Thanks to Marcus S Lazarus, Rosetylerrox, AmyAmidala, and daffodilTARDIS! You're reviews had me smiling for hours! Love you all! Well, you know what I mean. ;)

LittleGinny15: I'm guessing you're a Jack fan, then?  Lol, me too! He's great! Thank you again! And here's your update, honey!

I need to apologise for the unregistered link formed when naming my character. Believe me, when I thought of Teri, there was no intentional link between this and 24. Jack and Teri… I noticed it as soon as I'd posted it. Sorry, it wasn't intentional; it was just a name I thought of off the top of my head. I don't think I need a disclaimer for that, because it's not related to it, so sorry about that. If you didn't notice, then never mind. If you did, sorry! I won't change it, but I'll reiterate that there's no link whatsoever with 24.

Run! The Story of Our Lives

Part 2

"I wonder how the others are doing."

"Well, we haven't heard anything yet."

"Yeah, that's what worries me. I don't know if we should take that as a good thing or a bad thing. Maybe you should go back, Gin."

"No chance."

"Didn't think so," Harry muttered, smiling. He raised his wand a little higher, sending the beam of light from its tip rocketing through the corridor ahead. A shuffle of movement out of the corner of his eye had him stopping in his tracks. "Did you see that?" he whispered, hurriedly.

"See what?"

"Something moved. Wait, stop a minute, Gin!"

Ginny back-tracked and moved in beside him, following his glance into the now illuminated corridor ahead of them. The slightest shift in the shadows was enough to convince her. They weren't alone.

"Got your wand?"

Ginny raised her own, lighting it quickly and directing its beam towards Harry's, until the entire corridor was bathed in light. Harry lowered his wand slightly as every shadow vanished to reveal an empty alleyway.

"Where is it?"

Ginny moved slowly towards the place from where the moving shadow had disappeared.

"Nothing," she muttered, crouching down and pointing her wand at the ground to examine the floor. Harry turned on the spot, his wand light lifting from her face to the alley behind them. She looked up at him curiously, as he turned to face her again.

"Right. We keep moving," he said firmly, walking forwards and reaching for her hand. She grasped it gratefully and he pulled her once more to her feet.

As he turned to set off again, walking as close to the wall as he could without touching it, a glittering, golden light caught his attention, glowing steadily from the floor below the wall beside them, just behind Ginny. He turned and stared at it.

"What?"

"Look!"

Ginny twisted around and stared at it too, frowning. "What is it?"

"Well isn't it obvious?" Ginny glanced at him questioningly, and he sighed. "That's a doorway, that is. There's something on the other side of this wall. And that would probably explain where our shadow-thing vanished to. Which leaves us with a great, big, interesting dilemma," he smiled, still staring intently at the faint golden line at the base of the wall.

"And that would be …?"

"Do we take the most sensible option and play it safe, continuing down this endless corridor -"

"Or do we throw all caution to the winds, give in to curiosity and see where our newest discovery leads to?" Ginny finished, grinning broadly. Harry nodded, smiling.

"Your choice, Gin," he said. Ginny glanced briefly down the alleyway, then back at the crack of light beneath her feet. She studied it curiously for a few seconds, then turned back to face Harry, smiling.

"I think we know each other well enough, by now. You're dying to know what's behind here, and I'm dying to know what's behind here. And that leaves only one logical option, don't you think?"

Harry beamed at her. She stepped back to give him room to pass before her, and stood still, watching. Harry raised his left hand and ran his fingers over the cold, damp stone, thinking.

"Right. So this is a door, and there are lots of different ways to open doors depending on the location. Sometimes you have to give them something, sometimes you have to say something… sometimes you simply have to touch something," he whispered as his fingers closed around a tiny protruding stone. He glanced at Ginny, who nodded resolutely, and he pushed.

The stone disappeared through the wall, leaving a small hole in its place. Ginny moved up beside Harry and they both watched, smiling, as the stone bricks beside it fell one by one through the hole after the first.

