Title: Moonlight Shadows
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Tenth Doctor/Josef Kostan
Fandom: Doctor Who/Moonlight
Rating: PG-13
Table: Buffet 1, fc_smorgasbord
Prompt: 24, Nocturnal
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Tenth Doctor or Josef Kostan, unfortunately. Please do not sue.

***

The Doctor raised his glass of champagne to his lips, looking around the room at all of the elegantly dressed people. He didn't exactly feel out of place here, but maybe he shouldn't have crashed this party, as he didn't know anyone and he felt rather alone.

How could he be alone in a crowd of so many people? Yet he was. Everyone else was laughing and talking, having a good time -- but he had no one to talk with, no one here who knew who he was. He felt as though he was the only person here who didn't somehow belong.

But what did it matter? he told himself with a shrug, trying to shake off the feeling of loneliness that swept over him. He was used to being lonely, after all. It was, in a way, his default state of being. And if he was alone, then no one could hurt him by leaving.

Scanning the crowd again, he set the now-empty glass down on a nearby table with a sigh. It was time for him to leave, to go back to the Tardis and leave Earth for a while. He'd been here long enough, and going to a New Year's Eve party probably hadn't been the best idea.

"Hi there." A voice at his elbow almost made him jump; he hadn't realized that anyone was close enough to him to start a conversation. And he certainly hadn't expected anyone that he didn't know to actually speak to him, not in this crush of people.

The Doctor turned to see a slender young man standing next to him, his head tilted to one side, regarding the Time Lord with a curious expression. There was a half-smile hovering on his lips, as though he found something about the Doctor amusing.

"Hello," he answered, smiling and holding out a hand. "I was going to leave, but I'd much rather stay here and talk. A little hard to hear in all this, though, isn't it? Is there somewhere more private that we have a conversation without having to shout?"

The young man nodded towards the garden, raising his brows in question. "I think it'll be nice and quiet out there. And private, too -- we won't have to worry about anybody hearing us. Or seeing us," he added, his voice lowering to a seductive tone as he said the words.

The Doctor's eyes widened in surprise, that tone making his hearts skip a beat. Was this young man trying to seduce him? That wasn't an unwelcome prospect, actually. He'd rarely seen anyone this attractive, and if seduction was the aim, he wouldn't say no.

"The garden it is," he said, trying to keep the anticipation out of his voice. Casually, he strolled towards the French doors that led outside without a backward glance, hoping that the young man was following him and hadn't changed his mind and melted into the crowd.

He took a deep breath of the cool night air as he stepped out into the garden, feeling relieved now that the heat and noise of the party was left behind. He could feel the young man's presence behind him; so he still had company, and hadn't been abandoned.

For some reason, that thought made his spirits rise. Did this young man mean to seduce him here in the garden, hidden in the moonlit shadows? That would be a pleasurable way to usher in the new year. The Doctor found himself actually looking forward to the possibility.

"It's a lovely night, isn't it?" he said by way of making conversation. Focusing his gaze up at the velvety darkness of a sky sprinkled with pinpricks of stars, he tried to make himself relax, to let the evening take its course without any prodding in a particular direction.

"Yeah, it is." The Doctor could feel his heartbeats skip as the young man moved closer to him, standing so near that their shoulders were almost touching. Hie senses were stirring in a way that they hadn't in a long time, wondering what might be in store for him.

"I've always loved the night," he went on, not taking his eyes from the panorama of stars spread out above them. "Most people aren't nocturnal, but then, I'm not like most people. There's something about the night that draws me in and makes me feel that I'm a part of it."

"I'm a nocturnal creature." The young man was standing right beside him, hands in his pockets. He hadn't tried to slip an arm around the Doctor's waist, or lead him to a shadowy, private corner. "I'm Josef. Josef Kostan. And you are ...?" He turned to the Doctor, brows raised, looking expectant.

