CHAPTER SEVEN
He ran as fast as he could, the sound of his wildly beating hearts echoed loudly in his ears, blocking out everything else. The entire universe seemed to stop and then continue in slow motion as he could only watch as Sarah collapsed to the ground and the Vraxian again disappeared. Now his sole focus was getting to Sarah as fast as possible.
He crashed to his knees beside her, reaching out and wrapping an arm around her shoulders to gently roll her onto her back and bring her to rest against his legs. Her entire body was limp in his arms, so he gently turned her head so she was facing him. 'Sarah?' he called out to her, panic rising in his throat. 'Sarah Jane?'
She opened her eyes, but otherwise didn't respond. 'Sarah, can you hear me?' he asked, eyes frantically searching her face for some sort of response. 'Blink once for no, twice for yes.' He watched as she blinked twice, very slowly.
'Sarah, can you move at all? Please try.'
He waited for the response. Finally, one blink.
'Are you in pain?' he asked, almost afraid of the answer.
Two slow blinks, and his hearts broke. Her eyes closed again and a part of him could feel her slipping away from him. Steeling his hearts, he quickly but gently scooped her up, heading towards her car, intent on making sure she received proper medical attention. 'Don't worry, Sarah, you'll be fine,' he said to her unconscious form, using his most reassuring tone, unsure whether it was more for her benefit or his own.
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The Doctor sat by Sarah's hospital bed and tried not to look at all the equipment surrounding her. A small oxygen tube sat just under her nose with the tubing hooked around her ears and resting against her neck, and several small bandages covered the flesh wounds along her face. He listened to the rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor, assuring him that Sarah was still hanging on. Every part of him wished he could take away her pain as easily as he could alleviate her headaches when they were travelling together.
..
The Doctor wandered through the hallways of the TARDIS, scarf trailing along by his feet as always. He looked down and caught himself as he tripped over its fringe. Absently, he thought about Sarah always giving him a hard time about its excessive length, saying it would be the death of her if she ever tripped over it. He could take it off, but that would be like baring a part of his soul he wasn't ready to expose to the Universe.
He had an annoying headache that was really beginning to grate on his nerves. He wasn't used to the dull pain coursing through him, making him feel as if his actual brain was on fire. He stopped walking long enough to rub his temples to see if that would ease things any. As he did, he realised where the pain was actually coming from. 'There's an unexpected nasty side effect,' he muttered.
Turning on his heel, he walked back in the opposite direction towards Sarah's room. Not bothering to knock, he opened the door and saw her curled up in bed, her back to him, facing the opposite wall. His headache strengthened as he entered the room, validating his earlier thoughts about the source of his pain.
He quickly shed his coat, scarf and shoes and crawled into bed behind Sarah, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her towards him. She stirred, but said nothing as he rearranged his arms to put one underneath her head. With his other hand, he reached up and began to gently massage her forehead. He closed his eyes and began to concentrate. 'It's the imprint,' he whispered in her ear. 'It's causing your headache. All the wear and tear on the dendrites from those memories flooding and dancing about in your subconscious.'
She nodded ever so slightly, but said nothing. He could feel as she drifted off into a more sound sleep. He felt not only his pain easing, but hers as well. Satisfied that she was more comfortable, he relaxed and allowed himself to sleep, an easy smile on his face.
..
He held her hand in one of his and with his other hand he gently caressed her face and hair, being careful not to disturb the bandages. 'You can't leave me Sarah, not like this. I just got you back and you're all I have left. You told me you wouldn't leave, I'm holding you to that.'
Just then, the door opened. The Doctor looked up and saw Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart enter the room. 'Well, Doctor, I guess I shouldn't be surprised,' the old soldier noted.
The Doctor glanced up at the Brigadier, but didn't move from his spot next to Sarah. 'How'd you know it was me?'
Alistair crossed the room, his cane tapping loudly on the tile floor as he looked at the unconscious form of Sarah Jane. 'Who else would call themselves John Smith and be presumptive enough to tell the doctors at Royal Hope that they were her husband? Although, given that Sarah Jane has an automatic transfer order and I'm on her notification list, once she was here you could've dropped the story. No one would've asked you to leave her. Your name still has some clout, you know.'
'I didn't want to be obvious.'
Alistair looked at him incredulously. 'Since when?' When he didn't get an answer right away, he realised the Doctor's attention was elsewhere. He knew exactly where as he turned towards Sarah. 'How is she?'
'I don't know. She took a direct hit from a Vraxian blaster. In theory it should've killed her instantly.' He took a deep breath and looked at Sarah's still form. 'Instead, it just seems to have paralysed her. When I first reached her, she was barely breathing. At times it seems she's improving, and then she gets worse again.' He held her hand up against his chest. 'Her heart stopped twice on the way here from Royal Hope.'
If the Brigadier didn't know better, he could've sworn he heard the Doctor's voice break. Then he looked at the Doctor's eyes and realised that his ears hadn't deceived him. There were tears in his eyes. The Brigadier tightened the grip on his cane. 'Vraxians, you say. I'll have it taken care of.'
The Doctor gently put down Sarah's hand and stood up, walking to stand just in front of the Brigadier. 'Last time you took care of something, it was the Silurians.'
The Brigadier didn't back down from the Doctor's gaze. 'I plainly recall you weren't happy about that.'
'I'm not that man anymore. Do what you need to do, Brigadier.'
