The Man of Miracles[Doctor Who Fanfiction]

[Chapter 8] The Girl Who Believed

I was kept inside a dark room, with concrete floors and walls. The damp, cold walls were barren except for the rusted chains that hung off the wall which restrained my small hands from moving. I was restricted into this small room, like a prisoner. I was imprisoned for doing nothing. I was hopeless.

My head rested against the hard concrete wall as I stared at the door that was ahead of me. The tall iron door, that had a window near the top of it, but there were bars that stood vertical in it that blocked most of the light from touching my sun-deprived skin that was probably as pale as a marshmallow by now. Though that was only the least of my worries at this point. 

I often thought about the Doctor, about what he was doing. Whether he was exploring far off galaxies with a new, prettier girl while I sat in a cold, dark and damp room, being used as a toy for someone else's amusement; or maybe he was thinking of a way to save me. I always prefered the latter, but whenever I started to believe the latter my mind tried to sink in the dark reality in; because honestly, the truth is that some things have a very large price. This time, I was just drastically unaware of the price.

The light that came through the door was much brighter one day. It was nice though, since it made me feel that much more human. I could actually feel warmth on my skin as the light skipped around and danced on my hands.

The tall iron door made a loud creak that startled me at it's suddenness. I figured it was going to be a guard taking me to feast with the King, the thought made me frown. I rocked my head back so it was against the wall so I could see better. A guard walked through and gazed at me for a moment too long. It was a bit awkward and weird, but I simply brushed it off.

"Just get it over with now, please," I whispered to the guard in a desperate voice. I never realized how much I liked my cell compared to being with the King until it was time to see him.  The guard simply nodded at my request and used a key to unlock the chains from my hands. It felt nice to have all the weight lifted off my hands. I felt free again for a moment, until the guard grabbed me and pulled me up. Though the guard wasn't a rough as usual, but more graceful. It was one of the small things that you start to appreciate once all your freedom is ripped away from you; and that it was. 

Little did I know that this wasn't going to be a normal day. Instead of taking me to the King, this guard turn the opposite way and guided me to the back exit of the castle.

"What's happening?" I asked the guard. I was slightly scared that maybe the King had other plans for me, like maybe death. My heart was pounding at this point, as the guards only response was one finger pointing up, signaling me to be quiet. I did as he said, hoping that maybe if I was good they would change their mind about killing me, if that's what they had in store for me anyway.

The guard pulled me out the door quickly and shut the door. I was outside of the castle for once. It had been a while since they'd let me out. It felt amazing. The light danced among my now pale skin and brought a delightful warmth among me. My arms stretched in the big open space I was in. I was snapped out of my daydream by a sonic sound. Though this one was familiar.  I looked at the guard who had a familiar device in his hand, which he was using on the door. A smile stretched on my face. A big smile that hasn't been seen for a long time.

A sonic screwdriver. He had a sonic screwdriver.

"Doctor!" I cheered quietly, my eyes watering out of extreme happiness. For a moment I forgot about how he left me here for so long all alone, as I was just so happy to see him. He pulled off the silver helmet that he wore upon his head to reveal his stupid face, and his big and even stupider smile. Before I knew it my arms were wrapped around him, and his around me.  He pulled back from the hug and gazed into my eyes and let out a small laugh. 

"Oh, Estelle," he hummed to me as he used his hand to wipe the tears from my eyes. His voice made me so happy, it's softness and the warmth it brought was something I'd missed and yearned for a long time.

"I thought you left me," I said with a voice filled with despair and a small frown, "forever."

"Oh, me, leave you? Never." At this we both flashed a small smile before we heard banging on the door.

"Run," the Doctor whispered to me. I did as he said and we swam quickly away from the castle. I didn't even know where we were going, I just hoped that the Doctor did.

The Doctor stopped at an old house that sat in the middle of nowhere. It seemed a bit worn down, the paint chipped and vines growing along the house. Thought right next to the house sat a familiar item. The TARDIS! Never was I happier to see that blue box! 

"What are we doing here?" I asked the Doctor once we stopped.

"Well, we need to change you back to a human. Though that will take a day or two, or three. Not really sure actually. Not even sure if it will work, really," the Doctor rambled on about it.

"Doctor," I said to get him to stop. He quickly shut his mouth and stood at attention. "So what do we have to do?"

"I have a potion for you, it's in the house," he said cheerfully, "come on, now," he said as he walked into the house. I followed him into the house to see that the inside wasn't much better than the outside. It didn't really matter though, since it wasn't going to be permanent, I hoped. 

"Here ya go," he said handing me a purple drink that had a purple mist coming out of it. I looked at him for permission to drink it, and he nodded. I drank all of the liquid from the cup, trying to ignore the bitter taste. 

"Never get a job at a bar, all right?" I joked with him.

"Hey!" He said, placing a hand on his hearts pretending that my comment hurt his feelings. I let out a small laugh at this.

"Are you sure this is going to work?"

"Not at all," the Doctor replied. I rolled my eyes at this and hoped for the best.

"What now?" I asked as I sat down on a couch that was slightly worn. 

"Well, you can't go in the TARDIS since you need water, so we'll stay here until you've transformed!"

"If I do," I corrected him.

"Precisely!" He said with a clap of his hands. He turned his back to me and played with some of the trinkets that laid on the table beside him.

"You know, you are the oddest man I've ever met," I said as I gazed at him, shaking my head.

"It's not the first time I've heard that," he said while he examined an object.

"I still don't understand how I can believe and trust you so much, but here I am, trusting you as much as I possibly can," I said a bit hysterically.  The Doctor turned around to face me, his face lit up-- glowing.

"Oh, but you do. You believed in me, and you still do. And you always will," he said as he walked close to me, and placed a hand on my knee as he knelt to my level. I shot him a look of confusion. 

"Estelle, you're the girl who believed."