FicWad

I own an 11th Doctor sonic screwdriver, Steven Moffat and the BBC own Doctor Who. Think they'd trade? ~XO TheDoctorsTARDISXO

It has been a full twenty minutes since Amelia Pond decided to hatch Operation "Get Kayden to Snog the Doctor". She was as determined to see the Doctor and I kiss and make up from our petty fighting as I was determined to slap him for being a stupid, stubborn bloke. We were still locked in the theater, the Doctor hard at work fiddling with the ancient record player on the stage trying to get it to work without his faithful sonic screwdriver to assist him. I, on the other hand, was pacing around nervously, trying to think of yet another way to get Amy and Rory to let us out of here. Over the past twenty minutes I've tried everything, banging on the door, attempted bribery, threats, hell I even begged, but Amy was not to be put off her path and I knew Rory would be no help to us either. So here I was, pacing a hole in the polished floor of the theater while the Doctor ignored me, hard at work on anything that could distract him from what we were thrown in here to do in the first place, snog and make up. I couldn't say I blamed him for this, I mean I WAS incredibly harsh once we returned to the TARDIS after our rescue mission. I know it was childish of me to accuse him of not being MY Doctor, because he was, but then again he wasn't. I stopped pacing and sighed rubbing my temples when I felt a prick of yet another headache coming on. Absentmindedly I wondered how much longer I would have to put up with the headaches and the flashbacks of my life before the Chameleon Arch because quite frankly it was getting to be too much. I sighed again and turned to the Doctor opening my mouth to once again apologize so we could get the Hell out of here when he jumped up in triumph from the record player and the room was filled with the most catching jazz music I have ever heard.

"Ah-ha!" The Doctor cried in triumph as he turned and gave me such a charming smile, "I finally got it to work! Who needs a sonic screwdriver?"

I just rolled my eyes at him, but couldn't help but smile. His enthusiasm was contagious, always has been. I guess that's one thing I could say has not changed between the regeneration of the Doctor that I knew, and this current one. He was still overly enthusiastic and very, very charming. Something pricked at the back of my mind right then, a feeling and flash of recognition. There was something about this song that sounded familiar, but where had I heard it before? I opened my mind a bit and allowed more memories to flow through. I was getting much better at controlling how many memories I let bleed through the cracks in my mind, and it didn't feel like my skull was going to explode much anymore. I knew what was coming now, and I braced myself against the assault of yet another flashback.

It was 1923; the Doctor and I were seated in the one of the best Jazz Clubs in all of Chicago. I honestly didn't know how I convinced the Doctor to go to a Jazz club with me, but it worked and here we were now, dressed in our best (I had to say the feeling of being a girl from the 21st Century wearing a flapper dress was surreal. I actually felt like I was one of the locals) and watching everyone drink to their heart's content and dance the Charleston. The Doctor and I were laughing and having a grand old time when I was struck with a brilliantly crazy idea. I jumped to my feet and began to shimmy to the music. It couldn't have been that hard to dance The Charleston. The Doctor watched me with one eyebrow raised questioningly (a look I was already used to seeing in my three months of traveling with him) and a smile on his face. I crooked my finger towards him and winked. It didn't take him long to catch on that I wanted him to dance with me.

"Oh no, no, no, no. I don't dance." The Doctor stated matter-of-factly and took a sip of his water before shaking his head profusely.

"Come on Doctor, what happens if you dance? Does the world end, the cosmos plunge into never-ending darkness? Oh I know! Daleks fall from the sky and begin to bake soufflés!" I rolled my eyes and we both laughed, "Dance with me Time Lord. Don't make me give you the face; I know you can'tt resist the face."

Again he shook his head, "I can't Kayden, and honestly I don't dance."

That's it, I thought, now he's in trouble. I sauntered up to him, pulled him out of his chair by his tie, and dragged him out onto the dance floor with all of the other couples, all while giving him the face. He sighed and put his hands up in defeat before running them through his hair.

