The Planet of The Shard (Fitz)

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When The Doctor had realized that he had forgotten Fitz, he had torn the cosmos apart, broke nearly every time law there was, trying to retrace his steps to find him. The Doctor had suffered a violent panic attack when memories came flooding back and he'd realized that Fitz was gone. The Doctor hadn't slept, nor had he eaten in the time he searched. And he had frantically searched for nearly a month and was only just beginning to teeter on the edge of losing hope when, by a happy coincidence, a rather young Time Lady brought Fitz back to him.

Since having Fitz back, The Doctor almost felt as though he couldn't apologize enough to the man. The Doctor had almost become paranoid about misplacing Fitz again. He would often look in on the man while he slept to be sure that he hadn't imagined Fitz being back. He had even gone so far as to write Fitz's name on a bit of paper and neatly tuck it into his Fob Watch. He felt certain that since he was never without his arc, he would never misplace Fitz's name again

And the whole while, although he didn't realize he did it since having Fitz back, he would catch himself humming the tune of his 'unknown composer' when he idled the hours away as Fitz slept. He was still perplexed that Fitz and The Goddess had found him, but he had kissed nearly every inch of the man's face when Fitz was safely back in his arms. And while he had been grateful to Goddess for Fitz's return, he certainly wasn't about to kiss a stranger. He did, however, tightly embrace her and lifted the petite Time Lady off her feet in a gracious hug.

The months had rolled by since then, and The Doctor still found himself fussing over whether or not Fitz was only a figment of his imagination or not. He'd insisted on not leaving the ship because he was fearful of misplacing the man again. But The Doctor was beginning to feel a bit claustrophobic inside the TARDIS. He needed a change of scenery before he drove himself (and no doubt, Fitz) mad. He had decided not to inform Fitz of the random stop they were making. It was meant to be a pleasant surprise.

He pulled open the doors to be greeted by the warmth of a planet gently brightened by triple suns. The suns were due to form a perfect alignment in a few short days and the planet was holding a festival to celebrate the phenomena which only occurred every thousand years.. He smiled with a bright eyed child like enthusiasm and went to take that first step out of the TARDIS but found himself hesitating. He couldn’t bring himself to exit without hearing Fitz's chipper, if not a bit snarky, voice right behind him. He glanced over his shoulder and smiled.

“Well, Fitz? We can't hang about all day. Let's be quick on our feet, lad!”

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There were words, Fitz thought wryly, but they were too elusive. Obsessive almost fit it. He fancied himself a word genius – give him a crossword puzzle and he’d have the answer in about two seconds flat. Despite his proficiency with words and ability to discern them in record speed thanks to the influence of the TARDIS, he couldn’t think of the right words. How to describe his relationship with the Doctor? How to describe the Doctor’s fanatical behavior?

He was real. Sometimes he didn’t feel like it, but he was alive and he was real. He would see the Doctor staring at him out of the corners of his eyes, and he would hear the Doctor quietly shut his bedroom door. And he understood the fear – Fitz himself had to keep pinching his legs to make sure this wasn’t a dream. But Fitz was real, and no matter how crazy his life with the Doctor would become, he would always know that he was real.

Father Kreiner had almost convinced Fitz that he was a fake. But he was as Fitz-y as they came. He was Fitz Kreiner – a duplicate or not. There was no convincing the Doctor of that, though. After a few months of the Doctor constantly apologizing and checking on the state of his reality (-- and what made him so different? Hadn’t he forgotten about Sam at one point? Why was the Doctor so much more concerned with Fitz?), Fitz had simply began to pretend nothing had happened.

He had no idea what to do. He’d never had a bloke tear the universe apart to find him. So, he just did what he did best. He pretended like nothing was bothering him and played his guitar until his fingers bled. But even Fitz couldn’t hide that he was itching to leave the TARDIS. He was grateful to be back, and he loved both the TARDIS and the… the… well, Fitz was far from comfortable enough to finish that sentence, even in the safety of his own head.

Because, really, the Doctor liked to ‘accidentally’ read his thoughts.

He heard the TARDIS screech and moan, and he opened his eyes blearily. He had fallen asleep curled on one of the chairs in the main rooms, his guitar still loosely in his hands. He blinked wide grey eyes before rolling out of the chair, standing up blearily. “Yeah, ’m up,” Fitz said, walking shakily over to the console. The Doctor had already thrown open the doors to a rather sunny planet.

“Well, Fitz? We can’t hang about all day. Let’s be quick on our feet, lad!”

Fitz stared at the Doctor, bewildered. He had expected more fanfare after being held hostage in the TARDIS for so long. “Where’s this, then?” he asked, pulling on his jacket that he’d regained from the Doctor. “Quick on our feet. Ain’t that a laugh,” he smirked, rubbing against the Doctor gently as he brushed by him out of the door.

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“Where’s this, then?”

