coat?”

“Doctor, please-”

“Don’t tell me you blew up another-Arghhh!” 

The Doctor growled out painfully, wincing before letting out a louder cry and causing their companion to jump back as they stood up and slammed their head down into the front of the time rotor.

“I can’t… hold it… together!” The Doctor exclaimed, clenching their teeth before opening their eyes, a look of determination emerged on their face as they reached over the console.

“I…I need…I need to-No! I can do this!” The Doctor declared, flipping switches and controls, before pulling down on the lever to their right, gripping the monitor with their left hand as the Tardis gave another lurch and was suddenly still.

“Not bad for a crash landin’… Well, I’ve had worse… I’ve had bett-Aaargh!” 

Rose was looking at the Doctor before slumping back against the coral pillar, they could see her chest heaving and her eyes wide with shock and fear as the Doctor rushed away from the console.

They were considering getting a new desktop to go with the new body, would that be fitting? Maybe get one with the round things again, they remember liking the round things, or maybe the big viewing screen.

Were they going to throw up?

No… Surely not…

Ok, maybe.

Rushing over to the doors, the Doctor stepped out and came face to face with some very familiar people.

Were they familiar?

…Oh, that’s right. Powell Estate, that’s where they were heading, and that meant they were-

“Jackie! Mickey! Blimey!” The Doctor exclaimed, taking the two humans in.

They were taller too… or was that the dizziness? 

The Doctor thought they didn’t need to look up at them like this before? But again, there was clearly something going terribly wrong with the regeneration process.

And maybe they did need glasses after all?

“No! No, wait, wait! What was I saying?” The Doctor said, beginning to pace around and circle the two.

“...Something important, yeah? What was it?” The Doctor said before putting both arms around their waists and shushing them. “There is somethin’ very important that I ‘ave to tell the both of you.”

They shut their eyes for a moment as a familiar scent hit their nose, it smelled like… Cinnamon? Spices? Nutmeg? And… Turkey?

“Oh! That’s right!” The Doctor exclaimed suddenly, causing both of them to jump in alarm.

“Merry Christmas!” 

And then darkness descended as the Doctor fell forward, consciousness finally giving out as they let themselves give into the urge to rest.

Chapter Text

Rose’s heart was still beating a mile a minute as she clutched at her chest, seeing the Doctor… or whoever it was…

She thought it had been the Doctor, but then they went mental and almost killed them both, or… or whatever would have happened if The Tardis had crashed.

Well, proper crash, not the hasty ‘crash landing’ the manic girl had put them into.

Was it still the Doctor? Rose kept going over it in her head, the whole situation was just overwhelming. 

Somehow, someway, in some alien way the Doctor was in there , that’s all she could determine, but just how much?

Rose didn’t know what to do, she just sat there for several seconds as she saw the Doctor rush out the doors, followed by the sound of muffled speech.

Taking a steadying breath, she finally got to her feet and made her way across to the doors, opening them to find the Doctor passed out on the ground and being held by both her Mum and Mickey who both turned towards her in confusion.

“Rose?” Jackie spoke first, while Rose’s attention was focussed on the downed figure of the now teenage girl.

“...Is-” Rose began before she trailed off, unsure exactly what to say. “What happened?” 

“I don’t know, she just collapsed.” Mickey said, cradling the girl’s head as he looked up at her. “Who is she?”

Before Rose could form an answer, Jackie interrupted in a louder tone.

“Did the Doctor kidnap a kid now? Is that what happened?” She asked heatedly, looking past Rose to the Tardis doors.

“Oi! Doctor, get out here, I want to have a word with you!” 

“No! No, Mum, that's not what… the Doctor didn’t kidnap anyone, it’s just…” Rose tried to explain, before again her words failed her, she didn’t even know what was happening properly herself, let alone how to explain it to someone else.

“Oh…” Jackie said, her voice trailing off as her eyes widened. Glancing down at the unconscious girl in Mickey’s arms before turning back to Rose.

“Is this his daughter? Did he have a kid he never told you about?” 

“What?!” Rose exclaimed, her eyes widening at the absurdity of the question. And that was saying something given what she’d witnessed only minutes before.

“Typical, I know plenty of blokes like this, trailing along with you while he’s got a kid at home…or wherever he is when he’s not flying around in this thing. What happened, did his ex ring him up and tell him to come get her or somethin’?”

“What? Mum no, that’s- Look no, it’s not like that!”

“...Is he married? Are you the other woman, oh that’s it, Doctor! Get out here before I drag you out of-” Jackie began to loudly exclaim only for Rose to cut her off suddenly.

“MUM!” Rose cried out loudly, huffing as she did but thankful that her sudden interruption had caused Jackie to stop.

“It’s not like that at all, she’s not the Doctor’s kid… She is the Doctor.”  Rose admitted, her eyes travelling down to the petite teen clad still in the Doctor… in her Doctor's clothes, which were way too big for her.

“What? What are you on about?” Mickey asked, glancing down at the girl.

“Don’t be stupid, where is he?” Jackie asked again, causing Rose to run a hand down her face, wishing she didn’t have to be the one to explain.

Especially since she still didn’t know what happened beyond the Doctor having been ‘dying’ and then ‘changing to save his life’ and now for some reason the girl in question had taken his place.

“Look! I don’t know, alright! I don’t know how, I don’t know why, but the Doctor was… hurt, dyin’ and… and there was this light, and then she was standing there in his place, in his clothes, and then everything got all…” she tried to explain before trailing off, letting out a groan before turning back around and rushing back into the Tardis. 

“Rose? Where are you-” Mickey began only to stop as Rose appeared back outside the Tardis doors, holding the Doctor’s leather jacket.

“I’ll explain as best I can, but first can we just get her inside the flat, something… Something’s wrong, we got to get her into bed.” 

Not willing to explain any more, Rose simply directed Mickey to help carry the now much smaller Doctor into their flat, making sure she locked the Tardis door behind them before she followed them up.

What followed was Rose acting almost on autopilot, getting the Doctor settled into her old room while her Mum had gone and asked one of their neighbours who had a daughter around the Doctor’s age, physically at least, for some spare pyjamas. 

Changing her had been… awkward, especially since the Doctor showed no signs of waking, nor any signs of being affected by her body being moved.

Half an hour after they’d arrived, Rose stood by the Doctor’s bedside as she continued to sleep, now re-dressed and looking almost peaceful, aside from the occasional scrunching of her brow which would only last a few seconds.

“Here we go.” Jackie said returning again, now brandishing a stethoscope in hand which she handed to Rose. “Tina the cleaner’s got this lodger, medical student. And she was fast asleep so I just took it.”

Rose placed the earbuds of the stethoscope in her ears and was about to check the Doctor when Jackie interjected.

“I still think we should take her to a hospital.”

“We can’t. They’d lock her up… or dissect her.” Rose began before shaking her head. “One bottle of her blood could change the course of the human race.” 

Jackie went to interject again only for Rose to shush her, placing the earbuds back in her ears she leaned over the Doctor’s body, checking her left side and hearing what sounded like a normal heartbeat… well, she hoped it was normal.

She wasn’t an expert in human hearts, let alone alien ones.

Speaking of alien ones, she proceeded to check the right side of her chest as well, getting the same response.

“Well, least they're both workin’.” Rose said after a moment, causing Jackie to turn to her.

“What do you mean ‘both’?”

“Well he’s… She's got two hearts.” Rose explained simply.

“Oh, don’t be stupid.” 

“She has… And after everything I said earlier, you think that’s hard to believe?” Rose said as she exited the room.

Rose had taken a few minutes after they’d finally gotten the Doctor in bed to explain, to the best of her ability, what had happened inside the Tardis to both her Mum and Mickey, she didn’t think they understood.

She didn’t fully understand!

It was so surreal, so weird… She didn’t know what to think. Her Doctor was gone, and this… person, this kid ! Was in his place. A girl younger than her…

How could the Doctor have done this to her after everything they’d done, everything they were going to do.

And he went and did this? 

Rose returned to the kitchen, her Mum following behind her as she went and put the kettle on. 

Though this felt like a situation that required something a lot stronger than tea.

…Warmth.

That’s all the Doctor could feel, warm all over.

Too warm at points, everything was all blurry and she had no idea where they were. They’d collapsed somewhere… outside?

They could feel they were in some sort of bed, that was nice at least.

Flashes of warmth spread through their body, at some points intensifying and bubbling up, almost like a stew being put on a hot fire.

This was something else, something they hadn’t undergone before, post regeneration sickness or not, this was like they were ‘underdone’ and still cooking.

Three had gone through a period of exhaustion and bed rest but not like this… What the council had done to their Second form was different to this.

Fatigue and tiredness following it was normal, but they usually got over it pretty quickly. What was happening to them?

Opening their mouth, they let out a breath, a feeling of release occurred almost like the pressure welling up inside of them vented slightly before they settled back down, consciousness lessening as they let themselves drift off once more.

Rose checked the fridge for something, grabbing a small bran muffin as Jackie spoke up.

“But I still don’t get it… You said he changed his face? But how does that work, is it just a different face or is it someone else?”

Jackie was asking questions Rose didn’t fully know the answer to, she wished she did, but right now all she knew was the person in that bed was the Doctor, or at least had knowledge the Doctor had and had somehow replaced him.

“How should I know!?” Rose exclaimed softly as she turned back to her Mum, trailing off for several seconds as Jackie let her pace around the kitchen.

“...Sorry.” she said when she turned back to her mother. “The thing is, I thought I knew him, Mum.” Rose said with a shake of her head, she hadn’t cried before when the Doctor had…

Changed?

Left?

She hadn’t cried when the Tardis was crashing, but now after the dust had settled. 

Had it settled?

Standing in the kitchen with her Mum, she couldn’t stop the tears welling up in her eyes. 

“I thought me and him were… And then he goes and does this.” Rose said, bringing a hand up to brush the tears away before they could fall. 

Jackie brought her hands up to rest on Rose’s shoulders, giving her a comforting squeeze before Rose caught sight of the television in the lounge room, the sight of who appeared caused her to instantly leave her mother’s embrace.

“Is that Harriet Jones? Why is she on the telly?” Rose asked as she stood in front of the television, and there and behold it was Harriet Jones, MP for Flydale North.

Or… the Prime Minister?

A lot had changed for a lot of people it seemed.

“She’s Prime Minister now, I’m 18 quid a week better off.”

Despite the situation she was in, the uncertainty of the Doctor’s condition, Rose did manage a smile at seeing the woman speaking to the press.

“They’re calling it Britain’s ‘golden age’” Jackie explained, and Rose was reminded of something the Doctor had told her back during their first meeting with the politician. Well, at least that seemed to be going how the Doctor had predicted it would, which gave her some hope that whatever was happening now would turn out well.

Once again, consciousness ebbed and flowed, they still weren’t sure what was happening.

Were they ‘done’ yet? No… the process was still taking awhile, their mouth had opened up and released another ‘venting’ of energy and the pressure was relieved slightly. Strength returned in small increments, there were some noises in the distance, voices that seemed so close yet so far away.

The Doctor couldn’t tell who they were, but there was something else… something… they couldn’t quite put their finger on.

Then a crash, louder sounds of breaking and destruction echoed outside as their eyebrows knitted together slightly.

“-et out!” 

Out? 

“-ickey! Get ou-”

What?

“-o leave him! Just leav-”

“-et in here!”

So much shouting, so much noise, and then more glass breaking.

How could anyone get any proper rest and recovery with all this going on?

“-octor wake u-”

More screaming, more breaking, why couldn’t they-

Oh? Something was in their hand, something familiar. Almost like-

“-gonna get killed by a Christmas tree!”

Train of thought lost, and wasn’t that just ridiculous, killer Christmas trees? Someone’s been watching too much telly-

“Help me.” 

The words, the request, came in so clear and above everything else. 

Someone needed help? 

Help…

They helped people.

They were the Doctor…

And then their eyes opened.

The Doctor shot up, sonic screwdriver in hand and aimed it directly at the killer tree, one press of a button was all it took and the construct exploded, fire and debris rained down through the room, luckily no shrapnel impacted anything. 

“...A remote controlled killer Christmas tree.” The Doctor said, laughing a little at the observation, a toothy smile coming across their face. “That’s different. But who’s got the controller?”

The Doctor didn’t wait another second, hopping out of bed and grabbing a dressing gown that had been laid out beside the bed, putting on with a swish of their arms before walking out and through the flat, thankfully avoiding any broken glass and remnants of furniture, they weren’t wearing shoes after all.

Stepping out the front of the flat and walking over to the railing, they looked down to see three ‘Santas’ standing in a triangular pattern and all looking up at them.

“....Well, that’s overly ominous.” They said before Mickey spoke up.

“That’s them, what are they?”

The Doctor didn’t respond verbally, merely pointing the sonic screwdriver down towards them, the threat clear.

They got the message as all three of them began backing away, including the one holding the remote control. 

Gathering together, the three ‘Santas’ all shimmered before their bodies were engulfed in a blue transmat beam and they all disappeared into the sky. 

Not a terribly long range teleport, by the looks of it. No further away than the end of the solar system, if that. 

“They’ve just gone!” Mickey said with a huff. “What kind of rubbish were they?” he said before turning to the Doctor.

Stiff movements, not humans or anything biologically similar. Robots, maybe? Or one of the species that were a bit more mechanical in nature?

“I mean, no offence but they’re not much cop if a sonic screwdriver’s gonna scare them off.” He added in the Doctor’s direction.

“...Pilot fish.” the Doctor said, eyes narrowing as they put the pieces together.

“What?” Mickey asked.

“They were just pilot fish.”

Because of course, they weren’t an invasion force, they weren’t soldiers or ground forces, not meant for real combat. There were too few of them to be anything but a smaller force, the advanced guard scouting ahead.

They were just pilot fish. 

And that meant something bigger, something far more dangerous was coming.

Before the Doctor could say anymore, their throat constricted once again before they let out a groan, falling back as Rose and Mickey rushed to help.

“Argh!”

“What’s wrong?” Rose asked quickly. 

“...You woke me up too soon. I’m still regenerating, bursting with energy.” The Doctor explained before opening their mouth and letting out another trail of energy from their mouth, the golden trail floating up into the air and dissipating.

“You see? The pilot fish could smell that a million miles off. So they tried to get rid of you, cause you’re in the way of gettin’ to me.”

Regeneration sickness had been bad enough in the past, but a delayed/prolonged regeneration like this was just causing all sorts of problems!

“Probably wanna hook me up and use me like a big battery!” The Doctor explained before letting another pained cry, lurching forward before Mickey caught them, slumping down on the cold concrete below as Jackie helped steady them.

“Oh! Oh! Oh, my head!” The Doctor groaned, this was like the mother of all headaches times two!

“I’m having a neural imposition…I need-” 

“What do you need?” Jackie cut them off. 

“I need-”

“Just say, tell me, tell me!” Jackie insisted.

“I need-”

“Painkillers? Aspirin?”

The Doctor found their eyes almost twitching, and not from the effects of the neural implosion as they couldn’t get a word in as Jackie continued to ramble off ‘helpful suggestion’ after ‘helpful suggestion’.

At this rate they’d be unconscious before they could even utter what they needed, eventually when the long list of Jackie’s suggestions had hit ‘ham sandwich’ they’d had enough.

“I need you to shut up!” The Doctor ground out.

“...Oh, he hasn’t changed that much.” Jackie began. “Or should it be-”

Before she could finish whatever she was going to say, and frankly right now the Doctor couldn’t care what it had been at this point, they cut the inane rambling off with another groan of pain.

There was also the lingering remnant of something she’d said earlier while the Doctor had been unconscious? Something about leaving?

It was too muddled and too uninteresting right now to bother focusing on. Lurching forward, the Doctor collapsed again, this time beside Rose as their eyes met, the Doctor’s breathing labouring as they tried to explain what needed to be said.

“We… we haven’t got much time. If there’s pilot fish then-” The Doctor began before stopping in confusion.

Namely due to their hand coming to rest in something in the dressing grown pocket, reaching down they pulled out a granny smith apple… from their dressing down pocket…

What?

“Why is there an apple in my dressing gown?”

“Oh that’s Nancy’s from downstairs.”

“She keeps apples in her dressing gown?” The Doctor questioned, confusion having fully overtaken the earlier serious demeanour they’d felt.

“She gets hungry.”

“...in her sleep, really?”

“Sometimes.” Jackie replied. “It’s either that or chips and-”

The Doctor cut her off as another cry of pain echoed out from their throat, collapsing fully onto the ground as their eyes clenched shut. 

“Brain… collapsing...” They ground out, desperately reaching out and grabbing hold of Rose’s arms, meeting her gaze as they tried to speak, they needed to explain what to do before…

“The… the pilot fish!” They said, drawing in desperate breaths. “The pilot fish means there’s somethin’… there’s somethin’…”

Why was it so hard to just speak! Why couldn’t they form the words?

Gripping hold of Rose’s arms harder, struggling to fight the draw of unconsciousness that was overtaking them. The Doctor was able to utter one last foreboding warning.

“Something is coming.” 

And that was all they could say before they collapsed, falling back into unconsciousness that was anything but blissful now.

…Fish.

Something about fish?

Was it dinner? Fish fingers would be alright, or maybe some salm-

No! Pilot fish… The pilot fish! They hoped Rose understood, but there was so little time they had to explain before falling back to sleep.

And now even the ever present warmth spreading through their body was hit with cold chills, a shuddering feeling that didn’t seem to want to leave as the Doctor struggled to draw in breath properly.

And their chest felt weird on one…

Oh, only one heart was working, that was why. No wonder they were having trouble breathing and felt so worn down.

They needed to get better, they had to accelerate the regeneration process, get everything in order and wake up.

There was too much at stake…

Jackie came back in from the kitchen, a cold washcloth in hand as she sat down beside the young girl.

Young looking girl? Ah, this was so confusing, it was hard enough wrapping her head around time travel and outer space without tossing this into the mix.

But still, she couldn’t help but find herself concerned and worried. The Doctor may have been some space alien, but right now they were in the body of a child. Jackie’s maternal instincts had come rushing to the forefront after the initial confusion had… Well, mostly gone away.

It was the first time she’d properly sat down and looked at the Doctor properly, not sharing the room with Rose or rushing away from killer Christmas trees, but sitting down and looking.

She looked so vulnerable, sick and completely harmless and Jackie recalled what she’d screamed at Mickey earlier when he’d ran into the room to protect the Doctor.

“No! leave him. Just leave him!”

Not exactly her proudest moment, and she would readily admit that, as well as apologise to the Doctor for it when he- she- whatever they were now, when they woke up she would tell them she was sorry for telling Mickey to leave them behind.

“Oh, come on, sweetheart.” Jackie said seeing the Doctor panting and gasping. “What do you need?”

The Doctor only let out another half breath, almost coughing as Jackie brought the washcloth up to dab at her forehead. “What is it you need? Tell me..” She whispered softly.

But despite her quiet pleading, Jackie got nothing in response.

They continued to drift in and out of consciousness, time a blur…

…There were flashes, brief moments of stark reality before they drifted off again.

This was deeper than before, they’d fallen into a deeper sleep than before, now even the brief glimpses or sounds from the waking world were almost unintelligible.

The fact that they retained any form of thought or awareness was almost as impressive as the fact that the Tardis somehow hadn't blown up when they regenerated in the console room earlier. 

The Doctor made a mental note not to do that again, they could have hurt the Old Girl, and she was temperamental enough as it was.

Something was happening, something serious, that they already knew.

Mentally listing everything they’d learned so far.

Pilot fish.

Killer Christmas Trees. 

Some higher intelligence and threat.

And… Well for now, that was all they knew. If only they were awake! There were clues out there, surely. Information they could have made work of, if they hadn’t been stuck in bed taking a snooze.

A well beneficial and necessary snooze, but still!

They briefly felt like they were moved, their body leaving the warm cocoon of the blankets and carried somewhere?

No! Into the Tardis!

Safely locked up in the Tardis, they could feel the hums and soft whispers from the Old Girl thrumming away at her consciousness.

That was good, the Tardis was home.

The Tardis was safe.

Wait, no, hold on.

The Tardis was trying to tell her something?

Alone?

No, wait they had moved again, but the Tardis hadn’t been the one to do so, transmat again!

And then… What was that smell?

More than a smell, something interacting with her synapsis, kickstarting her neurons firing correctly. 

Was that tea?

Well, tea fumes more likely, something or someone had spilled something. But for now it was helping, taking a deep breath, The Doctor inhaled a deep breath through their nose.

As their brain was beginning to reboot properly, the memories and experiences from earlier began to assemble themselves correctly. It was like watching a movie in reverse, the scenes and footage piecing themselves back in their head as The Doctor absorbed the information.

And their other heart began beating too! That was a nice bonus, taking in deeper, more full breaths into their lungs.

Loved the new lungs after all.

Their eyes began to flicker, opening to see the roof of the console room.

Flight deck! Yeah, they had to go back to calling it the flight deck.

Finger twitches, lips smacked and eyes widened as they finally woke up with a gasp, sitting up suddenly as everything was pieced back together!

They were awake.

No, no that wasn’t right, it was meant to be that…

That she was awake! 

Now that she had regained some more awareness, The Doctor was pretty confident that she was a girl now, her hands came up to once again inspect her hair, trailing down to her cheeks.

So soft!

And then glancing down and taking in her body, she was sure now that yes.

She was a girl.

That was new, she'd not been female before. She hadn’t been this young since…Well she was this young! 

Oh, this was interesting! Completely new Doctor, even more so than usual! This was going to be fun, this was going to be an experience! 

But that was for later, yes plenty of time to explore and experience new things later. 

Right now, the Doctor had to save the Earth again.

Standing up, she looked out towards the Tardis doors before walking outwards as she could feel the Tardis interface now working at full capacity once more, glancing up at the ceiling she smiled.

“Sorry ‘bout that, love. Didn’t mean to worry you like that.”

She paused briefly at the doors, a hand coming up to softly stroke along the wood of the doors, the comforting thrum of her magnificent time ship filling her ears and mind as she readied herself for the first appearance of the new Doctor.

Before she stepped out, smiling at the sight of the humans and whatever big bad group of offworlders had decided to be a menace this week. 

"Did'ja miss me?" She smirked, striding out with all the casual authority she could muster and- hold on! 

Something else clicked in her head, something she’d considered before in the Tardis with Rose but hadn’t been in her right mind to fully assess, but right now it was clear.

"AM I SHORT?!" She bellowed, her eyes widening as she looked around at the human’s present.

She knew she was young , but short ? Short was another thing entirely!

…She’d have to struggle to reach for shelves, and she knew the Tardis would play jokes on her by raising the level of the pantry doors and moving things out of reach. Oh yes, her ship was going to enjoy every second of it.

As she’d said, a temperamental old thing.

"Uh... kinda..." Rose blinked, looking a bit confused. 

Rose was here, that was… well, the Doctor would have expected this in the past, but now it honestly had surprised her momentarily. 

From the earthling’s perspective however, a lot had happened in the last twenty four hours for her. 

Killer game shows, Daleks, being sent home, Bad Wolf, the Doctor had died .

The Doctor made another mental note to tell her future friends and companions about regeneration before she was just about to go through it, it was a little unfair to just spring them on it while actively dying. 

But then in her defence, she hadn’t expected Rose to do something as reckless, let alone as…invasive as what she had done with the Heart of the Tardis.

Yeah, she was going to have to look over the Old Girl later and make sure no lingering damage had been done, and have a serious talk to Rose about sentient time ships and autonomy.

But right now, her mind came back to the present situation, the Earth was being invaded!

Again! Her last self had questioned whether they could just let go, but the Doctor had fallen asleep for a day and the Earth was obviously worse off for it. 

There was still a bit of a blur in her vision, to be honest. Annoying side effect of her entire brain chemistry rewriting itself, which had now begun restoring itself at optimal functionality.

Luckily she'd be back to full mental and physical capacity in the next few hours. This was why she had the Zero Room, for all she kept forgetting to use it. 

Really, she should use it far more often than she had in her life, it was literally designed for her to recover after something like, say, “violently regenerating”. Maybe it was stubbornness, some deep ingrained desire to prove her own biological makeup ‘wrong’ that no this time she would regenerate without any issues, despite her lacking as much skill in the process, she was going to show… herself…?

She didn’t need a Zero Room.

…Through the last few hours, she would admit to herself and herself only! That she may have, in fact, needed the Zero Room. 

Before the Doctor could move beyond where Rose stood, the leader of the… Who were they?

She’d get it, give her a minute.

The leader thrust a whip towards her, causing the Doctor to dodge to the left, before grabbing the end of it. He obviously had been expecting such a response, as when his grip slackened, she took advantage and ripped the whip from his grip, rolling it up in her arms and tossing it aside with a frown.

“That wasn’t very nice. Is that how your people say ‘ello? I’d ‘ate to see how you say goodbye, and trust me, you’ll be saying goodbye.” The Doctor proclaimed as she walked up towards him, he raised a staff towards her only for the Doctor to once again take him by surprise, pulling it from his grasp and turning only to toss it into the foreground like a javelin.

“How dare-” he began, only for the Doctor to cut him off.

“Just can’t get the staff these days, can you?” 

….Was she into puns now? If so, that one needed work.

“Now you just wait! I’m busy.” She said to him, pointing up towards his face, waiting a second to make sure her point had been made.

Hehe, point.

Before turning back to Rose and Mickey, it was so strange looking up at them now. She’d have to get used to looking up at people again, that was going to take some time.

“Mickey! ‘Ello.” She greeted warmly, surprised to see her smile was reciprocated by the young man, before another surprising figure caught her eyes.

“And Harriet Jones! MP for Flydale North! Ha, it’s like bein’ on ‘This Is Your Life’.” the Doctor said grinning.

“Now, who do I have to thank for the tea?”

“Tea?” Rose questioned, causing the Doctor to roll her eyes with a smile.

“Yes, tea! That’s all I needed, a good cup of tea. I was trying to tell Jackie that earlier, but she kept rambling on about everything and the kitchen sink. Possibly literally about that last one, I honestly stopped payin’ attention. Good cuppa is all I needed, superheated infusion of free radicals and tannin.” She said before pointing to her right temple. “Just the thing to get me up an’ about again.”

“That was actually Jackie’s idea.” Mickey added with a rueful smile on his face as the Doctor actually paused, looking surprised.

“Oh? Well, right. Remind me to thank her later.” She said before looking at both him and Rose. “Now, first things first before we go any further, I need you both to be honest!”

“What is it?” Rose asked.

“How do I look?” 

“...You're serious?” Mickey asked, raising a brow.

“Well come on, Mickey. I haven’t exactly had the chance to look in a mirror since I changed, now ‘ave I? Come on I need a bit’a feedback here.” 

“Different.” Rose said in an odd tone. 

“Different”... okay… anything to add, good different or bad different?” The Doctor prompted, looking between them. Rose wasn’t saying anything and just looked uncertain, Mickey after a few seconds cleared his throat.

“Good different, not… Well, nothing bad, just… new?”

“New! Good!” The Doctor said grinning. “I like new! But the next thing is really important and you have to be honest.” She said leaning forward towards them, taking a moment to look each of them in the eye before she spoke again. “...Am… I… ginger?” 

“Uh… No? Sorry, you’re just brown… Like dark brown.” Mickey supplied, causing the Doctor to let out a groan of annoyance.

“Seriously!? Come on, is it too much to ask, just once I want to be ginger! But nooo, brunettes and blonde’s is what I seem to be stuck with, and the occasional rare black head of hair. Ten lives in, and you think I’d get ginger at least once! But noooo! ”

“And you! Rose Tyler, believe me we’re havin’ some words later. You gave up on me! That’s rude, very rude. ‘Ave a bit of faith once in a while, especially after all the times I wound up coming through, saving the day and all.”

“I’m sorry, but who is this? Why does the Doctor have a child in there?” Came the voice of Harriet Jones.

This caused the Doctor to swivel in her direction, smiling at the sight of the future- no present? Prime Minister of Great Britain.

She still had a long way to go to match up to Winston, mind you, but if the timeline went the right way, Britain’s Golden Age would be kicked off under her command, and pretty soon at that.

“I’m the Doctor.” 

“She’s the Doctor.” Mickey added nodding in her direction.

“What? She’s not the Doctor, the Doctor’s a man, and she looks like she’s barely in secondary school. If this is some kind of joke-” 

“I’m him, or I was. Literally, no title passing on, no mantel to be achieved.” The Doctor explained calmly as she walked over towards her. “Same person, new face. Well, new everything.” The Doctor said, giving the dressing gown a bit of a flourish as she stood in front of Harriet.

Again, another person she now had to look up at. At this rate her neck was gonna get stiff.

“But you can’t be-” Harriet began, disbelief clear in her tone as if she thought they were still joking.

“Harriet Jones.” The Doctor spoke up, cutting her off, looking into her eyes as she continued. “We were trapped in Downin’ Street, and the one thing that scared you wasn’t the aliens, wasn’t the war…”

As she spoke, the Doctor could see Harriet’s eyes searching her face, growing more and more stunned with every word.

“It was the thought of your mother being on her own.”

Harriet’s eyes widened, disbelief still present but now twinned with the realisation of whom she was speaking to.

“...Doctor?” 

“‘Ello.” The Doctor greeted, smiling as she leaned forward. “Tell me, did’ja win the election?” 

“Landslide majority.” Harriet responded with a smile, an air of breathlessness still present in her tone as she too had accepted the Doctor’s identity. 

“If I might interrupt.” Big bad leader-man cut in. 

Oh, right. The invasion of Earth.

“If you must.” The Doctor allowed, turning to face the leader of the invasion, who would have already looked like a pretty imposing figure even if The Doctor didn't have to look up at them. 

Seriously, how short was she now?! She would need to get a proper measurement when she got back to the Tardis. 

And this species, who were they again? She was certain she knew who they were.

And did they make a spaceship out of an asteroid? That's what it looked like at least, all rock-like and natural, like they'd hollowed out a massive chunk of stone and flown off with it.

….The Doctor had to admit, that was pretty cool. Not as cool as a Tardis, obviously, but for conventional space travel, a hollowed out/repurposed Asteroid was not bad. 

And their language?

Bit of eclectic feel to it, few loan words maybe? Not from this chunk of the galaxy, but she swore she knew it from somewhere? 

“Who exactly are you?” They demanded, glaring down at her.

“Not'a clue!” She cheered back, smiling widely, plenty of teeth on display as she did. That felt nice, smiling, she'd have to do that more often, this was clearly a body that would be good at smiling.

"I demand to know who you are!" 

Ah, shouting. Why did they always have to shout?

"Aye dunno!" The Doctor shouted back, marching forward a bit to glare (up) at the invader. 

She'd definitely need to get thick boots with a nice bit of lift in them, wouldn't she? 

“S'a whole new chapter, whole new me. S'all to come, who I am, who I'll be. I know who I was, of course, but that's not very useful.”

As she spoke, she wandered around, gesturing wildly with her hands as she tracked her way over to the big red button she spotted off to the side, that looked promising. 

“And I'll let'cha know if I work it out, but I'll tell what I do know!” She paused, taking note of her own voice briefly. 

Oh, that was just lovely! 

“First thing I know: I have an accent, and it's wonderful! Not entirely sure which accent, mind, Irish or… Scottish maybe? Something Gaelic sounding definitely… Ah, but who cares 'bout that?”

Hopping up the steps towards the button, she pointed right at it as the surrounding soldiers all rushed towards her, stopping when her hand rested beside it.

“Second thing I know! This big red button here? Pro'lly shouldn’t press it, because it's Very Important , right? Some kinda... control matrix?”

Bit tricky, reading facial tics when you couldn't even remember what species they were – something further afield, she reckoned, but the exact name escaped her – but The Doctor was pretty sure that she was right. 

“But what's feedin' it?”

She quickly ducked down to the lower parts of the mechanism and pulled open the panel on the side, revealing the control matrix inside and... blood? 

Who used blood in control matrixes anymore? No one bothered with that unless it was-

“Blood control!” 

And there was the smile again. She wondered how many teeth she was showing off with it. 

It felt like a lot. 

“Wow, ‘ello blood control! I think the Master used a bit of this back at the Academy to play pranks! Or did I use it? ...both, it was both of us. It was why the Rani didn't talk to us for the month leading up to our first year exams on multi-dimensional scanning. I think I failed that exam, actually…” she said, narrowing her eyes in thought. 

Wait, she had a point to all this, right?

Oh, yes, blood control and alien invasions.

“Anyway, let's getta move on!” She proclaimed before suddenly slamming a hand on the big red button as multiple screams of ‘No’ echoed out through the chamber. But the Doctor ignored them, locking her eyes to the leader of the invasion, her gaze not wavering as she took in his reaction to her activating the matrix. 

“You killed them!” The young man who’d been at Harriet’s side earlier exclaimed, causing the Doctor to roll her eyes. 

“No, I didn't, right big guy?” She queried, her eyes not having moved from where she was staring at the leader of the… of the…

Something with an S, she was sure of it. 

“We allow them to live…” the leader declared. 

Sico... phant? No, that's not it. Sicko… rats? Nah, that sounded like a slur.

“Like you had a choice.” The Doctor scoffed, strolling a bit closer with a roll of her eyes. 

“Blood control's a trick, pretty cheap one at that! You can't override someone's survival instinct with it, no more than you could hypnotise someone to kill themself.” She explained as she walked away from the control matrix, it was useless now that the Doctor had revealed its secrets. 

But it wasn’t over, she knew that. It never ended this easily. 

“Blood control was just one form of conquest. I can summon the armada and take this world by force.” The leader of the…the…

Sycorax! 

That was it! Load off her mind! It would have been really awkward if she stopped the invasion of Earth without ever knowing who the invading forces were.

“You won't though.” The Doctor challenged back, unhindered by his threat.

“I mean, really? Ya'came all the way to Earth, and thought'cha could take it? Gimme a break.”

Why did people even try anymore? Surely word got around that the Earth just wasn’t worth the effort by now, maybe she had to step up her game? Put out a formal notice with the Shadow Proclamation or something, that would be a lot of paperwork, but sparing her a ton of future work and cleanup with invasions would be worth it. 

“This world will be ours!” The Sycoraxian leader insisted.

“That's what the Daleks said.” 

That gave him pause. There was a shifting amongst the forces. 

Good, she’d struck a chord with them. Now to keep striking while the iron was hot, if she made Earth look too dangerous to approach, then hopefully they'd leave in peace after she dealt with their leader. 

“Others 'ave tried, and none of ‘em have managed it yet.”

“You think you can stop us? You are a child!”

With another roll of her eyes – and she did that a lot, didn't she? Youthful inspired disregard for authority, or in this case attempted authority?

Without saying another word, the Doctor stole a nearby set of short swords the length of her arms from one of the nearby Sycorax soldiers.

"I don't think I can stop ya. I know you won't get by me." She challenged with a grin before her expression steeled.

“I challenge you!”

Her earlier effect on the legions around them seemed to fade in that moment, as laughter rained down upon them, even the Sycorax Leader himself seemed to be having a chuckle.

“...Well, that struck a chord.” She said with a frown. “Not sure I feel a great deal of support from the crowd, but then again cheering the home team, I suppose.”

Turning her attention back to the leader, she continued. “Am I right that the sanctified rules of combat still apply?”

This ceased his laughing, and the crowds around them also went silent. Suddenly realising she wasn’t playing around. 

Taking off her dressing gown, she took in the sight of the Sycorax Leader walking down from the above platform, unsheathing his sword which was noticeably bigger than the two blades she had on hand. 

“You stand as this world’s champion?” 

“Thank you.” The Doctor replied, swirling the swords around in her hand and aiming them towards him. “See, still haven’t quite got a grasp of who I am, not fully at least. But you’ve just about summed me up fairly well, regardless of which face I’m in.” She said, tossing her dressing gown towards Rose. 

“So, do you accept my challenge? Or are you just a-” She began before spitting out a rather unkind term in Sycoraxic. 

This caused the Leader’s eyes to narrow, the Doctor could see his lip curl into a snarl as he gripped the hilt of his sword as he let out a loud hiss, raising his blade as the surrounding crowd of Sycorax all cheered out towards him. 

The Doctor knelt down, holding her blades by their respective hilts as the Leader knelt opposite her, doing the same with his sword, their eyes met as he spoke.

“For the planet?”

“For the planet.” The Doctor agreed. 

And then they were off. 

So, sword fighting was not something she was good at, good to know.

Her arms and legs were too short for a lot of conventional fighting styles, but she'd managed it in the end at least, making use of her smaller size and speed to combat his greater size and strength. Her arms were like wet noodles!

She made a note to practice a bit more before she got into another fight, just to avoid an embarrassing episode, and maybe some light weight resistance training. 

Might not be the worst idea to consider brushing up on her Venusian Aikido and Karate again.

Oh, and she’d lost her brand new hand! So that was more than a bit annoying! Or it would be if she hadn’t been within the first fifteen hours of her regeneration cycle, thus she had more than enough residual regeneration energy left in the tank to grow a new one. 

Hello, new new hand.

She’d also made plenty of use of his own emotional state against him before that point, provoking him and tossing a cheeky one liner or two his way to infuriate him, putting him off his game and giving her the advantage. 

And her growing her hand back, had visibly shaken the otherwise confident warrior. 

The Doctor also made another note to go find her missing hand, because it was just asking for trouble leaving that thing laying around on Earth. 

No clue who could find it, and then all it would take is one look at the blood in it for the course of human history to change to a nearly unprecedented degree. 

But in the end, the battle had been won. She’d had him at swordpoint, and made him swear on the blood of his people that he would accept defeat and leave the Earth in peace. 

Or at least peace in regards to the Sycorax, they were far from the only ones out there. The Doctor knew that better than anyone…

She was just heading back to the main part of the ship when she heard swift movement behind her, the commander charging at her back despite having lost. 

Was it so much to ask for this to be over already so she could sleep off the rest of her regeneration cycle, find some new clothes, and then tear apart the Tardis kitchen trying to find what tasted good this time?

With a grunt, she ducked low under the sword swing that was aimed at her neck, and with just a grab and a twist and a shift in her weight-

"Dishonour." She hissed, glaring down the commander. Her foot was placed firmly between his shoulders, and the wrist of the now empty hand that had held his sword was secure in one of her hands, the other gripping closer to the elbow.

"You swore on the blood of your species, so I think I'll let them decide what happens to you."

She stayed like that until two of the Sycorax approached, glaring down at what The Doctor suspected was now their former commander, and relieved her of her captive.

Walking back inside, she made a show of standing up on the platform she’d been on previously, casting one last glance at the now restrained former Commander before addressing the masses. 

"Now then! I defeated your champion, and furthermore he has cast dishonour on all of you." The Doctor announced, sweeping her hand out towards the gathered Sycorax. 

"As such: I forbid you to scavenge here forevermore! And if you decide to tell others out there about the Earth, of its potential, of its riches and resources, you’d better remember to mention one important thing.” The Doctor said before narrowing her eyes.

“It. Is. Defended!”

The silence that ushered throughout the crowd said enough as she stepped back down and walked back towards the Tardis, gesturing the others to follow her and opened the doors, ushering them in before turning back and giving her final command to the Sycorax. 

“Now! Get off my planet!"

The solemn nods sent her way, as well as the way the other Sycorax by the Tardis lowered their head in signs of respect as she passed by back inside, was enough to convince her that they wouldn’t be back. 

Ignoring the usual pleasantries and reactions from Harriet and her aid, the Doctor walked across the control panel and with a light exhale, set the Tardis to dematerialize, inputting the coordinates to land down below in London. 

The Doctor stared up at the retreating ship, a look of…Well, not satisfaction but pleasant resignation on her face as she watched it go.

Rose and Mickey were having a ball, celebrating another day saved.

But the Doctor couldn’t help but think of the two men who’d been lost aboard the Sycorax ship, having seen the expression on Harriet’s face when she’d begun piloting the Tardis and asked, without prompting, who had died. 

Major Thomas Blake, and Daniel Llewellyn, both killed in cold blood by the Sycorax.

…The Doctor tried not to think about ‘what if’s’ or what might have been, she’d done it before and no doubt would again, but despite the cycle of regrets, it wouldn’t weigh on her any less, the fact that she could have done something if she’d been awake at the time.

Two men were dead, and there could have been so many more. But that didn’t mean their loss was any less important or minimised by the lives saved. 

Sharing a hug with Harriet Jones helped a bit, she was glad to see her again and that she was seemingly on the path to a prosperous future, things were looking up.

“Absolutely the same person.” Harriet decreed as the Doctor smiled.

Yeah, she liked smiling in this form, it felt good.

The two shared a look once more at the sky, in the direction of the ship that was now almost leaving the atmosphere.

“Are there many more out there?” Harriet asked inquisitively. 

“Ohh, yeah. So many you wouldn’t believe, I could tell you about hundred, thousands! Even more, not just the Sycorax.” The Doctor replied, resting her hands in the pockets of her borrowed dressing gown.

She momentarily considered nicking it, sorry Nancy, but it was admittedly comfortable.

“And the human race seems to keep finding ways of drawing attention to itself. Not just your own solar system, nah, you’re exploring out there, sendin’ out probes, messages, signals. Exploring the ‘final frontier’... Well, the final frontier for you lot… Wait, isn’t that from that show on the telly? ...Star Pets? No, that doesn’t sound right, anyway you lot are getting noisy.” The Doctor said with a small smile, shaking her head as she did. 

“Keep on like this, and one day you’ll be invited to play with the big kids. Not today, not tomorrow, but… one day.”

 That was meant to be roundabout now, wasn’t it? Adelaide Brooke dies on Mars in Twenty-Fifty-Nine, and then her granddaughter helps lead humanity into the stars not long after that.

Within the next century or so, Earth would probably properly start colonising the Sol System, and from there…

“Better prepare.” The Doctor added before looking aside as Jackie rushed towards the group, Rose having taken off to greet her with a hug. 

Harriet walked off in the direction of her aid as The Doctor walked up at a slower pace where Jackie, Rose and Mickey were all huddled together. 

“I think I need to thank you, Jackie Tyler.” The Doctor said grinning. “That tea of yours sorted everythin’ out, fixed me right up, it did.”

“See, I said so.” Jackie said to Rose before turning back towards the Doctor. “So… it is you, you’re really the Doctor?”

“The one and the only… Well, relatively speaking of course. But yep, I am the Doctor.” She said as she approached them, it was a surprise when Jackie pulled her in for a hug.

She couldn’t picture Jackie Tyler hugging her yesterday.

But then she’d been a completely different person yesterday, and times were changing. 

“You’re really better?” Jackie asked, causing the Doctor to nod, Mickey joined in as well and she found herself caught in between a sandwich of bodies, her eyes however met Rose who was standing back a few feet.

She was smiling but… The Doctor could see the smile didn’t reach her eyes. It was a smile, but it wasn’t a smile . 

“Is that the Prime Minister!?” Jackie asked with wide eyes as they departed the hug, causing the Doctor to let out a short laugh.

“Yeah, wanna meet…” The Doctor began before she stopped.

She stopped because something felt…

Oh no…

Turning back to Harriet she saw her speaking to her aid before the Doctor felt a sensation wash over her body, it was like vertigo but far deeper and spreading not just through her body but inside her mind.

Time was happening.

A very important moment in time was occurring. 

A fixed point was forming, and she suspected where it was coming from. Looking up, her eyes met with Harriet’s, the Doctor’s began to narrow as she saw the steely expression the Prime Minister held.

The Doctor turned, looking around before the ‘feeling’ guided her attention, looking up into the sky as the Sycorax ship was just above the atmosphere.

“....No… Please…” she whispered, before five large connected concentrated beams of energy shot out towards the sky, forming one solid beam, and the Doctor could do nothing as it found its target.

And just like that the Sycorax ship was destroyed, along with everyone on board.

Britain’s Golden Age, built on blood and ash. The Doctor could see it, the various impacts, the fixed point, all flashing through her head, and it was making her feel sick.

…It wasn’t supposed to happen, not like this… Not like this…

“Doctor…” Mickey said, watching as she fell down to one knee, clenching her right hand into a fist. 

Today was meant to be a day of peace, of goodwill and cheer, happiness and charity towards all. 

And instead it had been turned into one of death and war…

Would she ever escape from it? 

Death, and war followed her everywhere she went… Every form she took…

She couldn’t ever just have peace.

And Harriet Jones had caused humanity a massive problem, not that she’d ever live to see it.

Peace and goodwill… but only if you were human . 

When that invitation to join the wider universe does finally come, a few hundred years from now, this will be the day that will be remembered, this will be the day that those that speak against Earth will cite.

Shooting down a retreating, surrendered force.

Harriet Jones may very well have pushed back humanity’s place in the universe by decades , if not longer. How many alliances wouldn’t happen in time, how much development and trade would never occur? How much had this one human changed?

“What is that… What’s happening?” Rose asked.

The Doctor didn’t even feel like pointing out the obvious act of murder they’d just witnessed, ignoring Rose as she walked over towards Harriet, the weight of her actions causing the Doctor to have to suppress the urges welling up within her.

Urges her Ninth self wouldn’t have suppressed as much as she was.

