The Image
"Do you see it?", the Doctor asked Rose as he stood in front of the mirror in the wardrobe.
"Of course I do, it is you in the mirror.", she replied.
"No. Do you see him?", he asked again.
"Now, Doctor. Don't tell me you have never seen your own reflection before-- Oh, my goodness. You mean him! He is not you, is he?", Rose said amazed.
"I am afraid he is. Part of me, at least.", the Doctor replied gravely.
"So it was him, you saw flashing by all those times.", Rose said.
"Yes. He is accumulating strength so that he can pull himself away, to be free to do whatever he likes. But what is it he wants, I wonder.", the Doctor explained.
"Your reflection has got a will of its own? That can't be good. How are you going to stop him?", Rose asked the Doctor.
"Stop him? Whatever for?", the Doctor replied.
"Well, it is not normal, is it?", Rose said.
"No. It is unusual but that is no reason to get rid of it straight away. I want to know what it wants. How could I communicate with it? Signing perhaps.", the Doctor said and started signing to the mirror. He waved his hands frantically though the air in his attempt to communicate with his image.
"Huh, if I ever woke up in the morning and see my reflection acting strangely, I would scream and that wouldn't be me trying to communicate with it. I'd smash all the mirrors I could find.", Rose said.
"Kind of violent approach, don't you think? Come on, Rose. Help me out here. How do I communicate with a mirror?", the Doctor urged her to think of a solution.
"Uhm, let me think. I know a fairytale in which a mirror could talk. An evil witch would ask it if she were the prettiest of the kingdom. How did that rhyme go again? Oh, I remember. Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the most brilliant of them all?", Rose spoke to the mirror.
"That would be me, as anyone can see.", the reflection in the mirror replied in rhyme.
"Ah, the Doctor. Of course.", Rose said with pride.
"No, you blond little girl. Me!", the image said angrily. Rose was taken aback by the image's rude manner.
"Well, you got him talking alright.", the Doctor commented cynically.
"He is not very much like you, is he?", Rose said.
"I don't see why not. He is just as rude--", the Doctor replied, but the image interrupted him.
"Of course I am not like him. I am much better! The Doctor here has been neglecting his duties and I intend to set that straight.", the image said with air. Contrary to Rose's vision of the image, it was actually very much alike the Doctor. It looked like him, it talked like him and it was just as confident of himself as the Doctor always is. The image even thinks it is better that everyone else. That is something we are all familiar with, in the Doctor!
"Hey, are you guys coming, or what? I am starving.", Mickey yelled from within the console room.
"Hold your horses, Mickey!", the Doctor called back.
"So what will we do now?", Rose asked the Doctor. She meant what they would do about the image.
"We are going out. Get your coat, it's pretty windy out there tonight.", the Doctor said.
"But-", Rose protested pointing at the mirror.
"Oh, he will have to bear with me. It can't be that hard, you do too.", the Doctor laughed as they made their way down the spiral stairs, through a corridor, across a suspended walkway, down a rather steep set of steps into the console room. There Mickey was waiting for them at the door.
"Let's get a bite to eat.", Mickey said as he took Rose's hand and walked out. It had gone dark outside. It was evening, the sky was clear and filled with stars.
The Doctor followed after he took his coat off the hat stand. The TARDIS door closed firmly as soon as he had left. The Doctor patted the blue police box on the side.
"We will be right back. Good girl.", he said and hurried off to join Rose and Mickey.
Through the looking glass
All around the Atomium, the Expo 58 site was illuminated by lanterns, imaginative light ornaments and the light coming from the buildings lining the street. It was a magical sight, almost as if it were Christmas. Despite it being late in the evening, there were still many people about the complex. Apparently the Expo had quite late opening hours. Almost every pavilion had it's own little restaurant or lounge area where visitors could enjoy some food and drink during their visit to the Brussels World Fair. Rose, Mickey and the Doctor were going to one of those restaurants to have dinner, since they had been travelling for a while and Mickey and Rose did need to eat regularly. Also the Doctor enjoys tasting every kind of food he comes across.
On their way to the restaurant there was plenty to see. There were lots of people out and about. They noticed a man coming out of a gift shop, clutching his coat and looking around conspicuously. The buildings alongside the road looked even more impressive than they did during the day. A family passed them by. The teenage boy dropped his can on the ground with a loud clash. The threesome also admired the fountain which they passed. It was entirely illuminated with all the different colours of the rainbow. In a circle around it, big bright star shaped lamps were placed to resemble the European Union flag. It was an impressive sight.
Just before they entered the restaurant, a tall man with sleek hair came rushing out the restaurant almost knocking Rose over in his hurry. A waiter came rushing after the man.
"Hey, where did he go? Did you see where that man went? He didn't pay his bill.", the waiter asked them. The three turned around to point the crook out but there was no tall running man anywhere near. They were puzzled because it had only been seconds since the man had almost ran Rose over.
