My Ghosts Come Back

by AuthorA97

Donna Blipping Noble. She can feel something coming. Bigger than any of them. The Doctor is more worried about the Time Lady than ever. There's River Song, and Jenny, and so many other people that when Rose shows up Terra isn't even surprised. (Part 5 of Fallen Star Series!)

4. Fires of Pompeii

The first adventure with a new companion was never a first adventure. It was more like a second adventure. There was a meeting adventure, where we met them and did things. The second adventure really did introduce them to space, showing them how life was away from Earth. It really helped convince them that we were aliens.

Donna got two additional adventures. She dealt with spiders from outer space and also the Earth's core, all while losing a fiance. She then dealt with tiny white fat babies. Donna Noble got more experience with aliens than Rose Tyler or Martha Jones ever did. She also had to put up with the Doctor, so that's that. Meeting me is an accomplishment too, so Donna is just the best person to ever exist ever.

I will fight people on this.

I mean- I love all companions equally.

Yep. Said that. Sticking with it.

Given that Donna Noble was special any which way you thought about it, Donna asked to be taken back in time. The Doctor set the TARDIS to random, taking us out in flight.

Donna's fifth, if we're counting things like that.

I got to show her the best way to brave yourself on the railings! Donna copied me, laughing loudly as the TARDIS moved. The Doctor watched us with a giddy smile. He just loved this. The traveling bit- the excitement of showing someone the universe.

The TARDIS liked it too. She must. Why else would her first choice be Rome?

She landed with the usual fanfare. I leapt towards the door. New place, with new potential to save things, I am very excited. Who wouldn't be feeling this way to see Pompeii before it was on fire?

I opened the door out the way. The Doctor and Donna behind me. I stepped out, feeling a past sun shine on me. The sounds of the Roman street market floated by my head. There was a guy selling fish, a guy selling goats, two ladies chatting about local gossip. Roman soldiers were walking in full getups, making me want to kick one into a large pit while screaming about Sparta. Or calling them all Oedipus. It's a coin flip for what I'd do.

"Behold, the glory of the Ancient Roman Empire!" I announced. My arms were thrown up, displaying the market for Donna.

She beamed, her smile warmer than a volcano.

"Well, not for them, obviously." The Doctor pointed out. He walked over to my side. "To all intents and purposes, right now, this is brand new Rome."

"Less fun sounding." I commented.

"Oh, my God. it's, it's so Roman! This is fantastic." Donna pulled the both of us into a hug. We both laughed as she let us go. It wasn't scary, really it wasn't. Donna would never do anything bad in a hug. Donna was too Donna to be that cruel, or that hurtful. "I'm here, in Rome. Donna Noble in Rome."

Because it was fun, we walked down the marketplace. People walked by in togas and tunics. They carried wares on their hips, and haggled prices. I could hear all of it as we passed them.

"This is just weird. I mean, everyone here's dead." Donna realized.

"Well, don't tell them that." The Doctor advised.

Donna's smile fell flat. She eyed back up the alley we just walked through. "Hold on a minute. That sign over there's in English." I looked back. Sure enough, a sign written in English hung off a cart. There was graffiti around it too- classic, fun graffiti like 'I was here' or 'so-and-so can fuck off'. I love graffiti. "Are you having me on? Are we in Epcot?"

"Nah, Epcot doesn't have any of this design quality in their Italy section." I told her. "It's super fun but super disappointing."

"No, no, no, no. That's the TARDIS translation circuits." The Doctor explained. "Just makes it look like English. Speech as well. You're talking Latin right now."

Donna gawked at him. "Seriously?" The Doctor nodded. "I just said seriously in Latin." She giggled.

I giggled too. "It's so cool!"

The Doctor grinned. "Oh, yeah."

"What if I said something in actual Latin, like veni, vidi, vici?" Donna asked. She started walking through the market again. I was excited to see more graffiti so I followed.

I will admit, that was a question the other two hadn't asked yet. I wonder, looking back, if they had done it which is why we got so many odd looks over the years. I know I've said a few choice words in other languages under my breath.

"My dad said that when he came back from football. If I said veni, vidi, vici to that lot, what would it sound like?" Donna asked, practically shaking with excitement.

"I'm not sure. You have to think of difficult questions, don't you?" The Doctor asked.

"Science!" I decreed.

"I'm going to try it." Donna agreed. She walked over to a nearby vendor.

As amazing as that was, I spotted something shiny in the road. I wanted a shiny Roman coin right before the apocalypse. That would be fun, more fun than penis graffiti or playing with the translation circuit.

Free money!

I scooped up the coin. Instantly it was the best coin I ever saw in my life. Clearly I must devote the rest of my life to finding more of these coins. There had to be more, this coin had a Roman numeral three on the back. The coin was simple metal by feel. A quick sniff proved it authentic for this era. One side had the numeric.

The other side had...hmm...yeah there was no dancing around it.

Hehehe, dancing.

Two people were having missionary sex.

Darcy would like this coin.

'Terra, you're missing this-'

'This coin likes to dance.' I took a picture of it, sending it off to Darcy. She would help me find these coins. She was so nice like that. Walking back to the Doctor I showed it off.

He blushed. He tried to snatch it from me. I pulled it back, grinning innocently. 'That's not appropriate. Put it back!'

'Can't do it!' I tucked it into my pocket. Darcy would get a kick out of them, maybe a belated birthday present? Or an early one, when was her birthday again...?

The Doctor huffed.

Donna came back to our side. Ah, guess I did miss the whole thing. Worth every cent. "How's he mean, Celtic?"

"Welsh. You sound Welsh." The Doctor answered. "There we are. Learnt something."

"What a stupendous thing we've done for Science!" I twirled in place. There was a spot of red behind me. A familiar red, that I never met before today.

We never said he wasn't Donna's grandad

We never said she didn't have ancestors in Rome

We never said-

We never said-

We never said-

"I love him to bits!"

If I told you I love you would it make you wanna stay-

"Don't our clothes look a bit odd?" Donna asked, pulling me out of what was bound to be a depressive funk.

I got into those any time I thought about Martha.

"Nah. Ancient Rome, anything goes. It's like Soho, but bigger." The Doctor replied.

"You've been here before then?" Donna asked.

"Mmm. Ages ago. Before you ask, that fire had nothing to do with me. Well, a little bit. But I haven't got the chance to look around properly." The Doctor admitted. He happily walked up the alleyway. I skipped after him, looking at the graffiti and hearing snippets of conversation. "Coliseum, Pantheon, Circus Maximus. You'd expect them to be looming by now. Where is everything?"

"Did you think-" I began. My thought was that I could lie about the city, maybe the buildings were too tall. The words were cut off.

The Doctor dismissed it without hearing it. "No, no. I definitely landed us in Rome." He insisted. "Try this way."

We walked off together. I happily let the Seer woman follow behind. How fun all of it was. Sure this day was basically cursed by every god, that wouldn't stop me from having fun.

We paused in one alley. Donna pointed ahead to the volcano.

"Not an expert, but there's seven hills of Rome, aren't there? How come they've only got one?" Donna asked.

I hopped in place, excitedly. "Oh! Oh! Maybe it's-"

That, of course, was when the ground started shaking. Obviously I was still in the air. Landing was not fun. I nearly fell down. The Doctor held my arm, trying to keep us both balanced. Donna grabbed my other hand.

Wow.

Two people were touching me.

I finally got a support group...hahaha

"I've got a bad feeling!"

"Wait a minute. One mountain, with smoke. Which makes this-" Donna realized.

"Pompeii. We're in Pompeii. And it's volcano day." The Doctor exclaimed.

I should be sad about all the death that's about to happen...instead I'm sad remembering Jack.

==MGCB==

So the Doctor was less upset about Jack. Apparently the fact that we were on Volcano Day was a bigger issue. I don't get it, it's fine. The TARDIS was fine. She would have let me know if there was a danger.

Once we were back to where we landed, the Doctor and Donna gawked at the empty space. I searched the ground for more funny coins. There was bound to be another, right?

"You're kidding. You're not telling me the TARDIS has gone." Donna huffed.

"Okay." The Doctor and I answered.

"Where is it then?"

"You told me not to tell you." The Doctor reminded her.

Donna glared. "Oi. Don't get clever in Latin."

"She does that sometimes." I told Donna. "Goes off on her own. We lost a woman, we didn't cherish her enough."

"Hold on." The Doctor ran over to a nearby seller. The same one Donna spoke with. "Excuse me. Excuse me. There was a box. Big blue box. Big blue wooden box, just over there. Where's it gone?"

"Sold it, didn't I?" The seller answered.

Hey wait...I found the coin here! Maybe I can find another one? That would be so cool. Darcy could have a cool coin, and so could I!

"But it wasn't yours to sell." The Doctor snapped.

"It was on my patch, weren't it? I got fifteen sesterces for it. Lovely jubbly." The seller cheered. There was a smug smile on his face, like the price was too much for the piece.

I got what he meant. The TARDIS was priceless. Any money spent on her was worth it.

Speaking of money, I was yet to find any cool new coins.

"Who'd you sell it to?" The Doctor asked.

"Old Caecilius." The seller answered. "Look, if you want to argue, why don't you take it out with him? He's on Foss Street. Big villa. Can't miss it."

"Thanks." The Doctor ran towards me. He turned on his feet, going back to the vendor. "What'd he buy a big blue wooden box for?"

"She's beautiful, why wouldn't he want her?" I asked.

The seller gave no answer besides a shrug. The Doctor huffed, running towards me. "Terra quit looking for coins!"

"But money-"

The Doctor grabbed my hand, dragging me up the alley.

If I was normal, I would tell him we were forg- (don't forget, can't forget, Dad said that's not allowed anymore-can't let Donna forget)- we left behind Donna.

I was suddenly shocked back to another time. A Time Lord. He grabbed my hand like this too, dragging me to the TARDIS exactly like this.

He wouldn't let me stay behind either.

==MGCB==

The TARDIS was fine. She- she screamed last time she was hurt. She screamed so loud, I couldn't hear anything else. She screeched and screeched and she apologized to me about it. About her pain.

What an awful birthday.

The Doctor found directions to where he wanted. I didn't have to say a word. Or even pretend to say words. The Doctor decided to just drag me all around Pompeii. Not that I was going to complain, or even think about complaining. It wouldn't get him to let go.

I killed his best friend

He's allowed to make me uncomfortable

"Ha! I've got it!" The Doctor called out to Donna. "Foss Street's this way."

Donna panted, pointing the other direction. "No. Well, I found this big sort of amphitheatre thing. We can start there. We can gather everyone together."

