The Bet - Part Three

>> Thursday 29 April 2010


Part Three - Salads and Chocolate

After another hour or two, the Doctor and Rose left Jackie and headed back towards the TARDIS. Rose was in a foul mood and continuously snapped one-worded answers to any of the Doctor's remarks.

When inside the console room, the Doctor asked Rose where she wanted to go and she just shrugged fiercely, turning her back to him.

"Oh, come on, Rose," he sighed. "I only got those chips because you made Jackie give me some tea!"

She didn't even bother replying, just gave him a glare.

"You started it," the Doctor murmured quietly, flicking at some buttons. Rose rolled her eyes and turned towards him. She opened her mouth to make a comment but stopped herself, closing her lips and sitting down on the chair.

"You look like a goldfish," the Doctor said, adding a grin to try and make her smile. Instead, she folded her arms.

"Well, anyway, I've set the controls to just fly through the Vortex," he continued when the TARDIS suddenly came to life. "Just thought you might be interested."

"I'm getting something to eat," Rose sighed, standing up and heading towards the kitchen. "I don't suppose you'll want anything seeing as you stuffed your face a few minutes ago."

"What are you gonna have?" he asked, trying not to chuckle.

"A salad," she hissed, slamming the door behind her.

Rose joined the Doctor a few minutes later with a plate full of what looked like a miniature garden. She picked at it lazily with her fork, completely reluctant to eat any of the lettuce; it looked like someone had just picked it straight from a bush and she grimaced to herself, moving on to the tomatoes. She pierced one's skin and retched, watching the liquid slowly oozing from the middle.

The Doctor watched this in quiet amusement, resisting the urge to laugh. "Taste nice?"

Rose met his gaze, forcing a smile. "Grand."

He smirked. "At least it's healthy."

"Yup," Rose replied bluntly. "I just love getting my five a day."

She began picking at a boiled egg and sighed to herself, longing for some chips. She could just imagine the taste... the greasy, salty-

"Rose?"

She blinked, realising that the Doctor was looking at her expectantly. He must have said something. "Sorry, what?"

"I was just gonna say that I need to go somewhere, I've just remembered," he smiled. "Preoccupied in your thoughts?"

"No," she frowned. "I was just overwhelmed by the taste sensations of this glorious dish."

"Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, y'know."

"Good job I never use it, then."

She quickly placed her unfinished meal to one side and stood up, joining him by his side. He looked a little hurt for some reason and Rose sighed, realising how cruelly she had been behaving; she was acting like a moody teenager.

"Doctor, I'm sorry that I've been rude," she said in a rush, kicking at the floor with her shoe. "I'm just..."

"Suffering from withdrawal symptoms?" he offered, grinning.

Rose nudged him. "Shut up."

"Apology accepted," he smiled. "Now," the TARDIS landed, "I just need to get something. I won't be long... you don't have to come if you don't want to. It'd probably be very boring."

"Why do I get the impression that you're hiding something?"

He raised his eyebrows. "I'll be about half an hour. Have fun with your salad while I'm gone!"

He rushed towards the doors and Rose resisted making a rude gesture to his back. "Where are you going, Doctor?"

"Well," he began, speaking in a low voice, "outside those doors lies a whole new world..." A smile crept onto Rose's face.

"We could be on some distant planet in the future, or some brilliant civilisation in the past," he continued, putting on his coat.

"Ooh, mysterious," Rose whispered, waving her hands around.

"Ah, don't spoil the suspense, Rose," the Doctor groaned. "I was quite pleased with myself then! Created quite an atmosphere." He paused, thinking to himself. "Maybe I should become an author. I've always had a way with words."

"Smug, much?" Rose grimaced.

"Anyway, allons-y!" he said, reaching forward and starting to pull open the doors.

"Doctor!" Rose yelled, causing him to start a little. "Just tell me where you're going!"

He sighed. "Alright. We're in London, modern day. I need to go to a shop. I love shops," he grinned. "Especially in hospitals!"

Rose shook her head in disbelief. "Wow, that really sounds like a 'whole new world.'"

"I had you fooled for a few moments," the Doctor countered. "So are you actually gonna let me go now?"

Rose sighed. "Feel free."

He disappeared out the doors and she blew out a long breath, prickling with curiosity but wanting to keep herself occupied while he was gone. After a few moments' thought, she headed towards the kitchen. More salad it was, then.

***

Rose was just beginning to develop a lifelong hatred of tomatoes when there was a sudden noise from the console room. Her name soon followed, yelled by the Doctor.

"Alright, I'm coming down now!" she replied, hauling herself off the kitchen counter that she'd been sitting on. She couldn't help sprinting a bit towards the main room; the suspense was killing her.

