The Time Ring

“How did you actually get here?” Peter Pan, against was Mousy imagined, was a 13 years old normal kid. He was happy to have her there, for some reason but he was skeptical as to whom she was exactly. She wasn’t like Wendy. She was an adult yet she didn’t look very old. He was smart and dependable but at the same time he was avoiding situations where he would have to take responsibility. He was a good friend and a good leader, but he was reckless and hotheaded. He wasn’t a real leader. He wasn’t real at all.

“I came with my friend in his magic blue box. How did you get here? Do you remember?” He shrugged and walked towards the bed. He flipped the cover and jumped in.

“I don’t. I’ve been here for longer than I remember. I found the boys and we became friends” She smiled softly and sat on the bed.

“Like a family” He nodded. “You built a tree house and you’ve been living here together ever since” He stumbled on the cover while trying to get closer to her. He fell on his face yet he started to laugh. He really was the definition of childhood.

“Mommy? Can we play today?” Little Mandy slid the door open and entered her mother’s room. The woman didn’t even glance at her daughter.

“Not now. I’m having problems” Mandy walked to her mother and stared at her with big green eyes.

“Can I help you, too?” The women turned to her daughter and watched her closely. After a moment of silence, she nodded. Mandy jumped in happiness.

“Mommy, I’m scared” Little Mandy was in a tub that could fit a real person. Her mother was typing rapidly. “It’s cold” The water started to get into the tub from a corner and it was filling quickly.

“Mommy?”

The woman only glanced over her shoulder and smiled reassuringly.

“You don’t have to be scared, Amanda. Everything is going to be alright. You will make mommy very happy”

Mousy blinked that memory away. Family wasn’t her strong point. Her past was bad enough as she remembered it. She didn’t want to get deeper into it.

Peter saw the older woman spacing out and got curious.

“Do you have a family?” Her eyes got colder and she distanced herself from the subject. She wasn’t tensed but there was a melancholic atmosphere around her.

“I did. I had a family but it fell apart. I want to believe that my mother loved me at some point. I have a younger brother who got in a lot of trouble in the past and he had to change himself under some circumstances. I think he wants his old life back” Her eyes became warmer when she started to talk about her brother. It was obvious enough for Peter to notice how much she cared for him. “He was a lot like you. He was always jumping around, full of joy and love. But there were people who didn’t like that and they forced him to change. When you grow up, you realize that everything you believed in was a facade. Your world shatters slowly and you become a boring adult”

“That sounds really sad” She chuckled.

“It is. Not many people can fight it. It just happens” Peter got on his feet on the bed and posed like a superhero.

“I promise I will always fight these bad people and make them happy again!” She laughed loudly. That sounded really childish. “I promise I will free your heart, Mousy!” She frowned. For a moment, his words cut deep into her heart. A child who had never met her before was fighting for her. The Doctor was the same. He was fighting for those who wanted to free their hearts.

“It’s getting cold” It was the fourth time Jeremy complained. “I’m hungry” It was the third time he said that. “Are you sure this tent is supposed to look so bent?” The Doctor tried to make a shelter out of what he could find. It didn’t work well. In the end, they just used huge leaves. They placed them in a triangle and hoped it wouldn’t rain.

“I’m sure I’ve seen that in a documentary about the jungle” The Doctor smiled and got comfortable against a rock. “Why don’t you imagine something? Something has to happen” Jeremy crossed his arms and looked at the sky.

“There are a lot of stars on the sky”

“Is that what you wished to see or what it really is?” Jeremy looked dumbfounded at the Doctor. He did want to see stars but that wasn’t something he necessarily wished for at the moment.

“I don’t know. I don’t have a particular wish. I have everything I need” The Doctor chuckled and leaned on his back.

“Are you sure? You can’t see the stars like that in London” The younger man chuckled and leaned on his hands. “You and Mousy are really different”

“We aren’t. It’s just that she didn’t surrender while I did. I gave up easily because I’m not strong enough” The Doctor sighed.

“I know what you mean. The temptation is too big to pass it”

“What did you do that made you watch the stars with melancholy?” The Doctor glanced at his companion seriously.

“I killed a whole planet” Jeremy’s eyes widened for a moment. “I did it to end a war but that doesn’t mean I had the right to end so many lives” Jeremy kept silent for a while until he decided to share his secret.

“I killed mom” The Doctor raised an eyebrow. “I was the one who started the fire. I found some test tubes and every time I was throwing one into the fireplace, it would change the color. At first it was fun and innocent but when I threw one big bottle of gasoline, the fire became bigger and brighter. I was fascinated by the flames. I wanted to touch them and feel the magic. I didn’t run to mom or Mousy when the fire spread. I opened the secret door under the stairs to mom’s play room and the fire entered it. It exploded with mom still in there. I caused the fire and the death of our mother” The Doctor’s eyes widened with every detail unveiled. Jeremy’s eyes were staring intensely at the stars.

