Chapter 1: The Doomsday Child - Part 1
Chapter Text

Once you've travelled with the Doctor, nothing could compare. That was what Rose Tyler believed for a long time. And upon her confinement to the parallel world, so similar to her own, her belief grew. Until she found the next best thing. Although she still cried at the thought of being separated from the Doctor, she still had a piece of him with her. She'd regretted lying, but she knew the Doctor – she knew how alone and helpless he'd feel if he knew what part of him she had been given.

 

That piece appeared in the form of, at first, a swollen belly. Then soon the small bundle with his brown eyes and nose, but her colouring and blond hair. She named him Harry. Rose had once thought to herself, if she were ever to have a son, she would name him after her late father Pete. But Pete Tyler, although not the one whom had been in her world, was alive. So she picked the next name she liked. After her mother's own father, Harry Prentice. With Jonathan for a middle name; the Doctor's real name only burnt in the stars, John Smith was the alias he always adopted. So Harry Jonathan Tyler was born and Rose felt herself become a little less lonely.

 

Rose didn't know a lot about raising a child. She'd grown up with younger cousins, so babysitting had been a regular occurrence, but this was very different. Harry seemed to grow differently to other children. Rose supposed he got that from his father. That's why he could run at seven months, and had a full head of hair before his first birthday. It grew just like the Doctor's, but stayed the same colour as Rose's own hair. Harry, once running, was into everything. Jackie remarked how Rose had been a quiet child, whilst Harry made noise everywhere. He also liked to pull things apart. Jackie had found him inside the washing machine, trying to figure out how it worked. He'd always managed to unplug everything in the house and move things.

 

Each of these events brought a bright smile to Rose's face as she was reminded of the Doctor. And her smile prompted Harry to do it more. He was very empathic for a child. He could feel she was missing someone. He could feel it from her, his Nana Jackie and Grandpa Pete. He would listen to their stories they told him of this Doctor. His Grandpa Pete would remark how the Doctor gave him the family he never knew he could have. His Nana Jackie remarked how the man was remarkable, if a little strange, and what she called a 'plum'. His mother told him stories of great space battles, of daring adventures that made Harry beam and laugh with Rose.

 

Time seemed to move faster in the parallel world. Rose could remember the Doctor explaining some scientific answer when they first visited, and before she knew it, she'd been trapped in the world for four years. Harry had grown a lot in four years. She knew nothing of Time Lord biology, but by the time of his fourth birthday, Harry had the height and structure of a seven year old, and was as curious as ever. He was forever wondering how things worked; from the dishwasher to the sun and stars. He liked the stars the best. He would sit there for hours, his only quiet time, and imagine all the different planets for each star, all the civilisations and the worlds. And he wondered if the Doctor had been to them.

 

It was his curiosity and wonder of the universe that made Rose see the Doctor in him. And it was these shared traits that would allow them to meet.

 

***

 

After the battle of Canary Wharf, Pete Tyler had offered his daughter a job at Torchwood. It allowed Rose some semblance to her life with the Doctor – had that life involved a lot of paperwork.

 

'You promise to be good? No taking anything apart?' Rose said to her son as they both climbed out of Pete's car. Her flyaway blonde hair was pulled back for days were Rose knew she'd be stuck behind a desk. It was the safety of the desk that eventually conviced Rose to let Harry spend the day with her at work. The safety of the desk, and Harry's begging. His brown eyes sparkled and Rose would swear it was the Doctor staring at her.

 

'I promise, Mum.' He said, grinning wide to show the gaps from missing teeth. Rose smiled at her son and clasped his hand. To everyone else he seemed older, but Rose would forever see him as a small baby in need of her protection. Whenever he'd cried she was there. Not because she wanted to smother him, but because he had rarely cried as a child. Two things had only ever scared him – clowns and nightmares. And no ordinary nightmares would befall the child of the Doctor and the Bad Wolf. Harry would wake, crying from images of fire, death and war. It would take Rose hours to calm him down. No one else could calm him after a nightmare.

 

Clutching her son's hand, Rose walked into the newly refurbished Torchwood building. After the Cybermen, Torchwood had become careful. And Rose's knowledge, if limited compared to the Doctor's, of alien life and possible threat helped a great deal.

 

'Hey kiddo, if you're good you can come with me later and see the experimental labs.' Pete Tyler said with a wink as they scanned their security clearance.

 

'Really?' Harry piped up as Rose fastened a visitor security pass to his green sweatshirt. Rose smiled brightly. Pete had taken time to adapt at becoming a father to her, but had gradually embraced the role. And when Harry was born, he became the doting grandfather, taking his daughter and grandson on days out, and sneaked Harry presents when Rose or Jackie attempted to instil discipline.

