Chapter Thirteen - To love a good argument

It had been alright for what it was. Everyone was very comforting, especially towards Donna.

Too bad she'd locked herself in her room.

"C'mon, Donna! I need to take a woman with me to the florist! I'll look a right prat on my own." the Doctor had been trying to pry her bed, but to no avail.

"I'm not going out there! Those vultures'll be on me within seconds of walking out that door."

"Oh, I've said the aunts don't wish to be disturbed. Happy? I'm serious about the florist, I can go in there on my own. I'll be jumped upon by Gita, and that's probably much worse than journalists."

Eventually she gave up and went with him to the florist.

"D'you think we should get flowers that match the girls' dresses?"

"You'd have your girls matching a bunch of overgrown pansies?"

"Alright, you've made you point. But what should we get?"

"Forget-me-nots."

"Aren't they a bit small?"

"Well, they symbolize true love."

"The girls can have them in their hair then, but I'm not having tiny blue flowers as the main décor."

"They're usually TARDIS blue, you know."

"Hello!" and just like that, Gita appeared behind them.

"Ah, yes, we've come to plan the floral arrangements. We just don't know what we should have."

"Something blue." Donna said without hesitation, and they were instantly shown all the blue arrays of flowers.

Finally, Donna spotted the perfect thing.

"Tulips. They're blue tulips."

"Yes, TARDIS blue. And?"

"Donna, these can't possibly be of Earth origin."

"Then her suppliers are in partnership with the alien blue men group, but they're inanimate and they're not trying to eat us or kill us. We're buying them."

They payed for their order, and got lunch.

"Miss Noble?"

Donna turned to face the man questioning her, "Donna Noble. What of it?"

"Well, you're one of the aunts who…"

"No offence, sunshine, but I don't speak to any reporters!" and she grabbed the Doctor and ran as fast as she could out of the café.

"You said no reporters!"

"I was wrong! Oh, and you know they have no respect for people's privacy! They'll go through a person's bins if it'll mean getting the latest scoop."

"Fine, I'm in the wrong then too aren't I? I assumed they'd leave us alone if they were told to. Obviously not!"

"We left our lunch. Looks like we'll have to go home and make something ourselves"

"You can't make a brew to save your life; you'd sooner implode the kettle."

"That was only once!"

"Well, I'm making our tea. I don't trust you with the microwave."

"I don't trust me with the microwave either, but that doesn't stop me. And I'll have you know I made perfectly good toast this morning."

"I see, so does burnt to a crisp count as perfectly good nowadays?"

"It was just a bit well-done and it wasn't even my fault, toasters are so complicated now…"

"Here's a hint: Read the instruction manual before use. Or would it damage your male pride so much if you had to read from a measly slip of paper?"

All of a sudden, he pulled her into his arms,

"I missed our arguments… and I missed making up too."

---

"How'd the flower search go?" The Master asked.

"Terrible." the Doctor replied.

"Oh, he's just moody because he thought they looked alien and I wouldn't let him scan them."

"Did they look alien?"

The Doctor nodded, "Blue tulips. I don't think it gets more otherworldly than that, and they didn't much look like tulips to me. But she got them anyway."

"They're TARDIS blue."

"Since when did the colour of my TARDIS become a new kind of blue?"

"Since it's been that way. What are you going to do with her at the wedding? It's an Earth wedding, we can't just have an eyesore like that in the room."

"She's not an eyesore, and she's my ship. She'll park wherever I park her."

"You two are like an old married couple. We can decide where the TARDIS goes at a later date! Right now we still have allot more important things to be dealing with. Perhaps the invitations?"

The Doctor facepalmed, "Donna, can you help me with those?"

"I've helped you with just about everything else today."

"Will you help me or not?"

"Fine, but you've got to make a list first."

---

"Here's my list." and it was plopped in front of her.

Donna read the list:

Donna Noble (Of course) and Wilfred Mott

Jenny and Amelia Smith (Bridesmaids)

Harresh, Gita and Rani Chandra (neighbours, I suppose)

Sarah-Jane Smith and Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart (Wow, does this bloke know how snobby he sounds?) (as well as Luke Smith if he can get here from Uni.)

Mickey and Martha Smith (Are we going to be overflowing with Smiths at this wedding?)

Jack Harkness (best man) (and he can bring a date as long as it's somewhat civilized)

"That's all?"

"Well, I don't know all that many people, and neither does the Master. We were thinking this would just be a small wedding."

