Fic again! Gemini (2/?)
For a break from the emo, I bring you fic!
By the time Nadia and Pippi had the whole story (or what they knew of said story) sorted out, they were nearly to All Souls, and Pippi was watching Nadia suspiciously. Not that Walter could blame her, though he was becoming more and more convinced of her story by the moment.
Which, really, only made this whole thing even more complicated and headache inducing.
"You really met Queen Victoria?" Pippi was asking. Nadia nodded.
"And got exiled from Britain forever. Kind of funny, really."
Very headache inducing.
Then there was a thunk, a scream, and Weevil suddenly stumbling out of the alley next to All Souls, his pants down around his ankles, and collapsing into a heap in the road.
Oh good, a distraction.
A man in a tweed suit and sneakers came out of All Souls at a run. "Right! Right, what's happened, then, is everyone alright--Nadia! There you are!"
Nadia smiled. "Doctor,"
"Right, so," The Doctor looked over Weevil on the ground, then peered into the alley. "What's going on?"
Weevil propped himself up on his elbows and shook his head. "I don't know . . . I really have no idea what came over me. . . ."
An empty bleach bottle came hurtling out of the alley and smacked Weevil in the forehead. "Bastard!" Cassie soon followed it. "You bastard! You think you can just--"
"I'm sorry!" Weevil, apparently, decided it was wiser to stay on the ground. "Really, I don't do that, usually--"
Then Nadia came half-running and half-stumbling out of All Souls. "Okay! What's happened?"
"That's what I'm trying to work out, just now."
Nadia waved to Nadia. "Hi, me,"
Nadia stared back and let out a long string of Spanish curses. The other Nadia rolled her eyes.
"What the hell is going on here?!"
"I really didn't--" Weevil started. Another plastic bottle winged out at his head.
"How am I standing over there?!" Nadia pointed a shaky finger at . . . her other self.
The Doctor pulled out his glasses. "If everyone would just calm down, I'm sure I could explain--"
Nadia stalked up to her . . . her what, doppelganger? Alternate self? "Who are you, and where do you get off wearing my face?!"
"I'm you," Nadia explained calmly. "I'm just another you."
"Just another--"
"Parallel world," the Doctor said again. "Like I was telling you, in the bar, I've spent the summer traveling with Nadia Santos. Just not the Nadia Santos that you are."
"That doesn't--"
"No, it does," Nadia--the other Nadia?--interrupted. "You're a slightly different version of me."
Walter decided it was probably best to just hang back. Pippi leaned in closer to him. "I've been wondering about this,"
"You've been wondering about another Nadia showing up? Or about Weevil liking to have sex in alleys?"
Pippi grinned.
"We've landed in an alternate dimension." The Doctor was explaining to the Nadias. "Though, really, I'm not quite sure how that could have happened. A rift, maybe, in space-time, but that ought to have caused at least a little bit of turbulence, you'd think I'd've noticed,"
"No, maybe not," the Doctor's Nadia cut in. "I mean, stuff like this used to happen all the time. I told you I recognized you when you regenerated, remember? It's because you were in Fandom, before you were in Fandom. Like, the you that you look like, now. You helped fight off the demons at Jack's birthday party."
The Doctor shook his head. "Merely a future version of me, not an alternate. Time travel, that sort of thing happens . . . well, fairly often, in fact."
"Okay, bad example. But I know there was. . . ." Nadia's voice trailed off, and then suddenly, both Nadias' eyes widened. "Sydney!" they said in unison.
That was moderately creepy.
"What, Australia?"
"My sister," the Nadias said, still in unison. "Our sister--look, would you cut that--"
One Nadia shook her head and kept quiet while the other explained. "Sydney Bristow. I remember when I first got to Fandom, Marty told me about another Sydney having been there already, only that one was pregnant. They even acted differently. And Buffy was like that, too, remember? And I think maybe we had a second Cordelia for a little while. . . ."
The other Nadia nodded. "She's--I'm--we're right. And Milieux has a lot of similarities to Fandom. Maybe this is just a spot where alternate realities like to mix?"
"Look," Weevil protested. "That's great, really, I'm sure, but I--"
"Oh do be quiet," The Doctor barely even glanced at him. "You're fine. Just . . . pull your trousers up, yeah?"
Weevil hastily went about doing so. Cassie kept her distance and glared a lot.
"Right, so we've got ourselves a sort of . . . wibbly wobbly . . . dimensiony place,"
"The other you explained things better," Nadia complained.
"Yes, so you've told me--hang on, was it you, or was it her?" The Doctor pointed between the two. "We're going to need a way to differentiate, here."
"Easy," Nadia answered. "Call me Nadia and call her Santos."
"Hey!" the other Nadia protested. "Why don't they call you Santos?"
"Don't be silly, I'm the original Nadia."
Nadia folded her arms. "Yeah, I don't think so, I was here first."
