[fic] Chances Are (multi-fandom, PG)
Chances Are
Fandoms: The West Wing, Gilmore Girls, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Doctor Who (current series)
Rating: PG
Ships: Josh/Donna, Luke/Lorelai, Xander/Willow, Doctor/Rose (if you like)
Summary: There's plenty of room at the Dragonfly Inn.
Warnings: See fandoms. Also, canon schmanon.
A/N: This is for krabapple, on the occasion of her birthday. I'm so sorry this is late! *HUG* Remus and Sirius wanted to come too, but they were afraid of Paris. Thanks so much to musesfool for the lightning fast beta read. Approx. 3,200 words.
The sign in the diner's front window said CLOSED, but the lights were on and there was a man inside, wiping tables. The look he gave them when they knocked frantically on the glass was not one to inspire hope, but he threw down his rag and came to let them in.
"I just mopped," he muttered as they hurried past him, stamping their feet to bring back feeling.
"Lost," Donna gasped into her scarf. "Car. Broke. Cold."
"We tried to find a garage," Josh explained, "but we couldn't see anything in the snow."
"Cold," said Donna plaintively.
"I'll make some coffee. Luke Danes," the man added in an offhand manner as he strode around the counter. He turned back to look at them, eyebrows raised, and Donna realized that he didn't recognize either of them.
"Donna," she offered. "And Josh. We're not from around here."
"Here being this general vicinity," Josh put in, gesturing vaguely. "I'm from Westport. Which was where we were heading when the storm hit. Figured we were better off getting off the highway…"
"I thought she said you were lost?" Luke cut in, jabbing his index finger at Donna.
Josh bit his lip.
"Well, however you got here," said Luke diplomatically, "welcome to Stars Hollow."
"Pretty name," said Donna. "Thanks for letting us in after hours."
"This is my place," said Luke. "I make the hours."
"Is there a garage anywhere nearby?" asked Josh.
"Sure," Luke said. "But you're not gonna get Gypsy to rescue you until at least after breakfast tomorrow."
"Gypsy?" Josh said, sounding uncertain.
Stars Hollow, Donna thought, gazing around the diner. They could have done a lot worse, she decided. Luke was a bit gruff-looking, with his stubble, his flannel shirt, and his backward baseball cap, but his diner was clean, and the coffee he was brewing smelled good. It sounded as if he knew someone who could help them with their car tomorrow, so if she and Josh could find a place to spend the night, they'd be all right.
There was a stack of laminated menus on the counter. Donna opened one and started to read.
"I'm not cooking anything," Luke warned.
Donna closed the menu quickly.
"But you can look, if you want," he added in an apologetic tone.
"Just how far are we from-" Josh was interrupted by the door, which banged open as a woman stumbled in, accompanied by a blast of frigid air and snow.
"Oh, for…"
Donna and Josh exchanged glances as Luke stalked around the counter, then offered the woman a hand while kicking the door shut. Her face was splotched pink and white from the cold and her hair was one big brown snarl, but Donna thought she was pretty. Her bright smile was currently directed at Luke.
Who did not appear amused.
"In case you haven't noticed," he said, his hand still on the woman's wrist, "I'm closed. And there's a blizzard," he added, seemingly as an afterthought.
"Uh, yeah, the blizzard was kind of impossible to miss," the woman replied. "And if you're closed, who're they?" She cocked her head at Donna and Josh.
"They got lost," Luke explained, "on their way to Westport. I couldn't just let them…you know. The snow."
"Aren't you sweet!" She made to poke his chin or his nose playfully, but he grabbed her other wrist.
"Lorelai, not in front of…people."
Donna edged closer to Josh. As nice as it was to be indoors, she suddenly felt as if she were intruding.
"What are you doing here, anyway?" Luke asked, releasing Lorelai's wrists.
"This is a diner."
"Yeah."
"Diners have coffee, Luke." She sounded as if she were imparting a secret.
"This diner is closed," said Luke stubbornly.
"All evidence to the contrary. And ooh, what do I smell? Could that be the sacred, wonderful, mystical aroma of…"
Luke threw his hands in the air and walked to the counter, shaking his head. Lorelai trotted after him, but she stopped when he passed Donna and Josh.
"Hi," Lorelai said, sticking her hand out. "Lorelai Gilmore. I run the Dragonfly Inn and enjoy taking advantage of Luke's good nature."
"I heard that," snapped Luke.
