Lyssa broke down in tears, no longer willing or able to hold them back now that Rose was gone. The Doctor turned her around in his arms, rubbing her back soothingly.

"It's all right," he murmured. "We'll both see her again someday, you probably sooner then me. She's not gone forever."

Lyssa shook her head, keeping her eyes tightly shut as she buried her face in his chest. "Yeah, but she has to wait several years, and so do you. And they won't be easy years, either."

Her eyes glazed over slightly as she thought about the traumatic Year That Never Was. That would be an awful jump, and one she was looking forward to even less than she had this one. Actually, she hadn't even really thought about this one at all. Or any of the episodes that she might have wanted to change. She sniffed and hugged the Doctor tighter, thinking about all the future episodes that ended with nothing but loss.

He held her closer and rested his head on hers, both of them closing their eyes in the silent TARDIS where quiet now meant loss rather than peace. In their pain, neither of them noticed gold dust swirling around in the TARDIS, slowly taking the shape of a red-headed woman wearing a wedding dress who looked around the room in growing shock and horror.

Finally the Doctor released her, pushing back slightly with a heavy sigh and wiping at some of the tear tracks on her cheeks with his thumb before swiping his own hands at his eyes and moving to the console, though he took her hand in his. He ran his fingers over some of the levers without any of the enthusiasm he normally had, not yet pushing any of them. Evidently hearing some noise, he looked up over by the door and sucked in a shocked breath, tightening his hand around hers. Frowning, she followed his gaze, raising her eyebrows at the sight of the bride.

"What?" he declared, aghast. The woman turned around at the noise, then yelped in surprise. "What?" the Doctor repeated again, even more confused.

The bride stared at him in disdain. "Who are you?"

The Doctor looked around, dumbfounded, his hand tightening on Lyssa's. "But..."

"Where am I?" the bride demanded.

"What?"

"What on earth is this place?" she yelled, growing irate.

The Doctor could only stare at her, lost. "What?" He stared down at a dial, his bewilderment only growing. "You can't do that, I wasn't... We're in flight! That is... that is physically impossible! How did you...?"

"Tell me where I am!" the bride commanded. "I demand you tell me where I am, right now!"

He just continued to stare at her disbelievingly. "Inside the TARDIS." Lyssa wiped her eyes with her free hand and felt a weak smile start to grow on her lips at the back and forth between the two who would later grow to be best friends.

"The what?"

"The TARDIS," the Doctor repeated.

"The what?" the bride demanded again, clearly wanting her own turn at a round of 'whats'.

"The TARDIS!" the Doctor emphasized, growing slightly impatient, turning back to the controls in an effort to figure out what had happened.

"The what?" She still wasn't getting it.

"It's called the TARDIS," the Doctor explained, not looking up at her.

"That's not even a proper word! You're just saying things," she told him angrily.

He spun around to face her. "How did you get in here?"

The poor bride was practically stiff, anger radiating from her body. "Well, obviously, when you kidnapped me. Who was it? Who's paying you? Is it Nerys? Oh my gosh, she's finally got me back. This has got Nerys written all over it."

The Doctor shook his head in bewilderment. "Who's Nerys?" Then, not even listening to her scornful rejoinder, he barreled on. "Hold on, wait a minute. What are you dressed all like that for?" Somewhat hidden behind the Doctor and the rotor, Lyssa smacked her face into her hand. Only the Doctor could be so oblivious about something as obvious as that.

"I'm going ten pin bowling," the woman said sarcastically. "What do you think, Dumbo?" she yelled. "I was halfway up the aisle!" She began to pace around ranting, while the Doctor fiddled with the controls, as if blaming them for his current predicament, although his hand tightened on Lyssa's when she tried to pull away so that he could have both hands free. She gave in and wound her fingers through his once more, not complaining at the continued sense of security.

"I've been waiting all my life for this. I was just seconds away! And then you... I dunno, you drugged me or something!" Donna was still going strong, ignoring the Doctor's protests that he was innocent. "We're having the police on you! Me and my husband, as soon as he is my husband, we're gonna sue the living daylights out of ya!"

