Doctor Who 2006 Episode 13.5: Compensation

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Doctor Who 2006 Episode 13.5: Compensation Note from the author: This is a fan-fiction, created by a fan for fans, and written only for fun. I 9m not a writer, but just crazy enough to try, so please be gentle. All characters are copyright of their respective copyright owners.

Names are in Japanese order (surname first) in some cases because while this story is in English, the language spoken is Japanese. (Doctor Who fans know what I mean) This episode occurs chronologically near the end of the 13th episode (titled cDoomsday d) of the 2006 season of Doctor Who. There is one major difference in this story, which is intentional and becomes obvious quite quickly.

Spoilers are ahead, so if you haven 9t seen the entire 2006 season, stop here. I mean it. -- Lycestra 1.INSIDE THE TARDIS The Doctor wakes up in the TARDIS, laying on the ground, not aware of what 9s happened.

DOCTOR Rose?! Rose?! The Doctor scrambles to his feet, scanning the bridge of the TARDIS.

DOCTOR Rose?! The Doctor fiddles with the TARDIS controls and grabs for the display. Clearly distressed about where Rose could be, his memory flashes back to the last few moments he could remember.

--- BEGIN ... more. less.

FLASHBACK --- LONDON: TORCHWOOD INSTITUTE: GHOST SHIFT ROOM The Doctor is holding on for his life so he won 9t get sucked into the Void between dimensions. Rose is across from him, but holding onto a lever, now locked into the active position. Holding on to the lever, Rose is being pulled in, her feet floating toward the rift on the other side of the room. Looking back at the Doctor, seconds pass like minutes, as the rift 1 appears to be sealing itself, Rose loses her grip, and is pulled toward the wormhole, with absolutely nothing on the other side. DOCTOR No!!! The Doctor witnesses as Rose is mercilessly pulled in, disappearing into the breach& lost forever. The distressed Doctor watches as the wormhole shrinks and disappears into nothing, leaving an empty wall. The Doctor pulls himself to his feet, troubled at having lost his companion, standing there, lost, not knowing what to do. One of the computers starts beeping an alarm. The Doctor rushes over to the console, and on it, sees the image of the open Dalek Void ship, with space distorting around it. Watching the readings of the sensors scrutinizing the existence of the ship gradually drop, they suddenly leap. The readings quickly shift and scatter all over the place. The camera 9s signal cuts out, followed moments later by the sensors. The lights in the room go dim, along with all the displays. The Doctor looks around the now dark room. The Doctor hears an explosion, and all goes dark. --- END FLASHBACK --- INSIDE THE TARDIS The Doctor remains standing in silence on the bridge of the TARDIS, staring at the camera, paralyzed by this memory. 2.DOCTOR WHO INTRO David Tennant, Sayaka Ohara Compensation - By lycestra@gmail.com 3.INSIDE THE TARDIS The TARDIS is completely silent, Doctor still standing. Having clearly landed somewhere, the Doctor looks at the display, fiddling with controls, trying to ascertain where he is or what happened. DOCTOR That 9s not right& Sensors must be offline. Something more must be out there. 2 The Doctor heads to the doors. 4.JAPANESE GARDEN, LATE AFTERNOON The TARDIS has materialized next to a well beside a building of Eastern design, and the Doctor steps outside. DOCTOR Rose?! The Doctor looks around, hoping to see Rose appear from behind a tree. Alas, nothing. DOCTOR Rose& The Doctor walks through a small garden that surrounds him, looking around, while trying to collect himself. At this moment, two little girls appear from inside the house, running toward him, arms extended like they 9re flying or playing a game. GIRLS Mister guest man! Mister guest man! The two girls, one with short pink hair dressed in white, one with long blue tattered pigtails down to her feet dressed in brown, run up to the Doctor and continue in circles around him, giggling, like they 9ve found a new best friend. DOCTOR Uhm, hello. Where is this? The girls stop in front of him and look up at him, still smiling. PINK HAIR This is Mistress 9 shop! BLUE HAIR Mistress 