Each moment that The Doctor was assured of Fitz's tangibility, it was like a long overdue exhale of relief. He smiled as the man brushed past him, and found himself retraining from clutching the man into a warm hug to remind him, yet again, that he indeed missed the man. Over the course of their travels, Fitz had become more than a mere companion. He was his friend. Truly his friend. His anchor to reality when things began to slip away.

“Solarius.. “ he finally replied, fondly. “Oh.. Fitz, here.. Before you get too far ahead.. Take these” offering Fitz a pair of round lensed darkly colored sunglasses. The frame was thin, made of fine brassy colored wire and seemed quite old. “Won't do either of us any good to go blind before the day is out.” While the blindness would, of course, only be temporary, Fitz was his responsibility, after all. Those eyes turned a rather fond shade of pale blue as he placed the glasses into Fitz's hand before sliding on a pair of his own.

“I thought we could use a change of scenery. Solarius is holding a festival in honor of a solar alignment. And that alignment is due to occur in approximately... “ He paused long enough to pluck up his fob watch and flip it open and look at it. It didn’t actually tell the time, it was more out of habit trying to blend as a human. Humans often looked at their watches when they didn’t actually need to. It wasn't the worst habit he could have possibly acquired, but it was rather pointless. “Three days,” he smiled, clicking the fob watch shut again.

As they made their way into the capital city, the buildings were stone and stucco, aged and a golden brown in color, awnings in deep red colors that fluttered in the warm breeze. The streets were dusty and cobbled with sprigs of wild flower growing here and there in the street. The Solari people looked human enough. A majority of the people had hair color raging from deep fiery reds and golds, to a pale blond. Their skin was a deep bronzed sun kissed color, and their eyes were deep dark golden yellow in color.

Fits and The Doctor seemed to be the only ones here with dark colored hair, light skin and pale eyes.. It was getting them quite a few fascinated looks from the locals. One Solari child ran up to the strange men and offered them a garland of brilliant red and yellow flowers. She had bright coppery red hair and the brightest gold eyes, and she seemed it little fairer in complexion than the other locals, a hit of freckles dotted across her nose. She had a pleasant enough smile for what looked like a ten year old child.

“Welcome to my city! Name's Say'adi! Anything you, need, I can get!” she beamed. The Doctor, not wanting to come across as rude, lightly bowed, accepting the garland and motioned his head for Fitz to follow his lead. The child eagerly lay the garlands around their necks like a lei and patted their chests cheerfully. The was when she took the opportunity to lighten their pockets with a cheeky grin. The items nixed? The Doctor's Sonic Screwdriver and Fitz's lighter. “Thank ya kindly for the donation, chaps! Tah!” and she darted off into the crowds.

The Doctor was left in stunned silence before a moment before frowning lightly with a slow drawn out sigh, looking to Fitz. “Never a dull moment, is there?” smiling lightly before patting Fitz's back and nodding in the direction of the girl who had lightened their pockets.

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Fitz pulled on the sunglasses and quirked an eyebrow at the Doctor. "Don't we just look like a pair," he snickered. He put his hands in his pockets and looked around the planet. His favorite part of the Doctor was the opportunity to explore new worlds. And, of course, getting to meet alien birds. That was a pretty good bonus. Solarius was an accurate name for a planet like this. It was very... solar-y.

He glanced at the Doctor, a smirk tugging on his lips. "A change of scenery " he repeated, shaking his head gently. "We've spent the past several months cooped up inside the TARDIS. You could take me to Skaro and I'd snog you from excitement," Fitz said blandly with a shrug of his shoulders. "I'm a cheap date when it comes to this sort of thing," he grinned.

Fitz put his hand on the Doctor's shoulder and peered over it at the fob watch. It was still stuck in the same time it had been when he'd looked at it before. Still, the Doctor had an innate sense of time. Perhaps only Time Lords could see it? The mystery only deepened when the Doctor shut it and said a decisive 'three days'. Fitz nodded and looked up at the sky, adjusting the sunglasses.

"Gives me plenty of time to work on my tan," Fitz said thoughtfully. "And pick up a few alien birds. How does this sound?" he said, turning to the Doctor dramatically. "Name's Kreiner..." he took off his sunglasses and wriggled his eyebrows seductively. "Fitz Kreiner, intergalactic man of wonder and mystery." He placed the sunglasses back on his face with a solemn look.

"Been practicing that one," Fitz said, turning back to continue the walk to the city. It reminded him of the time he and his mates had gone to explore a few old villages while they'd been in secondary. Their hair - the Solariusans? - was a bright red and gold, except for those that had white. But their skin was a deep tan. Fitz stared at his own pale skin and huffed, feeling quite the outsider.

Fitz crouched down for the little girl. She placed a garland around his neck and Fitz smirked to the Doctor. "'Ello there, Say'adi," he said. "Name's Fitz." He would have continued his polite (and age-appropriate) introduction, had she not swept her fingers into his coat pocket. His mouth dropped open as she thanked him and ran off. He stared up at the Doctor, and then back to Say'adi.

