Notes: I am calling Rhee Lady from now on cause she choose her name.
Chapter 26
A Christmas to Remember/Runaway Bride
By: Izzy
"What?" the Doctor said as he stared at the bride. "You can't do that. I wasn't. We're in flight. That is, that is physically impossible! How did-"
"Tell me where I am." the bride shouted. "I demand you tell me right now where am I?"
"Inside the TARDIS." he answered as she tried to run scans to figure out how she got aboard.
"The what?" she asked loudly.
"The TARDIS." he said as he continued to flip levers and press buttons.
"The what?" she shouted.
"The TARDIS!" he shouted back.
"The what?" she shouted louder with a great deal of anger.
"It's called the TARDIS." he said annoyed. This woman was getting on his nerves. She was nothing like his Lady.
"That's not even a proper word." the bride yelled angrily. "You're just saying things."
"How did you get in here?" he asked sounding angry.
"Well, obviously, when you kidnapped me." she barked out. "Who was it? Who's paying you? Is it Nerys? Oh my God, she's finally got me back. This has got Nerys written all over it."
"Who the hell is Nerys?" he asked.
"Your best friend." she spat.
"Hold on, wait a minute." he said just then noticing that she was in a wedding dress. "What are you dressed like that for?"
"I'm going ten pin bowling." she said sarcastically. He knew that tone, Lady used it whenever someone asked an obvious question. Which he was not the usually on the receiving end of that tone. He was so happy that she didn't hear him asked that. She would have compared him to Mickey-sama no baka. "Why do you think, dumbo? I was halfway up the aisle! I've been waiting all my life for this. I was just seconds away, and then you, I don't know, you drugged me or something!"
"I haven't done anything!" he argued.
"I'm having the police on you!" the bride shouted. "Me and my husband, as soon as he is my husband, we're going to sue the living backside off you!" She saw the doors and bolted for them. He reached for her but she was a hair bit faster than him.
"No, wait a minute. Wait a minute. Don't!" he shouted as she got to the doors and swung them wide open. "You're in space." He finally caught up with her as she stared out in awe of the nebula. "Outer space. This is our space ship. It's called the TARDIS."
"How am I breathing?" she asked in a state of shock.
"The TARDIS is protecting us." he said.
"Who are you?" she asked a bit calmer than before.
"I'm the Doctor. You?" he said.
"Donna." she replied.
"Human?" he asked.
"Yeah. Is that optional?" she asked.
"Well, it is for me." he replied like it was no big deal.
"You're an alien." she said in conformation.
"Yeah." he said with a soft smile.
"It's freezing with these doors open." she said. He gently closed the doors and ran back to the console.
"I don't understand that and I understand everything." he said as she grabbed his hair in frustration. "This this can't happen! There is no way a human being can lock itself onto the TARDIS and transport itself inside." He grabbed an opthalmologic scope and used it to look into Donna's eyes. "It must be impossible. Some sort of subatomic connection? Something in the temporal field? Maybe something pulling you into alignment with the Chronon shell. Maybe something macro mining your DNA within the interior matrix. Maybe a genetic-" He was cut off when she slapped him across the face. "What was that for?"
"Get me to the church!" she yelled.
"Right!" he shouted as he put the scope back. "Fine! I don't want you here anyway! Where is this wedding?"
"Saint Mary's, Hayden Road, Chiswick, London, England, Earth, the Solar System." she said as he put in the coordinates. She grabbed the elegant bra that he had taken off Lady not too long ago. Donna held it up almost in his face. "I knew it, acting all innocent. I'm not the first, am I? How many women have you abducted?"
"That's my wife's," he said with a big cheesy grin.
"Where is she, then?" she said. "Popped out for a space walk?"
"She's asleep." he said.
"Not anymore," Lady grumbled as she rubbed her eyes. She wore a casual short blue dress that showed off her legs nicely with a pair of black flats. She topped the outfit off with his old leather jacket. He looked over and panicked, he had seen that look before. That meant she didn't get a lot of sleep and she was not a happy wife. He shivered at having a flaming red head and a grumpy wife, bad mix. "Could you two be any noisier? You could wake the dead. Oh, wait you did! ME!"
"That's your wife?" Donna asked and he nodded.
"Yes, if it's any of your business." Lady said. Oh, here we go.
"So you are in on this!" Donna exclaimed.
"In on what?" Lady snapped.
"Oh, you know what!" Donna yelled as she moved around to get in Lady's face. He groaned and tried his best to hid behind the console. "The two of you kidnapped me!"
"The hell we did!" Lady shouted. "Why the hell would I kidnap someone as mouthy as you when all I want to do is sleep?!"
"Right," he said very loudly "Chiswick!" The TARDIS landed with a soft thud and groaned a little more than she usually did. Donna ran straight out. He followed behind. Lady followed him slowly.
"I said, Saint Mary's!" Donna shouted. "What sort of Martians are you? Where's this?"
"Something's wrong with her." he said as he affectionately touched the TARDIS. "The TARDIS, it's like she's recalibrating!" He ran back in, Lady stood there leaning against the door frame and watched him but she didn't follow him. "She's digesting. What is it?" He touched the lightly glowing column. "What have you eaten? What's wrong? Why aren't you talking to us? Donna? You've really got to think. Is there anything that might've caused this?" Lady turned her head and watched as Donna did the circling of the TARDIS with a large smile on her face. "Anything you might 've done? Any sort of alien contacts? I can't let you go wandering off. What if you're dangerous. I mean, have you, have you seen lights in the sky, or did you touch something like something, something different, something strange? Or something made out of a, box of metal or. Who're you getting married to? Are you sure he's human? He's not a bit overweight with a zip around his forehead, is he?" Lady shook her head at her husband, sometimes he could be so insensitive. She watched as Donna took off, and did nothing to stop her. "Donna!" He ran out after her. "Donna."
"Leave me alone." she said sounding like she was almost in tears. "I just want to get married."
"Come back to the TARDIS." he said trying to sound like he cared about her. Lady caught up with them.
"No way." Donna said. "That box is too weird."
"It's bigger on the inside, that's all." he said then got elbowed by Lady. "Ow!"
"Oh! That's all? Ten past three. I'm going to miss it." Donna said as looked at her watch.
"You can phone them." he said. "Tell them where you are."
"How do I do that?" she asked.
"Haven't you got a mobile?" he asked.
"I'm in my wedding dress." she said annoyed. "It doesn't have pockets. Who has pockets? Have you ever seen a bride with pockets? When I went to my fitting at Chez Alison, the one thing I forgot to say is give me pockets!"
"This man you're marrying." he said. "What's his name?"
"Lance." she said dreamily.
"Good luck, Lance," he said only to again to be elbowed by Lady. "Ow!" This time though he gave her a dirty look for elbowing him.
