Chapter 10: Pseudonym

After Plagiarius Ineo the Doctor had the means to return to The Library and make the crucial changes necessary to rewrite River's ending – and therefore his ending too. As with all of his plans, this one had evolved in his mind, to the point that his intentions now had less chance of affecting his younger self but a higher degree of risk that something would go wrong.

He needed to be there, at the point when River plugged the chair into the mainframe. Be there, but be undetectable during a sequence of events when his younger self had actively scanned pretty much everything within sonic screwdriver range. The idea made him jittery and on edge, more so because he had no idea if it was even possible for the TARDIS to hide from the Doctor. Would his younger self sense the presence of another time lord or had he been distracted enough by the mystery of River and the danger of the Vashta Nerada that something ordinarily pretty big could slip by?

He was actually contemplating crossing his own timeline – well, not crossing it as such, more like parking on the edges of it. Not once, but twice because before he did it when the stakes were as high as they could get he needed to test out his theories.

"But when," he mused, thinking back over his adventures for one that was similar enough to be a good test case. "Ah, I know," he grinned. "London, 2008. Adipose!" He wouldn't need long – a few minutes should do it. Deciding against telling Rory and Amy he was landing the TARDIS the Doctor did something he'd never willingly done before. He took the brakes off so that the time machine wouldn't make its characteristic sound.

"The things I do for you, River Song," he muttered, thinking of other times when River had strode around the console after him, flipping levers and pressing buttons while he pretended he didn't notice. "Activate cloak," he requested, putting a hand on the console where he felt closest to the vortex that was his TARDIS. "We need to be invisible old girl. Do you think you can do that for us, please?"

He waited a few moments and then some instinct, the connection between time lord and machine forged over millennia, had him moving. He opened the door and took a quick peak outside. The TARDIS was in a narrow alleyway beside what looked like a small group of shops, surrounded on all sides by residential housing. Stepping fully outside he took the precaution of locking the door before walking a few steps away. Turning he grinned – the TARDIS was invisible to the naked eye – a good start. He focused on where he knew she stood and decided it felt no different than any other part of the street.

Walking to the corner he took up position beside one of the power line poles, standing behind it and in the shadows so that he'd be able to watch the street without being noticed. A few minutes later the sound of footsteps heralded the arrival of someone to the deserted street. With a jolt the Doctor realised it was his younger self, his tenth incarnation. He'd had speed back then and Ten was using it to chase down something on his sensor equipment. He paused almost directly opposite the alleyway the Doctor stood in, waving his instrument backwards and forwards before it beeped and he took off again. All without any indication that he'd noticed anything out of the ordinary. Thinking back on the night, altered now because he'd been there twice, the Doctor grinned – his younger self had definitely suspected nothing. No sense of the TARDIS beyond his own version of it, and nothing unusual in his equipment. The fact that he was still standing there was good too – he'd not inadvertently destroyed time by touching the edges of his own timeline.

He'd stepped into the light to watch Ten disappearing around a corner. Turning back to the alley, his mind on the future and the past, the Doctor was knocked to the ground before he realised what had happened.

"Ouch," he muttered, wincing. Pushing his hair out of his eyes he looked up. This time the jolt was enough he actually gasped, covering it quickly with a cough, as he looked at the woman standing over him.

Donna Noble. His Donna, just as she'd been all those years ago when she'd invited herself to become his companion.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry," Donna rushed out, reaching down a hand to help him up.

He let her, dusting off his pants and fiddling with his bowtie as he tried not to look at her too closely. "And so you should be too," he declared, eager to see what she'd say next.

"Oi, don't you blame me Mister," Donna's brow rose. "Haven't you heard of looking both ways? You came out of nowhere – and you certainly weren't paying attention."

"Perhaps we should share the blame then," the Doctor suggested, smiling winningly.

"Maybe," Donna allowed, her gaze sharpening as she really looked at him. "What are you wearing?" she looked down her nose, eyeing him with a mix of distaste and curiosity.

"A bow tie," he replied smugly, straightening it again without thinking. "Bow ties are cool."

"And tweed?" Donna added incredulously. "Is tweed cool too?"

"This isn't just any old tweed. It's infinity tweed – impervious to everything, including insults," he grinned.

Donna laughed. He knew she was finding herself strangely charmed by this young man who was both a stranger and yet strangely familiar too. It was all he could do not to sigh wistfully because he really, really wanted to tell her who he was, when it was still possible that he could. "What's your name?" she asked.

"My name," the Doctor repeated stupidly. Of course, his name – because Donna wouldn't go past a half way eligible man willing to stop and talk to her without asking for his name. Especially not one giving every appearance of being captivated by her. "Ah Smith … John Smith."

"You're kidding," Donna chortled. "John Smith … is that like a pseudonym or something?"

"John Smith happens to be a perfectly serviceable name," he said stiffly.

"Yeah, but Smith," Donna laughed some more. "Smith," she repeated. "It's so … common."

