The Shakespeare Code
"Where are we even going?" Rita asked the Doctor as he started to press buttons while holding on to the console as it continued to jolt.
"London, 1599"
"What and not get the date wrong?"
"Shut up"
"Never" He groaned at her continuing to press buttons on the console.
"But how do you travel in time?" Martha asked. "What makes it go?"
"Oh, let's take the fun and mystery out of everything. Martha, you don't want to know."
"Seriously it's honestly quite boring." Rita told her.
"Hold on tight." The Doctor told Martha. The TARDIS jolted to a stop. Martha fell to the floor. So did Rita who would have also collided with the TARDIS grating if the Doctor hadn't grabbed her arm and stopped her.
"Thanks" she muttered brushing her clothes. "Maybe I should take control next time?" She hummed and he rolled his eyes at her.
Martha groaned standing up. "Blimey. Do you have to pass a test to fly this thing?"
"Yes, and I failed it."
"That makes two of us then" Rita laughed. "Still better than you."
"Now, make the most of it." The Doctor told Martha. "I promised you one trip, and one trip only. Outside this door, brave new world."
"Where are we?" Martha asked stopping by the door and looked back at the Time Lords watching her by the console. "Take a look" the Doctor told her. Martha looked over at Rita who just nodded towards the door. She gulped and then stepped outside to find herself standing in an Elizabethan street. People in old fashioned clothes roamed around the street buzzing and chatting living their lives with old houses and people hanging up clothes on the washing lines.
"Oh, you are kidding me." She gasped looking at them both. "You are so kidding me. Oh, my God, we did it. We travelled in time. Where are we?" She asked then held a hand up shaking her head. "No, sorry. I got to get used to this whole new language. When are we?" A mans voice shouting was then heard from the window directly above and the Doctor looked up. "Mind out." He warned them pulling Rita and Martha back as the man emptied the contents of his bucket from the upstairs window.
"Somewhere before the invention of the toilet. Sorry about that." The Doctor muttered.
"I've seen worse. I've worked the late night shift A+E." Martha then looked at them a little worried. "But are we safe? I mean, can we move around and stuff?" Rita frowned at her odd question and then looked at the Doctor who looked at her as well.
"Of course we can. Why do you ask?" The Doctor questioned asking what Rita was thinking.
"It's like in the films. You step on a butterfly, you change the future of the human race."
"Oh Martha" Rita placed a hand on her shoulder and patted it. "Let's not step on any butterflies then."
"What have butterflies ever done to you?" The Doctor asked slightly frowning.
"What if, I don't know," Martha looked at them. "What if I kill my grandfather?"
"Are you planning to?"
"No." She replied to the Doctor then looked down feeling a little stupid.
"Well, then."
"And this is London?" Martha asked looking around at the surroundings in awe.
"I think so. Stone?" He looked over at Rita who then licked the tip of her index finger and raised it eye level away from her. "1599 for once you got us in the right year, someone is getting better. Took you long enough."
"Whose rude and not ginger now" he raised a brow.
"I'll have you know that I have been ginger before" she waggled a finger in front of his face. "Interesting that was."
"And when was this?" He asked her.
"When I was around 800 years old, such a long time ago"
"800 years old?!" Martha squeaked.
"Ah ha" she rubbed the back of her neck forgetting that detail. "Sorry forgot to mention that"
The Doctor sighed a little faintly remembering that her. With the red hair and temper almost as bad as now. He was surprised she hadn't remembered him, to be honest. But what could he say? She wouldn't remember and he did. The Doctor knew that she would blame herself for forgetting her best friend that she had travelled in the TARDIS with years ago before the war.
Would she blame him for what he did? Of course, she would. In a way, he had the Stone he knew before it all happened. She claimed her name just like she had the first time round, hearing someone call her 'the Stone' and then plucking it right from them claiming it as her own.
He came back to reality as Martha began to speak again. He didn't realise that she was frowning at him noticing that he was oddly staring at the brunette. "Oh, but hold on. Am I all right? I'm not going to get carted off as a slave, am I?" Martha asked.
