If you want to help me financially, you can do it on
https://ko-fi.com/neverluckysmile
Danni walked into the small living room, a mug of tea in one hand and pulling her dressing gown around her with the other. Martha had been kind enough to lend her some pyjamas as they couldn't go shopping until tomorrow. She sat down on one of the worn chairs that had come with the small two-bedroom flat and blew lightly on the steaming mug as she gazed off into the distance.
She had tried to go to sleep, she was sharing a room with Martha who didn't snore thankfully, but she hadn't been able to drift off and at around half four she had given it up as a bad job and decided to get a cup of tea and wait for the television channels to start up. Every time she closed her eyes the noise in her head seemed to amplify itself, the four beats screaming in her head until she opened her eyes. It was strange, considering she had always been one for sleeping anywhere. Her mum had found her at the top of the stairs once, curled up in a ball when she was about 7. Then she had fallen asleep at Vincent's house on the bench outside, again that was nothing unusual but to not actively be able to fall asleep was very unlike her.
It was because she was worried, really worried, she knew that. Everyone who had watched New Who knew what the drumming was, what it had driven the Master to. She didn't want to become like him; an insane monster looking to take out his anger on the universe around him. Is that what it would do to her? Would she become insane, plotting to take over the world so she could build missiles to attack the rest of the universe? Or was that just because he was naturally very aggressive and the drumming exaggerated it? Or did it really have nothing to do with the drums, maybe he was just evil? She sighed, taking a sip of her drink, barely feeling the hot liquid slide down her throat, she knew that wasn't right. Until the Time Lords had put the drumming into his head, he probably was just like every other Time Lord child. They did that to him.
She shook her head hard to shake the thoughts out of her head. She wouldn't dwell on it, the Doctor had promised he was trying to figure it out and she trusted him. It was hard not to, even if she didn't feel the way she did about him she knew from watching him for years that he took care of his friends, if he promised to help her he would try his hardest to. She wrapped her spare arm around her waist, wishing she had Doctor-Moo to hug close but the teddy was on the TARDIS, which was in 2007, unlike them.
She looked down at her arm, where her manipulator sat. Maybe it had something to do with that? The drumming had entered the Master's head when he had looked into the Vortex, perhaps travelling all that time without a case around her had bled it into her head? It seemed plausible, but if the Doctor had been working on it like he said he had then it was probably one of the first things he considered and as he hadn't told her about it, he must have brushed it aside.
The more time had past, the more she remembered after the drumming had started. It was just bits and pieces of the conversation, the Doctor promising her he could fix it, her feeling so, so happy then angry. Them kissing; she blushed as she remembered how she had felt, all she had wanted was for him to touch her. The feeling had overwhelmed her in a way it never had before, she had only had a few boyfriends before she came to this universe and none of them had been serious. Until the Doctor, no one had made her feel anything near what she had felt at that moment. She would have killed to get what she had desperately craved, and that worried her more than anything else. Was she dangerous now? The Master had little control, would that happen to her? And what if it happened and the Doctor wasn't there to help her, or even stop her? Could she stop herself?
There were just so many questions, and she couldn't even ask the Doctor she was with because he only had a vague idea about the noise, stories he had heard in passing but no first-hand experience with it. The drumming had been a Russell era addition, earlier Master's hadn't suffered from it. So why did she?
"Hey, are you all right?" She turned to see the Doctor standing in the doorway, still in his pinstripe suit, looking at her with a concerned frown on his face. She plastered a smile on her face and nodded.
"Fine." She replied, "Couldn't sleep." He walked in and flopped on the couch across from her.
"That's unlike you." He remarked, "I've never known you to pass up an excuse to sleep." She shrugged, cupping her mug with both hands.
"First time for everything, I suppose." She lifted the mug to her mouth but pulled it away quickly as soon as the cold tea touched her lips. She looked down at the liquid, she must have been thinking a lot longer than she thought she was.
"Where have you just come from?" He asked her and she stared at him, considering what to tell him.
"My birthday." She settled on with a small smile, "I turned 23 and you took me to see the Beatles."