"Oi!" Donna said. "No stupid Martians are going to stop me from getting married. To hell with you!" She ran away, Lady ran after Donna.
"We're, We're not, We're not, We're not from Mars." he said with a defeated sigh.
"Taxi!" Donna shouted, as one justs drives past. "Why's his light on?"
"There's another one!" he shouted.
"Taxi! Oi!" Donna shouted as another one drove on by without any sign of stopping.
"There's one!" he pointed out another.
"Oi!" she shouted.
"Do you have this effect on everyone?" he asked. "Why aren't they stopping?"
"They think I'm in fancy dress." she said annoyed.
"Stay off the sauce, darling!" a random man shouted.
"They think I'm drunk." she said defeated.
"You're fooling no one, mate!" another random man shouted.
"They think I'm in drag!" she shouted angrily.
"Hold on a second," Lady said. She then stuck out a leg and whistled as loud as she could. Which was a little louder than she thought it would be. She forgot respiratory bypass, meant more air in the lungs, making a better whistle. But it did work a taxi made a U turn and stopped in front of them. Donna and the Doctor got in but Lady didn't.
"Saint Mary's in Chiswick, just off Hayden Road." Donna said to the driver. "It's an emergency. I'm getting married. Just hurry up!"
"Wait, Lady!" the Doctor shouted as the taxi drove off, and away from Lady.
"You know it'll cost you, sweetheart?" the driver said. "Double rates today."
"Oh, my God. Have you got any money?" Donna asked the Doctor.
"Er, no. Haven't you?" he said.
"Pockets!" she shouted at him. The driver turned around again a dropped them back off with Lady.
"And that goes double for your mother!" Donna shouted at the taxi as it left them. "I'll have him. I've got his number. I'll have him. Talk about the Christmas spirit."
"Is it Christmas?" the Doctor asked.
"Well, duh." Donna said. "Maybe not on Mars, but here it's Christmas Eve." She spotted a telephone box and started to run to it. "Phone box! We can reverse the charges!"
"How come you're getting married on Christmas Eve?" he asked.
"Can't bear it." she said. "I hate Christmas. Honeymoon, Morocco. Sunshine, lovely."
"We can't say too much about that," Lady said. "You and I got married on my birthday because I hated my birthday."
"You hated your birthday?" Donna asked.
"Yeah," Lady said. "I always lost something on or around my birthday. That is until I met the Doctor." Donna ran into the pay phone.
"What's the operator?" she asked. "I've not done this in years. What do you dial? 100?" Lady pointed her Sonic at the phone, then did some jiggery-pokery, and a dial tone was heard.
"Just call the direct." she said.
"What did you do?" Donna said.
"Jiggery-pokery." Lady said as she smiled at the Doctor. "Now phone."
"I'll get money!" he shouted as he ran to the nearest ATM.
"Oh, answer the phone!" Donna shouted at the phone. "Mum, get off the phone and listen. I'm in. Oh, my God, I don't know where I am! It's a street, and there's WH Smith but it's definitely Earth." Lady rolled her eyes at how silly that sounded to someone who had no idea what was going on.
"You know they won't believe you," Lady said when Donna hung up the phone.
"I never did ask," Donna said as she turned to Lady. "Do you have any money?"
"Yeah," Lady said. She pulled out the Doctor's wallet from the jacket. This one was slightly different than the one she found in his suit at Carney Wharf. She didn't think he knew about even having any wallets. "Though I'm American I don't know anything about British money." She handed Donna a couple bills out of the wallet. "He forgets that he has money." Donna turned around to the road and flagged down another taxi.
"Taxi! St Mary's Chiswick." she told the driver. She turned back to Lady and the Doctor. "Thanks for nothing, spaceman! I'll see you two in Court." Donna got into the taxi.
"Donna!" he shouted as he got a good look at the driver. Lady saw the robot Santas taking aim at them. She looked over at him and saw that he didn't see what she saw. So, she pulled out her Sonic real quick and made the ATM spit out cash.
"Oi!" he exclaimed as she grabbed his hand and pulled him back toward the TARDIS. "We need to get to Donna!"
"That's what we're doing!" she shouted as she continued to pull him. She didn't know but he was smiling at her. They ran to the TARDIS and together they worked as fast as they could to fly the TARDIS to Donna. Lady locked on to Donna's location. He ran to the doors and opened them wide, while Lady flew the TARDIS.
"Open the door!" he shouted as he hung out the doors.
"Do what?" Donna shouted back.
"Open the door!" he shouted again.
"I can't, it's locked!" she shouted back. He pointed his Sonic at the door. She opened the window but not the door. He sighed in frustration. "Santa's a robot."
"Donna, open the door." he said.
"What for?" she asked angrily.
"You've got to jump!" he shouted.
"I'm not blinking flip jumping." she shouted. "I'm supposed to be getting married!" Just as she shouted that the robot accelerated, pulling away from the TARDIS. Lady growled as she flipped a switch. Suddenly sparks flew from the console, one knocked her back into the railing, rendering her unconscious. The TARDIS accelerated, catching up the the taxi in no time.
He locked the robots hands with the Sonic. He hadn't noticed that Lady was knocked out. "Listen to me. You've got to jump." he said trying not to sound as frustrated as he felt. Donna was grating on his last nerve.
"I'm not jumping on a motorway!" she shouted at him.
"Whatever that thing is, it needs you." he said. "And whatever it needs you for, it's not good! Now, come on!"
"I'm in my wedding dress!" she shouted at him.
"Yes, you look lovely! Come on!" he shouted back. She opened the door and got a good look at the speed in which they were traveling.
"I can't do it." she whined.
"Trust me." he said. She didn't move for a minute but then she jumped on to the TARDIS, he caught her. The doors slammed behind her. He helped her off him, they turned to see Lady. He gasped and rushed to her side. Her dress was singed but all in all she was fine. He rushed to the console to pilot them to safety. He landed them on a roof top. First he carried out Lady. Donna was second out. He went back in grabbed a fire extinguisher and put out the fire in the console room. Once the fire was out he put it down and looked over to see a very sad Donna.
"The funny thing is, for a spaceship, she doesn't really do that much flying." he said with a small chuckle. He wished Lady was awake she was better at dealing with upset humans. "We'd better give her a couple of hours. You all right?"
"Doesn't matter." she said sounding defeated.
"Did we miss it?" he asked as he moved closer to her.
"Yeah." she said.
"Well, you can book another date." he suggested.
"Course we can." she said.
"You've still got the honeymoon." he suggested.
"It's just a holiday now." she said blankly.
"Yeah." he said. "Yeah. Sorry."
"It's not your fault." she said.
"Oh? That's a change." he laughed lightly.
"Wish you had a time machine, then we could go back and get it right." she said.
