The Doctor was silent, then he asked in a low voice, "What did you see?"

Katie shook her head, looking lost. "I saw…pictures. A lot of pictures. Pictures scattered about, like someone threw all the pictures out of an album. No, like a bunch of movie clips all jammed together. There is…there was a…a planet. A very red planet with silver edges. There were glass cities and tall proud, brilliant people. Circles were everywhere, and there was a gorgeous language being spoken."

Katie smiled, looking breathless as she continued. "Then the cities faded into the distance. It was the same planet, and there were fields and silver trees and two suns and mountains! It was…" Katie blinked, starting to understand what she had seen. She looked at the Doctor, mixing emotions crossing her face.

"That was Gallifrey, wasn't it?" She stepped a little closer to the Doctor, the console still in between them. "That was your home, wasn't it? The one that you lost."

"Yeah."

Katie looked about say something, then decided against it.

"What else did you see?" the Doctor asked, his tone flat. Katie seemed almost afraid to speak, but continued, looking down.

"The same planet. The same places, but it was covered in…in bodies. Bodies that were both alive and not. There were these…trashcan looking things. Upside down trashcans covered in bumps, with a plunger and egg beater attached to them like arms. They were fighting with the people on the planet. The battle was never ending, and the warfare was…indescribable. There are no words for it."

"The Time War."

Katie glanced up at the Doctor then back down again. To the Doctor, she seemed to resemble a very frightened child talking to an angry parent. "It must have been," she agreed. "I couldn't have pictured it before, and now I can't see how it would be anything else."

She fell silent again. "You saw more," the Doctor said, tone still flat.

"I did." Katie swallowed hard, knowing she had to continue. "I saw the planet from up above. High, high above. I could see the battle raging on the surface. I saw it spreading to more and more planets, like…like sparks leaping across a canyon to keep a fire going. I felt reflections of pain, horror, loss, responsibility, and anger. Such anger. Anger at so many things."

Katie blinked, a single tear creeping down one cheek. "And then everything stopped. The planets disappeared, and all the emotions became one all-consuming feeling of regret."

The Doctor was silent, his face stiff. Katie wiped under her eyes and took a deep breath, still not making eye contact with the Doctor. The look in the Doctor's eyes scared her. She hadn't wanted to remind him of those memories. He felt such pain at them, such regret. She knew he felt them, even now. It was almost as though she could feel what he was feeling.

"Did you only see the Time War?"

Katie bit her lip, debating her answer, deciding to go with the honest one. "Yes. I did. Random things, people mostly, with feelings attached. A man who felt weird, like he shouldn't exist. He had a name attached to him, something to do with a burning forest that wasn't really burning. Another man, one who was very close to your heart, but he's dead now. Lots of women. Amazing how many women were in your memories. A few really stood out. I think I felt Ace. Very explosive child."

A slight smile touched the Doctor's lips. Katie felt a little better and continued. "There were a few more recent girls. Ah, there was a black girl. Smart, kind of quiet. It felt like you didn't really see her though, but she had a sense of…I think it was loyalty about her. Determination and absolute loyalty. Before her there was a redhead. She seemed more live-wire-ish, like you wouldn't want to cross her. A bit thick and noisy, but resilient."

The Doctor's smile had grown past the ghost stage. Obviously these were much nicer memories. "That's almost all of it, at least of the clear stuff that makes any sense. The rest of it is a jumble. There was one other girl though, really recent. She had a lot of emotions tied to her. I couldn't begin to sort them all out. A blond girl, with a lot of pink and blue. She felt very naïve, and very vulnerable, but also very…I don't know. Very human."

The Doctor's eyes got distant again, but this time from grief. Katie shrank backwards, certain she'd crossed the line again. The Doctor's eyes focused again, noticing her position. His brow furrowed. Worry mingled with curiosity in his voice. "Kathryn?"

"I didn't mean to remind you. I know that these things have to hurt."

"When you get to be my age, everything hurts."

"Yeah, but I said I'd stay out of it."

