Author's Note: As always many thanks to BMG without whose help I my yankeeisms would be simply intolerable. Also much love to DM12 and noteissignedlc for all the nonstop support as I slowly wind down on this story that has taken up nearly a year of my life now. The drive to finish this episode is feverish as the next stories are already fiending for their voice. I'm looking forward to finally resolving some things before moving on to the universe at large once more.
The next few hours were quiet aboard the Tardis, though not for the reasons that the Doctor would have wished after their visit with Geoffrey.
Donna had withdrawn into herself when they had left the hospital;her arms had been wrapped tightly around her body and he could tell that she had been barely holding herself together as they had entered the Tardis.
He watched with a frown as Donna had looked up at him with glassy eyes and told him that she wanted to go take a long bath, before she had made her way up the ramp to their room and resolutely shut the door behind herself.
He leaned back against the jump seat, his mind trying to help Donna sort through everything that had just happened but his actions were hardly welcome. He threw his head back with a soft growl as he felt Donna's mind melt behind her barriers, her thoughts one last lingering caress begging for some time to sort through things before she vanished from his mind. His eyes slid closed around a soft whimper, his hands running agitatedly through his hair before he pushed away from his perch and marched back to the controls of the Tardis.
He had been alone with his thoughts far too many times over the centuries, and it had never been a good time for him. But now, he found that he couldn't focus without the gentle pulsing of Donna's mind within his; the warmth of her thoughts had become an anchor for him in ways that he hadn't even begun to realize.
The Tardis reached out to her pilot when she felt his distress, his mind already beginning to question his actions in the last few hours and if he had done the one thing that would push Donna away from him. He had sincerely thought that Donna would have been happy to have one final chance to say goodbye to her father; one final chance to show him that everything had turned out alright and that she had finally found the happiness that had been so elusive for her.
He thought of what he would do to have one final chance to say good-bye to his family, what he would say to them knowing that soon they would all be gone by his hand. He gulped softly when he realized he most likely would never want to let them go, that he would most likely willingly damn the laws of time and fate to keep them with him and save them from Gallifrey burning.
He had pulled Donna out of her father's arms, though it had killed him to do it. He had pulled her away to preserve the timeline and had forced her to say that final goodbye before she was ready to do so; no wonder she had pushed him away when they had finally boarded the Tardis. The Doctor gasped when he realized the enormity of his actions and how cold and callous they must have seemed to Donna, but he had been acting not only on instinct but on the wishes of her father as well.
He had been able to tell that Geoffrey had fast been losing the resolution to allow this version of Donna to walk away, and that had the Doctor not ended their visit when he had then the timelines would have most likely burned to ash. He wondered why he still even cared so much about the timelines when faced with the reality of Donna's pain and her weeping pleas to have just a few minutes more with her dying father.
He clenched his jaw tightly against the tears that were rising to choke him, and he had to finally admit the reason that he was so jealously protective of Donna's timelines. It was not simply because she had to still live the life that would lead to her fulfilling her destiny as the most important woman in the universe, but because he wanted her to continue on the path of self-discovery that would eventually lead to them coming together. He tried to paint those actions with the noblest of intentions; but in the end, with only his thoughts for company he had to admit the painfully selfish truth. He would do everything in his not insignificant power to protect the future that they were building together, and he worried that there was no price too high to pay for that beautiful promise.
They still talked sometimes of the descent he had made into the madness of the Time Lord Victorious and how it had reminded him of the glimpses he had been given in the past into his darker, baser nature. Sometimes, the veneer of civility wore just a little too thin and it was at those times that he remembered the things that he had been shown when he had been stood on a false trial. He remembered how outraged he had been when he had learned that the Valeyard was actually himself, albeit a darker version of himself but oh how innocent he had been in his earlier incarnations.
He had truly believed that he would never compromise his morals so much as to let the dark side of his nature rule his actions. He had held himself to his own code so strictly as to seem almost pompous at times and he had arrogantly assumed that he would always be able to hold himself to that higher ideal.
The lines between good and evil had been so distinct, the lust for power had never touched him because he had never lost everything before. He had never had the constant chatter of the Time Lords silenced forever in his mind and he had never known that one day he would be standing over his people's tomb with nothing but the burning fire of his own regret.
The silence was suddenly too much for him and it made him realize that his mind hadn't been properly separated from Donna's since he had found her once again. He knew that she just needed time to grieve properly and that old wounds had been reopened, but he hadn't been expecting her to pull away like she had.
It was with a heavy heart that he began to wonder if maybe he had miscalculated in taking her back to see her father. Perhaps that was a visit that she would never have been ready to make even though he knew that she had dreamed so very often about being able to do what she had just done.
The Doctor blew out an irritated breath before he sent the Tardis back into the void and decided to try to put the events of the day behind him. He refused to let himself sink down into the pit of despair that he was desperately circling, and with a soft huff of frustration he pulled himself back from the brink and instead focused on the here and now.
He could feel the gentle promise from the Tardis that she would let him know if anything were wrong with Donna, and he was at least thankful that she hadn't shut her mind off from the ship as well.
With heavy steps, he made his way to their room; his hands rising to undo the knot of his tie before he slipped into the wardrobe and began to rummage around in his pockets for the letter that Geoffrey had written for Sylvia. He held the neatly folded piece of paper in his hands, his mind flying back to the look on Geoffrey's face when he had finished writing it before he set it on the dresser with a soft sigh.
He knew that he could never bring himself to read the note, though the look in Geoff's eyes had promised that it might just be the thing needed to bring Sylvia around to seeing reason. He snorted softly at that thought, his hands rising to deftly undo the buttons on his suit jacket before he changed into a pair of comfy pajamas and made his way back into their bedroom.
The door to the bathroom was parted a crack and the Doctor could just make out the glow of candlelight from within before he turned resolutely towards the bed. Donna had been pretty adamant about needing some time to sort through her thoughts and he was determined to give her that space.
He slipped into bed with a soft sigh, his gaze returning repeatedly to the cracked door of the bathroom before he finally laid back and closed his eyes. He found that he was suddenly exhausted from the events of the day even though they had done nothing after the visit to the hospital, but the emotional turmoil was definitely beginning to take its toll.
He ran mental fingers lovingly over the flimsy barrier between himself and Donna, his eyes sliding closed as he softly whispered. "I love you, Donna."
With that gentle thought floating in the air between them, the Doctor let himself finally settle down for some much needed sleep.
Donna's head was still spinning in the aftermath of her visit with her father, her mind was still trying to reconcile everything that had happened in the last few hours to the memories that she had of him during the last few weeks of his life.