"Oi! Sayid! Get the hell back here!" he declared, grabbing the Doctor's elbow and taking off after the small girl.

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The Doctor chuckled fondly at his companion as he explained the reason for their little stop. "We've spent the past several months cooped up inside the TARDIS. You could take me to Skaro and I'd snog you from excitement," The Doctor paused in his steps at that statement, arching a brow at the man.

The Doctor wasn't sure if he was more taken aback but the concept of Fitz willingly agreeing to set foot on Skaro, or the fact that he had unabashedly admitted that he'd 'snog' him. "I'm a cheap date when it comes to this sort of thing," The Doctor chuckled, dismissing the statement as mere sarcasm. ”I'll keep that in mind” he smirked, returning the jest.

The Doctor announced they would be staying on the this warm and bright planet for three days to enjoy the festivities. It was a much needed break. Not just for Fitz but himself as well. He'd heard of this planet and the phenomena of their suns when in academy. Ah, if there was one way to truly remind himself of how old he really was, it was thinking back to his days on Gallifrey before he left home. 

"Name's Kreiner..." His companion's smooth voice brought him out of his musings and he arched a brow up at the slightly taller man.. "Fitz Kreiner, intergalactic man of wonder and mystery." The Doctor couldn’t help the light chuckle that escaped him. Fitz certainly did fancy himself quite the 'Ladies Man', didn’t he.

"Been practicing that one,"

“Damsels of the Universe, beware.” He replied with a soft laugh. “I'm sure they'll be lining the streets to fall, swooning, at your feet.” The Doctor tried very hard to sound sincere. After all, his friend's ego was on the line here. “If I was a lady, I'd certainly be impressed. Although, I think.. On this planet, we're a bit of an oddity. Might get a bit of a mixed reaction from the locals”

“Welcome to my city! Name's Say'adi! Anything you, need, I can get!” Their lighthearted conversation was cut short by a local child who seemed to have taken it upon herself to be their welcoming committee. “Well, hello.. I'm The Doctor. Did you say.. Your.. city?” The Doctor asked curiously. The two bowed accepting the garland of flowers. "'Ello there, Say'adi," his companion, chimed in. "Name's Fitz." 

“Nice to meet'cha, Doctor and Fitz! Thank ya kindly for the donation, chaps! Tah!”

"Oi! Sayid! Get the hell back here!" 

The Doctor was suddenly clutched by the crook of his arm and pulled into the crowd after the child, led by Fitz. He deftly made his way through the crowds, being sure to keep Fitz close by his side and within sight. He wasn't about to lose his companion on a strange planet.

She was relatively easy to spot despite the large mass of people. Her hair was possibly the brightest copper red he'd ever seen, and it was a mass of tangled curls that fell past her shoulders.

“Looks like the chase is on!”

The child was certainly quick on her feet. She ducked past merchants trying to carry their wares and through a bazaar casually snatching fruit and other food items from the tables, infuriating quite a few people, but no one seemed to take the time to try and chase her down. One old woman called out as The Doctor and Fitz chased her “You're wasting your time. No one's ever caught her. It's how she got her name. Surprised you weren’t more suspicious of her.”

The Doctor paused long enough to quirk a brow at the old woman. “Her name? You'll have to forgive us, but we're not exactly familiar with the language.” and the old woman chuckled softly “Oh I assumed as much. Say'adi is an old Solari word for 'Phantom Child'. She always disappears.” and continued on, carrying her bundles of silk-like fabrics down the street.

“Well, then let's not give her a change to vanish on us, yes?” The Doctor frowned and tugged at Fitz as he continued after the elusive little redhead. He could always buy Fitz a new lighter, but he very much needed his sonic screwdriver back. He saw the flash of red hair duck into an alleyway and he yanked Fitz as he hurried into what appeared to be a dead end.. and no Say'adi.

“Clever girl.. Very clever.” he mused, sounding admittedly impressed. His fingers trailed the walls of the alley as if inspecting for hidden doors or small crack the child could have slipped through. “Come now, Fitz. I'm sure we can riddle this out.. Help me look for our little phantom's 'trap door'.” he chuckled. The Doctor was far too analytically minded to accept that the girl had simply vanished.

The Doctor was busy checking the walls of the buildings, he'd failed to notice what looked like a grate leading into a sewer.

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Fitz grinned a little the Doctor paused in his steps. It wasn’t often that Fitz could say that he had flustered the unflappable Time Lord - or even that he gave him pause. It was a small victory for the human, but it was a victory, indeed. Fitz mimicked the eyebrow raise, feeling heat rise on his neck. All right, so maybe he’d gone a little too far in his friendly jests with the Doctor. He shifted a little as he stood, trying to think of a way to cleverly backpedal without seeming too flustered.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” the Doctor smirked. Fitz’s mouth went dry and he stared at the man. The Doctor was smirking - that meant that he wasn’t being serious. Still, Fitz lowered his eyes and turned back to the path, looking around the planet with half-boredom and half-amazement. I’ll keep that in mind. Fitz shook his head slowly. Well, he’d either just convinced the Doctor keep him held hostage some more or to take him on a nice romantic stroll on Skaro.