"Fine, but it's still a flashy wedding."

"Why? Nobody needs to know how well off I am."

"You wanted my help with planning this wedding, so you're going to have to accept my demands or I hop it back to Chiswick."

He sighed, "Fine, Donna, but it's still going to be small."

"You forgot to write the monarchy of Diligo-Ortus on this list."

"Oh, yes! I guess I was just thinking at the time that everyone could find their own transport, and so didn't think of RayRay and Sraexoa who can't. I'm going to have to make a trip to another planet on my special day, aren't I? I was looking forward to not having to be a taxi service like last time."

"It's only one trip to and from the planet, stop whinging."

He smiled, "See? I missed our arguments. You always give as good as you get."

"If I didn't I'd never win."

Chapter Twelve - To the police!

(I've got about 3 more freshly baked chapters on my netbook... they were written on the 22nd along with this chapter so they're getting a bit stale. I'll try to get them all up when I can, but for now here's a very serious chapter twelve. Enjoy!)



"How was your trip then?" Donna asked.


"Oh, fine. Yours?"


"Oh, ours was fine too, despite being kicked out of the dress place."


The Doctor looked appalled, "Donna, did you mouth off?"


"No, I swear, I was as good as gold," she said, holding up her hands in her defence, "It was the shop's fault. The woman at the counter is – as Amelia said – a homophobe. As soon as she found out the details – like the couple being two men – she was the one mouthing off."


"Oh."


"Yeah, oh. Jack said we should tell the police, she can't do that."


"Yes, you should inform the police. Y'know what, I'll be there too – for support, and I am one half of the couple you're talking about."


"I'm not so sure about this."


"Why?"


"I just keep imagining we'll end up being arrested for wasting police time."


"Donna, it was blatant discrimination based on the sexuality of two people she's never even met. I'm sure the police will be on our side."


"I hope you're right… There are much more important things than sexuality discrimination being reported on a day-to-day basis, we'll probably be waiting for hours."


"Donna, I'm sure Jack can get us seen in no time. And if that fails us, I've always got my psychic paper on me."

---

There'd been no need to use the psychic paper. Jack had even called ahead to explain the gist of what the complaint was about, and to get them seen by someone proper.


"Miss Noble, Doctor Smith, please sit down." The police counsellor motioned to the two empty seats on the other side of his desk. "I understand the issue you've been confronted with is of a discriminatory nature, Miss Noble."


"It's Donna, and yes, that's pretty much what it is."


"Ah, Doctor Smith, I believe the discrimination is aimed at you and your fiancée. Could you please elaborate further?"


The Doctor was rubbing his hands together nervously, "Yes… We weren't there specifically, but I was told what happened. My sisters and daughters went into a dress shop to get a fitting for their outfits for the wedding…"


"The woman at the counter was all smiles until we told her that the couple of the wedding we're going to is two men."


"I and a friend of mine thought it was best that we deal with this with the proper authorities. She had no right to do that. No matter what her views are, she can't just deny the business of the pretence of who's sharing a bed with who."


Now that the police knew about it, it seemed like Donna was finally realizing it, and it was affecting her deeply.


"Donna, could you please tell us something? We'll need to know where the shop is located."

---

(The morning after)


"See? Wasn't that bad, was it?"


"It was like telling your mum who really broke the good china."


"You have nothing to be ashamed of."


"Yes, I do." and a newspaper was dropped on the kitchen table.


The headline read:


DRESSMAKER TURNS AWAY HOMOSEXUAL BUSINESS.


The text went on to say:


Donna Noble, 33, Sarah-Jane Smith, 59, walked into a dressmaker's with their nieces and were turned away brutally by a counter-girl. The girl, who wishes to remain anonymous, was taken in by the police for questioning, but had this to say:


"I didn't turn them away because they were going to the wedding of two men…!"


When asked why she did turn them away if it wasn't because of that, she was unable to make comment. There will be further enquiries, and the victim couple of this along with the aunts may be pulled in for further questioning.


"You see that? We may be pulled in again. See, this is why I didn't want to go to the police! The tabloids always find out these things somehow. And if this carries on, they'll be asking us for interviews! We're supposed to remain inconspicuous round here, and now we're on the front page!"


"Don't worry Donna, we can easily handle this."


"You can maybe, but I don't think I can."


"Doctor…?" The Master had come in looking very pale, and holding an identical newspaper.