"Why would they do that?" The Doctor replied.
"Not exactly white, in case you haven't noticed." She gestured to herself.
"Martha I won't let anyone do that" Rita softly smiled. "And We're not even human. Just walk about like you own the place. Works for us." She gestured to herself and the Doctor who then began to talk. "Besides, you'd be surprised. Elizabethan England, not so different from your time." He then started to walk off with Rita following and then Martha. "Look over there. They've got recycling." He nodded over to a man shovelling horse manure.
"Water cooler moment," Rita said while they walked past as two men whispered words looking into a barrel full of water.
"The world will be consumed by flame!" A man shouted in the streets
"And global warming, you know Doctor did I ever tell you that this is my favourite era, forgetting the plague, black death and all of that" She waved her hand. "It's truly beautiful, the clothes, the people," A group of men then staggered out of a building obviously very drunkenly singing. "Well most of the people, the music if I'm honest it's all beautiful." She said in awe smiling.
"What about entertainment?"
"Now that is by far my favourite, it's surprising that I haven't met Shakespeare yet with how much I enjoy his plays, Macbeth is definitely my favourite." She whispered quietly due to the year they were in and it not actually being written yet.
"Well if I'm right, we're just down the river by Southwark, right next to" He then took the Time Lady's hand and ran along from the south end of the old London bridge and past St Mary, then Southwark Cathedral and beamed.
"The Globe Theatre" Rita said in awe beaming happily and then hugged the Doctor's side. He let out a chuckle and hugged her back wrapping his arm around her shoulder as if it was a natural thing to do. Martha then joined them bending over slightly and breathing before looking up and noticing the building they were standing in front of.
"Is that The Globe Theatre?" She asked raising a brow and then looked at the Doctor and Rita.
"Brand new. Just opened. Though strictly speaking, it's not a globe, it's a tetradecagon. Fourteen sides. Containing the man himself." He then looked at Rita watching her smile and stare in awe at the building.
"Whoa, you don't mean. Is Shakespeare in there?" Martha looked at him.
"Oh, yes. Now Lady Stone, will you accompany me to the theatre?" He moved his arm from around her and held it out for her to link her arm with his.
"I think I will Lord Doctor" She laughed at how silly she was acting, linking her arm with his.
"And Miss Jones, will you accompany us to the theatre as well?" He held his other arm out for her.
"Mister Smith, I will." She linked hers with his and they then began to walk.
"When you get home, you can tell everyone you've seen Shakespeare. As for you Stone. You can finally say you have met William Shakespeare.
"I can indeed"
----------------------------------------------------------------
"That's amazing!" Martha applauded widely smiling at what they had just witnessed. "Just amazing. It's worth putting up with the smell. And those are men dressed as women, yeah?"
"London never changes." The Doctor smiled.
"Where's Shakespeare? I want to see Shakespeare." She asked then began to shout. "Author! Author! Do people shout that? Do they shout Author?"
"Author! Author!" A man then joined in copying Martha and then a load of other people joined in the chant as well.
"Apparently they do now" Rita laughed.
They watched as Shakespeare then appeared on stage looking way too full of himself, sending kisses and waving to the audience.
"He's a bit different from his portraits." Martha noticed watching the man.
"Genius. He's a genius. The genius. The most human human there's ever been." The Doctor explained to her.
"The words he uses may seem dull for many in your time Martha, but now and still for me they are brilliant and beautiful, I honestly have no idea how he does it." Rita breathed. The Doctor nodded in agreement.
"Now we're going to hear him speak. As The Stone said he always chooses the best words. New, beautiful, brilliant words."
Shakespeare then stopped waving and shouted at the audience. "Ah, shut your big fat mouths!" The crowd began to laugh, Martha looked at the Doctor and Rita who's faces look full of shock mostly the brunettes.
"Oh, well, sorry Stone" He gulped.
"Still brilliant" She grinned shaking her head.
"You should never meet your heroes." Martha told them and they nodded in agreement.
