A/N: I've totally nabbed StarrGazzer's idea for this.
Part 10
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Adam went through the footage Jerry had provided him with for the week. Three weeks in to filming his production company's latest television project, and it was all going quite nicely so far, but he had tried to hide his biasedness towards the Temple-Noble wedding. After that first hiccup, the weekend Jonathan had arrived, things had gone reasonably smoothly. In fact, he had instantly arranged with Jerry that he would view all future footage of Donna and her family before anybody else did.
He had fobbed Jerry off with some legalise, saying he was making sure nothing untoward was used about Jonathan, since he was a minor and hadn't been consulted before the project had begun; but that wasn't the whole truth. It had worried him deeply that Jerry had caught some faint dialogue about alien parentage muttered by Sylvia; so Adam had hastily edited it out, and with a brief sleight of hand, had removed the memory from Jerry's head. Nothing too serious, just a touch of his fingers as he helped open the stiff front door of his apartment in order to let Jerry out, and the offending incident was gone, dealt with forever; leaving Jerry none the wiser but with a tiny mental block that made him ignore all mention of alien attachment.
To make sure things went along on an even keel; Adam had even paid his brand new nephew a little visit while Donna was out at work. The visit was so that he could check that the lad was settling in okay on Earth, amongst other more important things.
Adam accepted Jonathan's ready invitation to not only cross over the threshold but to also take tea. He nodded to himself in satisfaction as the lad escorted him into the living room; his manners were coming along very nicely. It satisfied him immensely that he had a gift to reward Jonathan with, so when the boy arrived back from the kitchen with a loaded tea tray, he began his announcement.
"Before we sit and enjoy this little repast you have prepared, I have some pressing news," Adam began. "The weekly broadcast of our show will commence this week; tomorrow in fact. And a decision has been made to include a great deal of footage of you."
"Me?! Why me, Uncle Adam?" Jonathan modestly wondered as he politely handed out tea and offered slices of cake.
Adam tried not to stiffen. The title the boy banded about with apparent ease still caught him off guard on the odd occasion. "Ratings, my dear boy. They think you will appeal to a younger fan base then the stay at home mums and pensioners we are expecting as our core viewing audience. It means, however, that you might draw upon yourself undue attention whenever you venture out. In order to help financially, I have arranged for our technical department to give you a little job to occupy you for the time being. I have a letter for you with all the details, and for your safety I have brought you this..."
From deep in his pocket he drew out a small metallic case; within it was a mobile phone to contact him on, should the need arise. It was one of those fancy, expensive models that apparently most teens lusted after, according to the publicity department. Of course it was a mere plaything compared to the technology he was more used to.
"A job and a phone!" Jonathan cried with joy, knowing how coveted the particular phone being offered was amongst his new peer group. "I don't know how to thank you," he admitted as he gleefully accepted his precious gift.
"I do not require thanks, merely an acknowledgement that you will contact me in any moment of trouble," Adam had smoothly stated.
The nod of agreement was the reaction he wanted. To his chagrin, the boy had immediately tried to hug him. So unbecoming for a Time Lord! Adam felt it was his duty to point out the error of his ways, leaving the lad rather chastised.
"Jonathan Noble, do not attempt to hug me again," he had told him in no uncertain terms. That was right before he sat himself down in Donna's living room to take tea with the teenager. "As a Time Lord you have a duty and a family heritage to uphold."
"Sorry, Uncle Adam," Jonathan had instantly apologised as he too sat down, bowing his head whilst grasping his own cup. "I didn't think."
"Obviously not," Adam agreed. He took a sip as he considered his next words. "Living with humans must not be allowed to affect you so. As a Time Lord you must compose yourself in a certain manner. Now on to other matters. It has been brought to my attention that your grandmother has been making defamatory remarks in front of my cameraman, Jerry."
"You mean all the sly snipes at Dad? Yes, she does that, unfortunately," Jonathan nervously confirmed. Somehow his uncle's formality managed to do that to him, despite the generosity he had shown with the gift. "She's not liked him since he ruined Mum's first wedding. Well, he didn't exactly ruin it; he rescued Mum from being eaten alive by the Racnoss."
"Did this incident occur three Christmases ago?" Adam queried, and waited for the nod. "That would explain it," he commented to himself. "I may be hidden from the world in general but I did detect a sudden evacuation of Huon particles."
"That was it. I didn't know you had detection equipment. Will I be allowed to view your setup, Uncle Adam?" Jonathan asked eagerly. "I bet you've got all sorts of interesting technology."
"Yes," Adam succinctly noted, and put his cup down decisively. "It is best that I don't humour such inquisitiveness until after the wedding. We do not want to draw any unwanted attention."
A pair of very pained, soulful blue-brown eyes regarded him with dismay.
"So you're going to let the wedding go ahead?! But I thought you would stop it," Jonathan petulantly confessed. "All you care about is shutting me up and your bloody television programme!"
Holding his hand up to halt the understandably angry tirade, Adam responded, "Jonathan Noble, I cannot in all good faith stop your mother's wedding unless I am given good reason to. In other words, unless my brother comes back and claims his wife, my hands are tied."
