Doctor Who - 03 - The August Sky

.14. Timelines

"Do you have any plans?" Jack turned in his chair; golden lamplight drawing sharp shadows on his face. "What are you going to do?"

"Wait for her," the Doctor said simply. He looked around the ruined office, not really seeing any of its features. His eyes were tired. "She needs some time with her family."

"You assume that she'd still go with you?" Jack sneered. "After all what happened?"

The Doctor sighed. "I don't think she has much choice in that matter. It's not safe for her to stay here, on Earth. It's not so safe for the Earth either."

"What do you mean?"

"The Rift playing up lately?"

Jack drew a long, whistling breath through his clenched teeth. He shoot an angry glance at the Doctor, taking in his wizened, battered face and his wide open, still slightly crazy eyes.

"Was it because of Donna?" he asked.

"I don't know." The Doctor shrugged his shoulders. "But I don't intend to stay and see for myself."

"What if she doesn't want to go with you?" There was an envious undertone in Jack's voice. His eyes sparkled.

"It's possible. She refused me once." The Doctor shot Jack a quick look. "You fancy her, don't you?"

"What?"

"You fancy Donna."

"I... I... No, I don't... Even if... None of your..."

"Of course. Sorry."

Jack shifted in his chair again. "I just think she's brilliant," he said harshly. "Don't you?"

"I've never doubted that." The Doctor smiled wistfully.

They looked at each other, straight into each other's eyes, and there was an instant understanding between them, an instant pace treaty. And then they looked away, sliding into their own worlds again. The Doctor was fiddling with the paperweight he'd picked up from Jack's desk, and Jack's eyes followed the beautiful item with a bit of cautious concern. The Doctor looked up, noticed Jack's expression, and replaced the paper weight on the desktop, in between a broken space resonator and a burnt-out gravity booster.

"You still owe me some explanation." Jack got up suddenly, hands clenched. "You owe me."

„Do I?" For a moment the Doctor glared at him with an expression of superiority on his face; a godlike creature scrutinising a lesser being. Then his face relaxed. "Maybe you're right."

"She's with her family now, laughing and prattling; no headache, no nosebleeds, no funny time disparity. A couple of days ago she was dying. She was in stasis, but she was slowly dying. I had put her to the sarcophagus with an absolute certainty..." Jack swallowed suddenly, his blue eyes getting glossy. "Absolute certainty that she would never wake up again," he finished with effort.

"I know," the Doctor said quietly.

"But she's fine now. She's Donna. She remembers you and us, and she's Donna. How did you do that?"

"I cheated," the Doctor said. He made a move as if he wanted to get up from the chair as well, and leave the office, before the next question could be asked. He didn't do it. He was just pushing around the objects on Jack's desktop, as if trying to find them a perfect arrangement. It was so unusual behaviour for the Doctor, it seemed unreal.

"I know you did," Jack growled. "But how?"

"I've changed the timeline," the Doctor said simply.