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Chapter Text

The Doctor didn’t have much of a social life despite the fact that he worked and lived in one of the most active military bases in all of England.  He had friends of course.  Jo and the Brigadier were his closest confidants and he even considered Captain Yates and Sergeant Benton to be his friends.  But those relationships never really developed past the regular workday chat.  His friends all had relationships with each other of course (the Doctor even suspected that Yates and Benton were more than friends).  They went on outings together; to bars, restaurants, and even the occasional museum, but they never bothered inviting the Doctor.  He wasn’t terribly upset by it. There had been one time when Jo had asked him if he wanted to go out and he had shot her down rather harshly.  Although, in his defense, it had been rather inopportune as he was in the middle of a highly volatile experiment.  But now after living on Earth for almost two years with no end to his exile in sight, he had an itch to do something with his peers.  Go on a walk, study paintings at an art gallery, row a boat down a canal, anything that would distract him from the ever-growing list of problems that plagued the TARDIS.  He considered inviting Jo and the Brigadier out but whenever an opportunity arose, they were suddenly interrupted by some machinery going haywire or an urgent radio message from one of the UNIT boys.    

The Doctor had begun to lose hope that he would ever be asked to go on an outing when he was approached by the Brigadier one Friday afternoon.  

“Doctor-” The Brigadier was looking as stoic and composed as ever, although the Doctor swore he saw a flicker of anxiety pass over the man’s face, “I was wondering if you would like to accompany me to the pub tonight.”

The Doctor paused, hand hovering in mid-air.  Surely the man was serious- he had no reason to be pulling his leg.  A broad smile broke across his face.

“Why my dear Brigadier!” He exclaimed, clapping the man on the shoulder, “I would be delighted !”

The Doctor pulled his bright yellow roadster to a halt in front of a modest-looking row of buildings.  The Brigadier led the Doctor through a door which stood beneath a sign that read ‘The Three Dragons Pub’.  The atmosphere inside was… shocking, to say the least.  One could only describe it as hippy .  Psychedelic rock music was being pumped through the speakers as young people milled about, dancing and sloshing their colorful cups around.

“I must say, Brigadier-” The Doctor shouted over the din, “I didn’t expect you to regularly attend this type of establishment.  Unless, of course, we are meeting up with Jo!”

“No, Doctor, we will not be seeing Ms. Grant tonight and this ” he scoffed, “is not our final destination.”

Lethbridge-Stewart led the Doctor through the pub towards the man behind the bar.  He flashed the man his UNIT badge and jerked his head in the Doctor’s direction.

“He’s with me.”

The Doctor’s arm in a tight grip, he led the man through a door marked ‘PRIVATE’ and into the area beyond.  The room was considerably brighter than the previous one and even with his advanced eyesight, it still took the Doctor a few moments before his eyes adjusted completely.  When they did, he found what could only be described as a more lively UNIT canteen.  Pop music played softly out of a small radio perched on a table and there were men scattered about the room, some in uniform, some not.  The strange part of it all, noticed the Doctor, was that they all seemed more friendly with one another.  ‘No- not friendly’ he thought, ‘Positively flirty!’  He could see groups of couples dancing together while others sat at the tables scattered about, drinking beer or in some cases, making out.  The Doctor was rather taken aback.  He hadn’t expected something like this when the Brigadier invited him out.

“I must say, Brigadier, UNIT is a lot more broad-minded than I had originally thought!”

“A UNIT specialty, Doctor.” Lethbridge-Stewart smiled as he led the man towards an unoccupied table in the corner of the room, “We aren’t always straight-laced and militaristic.  If you’ll excuse me-” 

He got up and headed over to the small bar which was currently being tended by Corporal Beauchamp- if the Doctor remembered correctly.  The corporal seemed very at ease around his commanding officer, even laughing and cracking jokes- something the Doctor didn’t expect out of him.  In fact, the Time Lord noticed, all the soldiers seemed very at ease around Lethbridge-Stewart.  Men waved at him or greeted him casually as he made his way back to their table.

“It seems you’ve surprised me in more ways than one, Alistair- may I call you that?”

“Oh?” Alistair set the glasses down and took his seat again, “And in what way?”

“Your men!  They seem very relaxed around you- nothing like at HQ.”

“We keep our work outside this door.” He nodded at Benton as he and Yates entered, “To a certain degree, at least.” 

They sat at their table for a while, watching the soldiers as they mingled about the room.  Lethbridge-Stewart, the Doctor noticed, kept a particularly close eye on the people dancing.

“Are you much of a dancer, Brigadier?”

“Hm?” He shook himself out of his reverie and stared at the Doctor, “A dancer?  Dear lord no. However, I do indulge myself from time to time.” The faraway look he had on suddenly returned, “Although since Fiona left I haven’t had the opportunity to do so…”

“And none of the men here are willing to accompany you for one dance?  That is- if you are interested at all.”

“Oh no, Doctor” Alistair exclaimed, “I’m their superior officer, it wouldn’t be very appropriate.”

The Doctor mulled over his options for a bit.  He could ask the Brigadier to dance or he could not and spend the rest of his night staring sadly at the man next to him.  He had to admit, the first option sounded more appealing- even if he was setting himself up for a rather awkward rejection.

“There’s always me, my dear Alistair” The Doctor quipped, hoping that the use of his first name would convey the sense of intimacy and affection he was going for, “Although, I’ve been told that my dancing skills are passable at best.”

The Brigadier smiled, 

“I would be honored, Doctor.”

They realized rather quickly that the pop music that was playing was not the sort of music that either of them was very good at dancing to.  They stood on the outskirts of the dance floor awkwardly tapping their feet or occasionally bobbing their heads.  They were attracting strange looks from other people and the Doctor could see a steady blush dusting across the Brigadier’s face.

“Alistair,” The Doctor whispered, pointing at the radio, “why don’t you ask that fellow over there to change the music?”

Alistair nodded and stalked his way over to the man running the radio.  A few moments later he came back, a triumphant look on his face.

“I suppose being the leader of UNIT has its perks when it comes to getting what you want?”

The Brigadier smiled, 

“I have no idea what you are talking about.”

The song sputtered to a halt and a new one was struck up, this one much slower and more romantic.  Alistair held out his hand in an offering which the Doctor accepted with some nervousness.  Much to his surprise, Alistair placed his hand on the Doctor’s waist and took the Doctor’s hand in his other one.  The Doctor froze for a second, feeling the heat of the Brigadier’s palm through his clothing.

“Are you alright, Doctor?”

He coughed, 

“Yes, of course, my dear Alistair.  Why wouldn’t I be?”

The Brigadier shrugged,

“Shall we dance?”

The song faded to a halt and Alistair stepped away from the Doctor, grinning widely. 

“I must say, Doctor- I haven’t had this much fun in a while.”

The Doctor felt flustered and momentarily unable to speak as he recovered from being so close to the man.

“I-” he cleared his throat, “Yes, yes, it was very enjoyable.”

He followed the Brigadier back to their table, rather disappointed that Alistair only seemed interested in having one dance.  Soon after they arrived, he was offered another drink and waved over for a conversation with a group of soldiers by the bar.

“Terribly sorry, Doctor-” the Brigadier said, as he made his way to the bar, “I have a bit of business to attend to.”

