Anywhere
Title: Anywhere
Characters: Donna, brief OCs, the Doctor
Timey-Wimey Factor: Set Post-JE.
Summary/Notes: Written for challenge #27 (anywhere) at doctor_donna
"This is ridiculous!” Donna shouted, slamming a folder down onto her desk. Well, not her desk, exactly, because she had never planned on working there forever, but still. And to be technical it was now someone else's; a hot young blonde, to be exact. Typical.
“You can't sack me just to hire her, you know,” she snapped as she stormed into her now former boss's office. “I don't care who you think you are, you've got no right to-”
“She's a better typist,” the rather fat man behind the expensive wooden desk said flatly. He smiled at her in a patronizing fashion and nodded toward the girl in the short skirt who was going to replace her. “You should see the way she types. Absolutely amazing.”
“Yeah, I'll show you where to stick your typing,” Donna growled. She walked back to her chair and pulled her purse out of the seat, ignoring the looks from the others in the office.
A man in a rather shabby but still nice enough looking suit walked up to her, placing a hand on her arm. “You can fight this, you know,” he said quietly. “We all know what a git he is and we'll help you if you need it. If you like I could speak to-”
“No thanks,” Donna said, startling him as she pulled away. Her expression softened and she smiled at him. “Really, thanks, but it won't help. He won't listen to us anyway. Maybe it's better if I just leave.”
The man smiled back, but before he could say anything the blonde walked in between them, bumping Donna's purse out of her arms. “Excuse me,” the younger woman said loudly, “but I don't believe you work here anymore, so if you could kindly get out of my way.”
Donna huffed, grabbing her purse from the floor, and muttered something under her breath.
“She won't last two weeks,” the young man whispered, shooting a glare at the blonde, who was now fiddling with the keyboard of the computer in front of her, pressing various keys as if to see what they did. “She'll be gone before you know it and he'll be begging you to come back.” Donna shook her head and he sighed. “Fine. Where will you go then?”
“Anywhere but here,” she replied. She managed a small wave at a woman across the room who had taken to ordering lunch with her, then turned around and walked out of the building.
The wind blew her hair in her face and as she pulled it away she found herself face to face with a tall, thin man in a suit that fit much better than her old co-worker's but was just as odd. “Get out of my way,” she snapped, and the man's eyes widened as he looked up at her. “Well, what's your problem, then? You stupid or something?”
She rolled her eyes and stepped around the man. “Nutter,” she mumbled, but she cast a glance back at the man anyway, frowning at his tatty brown suit. “It can't be,” she breathed, and shook her head. She started across the street then her foot slipped on a rock in the middle of the road and the last thing she heard was a stranger yell her name.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Donna felt someone tugging on her arm and the voice from earlier returned, urgently calling her name over and over. Finally she opened her eyes and she saw the same man's face from before, his brown eyes staring into hers, clearly concerned. “Donna, can you hear me?”
“Yeah.” She groaned, pressing her palm to her forehead. “How do you know my name?”
“I....I checked your purse,” he said lamely. “I found your wallet in the pocket.”
“Fine, whatever,” she mumbled, then she looked up at him and frowned. “I forgot my wallet today,” she said, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. She sat up and slid away, suddenly realizing that she was no longer on the street, but instead in what looked like a small bedroom. “Who are you? Where did you take me?” He tried to reach for her arm but she slapped at his hand. “Are you some sort of rapist or something? Because I'll bloody kill you, Mister. Watch it.”
“I'm not going to hurt you,” the man insisted. Donna shook her head and suddenly felt rather dizzy, her vision growing fuzzy. She winced and the man stepped toward her again, grabbing an ice pack off the small table beside the bed. “Just let me help, okay? I won't hurt you.”
“Yeah, sure you won't,” Donna snapped. The man shook his head sadly and ignored her protests as he gently pressed the ice to the side of her head, the throbbing pain in her temple subsiding. She glanced up at him again and smiled hesitantly. “So who are you then?”
