Chapter Thirty Six

After the trial, Pete was drugged so the Doctor could take him to Volag Nok. Adam, Duer and Pete's Jackie, Tony asked to go with him. The Doctor agreed and he carried the unconscious Pete back to the holding cell. The TARDIS removed the force barrier and the Doctor laid Pete inside the cell. After he put him on the floor, he leaned back up and stared at him.

"I don't envy you, Pete. I wish it could have worked out between you and Adam and Duer but you chose to shun them and tried to destroy them and now you must pay the price for endangering them and the universe."

He ordered the TARDIS to put the force barrier back. He turned around and was surprised to see Alan and Mirza standing behind him.

"Mirza was curious about the TARDIS and wanted to speak to you," Alan said to him.

The Doctor smiled warmly at him.

"Yes?" he said to him.

"Father was telling me about the…TARDIS, is that the correct name?" he said to Alan who nodded. "He said that Namid is different from TARDISes."

"Yes, she is a living TARDIS. This TARDIS is living but it can't walk around and interact with others, at least not like we can," the Doctor said.

"I was wondering if I could go with you. Father says this is his life and yours and if I'm going to be a part of the family, I wanted to see what you do. Is that okay?"

"I'd be honored to have you ride with me," the Doctor said, patting his shoulder.

Mirza looked at Pete.

"What will you do with him?" he asked the Doctor.

"He's going to prison," the Doctor said.

"Will he be executed?"

"Um…I don't think so. They normally don't execute people there; they just keep them in thick cells with steel walls."

Mirza nodded.

"I'm sorry if I'm bothering you with my questions…Uncle," Mirza said hesitantly.

The Doctor knelt down beside him.

"I don't mind questions, Mirza. I love em. You're not bothering me. How will you learn if you don't ask? So go ahead and ask anything you want."

Mirza smiled and nodded and the Doctor patted his shoulder. He looked at Alan.

"Are you coming as well?" he asked.

"Please, Father, come with me," Mirza said, slipping his hand into Alan's.

The Doctor beamed at that and nudged his brother's mind while Alan nodded at Mirza and gave him a tender look. Alan put his arm around him and they walked back to the console room.

After flying the TARDIS to Volag Nok, Alan carried Pete while everyone followed the Doctor to the governor's office. He shook hands with the robot that was overseeing the prisoners and explained who Pete was and what he did while he handed the robot an official document from Xashon saying he was found guilty along with all the paperwork from the trial. The robot settled down behind a desk and looked through everything while they waited. After skimming through the last piece of paper, the robot nodded.

"We will take care of him, Doctor, rest assured," the Governor said.

The Doctor nodded. He signed a release form and after that was done, he and the others turned to go. Adam paused a moment, gave a snort of contempt to his unconscious father in law and followed the others out the door.

When they arrived back at the Doctor's house, everyone filed out except for the Doctor, Adam, Duer, Alan and Mirza.

"What did you think of being a time traveler?" the Doctor asked Mirza.

"I like it. I think it's something I would like to do."

"Good," the Doctor said while Alan patted his shoulder. "If that's what you want to do, we can teach you how to be a Time Lord in addition to enrolling you in the academy here. By the time you're twenty, you'll be ready to explore the universe on your own or with us if you wish."

The Doctor turned around to go but Mirza grabbed his arm. The Doctor looked back, giving him a quizzical look.

"Uncle, I'm glad you're not cruel like my other uncle was," Mirza said. "I'm glad you like me and want me to be in your family."

The Doctor grinned. He leaned over and kissed Mirza on the cheek. Mirza smiled when Adam and Duer followed suit and patted his shoulders. The Doctor squeezed his hand before he let go.

Once they were back inside the house, the majority of the family went back to their homes except for the new Jackie and Tony and Alan, Christopher, Rose and Mirza. The Doctor sat on the sofa, Hope on his lap, while Rain sat beside him and the triplets, Christopher and Mirza sat on the floor near him. Jackie and Tony sat in the chairs while Duer sat beside Rain.

"Mirza, I just wanted to say to you…" Jackie said to Mirza after she hugged him, "if you need a grandmother, I'll be that for you. I hate that you haven't had anyone and you were a slave of the Valeyard. If you want to call me Gran, I don't mind."

"Thank you, Gran," Mirza said.

Jackie hugged him tightly.

The Doctor smiled at that and looked at the triplets.

"Well, now that we have everything sorted out. I suppose we need to plan your birthday party and…"

He trailed off when he heard a wheezing and everyone stared at Compassion with shock when she materialized in front of them.

"What's wrong? The other Doctors are alright, aren't they?" the Doctor said, panicking.

"Yes, they're alright. But before I go back to the future, there is something I must do here," Compassion said to him.