𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧
𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐬
𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐱

from the eyes of
— 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐒 𝐉𝐀𝐃𝐄 —

Guilt—like real proper guilt—ate away at my soul for the first time in a long time. I stayed put, watching the Doctor and Amy speak quietly to themselves near the controls of the console.

The Doctor piloted the TARDIS to float around in the Time Vortex. At least that's what I had picked up from his muttering rambles.

Amy left my side seconds ago, giving me one last genuine smile before scampering to stand near the Doctor. It was not long until they fell into hushed whispers. But my mind was otherwise occupied—I was not trying to focus or listen in on what they were saying.

The most amusing thing of all... is that despite the lies that had run from my mouth like honey... the truth was so much worse.

I wish I could say the truth of my past was being an average orphaned human from Kentucky. An average human who had been kidnapped and raised in space by Ravagers. An average human who found a Time Vortex Manipulator and started exploring time and space at the ripe age of sixteen.

But that was not even close to what actually happened.

I was far from an average human. So far that sometimes I wondered, despite my physical appearance, if there was any part of me left that was still human.

"Alright," The Doctor clapped, catching my attention. He pointed to me and Amy with a smile. "Winston Churchill! 1941! I think it's high time that we finally visit him!"

Winston Churchill.

Winston Churchill was an inspirational statesman, writer, orator, and leader who led Britain to victory in the Second World War. He served as Prime Minister twice, from 1940 to 1945.

That was the quick history book definition of him, at least.

Yikes, we're going to World War 2? Not good, indeed.

Amy nodded. "Yeah, he did call over a day ago now... we've certainly been taking our time to get to him. It sounded important."

"Time doesn't apply to us, Pond. We'll arrive seconds after he hangs up with us on the phone!" The Doctor smiled brightly, leaping down the console steps and circling me like a golden retriever.

"Alright, my new employee—consider this like an internship! Your payment is food and a place to live. The TARDIS provides clothing, I can't help but notice you packed a bit light! Also, if you want something on our journeys, then I get it for you! Simple as that!"

So an unpaid internship?

My lips pursed and I crossed my arms as he finally stopped circling me, freezing to stand in front of me. Once again, we were in a standoff, our eyes locked and tension surging between us. He wore a smug grin as he looked at me.

"This sounds more like I'm being employed as a sugar baby. Are you suggesting yourself to be a sugar daddy?"

The Doctor gasped, losing his smile and flushing. He floundered, stuttering for a few seconds before finding his words.

"PJ!" The Doctor gawked at me, his hands flailing as if physically pushing the idea out of the air. "PJ! That is not what this is! I am not—absolutely not!"

Amy choked on a laugh behind him. "Oh, I like her. I really like you, PJ." She snorted. "And you're so old too, Doctor! It's kind of true!"

The Doctor spun around, pointing a finger at her. "Don't encourage this, Pond!" Then, back to me, his face still tinted pink. "And you, no more of that... that insinuation! You're a traveler aboard the TARDIS, not some ridiculous—ugh!"

I smirked, shifting my weight casually. "I'm just saying, Doctor, the arrangement you described sounded pretty close. Food, clothing, accommodations, things bought for me on request..." I let the thought dangle, arching a brow for effect. "And all you want is company in return? Companions?"

He threw his hands up and marched toward the console, muttering, "Humans. Why do I let humans aboard? Always twisting everything."

Amy snorted. "Because we make it interesting. And because you'd be bored without us." She sang at the end.

The Doctor shot her a glare. "I am never bored!"

Amy tilted her head, feigning sympathy. "Sure you're not. That's why you keep picking up strays like me and PJ, yeah? Admit it—you like the chaos of people."

He pointedly ignored her, flipping switches and pulling levers with more force than necessary. I caught Amy's eye, and we shared a grin. It was too easy to wind him up.

The engines groaned, and the TARDIS shifted slightly under our feet. The Doctor grinned again, clearly regaining his enthusiasm as he declared, "Right! Churchill, 1941! Allons-y!"

I blinked. "What did you just say?"

He paused, momentarily thrown off. "What?"

"You said... Allons-y. French for 'let's go.' You speak French now?"

