This chapter is for koryandrs; I'm so grateful for all of your reviews!
Obviate
ob'vi'ate (v). to prevent something by anticipating and disposing of it effectively.
o-o-o
Given how peacefully the boy was lying on the medical bed now, it was be hard to imagine that only an hour or so earlier he'd been thrashing and convulsing to the point where he had to be held down by the not-exactly-apt Toshiko as Owen ran for a sedative and Gareth ran for Jack and Suzie. From what Jack could gather, after he and Suzie had left the others had offered Daniel a glass of water with the pill dissolved inside, much as they had a thousand times before with a thousand other people, but a few minutes after drinking it he'd started to sweat – quite profusely, apparently. It was the gargling noises he began to make that attracted Owen's attention, and soon it became an all-out fit across the bed.
"Allergy of somekind," was Owen's explanation, "his throat closed up and he couldn't breathe. The lack of oxygen caused the fit, but I'll need to run some tests to be sure."
"Do you have any idea what caused the reaction?" Jack rubbed his chin thoughtfully as they watched the younger man sleep peacefully.
"Not the slightest," Owen replied, "amnesia pills are designed as a catch-all type thing – no known food or otherwise chemically engineered material allergies should apply. Yet somehow, we picked up the one exception and dumped him in the middle of the Hub – nice one, Jack."
"Maybe he's allergic to the vessel you gave it to him in?" Suzie suggested.
"Water? Not likely."
"But not impossible," she pointed out.
He snorted. "A patient'd normally tell you if he was allergic to water before taking a nice long drink, don't you think?" She conceded with a nod.
"Then what I want to know is what caused it—I don't care how you find out," Jack pushed off from the wall he was leaning on and peered in to take a closer look at the sleeping form. "Until we know he can't leave."
There was a bubble of resistance from Suzie as she watched. "We can't just keep him here indefinitely, Jack. Who knows how long the tests will take?"
"What choice do we have?" He shook his head. "Until we can safely administer a Retcon we can't let him set one foot outside this building. Nobody leaves the Hub with memories of Torchwood, that's been the rule since before your great grandparents were even eating solid foods."
"He has a life to get back to. A father who needs constant care, remember?"
"Then we'll send someone to do just that," he pushed on, before calling for Tosh's attention, "get a nurse sent to Johnson's address. Tell the father he's on vacation for a few days."
Suzie fixed him with a steely glare. "He's not our prisoner, Jack. He wouldn't even be here and have any memories to erase if it weren't for you and my question that you still haven't answered."
"Who is he, Jack? Who's the Doctor?"
"I'll run a few basic tests, and if I come up with anything weird I'll show you. Beyond that, I refuse to be part of a kidnapping – nothing wrong with him, he walks, okay?" Owen came between them, an edge of finality in his tone that they both picked up on. It had been a strange day, and they didn't need to finish it on such a sour note, especially between the two who usually worked in tandem.
Still, Jack wasn't one to let the last word slip him by. "Well, find me an amnesia pill that won't kill him and we won't have any problems."
Suzie and Owen exchanged a look.
"Jack—" She started again.
"Jack," Tosh cut across from elsewhere in the Hub. "Yvonne Hartman's on line three, I put it through to your office if that's alright."
He groaned – to put it bluntly, he wasn't a huge fan of Torchwood One and their base of operations in London. Their methods belonged back in the nineteenth century and their attitudes towards aliens were distasteful at best. When Jack had rebuilt Torchwood he'd done it in the Doctor's honour – Torchwood One was still hell bent on capturing the man because of some ridiculous decree issued by Queen Victoria over a hundred years ago. Still, they were the headquarters for the whole Institute, so despite how much he disliked them as head of Torchwood Three Jack still answered to them.
Not to mention Yvonne Hartman was one of a kind, the only woman he knew whose arrogance was rivalled only by her ignorance and blatant disregard for non-human life. On the occasions he'd met the administrator over the past few years they hadn't exactly gotten on – not to mention Jack had been in this game a lot longer than she had. Only top level officials in Torchwood were aware just how long he'd sat on the Cardiff Rift, and Yvonne Hartman was one of them. He was a veteran when it came to alien life and Torchwood altogether, and she didn't like it. Regardless, she was still his boss, frustrating as it was.
"Tell her I'll be right there," Jack called back through gritted teeth, before turning back to the other two. "I'll be back in ten – he doesn't move while I'm gone."
In truth, he was worried – a lot more worried than the team felt he should be. Maybe none of them were aware that he'd been a member of Torchwood for over 100 years, but that didn't change the fact that in all his time using the Retcon since they'd managed to perfect the technology, there'd never been anyone who'd shown any kind of negative reaction to it. There had been people it was ineffectual on, but never someone whose body outright rejected it.