"I'm the Doctor." He saw a slight frown pass over Josef's handsome features before it was immediately replaced by an innocuous, bland expression. That wasn't the usual reaction to those words; most people laughed and demanded to know his real name.

"It's okay if you don't want to tell me your name. I guess you're just expecting sort of a one-night stand, aren't you?" Josef's words were accompanied with a laugh. "A little necking in the garden that we'll both forget about by tomorrow morning, right?"

"I'd wondered if that was what you intended, yes." The Doctor was surprised that Josef was being so open and straightforward; he'd expected more finesse than that! "If it is, then I won't say no. But I'll admit to being a little disappointed."

"Why would you be disappointed?" Josef asked, arching an eyebrow. "That's what we both want, right? A good time, a nice little memory, no strings attached." He flashed the Doctor a smile, though the Time Lord thought that he could see more behind those eyes than his words revealed.

"I don't know about you, but I'd like more than that," the Doctor said softly, wanting to be honest. Yes, he wouldn't mind an evening's dalliance, but his hearts cried out for something deeper, something that was meaningful and would last, at least for a while.

"I doubt I'm the kind of person you'd want to have a relationship with," Josef told him, his tone regretful. "There's way too many things you don't know about me. If you did, you'd be screaming and running for the nearest gun right now. Or a cross."

"A cross?" Those words mystified the Doctor. "Why would I run for a cross? You don't look like someone who would back away if one of those was waved in your face." He laughed softly, shaking his head. "It would take more than that to make me back away."

"Yeah?" Josef looked amused for a moment, then immediately sobered again. "I might have brought you out here for a reason other than seducing you, y'know. Maybe I had something more sinister in mind. You probably shouldn't have been so quick to be alone with me."

The Doctor took a step back, regarding the young man. "Whatever's on your mind, you might as well say it. If I was wrong in thinking that you wanted me, then there's no harm done. I was planning on leaving the party anyway, so I can just say good night now."

Josef sighed, shrugging and looking away. "If I told you the unvarnished truth, you wouldn't believe me. I'd have to show you -- and that might not be a good idea. I'm not known for holding myself back, and I don't want to hurt you. That wasn't ever my intention."

Hurt him? Josef didn't look as though he could hurt the proverbial fly. He was slender and almost fragile-looking, as though he was a boy dressed up in a tux trying to fit into the grown-up party. But the Doctor could sense a will of iron behind that seeming youth and innocence.

"You're older than you look, aren't you?" he said softly, wanting to somehow slip behind the walls that Josef had obviously built around himself. "I can sense that. And I think you might be just as lonely as I am. So maybe we could be good for each other."

"I don't know that I could be good for anybody," Josef said with a disparaging laugh. "I haven't tried to be good for anybody in years. If that's what you're looking for, you'd be better off finding somebody else. I'm sorry, Doctor. I shouldn't have even brought you out here."

"No, wait," the Doctor said, placing a hand on Josef's arm as the younger man turned to go. There was something about Josef that the Time Lord found intriguing; there was obviously much more going on below the surface than one would have thought at first glance.

"Come back to my .... home with me," he said softly, his dark gaze meeting and holding the young man's. "We can relax and talk, and get to know each other a little better. Then maybe we can decide whether we'd be good for each other or not."

"You're inviting me into your home?" Josef's stare was incredulous, his tone wry when he spoke again. "You don't know how dangerous that can be, Doctor. But if that's what you want, then I'll warn you, I'm not going to say no. I'll go home with you."

"Good." The Doctor slipped his hand into Josef's with a smile, feeling that he'd just leaped over a hurdle. "You don't have to stay, you know. You can always walk out the door. I'd just like to talk to you in a more private place, where we don't have to worry about prying eyes."

"Okay, Doctor. It's your party," Josef told him, following the Time Lord out of the garden and down the path to the front of the house. The night around them seemed to hold its breath, as though it was waiting for a play to build up to its completely unexpected climax.

***