#deep breath is really interested in the question of the doctor's identity after regeneration in a fascinating way!!

[aerithisms]

SLURPING this tweet about the "just see me" scene in deep breath. the way eleven and twelve both refer to themselves in the third person, because even though they are begging clara to understand they're still the same person even they still view each other as someone else. they both are the same person and they aren't.

[moon-in-daylight]

Jealousy / Dhawan!Master x reader

Summary: When Missy died, you thought it would be a good idea to travel with The Doctor to keep yourself busy and your thoughts away from the one you had lost. Now that you encounter The Master’s new incarnation, you have a decision to make, and The Master a few questions for you.

Words: 3116

Warnings: Jealousy, teasing, dirty talk? (Nothing too graphic. In fact, it’s not really dirty, let’s say suggestive instead)

A/N: So I’ve been out of inspiration for a week or two but I finally got myself to write something. I’ve not edited this so probably it has some mistakes, sorry for that.

The moment you saw the humanoid-shaped aliens hover over The Master, you quickly took a step forward and tried to grab his hand. You knew it was a stupid thing to do, considering that he was probably mad at you for helping The Doctor and blowing his plan of destroying humanity. You were fighting on opposite sides now, but that would never stop you from try and helping him if needed it. Yet, deep down you knew your little act of bravery was useless. It was obvious that you couldn’t prevent the Kasaavin from taking him, and by touching him you would only be giving the light-made aliens the chance of trapping you in their parallel universe as well, putting you in unnecessary and senseless danger. Not that you really thought or care about your well-being in that moment. You weren’t thinking rationally as you extended your arm towards him, as you tried to make sure he knew you were still by his side. Truth was, you hadn’t been thinking straight at all that day. Not since you had discovered O’s true identity.

All that mattered to you in that precise second was to help The Master, even if it was only by grabbing his hand and showing him your support and affection. After all the time you had been apart, and just by seeing the painful look in his eyes after being stuck on Earth for 77 years, it was clear that he needed it more than ever. It was painful to think about all the time he had spent alone, to think about all those nights that you had spent mourning him while he still was alive. Now that he was in front of you, you weren’t planning on letting him go again.

But before your fingers could reach his, you felt yourself being pushed back by a sudden grip on your wrist. After watching the Time Lord disappear in front of you with a blinding flash of white light, you turned to The Doctor, whose hand held you tight in place.

“Let me go!” You struggled to let yourself free, willing to throw yourself to the Kasaavin in hopes of getting reunited with The Master. Chances were you wouldn't even end up in the same place he was sent to, but you were willing to take that and any other risk now that you had the chance of getting him back.

“Y/N, what are you doing?” The astonished voice of Yaz called your name.

None of the other companions knew the history between you and The Master. You had never trusted any of them enough to tell them your backstory, and since Missy had died long ago, you had never thought it would be necessary for them to know any of it. After O’s reveal in the plane, you supposed it would have been the time to mention something to them, but after giving it a little thought, you finally decided it was best for them not to know about your feelings for him. The last thing you wanted was to create an uncomfortable ambient between you and the rest of the group because of your little ‘conflict of interests’.

None of that mattered the slightest now. You had the chance of going back to him and you no longer cared about what they thought of the fact that you were in love with The Doctor’s best enemy.

“How could you?!” You ignored everyone else in the room as you looked at The Doctor in the eye, your features showing nothing but hatred and frustration. “You told me Missy died!”

“I did believe she was dead.” She assured you under the confused looks of the rest. You gave her a suspicious look, not being sure if you could trust her anymore. “Y/N, I would have never told you that if I hadn’t believed it was true.”

You felt tears forming in your eyes as you remembered how The Doctor’s past regeneration had brought you the news that had shattered your entire life. You hadn’t been with Missy more than a few months, not as much as you would have liked to, anyway. It had been a short but intense time, traveling in her TARDIS and assisting her in any other mischief she planned.

Chaotic, fun and passionate… But ephemeral. That’s what your relationship had been like, what you still hoped you could get back.

You had spent more time apart than together now, but you remembered how special the bond between the two of you were. How it had taken so little time and effort to make her a very important part of your life, if not the most.

When she was taken away from you, you felt like a part of you had died with her too.

