Chapter One

Rose

It's funny how life can change in the blink of an eye.

In the blink of an eye, I let go of the lever and was sent hurtling away from the man I loved, towards the gaping hole of "hell." In the blink of an eye, I was rescued by my "dad" and spirited away to the other universe. In the blink of an eye, the gap closed and separated me from the Doctor. In the blink of an eye, the gap closed once more, permanently cutting me off from him forever, just before he was going to say something to me, something I had hoped and dreamed that he would say. But, now I will never know for sure if he was going to say the three words I longed to hear from him.

And…in the blink of an eye, I had done the impossible.

Or rather, it was done to me. I had nothing whatsoever to do with the bright flash of light that suddenly surrounded me. I was just walking along minding my own business enjoying a Saturday afternoon at the shops blowing some hard-earned money on clothes and shoes. The next thing I knew it was night, and I was standing in front of some red-haired woman who hadn't been there a moment ago. She seemed as confused as I was, so I knew she couldn't have been responsible for the bright light.

"Oi, did you just see that bright light?" I said to her.

She nodded, so I went up to talk to her. After all, if she had been standing there when the bright light happened, she might know what's going on.

Donna

Okay, that was bizarre.

We are in London investigating a series of disturbances. Apparently, people and things are suddenly just appearing out of nowhere in a flash of white light. Now, once upon a time, I would have dismissed that notion as something out of Star Trek. But, that's before I started traveling with the Doctor. After seeing giant wasps, and Sontarans, and Ood, trust me, I will believe anything you say now. People and things appearing out of nowhere in a flash of light? Okay, Doctor, I'll buy that, where do we start looking? Believe me; I've seen stranger things in my travels with him.

The Doctor had picked up a signal indicating there was some strong activity near Hyde Park and me, and him, and Martha had split up to see if we could pinpoint the location. So, there I was, walking along looking for this bright light, and lo and behold, it happens right in front of me. I am blinded for a second, and when my eyes adjust, I notice this blonde haired woman is standing in front of me, looking completely confused. I don't blame her. Judging from the shopping bag in her hand, she had just been to the shops. I picture her looking through a bunch of shirts, minding her own business, and then the light comes, and she suddenly finds herself in the middle of London. She notices me looking at her.

"Oi, did you just see that bright light?" she says, walking up to me.

I nod.

"Yes, in fact, you might not believe this, but I was actually looking for that light," I tell her.

She gives me an odd look.

"You were? Why?"

I smile.

"This has been happening a lot lately," I explain. "My friends and I have been tracking it and trying to figure out the source."

"Why? Are you from Torchwood?"

I frown. I recognize the name Torchwood, of course, from my encounter with the Racnoss, and the Doctor kinda filled me in a bit more, especially about his friend, Jack. Plus, Martha told me about the time she helped them out when she was with UNIT and filled in for a bloke named Owen, after he became a walking corpse. The way he and Martha had talked about it, I assumed it was a secret organization. Maybe it's not so secret after all.

"Um…no, I'm not," I say. "How do you know about them?"

"I work for them."

I raise my eyebrows. Oh, so that's how she knows about them. Okay, now things make more sense.

"Are you with UNIT?" the woman asks.

"Um…no, I'm not."

"Who are you with then?"

"Um…why do you want to know?"

"I want to know, because if you and your friends are a bunch of idiots out looking for a thrill, then I would stop searching, and go and inform the professionals before you get hurt."

My mouth drops open.

"Not that it matters, but me and my friends are not idiots out looking for a thrill, we are more than qualified to search for these lights," I say, angrily.

"Okay, than who are you then?" the woman says, folding her arms over her chest. "Because if this has been happening to others, I want to join you and help. Now, for the last time, who are you with?"

I sigh. I can tell this woman isn't gonna be satisfied until I tell her who I am, and what I'm doing. Not that it matters anyway. The woman won't know the Doctor or Martha, but I figure if she wants to go see the Doctor and offer her help, then it's up to the Doctor to decide whether or not she can join us. He's the one in charge after all.

"You don't know them, but I'm working with a woman named Martha Jones, and a man called the Doctor," I say.

I pause, and stare at her, confused. The woman suddenly turns whiter than a ghost. My anger is completely forgotten, as I walk towards her. Suddenly, I'm terrified the woman is gonna pass out right in front of me.

"Are you alright?" I ask gently.

I frown. She just mouthed something. Now, I've never been much of a lip reader, but did she just say, my love? Or…maybe it was something else, but I could have sworn that's what she just said. At any rate, I notice that she is deathly pale, and I reach out to grab her arm.

"Are you alright?" I repeat, wondering if I should sit her on the ground, before she falls down.

The woman looks at me, and my confusion intensifies when I see her face. I can see unshed tears in her eyes, and I wonder what the hell is going on. Does this woman know the Doctor and Martha? I notice her trembling, as she swallows hard and looks at me.

"The…the Doctor, where is he?" she asks.

"Um…"

Come to think of it, where is the Doctor? The man is quick. One minute you see him, the next you don't. Personally, I think he should wear a bell, but I have a feeling he wouldn't go for that.

"Um…" I say. "I'm not sure, but I'm sure he's around here somewhere."

I gasp, when she seizes my arms.

"Please, take me to him," she begs.

"Um…do you know the Doctor?"

She nods.

"Yes, my name is Rose Tyler. I traveled with him once."

It dawns on me who she is.

"Oh my God, you're Rose?" I said. "The Rose who's stuck in the other universe? That Rose?"

Rose frowns.

"The other universe? What do you mean? I…"

I see her starting to get it.

"Oh my God, I'm back? I'm back! That light carried me over the void?" she says.

"Um, yeah, I guess," I say, not knowing what she means by void. "The light has been bringing people and things into London from somewhere, and I guess it teleported you too."

She puts her hand over her mouth, and I can see the tears finally fall from her eyes.

"Oh God, I'm back. The thing I've been praying for has finally happened."

I gasp when she grabs my arms with such force; it feels like she's squeezing them in two.

"Please," she says, desperately. "Please, whoever you are, take me to him. You gotta find him. I gotta see him, please, take me to him!"

"Alright, geez, don't rip my bleedin' arms off! I'll take you to him!" I say.

Rose instantly lets go.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you," she says, sheepishly. "It's just that I've missed him so much, and I want to see him so badly. Please, we have to find him."

I smile. I remember how distraught the Doctor was over Rose when I first met him. It's nice to know that she loves him just as much as he loves her.

"Alright, who am I to stand in the way of your reunion," I say, holding up my hands. "Come on, we'll find the little bugger. He can't have gone far."

"Oh, thank you, thank you…um, what's your name?"

"Donna. Donna Noble."

She smiles.

"It's so nice to meet you, Donna. I'm so glad the Doctor found others to travel with him. I was terrified he was gonna end up alone. Despite everything that happened, I never wanted him to be alone."

"Well, trust me, not only is he not alone, but I think the poor man is frazzled now after having to deal with me and Martha."

Rose laughs.

"Can't be any more frazzled than he was traveling with me," she says.

"Oh, you'd be surprised," I reply. "Martha and I are a handful. I'm surprised the man hasn't gotten gray hairs from the two of us. But, we can talk about that later. Right now, we have to track him down."

Rose nods, and she, and I turn and head off into the park.