Author's Note: Very happy about the response this story is creating, I hope that everyone keeps it up! Special thanks to my reviewers and silent stalkers, love ya'll. Also thanks to my Beta-Reader, who has read over this chapter for me.

Disclaimer: If I owned Torchwood, the hub would have many bright colors.


"So Jack never told you about me?" Asked the man known as John Hart.

I just shrugged and sipped on my coffee before making a face. I could tell that it was instant, even though the waitress assured me it was not.

"Nope. Not a word," I answered as I took another sip of the coffee. The tips of my mouth turned upward; I was enjoying the look on his face, a look of a man who was thoroughly pissed off. Apparently John wasn't as special to Jack as he thought he was.

We were sitting in a small diner that was about five miles from the gas station where I first met John; if the word "met" could even begin to describe what happened. I'd say, 'discovered him in the back of my car all nonchalant like' but that would be a mouthful. Anyway, the first thing he did to gain my attention, other than scaring the shit out of me, was to hold up a little Tosh-made tracking device that had Torchwood all over it. Apparently, my car was bugged. I knew that Tad and Jack were probably on their way, so I hopped out of the car, ditched my keys, and allowed John to pay for bus fair, 'cause I'm that kind of alien, I guess.

We ended up at this diner, where I ordered coffee without thinking, and John ordered some weird alcohol that even I hadn't heard of...and I live with Jack and Owen. Talk about sad.

"Well, that's depressing," he finally said, taking another generous helping of his drink before ordering another one. He put on the appearance of having Jack's toleration to alcohol, though I didn't mouth my opinion. I really didn't feel like talking about any of them at Torchwood at the moment. I don't even know why I was thinking about them. The bastards.

I shrugged again, since there was really nothing else for me to do. John raised his arm to scratch the back of his red curly hair when I noticed something on his arm. The same something that Jack always had attached to his wrist; the thing that he always pressed to get something to work in the hub. I gestured to it. "What is that?"

"This?" John asked, pointing to it. I nodded. "It's my wrist strap. Dunno the real name for it. Every time traveler has one….mine's the biggest though," he added, a sense of pride-like emotion in his voice.

"Wait…you're a time traveler!?" I asked, sitting up very straight in the booth. I was suddenly very interested.

"So is your Jack. Makes you wonder, what else hasn't he told you." It was a statement, one that made Captain Jack Harkness suddenly seem like a stranger to me. A stranger that shagged Tad and helped raise me for six years. More fuel for the fire.

"Everything, apparently." I was surprised at the anger in my voice, and so was John as well, I saw it in his face.

The man leaned back, bringing his cup of whatever-it-was with him. I looked into his eyes, and in them I saw understanding and patience. It made it seem like the only reason John was there was to listen to my problems, which is all I wanted to do at that moment. Spill everything. But, in his eyes, I saw a hint of madness as well, just enough for me to hesitate. That, and the fact that the man was pretty much a complete stranger.

He noticed this as well. "Lemme guess. Jack saved you from some impending doom. Oh, the conquering hero. You fall for him, get stuck in a bloody time trap for five years where he is the wife, damn it, then when you get out, he suddenly disappears, leaving you heartbroken and pissed."

That got a smile out of me. "Not exactly. He did save me though…I think. I'm not sure anymore. I do know one thing though. He lied to me. For six years."

John raised his eyebrows. If it was in entertainment, surprise, or curiosity or a mixture of the three I wasn't sure. But I was tired of keeping all my thoughts to myself.

"Turns out, I'm not human, at least, not from this dimension. I came through the rift."

John smirked. "Didn't we all?"

I looked up, startled. "You're from the rift?"

He nodded. "Among other places. See, Torchwood tells you only bad things come from the rift, because, unlike you and I, they are human. And humans, when they don't understand something, they label it 'evil' and become hell-bent on destroying it.

"But you do understand, don't you Katylin? You understand the concept of dimensions, other realms. And you know what you want, don't you?" He was leaning closer now, that spark of madness growing into a light on insanity. But I didn't care. The words he was saying were the truth, every single syllable. I felt like I knew him, and I felt like I belonged.

