A Place Where No One's Lost
So I totally finished this one last night instead of the one I intended, but hey, I don't mind. (Also, I finally pwn'd LJ and got it to post! Woot!)
Title: A Place Where No One's Lost
Characters: Donna, the Doctor, and a little guest on board the TARDIS
Timey-Wimey Factor: Set between SitL/FotD and Midnight
Notes: Written for Weekly Drabble Challenge #25 (baby) at doctor_donna. Also, the title is from the song "Castle on a Cloud" from Les Miserables
“Donna, I got you a present.”
Donna glanced up from the magazine in her lap and gasped. “Doctor, what did you do?”
The Doctor shrugged and held it out to her, grinning. “Do you like it?”
“You....you flipping git! You don't just buy them and give them as birthday gifts. Give it here!”
“First of all,” the Doctor protested, “it's not your birthday. Third, you can have it. It smells.”
“No. I. Can't,” Donna snapped, but took the bundle from him anyway. “Are you bonkers?”
“Much better,” the Doctor muttered, absently wiping his hands on his pants. “Oh, and second. I completely forgot about second. How rude of me! Donna, you're supposed to remind me of-”
“Doctor!”
“Right, second. I didn't buy it, but it's fine, because-”
“You stole it?” Donna glanced down at her arms in horror. “Doctor, how could you?”
“I didn't really steal it, per se, I just-”
At that moment the baby in Donna's arms started to cry and she glared at him for a moment before rocking the infant in her arms. “It's all right, sweetheart, I'll get you back to your mum and dad, okay? I promise. And then I'll slap the Doctor into another galaxy for stealing you,” she added, sitting down with the child. “Shhhh....it's all right, just hush now.”
“You know, I was right. You are good with kids,” the Doctor said, smiling as the little girl wrapped her fingers around Donna's and slowly quieted. “Are you sure you're not a mother?”
Donna glared at him and his mouth snapped shut instantly. “Trust me, Spaceman, no one wants to have kids with me, so yes, I'm sure I'm not a mother, and I never will be. Now hush.”
“Donna, I think you're-”
“Shut it,” she interrupted, looking down at the little girl. “Let her sleep. I suppose we could take her to....Never mind. We’ll figure something out.” She glanced nervously at the floor. “Do you think the TARDIS has anything we can put her down in for a while?”
The Doctor nodded and followed her out of the console room. The hallway, which normally consisted of dozens of different doors, now only had three: the one which he knew belonged to Donna's room, the kitchen, and a little wooden door the TARDIS had only produced in the last couple of weeks. He'd caught Donna in the room several times but could never make her explain her attachment to the room, and whenever he walked in on her it turned into an empty room with white walls and only a chair for his companion to sit on.
“This way,” he directed, and Donna looked at the door hesitantly. “It’s all right. If the TARDIS let us in it’ll be safe.” Donna still looked uncertain but walked through.
The baby made a little noise in her sleep and Donna pulled her closer to her chest, rocking her slightly as she stepped into the room. “It's okay, sweetie, we'll take care of you.”
The Doctor watched as Donna walked toward a tiny bed in the corner without even looking up, placing the little girl in it and covering her with a blanket hanging over the edge. “Now that's interesting,” he said under his breath, watching as Donna bent down beside the crib and began singing to the child softly. He stared at her for a few moments and smiled. “I wonder....”
Donna glanced over at him as if just remembering he was there and suddenly went quiet, quickly standing up and backing away from the crib. “Do you two want to be alone?” he teased, but Donna didn't smile back. “Donna? What's wrong?”
“Nothing,” she said quickly. She refused to meet his eyes, heading for the door. “She's asleep. We should leave her alone so we don't wake her. The TARDIS will tell us if anything goes wrong, won't she?” The Doctor nodded. “Good. I'm going to bed. Wake me if-”
“Donna, it's the middle of the afternoon Earth time. You're not going anywhere. Sit.”
