Approaching the end here. I want to thank everyone who read up to this point for their patience... after such a long fic, I almost feel like apologizing. One more chapter to go after this one.
Bannerman Road
Present
Sarah's eyes flickered open to the sound of birds chirping and people laughing outside. A perfectly normal start to a perfectly normal Saturday on Bannerman Road. She stifled a yawn, and smiled as she caught a whiff of the Doctor's scent on her sheets. That, she knew all too well, was anything but normal.
The previous day had been extraordinary. One she knew was a gift, and was to be cherished as such, no matter what was to happen next. She turned around, eyes closed, intending to wrap her arm around his waist. Instead her hand landed upon the bare sheets beside her.
She wasn't exactly surprised. She knew he needed little sleep. She knew he was raring to take the Tardis for a spin and still needed to complete several checkups before doing so. Still she released a sigh of displeasure.
She had managed to keep him in bed the day before, and waking up with his arms around her had proven to be just as enjoyable as she had imagined. Heavenly actually.
They had left the garage during the middle of the night, intending on sleep. By the time they had reached her bedroom however, their bodies had already entwined themselves again up to a point where revived lust had long managed to outmanoeuvre fatigue. When her head was greeted by the soft pillow, and her collarbone was greeted by his lips, sleep had been crossed off the menu.
She had woken up, locked in his embrace; peaceful and safe. In that moment it was difficult to know who or what to thank. Circumstance, fate, destiny, coincidence, or even chaos. Whatever had instigated the turn of events which had led him back to her, she was grateful towards it.
When he stood up and headed for the door, his naked shape collecting the trail of scattered clothes along the way, she couldn't help but smile. He was so beautiful to her. It was difficult to imagine any woman in the universe would think otherwise. Though the more rational parts of her brain realized he wasn't to be defined classically handsome as dictated by aesthetic criteria, she had always found him to be more desirable than any other man she had ever seen.
'I must tend to the Tardis,' he had whispered, ready to leave her there. 'Just give me a couple of hours. After that, I am at your service.'
'To do what?'
He sat had down beside her while fastening the buttons on his shirt.
'Anything you want,' he had purred before planting a soft kiss upon her lips. 'Anything.'
'You need a shower. And new clothes. We're going shopping. Human experience number one on our schedule.'
'Oooooh shopping, how lovely,' he had said sarcastically, baring his teeth before petting her hand and fleeing the room.
With that one sentence and awkward display of affection, he had switched from lover to alien in a mere few seconds. It was something that still managed to surprise her. Every time she allowed herself to forget who he was, one unearthly glare, one biting remark, or one weird clumsy movement would knock her sideways and force her to remember. Extra terrestrial.
After she had driven Sky to school, the hours passed like days. The girl had insisted on saying goodbye to the Doctor before leaving, and before the Timelord could protest, she had pulled him down by the hand and kissed him on the cheek, leaving him somewhat startled as the girl ran back towards the car and stepped in.
After she had arrived back home, the wait had been agony. Every half hour or so, between completing some of her own tasks, she would take a peek inside the garage and be faced with the picture of the Doctor working patiently, often dotting things down in the journal which had also been delivered in the crates.
The fourth time she did so however, her eyes were faced with something she hadn't anticipated. As she stuck her head through the door, careful so as not to be seen, she gasped in horror as she saw the Doctor lying on his side, obviously hurt.
As she had run towards him he was already regaining consciousness, to her great relief.
'What happened?!' Sarah cried as she ran her fingers through his hair and aided him to his feet.
'Had my bell rung… it's all right, I'm fine.'
'Are you?,' she asked while checking him for cuts or bruises.
He nodded and grinned.
'Not funny,' she thought. 'Again. Just not amusing.'
'She threw me out. I wonder what that's all about.'
Sarah crossed her arms and raised a suspicious eyebrow.
'Threw you out?'
Again, he nodded and grinned.
'I walked in for the first time and everything appeared to be in order. Same Tardis. But as soon as I laid a finger on the controls, the intruder alert went crackers.'
'She doesn't recognize you?'
'Oh, I think she does. I think that may be part of the problem.'
'What, you mean she's mad at you?'
