Chapter Two

The Doctor had said goodbye to Jack and Martha, Mickey, Sarah Jane, even Rose after a fashion. Donna was standing on the beach, there for her friend as always, but she felt like she was somewhere else, even someone else completely. She knew the Doctor would never stay with Rose, and that Rose would never leave without the Doctor, so the Doctor's clone (they had taken to calling him Pretty Boy, a moniker Rose liked immediately even without understanding the joke) had stayed behind with her, giving her the happy ending she'd wanted, and allowing the Doctor(and)Donna to travel time and space forever. Forever was an awfully short time.

They were back on the TARDIS only minutes later, planning out their next 'vacation spot', which by God wasn't going to have giant life-altering beetles or diamond canyons with parasitic consciousnesses as house guests. Her hands shook for a second, then the feeling passed and she turned toward him, smiling. "Any ideas, Martian?"

"How about Felspoon? Or have I told you about that one? Beautiful place, mountains like you wouldn't believe...." The Doctor's tone was light, but Donna could tell he was worried.

"Watch it, Doctor, I know just as much as you now."

The Doctor looked at her for a moment. "I know, Donna. You're brilliant, just like me. Probably more so."

"Exactly. I'd call you a genius, except I'm in the room." The words felt foreign in her mouth, but she continued. "Felspoon sounds marvelous. Fantastic!" Another one. It couldn't be helped.

The Doctor walked over and helped her pilot the TARDIS. After all, being made for six pilots, an extra pair of hands couldn't hurt, but Donna couldn't help noticing that he stayed near her, constantly glancing in her direction. It was as if he expected her to fall over at any second.

They both knew Donna was stronger than that. She'd never been weak, even as a child, and she wasn't going to start now. Any other human would have died within minutes of a human-Time Lord metacrisis, but not Donna Noble. She would stay strong until the end, and she hoped with everything in her that the Doctor somehow, through some miracle, could save her. Having his brain, though, she knew it was impossible. And having his brain hurts. A lot. She didn't know how he could stand it.

"Donna, we could go to Felspoon any time. Let's go see someone from the past. Your choice."

Any time. They could see Felspoon any time. He was choosing to ignore it too. Maybe he had a plan after all. "Well...." Donna rolled the word around in her mouth, considering. "I've always wanted to meet Charlie Chaplin," she admitted. "Always funny, that Charlie Chap-Chap-Chap-" Donna panicked, but couldn't seem to make herself stop. "Chap-Chap-Chap-"

The Doctor masked his concern poorly by pretending to reach around her and flip a switch, resting his hand on her shoulder. "Chap-Chap-Chap-....A good chap, that's what he is." She broke away and checked the scanner, shaking. "Don't you think so, Doctor?"

The Doctor smiled and agreed, but they both knew she couldn't handle it much longer. A human brain could only take so much information, and the Time Lord consciousness currently swimming around in Donna's head was going to give her an aneurysm, quite literally.

"Doctor?" Donna's usually loud and sarcastic voice was now quiet and full of fear, but she'd made up her mind. She wasn't going back; she couldn't. "I want...." She paused and he saw her eyes momentarily lose focus. "I want to stay. Please, tell me I can stay with you."

"Donna, you'll always be with me. You think after all we've done, the Ood and the Pyrovile and Jenny, that I'd ever forget you?" She answered with a slap across his face, something he obliged under the circumstances. For a dying woman, Donna Noble had a few good smacks left in her.

"Listen, Martian, you know very well what I mean. Cut it out with the crybaby act and answer me!" Donna was starting to feel dizzy, but she didn't care. If she was going to die, she wanted to do it properly, more important and worthy than her mother had ever given her credit for. He'd shown her what she was capable of and she wasn't settling for anything less. When he didn't answer she tried a different approach, reaching out for one of his hands. "Doctor, I'm not leaving you," she told him sincerely.

"Donna...." The Doctor could hardly bear to speak the words; giving voice to the truth only made it that much more painful. "Donna, you're going to die. You know what I have to do....please, I can't let you die like this." He put one of his hands on her face, but she pulled back with such ferocity she almost fell to the floor. He tried to help her but she backed off as steadily as she could and refused to come near him.

"Die like this? The best I've ever been in my life? Doctor, all my life people have told me that I'm useless, just a temp from Chiswick, nothing special." She faltered slightly, choking back tears. "And I've always believed them. Until you came along and told me different."

She could see the Doctor's eyes cloud over and she knew she was hurting him, her best mate. He was only trying to help, but she wasn't going to stop until she had her say. "You made me so much better, Doctor. Told me I was brilliant and wouldn't shut up until I believed you. I won't go back, Doctor, you can't make me." She grabbed onto the console to maintain her balance, holding out a hand to stop him as he approached her. "Please....please don't make me go back."

The Doctor knew that if he had any chance of saving her, he would have to act quickly. Donna was growing weaker by the minute, even her attitude showed it. Donna Noble had never begged before, at least not for her own life; she was better than that. He took a cautious step toward her and took it as a sign of her exhaustion, not her complicity, that she did not back away. The Doctor hated what he had to do to save her life, but he couldn't stand by and watch another friend die. "Donna, just let me...."

Donna heard nothing after her name. It seemed that the cells in her brain were burning up faster than they'd anticipated. She was dying, and there was nothing she could do to stop it; even the mind wipe wouldn't save her now in all probability. Probabilities, ratios, radicals, numerals.... "The square root of pi is 1.772453850905516- Oh, my head...." she muttered.

"Donna! Donna, stop!" She felt her legs give out as he called to her. The Doctor caught her before she fell and she tried to smile knowing that he'd risked another Donna Noble slap to keep her from being injured. Not that it made a difference at this point.

She could vaguely hear the Doctor crying and she realized that no one in her life, except her gramps of course, probably cared for her as deeply as he did. She was his best friend too. "I'm not leaving you either, Donna," he whispered in her ear as he eased them to the floor, settling Donna against him. "Hands," she teased, but he just pulled her closer and she smiled. She realized how hot she must feel compared to him. Why is it so warm in here?

The Doctor held Donna for several minutes as she grew weaker. She could still talk, one of the blessings of the situation; Donna could never keep quiet, even if she couldn't move. "Doctor, it'll be okay. You'll find someone else to keep you out of trouble, I know you will. Remember that girl from the Library? I bet she could keep you in line...."

Donna stopped to take a deep breath and looked into the Doctor's eyes. She'd overheard the two of them in the library that day, how the woman (River, her name was? It was getting harder to remember specifics) had said he looked so much younger than the other times they'd met. He certainly looked older at that moment than she'd ever seen him.

"Stupid codependent Martian," she teased him softly. "You saved her, and you're mad because you can't save me. You don't need me, Doctor. You'll be fine," Donna assured him.

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To be concluded....