Paradoxical Paradox Chapter 1
Title: Paradocical Paradox
Fandom: Doctor Who
Rating: PG-13
Pairing(s): N/A
Warnings: Spoilers up to and including the Doctor Who Christmas Carol.
Word Count: 10,387
Summary: The first trip in the Tardis after the big bang lands the Doctor and his companions in a pocket dimension where The Year that Never Was is playing out. The Doctor wants to lie low, as letting the Master get his hands on a second Tardis would not be good, but when has the Doctor ever gotten his way?
Art here by Deadflowers5
The Doctor had the Tardis in motion the second the door closed. Trouble on the Orient Express in space, he couldn’t wait. It would be fun to go on just a simple adventure once more without worrying about the time cracks. The Ponds looked excited as well, clutching onto the console and one another. The familiar wheeze of the parking brake and the Tardis’ engines filled the room.
Everything was going smoothing, as smoothly as the Tardis allowed, when all of the screens turned red. Alarms started to go off and the Doctor scrambled over to look at the main screen.
“No, no, this is impossible,” the Doctor said as his eyes widened.
“Doctor, what is it?” Amy called out. “What’s going on?”
“Is the Tardis exploding again?” Rory asked.
“I closed it off, it never existed in the regular time stream,” the Doctor said to himself. He ducked down. “Hold on tight.”
Amy and Rory ducked down and held on tight as several things exploded. The lights dimmed as the engines got louder before everything returned to normal, the Tardis coming to a stop.
The Doctor stood up and started frantically scanning the data on the screen. “Impossible, but here we are,” he muttered.
“Doctor, where are we?” Amy asked. “What just happened? Tell us.”
“Several years ago someone took over the world, decimating the human population while doing so,” the Doctor quickly explained.
“And you stopped it?” Amy asked.
“Martha Jones did all of the work, but we were able to stop the man and restore Earth to normal,” the Doctor said. “It was like the year never happened and that timeline was sealed off from everyone.”
“Why don’t we remember this?” Amy asked. “I remember several things that I didn’t before the Pandorica, but not that.”
“That’s because you were not supposed to,” the Doctor said. “Only those directly involved remember and that’s a good thing.”
“So where are we?” Rory asked.
“We’re in that year that never was,” the Doctor said. He paused from reading the screen and clapped his hands. “Right, you two go get changed as quickly as you can.”
“Why?” Rory asked.
“We’re going to have t put the Tardis to sleep and that means I can't be here,” the Doctor said. “Now, I will keep you safe, but we need to leave before he notices.”
“Who?” Amy asked.
“The Master.” The Doctor ushered them deeper into the Tardis. He paused and looked down at his tuxedo. “I need to change.”
The Doctor hurried into the wardrobe and cast around for his signature clothes. “Where are they?” He hadn't had too much time to get ready for the reception, he remembered. Most of his time had been spent finding his tuxedo. In fact, he had to dig deep into his closet to find it and he had changed right there. “I don’t have time to go that far back,” he said. It would take him at least half an hour and that was half an hour too long. He scanned the closest selection for something to wear. Most of the outfits were either girl stuff that Donna or one of the others had pulled out, or things that he had worn in his previous regeneration. Something that he absolutely couldn't wear now.
Finally, his eyes landed on something that he had only worn once or twice in the regeneration before his last regeneration. “If I must,” he sighed before he started to get changed.
Amy and Rory gaped at him when he emerged. “Where’s your normal outfit?”
“No time, though I do miss the bow tie.” The Doctor pouted and touched the top of his head. “And the fez.”
“No fezzes,” Amy snapped.
“Right, let’s get going,” the Doctor said, hitting a couple of buttons on the console. The lights in the Tardis dimmed and everything went silent. The three cautiously left, making sure that the doors were locked behind them.
The Doctor looked around at the silent streets. “Well, the good news is that we’re here when everything really wasn't so bad.”
“And the bad news?” Rory asked.
“Things are going to get worse and I don’t think that we can try for home for a while,” the Doctor answered.
“So what do we do until then?” Amy asked.
“Survive,” the Doctor said.