The man hesitated, then looked away and muttered, “John Smith.”
“Right,” Donna scoffed. “No one really has that name, you know. Who are you really?”
“I can't say,” he muttered. Donna hissed in pain and he frowned, pulling the ice pack away. “You know, you've got a rather nasty bump. I wonder if you've got a concussion.”
“What are you, some sort of doctor or something?”
The man smiled, handing her the ice pack and standing up. “Yeah,” he said softly. “I am.”
“Great,” Donna sighed, pressing the pack to her head again. “Just what I need, another bloody doctor. It's not like you'll do any more good than the rest of them.”
“How do you mean?” the man asked, pulling a chair beside her. “You've seen a lot of doctors?”
“You have no idea,” Donna replied. “I had this....oh, like you'd even care.”
“Tell me,” the man insisted.
Donna looked at him and noticed that he was staring at her intently, like she was something either very valuable or very strange. Probably the second one, Donna thought glumly, and tried to smile at him as she adjusted the ice on her head again. He smiled back but it was an empty expression and she decided that the man looked as miserable as she felt.
“I got sick,” she told him finally. “That rubbish with the planets disappearing a few months back? Apparently what really happened was that there was a gas leak and it made people see all sorts of funny things in the sky. At least that's what my granddad told me, and he wouldn't lie so it's got to be true. I must have had some sort of allergic reaction to it and my mum said I was asleep for several days. When I woke up everything was sorted out again but I couldn't remember anything that had happened to me since....since my dad got sick,” she finished softly. She sniffled then looked up at him and wiped her eyes. “Sorry. I didn't mean to be weird.”
“It's fine,” the Doctor assured her. He smiled at her, wondering exactly when Donna had grown soft. When he'd left her at home she seemed the same shouty rude woman he'd met on her wedding day, but now she was practically crying in front of a complete stranger. On the other hand, she accused me of kidnapping her again. No change there then. He noticed her staring at him strangely and smiled. “What happened to him?” he asked, and Donna frowned.
“He'd been ill for a while but he was so excited about me getting married he wouldn't rest. Silly git,” she murmured, “always trying to do stuff for me.” She laughed quietly, clearly trying not to cry again. “My fiancé, Lance, he ran off because one of our friends told him I was pregnant. I wasn't, of course,” she said, and he nodded sharply, “but he never really did have a spine; I practically had to beg him to marry me. But he loved me. Only man besides my dad and my gramps who treated me like I was worth anything.”
“Donna, I think you're-” He bit his tongue, literally, and Donna saw him wince. “I'm fine,” he mumbled. He reached in his pocket and grabbed a couple of pills, taking a bottle of water off the table and handing both of them to her. “Well, it's been nice talking to you but I think you can manage on your own now. Take those; they'll help with the pain.”
Donna studied the pills for a moment then nodded, twisting the cap off the water bottle. He turned away as Donna raised her hand to her mouth and she deftly dropped the capsules down the front of her blouse, a trick she had learned in high school when a guy at a party had tried to give her drugs. She grinned, and as the man turned back toward her she put the bottle to her lips, pulling it away when he smiled. “Thanks.”
“No problem,” he said, smiling at her warmly, and stared at her. “Are you feeling better now?”
She nodded, and after a moment she let the grin slide off her face and rolled her eyes up into her head, flopping against the mattress. She even let the water fall out of her hands for effect and it splashed out, running over the blankets and onto the floor. She heard the man's footsteps sound on the floor as he walked over to her.
“Donna?” he called softly, and she forced herself to relax as he touched her. “Donna, are you awake?” When she didn't respond he squeezed her arm and then she felt him brushing the hair off her face, carefully pressing his fingers over where she'd banged her head. She wanted to tell him to keep her hands to himself but settled for what she hoped was a convincing moan instead. “Oh, Donna, I'm sorry,” he said softly, and his hand slid down her cheek. “I'm so sorry,” he repeated. “I'll try not to hurt you again, okay? I promise.”
