For some reason, this part was hard to write, and i am still not happy about it. be that as it may, here it is, hot off the presses. Enjoy all, and thanks for the lovely reviews, they really are inspiring.

The trains clickety clack jostling nearly put her to sleep. It was unrealistic for her to believe that a thirteen hour shift would not result in anything other than the need for a good night's sleep. She wondered how things were at home, ow he had fared his first night on his own.

Not that he knew who he was anyway.

She sighed and shook her head, wondering again for the umpteenth time how it all disintegrated into yet another mess. He had explained everything, and it really had made sense at the time. The Doctor had told her everything, just like he promised to do from then on. But the promise for full disclosure was not always the easiest to hear.

They did everything they had set out to do. The Doctor dropped the Mayflies at the planet he had found. Then, they stopped at the Shadow Proclamation. After the Doctor managed to get out f his lengthy prison term, they explained what the beings had done. It was afterward, after the last 'I' was dotted and the final 't' was crossed, that was when the Doctor explained everything to her.

"We have to lay low," he said, not meeting her eyes.

"OK," she nodded. "Is that a euphemism for something else"

He nodded, looked up to the apparatus that he had used the last time. "I have to hide us, again."

She shook her head, Martha backed up against the wall of the TARDIS and began to tremble. "I can't," she said. "I can't do that. I won't."

The Doctor moved to stand next to her, he noted her shaking and placed his hand on her cheek. "It was bad last time, Martha. I don't dispute that. I was rubbish as a human."

Martha shook her head, "No, no. I..." She looked up to the Chameleon Arch, it swung dangerously over the console, reminding Martha of the Sword of Damocles.

He took her hand in his and squeezed. "It'll be all right." he promised. "We really don;t have a choice. They can get off the planet, Martha. They are beings of conscious thought, travel through space is nothing for them."

"Then why would they want your ship to travel in?" she asked, still eying the Arch above her.

His fingers drew lazy strokes over her mocha skin. "They have a very short life cycle, Martha. Three months, if we give it a year and a half, you and I won't be more than a myth in their culture, a distant memory."

"I can't do it," she shook her head, Martha felt traitorous tears forming in the corners of her eyes. It had been the one thing she had promised herself after three months scrubbing floors; that she would never again be in this position, no matter what it cost her, she would not trust her fate to him, he always placed her in untenable situation where he came out neither scarred nor shaken, but she wound up emotionally flattened. "No." she shook her head, hard and certain.

But the Doctor would not stop, he would not leave it alone. If they didn't go away for a while, and these beings did remember. It may not be him they get to. It may be Addy. "Martha," he whispered. "I can promise a better situation this time-"

She shoved his hand away. "How can you promise that? You seemed completely unperturbed by any of my misgivings the last time. You said it was only three months and it was the safest location. I don;t trust you with this, Doctor. This isn't right."

"I have no choice this time." He folded his arms and glared at the woman next to him. "Its not just me at risk this time, is it?"

It was the cold water that dowsed her into reality. She shook her head. "How long?"

"Eighteen months." he answered as if it was a drop in the bucket; it was for him..

"We have to do Addy too, don;t we?" she asked looking at the Arch.

The Doctor nodded, and they made their way to Lagos. He'd stood outside the TARDIS while she gathered Addy in her arms and put on a brave face for Donna. They had wanted her to stay there, to take the chance on being found in their cloud top paradise.

The Doctor opened his mouth to warn Martha against it, but she was already shaking her head no. there was no way, after what she had seen those creatures were capable of, would she let Donna run the risk of ending up with Jenny's fate.

They sat in the TARDIS for an hour as it twisted through the vortex. Neither one wanted to go to the next step, Martha thought, in that time, that the Doctor would have insisted to get the ball rolling as soon as possible. But, to her surprise, he let her have as much time as she wanted, which still turned out to be not enough.

