Wow, you guys are awesome. I have had over 500 visitors for this rewrite. Can I just say, I love you guys. So thanks for your interest in the story and please let me know if you like the rewrite. I will be posting another chapter next week as an early Christmas post. I won't have access to internet or my computer to post on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, or the day after Christmas.
Disclaimer: Don't own Doctor Who!
Earth...
Luke is walking home from the store, with a bag in hand. Sarah Jane had sent him out 4 hours ago for a quick run to Tesco, and he wasn't supposed to be out as long as he was. He had run into some friends and time had gotten away from him. As he goes up the walk, towards the house, he notices that the front door has been left open. Which is odd since Sarah Jane is always telling him to keep the doors closed for safety reasons.
'That's weird. Mum never leaves it open.' he thinks as he closes it behind him after entering the house.
"Mum, I'm back. Sorry I was late. I ran into..." Luke calls out as he removes his shoes and continues further into the home.
He stops talking as he notices that the chairs in the lounge are broken into pieces and laying everywhere. Setting the bag down on the floor, Luke slowly walks down the hall towards the kitchen. The French glass door to the kitchen are missing several panes, with some panes cracked. Proceeding cautiously, Luke steps into the kitchen and sees the small, circular table is laying on the floor broken in two. Lying between the two pieces is a prone figure on the floor.
"Mum!" Luke shouts as he rushes to her side and tries to look for any injury while not moving Sarah Jane's body. "Mum! Mum!"
With the rise of panic moving through his body, Luke calls out for help from one of the two others who share the house with him and his mum.
"K-9! K-9!"
When the former, metallic dog companion to the Doctor doesn't appear Luke can only worry about why. Torn between staying with Sarah Jane and finding K-9, Luke decides to contact the emergency services. He isn't sure if it is the best option, but if his mum is needing medical attention then her health and safety comes first.
Once he has made the call, Luke hurries up the stairs to see if the destruction is only on the first floor. He reaches the landing only to see pieces and parts of K-9 strewn upon the next flight of stairs. At the very top of the stairs is where the largest pieces to K-9 lay with small, dark scorch marks on the grey color. Knowing that time is now running short before the emergency services arrive, Luke continues on till he reaches the room that houses the last of the four residents to the house.
"Mr. Smith I need... No."
As Luke walks into the attic he sees machine parts laying all over the place. There, in the middle of the room, is the torn apart computer, Mr. Smith. Seeing the wreckage of his computer friend, Luke's knees give way and sends the teenager to the floor. With tears starting to roll down his cheeks, Luke loses track of time and it isn't until someone's shouting causes him to regain focus of his surroundings.
"Hands on your head, lad! Do it now!"
Luke, does as he is told by the officer and puts his hands on his head. Hearing quick movements behind him, Luke doesn't flinch as the officer places handcuffs on his wrists after guiding his hands to behind his back. The officer roughly helps Luke up off of the floor and escorts him down the stairs till they reach the hallway.
As a stretcher, with Sarah Jane lying upon it, enters the hall Luke calls out for his mum. "Mum! Mum!"
Luke turns his attention to a female officer who has stepped out of the kitchen. "Where are they taking my mum? Please? Is she okay?"
The female officer looks at Luke, then towards the stretcher and EMTs, and then back again to Luke. "You are her son?"
"Yes. Please, is she okay?" Luke implores, not caring if a single tear escapes his eyes.
"Are you the one who called it in?" The female officer asks as she takes out a notepad and pen from the breast pocket of her uniform.
"I am, and can you please tell me where they are taking my mum?"
"Easy lad." The rough voiced officer, who standing behind Luke, says while keeping a hold of Luke's upper arm. "For all we know, you were the one who did this and now you're feelin' guilty."
"Officer Moffat, don't scare the boy. Can't you see by the distraught on his face that he is worried about his mother." The female officer evenly says to her fellow officer.
"Aye, but it could all be a ploy on his part of this. Need I remind you, Officer Gatiss, of that one case dealing with the murdering taxi driver? Your maternal emotions got in the way during the investigation."
"Yes, well we also had outside help with that one. If you remember correctly." Officer Gatiss glares at Officer Moffat before looking back at Luke. "Is there anyone we can call for you? We won't know how bad your mother is off till she reaches the hospital."
Luke looks at Officer Gatiss in confusion, trying to think of just who he should call. At one time, mum had told him about a certain Brigadier that she once knew, but the man had already passed on from this life. Yet this train of thinking leads Luke to another, who he knows may be able to help.