The Doctor remained at the table, shuffled into a corner, staring sadly at the Brigadier as he chatted animatedly with someone else.

Chapter Text

Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart was good at hiding his feelings.  As a young boy, his father would always tell him that real men never showed what they really felt.  Especially if they were soldiers.  Alistair took this piece of advice to heart and spent his entire childhood willing himself to never feel anything.  He loved it at first, he saw himself as the ideal man.  A boy ready to become a soldier, a boy who would grow up to be just like his father.  And he knew his father saw it as well.  The pride his father had for Alistair meant more than anything to the young boy.

But as he started school, he noticed that the gift his father had bestowed upon him was also a great inconvenience.  Other boys would make fun of him, call him names when they thought he wasn’t listening, leaving Alistair to grit his teeth and pretend it didn’t bother him.  And of course, he found himself prone to random outbursts of anger or sadness that would leave him shouting at an unsuspecting friend or sprinting away to find a small corner in which to cry his heart out.  His mother grew worried about him, fretting over her little boy who was unable to make new friends and who never seemed to laugh and play like the other boys did.  His father calmed her worries telling her that it was normal- good even!  Al- as his parents called him- would grow up to be a great soldier one day.  A man who would make their family proud.  

But when he was 12, Alistair took his emotional suppression to a new level, a level that concerned everyone.  Including his father.

Alistair knew from a young age that he liked boys.  It seemed normal as a child, surely everyone liked boys!  Mother had married Father, and Father had all his army friends.  Alistair saw nothing wrong with it.  But as he grew older, he began to doubt himself.  He noticed that other kids weren’t like him and soon enough, all the doubt he had crashed down on him after one small overheard conversation.

His father was drunk.  It was not an uncommon occurrence in the Lethbridge-Stewart household.  In fact, it was becoming a more and more regular occurrence.  His father was loudly ranting about those ‘bloody homosexuals’ who plagued the world and were, sure enough, going to bring back the Devil.  His mother sat beside him agreeing, albeit more quietly and less passionately.  Alistair, who was crouched at the top of the stairs, was frozen in fear.  His father, the man who he admired so much, hated him- would hate him, if he ever found out about what he was.  A lump forming in his throat, he ran back to his room, painfully aware that his parents could probably hear the pitter-patter of his feet, and shut the door behind him.  Alistair could feel his heart pounding, feel salty tears welling up in his eyes as he furiously wiped them away.  He wasn’t going to cry, he couldn’t .  From then on, Alistair promised himself, no one would ever know anything about him.  He would never let anyone know anything .  

His friends (the small amount he had) were no help either.  Everyday Alistair would drag himself to school and his friends would playfully recount stories of men being arrested and hung for being gay as they would try and reenact the events.  Alistair sat with them, forcing himself to laugh along with them, hoping that no one could see the fear in his eyes.        

Alistair buried his emotions in himself.  He retreated away, doing schoolwork, reading furiously, and, much to his personal surprise, praying.  Alistair had never been much of a religious person.  It had never been something important to him.  But after the incident with his father, he began wishing, which then evolved into praying, that he could be normal .  And then something happened.  Alistair began having feelings for girls.  He was 15, hormonal, conflicted, and unaware of what to do.  He was torn; thrilled at the prospect that God had answered his prayers and maybe- maybe he was normal, but also terribly confused at how he could like both boys AND girls.  It was, however, enough to give him the ability to push his attraction to men into the back of his mind and try not to think about his indecent feelings .  

He got happier after that.  Began talking to people again.  Let himself loosen up a bit.  Focused less on school and more on his ever-encroaching military career.  He joined sports teams, hung out with friends, had girlfriends, and was, for possibly the first time in his life, relatively happy.  He didn’t even think about his deep dark secret.

At least until he joined the military.    

It was a lot different than Alistair had expected.  He had expected the exhausting work.  And the rigorous physical training wasn’t too bad.   No, it was the other recruits that threw him off and brought back old, and rather unhappy, memories.  

One of the first things Alistair noticed when he arrived at the training camps was how terribly attractive all the young soldiers were.  It wasn’t something he wanted to think about but he found that his attraction to men that he had attempted to bury for good simply was not gone.  He did, however, do his best to hide it, training himself not to blush when someone bumped into him or stared at him for just a bit too long.  But sure enough, that didn’t last for long and he began to live in fear that someone would notice the way he looked at the men around him.  

And then the war hit.  

Alistair was deployed to North Korea and became Private Lethbridge-Stewart, a proud moment for the whole family.  There, Alistair learned firsthand about what his father had tried to teach him all those years ago.  He was lucky to have had the training, to know that sometimes you had to push everything down so you don’t lose your mind.  It was something Alistair saw much too often.  It was also there where he experienced just how comforting the male touch could be for the very first time. 

He wasn’t sure how it all happened.  He was with another private, sitting in a sheltered part of the trench when the young man looked at Alistair for just a moment too long and then- and then they were kissing.  Alistair didn’t know who started it or if anyone was watching but at the moment he didn’t particularly care.  And then, almost as soon as it had started, it was over.  The private was gone and Alistair was left alone in the cold.  The rest of his time spent in North Korea was spent sleeping around.  As it turned out, there were many other soldiers who felt the same way about men.  But then Alistair was sent back to England, never to see those soldiers again.  

He buried those feelings down again when he got back.  He was too focused on his job to care about trivial things like love- whether it was for a man or a woman.  He spent many years alone, not that he cared much.  ‘Perhaps it was better this way,’ he thought, ‘Perhaps I’m just too much trouble to even bother with love ’.

But then he met Fiona and his idea of spending the rest of his life alone was dashed.  They fell madly in love, practically fawning over each other at every hour of the day.  Alistair and Fiona were married later that year, despite the almost constant warnings from friends and family.  But soon after, he discovered just how much Fiona hated being the wife of a military man- and just how rights the warnings were.  Their relationship wasn’t improved by the dramatic introduction of aliens and a new military branch of the UN, spearheaded by Alistair himself.

Alistair, now Colonel Lethbridge-Stewart, didn’t know what to think of the Doctor.  This small man who came tumbling through the London Underground with a young man and a young woman following him in awe completely baffled the colonel.  Not only was this Doctor fellow terribly confusing but he brought with him an alien race- The Great Intelligence.  Alistair thought he handled the whole thing quite well.  It wasn’t every day that one had to blow up a handful of Yeti’s so they wouldn’t take over the London Underground.  Despite his overall confusion, the incident did prompt him to realize that the Earth needed protection from these new alien threats- whether that included the Doctor or not, Alistair did not know.  He became obsessed with the idea of an organization that would do just that, spending months carefully crafting all the details, no matter how small they were.  Finally, he submitted it to the only organization he knew might possibly accept it- the United Nations.  

After many weeks of debating his point and pleading to high-ranking officials, the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce came to be.  Alistair was to be the head of the UK branch and received a nice little promotion.  Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart was ready to defend Queen and country from whatever alien threat fell from the sky.  

After settling into his HQ and getting familiar with his new troops, Alistair came to realize that his marriage was very much teetering on the edge of collapse.  He wasn’t too shocked by this.  He hadn’t seen much of Fiona in the past few months, he’d been much too busy with UNIT.  He did feel bad about it though- he loved her, he really did, and he wanted to do what he could to save their marriage.