The Doctor went up to him. "We'll get through this. When the time comes, we'll just have to face the masses."


"The time has already come,"


"…?"


"We're out of cereal and Amelia's getting cranky."

Chapter Eleven - Choke on your blessings

Donna, Sarah Jane, Jenny and Amelia walked into the dress shop. Jenny and Amelia were there for their dress fittings, and Donna and Sarah-Jane were there because someone needed to be chaperoning them and they had no formal clothing for the occasion themselves.

"Ah, Miss Smith! Getting married for real this time, are you?" it was a sharp kick in the guts for her. Nobody knew of the trouble of 'false wedding' besides her, the Doctor and a few others.

"No, I'm going to a friends wedding but have nothing to wear to it. And these two need bridesmaid dresses."

"Oh, how lovely! Is it your…?"

"Our dad's wedding."

"Well, he must be a handsome man to have fathered two such beautiful girls! The lady who holds his heart must be a very lucky woman indeed."

"They're childhood sweethearts, and there's no lady involved. Our father is marrying his best friend."

The woman at the counter seemed to choke on her own cheerfulness for a moment, "He's marrying a man?"

Donna butted in, "Well, I'm hardly going to be the bride – I'm his sister and I'm already married."

After a moment of silence, Amelia turned to Sarah-Jane and said, "I think we're being served by a homophobic person, Auntie Sarah."

---

"That woman had no right to be that way. She can't just refuse to serve you on the basis of the sexuality of the couple who's wedding you're going to, she's never even met them!"

"Well, Jack, that's what we said, but we were still kicked out. I just hope the men haven't been kicked out of the tailors." Donna said, slumping down onto the couch, "Knew we should've just looked online… I've got all the measurements with me for no reason!"

---

Unlike the dress shop, in the tailors there was no tingly shop bell signalling the arrival of a customer. "And what can I do for you two gentlemen on this day? A bridegroom suit and best man suit, perhaps?"

"Ah, no. A bridegroom suit for him and a bridal suit for me." the Doctor said.

The desk clerk in the tailors was another to choke on his own cheerfulness.

"Surely you must know that gay marriage isn't an uncommon thing in this day and age?" the Master said.

The desk clerk seemed to grimace at the word 'gay', and dismissed the idea as absurd, "Gay marriage? No such thing exists in civilized society."

"Look, mate, it's the 21st century, it may be called a 'civil partnership' in certain countries but it exists and a wedding's a wedding. We can easily pay for our suits, so are we going to be served or are we going to have to take our business elsewhere?"

The desk clerk had hit a wall. These two men said they could easily afford their suits, and who was he to judge? What they did in their free time was up to them. And this shop always said it takes any business.

"Come this way, gentlemen."

Chapter Ten - I've got neighbours now

"Wow… you've certainly changed." the redhead scrutinized the building carefully, "How do I know this place isn't booby-trapped?"

"Why would it be booby-trapped?"

"You're the kind of person who lays daft traps for no reason and then lets the chaos unfold before him."

The Doctor frowned, "Hmm. I thought the Master was much more the type to do that."

"Ah, but you'll tinker with anything and try your best to make it into something else. For all I know this whole room could be full of lasers made from leftover teabags."

"Fair point."

"A house and a kid. You've certainly gone domestic."

"Eh, I'm fine with it…" and she noticed the look of adoration and pure happiness in his eyes.

"You really love him, don't you?"

"Of course I do! How could I not?"

"Doctor, he slaughtered millions, he nearly destroyed the planet! And always tried to kill you!"

"Thanks for your concern," he smiled then, "Really, thanks, I missed your concern. But he's changed and we're fine, he hasn't tried to kill me and never would. I trust him with my life and the lives of the some 60 million people on this planet."

"You're serious about this, aren't you?"

"I've tried to help him, and I've lost him so many times. I'm not going to jeopardize our relationship just because of everyone's close-minded old views of him."

"We have those views for a reason."

"An obsolete reason! He's fine now, the drums are gone and he's perfectly sane."

"You're hardly one to be the judge of sanity aboard this ship."

"It's my ship, and I'll be in a relationship with whomever I like on it."

"I see you've already forgotten about her."

He'd been turning and walking away, but now abruptly turned to face her, his face like thunder, "That could never happen. It never even did, and I've moved on. That was cold to bring up that, considering you know how I feel about it."

"You never even told her. Your clone did, but you certainly didn't."

