"Is this all there is?" Foreman asked, grimacing as he surveyed the world. "I mean, I don't know what exactly to expect, but..."

Despite this prevalent pessimism, it was clear to see where it came from. The three Time Lords set their eyes on nothing more than an unfathomably large ocean of purple violet - it skimmed their hips and threatened to scratch them if they shifted too violently.

"I don't see why there can't have anything here. It may be rather plain, but there's plenty of possibility," Susan said. "There is a heavy chance we can discover something which we can utulize.."

"I believe we can find something, no matter what Foreman says," said the Doctor.

"I didn't mean-" Foreman began to interrupt, before he was interrupted.

"I don't mean harm. I just want to be positive about the situation. Optimism is vital to me, even though there isn't going to be a time Lord wandering aimlessly around here. That doesn't mean why I have any reason to give up."

"I wasn't saying we were going to give up. I didn't mean anything of the sort," Foreman said, starting to defend himself. With a snap, however, he'd realised that there was no reason to defend himself. He simply needed to sew his lips together and trail behind the two other Time Lords.

Then again, this made him feel as useless as discarded toy. He'd been plagued by this particular experience several times over. It didn't get any more pleasant - if anything, it just deteriotated as time went on. All he wanted was to find a path to cling to and make his way back home - same as Susan and the Doctor.

He missed Gallifrey, despite the prevalent feeling of how he ended up missing his daughter even more. He knew this was a harmful way to think about things, but he couldn't help himself. Every time he looked over at Susan, he could see the glimmer like the energy of a thousand galaxies in her eyes reflecting his own...and yet, she could never know of it.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Susan asked, her voice injected with sunshine. "If the trace of the Time Lords is hidden around here, then it's up to us to go find it!"

"That's the spirit, Susan," the Doctor said. His mind was caught in a game of tug of war when it came to how he wanted to view this situation - perhaps this would lead them in the right direction, but it may as well just be a way to waste their time away to barren bones.

"We should all split up in different directions if we want this to move faster," the Doctor recommended. It was simply natural for him to become the leader - he had the most experience, after all. He was always going to end up being the one who would take the helm of the hunt and guide it in a specific direction.

"Are you sure we all have to split up?"Foreman asked. "For all we know, this planet could be dangerous. We don't have the foggiest clue what could be out there, lurking around in the grass."

"I think all of us can defend ourselves fairly well, Foreman," the Doctor said. He could sense the reasons why Foreman would react in such a manner, but he didn't exactly agree. "I don't see any major reason to worry about this. Danger is always a possibility, but..."

"We can do this without being together," Susan chimed in. "We all know how to handle ourselves."

"Whatever you say," Foreman sighed. Despite giving in, he couldn't let himself relax and fully head into the situation. He'd finally been given an opportunity to speak to Susan - he'd be less than a father, but he could still bond with her. Almost all of their experiences had been closely moderated by the Doctor thus far.

"I'm guessing the reason you keep protesting this is because you want to have someone along with you as you're venturing this new ground," the Doctor said. "I suppose I can understand that."

"Let me go along with him," Susan offered, her voice completely sincere. Foreman was shocked. He'd wanted it, yes, but he'd never fully articulated it in any way. And yet, Susan was offering to come along with him.

"I suppose that'll work out," the Doctor said, speaking to Susan but making eye contact with Foreman.

"It'll be more fun that way," Susan exclaimed. "I'm sick of working alone myself...but I know that helps you work sometimes, Grandfather. You can go on by yourself for a while, and Foreman and I will do our own investigating."

"I suppose that will just have to work out," the Doctor said. "And we will meet back here at the TARDIS, should we find anything."

"And what if we don't find anything?" Foreman queried.

"Then we'll just return back here when we are certain there is nothing to be found."

"I suppose I should have seen that coming," Foreman said, shaking his head. "Ah well. I guess we might as well begin moving. Susan, are you ready to go now?"

