Living a Dream P1At first, the Doctor thought it was a brilliant idea. A quiet, peaceful, library in a country town with no aliens or evil genii trying to take over the Earth, and above all, comfy chairs. He walked in, feeling slightly uncomfortable without a companion, and sat down in a sunny, deserted corner towards the back. He smiled at some of the books he saw around him; The Odyssey, The Mayan Code, Angels and Demons, Dracula. Humans always struck him as having such vivid and wonderful imaginations. He took down a pile of books, and began to read.Half an hour later, having chewed through at least 20 books, he sat back in his chair, enjoying the peacef
Living a Dream P2Fenn dragged the Doctor onto the street outside, which was populated by a few shops and a tavern at the end. There was barely anyone around- it was mid-morning on a weekday, so most of the town's population were out doing their respective jobs. Fenn pulled the Doctor down the street until they reached a small, cramped, European-style townhouse, squashed between a tailor's and a bookstore. She unlocked the door quickly, while the Doctor stood sheepishly behind her, wondering what in the world was going on. They stepped quickly through the door, into the dark, cool hallway beyond."Wait in the study; I'll be there in a minute."The Doctor wan
Living a Dream P3Fenn opened the old wooden box, setting out its contents on the desk for the Doctor to see. His eyes grew wider and wider with astonishment as the objects were laid, one by one, before him. He picked them up, wondering how on Earth he couldn't have known about this.First, there was a model TARDIS, almost exactly the same as his own. Next came the figurines- of himself, Rose, Jack, Donna and Martha, all correct down to the clothes they wore. Then there was a toy sonic screwdriver, exactly matching his own, and a t-shirt. He unfolded the shirt, and gasped at the picture painted on it.It was a Dalek, painted red and gazing at him in all of i
Living a Dream P4Hannah clapped her hands excitedly, "Oh, I always wanted to go to the proms! Which one should we go to, Fenn?"The TARDIS throbbed gently around them, a calm green-blue light coming from the glowing centre console. The Doctor walked around the console, flicking switches and levers, pressing buttons, and generally making sure his ship was still in good condition.They had been through the usual "ooh"s and "aah"s that came when a new visitor entered the time machine- though these two girls had seemed surprisingly familiar with the TARDIS interior. Fenn could even name a few of the switches, and Hannah seemed very comfortable in his beaten-up
Living a Dream P5The two temporary companions stepped out onto the pavement, with the Doctor following closely, locking the TARDIS door behind him. He wasn't sure what to expect- he was practically stepping into a performance showcasing his life. He wondered what he could do to stop it, and how the humans had managed to get all of this information about his life in the first place.They were standing at the back of the Royal Albert Hall, a playful wind tossing with their hair as they tried to plan their next move, surrounded by the sounds of busy London at night. Cars were everywhere; it was obviously a popular event. The Doctor took a quick look around and
Living a Dream P6Russell paled, "What? How did you know about that?""Like we said, we're time travellers. And if you don't tell us what we want to know, you're going to find some important trade secrets inconveniently make their way onto the internet." Fenn's smile would have suited a vampire, and Russell paled even further."Wouldn't that be a breach of some important rule of time or something?"Hannah caught on to Fenn's plot, "But how would you know? Have you ever time travelled?""No, but you said that my stories were exactly like your life, so wouldn't that mean that the 'laws of time' apply?"Fenn laughed, "You also said that some things can be ch
Living a Dream P7"Sooo... what do you think?"The audience was slowly getting to their feet, their contented murmuring growing louder every moment. The three companions remained seated, however. Fenn and Hannah were watching the Doctor closely for his reaction. He sat, still staring at where his image had been on the screen earlier."That never happened. I never did that."Fenn smiled, "Then maybe you will!" Then her eyes darkened and her smile vanished, "Or not."Hannah spoke up, "Well, maybe this means that the show doesn't copy your life after all."The Doctor just leant back, unsure how to answer, but Fenn spoke up, "I don't think so. This mini-episo
Living a Dream P8They entered the TARDIS again, an awkward silence ringing in between them.The Doctor spoke up, "So, where to next, then?"Hannah was again sitting in his chair, much to his annoyance, but Fenn was pacing the floor around the console; both companions looked sombre. Finally Fenn spoke up, "I remember reading somewhere that Jack turned up in an alien bar in the city of Zaggit-Zagoo on the planet Zog. We could try there."The Doctor nodded, glad to be moving on again, "What year?""I have no idea, to be honest, but I think our best bet is two thousand and eight, again- just after Christmas."The Doctor set the TARDIS in motion, relieved by