He shook his head and ran his tongue across his teeth.
'Well, could be but… she said I was already in there. You see the Tardis being a time machine has to take precautions against any of the passengers running into themselves. If I were to accidentally land in the same place at the same time as my former or future self, the Tardis won't allow that time double to pilot her… should he mistake my Tardis for his.'
'She can tell the difference between the you of today and the you of next week?'
'Absolutely. She can with you as well. With everyone. Our atoms are in a constant state of flux, Sarah; and the Tardis is in a constant state of saving and recognizing that information. Comes in handy for all sorts, not just rejecting doubles. If she wishes to do so, she can project an interface of you from any given moment you once spent in there.'
'That's slightly… disturbing,' Sarah whispered. 'So why does she think you are still in there?'
'Because to her, I am. As soon we landed in the Global Biota Repository, the Tardis was attacked by the Krynoid. I assume she attempted to save me in her databanks so that in case I would have been trapped in there, my then current self would also be saved in her consciousness.'
'The consciousness which was then transmitted into that little device I tried to open.'
He smiled proudly.
'Very good.'
'But what good would that have done? I mean you…'
'I would have been dead you mean?'
She nodded solemnly.
'It's a measure of last resort, Sarah. One that I can't divulge the possibilities of, I'm afraid.'
'Why not?' she asked, disappointed.
He sighed and gazed at his feet.
'Humans would consider it to be, oh… unethical,' he had said, somewhat mockingly. 'After that of course, they would steal the knowledge, copy the technology, and start doing it themselves left right and center just to make a few billions.'
She couldn't help but snort at that remark. Yet the sad thing was that he was probably giving a fairly accurate description of humanity… or at least the more powerful and corrupt amongst them.
'When she restored herself here inside of your garage, Sarah, she did so based on the last saving point… like any computer might. That last saving point included me.'
'How can you make her realize there is no other corporeal you in there?' She asked.
He groaned loudly and stretched his arms.
'We'll see. Don't worry… just a minor glitch, I'll straighten it out soon.'
He had smiled and taken her hands before touching her nose with his.
'For the time being, Miss. Smith, I am yours as promised.'
At that moment, the day had only just begun.
The Global Biota Repository
Days Earlier
As Sarah closed in on the Doctor's limp form; careful so as not to lose her balance on the slippery surface, she felt her hearbeat slow down. Perhaps it was the temperature, yes, the indescribable cold that seemed to not only slow down her already tired limbs, but her mind as well. Mostly it was the fear that when she would turn him onto his side, pat his cheeks for a reaction, and feel his pulse, there would be none.
She didn't dare speak, so she just kept on going. Nearer and nearer to her Doctor with every step.
She made her way through another aisle, she saw something on the corner of her eye. A dark unmoving blotch. As she turned to face it, she immediately realized.
'Karlsson,' she thought as a loud gasp got lodged in the back of her throat. He was lying on his stomach, his blood stained and all but frozen solid face turned towards her. The back of his head a bloody cracked mess. Yes, he had clearly been gunned down from behind, just as the Doctor had told her.
She turned her eyes back towards the Timelord, swallowing hard as she kept on going. No time to lose.
She crouched down in front of him, patting his back while rolling him onto his side. He was heavy. He had always been heavy. As her bare hands grazed the texture of his grey coat, her mind was flooded with memories. She smiled as she hovered above his scarf, suddenly wanting badly to smell it. Too cold. Not enough time.
As he turned onto his back, she was overwhelmed with happiness. It really was him. Her Doctor. Right there with her.
She patted his cheeks as the fire died beside them. As they grew surrounded by darkness, he still didn't respond. Soon the bombs would make it all academic anyway, she thought. There was too little time. Why didn't he wake up?
There, in the dark freezer of of a far from home facility, Sarah Jane Smith grew certain that she would –
'Sarah,' he muttered suddenly.
The Timelord's eyes snapped open violently, as if an invisible thunderbolt had revived him. He shot up without hesitation, only looking at her when he was fully standing. For a second, he looked into her eyes before scanning her features.
'Yes,' Sarah thought. 'I know. A few more wrinkles.'