They left the Tardis behind, safely hidden away, and headed deeper into the city. They walked for a while, trying to find a place to stay nearby, but what they did find was much more disastrous.
“Hey, there are people,” Amy said, looking up ahead. She started towards them. “Let’s go ask them what’s going on.”
“Wait,” the Doctor said, too late to stop her. “Oh, this is not good.”
“Is it dangerous?” Rory asked. He didn't wait for an answer and darted ahead. “Wait up, Amy.”
“And now there’s both of them gone,” the Doctor said. He sighed and jogged to catch up.
“Who are you and how did you find us?” one of the figures was asking the Ponds when the Doctor caught up.
“You,” another figure exclaimed, his eyes widening. “You’re not supposed to be here, how are you here?”
“Oh, you know, wibbly wobbly, timey wimey stuff,” the Doctor said, keeping his distance.
“Doctor?” Amy asked, backing up with Rory a couple of steps.
“Were you sent by the Master?” the first figure demanded, reaching for a gun.
“What, no,” Amy exclaimed. “We’re on honeymoon.”
“Some honeymoon this is turning out to be,” Rory muttered.
“I know. We are getting a better one, right?” Amy asked, turning to the Doctor.
“Yeah, just as soon as I figure out how to get us out of here,” the Doctor said, sounding preoccupied and still staring at the second figure.
“Okay, what is going on here?” Amy asked.
“Do you know them, Doctor?” the first figure asked.
“Of course he knows us,” Amy said. “The question is who you are.”
“Wait, Doctor?” Jack asked, turning to the current form of the Doctor. “Is that you?”
“You are not supposed to be here,” the last form of the Doctor said.
“Something happened and it must have knocked the boundaries between the worlds loose,” the Doctor said, keeping things vague because of spoilers. He could now kind of see why River had such fun with it, but things were a bit too serious this time to really appreciate it. River and his time streams crossed at odd points and that was perfectly fine, but bad things happened when a person crossed his own timeline and things were bad enough being in the closed off world. “I just hope that the other boundaries are holding.”
“A bit too late for that,” another voice called out. Both Doctors stiffened, each for a different reason.
“The Master,” Jack spat out. Martha joined them for the first time to glare at the man who came into view.
“Wait, that’s not your usual style,” the last Doctor said, taking in the grungy looking Time Lord.
“That’s my Master,” the current Doctor said.
The Master chuckled. “As much as I love to hear that, I am not yours. You left me - trapped me with them.”
“Ah,” the Doctor exclaimed. “Spoilers!”
“Forget about spoilers,” the Master grumbled. “This is only a pocket dimension where the time line is playing itself out. It makes no difference to anyone what happens here, at least not to your old self.”
“How do you know this?” the Doctor demanded.
“The others saw it, saw the opening, but dismissed it,” the Master explained. “They thought that it was pointless, but then you came along.”
“Whatever you’re plotting, stop it right now,” the Doctor said.
“What makes you think I’m plotting something?” the Master asked.
“I know you,” the Doctor said.
“Ah, but do you know me without the drums?” the Master asked, grinning widely.
“Okay, wait a minute,” Amy broke in. “Can we recap for those who are not in the know?” Amy pointed at the Doctor she knew. “You are the Doctor of the future and that,” Amy pointed at the previous Doctor. “Is your past self. What is up with that?”
“Yes, why do you look different?” Rory asked.
“Remember when you were seven and I had so much trouble finding something to eat?” the Doctor asked. “I had just switched bodies.”
“So you can just switch?” Amy asked.
“Ah, no, I regenerate when things get bad for me,” the Doctor answered. “I’m still the Doctor, but I get a new everything.”
“Hence fish custard,” Amy said with a nod. “So, how are we going to tell the two of you apart when talking to you? I mean, it’s not as though we can split your name.”
Rory snickered. “The and Doctor.”
“Ah, no, that wouldn’t work,” The Doctor said. “I don't know, I didn't really have a name that I use in this form. I mean, even when I stayed with Craig I just introduced myself as the Doctor.”
“What about you?” Amy asked, turning towards the last Doctor.
“Er, what?” the last Doctor asked, blinking in confusion.
