Part 03 - Chapter 29 - Best Laid Plans
I have been watching him since we came in and am thankful that at least once they sat down they have been pretty much stationary so I can watch them talking, even if I don’t understand the unusual sounding language they are speaking. It’s funny how when you don’t know a language you keep trying to find words you understand even when you know you don’t have a chance of grasping what is being discussed.
After a few moments though I see the Doctor goes very, very still and I wonder what it is the Emperor has said that has put him on a razors edge. He thinks I don’t notice, but even now when I can’t feel anything from him, I still understand his body language far better then most. I learned a lot from the time when he wasn’t so vigilant at making sure I couldn’t sense his emotions. I am sure no one else would notice how very on guard he is, he has had centuries to perfect his actions to insure that no one would, but I know. I hate that he feels he has to keep secrets from me, and sometimes it seems like all he is one secret after another. Thinking of him and all his layers makes me think of that funny American kids movie that the Doctor had in his video library. What was the characters name again? Oh yes, Shrek, funny name that, but in so many ways he is very much like the Doctor. He acts like a big bad, leather clad ogre but inside is sweet, kind and sensitive if you have the courage to get past his gruff exterior.
As I see the Doctor move, I realize my thoughts have wandered and how little sleep I have had in the last forty-eight hours. I am so tired. Hopefully when they get my head back where it belongs I can get some rest, not to mention get out of this fur suit. I want nothing more then to be able to get some sleep, safe in the Doctor's arms.
As he tells me they will help, I first feel joy but it's rapidly followed by fear. What if they get it wrong? If this isn't major surgery, I don't know the meaning of the words. People die all the time in major surgeries.
"It will be okay Rose,” He says quietly as if reading my fears. I will be right there with you all the time. They are the best in the universe at this kind of stuff."
"'K" I say no more as a woman with lovely green and yellow swirls wearing a lime green bikini enters.
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Ever since we stepped from the TARDIS I have had a bad feeling about this place, but they are Rose's best hope for a complete recovery. That unease prompts me to ask, "How long will this take?”, her response surprises me a bit, but I am thankful for the answer.
"No more then about 10 minutes."
I figure in 15 minute we will be back in the TARDIS and gone. Suddenly that feels like far too long and I wonder what it is that I am becoming aware of that is giving me this impending sense of doom.
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I don't need to know the language to know that this woman is beckoning us to her and take a deep breath as I feel the Doctor's hand at my back gently guiding me. Not as if I have a choice regarding this surgery, I'm no good to anyone like this. At least the Doctor trusts them to do the job well. Which is more choice then psycho bitch gave me when she took my head off.
I never realized how heavy a head is, and I stumble a bit as I shift my head from one hand to the other, and feel his steadying hand. I don't know what I would do without him. He jokes about my being jeopardy friendly but it's not like I try to find trouble, it's much more like the Doctor has his very own trouble magnet and anyone around him seems to pick it up the same 'charge' like a piece of metal that has been close to a magnet for a long time sometimes becomes magnetic. I would never say that to him though, as it is he worries enough about our safety and carries more guilt then anyone should ever have.
We step into what looks like an elevator and after a few moments, the door opens on a new corridor surprising me, as I didn't feel any movement.
A few moments later they lead us into a medium size room and they have the Doctor stand to the side as they direct me sit down so that they can properly see the metal collar that is attached to the lower part of my neck attached to my body. It’s a mate to the one I have felt around the upper part of my neck, which is attached to my head.
“Oi, easy on the flipping your making me dizzy.” I snap as the turn my head quickly around for the third time in as many moments.” I find myself suddenly staring into the face of an orange red swirled individual, I have to squeeze shut my eyes as I see his swirls begin a rapid movement across his face and it leads me to feel even more sick. “Please.” I moan as a realize that the last thing before I saw the orange man was the horrified expression on the Doctor’s face as it went whizzing by on the last turn.
In response, I hear a long string of words in that strangely fluid, yet at the same time guttural language these people speak, then a moment later I here the Doctor’s short melodic response.
