Jennifer Webb

The Ponds had gone to bed and the Doctor was still searching. Sometimes, his stops were random (mostly when he ignored what the TARDIS tried to do); other times, he was drawn to a certain place where the mystery girl had been (thanks to the TARDIS). Once more, he stepped outside the time machine and sighed at the sight of an empty thirty-third century museum.

"Hello? Mystery girl? Anyone?"

Nothing but silence. And his spidey senses weren't tingling. Perhaps this was another false alarm. Sadly, he went back into his ship. She hadn't recognized him last time. Perhaps this incarnation of the Doctor was simply fated to not meet the woman who had saved him from dying alone. Never again.

The Time Lord was so deep in thought that he didn't notice the desperate shout from outside.

She had heard it. That sighing, wheezing, screeching noise. That hopeful noise. The brunette tottered through the halls, holding her left arm up to shield her watering eyes and her other hand holding her gun ready. A shot from a plasma rifle from the right had grazed her face before she could jump out of the way, leaving her half-blind from the pain and swelling. She prayed she didn't have permanent damage to her eyes. Hadn't she left this insanity behind? Jack had disappeared – whether he was captured or had abandoned her, she could never tell.

She spotted it through her tears. That blue box! She ran faster as the engine started whining again. No! She didn't dare lose it. The men who owned this dump heap weren't at all happy about her and Jack breaking in, and she didn't want to discover the repercussions.

"Come on, ol' girl. Let's go." The Doctor paused to scratch his head when a few knobs simply refused to budge. "Well that's odd. Crazy ship. There's. Nothing. Here."

Determined, he flipped a few more switches and kicked one of the levers.

"Doctor!" she screamed. "Doctor!"

An unseen ledge caused the runner to trip and close her eyes for a moment as the pain faded. When she opened them, the TARDIS was gone and her pursuers were rounding the corner with guns trained on her back. She didn't bother looking up. She couldn't fight them, and they would either capture or kill her. She had a very matter-of-fact perspective on death. She had faced it enough times. If it happened, it happened.

"I'll watch her, lads. Check the perimeter." She suddenly found herself being helped up by a powerful-looking woman with wild blond hair and playful eyes. "All right there, dearie?"

"How did you get them to leave?"

"Hallucinogenic lipstick. Works like a charm. Best get a move on before it wears off, shall we?"

"Wait. Who are you?"

"The name's Professor Song. The Doctor asked me to get you somewhere a little safer." She smiled at the younger girl's confusion. "He won't realize for another twenty years or so that he missed you by mere seconds. 'I just remembered that I heard her and didn't notice until now!' he babbled. Oh, that man… Now." She grabbed the patient's hand and fiddled with the time-manipulator on her own wrist. "Might I suggest snagging one of these for yourself?"

In the blink of eye, they were gone.

"River, you're an angel!"

"Doctor, do I look like your personal delivery boy?"

"No," he waved, "you're a bit chesty for a delivery boy. I've sent a message to Jack. Seems he made a quick stop and lost track of time." The Doctor guffawed until he realized that no one else was amused by his bad joke. "Come on! That was hilarious! She was in the thirty-third century; he was in the twentieth… No? Wow. Tough crowd. Anyway."

With his thoughts finally a little less scattered, he finally turned to his guest and lost focus all over again upon seeing her injury. While Rory examined her and Amy handed over an icepack, River was staring expectantly at her husband.

"The people she was fleeing managed to get a shot at her before I could intervene."

"Her condition isn't life-threatening," Rory reported calmly in the background, "but her vision might be another matter. We can't tell until the swelling goes down. Amy, in my bag… Oh, thank you. This might sting a bit, but it'll help the pain and swelling."

The girl wasn't crying, but she was still trembling from the pain and her eyes were practically swollen shut. The Doctor was almost relieved when they were covered with a bandage.

"I didn't expect our first proper meeting quite like this," he muttered regretfully.

River squeezed his shoulder reassuringly.

"She's scared and she needs you, Doctor. Go talk to her. I know a good hospital."

The Doctor knelt down in front of the girl as his companions backed away. A ghost of a smile appeared on her masked face upon hearing the wheezing of the TARDIS taking off. River had purposefully left the brakes on… She jumped a little when he cupped her cold hands in his own.

"Doctor?" she whispered, squeezing his hands tighter.

"It's me," he replied softly. "Don't think you've seen this face yet, though."

"Don't think I'll be seeing much of anything," she grumbled sarcastically.

"Spoiler alert: You'll have excellent eyesight for a long time yet." A sigh of guarded relief. "You know, I've been hopping all over time and space to try finding you. Never had a proper introduction yet."

"Oh, you'll get the chance," she laughed.

"What's your name?"

"Jennifer Webb."

"How did you end up running around with Jack Harkness, anyhow?"

"Not really much of a story there. We were running, and Jack and I weren't fast enough. You left us behind. Didn't mean to, though. Time is a complicated thing. I wanted to see the universe, but I've been getting an unexpected back road tour. I don't really have any regrets." She hesitantly reached out and touched his head. Her icy fingers did a slow outline of his face before she seemed satisfied. "You're younger."

"Oh," he cringed, "don't tell me I go grey!"

"Spoilers, sweetie," River quipped from behind him, having just noiselessly landed the TARDIS.

The Doctor gave annoyed huff before turning back to his new friend.

"You know, I've seen you a few times and… You do quite a lot of running."

"I learned from the best."

"Well, Jennifer Webb, everything will be all right. It has been a pleasure." He helped her stand and gave her hand one last squeeze. He finally had the chance to say it. "And, Jennifer…thank you for everything."

"No, Doctor." She laughed knowingly. "Thank you."