"Oh dearie..." I winced, trying to sympathize with her plight. On a better day I would want to do the same thing as Donna. This was Volcano Day. Only a select few would survive the day. Yes I would be the one choosing but why is that relevant?

"Maybe they've got a great big bell or something we could ring. Have they invented bells yet?" Donna asked.

"I have no idea!" I answered dutifully.

"What do you want a bell for?" The Doctor asked.

"To warn everyone. Start the evacuation." Donna explained. The Doctor was still confused, albeit for different reasons now. I grimaced, awkwardly swaying on the balls of my feet. "What time does Vesuvius erupt? When's it due?"

"It's 79AD, twenty third of August, which makes volcano day tomorrow." The Doctor answered.

"Plenty of time. We could get everyone out easy." Donna decided.

"Not with a population this humongous. They'd be very slow in running." I told her. "We can't save Pompeii, Donna."

"But that's what you do. You're Terra and the Doctor. You save people." Donna reminded me.

Oh cool- she brought a knife to stab me in the hearts

"We're not good at it." I shook my head, wrapping my arms around my middle. If I was feeling more anxiety from Donna's future disapproval, that's my business. "It's- well it's just- we're just-"

"Pompeii is a fixed point in history." The Doctor was way better at the 'saving people' thing than me. We both sucked, he just sucked less. "What happens, happens. There is no stopping it."

Donna scoffed. "Says who?"

"Says me." The Doctor stated.

"What, and you're in charge?" Donna asked. "Always thought that was Terra's bit."

"TARDIS, Time Lord, yeah." The Doctor reasoned.

"Donna, human, no." Donna snarked.

"She got clever in Latin!" I giggled. The Doctor scolded me with a look.

"We don't need your permission. We'll tell them ourselves." Donna decided.

"Wait have I been drafted?" I asked.

"You stand in the marketplace announcing the end of the world, they'll just think you're a mad old soothsayer." The Doctor scolded. "Terra won't join you in that. Even she knows how mad that is. Now, come on. TARDIS. We are getting out of here!"

The Doctor grabbed my hand again. If I wasn't stressed out enough, the Doctor was always there to push me along! What a supportive friend. He dragged me with him, back up the road towards Foss Street.

"Well, I might just have something to say about that, Spaceman!" Donna yelled.

"Oh, I bet you will." The Doctor yelled back. "Why are we keeping her around again?"

"We need friends." I answered. I want my friends...Darcy...Jack...Groot...they were nice...they would let me blow up Pompeii.

They would stop holding my hand

The Doctor huffed.

==MGCB==

The earth started shaking. For many, this would cause them to trip. Or stumble. Or even slow down. Not the Doctor! He sped up! Zooming through the shakes of the ground to reach the beloved TARDIS.

I was no better, he just liked getting the limelight.

We ran into the Roman villa. The Doctor went to a rumbling statue of Julius Caesar- the bitch. He was holding my arm still. I wanted to see the sewer grate. Could I see the monster beneath? Was the smoke that hard to breathe? Did it feel worse than the air around here?

I kinda wanted to see it

Who wouldn't want to see it, a giant rock monster that was also on fire? Not only that, but you can see THE FUTURE!

Sure I would turn into stone but who also doesn't want to be Medusa?!

The Doctor put the bust back where it usually rested. I tilted my head at the head. Hey, wouldn't it be fun if Darcy was there during the Ides of March? She would like that. "Whoa! There you go." He assured Caecilius.

"Thank you, kind sir." Caecilius turned to the three of us, completely flustered. "I'm afraid business is closed for the day. I'm expecting a visitor."

"But that's me, I'm a visitor. Hello." The Doctor greeted.

Caecilius blinked at the Doctor, further flustered. "Who are you?"

The Doctor gave no hesitation. "I am Spartacus."

"And so am I." Donna joined in.

"I am-" The words stopped in my throat, lodging there like a bad cough. Some dust probably got in my throat as we ran over. Yeah. That makes sense.

"Mr and Mrs Spartacus, what a lovely daughter you have." Caecilius praised us.

That-

That's not a thing

Thank the Author that Darcy isn't here. She'd have a field day with that.

"Oh no, no, no. We're not, we're not married or her parents." The Doctor explained.

"I'm not her mum!" Donna added. Was she horrified or embarrassed? I can't quite tell exactly. Maybe even both. I knew what I was though.

"I am confusion!" Like, I didn't even finish saying it? I mean I was gonna but I couldn't. Why am I suddenly being labelled as their child? I do not like this. Do not give me new parents-

He might be right

Holy shiitake he might be right

I mean I picked the ginger hair because the Doctor always wanted it and the bowtie too...and I became more outspoken because of Donna...and the gingerness is only a few shades brighter than her's-

Yeah Darcy can never find out about this

"Oh, then brother and sister, with a cousin." Caecilius decided. Slightly better than saying they were my parents. Slightly.

"Couzzzzin?" I asked, asking like an experiment from Stitch. It's the only way Terra Three could say the word, I've tried others ways. It always comes back to Stitch, don't it?

"Seriously?" Donna asked. She was offended now. That's fun. It's always great when companions get offended by something so fast.

Like we compared her to a 4H pencil but saying we're related is where she draws the line. As a pencil, she can do that as she pleases.

"Yes, of course. You all look very much alike." Caecilius decided.

The Doctor and Donna exchanged looks, looking each other over for similarities. "Really?" The two even looked towards me. All I could offer was a helpless shrug of the shoulders.

This is the price I pay for being included

I would rather remember the cousin bit as a Stitch thing than as a Saxon thing. He told everyone I was his cousin too. Lucy was the only one that ever doubted- her brains were scrambled before she could do anything about it. That was the worst. The Simm-Master and I didn't even look alike.

Back Home, I had family. They looked like me. They had my smile, my laugh, the same jokes about the same things. My cousins didn't look exactly like me, but they had enough similarities that it could be ignored. My brothers looked more like the Master than I ever will- blond hair, pointed chins, one brother even had his ears.

Mom looked more like Lucy. Mom let her hair down, in direct contrast of Lucy's usual updo. Mom had bright blue eyes, Lucy had dark blue. Mom always looked at me like I was a buzzing gnat, Lucy looked at me like I was an alarm with no snooze option.

Family.

They love you because they're contractually obligated!

*sparkles*

"I'm sorry, but I'm not open for trade." Caecilius explained, like he wasn't shifting my entire world view on it's axis.

All I wanted was to become Medusa. Why must I be punished for doing something I enjoy?

"And that trade would be?" The Doctor asked.

"Marble." He tapped his chest, smiling warmly and brightly. It made me smile right back. This guy was so nice. "Lopus Caecilius. Mining, polishing and design thereof. If you want marble, I'm your man."

The Doctor was barely paying attention to this spiel. He was tingling incessantly in my head. 'Do you see the TARDIS? Terra can you see it?'

'Around the wife to the right.' I answered, then blinked. I followed my own instructions. Sure enough, there she was. That blue box in all her stunning glory, placed beside other priceless artifacts.

She was a treasure, she deserved to be respected for it.

Yes I am praising a blue box. She's in my head, she can hear every word. I want her to hear it. I don't praise my friends enough, I should start. Donna admitted to feeling like nothing before the Doctor, that she didn't feel like the most important woman in all of creation. It's not my job to convince her otherwise.

I will start by praising the TARDIS who can't tell me off for being embarrassing. She can hide my bedroom but she cannot hide my affection.

The Doctor nodded at Caecilius, reaching into his pocket. "That's good. That's good, because I'm the marble inspector." He pulled out the psychic paper, flashing it at the Roman man before walking past. I followed giving a delighted wave.

I wonder if it came with a business logo. 'Spartacus & Spartacus & Spartacus: Marble Inspectors'. That would be awesome- time for more t-shirts! They'll go right beside the Hermits United ones.

Metella gasped in dismay. "By the gods of commerce, an inspection. I'm sorry, sir. I do apologise for my son." She reached for her son's wine bottle, dumping it into the small fountain behind her.

"Oi." Quintus complained.

That was good Roman wine, don't just toss it on our account. Who knows how Dionysus feels about wasted wine?

"And this is my good wife, Metella." Caecilius introduced her. The Doctor walked around her, keeping in pace towards the TARDIS. Donna and I lagged back to give polite smiles. "I must confess, we're not prepared for a-"

"Nothing to worry about. I'm, I'm sure you've nothing to hide. Although, frankly, that object looks rather like wood to me." The Doctor noted.

"I told you to get rid of it." Metella hissed, speaking in low tones to her husband.

"I only bought it today." Caecilius admitted.

"Ah, well. Caveat emptor." The Doctor cautioned.

"Buyer's beware!" I translated proudly, raising my arm up like a proud school child.

Caecilius hummed, rolling with it. Seriously, such a nice guy. "Oh, you're Celtic. There's lovely."

"The blue wooden box is a lovely find indeed, sir. You have good taste." I praised him. "Your household gods must be so pleased by how you decorate, and provide for it."

"The whats?" Donna whispered at me.

"Later." I told her.

"I'm sure it's fine, but I might have to take it off your hands for a proper inspection." The Doctor explained.

"Although while we're here, wouldn't you recommend a holiday, Spartacus?" Donna asked, giving the Doctor a challenging look.

Please don't start a fight here

I want these guys to think we're cool

Please Mom and Dad, don't embarrass-

Okay I can't make that joke. It's too funny.

The Doctor narrowed his eyes, trying his best to stay nonchalant. "Don't know what you mean, Spartacus."

"Spartacus, Spartacus, can we not do this in public? Again?" I asked.

Was I listened to?

What a funny idea that is!

"Oh, this lovely family. Mother and father and son. Don't you think they should get out of town?" Donna explained.

Well that was rude of her, forgetting Evelina. "Don't forget the daughter in the back." She was a nice girl, really deserved better than she was getting.

"How do you know that?" Metella asked.

I blinked, looking up at them. '...did I say that out loud?'

'You did.' The Doctor confirmed.

'Huh.'

"Why should we do that?" Caecilius asked, breaking up any awkward conversation.

"Well, the volcano, for starters." Donna revealed.

Caecilius and his wife stared at Donna, confused. They were looking at her like she was speaking Celtic again. "What?"

"Volcano." Donna repeated.

"What ano?" Caecilius asked.

"That great big volcano right on your doorstep." Donna explained, huffing in her usual irritation when someone was calling her an idiot.

See I was prepared to lie to cover Donna's ass. Always. Every time. All the time. The god, Vulcan, was a great stand in for just this moment. He's a god of fire. If I remember correctly, days to honor him with August 23 so this was convenient. Plus he married Venus so he's an all around hot dude. He gained that marriage hand through a pretty cool trick on his neglective goddess mom, so bonus points.

