Thirty Days of Drabbles - Day Eight

[jeriendhal]

For drakemagi 's request of "The Doctor wakes from a pleasant dream about any former companion."



The Doctor awakened, yawned, and quickly slipped on his vest and coat, leaving the heavy tweed overcoat and the long scarf he favored in this incarnation piled in the bedroom chair, atop the panda. When he entered the control room Romana looked at him and noted, "You're in a chipper mood."

"I was dreaming about Sarah Jane, one my old traveling companions," the Doctor told her. "Very quick and clever girl, Sarah."

"For a human, I suppose," Romana said.

"Probable intelligence level noted," K-9 said from underneath the TARDIS console.

"Very clever period," the Doctor said, giving K-9 an irritated kick. "Anyway, I have a mind to see how she's getting along. The last time we met was about 1975… or was it 85?" He shrugged and flipped a few switches almost at random on the TARDIS console. "The TARDIS will know where to take us at any rate."

They materialized on the edge of a parking lot. Stepping outside, Romana looked over at the small stone building in front of them. "It appears to be some kind of religious structure. Is this Sarah Jane a priestess of the local religion?"

"No, a news reporter," the Doctor said. He straightened his scarf a bit. "Perhaps she's getting married." He strode forward, towards a trio of children dressed in formal clothes, a tall dark haired boy in his late teens, a another darker skinned boy a bit younger and a girl of East Indian extraction. Despite the sunny day, they looked uniformly morose as they sat on the steps of the church.

The East Indian girl stood up, looking at the Doctor and his companions with suspicion. "Hey, who's this? And why do they have K-9 with them? I thought he was inside."

To the Doctor's surprise, a second K-9 unit trundled out from the open door of the church. "Identify individuals as the fourth incarnation of the Doctor and the second incarnation of the time lord Romanadvoratrelundar, Miss Rani. Their mobile computation unit is designated K-9 Mark 2," it said, adding, "It is a much more primitive model."

"More primitive?!" the Doctor exclaimed, leaning down briefly to cover his K-9's scanner ears. "Don't you listen to the bad doggie!"

"We're looking for a Sarah Jane," Romana said, smiling at them. "Do you know where we can find her?"

The tallest boy stood up, gesturing towards the open door. "My mother is inside. I’m her son, Luke Smith. It was good of you to come."

"Son?" the Doctor asked, holding out his hand. "A great pleasure to meet you, Luke." The boy shook it gravely, still looking rather morose in a way that brought a tickle of worry to his mind even before K-9 spoke up.

"Warning, Master,” it said. "No lifeforms detected inside."

"Of course there aren't any lifeforms inside, you stupid tin dog," the dark skinned boy said. His face flushed in shame for some reason. "Sorry."

"It's all right, Clyde," Rani said, taking his hand. "She is inside, Doctor."

"I… think I see," the Doctor said, stepping inside the church. Even before he saw the coffin sitting at the end of the long aisle, he was thinking in fury and sorrow, I shouldn't have come back. It's never a good idea to come back. "

Comments

[drhoz.livejournal.com]

*sniffles*

[drakemagi.livejournal.com]

*blinks* 5.5 drabbles for the price of one. Wow. Also, what a punch in the gut...