The End is Merely the Beginning

Chapter 26

He felt like a fool! A miserable cranky old fool! He had walked away from the woman he loved, his wife, to sulk. How much of a spoiled child is that? He wondered, rhetorically for anyone listening he quickly added in his head. He couldn't face the truth he couldn't bring himself to tell her that he felt a dark and heavy storm approaching their shiny new lives together. He wasn't talking about the weather either. How could he tell her that he had to leave after he had promised that he never would? He had been a bear for the past week and he knew it but he couldn't help himself.

He was certain her reaction would not be pleasant, to say the least, when he told her that she had to stay behind. He sensed a terrible danger ahead and wanted her as far away from it as possible. She hated being left out the last time they had been under threat of such a danger. Even though he wasn't sure what it entailed he was sure that the very fiber of the universe itself was in danger of being unraveled. He did not have time to consider what course of action he should take as the ship's horn blew out in the harbor announcing the arrival of their first guests. He tried to put on a happy face for the others; he didn't want to frighten them hoping that he could avert yet another disaster without endangering the lives of his loved ones. Fiona was right he had become attached to them and was glad to see them again. He headed down to the firth to wait for their arrival. Sarah Jane, her son Luke, and his two friends Clyde and Maria were the first to arrive. By the looks of the luggage they had come prepared to stay, for a while at least.

"Hello Doctor!" Sarah Jane called from the newly built dock down below. He couldn't help but smile and wave back even though he had to quash the sickening feeling he had in the pit of his stomach; the ever present reminder that there was trouble brewing on the back burner. He heard the sound of carriage wheels rattling over the uneven ground behind him. Wisened from years of making the same mistake, he waited at the top of the hill for his guests to join him instead of going down to greet them. He didn't want to be wrangled into hefting luggage up that incline, this time he'd leave that up to the still brave youths she had brought with her. Connor, the MacDougal's second oldest, brought the ox cart to a halt along side him just as the youngsters crested the hill.

"Bring enough stuff?" The Doctor asked curiously as Luke and his friends dropped their luggage on the ground beside the wagon. Luke, exceptional boy that he was, wasn't as affected by the uphill climb as his friends were. Clyde and Maria both on the other hand were out of breath.

"Its summer vacation, we may as well make the most of it while we can." Maria explained not the least phased by the Doctor's snarky comment.

"I told them we'd only be staying a week but they had to bring a month's worth anyway." Sarah Jane panted as she at last joined the others. She was only carrying a small black bag but it matched one her son had carried along with the lad's own blue duffle.

"I can't go without having something to do." Luke's friend Clyde piped up. The Doctor noted his two very large duffels compared to the girl's smaller suitcases. "Sarah Jane did say you had electricity. You do don't you?" Clyde asked almost desperately.

"You've come to Paradise Island where there are lots of things to do and you want to sit around the house all day and play video games?" He wanted to know.

"Yes, Clyde we have electricity. I even put the four of you in a cottage that has a television and all the modern amenities." Fiona said coming up from behind the Doctor. The sound of her voice sent a pang of guilt though his chest like a knife as he watched his wife hug Sarah Jane and Maria before shaking hands with the boys.

"It was good of you to invite us." Sarah Jane told Fiona.

"Nonsense, unlike the Doctor I like to treasure what time I can with friends." Fiona replied with a gracious smile as she took Sarah's bag and handed it up to Connor who waited in the back of the wagon to load it with their belongings. "Luke, Maria, and especially Clyde don't think I'm going to let you get away with playing your games the whole time while you're here. I have a week's worth of activities planned for everyone. This is my first time playing hostess and I intend to make the most of it. I'm not the Duchess of Gallifair O'Way for nothing you know. You're to come up to the house for breakfast at ten every morning and we dine at six every evening for supper. I have a whole slew (a large number – US definition) of things to do after breakfast, you'll have some free time after lunch to do as you like. We have a swimming pool at the house or you can take a dip with the dolphins though I think the water's still a bit cold to stay in there long. The only thing I ask is that you have the Doctor or I accompany you inside the dome, but that is also a part of the tour. I'm sure you're all tired after the voyage over so you are all free to do as you like until the call for supper. Shall we say six?" Fiona talked non-stop and by the looks on the other's faces they only understood about half of what was said. "I had Mrs. MacDougal set out a light lunch for you at the cottage if you get hungry before then. How was the trip over? I'm dying to know how the crew treated you." She added. Sarah Jane laughed and put Fiona's fears to rest with the assurances of a safe trip and excitement for the next week's activities. Everyone piled into the back of the wagon though Sarah Jane opted to walk after seeing that there were no springs on the wagon whatsoever. Fiona was so busy that she didn't notice Connor waiting for orders.

