I thought I probably should explain this rather peculiar take on Doctor Who. I stumbled across a novel called Lungbarrow that dealt with the Doctor's family and his family home - Lungbarrow. Although I generally prefer Sylvester McCoy's sporadic and cryptic comments about his heritage, this book showed a really disturbing side of Galifreyan society. Apparently the family was so annoyed when the Doctor left they buried the entire house complete with the entire family inside. And I'm am not too sure, but I think they might be eating each other. So if you thought the Time Lords were a bunch of hyper intelligent pan dimensional beings with a passion for Brockian Ultra-Cricket. er sorry, wrong story. So if you though the Time Lords were the bunch of supercilious frock wearing guys from the Tom Baker era, think again. In Lungbarrow they seem to be a bunch of subterranean psychotics eyeing each other off as the next meal. So I thoughts to meself one day: Just imagine what they would do to the Doctor if they got their hands on him after all these years?

His hands shook as he struggled to hold them straight above his head. He tried to look ahead and focus on nothing, but he could feel the weight of the stares of his cousins.

"Please no Honoured House Mother" he whispered to the woman.

"So now you beg" She smirked. "Now you are held fast and there is nothing up those ridiculous sleeves of yours. Now you ask me for mercy?"

He was standing in the great hall, arms raised above his head, secured by a drudge who held his lower arms in grips of wood. They had taken off his jacket, vest and tie and he stood awaiting his punishment according to the dictates of the house.

The agony of the humiliation tore at him. He knew it would be many hours until he was punished. Until then he would stand as a reminder in the great hall while cousins looked over him with curious contempt in their eyes.

He had suffered this fate once before, many years ago. He had survived it then and he would survive it now. How much worse could it get?

Ace crashed into the hall. "What have you done with him?" she bellowed as she pushed aside the cousins. Then her eyes fell on the Doctor. "Professor, what have they done to you?" she asked.

"Ace. please" he whispered. "Please go away for a few hours and I'll explain everything. It's a family matter".

"They have you tied up to a tree and you are telling me it's a family matter?" she asked with incredulity.

Thirteenth Cousin Erganian came forward. "Mistress Ace. If you will come with me, I will explain everything" he said smiling at the Doctor as he ushered her away.

Despairing the Doctor slumped forward in his bonds. He closed his eyes. It had just got worse. Perhaps he should take their offer. One thousand years working in the archives could be bearable he thought. More bearable than the possibility of being locked up for ever, better than Ace seeing him like this.

.

Sometime later he was recounting the Albertonian alphabet backwards when he felt a thump on the floor and he felt something grab his right leg and hold it tight. It was a wonderful feeling.

"Professor?"

"Yes Ace?"

"They are scumbags."

"Yes Ace."

"Is it going to hurt much?"

"Yes Ace."

There was a long pause.

"I am not going anywhere."

"Thanks Ace."

Sometimes, he thought, it was nice to have a friend.

.

The clock struck and the cousins murmured excitedly.

He was dragged over to the table and bent over it, held fast by the drudges and unable to move an arm or a leg.

The Housekeeper passed her cane to the drudge and he swung it a few times in practice, listening to the whistling sound it made as it cut through the air.

..

Afterwards he was dragged upright. He struggled to focus through the pain. He hurt so badly. He didn't remember it hurting this badly last time. He didn't think he would have been able to stand if not for the drudges holding him up. Stranthorpe came over.

"Well boy. will you apologise now?" she asked.

"No Housemother I will not as I have not done wrong".

The old woman looked at him with fury in her eyes.

"Place him down again and repeat the punishment".

.

When they pulled him up the second time he was beyond pain, his eyes wet with tears. This time he had screamed. He couldn't stop the cries from coming from his mouth.

They held him up in front of her.

"I will have them continue until I have my satisfaction boy." She looked at him quizzically. "You know you have no choice. Why do you resist? You are bound. I have laid my claim upon you and we will have you back"

He looked over to where Ace was standing. What should he do? He was the Doctor?

The old woman lost her patience. "Place him.

"No please", he shouted frantically.

"I apologise" he said, his eyes focussed on nothing, tasting nothing but defeat.

"What did you say to me boy"? The old woman said menacingly.

Fear overtook him. It took him a while to draw enough breath, but eventually he managed to stammer out the correct response.

"I apologise for my miscreant behaviour. Forgive me Honoured House Mother".

"Beg"

He heard the cousins murmuring, but he couldn't look up at them. He couldn't face them this time. He couldn't face Ace. He stared hard down at his feet. "I beg forgiveness Honoured House Mother."

The old woman appeared satisfied.

"Take him away" she ordered.

.

It took Ace two days to find him. He was in a small cupboard on the thirteenth floor in the East wing. She had been despairing of ever finding him. None of the family would tell her where he was. It was a servant who had suggested she should go east. The east wing was dusty and deserted. She had wandered around it for a half a day and was almost going to give up the tip as a ruse when she had heard the crying. It was a gentle sound. She had followed it to the dark corridor and eventually had come across the cupboard.

.

She had slumped down outside the cupboard door. A cursory inspection showed it was secured with a large padlock and she had no nitro nine of her.

She was faced with the difficult task of talking to the occupant.

"Are you all right Professor?" she asked the door.

"Yes Ace".

"Do you want me to get you out of there?"

She heard a small sigh. "No Ace. Its all right."

She sighed herself. Right she thought to herself. It's a family matter. Some family.

.

She would come and visit him every day. She felt silly talking to a cupboard door, but he seemed to enjoy her visits. She would talk to him of what she had done that day. How she had walked through the meadows and watched as the wild animals drank from the streams. She asked him questions about the animals and told him of her own stories, in fact she talked to him more through the cupboard door than she had ever talked to him face to face. Sometimes she would just talk and talk, of her sixth grade science teacher and the joys of football, never pausing for breath for fear that he would start to cry again. It hurt her to hear him cry. She knew that finally he had been beaten. Not only physically, but in every sense. They had won. She knew that on some level he probably didn't mind being locked in a cupboard because he didn't quite know how to present himself anymore.

.

One day he had tapped softly on the door.

"Ace."

"Yes Professor".

"I don't want to come out".

"I know".

"What do you mean you know?"

"I just know".

"I suppose I am going to have to come out eventually. I suppose they will have to let me out eventually."

"Yes Professor" she agreed.

"I miss the light though", he added.

"That's a start Professor".