(I spent some time in ancient Rome before, okay? It was really fun- I got to help a slave girl marry a soldier. It really was adorable. The name Terra is actually Roman. I was literally born to be in this time.)

I was fully ready to pin Donna's story on Vulcan. The Romans would eat it up.

Right before I could even start I was interrupted by the Doctor.

"Oh, Spartacus, Spartacus, for shame. We haven't even greeted the household gods yet." The Doctor pushed our backs, herding us over to the plaque depicting their household gods.

"Oh no!" I yelped in dismay. "Household gods are a big deal. That's Vestia-"

"No time for that." The Doctor scolded.

"Aww...but this is the one time I know more than you!"

"They don't know what it is." The Doctor told Donna. "Vesuvius is just a mountain to them. The top hasn't blown off yet. The Romans haven't even got a word for volcano. Not until tomorrow."

"They do have a god named Vulcan, from which the word derives." I informed Donna with delight.

"Oh, great, they can learn a new word as they die." Donna snarked.

"That's how I learn new words." I told her. "Like...all my new words."

"Well they don't need to learn it at all." Donna hissed.

Ah.

Yes, that hurt.

I dipped my fingers in the ceremonial dish, splashing them on the plaque. 'Household gods, Author, whichever one of you is out there, get me out of the situation.'

"Donna, stop it." The Doctor scolded.

"Listen, Doctor, maybe Terra is fine with you telling her to shut up, and whatever sort of kids you've been flying round with in outer space, but you're not telling me to shut up." Donna scolded. "That boy, how old is he, sixteen? And tomorrow he burns to death."

"His sister is younger." I supplied, wincing. I heard it that time. "Poor thing..."

"And that's my fault?"

"Right now, yes."

Household gods, Mom and Dad are fighting. How do I make it stop?

This is worse than back Home. The Spencers do a good job keeping my brothers from watching them argue. They had to work hard to hide it from me. Now the Doctor and Donna were fighting. Did I have to step in to interrupt the fighting, like I did back Home?

"Doctor. Donna. Not in front of the gods!" I pleaded. "You're embarrassing me!"

Neither looked contrite at my scolding. If anything, they were more annoyed with each other.

"Announcing Lucius Petrus Dextrus, Chief Augur of the City Government." A man announced.

Thank you, Household gods and Author, whichever one of you actually did this for me.

The three of us turned back. The man himself- Lucius- was walking in, wearing a white cloak covering most of his body, and flanked by two soldiers. He wore a very stony expression, sneering at everyone in the room.

"Lucius. My pleasure, as always." Caecilius greeted, rushing to stand by his side.

"Quintus, stand up." Metella scolded. Quintus obeyed with an ever rebellious roll of the eyes.

"A rare and great honor, sir, for you to come to my house." Caecilius held out his hand. Lucius glared at it with utter distaste.

"The birds are flying north, and the wind is in the west." He stated.

"Quite. Absolutely. That's good, is it?" Caecilius asked.

"The bird is flying against the wind." I whispered to them. "He's telling them that somebody they know isn't who they appear to be, that they must be cautious of those without their best interest in mind."

Lucius narrowed his eyes my way. Ah, so lovely when we're called out so fast.

'Terra how did you know that?' The Doctor asked.

'Learned bird prophetic meanings in my twenties. Trying to impress a mentor who loved them.' I asked.

Lucius either heard me and didn't care, or hadn't heard. Given my luck I know which it was. "Only the grain of wheat knows where it will grow." Lucius told the family.

"There now, Metella. Have you ever heard such wisdom?" Caecilius asked his wife. He was no doubt wondering if she understood any of it.

"Never. It's an honor." Metella replied politely.

Caecilius motioned towards the Doctor, Donna, and I. "Pardon me, sir. I have guests. This is Spartacus and, er, Spartacus, and lastly Spartacus."

I waved at him.

"A name is but a cloud upon a summer wind." Lucius dismissed, narrowing his eyes on the Doctor.

"But the wind is felt most keenly in the dark." The Doctor countered.

"Ah. But what is the dark, other than an omen of the sun?" Lucius asked.

"I concede that every sun must set." The Doctor replied.

"Ha."

The Doctor motioned to Quintus. "And yet the son of the father must also rise."

"Damn. Very clever, sir." Lucius appraised the Doctor, looking more impressed than originally. "Evidently, a man of learning. The same cannot be said of your companion."

I glared right back. "Even so, I am not so poorly educated to miss your stone cold heart, Monsieur."

Hey wow when do I shut up?

Seriously where's her off switch? Can the voice box stop working sometime soon? I don't like this. Smart mouthing people in charge hasn't gone well for me lately.

The Doctor held my arm. The grip was tighter than needed. Donna took a stance at my side, glaring at Lucius. "Oh, yes. But don't mind us. Don't want to disturb the status quo."

Oh

Oh oh no-

Stick to the stuff you know-

"He's Celtic." Caecilius excused.

"We'll be off in a minute." The Doctor explained.

"Won't-" Won't cause a fuss, won't be a problem, won't trouble you any longer. Words caught in my throat. I coughed, trying to fix it. "Won't-"

Caecilius nodded at two slaves. They brought in the marble slab. "It's ready, sir."

"I'm not going." Donna shook her head.

The Doctor guided us both towards the TARDIS. 'Don't pay him any mind, Terra. He's just an augur. You got him good with that bit.'

'What bit?'

'About the stone heart. It was good. If he knew how smart you really were, it would blow his mind. We'll be long gone, maybe we could visit a different period in Rome. Let you talk about it however you like.'

'Wait what?' "Donna's right. We can't leave." I told him.

"We've got to." The Doctor insisted.

"Well, I'm not." Donna huffed.

"But Doctor, his marble-" I looked over my shoulder towards them. Caecilius was lifting a velvet blanket from the slab.

"The moment of revelation. And here it is." Caecilius boasted.

'Doctor look at it!'

The Doctor did so. He stopped us moving when he caught sight of it. The marble slab was dark green with silver implements. The implements were very similar to a modern day motherboard circuit.

"Exactly as you specified. It pleases you, sir?" Caecilius asked Lucius.

"As the rain pleases the soil." Lucius replied, stiff as a board.

The Doctor walked back over to it. I walked by his side, skipping. Just like that, the Doctor's convinced to stick around. We'll blow up Pompeii for sure by this time tomorrow! "Oh, now that's different. Who designed that, then?"

"My Lord Lucius was very specific." Caecilius explained.

"Where'd you get the pattern?" The Doctor asked.

"On the rain and mist and wind." Lucius answered.

"Water is bad for things like that." I explained, feeling ever so helpful.

"But that looks like a circuit." Donna pointed out.

"Made of stone." The Doctor agreed.

"Do you mean you just dreamt that thing up?" Donna asked.

Lucius sneered at her. Time to kill stone. It's possible, I'm looking at him. He can't move. It would be so fucking easy- oh wait, wrong stone statues... "That is my job, as City Augur."

"What's that, then, like the mayor?" Donna asked.

"Please don't mind her." I requested. "She's- uh-" The words got stuck again. I decided to just have a bit of fun. "-still new to Roman ways."

"She's from Barcelona." The Doctor excused. He turned us both around to whisper in Donna's ear. "No, but this is an age of superstition. Of official superstition. The Augur is paid by the city to tell the future."

I looked over towards the entrance to the back of the house. Evelina was walking out. Her skin was grayer and grayer, with heavy bags under her eyes. The yellow dress she wore didn't do much to convince me she was healthy. All it did was make her look more sickly.

"The wind will blow from the west? That's the equivalent of ten o'clock news." The Doctor explained.

"They're laughing at us." Evelina revealed. The others looked over to her. "Those two, they use words like tricksters. They're mocking us."

"Two?" I asked. "I assure you, Miss, my friends mean no offense."

Metella went to Evelina's swaying side. "I'm sorry. My daughter's been consuming the vapours." She excused.

"Oh for god's, Mother. What have you been doing to her?" Quintus asked, horrified.

"Not now, Quintus." Caecilius scolded.

"Yeah, but she's sick. Just look at her." Quintus told his dad.

Nobody ever listens to the teenagers.

"I gather I have more than one rival in this household." Lucius noted. "Another with the gift."

Metella's smile said it all. "Oh, she's been promised to the Sibylline Sisterhood. They say she has remarkable visions."

"The prophecies of women are limited and dull. Only the menfolk have the capacity for true perception." Lucius explained.

"I'll tell you where the wind's blowing right now, mate." Donna warned under her breath.

The world shook again. Everyone shifted about, the family looked ready to save the objects around the house. The tremor stopped before long.

"The Mountain God marks your words. I'd be careful, if I were you." Lucius warned.

"Consuming the vapours, you say?" The Doctor asked Metella.

Right yeah- danger-danger!

"They give me strength." Evelina argued.

"It doesn't look like it to me." The Doctor argued, still trying to comfort her.

"Is that your opinion as a doctor?" Evelina asked.

The Doctor tensed. "I beg your pardon?"

"Doctor. That's your name." Evelina replied. She sounded dazed, like something hit her on the head with this knowledge.

"How did you know that?" The Doctor asked, eyes wide.

Evelina declined to answer, focusing instead on Donna. "And you. You call yourself Noble."

"Now then, Evelina. Don't be rude." Metella cautioned.

"It's okie dokie, let her speak." I asked.

Evelina turned her head towards me. I tilted my head, curious to her answer. "You came from so far away...so very far away..."

I bristled at the remark. It was true, arguably I'd come from farther away than the Doctor and Donna. They traveled through time and space, I moved through whole realities to get here. That Evelina could see that...that she could even say anything about it...that was impressive.

And terrifying.

"The female Soothsayer is inclined to invent all sorts of vagaries." Lucius dismissed.

"Oh, not this time, Lucius. No, I reckon you've been out-soothsayed." The Doctor told him, looking at Evelina with an appraising eye.

Lucius narrowed his beady eyes on the Doctor. "Is that so, man from Gallifrey?" Lucius asked.

The Doctor whirled towards the Augur in shock. "What?"

"The strangest of images. Your home is lost in fire, is it not?" Lucius asked.

The world around us began to turn red. I could feel the heat on my skin, burning-burning-burning-it was so hard to breathe, to take in clean air. All of it was infected with them.

Yours will burn too, if I have anything to say about it

As much as I value human life, I can't risk the whole of creation on you.

The Daleks took Pyrovile, I can't fix that. Nor can I fix what you've done here without committing an apocalypse. Nor will I regret it.

Because I will see Jack again

I will see Martha

I'll see the Metacrisis

I'll...

