Lost In Time: A Doctor Who Fanfiction

Chapter 104 -Planting the Seed

Dedicated to @biscuitcucumberpatch's doggo Amber, who left too soon. She was the goodest, most derpy dog ever, and will be greatly missed. <3

"Hey, Lyssa?"

Lyssa looked up from her book, smiling when she saw Bria standing hesitantly in the doorway of the kitchen. "Hi, Bria. Are you looking for something?"

"Do you know anything about plants?" Bria asked shyly, hands carefully tucked behind her back.

Lyssa hummed. "Maybe? Depends on what you're asking. Bare minimum of survival, yes. Anything else, probably not. I've never exactly had a green thumb."

"I don't think humans are supposed to have green thumbs. Wouldn't that mean they needed a doctor if they did?" the blonde frowned, brow furrowing in confusion. "Doesn't it mean infection?"

Lyssa hid a smile behind her mug as she lifted it up for a drink. "It's an expression that means someone is good at helping plants grow," she explained once she was sure she had her expression under control, not wanting Bria to think she was laughing at her. "Why do you ask? Did you have a question about one?"

Bria nodded. "Can you help this one?" she asked, pulling a small pot from behind her back and thrusting it at Lyssa. "I don't think it's growing right."

Lyssa set down her mug and took the pot, looking it over. It was filled with dirt and had the withered remains of a pitiful-looking plant wilted inside. Brown leaves were scattered across the container, curled up around the edges and looking like they'd crumble at the touch.

"Yeah, I don't think this is growing much at all," Lyssa muttered, carefully patting the dirt and discovering it was bone dry. "Ah. I might have found the problem."

"Did I water it too much?" Bria fretted, twisting her fingers together nervously. "I know you have to water Earth plants, so I watered this one, but now it doesn't look right anymore. It looked fine yesterday!"

"You watered it yesterday?" Lyssa repeated, eyeing the dry dirt in confusion. "And this is an Earth plant?"

Bria nodded. "I wanted a plant for my room, and the TARDIS recommended this one. I looked it up in a book to make sure I could take care of it, but now it's sick!" she mourned.

"Well, I'm not sure if there's much we can do for this one, unless there's a bit of life left in the roots and stem," Lyssa frowned, to find a hint of green amidst all the brown. "We can try, I guess." She drained the rest of her mug, rinsed it out, and left it in the sink for later. "Maybe if we plant it in one of the gardens the TARDIS can coax it back to life."

She reached for her bond with the ship automatically, and got a faint hum of acknowledgement in return, but nothing else. She frowned. The TARDIS had been more withdrawn recently, mistletoe pranks aside, though she would still get comforting nudges and hums when distressed. Either the ship was planning something, or something was coming and the TARDIS was trying to prepare.

Neither was a comforting thought.

She sighed, trailing a hand lightly over the wall before leaving the kitchen, plant in hand, followed by a quiet Bria. It was easy enough to find the garden for Earth plants, and an incredibly handy device that she had no idea how it worked was able to not only tell them the name of the plant - Adenium, aka Desert Rose - and its care, but also where it should be planted in the garden. As in, which climate it needed - which further proved the awesomeness of the TARDIS, as there were entirely different climates all contained in one - admittedly massive - room.

Lyssa helped Bria plant the struggling roots and stem in a small hole in the right climate, then carefully watered the plant and stepped back to survey their work. It was hardly noticeable amidst all the other beautiful plants growing big and strong, but hopefully it would join them in time.