((The Shadows))

~~OO~~II~~OO~~

I stared at the Doctor for a few moments, and then moaned in disbelief. "Are you serious?" I rasped. "Jack is gone? Just…gone?"

"He was here for a few moments," the Doctor replied, running a hand through his styled hair before stuffing his hands into the pockets of his long brown trench coat, thoughtful. "He was outside when I came out. But I turned my back for one second and then he was gone."

Adjusting the strap for my bag, I bit my lip and said, shifting my weight, "Well, what do we do? I don't think…the TARDIS shouldn't be up to any moving around, and we can't exactly leave the guy here after you messed up his time thingy."

"Vortex manipulator," he corrected. "And no, the TARDIS isn't up to anything at the moment. I think our best bet is to ask around." The Doctor pushed away from the wall he'd been leaning against. He offered me a hand and I grinned, taking it. "Let's go, shall we? And ignore any strange looks you get at the clothes, you get used to it after a while."

"I thought as much," I mused as we started down the cobblestone path.

"What's in your bag?" the Doctor questioned, curious.

I shrugged, shooting him a smirk. "My sketches, my sketchbook, some pencils, pens and markers, some money and my shattered phone – by the way, you still owe me a new one."

He gave a sigh, frowning playfully. "I take you around space and time with me, something that nobody gets to see, and you still think I owe you a new phone?"

"Of course," I answered with a grin, playfully shoving at him, though I was careful of the wound on my side. I like this new outfit. I'd rather not stain it with blood, too. I adjusted the fedora on my head and smiled. But my smile faded when a woman glanced fearfully at us and urged her daughter away, going in a large circle around us. "Something's definitely going on," I said in a low tone, chewing nervously on my bottom lip.

The Doctor murmured an agreement, releasing my hand in favor of jogging over to an elderly man. He pulled out something from his pocket, holding it up for the man to see as he said, "Hullo! John Smith, here to inspect the rare sightings I've heard about. This is my partner, Alissa Levine." The old man cast me a strange look and I ignored it, winking. "We're from America," he explained, "Fashion is a tad different over there. Now, can you tell us more about what's been going on?"

"Yes," the old man said eagerly, his kind eyes fearful. "There are shadows, Mr. Smith. Terrible shadows. They come around every now and then and sometimes, people go missing. My grandson was one of the first…" His voice cracked, and I felt a stab of sympathy for the man.

"I'm sorry," the Doctor murmured, "I'm so sorry. We're going to try and find out what happened to him for you, I promise. Now, can you describe these shadows?"

"They're shadows," he stated bluntly. "They're all about the height of Miss Levine, Mr. Smith. And they all have glowing eyes. Someone managed to escape their grasp, but he died a few days later. He killed himself, that poor man. Said they were coming for him, they needed him for something."

"Hm," I murmured. "That's interesting. Maybe whatever they are took Jack for the same reason…"

"Sounds about right," the Doctor agreed. "Did he ever say what they needed him for before he died?"

The old man shook his head in denial. "No, Mr. Smith. His last words were put in the newspaper. He said, "I'm scared they'll come back. I don't want to be used. I'll die before they can use me." A few days later, he stole a syringe from a nurse in the hospital and plunged it into his neck."

I furrowed my brow. "You can kill yourself with a syringe?"

"Apparently," the Doctor mused. "Thanks for your help, that information will be useful."

"Of course, Mr. Smith," the old man replied warmly. He shook hands with the Doctor, and then turned and shook hands with me, his eyes gentle. "You be careful, Miss Levine," he told me. "My wife, Catie, told me to keep an eye out for a young woman by the name of Alissa Levine. Told me to tell you that when the time comes, you'll be able to reason with whatever those shadows are. I don't know how or why, but she said you would. Good luck!"

As the old man lumbered of, I stared at where he had been, stunned.

Catie. There was no way that Catie, my friend Catie, the Catie I knew and loved, the Catie that lived in my old home of Austin, Texas, was here in the eighteen hundreds. There was no possible way. She was safe with her family and going to college the last time I checked, only a day before I'd run off with the Doctor.

"Ali?" the Doctor said gently. "You alright?"

I shook my head to clear it. "Yes," I replied, reassuringly smiling at him. I swiped some hair out of my face. "I'm fine. So it's definitely the shadows that took Jack."

The Doctor nodded in confirmation, his brow furrowed in thought. "Definitely the Shadows," he agreed. "But why do they need people? And if it's for a bad reason, it's not a good thing that they have Jack of all people in the universe."