"Yeah, you're the abberation."
"I am not!"
"Ladies, please. . . ."
"I think we all need a drink," Pippi muttered. Walter could only nod.
"Well, you got Walter, so I think it's only fair that for the time being, I at least get our name,"
Eeep. Walter suddenly developed a keen interest in star gazing. The other Nadia--his Nadia?--stared down at her shoes.
Nadia looked between the two. "Oh, come on, I know how you kissed me, you can't tell me we're not together. . . ."
"There are . . . other factors," Pippi responded, trying to be diplomatic.
"What other factors?"
"Alucard," Nadia muttered. Her counterpart paled.
"He's here?" She looked at Walter again, and he met her gaze, giving a slight nod. "Oh you're shitting me. You've got to be shitting me. The universe hates me. It has to. This just isn't fair."
Weevil seemed to have slunk off somewhere. Cassie had slipped back into All Souls. The Doctor was frowning hard.
"Alucard . . . Alucard . . . what, you mean Dracula?" When they all turned to stare, he waved a hand. "It's not as though it's hard to figure out, and besides which, I'm brilliant. But you seriously mean to tell me that that flamboyant jackass is here?"
And then Walter was suddenly standing very close to the Doctor. His fingers twitched with the urge to let loose the wires. "You will not speak of him that way."
The Doctor didn't even blink. "What? You must have met him . . ."
Walter snarled, his fingers twitching out. "Yes. I have. I know him much, much better than you ever could. And if you keep speaking of him that way, then I'll see just how many times you can regenerate--"
The Doctor's Nadia stepped in between Walter and the Doctor, her expression dark, even as Pippi and his Nadia stepped behind him to grab his arms.
"Don't." Was all Nadia said.
"Step out of the way, Nadia."
"No."
"Step. Out of--"
"I've watched this man die once before, Walter, do you really want me to have to see it again?"
Walter deflated, the rage passing. Even as he did, he wondered at its source. "No. I don't."
The Doctor was studying him carefully. "Good. Rather messy, that is, the whole regenerating thing, I'm only just getting used to this form, you know."
Nadia and Pippi's hands were still on him, and Pippi was looking at him thoughtfully.
"I think," she said after a moment, "we should all go inside and just talk, okay?"
There was a general pause before the Nadias started nodding. Walter shrugged. "Yeah." He still felt on edge, and it wasn't just having two of his . . . girlfriend? . . . around. "I could definitely use a drink."
To be continued
By the time Nadia and Pippi had the whole story (or what they knew of said story) sorted out, they were nearly to All Souls, and Pippi was watching Nadia suspiciously. Not that Walter could blame her, though he was becoming more and more convinced of her story by the moment.
Which, really, only made this whole thing even more complicated and headache inducing.
"You really met Queen Victoria?" Pippi was asking. Nadia nodded.
"And got exiled from Britain forever. Kind of funny, really."
Very headache inducing.
Then there was a thunk, a scream, and Weevil suddenly stumbling out of the alley next to All Souls, his pants down around his ankles, and collapsing into a heap in the road.
Oh good, a distraction.
A man in a tweed suit and sneakers came out of All Souls at a run. "Right! Right, what's happened, then, is everyone alright--Nadia! There you are!"
Nadia smiled. "Doctor,"
"Right, so," The Doctor looked over Weevil on the ground, then peered into the alley. "What's going on?"
Weevil propped himself up on his elbows and shook his head. "I don't know . . . I really have no idea what came over me. . . ."
An empty bleach bottle came hurtling out of the alley and smacked Weevil in the forehead. "Bastard!" Cassie soon followed it. "You bastard! You think you can just--"
"I'm sorry!" Weevil, apparently, decided it was wiser to stay on the ground. "Really, I don't do that, usually--"
Then Nadia came half-running and half-stumbling out of All Souls. "Okay! What's happened?"
"That's what I'm trying to work out, just now."
Nadia waved to Nadia. "Hi, me,"
Nadia stared back and let out a long string of Spanish curses. The other Nadia rolled her eyes.
"What the hell is going on here?!"
"I really didn't--" Weevil started. Another plastic bottle winged out at his head.
"How am I standing over there?!" Nadia pointed a shaky finger at . . . her other self.
The Doctor pulled out his glasses. "If everyone would just calm down, I'm sure I could explain--"
Nadia stalked up to her . . . her what, doppelganger? Alternate self? "Who are you, and where do you get off wearing my face?!"
"I'm you," Nadia explained calmly. "I'm just another you."
"Just another--"
"Parallel world," the Doctor said again. "Like I was telling you, in the bar, I've spent the summer traveling with Nadia Santos. Just not the Nadia Santos that you are."
"That doesn't--"
"No, it does," Nadia--the other Nadia?--interrupted. "You're a slightly different version of me."