He reached for her hand, and she took it obligingly. The final stones fell through to the other side, and a small doorway was revealed, the arch-like structure still perfectly preserved.

"Handy craftsmanship." He turned to Ginny, and grinned. "Ready?"

"Of course."

"Good." Harry squeezed her hand gently and tugged her through the arch-way, his wand raised, as their feet caught on the litter of rubble from the wall.

The blackness was thicker, now; a lot more pronounced than it had been in the corridor that they had just left. The light from Harry's wand appeared to melt about three inches from where they were walking, almost as if it was shrouding them in a bubble of light as it floated along with them.

"God, I can't see a thing!" Harry muttered. "I'm getting a bit fed up with this, now. It's like we're the only people down here."

"Harry?"

"Yeah?"

"How exactly did you plan to negotiate with… whoever it is that's down here? You haven't brought anything with you. Are you not going to have to give something to them to get whatever it is that you need?"

"Ah, but we've got Magic. And that's the only thing that these Demons need. Well, so I've read, anyway. They live down here in luxury, but they have to travel to the surface every hundred years or so to fetch witches and wizards and bring them down here. It's like their way of feeding, I think. They can't live without magic, so they stock up whenever they return to the surface with enough to last them a century or so."

"Dunno what they consider to be luxurious, but I think they've missed a few vital lessons in Etiquette. It's horrible, down here!"

"Not to them, it isn't."

"So what exactly are they? These Demon things?"

"Erm. I don't know. I've read about them briefly, but there wasn't a lot to go on. And there were no pictures or anything. I don't think anyone knows what they look like. You don't usually get offered the chance to live if you see them, so how someone could write about them still baffles me!"

"… Right."

"Oh, sorry, Gin. That isn't going to happen."

"Wait! I can see something!"

Harry turned his attention to the passageway in front of them and stared.

"Nox!" he murmured, plunging them into solid darkness once more. As they made their way cautiously forwards, a small speck of golden light moved closer to them.

"There's light coming from beyond that corner, up ahead. It must be a room, or something," Ginny whispered, clinging on to Harry's arm as she crept forwards behind him. Harry raised his wand, ready, as they continued through the gloom.

As they stopped on the corner of the alley, Harry glanced quickly at Ginny, who nodded and shrank into the shadows. He gripped his wand tightly, and stepped up to the edge of the alley, glancing carefully around the corner.

A shuffling noise caught his attention and he flicked his head back quickly, staring at Ginny.

"There's something in there," he muttered. Ginny nodded again, paling slightly, and raised her own wand. "On three, yeah?"

"Yeah," she murmured back, softly.

"Right. One… Two… Three!"

As one, they burst around the corner, their wands ready and stunning spells on their lips. As they realised who it was that they had encountered, they skidded to a halt, swearing.

"Wait! Don't shoot!"

"For God's Sake, George! What the Hell did you think you were doing! We could have killed you!"

"Sorry! We didn't know you were there, did we?"

Harry sighed and lowered his wand as Ginny relinquished her own, looking around for Fred. Fred emerged from behind a large boulder seconds later with a lit torch in his hand and a smile plastered across his face.

"Hey, sis, and sis's boyfriend." Harry glared at him, shaking his head. "Nice of you to drop in to our humble hide-out."

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, we've been here pretty much since we left you," George said airily, picking up a small knife that was set precariously atop one of the smaller boulders. "It's weird, but handy."

"Quite," called Fred. "We've found a lot of items of interest, down here. Whoever hangs around in this place appears to have a real obsession with violence and injury."

"Oh?" Ginny stepped forwards and reached for the tiny knife held within her brother's white fingers. She held it by its point and examined the handle with interest. The wooden carvings flickered warmly in the torchlight, the flames from the surrounding brackets illuminating the intricate patterns carved deep into the wood. She didn't have a clue what they meant, but was fascinated by them, all the same.

"Knives and swords and daggers and chains. Guns, and grenades, bombs, candlesticks, pipes, hammers, nails, bricks, rope, everything."