"Why?" I asked curiously. "He's from who knows how where, but he's human, like me and like every other person that was taken."

"Jack," the Doctor began slowly, eyes darkening. "Isn't a normal being, Ali. He's human, yes. But he doesn't die. He's an impossible being. He was killed by a Dalek. And old companion of mine, Rose Tyler, revived him when she took the time vortex into her head. We're not exactly sure what she did, but…"

I ignored the way the word "Dalek" tugged on my mind, shrugging off the soft hint of something it gave me. But the name "Rose Tyler" immediately rang a bell in my head. "Oh!" I gasped, immediately placing a hand on my bag. "Rose Tyler is the girl I drew! The blond girl with the glowing eyes!"

The Doctor chuckled, his eyes sad. "Yes. I'll tell you more about her later on, but first, we need to get Jack back. I should have never let him run off by himself, he always gets into trouble."

I snickered. "Says the man who got us into trouble at Canziar."

"Says the girl who ran off when I specifically told her to stay in the TARDIS," he retorted.

I paused. "Point taken," I admitted. "So, any ideas on what those shadows could be, Doctor?"

"I think I may have a clue," he said after a few moments. "But I'd need a piece of the shadow to run through scanners in the TARDIS to be sure of what we're dealing with. I'd suggest we set a trap for one, steal a piece of it and run off, but after Canziar, I'm not letting you run off alone."

I grimaced at the reminder. "Don't think I want to. Maybe there's a trace of a shadow left somewhere?"

The Doctor grinned at me. "You're brilliant," he declared, grabbing me by the hand and dragging me towards another person that was hurrying down the street. I briefly noted that there were less people around now as the sun began to set. "Excuse me!" he cried, showing the strange paper to a young woman. "Can you answer a few questions?"

The Doctor stopped short and I slammed into him. "Doctor," I huffed irritably. But he was focused on the woman, who glanced briefly at the paper.

She smiled at us, and I was surprised at the young childish look on her face. She looked older, but she couldn't be more than sixteen. Her blond hair came down her back in soft waves, and she had bright blue eyes that seemed to pierce through my soul. "Of course," she murmured, locking gazes with me.

I could've sworn I saw a swirl of gold in the blue depths.

The Doctor beamed at her. "Molto bene! Can you tell me about the shadows that have been hanging around?"

"Of course, Mr. John Smith," the girl said, finally shifting her gaze from mine to look at the Doctor warmly. I was shocked at her warm and gentle tone towards him, as if she knew who he really was. But since the Doctor didn't seem to recognize her, I didn't think twice about it. "The shadows have been moving around the area for months. We grew used to them, but they only began taking people about a month ago, Mr. John Smith." She said the name "John Smith" in an amused tone.

Suspicious, I demanded, "Tell us, Miss…?"

"Skylar," the girl giggled, "I am Skylar Wilson."

"Alright, Miss Wilson," I said. Something about her didn't sit right with me, it made me…nervous. Scared. It made me want to run. "Tell us. Do they appear in certain places, or do they pop up randomly?"

Skylar tapped her lower lip almost thoughtfully, clear blue eyes glancing up. "They appear in many places. They appear everywhere, all around London. But they only appear at sunrise and dusk, when the light is changing."

"That's very helpful, thank you very much," the Doctor told her with a slight smile. Then he added, "Come along, Ali, we need to go report back to the upper people."

I nodded, bidding goodbye to the girl before scrambling after the Doctor, who was already jogging off in the direction that we had left the TARDIS, noting the way that I could feel Skylar Wilson's eyes boring a hole in my back.

Yes, there was definitely something about her that I wouldn't forget.

~~OO~~II~~OO~~

"Doctor!" I wheezed as we reached the TARDIS, doubling over and gasping for breath. Definitely wasn't used to that much running, especially when I was so out of shape. "Why exactly were we running?!"

"Because," he cried cheerfully, a grin lighting up his face. He quickly inserted the TARDIS key into the lock and twisted, opening the door and pushing it open. As soon as we stepped in, the TARDIS hummed a greeting, and I beamed. She was obviously feeling better. "I think I know what they are!" He darted over to the control panel and began hitting buttons before pulling the screen to him, perching the familiar black frames onto his nose. "Let's see…"

I peered curiously over his shoulder, removing my white fedora and running my fingers through my now tangled hair. Damn it. That would be a huge pain to brush out.