9 shop! DOCTOR (puzzled) Mistress? What kind of shop might this be then? 3 BLUE HAIR She makes wishes come true. PINK HAIR Wishes come true. The Doctor scratches his neck, trying to figure out what that means. DOCTOR Uh& yeah. You haven 9t seen a blonde around here, have you? The girls completely ignore his question. GIRLS Come this way! DOCTOR Okay. Mustn 9t keep Mistress waiting. The girls each grab one of the Doctor 9s hands and tug him toward a table and 2 chairs set up in the front yard, a few paces from the porch on the front of the house to the side of the main entry. GIRLS Mistress will be right with you. The Doctor has a seat, facing toward the house, and continues to look around at his surroundings. Now in what appears to be the front yard, he sees the front of a humble mansion, appearing to be unique interpretations of Japanese design, amongst others. Around the building are trees, and a fence follows the edge of the lot. Beyond the fence are tall skyscrapers; a mix sometimes seen in Japan 9s older cities that have modernized in the past century. The Doctor contorts his face in slight confusion, staring at the buildings towering overhead. Suddenly, a teenage boy appears, wearing a large white apron over a Japanese high school uniform. BOY (clearly being polite) 4 Can I get you something to drink? Sake? Tea? DOCTOR Oh, hello. You work for Mistress? The boy quickly brightens up. BOY (surprised) You know Yuuko-san? DOCTOR Can 9t really say that I do. You could say I just appeared out of nowhere. Hearing this, the boy slumps his arms at his sides, and stares down at the ground, sighing. DOCTOR That& isn 9t a problem, is it? BOY Nope. This is what always happens. DOCTOR I see. Best make the most of it. Tea does sound quite nice. BOY Coming right up. The boy turns around and disappears into the house. The Doctor continues to assess his surroundings. Suspicious of what the TARDIS was telling him versus what he is seeing, he pulls out his sonic screwdriver, and activates it for a few seconds. DOCTOR Very& peculiar& WOMAN How do you like my garden? The Doctor turns off the sonic screwdriver, and lets it fall back into the palm of his hand as he turns to see who has addressed him. Another person, a woman, maybe in her 30 9s or 40 9s with long raven black hair, appears on the porch, standing 5 just inside, dressed in a red and white rose-patterned Japanese gown and holding an elongated smoking pipe. The two children are giggling and playing inside the house, chasing each other, as often children do. YUUKO Did I startle you? DOCTOR No, I was just (swallows) admiring the scenery. Mistress Yuuko, I presume? YUUKO Ichihara Yuuko. Call me Yuuko. Yuuko walks toward the table. DOCTOR I 9m the Doctor. YUUKO Well, Doctor. I 9ve been expecting you. DOCTOR You have? YUUKO Yes. Yuuko sits across from the Doctor. YUUKO Do you know why you 9re here? DOCTOR Nope, not a clue. Yuuko takes a puff of her pipe, and exhales slowly. YUUKO You 9re here because you have a wish you want granted. I will grant you this wish, but I must take compensation in return. 6 The Doctor bites his lower lip, dismissively. DOCTOR Ah. Well, I don 9t think I have any wishes. You haven 9t seen a blonde girl, 19 years old, have you? YUUKO Can 9t say that I have. Are you sure you don 9t have a wish? The two pause, looking at each other. The boy returns with a tray holding a tea cup, places the cup in front of the Doctor. DOCTOR Thank you. The boy bows as he steps back behind Yuuko, and remains there, standing, holding the tray to his chest. The Doctor sips the tea while he thinks. DOCTOR Well, I 9d like to know a little more about where we are. I 9d say Japan, but from what I can already tell, appearances can be deceiving. The boy is startled by this statement, and glances down at Yuuko, who appears unfazed. YUUKO Indeed, you are correct. We are in Japan. DOCTOR If we 9re in Japan, why does nothing seem to exist beyond the fence? YUUKO To answer that question, I would recommend direct observation, Doctor. Be my guest. Investigate. Yuuko gestures with her hand toward the walkway leading to outside the property, and the only area not blocked by the wooden fence. The Doctor looks at the entry way, then back at Yuuko. It 9s just a