"I know of someone." Luke confidently says, letting out a hopeful sigh that this person will answer his bloody phone for a change.
"Splendid. After we take your statement, you may call them using the phone at the station." Officer Gatiss says to Luke before giving Officer Moffat a cheery smile.
In the Tardis…
All is quiet inside of the Tardis and the ship is thrilled with the silence. Her pup and his watcher had gone to bed early while her thief and wolf had gone out together. Before her thief and wolf had left for their date night, they had a small situation with the watcher. It was a good thing that her wolf knew what to do, for the Tardis was sure that her thief would have screwed up in his explanations. Her wolf had done well in explaining a certain function of a female body, and the Tardis had made sure to have extra products on hand for the watcher to choose from.
Doing one last check on her two wards, the Tardis makes sure that the temperatures in their rooms were at comfortable levels. She also dimmed the lights further down in her pup's room, noticing how restless his little sleeping body was moving. Satisfied at feeling her pup's restlessness disappearing at the darker room, the Tardis decides to run a full system check to keep herself from becoming bored. Of course she could always work on creating a nursery for the newest member of her thief and wolf's family, but she still has six more months till it arrives. So she has time still to make it.
Halfway through the systems check, the Tardis doors are blown wide open as a two laughing adults enter the ship. This causes the ship to flash the lights in the console room to get their attention, and the Tardis scolds her wolf and thief at how loud they are being.
"Sorry old girl." The Doctor jovially says to the Tardis before wrapping an arm around Rose so that she is tucked against his side.
Rose, who is wearing a very form fitting, sky blue sundress, gently slaps her husband in the chest. The white ballet shoes and crochet wrap that she had worn when they left the Tardis had been discarded during their escape.
"Behave yourself, Doctor. She is only trying to keep us from waking our children." Rose tells the Doctor before giving him a quick peck on the lips.
The Doctor lets out a low growl as Rose pulls back from the peck, and not wanting their night to end the Doctor surges forward so that he may give Rose a thorough snogging. He can't help but be proud that this action, that they are currently doing, is the very same one that had caused them to be placed under arrest by the local authorities on Felspoon. It isn't his fault that he is so aroused by the current changes to his wife's body. Especially since Rose is now four months along, and the idea of another child of his growing inside of her makes him feel a bit naughty.
With one hand on Rose's bum and the other on the gentle swell of her belly, the Doctor can't help but herd her towards a nearby column. Things start to become heated even more once the Doctor has Rose trapped between his body and the column. As Rose begins to push the Doctor's suit jacket off of his shoulders, a noise causes the two of them to jump apart in surprise.
"School's out for summer. School's out forever. School's been blown to pieces." A ringtone that the Tardis had decided to use, blares out from the console. It repeats again and again till the Doctor angrily walks towards the phone on the console.
"Hello?" The Doctor practically shouts into the phone at whoever it was that has intruded on his plans with Rose.
"Doctor?" comes a soft voice from the other end.
"Yes. Who is this?" the Doctor asks, looking over at a flushed looking Rose. He keeps his eyes locked on hers as she slowly makes her way over to him.
"Doctor. It's Luke, Sarah Jane's son."
"Ah yes, I remember you. How are you, Luke? Where is Sarah Jane?" The Doctor stiffens as he hears Luke swallow loudly on the other end.
"Luke? Is everything alright?" asks the Doctor, and he notices the look of concern on Rose's face.
"Doctor, what is it?" Rose whispers to the Doctor while trying hard not to intrude on the phone call.
"Luke? I need you to speak to me. What's happened?" The Doctor worriedly asks the boy on the other end.
"It's Mum. She... she... Someone broke into the house. They've taken her to the hospital, and I've got nowhere to go. The police won't release me from the station unless an adult comes to get me." Luke stammers out while trying to stay calm.
"We'll be right there to get you, Luke. Okay? What is the date for you there?" The Doctor asks while using his shoulder to hold the phone to his ear so that he can type in the date.
"March 7, 2009. The clocks show that it is almost 9 at night. The Ealing Station is located on Uxbridge Road."
"Stay where you are at, Luke. Rose and I are on our way."
The Doctor hangs up the phone and begins setting coordinates only a few blocks away from the Ealing Station. With the coordinates in the Tardis, the Doctor begins pulling levers to send his ship on its way.
"Doctor?" Rose gently places a hand on his arm to get his attention. "What do you need?"
