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As Danni, the Doctor and Martha walked out of the building where Lazarus laid dead on the floor, Danni couldn't help but look around and not think too much on the death she'd seen. The adrenaline was slowly winding down despite knowing what was about to happen next, and she thought for a moment to mention to the Doctor what was about to happen next. In the heat of the moment, when there was danger, she probably wouldn't have stopped herself, like with the woman in gold, but now she had a moment to think about it she still didn't know what the rules were. Time travel was such a complicated business, what if she had saved someone who eventually led to the destruction of the universe?
She really needed to get him to write the rules down. He was the Time Lord, after all. All she had to go on were a few time travel movies and a television show. She glanced at the Doctor; perhaps a thing best left for Eleven, who was the Doctor with all of the rules.
Either way, as they walked out into the world again, she looked over the people who were safe because of the Doctor and his friends and she smiled to herself. "I think I can do this," she said to the pair.
"Do what?" the Doctor asked, undoing his bowtie.
"This, all this," she replied, waving her hand in the air to illustrate. "The running and the saving people. Maybe I'll be alright."
The Doctor nodded along, because he knew that his life wasn't for everyone. Martha, on the other hand, had never doubted it because she'd always known Danni as fine with their life and all that the night had shown was that she'd needed to build up to it, but that it was there.
"You know what's not right?" she declared.
"What?" the Doctor asked as they watched Lazarus be wheeled out on a stretcher, covered in a red blanket to hide his body from the masses.
"That suit," she clarified. "Maybe it is cursed after all."
"Oh, she's alright!"
Martha was a little surprised as her sister rushed up and hugged her tightly. Her mother and brother weren't far behind but while Leo went to Martha, Mrs Jones only had eyes for one person. Danni nudged the Doctor backwards.
"Watch out," she warned and he frowned.
"What for?"
Mrs Jones didn't say a word but reached up, slapping the Doctor hard across the face. Everyone around them gasped in surprise as Mrs Jones jabbed her finger in his direction. "Stay away from my daughter!" she warned loudly as Martha turned to her mother, furious.
"Mum, what are you doing?!" she exclaimed angrily. Danni turned to the Doctor, stepping between him and Mrs Jones so she could take a look at his cheek.
"All their mothers, every time," he murmured, a little annoyed at the physical attack.
"I did tell you not to piss her off," Danni replied in a slightly sing-song voice. He mockingly repeated her and she shot him a look. "You're fine," she told him. "Just be careful of the mothers."
Martha and Mrs Jones continued to argue. "He is dangerous!" Mrs Jones protested. "I've been told things."
"What are you talking about?" Martha retorted.
"Look around you! Nothing but death and destruction!" she tried, hoping to convince her daughter who just batted her away angrily.
"This isn't his fault!" she snapped. "He saved us, all of us!"
"And it was Tish who invited everyone to this thing in the first place. I'd say technically, it's her fault," Leo added, trying to calm his mother down. Tish rolled her eyes and elbowed him in the side.
Luckily, or unluckily, a crash from the ambulances broke the argument and they all turned to find the source. The Doctor shot Martha look, telling her that he really didn't have time for an argument before running off in the direction of the noise. Danni looked up at Martha, who looked conflicted with her mother holding onto her arm.
"Do what you think is right," she told Martha gently. "Everything will work out." She dashed off after the Doctor to the ambulance, where the remains of the paramedics were sat. Her stomach turned slightly. She really should have said something.
"Lazarus," the Doctor stated. "Back from the dead. Should've known, really."
"I should have said something," Danni whispered as Martha and Tish joined them. The Doctor took out his sonic screwdriver and began searching for Lazarus.
"Yeah, probably," he replied offhandedly. "Too late now, though."
Danni couldn't tell whether he was angry at her or not, his words sounded mean but his tone was more distracted, like he hadn't really thought about what he said. Was that worse?
"Where's he gone?" Martha asked. The Doctor turned slowly on the spot, scanning the air for a trace of the fluctuating energy that Lazarus was emitting, until the sonic began beeping as he pointed it at the looming church behind them.
"That way," he stated. "The church."
"Cathedral," Tish automatically corrected. "It's Southwark Cathedral. He told me."
With the building obviously having some sort of significance, it made sense for them to head towards it than away. The Doctor walked ahead of the group, his sonic screwdriver in front of him so he could follow the energy signal as they walked down the main aisle between the pews.
