A/N- Sorry for the long wait! I've really been assembling this chapter in my mind for a while and it just kinda got away from me…but that's another tale…without further ado, chapter 14 of LMLD, Children by Any Other Name.

-Phillipsville, New Jersey, USA, Earth, May 30th 2028-

Dawn broke over a small and rather unremarkable town in New Jersey. At 5:30 hundreds of alarm clocks shrilly woke their owners from their individual pleasant slumbers as the minority bounded out of bed relatively happy while the majority groaned, threw pillows over their heads and slapped the snooze button (perhaps a bit too sharply) for ten more minutes rest. Outside, the first birds could be heard singing in the trees, squirrels slowly began to hunt out their mornings' sustenance and dew that would disappear all too soon slid down a virgin leaf lit only by the pale and watery sunlight. Inside the tastefully decorated kitchen of a modestly sized brick and wooden structure with an immaculately manicured lawn sat three people, all lost in their own thoughts.

The youngest of the three, Evelyn, stared forlornly down into her steaming ceramic cup of tea and idly turned it in slow circles while an incredible despondence radiated from her every movement. She looked up disinterestedly at her father, who stood at the light wooden countertop, leaning most of his weight against it while he stared intently into the dregs of his tea. Even having known him for only a few hours, she knew better than to interrupt him while he was so deep in thought. Slowly, almost heavily, she turned her head to look across the oval oaken table at her gran. Sylvia was uncharacteristically quiet, her lips clasped in a firm white line, her face and body tense with pent up emotion. Evelyn wondered if she should take away the tea cup before Sylvia hurled it at the Doctor.

On the one hand, it would make a terrible mess.

On the other, he thoroughly deserved it.

She supposed that she was being unfair. After all, she'd been incredibly protective of her mother since her parents had divorced…and no wonder considering the way that insidious bastard had treated. He'd always worked late, but to her knowledge his job description had never included banging the interns out of their bloody minds. It was never that Daniel didn't love her anymore that really fazed her mother, Evelyn had surmised over the years…no, by the age of twelve she had gathered that her mother had never really cared for him all that much…it was the fact that he didn't respect her enough to divorce her properly before chasing after some considerably younger bimbo. She was only eleven at the time, but Evelyn had been her mother's lifeline during those first few tumultuous weeks of the quick and messy divorce. Evelyn heaved a mental sigh; thankfully, Daniel had decided to pursue greener pastures back in London. A decision which left Donna with the house and full custody of Evelyn, along with a pair of hefty alimony and child support checks to boot.

She had, to put it crudely, cleaned up.

As per the custody agreement, Evelyn had only to spend a blessedly brief if painfully awkward two weeks with Daniel in the middle of August, which this year she was thankfully allowed to forego if favor of packing for college. Although now even that was completely up in the air…

Her hands tightened around the tea cup as the pace of her breathing quickened. Her mind shot down the tunnel that was the only thing she could see and she felt herself going places that she never went if she could help it. Her eyes widened and she chocked down a high pitched scream in her throat…she felt it…the net was starting to unravel…the fall was imminent and the cold, hard ground was rising up to meet her…

Meanwhile, Sylvia's glared at the Doctor and she hurled her teacup at him with surprising speed for a woman of her age. The Doctor managed to duck just in time as the cup smashed against the wall in the spot where his head had been a moment prior, the loud smash bringing Evelyn out of her vision with a short gasp and a brief shiver as she tucked her arms around her, the room suddenly too cold for her liking. Her grans' shrill voice as she went in for a second round of chewing out her father was tuned out by years of practice. Her eyes wearily swept the kitchen as she mentally dug through the cabinets for the dustpan. She slowly eased herself up from the table and walked over to the cabinet nearest the door. She opened the door and rummaged past a coat and a handbag to reach the dustpan as she closed the door with her sneakered foot, perhaps making it slam a bit harder than really was necessary.

Evelyn walked over to the counter and wedged herself behind her father and swept the shattered ceramic into the pan and dumped it into the garbage bin unceremoniously. They both stared at her dumbly, like they had quite forgotten she was there…in fact, she wouldn't be shocked if they had indeed forgotten that she was there.

She placed the dustpan on the countertop with practiced delicacy, just as slowly placed one hand on her hip and drummed her red fingernails against the beaten copper coolly while she looked back at her relatives with an impassive expression.

"Yes?" she asked in the overly calm, purposefully unnerving voice that she had learned first hand from her mother. 'The Voice', as she thought of it in her head, had the desired effect; her gran was now biting her lip and her eyes darted about the kitchen whilst her father was looking at his converse with a thoroughly embarrassed expression.

She didn't wait for a verbal response. Her impassive look intensified into a glare, "No better than children, the pair of you, I swear," she continued, with a hint of exasperation seeping into her voice, she continued with her stern look, while inwardly she lamented the fact that she didn't wear glasses…what she had lovingly christened 'The Look' would have been so much more terrifying over a pair of glasses…

Evelyn heaved an inward sigh, she supposed that it was time to wrap this up, although she did reap a sick glee from the discomfort the she was currently causing, "Now," she said in a tone that was vastly more authoritative than she felt, "We are going upstairs- And I don't want any whining about it!" she barked as her father opened his mouth lamely.

"But-" he tried fruitlessly as she glared him down.

"Well what was your plan, Daddy?" she cut in sarcastically, "Just avoid each other for an eternity?" as she said this, another thought drifted into her head, an awful thought…but she shut it out quickly…no, it wouldn't happen, it couldn't, she wouldn't let it…one father had already left her, she wouldn't let another.

She proceeded to walk purposefully towards the stairs and turned to make sure her father and grandmother were following her. As she went towards her mothers' bedroom she sent up a little prayer to any god that was listening, 'Please,' she prayed, 'I know that it sounds childish, but please let me have a whole family…let them at least get along…please, please…'

Little did Evelyn know that her father had a little mantra that had been playing in his head all night, ever since he met Evelyn, ever since she was conceived, hell, ever since Gallifrey went up in flames, it had changed over the centuries, but tonight he thought, over and over again, 'Let her love me, let her love me, I've already lost so much, please just let me have this, Rassilon, just let me have this…'

.....

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GM