"I assume you know which one they'll be staying at, we'll meet you at the cottage Connor." He dismissed the lad who nodded and nudged the two ox they had salvaged from the wreckage to move on. The Doctor followed after Fiona and Sarah Jane as they made their own way towards the small makeshift village. Since they weren't talking of anything important he let his mind wander until something Sarah mentioned caught his attention. "I'm sorry what was that you said?" He asked curiously.

"I was saying that John and Claire Benton have stayed in touch or rather gotten back in touch in our time." Sarah Jane repeated.

"No the part before that, something about a space ship." He specified.

"Oh, about four months ago a spaceship came close to earth but it never landed. Just by coincidence a new diet pill came on the market but the funny thing is I had Mr. Smith do some research about the company. Adipose, the name of the company as well as the drug they sell, didn't go through all the normal channels. They just started selling the diet pill and people are buying it." Sarah explained.

"If people are buying it then it must be working." Fiona commented.

"That's just it, it's working very well. It works perfectly, a little too perfectly if you ask me." Sarah added.

"Sounds like something worth investigating." The Doctor suggested.

"I thought it might be something you'd be interested in doing Doctor." Sarah told him.

"Not me! I'm a married man now. I'm settled." He contradicted himself trying to sound more convincing than he felt. In truth such a conundrum was right up his street but he had made a promise that he intended to keep no matter what.

"What do you think Fiona?" Sarah Jane grinned at his wife.

"He certainly doesn't sound all that convincing to me. I'm not buying it are you?" His own wife turned on him.

"I'm definitely not convinced." Sarah contributed to the conspiracy against him.

"What is this? First you and Rose gang up on me and now you're joining forces with my wife. I'm telling you…." He began with the serious intention of putting them in their place but the two women laughed all the harder.

"We're only teasing you, Doctor." Fiona put him out of his misery before turning to Sarah. "The Doctor and I will discuss whether we look into Adipose or not." Fiona told his former companion. He opened his mouth to put in his opinion but she put a finger on his lips. "I said we'll talk about it before we make a final decision." She stressed the word talk.

"Well we're close enough to the cottage now I'll catch up with the kids and let you two discuss it. I have to make sure they haven't broken anything already. I never thought I'd be a parent let alone be responsible for three of them." Sarah told them.

"You can at least be grateful you can give the other two back at the end of the week." Fiona offered helpfully.

"I wish it were that easy they seem to spend more time at my house than their own." Sarah laughed and joined the rest of the group.

"Connor when you're done here please return to the firth to wait for our other guests." Fiona called up to the lad still in the wagon. He gave Fiona an understanding nod before turning back to the others.

"Fiona I…" He began.

"Shut up Jonathan, I said we'd talk about it later." She shot back heading for the barn where she had left the Tardis.

"Where's Jack?" he wondered making light conversation.

"He went back to pick up the things I asked for and don't worry he promised to come back on the ferry with the others. Alistair and Doris should be here soon and I wanted to get Pandora and the kittens out of the way so we can hitch up the horses to the coach. The ox cart is okay for the kids and the luggage but the Brigadier and his wife are getting on in years and I don't want to send Claire into premature labor because there are no struts on the farm cart. I have the schematics to the gliders we had on Gallifrey and before you object we can dumb it down a bit. We'll have to ramp up the engines' hydrogen converters to account for the low density in the Earth's atmosphere. Then we'll have to change the solar panels to UV light as well but we can work on that when you get back." She explained.

"Fiona I said I'm not…" he began.

"This isn't up for discussion, Doctor." She persisted. "You've been a pain in my but for over a week. You need a fix of adrenalin to clear up this foul mood of yours and this Adipose thing is right up your alley. I'm not taking no for an answer. I can't go with you of course since someone has to stay here with our guests. Don't you dare come home until you've worked this addiction out of your system either." She commanded. He was about to set her straight with promises of never leaving her, a second time, but he suddenly realized why she was doing this. He caught her by the arm and turned her around to face him.

"What have you seen?" He demanded. She didn't meet his eyes which confirmed his hunch. "Fiona, please, if you've seen what kind of storm it is then I need to know what I can do to stop it." He determined. She looked up at him and his breath caught in his throat. The look of fear behind her eyes told him the encroaching peril was comparable to the Time War. Perhaps not as tragic, hopefully, but she held the same look in her eyes that had led him to become part of events that ended in the fall of Gallifrey.

