He had promised himself to stay away from Earth. With his saddened eyes, he knew that he could never return to see the beloved Donna Noble, whose humanity had saved the universe. She was the most important thing to have happened to him and the most important person to have happened to the universe. Without Donna Noble, temp, human, and Time Lady, he would have died. And the universe would have become nothing more than a Dalek's plaything.
So why did the tenth reincarnation of the last of the Gallifreyans return to Earth? If he were to do anything to remind Donna of the time she had spent with him, she would burn up. She would die. Everything would have been for naught and she could not live a happy, albeit without herself, life. When the mind of a Time Lord threatened to burn her body and mind to oblivion, the Doctor did what he thought best. He erased all traces of himself, their adventures, but worst of all, he erased Donna Noble, the most important person in the whole, wide universe.
The TARDIS landed on Earth. Earth, a few months after he had left Donna to her unhappy life without him. Not that she knew she was unhappy. The Doctor ruffled his hair and looked up, as if wondering what had possessed the TARDIS to take him somewhere he could not be. No matter, he owed Wilf a visit and would damn well say hello. It was midday, Donna would be working. He would not be risking her life. And if he did, he would find a way to fix it. The Doctor does not give up.
Leaving the blue police box locked in an alleyway a few blocks from the Noble residence, the Doctor ventured into London. He seemed to be like all the other businessmen, on a lunch break and heading toward a quick meal before returning to the office. But he was no normal bloke. The Doctor found the hill that Wilf would always watch the skies from, searching for the little blue box that Donna had always loved.
Peeking around the corner for her little blue car, he did not see it and found a reason to jovially skip toward the house. He whistled a tune, grinning, as he remembered the time they had spent at Agatha Christie's dinner party. Donna had been so full of life and had saved him from cyanide poisoning. Oh what a shock that was.
The Doctor soon found himself at the doorstep and his hand paused. Could he knock on the door and risk Donna answering? Nope. The Doctor whipped out his trusted, handy sonic screwdriver and looked up and down the street before unlocking the front door of the Noble residence.
Wilf sat in the living room, watching the news on the telly. Nothing had much happened in the skies and he wondered day and night about both the Doctor and his precious Donna. The loving grandfather hadn't seen her for a week and to hell if he or Sylvia could locate her. She wasn't answering their calls and would only send a daily postcard to reassure them that she was alright, just taking a holiday from her job as a temp.
But then he stood up, tense, as the door opened. "My Donna!" Wilf shouted, running to the door and, before he realized there was no shock of red hair, grasped the lean Doctor in his arms. Quickly, he let go. "You're not my Donna. What did you do to Donna?" Wilf was protective, as he knew what could have happened to her.
"Oh Wilf. I simply came to bid you a hullo since the TARDIS brought me here." He nodded, blinking quickly three times. "But you say Donna's gone?"
Wilf nodded. "'Bout a week ago she left. Sylvia and I have gotten daily postcards that she's on holiday, but that still worries me. Thought you might have something to do with it, as I haven't seen that little blue box of yours lately."
This puzzled the Doctor. Donna was a responsible young woman and wouldn't just up and leave her job. "Arrivedecci, my dear Wilf. I'm on a quest!" To find Donna, he finished in his mind. His most valued companion and the woman responsible for saving his life. But Wilf could not know that he was looking for her now, even if it was against his better judgement. If he could just see that she was alright. . .
Wilf bid goodbye and locked the door behind the Doctor, returning to the telly. He figured that if he watched the news for strange happenings, he might be able to spot Donna.
The Doctor didn't know where to start. Donna could be anywhere on Earth and he had no way of locating her, so he headed back to the TARDIS. Perhaps that could help. The Doctor had shut his brilliant eyes as he walked to the TARDIS, to think of where Donna would go. She was herself, but before she'd met him, and nothing was the same.
"Oi. Alien boy."
That voice. The Doctor opened his eyes to see the familiar vibrancy of Donna's red hair and pompous smirk. She was leaning against his TARDIS.