"Do you think he's in here?" Martha asked, voice low.
"Where would you go if you were looking for sanctuary?" the Doctor replied as they continued to the alter, following the beeping of the screwdriver. The cathedral was actually quite beautiful, and if she'd been there for a day trip it would have been one of the places Danni would have visited. Now, though, instead of admiring the stone work she stuck close to the Doctor as they searched for Lazarus.
They found him behind the alter, wrapped in the red blanket that had been draped over him when they'd removed him from the reception room. He gasped, twisting horribly in pain and was covered in a fine sheen of sweat as he tried to fight against the mutation.
"I came here before," he told them quietly. They all slowly approached him, cautious that he might turn at any moment. "A lifetime ago. I thought I was going to die then. In fact, I was sure of it. I sat there, just a child…the sound of planes and bombs outside."
"The Blitz," Danni stated quietly and Lazarus nodded.
"You've read about it."
"We were there," the Doctor replied. Danni looked up at him with a frown; he was obviously including her in that statement. She filed the little piece of information away. Perhaps she would make her way there in her future. Oh! Did he mean the Empty Child? Was she going to meet Jack?
"You're too young," Lazarus scoffed.
"So are you," the Doctor countered and Lazarus laughed. It quickly turned to a gasp of pain as he continued fighting, his body contorting painfully as it cracked under the strain. The sound was horrid and echoed in the large, stone room. The Doctor began pacing around him, looking upwards as he took in the surroundings, forming a plan.
"In the morning, the fires had died, and I was still alive. I swore I'd never face death like that again," Lazarus continued. "So defenceless. I would arm myself, fight back, defeat it."
"That's what you were trying to do today?" the Doctor accused.
"That's what I did today," Lazarus snapped back angrily.
"What about the other people who died?" the Doctor retorted, just as angrily as he made his way back to Danni.
"They were nothing," he spat disdainfully.
"One of those people was you wife," Danni bit back.
He held his head high. "I changed the course of history."
"Any of them might have done, too," the Doctor pointed out. "You think history's only made with equations? Facing death is part of being human. You can't change that."
"No, Doctor. Avoiding death. That's being human," Lazarus argued. "It's our strongest impulse, to cling to life with every fibre of being. I'm doing what everyone before me has tried to do. I've simply been more…successful." He cried out, his bones crunching as this time the force of the change come on stronger.
"Look at yourself! You're mutating! You've no control over it! You call that a success?" the Doctor jeered harshly.
"I call it progress," Lazarus corrected. He contorted again on the floor, underneath the red blanket. "I'm more now that I was. More than just an ordinary human."
"There's no such thing as an ordinary human," the Doctor told him. Lazarus yelled in pain and fell to the floor convulsing.
"He's gonna change again any minute," Martha pointed out worriedly.
"I know," the Doctor replied before nodding upwards. "If I can get him up into the bell tower somehow, I've an idea that might work."
"Up there?"
The Doctor shot the two women a look and Danni nodded once. "We can do that," she told him.
"You're so sentimental, Doctor," Lazarus gasped. "Maybe you are older than you look."
The Doctor slowly began to circle him, keeping his attention on the Time Lord and away from the humans he was protecting. "I'm old enough to know that a longer life isn't always a better one," he replied. "In the end, you just get tired. Tired of the struggle. Tired of losing everyone that matters to you. Tired of watching everything turn to dust." He crouched down next to him. "If you live long enough, Lazarus, the only certainty left is that you end up alone."
"That's a price worth paying," Lazarus whispered.
"Is it?" the Doctor countered softly. Lazarus twisted and writhed again, obviously becoming weaker against the transformation he did seem to be fighting off.
"I will feed soon," he warned.
"I'm not gonna let that happen," the Doctor replied almost apologetically, with a shake of his head.
Lazarus smirked. "You've not been able to stop me so far."
"No, but I did," Danni pointed out as she moved towards the pair.
"When?" Lazarus gasped.
"The woman in gold, at the reception. I saved her from you, and I'll do it again," Danni reminded him. "After all, you won't be able to resist such... young, fresh meat, will you?"
The Doctor had expected Danni and Martha to help him with his plan, not lure them away, especially with Danni being so young and inexperienced. "Danni, no!" he warned, terrified for her as Lazarus snarled and jumped up.