“Doctor, I-”
“Sit,” he commanded, gesturing to a rocking chair in the corner. Donna frowned at his order but complied, staring at him nervously. “I want you to stop lying to me. Now.”
“Lying?” She scoffed. “Like you can talk. When you said you were taking me to a beach and we ended up in a library, that was lying. When you said we'd be safe, that was lying, and then when you tricked me into leaving you....” She crossed her arms, glaring at him now. “That wasn't just lying, that was wrong. Why don’t we talk about that?”
“Stop changing the subject,” the Doctor said, plopping down on a large pillow on the floor. “Why is this room here, Donna? The TARDIS never had a nursery before.”
“It’s for the children,” Donna responded a bit too quickly. She cleared her throat, pointing to the child sleeping in the corner. “It’s for the baby, obviously,” she amended. “The TARDIS is sentient, right? She must have known we needed it.”
“It's been here for over a week,” the Doctor replied, shaking his head. “Tell me what's going on.” Donna turned away, staring at the little girl in the crib, and the Doctor watched as she shifted, absently picking at her left hand. “Donna?” he urged gently. “Answer the question.”
“It's my children's room,” she said at last. “There, now you know. Can we drop it?”
“Children? Donna, you don't have children,” the Doctor said. Donna flinched and he reached for her arm. “Donna? You don't have any children, do you?”
“No,” Donna replied softly, and pulled away from his grasp. She sat hugging her legs for a minute before she lowered her head onto her knees and whispered, “Yes.”
“Good, I didn't think so. So what's....wait, what? Donna, you have children?”
“Not anymore,” she hissed.
“What do you mean, not anymore? Donna, what happened?”
“Nothing.”
“Donna....”
“I mean it, Doctor, nothing happened. Just flipping drop it!”
Donna looked up at him and he saw anger burning in her eyes. But it wasn’t just anger, he realized; there was something else there, and he couldn’t tell what it was. She swallowed, the room falling into silence for a brief time. “They didn't even exist, okay?” she continued finally, lowering her voice as the baby snuffled in her sleep. “I made them up. When you trapped me in that bloody computer I had two children, and when I got out they were gone.”
“Donna, you know I didn't mean to trap you. I was trying-”
“I know. It's not your fault, but....they're gone, Doctor. My babies are gone.”
As soon as the words left her mouth she started to cry, tears running down her face and spilling into her hair. The Doctor was speechless and, as usual, useless for nearly a minute.
“Oh. Oh, right,” he said suddenly, and grabbed a tissue out of his pocket. “Donna, I'm sorry. I didn't know. Well I did suspect something was wrong but I assumed you just thought you were too old to have children of your own or-”
“Too old?” Donna said, her eyes narrowing as she leaned forward to snatch the tissue out of his hand. “What do you mean too old? Are you saying I'm old, Spaceman? Because I know you've got to be over a thousand by now so you can just shut your alien trap.”
“There's my Donna Noble,” the Doctor said with a grin, handing her another tissue as she tried to wipe her eyes. “Here, let me help,” he offered, dabbing at the dark smudges that had run down her cheeks. “I never understood why human women wear mascara. Is it just so men feel even more guilty when you cry?” Donna nodded and finally managed a smile. “I thought so.”
“Shut it,” she muttered, sniffling as she smiled at him. “Do you really think I'm old?”
“I'm not going to answer that,” he replied with a cheeky grin. “No matter what I say I'll get slapped, so I'll just take my chances and not say anything.” Donna sniffled again and he slid over beside her. “No,” he said finally. “You're not old. Compared to me you're just a kid.”
“Yeah, but compared to you-”
“Watch it,” he said sharply, and he grinned as Donna's mouth snapped shut. “Now, about these children.” Donna sniffled again and he fished another tissue out of his pocket. “Why didn't you tell me sooner?”
“It's stupid, that's why,” she muttered. “Why should you care? They weren't real.”
“They were real to you, weren't they?” She nodded. “That's all that's important.” He glanced over at where the little girl was sleeping in the crib. “Tell me about them?”