He gave me an odd look. "I've always spoken French. I speak over 5 billion languages, thank you very much, and French is hardly the most impressive one."

"That's not the point," I said, squinting at him. "You said it like it's your catchphrase or something."

Amy leaned against the railing, smirking. "Maybe it's just something he says when he's excited. Like a verbal tic."

"It's not a tic! I don't have any tics! And I'll have you know—that's not my catchphrase anymore, I was just being nostalgic!" He threw his hands up again, spinning back to the console and slamming a big green button. "This is my new catchphrase—geronimo!"

I blinked at him, eyebrows raised. "Uhm?"

He froze mid-step, turning to me with an innocent expression. "Yes? More snappy comments to make, dearest?"

"You said, geronimo. Like... like... the battle cry?"

You know what, I actually really like this guy already. But I'll never let him know that.

"Yes! Brilliant word, isn't it?" He grinned, clearly pleased with himself. "It's energetic, bold—has a certain flair, y'know? And perfectly fitting, don't you think?"

No words came from me. I didn't have a response to that.

Amy leaned against the railing, smirking. "For what? Your tendency to jump headfirst into trouble?"

The Doctor ignored her, brushing imaginary dust off his tweed jacket. "It's my phrase! Everyone needs a good phrase."

I tilted my head, crossing my arms. "A catchphrase is a bit cheesy, don't you think?"

He looked genuinely offended. "Cheesy? Cheesy?! It's a carefully curated expression of—"

The TARDIS groaned loudly beneath our feet, cutting him off.

Before either of us could tease him further, the TARDIS gave a violent shudder, throwing me sideways into the railing.

"What was that?" Amy gasped, gripping the edge of the console.

The Doctor's expression flickered from amusement to confusion. "That... was... uhm...?" He glanced at the controls, his brows furrowing as the ship lurched again, harder this time.

The TARDIS pitched violently to one side, and I nearly lost my grip on the railing. Sparks shot out from the console, the golden glow of the room flickering like a dying lightbulb. Somewhere in the chaos, the Doctor was shouting, though I couldn't decide if he sounded panicked or thrilled—or both. Probably both.

"This is normal!" He hollered, dashing around the console like a madman, his bow tie askew and hair sticking up more than it was a few seconds ago. "Perfectly normal!"

Okay, Doc Brown.

I clung tighter to the railing as the floor tilted again, my stomach lurching. "Normal?" I yelled back. "This feels like we're about to crash into a supernova!"

"Nonsense! Supernovae are much more dramatic. This is just... a bit of turbulence!"

Turbulence. Right. Because the words "just turbulence" totally explained why the TARDIS was practically trying to tear itself apart. Even jumping the multiverse was smoother.

...Most of the time.

"Doctor!" Amy's voice cut through the chaos from across the console. She was clutching a strut like her life depended on it. "What's going on? Where are we going?"

"Like I said, still to Winston Churchill!" The Doctor answered with manic glee, flipping switches and slamming buttons like it was the most fun he'd had in centuries."1940s, World War II! Lovely time, the forties. War, rationing, brilliant hats—"

The TARDIS bucked hard, throwing me off balance. I smacked into the railing with an ungraceful grunt, but at least I managed to keep my footing.

"No, no, no!" The Doctor shouted. "Hold on—just a hiccup! Hiccups are perfectly natural!"

Sparks exploded from the console again, and I ducked instinctively. "Your time machine is hiccuping?" I shot back. "Is that supposed to make me feel better? This is not how time machines are supposed to work!"

The Doctor clambered back to his feet, adjusting his bow tie with a look of indignant pride. "Says the expert on time machines. Have you built one? No? Then sit tight and enjoy the ride! Hiccups mean that she is sexy and alive!"

"Sexy?" I muttered, glaring up at the ceiling. "I don't know if I should laugh or be concerned that you call your ship sexy."

Amy was still clinging to her strut. "Doctor! Are we actually landing, or are we just going into oblivion?"

"Landing!" He insisted though the TARDIS gave another violent shudder that didn't exactly inspire confidence.

Oh great and sexy TARDIS! If you can hear my mind then please for my sanity—please, please land us!