I'll try to save Donna.

If it's her or Pompeii, there is no choice.

"Doctor, Terra, what are they doing?" Donna asked, scared.

"And you, daughter of...London." Lucius accused.

"How does he know that?!" Donna asked.

"They're psychic." I reasoned.

"More than they should be for this time." The Doctor argued.

"You, child of the stars." Lucius added. His sneer doubled. "Cast aside by your own god. Born from nothing, the same as your sight."

"Better born from nothing than of your sight borne." I smiled my least favorite smile at the Augur. "Tell me: which god provided your sight, allowed you to see things beyond? Who do you give your loyalty to?"

Lucius sneered but like with more hate. Like someone stuck a lemon in his mouth and then a dog shit on his shoe. He's wearing a sandal- that would be very unpleasant. "This is the gift of Pompeii. Every single oracle tells the truth."

Shiitake

Basketball on a stick

Fuck

That- that explains so much and I am now genuinely scared of what this means

I haven't been able to lie all day

Donna shook her head, fearful. "That's impossible."

"Doctor, she is returning." Lucius warned.

"Who is? Who's she?" The Doctor asked.

"And you, daughter of London. There is something on your back." Lucius warned.

Donna checked her back. The Doctor looked at her. I kept my attention on Lucius. "What's that mean?" Donna yelped.

"Child of nothing...they wait for you." Lucius warned.

I gave him a curious look. "Stone hearted...legend shall become history, three of the same shall cause the deaths of your empire, and the destruction of nature."

"Even the words Doctor and Terra are false." Evelina continued on. "Your real names are hidden. It burns in the stars, in the Cascade of Medusa herself. Lost in the Chaos...a traveler that will never tire...You are a Lord, sir. A Lord of Time." She began to sway. I rushed around the Doctor to catch her. "You-"

"Sleep." I instructed.

Evelina's eyes rolled back in her head. I caught her before she could hit the marble floor.

"Evelina!" Metella cried out in panic.

As I held the budding psychic, I reached for her bandaged arm. Sure enough, it was hard as stone beneath. She was already losing herself to the Pyroviles.

Wouldn't it be fucked up if I got a stone arm too?

==MGCB==

Metella took her daughter away to another part of the home. When the excitement died down, Lucius and his men left with their purchased marble. Quintus went off to drink, not that I blamed him. The Doctor and I asked to see the hypocaust where Evelina received her visions. Once showing us, he told us he was going to check on Metella and Evelina.

As the Doctor and I tried to heave off the metal grate, more ash flew up into my face. It burned worse than earlier. Do you know what it's like to breathe in a living thing, to feel something moving inside your lungs and know that no amount of coughing will get it out?

There was an alien shedding his old skin. That skin was stuck up my nose, crawling around my lungs trying to make it a permanent residence. I reached out to him.

'Doc Brown?'

'Everything alright? You looked shaken up earlier.'

'The sky is blue.'

'Sorry?'

'The sky is blue. You can't have the sex coin. I am not traveling in a monkey circus.'

The Doctor paused in his prying of the grill to eye me. Cautious and worried as ever. "Terra. What are you doing?"

"Trying to lie. I haven't been able to all morning." I answered. Fuck, didn't want to say that. Really didn't want to say that. Did I just answer any questions spoken too? What the HELL- "I love my boots. Your driving is awful. Donna is my favorite companion and I'm only saying that because I am still hopelessly in love with-"

I clapped my hand over my mouth, panting with the beats in my chest. Fuck I was scared. This was scary. I don't want to be like this. How do people live like this, telling the truth all the time?

The Doctor reached his hand towards me. I flinched back. What if he touched me, and I said how much I disliked it? If I admitted how much being touched hurt now? I couldn't do that to him. He would be crushed.

"Okay. That's new. This place just gets more and more impossible." He nodded at me. "Did you try a scan for anything?"

"W-with my sonic?"

"Yes." He went back to heaving the grill from the stone. "Mt hands are full of I would've."

I shifted nervously. Pulling mine out, I eyed the device. Combining the screwdriver with Miss Foster's pen hadn't taken any work. It even gave my sonic some interesting upgrades- new programs for me to use at my leisure. The sonic was such a beautiful device, a new fun thing...could it detect power on this level?

Scan me for something in the air itself? Something that's all around?

I don't think my sonic is capable of that just yet.

Caecilius walked back to us. I peeked up, tucking the sonic back in my pocket. The Doctor gave me a curious look.

"Different sort of hypocaust?" The Doctor noted.

"Oh, yes. We're very advanced in Pompeii." Caecilius explained with delight. "In Rome, they're still using the old wood-burning furnaces, but we've got hot springs, leading from Vesuvius itself."

"Who thought of that?" The Doctor asked.

"The Soothsayers, after the great earthquake, seventeen years ago. An awful lot of damage. But we rebuilt." Caecilius explained.

"Didn't you think of moving away?" The Doctor asked. He considered it before shrugging. "Oh no, then again, San Francisco."

'Nah, people still live in Pompeii in our time.' I told him. 'It's very pretty during the summer."

'You've been?'

'Seemed like a good idea at the time...'

Caecilius was still stuck on 'San Francisco'. "That's a new restaurant in Naples, isn't it?"

"Su-" I coughed. Turning my head away, I tried to avoid breathing in the ash. That would be hard, as this house had it pumping up like I would pump air conditioning.

As I coughed- in time with me- there was a rumbling below. The Doctor finally got the grill off. He leaned down to look below.

'We'll figure it out, Terra. I promise.' "What's that noise?" He asked.

"The-" I bit my tongue, hissing.

"Don't know." Caecilius answered. My slip sounded more like a cough, so I guess he wrote it off. "Happens all the time. They say the gods of the Underworld are stirring."

"They are-" I choked down the answer. Just because people asked, didn't mean I had to answer. Fuck I hate this. This sucks.

The Doctor rubbed my back. It soothed the aches, calming me down so I stopped coughing. I was gonna vomit at this rate. "But after the earthquake, let me guess. Is that when the Soothsayers started making sense?"

"Oh, yes, very much so. I mean, they'd always been, shall we say, imprecise?" Caecilius admitted. The Doctor and I nodded. I rubbed at my throat, trying to stop the soreness. "But then the Soothsayers, the Augurs, the Haruspex, all of them, they saw the truth again and again. It's quite amazing. They can predict crops and rainfall with absolute precision."

"Yet none of them speak of tomorrow..." I mused.

"No. Why, should they?" Caecilius asked. I blinked, fighting the urge to answer. "Why do you ask?"

"T-The- uh- Tomorrow! The sun will come out tomorrow...it's always a day away." I babbled. Author, please please let that be enough.

"The soothsayers, they all consume the vapours, yeah?" The Doctor asked.

Caecilius glanced at me, then back to the Doctor. "That's how they see."

"Ipso facto." The Doctor reached inside the grate.

I looked inside, trying to spot a Pyrovile through the smog. 'I shouldn't need to translate that, right?'

'Thought you would like it. A little translation loophole.' The Doctor joked.

'I mean yeah but like...' The game was very funny. Still it upset some part of me that Caecilius was being left out of the joke. That everyone was. Yeah, them calling us Celtic was funny for a while...the joke got less funny when people gave us those looks.

Those looks that said we didn't belong.

That we didn't fit in.

Like an American in a room full of Brits.

If they bring it up one more time-

The Doctor pulled out the small rocks. "They're all consuming this."

"Dust." Caecilius guessed.

"Tiny particles of rock." The Doctor answered. "They're breathing in Vesuvius."

'So the sonic shouldn't have noticed anyway.'

The Doctor's face went stony. Pun not intended. He stood up on his feet, marching towards where we last saw Quintus.

Caecilius and I watched him go, briefly confused. I stood up, smiling politely. "Pardon him, sir. He's a bit stressed." I cleared my throat, straight in bout my dress.

"It started out as a cough for Evelina as well." I tensed. The aged face of Caecilius tilted into a frown, expressive as a tragic Broadway song. "You must have the favor of the gods for that to start so soon."

Shite

That's not helpful

Sir you are awful at comforting people

Stuck with the values Mom pushed in my head, I smiled. "Thanks!" I skipped off after the Doctor.

He wasn't very chipper. That confused me. Usually things like this perked him up. New things, adventure, confusion, what more could he want? Was it that the sonic couldn't notice the odd ash?

"Doc Brown?" I asked, walking up behind.

The Doctor stopped. He let me catch up to his side. I brushed back my hair.

"So...we're going after Lucius, yeah?"

"Yes." The Doctor answered after a tense pause. "He knows more than he's saying. Do you remember what you said earlier?"

"He said a god gave him his visions." I answered, wincing. "Uh. Humans getting treatment from gods turns out to be aliens. Like the Jagrafass. Is that what you think's happening here?"

"Yes." The Doctor answered. Oh well he was definitely humoring me. I don't need that kinda snark right now. It's honestly not what I need here. Would it kill him to admit that this was aliens? "Exactly. Time to find local knowledge."

"But no Door's-In-Head." I chuckled. "That'd be bad."

"Very." The Doctor smiled too. The tension that was there eased somewhat. He wasn't good yet. It would be a slow process. "We'll stop this- whatever it is that's causing it."

"Course we will. We'll be marvelous!"

Together we walked up to a lounging Quintus. He was enjoying a new goblet of wine.

"Quintus, me old son. This Lucius Petrus Dextrus. Where does he live?" The Doctor asked.

"B-" I bit down on my tongue. Did I seriously know this answer too? I don't like that.

Quintus waved us off. "It's nothing to do with me."

'Give me the coin.'

'No! This is a gift for Carl!'

'Terra I need the coin'

'Nope. I got this.'

I knelt down by his side. "Let me say, Quintus." Quintus eyed me with a raised dismissive eyebrow. The classic teenager stare, it was familiar on my face. "Whatever Lucius is involved in, it's killing your sister." His eyes hardened, trying to be dismissive. "You saw her condition as well as I did. If the Doctor and I don't get to where Lucius Petrus Dextrus lives, then by this time tomorrow your sister will perish under Vulcan's wrath."

Quintus swallowed, fear in his eyes. Gotta activate that protective sibling instinct. He was the only one to show concern about her condition at that moment, worried more for her status as a Soothsayer than as a person. Quietus could hide it by drinking all he liked. I knew the look. "You can save her?"

I crossed my hearts. "Promise."

I will personally see to it that your sister is saved.

At whatever cost to me.

(Except the sex coin, I really like the sex coin)

==MGCB==

Quintus led the way by torchlight. The sun had long since set over Pompeii. The Doctor and I followed, tense for different reasons. I was worried for the future, of what failure here could mean, what damage my lack of lying could cause.