"I don't need anything at the moment, Rose. However, Sarah Jane and Luke need us. Someone broke into their home and hurt Sarah Jane from what Luke said." The Doctor says to Rose, his eyes showing his anger while his face shows sadness.
"Did he say how bad she was hurt?"
"No, but the local police will not release him without an adult present. And that is what we shall do. Once we have Luke, we will be heading to the hospital to check on Sarah Jane." The Doctor flips another lever and there is a gentle thud that echoes through the Tardis, signaling the landing.
"Right. I shouldn't be long." The Doctor says as he fixes up his suit jacket, preparing to leave the Tardis.
"Should I come with you, Doctor?" Rose asks, knowing full well that she is still considered dead from the events of Canary Wharf.
Before the Doctor can open the doors, he turns to face Rose. "I think it would be safer if you remained in the Tardis. Wouldn't want to cause an incident with having a dead woman signing to take custody of a teenage suspect."
"Be careful." Rose whispers as she watches the Doctor close the doors after stepping outside. Hugging herself with her arms, Rose quietly makes her way towards their bedroom so that she can change clothes.
Ealing Police Station…
The Doctor walks down the street and turns a corner that leads him towards the police station. The whole time he is walking, the Doctor is trying hard not to think about what all has happened. Yes, he cares about his former companion and her son; but the Doctor can't say for sure if it is his involvement in her life that may have placed a target on her.
Walking up the steps that lead up to the large police station and its entry doors, the Doctor steels himself for the possibility of being questioned by the authorities. What the Doctor wasn't expecting to see was both Jack Harkness and Martha Jones standing in the lobby. Hurrying his footsteps, the Doctor enters the lobby only to hear Jack Harkness arguing with one of the officers.
"Look, I don't care if it is an ongoing investigation. Sarah Jane is a close friend and colleague of mine, and I want to know what happened to her and her son." Jack Harkness snarls at the officer.
"I'm sorry, sir. But I am not allowed to speak about the investigation. However, if you want leave a message, I can relay it back to the D.I. in charge of the investigation." The male secretary says calmly to Jack.
"Jack? Martha?" The Doctor says loudly enough to catch their attention.
Both Jack and Martha turn to see the Doctor standing a few feet behind them.
"Doctor." Martha says with a smile before walking towards him to give him a hug.
"About time you show up, Doc." Harkness growls out as he walks away from the lobby desk.
"Why are you two here?" The Doctor asks, wondering why Torchwood would be interested in what happened to Sarah Jane and Luke.
"It's a long story, and would prefer to tell you about it once we leave this place." Martha tells the Doctor with a look that easy says not to push the issue.
"Very well. Let me go and collect Luke. Then we will talk about this in the Tardis." The Doctor says before leaving Jack and Martha to go speak with the lobby secretary.
Both watch as the Doctor is escorted into the back before turning to look at each other.
"I told you, Jack. Told you that sending Sarah Jane to investigate Naismith would not end well." Martha whispers harshly to her companion and boss.
"Well someone needs to look into his activities, and keep track of them. Think about it Martha. Why is he all of a sudden interested in the technology that we have at Torchwood? Who else could afford to pay hackers to try and break into our system and Units as well?"
"It could have been someone else, Jack." Martha retorts in a whisper. "And Mickey is already looking into the source of the hacking."
Elsewhere in the station, the Doctor has been shown to an interrogation room where Luke is currently being held. Entering the room, the Doctor is trying hard not to yell at the female officer that is in the room with Luke.
"Luke?" The Doctor asks. "You alright?"
"Yeah." Luke says morosely in return.
"Ah. You must be Doctor Smith, Luke's Uncle." The female officer rises up out of her chair and offers the Doctor one of her hands.
"Yes, this is mum's younger brother." Luke says in a hurry before the Doctor can blow the cover story that Luke gave the police.
The Doctor, not missing a beat, takes hold of the officer's hand and gives it a strong shake. "John Smith. You are?"
"Officer Gatiss. My partner and I were the first to arrive at the scene. Would you mind if I were to ask you some questions before I release young Luke to your care?"
"Of course." The Doctor says as he keeps his eyes locked on Officer Gatiss.
"Where were you today? I only ask because only computer parts and equipment were stolen. Yet none of her other valuables were taken." Officer Gatiss states as she holds a pen in her hand, ready to write any information that the Doctor can give her.
"I was at work all day, and that is where I was when Luke contacted me." The Doctor answers as he watches the woman write down his response.