"That's my growly bear," said Lorelai fondly. "He has a good nature," she informed them in a stage whisper. "He just hides it really, really well."
"I heard that too," said Luke.
Lorelai looked to be in her mid-thirties, but she sounded dizzyingly teenaged. Fortunately, she barely blinked when they told her their names. Not that it would have mattered greatly if she or Luke had recognized them. Donna suspected that Luke would not have cared one way or the other, so long as he was left alone, and Lorelai would probably have joked about the government owing her money.
Coffee arrived in large, mismatched porcelain mugs. Donna clasped hers between her gloved hands and inhaled deeply.
"Luke makes the best coffee," said Lorelai dreamily.
"I use the same beans as everyone else in town," said Luke.
"It's not what you have. It's what you do with what you have."
"Junkie," said Luke.
"You say that like it's a bad thing."
"It is good coffee," Josh offered.
Donna took a sip. It was hot; that was all that mattered. She found that she could feel the tips of her fingers again, something she hadn't been able to do since they'd abandoned the car about forty minutes ago. She could feel the tips of her ears too, and her nose. Her toes would wake up soon as well, she hoped.
She stole a glance at Josh. He was smiling uneasily. Later, she thought, she'd tease him about getting lost so close to his hometown. Actually, she suspected he wasn't half as unhappy about their circumstances as he appeared. He'd been looking forward to a quiet weekend away from work - as had she - but he hadn't necessarily been looking forward to a weekend in Westport.
"Do you need a place to stay for the night?" Lorelai asked.
Josh shook his head. "You mentioned an inn…?"
"The Dragonfly," said Lorelai.
"Yeah."
"Well, I know we have available rooms. Not because no one wants to stay at the Dragonfly," she added quickly. "If you come for the fall foliage or for Christmas, you have to book months in advance."
"It's a nice inn," said Luke. From what little she'd seen of him, Donna thought a nice from Luke equaled a lovely from just about anyone else.
"It is," said Lorelai, beaming.
"Is there hot water?" asked Donna.
"And cold," said Lorelai pertly. "Also tepid, lukewarm, warmish, scalding-"
Luke poked her elbow.
"What are we waiting for?" asked Josh.
*
Fortified by the hot coffee, and by the time spent thawing in Luke's diner, Donna, Josh, and Lorelai braved the snow. It hadn't tapered off; if anything, Donna thought, it was falling more thickly than before. She could see little more than a yard ahead. Lorelai, leading the way, was a dark smudge against the white veil. Occasionally, there was a pool of feeble light - a streetlamp, or a house's lighted window. It was like being in a cave, Donna thought, a particularly windy cave, with no illumination except for strange glowing lichens.
She clung to Josh. He'd offered his arm casually as they'd left the diner, and she'd accepted it gratefully. At one point he had shaken his arm free, which had stunned her. But a moment later he had wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close against his side. They had continued like that, keeping each other from slipping as they plodded up the street, huddling together when blasts of freezing air tore at them.
"Hot water," Donna mumbled to herself. "Blankets. Tea. A fluffy robe." They had not returned to the car for their luggage, but Lorelai had assured them that every necessity could be found at the inn. She would have their clothes cleaned and dried before breakfast the next morning, she had promised.
Donna wasn't sure how long they'd been walking when Josh tapped her shoulder. When she looked up at him in confusion, he raised his eyebrows and pointed. She had to squint, but, following his finger, she could just make out the street sign.
Her ear was so cold that it hurt when he spoke into it. "Does that say what I think it says?"
"Are you thinking 'Sores and Boils'?" She had to shout to be heard.
"I was thinking that, but I was hoping for something else. Maybe we're both delirious with cold," he said hopefully.
"There's always the chance," said Donna.
They both jumped when Lorelai crashed into them. "We're here."
Donna glanced again at the street sign. "Oh," she said faintly.
*
Despite its address, the Dragonfly Inn charmed at first sight - though Donna supposed she would have been happy with a hovel, so long as it had a roof and four walls. Her knees wobbled and she nearly fell when the front door closed behind her. Fortunately, Josh still had his arm around her, and held her upright.
"I'll get you checked in, and find everything you'll need for the night," Lorelai said, doffing her hat and coat, and shaking the snow out of her hair.
"I'll…" Josh began. He looked at Donna. "I'll take care of it. You sit down."
"I can stand."
"You can't," he pointed out gently.
