Missed Connection

The Doctor had decided that he did not enjoy traveling alone. He'd thought he would, after so long under the combined power of not being able to and not wanting to – both of which he could blame on Adelaide's influence. He'd never wanted to be apart from her.

There had been the briefest moment when the Doctor had thought he would enjoy it. When he'd thought that he needed a break from her just as much as she did of him. But that had been a lie.

He missed her.

So much.

And she hated him.

She hadn't said it, but he knew it was the truth. He knew how she felt, the terrible truth of it all.

She wanted nothing to do with him.

So he would be alone.

At least, that had been his honest goal. He'd been prepared to be alone, not interfering, for the rest of time.

And then someone had knocked on his TARDIS and he'd been led to River Song attempting to steal a diamond that had ended up embedded into the head of King Hydroflax.

River's original plan involved them being responsible for the removal of Hydroflax's head but, thankfully, the man and his android body took responsibility for that. Now, they were running.

All would have been normal for the Doctor and River – even without Adelaide – except for the small fact that River, for some reason, didn't recognize the Doctor as the Doctor.

She didn't know this face. She didn't have any record of it. To her, his last body had been the one who died on Trenzalore.

It seemed that the universe had planned for the Doctor to die then. But he, being him, had messed up that plan.

It felt like something Adelaide could have been angry about him for, though he was very thankful she wasn't. At least she was, at least as far as he was aware, happy he'd survived.

When the Doctor and River rematerialized in this first stage of fleeing, they were at least two feet above the ground. They both shouted as they fell.

"Ramone!" River called out. "Just once, can you get the height right?"

"Sorry, Professor," a man called, speaking through River's communicator.

"When I escape, I will bring terror to you and your family," Hydroflax's head grumbled from within the bag, a bit muffled. "There is no escape from the..."

River ignored him. "Home in on my signal. Get a shift on. Can you locate the Damsel or the Mentor?"

"I'm on it. The capsule is really close."

The Doctor, meanwhile, hadn't managed to stand. He'd taken the chance to laugh, really laugh, for the first time in a long while. It was harder to laugh when you were completely alone. He wasn't going to shirk this chance to really laugh at this stupid talking head in a bag.

River was a bit more constrained. "Is something funny?"

"Who dares laugh at Hydroflax?" the head continued, which didn't help the Doctor's situation. "You shall be crushed! You shall scream in fear! Let me out of this bag!"

"This is a serious mission in critical phase. There is nothing to laugh about here."

"We're being threatened by a bag!" the Doctor reminded her, still laughing. "By a head in a bag!"

"I shall make dust of you. My enemies are meat for the devouring!"

The Doctor sat up more, shaking his head, as she attempted to suppress her laugh. If he didn't look at her, he could pretend she was Adelaide. It was something Adelaide would have done if forced into this situation. "I can't approve of any of this, you know, but I haven't laughed in a long time."

"Well, good for you."

"Prepare to die in agony and submit to my supremacy! Unzip this bag!"

River couldn't hold it back any longer. She laughed with the Doctor. "You know, don't you?" he asked her, still holding out hope that maybe, just maybe, River did know him. Maybe the universe hadn't fully intended that he stop at Trenzalore. Maybe Adelaide didn't have to hate him for that too.

"Know what?"

"Stop pretending. You know who I am."

River laughed again. "Who are you?"

"You know who I am." He gestured at himself, grinning. "It's...it's...it's me."

"Great." River shook her head. "Who are you?"

He tried to laugh but it didn't quite last.

"Professor Song!" a young man called, hurrying up to them. "Sorry, Professor. Sorry about the height thing."

"Prove it." River leaped up and kissed this new young man quite hard...and for quite a long time.

The Doctor wasn't a big fan of kissing...specifically when other people did it. He didn't mind it so much personally...if he was kissing Adelaide. But they didn't do it often, and it was Adelaide, so it was a completely different thing. This, on the other hand... "Urgh!" he grimaced. "Doesn't it get dull after a while? As an activity, it's not hugely varied, is it?"

River finally pulled away to address the Doctor where he was still lying on the ground. "I'm so sorry. This is my husband, Ramone."

"Another one? Are you going to kill him, too?"

Ramone shook his head. "We're not actually married."