Living a Dream P9Suddenly, a scuffle broke out further into the bar, and a terrified scream rent the air, "DOCTOR!"They swung around- Hannah was being pulled out of the bar by a group of Judoon. Fenn swore- they hadn't noticed that Hannah had wandered off. They ran to follow the Judoon, but heads were turning in the bar- a group of Sontarans marched towards them, shouting, "At arms! It's the Doctor!"Jack ran behind them, and saw the Sontarans prime the guns. "Doctor! RUN!"The Sontarans fired, and explosions erupted all around them. Fenn glimpsed Hannah through the haze, being pulled into a rocket by the Judoon, "HANNAH!" She yelled, and tried to follow,
Living a Dream P10They stepped into the bar again, this time wary of potential enemies, but things seemed to have settled down- the mess was being cleaned up, there was no sign of the Judoon, and the Sontarans had all left to chase an imaginary TARDIS which was right back where they started.The Doctor whispered to Fenn, "If we split up, we'll get more information. Just don't go too far, d'you hear me?"She nodded and immediately wandered off into the crowd. The Doctor spotted a group of Vinvocci and walked over to them- he figured he might as well start off with a species he was friendly with. Sort of.***Half an hour later, having found no leads, the Do
Living a Dream P11The bar was silent as Fenn marched the Doctor back towards the door- even the music had stopped. The sight of the legendary Doctor being marched off in handcuffs inspired some admiring looks aimed towards Fenn. Jack ran up to them, walking alongside them. He whispered to Fenn, "Fenn, what the hell are you doing?""My job, Jack.""You can't just take the Doctor into custody!""Can't I? You're out of the agency- you're in no position to question me."Jack pulled out a gun and pointed it at Fenn's head, "What about now?"Fenn, in turn, pulled out a gun of her own and pressed it against the Doctor's back, the guilt of her actions flashing ac
Living a Dream P12The Doctor struggled as the guards began to drag him out of the room, "No! Stop! What is this? Where are you taking me?"Delven laughed, "Your cell, Doctor. Welcome to our Stormcage facility. I hope you find it welcoming."They pulled him down a white, clean corridor and into another; this one was made of concrete and had the look of a factory about it. All along one wall of the corridor were cells- each one was occupied with criminals from various times and species. The occupants stared- it was obvious that they recognised him. Finally, the procession reached an empty cell and pushed him in. The Doctor threw himself against the bars, scowl
Living a Dream P13"Doctor?"He jumped up and pressed his face against the bars, trying to see who was in the cell next to him."Hannah, is that you?"But it wasn't Hannah staring back at him from the other cell's bars."River?""Doctor, it IS you! What are you doing here?"She looked a lot younger than he remembered, "Never mind that, what are you doing here?"She smiled her patronizing little smile, "Looks like neither of us is going to tell the other how we got here. Question is, how do we get out?"The Doctor paused, "Well I've got a friend..."River looked around, "I don't see them anywhere.""That's because she's probably being tortured as we sp
Living a Dream P14They bolted down the corridors into the storage facilities, the sound of pursuing footsteps echoing in their ears. They reached the door, and the Doctor went to work with his sonic while Fenn stood beside him, gun trained towards the approaching pursuers.The Doctor glanced at her, "I thought you said you weren't going to hurt them!"Fenn shook her head, "This isn't hurting them, this is self-defence!"The door finally slid open and the two erstwhile friends slipped hurriedly inside. The TARDIS stood there, at the back of the room, almost glowing blue under the harsh white light. The Doctor ran to the door, patting down his pockets until h
Living a Dream P15The TARDIS landed and the Doctor picked Fenn up and carried her out the door. He had no idea where or when they where; all that mattered was that there was a hospital nearby. He ran towards the nearest building he could see, hoping desperately that it was the hospital. He took absolutely no notice of his surroundings as he ran.The building was a hospital- to the Doctor's eternal relief- and he ran into the emergency admittance section, feeling Fenn fading in his arms, which were by now covered in her blood. There was a queue twelve people long with broken bones or breathing problems- he almost collapsed at the idea that Fenn would die while
Living a Dream P16Gwen's phone rang. She was sitting in the hub with Owen, Ianto, Tosh and Jack, discussing Jack's travels with the mysterious Doctor. She picked it up, knowing that only one person had a phone with the proper security key to contact her in the hub. She flipped it open, "Rhys? What's wrong?""What? Who's Rhys? Who am I talking to? Is that the Torchwood hub?"Gwen glanced up at the others, who had fallen silent with curiosity, "Who is this? Only Rhys has the right security key to call me.""Security keys? That technology is so old. I'm the Doctor, and I was hoping that this was Jack, or somebody from Torchwood."Gwen looked up at Jack, "The