She remembered that the change in her father's behavior had been sudden and absolute from one day to the next, but she didn't understand how that could have been possible if she and the Doctor were now walking along a divergent timeline from the one that they had been following.
She had barely noticed the look of pained concern that had flashed across the Doctor's face when she'd said she needed some time to sort through everything that had happened; she was acting on pure instinct and withdrawing into herself so that she could better focus on the turmoil within.
She could feel the Tardis' concern wash over her as she made her way to their room, the ship's gentle query in order to see how best she could help Donna begin to cope with the sudden return of a grief she had long thought dealt with. She thought longingly of a hot bath, her mind pleading with the Tardis to make it as hot as possible before she changed out of her clothing and slipped into a bathrobe.
The lights in the bathroom had already been dimmed and the water was running in the large tub when she stepped within, several candles stood already lit around the edges of the tub so that the mountain of bubbles seemed to shimmer in the dancing light. The sight of the bath nearly drove her to her knees and she barely paused to slip the robe from her shoulders before she climbed into the welcoming depths.
Winding her hair in a messy bun atop her head, Donna let her head fall back against the sloped side of the tub and the tears that she had been holding back for what seemed like hours began to fall. She was grateful to the Doctor for this final, impossible gift but it had torn open the wounds that she had only just begun to put behind her. Her father's death had been a driving force in her life for several years now, and it had been the desperate wish that he would have been proud of her that had kept her going.
She felt like she was suddenly floundering now that she had that final resolution with him and though she knew that eventually she would be grateful for that closure, she was uncertain how best to proceed. She had needed some peace and quiet with her thoughts and so had cowered behind the barriers in her mind, disengaging from the Doctor completely so that he wouldn't misunderstand why she was so conflicted.
Saying that final goodbye to her father had probably been the hardest thing that she had ever done and she knew that if the Doctor hadn't pulled her away from him then she most likely never would have left and the damage to the timelines could very well have been irreparable. It was so hard sometimes to remember the lessons that he had taught her about the importance of not interfering in fixed points and Donna knew that her future was one of the most important fixed points of all.
She had felt the pain radiating from the Doctor when he had seen her father's timelines as they were beginning to fade away, the brilliant energy growing dimmer with each passing day so that he knew death was not far away. She was thankful at least that her own vision was not as sensitive as the Doctor's, because she honestly didn't know what she would have done if she had seen those timelines dying with her own eyes.
It was painful enough knowing that she was seeing him just weeks before his death, and that it was most likely because of this visit that he had finally decided to give up fighting so hard against that death. She had felt a stab of guilt at the thought, but she had also felt the unremitting agony that he had been in as she had lain huddled against his side.
She had deliberately let her mental barriers fall when he had taken her into his arms and let her mind touch his, it was her final good-bye and she had felt the happiness radiating from him when he had realized that she had finally found her place in the universe.
Donna sighed softly as her thoughts finally began to settle, the aching stab of grief was fading far more quickly than she had expected but she knew that she still needed some time to come to truly understand everything that had just happened. Her father may not be there to give her away to the man to which she was now inextricably bound, but he had given his blessing and she could not ask for a greater gift.
There was a gentle caress against the barriers in her mind, a brushing of the Doctor's mind before she heard him whisper I love you, Donna. She bit her lip when she felt that thought, her eyes sliding closed as the tears began to fall once more.
"Oh Spaceman." She whispered as she felt the sorrow and doubt in his mind for a brief moment before he pulled back, respecting her need for space and not trying to force his way into her thoughts. Her actions had left him confused and hurting, wondering if he had actually hurt her rather than help her to find her peace with the passing of her father.
She sighed softly before she pulled herself out of the now tepid bathwater, her hands reaching for a warm towel that she used to quickly dry herself off before she padded barefoot to the bathroom door and pulled it open to look at the Doctor as he lay sound asleep on the bed.
Raising her hand to her mouth, she leaned against the doorway and watched the Doctor while he slept but she couldn't stay away from him for long. The furrows in his brow attested to the fact that his dreams were not pleasant and with an inarticulate cry she threw aside the barriers in her mind and let her thoughts sink deeply into his once more.
He shifted slightly when he felt Donna's mind connect with his, but the contact instantly soothed the worst of his worry from his dreams and he instinctively reached out to her when she slipped into the bed beside him.
Donna shivered when she felt the morose turn his thoughts had taken, the fear and doubt that had taken hold without warning and had suddenly filled him with such self-loathing. He had worried that he was being completely selfish by ending her visit with her father when he did, that he hadn't done so because of concern for the future that had to unfold but because he couldn't bear to risk anything happening to the future that they now shared.
She slid her hand over his clothed chest, her arm tightening to pull him close against her body before she pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. "You're a great big dunce; you know that? Always ready to think the worst of yourself."
She snuggled against his side, her eyes sliding closed as the exhaustion she had been battling all day finally rose to consume her. She hadn't thought that disengaging her thoughts from him would lead to such a quick spiral for him, but then he hadn't seen her this off balance since before Cardiff and rather than accept his help she had stupidly thought she had to deal with it all on her own.
She wouldn't make that same mistake again, and with that thought firmly in her mind she let her essence fall completely into his own. Their dreams twined together and the Doctor's arms wrapped tightly around her body as he pulled her close with a soft contented sigh.
Tomorrow would be soon enough to talk to him about what she was feeling and how grateful she was for what he had done, for now she was just content to lie against him and cherish the closeness from which she had just foolishly hidden.
The Doctor was restless.
He had woken up to find that Donna had slid into bed with him after her bath and that she had wrapped herself completely around him while her mind had settled happily within his and helped him to find a peaceful slumber. He pulled her close, sighing contentedly at the feeling of comfort that her presence always seemed to evoke in him before he had carefully extracted himself from her embrace and slid from the bed.
They definitely needed to talk after what had happened the previous day; more importantly, he needed to talk to her about what had happened when she had pulled away from him and how his thoughts had instantly seemed to spiral out of control.
He knew that he was still off balance from the prophecy of the augers on Bellatrix Prime and as each day passed and the Tardis still found no indications of any temporal anomalies, his dreams were increasingly filled with the screams of the dying.
He dressed quietly so as to not wake Donna and slipped out of their room and back to the control room. The Tardis reached out to him with a gentle greeting, her thoughts sifting through his in order to check on his state of mind.
The Doctor ran his hand along the control console with a soft smile, his fingers lovingly caressing the worn surface before he looked up at the time rotor and let out a gusty sigh. "I'm doing alright, old Girl. Just had a bit of a rough night."