The Doctor's worries were harder to place. Well not exactly. I had a feeling about what caused him such distress. It couldn't possibly be true though.

Why would he worry about me?

The Master said it over and over again for months, that if he really cared he would've been there. The Doctor didn't care about me.

How could I be so important to him, after all I did to his precious Earth?

So yeah it was probably the whole 'humans being threatened by aliens' thing.

Quintus led us to the side of Lucius' house. "Don't tell my Dad." Quintus begged.

I ran up to the window climbing in like a spider monkey. Throwing open the shutters, I leaned inside. The hypocaust was fuming. The Doctor joined me.

"Only if you don't tell mine." The Doctor replied.

"Or mine!" I giggled.

Hahaha, Dad would lose his fucking mind if he heard me talking so much about Roman gods and non-Christian things

I leapt into the house. The Doctor reached down. "Pass me that torch."

The Doctor jumped in, taking my side. In one hand was the torch, the other held my shoulder.

I shrugged it off. With that handled I walked towards the curtain. The Doctor and Quintus followed me. Pulling back the curtain revealed multiple marble blocks of circuits.

"The liar. He told my father it was the only one." Quintus huffed.

"It was. All the others are varied just slightly, enough for a real motherboard." I explained before smacking my own cheek. "I really hate this. This sucks. It sucks so much."

"She's right. Plenty of marble merchants in this town. Tell them all the same thing, get all the components from different places, so no one can see what you're building." The Doctor reasoned.

"Which is what?" Quintus asked.

"The future, Doctor." Lucius emerged from the shadows, guards behind him. "We are building the future, as dictated by the gods."

"What future, I wonder?" I turned back to the marble blocks. Puzzles were always fun. When was the last time I did a puzzle like this? "Turn this way, add one, carry the three, drop down flip it and reverse it-"

"Keep that one upside down." The Doctor advised.

"Reverse it!" I repeated. Did he really think I couldn't do a computer puzzle? "Done! Ooo it's so pretty! What does it do?"

"Enlighten me." Lucius ordered.

"What, the soothsayer doesn't know?" The Doctor taunted.

"The seed may float on the breeze in any direction." Lucius dismissed.

The Doctor sighed. "Yeah, I knew you were going to say that." The Doctor tapped a marble slab. "But it's an energy converter."

"An energy converter of what?" Lucius asked, sneering as usual.

"I don't know. Isn't that brilliant?" The Doctors beamed. "I love not knowing. Keeps me on my toes. It must be awful being a prophet, waking up every morning, 'is it raining?' 'Yes, it is, I said so.' Takes all the fun out of life. But who designed this, Lucius, hmm? Who gave you these instructions?"

"I think you've babbled enough." Lucius decided.

"Lucius, really, tell us." The Doctor asked. "Honestly, we're on your side. We can help."

"You insult the gods. There can be only one sentence. At arms." Lucius ordered. His soldiers raised their short swords.

I slid into a defensive position. Any weapon I had would complicate matters beyond necessary. The only way I could get away with it was with killing Quintus too. It would be awkward to explain a gun to Pompeii era people.

"Oh, morituri te salutant." The Doctor muttered.

"Celtic prayers won't help you now." Lucius dismissed.

If they bring it up oNE MORE TIME-

"It just means we salute those that will kill us." I supplied. "You can salute us back whenever you like."

"But it was them, sir. They made me do it. Mister Dextrus, please don't." Quintus pleaded.

"Come on now, Quintus, dignity in death." The Doctor conceded. "I respect your victory, Lucius." He held out his hand. Lucius put on his classic sneer in reply. "Shake on it? Come on. Dying man's wish?"

Lucius denied it.

The Doctor lashed out, quick as a whip. He snapped off the Augur's right arm. It had become solid stone. Lucius yelled out in pain.

Quintus gawked. "But he's-"

"My friend called you stone hearted. Wasn't a general insult, was it?" The Doctor "Show me."

Lucius threw off the cloak, exposing the arm. Or what remained of it. The Doctor snapped off a good chunk, to the elbow. Everything to his shoulder calcified into stone. This must've been painful. The whole while of it, every single cell shifting into stone. Who knows what else of him is stone, hidden beneath common decency. "The work of the gods." He spat at us.

"He's stone." Quintus stated, his jaw dropped.

"Knew it!" I cheered.

"Armless enough, though." The Doctor tossed the arm up. "Whoops."

I pulled out my sonic, pointing at the puzzle circuit boards. The sparks sent the marble to the ground. "Quintus!" I ordered.

Quintus tossed the torch at the closest guard, giving us an escape route.

I knew I was right not to kill him.

The three of us ran to our escape window. I leapt out, barrel rolling on the ground. Once on my feet I gave a quick glance back to be sure the boys were following me.

The Doctor made sure I was out before shouting "Run!"

We ran down the road. We stopped near a square as things quieted down.

"No sign of them. Nice little bit of allons-y." The Doctor mused to me, smiling with the inside joke. "I think we're all right."

"You had to say that, huh?" I asked.

"We are!" He whined.

"But his arm, Terra." Quintus panted. "Is that what's happening to Evelina?"

"You've seen it. I felt it." I replied. "The skin beneath her wrapping- it's a slow process. She still has-"

The world shook. I stopped, trying to find the source. The ground was shaking. Looking up another alley, I saw things falling over.

"What was that?" The Doctor asked. The ground shook again.

"The mountain?" Quintus asked.

"Closer." I knelt down, feeling the dirt beneath my hand-

Hey another coin!

I picked it up, smiling proud. This coin was 'VI'. The sex position was...doggy. Complete with leash! Darcy will want both. Honestly these were so cool, I kinda wanted to keep it too.

"Footsteps." The Doctor realized.

Oh right. A Pyrovile was about to kill us. Money can wait for later.

Quintus "It can't be." Quintus shook his head.

I tucked the coin aside with the other. "The footsteps are below." As I spoke, items up the way fell over as the Pyrovile marched down. Chickens were clucking in fear, and clay potts shattered on the ground.

"What is it? What is it?" Quintus asked.

"Swim away!" I yelled, running off towards Foss Street. The hypocausts behind us began to blow off.

The Doctor and Quintus started running then.

==MGCB==

At Caecilius's house, the shaking was worse than ever. We weren't running very fast, compared to a giant rock monster.

"Retreat! Evacuate!" I shouted as I ran into the villa. "Swim. A. Way!"

The humans watched me in confusion. This was a really great call to retreat. Why was nobody obeying it?

The Doctor ran in. "Caecilius? All of you, get out."

Donna walked out, Evelina just behind her. "Terra, Doctor, what is it?"

"We got a MERMAID TAIL!"

The Doctor stepped in to translate. "I think we're being followed."

On cue, the hypocaust exhaust flared. The metal grill flipped off, clattering to the ground.

"SWIM AWAY!" I yelled again. "Why is nobody swimming?! The world is on fire!"

"Just get out!" The Doctor shouted.

The humans just stood there, watching it all. The Pyrovile climbed out. His rock body was lit by hot orange magma. The magma eyes were narrowed- could a thing be narrowed if it didn't have pupils?- on the Doctor and I. That didn't feel nice.

"The gods are with us." Evelina gasped in shock and awe, no doubt ready to worship.

I was fed up with people ignoring my command to swim away. Reaching into my Bag, I pulled out the only gun approved by the Doctor. They said it best:

It's Nerf or NOTHING

I dipped it into the small pond, sucking in water. Funny story...this was actually the gun Martha and I made. The fake Time Lord killer. Just a water gun we painted black...well she painted it black, I added bedazzles and glitter glue. And maybe a bit of acid- just to test it out! You all would do that same, don't judge me!

Like Martha did...

"Oh! Terra, bloody genius! Water! We need water." The Doctor turned to our accomplice. "Quintus. Help her. Get water. Donna!"

A servant walked up, bowing before the Pyrovile. "Blessed are we to see the gods." The god thanked him by burning him alive, to nothing but ash in a single second.

The Doctor stepped ahead, over the pile of ash. "Talk to me. That's all I want. Talk to me. Just tell me you are. Don't hurt these people." The Doctor asked.

The water gun was filled up. I looked up, watching Donna be abducted. That was a problem for a few minutes from now. The first problem was, and really always should, be the fire.

"Talk to me. I'm the Doctor. Just tell me who you are." The Doctor asked. He was always good at stalling.

I ran up to his side, firing a steady stream of water at the Pyrovile. When my gun ran out of ammo, Quintus came up with a bucket. That finished the job enough. The Pyrovile screamed as it fell apart.

"I did it!" I cheered. Raising my hand, I waited for a high five. The Doctor stepped forward to get a better look at the rocky corpse.

"What was it?" Caecilius asked from behind us.

"A Mountain God." I answered. "Straight from Vesuvius."

"Close. Rather a carapace of stone, held together by internal magma." The Doctor corrected. "Not too difficult to stop, but I reckon that's just the foot soldier."

Wow.

So nobody was gonna thank me.

That's fine.

I'm not upset.

"Doctor, Terra, or whatever your names are, you bring bad luck on this house." Metella stated. She was shaking with fear. In her mind, we'd just killed a god with water. Not exactly a thing that endeared people to you.

"Your son saved us for sure. Give him a thanks?" I suggested.

Metella and Caecilius reached out for their son. Quintus actually smiled at their praise. Ah, being ignored by your parents for your more talented sibling.

I got you, Quintus, I got you.

"Still, if there are aliens at work in Pompeii, it's a good thing we stayed." The Doctor reasoned.

"Hey Doc Brown?"

"Yeah Terra?"

"She's been quiet for too long again."

The Doctor scrunched up in confusion. "What-Donna?" He looked back. It was so fun to watch understanding come to him. "Donna!"

He's slow but he gets there in the end.

We all do...

==MGCB==

After I refilled my water gun, we asked where Donna went. Evelina pointed us towards the Sibylline Sisterhood. That got us out of their villa so I don't blame her for going along with it. Sneaking in was easy too- I guess Soothsayers don't worry too much about security when they can just foretell who and when is coming.

So really I expected a better welcoming committee than a bunch of Soothsayers- one of which still with Amy Pond's face- trying to kill Donna Noble. They had her tied spread eagle on a stone slab, the ropes tight and unyielding.

That was quite rude and not ginger of them.

Donna wasn't taking it while either. Donna "Listen, sister, you might have eyes on the back of your hands, but you'll have eyes in the back of your head by the time I've finished with you. Let me go!"

The second highest Soothsayer raised up a blade. "This prattling voice will cease forever." Spurrina gripped it, preparing to bring it down on Donna's heart.