normal walkway. Clearly suspicious of what could be behind such a proposition, the Doctor gets up, still 7 looking at Yuuko while he does so. He turns around, approaching the nearest part of the fence. The Doctor feels the side of the fence, then leans up to it, holding the sonic screwdriver up to it. Clearly not having the expected response, he pulls it back, changes the setting, and tries again. Yuuko and the boy are watching this. The boy leans forward to ask Yuuko... BOY (whispering) What 9s he doing? Yuuko watches earnestly. Still not having the desired effect, The Doctor pulls back the screwdriver, steps back a stride, thinking. He looks up and down at the fence. Then turns, and strides toward to the entryway. Upon trying to walk around the fence onto the sidewalk outside, The Doctor 9s foot hits something right on the edge of the yard, also bumping his face against the same invisible object. Ripples appear in mid-air, at the points he had impacted, distorting his view of the street behind. An invisible wall. The Doctor applies his screwdriver yet again. He smacks the side of it, still clearly not having any expected effect. He puts it away, and touches the invisible wall with both his hands, as well as the fence. Clearly puzzled as to the nature of it, he goes back into his pocket, and pulls out a set of Red/ Green 3D paper glasses and puts them on. Looking out the entry way, his face contorts. DOCTOR What the bloody& The Doctor slowly turns around, scanning the grounds, continuing the same face, clenching his jaw, mouth open, in a confused face. Looking at the house, the moment he hears the children giggling, he pauses facing the porch where they 9re playing, lifts the glasses off, and puts them back on again. Now looking toward Yuuko and the boy, still clearly in disbelief. He takes the glasses off, puts them back in his inside pocket, and strolls back toward the table with his hands in his side pockets. 8 DOCTOR Well, I 9m not going anywhere, and all the same, I might learn a thing or two. The Doctor walks back to the table and sits down, turning to Yuuko. Yuuko clearly looks as if anticipating a question. DOCTOR You have my undivided attention. Why can 9t I go beyond the fence? YUUKO That fence is a dimensional barrier. DOCTOR I can see that. What are you keeping locked in here? YUUKO It 9s simply a boundary, Doctor; permitting only those who have business here to enter. DOCTOR But& I still can 9t leave. YUUKO Indeed. The kids still horsing around, run outside and continue chasing each other while singing. KIDS Who 9s afraid for the big bad wolf, big bad wolf, big bad wolf, & The Doctor pulls out the glasses again and takes a moment to scan the 4 people, an the tea cup in front of him. He puts the glasses back in his pocket. DOCTOR Are you all stuck here as well? YUUKO Certainly not. This is my shop; where I conduct my business. Those two are Maru and Moro. This is Watanuki. He 9s is not a prisoner either, but works part time at my shop. 9 Watanuki silently bows, not saying a word. DOCTOR Why am I being held here? YUUKO It is in your fate. DOCTOR Fate? I don 9t suppose it would help to say I don 9t believe in fate, would it? YUUKO Call it what you like. Fate& Inevitability& or& Yuuko blinks her eyes, and stares directly at the Doctor. YUUKO &the infallible passage of time, perhaps? The Doctor withholds his surprise, but clearly wasn 9t expecting that. YUUKO A life-time traveler such as yourself surely respects that more than most. Watanuki, standing behind Yuuko, is shocked at what she says. WATANUKI Time traveler?! He quickly puts one of his hands to his mouth, as if trying to catch himself from talking. Without turning, Yuuko extends her arm, pointing toward the house. YUUKO Get back to work, Watanuki! Watanuki quickly darts back inside the house. The kids, Maru and Moro, chase after him, still playing. DOCTOR You seem to know who I am, and yet I still don 9t know who you are. YUUKO 10 Are you sure of that? The Doctor pauses, collecting his thoughts, half confused. Yuuko takes another puff of her pipe, exhales, and stares at the Doctor. YUUKO (grinning) Hmmm? The Doctor takes a sip of tea, but suddenly pauses. He almost drops the cup before setting it on the table. The look on