"You win Kayden, you win." He chuckled before leading me out into a dance. What a horrible liar the Doctor was, he was by far the most excellent dancer out there. We danced for half the night with not a care in the world. It was not often that I got to see this side of the Doctor, but I had to admit, I loved it.

I came back to the present with the Doctor giving me a worried glance. He knew I was having a flashback and I noticed he stayed as still as was physically possible, scarcely breathing to keep from spooking me. I had to admit, I appreciated the sentiment. Then with a start I realized I knew the song that the Doctor was playing on that ancient record player. It was the same song from the jazz club that night. Our song I guess you can say, we have a song. Sweet, right? I swayed to the music just remembering that night with my Doctor. Of course all good things must come to an end, and that night ended with a battle with some Cybermen. The Doctor stood there watching me sway and dance to the music before clearing his throat to get my attention.

"You remember that night, don't you?" He inquired as he held out his hand for me to take. "I think this time it's my turn to see if you've got the moves. Dance with me Kayden."

I hesitated for only a moment before consenting, and the Doctor swept me away into the familiar moves of The Charleston. I couldn't help but laugh at loud at this incarnation of my Doctor's dance moves. He had moves, but he was much more awkward than I remembered. He only managed to stomp on my toes a total of five times before the dance ended, the music stopped, and we were left standing on the stage of the TARDIS's theater a bit breathless and laughing. This felt good, it felt I don't know, natural? Well you know aside from the Doctor pulverizing my poor toes. I waited for the Doctor to release me, but he didn't. Instead he pulled my closer and we began to sway back and forth in a slow dance.

"What are you thinking right now?" he asked me as we swayed to the invisible music.

"About how this is nice, about how natural this feels, it's like nothing has ever changed." I admitted realizing for the first time just how much of my Doctor was truly in this incarnation.

"I really am sorry Kayden. I am so, so sorry for everything that I put you through but it was worth it in the end. You got to live a life without having to fear whatever we came across outside the TARDIS doors, and you've grown into such a strong and brave person." The Doctor gave me a small sad smile and I knew even to this day the pain of what he had to do ran deep beneath the surface.

"Show me Doctor," I whispered to him and placed my hands on either side of his face, "If we are ever going to over the bickering and petty fighting, I need you to show me everything from that day. I want to see it through your eyes. Help me understand why you did it."

"Kayden I-"The Doctor began, but I silenced him with a kiss.

"Please Doctor, I want to understand and this is the only way I know will help me to. You told me yourself that I had no idea the pain you felt that day, the guilt about what you did. If you really are the Doctor, MY Doctor you will help me to understand."

The Doctor sighed in defeat and I knew at that moment I had won. I have gotten the Doctor to relent and to show me what I needed. Closure, validation, and an explanation was what I needed, what the Doctor was now going to give me. I had to admit that I was honestly tired of bickering with the Doctor, tired of fighting with him and comparing him with MY Doctor. Truth was that he was my Doctor and I couldn't go around denying it anymore. Amy was right, we were both the last of our kind, and we did need each other. So it was time to stop being childish and to finally move on from the pain of the past. I won't ever forget my time with the Doctor before the Chameleon Arch, but I was finally ready to start living my life with him now.

"Kayden," the Doctor began in a completely serious tone, "What I'm going to show you isn't going to be pretty. You said you wanted to know everything from my point of view and I am going to give it to you, no holding back. If it gets to be too much just say the word and I will end this quickly. Do you understand?"

I nodded and squared my shoulders, completely ready to see all the Doctor had to show me. I took and deep breath, steeled my nerves, and opened my mind to him. The Doctor placed his hands on either side of my face and slowly began to invade my mind. My hearts began to beat faster as a picture began to form and I began to see everything through the Doctor's eyes. Once again we were transported to the laboratory where I was taken by the Jardane, but this time I was feeling the Doctor's emotions instead of my own.