Martha stood by the console as the Doctor paced inconspicuously around the room. She held Addy in her arms and watched his face with a careful smile. "It'll hurt him, won't it?" she broke the silence with a voice that trembled almost as much as her hands.

He came to her then, moved with the liquidity of water across glass. He nodded slowly and reached out to place his hand on top of the sleeping baby's head. "It will. But, he will not remember it."

"Can we put him out? I mean to sleep?" she shook her head with the image of a veterinarian's office. "I mean..."

"I know what you meant." he sighed tiredly. "I suppose we could, but I don't have to tell you that the risk is higher with him in any sort of dream state."

"The same reason you didn't do it the last time." Martha finished.

"Yes," The silence crept around them again, an eerie sort of solace that was full of so much to say. She had a thousand and one questions, but none of which would have done anything more than buy time against the inevitable.

The Doctor continued to run his long slender hand over the baby's fuzzy head. Addy had a mop of dirty blond hair that Martha wondered if it would change to brown as he got older. He was a good baby, quiet, serene. If he cried at all, it was usually to be fed. He never fussed when he was alone. He was content to sit near she or the Doctor and watch his own limbs move about. Martha wondered what that machine would do to him, had wondered if it would alter his personality as well. Even at two months, Martha knew Addy's disposition, and worried about how it would affect his brain chemistry. While the Doctor had assured her of no long term affect on the infant, she wasn't walking into this blindly, she was certain that somewhere, their actions would reap an unforeseen recompense in some distant future.

Martha moved to stand under the Arch now swung low over the console. "I think we should do him first." she whispered. "I would rather you know who you were in case anything went wrong."

"Of course." he nodded. He didn't tell her that there was no way he would leave Addy with only a human Doctor to look after him in such a dire situation. He knew he only had a year to prove his worth, mouthing off wasn't exactly the best way to win friends and influence Martha. Still, the Doctor had to wonder if this would be the straw that sent her back to Torchwood.

It took five minutes to adjust the head piece for Addy's small head. She held him as the electricity was charged through his system. The Doctor had asked if she was all right, but the tears gave him the only answer he was going to get to that question. Addy's body had gone rigid as the current drove his Time Lord essence out of him, and Martha could swear she felt every single cell change.

When it was over, Addy lay in her arms limply, his breathing shallow but even. The Doctor removed the head piece from him and scanned him. "Completely human." he announced with no fanfare.

Martha sat on the chair with Addy in her arms, she had not let go of his little frame in three hours, and even though her arms were starting to cramp, she would not let go of him for another three

XXXXXXXXXX

By the time she made it home to their flat in Manchester, Martha was as bone tired as she had been after a day in Farmingham. Living lies was always harder when you were the only one who knew the truth.

The sound of piano playing spilled into the hall way, it was enough of Mozart's Piano Concerto #15 to make her smile. He always played Mozart in the evening, but Martha wondered if it was a coincidence that it was her favorite piece. Did she like John Bowman any better than John Smith? Yes, he was peaceful, loving and kind with a serious streak. He was a professor of music at a small college, nothing like the stuffy and pompous creature he had been in Farmingham. The Doctor chose the last name, said it would illicit trust. "I don't ever want to be John Smith again," he had insisted that day with the Arch sitting on his head. ""I never want to hurt you again like that, or any other way for that matter. Bowman, he was there, that day. Saved you, saved Addy. Maybe, with a little luck, a name like that will remind me not to be so full of myself. "

He had the infant carrier on top of the piano, Martha advanced upon them, she watched for a time his beautiful hands playing over the keyboard. She stood in the doorway between the foyer and the living room where the upright piano stood. She loved watching him play, and was surprised at how human it was to see him play piano. There was a disconnect, watching him play music that was so human, yet knowing that he was not really from this planet. She wondered if it was something he acquired during the procedure, or had he always been able to play. It was his favorite thing, she could tell, to play for the baby. It kept him quiet and soothed the colic that Adric had somehow developed.