the Doctor 9s face indicates he 9s realized something, and, his disbelief is quite evident. DOCTOR Naw& That 9s impossible& It 9s only a fairy tale; a ghost story! YUUKO Reality is often stranger than fiction. Yuuko continues to glare at the Doctor, as if to push him to say what he 9s thinking. DOCTOR You 9re& The Dimensional Alchemist? Yuuko lets out a laugh. YUUKO Alchemist? Is that how you know me? DOCTOR But& Wish granting; a pan-dimensional gingerbread house& it all fits. You 9re really her? YUUKO I have been called that from time to time. DOCTOR You can 9t be real! This place can 9t exist! YUUKO You say that so confidently. Surely you can believe what you see with your own 11 eyes& especially after you 9ve spent some time dealing with your own& exploits. DOCTOR You knew about all that? YUUKO Of course. Any traveler must consider the condition of the waters before any voyage. DOCTOR You actually travel through dimensions? You must be aware of the damage that causes, aren 9t you? YUUKO Hmph. Still assuming the ghost stories to be fiction, I see. DOCTOR What about the dimensional fractures, then? You clearly know about those. YUUKO Indeed. The situation continues to grow toward a breaking point as we speak, but don 9t misunderstand. Those are the result of careless amateurs using ill- conceived technology. And as long as certain others continue to poke at the wound left behind, it can 9t heal, no matter what bandage you may put on it, Doctor. DOCTOR You mean it hasn 9t closed? YUUKO Hardly. Your vessel simply tore a dimensional micro-fracture as you fell through it. Any patch you applied was easily undone by the ongoing experimentation. The Doctor pieces together that the current time had to be before the day he crossed paths with Torchwood near present day, 12 but after the first trip to cPete 9s World, d when the TARDIS died. (memories of that episode regarding inter-dimensional travel, and the TARDIS 9 death flash on screen for a few seconds) DOCTOR The fractures were already here then? YUUKO Minute micro-fractures were created at that precise moment. Too small for you to detect apparently. Your vessel had practically collided with another, tossing you back in its wake, in to another dimension. DOCTOR Another ship? YUUKO Yes, and the source of the fractures. DOCTOR The Dalek Void ship& YUUKO Yes. That ship has caused quite some trouble. With the proper technique, the fluid nature of dimensional space allows it to be left undisturbed. This is why the Void is so vast. While that ship spent years crossing it, with proper method, that can be reduced to mere seconds. At this moment, another voice can be heard from the house, as a black blur leaps a few times, landing on the table, facing the Doctor. A weird black rabbit-like creature with just a face, stubby arms and legs, long ears, and a blue gem above its face. MOKONA Yo. DOCTOR Now, that& is weird. MOKONA Don 9t call Mokona cthat! d DOCTOR 13 And it talks. Mokona is clearly getting irritated. YUUKO Mokona. How was your nap? Mokona turns toward Yuuko, and raises his hand. MOKONA Mokona 9s all rested up! DOCTOR What is Mokona? YUUKO Mokona 9s a Mokona. Cute, isn 9t he? DOCTOR Yah. The Doctor pulls out the 3D glasses from earlier to get a better look at Mokona on the table. DOCTOR Woah& The Doctor jerks back in his seat, taking the glasses off. DOCTOR Not gonna do that again. Yuuko smiles and starts patting Mokona. DOCTOR I see what you mean about a proper method. Is cMokona d what I think? YUUKO What might that be? DOCTOR I would have to guess Mokona is a life form that came from the Void& one native to the Void itself, and useful for inter-dimensional travel& maybe? YUUKO 14 You really are a beginner at this. You 9re not even close. With help, I created Mokona as one single coherent form, across all dimensions. You could say the natural tendency for dimensional divergence is completely suppressed and controlled. Mokona also has a counterpart, similar in design, but linked, rather like a dimensional shadow. She has the ability you described, facilitated by the permanent link to this one, with unlimited range. She has the ability to change which dimension she is in, while this one stays with me. DOCTOR A man-made living mobile hyper- dimensional