He chuckled softly when he felt the flare of derision at his comment, her response was instant as she reminded him that that was far from what one could merely consider a rough night. "It's alright, girl. I'm going to talk to her about it, I guess I didn't expect that to happen."
Another soft query that had him nodding softly in response. "Yes, I know I'm still on edge after Bellatrix. It's not helping that no matter how hard we look there's nothing to find."
You know what they said, my thief. It will all be revealed when the time is right.
It was the Doctor's turn to snort at that comment, his eyes rolling up at the rotor before he began to turn a few dials and set the controls of the Tardis for a little trip. "You know me better than that. When in all our centuries of traveling together have you ever known me to be content to wait for things to happen in their own good time?" He pulled the monitor around and studied the readings before he slid a few more dials into place.
He knew exactly what the Tardis was doing, and though he appreciated her efforts to keep his mood light, it didn't completely dispel the shadows from his thoughts. Somewhere in the universe, people were suffering and possibly dying because of him and he was supposed to just sit back and have a good time?
You're always too hard on yourself. Let yourself enjoy the time that you have with Donna, because you know that these times are fleeting. You were beginning to come to terms with what had happened on Bellatrix, maybe you should try to hold on to that feeling and use it to draw strength from.
The Doctor was nodding softly, his mind suddenly filled with memories of the idyllic days that he and Donna had just spent on Bellatrix and how she had blossomed so amazingly in her newfound powers. He sometimes wished that the Time Lords could have seen how far a human could rise, though he knew that they would never have accepted a hybrid such as herself.
It had affirmed everything he had ever believed in other so-called lesser species, that they could change and evolve into so much more. He could barely contain the smile at the thought as first Jack, then Donna had risen to the challenges that had been thrown their way. Though he couldn't help but feel remorse for the never ending loss that Jack would always be forced to suffer, he had chosen to become a protector and to use his immortality for the benefit of humanity's future.
He glanced back towards the room he shared with Donna, his mind reaching out to touch her's with a feather light caress before he pulled away. She was mentally and physically exhausted and he could tell by the nature of her dreams that she would sleep for many more hours to come.
He figured now was as good a time as any to start preparing for the upcoming visit with her family for their Christmas dinner. He expected that it was going to be a challenging visit once Sylvia saw the ring on Donna's finger, and though he knew that Wilf would be on their side, he still would have to weather the storm of Sylvia's wrath.
What better way to break the ice than with dessert? With that thought uppermost in his mind, he threw the final lever home and held on as the Tardis shuddered upon entering the vortex.
He could feel the amusement in the Tardis' thoughts as she realized just what the Doctor had in mind, but it was far better than the melancholy that he had been prone to recently.
There was a soft bump as the Tardis materialized and the Doctor was off like a shot. His hands reaching out to grab his greatcoat before he pulled the doors opened and quickly stepped out into the cold English night.
The Tardis had landed outside a Tesco's in Cornwall, the large grocery store was very busy as it was nearing the dinner hour and the Doctor simply lost himself in the crowd. He had been inside grocery stores a few times in the past with his previous companions and had a general idea of where things were, and thankfully this time he had remembered to bring some earth currency so that he wouldn't make a scene.
Grabbing a cart and making his way into the store, the Doctor was momentarily overwhelmed with everything around him. He was used to just grabbing what was needed to stock the Tardis when he ran out of things and he never really thought too much about something as menial as grocery shopping.
Donna had actually been taking care of a lot of the shopping since he had expressed such disgust with the menial task and they had had quite a brilliant row over that little revelation. Rather than survive on whatever he could find as they went running through the universe, she had insisted on regular stops to keep their supplies well stocked. He had to admit that it was a little daunting to be faced with all the selection in front of him and he was almost tempted to admit defeat before even starting.
He knew that he wanted to make several desserts for the Christmas dinner and that he had a fair hand with baking. After all, he had been taught by Mary Berry and had even had a few rounds in the kitchen with Gordon Ramsey. Blimey, could that man shout!
He chuckled softly as he realized that Gordon reminded him a lot of Donna, though she at least didn't curse nearly as much as he did. The Doctor had to admit though that his shouts did get results.
He began strolling through the aisles, picking up various items that he would be needing. Eggs, flour and butter were a must as were several bunches of bananas. He wanted to make a banana cream pie, so he picked up several bags of flour as well as several cartons of whipping cream.
Before he knew it, he had nearly filled his basket and with a happy little jump in his step, he quickly made his way through the checkout line and back to the Tardis laden down with the spoils of his adventures. He couldn't help skipping all the way back to the Tardis, his eyes were alight with anticipation of the next few hours of frenzied baking and he knew that Donna would be completely shocked when she woke up to see what he had done.
He felt a thrill of alarm from the Tardis when she saw just how much he had purchased and she realized that he really did mean to bake desserts for Donna's family. She tried to remind him of the last time he had tried his hand at baking, but the Doctor brushed off her concern because in the end, his desserts had been delicious. She was just being a spoilsport and she wasn't going to dissuade him from his goal.
The Doctor paused by the control console, his fingers deftly programming the dematerialization sequence before he hefted the bags back in hand and quickly made his way to the kitchen to begin the preparations.
This was going to be great!
Donna swam upwards through the layers of consciousness, her thoughts reaching out to gently touch the Doctor's before she blinked her eyes fully open. She could tell that he was distracted by something, but for once, his thoughts were happy and he reached out to her with a whisper of warm greeting before wrapping his thoughts around hers and letting his attention return to whatever he had been working on before.
Donna laughed softly when she felt him immediately turn his attention back to whatever he had been focusing on, happy to feel that his thoughts had settled during the hours that she had been sleeping. It was a comfort for her to feel him back to his usual, manic self though there had been an edge of concern when he had first felt her mind touch his.
She was surprised that her mind had calmed as much as it had with just a few short hours of sleep, but she could feel the Doctor's hand in that comfort and try as she might, she couldn't be angry at him for not allowing her to suffer needlessly. She had been dreaming of her father and not all of the memories were sad ones. She had especially dwelled on the trips that they had taken on their own, when Geoffrey could be himself and didn't have to constantly be on guard from Sylvia's vitriolic tongue. She found herself remembering times with him that she had all but forgotten, it had been because of the Doctor's touch that she had delved into those parts of her mind that she had long since buried away.