"But I've already taken you to see the Beatles." He replied with a confused look. She shrugged, not yet but it wasn't important.
"I like the Beatles." She told him, "I enjoyed myself." She stood up and walked over to the window, pulling the curtain open slightly to look onto the street below. It was empty, illuminated only by the street lamps dotted around. It was later than she realised. She moved in closer as a Silent stepped out from next to a house, staring up at her as if it knew she was there. She stared back down at it, she wouldn't be surprised if it knew she was looking out.
"When in 1969 are we?" She asked the Doctor.
"June, why?" He asked. She stared down at the Silent, the moon landing hadn't happened yet. That was a shame, but it wasn't far away and then the Silents would have to go into hiding, their own command telling the humans to kill them on sight. Only there because the Doctor had put it in the transmission, because they had taken her. She smirked then turned back to the Doctor, a triumphant feeling filling her as the drums banged louder.
"No reason." She replied vaguely as she sat next to him, curling her legs up underneath her as she did, "Did you get the thing that goes beep working?"
"It's a Timey-Wimey detector." He replied, "And it goes ding, not beep." She rolled her eyes.
"Fine. Did you get the thing that goes 'ding' working?"
"It is working!" He protested.
"Does it still boil eggs?"
"Yes, but it's meant to do that." He told her and she giggled.
"No it's not." She replied, "Did you use it to find me?"
"No, you just appeared while we were walking home." He studied her for a moment and she shifted under his gaze, "Do you know the Weeping Angels?" She nodded.
"Yeah. They zap you into the past and survive off the potential time you leave behind." He nodded, smiling proudly.
"I should have known you'd know." He praised her and she blushed happily, "Well, they're going to send a guy called Billy back, and we need him to get a message to a girl called Sally Sparrow." He reached over to a small coffee table and picked up a paper file, "It's all in here." He handed it to her.
"Sally Sparrow? I remember that." She flicked through it, a picture of a young black man catching her eye, "That's Billy, isn't it?"
"Yeah. I wish there was more I could do for him, but he has to deliver the message to her."
"He'll be fine." She told him, "You'll help him set up a new life, won't you?"
"It's the least I can do." She nodded with a smile.
"Then he'll be fine." She repeated, "I know he will be."
"You seem very sure of that." He pointed out and she closed the file, smiling up at him.
"You helped me." She replied, "I was torn from my home with no chance of getting back, and you helped me. My life is fantastic, and it's because of you. Thank you." And he had, she realised. He had set up a whole new life for her, helped her settle in and shown her the universe. Despite her jumping around at random, she felt secure and the Time Lord in front of her had done that for her. She owed him everything.
She surprised him by moving over on the sofa, snuggling into his side and resting her head on his chest. Tears built in her eyes as she listened to his heartbeats, slightly out of time with the drumming in her head. She needed him to hold her, to know that whatever happened next would be okay and that he wouldn't leave her behind.
The Doctor stared down at the girl who was clinging to him, eyes wide in surprise as she began to cry. Not sobbing, crying silently as if she couldn't help it. He had been so worried about her, she had arrived in different states of emotion and dress before but never in so much pain. She had been muttering that count of four again, something she had done in the past but he still didn't know what it was about. It seemed a subconscious thing because she never seemed to realise she was doing it until she caught herself. Something was wrong with her and he didn't know what and he didn't like it. He was her... The Doctor and he should be able to fix it, but how could he do that if she wouldn't even tell him what was wrong with her?
He slowly wrapped an arm around her shoulders, hugging her closer and whispering soothing words into her hair. As she slowly relaxed, finding the sleep that had alluded her he vowed that he would get her to tell him, and he would help her.
Then he'd find who had done it to her, because he was sure it was deliberate, and they would pay.
~0~0~0~
Danni and Martha entered the flat talking animatedly about the many bags they were holding. Fortunately, the following day had been Saturday and Martha only worked the morning so the two girls had gone shopping to find Danni some suitable clothes. Martha had asked her boss, Mr Richards, if there was a job for her but as there wasn't the pair were going job hunting all Monday, so Danni had needed some smart clothes and the shopping spree had started from there.