"Yes." I whispered, nodding as fast as I could.

"And more than anything, you want to belong." He finished, marking the end of his speech by downing the last of his drink and slamming the table with his fists. I jumped.

"Well, Katylin, I can help you."

"How?" I asked. There was some kind of warning bell going off in the back of my mind, but I ignored it.

He waved his wrist, which had the strap on it, in the air. "We aren't called time travelers for nothing. "

"You can open the rift?" I asked incredulously. "But Jack told me that could unbalance everything, and destroy the Earth."

John laughed. "You should know by now that Jack lies a lot. He's a con man, that's what he does."

"You can send me back to my dimension?" I asked, one last time. He nodded.

"I just need you to get me into Torchwood," was his request. That was easy. I could do that.

--Torchwood--

I rode a bus back into Cardiff.

The seat was old and torn; the metal was cold to the touch. I leaned my cheek against it, wincing as it pressed into me. I closed my eyes and let all my thoughts flood over me, allowing my smarter-than-normal brain try and process everything. I questioned myself constantly, was I doing the right thing? Jack had to of had a good reason not to tell me about John Hart, right? But I wasn't sure anymore about Jack Harkness. Or Ianto Jones. Or anything relating to Torchwood. I did want to go home though, back to my dimension. That was one thing I was sure of, and John said he could get me there.

The plan was simple. Get into the hub, wait for an emergency, then just let him in. John said he would take care of the emergency, and I agreed, as long as no one got hurt. We shook on it.

The bus pulled to a stop and I got out, the Cardiff wind playing with my hair. My alien hair. I hesitantly opened the door to the tourist office, the familiar jingle of the bell alerting everyone that I had arrived. Tad wasn't in his normal spot, but I knew they all saw me the same. I knew exactly where the cameras were. I gave a weak wave toward one of them and heard a click as the secret door was opened.

I let out a large breath as I entered the tunnel, quickening my steps. I wanted to get this over with and leave before I changed my mind. The cog loomed before me and the loud annoying siren sounded, and the Torchwood hub was once again in front of me.

As soon as I stepped through, a small, black-haired woman attacked me. Tosh. I grinned and half-hugged her back.

"We were so worried, but Jack wouldn't let us come find you." Tosh said.

"I…just needed to be alone." I pushed away from her, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. She didn't seem to mind. I looked up and saw Tad standing right behind her, his hands held behind his back Star Trek style, his shoulders slightly rounded, head looking toward the floor; it was his trademark stance. I walked up and hugged him, since I knew he wouldn't do it on his own. It was meant to look like a welcome-back hug, but it was really a good-bye hug, since I knew that, any minute now, the alarms would sound and I would be alone in the hub for the last time.

Even Owen was there, with one of his 'I really don't want to be here' looks on his face, although I knew it was just a mask. I rolled my eyes and gave him a hug too, feeling kind of stupid. The silent words spoken, everyone turned back to go to work once again. I looked around, taking in the hub, when my eyes landed on Jack. He was standing just inside of his office, the glass walls not hiding him from my sight. He was staring at me, and he was frowning.

I gave a weak smile and an even weaker wave before going to the autopsy bay to bother Owen.

I was right. It was only a few minutes later that the Torchwood alarm blazed through the building.

"Jack! There's a major disturbance in the middle of the city. At least five Weevil sightings, along with power blackouts to half the city square. Major rift spikes."

The Captain came bounding down the stairs, all ready to take charge. "Owen, Ianto, take care of the Weevils. Tosh, I want you to get to the city power and fix it from the source. Kat, I want you on the computers, try and find the source."

"What about you Jack?" Owen asked, already gearing up with his Weevil hunting equipment.

"I'm going to stay here with Kat. There are a few things I need to explain."

Damn it.

"Now?" Tosh asked shocked at his choice of timing (as I was - believe me), but Jack's look put an end to all arguments.

In a few seconds the hub was silent. I moved to Tosh's chair and tapped a few things into the computer, trying to make it look like I was trying to find the source. Of course, I had already found it; I had found it before I ever entered the hub. I glanced over to find Jack staring at me, that frown still on his face. "What?"