"Oh, that'll be the day."

The Soothsayers whirled to face us. I whacked the Doctor's arm. He whined. "Doc Brown! Be nice. I still love you, Donna!"

Donna huffed, relaxing in the bindings.

"No man is allowed to enter the Temple of Sibyl." Spurrina yelled our direction.

"Well, that's all right. Just us girls." The Doctor and I walked closer to the Soothsayers.

They reeled back in shock. A man in their presence, how dare! I walked around them to reach Donna. They parted for me like the Red Sea.

"Do you know, I met the Sibyl once." The Doctor rambled. "Yeah, hell of a woman. Blimey, she could dance the Tarantella. Nice teeth." The Doctor walked to my side.

I was standing by Donna's head, aiming my sonic at the ropes. "He didn't notice you'd left. I had to tell him."

Donna scoffed. "Oh that sounds right."

"I'm loving the toga. Purple suits you!" I told her.

"Does it?"

"Truth be told, I think she had a bit of a thing for me." The Doctor was still rambling on about nothing. "I said it would never last. She said, I know. Well, she would."

"Donna, I cannot tell a lie right now." I cheered. The ropes on her wrist popped off. "Purple looks good on you. It's a very noble color."

"You can't lie? What's that about?" Donna asked.

"I like the toga." The Doctor added in, brightly.

I snapped off the last of the rope. Donna sat up, rubbing her wrists. "No don't do that- I have rope burn cream and bandages in here." Inside my Bag, there was an ointment. Darcy got into a lot of bad situations over the years. Last Year gave me a great chance to restock my supplies. "Here ya go!"

"Thanks." Donna started rubbing the cream onto his wrists. "Oh that's really good."

Spurrina watched us Time Lords, eyes wife. "What magic is this?!"

"It's a topical ointment that will prevent bruising-" I supplied.

"Let me tell you about the Sibyl, the founder of this religion." The Doctor explained. Right. Not every question was directed at me. Gotta remember that, that's not cool. "She would be ashamed of you. All her wisdom and insight turned sour. Is that how you spread the word, hey? On the blade of a knife?"

"A pretty knife! Could I have that, actually?" Darcy was getting a whole ass gift basket at this rate. What could I put in her gift basket? A cool ceremonial knife for sure… sex coins… dildos… poisons? A new shirt would be good. Oh and hydrogen peroxide!

"Yes actually." Spurrina answered. "But it will welcome your friend first!"

"Nope!" I hopped towards her, quickly disarming her.

Come on

I grew up by Darcy Anderson

You think you can just stab me?

Don't try to trick me! You know who I am. It doesn't work!

"Show me this man." A raspy, crackling voice ordered. The voice of somebody who smoked a pack a day for twenty years, then chewed on gravel just to be sure they lost it.

The Soothsayers turned towards a curtained area of the temple. They knelt down in respect to her. Spurrina was the only one still standing.

"High Priestess, the stranger would defile us." Spurrina argued.

"Let me see." The High Priestess ordered. "This one is different. He carries stardust in his wake."

The Doctor cheerfully stepped up. I smiled at Spurrina while tucking away the knife. She wouldn't be needing it, would she? "Oh, very perceptive. Where do these words of wisdom come from?" The Doctor asked.

"The gods whisper to me." The High Priestess answered.

"Their gifts are two fold aren't they?" I walked closer to the curtain. "Might I see your gifts, High Priestess? May I gaze upon rockin' divinity?"

The High Priestess must have sent a psychic message to the guards. They pulled aside the curtains, revealing their High Priestess. Her whole body was stone. She looked very much like a Pyrovile. Her eyes were stone, rather than the bright magma from earlier.

She wasn't hot.

She was stone cold!

...hahaha

"Oh, my God. What's happened to you?" Donna asked.

Right yeah. Priorities!

"The heavens have blessed me." The High Priestess explained.

The Doctor came up. "If I might?"

The High Priestess held up her hand. The Doctor lightly touched her arm. The Priestess gave no reaction.

"Does it hurt?" The Doctor asked.

"It is necessary." The High Priestess dismissed.

"Necessary for who? You, or to the 'gods' that whisper to you?" I asked. The Master told me shit like that for weeks. That my pain was necessary. That the suffering I went through was important, needed for the glory of the new Time Lords.

What sucks was for awhile I believed him

I think I still do

But...but that's not...I didn't need to be hurt. Not for a crazy Time Lord, or a 'mad god'

The High Priestess gave an answer I would've given a year ago. "The voices."

"Amor fati." I nodded. "I love my fate, and think all that happens in it necessary."

The High Priestess nodded in agreement. "That is...not Celtic."

"Finally!" I threw my head back, praising the Author for this one kind deed.

This is more frustrating than Donna calling us Martian

"Is that what's going to happen to Evelina?" Donna asked. She looked towards the other Soothsayers. "Is this what's going to happen to all of you?"

Spurrina pulled back her robe sleeve. She shoved off her stone upper arm. "The blessings are manifold."

One by one, the Soothsayers revealed their matching stone bodies. Looking back I saw Amy Pond's actress got two of them. That's...well it's not great...but it looks super awesome.

Donna went to us, horrified. "They're stone."

"Exactly. The people of Pompeii are turning to stone before the volcano erupts." The Doctor explained. "But why?"

"It was necessary, as the gods said." I answered. Then I winced, hating this whole fucking thing. Was I really that desperate for attention and recognition that I answered every single question?

When did I turn into Hermione Granger?

Not that that's a bad thing, she punched people in the face at age 14, she's a queen

But like...I don't deserve to be like her.

The Doctor turned to me. 'You don't like answering questions?'

'No.'

'Okay. Got it. I'll be more careful. We still have got to know what this has to do with the volcano.'

"This word, this image in your mind." The High Priestess wondered. "This 'volcano'. What is that?"

"More to the point, why don't you know about it?" The Doctor stepped closer to the young Pyrovile. "Who are you?"

"High Priestess of the Sibylline."

"No, no, no, no. I'm talking to the creature inside you." The Doctor corrected. "The thing that's seeding itself into a human body, in the dust, in the lungs, taking over the flesh and turning it into, what?"

The High Priestess nervously shifted on her elegant bedspread. "Your knowledge is impossible."

"Oh, but you can read my mind. You know it's not." The Doctor stood straighter, more commandingly. "I demand you tell me who you are."

The body reeled back, shuddering and shaking. She spoke, not just with her voice. Something spoke over her. The second voice was deep and foreboding, coming out like an echo from hell. "We are awakening!"

"The voice of the gods." Spurrina decreed. She knelt with her Sisters, rocking on their thighs.

"Words of wisdom, words of power. Words of wisdom, words of power. Words of wisdom-"

"Name yourself." The Doctor ordered. "Planet of origin. Galactic coordinates. Species designation according to the universal ratification of the Shadow Proclamation."

"We are rising!" The High Priestess yelled.

I stepped forward. "WHO ARE YOU!"

The alien inside shrieked. "PYROVILE!" They called out the answer, yelling like I was throwing water at them.

"Pyrovile. Pyrovile. Pyrovile." The Soothsayers chanted.

"What's a Pyrovile?" Donna asked us.

The Doctor answered before I could. "Well, that's a Pyrovile, growing inside her. She's a halfway stage."

"-the full stage was what attacked us in the villa." I supplied. "A fully grown adult mountain god."

"And the breath of a Pyrovile will incinerate you, Doctor and Terra." The Pyrovile warned.

I raised my water gun. The Doctor did much the same, his tiny and yellow while mine was big with gemstones all over it.

"I warn you, we're armed." The Doctor ordered. "Terra, Donna, get that grill open."

"What for?" Donna asked.

"I'm a faster shot. You go." I instructed.

"Just." The Doctor huffed. "What are the Pyrovile doing here?"

"We fell from the heavens." The Pyrovile was still speaking through the Priestess. Donna walked off to do the grill as ordered. "We fell so far and so fast, we were rendered into dust."

"Right, creatures of stone shattered on impact." The Doctor reasoned. "When was that, seventeen years ago?"

I should really go help Donna

But also: gun

"We have slept beneath for thousands of years." The Pyrovile hissed.

"Okay, so seventeen years ago woke you up, and now you're using human bodies to reconstitute yourselves. But why the psychic powers?" The Doctor asked.

"We opened their minds and found such gifts."

Looking back, I saw Donna struggling with the grill. I couldn't leave the Doctor alone. Not with fire psychics around here.

Besides I could easily swap this out for the real thing

I'm fine with everyone here dying

(Sorry Amy Pond's face. I'll make sure Amy has a nice life when I meet her)

"Okay, that's fine." The Doctor replied. "So you force yourself inside a human brain, use the latent psychic talent to bond. I get that, I get that, yeah. But seeing the future? That is way beyond psychic. You can see through time. Where does the gift of prophecy come from?"

There was a metal clang.

"Got it." Donna told us.

"Hop down!" I called back.

"What, down there?" Donna asked, disgusted.

"Yes, down there." The Doctor replied. "Why can't this lot predict a volcano? Why is it being hidden?"

The High Priestess possessed by a Pyrovile snarled at us.

"Sisters, I see into their minds. The weapons are harmless." Spurrina revealed.

"Whoopsi!" I shrugged, keeping my water gun aimed towards the High Priestess.

"Yeah, but it's got to sting." The Doctor fired.

I did as well. The High Priestess shrieked in pain. The Doctor started running.

"Sorry!" I called as I ran after him.

"Get down there!" The Doctor yelled at Donna.

She hopped down. I jumped down, barely avoiding her on the ground. The tunnel was heated, steam and smoke coming off from various hot pockets. The Doctor joined us.

"You fought her off with a water pistol." Donna laughed. "I bloody love you."

"Thanks!"

The Doctor nodded up the rocky path. "This way."

"Where are we going now?" Donna asked.

I pointed my thumb that way. "Inside Vesuvius!"

Donna's eyes widened. "No way."

"Yes, way." The Doctor replied. "Appian way."

I giggled. Donna did too.

==MGCB==

The wall to Vesuvius was long and hot. Annoyingly hot. So hot that a part of me regretted making my hair this long. The air conditioning nanobots were at work in my clothes, keeping me cool enough that I actually felt normal.

Every step hurt. Thinking about where we were going...about what would happen the next time we left...how this day would end. It pained something deep inside.

It was different from killing during the Year. These deaths weren't being reset in a while. These were fixed. Set. If I killed them, they were gone. They were going to die because of me-

No.

Not me- the Pyroviles did this.

Well the Daleks started it.

Yeah let's blame the Daleks for everything.