"But that's stupid!" Jonathan protested. "You know that they are bonded. How can you sit there and tell me you are powerless?"
Taking in a calming breath, Adam leaned forward in his seat to explain the situation. "Your father almost completely broke that bond when he buried away your mother's memories of him. It will lie in tatters until he reforms it; IF he reforms it, which he might not choose to do. You have to face that fact."
Tears welled up in Jonathan's eyes as he sat shaking his head in denial. "He wouldn't do that. Mum means too much to him to just abandon her as if she's nothing at all. He'll come back for her! I know he will. I was there when he said he had chosen her to be with. She belongs with him!"
"Be that as it may, it doesn't necessarily mean that he belongs with Donna," Adam softly but reluctantly stated, deeply affected despite himself by the boy's distress. "I cannot force him to return. We've done all what we can by sending out an appeal to his TARDIS; the rest is up to him."
"What do I do if he doesn't come and stop the wedding, Uncle Adam? What do I do then?" Jonathan pleaded with him. "It would be so wrong!"
Adam stood and walked over to place a comforting hand on Jonathan's shoulder. "Then you welcome your new stepfather into the family and we do the best we can. There are several protocols I would have to carry out as your nearest family member, but they would only come into play once your stepfather is deceased."
"You're not going to kill Shaun, are you?!" Jonathan asked in very shocked tones. "I know I don't want Mum to marry him, but he's a really decent bloke."
"I see your father's memories are receding from your mind," Adam noted. "No, I am merely pointing out our longevity compared to these humans we live amongst. It is our reward and our punishment."
Jonathan tried to bravely smile as his compassionate side came out. "You must have been very lonely, Uncle Adam."
He nodded. "I was but that is over. I have you and your mother now for company."
Feeling a small sense of pride at his uncle's words, Jonathan wondered, "What does protocol say you will have to do when Shaun eventually dies? Not that I'm trying to kill him off or anything…"
"Then, my dear boy," Adam supplied, giving Jonathan's cheek a brief fond touch, "I must make sure you become a permanent member of our House by marrying your mother."
As solutions go, it was one of the better options if his father didn't show up. Until then, Jonathan would have to make do. "I would be honoured to become your stepson as well as your nephew, Uncle Adam," he assured him sincerely.
"Good. Then we have an understanding between us." Adam then took away his hand from Jonathan's shoulder. Such familiarity would not be permitted unless a stronger union occurred.
With that agreed, he finished his slice of cake and then headed back to his office.
~0~0~
Far across the city landscape, a being was in a desperate race to get to the source of energy it had detected. It had lost contact with its brethren when they had chased the same source of energy, but the winds of time had blown it in an entirely different direction, and it was all alone on this alien world. The reason why was not important; this was purely a matter of survival now. Sentimentality could wait for when it found the rest of the family. For now, sustenance was the all-encompassing goal in its life.
Spying a possible vessel, the creature moved forward; and pounced.
Who cared about the little insignificant human it had commandeered? There were plenty to replace it on this infested planet. Lifting up its newly acquired head, the celestial being took a long, deep sniff.
Ah yes! There it was, the source of the energy being sought; and not too far away. Soon all that delicious energy would be all his to do with as he wished. "Brother of Mine has returned," he triumphantly declared to the world.
~0~0~
Sylvia Noble was stood at her kitchen sink, peeling potatoes for their Saturday evening meal. "Isn't Shaun coming over tonight, Donna?" she called out.
Donna looked up from where she was sat chatting with her grandfather and son in front of the television, with Jonathan half sprawled across her again, softly dozing in his favourite position, as she fiddled with his hair in tender sweeps. "He shouldn't be long," she yelled back. "There was something about a possible job with his mate Terry that he wanted to check out first before coming over."
"There's no need to shout," Sylvia commented as she appeared at the door, and fondly peeped in at her new grandson. "When were you going to sort out some more clothes for our Jonathan to wear? He'll need them for when he starts that job on Monday. Only, Sally said there is a sale on down at Burton's that started today."
"We were going to have a look tomorrow morning," Donna admitted. "I won't know until the afternoon where I'm supposed to go this week for work. Nicky reckons it might be Hannington's again."
"That'd be nice," Sylvia agreed. "It would take you up nicely to the wedding."
Jonathan suddenly sat up straight and took in a deep sniff. His eyes went wide as he confessed in a low voice, "Something's really off, Mum. I think I need to phone up Adam."
"Don't worry, love," Donna said to comfort him, giving his trembling arm a loving pat. "I'll go and check. Won't be a minute." She then indicated towards Jerry to stay exactly where he was. Well, she didn't want him to see this if it was what she thought it was.
Seconds later, after stepping outside the door, Donna turned and gasped. Standing a few feet away from her was a sight that assaulted her olfactory senses far more than they would have done previously, but she recognised the taste at the back of her throat nevertheless.
"You have got to be kidding me!" she exclaimed.
~0~0~