"I think I like the black skirt the best because it goes better with the blue top and I really, really like blue." Danni rambled, not noticing Martha's concerned look as the Doctor came to meet them, "Oh, hello sweetie, I'll go and try them on again and then we'll know what I need tomorrow so don't either of you come into the room or I'll be very cross." She walked into Martha's room, shutting the door behind her and Martha turned to the Doctor.
"She's been talking non-stop for the past ten minutes." She told him anxiously, "It's like she's drank her weight in caffeine or something, because she doesn't seem to be able to be quiet." The Doctor nodded in agreement, he had heard how quickly she was rambling as soon as the door had opened. He had come to see what was wrong, but she had brushed past him like it was her normal behaviour.
"I don't think she knows she's doing it." He told her, "She's been like this a couple of times before, but somehow she seems less in control."
"Should we do something?" Martha asked, worried. The Doctor had warned her of these 'particular' Danni's. She had seen one once before, back just before 1914 but he was right, she had seemed much more herself back then even when she did drift off. There was something 'off' with this Danni.
"I think it's something to do with her jumping around," He replied, looking at the door so she couldn't tell he was lying, "I don't think there's much we can do." The door opened and Danni stepped out wearing the blue blouse and calf-length black skirt she had mentioned to Martha. She looked very smart, ready for an interview but she looked upset.
"I don't like it." She whimpered. Martha stepped forward, wrapping an arm around her as she looked about to cry.
"It's fine." She reassured her, "If you don't like it, we'll find something else." Danni nodded with a sniff.
"Okay. Will you help me?" Martha smiled warmly.
"Of course." She walked Danni back into the room, the Doctor moving to follow, "No boys allowed." The Doctor pouted but headed back into the kitchen, determined to get the Timey-Wimey detector not to cook eggs. Not that he was taking his mind off Danni. Not at all.
~0~0~0~
Martha sat Danni down on the edge of her bed, keeping her arm wrapped around her as she sat next to her. The girl was shaking underneath her touch, her hand tapping on her own leg steadily. The noise in her head was almost tangible, banging mockingly at her as she had been getting changed.
"Right, why don't you tell me what's wrong? You've not been right since you got here." Danni looked at her, how did she even begin to explain what was wrong? She had tried the same outfit on she had in the shop, looked at herself in the small mirror in the bedroom and promptly burst into tears. All she could think about was how awful she looked and that if the Doctor ever saw her in it he would hate how she looked and decide to leave her. It was totally unfounded, she had worn a variety of different outfits and he hadn't ever said anything bad about any of them, but it was swimming in her head and this little voice just kept insisting he would hate her if she wore it.
"I..." She looked Martha in the eyes, this woman who had just accepted her along with the Doctor into her life and she couldn't bring herself to add to her burden, "I just haven't had a lot of sleep." She settled on, "It's making me grouchy, that's all." Martha looked unconvinced.
"That doesn't explain why you were in so much pain." She pointed out.
"You try travelling without a capsule on a regular basis." Danni retorted, wiping her eyes. She wasn't about to let them know how she was feeling, she couldn't disrupt the order of things, "Now, I want a better outfit than this, Martha Jones. The Doctor once said I should show off my legs more, let's do that." Martha's concerned look turned smug.
"I knew it had something to do with the Doctor." She teased, standing up, "I'm sure we can find something more appropriate for you." She didn't buy into the jumping around excuse, no matter how many people told her it but there was a chance Danni just didn't know what was wrong with her. They must think she was stupid, trying to hide it from her but she didn't press it, she would do what she had always been doing, observing from the side and trying to come to a conclusion which she could act on, even help treat it.
She wasn't a trainee doctor for nothing.
~0~0~0~
"Down here!" The Doctor rushed ahead of Martha and Danni, dashing down the alleyway, Timey-Wimey detector in hand as it beeped... dinged loudly. It had taken a week for Billy to turn up, well they hoped it was Billy. Two more people had turned up since Danni had appeared, a lovely young woman called Claire and her boyfriend Mark who had gone into the old house in 2007 as a dare one night. The Doctor had sent them on their way, grumbling about people wasting his time. They were doing important things, didn't they know?