"The darkness is coming! I can't tell you much more than that because something is preventing me from seeing further details. This Adipose thing feels connected somehow it's a good place to start at least if nothing else. I was afraid to tell you for fear you wouldn't go without me." She confessed. He caressed her cheek smoothing a lock of hair behind her ear as he did so.

"I have been rather difficult haven't I?" He asked.

"Difficult!" Fiona snorted rather unlady like. "Try impossible, darling." She returned wrapping her arms around his neck.

"I'm sorry, I truly am but I wasn't sure how to tell you that I felt something too." He admitted.

"That's something I didn't expect, you seeing the future as well." She commented.

"Ah," He tilted his head. "Just because I can't see visions or dream dreams doesn't mean I can't feel the changes in weather. Well not actual weather…" He began but she cut him off by pulling him into a kiss. "What about Capricillia's kids?" He asked when he pulled back.

"It just so happens that I thought of that, I dropped them off before I came home." She alluded. He frowned and looked up at the much older Tardis wondering why he hadn't noticed it before.

He looked down at Fiona. "How did you manage that? You told me that you never left earth's orbit." He wanted to know.

"Well, I didn't… after I dropped the kids off that is. I went to that place I told you about and as it turns out they were more than willing to help us out. I sent Capricillia ten years into the past and programmed her to stay once she got there. She had a few words to say when she finally caught up to me too, apparently some hatched out earlier than the others. Of course Jr. wouldn't leave my side but he can keep me company while the two of you are off gallivanting." She explained.

"Letting her travel on autopilot was taking a huge risk. Why didn't you travel with her?" He demanded.

"Because I didn't much feel like aging another ten years. How would I explain the fact that I left at the age of thirty-two but when I came back I was forty-two? We may not age like humans, dear, but we do age some between regenerations." She explained. He saw the reasoning in that and nodded his head.

"If you aren't home in a year's time just know that I will send Jack after you and I'll make sure he's armed first." She warned him. He would have laughed at that if he didn't know she was serious.

"If I can't solve the case of the 'what happened on a dark and dreary night' mystery then it's because I didn't have my trusty partner Mrs. Watson-MacDonald." He told her.

"I think you'll find a suitable substitute to take my riddle solving place." She replied.

"Yeah and who's that?" He wondered.

"Ever hear of a woman called Donna Noble?" She asked making his breath catch in his throat. As he realized she wasn't playing around. "I hear she's already on the case. You know how even some of your one time companions have a habit of getting into trouble because of you." She remarked.

"It wasn't just a coincidence she landed on my Tardis then," He deducted.

"That's elementary my dear Holmes." She affirmed.

"The mystery is afoot my dear Watson." He played along sharing a laugh.

"When you get home we have got to visit Doyle. I've always wanted to meet him, before he got into his weird phase that is." Fiona grinned up at him.

"What will you do while I'm gone?" He wanted to know taking on a serious note.

"Play in the garden, the crops will need to come in near the end of September I've extended the growing season a little thanks to the force field. I might even make it snow this winter wouldn't the kids like that? And By kids I mean Luke, Maria, and Clyde plus the MacDougal children. I wanted to relearn how to sew as well. I used to be a dress maker back in the day… well really I had women do that for me but I owned a dressmaker's shop. I knew my money wouldn't last forever and though I may be a trillionaire now I won and lost a few fortunes in my time. I know how to sew by hand but I wanted to see if Claire could teach me how to sew on a machine. Maybe I can go ashore and see if Sarah can join us for tea, I'm going to explain everything to Claire and Doris while they're here and before you object yes they need to be told. I don't like keeping secrets from anybody. Jane and Tom are going to visit some time in September. It's a quiet month for them at the publishing house and Jane and I have always wanted to visit Scotland. She just wants to see if Scottish guys actually wear anything beneath their kilts but I'll go along to keep her out of trouble. Until then I plan on playing the mad scientist for a while. The Dome still needs a few things like flutterbys and lumblelees for pollination and I was thinking a few Calasoric deer would help to keep the grass trim. I was also thinking of reconstituting a Jasaculea or two…" She trailed off.

"You better not…" He warned on cue.

"I know, I was just joking… about the flutterbys." She interrupted. He opened his mouth to repeat his dire warning but the look on his face was so hilarious she couldn't keep from laughing a second longer.