He didn't allow her the time to speak as he grabbed hold of her hand and pulled her towards him, embracing her tightly, chuckling in her hair. It didn't exactly warm her up, as he too was frozen, even more so than usual, yet it filled her with extasy. Years of hoping… over.
'How did you get in here?' he demanded, his anger suddenly on full display.
As she shook her head, he look at her in confusion. Did he not understand it was so cold she could hardly speak?
'I locked the door but my screwdriver went dead after just a few minutes, it can't function in this temperature.'
'Neither can I,' Sarah breathed, ready to faint. 'I… I…'
'Here,' he whispered while he took of his scarf and wrapped it around her neck. 'Put this around you.'
'Thank you.'
Her knees gave way as soon as the cold air reached her lungs once more. She fell forward, into his chest. She never hit the ground. Instead, he scooped her up as if she were a feather, and carried her towards the exit as fast as he could.
'Sonic stick lip…' Sarah mumbled in his arms. 'Right pocket.'
'Hang in there, Sarah. Stay awake now, you hear? Sarah!'
As they reached the door, the Doctor placed her against the wall, patting her cheeks in order to keep her awake.
'I'm awake,' she moaned, obviously losing consciousness.
'We'll get you warmed up soon,' he said as he reached into her pocket. As he retrieved the sonic lipstick, he grinned at the gadget, which looked like a doll accessory in his big hands.
'Still working,' the Doctor said surprised as he pointed the device at the door. He glanced at the fire extinguisher and looked at Sarah.
'Clever girl.'
He opened the door, and peeked through the crack to observe the state of the greenery. The plants had once again calmed down.
'Sarah,' he said calmly. 'I need you to be alert now. Can you do that?'
'It's too late,' she replied with her eyes closed.
'Sarah, please. We have to leave. You and me, remember?'
She opened her eyes and looked at him. He really hadn't changed one bit. Unlike herself.
She nodded and hunched forward.
As the Doctor helped her to her feet, he looked into her eyes.
'Stay close to me,' he whispered, prompting a determined nod from his friend.
'You too,' she breathed.
He smiled and gently tapped her nose.
'That's a promise.'
He grabbed hold of the extinguisher and took her hand in his.
'Let's go.'
As they hurried across the bridge, Sarah tried to stop him.
'Doctor,' she urged. 'The Tardis. It's…'
'She'll work,' he snapped. 'She can still take us away from her, I know she can.'
'Doctor!' Sarah cried desperately, grabbing his sleeve. 'Look at her!'
He didn't look at his ship as he turned to face her.
'She's gone, Doctor,' Sarah said as she looked at what as left of the blue box, which wasn't a whole lot.
He pressed his eyes shut; tightly; as if he wanted to alter reality by way of sheer anger. Substitute the one at hand for another. He tunred his head in the tardis' direction and opened them. No reaction. He knew it was over.
'I'm getting you out of here,' he hissed coldly.
As he turned to face her again, she noticed his eyes settling on something over shoulder. For a split second, his eyes dilated, and then… in a way she couldn't explain, time seemed to fracture.
He pushed and pulled at her, causing her knees and hands to crash into the grid of the bridge simultaneously.
'Ah,' Sarah cried.
It wasn't like the movies. Time didn't slow down when she heard the gun go off. It was like everything happened at once, and all she could do was try to make sense of it.
As she glanced up at him from her knees, another shot resounded, and she was greeted by a small shower of drops hitting her face and chest.
She looked down at them. Red. Blood. Her heart stopped skipping and stopped entirely.
As the Doctor sagged to one knee, her jaw dropped in disbelief. Confusion. Anger. Most of all, heartbreaking disappointment.
On the other side of the bridge, and closing the space between them menacingly… a familiar face…
Bannerman Road
Present
She had driven them to the nearest mall in order to acquaint him with the most unpleasant shopping experience she could think of. Not nice of her, she knew very well. But then loving someone so quickly tilts towards wanting to tease them as well.
He had sat wide-eyed, tugging at his seat belt, gazing at everything around him. Confused to the core.
'What's the matter?' she had asked as they drove onto the parking lot. 'You look like you've never been to earth.'
'It's quite… erm… different,' he stammered.
