Child of the Doctor

The Pilot Part 3

"It's not interested in the vault, it's chasing us," the Doctor declared, leaping towards the console. He began pressing buttons. "Let's give it a proper challenge. Let's see how far she's prepared to go."

He tugged the lever down and the Time Rotor began moving.

"But what about my friend?" Bill asked. He turned to look at her. "What about Heather? Can you save her?"

The TARDIS shuddered so he pushed the lever back up.

"First things first. Let's see if we can survive her."

He hurried over to the door and pulled it open. Sunlight flooded the room and he left the TARDIS, moving to lean against the rail overlooking the bay. The soft sound of water lapping against the shore was mixed with the calls of seagulls and the soft chatter of the people around. He turned to watch Bill coming out of the TARDIS and looking around in shock.

"But--" she started, turning in a circle.

"Yes," he grinned.

"We've moved again," she said.

"We have."

"It was night."

"Yep."

"Now it's . . . day," she observed.

He nodded. "Definitely day."

"Oh, my God! Have we travelled in time?" she asked moving towards him.

"No, of course not. We've travelled to Australia," he declared. He stepped aside to let her see the Sydney Opera House on the other side of the harbour. He turned back to grin at his daughter but she was gone. He saw her vanishing into a nearby restaurant.

Hurrying after her, he entered the building just in time to see her shove open the door to the ladies' restroom and dart inside. He followed after her, pushing the door open and sticking his head into the room. He found her bent over a sink, splashing water on her face.

"How are you doing?" he asked.

She spun around to look at him, breathing heavily. "How do you think?" she demanded. She turned and rested her palms against the wall.

He frowned. She was freaking out because he had been too focused on trying to impress her. It had been almost a hundred years since he had left her on Earth and now that he had to be less like a teacher and more like her father, he found he didn't remember how. If she knew who he was, comforting her would be as easy as pulling her into a hug and whispering soothingly into her ear, but that wasn't an option. He didn't know what to do. As Bill crossed the room to lean against the wall by the door, he stepped into the room and moved towards the sinks.

"Right," he said. "Um, how do I help?" He needed to know what kind of comfort, if any, she'd accept from him.

She turned. "Can I ask you a personal question?"

"No," he said automatically.

"Can I anyway?"

"Yes," he replied, partly because he knew she would anyway and partly because he hadn't meant to say no in the first place. It had been an automatic response. He was opposed to personal questions as a rule, but Bill was an exception.

"Are you from space?" she asked.

"No, of course not," he said. She slipped her hands behind her neck and turned away. He went on. "Nobody's from space. I'm from a planet like everybody else."

"This planet?" she demanded.

"No, not specifically this one," he admitted. He knew he was playing a dangerous game, but he couldn't lie to her.