You felt deeply lost, trying to picture what the rest of your life was going to be without her. You supposed you had no option but resign yourself to go back to Earth, grieve her and then try and keep on with your life. You weren’t sure you could get over her, especially on your own, but then the past incarnation of The Doctor offered you a place in his TARDIS. It wasn’t ideal, but it was best than staying home crying all day. And, even though you had a rough time adjusting to the companions that came and went and to the way she managed certain situations, you had eventually learned to travel with her. More than that, you were even starting to enjoy it.

You were quite fond of her at this point, but not enough to choose to stay with her if you had the chance to go back with The Master.

“Let me go to him.” You insisted, looking at the aliens that remained in the room. They were disappearing one by one, and with them your only chance of finding him again.

“Y/N…” The Doctor stared at you in disbelief when she understood what you were still planning to do, realizing how desperate you truly were. She had figured when The Master had revealed himself that it would affect you somehow, but not until the point of sacrificing yourself for him. Now, she realized that you were not over Missy at all. “You’re taking a step into the unknown. It’s not safe to-”

“I don’t care about safety!” You quickly cut her off. “I wouldn’t be doing this if you hadn’t let them take him!”

“Y/N, he’s not the person you once knew.” She warned you, repeating your name once again to try and make you see reason. “This incarnation may be previous to Missy. He may not even know you yet… And even if she survived and regenerated into him, it only means he decided to never come back for you. He may not feel the same for you anymore.”

You swallowed the lump in your throat as you took into consideration The Doctor’s words.

No, he wasn’t previous to Missy. You could tell by how he had looked at you, by the way his eyes had lingered on you more than necessary when introducing yourselves, by his incessant attempts to get closer to you while still being undercover as O. He had been especially interested in you since the first moment, taking any chance he could to go talk to you and showing a particular interest about the nature of your relationship with The Doctor. You had first mistaken those signs as an effort of innocent flirting by the shy agent, but knowing his true identity also exposed his true intentions. He was trying to find out how you had ended up in her oldest enemy’s TARDIS.

He did know you, but then again, The Doctor did have a point when she said he might not feel the same for you anymore. At least, that would explain why he had practically ignored you since his reveal, leaving you to die with the rest on the plane crash. If he still wanted you by his side, he would have rescued you from that situation and taken you with him, wouldn’t he?

Maybe he thought you had betrayed him by travelling with The Doctor, or maybe he just had gotten over you already.

“Nothing changes what I feel for him.” You clarified, finally letting yourself free from her grip. Taking a deep breathe, you organized the ideas running through your mind, focusing only on one particular feeling. “I love him. I always have. I’m going to stay by his side because that’s how I feel and nothing in this universe will make me change my mind. I don’t care if he doesn’t recognize me or if he doesn’t love me back anymore… That doesn’t change anything.”

“Please don’t do anything stupid…” Your friend unsuccessfully attempted to stop you once more. You could see desperation in her eyes as she tried to talk sense into you, to make you stay safely by her side. She meant well, but both of you knew it was useless to try to dissuade you. “He would never do the same for you!”

“I know.” You sighed, giving a final look at The Doctor and her companions. This was your goodbye. “Still don’t care.”

Before The Doctor or any of the others could say anything else, you rushed yourself to one of the few remaining Kasaavin, reaching your hand to the creature and fading away in a white light explosion.

When you opened your eyes again, you found yourself in an unknown, hostile place. It was the Kasaavin’s dimension. Judging by Yaz's reaction of when she had come back from there, you had supposed it wasn't going to be a friendly place, but you had pictured something very different in your head. You had imagined that place to be full of blinding white lights, but it was way colder and darker than you would have figured just by looking at the aliens who resided there.

The first thing you noticed were the wire-like structures that ran sparks of light through them. There were thousands- No, millions of them around. They slightly reminded you of trees, they were all around and each of them looked exactly the same. There was no way of developing any sense of orientation there. It almost felt like you were in the middle of a forest at night, lost and having no idea on where to go.

You had to admit that throwing yourself into an unknown dimension without any plan or guarantee of getting out hadn’t been your brightest idea.

Just when you were beginning to regret your impulsiveness, you heard a frustrated scream and, recognizing the source of the sound, you rushed in the direction where it had come from. You didn’t quite know this regeneration of The Master yet and his voice still sounded a bit unfamiliar, but you recognized his characteristic exasperation of when something didn't come out as planned in his shout. It had to be him. Plus, who else could be trapped there besides you and him?