Living a Dream P17The corridor was lit up suddenly as Gwen, Owen and Jack appeared. Medical staff scattered everywhere like leaves, staring at the new arrivals. The Doctor ran up to them, grinning with relief. He hugged Jack, "Well, you took your time!"Jack grinned back, "Maybe if you hadn't disabled my vortex manipulator, it wouldn't have taken as long!""Well, its working now, isn't it? And how long did it take you, about two minutes?"Gwen spoke up, looking fairly unimpressed, "Only because the equipment was buried in one of the deepest, darkest corners of the hub imaginable. Now can we please get on with it? Your friend's dying, isn't she?"The Doctor
Living a Dream P18Owen was busy in the medical bay when the Doctor arrived. Fenn was hooked up to an innumerable amount of wires and tubes, and Owen was looking downright flustered. The Doctor stepped forward, "How is she doing?"Owen looked up at him, "Very well, considering the circumstances. By that I mean she's not dead yet."Jack joined the conversation, "Is it the Huon energy?"Owen nodded, looking worried. There was silence for a minute or two while Owen worked. The Doctor was desperately trying to think of something he could do. He started muttering under his breath... "Huon energy, huon energy, how to stabilise it? C'mon, think, think..." Suddenly
Living a Dream P19The energy spread across Fenn's chest in shockwaves as they deployed the paddles. There was an electric crackle of static in the air as the artron energy flowed from the TARDIS and back again. Gwen was surprise at how still Fenn was- she didn't convulse or twitch in the way that people do when they're being shocked by a normal defibrillator. If it weren't for her blood stained shirt and the blue, crackling energy enveloping her, Gwen would have said she was sleeping.The Doctor and Owen held the paddles in place for three minutes, letting the energy pass through. The Doctor caught Owen's eye and cried, "And... off!" They lifted the paddles,
Living a Dream P20Fenn opened her eyes.The first thing that registered was her headache. It felt like a porcupine had decided to play water polo in her brain fluid. She shut her eyes again, but that didn't help, so she decided to at least try to figure out where she was.The second thing she registered was a ceiling. It wasn't particularly interesting, as far as ceilings go. It was concrete, smooth, and unpainted, like something underground. The thought occurred to her that she was in a bunker. But the complete absence of the sound of people in the room seemed to contradict that theory. Scratch that.She looked further around; the walls were all made of co
Living a Dream P21The Doctor looked at Fenn, shocked, "How did you know that?"Fenn rolled her eyes, "The show, Doctor."He looked at her almost imploringly, "Fenn, you seem to know my life inside out, but I don't even know what century you were born in. How can I trust you?"Fenn looked at him, as if judging him worthy of her darkest secret. She nodded, "I suppose you deserve an explanation. Can we discuss this somewhere private?""The TARDIS?"Fenn nodded, "Rather than out here... where exactly is here?""Torchwood," the Doctor answered, "The storage levels; all nine of them."Fenn grinned, "My legs certainly know it."They walked back over to the TA
Living a Dream P22"Two weeks?! I was asleep for TWO WEEKS?!""Whoa, calm down, Fenn. You didn't miss anything." Jack leaned across the table from the couch opposite her, his smile reassuring. The hub's living area was fairly plain, but it was a relief for Fenn to be sitting down again. She glared at the Doctor over the coffee table, who was sitting next to Jack, "Didn't miss anything? Tell me Doctor, did you go out for a holiday while I was asleep?"He looked uncomfortable, "Yes. Why do you ask?"She sighed, frustrated, "Hmm, let me think. You didn't happen to marry Queen Bess, save a planet from the red carnivorous mor, see the phosphorous carousel of the
Living a Dream P23WARNING: End of Time spoilers :(It is said that in the final days of planet Earth, everyone had bad dreams. To the west and the north of that world, the human race did gather, in the celebration of a pagan rite, to banish the cold and the dark. Each and every one of those people had dreamt of the terrible things to come; but they forgot, because they must. They forgot their nightmares, of fire, and war, and insanity. They forgot.Except for one.Fenn sat on the side walk, in an alleyway, in the middle of Cardiff. The Doctor was gone, two years in the future, when he would sit with Wilf in the café and tell him about the prophecy. She
Living a Dream P24WARNING: End of Time spoilers :("I'm sorry, but I can't come."Ianto asked, "Where will you go?"Fenn looked at the crowd milling around the train station, "Home.""You're a genius. You're stone cold brilliant; you are, I swear, you really are. But you could be so much more. You could be beautiful. With a mind like that, we could travel the stars. It would be my honour. Because you don't need to own the universe, just see it. Have the privilege of seeing the whole of time and space. That's ownership enough.""Would it stop then? The noise in my head.""I can help.""I don't know what I'd be without that noise.""I wonder what I'd be
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