Twissy: Run to the End of the Galaxy

Part Eleven

The TARDIS thrummed as it landed in the magnificent garden of a manor house. It was a deep grey colour with cracked stones peppering the walls, with emerald green ivy climbing the guttering. Its doors were thick oak planks, studded with iron nails powdered with rust. Wildflowers blew around wildly in the wind and a great maple tree stood at the foot of the garden, overshadowing everything beneath it. Missy stepped out of the doors, eyes wide with anxiousness. She was wearing a thicker violet frock coat covered in scalloped black lace. Her crimson lipstick had been reapplied so now it stood out more against her porcelain complexion.

"I'm nervous Doctor. What if she doesn't like me? What if she hates me for leaving her?"

"Missy, I've seen you lead and destroy entire armies. I've seen you bend and break every man and woman's heart in a moment. You're the Mistress, do what you do best".

"Nice pep talk, but I don't want her dead by the end of this". The Doctor smiled at her, then turned her around on the spot and walked her towards the door. He knocked four times on it, making hollow wood echo around the room behind. It then opened to reveal a shortish woman, dressed in a floor length ruby red gown. Her brown hair was in a curly bun at the top if her head and small swirls of hair flew down to her shoulders. A smudge of scarlet lipstick was across her lips and her cheeks were stained a light pink.
"Oh hello Doctor", she said, cutting through the tense atmosphere. "Who's this?" She gestured to Missy who was shaking with a mixture of excitement and fear.
"This is going to sound absolutely crazy, but you have to listen, we'll explain. Ashildr, this is your mother".
"You're kidding right? My father told me that my mother died. He would never lie to me".
"Can we come in?" murmured Missy's uncharacteristically quiet voice.
"He can come in, you stay here". Ashildr turned into her hall which Missy only caught a glimpse of. She could see a twisting oak staircase and several crimson rugs on the floor. A passageway lead down to somewhere dark. The Doctor followed obediently and shrugged at her. The door closed behind them, leaving her outside. But she wouldn't leave, she couldn't. Whatever the Doctor was about to say could determine whether she would get her daughter back. She carefully put an ear to the thin wall next to the door and listened. She heard muffled voices that she could only just make out. The Doctor's gruff Scottish one and Ashildir's melodic one.
"You know I wouldn't lie to you Ashildr", said the Doctor calmly. "That woman out there is your mother".
"I don't know how she could be. I told you, my mother died in childbirth".
"No. Look, take everything you've been told about your family as a lie and just listen to me".
"Fine", Ashildr answered and Missy heard the creak of a wooden chair being sat on. "So, enlighten me".
"Her name is Missy, well, the Mistress. She's a Time Lord like me from Gallifrey. There was a war there that lasted so long no one could remember why they were fighting. You were her daughter, one of a long line of the Delta lineage. Great fighters and it was my fault that we're in this position".
"Whatever happened Doctor, whatever you did, I trust you. I know you wouldn't hurt me".
"No, but I hurt her. And for that I'll never be able to live with myself".
"Doctor. What is it? What happened?"
"She was dangerous. She had been driven mad by the Time Vortex and manipulated by the council into a weapon. And your father had been killed by the Daleks, so I had to do it. I wiped your mind of all knowledge of Gallifrey, but it did stop you from gaining your mother's condition -"
"What condition?"
"Uh, she has a psychic drumbeat implemented by the Time Vortex. Anyway, I brought you down here to a little Viking village to live out your life, but I didn't know I would meet you again. Please believe me Ashildr, I am telling the truth".
"It'll take me a while, but it does explain a lot. Maybe she is my mother after all".