Urges she didn’t want to feel… Because she hated what they turned her into. She was supposed to be a new person, starting fresh and looking at the universe with a new outlook.

And yet Harriet Jones had summoned up what she used to be…

“That was murder!” she growled out, her teeth pressing against each other as she stepped into Harriet’s personal space.

“No, Doctor it was self defence.” Harriet replied firmly, her tone now coloured self righteousness that the Doctor knew meant she felt justified in her actions. 

“It was adapted from alien technology, an alien ship that fell to Earth ten years ago.” Harriet explained, as if the origin of the technology somehow softened the impact of her actions.

Alien threat taken out by alien weaponry.

“They were leaving! They were retreating!” The Doctor said, her own lips twitching as she struggled to maintain a sense of control.

“You said it yourself, Doctor. They’d go back to the stars and tell others about the Earth.” Harriet began. 

“And they’d say how merciful you were. How gracious you were in victory! They’d praise you! ” The Doctor firmly insisted.

“Maybe… Or maybe not.” Harriet argued. “You don’t know that… And I’m sorry, Doctor, but you’re not here all the time. You come and you go, it happened today. Mister Llewellyn and the Major, they were murdered. They died right in front of me, while you were sleeping. In which case, we have to defend ourselves.” 

The Doctor could hear the accusation lacing her tone whether Harriet meant it or not, and the grief that was threatening to spill over into her words.

The Doctor had seen people die, had caused death, she wasn’t a stranger to seeing people fall in front of her. 

But did Harriet think what she had done was truly justifiable, or was she influenced by her emotional response to the deaths…

“Britain’s Golden Age.” The Doctor said, though this time the phrase was spat out with detriment.

“It comes with a price.” Harriet stated, not wavering as the Doctor let out a scoff. 

“What price? Your ethics? Your morals? ...or is it your soul, Harriet Jones? Just how much are you willing to give till there’s nothing left.” The Doctor paused for a moment, wondering. “Or is that others have to pay the price? The Sycorax paid for your Golden Age with their lives, after all.”

Harriet didn’t respond, but the Doctor saw them forming. 

The cracks.

The cracks in her exterior, the twitching of an eye, of a cheek, her lips thinning into a line, a slightly shaky breath exhaling from her nose. 

“Y’know… I was wrong.” The words tasted foul, like the ash that even now was starting to rain down from above.

New thing to know about herself: she didn't like admitting that she had been wrong, but right now it was a necessity.  

Past experience said she'd end up saying it a fair few times anyway, so she’d just have to get used to that feeling whether she liked it or not.

And she didn’t. 

"I told 'em to leave. I should'a told 'em to run. Run as fast as you can and hide, because the big bad monsters are coming. The Human Race is on its way, and they don’t care who gets in their way. Soon as they got the advantage, soon as they got the power… look out.” 

"I did it to protect the people, Doctor. They are the ones I represent." Harriet insisted, an edge of desperation now creeping into her tone.

Another crack. 

Ridiculous justification anyway, they had been leaving , they had been going away . The threat had passed. There was nothing to protect people from .

“I should’a stopped you… I should’a seen this coming… But I ignored my instincts, let my compassion an’ feelings of affection blind me from what was righ’ about to happen, literally behind my back…”

“Don’t make yourself another alien threat Doctor-” Harriet began before the Doctor cut her off.

“Don’t!” The Doctor declared, glaring at Harriet and pointing up at her. “Don’t even finish that sentence, don’t even think of challenging me, don’t have even one little fantasy, even an abstract concept! Of trying to come after me, Madame Prime Minister… Because stronger and more resourceful people than you have tried, entire empires have tried and failed! And… Well, I won’t say what’s worse than failure… You can imagine what I mean by that if you like.” 

“But if you really wanna try it? If you really want to classify me as an ‘alien threat’? Then march yourself down the palace, an’ tell Her Majesty that you chased the Doctor out’a the British Isles. Go ahead, try it.” The Doctor said quietly, nodding her head up at Harriet as the corner of her mouth tugged up.

Not a smile, a smirk in its place though. 

For several seconds Harriet was silent, the Doctor could see the crumbling facade that had been her confidence and power falling apart like a sandcastle, and she was the high tide rolling in. 

"...Bloody humans." The Doctor quietly laughed as the silence dragged on, screwing her eyes shut as her lips pulled back in a grimace. 

Not a smile, she liked smiling now, liked the feelings of happiness it evoked. But after today… she didn’t think she’d smile properly for a while. 

And this? No, this was not happy, and the action left a sick feeling in her stomach. She opened her eyes after a few more seconds, looking up at Harriet and letting out a tired sigh.

"Go ‘ome, Harriet Jones.” She declared, suddenly tired.

“Just go. I'm done with you."

She'd have been brilliant, might yet be anyway, if the Doctor was honest. But if Harriet Jones still brought about that Golden Age she was supposed to usher in and kick start for the people of Britain was possible, it would be done without the Doctor's help.

"Done with me?" The Prime Minister baulked. The sound of her voice had The Doctor's eyes narrowing, turning a glare on the woman.

"Yeah, what don’cha understan’? I'm done with you. You think you know best, you think tha' shootin' down retreatin' forces is tha bes' way to protect the people , then ya can bloody well go off and do it!" 

Oh, her accent got thicker when she got angry, that was interesting. She remembered Seven’s accent would also get thicker in moments of frustration or anger.

"Ye'r a big girl now, Prime Ministah'. Time ta put on your big girl pants and go to work… or someone’ll come along who can do it instead!"

"Is that a threat?" 

If she thought that was a threat, she’d have been down on her knees sobbing like a child if she’d dealt with some of her past selves.

But in a way, the Doctor was trying to lay down the law, so to speak. Or more accurately, let Harriet Jones know she was more than capable of informing people who could in her steed. The Doctor knew people far higher up the totem pole than her, and she wasn’t worried about making a few trips, or a few calls if need be.

"Not'ta threat. Jus' a fact. Go ‘ome. Think on today. And be better tomorr'a… or we’ll just see how long your illustrious reign will last."

And with that the Doctor turned and walked away, Rose, Jackie and Mickey at her side as she didn’t spare one glance back in  Harriet’s directions, not sparing her an iota of awareness as they walked back towards the Powell Estate.

‘Bloody humans.’ ‘

A few hours had passed since then, and the Doctor was now stood by the Tardis doors, arms crossed as she saw Rose descend down the stairs to the bottom level of the estate. 

She was trying not to think about the ‘snow’ falling around them… all that ash…

She’d made due on her earlier endeavour, finding her missing hand.

A quick hop over in the Tardis, and a handy-

Hehe, handy.

-a handy bio-scanner with tracking functions, was all it took to snag up her missing hand, which was now sitting safely in one of the Tardis' bio labs, waiting for her to decide what to actually do with it. She didn’t know exactly what she’d use it for, or if it had any use at all for that matter.

But she wasn’t going to leave it around London for any old Tom, Dick, or Harry to pick up.

Glancing down at her clothes as she waited for Rose to cross the courtyard, she was still dressed in the same borrowed pyjamas and dressing gown she’d received from Jackie’s neighbour. 

She still thought of nicking the dressing gown, but she’d return it after she picked out a proper outfit for herself… eventually. It wasn’t stealing if she could bring it back in a time machine. (it may have also reminded her of one of Nyssa's old ones which… may have still been on the Tardis, come to think of it).

She'd not chosen an outfit just yet, deciding that there was little point when she intended on falling asleep within the hour, but she could think about that later.

Raising her head back up, she saw the slow form of Rose arrive near the Tardis, hands in her pockets as the Doctor spoke up. 

"So, you coming along?"

Rose didn’t respond immediately.

Which… honestly, didn’t surprise her. She’d seen signs since yesterday, signs that she wasn’t pleased with.

Should she be sad? Angry?... Disappointed? 

She didn’t know… But she knew she’d figure it out, in time.

And that one was not a pun!

…even if it had been a little funny.

"Uh... actually, Doctor, I think I need a bit of time?" Rose's voice cut through her thoughts like a knife through butter. 

The Doctor’s thoughts were proven correct, avoiding Rose’s gaze the Doctor nodded in response. 

"...Right, yeah, okay.” She responded, trying to sound casual, despite the welling combinations of emotions in her stomach.

“I'll head off then, and... yeah ." The Doctor muttered, turning back towards the Tardis. It was... maybe it was better this way.

New Doctor, new start. Yeah, that made sense.

Hoping she could get to the console quickly, and avoid any more ‘awkward’ interactions, she was stopped as Rose spoke quickly. 

"Not forever!" 

“Huh, wha’?” The Doctor replied, turning back to her as she rested her hand on the Tardis doors.

"I just... need a little bit of time. To think, to- to process... everything." Rose said, her own eyes were now the ones looking anywhere else but on the Doctor. 

Again, the Doctor found herself unsure how to feel. Unsure how to respond…

But the words formed anyway as she took her hand off the Tardis door, turning back to face Rose fully. 

"I can't wait 'ere for you to make up your mind, Rose." 

And it was true, she wasn’t going to sit here outside her flat for the next few, what? 

Weeks? Months? Years? How long would it take for Rose to be ‘Okay’ with her new body.

And did the Doctor even owe her that? 

If the Doctor had been vindictive, cold, cruel, and…Well, not the Doctor that’s for sure.

She could have pointed out that Rose in fact owed her, she’d died for her, given up one of her lives to save Rose’s own.

After Rose had hurt the Tardis…

Which she still hadn’t sat down and talked to her about it, she’d spent the past few hours with Mickey as the two of them had put together quite the nice little dossier and information packet about Harriet Jones, Prime Minister. 

The Doctor wasn’t going to kick the woman out of office, she meant what she said, she was done with her. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t let the people cast their own votes, push Harriet into the deep end and see if she would sink or swim.

And she knew just who to ask for help, well… indirectly ask for help. Mickey was going to be delivering the information packet, acquired from a ‘certain unnamed government adjacent source’ to a certain investigative journalist who would have free reign to run the story if she chose to. 

And then she’d passed a slightly less anonymous message Alistair’s way, a letter with a very particular seal that the Brigadier would recognize, asking him to cast his own eye over the Prime Minister. What he did with whatever he found was his business, not hers, but she saw no harm in asking an old friend to take a closer look at someone who was using alien technology to shoot down aliens in broad daylight.

But anyway, she was getting lost in her thoughts again.

Her previous self had liked Rose a lot, maybe had loved her even. But she couldn't stick around while Rose worked through her feelings on the Doctor's regeneration. 

And maybe that was a good thing?

The Doctor needed some space from her too, especially after she’d properly processed what Rose had done to the Daleks.

Now the Doctor would never be a fan of that species, and wouldn't be crying over their demise any time soon. She’d fought them so many times over the course of her lives, every incarnation had their battles with them.

And yes, she had killed many in her confrontations.

But what Rose did… commiting genocide…

Did she even remember? If she didn't, should the Doctor tell her, and if she did… then what did it say that she hadn’t even mentioned it after they’d returned to her flat earlier.

There were too many questions right now, too much baggage to unpack.

They needed some space and time to sort everything out, respectively, and the Doctor couldn’t do that waiting around here.

That wouldn't be fair for either of them. It wouldn't be fair to chain the Doctor to a single time and place, not when she could feel the wanderlust biting at her heels as strongly as she could now.

And it certainly wouldn't be fair to Rose if she had to see the cause of her emotional processing every day.

No, she needed to go for the time being. 

"Just come back? In a month or two, I'll have your answer then." Rose said eventually, causing the Doctor to nod slowly. 

"...Yeah. Okay, yeah. I'll see ya then." She said before turning back towards the doors. 

She didn't quite flee into the Tardis, but that was mostly due to centuries of self control.

She did, however, activate the various dials and switches and pull the time rotor’s lever a bit faster and harder than normal, taking a small comfort in the sounds of the temporal engine’s familiar tones as she closed her eyes, and slumped against the console.

Alone again.

She parked the Tardis on the moon Ganymede, extended the air bubble a little ways, and just sat in the doorway of the Tardis, silently watching Jupiter in the distance, a forlorn expression on her face as she rested her cheek against her palm. 

No one would bother her here.

It was funny, really. She'd not even looked at herself yet, not put any thought towards who she was or who she wanted to style herself to be. 

Instead, all she could think of was what she'd lost. She mourned for her last self, even as she accepted that he was still a part of her. 

He wasn't gone , just like none of those that came before him were truly gone. But it was still important to mourn the loss, because that Doctor had died, and dying was traumatic at the best of times.

And some of her death’s had been more so than others… But all of them in their own way, sad, either for her or those around her. 

It was almost funny, in a way. Her past selves had all died, and yet they were all still alive in her memory. And, of course, were still alive somewhere out there in the universe, because they were a time traveler.

There were moments where she considered hopping out there and sitting down and having a drink with one of them, or two, or three… But there were rules against that sort of thing, or there were rules…

Even now, it was dangerous, what with no Council to patch any paradoxes or pick up and plop down versions of herself for some big event of evil or strife that needed more than one Doctor.

No… it was just her now, no one else.

"I was absolutely fantastic ." She uttered, in remembrance of her former self.

The word didn't feel quite right on her lips, it wasn't her word like it had been his . But she felt it was important to send the Doctor she had been off with his word.

Did she have a word now, like he had? 

She stayed like that for a while, leaning against the not-wood of the Tardis and watching the movement of the stars as she came to terms with her latest death. 

It had been a good death, she decided. They'd died saving someone, and how could that be anything but good?

"Right, that's enough mopin' about!" She decided a few hours or so into her thoughts. The Doctor rose back to her feet and closed the doors.

Taking a few moments to set some alarms on the console so that the Tardis would wake her up if the entire universe exploded or something equally important happened, she then went to bed, the Tardis shortening her journey to her bedroom as she collapsed down on the mattress with a tired sigh. 

She'd sort out her outfit and appearance and identity when she woke up.

Brown hair again, just like Mickey said. That was alright, it was a nice shade of brown.

A bit long, maybe, down around her shoulders, where it became a bit curly. She could cut it shorter or style it, so the length wasn't too much of a hassle in the Doctor's opinion. 

Braids maybe? The Doctor imagined she'd look pretty nice with some kind of braid. Or maybe a bun? A ponytail?

Eh, she'd do something with the hair, but that was for later.

Dark coloured eyes, a warmer shade though. Pretty solid vision as far as she'd been able to tell so far, though she still wondered if she’d look good in glasses. A nice pair of brainy specs, maybe?

Eyebrows were maybe a touch thin, but nothing too bad. Eyelashes weren't terribly long either, which was good, because it had been aeons since she'd had to work on eyelashes, and it had never been her own.

Teeth looked healthy, straight, no obvious defects. Her cuspids looked a bit sharper than normal, but not out expected ranges, and the incisors looked pretty solid. Well, if all else failed, she at least seemed to have a good set of teeth for biting her problems.

And thankfully she didn’t need braces, that on top of her physical age would have left no one taking her seriously. 

Her skin was clear of any blemishes or marks, and while not really tanned per say, she wasn’t too pale, her face held the healthy shade that spoke of someone that had been outdoors a fair few times in their lives. 

Which was impressive, considering the most she'd been outside was to grab her hand and a quick jaunt to the Powell Estate and back. 

Ah, the wonders and mysteries of regeneration.

She was also left-handed now. That was neat, she'd not been left handed before! 

It was kind of funny. She had centuries of memories about doing things with her right hand, and yet her body moved instinctively to act with her left.

There was just one small thing: she looked young , that much had been proven to her earlier. But she’d not realised just how young she now appeared to be.

Now, The Doctor had looked pretty young before, but never like this!  

If she dyed her hair blonde, she'd nearly be able to pass as Rose's little sister! 

The apparent age difference wasn’t insanely huge, not as far as she could tell at least, but she'd not been this young since her first body had physically been this age!

"I knew I looked young… But blimey, this is proper young!”

Okay, okay, she could work with this, this wasn’t the worst look she could have come out with. Least her ears were the right size this time. 

Small, female, visually rather young. Some of her friends at the Academy had used this sort of thing to their advantage, hadn't they? 

She had the distinct memory of Ushas or Koschei conning some fellow students just by looking cute and helpless.

Of course, that kind of trick often only worked once , especially when it was those two, but it really didn't need to work a second time if it was done correctly.

So yeah, she'd just have to play smart. She was good at that! Probably.

…She used to be at least.

She'd need to do something about the distinct lack of authority that this form projected, but that was a problem for later.

For now, she had a far more pressing problem: outfitting. 

She had to look like the Doctor, whoever that was now. 

She started up some music over the PA system, something to bop along to while she got to work on figuring out who she was this time. Luckily the Tardis seemed to know what she wanted, as an entire playlist filled itself out barely a second after she made her selection.

And as if by chance, the first song that played was the one she’d been thinking of the day before, causing the Doctor to smile up at the ceiling to the Tardis as Kylie Minogue’s voice began playing around her. 

"Thanks, love." She called out, turning to face the wardrobe at large with a clap of her hands. "Now, let's get started!"

What followed was a blur of colours and ideas. Entire outfits were constructed over the course of hours only to be discarded within seconds, and she spent a mildly ridiculous amount of time debating between two different pairs of socks, but in the end decided on a third pair that she'd actually discarded half a day beforehand.

"Am I a headband person now?" She considered at one point, looking at the colourful strips of fabric. "...No, that'd just be ridiculous." She decided, tossing it aside. 

It took a few days, all in all, but the Doctor wasn't in any particular rush, so she didn't mind, many different combinations of clothes were tried on and modelled, in between a lot of eating and trying out new foods.

Her new self loves snacks! Like nobody ever hated snacks, but she now loved them.  

Maybe she should start carrying jelly babies again, just to have something on hand.

She could have been sorting through outfits for a week, and it still would have been a fair bit faster than some of the wardrobe changes she'd had over the years.

She was nearly giddy as she finally pulled the completed outfit together and strolled up to the large mirrors, taking a look at the new Doctor for the first time. It was a bit of a tougher look than she usually went in for, but it felt right .

It felt like her .

Her boots were somewhere between "military" and "platform", giving her a little bit of extra height while still being rather practical. She'd specifically chosen a pair that offered good traction, since she knew that she did more than enough running around to need good footwear for it.

Under the boots were a pair of long, dark coloured socks which ended just below her knees. And just above the knees, a pair of dark blue shorts. Over the top of the shorts, she wore a flowing, wavy, indigo coloured skirt that danced delightfully around whenever she spun in place.

Her shirt was a simple black, with a decal of spiral galaxy proudly displayed on the front, halfway hidden under the blue denim vest (which was modified to have a few bigger on the inside pockets on both the inside and outside) that was slung over the top of it. A pair of leather, fingerless gloves were hanging over a nearby chair; something to wear on occasion, she figured, but not her everyday wear. The gloves were pretty neat in The Doctor's opinion, with a cutout on the back that formed a heart when the straps were done up.

And pinned to either side of her collar, almost like some of the ranking medals that Alistair had owned, were a pair of simple steel question mark pins.

Then there was her hair. In the end, she'd tied it back with a length of cobalt blue ribbon, forming a pretty fashionable ponytail that hung down between her shoulder blades.

"Hello." She greeted her reflection, standing back a little to take a good look at the complete image of herself. So this was who she was now. She liked it, she liked it a lot. "I'm The Doctor."

"Alright then." The Doctor muttered to herself, walking back into the console room. "One quick trip, just to break things in, then back to Rose."

But where to? All of time and space, a literal universe of possibilities, and she had to pick just one place.

Maybe a resort planet? Like Midnight? Somewhere that she could relax and be pampered.

But most of those would probably require an "adult", and she wasn't in the mood to spend her first adventure trying to convince someone she'd just had one too many gene mods and looked a little too young.

So scrap that, she could always go to Midnight some other time. Could maybe take Rose, even, she’d probably enjoy Midnight.

Okay, so somewhere that she'd not have problems for how young she looked. She'd work out a solution to that problem later, but not now, not when she just wanted something easy in order to get a feel for who she was now.

It was as she was working through the sometimes forgotten pre-flight checks (and she really should do those more often than she did) that the thought came to her: Greece! 

Specifically around the twelfth or thirteenth century BCE, maybe a touch earlier just to make sure she avoided landing in the middle of the Trojan War (she was not getting into that mess). Walking into a war right after the events of today? No thank you. 

And so, with a wide smile, the Doctor began the mad dance of piloting her wonderful timeship through the vortex, her destination firmly in mind.

Oh, this was going to be just wonderful!  

Chapter Text

With her new outfit happily established, The Doctor got to work on some of the important things that needed doing before any grand adventures could begin.

First and foremost, the Tardis required some attention. Her past self hadn’t been great at keeping on top of the maintenance and upkeep of the timeship.

And that was before Rose had ripped the heart of the Tardis open, which was all only made worse by the Doctor regenerating directly next to the console.

…She remembered all those lectures from The Academy about it being unwise and not safe to regenerate within the Tardis console rooms, and for good reason. Particularly violent or repressed and built up regenerations could result in damage to the entire Tardis eco structure. 

And while her recent regeneration hadn’t been repressed or violent, she’d still undergone the process right next to the console!

She would have to remember not to do that again. Or at least try, it wasn’t the first time she’d unwisely done so within the Old Girl, but as she’d aged her regeneration energy and subsequent changes had become more powerful and external.

It wasn’t known to many outside the Time Lords, their biology and anatomy being closely guarded throughout the galaxy and for good reason, at least in regards to their Regeneration energy. But it was common knowledge among their people that the older one got, and the more regenerations a Time Lord underwent the more the process would become external, regeneration energy that previously would complete the process internally for the most part with only minimal external energy emission, would in their later lives begin to burst out of their bodies in a bright array of light and power. 

She could only imagine what would happen if Koschei regenerated these days, considering just how many lives he’d gone through.

Though internally she doubted it. 

Unlike her, ‘The Master’ never experienced any post Regenerative complications, never experienced ‘The Sickness’ like she had. A fact he’d often tease her about in their younger days, even attaching his own title once and boasting about being the ‘Master’ of regeneration. He’d no doubt be able to contain and dampen the external energy output of his regeneration process, and be the first to say so.

Just because she was one of the unlucky ones who weren’t skilled in directing and controlling the process, and her old friend never let her forget it. 

“Oh, what did the mean girl do t’ya?” The Doctor murmured, halfway buried beneath a mess of wires, cables, and machinery.

She was being a bit unfair to Rose, she supposed. Oh, it had been a remarkably dangerous thing to do, even under the best of circumstances, and she was still a bit upset about that.

The Doctor had a lot to process in regards to the Tardis being used like that. Rose wasn’t like her, she couldn’t connect and feel the Tardis like she could. 

Despite all of her assurance and talk of the Tardis being a living organism, she doubted Rose ever truly understood what that meant, or maybe thought of it like how some humans give their vehicles living qualities or refer to them as such. She didn’t understand the full scope or gravity of what she had done to the Tardis. And the Doctor made another mental note to inform any future companions or people she chose to travel with, of the Tardis true nature and that they would respect her ship. 

She wasn’t sure the Tardis would even let Rose travel inside of her at this point, maybe in time…

But the wounds were still fresh. 

“...I’m sorry for sendin’ ya away.” She murmured quietly, staring up at the time rotor, her hand softly resting on the nearest piece of the Tardis she could touch.

That was the crux of it, she supposed. Living thing or not, the Tardis was rather limited in some ways in regards to what she could and could not do. Centuries of work had given her more autonomy than a standard Type 40, or even the more modern models for that matter. She had freedoms that some Time Lords would consider heresy for a ‘mere ship’ to possess, but the Doctor didn’t care.

But the Tardis still had limitations, and Emergency Program One was something that took advantage of those limitations. She couldn’t have come back for him, not under her own power. It was… not exactly something the Doctor was proud to have made, it had been like forging chains to bind her beautiful timeship.

But she’d been scared and alone. Gallifrey had been gone, and the Tardis had been all she’d had left. So she’d forged those chains, so that even in the worst case scenario, one last little bit of her home would survive.

She had stripped away part of the Tardis autonomy or choice… but it had been for its own safety. If the Daleks had managed to capture it, dissect it and reverse engineer it…

She couldn’t have let that happen.

But then Rose in her own misguided way, had also tried to remove the Tardis’ autonomy, ripping it open and exposing herself to certain death, but also the unknown consequences of her actions. She had no idea what exposing herself to the Vortex and the Heart of the Tardis would do.

She could have died, been incinerated right there and then! Or she could have imploded, or been scattered into pieces across time and space.

Or if there had been an adverse reaction right in the conso- flight deck!

If there’d been an adverse reaction in the flight deck , then the resulting reaction could have caused the Tardis itself to be damaged or even destroyed.

And a Tardis being destroyed in unpredictable ways… would lead to unpredictable results! Rose could have killed not just herself, but countless others around her.

Rose had been shortsighted, and clearly hadn’t understood or respected just how alive the Tardis truly was. She’d tried to do something remarkably dangerous that could have so easily resulted in utter catastrophe.

…but she supposed the Tardis had used Rose, just like Rose had used the Tardis. Both to the same end, at that.

Emergency Program One prevented the Tardis from coming back to rescue the Doctor. But it didn’t prevent the Tardis from causing a minor fault in the console panel’s locking mechanisms.

And, looking back, wasn’t the Bad Wolf inevitable? A fixed point? 

“Legends before the fact.” The Doctor whispered to herself. That was how it had been for the Time War, and in a way that was how it had been for the Bad Wolf. The words, chasing them through history, leading to that moment.

That wasn’t to say she still wasn’t upset about it, that she still wasn’t furious about what Rose had tried to do.

But the situation was, perhaps, a bit more nuanced and complex than she had initially thought. Perhaps it would be best to talk to Rose about it, to get a more complete picture on the events that led up to it, as she really only had Mickey and Jackie’s offhand remarks to go off of.

But regardless, it was in the past…

The Doctor could sit here and think about this for days, weeks, months or more. But it wouldn’t change what Rose tried to do, what Rose did do, and the laws of time forbid the Doctor from going back and changing it herself.

So she was stuck, stuck in her current situation, stuck with these feelings and contrasting emotions and stuck with no one but herself and the Tardis to try and work through the emotional and mental mind field she was dropped into.

She didn’t like being stuck, but there was no other alternative. 

She wasn’t happy, the Tardis wasn’t happy.

Talk about living in an echo chamber.

With a soft exhale, she turned her attention back to her work. 

Initially, she had tried to keep her work light, to just get an assessment of what would be needed. But it had soon become obvious that the damage done by the humans had been far more extensive than she’d first assumed.

The opening of the console panel had caused a complete cavalcade of system failures that resulted in the Doctor needing to all but gut half the console in order to replace and repair everything.

Not to mention all the scratch marks from the cable’s hook that she’d need to buff out.

“...Would it be easier to just ask for a new console room? No! flight deck, a new flight deck ?” She wondered aloud around the seven hour mark, looking at how much was still to go. 

It would take her at least another eleven hours just to finish fixing the damage caused by forcing open the console panel, and then it would be another several days - weeks really, months if she decided to break into the “non-essential” list of work she’d been putting off - before she could claim to be on top of the routine maintenance.

A flickering of lights and a low hum from the console answered her question.

“You’re right, love, like always.” 

She always was, after all. 

“Well, back t’work.”

“...I’ve forgotten something, ‘aven’t I?”

The temporal anchoring system was realigned. The dimensional scanners were scrubbed clean. The Doctor had even updated the on-file maps with some really nice 70th century universal survey data that she had… acquired.

And yet there was the smallest niggle at the back of The Doctor’s mind, that something of massive importance.

Eh, it was probably nothing.

“Okay! So it wasn’t nothing’! I’m sorry!” The Doctor shouted at the closed doors of the Tardis, shivering from the cold.

As it turns out, the thing she had forgotten was the gravity regulator, which she’d disconnected at some point during her repairs. And then had forgotten to re connect it when she had put everything back to rights.

Which resulted in the Tardis throwing an absolute fit and leaving her stranded in the cold, desolate wastes of… honestly, she wasn’t sure, but The Doctor was absolutely positive that it was far too cold for someone in a skirt and shorts.

“At least lemme get a blanket!”

”Just because I found an army of evil, mechanical polar bears and saved the world from conquest doesn’t excuse that ya locked me out in the bloody Arctic!” 

Back in the Tardis - her wonderful, glorious, warm Tardis - the Doctor was not particularly happy with the last few hours.

“Th’ next time I forget to reconnect an important piece of ‘ardware, can you at least dump me on a beach?” She grumbled, her shivering fingers moving quickly to fix her mistake. It wasn’t a particularly hard task, but her frozen digits still managed to make it take three times as long as it needed to.

“Aight, you happy now?” She asked once everything was back in order. A beautifully warm gust of air blew through the flight deck in response, which the Doctor decided to take as an affirmative.

“Okay, so let’s try an intentional adventure this time.” It was a touch tricky to pilot the Tardis now, what with her smaller body shape. But the Doctor figured that just added a bit of fun to things, and she couldn’t help but laugh when once or twice she had to stretch to reach from lever to button in order to properly pilot the timeship.

“Aight, universe. Ready or not, ‘ere i come.”

It should have been lonely, being by herself again, and in some ways it was. There were times when the Doctor turned to talk about where she’d ended up and found only empty spaces. There was no one around to enjoy the magnificence of a triple solar eclipse, or to stare in awe at an entire city that drifted along the currents of their oceans and seas. There was no one to be surprisingly delighted at the taste of alien cuisine, or to stare in confused horror as the Doctor ate something truly bizarre (by their standards at least).

But at the same time, the chance to simply be , to discover who she was and how she felt and acted and thought, all without anyone around with preconceptions and ideas of what she should be? That was freeing beyond words.

She was the Doctor, and she could feel confident in what kind of Doctor that was.

There were also the memories, and the Doctor considered herself lucky that she had found out about that particular quirk of this life alone. It might have been a little embarrassing if it had come out while others were around.

Perhaps it was due to her brain chemistry, or it was because of being alone, or simply because she was a half step removed from the Time War, but she found herself reminiscing on the past far more than she remembered herself doing before.

More and more her old friends came to mind, as did misadventures from the Academy. Running through the fields along with her friends, breaking into secret facilities alongside Ace, stealing Ushas’ test answers (‘the Rani’ had always been a massive nerd, and had consistently done her work a week early whenever possible), staring down monsters alongside Jo, anything and everything just came to mind with only the smallest of prompting.

And what was worse was that she sometimes found herself talking about it without realising. One minute she was telling some rebels how to sneak past the security measures of the tyrant’s penthouse suite, and the next thing she knew she was mentioning that it would be easier than breaking into the teachers’ offices at the Academy.

She’d been right about infiltrating the penthouse of the richest man in New London being easier than getting into the offices of her old teachers, but that wasn’t the point.

The Doctor was now the type of person to make casual reference to her childhood, or to her old friends, and that was… well, that was certainly a Thing, and it was a Thing that she wasn’t sure how she felt about.

On the one hand, she was a pretty private person in her past lives, and she’d expected to still be so now.

On the other hand, it was nice to be surprised by how the memories came unbidden, to know that she truly hadn’t forgotten anyone after all this time.

In the end, she supposed it didn’t really matter how she felt about it. It was going to keep happening, so she would simply have to deal with it when she went back for Rose.

…which she really should do one of these days.

Eh, one more little adventure first.

“Gotta remember t’void those LINDA guys.” The Doctor muttered, taking off again.

‘One more little adventure adventure’ had turned into two, and then turned into seven. Her latest trip had been dealing with some of her fans (not that they realised who she was, thankfully) and an alien that wanted to absorb them all.

Luckily she was able to deal with the “Absorbaloff” before too many people died, which was nice, but the entire affair had put her in the mood for something relaxing. Not an adventure, just something like-

“A beach day!” And she knew just the place. “Surf and sun, ice cream, nice day out after all that!”

By the time she returned to the Powell Estate, exactly five weeks since she left, it had been closer to three months for the Doctor.

It wasn’t that she had been staying away, but she’d just… not rushed. The beauty of a time machine, tomorrow was whenever she said it was, as was next month for that matter.

Tardis repairs and maintenance, wandering distant bazaars, enjoying alien beaches, it all added up even if you ignored all the running down corridors, alien invasions, and other such shenanigans that she got involved in on a regular basis.

But, a few months on, she decided it was time to go back and face Rose Tyler. Maybe Rose would join the Tardis, maybe she’d decide that she simply couldn’t handle it. Whatever the case, the Doctor felt ready for it.

Yep, one hundred percent ready.

A couple months wasn’t a short time, well not for humans, but it wasn’t too long. 

For a Time Lord, standard human months may as well be hours…

But regardless, she was ready to face Rose head on. 

So why was she waiting behind the Tardis doors…

It was easy, exit The Tardis and walk up their flat and knock on the door, simple and easy.

…But she still couldn’t move.

She’d run through this scenario thousands of times during the last few months, this should have been a no brainer. But regardless of all the hypotheticals, the reality of doing it suddenly seemed so much more difficult.

As The Doctor’s hand hovered near The Tardis door, she was interrupted by a buzzing.

Well, not a buzzing but a vibrating from her denim vest’s left breast pocket, reaching inside she pulled out the vibrating object, her psychic paper. 

Flipping it open, her eyes narrowed in confusion as the message that appeared.

Please Come

.

New Earth

.

Ward 26

.

.

.

The Doctor weighed her options at that moment. 

One one hand, she could walk out the Tardis doors and reunite with Rose.

….Or she could investigate this strange and unexpected request. Personally contacting her via her psychic paper was a new one, she would admit, and curiosity was welling up inside over who was reaching out to her as she took another look at The Tardis doors.

The Doctor made her decision and turned back towards the flight deck. 

Chapter Text

The doors opened as the Doctor stepped out into the sunny atmosphere, pausing a moment to take in a deep breath of apple scented grass that lingered in the air, letting out a content exhale. 

“New Earth!” She declared to herself, smiling widely at the sight of the city.

Oh, it had been a while since she’d last been here. That had been during her Sixth body, if her memory held true. She’d stopped by for one festival or another, and had some absolutely wonderful baked goods while they were here. She could still remember the flakey puff pastry, the creamy fillings, the custards, and they even had nice fruit tarts.

Anything to wash the taste of Mel’s carrot juice from her palate was a grateful cleanser, though she doubted her Sixth body would have the same appreciation for treats and snacks as she did.

As she started making her way from the recreation of the Statue of Liberty - made of far more durable and impressive materials than the original - she found herself wondering if that bakery was still around. 

It had been… what was it? Only twenty years before, if her count was right. It very well could still be open, which would be a delightful treat after she sorted out whoever it was that was calling her to the hospital.

It was curious, her not knowing who was summoning her. The method they’d chosen spoke of a truly tremendous degree of psychic power, to reach across space and time on that scale just to send her a mysterious message.

Anyone that could do that would certainly be someone of great importance and power, and should have been more than capable of the time travel necessary to meet her in person. Or, given that they were apparently in a hospital, send someone in their stead.

Instead, it was sent to the psychic paper, which was a clever trick that the Doctor was certainly going to work out how to do. 

Eventually.

She actually hadn’t thought to check this body’s psychic potential, come to think of it. Some of her previous selves had been pretty impressive in that regard, as well as possessing a number of other unique tricks. Non-Gallifreyan species who knew of them often believed every regeneration was identical underneath and that the change was merely skin deep, but in truth a Time Lord’s regenerations were different on much more fundamental levels, their individual personality changes notwithstanding, their mental capacities and interfacing also could differ between bodies, as could their psychic shielding and strength. 

All in all, it was often a lottery, at least for Time lords lacking greater control and willful regenerative capabilities.

Her Eighth self’s highly attuned temporal senses, for example, was one such ability that she was reasonably sure she’d not gotten this time around, but she supposed that she should probably check for anything else.

Thoughts for later, perhaps.

As the Doctor boarded the bus that would take her to the ferry, she considered her choice of parking spot.

She could have landed in the city, or directly in the hospital ward itself if she had so desired. But if whoever she was coming to meet was strong enough to psychically reach her in the Twenty-First Century, then she wanted the Tardis out of the way, at least initially. 

She’d maybe go get the Old Girl if this proved to be a safe affair, but for now it was best not to put the Tardis into the hands of an unknown telepath and thus she was erring on the side of caution. 

Besides which, it offered her a wonderful chance to see the city as she rode in, to take in the sights. As she stared out the window of the bus, the Doctor saw parks and shopping plazas and- oh, that bakery she liked was still here! That was just wonderful!

And the smells! The smells! Ooh she found herself suppressing the urge to salivate. It had been weeks since she’d had some proper food.

Well, proper non-Tardis generated food. Not that the Old Girl was bad at generating and procuring decent food. But it was always different getting it fresh, market stalls, vendors, little kiosks or full blown restaurants, all offered not just delicious foods but the experience was part of the joys of eating out across different worlds.

She didn’t know what she wanted, maybe sweets? Pastries? Something savoury? She’d have plenty of time to choose later. 

She had a bit of a sweet tooth now, so maybe she’d get something to satiate that.

Regardless, she would certainly have to go and get something to eat later!

Eventually her thoughts were broken by the bus arriving at her stop, the sudden lurch of movement coming to a halt signalling they’d arrived, forcing her to dismount.

Stepping, she saw a short line for the hover ferry that would carry passengers across the bay to the Hospital, she could see it across the water, a tall towering structure that she couldn’t wait to explore.

Not the first thing that normally came to mind when thinking about a hospital.

She could have taken one of the shuttles that flew over the water and arrived at the top floor docking bay, but she felt more like taking a trip on the ferry today, the salty sea air was calling her. 

Stepping aboard, the Doctor quickly found a seat and upon the other passengers all being seated, they were off once more. The next few minutes were generally calm, a slightly more bumpy ride as the hover ferry bobbed along over the waves.

Five minutes was all it took before they arrived at the hospital dock, the passengers whom the Doctor assumed were all visiting friends or family of patients, disembarked alongside her as she took in the sight up close of the building, stuffing her hands in her vest pockets as she smiled. 

Well, no more waiting, it was time to find out what this was all about.

It was perhaps a little ironic for her to say given her chosen name, but the Doctor was not a fan of hospitals.

Considering she had died in one once before, she figured she was allowed the dislike.

But she marched on through the lobby nonetheless, chin high as she chased the memories of her near death experience to the darker corners of her mind where they belonged. She had important things to do today - presumably important at least - and she didn’t have the time to get lost in her own memories right now.

“Ward Twenty-Six, thanks.” She ordered the elevator once she was inside. The elevator moved upwards at a relaxed pace, the subtle sounds of the mechanisms helping ground her against her thoughts.

The automated disinfectant treatment also did a good job in giving her something else to think on.

She’d have to consider getting one of those for the Tardis, it was wonderful!

And the added blow dry function only enhanced the experience, though it wouldn’t be practical walking around a hospital soaking wet after all. Still, the warm air blowing around her in 360 degrees did elicit a few giggles. 

The Doctor was still smiling when she walked out of the elevator, mentally planning where she’d try to get an automated disinfection chamber installed on the Tardis. Near the flight deck, certainly, so that it could be easily used to clean off when coming back in from the outside, some people had door mats for their houses, but a disinfectant booth? Talk about next level practicality. 

Ooh, and she could have the disinfectant be scented! That way you’d be clean and smell nice!

Now, what scent would be best? Maybe pine? Nah, too ‘hospital-y’, so maybe something floral? Ooh, that could work! Maybe a flower scent from home would be nice, the Tardis could surely synthesise something for that.

…Although, she could definitely see the Old Girl pranking her and making her smell like rotten eggs if they were arguing, eau de skunk did not sound good. 

Also, the Tardis was definitely more playful since her regeneration, so maybe it wasn’t the wisest idea to tempt fate by giving the ship more ways to prank her. Even ignoring the occasional row the two of them had, the Tardis may decide to change the scent to something ‘funny’ just for a laugh.

Eh, either way, those were thoughts for later. For now, she had a summons to answer.

Walking along the halls, she stopped when she saw one of the Sisters of Plenitude. Quickly catching up to them, she greeted the veiled feline.

“Hi! ‘Ello! Sorry to bother you. I’m actually looking for someone, could you direct me to Ward Twenty-Six. I’m here visiting… well, not quite sure yet, but I know they’re in Ward Twenty-Six.” She explained. 

“Certainly, if you’ll just follow me, I can assist you.” The sister said, gesturing for the Doctor to follow her. 

“Right’o, lead the way.” the Doctor said, looping her thumbs into her skirt’s belt loops as she strolled along. 

It didn’t take long before they’d arrived at the Ward in question, a large open plan room with opaque curtains between the patients, only some of whom were in beds, while other patients were floating off the ground via anti-grav suspension systems.

“Nice place.” The Doctor said with a nod in the direction of the ward, she hadn’t visited the hospital in any of her previous visits to New New York, and despite still not liking being here or able to shake the lingering anxiety it induced, she could still admire the advancements objectively. 

…Though she hoped to avoid going anywhere near the morgue, no thank you.

“You’re doing well for yourselves, for the patients, I mean.” The Doctor commented as they walked through the ward, her eyes shifting to the various patients they passed. She paused as she noticed one in particular, a large bedridden man, visibly pained and uncomfortable as he was groaning.

“The Sisters of Plenitude take a lifelong vow to help and to mend.” The Sister explained, although the Doctor paid her little mind as she walked closer to the patient.

The rather stern looking bespectacled woman seemed to take affront to this as she turned to the Doctor.

“Excuse me!” she said, stepping towards her. “Members of the public may only gaze upon the Duke of Manhattan with written permission from the Senate of New New York.” 

‘Excuse me?’ The Doctor couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at that, briefly wondering how the Duke made any public appearances at all if that were the case, but she quickly cast the thought aside in favour of the more pressing matter.

“That’s Petrifold Regression, right?” The Doctor queried the man, ignoring the woman whom the Doctor assumed had her hair in too tight a bun due to her attitude.

Either that or she was just really enthusiastically into governmental red tape.

Regardless, the Doctor considered directing her to the Sisters of Plenitude for a relaxant. They had some rather nice relaxants in this era, didn’t they? Surely one of those could help her.

“I’m dying, my dear.” The clearly exhausted and pained Duke explained. “A lifetime of charity and abstinence and it ends like this.” 

“Any statements made by the Duke of Manhattan may not be made public without official clearance.” Uptight Hair Bun Lady was quick to inform the Doctor, who was really resisting the urge to roll her eyes at this point, the gravity of the Duke’s situation was the only thing stopping her. 

“...Frau Clovis.” The Duke said, suppressing a cough as he leaned forward in his bed, instantly drawing the woman’s attention as she moved to his side. 

The Doctor continued to examine him, the ashy grey coloration of his skin, almost rock like, and the laboured breathing, barely any major movement in his body. 

Even the leaning action seemed stiff and visibly painful.

“...I’m so weak.” The Duke uttered, before the now identified Frau Clovis turned back towards them.

“Sister Jatt, a little privacy, please.” She said sternly, to which the nun took heed of, continuing through the ward as the Doctor followed after another moment.

“He’ll be up and about in no time.” Sister Jatt informed, causing the Doctor’s eyes to narrow in confusion, but also out of speculation. 

“No he won’t.” She refuted, briefly turning back to look at the Duke. “Petrifold Regression is lethal .”

There wouldn’t be a viable cure for the next thousand years or so. And while time was rather mutable, and things were often discovered a bit earlier or later than her memories indicated, something so complex as the cure to Petrifold Regression being discovered an entire millennium was a bit further than she was willing to believe.

“Only way ‘e’ll be up an' about would be as a statue… Ooh, no, no shouldn’t have said that, sounds a bit rude, given the circumstances.” The Doctor said with a slight wince.

“Have faith in the Sisterhood.” Sister Jatt encouraged, before gesturing around them. “But you said you were here visiting someone, is there no one here you recognize?” she asked, before the Doctor glanced around. 

Lots of different kinds of people, and all very high profile by the looks of things, but no one immediately leapt out at her.

“It’s rather unusual to visit without knowing the patient.” She said, just as the Doctor’s eyes finally landed on someone familiar.

The only being in the ward she did recognize, and it caused her lips to turn up as a small smile graced her face.

“Actually, I think I’ve found him.” She said with a smile as she took in the sight of the Face of Boe situated at the end of the Ward, near a large window overlooking the bay. 

A nurse was beside his support tank, monitoring a series of intravenous bags.

The Face of Boe was something of a curiosity to the Doctor, admittedly. Because there hadn’t been a ‘Face of Boe’ before the Time War. That in and of itself wasn’t terribly unusual, big temporal events always caused big changes.

Drop a pebble in the water, it made waves.

Drop a meteor, tsunamis.

But the Face of Boe had existed for countless aeons, per the research she’d done on him, something which nearly certainly would never have been allowed under the Time lords. They did tend to get rather uppity about ‘immortals’ and the like, after all.

But the Time War was over, the Time lords gone, and now there was an apparently ageless head that had lived for billions of years. The Doctor couldn’t help but be curious about exactly which event had caused his existence in the Post-War universe, even if she admitted that she’d probably never know.

She’d only met him once in person, once before at the end of the Earth. But even during that meeting there had been… something there.