"I can…" But her head was swimming. The inn's interior was brightly lit despite the late hour, and warm. The change was overwhelming. "I'll…" She gestured vaguely toward the comfortable looking sofa, where four young people - three women and a man, more guests at the inn, she supposed - were also seated.
"What do you mean I don't have potential?" one young woman was demanding, as Donna slumped against the cushions. The speaker had blonde hair and a stern expression. She sounded deeply offended. "I have loads of potential!"
"I don't think that's what she meant, Paris," another young woman, with Lorelai's exact coloring, said in an undertone.
"I didn't mean you don't have potential. I mean…" The third woman was a redhead with a breathy sort of voice. She looked helplessly at the young man, who was dark-haired, stocky, and wore an eye patch. "Xander?"
"What Willow means," he said, and Donna grinned at his hasty back step when the blonde - Paris - snapped her furious gaze to him. "Ah, what she means is…"
"I'll tell you about potential," Paris fumed. "My GPA? Would give you nosebleeds. As for-"
"Not that sort of potential," Xander cut in. "When we said - when you overheard us say - that we were looking for potentials, what we meant was, ah - something other than what you're thinking," he finished lamely.
"And you know what I'm thinking?" said Paris scornfully.
"What we mean," Willow attempted to explain, twisting her fingers in her lap, "is, uh… Xander."
"What? You want me to handle her?"
"Handle me? Excuse me, but no one handles me." Paris sprang to her feet.
"Paris…" The younger version of Lorelai looked uncomfortable.
"Shut up, Rory."
"Willow," Xander said conversationally, "remember that time we had to run for our lives?"
"That happened more than one time," said Willow.
"Yeah. This is starting to remind me of all those times."
"All of them?"
"Every single one. Good times."
"But…the snow! And - and omelets. For breakfast. Sookie said there would be omelets tomorrow. With mushrooms."
"Will," said Xander, "I'm starting to think there might not be a tomorrow for us…"
Donna was bemused by the conversation, but not overly concerned. It seemed to be happening far away, rather than just a few feet from where she sat. She tilted her head back and rested it against the sofa cushions. She was overtired, she thought. That was why everything in this town seemed so odd. Things would be perfectly normal after a hot shower and a good night's sleep.
She wondered vaguely if this inn had an elevator, as she doubted she had the strength to climb stairs.
She did not look up when the inn's door burst open and a man with a British accent shouted above the howling wind, "Hello, anyone awake? Oh, good!"
"Close the door!" The voice was strident enough to be Paris's, but it really could have been anyone's.
"Sorry we're so late," said a young woman, also with a British accent.
"Oh, hi," Donna heard Rory say. "Um, my mom's checking someone else in, but she should…."
"Hello," said Lorelai.
"…right here," finished Rory.
Donna knew that Josh was approaching before she heard him speak. "They only had a single available," he said quietly in her ear. "I hope that's all right."
"S'fine," murmured Donna. "I can put up with you for a night."
She'd expected him to say something teasing in response. Instead, he touched her shoulder and said, "Um, Donna."
"What?" She opened her eyes and her gaze met his. "What?"
It was obvious the moment she raised her head. Obvious that something was wrong, anyway. The exact nature of the problem seemed to elude everyone in the room…except for the British man, who looked horrorstruck.
"This is wrong," he said. "We can't all be here."
"It's fine," said Lorelai, sounding uncertain. "We were expecting you. Not so late, but…it's understandable, considering the crazy weather. We didn't give your room away, if that's what you're-"
He shook his head. "You don't understand. But I don't really expect you to. Rose Tyler," he said, indicating his companion, "Lorelai and Lorelai Gilmore, Paris Geller, Xander Harris, Willow Rosenberg, Joshua Lyman, and Donna Moss cannot be in the same place at any one time."
"Why not?" asked Paris, while Josh said, "How do you know who we--?"
"He's the Doctor," explained Rose. "He knows these things."
"Excuse me," said Paris, "but I don't-"
"Actually, I've read about the lot of you," interrupted the Doctor, appearing to relax somewhat. "Articles, biographies…"
"There are no biographies of me," said Paris. "Him, maybe," she added, waving a dismissive hand in Josh's direction.
"Not yet," said the Doctor. "But it's an honor to meet you. Or will be - in seventeen years."
"Doctor," Josh mused, frowning. "Doctor who? Of what?"