And for some reason, that solution turned out to be a baby.      

On April 9th, 1969, Kate Lethbridge-Stewart was born.  She immediately became the center of Alistair's life.  She was perfect in every way, shape, or form.  And Kate did improve their marriage.  They began acting like a proper suburban family.  For the first time in his life, Alistair was beginning to see into a happier future- retirement to the countryside, Fiona by his side, and a gaggle of grandchildren running about.  And just when he was starting to get used to the whole idea, it all came crashing down by the arrival of that ridiculous alien man- that Doctor fellow.

He wasn’t thrilled by the prospect of the Doctor returning to Earth.  In fact, he was almost actively upset by it.  But, being the professional he was, Alistair bottled up his concern and, along with his new scientific advisor, Doctor Elizabeth Shaw, made his way over to Ashbridge Cottage Hospital.

Upon arrival, however, he was rather surprised to notice that the man who was currently identified as the Doctor was not the Doctor at all.  This man, who was lying in the bed, was a tall, lean man with a head full of curly white hair- nothing like the small hobo-like man he had encountered in the London Underground and later, in the city streets.  No, this man wasn’t the Doctor.  But Alistair couldn’t help but feel drawn to him.  Not from a scientific or militaristic point of view but in a way he hadn’t felt since his days in Korea.  It wasn’t the most welcome thought.  He had Fiona and Kate- a whole family who was just waiting for him at home.  Alistair couldn’t afford to go and have feelings for someone else- let alone a man .  It wasn’t right.

As it turned out, the man was the Doctor after all.  He’d tried to explain his new appearance to Alistair in the simplest way possible though Alistair couldn’t help feeling rather stupid after their conversation was over.  Whatever had happened, the Doctor was here to stay and there was nothing Alistair could do about it.  And he wanted to do something about it.

It didn’t take Alistair too long to figure out that he was harboring a crush towards the Doctor.  He’d felt this way before- for men and women.  But he wasn’t too concerned about it.  Surely it was just a fleeting crush, spurred on by the romantic idea of running away with someone and leaving everything behind.  He wouldn’t do that of course, he did have a family after all.  A daughter and wife at home, waiting for him, relying on him.  He reminded himself of that every day- every time an indecent thought would crawl into his head.  

The problem was, the crush didn’t go away.  In fact, if Alistair was being honest, it only got stronger.  He was at a point where he could barely even look at the man without feeling a blush creep up onto his cheeks.  It took him a while (and even longer to admit it to himself) but he realized that he was in love with the man.  It was a terrifying thought.  He was married, how could he go along and fall in love with someone else, for Christ’s sake!  

But he did and now that he thought about it, it was probably the thing that put the final nail in his marriage to Fiona.

To make matters worse, it was the Doctor who offered him consolation after it became public that he had gotten a divorce.  The man had come to him and offered him a cup of tea and an offer to listen to his troubles.  Alistair was hesitant at first.  How would he be able to explain to the Doctor that the reason his marriage had failed was because Alistair was in love with him?  But he tried- tried to talk to the Doctor about Fiona and how UNIT had destroyed their relationship.  He tried to talk about how much he loved her, how much he cared for her but now, the love he felt for her was almost pale in comparison to how much he adored the Doctor.  Not that he would ever admit it, of course.  

So he went on with his life, trying to ignore his feelings for the Doctor by burying himself in his work.  He spent more time at the office than he ever had before.  Lucky for him, the workload also increased with the arrival of a new and more dangerous foe- The Master.  The man was one of the Doctor’s kind and Alistair knew that they had some sort of previous relationship.  It made Alistair inexplicably jealous.  He knew he didn’t have a monopoly over the Doctor- he had no obligation to tell Alistair about his life before he served with UNIT or spend all his time with the brigadier.  The Doctor had other friends, of course.  Miss Grant, Captain Yates, and even Sergeant Benton all spent time with him.  That being said, he didn’t spend a lot of time with any of them outside of work.  Alistair knew Jo had asked him multiple times if he wanted to accompany her to some bar but from what she told Alistair, the Doctor definitely did not want to go out.  It was a bit of a blow to Alistair.  It dashed any chance of them ever going out on some semblance of a date- even if it was an unlikely chance anyway.

But at the same time, the Doctor had been stuck on Earth for nearly two years now- surely he would’ve had some desire to go out.  Even if it was just out on a walk around the gardens.  So Alistair set his mind on asking the Doctor out.  Not on a date, of course- he would never be that bold- but just out .  As two friends.  

It took him another month, however, to actually do it.  

Alistair had been getting ready to head to his usual Friday night spot- the UNIT regular down at The Three Dragons- when an idea struck him.  He should invite the Doctor to go with him.  It was a shot in the dark, sure, but what’s the worst that could happen?

As it turned out, not a lot.  The Doctor had readily- and rather eagerly- accepted his invitation.  They left shortly after in the Doctor’s car although Alistair was rather hesitant to draw that much attention to their final destination.  He did encounter a problem on the way, however.  It struck him that he was taking the Doctor to what was, essentially, a gay bar without knowing the Doctor’s sexuality or his stance on homosexuality.

“Doctor,” Alistair began hesitantly, as they rounded the corner and came to a halt in front of the pub, “This establishment isn’t what one would call a normal pub.  In fact it-”

“Do I look like I carry any of your human prejudices, my dear Brigadier?” The Doctor scoffed, “I’m rather unconcerned with whatever you do in your spare time.”

As they entered the ‘Three Dragon’s Pub’, Alistair chastised himself for not pushing his point further.  He held his breath as he tried to discreetly pull the Doctor into the room beyond.  Much to his relief, however, he didn’t look too shocked at the scene before him.  In fact, he looked almost relieved.

“I must say, Brigadier, UNIT is a lot more broad-minded than I had originally thought!” The Doctor exclaimed as Alistair led them to his usual table.

“A UNIT specialty, Doctor.  We aren’t always straight-laced and militaristic.  If you’ll excuse me-” He said, running off to get them drinks.

They made pleasant conversation for a while.  The Doctor had begun to refer to Alistair by his given name- something that pleased the brigadier to no end.  The chat eventually died down and Alistair found himself zoning out, watching the dancers as they spun across the floor, wishing that he was out there with the Doctor.

“Are you much of a dancer, Brigadier?”

That shook Alistair out of his reverie, now realizing that he had no idea how long he had been up in the clouds.  

“Hm?” Realizing he had to answer, he tried to recall what the question was, “A dancer?  Dear lord no.  However, I do indulge myself from time to time.  Although since Doris… left I haven’t had the opportunity to do so.”

Alistair hoped that maybe the Doctor would pick up on his message and ask him to dance.

“There’s always me, my dear Alistair.” The Doctor stated, “Although I’ve been told that my dancing skills are passable at best.”

Alistair’s heart jumped as he stared at the Doctor’s eager face.  He tried to suppress his grin as he responded,

“I would be honored.”

Their dancing was very much a trial and error situation.  As it turned out, neither of them was very good at dancing to pop music and eventually Alistair stalked off to go ask the private running the radio to change the music.  When the new music came on, however, they proved to be an adept pair.  Alistair, feeling brave, placed his hand on the Doctor’s waist.  The man froze under Alistair’s hand and for a second, he thought he had absolutely ruined any relationship he ever had (or would have) with the Doctor.