When she eventually stormed in to meet the Doctor, she stood completely still, momentarily stunned by the scene in front of her.

The area around the console was completely covered with cardboard boxes, some of which were open and Rose could see some jars inside. In another box she could see the wrappings of some chocolate bars and she frowned heavily.

"Doctor! What the fu-"

"Fudge!" the Doctor cried, stretching out his arm. "Do you want some of this chocolate bar?"

She stared at him wordlessly. "What the hell is all this?"

"Several jars of coffee and boxes of chocolate bars," he replied, as though it was common sense. He took an obvious bite out of the fudge and grinned happily, taking a seat on the chair. He rested his converse shoes on top of the controls, looking in Rose's direction. "Something wrong?"

"Wh-" Rose began, shaking her head. "Why?"

"Well I need to intake some caffeine somehow," the Doctor explained. "And this seemed like a fair enough solution."

"Yeah, 'cause everybody buys a shop's entire stock of products when they're craving something!" she exclaimed. "Isn't that cheating, though?"

"Nope. The contract strictly states-"

"Alright, alright," she interrupted. "But who on earth let you buy all this stuff?"

"Oh, he was a nice man. Bob, I think his name was. He even helped me carry the stuff to the TARDIS!" he told her, smiling all the way.

"But..."

"The psychic paper came in handy, mind you," he continued.

She rolled her eyes. "I hope you paid him."

He didn't answer that.

"Well there's another person in this world who now thinks you're insane," Rose sighed, taking a seat beside him. "Well done."

"Thanks," he grinned, reaching into a box. "Kit Kat?"

She sighed, taking the chocolate bar from him. "You're unbelievable."

"But," he interrupted, holding up a finger, "in a brilliant way."

"Whatever."

***

"Ugh. Rose, I feel ill."

She glanced over at the Doctor; he was currently slouched over on the seat, surrounding by dozens of empty chocolate bar wrappers. A low moan escaped his lips and she smiled a little.

"How many bars did you eat exactly?"

He let out a very long sigh. "Too many."

Rose laughed. "Some of those buttons on your suit will be popping soon under the strain."

"I've actually got a very fast metabolism," he frowned. "I don't usually put on any weight."

"That's obvious."

He smirked. "Ugh, I could seriously fall asleep right now... maybe I should get some coffee-"

Rose gripped his arm. "Doctor, that's not wise, you'll just make yourself vomit. If that's possible..." She paused. "Do Time Lords vomit?"

"Oh yes."

His words were slurring and Rose looked at him warily. "Do you want to take a nap?"

"I haven't slept in months. It's," he paused, yawning wildly, "it's a waste of time. I don't like it."

Rose sighed. "I really don't know what to do with you sometimes. One minute you're sprinting around the TARDIS like an over-active five year old, the next you're gorging on chocolate bars and complaing about sleeping! I-"

She trailed off, realising how oddly quiet he was being. Turning towards him, she snorted; his eyes were closed and his body was slowly drooping towards hers. His head eventually rested on her shoulder and she twiddled her thumbs, wondering how long she'd be stuck here; she couldn't disturb him, after all.

Staying as still as she could, she whipped out her mobile phone and began randomly checking through some old messages to keep herself occupied. It was only when a muffled sound came from him that the Doctor received her attention.

"Mmm... te-"

She froze, looking down at him. He was silent for a few moments before another set of meaningless words escaped from his mouth.

"No, te- I want the... no!"

Rose had to clamp her hand over her mouth to stop her laughter. She now knew the reason why the Doctor hated sleeping; someone must have told him that he had the habit of talking during the process.

"Rose... no, I just- just one!"

Her eyes widened at the mention of her name.

"Just... ugh, give me the tea! Nooo!"
He practically shouted this last part and Rose snorted, her shoulders shaking violently. She couldn't believe what was happening and was overwhelmed by the sharp pain this laughter had caused in her chest.

Looking down at her phone, a sudden idea sprung into her mind and she giggled, setting up the video camera.

"And... record..."

Part Four will be up soon!

Read more...

Read The Bet

>> Friday 9 April 2010





Read more...

The Bet - Part Two

Part Two - Evil Schemes

"Hang on, though," Rose suddenly said a while later, frowning at the Doctor. "I was thinking about this earlier... you're a Time Lord and I'm just a human. Doesn't that give you some kind of... unfair alien advantage?"

The Doctor popped his head above the book he was reading and looked at her through his wide rimmed glasses. "Nah. Not really... and besides, you get to sleep for half of the time. I've got to survive the night on my own."