Too many times over the years, she had felt that the happy memories had actually only highlighted how achingly sad and lonely she had become as she had grown older. She had deliberately buried the happy times away so that she wouldn't be tormented by the memories of something she would never have again. Now they had all come bubbling to the surface, flowing from one into the next until she had felt nearly giddy with the remembered happiness.
The screaming regret that she had felt when the Doctor had pulled her from her father's embrace was slowly melting away to be replaced with utter happiness that she had a final new memory with him, a memory that showed her in no uncertain terms that he couldn't have been more proud of her.
Thank you, Doctor. I never did say the words properly when we got back, did I?
She smiled softly when she felt the burst of warm affection from him, his mind opening to hers before his replied. You weren't ready at the time, Donna, I realize that now. There was a pause where Donna could feel him struggling to find the right words before he was able to continue. I'm sorry about what happened when we got back, I didn't mean to turn your pain into being all about me.
Donna growled softly as she rolled onto her back, wincing when she felt stiff muscles cry out in protest of the sudden movement. For the first time, she began to wonder just how long she had been asleep. Don't do this, Doctor. Just because I'm hurting, doesn't mean that you can't be hurting as well. It was selfish of me to pull away from you without talking to you first, I'm sorry that I did that Doctor.
There was a soft growl in response to that apology, the Doctor's thoughts suddenly flaring brightly before he retorted. Don't you dare apologize, Donna. You did nothing wrong, I need to learn to control my emotions better and I suppose now is as good a time as any.
Donna was out of bed in a flash when she heard the Doctor's reply, her thoughts swirling angrily that he was thinking denying his emotions was once again the answer. There was no way she was going to let him dive back behind the veil of distant cynicism, they had already come too far together and they still had a long way to go.
He had gone silent when he felt the flash of her ire, his attention turning back to whatever he was focusing on. He merely held himself still within her mind, his thoughts filled with the realization that he was way out of his depth when dealing with emotions of this magnitude. He had run from his emotions for so many centuries that he found he was constantly off balance when they would swing too violently in any single direction.
Donna quickly dressed in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt before she threw open the door to their room and reached out to the Tardis to find out where the Doctor was. It was the smell of baking though that turned her instinctively towards the kitchen even before the Tardis could point her in that direction.
Her footsteps slowed as she neared the kitchen, the delicious smells causing her stomach to growl before she rounded the corner into a scene of pure chaos.
Donna stood frozen in the doorway of the kitchen, her eyes widening in slow increments as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing.
The table was piled high with containers filled with all sorts of treats, from macaroons to cookies and everything in between. The Doctor had obviously been busy while she had been sleeping, but it was the mess by the counter that finally drew her attention.
The Doctor had a hand mixer in hand and was in the process of beating something in a large bowl, but he had turned at her arrival and sent several large drops of the mixture flying before he was able to turn the mixer off. Donna ducked as a glob of something went flying over her head, the smile that she had been fighting to contain finally bursting free.
"What in the world did you do to this kitchen, Doctor?"
His face was a mask of innocence but the look was completely ruined by the flour that completely covered it. His expressive eyebrows were tipped with the white powder and his hair looked like he had been out in a snowstorm. The counter was also completely covered in flour as well as some other gooey substance, and the rest of the kitchen hadn't fared much better.
It looked like a huge flour bomb had gone off and the Doctor seemed completely oblivious to the mess, though the kitchen table was the only piece of furniture that was conspicuously clean.
The Doctor set aside the bowl that he had been holding, balancing the mixer on its beaters against the rim before he stuck a finger into the contents and offered the taste to Donna. "I've been baking, Donna! I figured homemade desserts would be a nice treat for everyone."
Donna eyed the goop that coated his finger, her look of skepticism causing the Doctor to shake his head with a laugh before he popped his finger into his mouth and closed his eyes with a sigh of pure bliss. "MMmmmm, just right!"
"What's it supposed to be, Timeboy?"
"Banana cream pie filling, and I finally got the taste just right! Took a few tries, but well worth it."
"Why does it look like a bomb went off in here?"
The Doctor looked around and seemed to become aware of the mess for the first time, lips parting in an "O" of surprise before he rubbed the back of his neck in chagrin.
Donna just laughed softly when that motion smeared the flour that coated his body into a gooey mess across his neck and cheek. He truly was hopeless sometimes.
"Well, the mixer just didn't seem to be functioning at peak efficiency so I tinkered with it and the first time I used it, the flour kind of poofed before I was able to adjust the settings to the proper speed. After that, I was baking up a storm and didn't notice how much flour had gotten over everything, well sort of anyway."
"How could you not notice that everything was covered in flour, Doctor?" Though she knew the answer even before the question was fully out of her mouth and she couldn't help but double over in helpless laughter.
The confused look on the Doctor's face finally did it for her and she collapsed to the ground in helpless peals of laughter.
It felt so good to laugh at the utter absurdity of the Time Lord covered from head to foot in flour and not even aware of it while he did something utterly domestic like baking; his utter confusion at finding the mess that he had made was enough to cause Donna to forget the flour that dusted the floor while she simply laughed and laughed.
The Doctor was staring at Donna like she had lost her mind, though when he was able to concentrate on her and focus on the image she had of him in her mind, he couldn't help but join her in helpless laughter. He fell to the ground next to her, his arms sliding around her body to pull her close so that she cried out in indignation. "Oi! Watch it, Spaceman! I don't need to be covered in this stuff too!"
His grin was utterly boyish as he reached up and quickly ran his hands through his hair, sending a fresh shower of flour sifting down over the both of them. Donna screeched in protest as the flour cascaded down over her, coating her hair and clothing in a light dusting of the white powder. She couldn't keep the scowl in place though at the delight she felt echo through the Doctor's thoughts, he playfully waggled his eyebrows and leaned down to kiss her with a giggle. "But that's half the fun, Donna, because then we have to get clean together!"
She burst out laughing, her hand reaching up to brush the worst of the flour from his eyebrows with a deft flick of her wrist. "You're impossible, Doctor. You do realize that?"
He jumped to his feet, his eyes dancing as he reached down to pull her to her feet as well. "Not impossible, just highly unlikely. And you love me for it."
She guffawed and pushed against his chest, her eyes flashing up to his before she teased. "Getting a little full of yourself, aren't you, Spaceman?"
The Doctor's arms tightened around her, the playful mood suddenly disappearing like a wisp of smoke as he let himself drown in the warm depths of her eyes. He stroked her flour dusted hair aside, his hands cradling her neck for a brief moment before he whispered. "I wanted to surprise you, Donna. I know I've made things infinitely more complicated by asking you to wear the biodamper, but I wanted to try to make a good impression on your family for this occasion."