“Are you alright Doctor?” Alistair hoped that he couldn’t hear the nervousness through his voice.

“Yes, of course, my dear Alistair.  Why wouldn’t I be”

He nearly sighed in relief.  The Doctor wasn’t mad at him and, after all, he found himself pleasantly close to the man.

“Shall we dance?”

It was the most exhilarating and most nerve-wracking dance Alistair had ever participated in.  He was constantly nervous that he was going to mess something up yet at the same time, it felt like the most natural thing in the world.  They seemed to almost float effortlessly across the floor- in perfect time with the music.  ‘Magical’ was the only word Alistair could use to describe it, despite them being in a crowded basement on some backstreet.

It all ended quite too soon for Alistair’s liking.  He stepped back as the song ended, not trying to hide the wide grin that had split across his face.

“I must say, Doctor.  I haven’t had this much fun in a long time.”

He felt giddy, thrilled, in love - and they had only been dancing as friends .  God only knew what it would be like romantically.

“I-Yes, yes, it was very enjoyable.” The Doctor stammered.

Alistair’s stomach clenched at the man’s tone.  The Doctor seemed awkward, uncomfortable even.  God, he’d ruined it, hadn’t he.  He’d overstepped himself and had made the Doctor uncomfortable.  He made his way back to the table avoiding the Doctor’s gaze.  He was about to open his mouth and apologize when he was called over by a group of soldiers a little ways off.

“Terribly sorry, Doctor- I have a bit of business to attend to.”

Alistair sped off, hoping he hadn’t ruined their relationship once and for all.

Chapter Text

Alistair spent the next week shut up in his office.  His paperwork had begun to pile up so he finally decided to get a crack on it- although deep down he knew that it was simply an excuse to stay locked away and not run into the Doctor.  Alistair was one hundred percent convinced that he had ruined his relationship with the man.  He cringed, recalling the expression on the Doctor’s face as the dance ended.  The Doctor hated him and Alistair knew it.

So it came as a surprise when he received a knock on his office door Friday evening.  

He had absolutely no clue who it could be.  Captain Yates had already stopped by to say good evening and, if the clock on his desk was correct, most of the men who were currently on duty never bothered him.  Brow furrowed, he called out a curt ‘enter’, curious to see who had decided to pay him a visit.  Shockingly enough, the man who stepped through the door was not a UNIT soldier but a man dressed in a distinctive velvet cape.

The Doctor.

Alistair’s heart jumped into his throat as the man strode confidently into the room.

“Ah!  My dear Brigadier!” He exclaimed, giving Alistair a funny look as he began nervously shuffling papers on his desk, “Are you ready to go?”

Alistair’s poorly hidden anxiety was quickly overpowered by a look of confusion.

“Ready to go?  What are you talking about?”

“I assumed your invitation to the bar was an ongoing one.” The Doctor said carefully, “Unless, of course, I was mistaken.”

Alistair paused and mulled over his options.  He could tell the Doctor that his invitation was not, in fact, an ongoing one, or he could lie and claim it was.  Neither of those options seemed particularly pleasing so he decided on the middle ground.

“I’m afraid it wasn’t, Doctor.  However,” he added on hurriedly when he saw the Doctor’s awfully dejected expression, “I wouldn’t be opposed to extending it.”

The Doctor grinned and rapped the desk.

“Wonderful!  Shall I meet out outside in 5 minutes?”

“I won’t be late”

This became routine for the Doctor and Alistair for the next few weeks.  Every Friday at exactly 5 o’clock, the Doctor would waltz into Alistair’s office and ask him to meet him by Bessie in 5 minutes.  From there they’d drive down to the pub (occasionally accompanied by Jo or Benton and Yates) where they’d spend the rest of the evening.  Though their outings always remained strictly platonic, both men were satisfied with what they had- even if both of them secretly wished for more.

These Friday trips eventually became a sort of legend at the UK UNIT HQ.  All of the personnel seemed fascinated by it- some even went as far as to set up a betting pool to see when the Doctor and the Brigadier would finally bite the bullet and admit their feelings.  Some staff, however, were not so happy with that situation.

“Oh Mike, what an awful thing to do!” Jo exclaimed after the captain told her about the bet.

“It’s alright, Jo.  It’s not doing any harm , we’re just having a bit of fun!” 

Jo huffed, 

“I’m going to tell the Brigadier about this.”

Benton gripped her arm,

“You wouldn’t dare-”

“What?  Are you afraid of getting caught, Mr. Benton?”

Benton’s ears went red and his gaze dropped to the cup of tea he had in his hands.

Two days later, the Brigadier called Benton and Yates into his office and forced them to shut down the pool.

“I swear it wasn’t me. Mike!” Jo exclaimed when she passed them in the hall, “I don’t know how he found out!”

Even though he had been slightly offended by the idea that his men were betting on his love life Alistair still found it in him to be slightly amused by the whole thing- amused enough to tell the Doctor about it.

“Did you hear, Doctor-” Alistair said one Friday night at the pub, “Some of my men started a betting pool to see how long it would take for us to get together!”  He let out a short bark of laughter, “Ridiculous, isn’t it.”

Subconsciously, Alistair knew that he probably shouldn’t be telling the Doctor about it.  But he had had quite a few drinks and at this point was most likely a little drunk.

“Is that so?”

And by the sound of it, so was the Doctor.

“Still, it’s flattering I suppose.  The idea that a man like me could attract a man like you-”

“You shouldn’t sell yourself short, Alistair!” The Doctor exclaimed, dragging the brigadier over to the dance floor, “You are attractive.”

“Oh come off it, man!” Alistair laughed, twirling the Doctor about, “You know… you aren’t too bad yourself.”

That made the Doctor laugh uproariously, 

“I think you’ve had one too many drinks, my dear man!”

“Nonsense!  I feel perfectly fine- giddy, even!”

Alistair smiled broadly and as the song ended, placed a kiss on the Doctor’s forehead.  As soon as he pulled away the radio crackled to a halt and he froze- he would’ve appreciated the timing of it all if he hadn’t been so mortified.  The Doctor was standing there silently, his hand gripped loosely around Alistair’s wrist.  The look on his face almost sent the soldier running.  The Doctor looked shocked- Alistair wasn’t sure if he had ever seen him that surprised.  Oh no .  He pulled away, arms falling limply at his sides.  He’d kissed him.  Not properly, but he had kissed the Doctor.  He took a step backward, stumbling over his feet.

“I- Doctor, I-” 

He tensed up and practically sprinted out of the pub.

He’d done it again.  He’d gone and ruined their friendship.  For good this time.

Chapter Text

The Doctor had spent his weekend as he usually did- shut up in his Tardis.  Usually, that time would be spent repairing some minor system but this weekend was spent contemplating what had gone wrong on Friday.  It was his fault, surely!  He was the one who’d gotten Alistair drunk, flirted with him, and coerced him into flirting back!  He fiddled with the Tardis controls, wishing that somehow navigational control would be restored and he would be able to fly away, leaving his embarrassment and shame behind.

He stepped out of the Tardis on Monday morning to find Jo Grant standing in the center of the room, arms crossed.

“Doctor-” Her voice was terse, “What do you have to say for yourself!”