"Yeah, yeah." he said. "But even if I did, I couldn't go back on someone's personal time line." He paused for a moment to look back at Lady. "Apparently." He sighed as Donna sat down on the ledge of the roof.
"Will she be OK?" she asked sounding concerned.
"You mean Lady?" he asked.
"I mean your wife!" she barked at him.
"Yeah, she'll be fine just got shocked by the console," he said. "And her name is Lady."
"The Doctor and the Lady strange names," she said as she shivered, so he took off his coat and draped it around her. "God, you're skinny. This wouldn't fit a rat."
"Fits me fine," Lady said as she came to. They looked at her as she sat up and regretted it. She was dizzy. "Oh, did you get the license plate number of that Mac truck that just hit me." He laughed remembering the last time she said that.
"The TARDIS," he said.
"Well, bad girl," she said as she shook her finger at the TARDIS. "Dizzy." He stood up and walked over to her. He pulled out his Sonic and scanned her for a concussion.
"You're fine," he said. Which she was just dizzy not hurt. She was acting silly to try and help Donna. He walked back to Donna and sat down where he once was.
"Oh and you'd better put this on," he said as he turned back to her. He pulled out a golden band and slipped it onto her finger.
"Oh, do you have to rub it in?" she whined.
"Those creatures can trace you." he said. "This is a bio-damper. Should keep you hidden. With this ring, I thee bio-damp." The three of them laughed lightly as Lady sat down on the other side of Donna.
"For better or for worse." she said. They sat in silence for a bit. "So, come on then. Robot Santas, what are they for?"
"Ah, your basic robo-scavenger." he said. "The Father Christmas stuff is just a disguise. They're trying to blend in. I met them last Christmas."
"Why, what happened then?" she asked.
"Great big spaceship hovering over London?" he asked. "You didn't notice?"
"I had a bit of a hangover." she said.
"We spent Christmas Day just over there, the Powell Estate, with this family." he said then paused to look at Lady.
"My sister, we spent Christmas with her family." she said sadly. She missed Rose. But Rose made her choice. "Sadly my sister's gone now."
"Your sister, who was she?" Donna asked. Lady shook her head lightly letting him know she didn't wanna talk about it.
"Question is, what do camouflaged robot mercenaries want with you?" he asked changing the subject. "And how did you get inside the TARDIS? I don't know. What's your job?"
"I'm a secretary." she said.
"It's weird." he said as he pulled out his Sonic and scanned her. "I mean, you're not special, you're not powerful, you're not connected, you're not clever, you're not important."
"How do you keep from punching him in the face?" she asked Lady. Who laughed and shrugged. "Stop bleeping me!" Donna smacked the Sonic away from her.
"What kind of secretary?" he asked. Lady was surprised he hadn't asked her about Donna yet.
"I'm at HC Clements. It's where I met Lance. I was temping." Donna said. "I mean, it was all a bit posh really. I'd spent the last two years at a double glazing firm. Well, I thought I'm never going to fit in here. And then he made me a coffee. I mean, that just doesn't happen. Nobody gets the secretaries a coffee. And Lance, he's the head of HR! He don't need to bother with me. But he was nice, he was funny. And it turns out he thought everyone else was really snotty too. So that's how it started, me and him. One cup of coffee. That was it." She smiled fondly.
"When," he said. "When was this?"
"Six months ago." she said with a smile.
"Bit quick to get married." he said.
"Smack him for me," Lady said and Donna smacked his arm.
"What was that for?" he shouted as he rubbed his arm.
"I couldn't reach you," Lady said. "You're the pot calling the kettle black. We weren't together six months from your point of view."
"Well, well, you and I are different," he defended.
"Well, he insisted." Donna said seeing a changed in topic was needed. "And he nagged, and he nagged me and he just wore me down. And then finally, I just gave in."
"What does HC Clements do?" Lady asked before he could.
"Oh, security systems." Donna said. "You know, entry codes, ID cards, that sort of thing. If you ask me, it's a posh name for locksmiths."
"Keys." he said.
"Anyway, enough of my CV." she said. "Come on, it's time to face the consequences. Oh, this is going to be so shaming. You can do the explaining, Martian boy." She got up.
"Yeah. I'm not from Mars." he said as he got up and helped Lady up as well.
"Oh, I had this great big reception all planned." Donna said. "Everyone's going to be heartbroken." They got to the reception they saw everyone is bopping to Slade, under a big disco ball, and having a good time. She stared at them in shock. The music stopped and everyone looked at her. "You had the reception without me?"
"Donna, what happened to you?" Lance asked with fake concern. Lady rolled her eyes and moved closer to the Doctor. She held onto him, because if Lance got any closer she couldn't be held responsible for what she did to the man.
"You had the reception without me?" she asked loudly.
"Hello. I'm the Doctor, and this is my lovely wife Lady." he said cheerfully but Lady was holding onto him so tight she didn't let him step forward.
"They had the reception without me." Donna said sounding angry and hurt.
"Yes, I gathered." he said.
"Well, it was all paid for. Why not?" Nerys said.
"Thank you, Nerys." Donna said sarcastically
"Well, what were we supposed to do?" Sylvia, Donna's mother, said. "I got your silly little message in the end. I'm on Earth? Very funny. What the hell happened? How did you do it? I mean, what's the trick, because I'd love to know."
"Where were you the whole time?" Lance asked as everyone started talking all at once. Donna burst into fake tears and everyone fonded over her. Lady grinned as Donna winked at the Doctor. Somehow Donna got the party started again.
"Donna," the Doctor said as Lady let go of him. "You should have Lady sing for you."
"Oh, you any excuse to hear me sing," Lady said.
"If you want," Donna said with a smile. Lady was torn. Of course she wanted to sing for the Doctor, but at the same time robots were on their way.
"Go on," he said as he bumped her with his shoulder.
"Fine, I'm going," she said as she took her place on stage. She took an acoustic guitar. "Follow my led just play what feels right." She told the band. She started to play/sing Never Gonna Be Alone by Nickleback. He smiled brightly as he listened to the word. And surprisingly the band played it right. And that song was a few years till it came out. He spotted the camera man as the song ended. The Doctor clapped as he went over to camera man. The Doctor smiled as he heard everyone call for an encore. So she sings In Your Eyes by Peter Gabriel. He smiled at her choice.
"Can I see the recording of Donna's disappearance?" he asked.
"Oh, I taped the whole thing." the camera man said. "They've all had a look. They said sell it to You've Been Framed. I said, more like the News. Here we are." He watched as Donna glowed with the golden light of Huon Particles.
"Can't be. Play it again?" the Doctor said as the camera man played it again.
"Clever, mind. Good trick, I'll give her that. I was clapping." he said.
"But that looks like Huon Particles." the Doctor said aloud.
"What's that then?" the camera man asked.