"You've got excellent taste, I'll give you that." Shakespeare said to the audience and then pointed at someone "Oh, that's a wig. I know what you're all saying. Loves Labour's Lost, that's a funny ending, isn't it? It just stops. Will the boys get the girls? Well, don't get your hose in a tangle, you'll find out soon. Yeah, yeah. All in good time. You don't rush a genius." Shakespear then stumbled back a bit looking confused then continued again. "When? Tomorrow night. The premiere of my brand new play. A sequel, no less, and I call it Loves Labour's Won."
The Doctor and Rita looked at each other confused. "But it's a lost play?" She telepathically told him.
"I know"
"We have to stay and find out why it's lost"
"We can take Martha home and then find out." Rita looked at him practically begging him to let Martha stay a little longer, he groaned slightly seeing the pleaded in her eyes and then remembered seeing the exact same look in multiple eyes. He sighed and shook his head at her. She smirked seeing the defeated look on his face.
----------------------------------------------------------------
"I'm not an expert, but I've never heard of Loves Labour's Won." Martha thought aloud as they slowly walked out of the theatre with all of the others trying to leave.
"The lost play" Rita muttered in thought.
"It doesn't exist, only in rumours. It's mentioned in lists of his plays but never ever turns up. And no one knows why." The Doctor explained to Martha.
"I always wondered where it went," Rita told them. "Made theories up but never came to see if they were true. The mystery was something I enjoyed.
"Have you got a mini-disc or something? We can tape it. We can flog it. Sell it when we get home and make a mint." Rita and the Doctor's faces darkened at her idea.
"No." They both replied.
She then realised why they looked at her the way they did and muttered. "That would be bad."
"Yeah, yeah."
"Well, how come it disappeared in the first place?" She quickly changed the subject.
"Well, we were just going to give you a quick little trip in the Tardis, but I suppose we could stay a bit longer." The Doctor muttered to her then winced when he felt a slight jab under his ribs and noticed it was Rita.
"That was my idea" She firmly told him. "I practically begged you, don't go claiming it was you" She pointed at him showing she was being serious.
"Okay, okay" He held up his hands. "She suggested to me"
"Good, now come on I want to find out what happened now I'm here"
----------------------------------------------------------------
After Rita, the Doctor and Martha had asked around they soon found The Elephant tavern where Shakespeare lived they headed inside to find the man himself.
The Doctor being well the Doctor bursted in interpreting Shakespeare's conversation with two actors from the play earlier enjoying a drink with the man. "Hello! Excuse me, not interrupting, am I?" The Doctor asked knowing fully well that he was. "Mister Shakespeare, isn't it?"
He sighed pitching the bridge of his nose and looked down. "Oh, no. No, no, no. Who let you in?" He asked Rita and Martha standing behind. "No autographs. No, you can't have yourself sketched with me. And please don't ask where I get my ideas from." Rita raised a brow at how rude he was actually being she understood that it was Shakespeare but honestly he could have been a little nicer. She slowly poked her head to the left out from behind the Doctor and noticed Martha was doing the same on his right. "Thanks for the interest. Now be a good boy and shove-" He stopped noticing the two behind the Doctor and glanced his eyes over to the both of them.
"Hey, nonny nonny." He looked at them both grinning. "You two sit right down here next to me." Rita's eyes widened and felt extremely uncomfortable at what she was witnessing. Honestly, she loved his plays and all and thought Shakespeare was brilliant but she did not know him at all and to make it worse old memories began to rise. She stepped a little behind the Doctor again not liking the memories taking over her mind. The last time she ever got close to love it was forced on her, forced by her mother and father and forced to marry, something she did not want to do or agree with at all. The Doctor noticed her sudden change in mood and slightly moved his hand, it lightly brushed against hers. Martha, however, enjoyed the flirting and stepped out from behind the Doctor smiling away.
Shakespeare then ordered for another chair to be brought and for the two men to leave. "Come on, lads. I think our William's found his new muse." A woman joked walking out.
