van
in
dwliterotica
Doctor Who: Reflections (5/21), (2/Jamie), Adult.
In which stuff actually happens. :D
Title: Reflections (5/21)
Author: Van Donovan
Rating: Adult
Characters: the second Doctor, Jamie McCrimmon, Victoria Waterfield
Pairings: Two/Jamie
Word count this chapter: 4,114
Word count total: 87,791
Warnings: Slash and eventual graphic sex. Spoilers through "Evil of the Daleks."
Summary: Charged with saving the universe, can the Doctor overcome his own darkness to defeat the Daleks?
Notes: This is a "Mirrorverse" fic, set in a splinter off "Evil of the Daleks." It isn't required you know either term/story, but it will heighten your enjoyment. This fic is rather dark and adult in nature, so be warned.
Thanks: To randominity who planted the seed for this (and helped beta), to lithrael for the encouragement--this fic would not exist without her support (and for the help betaing :D, and the artwork, which is hers), and to irreparable for her amazing very-thorough beta skills. She is glorious. I feel I should be paying for her services. :D
(Crossposted to two_love, dw_slash, and dwfiction)
Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21.
Chapter Five:
Dawn brought a whole new host of problems to the Doctor.
He’d been up several hours, simply watching Jamie sleep. His body had long been used to operating at optimum on the minimum amount of sleep necessary. Even had he not preferred to watch the boy, his body, long unused to lengthy periods of rest, would not have allowed him such a luxury. It was quiet and peaceful when Jamie was asleep-he feared the repercussions of the events from the night before.
Struggling to keep things under control and as if everything were normal, the Doctor threw open the curtains at first light. “Rise and shine, Jamie!” he called.
Instead of rubbing his eyes or groaning at the light, Jamie just sat up and blinked a few times. It wasn’t the sort of sleepy-eyed reaction the Doctor had expected.
“Victoria is still out there,” the Doctor said with as much concern as he could fake. “We’d best not waste any more time. And look, it’s stopped raining.” Gesturing grandly to the window, he pointed out the vivid, cloudless blue sky that was now visible.
Swinging his legs over the bed, Jamie presented his back to the Doctor and the window. He stretched and yawned, rising to his feet, but did not greet the Doctor in return.
Grimacing at the response or lack thereof, the Doctor forced himself to behave normally. Jamie had every right in the world to feel the way he did. The Doctor was the one who had to change the way he thought. “Well, hurry up and get dressed,” he insisted. “I’ll meet you downstairs for breakfast.”
Quickly, he departed the room, eager to give Jamie a little time alone-as well as some privacy. He headed for the bathrooms to wash up-he’d neglected to do so last night. His clothes had dried out, but they still clung to him awkwardly. A quick rinsing off did much to improve his comfort levels. By the time he reached the main room, he felt like a new man.
Greeting him with a smile, the innkeeper gestured to the long table where breakfast was being served. Two other people, travelers by their apparel, sat eating from hearty bowls of soup. Sliding onto the bench, back to the main doors, the Doctor tucked his napkin into his shirt, preparing to eat.
“Your friend isn’t joining you?” the innkeeper asked as he sidled up to the table.
“Jamie is dressing right now. I imagine he’ll be down in a few minutes,” the Doctor replied. “Those eggs look delicious, by the way.”
“I’ll see to it that you get some,” the innkeeper replied.
“And some tea, please,” the Doctor added.
“Of course.” Bowing deeply, the innkeeper departed.
Not long after, one of the serving girls arrived with a plate and hot tea. She tried to chat with him, but left after only a few words, aware he was not in the mood for conversation.
He was much too lost in his own thoughts. How badly he had wanted to act normally around Jamie, to somehow regain the friendly foothold he had once had with the boy. The only clear solution he could work out, however, revolved around returning the girl to him. Perhaps it would be painful to watch those two interacting happily together without him, but it had to be better than the awkwardness between them now. Victoria would likely defuse the situation, and that was something he sorely needed. Just to see Jamie smiling and happy, even if it wasn’t because of him, would be worth it. Perhaps then he could focus on the task the Time Lords had actually given to him.
Halfway through his breakfast, the main doors opened behind him, and an uncomfortably familiar, metallic whine filled the room. A chill coursed along the Doctor’s back, forcing his spine ramrod straight. He didn’t turn around but his hand froze with the fork halfway to his mouth as he listened acutely to the thrumming noise behind him, fervently hoping it wasn’t what he thought it was.
“Ah, welcome, welcome!” the innkeeper called, in an over-the-top friendly manner. “Come on in. As you can see, everything is in nice, neat working order. You won’t find anything amiss here.”
“Searching will commence as usual!”
Despite the Doctor’s back having already been perfectly straight, he tensed even further at that unmistakable, grating voice. Slowly, the eggs fell off his spoon, flopping onto the table as he intently focused on the monstrosity he now knew was behind him.
“Of course, of course,” the innkeeper amiably said. He backed into the Doctor’s sight, bowing lowly as he did. Seconds later, a grey Dalek sentinel rolled past him, eyestalk swiveling as it investigated the main room.
Unable to move, the Doctor dimly became aware of the fact that the two other diners at the table had barely looked up from their meal at the arrival of the Dalek; it was as if its presence were commonplace. Perhaps it was, though he could not conceive of an existence where Daleks were so common as to not be feared. He had lived some twenty years in their service and had never once felt relaxed or nonchalant around them.