"You were right the first time," said the Doctor. "Now then. The universe hasn't torn itself apart yet, which is a very good sign. However…" He looked around nervously. "We're straining things, all of us, just by being in this room together. When you've been around as long as I have, you just…get a feel for these things."
Donna did not have to look to know that everyone was staring at the Doctor.
At length, Rose said, "I don't think they understand."
At the same time, Lorelai muttered, "He didn't sound this crazy when he made the reservation."
"Maybe he's drunk," said Paris, with candor that Donna might have appreciated in a less bizarre situation.
"They don't have to understand," said the Doctor - in a rather cavalier manner, Donna thought. "What needs to happen is-"
"Excuse me," Lorelai said, stepping forward, "but this is my inn. I think I'm the person most qualified to decide how things are done here. No offense."
Josh started to speak, but Donna grabbed his wrist and he closed his mouth. Don't say anything to the crazy man, she thought at him. He knows who we are.
The Doctor turned to Lorelai and said, "Fine. You decide. And after you've made the wrong choice and the universe is destroyed, billions of years in the future, when life finally evolves again, and billions of years after that, when it develops the ability and curiosity to figure out what happened to the last universe, do you know who they'll blame?"
"God, you're worse than my mum, you are," laughed Rose.
"He's not worse than mine." Lorelai sounded discomfited.
"This is what we're going to do," said the Doctor, glancing at all of them in turn. Donna found his bright gaze rather unnerving, but she met it anyway.
He sent them to their rooms, as if they were children. Xander and Willow left first, and seemed glad to be going. As they left, Donna heard Xander mutter, "Easiest apocalypse we ever averted."
Paris went reluctantly. She wanted to know what the Doctor thought would happen to her in seventeen years.
"We'll all find out, won't we?" he said, beaming down at her. "Now run along."
"I don't run along," said Paris.
"Come on, Paris," said Rory, tugging at her arm.
Up in their room - which was cozy and warm - Donna and Josh sighed in unison and sank onto the edge of the neatly made queen-sized bed.
"Should we call the police?" asked Donna.
"I don't know how much good that would do," Josh said. "He and that girl didn't actually do anything. They're just…weird."
"We listened to him, though."
"Yeah, we did. Does that strike you as odd?"
"That we took orders from a weirdo?"
"Yeah."
"I don't know," Donna admitted. "Maybe." She shook her head. "It was almost instinctive. Don't you think?"
"No," said Josh firmly, but Donna suspected that he wasn't as certain as he sounded. "We were just tired. If we hear anything, I'm calling the police."
"Anything like - a gunshot?"
"Yeah."
"He didn't look armed. Neither did Rose."
There was a knock at the door. They both tensed, but it was only Lorelai with their robes, toothbrushes - and apologies.
"If you want to just leave your wet things in the hall, I'll have someone collect them right away and we'll have them washed and pressed in no time. I was going to say," she went on, in a lower voice, "that Stars Hollow isn't usually this weird, but to be honest…"
"It gets weirder than this?" said Josh skeptically.
"Tomorrow morning I'll introduce you to Michel, and you'll see."
With that, she left them. They took turns in the bathroom, washing up and changing into their robes. They left their sodden clothes just outside the room for Lorelai. Then they turned off the lights and climbed into bed, Donna on the right, Josh on the left.
"What are we going to tell everyone when we get back to Washington?" Donna whispered. "They think we're visiting your friends in Westport."
"We'll tell them the truth. We got lost and stranded, and had to spend the night in a quaint little town."
"And if they ask how it was?"
There was a moment's silence. Then Josh said, "We'll tell them the truth. It was…interesting."
"Interesting?"
"Yeah." Josh yawned. "We'd better get to sleep. If Lorelai had been in trouble, she'd have given us some sort of signal. Maybe Doctor Whoever was just drunk."
"Maybe." But he hadn't seemed drunk to Donna. Neither had Rose. "Josh," she said softly, then bit her lip. There couldn't have been any truth in the Doctor's words. The universe tear itself apart because a few random strangers happened to be in the same lobby at the same time? Please.
Still, something very much like worry wriggled in her stomach, and wouldn't go away.
"Josh?"
"What?"
If we did narrowly avoid destroying the universe somehow…
She felt the mattress lurch as he turned over, and then his warm breath stirred her hair.
"What?" he said again.
If I ever got to the end of the universe, I'd want you beside me.
"Nothing," Donna said, and closed her eyes. She was still awake when his hand came to rest on her hip, and she covered it with her own.
