A/N: Sorry for the delay, everyone. I just graduated a fee weeks ago and I'm in the middle of taking piano lessons, which takes up most of my free time. I also lost a lot of inspiration for a while and only just got some when the trailer was released for 12.

Also, I'm thinking of editing my earlier chapters and changing a few minor details. If and when I do decide to edit chapters, I'll let you all know in the author's notes. :)

I could hear the Doctor speaking to me in my sleep, but couldn't wake up. The TARDIS brought my consciousness to her console room and explained to me what was happening to my body. According to her, the numerous close calls with death I had experienced the past two days had weakened me enough that if I didn't have any contact with the time vortex soon, I could die, and so she would try to activate the part of my mind and body that made me jump through time and space.

While the ship tried to do everything in her power to save me, I remained in my coma. I could hear people talking to me while I slept. Sometimes I heard Jo or Benton or Yates and once I thought I heard Lieutenant Smith. But I usually heard the voices of Alistair or the Doctor on a daily basis. They spoke to me in my sleep as if I was awake.

The Doctor would apologize for allowing the Master to kidnap me and he promised never to let it happen again. He told me about the planets he planned to take me to once I woke up and all the stars he would show me. Alistair would hold my hand and usually talk about his day and what sort of shenanigans Benton and Yates were getting into. He would tell me about how annoying his paperwork was and would sometimes mention that he was one step closer to finding the Master.

I eventually started to dream again. Sometimes they were about past experiences I'd had with the Doctor or the Master, but sometimes I would dream about things I had never seen before. And somehow I knew that during my dreams, I had left UNIT and Earth behind and had gone into the vortex.

I remained unconscious, but could feel changes in my body over time. My body grew stronger as the days passed and slowly absorbed some of the power of the vortex. I remained in the vortex for such a long time that it started to affect my mind. I could see the swirling colors in even though my eyes were closed, I could hear the winds and feel then going through me, and I could see everything and everyone in the universe all at once.

When my eyes finally opened, I was still in the vortex. I lifted my arms and looked at them and was relieved to see that there were no marks left from the Master's needles that he had placed in my arm. I turned my head and looked around at the inside of the vortex and could just make out the light of galaxies past the vortex.

Alone again, I thought a little sadly. I wish I was with the Doctor.

I closed my eyes and sighed, no air leaving my body as I did so. I opened my eyes again and folded my arms against my chest.

Idris? I called out with my mind. TARDIS? It's me. It's Diana. Can you hear me?

I didn't hear the ship answer in reply, so I repeated her name and my question. My heart sank when I received silence again. I twisted my body and looked around the vortex, seeing images of people and places whizzing past me. More than a few times, I saw the Doctor and myself off on an adventure.

I just want to get out of here. Put my feet on solid ground and hold something real that's not made up of vortex winds. I pressed my lips together in frustration and continued to watch the images the vortex showed me. TARDIS, please. Can you hear me? I want to go home.

Suddenly, the vortex started to change colors. It turned from a mix of purple, green, blue, and orange to an ugly mix of gray, black, and dark blue and green. A loud, angry noise started to echo inside the vortex and lightning began erupting around me. I screamed in panic and pulled my arms and legs close to my body.

"Idris!" I shouted. "Doctor!"

Ahead of me, a large hole appeared in the side of the vortex. Bright light streamed through the hole and I brought my hands up to shield my eyes from the bright light. A man's lightly accented voice came through with the light and I recognized it immediately.

The vortex winds propelled me forward and through the hole. I fell out and landed on my side, then rolled for a few yards due to the momentum of my fall. I groaned a little as pain ached in my hip and shook my head to clear my thoughts.

"Diana?" a Northern accented voice asked incredulously. I opened my eyes and looked up to see the Doctor staring wide-eyed at me. "Where did you come from?"

My lips spread into an elated smile. I scrambled to my feet and threw my arms around the Doctor's waist, resting my head against his chest and sighing happily. He lightly rested his hands on my waist and chuckled.

"I am so glad to see you," I breathed. "You have no idea."

"Well, I'm very happy to see you too," he replied.

An overwhelming feeling of admiration swept through me when I tilted my head to look back at the Time Lord. His blue-gray eyes were shining happily and his smile was wide and excited. I felt chills all over my body when I felt him move his arms from my waist to my upper back; it had most likely been weeks since I'd had any human contact.

