For Cosmo-Gyral

[nevercruel]

[Written for my best and oldest friend, who years ago created a companion for my Eleventh Doctor who became his best girl in the years he was running away from his death, hiding from the Ponds, and then was left behind years later, when he knew his time was running out. They've always been two of my favorite characters, and until the new season of the show started, we had never thought we'd be able to explore their relationship as anything more then just those years they stole while he was avoiding his responsibilities. Now, I can't stop imagining all of the possibilities! I hope you like it!]

 

The moment she’d woken up, the presence of her TARDIS in the back of her mind had been buzzing strangely, like a tickle on a part of her brain that made Evie feel like she were clawing at the walls, needing to get out and go.  They’d been parked on Hydrus 9; that old, familiar world that brought back memories of bioluminescent aquaballets and dinners under the moonlit sea.  It had become a predictably frequent vacation spot over the years.  Just when she thought she was beginning to forget, they would invariably find themselves coming back to remember, and no matter how she protested, no matter how painful the memories had been, she had always been thankful for the trips. 
 

So when she found herself needing to get up and go, she could already tell that something was on what passed for the old girl’s mind..  It wasn’t unusual, of course.  She had never known them to be anything but fickle, flighty things, from the first time she saw that particularly bright, blue box over three centuries before.  He’d always talked as if it were a quirk of his own constant companion, some glitch in her heart that set her apart from most of the others and made her special, but she’d often wondered if his fondness for her had biased his opinion.  While Tiny wasn’t anywhere near as persnickety as his Sexy had been, she had still shared some of her sister’s proclivities for unexpected detours when the mood struck her.  It certainly made life more interesting, in the long run.
 

She swung her legs out of her bed, stretching her back until she felt the cracks roll down her spine as she yawned.  Her constant companion sent a welcoming “purr” through her mind  as a form of unspoken Good Morning, and she could feel the engine rumble under her feet, already eager to go.  Evie gave a small breath of a laugh as she slid across the glimmering, silver floor to the console in soft, fuzzy socks as readouts began to scroll down the display.  The weather outside the entry hatch (a balmy 26 degrees,) flight paths of other ships as they flew by overhead, the top bestselling books for that day across twenty years each direction.  For all intents and purposes, everything seemed completely normal, apart from the bubbling sense of anticipation that filtered down to her through the telepathic field.
 

She let her stew on the feeling for a few minutes, humming softly to herself as she ran her fingers along the textured surface of the control console, and felt the ship give an irritated snarl in retort before she smiled at the central rotor, crossing her arms and staring up at the far corner of the combined control room and sleeping quarters.

“Well, it’s obvious you’ve got somewhere in mind.  I suppose you can choose this time; no sense in risking another TARDIS tantrum.”
 

There was another hum of reply from under her feet, and she jumped up, pressing levers and flipping switches while the ship made the necessary adjustments and calculations for their next destination, and within moments they were careening through the time vortex, the whine of the engines ringing through her head.  It was over almost before it started, as any well-executed flight should be, barely giving her time enough to rush to the wardrobe and begin to throw together an outfit.  Something told her today was going to be a “pretty” day.  ‘Put on your Sunday best, Miss Evie,’ she heard that old, familiar voice quip playfully in her head from memories long past, ‘today is a special trip.’

Half an hour later, she stepped out of the hatch and into a small, paved alley between a pair of brick and mortar townhouse blocks.  She didn’t have to give the command before the TARDIS’ chameleon circuit kicked on, leaving the small, slender form of a young woman standing beside her, a smile on her face and a strange glimmer shining out mischievously from behind her hazel eyes.

“Alright, you old bird, what have you got planned for me this time?”  The silent companion simply tilted her head slyly, a brow lifting teasingly, but Evie could feel the ship holding back, keeping her secrets closer to her heart.  “Fine, then, you tease.  Have it your way, lead on. I’ll follow you.”