Luckily, you found The Master standing not far from where you had landed, his back facing you as he didn’t seem to notice your presence. You tried to calm your breathing before getting closer to him, trying to figure out what to say to him. After losing Missy, you never thought you would have this opportunity. Him, standing in front of you in the middle of such a strange place felt like something come out of a daydream. For a second you even considered the possibility that everything was only happening in your sleep, and you feared that you would suddenly wake up alone in your bed or that he would fade away before your eyes.

Before you could find the courage to say something, he turned to you.

“What are you doing here?” His eyes observed you with surprise and curiosity during a few seconds. That confusion turned itself into bitterness with his second question. “Don’t you travel with The Doctor now?”

“Well, you know me-“ You tried to act smooth, but you were sure he could sense the nervousness in your voice. “I can’t help myself when it comes to helping a damsel in distress.”

Seeing him chuckle at your little remark helped calm you down. He definitely was the same person you had fell in love with, only different. You had never understood what that meant when Missy tried to explain you the regeneration process, but seeing The Doctor change had helped you comprehend the concept. And now, looking at this new incarnation of him, you were completely sure that, even though he looked different, nothing had really changed.

“Not a damsel anymore, love.” He pointed out as he stepped closer to you. Well, almost nothing had changed. “Is that of any inconvenience for you?”

“As long as we’re still getting in distress…” You softly shook your head, a smile spreading across your face when you watched his smirk getting wider.

“Oh, we’re going to.” His preying eyes examined your body with amusement, sending a shiver down your spine when you realized how he had perceived your initially innocent comment. “I can assure you that.”

“You’re going to need to catch me up on a few things first.” You did your best to hide your increasing blushing as he got even closer to you, invading your personal space and barely giving you room to breathe. Trying not to get distracted by his proximity, you looked at him in the eye. “The Doctor told me you died.”

The Master sighed and took a step back when you pronounced his childhood’s friend’s name, as if he was repealed by it. It was no secret that he wasn’t her biggest fan, but as he backed away you saw something in his eyes you couldn’t quite decode, something different from his usual hatred.

“I was left to die alone.” He clarified. The resentment in his voice more than obvious as he spoke, and hearing him say those words did nothing but break your heart. Trying to show him that you were there with him, you carefully caressed the side of his face. It was strange to feel the light stubble against your skin, but you kind of liked how it looked on him. Softening under your touch, he let out another sigh, a more relaxed one. “Almost had to regenerate twice. That damn corset.”

“I liked that old thing though. It looked good on you.” You complimented him, trying to lighten up the mood a bit.

“It looked good on you too.” The Master’s eyes left your face to look down at your body, his stare tracing the curves and edges of your body as he remembered the several times you had stolen his clothes and walked around his TARDIS wearing them. That memory brought a sincere smile to his face. “We had some good times, didn’t we?”

“The best of times.” You nodded your head in agreement, a little smile forming on your face as well.

“Oh, but I’m sure you had a great time with The Doctor too…” The Master’s face suddenly got dark, the smirk disappearing from his face as he looked away from you. His harsh tone confused you for a second, trying to understand what was going on inside his mind and the reason behind his sudden change of mood. He surely was an emotional rollercoaster. “You seemed to be having so much fun playing spies with her…”

When you finally interlocked your stare with his you understood why the innuendo on his voice.

He was jealous.

“Did you?” He inquired as he stepped closer to you again, his hot breathing hitting your face. “Did you have fun with her?”

“I only agreed to travel with her because I couldn’t stand being on my own without you.” You tried to justify yourself, feeling your knees weakening under his cold stare.

“That’s not what I am asking.” His voice was rough as his eyes shifted through your face. “You seemed close to her… Did you feel anything for her?”

“Of course not.” You quickly assured, but it didn’t seem to be enough for him. Placing both of his hands on each side of your hips, he pushed you against one of the wires, his weigh pinning you against the alien structure.

“Did you think she could make you forget about me?”

He ran his tongue through his lips, making your body squirm slightly and your breathing unsettle. You shook your head as he got even closer to you.

“Did you think she could make you feel the way I make you feel?”