04/17/06
Fandoms: The West Wing, Gilmore Girls, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Doctor Who (current series)
Rating: PG
Ships: Josh/Donna, Luke/Lorelai, Xander/Willow, Doctor/Rose (if you like)
Summary: There's plenty of room at the Dragonfly Inn.
Warnings: See fandoms. Also, canon schmanon.
A/N: This is for krabapple, on the occasion of her birthday. I'm so sorry this is late! *HUG* Remus and Sirius wanted to come too, but they were afraid of Paris. Thanks so much to musesfool for the lightning fast beta read. Approx. 3,200 words.
The sign in the diner's front window said CLOSED, but the lights were on and there was a man inside, wiping tables. The look he gave them when they knocked frantically on the glass was not one to inspire hope, but he threw down his rag and came to let them in.
"I just mopped," he muttered as they hurried past him, stamping their feet to bring back feeling.
"Lost," Donna gasped into her scarf. "Car. Broke. Cold."
"We tried to find a garage," Josh explained, "but we couldn't see anything in the snow."
"Cold," said Donna plaintively.
"I'll make some coffee. Luke Danes," the man added in an offhand manner as he strode around the counter. He turned back to look at them, eyebrows raised, and Donna realized that he didn't recognize either of them.
"Donna," she offered. "And Josh. We're not from around here."
"Here being this general vicinity," Josh put in, gesturing vaguely. "I'm from Westport. Which was where we were heading when the storm hit. Figured we were better off getting off the highway…"
"I thought she said you were lost?" Luke cut in, jabbing his index finger at Donna.
Josh bit his lip.
"Well, however you got here," said Luke diplomatically, "welcome to Stars Hollow."
"Pretty name," said Donna. "Thanks for letting us in after hours."
"This is my place," said Luke. "I make the hours."
"Is there a garage anywhere nearby?" asked Josh.
"Sure," Luke said. "But you're not gonna get Gypsy to rescue you until at least after breakfast tomorrow."
"Gypsy?" Josh said, sounding uncertain.
Stars Hollow, Donna thought, gazing around the diner. They could have done a lot worse, she decided. Luke was a bit gruff-looking, with his stubble, his flannel shirt, and his backward baseball cap, but his diner was clean, and the coffee he was brewing smelled good. It sounded as if he knew someone who could help them with their car tomorrow, so if she and Josh could find a place to spend the night, they'd be all right.
There was a stack of laminated menus on the counter. Donna opened one and started to read.
"I'm not cooking anything," Luke warned.
Donna closed the menu quickly.
"But you can look, if you want," he added in an apologetic tone.
"Just how far are we from-" Josh was interrupted by the door, which banged open as a woman stumbled in, accompanied by a blast of frigid air and snow.
"Oh, for…"
Donna and Josh exchanged glances as Luke stalked around the counter, then offered the woman a hand while kicking the door shut. Her face was splotched pink and white from the cold and her hair was one big brown snarl, but Donna thought she was pretty. Her bright smile was currently directed at Luke.
Who did not appear amused.
"In case you haven't noticed," he said, his hand still on the woman's wrist, "I'm closed. And there's a blizzard," he added, seemingly as an afterthought.
"Uh, yeah, the blizzard was kind of impossible to miss," the woman replied. "And if you're closed, who're they?" She cocked her head at Donna and Josh.
"They got lost," Luke explained, "on their way to Westport. I couldn't just let them…you know. The snow."
"Aren't you sweet!" She made to poke his chin or his nose playfully, but he grabbed her other wrist.
"Lorelai, not in front of…people."
Donna edged closer to Josh. As nice as it was to be indoors, she suddenly felt as if she were intruding.
"What are you doing here, anyway?" Luke asked, releasing Lorelai's wrists.
"This is a diner."
"Yeah."
"Diners have coffee, Luke." She sounded as if she were imparting a secret.
"This diner is closed," said Luke stubbornly.
"All evidence to the contrary. And ooh, what do I smell? Could that be the sacred, wonderful, mystical aroma of…"
Luke threw his hands in the air and walked to the counter, shaking his head. Lorelai trotted after him, but she stopped when he passed Donna and Josh.
"Hi," Lorelai said, sticking her hand out. "Lorelai Gilmore. I run the Dragonfly Inn and enjoy taking advantage of Luke's good nature."
"I heard that," snapped Luke.