There was a flash of light and a man appeared against the wall of the alleyway, groaning as he hit it before sliding to the floor. Danni smiled slightly, that must be what it was like when she appeared from nowhere, and just as graceful.
She had felt much better since talking with Martha, and being dressed up had been rather fun. She had been true to her new-found resolution and tried as hard as she could to not let them know that she was feeling out of sorts. Her moods had calmed down, although she had spent a good hour crying after watching a show about animals on BBC1 for no reason because it hadn't been sad. Still, she still hadn't been sleeping and she was starting the feel the after effects of it, especially considering she had been drinking her weight in coffee.
The Doctor approached him, holding the telephone receiver that he had added to the device to his ear, pointing it at the man.
"Welcome." He called.
"Where am I?" Billy asked, his head swimming as the three stood over him.
"1969. Not bad,as it goes. You've got the moon landing to look forward to." The Doctor explained as the beeping stopped and he lowered the device.
"Oh, the moon landing's brilliant. We went four times. Back when we had transport..." She glared at the Doctor, still not fully forgiving him for having her effectively killed.
"Working on it!" He promised her, nodding at Billy.
"How did I get here?"
"The same way we did. The touch of an angel. Same one, probably, since you ended up in the same year." The Doctor stepped through some railings as Billy tried to get up. The Doctor placed a hand on his shoulder, forcing him back down as he sat next to him, "No no no no no, don't get up. Time travel without a capsule, nasty. Catch your breath, don't go swimming for half an hour."
"I don't... I can't..." Billy stuttered, unable to comprehend anything the man was saying.
"Fascinating race, the Weeping Angels. The only psychopaths in the universe to kill you nicely. No mess, no fuss, they just zap you into the past and let you live to death. The rest of your life used up and blown away in the blink of an eye." The Doctor explained, "You die in the past, and in the present they consume the energy of all the days you might have had, all your stolen moments. They're creatures of the abstract. They live off potential energy."
"What in God's name are you talking about?" Billy asked, confused and Danni smiled down at him.
"You've been sent into the past by an alien." She told him, "The Weeping Angel lives off potential energy, so the life you might have lived is their food. The Doctor just likes to ramble."
"Oi!" He exclaimed and she shot him a cheeky grin, which he returned.
"Trust me. Just nod when he stops for breath." Martha added.
"Tracked you down with this." The Doctor lifted up the device, "This is my timey-wimey detector. It goes ding when there's stuff. Also, it can boil an egg at 30 paces, whether you want it to or not, actually, so I've learned to stay away from hens. It's not pretty when they blow."
"I don't understand. Where am I?" Billy asked, looking around the alley. One moment he was at work the next these three people were standing over him, talking about being in 1969 and time travel. His two friends were hot, not as hot as Sally Sparrow was but then again he was too disorientated to notice.
"1969, like he says." Martha replied gently. It was hard, because while they were going to get away, this was his life now and there was nothing they could do about it.
"Normally, I'd offer you a lift home, but somebody nicked my motor. So I need you to take a message to Sally Sparrow." Billy's attention was pulled fully to the man at the mention of the girl's name, "And I'm sorry, Billy, I am very, very sorry. It's gonna take you a while."
"What do you mean?" he asked as the man stood up. Danni stepped through the railings and smiled at the man.
"My name's Danni." She told him gently, "We're from the future, and Sally gave us this." She reached into the messenger bag at her hip and pulled out the Sally Sparrow paper file. She flipped through it to the point that mentioned Billy, "She says that just after you were touched by the Weeping Angel, she saw you as an old man. That means you're going to live here. You meet a lovely girl, work in media. You have an amazing life, but it begins here, not in 2007." She handed him the sheet on himself and he read through it, shaking his head.
"This means nothing." He replied, "Some girl could have just told you this." Danni nodded.
"I know, but she didn't." She replied, "This is real, because you're in 1969." He slowly stood up, looking around his surroundings. He had moved, but he could be unconscious or anything.
"But what do I do?" He asked, "I... I wasn't even born in 1969." Danni grinned and took his hand.