 

Rose and Harry waved goodbye to Pete as he met up with some colleagues and they parted ways, heading towards the tenth floor, where Rose's office was.

 

Harry managed to entertain himself with the view from his mother's office for a total of ten minutes before he became restless. Within an hour, he'd used a whole stack of paper in drawings and folded spaceships, and now sat at her feet as she filed some papers.

 

'Let me guess, you're bored now aren't you.' She said with a toothy smile, which Harry returned.

 

'I just thought it would be more exciting. Like it was when you were with Dad.' Rose's heart swelled whenever Harry called the Doctor 'Dad'. They'd never met, but Rose could tell he missed him. Like there was a gap in his mind and heart she couldn't fill, no matter how much they tried.

 

'It has its days. But for now, the most exciting thing is trying to dig out staples from the stationary cupboard.'

 

'I'll get them!' Harry said, beaming as he jumped to his feet. 'Maybe I'll see some aliens!' He smiled the same toothy smile and Rose couldn't help but laugh.

 

'Alright then. It's down the hall and the second door on the left. Come straight back, Harry.'

 

'I will, Mum!' He called as he raced from the office and sped past others. Several looked at him in curiosity as he wandered through the office. On the tenth floor, it was only a small team, all with security clearance. So they knew of Rose's adventures with the Doctor, they knew the Doctor's legendary stories, and they knew Harry was half Time Lord.

 

He left the office and followed the signed posts towards the stationary cupboard. When he opened it, he was disheartened to find no aliens or amazing technology stashed away. Just printer paper, paper-clips, staples and boxes of pens.

 

'Hey, Harry!' Harry peered from behind the cupboard door as he saw Pete Tyler walk along the white-painted hallway.

 

'Hi Grandpa Pete! Mum needs staples again.' He showed him the box and Pete chuckled.

 

'Bet you wished there was something more exciting going on, don't you?' Harry nodded eagerly, and happily followed Pete down the corridor. He knew he'd said he would go straight back to Rose, but she wouldn't mind him going with Pete. He pocketed the staples and stepped into the lift with Pete.

 

'Where are we going?' He asked.

 

'Oh you'll see.' Pete said with a small chuckle. The lift stopped and an automated voice called for security clearance. Pete swiped his ID card and the lift continued into the basement level.

 

'Harry; welcome to the experimental laboratory.' Pete said with a wide smile as his grandson looked around in wonder. Works milled around benches with piles of recovered alien tech. And weapons beyond anyone’s imagination.

 

'This is amazing!' Harry breathed, and made to run towards the first bench, but Pete grabbed the back of his sweatshirt.

 

'Nice try kiddo. Look, don't touch. If you go back upstairs with so much as a hair missing your mum will go crazy. Never mind what your Nan would do to me.' Harry laughed and followed Pete around the lab, explaining what Pete could, with Harry making suggestions in his bright-eyed way.

 

'Is that him?' One lab assistant asked Pete, as Harry inspected a small round yellow device that was harmless. 'That's the Doctor's child?'

 

'Yeah, that's him.' Pete replied.

 

'What are these?' Harry asked, holding up the discs as Pete inspected sheets of paper a technician had passed him.

 

'Those, are dimension cannons. Its what we used to hop between realities.'

 

'From the Cyberman battle? You still have them?' Harry asked hopefully. Pete hated to shut down the boys hopes.

 

'Yeah. But sorry kiddo, they're all broken from the war. Besides, your Dad closed the breach. It would take a phenomenal amount of energy in that room to transport a single person. Even then getting the right reality is hard.'

 

Harry held onto the disc whilst they explored the rest of the room. They were useless now without a strong energy source, so Pete allowed his grandson to carry the disc. They soon moved from lab to lab, before coming across a reinforced door.

 

'What's though here, Grandpa?' Harry called as he reached the heavily locked door. Pete jogged over and began keying in a code.

 

'Don't tell your mum I showed you this.' He said with another knowing smile. 'She's told you about the story of that creature, what was it called, the one they found in Cardiff?'

 

'The Slitheen?' Harry said, happily re-living the story inside his head.

 

'Yeah, that one. Well did she explain what the Rift is?'

 

'The intergalactic pit stop mum calls it.' Harry said with a smile as he raced into the room. 'Is there part of the rift in there?' He asked, and Pete nodded.

 

'Be careful!' Pete called, as he tried to follow his grandson, a lab technician came forward with some paperwork.