The Doctor and Donna weren't having this ethical debate. They were going to have this debate. They just didn't know I already decided on a fate.

"But if it's aliens setting off the volcano, doesn't that make it alright for you lot to stop it?" Donna asked.

"Still part of history." The Doctor insisted.

"But I'm history to you." Donna argued. "You saved me in 2008. You saved us all. Why is that different?"

"Some things are fixed, some things are in flux. Pompeii is fixed." The Doctor argued.

Donna "How do you know which is which?" Donna asked.

"Because that's how we see the universe." The Doctor stopped in his mad pacing. I stopped beside him, facing off towards our destination.

Screams

My hand- burning

The Master was so angry, trapped in his fob watch.

The universe always gets her due

"Every waking second, I can see what is, what was, what could be, what must not. That's the burden of a Time Lord, Donna. And we're the only ones left."

"It hurts." I admitted. My arms wrapped around me. Suddenly, in all the heat of the tunnel under an August sun, there was no warmth. "To see...to know...it's a thousand 'what if's all bouncing about in my head...I can feel which ones can change...which ones must not...and- and it-"

Gunshots

Two of them almost in sync

Him just that little bit faster

That was all it took

"-it hurts."

I couldn't look at them. A wave of grief came over me. A whole three years of pain hit me at once. Or maybe, a better analogy was that it had been crashing into me for three years and I felt it all anew in a split second. Three years of pain repeating in a blink.

Falling into the Void. The emptiness, the voices, the feelings that never quite got shaken off in regeneration...stuck to my mind like lint in pocket.

All the failures in my years here...how many was it? Quick bit of math here...183-179...4 fucking years of this

It hurts so badly. Knowing what I could've stopped, who I could've saved. Knowing that I could only stop four dying today. Because if I tried to save more...if I let myself believe I could stop more...that only brought me pain.

Close Pandora's box right back up.

I don't need that right now.

"How many people died?" Donna asked.

I opened my mouth. The Doctor yelled louder. He scolded Donna for daring to ask anything. "Stop it. Terra is caught up in this. She can't lie to you. Don't make her answer."

That made Donna pause. She was a rare breed of companion that didn't want to hurt me. "Then you tell me, Doctor, how many people died?"

"Twenty-"

"20,612." I answered, gasping when I finished.

Oh Author

Oh Author please no

Please please don't let me be right-

"10% of the population!"

"2.47 billion. And I killed all of them. In a single second."

All of Japan in flames...

The paper factory used to smell like fart...it all smells like ash now...

The breath I let out came with shivers.

I wasn't crying.

Fuck you. That's just sweat.

"Is that what you can see, Time Lords? All twenty thousand?" Donna asked us. Fuck she was good at that...making me wonder about what was right, about what actually was the better choice. Ugh I loved and hated her for it. "And you think that's all right, do you?"

No. I think it's awful.

But it's all of them, or you.

I will always choose our companions

...I'm so tired

Ahead there was a roar. A great roar like the monsters trapped in the Underworld were being unleashed.

"They know we're here." The Doctor reached for my hand. Fearful, wanting contact, wanting something to connect to, I took his hand. "Come on."

==MGCB==

The center of Vesuvius was on fire. There was fire shooting up from various spots in the rocky ground. Rivers of magma flowed from deeper beneath. The Pyrovile walked the grounds with ease, never once fearing the magma.

"It's the heart of Vesuvius. We're right inside the mountain." The Doctor told us.

We stayed low and hidden behind various rocks. The Pyroviles were all around, walking about as their plans for the day neared completion. I spotted the remains of their ship in the distance, the silver components of a spaceship standing out amongst all the red and smoke.

"They're getting excited." I noted. "Their plans are near manifest. I would be excited too."

"There's tons of them." Donna confirmed, panting as the heat made the air so dry.

"What's that thing?" The Doctor pulled out a telescope. "And no Terra, you don't need to answer that."

"Whichever one of you looks at it, better hurry up and think of something." Donna asked. "Rocky Four's on its way."

That confused me. A film from the 80's was on it's way? How was that possible, I hadn't done anything to make that happen.

"That's how they arrived." The Doctor told us, lowering his telescope. "Or what's left of it. Escape pod? Prison ship? Gene bank?"

"Escape pod. Damn it!" I slumped back against a rock formation.

Only two aliens would be escaping from there today

Well I mean three, humans are alien to Pyrovile

Whoops

Only three aliens would be escaping from there today

(Perfect recovery!)

"But why do they need a volcano? Maybe it erupts, and they launch themselves back into space or something?" Donna asked.

"It's worse." I answered. "Stop asking things!"

Donna reeled back at the anger in my voice. "Why? What's wrong with you?"

"I am standing around Pompeii which enhances psychics abilities and I have those and I can only tell the truth and I feel compelled to answer every single question asked in my presence!" I snapped. "So I would appreciate it if you held back on the question things!"

Donna gasped. "Are you turning to stone too?"

"Gah! That's a question!" I reached for my sleeve, pulling it back. The Doctor put his hand over mine. "Doc-"

"She's not stone." The Doctor answered. "She's a Time Lord. The Pyrovile could work for a hundred years and not get even a patch."

"Oh. That's nice." I slumped against the rock in relief. "I don't wanna be a rock."

The ground began shaking.

"Doctor, Terra, it's getting closer." Donna reminded us. She was clearly terrified, clearly scared for her future, still she remained with us as brave.

"Heathens!" Across the rocks, Lucius stood among the rocks. His robe was peeled back to reveal the broken stone arm. His idea of honoring the gods, no doubt. Revealing the pain and suffering he underwent on their behalf. Meanwhile the High Priestess hid away behind curtains and the like. Was this truly honorable, or was it more because he was in their presence so it was fine? "Defilers! They would desecrate your temple, my lord gods."

The Doctor held my hand. "Come on."

"We can't go in." Donna argued.

"Well, we can't go back." The Doctor argued back.

"Crush them. Burn them." Lucius shouted at his gods.

Fuck your gods

They're just fire

I can kill fire

Right on cue a Pyrovile blocked our path. Quickly I raised my water gun and started blasting. The Pyrovile screamed, cowering away from me.

Excellent

The three of us ran towards the escape pod.

"There is nowhere to run, Doctor, child of nothing, and daughter of London." Lucius warned.

"Is he saying we've hit rock bottom? Cause I've got a shovel and I'm ready to dig!" I asked.

"Now then, Lucius. My lords Pyrovillian, don't get yourselves in a lather." The Doctor joked. I giggled for his sake. The Doctor smiled at me. Donna glared at us, unamused. "In a lava? No?"

"I thought it was good." I complimented.

"Thank you, Terra. So was your's." The Doctor praised, warmly smiling at me.

"I made a joke?"

The Doctor's eyes widened. He turned his head towards the Pyroviles in front of us. "But if I might beg the wisdom of the gods before we perish. Once this new race of creatures is complete, then what?"

"My masters will follow the example of Rome itself." Lucius decreed. Or perhaps threatened, cause this felt like a threat. "An almighty empire, bestriding the whole of civilization."

"But if you've crashed, and you've got all this technology, why don't you just go home?" Donna asked them.

"The Heaven of Pyrovillia is gone." Lucius answered before I could.

"What do you mean, gone? Where's it gone?" The Doctor asked.

The Daleks took it

Davros took it

But she'll return then

All of them will

Every last one of them, for one moment, will be together

That's a long ways away...so much more will happen in the meanwhile...

"It was taken. Pyrovillia is lost." Lucius spoke for the Pyrovile. "But there is heat enough in this world for a new species to rise!"

"Yeah, I should warn you, it's seventy percent water out there." The Doctor warned.

"Water can boil. And everything will burn, Doctor!" Lucius shouted.

"Then the whole planet is at stake." The Doctor realized. "Thank you. That's all I needed to know. Terra. Donna."

I was running before he even finished the sentence. The escape pod was waiting for her occupants. Once I was inside I stared at the marble slabs and the life ending lever below.

The Doctor and Donna came in behind me. I used my sonic to close the door behind them. The Doctor came to my side, looking at the same lever that would kill twenty thousand people.

20,612

"Could we be any more trapped?" Donna asked,

"Yes. This could be a stationary room." I answered, then smacked my own face. "Stop doing that, me!" Scolding myself always came easier than praise.

The escape pod began heating up. I cared very little about the events going on outside.

I had to

I couldn't let myself feel that grief again

It's not allowed

"Little bit hot." Donna noted.

"Do you see?" The Doctor asked.

"I do." I replied.

I see what must be done

The Time Lord might not like it...but I see it

"See what?" Donna asked.

"Look." The Doctor pointed at the marble slabs. "The energy converter takes the lava, uses the power to create a fusion matrix, which welds Pyrovile to human. Now it's complete, they can convert millions."

"But can't you change it with these controls?" Donna asked.

"Of course I can, but don't you see?" The Doctor waved his arm at the lever and marble. "That's why the soothsayers can't see the volcano. There is no volcano. Vesuvius is never going to erupt. The Pyrovile are stealing all its power. They're going to use it to take over the world."

"But you can change it back?" Donna asked.

"Physically? We won't break a sweat." I answered. "It'll take a toll emotionally."

"How come?" Donna asked.

"Because we'd be sending all the power right back to Vesuvius." I explained. "All that power, that force, to the heart of a volcano. To Vesuvius on volcano day."

Donna's eyes widened. Her heart breaking right before my eyes.

"That's the choice: Pompeii or everyone else."

Including you.

We saved you in 2008

And if we chose Pompeii, it'll have been for nothing

You'll die

Martha will die

All our friends will die. Worse they'll have never been born. Or maybe, turned into them.

"Oh, my God." Donna looked at the lever with a new horror.

"If Pompeii is destroyed then it's not just history, it's me." The Doctor explained. He spoke through clenched teeth. His brown eyes and tense shoulders and the grip he had on the lever showed all the signs of a flashback. "I make it happen."

"Doctor, Terra, the Pyrovile are made of rocks. Maybe they can't be blown up." Donna suggested.

The Doctor reached over, twisting various bits and bobs. He was priming Vesuvius for the explosion. "Vesuvius explodes with the force of twenty four nuclear bombs. Nothing can survive it. Certainly not us."

Donna "Never mind us." Donna dismissed.

The fire was getting worse outside. More and more Pyrovile trying to kill us.

"Push this lever and it's over." The Doctor put his hand down over it. "Twenty thousand people."

"Legend shall become history." I repeated the prophecy I gave to Lucius. Just yesterday, when prophecy and knowledge were being tossed all around. "Three of the same shall cause the deaths of your empire, and the destruction of nature."