And then, just like that, the chaos stopped. The room went still, and the steady hum of the TARDIS engine filled the silence.

Were my thoughts heard?

I straightened slowly, brushing my hair out of my face and fixing the baseball cap. "Is it over? Are we alive?"

"Alive and exactly where we're meant to be!" The Doctor announced cheerfully, bounding over to the monitor like nothing had just happened.

Amy gave him a skeptical look. "Where's that, then? Churchill? The 1940s?"

He hesitated. Not a good sign.

"Doctor..." I said, crossing my arms. "What decade are we in?"

"Well, it's not the forties," He admitted, scratching the back of his head like a kid caught sneaking sweets.

Amy groaned. "Of course, it's not."

"It's fine!" He said quickly, his grin widening. "Think of it as a pit stop. We're in—" He squinted at the screen. "Ah! Australia! Lovely place. 2016. Gorgeous year! February 29? A leap day! Very fun!"

"2016?" I repeated, stepping closer. "You missed your mark by seventy years and half a planet. How does that even happen?"

"The TARDIS has her reasons," He replied cryptically, his eyes narrowing at the screen as he off-handedly bopped me on the nose. I went cross eyed with a scowl. "And I think she's brought us here for a good one."

"Why? Because it's a leap day?"

"No, a leap day is just another day!" He exclaimed happily.

Amy sighed, rubbing her temples. "Why does this feel like the start of another Prisoner Zero problem?"

I was confused. "Prisoner Zero?!"

The Doctor clapped his hands together, his grin bright as ever. "Well, let's not stand around waiting! Come along, girls—let's see what's out there!"

He strode toward the doors, throwing them open with a flourish. Sunshine poured in, and the scent of saltwater drifted through the air. We were on a beach—like a super beachy sunny beach.

"Wow, this is way better than World War II..." I smiled, strolling out of the TARDIS.

It was immediately too hot—way too warm to be wearing a sweater, jeans, and snow boots.

"Should you maybe change your shirt?" Amy asked me with a small laugh.

The Doctor who was standing feet away with his hands on his hips whirled around. It seemed both he and Amy finally took notice of the inappropriate Christmas sweater I was wearing.

"Blimey, what are you wearing?!" The Doctor cried out. "Take that off!" He desperately looked around as though people were staring at it.

Nobody was around—the beach was literally empty.

I rolled my eyes, sliding my backpack off and setting it by my feet. "Only because it's hot, not because you told me to!" I said before pulling the sweater over my head.

I heard two sharp intakes of breath. It seemed the Doctor and Amy thought I was giving them a free strip show and view of my titties. Unfortunately for them, I was wearing a tank top underneath.

"Wow, you're fit—like, bloody hell, you have nice arms..." Amy complimented with a single huff. "Is a six-pack hiding under that tank top as well?"

What can I say? My body is muscularly toned from a lifetime of running and fighting. Not to mention I am half Celestial Titan. I was like the ultimate athlete.

Not to mention my ass and thighs were harder than rocks.

Now, not to slap my own ass or toot my horn or however that saying goes, but like... if Avatar Korra was a real person I would embody her in mind, body, and soul.

She was probably real somewhere in the infinite multiverse, but in the ones I had been to, she sadly remained exclusively on the television.

One day I'll meet her... and then I'll kiss her or something.

The Doctor said "yes" at the same time I said, "Of course there is! I like to work out is all...!" I tried to play it cool, but it was obvious by the tone of my voice that I was more than a little perky at being complimented. "What did you just say, Doctor?"

The Doctor was staring at me a bit too hard. However, when he realized that I caught him staring, he awkwardly coughed and hastily looked away.

"Nothing! I didn't say anything at all!" He quickly said.

I gave him a suspicious glance. How the fuck did he know I had a six-pack hiding under my shirt.

The answer seems like something I don't really want to know yet, so I'm going to just ignore it.

"Maybe you should catch a workout with me, Doctor...!" I playfully called instead.

He snorted, now over his previous fluster. "Trust that I can outrun you any day, deary! We've already had many races, all of which I have won. So you have that to look forward to!"