"I know Jonathan. Besides the fact that they were nothing but a legend by the time I came along I don't think they would have included any DNA samples of such a predatory creature anyway. A Jasaculea is like the T-Rex here on earth, maybe not as big or as stupid but I don't think we have to worry about waking up any prehistoric creatures from beyond the grave. I'm sure Mom wouldn't have let them even if the Time Lord science geeks had tried. I did find a few Sarganol eggs though." She said putting him at ease until his mind caught up to the last sentence.

"The dome is only three hundred feet high and five hundred feet wide I think a Sarganol is a bit too big for it to roam about comfortably in there. You might ought to wait until we need to resettle to take them out of cold storage. When we find a nice planet to teraform, which is inevitable you can have all the Sargans you want roaming about. An Island the size of Delaware isn't the place to bring back all the endangered species of Gallifrey. I suggest you stick to Flutterbys and the ipsalowe sets." He advised.

"Flutterbys and Ipsalowes are fine and all but I'll have to create an entire ecological system if you expect the Dome to flourish. I'm not going to go replanting it again every hundred years or so, Jonathan. Quit worrying and just leave everything to me. All joking aside I won't take any species out of cryostasis that I don't deem absolutely necessary for the survival of the Dome." She counseled.

"I just don't want to come home and find the island over run by gobells." He remarked.

"I wasn't planning on reviving any of those. A few garafess maybe…" She taunted.

"Fiona," He warned.

"You are so gullible. No garafess either I swear but I am going to make a Passifrey. I had one growing up and I want our kids to have the same joy of having one for a pet as well." She insisted.

"I also had a Passifrey as a kid but don't you think they're a bit big…" He cautioned.

"I'll play around with the genetics a little, make it so they only grow to a certain size. I don't want to have to replant the Dome because the big guy couldn't control his feet getting in the way. I'm also aware that they lay almost a thousand eggs at a time but I was only planning on bringing one out of cold storage for now. Like you said the rest can wait for the appropriate planet. A bunny that is the size of a bear may have been an appropriate play thing on Gallifrey but on a planet that's hardly a fourth of the size it isn't. I think around the size of a large breed of feline should be big enough for Earth. The kids can still ride on it, maybe not as long as we could but it should suffice." She commented.

He frowned and gave her that `are you out of your mind look` Rose was always on his case about but he couldn't help himself. "You're comparing the great Passifrey to a small creature like the rabbit?" he asked unable to keep the disgust out of his voice.

"And what is wrong with that? The Passifrey does look like a bunny! Bunnies have big floppy ears and the fuzzy fur of a Passifrey. Maybe the hind legs are a bit different but they have other similar aspects as well, they're both herbivores." She insisted reaching a bit to find similarities. He just shook his head knowing they looked nothing… well almost nothing, alike. To compare such a magnificent beast like the Passifrey to a tiny little rodent he couldn't bear it but he held his tongue.

"You're really alright with my leaving you like this?" He asked wanting her honest opinion.

"No!" She gave him an honest answer trying to be brave but he could see the tears welling up in her eyes. "It isn't like I have much of a choice it's either keep you here safe with me or endanger the entire universe. I'll go with the universe even though my hearts are screaming the exact opposite. Beside do you really think I'd be happy leaving my beloved's safety in the hands of a woman I don't even know?" She asked and he shook his head. "Good then don't forget who you really belong to." She told him emphatically starting back towards the barn; they were nearly there when he stopped her.

"I can't possibly," He assured her smiling when she cast him a doubtful look over her shoulder. "You wouldn't let me." He added making her laugh. "When this journey of mine supposed to start? You wouldn't by chance have seen that in your vision would you?" He wondered.

"Immediately," She said on a sad note stopping by the door of the Tardis.

"What about our guests?" He inquired.

"I'll make your excuses…" She began but got the saddest most heart wrenching looking on her face. "I never thought I'd have to say that to anyone myself. I kind of know how Mama must have felt sending me away all those years ago." She acknowledged.

"Not quite," He came to a stop beside her. Saying good-bye to a loved one knowing you'll never see them again was one thing but saying it to a child is something no one could understand unless they had done it themselves.

"You're probably right but still I want you safe." She admitted.

"I'll take as many precautions as I can to avoid the things that can kill even a Time Lord." He promised but she grabbed his lapels and pulled him closer looking about as menacing as a small wisp of a girl like her could look.

