Author's Notes: I do not own Doctor Who. Thanks for all the reads and reviews. It's good to be back! Please let me know what you think and happy reading!
Donna followed the Doctor. "What's wrong?"
"Never mind, Donna. I'll handle this."
Donna rolled her eyes. "Oh, yeah, I'll let you handle this. You are storming through the house and looking to yell at your child! Could you just calm down?"
"There is more at stake than you could possibly imagine." The Doctor arrived at Lydia's door and opened it to reveal nothing. He groaned. "Her room moved."
"What? They can do that?"
"The house always takes the children's side."
"You mean like when you're acting like a lunatic?"
"Donna..." he groaned.
"What about Oswin? What was all that stuff?"
"Donna, please don't ask about Oswin."
"Don't ask about Oswin?," Donna asked derisively. "What? There's some great dark secret about Oswin? What? The souffles?"
"I'm not joking, Donna."
"Then I think you had better tell me what's going on."
"It's... complicated."
"Well, you like talking."
The Doctor turned to Donna and held his hand out to her temples.
"What are you doing?," she asked. "Checking my sinuses?"
"Open your mind."
"What does that even mean?"
"Donna, it'll be much simpler this way, open your mind."
Within a second, Donna snapped away and found herself in the Doctor's thoughts, transported back to his memories, catching a reflection of his ninth self as he landed the TARDIS.
The Doctor walked into the library from the TARDIS. He felt dirty. He felt as if he didn't deserve to be home after what he had just done. What he had to do.
He heard tiny footsteps and Lydia appeared in the doorway. She smiled at him innocently, totally incapable of understanding what he was.
He envied her that.
He heard an argument in the Great Hall. He scooped up Lydia and looked round the corner. The Oracle was having a heated discussion with one of the Castellans as a group of Chancellory Guards stood nearby.
"This was not what was agreed to," the Oracle insisted.
"Lord President Rassilon has altered the agreement."
The Doctor's hearts sunk as he realized precisely what agreement was being alluded to. He hurried back towards the TARDIS and placed Lydia inside and she looked up at him in confusion.
"Don't come out," he said shutting the door.
He walked into the Great Hall. "What is going on?!," he shouted, his voice booming against the walls.
The Castellan didn't speak.
"There are soldiers in the House of Lungnarrow! Now tell me why!"
"They've come to take Oswin," said the Oracle.
"Under the orders of Lord President Rassilon-"
"He and I had an arrangement."
"Your arrangement is over."
"What can you do with her? What do you lot need with another soldier not old enough to understand what she's doing?!"
"She's not needed as a soldier."
"Then what's she needed for?"
"That's for the High Council to know."
The Doctor shook his head. "What could you possibly want with a little girl?"
"It doesn't matter, she's not going," said the Oracle.
"Oracle, must we do this so unpleasantly?," asked the Castellan.
"I've given four children to this bloody endless war! I'm not giving another!"
"We thought you might be reticent." The Castellan snapped. The guards grabbed the Oracle. The Doctor moved to stop them and more guards grabbed him as he found a Gallifreyan gun at his head.
"Child!," the Castellan called. "Come out and be seen!"
"Oswin, don't you dare!," said the Doctor.
"If you don't, the Doctor dies."
The Doctor and the Oracle exchanged wordless horror. Then the sinking feeling in their stomachs when they heard footsteps fall on the landing. Oswin peered over the side of the balcony.
"Surrender yourself, child and no harm will come to him."
"Oswin, don't!"
The gun was more pointedly positioned at the Doctor's temple.
"I'm coming," Oswin said.
It seemed like an eternity as Oswin descended the stairs. The Castellan took her by the hand. He looked up at the Doctor and the Oracle. "You'll be released as soon as we're done with her."
The Castellan began walking out.
Oswin looked back. "Run... and remember."
There were still ten Chancellery Guards standing around the Doctor and the Oracle thirty minutes later. They hadn't been allowed to speak.
Not that they needed to.
Standing amidst the unconscious bodies of the guards, they exchanged a glance and headed back towards the library.
"They'll have taken her to the High Council chambers," said the Doctor.
"No, that's not what they want with her."
"What do you mean that's not what they want with her?"
The Oracle entered the TARDIS, the Doctor followed suit and went to the controls as she picked up Lydia.
"What do you mean that's not what they want with her?," he repeated.
"We should get the Master. He's been imprisoned again since you were here last."
The Doctor stared at the Oracle.
"Well, are you going to do it or not?!," she shouted.
The Doctor started the controls. "You owe me an explanation!"
"Really? Are we keeping a tally now? Because I think I'm still ahead of you!"
"Oracle!"
