The Unforgivable Journal

Chapter Twenty Four

"I'm sorry," the Doctor whispers. "I'm so sorry."

River nods slowly and takes a small step out of the TARDIS. She turns her head around at the Doctor. "You're leaving me here, so there's something I need to do first." She reaches into her raggedy purse and pulls out her journal. The Doctor's eyes widen and he lurches forward, grabbing the journal and knocking River down onto the ground. She takes out a gun and points it at her husband.

"What do you need to do?" the Doctor asks through clenched teeth. The lines on his forehead become deep and his eyes become dark. "Tell me." His grip on the journal becomes tight and River's finger floats down onto the trigger of the gun. She has it pointed at the journal with an over-determined expression.

"We've been to Trenzalore; a place where none of us should have gone. But we did." River gets up onto her feet, keeping the high-tech gun trained on her journal. "You've gone there twice, or will be. Maybe once is enough for this face."

The Doctor takes a step back, bumping into Clara who is standing nervously in the TARDIS doorway. "Clara, please back away," the Doctor says quietly to his companion. She moves back a few meters and watches nervously, her hands balled into fists by her sides. "River, please don't do it."

"What does she mean?" Clara asks, looking like she's on the verge of tears. "What does she mean, Doctor."

"She's saying that I should regenerate." His voice is shaky, but his face is stern. He doesn't want to regenerate. He likes being this weird, bowtie-loving Doctor way too much. "I'm not going to though. I can't regenerate unless I open the right page to this book or I'm injured enough. I'm not going to do it."

River looks solemnly at the Doctor and pulls the trigger. The journal falls out of the Doctor's hands and lays on the ground, with a bullet hole going right through the middle. "By destroying this book, I can make everything that hasn't happened a reality. The bullet hole is just the beginning."

The Doctor takes a staggered step back. "River, I know you. You would never do something like this. I know who would though." His eyes brighten a little bit as an idea pops into his head. "A Zygon."

River chuckles and suddenly, a veil of light surrounds her. It fades and a Zygon stands in her place. It hisses at the top of their lungs and Clara gasps.

"Where's River? What did you to with her!?"

"She'ssss dead," it hisses in reply.

"No she's not. Don't kid yourself." The Doctor smiles mockingly and does a full circle around the Zygon. "If she was dead, you wouldn't be able to use her look. That's the only thing that you Zygons can't do. Look like someone who is dead."

"She will be."

"I know."

"You will be too."

Clara comes running out of the TARDIS and stands just outside the doors. Her face is sagging with sorrow and her eyes look wet with tears. "Don't hurt him! Please don't hurt him!" She comes in between the Doctor and the Zygon with her arms keeping them a good length apart. "Please."

The Doctor gently pushes Clara away and she stays behind him, feeling the urge to grab the Doctor and go back to the TARDIS. "Now, where were we?...Oh, yes! Yes, I will die, but today is not that day."

"Your sssoul with not die, but thissss face with change." The Zygon bends down and takes the journal in it's hands covered in suckers. Smoke starts to rise off of the journal and smolders in the alien's hand. Then it's gone. "Die, Doctor. Die."

The Doctor moans and doubles over onto his knees. "You're pretty clever for something so ugly." His breath becomes heavy and he falls onto his side on the dirty ground. Clara rushes to his side immediately and holds onto his shoulders.

"Please don't die, Doctor, please!" Tears are streaking the girl's cheeks and her cheeks are fuscia. "Please!!"

"Clara," the Doctor says with a pained voice. "I'm not going to die. I'm going to live, but you won't see this  face again. I'll be a completely different man....but I'm going to live. I promise."

"Please don't change." The Doctor's sonic rolls out of his pocket and Clara grabs it instantaneously, holding down the button to make the pulsing noise. She points it at the Zygon with anger and it's form dissolves, leaving nothing but ash on the ground. "Can I do anything...?"

"Put the sonic in the charger slot and turn it three times clockwise. The TARDIS might be able to stop the regeneration. I don't know. I've never tried."

Clara rushes to her feet, running into the TARDIS as fast as she can. She shoves the sonic into the charger slot and turns it a few times. The time machine lets out a whining noise and all the lights go out. But there is light. She turns, looking outside.

The Doctor is on his feet, but is bent over with his hands on his knees. His hands are a strange orange color, like fire and his face is starting to turn orange. He stands up straight and stands in a position like he's stretching. The flames are solid and flickering like crazy.

He's regenerating.

                                              -END OF PART 1-