"I couldn't bare to spend my life with someone who'd die in the next 60-or-so years and leave me to live on in pain. Better to live with someone with a similar lifespan."

"Oh, and we've hit the nail on the head! You don't want him because of love, you want him because you're the last of your kind and somehow that means something."

He was scowling now, "That's actually what he thought too. What I thought… But now we know it's nothing to do with that. It's a nice perk to the relationship, but our relationship is based on true and honest-to-goodness love. That's something that nobody can dispute. And anyway, you're my best friend; I thought you'd be happy for me! Everyone else has accepted it, why can't you?"

"Because!"

"Because WHAT?"

"Because you're right!"

"How am I…?"

"We are best friends and… I feel like I'm losing my best friend, like it's already happened and I'm not going to get you back."

The Doctor's expression softened considerably at this, and he pulled her into his arms, "You'll never lose me. What the Master and I have is love and it's special, but it can't break our friendship."

"…"

"Bigger things than great sex have tried, you know. I've always loved you, it may just be platonic love but just like mine and Koschei's it can't be broken. Thought you'd know this by now, I even let him bring you back despite the obvious risks the procedure posed. I trust him with my heart and secrets, but I trust you with my life and my sanity, as well as your ability to stop me when I need stopping. I'd certainly be dead now without that."

"Okay, but you really need to tell me all that's happening with you now."

"We're getting married, here on Earth."

Donna was now gawping openly at him.

"Well, technically we're getting remarried. We got married on the planet Diligo-Ortus a while back, after we were given honorary citizenship for saving the planets' Queen. But Koschei went behind my back and got us a divorce so we could get married on Earth." he carried on, "Along with the benefits we're getting with this, I've also got my own cashflow; Along with my job in Torchwood, I used to work for UNIT a long time ago when I got exiled to Earth. I didn't want the pay because I was going to fix the TARDIS and get out of there, which I eventually did with what tools and materials they supplied me with. But because I didn't want it, I let them manage my finances, and [considering this was all decades ago] it's all accumulated to a good sum of money."

"So basically you're minted? Benefits from the adoption place, new revenue from Torchwood and old hefty revenue from UNIT?"

"I wouldn't use such a term, but yes, I guess you could say that."

"Does the Master know about this? You have to have told him – he could be like a trophy husband, and you wouldn't need to worry about paying for the wedding."

"I don't want him to be a trophy husband! I like him being my regular old husband."

"So you haven't told him?"

"…I've been sure to drop hints."

"You're going to have to do better than that. If you don't tell him, I will."

"Tell who what?" It was now that the Master came walking coincidentally in with Amelia.

"Tell you your fiancée is stinking rich."

"Donna!" the Doctor looked appalled at being betrayed so quickly.

"Well, let's face it, you were never going to tell him."

"I was! …When the time was right…"

"Excuse me, what?"

Donna rolled her eyes, "Your hubbie, with the benefits, his Torchwood money and his old UNIT money, is rolling in it."

"Rolling in what?"

She rolled her eyes again, "Money, you dolt!"

The Master now looked at the Doctor for an explanation, having realized that he was, in fact, rolling in it as Donna said he was. "Well, Donna's essentially right. With all that I have, we wont have any money troubles for a while."

"But you're terrible with money."

"Exactly. I didn't need it at the time of my exile, and I didn't even know how to use it, so I let UNIT handle it all. They collected the interest and made some prudent investments on my behalf, and now it seems to have accumulated to allot of money – and it was quite allot from the start. With it and all we get from the other two revenues, we wont have any money troubles where the wedding expenses and raising Amelia are concerned."

"…Why didn't you tell me?"

"I only found out recently. Jack mentioned it at our first adoption hearing – when you'd taken Amelia to the loo. We did our research, contacted UNIT, pulled some strings and now it all officially belongs to me again, but I've still got a UNIT–employed financial adviser who'll handle all the small things like collecting interest and all the other things I can't really do. I was going to say something about it when I got over the shock of it, I suppose. I was going to tell you if Donna hadn't just blurted it out in front of you."

"You know me, I'm a gossip and I didn't want to be a gossip with this. Best to let me just tell him straight rather than half of London knowing before he does."

"Thankyou, Donna. At least someone wants to keep no secrets from me." and he scowled at the Doctor, a scowl that was usually reserved for Jack when he stopped making sense or started acting like an idiot.