He wasn’t sure which of those was less appealing. Fitz turned back to the Doctor, replacing his pensive frown with a bright smile. The Doctor needed to see smiles, Fitz reckoned, and he’d recently been making conscious efforts to smile around the man more. (Not that he needed an incentive, mind you, but sometimes when he was thinking, the Doctor claimed he looked sad.) “Hey,” he said, and provided the Doctor with the ‘greeting’ he’d been practicing.

The Doctor chuckled at him. “Great, ain’t it?” Fitz asked, grinning and brushing against him cheerfully. Fitz smirked, soaking up the attention and praise he was getting from the Doctor. The broad grin faltered slightly when the Doctor mentioned how impressed he’d be if he were a lady. Fitz’s eyes raked across the Doctor, imagining him as a woman. The curly brown hair would be a little longer, but he certainly had rather feminine facial features.

Now that Fitz thought about it, it was strange how sometimes the Doctor seemed to blend the two genders. He cleared his throat, feeling a bit sheepish about essentially undressing his best friend with his eyes and genderbending him. “Exactly,” he said, swallowing his nervousness. “Yeah, but I wasn’t done yet. ’Cos once I’ve swooped them in with that line, I’ve got to have a closer, don’t I?” Fitz said.

He smirked, and took the Doctor’s chin between his fingers, standing on the tips of his toes to make the height difference more dramatic than it usually was. Okay, Fitz. It’s not like you’re flirting. Just explaining. For science! For exploration! For discovery! “On my planet,” he recited, his voice a bit huskier than normal, “it is customary to shag by way of civilized greeting,” he finished, running his thumb across the Doctor’s bottom lip.

He hesitated for a moment, his thumb still pressed against the man’s lips, and Fitz was almost certain that there was something in him trying to tell him to do something. He licked his own lips and smiled beatifically at the Doctor, dropping his hand and back to his regular height. “The birds always fall for that one,” he told him, the smile widening. The key to not admitting that he’d been slightly tempted to snog his best friend was to not act embarrassed by it, after all.

“Don’t worry, Doctor,” he said, brushing off the man’s concern about being an oddity. “They dig exotic wanderers. Why do you think you get so many companions? It’s because you’re exotic. Obvious--...” Fitz stopped and huffed, becoming rather annoyed by the word since Compassion had entered (and rudely exited, though the Doctor wasn’t supposed to remember that) his life. He also tried to avoid all uses of the word.

And then... they were robbed. Fitz huffed and grabbed the Doctor by the crook of his arm, chasing after the child. He came to a screeching halt when the Doctor stopped to talk to a woman. Fitz huffed, tugging on the Time Lord’s arm impatiently. Fitz was accustomed to people nicking him all the time; growing up in the ‘wrong part’ of London had given him more than enough experience to chase down and valiantly fight people.

Or so he liked to imagine, anyway.

When the Doctor was finally done chit-chatting with the woman about the so-called Phantom Child, the pair ran into the alley Say’adi had disappeared into. Fitz huffed, glaring at the Doctor accusingly. “Really, Doctor? Did you ever spend any time in London or were you just parked there all your visits?” Fitz asked, nudging his friend and raising an eyebrow.

He stuck his foot between the lining of the gratings and lifted it. “Come on. Don’t you just love foreign sewers?” he said. Well.. for once, being stick-thin had its advantages. Fitz sat on the ground and slid himself easily inside of the grating. He wasn’t sure if the Doctor could get through the grating as easily as he had, but he squinted through the darkness anyway.

“I just love foreign sewers,” he muttered, rather lacking in enthusiasm.

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“Yeah, but I wasn’t done yet. ’Cos once I’ve swooped them in with that line, I’ve got to have a closer, don’t I?”

The Doctor was about to make some snarky reply about proximity when he felt Fitz's hand resting on his face. He arched a brow at first, about to question the man as to what he was doing when their eyes locked. Fitz had always been slightly taller, at least be three inches, but The Doctor found himself having to crane his head back and look up at his companion. He had always been fond of the man's pale gray eyes but, there was something uncomfortably beautiful about them just then.

“On my planet,” Goodness, Had Fitz's voice always sounded like that? The Doctor was tempted to loosen his cravat to make it more comfortable to swallow. But, the ever calm and collected Doctor found himself unable to even manage that much. “it is customary to shag by way of civilized greeting,” The caress of Fitz's thumb over his own lower lip sent a strange chill down his spine. Well that was certainly enough of that, he decided. However innocent and unintentional Fitz's gesture was, The Doctor found himself playfully retaliating by softly dotting a delicate kiss to Fitz's thumb before offering an amused smile.

