AN/ Yes I know... LATE! Sorry! No excuse really. Just really bad writer's block mostly, it was like a huge wall between what I wanted to write, and putting it into words. I started another story to help get the flow going again and it seems to have helped because I got this chapter done and the next one is nearly finished! Anyway, hope everyone had a good summer and all you younger ones are enjoying being back at school, I have yet to enrol for this year's classes and anyone who knows the Queens QSIS system should understand why that is such a daunting thought :P

Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who, even though I specifically asked for the rights to it for my birthday

OAN (on another note): Currently watching "Mock the Week" why does everyone who doesn't watch Doctor Who think that the Doctor's name really is "Doctor Who?"

Chapter 7: Perfect Harmony

They stepped out of the TARDIS into a vast forest. Trees towered above them, the sky obscured by an emerald ceiling of thick canopy. Between the soaring trunks a myriad of flowering plants grew, their brilliant flowers decorating the greenery like precious jewels.

"It's beautiful," said Rose, breathing in the warm, sweet air.

"Everything's so big," added Donna, "trees don't grow this tall on Earth. Are they on steroids or something?"

The Doctor chuckled as he came up beside them. "This planet orbits three suns. The photosynthesising activity is phenomenal, all these trees competing for the light growing as fast as they can so they aren't left behind in the shade."

Wanting to see more, Rose wandered into the trees, manoeuvring through the myriad of timber and foliage. She came across a small freshwater pool and gasped at what she saw. The water was split into a rainbow of shimmering colours, mixing and diverging like a liquid kaleidoscope.

"Prism fish," said a familiar voice.

Rose didn't need to turn around to know that the Doctor was standing behind her. She smiled as she heard the soft footfalls of his approach and felt the caress of his arms as they glided around her waist. With a contented sigh her head fell back against his chest and her eyes slowly closed as she allowed herself to simple be.

She stood with him in silence for a few moments, listening to the exotic calls of the forest. Chitters, chirps, barks and resonating cries filled the air in energetic cacophony, chaotic yet somehow harmonious. "So what are prism fish, then?" she asked, knowing he was itching to speak.

He took a breath before rolling the explanation off his tongue. "Their scales diffract light into its different coloured components, like a sun beam passing through water droplets and casting a rainbow. It shields them from predators, some animals change colour to blend with the environment and some just change the colour of the environment."

"Well it's very pretty," mused Rose, "maybe the predators see the colours and decided watching them is more fun than hunting," she offered with a grin. "This place is amazing, like an enchanted forest from a fairy tale, all it needs is a castle."

The Doctor chuckled at the very child-like comparison. "Yes, and then we'd explore it and end up being chased by a fire breathing dragon, and I don't mean your mother."

Rose slapped his shoulder with the back of her hand but the odd angle didn't allow for much force. "Cheeky sod," she admonished though unable to hide the mirth in her voice.

The Doctor grinned and continued his lecture. "This sort of surface water storage is actually quite rare on this planet. You won't find any large oceans like on earth, most of the water is stored in trees. It's quite remarkable really, the three suns that this planet orbits should render it a desert wasteland but these forests blanket the entire surface of this world. They pump out gases that form a thick protective atmosphere and manipulate their transpiration to induce rainfall, similar to the rainforests on earth but on a much larger scale. The organisms of this planet exist in a delicate balance of predation, conspecifics and symbiosis but fundamentally, all life here is dependent on these trees."

He fell silent, hugging Rose close to him and indulging in the peace and perfection of this moment and allowed himself, just for a second, this little taste of paradise.

They were startled by Donna who suddenly backed into them. The Doctor turned to tell her to watch where she was going but frowned when he noticed her wary expression as she kept her eyes on the tree line.

"What is it?" he asked, following her gaze into the thicket.

"There's something in there," she said. "Just now, something moved nearby."

"Are you sure it wasn't just a squirrel or something?" asked Rose, even as the Doctor moved to stand in front of them protectively.

"It sounded too big to be a squirrel," she replied defensively before asking, "Doctor, is there anything dangerous on this planet?"

The Doctor made a noncommittal noise in his throat. "Technically no planet is perfectly safe, well, except for maybe the Marshmallow Moon of Floomba, but then a moon isn't a planet, so the point still stands. "

Even as he made the nonchalant reply his eyes remained fixed on the trees, wary of the slightest indications of danger. However the shrubs were still, there was no noise save for the animated chatter of creatures and no movement other than a lazy breeze that slid through the trees, heavy with heat and thick with its floral scent.

The Doctor was about to call it quits when all of a sudden a sharp gasp caught his ear, he recognised it immediately as Rose's. Quickly he spun around to see what had startled her and what he saw made his hearts quicken. A group of humanoids had managed to sneak up behind them, they already had Rose and Donna at spear-point and from the corner of his eye, the Doctor could see two others circle around either side of him until they were at his back.

