AN: Hi again! It was great to see you most of you are still reading- and reviewing! Thankyou so much to all of you for still reading:

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Ok, so- this chap's quote!

"The most powerful symptom of love is a tenderness which becomes at times almost insupportable." ~

And if you didn't guess (although I'll bet you did, you're a smart bunch) this means angst is a' coming. But then lots of fluffy hurt/comfort. Depends if you're glass is half empty or half full, but hopefully you enjoy it anyway.

So- the Doc's just been taken by the Tarme (New Gardeners) into the rose bushes now surrounding Donna's house to break down the barriers in said woman's mind. We don't yet know why. Also- Jack doesn't want Amy going after him, in spite of the fact the Time Lord doesn't seem too optimistic about his chances. As their arguing this point, Donna's injured husband Shaun walks in, and then rushes out again when he hears Jack's name.

On the gossip side- Amy's desperate to get back to the Doc and taking out on Jack, who doesn't mind cos he feels worried too, which suddenly dawns on our favourite scot- Jack's reply,

"He's a different man now."

And so we start with everyone's favourite alien love interest- currently in the base of pyschic space caterpillars, which is, incidentally, guarded by homicidal roses. Lifes good.

Enjoy!

"So, what's up?"

The Doctor shoved his hands in his pockets and beamed at the Tarme, who, now in their native form, looked less like humans and more like giant dusty silver caterpillars.

Some kind of leader twitched its luminous violet antennae and clicked at some of the others- the caramel skinned woman who'd been their spokesperson had vanished into the tunnels.

The Doctor held up his hands as he caught the drift of the creatures chitters. "Oh no- no, you don't need to esco-"

He broke off as two soft, powerful mandibles took him by each arm and he was dragged down a small earthy tunnel, carpeted with various eerie flowers.

Finally the flood of caterpillars turned in a serpentine movement that managed to make even the Doctor's skin crawl, and they entered a tiny earthen room lit by luminous plants.

In the centre of it all lay Donna, strapped down and hooked up to all sorts of biotechnological wires and feeder tubes. Her face was vacant, her eyes were closed, and for one horrible moment the Doctor thought she was dead.

But then her chest rose and fell, slowly, inch by inch as the Doctor watched and the cold sweat on his skin evaporated, whilst the Tarme remained silent, antennae twitching, liquid silver eyes expressionless.

The Doctor frowned and shrugged off the soft, crunchy mandibles holding his arms, taking out his screwdriver and scanning his unconscious friend. She was still alive, but barely- brain activity was minimal, her circulation was down to half the average rate- a quarter of that of a Time Lady.

The Time Lord grimaced, placing a hand on Donna's cold cheek and then glaring at the horde of interstellar larvae filling the room.

"What did you do to her?"

The lead female, slightly larger than the others with swirls of lilac round her eyes shuffled forwards. "We did nothing. We said, she has barricaded her mind."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows, he'd forgotten about that. He ran a hand through his hair, staring at the perplexing truth of Donna's motionless form.

He'd heard of Time Lord's putting themselves into a coma to protect themselves or their minds- but he'd never seen it put into practice, it required a huge amount of skill and knowledge. The kind of skill and knowledge the Doctor had never come close to having, and now never could.

Which meant Donna couldn't know how to do this. But she did.

The Doctor frowned, there was something….something that didn't quite add up. He'd think about it later though, because for now the greatest issue was why? Why was she doing this in the first place? What did the Tarme want from her so badly they'd asked him for his help? What was Donna so desperate to hide she'd rather risk death than give in without a fight? Because that was what she was doing.

Confused and anxious the Doctor took Donna's hand, gently rubbing the back with his thumb.

What are you getting yourself into? His thought was desperately fervent and almost unconsciously he tried to send it into Donna's mind, tried to communicate with her in some way.

It's alright. There's been a hiccup, but it's alright.

The Doctor nearly jumped a foot in the air. As it was he glanced quickly at the Tarme, who remained impassive, and then back at Donna's sleeping face. He could have sworn there was now a slight smirk gracing her lips.

What do you mean? Are you ok? How are you doing this? Why are you doing this? What's going on here?

He sensed a slight, exhausted mental chuckle in response to his flood of question-thoughts.

Not…now…Doctor. Later. Not…..yet.

Donna's presence faded, as if she was exhausted, and her body relaxed a little more into the slab of plant and wood she lay on. For the first time the Doctor realized how difficult it must be for her to communicate with him and keep up her blocks simultaneously.

Gently, he let go of her hand and turned to look at the Tarme apprehensively, shoving his hands in his pockets and tilting his head to the side.

"Have you opened her mind?"

The Doctor shrugged and smiled. "Don't want to yet."

There was a hissing insectile noise from the horde.

"We are the Tarme. You will do as we tell you."

The Doctor shifted and sighed, leaning against Donna's stretcher and moving something from a pocket to behind his back.

He straightened and looked down at the dusty, eerie creatures, which were up to chest height on all their many feet.

"I am the Doctor. I am the last Time Lord in the universe. I've seen the medusa cascade and planet 0. I've witnessed the end of the universe. I will not do as I'm told." He finished with a smirk and watched the creatures coldly.