“Confirm the status of the supply facility!” the Dalek ordered.
“Intact, of course,” the innkeeper said. Though he put on a brave face, much of his nervousness leaked through his voice and mannerisms.
“Show me!” The Dalek glided away, keeping its eyestalk trained on the innkeeper, who hustled to keep up. Within seconds, the pair moved out of sight.
“Doctor!” a voice hissed.
Spinning around in his seat, the Doctor looked up at the stairs and found Jamie crouched on them, glaring in the direction the Dalek had gone. Once it was apparent the coast was clear, the boy nearly vaulted the rest of the way down until he was at the Doctor’s side.
“Believe me, I saw it,” the Doctor said, wiping his mouth and beard clean with his napkin. He rose quickly, more than content to abandon his breakfast in an effort to escape. “I suggest we get underway.”
“Aye,” Jamie said, his eyes still focused on the empty corridor the Dalek and innkeeper had disappeared down. “Though,” he glanced briefly to the Doctor, “if they’ve got Victoria . . .”
“We’re at a disadvantage here,” the Doctor replied in a soft voice. He was all too aware the other travelers might be monitoring their conversation and he had no desire to be overheard by Dalek sympathizers. “We’ll discuss Victoria’s whereabouts once we’re back safely on the TARDIS.”
A hand on the back of Jamie’s shoulder was all it took to get the boy going. Grabbing the roll that had come with his meal, the Doctor stuffed into his pocket as they hurried across the room and out the main door.
Once in the open, both men prepared to break into a run. It was only the sight of another Dalek sentinel patrolling another part of the village that prevented them from doing so. Putting a restraining hand on Jamie’s arm, he forced the boy into a leisurely stroll beside him. In a very low but casual voice he said, “We mustn’t appear to be running away. Any suspicious activity will be monitored and interrogated. I’ll be recognized before we’re able to get away, and the last thing we want is to be captured by the Daleks.”
“Aye, y’ don’t have t’ convince me of that,” Jamie replied in a tone that matched the Doctor’s. “Though perhaps we’d find Victoria faster if we were.”
“I’d certainly rather not risk it. There’s a chance yet that she’s still somewhere safe in the TARDIS, remember?”
They exchanged glances and as one, both subtly quickened their paces in an effort to return to the TARDIS. With danger all around them, the awkwardness of last night seemed to melt away. There was no time for petty squabbles with Daleks patrolling the streets around them.
They soon put the village behind them and broke into a run. As they loped through the fields together, the Doctor felt a surge of joy spread through him. It wasn’t quite like the time with his Jamie before their encounter with the Daleks when traversing the universe had still been fun, but it was as close as he could now get.
When the TARDIS loomed in sight, the two exchanged relieved glances and stepped up their pace once again. In those few scant moments they were on an adventure again, running from the monsters with the wind at their backs, the sun in their eyes, safety fast approaching, and once again they were having fun.
--
It was almost like entering a dream, the Doctor thought. Once they were safe and sound inside the TARDIS again-a TARDIS still free of Dalek occupants-the Doctor slumped against the controls and let out a deep breath. He hadn’t actually believed they could sneak undetected past the sentinels, let alone make it all the way back to the TARDIS unmolested. He had had visions of being captured, the Daleks exterminating this Jamie before his eyes, just like they had the first one.
“All right?” Jamie asked, stooping to catch his breath, but he was not nearly as winded as the Doctor.
“I’m fine, thank you,” he replied, holding a hand to his side to prevent a stitch. “I thought for certain we’d be caught!”
“Aye, me too,” Jamie said. Moving around the console, he came to stand beside him. Whatever reservations he’d had in the inn room earlier seemed to have diminished considerably. “What were they doin’ in a wee little village like that?”
“Looking for us, I would imagine,” the Doctor said. He began twisting knobs on the panel before him-it would be best for them to get away from this planet. He didn’t know where would be safe-not even treading space was remote enough-but he was unwilling to stay where they were.
“What do y’ suppose that talk ‘bout supplies was, then?”
“Supplies?”
“Aye. Th’ one in th’ inn was goin’ on about the intactness of some supply thing. Maybe they were lookin’ for us, but I reckon they had other reasons t’ be there in th’ first place.”
“You might be right, Jamie,” he said. He had to admit, when he’d heard the voice of the Dalek, he’d been more concerned about his own safety than what the Dalek was actually saying. Now that Jamie had jogged his memory, he could recall the Dalek’s words. Whatever their reason for being in the village was, it definitely had extended past just searching for him, though he didn’t doubt for a moment that he was high on their list of prisoners to recapture. “But we haven’t got time to ponder that now.”
The TARDIS began to whirl to life around them as the center column rose.
“We’re leavin’?” Jamie asked, his tone cautious.
“Well, yes. Every moment we stay is another chance for the Daleks to catch us.”
Jamie seemed temporarily satisfied by that answer, but soon crossed his arms and said, “What about Victoria?”
Making certain the TARDIS controls wouldn’t accidentally land them while he was away-the last thing he needed was to materialize on a Dalek supply ship or Skaro for that matter-he turned to face the boy. “I believe she’s still on this ship. Shall we go searching for her?”
--
At first, the Doctor had meandered through the TARDIS, not wanting to take Jamie to the girl straight away. That, he knew, would be too obvious. He wanted time to think up a reason she would have wound up in the depths of the ship, and he wanted to spend as much time with the boy as he could before reuniting him with the girl. It soon became apparent, however, that Jamie was growing impatient. He had scowled deeply when they’d checked her room and found it empty. He’d scowled even more when she wasn’t found in his room, either. Jamie had fondled some item in his room, looking like he’d never seen it before in his life, and the Doctor quickly led him out.
