My First Short Story!

I'm quite excited and nervous to share this post with you today. Why? You might have guessed from the title, but because I'm going to share my first short story! It's a Doctor Who fanfic piece that I enjoyed writing and learned a lot from. So, here it goes. Enjoy!

Misadventure in the Vuluvian Markets

“How do you feel about shopping?” Amy said. She leaned back on the console next to the Doctor.

“Shopping?” the Doctor said. “Go to the shop, buy something? That sort of shopping?”

“Is there another kind?”

“I suppose not. I've never really liked it myself. Seems pretty pointless.” As he talked, he worked on the TARDIS- flipping switches, pushing buttons, and looking at Gallifreyan writing on the screen.

“But would you take me shopping if I asked?” She twirled a lock of her red hair around her finger.

“Well. . .”

“We don't even have to go to a normal shop. We could go somewhere more exotic.” Amy played her trump card. “We could even look at some new bow ties.”

The Doctor adjusted the red bow tie he wore currently. Amy could tell she had him.

“Exotic, you say.” The Doctor typed something into the TARDIS console. “How does another planet sound?”

“Perfect.”

The Doctor jumped into action, preparing the blue box for their trip. “Ready?” he said, his hand on the final lever. They grinned at each other, then he pulled it down.

Vworp vworp. The TARDIS took off with its usual noise. The two companions clung to the center console to avoid being thrown around the room. In a few minutes, the TARDIS landed.

Amy ran to the door. “Where are we this time, Raggedy Man?”

The Doctor opened the door and extended his arm. “Welcome to the Vuluvian Markets, home of the best and rarest shopping in the galaxy.”

Amy ran out of the TARDIS and stopped, taking in her surroundings. As far as she could see, tall buildings stretched up into the sky, covered in bright neon lights. Holograms floated around their shiny sides, showing what you could buy in each building. On the surface of the planet sat tents and stalls of all kinds. The sound of thousands of voices talking in different languages filled the air, as did the smell of all sorts of food, not all of them pleasant.

They seemed to have landed in a parking lot of sorts. Vehicles of all kinds were parked around them, including a spaceship, a hover board, and a Volkswagen. Amy raised her eyebrows at the last one, wondering how it had gotten here.

The Doctor finished locking up the TARDIS and came up behind her. “The Markets were created because the people of this galaxy loved shopping so much, stores were starting to cover their whole planets, leaving no more room for actually living.”

“This isn't a planet, then?”

“No, just a small, terraformed moon. Look, you can see one of the planets up there.”

The Doctor pointed up in the sky. Amy looked up and saw the distant form of a blue-ish planet. Amazing.

“So,” he said, “where do you want to start?” They started walking across the parking lot towards the Markets proper.

“I'm actually looking for a piece of jewelry,” Amy said.

“Jewelry?”

“Yes, Doctor, jewelry. You know, necklaces, bracelets, rings, that sort of things. Where do you think we should start?”

He looked around. “The Markets are divided into sections according to what they sell. Apparel, home goods, food, spaceships, things like that. It looks like we're already in the apparel district, so we just have to find someplace selling jewelry and bow ties.”

“Let's go then.”

Amy grabbed the Doctor's hand and dragged him out into the Markets. She took in everything as best she could. The stalls full of racks of clothes for all body types, aliens hawking their wares, others offering to buy anything you had, including yourself. She let go of the Doctor's hand as she turned, trying to look at everything.

“Now remember,” the Doctor said. “This is a nice area, but there are black markets here too. They'll buy just about anything here. Keep your wits about you and make sure to stay together.” He looked around again. “Amy?”

Amy had seen a tent that was full of sparkling necklaces and went to see what they had. She hadn't told the Doctor why she was looking for jewelry. He didn't even know about the reason.

She was getting married tomorrow, or at least whenever she decided to have him take her back. The wedding had started to weigh on her mind during their last few adventures. Perhaps finding something special to go with her wedding dress would help her relax about it.

“What did I just say about staying together?” the Doctor said as he came to her. He was using his peeved voice.