She swallowed, slightly panicked now, but managed to keep her body limp as he stroked the side of her face. “Donna, I've missed you so much,” he murmured, and she felt him press his lips to her forehead. “No fever,” he said, sounding rather relieved, and while she was still wondering why a concussion would give her a fever he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, the other hand brushing her knees as he slid his skinny arm under them. “It's going to be all right, Donna,” he whispered in her ear. “I'm right here, and nothing's going to-”
“All right, what's the big idea?” she shouted, deciding she'd had enough. The man dropped her back onto the bed and she winced as the jolt made her headache return. Still, she ignored it and pulled away from him, pressing herself into the corner and pulling her knees to her chest.
“Donna, I- I thought you were asleep,” he stammered.
“Yeah, well I'm not,” she barked. “You tried to drug me. Why did you-” She gasped, holding herself tighter. “You are a rapist or something, aren't you? You were just messing with me!”
“Donna, I'm a doctor, okay? I was just trying to help you, I-”
“You're not playing doctor with me, Sunshine!” she roared. He flinched at how loud she was yelling but suddenly the angry expression dropped from her face and she frowned at him, her eyes moving up and down his scruffy brown suit, his white trainers which had various colors of dirt and muck on them, and his spiky brown hair that looked like a hedgehog perched on his skinny neck. “Do I know you?” she asked finally. “You....you look really familiar.”
“No,” he said quickly. “No, you don't know me. Listen, you can leave, but I need to-” He reached for her and she thrust out her foot, barely missing his head. “Donna, please trust me.”
“And why should I?” Donna snapped. The man didn't seem to have an answer and she nodded sharply. “I thought not.” She stood up, keeping her eyes on him, but quickly lost her balance. The man dashed forward to catch her and she collapsed into his arms., too dizzy to push him away. “What did you do to me?” she asked breathlessly. “And who are you?”
“No one of consequence,” he replied. He helped her back to her feet, gripping her arms as she swayed slightly. “You all right?” he said, staring down at her in worry, and she slowly nodded. “Okay. I'll take you home then. If you just- Donna?”
Donna stared at him for a moment longer then her eyes widened. “Doctor?”
“I....yeah, I'm a doctor, that's right. No concussion then, I guess,” he said, quickly pulling away from her. He practically shoved her onto the bed, turning to leave, but Donna called his name again and he stopped, slowly turning back to face her. “What gave me away?”
“You smell,” Donna said after a moment. The Doctor huffed indignantly and she laughed, motioning for him to join her. “You smell like bananas and those awful chocolate cookies you like so much and....” She leaned against him, settling her head on his shoulder. “And it rained wherever you were last. I love rain, you know. Snow not so much, but rain, yes.” He smiled, wrapping an arm around her, and she took a deep breath. “Let's see, what else? The oil you use in the TARDIS -though I don't know why, because she doesn't need it- and your hair gel that I used by mistake that one time. You remember? It turned my hair purple and- Oi, don't laugh! It was awful!” She heard him chuckle again and sighed, relaxing into his arm. “Of course you always smell like jelly babies, and....” She sniffed again and made a face, covering her mouth. “You never did wash your coat after the Oodsphere, did you?”
The Doctor chuckled. “Guilty,” he said with a shrug, then he frowned. “You know who I am.” Donna nodded and he stared at her curiously. “You certainly didn't before.”
“Ten points to the supergenius,” Donna said, and looked up at him. “Well? What's going on?”
“I don't know,” he replied honestly, shaking his head and running a hand through his messy hair. He paced around the room for a moment, Donna watching him. “We could- no, that won't work. Oh, maybe I could....” He turned to her, staring at her quizzically. “Do you like your hair?” Donna's eyes widened and she tugged absently on a stray curl, shoving the red strands back into place as she backed away. “Right, that idea's out then.”
“Doctor,” Donna said after a moment, “why do you have to do anything anyway?”
