The Doctor (12) (twelfth_doctor) wrote in thedisplaced, @ 2020-05-23 21:02:00 |
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Entry tags: | !log/thread, doctor (12), river song |
WHO: River Song and the Doctor (Twelve)
WHEN: The morning of the de-aging event
WHERE: A room inside Twelve's TARDIS made to perfectly resemble his and River's home on Darillium.
WHAT: River has turned into Mels, and the Doctor lies. A lot.
TRIGGERS: Not really?
Awareness came slowly as Mels woke, lazily stretching even before she opened her eyes. Her arm connected with something warm and mostly solid, and her eyes shot open as she sat straight up in the bed. This was definitely not the bed she had gone to sleep in. Or the room, she thought.
Making a face, she edged away from the unfamiliar man lying next to her, taking in the room around her as she did, making note of the exits, automatically looking for escape. The view through the window gave her pause. Was this even Earth? She'd definitely been on Earth.
Was it Kovarian? Was this a test of some kind? A punishment?
It wasn't the first time she'd woken up in a strange place, but usually she was alone and less comfortable.
Oh, ugh, and these were definitely not her clothes.
Okay. If it was a test, or a punishment, first order of business. She needed a weapon and an escape. Feet landing softly on the floor, she slipped from the bed and reached for the first drawer she saw.
Time Lords only required one hour of sleep to fully refresh themselves, so when the Doctor slept beside River, it was a conscious choice and something he considered very intimate and special. It was one of the few times he was fully vulnerable, and it showed how much he trusted her.
He awoke the moment he felt River rise from bed, but when he slowly opened his eyes, it wasn’t River that he saw. He froze, and remained perfectly still. It took a minute for him to recognize the stranger in his bedroom as Mels. Shit. The Portal was playing tricks this morning. Obviously it was fiddling around with people’s ages again, and River had been caught up in it. Not the first time she’d turned into Mels, though. It happened once before, when they’d been on Knowhere together, and it had been a group effort to trick her so that she wouldn’t realize who he was so she wouldn’t kill him.
Coming up with a clever lie to fool her was going to be more difficult with her waking up in bed together, so he lay there, mind racing, trying to come up with an idea. Finally, he spoke. “Morning, Mels. You’re up early.”
Her eyes narrowed as her attention shifted back to him, and she slammed the partly open drawer shut again. Not that she cared that he’d caught her. She looked him up and down, gaze critical. He was old. She could kill him easily enough if she wanted. But he knew her name.
She was on another planet, and he knew her name. This was looking more and more like a test by the second. She’d thought she was past all of that. Hadn’t they done enough? Hadn’t she proven herself capable?
So she met him with suspicion. “I don’t remember you.”
“No? Not at all?” He feigned a disappointed look, then continued. “I’ll have to speak to Madame Kovarian. Memory loss wasn’t supposed to be a side effect.” He shifted to a sitting position upon the mattress. “My name’s Basil. I’m an agent of the Papal Mainframe. What… was the last thing you remember?”
He knew Madame Kovarian as well. It was still hard to tell if he was lying. People often didn’t tell her the truth. She was starting to get a headache.
“A side effect of what?” she asked, her irritation growing more obvious as she rubbed at her temple.
“Leadworth. Earth. Amelia Pond. My key to the Doctor. Why have I been pulled away?”
She was careful not to mention her friendship with either of her parents, knowing Kovarian felt she was getting too close to them, that she was becoming compromised. Maybe that was why she had been brought here.
“Molecular Peregrination,” was the Doctor’s answer to Mel’s first question, something that just popped into his brain that sounded good and scientific enough to be realistic. The only problem was that coming up with off-the-cuff reasons, his presentation became more excitable in order to sell it harder. It was something he didn’t realize he was doing, and began to sound more like showboating. “Recent technology. Allows for quick travel across galactic distances. Your memories ought to return in a couple of days as your body readjusts to being zapped from one place to another.” Taking a cue from how she rubbed her temples, he added. “Headaches can happen, too. All normal symptoms. I’ve already done it a couple times before, so I’m accustomed to it.”
Now for the real kicker - the Doctor hoped Mel bought it. “Huge change of plans. The Silence has learned that the Doctor will be taking up residence here on Darillium for twenty four years, no traveling through time, no interfering with time. It’s the perfect opportunity for you to blend in here so you can have a better chance at getting close enough to do your job and finish him off.”
Right… She was brilliant. She’d never heard of such a thing. It could be new. He could still be lying. Really, if he could just hold still.
“Darillium?” Her disbelief was obvious in both her tone and her body language. “No, that doesn’t sound like the Doctor. I’ve studied the Doctor. I know him.”
Better than anyone else, or so she’d thought. She was trained and conditioned to be his perfect match.
Why would he do that? Why would he sit still for 24 years? There was a new tension in her posture as she stared at the grey-haired stranger.