He stared at her and tried to wrack his brain for something he might’ve done wrong.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Oh come off it, Doctor.” She walked over to him and placed her hand on his upper arm, “I know about what happened on Friday.”

The Doctor winced,

“How did you find out about that?”

“John and Mike told me when I went to see them.” She sighed and followed him as he made his way over to his desk, “Oh Doctor, I’m sorry.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Jo.  What is there to be sorry about?”

“Well, it’s obvious!  I’m not stupid , you know.  I know you like the Brigadier- in fact, everyone does!”

“Of course I like him- I do stay here and interact with him, don’t I?”

Jo sighed in annoyance and stared him dead in the eyes,

“Doctor, don’t act like you don’t know what I mean.  I know you love him.  And I just so happen to know that he feels the same way.”

The Doctor spat out the tea he had just sipped, leaving him spluttering.

“Jo!”

“Well it’s obvious, isn’t it!  I’ve seen the way you look at him and I’ve definitely seen the way he stares at you- you must’ve noticed it too!”  She paused as the Doctor stared at her with a blank look on his face, “Oh come on, Doctor!  You know, for an advanced Time Lord you sure can be thick!”

The Doctor ruffled at the insult, 

“I may not be that emotionally adept, Jo, but I am certainly not stupid .”

She smiled apologetically and hopped up on the desk to be more level with him.

“I know- I’m sorry, Doctor.  But it’s true, you know.  He does like you- a lot, in fact.  Why else would he keep taking you out to the bar?  And dancing with you?  And kiss you!?”

“Oh no, Jo-” His gaze dropped to the contraption he had in front of him, “I don’t believe so.  You must be mistaken.”

Jo rolled her eyes,

“Honestly!” She said in annoyance before addressing him again, “Look, Doctor, just tell him.  What harm can it do?”

“What harm?” He spluttered, “What harm ?  My dear Jo, it could do a lot of harm!  Not only could it irreparably damage our relationship it might put Alist- the Brigadier in a terribly unfortunate situation!”

“No one here cares, Doctor.  You’d make a good couple, anyways.” She smiled, “You could go on double dates with the captain and the sergeant.”

The Doctor made a face and then shook his head,

“No- no, I couldn’t, Jo.”

“You’re afraid he’ll say no…”

“Of course I’m afraid of that!  Have you ever had to tell someone you loved them?  No, no you haven’t.  I won’t do it- I can’t do it.”

“Look at me, Doctor-” She turned him around so he was facing her, “Just do it.  He won’t refuse, trust me.  You do trust me?”

“Of course I trust you.”

Jo smiled,

“Then it’s settled!” She made her way towards the laboratory door, she stopped and turned back, “I better see you and the Brigadier on Friday- on a proper date.”

Alistair spent the weekend in a well of self-pity, sitting by his window and wondering where it all went wrong.  He was able to talk to Kate but even that brought him little joy.  When he arrived at HQ on Monday morning he made a beeline for his office, ignoring the scattered greetings that were sent his way.  He thought about all the paperwork that he had and, for once, was rather excited by it.  Maybe he would be able to avoid the Doctor for the day.  Upon entering his office, however, he found someone else was already in there, waiting for him. 

“Oh, there you are, Brigadier!” Jo Grant exclaimed, jumping out of the chair she had been occupying, “I was beginning to wonder if you were going to come in at all!”

“Miss Grant!  What on Earth are you doing here?”

She sighed, 

“I had a feeling you were going to ask me that… Permission to speak freely, sir?”

Alistair sat in his chair, a confused look on his face, 

“Granted.”

“Brigadier, I know about what happened on Friday.”

Alistair jumped, almost sending the papers on his desk toppling to the ground, 

“I beg your pardon?”

“I know what happened between you and the Doctor at the pub.  You know- how you got a little drunk, danced, and then-”

“Yes, yes, I was there, Miss Grant, you don’t need to recount the events.” He cringed at the memory, “How did you find out- I don’t remember you being there.”

“Benton and Yates told me, sir.  They didn’t really have a choice though.” She added on hurriedly when she saw the Brigadier’s expression, “I made them tell me.”

“Hmm, is that so…” He made a mental note to talk to them at the first chance he got, “Well in any case, if you have anything else to say, please say it.  I’m rather busy, you know.”

“Yes well… Sir, I think you should ask the Doctor out.”

“I’ve already done that, Miss Grant.  I have no desire to do it again”

It was already stressful enough , he added internally.

“I mean on a proper date.  A romantic one.”
“Well, I never-” Alistair nearly stood up in shock, “What exactly are you suggesting, Miss Grant?”
Jo remained relaxed, despite being under pressure from a gaze that usually sent UNIT squaddies running, 

“I know that you like the Doctor, Brigadier, most people here do!  But I’m trying to tell you that you need to shoot your shot!”

Alistair huffed and took his seat once more, 

“In all my years- and how exactly do you propose I do this?”

Jo shrugged, 

“Quite simply, I suppose.  He doesn’t seem like a man for large romantic gestures.  Just walk up to him and ask him out on a date!”

“I’m not going to do that!  Do you know how many UNIT regulations I would be breaching?  How improper it would be!”

“Actually none, sir.  The Doctor is not actually a member of UNIT-”

“As he never fails to remind me.”

“-And so you wouldn’t be breaching any protocol!”

“Even so-” Alistair said, fiddling with the hem of his sleeve, “Even so how would I know if he’d accept- no, no I won’t bother.”

“I know he’d accept because I just talked to him.” Jo smiled, “And he told me he liked you too.”

Alistair stared at her for a bit before letting out a low chuckle, 

“Very funny, Miss Grant, but I’m sorry I just don’t believe you!”

Jo groaned and dropped her head in her hands, 

“Honestly!  You’re just as bad as the Doctor… Look, you’ll just have to trust me on this.  You’ve got to ask him on a date- a proper date.”

Alistair sighed.  He knew that he was losing this battle- if Jo set her mind on something it would get done.  Besides, if the Doctor did like him back then he wouldn’t mind going out on a date with him…

“Oh alright, I’ll do it.  But only if you promise me that you’ll ask Corporal Bell out as well.”

Now it was Jo’s turn to be shocked.

“But- but how did you-”

Alistair smiled, 

“I know things, Miss Grant.  The perks of being a commanding officer!”

He settled back down into his chair and reached out to pick up a document when he was stopped by Jo.

“Oh no, Brigadier!  You’re asking him now!”

“I can’t do that!  I have work to do.  My job isn’t just shooting at alien threats, you know.”

“Of course I know that.” She pushed on, “But if you don’t do it now, when will you do it?  And besides, don’t tell me that you actually want to do the paperwork?”

Alistair stared at the stack of papers that looked quite a lot larger now that he wasn’t itching to stay in his office all day.

“Oh very well.” He stood up, ready to follow Jo out of the room, “But if this goes wrong I-”

Just then Captain Yates burst into the room in a panic, hand gripping the holster on his hip.

“Sir!” He shouted frantically, “We’ve just received an urgent call!  There seems to be a group of unknown invaders down by Wenley Moor!”

In an instant, Alistair was back on his feet, military composure restored.  

“Wenley Moor- the Silurians?”