Amy huffed. “What can I call you besides the Doctor?”
“Do I have to?” the last Doctor whined. “I’m still the Doctor, no matter what I look like.”
“So, in essence I would still be calling you the Raggedy Doctor if I called him that, so, what can I call you?” Amy asked.
“John Smith,” Martha spoke up. “We’ll call him John Smith and that one the Doctor.”
“Sounds good to me,” the Doctor said, ignoring his squawk.
“Well, all of this is very charming, Raggedy Doctor, but if I remember right, my forces are coming close to finding your location,” the Master said. “And, as amusing as that could be, I don’t relish being taken at the moment, so can we move on?”
“Wait, why do you want to leave?” the Doctor asked. “This was your crowning glory the next time, so what’s got you to change now?”
“Yes, it was crowning glory and it will be for that Master, but it wouldn't be for me,” the Master said. “Besides, we’ve still got a couple of things to check out.”
“Like what?” John Smith asked.
“There was a reason why I came to this dimension before I knew that you were here,” the Master said. He smirked at them and turned away. “Follow me.”
“Where are you going?” Jack asked.
“You’ll see,” the Master called out as he walked away.
The two Doctors and their companions stared until they realized that the Master was leaving them behind. Then they gathered up the stuff that John Smith and his companions had before they hurried after the Master. He stood waiting at the end of the street, impatiently tapping his foot.
“Well, lead the way,” the Doctor said as he approached the Master. He shook his head. “I never thought that I would say that, but I did. You’re up to something and I’m going to figure out what it is, but that means playing along with you.”
“Glad to see that you’ve decided not to be caught,” the Master drawled out before continuing to walk away. They followed after the Master, walking through the city.
The Doctor frowned when he started recognizing their surroundings. “Hold on, why are we in Chiswick?”
“You’ll see, Doctor,” the Master said. He grinned, which did not look innocent at all. “You’ll see.”
“I’m not so sure we should go this way,” the Doctor said, looking around nervously.
“What’s wrong?” Amy asked.
“You,” a voice exclaimed. Quicker than anyone could track, a flash of red rushed past and a slap rang out.
Chapter 2
Fandom: Doctor Who
Rating: PG-13
Pairing(s): N/A
Warnings: Spoilers up to and including the Doctor Who Christmas Carol.
Word Count: 10,387
Summary: The first trip in the Tardis after the big bang lands the Doctor and his companions in a pocket dimension where The Year that Never Was is playing out. The Doctor wants to lie low, as letting the Master get his hands on a second Tardis would not be good, but when has the Doctor ever gotten his way?
Art here by Deadflowers5
The Doctor had the Tardis in motion the second the door closed. Trouble on the Orient Express in space, he couldn’t wait. It would be fun to go on just a simple adventure once more without worrying about the time cracks. The Ponds looked excited as well, clutching onto the console and one another. The familiar wheeze of the parking brake and the Tardis’ engines filled the room.
Everything was going smoothing, as smoothly as the Tardis allowed, when all of the screens turned red. Alarms started to go off and the Doctor scrambled over to look at the main screen.
“No, no, this is impossible,” the Doctor said as his eyes widened.
“Doctor, what is it?” Amy called out. “What’s going on?”
“Is the Tardis exploding again?” Rory asked.
“I closed it off, it never existed in the regular time stream,” the Doctor said to himself. He ducked down. “Hold on tight.”
Amy and Rory ducked down and held on tight as several things exploded. The lights dimmed as the engines got louder before everything returned to normal, the Tardis coming to a stop.
The Doctor stood up and started frantically scanning the data on the screen. “Impossible, but here we are,” he muttered.
“Doctor, where are we?” Amy asked. “What just happened? Tell us.”
“Several years ago someone took over the world, decimating the human population while doing so,” the Doctor quickly explained.
“And you stopped it?” Amy asked.
“Martha Jones did all of the work, but we were able to stop the man and restore Earth to normal,” the Doctor said. “It was like the year never happened and that timeline was sealed off from everyone.”
“Why don’t we remember this?” Amy asked. “I remember several things that I didn’t before the Pandorica, but not that.”
