"Two After Midnight"

[shivver]

Title: "Two After Midnight"
Fandom(s): Doctor Who
Characters: Tenth Doctor, Donna Noble
Pairing(s): None
Rating: PG
Genre: General
Word Count: 466

Summary: He'd wanted to see sapphires.



They sat on the edge of the pool, the roar of the waterfall drowning out the sounds of the forest around them. They'd both rolled their trouser legs up to dangle their feet in the cold water, the icy shock reminding them that they were alive.

After a few minutes, he scooted a tad closer to her and leaned his head on her shoulder, and she slipped her arm around him, first squeezing his shoulder, then running her fingers through his hair, playing with the soft locks the way her mum used to sometimes, when she was a girl, that would make her fall asleep even though she really wanted to see the end of the telly show. Though she felt more than heard his soft sigh at her touch on his scalp, she knew that he wouldn't fall asleep, that his wide eyes were haunted, horrified.

As she watched the river above plunge down, churning up raging clouds of mist where it met the water below, she mused on what had affected him like this. He'd faced death before, stood in front of aliens with claws and tentacles and poison, and men threatening to gun him down, without blinking an eye. Death doesn't scare him. Or, at least, death for a good, noble purpose doesn’t. It wasn’t the possession by the alien lifeform: he'd been controlled, rendered helpless, unable to protect the passengers of that bus, but from the stories he'd told her, and some she'd heard from Martha, he’d previously dealt with similar situations the way he did with everything else: as long as everything came out molto bene, he never looked back.

It was different this time, and she knew why, much as she didn't want to admit it. He was the eternal idealist. He searched for the magnificence in each person he met, but this time, as they dragged him to his death because he was clever, because he told them things they hadn't wanted to hear, because he was different, he'd seen what was truly inside: fear, ignorance, suspicion, panic, hatred. Beneath the sparkling surface of the jewel, there was nothing, no substance, no beauty deep down. A tear slid down her cheek, for him, and for the failures of her species.

Gazing at the streams of falling water and tangling her fingers in his hair, she bit her lip to stop her usually glib tongue. She wanted to comfort him, but words, those empty, meaningless sounds, were the last things he wanted, from her, from anyone. She rested her head against the top of his. No sapphires here, Doctor. Just me and you. As the thought drifted through her mind, somehow, he heard her. He shifted ever so slightly, relaxing just a bit against her, and she knew that his eyes had finally fluttered closed.

Comments

[bas_math_girl]

This is adorable!!! :)

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[serenityslady.livejournal.com]

What a beautiful scene for the aftermath of "Midnight". The fact that he feels so comfortable with her that he can let himself relax after such an ordeal speaks volumes about the closeness of their relationship, and the trust they have in each other.

Lovely. Really lovely.

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I think Donna was really the only one who could have healed him after that.

[serenityslady.livejournal.com]

She was. As I've written in a couple of my stories, his other companions tended to blow off his pain ("You've got me!" was one notable reaction), or push to find out want was wrong, intending to "fix" everything. Donna just let him be, and was there for comfort, a shoulder to lean on, and a sympathetic ear if/when HE decided he wanted to talk about it.

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

One of the things I love about posting here is that I meet new authors through the comments. :) I'm poking through your Twelve Days of Christmas right now (I'm at work and shouldn't be reading), and enjoying it quite a bit.

[dm12.livejournal.com]

Absolutely... Donna was mature enough to realize several things his younger companions didn't:
1. She was no substitute for the loss of his entire planet, his people, and everything he knew,
2. She couldn't fix everything,
3. Sometimes silence is the best way to help someone, and most importantly,
4. The Doctor is not human, he's alien to them.

Exactly as in this story, Donna was simply there for him as a shoulder to lean on. If/when he wanted to talk, he could tell her anything and she wouldn't be judgmental on a human scale, but she could help him see the human side while still respecting his alien-ness.

As for this story itself, it illustrated all of these points very well and showcased Donna's maturity. She realized why he was reacting so differently to this than any other danger. She truly was the only one who could possibly have helped him after Midnight, and Waters of Mars is what happens when Donna isn't there to help him come to the correct conclusion.

The bit at the end, of course he probably heard her thoughts; he's a touch telepath and she was in physical contact with him. Humans tend to forget that.... he probably knows a lot more than he lets on. It seems, though, that Donna did realize it a little.

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

You've touched on everything I wanted to communicate with this story. Thank you! Donna's maturity and insight is exactly what makes her the Doctor's perfect companion.

I think that the Doctor tries to not use his telepathy except when he specifically lets his target know he's doing it; he thinks it's an intrusion otherwise (re: The Girl in the Fireplace). That's very much in his nature, especially the Tenth incarnation. Doesn't mean, of course, that he doesn't hear important things.

[dm12.livejournal.com]

He tries, but I imagine that Donna was broadcasting quite loudly and with a lot of emotion! I think she wanted him to read her, because that's how he would find a measure of peace.