He counted six in all, the three who had spears pointed at his companions, the two flanking him and one who stood slightly back from them, holding his spear like a staff, presumably their leader, staring over at them with appraising eyes. They looked similar to humans, more swarthy perhaps, and very tribally reminiscent, they wore sparse clothing, hiding the essentials behind tattered cloth that looked to be hand-made from animal hide.

The Doctor bit back the urge to snarl at the suicidal idiots who had spears pointed at Rose and with considerable effort, forced a blasé grin onto his face. "Oh, hello! I wasn't expecting a welcome committee, although I really must say, pointing threatening weapons at your guests really isn't the best way to earn tips. You could try providing refreshments or offering to carry our suitcases, not that we have any. Did you know on Klaffagog they welcome visitors by performing a four hour long dance, which is really more of a competition of 'who can jump the highest' while providing the guests with bowls of fermented winged-boar milk? Though for me, tea's fine thanks."

Their captors' leader did not respond to the Doctor's ramble, in fact he showed no signs that he'd even heard it. Instead he stepped forward, holding his muscular form like an impenetrable wall and spoke with a biting, caustic tone. "Who are you, strangers? And what are you doing, intruding in our parts of the forest? Speak quickly!"

"Why? You got somewhere to be, Tarzan?" quipped Donna, earning her a nudge from the spear behind her. "Oi, watch were you poke that thing, sunshine, or I'll make you sit on it!"

"Donna, easy," urged the Doctor, not wanting to make their captors any more hostile. He turned his attention back to the leader. "I'm the Doctor and these are my companions, Rose and Donna. We were just passing through. Travellers, that's what we are!" He finished with a forced grin, hoping they would believe him and let them be on their way yet knowing they'd have about as much luck trying to teach a dalek to tap-dance.

Sneering, the leader replied, "Doctor? You look like no medicine man."

One of the spear wielders growled, "They're spies, vassals for those of whom we don't speak!"

"Silence!" barked the leader but it was too late. The Doctor's curiosity was peaked.

"Ohhhh? 'Those of whom we don't speak?' Who are they then? Go on, you can tell me. You must speak about them sometimes, or else you wouldn't all know who he was talking about. Then again, 'those of whom we only speak sometimes' doesn't quite have that same ominous feel to it that brings in the tourists, am I right?" babbled the Doctor.

"That's enough!" snapped their head captor, who was quickly losing his patience. His next words were to his men, "keep the spears on them. They're coming back with us."

They were lead through the thicket, along a trail that had wasn't often travelled by if the dense undergrowth and lack of obvious path was anything to go by, yet their captors seemed to know exactly where they were going and stayed in line with ease whilst keeping their spears trained on them unwaveringly.

Donna huffed as a branch snagged on her hair for what felt like the hundredth time. "Where the bloody hell are they taking us? I swear if we end up having our clothes stripped off and being sacrificed to their god..."

Rose giggled. "You know, that doesn't happen nearly as often as the cliché would have you believe."

"But it does happen?" Donna asked, shooting her a pointed look.

"It does if you're Rose," muttered the Doctor, earning him an indignant elbow prod from the blonde in question. "Oi, it's not my fault you're like catnip to delusional alien tribes who like to sacrifice pretty blondes!" retorted the Doctor, a tad disgruntled.

"You think I'm pretty?" asked Rose, turning to look at him with a tongue-touched smile.

He arched an eyebrow, "nice to know your priorities are still in order."

They held each other's gaze as their hands gravitated towards each other and their fingers entwined. The moment was rudely interrupted when a spear poked the Doctor in the shoulder blade. "Oi, do you mind? That bloody hurts!" he complained, turning his head to glare at the offending captor.

"Keep moving," was the man's terse reply.

The Doctor narrowed his eyes unhappily but nevertheless continued walking, cheering up ever so slightly when Rose rubbed her thumb over the back of his hand in silent sympathy.

The trail eventually opened up as they left the trees and walked into a large clearing. The space was interspersed with small, wooden huts, each one skirted with well-groomed flowering shrubs. Upon closer inspection they could see that the smoothly sanded wood was ornamented with intricate floral carvings.

However, all of the residents seemed to be outside. Villagers weaved between the huts, some carrying bowls of fruit or piles of cloth or wood. Outside one hut, an elderly woman was weaving a basket while sitting close to her a young boy played with a carved animal of some sort. At another hut a younger woman was laying wet clothes over a wooden rail to dry. It was all so… normal. They all looked so at home in this quaint little village nestled in the vast surrounding forest.

Their arrival, however, seemed to unsettle the peace. Each villager stopped what they were doing to stare at them as they passed. The sudden silence was deafening and all of the eyes now trained on them caused hairs to rise on the back of their neck as they were lead further into the village.