She wasn't expecting that. "Oh." After a pause, she asked, "Well what do you usually do, then?"

He shrugged. "It depends really. I mostly find a good book, sometimes go outside and wander about a bit."

She was a little disappointed. "Hmm."

The Doctor turned his attention back to the print in front of him but was really struggling to find any meaning behind the words, despite his intelligence. His mind was being dominated with a craving of caffeine and it had only been, what? - he quickly glanced at the TARDIS console - fifteen minutes since the bet...

He was in trouble.

Rose, on the other hand, was feeling quite positive. She didn't think she had any cravings of any kind at the moment, but kept a close eye on the Doctor and his actions. He seemed perfectly composed, as usual, and she silently glared at him.

She had actually expected this bet to be a lot more interesting and quietly dawdled around the console, wondering what to do next. She certainly didn't have the Doctor's attention and wanted something to keep herself distracted.

A sudden idea popped into her head and she grinned mischievously.

"Doctor?" she said slowly, walking over to him. He glanced up at her and waited expectantly. "I was wondering..."

Before she could finish, the Doctor interrupted. "Now why do I have the feeling this is going to be bad?"

Rose smiled sweetly. "I just wanted to ask a little favour."

He took off his glasses and placed the book on the seat beside him. "And what might that be?"

"Well, it's been a while since I saw my Mum..."

He quickly shook his head. "Oh no. No, no, no."

"But, Doctor!" Rose moaned. "It's been a while since I've seen her!"

"You saw her last week," he pointed out, somewhat bluntly.

"Yeah, well," Rose shrugged. "I lose track of time in here."

He quickly stood up and occupied himself with the TARDIS screen and Rose followed promptly behind him, determined to get her way.

"But Doctor, she's my Mum..." she whinged. "We won't be there long, I promise, an hour at the most!"

He remained silent, pressing a few random buttons.

"Please?" Rose pleaded, hoping to stare at him long enough and pull his gaze towards her. She eventually succeeded and his eyes met hers a little reluctantly. He blew out a long breath and pulled a lever that was within his reach.

"Alright, then," he sighed. "But just the one hour! I don't know how much of your mother's company I can endure."

Rose smiled to herself. He hadn't seemed to have twigged her real intentions for going back home... Not yet, anyway.

***

"Well, here we are then," the Doctor announced a few minutes later. "The Powell Estate."

Rose smiled. "Home sweet home."

The TARDIS settled and the pair headed towards the doors. The Doctor didn't pick up his coat on the way there; he was feeling very warm and queasy, so no longer required it. He didn't want to think about that too much, though.

They both stepped outside and headed towards the flat, Rose skipping eagerly ahead and the Doctor trailing behind a little slowly. Rose noticed this and backtracked, grabbing his hand in an aid to help him up the stairs. At the moment, he was beginning to feel very much like an old man. Well, he was already over 900 years of age, but that didn't matter...

"You alright, Doctor?" Rose asked. "You seem a little down."

He looked up to her and smiled slowly. "I'm fine. Just scared about Jackie."

"Hey!" she grumbled, nudging him. "She's not that bad."

"Nah," he muttered under his breath, "neither was Hitler."

"You did not seriously just compare my mother to Hitler?!" Rose retorted, unable to stop grinning a little.

They reached the top of the steps and Rose happily knocked on the door, while the Doctor kept his distance; it was best to be cautious, in his opinion. He'd learnt that from years of experience.

After a few moments, Jackie appeared at the door and her eyes widened at the unexpected visitors. She soon smiled and pulled her daughter into a crushing hug, loudly showing how glad she was to see her. The Doctor had to suppress an agitated eye roll; sure, it was nice that Rose had a great relationship with her mother, but Jackie could sometimes be a little overpowering and annoying.

"Rose! I never knew you were coming back! Oh! This is such a nice surprise, but I've got nothing in... I wish you'd have given me some notice!"

Rose pulled away, laughing lightly. "No need to worry, Mum, it's just a quick visit."

"Well come in, then!" she said, stepping inside while Rose followed. The Doctor took in a deep breath and tried to steady himself as he trailed in after her, a little reluctantly.

He took a seat next to Rose on the sofa and Jackie frowned at him. "Eh, Doctor, you're looking a little pale. You alright?"

He gulped at the sudden attention and loosened his tie a little. "Yeah, I'm fine," he replied, forcing a smile.

She studied him for a moment and the Doctor began to feel very uncomfortable. "You don't look fine," she observed. "Are you sure?"

He wanted to sigh but nodded slowly. "Absolutely positive."

"Well, whatever you say," she shrugged. "But I know what'll cheer you up anyway; a nice cuppa tea."