"That's my growly bear," said Lorelai fondly. "He has a good nature," she informed them in a stage whisper. "He just hides it really, really well."
"I heard that too," said Luke.
Lorelai looked to be in her mid-thirties, but she sounded dizzyingly teenaged. Fortunately, she barely blinked when they told her their names. Not that it would have mattered greatly if she or Luke had recognized them. Donna suspected that Luke would not have cared one way or the other, so long as he was left alone, and Lorelai would probably have joked about the government owing her money.
Coffee arrived in large, mismatched porcelain mugs. Donna clasped hers between her gloved hands and inhaled deeply.
"Luke makes the best coffee," said Lorelai dreamily.
"I use the same beans as everyone else in town," said Luke.
"It's not what you have. It's what you do with what you have."
"Junkie," said Luke.
"You say that like it's a bad thing."
"It is good coffee," Josh offered.
Donna took a sip. It was hot; that was all that mattered. She found that she could feel the tips of her fingers again, something she hadn't been able to do since they'd abandoned the car about forty minutes ago. She could feel the tips of her ears too, and her nose. Her toes would wake up soon as well, she hoped.
She stole a glance at Josh. He was smiling uneasily. Later, she thought, she'd tease him about getting lost so close to his hometown. Actually, she suspected he wasn't half as unhappy about their circumstances as he appeared. He'd been looking forward to a quiet weekend away from work - as had she - but he hadn't necessarily been looking forward to a weekend in Westport.
"Do you need a place to stay for the night?" Lorelai asked.
Josh shook his head. "You mentioned an inn…?"
"The Dragonfly," said Lorelai.
"Yeah."
"Well, I know we have available rooms. Not because no one wants to stay at the Dragonfly," she added quickly. "If you come for the fall foliage or for Christmas, you have to book months in advance."
"It's a nice inn," said Luke. From what little she'd seen of him, Donna thought a nice from Luke equaled a lovely from just about anyone else.
"It is," said Lorelai, beaming.
"Is there hot water?" asked Donna.
"And cold," said Lorelai pertly. "Also tepid, lukewarm, warmish, scalding-"
Luke poked her elbow.
"What are we waiting for?" asked Josh.
*
Fortified by the hot coffee, and by the time spent thawing in Luke's diner, Donna, Josh, and Lorelai braved the snow. It hadn't tapered off; if anything, Donna thought, it was falling more thickly than before. She could see little more than a yard ahead. Lorelai, leading the way, was a dark smudge against the white veil. Occasionally, there was a pool of feeble light - a streetlamp, or a house's lighted window. It was like being in a cave, Donna thought, a particularly windy cave, with no illumination except for strange glowing lichens.
She clung to Josh. He'd offered his arm casually as they'd left the diner, and she'd accepted it gratefully. At one point he had shaken his arm free, which had stunned her. But a moment later he had wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close against his side. They had continued like that, keeping each other from slipping as they plodded up the street, huddling together when blasts of freezing air tore at them.
"Hot water," Donna mumbled to herself. "Blankets. Tea. A fluffy robe." They had not returned to the car for their luggage, but Lorelai had assured them that every necessity could be found at the inn. She would have their clothes cleaned and dried before breakfast the next morning, she had promised.
Donna wasn't sure how long they'd been walking when Josh tapped her shoulder. When she looked up at him in confusion, he raised his eyebrows and pointed. She had to squint, but, following his finger, she could just make out the street sign.
Her ear was so cold that it hurt when he spoke into it. "Does that say what I think it says?"
"Are you thinking 'Sores and Boils'?" She had to shout to be heard.
"I was thinking that, but I was hoping for something else. Maybe we're both delirious with cold," he said hopefully.
"There's always the chance," said Donna.
They both jumped when Lorelai crashed into them. "We're here."
Donna glanced again at the street sign. "Oh," she said faintly.
*
Despite its address, the Dragonfly Inn charmed at first sight - though Donna supposed she would have been happy with a hovel, so long as it had a roof and four walls. Her knees wobbled and she nearly fell when the front door closed behind her. Fortunately, Josh still had his arm around her, and held her upright.
"I'll get you checked in, and find everything you'll need for the night," Lorelai said, doffing her hat and coat, and shaking the snow out of her hair.
"I'll…" Josh began. He looked at Donna. "I'll take care of it. You sit down."
"I can stand."
"You can't," he pointed out gently.