He pulled one of the wheelie chairs over next to mine and plopped down into it, crossing his legs and getting comfy while he stared at the screen. "I know you're angry at me for not telling you who you are, and you should be. But it was for the best."

"How did you know that? How could you possibly know I was better off not knowing."

Jack sighed and gently bumped my chair out of the way and pressed a few keys. A file popped up. My file. He began to read. "Young, about ten years of age. All signs of human life, excluding the rapid mental growth. Suffering from extreme mental and physical trauma. Unresponsive to any attempts of communication."

"Something happened to you in your dimension," he continued, "you wouldn't eat, drink, or talk, other than your ramblings that none of us could explain." Jack said, his eyes vacant, like he was reliving the memories. "So we gave you retcon. Wiped everything, let your wounds heal, then gave you a new life."

I sniffed, wiping away tears that I didn't notice I was shedding. "I want to go back."

"What?" Jack asked, geniuenly confused. "Why?"

I kept my back to him, exiting out of my file and keying a few buttons, glancing at the clock. A few more minutes. "Because you taught me how to save the world, Jack. So why shouldn't I? If I was as bad as you say I was, how do you think the rest of my dimension is fairing? I want to help; I need to help." I turned, locking onto his eyes. "I don't belong here."

My finger hovered over the final key, the one that would allow John access into the hub. But I needed one thing out of Jack first. "Why won't you let me go back?"

Jack blinked his eyes fast, and shook his head. His voice came out shaky. "I…I can't Katylin."

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding as my finger came down, swiftly striking the final button. "Then I'm sorry."

He frowned, tensing. "For what?"

"For this."

We both turned to see John Hart standing at the front of the Torchwood hub, both of his guns in his hands, that crazy glint in his eyes. Jack stood up immediately and held his hands up, glancing between me and John, the hurt in his eyes evident.

"Thanks Katylin, dear, but I'll take it from here."

My eyes widened as I saw him squeeze the trigger. Jack saw this too, and jumped in front of me just in time. Two loud shots echoed through the hub and I was thrown backwards by the weight of Jack's body. A scream I later identified as my own pierced my ears, and I hit the ground with a thud. There was maniacal laughter, and the smell of blood that was not my own. I struggled to get out from under Jack's body, my eyes glancing toward John as I watched him strut towards the computers, whistling like there wasn't a care in the world. "Bastard! You lied!"

He laughed. "And you're surprised, why?"

I unpinned myself from Jack's dead body and rolled him on his back, my hands searching for the bullet wounds. He wasn't breathing, but it didn't worry me. He would be back in a few minutes. When I reached his chest my hands came away red with blood. I swallowed the bile rising to my throat and hugged Jack tightly. It wasn't supposed to be like this. I looked down, and my eyes fell on Jack's waist...his gun. My hand slowly crept toward it, my fingers curling around the handle. This was my mistake, and I would be the one to fix it.

Sadly, John realized this as well and walked, with a bit more speed, over to where I was and yanked to gun out of my grasp. I yelled, but all he did was roll his eyes. "Shut up."

A painful hack came from Jack, followed by a gasp that could also count as a scream. His wild eyes searched for anything and landed on me. He refocused just in time to be slammed back, shot dead again.

"I said, shut up." John reiterated, the smoking gun in his lazy hands. "Lemme fix this."

He took Jack out of my hands without any fight from me and chained his hands together behind his back, hooking the handcuffs on a pole cemented into the ground. John smirked at his handiwork then turned toward me. "Now, I'd like it if you turned on the rift manipulator."

He gestured with his gun and I stared at the barrel. Was he going to shoot me? At that point I was past the point of caring. My hands and feet felt numb, and my brain was shut down, my body moving on its own. Some would call it shock; I called it being a wimp. Jack needed me, hell, the world needed me right now, and all I could do was nod.

I stumbled to the computers, where my fingers clumsily danced on the keys. "I…I don't know how."

"Bullocks." John started to gesture with his gun and I flinched. "I know all about your brain, figure it out. I can shoot Jack all day and he'll keep coming back. But what about eye-candy, hmm? I don't think your precious Jones, Ianto Jones will be able to take more than two bullets."