“I don’t know, sir, but apparently whoever they are they’re venturing dangerously close to a nearby town.”

Alistair nodded and walked out the door, Yates and Jo at his heels.

“Captain, get two armed squads down there and keep the others ready for action.” He stopped suddenly and turned to face Jo, “Get the Doctor and tell him to meet me at Wenley Moor.  Let him know that we may be facing the Silurians again.”

“Aye, sir!”

Both ran off in opposite directions, leaving Alistair to tug on his collar and set off for the armory.  

‘ So much for asking the Doctor out ’ He thought bitterly.

The UNIT troops arrived at Wenley Moor a little while later, the Brigadier commanding them to stop near the old Silurian cave.  Upon arrival, however, the Silurians were nowhere to be found.

“Sir!” Shouted Sergeant Benton from the other truck, “Sir, I see something!”

Squinting in the direction Benton was pointing at, the Brigadier could just make out about 20 figures- distinctly alien- marching towards them.

“Right!  Squad Two, get into attack formation Omega!  Squad One, follow me!  We’re going to find a route through the trees to attack them on the other side.” He turned to Yates, “Captain, stay with Sergeant Benton and tell him to get the Doctor on the radio.  And notify me when he arrives!”

The Brigadier hopped back in the rover and commanded his men into a small forest just off of the road.  The tree cover was a little less dense than he would’ve liked though he had a feeling that if it had been any tighter they wouldn’t be able to get the squad through.  They drove through the forest in silence for a bit before Corporal Adams pulled the vehicle to a halt and pointed through the trees.

“Sir!  One of the aliens has broken formation and is heading straight for us!”

The Brigadier looked to the side and sure enough one of the creatures was slowly ambling towards them.  He picked up his radio,

“This is squad One-A calling squad One-B and One-C, do you read me?”

He paused as the radio crackled and two distinct voices acknowledged his call.

“One of the creatures has broken formation and is heading in our direction.  We will put ourselves on an intercept course and attempt to stop it.  Alright, follow me.  Squad One-A out.”

Corporal Adams drove the car through an opening in the trees a little ways ahead and pulled to a halt about 20 meters away from the alien who was slowly advancing towards them.  From this distance, the Brigadier was finally able to get a good look at the aliens.  They were bipedal, a little taller than the average human male, and seemed to be covered in fur.  If they had not been as thin as they were, he would’ve assumed they were Yeti.  He picked up his radio again,

“Greyhound One calling Greyhound Two, Captain Yates do you read me?”

“Greyhound Two here.” The radio answered after a moment's pause.

“Has the Doctor arrived yet?”

“I’m afraid not sir, but Benton says that he’s almost here.”

“Very well, tell me when he arrives.  And let him know it’s not the Silurians!  Greyhound One out.”

His gaze locked on the creature once more who had advanced quite a bit but had now stopped about 10 meters away from the squad.

“Right!” The Brigadier shouted out the window, “Squad, take up attack formation Zeta.  Prepare to fire on my command!”

The air was thick with tension as the soldiers waited for their orders.  The Brigadier was staring at the alien, watching his every move.  It didn’t seem very dangerous- almost peaceful, in fact.  He opened his mouth to tell Adams something when the creature raised his arm and lobbed something across the moor.  It landed with a thud on the hood of the vehicle.  The Brigadier didn’t need to look twice at the thing to know what it was.  The device was round and had latched onto the hood with three large metal clamps.  It was beeping loudly and flashing a bright red light- a universal signal.  It was a bomb.

“GET DOWN!” The Brigadier shouted, “IT’S A BOMB!”

He threw himself out of the rover just as the thing exploded, sending him flying through the air.  He landed face first, head grazing against a rock.  The pain in his head, however, was nothing compared to the agony that had begun to radiate from his abdomen.  He glanced down just in time to see a large piece of shrapnel from the vehicle lodged in his stomach before the pain won over and his world went dark.

Chapter Text

Pain  

Pain was the first thing Alistair noticed when he regained consciousness.  He felt tired, incredibly tired.  There was a dull throbbing in his head, a sharp pain in his abdomen, and a slight buzzing in his ears.  His body felt heavy , each limb seemed like it weighed a thousand pounds.  He cracked open his eyes and found himself staring at a gray ceiling.  Bright white lights shone painfully from above, making his eyes water.

“Brigadier!” A voice shot out like the crack of a gun, “Oh thank heavens, you’re awake!”

Alistair winced painfully as his headache was intensified by the noise.

“Oh, I apologize.” The voice said again.

Slowly, Alistair turned his head and saw a tall, white-haired man sitting by his bedside.  The man gripped his hand tightly and Alistair instinctively pulled it away.

“Is there something wrong?” He asked, a slight frown on his face. 

Alistair tilted his head in confusion,

“I’m sorry- do I know you?”

The man’s face fell,

“Alistair- do you not know who I am?”

Alistair shook his head, rattled by this man he didn’t know using his given name.

“I don’t believe so… Should I?”

The man was opening his mouth to say something when three people burst into the room, all beaming.

“Oh, Brigadier!  Thank god you’re alright!” Exclaimed the voice of the young woman who rushed over to him and placed a kiss on his cheek, “How is he, Doctor?”

The man- the Doctor- shook his head.

“I- I think something-”

“Corporal Benton!” 

Alistair gave a small sigh of relief when he finally spotted someone he recognized.  The man standing at the foot of the bed- Corporal John Benton.

“Sir?” Benton frowned

“Don’t just stand there corporal!  What’s the situation- are the Cybermen back?”

“It seems the Brigadier is suffering from amnesia- I don’t think he recognizes us.  Save for Sergeant Benton.”

“Sergeant Benton?” The Brigadier’s head was practically throbbing now, “That’s Corporal Benton- What the devil is going on ?”

They were interrupted by the arrival of a short, thin man in an oversized lab coat.

“Well hello, Brigadier!” The man smiled, “How are you doing?”

“I assume you are the physician who has been taking care of me?”

The doctor frowned,

“Brigadier, sir?  It’s me, Doctor Keating-”

“It appears the Brigadier has developed amnesia, Doctor.” The other Doctor said, “He doesn’t know who any of us are- save for Sergeant Benton.”

Doctor Keating plucked a penlight out of his pocket and shone it in front of Alistair’s eyes.

“Hmm… it seems his concussion has healed.  What’s the last thing you remember, sir?”

The Brigadier gazed out into space, wracking his brain to try and remember something .

“I… I was ordering Corp- Sergeant Benton to begin the clean-up of the London Underground.”

Keating turned to Benton, 

“And when did this occur?”

“1969, Doctor- three years ago.”

“Strange… And did he experience any traumatic head injury then?”

“Not that I know of, sir.” Benton shifted nervously on his feet, “We had just finished a rather large battle with the Cybermen, though.  He might’ve been injured then.”

Keating sighed,

“Well, all I can do for now is hope for the best.  It would be beneficial if you all talked to him about the past three years- try and jog his memory and see if he’ll remember any details.” He turned to Alistair, “As for your physical injuries, sir, they’re not too serious.  Luckily the shrapnel from the ranger missed any vital organs and I’ve patched up your ribs. Sir, I’m putting you on medical leave for six weeks- Starting after you leave the hospital.” He added when Alistair began to protest.