The next words surprise me in that I actually understand them. “Our pardon lady, we didn’t wish you distress but we need to assess what kind of connection is in place in order to properly remove it.”
My eyes snap open and I look to the Doctor to see if I should say anything in reply, and as if sensing my question he gives me a small hesitant nod and I know that whatever I say better be brief “Okay.”
Apparently, my response doesn’t engender in him much confidence and flashing the Doctor an almost fearful look he quickly asks “Would you like some medication to allow you to sleep through the process?” I wonder what the Doctor said to him, but the lightning fast flash of panic that crosses the Doctor’s face at the suggestion is more then enough answer as what my reply should be.
“No, thank you.”
“Are you sure Lady?” Comes his worried reply.
“Yes.” I reply emphatically as I trying to suppress the panic I feel at knowing that there is some reason the Doctor wants me to be alert and aware and I concentrate on shoring up the shields around my mind as he taught me to do. The almost imperceptible smile I see appear on his face makes me want to grin broadly as I know that I have done the right thing and that he sensed my fortification.
A few more, now far more gentle turns, and the place my head in alignment with my body. I can feel he is carefully lining up the two sections of my neck, but with my face pointed toward my back. Just as I am about to speak, I feel an odd tingling sensation start shivering through my limbs as he slowly rotates my head around to the front passing my face around my right shoulder till I am facing straight ahead.
I gasp as I feel him rapidly pull his hands back from my head and I jerk my hands up to catch my head fearing it will fall without his support. It’s then that I realize that at least my head seems to be attached. Even as the thought occurs to me the tingling becomes a burning about my throat and I scrunch my eyes tight trying to keep from crying out my distress. In the next few minutes I get some of the oddest feelings I have ever felt in my life at random points about my body and I am aware of the quite hum of a few different voices.
*****************************
I chafe at being left behind and Verity’s cryptic words give me no comfort. I want to ask her more, try to get her to tell me what the debt the Doctor is calling in is so I can judge how likely it is that things will go sour but I have a feeling that if she can out stubborn the Doctor I’m not real likely to get very far. My usual strategy would be to seduce it out of her. In this case for a multitude of reasons that strikes me as a very, very bad idea. It’s not that I haven’t had relationships with non-bipeds before but after what happened with the Essarrians it is more then obvious that she is a very passionate woman and the love she has for the Doctor is such that she would do anything to protect him. Therefore, the likelihood is the only way she is going to tell me anything is if she feels he is in some sort of danger.
I know he told Rose that Verity wasn’t going to be able to translate for her, but I notice that he didn’t give any indication that he would be out of touch with Verity so I suspect that she is still in contact him even if she can’t stay in contact with Rose.
“You will tell me if he needs us right?”
‘Of course I will you silly human! Why else do you think you have been left behind?’
“Yes, of course. Are you sure you won’t tell me anything more about these people?” She doesn’t answer in words this time, but the sense I get from her is an emphatic no.
Well if I can’t get her to talk about that at least I can bring her up to speed on what has happened with Das while Rose and he were back trying to straighten out the people that had sent him forward in time.
--------------------------------------------
I am glad he has let this go. I don’t want to lie to Jack, as I said to Rose earlier, he is a good man, but there are things he doesn’t need to know about unless Theta tells him. How he met the now ruling emperor and why he owes him a favor are not things that are any of his business.
As he is speaking, I get an odd feeling that a human would describe with the floral term of ‘someone walking over their grave’ and I recognize that sensation as being like what I had felt before I had suddenly found myself light-years and millennia separated from Theta and Rose while we were visiting woman wept. Alarmed I begin to search the time lines trying to figure out what is causing me to feel this way and watch in horror as suddenly the time lines around Theta and Rose begin to shift into a myriad number of unpleasant outcomes. Yet, I can’t seem to see what has started the chain reactions that are driving the multitude of disasters.
“Theta! Where are you?”
“Verity? What’s wrong?”