The Doctor moved again, pressing a button on his sonic screwdriver and pointing it at a particular lever on Donna's support systems. There was a whirr, but before whatever he was doing could work the Tarme swarmed forwards in an angry, chittering mass.

As the Doctor was pressed down to the ground beneath the creatures' hairy, dusty bodies he pulled a face, and tried to cover a hint of fear with bravado.

"Well, this is just brilliant."

X

"Captain Jack Harkness! You-introduced yourself as- Captain Jack Harkness!"

Jack and Donna jumped as Shaun came hobbling at double speed back into the corridor. Amy glanced at her watch and bit her lip. It had been one hour and twenty seven minutes since the Doctor had been taken.

Jack shrugged as Shaun came up to the pair of them, staring at Jack with wide eyes, a battered blood red leather journal in one hand and a brass pocket watch in the other.

Jack shrugged. "Right, that's me, Captain Jack." He tried to grin, but Amy could see the worry in the tense line of his jaw.

Shaun shook his head, turning round the diary so Jack and Amy could see where he had it open, what lay on the thick, expensive, creamy pages.

It was a confusion of ink sketches and scribbles, messy writing and smudges, done as if by someone half awake. In the middle of these two particular pages was a messily drawn face- still surprisingly recognizable, and underneath it, in rushed capital letters-

CAPTAIN JACK HARKNESS! REMEMBER CAPTAIN JACK!

"That's you! She- this is Donna's dream journal. How, the hell, does she know you? She swore you didn't even exist!"

Amy was oblivious to Shaun's outburst, instead she was concentrating on the diary and the pocket watch clutched in Shaun's hand as Jack tried to explain over the man's ever more incredulous outbursts.

Amy was remembering an evening when the Doctor had told her stories- dozens of stories about everyone he'd ever known and loved. She was remembering one story in particular, about a Doctor-to-be called Martha Jones, and a Family of blood.

'You see, a Time Lord can become human- put their mind and soul into a pocket watch. But when I did, the truth came out in my dreams, I wrote them in a journal, and showed them to her- the one person I loved and trusted enough with my secrets….'

Amy gasped. "That's it! She needs it! That's why they can't get into her mind- half of it's here!"

Jack and Shaun blinked and turned to her.

Shaun's first reaction was one of outrage, "wait, now the bug things with the evil roses who've kidnapped my wife have been trying to break into her mind?"

But Jack grinned. "I can see why he keeps you around Miss Pond- it makes perfect sense!"

Amy gulped and tried to breathe as another realization hit her like a ton of bricks. "It also means he can't help them. What are they going to do to him?"

Jack's expression sort of froze, and then he fixed his smile a little and very deliberately, with a speed that betrayed the awkward calm settling over him, took the pocket watch out of Shaun's raised hand and marched back to where the Doctor had been taken.

Wordless, Amy and Shaun ran after him.

Shaun seemed about ready to explode, and now he knew what it was, his eyes were focused solely on the pocket watch in Jack's fist as he marched onto the veranda.

Amy, too, was focused on the watch, but for an entirely different reason. She grabbed Jack's arm, and as the captain tried to pull away she promptly bit his fist. Jack swore and Amy caught the pocket watch.

Jack stared at her. "What the HELL are you doing? I need to go, now!"

Amy shook her head. "No- I need to go! Don't you understand that he needs me?"

Jack grabbed her shoulders, panicked and frustrated. "And don't you understand that I can't die and I can't let you be hurt. Don't you get that?"

Amy opened her mouth to reply when Shaun interrupted, hobbling in between them, the diary clutched firmly in his hand.

"Why don't you both go and save my wife?"

Amy and Jack paused, staring at the injured man.

"I can't go- the state I'm in, I'd just get her hurt, but I'm just as worried about her as you two are about your Doctor, alright?"

Shaun stared Jack straight in the eyes. "And if you don't get her back pretty damn soon, I swear, immortal or not, I'll come and kill you myself."

Amy could see the admiration in Jack's face, in spite of the venom in the other man's voice. The captain snapped a quick salute. "Yessir!"

Shaun turned to Amy and nodded to the pocket watch. "I'm trusting you with that. I don't know you, but... I can tell that you want him back as much as I want her."

Amy bit her lip and nodded. "Of course I understand, and I will get her back."

Shaun smiled, holding tightly on to the diary and nodding a little.

Jack grabbed Amy's shoulders and she turned to face him, blushing a little at how awkward she felt, their relationship had hardly been anything but turbulent, and yet there was real affection in his eyes when he gave her a roguish smile.

"Look, Amy, you're brilliant- remind me a lot of myself. I know it would take a lot more than a herd of buffalo to stop you going after him, but I have to know that if I tell you to run, you will. Because I know I'll be fine, but I know neither of the two of you will if you're hurt, ok?"

Amy nodded, though she crossed her fingers behind her back. Jack grinned, put his arm through hers, and together they walked down the garden- to the roses.

Beware the roses...

Hope you liked this chap- wonder what's going to happen now- and what's Donna been planning? Clearly something- due to her conversation with the Doctor and the fact she has a pocket watch. Plus- what's going to happen to the Doctor now?

As ever, reviews are hugely appreciated, if just one or two words so I know who is still interested- I welcome all criticism, queries and comments, so please don't hesitate!

Thanks again for reading this silly ramble- I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I do writing it,

Kat