"I've really missed you," I said.

"How long's it been since you last saw me?"

"It feels like forever," I admitted. "Where are you now? World War II? Cardiff?"

"None o' the above, Diana. Sorry." He smiled apologetically and lightly kissed my forehead. "You an' I just had tea with the president of Ashtar."

"Bless you."

The Doctor smiled and shook his head. "No, Ashtar. Y'know, the planet?"

I shrugged. "Never been. Never even heard of it."

"Ah. So we're a little earlier than tha', then." He pulled away and crossed his arms across his chest. "So where were you, then?"

I immediately looked down as the very unpleasant memories of my encounter with the Master and his horrible machine came to the front of my mind. "Um," I started slowly, my voice cracking slightly, "you and I... Er..., you were in your third incarnation and... the Master... Well, he kidnapped me and then there was that horrible machine he created a-and he stole that missile UNIT was trying to destroy and-"

"Diana, tha's where you were?" The Doctor worriedly ran his hands over my face and then down to my shoulders. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I-I had no idea."

"No, it's fine," I said softly.

"Are you alrigh'? Are you hurt? You were in a bad way when you disappeared."

I pursed my lips and looked away. "I've been in the vortex for a while. I don't know how long."

"Let's get you back to the TARDIS, alrigh'?"

I looked around at our surroundings and frowned. "Where are we? Where's the TARDIS?"

"Oh, just Earth in the early twenty-first century." The Time Lord waved his hand dismissively. "You deserve something better than li'l ol' Earth. How about Pertone? Lovely planet. Inhabited by-"

"Can we go now, please?" I asked softly.

The Doctor nodded. "Of course." He reached for my hand and intertwined our fingers, smiling down at me and rubbing his thumb across my wrist. "Come on."

The Doctor released my hand and sent the ship into flight, then turned back to face me. He leaned against the console and placed his hands on the edge of the coral console. "The ship's jus' floatin' in space right now. I wan' you to go take a bath, get all cleaned up, an' then put on some comfortable clothes. I wan' to take you somewhere."

"Where?" I asked.

"Spoilers," he answered mischievously. He tilted his head towards the rest of the ship and smiled. "Now go on."

I blushed a little and nodded, walking past him with my arms folded across my waist. The memories of my time in the Master's captivity were difficult to think about and difficult to forget, so I did my best to focus on something else. The Doctor made that easy for me. His bright smiles and hand holding made my heart race and my face flush.

After I'd taken a long, hot shower and put on a bathrobe, I went into the wardrobe and started looking through clothes. The TARDIS helped me pick out a pair of black pants that were stretchy and loose at the waist. Then I found a dark blue v-neck and a baggy sweatshirt. I picked out a pair of extremely comfortable sneakers and fuzzy white socks. I went back to my bathroom to change and was ready within ten minutes. I towel dried my hair and ran a brush through it, not caring how it looked.

When I went back to the console room, the Doctor was sitting on the jump seat. His head was titled back and his arms were folded loosely on his lap. I smiled fondly at him and laughed when his mouth fell open and a light snore came out.

He actually looks kinda cute like that, I thought dreamily.

My laugh, however, woke the Time Lord up and his head snapped up as he groggily looked around the room. He spotted me and sighed heavily, running his hands across his face. I walked towards him with a smile and sat down next to him.

"I didn't meant to wake you," I told him.

"No, no, you're fine."

"Are you tired?" I asked, worried that he might be working himself too hard without enough sleep.

"Who, me?" he asked incredulously. "Course not. I was jus' waitin' for you."

I put a hand on his thigh without even thinking and leaned in towards him. "Doctor, if you're tired then we don't have to-"

"Are you kiddin' me? Of course we do! You need a lovely planet to relax on and-"

"But I don't want you to be exhausted, " I protested. "It wouldn't be any fun without you, you know. And... I worry that you don't get enough sleep sometimes."

The Doctor smiled. "You're worried about me when you should be focusing on yourself."

"Nah. I'd rather think about you." I bit down on my lower lip and mentally reprimanded myself. "Um, I mean... Um..." My gaze flitted down to the Doctor's mouth and my face felt like it was on fire. "Sorry."

