"We are like islands in the sea,
separate on the surface
but connected in the deep."
-William James
Burgess County, OH, October 24, 1957
Clyde Shipley was on his way home from working the 4 to midnight shift at the Cloburn Vacuum plant in Kirkmore. He was tired and having a hell of a time staying awake.
He'd stayed up most of the night before with his brother Vernon and best buddy Jimmy Lewis. There had been beer and poker and lots of laughs. He and Vernon had given Jimmy shit over his newest girlfriend. That Evelyn had him whipped they said. She had him dressing different and shaving more often.
The ribbing was all in good fun. Truth be told, Vernon and Clyde should be so lucky to find a girl like Evelyn. She was a class act. Definite wife material.
Vernon, the oldest of the two brothers, was the perpetual bachelor type. He was more interested in seeing how many girls he could get to screw him. He was 34 and had racked up quite an impressive body count. At 28, Clyde had only had one serious girlfriend, Helen Beatty. That ended four years ago when she'd wound up pregnant by some farm kid named Joe. They were married now and lived over in Kirkmore.
Clyde remained single all these years later. He wasn't a bad looking guy, most would say he was the more handsome of the two brothers. He was tall with blonde hair and blue gray eyes. He just hadn't been eager to put himself on the line since then and he definitely wasn't a love em and leave em fella like Vern.
Clyde yawned as he turned off the highway onto County Road 109. He lived in the old family home just outside the city limits of Sugar Creek, on the outskirts of Ritenour Woods. The house was somewhat dilapidated, the porch needing major repairs. He'd had grand plans for it when it had been left to him by his alcoholic father years back. He hoped to marry Helen and have children and raise them there in the same house where he and Vernon had grown up. He knew he'd let a lot of shit go when he'd split with Helen.
He started to nod off just as he reached the tree line of the woods. He shook his head to snap himself out of it and cranked the window down on his shabby green pickup truck. The crisp Autumn air hit his face and revived him somewhat. He glanced at the woods on either side of the road, noting the leaves had fallen early this year. Aside from the big pine trees, most of the branches were bear, giving the woods a stark, almost sinister look.
On a night like tonight, one could almost imagine these woods really were haunted as the local legends claimed. He shivered inexplicably. Strange. Clyde wasn't the superstitious type.
As he rounded a bend where the woods really closed in tightly on the road, he felt his eyelids growing heavy once more. Why hadn't he ever fixed this damn radio?
The thought had no sooner come to mind when he saw a strange flash in the woods up ahead and off to his right. It was like white flames with a strange blue glow around the edges. There and gone. He saw movement then, perhaps an animal bursting out of the woods, crossing the clearing just ahead of him. Clyde's eyes narrowed and he slowed the beat up Chevy that hadn't been new since 1942. What the hell...?
As he neared the spot where he'd seen the odd disturbance, his eyes flew open wide. The animal that he thought he'd seen cross the clearing had fallen and was laying there, right in the middle of the road. Only, upon closer examination, Clyde didn't think it was just some animal...
Clyde slammed on his brakes, shut the truck down and jumped out. He ran toward the prone figure. He was right. It was a girl. A young woman...perhaps 20 years old. She was dressed in strange red clothing. Like a robe with a hood.
He knelt beside the girl, who looked like she might be dead. He turned her over onto her back and held a shaky hand under her nose. He could feel her breathing and blew out a sigh of relief. He squinted at the young lady. She didn't appear to have any injuries, at least none he could see. He smoothed her long, dark hair back from her face. He felt his heart skip a beat at how beautiful she was.
Clyde stood up and looked around. Where the hell had she come from? He knew he couldn't leave her here like this. The nearest hospital was an hour away. He might be able to raise Dr. Bantree if he went and knocked at his door. The Doc only lived about a mile from his own house. Clyde stood over the girl, suddenly feeling wide awake, trying to decide what to do. First things first. He'd need to get her out of the road.
He bent to pick her up and when he did, her eyes suddenly flew open. They were big and brown and looked frightened. She sat up quickly and groaned, put a hand to her head as if the sudden movement had caused her great pain.
"Hey." Clyde said gently. "Are you alright there, Miss?"
The girl gasped as if spotting him for the first time. She was definitely afraid now. She crawled backwards away from him, out of the road. She looked like she thought he might attack her. He frowned and stood back up straight. Took a few steps back.
"No need to be frightened." He tried his best to reassure her. "I won't harm you."
Finally she spoke. Only it was in some bizarre language Clyde had never, ever heard before. Her tone was unmistakable though. She sounded like she was telling him to fuck off. Clyde chuckled despite himself. This strange, frightened girl, alone on a country road in the middle of the woods. She was giving him the business just the same. He peered down at her, curious.
