Sorry it took me so long, I've been a bit busy.

The Doctor casually walked up the ramp to the TARDIS console, where Basil and Diana telepathically carried on a private conversation. Unsure in the silence, the Doctor started to dial in the coordinates to Cardiff. It was about time to refuel anyway, and that was the most likely starting point for Diana and Basil.

"Doctor," Diana said as she silently came up to him, "I really am sorry for slapping you. I hope you're not mad at me?" Her voice had the tone of a child addressing her parent after getting in trouble.

"No, of course not," the Doctor said. "It only hurt for a second."

Diana had an expression of skepticism as she glanced at the pinkish handprint she had left on his cheek.

"So why did you slap me?" the Doctor continued.

"I, err..." Diana looked to Basil for help, but he was busy pretending to be examining the engines of the TARDIS curiously. "It's a bit complicated."

"That's alright, maybe later," the Doctor said as he started the TARDIS engines.

The engines whined and groaned as it made its journey to Cardiff. The people inside were jostled about. Diana clung to the car seat, but her mind was elsewhere, remembering her last memories as a Time Lord. She played them over and over in her mind. She couldn't find any real reason why she had to hide it from the Doctor, and it made her feel almost guilty to not explain her behavior to him.

A sudden jolt of the TARDIS brought her mind back to the present. Everything stopped in one instant, and she gained her balance again.

"Sorry about that,' the Doctor said, "a bit bumpier than I planned, but we should be at the right spot." Quickly he consulted the computer screen. "Yep, Cardiff, 2009. Nice place for a pit stop. Where should I drop you two off?"

"We need to go back to get Diana's TARDIS," Basil said in his angelic voice, his speckled wings folding out in full glory.

"It should still be here in Cardiff, what do you mean go back?" Diana asked.

"I was thrown into the same moment you were found by James Caradeen," Basil mused. "Once I established where you and he lived, I found and moved your TARDIS closer. I thought that you might need it when you regained your former consciousness, and knew what you were the moment I laid eyes on you. It was in your best interests to discover your full potential, but I couldn't directly influence your decision unless there came a situation that threatened your life without my intervention."

"It's part of the Dominion code," the Doctor elaborated. "Noninterference unless a life is at stake. There have been a few rule-breakers, hence the countless stories about Angels."

"Yes," Basil said, "I didn't want to add fuel to an already roaring fire of controversy, so for years I tried to find a way to, for a lack of better words, bend the rules. First I watched from afar, but then, when I was sure that my non-aging face wouldn't give me away, I started to get closer to the family, to you."

"And that's when you…" Diana asked.

Basil nodded.

"I found Hidego in a pub as I was looking for someone who would help me with my plan," Basil continued. "He seemed to be willing enough, so I hired him. I should have taken more interest in his eagerness to do the deed for no money."

"I hate to interrupt story time," said the Doctor, "but we're fueled up now, so we can get going."

Along the road, near the hidden patch of flowering meadow in the woods, there stood an odd-looking tree. Very few ever took notice of it. It was just an old tree, after all. It was just a part of the landscape. One thing peculiar about the tree, that no one ever took the time to notice, was an etching in bark. In truth it wasn't an etching as much as it was an indention, for the surface had never been broken.

Slowly the TARDIS began to materialize in the meadow across the road. First the Doctor emerged from within, then Diana, followed closely by Basil.

"It's the old tree!" Diana exclaimed as she quickly ran over to the other side. "I can remember climbing it every moment I had the chance."

"Just goes to show the power of the subconscious mind," the Doctor mused as he and Basil slowly followed her.

"So, this is…?" Diana asked.

"Yes," Basil said, "that is your TARDIS."

Diana searched her pockets, instinctively, for the key, but found nothing.

"Looking for this?" the Doctor asked as he pulled Hidego's crucifix from his pocket and unwrapping the strip of cloth.

"How did you…?"

"I've seen very few perception filters with this amount of power other than a TARDIS key."

Diana took the crucifix and placed it in the indention in the bark; a perfect fit. A soft light erupted from inside the trunk of the tree. A door slowly swung open from the trunk, like a moment from Alice and Wonderland, and Diana eagerly ran inside.

"It's just as I remember!" Diana exclaimed.

Inside, it was decorated like a sacred ruin in the depths of a forgotten forest. The console looked like a tribute to the stone in which Excalibur had been placed before the time of King Arthur.

Diana stood at the centerpiece for a reverent moment, and then turned to the Doctor with the expression of a sinner waiting for her turn in the confession booth.

"I was only eight when you went off on the mission to prevent the Daleks' existence," she said, her eyes focused on the hem of her dress. "I was going through the initiation ceremony, staring into the Eye of Harmony. I saw…" She stopped a moment as she felt her voice about to break. "I saw what was to come. I saw the devastation of the Last Great Time War." She finally looked up to the Doctor. Her eyes were red with tears. "I looked to the elders. They had seen nothing of it, for if they had, they would have felt the same despair I was feeling. They would have seen Gallifrey burn and the ripples in space/time that caused even more destruction." Diana looked back down at the hem of her dress. "I could see nothing that could change the outcome, so I stole this TARDIS and ran."

Diana sat down on the synthetic grass and clutched her knees to her chest. The Doctor went to her and sat beside her.

"Hey," the Doctor said, trying to look her straight in the eye. "I really am sorry. I can't say I'd change it if I could, because I'm not quite sure if it's true or not."

Diana looked into the Doctor's eyes. He was so calm in the face of danger, but at this moment, he was racked with grief and remorse.

However much she wanted to deny it, Basil was right; what happened has happened, and all they could do now was to keep on going from there.

"So what are you going to do now?" the Doctor asked.

"I'm going to do what I can do," Diana said. "I'm going to try to find a way to restore Gallifrey." She looked at some indeterminate point in front of her. "I'm going to find what's left of our home and try to rebuild. If there's nothing left, then I'll just keep going and try to find a place to start over."

The Doctor felt for a moment that it was an impossible task she was taking upon herself, but he also couldn't find the nerve to discourage her hope.

"Sounds like a plan," he said simply.

"What about you?" Diana asked. "Where are you off to now?"

"Not a clue," the Doctor said as he got up. "Should be fun."

The Doctor helped Diana up and made his way to his next adventure.

One more thing, I'm co-authoring a story that's total crossover. It's going to be called "7-cross of DOOM" Just keep your eyes out, not sure when we'll get done with it. (discontinued until further notice)

As always
Happy reading ;)