"Sweet lady." Shakespeare hummed as Martha sat in a chair. Taking the opportunity of Shakespear being too busy talking to Martha the Doctor turned to Rita and looked at her seeing she had paled a little more than her usual skin tone and began to worry.
"Doctor I know what you're thinking right now. I'm fine"
"Rita you're very pale skin and scared look in your eyes says otherwise, what's wrong?"
She sighed and looked down starting to play with her own hands. "Your will think I'm an idiot"
"Rita"
"The last time anything like... that happened was before I was forced to be married, I never liked the idea of arranged marriages at all, my parents obviously did and forced me to marry someone I didn't even really know."
"You think that is silly?" He asked.
"Is it not?"
"Of course it isn't Rita" He shook his head then moved his eyes over to Martha and Shakespeare to see they were deep in a conversation. "You disagreed with them and wasn't comfortable in the situation. He isn't bothering you now and he won't." He looked at her seriously showing that he meant every word. She breathed out a sigh and the Doctor moved the chair one of the men had left near the table then sat down. Rita sat in the other next to him noticing how he sat in the one closest to the table and felt the corner of her lip curl in a smile.
"Such unusual clothes. So fitted." Shakespeare said looking over Martha who grinned.
"Er, verily, forsooth, egads." Martha began to mumble.
"No, no, don't do that. Don't." The Doctor shook his head. He then brought his psychic paper out and showed Shakespear.
"I'm Sir Doctor and this is Dame Stone of Tardis and this is our companion, Miss Martha Jones."
"Interesting," Shakespear leant closer. "That bit of paper. It's blank." The Doctor and Rita looked at each other and began to grin.
"Oh, that's very clever. That proves it. Absolute genius." The Doctor continued to grin.
"No, it says so right there." Martha pointed. "Sir Doctor, Lady Stone and Martha Jones. It says so."
"And I say it's blank." Shakespear told her.
"Psychic paper, I'll explain to you later Martha" Rita promised.
"Oh I hate starting from scratch." The Doctor muttered under his breath.
"Says the one who looked like they were enjoying joking around about the TARDIS being bigger on the inside earlier" Rita muttered to him.
"Psychic? Never heard that before and words are my trade. Who are you exactly?" Shakespear looked at them. "More's the point, who is your delicious blackamoor lady?" Rita's brows raised at what he had just said. She understood the time but right in front of Martha.
"What did you say?" Martha snapped her head towards Shakespear not believing the words she just heard.
Shakespeare's eyes widened and started to mutter. "Oops." He then asked: "Isn't that a word we use nowadays? An Ethiop girl? A swarth? A Queen of Afric?"
"I can't believe I'm hearing this." Martha groaned and the Doctor clearly didn't look very happy having to explain it as he blew his cheeks out. "It's political correctness gone mad. Er, Martha's from a far-off land." He thought of what to say. "Freedonia."
"Freedonia? really?"
"I didn't see you helping"
"Shut up"
They all turned to the door as a man wearing a golden chain dressed in rich clothes entered obviously with a temper as he looked very angry.
"Excuse me! Hold hard a moment. This is abominable behaviour. A new play with no warning? I demand to see a script, Mister Shakespeare. As Master of the Revels, every new script must be registered at my office and examined by me before it can be performed."
"Tomorrow morning, first thing, I'll send it round." Shakespear promised.
"I don't work to your schedule, you work to mine. The script, now!" He snapped demanding it right at that moment.
"I can't." Shakespear told him.
"Then tomorrow's performance is cancelled." He stated.
"It's all go around here, isn't it?"
"When isn't it Martha?" Rita asked quietly.
"I'm returning to my office for a banning order." The man stated. "If it's the last thing I do, Love's Labours Won will never be played." He then headed down the stairs and left.
"Well then, mystery solved. That's Love's Labours Won over and done with. Thought it might be something more, you know, more mysterious." Martha grinned and Rita groaned a little.
"Now I don't do rules and all that but never say anything like 'nothing can go wrong' because it always means something will go wrong." She finished shaking her head. Suddenly there was a scream and the four snapped their heads to the door. "Oh great" She groaned as the Doctor jumped up and ran out the door, she then followed as well as Martha and Shakespear.