 

Harry entered the room, and found it divided by a thick wall. Inside, although he couldn't see the energy, he knew the other room was bursting with in. The door to the camber had been left ajar. There was a notice for repairs attached to it. He decided it would not hurt to explore it. As he passed the control console, he took no note of the rising energy levels that were being recorded in the room.

 

Harry could feel the energy once he stepped into the room. Like a million bees were buzzing, swarming around him, but invisible. The air was so thick it was nearly tangible.

  

'Harry!' He could hear Pete call his name, but the energy seemed to be thickening somehow, and it amazed him. He felt something warm inside his sweatshirt pocket, and pulled out the small silver disc. The Dimension cannon Pete had showed him. The air seemed to be getting thicker and thicker with the energy, and sparks were trembling along the sides of the Dimension Cannon, the yellow centre seemed to be glowing.

 

'The rift gives enough energy, Grandpa!' Harry called out as he saw Pete burst into the other room, beyond the thick glass.

 

'Harry! Get out of there!'

 

'I think it works now!' Harry called back, gleeful as he stared at the yellow button. As if the energy in the room was coaxing him to, he felt an urge to press the button, as Pete screamed for hi to come out.

 

'The rift is going crazy!' Said one of the technicians that had followed Pete in. They watched as Pete was too late to run into the room, as Harry pressed the yellow button and seemed to be absorbed by the energy in the room, leaving it bare.

 

'Harry!' Pete screamed out as his grandson disappeared with a blast of energy, and the smell of burning plastic left behind. The energy readings on the console seemed to dim down, and Pete Tyler couldn't take his eyes off the spot where Harry had been stood, now vanished to possibly anywhere in the whole of time and space. Or possibly absorbed by the crushing weight of the Void.

 

'Harry!' He called again, to the empty room.

 

***

 

The rift had no colour, sound or scent. And was gone in a blink. Harry continued to squeeze the Dimension Cannon button, even after the damage was done. And suddenly, he was thrust forwards onto the cold ground which felt wet.

 

Disc still in his hands, Harry slowly opened his eyes to be greeted by the night sky. The stars looked the same. He even managed to notice the constellations that he recognised through his telescope. Was he home?

 

He slowly sat up and found himself in a deserted town centre. Behind him, a tall water piece was flowing, speckles of water hitting his face. Beyond that, a large mental building with words in Welsh stencilled in.

 

'Grandpa? Mum?' Harry called, but the night was deserted. 'Mum? Mum! He called again, becoming worried.

 

'Hey! Stop right there!' A voice called out as people suddenly appeared. Five people suddenly came out, most with guns, a few with energy readers.

 

'Its a child.' A woman who seemed Japanese said in shock.

 

'Yeah, we can see that, Tosh.' A man with short dark hair said. 'But could be anything. Wouldn't be the first one, would it.'

 

'Take it easy, Owen.' A woman with a heavy Welsh accent said, with dark hair and a kind face that reminded Harry of his mother.

 

'Identify yourself, kid.' A man said, clearly the leader. He held himself like Pete did, but had an American accent.

 

'I'm sorry. I just want to go home.' Harry said, still clutching the Dimension Cannon.

 

'He can't be an alien, look at him! Put your gun down, Owen.' The woman with the accent said again.

 

'And what? Let him blow us to hell with that thing in his hands? That would be a great idea, wouldn't it, Gwen?'

 

The man with the American accent moved towards Harry, who noticed he was dressed in a World War Two style of outfit. That's when the name clicked in his head.

 

'I know you!' Harry said, clambering to his feet. 'You're Captain Jack!' The man was taken aback, as were the others behind him.

 

'How'd you know who I am kid? What's that you got there in your hands?'

 

'My Mum told me about you! You and Satellite Five! With the Daleks!' The man's face seemed to pale considerably.

 

'What's he talking about, Jack? You know this kid?' The man – Owen – asked as he took a steady step towards Harry. Harry held out the Dimension Cannon to Jack, who took it carefully.

 

'Its a Dimension Cannon, my Grandpa made it, he works for Torchwood.' Jack cocked an eyebrow.

 

'What's your name, kid? And who's your Mom?'

 

'My name's Harry. My Mum is called Rose Tyler. She said you knew her and my Dad, the Doctor.' If Jack could look anymore pale and confused he would, as he stared at this small blond boy who beamed away at him, who seemed to have been quite literally spit out by the Rift.

 

'Rose Tyler and the Doctor, the Doctor, are you saying those are your parents?' Harry nodded, and Jack inspected the round yellow disc in his hands. This was not how he imagined this day was to go. He turned around to the rest of the Torchwood team.

 

'We've got a problem here.'
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