"Language, my Girl," the TARDIS chided.

I smirked, ignoring her as I focused on the screen. I groaned as it showed "the circle language", Gallifreyan. "Why won't the TARDIS translate it?" I complained.

"Older than the TARDIS," the Doctor replied. He typed in something, and the screen changed to show an exact copy of the description the old man had given us. "Exactly what I thought it was."

"And that is…?"

"Carfioliax," the Doctor answered with another grin. He patted the control panel of the TARDIS affectionately. "The shadows are a defense mechanism. They're literally ghosts until the Carfioliax wants something. Then they become physical real beings."

"And these things want people for some reason," I said slowly, "So they're becoming real and taking the people."

"Exactly," the Doctor replied, "So now we need to figure out where the Carfioliax themselves are hiding and why they're taking the people…"

"Can't be too hard," I mused. Silently, I pleaded to the TARDIS, Can you show us where the most shadows have been seen? You don't have to if it's too much work.

The TARDIS silently scoffed, and the screen suddenly shifted to a map of London, showing red dots. Most of them were scattered but there was one spot where… "There," I said, pointing at the place where there were quite a few of the dots gathered. "That's where we need to go."

"Good job, old girl," the Doctor told his ship, patting it before turning the screen off and shrugging off his trench coat, draping it over a piece of the coral that made up the inside of the TARDIS. "Now, let's get going Ali."

He made his way over to the TARDIS doors, opening them, and held one of the double doors open for me. I stepped out with a laugh. Then I frowned, becoming serious as he closed and locked the doors again. "Doctor," I asked, "They won't hurt Jack, will they?"

"They're not a violent species," he reassured. "Jack will be fine."

"Good," I sighed in relief. "He's not a bad man. He just annoys the hell out of me."

"Finally!" the Doctor cried cheerfully, a grin on his face. "A companion who isn't swayed by his charms!"

We started for the place the TARDIS had showed us, the Doctor practically bouncing as he walked, a cheeky smile on his face. "So," I mused, "People disappearing and aliens being mean are things you deal with every day."

"Not every day," the Doctor protested, and then paused. "…well, sometimes I do, but it's not always like this." He frowned, becoming anxious. "Do you want to go home? I can take you there if you really want to."

I snorted, glaring at him for even suggesting the idea. "I don't want to go home, you idiot." I reached over to affectionately pat his arm. "I'm not going home anytime soon, I can promise you that much. Though I do kind of want to stop by the place I'm from and visit some friends. I think the TARDIS is a cheaper and faster way to travel then by plane…"

The Doctor relaxed, a smile spreading across his face once more. "Of course. We'll head there after we've finished up here. The Carfioliax won't cause much trouble. I'll drop you off, but then I need to fuel up the TARDIS. It'll take about twenty four hours, but I'll come back for you."

I grinned. "Good. Because I have a feeling that if you don't want to come back and get me, the TARDIS won't like it very much."

"She is strangely attached to you," the Doctor agreed thoughtfully.

I shrugged, smirking as I adjusted my fedora, holding it to my head as I skipped forward. "You know, I think I'll keep the hat. I like it. "

"Go ahead. Keep anything you like from the closet, I'm overrun with clothes from every planet and time period," he muttered under his breath, grimacing slightly as if he didn't like the reminder.

Movement caught my eye and I stopped, whirling around. "Doctor," I gasped.

"Every time I look, there are more clothes," the Doctor continued as if he hadn't heard me, thoughtful. "New Alark clothes, new fourteenth century clothes-"

"Doctor!" I snapped, interrupting his sudden babbling rant. "Hate to interrupt, but-"

"And everyone's so rude," he continued, ignoring me now on purpose, sounding irritated. "Interrupting me when I'm talking. Every single time."

"Doctor!" I exploded, not taking my eyes off of the shadow that had appeared before me. "There's a bloody thing right here!"

Immediately the Doctor whirled around, pointing a familiar silver device at the shadow. The sonic screwdriver gave a buzzing sound and the shadow screeched, freezing as it flickered before disappearing. The Doctor waited a few moments, his eyes locked on where the shadow had been. And then he tucked his sonic screwdriver safely away, saying sternly to me, "Never notice something until you have to. It'll know you've seen it and just attack before you're ready."

I flushed, ducking my head. "I'll make sure to think of it next time," I muttered under my breath, crossing my arms.