“Well you can't stay here,” he insisted, turning to face her. He was about to explain that he was under no circumstances going to allow her to talk him into not wiping her mind when he saw the look on her face; she appeared confused, even lost, and he studied her carefully. “Donna?”
“Doctor?” She blinked a couple times, looking around. “Where am I? I've never been here.”
“You're in my bedroom,” he answered. “I needed to have access to the medical bay but it was too dangerous to leave you in there or let you rest in your old room.” Donna nodded absently and he frowned. “Donna, is something wrong? You look upset.”
“I'm fine,” she assured him. She looked around again then sighed. “I just don't understand why I have to leave again. Did I do something wrong?” She managed a quick grin and shook her head. “More like you did something wrong, but that's not the point. Why am I going home?”
The Doctor stared at her incredulously, watching as she picked at one of her fingernails. “Are you sure nothing's wrong?” he said. He quickly walked over and pressed his fingertips to her temples, taking care to avoid the bruise on the side of her face from the rock. “Donna, you-”
“-Have no idea what's going on,” they said in unison.
His fingers dropped from her face and he frowned. “Why don't you remember?”
“Remember what?” she asked. She rubbed her forehead and quickly pulled her hand away, wincing. “Doctor, my head hurts. Whatever you did, do it again and I'll kill you.”
“Oh, of course!” the Doctor said. “Thick, thick, thick, that's me! The bump to your head must have triggered a- oh, it doesn't matter. You're safe!” He gathered Donna in his arms and swung her around the room, holding her tightly. “Oh,” he said as he set her back down on the ground. “You do know who I am, right?” Donna slapped him across the face. “Yup, you remember me,” he said dryly.
“You bet I do,” she said. “Now tell me what's going on. Why do I remember you and everything else but have no idea why you'd be trying to take my memories?”
“The knock to your head,” he replied simply. “You must have recognized me on some level when I bumped into you on the street, and when you hit your head it caused a concussion of some sort. And I thought I'd regenerate tripping over a brick,” he chuckled, looking into her eyes to make sure there was no damage. “Anyway, it triggered a bit of amnesia, and since the memories of me -literally, my thoughts, all the traces of the DoctorDonna- were at the front of your mind, figuratively speaking, it erased them. Your brain managed to do to itself what I didn't quite do properly the first time. Do you mind?” He gestured toward her face and she nodded, still looking very confused as he pressed his fingers back to her temples. “Aha!” he shouted, startling her. “Just as I suspected. There's evidence those memories were triggered, but they're....well, they're not here.” He grinned, hugging her again. “Donna, you're fine!”
“Glad to hear it,” she said, shrugging and rubbing over the bump on her head again.
“So what now?”
“How about you take me home?” Donna suggested nonchalantly, and the Doctor's face fell. She noticed his expression and reached for his hand, squeezing it gently. “I'm kidding,” she assured him. “But you're going to tell me why you took my memories in the first place, because I remember being here and then I remember being home but not how I got there and I don't know why you'd do that to me. Tell me what happened and I'll see if I want to stay, all right?”
The Doctor nodded curtly. “That seems fair,” he said, clearing his throat awkwardly. “Do you remember the daleks? And Rose?” Donna nodded. “Okay, good. So when all that was going on there was....well, an accident, sort of, and my brain got transferred into yours. Oh, you were so brilliant, Donna! I mean even more than before, of course. But it hurt you and there was no other way to save you in time, so I had to-”
“I want dinner,” Donna said suddenly. “You abducted me right before lunch and I'm hungry. The least you could do is buy me something to eat.” The Doctor stared at her, and he noticed the grin slowly spreading on her face. “Well? Are you going to let me starve or what?”
“Dinner it is,” he said, tightening his grip on her fingers briefly before letting go. “What are you hungry for? Chinese? Italian? Or maybe that planet with the fantastic banana pancakes.” Donna shrugged. “What? You don't like pancakes anymore? Where do you want to go then?”
“Anywhere,” Donna answered quietly. “Take me anywhere.”