Something about the seemingly endless being that had struck a chord within her, a feeling of some kind of connection there. This call to come to the hospital only strengthened her thoughts on the matter. She may not have known him well, but there was obviously a connection, a history there yet to be unfolded.

And being a time traveller, it’s fairly likely she would meet him again in future, or in the past, and that could be why the Face of Boe had summoned her here.

Was she destined to meet him again in the past, or the future? 

Again, time travel made such things relative and flexible, as was her life and the norm for ones such as her.

“Novice Hame, If I may leave this young lady in your care.” Sister Jatt said as she approached the woman who was servicing the Face of Boe’s intravenous connections.

“Of course.” Novice Hame said with a nod while the Doctor stood closer to the tank, taking in the sight of the Face of Boe, his eyes were closed but his lips seemed to be almost mouthing silent words while his head bobbed slightly within the confines of the tank. 

Standing this close, and knowing to listen for it, the Doctor could faintly ‘feel’ the touch of a powerful telepath brushing against her mind. Not actively, but in that passive way that one could hear things despite not listening for them, soft and long lived tones brushing against her mind. 

“I’m afraid the Face of Boe is asleep.” Novice Hame said as the Doctor glanced her way momentarily before turning her attention back to the Face of Boe.

“It’s all he tends to do these days.” She said before turning to the Doctor. “Are you a friend?”

“We met on Platform One, seein’ the Earth out.” The Doctor replied softly. They’d not even talked much that day, had they? A few polite words, a brief conversation perhaps, but…

“What’s wrong with him?” She asked, taking note of the various bags of medical fluid being pumped into the tank.

“I’m so sorry, I thought you knew.” Novice Hame began, quietly. “The Face of Boe is dying.” 

‘Everything has its time, and everything dies.’

That was what she had said- well, what he had said, the last time they had met the Face of Boe, wasn’t it?

Everything died sooner or later. People, empires, stars and planets, even the universe itself wouldn't last forever. She supposed that even creatures that had lived for billions of years had to die eventually.

But still… it seemed almost surreal that a being who had lived for so long, seen so much, would be gone. Almost as if a fundamental aspect of reality was suddenly being wiped out.

If the Doctor had been a vainer person, or if she had been one of her more self-important incarnations, she may have likened herself in a similar fashion, but even with all of her years she didn’t compare to the Face of Boe. 

“What’s ‘e dying of?” She wondered, her words a little quieter than usual.

“Old age.” Novice Hame said evenly. “The one thing we can’t cure, I’m afraid.” 

“He’s so very old, some people say millions of years old. Although that’s impossible.” she said lightly, as if unsure of the statement’s reality. 

“Well, I dunno ‘bout that. I like impossible. Sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.” The Doctor shrugged, stepping a little closer to the glass.

“I’m here.” She greeted softly, placing a hand upon the glass. “I might look a bit different… or a lot different, but it’s me.” 

“It’s the Doctor…” 

Closing her eyes, she allowed her psychic barriers to open and could feel the sense of comfort, of familiarity and… happiness that was sent her way. 

The Face of Boe was asleep, but he knew she was here. And he was happy…

Novice Hame went back to observing his vitals, and the Doctor allowed her forehead to rest upon the glass, not speaking verbally, just allowing herself to connect on a deeper level with the ancient being as words weren’t necessary.

Hours had passed, though the Doctor hadn’t been counting down the time as she’d sat with the Face of Boe. Finally taking a break she’d gone to grab herself some water, along with one for Novice Hame, who to her credit had also never left the Face of Boe’s side the entire time she’d been there.

“Here, thought’cha could use a drink.” The Doctor said, offering her the cone shaped clear cup of water. 

“Thank you.” Novice Hame replied, accepting the cup. “But you didn’t have to.”

“You’re the one who’s working, gotta take a breather now an’ then.” The Doctor said, strolling over to the window and looking out across the bay.

“There’s not much to do.” Novice Hame said, taking a sip from the cup regardless. “Just keep up the intravenous feeds, and maintain his Support Tank’s smoke”

“And I suppose I’m company.” She added. “...I can hear him singing sometimes, in my mind.” she said, looking at the Doctor.

“Such old and ancient songs.” 

The Doctor looked at the still sleeping Face of Boe, the mental connection had dimmed but was still active as deeper sleep had overtaken him. 

“Am I the only visitor he’s had?” she asked, to which Novice Hame nodded almost regrettably.

“The rest of Boekind became extinct long ago. He’s the only one left.”

And didn’t the Doctor know just how that felt, again another connection she had with the elder being. A shared grief, a shared sadness…

The last of their respective kind’s.

Though unlike herself, she doubted the Face of Boe had such a troubled and complicated history with his people. Or maybe he did and they were simply too far in the annals of history long since past. 

But even if he did have issues with his lost people, she knew even then there were parts of him that would still long for them. Longing for home , the kind of home that could only be found amongst one's own kind, for better or for worse.

The Doctor had never felt particularly as if they were a part of Time lord society, at least the type the Council and the upper echelons had touted and expressed, having instead found a sense of freedom and relief upon travelling the cosmos, of traversing space and time and actually seeing the universe first hand, of getting her hands dirty and leaping into adventure and opportunity. 

But despite it all, despite losing her family and her home world to war and bloodshed, despite her people and her leaders having devolved into warmongers and killers...

Part of her still missed her home, the planet where she’d been born.

And as much as the Earth had become her defacto-adopted homeworld, and for all the love and familiarity she had with it, it was still lacking in fulfilling the hole left by Gallifrey, like sticking a square into a circular hole, it might fit, but there would always be gaps, missing pieces that would forever be left unfilled.

She loved the Earth, and she loved the humans that inhabited it. But Earth wasn’t Gallifrey, and humans weren’t Time lords.

No matter how much she had sometimes wished otherwise.

“Legend says that the Face of Boe has watched the universe grow old.” The nurse continued, oblivious to the Doctor’s melancholy thoughts, and causing the Time lord to turn away from the window to face her. “There's all sorts of superstitions around him.”

The Doctor couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at the words, wondering just what stories had sprung up about the Face of Boe. She’d found one or two when she had looked into the ancient face, of course, but she was still curious to hear more.

“One story says that just before his death, the Face of Boe will impart his great secret, that he will speak those words only to one like himself.” Oh, now that was properly mysterious, wasn’t it? Great secrets that only one other person could know, which could only be told on your deathbed? 

The Doctor couldn’t help but smile a bit at the idea of it.

“What’s that mean, you reckon?” Another of Boekind that had survived their extinction, perhaps?

“It's just a story.” Novice Hame shrugged.

“Oh, come on, you can’t just leave it there. ‘ow’s it end, this story?” The Doctor pushed. The Doctor had her fair share of ‘great secrets’ of course, you tended to pick them up when you lived as long as she did. So what did someone that lived for as long as the Face of Boe know?

“It's said he'll talk to a wanderer.” She relented, looking up from her drink to meet the Doctor’s eyes. “To one without a home. A lord who transcends Time itself.”

At this, the Doctor’s eyes immediately turned back to the Face of Boe, silence overtaking her as she watched him rest. Intrigue blending with an almost anxious feeling…

The Doctor didn’t know for certain the fable or legend was referring to her. 

But at the same time…

Well, she had been called to the apparent deathbed of the Face of Boe under rather mysterious circumstances.

“I’m sure you must be hungry, after all you’ve been here for hours. If you’d like there is a commissary downstairs, above the common area, two floors up from the reception.” Novice Hame said, breaking the Doctor’s train of thought as she looked up, expression lightening as she smiled. 

“Could do with a snack, yeah. I like snacks now, love ‘em.” She declared, before nodding in the direction of the Ward entrance. “Just ‘bove the common area, got it.” 

And then she was off, strolling back through the ward, thoughts of food thankfully coming forward in her mind and for now, abating the mystery and churning feeling in her stomach that had been stirred up by Novice Hame’s words. 

The Doctor seemed to be spending a lot of time on this visit not thinking about things, didn’t see?

She briefly glanced the way towards the Duke of Manhattan as she passed, who was still being attended to by Frau Clovis, giving him a gentle nod and a wave as she passed. 

Petrifold Regression was not something one just ‘got over’ at least in this time. But the Sisters had seemed too assured, like it wasn’t even a question…

The Doctor couldn’t shake that, but her stomach’s grumbling was taking precedence right now as she stepped back into the elevator.

“Commissary, please.” She said before the elevator began its descent. 

A moment passed before she was once again doused in the disinfectant, reminding her of her earlier thoughts on possible Tardis integration. 

The Doctor had squirrelled away to a table in the corner of the commissary, a large open planned room similar to the Wards. The cafeteria was in the centre while the seats and tables surrounded it in an oval setting.

The meals and snacks offered were free of charge, and the Doctor wasn’t ashamed to admit she had filled up an entire tray. Pudding, custard, and a pyramid of jelly had filled the tray before she’d tucked in.

They didn’t come in pyramids, but the Doctor had taken time to stack the various cubed jelly moulds into her own personal pyramid. 

Which had been quickly demolished in a display she hadn’t bothered to reign in. But it’s not her fault! Jelly was suddenly very nice, she couldn’t remember it being this nicer in her past bodies.

Maybe she did need to start carrying jelly babies again? They weren’t jelly per se, but a quick fix and a nice enough sweet in their own right. 

Scraping out the last remnants of custard from the last cup of it she’d had left on her tray, she saw two Sisters of Plenitude walk past, stopping near an empty table and sitting down.

The Doctor wasn’t eavesdropping , but she could clearly hear the tail end of their conversation.

And she hadn’t considered that turn of phrase just because they were cats!

…although, it was rather funny. Probably best not tell it to the catkind though, they might take offence.

“-still can’t seem to get her to calm down. We’ve treated the grazes and applied a medi-patch for the wound and concussion, and they will be healed in no time at all. However she keeps rambling and babbling on, but there’s no underlying issue we can see. It could be an emotional reaction to her injuries rather than the actual injuries themselves, I suppose. The gentleman who dropped her here said she’d been involved in some form of collision.”

“What is she saying exactly?” The other Sister asked.

“It’s the strangest thing, she keeps saying she’s ‘not from this time’. And looking at her outfit, I would almost believe it. She’s dressed in old pre-colonial clothing, like something out of the old Earth holo-vids… Twenty-First Century from memory? No! Twentieth, at least I think. Earth history of that period isn’t my strong suit. Anyway, the poor thing kept calling for a doctor. I told her we had plenty of nurses and medical staff here, but she kept refusing, rambling on about needing her doctor and that he could get her home.”

At this, the Doctor’s eyes narrowed. Wasn’t that curious?

It didn’t have to mean anything, of course. Twenty-First Century fashion often got brought by ‘retro fashion’ movements and the like, due to its historical importance to the human race. And a head injury could easily confuse someone to demand to see a doctor, and they could just have a personal physician that they were referring to.

But still…

Standing up and cleaning her hands off with a napkin, the Doctor walked over to the table and leaned in slightly.

“Hi, sorry to interrupt. I couldn’t help but over’earing.” She said as she glanced between the two sisters. “But this girl, I was wondering about what she said. Was she calling for ‘ a ’ doctor, or was she saying ‘ the ’ doctor?” 

The Sister who’d been speaking before, narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth for a few seconds, quietly contemplating before she uttered a response. “Oh…Um, I believe she kept saying ‘ the ’ doctor. It was all rather odd, but the young girl is clearly confused and suffering from-”

“Yeah, where is she?” The Doctor interrupted, curiosity now having grown into a need to know, a need to follow up on this.

There was someone here, wearing old Earth clothing, saying they were ‘not of this time’ and asking for ‘The Doctor’.

This was clearly directed at her. 

“Um, she’s down on the Common area, we allowed her to leave the Ward as she wasn’t required to rest, and she didn’t seem to be in danger of harming herself.” 

“Ta.” And with that the Doctor ducked back over to her own table, grabbed her tray in order to properly dispose of it, and then raced out of the room.

Rushing back to the elevator, the Doctor didn’t hesitate.

“Common Area.”

Once again, she was subjected to the disinfecting process but this time all the Doctor could think of was who was waiting down below.

Should she do this? It was clearly someone who knew her, but was it someone who knew her in the past? The future?

And this ‘gentleman’ who had dropped her off? A future or past body of hers? She didn’t remember ever dropping anyone off at this hospital, but that didn’t mean that she didn’t do it, it just meant that she had no memory of it, which didn’t strictly mean much of anything.

And who could it be? She had plenty of friends from the Twentieth Century, and plenty more that would dress like they were from there simply because they enjoyed the fashion.

The more she thought on it, the more contentious the situation became. But her curiosity was too great, after all if this was a companion or friend of a past or future version of herself, and he had dropped her off, then it was highly probable the person wouldn’t recognize the Doctor’s current body.

…Unless of course the person was a future companion of hers that had witnessed her current body regenerate. But again, the likelihood of that… Well it wasn’t impossible , but again the Doctor’s curiosity and need for answers was overshadowing possible concerns in regards to crossing her own time stream.

And even if ‘the gentleman’ had been her, she was here first!

Stepping out into the common area, running her fingers through her now once again dried hair and tucking it behind her ears, she looked around to see a host of rest areas spread about. Benches, sofas, holo pads with digi-magazines and news articles, an area in the far corner for younger children. 

It had an indoor rock garden, even! Very nice ambiance and a calming feel about it.

And while the Doctor would normally find it a very relaxing space, she was here on a mission, and as such had no time to enjoy the carefully designed patterns in the rock garden.

But as her eyes traversed across the room, she suddenly came to a stop.

She spotted her.

It took the Doctor only a few seconds to lay eyes on the girl in question. She’d not have been able to miss her even if she wanted to, with how well the Doctor had trained themselves to be aware of her. It was almost like her eyes were drawn to the girl like inbuilt trackers going off in her head.

 She felt her hearts pounding as her normally quite impressive brain caught up with who she was looking at.

‘Ace.’ She thought in amazement.

She looked exactly the same as when the Doctor had seen her last, back in her Seventh body.

And that wasn’t an exaggeration, she looked exactly the same. Same hair, same jacket, same… same everything . She looked as if she had stepped directly out of the Doctor’s own memories, not a single detail out of place.

From Ace’s perspective, this must have been either during that time or only shortly after.

The Doctor was conflicted, part of her wanted to back away slowly while Ace hadn’t noticed her.

And the other part wanted to run across the room and wrap her arms around the teen with glee.

…Ace wouldn’t recognize her, so the latter would no doubt be confusing and alarming. 

However her body seemed to move on its own, a decision was made before she could consciously decide what to do. Her legs made the journey across the room and the rest of her body was along for the ride. 

Ace was sitting on an extended sofa, arms crossed as one boot tapped on the ground aggressively, a visibly displeased expression on her face and a white medi-patch was visible on the left side of her head, held in place by some self degrading mesh bandages. 

“You’ll wear ‘em out if you keep doin’ that.” It was like hearing someone else speak, but with her own mouth. The words came before the Doctor had even realised that she was close enough to say anything, let alone think about what she would actually say.

“Heh?” Ace hummed, looking up as the Doctor stood a few feet from her. 

“Your boots.” The Doctor continued, nodding down towards them. “You’ll wear out the soles.”

Down below, in the depths of the hospital, long since abandoned and sectioned off was a private room that had been reactivated. 

The staff and those in charge being completely unaware of this of course. 

A lone pair of eyes…As that was some of the only features said person possessed, was focussed on a screen being held in front of her.

Or in front of her frame, rather.

Said eyes widened as she read the information presented to her.

“Is this accurate?!” She asked hastily.

“Yes, Mistress. The bio-data was scanned and uploaded into the hospital’s database, flagged per your instructions.”

“A human!”

“Pure blooded human, no mutations, imperfections, crossbreeding, or cyber enhancements.” her attendant listed off excitedly, picking up on his master’s emotions.

“Finally! After all this time, my plans can move forward! No longer stuck in this form, but to have a body all my own again. The beautiful Lady Cassandra restored to her full potential, ohhh this is almost too good to be true.” Proclaimed Lady Cassandra O'Brien.Δ17.

“I want eyes on her immediately! Access the Hospital’s security feed, I want her found, Chip! Then we just have to get her down here.” Cassandra demanded.

“Of course, Mistress.” Her assistant Chip replied, nodding as he went back to the computer terminal, intent on finding the surprising young human for his mistress.

She’d waited long enough afterall.

Ace couldn’t believe it!

…Well, she could . But she wasn’t happy about it, that’s for sure!

One minute she was walking down the street, minding her own business. Twentieth Century, Earth, England, London to be precise.

Next thing she knows, some bloke in a coat comes running along, barreling into her and bringing them both to the ground. Ace could still feel the impact in her bones as her head hit the pavement, though it only got worse as she was suddenly hit with a headache to end all headaches.

And her back! Well, her back and her other muscles suddenly felt like she’d run a marathon.

Her vision had been blurry, probably from her head injury, but she knew the moment she opened her eyes she was no longer in London anymore.

What happened next was another blur, she’d been whisked off to this hospital by Mister ‘Impatient’ who’d ran into her and somehow sent them barreling into the future. Personal time travel device, she hadn’t seen it but it must have been somewhere on his person.

She remembered the Profess-

…She remembered they’d been described as being an issue, and a pain to use. A fact she now knew was literal judging from the feeling she’d had upon her arrival.

Apparently the guy responsible for sending her here said he’d be back later today, and the staff weren’t willing to discharge her until he did. How he had conned that, she didn’t know, but she suspected that she would be rather cross when she found out.

Ace considered leaving anyway, ditching this joint and getting away from here. But she had no solid idea of what to do after she did, she didn’t have any means of getting home on her own.

She’d tried asking for the Professor, though that may have been due to the concussion that was now wearing off thanks to the patch they’d stuck on her head. For a brief moment she considered if the man who’d ran into her was the Professor in another of his bodies.

But… No…

It couldn’t have been him, he wouldn’t have used such a ‘crude, inefficient, imprecise, and remarkably dangerous ’ form of time travel for one thing. She could practically hear his Scottish tones rolling along with derision at the idea. 

And besides that, he didn’t want anything to do with her anyway, not anymore.

He’d made that very clear…

Anyway, Ace had never been to New Earth before, not this one at least. She and the Professor had passed it by on a luxury galactic cruise once, however, and that had been right about now from memory. So she was at least passingly familiar with the time and place, which she felt would help if she decided to stage a jailbreak.

If worse came to worst, she supposed that there were worse places to live out her life than New New York. She could probably find some kind of work while she sorted herself out, and it wouldn’t be the first time that she’d needed to make a life on an alien world far from home, and surely anything had to be better than Iceworld.

It would just be the first time that she didn’t have hope that the Professor would come for her, that was all.

Ace squeezed her eyes shut, she wasn’t going to cry! She’d done enough of that already… Crying wasn’t going to solve anything, it wasn’t going to get her out of this mess.

Bringing a hand up, she stubbornly rubbed at her eyes and let out a deep exhale, looking down towards the floor as she tried to distract herself. As her mind raced for something, anything to do, she began to tap her left boot on the floor, almost on reflex as her eyes darted back and forth.

Surely she could do something to pass the time while-

“You’ll wear ‘em out if you keep doin’ that.”

“Heh?” Ace muttered out, looking up at the sound of the voice to see a girl standing there.

She was younger than Ace by a few years, dressed in an outfit that looked pretty out of place in a New New York hospital.

Though so was she, so she couldn’t exactly talk. 

“Your boots.” The girl explained, nodding at Ace’s boots. “You’ll wear out the soles.”

Well, that was some freaky deja vu. How many times had the Professor said those words to her? Countless times, surely.

But it had always been in that strange way of his, as if he was amused and saying the words for the routine, rather than out of any actual care for her boots.

“...Just bored I guess.” Ace replied with a huff, pushing the coincidence aside.

“Yeah, I get it.” The girl said with a nod, looking around. “I’m not exactly a fan of hospitals personally, just… visitin’ a friend.” 

“So you’re not an inmate here?” She joked, getting a small smile from the girl who shook her head in amusement.

“Not unless I spontaneously come down with somethin’, though the way the Sister’s talk, anythin’ can be cured here.” 

Ace nodded, leaning back on the sofa as she looked around before meeting the girl’s gaze once again, deciding to try striking up conversation to help pass the time she nodded at her.

“So… is your mate alright?”

The girl didn’t nod, but looked down towards the floor for a few seconds before she answered. 

“He’s…He’s seen better days.” the girl said quietly, and Ace knew there was a lot behind that statement.

“Hope he gets better.” She said simply, knowing there wasn’t much more she could say, to which the girl nodded.

“Yeah, me too. He’s a tough ol’ head, been around a lot, I think he’s got more left in the tank…” She said before an amused smile split across her face as she suppressed a laugh. 

“Heh… tank.”

“...I’m Ace.” Because what else was she meant to say to that? On a normal day, Ace would like to think that she would have something supportive to say, or some clever comment to change the direction of the conversation. But today had not been a normal day, so she felt pretty justified in being little off her game.

Before she could offer any more words of comfort, the younger girl spoke up again. 

“Wanna go see the roof? There’s an observation area there where we can sit an’ look out over the bay. Bit of fresh air might do you some good?” 

Ace perked up at the suggestion. Anything would be better than being stuck in here smelling hospital disinfectant and being pestered by cat-people about her head injury.

“Sure, count me in!” She said enthusiastically, leaping to her feet. “We’ll just stop by the Ward I was in first, want to grab my bag. I’m not sticking ‘round here overnight.”

Ace didn’t know who this girl was, but she at least seemed to know what she was doing.

The Doctor had no idea what she was doing!

One minute she wasn’t sure how to approach Ace, now she was initiating further contact. 

Not that it was a bad thing! Quite the opposite, seeing Ace was an unexpected bonus to the day she was having.

But… Things hadn’t ended particularly ‘well’ between the two of them. It was her fault, or if she was being time spatially specific, her Seventh Self’s fault.

There was way too much to unpack there, and right now she didn’t feel like reminiscing on it. Instead focusing on the now, and right now Ace didn’t know who she was. After returning to Ward Twenty-Two where Ace had been situated earlier, she had retrieved her bag and the Doctor couldn’t help but grin at the sight of it.

Memories of Ace whipping out can’s of Nitro-9 to use in a quick pinch came to mind, she was certain the teen was packing at least one can in there now, if not more.

Honestly, she would probably be a little disappointed if Ace didn’t have any explosives on her at all.

The Sisters of Plenitude would probably be a bit unhappy knowing she was technically smuggling explosives into the hospital - assuming that the Doctor’s assumption was correct, at least - but she trusted Ace and knew the activators were safe… If no one pulled the lid’s off unknowingly, anyway.

They made one more stop before heading to the roof, the Doctor wanted to stop in and see the Face of Boe again before they head off. But what she found was shocking.

Well, shocking to her, Ace trailed beside her with confusion on her face, but the Doctor was too focused on the sight before her. 

The Duke of Manhattan was healed. More than that, his demeanour had done a complete reversal as he was now sitting up and happily toasting glasses of champagne with Frau Clovis, who looked slightly less uptight than before.

“Ah, it’s that girl again. She’s my good luck charm.” The Duke said, hoisting up his glass. “Come in, come in.” He greeted, warmly. “Don’t be shy.” 

The Doctor had a smile on her face, but her eyes kept switching between the now clearly healed man and the various intravenous drips hanging beside his bedside. 

Something was off about all of this. She knew it, as she’d said earlier the cure for Petrifold Regression was a thousand years away, and yet he had been healed!

There was something going on here that wasn’t adding up, and the Doctor suspected there was more to the Sister’s operation than simple healing and medical practices.

This was advancing beyond the capabilities and medical science of the era, which meant something dodgy was taking place behind closed doors. And she wouldn’t be able to let this go without investigating. 

Frau Clovis spoke up as the Doctor stepped closer. 

“Any friendship expressed by the Duke of Manhattan does not constitute a form of legal contract.” 

The Doctor spared a glance at the taller woman.

“Just a quick question; have you ever considered asking the Sister’s for something to maybe y’know, ‘chill out’... Do people still say that?” 

“Excuse me!?” Frau Clovis replied, her mouth gaping open slightly.

“Now see here, young lady-” She began only for the Duke to speak up.

“Winch me up!” He motioned to her sending the Doctor a ‘thumb’s up’ as he did, causing Frau Clovis to turn back to the Duke, but not before sending the Doctor a stern look, to which she merely responded with a tooth filled grin.

Was she cheeky now? She hadn’t spent too much time with people in the last two months, her few stop offs and adventures hadn’t provided much ‘down time’ like she was experiencing now, and instead a lot of fast paced interactions with people, running, jumping, hiding, more running and so on and so forth.

“Look at me! No sign of infection.” The Duke proclaimed motioning to himself, the previous stiff and painful movements a thing of the past, the grey and almost gravel like appearance of his skin replaced with an almost rosy redness in his cheeks.

…though that could be the champagne.

“Sparkling water, young miss?” A waiter appeared beside her, causing the Doctor to momentarily double take, looking at the serving tray before shaking her head.

“Ah, no thanks, still full on jelly.” She said before turning her attention back to the Duke, her eyes narrowing inquisitively.

“You had Petrifold Regression, right?”

Behind her, the Doctor heard Ace step a bit closer at the name of the disease, a soft hum of interest coming from the human.

“‘Had’ being the operative word.” the Duke replied. “Past tense, completely cured” he added gleefully.

And the Doctor didn’t blame him, knowing the condition and its symptoms. She would have said it was a one hundred percent assured death sentence in this day and age, but here he was, fully recovered.

Oh yeah, she was going to be investigating this before she left.

And unlike the Sisterhood of Plenitude, curiosity wasn’t going to kill her.

…And she was really thankful she didn’t say that outloud, as while she may have seemingly begun dropping puns in her new body, that one wasn’t particularly good humour wise, as well as the fact that her curiosity regularly got her into situations that threatened her wellbeing.

And also because that one was definitely offensive to catkind.

Cheeky was one thing, but she knew she wasn’t the type of person to go dropping xeno-racially charged humour on purpose. 

Accidental? Well… She’d said some things in her previous bodies to some alien races at times which had almost, and in some cases had, earned her previous bodies a slap in the chops due to ignorance. 

Six more so than most. 

She’d work on that, it wasn’t a good look on her at the best of times. Her Sixth Self got away with it mostly by virtue of being such a self centred git that he truly didn’t care what others thought of him, something she doubted her apparent youth would allow her to emulate.

Or, worst case, get her a smacked bottom.

She’d never live that down…

“But that’s impossible.” The Doctor said, knowing one of the Sisters of Plenitude was beside her, casting the statement out and hoping to get a clue from the elder catkind, whom she assumed was Matron Casp, having overheard Novice Hame mention her earlier.

“Primitive species would accuse us of magic, but it’s merely the tender application of science.” 

The Doctor wasn’t primitive, far from it, and she could practically hear the deception dripping from the elder catkind’s words.

“How on Earth did you cure him?” the Doctor asked, though she knew a straight answer was a long shot. 

“How on ‘New Earth’, you might say.” 

And now the Doctor had to fight against rolling her eyes at the pun. At least she had the decency to keep her terrible wordplay to herself.

Alright, time to try another avenue.

“Well, what’s in that solution?” The Doctor asked, nodding in the direction of the intravenous bags held up beside the Duke’s bed, she might have to snag a sample when no one was looking. 

“A simple remedy.” Matron Casp replied, far too casually for the Doctor’s liking. 

“...Then tell us what it is?” Ace chipped in, a nearly verbal glare in her voice.

The Doctor glanced to the side where Ace had now walked over closer, crossing her arms and raising a brow at the elder nun.

“After all, if it’s so simple, and ‘merely a simple remedy’ surely it’s not some big secret, right?” 

The Doctor couldn’t help the feeling of pride that surged up in her. Ace hadn’t been told anything clearly, and she was still catching up fast enough to realise that there was something sketchy going on here.

That was her Ace, wonderfully brilliant and sharp as a whip.

“I’m sorry children, but that is strictly kept under patient confidentiality.” Matron Casp replied, her expression turning firm as she tilted her head in the Doctor’s direction.

“I don’t believe we’ve been introduced. I am Matron Casp.” 

Confirming what the Doctor already knew, but it did also put her in a small bind as she saw the catkind looking at her expectantly. The Doctor was not trying to avoid Ace beside her either.

Definitely not…

Especially since she realised she hadn’t given Ace a name, nor had the teen asked, and now she felt like a deer in headlights.

Normally, she would have just given her name. But standing beside Ace, and still not wanting to reveal herself just yet, she fell back on an alias. 

Previously she had defaulted over the years to John Smith, it was simple, effective, and average. There were a lot of John Smith’s around, and even if it was remarkably average, it was an easily defendable name.

She suspected it might not be as incognito or defendable in her current body, so in that case…

“Jane.” The Doctor answered, her blank expression shifting into a lighter one. “And this is Ace.”

“Well, your concern is admirable, children. But I think you’ll find that we only have our patients' best interests at heart. We are the doctors here, and we strive to do our very best.”

‘Very best at being discreet and unhelpful.’ the Doctor thought to herself. 

Right now, she really wished she was taller. Not to say she would delight in using height based intimidation… but it was useful at times in getting people to be a bit more cooperative.

“Matron Casp.” Another Sister of Plenitude said as she approached. “You’re needed in Intensive Care.”

“If you would excuse me.” Matron Casp said, sending the Doctor a smile that she could feel the condescension rolling off her in waves, before she turned and left, leaving both the Doctor and Ace standing there and watching her leave.

Glancing to her side she could see Ace was giving the retreating Nun a narrow eyed look. Seems Ace had smelt something fishy, and-

No! The Doctor cut off that train of thought before she ventured into pun territory again.

The important thing was, Ace knew something was up too.

And… Well, that could be a problem.

Wonderfully brilliant and sharp as a whip, that was Ace. But she also had the drive and determination to get into nearly as much trouble as the Doctor themself. She’d want to be right in the thick of things, right on the front lines of whatever conspiracy was afoot in this hospital.

And if Ace was determined to dive head first into the danger, then that would put her in a prime position to find out that the Doctor was, well, the Doctor. The two of them hadn’t parted on the best of terms, actually on rather rubbish ones if she were honest, and the Doctor’s identity coming out would surely rip open old wounds for the both of them.

Maybe it would be better if she slipped away, did a bit of poking around by herself.

As the Doctor saw the two Sisters of Plenitude walk off towards the Ward’s exit, she focused on their retreating forms. It was times like this her physiological differences to humans came in handy, especially her greater senses, highly attuned hearing made it so easy to hear things you weren’t meant to.

“It’s happened again. One of the patients is conscious.”

“Well, we can’t have that.”

As they exited the Ward fully, neither catkind could see the Doctor’s eyes now narrowed intently on their backs.

Things had just grown from mysterious and suspicious, to something potentially worse.

And the Doctor wasn’t going to leave this hospital until she got to the truth of the matter. 

“So, I suppose we’re going to take a look at what’s in those bags, then?” Ace said, speaking up as the Doctor turned back to her, Ace was giving her a grin.

A small, mischievous grin that the Doctor had missed.

But it also heralded the potential trouble and danger Ace could find herself in. 

“...Y’know, it’s pro’ly none of our business.” The Doctor tried, hoping against hope that Ace would take the out when presented to her.

“Oh come off it, you’re just as intrigued as I am. And those cat’s are clearly up to something, you think this place is above board? There’s something going on here, something not right, I can feel it.” Ace said, firmly, her eyes traversing the room and taking in the various patients. 

“Well...You’re not wrong-” The Doctor began, only to let out a surprised huff as Ace put her arm around her and began leading her.

“Nope, I’m right. Now come on, let’s take a look around.” Ace declared, already walking over to a particular patient, a red skinned humanoid held up by anti-grav suspension.

The Doctor had no choice but to walk along with the taller girl, Ace gently guiding her about halfway along before she paused and looked down at the Doctor.

“And Jane? Don’t worry, I promise I’ll keep ya safe.” She quietly said, as if the words were only for the Doctor. “I won’t let anything happen to you, not while I’m here.”

“Now, let’s take a look at his chart.” Ace said, pulling the Doctor along to her chosen target and taking hold of a datapad, turning it on and accessing the patient’s information. “....Hm, something called Marconi’s Disease.”

“What?” The Doctor baulked, coming out of her thoughts. “...But that takes years to recover from.” 

“Heard of it?” Ace asked, turning to the Doctor, who reached into her vest pocket and pulled out a round pair of glasses, slipping them on and taking the datapad from Ace’s hand, she began to scroll through it.

“...This is impossible. Two days, he’s been ‘ere for two days and ‘e’s already in recovery?!” She muttered, looking at the available information before putting the datapad aside and staring up at the floating man.

“From the looks of it, they’ve invented some kinda cell-washing cascade.” The Doctor said, her eyes widening slightly. “..This is amazing, but-but this is a treatment they shouldn’t ‘ave…” she began before cutting herself off, not wanting to add a prospective date to the end of it, and thus raising Ace’s suspicion.

Thankfully, the teen seemed too caught up in the overall situation to notice. 

“If that doesn’t scream ‘unsanctioned medical testing’ I don’t know what does.” Ace said as she turned and led the Doctor across to another man, this one looked humanoid but his entire body was chalk white coloured.

“What if they’re testing illegal drugs, making their own batches or something, and the patients are the lab rats?” Ace queried, before the Doctor saw her glance at the bedridden man who gave them a look.

“... Kidding , of course, we’re just having a laugh.” Ace said before the Doctor discretely picked up the datapad and moved behind the opaque curtain separating his bed from the others and accessed it.

Ace was at her side a moment later. 

“What’s he got?”

“Pallidome Pancrosis.” The Doctor read, barely able to believe her eyes.

“I’ve heard of that… Isn’t that the one that’ll kill you in twelve minutes?” Ace asked, looking at the pad.

“In ten . But ‘cording to this, he’s fine.” the Doctor said, glancing around the room to the other various beds, wondering just how many different treatments alone were being used in this one room.

Not to mention the other floors and Wards.

This hospital could house hundreds of patients at a time, more if they were really pushed. How many of them were recovering from otherwise lethal conditions? How many miracle recoveries had this hospital seen?

“Right, we have to do a little snoopin’ around.” Ace said, causing the Doctor to turn to her before she slipped the datapad back near the patient’s bed.

“Snoopin’ around?” the Doctor repeated, a vague hope that Ace would listen to reason, heed the danger ahead, and decide to do literally anything else. “That could get us caught.” 

Ace merely turned to her with a grin. “Not if we’re sneaky, it won’t.” 

The Doctor couldn’t suppress the smile that Ace’s words conjured up, even though she knew it wasn’t right to be encouraging her. But at the same time, she couldn’t help but feel happy, and a sense of pride that even unaware of her actual identity and presence, Ace was still intent on discovering what the truth of the matter at hand was.

And the fact it was to do with medicine and patient treatment, and the nurses were clearly hiding something shady going on.

That was a danger that could affect the entire city, any potential patient and person off the street could fall victim to… well, whatever was going on here. If the Sisters of Plenitude were conducting dangerous and illegal medical experiments and practices, it was only a matter of time before someone got hurt, or died.

They could be on the precipice of a global disaster. If whatever they were doing went wrong, then the consequences could impact the entire planet.

And that was assuming that no one that had ever gone to this hospital had never left the planet.

“Come on, let’s get a move on.” Ace said, linking her right hand with the Doctor’s left and taking off towards the exit.

They weren’t running, but they had a definite hop in their step as the Doctor found herself squeezing Ace’s hand just a little bit tighter. 

Now, Ace wasn’t an idiot, she knew that dragging a kid into this wasn’t the smartest thing in the world.

But something about running off with Jane’s hand in hers just felt right .

So yeah, she was being a bit reckless, but she wasn’t going to be stupid . If this little snooping session started turning hairy, then she knew what she would do.

If it was dangerous, she’d get Jane out of the way. Send her off to safety, to go and fetch the cops or something like that.

If it was just disapproving cat nurses, then Ace would take the blame for it. She’d say that she pressured the kid into doing this, that it was all her fault.

Hopefully nothing bad would happen, and they’d find some conveniently located evidence to turn over to the authorities about whatever was happening here. But if push came to shove…

Well, Ace had a few canisters of Nitro-9 in her bag for emergencies, so there was always that option.

The Professor had never particularly approved of her explosives, but she supposed that the Professor wasn’t here , now was he? And if she had to blow a few things up to save some lives, to save Jane’s life?

She’d blown things up for less noble causes.

They’d found their way to a terminal after the Doctor had ‘suggested’ they could use it to narrow down where to look, and upon finding one had brought up a layout and map of the building which was used as a directory for patients.

As the two looked through it, Ace was the first to speak up.

“Hold on, that can’t be right?”

“What is it?” the Doctor asked, while side eyeing Ace. 

‘Come on Ace, what do you see?’ The Doctor silently asked, watching the girl work.

“What is something all hospitals have?” Ace asked, looking at the Doctor expectantly.

“Um… A little shop?” the Doctor replied, she already had spotted what Ace was talking about, but again to keep her cover, she was playing dumb.

“...Well, ok you’re not wrong. Well, not completely right, not every hospital has one. But what I mean is, the one thing every hospital has is an Intensive Care Unit.” Ace said before pointing at the outlined map on the terminal screen.

“So where is it?”

‘That’a girl, Ace.’

“Do they need an Intensive Care Unit?” The Doctor asked aloud, pushing a little more. “They’ve people in the regular Wards that should’a been dead in minutes. If they can do that, what would be intensive ?”

“But it couldn’t have always been like this. There would have had to have been an Intensive Care Unit somewhere along the line. And that cat from before clearly said the Matron was needed there, so where is it?” Ace insisted, eyes darting around the map as if she had just missed an entire wing of the hospital. 

“And if these cats are brewing up their own medicine, what better place to do it than an abandoned section of the hospital, no one’s looking for it or needing it, perfect hiding place.” Ace surmised. 

‘That’s it, exactly!’ The Doctor thought happily, ecstatic at Ace putting the clues together so quickly. 

“And since every floor going up seems to be accounted for… then the best place to start would be at the bottom.” Ace decided, standing a little taller with her declaration.

The Doctor silently nodded, there were other avenues she could look into via the terminal with her sonic, but right now she was accepting Ace taking the lead and interested in where her insight would lead. And she could always do her own additional scans and comb through another terminal later if need be. 

They made their way to an elevator and Ace ordered the elevator to take them to the ground floor, where they’d get off there and look for a service entrance that would lead them below to the basement and sub-levels.

At least that was the plan, a plan which began to unravel once they reached the ground floor.

And then kept going down!

“Uh, is this supposed to happen?” The Doctor asked, half playing up the role of ‘aloof tag along’ while internally she was looking at the elevator walls and surroundings, looking for a camera or surveillance devices. 

Was someone pulling the strings? Definitely, but if they were onto them, why lead them exactly where they planned to go anyway?

Unless it was on purpose, which likely meant a trap. 

“Well… damn.” Ace sighed, interlocking her fingers and stretching her arms out with a series of pops and cracks. “Stay near me, okay Jane? Whatever happens next, you stay right next to me.”

“Okay… D’ya think it’ll be dangerous?” The Doctor asked, putting on her best nervous voice.

“I’ll look after you, just stay close, listen to what I tell you. And everything’ll be fine.” Ace assured her as the elevator door opened, revealing a dimly lit hallway which had three diverging corridors up ahead.

The Doctor walked behind Ace, who had once again fully taken command and was cautiously making her way up towards the diverging paths. They paused when they came to the crossroads, looking down each of the dimly lit passageways.

“Which one should we-” The Doctor began before as if by command, the right corridor’s door lit up, old and unused machinery came alive once again as the door groaned and spluttered before opening in a poor attempt at ‘automation’.

But it opened in the end, and both Ace and the Doctor shared a look.

“I guess someone made the choice for us.” Ace said, narrowing her eyes she turned back towards the now opened corridor, looking down into the dark as one of Ace’s hands drifted into the bag at her side. There was little to be seen further down, and only a few flickering lights near the entrance.

“...Jane, I think you should go back to the elevator, I’m getting a bad feeling about this. Go back and-”

“What? No! I’m not leavin’ you down here all alone!” the Doctor protested, genuine concern and denial coming to the forefront, she didn’t need to mask or pretend with this sentiment.

“Jane, listen. I need you to go back into the elevator, and-” Ace was cut off as the Doctor took a step closer.

“No! I meant what I said, I’m not leavin’ you, Ace. If you’re goin’ down there, so am I.” the Doctor declared firmly, not budging an inch as Ace stared at her for several seconds, seemingly trying to out-stare her before letting out a frustrated sigh.

“Okay, fine . But remember what I said about staying close and listening to what I say.”

“Yeah?”

“Well that’s doubled now, got it?” Ace asked, to which the Doctor merely nodded. “And if I tell you to run, you run, alright?”

“I’m good at runnin’.” The Doctor promised, before Ace placed her bag down on the ground, reaching into it and pulling out an almost comically long torch, turning it on and shining it down the now opened corridor.

Silently the two began to move once again, as Ace put her backpack on and the Doctor returned to her side.

“Chip, you idiot! You opened the wrong one!” Cassandra exclaimed, admonishing the grown-clone who was frantically typing into the computer terminal. “They were supposed to go down the left corridor, not that one! You’ve gone and ruined everything!”

“I’m sorry, Mistress. The old systems in that section are faulty, the signals got crossed and-”

“I don’t want your excuses! I want solutions! Is there an alternate route from there?” she asked, being able to do nothing more than watch as Chip brought up an old layout schematic.

“...There is good news, Mistress. That corridor’s schematics do show some of the old labs and units loop back around, which would bring them back to where we need them to be.”

“....Why do I get the feeling you’re about to ruin the mood, Chip?”

The force-grown clone nervously swallowed as he turned back towards Cassandra.

“....Well, it’s just that-”

“Out with it!” Cassandra exclaimed, causing the clone to jump slightly before he finally replied.

“...They would be heading into its section, M’lady.” 

If Cassandra had hands right now, they would be clenched into exasperated fists of anger, ones she would use to smack the force grown clone into next week. As it where she could do little more than twitch her eyes and curl her lips up into a snarl.

So close to achieving what she wanted.

What she needed ! And now her plans were in jeopardy. 

“Chip! You had better hope they survive, because if they’re torn apart by that creature, you’ll be its next course!”

The Doctor was walking beside Ace, her eyes inspecting every inch of their surroundings as she kept up the pace alongside her. They had walked down the corridor and into a laboratory, or the start of one. This was a completely closed off facility from the looks of it, multiple labs and levels all underground, long since abandoned.

Mildew and mould were aplenty, covering sections of the floor, walls and ceiling and some leaks had clearly occurred in some places due to the damp squelching their respective boots made on the ground in section.

Ace’s torch was being put to good use, as they walked into another labspace, this one containing diagnostic equipment. Some of which looked high tech and nothing like they would have encountered in the 20th or 21st century, while some looked like older technology aesthetically, but the Doctor knew to be more advanced in function.

The row of microscopes for instance, looked like ones they would have seen in a much older hospital, but the Doctor knew could perform deeper and much higher quality magnification scans and log data wirelessly with external computer systems, saving time on individual notes and observations.

Walking away from Ace, who was inspecting a cabinet full of jars containing dark green fluid. The Doctor made her way to a seemingly flat section of wall, marked only with a long dark line going from the ceiling to the floor, one which had a handle attachment just about hand height with a circular button on it.

After giving it a quick tug before realising it wasn’t budging, she reached into her vest pocket and retrieved her sonic, glancing once again back at Ace who now had opened the cabinet and was inspecting one of the jars.

She discreetly aimed the sonic at the button on the wall and pressed the sonic’s activator, as she did she let out a few coughs, loud enough to blanket the sound of the sonic. 

“Are you all right?” Ace asked, just as the Doctor slipped her sonic back into her pocket.

“Y-Yeah, just a bit of dust over here is all.” She said just as the lights suddenly began to flicker on and she slid her hand into the handle, this time the wall gave a hiss and the section moved outward several inches.

“Oh wow, this opened up!” She said, putting on a surprised tone as she looked at the flickering lights in the ceiling. “And the lights came back on… Well, almost all the way.” 

“Hold on! Don’t open it yet, it might be dangerous.” Ace admonished, rushing over and putting a hand on the Doctor’s chest, moving her back from the wall.

“...How long should we wait?” The Doctor asked, raising a brow and getting a look from Ace.

“There could’ve been anything behind this wall, security measures, poison gas…booby traps.” Ace argued, though her tone wavered a bit at the end.

“...Booby traps?” She checked, raising an eyebrow. It was possible, she supposed, but the Doctor didn’t really see why anyone would bother laying booby traps in an area that was clearly abandoned.

“You never know!” Ace exclaimed lightly, before glancing back at the wall, putting her own hand on the handle and pulling the opened section to the right, sliding it open and revealing the previously hidden room.

The light’s continued to flicker as the ‘secret room’ was revealed to contain another terminal, though this one was not connected to the wall, but a larger workbench. The wall behind it had a large collection of rectangular nodules. 