The Doctor studied her for a few moments. "And now that you have asked, you're worried I'm going to leave you behind, particularly after what you just did."

"Yeah," Katie said quietly. She looked up at him. "Are you going to?"

The Doctor looked astonished, and more than a little hurt. "After everything…after all these months, you still have to ask?"

"Yes, I do," Katie answered instantly.

"Why?"

"Because I still don't know how you can accept me."

The Doctor couldn't find an answer for this.

"I didn't enjoy it. What I did. I didn't want to."

The Doctor swallowed. "I know."

"I felt like I had to. Like I had no choice, and no one else would do it, so it had to be me. I knew that if I didn't, I would be responsible for even worse horrors than what I did. I couldn't…I couldn't put that on anyone else."

The Doctor smiled lightly. "And that's why you stay."

Katie looked at him, startled. The Doctor was already grinning and moving around the console. "So where should we take our two newest passengers first?"

"Someplace where we can live in peace."

Katie and the Doctor turned to the doorway leading into TARDIS. Katrina was standing there holding Jaya. Katrina's face was pale, but she held herself steady. "I want you to take us somewhere were we will be safe. We have relatives in the mining colony on Praxill Three. Take us there."

Katie and the Doctor set TARDIS down as gently as they could, very aware of the silent Katrina. Jaya watched everything with wide eyes.

"We're here," the Doctor said. "About a block down from the address specified. Do you want an escort?"

"No. I can take it from here." Katrina looked steadily at the Doctor. "Doctor, I want to thank you for caring for Jaya and I, and for getting us here safely."

"Anytime."

Katrina nodded, then turned for the door.

"Katrina," Katie called, taking an involuntary step forward. Katrina stopped but didn't turn around.

"Yes?"

"Katrina I…I'm sorry for what happened. I didn't…I didn't mean to—"

"Don't try Katie," Katrina said, turning around to face her. "The letter my brother left for me told me about what happened. He lived a happy life, at least. It turns out he was the man we all regarded as a grandfather. These people are his real grandchildren. He left instructions to care for us. Aiden arranged everything."

Katrina took a breath before continuing. "He told me to forgive you. He knew that you never meant to let go, that it was the Angels influencing you. But I…I don't think I can."

Katie breathed in deeply, and nodded. "I wouldn't expect you to."

Katrina seemed to have more to say, but instead she pursed her lips and turned around. As she closed the door behind her, Katie heard little Jaya's voice in her head.

I forgive you.

Katie sank to the floor, sobbing. The Doctor wordlessly walked over to her and crouched next to her, holding her as she leaned into him and cried.

Sometime later, Katie was finishing a glass of cold, dark tea. She had washed her face, and gotten into different clothes, also refilling her bag at the same time. Anyone seeing her wouldn't have had any clue as to her recent meltdown.

She stepped into the console room, where the Doctor was down under the floor grates again, repairing the cord he had ripped out earlier.

"Almost done?"

"Just finished," he said, climbing out. He gave her a look. "You know, you're going to have to start fixing her yourself, if you insist on damaging her this way."

"Well, if I still had the manual, it would be easy. But someone threw it into a star."

He smiled lightly and turned a few dials on the console. "I think it's time you learned about another lever."

"Is it the one that has the words "Never Use" printed under it?"

"No. It's the one next to it," he said, pointing. Katie walked over to look.

"What's it do?"

"Gives TARDIS almost complete control over where we go. We just have to help hold her on her course."

Katie smiled broadly. "Then let's do it."

The Doctor hesitated. "You sure you're all right?"

Katie's smile faded a little. "Yeah. I'm all right."

Knowing full well what she meant by that, the Doctor grabbed the lever and yanked it sideways. TARDIS started to shake as she took off, Katie and the Doctor working in tandem to hold her steady.

*Constructive critisisim welcome, praise happily accepted, flames not wanted*

So, now Katie has the Doctor's memories, and she's just committed genocide. Isn't that a grand combination to have in a girl like her?

My next episode is titled, "Rifts are Funny Things." I wonder how many of you can guess what happens next?