There was a dimming of the lights in the TARDIS as he flipped the switch, and a soft hum as the lights resumed their full brightness. A figure slowly materialized on the TARDIS platform. It was Michelle Reynolds.

The Doctor cleared his throat. "Wakey wakey!"

She stood on the platform, eyes closed as if she was sleeping. Barefoot and clad in a lightweight linen dress, white in color, Michelle was now 100 pounds thinner. Her hair fell to shoulder length in ringlets of reddish-blonde gold.

"Tommy, can you hear me?" he mimicked. "C'mon, I'm sure you can."

In response, Michelle's eyes snapped open, and her hands flew to her throat. A look of extreme panic came over her face.

"Oi, hello, hello! That's pretty good...except for the little breathing thing. Had a good rest then?"

Michelle's face turned a slight shade of purple. Her look of panic was now mixed with obvious anger.

"Right! The breathing thing! So very sorry." The Doctor pointed the sonic screwdriver at the TARDIS console. "A little bit more memory...and there. Good as new."

Michelle audibly gasped for oxygen, and dropped to her knees. When she had gotten her voice back she chattered randomly, "Kedron...Doctor...Vortex...DoctorDonna!" She looked around frantically. "Donna Noble. DoctorDonna?"

"And a little adjustment on the vocal processors...that should do it."

Finally, Michelle ceased to ramble and stood up. "Prom night, and the end of Earth...Doctor?" She looked at him suspiciously. "What happened? You're not actually telling me I'm still alive?"

This question seemed to fluster the Doctor, who ran his fingers through his hair distractedly. "Yes, well...er, heh. Ha ha. 'So Alive', by Love and Rockets. Great song. I once told Donna that Rose was--"

"So alive, when she asked if Rose trusted you," interrupted Michelle with an automatic precision.

"Yes. And now I suppose I have to ask you the same question." The Doctor's expression was solemn.

Michelle was puzzled. "I'm pretty sure you asked me that, and I already told you."

The Doctor put his hands in his pockets. "That was then, this is now."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Not a thing," he added quickly. "I just want to see what you can remember."

"Well...I grabbed the bomb on the Kedron ship and it went off under me. There was a lot of pain and blood, and you disabled the Kedron vessel. We got back to the TARDIS, and there was a sort of healing blackness that made everything around me disappear. Then...nothing. And I was here."

The Doctor was silent. The music, the simulations, had all been to keep her brain pattern stimulated. She hadn't formed any solid memories during her time in the computer.

Michelle broke into a wide grin. "But that's wonderful! That means I didn't die! I'm safe, and you're safe! Earth survived, and so did I!"

"Technically, yes," mumbled the Doctor.

Her grin faded. "'Technically?' Well, whatever that means, I'm sure there's nothing to stop us now from traveling together some more!"

"What about the 1980's?"

"Oh, that. I don't know so much anymore. I somehow feel liked I've lived through so much vintage music recently...I feel somewhat sick of it. It's weird."

The Doctor again said nothing.

Michelle chose to ignore this and jumped for joy. "Oh, stop being such a cold fish! Let me hug you; I'm so glad to see you!" She started towards him.

The Doctor took a few steps backward, stammering, "P-probably not such a good idea..."

But it was too late. As she moved to place her arms around the Doctor, Michelle passed right through him, grabbing only empty air.

In terror, she shrieked, "What is this??" Before he could speak she snapped, "And don't tell me you're sorry! Just tell me the truth!"

The Doctor sighed. "All right. You're...a hologram. A projection. When you died, the TARDIS absorbed your mental essence. I was able to...manifest you, so to speak, by using some technology I had from a previous encounter."

"But...but I can breathe! My heart is beating! I can physically feel the console!" She demonstrated for him.

"That's because you are part of the TARDIS, and vice versa. It's part of the illusion. At some point during your journey with me the two of you were telepathically linked."