She put Lydia down in the jump seat.
"Oswin's not exactly your daughter," said the Oracle.
"What?"
"She's not exactly mine, either, so you can stop that accusatory look. The fact is, she's an echo of someone. There are copies of her all throughout time and space and they all have one thing in common. Do you want to guess what?"
"What do you mean she's a copy? She's not a copy, how do you know that she's-"
"I looked."
"Nobody's supposed to look."
"Yes, who knew you were so rule-abiding. Now, let's break the Master out of prison."
They suddenly heard barking.
The Doctor broke the telepathic link with Donna as Esther happily put her front paws on him.
"Well, that's never happened before," said the Doctor. "Then again, never had a dog before. Well, I did actually, there were four if you count all the models."
"What?," asked Donna.
"Daddy, look!," Ella said running in with a paper full of Gallifreyan writing.
"That's wonderful," said the Doctor. He held the paper for Donna.
"Yeah, haven't got a clue," Donna said grinning.
"Oswin helped me."
Oswin popped her head out of the room. "Has anyone seen Lydia? Aunt says it's time for dinner and Jenny's not threatened anyone in nearly ten minutes."
"Right. We'll be right there."
"Go help Tayi feed Esther," said Donna. "Poor thing's still terrified of her."
"Okay," said Ella. "Come on, girl."
Ella hurried off. Donna touched the Doctor on the arm.
"An echo? What does that mean?"
The Doctor leaned in to whisper. "It means that somewhere out there, in the past, in the future or even right now there's another Oswin. The original Oswin and hundreds, thousands, maybe millions of copies of her are throughout the universe."
"Why? How does that even happen?"
"I don't know, but she can never know Donna."
"Why not?"
"How would you feel if you were to find out you weren't unique, you were a copy and there were thousands more of you?"
"What was the arrangement you made with the Council? You kept on about something."
"When the Academy closed and the war raged, they took children who were too young to fight and accelerated their growth. I made an arrangement to stop that happening to Oswin and Lydia."
"And what was that?"
"I gave them something."
"What?"
"Me."
Donna wondered at what he meant. Oswin appeared again.
"Dad, have you seen Lydia? Can't find her anywhere."
"She'll turn up," said the Doctor. "Come on."
The Doctor walked away with Oswin, giving her a squeeze. Donna noticed as the door to Lydia's room re-closed. She opened it again.
Lydia was in sitting on her bed. She looked aghast. "Why did the house let you in?"
"You're not going to be in trouble," said Donna. "I'll guarantee it."
"How?"
"Oh, trust me, I've got some womanly wiles."
"What?," asked Lydia.
Donna shook her head. "Never mind. I understand about Oswin now. I can see why you're upset."
"That's not why I'm upset."
"Then why are you upset, sweetheart?"
"The things I can't see."
Donna didn't have a clue what Lydia meant, but she sensed the young Time Lady needed a hug so she gave her one. They were interrupted by what sounded like a clattering of dishes.
"What was that?," asked Donna.
Lydia rolled her eyes.
"Oh, it's Jenny," said Donna.
Donna hurried down to the dining room to find the dog barking, the Time Lords and the children huddled in a corner. Jenny was currently shouting at one of the maids.
Well, Donna knew she could shout louder.
"What's going on here?!," Donna shouted.
"Well..." the Doctor began in a way that Donna knew instantly would elicit no answers.
"Right! I want to hear it from you!," Donna shouted at Jenny.
"What?" Jenny looked plaintively at the Doctor and Malyon.
"Don't look at me," said Malyon. "You answer to her now."
Donna stood with her hand on her hip. "Well, what is it, missy? We're all waiting."
"She was in my way," said Jenny.
"She's working," said Donna. "Apologize to her."
"What?"
Donna narrowed in on Jenny. "Look, I don't know what your plan is, but if you think you're going to get sent off again, you're wrong. I was raised by Sylvia Noble. You will never be let off that easy."
For a moment, Jenny had a fleeting expression of fear that she quickly hid.
"Now," said Donna, "apologize to her and help her clean up the mess-"
"Clean up the mess?!," Jenny squeaked.
"And then and only then, can you come back and eat with us."
"I'm not hungry."
"Well, you can't leave, either."
"Who is she?," asked Josh, referring to Jenny.
"She's your sister," said Donna.
"Only technically!," said Jenny.
Josh groaned. "Another sister?" He looked at the Doctor. "Don't you think this is enough?"
"Right..." said the Doctor.
"Well, what's it going to be?," Donna asked looking at Jenny.
Jenny stood then the maids watched in shock as she began helping with the fallen place settings.
"So," said Donna, "who's hungry?"