Hello again, chapter 10, and a little more explanation hopefully. Took crytears much appreciated advice and got myself a Beta, so can I take the opportunity to thank scribblechacha for their help on this chapter and the rest of the fic =D Anyways on with the show, hope you like it, if you do (or if you don't) please review!

El x

It was, Sarah Jane mused as she drove cautiously through the dark, a rather bizarre experience to fear something she couldn't see. Generally in times of peril sight was her greatest weapon: the flicker of an unspoken exchange, the stir of a hand as it reached for a gun, the widened eyes of an enemy that doesn't really have the nerve to push the button, all observations that had saved her life. But now, now she was walking into the battlefield blindfolded, and that raised the hairs on the back of her neck.

Rani was restless as they drove, constantly, futilely, twisting in her seat to watch the invisible girl. She stared until her neck cricked but all she could see was Luke's hand clutching thin air in the warm glow of the car's interior lighting. This frustrated her, she had the quick eyes of a journalist and she had seen a slight look of recognition pass across Sarah Jane's face, and though she had stayed silent, Rani knew that Sarah Jane had seen, or at least sensed, the girl. It tormented Rani that she could see nothing, she felt humiliated by her incompetence, by her lack of vision in wake of Sarah Jane and Luke's power, she felt, not for the first time, inadequate, and it ate away at her.

A feeling of calm had settled over Luke, which seemed to radiate to the girl. She had been terrified to leave the school, clamping Luke's hand in an ice-hot embrace. Walking across the car park her steps had been quick, emphasising her slow, shaky breaths. Luke had been unable to offer comfort as her eyes darted in the dark, her body tensed for the attack of unseen assailants. Now however, in the simple security of the car, she had calmed, though she never once let go of Luke's hand. As the steady rhythm soothed her, she sunk low in her seat and lightly rested her head against Luke's arm. His first instinct was to shy away, but watching the easy look of content on her face he relaxed, and was overcome by a feeling he had never experienced before. He wanted to protect her. It was so different to the feeling of protectiveness he had for his mum or his friends. He wanted to protect her because she needed protecting, and he knew without thinking that he would do anything to keep her safe. Watching her small form rise and fall with each breath he smiled, softly, to himself, and enjoyed the all-consuming freedom the emotion gave him.

~*~

Against the softly lit silent world of the car, the sudden noise and bright light of the hallway as they entered the house was a harsh comparison. They migrated into the kitchen and the kettle was boiled, but, impatient for answers, they had soon moved up to the attic, and settled themselves about the place before the tea had cooled enough to drink. Rani sat, feet tucked under her on the floor, Sarah Jane pulled up the computer chair and Luke sat the girl down on the sofa.

"Mr Smith we need you." Sarah Jane softly called for the Xylok's assistance.

The computer's fanfare was far too gaudy for the almost sombre atmosphere that night had brought, and Mr Smith's ever bright voice replied, "Good evening Sarah Jane, Luke, Rani, are you aware that it is 11:53pm on a school night?"

"Yes, Mr Smith, quite aware, and that is why we would like you to be brief. Could you please scan our friend?"

Luke guided the girl to the centre of the floor, but didn't leave her side. Mr Smith obliged and, within a matter of minutes, replied. "Your friend is human female, aged 8 years and 3 months, approximate height 4'9, approximate weight-"

"Thank you, Mr Smith," Sarah Jane cut in exasperatedly muttering, "brevity was called for I believe," before returning to her normal volume and addressing the computer directly, "but how can she be human?"

Rani added, stating the obvious, "We can't see her!"
Meanwhile Luke watched the girl with concern, worried of the effect everything was having on her, in turn she watched Mr Smith's patterns serenely, seemingly uncaring, unaware even, of her surroundings.

"Your inability to see the girl," Mr Smith responded in infuriating cheerfulness, "could be a result of the other life-force I am detecting in the room."

Luke, Sarah Jane and Rani jolted and began comically looking about themselves for the fifth person.

Mr Smith continued to speak, and the group turned to him desperate for further understanding, "The life force is a member of the Shaan race," a fact file appeared on his screen listing facts and figures and displaying a bizarre spinning image of a flickering shape that appeared to be made of light.

"But what are the Shaan? And why can't we see it?"

Mr Smith's reply was instantaneous, "The Shaan are creatures formed entirely from oscillations, they have no definite form, colour, size or appearance in general, and as a result of the ability to change the wavelengths they produce can become completely undetectable to any species."

Rani frowned, trying to follow Mr Smith's explanation, "All I got there was wavelengths, how does that mean we can't see it?"