Lyssa's hand flew up to her mouth to prevent a giggle from coming out in a moment of extremely bad timing. The extra moment drew Donna's attention to her, and seeing the way she looked - tear streaks running down her face, half hidden behind the Doctor, and her hand covering her mouth in a way that could have been covering up horror as well as laughter - Donna reacted.

"I'm not the only one you've kidnapped, am I?" she accused in horror, staring at Lyssa. The Doctor and Lyssa both looked up, Lyssa shaking her head in denial and confusion.

"He hasn't kidnapped me," Lyssa started.

"What? I haven't kidnapped anyone! Especially not -!" Donna cut him off, lunging forward to pull Lyssa away from the supposed kidnapper.

"I'm not letting you hurt anyone else!" she snarled, gripping Lyssa's shoulder and yanking her away from the Doctor, both of them too startled to react immediately. Unfortunately for her, she had grabbed the same shoulder that the Cybermen had, though her grip was not nearly as bruising, and had far better intentions. Already emotionally unstable, and barely two days after the event, the pain and firm hold on her shoulder bent on tearing her away from the Doctor only sent Lyssa back into the dark memories still so fresh in her mind.

Panic coursed through her as she twisted away, trying to flee from the Cybermen, her breaths growing erratic. She couldn't make out most of her surroundings, but she could see the sharp saws waiting for her, could smell the blood that seemed to have permanently etched itself into her brain, could hear the screams of the other victims - or maybe it was just her own screams. She didn't know anymore. She didn't know why they weren't coming after her, curled up in the corner with her hands over her ears to block out the screams. Surely she was easily visible.

But slowly, slowly, the screams diminished, replaced by the sound of a comforting voice uttering soothing, meaningless words, the horrific smell of blood replaced by a familiar scent her mind simply labeled as 'home', and the cold metal that threatened so much was replaced by a protective body that was wrapped around her, blocking out any hints of danger. Still keeping her hands planted over her ears, she reluctantly opened first one eye, then the other, afraid of what she might find.

She was in the TARDIS, safely nestled up against the wall, and she could see that she was sitting on someone's lap, curled up into their chest while they were running their hands over her back and arms soothingly. She could make out a hint of a white dress that rustled every so often in the corner of her vision but came no closer, but no Cybermen. No blood. No saws. No threat that was trying to take her life. The only sounds came from the TARDIS, which sounded worried, and from the calming whispers behind her.

She carefully removed her hands from her ears, half afraid as to what she might hear, her heart still pounding madly. One hand clenched into a fist while the other reached up to grip the suit lapel she now recognized as the Doctor's, swallowing hard.

"Doctor?" she asked uncertainly, her voice raw. His hands stopped moving briefly, before wrapping around her.

"Lyssa? Are you with me again?" He sounded incredibly worried, and that just made her feel worse. He didn't need to worry about her on top of everything else.

"I, I think so? What happened?" Her muscles were tight and sore, and she guessed that it was from being in the same position for so long.

"You had a panic attack. The woman grabbed you and pulled you away, and since it was so fresh in your memory, it made you think -"

"That I was back in the upgrading chamber," Lyssa finished weakly. "Yay. Is that going to happen every time someone touches me? Because that sucked."

The Doctor shook his head. "It shouldn't. But it's still fresh for you, and you were already in a state of emotional instability after saying goodbye, so I think it was a multitude of triggers all at once. It was just too much to handle while your brain's still trying to sort through everything that happened that day. You haven't really had any time aside from yesterday to sort through what happened."

"Excuse me." They both looked up to see the woman from earlier standing by the console, her voice much quieter than it had been, and her face worried. "But if your friend is all right, I'd really like to leave now. And... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..." she trailed off.

The Doctor stood, lifting Lyssa easily with an unhappy look on his face. "Didn't mean to traumatize her two days after she was nearly killed, you mean?" he snapped. "If you'd waited just a minute instead of acting like that, maybe we could have figured out what was going on by now. Instead, we're right back where we started, except that Lyssa's had a setback in her recovery, both mental and physical."

He growled under his breath. "Humans! Always acting before you think, doing more damage than good. What's that? A breach between universes? I think I'll poke it with a stick and make it bigger. Surely nothing bad could ever come from that," he mocked sarcastically, anger plain to see on his face.