“A private server.” The Doctor remarked, eyes moving to take it all in. “With individual data banks.”

“Someone clearly wanted to keep this hush hush, self contained and off the grid.” Ace said as the Doctor walked up to the terminal, inspecting it and pressing the command keys on the workbench only to get no response.

“Nothing, hmmm, maybe the power’s not connected, or could be damaged. But it should have a backup, if I could get into it, might be able to get it goin’ again.” The Doctor said, leaning down towards the floor and running her fingers along the panel going along the workbench’s bottom.

Now, If she could get Ace to go look for some ‘tools’ she could use the sonic to unlock the panel and then claim she managed to pry it loose, that way-

“Here, try this.” Ace said, having taken off her backpack and pulling out a flat head screwdriver.

“...You carry a screwdriver around with you?” She checked, feeling oddly… touched? Embarrassed? There was some kind of emotion there, about Ace having a screwdriver, and the Doctor found herself pushing down a blush at the thought of why Ace might carry a screwdriver.

“Sure, never know when you’ll need one.” Ace explained, as the Doctor took it slowly from her and began working it underneath the panel’s crease.

“You sure you know what you’re doin’?” Ace asked, kneeling down beside her.

“Sure, ’m a bit of a techie, love tinkerin’.” the Doctor explained, which wasn’t a lie. Her smaller form in this life was even a boon towards the tinkering, able to better get into some of the nooks and crannies in the Tardis’ machinery that she’d been neglecting for far too long.

She was also thankful for the degraded state and weathering effects the room had obviously sustained, even being sealed, it was clear these lower levels were suffering from years of abandonment and lack of maintenance, factoring in that there had been obvious leaks, moisture and varying air pressure that had eroded and weathered the hardware.

Hopefully the electronics had survived, and it was just the casing that was in such a state.

What did the Sisters of Plenitude do to these lower levels? It was possible, even probable that they were using the lower abandoned levels as a refuge for industrial, medical, and other waste and run-off which had affected and leached into various parts of the underground infrastructure.

“Aaaaand there!” The Doctor announced as she wrenched the panel off, revealing a series of wires and internal connections that were surprisingly well kept, a contrast to the outer rooms they’d come thorough.

“Right’o, now jus’ let me get in ‘ere.” She said as the top half of her body went inside the now open terminal, searching through it for a moment before her arm came back out and blindly reached around.

“Can I borrow your torch?” She asked, continuing to blindly reach for a moment before Ace passed it to her.

“Ta.” She thanked as she brought the torch down and could now see properly. “Now then, where are you?” She questioned as her eyes darted around before she spotted what she was looking for.

“There you are.” The Doctor muttered as she manoeuvred around, placing the end of the torch in her mouth, an act which was a bit uncomfortable given the long length of it. It didn’t help that she had to reach out with both hands and disconnect a coupling from the power source, which clearly was burnt out. Once that was done however, it was simply an act of plugging the coupling into the backup power source which was located beside it.

“‘ere ‘ee ‘oh.” the Doctor said, around the torch as she began to slide out of the terminal, removing the torch as she stood up. 

Doing the polite thing and wiping the now wet end on her t-shirt before offering it back to Ace and trying once again to activate the terminal. A low humming sound filled the room before the terminal lit up, the various data banks that filled the wall behind it also lit up, blinking red and green as the system booted up.

“Now we can get some answers.” Ace declared as the screen lit up, coming to watch over the Doctor’s shoulder.

“Let’s hope so.” The Doctor said as she began accessing the database, mildly surprised that there wasn’t even a password required for any of it. Not that it would have stopped her, but the lack of security measures was unexpected.

“Right, let’s see…” She muttered as she immediately went for the files, opening up the history and logs.

“Ok, accessing the data, starting with the oldest first.” She said as she opened up a file and scanned across it.

“Human colonisation continued… Numbers exceeding projected parameters…” The Doctor read out. 

“Exceeding projected parameters?” Ace queried, blinking. “What…they didn’t expect that many humans to come here?”

“Refugee crisis, whichever way you spin it, humans came ‘ere in droves. Not all of ‘em mind’cha, there’s a lot a’ colonies out there-” the Doctor began before clearing her throat.

“At least, that’s what they taught us in school.” She tapered off, a tad awkwardly. 

“I thought that there weren’t any humans left, though?” Ace wondered, confusion clear in her voice.

“Oh… I guess it depends on your perspective. I mean, I don’t consider human variants and off-shoot humanoid species d’rived from ‘em to be differen’. But, there’s people who have… let’s say, highly opinionated views on it.”

“Bigots?” Ace said with a huff.

“...Yeah.”

“Seems some things never change.” Ace replied, her tone gaining an edge to it as the Doctor considered speaking up, before deciding it best to turn her attention back to the file.

“...census taken of biological and physiological conditions… pre-existing medical treatments unable to be engineered for human species compatibility…” The Doctor read as she continued to scroll down the file.

“Makes sense. A world where catkind is the predominant species, next minute humans turn up with differin’ biology… Be like a doctor tryin’ to operate on a tree… or, well not’a tree but you get the idea.” the Doctor declared as she continued reading.

“Cooperation with human medical stuff provin’ insufficient…. refugees spreadin’ non-terrestrial diseases, no known cures… Terrestrial diseases mutatin’ within human hosts…” She said as she narrowed her eyes.

“Wait, so the humans brought in sicknesses the cats hadn’t any cures for… And diseases they had here-” Ace began to understand.

“Mutated inside the ‘uman hosts, blimey… that wouldn’t have been a pleasant time to be around.” the Doctor said in realisation, trying to imagine it. A disaster of epic proportions, a global crisis.

She began to scroll down at a faster rate. 

“...Beginnin’ phase one of experimental treatment production… New medicinal solution testin’… P’rameters, clone meat cultivation trials…”

“Clone meat?” Ace said, her eyes narrowing. 

“Think of it like synthetic flesh, good for pr’sthetics, it’s near enough like actual muscle tissue, but for this… Not really, it might sim’late flesh well enough on a basic level, but biological function is another thin’.” The Doctor absently explained, becoming too engrossed in her reading.

“Alright let’s try the next few logs.” She said as she went back to the data entries and scrolled down a bit, before choosing a later entry.

“....Exhausted clone meet trials, cultivation failure… No success… Movin’ to phase two, bio-cattle cultivation trial to proceed…” 

“I know about that.” Ace said as she looked over the Doctor’s shoulder. “It’s like synthetic meat programmed to simulate other meat, right? Like you can make it into a steak, or chicken, or whatever else you want.”

“Exactly, they seem to have been tryin’ to program it into simulatin' and replicatin’ human flesh… That’s not exactly illegal… but it’s frowned upon, bio-cattle isn’t meant for that, it’s ‘spose to serve as a replacement food substitute for beings on planets were the local meat may not be compatible with their diets or individual systems. It’s ‘specially popular on worlds with a lotta interstellar tourism.”

“Yeah, I had synth chicken once on a trip… tasted like turkey.” Ace muttered, bringing a small smile to the Doctor’s face.

“That ‘appens, dependin’ on the manufacturer the taste and authenticity can vary.” The Doctor said as she glanced at Ace before turning back to the terminal.

She remembered the particular lunch Ace was talking about, she’d been amused to see her face scrunch up and comment on the taste being off when she’d had a synth-chicken sandwich, momentarily asking if she was going to get food poisoning.

‘Are you sure ‘bout this professor, this doesn’t taste like chicken?’ 

‘Cheap manufacturin’ Ace, happens almost everywhere. Wherever there is a diverse group of people, workforces, and economic freedom, you’ll find people doin’ things on the cheap. Even on Earth’s there’s non branded products that aren’t as good as the real thing.’

“Yeah but…this is space, in the future!’

‘Yes, it’s surprising how many things stay the same. Universal constants you can find everywhere’

‘Well I’ll tell you this much, they can forget desert. If this is what the chicken is like, I don’t want to think about what the rice pudding tastes like.’

“Jane?”

“Huh? Ah right, sorry.” The Doctor said, blinking as she realised she’d gotten lost momentarily, old memories having resurfaced.

“Ok, what happened next…” the Doctor continued, looking through the rest of the file. She had a bad feeling about how this story ended, and it wasn’t a pretty thought. Maybe she would be wrong, and the hospital was just being tight lipped about exactly how they’d revolutionised medicine.

She doubted it, but just once it would be nice if it wasn’t an evil plot. She had a bakery she wanted to visit sometime today, after all, and if she had to stay and fight against evil they’d be shut by the time she was done.

“And… Perspective outlook not promisin’, results too slow to yield effective treatments… Quarantine declared en masse… Urgent measures needed… Seekin’ fresh samples…”

“Samples?” Ace asked, leaning over closer to read for herself.

“....’ealthy human DNA acquired…. Various subjects for expanded parameters…. Beginnin’ new experimental phase… Due to local and intergalactic legalities all future testin’ in new phases…” the Doctor read before pausing.

“....Must be kept confidential… Utmost secrecy required… Governmental bodies must not be made aware…”

The two were silent for what seemed like minutes as they mulled over the new information, Ace was the one to finally break the silence.

“Well, this proves they were doing something they knew was illegal, and probably still are. Even if they aren’t, surely they could be arrested for past crimes right?”

Well, there went the Doctor’s planned visit to the bakery.

Maybe she could take Ace to it when they wrapped up whatever was going on here, that’d be nice. Nostalgic even.

“...Some crimes, yeah, dependin’ on the statutes of limitations. But somethin’ tells me this wasn’t something they simply shelved.” She said before she exited back into the main folder.

She needed to know more, needed to get to the more recent entries, or the most recent before these labs had been abandoned.

There were several reasons they could have abandoned the laboratories. It was possible they’d given up on the research and found alternatives… unlikely, very unlikely.

Another potential explanation was external help and other races had come along and provided assistance. Again, an unlikely outcome.

Or another was one that the Doctor was beginning to piece together. That they’d found a superior and effective method to get the results they needed, and thus these testing labs were no longer required…

In which case, they were in the wrong place. They needed to look for wherever the current ‘cures’ and medical solutions were being manufactured, which was almost definitely still on site. There was very little chance they’d go through all this, and then move their operation off site when they needed to keep it under wraps to avoid any legal issues or suspicion.

That, and they likely needed their production kept in house for fast turnover and delivery to their patients.

That must have been their Intensive Care Unit, their drug factory that was off the books and kept under the radar from every conceivable authority. 

The patient with Pallidome Pancrosis came to mind, couldn’t have someone like him waiting for hours or more for a cure when he’d be dead in ten minutes otherwise.

The Doctor was kicking herself for not using her sonic earlier to access the terminal’s building schematics, a deeper scan revealing the subframe, bypassing the installation protocol would have given her the location.

May have even accessed the area from the terminal itself, afterall the Sisters of Plenitude obviously had hidden access areas to their Intensive Care Unit, and using the terminals, or specific terminals to do so would be the most likely. 

Hiding their secret entrances in plain sight.

They had gathered evidence, and information of course, but they had gone about it the convoluted way in hindsight. They were getting the ‘how’ and the ‘ why’ while the actual physical evidence, aside from the data banks, was all likely upstairs.

Or more upstairs then they currently were, the hospital’s sublevels and basements were quite extensive, they were near the ‘lowest point’ and it showed. They needed to get back upstairs, quickly.

“Right, one last look.” The Doctor said as she accessed the most recent file, opening it quickly and scrolling through it.

“Final phase results… All tested p’rameters providin’ positive results… Human patient trials showin’ zero failure rate… Proceedin’ to move forward with increased production…” The Doctor read while narrowing her eyes.

“Increased production of what -No! No No!” She began before suddenly exclaiming at the screen suddenly began to flicker before going dark.

“No! Come on!” She exclaimed, kneeling down and seeing sparks coming from the back up power source, it too having burned out and malfunctioned just as she was about to find out perhaps the most important detail.

“Urghh!” She groaned out, slamming a hand against the terminal.

“It’s alright, Jane. We learned enough, least enough to keep looking upstairs, we know for a fact they’re hiding something big, now we just have to find out exactly what that is.” Ace said, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Ace was right of course, but it still annoyed the Doctor that she had missed out on a key detail.

She just had to get distracted by thinking about the bakery! Why did she have to have such a fixation on snacks in this body!

…A snack would probably calm her nerves however-

No! No. Investigation now, snacking later.

If she could stomach it, that is. This whole conspiracy had the trappings of something she was beginning to believe would turn her appetite for days, if not longer.

“Come on, let’s keep going. There’s gotta be a way back around, or another elevator.” Ace said as she guided the Doctor out of the terminal room.

“I’d take some stairs at this point, but it’d probably take half a day to get back up to the ground floor.” Ace joked as they continued through the lab into the next connected room, shooting a smile down at the Doctor.

The Doctor meanwhile was silently following along, her mouth taking a rest as her brain was working overtime.

She was beginning to form some possible theories, and none of them were good…

They had been walking for almost twenty minutes since leaving the terminal room, Ace had mostly been doing the talking as they searched for a way back to the upper levels.

Jane had been pretty quiet, though Ace didn’t blame her, walking through the dark decrepit facilities was enough to give anyone the creeps she thought.

…And it was admittingly making her a bit on edge. It wasn’t like she hadn’t seen her fair share of frightening things, or been in enough scary or life threatening situations.

But being in a scary situation was one thing.

Being in a lingering, tense and eerie situation like this? Wandering around a dark underground laboratory and series of corridors with little to no idea where you were going? Only the sound of their boots on the floor, the occasional dripping of water, or the rusty and creaking doors they had to pry open, twice now by hand, to continue ahead?

Yeah, Ace wasn’t exactly feeling chipper.

But she had to put on a brave face, for Jane at least. She couldn’t let the younger girl see her getting disturbed, that would just frighten her more.

And she already seemed a bit spooked, she’d barely said a word since they’d left the terminal room.

They came to a stop at a lab which had a large glass window overlooking some kind of chamber, the window was covered in dirt and mould, which was no surprise at this point. 

Ace looked around the room, and could see there was another control panel near the window, walking over to it she inspected the various buttons, and a small screen and terminal above it. It was different from the previous ones, the location and placement of it near the window, and the large button and lever controls made her believe it was a control panel, not an access terminal or database.

This controlled something…

But what?

Whatever this room was, they couldn’t go back, this was the only way through. 

“We need to go through there.” She said, nodding in the direction of the large rounded door in the right hand corner of the room, beside the window. It was different from the previous doors, reinforced and with painted lines on the bottom and top.

She’d seen doors like that before, they were used for sealing and airlocks. 

“I wonder…” She whispered to herself, looking through the window, and trying to wipe away the grime, only to succeed on her side, the other side remaining just as filthy. Because of course, nothing could be easy while they were sneaking around in the abandoned sublevels of a hospital, could it?

“We’ll need to get this terminal powered up if we’re gonna go through that door. Think you can give it a go like the last one?” Ace asked, causing Jane to look up from where she’d been standing, eyes facing the floor.

“Hm? Oh! Yeah, I can try.” Jane said as she perked up, walking over to the control panels and once again accepting the offered screwdriver.

Ace had been right, it was a handy tool to carry around.

It took a minute, reconnecting the similarly burned out and rotted power source to the backup before Jane announced it was done. She proceeded to power it on, and the room thankfully lit up with less flickering lights this time.

“Now to open the access door, simple enough.” Jane said as she walked over to the sealed door and hit the conveniently placed red button on the wall beside it.

Ace moved to her side as the door began to open up, groaning lightly from disuse before a sudden spark erupted from the interior lining of the door.

Instantly she moved a hand in front of Jane and pushed her back as the door sparked again and groaned before it froze, leaving only a two foot gap from the floor.

They both stared at the gap before meeting each other's gaze.

“Well, at least we can get through.” Ace said after a moment, trying to sound optimistic. “But better be quick, we don’t know if this door’ll hold.” 

Jane nodded silently and they both got on the floor, Ace shoved her backpack through first before sliding under on her back in what she was sure looked like the world’s lamest limbo move, followed by Jane as the two now stood on the other side of the the window, revealing the chamber in full.

It was circular in design, with a walkway that extended out from the observation room they’d come from, which led across to a railing. Ace walked over and looked down over the edge, seeing that it separated them from a large pit thay Ace could see the bottom off, but not clearly.

Only that it was some kind of rounded metal ‘eye’ made up of segmented pieces.

Glancing to the left, her eyes lit up upon seeing an access door, which thankfully had manual access. It was still obviously sealed, but at least they wouldn’t need power to get it open.

“There we go! That’s our way out.” Ace said as she turned to Jane, who had resumed looking down at the floor as she had before.

Ace’s expression dropped as she saw her drooped posture.

This was obviously too much for her. Again Ace was kicking herself for letting her come along. She should have insisted that Jane stay by the elevator, or Ace herself could have stayed and waited for it to come back online, or she could have tried using the emergency protocols to call for help.

…That is if whoever had lured them down here hadn’t disabled the emergency protocols.

But still, she likely would have been safer.

Ace let out a sigh, walking back towards Jane but letting her have her space. Taking off her backpack, she put it down and leaned back against the railing.

She needed to say something, bit of encouragement or something to lift her spirits up. But what could she-

‘Creeeeek’

“What-” Ace said, aloud in confusion before the origin of the noise became apparent. 

Namely the section of railing she was leaning against suddenly came loose, the rusted top railing giving way as Ace fell back.

“Arrrghhhh!” She screamed as her body was taken by gravity and her legs tripped over the lower rail.

“ACE!”

The Doctor had turned to Ace the second she heard the telltale sound of shifting rusted metal, just in time to see the railing give way. Ace’s upper body fell back, before tripping over the bottom rail as she screamed.

Time stood still as the Doctor moved.

She leapt, crossing the distance in a second and grabbing onto the one part of Ace that she could: her ankles.

Ace’s body slammed against the wall of the chamber, causing her to let out a cry as the Doctor let out a huff, having been winded by the sudden landing.

Thank you Respiratory Bypass.

“Ace! Hold on!” The Doctor exclaimed, straining not to be dragged over as well.

“I should be telling you that!” Ace cried out, her body dangling upside down as the Doctor tried to pull her up, to gain some form of purchase that she could use to manoeuvre her further up at least till she could hook her calves onto the walkway. If she could do that, the Doctor could support her legs so she could bend up and then pull her the rest of the way up.

If she’d been in an adult or older body, this wouldn’t have been a problem.

She’d have more than enough strength to hoist Ace up with no problem in her current position. But unfortunately, her younger body lacked the strength.

Gallifreyan adults tended to be a bit stronger than baseline unaltered humans of the same build, their physiological differences granted them a slightly above average level of strength by nature of their density and muscular composition they achieved in adulthood.

But Gallifreyan children and teens?

The difference was nearly nonexistent until their late teens, so the Doctor was just as strong as a normal human of the same age and build as she looked.

Durability wise? She’d still survive a fall from this height, even if it would hurt something awful in comparison to an adult Time lord. 

But in terms of lifting Ace up?

That was another matter entirely.

‘Stupid! Skinny! Noodle Arms!’ The Doctor internally swore, desperately trying to hold on.

Her attention however was suddenly distracted by the sudden appearance of five fast moving shapes that fell down from above, and the sound of them impacting against the chamber’s bottom, causing the Doctor to look up and see the top of the chamber above through the ceiling.

…Far above.

Looking back down, her eyes narrowed as she looked down to the floor down below and her eyes widened in shock.

“What… What was that!?” Ace asked, still dangling.

“...I know what they use this chamber for… The observation deck isn’t in operation, but this still is.” The Doctor uttered quietly.

It all made sense…

The files, the tests, the medicine, where it had all been heading.

Her mind having been putting the puzzle together, she’d been nearing completion, just lacking the final few pieces.

Pieces that had just fallen before her.

“Is that… Are they…” Ace began slowly, the Doctor didn’t need to see her face to know she too was horrified.

“...Say hello to the medicine farm, the cultivation method for their ‘simple remedies’ ...” The Doctor spat out, disgust clear in her tone.

Disgust and the kindling of rage beginning to stoke within her tone.

She was going to get out of here, she was going to find where these people were being held, and she was going to stop this whole horrific experiment before the day was over!

And those responsible were going to pay for their crimes.

The Doctor shut her eyes, the last sight of the bodies that lay still at the bottom of the chamber however were seared into her mind, their ragdoll appearances and spread out limbs imprinted in her head.

‘I’m sorry…’ She internally apologised, emotion bleeding through onto her face as her expression twitched and shifted, a snarl fighting its way into her lips as rage and grief came forth in equal measure as her eyes grew moist. 

‘...I’m sorry I wasn’t here sooner.’

The Doctor’s grip hadn’t wavered even as her arms were beginning to feel the strain, she tried to slip her right leg up, if she could up on one knee she could use the added purchase to help pull Ace up.

“Just hold on, Ace!” 

She tried, but only managed to budge her leg slightly, not nearly enough for what she had to do.

If only it were reversed, Ace would be strong enough to pull her up! 

However both the Doctor and Ace went still at another sound coming from down below at the chamber’s bottom.

Looking down, the Doctor’s eyes widened as she saw the segmented sections of the circular floor begin to open, a low whirring sound filling the area as a mixture of orange and blue began to emerge from beneath the teeth.

Realisation struck as the Doctor understood, this wasn’t a garbage chute.

It was an incinerator!

“Hold on Ace! I’m gonna get you out of there.” The Doctor said, pulling at her ankles trying desperately to gain some leverage, but her entire body lying flat on the ground, while Ace’s weight was pulling her upper body down gave her little wiggle room.

She heard Ace let out a shout as hot air had begun to rise up from the bottom of the chamber, the incinerator powering and causing the Doctor’s attention to shift down to the still opening heat vents.

“....Jane-” Ace began, only for the Doctor to cut her off, still trying to pull her up even a little bit. She could do this, she could do this. She had to.

“Don’t worry Ace, just… just look at me! Don’ look down, look at me!” The Doctor pleaded, grunting as she managed to move back slightly, though this barely gained Ace any elevation, it was enough for the Doctor’s right knee to slip further down, if she could just push herself up enough.

Finally!

“I-I’m slipping!” Ace cried out, causing the Doctor to squeeze her ankles tighter in her grip. She was certain Ace was going to have bruises at this point, but bruised legs would be better than being burned alive!

“No, you’re not! I’ve got’cha, Ace!” 

‘And I won’t let you go.’

She shouldn’t have ever let her go.

Right here and now, once again facing death and danger and the frighteningly real chance that she might lose Ace in the next few seconds, the Doctor couldn’t help but be reminded of the times both she and Ace had faced both in the past. 

Reminded of all the good times… and the bad.

And she was reminded of how she’d seen this amazing, smart, funny, kind, and wonderful girl prove time and time again just how capable and worthy she was.

How Ace had looked at her like she’d arranged the constellations themselves in the sky, how she, or more accurately her Seventh self, had become such a fixture in Ace’s life and had given her things no one else had.

And her eyes squeezed shut as she remembered how she’d manipulated her, how she’d lied to her, how she’d subjected her to her Seventh’s selves machinations.

She hadn’t liked-No! She hadn’t loved Ace any less, but her Seventh self had come part and parcel with a lot of behaviour that the Doctor looked back on with concern and disapproval.

And also shame…

Ace hadn’t deserved the ‘trials’ and games she’d put her through in that body. No, she deserved so much more, someone better than who she had been! 

She may not have been able to go back and change her own history, but if they got out of this. The Doctor swore she would make amends, she would apologise to Ace for her shortcomings.

And most of all, she would apologise for having kicked her out of the Tardis the way she had…

“Jane just-just let me go!” 

“What!?” The Doctor cried out, her eyes shooting open as Ace’s head was now upturned towards her, she could see her trembling form, her fists clenched.

She could see the fear in her eyes!

“No! I’m not-”

“You can’t pull me up and this thing’s about to go off! Just let me go! Save yourself-”

“Don’t be-”

“Don’t be stupid, Ace!” An older male’s voice echoed through her head.

“Don’t talk like that!” The Doctor said, focussing on Ace, but in the corner of her eyes she could see the orange and blue colouring from below growing more intense, feel the sharper heat hitting her face from the air.

“Either you let me go, or we both wind up getting burned! I..I  don’t want to die…” Ace admitted, her voice choking up as the Doctor could see her eyes shining with quickly forming tears.

Once again reminding her how young Ace truly was.

“But I don’t want you to die with me! One of us can still walk away from this! So… So just let me fall and get out of here!” Ace cried out, tears building in her eyes.

“You’ve got your whole life ahead of you!” Ace screamed as she shut her eyes.

“So do you!” The Doctor replied sternly, pushing herself further as she gained another inch, her knee was scraping along the hard metal walkway, the unprotected bit of flesh not getting much leeway, but what she was achieving she was going to fight for!

Just a little more!

“No I don’t!” Ace cried, her eyes still clenched shut as her chest let loose a sob. “...I don’t have no one, no family, no home! I’ve never done anything right, everything I did try and do I only screwed up! That’s all I am! One big, massive mistake!”

“...why would you think that?” The Doctor muttered, her own eyes blinking rapidly as the surrounding danger momentarily faded as she and Ace became the only two things in the room. “You’re wonderful!”

“...No one’s ever told me any different… And the one person… I messed it up, just like everything else… I don’t have anything left! I’ve got nothing to give… Just let me go, Jane. No one’s gonna miss a waste of space like me…”

And that was the last word she was going to put up with listening to.

She wasn’t going to tolerate one more lie coming out of Ace’s mouth, because that’s what they were!

Lies! 

How could this brilliant, amazing, wonderful child think so little of herself, whoever made her…

…Oh.

And once again the world stopped.

And the Doctor’s blood ran cold as the realisation swept over her.

So cold not even the rising heat from the incinerator could ever hope to melt the ice that filled her veins.

Her eyes clenched shut as her hearts did the same.

It was her fault…

She may not have planted the seeds of depreciation and sabotage within Ace’s mind. But she knew she was the one who had tended to them, and finally made them bear fruit.

She’d kicked her out, sent her away, a lonely girl who had no one, and who’d chased after every scrap of approval, every ounce of praise and validation her Seventh self cared to give.

Been shown the infinite mysteries of the cosmos, the wonders of time and space and made to feel like she had a place in it all.

A place with him…

And then he… and then she had ripped it all away from her. 

‘It was for her own good.’ The memory of an accented voice came, unbidden.

‘She didn’t have any place, nor could have had any place in what was brewing on the horizon… It was a kindness more than anything.’ The memory-voice continued, his voice firm.

“Shut up!” The Doctor shouted in response, gritting her teeth as she tugged as hard as she could on Ace’s legs. “Just shut up! ”

“Look at me!” She ground out, turning a determined glare onto Ace. “Look at me!”

“Jane-”

“DOROTHY!” 

And as if she’d pressed some hidden button or remote, Ace’s eyes shot open, staring up at her in shock, her body going almost limper than it was in her grip.

“Dorothy Gale McShane, don’t you dare ever say those words in front of me again!” The Doctor ordered, managing to get the two another inch further back.

“Do you hear me! Don’t you EVER-” The Doctor screamed, pushing herself more, and more, and more!

Her muscles straining, her joints protesting, her skin digging into the metal grating below, but it didn’t matter. She’d bruise her skin, tear her muscles, break her bones, shed her blood if she had to!

She’d give up this life, this new life of hers, she’d cut this life short so soon after she’d been born, right here and now in this dark, depressing pit! 

If it meant Ace Mcshane would live another second.

“DON’T. YOU. EVER. SAY. THAT. AGAIN! ” The Doctor screamed out as she pushed herself up, and up! And up some more, until she was on her knees, and then with her hearts beating, the heat and sound of the incinerator reaching its final stage before ignition, she pushed herself again!

The burn that spread throughout her body only gave her the necessary encouragement for what came next as in a heaving motion, she took Ace’s full body weight, her right foot coming up in a split second and finding purchase.

And then with a scream, she tore Ace up out of the pit.

The teen’s body may as well have been a helium balloon in that moment, as the Doctor wrenched her around and aided by the momentum, the two flew across the walkway, crashing down as the Doctor made sure Ace landed first.

The Doctor wrapped her arms around Ace, shielding her just as a burst of flame shot up from the ignition chamber, travelling up and through the ceiling vent above them.

She could feel the scorching, ash producing heat going past so close and at such speed, but she continued to hold onto Ace as it flew upwards like a fiery tornado.

After several seconds of this that seemed to stretch out far longer than it seemed in reality, the flames receded. The Doctor didn’t relinquish her hold on Ace however, merely remaining there like that for a few moments more, clutching the teen tightly in her arms. 

Both of them took deep breaths as the oxygen level returned to normal inside the chamber.

When they finally separated, the Doctor rolled over onto her back as Ace did the same, the smell of ozone, sweat, heated denim and Ace’s familiar shampoo she’d clearly put in her hair earlier today that was now blended with hints of ‘char grill’ filled their immediate area.

They both stared at the ceiling, chests rising and falling in increasingly slower beats. 

It was official.

It had been before, but this event, combined with San Francisco made it doubly so.

The Doctor hated hospitals!

And yes! Anyone who wanted to point out the irony of that statement was more than welcome too. She’d let them have it at this point!

Hospitals were the worst!  

As Ace continued catching her breath, the adrenaline and fear still coursed through her body as it struggled to catch up and accept the fact she was no longer in mortal peril. But amidst a whirlwind of thoughts, one in particular came to the forefront of her mind.

Jane had called her by her name . 

Her real name, well at least the one written on her birth certificate. The name she never liked, and instead dropped in favour of a name of her own choosing, one that was more her . 

And yet Jane had known, not just that but had known her full name. 

Dorothy Gale Mcshane.

Yeah, she’d received more than her fair share of teasing and bullying in school over that one.

But it didn’t make sense, there was no way Jane could have known that. She was pretty sure the kid wasn’t psychic or possessed any mental abilities like she’d heard about and come across once or twice when she’d been travelling.

She looked like a normal, everyday human. A ‘plain Jane’ as it were, well except for her outfit of course, she had a pretty out there dress sense, especially for the ‘future’ they were in.

Future to Ace, but present to Jane. 

Her clothes looked relatively ancient, like somethin from Ace’s own time or near about.

…But that couldn’t be right.

Right?

She must have just been really into retro fashion…

Fashion that in this time would only be found in museum displays. As one Cat Nurse had commented on while trying to make pleasant conversation upon looking over Ace’s head.

Ace’s eyes began to knit together slowly, clues and little hints she hadn’t perceived as clues or little hints were beginning to fall into line.

Old differences and familiar habits that were displayed, subtle little things she had simply glossed over or not paid attention to were now replaying in her head.

The fact a child had so easily figured out something was similar to Ace, how she’d pressed the issue, not backed down and simply accepted the Cat’s word for it. How she’d so quickly agreed to come along and investigate, curiosity and a drive for the truth being on display.

Not even chickening out when they’d arrived at the basement.

 And then her words…

Ace remembered how she’d spoken while they had been inspecting the lab’s terminal, the tone she used, the little tangents she went off on inbetween her inspecting of the files. 

…That familiar, oh so familiar lecturing tone that seemed far too out of place with a kid her age.

And then the words she’d yelled at Ace when she’d been dangling there, and the look in her eyes…

Her eyes…

How had Ace been so blind? It had been staring her right in the face and she hadn’t even suspected!

The girl was wearing question marks for Pete’s sake! What kind of weirdo actually wore questions marks so blatantly and casually except for-

And then as if on cue, her thoughts were interrupted and her face was being grabbed, a hand either side forcing her eye to eye with- with-

How had she not seen how old those eyes were? The age and wisdom hidden behind the youthful exterior and grinning teeth.

How had she missed everything that screamed that this was- that ‘Jane’ was-

“Don’t you ever say that you are a mistake, Ace!” She was ordered, the words hissed over clenched teeth. 

“Don’t you ever say that you are a waste of space! Not to me, never to me!”

It was, wasn’t it? It had to be.

She didn’t know how or why or what was going on anymore, but somehow ‘Jane’ was-

“...Professor?”

Chapter Text

“...Professor?”

The word was uttered so softly as Ace stared at her. The Doctor could only stare back into those eyes, her hands still resting on either side of Ace’s face as her eyes stared at her with an almost desperate gleam to them.

Slowly, the Doctor lowered her hands as she finally looked away from Ace, her own gaze momentarily dropping to the metal walkway they were sitting on before she looked at her once more.

“... ‘Ello, Ace.”

Part of her had known this was going to happen. While she had kept up the pretence of an alias around her, she knew someway Ace was going to discover the truth. It had been inevitable.

Either she’d be forced to reveal herself if the situation had gotten too dangerous. if Ace had been threatened or they’d found themselves in some sort of death trap, then the Doctor would have thrown away the disguise in a second.

Which in a way, she supposed that she had.

Or Ace would have figured it out, the Doctor had realised earlier she may have slipped up a bit when she’d been reading the Sisters of Plenitude’s files, gotten too engrossed and fell back into her familiar mental and verbal pacing as she’d studied their research notes.

Ace wasn’t stupid, far from it.

She may not have picked up on it immediately, but she knew something like that would be a clue she wouldn't overlook if she began to put the pieces together.

And it seemed she had done just that, but the Doctor didn’t regret doing what she had done. Even if revealing herself to Ace unintentionally had given up her anonymity, using her full birth name like that, it had been done in a moment of strength that had ultimately saved her life.

The Doctor had meant what she’d been thinking earlier, she wouldn’t have hesitated to put her life on the line for Ace, or even to give it. A stupid false identity was nothing.

Letting out a sigh, she shifted her legs around and stood up, stretching sore limbs out a bit as she did.

“Come on, Ace.” The Doctor tiredly said as she continued along the walkway towards the access door.

“...What?” Ace asked aloud, causing the Doctor to pause and glance back at her, seeing Ace’s body twisted around towards her, a look of disbelief on her face.

She wanted to talk, the Doctor knew that. But she couldn’t, not here, not in this room, not after what had happened, after what she’d seen.

If she leaned over the railing to look down the bottom of the chamber, she’d see nothing left over from the five bodies that had been unceremoniously dropped from the floors far above. But the image of them would still be there.

And right now, the Doctor didn’t want any more reminders of what they’d just seen or experienced than she was forced to.

“Look, I- …I know you want-” The Doctor began, before taking a breath. “I know we need to talk, but can we please just move on’a the next room… or two, I just… we should…” 

Her eyes narrowed a little as she realised that she was stumbling with her words, her tongue feeling heavy and awkward in her mouth.

Since when did she fumble over her words like that? At least not in this kind of scenario. She was the Doctor , she’d toppled empires in six words, she’d dethroned dictators with her silver tongue. Speaking well was what she did .

But…

Something was wrong, her hands were shaking but she wasn’t cold, breath was hitching in her throat but her airways were clear, she could feel her skin growing clammy which honestly was the only sensible reaction after being near an open incinerator ventilation shaft.

Was it always this hard to breathe? She took it back about her airway being clear as she began to take in faster breaths.

Was there an issue with her Respiratory Bypass? 

Why couldn’t she focus on anything! Her eyes kept shifting around and she wasn’t able to stop-

“Professor?” Ace spoke again, causing the Doctor to look up as she snapped out of…

Well, whatever that was.

She still felt clammy, but looking at Ace and the expression on her face seemed to bring her some sense of clarity.

Ace was looking at her with concern, and somehow had stood up?

When did she stand up? 

“...Let’s go, I… Let’s just get outta here.” the Doctor said, hastily wiping her hands on her skirt as she saw Ace approaching her slowly. Turning her back to her, the Doctor walked over to the access door, pulling the lever handle on the wall, a small hiss of air was heard as the seal on the door released.

Looking at the circular hatch, she took note of the mould and somewhat rusted appearance and decided to forego attempting it by hand. She paused for a moment as she reached for the sonic on her inside vest pocket, pressing the hand against her left heart.

Beating up a storm, but slowly it was beginning to return to a normal pace, as was the right one when she checked it as well.

‘Right, so it wasn’t a heart attack… That’s one good thing’

Or two, if she was being more precise.

Aiming her sonic at the circular latch, she pressed the activator and after a moment of groaning metal, the hatch began to turn counter clockwise, rotating until it came to a halt and the Doctor repocketed her sonic.

“Come on, we should be able to find our way back to the main corridors through ‘ere, might take a bit of walking again, but this’ll bring us back to where we came in.” She said, beckoning over her shoulder to Ace as she pulled the latch with a heave, the airlock seal having released before and done its job separating the door enough so that even with its subpar maintenance, the Doctor was able to open it on her own.

She didn’t feel like being touched right now anyway, and if Ace had tried to help her open the latch…

Why didn’t she feel like making skin contact with anyone?

Something was wrong, something was very, very wrong…

Ten minutes and two laboratory spaces later, they finally entered and sat down in what they had come to discover was some form of break room.

It was almost laughable if their situation hadn’t been so morbidly sickening.

The Catkind had set up a break room in the presence and origin of their inhumane and horrific experiments.

The Doctor had taken up a seat across from Ace on an old and overly dusty sofa, having regretted sitting down so quickly upon experiencing the plume that had been practically exhaled up from the cushion beneath her.

Ace had done the smart thing and sat on a metal chair instead, taking off her backpack and sitting opposite the Doctor, now they were face to face, no pretence or hidden identities between them.

Just an old mouldy coffee table.

“...aight, ask away.” The Doctor opened, coughing a bit from the dust that had bombarded her, trying to wave the cloud away from her face.

“Ask away?” Ace spoke up, her eyes knitting together as she looked at the Doctor incredulously.

“Ask away? What kind of question is that?”

“...One for you to ask whatever questions you ‘ave on your mind, Ace.” The Doctor responded back, a tired edge to her voice.

‘Honestly, can’t you grasp the-’ 

No! She wasn’t going to think like that, Ace was obviously processing a lot, and after almost dying back in the incinerator chamber. 

And it wasn’t lost on the Doctor that the errant thought had a distinctly familiar Scottish droll in its ‘voice’.

Shutting her eyes for a moment she took a breath and exhaled.

She wasn’t that person anymore.

…She hadn’t been him for a long time now.

She opened her eyes to see Ace still hadn’t said anything, she was just staring at her expectantly. So after a few more seconds of silence, the Doctor broke it first.

“Aight, I’ll go first.” She declared before leaning forward slightly on the sofa.

“I’ve changed.” She begun, gesturing to herself. 

‘I died…’

“Obviously, I mean you can see that-”

“Is this the one after…” Ace began before the words seemed to die out in her throat, as if she was afraid to say them, or just couldn’t bring herself to say it. 

The Doctor knew what she meant however and answered anyway. 

“No… it's a few on from ‘im with the hat an’ umbrella.” She confessed, looking down at her boots.

“I reckon’ it’s an improvement.” The Doctor remarked as she smoothed down her denim vest. “Improved fashion sense, at least.”

Ace didn’t respond immediately, didn’t say anything but simply nod as her eyes continued to stare at the Doctor.

But there wasn’t any speculation behind her gaze, no questioning of her validity or if she was telling the truth.

Ace believed it was her, without visible proof or witnessing the change or needing to be convinced beyond what she’d deduced earlier. 

She accepted she was the same person.

She knew who she was. 

“...How long’s it been since you…changed?” Ace asked quietly, breaking her own silent streak.

“This time?” The Doctor checked, looking up briefly. “Little under three months, Tardis and relative time combined. Spent most o’ m’days fixing up the Old Girl, did a few quick little stops ‘ere and there but… I wasn’t ‘xactly up to… Well, I was still getting the ‘ang of the new me.”

Ace again lapsed into silence, a small nod all she gave the Doctor.

She wanted her to speak up, to say something, to tell her about what she’d been doing. But at the same time, the Doctor didn’t want to push her, or feel like she wasn’t able to contribute at her own pace.

“...You’re still-”

“How long…” Ace began, cutting her off and fulfilling the Doctor’s wishes, albeit by cutting her own words off.

“How long has it been since we… since you… How long?” Ace said, fumbling over her own words before she fixed her gaze on the Doctor.

“...bit ‘ard to say, really. Got tricky to count in the middle, even for me.” 

That was the Last Great Time War for you. And honestly, not entirely being sure how long it technically lasted was the least of its impacts on her life.

“There was a lot going on, you could say.” The Doctor said quietly. “I was… busy.”

“Alright then, a rough estimate.” Ace requested, a touch firmer.

“Couple’a centuries, definitely know that for sure.” She said, licking her lips. When had they gotten so dry?

“Centuries…” Ace whispered, and the Doctor could hear the shock in her voice. “...It’s been that long?”

The Doctor could only nod, what else was she going to do? But Ace’s question inspired one of the Doctor’s own, as she took in the sight of Ace sitting there.

‘...Like no time had passed.’

“And you?” The Doctor wondered, looking up for a moment to ask. “...‘ow long’s it been on your end? A year, or-”

“A year?!” Ace exclaimed lightly, actually letting out a scoff as she stared at the Doctor with the same incredulous look from earlier. 

“...I mean, you don’t look much different. I was just assumin’.” The Doctor defended her estimate, before Ace shook her head, again looking away from her, but keeping her eyes fixed on the sofa the Doctor was on.

“Professor, it’s been two weeks since I last saw you…” Ace replied, almost muttering her words out so quietly, the Doctor’s own heartbeats almost drowned them out, her eyes widened as she realised her former estimate had been correct.

‘She looked exactly the same.’ that’s what she’d thought earlier upon seeing her in the Common Area, like no time had passed.

And for Ace, it hadn’t…

She’d spent centuries between her past few lives, and the memories and experience to show for it. 

But for Ace? It had been only two weeks!?

Two weeks from her perspective when the Doctor, or her Seventh Self, had sent her back to Perivale.

“...oh.”

“Yeah, ‘oh’.” Ace uttered back, still not meeting her gaze.

Once again the silence stretched out between them, and the Doctor found her gaze drawn to her bootlaces while she waited for one of them to break the silence.

Give her a political assassination plot, an army of Cyberman, a bio weapon gone rogue, give her danger and desperation, mind bending challenges, impossible odds.

Give her a summer camp missing a canoe!

Anything but trying to figure out what to say right now!

“...” The Doctor opened her mouth again, but no words came out. She simply wound up closing her lips, her gaze shifting away as she examined the details of the worn down break room before Ace finally spoke up, sparing the Doctor from needing to find the strength to end the silence. 

“Why did you lie?” She demanded, her voice shaking slightly. “After everything, after how it all ended, you come back into my life and you lied about who you are! Why?!”

“...s’not an easy answer.” The Doctor muttered, tracing patterns in the dust with her eyes.

“Oh? No clever things to say, is that it? You can talk your way into or outta almost anything, get people to do whatever you want when it suits you. But now you can’t answer a simple question!” Ace exclaimed, her eyes now ablaze as she leaned further across the coffee table.

She was angry, and the Doctor understood why.

But at the same time-

“I didn’t get you to do anythin’, Ace. You came down ‘ere of your own free will. I told you to leave it alone, but you marched down ‘ere anyway.” The Doctor refuted, looking up to point a finger Ace’s way as she spoke.

“Of course I wasn’t gonna leave it alone! People are in danger, this is a hospital ! They’re supposed to be helping people, not… not doing what we saw down there!-”

Burned bodies.

Fire and smoke and ash and death.

How many this time?

“-I couldn’t just walk out the front door and go home knowing this place was doing something wrong, not when it involved vulnerable people!” 

The bodies.

So still, just minutes ago so full of life.

“Don’t blame me for your decisions, Ace.” The Doctor growled back, glaring properly now.

“Well how can I not?! You’re the one who taught me to get involved, remember!? You said it wasn’t right to turn your back on someone when they needed help! What happened to the ‘moral and ethical responsibilities’ that we carried as time travellers, and beyond that as ‘good, decent people’, what happened to that!?”

He should have been better.

He was supposed to put an end to the fighting!

“Oh, so now you’re gonna listen to what I say?” Was she laughing? It sounded like she was laughing, but it was… but it was far away…

“You always complained when I did something that went against your ‘oh so perfect plans’, but when you go and wing it, the rest of us just have to accept it, is that it!?”

“Don’t take that tone with me! When I have to improvise, it’s for a much broader purpose or tactical advantage, you disobeying me-”

“Disobeying?!”

“-and deciding to ‘shake things up’ was dangerous, foolish! And could have gotten you, and others killed!”

If only they listened to him.

Why did no one listen to him?  

“Oh, like you care!” Ace spat out, causing the Doctor’s eyes to widen.

“Of course I care!” She screamed, jumping to her feet. “I have done nothing but care about you since Iceworld! ”

“You call that caring for someone?! People who care don’t treat people the way you did!” Ace shot back, also standing up.

Looking up at Ace… Now that was something she was still getting used to.

How many today…

How many tomorrow?!

Surely they’d run out of space for the graves one of these days.

And who would be left to dig them?

Him? He was the…

No… No, he wasn’t.

Not anymore.  

Ace’s accusation only fueled the whirlwind of emotions the Doctor was experiencing and her accusation struck a nerve this time.

“I was there for you!” She shot back suddenly, cutting off whatever Ace was about to say. “You had no one! And I was there!”

“Have you forgotten everything I did for you! All the positive times we had, the good days!” The Doctor continued, her chest heaving and her tone still running hot as Ace looked away.