I put my hand over his. When I looked up at him, that wave of grief came over me again. The Doctor was heartbroken over this decision. This was probably so close to how he killed his people.

Was it a lever, Doctor?

I can never see it being anything but a big red button

'You don't have to push it. I could do it for you.' I offered.

The Doctor was still looking back into my eyes. His jaw trembled with restrained tears.

'I can push it.'

'I don't want this on your conscience.' The Doctor pleaded with me.

'I don't want it on yours either.' I told him. My fingers wrapped around his, squeezing them in assurance and comfort. 'I'm here for you. Let me help you.'

This only seemed to hurt him more.

Another hand came on top of ours. We looked over to see Donna watching us. Her cheeks were wet. Just in the contact of her hand on mine, her grief was added to my own. All three of us were sharing our grief, mixing and mingling until it was hard for me to place who started what.

We were the same here

A human, a Time Lord, and a reality jumper

We all were the same

As one, we pushed the lever down.

Pompeii burned.

==MGCB==

The sky was gray. The escape pod sent us off miles away from Vesuvius, we could still see the damage it was bringing.

This was my third time seeing ash instead of snow.

The Doctor, Donna, and I ran in the burning streets of Pompeii. The psychic connection was broken- snipped inside of me like a frayed ribbon. Still I heard the screams of everyone in this city. Just like I heard them screaming in Japan.

Their deaths hurt just the same.

Children screamed for their parents the same. Only sometimes were they answered. As we ran, I saw so many fallen already. Crushed beneath collapsed walls, trampled beneath the panicked crowd.

The TARDIS was calling out to me. Her singing in my mind came louder than the surrounding screams. I focused on that- on her- on reaching her.

Donna was screaming at them all, begging them not to run to the beaches. It wouldn't do anything. People were still running out to it. She tried helping children find their mothers and fathers.

There were just so many...

20,612

"Come on." The Doctor told me.

I obeyed.

It hurt just the same as Japan

The ash on my head was familiar now...

On Foss Street, the villa was half collapsed already. The family of four were curled together, protectively over Evelina.

Five minutes

Just give me five minutes

"Gods save us, Doctor." Caecilius cried out.

Quintus looked up at that cry. He looked right at me. Evelina stared right at me.

I told Quintus that his sister would die under Vulcan's wrath if he'd didn't help me

This is how I repay them

It wasn't Vulcan's wrath. It was my selfishness. My refusal to lose any of my friends.

(I also said I'd do it at whatever cost to me)

The Doctor walked off into the TARDIS, leaving Donna and I behind him.

Time to pay.

"No! Doctor, you can't. Doctor!" Donna pleaded.

I walked to the TARDIS.

==MGCB==

The TARDIS was cold. The air clean, smooth, clear. Like stepping into a store while it was raining. Everything about it made me feel safe, that everything was fine now

The Doctor flipped the handbrake. No doubt warning Donna to get inside.

I walked closer, taking place by his side.

The Doctor flipped the handbrake up. The noise stopped. "We can't save them."

"That would mean going back over our own time stream." I agreed. "That doesn't stop us from doing anything now."

"Don't you think we've done enough?" The Doctor asked. He wouldn't meet my face. He focused instead on the console. "Legend became history, and everyone dies."

I sucked in my lip, biting down on it. "I know this must hurt, reminding you of- of our planet."

"Yes. It is. It is exactly like that." The Doctor finally raised his head to look at me. "Because I want to go back and save them. If I could, I would. But I can't. I can never go back." He choked on a wet sob. "I just can't, Terra, I can't."

"Sometimes...in the Year...I had to walk away from the worst places...so many people hurt and I couldn't help them." I admitted. The Doctor looked up at me. Talking about the Year just...wasn't on. I hoped doing it now would help him. "But I made time. I helped someone. Because...because if I could save just one...even for a little bit...that's better than doing nothing."

The Doctor sucked in a breath. He clenched his teeth, gripping the handbrake again. "It's not fair."

I took his side, holding the free space on the handbrake. "I know."

For a moment I shared my feelings in our minds. I let him feel what I felt. The sharp brutal pain of living in at all before, in a different land. Feel my grief at the only choice available to us. My rage at the Pyrovile, for manipulating and using the people until this was the only wag to save everyone. My confusion about why it had to be them, to these people. The Doctor could feel my pain- shared by all the Soothsayers and psychics and mediums who I could feel naturally, all of them betrayed by their gods.

Pandora's box opened.

I held it open that little bit longer...letting the Doctor feel my hope too.

Just that little bit-

A tiny spark, beneath the gray snow

A future not yet lived.

A small family that could make it out of here...right outside the doors

The doors swung open. Donna stormed in, her purple toga blowing. "You can't just leave them!"

The Doctor lifted his hand. "Quite right."

"You've got to go back-"

"Donna." The Doctor interrupted. "I said you were right." He looked at me, smiling in thanks. "You both are." He pushed down the handbrake.

I smiled. Happily I skipped around the console.

Donna was still confused. "But- that noise only happens when you're leaving."

"Not every time." The Doctor flipped another switch. The TARDIS shined brightly from the inside. This was definitely bright enough to be seen through the thickest cloud of ash.

The Doctor and I opened the doors. The TARDIS moved to be in front of Caecilius and his family.

The Doctor and I held out our hands.

"Come with us."

==MGCB==

We brought them to a clearing, a safe distance from Pompeii. You could still see the gray cloud, see the ash falling down. I could hear the screams- no doubt the Doctor did as well.

The Romans watched, horrified. Caecilius held his wife's hand. Quintus and Evelina stood apart as they tried to understand the depth of the tragedy.

"It's never forgotten, Caecilius." The Doctor promised him. "Oh, time will pass, men'll move on, and stories will fade. But one day, Pompeii will be found again. In thousands of years. And everyone will remember you."

Caecilius held his wife tighter. Metells held him right back, hiding her teary face in his robe.

"What about you, Evelina? Can you see anything?" Donna wondered.

Evelina closed her eyes to focus. "The visions have gone."

"Imagine an event so powerful it rippled back on itself." I explained. "Vesuvius cracked open the very fabric of time. Not for long, barely a second. It was enough for you and all your sisters the gift of prophecy. That echo made a whole Pyrovillian alternative! But not anymore. You are free." I promised.

Evelina smiled, relieved and thankful. Quintus stepped up to her side to hold her hand.

Siblings giving each other comfort.

I'm all for that kind of solidarity

I'm glad for you, Quintus and Evelina.

"But tell me." Metella spoke up. "Who are you, Doctor and Terra? With your words, and your temple containing such size within?"

"Oh, we were never here. Don't tell anyone." The Doctor requested.

Caecilius stepped closer to his smoldering city. His words wrenched my hearts. "The great god Vulcan must be enraged. It's like some sort of...volcano. All those people."

I hugged the Doctor's arm. He hugged back. Slowly, we made our way back inside the TARDIS.

The door closed. Their fate was in their own hands now. We'd done all we could.

"Thank you." Donna spoke up.

I hugged her. Donna hugged me back.

She gives good hugs

Even if I don't like hugs in general, I can give one to Donna

"Yeah. You were right. Sometimes I need someone." The Doctor admitted.

I pulled away from Donna, throwing my arms up. "Welcome aboard!"

Donna laughed. A proud smile came on her face. That was the Most Important Woman in the Universe. "Yeah."

==MGCB==

Six months later

Caecilius was panicking. He'd lost it! He hadn't meant to lose it. He distinctly remembered where he put it. Maybe Metella would know what happened to it...may the Gods help him

"Metella, my love, have you seen that clasp?" Caecilius called out. "The beetle one. The Egyptians do love a scarab."

His wife approached him. Her lips were curled in delight as she held up the clasp. "Here we are. I was giving it a polish. Now calm down."

Caecilius accepted it. He attached the shining clasp to his robes. "If I get that contract for the marble granaries of Alexandria, we'll be rich. You'll see."

Metella hummed.

Caecilius caught sight of his daughter, trying to walk behind him. She wore a bright pink dress, shorter than her knees and with no sleeves.

People could see everything!

By the gods!

"Hold on there, Evelina." Caecilius scolded. Evelina rolled her eyes to the sky. "You are not going out wearing that."

"Don't start, Dad." Evelina replied. "It's what all the girls in Rome are wearing."

Caecilius mentally stuttered. He didn't want to limit her interactions. She had been closed off from people her age all her life, since her visions first started. If she was making friends...gods if he held her back again-

Terra said Evelina was free.

"See you later." Evelina kissed his cheek, rushing out from their villa again.

Something clicked in his head. "Are you seeing that boy again?"

Quintus walked in as Evelina ran out. He was standing proud, official papyrus scrolls in his hands.

"Oh, look at Quintus. My son, the doctor." Metella beamed with pride.

Quintus rolled his eyes, cheeks flushing in embarrassment. "Mum, I've told you. I'm not a doctor. Not yet. I'm just a student of the physical sciences."

"Well, that's a doctor to me. Give thanks to the household gods before you go, there's a good boy." Metella instructed. She turned to her husband, frowning. "Come here, let me fix it. You've got that folded all wrong."

Quintus walked to their household shrine. Three figures were there, along with their temple. Quintus dipped his fingers in the ceremonial jar. He sprinkled his fingers at the plaque. "Thank you, household gods. Thank you for everything."

Their marble Terra, Doctor, and Donna smiled down at him. Quintus could feel stronger after giving his thanks.

At the same time...thousands of years away...their gods never felt weaker.

==MGCB==

AN: Okay! Yes I checked. The sex coins are real, their Greek name is 'spintriae'. They are so funny.

In my mind, Terra got connected to their thing when she sniffed the coin at the beginning. The sonic not scanning is it bullshit, maybe it would, but for right now I'm saying it won't.

I hope you guys like it. This was a challenge, keeping Terra honest for her answers and just general conversation. That seemed like a fun concept I could expand on, Lucius saying they could speak truth. I've already hinted that Terra is a bit gifted in those abilities so I thought 'why not have fun with it'? Even if you dislike it, I hope it was a fun read.

There. Onto better things...HAPPY NEW YEAR! Time for 2020 to fuck off.

The chapter is late because I had finals, Christmas plans, and other personal stuff. This is 4 weeks late and I'm only a little bit sorry. Because today is Special Day and I am completely fine.

Wanna know who else is completely fine? Captain Jack motherfucking Harkness

It's just so good. As I'm writing this there are three hours left before showtime and I am so excited. I don't even care (much) that the Discount Hospital Horse is gonna be in it. We get Captain Jack!

A reminder that a review is always welcomed! Or checking out my tumblr at AuthorA97 writing updates. I wanna hear from you guys!

Thanks to TNTVGC for favoriting and following