He never thought he'd see her again, his beautiful, blonde angel, though of course, he'd hoped. It was torture but of the addictive kind, when even the pain of fantasy and memory was preferable to the stark loneliness of truth. He'd punish himself with images and imagined sensations of what might have been; obsessive sexual dreams that fractured the known timeline and had him lost in the arms and buried in the bodies of the two people he loved and trusted more than his previous Time Agent/Con-man mind had thought possible. But now she was listed in the names of the dead and that bought such a painful, sickening reality that even his perverse, sex-crazed brain couldn't deflower the only memories and experiences of her he had left.
Then it happened. He was alone of an evening, as was usually the case, and walking aimlessly about the darkness-corrupted streets of Cardiff - the moans of couples in alleys, the smell of sex and alcohol on the stagnant, humid air rushing out of the back doors of clubs, the man bundling himself into a taxi, spraying heavy cologne as he made his way home to his wife – night when all the desires and passions and needs of humanity were flaunted and filled. But he was alone.
Suddenly he heard a scream that chilled his melancholy. Exploding neurons fired and adrenalin pumped as the instinctual alert state of preservation and awareness flooded his system. He took off at a run, listening intently for direction over the screech of burning tyres, drunken laughter and speeding taxies.
Past the library, rounding the basement club, down the alley and there it was – a weavel and a damsel in distress, blonde hair licking a muddy puddle as she scrambled backwards on the ground, like a crab, never taking her eyes off the advancing being.
Jack approached cautiously and quietly not wanting to startle the beast into either advancing or fleeing. He wasn't in the mood for a game of chase and needed to deal with efficient alacrity. When he was about a foot from the woman he whispered, "When I tell you to, run." A shiver seemed to thrum through her body and she nodded carefully, still not losing her intense focus.
Slowly Jack removed his blaster and set it to stun. He then edged to the side of the girl and drove the weavel closer to the wall, putting the dumpsters in its path and giving her a clear escape route.
"RUN!" he bellowed and levelled his weapon and fired. The alien was too fast and the shot deflected off a rusty door as the weavel lunged towards him. Luckily the captive victim scooted back and to her feet with the distraction and he could focus on the hunt now that she was at a safe distance although, he noted, she didn't flee.
The beast rocked him over with his bulk and used its weight to try to restrain and maul the Captain. He was at a disadvantage, trying to shove it off against gravity just enough to give him room to take aim once more. Suddenly the thing lurched to the side with a howl, a blunt object connecting with the side of its skull. Now it was pissed but Jack had already moved and fired at point blank range. It slumped defeated to the ground with an audible groan of exhalation. Jack quickly moved to secure it and get on top of the situation.
"Thanks," he enthused as he cuffed the poor beast, dragging its body to the stairs of a nearby fire exit, hoping it would stay unconscious long enough for him to discreetly fetch an SUV and make it disappear into the Cardiff night.
"Anytime! Looked like you were having some difficulty and what's a girl to do? Leave her handsome knight to get mauled while she skips back to her castle?"
Jack battled with a will power (or perhaps weakness) he didn't know he possessed as he uttered one word before turning to face his fear of mistaken reality, "Rose?"
"Bet you thought you were done saving me?" she smirked, standing so close, so vivid and so alive, mischief twinkling in slightly misted eyes.
"Oh my God, Rose!" And in a second they were in each others arms, squeezing so tight he feared bones would break and hearts would puncture!
Quickly pushing her back, needing desperately to see her for affirmation, he cupped her face and kissed her. He didn't even think about it. It was the most natural reaction in the world. His kiss was hungry and fumbling with none of the usual Harkness finesse but when she kissed back just as passionately, he didn't care.
"I missed you so much!" they both gasped in unison when eventually their lungs demanded that they part. Gentle, deft caresses were exchanged, fingers smoothing over faces and down arms, relearning, memorising and needing the touch and closeness so much.
As shouts broke out from the front of the club they realised they'd soon have company and the spell was broken or at least put on hold for duty and secrecy.