Can't Sleep (Doctor/Master Fic)
Title: Can’t Sleep
Rating: PG … (right? No swears, no kissing, just snuggles!)
Characters: Kenni and Jymes … little Timelords.
Pairing: Master/Doctor … when they were young.
Word Count: 528
Warnings: I’m American. My viewing of Doctor Who has been severely limited, incredibly mixed up, I’m not sure I spelled ‘Tocalfane’ right.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Doctor Who. If I did, the Master wouldn’t have ‘died.’ The Doctor would be ‘keeping’ him in S4, not cavorting with the Ood and what’s-her-name!
My Thoughts: The names were pulled out of my wacky head. Young!Doctor and Young!Master are the cutest things EVER. *plots darker fics in the future*
In the middle of the night on Gallifrey, inside the Academy, a boy was crying. The other children had been telling stories before lights-out and, though he’d laughed with them then, he was terrified now. He’d fallen asleep briefly, only to be woken by a horrific nightmare.
“Jymes, what’s wrong?”
The crying boy poked his tousled head out from under his covers. Another boy, older by a year or two, was sitting on the edge of his bed, the moonlight illuminating the millions of tiny braids he wore his blond hair in.
“Kenni, the Toclafane’s gonna get me!” Jymes whispered, rubbing furiously at the tears streaming down his cheeks.
“There’s no such thing, Jymes,” Kenni said, frowning. “You know they only make up those stories for fun …” he looked around the darkened dormitory. “No Toclafane here.”
“Yeah, but you wouldn’t see it, would you? It only gets you when you close your eyes!” Jymes was nearing hysterics again.
Kenni sighed, glancing around again. “Ok, how about this?” he pulled Jymes into his arms. “I’ll keep my eyes open all night, and you can sleep. I won’t let the Toclafane get you, promise.”
Jymes stared at the older boy. “Really?”
Kenni nodded. “Really.” and, still holding Jymes tight, he flumped back down onto the bed. “Besides, I don’t sleep much these days anyway …”
Jymes bit his lip. “Because of the Rite?”
A few months ago Kenni had taken the Rite, and as soon as he’d returned to the Academy he’d drowned himself in the lake (he later regenerated, of course.) The adults never spoke about it, but you couldn’t keep such things from children, especially those who’d known Kenni before he took the Rite.
“Don’t you worry about the Rite, Jymes, it’s not so bad …” Jymes gave him a look and Kenni changed the subject. “Now, go to sleep, I’ll keep watch for the Toclafane.”
Jymes tentatively closed his eyes and snuggled up against Kenni, pressing his ear to the other boy’s chest, letting the steady beats of the twin hearts lull him to sleep.
He’d be ok … Kenni wouldn’t let the Toclafane get him …
~*~
Kenni smiled as the younger boy drifted into a peaceful sleep. He remembered that: sleep. The Drums hadn’t let him sleep since the Rite … he felt a stab of jealousy, which was immediately quelled by the faint smile on Jymes’ little face.
He was so distracted by Jymes’ face that at first he didn’t realize it. When he did he almost sat up in bed in shock.
Ba-bump (ba-bump) … ba-bump (ba-bump) … ba-bump (ba-bump) …
The Drums weren’t beating out the erratic, horrific pattern they’d been going at for these past months. They were going at the same pace, the same rate, the same rhythm, as Jymes’ little hearts. It was … almost soothing …
Kenni hadn’t felt this peaceful since the Rite. It felt … wonderful.
Kenni blinked, glanced around for the Toclafane with a grin, and closed his eyes, resting his head on the pillow next to Jymes.
The Drums and Jymes’ heartbeats eased Kenni into the first sleep he’d had in eighty-seven days.