"I can…" But her head was swimming. The inn's interior was brightly lit despite the late hour, and warm. The change was overwhelming. "I'll…" She gestured vaguely toward the comfortable looking sofa, where four young people - three women and a man, more guests at the inn, she supposed - were also seated.
"What do you mean I don't have potential?" one young woman was demanding, as Donna slumped against the cushions. The speaker had blonde hair and a stern expression. She sounded deeply offended. "I have loads of potential!"
"I don't think that's what she meant, Paris," another young woman, with Lorelai's exact coloring, said in an undertone.
"I didn't mean you don't have potential. I mean…" The third woman was a redhead with a breathy sort of voice. She looked helplessly at the young man, who was dark-haired, stocky, and wore an eye patch. "Xander?"
"What Willow means," he said, and Donna grinned at his hasty back step when the blonde - Paris - snapped her furious gaze to him. "Ah, what she means is…"
"I'll tell you about potential," Paris fumed. "My GPA? Would give you nosebleeds. As for-"
"Not that sort of potential," Xander cut in. "When we said - when you overheard us say - that we were looking for potentials, what we meant was, ah - something other than what you're thinking," he finished lamely.
"And you know what I'm thinking?" said Paris scornfully.
"What we mean," Willow attempted to explain, twisting her fingers in her lap, "is, uh… Xander."
"What? You want me to handle her?"
"Handle me? Excuse me, but no one handles me." Paris sprang to her feet.
"Paris…" The younger version of Lorelai looked uncomfortable.
"Shut up, Rory."
"Willow," Xander said conversationally, "remember that time we had to run for our lives?"
"That happened more than one time," said Willow.
"Yeah. This is starting to remind me of all those times."
"All of them?"
"Every single one. Good times."
"But…the snow! And - and omelets. For breakfast. Sookie said there would be omelets tomorrow. With mushrooms."
"Will," said Xander, "I'm starting to think there might not be a tomorrow for us…"
Donna was bemused by the conversation, but not overly concerned. It seemed to be happening far away, rather than just a few feet from where she sat. She tilted her head back and rested it against the sofa cushions. She was overtired, she thought. That was why everything in this town seemed so odd. Things would be perfectly normal after a hot shower and a good night's sleep.
She wondered vaguely if this inn had an elevator, as she doubted she had the strength to climb stairs.
She did not look up when the inn's door burst open and a man with a British accent shouted above the howling wind, "Hello, anyone awake? Oh, good!"
"Close the door!" The voice was strident enough to be Paris's, but it really could have been anyone's.
"Sorry we're so late," said a young woman, also with a British accent.
"Oh, hi," Donna heard Rory say. "Um, my mom's checking someone else in, but she should…."
"Hello," said Lorelai.
"…right here," finished Rory.
Donna knew that Josh was approaching before she heard him speak. "They only had a single available," he said quietly in her ear. "I hope that's all right."
"S'fine," murmured Donna. "I can put up with you for a night."
She'd expected him to say something teasing in response. Instead, he touched her shoulder and said, "Um, Donna."
"What?" She opened her eyes and her gaze met his. "What?"
It was obvious the moment she raised her head. Obvious that something was wrong, anyway. The exact nature of the problem seemed to elude everyone in the room…except for the British man, who looked horrorstruck.
"This is wrong," he said. "We can't all be here."
"It's fine," said Lorelai, sounding uncertain. "We were expecting you. Not so late, but…it's understandable, considering the crazy weather. We didn't give your room away, if that's what you're-"
He shook his head. "You don't understand. But I don't really expect you to. Rose Tyler," he said, indicating his companion, "Lorelai and Lorelai Gilmore, Paris Geller, Xander Harris, Willow Rosenberg, Joshua Lyman, and Donna Moss cannot be in the same place at any one time."
"Why not?" asked Paris, while Josh said, "How do you know who we--?"
"He's the Doctor," explained Rose. "He knows these things."
"Excuse me," said Paris, "but I don't-"
"Actually, I've read about the lot of you," interrupted the Doctor, appearing to relax somewhat. "Articles, biographies…"
"There are no biographies of me," said Paris. "Him, maybe," she added, waving a dismissive hand in Josh's direction.
"Not yet," said the Doctor. "But it's an honor to meet you. Or will be - in seventeen years."
"Doctor," Josh mused, frowning. "Doctor who? Of what?"