[gallif-migrant.livejournal.com]

I like the idea that the Doctor doesn't read the mind of people except when he has permission. Fits his nature.

[tangotabby.livejournal.com]

Oh, this is just lovely! He really was affected by what happened in this episode, and for Donna to just be there and not talk shows that she really does understand.

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Thanks! As I wrote the story, it occurred to me that the things that happened on the tour probably really influenced his behavior later on, especially in "The Waters of Mars," where he tries so hard to save the people he saw as good and wonderful. I really, really love how they subtly built his character up over three seasons just to get to that point of failure.

[serenityslady.livejournal.com]

And think about it. If he hadn't lost Donna in such a horrific manner ( and at HIS hands), "The Water of Mars" would have been quite different, and we would never have seen the emergence of The Timelord Victorious.

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Oh absolutely. And that's what I love about the Tenth Doctor - he grew, he changed, and ultimately, he failed, and then transcended himself at the end. Ninth Doctor, too, though he only had enough narrative time to grow and change.

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Wonderful! Thank you! :)

[paynesgrey.livejournal.com]

What a sweet moment, and some great introspection as well. Wonderful job.

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Thank you! Donna is lovely to work with.

[jay-vingt-six.livejournal.com]

I love anything Donna/Doctor and your descriptions are brilliant! This episode is possibly my favourite ever, and this aftermath is just so perfect I might just be reduced to tears again... Thank you for this lovely fic!

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Thank you! This is my second favorite episode (it *just* missed beating out Human Nature/Family of Blood), and it's not an easy one to write about. I'm very glad you liked the descriptions - I tried extra hard on them for this. :)

[swan-secrets.livejournal.com]

Very good, I liked the insight into both of them you showed here

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much!

[gallif-migrant.livejournal.com]

"A tear slid down her cheek, for him, and for the failures of her species."

Well,that was...awesome. So sad, so..."feels" seems disrespectful to say, cheapening somehow. An awesome, heartbreaking fic. Good job.

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I am glad that it worked - I find "Midnight" hard to write about because it's so deep and horrible.

[a-phoenixdragon.livejournal.com]

Oh honey...ohhh, this made me sad, even as it made me love Donna that much more. Thank you for this...

*HUG YOU HARD*

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Many, many hugs! I'm so glad you liked it!

[flowsoffire.livejournal.com]

This is such a beautiful, beautiful moment ♥ Your writing was absolutely gorgeous. Those descriptions—flawless. And it was such a beautiful moment of insight, Donna making herself remain quiet as she pondered the impact this had had on the Doctor, as she just offered him the comfort of her quiet companionship. That's really what's so striking in Midnight, the sheer hatred and madness of humanity in the face of what's different and they don't understand, and she got that perfectly. Amazing work ♥

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Thank you! That's the thing with Midnight - the alien was creepy, but the real terror came from the humans. Even just thinking about the episode horrifies me, because, unlike all of the other threats in DW, this one is real, and it's terrible.

[flowsoffire.livejournal.com]

Exactly… it's a favourite of mine, it impacted me so much. Just absolutely chilling. And we can tell the impact on the Doctor so clearly… which is why your fic is so spot-on…

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

It just occurred to me that my fic implies that the Doctor explained to Donna exactly what happened on the bus, and the thought of that conversation made me tear up. :(

[flowsoffire.livejournal.com]

Ohhhh, yes, that's true… *hugs Ten* ♥

[radiolaires]

Oh, such a gorgeous add-in to Midnight! And beautifully expanding everything Donna was able to say in that hug at the end of the episode. I love so much how you subtly described how perfectly they were working together -there's a reason the Doctor-Donna was created. They click; physically fitting around each other and emotionally, since Donna is able to tell so much about what happened to him. Explaining it silently to herself, she somehow explains it to him. The physical awareness of the two of them is one of the most beautiful I have read for those two characters. It's splendid, quite crystalline: all the tiny gestures, feeling so right and in place. Thank you so much for writing it!

Favourite line: No sapphires here, Doctor. Just me and you I think that it sums them up perfectly, and the fact Donna was able in her time to realise how important their relationship was makes me a bit teary-eyed.

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Thank you so very much! I am happy I was able to communicate all of this; it's difficult sometimes to really show how well the Doctor and Donna fit together, and then to add on the complexities of Midnight... I also wanted to keep the story as simple as possible (not to mention the wordcount restrictions), so I am very happy that it worked out for you!

[radiolaires]

You did a marvelous job, even adding more to a scene I already considered to be so complete in the show. It adds such a cool, timeless feeling to it.

[eve11]

This is such a scenic and private look at Donna and the Doctor after Midnight. Just the two of them at the waterfall; I like the details of their trousers rolled, of the silent communication. And Donna is spot on about the Doctor's dismay as well; it's not the big Alien Adventure and Peril that gets to him; it's the failure in the human heart.

[shivver13.livejournal.com]

Thank you! This is exactly what I wanted to communicate. I think the Doctor took a long time to recover from Midnight, and that Donna was really the only one who could help him.