He's Fire And Ice And Rage

FOR THE DRABBLE MEME.

• The known, the unknown, and the underknown
Look at what she found
Digging all around by the goldfish pond
She's going to get in trouble now
Shaking up the bees, swinging from the tree
Doesn't understand
She's in trouble now
. •


"Why are you here?"

It's not the most pleasant way he's spoken to someone, and he shouldn't be too surprised that Jeanne-Marie looks offended. The offended look is brief, though, flickering quickly on her face before settling into pleasant surprise. She likes the Doctor, she hasn't seen him in a while.

"It's a party," she says. "We only meet up at parties."

She takes a step towards him, and he takes a step back. She looks a little offended again, but she shakes it off. It's been a rough year for mutants. He's not surprised she's learned to shake off little offenses.

"I'm talking to a reporter from the Sun about what happened to my brother," she says. She looks around the room in disgust at the anti-mutant members of Parliament giving her glares. There are so many of them here.

The Doctor touches the detonator in his pocket. He came here for a very different reason.

"You need to leave," he says, and there's no warmth to his voice, no pleasantries. None of the kind, friendly man she knew, or thinks she knows.

"But---"

"Just go," he says.

She's not offended this time, she's just confused. She thinks she knows him, but she only knows part of his story, the part he spends on Earth, the part where he's had a few glasses of champagne and can't dance properly to save his life. She doesn't know about this part of him.

He doesn't want her to.

But she wants to. She crosses her arms and stands her ground. She's much shorter than he is, but she's a presence in and of herself.

"What if I don't want to?" she demands.

He thinks about what he left in the basement, thinks about the things he's doing now, and thinks about the one innocent life standing before him.

Three years ago, when he first met her, he wouldn't have been here. There'd have been no other choices but to save the one life.

Now, he weighs the loss.

Muse: The Doctor (The Valeyard)
Fandom: Doctor Who
Word Count: 326