He chuckled in return.

Suddenly, everything went silent. Alarmed, I raised my head. Nothing had changed. There was no change of scenery. It was still dusk, the sun now sinking below the horizon. I still had my hat on my head, my bag on my back.

But the Doctor had disappeared.

And that just made nineteenth century London a whole lot more dangerous.

~~OO~~II~~OO~~

It was obvious that the damn shadows had taken the Doctor, I thought to myself from where I was sitting beside the TARDIS, having decided that it would be safer near the police box then wondering the streets of a city in a time period where women had little to no respect. I had my sketch book on my knees, a pencil in hand, and a flashlight in the other as I sketched out the girl we'd met earlier, Skylar. But in my drawing, she had glowing eyes. Just like the picture of Rose Tyler.

The TARDIS hummed beside me, and I scowled. "Hush you," I huffed to her. "You're the one who won't let me inside because the Doctor disappeared."

She hummed again.

Irritated, I returned to skimming my pencil across the paper, thinking of what to do.

The shadows had taken the Doctor, I repeated to myself. And the Doctor had seemed to think the owners of those shadows had needed help and people to help them with whatever they needed help with. If that was the case, then they needed the Doctor's help.

He'd also mentioned the people being returned.

So if I waited, he'd be returned. Right?

I bit my lip. He would come back, wouldn't he? If he didn't, I 'm not sure what I'd do. I'm sure the TARDIS would let me in eventually. In a few days, when I was starving and hungry. And I knew for sure she'd at least help me get home…but…

An idea flashed through my mind. I stuffed the drawing of the girl, Skylar, into my bag, leaping to my feet as I immediately pleaded to the TARDIS, probably looking insane, "Open! You've gotta open! I need to get inside, and I'll need that map back up if you don't mind!"

The TARDIS door gave a soft click before I swung it open, smiling happily as I stepped in. "Thanks," I told the TARDIS, quickly closing it behind me. I strode over to the TARDIS screen, and the map appeared like before the Doctor had disappeared. I skimmed my fingers over it, biting my lip thoughtfully. "Can you show me what alien I'm looking for?"

The screen flickered, and I felt a slight feeling of guilt for making the TARDIS use more energy than necessary. I patted the console. "I won't let him move you for a full day if you do. Please, old girl."

The nickname the Doctor used on her worked. The screen shifted from the map (I had noted where I needed to go, planting it firmly into my mind) and had become the alien. Thank goodness the language was a language I could read.

Species: Carfioliax

Planet: Carfio

Language: Carfiol

Height: Two'

Weight: 50 lbs.

Notes: Shadows are used when in need of assistance, aren't a generally violent species.

I smiled as I skimmed over the picture and information. Pretty obvious who'd been adding the notes. The Doctor had said those exact words earlier. "Thanks, you beautiful police box," I murmured. Then I darted towards the door. I slammed them shut behind me, hearing the lock click back in place. Looks like the TARDIS didn't want anyone random walking in either. I hurried away from it, quickly making my way to where I had been.

When I reached the place that the Doctor had disappeared in, I ran my fingers through my hair, peering around. How to get the aliens to me…?

I bit my lip, the memory of the little creature embedded in my mind.

The Successor. That's what the other aliens had called me. And the old man's wife had told her husband to tell me that I could reason with them. And the Zaraux had wanted me for the same reason, to reason with the Sontaran. That appeared to be part of being the Successor.

Suddenly, something latched onto my leg, becoming a heavy weight. I nearly screamed in surprise, jumping with a gasp and shining my flashlight at whatever it was immediately.

But it was just what I had been looking for. A Carfioliax. It reminded me of a child, beaming at me with its chubby orange face, green eyes glowing happily. "You're here!" it cried, "The Successor's here."

I gave a hesitant smile. "Uh, guess I am. Hi."

The small alien giggled, surprising me as it crawled up my body to hug me gently around the neck, squealing happily. "You didn't break your promise! You came back just like you said you would! I'm so happy, we're all so glad! The Doctor's waiting for you, Miss Successor; you have to come with me!"

I hesitantly patted the alien's back, wary at the fact that it was near my neck. "Where exactly is he?" Dear God, I was being kind towards an alien, acting like it happened on a normal basis. Which, with the Doctor, I supposed it did. "He's alright, right? You didn't hurt him? Because I won't be very happy if you did," I warned.