wormhole? Yuuko sighs. YUUKO Not quite& but close enough. DOCTOR Neat trick. YUUKO You have your own tricks, I can see. Considering the power demand and risk involved, even I didn 9t expect your vessel to survive both tearing a hole across dimensions and the return trip. Luck seems to be a strong talent of yours. DOCTOR Luck isn 9t as reliable as I 9d like. The Doctor now recalls what happened to Rose. YUUKO I wouldn 9t consider your lifestyle a curse. You are still responsible for your own choices, Doctor. The inevitabilities of existence always 15 are flexible in how we choose to live, even in matters of life itself. DOCTOR Yeah. I wish& Yuuko places her elbow on the table and leans her face into her hand, staring at the Doctor. YUUKO Do you? The Doctor looks up at Yuuko. She 9s glaring back at him like before, clearly already expecting something. DOCTOR I can 9t do anything about her! If I could save her, I would, but I can 9t change events in my own past! Time has already told. YUUKO Thinking in such limited dimensions. Ignore your claws d for one moment. DOCTOR You 9re saying you could save Rose? YUUKO For a fair price& The Doctor began considering what this could be building toward. He knows the horrific ghost stories that speak of the woman sitting across from him. The tales he knows often title her as an Alchemist; a word of many meanings and several volumes of history. Some consider alchemy a varied mix of mysticism and physical science that predates scientific method. However, others consider it more occult, analogous to witchcraft, with tales of cequivalent exchange d and dire consequences from unexpected costs. Some stories cut to the chase and simply call her a witch. Her cclients d have vanished, become life-long prisoners of their own torment, or gone inexpressibly mad from being unable to escape a roller-coaster of undesired success& just to name three. Taking a sip of tea, the Doctor realizes he must be cautious and direct. In all cases, arrogance and selfishness are paid for with suffering. By her action, wishes come true. Final outcomes depend on the client. 16 DOCTOR To save Rose Tyler from being pulled into the Void, so she can live out her life. What 9s the price? Yuuko pauses to suck on the pipe. Exhaling, she looks at the Doctor. YUUKO You can never be together again. The Doctor easily puts one and one together. YUUKO Ever & DOCTOR My life for her 9s? Yuuko snickers a little. YUUKO Certainly not. Your life is in your own hands. Besides, life taking is not worth the trouble. Skepticism. The stories portrayed her to always understand the inevitable outcome, always letting the child play with fire, and an objective judge would never place blame on her, yet never free her of guilt either. He considers the options& the past& DOCTOR She 9ll be safe? YUUKO Perfectly. DOCTOR Free to live as she wants? YUUKO Whatever is within her ability, yes. DOCTOR And no one is going to die? Yuuko laughs. YUUKO 17 (half-laughing) Doctor& I have no more control over human nature than you do. The Doctor tilts his head slightly, taking a serious tone. DOCTOR You didn 9t answer my question. Yuuko also turns serious, closes her eyes, takes a breath, and looks at the Doctor. YUUKO Your wish ends with Rose being saved from the Void, and being able to live as she chooses. What happens afterward is out of my hands. Payment is simply the condition I stated, which, like the wish, is absolute. DOCTOR May I ask what happens to the Void ship? The last thing I remember, it did something that may be a problem. Yuuko, taking a bit more spirited tone again, turns her head to the right, and flaps her hand in dismissal. YUUKO (amused) Oh, you don 9t need to worry about that old thing. It 9s not going to tear apart the universe. The Doctor is rather confused by how she takes saying such a thing. YUUKO Do we have a deal? DOCTOR Deal. YUUKO May your wish& be granted. DOCTOR Oh, one thing& Will I be able to say goodbye? 