Tiny wasted no time in turning and marching purposefully down the alley, out into the street and down the sidewalk at a brisk pace, and Evie rushed to catch up with her with a laugh, swatting the other’s arm gently as she fell into step beside her. Every few blocks, the sentient vessel stopped for but a brief moment to survey their surroundings before darting off again, weaving a labyrinthine path through the city that Evie had forgotten to even identify before they had embarked.

And then she felt a sharp twinge in the back of her mind, the equivalent of her TARDIS giving a start of surprise as they caught the nearby sounds of voices chattering energetically and the sound of an old creaking door snap shut, and a rush of excitement hit her as she caught the playful glance Tiny gave the Time Lady.  Before she could stop her, she had darted into a bright alley after the sounds, drawing a protesting sound from her pilot before Evelyn could catch up behind her.  Her feet caught on the concrete path at the sight of an old police box, looking worn around the edges but still refreshingly bright for its age.

Tiny ignored her hesitance as she marched right up to the door, missed the moment of disbelief her pilot felt before the emotion immediately melted into disappointment, a twinge of ache pulling at her hearts.

“Oh no, Tiny.  It’s just a police box, that’s all.  An old, normal, mundane police box.  It’s not even the right shade of blue!” She followed after her regardless, watching as her TARDIS rapped brightly on the door three times, as it clicked open, the lock inside surely weak or broken with age, and Tiny marched inside without looking back.

And then she heard it; the sound of voices inside, the sound of surprised murmurings and one very high shout of obvious shock, and she gasped.  Evie ran, throwing the door open, throwing herself through before she could second-guess herself, and immediately found herself inside…a police box interior.  White walls and high windows that allowed the yellow glow of sunlight to flow in. But beyond that.

Oh, the sight of it dazzled her, taking her breath away as she looked up and around her at the massive honeycomb matrix of the support structures of the room, the yellow, glowing light streaming down to the floor like sunlight through the branches of a forest of trees.  The massive, crystaline structures that jutted up inside that, surrounding the central platform, glowing and warm and welcoming.  The feeling of the floor underneath her rumbling as a hum erupted all around her, and her mind lighting up at the sensation of an old, very familiar presence lighting up in her mind.

She felt the spot just behind her eyes tighten, stinging as her vision blurred.  She dimly realized that the tiny, strangled sound she heard was her own voice, a tiny sob of shock and joy.  And then a woman was calling out, voice high and almost sounding as stunned as she felt, the sounds of footsteps quickly approaching breaking her out of her stupor.

“Miss Evie?” She wiped her eyes furiously as the blurred figures in front of her moved, fought to focus on one form clad in soft powder blue as it moved into view, and when her vision had cleared enough to make out the world around her once again, she found it filled with a young woman’s face.  Blonde – no brunette, dyed blonde, her roots were showing – mouth hanging open, hazel eyes.  They were red, watery, eyebrows arched so high on her forehead that they set deep lines there that aged the face more then it was.  She looked so sad.

“Wh-…the Doctor. This is his…where…Where is the Doctor?” her eyes flew past her, darting around the control room.  There was Tiny, and there was an older man, looking confused.  A young woman, a young man, all of them staring at her, none but her own TARDIS holding any recognition in their eyes when they saw her.

But oh, how Tiny was grinning, silently clapping and bouncing on her feet, pointing at her insistently.

“Evie!”  She jumped, for a second mishearing the voice of the sad woman in front of her as his, and she looked back at her in surprise when she felt her arms being grasped gently in long, slender fingers.  She looked so expectantly at her, shifting on her feet and moving so that her face filled her vision.  “Evie, I’m here, it’s alright!”

No, not pointing at Evelyn.  Tiny was pointing at her, at the sad woman who’s eyes looked  so much older then the rest of her face.  Bright, sad, old hazel eyes.