'You mean not having Daleks or Zygons chase you during your odd visit? Just people going about their daily lives. Honking and pushing trolleys.'
'Don't know which of the two I find more terrifying,' he mumbled, prompting her to feel a stab of guilt.
As they wandered from shop to shop, a few things became clear very quickly.
Some shop girls were extremely fond of him; taking advantage of every opportunity to let the back of their hands graze his bum as they assisted him, or smile and flirt with him shamelessly whilst discussing colors and fabrics. Perhaps it would have bothered her slightly if it hadn't been for his reactions ranging from a loud and clear for the whole store to hear 'You're very good at flirting, madam!' to hopping around like a nervous toddler with his hands tied behind his back in an attempt to form a shield between his behind and any hands that may have potentially landed there.
In the end, any attempts made on their behalf as far as telling him what to buy were eventually disregarded as he had wandered into a dusty store at the far end of the building while she had been making a call, and had walked out again dressed as a late nineteenth century tweed and velvet tramp. A timelessly stylish and clean tramp mind.
It had been a relief to be honest. Seeing him in modern suits and jumpers had been a treat to the eye but it just wasn't him. In a span of a few minutes, he had managed to look entirely out of place in their current surroundings.
'You are so vain,' she teased. 'Lord forbid you should blend in with the natives.'
'I do blend in. This is me blending in.'
'Seventy years ago… perhaps.'
'Ah well, your species' propensity to mess with perfection isn't my fault… and I hardly think my wardrobe should suffer because of it.'
They had sat down on the terrace of a bistro to have lunch. A few minutes after ordering, she had made her way towards the bathroom, passing a few tables, one of which was occupied by a loud drunken couple; the female half of which had made herself at home by way of taking her shoes of and making other customers around her rather nervous. She was sweating too. As she shuddered internally and passed the bar, she had heard something on the television causing her to halt and retract her hand from the cold surface of bathroom door handle.
'This morning in Stockholm, hospitals were overrun by people suffering from sudden respiratory complications; the cause of which has yet to be determined. The list of deadly casualties is presumed to have passed the one hundred mark and growing rapidly. More facts regarding this unsettling news are to follow soon.'
Then, between the images of doctors, investigators, and frightened people, she saw the shape of a man. A young man wearing a bow tie, and a white coat… a white coat he had obviously stolen.
'Doctor,' she whispered at the television screen.
What was he doing in Sweden? Had Stockholm been invaded by the Yaxwinnik?
As she had shuffled back towards their table, her coffee and his tea had arrived.
'Do you need this sugar?' he had asked, already opening the packet.
She had shaken her head nervously, her mind still firmly attached to the images she had seen on the news.
As she looked at the trays in front of her, she saw four empty packets of sugar. Looking up, the Timelord was sipping his tea in between pulling faces of disgust.
'Too sweet?' she had asked.
'Too bitter.'
She had smiled and taken his hand hers. An attempt to forget what she had seen. If the older Doctor said he would handle the Yaxwinnik, she was convinced that he would.
As his younger self looked back at her dreamily, it worked. She forgot.
After having finished lunch they had sat enjoying the rare wonderful weather, talking about all sorts. From Gallifrey to her job to her children to food to the smells of spring. Before they had realized, two hours had passed, and she had allowed herself to feel as though, for now, she was one half of an average couple.
During their drive back towards Ealing, they had decided to pick up Sky from school, grab a blanket, and head for Windsor Great Park to make the most of the nice weather. Once there, they had enjoyed a lovely stroll before deciding to lie down by the Leptis Magna ruins with ice cream. The only moment of sadness was missing Luke.
As they had arrived back on Bannerman Road in the middle of the night after a late dinner, she had known how lucky she was; and when falling asleep in his arms after making love, she knew she would have rather had that day and died straight after, then to have lived without it. It had been such a simple day, and yet it had been perfect.
As her mind wandered back towards the present, she heard the Doctor's voice outside; mingling with other familiar ones.
'Oh no,' she muttered as she recognized Rani and Clyde's voices.
She hopped out of the bed, slipped into the first t-shirt she could find, and threw on her bathrobe. On her bare feet, she scattered down the staircase and headed for the driveway, hoping Clyde hadn't been able to pry loose certain details involving the past few days.