"Oi! You just kidnapped me in the middle of my wedding," Donna pointed out angrily. "What was I supposed to think? That you're ruddy Santa Claus?"

"For the last time, I didn't kidnap you!" the Doctor snapped, before setting Lyssa gently on the seat and focusing entirely on her, all signs of anger gone from his face. "Now, how are you feeling? And please, don't try and cover anything up," he implored her. "You're still weak after what happened, and your time and nutrient levels are still too low to be comfortable. I need to know if there's something else that I need to do."

She held his hand tightly, seeking strength from his grip as she stared at the grating on the floor. "I feel tired. My muscles are sore, and my stomach hurts. But I think that's because I clenched them for so long. And I feel..." She sighed. "I feel kind of stupid for letting it get to me like that. I've never had a panic attack before."

"Hey." The Doctor cupped her chin with his hand and lifted it so she would look him in the eye, his brown eyes encouraging. "It's not your fault that it happened. You didn't want it to happen, you didn't mean for it to happen. Too many sensations overwhelmed the processing centers of your brain, which was already trying to work through what happened earlier. You're not stupid, and you're not weak because it happened. Many brave people have suffered from them, and you've pulled me from many of my own. Don't blame yourself for something that's out of your control, all right?"

She sighed but nodded in agreement, looking back down at the floor. He may have been right, but she still felt bad for losing it like that. And she felt really tired again, which was so nice to feel again so quickly after finally starting to feel more energized.

"Right. I hope you feel better, lady, but I need to get back to my wedding." The redhead had waited until she was sure Lyssa was feeling better before rushing to the doors, intending on escaping that way. The Doctor surged to his feet and ran after her, but it was too late.

"No, wait a minute. Wait a minute! Don't!" He reached the doors right as Donna threw open the doors, revealing a supernova outside, and all the bleakness of space beyond that. He stood beside her as her mouth fell open, while Lyssa watched from the seat. "You're in space. Outer space. This is my... space ship. It's called the TARDIS," he explained gently.

"How am I breathing?" the poor lady asked faintly.

"The TARDIS is protecting us."

She shook her head before turning to him. "And who are you?"

"I'm the Doctor. And you?"

"Donna."

He looked her up and down. "Human?"

She wrinkled her nose. "Yeah. Is that optional?"

He shrugged. "Well, it is for me."

She looked around the TARDIS, but didn't seem to have the energy to be any more surprised than she already had been. "You're an alien," she stated after a moment. When he nodded, she turned back towards Lyssa. "And you?"

"I'm Lyssa," Lyssa spoke up, hating how her voice came out so weak and unsteady. "And I'm human, I just travel with him, try and be a bit of damage control."

The Doctor snorted. "When you're not part of it. I know you've been to 10 Downing Street by this point. Damage control? You were on the alien spaceship that crashed into the Thames!"

"Not by choice," she pointed out, raising an eyebrow. She felt a little bit better at the return of their normal banter, and wondered if he had instigated it on purpose. The Doctor winked at her, but didn't otherwise respond.

After a moment, Donna shivered. "It's freezing in here." The Doctor seemed to be inspired by an idea suddenly, and slammed the doors shut before darting over to the console.

"But I don't understand it, and I understand everything! This... this can't happen! There is no way a human being can lock itself onto the TARDIS and transport itself inside. It must be..." He trailed off, frowning at something on the console before grabbing an opthalmoscope, something Lyssa vaguely recognized from her visits to both her normal doctor and her eye doctor back in her old world when she had to get her eyes examined. He held it up to Donna's eyes, all the while muttering to himself, while she just watched him silently in confusion.

"Impossible. Some sort of subatomic connection? Something in the temporal field? Maybe something pulling you into alignment with the Chronon shell. Maybe something macro-mining your DNA within the interior matrix. Maybe a genetic..." He and Lyssa both winced as Donna seemed to come back to herself and slapped him with a fierceness that would make Jackie proud. "What was that for?" he demanded indignantly.

"Get me to the church!" she yelled, fed up.

The Doctor scowled at her and dropped the instruments, going back to the controls. "Right! Fine. I don't want you here anyways. Where is this wedding?"