She stood mesmerized by his words, her heart was fluttering as she listened to the nervousness in his words. He truly was worried about what would happen at Christmas, he was worried that Sylvia wouldn't accept their relationship and that he would be the cause of her losing another parent so soon after having to say goodbye to her father. "Doctor, you know that my granddad loves you and that he couldn't be happier about the two of us. At the end of the day, I am happy here with you. I am happy with what we share and with feeling it only grow stronger with each passing day. If my mother can't see or accept that, then that's her loss. Something tells me though that she will eventually come around to the idea."
The Doctor's brow furrowed at her last words, his gaze tracing the brief surge of energy around Donna as her timelines flared into focus for him before fading away. He quite clearly saw the possibility of either decision flash through Donna's essence and he could not tell which way the night would go. He didn't want to cause Donna any more pain, but he knew that she was too strong willed for him to coddle her or try to protect her from the consequences of being in a relationship with him. "Either way, I'll be there right beside you every second and you won't have to face her alone. I warn you though, if she starts tearing you down, I refuse to be held responsible for my reaction."
Donna snorted at that, her mind flashing dangerously within his before she retorted. "I CAN handle my mother, Doctor. Trust me, I've been doing it for years and I've no intention of letting her walk all over me. Especially not now, but I do owe it to her to tell her about seeing my father one last time. If she calls me a liar for it, then I've at least done my part to try to share one of my happiest memories with her."
The Doctor was suddenly struck with a thought, his arms tightening around her briefly before he whispered. "I can show her the visit if you would like, Donna. If that is what it takes, I can share all of it with her."
Donna shook her head violently at that, her body jerking back out of the Doctor's arms when she thought of her mother's reaction to such an invasion. "Absolutely not, Doctor. Not unless she asks to see it, and no coaching her on the subject either. I don't want her to think that you are invading her mind, or that you've somehow invaded mine. Trust me, that's the first thing she will think of if you were to suggest that and it would do nothing to help our situation."
The Doctor was nodding slowly as he realized the wisdom in Donna's words, though he couldn't help but be tempted to offer to share that memory with Sylvia at a later date hopefully after she had made peace with the thought of the two of them together. "Alright, Donna. I'll follow your guidance in this situation, but is she going to believe that the note from your father is legitimate?"
"She'll have to, Doctor. Besides, my father had ways of being very convincing. I think he would have thought of that when he was writing it and made sure that she couldn't deny the authenticity of the note for long."
He nodded with a soft sigh of relief, his attention turning inward once more before he pulled away to pace back towards the counter with a sudden feeling of trepidation. "Donna, about what happened earlier…"
"Don't you dare, Doctor. Don't you dare take it all on yourself when I was equally at fault for pulling away like I did, I just didn't know what else to do when I felt so overwhelmed."
He turned back towards her with a start, his eyes widening before he murmured. "I pulled you away from your father without so much as a by your leave, I didn't even give you the chance to truly say goodbye to him before I made us return to the Tardis."
Donna nodded, her arms crossing over her chest as she carefully replied. "Yes you did, Doctor. You pulled me away because you had to, because it was the proper thing to do in order to protect the timelines. You told me that yourself."
The Doctor shook his head, his hands rising to grab at his hair in frustration before he growled. "I did it because I couldn't bear the thought of losing you, not because I gave a damn about the timelines. I did it only because I knew if you did interfere with your past self, you might not ever have returned to traveling with me and we wouldn't be where we are now. I couldn't risk that, Donna."
Donna made a rude sound at that comment, her steps were furious as she closed the distance between them and she reached up to pull his hands down into her own. She clutched his hands tightly, her body pressing against his while her mind slid seamlessly into his. "I think that's utter bullshit, Doctor." The Doctor blinked at the sudden vehemence in her words, the feeling behind them made all the more visceral because she so rarely swore. "You're always ready to think the worst of yourself, but at the end of the day I think you just don't want to believe that you can want something for yourself while still protecting the universe. It's not a terrible thing to want to protect your happiness, nor is it terrible to admit that you sometimes save reality for purely selfish reasons. The end result is what matters, Doctor. The fact that you once again made the decision to be a guardian of all reality, who cares what your motivation was?"
She rose up on her tiptoes, her lips brushing lightly against his as she felt the tumult begin to settle in his mind. The fact that she didn't instantly recoil when he had revealed his base motivations, filled him with a profound sense of relief and helpless love. He knew that he didn't deserve her, but the fact that she was willing to fight for him just as much as he was for her was all the confirmation that he needed. The universe had finally given him the chance to have something of his own, and he was damned if he was going to let it go without a fight.
Donna was grinning softly when she felt the certainty settle in his mind, the comfort that he took from her words was all that she had hoped he would feel. "Neither of us are saints, Doctor. We're running through time and space making it up as we go along, which frankly you've been doing for centuries." She laughed when he squawked indignantly at that, but she continued on without pause. "Oh come on, you've admitted it yourself that you don't know what you're doing half the time but that's okay because things usually do work out alright in the end."
He sighed softly at that, thinking of a few times when things had not worked out alright and billions had died for his folly. "It doesn't always work out in the end, Donna."
She shook her head in virulent denial, her fingers tightening around his momentarily before she showed him what they had seen flashing through the timelines on Bellatrix. She shared the memory of Nishtano's gratitude for his actions on that last fateful day of the time war, and the wonder that Largana had also felt when she had met him even though she hadn't been born when he had last visited their planet. "Even that turned out alright in the end, Doctor. We're all here aren't we? You saved us all and isn't that worth something?"
He was nodding slowly though he found it so hard to let go of the pain and guilt with which he had beaten himself for all these years. It was a part of him that he knew would never completely be healed, but perhaps he could finally let go of the worst of his pain and stop using it as a cudgel whenever he felt unable to accept his own happiness. "You're right, Donna. I suppose when you look at it that way, even the worst day of my life made a difference in the end."
Her smile was blinding when she heard him finally accept some comfort in the result of his actions that had doomed billions but had ended up saving countless trillions. It was a fundamental shift in his thoughts and it would take time for him to truly accept that feeling of absolution, but he knew that in time maybe the burden would be a little easier to bear. "You're the reason for all of this, Doctor and just as Nishtano said, we all have reason to thank you."
His laugh burst forth with startling strength, the joy that echoed through their bond was almost too much to bear before he pulled Donna into a bone crushing embrace. He buried his lips into the crook of her neck, heedless of the fact that he was now completely covering Donna in flour and just breathed deeply of her wonderful scent that was tinged faintly with the sweet tang of destiny. "I don't know what I did to deserve this chance at happiness with you, Donna but I promise to try my best to never look back."