"I'm guessing they don't get many visitors," muttered Donna.

"I feel like I'm in a funeral march," added Rose quietly, trying not to meet anyone's eye.

"Oh come on you two, don't be so negative! They could be perfectly nice people for all you know!" admonished the Doctor, his normal boisterous voice making the girls cringe with its seeming loudness.

In the centre of the village lay a large stone-lined circle, a blackened pit at its centre where fires had burned. They stood by the circle and were turned to face an open sided hut, inside which sat a very old female, garlanded in shiny metals and dyed fabrics. She sat cross legged, her head down and eyes closed, looking very tired.

"The village elder," whispered the Doctor absently.

"I heard that!" she barked. Two sharp eyes opened to glare directly at the Doctor. "I have a name, son. It's Baba Yaga and you would do well to remember it."

"Oh?" said the Doctor in surprise. "Sorry, I didn't think you could hear…"

Her eyes narrowed. "Is that so? You think I'm deaf as well as senile?"

The Doctor looked like he was at a bit of a loss. "Umm sorry, I meant no offence."

She got to her feet with surprising agility and held a firm grip on her staff as she quickly made her way over to the Doctor, not stopping until she was less than an arm's length away from him and stared up with glaring eyes. However, even standing at full height, the top of her white-haired head barely reached the Doctor's elbow height.

The Doctor stared down at her in bewilderment. Quick as a flash, she had his tie in a tight grip and with an undignified yelp, he found himself tugged down to her eye level. Her piercing orbs bore into his unnervingly while all he could do was stare back and gape like a stunned fish.

"You have a lot of gall, traveller," she said after a few moments.

"What?" spluttered the Doctor, wholly unhappy that she still had his favourite tie in a death grip and wondering the point of this rather embarrassing exercise.

She arched a thick eyebrow. "Calling me old," she scoffed, "I may have seen my fair share of winters but compared to you, I'm as fresh as a yearling. So many centuries swim in your eyes… "

The Doctor swallowed uncomfortably. He didn't like strangers reading him so accurately when it was outside of his control. However, before he could spend much thought on it, the old woman's searching eyes suddenly came back into focus, though this time sharpened with mischief. "And for your information old man the correct term is 'Wise Woman.'" She released his tie but not before thumping him on the head with her staff, to emphasise her point.

"Ouch!" the Doctor yelped, backing away from the violent old bat and rubbing his poor abused head. Already he could feel a bump growing and made an expression dangerously close to a pout. "What did you do that for?"

"Knowledge at a price is held all the tighter," she answered, as though her methods were completely justified.

He frowned as a light chuckle sounded from beside him. He turned to see Rose stifling another giggle, looking up at him with unrestrained mirth. "You have to admit, she's good," she said, accenting her words with another escaped chuckle.

Baba turned her attention towards Rose, her expression shifting as she regarded the young woman, so bright and full of life, shining like a golden star.

Frowning at Rose's teasing, the Doctor missed the elder's scrutiny. Instead, when he turned back she was smiling warmly at them. "Please," she said, opening her arms. "You have travelled far, strangers, stay the night, we will give you shelter and a warm meal."

"Thanks for the offer," said Donna, but we should probably be heading on, places to see and all that."

Baba frowned, "but it is getting dark and the forest is dangerous at night. You have no protection and we have none to spare."

"Getting dark?" quizzed Donna, looking up at the blinding light of the planet's suns. "It's nowhere near dark! It must be what, mid-afternoon?"

The elder spoke with a tone one used to tell a child something they should already know. "The closest sun is still high and its light fills the sky most intensely, however its cycle is very short and its sisters are already setting. Nightfall will come soon, trust a native, dear."

Hearing the word 'dangerous' the Doctor balked, so much for keeping Rose safe. His instincts told him to get back to the TARDIS but he didn't want to risk the forest if they were vulnerable, it would be just his luck that they'd run into trouble. Therefore, with a heavy sigh he accepted the elder's kind offer and thanked her for her generous hospitality while insisting they must leave first thing in the morning. The elder seemed happy with this bargain.

"Wonderful!" said Baba. She clapped her hands together while shouting, "Prepare the meal!"

The villagers who had remained quiet and watchful through the exchange suddenly burst into life, bustling about with pots and food as they got dinner ready.

Rose smiled at the elder and thanked her, taking the Doctor's hand in hers instinctively and grinning as the elder waved them off, showing little patience for their thanks and ordering Rose and her group, in her bossy manner, to make themselves at home.

It was as they walked away, the Doctor's hand entwined tightly with Rose's that he said the magic words. "Let's go explore, shall we?"

TBC

Sorry this took so long! Feel free to badger me if the next chapter isn't up soon because it shouldn't take long at all :D