Characters: Donna, brief OCs, the Doctor
Timey-Wimey Factor: Set Post-JE.
Summary/Notes: Written for challenge #27 (anywhere) at doctor_donna
"This is ridiculous!” Donna shouted, slamming a folder down onto her desk. Well, not her desk, exactly, because she had never planned on working there forever, but still. And to be technical it was now someone else's; a hot young blonde, to be exact. Typical.
“You can't sack me just to hire her, you know,” she snapped as she stormed into her now former boss's office. “I don't care who you think you are, you've got no right to-”
“She's a better typist,” the rather fat man behind the expensive wooden desk said flatly. He smiled at her in a patronizing fashion and nodded toward the girl in the short skirt who was going to replace her. “You should see the way she types. Absolutely amazing.”
“Yeah, I'll show you where to stick your typing,” Donna growled. She walked back to her chair and pulled her purse out of the seat, ignoring the looks from the others in the office.
A man in a rather shabby but still nice enough looking suit walked up to her, placing a hand on her arm. “You can fight this, you know,” he said quietly. “We all know what a git he is and we'll help you if you need it. If you like I could speak to-”
“No thanks,” Donna said, startling him as she pulled away. Her expression softened and she smiled at him. “Really, thanks, but it won't help. He won't listen to us anyway. Maybe it's better if I just leave.”
The man smiled back, but before he could say anything the blonde walked in between them, bumping Donna's purse out of her arms. “Excuse me,” the younger woman said loudly, “but I don't believe you work here anymore, so if you could kindly get out of my way.”
Donna huffed, grabbing her purse from the floor, and muttered something under her breath.
“She won't last two weeks,” the young man whispered, shooting a glare at the blonde, who was now fiddling with the keyboard of the computer in front of her, pressing various keys as if to see what they did. “She'll be gone before you know it and he'll be begging you to come back.” Donna shook her head and he sighed. “Fine. Where will you go then?”
“Anywhere but here,” she replied. She managed a small wave at a woman across the room who had taken to ordering lunch with her, then turned around and walked out of the building.
The wind blew her hair in her face and as she pulled it away she found herself face to face with a tall, thin man in a suit that fit much better than her old co-worker's but was just as odd. “Get out of my way,” she snapped, and the man's eyes widened as he looked up at her. “Well, what's your problem, then? You stupid or something?”
She rolled her eyes and stepped around the man. “Nutter,” she mumbled, but she cast a glance back at the man anyway, frowning at his tatty brown suit. “It can't be,” she breathed, and shook her head. She started across the street then her foot slipped on a rock in the middle of the road and the last thing she heard was a stranger yell her name.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Donna felt someone tugging on her arm and the voice from earlier returned, urgently calling her name over and over. Finally she opened her eyes and she saw the same man's face from before, his brown eyes staring into hers, clearly concerned. “Donna, can you hear me?”
“Yeah.” She groaned, pressing her palm to her forehead. “How do you know my name?”
“I....I checked your purse,” he said lamely. “I found your wallet in the pocket.”
“Fine, whatever,” she mumbled, then she looked up at him and frowned. “I forgot my wallet today,” she said, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. She sat up and slid away, suddenly realizing that she was no longer on the street, but instead in what looked like a small bedroom. “Who are you? Where did you take me?” He tried to reach for her arm but she slapped at his hand. “Are you some sort of rapist or something? Because I'll bloody kill you, Mister. Watch it.”
“I'm not going to hurt you,” the man insisted. Donna shook her head and suddenly felt rather dizzy, her vision growing fuzzy. She winced and the man stepped toward her again, grabbing an ice pack off the small table beside the bed. “Just let me help, okay? I won't hurt you.”
“Yeah, sure you won't,” Donna snapped. The man shook his head sadly and ignored her protests as he gently pressed the ice to the side of her head, the throbbing pain in her temple subsiding. She glanced up at him again and smiled hesitantly. “So who are you then?”