He turned, sensing her presence, and the look of joy on his face made Martha glad to be home. "You're back." he announced happily. He stood and removed Addy from his carrier. He waved Addy's hand "Say hello to Mum, she has been out fighting the good fight, keeping the world safe from Measles, Mumps and auto crashes. How was your first day back?"

"They were holding all the weirdoes until I got back." she smiled. "How was he today?"

"On a scale of one to ten? He was Sousa." He placed Addy in her arms and kissed her on the mouth. "I made dinner.' he turned and headed toward the kitchen.

"Sorry," she said, and actually meant it. Her once quiet baby had turned into a fussy, erratic nightmare that she once would have blamed the parent's for at the Tesco. She was that parent now, and whether she could blame herself or the Doctor, she wasn't sure. Yet. Martha took the opportunity to let out the breath she had been holding since the kiss.

"Oh, Addy we are in so much trouble. " she nuzzled him close to her and kissed his neck.

XXX

"Jack called, wanted you to call him and tell him all about your first day back."

"I bet he did." she smiled.

John shook his head. "It's not like that, Martha. My cousin hasn't had a crush on you since the wedding."

"That's what he wants you to think." Martha smiled, she took another large spoonful of the stew that John had placed in front of her. "This is sooo good."

He smiled back at her, and Martha was struck again by how handsome he was. "My sister will be glad to hear it." John believed that he had been raised by his sister, that their parents died when he was terribly young and Sarah Jane left University to care or him. Martha liked Sara Jane, she was very practical and thorough in dealing with the situation. Martha had wondered why the Tardis had landed them on a small suburban street. She had been sure they would have been spit out in the center of the Torchwood Hub.

But, Sarah Jane ad been waiting for them, she said that her Mr. Smith had sent a message. Sarah Jane helped Martha get the nearly comatose pair out of the ship and into her house. By the time that the Doctor, now John Bowman, had come around, he was apologizing for having fallen asleep on her loveseat.

It was Jack who had done all the hard work. When Martha Jack he flew into action. The Doctor had the good sense to sleep for twenty four hours, enough time for Jack and Sarah to pull together a life. They were on their way back to Manchester. Martha worked their for the last three years, but John had spent the last three years traveling and playing concerts. He finally decided to settle down when Adric was born two months ago, and had found a position as an adjunct professor.

Within three hours, Jack had photos, documents, NHS cards, and even a half dozen pictures and press releases for John's small musical tour. Martha was so impressed, she kissed him on the cheek. It was the first time she ever saw Jack blush.

But, as they stood in their too small kitchen a week later she washing and he drying, Martha wondered if this was going to eventually turn around and bite her in the ass.

"You seem distracted." he said.

Martha nodded. "Just work, nothing too complicated." She lied. Martha swore he was about to contradict her assurances when her phone rang. She looked at the name and raised a finger. "Jack? Yeh. It's good, no my phone doesn't work in the tube." she moved toward the back of the large flat and into the back bathroom.

"How is it going, Nightingale?" Jack purred from the other end.

She sighed and sat on the toilet seat. "I don't know how long I can do this." she admitted.

"Oh, you'll be all right. Domestic. I gotta have tons of pictures for late."

"You are a prig, Jack. And I find nothing of this remotely humorous. You should be ashamed of yourself, my son is in real danger here. We all may be."

"Still," Jack argued, but the smile left his tone. "All right, I am coming out there for the weekend. I expect to have some sort of homey setting there."

"You can expect all you like. I don;t know how long this farce is going to hold up." She let her head drop into her free hand. "It's never going to work."

"You can make it work, Martha." Jack insisted. "And, I can help a bit. John seems to recall not being there for Adric's birth-"

"Yeah, its amazing the things that emerge, innit?" she smiled.

"That can work to our advantage. Listen, as far as John knows, its only been 6 weeks since you gave birth. So, just claim no medical clearance for take off."

"That is only going to work for so long." she whined, hating the sound of her own pitiful voice.