Countless dead by his hands.

Daleks and Time Lords and Gelth and Autons and everyone else.

He couldn’t save them.

He couldn’t save any of them.  

“I s’pose that the time we spent together was just ‘orrible wasn’t it. Every day of your travels with me was jus’ unbearable agony for you, is tha’ it Ace?!” The Doctor asked as she walked around the table.

A small part of her mind was saying she should pull back, reign herself in and sit back down.

He’d made a promise, he’d aimed to preserve life as best he could, to never seek death as a first option, but always strive for life, for compromise, for compassion and diplomacy.

How many times had he broken that promise now? A hundred times? A thousand?

And how many more times would he have to break it before the end?

But she wasn’t sitting down, not now. Ace’s words had kindled this fire she had in her belly, and she wasn’t going to quash it so quickly, she had gained too much momentum now and there was no stopping her.

“I s’pose I shouldn’a taken you along to so many amazin’ places!”

How many battlefields had he stained with blood?

How much of that blood had been by his hand, or by those beneath him?

“After all, you clearly were just sufferin’ in silence, weren’t you.”

How many of his people, of his people’s children, had he led to their deaths?

….And just how many more days could he find the strength to do it all over again until it became one day too many?

“It was ‘orrible for you, wasn’t it Ace? Hm, nothing to say ‘bout it? No spiteful accusations?”

‘Too long have I stayed my hand.’

‘No more.’

“And I guess the time you were sick with Lunar Fever and I stayed at your side the whole time, I was a real arse then wasn’t I? Why would I care, right? Cause I’m heartless and incapable of showing you concern or affection, aren't I!”

‘No more.’

“Yeah, I was laughin’ at you the ‘ole time, I must’a thought it was so ‘ilarious while you were sick, I found it so amusing!” The Doctor ranted. 

Ace had taken a step back now, her hands coming to wrap around her chest.

The small voice in her head telling her she needed to stop, was growing louder and louder.

‘No more.’

But so was the Doctor’s actual voice, her accent having grown thicker with anger as she couldn’t stop herself now.

“Or all those times I nearly died savin’ you! All those times I risked my life for yours!” Why was her vision getting blurry? And… and were her cheeks wet?

And her hearts were beating faster and faster to the point she couldn’t keep track.

‘No more…’

“Like just ten minutes ago!” She exclaimed, roughly poking Ace’s shoulder. “You know, when you asked me to just drop you down tha’ shaft? But did I? Huh? Tell me that, Ace! ”

‘Two-point-four-seven billion.’

And then the Doctor finally stopped. 

She came to a halt when she heard one thing that caused her tirade to freeze in its tracks, all the bluster and fire in her belly was quenched with one simple sound.

Ace let out a sob…

Her shoulders were shaking, her hands were gripped into the fabric of her jacket as she gripped her arms at her shoulders, her eyes were downcast and the Doctor could see tears she’d previously been too wrapped up to fully notice, were now freely flowing down her cheeks.

“...Ace?” She said, her tone instantly shifting as she slowly moved closer only for the taller girl to flinch back with a whimper. 

And if that didn’t send a pain through both her hearts she didn’t want to feel again.

It was like somebody had thrust two knives into her chest. 

She’d rather go dive headfirst into the incinerator than see Ace flinch away from her…

‘...what- what did I…’  

No. No, she knew what she did. She’d torn into Ace, viciously and cruelly, and with the intent to hurt.

She was supposed to be the mature one, the older of the two, despite appearances. And she’d fallen into a spiteful, angry tirade, taking the emotional release out on Ace.

On a girl who at times did seem older and more mature than her years, but in reality she was still just a child…

An emotionally vulnerable child who didn’t need her baggage and anger directed at her, especially after almost having died minutes beforehand. 

As the silence reigned over them once more, the Doctor, unable to mask her downtrodden expression as she tried to think of how they were going to proceed from here, Ace was crying and she didn’t want to risk moving near her again lest she frighten her some more.

“M’sorry…” Ace muttered out, in between choked sobs, her eyes clenched shut but the act did little to suppress the tears, shaking her head as she kept muttering apologies. 

“Ace, no… no you don’t-” She tried to interject, but she was easily ignored.

“-sorry!wasn’tgoodenough-” Ace whined out, her words mixing together in a torrent of half torn sobs and heaving breaths. 

“Ace… breathe, you’re gonna-you’re gonna be sick if you-” She tried to say, the only thing she could think of that could help right now. But Ace only took another sniffle filled breath as she finally looked up at the Doctor, eyes now red rimmed and her cheeks were a mess of both tears and nasal residue as she continued to cry. 

“I’m sorry for… I’m sorry for-for not being enough, Professor.” Ace quietly cried, bawling at this stage as she was struggling to string a full sentence together in between tears, sobbing, sniffling and trying to keep air in her lungs. 

The Doctor couldn’t help it, the tearful look, the sorrowful words, the complete and utter ridiculousness of the statement.

And the genuine belief once again rearing its head in Ace’s words, she still believed it…

She couldn’t stop what came next. 

The Doctor laughed. A single loud bark that she couldn’t hold back in her throat.

“Ha! Not enough? Not enough?!” She asked incredulously, her own eyes stinging with tears that she knew would fall. 

She’d done it again! What was wrong with her?!

She’d gotten so caught up in the words Ace had said, words that were a product of a momentary flair of anger and emotion, that it caused her to respond in turn. 

She’d allowed her own emotional state to heighten till she had gotten so lost in her tirade she hadn’t realised she was pushing Ace to such a state. 

She knew she was going to make Ace flinch, she’d probably send a momentary spark of fear up her spine with what she did next. 

But she didn’t care, she needed to do something! Hopefully that split second of unease and fear could be assuaged by what she was about to do.

Rushing around the coffee table and closing the gap, she wrapped her arms around the taller teen. 

Ace, predictably, flinched at the touch.

The Doctor’s hearts clenched again at the realisation of the pain she’d caused, but she didn’t let go. Every inch of skinny limbs and oversized puffer jacket wrapped in her embrace as she brought her hand up to cradle the back of Ace’s head.

She could feel Ace sobbing, her breath hitching as she tried not to cry and was failing at every breath.

And when the Doctor grabbed hold of Ace, her eyes widened as her mind was suddenly bombarded.

Ace was so worked up, so emotionally ‘loud’ right now, the Doctor could have been blind, deaf and physically numb and she’d still perceive and feel Ace right now. As soon as the Doctor’s arms encircled her, she was flooded with the pain, the emotional floodgates had broken and she let out a choked sob as she felt everything Ace was feeling. 

She trembled as her arms gripped the teen tighter, and she managed to keep her voice somewhat stable as she spoke. 

“Dorothy… Ace. It’s ok, let it out. Just let it out, it’s going to be alright…”

“-sorry!m’sorry!sorry!” She continued to sob, muffled by the Doctor’s hair, which she could feel absorbing every bit of fluid the taller girl was letting out, her cries blending together with every attempt at speech.

“Shh… I got you, I’m here.” The Doctor promised, holding on as tightly as she could, trying to express every ounce of comfort and reassurance she could. 

“I’m sorry too… For so much…” The Doctor quietly said, her own eyes once again stinging, but she could feel it this time, her emotions having done a complete one-eighty and where anger had numbed her before, sadness had now bared it for her to feel unbridled.

And she simply let the tears fall… She deserved it, she deserved to feel horrible after what she’d caused Ace to go through.

She wished she could just telepathically take all that pain and sadness from her and shoulder it herself, bottle it all up and keep it from every touching or harming Ace again…

She’d caused this, not just now in this room, not just today outside… But for so long, two weeks… all those centuries ago.

When she’d severed the bond they’d formed, taken from Ace everything her Seventh Self- everything she had given her.

And now she was seeing the consequences before her very eyes, and she deserved it!

But Ace didn’t…

“Oh, Ace. You wonderful, silly girl.” She sighed, pulling back a little to look the human in the eyes. “You are not a ‘mistake’. You are not a ‘waste of space’. And you certainly did not ‘mess up’ anythin’ with me.”

“You have nothing to apologise for! Nothing, you understand.” 

“B-But I… I made a mess of everything?” Ace whispered, swallowing heavily. “I never did anything right, not really. Y-You sent me away… You said-”

“I know.” The Doctor cut her off, closing her eyes for a second as she sighed. “I know, Ace. I know what I said… but…”

The words stuck in her through briefly, blocked by pain and heartbreak.

But Ace deserved to know.

But Ace needed to know.

“...there was things comin’. Things I didn’t fully understan’, and didn't really believe at the time. But if they were real…” She began before opening her eyes as she looked at Ace.

Reaching into her vest’s bigger-on-the-inside breast pocket, she searched through it before pulling out a hanky, reaching up she wordlessly began to wipe away the tears and mucus that had marked the teens face, and was still doing so.

“B-but you said that I was always disobeying and-”

“I said that because I needed an excuse… It wasn’t the way I should have handled it. There was… conflict, conflict that had been brewin’ for quite some time.” The Doctor began, licking her lips.

When had they gotten so dry?

“I was expected to fight, like everyone else, more than everyone else really. I still wasn’t completely convinced it would break out into open conflict, but everyone else was preparin’ anyway… was gettin’ clear that I was either too naïve, or too wilfully stubborn t’admit what was comin’. Or maybe I was just hopin’, despite everythin ’ that war was the one thin’ my people wouldn't succumb to.” The Doctor said, her voice full of regret and fatigue from so long ago.

What a fool she had been then, how willing she’d plugged her ears and ignored the signs.

“I was worried that If you’d known what might’a been comin’, that you’d ‘ave been dragged into it just cause’a me, or worse… that you’d want to get involved, no matter what I would’a said to stop you.” She explained quietly, before pausing and placing the hanky over Ace’s nose, raising an eyebrow expectantly. 

With silent prompting, Ace gave a light blow. 

The Doctor moved the now soiled hanky back and placed it in her opposite breast pocket. There was no way she was putting it back in the original with her sonic screwdriver now. 

“If I had told you to not get involved, or that I was gonna to be… well I ‘spose ‘draft dodging’ is a good’a term as any.” The Doctor said with a slight nod of her head. 

“-you would’a still wanted to stick about and do the right thin’ and ‘elp people.” She continued, shaking her head but unable to quash the pride in her tone for Ace in that moment. Because it was true, she knew Ace would have wanted to help people during the War, despite not being centralised around the Earth or her own people, the suffering the War caused impacted so many.

And Ace wouldn’t have been able to stand idly by, and that thought had terrified her Seventh Self.

“I would’a been under more scrutiny. When I refused to return when the war had kicked off, I was declared a criminal and hunted for ‘going AWOL’, as if I hadn’t been doin’ it for centuries anyway.” And what a laugh that had been. Not a happy laugh, of course, but there had been a bit of a twisted humour to it at the time.

Oh, sure, the Time Lords had raised hell over the centuries about her activities, but for the most part it had suited them to have the Doctor away from the homeworld, to be out there in the universe where they could leverage her reputation and skills for their own ends, an unofficial ‘free agent’ as it where for when they didn’t want to get their hands dirty.

But then the War had kicked off, and it had suddenly become a big deal that she wasn’t around to fight in it. They wanted the Doctor’s mind in the  war rooms, the Doctor’s skills on the front lines, they wanted the Doctor to win them the War.

“And you’re righ’.” She remarked, bringing her right hand up to stroke Ace’s now red and puffy cheek. 

“You’re righ’ about what I used to say, about our moral and ethical mission… When the fighting started, I stayed away. I ‘elped where I could, but I didn’ fight, I refused to fight. But it became ‘arder and ‘arder, the…” The Doctor explained before she paused, her eyes closing yet again.

“...the War spread. So many corners of the galaxy seemed to be infected by it. So many battlefields… It became harder to avoid it. So many people needed help…” she said, trailing off slightly as she swallowed a small lump developing in her throat. 

“And no matter ‘ow many I saved, no matter ‘ow many planets I ‘elped, there was always some’un else cryin’ out for me, or I’d arrived too late to make a difference.”

“It was nothing like our travels, Ace. I… I lost, or I was too late… or…” the Doctor struggled, once again today finding herself stumbling over her words. 

Ace hadn’t interrupted her yet, and it was a good thing, as the Doctor wasn’t sure she’d be able to keep this up. Letting out a shaky exhale, she turned her eyes back to Ace as she continued.

“...I was wearing myself down to the bone. There was no rest, no downtime… No ‘good days’. In the end, I just… I had to give up…”

“You surrendered?” Ace asked quietly.

“....I gave up, and did what I knew deep down I had to do. What I never wanted to do. The promises that make me the Doctor , I broke ‘em all…” The Doctor explained, her voice growing quieter and quieter, her voice practically a whisper. 

“...I fought. I gave up, and I fought.” She said before her eyes knitted closer together and her expression firmed.

“And there was no way, no potential future, no eventuality! …where I was going to subject you to that!”

She’d had nightmares, even after Ace was gone, when she was far away from her Seventh Self and was safe. Nightmares of the Time Lords coming, of the Dalek’s coming, of Ace winding up dead due to the War.

“I couldn’t let you be a part of that.”

“I could barely stand the knowledge of what I had turned myself into. What I had become… I’d rather die, than ‘ave had it happen to you… to see you be- be just another body on a battlefield… or worse…”

“If you’d gone down that dark path, compr’mised and bent every one of your morals, then one day you would’a found yourself just like me… lookin’ in the mirror an’ only to see someon’ that used to be Ace McShane, but not recognizin’ the face starin’ back. All you see is a killer wearing your skin, but the humanity that had once been present was long gone.”

The Doctor looked up at Ace, tears once again had formed in her eyes as she saw Ace was crying too.

“....I love you too much to even imagine putting you through that for even a second. To open you up to the potential! I’d a’ died, Ace, if I saw you like that.”

“An’ if the Daleks had gotten ‘old of you…” The Doctor said, her eyes narrowing. It had been one of her biggest fears, even more so than the thought of the Time Lords forcing Ace to join up.

“Davros ‘ad a long memory… He hadn’t forgotten you from the Hand of Omega crisis. He’d sworn to find all of my friends, my companions, and if he got his ‘ands on ‘em… An’ even after ‘e was gone near the start of the war, the Daleks tried to keep ‘is promise.” There’d been some relief, when Davros had died to the Nightmare Child. The Dalek’s creator was dead, surely that meant the War would be swift.

If only that had been the case.

“So… they were who you fought against, the Daleks?” Ace asked, her tone quite as she reached up and dabbed away at her eyes lightly with her thumb.

“Mostly Daleks, yeah. They led the call to arms, rallied up anyone else who had a bone to pick with Gallifrey.”

Ace’s eyes were locked on the Doctor now as she had been speaking, engrossed in her every word.

“This war… it went on for a long time, didn’t it?” Ace asked quietly. “...Centuries?”

The Doctor could only nod, getting a far off look in her eyes as she did.

“It was… It was so unlike anything I’d ever seen, ever been a part of before… No one had seen a war like this.” The Doctor explained as she shook her head slowly.

“Professor-” Ace tried to cut in, but the words wouldn’t stop now, the dam finally broken after centuries of pain, she’d never talked about it, not really. 

It was too painful to even consider fully opening up about it. 

And she never would have wished to burden Ace with, but the cracks had been too far gone, reaching towards her, she took Ace’s hands in her own. 

Not even Rose in all her plucky young wide eyed wonder she displayed had ever come close to how Ace had a way of making the Doctor feel, nor could she. Rose looked at her like she’d been… Well, there were plenty of ways it could be described.

The Doctor hadn’t been some blushing young academy student for centuries. They’d known exactly how Rose had begun to see them, and the effect her Ninth body had on her, as strange as it was to look back on now.

But Ace? Their dear, sweet Ace. 

She’d always been capable of persuading the Doctor to do things, getting them to talk about topics they normally wouldn’t have. Ace had wormed her way into her hearts in a way that they never could have seen coming.

And right now, in this moment, with the Time War coming back to the surface of her mind, and with her right there, it felt so easy to just fall back into the old habits.

But still she pulled back. She wasn’t going to go into detail, not right now, not in this dingy hospital basement. It felt freeing, in a way, to finally say it all. She’d told Rose a little bit here or there, of course, but not nearly to this degree.

Was that a kindness on her part? To spare Rose the knowledge of the horrors of the Time War?

Or had it been avoidance? Hiding away her sins and pretending they didn’t exist?

She honestly didn’t know.

But she did know that she couldn’t go into more detail, not now…

She didn’t want to overwhelm Ace or burden her with all of it. 

“I loved you too much.” The Doctor finally admitted, sniffling slightly as she shook her head.

“I still do…I know I do, and I always will.”

Had she said that, back when she’d been him? Had he ever told Ace just how much of his hearts she was in possession of? Oh, he’d heaped praises and celebrations on the girl, absolutely, but had he ever truly said how he had absolutely adored her?

No, never outright, never to her face… maybe her Seventh self should have-No! He… She definitely should have. She couldn’t hide behind the idea that it hadn’t been her, because at the end of the day it was the Doctor that had done it, and both her Seventh and her current self were the Doctor.

Maybe if she had said it then this wonderful amazing child wouldn’t have such a low self image of herself, to have her self esteem shot down so low.

Especially when Ace had hung on The Doctor’s every word, with praise and affection lapped up like water to a person dying of thirst.

Second chances were becoming rarer and rarer in her life these days, but coming here to New Earth on this day? Running into Ace as she had, that was a second chance to undo her past mistakes and one served up on a silver platter. 

“And I had to protect you, please you have to believe me, Ace. I sent you away for your own good.” The Doctor pleaded with her, standing back a little as she finally finished her speech, bracing herself for whatever it was that Ace would say next.

“...why do you always do that, Professor?” Ace quietly asked, looking at her with furrowed brows and red eyes. “Why do you always do things ‘ for my own good’ ? Why couldn’t you just… tell me this then? ”

And why hadn’t she? Why hadn’t she just talked to Ace, why hadn’t she tried to just explain the situation to the girl? Why the trickery, the lies, the deceit?

The Doctor squeezed her eyes shut, trying in vain to suppress the tears that were once again threatening to flow. 

She was going to wind up dehydrated at this rate. 

Why had she made such a mess of things? It would have been so easy to avoid breaking Ace’s heart, and yet she’d done it anyway.

What was wrong with her?

A shuddering, breathy laugh ripped itself from the Doctor’s throat as she finally, quietly admitted something she’d been holding onto for so long.

She told the truth.

“I was- I am a selfish old man, Ace. I would rather you lived an’ hated me for the rest of your life, rather than face my fears.” She said, letting out a sob as she clenched her hands into fists.

“I’m sorry….I’m so… so sorry.” The Doctor repeated, her face scrunching up as she tried to take a breath, but only succeeded in another harsh sob echoing out, bringing a hand up to cover her eyes as she cried. 

Her body shook for several seconds, sobs overtaking her before the unexpected feeling of hands, gentle and loving wrapping around her, echoing her own actions from before. 

Ace had pulled her into a hug, her longer arms encasing her as she rested the top of her head on the Doctor’s own, her arm rubbing slow circles on her back. 

“...Oh, Professor.” Came Ace’s soft and clearly quaking tones.

Far softer and kinder than she deserved. 

And then the hands came to her cheeks, to her chin, and pulled her up to look Ace in the eyes again, the young teen’s eyes shimmering and her cheeks similarly stained with her tears before she uttered words the Doctor had only heard her utter in dreams and fantasies since that fateful day she’d let her walk out of the Tardis doors.

“I forgive you.”

And that only made her cry more.

All the while Ace didn’t let her go…

“...pro’ly goes without sayin’ but… but that‘s never how I wanted it to end, ya know.” The Professor quietly commented, some ten minutes later.

The two were against a wall, now, elbows and knees brushing against one another as they stared at the far wall, physically and emotionally drained.

But also lighter, less weighed down.

“Hmm?” Ace hummed in response, still trying to take everything in.

The Professor had gotten caught up in a war, one so big that it seemed to have nearly broken her.

Or maybe it had broken her. It hadn’t escaped her notice that there hadn’t been much mention of how this great big war had ended , just that it was over now.

Ace had seen the end of a lot of wars while travelling in the Tardis. It was rarely a pretty, happy affair. She could only imagine how one this horrid had ended.

“I… well, I never wanted it to end.” The smaller girl - and wasn’t that just crazy to think about? The Professor had always seemed larger than life, and yet was now smaller than Ace herself was - admitted, leaning a little more against Ace. “Wanted it to go on forever.”

That was a nice thought, wasn’t it? Ace and the Professor, in the Tardis, forever. Going on and on and on, seeing every corner of the universe, helping people, saving worlds.

“...do you know what I thought of you? Those first few days after Iceworld?” The Professor suddenly asked, turning to look (up) at Ace.

“No. You never told me.” Ace flinched a bit at the tone of her own voice, as did the Professor, but she continued before Ace could apologise.

“I looked at you, and I saw… I saw a desperate girl, who wanted validation and recognition.” 

Wow, harsh. Not untrue, but still harsh. 

“Beaten down by the world, lost, alone, with nowhere else to turn to. And yet- and yet so absolutely wonderful . So smart, so quick, so kind, so passionate, so carin’, so strong … so perfectly tailored to be my companion.”

“...I thought that I had never seen such a beautiful trap before in all my lives.” The words were quiet, with some kind of emotion that Ace wasn’t sure she could identify.

“Fenric.” Because what else was there to say beyond the acknowledgement of why she had been placed in the Professor’s path?

“Yeah. But I never ‘spected, never ‘magined that I’d fall in love with you the way I did.”

“...I loved you too, Professor.” She quietly admitted. “...I- I always will.”

“...I’ll always love you too, Ace.”

“I’m sorry for explodin’ at you.” The Doctor said, head now fully resting against Ace’s shoulder. “s’the new body, I think. Sometimes feels like emotions are… bigger than they used to be. Like I can’t reign ‘em in the same way, or suppress ‘em the same way I could before…”

Ace nodded beside her, before the Doctor heard her suppress a snicker. 

"What is it?"

"Nothing."

"No, really?"

Ace gave her a short glance before she spoke. 

"So, what you're saying is...your emotions are bigger on the inside?"

.

...

......

"Ace!" The Doctor shot back, indignation giving way to a giggle, which turned into more as she couldn't reign in her laughter, Ace's shoulders were shaking as she covered her mouth, letting out giggles of her own as the atmosphere continue to lighten around them. 

The Doctor had missed this, slowly coming down her her amusement as Ace spoke up again. 

“...It’s okay, Professor.” Ace said after the laughter died down, her tone shifting as the Doctor realized she was responding to her earlier explanation. 

“It’s not.” She insisted, turning a small glare upwards.

She shouldn't have went off on Ace the way she did. 

“I haven’t had much of a chance to be ‘round people these past two months. I was cooped up in the Tardis mostly, ‘ad a few quick stops here and there, ‘elped out a few people. But didn’t really stick around or interact with anyone for long… the rest of my stops were to beaches, or places on my own.” The Doctor listed off, shaking her head softly.

“What I mean is… I haven’t really gotten used to being ‘round people like this. The most ‘well balanced’ interactions I ‘ad was right after my regeneration and the sickness combined with a real bad case of Neural Implosion side effects wore off, and even that was around people I was accustomed to in my last body.” The Doctor explained before placing her hand on her chest. 

“This me… I still haven’t gotten the people skills down pat yet… I guess it all just came to a head earlier.”

“...You shouldn’t spend so much time on your own, or locked up in the Tardis. It’s not healthy, isn’t that what you told me when I’d just potter about the place for days? I remember you practically had to drag me out of there after a four day chemistry binge, the sun was almost blindin’.” Ace said, amusement clear as she let out a short laugh. 

The Doctor laughed as well, remembering how much Ace had complained about the brightness of the sun that day, and how much the girl had grumbled about being away from the comforts of the chemistry lab that the Doctor had given her.

‘Professor, come on, this isn’t necessary!’

‘You were practically glued to the workbench, Ace. Any longer and you’d be developin’ moss. You need some fresh air, and a bit of Vitamin D.’

‘The sun’s gonna blind me! …No, your umbrella is not helping!’

And maybe it was just the emotional exhaustion, or maybe it was just that she didn’t think that she’d get a better chance to ask, but the Doctor found herself swallowing back some nerves before opening her mouth one more time.

“...well…” The Doctor hummed, trying to sound casual. She felt rather like she was failing in that regard, but she pressed on anyway. “Your room is still there, if you wanted to keep me company for a bit.”

The statement made so evenly, extended so easily on the exterior was something deeper.

It wasn’t an offer, it was a request.

It was a silent plea…

Rose hadn’t been comfortable, hadn’t been able to accept her, not completely. She’d accepted whom she thought the Doctor was, whom she had been. She’d liked her Ninth Self, clearly her feelings had extended beyond mere platonic friendship.

But the moment she’d changed, the moment her ‘alienness’ had become something real, something tangible, and more than just odd behaviour or time and space travel capabilities. Once she’d been confronted with the reality of her otherworldly composition and how different she truly was?

She’d retreated, backed off and suddenly looked at the Doctor like she was someone else entirely. And yes, the Doctor was going back for Rose, she was going back to close the book on all of that one way or the other, but… but it still hurt to see that reaction.

But Ace? 

She was the same person to Ace, different on the outside, but on the inside? Ace saw her the same as she had in the past.

And the Doctor wanted that.

She needed that right now. Someone who knew all the rules and still was willing to go all in. 

“...is it?” Ace asked after a brief moment of hesitation, voice suddenly thick with emotion again as her eyes met the Doctor.

So bright and so desperate for what she was saying to be true. 

The Doctor didn't think she was doing much better, and she definitely felt tears building up in her eyes again, but she didn’t let that stop her.

“Should all be ‘xactly the way you left it. Y’know, if you want it.”

It was a useful trick of the Tardis, one she applied to the rooms of all her companions when they left. A simple enough stasis lock, so that anything that changed was quickly reverted back to its previous state. The Doctor could have set a bomb off in that room, and it would be back to normal within hours.

She also had the ability to ‘archive’ older rooms, turning the spaces into pure data that could be reconstituted at a later date so that they would be safe in the event she removed them or the Tardis needed to temporarily get rid of them. 

In essence, the room would be identical to the last time Ace was in it, right down to the dust.

The only way the rooms would be entirely ‘gone’ was if she purged the archives, they were deleted, or if the rooms were ‘recycled’. But Ace’s was one that she hadn’t gotten rid of, hadn’t even put it in archives.

It was one of the few that she’d left untouched.

And that wasn’t to say that her other friends weren’t also precious to her, that the Doctor didn’t think just as fondly back on all their adventures together as well.

But after a while, it was rare that she found herself wandering into their rooms to relive old memories, and so it just made more sense to keep them archived. Ready to be called up again if the Doctor ever became particularly nostalgic, but tucked away where they couldn’t be discovered by accident.

She trusted the Tardis to keep the other rooms, the ones that had belonged to her friends but that she’d not archived, out of the way of any new companions. Those weren’t rooms for anyone but the Doctor, after all.

The Doctor saw Ace’s eyes grow moist before she reached up and quickly tried to hide it, rubbing her eyes with her sleeve before a grin formed on her face.

“Yes!” Ace said, nodding enthusiastically. “I want to come h- I want to come back.”

Nodding decisively, and deciding to ignore what she suspected Ace had nearly said, the Doctor dug into one of her bigger-on-the-inside vest pockets, pulling one of her spare keys out and holding it out for Ace to take.

“You really should’a ‘ad one of these already, but ‘ere you go.” Better late than never to correct an old mistake, it seems.

Ace’s grin grew even larger as she took the key, if that were possible and it became infectious as the Doctor’s own smile was a mile wide.

She liked smiling, especially the big, toothy smiles like this one.

And her cheeks were going to be sore at this point, but she didn’t care. Standing up, she extended her hand to Ace who gladly took it, hoisting the taller teen up as she exhaled pleasantly.

“Now, ow’s ‘bout we finish what we started, eh?” 

Ace gave her a firm nod in response. 

And with that, they exited the break room of doom and continued on towards the outer corridor, walking till they reached a separate hall, presenting a forked path, one going left and one going right. If they kept going left, they were going to reach an access point which would bring them back to the elevator they’d arrived in. 

Then all they’d need to-

Drip

…the Doctor paused just as they entered the entrance of the diverging hall.

“....Did you hear that?”

“What, the leaky ceiling?” Ace asked, turning to her in confusion as her expression shifted.

Again, the Doctor’s enhanced hearing picked up on something Ace’s couldn’t.

“No… Not the leaky ceiling… Which isn’t a leaky ceiling.” She said as her tone lowered, her nose twitched as she went stock still.

“...Ace.”

“...Yeah, Professor?”

“....Whatever you do, don’t look up… And when you do look up anyway… Don’t scream.”

Ace’s eyes flickered, the warning made her freeze in place as she could see the Doctor’s gaze was facing right ahead, not even inclining her neck up an inch as she offered her hand towards Ace.

She wanted to copy her, take her hand and calmly continue on their way.

But she saw the Doctor’s fingers twitch light and her legs shift ever so slightly… Whatever it was she wasn’t supposed to look at, and even on the different body, Ace recognised the signs.

They were going to run away from the thing that was above them.

She tried! She really tried to avoid doing it, but in the end her eyes shifted upwards just for a second.

And before she even had a chance to scream, the horrific looking monster clinging to the ceiling above them let out a deafening roar, blanketing them in warm foul smelling air and flecks of saliva.

And just before it leapt down, the Doctor grabbed her hand and ran.

Oh yeah, things were definitely back to normal.

Chapter Text

“I told you not to look up! ” The Doctor screamed, tugging Ace along and cursing the fact that this regeneration’s legs were so short.

“You also knew that I would look up anyway!” Ace bit back, starting to pull ahead as she began to mentally catch up with the situation.

“You could have proven me wrong!” The Doctor pointed out heatedly as they could hear the… Whatever it was, gaining on them.

She hadn’t gotten a good look at it before, but she’d heard the sound of it breathing on the ceiling before she’d clocked the smell, different from the everpresent mould and mildew they’d encountered so far.

Its breathing was most peculiar, almost as if-

“Raaaargghhhhh!” 

Right! Focus on evading for now, theories could come later!

“We need to find a door!” She shouted, eyes scanning the darkness for an escape path. “Or another lift!”

A nice solid door between them and whatever the creature was would be a wonderful first step to getting out of this situation. Step two - getting away from it entirely and possibly back upstairs to confront the nurses about all of this - would be an equally wonderful second step to undertake once they were out of danger.

The two raced past closed door after closed door, none of which they had the time to stop and open with the creature on their heels, and as the two turned a corner the Doctor took the chance to let go of Ace’s hand and spin on the spot.

This also finally gave her a chance to lay eyes on what it was that was chasing after them.

And Ace’s mouth fell agape at the sight of the creature, but the Doctor didn’t pause as she rounded to face it. 

“I order you to identify yourself and your planet of origin!” The Doctor loudly declared, trying to glare down the creature, only for a hand to grab the back of her vest and pull her away from it.

“Does that ever work!” Ace demanded, her hand moving to reclaim the Doctor’s own as they continued to run.

“Not often, no!” 

It was nice when it did, but it rarely seemed to. Not that she was terribly surprised, this creature seemed to be pretty bestial in nature, sub-average intelligence judging by it’s actions, primal and lacking coherent thought and it looked… unnatural . 

Not that an ‘unnatural’ appearance meant anything, the Doctor knew many species that naturally looked distinctly ‘unnatural’ due to how their evolution had played out, but she had an awful feeling that this thing wasn’t supposed to look like that, like it was the result of anything but nature at play. 

In fact, she suspected that she knew precisely what was chasing them, and the idea of it made her hearts ache and her stomach want to eject its contents. 

If she was right, then there’d be hell to pay.

“There!” Ace shouted, pointing ahead to a mercifully open door. “We can hide in there!”

The opportunity of a respite as well as safety was just the recharge they needed, picking up speed as they ran before barrelling through the open door. As soon as they had, the Doctor slid it shut and pulled out her sonic, aiming it at the door’s lock and making sure it was secured. 

That didn’t however stop the creature from slamming into it, causing a slight groan and the metal to protest. 

She quickly looked around desperately for something, anything they could use to brace the door. Luckily the Doctor’s eyes soon found what looked like an empty and long since abandoned vending machine that was placed near the door.

“Come on, give me a hand!” The Doctor exclaimed, pushing the sonic back into a pocket and rushing over to it as Ace caught up, the two of them grunting as they exerted enough force to push the heavy, but luckily still movable, machine across the floor, the door still being slammed into by the creature as the Doctor’s eyes glanced around the machine.

With one last push, they managed to place it in front of the door, and after a few more muffled impacts from outside, the creature seemed to pick up on the fact it wasn’t getting in, and the ensuing footsteps the Doctor heard made her let out a sigh as she leaned forward, her hands resting on her knees as she allowed herself a momentary rest.

Reaching back into her pocket she walked over to a nearby terminal and aimed the sonic at it. 

“Let’s get some proper lighting going on.” She said as she accessed the systems, a few small overrides later and the room lit up properly, the flickering and low lighting reinvigorated as they were bathed in bright fluorescence.

Turning back to Ace, the Doctor saw she was looking at her, or more accurately her hand in confusion. 

“...what’s… what’s that?” Ace panted, gesturing towards the sonic screwdriver.

“...oh! Yeah, right! Didn’t really use one ‘o these when we travelled.” The Doctor replied, realising as she shook her head. 

How funny a thought that was. Some of her past selves had gotten great use out of the sonic, and then some of the others hadn’t bothered with it much at all.

“It’s a sonic screwdriver.”

“...What? Did you fight, like, an evil hardware store or something after I left?” Ace asked, only half joking, however the Doctor couldn’t ignore the genuine questioning in her tone.

They had encountered the Kandyman after all, an adversary based around or operating in a hardware store wasn’t that far fetched. Given her history, the Doctor could very well end up fighting some variation of ‘an evil hardware store’, come to think of it…

But still, she couldn’t help but wonder-

“Why does everyone keep asking things like that?!” 

What was wrong with a nice sonic screwdriver? Did people not realise how versatile it was? It didn’t just do screws, it was a brilliantly designed multitool with infinite utility!

“No, Ace. This is in fact a rather basic and common tool on Gallifrey. Not everyone used them mind you, but they were common enough. We first learned to make them in the Academy, if you took the elective that is.” She said, twirling her sonic in her fingers.

“They’re useful for a whole host of things, least of all, locking and unlocking doors.” 

“...But why didn’t you ever use it when we were travelling together before?” Ace asked, an odd look on her face. “I could think of a dozen times off the top of my head that would have come in handy.”

“Ah yes, well you see…” the Doctor began, clearing her throat as she slightly avoided Ace’s gaze.

“My Fifth self had ‘is destroyed, and then when I was in my Sixth body, there was an… ill conceived idea to switch to a separate model, a sonic lance… Needless to say it wasn’t to be, got destroyed, replaced it afterwards going back to the screwdriver model, but the next one also got destroyed, so went ‘hands free’ again for a while. It wasn’t until after we… parted company, that I picked up using them again.” The Doctor said, gingerly stepping around Ace’s departure.

“...Can’t imagine goin’ without one these days. I try not to be overly dependent, but they are quite handy.”

“Why did you only start using it again after I- after we-...” Ace began, stumbling a bit over her words.

Yeah, that topic was going to be needing a soft touch for awhile, from both of them it seemed.

“Lost my best spare pair of ‘ands, needed to make up the difference.” The Doctor shrugged, hoping that Ace decided to take the statement as a joke.

She had barely even thought to say that, and yet…Well, there was a bit of truth there, if only on an emotional level. Her Seventh had been just as capable without the sonic after Ace was gone as he was before, but it had just felt a little better to carry the tool again after they had parted ways, the hole in their hearts a little smaller for the return of the trusty sonic into their bag of tricks.

As if needing something there to make up for a lack of someone there, as silly as some might see her Seventh self having related what amounted to at the end of the day, a tool, as helping adjust to loneliness. 

“For now, let’s focus on finding our way back to a lift.” The Doctor announced, gesturing away from the now blocked door.

“Sleepin’ quarters, by the look of it.” The Doctor said as she walked over to the far side wall, a series of large rectangular sections on the wall, sliding her hand along the rectangular lines, she paused and hit a round button on the end.

Just like the hidden terminal room from before, as soon as she hit the button the section of the wall hissed and distended a few inches. Slipping her hand beneath it, with a firm tug the section came out revealing a well made, but long since used bed.

“...I’d hate to be in there if you were claustrophobic.” Ace muttered as she walked over, inspecting the inside of the sleeping pod-like bed.

“Imagine waking up and trying to sit up.” The Doctor mused with a smile before sliding the pod shut and taking a look around the room.

“There’s a back entrance.” The Doctor noted, gesturing towards the only other door in the room as she walked towards it. “This sleepin’ quarters must be connected to the other common quarters, an’ there should be a way out back to the lift. All we have to do is keep goin’ forward.”

“And avoid that big, well whatever it was… What was it, Professor?” Ace asked, causing the Doctor to pause, frowning as her thoughts were turned back to the creature.

“I’m not certain, it was dark and the lightin’ wasn’t the best… I couldn’t really get a look at it. But whatever it was, it wasn't native to this planet. I can say that for certain.”

Ace had kept mostly quiet after they’d exited the sleeping quarters and made their way through an old commissary, smaller and much less inviting that the one she’d briefly stopped at upstairs before moving to the common area where she’d bumped back into the Doctor.

Partially as she still was thinking about earlier, about how she’d almost been turned into an extra large Kentucky Fried Chicken meal. 

But more so… About the bodies.

She’d seen a lot travelling with the Doctor, seen people and beings lose their lives. But that didn’t make it any easier, especially since in a lot of ways, she was still just a kid from Perivale.

‘Does it ever get easier, Professor? Seeing people die like this?’

‘I have travelled the universe for a very long time, Ace. If it does get any easier, I’ve not noticed it yet.’

Sure she acted tough, but a lot of the time that’s all it was, an act. She didn’t want to look scared, or weak or have people- 

Mostly adults.

-look down on her or dismiss her for being a kid. 

So she acted tough, tried not to let things seem like they got to her, putting her often disciplined ‘smart mouth’ to use in ways her old teachers at school had often blown a gasket over.

But inside, she still got frightened…

Even if she’d smashed up a Dalek with her upgraded baseball bat, sent more than one intergalactic adversary down with some Nitro-9, took down a horde of Cyberman with nothing but a few gold coins and slingshot…

Even faced her fear of clowns at the psychic circus… or mostly faced it…

And she’d even rugby tackled Morgan Le Faye!

Or Morgain… but same difference!

She’d even wielded Excalibur!

But despite everything she’d seen and done, Ace still got scared. She just tried not to show it, to be brave like the Doctor. 

‘Even adults get scared, Ace. Fear is never something to be ashamed of.’  

The Professor had told her that, even he with all his wisdom, experience, and bravado would get scared. But he wouldn’t let it stop him from doing the right thing.

…Just like she still wouldn’t even now.

The Doctor was still the Doctor, her body might be different but underneath her skin she was still the same person.

And just like in the past, Ace would have her back.

…Even more so now that she wasn’t as physically able. Her Seventh self might not have been a mountain of muscle, but her new body was positively petite . 

She was still shocked the Doctor had been able to hoist her up how she did earlier. But Ace wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth over that one.

One of the other reasons she hadn’t made a lot of noise, was she didn’t want to draw that big creature to them. The Doctor had told her to try and be as quiet as possible, given the fact it likely lived down here, it was logical to assume it not only knew it’s way around but also was able to navigate the area in limited light or darkness given the intermediate levels of lighting.

The Doctor had only used her Sonic Screwdriver sparingly so far with the lights, not wanting to power them on and risk drawing the creature to them unless they absolutely had to.

That’s how her torch had come back into play.

“So… what’s the plan?” She quietly whispered, shining the light ahead. “After we get back upstairs, I mean?”

“First we find their ‘Intensive Care Unit’, we get evidence as to what they’re doin’, then we confront ‘em. After all’s said and done, we alert the proper authorities.” The Doctor said as she continued leading the way. 

“Right… But, shouldn’t we just call the coppers first ? I mean, we know they’re doing illegal medical experiments.” Ace replied, frowning.

Surely it’d be the quicker option.

And it’d be nice to just sit back and let other people deal with things for once, rather than dive head first into danger for the millionth time.

“We don’t know how many eyes and ears they have in the city, Ace. And they’ve got a reputation, remember. We call the police first, start tellin’ them all sorts of ‘wild’ stories about the kind and charitable Sisters of Plenitude performin’ illegal experiments and horrific acts like that?” The Doctor lectured from Ace’s side, the long winded ramble oddly comforting in the oppressive darkness of the abandoned hallways. 

“At best we’d be laughed at, and that’s not counting the fact they might have contingencies in place. If we bring the police through the front door, they might have means of makin’ everything ‘disappear’ before we can show evidence. You don’t have a system like this in place without a backup plan or a fast exit.” 

“Alright, fair enough” Ace nodded, accepting the explanation. The police could easily be just as corrupt as the nurses, if not even worse. And even if they weren’t, the two of them didn’t have any real evidence beyond some suspiciously fast recoveries. “But why confront them? Why not just grab the evidence and go dob’ them in?”

The Doctor stopped walking, coming to a stop just before they reached the next doorway, she turned back to Ace with an expression that reminded her of the Doctor’s Seventh self when he was angry, it was a familiar look coming through a new face, but just as effective to her.

When the Doctor looked like that, someone was going to have a bad day, or worse.

“Because I’m gonna let them know exactly what I think of their little petri dish . And ‘cause they get a chance, just one! I’ll offer them one chance to shut this whole thing down… Or I’ll bring this whole diseased horror show down on their heads!” 

Ace felt a shiver go through her at the Doctor’s words, as well as realisation. The Doctor was beyond angry, and Ace couldn’t blame her.

She was angry and disgusted too!

But other than that, the Doctor didn’t want to confront them. No, she needed to at this point, the built up and bottled up anger she saw beyond those eyes was going to be unleashed upon those deserving. 

And despite this being a New Doctor, and who’s personality did differ from her older self, Ace knew the Doctor had her own contingency plans up her sleeves, as well as her own punishments in mind for the Catkind that may or may not come into play.

It wouldn’t be the first time the Doctor had simply manoeuvred certain things, or even people, in just the right place that ‘just desserts’ were served, or in some cases more so.

‘Davros had begged the Doctor to spare them…’

‘The Cyber Leader wiped out his whole fleet due to the Doctor's careful handling of words.’

‘And what happened with me and-’

No!

She wasn’t going to think about that , not today… not for the foreseeable future.

Ace knew the Doctor, and she knew when she was determined, or worse angry . That people around them would get what was coming to them, and she couldn’t help but wonder how much the War had influenced these old traits. 

For better or worse…

“Okay, so… we get the evidence, we give them a chance, and then if they don’t shut it all down…” She trailed off, looking down at the Doctor.

“They’ll shut it down.” The Doctor promised, a dark look in her eyes.

Stepping through the doorway, the Doctor was about to shine the torch to their right and down one of the two diverging halls, when a sudden and familiar guttural roar rang out, causing her to look to the left.

Just in time to see the creature rushing towards them.

“Ace, run!” The Doctor screamed, grabbing Ace’s hand and taking off down the right corridor, seeing a large room up ahead connected to several as it looked like a service bay with multiple connected rooms.

Good!

Not just an open space, this meant that they could put buffers between themselves and the creature, maybe circle back if they had to and-

“Doctor! It’s gaining on us!” Ace exclaimed, chancing a glance back in the darkened halls. 

They leapt through the door to the service bay and the Doctor practically ripped her sonic from her pocket and slammed it into a terminal panel beside the door, the sonic briefly lighting up with its familiar sound as she activated it.

Instantly a layer of glass came down, sealing off the service bay just as the creature slammed into the protective sheet, lights came on in the room only briefly before sputtering and flickering, giving them a small amount of light.

“Will that hold…” Ace asked, taking a breath as the Doctor stepped around her. 

“For now, it’s reinforced quarantine glass. Lower grade though, made to stop contagents from gettin’ through, but blunt force from something that size… I’d say it gives us a minute.” She explained as she walked ahead towards the glass. 

The room they were in had light’s that weren't completely on, but the light above the doorway was working just fine.

And for the first time she could see it completely, the creature’s large snarling form was roaring, and with a slam of its… arms? The glass shook, but thankfully was holding for the time being.

“...What is it, Professor?” Ace asked from behind her.

“...Like I said before, it’s not native to this planet.” The Doctor said quietly, as she took in the sight of it, slowly stepping closer as she spoke.

“....At least its origins. But this thin’- this bein’, I’m pretty sure it was born here…” 

It was large, almost three times her size and wide around its middle. What she’d previously thought were ‘tendrils’ or tentacles she’d seen flashes of in the dark during their first encounter were now revealed to be arms . 

Arms that were currently slamming into the glass, this time causing a few cracks to appear.

“Professor!” 

“...No.” The Doctor whispered to herself as her eyes flickered across it. 

