The visit at Madame Vastra's was noteworthy for only a few things. Madame Vastra came out of a private meeting with the Doctor, Danny, and Gabrielle being visibly disappointed and the Time Lord equally chastened. And Danny found a kindred spirit in Strax. He seemed to be having so much fun agreeing with Strax about a grunt's lot and how some officers were nincompoops that Clara had to yell at him three times before he returned to the Tardis.
Martha closed the doors. "Right. All present and accounted for. Doctor?"
The Doctor programmed the controls. "UNIT HQ, fifteen minutes after we left."
Martha said, "We hope."
"Getting' there is half the fun," Clara added.
Danny frowned. "Excuse me?"
"Ignore them," the Doctor said. "Here we go."
He hauled over the drive lever. The time column groaned to life…and then the deck rattled slightly. Then the rattling stopped and the ride smoothed out.
Danny said, "Does this happen often?"
"Doesn't happen at all usually," the Doctor said. "Vortex seems to be a little choppy today. It happens. And here we are."
Kate came aboard as soon as the doors opened. "Doctor? Will you please tell me what's going on?"
"Had to make a slight detour," the Doctor said. "You wanted to meet the angel? Well, here she is. Gabrielle, Kate Lethbridge-Stewart. Kate, Gabrielle."
Gabrielle smiled. "Hello."
"Hello," Kate said. "Didn't think I'd be able to talk to you. Nice for once to meet an alien who-" Kate broke off, then slowly turned to face the Doctor. "Oh, I get it. She's the 'dangerous female alien,' isn't she?"
"Well, weeping angels are dangerous," the Doctor started, "but I can assure you that Gabrielle—wait, what did you say?"
"You didn't think I'd figure it out?" Kate said. She turned to the rest of the team. "Before my father died, he told me how a future version of the Doctor who spoke with a Scottish accent appeared at UNIT HQ having just come from…" she cleared her throat "…an 'encounter' with a 'dangerous female alien' in a New York City graveyard. This Doctor swore my father to secrecy, but he told me because he figured it was a point of honor for our family to figure out what was going on, especially as this Doctor seemed to have been holding something in his arms before he appeared. Or someone."
"It was me," Gabrielle admitted. "I was overjoyed that the Doctor forgave me and I hugged him. No problem."
Clara's eyes widened. "You hugged him? And he hugged you back? I can barely get a pat on the back out of him. Why do you rate? He didn't even know your name!"
"It's the wings," Martha said acidly. "Has to be."
"Probably," Clara said. "Danny? I'll meet you back home." Clara stomped out of the Tardis.
Kate said, "All right, Doctor, if you'll just turn Gabrielle over to us for questioning and-"
"I'm sorry," the Doctor said, "what? I've taken Gabrielle on as a companion. You don't 'question' one of my companions without a damn good reason."
"Doctor, we discussed this!"
"You'll have to remind me of the part when you can just take someone off my Tardis without a by-your-leave."
"Doctor…right. Have it your way. Just leave the space/time telegraph on, won't you?"
"Of course."
Kate turned to the remaining UNIT troops. "Dismissed."
After everyone else had left, the Doctor closed the doors, set the Tardis in motion, and leaned heavily on the console.
"I'm sorry," Gabrielle said. "I seem to have created problems between you and your friends. I didn't mean to do that."
"What did you mean to do?" the Doctor asked.
"Sorry?"
"A couple of uncomfortable loose ends. One is that I blew up Winter Quay and killed off everyone you knew there. And now, here you are."
"You think I wanted to get close to you so I could have revenge?"
"You tell me. And if you're going to take a shot at me, now's the time, when you can't hurt anyone else."
"No. If pressed, I could say I upheld the honor of the Host by sending Amy and Rory back, but I'm not angry at you for what you did. Maybe I should be angry, but I'm not. I suppose you could say I've always been the odd angel out, Doctor. Always sympathetic to my prey. Always wanting to see more of the world around me, not just pick one spot and stay there. Other than Lucielle, I didn't really feel close to anyone at Winter Quay; and Lucielle and I were…having our differences at the end. I'm sad about what happened, but not angry. You and Rory did what you had to do. I don't blame you anymore than you blame me."
"Fair enough. I had to ask."
"Understandable. You have to be cautious. All I can ask is for you to give me chance to let me earn your trust."
"All right."
"What's the other loose end, Doctor?"
"That sooner or later, Gabrielle, someone is going to have to go back to Winter Quay in 1938 and hold that door against the angels."
"And whoever does that may not come back."
"Which means I may lose someone else I care about to that place. Not a pleasant thought."
"I know." She smiled. "But it hasn't happened yet! So enjoy the time you have."
The Doctor smiled and nodded. "So you say you like to travel?" he asked.
"I did as much as I could," Gabrielle said. "Not easy, being unable to speak their language and turning to stone when they look at you. Makes trying to hitch a ride very difficult. But I managed."
"And that's one reason you're the odd angel out?"
"My people are content to stay in one spot and let the world come to them. For all the terror we inflict, they have as much sense of adventure as door mice."
The Doctor pointed out the doors. "Outside those doors, all of time and space. Anytime, anywhere."
Gabrielle giggled. "I know. The whole universe to choose from, not just one planet. I can't believe I have this chance."
"Where would you like to go first?"
"Ooh, I don't know. You decide! I'm happy to go wherever."
The Doctor began programming controls. "Well, there is one planet I keep trying to get to but never quite make it. Why don't we try again, eh?"
"Let's! What's this planet called?"
"Barcelona!"