It was probably nothing – maybe a faulty pill or something funny Johnson had eaten earlier in the day, but Jack didn't like it. He had a bad feeling about it; about that boy altogether. It was one of those nagging instincts you picked up when travelling with the Doctor that you learnt to trust rather than dismiss.
He wasn't sure if that justified containing him in the Hub. Maybe a small irrepressible part of him was still sniffing for any sign of the Doctor around him, and he could tell that was what the rest of the team were picking up on. Telling himself that he was keeping Daniel around for his own good, he strode into his office to find out what the self-proclaimed lady and mistress of Torchwood wanted with him.
"Yvonne Hartman," he chirped as brightly and as falsely as he could into the receiver, "to what do I owe the pleasure?"
"Oh Captain, I can feel you lying all the way down the line."
Her tone was, as usual, a poor attempt at being coy, no doubt with that smirk that made her perpetually look like the cat that caught the canary.
"I guess not all of us can pull them off as easily as you," he parried.
"Clearly."
"What do you want?"
"Believe it or not," he could hear her sigh, "your help."
Now he couldn't resist the triumphant grin. "Now I'm intrigued." With their mutual dislike always so obvious, it had to be something serious for her to consider going to him for help – knowing Yvonne Hartman, she'd probably exhausted all her other options first.
She ignored him, "how soon can you get up to Torchwood Tower?"
"I'm in Cardiff," he pointed out dryly.
"I'm aware," she purred down the phone. "I know it seems out of the blue, but you must remember I'm a professional. I'm the first to admit that your extra-terrestrial knowledge puts everyone else in the Institute to shame—and if you weren't so hell-bent on staying in your, shall we say, modest subdivision in Cardiff you'd be well-received here at Torchwood One."
Jack said nothing – same old argument, same old ignorance.
"That, coupled with your... fascinating ability has made you invaluable to the Institute over the years."
"I'm aware," Jack echoed in a slight mimic of her earlier tone.
Her false flattery was dropped in an instant. "Believe me, Captain, if I could ask anyone else I would have done so already."
Jack smirked, "at least I know you're being honest."
"I wouldn't go that far."
He gritted his teeth – still, he'd been right. It had to be something serious for her to want him, and whatever it was didn't bode well for London.
"I'll drive. Four hours tops."
He could feel her smug smile even if he couldn't see it. "I'll reserve you a parking space." With a click the line went dead, and he resisted a growl of frustration. He'd take an army of gas-masked zombies over Yvonne Hartman any day.
As he emerged from his office, before he could even start to explain to his team why he'd be heading to the capital for an indeterminate period, Toshiko beat him to it.
"London?"
The corner of Jack's mouth perked up. "Am I that predictable?"
"No, but Yvonne is. We've just been sent a lot of intel on some UFO sightings there last night—Torchwood One managed to stamp down on them before the reports became too widespread, but I'd say that's what she wants you for. Am I right?"
"Maybe," Jack shrugged; she hadn't exactly been forthcoming with information.
"That woman always makes me think of a velociraptor," Gareth mused from where he sat, swinging round in his seat to face Jack. "She looks like she's smiling, but she's probably just wondering how easily she could pin you to the ground and rip open your throat."
"I'll be sure to keep an eye out for any killer claws."
o-o-o
The door to the TARDIS swung open, revealing a man and his companion emerging from within, already deep in conversation.
"It's like... you know how on Earth they always go on about your moon controlling the tides on the planet's surface?"
"Yeah," Rose said, eyeing him suspiciously, "doesn't it?"
The Doctor grinned. "It does, don't worry. I'm not about to ruin your primary school physics—just a simple gravitational field. Like magnets where the moon is one pole and the water's the other, right?" He turned and locked the TARDIS as he continued to talk, and Rose let her tongue poke out between her teeth and allowed herself an indulgent grin while he did so.
She loved it when he got like this – so animated and involved in his exploring, but always eager to explain it to her in a way she'd understand; keen to show her all the wonders of the stars in the only way he knew how. Like her own personal tour guide of the Universe. He loved it too, she knew, being the clever one of the pair, and that left an amiable partnership in its wake.
"Right," she agreed, even if she wasn't quite sure what she was agreeing to.
"Well, this—this, is different. Much different. Imagine the moon actually controlled the tides instead of it being down to rudimentary forces; imagine the height of the waves being totally at the discretion of one huge, sentient being in the sky."
Rose whirled around and her jaw dropped. "You mean it's alive?"
The Doctor's eyes sparkled. "Oh, yes."
Before she could even begin to fire off questions the Doctor had taken her hand, tugged her gently back to his side and pointed up to the sky with his free arm, his familiar expectant and tender smile trained on her to watch her reaction as realisation dawned.