'What are you kids doing here?' she asked, attempting to sound casual while taking in the sight of the Doctor sitting on a crate, surrounded by two overly curious teenagers and her daughter.
'Oh, just talking,' Clyde replied in a tone of equally calculated casualness.
'Wondering why we weren't invited along yesterday,' Rani added.
'Family day out,' Sarah said, immediately realizing how that must have sounded to the ancient alien opposite her.
'Oh,' Rani replied suggestively. 'I see.'
'Sarah, perhaps you should put some shoes on,' the Timelord interjected.
'Yes, dear. Put some shoes on,' Clyde agreed, mimicking the Doctor's voice… and failing.
She stared blankly at the kids and shrugged.
'I'm fine. What are you talking about.'
'We were deciding where to take the Tardis for a test ride,' Sky informed her mother while pulling the Doctor's arm to one side for no apparent reason, gesticulating with it as if he were a doll of some kind.
'How about the great wall of China?' Rani suggested. 'I'd love to see that.'
'During the time of the Samurai!' Clyde added, clearly having made his mind up.
'That's a little risky, young lad,' the Doctor informed him. 'Especially considering they were from Japan.'
'Woodstock!' the teenager attempted, prompting the Doctor to once again shake his head.
'I can guarantee you that little hop was one over-hyped and uncomfortable mess for everyone involved.'
'Excuse me,' Sarah attempted.
'Especially the androids pretending to be Crosby, Stills, and Nash.'
'Doctor,' Sarah tried again.
'They short circuited after performing. Still, not as nasty as the Hendrix one… he melted.'
'Are you saying Jimi Hendrix was an android?'
'No, Clyde, don't be daft. The real rockstars had been knocked out cold by their android doubles in a tent. Still, no one seemed to notice the difference and it had a happy ending.'
'Excuse me!' Sarah shouted.
'I don't remember granting any of you permission to go anywhere.'
'That's what I told them,' the Doctor urged.
'Besides, the Tardis is too knackered to go anywhere.'
'I fixed her.'
Sarah's heart stopped. No, scratch that. It broke.
'You did?' she whispered.
'Ready to launch,' Clyde smiled.
'What if we taker her for a tiny spin? Please, mom.'
Sarah folded her arms and pressed her lips together.
'Is it safe?' she asked, gazing into the Timelord's eyes, begging for the truth.
He nodded.
'It's perfectly fine. But it's your decision. And you kids will obey, no matter what.'
'Please, mom,' Sky nagged, pouting her lips and clearly attempting to win an Oscar for her performance.
'This could be the only chance we'll ever have, Sarah Jane,' Rani added.
For a moment, everything went quiet while Sarah deliberated the matter in her head.
'You're keeping them in England,' she then ordered the Doctor. 'And on today's exact date.'
'We might as well take a taxi!' Clyde protested.
'Final offer,' Sarah said.
'Great!' Rani cried. 'Where shall we go?'
'Windsor Great Park!' Sky suggested.
'You were there yesterday, you goose.'
As the kids argued amongst themselves where to go, Sarah turned around and headed for the house.
Within a matter of seconds however, the Doctor was beside her, grabbing her hand as they walked through the door and headed for the sitting room.
'Come here,' he whispered as he sat down and urged her to join him. As she did so, he immediately kissed her.
'You should join us,' he whispered as he nuzzled her neck.
'Certainly not. If I join you, you'll have no reason to take us back home any time soon. I know you… you'll just get lost again and again and again, on purpose, hoping I won't get fed up with wandering around the stars.'
He closed his eyes, obviously knowing her words contained almost nothing but the truth.
'Did you then?'
'What do you mean?' she asked while running her fingers through his hair.
'Were you fed up when you left me?'
She looked at him, confused at first.
'I don't know. I probably needed a short break. But if I had known then you wouldn't be coming back for forty years, I wouldn't even have considered leaving.'
'I did come back.'
'Yes, I know.'
'The Tardis she…'
'I know, Doctor.'
She rested her head upon his.
'You were the only one I wanted to share my life with. It's just that sometimes we need peace and quiet. A warm bed in a brick house. I needed to be sure I could still come back. Be part of my own planet's history, if only for a few days here and there.'
