The Stars - Doctor Who Fanfiction

Chapter One

"Thank you for coming to the art gallery. I'll be around if you need anything."

The day could not get any more boring for Harriet Button. The pop-up art gallery in her towns church was a success but a dull and slow one. Mostly elderly couples or the odd parent, at a loss of what to do with their child over the school holidays, wondered in to potter around the exhibit.

Harriet was the only member of staff, bar the security guard who patrolled the grounds at night. The light, foot traffic didn't warrant a colleague or someone to talk to. Once the old man before her padded off, she'd give it a couple of minutes before slinking off to her hiding spot. It wasn't much, and she wasn't supposed to hide from the visitors but she'd turned the cleaning cupboard into a comfy spot to rest. It had a kettle, a box of snacks and a window to watch the world go by. 

The man walked away, Harriet immediately dropped her customer service smile and reached for the 'Back in 5 minutes' sign, placing it on her welcome desk. She grabbed her phone from the drawer and started walking towards her hiding cupboard, praying she wasn't spotted and asked questions. Harriet pushed open the door and hurried inside, locking it behind her. Another thing she shouldn't do but after the incident involving a visitor barging in to find Harriet asleep in her chair with a chocolate digestive falling out her mouth, it was better to be safe than sorry.

She slumped down into her chair, flicking the on switch on the kettle in the process. Harriet glanced out the small window, which overlooked the town down the hill and allowed her to see any new guests approaching. She quickly made a cup of tea, settling back down to enjoy the peace. 

It wasn't exciting or interesting, it wasn't the dream job of a twenty-one-year-old. Harriet wasn't sure how she even ended up here. She always planned big, dreamed to leave her home town after school. Head off to university or travel around the world. But the time came and went. No degree drew her in, no country inspired her to visit, no close friends or family encourage her to pursue all she wanted. She just stagnated, stayed in the town and taking the easier jobs to get by. She's been at the art gallery for 5 months, it'd only be here for a few weeks more.

 A crash in the distance snapped Harriet out of her daydream. She let out a frustrated groan, knowing a young child had probably run in and knocked over some artists work. She slammed down her mug, silently cursing having to leave behind a good cup of tea. She made her way back to her front desk, expecting to find a sheepish looking parent with their apologetic kid but found no one waiting. 

The large, wooden front doors had been shut, which was odd as only Harriet held the keys to the chains keeping them open. Faint footsteps could be heard in the distance but no other people could be seen. Harriet began her walk through the exhibit to find the cause of the crashing noise. 

She headed down the corridor that connected the entrance extension to the main church. Painting adorned the walls, each by a different local artist or by the children of a nearby primary school. Harriet quickly came to a halt as she noticed the art had been damaged; half had been slash by what looked like a knife and the others had been pulled from the walls. 

"I hate kids," Harriet exclaimed, looking around in shock. She couldn't believe it, the worst the gallery usually faced was a rogue crisp packet on the floor. She debated calling the police until another crash came from the main church area. Harriet stormed towards the noise, adamant about catching the perpetrators. She would catch them red-handed, phone the police and be the talk of the town. Or have a small place in the local paper as the girl who let the art gallery be vandalised. 

Harriet pushed through the connecting door, seeing all the sculptors and statues smashed to the wooden floor. At the far end of the church, the old man she had greeted earlier stood with his back to Harriet. How could one elderly gentleman cause so much damage and why?

"I am not paid enough to deal with this," Harriet muttered, before making her way towards the man. "Excuse me? Sir? Did you cause this damage? You're the only visitor we've had this afternoon and you're the only person I've seen inside. Sir?" She called out, stopped behind the man. He ignored her, almost like he didn't hear Harriet at all. "Hello? Sir, I'll have to call the Police about the damage. Are you listening to me?"

She reached out her hand and touched the man's shoulder. The moment she did, he crumpled to the floor, a large black spike sticking from his forehead. Harriet recoiled in fear, jumping away as he fell at her feet. Just as he hit the ground, a figure jumped out before her.

She couldn't believe what she was seeing. It wasn't human! It couldn't be. Purple skin and spiked teeth and its head wasn't a human shape. It hissed and whipped a long, forked tongue at her, which Harriet jumped back from.

"Jesus Christ, oh God, what the hell?!" Harriet screamed as she bolted from the room as fast as she could. She could hear quick footsteps behind her. It was following her. She ran towards the exit before remembering someone had shut it earlier. It would take too much time trying to pull the heavy doors open to escape. She veered off to the left, heading now to her hiding cupboard. The window in there was small but she could make it out. 

She threw open the door and locked it behind her, not daring to check if the monster had caught up with her. Harriet turned back around, ready to climb out the window only to find she was not alone.

A woman with short blonde hair, a long coat and baggy blue trousers was lounged out in her chair. Harriet's forgotten tea and biscuits were in the stranger's hands. She looked up at Harriet, with a broad smile, waving the custard cream in her hand at her.

"Oh hello! I haven't had tea and biscuits in ages, and these are smashing. Are they yours?" The woman rambled, finishing the food and wiping the crumbs away on her jacket. She jumped up and offered her hand out to Harriet to shake. "I'm the Doctor, by the way. Have you seen any aliens?"