"And where do you work?"
"I work for Unit. In their science and technology division. Well research mostly." The Doctor says while sending a telepathic message to the Tardis to contact Unit about a possible incoming call.
"Alright. Just so that you are aware I will be having to call them to verify your whereabouts today. I only have one other question for you, Mr. Smith. Do you know if your sister has any enemies?"
"None that I am aware of." The Doctor says quickly before asking Officer Gatiss a question of his own. "May I sign the paperwork needed for Luke to be released into my charge. I would very much like to go to the hospital to check on my sister."
"Very well, sir." Officer Gatiss produces the paperwork from out of a folder on the table and slides the paper towards the Doctor.
Quickly looking over the paper, the Doctor commits the entire document to memory before taking the offered pen to sign the paper using his alias on Earth. Sliding the paper back to Officer Gatiss, he gives Luke a wink as the female thanks him for his time and sends them out.
Once they leave the room, the Doctor places a single finger on his lips hoping that Luke will understand the gesture means. Luke gives a nod in acknowledgement and follows the Doctor as they make their way back to the lobby. It is there that both Jack and Martha are still waiting, and silently follow as the Doctor keeps walking till they are out of the building.
As they walk down the steps, Jack can't hold back his questions.
"Did they say anything, Doc? Did they ask you any questions?"
"They did." The Doctor replies as he keeps walking. "I'm going to have to notify Unit about all this. Though I am surprised that they weren't the first on the scene. They usually keep better surveillance on their former employees and their associates. "
"Normally they do, but there have been recent hacks into nearly every agency. Even Torchwood was hit." Martha says quickly as she tries to keep up with the group. "Besides, we have reasons to believe that what happened to Sarah Jane was done on purpose."
Hearing this causes the Doctor to stop and turn around to face Martha. "What do you mean?"
Jack decides that now is the time to come clean to the Doctor. "I was the one who asked Sarah Jane to investigate a lead regarding the hacks. All of our information showed that the lead wasn't dangerous, so I went ahead and asked her to look into it."
The Doctor gives Jack a hard look before speaking. "Did you keep close tabs on Sarah Jane once you asked this of her?"
"We were monitoring her just as Unit does. Nothing came up to show that she was in any danger." Martha says quickly to defuse the situation.
"She could have been. This wasn't just a random event." The Doctor almost shouts at Martha.
Luke, seeing the confused looks on Martha and Jack's face, decides to tell the others of what was all taken from the home. "Whoever broke in destroyed K-9 and then torn Mr. Smith apart. Several of his hard drives and memory board were taken. So they were looking for something. Possibly alien technology?"
"It's possible, kid. Though isn't your mum's supercomputer made out of Earth technology?" Jack asks, he has always been curious about Sarah Jane's Mr. Smith.
"Most of it is, but there are a few bits that are alien tech." The Doctor replies, knowing full well just what parts of Mr. Smith were in fact alien.
"So what do we do now?" Luke asks the Doctor. "I can't go home due to the police having it off limits."
"You'll come with me and stay in the Tardis." The Doctor says, answering Luke's question before looking over at Martha and Jack. "You two, keep me updated on what your investigation goes. I don't trust the locals, and Unit can sometimes miss things in their reports."
"Of course." Martha says as she pulls out her cell phone to text Mickey.
"Can we visit mum first?" Luke asks the Doctor. "I want to see her."
"That was my plan, but first we need to get to the Tardis. Rose will be wondering what is going on; plus, it is getting late as it is." The Doctor says as he looks up at the dark, star-filled sky.
The Doctor and Luke head towards where the Tardis is parked while Jack and Martha make their way back to Torchwood. It doesn't take long till Luke and the Doctor reach the Tardis. However, the Doctor is surprised to see that Rose is standing outside of the doors waiting for them.
"Rose?" The Doctor asks as he begins to walk faster to reach her.
"You're back." Rose says as she allows the Doctor to pull her into a crushing hug. "That didn't seem to take you too long."
"Just had to answer a few questions and sign some paper to have Luke released into our care, which by the way." The Doctor says as he turns to look back at Luke. "Your uncle? Is that the story that Sarah Jane told you to tell?"
"Well, mum always said that you used the alias of John Smith during your time on Earth. I just told them that you were my mum's younger brother." Luke replies with a slight blush on his face.