He nodded.
'But I can't do that anymore. Sky and Luke, they come first now. And I would never forgive myself if something happened to them out there.'
'I would never allow that to happen,' he said blankly, his eyes growing dark with determination, making clear to her he was willing to lay down his own life for her and either of her children if that's what it came down to.
She embraced him tightly.
'I'm sorry,' she said. 'I can't.'
At that moment, Sky, Clyde, and Rani rushed into the house followed by K9, and headed straight towards them.
As Sky and Clyde sat down on the opposite couch, Rani unfolded a map of England on the coffee table.
'What's all this?' Sarah asked as she wiped a stray tear from her cheek.
'We can't decide where to go,' Sky informed her mother.
'That's because you refuse to go anywhere Clyde and I point out on the map.'
'Suggestion,' K9 proposed in his distinctive tone.
'Allow impartial hand to decide. Perhaps Master or mistress can oblige.'
'That's a good idea,' Rani agreed.
'The Doctor should decide, he's the pilot,' Sarah suggested while standing up. 'Breakfast, anyone?'
'What do we say I close my eyes and allow a certain element of randomness to decide?'
As the three youngsters nodded in agreement, the Doctor stood up and allowed his index finger to hover above the map in circles.
He closed his eyes, and dropped his finger.
Inside the kitchen, Sarah rested her head upon the fridge and sighed, already knowing the destination.
The Global Biota Repository
Days Earlier
'Marianne,' Sarah breathed.
The blonde woman didn't reply as she approached, pointing the gun at the Timelord.
He looked at her then, trembling in pain; his eyes asking whether she was okay.
Without regard for the oncoming threat, Sarah crawled towards him. She swallowed hard as she took note of the damage. His upper chest and shoulder were a mess. Blood seeping onto the grid below and onto the plants beneath them.
'Yet another admirable display of heroism,' the woman deadpanned as she halted a few feet in front of them. 'Truly touching.'
'You're going to be okay,' Sarah breathed tremulously, her eyes filling with tears as the Doctor's settled upon some far away invisible place. 'Stay with me.'
Sarah glared at Marianne.
'Who are you? We have to go or we're all dead. What happened to Edison?'
The blonde woman chuckled. She sounded so much different than before.
'Let's see,' she sneered. 'Which one of those would you like me to answer first?'
She put the gun to the Doctor's head. He was close to losing consciousness.
'Get away from him,' Marianne ordered, prompting Sarah to shake her head.
'Now… or this gun will go off in his face.'
'I swear, Marianne, if you hurt him.'
The blonde woman hit the Timelord in the face with the gun and grinned.
'Hurt him? Miss, Smith, I have no intention on hurting him. I intend to kill both of you.'
'The bombs -,' Sarah attempted.
'You really believe I would allow this entire operation to be destroyed by a journalist from Ealing?' Marianne interrupted. 'That timer never began its countdown, because I never entered that code. My apologies if it caused you a certain amount of stress. As for that winged Judas, who knows. I left him.'
As Sarah crawled backwards and away from the Doctor, she caught a glimpse of the plants beneath them. The gunshots and the Doctor's blood had revived their interest in what was going on above them. Slowly but surely, they began extending upwards again.'
'You have no idea how long it took for us,' Marianne said. 'Years to collect those pods and set this up. Then Karlsson insisted on finding out what they were and nearly blew our cover.'
She grinned once more.
'Nearly.'
'You shot him,' Sarah said as she watched the Doctor regain some temporary strength.
'He didn't leave me with a lot of alternatives.'
'Who are you?' The Doctor asked in between moans. 'Are you human?'
'You insult me, Timelord. Perhaps the question is whether you are? More importantly, how is it that you are alive while the rest of your kind -'
The blonde woman was interrupted by her own thoughts.
'Of course,' she cried victoriously. 'The last of the Ti-'
'Shut up!' Sarah shouted.
Marianne chuckled.
'I see,' she whispered before glaring at the Doctor. 'He doesn't know. Don't worry, Miss Smith. I'll leave him with the opportunity to be surprised when that infamous hour occurs and echoes throughout the entire universe.'
