The Same |:| A Doctor Who Fanfiction Part II |:|

Luz woke up the next morning, the Doctor's arms wrapped around her. In his arms, everything seemed to melt away—all the pain and insecurity—all of it seemed to vanish. She cuddled closer, and felt him begin to move and wake up.

The Doctor looked down and saw the little girl in his arms. “Hello, Luz,” he smiled. He sat up. “How did you sleep?”

She rubbed her eyes and nodded.

“Any more dreams?” he ruffled her hair.

She shook her head, looking up at him with a suspicious smile, fixing her hair. “Did you have any dreams?” she asked, trying to reach up to ruffle his hair.

He bent down so she could return the favour. “Nah, not me. I hardly ever dream,” he lied. He had another nightmare.

“You lied,” she cocked her head. “Why did you lie?”

He looked dead into her eyes. “How did you know I lied?”

“I heard you whimpering in your sleep. You had a nightmare,” she noted. “You don't have to lie to me, there's nothing to be afraid of with me,” she hugged him.

His hearts melted, as he hugged her back. “Thank you, lovely,” he answered.

“What will we do to-day, Doctor?” she asked him, looking up at him.

He looked down at her pure, innocent eyes, he still couldn't get his mind around how someone would want to leave this girl to die. “Well, I was thinking maybe we could try and tap into your subconscious. Hopefully we'll be able to find a little more this time. Would you like that?” he asked, stroking her hair.

She nodded warily. “Don't let me die...” she gripped onto him.

“I won't...I promise,” he rubbed her back.

“I'm frightened, Doctor...but I don't know what I'm frightened of...” she looked back down at her hands.

“The fear of the unknown...it scares all of us,” he nodded.

“Even you?” she looked back up at him.

He smirked and nodded again. “Even me,” he shifted towards her more. “Now, let me see...” he muttered, reaching out his hands for her temples. “Just relax your mind, and focus on what you saw. I'm going to try and see what you saw, and maybe even unlock some of those memories stored away in your mind.”

She looked rather nervous.

“Don't fret, I'll be gentle. It won't hurt a bit...” he trailed off, pressing his fingers on the sides of her head, stepping into her mind. He saw her dream:

She was right: fire. Fire all around him. He was standing in the midst of a blaze, though it was like he was protected from it—and not just because she was dreaming. There was literally something protecting them in her dream. He looked around, trying to make out what their previous surroundings used to be. It almost looked as if there were no previous surroundings—like it had always been fire.

He tried once more to unlock memories of hers, rattling the doors of her mind—he could tell the psychic link was starting to break, but he tried a little harder. He almost had it.

Luz gasped, and ripped away from the Doctor's grip. “I'm sorry...” she whispered.

“It's alright. You did good. You did really good, love,” he said, giving her a hug. He felt his nerves quiver a bit thinking of her dream. There was something about it that didn't sit right with him—what was burning?