Title: Another Thirty Years
Author: Tess/mihane_echo
Rating: Rated SS for Squish Supreme
Word Count: 542
Spoilers: Post Series 4
Summary: Donna and the Doctor celebrate a very special date together.
Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it belongs to the Beeb and I'm borrowing it to play with. I promise I will return them (marginally) unharmed. ;3
Author's Note: If you were to flash-forward far into the future of Sounds Like Destiny, you would get this. xB Written for Weekly Drabble Challenge #20 at doctor_donna. Prompt was perfect.



Donna wasn't sure when the thought had first crossed her mind. Perhaps it had been in the Doctor's arms as they glided over the dance floor together, him in his brown pinstripes at her request, and her in a white gown which he had fancied.

Or maybe at dinner, when he presented her with earrings of Lilliputian pearls, the tiniest pearls in the universe, looking like cappuccino foam strung together on thready gold filament and glittering like stars as they caught the candlelight.

Possibly, it had been as the resort operations A.I. began to go haywire, sending the signal to vent the oxygen slowly and leave the guests to die pasty and blue, and the two of them ran together as they always did, to do what they did so well.

It could've been when the two of them collapsed into the console room, panting and laughing amidst Wil's frantic inquiries as to what in the hell happened (“Watch the mouth, young man.”) and Anne's lamentations as to the condition of her mother's dress, properly ruined by the explosion of the main A.I. terminal at the resort. (“Nan, love, it’s just a dress.”)

But the first time she uttered it out loud was in their bed, whispering it against his ear as they made love, as tender and passionate as they had ever been with each other and yet sweeter for the length of time they had spent together.

His heartbeats thudded steadily in her ear as he glanced down at her. "Perfect? Really?"

Donna hummed softly, content. "Yeah. Absolutely perfect."

"It was just like any other day," he remarked, sounding a bit disappointed. Not very much so, but she could hear it underneath his words. "I wanted to do something special for you. I mean, really special. Not, we're-going-to-see-Audrey-Hepburn-for-your-birthday-special, I mean--"

“Something aimed more my way than yours. I know,” Donna understood. She pushed her hair from her face, never moving from where she lay next to him; with a smile, she pressed a kiss to his chest.

"But I got to dance with you. You gave me pearls. We lived to run another day. Our children are safe and you're safe, next to me. It was the perfect anniversary."

She looked up at him then, smirked as she always did at the sight of the silvery strands fading in at his temples. She loved that he was going gray, even if he complained about it. (It wasn't even a lot of gray. A smattering here or there was all.) But it was a silent symbol of how long it had been since his last regeneration, how long she had been with him.

Affectionately, Donna ran her fingers through the rest of his spiky brown hair, and traced her hand down his face. His eyes fluttered closed as she touched him, treasuring this simple act of love from her.

Softly she spoke his real name, and he opened his dark eyes to focus on her. Donna pushed herself up onto her elbows and gazed lovingly down at him. "You think you'll stay with me another thirty years?"

The Doctor grinned at her, then drew her back down to him and kissed her. "I can't think of anyone else more perfect, Donna."

end