You shivered as his hands slipped down your shirt and caressed the skin of your lower back. Closing your eyes, you tried to steady your breathing. It had been years since you had felt his touch, the way his fingers slowly explored your body. That simple gesture was all he had to do to have you at his complete and utter mercy. And he knew.

“That she could ever make you this desperate for her?”

“No…” You mumbled under your breathe.

With a proud smile he lent closer to you, his lips gently brushing the skin of your neck as the harsh but pleasant feeling of his stubble against you sent goosebumps all over that area. Stopping himself right next to your ear, he left a soft kiss on your neck before whispering.

“Have you forgotten who your Master is?”

You shook your head again, but he didn’t seem pleased with your answer.

���Say it out loud.”

“Only my Master could make me feel this good.” You muttered as you still felt the tip of his fingers roaming through your body, his breathing against the particularly sensitive skin of your neck. “No one else could.”

You supposed he was satisfied with your answer this time when he took a step back to smash his lips with yours.

He was even more passionate than you remembered, his mouth moving eagerly against yours as his arms wrapped around your waist trying to bring you impossibly closer to him, as if he was afraid of letting you go again. Your whole body trembled as you tried to keep his pace, placing one of your hands on his shoulder for support as the other caressed the side of his face gently.

“Good thing you still know who you belong to.” He smirked as he stepped away from you, your body immediately missing the warmth of his touch. “Now, let’s find a way to get out of here so I can show you just how much I’ve missed you.”

[easily-infatuated23]

The Mark of the Angel Part Two: Emergence

Part One

a/n: i’m totally creating my own lore so sorry about that lol also this is in third person now bc it felt better to write so sorry for the grammar change from part one

pairing: 11th Doctor x Reader Angel OC x Amy and Rory

word count: 1.6k

warnings: none

summary: The Doctor is ecstatic to have found the Angel but, have they always known each other? 

The group of friends stared in amazement, but for different reasons. Amy and Rory couldn’t believe the transformation that had occurred right in front of them. This seemingly ordinary girl had suddenly levitated and her skin glowed a brilliant orange color. Now, she still looked slightly ordinary but her aura and attitude had changed completely. The Doctor, on the other hand, was amazed at the discovery of the creature that stood before him. As a boy, he had been told many stories about the Angel. Some came from his family which described a noble being that had saved and practically created the Time Lords, others came from his mates at the academy who told stories of a terrifying creature who would steal your soul. He buzzed with excitement. Even as his hundreds of years of life had passed, he never found a story that rang true or made sense. Now he could know. This is why the TARDIS had brought him here, to learn the secretes of this legendary creature.

Even though thoughts raced wildly through each of the friends heads, none seemed to be able to speak. The Angel surveyed her surroundings. “You know I actually quite fancied this little flat, it might’ve been fun to stick around a bit longer but no matter, there are things to be done”. She looked directly at the Doctor who realized that he was, for the first time in his life, truly at a loss for words. “Doctor, it is very good to see you again, and…. I forgive you”. Amy and Rory turned their heads sharply toward the Doctor, awaiting an explanation. But, none came. Amy grew impatient. “I thought you said you had never met or even seen the Angel before” Amy said, somewhat accusingly. The Doctor barely heard her voice, a darkness swimming in his head as he knew exactly why the Angel said she forgave him. “I suppose there is no harm in sharing now” the Angel began, looking at Amy. “A long time ago I decided I wanted to watch over the Time Lords more closely. That would be easier to do from the inside, not from above. I am very gifted in changing my form, you see, so I would cycle through a new form every couple hundred years or so. Living the life of a Time Lord on Gallifrey, never revealing my true identity. The Doctor and I were friends for a very long time but he still hasn’t figured out who I was then, have you Doctor?” the Angel said, her gaze fixed on the man who was adjusting his bowtie nervously.