---

"I can't believe it…"

"I know…" The Doctor looked down at the bank statements again. It certainly was allot of money, and it was growing every day.

"Now we'll be able to give our little girl whatever she wants."

The Doctor frowned disapprovingly, "Wouldn't that be spoiling her?"

"She seven years old and we've only just adopted her – I think we're well within our rights to spoil her for a while."

"Well, not for long; I don't want my daughter being a spoilt brat growing into a shallow cow."

"Y'know what?"

"What?"

"I called her 'our little girl' and you called her your daughter."

"Yes, because she is our little girl."

"D'you think we can get her and Jenny to be bridesmaids at our wedding? I'm sure she wouldn't mind being in a dress, but what about Jenny?"

"She'll have to live with it. Now go to sleep." and the laughing man's guardian angel did watch him sleep on that night.

---

It was in the daytime, and they were trying to plan their wedding.

"Alright, so I'm the bride this time?" the Doctor said, looking puzzled at the various planning sheets.

"Yes, and I'm your sexy bridegroom who's going to fuck you raw on our wedding night. And we've got Donna helping us with all this when she wakes up," Donna was staying with them for a while to get acquainted and reacquainted with them, and was currently having lie-in in the spare bedroom.

"Well, she is a woman who's been through one failed wedding and a successful one, so she must know something about wedding planning."

"Alright you two, bridesmaid dresses are my domain." Donna came in yawning, dressed but half-awake, "Where's that scot of yours? School, is she?"

"Yeah."

"Well I'm going to need to get her measurements when she gets home then, aren't I?"

"You can get Jenny's measurements."

"Yeah, when she wakes up." the spare bedroom housed two separate beds, and Jenny was staying with them also – until after the wedding.

The Doctor held up a mini-foghorn, "The perks of being a father; you have good reason to own one of these."

Donna grinned, "Nice. Can I go use it now? She's had far too much time in that bed."

The Doctor grinned back, "Yeah, not too much or you'll wake the neighbours–" he paused briefly, "Ooh, that's right! I've got neighbours now," he paused again, "Oh dear. We're going to have to socialize, aren't we?"

Chapter Nine - 'Open your mind' Part Two: The Laughing Man

"Alright, go ahead, if it'll mean I can be back here again."

"Have you opened your mind?"

"You're starting to sound like my mum. If she were a mind-reading martian."

"Great, no sign of brain deterioration yet – you've still got your sense of humour."

"Just get on with it blondie, before I decide to break your wrists."

Donna's mind was a peculiar thing. Everything was shrouded in a fine psychic mist, making it hard for the Master's mind-self to move around and find what he was looking for.

It had attached itself to Donna's mind-brain; it being a thick glob of death that recoiled as he moved a hand out towards it. It certainly liked being latched on to Donna, but then again it was the Doctor and the Doctor liked Donna allot. If he could get it to latch onto himself and feed its' energy and general Time Lord-ness back into him, all would be well. Donna wouldn't die and he might get back the ability to regenerate.

He had always been hypnotic, it wasn't just the drums' doing. And he knew how to handle something latching onto a person like that, as the person used to be him. He knew how to entice the wary shape with what little he had. He gulped as it engulfed him, merely because he'd never liked the feeling of the drums claiming him and this wasn't much different. He also took all of the Doctor's information and knowledge, he'd wipe it from his own memory if the Doctor asked but he'd already knew it all before. Once he'd finished assimilating the power of the strange globule, it was no more. He'd done what he'd came to do and left, not wishing to pry into Donna's own [very personal] information.

The mind-trip had left them both haggard and knackered, and as they separated Donna slumped forth [unconscious] onto the Master and he was having a hard time keeping her upright.

He yawned, "She should wake in a few hours, and her mind will be fine."

---

She groaned. It felt like she'd definitely had one too many, it seemed it had all gone to her head and now she had a banging headache.

She realized she was in a man's arms. Nice familiar lanky arms, but strange unfamiliar arms nonetheless.