Donna looked at him for a moment then took a deep breath. “It's complicated.”
“How so?” he asked when he realized she wasn't going to say any more. “Donna, tell me.”
“Very complicated,” she said flatly.
“Listen. The last distress call we received was from someone who knows me so well they know my name. My real name. You don’t even know that. But I’d never met her. If you can get any more complicated than that I’ll give you your own sonic screwdriver.” Donna smirked but still didn’t respond and he sighed. “What were their names?”
Donna swallowed, closing her eyes until she could speak again. “Josh and Ella.”
“What did they look like?”
“They were....” She sniffled again, nodding gratefully as he handed her another tissue. “They were beautiful.” She smiled. “I’ve no idea if they would really look like that, but Ella....she had hair just like my aunt’s, and Josh had my grandmother’s nose. And they both had his eyes.”
“Whose?” the Doctor asked quietly. “Whose eyes, Donna?”
Donna shook her head, tears slipping down her cheeks. “I can’t,” she managed.
“It’s all right, Donna. You trust me, don’t you?” Donna nodded. “Then tell me.”
“My husband,” she said finally. “I told you about him.”
“Ah. Right. Well that was a stupid question then, wasn’t it?” Donna chuckled and he slid an arm around her back. “Do you think you can talk about it?”
“Yeah,” Donna said after a moment. She let out a deep breath then sat back, resting her head on his shoulder. “Lee and I had kind of a strange life. It was wonderful, but it didn't make a whole lot of sense. The kids, for instance....well, there was this one time....”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“-And you believed them?”
“Yeah,” Donna said, stifling a laugh. “Lee did too, actually. When we got up in the morning they were both covered in chocolate and I told him, ‘They’re yours right now,’ and went back to bed. He didn’t speak to me for....I don’t know....” She laughed again but suddenly got quiet, her smile fading. “About ten seconds, come to think of it. The next thing I remember we were celebrating our anniversary and the kids were six. They’d calmed down a bit by then, so all I remember is me and Lee until the day....Well, it was the day-”
“The day you came back to me,” the Doctor said abruptly, and Donna nodded. “I missed you.”
“I was gone for less than two hours,” she reminded him. “You didn’t have time to miss me.”
The Doctor shook his head, but before he could reply they heard a soft whimpering coming from across the room.
Donna shot up, quickly walking over and taking the baby out of the crib. “Oh, someone’s fussy,” she said. “All right, sweetheart, you’re okay.” She turned around, frowning. “We have to take her back, you know. Take me there.”
“I can’t,” the Doctor admitted. “I would if I could but I just can’t.”
“Why not?” Donna asked. “Her mother and father have to be missing her something-”
“She doesn’t have a mother and father.”
The color drained from Donna’s face and she looked down at the child in her arms, snuggling the little girl closer to her chest. “What happened to them?” she asked finally.
“I’ve no idea,” the Doctor admitted. “I found her outside the TARDIS. Literally, right outside. Do you want the truth?” Donna hesitantly nodded. “She was all wrapped up like this when I found her and I can’t help thinking they thought the TARDIS was some sort of temple.”
“Been there, done that,” Donna said with a little bob of her head. “Go on.”
“I think she was either a sacrifice or her parents left her at the mercy of the gods because they couldn’t care for her.” He sighed. “Either way, they won’t be looking for her, and they won’t want her back even if we take her. I’m afraid she’s got no one to look after her.”
“So what do we do with her?” Donna asked slowly.
The Doctor ruffled his hair then finally said, “Would you like to keep her? At least- Donna!” He shot forward, wrapping one arm around Donna’s back and the other under hers to support the baby in her arms. She steadied herself and he looked down at her, concerned. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” she breathed, “I’m fine.” She adjusted her grip on the little girl, rocking her back and forth. “I’m sorry, little one,” she said softly, then looked up at the Doctor. “That’s not funny, you know. I told you before, they’re not birthday gifts. You don’t joke about things like that.”
