Every Doctor appeared at the funeral of Sarah Jane Smith, they stood in a way that they could see the people they had been but not the people they were still yet to become.
The 11th Doctor looked at his previous body and Rose who was standing next to him, he remembered coming to the funeral 10 times in the past and wondered how many times he would continue to come. In his last body it was just after Mickey had decided to stay in the parallel world. Before that he was standing alone, at would be another few weeks before he met Rose and his life changed again and he smiled properly for the first time since the war ended. He continued to remember what it had been like in every body.
His third body would leave the funeral to return to the TARDIS with Sarah Jane inside asking where they would go next and complaining that she had left him behind and that his time machine wouldn't let her out, before being stopped by a huge hug from the Doctor. The fourth Doctor had just dropped the journalist at what he thought was Croydon but was actually Aberdeen.
His first and second bodies were also here paying their respects to a woman they had yet to properly meet.
Next to him Rory and Amy stood giving each other support, they had never met Sarah Jane in person but they knew who she was and felt they should be there to give their homage to the woman who used to be like them and continued to do the same thing, saving the earth from her attic in Ealing.
To his surprise, the Doctor was shocked out of his thoughts as a hand slipped into his own. It was a hand he knew well and he had missed, Donna Noble smiled at him and rested her head on his shoulder as they listened to Luke speak about his mother and the amazing woman she had been. Unconsciously they mirrored the married couple that stood to their right.
When the funeral was over the Doctors all left, walking forward and refusing to look back, they all gave their respects to Sarah Jane and their apologies to Luke and Clyde – who had always thought of Sarah Jane as his second mother – before walking to their TARDIS and leaving to continue travelling
Eventually they returned to the TARDIS and the Doctor spoke for the first time as they stood outside of the type 40 TT machine, "Donna how are you here and what about Shaun?"
Donna gently moved their still linked hands against her chest so he could feel her double heartbeat. "That Christmas, your safety was the regeneration energy that had been bouncing around my brain. It would have worked but there was Gallifrey and I grew a second heart. That wasn't just Sarah Jane's funeral, it was the funeral of the human Donna Noble as well. Shaun and I tried, we really did but he couldn't get around it. It was too 'freaky' for him. So we split the lottery winnings – someone rigged the lottery for me, wasn't that nice of them? – and went our separate ways. I knew you'd be here so I came to pay my respects to our Sarah Jane and to give you support. You were one behind the Doctor I knew and you were there at Granddad's funeral. How could I not be here to help you? You're my best friend Doctor." She clicked her fingers and the TARDIS door opened, "Let's go home." The Doctor grinned at her and pulled her into a hug before carrying her in a bridal lift over the TARDIS door.
"You stupid Martian." Donna laughed, "Everyone already thinks we're married, you're not helping matters."
The Doctor continued to grin "Welcome home Donna Noble – the most important woman in the universe. You're brilliant."
It was at this point Amy felt she had to say something, "Err who are you?" She tried to sound as polite as possible but it evidently didn't work because Rory elbowed her gently.
"Donna Noble - DoctorDonna" Donna replied as she was put back on the floor by the Doctor, she looked around the TARDIS in wonder, "oh she's beautiful, just look at her. Oh you gorgeous girl." She started to spin but as the Time Lord was still holding her hand she stopped and looked at him with a wry smile, "and what did you do to cause her to look like this?"
The Doctor looked a bit sheepish, "I regenerated in flight. But everything's OK now. Oh and your room has moved it so it's next to mine. She was trying to make me guilty and it worked, every time I walked past your room, I would remember something else."
"Well she's brilliant like that aren't you old girl?" She said stroking the console
"Apart from that it's identical, she hasn't touched it at all, so all your clothes that you left on the floor, and the unmade bed…"
"Git" Donna laughed. They had completely forgotten about the Ponds and Rory decided he had to speak.
"Um, Doctor, Donna?"
"Yup" The Doctor replied popping the 'p'
"What's going on?"
"Short story" Donna said as she flicked a couple of levers, "I travelled with him, gained a time lord mind, he wiped my memory, last Christmas everyone turned into a Time Lord called the Master, I didn't. Gallifrey came to replace Earth, and because of that I regenerated gaining a second heart and becoming a Time Lady, and now I'm home again."
"Right" Rory said slowly "no sorry completely lost."
"Donna Noble is a Time Lady and my best friend." The Doctor said, "there is nothing else you need to know. Now Donna, anywhere you want to go?"
"I know just the place, a couple of miles that way on 5/4/2011. The last time Granddad looked out at the stars, he died in his sleep later that night. Let him die knowing that I've gone home."
The Doctor smiled and they quickly appeared where Donna directed, she opened the doors wild and waved manically at the old man who looked up in joy before dancing around again. The Doctor stood behind her and waved as well, finally after waving and crying for a couple of minutes they shut the doors and Donna slumped against the Doctor and cried into his chest. He soothed her gently missing the looks Amy and Rory were sending each other.
"I'm going to take her back to her room." He said eventually. "She just needs to sleep, I think. Then I'll come back and tell you everything you want to know. And tomorrow, we set the controls for random and go anywhere and any when. DoctorDonna travelling through the stars once more as a Time Lady, the universe has been waiting for her."