Donna wrapped her arms tightly around him, her eyes sliding closed when she heard the fervent promise in his words. She knew that there would be times when he slid into melancholia and truthfully, that was part of the reason why she had fallen in love with him. Her broken warrior, fighting forever alone against the cruel realities of a universe gone mad and there would always be times when the burden became too much to bear. She was just grateful that she was privileged enough to be able to help him shoulder some of his burden, even if it would only be for a fraction of his long, long life. At least for a little while, he didn't have to walk alone.
"Come on, Doctor. Why don't you finish baking that pie so we can get cleaned up before we head to earth for dinner?"
The Doctor grumbled softly against her neck, his arms tightening reflexively before he pulled away with a soft sigh. "Alright, Donna but I plan to take my time getting cleaned up with you."
She just laughed softly though she couldn't fight the blush that rose to stain her cheeks, her gaze rose to look at him through a thick fringe of lashes while he stood rooted to the spot. "I'll be waiting for you then, Doctor."
With a final teasing look tossed over her shoulder, Donna turned on her heels and walked from the kitchen with as much allure as one could manage while liberally coated in flour.
The Doctor just stood stock still for a moment, thunderstruck by the quicksilver change in Donna's demeanor before he turned back to the mixing bowl and began to hurriedly finish making the pie.
His mind was already a million miles away and he was barely able to focus on the next steps while he felt Donna's gentle teasing in his mind.
With a softly muttered curse, he tossed the bowl into the sink and stripped off the apron that had done nothing to protect his suit before turning and racing from the kitchen to their bedroom.
To hell with it, they would just take a store bought pie.
The Doctor sat in the doorway of the Tardis with his leg dangling out into the emptiness of space, foot absent mindedly kicking and occasionally lifting as a piece of space debris would hurtle by the open portal.
His back was pressed against the doorjamb of the Tardis while he nonchalantly tossed his sonic in his left hand, his eyes travelling back from time to time to the room he shared with Donna before he would turn his gaze back out to the panorama before him.
He sometimes forgot how polluted the space around earth had become in the early part of the 21st century where decades of rockets and satellites had increasingly cluttered the skies of the planet. It hadn't been until the latter part of the 22nd century when repeated solar storms had caused the atmosphere to swell to such a point that it had dragged much of the derelict spacecraft down from the skies to rain their fiery death on the hapless planet below.
The Doctor remembered visiting during those times when he and Susan had still been travelling together, when cities had burned with no warning as the skies had rained fire and death on all below. It had been the final legacy of humanity's wasteful ancestors coming home to roost, and it had taught humanity a valuable lesson as they had finally begun to stretch their ever-questing fingers further into the cosmos.
He sighed softly when he felt the soft whisper of thought echo through his mind, ghostly fingers of sensation dancing across the nape of his neck before there was a soft throaty chuckle that shivered across those same hypersensitized psychic nerves. Donna was enjoying exercising her newfound control far too much and she was using that skill to drive him to utter distraction.
They had spent several hours enjoying each other in their new shower, the flour that had coated the both of them had turned into a gooey mush that had been nearly impossible to wash clean without excessive effort. Not that either of them had minded, but it had taken near monumental control on the Doctor's part to finally pull away from the temptation that was Donna Noble in order to focus on getting ready for dinner.
He had left her in the shower, laughing softly when he felt her luxuriating in turning up the heady warmth of the water now that he wasn't sharing the space with her. She always kept the water cool enough so that he wouldn't be scalded when the water hit him, but she would instantly turn the heat way up when he stepped out.
The Doctor just grinned softly when he felt the teasing caress, his eyes sliding closed as he sent back a wave of heat that caused Donna to growl softly in response.
She was truly a tempting siren and her control of her abilities only made her even more irresistible when she chose to tease him with the strength of her mind. She hadn't quite mastered the control of their telekinetic connection that they had shared on Bellatrix Prime, but he knew that it was only a matter of time before she was able to torment him in that way as well.
The Doctor sighed when he felt the nudge of the Tardis as she let him know that Donna was almost done getting ready, her thoughts were almost playful as she spun through space causing the Doctor to cry out and hold on for dear life as the stars began to careen wildly past the open door. He knew that the Tardis would never let him go tumbling out into space, but she did love to get his hearts pounding.
The Tardis finally settled into an orbit directly over the British Isles, her wild spinning of a few moments before settled as she felt the trepidation begin to rise within the Doctor. Judging by the feel of Donna's thoughts, he knew that they would be heading down to the surface soon and his trial by fire would begin.
He glanced down at the small box beside him, his fingers tapping lightly against the white edge before he leaned his head back against the doorjamb and just chuckled softly.
The Doctor loved to make an entrance and though they would be arriving laden down with gifts and sweets, he knew that the banana cream pie that he had picked up from Billy's Bakery in New York would make the biggest splash.
After he had abandoned his mad quest to try to bake a pie, he had decided to buy the best pie that he had ever tasted in his last few regenerations. He had discovered Billy's bakery on some random excursion to New York in the mid 2000's, probably on the same trip that he had stumbled over those bookmarks that he had tried to entice Donna into using what had seemed eons ago. Their pies were simply to die for and he knew that no other pie would do for this particular event.
The Doctor still couldn't calm the racing of his hearts, his memory of the twin possibilities in Donna's timelines had left him uncharacteristically unbalanced and he knew that he would be fumbling through most of the evening until he had any hope of finding a resolution.
With a soft huff of annoyance, he pulled his cell phone from his pocket and dialed Jack's number from memory. He closed his eyes while the ringing echoed from the earpiece, adam's apple bobbing while he waited for Jack to answer.
"Hello Doctor."
The phone crackled slightly as the connection hissed and warbled, but the Doctor could tell that Jack was on the road. "Donna and I are about to land in Chiswick and I just wanted to make sure that you were still going to make it for dinner tonight."
The Doctor winced at the knowing laugh from Jack's end of the line, the warm sound at odds with the eagles that were suddenly beating their wings against the Doctor's insides. He knew he had avoided anything remotely domestic with any of his companions in the past for a reason, and though he had broken that rule from time to time he tried to stick to it when and if he could.
Of course, Donna was no longer just his companion and as his wife and mate she had a certain command of his time and energy. Her family, unfortunately, happened to be one of those things.
The back of his head smacked back against the doorway of the Tardis, his free hand rising to rub against his temples as he listened to Jack's cheeky reply.