“I didn't hear. Besides, look at this stuff.” She swept her hand towards the racks and racks of necklaces. “How am I ever going to find something if everywhere has this much to chose from?”

“I actually think I know a good place around here. A friend recommended it to me.”

“A lady friend?” Amy said, getting a teasing look in her eye.

“No.” The Doctor looked the other way. “Maybe. Oh, come on.”

He grabbed her hand and pulled her through the crowds. They soon arrived at one of the tall skyscrapers, this one advertising all sorts of clothes and accessories on the outside. The one thing in common was they were all in human Earth styles.

As soon as they stepped inside, an android came to meet them. It looked like a young woman with blond hair and shop girl clothes. “Good afternoon,” she said in a crisp British accent. “How may I assist you today?”

“I'm looking for some jewelry,” Amy said.

“And I'd like to look at your bow tie selection,” the Doctor said.

“Those are both on the tenth floor. Would you like me to accompany you? I can help you find what you're looking for, carry your purchases, and even aid you in buying your items.”

“We'll be fine,” he said. “Tenth floor, here we come.”

The tenth floor was as big as a normal department store back on Earth. Large signs hung above the isles, announcing what you could find in them. The two things they wanted to look at were in different directions.

“All right, I suppose we'll split up,” the Doctor said. “Here's a card with plenty of money on it for you to use. If you have any problems, just give me a yell.”

“What could possibly happen in a shop that I'd need to call you for?”

“You never know. Be careful.”

Amy smiled at the Doctor and headed for a large sign reading “Jewelry”. Beneath it were necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and more. From plain to fancy, this place had everything. Amy began her perusal.

• • • • •

Halfway across the floor, the Doctor found the bow tie selection. It was bow tie heaven. All colors, shapes, and sizes hung on the racks. He pulled off one and held it up to a mirror to see how it looked.

• • • • •

Going through all this jewelry was discouraging for Amy. She didn't know what she wanted, and there was so much here, she didn't think she'd find anything. Perhaps she should have had the Doctor take her to a nice little shop in West End or something. A gift shop would be easier to look through than this place.

“Excuse me,” someone said behind her. Amy turned around and barely managed to suppress a yelp. Standing behind her were two normal-looking women, except for one thing. Their heads were shaped like eagle heads. One had blue feathers, the other red.

“We didn't mean to startle you,” the blue one said.

“Startled? I wasn't startled,” Amy said. She put her elbow on the counter. “Why would I be startled?”

“Some people don't care for our appearance,” the red one said. “As I was about to say, we noticed you seemed dissatisfied with the selection here. Can we help you find something?”

“Not really. I'm looking for something for a special day, but I don't know what I want.”

“I'm sure it's overwhelming. We actually have a small selection of pieces for special occasions in the back, if you want to look at them.”

“I don't know.” Amy looked around for the Doctor, but he was out of sight. She couldn't be distrustful of all aliens. These two were probably nice and trying to help her.

“If it's not too bold, may I ask if this is for your wedding, perhaps?” the blue bird woman said. Amy's face said it all. “I see. Well, we have some excellent wedding accessories back there too. Would you care to come see?”

“I suppose it wouldn't hurt.” She pushed aside the seeds of doubt that tried to take root in her mind.

Amy followed the women to an almost invisible door in the wall. It opened into a dark hallway with few lights. Still, that was probably only because this was the storage area. They probably didn't bring people back here a lot. Nothing to worry about. She continued towards the room at the end of the hall.

• • • • •

The Doctor had found two bow ties he liked, one in purple, one in blue. He decided to ask Amy which she thought was better. “Amy?” he said as he arrived in the jewelry section. His Scottish friend was nowhere to be found.

He turned around, looking for her. He spotted her red hair disappearing through a door almost hidden in the wall. Where was that girl going now?

The door, when he reached it, was locked. Worry started to grow in his stomach. The Doctor slung the bow ties around his neck and pulled out the sonic screwdriver. It made quick work of opening the lock. He glanced around, then ducked inside.

• • • • •

The bird women showed Amy a whole table full beautifully jewelry. She could barely take her eyes off of them. A necklace made of white and blue diamonds caught her eye.

“What about this one?” she said, picking it up.