Walter decided it was probably best to just hang back. Pippi leaned in closer to him. "I've been wondering about this,"
"You've been wondering about another Nadia showing up? Or about Weevil liking to have sex in alleys?"
Pippi grinned.
"We've landed in an alternate dimension." The Doctor was explaining to the Nadias. "Though, really, I'm not quite sure how that could have happened. A rift, maybe, in space-time, but that ought to have caused at least a little bit of turbulence, you'd think I'd've noticed,"
"No, maybe not," the Doctor's Nadia cut in. "I mean, stuff like this used to happen all the time. I told you I recognized you when you regenerated, remember? It's because you were in Fandom, before you were in Fandom. Like, the you that you look like, now. You helped fight off the demons at Jack's birthday party."
The Doctor shook his head. "Merely a future version of me, not an alternate. Time travel, that sort of thing happens . . . well, fairly often, in fact."
"Okay, bad example. But I know there was. . . ." Nadia's voice trailed off, and then suddenly, both Nadias' eyes widened. "Sydney!" they said in unison.
That was moderately creepy.
"What, Australia?"
"My sister," the Nadias said, still in unison. "Our sister--look, would you cut that--"
One Nadia shook her head and kept quiet while the other explained. "Sydney Bristow. I remember when I first got to Fandom, Marty told me about another Sydney having been there already, only that one was pregnant. They even acted differently. And Buffy was like that, too, remember? And I think maybe we had a second Cordelia for a little while. . . ."
The other Nadia nodded. "She's--I'm--we're right. And Milieux has a lot of similarities to Fandom. Maybe this is just a spot where alternate realities like to mix?"
"Look," Weevil protested. "That's great, really, I'm sure, but I--"
"Oh do be quiet," The Doctor barely even glanced at him. "You're fine. Just . . . pull your trousers up, yeah?"
Weevil hastily went about doing so. Cassie kept her distance and glared a lot.
"Right, so we've got ourselves a sort of . . . wibbly wobbly . . . dimensiony place,"
"The other you explained things better," Nadia complained.
"Yes, so you've told me--hang on, was it you, or was it her?" The Doctor pointed between the two. "We're going to need a way to differentiate, here."
"Easy," Nadia answered. "Call me Nadia and call her Santos."
"Hey!" the other Nadia protested. "Why don't they call you Santos?"
"Don't be silly, I'm the original Nadia."
Nadia folded her arms. "Yeah, I don't think so, I was here first."
"Yeah, you're the abberation."
"I am not!"
"Ladies, please. . . ."
"I think we all need a drink," Pippi muttered. Walter could only nod.
"Well, you got Walter, so I think it's only fair that for the time being, I at least get our name,"
Eeep. Walter suddenly developed a keen interest in star gazing. The other Nadia--his Nadia?--stared down at her shoes.
Nadia looked between the two. "Oh, come on, I know how you kissed me, you can't tell me we're not together. . . ."
"There are . . . other factors," Pippi responded, trying to be diplomatic.
"What other factors?"
"Alucard," Nadia muttered. Her counterpart paled.
"He's here?" She looked at Walter again, and he met her gaze, giving a slight nod. "Oh you're shitting me. You've got to be shitting me. The universe hates me. It has to. This just isn't fair."
Weevil seemed to have slunk off somewhere. Cassie had slipped back into All Souls. The Doctor was frowning hard.
"Alucard . . . Alucard . . . what, you mean Dracula?" When they all turned to stare, he waved a hand. "It's not as though it's hard to figure out, and besides which, I'm brilliant. But you seriously mean to tell me that that flamboyant jackass is here?"
And then Walter was suddenly standing very close to the Doctor. His fingers twitched with the urge to let loose the wires. "You will not speak of him that way."
The Doctor didn't even blink. "What? You must have met him . . ."
Walter snarled, his fingers twitching out. "Yes. I have. I know him much, much better than you ever could. And if you keep speaking of him that way, then I'll see just how many times you can regenerate--"
The Doctor's Nadia stepped in between Walter and the Doctor, her expression dark, even as Pippi and his Nadia stepped behind him to grab his arms.
"Don't." Was all Nadia said.
"Step out of the way, Nadia."
"No."
"Step. Out of--"
"I've watched this man die once before, Walter, do you really want me to have to see it again?"
Walter deflated, the rage passing. Even as he did, he wondered at its source. "No. I don't."
The Doctor was studying him carefully. "Good. Rather messy, that is, the whole regenerating thing, I'm only just getting used to this form, you know."
Nadia and Pippi's hands were still on him, and Pippi was looking at him thoughtfully.
"I think," she said after a moment, "we should all go inside and just talk, okay?"
There was a general pause before the Nadias started nodding. Walter shrugged. "Yeah." He still felt on edge, and it wasn't just having two of his . . . girlfriend? . . . around. "I could definitely use a drink."
To be continued