“The birds always fall for that one,”

The Doctor couldn't help but chuckle as they made their way into the outer ring of the city. Being 'lifted' by a ten year old girl was not how he imagined his first day on a strange planet playing out. But, he shrugged it off as simply another hazard to his occupation. After a momentary distraction from an old peddler woman, their chase led them into a dead ended alleyway where the child had disappeared.

“Come on. Don’t you just love foreign sewers?”

The Doctor spun around as Fitz discovered the child's rather less than glorious exit. There came a slight groan as he watched Fits slip into the grate with all the relative ease of a cat. Traipsing through the sewers of a strange planet was not how he envisioned this trip. When the caught up with that child, he was certainly going to give her a stern talking to about her lack of hospitality and the bad impression she was giving her planet. With a slightly long and drawn out sigh, he went to removing his coat and waist coat, and rolled them up. He really didn't want them getting soiled in whatever might have been down there.

“I just love foreign sewers,”

“Well, Fitz, we were looking for something to alleviate the monotony.. Think we've bitten off more than we can chew or for you fancy a bit of adventure?” he chuckled at the tone of Fitz's voice and smiled rather apologetically as he went to slip into the opening, only to have his dress shirt snagged and ripped. There was an awkward moment of silence as The Doctor examined the rip. The frown on his face vanished with a slight sigh as he went to remove the shirt as well. “Alright then.. Shall we”

---

As time dolled on, nearly an hour, The Doctor suddenly stopped. “Fitz. We've been here before.” He groaned in annoyance, rubbing his temples. Normally, The Doctor had an impeccable sense of direction, but something about this planet was throwing him off. That and these sewers didn't seem to be designed like any sewers he'd seen before. It was more like a labyrinth. The Doctor finally came to a stop. “We've gone in a circle.”

“You gents lost?” can a rather familiar young voice. The Doctor glanced up to see the little redhead hanging from the pipes of the tunnel above them. The Doctor stared evenly up at the young girl and approached her. “Alright, I believe you have something of ours?” he held out his hand expectantly. She was about to make a reply when a low rumbling, like a deep guttural growl echoed through the tunnels. Say'adi's pale yellow eyes went wide. The girl suddenly dropped down from her hanging spot and clutched the men by their wrists. “Come on!” a great deal of urgency in her voice, as she practically dragged them.

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 The Doctor removed his coat and Fitz rolled his eyes. Yeah, the man who would save worlds could be the biggest priss about his clothes. It was an idiosyncrasy of the Doctor that made him... well, Doctorish. He crossed his arms, waiting for the Doctor. “Oh, yes,” Fitz replied. “Mucking our way through the sewers is definitely my idea of alleviating monotony,” he answered. He ignored the jab at biting off more than he could chew, because he was getting that lighter back if he had to chase the girl to the ends of the planet.

The Doctor had almost made it down to the sewer floor when there was a telltale ripping noise. Fitz was silent, praying that the Doctor hadn’t ripped anything too important. Or, at least, that it didn’t cut him. The Doctor landed next to him and, after examining the shirt for a moment, removed it. Okay, the Doctor was shirtless. Fitz stared at the man’s chest blankly, opening and closing his mouth. He’d seen the Doctor shirtless before. Hey, he’d even... well, Fitz didn’t want to quite think about imagining the Doctor in a state of undress now.

Realizing that he was staring at the Doctor – something that was not deemed acceptable in polite society – he swallowed thickly. He dragged his eyes to the Doctor’s and offered him the famous Kreiner smirk, laced full of sardonic mirth. He clapped slowly. “Only you could manage to be forced to strip inside of a sewer.”

“Alright then... Shall we?”

Fitz nodded, lacing his arm in the Doctor’s. “A stroll through the sewer. Not quite what I thought you had in mind by taking me here, but I must say, Doctor, you certainly know how to liven up what could be a dull vacation,” he said, rolling his eyes as he let the Doctor lead. He had super innate Doctor senses, didn’t he? He could traverse the universe without a map. He had to have an internal map of everything in that giant head of his.

That didn’t pan out to be entirely truthful, however. “Fitz. We’ve been here before,” the Doctor said, annoyed. Fitz looked around at the sewer system. Everything looked the same to him.

“I’ll take your word for it,” Fitz said, shrugging. “I told you we should have taken a right back there,” he said, ribbing the Doctor gently. “And here I thought you were the sewer expert.”

His gentle teasing of the Doctor stopped abruptly when the Child From Hell popped down. And then her pet, The Demon From Hell, growled at them. Fitz narrowed his eyes suspiciously as she ran off with them. “Okay, really, kid. You’ve got to stop the theatrics. Why would you live down here if there was something that was going to eat you? You’re just playing us,” Fitz insisted, pulling his wrist from her grasp and stumbling, catching her hand.

“Seriously. Just give us the stuff and we won’t bother you anymore. Will we, Doc?”