Danni didn't really have long to consider the rather strange situation she found herself in – being chased by a naked old man – when Martha and Tish appeared on either side of her as she headed towards what she hoped were the stairs to the bell tower above them.
"You're not supposed to follow," she scolded, although she had only taken the part in the episode from her in the hopes of speeding it up. She hadn't expected being with the Doctor to be so tiring.
"Who's going to keep you out of trouble?" Martha countered and Danni rolled her eyes, suddenly feeling like she was being told off by a parent. Was this how Tish felt when Martha did the same to her? Danni had never had a sibling, so it was a new experience for her.
"Doctor!" Danni called back to the Time Lord. "The tower!"
She didn't see the Doctor grin as he worked out her plan, or rather what had been Martha's plan, because she was too busy being rather pleased with herself that she'd managed to choose the right hallway with the doorway she was looking for at the end. She ushered Martha and Tish before following them up herself.
Only to promptly trip over onto the stone stairs, landing on her hands and knees with a loud stream of swearwords. She could hear Lazarus gaining ground and she didn't have time to fall all over the spot.
She sat down, taking off her shoes and chucked them down the stairs in a vain attempt to delay Lazarus before following the pair upwards.
"No more heels," she swore. "Ever. And always a jacket. It's so cold!" Martha began to laugh only to be cut off by the sound of Lazarus screaming in pain, them snarling in anger.
"He's changed again," she breathed and Danni began nudging her and Tish up the stairs again.
"Keep moving," she told them both. "I am not being eaten by him!"
"Danni?! Martha?!" They heard the Doctor shout from below as they reached the upper floor that ran around the cathedral's main hall. It was lined with stone arches that acted as windows and Martha stuck her head out of one to locate the Time Lord.
"Doctor!" she called down to him. He was walking down the aisle and paused in his step, looking up at her.
"Is Danni there with you?"
"Yes!" Martha told him, slightly exasperated. They were busy running away from a mutant, now was not the time for his dormant protectiveness of the ginger woman to come out.
"Take him to the top, the very top of the bell tower, d'you hear me?!" he commanded and she nodded.
"Up to the top," she called back down in confirmation.
"We don't need to do this part," Danni said to Tish. "He needs the bells to…" She trailed off to look behind them at the loud roar that said Lazarus was very much upon them. Tish began jabbing her sister in the arm.
"Martha?" she tried but she just shrugged her off.
"Up to the top!" Martha confirmed and Tish tugged her arm.
"Martha…"
"Then what?" Martha asked the Doctor, ignoring her sister. Danni grabbed her arm, pulling her back out of the window.
"Martha, come on!" Danni cried, pulling her out of the window. Martha yelled as she saw the monster and they continued running, just managing to dodge him as he swiped at the trio.
Somehow, they managed to outrun him all the way to the top of the bell tower, which to Danni seemed like a miracle considering how painful it was to run on stone floors with only tights protecting your feet. And running up stairs wasn't much fun, either. Both were much more preferable than being eaten by a scorpion man, but she was trying hard not to focus on that.
The bell tower was a circular room with a wooden runway that ran all around the outside, with a massive hole in the middle that gave a terrifying look down to the hall below. With not many options available to them, the trio ran away from the door and to the other side, pressing up against the wall to get as far away from Lazarus as they could.
"There's nowhere to go!" Tish cried. "We're trapped."
"This is where he said to bring him," Martha offered but it didn't reassure Tish at all.
"Alright, so we're not trapped. We're bait," she corrected cynically.
Martha knew that her short tone was just because she was scared. "He knows what he's doing," she promised. "We have to trust him."
"He can be very reckless, but it's only with his own life," Danni added. "Never with anyone else's. It's…" She looked over the edge, wondering if she should go into the survivors guilt that this Doctor in particular seemed to suffer from, or whether she should focus on the very big hole that they could fall down any moment.
She shook her head, clearing her throat. Neither. Neither was good. "It's to do with the soundwaves," she offered instead. "Remember, in the lab? He said something smart about hypersonic sound waves. And look," she pointed upwards, "there's a huge bell just there. We've just got to stall him."
The door burst open, breaking off its hinges and Lazarus entered, filling up quite a lot of the available space. Martha pushed her sister behind her protectively, and Danni stood slightly in front of Martha. It did feel a lot better knowing that they all had each other's backs.