There were more screams as they ran down the stairs and saw the man from moments ago cluching his throat in the middle of the area chocking and spewing up large amounts of water.
"It's that Lynley bloke." Martha identifyed him as.
"What's wrong with him?" The Doctor asked. He then ran over to help the man as best as he could. "Leave it to me. I'm a doctor."
"So am I, near enough." Martha ran over to help.
"I also know a thing or to, I'm no Doctor though" Rita ran over. They held him y his arms as he continued to cough up water as if he was drowning. He let out another load of water before his back straightend suddenly and then his body became limp. The Doctor, Rita and Martha lowered him to the floor.
"Got to get the heart going." Martha mumbled as the Doctor and Rita ran a little down the street trying to see if anything was down there. "Mister Lynley, come on. Can you hear me? You're going to be all right." Martha started to clear the mans airways for CPR. The Doctor and Rita head over to him and see the water appear out of the mans mouth.
She then moved back in suprise. "What the hell is that?"
"I've never seen a death like it. His lungs are full of water. He drowned and then, I don't know, like a blow to the heart, an invisible blow." The Doctor tried to describe it and looked at Rita for her thoughts.
"Drowning on land" She muttered. "But how?"
Seeing that the people around would begin to ask questions the Doctor turned to the woman who was with Shakespear earlier. "Good mistress, this poor fellow has died from a sudden imbalance of the humours. A natural if unfortunate demise. Call a constable and have him taken away."
"Yes, sir." She nodded then headed off. A woman ran downstairs from the Tavern and then offered to do it herself, she turned without saying another word and headed off.
"And why are you telling them that?" Martha asked quietly.
"This lot still have got one foot in the Dark Ages. If I tell them the truth, they'll panic and think it was witchcraft."
"Okay, what was it then?"
"Witchcraft." Rita gave Martha a serious expression.
"I got you a room, Sir Doctor. You, Lady Stone and Miss Jones are just across the landing another bed has been placed in the room." A woman informed them then left just after the four walked back into Shakespears room.
"Poor Lynley." Shakespear sighed. "So many strange events. Not least of all, this land of Freedonia where a woman can be a doctor?" He frowned at Martha in confusion not understanding.
"Where a woman can do what she likes." Martha smiled.
"And you, Sir Doctor. How can a man so young have eyes so old?"
"I do a lot of reading." He replied automatically.
"A trite reply. Yeah, that's what I'd do." He nodded then looked to Rita. "And you, Damn Stone, your eyes show pain yet you seem to not even notice it is there"
"I have seen pain you will never understand" Rita pursed her lips. "It's one of the curses I have" The Doctor looked at her frowning a little. 'She never mentioned this before?'
"And you? You look at them like you're surprised they exist. They're as much of a puzzle to you as they are to me."
"I think we should say goodnight." Martha nodded to Shakespear and left.
"I best go with her, goodnight" Rita followed behind her not looking back, the Doctor watched her leave and sighed.
"Ah 1599 interior, one of the things I don't miss as much" Rita chuckled walking into the room. Martha picked up a candle.
"It's not exactly five star, is it?"
"Oh, it'll do. We've seen worse." The Doctor walked in and looked at Rita.
"We have indeed" she nodded in agreement looking around at the very basic room. Double bed in the middle with a singilar pushed up against the wall. The room was lit by many candles scattered around it and a thin wodden door seperated the room they were currently in with the bathroom..
"I haven't even got a toothbrush."
"Oh. Er." The Doctor patted himself and then reached into his pocket and brought one out handing it to Martha.
"Contains Venusian spearmint."
"Good for the teeth, makes them nice and bright" Rita grinned.
"So, who's going where?" Martha asked. "Someone's going to have to share"
"Oh me and the Stone can share, we've had worse" Martha looked between the two now wondering where their friendship stood as she walked over to the single bed.