"Ah, we are, in fact. I wiped it from your memory."

Ramone frowned. "Why?"

"Well, you were being annoying." River shrugged. "So, the Damsel or the Mentor. Do we have a fix on either?"

"Found his capsule just over in the village, but I can't locate Damsel. I've looked everywhere."

The Doctor finally stood. "Who's Damsel? Who's Mentor?"

"Have you been thorough? It's not easy, you know. He does have twelve faces."

Ramone pulled out a wallet of all the Doctor's previous faces...and it didn't include this current one. There was no sign of a similar one of Adelaide's, at least that the Doctor could see. "None of these men are here. Are you sure it's one of these?"

River nodded. "Yes! He only has these twelve faces. He'll be around here somewhere. This is the closest intersection with the Doctor's timeline, which has a high chance of an intersection with Adelaide's. This is why I crashed Hydroflax's ship here."

"Damsel and Mentor," the Doctor said, nodding.

"His codename, Damsel in Distress," Ramone explained. "Apparently, he needs a lot of rescuing. The other one, Adelaide, is the Mentor because, apparently, she's quite clever. A good teacher. Tends to turn up wherever Damsel is, even if they don't know it."

The Doctor kept his jaw tight, but he tried not to show it. "What if he has a face that you don't know about yet?"

"He has limits." She looked back to Ramone. "Well, then, let's go find him."

|C-S|

River and Ramone led the way through the street, walking together, while the Doctor carried Hydroflax's head.

"What if we can't find him?" Ramone said. "We need to get you off-world now."

"Off-world." The Doctor made a face. "People never say that." He laughed. "Are you new?"

River kept ignoring him. "We can't hang around waiting. He could be ages."

"Yes, he's probably off rebuilding a civilization or defeating giant robot fish..."

They'd arrived at the TARDIS. "We'll just have to steal it."

"...from the ninth dimension..." the Doctor shook his head, blinking. "Sorry, what?"

"The hopper is really close," Ramone tried. "We would be out of here in less than ten minutes."

River shook her head. "I need time travel. I need this TARDIS."

The Doctor tried to push his way into the conversation. "I'm sorry. The word 'steal'. Somebody said 'steal'."

River turned to him with much the same look as he'd seen on Adelaide's many times, though it was usually addressed toward a companion. "Yes. We're going to steal this box. Hush," she waved a hand, "you wouldn't understand."

"You can't."

"Why can't I?"

"You can't just steal a TA...a box."

River frowned. "Why not?"

"Look," he pointed at the top of the box, "it says Police."

"I have a key." River held up a key that the Doctor was immediately regretting having given to her, even if he didn't actually remember when that exchange had occurred. He did wonder if she also had a key to Adelaide's TARDIS. If he could find a way to steal it and then get back to Adelaide and break in and face her hatred because he deserved it.

River was, meanwhile, unlocking the door. "Okay," the Doctor tried. "This...er...Damsel person. He sounds...he sounds pretty dangerous. Ish. And this Mentor...sounds even worse."

"It's a time machine," she shrugged. "I can take it, do whatever I want for as long as I like and pop it back a second later. She might notice, but it's more likely she's not here and he'll never know it was gone."

The Doctor frowned. "Yes, he will."

"How?"

"He'll just know."

"Well, he's never noticed before."

"Maybe he'll notice now."

River just laughed. It was absurd. She turned back to Ramone, wrapping an arm around him. "I'll see you on Temple Beach." She kissed him and the Doctor restrained his grimace...barely. "I've already picked out your swimwear."

Ramone nodded. "Okay, but be careful."

"Absolutely not." River stepped back, pointing at the Doctor. "You, with me. Bring the head." She hurried into the TARDIS, leaving the men alone together.

"Please," Ramone said, looking pained, "look after her for me." He turned away, starting to go off.

As the Doctor turned to face the TARDIS, River popped her head back outside. "Oh, before you come in, you'd better prepare yourself for a shock. It's not as snug as it looks." She vanished again.

The Doctor couldn't help but grin. Even without Adelaide, even without River recognizing him...this was going to be good. "Finally."

Ramone, who was still close enough to hear him, glanced back. "Finally?"

