"Oi, Martian! It wasn't my fault that you didn't explain that I wasn't allowed to smell the flowers," shouted a clearly incensed Donna Noble, as she followed the Doctor into the TARDIS.

Throwing his coat over its customary strut, the Doctor stalked to the console and took them into the Vortex. "Honestly, Earthgirl, I'd have thought that the fact that everyone else was avoiding them would have been enough of a hint. Even for someone as observationally challenged as you."

"I'll observationally challenge you, mate!" Raising her hand in pre-slap mode, Donna strode towards her target.

"Don't even think about slapping me for this, Donna. It's your own fault and I refuse to be blamed when I've already been punished on the planet for your misdemeanour," growled the Doctor ominously.

Quirking an eyebrow and tilting her head in the way that infuriated him, Donna put her hands on her hips and retorted, "I don't recall asking you to take my punishment for me. Besides, you call that punishment? All they did was chant some mumbo jumbo at you. There was no need for you to go all Martian martyr for that. I could have stood in the middle of the creepy robed gits and listened to chant for an hour."

Grimacing, the Doctor tried valiantly to hold on to the last shreds of his rapidly waning patience, as he explained, "Donna. It wasn't just sound, it was psychic. They were inside my mind… I have shields and training, but you'd have had no chance at all. Humans are notoriously weak when it comes to mental disciplines."

Donna had been softening a little until that last sentence, instantly bristling. "Weak! Oh, of course, because we're just stupid apes to you, aren't we? The mighty Time Lord who sweeps in and saves the day for us poor Humans. Why do you travel with us then? Huh? Is it so you have someone to show off to and fluff up your ego?" Adopting an exaggerated expression of fawning, she simpered, "Ooo, Doctor, you're so brave and strong and clever. However did I manage to survive without you?"

"Donna.." The Doctor's voice was low and dangerous.

Unheeding of the treacherous ground she was treading, Donna continued, "Well, Rose and Martha may have been impressed by your unwarranted heroics, but I'm not, Sunshine."

Suddenly fury flamed in the Doctor's eyes and he bellowed, "Don't you mention Rose to me. She was worth ten of you. I've had enough of this. I'm taking you back to Chiswick."

Watching him run around the console, setting co-ordinates, Donna's heart clenched at the thought that he would actually dump her. But still her temper wouldn't allow her to stop. "Oh, so is that it then? You chuck us out as soon as we start to question you, like a toddler chucking his toys out of the pram? Dump us back home if we're lucky, alternate universes if we're not?"

The TARDIS landed with a thump, throwing Donna to the ground. Looking up, she saw the Doctor standing over her with the same expression she'd seen on his face in the basement of HC Clements.

His voice was icy calm as he commanded, "Get out!"

Inwardly quailing, Donna blustered outwardly. Standing up and dusting herself down, she stood toe to toe with him and shouted, "I'm not going to be thrown out by some skinny streak of alien nothing. All my stuff is here. I'll be more than happy to get away from you, but I'm going to pack my belongings and take them with me. You can just bloody wait."

With that, she stalked out of the console room, with as much dignity as she could muster. Once in the hallway and out of his sight, she ran for her room, locking the door. Sitting on the bed, she dimly registered that her hands were shaking and her face was wet. He was throwing her out! Over one little argument, he was prepared to throw her out and continue on his dangerous adventures without her to protect him. Who'd stop him from doing something stupid, if not for her? She supposed he'd pick up another companion, someone who wouldn't question him or slap him. Someone who didn't make hurtful comments about the people he'd lost, she thought, mentally slapping herself for saying what she had about Rose. Someone better than a stupid, bad tempered temp from Chiswick.

Looking around her room, she realised that it was home now. She'd added photos and mementos, furnishing it to her taste. She felt comfortable and accepted on the TARDIS, which was more than could be said for her room in her mother's house.