The man hesitated, then looked away and muttered, “John Smith.”
“Right,” Donna scoffed. “No one really has that name, you know. Who are you really?”
“I can't say,” he muttered. Donna hissed in pain and he frowned, pulling the ice pack away. “You know, you've got a rather nasty bump. I wonder if you've got a concussion.”
“What are you, some sort of doctor or something?”
The man smiled, handing her the ice pack and standing up. “Yeah,” he said softly. “I am.”
“Great,” Donna sighed, pressing the pack to her head again. “Just what I need, another bloody doctor. It's not like you'll do any more good than the rest of them.”
“How do you mean?” the man asked, pulling a chair beside her. “You've seen a lot of doctors?”
“You have no idea,” Donna replied. “I had this....oh, like you'd even care.”
“Tell me,” the man insisted.
Donna looked at him and noticed that he was staring at her intently, like she was something either very valuable or very strange. Probably the second one, Donna thought glumly, and tried to smile at him as she adjusted the ice on her head again. He smiled back but it was an empty expression and she decided that the man looked as miserable as she felt.
“I got sick,” she told him finally. “That rubbish with the planets disappearing a few months back? Apparently what really happened was that there was a gas leak and it made people see all sorts of funny things in the sky. At least that's what my granddad told me, and he wouldn't lie so it's got to be true. I must have had some sort of allergic reaction to it and my mum said I was asleep for several days. When I woke up everything was sorted out again but I couldn't remember anything that had happened to me since....since my dad got sick,” she finished softly. She sniffled then looked up at him and wiped her eyes. “Sorry. I didn't mean to be weird.”
“It's fine,” the Doctor assured her. He smiled at her, wondering exactly when Donna had grown soft. When he'd left her at home she seemed the same shouty rude woman he'd met on her wedding day, but now she was practically crying in front of a complete stranger. On the other hand, she accused me of kidnapping her again. No change there then. He noticed her staring at him strangely and smiled. “What happened to him?” he asked, and Donna frowned.
“He'd been ill for a while but he was so excited about me getting married he wouldn't rest. Silly git,” she murmured, “always trying to do stuff for me.” She laughed quietly, clearly trying not to cry again. “My fiancé, Lance, he ran off because one of our friends told him I was pregnant. I wasn't, of course,” she said, and he nodded sharply, “but he never really did have a spine; I practically had to beg him to marry me. But he loved me. Only man besides my dad and my gramps who treated me like I was worth anything.”
“Donna, I think you're-” He bit his tongue, literally, and Donna saw him wince. “I'm fine,” he mumbled. He reached in his pocket and grabbed a couple of pills, taking a bottle of water off the table and handing both of them to her. “Well, it's been nice talking to you but I think you can manage on your own now. Take those; they'll help with the pain.”
Donna studied the pills for a moment then nodded, twisting the cap off the water bottle. He turned away as Donna raised her hand to her mouth and she deftly dropped the capsules down the front of her blouse, a trick she had learned in high school when a guy at a party had tried to give her drugs. She grinned, and as the man turned back toward her she put the bottle to her lips, pulling it away when he smiled. “Thanks.”
“No problem,” he said, smiling at her warmly, and stared at her. “Are you feeling better now?”
She nodded, and after a moment she let the grin slide off her face and rolled her eyes up into her head, flopping against the mattress. She even let the water fall out of her hands for effect and it splashed out, running over the blankets and onto the floor. She heard the man's footsteps sound on the floor as he walked over to her.
“Donna?” he called softly, and she forced herself to relax as he touched her. “Donna, are you awake?” When she didn't respond he squeezed her arm and then she felt him brushing the hair off her face, carefully pressing his fingers over where she'd banged her head. She wanted to tell him to keep her hands to himself but settled for what she hoped was a convincing moan instead. “Oh, Donna, I'm sorry,” he said softly, and his hand slid down her cheek. “I'm so sorry,” he repeated. “I'll try not to hurt you again, okay? I promise.”