“It’s for the best, Brigadier- I’m Jo Grant by the way.  I’m the Doctor’s assistant.” She introduced herself quickly after he gave her a blank stare.

“And I’m Captain Mike Yates.” The remaining man beamed, “Don’t worry, sir.  We’ll keep UNIT HQ in tip-top shape until you return”

Alistair spent the next two weeks cooped up in the hospital.  Jo, Benton, and Yates all took turns visiting him and recounting tales of what adventures they had.  They managed to convince Doctor Shaw to come down from Cambridge for a day and spend some time with Alistair.  Fiona even agreed to stop by and bring Kate, much to Alistair’s excitement.  By the time Doctor Keating released Alistair he could recount details of the major UNIT battles they had had in the last three years without prompting from the other three and had regained the knowledge of his personal life.  The only thing he couldn’t seem to really place was the Doctor.  Jo had spent extensive time telling him about the Doctor but nothing seemed to jog his memory.

“My guess is that because the Doctor hasn’t come in to talk to the Brigadier then he just can’t place his face in his memories.” Keating told a distressed Jo, “But considering how important the Doctor is to the Brigadier I would guess that it won’t take much for him to remember.”

Jo tried to convince the Doctor to come and visit him but the man wouldn’t budge.

“I told you, Jo!” He finally snapped one afternoon after she had been bugging him about it for days, “I will not go see him!  And no meddling you do will convince me otherwise!  Now do go- I’m in the middle of a highly dangerous experiment and I don’t want you ruining it!”

Secretly, of course, the Doctor wished for nothing more than to go visit Alistair.  But he knew that the man wouldn’t want to see him and as for the Doctor, well he didn’t think he would be able to look the Brigadier in the eyes and only see blank confusion staring back up at him.

Doctor Keating released Alistair on the three-week anniversary of the accident.  He was itching to go back into the office and prove that he was well enough to do his job and do it well but Keating had been more than insistent and so Alistair found himself being driven to his small townhouse by Benton, Yates, and Jo.

“I do appreciate this, you know.” Alistair thanked them as they helped him into his house.

“Are you sure you are alright on your own?” Jo asked for the hundredth time that day.

“Yes, I’m fine, Miss Grant.  Mrs. McNeill next door has agreed to stop by every so often to check up on me.” He rolled his eyes, “Ridiculous, really.  I’m not an invalid.”

“You may not be an invalid, sir,” Benton said as he returned from setting the Brigadier’s suitcase down in the bedroom, “But if your stitches break, you won’t be very happy.  Trust me- I should know.”

“Are you positively sure you’re alright?” Jo asked again, “I could always stay for the evening- make sure you’re settled in and have everything you need.”

“Miss Grant-” Alistair straightened his back and puffed out his chest, “I am absolutely sure I will be alright.  And the Doctor would be terribly jealous if I stole his assistant.”

They all laughed and Alistair slowly led them back to his door.

“I was thinking-” He paused, just as the trio had crossed the threshold, “Would you all like to come over for dinner this Friday?”

The crew exchanged a look before Yates shrugged, 

“We’ll be here, sir.”

“Oh and- and bring the Doctor, will you?” Alistair shouted out after them as they made their way to the street, “It would be nice to talk to him- get to know him again.”

Jo, Benton, and Yates exchanged another look before nodding.

“We’ll all be here, sir.  See you then!”

Chapter Text

When Jo extended the Brigadier’s invitation to the Doctor he flat out refused.

“For goodness sakes, Jo!” He practically shouted, “How many times do I have to say it!  I won’t go see him.”

“But why?” Jo pressed on.  She knew that, deep down, he did want to see the Brigadier- she’d seen him slow down as they passed his office.  She’d seen him look forlorn when the laboratory door would swing open and someone who definitely wasn’t the Brigadier would walk through the doors. “I know you do want to see him.  Are you scared?  Because if you’re scared, Doctor, you shouldn’t be.  He invited you himself and so obviously he-”

“Good lord, Jo!  You really don’t know when to stop!” The Doctor threw down the glove he was holding, “If you want to know this badly I’ll tell you!” He grew quiet for a bit and stared blankly out the window, “I don’t know if I can see him like that- see him look up at me and not know who I am.”

Jo stood behind him, feeling very foolish.

“I’m sorry, Doctor.  I didn’t know that was why.  I just thought-”

“Yes, yes I know.” The Doctor turned around and started to walk towards the Tardis before stopping in his tracks, “You sure he invited me?”

Jo suppressed a smile,

“Absolutely.  Mike and John are driving me there on Friday if you’d like to join us.  We’d all love to have you.”

When Jo walked into the Doctor’s laboratory that Friday at six o’clock, she found him standing in front of the mirror, adjusting his cravat.

“Doctor?” Jo asked, knocking on the doorframe to alert him of her presence, “Doctor, we’re going now-”

He whirled around and nodded at her, trying to hide his (rather obvious) nervousness.

“Well then-” He fastened his cape around his shoulders, “We shouldn’t keep the Brigadier waiting, now should we?”

Alistair sat nervously at his kitchen table waiting for the doorbell to ring.  He’d spent all day preparing for the dinner that evening.  He’d cleaned the whole house, spent hours laboriously putting dinner together, and changed his tie thirteen times before sitting down at his freshly scrubbed table to await the knock at the door.  His gaze wandered around the room, counting each plate he had set out- five in all.  He had set one for the Doctor though he still wasn’t sure if the man would show up.  He debated putting it away- he didn’t particularly want to go through the embarrassing ordeal of having to explain why he had set the table for five when there were only four of them there.  

‘ Then again ,’ he thought to himself, ‘ If the Doctor did show up and the plate was gone he might think I don’t want him ’

Eventually, he made up his mind and was getting up to put the plate back in the cupboard when there was a knock at the door.  His eyes darted back and forth from the door and the table before he sighed and went to go answer the knock.

“Ah!  You’re all here- please, do come in!”

Outside his door stood Jo, the captain, the sergeant, and- and the Doctor .  Alistair suppressed a grin as they walked through the threshold.

“Doctor, I’m glad you could make it.”

The Doctor nodded curtly and forced a smile onto his face,

“Thank you for inviting me- I’m usually not one for dinner parties but I thought I could make an exception.”

Alistair led them to the dining room and offered them their seats, grateful for the fact that he hadn’t put away the Doctor’s plate.

“I certainly hope everyone is hungry- I made pot pie!”

Dinner was a lively affair.  Everyone recounted their versions of adventures they had had- some more accurate than others.  Even the Doctor, who had spent a good twenty minutes silently observing them all, began to have a bit of fun.  Alistair suspected they were all a little drunk- or at least going in that direction.  Eventually, however, the laughter began to die down and everyone relaxed a bit, stomachs full.

“I say, Brigadier-” Benton said, a grin plastered on his face, “That was one of the best meals I’ve had in a while.”

“Oh yes!” Jo added, “I haven’t had this much fun in a long time.”

“We may have to do this again, then- what do you say, Doctor?”

“Hm?” The Doctor shook his head, snapping himself out of his reverie, “Oh- oh yes we should.”

Jo’s eyes darted back and forth between the two men before she picked up her plate and stood up.

“Why don’t I clean up, Brigadier.  You’ve already done enough work.”

“No, no, Jo.  I’ll do it.”