"Of course," Susan agree. Any vestiges of what happened with her and the TARDIS seemed to have vanished. She was in perfect health, appearing as if she had a embers fuming within her to keep her lively and bright.

"Off we go, then," Foreman said. Susan darted off, her feet pattering against the grass. Foreman had to hasten his pace in order to catch up with her, not minding to watch as the Doctor set off in his own direction.

Susan would most likely have the best idea of what item they were seeking out, but at the same time it became clear that she didn't have a clear image of anything. She seemed as perplexed as Foreman felt, just in less of an anxious manner. She utulized this feeling to propel herself, using curiosity to move her forwards.

Foreman admired this quality her immensely. Pride coursed through him when he thought of how this woman was his daughter, even though he was no longer her father. Not according to the Doctor, anyways. Brook would have been every bit as proud. She would've been so pleased.

This, of course, was no topic he could discuss with Susan. He certainly wished he could do such a thing - he could speak about just Brook for ages. Susan deserved to know about the various stories he had piled up within his mind, simply because she should know about her parents. But he'd been forbidden from this, and therefore conversation was slow.

Foreman knew part of the lull in their conversation was due with the fact he was somewhat lost within his thoughts, but it was still not what he desired. This was the first time he'd been handed even the slightest moment to speak to Susan about anything which happened in the many (many, many) years which had passed between when hey'd last seen one another.

But work could still be done even as they spoke to one another. The only obstacle he could see was that he didn't know how to begin talking to her - what would you say to the girl who was your daughter, but you were no longer your father? What would you say to the girl who had become a woman even though you hadn't seen her since she had barely learned how to read?

"Is anything wrong, Foreman?" Susan asked, cutting through his thoughts as if her words were made of a knife, freshly sharpened.

"I'm sorry, I just got a little carried away, a bit lost in my mind. I apologise about that. No. Sorry. It doesn't matter. Forget about that," Foreman said, knowing he'd already managed to mess things up. Of course, he had to find some way to keep the momentum going.

Susan, luckily, didn't seem to care about all the ways he tended to bumble and mess around. If anything, it seemed to make her rather pleased - she enjoyed this. This effect alone made Foreman far more at ease, and therefore much happier. Perhaps this would work out if he paid attention to his surroundings.

"So, we're finally getting a chance to just talk," Susan noted. "I know we've kind of talked here and there when we've been whooshed around in the TARDIS, but for the most part it seems like Grandfather is always trying to push us along to the next big thing."

"I agree with that," Foreman said. "I mean, he told me a bit about you - not much, but enough to spark my interest. I was thrilled to finally get to meet you once we arrived at Coal Hill, Absolutely thrilled to meet you...for the first time."

"You make me sound like I'm some sort of celerity!" Susan laughed.

Foreman ached to explain the underlying reasons which had driven him to see her once again. If he could take any given moment to explain his history, it would be now. Only a small wall of air stood beside him and dear Susan, and she was hanging on to his words as if they were a lifeline. He could easily release his story, and the Doctor couldn't interrupt.

But, of course, Foreman was no longer her father.

"Well, I wouldn't say that much..." Foreman began. "Ah, well. I just wanted to inform you of how excited I was to finally meet you, that's all. I do wonder, though, and I've always wondered...are you truly the Doctor's granddaughter?"

The words spilled from within his mouth without ever the slightest bit of resistance, despite the fact Foreman knew he never should've asked such a deep and personal question. Perhaps Susan would end up sensing the significance behind it, perhaps not - but those words should not have escaped from the confines of Foreman's brain. And yet, now they flitted and floated about for all.

"Of course," Susan said, somewhat in awe of being given such a strange question. Then she took several moments to think through her answer before speaking again. "I mean, yes. I am, and sometimes I forget just how strange it is to be his granddaughter. People don't really think of the Doctor having family members, do they?" 

"No, he just seems like a loner...with quite a few friends," Foreman agreed. "Besides, it's not like you two look all that related any more - you've both regenerated many times, if I'm correct?"

