Thanks to everyone who has made it to this, the final chapter!
The next morning, the Doctor awoke to find Missy wrapped in his arms, her head resting against his bare chest. The room was quiet, and he discovered that between her slow, even breaths, he could hear the four-beat pattern of her hearts. It was strange to think that the same rhythm that had once driven her insane could be so sweet to his own ears.
Now, Missy stirred slightly, and the Doctor let his thoughts slip into her mind, sending her every happy memory, every warm feeling he knew.
She opened her eyes slowly, a contented smile gracing her lips. Her hair—which was usually so tidy, piled atop her head—was draped around her face, framing it beautifully. "Good morning, Doctor."
As he stared down at her, he couldn't help but remember everything that had happened the night before. "Sleep well?" he asked shakily.
She laughed at this, and moved one hand to trace slow circles on his chest. "Well, now, you of all people should know the answer to that."
His face blushed a bright red. "Yes, well, we should probably start figuring out what to do next."
"Oh, Doctor," she grinned. "I like the way you think."
She leaned up to kiss him, but he only replied with a short, gentle peck. "Not like that," he said, sliding out of the bed and beginning to pull on his clothes. "I mean, we need to talk about what you're going to do."
Missy watched as he dressed, but she didn't move to get up. "Aw, but that's no fun," she teased, giving him her best pouty face.
"Life isn't always fun." Finally, he pulled on his jacket, then walked to the door.
"Wait!" Missy called. "Aren't you going to help me get dressed?"
He gulped. She always knew exactly what to say to make him blush. "Do you…" He cleared his throat. "Do you need help?"
"I guess I don't need help," she began, winding him up. "Of course, if you want to help…"
"Fine," he sighed, walking back towards Missy, who was smiling triumphantly.
It took significantly longer for her to get dressed with his help than if she had done it by herself, but she had to admit, it was infinitely more entertaining this way. The Doctor fumbled around with everything—buttoning the wrong button, lacing her corset incorrectly—so that he often had to undo his work and start again. If she hadn't known any better, she would have said he was doing it on purpose, not that she minded.
Eventually, however, once they were both fully dressed, they made their way to the console room. The Doctor immediately began pulling levers and pressing buttons, obviously piloting them somewhere.
"Where are we going?" Missy asked, watching his every movement, and silently noting all the things he was doing wrong.
The Doctor didn't answer; his expression was solemn and worn. At times like these, it was easy to see just how old he truly was.
But his silence was the only answer that Missy required. If he wouldn't tell her where they were going, there was only one place it could be.
"You're sending me back to my TARDIS." It was a statement, not a question, as she already knew she was right. "So all that talk about not leaving me was a lie." Her voice was incredulous, yet it was sharpened to a point that pierced straight through him with every word she said. "I guess you've become like me after all."
He froze in his tracks, one hand gripping a lever so tightly that his knuckles turned white. "What choice do I have?" he practically yelled, turning to her. "You don't want to travel with me, you don't want to tell me where Gallifrey is, so the only option left is to let you travel on your own."
"So you've decided that the best thing for you to do is to let a dangerous psychopath go free?"
He'd already thought about this, but it was odd that she was bringing it up at all. He had assumed that she would resent being "imprisoned" with him, as she had once put it. So why was she trying to persuade him otherwise?
"Okay, what do you want to do?" he sighed, holding up his hands in surrender.
She took a moment to think about it before answering. "Do you remember… what I said in the graveyard, when you were about to kill me?"
He cringed. Not kill. Never kill. "What, do you mean that nonsense about finding Gallifrey together?"
She nodded. "Think about it: I know where it is, and you don't. Your only hope of finding it is to take me with you." To her satisfaction, she could tell that he was actually considering this. "Besides," she added, smoothing the deal, "I can't do any real damage under your watch, now can I?"
The Doctor looked her in the eye. She didn't appear to be lying. Then again, he'd thought she was telling the truth the last time she said she knew where Gallifrey was. For a moment, he wondered why she hadn't just stayed there herself. But there must have been a reason she'd left. After all, she was a traitor to Rassilon and to the people.
"Alright," he finally answered reluctantly. "I guess you could stay for a bit longer. I'll have a lot to explain to Clara, but I can deal with all that later."
"On one condition," she added.
"Shouldn't I be the one at liberty to make conditions?"
She ignored him and continued. "If we find Gallifrey, you can't let them lock me up."
"But… you're a criminal," he replied. "That's probably the first thing they'll do when we step out of the TARDIS."
"I think you can probably guess what will happen to me if they put me in prison."
The Doctor cringed as he thought about just how ruthless the Time Lords could be, and how much they surely hated the Master.
"Promise me," Missy said, interrupting his thoughts.
He took her hand securely in his, a sign that he wouldn't let her go, and that he would put up a fight to keep her by his side. "I promise."
"Well, then," she smiled, moving to the console to type in coordinates, "what are we waiting for?"
With that, they set off in search of the planet that had once been their home, the planet where they had existed as best friends, before the war ripped apart everything they'd loved.
But all that pain and destruction was behind them now, because they refused to see Gallifrey as it was during the war. It was much easier to remember the days when they were happy and safe and careless, the days when they were together. Because now, that was all that really mattered. The Doctor was willing to fight the Time Lords in order to defend Missy, because he loved her. He truly loved her, and he wasn't afraid to admit that to himself anymore.
And as he stood there, holding her hand in his, he never wanted to let her go again. Unfortunately, he would probably have to at some point. That was the worst part of their dynamic, the inevitability of their separation.
But for now, they were together.
For now, they could pretend that everything was like old times again.
For now, they were happy.
Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think!