She tried to remember the events leading up to her current situation. She remembered the Doctor entering her head and staying there for some reason, and then she remembered crying and backing away from him. What had he done? He certainly wasn't the type to attack an innocent woman, and he'd never hurt her when she mouthed off. What had she done? What had given him cause to confront her so menacingly that she ran from him? She then remembered why. He was going to wipe her mind of him, and she didn't want it. She'd rather be dead than be stupid old Donna again. But he did it, and she was stupid old human Donna, stuck on Earth and not knowing what she's missing. Then she remembered something else. A while later, and she was engaged. He wasn't a total arse like Lance, he was loving and somewhat reliable. Shaun something, wasn't it? Then she was married, and she was happy. But now these memories made her upset, because she remembered the Doctor and he wasn't in any of them. Before she was married but while she was engaged, everyone seemed to have turned into a laughing blonde man. She remembered him more recently, but he wasn't laughing then. Anything but.
But the Doctor had been with him, and gramps, and then she remembered. The laughing man who wasn't laughing, he'd stopped her dying. He'd made her herself again instead of the DoctorDonna, and he'd saved her life.

She dared to open her eyes, but it wasn't a funny blonde who was holding her. It was mister lanky himself, and she couldn't be happier. He seemed to be staring at her in curiosity and admiration, studying her and scrutinizing her in excited apprehension.

"Told you you're brilliant."

She rolled her eyes and hit him in the shoulder in jest, "Yes, and you never stop telling me. That boyfriend of yours did something right then? I'll have to thank him, after I'm told who he is of course."

The Doctor smiled at her, dimples-and-all, "Donna Noble. Supertemp from Chiswick, ginger after my own hearts, and my best friend…" then he frowned, "…Were you always this inquisitive?"

"Spaceman, I've had my memory wiped – by you –, I've been grounded to my home planet for a couple of years, and now I've had my memory reimbursed by your crazy lover. I think I am owed some answers, if not the news on what's been happening with you while I've been gone."

"I swear I'm going to tell you everything that's been going on, but not right now."

"Why?"

He just squeezed her tighter in his arms.

"Oh."

Chapter Eight - 'Open your mind' Part One

"I did tell you to visit that old man again when I was dead, and now I'm not dead we can do it together."

The Doctor stared at him incredulously, "I though you were just joking about that bit, you've never been a big fan of humans."

"A bloke can change his mind, can't he? And anyway, we'll be able to kill two birds with one stone and invite him to our new wedding."

"Fine, but you're driving."

---

As the blue box materialized, it crushed a rather unfortunate flowerbed. "My crocuses! He's only gone and landed the thing on my crocuses!"

And the two men who emerged from the box, they walked into the house and filled the old man in on what had happened since they'd last seen each other.

After their discussion the Master suddenly looked anxious, "I must admit, I had an ulterior motive to coming here." he saw the Doctor's horrified expression, "Don't worry, it's nothing bad. I think I know how to bring Donna back without her dying."

Wilf looked confused, "But he said…"

"If the universe was ending he'd fumble with his keys, which I know he has because I was there. He doesn't like to think about it, and so never thinks of a solution. If he'd thought of it he wouldn't have been able to carry it out anyway."

"Why not?"

"For this he would have needed me. And now he's got me, I can carry it out and I'm sure it'll work."

"What'll work?"

"Well, I actually have two different solutions in mind, both of which contain triggering the Time Lord consciousness to come out. The first consists of that, but then we hook her up to the chameleon arc and turn her into a Time Lady, she'll still have all her own memories and personality, but she'll be able to cope with another consciousness inside her head. The other solution consists of the same first step, but we now know that I can't regenerate anymore, so I figure that taking the consciousness into my head will trigger my body to connect with all its' Time Lord functions, including regeneration. Donna won't remember much of what happened after the consciousness entered her head, but she'll certainly remember all that she's done with the Doctor and she wont die from it. I completely understand if you'd go for the second solution, she'd still be your human granddaughter after all."

The Doctor was gawping at him now, "How long have you been thinking this up?"

The Master sighed, "I know you miss her, and I'll do whatever it takes to make you happy."

"But you can't possibly know if this could work..."

"I know enough Theta, and you can't tell me you wouldn't want to bring her back if you could take my place. The fact is you can't; if we're going for the second option it has to be me, because since it's your consciousness she's got in her head it would just bounce off your mind because it already contains all that knowledge."

"Second option," it had been quite a while since Wilf had said anything, "go with that."

---

"We have to drag that consciousness and its' energy out of her, and I'm sorry but it's going to hurt."

Wilf and the Doctor hid themselves on The Hill, waiting in anticipation and fear.

Donna emerged from the door, "Donna? Donna Noble?"

"Yeah, what of it?"

The Master grimaced, but carried on, "It's your grandfather."

"Oh, what's he done this time? Froze himself up there I suppose, or maybe he's had too much tea and pasties?"