"It's my go."

|C-S|

They were on a ship of some kind, the Doctor was aware of that. Something about it made the hair on his neck stand up – he didn't like it. He didn't want to be here. He wished River would explain properly and would stop holding his hand and hushing him. People didn't do that to him! That wasn't how this worked!

The room they'd entered was filled with small groups of well-dressed humanoids all standing around chatting. It seemed to be some sort of party. The Doctor really didn't like that.

As River turned from closing the doors to the baggage hold and the terror that they'd left inside, an alien approached them, wearing a suit. "Ah, Doctor Song," the alien said, smiling. "Your table is ready."

"Flemming!" River grinned. "How are the twins?"

"Still digesting their mother, thank you for asking."

"I'm sure it was a lovely ceremony."

Flemming nodded. "Oh, there were tears. And just a hint of screaming." Both Flemming and River laughed.

"Er, Flemming," River smiled, "I wonder, could you deadlock seal the baggage hold for me?"

Flemming frowned. "It's a little irregular. The other passengers might want access."

River leaned forward. "Do you remember that time I was transporting dragon eggs?"

Flemming looked slightly panicked. "Consider it done." He clicked a device from his pocket, switching the door lock from green to red with a loud thud. "Is the gentleman here for dinner?"

The Doctor nodded. "Yes, he is."

"Excellent! I'll have the chef prepare him immediately."

The Doctor's eyes widened, stepping back. "No, you won't."

River put a hand on his arm. "Er, he will in fact be joining me to eat."

Flemming nodded. "I was about to suggest that force-feeding might be required. This way," he stepped back, gesturing behind him. "Oh, may I take your bag?"

River held it closer. "Oh, no, no, no, no. That's fine, thanks."

There was muffled shouting from inside the bag. The Doctor grabbed his stomach in a terrible attempt to disguise the obvious source of the sound. "Sorry. It was my stomach. I have an irritable bowel."

"My revenge will be merciless! I will rip you open and devour you!"

He shrugged. "It's having a day."

"You cannot escape!"

Flemming nodded. "This way."

"Your actions will not go unpunished!"

River turned and threw the bag to the Doctor, making the head inside grunt. "Here. I don't suppose you mind if I freshen up." When the Doctor didn't complain, River sprayed something at her head and a cloud of golden light flowed down her, shimmering her into pinned up hair and a black evening dress. "Not bad for two hundred, eh?"

The Doctor's eyes widened. "Two hundred?"

River waved a hand. "I have an augmented lifespan. Long story." She followed Flemming into the next room. The Doctor stared at her before following.

"So, what's the occasion?" the Doctor asked River.

"I've got the diamond. Now it's time to sell it."

He frowned. "I thought you were returning it to the Halassi?"

River gave him a look that he was fairly certain he'd given to companions before. "Tell me, were you born boring, or did you have to work at it?"

"Where did you find a buyer?"

River gestured to the room. "Look around you. The starship Harmony And Redemption, minimum ticket price one billion credits, plus the provable murder of multiple innocent life forms. Suites are reserved for planet-burners." She took a drink from a passing waiter. "Thank you. Even the staff are required to have a verifiable history of indiscriminate slaughter. This is where genocide comes to kick back and relax. Do try the fish." She smiled and left him, moving in the direction of one of the many dining rooms.

In leaving, she offered him a better view of the room and the other passengers, whose crimes were currently what the Doctor was attributing his unease to.

But, at that moment, he felt he may have discovered the real reason.

Adelaide was here.

His hearts felt like stopping and the Doctor found it vaguely offensive that they didn't actually.

It was not either of the Adelaides he knew, but it was the only other one he'd met previously. Her first regeneration. The one that had died from the Judas tree. The one who'd discovered its deadly effects on Time Lords. The one who'd taught at the Academy because it was the only thing she'd been able to tolerate while she waited for permission to travel because of course, she was going to wait for permission. The one who'd wanted to flee Gallifrey, but had managed to wait.

She was in a high necked haltered dark green gown, hair free around her shoulders. Beautiful in the manner Adelaide always managed to be. Not entirely comfortable, but not as obviously uneasy as he had seen her look in the dark. Not afraid.

She was even holding a glass, though just of water.

He didn't realize he'd stepped closer until after he nearly ran directly into someone crossing between them, forcing him to stop. He could see her better now. She was standing quite close to an older alien, looking very near to an escort, which made him feel sick.