His eyes darted from side to side, scanning his brain for all of the faces and names of his friends on Gallifrey, before it was lost. “I will give you a clue” the Angel said. The Doctor looked up at her. She held up her hand, it was balled into a fist with only her pinky finger sticking straight up. “Do you trust me?” she asked. He was stunned and confused. The Doctor had lived for so long that sometimes he was convinced that some things from his childhood were made up. This being one of those things. A memory flashed into his mind of himself as a boy, running around and playing with a little girl. The two would go on “adventures” together. Whenever one of them was hesitant to do something, they would hold up their pinkies and ask the question. He knew the words he had to say next. He stepped forward and interlaced his pinky with hers. “To the ends of the universe” he replied. Another gust of wind blew through the room. This time, the Angel’s appearance changed completely. She looked as if she had become a few years younger, looking more like a teenager now. Her long blonde hair replaced by short curly red hair with light brown freckles peppering her face. Her eyes glowed a fantastic green. She was now wearing red robes instead of the jeans and t-shirt she had previously donned.

“Cora?” the Doctor asked. The Angel smiled and nodded. “Yes. It has been a very long time my friend” she replied in a smooth voice. The Doctor felt his eyes welling up with tears as he pulled the girl into the tightest hug he could manage. Amy and Rory, feeling very left out, simply stood there. Unsure if they should wait in the TARDIS for this odd reunion to conclude or remain standing and watching. “We should probably leave them alone for a minute” Rory said as he opened the doors to the TARDIS. He pulled Amy inside and shut the doors.

The Doctor released her from the hug. He cupped her face. “I thought you were lost or even dead. What happened?” He said, somewhat breathlessly. “There will be plenty of time for you to get the answers you desire but for now, we have more pressing matters” the Angel said. She shook her head back and the physical appearance of ‘Cora’ disappeared and she returned to the form the Doctor had found her in. He tried to hide the awe struck expression on his face but he was unsuccessful. “I like my form as Cora, but I figure this is less distracting for the moment” she said. He nodded. She walked past him and, snapping her fingers, opened the door to the TARDIS. Amy and Rory looked up, expecting to see the Doctor entering. “Can she really do that? I thought only he could” Rory whispered to Amy. She shrugged. As much as she loved Rory, and she really really really loved Rory, she couldn’t help but feel a little jealous toward the Angel. Amy had always felt like the Doctor’s special girl, and she wasn’t keen on the idea of sharing that.

The Angel entered the TARDIS and took a deep breath. She traced her hand on the center console. “Hello darling” she said. Amy and Rory looked at each other again. The only person they had seen act like that toward the TARDIS was the Doctor, who at this point looked like he was going to jump out of his skin with excitement. “Is the story about the TARDIS and you true?” he asked, walking closer to the Angel. She chuckled. “Yes, I did give some of my body to create the first TARDIS. After that, they grew all on their own but they are all connected back to me in some way.” The Doctor smiled, his hands on the brink of waving wildly.

“So, how did you find me after all this time? I know you have been on and off of Earth for a long time now. What took so long?” she asked. “Yes, well, I punched in that the TARDIS should take us somewhere I have always wanted to go but never knew I wanted.” “Interesting” the Angel said. “Seeking an unknown destination can be quite dangerous. You two are aware of those risks aren’t you?” She looked up at Amy and Rory. “Oh yeah, we’re aware” Rory said. “Once, the Doctor took us to Venice for a ‘date’ and we ended up having to defeat vampire fish from space” Amy added. The Angel turned to the Doctor. “I like these two” she said. Amy smiled, she was beginning to warm up to the Angel.

“Would you mind if I held your hands for a moment” the Angel said. She walked over to Amy and Rory and held her hands out. They each placed one of their hands into hers. The Angel closed her eyes, her head moving slightly from side to side, as if she was viewing something only she could see, and it was in fast motion. The Doctor moved in, eyes widening. “Doctor what’s she doing?” Amy asked. He walked closer the Angel then pulled out a magnifying glass. He surveyed the Angel’s face and then followed the line of her neck, down to her shoulder, and all the way down her arm. He focused on the top of Amy’s hand then ducked underneath to look at the top of the Angel’s hand. As he did this Amy gasped. The Doctor popped back up and saw what caused Amy to gasp. On the top of her and Rory’s hands was a small spiraling shape resembling a drawing of a sun. The design was glowing with the same hue as the Angel’s regeneration light. The shape was constantly spiraling, never remaining static. “Oh!” the Doctor said slapping his forehead. “She’s gathering all the information she needs about you and the world and the universe through your life experiences. Past, present, and future! This is incredible!” As the Doctor finished speaking, the spirals transformed into the shape of a pair of wings flying before the light poofed in a small cloud of smoke and disappeared from their hands.