Sticking to the kitchens and gardens and pools was the Doctor’s plan, but Jamie soon began stalking purposefully down the corridors, calling Victoria’s name, his frustration growing. “She’s no’ on the ship,” he stated at last. “The Daleks must have her.”
“Well, well, let’s not give up hope just yet,” the Doctor encouraged. Enough was enough, he supposed. He purposefully turned down a corridor, heading for the room he’d shut the girl up in.
Pausing, Jamie peered curiously into the Cloister Room as they passed. While the Doctor could see the wonder on the boy’s face at the room, the fact that Victoria was not there kept him going. “Here,” the Doctor said, hand on the door to the room he’d left the girl in, “let’s try this room.”
He swung it open with a proud flourish.
Jamie stalked in, but the room was empty. “She no’ here, either,” he unhappily stated.
Promptly, the Doctor’s smile faded away into alarm. “What?” He pushed Jamie aside, entering the room. There was no doubt in his mind that this was where he’d put the girl, but she was definitely not there anymore. There was no sign that she’d ever even been in the room: the bed wasn’t even rumpled. “Why, where is she!”
“That’s what I want to know,” Jamie said, his tone turning grave, accusing.
The Doctor fretted. They had searched almost all of the other rooms on the TARDIS already, save the ones down below, where he’d stored the double of himself. He’d meant to seal up this part of the TARDIS, to keep the girl confined, but with all the excitement of finding Jamie again, he’d forgotten!
What if they had left her on the planet?
“Oh crumbs,” he said.
Suddenly, he wanted to rush down to the lower levels, to see if the other Doctor was still locked away there, but he couldn’t, not with the boy following. Besides that, he had a growing, sinking suspicion that the other man was gone, too. He could touch the mind of other Time Lords; knew when they were around. It was different with a double: less distinct, but similar. Now that he concentrated on it, he couldn’t feel the other Doctor anymore. The pair of them had likely escaped together and left the ship. Wringing his hands nervously, he stared forlornly at the empty bed.
Rounding on him, Jamie spun him about forcefully, eyes cold with fury. “Just what’s going on here?” he demanded. “Who are you?”
Blinking, his eyes wide and disbelieving, the Doctor felt a horrible, cold chill course up his spine, colder by far than the one the Dalek had given him. “I . . . I don’t know what you mean, Jamie!” he cried. “I’m the Doctor!”
Stalking around him, Jamie scrutinized him. Keenly, the Doctor was aware that when Jamie stopped, he did so in front of the doorway, blocking the only route of escape. It was only then that he noticed the dirk held in Jamie’s right hand.
“You look like him,” Jamie said, “and you sound like him, and sometimes you even act like him, but you’re no’ the Doctor.” Distastefully, he glanced around the room they were in. “And this isn’t the TARDIS.”
“Jamie, I-” the Doctor began.
“Where are they!” he shouted. “What’ve you done with Victoria and the Doctor?”
“Jamie, please,” the Doctor said, gesturing helplessly with his hands to try and settle the boy. “I can explain.”
With the boy advancing on him, the Doctor backed away from Jamie, suddenly frightened. In an even fight perhaps he could contend with someone like Jamie, but he wouldn’t hurt the boy. He simply couldn’t. But he still feared this one.
“Are you working for the Daleks?” Jamie demanded. “Did you sell them out to the Daleks?”
“I wouldn’t do that!” the Doctor protested. “I hate the Daleks as much as you do! We . . . we ran away from them, didn’t we?”
“Aye, did we? Or did they let us escape?” Jamie’s eyes narrowed more. “Or maybe y’ were supposed t’ turn me in too, and something made y’ decide not to.” Looking over the Doctor, there was unveiled distrust on his face. “Thought your ruse was good enough t’ keep me for yourself, maybe?”
“I’m from a parallel universe,” the Doctor forcefully stated, ignoring the hollow ache growing in his chest. “No, no. This is the parallel universe. You’re from another universe, in mine. You and Victoria and . . . and your Doctor, too.” Worrying his hands more, his eyes darted from Jamie to the dirk and back. Words weren’t making much sense to him, anymore. His grasp on the situation, on the boy, felt as though it was sifting through his fingers.
Eyes still narrowed dangerously, Jamie now furrowed his brow. “What’s a . . . a ‘parallel universe?” he asked, his tone aloof as he reserved judgment until he had a proper answer.
Hearts slamming in his chest, the Doctor felt them seem to skip a beat at the question. It was a reprieve, of a sort. He could explain, could at least have a chance to explain. “It’s . . . it’s a universe, identical to this one, you see? It diverged at some point in time, when a different choice was made than the one made into your universe. They splintered into different outcomes. In . . . in your universe, you defeated the Daleks, yes? Well, in this one, we didn’t.”
Jamie did not seem convinced, but the dark fire dimmed in his eyes as he struggled to understand what he was being told. Obviously there were questions he wanted to ask, but the one that finally came out was, “But you knew I wasn’t some . . . parallel Jamie.”
“That’s correct,” the Doctor said, finding it suddenly easy to avert his eyes.
“How did I get here?”
“I needed help to defeat the Daleks. The . . . the . . . my people sent you to me, to help. Only, they weren’t supposed to send me you.”