"Sounds like something that's come right out of Cluedo. Miss Peacock in the Library with the spanner, sort of thing," Harry mumbled, more to himself. He looked up in time to catch the raised eyebrows, and he shook his head, smiling. "An old Muggle Game. Don't worry, forget I said anything. Did you find anything to say who lives down here?"

"Not a footprint, Sherlock. This place is spotless."

"Well, apart from the wide collection of infantry, that is. Why? Who does hang around down here?"

Ginny smiled. "That's the problem. We don't know."

"How did you know about Sherlock Homes?" Harry asked with interest. Fred and George shared a look.

"Well, he was a wizard, wasn't he?" George exclaimed. "Blimey, Harry, you think he could solve all of those mysteries without having a magical knowledge? No Muggle's that good!"

Harry gaped at Fred, his eyes wide with wonder. "I never knew that! I always assumed he was a Muggle, the way they go on about him all the time. He's a legend to them. Really? He was a wizard?"

"Yep! A genius, too," George sighed. "I've always fancied meeting him. Learning a few vanishing acts, a trick or two from an expert…"

"How are you with a broadsword, Harry?" Fred called suddenly. Harry blinked and stared at him.

"Wouldn't know, Fred," he replied in surprise.

"Fancy having a look-see, then?" Harry suddenly grinned wickedly and walked across to where Fred was standing, his right hand resting on the handles of a pair of identical longswords. "No wands, mind. I wouldn't stand a chance against you if I let you use that wooden stick of yours."

"You must be pretty bored. Still, it's not like there's anything else to do around here… Alright, then." Harry reached for a sword and ran his fingers across the sharp blade, before grasping it tightly by the handle and standing in front of Fred. Ginny and George looked across in interest and moved to the side of the large, stone room to watch. Fred grinned across at Harry, who smiled innocently back.

"Any rules before we begin, Mr Potter?"

"Only one," he smiled. "No rules."

"Fine by me," Fred said, feigning seriousness.

Ginny and George stepped back as the two teens and their swords moved into the middle of the room. The torches in their brackets flickered ominously, and a soft wind swept across the floor unnoticed by everyone. Harry's eyes were blazing, and Ginny felt a faint glimmer of fear for her brother, who seemed unnaturally calm to say he was staring at a blade long enough to slice through his entire body with one strike. She knew Harry wouldn't deliberately harm Fred, but he had changed a lot over the past few weeks. She was beginning to wonder if anything was beyond him.

As one, Harry and Fred launched at each other, swords raised. The clang of metal sent a shiver running through her spine and she flinched. The torchlight reflected from the blades shone against the wall behind her as George cheered beside her. She watched as Harry dodged Fred's blows, who in turn ducked and dived away from Harry's.

"My God, Harry! I thought you said… that you'd never… used one before!" Fred panted as he rolled out of the way of a rather menacing looking blow to the head.

"I haven't!" Harry beamed.

As their swords met once more, forming the rather clichéd cross move, a siren whistled around the room, bringing them to a stop as they both looked up in confusion. Ginny stared at the ceiling as a high-pitched voice rang through the Underworld, rooting everyone to the spot.

"Alert! Alert! Intruders in Section 14, Weapons Storage! Alert! Intruders in Section 14, Weapons Storage! Investigate immediately!"

Harry grinned.

"I think that means us," he sighed, softly. Ginny laughed weakly but her laugh turned almost immediately into a scream of terror. Harry, Fred and George whirled around and stared in shock as at least seven wolf-like creatures burst from the corridor, through which Harry and Ginny had come minutes before, and stopped, staring.

"What are they?" Ginny whispered, staring at their outstretched claws in horror.

"Do you really want to wait around to find out?" George called back, pulling out his wand as Fred readied his sword. Harry couldn't decide which weapon would be the most effective, and decided on using both, pulling out his wand and steadying it in his right hand as he straightened the sword in his left.

"Erm, Harry? Are you crazy?"