She felt her breath catch in her throat and she gasped, her hands darting up to cover her own gaping mouth as time seemed to come to a standstill.  She saw the young man in a pin-striped suit and sneakers, dashing through her life as mayhem ensued, shoving her into a broom closet to hide until the coast was clear.  She saw a young man years later, bow ties and tweed and love wrapped into one package that was older on the inside, warm arms and comfort and fury and sadness and pain.  The Doctor, her Doctor, both one and the same. Regeneration, he’d explained.  Many faces, one life, one soul, shared memories and experiences and adventures that continued after one of them-…

The woman nodded gently, the hands on Evelyn’s arms drifting up to cup her cheeks as the realization took hold.  Evie’s fingers found their way to the lapels of her powder-blue coat and gripped it tightly as she fought to ground herself, and she cried, the tears that she’d wiped away returning to stream down her cheeks and shatter the world around her into a kaleidoscope of lights and colors that she tried furiously to blink clear again.

“You changed!”

“Yes, Evie, I’m here, it’s alright, it’s me!” There were tears in the others voice as well, and it did nothing to still her own shock.

“Doctor! Doctor, you left me!  You left me alone and you changed!  Why?  Why did you do it?”

Warm arms wrapped around her, a cheek pressing against hers, and instantly she felt the ghost of another mind touching her own, imploring, reassuring, comforting.  Sadness and pain and absolutely her Doctor. She let out a sob, clinging tightly to the woman in front of her as she let it envelope her.

“I’m so sorry, Evie, I’m so sorry!  I didn’t want you to see, I didn’t want you to suffer!  It was my last, I didn’t know!”  she shook the coat, shock and rage bubbling to the surface for a moment, and she pushed her away, swatting at the woman’s chest in anger before it left as quickly as it had come, the strange combination of grief and joy settling deep inside.

“Didn’t want me to suffer?!?  You left me alone!  What wasn’t I supposed to see?  Why didn’t you just tell me? What were you thinking?”

The woman caught her hands, holding them tightly as she felt her forehead press against her own, heard her whispering softly to her, shushing her, as she let her mind speak for her through the telepathic bond the touch allowed.

He had thought he was going to die.  He had been running from it even before he’d met her with his bow-ties-face, and it was meant to be his last.  No more faces, no more regenerations, no more Doctor.  Dangerous and painful and he didn’t want her to hurt, didn’t want her to see it happen.  He’d given her up, let her be free, when her father’s TARDIS had found them, he’d let her go so that she could be happy. Away from all the pain and death and danger he left in his wake.

Soft cries mixed with her own, and she realized that the woman holding her was sobbing, too, felt the other mind trying to hold it back and failing miserably, felt how exposed it – he – she felt, breaking down in front of the others that were across the room.  The other body shook gently, pressing close to Evie as if the closeness would somehow shield them from view.

Don’t cry, please don’t cry, I hate it when you cry!

I’m sorry, Miss Evie, I’m so sorry!

Never thought I’d see you again!

Never wanted to hurt you!

Can’t believe it’s you!

Can’t think clearly

Need to break free, too much, let go, can’t think

Let go!

There was a shared gasp as they pulled away, breaking the feedback loop of emotions that neither felt capable of containing and returning to themselves once again, and Evie found she could blink the tears clear this time, found herself staring at the Doctor, at the sad eyes that stared back at her, red and watery and wide.  It was her.  After all these years, after centuries, after feeling abandoned and angry and lost and most of all confused, he was there, in front of her, and it was her.  Gazing at her expectantly, waiting on baited breath to see what she would do next.

What she did was lunge forward wrapping her arms around the woman – so much more slender and delicate and small then she remembered him being – and pull her tightly close, pressing her lips to her gently-parted mouth and kiss her fiercely, as if putting the strength of all of those she’d missed over the years into this one.  Her Doctor made a small sound, surprise or joy she wasn’t sure, and her hands flailed gently from where they were pinned between them, awkward and unsure of what to do.  It made her laugh against her mouth at the familiarity of it, bright and loud and so happy.  Her silly, awkward Doctor, never sure what to do with themself when they were kissed!

