Well…I finally got around to writing an author's note (sorry, I'm used to a different site that does it separately from the story, bear with me here) This story started off as a one-shot I thought of while I should have been doing geometry homework. Then I found it a few weeks later, and decided we needed to hear from Tish as well, and the rest just sort of came. Thank you to all that reviewed, and no, this is not the last chapter, this is just me trying to cram three author's notes into one. Enjoy!
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Dear Doctor,
I couldn't find you in the console room, so I thought I'd just e-mail you.
There, that was a good start. Something simple, nothing suspicious, nothing too horribly domestic…not yet anyway.
I've just sent a letter to my sister back in London, and she's finally gotten around to writing back.
He had said she could write and contact her family if she came with him, it should come as no surprise that one of them had written back. Though, that wasn't what was worrying her.
She was wondering if maybe we could…
No, that wouldn't work. He could easily just say no that, throw on his "Oncoming Storm" look and pilot them as far away from Earth as he could get. That was his typical response to mentions of her family, even if it had nothing to do with actually seeing them. It was as if he was afraid of the idea. Figures, the Oncoming Storm's worst fear: family.
I know you're not a big fan of the whole 'family thing', but my sister Tish said…
That wouldn't work either. Bringing the Doctor's weaknesses to light was never a good idea, even in a generally friendly manner. Normally, Martha would have no problem with this, she always figured it was good for him to hear that he wasn't infallible once and a while, to make him think about himself for a minute. But right now, she needed something from him.
I need you to meet my sister, Tish, just for a minute.
It was so out of his league. The exact opposite of something he would do. Sure, the Doctor was perfectly fine killing off whole hordes of evil space-demons with one wave of that screwdriver of his, if it meant saving a planet or the universe or something. That was normal for him. But meeting someone's family…it was so alien to him.
Meet my sister, or she'll die.
Oh, yeah. That was brilliant. Make him meet Tish by telling her she'll be killed if he doesn't, perfect. They'd meet, she'd live, and the Doctor would think he'd have saved her sister's life. Fantastic, for a lie. But then, Martha had never really been any good at lying. Maybe she should just scrap the whole thing.
How are you Doctor? Just though I'd e-mail, nothing at all dramatic happening in my life right now, not at all. My sister Tish sends her love…
She couldn't do that. "No meeting, no acceptance," Tish had said, "That's it." Anything but love in that example. No, Martha had to get the Doctor and Tish to meet, and if it meant addressing his worst fear in the process, so be it. She opened up her e-mail, and apologized quietly as she wrote.
Dear Doctor,
I couldn't find you in the console room, so I thought I'd just e-mail you. I'll admit, I'm a bit scared to ask this of you face-to-face anyway, so I suppose this works out in the end. Though if you really want to talk face-to-face about this then bring it on. I may be scared of the question, but I'm not scared of you.
A few days back I sent a letter to my sister, Tish. I told you about her, the stubborn one I said reminded me of you sometimes. I love her to pieces, and a lot of the time growing up, she was the only thing I had even resembling a friend, I'd be crushed if I suddenly didn't have her. Even if I am on the other side of the universe from her. I suppose though, that's why I'm asking you this.
In her letter, she gave me a sort of ultimatum. She said she was a bit angry with me for leaving like this, which in her language means she's about ready to throw me off the tower of London. She refuses to accept me, refuses to be ok with what I'm doing, until she meets you. Now before you go all "I don't do domestic" on me, let me explain. I love Tish, she's my sister and my best friend all rolled into one, and there isn't anything I wouldn't do for her. You'd only have to see her for about a minute for her to be ok with it, I just want to know that she's not angry. It's just one trip back, one visit, one more person to meet.
You have to understand; didn't you ever have someone you'd anything for?
I know this is a lot to ask, and I'm sorry. But I need you to do this. Just once. Please.
Yours,
Martha