"You do anything that makes you so much as regenerate and you'll never travel in the Tardis again do you hear me?" She demanded. For the first time in his life the Doctor was actually scared by the seriousness in her eyes. Only his mother could put the fear of damnation into him to that extent. He nodded his head but instead of letting him go she kissed him as hard as she could. "Don't you forget it either," She added pointedly. She let go of him but before she could pull away he grabbed her and pulled her tightly to him again already missing her warmth. He kissed her long and hard with as much passion as he could evoke in a single kiss.

"Now and forever I am yours Fiona, no matter whose face I'm wearing. I promise to do my best not to regenerate any time soon. After a thousand years in the same form our bodies will begin to regenerate anyway." He gave her the promise she sought while reminding her of the inevitable.

"I know but hopefully by that time I'll be able to regenerate with you." She told him the reason for her insistence; she didn't want to be left out. Even though he had been given his back he only had so many regenerations and she didn't want to out live him.

"What happens if in that thousand years you regenerate first?" He wanted to know grinning at her like an idiot.

"Then you can do something to go and get yourself killed so you can regenerate too." She grinned back. "Now quit wasting time, Time Lord. You have work to do and so do I. Go find that Donna Noble of yours." She admonished.

"She isn't my Donna Noble and I wasn't really that fond of her to begin with." He frowned.

"At least try to be nice to her. You have habit, an annoying one, of making a difference in people's lives whether you realize it or not. Yes it's generally for the better," She hastened to add before he could interrupt. "I'm sure she's the better for her experiences with you. Most us women are you know." She informed him flashing him a smile.

"You've changed," He announced.

"What again?" She questioned with a laugh.

"I didn't mean it like that I just meant you're a lot more relaxed than when we first met." He explained.

She shrugged her shoulders and played with the lapel of his jacket. "Maybe I am. Thanks to you I've gotten over living the past year twice though it still hurts a little. I'm starting to feel like my old self again. Now that I don't have the gonging in my head or the headaches anymore I really feel like myself for the first time in my life. Maybe I always knew I was different deep down but couldn't find that part of me that made me who I am. I have a purpose now not just living my life day after day in the same old mundaneness of it all. Of course being in love and trying not to compare every man to someone imaginary did have its drawbacks." She made known.

"Aren't you glad I turned out to be a little less imaginary than you thought?" He wondered holding her a little tighter.

"Very!" She exclaimed kissing him with all her might using their connection to convey all her doubts, fears, and best of all love mixed with her hopes for his swift and safe return.

"This is where we say good-bye I take it." He guessed when she pulled away and backed out of his reach. "Will you miss me?" he asked.

"Idiot, of course I'll miss you." She smacked him in the arm grinning at him.

"I love you," He professed stealing one last kiss.

"I love you too. Now please get out of here before I steal the Tardis keys and hide them permanently." She begged reluctantly squirming out of his grasp again.

"I will be back and don't worry I'll be ready to settle down when I get home." He pledged.

"That's something I'll have to see to believe." She shot back.

"I hate good-byes," He admitted as he backed her up against the barn so she couldn't retreat anymore.

"Then don't say good-bye," She replied looking like she was about to cry at any second.

"I'll see you soon," He smiled down at her and caressed her cheek.

"I love you and I'll see you when you get home." She told him.

"Home," He repeated the word as he stepped away to get a better look at the paradise that she had created for them. "I'll be home soon I promise." He stressed the same word as he stepped into the Tardis.

"I'll hold you to that!" She exclaimed waving her hand at him. "And bring that Donna woman around will you. I want to meet the woman whose hands I'm putting my husband's life into." She called as he waved back. He nodded his head and smiled once more before closing the door and setting off for one last adventure.

!The End!

I hoped you liked the story as much as I did writing it. There will be a sequal but not for some time as I am trying to get another one that is already finished put on the computer so I can publish it as well. There will also be more to come of my other DW story though I don't know when. It's still playing hide-and-seek with me at the moment. I had wanted to have one of my originals published this year but it doesn't look like it will happen anytime soon as they are all painfully silent, but that gives me time to practise by writing fan fiction. You know what they say about practice... it's the easiest way to get to Carnagy Hall (okay so I'm not a musician but the idea is the same) Please let me know if you liked it or let me know if you didn't like though I'll probably ignore you and thanks again to all those who have read and liked it and to those of you who liked it and didn't tell me so. Thanks! VaniDot

P.S. I probably should have mentioned it sooner but David MacDougal is my hommage to David Tennant, one and the same really except he has a beard (my character that is. ;-)