Hello lovelys! It's been ages, and I apologise, but with nothing going on in terms of feedback, follows, anything, I kind of forgot about this. I will finish this one, because it's already done, but the next one in the series I might just leave it be, seeing as no one is really interested.
So yes, please review.
Beatrice finally found herself in the campsite that she had grown to hate with every fibre of her existence. Her sister, her baby sister, was there and she was going to die. The people at the camp did nothing to stop it from happening. Granted, they probably didn't even know themselves that it was going to happen, but still, it was her sister. Beatrice knew that she wouldn't be able to save everybody, she had accepted that a long time ago, but just one. If she could just save her sister, then she'd be happy. Then she would be able to sleep at night.
She snuck her way around the campsite, looking for Maya's tent. She had asked two people for "John Smith's" tent, and they had given the vaguest directions. Having finally found it, Beatrice quickly snuck inside. She figured it wouldn't take too long before her sister appeared. She didn't quite expect Maya to already be in there.
"What the hell are you doing?" Maya demanded.
Beatrice spun around quickly, the voice of her sister startling her. For a second, she debated coming up with a lie, something to get Maya out of there, but she knew that would never work. Maya wouldn't believe any of her lies. So Beatrice opted for the truth.
"Look at me," Beatrice demanded. Maya opened her mouth to say something, her expression clearly showing how confused she was. Beatrice quickly cut her off, "Don't say anything, just look at me, Maya. Look me in the eye, really look at me. For the love of God, you know me, Maya! Please just look at me!"
"Okay…" Maya said hesitantly, slowly backing away from Beatrice. "You're clearly crazy, I'm going to – "
Beatrice ran up to Maya and held her sister's shoulders. Their faces were now only inches apart, and Maya could do nothing but stare at the older girl.
"Think back. Please. Remember me."
It took a moment. it took a very long moment, with Maya just staring intently at Beatrice, trying to figure out if the look in her eyes was familiar or crazy. At long last, she remembered.
"Oh my God," Maya whispered. Beatrice finally relaxed, a smile spreading across her face. Maya continued, "It's you! it's… it's actually you!"
"Yes."
"I never thought I'd see you again!" Maya was now ecstatic, but then a thought occurred to her, "Where's Beatrice?"
Beatrice could feel her heart break into a million pieces. "What?"
"You're the girl from the clearing. You saved me. When I was little, I was lost and confused. You found me, and you told me to wait. My parents came soon after you left, but Beatrice never came. Where is she?"
"She's… fine," Beatrice said softly.
Maya's face fell, and her eyes narrowed at Beatrice, "Somehow, I don't believe that."
"Look, this isn't about Beatrice, okay? Your sister is fine, it's you I'm worried about! You're going to die in this war!"
"So are thousands upon thousands of soldiers."
"Yes, but you could avoid this. Come with me, I can take you somewhere safe."
Beatrice grabbed her sister's arm and started to pull her away. Maya quickly freed her arm and stayed in the tent.
"No," she said.
Beatrice turned around to face her little sister. From just one look into her eyes, Beatrice knew her little sister wasn't going anywhere. Nothing she said or did would change that.
"Why?" Beatrice asked.
"I have to do this," Maya insisted.
"You don't. Why on Earth would you think you did?"
"I have to do it for Beatrice."
Her world came crashing down. Her sister, her baby sister, was going to die? For her?
"What?" she asked. "How… how could this possibly be for her?"
"Because she's all alone. Wherever she is, she's alone. If I can send some kinds of message to her, I will. So far, this is my message."
"Dying is your message to her?"
"No, you silly girl. Sergeant Smith is!"
The Doctor. What else is he not telling her? "How is Sergeant Smith your message?" Beatrice asked.
"It's complicated. He's like you, he never ages. I met him for the first time when I was eleven years old, and for the second time ten months ago. He hadn't aged a day. Just like you. you haven't aged at all."
"You met him when you were eleven? What did he say to you?"
"He just talked to us about Beatrice. Nothing you don't already know," Maya said, a small glare forming.
Beatrice decided to ignore it for now, she could talk to the Doctor later about that. For now, she had to save her sister.
"I'm sure there are other ways Sergeant Smith could get your message across. You don't have to go through this war."
Maya sighed very heavily, before she finally snapped, "I know, okay! Ever think maybe I want to be in the war?
"Why would you want this, though? Just explain it to me!"
"To make Beatrice proud of me!" Beatrice blinked twice in shock. No, please, any reason but that. Any reason to join the war except because of her. "I want her to be proud of me," Maya said again, her voice a lot more calm now. "I want her to be able to look me up in a history book, or search my name and find me. I want her to be able to look at me and say, 'that's my sister'. I want her to be proud."
Beatrice was silent for a moment. This was what Maya wanted. This was the way she chose to cope with the knowledge that her sister was stuck in the future. This is what she chose to do with her life. While Beatrice would prefer that her sister was safe and sound, she had to accept the fact that that was never an actual possibility. No one is safe and sound. If Maya were to die, at the very least, Beatrice could hope that it was doing what she wanted, and being the person she always hoped to be. If this was what Maya wanted, who was she to intervene?
Maya was going to die tonight. The least Beatrice could do was make her happy. So Beatrice walked towards her sister, tears already threatening to fall down. She stared at her baby sister, knowing this was the right thing to do. Beatrice wrapped her arms around Maya and held her tightly, as tightly as her arms would allow. Maya hesitated at first, but soon she returned the hug.
"Beatrice is be proud," Beatrice whispered, "She is be so, so proud of you, Maya." That was the moment the tears began to fall. They streamed down her face, and she knew she had to go. "I have to go," Beatrice said quickly, breaking away from the hug. Her voice was shaky from her crying, and she really knew she had to go. She quickly spun around and made for the exit.
"Wait a second," Maya whispered after her, but Beatrice was already out of the tent. "Wait!" Maya called, running out after her. When she exited as well, Beatrice was nowhere to be seen. She didn't know what had just happened, but for a second there, she could have sworn that that woman was her sister.
Beatrice took her time in getting back to the Doctor. She had just said goodbye to her sister for the last time, and she needed sometime alone. She needed to let it all out before The Doctor got to her and started to yell about paradoxes and about how stupid she was. She just needed a moment to herself.
It didn't take too long before Beatrice found herself outside the familiar blue box. The Doctor wasn't outside, which Beatrice was thankful for. At least now she had a bit more time to compose herself. She waited outside for just a moment, before taking in a deep breath and pushing the doors open. Inside, the Doctor was standing in front of the console, staring with no emotion. Beatrice quietly closed the door behind her. They both stood in silence for a minute before Beatrice spoke up.
"I didn't tell her," she said. "I just said goodbye." The Doctor didn't say anything, he just stood there with the same look on his face. "So your time and space is perfectly safe. I just wanted to say goodbye." Beatrice's voice caught on the last word and she had to turn around to hide her tears.
She could hear the Doctor approach her, but she didn't turn. The Doctor turned Beatrice around and opened his arms for her. Beatrice leaned into the Doctor, hugging him tightly and crying on his shoulder. They stood like that for a good minute, where Beatrice just cried and cried, and the Doctor comforted her as well as he could.
"I'm sorry, Beatrice," The Doctor said softly. "I wish I could do something, but I can't."
"I know," Beatrice said, although she really didn't quite understand it. Beatrice pushed away to look the Doctor in the eye. "I want to be there. When she dies, I want to be there for her."
"I can do that," the Doctor said. He offered Beatrice a smile, and she did her best to return it. She let the Doctor guide her to one of the seats, and together they waited until it was time.