"Saint Mary's, Hayden Road, Chiswick, London, England, Earth, the Solar System," she informed him snippily, stalking around the console before stopping when her eyes fell on Rose's purple blouse, which had dropped out of her laundry bag and been placed on the railing before they arrived at Torchwood and the events of Doomsday started.

She snatched it up, then turned to Lyssa. "Is this yours?" she demanded, waving it at Lyssa, who shrunk back, startled at the unexpected change in conversation, before shaking her head in denial and looking away, feeling the hurt start afresh at the memories that came with the sight of Rose's shirt.

Donna's face grew hard as she whipped around to face the Doctor. "I knew it. Acting all innocent." She strode over to him and waved it around in his face. "Lyssa winced when she saw this shirt, but it's not hers. How many other women are on board? How many other people have you abducted? I'm can't be the first, even if Lyssa travels with you willingly." The accusations didn't make sense, but overwhelmed by her current situation, Donna went with the first possible answer presented to her.

The Doctor looked up, at first confused about the nonsensical babble coming from the woman, but then he caught sight of Rose's shirt, and his face fell. "That's my friend's," he explained quietly. "Mine and Lyssa's."

"Where is she then?" Donna asked sarcastically. "Popped out for a space walk?"

"She's gone."

"Gone? Gone where?" Donna repeated relentlessly, either not seeing or not heeding the Doctor's wince. After a moment, he answered reluctantly, his eyes distant.

"We lost her."

"Well, you can hurry up and lose me," Donna snapped. She frowned, watching him, then suddenly seemed to realize the sensitivity of the topic. "How do you mean, 'lost'?" she said softly.

The Doctor looked up at her, his face hard, then advanced towards her. Donna backed up fearfully, but all he did was take the blouse back out of her hands, before turning back to the controls, tucking the blouse underneath the console.

"Right. Chiswick!" He flipped the lever, starting the rotor. Donna gasped as the TARDIS began to move about, a bit rougher than usual, and gripped onto the console for dear life. Lyssa held onto the seat, glad for the chance to rest her legs, and hoping she'd be feeling up to moving around. She remembered this episode, and was currently trying to see if there was anything she could change. Maybe save Donna's husband-to-be, and possibly the Racnoss? Or at least stop them before anyone else had to die...

The TARDIS landed with a groan, sounding unhappy. The Doctor followed Donna outside, while Lyssa rolled her eyes and got to her feet with a sigh, feeling weaker than she had all day.

"I said, 'Saint Mary's,'" Donna said snarkily, her voice echoing back into the TARDIS. "What sort of Martian are you? Where is this?"

"Something's wrong with her," the Doctor's voice retorted. "It's almost like she's... recalibrating!" He rushed back into the TARDIS suddenly, scanning the console. "She's digesting," he said in a tone of wonder, placing his hand on the rotor. "What have you eaten? What's wrong?" He frowned, then called to Donna, who was still outside the TARDIS "Donna? You've really gotta think. Is there anything that might've caused this? Anything you might've done? Any sort of alien contacts?"

He frowned. "I can't let you go wandering off in case you're dangerous. I mean, have you... have you seen lights in the sky? Or... did you touch something? Something... something different? Something strange? Something made out of a sort of metal or... who're you getting married to?" Donna poked her head back in the TARDIS, the look of shock on her face making Lyssa giggle as she stumbled backwards, her hand over her mouth, while the Doctor continued, oblivious. "Are you sure he's human? He's not a bit overweight with a zip around his forehead, is he?"

Donna shook her head, the strangeness of the last hour too much for her as she turned and ran out of the TARDIS. The Doctor muttered something under his breath before turning to follow her, telling Lyssa to stay there while he chased after her.

Lyssa frowned, but reluctantly stayed put. She honestly wasn't sure how she'd react around all the people that were sure to be milling around out there on Christmas Day, not to mention the fact that she didn't think she'd be able to run after them in her current state. And the Doctor was probably still stuck in his overprotective phase after she'd almost died the last time she left the TARDIS.