“It’s alright!  You deserve the rest, you’re still on medical leave after all.”

Alistair sighed and leaned back into his chair.

“Mike, John- why don’t you help me?  It’s the least we could do…” 

She shot them a look and they both jumped up, 

“Yes, yes I think we will!  John, will you grab the Doctor’s plate?” Mike asked as the three of them began pilling dishes into their arms and heading towards the kitchen.

Alistair and the Doctor sat in silence for a bit before he spoke up, 

“Doctor, would you like to join me in the living room?  It’s much more comfortable-”

The man nodded and Alistair led him to the adjacent room.  They sat together awkwardly- Alistair sitting on an armchair, the Doctor occupying the couch.

“I heard you talked to Miss Shaw the other day.”

The Doctor was the first one to speak up, though his gaze remained firmly locked on the wall opposite him.

“I did!  She’s doing well.  Rather busy I gathered- I suppose that’s what she expected though…” He paused, fiddling with his cuff, “She told me about the adventure with the Autons.  The one at… at Ashbridge Cottage Hospital, was it not?”

The Doctor nodded, a small smile appearing on his face.

“Yes, yes it was.  I remember you didn’t believe me when I told you it was me .”

“Well, Doctor, I don’t think you can blame me.  You looked nothing like you did the last time I saw you.  And those young people weren’t with you either- Jamie and Zoe, wasn’t it?”

The Doctor seemed to deflate a bit at the mention of their names.

“I apologize,” Alistair could tell that the memory of his former companions wasn’t a happy one, “I didn’t mean to remind you of-”

“No, no it’s quite alright, Lethbridge-Stewart.  It was a long time ago.”

Alistair knew that three years was not that long ago but he didn’t press the point further.

“I’m afraid I don’t remember much about our interactions- I remember the aliens, of course.  The Silurians, the Autons, and so on but you-” He hesitated, “I don’t seem to remember you very well.”

“I don’t doubt it- Jo tells me that I should’ve gone to see you.” The Doctor’s gaze shifted and he stared at Alistair, “She’s right.  I’m sorry.”

“It’s quite alright, Doctor.  I don’t blame you- you were probably busy.”

They fell into silence for a bit, listening to the quiet noise of Jo, Mike, and John clattering away in the kitchen.

“Maybe I could talk to you now?  Try and help you remember.”

Alistair smiled,

“I’d like that very much, Doctor.”

When Jo found them twenty minutes later, they were chatting away animatedly like two old friends.

“Ah, Miss Grant!  The Doctor was just informing me of some of the details you seemed to have missed out.”
Jo shrugged, 

“He does have a better memory than me.  It’s that alien brain of his!” She laughed.

“Say, Brigadier,” Mike said upon entering the room, “I’m afraid John and I have to go.  We have an early appointment tomorrow but dinner was lovely, thank you.”

Alistair stood up and shook the hands of both men.

“Thank you for coming.  I do appreciate all you’ve done, this would’ve been much harder if you hadn’t helped.”

Jo smiled,

“Of course, Brigadier.” She glanced at her watch, “Good grief it’s late!  I think it would be best if we left too, Doctor.  We don’t want to bother the Brigadier too much- especially since he should be resting.”

Alistair bristled,

“As I’ve told you multiple times, Miss Grant, I am perfectly-”

Jo laughed, 

“I know, I know- you’re perfectly alright and definitely not an invalid.”

The group reached the threshold and Alistair gave them each a firm handshake.

“Thank you for coming.  I’ll see you- well I’ll see you at some point.”

As Alistair’s guests were walking back to their cars, he saw Jo stop, whisper something to the Doctor, and run back to the door.

“Say, Brigadier- I have something I’d like to give you but I don’t have it with me- is it alright if I stop by tomorrow?”

“By all means, Miss Grant.  I’m not going anywhere.”

Chapter Text

The weekend came and went for the Doctor.  Nothing interesting happened.  He wasn’t looking forward to Monday.  He didn’t have much to be excited about.  Now that he was speaking to Alistair again the fact that he wasn’t there at HQ only hurt more.  He was glad to have seen him on Sunday, though.  As he expected, it had pained him to see Alistair look at him with a hint of unfamiliarity in his eyes but he got over it.  It wasn’t like he had much of a choice.  The Doctor considered bringing up their Friday outings- even possibly mentioning the date date Jo had insisted upon but decided against it.  Alistair was already confused enough with having to relearn and remember three years of his life- he didn’t need some mysterious man shoving affection in his face- affection Alistair might not reciprocate anymore (if Jo had been telling the truth in the first place).  So when Monday did roll around he wasn’t expecting anything special to happen.  He had a quiet day planned.  Work on the Tardis, fix Sergeant Osgood’s broken converter, and maybe have lunch with Jo- if he had the time.  He promised himself he would not, under any circumstance, think of Alistair.  

That turned out to be a bit hard to do when the man strode through the doors to the laboratory.

The Doctor heard the doors swing open first.  It wasn’t an unusual sound.  It was probably Jo coming by to give him tea or to ask him if he needed help with his work.  A few moments later, however, it was clear that the person who had walked into the laboratory was not Jo.  The footsteps were too heavy- too perfectly synchronized- for it to be Jo.  The Doctor only knew of one person who walked like that- the Brigadier.  He whirled around and found himself face to face with the man.

“Brigadier-” He started before he was cut off by Alistair cupping his face in his hands and kissing him. 

The Doctor stood there, shocked, before being pulled out of his trance.  Alistair had pulled away, his hands still resting on the Doctor’s cheeks, face only millimeters away from the Doctors own.

“Brigadier- how did- why are-”

“I came to see you, Doctor.” He whispered, his breath ghosting across the Doctor’s lips, “And to tell you how foolish I’ve been.”

“But-”

“Oh do be quiet,” Alistair said and kissed him again.

This time was even better than the first one.  The Doctor pulled him in closer, arms wrapped around his partner.  He felt Alistair chuckle and smile against his lips.  It was a bit of a messy kiss- and a little clumsy- but neither of them cared.  

When Alistair finally pulled away, he was slightly out of breath, a little disheveled, and blushing furiously.  

“Now what-” The Doctor cleared his throat, trying to clear his thoughts and make sense of all that had happened, “My dear Alistair, what, may I ask, brought that on?”

“Jo came to see me on Saturday, Doctor.” He said softly, tucking a stray curl behind the man’s ear, “She told me about- about our dates and how you felt and reminded me about how I felt.  Everything fell into place afterward.”

“And you’re not just doing this because Jo- because Jo told you I loved you.”

Alistair was grinning like an idiot at this point.

“No, Doctor.  I did this because I love you and was too stupid to act on it before.”

Instead of answering him, the Doctor pressed another kiss to Alistair’s lips- less passionate but no less meaningful.

“Well, I’m quite glad you did it.  I’m not sure I would’ve taken the initiative myself.” The Doctor whispered.

“I was wondering…” Alistair ran one of the frills on the Doctor’s shirt between his fingers, “Would you like to come back to my place?  Just for a while.”

A large grin broke out on the Doctor’s face.

“There’s nothing else I’d rather be doing right now.” He said, grasping Alistair’s hand and pressing a kiss to his forehead.  

And then they walked out of UNIT HQ and towards Bessie, hand in hand.