Unexpected (25/30?)
Title: Unexpected
Author: hhertzof
Rating: PG
Beta: paranoidangel42
Summary: What happens after Inconceivable
Blame: paranoidangel42 and the mods who demand their offerings of fic.
As usual x-posted to my lj.
Chapter 1: Old Friends
Chapter 10: A Slight Miscalculation
Chapter 19: Behind the Mask
Chapter 2: Girl Talk
Chapter 11: Serendipity
Chapter 20: You're Having My Baby
Chapter 3: Ladies Who Lunch
Chapter 12: Road Trip
Chapter 21: Have You Met Fred?
Chapter 4: Back to the Beginning
Chapter 13: War Zone
Chapter 22: What You've Lost
Chapter 5: Retail Therapy
Chapter 14: A Nice Cup of Tea
Chapter 23: All Fall Down
Chapter 6: Synchronicity
Chapter 15: Paint by Numbers
Chapter 24: Long Ago and Far Away
Chapter 7: Remember When
Chapter 16: Slumber Party
Chapter 8: Think of the Children
Chapter 17: Wedding Bells
Chapter 9: Domestic Disputes
Chapter 18: Dancing in the Dark
The four of them sat in the small antechamber in a rather awkward silence. The Doctor was still holding Fred and all of his attention was focused on the baby, perhaps so he wouldn't have to deal with Rose and Martha's reaction to the news that he was her father.
Fred started to fret, and the Doctor automatically handed her back to Sarah so that she could nurse, giving Sarah's hand a quick squeeze in the process. After a moment he crossed the room to sit beside the other two, and started speaking quietly enough that Sarah couldn't hear more than a word or two of what he was saying.
She focused instead on feeding her daughter. "I'm not going to let them take you away from me," she said softly. "And your Dad will fight to keep you too, so don't worry, Fred, Mum and Dad will keep you safe."
She was burping Fred, when there was a flurry at the door and a young woman burst in. "They told me grandfather was back." She stared at Sarah for a moment, "Grandmother? Sarah?"
Sarah grinned. She had forgotten Susan's insistence on the title, even when she had looked too young to claim it. She stood and shifted the baby to lie against her shoulder so she could embrace Susan with her other arm. "You've regenerated. You look good."
Susan smiled back. "And you look fantastic. Who's this? Your granddaughter?" She sounded hopeful.
"Our daughter. Susan, oh my Susan." The Doctor picked her up and embraced her. "You're ginger." There was a note somewhere between pride and jealousy in his voice. After a moment he held her at arms length and just stared at her. “It is so good to see you. Oh, these are my current companions, Rose and Martha.”
“Pleased to meet you. And as for the red, I've regenerated...just like you. I like it, though. Very handsome." Susan grinned at him. "So this is my aunt. May I?" She didn't wait for an answer, but picked up Fred to cuddle her. "What's her name? Something outrageous, I bet."
Sarah grinned at that. “Fred. Winifred Susan Smith. Not as outrageous as human names sometimes are.”
“I didn't think anyone else had survived,” the Doctor added softly. “My dear, dear Susan. We had thought you were lost.” She had been fighting on another planet, and they had thought her dead. “David?” He caught his breath.
“He's fine. He's working in the fields today. I was helping in the infirmary when someone said you had arrived.”
Her death...presumed death...had been part of what had made him amenable to the High Council's plan, she remembered from their conversations at the time. Finding her here, alive was perhaps even better than knowing that Leela or Romana had survived.
“My team and I managed to reach an abandoned spaceship, but repairing the damage that it suffered took some time. We only managed to limp back here about a year ago. Since then we've been helping with the reconstruction of the Capitol.” Susan smiled at Sarah. “You did a wonderful job of stocking this place after I was sent to Rxanda.” She handed Fred back to her mother.
“I couldn't have done it without your experiences after the Dalek occupation of Earth. Your knowledge of rationing and necessary supplies made a big difference.” Sarah shrugged. She noticed that Rose and Martha were standing awkwardly, but bringing them into the conversation would require more explanation, than she felt like giving at the moment. There would be plenty of time to fill them in later.
The point was rendered moot when Andred walked into the room.
The Doctor jumped up and hugged him, which surprised Andred more than it did Sarah. "Andred, it's good to see you again." He paused, clearly unsure whether he should ask.
"Leela's resting at home. We're due for a baby in a few months." Andred sounded incredibly proud of this fact. "Susan, I see somebody notified you. Good. Sarah? Is that you?" He gestured at the baby. “And who might this be?”