A large layer of fatty tissue, seemingly fused together skin, and muscle held it together. She could even see some distended bone sticking up near its back… or what was most accurately its back.

Some hair was sprouting in various parts of its body, though not in anywhere seemingly productive of a natural creature or animal.

The legs were large and one had an arm sticking out the side, some scaly looking growth spread up it’s side as well as scattered around like the hair was.

And then there were the faces…

Not full ‘faces’ per say, but she could see sharp and jagged teeth sticking out on jaw bones, three large ones near the top, and she was certain she could hear similar ‘screeching’ coming from around its back. 

Another slamming of fists on the glass did little to phase her as she stared at it with a growing realisation and horror.

She’d thought she couldn’t get any angrier today, any more disgusted.

“Professor!”

This was beyond horrible, was there really no limits to the Sister’s machinations? No depths they wouldn’t sink to? She’d been too kind when she’d spoken or merely having them arrested. This, this thing…

“Doctor, look out!”

The Doctor’s eyes widened as she realised she’d gotten lost in thought and a chunk of the glass had cracked away, leaving just enough room for one of the creature’s smaller ‘side arms’ to slip through, and before she could move it had latched onto her face.

The Doctor let out a cry as she tried to pull back, but its grip was strong. Sharp claw-like nails gripped into her as she struggled and… struggled…

…Oh no.

No!

NO!

“Arrrrrgggghhhh!!”

“Raaarrrrgggghhhhhh!” 

And then in an instant she was released, reeling back from the sudden loss of grip. 

Her hearts were beating, her eyes were unfocussed as she fell to the ground, looking ahead but not seeing what was before her for several seconds.

Ace…

Ace! Her vision began to clear as she saw Ace standing there.

Standing there as blood now marked the glass section the creature had its arm through before.

It’s arm that was now on the ground, still twitching.

Ace was holding what looked like a fire axe in her arms, panting and the creature roared in pain and reared back behind the glass before slamming its whole body against it, the multiple arms now flailing and making larger shattering cracks through it.

“Ace!” She gasped, rubbing her throat. “...Ace.”

“Professor, are you okay?” The taller girl asked, not turning away from the splintering barrier.

“Need to- We need to go-” The Doctor said, drawing in frantic breaths.

“But-”

Before Ace could say another word, the Doctor sucked in one final breath and latched onto her arm. 

“We need to get out of here !” She screamed, pulling Ace away as she dropped the axe on the ground, rushing across the room and busting through a door to one of the offices within the service area, just in time as the glass barrier gave way and the creature let out a triumphant roar, its loud footsteps were heard as the Doctor kept running with Ace.

“Where are we… There!” Ace called out, pointing ahead to a sign at the end of the hall they jumped through from the office. “Lifts ahead.” 

“Come one!” The Doctor shouted, the two of them running as fast as they could, Ace was several steps ahead due to her longer legs that the Doctor would have been jealous of if they weren’t running for their lives.

Pulling out her sonic, she aimed it ahead, not pausing in her pace as she aimed it towards the terminal on the wall beside the door at the end of the hallway and activated her trusty gadget.

“Please work, please work, please work!” She repeated as the terminal lit up and the door began to open, the large round locked doors just like the disjointed hall they’d seen when they stepped out of the lift.

However her eyes widened as it groaned and stopped, just like the door from before in the observation room, though this time it didn’t merely halt in mid transition!

This one began to lower itself down once more, a slow, unsteady movement that was accompanied by the sounds of neglected machinery trying to operate.

“Don’t stop, Ace!” The Doctor cried as she ran as fast as she could, briefly matching Ace as they were side by side.

Despite the danger of the situation, some distant part of the Doctor’s mind still managed time for a completely inane thought.

‘When we get back to the Tardis, I am going to go and find that running track.’

“Get down and through!” She exclaimed as Ace ripped her backpack off, tossing it ahead of them just as they reached the door, instantly dropping the floor and rolling through a millisecond before the large metal door slammed back down once again.

The muffled sounds of the creature’s arms slamming into the metal and its roaring were almost muffled completely by their own panting and the blood rushing to their ears.

Ace’s legs were burning, as were her lungs as she was once again that day on her back and staring at the ceiling, after yet another near death experience.

That was… three? Four?

She’d honestly lost count, the last few hours were honestly something of a blur to her at that moment.

She had not missed this part of things.

After she felt her breath begin to return, she was about to speak up when she heard it.

Sobbing.

Turning over, she saw the Doctor lying on her back, her face crumpled up as she was crying.

“Professor!” Ace exclaimed as she got up slowly. 

“Are you alright, did you get hurt when-”

“Pain!” 

“You’re hurt, look we can-” Ace began, only for the Doctor to cover her face with her right hand, pushing herself up as she sobbed.

“...It’s in pain! s’all it’s ever known… pain, an’ solitude, an’ darkness…” The Doctor sobbed out, causing Ace to realise what she was referring to.

“The creature…” She stated, seeing the Doctor so worked up was unreal to Ace. She’d seen the previous Doctor she’d travelled with before get emotional, an odd moist eye here and there, sure.

But crying? Sobbing like this? The Doctor of old had never done this, at least in front of her. 

But again, just like earlier when they’d both let loose on one another and the Doctor had apologised to her, she’d cried in front of her so openly.

‘s’the new body, I think. Sometimes feels like emotions are… bigger than they used to be.’

“It was born ‘ere, but it’s created from the samples of human DNA… I think… I don’t know for certain…” The Doctor said, pain clear in her voice as she wiped her eyes, trying to contain herself long enough to explain.

“...I think they dropped some of the bodies down some of those pipes.” She said with disgust, sniffling. As she continued to speak, the Doctor began to curl up a bit more, pulling her knees up to her chest and hugging her legs.

She’d looked small before, but in that moment, the Doctor looked positively tiny.

“But one of them must have been faulty, or- or damaged. Some of the bodies landed elsewhere in these sublevels, bunch of dying grown bodies, dying but not dead … add in a helping of medical waste an’ a combination of their concoctions upstairs…” The Doctor continued, her arms tightening a few times as she went through the explanation.

“...And they merged into that, that thing ?” Ace asked, her mouth gaping slightly as she saw the Doctor nod, her red rimmed and tear filled eyes turning to her as her lips quivered.

“...I could feel it, when it grabbed me, when they grabbed me.” The Doctor said as Ace walked over to her slowly and sat beside her, placing an arm on her shoulder which the Doctor leaned into.

“All they know is pain, the last thoughts of what they were before I could feel, was of fear an’ then agony as they were electrocuted, in an attempt to kill them. Some of them survived, mortally wounded but alive on their way down the chutes…” She said before shaking her head, leaning into Ace as more tears welled up.

“...They just want to die! That’s all they want is to die , to get the pain to end, but they can’t!” The Doctor said as she sniffled again, reaching up to wipe her face only to realise she couldn’t.

“Here.” Ace said, offering her own sleeve. 

She could wash her jacket later anyway.

“...someone’s gonna have to kill them.” The Doctor quietly admitted, curling even tighter into Ace for a moment. “Put them out of their misery, an’ I don’t… I don’t want it to be me.”

“I didn’t want this… not anymore… I wanted to put this behind me! I… I wanted to be the Doctor again…” 

“Hey…” Ace hummed, hugging the Doctor tightly. “You’ll always be the Doctor to me. And… and I won’t let you be the one that kills that thing, okay? After we expose everything, someone will handle all of this for us, right? The police can do it, or the nurses.”

Or, if she absolutely had to, Ace would do it herself.

If what the Doctor was saying was true, it’d be a mercy… 

“...Yeah, I suppose you’re right. Either way… either way, this ends today.” The Doctor said, turning to Ace with a grateful nod before she wiped her face on the offered jacket sleeve, and when she was done, Ace saw the same look from before.

Only this time, if it were possible, it was darker.

The Doctor stood up, determination and fury blazed in her eyes as she walked ahead towards the lift.

“Come on Ace, we’re getting out of ‘ere. An’ when we’re through not one single-”

And then out of nowhere a small blue bolt flew through the air, hitting the Doctor in the back, and with a soft groan she fell forward onto the floor.

“Doctor!” Ace cried out as she stood up, only to turn just in time to see a pale looking man standing there in hospital scrubs.

And the blaster in his hand went off, sending a bolt of blue towards her before she found herself dragged into unconsciousness. 

The Doctor wasn’t unconscious, not fully.

Whatever she’d been shot by had obviously not been calibrated to her biological standards. She was however very very sleepy, the urge to fall into a deep sleep was there, and her eyes kept drooping but she wouldn’t.

She couldn’t.

Not now, not when there were things she had to do!

And Ace… Ace? Where was she?

Mustering what little strength she could in her arms, the Doctor forced her shaking arms under her and slowly, at almost a snail's pace, pushed herself up till she was on her knees. Looking around, she saw the room they’d started in, by the lift. 

The door they’d jumped through was the centre door, and now the Doctor turned to see the left hand door was now opened.

Ace was gone.

She wouldn’t lose Ace, she couldn’t lose Ace.

Not again, not so soon after finding her again.

She would find her.

‘I’m coming Ace.’ She silently promised.

…Just as soon as she could work up enough energy to stand up.

There were a few things in Ace’s life that she could rely on as being constants.

There were the universal constants like gravity.

There was the fact the Professor would always have some form of a plan, no matter the situation.

And amongst the many, many less important things that Ace had found to be consistently true in her life, the fact that waking up after being knocked out was a bloody awful experience had long since earned its place on the list.

Waking up after being knocked was never pleasant, no matter the circumstances.

That said, there was some variety to waking up after being knocked out.

Being knocked out due to head trauma was probably the worst, if only because of the killer headaches that were always a part of it.

Being knocked out due to some form of blaster bolt, however, was considerably more pleasant. It wasn’t nice by any means, but besides the dull, throbbing pain against her lower left ribs – and Ace just knew that was going to bruise something wicked by tomorrow – she actually felt… well, not good , but at least not completely horrid.

It was better than waking up after being knocked out due to drugs, at least. That was truly horrible, especially when the drugs weren’t designed for humans.

“The human child is awake, Mistress.” Cracking open her eyes at the voice, Ace squinted against the sudden light as she stared at the man standing in front of her.

Taking a moment to glance at the rest of the dirty, dingy basement-like room she was in, Ace was surprised to see that while she had been put into an equally dirty, dingy seat, she wasn’t restrained at all.

That was never a good sign. It meant that they either didn’t consider Ace to be a threat, or they had plans for her.

Or they were confident in their ability to contain her regardless, though she didn’t see any muscle bound henchmen, so that was less likely. 

Hopefully it was the first, because Ace would gladly prove that she was a threat.

Turning her attention back to the man, Ace was a little surprised to see that he at least seemed to be human, but she supposed that he could have just as easily been a human adjacent species, rather than being pure human.

The markings and shapes upon his skin sure didn’t look human, but she’d seen weirder tattoos before to be fair.

She may have even had weirder tattoos once or twice, although only ever the temporary kind. The Professor had blown a gasket when he’d seen her walk in one day with an actual tattoo, and had walked her right back to the market she’d got it from and verbally chewed out the artist to the point that the young man had been close to tears.

Followed by a quick removal at a clinic that while being fast and leaving no trace, had stung a lot for the rest of the day. The Professor had told her it was a good reminder not to go having such ‘ridiculous rubbish’ painted onto her skin, and that she should do well to remember it. 

…although after half an hour of giving him the most dejected doe-eyed look she could muster, a few sniffles thrown in for good measure, he’d given her a soothing ointment and taken her out for ice cream.

So she still came out on top in the end.

The pale, tattooed man was, Ace realised a little belatedly, the man that had shot her and the Doctor.

The Doctor, who wasn’t in the room with her.

Ace very forcefully didn’t let herself react to that information, focusing on the situation in front of her.

It didn’t make much difference to her, if the Professor was being held in another room or if she’d been left behind because they only wanted Ace. Either way, she would do everything she could to escape and get back to them, so all that mattered was getting out of here.

The next thing that caught her attention was the screen across from where she was seated, on the wall to her right was a screen where images were being projected. It was showing a party, obviously a very posh and high society type event. 

Ace narrowed her eyes in confusion as she saw the camera linger on a blonde haired woman, teetering on middle age and maturity and obviously used to such affairs. 

She was making small talk and schmoozing it up with various guests, reacting to a younger man’s advances on screen with a cheeky rebuke.

Shaking her head as she realised she’d gotten distracted, Ace turned back around to where the man had wandered off to, getting up off the chair she walked closer only to see a previously unnoticed…

Ok, Ace honestly didn’t know what she was looking at. Which meant that it was impressively weird, given the long, long list of weird things she had seen while travelling.

It looked like a stretched out trampoline with a face on it!

The pulsing red of veins through it that were being fed by connected tubes, and the brain in a jar underneath were not making her feel any less comfortable.

“Don’t you know it’s rude to stare, girl.” The face spoke up, causing Ace to jump slightly.

Not out of fear!

It was just a surprise.

It wasn’t often you saw a face and-Oh.

Oh no…

“...what…” Ace began slowly, causing the face-No! The person , it-she was obviously a person.

“Hmm, you’d think one would be more polite to one's hosts.” The person said to the man beside their frame.

The voice, it sounded just like the woman on the screen. Ace turned back momentarily, still seeing the footage playing out and heard the same voice coming from the woman as she exchanged pleasantries now with a similarly dressed aristocrat.

“Enjoying the footage, that was the-”

“Are you okay?” Ace asked, cutting the woman off who blinked at her for a moment.

“...What?”

“Are you okay?” Ace asked again, walking slowly towards her, but stopping after a few steps and keeping her distance.

“What? What do you mean- Of course I’m-” The woman said in exasperation before glancing at the still lingering man. “Are you sure she didn’t hit her head when she fell?”

“I made sure not to damage her, Mistress.” He replied quickly, stepping back slightly with a wide-eyed look.

Ace’s mind was reeling, the creepy basement, the obvious… condition the woman was in, the crazy Cat’s upstairs.

“Did the Sisters do this to you?” Ace asked softly, looking over her… well, it wasn’t really a body as already established. 

She had two working theories. 

One, this was the woman on the video… or what was left of her.

Or two, they’d tried some weird cloning experiment… and this was the result.

“You’re not in pain or anything are you?” Ace asked before her eyes narrowed. “When I get my hands on those furballs, I’m gonna-” 

“You think the- Oh no, you stupid girl, the Catkind didn’t do this to me. I’ll have you know I paid a fortune for this figure.” The woman said with a scoff, as if the very notion of Ace’s claims were insane. 

“...So…” Ace began slowly, gesturing vaguely towards her. “I’m sorry, I’m struggling with how to address… Whatever this is, politely. The Doctor always says I can say the wrong things sometimes… But then other times it’s alright, as confusing that is.” Ace said with a roll of her eyes. 

“...The Doctor?” the woman asked slowly, speaking up and narrowing her eyes. “He wouldn’t be a meddlesome man with a habit of sticking his nose into other people’s business, would he?” 

“...close enough.” The Doctor wasn’t a man currently, but that didn’t mean much when they were a time traveller, did it?

“The same ‘Doctor’ who witnessed the end of the Earth on Platform One, sponsored by the Face of Boe?” The woman continued, her eyes still narrowed with a type of focus that Ace found mildly unsettling.

Ace had listened to the Profesor earlier, she’d spoken about visiting her friend upstairs after her identity had been revealed, and had mentioned the last time they’d met had been on an observational space station watching the destruction of the Earth, apparently he was a big head?

Come to think of it, she thought she caught a glimpse of a big head upstairs when they’d been in Ward Twenty Six, but they’d been pretty distracted with checking the other patients. 

She’d wondered why he was called the ‘Face’ of Boe, and not the ‘Head’ of Boe. But again, the Professor had just turned to her and said asking that would be rude… Before she admitted she’d wondered the same thing in the past.

“...Yeah? So what, what are you getting at?” Ace asked while narrowing her eyes, steeling herself as she suddenly wasn’t so certain she’d been on the right track about this woman. 

The skin around her mouth twitched as if fighting back a snarl.

“That… That…Oooghh! I can’t believe he’s here! Now I have a chance to…” The woman began before glancing at the man who had been standing diligently at her side. “Moisturise me! Moisturise me!” 

Ace could only watch, her narrow eyes staring as her lip curled up in a confused and slightly… off putting expression as the man grabbed a large spray bottle and began to spray the large flap of skin down. 

“....Um, do you want me to leave , or…” Ace queried, pointing at the door behind her.

If she’d been any less weirded out, escape or retreat would be the first thing on her mind. But right now, she just felt like she was intruding on something…

“Oh no, you’re not going anywhere!” The woman snarled. “My original plans still are in place, but now that I know the Doctor is here, he’s going to be a bonus! What’s the old Earth saying, two birds and one stone?” 

“What are you talking about?!” Ace exclaimed, feeling like she had come into whatever this was halfway in. She hated when she felt like that, it nearly always ended with the Professor looking smug. 

“What do you have against the Doctor? And what plans?”

“Oh don’t worry, you’ll discover one of them soon enough. And in regards to the Doctor, he ruined my plans in the past, and all I was trying to do was a minor bit of sabotage and a little  fake hostage situation, I would have come out of profiting a nice paycheck and no one would have been the wiser, but he had to spoil everything!”  

“...just to check; did your plans involve the deaths of innocent people?” Ace asked, even as she felt the question was rather redundant. The answer was going to be yes, it was always yes in these situations, but it was important to double check and get all the facts first.

“Oh, one or two… Maybe more, I wasn’t counting.” The woman replied with a distracted tone, as if the details were unimportant.

This made Ace’s hands grip into fists at her side, the Professor hadn’t gone into detail about the events on Platform One, just that it hadn’t gone well.

Ace knew that was code for “something bad happened”, and now she knew she was looking at the architect of the whole thing. 

“Though to be fair, one of them was a tree, so take that as you will.”

“You killed one of the Trees of Cheem?!” 

She liked the Trees of Cheem! They were nice, and they hosted fantastic parties.

“Oh you’re one of those types.” The woman responded with a roll of her eyes. “Don’t worry, I’m sure she was put to good use in the end, after all sawdust is always needed somewhere or another.” 

Ace felt her eye twitch and had to bury the desire deep down to pick up something, preferably heavy, and chuck it right at her… flap? 

Yeah, just to see if it’d bounce off or make a hole. 

Though she already had one big one in the middle which Ace wanted to stick a cork in right now!

“Oh, silly me, with all this excitement and talk of well deserved revenge, I forgot my manners. I am Lady Cassandra O'brien dot Delta Seventeen.”  

“...I really hope you don’t expect me to remember all of that.” Ace blinked.

Why did crazy villains so often have such long names? What was wrong with something simple? Like Fenric, Morgain, or Davros! All nice, simple names! They were easy to remember and quick to say. 

Even ‘the Master’ wasn’t too bad, really, if not madly egotistical.

Who needed three names, a Greek letter, and a number ?!

This caused the now named Lady Cassandra to let out an irritated scoff.

“Insolent little whelp.” She spat out.

“I’ve been called harsher, but much more dangerous than you, stretch!” Ace shot back defiantly, she wasn’t scared of someone who couldn’t even move, let alone attack her. 

And she was pretty sure she could take her attendant too. 

“The Doctor and his last precious little tagalong almost killed me, but I am nothing if not a survivor.” Cassandra proclaimed, and Ace could picture her posing dramatically if she’d had hands.

‘The last one…’ Ace thought, consideringly.

She hadn’t asked the Doctor if she’d had anyone else travelling with her recently, but it wasn’t a surprise. It had been a long time since they’d been together on the Doctor’s end of things, and the War having ended would have left her with no one else.

Picking up another travelling companion or friend wasn’t exactly a surprise. There’d been others before her, after all, so it only made sense for there to be others after.

“She and the Doctor ruined my last skin form, drying me out till I blew up like an overcooked egg!” Cassandra said with a growl. “Luckily my brain survived, and Chip was able to repair me.”

“I live to serve, Mistress.” The man proclaimed beside her.

“...uh huh.” Ace hummed, considering the apparent sycophant. “And by repair… you mean, what? Stuck your brain onto some synth flesh?”

“What? Oh no, nothing so crude and artificial .” Cassandra denied with afront, sounding offended at the suggestion.

‘Right cause this is totally natural.’ Ace thought with a roll of her eyes. 

“My eyes were saved from disposal, my former skin form was created from samples taken from the front of my body.” Cassandra explained as she was once again being sprayed down by Chip.

Ace really felt like she should turn away while that was happening, but settled for averting her eyes. 

“This piece of skin is from my back.” 

Silence followed for several seconds before Ace spoke up, tilting her head slightly as she pointed at Cassandra’s face.

Or her approximation of a face. 

“....So, I'm sorry, but that is your mouth , right?” Ace asked, not an ounce of humour in her tone but genuine confusion and pleading.

‘Please be her mouth,’ she silently prayed.

“W-What!? Of course it is, you- you perverse child!” Cassandra exclaimed, the skin form growing a shade of pink as the veins flowed more prominently.

“Right! Right, sorry… just…” Ace said nodding before she once again vaguely gestured at her. “Needed to be sure.” 

‘Would’ve explained her spouting out a load of hot air, though.’ Ace thought to herself with a smirk.

“The Mistress was lucky to survive.” Chip said, speaking up from Cassandra’s side. “Chip secreted m’lady into the hospital.” 

“Yes, he’s very devoted. But what else can you expect from a force grown clone? Subservient to the letter.” Cassandra declared, causing Ace to glance one more at the man.

She’d heard of ‘force grown’ cloning, the Professor had told of it during their former travels. Illegal on some worlds, while others used it for quickly generated labour and replaceable servants. Though they only had limited lifespans, the nature of their creation and production was for efficiency, not for extended or proper longevity. 

Poor guy would probably be lucky if he lasted the year before he was replaced.

“So, the Sisters upstairs, they don’t know you’re here then?” Ace checked.

“Chip steals Medicine,” he replied proudly. “Helps m’lady.” 

“Soothes her.” He added, rubbing a hand along the right hand frame that stretched out her ‘body’.

…And again, Ace felt like she really, really shouldn’t be watching this. 

“Yeah, alright can you please just… No. Don’t need to see that, Chip.” Ace said, waving a hand up as she averted her gaze again. 

“You have no idea what it’s like.” Cassandra suddenly spoke up, with a tone that Ace suspected was supposed to garner sympathy. “I’m so alone, hidden down here. The last human in existence.” 

Ace let out a scoff as she shook her head. “The last- Are you having a laugh?” 

She knew that there weren’t any pure humans in this time period, the Doctor had said as much during that cruise they went on, but human descendants, near-humans, any of the countless divergent branches of the original, were still human. 

Some just had a little extra sprinkled in.

Honestly, there had been times she’d been jealous of that little extra that they had, given how she was just… a regular, boring human.

But regardless, they were all still human .

“And if you hadn’t realised, you’re on New Earth , it’s all out there.” Ace said, pointing behind herself to make a point. 

“A vegetable patch.” Cassandra said dismissively. 

“And there’s millions, billions even! Of humans out there, all across the stars.” Ace declared, leaning closer with her hands on her hips. 

She didn’t know Cassandra personally, but she was picking up on her attitude quickly. 

“Oh please, nothing but mutant stock, cyborgs, ‘near-human’, patchwork DNA, however you want to say it, none of them pure and original like me! The last true human in existence!” 

“...ooh…” Ace breathed, the realisation hitting her like a blast of Nitro-9. “Oh you’re one of those types.”

“If by ‘those types’ you mean a conservative realist, then yes.”

Ace couldn’t believe the gall of this woman-

No, scratch that, she could. She’d met more than one or two people in her travels like this. 

And not just in space, unfortunately. She still remembered her feelings at seeing the segregation and racial discriminatory aspects of Nineteen-Sixties England back during the Hand of Omega Crisis. 

Then there was the time that she had taken her bat to some actual Nazis during World War Two.

And before it all, before travelling through time and space, before seeing the universe and just how much things differed, but at the same time stayed the same, there’d been Manisha…

She remembered how so called ‘nationalists’ burned down Manisha’s flat while she’d been inside. 

Ace had watched it happen, unable to do anything as the flames blew out the windows… And in her ensuing anger fueled grief, she’d burned down Gabriel Chase Mansion. It hadn’t changed anything, it hadn’t brought Manisha back, but Ace had needed to burn something, to destroy something.

She’d known those Neo-Nazi scumbags had used it as a hangout from time to time, and while she’d been tempted… Oh so tempted, to fire bomb it when she knew they’d be there, she’d gone when it had been empty and abandoned.

It hadn’t brought Manisha back, but at least she’d taken something from them.

But it hadn’t filled the hole, nor soothed the pain of losing her friend in such a barbaric way. 

And here was this woman, if she could even be called that anymore. Having killed people so flippantly, without a care or concern. And talking about other living beings as if they weren’t people, or not ‘human’ just because they’d changed and progressed while she’d stayed the same.

Clinging to her ‘pureness’, and no doubt extending her life with whatever surgeries and treatments she’d done to herself, all in the sake of vanity and ego.

The memories of losing her friend, of the various other ‘purists’ she’d come across during her travels was igniting a fire within her belly. Ace had to fight the urge to walk over there and kick her trampoline looking body to the ground and give her a good stomping for extra measure. 

She’d need more than some moisturiser to sort that out! 

‘It is an inherently ridiculous notion, Ace. And yet, it is one that unfortunately seems to crop up across the universe. The causes of it are systematic, cultural, and so it is not easily defeated.’

‘Then what can we do?”

‘You can hit them with my umbrella, that tends to sort them out.’

‘...Seriously, Professor?’

‘...In reality, it’s not as simple as shaking hands and changing one’s worldview overnight, Ace. I wish it was… I truly do. In some cases, those who have such bigoted mindsets simply are lacking in perspective, they need guidance and help to understand the folly of their actions’

‘And in others?’

‘...Do you fancy a trip? Somewhere sunny, I think, after the day we’ve had.’

‘Professor, don’t try to change the subject, come on.’

‘...Very well then. In other cases I’m afraid there simply is no reasoning with some people. Their ideals are simply too deeply ingrained and they are too set in their ways, unable to change…  And some don’t want to change. In the end, we can be angry and shout at them, match their energy, fight back, exchange an eye for an eye! But in the end, what would that accomplish? Underneath it all, I find it sad… Sad that people would devote so much time, their thoughts, and their emotions to hatred, bigotry, and ignorance… That’s not what life should be, Ace. And anyone trapped in a cycle such as that, they aren’t truly living.’

‘...You’re right, I guess it is sad when you think about it…’

Ace’s fists clenched several times, her harsh breathing slowing as she closed her eyes for a moment and let out an exhale. 

She didn’t have time for this, didn’t have time to waste on Cassandra, no matter how much she wanted to knock her… Well, she couldn’t knock her block off, but she could give her frame a good whack.

There were more important things going on upstairs she needed to get back to, Lady Cassandra’s little revenge tiff would have to wait for another day.

And after all, it’s not like she could catch her if she took off, and she knew to look out for stun blasts this time. 

Opening her eyes, she saw Cassandra had turned back to the screen and was in the middle of reminiscing. 

“-Ambassador of Thrace. That was the last time anyone told me I was beautiful… After that it all became such hard work.” Cassandra lamented.

“What, did you think you’d stay young forever?” Ace questioned as she folded her arms. “You’re only human after all. We age, and some of us not as gracefully as others, but there’s still beauty to be found there. Maybe not the kind you want, but I’d rather be a wrinkled up prune and still keep my humanity in here.” Ace declared jabbing at her heart with her thumb. “Rather than ever turn into something as vile as you!” 

“Spoken like a child, so young… So naive.” Cassandra replied dismissively.

Ace wanted to reply, but her mouth closed, there was no reason to keep talking. She had to get back to the Doctor, they had work to do.

As Ace began to turn, intent on leaving as quickly as she could, Cassandra’s voice called out.

“Leaving so soon?” 

“I’d rather get chased by the thing in the basement than spend another minute with you, M’Lady .” Ace said, giving her the most sarcastic courtesy she could.

“Oh, so you know about that?” Cassandra asked, Ace didn’t bother replying, merely turning fully and beginning to walk away and towards the exit.

“I’ve been listening down here, The Sisters are hiding something.” Cassandra continued.

“Yeah, I know. And I’m going to help the Doctor expose them.” Ace said, glancing back over her shoulder as she continued to walk along.

“And when we’re done with them, I’m gonna make sure you’re put away too. Who knows, you might get parole work as a flag-” Ace began as she was about to walk through the exit, but suddenly found herself frozen in place. Two panels on opposing sides of the walls had caught her in arcs of energy, immobilising her arms. 

“Chip! Activate the psycho-graft!” Cassandra said with urgency. 

Ace tried to thrash and free herself, but her arms were locked in place. Looking up upon hearing Cassandra’s command, Ace looked around in alarm before spotting a metal array above her head just as Chip pulled a command lever on the wall.

Blue light bathed Ace’s trapped body as she could feel her entire body tingling, her head most of all.

“What is this! What are you doing!?” Ace asked, still struggling in vain as Cassandra replied gleefully.

“It’s goodbye trampoline, finally I’ll have a real body again!” 

Ace’s eyes widened as she realised what Cassandra meant. Opening her mouth to shout only for a pink cloud like energy to travel towards her from Cassandra’s body and be absorbed into her head.

And her consciousness once again left her as she felt herself not drifting, but forced down into unconsciousness. 

The Doctor quietly muttered Gallifreyan curses under her breath as she clicked the sonic screwdriver on and off repeatedly, slowly spinning in a circle, trying and failing to find any life signs in the labyrinthian corridors of the hospital’s sublevels.

“Swear this settin’ used t’work.” She growled, deactivating the sonic and smacking it against her palm a few times before once again turning it on in an effort to find Ace.

As she slowly rotated on the spot, hoping that she’d find even the slightest lifesign that she could track, the Doctor started to debate whether it was time to do a proper upgrade of the sonic, rather than the simple maintenance that she did every time it started to short out.

She’d ignored such things during the Time War – she’d ignored a lot of things during the Time War, the sonic least of all – but perhaps it was worth considering if more drastic measures would be smart.

An entire rebuild from the ground up would probably not go amiss, as intensive and time consuming as that could be if she elected to do it by hand.

The design process alone could take weeks, let alone the material selection, fabrication process, and the actual building of a new sonic screwdriver.

…Well it could if she sat down and got pedantic about it. Making a sonic screwdriver wasn’t a long arduous process, at least to those skilled and experienced in their production, unless one made it so. 

As she completed her circuit, the sonic let out a small chirp, negative for life signs.

With a growl the Doctor turned the multitool over, scanning herself with it.

Negative for life signs.

“...aight, so that must’a broke durin’ one of my recent short stops… or maybe I just dropped it, not done any proper maintenance since…” The Doctor paused for a moment, turning her mind back over the last several months. It had been during her last life, wasn’t it? Yes. Yes, just after- 

“Jack an’ the nanogenes.”

…which had been months ago, well over the Academy recommended three week maintenance cycle.

She sighed, shoving the sonic into its designated pocket as her shoulders fell. Nothing for it now, she supposed. She couldn’t exactly fix whatever was broken while looking for Ace, so she’d just have to work out a new plan

Regardless of life signs or not, she couldn’t stand around here in one place. Firstly, she needed to find Ace, and secondly head upstairs and find out where the ‘Intensive Care Unit’ was, after that she had a few potential ideas on what to do and several of them involved a lot of raised voices to say the least.

Oh, she was going to-

The Doctor paused, the sudden sound of footsteps caught her attention. They weren’t close, and she turned unable to see their origin, but her keen hearing picked up on it.

“Ace?” She called out, walking down the corridor and stopping at an impasse, turning her head in the direction she could still hear the approaching footsteps coming from, heavier steps, boots assuredly.

“Ace!” She called out louder, now sprinting in the direction, her running came to an abrupt halt however as she impacted into a taller form.

A taller familiar form. 

Ace was standing there, surprised as she was clearly at having been run into, from the expression on her face that is.

“Ace! You’re okay!” the Doctor exclaimed happily, bringing her hands up to grasp Ace’s shoulders.

Yeah, Ace being taller was still weird, she was really going to have to adjust to that properly.

“...Yes, I’m fine.” Ace replied slowly, her eyes looking at her almost quizzically. “Doctor?”

“Yeah? What is it?” The Doctor began before shaking her head. “No, wait, what happened ? I was knocked out, some kinda stun weapon, and when I woke up you were gone . Was it the Sisters of Plenitude?” The Doctor asked, glancing back behind Ace, who for some reason was still staring at her.

Before the Doctor could ask anything else, she froze when Ace’s hands came up and clutched her cheeks, her hands morphing and moving the smooth skin around as Ace knelt down slightly and looked at her as if studying something under a microscope.

“...Uhhh, Ace, what are you doing?” She blinked, trying to gently push Ace’s hands off of her.

“This is extraordinary…” Ace muttered. “You didn’t even have to worry about scaring or recovery, or any of that post operative nonsense.” 

“What?”

Ace leaned back, but her hands still were on the Doctor’s face, moving up and resting a hand on the top of her head for a moment and comparing her height.

“You’re even shorter than before.” 

“Yeah, I’ve been thinkin’ about gettin’ some boots with bigger soles, and- Wait! What are you doing?” The Doctor said as she almost went on another tangent.

“Oh, nothing! Nothing.” Ace said suddenly, moving her hands back and moving them down to her chest, wringing them out slightly as a smile overtook her.

“Just… All a bit new still, that’s all. Just appreciating the new… boat race.” Ace said, gesturing to the Doctor’s face and smiling a bit too widely. 

And why was she talking like that? It sounded like someone trying to sound like someone from Ace’s time period, but also there was an undercurrent of posh linguistics bleeding through. 

…Okay, this was going from ‘funny weird’ to ‘weird weird’. 

“...Where were you, Ace? Where’d they take you?” The Doctor prompted, frowning. “Did they say what they wanted?”

“No, no, luckily I managed to get away. Didn’t see where they went, it was all rather frightening really.” Ace said with a nod as she cleared her throat.

Okay, now the Doctor wasn’t always the most perceptive in certain situations, she would admit that. Perceptive on average? Yes, but there were times when things could slip past her notice or she would be too distracted or too fixated on a problem to notice little things. 

But she knew her companions, and more to the point she knew Ace . 

And that was not only a lie, it wasn’t even a lie that Ace would try and make in regards to herself.

Ace wouldn’t have been afraid of the Catkind, even if they’d outnumbered her. 

The Doctor frowned as she considered the conversation, double checking her memory to make sure that Ace hadn’t been trying to pass on any secret messages, or if there were any signs of her being threatened into acting like this.

But all she could see was someone doing a truly awful job at acting the part of Ace McShane.

A clone, perhaps? Some kind of shapeshifter? 

No, cloning wouldn’t have been this fast, she hadn’t been knocked out for that long, she’d checked upon waking up. There’s no way it could be a clone.

Or had there been enough time for the Catkind to hypnotise or brainwash Ace somehow?

Brainwashing or some kind of hypnosis wasn’t out of the question, maybe a control node had been placed on her? They were more logical avenues. 

The very thought sent a shiver down her spine and a heat igniting in her belly.

If they so much as laid one paw on Ace, she was going to-

No! Not now, now was not the time for that, not when Ace was potentially in danger. 

But why would they take control of Ace? Did they know what they had been up to, some surveillance having caught them in the sublevels and thus had done something to Ace to distract her and divert her attention from their actions? 

Urghh! She wished she hadn’t been knocked out, she didn’t have all the variables or pieces to put together.

Nor did she have any strong direction on which theories were right or wrong.

And she hated being wrong! 

So potential brain tampering or mental coercion, right now she had to keep up the charade and get back to the higher levels, she’d fix whatever had been done to Ace.

Or she’d make the Catkind reverse it. 

Today was definitely not a good day to test her. 

“Well, you’re safe now.” The Doctor nodded only a second or two after Ace replied, slapping on a confident smile to hide her nerves. 

The smile on Ace’s face shifted to a more natural one. 

“Yes, everything’s fine now.” Ace said as she looked behind the Doctor. “What’s say we crack on then?”

“...Yeah, good idea. Let’s head back upstairs, Ace.” 

At least they had done an absolute rubbish job at retaining Ace’s mannerisms and speech pattern in their control method, she’d hate to have been caught off guard by this later. With her luck, it would have been at the most inconvenient time possible.

She needed to get to the bottom of this now too, and the Catkind were going to regret ever so much as looking at Ace.

Cassandra let out a groan as she felt like she’d been hit with a sharp headache. 

“Mistress?”

Beginning to shake off the sudden mental cobwebs that hit she said the first thing she could think of.

“Moisturise me…” She groaned before rolling over and-

Wait, rolling over?

Her eyes opened as her vision began to clear and she felt her body, her new body, move as she tried to sit up. 

Her eyes travelled to her new hands, her eyes widening as she froze, taking in the sight of her twitching fingers.

Long since felt sensations flooded through her as she remembered what it felt like to have tactile sensations beyond what her previous skin form had been capable of. 

“Fingers…” Cassandra said as she flexed and moved them, before feeling the weight on top of her head, her hands coming up to come through her hair as she sat up. “And hair! Ohh, I’ve missed having hair!” 

In her excitement she pushed herself up and rushed to find a mirror. “I need to see! Let me see!” She said as she rushed over an old round convex mirror, Chip coming to rest close to her as Cassandra was too absorbed in her own appearance to pay him any notice. 

“Oh no…” Cassandra muttered as she took in her new body properly, hands travelling down her hair to the jacket pockets.

“...I’m a chav! ... A commoner! Oh, this is horrible!” Cassandra exclaimed, her hands traversing around the clothing and to her hips. “Look at me, from class to brass!” 

“And this jacket! Ugh, it’s going to have to go.” She muttered, looking down at the hideous garment. Badges … “Straight into an incinerator, I think.”

Cassandra’s wandering hands once again came to rest on her hips, her left brow raising as she took in the body more closely. 

“Hmmm, guess it’s not that bad. After all this body is young, could have been worse. I could have entered some old crone. And I can always use this temporarily till I find someone more suitable.” Cassandra declared, swaying her hips from side to side. “And it is nice to be able to move around independently again. And as for the looks… eh, could be worse I suppose. Not exactly screaming beautiful, but she has a sort of cherubish cutesy look about her, that could come in handy.” 

And most importantly, it was a proper human body, one hundred percent pure.

“I’m so happy for you, Mistress!” Chip applauded her, causing Cassandra to glance in his direction before catching sight of something.

“Oh, but look.” She said as she walked a few feet towards her previous ‘body’, the skin form having ruptured upon her having exited it and entered into the girl.

The jar at the bottom that contained her brain was still, the water no longer reacting to her active living electrical signals and now would forever be stagnant.

Cassandra felt a minute shiver run through her spine as she took in the sight of her former remains, a second passed as she could do nothing but stare.

She didn’t know what she was feeling… 

Relief at having no longer been shackled to that vulnerable form?

A sort of sadness or melancholy?

Thrilled at having escaped? 

Or some combination of emotions she couldn’t narrow down…

All she knew was she was not going back to such existence, now that she had this body she could have a whole new start. Well, a new start with all of her money, of course.

And it was time to search for a more appropriate body, or if she had to, she could always have a few nips and tucks done to better suit her needs and desires.

After all, a little work here and there never did any harm. 

And she wasn’t going to settle for anything less than pure human DNA, if she had to, she’d have this body cloned and sampled to grow her a new body, tailor made for her specifications if need be.

It may have been common , but no one would know the details of it if she made it so. The important thing would be that Lady Cassandra survived, she could stomach hiding the origins of her current body if need be, it wasn’t like there was anyone else left to dispute her status. 

She could even claim she was some long lost daughter who’d been cryo-suspended if she needed a good cover story. It almost reminded her of some of those old soap operas she’d watched in her younger years, though she wouldn’t be overacting as much… at least any more than to sell it if need be. 

She would need a new name of course, if she went through with that plan.

What was the girl’s name? She had told the Sisters of Plenitude her name was ‘Ace’.

Cassandra had to roll her eyes at that, clearly a pseudonym, and not one born of class.

No, her real name was…

Cassandra narrowed her eyes as she thought she could feel the girl’s thoughts swirling around, mostly surface thoughts, but the more she concentrated and peeled back some outer layers.

An act which was harder than Cassandra thought would be, like trying to penetrate a wall of rubber that kept trying to keep her out. But as she pushed and probed at the wall, a name began to take shape on her tongue. 

“...Dorothy …Gale …McShane.” She uttered after a moment.

Still rather common, but not so much as to be unsalvageable. With a little creativity, it would surely polish up enough to pass amongst the upper classes. Perhaps- “...Lady Dorothy O’Brian.” She tilted her head to the side as she considered it. “Hmm, not bad , although it could use some work. It has a sort of… Old Earth charm about it that would still work, but that can be workshopped later.”

Cassandra glanced back to Chip who was now leaning near her former brain casing.

“The brain meat expired, my old Mistress is gone…” He lamented, before Cassandra turned to him with a roll of her eyes.

“But safe and sound in here.” Cassandra said as she tapped a finger against her temple. 

“But what of the child’s mind?” Chip asked, as she saw him inspect around her head. 

“Tucked away.” Cassandra explained as she could feel the consciousness of Ace being buried deeper. “I can just about access the surface memory.”

Which would be useful if need be, especially to-

‘Wait…What?…’ Cassandra thought as her eyes narrowed for a moment, the surface memories she was accessing, seeing and feeling began to focus on one thing.

One person in particular.

The Doctor!

Cassandra’s eyes narrowed again till they were almost squinting, so the girl did know the Doctor after all.

And he was here in the…

No… No, that wasn’t… it couldn’t be…

“Mistress?” Chip spoke up at her side.

“...Extraordinary.” Cassandra breathed out as she tried to wrap her head around the images and memories she was accessing. 

The Doctor, the same man from before, it had to be!

And yes he’d changed…He could change his face-No! His entire body could be changed. Cassandra saw an older man with a funny little hat and an umbrella, feelings of affection and love flooded through her from the child at the thought before Cassandra brushed them aside with a grimace . 

And… And now he’d changed, now he was…

“No…It can’t be.” 

“Mistress, what is it?” Chip asked as Cassandra turned to him, her eyes wider than before as she delved into the recent memories.

“...That girl , the one she was with before. She’s the Doctor…”

Cassandra had been following the monitor’s ever since they medical scans had been logged by the Sisters of Plenitude, the back doors and access into the hospital’s systems having been set to flag for any potentially viable DNA, as well as Cassandra’s robotic spies having been put to use throughout the building and the wider city.

Upon having gotten the scan of the girl, she’d sent in a smaller spy bot to double check, and ever since then she’d been monitoring her over the security feeds, as well as the little tag along in the vest. Having overridden and had them transported to the lower levels only for a glitch in the system to have sent them in the wrong direction!

That’s when she’d lost track of them, all that time they’d been down there alone…

That’s when the Doctor had revealed herself.

When the only pure human vessel she’d found was almost burned to a crisp by those Cats!

It may have left a lot to be desired, but it was pure! She needed that at the very least! 

Her mind wandered back to the Doctor, the girl’s mind was filled with images, words, thoughts and memories abound about them. Even the surface thoughts she could access easily were flooding through. 

Who was the Doctor? 

Cassandra had never heard of him before he had appeared on Platform One, and she had researched everyone that was on that station before she had set out, making sure to not have any surprises over the guest list.

It was an exclusive event .

The trouble she’d had getting her robots into the damn thing had been trouble enough, but it simply wasn’t possible for anyone to be rich enough to have been there and for her not to have heard of them.

Unless the man she’d encountered was one of those reclusive eccentrics, but even then there were stories and gossip. 

And after all, anyone who goes around calling themselves ‘The Doctor’ likely had a juicy tale to go with it. 

She poked once more at the memories of her body’s original occupant, trying to find any answer, and-

‘One: I’m in charge. Two: I am not ‘The Professor’, I am ‘The Doctor’. And Third… Well, I'll think up the third by the time we get back to Perivale.’

-time and fire and death and fear and horror-

-love and care and wonder and joy and life-

-eyes that were older than galaxies-

-room after room after room after room of a ship that defied the universe’s laws-

-wheels within wheels, schemes within schemes, gods and monsters laid low-

‘Come on Ace, we’ve got work to do.’

-loneliness, abandonment, pain, loss-

‘Professor… Why!... Why did you leave me!’

‘Come back! Please come back! Don’t… Don’t leave me, you’re all I’ve got…’

More flashes, images and scenes all speeding through her head as Cassandra took a step back, it was becoming hard to sort through it all.

The sounds of…of…

Freezing!

Screaming!

Blasters !

Crying!

Clowns!

Drowning!

Burning!

Swords clashing!

Death!

…so much death.

…what kind of man- what kind of creature had come to this hospital?

Cassandra brought her hands to her head, grimacing once more though this time in pain as she forced the memories and mind of the child down, deep down so she could think! Think without that weight she’d unleashed upon herself.

The last thing she heard was… It almost sounded like a wolf's howling…

Cassandra felt herself tremble, fingers that had been resting on her head now shaking as she could feel so much .