18 YUUKO Well& that 9s a completely different issue, now isn 9t it. The Doctor grits his teeth and grumbles. Caught up in making sure she was safe, he neglected that detail. YUUKO There is a way. But& DOCTOR Another price. YUUKO Indeed. DOCTOR How about this? The Doctor holds up the sonic screwdriver. Yuuko looks at it. YUUKO As a tool, quite valuable. To you, rather worthless. DOCTOR Then what will it take? Yuuko pauses to think. DOCTOR The less you have to do, the lower the cost, correct? YUUKO No. The cost is only reduced by reducing the value of what you receive. Anything else would upset the balance. DOCTOR If you just give me a hint, will that reduce the cost? YUUKO Yes. However your own task will be all the more difficult and uncertain. DOCTOR I can manage that. Follow me. 19 The Doctor stands, and heads to the TARDIS beside the house. Yuuko follows. 5.INSIDE THE TARDIS The Doctor pulls open the door, holding it open for Yuuko. Yuuko steps into the TARDIS with the Doctor close behind. YUUKO Magnificent. DOCTOR The last of its kind. YUUKO Known to many as the Chariot of the Gods. Yuuko walks around the center console, rubbing a finger along the outer edge as she walks past. Suddenly, the TARDIS controls seem to light up, and a display activates. DOCTOR What 9d you&? Yuuko is still walking around the bridge with her back to the Doctor. The Doctor leaps over to the display, checking the display 9s new information. YUUKO Go there. The rest is up to you. DOCTOR This is& What? YUUKO Don 9t try to understand just yet, Doctor. It will take time. You wanted a challenge. Just be wary of shock waves. Yuuko, stops, turns her head to look at the Doctor. The Doctor looks up from the screen at her. YUUKO Now, about my fee& I believe you have a somewhat drab scarf that you hold quite dear. DOCTOR 20 Scarf? That scarf? But& that 9s my favorite scarf! You can 9t take that! YUUKO You may be the Doctor, Doctor. But I 9m the Dimensional Alchemist. The definite article you might say. DOCTOR Take it. YUUKO Pleasure doing business with you, Doctor. Yuuko continues to walk around the TARDIS bridge, looking around at every angle. She places her other hand on the railing as she approaches the exit. She stops at the top of the steps, still facing away from the Doctor. YUUKO May I ask you something? Why do you accept your own loneliness? Yuuko seemed to hit a bit of a nerve with that question. Still, reluctantly, the Doctor responds. DOCTOR The more people I involve, the more people will end up hurt. YUUKO That sounds rather selfish. And yet, consider that you still persist hanging around these humans, which you hold so dear. By your statement, you will inevitably hurt some of them. You even associate with them directly& Yuuko turns to face the Doctor. YUUKO Seeking a distraction from the guilt, are you? DOCTOR Who are you to talk? You know how most of them are in this age! How can you 21 just hand an infant a ticking time bomb of fancy and send them on their way? YUUKO I can 9t be held responsible for their choices. They choose how to live. Human nature. I force nothing on anyone. DOCTOR You clearly know what they 9re in for. YUUKO If that 9s what you think to be true& that may be so. And what of your adventures, Doctor? Why don 9t you do something to stop them from following you? DOCTOR I only take the best. They understand the risks. YUUKO & and if they don 9t, it 9s no loss to you. It wasn 9t your influence, even if they are blinded in awe at the possibilities. DOCTOR You let them decide based on fundamental desires and greed, feeding the darker facets of a person. YUUKO They ask me to do it, and I do as I am contracted to do. I can 9t help it if that 9s in their nature. Right and wrong, good and bad; these are human concepts anyway, not nature 9s. The universe was not created with such ideas so extraneous to reality. DOCTOR That 9s where you 9re wrong. I 9ve seen people do tremendous good as well. The universe wasn 9t created with these ideas because they aren 9t universal ideas to begin with. But I know for a 22 fact that there is a good nature in every person, and it is meaningful. YUUKO And that goodness you see is what draws you to them. I couldn 9t have put it better myself. I didn 9t say the ideas are meaningless, just extraneous& as are most things that make up a humble human life. Most just don 9t realize it, and find themselves exploring their own selfishness. You seek to complete your own puzzle, where you gain the benefits of humanity, and trade experiences otherwise alien to