“I wasn’t making a joke,” the Doctor said flatly.
“It’s not safe for a baby on the TARDIS,” Donna said, though she didn’t look entirely convinced herself. “We can’t keep her. I can’t,” she repeated firmly, closing her eyes. “I can’t keep her.”
“No, no, not permanently!” the Doctor assured her. “We can find her another home, maybe with someone who can’t have their own children and will be able to care for her properly.”
“Is she an alien?” Donna asked suddenly. “Is she? Is she an alien? I mean....” She looked down and smiled. “She’s beautiful either way, but is she? Is there something wrong with her that her parents didn’t want her, like she’s half Martian like you or something?”
The Doctor shook his head, sighing as Donna managed to smile at him. “She’s just like you, she’s just a bit out of her time.” He looked from Donna’s face to the child in his friend’s arms and his face slowly split into a grin. “Oh, of course! Donna, that’s brilliant! Come on.”
Donna started to follow but stopped, staring down at the little girl with a strange expression. “I can’t give her away, Doctor, not now.”
“Hey,” the Doctor said softly. “You’ve got plenty of time to have your own. You’ll be great. And I know it’s hard to let her go, but-”
“Doctor, I don’t think you understand. She’s just-”
“-and you’ll be a great mother. Trust me, Donna, you’ll-”
“I meant she’s wet, you idiot.”
“Oh. Right. I’ll....I’ll get us there, and you can....” He made a face at the little girl and Donna suppressed a laugh. “You can deal with that.” He quickly inched away from Donna and the baby, his nose wrinkling a bit as Donna held the baby out at him. “Right. See you in a bit.”
Donna snorted, glancing down as the little girl tugged on a strand of her hair. “You know, I think I like you.” The baby flashed her a toothless grin and Donna gently pulled her hair from her grasp. “You like gingers too, do you? I think you and the Doctor would get along fine. He’s got a bit of an obsession, actually.” The girl stared up at Donna, her eyes wide and alert, and Donna slowly smiled. “Yeah,” she sighed, “I think you would have fit in here all right.”
Title: A Place Where No One's Lost
Characters: Donna, the Doctor, and a little guest on board the TARDIS
Timey-Wimey Factor: Set between SitL/FotD and Midnight
Notes: Written for Weekly Drabble Challenge #25 (baby) at doctor_donna. Also, the title is from the song "Castle on a Cloud" from Les Miserables
“Donna, I got you a present.”
Donna glanced up from the magazine in her lap and gasped. “Doctor, what did you do?”
The Doctor shrugged and held it out to her, grinning. “Do you like it?”
“You....you flipping git! You don't just buy them and give them as birthday gifts. Give it here!”
“First of all,” the Doctor protested, “it's not your birthday. Third, you can have it. It smells.”
“No. I. Can't,” Donna snapped, but took the bundle from him anyway. “Are you bonkers?”
“Much better,” the Doctor muttered, absently wiping his hands on his pants. “Oh, and second. I completely forgot about second. How rude of me! Donna, you're supposed to remind me of-”
“Doctor!”
“Right, second. I didn't buy it, but it's fine, because-”
“You stole it?” Donna glanced down at her arms in horror. “Doctor, how could you?”
“I didn't really steal it, per se, I just-”
At that moment the baby in Donna's arms started to cry and she glared at him for a moment before rocking the infant in her arms. “It's all right, sweetheart, I'll get you back to your mum and dad, okay? I promise. And then I'll slap the Doctor into another galaxy for stealing you,” she added, sitting down with the child. “Shhhh....it's all right, just hush now.”
“You know, I was right. You are good with kids,” the Doctor said, smiling as the little girl wrapped her fingers around Donna's and slowly quieted. “Are you sure you're not a mother?”
Donna glared at him and his mouth snapped shut instantly. “Trust me, Spaceman, no one wants to have kids with me, so yes, I'm sure I'm not a mother, and I never will be. Now hush.”