Then, as the Krynoid were right below them, the Doctor's eyes closed. His head falling upon the grid of the bridge with a violent thump.
'Doctor!' Sarah cried.
'One more question,' Marianne deadpanned. 'Does humanity not kill species that roam this planet beside them every single day? Does humanity not kill its own? Does humanity not poison this planet?'
Sarah nodded.
'Then why should we not follow that example and wipe this world clean from the virus that infests it?'
Then, without warning, The blonde woman opened her mouth. Within a mere few seconds, something lunged from her throat and headed towards Sarah's at the speed of sound. Before the journalist could react, let alone duck, the slippery suckers on the tentacle began hissing and squeezing the oxygen from her lungs. While doing so, Marianne's eyes grew larger and larger. As if Sarah's lungs were functioning as a pump and blowing oxygen into Marianne's eyeballs.'
She tried to pull them off as she felt her entire body weaken, and for some odd reason, she tried to remember whether she had ever been strangled before. She couldn't. She couldn't form a coherent thought as she wriggled around like a fly trapped in a web.
She glanced at the Doctor's lifeless body; his foot being pulled towards the side of the bridge by the thick mutated ivy which had clasped itself around his ankle.
'This can't be it,' Sarah thought as her eyes involuntarily rolled back. 'Not here.'
She hunched her back, as if that would somehow unlock a backup unit of air stocked somewhere in her body. No such luck.
As the Krynoid had surrounded the bridge, and the killer opposite her had sucked every last atom of oxygen from her lungs, Sarah Jane Smith drifted away.
In between flashes of light and a series of random memories, she heard sounds. Sounds that pulled her from the darkness, if only for several brief moments.
She heard screams. More gunshots. She saw the Krynoid receding. She saw Mark's mutated body grapple with Marianne's. She saw darkness and heard one violent scream… then, silence again. More dreams. As her eyes flickered open, she immediately glanced down. There, in the jungle beneath her, lay two bodies. Dead or unconscious, she did not know. Marianne, or whoever she was, and Mark, or whatever was left of him.
Had Mark pulled Marianne down with him? Her heart broke as she considered him being innocent. Perhaps they were working together… Perhaps… she did not know. She couldn't think. Nor could she move.
A few feet in front of her the Doctor was till unconscious. Blood dripping from his side, neck, and hands. In the distance, she heard the Tardis, wheezing. Crying almost. As i fit wanted desperately to dematerialize out of this hellhole, yet couldn't. She turned to watch, immediately noticing the yellowish hue emanating from what was left of the blue box. Her heart broke.
'Look at you,' she whimpered as a tear rolled down her cheek.
'Doc…,' she attempted, but to no avail. Inside she was screaming. Inside, she was banging against the walls of her mind, urging her body to listen. Shouting at her legs to move and help both her friend and his wonderful ship. No response. All she could do was lie there and wait for certain death.
As her vision dimmed, she was sure she heard the sound of the Tardis, a Tardis, materializing nearby.
How?
'My dear girl,' an all too familiar voice spoke clearly. A voice belonging to neither the curly haired or the bowtie donning Doctor…
The last thing she experienced was velvet grazing against her cheek, followed by a soft hand.
'Doctor,' she muttered.
'Sarah Jane Smith,' the familiar voice reassured her. 'I'm here to take you home.'
Bannerman Road
Present
'You promised!' Sky cried as the Doctor threw on his purple coat to complete his characteristic traveling look.
'I didn't promise anything,' Sarah replied.
'Well, yeah… you kinda did, Sarah Jane,' Rani said. 'You told us it was okay if we stayed in the country and Hyde Park is in England as far as I know, so what gives?'
She knew she couldn't tell them the truth. Couldn't tell them that he wouldn't be back.
'Hyde Park,' Sarah whispered in a barely audible tone. Her eyes wandering off as her mind went over what the older Doctor had told her. Time to let him go.
She was grateful for the ability to suppress the tears, and looked at him. He too was staring at her with great confusion, just like the kids were. Then, suddenly, he turned his attention towards Sky, and kneeled in front of her. She was hardly a little child, but he was so large that she might as well have been.