"That's impossible." the Doctor said as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "That's ancient. Huon energy doesn't exist anymore, not for billions of years. So old that it can't be hidden by a biodamper!" He ran to the window to see the robots approaching. "Donna!" He ran back to Donna. "Donna, they've found you."
"But you said I was safe." she said.
"The bio-damper doesn't work." he said. "We've got to get everyone out."
"My God, it's all my family." she said.
"Out the back door!" he shouted as they ran for the back door, only to see two robots headed at them. "Maybe not." They ran around to see that the place was surrounded.
"We're trapped." she said. He noticed that one of the robots had a controller. Then it hit him. The trees.
"Christmas trees." he said as he turned around.
"What about them?" she asked.
"They kill." he said as he ran in to the party of people. Lady stood over by the sound system. "Get away from the tree!"
"Don't touch the trees!" Donna yelled.
"Get away from the Christmas trees!" he shouted. "Everyone get away from them! Everyone stay away from the trees! Stay away from the trees!"
"Oh, for God's sakes, the man's an idiot." Sylvia said. "Why? What harm's a Christmas tree going to. Oh." The plastic bulbs started to float away from the trees. The bulbs scattered and started to explode all around. The Doctor ran to Lady. Lance and Donna took up shelter underneath a table.
"Hey!" Lady shouted to the robots once the were inside, as she pulled out her Sonic. "Santa! Little tip for the future. If you're attacking someone with a Sonic, don't let them near the sound system." She jammed the screwdriver into the deck, and the resulting harmonics shake the robots to pieces.
"How'd you know to do that?" the Doctor asked.
"I watched someone really clever do it once," she said with a flirty grin. He grinned back at her and ran to the robots. Donna was trying to get things organized. Lady walked over to Donna and nodded to the Doctor then smiled. Donna gave Lady a strange look but went over to him.
"Look at that." he said as he held up the controller. "Remote control for the decorations, but there's a second remote control for the robots. They're not scavengers anymore. I think someone's taken possession."
"Never mind all that." she said. "You're a doctor. People have been hurt."
"Nah, they wanted you alive." he said as he threw a bulb at her. "Look. They're not active now."
"All I'm saying, you could help." she said.
"Got to think of the bigger picture." he said. "There's still a signal!" He ran outside.
"Donna, who is he? Who is that man?" Sylvia asked right before Donna ran after him.
"Sylvia," Lady said. "That man is my husband and he is the man that is going to save your daughter." She smiled at the older woman.
Outside with the Doctor and Donna, he was still trying to find where the signal is coming from. "There's someone behind this, directing the roboforms."
"But why is it me?" she asked. "What have I done?"
"If we find the controller, we'll find that out." he said as he looked at his Sonic. "Ooo! It's up there. Something in the sky." The ambulance arrived. "I've lost the signal." He looked around and didn't see Lady. So he ran back in and saw her tending to the wounded and helping calm people down. He smiled. "Oi! Lady, you coming?"
"No," she said with a smile. "I know me to well, I'm not what you need right now. Donna is."
"I'll always need my bondmate," he said.
"Yes," she said as she walked up and hugged him. "But I know me, I wouldn't stop you from doing it. As much as I love you, and even with as far as I've come from the sad angry woman that you found me as. I'm still easily angered. I wouldn't do what needs done. Donna will. Stick with her." She smiled sadly at him.
"But why?" he asked. She put a finger on his lips.
"Trust me." she said as he nodded so she removed her finger. He kissed her before he let go then ran back to Donna. Why is Donna so important? He shook his head as he ran back to her and Lance.
"Donna, we've got to get to your office." the Doctor said. "HC Clements. I think that's where it all started. Lance! Is it Lance? Lance, can you give me a lift?" Lance nodded and they all piled into his car. The Doctor couldn't get his mind off why Lady thought she couldn't stop him. Wait, she knew she could. She couldn't stop herself. He felt a twinge of pain at that. What did he have to do that she would condone but Donna wouldn't.
"Doctor!" Donna shouted once they got to H C Clements.
"What?" he asked.
"I've been saying your name for a while," she said. "Thinking about Lady? Why didn't she come with us?"
"She figured she would be better to help with the wounded," he said as they got out of the car. They ran inside and up to her desk. He used his Sonic to access the computer. It flashed up with Torchwood Institute logo. "To you lot this might just be a locksmiths, but H C Clements was brought up twenty three years ago by the Torchwood Institute."
"Who are they?" she asked.
"They were behind the battle of Canary Wharf." he said like she should know this. "Cyberman invasion. Skies over London full of Daleks?"
"Oh, I was in Spain." she replied.
"They had Cybermen in Spain." he said.
"Scuba diving." she said simply.
"That big picture, Donna." he said. "You keep on missing it. Torchwood was destroyed, but HC Clements stayed in business. I think someone else came in and took over the operation."
"But what do they want with me?" she asked.
"Somehow you've been dosed with Huon energy." he said. "And that's a problem, because Huon energy hasn't existed since the Dark Times. The only place you'd find a Huon particle now is a remnant in the heart of the TARDIS. See? That's what happened. Say, that's the TARDIS." He picked up a coffee mug. "And that's you." He picked up a pencil. "The particles inside you activated. The two sets of particles magnetised and whap." He shook the mug and the pencil then dropped the pencil into the mug. "You were pulled inside the TARDIS."
"I'm a pencil inside a mug?" she asked.
"Yes, you are. 4H." he said as she rotated the pencil in the mug. "Sums you up. Lance? What was HC Clements working on? Anything top secret? Special operations? Do not enter?"
"I don't know," Lance said. "I'm in charge of personnel. I wasn't project manager. Why am I even explaining myself? What the hell are we talking about?" The Doctor used his Sonic again to look at the building plans.
"They make keys, that's the point." he said. "And look at this. We're on the third floor." He pointed to the third floor on the plans. "Underneath reception, there's a basement, yes?" Lance nodded. They all walked swiftly to the elevator. It opened and the Doctor stepped inside. "Then how come when you look on the lift, there's a button marked lower basement? There's a whole floor which doesn't exist on the official plans. So what's down there, then?" He pointed to the LB button.
"Are you telling me this building's got a secret floor?" Lance asked.
"No," the Doctor said. "I'm showing you this building's got a secret floor."
"It needs a key." she said.
"I don't." he said as he used his Sonic on the LB button. "Right then. Thanks, you two. I can handle this. See you later."
"No chance, Martian." she said as she stepped into the elevator with him. "You're the man who keeps saving my life. I ain't letting you out of my sight."
"Going down." he said. He remembered what Lady had said about Donna. He smiled at her.
"Lance?" she said.
"Maybe I should go to the police." Lance said.
"Inside." she commanded. He does as he's told.
"To honor and obey?" the Doctor said. No sooner than he said it her regretted it. Because as Lady said earlier 'Pot calling the kettle black', he would do anything for his Lady.