The fact she didn't look happy made it a little better, though it didn't help to explain why she was there. He supposed she'd been dragged along to appease some genocidal planet's ruler so that she could properly study some aspect of their world, as he knew that she wasn't yet responsible for the necessary amount of innocent death – she never was. Not personally. Not intentionally.

He wondered how long it had taken for it to fully sink in that everybody in the universe wouldn't just bend over backward to give science free reign. How long it had taken before she'd started to accumulate planets to be indebted to her, willing to go to war with the Daleks if she'd asked them.

The Doctor was surprised when he could see her notice him. He hadn't expected it to take as long as it did, though he supposed she was distracted by her conversation. Her eyes, blue this time – a color that was so odd to see from any of her faces now – met his and she sniffed. She was shielding everything that would make her recognizable as a Time Lady, which had the Doctor realizing that he wasn't. To anyone who cared, he was screaming with the scent of Time Lord.

She recognized it. He watched her shoulders roll and those strange blue eyes narrow. She didn't recognize him, but she knew exactly what he was.

Before he could find River again and escape from a conversation that he'd very quickly decided that he, actually, didn't feel like having right now, Adelaide had excused herself and made her way through the crowd to him, taking his arm to stop him. That touch was all the Doctor could notice for a few seconds. Her voice was a ring, but thankfully part of his brain was processing it for him. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"I'm..." he swallowed, "the Professor." Adelaide had never mentioned this meeting, which meant she didn't remember it, which meant he had to lie to her right now. "I'm here with a friend." He nodded toward River, who'd paused to socialize with someone she recognized and couldn't see where he was trapped. He wondered if she would have come over if she could see him. If she would recognize Adelaide's first regeneration if this face was at the top of a wallet like his. "Who are you?"

"My name is Adelaide." Of course, she wouldn't lie. Adelaide never lied. She hated lying. It wasn't logical, there wasn't a point.

At least, that's what she kept saying. The Doctor was under the impression that she kept saying it because she kept lying to herself and desperately wanted to stop.

"I'd recommend hiding your disgust." She finally released his arm. "They don't take kindly to it."

The Doctor nodded. "Noted."

She was studying his face. Adelaide was always studying his face. He wondered if she was hating him like she hated all Time Lords. If this was before she and the Corsair truly got to know each other before she'd drifted into more adventurous behavior. "Why were you staring at me?"

"I...I thought I recognized you."

"Have we met before?"

He shook his head. "No, not as far as I'm aware." How long had it been since she'd left Gallifrey? How long had it been since they'd first met? If this Adelaide had even bothered to remember the parent who'd been interested in the stars but had yet to dare to travel. If she thought about him when she looked out the door of her TARDIS at the expanse of the universe that she found simultaneously terrifying and intriguing. "Non-interference agreement?"

Adelaide nodded. She'd nearly backed away when River spoke. "Oh, hello, Adelaide."

He watched Adelaide smile. Watched her force her expression into something that wasn't quite pleasing, but was clearly the first form of one the Doctor knew well. "Doctor Song. You're his friend, then."

River glanced at the Doctor but didn't focus on him. "Yes, yes. I didn't expect to see you here."

Adelaide grimaced. "I didn't expect to be here either. Thankfully," she glanced behind her at the alien she'd left, "it appears that we're preparing to leave. I was hoping it'd be soon." She exchanged a look with River that had the Doctor believing they were both aware of something they weren't going to bother to share with him right now. "Good to see you, Doctor Song." She looked to the Doctor and all he could hear were his hearts and he knew that he would miss her forever. "Enjoy your evening, Professor."

"And you, Adelaide." He had to force the name to sound normal. Make it sound like it didn't mean the universe to him.

She left without a nod. River leaned close to the Doctor. "You've just meant the Mentor."

He couldn't say anything.

River took his arm and pulled him towards the dining rooms and the Doctor didn't succeed in not looking back at the hiding Time Lady in her dark green and attempt at a pleasing expression.

This was before she hated him.

A/N: The moment I reached this episode in my planning, I knew a former version of Adelaide would pop up. Can't explain how I knew, I just did.

This story will be continued over in Mistaken, which should be posted right after this chapter!