A/n: You don't know how warmly thrilled I am that people actually wanted to read the ending to this story. Thank you so much for your interest!

IT DOESN'T END THERE - PART 9

Oi, Spaceman

Up and down went the moving parts in the column as the TARDIS operated in walrus mode. Bright blue and glowing, it was the main source of light in the control room. The rest of the lights the TARDIS had dimmed to half their usual strength. They were travelling backwards in time; slowly making passage against the flow of the time currents and the destination was preset to Alpha Centauri, 1 July 1912.

The Doctor wiped the tears from his eyes and did his best to focus on the view screen showing the temporal vortex outside the ship. 'Oh, Donna.' He sighed. Her suffering was entirely his fault. The sound of Donna's screams earlier echoed endlessly in his recent memory. It was yet another horrible guilt ridden nightmare to add to the collection of horrors he kept in his head.

A shrill pitched whistle shattered the powerful mental echo.

The Doctor whipped around, checking his instruments. "Oh-no-what's-wrong? What-happened?" He yelped, jamming his glasses on his face and peering at the status reports that were reading normal. He looked up at the bright blue column, letting out a frustrated breath. "What's the matter ol' girl, eh?"

"Oi, Spaceman!" A familiar irritated voice spoke up from behind him. "I'm over 'ere."

The Doctor startled and spun around to see Donna sitting up on the floor.

"Donna!" He leapt to her side, kneeling down beside her on the decking. Fresh tears sprang into his eyes and he grabbed her into a hug. "Donna! I am so-so sorry."
"Mmph ... Doctor ... choking ...!"
"Sorry!" He let go of her and looked at her through his black-rimmed glasses. "Are you alright?"

"Ye-ah." She breathed, "more or less, I reckon ... cor, are you deaf or what? Y'must'a been a million miles away just now."

The Doctor felt a nervous tension in his body. Sure he hadn't heard her calling him over his memory of her own screams. Sure he hadn't even noticed that the TARDIS had turned the lights back up and it was currently as bright as day in the control room. But on the other hand Donna had just been through a hell of a lot and all she seemed to be was tired.

"Donna," he fretted, "do you remember what happened to you?"
"The Chameleon Arch." She answered simply and they both looked up to regard the fateful headset still dangling over their heads. "I wasn't conscious the first time when all the Time Lord information got extracted from my head. I only remember seeing those guys coming into the job office to get me and that was it for me until you came. Doctor, why'd I pass out like that?"

The Doctor frowned, "that was a fail-safe in case some random idiot did something that might make you remember and trigger the meta-crisis." He felt another painful stab of guilt. "I am so sorry, Donna."
"Doctor. And-I-do-mean-this..." Donna gritted her teeth, grabbing his wrists and staring sincerely into his eyes "... will-you-please-cut-that-out!" She bellowed in his face.

"I'm fine now." She reassured him in a gentler voice, letting go of his arms. "Although I don't know ... I think ..." She put her hand to her chest, "uh, where's your stethoscope?"
The Doctor stared at her blankly, still stunned, watching for more terrific reactions as he pulled the medical device out of his pocket. Silently he put the tips in his ears and pressed the diaphragm against the left side of her chest.

Her heart was beating perfectly ... except there was an echo. He moved the diaphragm over to the right side of her chest. It was the exact same story. He didn't know how she would take this news. 'Well, here goes nothing ...' he swallowed anxiously and rushed his next words. "Both-your-hearts-are-fine-Donna-it's-amazing-that-you-survived-at-all!" Trying to ease the feeling of nervous tension in his body the Doctor took off his glasses and pocketed them. "It's a positively brutal procedure." He gritted through his clenched teeth, gesturing unhappily to the headset overhead. The very fact that something on his own TARDIS could cause such horrific pain to someone he cared about made him positively furious.
"Yeah ... well ..." Donna sighed wearily.