In response to Mels’ exclamation of disbelief, the Doctor simply made a grand gesture with his hands to draw her attention to the window. The sill perfectly framed the Singing Towers, which Darillium was famous for. This was all a perfect illusion, though. One created by the TARDIS to replicate the Doctor and River’s home on that planet, complete with artificial environment. There was no way Mel could casually tell the difference, and it was the Doctor’s intention that she never got as far as to do that.
I know! Right?” he responded either. “I don’t get it either. The guy can’t stay in one place for too long without getting jittery. Maybe his TARDIS breaks here? I dunno. But that’s what the Silence says, and I’m not going to argue with them.”
The inference was that Mels should not argue, either.
Mels turned toward the window, walking slowly toward it and pressing her hand to the glass. There were the famous towers, beautiful in deep twilight. She still didn’t understand. Why would he be here?
Maybe this stranger, what had he said his name was? Basil. Maybe he was right. She wasn’t trained to question. Well, not to question The Order anyway.
“Where is he, then?”
Oh wow. It looked like this was actually going to work! Of course, he could imagine a million ways how the ruse could unravel at any given moment, but he’d deal with that when the time came. Actually, it felt exhilarating, the thrill and danger involved. This was his idea of fun.
“Not here. At least not now. They wanted you to come before he arrived. Establish yourself, learn about the area, the people. So when he does come, you’ll be prepared.”
She’d done something similar on Earth, with Amy and Rory, but Amy was destined to be the Doctor’s companion. It had made sense for her to get close to her.
Mels didn’t see how it made sense now. Who was she meant to get close to on this world? Who did the Doctor know here?
“What people?” She was getting frustrated again, impatient. For all her training, she was still impulsive, still preferred action. “Is this some sort of test?”
For some reason, Mels’ response caught the Doctor off guard. A little flustered, a little irritated, he waved his arms wildly in the air and exclaimed, “I don’t know! People! I’m in the same boat as you. We arrived at approximately the same time, with the orders to sit tight and await further orders.”
There. That was another good lie. Vague enough not to have to explain details, but still within character. The Doctor was feeling a bit proud of himself.
She wanted to pace, burn off some of the frustrated energy, but she didn’t want to give him the satisfaction. Instead, she crossed her arms and stared him down.
“So they think I need supervision now?” For just a moment, she sounded like a put-out teenager, despite the fact she was already much older than appearances suggested. She was still relatively young by some standards, and it was showing.
Finally, she sat heavily back on the bed. “Fine. What do I need you for?”
She might’ve had a very different face, but the Doctor could see River’s independent personality shining through, and that was what he connected with. It was natural for Time Lords, who changed their appearance multiple times during their lifetime. And as such, the Doctor naturally responded with the same sort of sass as he would to River.
“Oh? You would rather find yourself on a completely foreign planet without remembering how you got here, and trying to assimilate all on your own?”
She glared at him. “I’d have done fine on my own.”
It wasn’t like they’d ever cared before. They watched her, sometimes, enough to protect their investment and make sure she wasn’t getting too distracted. But the only thing they cared about, the only thing that mattered, was the mission.
“So that’s it, then, they expect us to just wait?”
“Fine is not an option,” the Doctor replied, lowering his voice ominously. “Not with the Silence.” He hoped she would take the hint that she needed to follow orders and not ask too many more questions. At least long enough until she returned to normal. “Not when we’re this close.”
He then threw up his arms in an exaggerated shrug, “We’re not just going to wait. I’m supposed to familiarize you with the planet, and with your new persona, so you can blend in without being too suspicious.”
Her eyes sparked with barely restrained challenge. “I usually deal with Kovarian.”
Of course, The Order had their own hand in her upbringing, but for years now, she’s been in Kovarian’s charge. And there was something about the woman’s determination. But mostly, she was willful, and despite her training, she still didn’t like taking orders. She was always being told what to do, what not to do, punished when she thought too independently or not independently enough.
She’d been on her own for a while now, or as near to it as she’d ever gotten. And she’d enjoyed that taste of freedom.
“I’ve been blending in for years now. No one’s ever suspected a thing.”
“If you want to take it up with the Order, then suit yourself. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He finally swung out of bed, wearing the simple, cotton pyjamas he’d slept in. “In a few days a representative will be coming for a briefing, but until then we’re supposed to hold down the fort.”
The Doctor tried to sound casual, but he was making up the lie as he went along. All he had to do was convince River long enough until the Portal decided to change her back to normal in a few days, but he worried that he might not be able to buy that much time.
She was staring at him again, like she couldn’t make sense of how casual he looked. Or for that matter, how casual they both looked, judging by the glance she stole at herself. She’d clearly gone to sleep next to him, and she couldn’t remember a thing.
Mels knew she was missing something. She just wasn’t sure what yet.
Finally making her decision, she gave him another coldly appraising look before turning toward the wardrobe. “I should change. Then you’re going to tell me everything.”