"I feel like you're lying..." I narrowed my eyes.

He shrugged. "Mmm, you'll need to find out for yourself,"

Rolling my eyes, I tossed the Christmas sweater back into the TARDIS along with the Chicago Cubs baseball cap. Closing the door after I threw both articles of clothing inside, I was quick to pull my messy hair in a low ponytail and hike my backpack around on my shoulders.

"You can put your backpack inside too!" The Doctor told me, standing casually with his hands in his pockets.

"I'd like to keep it with me!" I grinned.

He raised a brow at me, eyeing me for a second more before shrugging. He turned and motioned to the beach.

"I present to you both—Australia!"

Me and Amy fell to either side of him. He stood slightly in front of us with his arms outstretched. It was a very pretty view, especially if you are a fan of warmth and beaches.

However, Amy admittedly looked much more impressed than I. "Australia, and in the future? PJ, was right. I think this is better than World War II..." She spun in a circle happily. "Honestly, just feel that warm sun! And the air smells so good. Way better than rainy ole' Leadworth!"

This was the future for Amy? What year was she coming from?

"What year are you coming from?" I questioned her.

Amy turned to me with a smile, still basking in the sunlight. "2010 and you?"

"With this, I was all over the place..." I motioned to the Vortex Manipulator still strapped to my wrist. "But I've been in the 2020s for a while..."

The Doctor was half-listening to us with a smile, the other half of his attention on everything around.

"Ah—yeah... that makes sense," She nodded, once again looking around proudly. "I've been waiting fourteen years for this!"

"What?" I was shocked, looking at her. "What do you mean fourteen years?"

The Doctor, of course, cut in as the conversation changed. "Yes! A small mistake on my part! See I met Amelia three days ago—for my internal clock, at least. Regenerated three days ago too!" He explained to me.

I was surprised, he seemed rather well-rounded for this apparently being a brand new incarnation of himself.

"Crash landed in her backyard when she was seven—" He was cut off by Amelia herself.

"Yeah, he crash lands in my backyard! I'm nice enough to bring him inside, and I make him tons of food only to find that he only likes fish fingers and custard—" She was cut off by the Doctor.

"Oi, new face, new taste buds! They're still sensitive, it'll even itself out within the next few weeks! Besides I really liked the pizza we had earlier!" He defended only for Amy to wave him off and continue her speech.

"Anyway, as it would turn out there was this crack in my wall—!"

"A crack of time and space, two parts of reality that should never have touched!" The Doctor added.

That caught my attention. A crack in time and space? Two parts of reality that should not have touched? How have I not noticed that?

Panic ate away at me: had I been found and did not even know it? Had they found me?

The slightest bit of cold sweat broke out on my forehead.

My nerves were put at ease by Amy's next words.

"Anyway, the Doctor pulls out his sonic-thingy and fixed it. Then something happened with the TARDIS and he runs off so I followed—" She was cut off by him again.

If the Doctor could fix the time and space crack with his sonic then it wasn't anything I had to worry about.

No multiversal crack or anything that is detrimental to my purpose here.

"It's called a sonic screwdriver. And the TARDIS engines were phasing, she was burning and needed a trip through the Time Vortex to cool, I already explained this, Pond—" The Doctor groaned.

Amy put a hand in his face and he huffed at it.

"Anyway, so he tells little cute seven-year-old me he'll be back in five minutes... you know when he came back though?"

The Doctor groaned and turned away with a hand on his face as though embarrassed.

I raised a brow. "When?"

"12 years later!" She cried.

I gasped out a chortle. "What? Oh my gosh—that's so messed up! And you were seven?"

"Seven! He lied to a little seven-year-old!"

"Talk about lifetime trust issues..." I said.

"Talk about lifetime issues in general—!" Amy said back.

The Doctor having enough, put himself back into the conversation. "I didn't lie! The TARDIS was going through some stuff, she's been a little more temperamental since my regeneration and her change. She'll stabilize soon enough... but it makes her travels more... unpredictable..."

"As can be seen," I motioned around us to Australia in 2016.

Again, not necessarily something to complain about.