Luke replied, answering Rani's question but looking to Mr Smith for confirmation, "The Shaan are made out of waves, and because they can change the type of waves they can appear invisible to different species. It's like how bats can hear things we can't, bats are adapted to pick up waves of a higher frequency than we are. This Shaan has morphed its waves into something completely undetectable to humans, probably at a higher frequency than anything else on Earth."

"You are correct Luke."

For Sarah Jane the science wasn't important, there was only one question she cared about, "But are they dangerous Mr Smith?"

"Not at all Sarah Jane, the Shaan are very peaceful creatures. The Shaan feed on emotion," Sarah Jane didn't like the sound of that, she had a small black box that proved creatures that fed on emotion were trouble, "but they can do nothing do directly affect emotion, and only feed on bad emotions which actually has a positive effect on the recipient. In some hospitals in their home region, the Beta Galaxy, Shaan are employed as a living painkiller, they feed on patients' pain, which is sustenance for the Shaan and dulls the pain for the patient. The Shaan's relationship has always been completely mutualistic."

Satisfied by the answer, and finally reassured that her family were in no danger, Sarah Jane realised something odd in Mr Smith's information, "Beta? But that's light-years away, how on earth has one ended up here?"

Mr Smith was finally faced with a question he did not have an answer to and the room fell silent in a cloud of thought.

Rani broke the silence, "Well there's only one thing to do," the others looked to her enquiringly, "it's like you said Sarah Jane, ask."

Sarah Jane couldn't help but smile at the quickness of her apprentice, but Luke had raced forward and frowned, "But we can't speak to the Shaan, you can't even see her."

Mr Smith cut in, "I believe I can help with that Luke, please stand back." Reluctantly Luke let go of April's hand and stepped ever so slightly away from her, he watched as a green pulse was fired at her from somewhere within Mr Smith.

Slowly, gradually a figure appeared before Rani and Sarah Jane, and as Luke watched their reactions, he understood what was happening. "Mr Smith is magnifying the Shaan's signal, he's turning it into something we can pick up, and because April and the Shaan are one we can see her too."

Finally, she stood before all of them, a small pale girl of eight, with large brown eyes and mousy brown hair pulled away from her face in a ponytail. She wore a simple grey pinafore with white knee length socks and heavy brown leather shoes. She wasn't smiling, but her expression was not one of pain, she looked content, her wide eyes that took in every detail betraying her curiosity.

"Oh my," Sarah Jane gasped, aware for the first time of the frailty of the young girl.

Rani's observation was a little more trivial, "How did you think she was at our school Luke? Her uniform's nothing like ours!"

Luke looked a little shamed, but decided there were more pressing things at hand. Taking her small hand in his he introduced her, first to his mum, and then to Rani.

"Hello," Sarah Jane said, bending to look the girl in the eyes, "My name is Sarah Jane Smith, what's yours?"

The girl looked puzzled, and replied in a small voice, "I can't remember"

If Sarah Jane was at all taken aback by this she didn't let it show, and instead said, "Well, how about for now we call you April, would you mind that?"

April shook her head and smiled shyly.

Rani greeted her equally as gently, saying, in a voice reserved for times like these, "I'm Rani; it's nice to meet you."

The girl smiled again but suddenly her face was clouded, and her voice took on a panicked tone, "I need to find my Father."

"It's okay," Rani attempted to reassure her, "we'll help you."

"But," Sarah Jane interjected, as she noticed the slight yawn Luke let out and the way Rani's eyelids were drooping, "tonight we need to sleep. We will help you tomorrow."

The mundanities of ordinary life took both Rani and Luke by surprise, they had become so caught up in the excitement, however neither objected to Sarah Jane's decision.

The girl seemed content with the decision, and nodded, saying in a quiet voice, "Thank you."

It was at this point that Mr Smith felt the need to add to the conversation, "Sarah Jane, can I point out that the Shaan do not sleep; I believe April does not need to sleep."

"Ah, well is it ok if I leave April up here with you Mr Smith, just to make sure she's alright while we sleep."

"Of course Sarah Jane."

Crouching to make eye contact for a final time Sarah Jane spoke to April, "We're going to sleep downstairs, will you be ok to stay up here with Mr Smith?"

The girl looked up at Luke fearfully and he quickly suggested, "Why don't I sleep up here on the sofa, mum. Rani should probably sleep over anyway to stop Mr Chandra being suspicious, so she can take my bed. It's not a problem."

Sarah Jane looked from the now reassured girl, to her eager son and nodded. "As long as you get some sleep."

It was decided, and very soon Rani, Luke and Sarah Jane were sleeping in their respective beds. In the quiet of the attic; where Luke's rhythmic breathing and Mr Smith's cheerful whirring were the only noise; the little girl smiled to herself as she played on a computer game Luke had shown her and for the night at least, she was allowed to forget the horrors of her quest.