The Many Doctors - Chapter 31: Thirteen meets Eleven

[fardell24]

<>The TARDIS (Thirteenth, with Daniel, Jia'hale, Sabrina, Sigrun and Tamsin)
It had been days, possibly over a week, since the Doctor and his companions had meet the previous Doctor and Tamsin had started travelling with them.

Tamsin and Sabrina entered the console room. “Jia'hale is still withdrawn. I still don't know why the absence of Felicia has affected her this way,” Tamsin said.

“I have no idea either,” Sabrina said. “She'll come around.”

“I hope so, she spends all her time in either, her room, the kitchen or the gymnasium, and she's still as bare as ever!” Tamsin shook her head.

“That is annoying. The Doctor should really talk to her about it.”

The Doctor was already there. “I already have. I even offered a holographic clothes capsule. She turned it down. As long as she remains in the TARDIS there is nothing I can do.”

“Surely she would require some Vitamin D eventually?” Tamsin asked.

“Good question. But there are places aboard where one can get the requiste radiation. In addition the milk stocks are low,” the Doctor said. A tone emanated from the console. “Ah! We're closer. Listen.”

“... Doctor, Who? Doctor, Who? Doctor, Who? Doctor, Who? Doctor, Who? Doctor, Who? Doctor, Who? Doctor, Who? ...”

“What's that?” Tamsin asked.

“The Time Lords. Sending a message throughout time and space. Seeking the attention of my previous self.”

“Why?” Sabrina asked.

“The were trying to get back in the universe after the conclusion of the Time War,” the Doctor explained. “That is merely the translated version. Poor old Handles...”

“Handles?” Sabrina asked.

“The remnant of the cybernetic portion of a Cyberman's cranial unit. He expired part way through my stay on Trenzalore. Which is what that message lead to.” He manipulated the console again.

Soon the “... Doctor, Who? Doctor, Who? Doctor, Who? Doctor, Who? ...” was replaced by a bell-like sound.

The Doctor could see that Tamsin was going to ask. “That's the untranslated version.”

“Ok then...” Sabrina said.

“Just trying to get to the right place in the probability waves of the universe,” the Doctor said.

“Huh?” Tamsin asked.

“It's timey-wimey, Tam.”

Tamsin sighed.

“And now. Let's find Clara and I. More likely to be with myself and Clara, rather than the complication that was myself and the Ponds...”

“The Ponds?” Sabrina asked.

“I don't know. Maybe we'll ask the Doctor, the Eleventh maybe.”

“We'll be there, in ten minutes, go and find Daniel and Sigrun. We may need them.”



26 August 2014
London, England, United Kingdom
The TARDIS landed in Totters Lane, outside the junkyard where the Doctor had originally landed with his granddaughter all those years ago. The door opened and the Doctor, Sigrun, Tamsin, Daniel and Sabrina emerged.

“Why are we here?” Daniel asked.

“Clara's a teacher at Coal Hill School, that's near here.”

“And you'll be there?” Tamsin asked as she closed the TARDIS doors.

“There were a few times. The school's a weirdness magnet. There was a time when my seventh self faught Daleks on the grounds...”

“That's not this time, is it?” Sabrina asked.

“Don't worry. It was the '80's.”


Coal Hill School
Clara Oswald re-entered her staffroom. The Doctor had fought off the intelligent mice invasion with his usual exuberance. “That's over, isn't it?” she asked him.

“Yes. They have retreated back to their haunts below London. They won't trouble the school again any time soon,” he said.

“It's going to take a while for the school to get back to normal,” Clara said.

The Doctor looked at her.

“You know what I mean, normal for the school.”

There was a knock on the door. Clara answered it. “Ms. Oswald?” A student asked.

“Yes.”

“There's a Doctor asking for you.”

“Impossible, he's already here.”

“And yet someone is asking for you.”

Clara looked at the Doctor.

“Could be something important,” he said.

“Send him in.”


The Doctor, Tamsin, Daniel, Sabrina and Sigrun entered the room, crowding it. “Hello, Doctor,” the older Doctor said.

“Impossible!” the younger Doctor said.

“Does the name 'Felicia' mean anything to you?”

“Now I remember, but it's impossible.”

“Spoilers.”

“Don't imitate River like that, it's infuriating.”

“You'll find out,” the older Doctor said, with a glance at Clara.

“So we're too late again?” Sabrina asked.

“Jia'hale won't like this,” Sigrun said.

“I don't know anyone named Felicia, apart from a student here by that name, but I don't think you mean her,” Clara said.

The younger Doctor sat down. “You are definitely too late. I met Felicia before I met Clara.” He looked at her. “This Clara I mean. I met her after I met the Victorian Clara. I don't know how I would have reacted if I had met her before that.”

“Yes, the post-Pond funk, that wasn't good,” the older Doctor said.

“Post-Pond funk?” Tamsin asked.

“You don't want to know,” the older Doctor said.

“I met Felicia, we went to Bisonville. Then to Babylon 5, and finally to Ilaran.”

“I found meeting Twelve that Felicia changed the timeline.”

“One of us travelled a lot longer with him than otherwise,” Daniel said, trying not to look at Tamsin.

“I don't think anything changed. Neither Kellie nor Grefrew Kra travelled with me away from Bisonville. They arrived with River and left with her.”

“That's right, but what about B5?”

“I doubt anything changed there, other than Felicia drawing Garibaldi's attention.”

“That could have changed a lot.”

“I guess you would have to go there and find out.”

“No, I could get further cought up in that War with those 'Shadows'.”

“Shadows?” Clara asked.

“I never found out much, other than that they were an ancient race that manipulated the younger races into attacking each other, so that they would adapt and evolve,” the younger Doctor said.


“I guess we are looking for number Ten?” Tamsin asked after a pause.

“Yes,” The older Doctor said.

“Nice meeting you,” Clara said. “I didn't see any later than him in the timestream.”

“Timey-Wimey, Clara.”


After a strained goodbye, the older Doctor and his companions made their way back to the TARDIS.