Authors Notes: Get your tissues. This is going to be a sad story.

Never Left You

Chapter 11

Childish

The Professor and Donny had been together for only seven months when the first bombs fell. School had been canceled for the time being. Boys, and men were sent off to battle the Nazi's and the children were sent to the country side.

Said action...wasn't what they wanted. Neither wanted to leave the others arms, but as they stood on the platform looking out over the country side. Neither wanted to say the first word, no one wanted to move at all. Horatio could tell that his daughter was mad at him. But three days ago when he got the official notice that she was going to be scheduled on the next train, and she was going to the countryside like the other children...she didn't want to. She cried loudly in his arms, and he too shed a few tears with her. He wanted to go with her; he wanted nothing to do with this silly war and the death it would bring.

Yet as they stood there, her in her darling little dress he had bought for her and him in his uniformed best...they stood together perhaps for the last time.

That thought in general broke his heart, but no more than the whistle of the train as it broke over the bridge and into Kings Cross. Donny jumped into the Professors arms and clung to him. "You have your bag? I put some pictures inside of it. That might help." He said she just nodded and clung to him tighter when he tried to pull away.

"Hey…I don't want to see you crying like that angel. What I want for you to do is get on that train. Crying is for the end…this is the beginning. Alright?" He asked and looked at his daughter who pulled away and wiped her eyes free of the tears she had just shed.

Donny pulled something out of her pocket and put it over the Professors head. "Don't go alone." She said and walked onto the train. The Professor looked at the necklace that now hung loosely around his head. He opened the locket and smiled. Pictures of them at the fair not that long ago.

He looked up at the train following her with his eyes. She walked into one of the units and opened the window. "Take care of it alright? I'll want it back." She said and Horatio reached out cupping her tiny face in his hands. "Take care of yourself; look after the kids younger then you." He said knowing some of the children might get housed with her too.

"I will Papa…I promise." She said kissing his fingers. She gasped when his fingers were pulled from her own as the train began to move.

"I love you Donny…remember that!" He called after her as the train sped up.

"I will…I'll remember." She blew him a kiss and he caught it placing his hand to his chest. The train sped away from view and away from the crying, and heart heavy parents that let their children go to their fates.

The train sped down its track letting the scared, and crying children rest from the sudden worries of bombs, or raids.

Donny sat looking out the window, her head on her hand. The sky proved the show as much emotion as she did as the clouds opened it and started to spray the countryside with rain. Even the low rumble didn't scare her like it usually did. Her heart hurt, and that hurt more than any lightning bolt could ever do.

"Hey get back here with that. You're not supposed to have gum on the train!" One of the nurses yelled at a dark haired boy who looked twice as young as she did. Donny looked down at the child who glared at the woman.

"It's not gum you lousy winch." He yelled Donny grabbed the boys hand and looked him in the eyes and shook her head.

"You don't need to run for her kid…just don't chew it and there shouldn't be a problem…right?" She looked up at the nurse who rolled her eyes and walked out of the room. The boy pulled out the trinket he had in his mouth and put it in his pocket. It looked like a tiny figure that belonged to a bigger set. Little toy soldiers were very common in Britain.

"Thanks…names Roger. Whats yours?" he asked rubbing his nose with his sleeve and sniffled noisely. Great…that's all Donny needed right now…a cold.

"Names Donny Smith." She said looked back down at the pictures in her hands. She was on the Professors shoulders a few days after they got off the boat. Her first time in England…and she had that awful looking brace on her arm, and leg. They were both a little worse for wear after that ordeal.

"That your dad?" He asked. Donny nodded. "Where your mama?" He asked. He had to be about 4 or 5 years old. So she didn't correct his grammar that would come with age.

"Yeah, he adopted me a few months ago. He's not married so I don't have a mama. My parents were killed by the Nazi's." She said and looked back out over the lands as the rain got a bit worse. She squinted her eyes and narrowed them slightly. She saw it before it happened…a German spitfire flew overhead dropping bombs on the road just ahead of the train. The explosion shook the ground, and split the ears. Donny grabbed the boy and ran into the hallway and sat on the ground holding him tightly to her. When the train hit the railing that was now blown apart…everything oddly was soundless, wordless, and painless. But only for an instant, when Donny woke up the boy was crying, and clinging to her tightly.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Donny asked the boy who shook his head and looked around at the mangled train. A few feet away the nurse that had been chasing Roger was laying, her eyes were open, and blood was dripping from her mouth and nose. She was pretty sure the reason why the boy was crying was because the woman…was only half there.

Donny backed away from the woman and walked back toward the back of the train where there were crying children. Donny wasn't sure what was going to happen, much less where they were going to go. All she knew was the follow the tracks back to England.

But the other kids were crying, and she made a promise to her father to take care of them…they would have to follow.

In England

Horatio looked around at the men playing poker waiting for orders. One of the big things about playing soldier…there was a whole lot of waiting. Its where the Professor learned patience.

"Guys…guys listen to this!" One of the other boys ran over with a radio.

"Several of the train tracks have been blown up, and several of them had trains full of children following them. Three trains so far have followed a dreadful fate. The numbers are to follow. Train heading for Liverpool number 382. Train heading for Dublin 918, and Train heading for Manchester number 188…"

The radio went on and on…and the soldiers went on talking. But the Professor pulled his daughters ticket from his breast pocket and looked at it.

"Prof…you alright?" Horatio handed the man the ticket and he looked over it.

"My daughter…was on number 188." He said and swallowed hard.

"Any volunteers to go find some straggler children?!" One of the officials asked and jumped when they all threw there arms into the air. "Now let's all not jump up at once." He said and motioned for everyone to follow.

"It's the professors daughter Major. She's on train 188." The man called Dibbs said. The Major looked up at the Professor whose bag was already on his back.

"Well lets go find her then." He said and tipped his hat.