She swallowed, slightly panicked now, but managed to keep her body limp as he stroked the side of her face. “Donna, I've missed you so much,” he murmured, and she felt him press his lips to her forehead. “No fever,” he said, sounding rather relieved, and while she was still wondering why a concussion would give her a fever he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, the other hand brushing her knees as he slid his skinny arm under them. “It's going to be all right, Donna,” he whispered in her ear. “I'm right here, and nothing's going to-”
“All right, what's the big idea?” she shouted, deciding she'd had enough. The man dropped her back onto the bed and she winced as the jolt made her headache return. Still, she ignored it and pulled away from him, pressing herself into the corner and pulling her knees to her chest.
“Donna, I- I thought you were asleep,” he stammered.
“Yeah, well I'm not,” she barked. “You tried to drug me. Why did you-” She gasped, holding herself tighter. “You are a rapist or something, aren't you? You were just messing with me!”
“Donna, I'm a doctor, okay? I was just trying to help you, I-”
“You're not playing doctor with me, Sunshine!” she roared. He flinched at how loud she was yelling but suddenly the angry expression dropped from her face and she frowned at him, her eyes moving up and down his scruffy brown suit, his white trainers which had various colors of dirt and muck on them, and his spiky brown hair that looked like a hedgehog perched on his skinny neck. “Do I know you?” she asked finally. “You....you look really familiar.”
“No,” he said quickly. “No, you don't know me. Listen, you can leave, but I need to-” He reached for her and she thrust out her foot, barely missing his head. “Donna, please trust me.”
“And why should I?” Donna snapped. The man didn't seem to have an answer and she nodded sharply. “I thought not.” She stood up, keeping her eyes on him, but quickly lost her balance. The man dashed forward to catch her and she collapsed into his arms., too dizzy to push him away. “What did you do to me?” she asked breathlessly. “And who are you?”
“No one of consequence,” he replied. He helped her back to her feet, gripping her arms as she swayed slightly. “You all right?” he said, staring down at her in worry, and she slowly nodded. “Okay. I'll take you home then. If you just- Donna?”
Donna stared at him for a moment longer then her eyes widened. “Doctor?”
“I....yeah, I'm a doctor, that's right. No concussion then, I guess,” he said, quickly pulling away from her. He practically shoved her onto the bed, turning to leave, but Donna called his name again and he stopped, slowly turning back to face her. “What gave me away?”
“You smell,” Donna said after a moment. The Doctor huffed indignantly and she laughed, motioning for him to join her. “You smell like bananas and those awful chocolate cookies you like so much and....” She leaned against him, settling her head on his shoulder. “And it rained wherever you were last. I love rain, you know. Snow not so much, but rain, yes.” He smiled, wrapping an arm around her, and she took a deep breath. “Let's see, what else? The oil you use in the TARDIS -though I don't know why, because she doesn't need it- and your hair gel that I used by mistake that one time. You remember? It turned my hair purple and- Oi, don't laugh! It was awful!” She heard him chuckle again and sighed, relaxing into his arm. “Of course you always smell like jelly babies, and....” She sniffed again and made a face, covering her mouth. “You never did wash your coat after the Oodsphere, did you?”
The Doctor chuckled. “Guilty,” he said with a shrug, then he frowned. “You know who I am.” Donna nodded and he stared at her curiously. “You certainly didn't before.”
“Ten points to the supergenius,” Donna said, and looked up at him. “Well? What's going on?”
“I don't know,” he replied honestly, shaking his head and running a hand through his messy hair. He paced around the room for a moment, Donna watching him. “We could- no, that won't work. Oh, maybe I could....” He turned to her, staring at her quizzically. “Do you like your hair?” Donna's eyes widened and she tugged absently on a stray curl, shoving the red strands back into place as she backed away. “Right, that idea's out then.”
“Doctor,” Donna said after a moment, “why do you have to do anything anyway?”
