Tegan walked around the house, peeking in the various rooms on the ground floor, noting the tasteful furnishings and ample fireplaces and gleaming, modern-to-her kitchen, even glancing through the windows at the beautifully manicured lawns and gardens she could see all around the Tudor-style house. "Not bad for a prison," she finally pronounced.

The Doctor held back on a sigh. He couldn't blame, her not really, because in essence, she was right; it was a prison. Still, he had to try… "Tegan, it's not a prison," he began, only to stopped by her raised hand.

"Right, it's not meant to keep me away from everyone in the universe, it's to keep them away from me," she said wearily, as if she'd been told all this before.

Which, of course she had. Still, it didn't mean she didn't hate it, the necessity of being plunked down on a planet in the middle of nowhere, one that had been isolated from the rest of the populated parts of the universe. One that had a large island on its toxic ocean deliberately terraformed and covered in a force-field and given Earth-normal gravity and air and temperatures, just for her. Her home away from home at the ragged end of time.

"How many people are around at the end of the universe, anyway?" she asked, peering over at him with an attempt at cheerfulness.

The Doctor appreciated the effort, raked fingers through blonde hair as he raised his eyes to the ceiling and tried to calculate. "Not many, certainly not 'people' in the sense that you'd count them. And none in these coordinates for many millennia in either direction, timewise. Or distance-wise. You'll be safe here, Tegan," he added, gentling his voice.

She sighed. "I know. Safe. No contact with other minds, no way for me to start going bonkers again."

She returned her attention to the large picture window they were standing in front of, gazing at the far-off woods that formed the edges of the property she'd been given. Inside the confines of that forest were lawns and gardens, hiking paths, fountains, stables, a garage with a slew of different cars from different eras, even a small airstrip and a couple of choice single-prop planes of the type she'd learned to fly when her dad was still alive. Surrounding that was the forest, miles and miles of nothing but trees and a few lakes and some mountains if she wanted to go exploring or skiing in the winter. There was even a bit of beach with some artificial tides in the water to make it seem like an ocean instead of a construct with a holographic horizon making it look bigger than it actually was…everything she'd thought up, the Doctor had provided.

"It's a lot nicer than the UNIT isolation ward," she acknowledged, making an effort to show that she appreciated everything he'd done for her.

It didn't help the Doctor's mood, and she didn't need to be able to hear his thoughts to tell that. Even his celery seemed droopy, defeated, and she knew it was because he hadn't been able to figure out a way to cure her, to free her completely from whatever malevolence the Mara had booby-trapped her mind with when he'd forced it out of her that last time.

The Doctor understood why she found it impossible to maintain a positive attitude for more than a few nanoseconds at a time; of course he did. He blamed himself, and when she wasn't blaming him and failing miserably at hiding it, she was blaming herself as well. "I chose to get back on the TARDIS that last time," she reminded him. And herself; she needed to remember it had been free bloody will that had brought her to this.

She felt him move closer, standing behind her but not touching her, not offering the comfort he'd tried to give her before. The comfort she'd rejected, but longed for. To never be around anyone else, ever again, it was more than she could comprehend, but comprehend it she would, as the days went on. And on, and on…

"I promised I'd keep trying to find out a way to cure you, and I will," he reminded her.

She closed her eyes and sucked in her breath at the feel of his hands hovering over – but not quite touching – her shoulders. "I know," she said tightly. "I know you will. Just like I know you'll never find it. If it was out there to be found, you'd have it already and none of this would have happened. One of your future selves would have risked a few broken Time Laws to drop it into your hand, or come to see me himself. Yourself. Whatever."

Of all the times for it to become too much, why now when he was there to witness the breakdown? She dropped her head into her hands, finally giving in to the sobs she'd been fighting for weeks, months, ever since finding out that the reason she was hearing other minds in her head was because the Mara had left her a lovely parting gift, one that had made its presence known once she stopped traveling in the TARDIS. A booby trap with a time delay to make sure it worked its insidious evil without the Doctor around to stop it.

This time the Doctor's hands landed softly on her shoulders, turning her so she leaned against his chest. This time, she allowed him to give her the comfort she so desperately needed. As his arms enfolded her shoulders, she knew the comfort wouldn't last, if her bleak prediction were to come true…

A/N: Reposting this as an M story as it is on teaspoon. First bunch of chapters are pretty much the same but with some tweaks and fixes and, I hope, improvements. Things will be very different in chapter 8, "The Human Touch." Enjoy!