"Wait a minute!" With a jolt Donna was fully awake. "Both my hearts? You just said I have two hearts!" Donna repeated, staring at him wide-eyed in shock realisation. "... Like you have."
The Doctor looked her in the eye. His hands were sweating and he gulped. "Yes."
"... So what you're saying is ... I'm not human anymore."

"Well ..." He began reluctantly, a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach with the idea even as he mentioned it. "The Chameleon Arch could turn you back ..."
"Oh, no-way-am-I-going-through-that-again!" Donna vaulted clear off the floor in protest and backed away from him. "You're barmy if you think I'm up for another round'o'that!" She gestured furiously at the headset.

"Good." The doctor answered flatly. "That's two of us then." Moving into action he jumped up onto his feet as well. "Right!" He announced loudly and clapped his hands together. It was sheer relief to the Doctor to hit the switch and send the dread machine up to the roof. "Glad to have that settled."
"Good." Donna agreed.
"Good." The Doctor repeated hollowly and cleared his throat. Settled? Was it really? He couldn't help but think that perhaps the word was a bit premature.

Maybe the issue wasn't entirely settled so long as the device remained in existence but it was by far the best solution he could come up with at the present moment. "Actually you know I should probably dismantle that thing." He found himself babbling his train of thought aloud, putting his hands in his pockets and avoiding her gaze. "It seems to cause more harm than good."
"Might be an idea there." Donna answered back in a more relaxed voice. Out of the corner of his eye the Doctor watched her go sit down on the jump seat.

The Doctor felt a blush, realising he'd thought a few too many sentences out loud again. "Then again it's not that I'd wish anyone to join up to be a life-long member of an extinct species, Donna, and I've really got no right to take that choice away from you besides" he back-pedalled. "It's just that I don't want-."
"It doesn't matter what I am." Donna interrupted. "So long as I'm here with you ... I mean ... it's not as if my mouth's suddenly grown funny-looking tentacles, has it?"

The earnestness in her voice accompanied by the jocular reflex brought a fresh welling of tears to the Doctor's eyes. Trust Donna to be so brave when he himself was crumbling.

When the Doctor finally got up enough courage to turn his gaze back towards Donna she was watching him from the chair with a startled look on her face.

"What's the matter?" He asked worriedly. There were so many differences between Gallifreyan and human he wouldn't know where to start guessing. It was safe to say she had a lot of adjusting ahead of her. "Are you alright, Donna?"

"Oh, I was just thinking. You know how it is with temporal genes." The corners of Donna's mouth were quirking in quiet amusement. "Got a lot more to think about now, haven't I?" Donna's tone of voice was bright. "Like ... you've never considered yourself Normal, have you, Doctor? I mean on the whole scheme of Time Lords?"
"Nah." He answered cheering up. "Normal's boring."
"Well, I'm with you on that one, Doctor." Donna stood up and straightened her outfit. In a businesslike manner she peered around at the console settings. "S'where are we off to?"
"Alpha Centauri." He answered minimally.

Donna's face beamed happily. "Twin suns! Lovely ... oh-hang on!" Donna sat down thoughtfully on the jump seat again. "Alpha Centauri ..." She repeated to herself quietly. "Well." She looked up at him, her eyes shining brightly again. "I've never been to a water planet before." She grinned gamely. "I mean I've been scuba diving but a whole planet?" She giggled getting more excited. "Have we got the gear for that? All my luggage is back at home."
"Honestly, Donna, what kind of Time Lord do you take me for? 'Have we got the gear for that?' Honestly." He scoffed, turning away and pretending to pout for a moment. He couldn't keep it up for very long before he shot her a mischievous look from the corner of his eye. With a broad smile the Doctor nodded to the internal doorway in their line of vision. "Closet room's usually third to the left."

Donna giggled and raced to the internal door. She paused and looked back at him. The grin on her face couldn't have been wider. "I can't wait!" She announced and shot off up the corridor to get changed.

The Doctor couldn't help but smile in return.

He had his brilliant Donna back.