It gasped, looking offended. "Hurt the Doctor," the alien scoffed, horrified by the idea. "The Doctor's our friend!"

"Alright, alright," I replied, thought my lips curved into a smile of relief. So the Doctor had been right.

"Come," the Carfioliax cried, scrambling back down to the ground. It grabbed my hand, and I was forced to bend over, allowing it to pull me down the street. "Come! We just need you o help us and we can go home!"

"Uh, I'm not good with technology," I told the Carfioliax as it led me down an alley. Suddenly, everything disappeared into shadows. I gasped in surprise, and the alien reassuringly beamed at me as we reappeared in another location.

"That's okay," it replied. "Your touch will be enough, Miss Successor. And we're a few miles away from that horrible city. Our ship can't run when there's so much pollution."

"Ah." As if that made sense. We were in the middle of a forest, near an old abandoned cottage. And leaning against the old crumbling walls, scowling at the man beside him, was none other than the Doctor. I gently removed my hand from the alien's grasp, stalking over and immediately smacking the back of his head, huffing. "What's with you and running off to who knows where without warning, huh? Do you know that I sat outside because I couldn't get into the TARDIS?" Not that I couldn't get in. I had. But he didn't need to know that."

The Doctor yelped, rubbing the back of his head and Jack snickered beside him. I couldn't help the faint smile that was playing on my lips. "I'll give you your own TARDIS key when we get back. Make it official that you're my companion."

I beamed. "Great!" I said cheerfully.

And suddenly, I was being swarmed by little orange aliens, all squealing excitedly and crying "Miss Successor" excitedly. Before I knew it, I was flat on my back, and maybe a dozen of them were curling against me, rubbing their cheeks against me with giggles. Definitely like children.

And I think they were purring.

Oh my gosh this is so weird!

Jack stared at me in surprise, and the Doctor was smiling slightly. I glared at both of them. "Not a word," I threatened. "Not a word to anyone about this, you two. Or I'll make sure I beat the hell out of the both of you."

"Oh, you wouldn't go through with that," the Doctor replied with a grin.

"Of course she wouldn't!" one of the Carfioliax cried, scrambling away from me and towards a lump of a machine that was about the size of a car. It beamed at me. "She's Miss Successor! Miss Successor doesn't hurt anyone."

"That name again," the Doctor murmured.

I ignored him, fairly pissed off at the fact that he hadn't apologized just yet about disappearing just yet. To the small aliens, I asked, "What do you want me to do?" I gently pushed them off, climbing to my feet, and one dragged me over to the machine.

"Right here, Miss Successor," another said eagerly, patting a flattened piece of the metal. It had a red light, and it reminded me of a lock on the phone the Doctor still owed me. "Just press your hand here and all fixed!"

I hesitated, and then laid my hand on the piece of metal as instructed, smiling as the red light turned green. The machine suddenly sounded like a car starting up, and then began to purr, sounding much like the little creatures themselves.

"Thank you, Successor," they squealed, "Thank you!" The Doctor and Jack moved over and we all helped them into the machine. One began to press buttons.

And then, there ship disappeared.

I blinked. "What about the other people?" I said suddenly, the reminder from earlier making me whirl around to face the Doctor."

"Already heading home," Jack replied. He winked at me, a cheeky smile on his face. "We sent them on their way about an hour before you got here."

I sighed in relief. "Good," I breathed. So the old man's family would be getting home…which reminded me… "Doctor," I said slowly, hesitant. "Can I maybe visit some friends and family? In Texas? I'm worried about them; I haven't talked to some of them in over a month."

"Of course," the Doctor said warmly. He beamed, brown eyes sparkling happily. He offered me a friendly hand, and I clasped it, allowing him to tug me in the direction of the distant city. "But first, we have a long walk ahead of us."

I rolled my eyes with a smile, beckoning Jack to follow. Jack grinned, bouncing after us. As we walked away from the crumbling building, I didn't notice the two words that had been painted across the stone path behind us. The Doctor didn't notice, and neither did Jack.

Finally. I would finally get to visit home for the first time in four years.

Another thought made me pause.

…Mandy was going to kill me.

~~OO~~II~~OO~~

A/N: Not very happy with this chapter, but I love those little aliens I came up with. Wasn't feeling creative with the name, so they have a weird one. XD So next, Ali and the Doctor will be going to Texas!

I'm also really sad to say, I have nobody to thank for reviews. ;-; I feel as if this fanfic isn't as well liked as I hoped…