"Tell me about it, mate." Lance said.
"Oi." Donna said. They reached the lower basement, it was lit by an eerie green light. "Where are we? Well, what goes on down here?"
"Let's find out." the Doctor said.
"Do you think Mister Clements knows about this place?" she asked as they got out of the
"The mysterious HC Clements? I think he's part of it." he said. Then he saw three Segways. "Oh, look. Transport." They all got on the Segways. As they continued down the tunnel she couldn't help laugh. They arrived at a bulkhead door labeled Torchwood, authorized personnel only. They stopped and he walked up to the door. He opened the door. She and Lance followed the Doctor to the door. "Wait here. Just need to get my bearings. Don't do anything." He climbed up the ladder.
"You'd better come back." she said. He stopped and smiled back at her.
"I couldn't get rid of you if I tried." he teased. "Plus even if I did, Lady would kill me for it." She smiled back at him, then he turned back to continue up the ladder.
"Donna, have you thought about this?" Lance asked. "Properly? I mean, this is serious! What the hell are we going to do?"
"Oh, I thought July." she replied. The Doctor heard them and laughed lightly to himself. She still didn't get it. He climbed up to the top. There was a door like a submarine's door. He opened it to reveal that they were underneath the Thames Flood Barrier. He shut the door and climbed down the ladder back to Donna and Lance.
"Thames flood barrier right on top of us." the Doctor said as he jumped off the ladder and they moved to make room for him. "Torchwood snuck in and built this place underneath."
"What, there's like a secret base hidden underneath a major London landmark?" she asked unable to believe it.
"Oh, I know. Unheard of." he said sarcastically. They continue done the tunnel and find a lab. "Oo, look at this. Stunning!" In the lab there were pipes filled with bubbling liquid.
"What does it do?" she asked.
"Particle extrusion." he said as he ran to one of the pipes. "Hold on." He used the spout to gather some of the liquid into a strange container. "Brilliant. They've been manufacturing Huon particles. Course, my people got rid of Huons. They unravel the atomic structure."
"Your people?" Lance asked as the Doctor looked over at Lance. "Who are they? What company do you represent?" Oh, Lady would have had a heyday with that question.
"Oh, I'm a freelancer." he answered then turned back to Donna. "But this lot are rebuilding them. They've been using the river. Extruding them through a flat hydrogen base so they've got the end result, Huon particles in liquid form."
"And that's what's inside me?" she asked. He turned the knob on the container, causing the liquid to gold as well as Donna. She gasped. "Oh, my God!"
"Genius." he said with a large smile. "Because the particles are inert, they need something living to catalyse inside and that's you. Saturate the body and then." He jumped back as the turned the knob again, they both stopped glowing. "Ha! The wedding! Yes, you're getting married, that's it! Best day of your life, walking down the aisle. Oh, your body's a battleground! There's a chemical war inside! Adrenaline, acetylcholine. Wham! go the endorphins. Oh, you're cooking! Yeah, you're like a walking oven. A pressure cooker, a microwave, all churning away. The particles reach boiling point. Shazam!" She slapped him so hard he stumbled backwards. "What did I do this time?!"
"Are you enjoying this?" she asked loudly. He looked at her with an apologetic look. "Right, just tell me. These particles, are they dangerous?" He didn't answer her right away. "Am I safe?"
"Yes." he said honestly.
"Doctor, if your lot got rid of Huon particles, why did they do that?" she asked.
"Because they were deadly." he answered her honestly.
"Oh, my God." she gasped.
"I'll sort it out, Donna." he said. "Whatever's been done to you, I'll reverse it. I am not about to lose you else."
"Oh, she is long since lost." a deep female voice came from over head. The back wall behind Donna rose and revealed a large room with a deep chasm. "I have waited so long, hibernating at the edge of the universe until the secret heart was uncovered and called out to waken!" Lance ran out of the lab and black robed robots aimed guns at them.
"Someone's been digging." he said as he looked down the chasm. "Oh, very Torchwood. Drilled by laser. How far down does it go?"
"Down and down, all the way to the center of the Earth!" the voice shouted.
"Really?" he asked. "Seriously? What for?"
"Dinosaurs." Donna suggested.
"What?" he asked her with a strange look.
"Dinosaurs?" she repeated as a question.
"What are you on about, dinosaurs?" he asked.
"That film," she said. "Under the Earth, with dinosaurs. Trying to help."
"That's not helping." he said annoyed. How can she help him, where Lady can't?
"Such a sweet couple." the voice said.
"Only a madman talks to thin air and trust me, you don't want to make me mad." he snapped. "Where are you?"
"High in the sky." she said. "Floating so high on Christmas night."
"I didn't come all this way to talk on the intercom." he said annoyed. "Come on, let's have a look at you!"
"Who are you with such command?" she hissed.
"I'm the Doctor." he said proudly.
"Prepare your best medicines, doctor man, for you will be sick at heart." she hissed. She teleported in. When she finally revealed herself to the Doctor, his eyes widened in disbelieve.
"Racnoss?" he said. "But that's impossible. You're one of the Racnoss?"
"Empress of the Racnoss." she corrected.
"If you're the Empress, where's the rest of the Racnoss?" he asked. "Or, are you the only one?"
"Such a sharp mind." she said.
"That's it, the last of your kind." he said with a smile. Then he looked over to see the confused look on Donna's face. "The Racnoss come from the Dark Times, billions of years ago. Billions. They were carnivores, omnivores. They devoured whole planets." She nodded in understanding.
"Racnoss are born starving. Is that our fault?" the Empress said.
"They eat people?" Donna asked.
"HC Clements, did he wear those, those er, black and white shoes?" he asked.
"He did." she said with a smile. "We used to laugh. We used to call him the fat cat in spats." He pointed up to a pair of shoes that were black and white. "Oh, my God!"
"Mmm. My Christmas dinner." the Empress said with a chuckle.
"You shouldn't even exist." he said. "Way back in history, the fledgling Empires went to war against the Racnoss they were wiped out."
"Except for me." she hissed.
" But that's what I've got inside me, that Huon energy thing." Donna said. "Oi! Look at me, lady, I'm talking. Where do I fit in? How comes I get all stacked up with these Huon particles? Look at me, you! Look me in the eye and tell me."
"The bride is so feisty." the Empress hissed. That's when he finally saw Lance behind her, with an ax.
"Yes, I am!" Donna shouted. "And I don't know what you are, you big thing, but a spider's just a spider and an ax is an ax! Now, do it!" Lance went to swing the ax but stopped. He started laughing at Donna. That's when the Doctor knew. This is what Lady meant. She would have killed Lance if she'd have come with. And now that the Doctor really thought on it he realized that she had acted weird around Lance at the party. It all made sense now.
"That was a good one." Lance laughed. "Your face."
