Cymbeline

Cymbeline was a play by William Shakespeare.

The play's plot concerned the titular King of the Britons, as well as his daughter Imogen. At some point, Imogen's husband Posthumus met the Italian nobleman Iachimo in Rome and accepted a drunken wager with him in which Iachimo proposed to test the loyalty of Imogen. To accomplish this, he travelled to the British city of Lud's Town and asked Imogen to guard a trunk of valuables which he concealed himself inside. Imogen took the trunk into her bedchamber with Iachimo planning to emerge at midnight to collect evidence he had been in her room such as notes on the furnishings and the theft of the bracelet that Imogen always wore, a love token from Posthumus.

In an early draft of the play contained within the Shakespeare Notebooks, the Queen's Doctor, who expressed a liking of "jumping into dangers unexplored" and was clearly based upon the Eleventh Doctor, also emerged from the trunk and into Imogen's room despite being seemingly absent while Iachimo was hidden. The Doctor attempted to persuade Iachimo not to go through with his plan but was unsuccessful with the latter accidentally awaking her when removing her bracelet. Iachimo apologised profusely for their trespass and claimed both he and the Doctor had "left [their] manners at the door" but the Doctor cut in and accused Imogen of doing the same. Although Iachimo tried to calm him down, telling him "this lady holds us both within her power", this did not work and the Doctor continued by proclaiming she was "no lady". He explained she was not from Earth but a "torrid world of seas and lakes and swamps wherein which dwelt great milky worms they called the Skarasen". He also said they were all "boiled like eels when stellar blasts screamed through her tract of space". Imogen sadly confirmed the "bitter truth" and, as the bracelet had been robbed from her person, changed into her true form. Iachimo initially believed he was suffering from delusions and a sickness which overpowered his sight but was soon convinced by the Doctor he was not dreaming. Iachimo instead started to beg for his life, though quickly and eagerly accepted the Doctor's invitation when he suggested Iachimo should return to secreting himself in the trunk, an offer he had earlier refused. "Imogen" then told the Doctor it was best Iachimo did not see the "final act" as the next scene was their own. She threatened that by its conclusion, Britain would be her realm. (PROSE: Cymbeline)