these people; both so unique to each other and otherwise unobtainable. Quite an interesting balance, wouldn 9t you say? DOCTOR Aren 9t you the least bit concerned about what happens? YUUKO Fate will see things through. You and I are far more alike than you are willing to admit, Doctor. You understand, as do I, that knowledge doesn 9t grant power, but enforces limits. While we both have our egalitarian ways, you choose to be a wandering knight, whereas I choose to accept myself as a simple proxy. This is how we must be for now. That won 9t change unless opportunities are created and taken to change it. DOCTOR I suppose I should ask& What would the price be for bringing back the rest of my people? YUUKO (jokingly) Oh& you don 9t want to know. But& (seriously) Since you asked& 23 Yuuko looks down at the railing, rubbing it with her hand, then looks up at the Doctor. YUUKO Your TARDIS. DOCTOR You 9re right. I didn 9t want to know. Yuuko looks at the Doctor, and nods in a thoughtfully approving way. DOCTOR I was just asking, anyway. YUUKO (smiling back) No harm in that. With that, Yuuko descends the steps and opens the TARDIS door. DOCTOR Will I ever see you again? Yuuko pauses, but doesn 9t turn around. YUUKO If it's in your fate. Yuuko opens the door to the TARDIS. YUUKO Cheer up, Doctor. You never know& There may still be another out there& a rogue like yourself, taking things day by day, trying to live on without another. DOCTOR Wait, what?! Yuuko exits the TARDIS, closing the door behind her, and the TARDIS engines activate, by no action of the Doctor 9s. Hearing the engines, Watanuki runs outside, just in time to see the TARDIS disappear right in front of Yuuko. She looks down at the scarf in her hand. YUUKO Godspeed, my Time Lord. 24 6.TORCHWOOD INSTITUTE GHOST SHIFT ROOM - cPETE 9S WORLD d DIMENSION The room is empty. Abandoned in darkness of a Torchwood that survived a world under siege by Cybermen and the politics of ethics. Suddenly, 7 people appear out of nowhere. The blonde girl, standing separate from the group looks around the room. ROSE Oh, no you don 9t. He 9s not doing that to me again. She activates a green disk attached to a chain around her neck and disappears. JACKIE Rose! Jackie starts fumbling with a similar green disk she has. The man next to her yanks it out of her hand. JACKIE But, I 9ve got to go back! PETE The Doctor said every time we use one of these, it damages the whole world! Now that 9s it!! JACKIE She 9s your daughter! PETE She 9s your daughter! Not mine! Pete takes the device from Mickey. PETE That 9s an order! Pete turns and walks away from Jackie in a huff. JACKIE Mickey, tell him! Tell him, Mickey! Mickey! Mickey just rubs his chin, finding it difficult to disagree with Pete& that they can 9t do anything. 25 JACKIE The Doctor will find away, he always does! He has to! PETE You can 9t go back! We have to end this here, for the sake of both worlds! The Doctor knows the price, and so does Rose! MICKEY Rose 8ll be okay. The Doctor would never let anything happen to her. I know him. Pete walks over to Jackie. PETE She 9s safe. Jackie& Pete tries to hug Jackie. JACKIE Get away from me! Jackie pushes Pete away, and starts crying at losing her daughter. YUUKO Rose is in danger. Everyone turns to see Yuuko, dressed in a large black gown she often wears during inter-dimensional trips. PETE What? JACKIE Who the hell are you? YUUKO A friend of the Doctor 9s. In three minutes, the breach will be sealed, but Rose will be on neither side. MICKEY Neither side? Stuck between? 26 JAKE She gets pulled in? JACKIE NO! YUUKO Yes. PETE What about the Doctor? YUUKO He escapes. JACKIE And Rose doesn 9t? Who the hell do you think you are? YUUKO I can only warn you of her fate. It is up to you to change it. MICKEY You seem to know so much. Can 9t you do anything? YUUKO I 9ve already done everything in my power. Suddenly, in a flash of light, part of the floor around Yuuko distorts in a ring around her, as if the floor were liquid. A column of light surrounds her. JACKIE Wait!! Tell us how to save Rose!! The ring descends, turning into a hole in the floor, like a whirlpool without a whirl, with Yuuko at the center. As Yuuko slowly descends into the pool, she looks directly at Pete. YUUKO The rest is up to you. Moments later, she sinks completely into the floor, and the ring of light shrinks, and the floor seals just above her head, leaving the floor just as it had been a minute earlier. 