The Doctor rolled his eyes and poked me in the middle of my forehead. "Enough from the peanut gallery!"

"The peanut gallery—?" I screeched, my voice going high pitched.

Amy put herself in the middle of us to stop another one of our fun little spats. Was I meant to be arguing with my boss this much?

"Anyway! So he comes back 12 years later..."

"Again, barely five minutes for me!" He explained.

"12 years later..." She threw him a side-eye. "And then this alien race called the Atraxi came! He said they were following him—"

"They were following me!" He piped in dramatic defense. "I didn't know that until I got back!"

Amy gave the Doctor a sharp glare, the kind that could cut through steel. "Right. So anyway, the Atraxi showed up, and they basically threatened to fry the entire planet because one escaped prisoner was hiding on Earth. In my house!"

The Doctor threw up his hands in frustration. "Oh, come on! I handled it! Gave them a proper talking-to, sent them running—sorted the whole thing out!"

"After getting dressed in a stolen outfit!" Amy smirked. "With the bowtie."

"It was borrowed, Pond!" He shot back indignantly, adjusting his bowtie. "Very dashing look, too, if I do say so myself."

The bowtie is kind of hot, but I'm definitely not saying that out loud.

I crossed my arms, arching a brow. "So let me get this straight: you crashed into her backyard, ate a bunch of her food, left for over a decade, and then proceeded to drag killer aliens back to Earth? All in a matter minutes, by your account, of course? That's... impressive."

It's also kinda screaming extra-terrestrial scrub behavior.

The Doctor whirled on me, his mouth opening and closing like a fish. "I—No! That's not—You're twisting it!"

Amy burst into laughter, clapping her hands. "She's got you there, Doctor."

"Thank you," I said with a satisfied nod. "Honestly, I'm starting to see a pattern with you. What's next? Setting fire to a library?"

"That was one time!" the Doctor snapped, pointing a finger at me, his face a mixture of exasperation and slight.. what was that? Amusement... fondness? "And it was your fault that it happened in the first place!"

Amy blinked, her mouth falling open. "Wait—wait a second. You actually burned down a library? Both of you?"

I held my arms up. "Anything that future me does is not my problem!"

"Spoilers!" The Doctor said quickly, his voice rising in panic. "And you two are ganging up on me! This is highly unfit behavior for companions! This is why I typically only have one at a time!"

"Companions?" I teased. "I thought I was your intern slash sugar baby?"

Amy snorted, bring up a hand to cover her mouth. The Doctor let out a long-suffering sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose as if that would somehow dull our combined wit.

"Right," he muttered. "This is what I get for taking humans on board. Never again. You two will definitely be my last."

I smirked, tilting my head. "That's a lie, and we both know it."

The Doctor shot me a sideways look but said nothing, his lips twitching ever so slightly. Amy, recovering from her laughter, placed a hand on her hip and turned to me.

"Sooo..." She dragged while grinning, "Long story short, the Doctor and I stopped the Atraxi together, and he invited me to come along."

I gave her an impressed look. "Sounds like quite the introduction. I mean, apart from the childhood trauma."

Amy shook her head. "Honestly, it was worth it."

The Doctor straightened, his face lighting up with his trademark enthusiasm. "See? Amy gets it! Adventure, danger, wonder—it's the best life in the universe!"

"Hmm," I hummed skeptically, shading my eyes from the sun as I looked out over the ocean. "I guess we'll see if it lives up to the hype. So far, all I've experienced is turbulence and your inability to land where you're supposed to."

The Doctor huffed, throwing his arms up in mock exasperation. "Oh, for—fine! Let's see what this town has to offer, shall we? Maybe then you'll start appreciating my brilliance."

Amy gave me a knowing grin as we followed him toward the beachside road. "Don't worry. You'll get used to his ego, too."

"Doubtful," I replied, smirking.

Behind us, the Doctor muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "peanut gallery," and I couldn't help but laugh.

Amy grinned, leaning toward me. "Oh, and I forgot the best part—he had to break in the TARDIS afterward."

I blinked. "Wait, what? Break in the TARDIS? How do you even manage to get locked out of your own spaceship?"

