Real Never Waits - Tenth Doctor [2]

Chapter 1

I watched, half concealed by a pillar as the man dashed to the console and flicked a few switches, checking the monitor, "6 PM . . . Tuesday . . . October . . . 5006 . . . On the way to Barcelona!" He straightens up and faced me, grinning as if extremely pleased with himself.

"Now then . . . what do I look like?" He asked. I opened my mouth to speak but he hold his hand up and I jumped, "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. No. Don't tell me," He said. I stared at him shocked and scared.

"Let's see . . . two legs, two arms, two hands . . ." He said and tested his wrist, circling it. "Slight weakness in the dorsal tubercle." He put his hands in his head. "Hair! I'm not bald!" He ran his hands through his hair gleefully, "Oh, Oh! Big hair! Or really bad skin. Little bit thinner . . ." He slapped his stomach, "That's weird. Give me time, I'll get used to it. I . . . have got . . . a mole. I can feel it."

I breathed heavily staring at him as he continued, "Between my shoulder blades, there's a mole. That's all right. Love the mole," He said with a smile and looked at me again, "Go on then, tell me." He stood straight up before me while his hair was all ruffled, "What do you think?"

I looked at him in fear and swallowed. "Who are you?" I asked and his smile faded away as he looked a bit surprised. "I'm The Doctor," He said. I shook my head as I took a step back, "No . . . Where is he?"

"You saw me, I, I changed . . . Right in front of you," He said. "You replaced him, like a . . . A teleport or a transmat or a body swap or something," I said. He didn't say nothing and just looked at me. "Send him back," I demanded, "I'm warning you; send The Doctor back right now!"

"Sam, it's me," He said softly, "Honestly, it's me." I took another step back as he took step forwards but he stopped, "I was dying. To save my own life I changed my body. Every single cell, but . . . it's still me." I shook my head, "No, you can't be," I whispered, fighting back my tears.

He took a few steps closer to me, looking straight down into my blue eyes, "Then how could I remember this? Very first word I ever said to you. Trapped in that cellar. Surrounded by shop window dummies . . . Oh . . ." He looked away for a moment before looking back into my eyes, "Such a long time ago. I took your hand . . ." He gently took my hand and I glanced briefly down at our joint hands, and then back up at his face. "I said one word . . . Just one word, I said . . . 'Run'."

I looked into his brown eyes and blinked. "Doctor?" I whispered. He grinned, "Hello," He said gently. Then he took off around the other side of the console and I took a step back, shocked.

"And we never stopped, did we? All across the universe. Running, running, running . . ." He said as he flicked a few switches on the console, "One time we had to hop. Do you remember? Hopping for our lives."

He hoped madly up and down on the spot as I had my back against the pillar, and just watched him. "Yeah? All that hopping? Remember hopping for your life? Yeah?! Hop? With the . .. " He said before he stopped as he watched me, "No?"

"Can you . . .Can you change back?" I asked. "Do you want me to?" He asked. "Yes," I replied. "Oh," He said. "Can you?" I asked. "No," He replied. He glanced briefly down at the floor and then back at me, "Do you want to leave?"

"Do you want me to leave?" I asked sadly. "No!" He said quickly, "But . . . Your choice . . . If you want to go home . . ."

I looked at him upset while he walked over to the console again, "Cancel Barcelona. Change to . . . London . . . The Powell Estate . . . Ah . . . Let's say the 24th of December." He looked at me, "Consider it a Christmas present."

I walked slowly closer the console, and looked at him, then at the console. The TARDIS shudders as it changed direction. "I'm going home?" I asked and looked at him. "Up to you. Back to your Uncle, Aunt and cousin . . . It's all waiting," He said, "Fish and chips, sausage and mash, beans on toast . . . No, Christmas! Turkey! Although . . . Having met your Aunt . . . Nut loaf would be more appropriate."

I looked down quickly to hide a smile and shook my head slightly. "Was that a smile?" The Doctor asked. "No," I said as I glanced at him. "That was a smile . . ." He said with a smile. "No it wasn't," I said. "You smiled . . ." He said with a smile before he gaged as the TARDIS shuddered.

I looked around before back at him. The same thing happened again, more violently. He made nasty retching noises, "Uh oh," He said. "Are you okay?" I asked. A piece of gold came out from his mouth. "What's that?" I asked. "Oh . . . The change is going a bit wrong and all," He explained before gaging again.

He fall to his knees as his face contorted and I swallowed slowly. "Maybe we should go back. Let's go and find Captain Jack, he'd know what to do," I said. "Gah, he's busy! He's got plenty to do rebuilding the Earth!" He said and then looked around before frowning, "I haven't used this one in years."

He flicked a lever and the TARDIS shuddered violently. "What're you doing?!" I asked as I grabbed the console. "Putting on a bit of speed! That's it!" He said. He turned more knobs while I tried to maintain a more secure grip on the console.

"My beautiful ship! Come on, faster! That's a girl!" The Doctor yelled. I looked at him with fear; He looked and sounded violent, crazed. "Faster! Wanna to break the time limit?!"

"Stop it!" I yelled. "Ah, don't be so dull . . . let's have a bit of fun! Let's rip through that vortex!" He said before catching my eyes for a moment in spoke calmly, "The regeneration's going wrong. I can't stop myself." He grimaced in pain, "Ah, my head . . . Faster! Let's open those engines!"

A bell rang and I looked around, "What's that?" I asked before looking at The Doctor to see his face closer to mine, "We're gonna crash land!" He said with a grin before laughing manically. "So do something!" I said. "Too late! Out of control!" He said before running around the console, giggling. "Oh, I love it! Hot dawg!"

He hopped in the air excitedly and my jaw dropped. "You're gonna kill us!" I said. "Hold on tight, here we go!" He said and we looked at each other across the console. He grinned madly, "Christmas Eve."