“Thank you for that” the Angel said, letting go and opening her eyes. She fixed her gaze on Amy. A small tear dropped from the Angel’s eye as she took a step closer to Amy. “You my dear, are going to have some wonderful adventures.” There was a small awkward silence before the Angel stepped back and looked at the Doctor. “Now, we have an issue to discuss. When I escaped from Gallifrey, an echo went across the universe exposing my actual existence. I came to Earth and became human to avoid detection. I have a feeling that now the echo just repeated itself” “Is that a bad thing?” Amy asked. The Doctor’s face was suddenly pale. He looked at Amy. “We’ve just told the universe that there is an actual god on Earth…” “And people will want me for themselves and to use my powers the way the Time Lords could…” the Angel added. Rory rubbed his face anxiously. “Basically, the biggest bounty in the universe just became active, and people will be coming to collect” the Angel said. This was going to be trouble.

[raywritesthings]

It All Started With a Duke

My Writing Fandom: Doctor Who Characters: Donna Noble, Tenth Doctor Pairing: Doctor/Donna Summary: Sparks fly when Donna tries once again to pick up a suitor on their travels. Inspired by @fangjy‘s comment on @thegingergoddess‘ post. AO3 link  

They’d only been on the Traverser a little over an hour before Donna spoke the dreaded words, “Oh, he’s nice.”

The Doctor tried his best to suppress the heavy sigh that threatened and took another sip of the cocktail he’d snatched off a passing waiter’s tray. “Who is?”

If a lovely night out with Donna was about to be ruined by some muscle-bound brainless beau, he might as well find out which one was ruining it.

She nodded over her own glass which he’d gotten for her at the typical sort of specimen for these things. Some 29th century duke who was already surrounded by a gaggle of ladies and some who identified as neither lady nor gentleman. He had dark hair and perfectly straight teeth, the Doctor supposed, and was already no good for Donna. He didn’t need a second look to know that.

Why did she always go after these types? They weren’t smart or kind or brilliant like she was, and they certainly wouldn’t notice those qualities in her. No, all they were interested in was her physical beauty, and tonight, with her hair cascading in ginger waves past her shoulders and her rather ample assets fit snugly into a deep blue gown — TARDIS blue, his blue — there was a high chance indeed a fellow might do more than notice. The very idea made his stomach churn.

He only just managed to tear his own gaze away when Donna glanced to the side at him. “You think he’s single? Or did he leave the wife at home?”

“One can only hope,” he muttered under his breath. Donna didn’t appear to hear him.

She placed her drink on the little table that stood against one of the ship’s support beams, which had been done up like a Roman column, and he did likewise. “I think I’ll see if he wants to dance. Women can ask in the 29th century, right? It only took us twenty to get the vote.”

Before he could think better of it, the Doctor reached for her arm and shifted between her and her quarry. “Donna, don’t. Just don’t.”

She didn’t shove him away or bark a warning about hands, but she did raise her chin in defiance. “And why not?”

He hadn’t expected a pushback. He should have expected it; this was Donna. But he couldn’t very well tell her that it was because he couldn’t stand the idea of her using her charms on some other man.

The Doctor floundered for a moment. “Er, well, because—”

“Wait, better question — what are you gonna do to stop me?”

She hadn’t lost that smoldering look, only now it was directed at him. The Doctor licked at his suddenly dry lips, which did not go unnoticed by Donna. Her own lips curved up into the slightest smirk, and he could read the challenge in her eyes: Go on, Spaceman.

It was as if something snapped. All of his carefully constructed arguments about not interfering with the timelines or how there was an — admittedly small — chance that interacting with the future in such a way could have catastrophic consequences on the universe itself were forgotten, and all that mattered was the pool of longing and desire that stirred inside him whenever he so much as thought of Donna had reached a boiling point.

His other hand rose to cup the back of her head, fingers fanning through that glorious hair as he sealed his mouth over hers. Donna went willingly, or perhaps it was the surprise that had her pliant in his hold as he spun them around to the other side of the pillar and crowded her up against it. He didn’t want an audience; this was their moment and theirs alone, at least until Donna came to her senses and no doubt slapped him silly for this serious violation of their ‘just mates’ agreement.