She couldn't find it in herself to get too annoyed, as she'd been an emotional wreck the last two days, and was probably in need of an overprotective friend who refused to leave her alone. If it continued on for several weeks, and she was better by then, then she'd probably say something. But for now, she actually felt better when she was around him, so she wouldn't complain.

She could still worry, though, and she felt some of her strength return in the form of nervous energy that she tried to work off by pacing around the console, one hand going up to squeeze her necklace every now and again. She jumped and let out a startled shriek when the Doctor came running back in, the door slamming shut behind him.

"Sorry! No time to explain. Donna's in trouble, robot Santas," he blurted out, flipping levers and spinning dials before pounding on the console with a hammer, trying to get the rotor started before fiddling with the monitor, tracing Donna's location on it. Lyssa stumbled and grabbed onto the console for balance as they took off, only to jerk away and fall to her knees when sparks erupted from the console.

The Doctor spared her a worried glance as she made her way back to her feet using the railing as he pounded the console with the hammer again. "Behave!" he scolded the TARDIS. "Lyssa, pull that lever when I tell you to," he ordered her, pointing out a small red lever on the console. "And then immediately spin that dial two full turns to the left."

She nodded, making her way shakily over to the console and placing her hand next to the aforementioned controls. The Doctor darted over to the doors and threw them open, revealing their current location hovering over a taxi speeding along a highway, with a robotic Santa in the front seat, and Donna trapped in the back, pounding on the window and calling for help.

"Open the door!" he yelled. He repeated it a moment later, then pulled out his sonic and flashed it at the window, allowing her to open it while Lyssa watched anxiously.

"Santa's a robot!" Donna shouted immediately, sounding almost hysterical.

"Donna, open the door!" the Doctor repeated urgently. "You've got to jump!"

"I'm not going to flipping jump!" Donna said shrilly. "I'm going to my wedding!"

The robot seemed to have been following the conversation, and sped up, leaving the TARDIS behind. The Doctor, holding onto the door frames for balance, called back to Lyssa, "Lyssa! spin the dial two clicks to the right! We've got to stay behind them!" Lyssa nodded, then spun the dial two clicks, wincing as a bump below them seemed to indicate them scraping the roof of someone's poor car. The Doctor stumbled, but regained his balance before sonicing the robot.

"You've got to jump!"

"I'm not jumping on a motorway!" Donna shouted stubbornly, looking aghast at the very idea.

"Whatever that thing is, it needs you. And whatever it needs you for, it's not good. Now, come on!" the Doctor yelled in annoyance.

"I'm in my wedding dress!" Donna yelled right back.

"Yes, and you look lovely. Now, come on!" the Doctor shouted in exasperation.

Breathing heavily, Donna opened the door and prepared to jump, only to draw back at the last minute, too frightened to do it. "I can't do it," she said tearfully.

"Trust me," the Doctor pleaded with her.

"Is that what you said to her? Your friend? The one you lost? Did she trust you?" Donna said, half accusing, half pleading.

"Yes, she did. And she's not dead, she is so alive. Now, jump!" the Doctor urged. Donna gathered herself, then jumped with a scream, landing in the Doctor's waiting arms and knocking him onto the floor. "Lyssa, what I told you earlier. Do it now!" the Doctor shouted, rolling Donna off of him, and springing back to his feet and shutting the door as Lyssa flipped the lever immediately, then spun the dial to the left twice.

She fell backwards with a shriek, throwing her arms up to protect her face as sparks erupted once more from the console, and a small fire erupted from the other side of the console, smoke billowing out and filling the room. She rolled over onto her knees, coughing as the Doctor struggled to get the TARDIS under control before finally landing them with a jolt.

"Everyone out!" the Doctor shouted, heaving Lyssa to her feet and helping her out, pushing open the doors, followed by Donna, who was waving her hands in front of her face.

Once he was certain she was safely outside, the Doctor hurried back inside, trying to deal with the havoc. Lyssa sucked in a greedy breath of the fresh air, only to start coughing again when it triggered her sensitive lungs, still trying to get rid of all the smoke she'd inadvertently breathed in.