“Does she know?” Jeremy chuckled and turned on his side. He looked at the Doctor with cold eyes.

“No. But it doesn’t matter. We didn’t really have a family. I don’t feel guilty for what I’ve done. I saved us”

“She think you’re afraid of fire” Jeremy started to laugh loudly and hardly regained his senses. The Doctor watched the young man with interest.

“I’m not afraid of fire. I’m afraid of myself around fire. Every time I watch those flames I feel the need to make them bigger and more beautiful. I caused a fire when I was in the boarding school. They called my aunt and told her that I have a problem; that I should see a psychologist. I went for a whole year but I didn’t tell him anything relevant. We attract trouble wherever we go, in different shapes. But you, you are the most incredible trouble we met. You give people a way out of the normal world. I’m sure you changed many lives”

“People died because of me” Jeremy smiled.

“I think you actually saved them. You showed them real freedom. I’m sure they sacrificed happily for you” That was one point of view. The Doctor wasn’t really seeing it like that. But the way Jeremy spoke made something in the Doctor feel better. Maybe he had done good, too. He did save a lot of people. Maybe he wasn’t that bad.

That thought changed quite radically.

“I didn’t see this coming” Jeremy glared at the Doctor and scoffed. They were walking in order, chained together.

A few hours after they opened up to each other and bonded in a manly way, Jeremy went to sleep. The Doctor still had a lot of things to think about. Neverland was a forgotten planet and it was far from Earth. However, from Neverland, the image over the sun and the moon was beautiful. The closer planets were amazingly contouring quite the view. He was on his back and had his hand behind his head. He was content. Even if he indirectly and directly killed some people, he saved as many. That was a positive thought and he wanted to keep it for a while.

Besides, he was intrigued about something. He had to regenerate. He could feel it in his body and both his hearts. He already took his farewells from everyone who mattered but nothing happened. The TARDIS landed in London on a winter day and the regeneration process had been postponed. He didn’t have much time left but he still had a week, probably.

The Doctor closed his eyes and hummed. It was quite a surprise when he met someone with a time ring. The Cavington’s didn’t cease to surprise him. Mousy had a powerful time object and Jeremy was a pyromaniac. What was next? When he opened his eyes, he realized he talked too soon.

“Look what we found. The captain will be so happy, ay?” Well, he definitely talked too soon. That was how they ended up in that bad situation.

“I didn’t know pirates have an Irish accent” The Doctor raised an eyebrow. That was quite a statement.

“I don’t think they know what an Irish is” Jeremy chuckled and poked the Doctor’s side.

“Maybe we should start and talk in different languages. They will think we’re weird and let us go” The Doctor stopped and looked at him stupidly.

“I heard, used and thought about a lot of ways to get out of trouble but this one never struck me” He rubbed his chin and thought about it. “Let’s try it” It was an exciting adventure for the men. They were actually having some kind of fun.

“Hello, hello. What did my crew catch for me today?” Jeremy coughed and straightened.

“Mio nombre es Jeremy” The Doctor suddenly felt like that wasn’t such a good idea after all. He decided to take the initiative.

“We’re travelers. We don’t mean any harm for you, captain. We’re only here to visit” Hook inspected them from head to toe. Jeremy was still dressed in a suit.

“You, the pretty boy” The two glanced at each other. They didn’t know who he was talking about. They both felt pretty enough. “The one dressed in fancy clothes. You’re too clean” Jeremy blinked in surprised.

“I have never ever heard such a compliment” Hook glared at him and raised his voice.

“It’s not a compliment! Be silent” Jeremy raised an eyebrow. He had a sword pointed at his back but he didn’t feel scared. “I don’t know what to do with you. You don’t seem special. Throw them in the cell for now!”

“Wait!” The Doctor had an idea but he wasn’t sure if it would work. “You’re right. We’re not only simple travelers. We are magicians! Famous all over the 7th Centurion” Jeremy blinked and looked at the Doctor in confusion. “We can entertain you! My pupil here can do a lot of things!” Hook looked like he was actually taking it in consideration.

“What do you know to do, boy?” Jeremy gulped. He glanced to the Doctor and leaned closer.

“What should I say?” He whispered. The Doctor shrugged.

“Just lie. He won’t make you do it” The younger man nodded.

“I can do tricks. Right. I can cut someone in two and that person won’t die” The pirates awed. They were surprised. “Or can play with fire and water”

“Amazing! Then you can show us tomorrow night! We’ll have a show!” Jeremy’s eyes widened and his head snapped to the Doctor. He shrugged.

“Well, my bad” Jeremy was in deep shit.