"I was right behind him. How could I have lost him?", the waiter scolded aloud and went back inside.
Then Rose, Mickey and the Doctor settled in the restaurant of the Netherlands pavilion and ordered a typically Dutch dish. It was the meal of the day and the waitress recommended they'd try it.
"Are you no longer angry, Mickey?", Rose asked while Mickey was tucking into his plate like he hadn't eaten in days.
"No. I am not angry anymore. I am just disappointed.", Mickey answered as he stopped eating.
"You didn't mean what you said today, did ya? 'Cause I do care, you know.", Rose said truthfully. She shifted some of her food around the plate, waiting for Mickey's answer.
"I know you do, you just didn't show it enough, I guess. I am just worried about Lynne, that's all. I can't help it.", Mickey said trying not to blame Rose too much, because he knew it wouldn't do much good to start arguing again. He totally avoided talking about the Doctor, who, wisely kept out of the conversation. Though, he listened and watched silently while eating at a steady pace.
"Talking about being worried; I am still worried about you Doctor. I don't like the way that reflection was talking just then.", Rose said.
Mickey gave a quick glance at the Doctor and resumed emptying his plate. Now it was the Doctor's turn to be surprised and stop eating.
"Ah, there is no problem. He can't do anything. He's just an image trapped in a mirror.", the Doctor said.
"A very frustrated image, yeah. And you said it yourself, he is accumulating power, somehow. And he will use it to break free and do whatever wicked things it has planned.", Rose said severely.
"What Image? Trapped where? Break free how?", Mickey asked confusedly. Both Rose and the Doctor immediately looked straight at him, but said nothing. Their faces showed he shouldn't interrupt them right now and that they didn't want to explain everything to him.
"Okay, okay. Why bother telling me anything, right?", Mickey said disappointed and went back to eating his dinner. The Doctor and Rose resumed their conversation.
"What wicked things has he got planned?", the Doctor asked Rose.
"I don't know. He said something about setting things straight. Apparently he doesn't like the way you handle 'your job', whatever that may be.", Rose said.
"Hm, I don't know either.", the Doct
or said and shrugged, leaving the matter for what it was. He didn't want to discuss it any further. Both stared down silently at their almost empty plates.
"Still, I think it was weird that that crook who almost bumped into us had disappeared so quickly, don't you think?", Mickey said after a short while to break the silence. Rose looked at him as if he was speaking Martian.
"He didn't disappear.", the Doctor said determinate, still staring at his plate.
"Okay, maybe a bad choice of words. Ran off so quickly, then.", Mickey said.
"He didn't actually disappear!", the Doctor exclaimed and shot up from the chair.
"Then where did he go?", Mickey asked, desperate to know what was going on.
"He was transported somewhere else. The image, Rose. Let's go!", the Doctor said frantically excited and left the restaurant. Rose and Mickey followed hesitantly.
"I told him there was something strange going on!", Rose said to Mickey. "But he wouldn't listen."
"Does that still surprise you, after all this time?", Mickey quipped as they ran out to the street, where the Doctor was looking around anxiously. Soon he found what he was looking for.
The family they had passed earlier on their way to the restaurant were just down the road, near the fountain. They were in a right state. The mother was crying and the father angrily, though helplessly marched around. Their two children sat on the edge of the fountain. Frightened they held each other. It was clear the family was in distress but it wasn't quite clear as to why.
The Doctor ran up to them followed by Rose and Mickey.
"He disappeared, didn't he? Did you see where?", he asked the family. The father came forward to speak with the stranger that had just come running up to his family like a mad man, meddling with their affairs.
"You! It was right after you passed us by that he disappeared. How dare you! The guts you must have to come up to us now and ask whether we've seen it. Rub it in our faces. Well, mister. That ain't gonna happen. Leave us alone!", the father yelled angrily.
Rose had gone to sit with the mother and the two children, while the Doctor and Mickey were being yelled at by the father.
"He was right here, by the fountain. And then-", the mother cried.
"Did you see what happened?", Rose asked, "How did he disappear?"
"Oh, my boy!", the mother could only cry for her lost son.
"Hey. Leave her alone!", the father said, turning to Rose this time, "Leave my wife alone. You have no business here."
"As a matter of fact we do, mister. Your son has suddenly disappeared and whether you like it or not, we are the only ones who can find a way to get him back!", Rose stood up against the yelling man. Mickey and the Doctor were surprised to see Rose being defensive like that.
"So, now I suggest you tell us all you've seen, so we can solve this.", Rose continued in a calmer way. The father was surprised too, for he quieted down and cooperated as Rose had requested.
"All I know is that we walked past you three. Tim finished his drink and went to play by the fountain with his brother and sister. Mother and I went to sit on the bench here. We only took our eyes off them for a moment. Elisa screamed and then he was gone. Just gone, without a trace.", the father said.
