A Starcrossed Reunion (A Doctor Who Short Story)

A Starcrossed Reunion Part 4 (Epilogue)

Missy and the Doctor sat together in the vault. They were ten years into her thousand-year imprisonment. Although isolated rehabilitation was a more accurate term. Both the Doctor and Missy knew that she had the capability to escape but she was instead choosing to stay. Choosing to genuinely attempt to change.

"I've often wondered, do you ever think about Beatrice Rosenfield?" asked the Doctor. Missy turned her head to look at him.

"More often than you would imagine. Even after we parted in the seventies she was often on my mind."

"Oh yes, I remember you had a picture of her during the Time War didn't you? I think I recall something along those lines from the one time we met, before your Yana incarnation."

"Journal of pictures drawn by Beatrice," corrected Missy. "I still have it."

"I never pegged you for the sentimental type. But then again Beatrice was always an exception."

"Yes. She was." Missy agreed quietly. "I do miss her."

"Have you considered visiting her again?" suggested the Doctor.

"I did visit once. Right before I ran and used the chameleon arch. But I couldn't visit now." Missy met the Doctor's gaze once more. "She's dead." Surprise crossed the Doctor's face.

"When did you find that out?" asked the Doctor quietly.

"While I was in my Harold Saxon incarnation," replied Missy. She paused before speaking again. "Do you remember the Lazarus Experiment?" The Doctor raised one of his very bushy grey eyebrows.

"The one to reverse or speed up aging? Yes, I remember. Difficult not to when you made me look like Dobby the house elf." Missy chuckled. 

"I suppose I should apologize for that."  

"Among other things,"replied the Doctor with a slight smile. "Anyway, what about the Lazarus Experiment?"

"I didn't originally plan to use it as a weapon. I commissioned the Lazarus Experiment for a completely different reason." The Doctor still looked slightly confused and Missy resisted the urge to roll her eyes. For all his brilliance her best enemy really could be slow on the uptake.

"When I got my memories back and had sorted them out the first thing that came to mind was Beatrice. I thought to go to her immediately but stopped when I realized that with my younger body, even if I saw her again, there wasn't much hope as she was now older and would continue to age."

"So you commissioned the Lazarus Experiment as a way to give the two of you a second chance at a more permanent relationship," the Doctor said looking slightly impressed. "For once your inetentions were largely pure."

"Yes," Missy sighed. "I managed to perfect the technology so that it wouldn't have any of those nasty little effects it had on Doctor Lazarus."

"Yes, we wouldn't want any more human-scorpion monsters if we could help it," chimed in the Doctor. This time Missy did roll her eyes.

"Obviously. Anyway, once the technology was perfected and incorporated into my laser screwdriver I went to surprise Beatrice. Unfortunately, I was the one that was surprised. I reached her old house only to find out that she had died in a car accident a week after I had last seen her." Missy's voice shook ever so slightly.

"I was devastated, angry, and the drums were becoming louder than ever. You know she was the only thing that could ever soften them. I think one of the things that angered me most about the situation was that her death had been so meaningless. She didn't even die saving someone or something. It was just a stupid, pointless accident."