"Are you going to stand there all night?" The Doctor bluntly asked, Rita snapped her head in his direction not realising she was day dreaming about something. But what?
"Are you ever going to not be rude?"She retorted walking over to the bed and laying down beside him.
"Nope" he sent her a cheeky grin.
"You can exept more slaps on the back of your head then" She threw back and he rolled his eyes not looking at her.
"So," Martha cut in before the Doctor could throw another comment at the Time Lady. "Magic and stuff. That's a surprise. It's all a little bit Harry Potter." She joked.
"Wait till you read book seven." The Doctor smiled a little. "Oh, I cried."
"Of course you did. Then again who didn't?" Rita asked and he nodded.
"But is it real, though? I mean, witches, black magic and all that, it's real?" Martha asked them not sure what to believe anymore since she had met aliens and now knew traveling through time was possible.
"Course it isn't!" The Doctor replied to her question a little too harshly. Rita hit his arm glared at him when he looked at her.
"I did tell you" She pointed at him then sent Martha an apolojectic look.
"I know" He held up his hands in defence. "I know"
"Well, how am I supposed to know? I've only just started believing in time travel. Give me a break." Martha muttered pressing on with the subject.
The Doctor looked over at Rita who narrowed her eyes at him as a warning to remind him to not be rude. Martha was new to all of this and it honestly wasn't her fault. "Looks like witchcraft, but it isn't. Can't be." He said softer than before. Looking over at Rita again she nodded in approval and smiled then rolled over on her side facing him. "What do you think it is?" He layed down as well. "Because I don't have a clue.
"He died in a drowning state on dry land." She said. "But I remember something about psychic energy, read it somewhere" She started to mutter and the Doctor nodded understanding what she meant.
"You're right there, but a human couldn't channel it like that. Not without a generator the size of Taunton and I think we'd have spotted that. No, there's something we're missing. Something really close, staring me right in the face and I can't see it."
She sighed. "I can feel it too, it's right there but I can't see it either. You know, Rose, would probably know what it was. She always did, then again so did I" She sighed. "I said I was still me but I feel like it was a lie. I feel the same but I can't really remember anything only small insignificant details, and the foreknowledge, is gone" She whispered so Martha wouldn't hear. "I now remember things from before I became human, things I wish I never remembered."
"Your still you to me, I'm sure Rose would definitely agree, Martha's a novice, We'll take her back home tomorrow and sort this out." The Doctor promised.
"Great." Martha harshly spat at him then blew out the candle and slumped onto her bed. Rita sighed shaking her head. Sometimes the Doctor didn't know when to shut up. She laid there for a few minutes thinking, the past was now on her mind constantly, her parents and what they would think of her now, breaking every single one of their rules. she sighed and heard the faint muffled voice of the Dotor next to her. She raised a brow and turned to see him staring at her. She jolted back a little not expecting it then calmed down.
"What are you doing?" he whispered to her.
"I was thinking" She whispered back. "That was until you almost scared me enough to make me regenerate"
He chuckled at her then asked: "May I ask what you were thinking about?"
"My family" His face grew soft at her words and she sighed. "I remember them, my parents, I wish I don't but I don't, you probably guessed since I mentioned them at the alleyway. Honestly it hurts, I feel like I am missing something though, missing remembering someone, someone important, someone I should know" She sighed shaking her head a little. "It's like I already know them but I don't in a way because I don't remember, okay now I'm being stupid and rambling, sorry"
"Why are you saying sorry?" He asked looking in her direction concerned.
"Because I'm boring you and rambling."
"Rita" He whispered. "I ramble and you're not boring, when you explain something it's fasinating to see someone else understands what I understand, someone as clever as me able to keep up." She looked at him for a moment a little shocked by what he said. She was so glad that the room was almost pitch black otherwise he would clearly be able to see her face which felt as hot as the Earths sun. "Now try and get some rest, I know you're tired"
"And how would you know that?" She cheekily asked.
"I don't" He smirked and rolled over no longer facing her so she would try to sleep even though they couldn't see each other to begin with.
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: AzTruyen.Top