"Miss Noble, I'll hear none of that. This is serious."

"Why'd you call me 'Miss'? Do I look single to you?"

"Your relationship status is none of my concern, we have a serious matter to attend to."

Donna suddenly looked horrified, "Oh, he's really gone and done something stupid, hasn't he? Fine, I'm coming with you, but it better be nothing more than a scorching with hot tea or it'll be on both of your heads."

---

"Why are you crying, gramps?" she looked to the mystery man and glared daggers through him, "What's this bloke gone and done?"

"Oh, it's not him love… but I'm really sorry."

"Sorry? Why?"

"Because if this doesn't work, you'll die." and the Doctor emerged from the foliage.

Donna squinted, but she just couldn't place this new arrival, "Who're you, then?"

The Doctor frowned, "I'm the Doctor. Thought you'd remember just from seeing me, but I guess not."

"…Why am I going to die? What wont work?" Donna looked pale now, that was plain to see.

"Your brain seems to be protecting you from remembering me, I always knew you had a brilliant brain. But you always thought I was joking when I told you. Remember? Donna, you're brilliant."

Donna looked at him in confusion, "Look here skinny, I've no idea what you're going on about but it's starting to creep me out bigtime."

"Thought you'd have figured it out by now, seems I'm being thwarted by defences I created."

Donna decided to look behind her, "Where's he gone, and why won't anyone give me a straight answer?"

Then, there was a sudden noise in the air. Like supernovas and new planets being born and the universe and oh time, that wonderful noise that always sent chills of anticipation and wonder down your spine. As the vwoorp-vwoorp of the engines died away, a big blue 1960s police box was standing where the other man and her grandfather had been only moments before.

She hesitantly ventured a hand toward the offending object, and was surprised when it felt solid and wooden and there. She opened one of the blue doors, and was met with a pleasant glow and a faint humming. Standing inside were her grandfather and the two mystery men.

"Remember the TARDIS? C'mon, you gotta remember the old girl, she popped over here just to see you. Bigger on the inside…? Nothing? Not even a smidgen of memory?"

All from nowhere, tears sprung from Donna's eyes, "Why am I crying, and anyway what is all this? It looks like someone ate an antique shop and spat it out because the contents was so stale."

The Doctor forced a smile, "You've already said that once before."

"Really? You'd think I'd remember a place like this."

Tears now sprang up in the Doctor eyes, "You certainly should. Nobody ever forgets the TARDIS, even if they forget me."

The three men were giving up hope, thinking they must have left it too long.

"One last ditch effort, then."

---

Donna's eyes had the unfortunate disadvantage of being covered with a makeshift blindfold as they made their way from several corridors, "Why am I blindfolded? Where are you taking me? I better not be here to join some bloody daft cult…"

"Look, Donna can you just shut up 'til we get to where we're going? We're never going to get there at this rate."

"At the risk of sounding like a broken record, where are you taking me?"

"Your room."

"My...? Oh god, this is a mental asylum! You're putting me in the nuthouse!"

"No we're not, Donna. We're here." and the Doctor opened the green door.

"Excuse me, but some of us have no vision here, and I'd really like to have mine back."

The blindfold was removed so that she could see again. "What...?"

"Each companions' room is uniquely made to fit their personality and what they like, and no room is ever destroyed."

A look of realization passed over her face, "My room on the TARDIS… My room on the TARDIS! On the Doctor's TARDIS!" She turned to face said Doctor.

And slapped him upside the head.

"You pillock! Look what you've done now, I remember everything – and I'm going to die from it!"

"Not necessarily. My friend here can save you without you having to forget any of this."

Donna scrutinized the Master for a moment, and then slapped him upside the head too, "You! You're the one who everyone turned into!"

The Master rubbed the back of his neck anxiously, "It wasn't all fun on my part; I ended up in an ill-fitting pink dress. And that is not how I'm going to introduce myself…" he continued nonetheless, "Donna, I can save you, but you need to open your mind to me before I can do it."

Donna looked between both Time Lords, "He's one of your lot isn't he? Well I have to applaud you on finding another beside yourself, and congratulate the two of you."

"For what?"

"For being together, of course."

The Doctor frowned, "Didn't think it was that obvious."

"Alright, go ahead, if it'll mean I can be back here again."

"Have you opened your mind?"

"You're starting to sound like my mum. If she were a mind-reading Martian."