The first thing Rose noticed was how huge the moon was, looming down on them like a bubble of something incandescent, a much paler ivory colour than what she was used to on Earth. It filled at least a third of the sky that she could see, appearing so close that she felt as if she could reach out and touch it – she was tempted to try, but she didn't want the Doctor to laugh at her. The edges of the moon were a lot less defined than what she was used to as well; instead of it being a clear sphere, the rim danced in her vision filled with wisps and extended tendrils of slim moonlight like ghostly tentacles reaching out across the navy sky.
Coupled with the familiar twinkling of distant stars, it was breathtaking. And it was alive.
"It's beautiful," she breathed, and the Doctor's grin grew wider. He refused to let his trips be anything but impressive – now more importantly than ever, given his desire to take her mind as far away from what (or rather, who) they'd found back on Earth as possible.
"You see those wobbly bits around the edge that keep moving?" He pointed at a few of the wisps she'd noticed before and she nodded. "They're antennae. They sense the gravimetric waves and distortion coming from the planet's surface and she responds however she pleases—she is, quite literally, the storm bringer for the people who live here." He squeezed Rose's hand as his musings continued. "She doesn't have a name for herself, only one of her kind. Not entirely self aware enough for communication or anything like that, but she's brilliant all the same."
"She?" Rose dragged her eyes from the site of the moon to look over at the Doctor with a raised eyebrow.
"The humans who colonised here call her Selene, after the Greek Goddess of the moon."
"That's lovely."
The Doctor's eyes sparkled with amusement. "Yup. Although I like to call her Carol."
Rose rolled her eyes. "So who lives here then? When are we?"
He scratched his ear and returned to tour guide mode, and she leaned into his shoulder peacefully to listen. "42nd century, this is one of the last planets to be officially colonised by the Second Great and Bountiful Human Empire before a species-rights act decreed you should stick to your own corner. Didn't last o' course, you humans are insatiable when it comes to exploration."
"And proud of it!" Rose beamed.
The Doctor spared her a smile. "Officially christened Moonwave, this planet consists of 93.7% water—Earth's only about 70.8% for some perspective—so most of the population live on floating cities." Rose's jaw dropped, but the Doctor took no notice. "I have to say, I hope they fired the bloke that named it Moonwave. Over three galaxies full of endless cultures and some of the most creative names in the Universe at their disposal—they take one look at Carol and go 'yep, moon controls the waves. Got just the name for that.' It's criminal!"
Rose wasn't paying attention as her smile grew even wider. "Doctor," she began, taking the opportunity to look around her now, positively brimming with excitement, "are we on a—?"
He only waggled his eyebrows in response.
"Oh my god we're floating," she gasped, letting go of his hand and jogging to the edge of the platform the TARDIS had parked on. "There's water below us and we're floating—it's like Atlantis or somethin'!"
"Actually, Atlantis was an island with a city. And before you ask, it wasn't my fault," he rubbed the back of his neck abashedly.
She didn't even spare him a glance, but the Doctor didn't mind being ignored.
"Amazing, isn't it?"
It had to be, especially if he was to divert her attention from other matters. The Doctor knew it was rare that he and Rose ever hit a point of contention, and he'd been shaken by their argument in the TARDIS the day before – Jack was a difficult subject to broach. He thought he'd managed to convince her that it was alright and to leave him out of the picture, but Rose didn't just forget things; especially people she cared about. It was one of the wonderful things about her. However, with it being clear now that Jack was out looking for them in the 21st century he'd have to be more careful that they didn't cross paths again. A prickle of guilt tugged at the corner of his mind and he tried to ignore it with false reassurances – Jack was different now. Jack was permanent.
As much as in some ways he disliked trying to avoid an old friend in such a way, no less a friend who had put his life on the line and lost it for him, his instincts were difficult to ignore. And as he watched Rose kneeling on the ground and running her hand through the water a lazy smile slid into place. They had a great life, didn't they? The pair of them. Running from star to star and saving the Universe a hundred times over. They didn't need the added passenger when they could be just as they always had been.
Was that selfish? Probably. Maybe part of the Doctor just wanted Rose Tyler to himself, at least for as long as he could. So he was back to dazzling her with the floating cities of Moonwave in a silent plea for her to forget Jack, forget everything else, and just carry on as normal.
He was definitely selfish.
He couldn't bring himself to care.
"Want to go explore?" He called and held out his hand as she turned, wiggling his fingers invitingly.
"You betcha!" She laughed, and bounced back towards him.
Just as they started setting off for one of the nearest citadel type buildings the familiar electronic jingle of Rose's mobile phone floated out of her pocket. They halted so she could pull it out and take a look.
