Chapter 10

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Donna yawned as she stumbled out of her bedroom door, glancing down the hallway towards where she'd left River the night before. The TARDIS wasn't taking any chances with their mysterious guest—the door had melted away after the archeologist had stepped through. The wall was still blank, so either River was still asleep, or the TARDIS didn't think she should be out and about yet. If Donna was caffeinated, she might have been worried about their guest—as it was, she smacked her lips and headed to the kitchen.

The table was covered in dishes, and Donna grimaced as she looked at the assortment. Chips, peanut curry, what looked like purple fern fronds and a pile of (apparently rejected) lime jelly that had been stacked into a wobbly representation of the Eiffel Tower—it looked like Rose's cravings had kicked in, and the Doctor had been more than willing to help out.

"You'd think after the first few centuries he'd have learned how to pick up after himself, but no." Rolling her eyes, Donna grabbed a cup of tea from the kettle on the stove and headed off the console room. If those two idiots weren't going to clean up their own mess, she sure as hell wasn't going to do it for them. What did the Doctor think she was, a maid?

Quiet voices drifted out into the hallway as she walked towards the console room, and Donna smiled as she sipped her tea. It seemed like the two morons were in better spirits today—after a scare like yesterday's, she'd been worried. Yet more reasons to be grateful Rose was here, really. If the Doctor had witnessed something like this a year ago, she'd have had to deal with his moping for months.

A cheerful male voice interrupted her thoughts. "Andromeda?"

Rose spoke, her voice contentedly amused. "Didn't she end up chained to a rock?"

"Well, yes, but it's still a lovely name. Cassiopeia, then?"

"Wasn't she the one who caused all the trouble in first place? And how come all your suggestions are old Greek names?"

Donna could practically hear his pout. "Well, I thought you'd prefer human names. Besides, since when were you an expert on classical mythology?"

Rose's voice was soft, and Donna leaned forward to hear better. "Well, Pete had this gorgeous set of books on it in his library—he told me parallel Mum had given 'em to him when Vitex first took off, told him he needed something to class up his office. He'd never read them, and, well... it seemed a shame to leave them unused."

Donna paused in the doorway. The Doctor was peering out of the grating under the console, some odd goggle contraption that made his eyes enormous strapped to his forehead. His grin was oddly smug for someone who looked like the mutant love child of a fly and a puppy. "Rose Tyler, did you feel bad for a set of books?"

Rose blushed fiercely, slouching lower on the jump seat. "Don't be absurd. Of course I didn't."

"You did!"

"Shut up."

Donna snorted loudly. "Good lord, you two are nauseating." She raised an eyebrow at Rose. "Aren't you supposed to be the one with the morning sickness?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Yes, good morning, Donna. I see the caffeine hasn't kicked in yet."

She ignored him, strolling over to flop onto the jump seat next to Rose. A moment later, she grimaced and sat up, staring back at it. "Is it just me, or is this seat shaped completely differently?"

"Yeah, that's me, sorry." Donna blinked at her, and Rose gestured at her stomach. "She's insisting on spoiling me."

"Oh, lord. You're just as nutters as that one."

The Doctor popped his head up again, looking like a mad scientist gopher. "Oi! What's that supposed to mean?"

"What do you think, Spaceman?"

Rose was watching Donna, and she cleared her throat. "You've been living here what, a year now? Surely you've noticed her moving things around on you?"

Donna pursed her lips. "I don't particularly like the idea of living in a giant She, thank you very much."

The Doctor rolled his eyes, something that looked far less innocuous when magnified by his goggles. "Blimey, it's scuba diving all over again."

She scowled, stung. "Oi!"

Rose snorted. "You weren't kidding when you said she's like your sister." They both turned to glare at her and she leaned back and raised her hands. "Blimey, forget I said anything. Doctor, what's the progress on the temporal analysis?"

He blinked before beaming at her, and Donna rolled her eyes. He ignored her. "So far it seems River and her mysterious doctor haven't done any lasting damage to the timelines—how they managed that, I'm not quite sure."

Rose frowned thoughtfully. "Could it be something to do with those Flesh things you mentioned?"

Donna shuddered. "I do not want to know."

The Doctor glanced at her impatiently, huffing. "You humans have such filthy minds."

She jabbed a finger at him, sitting up straighter. "Oh no, you don't. I've walked in on you two too many times for you to get to act like a prude."

Rose snickered. "She's got a point, Doctor. I didn't end up this way by accident."

He pushed his goggles up and slipped his glasses on, staring intently at the monitor. "I think it is because of the Flesh, yes." Donna and Rose exchanged a smug glance, and he pursed his lips. "I'm surprised I hadn't heard of them before, really, but they didn't show up in the archives until a few hours ago."

Rose shrugged. "Time loops are tricky. The TARDIS had to be sure you would know what you needed when you needed."

The Doctor threw her a heated glance, and Donna groaned. "Oi, wait until the shipmate's not around, will you?"

He flushed and cleared his throat, his hand raising towards his hair before he remembered the goggles. "Yes, well. The Flesh have been around since the 22nd century, apparently."

Donna rolled her eyes. "For ages, then."

He pursed his lips. "From a certain perspective, yes."

Rose sighed, pushing herself forward to interrupt their staring match. "So what are they?"

"Hmm? Oh, yes. They're flesh avatars, basically. A temporary body just waiting for a consciousness."

Donna's eyes narrowed. "What does that have to do with River?"

"River might not have died in the Library. In fact, I think I might have trapped her there." He paused and watched her carefully. "We have to go back."

She swallowed. "Well, I should probably go check on River, make sure she hasn't started an expedition into the gallery or anything."

The Doctor's eyebrows pulled together, and he cleared his throat carefully. "Donna—"

"I'm all right. Besides, it's not like I'm going to go rescue the damsel in my jim-jams, is it?" She smiled, her eyes pained, and fled the room.

He sighed and closed his eyes, leaning against the console. Rose frowned.

"Doctor, what happened there?"

He opened his eyes, his shoulders still slumped. "River wasn't the only person who was hurt that day. The Library's supercomputer got Donna, as well." He shivered. "I thought she was dead for a bit there, but she wasn't. The computer plugged her into a dream world and gave her the normal life she doesn't think she can have—the husband, the kids, the picket fence and all that jazz—and then took it away from her. I don't think she's ever forgotten that."

Rose's hand covered her mouth, her eyes wide. "And we've been prancing around on our honeymoon, with a baby on the way... oh, Donna. No wonder she's been a bit on edge lately."

The Doctor smiled weakly. "When is she not on edge?" He tugged on his earlobe at Rose's look and sighed. "No, I know."

"Why didn't she say anything?"

"You know Donna. She doesn't like to admit she's got any problems."

Rose raised an eyebrow at him. "So not like anyone we know, then."

A pair of female voices drifted in from the hallway, and the Doctor focused on the console, twisting dials and flipping switches without looking at her. "Sounds like we've got company." Donna and River entered the room, and he grinned manically at them. "Ladies! You might want to hold onto something—we're off to the Library, and it looks like it's going to be a bumpy ride."

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