Chapter Seven - My Friend

"So, you're Amelia?"

"Does this mean you're gonna be my big sister?"

Jenny did a double take, "An answer for an answer."

"I'm Amelia Pond."

"And I'm Jenny. I may be your big sister; it all depends of whether we're allowed to take you home or not."

"They get us to make these bracelets. Don't see the point of it, really." She handed the pink bracelet to Jenny, the blue bracelet to the Master, and the orange bracelet... the Doctor visibly paled. The Master quite visibly grinned.

"I wasn't allowed another daddy one."

"I'm the mother again."

"Again?"

"You do have a mothering instinct, Theta; I don't see why you shouldn't get the mummy bracelet."

Jack popped in, "You can take Amelia home today, guys."

---

"There's a crack in my wall."

Both men squinted at the offending shape, the Doctor finally saying "That wasn't there before."

"We can always get some sealant tomorrow."

---

"She seemed disturbed by that crack."

"It was just a crack, we'll fill it and she'll get over it."

"Yeah, but still…"

"What was meant by 'again'? The mother 'again'?" they were both startled to find Amelia standing behind them, hands on hips with a pout extremely evident on her face, "I have a right to know, considering you're my new parents."

"You're supposed to be in bed."

"Tell me what you're hiding and I'll be out like a light."

"You surely will, it's all quite boring."

"I can handle boring – Tell me."

---

The three were seated at the kitchen table, each with a mug of tea or coffee clasped in their hands.

"You know we're aliens, right?"

"Yeah…?"

Yeah well, our species – the Time Lords of the planet Gallifrey – were once at war with an emotionless, murderous species called the Daleks. Eventually both species perished in something we call 'The Time War', and only I was left to protect the universe and the order of all things. But the Daleks kept coming back, in small droves and big fleets, and no doubt they'll keep coming back as they are persistent buggers. But, a while after the war I'd discovered something: my old friend-and-enemy, who was perhaps the only of our kind who understood me and my love of travelling, had been resurrected before the end to be a warrior on the front lines. But he'd seen the death and destruction that this war had brought, and he was terrified by it. So he ran. He would surely be called a deserter of war, but you couldn't really blame him; anyone in their right mind wouldn't want to stay in that hell. I ended the Time War, by sealing it all in a timelock, and of course I had no idea then that my friend had survived. But after a few years, he returned in a different time, with a new face and old age and a human body. He was human because he'd wanted to forget the war, and so sealed his Gallifreyan past in an old keepsake – a fobwatch. When we met up again in that time, he'd never met me and I didn't know him because he was a completely different person. I had no reason to be suspicious, he seemed like an ordinary [if quite intelligent] human being, but when he changed back and I realized it was him I was too late. A little while later when I managed to get back to my own time [as he'd stolen the TARDIS, you see], I found him again, but he was still as crazy as before and kept me locked up in a cage for almost a year, the rest of that year I had spent in a wheelchair. But when everything was fixed and back to how it should have been, he died from a gunshot wound just to spite me. He could have easily regenerated – we've already told you about regeneration – but he wanted to see me suffer, so he decided to die. A few years later, and he was resurrected again, and was more insane than ever. In the end we found out that his insanity, a drum beat in his head, was actually a link the Time Lords had put in his head when we were kids so they could make their way back into the universe if the need ever arose," the Doctor continued, "When they came back, they were all just as crazy as him, if not more, and when I managed to destroy the link and send them all back into the timelock, my friend's head became clear and free for the first time in his life since childhood, and he was able to see all that he'd done with his life, and since his head was now clear he was able to create his own personality, something that he'd never been able to even think about doing when he was under the control of the 'drums'. As he developed, he discovered what he could have been, and I discovered the friend I'd so dearly missed. As things progressed, our relationship became far more than platonic, but we encountered the Daleks again, and they were syphoning energy from a metal planet. We rescued their prisoners and rerouted the setup so that the Daleks themselves were powering the entire planet, and one of the prisoners was a small human boy called Matthew. He was orphaned as his entire family had been killed by aliens, so Jack had been working to get him adopted. Eventually, after we got married, we decided to adopt him, but it didn't work out; on the day we went to collect him, we'd found out that they'd found his godparents, so we weren't allowed to adopt him. I was devastated, my only daughter was in tears and my friend was distraught as we'd all bonded with him. We almost gave up on adoption after that, but… Then we met you and we couldn't be happier."