“Donna, I think you're-”
“Shut it,” she interrupted, looking down at the little girl. “Let her sleep. I suppose we could take her to....Never mind. We’ll figure something out.” She glanced nervously at the floor. “Do you think the TARDIS has anything we can put her down in for a while?”
The Doctor nodded and followed her out of the console room. The hallway, which normally consisted of dozens of different doors, now only had three: the one which he knew belonged to Donna's room, the kitchen, and a little wooden door the TARDIS had only produced in the last couple of weeks. He'd caught Donna in the room several times but could never make her explain her attachment to the room, and whenever he walked in on her it turned into an empty room with white walls and only a chair for his companion to sit on.
“This way,” he directed, and Donna looked at the door hesitantly. “It’s all right. If the TARDIS let us in it’ll be safe.” Donna still looked uncertain but walked through.
The baby made a little noise in her sleep and Donna pulled her closer to her chest, rocking her slightly as she stepped into the room. “It's okay, sweetie, we'll take care of you.”
The Doctor watched as Donna walked toward a tiny bed in the corner without even looking up, placing the little girl in it and covering her with a blanket hanging over the edge. “Now that's interesting,” he said under his breath, watching as Donna bent down beside the crib and began singing to the child softly. He stared at her for a few moments and smiled. “I wonder....”
Donna glanced over at him as if just remembering he was there and suddenly went quiet, quickly standing up and backing away from the crib. “Do you two want to be alone?” he teased, but Donna didn't smile back. “Donna? What's wrong?”
“Nothing,” she said quickly. She refused to meet his eyes, heading for the door. “She's asleep. We should leave her alone so we don't wake her. The TARDIS will tell us if anything goes wrong, won't she?” The Doctor nodded. “Good. I'm going to bed. Wake me if-”
“Donna, it's the middle of the afternoon Earth time. You're not going anywhere. Sit.”
“Doctor, I-”
“Sit,” he commanded, gesturing to a rocking chair in the corner. Donna frowned at his order but complied, staring at him nervously. “I want you to stop lying to me. Now.”
“Lying?” She scoffed. “Like you can talk. When you said you were taking me to a beach and we ended up in a library, that was lying. When you said we'd be safe, that was lying, and then when you tricked me into leaving you....” She crossed her arms, glaring at him now. “That wasn't just lying, that was wrong. Why don’t we talk about that?”
“Stop changing the subject,” the Doctor said, plopping down on a large pillow on the floor. “Why is this room here, Donna? The TARDIS never had a nursery before.”
“It’s for the children,” Donna responded a bit too quickly. She cleared her throat, pointing to the child sleeping in the corner. “It’s for the baby, obviously,” she amended. “The TARDIS is sentient, right? She must have known we needed it.”
“It's been here for over a week,” the Doctor replied, shaking his head. “Tell me what's going on.” Donna turned away, staring at the little girl in the crib, and the Doctor watched as she shifted, absently picking at her left hand. “Donna?” he urged gently. “Answer the question.”
“It's my children's room,” she said at last. “There, now you know. Can we drop it?”
“Children? Donna, you don't have children,” the Doctor said. Donna flinched and he reached for her arm. “Donna? You don't have any children, do you?”
“No,” Donna replied softly, and pulled away from his grasp. She sat hugging her legs for a minute before she lowered her head onto her knees and whispered, “Yes.”
“Good, I didn't think so. So what's....wait, what? Donna, you have children?”
“Not anymore,” she hissed.
“What do you mean, not anymore? Donna, what happened?”
“Nothing.”
“Donna....”
“I mean it, Doctor, nothing happened. Just flipping drop it!”
Donna looked up at him and he saw anger burning in her eyes. But it wasn’t just anger, he realized; there was something else there, and he couldn’t tell what it was. She swallowed, the room falling into silence for a brief time. “They didn't even exist, okay?” she continued finally, lowering her voice as the baby snuffled in her sleep. “I made them up. When you trapped me in that bloody computer I had two children, and when I got out they were gone.”