But then those hands were back on her face and those lips kissed her back, just as fiercely, and she clung to her as she felt the door press firmly against her back.  Fingers touching, caressing, clutching, gripping up into her hair as she felt her head swarming.  The world narrowed down around them until it was just her and the Doctor, not even the vibrations of the ship at her back breaking through the fog.  It seemed like an eternity before they came up for breath – and with a respiratory bypass system, perhaps it was – faces pressed close as their eyes roamed over each others features and drank it all in.  She studied everything; the curve of her jaw, the perfect arch of her eyebrows, the way one side of her kiss-swollen lip curled up just a little higher on one side.  It was all so new, so foreign, but already she loved it, loved this new face.  She was beautiful.

“What’s the laugh for?”

“You’re a bird, now!?”

“Yeah, guess I am.  Is-…is that alright?”

The tiny hint of worry in her voice made her coo affectionately, despite herself.  How dare she do that.  That…being adorable thing.  It wasn’t fair!

“Yes, mi duck, it’s alright.  New, but…I like it.  Just take some gettin’ used to, that’s all.”  The Doctor grinned then, her nose and her eyes crinkling up in a face that gave the adorable voice a run for it’s money.  Evie leaned in, nuzzling against that nose playfully before settling back in to rest against her forehead, her eyes sliding closed as she flexed her own mental muscles, seeking out her Doctor’s mind tentatively.  The connection was accepted again, so different, but even more then those old eyes, so familiar.

Don’t you ever do that again.

I promise, Evelyn Reed, I won’t.

Evie

Yes, Miss Evie

E v i e

Yes, Ma’am

The small snarl of frustrated amusement she made drew a bright laugh from the other, and they sighed in tandem, settling into each other’s presence as if they hadn’t been separated for centuries.

The moment was finally broken as a new pair of arms wrapped around the two of them suddenly from behind, and they jumped, turning to see Tiny grinning as she squeezed them tightly.  The Doctor laughed again, pulling away to put an arm around the human-disguised TARDIS and patting her affectionately on the back.

“Yes, Hello to you, again, too!  I hope you didn’t get her into too much trouble while we were gone."  The sound of a throat being cleared behind them made the three look up, suddenly remembering that they were not alone, at the other three people standing awkwardly nearby.

Oh.  The look on their faces – on the face of the young man in particular – made it painfully obvious just how much of that they’d seen.  Evie felt her entire face flush bright red.

“OH NO!  Where are my manners?  Evie, meet Team TARDIS!”  Wiping her eyes on the sleeve of her coat, the Doctor pulled them deeper inside, rushing her up to them as if nothing were amiss.  Of course she didn’t notice how awkward everyone was!  Some things never changed.  “Graham, Ryan, Yaz, meet Evelyn Reed!  Evie, Graham Ryan and Yaz.”

She nodded shyly and waved at them all, and they returned the timid little gesture with their own.  The Doctor, having seemingly gotten over the tears as if they had never even existed (though Evie knew better, more then most) was all grins and energy, bouncing on her feet and pushing her toward them like a new puppy being presented to the family.

“Go on, shake hands!  She’s one of my dearest friends!  Wonderful woman, you’ll love her, I promise!”

“Friend?  Is that how all friends greet each other where you’re from?”

“Ryan, hush that, don’t be rude!”

The Doctor pressed up closer against her back as her eyes darted back and forth between the three of them, mindlessly shaking their hands, and she felt her cheek press against hers from behind, her mind brushing up to her again.

Grandson and Grandfather.  Sorta.  It’s complicated.  They just lost his Grandmother.

It wasn’t said, but she could feel guilt coming from her, and she knew there was more to that then was being told.  Maybe later.

Is that why he looks…sad?  Maybe…we should do less of the kissing thing like that until we’re alone, it looks like we hit a nerve.  Poor thing.

There was a sharp breath from the Doctor as she pulled away, but not fast enough for Evie to feel the psychic blush that erupted in response.  She let her dance off to the other side of the console, momentarily sad for the absence of her touch, as she smiled at them, doing her best to pull her own awkwardness under control.

“It’s alright, I’m sorry for…that.  We lost each other, me and the Doctor.  Years ago.  We’re fine, now, it’s fine.  I’m just so happy to be back, I guess we got a little carried away.”