“Och, what’s that supposed t’ mean?”
Lifting his eyes, the Doctor was quick to explain. “There aren’t just two parallel universes, you know. There are hundreds. Hundreds of millions, even. Infinite numbers of them! My people told me they’d send me a Jamie from a parallel universe where . . . where they had defeated the Daleks, but not before the Daleks had killed his Doctor. He was trapped on the Dalek planet Skaro and was going to die. That poor Jamie.” Lost in sad thought, Doctor’s gaze blurred for several seconds, before refocusing. “I . . . I don’t know why I got you instead.”
Unreadable, Jamie’s eyes flickered. “I don’t much like th’ way you talk, like I’m some sort of commodity.”
“I’m sorry,” the Doctor said, sincerely. “I didn’t mean to lie to you . . .”
“Then why did you?” Jamie glanced around the room again. “And where is Victoria?” His eyes returned to the Doctor, cold and hard again. “If you’ve hurt her…”
“I wouldn’t hurt her, I swear,” the Doctor quickly countered. “I put her here, in this room. She must have escaped.”
“Well, she’s no’ on this ship anymore.” His eyes remained hard and unkind.
“But you believe me,” the Doctor asked, hopefully.
“No. If y’ knew she was on the TARDIS, why did we go out searching for her yesterday? If you knew the Daleks are all over the place, why did y’ act so surprised t’ see one?”
“I didn’t know there were Daleks on this planet. I don’t even know where this planet is! I’ve been under their control for the past twenty years, Jamie. I’ve been under a lot of duress. I admit, I wasn’t thinking right.” Lowering his eyes, he focused on the floor. “I was only supposed to be sent you. Just you. I didn’t know who she was and . . . and I wanted to explain things to you, first.”
“But you didn’t.”
Worrying his hands again, the Doctor wished Jamie would put the dirk away. “It was difficult!” he explained. “You weren’t who you were supposed to be. Your Doctor wasn’t dead, and there was Victoria . . . I had to improvise.”
“By lying to me?”
“Oh, Jamie,” the Doctor sighed. “It wasn’t easy to do, please believe me. I just had to see . . . to . . .” Swallowing hard, he forced himself to straighten out and be honest. “My Jamie is dead,” he resolutely said. “He died after the test that the Daleks made him undergo to find out the Human Factor. We were on Skaro, captives of the newly engineered Daleks, and based on some information I let slip, he tried to escape.”
At the Doctor’s words, Jamie’s dirk lowered a fraction of an inch.
“That was a long time ago, for me,” the Doctor continued. “I think he’s been dead longer now than he was alive. And . . . and he and I were close.” He closed his eyes, sighing, accepting. “We were so very close, and it was my fault he was killed, and I just . . . I had to see how similar to him you were. I’m sorry.” He lifted his eyes. “I shouldn’t have lied. I’ve only managed to make things worse.”
“Aye,” Jamie agreed, although his voice wasn’t as harsh. “And now you’ve lost Victoria, and I can’t replace people like you can.”
“You aren’t a replacement, Jamie,” the Doctor firmly stated, longing even more now to reach out and touch the boy. “You’re special. You’re the only hope my universe has in stopping the Daleks. Even now, it might be too late.”
Jamie’s lips curled into a sneer. “Och, but you didn’t think t’ ask me whether or not I wanted t’ help, before dragging me into this, did you? I don’t suppose you were going to ask that other Jamie, either, were you? And now you’ve involved Victoria too, and lost her, and my Doctor probably doesn’t even know where we’ve gone.”
“He’s with Victoria,” the Doctor said simply. “All three of you were here. I put them both away. If she’s gone, then I’m sure he’s with her.”
Immediately, he shied away from Jamie, afraid of the boy’s wrath. And the boy did get angry, gripping his dirk tighter.
“So you’ve lost me Victoria and my Doctor! I don’t see why we should help you at all! Maybe th’ Daleks just deserve to win in this universe!”
“Jamie!”
“Och, don’t ‘Jamie’ me! I’m no’ your Jamie and I never will be. So leave off!”
Those words should have broken the Doctor’s hearts, but they had been shattered long ago when the Jamie who had intensely, selflessly loved him had been killed. Perhaps he could have loved this one, but he didn’t and so there was nothing in him left to destroy. The words just echoed inside his already empty hearts.
But there was something about this Jamie that defied the things he said, a too-quick hotness in his denial that left a niggling doubt in the Doctor about the conviction of his words. Even now, Jamie seemed somehow ashamed of his outburst.
“I’m sorry,” the Doctor repeated, even more sincerely. Drawing strength from a well he didn’t know he had, he took a step forward. “But now that you know everything, we can go back for them. If I can’t convince you to help me, then maybe your Doctor will.”
Staring down, Jamie stood his ground. At last, seemingly unable to argue with that, he stepped aside, replacing his dirk to its sheath. “All right,” he gruffly said. “But no more fooling around.”
Turning back to him, voice cool and clipped, the Doctor said, “I’m sorry if you feel I’ve fooled you, Jamie. That was never my intention.”
“Och, you call pretending t’ be my Doctor not intentionally fooling me?”
“It was not done out maliciousness, or in an attempt to trick you. If anyone was being fooled, it was me thinking you might be anything like the boy I used to know. Now I know better.” Pushing easily past Jamie, he strode resolutely away from him and in the direction of the Console Room.