“Donna, you know I didn't mean to trap you. I was trying-”
“I know. It's not your fault, but....they're gone, Doctor. My babies are gone.”
As soon as the words left her mouth she started to cry, tears running down her face and spilling into her hair. The Doctor was speechless and, as usual, useless for nearly a minute.
“Oh. Oh, right,” he said suddenly, and grabbed a tissue out of his pocket. “Donna, I'm sorry. I didn't know. Well I did suspect something was wrong but I assumed you just thought you were too old to have children of your own or-”
“Too old?” Donna said, her eyes narrowing as she leaned forward to snatch the tissue out of his hand. “What do you mean too old? Are you saying I'm old, Spaceman? Because I know you've got to be over a thousand by now so you can just shut your alien trap.”
“There's my Donna Noble,” the Doctor said with a grin, handing her another tissue as she tried to wipe her eyes. “Here, let me help,” he offered, dabbing at the dark smudges that had run down her cheeks. “I never understood why human women wear mascara. Is it just so men feel even more guilty when you cry?” Donna nodded and finally managed a smile. “I thought so.”
“Shut it,” she muttered, sniffling as she smiled at him. “Do you really think I'm old?”
“I'm not going to answer that,” he replied with a cheeky grin. “No matter what I say I'll get slapped, so I'll just take my chances and not say anything.” Donna sniffled again and he slid over beside her. “No,” he said finally. “You're not old. Compared to me you're just a kid.”
“Yeah, but compared to you-”
“Watch it,” he said sharply, and he grinned as Donna's mouth snapped shut. “Now, about these children.” Donna sniffled again and he fished another tissue out of his pocket. “Why didn't you tell me sooner?”
“It's stupid, that's why,” she muttered. “Why should you care? They weren't real.”
“They were real to you, weren't they?” She nodded. “That's all that's important.” He glanced over at where the little girl was sleeping in the crib. “Tell me about them?”
Donna looked at him for a moment then took a deep breath. “It's complicated.”
“How so?” he asked when he realized she wasn't going to say any more. “Donna, tell me.”
“Very complicated,” she said flatly.
“Listen. The last distress call we received was from someone who knows me so well they know my name. My real name. You don’t even know that. But I’d never met her. If you can get any more complicated than that I’ll give you your own sonic screwdriver.” Donna smirked but still didn’t respond and he sighed. “What were their names?”
Donna swallowed, closing her eyes until she could speak again. “Josh and Ella.”
“What did they look like?”
“They were....” She sniffled again, nodding gratefully as he handed her another tissue. “They were beautiful.” She smiled. “I’ve no idea if they would really look like that, but Ella....she had hair just like my aunt’s, and Josh had my grandmother’s nose. And they both had his eyes.”
“Whose?” the Doctor asked quietly. “Whose eyes, Donna?”
Donna shook her head, tears slipping down her cheeks. “I can’t,” she managed.
“It’s all right, Donna. You trust me, don’t you?” Donna nodded. “Then tell me.”
“My husband,” she said finally. “I told you about him.”
“Ah. Right. Well that was a stupid question then, wasn’t it?” Donna chuckled and he slid an arm around her back. “Do you think you can talk about it?”
“Yeah,” Donna said after a moment. She let out a deep breath then sat back, resting her head on his shoulder. “Lee and I had kind of a strange life. It was wonderful, but it didn't make a whole lot of sense. The kids, for instance....well, there was this one time....”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“-And you believed them?”
“Yeah,” Donna said, stifling a laugh. “Lee did too, actually. When we got up in the morning they were both covered in chocolate and I told him, ‘They’re yours right now,’ and went back to bed. He didn’t speak to me for....I don’t know....” She laughed again but suddenly got quiet, her smile fading. “About ten seconds, come to think of it. The next thing I remember we were celebrating our anniversary and the kids were six. They’d calmed down a bit by then, so all I remember is me and Lee until the day....Well, it was the day-”
“The day you came back to me,” the Doctor said abruptly, and Donna nodded. “I missed you.”