"Come on, you," he said teasingly, wrapping my fingers around my hand that was on his thigh. He leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss to my lips, which made me blush and smile a little. "Let's go see the planet I've taken us to."

The Doctor had taken us to the planet he'd mentioned earlier: Pertone. When the Doctor and I stepped out of the TARDIS, I felt my mouth fall open in shock. The planet was absolutely gorgeous and simply stole my breath away. The Doctor then informed me that the planet was inhabited by fairy-like creatures that were about the size of my hand and extremely friendly, not to mention telepathic. The surface of the planet was covered in green grass that was about two feet high and brilliant blue rivers ran all across the planet as well.

One of the fairies suddenly flew towards us. It was a lavender color and had beautiful, clear wings that reflected a small rainbow when the sunlight hit it at a certain angle. It smiled at us and reached for my hand first.

Diana Scott, it said in my mind. You are most welcome here. You and your friend may stay as long as you wish. There was a pause and the fairy's tiny mouth turned up into a smile. Perhaps you may find your love for one another becomes stronger during your stay.

I started to reply out loud, but remembered their telepathic abilities and thanked it mentally instead. The fairy spoke with the Doctor and then looked back at me. It gestured to grassy field behind it and gestured for us to follow it.

I will take you to a place where you may rest together. You may stay for as long as you wish and do whatever you want. Others of my kind will be glad to help you should you need anything.

Thank you very much, I answered as we followed the fairy. You're very kind.

You are kindhearted and have pure intentions. You and your mate are welcome here.

I blushed at the term the alien used to refer to the Doctor and I and quickly looked at the ground. The Doctor apparently heard it as well because he coughed awkwardly and rubbed the back of his neck. We glanced a little shyly at one another and both flushed upon making eye contact.

"Interesting, uh, choice o' words they have," the Doctor commented awkwardly.

I nodded silently and forced a smile onto my face. Okay, let's not be completely awkward around the Doctor, Diana, I told myself.

The fairy alien led us in silence to a secluded area a short walk away from the TARDIS. A small grove of trees grew near one of the rivers and the fairy proudly showed us the natural hideaway.

You may rest here together, it told us. And now I will leave you.

The fairy nodded politely at both of us and then flew off. I glanced back at the Doctor and he smiled. He started to shrug off his leather jacket and walked towards the largest tree in the grove. He placed the jacket on the ground and then sat down at the base of the tree, leaning against its trunk and folding his arms behind his head. I felt my heart skip a beat as I stared silently at the Doctor, admiring his lean figure.

"Come sit down," he called to me. "It's cooler in the shade."

I quietly walked over to the tree and sat down beside the Doctor, crossing my legs and pushing the sleeves of my sweatshirt up to my elbows. The Time Lord looked out of the corner of his eye at me and smiled lightly.

"Aren't you warm in tha'?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. It's just comfy."

The Doctor looked up at the branches above us and sighed. "This place is fantastic."

"I knew you were gonna say that."

"Wha'?"

" 'Fantastic'," I repeated with a laugh. "I knew you were gonna say that."

"How?"

"Because that's your catchphrase."

"Oh?"

I nodded smugly and copied the Doctor's earlier movements, folding my arms behind my head and stretching my legs out. "Mm hmm." I closed my eyes and exhaled through my nose. "But you're right, though. It is fantastic."

"I'm glad you like it."

I opened my eyes again and shook my head, staring up at the treetops with a smile. "No, I love it. It's gorgeous here, Doctor. I could live here and be perfectly happy."

The Doctor shifted slightly so that he was facing me and lightly cleared his throat. "Are you? Happy, I mean."

I lowered my arms and turned to look at him In confusion. "Of course I am. Why would you even ask?"

"Because of wha' happened to you," he said seriously. "The Master hurt you, Diana, and I could barely rescue you and save the worl'."

"You think it's your fault?"

"Of course it is."

"What? No!" I shook my head firmly. "Theta, no it's not. It was the Master." I could tell that he was concerned for me and didn't believe a word I was saying, so I reached forward and grabbed his wrist. "I don't blame you for what happened. How could I? I care about you, Doctor, and the Master kidnapping me isn't going to change that."