“You have a good eye,” the blue one said. “That would look lovely with your hair and complexion. Let me help you try it on.”

Amy lifted her hair out of the way and the bird woman clasped it around her neck. Amy looked in a small mirror hanging on the wall. It did look gorgeous on her.

She was about to ask how much it was when the Doctor burst through the door. “Amy, get away from them.”

The instant he spoke, the necklace turned into garrote, tightening around Amy's windpipe. It completely cut off her air. She gasped and clawed at it.

The bird women stepped in front of her. “She's ours,” the red one hissed. “We caught her.”

“Well, I'm taking her back,” the Doctor said.

He pointed his sonic in the air. It let out a high-pitched noise that made the bird women cover their ear holes and yell in pain. In a few seconds they ran from the room.

The Doctor instantly moved to Amy's side and pointed the sonic screwdriver at the necklace. It loosed and he ripped it off. She gulped in air and coughed.

“There, there,” he said, patting her back. “You're fine.”

“What were those?” Amy said as soon as she got her breath back.

“Chokstra. A species that lures in other creatures with shiny objects, then chokes and eats them. You're lucky I found you.”

“Apparently I shouldn't be tempted by pretty things next time.”

“If you're feeling better, we had better head for the TARDIS. The Chokstra are notoriously bad at giving up their food once they've caught it. The sonic will have only drove them off for a few minutes.”

Hand in hand, the two of them ran back down the hallway. They headed straight for the elevator back down. The Doctor tossed the bow ties he had been looking at on a rack as they went by.

It seemed at first they would make it find. They dashed through the Markets without spotting the Chokstra. Then there came a shriek from behind them. Amy looked back to see the Chokstra pushing their way through crowds.

“Doctor,” she said, pulling at his sleeve.

“I see them. Come one, I've got a plan.”

“One of your good ones or one of your crazy ones likely to kill us?”

“Let's test it and see.” He grinned at her.

He dove away from the main path. He waited until they were in the middle of a thick crowd, then ducked down and crawled under a table. Amy followed him.

“This is your brilliant plan?” she said. “Hiding until they go away? I'm getting dirt all over my skirt.”

“I never said it was brilliant. Now keep quiet.”

The bird women walked right past their hiding place. Amy saw they had bird feet underneath their pants. After a second they moved on.

They remained under the table for a few more minutes before crawling out and running back towards the TARDIS. Amy smiled apologetically at the stall owner as they dashed away.

As they reached the police box in the middle of the parking lot, the Chokstra found them again. They started running across the asphalt towards Amy and the Doctor.

“Hurry up, Doctor. They're coming,” Amy said, tapping the TARDIS door.

In the nick of time, the Doctor got the door open and the two of them ran inside. He slammed the door shut behind them. The Chokstra banged on the outside with shrieks of rage. Amy high-fived the Doctor.

“That'll show them to pick their meals more carefully,” she said. “No one messes with Amy Pond and the Doctor.”

A little while later, the Doctor came over to Amy as she sat on the steps leading down from the console. “I'm sorry the shopping trip didn't go quite as planned,” he said.

“It's all right. I was the one who got us into the mess anyway.”

“I know you didn't have a chance to buy what you were looking for, so I dug around in the back rooms of the TARDIS and found this for you.” He held out a white jewelry box. “It's not much, but I hope you like it.”

Amy opened it. Inside was a simple chain with a round red stone hanging on it. The Doctor hurried to explain.

“It's a special stone from my planet,” he said. “The necklace has just been lying around and if you don't like it, we can go somewhere else and-”

Amy threw her arms around him. “Raggedy Man, it's perfect.” She could already see it with her wedding dress.

The Doctor awkwardly hugged her back. When he managed to get away, he adjusted his bow tie. “So, where to next? The gladiator matches? The no-longer-lost moon of Poosh? The 700^th Olympics, which take place on Mars?”

Amy looked up at the TARDIS ceiling with a smile. “Anywhere, Doctor.”

*  *  *  *  *

There you are. What do you think of it?

Let's talk! Have you ever written a short story? Do you enjoy fanfic? Tell me in the comments.