When she'd regained control of her breathing again, tears running down her face as she swiped at them, the Doctor had just shut the TARDIS doors after calling for the extractor fans to turn on. Waving a hand in front of his own face, he rejoined Lyssa, helping her sit down, evidently on the roof of a high rise building. He frowned at the sight of her red eyes before sighing and pulling out his sonic screwdriver, waving it over her.

"Just couldn't stay out of trouble for one day, could you?" he muttered, looking worried at the results. "All this stress and aggravation has been setting you back. Hang on... I think I have another one of those pills in here," he muttered, rummaging around in his pocket before pulling out a small pill bottle that held the little capsules she'd been taking. "It's a bit earlier than I'd like, but I think you're going to be needing the extra doses if you want to stay healthy. Sorry I don't have any water, though."

She shook her head. "S'all right. I've taken them dry before, I just don't like to." She took the offered pill, then downed it, grimacing at the feel of it before sticking out her tongue. "Ugh. Hope I have water next time. It tastes worse without it."

The Doctor scanned her one more time, still not looking overly pleased with the results, but helped her stand back up once it seemed she was all right, slinging an arm over her shoulder before changing the subject. "The funny thing is, for a spaceship, she doesn't really do that much flying. We'd better give her a couple of hours. You all right?" he asked Donna.

She shrugged apathetically. "Doesn't matter."

"Did we miss it?"

"Yeah..." she sighed, Lyssa looking at her sympathetically.

"Well, you can book another date," the Doctor tried.

"Course we can," Donna agreed, sounding falsely cheerful.

"Still got the honeymoon," the Doctor tried again.

Donna frowned. "It's just a holiday, now." She shook her head when the Doctor tried to apologize. "It's not your fault."

"Oh. Well, that's a change," the Doctor muttered sarcastically, pretending not to feel Lyssa's elbow.

"Wish we had a time machine. Then we could go back and get it right," Donna sighed.

The Doctor opened his mouth and closed it again, before saying innocently, "Yeah... yeah. But, even if it did, I couldn't go back on someone's personal timeline. Apparently"

"Eh, just let me know if you need one," Lyssa offered nonchalantly. "I know a guy."

A/N: Donna's here! She was always one of my favorite companions, possibly because of a) her snark - which I have in abundance, and b) her awesome friendship with the Doctor (friendship goals, right there).

And things will probably be going downhill for a while before they go uphill again. Doomsday is still far too fresh for Lyssa to not have to deal with some repercussions from it emotionally, and she's not the only one... But things do get better, too... (except for the ending to this story... Everyone's going to hate it, lol, I already have it all planned out...)

Special thanks to everyone who's favorited and followed, and shout-out to Fakira, E-man-dy-S, Ruby Slippers, Guest, and V for reviewing!

Fakira: Lol, same. For some reason, I keep getting an American Southern and a British accent mixed up, and I'll switch mid-sentence. :/ Guess I'll have to stick to my regular American one. And hahaha, yep. We'll be seeing more of the Gallifrey room. (And Lyssa/Doctor, of course). I've always hated Doomsday. :P I cried at the end of it . And I made my hint this chapter a bit more clear, should narrow down some of the possiblities quite a bit. Thanks for your awesome review, and I hope you enjoyed this new chapter! :D

E-man-dy-S: Thanks! I was trying to keep it from being too much, but at the same time, not dismissing it too soon. And the Doctor can be very sweet where Lyssa is concerned... *shifty eyes* Hopefully the new hint helps clear things up a bit. If no one can figure it out soon, I'll probably point it out. Thanks for reviewing , and I hope you liked it!

Ruby Slippers: Thanks! Hope you like this one as well. :D

Guest: Here's some Donna! The Doctor isn't too thrilled about her at first, especially seeing as how she sent Lyssa into a panic attack, but he's slowly warming up to her. Lyssa, well... she likes Donna. Thanks for reviewing, and I hope you enjoyed! :D

V: Thanks! Hahaha, I love hearing from you! And that goal just makes me happy, lol. You always leave such hilarious reviews, and make me want to keep writing more! (I love getting a notification that I've got a new review on one of my stories, and they're always highly motivating). Thanks for reviewing, and I hope you enjoyed! :D

Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed! :)

General Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who. If I did, there would have been no Doomsday. :/