“I was gone for less than two hours,” she reminded him. “You didn’t have time to miss me.”
The Doctor shook his head, but before he could reply they heard a soft whimpering coming from across the room.
Donna shot up, quickly walking over and taking the baby out of the crib. “Oh, someone’s fussy,” she said. “All right, sweetheart, you’re okay.” She turned around, frowning. “We have to take her back, you know. Take me there.”
“I can’t,” the Doctor admitted. “I would if I could but I just can’t.”
“Why not?” Donna asked. “Her mother and father have to be missing her something-”
“She doesn’t have a mother and father.”
The color drained from Donna’s face and she looked down at the child in her arms, snuggling the little girl closer to her chest. “What happened to them?” she asked finally.
“I’ve no idea,” the Doctor admitted. “I found her outside the TARDIS. Literally, right outside. Do you want the truth?” Donna hesitantly nodded. “She was all wrapped up like this when I found her and I can’t help thinking they thought the TARDIS was some sort of temple.”
“Been there, done that,” Donna said with a little bob of her head. “Go on.”
“I think she was either a sacrifice or her parents left her at the mercy of the gods because they couldn’t care for her.” He sighed. “Either way, they won’t be looking for her, and they won’t want her back even if we take her. I’m afraid she’s got no one to look after her.”
“So what do we do with her?” Donna asked slowly.
The Doctor ruffled his hair then finally said, “Would you like to keep her? At least- Donna!” He shot forward, wrapping one arm around Donna’s back and the other under hers to support the baby in her arms. She steadied herself and he looked down at her, concerned. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” she breathed, “I’m fine.” She adjusted her grip on the little girl, rocking her back and forth. “I’m sorry, little one,” she said softly, then looked up at the Doctor. “That’s not funny, you know. I told you before, they’re not birthday gifts. You don’t joke about things like that.”
“I wasn’t making a joke,” the Doctor said flatly.
“It’s not safe for a baby on the TARDIS,” Donna said, though she didn’t look entirely convinced herself. “We can’t keep her. I can’t,” she repeated firmly, closing her eyes. “I can’t keep her.”
“No, no, not permanently!” the Doctor assured her. “We can find her another home, maybe with someone who can’t have their own children and will be able to care for her properly.”
“Is she an alien?” Donna asked suddenly. “Is she? Is she an alien? I mean....” She looked down and smiled. “She’s beautiful either way, but is she? Is there something wrong with her that her parents didn’t want her, like she’s half Martian like you or something?”
The Doctor shook his head, sighing as Donna managed to smile at him. “She’s just like you, she’s just a bit out of her time.” He looked from Donna’s face to the child in his friend’s arms and his face slowly split into a grin. “Oh, of course! Donna, that’s brilliant! Come on.”
Donna started to follow but stopped, staring down at the little girl with a strange expression. “I can’t give her away, Doctor, not now.”
“Hey,” the Doctor said softly. “You’ve got plenty of time to have your own. You’ll be great. And I know it’s hard to let her go, but-”
“Doctor, I don’t think you understand. She’s just-”
“-and you’ll be a great mother. Trust me, Donna, you’ll-”
“I meant she’s wet, you idiot.”
“Oh. Right. I’ll....I’ll get us there, and you can....” He made a face at the little girl and Donna suppressed a laugh. “You can deal with that.” He quickly inched away from Donna and the baby, his nose wrinkling a bit as Donna held the baby out at him. “Right. See you in a bit.”
Donna snorted, glancing down as the little girl tugged on a strand of her hair. “You know, I think I like you.” The baby flashed her a toothless grin and Donna gently pulled her hair from her grasp. “You like gingers too, do you? I think you and the Doctor would get along fine. He’s got a bit of an obsession, actually.” The girl stared up at Donna, her eyes wide and alert, and Donna slowly smiled. “Yeah,” she sighed, “I think you would have fit in here all right.”