ooooOoooo

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"Well, was I right or was I right?"

"You were right." Romana admitted it freely, knowing it would surprise him and suppressing a giggle as she felt him staring at her. Usually she argued with him or denied it if he accurately guessed her reaction, but tonight she didn't feel like playing the usual game. "It was delicious, as good as anything I've had on Gallifrey." She pulled a face. "Better by far than some."

They were strolling along the banks of the Seine, arm in arm, making their way in companionable silence until the Doctor broke it with his first question. "So now you'll admit that my taste isn't all that bad?"

Romana grinned up at him. "I'll go so far as to say it isn't always that bad," she conceded.

"It's the subtle differences you have to watch out for," the Doctor muttered by way of response, but he grinned back. Neither of them felt like dueling, not on such a beautiful night. "Perhaps 1979 isn't such a bad year."

They stopped and gazed out over the water, purified by the silvery gleam of the full moon, disguising the less attractive detritus visible under the relentless glare of daylight. "It's lovely," Romana murmured, then turned and smiled up at the Doctor.

His easy grin faltered as he met her gaze, then disappeared as he leaned down and kissed her. She stood quite still, not moving even when he broke off the kiss and peered down at her, suddenly uncertain. "Romana?"

"You kissed me."

He nodded uncertainly. "Yes, I did."

"Why?"

"Well, I thought...that is, I wanted...I thought you wanted...because we're in Paris on the banks of the Seine in the moonlight and you looked as if you should be kissed," the Doctor finished, shrugging helplessly. "I'm sorry if I misunder--"

He got no farther than that before she slapped him. Hard. "Don't you ever dare to presume such a thing again." She glared at him. "I'll be the one to decide when I should or should not be kissed." Just as the Doctor opened his mouth to apologize again, she yanked him down to her level, both hands firmly grasping his scarf. "Now kiss me again," she ordered. "Properly. With my permission."

"In a bodily-fluids kind of way?" the Doctor muttered, but the twinkle had returned to his eyes, matched by the mischievous spark in hers. This time, she returned the kiss wholeheartedly, pressing her body against his in a way that seemed to startle her as much as it did him, and nodding when he tentatively put his arms around her.

When Romana finally pulled away, breathless, she gave a small laugh and released her hold on his scarf ends. "Back to the TARDIS, I think. Paris is having a very strange effect on me."

The Doctor's grin was wicked. "I'd rather like to stay."

"The TARDIS," Romana repeated, but there was a slight grin curling the edges of her lips, and she held her hand out to the Doctor. He caught it up and willingly followed as they returned to the ship.

Once inside, Romana released his hand and bent down to rub the waiting K-9 along his metallic nose. "Miss us, K-9?" Without waiting for an answer, she straightened up and turned to look at the Doctor. "Remember what I said: My choice. My permission."

"I'm likely to seek that permission on a regular basis," the Doctor retorted, but Romana just wrinkled her nose and headed through the interior door. "Good night, gentlemen. I'll see you in the morning."

"Good night, Mistress," K-9 replied. Manners were illogical, as he well knew, but so were humanoids, and sometimes it was logical to accede to their illogical wishes. Mistress Romana had lectured him several times on manners, so he'd finally incorporated some of what she told him into his memory.

"K-9, what do you know about women?" The Doctor absently rubbed his cheek as he gazed after Romana. It no longer stung, although it had for a good long while. At least she was pulling her punches a bit now.

"Insufficient detail in your query, Master," the robotic dog responded. "Please restate your question."

"Insufficient detail in anyone's ability to answer that query, I'm afraid," the Doctor muttered. "Remember, K-9. Women are more difficult to decipher than any secret code." He walked away, whistling. Heading for his own quarters and some very heavy thinking indeed.

ooooOoooo

"Get off, you had a dog?" Ace was incredulous. "A robot dog? What'd you do with it?"

"The K-9 Mark I stayed with Leela on Gallifrey, and the Mark II stayed with Romana when she remained in E-Space. And the Mark III I sent back to Sarah Jane."

"What, none for Tegan or Peri?" The words were out before Ace could stop them, although she did manage to stifle the snicker that wanted to follow them.

"That's rather unkind of you, Ace." The reprimand was mild, but Ace knew he was right.

"Sorry, Professor," she muttered. "I just had this sudden image of a game show host offering lovely parting gifts."

"That wasn't how it was intended, and I certainly hope none of them viewed it that way." The Doctor was still offended, but he was also still talking to her, so Ace relaxed a bit. "The Mark III specifically had me drop him off on Earth long after Sarah Jane had stopped traveling with me," he added with a frown. "I can't remember why, but for some reason he decided she needed him more than I did. In fact, each K-9 unit opted to leave me, so eventually I got the hint and stopped building them."

For some reason that struck Ace as incredibly sad, although she refrained from telling the Doctor how she felt. Perhaps it was the wistful note in his voice, or the faraway gaze in his eyes. Instead, she returned to the story she'd interrupted. "I never realized Romana was so violent. Hitting you twice."

"Don't worry, it wasn't an abusive relationship." Ace went very still at that, which the Doctor noted but chose to file away rather than pursue. Perhaps one day she'd be ready to share some of her past with him, more than the snippets she'd given out now and again. "And I certainly never laid a finger on her. I think she was just frightened, and I can't blame her. I was introducing her to new thoughts, new emotions, and change can be very frightening, especially for the young." Never mind that Romana's "young" was Ace's "ancient."

"So did things go on from there, or just sort of stall out?" Ace would be bitterly disappointed if this was the end of this particular romance, dead on the vine before blooming, but she suspected there was still more to come.

"Stall out? Not in the least," she was relieved to hear the Doctor say. "But it was certainly going to go at Romana's pace, which meant I had to be more patient than I usually was in that particular incarnation. Believe me, there were times when I almost wished she'd tell me we hadn't a chance at anything more than a friendly professional relationship, just so I would know for sure."

"That wasn't what you wanted, though, right?" Ace's grin had returned. "For things to just end there. So what did you do? Flowers and candy?"

"Nothing so common," the Doctor sniffed. "Between adventures, we worked closely together on some theoretical mathematical issues I thought might intrigue her."

Ace rolled her eyes. "Math theory. Right. Incredibly romantic. How could I ever have doubted you."

"Do you want to know if it worked or not?" Ace nodded, and the Doctor continued. "All right then, mathematical theory. Far more romantic than you might think..."