He knelt once more so she didn't feel like he was looming over her. "It's okay." He whispered. "My name is Clyde. Clyde Shipley."
He made eye contact and saw that the girl's brown eyes were wise, almost ancient looking. He was taken aback. She looked right back at him, right into his blue gray eyes. She still looked unsure, but not as afraid as she'd been.
He tried again, pointing to himself. "Clyde." he repeated, then looked at her expectantly.
Her eyes narrowed, her expression became almost imperious. She tapped her own chest and proclaimed. "Theia."
He smiled. It was an unusual but beautiful name."Theia. Why don't we go somewhere and get you warmed up." He gestured at the trees all around them. "Away from these creepy woods."
Theia's eyes grew big. "Woods?" she repeated, then shivered.
Clyde stood and held out a hand to help her up. She hesitated for a moment, then seemed to decide he really was only there to help her. She took his hand and allowed herself to be hauled to her feet. She stood on her own just fine so she couldn't be too injured. He led her to the truck and opened the door for her.
She looked like she didn't quite know what was expected of her. She studied the old Chevy like she'd never seen an automobile before. Quite frankly, she had looked at him like she'd never seen a man before. He shook his head before helping her into the cab of the pickup. He shut the passenger door, then walked around and started it up.
He glanced over at her before he pulled back onto the road. She was leaned forward in her seat, looking out of the windshield, up at the stars.
Sugar Creek, OH, Universe B, Present Day
Savannah sat in Lenore Byers' living room on the sofa between Dayle B and the Doctor. Jesse and Silas Squared were waiting in the TARDIS which was parked in the backyard. Savannah felt like she was having another one of her crazy, lucid dreams.
Her grandmother. Alive. She was mesmerized by her beautiful blue-gray eyes. Dayle, Savannah's mom, was the spitting image, she realized, smiling sadly as Lenore told them the story her father had told her when she was a child. The story of how he'd met her mother. Theia. Savannah's (and Sienna's) great grandmother.
Savannah had grown up knowing the basics about her extended family. She knew that her great grandparents, Clyde and Theia Shipley had Lenore and Dayle's Aunt Lucy. Theia had passed away before Lenore turned seven years old.
Lenore had gone on to marry Bradley Moss and had Savannah's mother, Dayle and her Auntie Lynette. Lenore had taken her own life when Dayle (A) was all of three years old... or at least she had in her universe.
Savannah knew that her mother had come up from a dysfunctional family with a sad history. But she had a feeling even her mother had never heard this story. Savannah probably would have never heard this story had it not been for a parallel universe version of her grandmother, alive and well. Fuckin trippy.
Clearly Dayle B had never heard the story either. It seemed Lenore had never been fond of talking about her mother. It was a wound that had never healed for her. But she opened up now.
Dayle cleared her throat when Lenore had finished the tale of the "girl from the woods", as Clyde had liked to call her. (The nickname had caused the Doctor to raise his considerable eyebrows in surprise, like maybe he'd heard it before.)
"So did he have any theories? About the weird glow he saw in the trees?" Dayle wondered, fascinated.
Lenore sighed, clearly still mystified by the story herself. "When dad used to talk about the flash of light in the woods, my sister Lucy and I never really believed it. We figured he'd added the embellishment to make the story more interesting to us."
The Doctor was looking at Dayle, curious. "And what road do you suppose this took place on?" He gave her a meaningful look. She gasped and then turned back toward her mother. Leaned forward enthusiastically.
"You said county road 109... where exactly was this on 109? Like, in relation to my apartment?" It seemed to Savannah that Dayle already knew the answer but couldn't quite believe it.
Lenore thought for a moment. "Oh, you know that old stretch of road that's turned to dirt out toward where Papa's house used to be. It's a mess. It isn't used much. I suppose from your place, it would be a straight shot through those woods. Through what they used to call Ritenour Woods. It was in a bend of the road. It formed a clearing, cutting the woods in half there." Clearly she wondered why they wanted to know but decided not to ask.
Savannah saw the Doctor and Dayle B exchange a look of wonder. There must be something significant to them about that place, Savannah decided.
She felt a strange tickle in the back of he mind just then and heard a now familiar crackling sound. Just like in the library hallway before she'd passed out.
Pleased to meet you Sienna Woods. Cheer up, won't you? The night has ended. It's a brand new day.
Savannah shivered and shook her head to clear it. Freaky bullshit.
She noticed the Doctor was eyeing her curiously. He mouthed "Are you okay?" Savannah pressed her lips together and nodded.
"So... did Papa ever find out where Theia came from?" Dayle asked after a moment.