"Lance is funny." the Empress laughed.
"What?" Donna asked looking throughly confused.
"I'm sorry." the Doctor said.
"Sorry for what?" she asked as she looked from him to Lance. "Lance, don't be so stupid! Get her!"
"God, she's thick." he said. "Months I've had to put up with her. Months. A woman who can't even point to Germany on a map."
"I don't understand." she said softly
"How did you meet him?" the Doctor asked.
"In the office." she said as if he should know that.
"He made you coffee." he reminded.
"What?" she asked.
"Every day, I made you coffee." Lance said.
"You had to be dosed with liquid particles over six months." the Doctor informed her.
"He was poisoning me." she said in realization.
"It was all there in the job title. The Head of Human Resources." he said bitterly.
"This time, it's personnel." Lance corrected.
"But, we were getting married." she said in a state of shock.
"Well, I couldn't risk you running off." he retorted. "I had to say yes. And then I was stuck with a woman who thinks the height of excitement is a new flavor Pringle. Oh, I had to sit there and listen to all that yap yap yap. Oh, Brad and Angelina. Is Posh pregnant? X Factor, Atkins Diet, Feng Shui, split ends, text me, text me, text me. Dear God, the never ending fountain of fat, stupid trivia. I deserve a medal."
"Oh, is that what she's offered you?" the Doctor asked bitterly. "The Empress of the Racnoss? What are you, her consort?"
"It's better than a night with her." Lance said as he pointed to Donna.
"But I love you." she said almost in tears.
"That's what made it easy." he retorted. "It's like you said, Doctor. The big picture. What's the point of it all if the human race is nothing? That's what the Empress can give me. The chance to go out there. To see it. The size of it all. I think you understand that, don't you, Doctor?"
"Who is this little physician?" the Empress asked.
"She said Martian." he said.
"Oh, I'm sort of homeless." the Doctor said. "But the point is, what's down here?" He jumped up on to the rim of the the chasm. "The Racnoss are extinct. What's going to help you four thousand miles down? That's just the molten core of the Earth, isn't it?"
"I think he wants us to talk." Lance said with a grin.
"I think so, too." she laughed.
"Well, tough! All we need is Donna." he snapped.
"Kill this chattering little doctor man." she commanded the robots.
"Don't you hurt him!" Donna shouted as she moved in front of the Doctor.
"No, no, Donna. It's all right." he said.
"No, I won't let them." she said.
"At arms!" the Empress shouted. The robots stood at attention.
"Ah, now. Except." he said.
"Take aim!" she shouted as they aimed their guns at him.
"Well, I just want to point out the obvious." he said.
"They won't hit the bride. They're such very good shots." she hissed.
"Just, just, just, just, just hold on." he said as he waved his hands about. "Hold on just a tick. Just a tiny little, just a little tick. If you think about it, the particles activated in Donna and drew her inside my spaceship. So reverse it, and the spaceship comes to her." He turned the knob on the container the other way, the TARDIS appeared around them both.
"Fire!" she said as it appeared.
"Off we go." he said once the TARDIS had fully appeared. "Oh, do you know what I said before about time machines? Well, I lied. And now we're going to use it. We need to find out what the Empress of the Racnoss is digging up. If something's buried at the planet's core, it must've been there since the beginning. That's just brilliant. Molto bene. I've always wanted to see this. Donna, we're going further back than I've ever been before." He flipped levers and put in coordinates. "We've arrived. Want to see?"
"I suppose." Donna said.
"I know I do!" Lady exclaimed from the hall.
"Lady!" he exclaimed as he ran to her and pulled her into a hug. She let go of him, then she moved over to Donna and hugged her.
"I'm so sorry," Lady said. "Let's look at this together." She walked over to the doors while Donna and the Doctor walked to the monitor.
"Oh, yeah that scanner's a bit small." he said. "Maybe your way's best." He joined Lady. "Come on. No human's ever seen this. You'll be the first."
"All I want to see is my bed." Donna moaned as she followed him.
"Donna Noble, welcome to the creation of the Earth." Lady said as she opened the doors. They saw the beauty of space and the gases, dust, and rocks.
"We've gone back four point six billion years." he informed them. "There's no solar system, not yet. Only dust and rocks and gas. That's the Sun, over there. Brand new. Just beginning to burn."
"Where's the Earth?" Donna asked.
"All around us," Lady said.
"In the dust." he said.
"Puts the wedding in perspective." Donna said with a light chuckle. "Lance was right. We're just tiny."
"No," Lady said. "That is what we do, the human race makes sense out of chaos."
"Marking it out with weddings and Christmas and calendars." he continued. "This whole process is beautiful, but only if it's being observed."
"Do you always do that?" Donna asked.
"Yeah," he and Lady said at the same time. Donna smiled them.
"So I came out of all this?" she asked.
"Isn't that brilliant?" he asked. A large rock floats by the doors.
"I think that's the Isle of Wight." Donna joked. Lady and the Doctor chuckle at Donna's joke.
"Eventually, gravity takes hold." he explained. "Say, one big rock, heavier than the others, starts to pull other rocks towards it. All the dust and gas and elements get pulled in. Everything, piling in until you get-"
"The Earth." Donna finished.
"But the question is, what was that first rock?" he asked as a seven pointed star spaceship came out of a dust cloud.
"Look." Donna said as she pointed to the ship.
"The Racnoss." he said.
"Hold on." he said as he ran back to the console and sped up time moving around the TARDIS. "The Racnoss are hiding from the war. What's it doing?"
"Exactly what you said." Donna said. Lady and Donna watched as the gas, dust, and rocks
"They didn't just bury something at the center of the Earth." Lady said.
"They became the center of the Earth. The first rock." he said. Suddenly the TARDIS shook.
"What was that?" Donna asked as he flipped switches and pressed buttons trying to get the TARDIS under control.
"Trouble." Lady said as she tried to get to the console to help him, but the TARDIS seemed to shake harder with each step.
"What the hell's it doing?" Donna shouted.
"Remember that little trick of mine, particles pulling particles." he said. "Well, it works in reverse. They're pulling us back!"
"Well, can't you stop it?" she asked. "Hasn't it got a handbrake? Can't you reverse or warp or beam or something?"
"Backseat driver." he retorted. "Oh! Wait a minute! The extrapolator!" He pulled the extrapolator from underneath the console. "It can't stop us, but it should give us a good bump! Now! We're about two hundred yards to the right. Come on!" Donna, Lady, and the Doctor got out of the TARDIS and he ran to a nearby Torchwood door.
"But what do we do?" Donna asked.
"I don't know." he said.
"He makes it up as he goes along." Lady said as he pulled out a stethoscope and used it on the door. "But trust me, he's got a history."
"But I still don't understand. I'm full of particles, but what for?" Donna asked.