What's more, the infuriating Time Lord had become her best friend and she couldn't even comprehend what her life would be like without him. Sniffing, she realised that he obviously didn't feel the same way about her, if he was so quick to get rid of her. Thinking about going back to her mother's and giving up her life as it was now was enough to bring Donna's misery to the surface. The guilt she felt at his suffering at the hands of the priests, now that she knew the full extent of it, also surfaced and she threw herself on her bed and sobbed.

Still reeling from the mental assault of the priests, as they tried to force their rules and morals to overwrite his own, all the Doctor had wanted was some peace and quiet – maybe a cuddle, if he was brutally honest with himself. It really hadn't been a pleasant hour and his head was pounding with the effort of keeping himself protected. Instead, Donna had harped on at him about taking her punishment, not keeping her informed about the places they visited and not letting her make her own decisions. Like she ever listened to him anyway, he thought angrily. The comments she'd thrown in his face about Rose and Martha had hurt, making his fury flare to its fullest. He'd been almost ready to throw her out physically, which was most unlike him.

His anger died as suddenly as it had flared, leaving him exhausted and emphasising the pain in his head. Donna had helped him with his headaches before and he thought longingly of her fingers massaging his scalp. Frowning, he remembered the comments she'd made about Rose and Martha. They'd been uncharacteristically cruel and now that he thought about it, maybe she'd been affected by the flowers she'd been sniffing. There had to be a reason why only the priests could smell them. Maybe the pollen was psychotropic…

Looking forlornly at the doorway, he wondered if Donna would really leave him. Deciding that it would take her ages to pack all her things and/or cool down, he slouched his way to the kitchen to make a cup of tea.

Leaning on the cabinet, waiting for the kettle to boil, the Doctor rubbed his temples tiredly. His gaze fell on the cake tin on the table, so he ambled over to see if there were any muffins left. Instead, there was a freshly baked banana cake in there with Spacecake spelt out in icing sugar across the top. Tears sprang into his eyes and he realised how much he'd miss Donna's humour (and baking) if she left him. Replacing the lid, he realised that he'd lost the urge for tea and cake and his headache was rapidly developing into a migraine. Stumbling to the door, he made his way to the medbay.

The TARDIS dimmed all the lights in deference to her stricken pilot, setting up an urgent humming in Donna's room. Lifting herself from the bed, Donna sniffed and swiped at her eyes. "What's wrong, old girl? Is he getting impatient for me to go?"

Flashing red lights in Donna's room, the TARDIS unlocked and opened her door, before turning the lights in her room off completely and brightening the ones outside her door.

Frowning, Donna could feel a change in the atmosphere of the room. Curiously, she rose to her feet and left the room, muttering, "Alright, alright, I'm going. Don't get your circuits in a twist."

Following the lights she found on the floor, like the lights you're supposed to follow on planes when they crash, she rounded a corner and found the Doctor crumpled in a heap on the floor. All animosity and hurt forgotten in her rush of concern, she knelt by his side and murmured, "Doctor, what's the matter?"

"D-Donna?" Blindly, he groped for her hand.

"Yeah, Spaceman. I'm here." Taking his hand, she rubbed circles on the palm. "What's wrong, Doctor, were you trying to get to your room?"

"M-medbay," he stammered, then gulped convulsively before throwing up.

Chuckling and rubbing his back, Donna said, "Better out than in. Have you got one of your migraines, Sweetheart?"

Squeezing her hand was all he could manage as he continued to heave dryly and he hoped she'd know what he meant.

"Right, well, you're outside your room, so let's get you into bed. I'm sure the TARDIS can supply your headache medicine in a hypospray by the bed, can't you old girl?" Rubbing the wall, Donna heard the hum increase marginally. "Are you done throwing up? Think you can walk?"

Honestly, he was pretty sure that she was going to have to drag him, if she wanted him anywhere but where he was right now. Unfortunately, his power of speech seemed to have deserted him, along with his ability to move, keep his eyes open or hold down food.

Humming thoughtfully, when she received no response, Donna wondered if she could lift him. She was quite strong and he looked like he weighed nothing. Careful to avoid the pool of vomit, she sat him up and draped him across her back. Hooking her arm around his leg and grasping his wrist, she grunted as she hoisted him in a fireman's lift, warning, "Don't you throw up on me, Time Boy."