Rose lets out a snort of laughter at hearing the young man's reasoning. Even though she knows that the Doctor is actually older than Sarah Jane is, Rose can't help but chuckle at the idea of her husband and his former companion being siblings.
With receiving a scowl from the Doctor, Rose pulls out her key and unlocks the Tardis door.
"Let's go check on Sarah Jane." Rose says to the two males as she opens the door for them.
As Luke gets his first look inside of the Tardis his mouth drops in awe. He walks around the outside of the Tardis before looking back at Rose.
"How is... I mean, I have heard my mum talk about it but... wow." Luke gasps out through his surprise at how such a large place can fit inside a small structure.
"Yeah. I know. Felt the same when I first saw it. Come on, in you go." Rose gently pushes Luke through the door before giving the Doctor a cheeky smile. Both of them follow Luke into the Tardis and head towards the console.
"There you are. Where did you and dad go?" a female voice says all of a sudden from the other side of the console.
Luke turns around to see a young, blonde female making her way around the console. He watches as she comes to a stop at having noticed his presence in the room.
"Who are you?" she asks as her body stiffens.
"Jenny, this is Luke." the Doctor says as he starts to send the Tardis into the Vortex. "He will be staying with us for a while."
"Daddy!" cries a small boy, who is still dressed in his navy blue, star covered pajamas.
The Doctor bends down and scoops up Jack just as the boy leaps into the Doctor's waiting arms.
Seeing Luke's confusion about the young boy, the Doctor gives him a smile. "This little ball of energy is Jack, my son."
Rose walks over to the Doctor and takes Jack from the Doctor. " Jack, this is Luke. Can you say hello to him before you go back to bed?"
"He feels different." Jack whispers to Rose before looking over at his dad. He sends the Doctor a questioning look, knowing that his father will answer his question via their link.
"I'm not exactly 100 percent human." Luke says all of a sudden, taking everyone by surprise that he would have heard Jack's question.
Jack, who isn't used to having people overhear his conversations through the link, wiggles out of Rose's grips and goes running out of the console room.
"That he got from you." Rose states to the Doctor before hurrying after Jack. She knows that Jack still doesn't understand that there are others who are telepathic like him. So the boy has always thought himself as being special.
The Doctor isn't sure what to make of his son's sudden anguish, but decides to look into it later. A thud from the Tardis landing pulls the Doctor's attention away from his son and back to the task at hand. Checking to make sure that he is at the right hospital, the Doctor looks back over to where Luke is standing.
"Right. We have arrived at the hospital where your mum is. Do you want me to come with you?" The Doctor asks, he doesn't want to intrude on Luke's visit.
"I'd like to go alone, first." Luke shyly tells the Doctor. He glances over to the blonde female, who is still in the console room and watching everything.
"Well I parked the Tardis in her room, so you can just step out of those doors and you will see her." The Doctor says to Luke, and watches as the young man leaves before the last word has left his mouth.
"Is he going to be traveling with us?" Jenny asks the Doctor after watching the strange male leave.
"Just till Sarah Jane gets better." The Doctor replies before looking at Jenny. "Why are you out of bed?"
"Jack woke me up. He felt mum's anxiety over where you were, and it got him all worried that you might have left us." Jenny tells her father. Even though she too has some telepathy, hers isn't as strong as Jack's.
"Right. Well you best get back to bed then. I'll wait here for Luke to return before showing him to a room."
Jenny walks over to her dad and gives him a goodnight hug before leaving him in the console room, alone.
As the Doctor waits for Luke to return, the Tardis starts to speak with him through their bond.
'Thief, we might have a little problem concerning our pup.'
'How so?'
'Our pup isn't happy with the strange male staying here.'
'Really? Why would he?'
'Same reason you resented our flirt at first.'
'Ahhh, male ego. Right. Rose or myself will talk to Jack later.'
Feeling that the Tardis was satisfied with his answer, the Doctor reaches out through his bond with Rose. He notices that she is feeling a little unsure of herself and is worrying about Jack. Thinking to himself, the Doctor realizes that if Jack isn't handling the addition of Luke so well. This causes him to wonder how his young son will handle having a baby join them.
'That, my thief, is why our pup needs to be prepared for our little star's appearance in six months' time.' The Tardis says to the Doctor just as Luke returns to the Tardis.
So if you haven't noticed I changed a lot in this rewrite by removing half of the original chapter, adding some little sub-issues, and merged another chapter with it. Hopefully you all enjoyed it.
Reviews are welcomed, cherished, and loved.
Selene