"There's a Racnoss web at the center of the Earth, but my people unraveled their power source." he said as he continued to listen to the door. "The Huon particles ceased to exist but the Racnoss were stuck. They've just taken hibernation for billions of years. Frozen, dead, kaput. So you're the new key. Brand new particles, living particles! They need you to open it and you two have never been so quiet.": He turned around to see that both Lady and Donna were gone. "No!" He used his Sonic to go though the door to find three robots with guns tried on him. He pulled out the controller he stole from the first robots they encountered, and used it to shut down the robots. Then he dressed up as one of the robots and slipped back into the room with the chasm.
"I hate you!" Donna shouted as Lady finally woke up.
"Yeah, I think we've gone a bit beyond that now, sweetheart." Lance said.
"You rat bastard," Lady said as she struggled against the webbing that held all three of them in place. "If I get my hands on you!"
"My golden couple, together at last." the Empress hissed. "And who is this morsel?"
"I'm the wife of a very powerful man," Lady said.
"She's the Doctor's wife," Lance said.
"Your awful wedded lives." the Empress chortled. "Tell me, do you want to be released?"
"Yes!" Lance and Donna shouted.
"You're supposed to say, I do." she chortled again.
"Huh. No chance." he laughed nervously.
"Oh, go sit and spin on a flag pole!" Lady shouted.
"Say it!" the Empress said ignoring Lady.
"I do." Lance and Donna said it reluctantly.
"I don't. Activate the particles. Purge every last one." the Empress said. The robots obeyed her and all three of them began to glow. Lady screamed in pain. "So she has them as well." The Empress grinned wickedly. "And release!" The Huon particles began to drain from Lance and Donna but Lady only screamed more. "The secret heart unlocks, and they will waken from their Sleep of Ages."
"Stop it you're killing her!" Donna shouted then realized what the Empress said. "Who will? What's down there?"
"How thick are you?" he asked. No particles left Lady but she still screamed, a blood curdling scream that made the Doctor want to blow his cover. But he knew that wouldn't help, he needed to remain hidden.
"My children, the long lost Racnoss, now reborn to feast on flesh!" the Empress shouted happily. "The web star shall come to me. My babies will be hungry. They need sustenance. Perish the web." Lady finally stopped glowing and also stopped screaming, though she was left feeling quite weak.
"Use her, not me! Use her!" Lance shouted as the web around him gave way slowly.
"Oh, my funny little Lance!" she chortled. "But you are quite impolite to your lady friend. The Empress does not approve." The webbing around Lance gave way and he feel down the chasm.
"Lance!" Donna shouted.
"Harvest the humans!" the Empress commanded. "Reduce them to meat. My children are climbing towards me and none shall stop them." The Doctor walked up the stairs dressed up as a robot. "So you might as well unmask, my clever little doctor man"
"Oh well." he said as he removed the mask and cloak. "Nice try. I've got you, Lady, Donna!" He pointed the Sonic at the webbing and both Lady and Donna's web began to give way.
"I'm going to fall!" Donna shouted sounding terrified.
"You're going to swing!" he shouted. "I've got you both!" The web gave way fully and they swung. Donna screamed and Lady laughed. But Lady was too low and hit the stairs before falling flat onto her back. Donna however swung perfectly into his awaiting arms. He looked down with a sheepish look at Lady.
"Oh. Sorry, Love," he said.
"Oh, I will get you back for this!" Lady shouted.
"The doctor man amuses me." the Empress said.
"Empress of the Racnoss," he said addressing the Empress. "I give you one last chance. I can find you a planet. I can find you and your children a place in the universe to co-exist. Take that offer and end this now."
"These men are so funny." she chortled.
"What's your answer?" he asked with a serious but not angry look on his face. Lady knew that look. That was the Oncoming Storm look. Don't be scared of his anger be very afraid of his calm moments.
"Oh I'm afraid I have to decline." she hissed.
"What happens next is your own doing." he said coldly. Lady could tell that he was beyond mad with himself and with the Empress. And Lady knew why. The Empress had cause Lady pain unbelievable amount of pain. But he was scaring Donna and he didn't even know it.
"I'll show you what happens next. At arms! Take aim! And-" the Empress started.
"Relax." he commanded. The robots deactivated.
"What did you do?" Donna asked.
"Guess what I've got, Donna?" he asked as he looked over at her. "Pockets." He pulled out the controller.
"How did that fit in there?" she asked.
"They're bigger on the inside." he smiled.
"Roboforms are not necessary." the Empress said bringing his attention back to her. "My children may feast on Martian flesh."
"Oh, but I'm not from Mars." he said.
"Then where?" she hissed.
"My home planet is far away and long since gone." he said sounding hollow. "But its name lives on. Gallifrey."
"They murdered the Racnoss!" she shouted. Lady took this moment to run up the stairs to get to him.
"I warned you. You did this." he said still sounding hollow. He took bulbs from the trees out of his pocket and threw them into the air.
"No! No! Don't! No!" she pleaded loudly. The bulbs exploded in key points in the tunnels, flooding them. The water rushed in flooding the chasm. "No! No! My children! No! My children! My children!"
"Love!" Lady shouted. He was unresponsive. "Theta! Please stop!"
"Doctor! You can stop now!" Donna shouted as she put a handed on his arm.
"My children!" the Empress cried.
"Come on. Time I got you two out." he said as he grabbed both women by the hand and led them to an exit.
"But what about the Empress?" Donna asked.
"She's used up all her Huon energy." he said happily. "She's defenseless!"
"I'll take Donna home," Lady said with her back to him.
"Are you alright?" he asked and she didn't respond. "Love?"
"Come along Noble!" she exclaimed a little to happily as she pulled Donna out of the area and walked her back home.
"Mind telling me what that was about?" Donna asked as they slowed their walk down a bit.
"It's nothing," Lady said.
"That was not nothing," Donna replied. "You were short with him. You two are like the perfect couple."
"Oh, we are far from the perfect couple," Lady laughed. "Perfect for each other maybe, but I'm just a little hurt that he stopped when you asked and not me. Though I knew it was going to happen I just didn't know how."
"What do you mean you knew?" Donna almost yelled.
"I'm from a different Earth," Lady explained. "In my universe, this." She pointed all around her. "Is a TV show."
"A TV show?!" Donna asked loudly and in a far amount of shock.
"Yes," Lady said.
"So you know my life then?" Donna asked.
"Parts of it," Lady said. "Like I knew about Lance, I know you're a brilliant woman who settles for second fiddle. All because her mother tells her on a daily bases that she is a loser. And trust me I understand that best."
"I'm not brilliant or important," Donna sighed.
"That is where you're wrong Donna," Lady said as she stopped and took her hands. "You are the most important woman in this universe. And you have fans back in my original universe. Hell I'm one of those fans."