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“A stroll through the sewer. Not quite what I thought you had in mind by taking me here, but I must say, Doctor, you certainly know how to liven up what could be a dull vacation,”

“Mhmm” was all the doctor reemed able to say as he guided blindly led Fitz through the twists and turns of the endless tunnels of what were beginning to seem less and less like a sewer.. and more like... Well, he didn't want to admit it, but it felt like a tomb. They were still so very close to the surface and yet, The Doctor could feel the chill in the air. The dampness that clung to his skin... didn't seem possible for such a bright, sunny and well heated planet. And to make matters worse, something was throwing off his sense of direction.

He eventually admitted that they had somehow lost their way and paused in his steps. That was when the child they had been pursuing reappeared. The Doctor sternly requested the stolen items back when a low bellow cut through the calm and they were being dragged by the child.

“Okay, really, kid. You’ve got to stop the theatrics.”

“I'm not acting! We have to go!”

“Why would you live down here if there was something that was going to eat you?”

“What?!” Say'adi huffed as she continued to pull on them, but being slowed as the adults began to resist her tugging. “I don't live here by choice if that's what you're implying!”

"You’re just playing us,” Fitz finally wrenched out of the child's grasp and she spun around looking up at then like they had lost their minds. “Seriously. Just give us the stuff and we won’t bother you anymore. Will we, Doc?” The Doctor wasn't listening. He was too focused looking over his shoulder at the creature coming up behind them. As it slowly stepped from the shadows of the dimly lit tunnel system. It was massive, it's back dragging along the ceiling of the tunnel. It's body was plated in scales that were as black as the shadows from which it crept. It's eyes were a pale golden yellow that shone in the dim light. From what The Doctor could make out, it looked like it had the head of a massive horned bull, the body of a bear, the massive muscular legs, and the tail was a spiked weapon that lashed side to side, sending out sparks as it struck the walls and dragged it's tail. It let out another low bellow as it's eyes fixed on the three of them.

“They found me..” she whispered, terror shuddering in her voice.

“Say'adi.... What's going on?” The Doctor finally snapped as he looked down at the child, his eyes paling to a shade of gray. “What have you dragged us into?” The Doctor couldn't put his finger on it, but the way the creature was slowly advancing, this was no wild tunnel dwelling beast. It was a trained 'hunting dog' for lack of a better term. And it was after the girl. And now The Doctor and Fitz were the only things standing between the child and the beast. And Damn his moral compass, he couldn't just let the beast have her, annoyed with her as he was. This child was going to have a LOT of explaining to do once this was over. He picked up the light child, dropping the frock coat, wast coat and shirt in the muck and began to sprint. “Come on, Fitz!”

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“Then why the hell do you live here?” Fitz argued with the infuriating child. Really, a thief and a liar. Not that he had expected much better given her less than stellar introduction, but Fitz always tried to... well, fine, he was a bit of a cynic. Say’adi was glaring at him like he’d lost his mind, and Fitz returned the glare, putting his hands stubbornly on his hips. He didn’t need for this kind of thing. He and the Doctor were just trying to enjoy their time on some weird sun planet. And it was going to be great and boring and...

Okay fine, like that was going to have panned out. The Doctor didn’t do boring, even accidentally. He glanced over to the Doctor after rambling to him, and the Doctor – shockingly enough – was not listening to him. He finally followed the Doctor’s gaze, and came face to face with a Hellhound straight from a cheesy horror movie. “Good puppy,” Fitz tried, petting the air. “Good little Fluffy Fluffy.”

The thing snarled and Fitz realized that either the Hellhound didn’t enjoy the name Fluffy, or that it was about to rip out Fitz’s throat. Or both. Possibly both. The Doctor dropped his clothes – which was the most jarring out of this situation, Fitz thought as he stared at both the retreating figure and the discarded clothing. “Come on, Fitz!” the Doctor shouted, ripping Fitz from his confused stare.

He scampered forwards, glaring accusingly at the girl. “I blame you for this! Now, you wanna tell us how to get out of here or are ya content with playing ring around the rosie with Cthulu?”

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“I blame you for this! Now, you wanna tell us how to get out of here or are ya content with playing ring around the rosie with Cthulu?”

The Child grabbed both men by their wrists and ducked into a small corridor. It was just narrow enough that The Doctor found himself having to suck in his breath to squeeze through. It it was most uncomfortable as his was bare chested after all. Luckily, the walls were smooth like glass and not nearly as rough as he had expected. This sewer system was made naturally, it seemed. The curves and bends of this corridor were more like the path of water cutting through. This stone had been eroded by water. “Say'adi! Where are you taking us?” he called out, finding himself growing quite impatient with the child.

The hound thing bellowed behind them, furious that it couldn't fit it's massive body into the narrow passage. “Somewhere safe.. To the collective.” the child replied casually. The Doctor arched a brow.. He wasn't sure if he liked the sound of that or not and he instinctively reached behind to grasp Fitz's wrist, making sure his companion was right behind him. He couldn't explain it, but the further they moved down the corridor (which was, thankfully, widening out) he could feel a strange hum at the back of his skull, not quite like an oncoming headache, but like something was trying to get inside his head, mess with his thoughts as though prying for something.