There was a fire in the Doctor's eyes that the Brigadier had never seen before. He saw the anger flaring just underneath the surface. Had the Brigadier not known the Doctor for decades, he might've been intimidated by the fierceness there. 'I'll make the call. The Vraxians won't bother Earth again,' the Brigadier stated.
The Doctor nodded. 'The sooner the better.'
'No,' Sarah's weak, yet insistent voice surprised them both.
The Doctor whirled around to see her open her eyes and give him a weak smile. He couldn't help smiling in return. 'You're awake!' He quickly went back to her side, taking her hand in his again.
'You can't destroy the Vraxians,' she said softly. 'Either one of you. I won't let you.'
'Sarah,' the Doctor argued, 'Look at what they did to you. I can't just let that go.'
She concentrated all her energy before speaking. 'And you taught me that revenge is never the answer.'
The Doctor reached up and gently ran his hand along her face. 'You almost died, Sarah. I can't lose you.'
'I'm too stubborn to die,' Sarah took a deep breath, wincing as the pain echoed through her chest. She closed her eyes again.
'Sarah?' the Doctor asked.
'Shhhh,' she gave him a wry smile without opening her eyes. 'Now, the Vraxians. Don't make me hurt either one of you two.'
The Doctor and the Brigadier exchanged glances. The Brigadier shook his head. 'I learned a long time ago not to argue with Sarah Jane. You're on your own with this one, Doctor.' He stepped closer to Sarah's bed. 'Sarah Jane, you seem to be in capable hands. Liz would've come, but she's tied up with an experiment she couldn't leave. Just let either one of us know if you need anything.'
She opened her eyes and looked up at him with a smile. 'Thank you, Brig. Tell Liz I'll call her when I get home.'
The Doctor stood up and walked out with the Brigadier. Once he was sure they were out of Sarah's earshot. 'I know what Sarah said, and I know why she said it.'
'She may be right, Doctor.'
The Doctor shook his head. 'Not this time. The Vraxians are still in orbit. Make the call, Brigadier. Sarah won't be the first victim if you don't.'
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A couple of days later, Sarah walked into the house on Bannerman Road and made her way straight to the sofa. She took a deep breath as she sat down and closed her eyes, letting her head fall back against the cushion.
The Doctor watched, but said nothing. He tried not to hover too closely, although every instinct was telling him to go sit beside her. Instead, he headed into the kitchen to make her some tea.
After plugging in the kettle, he looked out the window and watched as the TARDIS door opened slightly. Throwing a quick glance over his shoulder towards the living room, he headed out the back door.
He reached the TARDIS, but the door closed in his face. 'What's the idea?' he said aloud. 'What do you mean you won't let me in without Sarah?' He frowned as he looked back towards the house. 'Yes, she could use it,' he sighed. 'Fine, I'll get her.'
He made his way back to the house and was surprised to see Sarah sitting in the kitchen, her mug in her hands. 'I thought you were resting,' he said quietly.
Sarah took a deep breath. 'I needed a real cuppa. Hospital tea is awful.' She took a sip of her tea. There was very little emotion in her voice when she spoke. 'You saved me some time by putting the kettle on, thanks.' She gestured towards the door. 'What's the news with the TARDIS?'
He dropped down into the chair opposite her. 'She's still not finished, but she has reconstructed certain rooms. She thinks you need time in the Zero Room and won't let me in without you.'
Sarah smiled. 'Nice of her.'
'Too nice.' He crossed his arms. 'What did you do to her, Sarah?'
Sarah shook her head. 'She's playing favourites again. Not my fault.' She stood up and carried her mug to the sink before turning back to him. 'So, Zero Room?' She leaned back against the counter as a wave of dizziness washed over her.
He was at her side in a second. 'Yep.' Without another word, he moved to pick her up, but she stepped to the side to stop him.
'I can manage,' she insisted.
He stepped back and looked at her, trying to gauge her emotions. 'I know, but I don't want you to have to manage.'
She started walking slowly towards the door. 'Too bad. I can do it myself.'
He knew what was bothering her. 'You're still mad about the Vraxians. We did what we needed to do.'
She looked at him, then turned and began to head across the yard. He was right behind her, just in case. She glanced over her shoulder, and when she spoke, her tone was muted. 'You did it for you, Doctor. I haven't decided how I feel about that yet.'
'You don't know what they were capable of, Sarah.'
She stopped and turned to face him. 'Oh no? I know that my exposure to the Universe may be less than yours, oh Great and Powerful Time Lord, but I also know that my reaction to adversity has to be weighed with a certain amount of logic, not impulsive decisions based on personal feelings.'
He started to respond, but stopped at the look in her eyes. Her eyes didn't reflect anger or pity, just sadness. He reached out and put his hands on her shoulders. 'I'm not sorry that this planet isn't going to have to worry about the Vraxians anymore. I watched Gallifrey die, Sarah. Full of people I cared about. There was no way I would let that happen to Earth, especially not with you here. After everything else, I won't risk losing you again.'
She closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around his waist. 'I told you, I'm not going anywhere.' She pulled back and looked at him. 'I'm still not happy with the outcome. There was a better way.'
'Yes, well, we'll discuss it later.' The Doctor turned Sarah towards the TARDIS and with an arm around her shoulder, guided her onward. He smiled as the doors opened as they approached. 'The Zero Room awaits.'
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