He did not see the pained expression that stole across Jamie’s face at his words.
Title: Reflections (5/21)
Author: Van Donovan
Rating: Adult
Characters: the second Doctor, Jamie McCrimmon, Victoria Waterfield
Pairings: Two/Jamie
Word count this chapter: 4,114
Word count total: 87,791
Warnings: Slash and eventual graphic sex. Spoilers through "Evil of the Daleks."
Summary: Charged with saving the universe, can the Doctor overcome his own darkness to defeat the Daleks?
Notes: This is a "Mirrorverse" fic, set in a splinter off "Evil of the Daleks." It isn't required you know either term/story, but it will heighten your enjoyment. This fic is rather dark and adult in nature, so be warned.
Thanks: To randominity who planted the seed for this (and helped beta), to lithrael for the encouragement--this fic would not exist without her support (and for the help betaing :D, and the artwork, which is hers), and to irreparable for her amazing very-thorough beta skills. She is glorious. I feel I should be paying for her services. :D
(Crossposted to two_love, dw_slash, and dwfiction)
Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21.
Chapter Five:
Dawn brought a whole new host of problems to the Doctor.
He’d been up several hours, simply watching Jamie sleep. His body had long been used to operating at optimum on the minimum amount of sleep necessary. Even had he not preferred to watch the boy, his body, long unused to lengthy periods of rest, would not have allowed him such a luxury. It was quiet and peaceful when Jamie was asleep-he feared the repercussions of the events from the night before.
Struggling to keep things under control and as if everything were normal, the Doctor threw open the curtains at first light. “Rise and shine, Jamie!” he called.
Instead of rubbing his eyes or groaning at the light, Jamie just sat up and blinked a few times. It wasn’t the sort of sleepy-eyed reaction the Doctor had expected.
“Victoria is still out there,” the Doctor said with as much concern as he could fake. “We’d best not waste any more time. And look, it’s stopped raining.” Gesturing grandly to the window, he pointed out the vivid, cloudless blue sky that was now visible.
Swinging his legs over the bed, Jamie presented his back to the Doctor and the window. He stretched and yawned, rising to his feet, but did not greet the Doctor in return.
Grimacing at the response or lack thereof, the Doctor forced himself to behave normally. Jamie had every right in the world to feel the way he did. The Doctor was the one who had to change the way he thought. “Well, hurry up and get dressed,” he insisted. “I’ll meet you downstairs for breakfast.”
Quickly, he departed the room, eager to give Jamie a little time alone-as well as some privacy. He headed for the bathrooms to wash up-he’d neglected to do so last night. His clothes had dried out, but they still clung to him awkwardly. A quick rinsing off did much to improve his comfort levels. By the time he reached the main room, he felt like a new man.
Greeting him with a smile, the innkeeper gestured to the long table where breakfast was being served. Two other people, travelers by their apparel, sat eating from hearty bowls of soup. Sliding onto the bench, back to the main doors, the Doctor tucked his napkin into his shirt, preparing to eat.
“Your friend isn’t joining you?” the innkeeper asked as he sidled up to the table.
“Jamie is dressing right now. I imagine he’ll be down in a few minutes,” the Doctor replied. “Those eggs look delicious, by the way.”
“I’ll see to it that you get some,” the innkeeper replied.
“And some tea, please,” the Doctor added.
“Of course.” Bowing deeply, the innkeeper departed.
Not long after, one of the serving girls arrived with a plate and hot tea. She tried to chat with him, but left after only a few words, aware he was not in the mood for conversation.
He was much too lost in his own thoughts. How badly he had wanted to act normally around Jamie, to somehow regain the friendly foothold he had once had with the boy. The only clear solution he could work out, however, revolved around returning the girl to him. Perhaps it would be painful to watch those two interacting happily together without him, but it had to be better than the awkwardness between them now. Victoria would likely defuse the situation, and that was something he sorely needed. Just to see Jamie smiling and happy, even if it wasn’t because of him, would be worth it. Perhaps then he could focus on the task the Time Lords had actually given to him.
Halfway through his breakfast, the main doors opened behind him, and an uncomfortably familiar, metallic whine filled the room. A chill coursed along the Doctor’s back, forcing his spine ramrod straight. He didn’t turn around but his hand froze with the fork halfway to his mouth as he listened acutely to the thrumming noise behind him, fervently hoping it wasn’t what he thought it was.
“Ah, welcome, welcome!” the innkeeper called, in an over-the-top friendly manner. “Come on in. As you can see, everything is in nice, neat working order. You won’t find anything amiss here.”
“Searching will commence as usual!”
Despite the Doctor’s back having already been perfectly straight, he tensed even further at that unmistakable, grating voice. Slowly, the eggs fell off his spoon, flopping onto the table as he intently focused on the monstrosity he now knew was behind him.
“Of course, of course,” the innkeeper amiably said. He backed into the Doctor’s sight, bowing lowly as he did. Seconds later, a grey Dalek sentinel rolled past him, eyestalk swiveling as it investigated the main room.
Unable to move, the Doctor dimly became aware of the fact that the two other diners at the table had barely looked up from their meal at the arrival of the Dalek; it was as if its presence were commonplace. Perhaps it was, though he could not conceive of an existence where Daleks were so common as to not be feared. He had lived some twenty years in their service and had never once felt relaxed or nonchalant around them.
“Confirm the status of the supply facility!” the Dalek ordered.