'Sky,' he began as soon as his eye line reached hers.
'What do you say if the three of you come along with me next time? As soon as I've made sure everything is in order. After all, I wouldn't want to get any of you hurt. Or lost…'
'But you said –'
'I know,' The Doctor interrupted. 'But there are always thing I can't anticipate. The Tardis has a mind of her own, and taking along three passengers she doesn't recognize might be a bit too much for her right now.'
Sarah's throat was suffering greatly from having to fight back the emotions begging for release. She wanted to weep. Wanted to beg him not to leave, yet she knew she couldn't. He belonged out there, and she and the kids belonged here. Those were the facts.
'Sky, why don't we go in the house for a moment,' Rani suggested. 'Let your mother and the Doctor discuss this in private.'
Sarah smiled at Rani, who gave her knowing look.
'Than you,' she mouthed.
'Come on, Clyde,' Rani urged while tugging his sweater and guiding him out of the garage.
'You're leaving, aren't you?' Sky asked.
'Yes he is, Darling,' Sarah replied as she approached them, prompting Sky to press her lips together tightly, ready to burst into tears.
'Why?'
'Because he doesn't belong here, sweetheart. Neither in this house or in this time. He broke the rules to save my life. So that I could be with you and Luke for many many years to come.'
'Whose rules?' Sky demanded in between sobs. 'I hate those rules.'
The Doctor looks down at the floor and nodded in agreement.
'So do I,' he mumbled. 'But some rules exist to keep everyone safe, Sky. And this is one of those rules.'
The girl looked down and covered her eyes with her forearms in sorrow, her body shaking as she cried.
'Come here,' the Timelord said as he scooped the girl up from her feet and comforted her.
'I Have this feeling that I'll be around, you know,' he said as he looked at Sarah knowingly. 'Albeit a different and far too skinny exterior.'
'Bugger,' she thought between tears. 'He knows.'
'Not you,' Sky complained, thereby admitting to having seen another version. 'He's not you.'
'Oh, he's me,' The Doctor assured her. 'And he loves you. Because I love you.'
He put her down again and tapped her gently on the nose.
'So the next time you see me, no matter how silly I look or act… you'll know that I remember you. That I remember what I'm telling you right now.'
He smiled and embraced her tightly. 'Silly goose,' he said before kissing her on the forehead.
'You look silly now,' Sky replied blankly, prompting a deep chuckle from the Timelord.
'Now let me say goodbye to your mother.'
The girl nodded and headed towards the door.
'Sky,' the Doctor called after her.
She turned around, obviously comforted by his words.
'Promise one thing… just one thing.'
The girl smiled and nodded.
'Go ahead and be silly,' he said softly.
She waved and left the garage, soon calling after Rani in the distance.
Sarah approached him and took his hands in hers.
'You do that well,' she whispered.
'She's a good teacher.'
Sarah smiled and kissed his hand.
'What do you mean?'
'I mean that your daughter's heart was open to me just like yours has always been.'
'Don't even think about about stealing my daughter in ten years time, sir.'
'Not even for one trip? You would deny her everything you saw?'
'Yes!' Sarah replied quickly. 'I hate Daleks and Cybermen as much as the next girl, but my daughter would be too much punishment even for them.'
He grinned and caressed her cheeks.
'I wish…'
'It's okay,' she said. 'You already told me… and I understand.'
As he placed his lips onto hers, everything was alright. In that moment, she knew that she had been handed a small miracle free of charge.
How good that feels… Sarah thought.
The feeling of happiness didn't last long as she imagined what was about to happen. He would walk through those blue doors and she would never see him again. This was it.
'You better go,' Sarah said. 'Before I tie to you to a chair and keep you here.'
He nodded in silence.
'I love you, Sarah Jane Smith.'
He planted another kiss upon her lips and turned around. Just like that. Before she could say anything, the doors behind him had shut.
She bit her lower lip to forget the agony within. Once again, he had kissed her as the man who loved her. Once his back had been turned however, he had been the alien. That small part of him she would never reach, no matter how many kisses they shared.'
As the Tardis dematerialized in front of her, she stood and gazed at the floor. Motionless like a statue.
He was gone.