"You were right the first time," said the Doctor. "Now then. The universe hasn't torn itself apart yet, which is a very good sign. However…" He looked around nervously. "We're straining things, all of us, just by being in this room together. When you've been around as long as I have, you just…get a feel for these things."
Donna did not have to look to know that everyone was staring at the Doctor.
At length, Rose said, "I don't think they understand."
At the same time, Lorelai muttered, "He didn't sound this crazy when he made the reservation."
"Maybe he's drunk," said Paris, with candor that Donna might have appreciated in a less bizarre situation.
"They don't have to understand," said the Doctor - in a rather cavalier manner, Donna thought. "What needs to happen is-"
"Excuse me," Lorelai said, stepping forward, "but this is my inn. I think I'm the person most qualified to decide how things are done here. No offense."
Josh started to speak, but Donna grabbed his wrist and he closed his mouth. Don't say anything to the crazy man, she thought at him. He knows who we are.
The Doctor turned to Lorelai and said, "Fine. You decide. And after you've made the wrong choice and the universe is destroyed, billions of years in the future, when life finally evolves again, and billions of years after that, when it develops the ability and curiosity to figure out what happened to the last universe, do you know who they'll blame?"
"God, you're worse than my mum, you are," laughed Rose.
"He's not worse than mine." Lorelai sounded discomfited.
"This is what we're going to do," said the Doctor, glancing at all of them in turn. Donna found his bright gaze rather unnerving, but she met it anyway.
He sent them to their rooms, as if they were children. Xander and Willow left first, and seemed glad to be going. As they left, Donna heard Xander mutter, "Easiest apocalypse we ever averted."
Paris went reluctantly. She wanted to know what the Doctor thought would happen to her in seventeen years.
"We'll all find out, won't we?" he said, beaming down at her. "Now run along."
"I don't run along," said Paris.
"Come on, Paris," said Rory, tugging at her arm.
Up in their room - which was cozy and warm - Donna and Josh sighed in unison and sank onto the edge of the neatly made queen-sized bed.
"Should we call the police?" asked Donna.
"I don't know how much good that would do," Josh said. "He and that girl didn't actually do anything. They're just…weird."
"We listened to him, though."
"Yeah, we did. Does that strike you as odd?"
"That we took orders from a weirdo?"
"Yeah."
"I don't know," Donna admitted. "Maybe." She shook her head. "It was almost instinctive. Don't you think?"
"No," said Josh firmly, but Donna suspected that he wasn't as certain as he sounded. "We were just tired. If we hear anything, I'm calling the police."
"Anything like - a gunshot?"
"Yeah."
"He didn't look armed. Neither did Rose."
There was a knock at the door. They both tensed, but it was only Lorelai with their robes, toothbrushes - and apologies.
"If you want to just leave your wet things in the hall, I'll have someone collect them right away and we'll have them washed and pressed in no time. I was going to say," she went on, in a lower voice, "that Stars Hollow isn't usually this weird, but to be honest…"
"It gets weirder than this?" said Josh skeptically.
"Tomorrow morning I'll introduce you to Michel, and you'll see."
With that, she left them. They took turns in the bathroom, washing up and changing into their robes. They left their sodden clothes just outside the room for Lorelai. Then they turned off the lights and climbed into bed, Donna on the right, Josh on the left.
"What are we going to tell everyone when we get back to Washington?" Donna whispered. "They think we're visiting your friends in Westport."
"We'll tell them the truth. We got lost and stranded, and had to spend the night in a quaint little town."
"And if they ask how it was?"
There was a moment's silence. Then Josh said, "We'll tell them the truth. It was…interesting."
"Interesting?"
"Yeah." Josh yawned. "We'd better get to sleep. If Lorelai had been in trouble, she'd have given us some sort of signal. Maybe Doctor Whoever was just drunk."
"Maybe." But he hadn't seemed drunk to Donna. Neither had Rose. "Josh," she said softly, then bit her lip. There couldn't have been any truth in the Doctor's words. The universe tear itself apart because a few random strangers happened to be in the same lobby at the same time? Please.
Still, something very much like worry wriggled in her stomach, and wouldn't go away.
"Josh?"
"What?"
If we did narrowly avoid destroying the universe somehow…
She felt the mattress lurch as he turned over, and then his warm breath stirred her hair.
"What?" he said again.
If I ever got to the end of the universe, I'd want you beside me.
"Nothing," Donna said, and closed her eyes. She was still awake when his hand came to rest on her hip, and she covered it with her own.
04/17/06