“Intact, of course,” the innkeeper said. Though he put on a brave face, much of his nervousness leaked through his voice and mannerisms.
“Show me!” The Dalek glided away, keeping its eyestalk trained on the innkeeper, who hustled to keep up. Within seconds, the pair moved out of sight.
“Doctor!” a voice hissed.
Spinning around in his seat, the Doctor looked up at the stairs and found Jamie crouched on them, glaring in the direction the Dalek had gone. Once it was apparent the coast was clear, the boy nearly vaulted the rest of the way down until he was at the Doctor’s side.
“Believe me, I saw it,” the Doctor said, wiping his mouth and beard clean with his napkin. He rose quickly, more than content to abandon his breakfast in an effort to escape. “I suggest we get underway.”
“Aye,” Jamie said, his eyes still focused on the empty corridor the Dalek and innkeeper had disappeared down. “Though,” he glanced briefly to the Doctor, “if they’ve got Victoria . . .”
“We’re at a disadvantage here,” the Doctor replied in a soft voice. He was all too aware the other travelers might be monitoring their conversation and he had no desire to be overheard by Dalek sympathizers. “We’ll discuss Victoria’s whereabouts once we’re back safely on the TARDIS.”
A hand on the back of Jamie’s shoulder was all it took to get the boy going. Grabbing the roll that had come with his meal, the Doctor stuffed into his pocket as they hurried across the room and out the main door.
Once in the open, both men prepared to break into a run. It was only the sight of another Dalek sentinel patrolling another part of the village that prevented them from doing so. Putting a restraining hand on Jamie’s arm, he forced the boy into a leisurely stroll beside him. In a very low but casual voice he said, “We mustn’t appear to be running away. Any suspicious activity will be monitored and interrogated. I’ll be recognized before we’re able to get away, and the last thing we want is to be captured by the Daleks.”
“Aye, y’ don’t have t’ convince me of that,” Jamie replied in a tone that matched the Doctor’s. “Though perhaps we’d find Victoria faster if we were.”
“I’d certainly rather not risk it. There’s a chance yet that she’s still somewhere safe in the TARDIS, remember?”
They exchanged glances and as one, both subtly quickened their paces in an effort to return to the TARDIS. With danger all around them, the awkwardness of last night seemed to melt away. There was no time for petty squabbles with Daleks patrolling the streets around them.
They soon put the village behind them and broke into a run. As they loped through the fields together, the Doctor felt a surge of joy spread through him. It wasn’t quite like the time with his Jamie before their encounter with the Daleks when traversing the universe had still been fun, but it was as close as he could now get.
When the TARDIS loomed in sight, the two exchanged relieved glances and stepped up their pace once again. In those few scant moments they were on an adventure again, running from the monsters with the wind at their backs, the sun in their eyes, safety fast approaching, and once again they were having fun.
--
It was almost like entering a dream, the Doctor thought. Once they were safe and sound inside the TARDIS again-a TARDIS still free of Dalek occupants-the Doctor slumped against the controls and let out a deep breath. He hadn’t actually believed they could sneak undetected past the sentinels, let alone make it all the way back to the TARDIS unmolested. He had had visions of being captured, the Daleks exterminating this Jamie before his eyes, just like they had the first one.
“All right?” Jamie asked, stooping to catch his breath, but he was not nearly as winded as the Doctor.
“I’m fine, thank you,” he replied, holding a hand to his side to prevent a stitch. “I thought for certain we’d be caught!”
“Aye, me too,” Jamie said. Moving around the console, he came to stand beside him. Whatever reservations he’d had in the inn room earlier seemed to have diminished considerably. “What were they doin’ in a wee little village like that?”
“Looking for us, I would imagine,” the Doctor said. He began twisting knobs on the panel before him-it would be best for them to get away from this planet. He didn’t know where would be safe-not even treading space was remote enough-but he was unwilling to stay where they were.
“What do y’ suppose that talk ‘bout supplies was, then?”
“Supplies?”
“Aye. Th’ one in th’ inn was goin’ on about the intactness of some supply thing. Maybe they were lookin’ for us, but I reckon they had other reasons t’ be there in th’ first place.”
“You might be right, Jamie,” he said. He had to admit, when he’d heard the voice of the Dalek, he’d been more concerned about his own safety than what the Dalek was actually saying. Now that Jamie had jogged his memory, he could recall the Dalek’s words. Whatever their reason for being in the village was, it definitely had extended past just searching for him, though he didn’t doubt for a moment that he was high on their list of prisoners to recapture. “But we haven’t got time to ponder that now.”
The TARDIS began to whirl to life around them as the center column rose.
“We’re leavin’?” Jamie asked, his tone cautious.
“Well, yes. Every moment we stay is another chance for the Daleks to catch us.”
Jamie seemed temporarily satisfied by that answer, but soon crossed his arms and said, “What about Victoria?”
Making certain the TARDIS controls wouldn’t accidentally land them while he was away-the last thing he needed was to materialize on a Dalek supply ship or Skaro for that matter-he turned to face the boy. “I believe she’s still on this ship. Shall we go searching for her?”
--
At first, the Doctor had meandered through the TARDIS, not wanting to take Jamie to the girl straight away. That, he knew, would be too obvious. He wanted time to think up a reason she would have wound up in the depths of the ship, and he wanted to spend as much time with the boy as he could before reuniting him with the girl. It soon became apparent, however, that Jamie was growing impatient. He had scowled deeply when they’d checked her room and found it empty. He’d scowled even more when she wasn’t found in his room, either. Jamie had fondled some item in his room, looking like he’d never seen it before in his life, and the Doctor quickly led him out.