“That’s because you were not supposed to,” the Doctor said. “Only those directly involved remember and that’s a good thing.”
“So where are we?” Rory asked.
“We’re in that year that never was,” the Doctor said. He paused from reading the screen and clapped his hands. “Right, you two go get changed as quickly as you can.”
“Why?” Rory asked.
“We’re going to have t put the Tardis to sleep and that means I can't be here,” the Doctor said. “Now, I will keep you safe, but we need to leave before he notices.”
“Who?” Amy asked.
“The Master.” The Doctor ushered them deeper into the Tardis. He paused and looked down at his tuxedo. “I need to change.”
The Doctor hurried into the wardrobe and cast around for his signature clothes. “Where are they?” He hadn't had too much time to get ready for the reception, he remembered. Most of his time had been spent finding his tuxedo. In fact, he had to dig deep into his closet to find it and he had changed right there. “I don’t have time to go that far back,” he said. It would take him at least half an hour and that was half an hour too long. He scanned the closest selection for something to wear. Most of the outfits were either girl stuff that Donna or one of the others had pulled out, or things that he had worn in his previous regeneration. Something that he absolutely couldn't wear now.
Finally, his eyes landed on something that he had only worn once or twice in the regeneration before his last regeneration. “If I must,” he sighed before he started to get changed.
Amy and Rory gaped at him when he emerged. “Where’s your normal outfit?”
“No time, though I do miss the bow tie.” The Doctor pouted and touched the top of his head. “And the fez.”
“No fezzes,” Amy snapped.
“Right, let’s get going,” the Doctor said, hitting a couple of buttons on the console. The lights in the Tardis dimmed and everything went silent. The three cautiously left, making sure that the doors were locked behind them.
The Doctor looked around at the silent streets. “Well, the good news is that we’re here when everything really wasn't so bad.”
“And the bad news?” Rory asked.
“Things are going to get worse and I don’t think that we can try for home for a while,” the Doctor answered.
“So what do we do until then?” Amy asked.
“Survive,” the Doctor said.
They left the Tardis behind, safely hidden away, and headed deeper into the city. They walked for a while, trying to find a place to stay nearby, but what they did find was much more disastrous.
“Hey, there are people,” Amy said, looking up ahead. She started towards them. “Let’s go ask them what’s going on.”
“Wait,” the Doctor said, too late to stop her. “Oh, this is not good.”
“Is it dangerous?” Rory asked. He didn't wait for an answer and darted ahead. “Wait up, Amy.”
“And now there’s both of them gone,” the Doctor said. He sighed and jogged to catch up.
“Who are you and how did you find us?” one of the figures was asking the Ponds when the Doctor caught up.
“You,” another figure exclaimed, his eyes widening. “You’re not supposed to be here, how are you here?”
“Oh, you know, wibbly wobbly, timey wimey stuff,” the Doctor said, keeping his distance.
“Doctor?” Amy asked, backing up with Rory a couple of steps.
“Were you sent by the Master?” the first figure demanded, reaching for a gun.
“What, no,” Amy exclaimed. “We’re on honeymoon.”
“Some honeymoon this is turning out to be,” Rory muttered.
“I know. We are getting a better one, right?” Amy asked, turning to the Doctor.
“Yeah, just as soon as I figure out how to get us out of here,” the Doctor said, sounding preoccupied and still staring at the second figure.
“Okay, what is going on here?” Amy asked.
“Do you know them, Doctor?” the first figure asked.
“Of course he knows us,” Amy said. “The question is who you are.”
“Wait, Doctor?” Jack asked, turning to the current form of the Doctor. “Is that you?”
“You are not supposed to be here,” the last form of the Doctor said.
“Something happened and it must have knocked the boundaries between the worlds loose,” the Doctor said, keeping things vague because of spoilers. He could now kind of see why River had such fun with it, but things were a bit too serious this time to really appreciate it. River and his time streams crossed at odd points and that was perfectly fine, but bad things happened when a person crossed his own timeline and things were bad enough being in the closed off world. “I just hope that the other boundaries are holding.”
“A bit too late for that,” another voice called out. Both Doctors stiffened, each for a different reason.