“And.. What is 'The Collective', if you don't mind my inquiring?”

The girl looked back up at them with those bright golden eyes and smiled sheepishly. “The sick, the lame., the lost and the unwanted. Refugees of the war.” She lead them to an old makeshift looking door that was only propped into place rather than actually resting on it's hinges and she led them inside. It was an enormous round room with sunlight faintly filtering from the tall ceiling. It looked as though these people had taken up residence inside an abandoned underground silo of some kind. There were at least forty people inside, most of them, children that didn't look much older than Say'adi, some elderly and one teenage boy who looked as though he was trying to administer first aid to an old man.

“Welcome to The Collective.” she replied cheerfully as she turned to look at them. She fished into her pockets and gave them back the items she'd stolen. “Probably couldn’t have traded them for much, anyway” she lamented as she gave them up. Two small children ran up and hugged Say'adi and nearly tackled her to the ground as they clung to her. They were twin boys with dark skin and white hair. “We missed you!” “Did you bring us something to eat?” Say'adi ruffled their hair and pulled some fruit out of her pockets and gave it to them. “It's not much but.. “ The boys greedily stuffed the food into their mouths and thanked her before darting off into a small group of other children he seemed to be playing a game of sorts.

“Cristalli.. Who are these strangers?” came a voice behind them. The teenaged boy from earlier. He looked like he was nearly an adult, possibly seventeen, judging from his youthful face. “I apologize if my sister gave you any trouble.” he smiled softly, ruffling Say'adi's hair. “I'm Gaias.”

[Deleted]

And so the Doctor and his ever-faithful companion entered the Court of Miracles, straight from a Victor Hugo novel. “The Collective,” he repeated. “I’ve been in enough to know that they’re bad news,” he said drily, rubbing his head. It felt less as though someone had slammed into a concrete wall and more like he’d woken up with a mild hangover, but the headache was still there. He ran his fingers through his hair and glanced over at the Doctor.

He pulled the items out of her hands and crossed his arms. Little thief. He decided not to mention that if she knew where to trade, she certainly could have gotten quite a lot for the sonic screwdriver. Instead he let out a small huff of concurrence. “So, what? This is some sort of hive for illegal activity? I’ve been in enough cults to last me an eternity... oh, wait...” Fitz deadpanned. Then he glanced apologetically to the Doctor, realizing that the man didn’t understand most cracks about Fitz’s past anymore.

Fitz’s eyebrows raised as a flock of children came to the child and he stepped out of the way from the feeding frenzy. He cut a glance towards the Doctor, knowing deep in his bones that they weren’t going to be going anywhere soon. The last time they had landed on a planet with such social strife, Fitz had nearly been murdered by homicidal worms with sharp teeth and an agenda. And he’d turned into a social justice fighter. That was a new one.

“Gaias,” Fitz said, shaking the kid’s hand. “I’m Fitz. This is the Doctor. We’re kind of experts in helping people get out of places like this,” he said, rubbing his head again, looking mildly uncomfortable. “First things first. How do we help? Why was it chasing Cristalli? And...” he trailed off, sighing. “D’you have anything for a migraine?”

[Deleted]

“So, what? This is some sort of hive for illegal activity? I’ve been in enough cults to last me an eternity... oh, wait...”

The little redhead huffed at him and turned her nose up. “We're not a cult!” and she kicked his shin, crossing her arms and sticking her tongue out at him. The Doctor chuckled softly and glanced at Fitz, still slightly rubbing at his temples as he fought to stave off what felt like a migraine. “Here now, Say'adi.. Fitz meant no harm. It was only a simple question.”

“Well you can tell Fitz that he can take his simple questions and-” but the little spitfire was cut short by her brother's voice and her face changed from a little hellion about to gnaw on Fitz's leg to a simply divine angle. “Gaias!!” and she lept into her brother's arms, nuzzling her nose to his cheek and sticking her tongue out at Fitz. The older brother chuckled as he set her down and ruffled her thick tangle of red hair and apologized for any trouble she might had caused. “She means well, but... she can be a little much to handle.”

“Gaias.. I’m Fitz. This is the Doctor. We’re kind of experts in helping people get out of places like this,” 

The Doctor was far too distracted watching the people that had holed themselves into the silo... The topside of the planet seemed to peaceful. No one else seemed to be troubled by this 'war' that the child seemed to mention. That and the infernal dull hum at the back of his skull was making it hard to focus much of anything. “I suppose I should have known better. Nothing quiet ever happens with us, does it, Fitz” he asked softly, answering Fitz's unasked question. “Seems there's more going on here than a simple solar alignment festival.. Am I right?” he inquired, turning to Gaias.