Lenore shook her head. "He told me he just assumed she had some sort of amnesia of the time before they'd met. He said that she must have already known English because within just a few days she was speaking fluently. She adapted easily to life here. She never seemed to want to talk about or even wonder about where she came from."
"And she didn't have any problems? Anything strange that might relate to any of this?" The Doctor pressed.
Lenore smiled, a sad little smile. "Dad said they were very happy. They were happy together until she died in 1964. It happened so quickly." Lenore shrugged. "We were rural and healthcare wasn't what it is now. The doctor said her heart just quit. Dad always said she seemed to age rapidly in the last few months of her life. But I don't remember that. I remember her being young and very beautiful."
Lenore smiled directly at Savannah now. "You look just like her, you know? You and Sienna both. The spitting image. She used to make me and Lucy laugh so hard. She was so clever. And such a loving mom." Her eyes teared up and Dayle B moved quickly to sit beside her.
Dayle gave her mom a squeeze. "Must be where you got it then." she told Lenore softly. Lenore chuckled and kissed her daughter on the forehead.
Savannah was touched by the moment they shared but couldn't help but feel how badly her own mom had been ripped off. She blew out a sigh. She needed to get the hell away.
She stood. "I need some air." she told them shortly. The Doctor moved to join her and she held a hand up to stop him. "Alone." She clarified. He shrugged and settled back in, looking terribly uncomfortable in this domestic situation. She realized that he hadn't so much wanted to keep her company as to escape himself. Savannah would laugh if she didn't already feel like crying.
She trudged out the back door toward the TARDIS. It was sprinkling lightly, the night sky obscured by clouds. She figured she'd check in with the others. When she walked in she found Silas... er Silas A she supposed, alone in the control room, lounging in a chair half asleep. She could only tell them apart by his clothes and the fact he wasn't wearing the silly tan stocking cap. She realized she was already starting to think of him as Lancelot. She just managed to keep from laughing out loud. Her exhaustion had her feeling a bit loopy.
"Hey." she greeted. "You look as tired as I feel."
"Sup?" he replied without much enthusiasm. Yeah, he was wiped out.
She joined him in a chair nearby and fidgeted, struggling to wrap her mind around this crazy night. It was damn near midnight. They'd left their universe behind over five hours ago. She thought of her mom. Even knowing they were dealing with time travel and she could be returned to the very time she'd left, she still felt the time passing without her and she felt worried about her.
Savannah realized that no matter how long her mom kept things together, no matter how many years of sobriety she had under her belt, Savannah would always feel responsible, like she needed to take care of her. And that would never change. Her heart hurt for the fact that Dayle would never know her mom Lenore.
She knew she'd gotten the chance to meet the Lenore of this universe when she'd been here before. It bothered Savannah that her mom hadn't felt she could share that with her at the time. She sighed and put her face in her hands. Seriously. Too damn much.
She heard soft snoring and realized Silas had fallen asleep in the chair. That was what broke her. She cracked up laughing. With all the craziness, the stress and the emotions running high, it was just the release she needed. She was still laughing when Jesse and the other Silas returned to the control room from the corridor.
They peered at her curiously, the other Silas had an eyebrow raised like he had a smartass remark for her but didn't feel he knew her well enough to share it.
"You alright?" Jesse wondered, a half smile on his kind face. Savannah had realized pretty quickly he was the man in her dream from the night before. The one who'd been injured. The one she'd healed. The one Sienna had healed...
Savannah blew out a breath. "Other than the whole parallel universe thing and time traveling alien you mean? I'm peachy man. Aces." She leaned back in the chair and closed her eyes. She needed sleep. She figured nothing in her dreams could be any more surreal than her current waking situation.
Jesse chuckled. "Fair enough. I think I'm gonna go check on Dayle. Be back." He exited.
"Jesse was showing me around a bit." Silas B finally spoke up. Savannah opened her eyes and looked at him. "There's a bedroom back there. Your mom's we think. You could go lay down." He shrugged and put his hands in his pockets nervously. It was clear he didn't know quite how to interact with her. It was just as clear he had it bad for her counterpart Sienna. She wondered if the feeling was mutual.
Savannah studied him and shook her head imperceptibly. Quite frankly, Sienna would be crazy not to feel the same. Intelligent, well mannered and funny. Not to even mention the level of sexy. Two of them in the same room was almost too much sexy to handle.
She smiled and got back to her feet. "Yeah. May as well go take a little nap. I think I've reached my quota on strange for the day. She yawned and headed toward the corridor. Then stopped and looked back. "Uhh...?" she looked back at him and gestured helplessly.
He chuckled and headed over to show her the way.