“Well you can't stay here,” he insisted, turning to face her. He was about to explain that he was under no circumstances going to allow her to talk him into not wiping her mind when he saw the look on her face; she appeared confused, even lost, and he studied her carefully. “Donna?”
“Doctor?” She blinked a couple times, looking around. “Where am I? I've never been here.”
“You're in my bedroom,” he answered. “I needed to have access to the medical bay but it was too dangerous to leave you in there or let you rest in your old room.” Donna nodded absently and he frowned. “Donna, is something wrong? You look upset.”
“I'm fine,” she assured him. She looked around again then sighed. “I just don't understand why I have to leave again. Did I do something wrong?” She managed a quick grin and shook her head. “More like you did something wrong, but that's not the point. Why am I going home?”
The Doctor stared at her incredulously, watching as she picked at one of her fingernails. “Are you sure nothing's wrong?” he said. He quickly walked over and pressed his fingertips to her temples, taking care to avoid the bruise on the side of her face from the rock. “Donna, you-”
“-Have no idea what's going on,” they said in unison.
His fingers dropped from her face and he frowned. “Why don't you remember?”
“Remember what?” she asked. She rubbed her forehead and quickly pulled her hand away, wincing. “Doctor, my head hurts. Whatever you did, do it again and I'll kill you.”
“Oh, of course!” the Doctor said. “Thick, thick, thick, that's me! The bump to your head must have triggered a- oh, it doesn't matter. You're safe!” He gathered Donna in his arms and swung her around the room, holding her tightly. “Oh,” he said as he set her back down on the ground. “You do know who I am, right?” Donna slapped him across the face. “Yup, you remember me,” he said dryly.
“You bet I do,” she said. “Now tell me what's going on. Why do I remember you and everything else but have no idea why you'd be trying to take my memories?”
“The knock to your head,” he replied simply. “You must have recognized me on some level when I bumped into you on the street, and when you hit your head it caused a concussion of some sort. And I thought I'd regenerate tripping over a brick,” he chuckled, looking into her eyes to make sure there was no damage. “Anyway, it triggered a bit of amnesia, and since the memories of me -literally, my thoughts, all the traces of the DoctorDonna- were at the front of your mind, figuratively speaking, it erased them. Your brain managed to do to itself what I didn't quite do properly the first time. Do you mind?” He gestured toward her face and she nodded, still looking very confused as he pressed his fingers back to her temples. “Aha!” he shouted, startling her. “Just as I suspected. There's evidence those memories were triggered, but they're....well, they're not here.” He grinned, hugging her again. “Donna, you're fine!”
“Glad to hear it,” she said, shrugging and rubbing over the bump on her head again.
“So what now?”
“How about you take me home?” Donna suggested nonchalantly, and the Doctor's face fell. She noticed his expression and reached for his hand, squeezing it gently. “I'm kidding,” she assured him. “But you're going to tell me why you took my memories in the first place, because I remember being here and then I remember being home but not how I got there and I don't know why you'd do that to me. Tell me what happened and I'll see if I want to stay, all right?”
The Doctor nodded curtly. “That seems fair,” he said, clearing his throat awkwardly. “Do you remember the daleks? And Rose?” Donna nodded. “Okay, good. So when all that was going on there was....well, an accident, sort of, and my brain got transferred into yours. Oh, you were so brilliant, Donna! I mean even more than before, of course. But it hurt you and there was no other way to save you in time, so I had to-”
“I want dinner,” Donna said suddenly. “You abducted me right before lunch and I'm hungry. The least you could do is buy me something to eat.” The Doctor stared at her, and he noticed the grin slowly spreading on her face. “Well? Are you going to let me starve or what?”
“Dinner it is,” he said, tightening his grip on her fingers briefly before letting go. “What are you hungry for? Chinese? Italian? Or maybe that planet with the fantastic banana pancakes.” Donna shrugged. “What? You don't like pancakes anymore? Where do you want to go then?”
“Anywhere,” Donna answered quietly. “Take me anywhere.”