“First things first. How do we help? Why was it chasing Cristalli? And... D’you have anything for a migraine?”

The Doctor quirked his brow. Fitz seemed to be getting plagued with that dull buzz as well. Gaias tilted his head a little looking up at Fitz for a moment as his amber colored eyes trailed over to The Doctor. “Help? I'm not sure you can. The Acting Prince Regent is collecting oracles.. Young maidens who can interpret the will of The Shard. The beast in the corridors is looking for Cristalli because.. He thinks she's an oracle.” He looked down at his sister and seemed to hold her against him rather protectively. “She's just a child.. We couldn't just let them take her so... We joined the other families who came to hide here.. “ He morioned his arm to gesture to everyone inside the room. “Each one of them is suspected of being an oracle.”

“Is that really such a terrible thing?” The Doctor inquired, but Gaias looked at him, dumbfounded. “She's just a child.. most of them are.. Anyone thought to be an oracle is collected and forced into a life of servitude to the Regent. That's not the life we want for them.” Gaias dug into his pocket. “As for your head.. chew on this... It'll help” handing them each what looked like a bit of chopped root.

[Deleted]

Fitz scoffed and nudged the Doctor playfully as he pointed out that nothing quiet ever happened. Unless, of course, the Doctor counted not letting him out of his sight (or the TARDIS) for a couple of months over the fear of losing him again. Literally. But now wasn’t the time to point out that he had been slowly driven mad by the TARDIS’ limited room (something Fitz thought he’d never say). “No,” he agreed finally, putting his hands on his hips as he examined his surroundings, trying to focus on what was important.

After all, the Doctor had invited him a not-date to watch the festival, and Fitz was damned if they’d miss that not-date. He listened carefully to Gaias as he explained the purpose of the underground settlement. “What’s so bad about being an oracle?” he asked, running a hand through his hair. “I mean... if she is an oracle, what’s so awful about it? She gets to stay with the prince right? Sure, the servitude is kind of a drag, but isn’t it better than having to steal and living here?”

He took the root from Gaias and chewed on it, his nose wrinkling. “It’s lacking a bit on the flavor,” he mentioned, deciding not to come right out and say that it tasted like the back end of a cow. He lowered the root from his mouth, swallowing some of the bits he’d chewed off. The migraine wasn’t completely gone, and he sighed and went back to chewing the disgusting thing. “So, what is this?” he asked. “And how’d you know to give it to us?” he asked.

Still chewing on the root, he looked between Gaias and the Doctor. “Why do people need to interpret the will, anyway? And what is the Shard? And how does the prince even determine who’s an oracle and who isn’t?” he asked.

[Deleted]

The little redhead stared at her feet when Fitz asked the question.. "What's so bad about it?” she repeated sadly. “Treated well or not, it's still servitude. If I told you that you had to stay with me because you had something I wanted, even if I was going to treat you well.... would you do it?” she pointed at the Doctor, arching her brow at Fitz. “Oh.. and you could never see your friend again, either.” she stated.

The Doctor was busy curiously examining the root that Gaias had offered them. It had a distinct smell that was similar to Asprin. The Doctor chose to ere on the side of caution and politely turned it down. He did, however, muse over the similar qualities of the root to one that was known to be found on Earth. “Ah.. Feverfew.” he quietly murmured to himself as he turned to root over in his hand before picketing it. Some how, he had a feeling it might come in handy later.

“So, what is this? And how’d you know to give it to us?”

Gaias offered a light shrug and motioned back towards the elders. “We've been using it for the last hundred generations as a general cure for pain. 'The Pale Ones' brought it with them when they landed here... Of course, that's just a legend, no one really believes that anymore.” At the mention of Pale Ones, The Doctor's attention seemed to perk as he turned to cast a curious glance at Say'adi.. Or.. Rather Crystalii, as Gaias had called her. It was then, The Doctor took a moment to look at the girl. Really look at her. The look on his face would have spoke volumes to Fitz. Something was not as it appeared to be.

“Why do people need to interpret the will, anyway?”

"We're.. a pretty primitive culture. We've been visited by other worlders before. So.. I mean we know we're not advanced at all compared to them. We dont have the sort of science they do to travel the stars. The Shard can tell us about our weather, when to expect rain... when other worlders are near our planet. It can protect us”

"And what is the Shard? And how does the prince even determine who’s an oracle and who isn’t?”

Gaias shrugged lamely as he rested a hand on Crystalii's shoulder. “Well.. The Shard.. it's.. well... According to legend, It's a massive floating crystal and it's alive... We think.. We just know that only an Oracle can hear it. It's said that The Oracles are descendants of The Pale Ones. They were the ones who brought The Shard.” It was then, The Doctor seemed to danced excitedly in place as her grinned at Fitz. He went to pat his chest, looking for his breast pocket of his waist coat when he finally realized... He had misplaced his upper garments when running from that beast they'd met in the tunnel system. “Fitz? I dont suppose I could borrow your jacket?”