27 They are now on their own, with less than two minutes to save Rose. JAKE That was weird. MICKEY What are we supposed to do now? Go back in time and stop her? The TARDIS is on the other side, not that it 9d even listen to us. PETE No matter what we do to get to the other side, we would get pulled in too. JACKIE You can 9t let Rose die! PETE What can we do? JACKIE Save her! You heard her! It 9s possible! PETE If we set foot on the other side, we get pulled in. MICKEY Yeah. The only way we don 9t is if we had something to hold on to. And if Rose gets pulled in, we have to anchor her too. With that thing already open on that side, how do we do that? Get lucky? PETE That side& not this side. MICKEY Huh? PETE If we have an anchor point on this side& Pete quickly grabs the large strand of wires hanging from the center of the room. 28 PETE &we don 9t need to worry about being pulled in. Pete tugs at the wires, verifying they are sturdy, and proceeds to tie the wires around his own waist. PETE I just have to make sure to come back with her. Who knows what a few wires strung between universes could do. MICKEY Wait, can this even work? PETE Only one way to find out. Pete rushes to the white wall at the end of the room. He tries tying it tighter, so it 9s taut to the ceiling. PETE If the breach is here, then this is the best place to stand& Finishing up the knot, checking it one last time, he looks up. JACKIE Pete& PETE Trust me, Jacks. Pete presses his green disk and disappears. Seconds later, he reappears, holding Rose. 7.YUUKO 9S SHOP: LIVING ROOM WATANUKI So who was that man? You called him a cTime Lord, d right? YUUKO Yes. He is a wanderer, traveling in time for all eternity, seeking companionship. WATANUKI 29 I don 9t get it. If he 9s tired of traveling, he could just go home if he wanted to, couldn 9t he? YUUKO His home was destroyed long ago, along with all his family. WATANUKI Really? Can 9t he go back in time and fix it, or have you bring them back to life? Or& would it be one of those paradoxes, like in movies? YUUKO Done properly, there wouldn 9t be a paradox. He knows this. Yet, it still isn 9t that simple. They were killed in a war; the ultimate sacrifice to destroy the enemy. Resurrecting one power, the other must follow. WATANUKI Ohhhh. So if he wished them back, the enemy would be back too, right? YUUKO Indeed. By whatever means necessary, the natural balance would maintain itself. It is something neither of us have any control over. WATANUKI But he beat them once& couldn 9t he find another way? YUUKO Who is to know? Maybe the same events repeat themselves& or perhaps they are replaced with new and different ones. Some things are best left to the imagination. Watanuki begins to understand the particular cruelty of the situation. WATANUKI 30 So& that 9s why he doesn 9t? There 9s no way to know if it 9s worth it? YUUKO Maybe& And yet& despite everything that does change, he would remain unchanged himself& with full memory of his current life, and the people he 9s left behind. Watanuki considers what that might be like& He lost his parents at an early age, which put him on the path he 9s been living for years. If his parents were still alive, just how much that would mean to him& but then he 9d never meet most of the people he knows today, yet still remember them. Yuuko, Himawari-chan, Doumeki, and the many spirits he 9s now friends with. YUUKO In this universe of balances, there are no winners or losers. Conflict and turmoil reflect the chaos this universe was born out of, and the balance that has been ever present. One instinct that drives you to find your own purpose in the universe also stands in your way from accepting it for what it is. WATANUKI What instinct is that? YUUKO Desire. See notes and explanations in Doctor Who Confidential at http://www.lycestra.com/whoholic/13_5_confidential_MirrorOfFate.rtf Special Thanks to K-Oni and Nanmo. Without their help, this probably would never have been written Updated 2007.08.08 31

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