“Look at the lines.” When he doesn’t comment I reach out, “Theta?” Silence.
Chapter 30 - Overstaying Your Welcome is Inadvisable
(Story Index)
After a few moments though I see the Doctor goes very, very still and I wonder what it is the Emperor has said that has put him on a razors edge. He thinks I don’t notice, but even now when I can’t feel anything from him, I still understand his body language far better then most. I learned a lot from the time when he wasn’t so vigilant at making sure I couldn’t sense his emotions. I am sure no one else would notice how very on guard he is, he has had centuries to perfect his actions to insure that no one would, but I know. I hate that he feels he has to keep secrets from me, and sometimes it seems like all he is one secret after another. Thinking of him and all his layers makes me think of that funny American kids movie that the Doctor had in his video library. What was the characters name again? Oh yes, Shrek, funny name that, but in so many ways he is very much like the Doctor. He acts like a big bad, leather clad ogre but inside is sweet, kind and sensitive if you have the courage to get past his gruff exterior.
As I see the Doctor move, I realize my thoughts have wandered and how little sleep I have had in the last forty-eight hours. I am so tired. Hopefully when they get my head back where it belongs I can get some rest, not to mention get out of this fur suit. I want nothing more then to be able to get some sleep, safe in the Doctor's arms.
As he tells me they will help, I first feel joy but it's rapidly followed by fear. What if they get it wrong? If this isn't major surgery, I don't know the meaning of the words. People die all the time in major surgeries.
"It will be okay Rose,” He says quietly as if reading my fears. I will be right there with you all the time. They are the best in the universe at this kind of stuff."
"'K" I say no more as a woman with lovely green and yellow swirls wearing a lime green bikini enters.
----------------------------------------
Ever since we stepped from the TARDIS I have had a bad feeling about this place, but they are Rose's best hope for a complete recovery. That unease prompts me to ask, "How long will this take?”, her response surprises me a bit, but I am thankful for the answer.
"No more then about 10 minutes."
I figure in 15 minute we will be back in the TARDIS and gone. Suddenly that feels like far too long and I wonder what it is that I am becoming aware of that is giving me this impending sense of doom.
----------------------------------------
I don't need to know the language to know that this woman is beckoning us to her and take a deep breath as I feel the Doctor's hand at my back gently guiding me. Not as if I have a choice regarding this surgery, I'm no good to anyone like this. At least the Doctor trusts them to do the job well. Which is more choice then psycho bitch gave me when she took my head off.
I never realized how heavy a head is, and I stumble a bit as I shift my head from one hand to the other, and feel his steadying hand. I don't know what I would do without him. He jokes about my being jeopardy friendly but it's not like I try to find trouble, it's much more like the Doctor has his very own trouble magnet and anyone around him seems to pick it up the same 'charge' like a piece of metal that has been close to a magnet for a long time sometimes becomes magnetic. I would never say that to him though, as it is he worries enough about our safety and carries more guilt then anyone should ever have.
We step into what looks like an elevator and after a few moments, the door opens on a new corridor surprising me, as I didn't feel any movement.
A few moments later they lead us into a medium size room and they have the Doctor stand to the side as they direct me sit down so that they can properly see the metal collar that is attached to the lower part of my neck attached to my body. It’s a mate to the one I have felt around the upper part of my neck, which is attached to my head.
“Oi, easy on the flipping your making me dizzy.” I snap as the turn my head quickly around for the third time in as many moments.” I find myself suddenly staring into the face of an orange red swirled individual, I have to squeeze shut my eyes as I see his swirls begin a rapid movement across his face and it leads me to feel even more sick. “Please.” I moan as a realize that the last thing before I saw the orange man was the horrified expression on the Doctor’s face as it went whizzing by on the last turn.
In response, I hear a long string of words in that strangely fluid, yet at the same time guttural language these people speak, then a moment later I here the Doctor’s short melodic response.
The next words surprise me in that I actually understand them. “Our pardon lady, we didn’t wish you distress but we need to assess what kind of connection is in place in order to properly remove it.”