Sticking to the kitchens and gardens and pools was the Doctor’s plan, but Jamie soon began stalking purposefully down the corridors, calling Victoria’s name, his frustration growing. “She’s no’ on the ship,” he stated at last. “The Daleks must have her.”
“Well, well, let’s not give up hope just yet,” the Doctor encouraged. Enough was enough, he supposed. He purposefully turned down a corridor, heading for the room he’d shut the girl up in.
Pausing, Jamie peered curiously into the Cloister Room as they passed. While the Doctor could see the wonder on the boy’s face at the room, the fact that Victoria was not there kept him going. “Here,” the Doctor said, hand on the door to the room he’d left the girl in, “let’s try this room.”
He swung it open with a proud flourish.
Jamie stalked in, but the room was empty. “She no’ here, either,” he unhappily stated.
Promptly, the Doctor’s smile faded away into alarm. “What?” He pushed Jamie aside, entering the room. There was no doubt in his mind that this was where he’d put the girl, but she was definitely not there anymore. There was no sign that she’d ever even been in the room: the bed wasn’t even rumpled. “Why, where is she!”
“That’s what I want to know,” Jamie said, his tone turning grave, accusing.
The Doctor fretted. They had searched almost all of the other rooms on the TARDIS already, save the ones down below, where he’d stored the double of himself. He’d meant to seal up this part of the TARDIS, to keep the girl confined, but with all the excitement of finding Jamie again, he’d forgotten!
What if they had left her on the planet?
“Oh crumbs,” he said.
Suddenly, he wanted to rush down to the lower levels, to see if the other Doctor was still locked away there, but he couldn’t, not with the boy following. Besides that, he had a growing, sinking suspicion that the other man was gone, too. He could touch the mind of other Time Lords; knew when they were around. It was different with a double: less distinct, but similar. Now that he concentrated on it, he couldn’t feel the other Doctor anymore. The pair of them had likely escaped together and left the ship. Wringing his hands nervously, he stared forlornly at the empty bed.
Rounding on him, Jamie spun him about forcefully, eyes cold with fury. “Just what’s going on here?” he demanded. “Who are you?”
Blinking, his eyes wide and disbelieving, the Doctor felt a horrible, cold chill course up his spine, colder by far than the one the Dalek had given him. “I . . . I don’t know what you mean, Jamie!” he cried. “I’m the Doctor!”
Stalking around him, Jamie scrutinized him. Keenly, the Doctor was aware that when Jamie stopped, he did so in front of the doorway, blocking the only route of escape. It was only then that he noticed the dirk held in Jamie’s right hand.
“You look like him,” Jamie said, “and you sound like him, and sometimes you even act like him, but you’re no’ the Doctor.” Distastefully, he glanced around the room they were in. “And this isn’t the TARDIS.”
“Jamie, I-” the Doctor began.
“Where are they!” he shouted. “What’ve you done with Victoria and the Doctor?”
“Jamie, please,” the Doctor said, gesturing helplessly with his hands to try and settle the boy. “I can explain.”
With the boy advancing on him, the Doctor backed away from Jamie, suddenly frightened. In an even fight perhaps he could contend with someone like Jamie, but he wouldn’t hurt the boy. He simply couldn’t. But he still feared this one.
“Are you working for the Daleks?” Jamie demanded. “Did you sell them out to the Daleks?”
“I wouldn’t do that!” the Doctor protested. “I hate the Daleks as much as you do! We . . . we ran away from them, didn’t we?”
“Aye, did we? Or did they let us escape?” Jamie’s eyes narrowed more. “Or maybe y’ were supposed t’ turn me in too, and something made y’ decide not to.” Looking over the Doctor, there was unveiled distrust on his face. “Thought your ruse was good enough t’ keep me for yourself, maybe?”
“I’m from a parallel universe,” the Doctor forcefully stated, ignoring the hollow ache growing in his chest. “No, no. This is the parallel universe. You’re from another universe, in mine. You and Victoria and . . . and your Doctor, too.” Worrying his hands more, his eyes darted from Jamie to the dirk and back. Words weren’t making much sense to him, anymore. His grasp on the situation, on the boy, felt as though it was sifting through his fingers.
Eyes still narrowed dangerously, Jamie now furrowed his brow. “What’s a . . . a ‘parallel universe?” he asked, his tone aloof as he reserved judgment until he had a proper answer.
Hearts slamming in his chest, the Doctor felt them seem to skip a beat at the question. It was a reprieve, of a sort. He could explain, could at least have a chance to explain. “It’s . . . it’s a universe, identical to this one, you see? It diverged at some point in time, when a different choice was made than the one made into your universe. They splintered into different outcomes. In . . . in your universe, you defeated the Daleks, yes? Well, in this one, we didn’t.”
Jamie did not seem convinced, but the dark fire dimmed in his eyes as he struggled to understand what he was being told. Obviously there were questions he wanted to ask, but the one that finally came out was, “But you knew I wasn’t some . . . parallel Jamie.”
“That’s correct,” the Doctor said, finding it suddenly easy to avert his eyes.
“How did I get here?”
“I needed help to defeat the Daleks. The . . . the . . . my people sent you to me, to help. Only, they weren’t supposed to send me you.”