"Ladies," Lazarus hissed in a mock of a greeting.
"Stay behind me," Martha told her sister. "If he takes either of us, make a run for it. Head down the stairs, you should have enough time."
"But…"
"Just do it, Tish!" Martha screamed in reply. Lazarus swung his tail at them, all of them ducking out of the way just in time, Tish screaming in fright as they ducked to avoid it. He attacked again, this time the girls spreading out from each other, each crouching down away from his stinger. The sound of an organ began ringing through the church, but it didn't bother Lazarus who aimed his tail at Danni, hitting her side and sending her into the wall as it also took some of the railing away. She tried to run away but it caught her on the side of her head and she fell over the side, clinging to pathway tightly as she screamed, clinging onto it tightly. She tried very much not to look down, but couldn't help it and screamed again.
"Danni!" Martha yelled as she tried to get near her friend to help, but Lazarus leapt over the hole, hovering over her. Danni looked up at him and suddenly preferred looking down. His mouth opened unnaturally, his bones were visible through his paper think skin and the ends of his extra feet were much too pointy.
"You are absolutely horrid, you know that?" she told him boldly.
"Hold on!" Tish encouraged as the two sisters went opposite ways around the walkway to try and get to her.
"Get away from her!" Martha shouted angrily. Lazarus didn't pay her any attention Get away from her!" Tish cried. He lashed out mockingly at Danni, who flinched away the best she could without letting go.
"Doctor! Hurry up!" Danni screamed down at him, hoping her could hear her. The noise from the organ suddenly increased in volume as the sound waves bounced off the walls of the small space, echoing in the bell above them. Tish and Martha covered the ears in pain as Lazarus began to writhe in agony, eventually toppling over the edge and landing with a thud on the floor below. Danni looked down and saw the pitiful human form of Lazarus on the floor, just as her grip slipped and she screamed. Martha reached out and grabbed one arm, Tish joining her and grabbing the other.
"We've got you. Hold on," Tish told her as the sisters pulled her up.
"That's the last time I take anything for you, Martha Jones," she panted out and Martha laughed happily, pulling her in for a big hug that Danni was eager to return. She'd almost died. Again. She really didn't know how she was going to survive, but as Martha comforted her for a moment, she was rather glad that she wasn't going to have to go through it alone.
"Danni?!" the Doctor shouted from down below, obviously concerned and Danni nodded, trying to catch her breath.
"I'm okay." she stuttered out quietly, clinging to both Martha and Tish as they leant back against the wall, exhausted.
"Danni?!" the Doctor shouted tried again when he couldn't hear her.
"She's okay. We're all okay!" Martha called down for her, for which Danni was very grateful. In fact, she was very grateful for the pair of them.
"Thanks," she said sincerely. "Both of you."
"It's your Doctor you should be thanking," Tish told her and she laughed.
"Who'da thought it? The Doctor, having a plan," she replied before she sniffed, leaning her head on Martha's shoulder.
"He cut it a bit fine there, didn't he?"
"He always does," Martha told her sister.
"It's more fun that way, apparently," Danni added. "I don't see the appeal, myself."
"Yeah, right," Martha scoffed and Danni nudged her, still smiling slightly at the idea that Martha Jones seemed to be her friend.
"Who is he?" Tish pressed.
"He's…" Martha started before trailed off. How could she possibly answer that? There was so much that the Time Lord was, and she'd only known both him and Danni for a short amount of time. Even Danni was something she couldn't quite explain, so she turned to her for help answer the question.
Danni just offered a shrug. "He's the Doctor," she said, quoting Martha.
~0~0~0~
The Doctor knelt down by Lazarus's body, observing him silently before reaching out and closing his eyes in respect as his body turned back to its old 76-year-old form. Danni was right to point out that he hadn't returned back the first time they'd thought he was dead, once again he should have listened to her. Whether or not she knew it, she just saw things he didn't. Perhaps he needed to put his pride away. After all, she'd almost fallen her death. If he lost her like he'd lost Rose…
He jumped back up and sprinted to the stairwell, almost reaching it as Danni barrelled out and jumped on him for a tight hug that she also really needed. It wasn't very surprising that she found him more comforting that Martha, after all she'd loved the Doctor and Doctor Who for many years before she'd been pulled to him, and there had to be some benefits to her life, right?