My eyes snap open and I look to the Doctor to see if I should say anything in reply, and as if sensing my question he gives me a small hesitant nod and I know that whatever I say better be brief “Okay.”
Apparently, my response doesn’t engender in him much confidence and flashing the Doctor an almost fearful look he quickly asks “Would you like some medication to allow you to sleep through the process?” I wonder what the Doctor said to him, but the lightning fast flash of panic that crosses the Doctor’s face at the suggestion is more then enough answer as what my reply should be.
“No, thank you.”
“Are you sure Lady?” Comes his worried reply.
“Yes.” I reply emphatically as I trying to suppress the panic I feel at knowing that there is some reason the Doctor wants me to be alert and aware and I concentrate on shoring up the shields around my mind as he taught me to do. The almost imperceptible smile I see appear on his face makes me want to grin broadly as I know that I have done the right thing and that he sensed my fortification.
A few more, now far more gentle turns, and the place my head in alignment with my body. I can feel he is carefully lining up the two sections of my neck, but with my face pointed toward my back. Just as I am about to speak, I feel an odd tingling sensation start shivering through my limbs as he slowly rotates my head around to the front passing my face around my right shoulder till I am facing straight ahead.
I gasp as I feel him rapidly pull his hands back from my head and I jerk my hands up to catch my head fearing it will fall without his support. It’s then that I realize that at least my head seems to be attached. Even as the thought occurs to me the tingling becomes a burning about my throat and I scrunch my eyes tight trying to keep from crying out my distress. In the next few minutes I get some of the oddest feelings I have ever felt in my life at random points about my body and I am aware of the quite hum of a few different voices.
*****************************
I chafe at being left behind and Verity’s cryptic words give me no comfort. I want to ask her more, try to get her to tell me what the debt the Doctor is calling in is so I can judge how likely it is that things will go sour but I have a feeling that if she can out stubborn the Doctor I’m not real likely to get very far. My usual strategy would be to seduce it out of her. In this case for a multitude of reasons that strikes me as a very, very bad idea. It’s not that I haven’t had relationships with non-bipeds before but after what happened with the Essarrians it is more then obvious that she is a very passionate woman and the love she has for the Doctor is such that she would do anything to protect him. Therefore, the likelihood is the only way she is going to tell me anything is if she feels he is in some sort of danger.
I know he told Rose that Verity wasn’t going to be able to translate for her, but I notice that he didn’t give any indication that he would be out of touch with Verity so I suspect that she is still in contact him even if she can’t stay in contact with Rose.
“You will tell me if he needs us right?”
‘Of course I will you silly human! Why else do you think you have been left behind?’
“Yes, of course. Are you sure you won’t tell me anything more about these people?” She doesn’t answer in words this time, but the sense I get from her is an emphatic no.
Well if I can’t get her to talk about that at least I can bring her up to speed on what has happened with Das while Rose and he were back trying to straighten out the people that had sent him forward in time.
--------------------------------------------
I am glad he has let this go. I don’t want to lie to Jack, as I said to Rose earlier, he is a good man, but there are things he doesn’t need to know about unless Theta tells him. How he met the now ruling emperor and why he owes him a favor are not things that are any of his business.
As he is speaking, I get an odd feeling that a human would describe with the floral term of ‘someone walking over their grave’ and I recognize that sensation as being like what I had felt before I had suddenly found myself light-years and millennia separated from Theta and Rose while we were visiting woman wept. Alarmed I begin to search the time lines trying to figure out what is causing me to feel this way and watch in horror as suddenly the time lines around Theta and Rose begin to shift into a myriad number of unpleasant outcomes. Yet, I can’t seem to see what has started the chain reactions that are driving the multitude of disasters.
“Theta! Where are you?”
“Verity? What’s wrong?”
“Look at the lines.” When he doesn’t comment I reach out, “Theta?” Silence.
Chapter 30 - Overstaying Your Welcome is Inadvisable
(Story Index)