"Oh, don't worry, we've got that all sorted. You live about 15 minutes away in a lovely flat, I've got you a job at the BBC with me and you'll be very successful there." she had found a job at the BBC almost instantly and had set to work convincing them to hire Billy even though they had never met him. The one thing she didn't like was the fact being touched by an Angel meant you had to start from scratch, no one ever has to do that in real life. Most people don't just run away with absolutely zero money, not even existing in the time period they were in so she insisted that they help Billy, considering him helping them meant that he could never go home.
"But I'm a police officer." He protested weakly as the Doctor frowned from the floor, standing up and breaking the contact between Danni and Billy. She didn't know the man, she didn't need to hold his hand. He reached out and grabbed it, switching the Timey-Wimey detector into his other hand, just in case Billy got any ideas. Martha saw him and smirked again, he didn't even see what he was doing.
"And now you're a runner, Billy-Boy. Let's get you home." The Doctor declared loudly, "Then once you're settled in, we'll be filming some Easter Eggs for Sally."
"Why Sally?" Billy asked as they started walking down the main street, "Why is she so special?"
"At the moment she's one of the most special women on Earth." The Doctor explained.
"The most special being Martha, obviously." Danni added, Martha batting her arm.
"Oh, shut it you." She was always saying that. Danni kept insisting she was the most important woman on Earth, although when she was challenged about it she would shrug and change the topic of conversation. Martha guessed she was just trying to make up for the fact that the Doctor was obviously crushing on her, while she... well, she didn't anything him. Honestly.
"And she'll be forever grateful for your help." The Doctor continued, tightening his grip on Danni's hand as she smiled up at Billy, "So we'd better get started, hadn't we?"
~0~0~0~
The Doctor entered the pub, looking around for where Danni and Martha were. The two girls had just finished work and they'd agreed to meet at a pub for a meal and to discuss when would be the right time to find Billy and get the Easter Eggs filmed. He scanned the room and caught Danni sitting at a small table and grinned as she met his eyes and waved him over. He shrugged off his jacket, chucking it over the back of the chair in front of her then flopped into it.
"You took your time." She pointed out, taking a sip of her lemonade. She had been waiting for at least 15 minutes for him, but then again she should have known better for the Doctor to ever be on time. She might have to start telling him to come earlier if she wanted him to ever be on time.
"Yeah, sorry about that." He apologised, running his hand through his hair, "I was just tidying up and lost track of the time." She was wearing a short white dress with black squares on it and a pair of black tights and she looked... lovely. This era of clothing really suited her, no wonder he kept taking her to see the Beatles.
"What did you break?" She asked him with a laugh, bringing his attention back to the present.
"What makes you think I broke anything?" He defended, blushing slightly. She stared back at him pointedly before he sighed, "The kettle. I wanted to make it electric." She giggled and he beamed.
"Oh bless ya." She told him, "Good thing Martha isn't here, she would have told you off. How many times has she told you to leave stuff alone?" He frowned and looked around, realising for the first time his companion wasn't there.
"Where is she?"
"At home." Danni replied simply, crossing one leg over the other, "I sent her there." He turned back to her.
"Why?" He asked bewildered.
"I wanted to spend some time with you, so I asked her to leave and she did." He studied her closely. He couldn't say he wasn't glad to spend some time with her, he had found himself really missing her between the times she was there, but he still didn't understand.
"Why?" He asked again, not really knowing what else to say.
"Because, like our friend Billy once said, 'Life is short and you are hot'." She grinned, happy she had gotten to say that line. It was one of her favourite lines from the whole show, he was just so sure of himself when he said it, "So, Doctor, welcome to our first date." She knew he had really only just started to like her, but to make sure Eleven liked her she had to start somewhere, and the Doctor wasn't going to make the first move, "We're in the 1960's, the decade of peace and love. Seemed appropriate." The Doctor stared at her, shocked, then shot her a large smile.
"Well then, Danni-Girl." He drawled, "If this is a date, we should go some place more suitable." He stood up and held his hand out for her. She took it happily and he lead her had been thinking about it since she had first landed in 1969. She had to start now, she had to make him hers.
There was no way she was going to let him marry River Song.