"What? Are you afraid of being there all alone with Donna's family? From what she told me they are simply lovely and you just can't stand to do anything that remotely smacks of settling down."
The Doctor snorted when he heard Jack's reply, trust Donna to paint her mother in such a flattering light. Of course it would serve the handsome immortal right to be taken off guard when he tried to charm Sylvia Noble with his not inconsiderable wiles. Oh, he almost couldn't wait to witness that meeting. "That is hardly the point, Jack and well you know it. Sylvia has barely tolerated me from minute one, and unfortunately things with Donna have progressed to such a point that she will have every reason to chase after me with the axe that I know she keeps on hand."
There was a loud guffaw from the other end of the line before Jack managed to blurt out. "Don't tell me you and Donna are expecting a Christmas surprise?"
The Doctor scowled into the phone before he barked in reply. "Hardly, Jack. Though it is going to be hard for Donna and I to hide the nature of our relationship from her. We just came back from Bellatrix Prime and well, we came to realize just what the Metacrisis actually meant for us."
There was low whistle of appreciation on the other end of the phone, Jack's voice dropping low as he murmured. "You took her to a Nexus world?" There was a pregnant pause while it sounded like Jack was navigating some particularly nasty traffic. With a softly muttered oath, Jack continued. "With how volatile Donna's abilities can be, was that really a good idea, Doc? I mean I'm not mind blind by any stretch of the imagination, but even I know that I can't handle the sensory input of a Nexus world."
The Doctor just snorted, not at all surprised that Jack would know exactly what the significance of Bellatrix Prime would mean, but he couldn't hide what had happened on that distant world. "I had no choice, Jack. She was drowning in her new abilities, which quite frankly put yours to shame. It ended up being the best thing I could do for her, however it has led to some additional complications." The Doctor paused for a moment, his natural reticence taking over before he managed to force himself to say. "Donna and I are actually married, and she finally realized that we have been since the Metacrisis."
There was a softly uttered oath on the other end of the phone followed the sound of squealing tires and a honking horn before utter silence. He waited with baited breath for Jack's response, uncertain what exactly he expected the immortal to say but suddenly he needed to hear just what Jack thought of his revelation.
The silence continued for a long enough time that Donna reacted to the discomfort in his mind, her thoughts reaching out to him as she suddenly began to dress far more quickly so that she could see what was wrong. He sent soothing waves of warmth back along their bond, hoping that she would take a few moments more before disrupting his call with the Captain.
There was finally a long indrawn breath on the other end of the phone before he heard Jack mutter. "You don't do anything in half measures do you, Doc? It's no wonder that you told me Donna nearly took your head off when you found her again. Did you know when you stole her memories?"
There was a sudden tension in Jack's voice that caused the Doctor to wince before he whispered. "No, Jack. I didn't know. I was too scared of losing her and was desperate to save her before she burned, trust me it's been a rough few weeks for the both of us."
There was a soft grunt of acknowledgement before Jack muttered. "Well Doc, don't worry. I'm only about an hour outside of London and I should be there with plenty of time to spare you the worst of the issues with your new in laws." Jack let out a sharp burst of laughter before he replied. "I'm glad I brought as much wine with me as I did. This is going to be a lot of fun!"
The Doctor scowled, but before he could answer Jack spoke. "I'll see you soon, Doctor. Give my love to the blushing bride, I can't wait to see the both of you!"
The line suddenly went dead, leaving the Doctor scowling at the handset before he stuffed it into his pocket with a frustrated sigh.
"Is Jack coming Doctor?"
The Doctor looked up and felt his breath catch in his throat, his eyes nearly popping out of his head before he gasped a sudden desperate breath of air as black spots threatened to dance across his vision.
Donna stood by the control console, her hand resting gently against the knobs and dials while she waited for him to meet her gaze. She was dressed in the same purple gown that she had worn in Pompeii, the tight, form fitting bodice accentuating lush curves before falling in soft folds around her legs.
The Doctor swallowed convulsively, his eyes bouncing from the top of her head to her toes and back again before he paused with his gaze mesmerized by the warm glow within hers. "You look… You are… You're amazing."
She smiled softly in relief, her hand rising to flutter hesitantly around her throat before falling once more. She pushed away from the control console and made her way to his side, her heart dancing a strange staccato that seemed to match the pounding of his twin hearts until she felt light headed. His gaze seemed to be burning through her clothing to scorch her skin, and she couldn't have been more thankful that the Tardis had saved the dress after she had thrown it in a heap to hopefully forget the torment of that day.
Her hair was held back by a thinly hammered golden circlet which had been a gift from Metella that caused the red gold curls to fall in riotous waves about her shoulders, the longer tendrils licking lightly over the tops of her sumptuous breasts which peeked over the delicately scooped neckline. She paused before him, her gaze searching his before she reached up and smoothed an imagined wrinkle in his blue paisley tie.
"Don't you ever change?"
He blinked stupidly down at her, his lips opening and closing around words that simply wouldn't form before he shook his head. "I like this suit, Donna. Besides, it fits and looks good. Why would I want to change? I've done that too many times for me to much like it."
She just smiled at his reply, her head dipping in acknowledgement of his many regenerations before she let her hand entwine with his. "Well, since you are indulging me and my need for family during this time of year, I suppose I can put up with the same silly old suit."
His answering grin was infectious as he let his fingers entwine with hers, their hands clasping tightly before he tugged her back up towards the control console. Their wrapped holiday gifts and the bag of treats that the Doctor had baked suddenly appeared at their side so that they wouldn't have to go wandering through the Tardis' halls in search of them once they had landed.
Donna settled against the Doctor with a happy sigh, her mind filled with the memory of the last few hours that they had shared in the shower. The Doctor was practically dancing around the controls, his eyes mischievous as he looked up at her and threw another lever or slid another dial into a new position. He knew just what this night meant to her and though he was worried about what could go wrong with the visit, he would never rob her of this chance to celebrate with her family. This would be the first time that she was happy and content in herself, and he had a disturbing feeling that there was going to be a battle royal once his relationship with her was discovered.
Donna leaned against him, her eyes sliding closed before she thought to ask. "So Jack is on his way?"
The Doctor nodded, his eyes rising to the time rotor as he made the last calculations and slammed the final lever home. "Yup." He replied, popping the "p" as he so often did when he was excited or nervous. "He said he was about an hour outside of London and would be joining us shortly."