If he were still capable of speech, he'd be warning her that he was heavier than he looked. Followed closely by an expression of surprise as she managed to lift him. She was a woman of hidden talents, his companion. He groaned as she lowered him onto the bed. He heard a drawer open and then felt the hypospray hissing against his neck. Sighing with relief as the painkillers took immediate effect, he slumped into her.

"Okay Sweetheart, let's get you out of your suit so you can be a bit more comfortable." She'd kept him upright, propped against her with his head on her shoulder. Unbuttoning his shirt, she slid both his jacket and shirt off in one smooth motion, leaving him in his t-shirt. Lowering him onto his back, she unbuckled his belt, undid his trousers and eased them over his hips. Standing, she bent down to undo his laces and remove his shoes and socks. Lifting his legs up onto the bed, she pulled his trousers off. Covering him over, she gathered his clothes up and folded them neatly over the chair that he kept them on.

Going to the bathroom, she returned with a cup of cool water and a face cloth that she'd wrung out in warm water. Using the cloth to wipe his face, she then carefully lifted his head so he could sip the water. Leaving the cup on the bedside cabinet, she returned the flannel to the bathroom.

"Right, that's you sorted. I'll leave you to get some sleep."

"No," he groaned and forced his eyes open to find her.

Turning back to him, she saw his beautiful, big, brown eyes had fixed on her. "What do you mean no? I've just given you enough narcotics to knock out a bull elephant, why aren't you asleep already?"

"Closer." His hand was lying palm up on the bed, his fingers twitching as though beckoning her to him.

Her eyebrows shooting up into her hairline, she returned to his bedside and sat next to him. "What's wrong, Sweetheart?"

"Crying?" His hand rose as he tried to touch her cheek, but he only managed to lift it onto her lap.

Taking his hand and massaging the pressure points that would help his migraine, she murmured, "Yeah, but don't worry about me. I'm alright. You need to sleep now and we'll talk when you feel better."

"Sorry." He squeezed her hand.

"Yeah, me too. Don't know what came over me, really. Still, I am sorry I upset you. Are you still going to take me home?" Releasing one hand, she picked up the other one and started massaging that one.

"Stay?" His yawn startled them both.

Laughing softly, Donna put his hand down and started gently stroking his hair. "Yes, I'll stay. I love living here with you and the TARDIS. Now, get some sleep. Silly Martian."

His grip on her trousers tightened as she tried to get up and he whispered urgently, "Stay?"

Remembering then that he hated to be left alone when he had a migraine, she nodded and whispered soothingly, "Alright, Spaceman. I'll stay with you whilst you're ill. Hush now. The sooner you go to sleep, the sooner you'll feel better."

Patting the bed beside him, he pleaded, "Here?"

Rolling her eyes, Donna stretched out beside him on the bed after removing her jacket and shoes. Gathering him into her arms, after his weak scrabbling effort to turn over, she asked, "Better?"

"Mmmm." Cuddling into his Human hot water bottle, the Time Lord felt the residual pain leave and his muscles start to relax.

He constantly wondered why his people had looked down on Humans. They were always so wonderfully warm, just perfect for snuggling into when you felt ill and tired. Donna was even better as she was not only warm, but soft and smelled lovely. Plus, she had magic fingers which soothed away muscular aches and relieved tension. He groaned a little as said fingers worked circles in his scalp, loosening the stress so it trickled away.

His head cushioned on her breast, he listened to the rhythmic beating of her single heart and let it lull him into sleep. This is what he'd wanted all along.

Smiling fondly at the now sleeping alien on her chest, Donna smirked and murmured, "Silly Spaceman. What would you do without me?"

Thoughtfully raking her fingers through his thick, soft hair, she felt helpless as a surge of love and protection welled up in her. "More to the point, Time Boy, what would I do without you?"

Unconsciously, the Doctor pulled himself closer to Donna, seeking more warmth.

Turning to him and tightening her hold, she whispered, "Let's hope we never have to find out, huh?"