The Doctor stiffened in his seat and Rose had to stifle a laugh. Jackie walked through into the kitchen, completely oblivious, and began boiling a kettle. The Doctor turned to Rose and raised an eyebrow.

"I never thought you were a schemer," he said, grumbling under his breath.

She grinned. "Sorry, it was just irresistible. I'm taking this bet very seriously."

Jackie soon joined them, placing a tray with three cups of tea on the table. The Doctor very nearly groaned when Rose took hers, taking a very long and obvious sip.

"Evil," he murmured quietly.

Jackie had settled down with her own cup and quickly noticed the Doctor's actions, or lack of actions; he was sat there rigidly, staring ahead at the wall. "That one's for you, y'know," she said, pointing to the solitary cup on the tray.

He looked at it longingly but sat back, folding his arms. "I'm not thirsty at the moment."

Jackie's mouth dropped open wildly.

"Watch out, you'll be catching flies in a moment," the Doctor muttered.

"You must be ill, Doctor," Jackie said. "Usually you can't get enough of my cups of tea!"

He fidgeted around awkwardly. "Not today."

He knew he was being horribly rude but he couldn't stop himself; he wasn't in the mood to be polite. Besides, that was the type of man he was; rude and not ginger.

"Ah well," she shrugged. "Your loss."

"Yeah," Rose added. "You're missing out. This cuppa happens to be extra hot and tasty."

The Doctor wanted to glare at her.

He was feeling really unwell at the moment and, although he hated to admit it, he knew that he was suffering from withdrawal symptoms. It was pathetic of him, really, but he couldn't help himself, and now Rose's plan was very nearly working. The temptation to reach out and finish that tea in one gulp was overwhelming, but he concentrated on translating his favourite book into Latin in order to control himself.

Rose, on the other hand, was a little irritated that she hadn't succeeded, but still had plenty of tricks up her sleeve. She felt a little cruel in doing this, but was determined to show the Doctor that she wasn't a pushover. She meant business and was going to win.

"What's up with you two today?" Jackie suddenly asked, pulling the pair from their thoughts. Rose frowned at her.

"What do you mean, Mum?"

"I dunno... have you had an argument?"

The Doctor and Rose met each other's gaze. "No, I wouldn't exactly say an argument," Rose replied. "But anyway, what have you been up to? Hang on," she leant forward, squinting at a photo that had suddenly caught her attention. "Wait, is that Mark from the newsagents?"

The Doctor tuned out again as Rose and her mother began talking about Jackie's love life, something which actually made his stomach turn. He was desperately struggling now and really needed to get out of there when, suddenly, an idea came into his mind. If he was alone, he would have let out an evil laugh and made a hand gesture like Mr Burns from the Simpsons.

"Would you two ladies please excuse me for a few moments?" he asked, standing up. "I've just remembered something."

Rose raised an eyebrow suspiciously but said nothing. He quickly waved to the pair and rushed out, racing down the stairs. Almost as soon as his coat swished out the door, Jackie was commenting on his strange behaviour.

"He's a bit weird, y'know."

"Nah, he's not really. He's just an alien."

Jackie shook her head in despair, making a start on the Doctor's cup of tea. "Don't you think he's been acting strangely today?"

"Mum, you need to see him when he's trying to save the world from a bunch of aliens," she laughed. "He's a lot stranger when he's doing that. I think he's just moody today."

"Can aliens like him get moody?" she frowned.

Rose laughed. "Hell yes. You should meet the Daleks." She paused for a moment. "Then again, maybe you really shouldn't."

Jackie looked grave. "You're starting to sound like him."

Rose scoffed. "Don't be so ridiculous."

"I'm not. You speak like him. Before you know it, you'll start looking like him."

"Now you're just being stupid, Mum," Rose laughed. "I'm not thinking of growing sideburns anytime soon."

Jackie sighed. "I just don't wanna lose you, that's all. I don't want you to change so much that I won't even recognise you anymore."

"Mum," Rose said, leaning across to grab her mother's hand. "That's not gonna happen."

"I-"

Jackie was interrupted by a noise near the door and the Doctor soon hurried in, carrying a plastic bag in his hands. He seemed chirpier than before and gave the pair a big grin, taking his seat back down on the sofa next to Rose.

"Sorry about that," he said, taking some wrapped objects out of the bag. "I don't know why, but I just had the sudden craving for some chips!"

Rose stiffened this time, and the Doctor tried not to look too smug. The smell of the food soon hit her nose and she closed her eyes, willing herself not to drool.

He continued unwrapping the chips and Jackie rubbed her hands together. "Ooh, Doctor, you got some for all of us!"

