Thanks to funkyferret, animeloveranimegunner, HBR the dark princess, Arcknight3, Ice Jewel of eternal beauty for following/faving my story.
NicoleR85: thanks! I'm glad you like the way I put Orion and River into the story.
Savethemadscientist: yeah, she does seem like the kind of person to be sceptical of the 'ghosts'. Yep, Ellie's uncle should be very, very afraid of those two.
After what seemed like forever, Melanie opened her eyes. "Mum?" she said, looking up at her blearily.
"Hey, sweetie. How are you feeling?" Sarah Jane asked, sitting on the edge of the bed.
"Like I've just been healed from a knife wound", Melanie replied, sitting up and wincing slightly "where's the Doctor?" she questioned, noticing the absence of her Bonded. She figured that he would've been glued to her side until she'd woken up.
"He had to go investigate another Ghost Shift", Sarah Jane answered "but he promised to be back soon".
"Ok", Melanie said touching her chest. She could feel a dull ache, very similar to when they were in the parallel world. She really hoped it wouldn't be too long before she had him with her again. She didn't like this feeling one bit. "Mum…can I have a cup of tea?" Melanie asked after a moment.
"Of course", Sarah Jane replied. She pressed a light kiss to her adopted daughters forehead "I'll be back in a minute", she assured her and then left the room. As soon as she was gone Melanie glanced down at the blood stain on her shirt. She gingerly touched it. I can't believe he found me she thought. She'd been so sure that she was safe, that he didn't know where she was. Melanie shook her head, mentally pulling herself together.
The brunette slid out of bed and tugged off her shirt, discarding it onto the floor. Melanie then grabbed a fresh t-shirt from her drawers and put it on. She'd barely gotten her hair out from under the clean top when Sarah Jane called up to her. "Sweetheart! Could you come down please!"
"Ok!" Melanie called back. She headed down the stairs, pausing when she saw her adoptive mother standing at the bottom with a couple of soldier boys. "Mum, what's going on?" she asked.
"These 'gentlemen' are going to take us to Canary Warf", Sarah Jane replied.
"Why?" Melanie questioned.
"You'll find out when we get there ma'am", one of the soldiers said "but we need to go now".
~Canary Warf/Torchwood~
The Doctor turned toward the doors when he felt the presence of his Bonded, replacing the aching emptiness that was in his chest before. The double doors opened and two soldiers entered followed by Melanie and Sarah Jane. The younger brunette pushed past the soldiers, hurrying toward the Doctor. The Time Lord met her half way, engulfing her in a massive hug. "You ok?" he asked checking her over, looking for any signs of distress or pain from what her uncle did.
"I will be", Melanie honestly answered.
"Well, this is a nice reunion but we need to get back to the matter at hand", a female voice spoke up.
"And who are you?" Melanie asked.
"Yvonne Hartman", the blonde answered "its nice to finally meet you Melanie Hannigan".
"How do you know my daughters name?" Sarah Jane queried, slightly defensive as her protective side towards her adopted child flared up.
"I know a lot of things, Sarah Jane Smith", Yvonne said with a smirk "for example I know that your adoptive daughter is the Doctor's Bonded". At those words the Doctor tightened his grip on Melanie.
"That's why she's brought here? Because she's my Bonded?" he questioned.
"That's the alien soulmate thing, right?" Jackie suddenly piped up before Yvonne could answer. Rose had sort of explained it to her but she still couldn't quite wrap her head around it.
"Yes it is", Melanie replied.
"Its true we did bring Melanie here because of the connection the pair of you have", Yvonne admitted.
"If you think you're going to keep her prisoner here too, think again", the Doctor said, his voice taking on an angry tone. It was one thing to keep him prisoner at Torchwood so they could use him for information but to hold his Bonded captive… there was no way in hell he was letting that happen.
"What?! You were going to hold my daughter prisoner!" Sarah Jane exclaimed.
"She was going to be our guest for an extended period of time", Yvonne said calmly, trying to placate the woman.
"Well, it's not going to happen. Ever!" Sarah Jane said firmly.
"She's right, its not happening", the Doctor agreed adamantly, stepping forward, getting right in Yvonne's face "you're going to let Melanie go home, right now".
"I'm afraid I cannot do that, yet", Yvonne confessed "She's your Bonded so she's your incentive to help". The Doctor's jaw clenched as the Oncoming Storm began to surface.
"You…." he trailed off when his Bonded reached out and touched his shoulder.
"We should help her", Melanie stated.
"Ellie…" The Doctor started but the brunette cut him off with
"I know you're not happy but the ghost situation is more important right now. Once that's dealt with then you can argue with her about keeping me as a 'guest'"
The Doctor looked at Melanie knowing that she was right. They unfortunately had bigger problems to deal with but once it was all sorted, then he was going to show Yvonne why he has the moniker, the Oncoming Storm. "Alright", the Time Lord said "I'll help".
"Good", Yvonne said. She walked over to a large door and pressed her ID card against the digital lock next to it. When the door opened, she walked in "you can help by telling us what you think of this", she said. Inside the room was a rather large bronze sphere was suspended in mid-air.
"What is that thing?" Jackie asked.
"We got no idea", Yvonne said.
"What's wrong with it?" Melanie questioned, gaping up at the sphere.
"What makes you think there's something wrong with it?" the Torchwood scientist, Rajesh, counter asked her.
"I don't know. Its feels weird", Melanie answered.
"Well, the sphere has a similar effect on everyone", Yvonne told her.
"We tried analysing it using every device imaginable", Rajesh said. The Doctor put on his 3D glasses and looked up at the sphere, seeing the same red and green particles around it just like the 'ghost'. "But according to our instruments, the sphere doesn't exist. It weighs nothing, it doesn't age. No heat, no radiation, and has no atomic mass", the scientist continued.
"That doesn't make sense", Sarah Jane said "I can see it".
"Fascinating, isn't it? It upsets people because it gives off…nothing. It is…absent", Rajesh said.
"Well, Doctor?" Yvonne asked.
"This is a Void Ship", the Doctor answered.