He was running down the corridors, one of many as he tried to find her. He became separated from Kayden when the lights went out and has been on a mission to find her ever since. It was unnerving to be in this place with not a single soul around. Being unnerved was not a feeling the Doctor cared about. It was right up there with helplessness and stupidity. The Doctor was used to being the cleverest in the room, and now at this moment he felt anything less than clever. He hung a right at a corner of another intersection and found where he needed to go. He heard voices coming from the double doors at the end of this corridor and wasted no time in bursting through them. There he saw her, his Kayden strapped to a gurney writhing in pain. What were these bastards doing to her? The Doctor noticed at that moment that her skin was shimmering with a pale golden glow and a shiver crept up his spine as a realization hit him: She was regenerating.

"Kayden!" He cried out and brandished his sonic screwdriver, "No, NO! What are you doing to her? Stop it RIGHT NOW!"

Who were these Jardane creatures, and what right did they have to do this to Kayden? The Doctor's worst fears were realized at that very moment. In the six months that she has been with him everywhere they went, no matter what time period or galaxy, planet or location there was always mention of a prophecy. A daughter of Earth was going to be shaped into a weapon, one that the Doctor could not defeat. One that could easily bring about the Doctor's demise. He realized it now in this very room that the prophecy was all about Kayden. Whoever was behind this knew that she was the one thing he would never be able to destroy. The Doctor's blood boiled and he wasted no time. He aimed his sonic at the machinery all around them and instantly it exploded distracting the Jardane, and allowing the Doctor to get Kayden out of there. He worked as quick as he could, unhooking her from machinery and getting her out of there. Down the corridors they ran together the Doctor amazed that she was running with him let alone conscious after what they did to her. They hung a quick left and heard the Jardane pounding away after them. They had to get back to the TARDIS and fast. Up ahead was a door, the door leading to freedom. The Doctor knew then what he had to do the save Kayden though it broke his hearts. He needed to get her promise that she would trust him and be brave. He skid to a halt mere feet from freedom. He didn't have much time, but he needed to do this.

"Kayden, I need you to trust me. Oh my beautiful, brilliant Kayden Grey I need you to promise me something." His gaze holds hers in the most intense way and she can only nod, feeling breathless. He places his hands on either side of her face before placing a kiss against her forehead. "Kayden, I need you to be brave for me. You've always trusted me, and I need you to trust me now more than ever. Trust me and be brave." Kayden nodded again and he smiled at her. A small, sad smile but one that spoke of so many things left unsaid. "There's one more thing I need to tell you. Kayden I-"

"There they are! Stop the Doctor and retrieve our pet at all costs!" The Jardane had caught up with them. No more time to waste, out the door they ran and did not stop until they were once again safe behind the TARDIS's doors.

"Doctor," Kayden croaked out her voice barely above a whisper."What happened to me?"

"Those creatures, those Jardane injected you with Time Lord DNA. I don't know how they managed to get a hold of it, it should be absolutely impossible but they did. Kayden, you're a Time Lord now."

Kayden looked at him in disbelief and amazement, shock and awe. There was no way she could be a Time Lord. The Doctor had told her about Gallifrey and the Time War. He had told her what he had to do to his own race to save the entire universe. He had to be mistaken. This had to be a joke, or a sick prank. She was human through and through. The Doctor looked at her the confusion and disbelief shown in her eyes, her beautiful features were pulled down into a frown and she was worried. Oh how he wished that he could erase the events of that day and keep her safe. But wait, he could. He could keep her safe until he caught whoever was behind this. No enemy of his was going to use her as a weapon in any plot or ploy against him. From out of his pocket he pulled out a watch, a beautiful fob watch inscribed with the language of his people. He handed it to her before taking her to the one place he wished he never had to.

"Doctor what is this? Where are we going?" she asked him and he could still hear the pain and confusion in her voice.