"Yup," he smirked. "A nice treat for us all, eh?"

"I could kill you," Rose muttered quietly, and the Doctor smirked, replying, "You'll regret it if you do."

Jackie didn't hear the exchange and quickly settled back, eating her own portion of chips. The Doctor did the same and Rose's lay untouched on the table. The scent was overwhelming and seeing the greasy chips just a few inches to her left was almost unbearable.

"Rose," Jackie muttered around a mouthful of food. "Why aren't you having yours?"

"I'm not hungry," Rose grumbled through gritted teeth.

"But these are your favourite," she protested. "The one's from the local chippie!"

"I know," Rose sighed. "I'm on a diet, anyway."

"Rose, for God's sake, you're like a stick; you don't need to diet. Just eat the flipping chips!"

She let out a frustrated sigh, the temptation becoming too much. "I'm just going to the bathroom."

She stormed out and made a point of throwing a pillow at the Doctor on the way out. He couldn't help grinning in amusement. Revenge was certainly sweet and this bet was now definitely becoming interesting...

Part Three will be up soon!

Read more...

Series Five

>> Monday 5 April 2010

The Eleventh Hour

Written by: Steven Moffat

Synopsis: The newly regenerated Doctor lands on planet Earth once more and meets Amelia Pond who has a strange crack in her bedroom wall. He promises her that he'll fix it after a trip in the TARDIS, but accidentally times it wrong and meets her once again, 12 years later, and she's changed a lot... but now the Doctor has only 20 minutes to save the world, with a deadly shape shifting alien on the loose. Then again, some things never change...

Cast: The Doctor - MATT SMITH, Amy Pond - KAREN GILLAN, Rory Williams - ARTHUR DARVILL, Amelia Pond - CAITLIN BLACKWOOD, Dr Ramsden - NINA WADIA, Mrs. Angelo - ANNETTE CROSBIE, Ice Cream Man - PERRY BENSON, Jeff - TOM HOPPER, Patient - PETER MOYLES, Mother - OLIVIA COLMAN, Patrick Moore - HIMSELF


First Broadcast: Saturday 3rd April 2010, BBC One

Ratings: 10.8 million

The Beast Below

Written by: Steven Moffat

Synopsis: The Doctor and Amy land on Starship UK, a ship floating on space carrying Britain. But the sinister smilers are causing problems and they soon find out that something strange is lurking below...

Starring: The Doctor - MATT SMITH, Amy Pond - KAREN GILLAN, Liz Ten - SOPHIE OKONEDO, Hawthorne - TERRENCE HARDIMAN, Mandy - HANNAH SHARP, Morgan - CHRISTOPHER GOOD, Poem Girl - CATRIN RICHARDS, Winder - JONATHAN BATTERSBY, Timmy - ALFIE FIELD, Peter - DAVID AJALA, Voice of Smilers/Winder - CHRIS PORTER

First Broadcast: Saturday 10th April 2010, BBC One

Total Ratings: 8.42 million

Victory of the Daleks

Written by: Mark Gatiss

Synopsis: The Doctor receives a phonecall from his old friend Winston Churchill and is soon sent back in time during the War, but the Daleks, his oldest and deadliest enemy, appear to be helping Britain... will this change?
Starring: The Doctor - MATT SMITH, Amy Pond - KAREN GILLAN, Dalek Voice - NICHOLAS BRIGGS, Winston Churchill - IAN McNEICE, Edwin Bracewell - BILL PATERSON,
Blanche - NINA DE COSIMO, Childers - TIM WALLERS, Dalek 1 - NICHOLAS PEGG, Dalek 2 - BARNABY EDWARDS, Lilian - SUSANNAH FIELDING, Todd - JAMES ALBRECHT, Air Raid Warden - COLIN PROCKTER

First Broadcast: Saturday 17th April 2010, BBC One

Total Ratings: 7.82 million

The Time of Angels/ Flesh and Stone
Written by: Steven Moffat
Synopsis: The return of the Weeping Angels is never something good and they are soon causing trouble during the crash of the Byzantium. But can the mysterious River Song offer any help?
Cast: The Doctor - MATT SMITH, Amy Pond - KAREN GILLAN, River Song - ALEX KINGSTON, Alistair - SIMON DUTTON, Security Guard - MIKE SKINNER, Octavian- IAIN GLEN, Christian - MARK SPRINGER, Angelo - TROY GLASGOW, Bob - DAVID ATKINS, Marco - DARREN MORFITT
First Broadcast: Saturday 24th April 2010/Saturday 1st May 2010, BBC One
Total Ratings: 6.8 million (TBA)

Read more...