"Why are you doing this?" I whispered, my mind racing.

"Because I'm stranded on this bloody planet, and I want to leave!" John yelled. His rant was accented perfectly by Jack, whose body chose that exact moment to revive itself again. John smiled and walked over to where he had the Captain chained. He kissed the other man firmly on the lips then retreated, aiming the gun right at his heart. "Any minute now."

"No!" Was Jack's hoarse, desperate cry. "Kat, no! Whatever he promised you, it's not worth it!"

My finger once again hesitated over the kill switch. I had set everything up, imputed the coordinates and everything. Like I said before, I understood the complexity of dimensions, and had a basic understanding of how they worked. I would have made a bloody great time agent.

I looked Jack in the eyes, dread filling his, hope filling mine. "I'm sorry."

I pressed the button.

A roaring sound filled the air as the rift manipulator screamed into life. The world seemed to tilt and turn as a rip was created in the actual fabric of time. There was nothing but light spilling out of the seam, and John let out another maniacal laugh.

"Good bye, my love!" He yelled over the scream of the machine. He raised his hand in a mock salute and jumped through the rift.

I turned and hit a few keys that were supposed to turn the rift manipulator off, but the machine kept going. The computers started going crazy, monitors showing numbers off the chart. I took all the data in in one glance. This wasn't good. Time itself was unraveling. "Jack!"

I ran to the man, my hair blowing all over the place, my body feeling like nothing but a leaf in the very strong wind. I made it over to the man and uncuffed him.

"Where'd you send him?" Jack yelled into my ear, but over the noise I could barely hear him.

"I'm not quiet sure, I just took coordinates from a file labeled 'places never to send someone through the rift.' Figured it would work."

Jack laughed, a strange sight under the circumstances, since I couldn't hear the sound. Another piercing scream as the hub shook brought us back to the frightening reality. "We got to turn it off!"

Jack ran toward the machine, but I grabbed his arm. "I can fix it!" I yelled.

"What?!" But I knew he had heard me. I grabbed him tightly and pulled him close so that he would catch every word.

"A small explosion through the rift will cause it to invert upon itself." I screamed into his ear. I knew there were several small bombs in the Torchwood archives, and Owen had to have at least a few just hanging around. He was that kind of guy.

Jack shook his head. "No! Someone would have to jump into the rift to do that!"

"I know! I reset the coordinates to the ones Tosh picked up when I first arrived." I yelled, and I saw Jack's eyes flash as he realized my plan. It was a long shot, of course. The worst that could happen would be the world would end in a bang, the best being a few people forgetting why they were here. More than likely something in-between would happen, but only if we closed the rift very, very soon.

"I won't let you go!" Jack yelled, grabbing my arms, but I had already made up my mind. I hugged him tightly and kissed him on the cheek, pulling out of his grasp. I struggled to run to the weapons cabinet, grabbing a very big-looking explosive alien device from the shelves. I ran back to the rift manipulator to find Jack on the computers, making last minute adjustments. He was crying.

The rift screamed an agonizing scream, and I knew my time was coming close to being over. The hub was now moving all around, and I started to see glimpses in time, the rift screwing with time itself. I saw a cyberwoman shooting up the hub, Gwen crying on the floor, Owen working on a body, Jack laughing at some joke, Tosh at her computer, Myfanwy flying all around the hub, Ianto making coffee, Jack harassing Ianto, Ianto harassing Jack. And me, standing there through the middle of it all, a look on my face that was the pure definition of Torchwood. And I realized that I would miss it all. But this was the only way.

I hesitated, the bomb in my hands, facing the rift.

I turned to see Jack looking at me, and I ran to him, hugging him again, afraid to let go. "I love you!"

I only whispered the words, but he heard, and buried his face in my shoulder.

"Tell everyone I love them, especially Tad." Then I let go, gave Captain Jack Harkness one last look, then ran toward the rift, toward my home.

Then I got to the edge, and I felt the pull. Every inch of my body screamed as its molecules began to be ripped apart. I closed my eyes, said good bye, and jumped.


-Hides- don't kill me. Please. There is one more chapter left, promise.

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