But as the memories quietened, she began to breathe easier. 

Smoothing her hands back down the jacket, she walked back towards the mirror, once again taking in her appearance as her expression shifted to one of determination.

“Right, no use standing around here all day.” 

“But, Mistress, you spoke of the Doctor before. You’ll be in danger.” Chip pleaded, concern that almost made Cassandra want to pat him on the head, like a little puppy trailing after her.

“Yes, danger seems to follow him, her, everywhere. But while she may be dangerous, she’s also clever.” Cassandra said as she smoothed back a few strands of hair that had come out of place. 

“And from what I saw in the girl’s mind are true, the Cats upstairs are up to something very, very bad, which could turn out quite well for me. If I play my cards right, that is.” 

Yes, yes this could all go quite nicely for her.

A little blackmail would do her well, and the word of such a prestigious hospital would go a long way towards whatever story she concocted to reclaim her wealth.

“I could use a mind like the Doctor’s, for now at least.” Cassandra said as she gave a slight turn while facing the mirror.

“Remember that Old Earth saying? ‘Never trust a nun, never trust a nurse, and never trust a cat.’” Cassandra declared before walking over to Chip and holding her hand out.

“Perfume?”

Quickly the force-grown clone reached into the pocket of the scrubs he wore and retrieved a small spray bottle of perfume, pocketing it before turning and heading out of the room. 

It would come in handy, she had no doubt about that. 

For the next several minutes she traversed through the labyrinth-like tunnels, the passages a bit confusing to navigate even after having seen the maps and schematics so many times, actually walking through them was another thing. 

Though she did enjoy having legs again.

But these boots! Urghh, she was going to enjoy shopping for a whole new wardrobe once this was all over.

A whole new wardrobe that would be fit for her return to the life that she deserved. Soon she’d be in a nice penthouse suite, with the finest of drinks and food on New Earth – and oh, it had been years since she had properly eaten food – while she sorted out the details of her new life.

Soon, soon she’d be back on top, where she belonged.

But first…

“Ace?”

The Doctor.

Oh how long she had waited for this, how she had dreamed of getting revenge if they ever crossed paths once more.

Though as Cassandra steeled herself, she was not expecting the Doctor to come crashing into her. The form of the brunette ‘teen’ having rushed around the corner and smacking into her midsection.

If the ‘Ace’ girl had been any shorter she’d have surely wound up on the floor.

“Ace! You’re okay!” The shorter girl exclaimed, bringing her hands up to Cassandra’s shoulders. 

Cassandra stared at her for a moment, her eyes searching across her body for any familiar signs or connection with the northern man with the enormous ears she’d encountered before but saw no resemblance at all.

“...Yes, I’m fine.” Cassandra replied after a moment’s hesitation, her words coming out slowly as she still couldn’t believe it.

This was the Doctor, the memories she’d seen and glimpsed into had shown her that. But Cassandra still couldn’t comprehend it, the Doctor had the ability to change his, or more accurately now, her body in such a way.

She’d admit freely that she was jealous, such a biological trump card would have served her many times over, as well as saved her countless costly and extensive surgical measures. 

Although, she couldn’t exactly commend the Doctor’s choice . Choosing a female form was one thing, she fully supported it, but to be a child . She had thought that this ‘Ace’ had been young, but the Doctor’s new body was positively pre-pubescent. 

“Doctor?” She said after a moment, internally kicking herself for sounding like she was asking a question. 

She listened as the Doctor babbled on after this, explaining herself and questioning her, before curiosity got the better of Cassandra and she reached up, cupping the girl’s cheeks in her hands. 

“...Uhhh, Ace, what are you doing?” The Doctor asked while blinking, her hands coming up to gently grasp Cassandra’s wrists, but she held onto her face as she inspected it intently. 

“This is extraordinary…” Cassandra muttered. 

Because she would admit it was something she hadn’t seen before. 

“You didn’t even have to worry about scaring or recovery, or any of that post operative nonsense.” She said as she rolled her flawlessly soft and smooth cheeks between her fingers. 

Again, jealousy. 

Some would consider it a bad colour on her, but in this instance she felt it was warranted. 

…perhaps she should have stolen the Doctor’s body.

No, no, bad idea. Cassandra wasn’t sure what kind of non-human the Doctor was, but she wouldn’t settle for anything less than pure, no matter how intriguing the alternative was. 

She still had her standards after all.

“What?”

Cassandra brought a hand up and rested it on the Doctor’s head, comparing her new height. 

“You’re even shorter than before.” 

Changing one’s features or face was one thing, she’d seen her fair share of facelifts in her time, but this was an entire physiological metamorphosis, bones and all!

A part of her thought of the Sisters of Plenitude and how much of a goldmine the Doctor’s biological secrets would garner. And not just the money – although she would certainly take the hospital for all she could, that was just good business – but the ability to completely change herself to such a radical degree.

“Yeah, I’ve been thinkin’ about gettin’ some boots with bigger soles, and- Wait! What are you doing?” The Doctor said as she almost went on another tangent.

“Oh, nothing! Nothing.” Cassandra quickly said as she brought her hands down to her chest, wringing them slightly as she plastered on a smile. 

“Just… All a bit new still, that’s all. Just appreciating the new…boat race.” she said, gesturing at the Doctor’s face as she tried to recall old timey slang appropriate for the girl she was inhabiting.

Cassandra was quite proud of her knowledge of old Earth culture, but still she’d need to stay on the ball if she was going to keep the disguise up for as long as was needed.

“...where were you, Ace? Where’d they take you?” The Doctor asked, eyebrows furrowing together as she frowned. “Did they say what they wanted?”

“No, no, luckily I managed to get away. Didn’t see where they went, it was all rather frightening really.” Cassandra replied quickly, nodding as she cleared her throat. 

She hoped her plausible explanation would be enough to abate the seemingly endless curiosity of the Doctor. 

“Well, you’re safe now.” The Doctor said with a smile after a moment, causing Cassandra to internally give a sigh of relief as she saw the girl smiling.

Allowing herself to relax, her own smile rested on her face as she spoke up once more. 

“Yes, everything’s fine now.” Cassandra remarked as she took a couple of steps onward, glancing back at the Doctor as she did. “What’s say we crack on then?”

She saw the girl nod after a moment, smiling still as she began to follow her. 

“...Yeah, good idea. Let’s head back upstairs, Ace.” 

The Doctor was uneasy.

Yes, being in a hospital was enough to get a few hackles raised.

Yes, being around an alien conspiracy cover up got her mind racing.

Yes , the fact the Catkind were experimenting on living beings got her livid.

But add Ace’s… condition? On top of it all, she was feeling very, very uneasy.

And tack on more than a little bit more of the ‘anger’ options.

Oh yes, she was using a lot of restraint to just appear ‘normal’ right now, and when she confronted the ones responsible, she wasn’t sure what her reaction was going to be…

Riding the lift back up to the upper floors, they’d found their way to another access terminal, the Doctor’s earlier retrospective thoughts when she’d accessed the database in the basement levels had borne fruit as she’d accessed the subframe network.

Using the installation protocol she’d uncovered another private entrance, this one leading to the intensive care ward, all the while Ace was more than eager to lead the charge as it were. And while this wasn’t exactly new behaviour for her, the Doctor still knew something was up. Following the teen down the stairs and corridors until they came to their destination.

The Doctor’s eyes narrowed as she looked around, the various levels and rows upon rows of glowing green medical capsules…

A practical tower, all built to serve one sick purpose.

Literally.

“This is… somethin’ else.” She muttered, taking in the full scope of the chamber. How they could hide this from the general public boggled the mind, the logistics of managing a facility this large alone…

And not just the public, but all the officials that had reason to be able to find something like this. The government departments and branches that worked with the hospital. How high did this conspiracy run if they could do something this big?

The sight of shadowy figures appearing near them behind the glass, caused the Doctor’s stomach to turn, but she kept her composure as best she could and walked further down the corridor till they came to a corner section more private then the open stairwell they’d been near before.

Walking up to a capsule, the Doctor retrieved her sonic and aimed it at one of the capsule’s locking mechanisms, only taking a second for it to unlock. Ace was at her side, silently watching as the hinges let out a hiss as the Doctor opened the capsule, revealing the hidden figure within.

Inside was a human. One that, judging by the sheer number of blisters and rashes across their body, was horrifically sick.

“That’s disgusting.” Ace said as the Doctor’s gaze never left the man inside the capsule. “What’s wrong with him?” 

The Doctor picked up on the tone, the indifference beneath the curiosity.

And again it only made her angrier, but instead of turning or replying to Ace, she could only look at the man within the capsule.

His face held such a look of longing, of loneliness and utter despair. 

She knew he’d never known anything else, anything but this…

His entire existence had been spent trapped here, being used as an experiment, a walking petri dish for sickness and disease. 

“I’m sorry.” She told him, her stern gaze betrayed only by the pricking of tears she could feel at the edge of her vision.

“...I’m so sorry.” she said quietly, as she stepped back, closing and locking the capsule again, she paused for only a moment, resting her hand on the glass.

This was proof, proof of what they’d discovered down below, how the hospital was learning so much about diseases. It was actually a pretty simple system, all things considered, almost clinical in how clean and straightforward it truly was. 

If not for the utter horror and breach of any sort of ethical or moral boundaries. 

All the nurses had to do was closely monitor a few thousand people who were in climate controlled capsules, infect them all with the cocktail of diseases and ailments they cooked up and harvested, and then try different treatments on different sets of them.

There’d be mountains of data afterwards, which could be used to direct the next round of ‘medical trials’.

Walking quickly to the capsule beside the one she’d just shut, the Doctor repeated the process, opening it and looking inside to see a similar sight, a darker woman was standing up, her hands resting on two railings and a mess of wires strung about as she looked at them.

She looked so drained, so devoid of strength, her face was covered in blisters and dark veins beneath her skin, the Doctor could see it spreading beneath and underneath her gown as Ace spoke up.

“What disease is that?”

“All of ‘em.” The Doctor replied gravely. “Every single disease in the galaxy… They’ve been infected with everything.”

Ace turned to the Doctor as soon as the words left her mouth, she saw her in the corner of her eyes as she still kept looking at the poor woman in the capsule.

“But what about us? Are we safe?”

The Doctor again knew this wasn’t Ace, it may have been her body… but this wasn’t Ace.

“The air’s sterile.” She replied evenly. “Just don’t touch ‘em.” 

Slowly closing the capsule as she’d done previously, the Doctor let out an exhale as she looked around at the other capsule going down the hall before walking back down to the outer level overlooking the railing, leaning on it as she looked out once more at the many levels containing the trapped people.

“How many patients are there?” ‘Ace’ asked, causing the Doctor to let out a scoff as her lip almost turned up into a snarl. 

“They’re not patients .” The Doctor said as her hands gripped the railing tightly.

“...But they’re sick?” Ace replied, almost causing the Doctor to roll her eyes if not for the feelings she had whirling inside she was trying to contain.

“They’re guinea pigs. Test subjects.” The Doctor growled out. “They were born sick, they’re meant to be sick! They exist t’be sick!” She spat out angrily, slamming a hand down on the railing as her hands were now shaking.

“Lab rats!” She grit out she said as she looked up above, it was just sickening. She was regretting visiting the commissary earlier now, as all she wanted to do was empty her stomach.

“This is how the Sisters ‘ave gotta cure for everything’. This is what all that data downstairs pointed to… this is what the final bit of evidence I saw proved, in their little ‘incineration’ chamber! Where they toss away the people when they’re no longer needed! When they’ve served their ‘purpose’! They toss ‘em aside like rubbish and burn their remains! This… This research laboratory is nothing but a sick human farm !”

Her lips trembled as she suppressed another snarl, turning she began to walk back down the corridor, Ace’s hurried footsteps catching up to her as the Doctor’s hands kept clenching and unclenching into fists.

“Why don’t they just die?” The fake Ace asked as the Doctor paused in front of another chamber, she contemplated pulling out her sonic again, but… part of her just didn’t want to see another.

“Plague carriers, the last to go.” The Doctor replied curtly. 

“It’s for the greater cause.” A familiar voice said from further down the hall.

The Doctor had heard the footsteps approaching, featherlight as they were, she’d picked up on the approaching presence as she turned to see Novice Hame approaching from the dimly lit corridor’s entrance.

“Novice Hame.” The Doctor greeted with a frown that teetered on a glare.

“Tell me, when you took your vows, did you agree to this?” She demanded to know. 

“The Sisterhood has sworn to help.” Hame replied, and the Doctor let out a scoff at the honesty held in that tone.

She either deserved an Oscar, or she genuinely believed the drivel she was spitting out right now.

“Isn’t it funny ‘ow often people that swear that they just wanna ‘elp are the ones causing all the problems?” The Doctor commented, a sardonic grin crossing her lips before her expression shifted to an angrier glare once more.

“And you’re so-called help comes by what? Killin’?! ” She spat out at the end. 

“But they’re not real people.” Hame argued. “They’re specially grown, they have no proper existence.” 

“Oh, so they’re all braindead?” 

They weren’t and the Doctor knew it.

Nothing without brain activity looked at someone like those two had looked at her. Nothing that couldn’t think had eyes filled with such clear emotion.

The Doctor saw her begin to tightly ring her hands together, either their unexpected presence here wasn’t something she’d had to deal with before, or maybe somewhere, deep inside, the Doctor’s righteous anger was actually striking a chord or two within the young Catkind. 

So she continued. 

“What’s the turnover?” She asked as she walked towards her. “You manage… what? A thousan’ corpses a day? Maybe two, three?” She questioned as her expression continued to grow angrier with every word. 

“How many, huh?” She asked as she now stood only a few feet from her. “For how many years?” 

“HOW MANY!” She exclaimed loudly, her hands now clenched into fists once more, she saw Ace actually jump at her side from the sudden loudness, as did Hame.

Catkind enhanced senses.

Good, the Doctor wanted it to hurt.

She deserved a lot more than some momentary sore ears for this disgusting practice she’d become a part of. 

“...you don’t know , do you, Novice Hame?” She realised, blinking away at the angry tears that were beginning to cloud her vision.

“Mankind needed us!” Hame replied desperately, pleadingly. “They came to this planet with so many illnesses, we couldn’t cope.” She explained, rehashing the information the Doctor had already read, but she let her go on anyway.

“We did try… We tried everything.” Hame uttered.  

“I know.” The Doctor said after she was about to speak up once more. “I read the secret files you got locked in the basement, the Catkind who were ‘ere back during the initial settlin’ of human refugees tried… they just decided to toss aside their morals and ethics in the name of progress.” 

“No…No, they grew their own Flesh.” Hame argued, shaking her head, almost desperately. “T-That’s all they are, Flesh.” 

“D’you really believe that?” The Doctor questioned as she motioned around them. “Have you ever looked, truly looked in these capsules? Or this above your level of duties, hm?” The Doctor asked.

“Have you ever looked into their eyes?! Seen what they do when you pump ‘em full of sickness… What they feel! These people are alive !” The Doctor argued, causing Hame to blink and look down, breaking their gaze as she spoke.

“But think… Think of those humans out there, healthy, and alive, and happy because of us.” 

The Doctor looked at her and didn’t reply immediately, she looked into the growing desperation in the young Cat’s eyes, the way she gripped her hands at her chest.

She obviously hadn’t known about this when she’d taken her vows, when she’d come to the hospital. But somewhere along the way she’d been introduced to all this, probably fed a whole story and obvious lines from the older Sisters about the necessity of their work, and the spiel about the humans being only flesh, nothing sentient or of any rights, any decency as people.

No, just experiments for them to use to help the ‘real’ people out there.

Maybe there had been doubts once, maybe not, maybe she’s suppressed her discomfort long ago, or maybe she’d never had any to begin with.

But regardless, she was visibly experiencing it now.

“If they live because of this, then life is worthless.” The Doctor declared breaking the silence. 

“...But who are you, to decide that?” Hame asked as she met her gaze.

The Doctor approached her, crossing another foot of space as she narrowed her eyes. “I may not have been forthcoming earlier, so let me make this real simple for you. I’m the Doctor. Now I dunno ‘ow versed you are in human history, but I’m guessin’ you’ve stopped at a library once in’ awhile, maybe you’ve ‘heard a tail or two from the wider universe. But if not, let me explain: if you’re plannin’ to take this whole thing up the chain, or call on a ‘higher authority, don’t waste your time; there isn’t one.” She said firmly, stepping forward into Hame’s personal space.

“It stops with me!”

She let the words hang in the air for a second longer as she saw the desperation now shifting to nervousness in the Cat’s eyes as she looked up at her, Ace’s voice cut through the silence as she leaned in from the Doctor’s side.

“Just to confirm.” Ace began. “None of the human’s in the city actually know about this?”

“....Well, no.” Hame replied, almost grateful for the opportunity to talk to someone besides the Doctor.

“We thought it best not-”

And the Doctor had finally had enough, she couldn’t take this any longer, couldn't stand here and pretend everything was fine with Ace when it so clearly wasn’t. 

“Shut up!” She snapped, turning a glare over her shoulder, the sudden exclamation causing ‘Ace’ to jump again and step back. 

“You just-just shut up!” She ordered the imposter.

Her head whipped back around to Novice Hame so fast she almost thought she’d give herself whiplash. 

“I dunno what you did to Ace, and right’ now I don’ really care . Fix. Her. Now.” The Doctor snarled out, causing Hame to look between them, a look of what the Doctor would call genuine confusion crossed her face, and if there’d been any other Catkind here right now, she might have directed her anger to someone a bit more higher up the chain, but unfortunately for the young Catkind, there wasn’t anyone else.

And she didn’t care.

They’d done something to Ace, and the Doctor would rip this hospital, this entire planet apart if got her put back to rights.

“I can understand the bodies, and your vows.” The Doctor began before shaking her hand around dismissively. “Not sayin’ I approve in any way, or think is not sick and infuriatin’! But I can understand the twisted and messed up reasonin’ why you do it.” She said before raising a hand up and pointing to ‘Ace’.

“But whatever you did to Ace, I want it reversed!” 

“I… I don’t know what you mean?” Hame replied in confusion, again glancing at Ace nervously. 

“I am tryin’ very, very hard to be calm right now, not a hundred percent succeeding, but I am tryin’ .” The Doctor stressed as she fought back her twitching lip as she addressed Hame, eyes intently staring at her. 

“And I want you to be aware of that.” She continued as she saw Hame almost frozen on the spot from her words and the expression on her face.

“The only reason I’m tryin’ to be so very, very calm, is because the brain is a delicate thing!” 

“I’m perfectly fine.” Ace tried to argue, at the same time as Hame.

“I don’t know what you mean-” 

“People are dyin! They are suffering!” The Doctor said before she turned to look at ‘Ace’ with a glare.

“And Ace, the Ace I know , the Ace who cares about’ other people! She wouldn’t just’ stand by like this, she’d be just’ as angry and just’ as determined to fix this as I am! And she’s not, so something’ has happened to her! And I want it fixed right now.”

“We haven’t-”

Before Hame could even finish her sentence this time, the Doctor lost the last ounce of her patience and in a flash of movement, Hame found herself pushed back against one of the capsules, the Doctor’s hand pressing her arm against her upper chest as her other held back one of her hands at her side forcefully.

“I swear to you! If I have to’ tear down this entire hospital-no, this entire city, I’ll do it. Brick by brick, wall by wall, street by street! There will be nothin’ left by the time I leave here if Ace isn’t returned to me, unharmed!” The Doctor growled out, pressing further into Hame’s chest as the Catkind’s other arm was being used to restrict her movement.

“I don’t think you have an inkling’, not a clue of what I would’ do for that girl! And today, no not just today, these past few weeks, is not the time to try and test me!” She declared angrily.

Her blood was pumping so fast, both hearts pounding in her chest as she didn’t even know if she was breathing or if she’d engaged her respiratory bypass, the surroundings, the darkness and green glow from the capsules, began to disappear.

The smell of medicine and disinfectant and disease and sickened flesh all gave way as the Doctor felt herself falling.

She wasn’t here…

Where was she then?

The Tardis… No…

No… No … No … Not again…

Not another…

She couldn’t lose another-

Another…

Another grave?

Not another…

Her eyes clenched shut as she tried to make sense of it all, all the while her hearts kept beating a million miles a minute.

Would they ever stop?

Would she ever stop…

Stop falling and-

“...P-Please, let me go!”

As soon as her ears heard those words the Doctor’s eyes shot open, and she saw it.

The frightened expression on Hame’s face, the choking sounds of her gasping for air, her mouth open in a silent plea.

And the Doctor let her go.

She let her go and stumbled back as Hame slid down the capsule exterior, all the while the Doctor took desperate breaths looking around to see ‘Ace’ staring at her with…

Fear? Confusion? Shock?

She didn’t know, she didn’t…

She needed a moment to get her breath back, as did Hame noticeable, who was resting her hand on her chest and taking breaths of her own.

“....I’m…I’m sorry…” The Doctor said after a moment, causing the Catkind to look up at her.

“I’m sorry… I…” she trailed off as she gripped her head, letting out a watery breath as she shook her head.

What had happened?

She’d lost control of herself. Not that it had been the first time she’d felt anger like that, but to lash out so quickly in a physical sense? This wasn’t her Third self fighting off an alien warrior with a well placed nerve pinch or Venusian chop to the neck, it wasn’t her First self trading fisticuffs in Ancient Rome, joyfully dueling an assassin, it wasn’t her Fourth self fighting a Sontaran in hand to hand combat.

She’d choked out a nurse , and not just a nurse, but a nun . 

A young woman who despite being involved in a horrible and disgusting practice, seemed to have some genuine convictions about what she’d done, and clearly had been indoctrinated and fed lies to pacify any thoughts to contrary by the elder Sisters and the Matron, and those who’d been here long before she’d been born. 

A young woman who wasn’t the one who’d started all this.

And now that the Doctor was thinking about it… she may not have even known about Ace, the genuine confusion in her voice before…

Again, she was either a very good actor… or she was telling the truth, at least as far as she was aware, that is.

Walking across the corridor, she reached down, extending her hand to Hame, who flinched back momentarily before she looked up at the Doctor.

“....I’m sorry.” She said a little quieter than before as Hame slowly reached up to take her hand, the Doctor helped her to her feet before letting out a sigh.

“...I shouldn’t ‘ave jumped to violence so quickly… it’s not how I like to do things.” 

Images swirled of Peri flashed in her mind as she shook them off before turning to Ace, her eyes narrowing.

“Now, that still leaves the problem of you.” The Doctor said to Ace before glancing at Hame. “If you’re truly unaware of what happened, I want you to help find me someone that does know what’s happened to Ace, she was fine before we were separated downstairs and by the time I found her, she was different.”

Before she could say any more the sound of slow clapping caught her attention, turning back to see Ace with her hands together.

“Clever girl, you figured it out, smarty pants.” She declared, causing the Doctor to give her a narrow eyed expression.

“...not really ‘clever’, you’re a terrible actor.” The Doctor commented, blinking a little. “So, you’re… what? Remote controlling her, some kinda psychic projection onto Ace’s mind, or-”

“Oh give it a rest, since you’re so eager, I might as well tell you.” She said as she stepped closer, tugging on one of the Doctor’s lapels and giving her a smirk.

“I knew something was going on in this hospital, but I needed this body and your big brain to figure it out.” 

The Doctor’s eyes narrowed, almost dangerously as the anger she’d let go of moments ago threatened to flare up. 

It was someone else, someone using Ace like a puppet! 

“Who are you?” She demanded of her, as the taller girl grinned wider as she leaned in closer till she was next to her ear.

“...The last human.” 

“Cassandra?!” The Doctor questioned as she looked her in the eyes.

“Wake up and smell the perfume.” She declared, causing the Doctor to squint in confusion.

“Wha-” she began to say only for Ace- Cassandra to pull out a small spray bottle and let it off in front of her face, instantly she could feel her body begin to fall as consciousness left her, falling down to the ground with a hard impact upon the metal floor. 

The last thing she could feel was a soft gloved hand coming to her face.

“-ou’ve hurt her-” 

Before blackness.

Chapter Text

“Urghhhh.” The Doctor groaned out as she regained consciousness, her eyes adjusting quickly to see the grimey interior of a previously empty medical capsule that she was now inhabiting. 

“Let me out!” She exclaimed, banging her fists against the glass. “Let me out of here!”

“Aren’t you lucky there was a spare? Standing room only.” Cassandra's voice filtered in from the outside, cloaked in Ace’s own that only served to remind the Doctor of what she’d done, more so when she stood in front of the capsule and even with the blurred green tint of the glass, she could see her clearly enough.

“You’ve stolen Ace’s body!” 

“Yes, thank you for stating the obvious.” Cassandra replied sarcastically before she leaned closer to the capsule, the Doctor glare was now focussed solely on her. 

“...I hope you run, Cassandra. Because when I get out’a here, and I will get out’a here, I’ll come for you. And there is nowhere you can go that I can’t find you.” The Doctor vowed, glaring through the glass.

“Hehe, funny you think you’re in any position to make threats. You see, I’ve thought of a thousand ways to kill you over the years, Doctor.” Cassandra stated as she ran a hand down the cables beside the capsule. 

“And now that’s exactly what I’ve got. One thousand diseases.” she said with a raise of her eyebrows. 

“They pump the patients with a top-up every ten minutes. You’ve got about three minutes left.” Cassandra declared. 

“Then I’ll be with you in two.” The Doctor declared.

The anger was… not gone, because this body’s emotions were just so big and so strong . But it had settled a little bit, the inferno dying down to softly simmering flame in her gut.

She wasn’t calm , far from it, but Cassandra knocking her out had actually helped her shut out the blinding rage that had driven her to attack Novice Hame.

But she was keeping her temper in check for her productivity’s sake.

And for Ace’s sake.

“That gives you one whole minute to get out of Ace an’ run, Cassandra. I’m givin’ you a chance here, one chance!” The Doctor repeated, not letting up her glare.

“Do yourself a favor, and take it.” 

“Oh don’t worry, I will get out of her body. If I can find someone more suitable, pure human of course, hopefully a bit more high born than this one.” 

“Well, there’s a few thousand ‘pure humans’ in these pods. Take your pick.” The Doctor snarked, subtly reaching for her sonic.

“Ugh, don’t even joke about that.” Cassandra scoffed back, as if offended at the mere mention of inhabiting one of the newly grown humans. 

“Well, I s’pose you could just find one of those other ‘pure humans’ to steal the body of.” The Doctor allowed, fingers deftly moving to the correct settings on the sonic. She’d only get a few shots at this before she was infected. 

“Remind me, what was your title?”

Even as she was talking and preparing to put her plan into action, the Doctor considered the very few options available to her. If the sonic didn’t work, then she might be able to force some kind of system failure from within the capsule, and if that didn’t work…

Well, she’d probably break the door off its hinges if she regenerated. It would heal her too, as well as burn out any pathogens in the air.

She really, really didn’t want to come to another hospital for a long time after this.

Hopefully ever.

One death in a hospital was enough, thank you very much!

And she didn’t seem to have much luck being in them either. 

“Clever, clever, trying to distract me. But I don’t have time for games, I’m going to leave this place and if all goes well, I’ll have a nice lump sum to establish myself anew, now then, hush-a-bye. I have important business to get to.” Cassandra said, before a new voice interrupted her.

“Anything we can do to help?”

The Doctor strained to see the edge of the capsule’s periphery, spotting Matron Casp and another older Sister of Plenitude, the same one who’d introduced her earlier to Hame, Sister Jatt.  

“Ah, straight to the point, whiskers.” Cassandra said as the Doctor noticed another figure had appeared beside Ace.

Had he been there before?

He was dressed in scrubs and seemed to defer to Cassandra as she spoke. 

“I want money.”

The Doctor had to admit she was nearly… disappointed. She supposed that it was in line with Cassandra’s scheme from Platform Five, but pure monetary gain was just so utterly boring as far as motivations went.

The least Cassandra could do was demand that the hospital use its cloning technology to make herself a new body, rather than just pay her out for her silence. At least that would have a modicum of interest beyond mere financial greed. 

“The Sisterhood is a charity, we don’t give money. We only accept.” Matron Casp intoned.

Glancing back to Cassandra, the Doctor could see the smug expression on her face still present as she replied to the Matron.

“The humans across the water pay you a fortune, not to mention I have a feeling you’re definitely dealing under the table with all of this going on.” Cassandra said motioning to the capsules around them.

“And that is what I want. A one off payment, that’s all.” she said before tilting her head slightly. “Oh and perhaps a yacht, in return for which I will tell the city nothing of your institutional murder.” 

“Do you really think that the hospital just has a spare yacht laying around?” The Doctor checked, raising an eyebrow as she quietly placed the tip of the sonic against the door. She’d have to pick her moment, but with any luck the door would swing open as soon as she pressed the button.

“Hush! I’m negotiating.” Cassandra said while shooting her a look before the Doctor saw her turn her attention back to the Matron.

“Well, do we have a deal?” 

“I’m afraid not.” Matron Casp answered flatly. 

This momentarily threw Cassandra, from the pause the Doctor noted from her, before she replied back.

“I’d really advise you to think about this.” Cassandra pressed, causing the Doctor to let out a scoff.

“Oh there’s no need. I have to decline.” Matron Casp replied, with a tone that sounded far too… lighthearted or chipper, for someone who was being blackmailed.

“I’ll tell them. And you’ve no way of stopping me!” Cassandra said before the Doctor saw her smirk at them. “You’re not exactly nuns with guns. You’re not even armed.” 

“ Well- ” The Doctor began, but stopped at the glare Cassandra levelled her way. Probably best not to draw attention to herself, on second thought.

“Who needs arms when we have claws!” The Matron declared, raising a hand as her fingers extended several sharp looking claws as she and the Sister at her side began to advance towards Cassandra with a snarl like hiss, who now was looking nervous.

“...Yeah, see, this is what happens when you try to blackmail murderous cat nuns who experiment on people!” The Doctor exclaimed as she finally unlocked the door and stepped out of the capsule.

“Well, I tried. Chip, plan B!” Cassandra shouted, turning back to the man in scrubs. The Doctor was about to question them when she saw Chip pull a lever on the side of the wall by a series of controls.

It only took a second before a row of capsules opened along the corridor they were on, causing the Doctor to roll her eyes.

“Couldn’t have done that a few minutes ago?” She questioned rhetorically, before taking notice of the various humans who were now walking out of the capsules, and unlike the woman she’d seen before they were far more energetic.

Oh… oh, that was not good.

“What have you done?!” The Doctor questioned Cassandra who’d walked further down past her, she turned back to the Doctor to respond.

“Gave the system a shot of adrenaline, just to wake them up. See ya!” She finished with a mock wave before running off, Chip eagerly following.

This left the Doctor in a bind, as she looked back to where the two Sisters were before seeing where Cassandra had run to.

She couldn’t be in two places at once…

Turning to the two Sisters she spoke up quickly.

“Don’t touch them! Whatever you do, don’t touch them!” She exclaimed before she ran after Cassandra, dodging a young woman who’d stepped out of the capsule near her and wincing as she saw her look to her.

“S-Save… Us…” the young woman uttered, her throat dry and crackly from underuse.

If she’d ever used it…

But she knew, she knew how to speak, she was constructing speech! 

Constructing thought!

And the Sisterhood had the nerve to say they weren’t real people.

“...I’m sorry.” the Doctor uttered, her eyes once again pricking with tears. “For everything they’ve done to you… I’m so, so sorry…”

“Please… Save…Us…” The young woman said, reaching out and causing the Doctor to flinch back, bringing a hand up to wipe her eyes before looking at her directly.

“I will… I promise!” She said firmly before she turned and ran down the hall.

She was going to find Cassandra and free Ace, and she was going to shut this whole place down and cure the infected, and give them their freedom. 

By the day’s end, they were all going to be free, she’d see to that.

But for now, she’d need to establish a quarantine, to keep the infected inside the hospital. If they broke containment before she could cure them, then the infections could spread across the entire city. And New New York was a major space hub, all it would take is one person to carry a disease like this off world, and they could be looking at an apocalyptic situation.

“The hospital should have a lockdown procedure.” She muttered, her mind racing. If she could enable that, then the infected would be locked inside.

Inside, with all the patients who couldn’t get out because the hospital would be on lockdown.

Inside, with the immunocompromised, and the children’s ward , and-

Urghh! Why did it have to be so complicated to keep them in one place!

But wait! Only a few were released thus far, a small section in that one corridor, if she could keep it that way, she wouldn’t need to-

A sudden spark of bright lights caused the Doctor to stop running, as she saw the sparks flying down in a row along the capsules.

Coming from the capsules’ locks.

And as the various capsule doors around her, and if the echoing sounds of it happening further back were any indication…

Yeah, so backtracking to her previous desire to keep it to only a few being released, it suddenly became an impossibility. 

“I. Hate. Hospitals!” The Doctor growled to herself as she took off again, running faster until she saw both Cassandra and Chip also running along at high speed, catching up to them she turned to Cassandra with a glare.

“Is this you?!”

“What!? I only released a few back there to keep the Cats busy! Why would I let them all out! Ahhh!” She finished with a scream as another spark went off right by her as they continued to run until they stopped at a railing near a stairwell, the Doctor leaned across the railing as she took in the sight of the capsule opening still.

Every capsule opening, from the levels below and far above.

“Oh my goodness…” Cassandra gasped at the sight of it at the Doctor’s side, causing her to give her a look.

“Proud of yourself? You might not have caused this, but you set off a chain reaction, you think this would have happened if you hadn’t let those others out!?” The Doctor said before spotting one of the infected coming down 

“One touch and you get every disease in the world.” She reminded Cassandra as they began backing away from the stairwell.

“And I want that body safe, Cassandra!” The Doctor declared before turning to the stairs in front of them. “We’ve got to go down!” 

“But there’s thousands of them!” Cassandra shot back anxiously. 

“Really?! I hadn't noticed!” The Doctor shouted, pushing her towards the stairway that led to the lower level.

“Shut up and run!” She added as Cassandra and Chip both heeded her command in the face of the encroaching infected, rushing down the stairs with haste. 

“Down, go down! Just keep going!”

For the most part, the hospital was logically put together, even accounting for the massive secret bio-lab, cloning facility, incinerator, and who knew what else. Which meant that, if the architects had been smart, then there should be a service shaft or something that led towards the lowest levels of the hospital and was out of the way. 

People doing maintenance couldn’t exactly go through the wards with all the sick people, after all. So there had to be some kind of back entrance.

“This building is under quarantine.” An automated voice called over the tannoy PA system.

“Well that’s one thing I don’t have to do.” The Doctor muttered to herself as they kept running, obviously the Matron or one of the other Sisters had been informed to place the building under quarantine procedure. 

“Repeat, this building is under quarantine. No one may leave the premises. Repeat, no one may leave the premises.”

The stairs were getting awfully repetitive, but they kept on till they could find a service entrance that could help them get back upstairs, to the ground levels.

“There!” The Doctor called, pointed to the corner near the stairs they were descending, a service door, probably leading to a maintenance area or storage.

Either one could have access to the lifts, and even if they weren’t working, a service hatch could be used to access the upper levels… with a bit of climbing.

They just needed a direct route up that bypassed the infected.

As they entered through the door into what was clearly an old maintenance area, Cassandra rushed ahead towards the lifts and began pressing buttons only for the Doctor to speak up. 

“The lifts won’t work, they’re closed down. There’s a quarantine, nothing’s moving.” 

Cassandra didn’t linger by the lifts, immediately taking off further down the way they’d just come from but taking another side passage, with the Doctor and Chip on her trail. 

The Doctor grabbed Cassandra’s arm and slowed her momentarily.

“Don’t think this changes anythin’, I want you to get out of that body an’-” The Doctor began before they both came to a halt as a door to their right opened to reveal a mass of the infected humans shuffling through.

The Doctor looked around frantically, they couldn’t go back the way they’d come, the lifts were the only way out down there and their current route was blocked.

“Mistress!” Chip cried out, having been separated by the now emerging hoard further down the corridor.

“Don’t let them touch you!” the Doctor cried out, outstretching her arm towards the force grown clone.

“Oh, leave him!” Cassandra spat out, grabbing the Doctor’s arm to retreat further from the infected. “He’s a clone thing, he’s only got a half life. Come on!” 

The Doctor turned back towards Chip, seeing the fear and abandonment in his eyes as Cassandra ran and the infected approached.

“Mistress!” 

Cassandra didn’t turn back as she rushed further away, and the Doctor had to make a choice once again, quickly glancing between them, she gave Chip a frantic look of apology.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry, I can’ let her escape! Find somewhere to hide and lay low, and don’t let ‘em touch you!” The Doctor called out before she reluctantly turned and ran after Cassandra, her hearts clenching at the sounds of the clone’s cries to Cassandra even now.

The Doctor came to find Cassandra about to open a door, tugging at the old and rusted frame and was about to let loose on her for her callous display in the other room, but they were both interrupted by the sound of loud banging and groaning coming from the other side.

The infected were waiting.

“There’s no way out! They’re coming from both sides!” Cassandra cried out, the Doctor bit back the reply she wanted to give to the woman as she looked around the room, for anything that could aid them in-

Oh!

“Here! We’ll use this!” The Doctor proclaimed as she rushed over to a waste chute, Cassandra rushed over but paused in her steps upon seeing it up close.

“...You can’t be serious?!”

“It’s either the rubbish chute, or shakin’ hands with the infected, so do you wanna live or not?” The Doctor demanded, annoyance and anger now seeping into her tone once again, she was ready to grab Cassandra and push her down the chute at this point.

“It’s-What if it’s medical waste!?”

“It’s not, it’s a rubbish chute , probably from the commissary! Now, come on!” The Doctor said, grabbing her arm and reaching the edge of the chute just in time for the door they’d been standing by to get busted open, more of the infected shuffled through as the corridor they’d come from before was entered by another hoard.

“Still worried about the chute?” The Doctor asked rhetorically and with more than a little sarcasm before Cassandra looked back to the infected and down the chute before giving a whine of disgust before leaning over and slipping down into it head first, the Doctor pulled out her sonic and hopped up into the chute, going down legs first as she aimed her sonic at the opening, closing it as she slid down the long and widened pipe.

It was almost like a slide at a carnival.

If not for the smell.

They fell for several floors, sliding down the chute before coming to a halt, Cassandra having slid out and tumbled across the floor while the Doctor, having gone down feet first, was able to stop herself easier as they came to rest.

Letting out an exhale, she stood up and brushed off a few stray pieces of food waste off her clothes and took a moment to look around the room. 

The Doctor was confused, looking around she saw what looked like an abandoned room, similar flickering lights that had filled the rest of the basement levels they’d been to before.

But if this was a food waste chute…where was the-

“Urghhh!” Cassandra groaned as she stood up, causing the Doctor to turn towards her with a glare.

“Next time, you go first.” Cassandra complained as she stretched her back, only to turn and find the Doctor had crossed the distance and was now directly in front of her.

“What-” Cassandra began only for the Doctor to interrupt her.

“It was a Psycho-Graft, wasn’t it!” The Doctor spat out, not a question, but an accusation as she’d had time to think it over, and it seemed like the most logical explanation for Cassandra having taken over Ace’s body.

“Took you long enough.” Cassandra said with an eye roll, and it took the Doctor channeling more restraint to avoid lashing out as she reigned herself in and poked Cassandra’s chest.

“That technology is banned on every civilized planet!” The Doctor said before her glare harshened.

“You’re compressin’ Ace to death!” She exclaimed, as Cassandra didn’t look at her, but rather their surroundings. 

“Well it’s not like I have anywhere to go, my original skin’s dead.” Cassandra supplied.

“You should have asked for help!” The Doctor spat out. “You ‘ad samples of your original DNA, your skin, brain tissue, an’ obviously some to spare if you’ve been skulkin’ about the basement as another trampoline I’m guessin’, you could’a gotten a fully formed clone body customised to your original genetic structure!”

Cassandra turned around, now with her own glare directed the Doctor’s way. 

“Well it’s not like I could afford it!” she shot back . 

“Oh, where'd Chip come from, then? Fell off the back of a truck?” The Doctor scoffed, rolling her eyes.

“He was created before Platform Five, when I still had a modicum of my resources. I don’t know if you’d put it together but the whole reason I orchestrated that mess was to get paid! I don’t exactly love living in a decrepit hospital basement, you know, it’s not the latest trend!” 

“Well whose fault’s that?” The Doctor asked, turning her glare back on Cassandra. “You probably went through life spending your fortune and family’s money like it was going outta style, and then not to mention the surgeries and cosmetic procedures, eh? Am I getting warmer?”

The glare of the aristocrat channeling through Ace’s features only grew harsher, her silence also answered the Doctor’s question for her. 

“Get. Out. Of. My. Friend.”

“I don’t have anywhere else to go!”

“Not my problem!” The Doctor growled out. “You can float as atoms in the air, I don’t care! Now get OUT!”

Glaring at her, she raised her sonic towards Cassandra in warning. “You will give her back to me.” 

Cassandra stared at the Doctor for a moment, before letting out a huff. 

“Fine, you asked for it.” Cassandra said before her lips pursed and she exhaled.

And the last thing the Doctor saw heading towards her was a pink gaseous cloud of energy before once again for the second time today, everything went black.

Ace let out a gasp as her head tilted back towards the ceiling.

…The ceiling.

Where was she?

…What.

“Ugh! My head… What…” Ace groaned, clutching her forehead, feeling like she’d just gotten hit by a freight train. 

What had…

The basement! The trampoline woman, everything came rushing back as she gasped and looked around frantically, the first person she saw was the Professor, who was looking around confused as well, and…

Checking her measurements?

Her hands were going down the side of her skirt before coming up and checking her stomach.

“...Professor?”

“Oh! This is… different?” She said, looking back at Ace as her eyes narrowed.

“Cassandra!?” Ace exclaimed as the visage of the Doctor twisted and grew almost disgusted. 

“What… What is that!?” Cassandra exclaimed, taking a step back and clutching her chest. 

“So many different parts and… is that two hearts!?” She asked as she looked ready to heave. “Who has two hearts?! That’s just excessive!”

“Hey!” Ace cried out rushing over to her. “What are you doing! Get out of the Doctor!” 

Cassandra didn’t pay her any mind however, which annoyed Ace more as she proceeded to keep taking ‘stock’ of her new body.

“Hm, short, shorter than I’d like. And young, younger than you, ughh thank goodness this is only temporary, not only a non human but whatever she is, it’s just… urgh, so unbearably different.” She said, clutching her head.

“And not to mention… the brain, how does she cope?” Cassandra said with obvious signs of discomfort.

“Don’t worry ‘bout that, just get out of her!” Ace demanded, glaring as she grabbed at the Professor’s- at Cassandra’s shoulder.

“Oh believe me, this isn’t a vacation for me either, brat! The sooner I’m out of here the better, but she was pretty insistent on me getting out of you, so here we are.” Cassandra said, sending Ace a derisive look.

“Or what? Can’t spend five minutes alone without your precious ‘Professor’ holding your hand, hmm?”

“What?!” Ace exclaimed, as Cassandra pushed her hand off her shoulder.

“Oh don’t try and hide it, I’ve been inside your head.” Cassandra said with a smirk. “The drama, the angst, oh you could fill up seasons of a soap opera with all your complexes and history, dear.” 

Ace’s hand that had been brushed aside tightened at each word, her eyes steeling at the sight of the aristocrat tutting as she shook her head.

“Mummy dearest being what she was and poor poor little Dorothy always wanting someone to love her, and then in comes the Doctor.” She said with a scoff and a roll of her eyes.

“Talk about desperate for a father fig-”

Before Cassandra could even finish the next word from her mouth, Ace struck out, pushed her back to the nearest wall and grabbed her throat in her hand, the thin arms tried fighting back as Ace held her firmly, not constricting her windpipe, but holding her firmly in place.

“Shut. Your. Mouth!” Ace spat out, furious at not only the woman’s words, not only the fact she was possessing the Doctor!

No she was angry at having been violated in such a way, her private thoughts, feelings, history! All laid out before the bodystealer like a film for her viewing pleasure. 

Part of her wanted to punch the snobby bigot’s teeth clean out of her head!

But she couldn’t, not when she was inside the Doctor’s body. It made any physical threat or methods off the table, despite how badly she wanted to job her in the mouth once or twice to shut her up!

“We need to get out of here, and as much as I want to beat you into a pulp! I can’t… but don’t think I’m going to let you get away with saying whatever you want!” Ace slowly ground out. “Not about them!”

“And don’t think you’re getting out of my sight, the Doctor’s-” Ace began before she stopped.

“...What?” Cassandra asked as Ace let go of her and looked around, taking a step back.

“...This is a rubbish room from the cafeteria, food waste and all that.”

“Yes, your powers of deduction are fascinating. What do you want a meda-”

“No, I mean… It’s supposed to have all the food waste from the upstairs levels.”

“Yes, and ?” Cassandra asked, rubbing her throat as Ace turned to her.

“...Then where is it?” she said gesturing to the ground around them, where only a few remnants of what looked like dried custard and soup stained the otherwise empty floor.