"The Chameleon Arch Kayden, I'm taking you there. It is the only way to keep you safe. And I am sorry, I am so so sorry. I didn't want it to have to end this way."

Kayden knew what lay ahead at the Chameleon Arch. The Doctor had explained to her what it was for and what happened to any Time Lord that went through it. He was going to take her memories away and lock them inside of the watch she now clutched tightly in her hands. She begged and pleaded with her Doctor not to do this and though the anger, frustration, and guilt chipped away at his hearts he did not steer away from his task. He watched his brave companion beg and cry and try to reason with him to let her stay, that she knew the risks and they were worth it to be with him. They could fight whatever came at them together. The Doctor who was normally so strong and composed broke down there and told her that she'd be safer this way.

"Doctor," Kayden called from the center of the Chameleon Arch her words coating in intense sadness causing more pain and guilt to chip away at his old hearts, "Please."

Those were her last words to him. He met her red-rimmed tear glazed gaze with his own before pulling the lever activating the Chameleon Arch. It was the second most painful thing his brave companion had to endure that day and he despised himself for it, hated himself for not being clever enough to figure out the truth of the prophecy before it was enacted. Only when Kayden was slumped over in complete unconsciousness did the Doctor finally break down and begin to openly weep. He wept for the race he had lost, the companions he had seen come and go, and now for the girl who had seared herself onto both of his hearts. He drew her into a tight embrace and just held her for what he knew would be the last time. But for how long he would be without his companion he did not know.

"My brilliant, brave Kayden Grey. I wish it didn't have to end this way. We've been through so much together; you and I and you'll remember it. In your dreams I'll be there and we'll go on such amazing adventures together and visit places you never even knew existed. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry that it had to end this way. Live well my beautiful girl and remember that I will always be there protecting you though you'll never see me. Dream of me as I know I'll dream of you and the times we've shared."

The Doctor severed the link between his mind and my own there, and as I came back into my own I realized that I was sobbing. The pain I felt, the guilt, all his was immense and ran so very deep. I had felt it for myself first hand and now I truly knew why he did what he had to that day. It was cruel of me to treat him as I did. I didn't know how much it cost him to decide that. I looked up into the Doctor's, MY Doctor's eyes and saw the same pain and guilt still there, still so very fresh and present. My knees gave out at that moment, all of this was just too much for me to handle. But he was there, the Doctor caught me before I fell and together we made our way to the edge of the stage and he gently lowered me down before sitting next to me.

"Thank you, Doctor. I think, no, I know I finally understand now why you did it. Thank you for helping me to understand."

"I told you it wasn't going to be a happy story Kayden. No one got a happy ending that day at all." The Doctor replied running a hand through his floppy hair. "Four years I searched the galaxies trying to figure out who was behind this. Trying to figure out who knew how much you meant to me and how they knew I could never destroy you."

"We'll figure it out Doctor," Here I took his hands and entwined my fingers with his own, "together this time."

He nodded and gave me his trademark grin, "Together." The Doctor then leaned over to kiss me when the door to the theater was thrown open with such force the two of us actually jumped.

"Oi now don't you two Time Lords think you're doing this without us now, yeah?" Amy called from the doorway, hands on her hips, a serious expression on her face. Rory was just behind her with his arms crossed over his chest but he nodded in agreement with his wife.

"Amelia Pond were you…listening at the door?" The Doctor inquired and Amy blushed red to the roots of her hair.

"So what if I was? Had to make sure the two of you got with the snogging and finally making up. And it has appeared to work." She responded with a triumphant grin before once again becoming serious. "You aren't going anywhere without Rory and I, yeah? We're in this together. All four of us. Whatever it is you're planning, Rory and I are in. Isn't that right Rory?"

"Oh, uh, yeah, yes. Together." Rory replied knowing that saying anything else would earn him a glare from his wife.

So it was settled then. We were going to get to the bottom of this mystery one way or the other. And we were going to do it together, or not at all.