Chapter Twenty One: In Which There is a Parting of Ways

Sarah lay in bed, her eyes closed. She didn't know what time it was- it was difficult, on the TARDIS. It was hard to know how long you'd slept when you were suspended in space, able to travel to any time and anywhere. The museum last night had been frightening, but no more so than any other adventure. What was frightening was the look on the Doctor's face when she had left for bed. What had he wanted to tell her? What had that poison arrow made him see? But it was useless. The Doctor was impossible to get details out of. He would never tell her something he was unwilling to divulge. She'd just have to wait.

She sighed and stretched, feeling sunlight hitting her face. Must be time to wake up, she thought.

And then she paused. Sunlight? How could there be sunlight in the TARDIS?

Slowly she tried to feel her surroundings, to reassure herself of where she was. She could not open her eyes. Not yet. It would be okay if she could just feel the ground at level with her hand, and know that she was in her sunken bed. It would be okay if she could feel the silky sheets of her bed on the TARDIS. It would be okay.

But Sarah didn't feel silky sheets. Instead, she felt cheap fabric, rather like the sheets she'd purchased from ASDA for her flat in Canterbury. And when she reached out her hand to feel the floor next to her, she tumbled down. Her eyes snapping open, she looked around wildly. This was not the TARDIS. This was her flat.

Feeling panic rise in her chest, she looked around. Her eyes fell on the Doctor. He was standing at her window, watching her. He didn't say anything. Just watched her, with a strange look in his eyes…

"D-Doctor? I…what's going on? Is…this a joke?" Sarah tried to laugh, but it came out as a choking sound.

Still, he didn't answer her. He just watched her.

"This must be a joke," she said, trying to keep the panic out of her voice. She could feel a piercing cold emanating from her stomach. "This has to be a joke. Have you dropped us off on April Fool's, Doctor? Very funny. So funny. I want to go back to the TARDIS now."

He closed his eyes, as if he couldn't look at her anymore. A breath escaped him, shakily.

"I want to go back to the TARDIS now!" She could no longer sound calm. Her voice broke, and she could feel tears starting in her eyes. She stood up. "This isn't funny. I want to go back to the TARDIS. I want…I want….I want to go home."

The Doctor opened his eyes. "This is your home, Sarah. I should have never taken you from it."

Her eyes widened. "This is my home? This? This flat in an unfamiliar country? Living with people I don't know? Miles away from anyone I care about?" Tears were spilling down her cheeks now. "How could this be home? How could it be home without…without you?"

She thought she saw the briefest flicker in his eyes. For just a second, he looked anguished. But then his brown eyes were dead again. Usually so expressive, he kept his face calm. He seemed to be exerting a great effort to keep his face calm.

"Sarah, this is the safest thing for you. Last night…I took you somewhere I should never have taken you. I was incredibly foolish. I let myself get injured, and if you hadn't found me we never would have gotten out of there. I didn't protect you. I failed you, Sarah." He paused, and just looked at her. "Sarah, you have to stay here. You have to stay. I can't hurt another companion. I can't do this to you. You deserve better than me. This has to end."

Something felt broken inside of Sarah. "No. This can't end. This doesn't have to end! Please, Doctor, please! You didn't fail me! We're a team! We work together! You need me as much as I need you! Don't…don't you need me? Please…I need you. Please don't go."

The Doctor closed his eyes again, as if looking for strength. "I need you to stay safe," He said, looking at her. "If I lost you…I can't bear it. So you have to stay here, and I have to go. It's not safe for me to travel with a companion. Please, Sarah. Stay safe for me."

He wasn't looking at her anymore. He was looking past her, and she turned to see that the TARDIS was parked in her room, just in front of her door. Slowly, he started to walk towards the TARDIS. She watched him go, frozen. This wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening. Yesterday she'd woken up ready for another adventure and now she was expected to go back to her life on Earth? As if nothing had ever happened? The Doctor was level with her now, about to walk past her. She grabbed his arm.

"Please. Please, Doctor. Don't do this. I can't…I can't stay here. You…you can't…" She tried to go on but couldn't, lost for words. She fell forward onto the Doctor's chest, clutching at his brown suit. She felt so frail. Useless. She didn't even have the power to make the most important person in her life stay. She was about to lose him, and there was nothing she could do.

She felt a hand on her back, and for one wild moment she looked up at him, sure that he had changed his mind. Hopeful, grasping at straws, she looked up at him. That deadened look was still in his eyes. Nothing had changed. He attempted a weak smile, failed, and pulled her gently away from him. And then he had moved away from her, and was in the door of the TARDIS. He was leaving her.

She steadied herself. She could not let him go without one final goodbye. It killed her to say it. "Doctor…please. Please promise me. Just….think of me, okay? Remember me. Because I'll never forget you. Eventually I'm going to convince myself that I'm crazy. That I imagined all of this. That I never woke up from that dream where I ended up on the TARDIS. So remember me. You have to remember me. One day, I won't know if this ever happened. So you have to know." She swallowed. "Remember me. Please."

He just looked at her. "Sarah, how could I ever forget?"

And with that, he turned into the TARDIS and closed the door. The warping sound felt far away, and then the TARDIS was gone. She was alone. Again.

Author's Note: So this might have been a little cruel to finally update with something...a little more sad than usual. Guys, just wait! I swear I have something else coming up! Please don't throw things at me!