She’d gasped as her back hit the pillar, though he’d made sure to keep cradling her head to avoid any injury, and her open mouth was too delicious a temptation to resist. His tongue swept over her full bottom lip, and at last Donna’s arms raised — only for one to wrap around his back and the other to bury her hand in his hair, urging him on.

This couldn’t be real, the Doctor thought deliriously. It was the drink or an invention of his mind. He had to be lightheaded, and indeed he was breathing rather harshly through his nose as, not to be outdone, Donna had brought her own tongue into play. He could detect the lime that had been in her cocktail and the slight burn of alcohol that danced along his taste buds as well as something difficult to define. The Doctor didn’t want to stop until he could, and maybe not even then.

His hand had slid from her arm to her waist and finally to her hip, the material of her dress silky under his touch. She hooked a leg around one of his own, drawing him closer. His hips were pushed into hers, producing a low moan from the back of her throat that made his toes curl inside his trainers. He could feel the swell of her breasts pressed against his chest, and if he’d looked down would’ve been granted a view the likes of which no wonder in the universe could top.

The Doctor had truthfully been clocking overtime as far as lip-locking went compared to previous regenerations, but he couldn’t remember a kiss quite like this. So immediate, so synchronous, so consuming. She drove him mad, and he couldn’t get enough.

“Sir! Madame! I must insist you stop!”

Donna and the Doctor broke apart with identical gasps to find a rather harried android in a waitstaff uniform standing a few feet to the side. Some of the other passengers on the starship had wandered over to peer at them as well, including the duke who had started this whole chain of events.

The Doctor shifted to shield Donna as best he could while her chest heaved with the breath she was trying to get back. He was panting as well, though not as badly having a better capacity for storing air than most humans. “Er, sorry about that.”

“Such behavior is most unbecoming of our clientele and the dignified atmosphere we strive to maintain.”

“Dignified, that’s definitely us,” Donna remarked, despite the Doctor’s efforts to shush her.

“I must ask for you and your wife’s identification.”

“Iden- identification?” The Doctor patted himself down, trying to recall where he’d stuck the psychic paper. “Let’s see. Um.”

It turned out that getting caught in a rather passionate display of public affection and not really having the presence of mind to handle sudden inquiries into the nature of whether or not tickets were actually in his possession made it rather difficult not to be labeled a stowaway. The Doctor and Donna were led out of the spacious ballroom to much scandalized murmuring from the other passengers.

Seeing as the purpose of the Traverser was for cruising the galaxies, there were no cells on board. It was determined, therefore, that they would remain in the cargo hold until the ship docked next. Fortunately, the cargo hold was precisely where they’d parked the TARDIS.

“Well, it was getting late anyway,” the Doctor said with a breezy sort of tone as he held the door open for Donna. “And the hors d'oeuvres weren’t very good.”

“Yeah,” she agreed.

In the relative quiet of the console room, it was very hard to look at each other.

“You, er, you didn’t…”

Donna looked up from studying the controls. “Didn’t what?”

“Didn’t correct the waiter. When he said we were married.”

It was a less direct way of asking, of trying to figure out what she was thinking about the kiss.

“Neither did you.”

Oh. “Right.”

The Doctor busied himself with piloting, taking them into the Vortex and trying to ignore how hyper aware he was of Donna slowly walking around the console ever closer.

“So! Where to next?” Perhaps simply going along like usual was the best course of action. They could pretend it had never happened, just like the detox kiss and their not-date at the antigravity restaurant and Donna calling him pretty that one time.

Only when he turned to face her, he found Donna to be extremely close so that she only had to lift her hands to place them on his chest. The Doctor drew in a breath and tried otherwise not to move a muscle.

But then, Donna took a step forward, which forced him to step back. She did it again and again, never taking her eyes off his, until his back thumped against one of the coral struts.

“I’m thinking about here’s good.”

“Is it?” He squeaked.

Donna took one last step, and he finally did get that very nice view as the gap between their bodies evaporated into nothing. She’d worn a rather low heel and so curled her fingers into his lapels to drag herself up to his height. The Doctor swallowed once. “My turn, Time Boy.”

Well, the Doctor supposed as he found his mouth reengaged, as long as they were keeping things equitable between them, that had to be alright. A lovely night, indeed.