Lost In Time: A Doctor Who Fanfiction

Chapter 13 - The Big Bang

River shouted in frustration, grabbing two jumper cables from a nearby box and hooking them from the console to the main door. "Just a little longer," she assured Lyssa, running back to the console and flipping a switch that set off more sparks and explosions.

The words seemed to set off their own explosion inside Lyssa's head, echoing around, as if River kept repeating herself. She winced, raising a hand to rub at her temple, hoping to ease the sharp pain as River turned back to the door.

There was a bright flash of light as the Doctor appeared, River's vortex manipulator on his wrist, and a bright red fez upon his head. "Hi, fairy-girl. I'm home," he grinned, his tense posture belying his easy manner as he turned to Lyssa. 

River straightened, all signs of panic disappearing to be replaced with a cool expression. "And what sort of time do you call this?" she demanded, looking at her watch.

"The end of time," he told her seriously, dropping the lighthearted attitude but keeping his attention on Lyssa. "You all right, Lyssa?"

She grimaced, dropping her hand as the pain began to ease. "I think so? Just had a... really sharp headache for a second, there. It's going away now."

His eyes darkened. "You were trapped in a time loop for almost two thousand years," he told her grimly. "You were aware of it on a subconscious level, and that caused a disruption in your memory centers each time the loop restarted as they tried to process the extra memories where there shouldn't be. I've disrupted the loop, which is why it's going away," he explained, glancing down as his watch beeped. "Right. Time's up. The TARDIS has managed to extend the loop, but we don't have long. You two, over here." he requested.

River placed a hand on his wrist next to his vortex manipulator as Lyssa hurried over to them. She was going to grab hold of his other wrist, but the Doctor pulled her into his arms before she could. Wrapping his free arm gently around her, he tapped a rapid set of instructions into the manipulator and activated it. They disappeared just as a burst of flames erupted from the console and reappeared with a flash on the flat roof of a building, Amy and a tear-stained Rory in a security guard uniform standing nearby.

Lyssa staggered away with a groan the second the Doctor released her, arms wrapping around her stomach as it protested being hurtled through space and time for the umpteenth time that day.

"Lyssa? What's wrong?" he asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.

She waited for the next wave of nausea to quell before hesitantly straightening and thoroughly grateful when her stomach finally seemed to settle. "Time travel via vortex manipulator does not seem to agree with me," she told him with a grimace. "River said it would get better, but apparently she's a lying liar who lies."

He bit back a chuckle, giving her shoulder a sympathetic pat. "Vortex manipulators are the cheap way to time travel, and unfortunately, you get what you pay for. You do get used to it over time, but it will never be as good as my TARDIS," he added with a sniff.

His TARDIS, which was currently exploding up in the sky.

She gave him a cautious glance out of the corner of her eye and saw the deep lines of pained tension lining his face, seeming to reflect his actual age for once instead of his youthful appearance.

And then he noticed her looking and his face smoothed over in an instant, hiding any glimpses of his current feelings.

Still, she knew they were there on the inside, and so, without drawing any attention to it, she quietly reached out and drew his hand into hers. He stiffened, and she was about to draw her hand away with an apology when he relaxed, hand wrapping around hers with a tension the rest of him refused to show.