"My daughter." Sarah grinned at him. "Fred, Andred, Andred, Fred. Would you like to hold her?" She didn't wait for an answer but dumped the baby in his arms. "She's a week old. Isn't she the most obnoxiously cute thing you have ever seen?"
Susan looked amused at Andred's discomfort, but didn't say anything.
The Doctor gave Sarah a dark look and helped Andred adjust his grasp so that the baby was comfortable. "Our Fred is not obnoxious in any way."
Sarah resisted the urge to make a snarky comment about whether or not he'd recognise when someone was being obnoxious. Instead she smiled at Andred. "How is Leela doing? I'd love to see her again."
"She would be glad of the visit. I think she's feeling a bit hemmed in at the moment." He looked somewhat relieved at the sight of Fred, and Sarah couldn't blame him.
The work Calla had done had all been theoretical up until now, and if Leela was having similar problems to the ones Sarah had.... "I felt the same way when I was pregnant. Though that was complicated by other things going on in my life.”
The Doctor arched an eyebrow. "You spent your pregnancy dealing with mad cultists and Daleks. How could you possibly have felt hemmed in?"
Sarah grimaced at him. "Trust me, it's possible."
Andred handed her back the baby. "She is very sweet. Romana is waiting for you in the next room, so I shouldn't keep you." He opened the door for them. Rose and Martha stood up to follow, and he added. "Your friends will be shown to their rooms."
The Doctor looked somewhat embarrassed. "These are Rose and Martha." Turning to them, he added, "It's okay. Andred's a friend. As is Romana. We'll see you at dinner."
Susan smiled at them. “Why don't I walk back with you and explain what's going on? And in exchange you can tell me what sort of trouble my Grandfather has been getting himself into.” She grinned and led the other two out of the room.
Apparently Gallifreyan society hadn't embraced all offworlders, just her. The exception that proves the rule. As she watched the other two being herded off, her lips twitched slightly, but she didn't say anything. She had learned during her time on Gallifrey to work with the system, rather than against it, and she was looking forward to a private conversation with Romana. If the other two had been there, too much time would have been spent on explanations. At least if Susan brought them up to speed, things would go more smoothly later on.
Author: hhertzof
Rating: PG
Beta: paranoidangel42
Summary: What happens after Inconceivable
Blame: paranoidangel42 and the mods who demand their offerings of fic.
As usual x-posted to my lj.
Chapter 1: Old Friends
Chapter 10: A Slight Miscalculation
Chapter 19: Behind the Mask
Chapter 2: Girl Talk
Chapter 11: Serendipity
Chapter 20: You're Having My Baby
Chapter 3: Ladies Who Lunch
Chapter 12: Road Trip
Chapter 21: Have You Met Fred?
Chapter 4: Back to the Beginning
Chapter 13: War Zone
Chapter 22: What You've Lost
Chapter 5: Retail Therapy
Chapter 14: A Nice Cup of Tea
Chapter 23: All Fall Down
Chapter 6: Synchronicity
Chapter 15: Paint by Numbers
Chapter 24: Long Ago and Far Away
Chapter 7: Remember When
Chapter 16: Slumber Party
Chapter 8: Think of the Children
Chapter 17: Wedding Bells
Chapter 9: Domestic Disputes
Chapter 18: Dancing in the Dark
The four of them sat in the small antechamber in a rather awkward silence. The Doctor was still holding Fred and all of his attention was focused on the baby, perhaps so he wouldn't have to deal with Rose and Martha's reaction to the news that he was her father.
Fred started to fret, and the Doctor automatically handed her back to Sarah so that she could nurse, giving Sarah's hand a quick squeeze in the process. After a moment he crossed the room to sit beside the other two, and started speaking quietly enough that Sarah couldn't hear more than a word or two of what he was saying.
She focused instead on feeding her daughter. "I'm not going to let them take you away from me," she said softly. "And your Dad will fight to keep you too, so don't worry, Fred, Mum and Dad will keep you safe."
She was burping Fred, when there was a flurry at the door and a young woman burst in. "They told me grandfather was back." She stared at Sarah for a moment, "Grandmother? Sarah?"
Sarah grinned. She had forgotten Susan's insistence on the title, even when she had looked too young to claim it. She stood and shifted the baby to lie against her shoulder so she could embrace Susan with her other arm. "You've regenerated. You look good."