“Och, what’s that supposed t’ mean?”
Lifting his eyes, the Doctor was quick to explain. “There aren’t just two parallel universes, you know. There are hundreds. Hundreds of millions, even. Infinite numbers of them! My people told me they’d send me a Jamie from a parallel universe where . . . where they had defeated the Daleks, but not before the Daleks had killed his Doctor. He was trapped on the Dalek planet Skaro and was going to die. That poor Jamie.” Lost in sad thought, Doctor’s gaze blurred for several seconds, before refocusing. “I . . . I don’t know why I got you instead.”
Unreadable, Jamie’s eyes flickered. “I don’t much like th’ way you talk, like I’m some sort of commodity.”
“I’m sorry,” the Doctor said, sincerely. “I didn’t mean to lie to you . . .”
“Then why did you?” Jamie glanced around the room again. “And where is Victoria?” His eyes returned to the Doctor, cold and hard again. “If you’ve hurt her…”
“I wouldn’t hurt her, I swear,” the Doctor quickly countered. “I put her here, in this room. She must have escaped.”
“Well, she’s no’ on this ship anymore.” His eyes remained hard and unkind.
“But you believe me,” the Doctor asked, hopefully.
“No. If y’ knew she was on the TARDIS, why did we go out searching for her yesterday? If you knew the Daleks are all over the place, why did y’ act so surprised t’ see one?”
“I didn’t know there were Daleks on this planet. I don’t even know where this planet is! I’ve been under their control for the past twenty years, Jamie. I’ve been under a lot of duress. I admit, I wasn’t thinking right.” Lowering his eyes, he focused on the floor. “I was only supposed to be sent you. Just you. I didn’t know who she was and . . . and I wanted to explain things to you, first.”
“But you didn’t.”
Worrying his hands again, the Doctor wished Jamie would put the dirk away. “It was difficult!” he explained. “You weren’t who you were supposed to be. Your Doctor wasn’t dead, and there was Victoria . . . I had to improvise.”
“By lying to me?”
“Oh, Jamie,” the Doctor sighed. “It wasn’t easy to do, please believe me. I just had to see . . . to . . .” Swallowing hard, he forced himself to straighten out and be honest. “My Jamie is dead,” he resolutely said. “He died after the test that the Daleks made him undergo to find out the Human Factor. We were on Skaro, captives of the newly engineered Daleks, and based on some information I let slip, he tried to escape.”
At the Doctor’s words, Jamie’s dirk lowered a fraction of an inch.
“That was a long time ago, for me,” the Doctor continued. “I think he’s been dead longer now than he was alive. And . . . and he and I were close.” He closed his eyes, sighing, accepting. “We were so very close, and it was my fault he was killed, and I just . . . I had to see how similar to him you were. I’m sorry.” He lifted his eyes. “I shouldn’t have lied. I’ve only managed to make things worse.”
“Aye,” Jamie agreed, although his voice wasn’t as harsh. “And now you’ve lost Victoria, and I can’t replace people like you can.”
“You aren’t a replacement, Jamie,” the Doctor firmly stated, longing even more now to reach out and touch the boy. “You’re special. You’re the only hope my universe has in stopping the Daleks. Even now, it might be too late.”
Jamie’s lips curled into a sneer. “Och, but you didn’t think t’ ask me whether or not I wanted t’ help, before dragging me into this, did you? I don’t suppose you were going to ask that other Jamie, either, were you? And now you’ve involved Victoria too, and lost her, and my Doctor probably doesn’t even know where we’ve gone.”
“He’s with Victoria,” the Doctor said simply. “All three of you were here. I put them both away. If she’s gone, then I’m sure he’s with her.”
Immediately, he shied away from Jamie, afraid of the boy’s wrath. And the boy did get angry, gripping his dirk tighter.
“So you’ve lost me Victoria and my Doctor! I don’t see why we should help you at all! Maybe th’ Daleks just deserve to win in this universe!”
“Jamie!”
“Och, don’t ‘Jamie’ me! I’m no’ your Jamie and I never will be. So leave off!”
Those words should have broken the Doctor’s hearts, but they had been shattered long ago when the Jamie who had intensely, selflessly loved him had been killed. Perhaps he could have loved this one, but he didn’t and so there was nothing in him left to destroy. The words just echoed inside his already empty hearts.
But there was something about this Jamie that defied the things he said, a too-quick hotness in his denial that left a niggling doubt in the Doctor about the conviction of his words. Even now, Jamie seemed somehow ashamed of his outburst.
“I’m sorry,” the Doctor repeated, even more sincerely. Drawing strength from a well he didn’t know he had, he took a step forward. “But now that you know everything, we can go back for them. If I can’t convince you to help me, then maybe your Doctor will.”
Staring down, Jamie stood his ground. At last, seemingly unable to argue with that, he stepped aside, replacing his dirk to its sheath. “All right,” he gruffly said. “But no more fooling around.”
Turning back to him, voice cool and clipped, the Doctor said, “I’m sorry if you feel I’ve fooled you, Jamie. That was never my intention.”
“Och, you call pretending t’ be my Doctor not intentionally fooling me?”
“It was not done out maliciousness, or in an attempt to trick you. If anyone was being fooled, it was me thinking you might be anything like the boy I used to know. Now I know better.” Pushing easily past Jamie, he strode resolutely away from him and in the direction of the Console Room.
He did not see the pained expression that stole across Jamie’s face at his words.