"Really?" Donna asked.
"Yeah," Lady said. "I love you, not in a creepy sort of way. But you are brilliant! And clever!"
"I don't see it," Donna said sadly.
"And sadly you never do," Lady smiled sadly. "Those of us that scream loudest at the world only scream because we feel like no one's listening."
"Is that something from your show?" Donna asked.
"Nah," Lady said. "That was the words of the wisest woman I know." Lady smiled brightly.
"Who's that?" Donna asked.
"My Mum," Lady said. "Come on let's get you home." They continued the walk in silence, but for Donna that silence was liberating. She felt like for the first time in her life she met someone who honestly gets her. They reached her house and a couple minutes later the TARDIS appeared.
"There we go. She's all right. She can survive anything." he said proudly as he patted the side of the TARDIS.
"More than I've done." she said. He pulled out his Sonic and gave her a quick scan.
"No, all the Huon particles have gone." he said. "No damage, you're fine." He stepped away from the TARDIS a couple steps and Lady slipped in behind him. He didn't even notice.
"Yeah, but apart from that," Donna said sadly. :I missed my wedding, lost my job and became a widow on the same day. Sort of."
"I couldn't save him." he said regrettably.
"He deserved it." she said bitterly. He gave her a strange look. "No, he didn't. I'd better get inside. They'll be worried."
"Best Christmas present they could have." he said with a smile then noticed that Lady wasn't there. "Oh, no. I forgot you hate Christmas."
"Yes, I do." Donna said.
"Even if it snows?" he asked with a smile. He flipped a switch above the inside of the door and a burst of light came from the TARDIS
"I can't believe you did that!" she laughed lightly.
"Oh, basic atmospheric excitation." he said smuggly.
"Merry Christmas." she said with a smile.
"And you." he said. "So, what will you do with yourself now?"
"Not getting married, for starters." she said and they laughed lightly. "And I'm not going to temp anymore. I don't know. Travel. See a bit more of planet Earth. Walk in the dust. Just go out there and do something."
"Well, you could always," he paused.
"What?" she asked.
"Come with us," he said. "I know Lady would love having another woman about the TARDIS."
"No." she said.
"Okay." he said sounding disappointed.
"I can't." she said.
"No, that's fine." he said.
"No, but really." she said. "Everything we did today. Do you you two live life like that?
"Not all the time." he said.
"I think you do. And I couldn't." she said.
"But you've seen it out there. It's beautiful." he said.
"And it's terrible." she said. "That place was flooding and burning and they were dying, and you were stood there like, I don't know, a stranger. And then you made it snow. I mean, you scare me to death."
"Right." he said sadly.
"You have something to fix first anyway," she said.
"Something to fix?" he asked.
"Your wife," she said softly. "She is hurt, and in there." She pointed to the TARDIS.
"Right!" he said. He dashed back into the TARDIS. He searched the console room, their bedroom, the library, and the media room. He couldn't find Lady. Some times he damned how large his ship was. He took a deep breath and concentrated on their bond, he could feel her trying block him without hurting him but it was failing. It hurt. Badly. He concentrated harder only to be met with more pain.
Thief, Jess's voice sounded in his head as the pain subsided. She is in the Med Bay.
Thanks, he responded as she took off for the Med Bay. When he got there the sight broke both his hearts. She sat in the floor crying so hard she was gasping for air. "What's wrong, Love?" He kept his voice gentle.
"You. Didn't. Hear. Me." she said gasping between each word.
"When?" he asked as he moved closer and rubbed her back.
"In. The. Tunnels." she said still gasping between each word.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I'm so sorry." He held her until the gasping stopped. "I need to check you over." She nodded not trusting her voice. He lifted her onto the table. He did a preliminary scan with his Sonic first and frowned at the results but said nothing. He pulled a few more scans. He shook his head and sighed.
"A quiet Doctor scares me," her voice cracked as she spoke.
"Your emotional out burst," he said as he rubbed the back of his head nervously. "I know why."
"Is it an after effect of the leech?" she asked. He shook his head and nervously pulled on his ear.
"Your, um," he said. "Pregnant again."
"What?!" she shouted. "But, but, but, but, but, what?" He didn't say anything as she kept repeating herself. "How am I pregnant again so soon after my miscarriage?"
"Time Lord bodies heal faster than humans," he replied.
"I know but that fast?" she asked and he nodded. "Is this one going to stick?"
"Yes," he said without emotion. He carefully watched her face to gage her reaction. She sat in shock for a bit.
"I'm going to be a mother again," she said still in shock. Then a large smile spread across her face. "I'm gonna be a mom!" She launched herself at him. He was a bit surprised at this but still caught her with ease. "And you're gonna be a DAD!"
"I am going to be a dad!" he exclaimed happily as they hugged tightly. He started to cry because he was so happy he couldn't hold it in. He was going to be a dad and she was happy about it. "Are you sure you're ready?"
"Well remember what I told you before?" she asked as she pulled away and wiped his eyes.
"Wait," he said as he thought for a minute. "That if it happened it happened?"
"Yup," she said happily. "But just to warn you I was a horrible pregnant woman as a human, so yeah."
"I may have my word cut out then," he said.
"I gotta go tell Donna!" she exclaimed as she let go of him and ran out the door. Then she popped her head back in. "Are the Huon particles going to be a problem with the baby?"
"No," he said. "The reason the Huon particles wouldn't leave you is because they are infused with your TNA."
"So, it's part of me?" she asked. "Like permanently?"
"Yes," he said. "That's way it hurt you so bad when the Empress tried to remove them."
"Ah," she said. "Well off to tell Donna." She ran down the hall and back out the door into the snow. She counted herself lucky that she was still wearing the leather jacket. She ran to the door and knocked Shave and a Haircut. Donna answered the door. "Donna!" Lady hugged Donna.
"Hi," Donna said.
"Guess what?!" Lady exclaimed.
"What?" Donna asked.
"I'm pregnant!" Lady exclaimed. "I'm gonna be a mom again!"
"That's wonderful!" Donna exclaimed hugging Lady a little losser. "I'm not hurting you am I?"
"Nah," Lady said. "Not that far along, but the Doctor has these scanners that can tell ya early."
"Handy," Donna said. "Want some Christmas dinner? There's enough, I mean my mum makes enough to feed like 20."
"Nah," Lady said. "But thanks. I'm going to go sleep. I need it." She yawned.
"Alright," Donna said as Lady turned to go back to the TARDIS. "Will I ever see you again?"
"If I'm lucky," Lady said as she turned back to flash a smile at Donna. Then Lady went back inside the TARDIS and they left Earth.
Notes: Sorry this one took me a bit. So we have a Time Tot on the way! Woot! Name suggestions are welcome. I'm rubbish with names :P Thanks to my Readers and Reviewers! -Hugs- ~Izzy