"But it's not safe for you to be around me-"

"Stop." I shook my head. "Please, don't. You're all I have. If I lose you..., I'm lost. I need you, now more than ever. I-I... I haven't been with another living creature in weeks, maybe even months. Doctor, I need to know that you're not going anywhere."

He shook his head and smiled sadly. "No. I'm not goin' anywhere," he answered softly. "I promise."

I breathed a sigh of relief and leaned forward to wrap my arms around his neck. My cheek pressed against his and I felt a warm sensation of happiness bubble inside my chest when his arms pressed gently on my back.

"I love you," he whispered.

For a moment, I thought my heart had stopped. "W-What?" I choked in surprise.

The Doctor pulled back a few inches and looked down at me. "I love you," he repeated. "I know tha' sometimes I don't say it very often, but I know you need to hear it now after everything tha's happened."

I quickly searched his eyes and wondered what had prompted him to say that. Did he not know that I wasn't married to him, that I hadn't even gone on a proper date with him? Then I suddenly realized that when I was with Three, I had failed to tell him that I wasn't married and had let him assume that we were.

"Why don't you say it more often?" I asked slowly, unsure of what else to say.

"I don't know," he answered. "I s'pose I jus' assume you know."

I looked away for a moment and shook my head. "I don't. I'm not saying that you, uh..., don't show it or anything, but I'm... I'm not the kind of person who has a lot of self confidence. I get jealous easily and I get scared easily. That's why I sometimes get annoyed with Rose because she's so beautiful and-"

"Wait, Rose? Who's Rose?"

I froze and exhaled heavily when I realized that the Doctor hadn't even met his most popular companion yet. "Well, shit, I screwed that up," I mumbled. I waved my hand and smiled a little awkwardly. "Future spoilers, Doctor. Sorry."

"Well, it doesn't matter," he told me. "Whoever she is, you don't have to be jealous of her. Or of anyone else. And if it makes you feel any better, I'll be sure to remind you tha' I love you every day."

I laughed and blushed just a little. "Theta, you don't have to-"

"I want to."

"Alright," I answered with another laugh. I rested my head on his shoulder and sighed. "Not like I mind."

The Doctor and I spent a long time under that tree. I moved so that my back was resting against his chest and he had wrapped his arms around my waist. My hands were around his wrists and my head rested under his chin. I had ended up sitting comfortably between his legs and we stayed in that position for many hours.

"What're you thinkin' about?" the Doctor asked me after a long silence.

"Everything."

He moved his head so that his mouth was against my cheek and his temple was by my ear. "Like what?"

"Like how beautiful this planet is."

"And?" the Doctor asked as he kissed the bottom of my jaw.

"I missed this version of you a lot."

"And?" he asked again, slowly trailing his lips down my neck.

"I think I'd like to stay here for a while."

"And?"

"And what you're doing right now is really hot," I blurted, suddenly feeling very flustered and giddy.

He smiled against my throat and tightened his arms around my waist. "Is tha' right?"

I nodded wordlessly, my throat going dry and words failing me as the Time Lord trailed more kisses up my neck. I felt embarrassed for telling him that I enjoyed him kissing my neck, but I didn't have the heart to ask him to stop. The sensation of his lips against my skin made me shiver and smile. All the worries I had been holding onto seemed to melt away and I felt safe.

"That feels... nice," I admitted shyly.

The Doctor smirked and pressed a kiss to my cheek. "We could continue this in the TARDIS," he suggested.

"Oh." Oh, no, I thought worriedly. I awkwardly shifted in his arms and looked down at the ground. "Oh, um, I-I don't know... I'm a little tired."

"You sure?"

"Yeah," I said quickly. "Maybe later?" I asked, hoping he wouldn't mind.

"Whatever you want, love."

I sighed in relief and nodded with a small smile. "I just want to rest here with you and not worry about anything."

"We can stay for as long as you want."

I closed my eyes and leaned back against his chest, my head falling against his shoulder and my arms resting on top of his. I let the sound of the river and the pattern of the Doctor's heartsbeats and breaths lull me to sleep.

Well, I hope you don't mind the end. I sort of wanted to have a light chapter that helped settle everything and address the problem with Diana lying about her relationship with the Doctor. Please don't forget to leave a friendly comment. :)