"It's Mickey," she said somewhat apologetically, and the Doctor groaned. "I better take it."
She let go of his hand and stepped a few paces away and he sighed – maybe he was just destined not to have her to himself for any length of time at all. He entertained himself by counting the windows of the citadel while he waited, and after a few minutes she hung up and walked back over to him with a secretive grin.
"How quick do you reckon we can explore this place then? Only Mickey thinks he's got himself an emergency back home."
This piqued the Doctor's interest. "What sort of emergency?"
"He says there's this school, right? In the last three months they've been getting record results, an' he thinks it's aliens."
"Does he now?" The Doctor mused, and Rose could tell there was a good-natured but derogatory comment about Mickey's intelligence to follow, and although it probably would have been funny she felt the need to defend him on this occasion.
"Apparently there were loads of UFO sightin's around just before the results started getting better," she pressed on, "worth checking it out though, yeah?"
"Oh 'course, yeah," the Doctor nodded, "love a good school, me. I was once a substitute teacher for Alan Turing—he couldn't half talk, I can tell you. And next to no appreciation for anything beyond maths. Even history!" The blank look Rose was giving him suggested she wasn't really sure who he was talking about, but that wasn't much of a change. "Anyway, I can guarantee you there's nothing in the entire Universe more fun than going to school."
"Tell that to my sixty percent attendance record," Rose clicked her tongue and the Doctor shot her an amused look. "We can explore the city first though, yeah? TARDIS an' all. Mickey'll still be there when we get back."
The Doctor beamed, taking her hand again and nodding in the direction of the citadel. "Moonwave awaits!"
o-o-o
"Please tell me you're taking that dreadful hand with you," Suzie grimaced from where she stood in the doorway to Jack's office. The hand gurgled in response from its place on the desk, and Jack looked up at her from whatever he was fiddling with on its settings.
"And deprive you of that disgusted reaction every time you walk into my office?" he grinned, "Where's the fun in that?"
Suzie wrinkled her nose and averted her eyes to look at the rest of the office instead – a few duffle bags were swung into one corner, presumably with whatever Jack had decided he'd need for his stay in London inside. She found herself, bizarrely, wondering how exactly Jack washed his clothes. Did he even own a washing machine? A house or flat somewhere in the middle of Cardiff? Somehow the banality of these things she took for granted didn't quite fit in with the image he so effortlessly projected. It seemed the only thing that would seem congruous with him was that he lived here, in the Hub, and that was just ridiculous.
Were there any precious belongings tucked away in those bags he couldn't be without? She did wonder. The only object she'd ever seen him care about was that dratted hand.
"I'm downloading the biological code instead," Jack offered at her lack of response, showing her his wrist strap that he was never seen without. So he wasn't taking the hand, but he may as well be.
She nodded, not really wanting to ask more but still with her own suspicions about who the hand belonged to and why it was so important – considering how off kilter this day had already been, a lot of things were starting to seem logical. Jack resumed his work and the beeping of the strap was the only sound for a few moments.
"Jack," she started again and he looked up, "about Daniel."
"He stays," Jack's tone left no room for argument. "At least until I get back and we can work something out."
"So what do we do with him in the meantime? He's going to wake up." She could feel irritation worming its way back into her mind again.
Jack shrugged, "put him to work or something. He can make the tea. We need a tea boy, don't we?"
"So we imprison him here doing odd jobs long enough until he becomes a member of Torchwood? Is that the plan?"
"Worked for you, didn't it?" Jack shot back, and the words stung.
Suzie's jaw set and she looked away. "That—that was different. That was my choice."
Jack didn't answer. It gave her a nauseating suspicion that maybe it wasn't, and it never had been.
Her silence was an assent of sorts – Jack would only be away for a few days after all, and she did hate to fight with him. A few lost days on Daniel's part were nothing a working Retcon and Toshiko Sato couldn't fix, and it would give Owen ample time to complete his tests. Jack finished whatever he was messing around with and shut his wrist strap, standing up and squaring his shoulders. She knew he was giving her one last chance to make her case, even if they both knew he wouldn't listen, and she choose the more amiable route and resigned.
"Enjoy London," she said quietly.
"It's Yvonne Hartman," Jack pointed out with a smile, grabbing the duffle bags and heading past her to the door, "I'll be lucky if I even survive it."
o-o-o
So there is chapter three! For those who haven't worked it out, we're working into a prelude to "School Reunion". :D Now I'm not normally the kind of author to beg for reviews, it seems a little false, but I really would love some feedback on this since I'm getting next to none. Especially with the amount of people reading it I'd love to get some kind of idea on whether this is even worth continuing. That said, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! :) Over and out!