The Doctor held on to Donna tightly as the ship shuddered and adjusted her heading towards the blue planet that spun so serenely below. Donna merely rested against him, her legs spread wide to withstand the sways and jolts of the Tardis before she smiled in reply to the Doctor's words. "That's great, Doctor. I was worried he wouldn't come."
The Doctor scowled briefly, his thoughts distracted as the ship jolted in its materialization on the planet's surface. "I told him about us, Donna. I told him about what the metacrisis meant for the both of us, I didn't want him to be surprised along with your family if they should happen to figure it out."
Donna smiled softly up at him, her fingers tightening around his upper arms before she pressed a soft kiss to the tense bicep she gripped in her hands. "I'm glad, Doctor. He deserved to know what he was walking into and I'm happy that he was accepting of it."
The Doctor burst out laughing, bending to hand Donna the two treat bags and pie box while he took the two larger parcels that held Sylvia's bowl and Wilf's lenses. "I think he was just happier that it proved I wasn't completely ignorant of what a relationship might entail. Don't think that he won't use this knowledge to his full advantage."
Donna grinned softly up at him, her eyes flashing to the time rotor with a softly whispered word of thanks to the Tardis for getting them to their destination in the right time before she followed the Doctor to the double wooden doors that led to the outside.
She clutched the pie box to her chest, the box and bags were hard to handle as she tried to maneuver a hand free to hold tightly to the Doctor's. She could feel the tension rolling off him in waves, his eyes repeatedly rolling upwards towards the ceiling before he would look at the doors once more. She could have sworn that he was worried about walking to his own execution.
Which knowing her mother, might not be too far from the truth.
Donna tugged on his hand, her motion drawing his gaze down to hers so that she could focus on the heart of his troubles. "Hey, Spaceman. We already spoke about this. She will have the note from my father and we are going to tell her exactly what has happened between us. If she chooses not to accept that, we walk out the door and take Jack with us. In the end, it'll be her loss."
The Doctor took a deep breath, his cool hand grasping hers almost painfully before he muttered. "You're right, Donna. I have no intention of letting you go, and at least I have the blessing of your father."
He gulped audibly at those words, his mind flashing back to the anguished look on Geoffrey's face as he implored the Doctor to pull his daughter out of his arms before it was too late. He had literally been handing his only daughter into the Doctor's care, and the Doctor knew that no action had ever affected him quite so deeply. He would cherish Donna Noble with everything that he had within him, and there was nothing in this universe or any other that would ever change that. He had changed time to keep her with him, and he knew that he would do so again until he had wrested every blessed moment of love and joy that he could from their time together. He knew that he wouldn't accept anything less than a full and happy life for the both of them, and the declaration of the universe be damned. He had been given a gift and he had no intention of letting this gift slip through his fingers.
"I hope it doesn't come to that, Donna. You just lost your father, I don't want you to lose your mother as well because of me."
Donna snorted quite rudely in response to those words, her mind snapping painfully within his before she retorted. "It's my choice in the end, Doctor. A choice that I make with my eyes wide open and my feet on the right path."
The Doctor only nodded before he reached out and pressed gently on the Tardis doors. They swung inward on squealing hinges, revealing the empty Chiswick street beyond.
Christmas Eve was chilly in southern England, the air held just the faintest tinge of snow though the low hanging clouds seemed to be holding off for the time being.
Donna wrapped her black fur coat around her shoulders and turned towards the front porch of her mother's house sighing softly when she noticed her mother already stood silhouetted in the doorway.
"Always having to make a grand entrance. Couldn't arrive in a car like normal people."
Donna just ground her teeth at the shout from her mother, her eyes rolling longingly towards the doors of the Tardis before she clutched her coat tight around her shoulders and marched across the empty street.
She plastered a fake smile onto her lips, her eyes snapping all the retorts that she didn't dare to utter for fear of destroying Christmas dinner for her grandfather before it had truly begun. He truly was the only reason why she made such a big deal over Christmas, the silly antlers that he wore each and every year and the happy smiles that he couldn't contain whenever he unwrapped his gifts.
Donna swore that it would one day get old, or that he would get tired of all the silliness involved in the holiday season but she wouldn't miss it for the world. With that thought uppermost in her mind, she clutched the pie box and treat bags to her chest, her agitation barely held in check as she looked back to see the Doctor had followed nearly on her heels.
Donna had slammed the mental barriers up in her mind the moment she sensed her mother's mood, she had no desire to have her mother's emotions rampaging through her mind without warning. She could feel the Doctor hovering in the back of her mind, his calm presence making sure that the barriers were truly in place before his focus shifted to the woman before them.
"Happy Christmas, Mum. I'm so glad to see you."
She then swept past Sylvia without so much as a breath, leaving the Doctor to stare down at Sylvia Noble with a troubled frown before he followed Donna into the house. Wilf's happy cries already drifting out of the living room to meet him even before he had managed to clear the front door.
Sylvia stood rooted to the spot as her daughter swept by her, her eyes had unerringly seen the thick golden band back in place around Donna's ring finger. She knew that it was the same band that Donna had worn when she had returned to the reception on that fateful day years ago, and with an angry scowl Sylvia barely managed to keep from slamming the door closed.
It looked like her daughter had been quite busy in the last few weeks, which explained why she had had to run off as quickly as she had when they had visited last. She had trusted in her daughter's declarations that nothing was going on between her and the Doctor, and she had held on to a glimmer of hope that maybe her daughter would one day come to her senses and settle down with a good human man who could give her that life and family for which she had claimed to long.
The Doctor's gaze had been far too direct for Sylvia's comfort, and the protective way his eyes had followed Donna into the house had already answered all the questions that she couldn't ask. She barely even noticed the pie box held balanced in one hand with a little sticker from a bakery somewhere in the United States, and she could only stare after him as he had turned away from her accusatory gaze to follow Donna deeper into the house.
She would wait for Donna to bring it up, but if her daughter waited for too long then she had no compunction about broaching the subject herself. Gallivanting around the universe with the Doctor while she was engaged and hiding it from her family was beyond the pale, and Sylvia would make damn sure that her daughter knew just what she thought of that sordid arrangement.
It was so typical of her daughter to waltz in and ruin a holiday gathering with her selfish disregard for the price of her own actions. She wondered if the Doctor would be man enough to speak to her about their arrangement first or if he would hide behind Donna's skirts like he had when she had first met him.
Sylvia fought hard to keep from grinding her teeth in an unseemly display of agitation and with a deep breath to calm jittery nerves, she followed the Doctor and her daughter back into the house.
Soon enough would be time to confront the both of them for their duplicity.