"We'll cross that bridge this weekend. You leave that to me."

"Thanks, Jack."

John was just finishing the clean up when she came back into the kitchen. "Jack all right?" he asked. "Still coming up for the weekend?"

"So far, but you know, Jack, there may be a work crisis or a brunette crisis that may divert him from Manchester."

John smiled. "I doubt it, he loves Adric. Been wanting to see him for a while."

"He saw him last week." Martha corrected, momentarily worried that The Doctor's brain had suffered some sort of crisis from the Chameleon Arch.

Then, John smiled shyly, sitting down at the piano he began to finger a few keys nervously "Ok then, maybe that crush hasn't quite abated yet." he turned his eyes to meet Martha's "But he is completely harmless, I swear it."

It was apparent that even John knew that Jack was coming to see her. Ever the observant one, even as a human, Martha really began to feel a nervousness about the entire thing.

As if he read her mind, he began to play that piece again, pouring his heart into it. She was drawn to sit beside him, her head against his shoulder.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Their bedroom was a tasteful homage to IKEA. Martha placed Adric in his cot at the foot of their bed and began to change into her pajamas. John entered halfway through, if he was surprised at Martha's modesty at his entrance, he did not let it show. "Is he sleeping?" John asked looking in on the baby in the cot.

"You can see that yourself," she fired, annoyed that she had to continue changing in front of him.

"You know, he had a perfectly good bedroom." John offered.

"Really?" Martha answered. "Look, he's only six weeks, and I will feel a whole lot better with him in here, at least for a while longer, yeah?"

"Til when? High school. That could get a bit...homicidal murderish." he smiled and moved to sit on the bed and began to take off his clothes. "I just miss it being...just us." he turned and eyed her over his shoulder.

She smiled back at him innocently. The man on the bed took a deep sigh and crawled into his side of the bed in just his underwear.

Turned out, as Martha learned on their first night in the flat. "He loved to cuddle. Sometimes she wondered about his complete turn abouts when he was human, as if he were reading some manual on how to be the opposite of yourself to really confuse the hell outta Martha. Still, it felt good when he turned on his side to face her, his arms reaching out across the distance to her. When he placed his hands over her head, and his head next to hers, something about it felt. Right. In her mind, she went over the last fifteen minutes of sentience fo the Doctor, before the screaming had started. It had become a favorite pass time for her in the last week, trying to play arm chair time traveler, at what point could she had ended this?

Tonight, it was the same time it had been, the time when she asked the right questions at the wrong time.

It was right after Adric had finally gone limp in her arms that she had the guts to ask. Not that it wasn't too late by then, but it was a confirmation of what she needed to hear. There was no turning back, she knew that, there was no where else for them to go, perhaps, looking back, it was why she asked then instead of in the beginning. If she had asked sooner, she may have done something stupid like stay on Lagos and put everyone in danger.

While he slept in her arms, Martha asked the question she had been afraid to ask. "In this nightmare," she began tentatively. "Where are we?"

He poked around the settings while he spoke. "Present Day, Manchester, far enough from London to not cause any trouble. I think a bigger city will be better. Sort of blending in, urban camouflage I think the American Military calls it. Although, I don't see-"

"No, that's not what I meant." she shook her head and squeezed her eyes shut against the onslaught. "I meant, where will we be, to each other."

She noticed he was stricken then, writers often used the term a cloud had passed over someone features. It was the perfect description for what was dancing across the Doctor's face then.

"I assumed we would be married." he said finally.

Martha shook her head. "Wrong assumption."

He nodded then, "Martha,, I can sit here and make promises to you seven ways to Beruvaliean Sunday, and believe you me, that is a long time. The truth is, when I wake up, and I see you, it will be as my wife. I have no way to overwrite that."

She nodded then. "Not what I bargained for." she admitted.

"It never is," The Doctor had answered and flipped the switch. His screams drowning out any further argument on her part.