Time Will Tell

1

"No, no, no!" The Doctor screamed, pushing buttons and pulling levers on the Tardis. "Why are you not working? Come on!" The Tardis made sounds, and the Doctor groaned. "Oh, come on!" The Tardis shook violently before staying still, tilted slightly.

"Oh, great," he said with an exasperated sigh. "Where are we?" The Tardis made more sounds. "London? Are you serious? I thought we were going back in time, though." More sounds. "No we didn't. Just... oh, forget it. I'm going out to do a little exploring. You stay here and fix yourself. I'll be back later to check up on things." He grabbed his coat, fixed his bow tie, then stumbled out of the Tardis.

He looked at the bright blue sky, thinking it looked oddly familiar and comforting to him. He looked around the empty field, noticing the marks the Tardis had made when it landed. "Great," The Doctor muttered. "Not only is there damage to the Tardis, but now I may have to pay for property damage."

"Slow down!" He heard a male yell. He quickly turned, taking a defensive posture, as two men quickly ran up to him. One of them stopped in his tracks, staring at the Doctor. "Who are you?"

"Who am I?" The Doctor asked. "Who am I? I think the correct question is what year is it?"

The other man looked at The Doctor, seemingly fascinated. "Extraordinary," He whispered. "We could feel tremors all the way from Watson's home, and now here's a man, standing next to a police box in the middle of a field. Who are you?"

"Why don't you answer my question, first?" The Doctor asked impatiently. "What year is it?"

"1890," The first man stated. "April 27, 1890. This is just outside of London."

The second man was still mumbling. "Are you an alien? No, that can't be right- aliens aren't real. Are you a scientist? A detective?"

"Speak up, will you?" The Doctor snapped. "I can't hear you and the questions you must be asking."

"You never said your name," The second man said, much more loudly.

"Call me the Doctor. And you are?"

"Doctor?" The first man asked, ignoring The Doctor's question. "I'm a doctor, as well, actually. I specialize in..." He stopped, noticing The Doctor's stare, and realized that he just ignored the question. "I'm sorry, please forgive me for being so rude." He stuck his hand out. "John Watson. You can just call me Dr. Watson or Watson."

The Doctor shook his hand, then turned to the other male, who smiled and did the same. "Holmes. Sherlock Holmes. Consulting Detective of Baker Street."

The name rang a bell in the back of The Doctor's head, but he didn't dwell on it. "Holmes and Watson. Well, it is certainly a pleasure to meet you both. Now, if you could excuse me, I must be going. I have to fix this..." He turned around, facing the Tardis, and lost the words. "...thing of mine."

"What even is it?" Holmes asked, stepping closer to it. "It's a very... peculiar mode of transportation."

The Doctor turned around, staring at him. "It's a police box, can't you read?" He started walking away.

Holmes and Watson ran to catch up with him. "Wait, don't go just yet!" Holmes yelled after him. "I have so many questions to ask!"

"You humans always do," The Doctor muttered under his breath.