Drip

Drip

Drip

“...this is just going to be one of those days, isn’t it?” Ace muttered, shoulders falling as she realised just where the food had gone.

Looking towards the source of the dripping, she looked into the darker corridor leading out of the room, her head slowly turning upwards as the flickering lights darkened in one location.

And in that one spot she saw a familiar mass slowly coming into the light.

“...Cassandra.” She quietly began as she looked at the corridor, it was wide and the ceiling was high enough.

Given their proximity…

“When I say run, turn around and run as fast as you can.”

“What do you-”

“Just do it!” Ace replied with a louder tone, still keeping it as quiet as she could as she slowly walked towards her, placing a hand on her arm as she mentally counted down in her head.

‘3…2….’

“Run!” Ace screamed, pulling Cassandra along as she dashed through the corridor and past where the creature was situated and kept going.

“RAARGHHH!” 

Ace saw Cassandra glance back in its direction.

“Oh, great, that thing!” Cassandra screamed at the sight, a look of pure terror on her face that just felt wrong to see on the Doctor’s body.

“You know about it!?” Ace questioned as they came to a set of closed doors.

‘Because of course they were closed!’

“It’s been down here for who knows how many years before I came here. The Cats can't risk coming down here to kill it or finish the job, so they just feed it and keep it in the lower levels. I didn’t know it was the result of their experiments upstairs, I just thought it was some mutant caused by the outbreak of disease back when the settlers came here!” 

Ace grabbed one of the large doors and pulled, the metal creaking as it began to open slowly, she was thankful there was any movement at all.

“You can help you know!” Ace said as she heard the lumbering creature begin to catch up.

Cassandra let out a groan as she moved beside Ace and helped her pull the door harder, they managed to get it open enough to where they could both slip into and Ace took a breath as she made a move away from the door, pulling Cassandra back as she looked around.

This looked like a garage of some sorts.

She could see what looked like two older model vehicles, one more stripped down and the other in better but still obviously old and disused condition.

“Ambulances.” Cassandra said as she regained her breath. “They used to have their own garage and storage bay down below before the city contracted a private company, they also paid for the upper level rooftop landing bay to be installed. This whole area was closed off and shuttered.” 

A loud roar cut them off as Ace turned to see the creature was banging against the door, the small gap they’d made to enter was not wide enough for it.

But she knew it wouldn’t be long before it entered, before it figured out how to get the door open with brute strength.

‘Probably still mad about being down an arm, even if they’ve got more than enough to spare.’ Ace thought back to the earlier counter and her quick thinking with the axe, but her thoughts quickly grew more somber.

That wasn’t some monster or creature… It was a person.

Well, several.

Several people that had been grown here, hurt and abused before being tossed out like rubbish, and now they couldn’t even die properly, fused together in some grotesque amalgam.

Closing her eyes momentarily she swore she was going to put an end to this, she and the Doctor were going to put a stop to it.

But right now, they needed to get out of here.

“Right, where’s the entrance then. If this is a garage, there’s gotta be a way out.” Ace said as she turned to Cassandra who blinked at her.

“....Well what are you looking at me for? I didn’t bother studying all the schematics, this location was of no use to me.”

“Urghh, fat lot of good you are, even with legs you still need someone else to do everything for you, don’t you.” Ace muttered, taking off further into the garage at a light jog. Hopefully she could find another exit somewhere here.

“Okay, so… explain to me, how did you take control of my body?” Ace called back as she made her way further in. They might not have long before the creature got past the door, but surely anything was better than the silence that was only broken by the roaring bellows of the creature. “And how did you get out of me and into the Professor?”

“There’s no secret method, I simply… disconnected from your mind and entered into hers.” Cassandra explained, coming up behind her.

“Good, then you can do it again. We need the Doctor, and right now you’re in the way.” Ace said as she entered what looked like a foreman or managers office and looked for something, anything that could help them, most of everything was picked clean. 

Walking out she looked around the dimly lit room and rushed over to what looked like another security door, large and fortified.

“This must be the exit, leading out to the ambulance bay. There might be a side entrance to the stairs in there, or another lift access.”

“Quarantine, remember.” Cassandra said before smirking. “Or you might not.” 

“...the Professor can get by it,” she hoped, “Or at least open the lift doors, we can climb up the lift shaft if we have to, desperate measures and what not.” 

Another loud banging on the entrance door made Ace turn back to Cassandra, who crossed her arms and looked none too ready at all to evacuate the Doctor’s body.

“Cassandra.” She prompted, raising an eyebrow.

“What, not smart enough to come up with a solution on your own?”

“I don’t see you coming up with anything, and if we stay here, we’ll…” Ace began before stopping, her expression shifting as a thought came to mind as she looked at Cassandra’s still stubborn stance. 

“....All right, fine.” She decided, sitting down suddenly and crossing her legs.

This got Cassandra’s attention, dropping her arms as she looked at her.

“What?”

“Fine.” Ace repeated nonchalantly, shrugging. “You don’t want to get out of the Professor, then fine. I guess this is it, we’ll both wind up dying here.”

Cassandra was silent for a moment, before the roaring of the creature made her jump in place, her eyes shifting back to the entrance door before back to Ace.

“You're bluffing!” 

Another bang on the door caused Ace to shrug her shoulders again.

“ That’s not bluffing.” She pointed out as she leaned back and rested on her hands.

“I wonder what it’ll do to us, which one of us it’ll get first. I mean you’ve got shorter legs, though I’m a bigger target, do you think it’ll bash our heads in first? Rip us limb from limb?”

“Shut up!”

“Do you think it’d eat us? Or just kill us violently?”

She saw Cassandra once again glancing at the doorway, anxiety flashing across her stolen visage before she turned back to Ace.

“I mean, there’s also the possibility it might assimilate us into it and then-”

“Alright!” Cassandra exclaimed, cutting her off as Ace glanced at her.

“Huh, you say something, Cassie?” 

“I said alright ! You insufferable little toad!” Cassandra said as her eye twitched before she stepped closer to Ace, her lips pursed before Ace saw the familiar pink cloud of energy coming towards her.

The last thought in her head before Cassandra’s consciousness took over came quickly.

‘The Professor’s not gonna like this.’

The Doctor gasped as she stumbled back, her eyes blinking as she tried to regain her faculties, taking a few breaths before she turned to glare at Cassandra, who was once again in Ace’s body and standing up from the seated position.

“Cassandra! I warned you-” She began, rising up to her full height as she leveled a glare at the body hopping menace.

“Don’t blame me, it was all sweet little Dorothy’s idea.” Cassandra said sarcastically. 

“Her name is Ace. ” The Doctor automatically corrected, even as she took stock of the situation.

The creature, banging against the halfway open door.

The sense of how long Cassandra had been possessing her. Thankfully she’d been able to shield her mind and keep her thoughts hidden from Cassandra’s intrusion, the last thing she’d needed was Cassandra having access to her mind and intellect. 

The way Ace had been calmly sitting on the floor, legs crossed.

She’d known Cassandra wouldn’t have left her without no other option.

‘Oh Ace! Why’d you do it!’ the Doctor thought before sighing as she knew the reasons. 

“Oh boo hoo, you can sit and have a big emotional moment later. Right now, we have bigger fish to fry!” Cassandra said as she pointed towards the entrance way where the amalgam creature had slipped its larger arm through and had begun to push the large doors open, far easier than Ace or Cassandra had managed before.

“...you are going to do everything I say.” The Doctor said, turning to the nearby exit that Ace had been sitting near.

“I’m going to get started on the lock, you go into that service area on the other side of the room, look for anything useful; tools, equipment, anything that might help hold that off.” The Doctor said, gesturing in the direction of the door as she pulled the sonic out from its pocket.

They had maybe a minute or two at most before it widened the door enough to enter.

Cassandra rushed off to the service room, the sounds of items and objects being tossed around came to her ear as the Doctor focussed on the side panel near the door, using her sonic she began to try and power up the door, but from the looks of things, the power grid down here had been mostly diverted to other areas anyway.

‘No doubt Cassandra had a hand in this, keeping her secret little hidey hole tucked away’ The Doctor thought with annoyance as she couldn’t get the door open.

“Here! I got this.” Cassandra said rushing in, holding an old plasma torch in her hand, the device looked similar to an old welder’s torch from Earth but required no external connections or tubing, self contained plasma emission used for cutting and welding.

“....Well that’s something at least.” the Doctor said with only slight exasperation.

“Well it’s not like there were a lot of options, this isn’t an auto store… or whatever those places are called!” Cassandra exclaimed as the Doctor took the plasma torch, looking at it in contemplation.

“Well!?” 

“I’m thinkin’!” The Doctor said as she glanced at the door and held her sonic to the device’s side. “I can increase the output past safety regulations an’ bypass the restrictions. If I do that, I’ll be able to increase cuttin’ power an’ cut through the door.”

After several seconds, she had done just that, spinning the torch around as the loud groaning from the entrance door increased.

“Doctor!” Cassandra said with alarm as the Doctor waved her off.

“I know!” She said as she turned on the torch, the normally small fine jet of heated plasma coming out in a wider and more unstable looking beam as she pressed it to the side of the door, it did begin to cut through the reinforced metal with a loud hiss, an orange heated lined began to raise up along the door as the Doctor wasn’t worried about finesse, they just needed a hole big enough to get through. 

“Doctor!” Cassandra shouted again, this time the Doctor did glance back to see the door had now been pushed open.

Open wide enough for the amalgam of bodies to step through and let out a triumphant roar.

“...Oh, bollocks.” The Doctor exclaimed as it ran towards them, causing her to pull the torch away as Cassandra rushed back to her side. The Doctor acted fast, rushing forward and in an arc, swinging her arm around.

The ensuing scream from the creature made her ears ring as she had cut off two of it’s smaller arms, the smell of burning cauterized flesh filling the air as the creature stumbled before lashing out, hitting her and causing her to stumble to the side, the torch went flying through the air and landed on the ground across the garage. 

Cassandra tried to take cover behind one of the disused vehicles, but the creature rounded on her, rushing over and bringing it’s larger arm crashing down on the roof of the vehicle, causing it to crumple as Cassandra let out a scream, the Doctor could see her hiding down behind the vehicle, Ace’s backpack looking like a tortoise shell that-

Her backpack!

“Cassandra! Reach into Ace’s backpack, you need to grab the Nitro-9!” The Doctor cried out, causing the creature to growl and turn back towards her.

“The what?” Cassandra called out.

“The-Urgh, this is annoying.” The Doctor exclaimed as she dodged another rush from the creature, bypassing it and trying to get across the room to Cassandra, only for the creature to change directions and rush towards her again, the Doctor rushed into the office section as she yelled out.

“The bottles in her bag! I know she’s carrying at least two.” She yelled out.

She’d came to that conclusion earlier, despite Ace’s ascertain she wasn’t carrying any, it was far from the first time she’d made such claims, the Doctor always knew when she was actually carrying some of the home made explosive devices on her, and like it had been in the past, it would come in handy. 

Cassandra hastily pulled the teen’s backpack off and ripped it open, frantically searching through it for what the Doctor had described, a handful of items came spilling out.

Why did she have a rope ladder?!

Who carries around a rope ladder with them?!

Two clanging sounds filled the area as she saw what looked like metal deodorant bottles falling to the floor, was this…

Yes! She could see some memories from the girl on them, some kind of explosive device, but how did she-

“Raaarghhhh!”

“Cassandra!” She heard the Doctor yell out, without thinking she pulled the cap off the top of the can and frantically threw it over towards the office, as she did Cassandra allowed herself a slight reprieve and exhaled.

Her day was not turning out how she’d hoped, especially winding up down…

….Wait, wasn’t there supposed to be a timer, she tried probing deeper into the girl’s mind but her eyes widened as she turned to the location of the can just in time for a loud explosion to fill the area, sending her reeling back and the sound deafening her as she fell to the hard floor. 

Distantly, she could make out the creature thrashing around and still trying to enter the office.

Blinking wearily, Cassandra let out a groan as she tried to regain her focus and composure all the while the ringing in her ears only added to her disorientation. 

“....-ssandra.”

“Hmm..”

“...-assandra...-n’t work!”

“...What…” Cassandra groaned out, blinking as her hearing slowly began to come back fully, only for her to look over and see the Doctor’s face from behind the office window, the creature trying to squeeze its way through the small door. 

“It didn’t work!” the Doctor screamed out. “You didn’t throw it close enough! The timer! What’s the timer on it!”

Finally shaking off the remaining mental cobwebs, Cassandra squinted as she picked up another canister, her eyes narrowing as she tried to think. 

“I…I don’t know!?” she cried out, wracking her brain and Ace’s mind for the answer. The girl was either compressed deeper, or the whole situation’s stress and pressure was getting to her.

Or both.

Clutching the canister and seeing the creature’s frantic movement in the distance, her gaze fell back upon it as she realized what she’d have to do, and as she did a grimace took over her face.

“Oh…Oh I am not going to like this!” she said as she pursed her lips and exhaled. 

-

The collective mass of the creature was still trying, desperately and savagely to break its way through the office entrance, the large mass of it had hindered it thus far successfully. 

However a pink mist struck it from behind while it continued to try and break through, not slowing its overall attempts. 

But if one looked close, one of the humanoid masses on its back suddenly reared its head back and let out a guttural screech, one malformed hand clutching at its head. 

-

The Doctor was inching her way further back in the office, looking around for anything she could use in her defence. 

Why did she have to drop the plasma torch!

If only she’d-

“Professor!” 

Turning on instinct, she saw the body of Ace-

No! Cassandra wouldn’t have called her that, and the look in her eyes as she saw the teen uncap the canister of Nitro-9 with proficiency and clear intent in her eyes.

It was Ace!

The Doctor reached for the window and slid it further up, leaning out as she threw her arm out. 

“Ten seconds!” Ace cried as she lobbed the canister across the room, the Doctor’s hand reaching out just far enough to grab hold of it. 

Mentally counting down in her head, she turned and ran back towards the mass of beings which was now halfway lodged into the entrance. As she approached, she couldn’t help but stop in front of it.

Just a second of hesitation, looking at its malformed body and fused flesh as she couldn’t suppress the moisture that grew in her eyes once again today.

“....I’m sorry.” Was all she could say before with a loud cry, she jammed the canister into its large mouth of the main head that was in front of her, shoving it deep into the open screeching mouth before she turned and ran back into the office, quickly jumping through the open window and running as fast as she could to where Ace was, diving into her as they both took cover just in time for the Nitro-9 to do its job.

And the muffled explosion that followed silenced the beings multitude of screams for one last time in a mess of flesh, spewing out across the office and outer garage floor as the two remaining people lay silently for several moments. 

The Doctor was the first to recover, slowly getting to her feet as she turned.

She didn’t want to turn, didn’t want to look at the bloodied remnants and mess that now covered the room. But at the same time she couldn’t not look, either out of a sense of confirmation or condolence for the several unlived lives she’d taken, of beings who never even got a chance to live having been killed so brutally.

As she lowered her head silently, she tried to focus on the fact that the mix of beings were no longer forced to suffer as they had, that they were no longer in pain, no longer condemned to live the life they had been subjected to. 

They finally were finally at peace. 

Her thoughts however were cut off by the sounds of sobbing, and she turned slowly to see Ace was curled up with her arms around her knees, rocking back and forth.

“...Ace.” the Doctor said quietly, slowly approaching her. 

“....Ace?” She asked again as she was beside her, placing a hand on her shoulder and watching as Ace met her gaze.

The small, almost undetectable shaking of her head made the Doctor’s eyes narrow in realization.

“Cassandra.” 

Of course, she’d jumped back into Ace at the last second. Not surprising given everything else she’d done today. 

“It…they-they were so alone.” Cassandra said, her hands falling limply to her side as she stared at the Doctor, tears flowing freely down her cheeks and her now reddened eyes squinted as she shook her head.

“...So lost, so alone down here.” she said before a sob caught in her throat. “Before that, all they knew was…nothing, loneliness, being trapped as lab rats. And then they were discarded, killed off like…like nothing…” 

The Doctor watched silently as Cassandra let out another harsh sob, covering her eyes as she did.

“They only want to be touched, that’s why they keep reaching out. They’ve never been held, never felt another person’s embrace…they just want to live.” Cassandra said as she dragged a hand down her face. 

The Doctor didn’t respond, but her expression did soften. Despite it being Cassandra, she couldn’t help but feel a tugging on her hearts. Maybe it was due to her being in Ace’s body, or maybe it was due to Cassandra also having mentally linked with them like she had previously, whatever the reason she couldn’t stop herself from offering her hand.

Cassandra saw it, and after a moment, accepted the offer as she was helped to her feet. The Doctor reached up and wiped away the tears as Cassandra sniffled, bringing up her sleeve to wipe at her face.

Taking one last look at the remains of the merged being, the Doctor’s expression was set as she looked at Cassandra.

“Come on, we’ve got work to do.”

Making their way back to the above ground wards was spent in a mixture of silence and direct conversing between the two, the Doctor was moving with driven intent and speedily making her way up as Cassandra followed along.

By the time they did make it back to Ward Twenty Six, entering through a back entrance they were met with a not so warm welcome as Frau Clovis had run at them with a stool, practically growling as she was ready to attack them.

“Woah! Woah! Woah!” the Doctor cried out as she raised her hands alongside Cassandra. “We’re safe! We’re safe. Look, we’re clean!” She insisted, showing her hands.

The frantic and almost crazed look in the woman’s eyes abated slightly at the sight of their reactions.

“Show me your skin!” she insisted, causing the Doctor and Cassandra to show their arms and rotate their heads around to show off as much unblemished skin as possible.

“If they touched us, we’d be dead. We’re not infected.” The Doctor insisted as Frau Clovis lowered the chair, slumping slightly as she let out a sigh.

“Well, I can tell not everything’s going well up here.” The Doctor remarked as she pocketed her sonic and walked across the room. “What’s the status? Is everyone alright?”

“Nothing but silence from the other wards. I think we’re the only ones left.” Frau Clovis said as she walked past the Doctor and towards the windows looking out over the bay and to the city.

“I’ve been trying to override the quarantine.” She said as the Doctor looked at her with a raised brow.

“If I can trip a signal over to New New York, they can send a private executive squad.” 

Great, cause just what this situation needed was more people being exposed to potential infection.

…and she wasn’t going to risk any more people being exposed to this sickness. 

The Doctor fought an eye roll as she spoke up. “You can’t do that. If they forced entry, they’d break quarantine.”

However her words had little effect on the woman who bit back a snarl as she walked past the Doctor and Cassandra. 

“I am not dying in here.” She proclaimed stubbornly.

Uh, did she just have a face that no one listened to?!

…again.

Why couldn’t she have had something more like Alistair, people listened to him!

…was it the moustache?

It was probably the moustache, it really helped his ‘air of authority’.

“I don’t think you understand, we can’t let a single particle of disease get out.” The Doctor insisted. “There’s ten million people in that city, they’d all be at risk. Now turn that off!” She demanded pointing at the communication pad Frau Clovis was clutching.

The bespectacled woman merely let out a huff and straightened her posture.

“I’m not going to be spoken to like that, least of all by a child making demands. If this gets me out of here, so be it!”

The Doctor reminded herself what was really important, and in that moment was not running over and snatching the device out of her hand and smashing it.

…Well it could.

But she decided to focus her mental and physical energy elsewhere, merely leveling the woman with a look of determination.

Determination and a tiny dash of spite thrown in.

“All right, fine . You wanna play it like that, I’ll have to stop you lot as well. Suits me jus’ fine after the day I’ve been havin’!” The Doctor exclaimed, throwing her arms out beside her before focussing her attention back on the others, sending a short look to Novice Hame who visibly stiffened.

“Cassandra, Novice Hame, everyone!” The Doctor said loudly, grabbing the attention of those around her as she rushed across the room. “Excuse me, Your Grace.” She said as she passed by the Duke.

“Get me the intravenous solutions for every single disease!” She said as she took out her sonic. Upon seeing the slightly questioning glances from around her she again suppressed an eye roll.

What did they teach in schools these days?

“Those people are infected, their bodies swimming with every disease you could think of. We need the combined and cultivated mixtures of the solutions if we’re going to have a hope of stopping all this.” She lectured as she examined a nearby IV.

“Yes, just adding to what she’s saying.” Cassandra said butting in. “But we were downstairs, and trust me you don’t want to have those thi-those…people rushing in here all at once without a plan. And since you don’t have many other options…” She said trailing off.

That seemed to be the push they needed, as the Doctor was joined by the other residents in the room as they began pooling the solutions and IV’s from around the ward. As they did, the Doctor used her sonic to disconnect a mechanical winch from above one of the disused bed’s, collecting a length of rope afterwards as she situated herself at the edge of the ward’s beds and began working the rope around herself in the form of a makeshift harness.

Cassandra rushed over and began helping her tie and fix the various IV bags around her body to the rope harness until she was covered in them all across the front of her body.

“How’s that, will that do?” The Doctor asked as she did a little turn in place and inspected the IV’s.

“I don’t know, will it do for what?” Cassandra asked in confusion.

Ah, yeah the Doctor hadn’t fully explained what she had planned to do.

She’d assumed it was somewhat obvious, but she didn’t reply as she rushed over towards the lifts further down the hall from the Ward. 

“The lifts aren’t working, remember.” Cassandra said as the Doctor used her sonic to open the doors, revealing the open and empty shaft. 

“Nope, they’re just not moving. Different thing, I don’t need the lift itself to move for what I’m about to do.” The Doctor explained as she took several steps back, holding the winch on her arm as she looked at the cable running down the empty shaft.

“Here we go.” She said with a whisper, causing Cassandra’s eyes to widen as the Doctor placed her sonic in her mouth.

“You’re not going to-” 

Before she could even finish her sentence, the Doctor ran across and leapt into the lift shaft, quickly grabbing hold of the cable with a grunt. 

“What do you think you’re doing?” Cassandra asked, alarmed obviously but the Doctor’s mumbled and sonic-muffled response didn’t do much to explain, but she was a little busy!

Attaching the winch to the cable, she was thankful for her leg strength as she took her sonic out and fixed it more firmly in place, now having the use of both of the hand holds on the side to give herself a proper grip.

“Alright, come on.” She said expectantly, looking at Cassandra who let out a short scoff.

“Not in a million years.” 

“Yeah well I think you’ll be cuttin’ that short by a wide margin. I need another pair of hands, and you’ve got my best ones, so come on!” The Doctor said before a small smile etched its way onto her face. “If you’re so desperate to stay alive and live how bout you actually do a bit of living, eh?” 

Cassandra still looked back at her, uncertainty in her eyes before the Doctor heard Frau Clovis from down the hall. 

“Seal the door!” 

The sound of the aforementioned doors shutting firmly followed by the groans and moans of the infected caused Cassandra to glance back in their direction before turning back to the Doctor.

Now the Doctor knew she had only one choice. 

Letting out an almost squealed whine, Cassandra ran and jumped across, latching her arms and legs around the Doctor.

And…

Wow, okay, the added weight may have been something she’d momentarily forgotten to account for. Again, an adult Gallifreyan body and its musculature would really come in handy right now!

But she’d make do, she was good at making do.

Was Ace always this heavy? She’d used to carry her to bed when she’d fall asleep in various rooms of the Tardis and she did not remember her being this heavy.

But again, she wasn’t in the body of an adult Gallifreyan, body weight it seemed much like time, was relative.

“You’re completely mad, I can see why-” Cassandra began, only for the Doctor to reach up and activate the winch.

“Going down.” She said before suddenly they began falling as the winch descended, faster and faster they fell as floors passed them by and Cassandra let out a long drawn out scream.

The Doctor meanwhile couldn’t suppress the cheer of excitement that escaped her throat, grinning as they rushed down the cable before she activated the breaking mechanism as the top of the lift finally came into view, the winch screeching slightly with sparks as it came to a halt just in time.

Cassandra almost fell to the floor as the Doctor stepped down, looking at the controls atop the lift’s roof.

“Right, now listen. When I say so, take hold of that lever.” She said pointing to the lever mechanism.

“But there’s still a quarantine down there. We can’t just-” 

“Just hold the lever!” The Doctor cut her off loudly, not wanting to get into another drawn out explanation.

Obviously… it was pretty clear what she was going to do, but she supposed a simple step by step could be done.

“I’m cooking up a cocktail. I know a bit about medicine myself, well with my name it’s sorta expected.” the Doctor said as Cassandra held the lever as she tore open one of the IV bags with her teeth and proceeded to empty its contents into the vat of disinfectant that was used to decontaminate people between wards and floors, tossing it aside as she was done, the Doctor proceeded to follow up with another IV.

And she did so until there were no more bags of solution left strapped to her body, the vat of disinfectant now containing every solution she’d carried down with her.

“Now that lever’s gonna resist, but keep it in position.” The Doctor explained to Cassandra as she stood up and opened the top service hatch to the lift.

“Hold on to it with everything you’ve got.” 

“What about you?” Cassandra asked as the Doctor sat down on the edge of the hatch.

“I’ve got an appointment.” The Doctor said before a wider grin emerged on her face as she clicked her tongue and winked. “The Doctor is in.”

And with that she dropped down into the lift with a light thump, standing back up she aimed her sonic at the lift’s doors and opened them. Immediately she saw a large group of the infected, not stumbling or rushing towards the lift.

They were sitting…

Together, all of them were huddled together and looked so gentle, and still. However at the sound of the lift doors opening, she saw them all begin standing up and making their way towards the lift.

Not reacting fearfully, or aggressively, she merely stood still as they grew closer and closer.

“I’m here, come on. That’s it, come on.” the Doctor said as she could hear Cassandra shout down from above.

“Don’t tell them!” 

Ignoring her, the Doctor waited for them as they stepped closer.

“Pull that lever!” She said as they were within range, only for nothing to happen, glancing up once more in the direction she knew Cassandra was in, the Doctor turned back to the approaching masses.

“....Cassandra, now!” The Doctor called again, taking a step back. She really hoped that she hadn’t misjudged Cassandra, because this would be a really embarrassing way to die after all the smiles and laughter in the last two minutes.

Hearing a grunt, before the sound of metal groaning could be heard, the Doctor sighed in relief as she finally heard the automated voice come over the tannoy system.

“Commence stage one disinfection.” 

“Yes!” She shouted as the infected began to walk through the lift door and she stepped further back just in time for the combined solutions to begin spraying down on the ones who’d made it through, the Doctor was also soaked as the entire lift was blanketed in the liquids. 

“Come on, come on!” The Doctor said as the infected looked around, confusion marring their faces as some of them began walking back out.

Yes! This was it.

“That’s it! Pass it on!” She exclaimed as she saw them begin to walk out further, all they needed to do was spread it amongst themselves. 

And then she saw it! 

The infected began to touch one another, their skin was steaming as the combined cures and medicines did their job. She could see it happening right before her eyes, wounds and boils disappearing in seconds, the dark veins and diseased flesh began to heal as the infected spread it amongst them. 

The more they connected with one another, the quicker it was spreading, as fast as their sickness had contaminated their unfortunate victims before, the cure was now being administered throughout their collective mass.

Cassandra hopped down and looked around in confusion as the Doctor ran a hand through her now soaked hair.

“What did they pass on?” she asked, looking out into the hall. “Did you kill them? All of them?” 

The Doctor normally would have responded fiercely, cutting off her assertion with a powerful rebuttal.

But right now…

She was staring at the humans, no longer infected, no longer in pain, and no longer trapped and without their freedom.

Without any form of life to call their own. 

Tears welled up in her eyes as she could only smile at the sight of them. 

“That might be your way of doing things, but no.” The Doctor said, shaking her head as she stepped out of the lift, looking around at the assembled New Humans who were looking at her.  

“I’m the Doctor .” She declared proudly, cheeks almost sore from the wideness of her grin, the tears that welled in her eyes one of joy and happiness after such a long, and horrible day.

“And I cured them!” She rejoiced, turning around and looking around the room.

“I gave them a future. The cure will pass aroun’, deal with most of the problems, although the hospital’s gonna be busy for the next few days double checking them all.” The Doctor explained before she let out a light huff as one of the New Humans hugged her, wrapping her arms around her as the Doctor reciprocated the embrace.

The first hug this young woman had ever had, and she had the honor of doing it.

“That’s right, there we go, it’s nice isn’t it.” She said letting out a pleased laugh as she tightened her embrace.

She looked at Cassandra and noticed even she couldn’t help but smile as she looked out across the open area and the newly cured race.

Noticing the young woman was looking at another, the Doctor loosened her arms and pointed to them. 

“Go on, I think he needs a hug too.” She said as the young woman proceeded to spread the affection while the Doctor looped her thumbs in her belt loops.

“It’s a brand new subspecies, Cassandra. Brand new form of life, New Humans!” She exclaimed brightly as she inspected them.

“Run by Cats, kept in the dark, fed by tubes.” She said as she knelt down to look at one of the women who was seated, she looked at the Doctor with such hope and light in her eyes.

“But despite all that, completely, completely alive!” The Doctor exclaimed, elation and joy overflowing in her body as she jumped up and turned to Cassandra, pointing at her as she did.

“You can’t deny them! Nope! Cause you helped create them, Cassandra.” She declared as she saw a smile from Cassandra she was trying to mask. 

“The human race just keeps on going. Keeps on changing.” She said before exhaling. 

“Life will out.” she added with a laugh. 

For a day that had started out as a mystery, then devolved into a walking horror story, to have such a pleasant and uplifting end…

She was glad she’d come here, despite all the pain, there was still a positive outcome to be had. 

She’d found Ace again, she’d finally admitted to a lot of things that she never should have kept secret, and she’d even helped usher in a new type of human.

All in all, it was a good day.

.

.

.

Even if she still hated hospitals.

It wasn’t long after that when the quarantine had ended, the NNYPD had arrived en masse and quickly taken charge of the hospital. Statements had been taken, and the Doctor had been sure to direct the officers to where they could find all the Sisters of Plenitude’s dirty secrets. 

It also helped that the Duke of Manhattan had been there, having high profile witnesses always helped speed things along.

Even if there hadn’t been as many witnesses however, the New Humans themselves were a testament to the Sisters' crimes, as was the very intricate and well documented logs and files they had kept under wraps.

There was no escaping the punishments of their crimes, their spotless and revered reputations among the people of New Earth would be forever tarnished by the revelations of today. Not the best historical event the Doctor had been a part of.

…Not the worst either.

But she was trying to focus on the positives, the New Humans were free and being processed and aided by the police force. It would take time, and careful assistance, but they would begin to live their own lives now.

As the Doctor made her way back through the wards, she saw Novice Hame being led away by the police. The young Catkind looked like she wanted to say something as she passed, but the officer kept escorting her along, the Doctor saw her look back in her direction as she was led out of the ward one last time. 

As she watched her disappear around the corner, the tannoy system’s announcements reminded her of something.

Or more accurately someone.

“The Face of Boe!” She cried out as she began running through the ward.

As she did however, she failed to notice Cassandra wasn’t following her.

Cassandra should have ran while she had the chance.

The hospital was in disarray and even with the police presence she was certain she could slip past them somehow.

But then she heard it, the voice in her head. Not speaking, so much as whispering lightly. It wasn’t her first time experiencing telepathic communication, so thus she didn’t react negatively. But it was a surprise, she couldn’t pinpoint who, but she found herself listening to the voice, following the whispering instructions and guidance till she found herself in one of the now filled wards which was temporarily housing the New Humans while they were being processed, an array of police and officials were present, including medical staff that had been outsourced in.

There were a few Catkind present, but they were all in handcuffs, and Cassandra was more than content to ignore them.

Cassandra heard the whispering voice one more time as she turned to see what looked like a gathering of the New Humans, as well as a police officer. Walking over towards them, she saw the assembled people begin to move away.

There was an air of sadness that seemed to cling to them as she saw them move further across the room, and looked to see what they had been all gathered around. There were two rows of beds, all in all numbering twenty beds that were full of people.

New Humans obviously, judging by the hospital gowns they were wearing that matched the others, but they were sleeping, at least that’s what they looked like. Glancing at the officers she cleared her throat lightly, getting their attention as the older man turned to her.

“Hello, I was just wondering… what exactly happened to them?” She gestured to the sleeping patients.

Her question however only got a scoff as he nodded in their direction.

“Poor souls, they were being kept locked up by the Sisters, all of them are braindead. They were using their bodies for separate sets of experiments.” He said with a shake of his head, taking off his hat and giving a sigh.

“Finally cured of what they’d been afflicted with, and they're all in vegetative states. That’s the mother of all bad luck situations if you ask me.” 

“...So there’s nothing that can be done for them?” Cassandra asked, her eyes shifting back to the rows and rows of braindead New Humans as the police officer shook his head.

“The Sisters tried plenty of things, maybe they didn’t try enough, or maybe they just preferred having them like this, just another separate batch of lab rats. It’s disgusting, the whole thing.” The officer said with a grimace before he turned at the call of another officer across the room, glancing back at Cassandra momentarily.

“Sorry miss, I’ve got to go help my partner out. Oh and if you haven’t already, everyone present has to provide a statement for the official investigation.” He said before walking back across the room to where his partner was.

As soon as he was out of her line of sight, Cassandra turned back once more to the vegetative New Humans.

She raised a brow as she began to walk slowly through the rows, eyeing each and every body intently.

It had taken her several minutes to get back to ward twenty six.

Again, short legs!

But she’d made it, and she was happy to see the Face of Boe still there, by the window where he’d been before. Though now he was noticeably more lively, and moving more spryly.

…Well, for a head in a tank that is.

Hooking her thumbs into her belt loops she walked over, smiling at him as she approached, seeing him turn to her.

“You were supposed to be dying.” She remarked, her smile widening as he let out a low chuckle telepathically, embracing the mental link as he spoke.

“There are more important things to do today.” The Wizened being stated, an air of amusement lacing his tone. “Dying can wait.” 

The reply only made the Doctor happier, as she nodded. “Too right. Though I suppose you’re used to it, livin’ for so long. Death must seem… well, sort of abstract, I guess.” She said, cocking her head to the side slightly. “Somethin’ that happens to other people.”

“Speaking from experience, old friend?” The Face of Boe spoke through their mental link. 

The response almost got a laugh from the Doctor, though she supposed she could empathise a little, her own lifespan being so great in comparison to most races. Though even she paled in comparison to the Face of Boe’s lifespan. 

Still, there was a comfort and solidarity that she could feel spread out across their mental link, and she took it in stride. 

“...you get used to it.” She shrugged, deliberately casual.

“Yes, of course.” the Face of Boe replied. 

“I remember when they came to New Earth, those first ships.” She admitted a little quietly, turning to look out the window briefly. “I remember when it burned to dust, the sun expandin’. I was there, both times.”

“And you are here again, the day the New Humans gained their freedom. Yet another milestone of their species you have witnessed, participated in even.” The Face of Boe commented, causing the Doctor to merely nod.

The Face of Boe had clearly done his homework.

Or maybe…

Something more.

Again she couldn’t help but feel her connection to the being was clear and almost tangible, there was something about him…

But she didn’t think she’d get answers today.

“So, what’s next for you then? Vacation could do you some good, eh?” The Doctor said, raising her brows.

“I had grown tired with the universe, Doctor.” He intoned. “But you, you have taught me to look at it anew.” 

“You know, from what I hear, rumors and whatnot… some might say legends. Some say that you’re millions of years old, some say billions even.” The Doctor said as she leaned down in a crouch in front of his tank, despite not expecting answers she couldn’t help but fish for some potential tidbits of information she might glean from the Face of Boe.

“Well, now that would be impossible.” the Face of Boe replied, again the air of amusement colored his tone that caused the Doctor to smile. 

“It would be, wouldn’t it.” She laughed.

“Professor?”

The Doctor’s eyes widened as she stood up, quickly turning to see Ace walking into the ward towards them, clutching her forehead with a wince as she did. The Doctor rushed to meet her halfway, wrapping her arms around her. 

“Ace!” She exclaimed, hugging her for a moment before she moved back and began examining her.

“...You’re okay. You are okay, aren’t you?” The Doctor questioned as she was about to pull out her sonic and scan her only for Ace to wave her off.

“Yeah, I mean ok except for feeling like I have the world’s biggest migraine… Uh, no offence.” Ace said as the Doctor glanced to see her looking at the Face of Boe.

“Ace!”

“....He’s a giant head, Professor, you think he’s never gotten a headache before.” 

“Time and place, Ace. And this is neither to be cracking head jokes. Especially not after your ordeal!”

“An ordeal that is gladly over.” The Face of Boe spoke softly to them both. 

“Oh, telepathy!” Ace blinked, smiling a little. “It’s been a while since I met a telepath! Sorry, I’m a bit out of practice in replying.”

“Something I believe you will come to practice again, in time.” The Face of Boe said, as the Doctor glanced back at him before side eyeing Ace, who didn’t seem to pick up on her glances. 

She looked at the Face of Boe for a long moment, considering something, something that began to put some of the puzzle pieces together of this whole ordeal.

Or more specifically, how she got here in the first place. 

He’d been the one that had called her here, the one that had put this all in motion. She had a lot of questions for him, so many things she wanted to know.

Did he know what would happen here?

How did they know each other? Because it was clear he knew more than he was saying, but this wouldn’t be the first time time travel had made her meet people in such a manner. 

What were the Boekind? Where were they from?

But the one that she actually asked was-

“Did you know that Ace was here? Is that part of why you called me?” 

If he knew her in the future, in her personal future, it would stand to reason. 

All it would take is her telling his past self about today, and he could call her here now in order to close the loop. It was barely a concern in the grand scheme of things, because that was just how her life was.

But she had to know for sure if her reunion with Ace had been chance, a convenient twist of luck going in her favour as it so rarely did, or if someone had orchestrated their meeting.

She’d done that before, Fenric had ensured that she would meet Ace on Ice World as part of his schemes, and if someone was manipulating her and Ace into meeting each other again then she’d not stand for it.

“Questions for another time, Doctor.” The Face of Boe replied softly. 

The Doctor wanted to argue the point, push for more details, but at the same time, she couldn’t seem to find the strength or urge to.

Again there was something about the face that was just…

Trustworthy? 

“We shall meet again, Doctor. Of that you can be sure, and you will have answers, and the truth shall be told.” The Face of Boe said softly, causing the Doctor’s half opened mouth to shut as she watched on as the tank he was in began to shimmer and glow a bright green.

“Until that day…”  Was all he said before disappearing via teleport. 

The Doctor sighed, shaking her head with a small smile 

“Big enigmatic head.” She said before she turned back to Ace, her expression shifted as she looked at her seriously. 

“ Are you okay, Ace?” She asked again, looking her over a bit more closely. “You went through a lot today.”

“I’m… Honestly, I don’t know if ‘okay’ is the word, Professor.” Ace said as she clutched her forehead again. “I was almost killed in that incinerator chute, then almost killed mentally by a nutjob snobby bigot trampoline. And then almost got killed again by that… mesh of bodies in the basement, then the Catkind, and the New Humans.” Ace said before she winced.

“I’m alright, physically, but everything else is…” she began before sighing. “It’s just one of those days, I guess.”

“Ah. Well, I happen to know the cure for one of those days.” The Doctor said, grabbing Ace’s hand and starting towards the door.

 “There’s a beautiful little bakery down in the city, how about we buy ourselves some food, ‘ave ourselves a nice little picnic, and then head home.”

“Home.” The Doctor decidedly ignored the wistful tone in Ace’s voice, the way she sounded so hopeful at the word. “Yeah, yeah, let’s do that.”

“Aight! Bakery, picnic, then home! But first.” The Doctor said as she narrowed her eyes.

Cassandra was now dressed properly.

Well as properly as one can be scavenging for clothing in a hospital, but luckily she’d managed to grab some items from the hospital’s reception area. 

Who knew they had a lost property bin?

The choices were limited but she had discarded the hospital gown the body she’d jumped into had been wearing as soon as she could, having snuck out of the room after she’d taken control of the body.

Whatever experiments the Catkind had done had luckily prevented any muscle atrophy, or maybe that was part and parcel with the Doctor’s little cure cocktail, but she was moving around perfectly fine.

“Mistress, we should leave now. The police are everywhere!” 

Oh, and she’d found Chip too.

Talk about lost property.

He had snuck away and hid inside one of the capsules in the basement till the quarantine had ended before coming to look for her, devoted as always.

Cassandra took one last look at her new visage in a small compact mirror. She’d made sure to look over every body intricately before choosing the one she was in now, blonde, young and good looking.

Perfect for her needs.

She’d made sure to pick one that was young, but of legal age. She didn’t want to worry about being asked for ID or the trappings of underage restrictions. Something she knew the Doctor would no doubt endure in her new appearance.

“Let’s head off, Chip. It may not have been the way we planned, but I still got what I wanted in the end.” Cassandra said as she popped the compact into her pocket. 

Now all they had to do was-

She was cut off from her thoughts, as a long, low whistle sounded from behind her. 

Turning, Cassandra saw the Doctor standing on the other side of the reception area, the McShane girl beside her. The two watched her for a long moment, silently, as if judging her, as they approached.

And then, slowly, the Doctor nodded.

“I’ll let you have this, Cassandra.” The Doctor spoke, almost as if she was deciding it for Cassandra.

“I’ll let you ‘ave this, because underneath everythin’, and I mean… deep underneath. I think you can change, I think there is some small sliver of humanity in there. You weren’t always the way you were, I think you lost yourself along the way to becoming what you’ve become. And I also think maybe you can find it again.” The Doctor intoned as she took a few steps closer till she was standing right in front of Cassandra.

Her eyes narrowed and Cassandra fought the urge to step back.

All those things she’d seen in the child’s head, of what the Doctor had done, glimpses here and there mostly, but enough to paint a picture…

Paint a picture Cassandra didn’t want to see in full.

“You get one , Cassandra, one chance. Don’t lemme hear about you causing any more trouble.” The Doctor warned, as Cassandra fought the urge to swallow as she didn’t know whether the Doctor expected her to nod or give any kind of response.

But just like that, the Doctor and her tagalong teen turned and began to walk away. Leaving Chip and Cassandra alone as she called out behind her.

“You’ve got a new chance, a new life to live, Cassandra! So why don’t you make the best of it?” 

How could one so small be so utterly terrifying?

Shaking her head, Cassandra watched as they both disappeared out of sight as she turned a corner.

But even then, she still felt the Doctor’s gaze lingering.

“...Well, let’s not waste all day standing here. Let’s go!” Cassandra said as she hastily made her way through the reception.

If she was lucky, this would be the last time she would ever run into the Doctor again.

Though luck hadn’t always been on her side.

“Are you sure it’s safe, letting her go? She killed people! She nearly killed me! She tried to kill you! ” Ace rambled an hour later, the two of them now seated on a comfortable hill outside the city.

“We ‘ave to have hope, Ace.” The Doctor reminded her with a shrug.

“The way she reacted after temporarily merging with the amalgamated New Human in the basement… There was humanity there. There was empathy and pain she was fealing, even in someone like Cassandra, she still felt for those people, there was anger, sadness, and hurt. She showed she was capable of that, and that’s part of why I think deep down, she can change. She can be a better person, if she takes the right steps.” 

“...fine.” Ace sighed, looking away. “I don’t think I like it, but fine .”

“I’m not askin’ you to like it, Ace. I’m just askin’ you to have hope, to have faith that people can change, that they can be good.” The Doctor said. “And besides, the psycho-graft will settle in a few hours, faster even in a braindead body like that. No more hoppin’ around for Cassandra, she’ll have to live with the choices she makes from now on.”

“Well, that’s one thing I can feel good about. No one else has to be subjected to ‘her ladyship’ taking over their body and taking it for a test drive.” Ace said, as the Doctor saw her roll her eyes. 

The Doctor and Ace sat in silence after that, eating their pastries and enjoying the view, letting the stress of the day they’d undergone lessen, even if just a little. The Doctor really needed to start carrying snacks around in her pockets as she was reminded yet again just how much she enjoyed snacking in her new incarnation. 

As she finished up the last of the custard filled danish she’d saved for last, she suddenly realised something. 

“Y’know, I never did ask!” The Doctor began, jumping to her feet and spinning around to face Ace, holding her arms out wide with a smile. “Whatcha think? The legs are a bit short, and the hair is dreadful first thing in the mornin’, but I really like it!”

Ace put her own food aside and rose to her feet. The Doctor held still as she was inspected, the taller girl circling around her once before giving a single, definitive nod.

“Still the same Professor as before.” She decided with a smile. “Just a little smaller.”

It was quiet in Matron Casp’s office, the hospital far too busy with the sudden influx of patients for anyone to be paying attention to it.

And so no one noticed when a large blue box pulled itself out of thin air with a low wheezing sound to sit in the corner of the room.

And no one noticed when a smaller figure stepped out from the box and began to access Madame Casp’s computer.

“Up to date medical information really should be with a patient’s doctor.” The Doctor chuckled, quickly downloading the files that she wanted and wiping away any evidence of her presence as well as any copies of the files that she took, there really was no need for anyone else to have those.

And with that she left, walking back into the Tardis which promptly disappeared with another grinding, groaning sound.

But of course, no one saw any of that.