"Wouldn't surprise me if I was," he replied quickly, his eyes raking across the room in an attempt to spot an escape route. A small protruding stone on his right caught his attention, and he began to edge towards it, trying to move without attracting too much notice. A rumble of low growls erupted as the creatures moved in closer, sending Ginny, Fred and George backing away, weapons raised.

"Right. Come over here," Harry muttered. "Slowly. No sudden movements."

He reached out his left hand, the sword still tight within its grasp, his wand still covering the new arrivals, and pressed the stone into the wall. With a soft click, the doorway was revealed.

The twins and Ginny launched themselves towards him as he stepped aside to let them through the stone archway. The creatures pelted after them with a chorus of loud, inhuman roars, running across the room on remarkably thin legs, their amber eyes blazing with rage. As Harry disappeared through the doorway, he pointed his wand at the advancing party, who were metres from the open door.

"Colloportus!"

Ginny stepped up behind him, her face flushed, as the twins skidded to a halt a little way down the corridor.

"That should hold them for a while," Harry said, attempting to even out his breathing enough to stop himself from dropping on the spot. He blinked and looked at the sword held loosely within his grasp, only now registering its peculiar lightness.

"Reducio!" he thought, mentally shrinking the sword enough to fit it into his pocket for the time being. Fred grinned at him and did the same. "It might come in handy later," he said when Ginny stared at him questioningly.

A loud Crack! broke the silence and a large indent was suddenly apparent within the stone wall that had seconds before been an open door.

"I thought you said that lock would hold it!" Ginny cried, backing away.

"Well obviously I was wrong!" He shouted back, grabbing her hand and running towards Fred and George.

"What now?" George asked, staring as a second smash rocked the wall behind them, followed by a slender, five-fingered claw that was worming its way through a small hole. Harry blinked and turned to them, then pelted past, Ginny hanging onto his hand and running at an equal pace. His accompanied shout echoed around their heads, as he vanished around a corner.

"Run!"

Rose skidded to a halt behind The Doctor, who was crouching behind a large, crystal-looking plinth, staring ahead at a vast purple lake. She sighed deeply and dropped onto her knees beside him.

"Phew! That was close. Too close. Do you think we lost them?" she asked frantically, gasping for breath. The Doctor nodded briefly, never taking his eyes from the swirling violet waters.

"For now," he murmured. "I wonder what that is."

"Looks like purple water, to me, Doctor," Rose grinned. "Don't tell me you're colour blind, this time, as well."

"No, of course not. I didn't mean that, I mean… Yes I did! What is it? It isn't water; it isn't any sort of liquid that I've ever seen."

Rose paused, and then tapped him once on the shoulder.

"Well, let's go and have a look. You said we'd lost those creatures, whatever they were."

"Call them Natives until we find out what species they are," he corrected her softly. Rose rolled her eyes once and pulled him to his feet, smiling. She tugged on his hand and he followed her closer to the water's edge. Together, they dropped down once more, and stared at the ripples beneath the dreamy, coloured surface.

"Strange," he mumbled, more to himself than to Rose. She looked up and examined the room they had arrived in, taking in every detail.

Everything in this chamber appeared to be made from some form of ice, the walls, the floors, the ceiling. Crystals and large icicles were pointing upwards out of every wall, each one facing the huge, ice-looking bridge that was crossing the amethyst lagoon.

Rose sighed and looked down at the waters, smiling as a flicker of light reflected from the surrounding crystals launched across the lake, sending soft ripples rocking the surface gently. She stared with fascination as The Doctor reached a tentative hand toward the lake, and touched the tip of his index finger to the waters. He smiled.

"What?" Rose asked, quickly.

"It's warm. It's wonderful… beautiful…" Rose watched as his eyes gained a somewhat glazed expression, staring unblinkingly into the depths below. Feeling slightly uneasy, she tapped him on the shoulder again.

"That's enough, now, Doctor," she muttered. He ignored her, his hand dropping bit by bit into the swirling waters, a gentle smile influencing his content expression. "Doctor!" she called warningly.

