Fam Away From Home

Fam to Home

Astra stood before the confused Doctor, waiting for a case to be made. "I don't get you!" the blonde exclaimed. "I've been thinking about it and I've decided. I don't get you. So I need you to explain yourself, right now!" the North accented woman demanded. 

Astra laughed. "Don't get what?" 

"You threatened to kill Epzo, then you almost killed that policeman in Mississippi. And now, you held a spider, something you fled from, as it drew its last breaths. I don't get it!" 

"No one deserves to die alone!" Astra defended calmly. 

That shut the Doctor up. She paused, floored by the depth of her statement. 

"My body has a lot going on inside it. So, yes, sometimes my emotions run away with me. When a sonofabitch is trying to make everyone else miserable while I'm on another planet I didn't want to go to, where the planet is wrong at its core, you're damn right I get bitchy. Did I nearly lose my shit with a racist, yes!" she hissed. "I'm not usually like that, but it had been a very hectic few days. Back on Earth, able to balance back out, I'm better. So when a creature of nature is in pain, I'm sympathetic." She calmed down, crossing her arms, and took a breath. "It's who I am. Who I am is also homesick so can I please go to the airport now?" she begged. 

The Doctor stepped forward, taking her hands to hold her arms out in front of her. "Trust me to take you home. This second, this moment." She bounced up. "We'll test it!" She looked around before popping her head out of the TARDIS. "You three! I'm gonna take Astra home." She threw Astra's cell phone out the door. "Call 'er mum!" She slammed the door shut and raced to the console. 

Astra was feeling her pockets, checking her jacket too. "I'm sorry. How did you get my-" 

"You dropped it on the pavement outside Yaz's apartment. I grabbed it, wondering how long it'd take you to notice it was gone." 

"We were a bit distracted-" Astra cut herself off, walking to the door. "Don't leave my-" 

"Too late! We're already off!" the Doctor cut her off, pulling the lever up excitedly. 

The TARDIS shook violently and Astra was thrown to the floor. They landed and the Doctor squealed. "We're here!" She raced over to the fallen brunette, helped her to stand, then took off at the door. She pulled it open and raced into the office they'd landed in. A dark haired woman who was most assuredly Astra's mom held a rotary hand device. She took it from the confused woman. "Yaz?" she asked into it. With a grin, she turned to the brunette who'd finally followed out the door. "It's for you." 

Astra took the phone, holding it to her own ear. "Just called?" 

"Just left!" Yaz barked in some sort of awe. 

Astra smiled with a nod. "Thanks." She took the rotary from her face. 

"See?" the Doctor chirped cheerfully. "I told you I could do it. Just honed in on your phone's circuitry, rode the radio wave. Just had to trust me." 

Astra slammed the phone down. "Quite. But I'd like to point out that I didn't trust you. You took it. Ran with it. Asked then did it anyway." 

The Doctor deflated when she realized Astra never quite answered her. oh! She felt horrible. The girl had been nearly assassinated, taken to another planet, taken to another time, confronted English spiders, and she'd violated her even more. "You're right," she realized. She sat down, looking up at the girl. "I'm sorry. I used to know better." 

Astra snorted, lightening up at the apology. She could feel the woman's contrition, which was the only way she was forgiving anything ever. "I doubt that." She turned to her mother, leaning in for a hug. "Hi." 

"Ric said you were with him," Jo was trying to unpuzzle. 

"I was, then my friend here brought me here instantly. Mom, this is the Doctor. Doctor, this is my mom." 

"Where's Ric?" Jo demanded urgently. 

Astra spared her a look. "Oh, still in England. The only redeeming factor from your little non-consensual excursion." 

The Doctor looked up at her, an unbearable hope rising in her eyes. "You don't hate me?" she asked. 

Astra frowned. She shook her head. "No," she answered plainly, as if a bit shocked she was asking. She turned to her mom again. "I have so much to tell you." 

*~*

Days later, the Doctor was still in the Salvatore Boarding school. Sometimes, she got a little bored, but she'd find Astra and make her do magic. The brunette nearly laughed from how frequently the blonde got bored. Well, she would be if it weren't her job to entertain the alien.

The blonde used the TARDIS' med bay to learn the ins and outs of the witch's foreign biology and, for some very obvious reasons, was infinitely pleased with Astra's speedy healing. She was especially fascinated with the odd variety of things she could do, like the Doctor's screwdriver. Astra still came on the ship while it was parked, appreciating that she was staying for a while. She eventually agreed to continue travelling. 

The Doctor managed to pilot the TARDIS back to Sheffield with no problem, something the brunette was very suspicious of.

"Naw, it's fine," the overly cheerful blonde blared. "Sor' of like the 'last' button on an old car radio."

Brown eyes still narrowed, Astra regarded the Doctor again. "But you did a lot more than press a button."

The blonde shrugged, grinning cheekily. "My TARDIS is a lot more sophisticated than your cars."

*~*

A/N: I know it seems like nothing is changing and Astra's just stealing lines, but I promise it gets better now that they're consensual ride-alongs.