"What's your name then?" he shot back even though he already knew.

"Donna Noble," she declared.

Donna Noble has left the library. Donna Noble has been saved. He could hear her saying those words over and over and remember what he'd felt when he'd thought his friend was gone … and here she stood with no idea who he was. If only he could spare her the lows to come; find a way to let her keep the highs.

"Okay, you've got me," he said, shaking off the maudlin thoughts. "Your name is cool … cooler than John Smith."

"So, what are you doing in London then?" Donna asked. She smiled up at him – it was her 'I'm interested in you, what do I need to do to make you interested in me too?' face.

"Just passing through," he steadied himself and then continued. "Actually I'm looking for something for my ah … for my wife." It was the first time he'd referred to River by that title, and though it wasn't true yet, it would be so it wasn't like he was lying as such.

"Typical," Donna scowled, adding under her breath, "all the good ones are taken." She seemed disgruntled but then shook off the bad mood and patted his arm. "Do you need help then, finding this thing for your wife?"

"You're a wonderful girl Donna Noble," he said, putting his hand over hers. "Don't let anyone ever tell you differently."

"If I were so wonderful I'd be married already," Donna said sarcastically, laughing. "Still, you never know what's around the corner, right? Especially my corner, with any luck." She laughed at a joke she thought only she understood – because she'd been so positive she'd find the Doctor again. "So, do you need help?"

"Not at this time, thank you," the Doctor replied.

"Right then," Donna smiled. "I've got to go – I'm looking for a friend."

"You'll find him," the Doctor promised.

Donna frowned. "Hang on, how do you know it's a he? I never said."

"Lucky guess," he smiled. "It's been a pleasure to meet you Donna Noble. I wish you luck on your quest."

Before she could reply he gave her a small bow and then spun on his heel and strode off. When he got to the corner he glanced back to see her still watching him. Lifting a hand to acknowledge her he had to smile when she turned and hurried off – uncomfortable he knew with being caught watching him walk away.

"Donna, Donna," he murmured. "What am I to do with you?" That's when it came to him. He'd be at The Library anyway – he couldn't change things for Donna there and then but perhaps he could do something to bring Lee McAvoy to her in the future, if indeed it turned out the man she'd married had been real like she'd believed. She'd have no memory of the events in that pretend world but if the connection she'd shared with her pretend husband was real, then maybe they could recreate it – in the real world this time.

Retracing his steps he returned to the alleyway where the TARDIS remained hidden. Of course he bumped into it before he managed to find the door, unlocking it quickly and stepping inside.

"I can't believe you locked us in!" Amy was almost growling she was so angry with him. "What if we'd needed to get out, huh? There could have been a fire or something!"

"I was gone for a few minutes at most," the Doctor defended himself. "You could just as easily have never realised the door was locked."

"Where were you?" Amy demanded. "Where are we?"

"Nowhere in particular, and we're not staying," the Doctor pushed past her and all but leapt to the console, rapidly firing up the systems and requesting that the TARDIS take him anywhere that wasn't here. Once they'd taken off he turned back to Amy and Rory, folding his arms over his chest and waiting for one of them to speak.

"Right, this has gone on long enough!" Amy stood in front of him and folded her arms over her chest, mirroring him. "Either you tell us what's going on or we're out of here."

"Uh -," Rory began but was silenced with a slicing glance from his wife.

"Amelia Pond," the Doctor felt suddenly sad … and too old to lose another companion to circumstances he couldn't change. "Has it really come to this?"

"Doctor," Amy looked like she wanted to relent. Of course she was so stubborn she wouldn't do it unless he gave her something too.

"Well, this is a right old mess, isn't it," the Doctor tried to smile but his hearts weren't in it. "You'd really leave?" he sounded wistful and he couldn't look at her. Didn't want her to see how important her answer was to him.

"Of course not, you big doofus," Amy smacked his arm, glaring at him, exasperated. "But don't you ever lock us in here again, okay?"

"O-kay," the Doctor hurried forward and wrapped his arms around Amy. "Ah – permission?" he remembered to ask belatedly.

"I suppose, under the circumstances," Rory said with his usual reluctance.

The Doctor held Amy tightly, sighing. "I promise that one day I'll tell you everything," he muttered close to her ear. "Just please, trust me until then."

Amy nodded, hugging him back just as tightly.

"Okay, that's enough," Rory announced, stepping up to tap the Doctor on the shoulder. "Unhand my wife," he ordered, sounding very like the Roman centurion he'd never been and yet still remembered.

"Unhanding her now," the Doctor squeezed one last time before reluctantly letting go. Grinning, he pulled Rory in for a hug too, slapping his friend on the back fondly before breaking away. "Right, good. This is good," he smiled.

"Where are you taking us to now," Amy asked, everyone striving for their normal banter and camaraderie.

"I have absolutely no idea," the Doctor admitted. "Gave the TARDIS her head. Shall we see where she's taken us?"

"Geronimo," Amy teased.