Michelle had gone stark white. "No. This can't be happening. You're making this up. A fairy tale story for the benefit of a girl in fairy tale clothes. Did you melt away my pounds with genetically-altered Adipose too?" The TARDIS had infused her with knowledge of the Doctor's history, which could now be brought up with lightning-fast recall.

"Don't be ridiculous. You appear the way you do because this is your idea of what people look like in the Earth version of Heaven. Angels and all that."

"So there's no afterlife either???"

"That's not the point right now, and I could extrapolate for hours about theories of what happens after human death, so..."

"So what is the point then? Why did you bring me back? To avoid being lonely?"

"Because it was the right thing to do! I couldn't let you be a virtual vegetable, I had to give you a choice!"

"Can you disconnect me from the system?"

"If...if I did, you would be erased. Permanently gone. Really and truly dead."

"And if I stay...activated?"

"You'll travel with me indefinitely, just as all my companions have done."

"But can I ever leave the TARDIS, or have physical contact with any other beings?"

The Doctor's voice was hoarse. "No. I'm sorry, but I had to tell you the truth. I know that it's a big sacrifice either way."

Michelle was dangerously silent. When she looked at him, her eyes brimmed with tears of rage. "You 'know', huh? What exactly is it that you 'know'? What do you 'get' about being human?"

"I have loved and lost so many times, Michelle..."

Furiously distraught, she screamed at him, "Do you know about those of us who haven't? At least Rose, Martha and Donna were all pretty enough to have relationships with others! What about us rejects?"

Michelle began to pace incessantly. "What about us who have no clue of what it was like in the first place? You're just an alien! A creepy old...thing in some young hipster's body, sporting Converse and stupid hair! And then you want me to stay here, a permanent play toy for you, while I miss out on all of the important things in life because I have no choice but to be brought to existence with the push of a button! Because of what you've done!"

She tore at her hair in agony, pointing an accusatory finger at him. "Well, no more. No more words from you, you emotionless..." And then, with all she'd learned from the TARDIS archives, Michelle uttered a Gallifreyian slur.

The response from the Doctor surprised her. "It's wrong, you know." He turned away, clearly brokenhearted, and his shoulders began to shake. "I feel everything. You have no idea how long it's been."

"Stop it. Shut up and quit crying." She softened. "Aliens don't cry. Especially not over something like this."

"Maybe not, but Time Lords do." Tears streamed down the Doctor's face.

Michelle felt embarrassed. "You're acting like a pussy."

"I'm 900 years old! I've earned myself a few bouts of weeping now and again." He smiled through his tears. "I had...if you planned to stay 'alive', I finally had someone to share it with. I don't usually have that luxury. I can't tell anyone human; they always go away in the end."

"Share what?" she asked carefully.

"The lura. It's...it's Gallifreyian for love of the spirit and soul. That's the only way I can translate it, I'm afraid. I wouldn't call it 'love' as humans know it exactly...it's more than that."

He looked at Michelle urgently. "If I gave you a sense of the lura, would you remain here?"

Michelle did not answer at first. "But..." she said finally. "You might get sick of me. You might laugh. You could delete me or something. Or be nasty to me. It's...I don't know..."

The Doctor laughed, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. "It's not what you think. Just a chance to break free from my demons. Show you I'm a feeling man. That my companions...that you...are a part of me."

She still looked doubtful as he told her gently, "Please. I'll never leave you cold inside."

He winced as Michelle snapped, "Oh, please! You can't use something so cheeseball on me, you know. That was a lousy pick-up line."

"Okay, okay, you're right, it sounded bad," admitted the Doctor. "It's not a pick-up line. It is...a chance to grow. An offer. That's all."

Michelle's cheeks went crimson. "I...I suppose." The statement sent a little shiver down her spine. The programming was effective, that was certain.

"On one condition..." The Doctor was serious now. "After this...we will never speak of it again. And you have to promise me that you will never, ever ask me if I love you. Do you swear?"

She nodded vigorously. "I promise." With the two little words, the Doctor began to relax. It would be done.