They smiled at her, their own discomfort melting away slowly, and the look she saw on the older man’s face spoke volumes to the understanding he felt but was leaving unsaid.  Don’t make it more uncomfortable then it already is.  Buck up and smile and pretend it’s not a thing.  Perfectly English.

“And who’s this?”  The sound of a foot pedal being depressed repeatedly from where the Doctor had disappeared behind the crystaline time rotor filled the air as the young woman named Yaz gave a little wave to Tiny beside her and received one in return.  Before she could answer, Evie found a small mountain of custard crème biscuits being dropped into her hands as the Doctor came back around, leaving her staring at them in confusion as she handed more to the rest of her friends.

“This, Yaz, is Tiny!  She’s another TARDIS!”  Her hands now empty, the Doctor reached over to poke Tiny playfully in the cheek, only to receive a gentle swat in return.

“What?  No.  Like your police box?”

“Yes, mostly!  She’s newer, and her chameleon circuit still works.  I’d always heard Type 45’s could take on humanoid form, but I never had a chance to see until she showed up!  Mine’s a Type 40, can only do inanimate disguises.  But that’s alright with us, isn’t it?  Yes, it most certainly is, we love her just the way she is!”

Evie watched her pet one of the glowing pillars as she cooed at the ship they were standing in, and she could feel the wave of affection and smug pride that was sent out in response, making the Doctor beam.  She found it hard to pull her eyes away from her again, watching her dart around the room, fluttering and flapping with so much energy, so very much like the young old man she’d known years ago.  It made the joyful ache in her hearts swell, and she giggled at the feeling, drawing the gaze of those hazel eyes again, a tiny smile shared between the two of them.

“So…they really are alive?  I mean, I know you kept sayin’ as much, but – oh no, I’m sorry, now I’m talking about you like you’re not here!  She said your name is Tiny?”

“She’s not one for talking, Graham, and yes, they’re alive.  Give it time, you’ll start being able to sense it, too, I promise!  It’s stronger for us Time Lords, but they have a telepathic aura that even humans can feel!  If you’re quiet, before long, you’ll be able to feel her around you!  I told you she was very all that, didn’t I?”

Graham may or may not have been listening, of course, as Tiny had wandered up to him, moving far too close for most humans’ comfort, and stared into his face before smiling, grabbing his hand, and shaking it firmly enough that it shook his entire arm.

Evie took pity on him, mentally calling Tiny back over before handing her the mountain of biscuits and keeping one for herself.

“So, these are your new friends, eh, Doctor?  I hope you haven’t gotten up to too much trouble while I was gone.”

“What, me, trouble? No, it’s been grand!  We’ve had loads of fun, haven’t we, team? And now that you’re back, we’ll have even more!  It’ll be so good, having you back!”

“Oh yeah, loads of fun.  If you count giant spiders as fun!”

“Hey now, that wasn’t my fault, and you three came out just fine.  It’s not like wh-…”

Evie stopped focusing so much on the words that were said as she did the fact that they were being said at all, her eyes following the Doctor around as she danced around the console, flipping switches and pulling levers as she chattered on tirelessly.  Next to her, Tiny nudged her with an elbow, and when she looked over at her, she simply grinned broadly, clapping her hands before she darted off, racing through a gap in the honeycomb structure to heavens only knew where, disappearing into the interior of the Doctor’s TARDIS.  Probably off to reconnect with the older sister-ship while Evie fell back into her rightful place at the Doctor’s side.

The fact that hours later, when she finally went looking for her, she found a softly humming, vibrating old music box sitting in Evie’s old bedroom – unchanged and looking as if she’d never left in the first place – made her smile.  Both of them back home, and if one TARDIS hiding inside of another threatened to cause any sort of temporal catastrophe, the Doctor certainly didn’t seem inclined to worry about it.  Who cared about the impossibility of a gigantic box inside of a tiny box sitting inside an even more gigantic box sitting inside of a telephone box?  They were home, and that was what mattered.