“The Master,” Jack spat out. Martha joined them for the first time to glare at the man who came into view.
“Wait, that’s not your usual style,” the last Doctor said, taking in the grungy looking Time Lord.
“That’s my Master,” the current Doctor said.
The Master chuckled. “As much as I love to hear that, I am not yours. You left me - trapped me with them.”
“Ah,” the Doctor exclaimed. “Spoilers!”
“Forget about spoilers,” the Master grumbled. “This is only a pocket dimension where the time line is playing itself out. It makes no difference to anyone what happens here, at least not to your old self.”
“How do you know this?” the Doctor demanded.
“The others saw it, saw the opening, but dismissed it,” the Master explained. “They thought that it was pointless, but then you came along.”
“Whatever you’re plotting, stop it right now,” the Doctor said.
“What makes you think I’m plotting something?” the Master asked.
“I know you,” the Doctor said.
“Ah, but do you know me without the drums?” the Master asked, grinning widely.
“Okay, wait a minute,” Amy broke in. “Can we recap for those who are not in the know?” Amy pointed at the Doctor she knew. “You are the Doctor of the future and that,” Amy pointed at the previous Doctor. “Is your past self. What is up with that?”
“Yes, why do you look different?” Rory asked.
“Remember when you were seven and I had so much trouble finding something to eat?” the Doctor asked. “I had just switched bodies.”
“So you can just switch?” Amy asked.
“Ah, no, I regenerate when things get bad for me,” the Doctor answered. “I’m still the Doctor, but I get a new everything.”
“Hence fish custard,” Amy said with a nod. “So, how are we going to tell the two of you apart when talking to you? I mean, it’s not as though we can split your name.”
Rory snickered. “The and Doctor.”
“Ah, no, that wouldn’t work,” The Doctor said. “I don't know, I didn't really have a name that I use in this form. I mean, even when I stayed with Craig I just introduced myself as the Doctor.”
“What about you?” Amy asked, turning towards the last Doctor.
“Er, what?” the last Doctor asked, blinking in confusion.
Amy huffed. “What can I call you besides the Doctor?”
“Do I have to?” the last Doctor whined. “I’m still the Doctor, no matter what I look like.”
“So, in essence I would still be calling you the Raggedy Doctor if I called him that, so, what can I call you?” Amy asked.
“John Smith,” Martha spoke up. “We’ll call him John Smith and that one the Doctor.”
“Sounds good to me,” the Doctor said, ignoring his squawk.
“Well, all of this is very charming, Raggedy Doctor, but if I remember right, my forces are coming close to finding your location,” the Master said. “And, as amusing as that could be, I don’t relish being taken at the moment, so can we move on?”
“Wait, why do you want to leave?” the Doctor asked. “This was your crowning glory the next time, so what’s got you to change now?”
“Yes, it was crowning glory and it will be for that Master, but it wouldn't be for me,” the Master said. “Besides, we’ve still got a couple of things to check out.”
“Like what?” John Smith asked.
“There was a reason why I came to this dimension before I knew that you were here,” the Master said. He smirked at them and turned away. “Follow me.”
“Where are you going?” Jack asked.
“You’ll see,” the Master called out as he walked away.
The two Doctors and their companions stared until they realized that the Master was leaving them behind. Then they gathered up the stuff that John Smith and his companions had before they hurried after the Master. He stood waiting at the end of the street, impatiently tapping his foot.
“Well, lead the way,” the Doctor said as he approached the Master. He shook his head. “I never thought that I would say that, but I did. You’re up to something and I’m going to figure out what it is, but that means playing along with you.”
“Glad to see that you’ve decided not to be caught,” the Master drawled out before continuing to walk away. They followed after the Master, walking through the city.
The Doctor frowned when he started recognizing their surroundings. “Hold on, why are we in Chiswick?”
“You’ll see, Doctor,” the Master said. He grinned, which did not look innocent at all. “You’ll see.”
“I’m not so sure we should go this way,” the Doctor said, looking around nervously.
“What’s wrong?” Amy asked.
“You,” a voice exclaimed. Quicker than anyone could track, a flash of red rushed past and a slap rang out.
Chapter 2