"Indeed. I've known him since his first regeneration and he's known me since my first rengeration. I suppose we looked more similar then...but it's more complicated than that. I think. I mean, I never actually knew either of my true parents. I only knew him. Or, at least, I only remember him."

"Oh, that's a shame," Foreman sighed, making sure to keep a better grasp on what he was saying. "I mean, it must be terrible to know your family is out there in the vast expanse of time and space and you don't know them."

"Well, yes and no," Susan said, pursing her lips. "There's the fact of the matter that I've made my own family from other people - just because someone isn't directly related to you doesn't mean they can't be a part of your family."

"That's a wonderful way to look at things," Foreman said, although he could feel a stone sinking through his stomach. Of course she didn't care about finding her birth parents, not past this point in her life.

"I do try look on the bright side whenever I can," Susan said, releasing a giggle. "But I suppose you've already realised that much from just listening to me."

"And once again, that is a wonderful way to look on things," Foreman said. "I tend to be rather pessimistic, but I've been working on it."

"Well, I think you're doing a fine job. Now, if only we could both turn our optimism to productivity - we needed to find that trace of the Time Lords! And I want to find it before Grandfather does - he always manages to find everything first, and I want to beat him for once!"

"Then I suppose we better get down to work!" Foreman agreed. "He was enjoying this, quite a bit, but there was one problem - he wasn't quite sure what he was meant to be doing. Searching around for clues was a very vague order, and he wasn't sure how he was meant to follow it.

Nevertheless, he attempted to do his best for Susan's sake. Susan was ecstatic about this particular adventure, and he wanted to help advance her wishes as much as possible. He knew he had it in himself to make everything work out, but he needed to make sure he focused. He just wanted to impress the Doctor. He just wanted to impress Susan.

Perhaps what he had to do was pull on a deerstalker and pretend like he was a detective, taking time to scan the planet and find whatever it was they were looking for. Surely there had something out there, otherwise the TARDIS wouldn't have brought them to this strange planet to begin with. It couldn't be purely in vain.

But when walking through an endless field, there didn't seem to be much out there. After all, even the foreign purple grass soon became dull and monotonous when it was all one saw for hours on end. While Susan seemed to gain more and more energy as she went on, he just felt drained.

"What exactly are we looking for?" Foreman asked. "You were the one connected to the TARDIS ths whole time, you must know more about it than anyone else..." He trailed off, waiting for her to pick it up and explain.

"Well, I have a basic idea of what me might want to look of - it's more of an energy sort of thing than anything else. Only certain types of energy can come from Time Lords, after all. I'm guessing there is some sort of extra regeneration energy left here - not like someone chose to regenerate here, but they came here right after regenerating and had vestiges left behind. That would most certainly make sense, wouldn't it?" Susan asked, tilting her head. "It can last for an awfully long time if you let it sit there."

"Tht would make sense, wouldn't it?" Foreman asked.

"Yes, indeed! It's just that we have no real way to formally track any of it. If anyone has the materials, it's the TARDIS. And Grandfather, of course. But he doesn't count at the moment."

"Then are we just going to have to see it?"

"Or feel it, yes," Susan confirmed. "There isn't any other way to do it, so we'll just have to make do with whatever we have."

"And so it will be interesting to see if we find anything. I haven't seen any regeneration energy in ages, not since I last regenerated. Ah, well. "

"Well, it will certainly stick out from the purple grass,' Susan suggested. "I mean, yellow and purple are entirely different!"

This property of colour ended up being vital to their success - it wasn't long before their eyes set upon the glimmer of golden energy. Their instincts were to move forward and place their hands upon it, just to let it overtake their senses once again. It was something so familiar, so out of place...but it managed to drench them in a deluge of nostalgia.

"I suppose we have to head back to the TARDIS now, then," Susan said. "Grandfather will want to know that Gallifrey is most certainly out there somewhere, and we've just found our first trail."