Susan smiled back. "And you look fantastic. Who's this? Your granddaughter?" She sounded hopeful.
"Our daughter. Susan, oh my Susan." The Doctor picked her up and embraced her. "You're ginger." There was a note somewhere between pride and jealousy in his voice. After a moment he held her at arms length and just stared at her. “It is so good to see you. Oh, these are my current companions, Rose and Martha.”
“Pleased to meet you. And as for the red, I've regenerated...just like you. I like it, though. Very handsome." Susan grinned at him. "So this is my aunt. May I?" She didn't wait for an answer, but picked up Fred to cuddle her. "What's her name? Something outrageous, I bet."
Sarah grinned at that. “Fred. Winifred Susan Smith. Not as outrageous as human names sometimes are.”
“I didn't think anyone else had survived,” the Doctor added softly. “My dear, dear Susan. We had thought you were lost.” She had been fighting on another planet, and they had thought her dead. “David?” He caught his breath.
“He's fine. He's working in the fields today. I was helping in the infirmary when someone said you had arrived.”
Her death...presumed death...had been part of what had made him amenable to the High Council's plan, she remembered from their conversations at the time. Finding her here, alive was perhaps even better than knowing that Leela or Romana had survived.
“My team and I managed to reach an abandoned spaceship, but repairing the damage that it suffered took some time. We only managed to limp back here about a year ago. Since then we've been helping with the reconstruction of the Capitol.” Susan smiled at Sarah. “You did a wonderful job of stocking this place after I was sent to Rxanda.” She handed Fred back to her mother.
“I couldn't have done it without your experiences after the Dalek occupation of Earth. Your knowledge of rationing and necessary supplies made a big difference.” Sarah shrugged. She noticed that Rose and Martha were standing awkwardly, but bringing them into the conversation would require more explanation, than she felt like giving at the moment. There would be plenty of time to fill them in later.
The point was rendered moot when Andred walked into the room.
The Doctor jumped up and hugged him, which surprised Andred more than it did Sarah. "Andred, it's good to see you again." He paused, clearly unsure whether he should ask.
"Leela's resting at home. We're due for a baby in a few months." Andred sounded incredibly proud of this fact. "Susan, I see somebody notified you. Good. Sarah? Is that you?" He gestured at the baby. “And who might this be?”
"My daughter." Sarah grinned at him. "Fred, Andred, Andred, Fred. Would you like to hold her?" She didn't wait for an answer but dumped the baby in his arms. "She's a week old. Isn't she the most obnoxiously cute thing you have ever seen?"
Susan looked amused at Andred's discomfort, but didn't say anything.
The Doctor gave Sarah a dark look and helped Andred adjust his grasp so that the baby was comfortable. "Our Fred is not obnoxious in any way."
Sarah resisted the urge to make a snarky comment about whether or not he'd recognise when someone was being obnoxious. Instead she smiled at Andred. "How is Leela doing? I'd love to see her again."
"She would be glad of the visit. I think she's feeling a bit hemmed in at the moment." He looked somewhat relieved at the sight of Fred, and Sarah couldn't blame him.
The work Calla had done had all been theoretical up until now, and if Leela was having similar problems to the ones Sarah had.... "I felt the same way when I was pregnant. Though that was complicated by other things going on in my life.”
The Doctor arched an eyebrow. "You spent your pregnancy dealing with mad cultists and Daleks. How could you possibly have felt hemmed in?"
Sarah grimaced at him. "Trust me, it's possible."
Andred handed her back the baby. "She is very sweet. Romana is waiting for you in the next room, so I shouldn't keep you." He opened the door for them. Rose and Martha stood up to follow, and he added. "Your friends will be shown to their rooms."
The Doctor looked somewhat embarrassed. "These are Rose and Martha." Turning to them, he added, "It's okay. Andred's a friend. As is Romana. We'll see you at dinner."
Susan smiled at them. “Why don't I walk back with you and explain what's going on? And in exchange you can tell me what sort of trouble my Grandfather has been getting himself into.” She grinned and led the other two out of the room.
Apparently Gallifreyan society hadn't embraced all offworlders, just her. The exception that proves the rule. As she watched the other two being herded off, her lips twitched slightly, but she didn't say anything. She had learned during her time on Gallifrey to work with the system, rather than against it, and she was looking forward to a private conversation with Romana. If the other two had been there, too much time would have been spent on explanations. At least if Susan brought them up to speed, things would go more smoothly later on.