He lifted her up slightly as he squeezed her tightly, returning the hug in earnest. When he put her feet back on the ground, she didn't pull away straight away, but when she did she had a large grin on her face. "You took your time," she scolded playfully. "I swear you left me dangling there for ages! Next time I'll play the organ and you can get chased by the mutant man, alright?"
"That seems entirely unfair," he protested.
"How do you know how to play, anyway?" Martha asked as he placed his hands in his pockets, ignoring the twinge in his chest that had come from almost losing his friends. He was very good a pushing it down and away, after all Danni was safe. They both were.
"If you hang around with Beethoven, you're bound to pick a few things up," he explained and she nodded.
"Especially about playing loud," Danni teased and he leant forward, a fake frown on his face.
"Sorry?" he asked as if he couldn't hear her and she laughed.
"Oh, that's such a bad joke," she groaned before hugging him again. He gave her a squeeze in return before wrapping his arm around her shoulders and walking them out, telling her a story about how he'd met Beethoven.
Martha watched them go with a resigned smile and her sister rubbed her arm in condolence. It was never fun to watch the man you loved walk away with someone else.
~0~0~0~
They all managed to get away before the authorities had turned up, Martha dropping them a quick phone call letting them know where Lazarus was before they'd rushed off. Tish had gone to find their mother, but Martha had just wanted to go home, so that was where they all headed. After all, that was where the TARDIS was parked.
Danni looked up at the front of the TARDIS, at the bluest blue and the windows and she couldn't help but smile brightly to herself. She got to come home to the TARDIS. She had her own bedroom, she travelled with the Doctor and when it was over, no matter when she may end up, her home was in the TARDIS and while it was definitely not home, it wasn't too shabby at all. She could call the TARDIS her home.
She glanced at Martha, who was watching the pair sadly. That was more than Martha could say. Well, for the moment anyway. The other woman leant against the TARDIS door and Danni smiled knowingly at her. She knew what was coming next, so she wasn't too worried about how dejected Martha was feeling. It was definitely only temporary.
"Something else that just kind of escalated, then," the Doctor said as he opened the TARDIS door, checking inside just to make sure everything looked as it should. Martha nodded slowly.
"I can see a pattern developing. You should take more care in the future. And the past, and whatever other time period you find yourself in," she warned him gently with a bit of a laugh at how ludicrous it still was that he was a time travelling alien with a woman who jumped in and out of his life.
"It's been fun, though, hasn't it?" he asked with a grin.
"Yeah," she replied, a grin of her own as they laughed together, remembering their adventures.
"So, what d'you say, one more trip?" he tried to temp. Martha gazed up at the box, pondering for a moment before shaking her head.
"No. Sorry," she replied and he frowned.
"What do you mean? I thought you liked it," he asked, confused.
"I do, but I can't go on like this," she explained. "'One more trip.' It's not fair."
"What're you talking about?"
"I don't want to be just a passenger anymore. Someone you take along for a treat," she told him. "If that's how you still see me, well, I'd rather stay here." She looked down, sulking slightly as the thought annoyed her. She was so much more than just a guest, if he couldn't see that then she didn't want to be around him anyway.
"Okay, then. If that's what you want," he told her, a serious look on his face. Her head shot up; she hadn't been expecting that. She had been expecting him to protest a little bit, not just agree with her. She straightened slightly, offended.
"Right. But we've already said good-bye once today so it's really best if you just go," she muttered before she turned and walked away, pointedly looking out of the window of her flat and not at the pair stood at the TARDIS.
Danni rolled her eyes. It had been obvious when she'd been watching the episode for the first time, and being there in person really didn't change it. "Martha, you're an idiot," Danni told her in no uncertain terms and Martha turned to look at her, cross.
"What? Why?"
"He said okay," Danni replied pointedly before she headed into the TARDIS. She shook her head as she heard Martha squeal out in the flat. Honestly, it was a little embarrassing to be that unobservant.
"Well, you were never really just a passenger, were you?" the Doctor told her as they entered together. Danni turned from looking up at the time rotor – maybe, now, she could find out what all the controls actually did! – and smiled at the pair. Martha was grinning from ear to ear, it was adorable.
The Doctor shot her one of his wolfish grins as he made his way to the console. She didn't even look surprised, but he should have known better than to think he could surprise her. So he just flew them away. The Doctor, his Danni-Girl, and his new companion; Martha Jones.