The Doctor spun around, his coat flaring dramatically as he waved his hands. "You mean break-in like you did less than an hour ago? Also, I wasn't locked out! It was just... recalibrating after my regeneration. Completely normal!"

Amy rolled her eyes. "Yeah, he had to jump to the moon and back just to reset it."

I stared at him. "Why the moon? There is literally nothing on it other than the American flag... and you're both British..."

"Scottish," Amy corrected. "1000% a proud Scot!"

We were nearing the beachside road. Somehow, through all of this, the Redbull had still remained in my grasp. I finished it off, noticing we were approaching a trashcan that sat at the edge.

I chucked it in, my aim and shot were perfect as the can clinked on the trash and fell inside. The Doctor raised both his brows and Amy whistled in an impressed tone.

The Doctor cleared his throat, brushing imaginary dust off his lapel. "And I'm not British either, a TimeLord. I just talk in this accent while speaking human English because I like Great Britain the best. And I just needed a quick hop, skip, and jump across space. The moon is the easiest and fastest place to go."

Amy snorted. "He says that, but then it took him two years to come back."

"Two years?" I choked out a laugh, looking between them. "You seriously left for two more years after all of that? Holy shit, fourteen years?! That is sooo fucked!"

"Language, PJ!" The Doctor threw up his hands. "And it was the TARDIS! She was still warming up, adjusting after the—" He paused, making a large gesture to himself. "—changes. Perfectly reasonable delay."

Amy crossed her arms, giving him a pointed look. "Fourteen years, Doctor! Fourteen years!"

"Which is practically a blink in time travel terms!" The Doctor protested. "And I did come back, didn't I? Fourteen years for you but overall only about four hours for me! Cut me some slack!"

Amy turned to me, ignoring him entirely. "Two years later, and he shows up in the middle of the night like no time has passed."

I laughed, shaking my head. "Wow, you're really building a case for Most Reliable Time Traveler of the Year."

The Doctor looked utterly scandalized. "Oh, come on! It's not like I planned any of this! The TARDIS had—"

"Weren't you just hating on the Vortex Manipulator for being, as you put it, cheap and nasty?" I questioned.

"Which it is! Don't even try to make a comparison between my TARDIS and the rubbish on your wrist!" He cried with fury.

I waved a hand between the two of them, still laughing. "Wait, wait—so you're telling me that in the span of four hours for him, you aged fourteen years, had a crack in your wall that turned out to be a tear in time and space, and had to deal with killer aliens chasing after him?"

Amy nodded solemnly. "Pretty much."

I let out a low whistle. "And here I was thinking my life was insane."

Amy smirked. "And, right before the Doctor took me to Chicago to try authentic deep-dish pizza, we were in the 29th century on a spacecraft carrying the whole of Britain!"

I vaguely remembered the conversation they were having when they first boarded the TARDIS an hour ago and found me on board. It seemed the Doctor had taken Amy to Chicago for the sole purpose of pizza.

"Yes, Pond, as we agreed: lunch before Winston Churchill. Although it seems we'll need to wait before getting to him for even longer." The Doctor groaned, rubbing his temples. "You two are going to be impossible together, aren't you?"

I grinned. "Oh, absolutely."

Amy threw an arm around my shoulders, her grin matching mine. "Get used to it, Doctor. You're stuck with us."

Amelia Pond really is a cool person.

With a dramatic sigh, the Doctor pointed ahead. "Fine! Enough storytelling. Let's see what kind of beach town we've come to!"

"But we still need to tell her about the Star Whale from yesterday!" She said.

"Later, Pond!" He called, all of us coming to a stop.

We stopped behind him—at that moment, my stomach gave a loud and angry sound. The Doctor and Amy turned to me with wide eyes.

"Blimey, was that your stomach?" The Doctor gasped, looking to my abdomen as though a monster was popping out of it.

Against my will an angry fluster took over my face. While I could not die from starvation—I still had to eat to be able to function properly. Not to mention, not eating was still entirely uncomfortable.

"Uhm," I brought a hand behind my head and rubbed the back of it. "Yeah, do you mind if we actually stop somewhere to eat, I'm pretty hungry..."