"Not exactly without trace.", Mickey commented and picked up the can the boy had thrown on the street. He dunked it in a nearby trash bin.
"The fountain, of course. Everybody get away from the fountain.", the Doctor said as he began to understand what had caused the boy to disappear. The mother and two children moved away from the fountain and were guided to the nearby bench by Rose.
Then the Doctor slowly approached the fountain and he looked in the water. As he hung above the water he became terribly sad.
"I'm sorry.", he said sadly.
He saw his own reflection in the water, but also that of the boy, and the man that came running out of the restaurant and others. They were calling out for help, but they couldn't be heard. Their attempts were futile. Still they called and tried to reach out in panic. The image didn't bear the same sad face as the Doctor did. He had a broad grin running across his face.
"What do you see? Is he in there?", the father asked and approached the fountain. When the Doctor noticed him, it was too late. He had come too close to the water.
The Doctor tried to grab hold of him and pull him back, but there was nothing he could do. The man turned liquid and was sucked into the water's surface. All that remained of him was a panicked face in a rippling fountain basin.
"Daniel!", the mother cried. Rose and Mickey had to keep her away from the fountain.
Then the father's face calmed as he seemed to have spotted the Doctor gazing into the water. It was as if the faces could see the Doctor, as if they were on the other side of a looking glass.
The Doctor could be seen by the people trapped by the image, though only distantly.
"Please, help us.", the father seemed to say, without any actual words coming from his mouth. His son had appeared next to him. The Doctor didn't know if he could help them but he consoled himself with the knowledge that at least the father and son were together.
The other side
"What just happened, Doctor?", Rose asked when he had joined them again at the bench.
"I am afraid you were right, Rose. The image has got wicked plans indeed and he has become strong enough to act them out too. He is snatching people from this side into his mirror world. He can only snatch them if his victim's reflection appears in the same mirror he is in too. A window or a pool of water can be a mirror too. That is how he could snatch the boy and his father.", the Doctor said earnestly.
"But you looked at him. Why weren't you sucked in as well? And the other two children weren't sucked in either. Why not them?", Rose asked.
"Yes, that is odd. What is different about Tim than the other two? Or better still, what do all the snatched people have in common?", the Doctor pondered.
"Brings us back to the question; what does he want? He disapproved the way you handled your job, Doctor. What could he mean by that?", Rose said.
"You don't really have a job, do you? Except for popping up in places anywhere in time and space and meddling with other peoples business, raking havoc wherever you go, that is.", Mickey commented.
"I don't meddle with other people's business just for fun, Mickey. I do it because I have to help them. Because I am the only one that can; the only one that will?", he let his sentence trail off. He thought back to the times on his home world Gallifrey; the times when the Time Lords took the task upon themselves to preserve order and to keep anyone from disturbing the balance in the universe. He used to disobey their rules and regulations but their goals and his had always been the same. Now, he was the only one left to fulfil that goal.
"Sounds a bit like Robin Hood. A rogue Time Lord fighting for Good in a battle against Evil.", Mickey said theatrically.
"Mickey! Shut it!", Rose said angrily. She didn't like him mocking the Doctor like that.
"It's all very nice and well, this chatting about reflections, mirrors, right and wrong, but that isn't helping my son and my husband. Please Sir, if you can, try to get them back.", the mother pleated sorrowfully. The Doctor took the woman's hands and looked her straight in the eyes.
"I will.", he whispered determinately, though he wasn't quite sure he could. Then he turned to Rose and Mickey.
"Right. First we find a proper mirror. I want to have a word with that image of mine.", the Doctor said and they headed back to the restaurant.
The threesome hurried all the way through to the back the restaurant and went into the restroom. Mickey stopped to look at the sign on the door. It was the women's restroom.
"Oh, come on. No time to be picky.", Rose said and pulled him inside by his jacket.
The women's restroom had a nice big and long mirror stretched along the entire wall above the sinks. Rose and Mickey checked the cubicles to see if they were empty, because they didn't want to involve any
more innocent passer by's.
"Tell me, Doctor. If that is your mirror image, why isn't he just the same as you? He has a will of its own now, but he seems to be only a wicked part of you. If he were identical he wouldn't be kidnapping people like this.", Rose said while checking the cubicles.
"If only that were true, Rose. No, he is like me but he is more determinate. I am sure he believes that what he does is for the best. That is what makes this all the more difficult.", the Doctor said.
"They're clear.", Mickey and Rose said.
"Okay, we're going in!", the Doctor said and put his hand on the mirror. Rose and Mickey did the same. Their reflections seemed to fade away slowly into a mist, but nothing else happened. They were quite disappointed and thought they had failed.
Rose looked to her right to ask the Doctor what they should do next, but instead she saw Mickey. Both the Doctor and Mickey wanted to face Rose but they actually looked away from her.
"Rose?", they asked.
"Here.", she answered.
"How did you get there?", Mickey asked.