It was like he couldn't hear her. He was on the edge of the lagoon, now, everything below his elbow hidden beneath the glossy surface. She watched in shock as he moved slowly forwards, lifting his foot just enough to sink it into the rippling lake, his smile widening with every movement.

"Doctor!"

Nothing.

Feeling faintly annoyed by his ignorance, she reached forwards and wrenched his arm up and out of the water. He blinked and pulled back, falling backwards with a soft cry of shock. She pulled him into a sitting position, and he turned to her, staring at her look of combined worry and irritation in surprise, as she dropped his arm.

"What was that all about? It was like I was talking to a brick wall!"

"Oh, sorry, I didn't know you were talking. Didn't know anything, as a matter of fact…" and he stared once again at the lake, the water winking invitingly at him as more streaks of reflected light interrupted its stillness. Feeling suddenly uneasy, he reached into a pocket and pulled out a small vial. "This isn't safe," he said suddenly.

Rose snorted as he reached forwards and dipped the vial into the lake, collecting a small amount of swirling liquid with a frown on his face.

"No, and you were about to go for a swim in it," she said, shaking her head as he replaced the stopper. She looked up quickly, a sudden thought catching her attention.

"Hang on, I thought we were underground. How can ice survive in a place that's supposed to be about as hot as the Sun?"

The Doctor looked up, examining the intricate sculptured statues and towers scattered randomly around the room.

"Good question." He gazed at a statue on the other side of the ravine, and stood up, crossing the bridge before Rose had managed to drag herself to her feet, and hopping down onto the other side. Rose followed, jumping from the bridge herself as he stopped beside the statue that had intrigued him. She walked towards him and watched as he began running his hands over it, muttering.

"It's warm," he said, finally. "Here, feel it," and he raised her hand, softly, placing it onto the wing.

"It's beautiful," she sighed. "Strange, but beautiful. It looks like a cross between a cat and a fairy."

"Oh, no." The Doctor dropped her hand immediately and ran around to the other side.

"What's the matter?"

As she followed him, she saw quite clearly what had upset him. A small figure was lying face down, crumpled on the floor behind the statue, bushy brown hair sweeping across the ice around her, unmoving.

The Doctor knelt down beside her and pushed her carefully onto her back. Rose gasped as the light from the ice-sculpture behind her illuminated the five blazing cuts across her cheek.

"Hermione?" he called softly, manoeuvring her so that her head rested against his knees. Rose dropped down beside them, reaching for her neck in search of a pulse.

"She's alive, Doctor," Rose said, firmly, grabbing Hermione's hand. Suddenly realising what it was that was missing from the picture, Rose turned and stared at The Doctor in horror.

"Doctor?" she murmured, her eyes wide.

"Yes?"

"Where's Ron?"

The Doctor turned to her, his shock by no means disguised. They shared a look of horror, before he blinked and returned his gaze to Hermione. He placed a shaking hand against her chest and felt for her heartbeat, frowning. He took her pulse himself, counting them, and Rose watched with trepidation as his eyes narrowed in confusion.

"They're racing," he muttered. "Something isn't right."

"Well, what makes you say that? Doctor?" Rose suddenly called sarcastically. "It wouldn't be the fact that she's out of it, would it?" He glared at her but otherwise ignored her remark. She sighed, then pointed at Hermione's face. "What did that?"

"Don't know. But whatever it was, it's poisonous."

Rose gaped at him, her eyes wide.

"You mean, she's been poisoned? That's why she's like this?"

"So it would seem. And judging by the fact that there're five scratches, I think whatever attacked her must have been the same thing that came for us."

"Have you ever seen those creatures before?"

"No. They're new to me, unfortunately. Which means I have no idea about how to stop them."

As The Doctor lowered his gaze to Hermione, shaking her gently in an attempt to rouse her, a soft, whoosh! broke the sleepy silence, and Rose gasped as something hit the side of her neck. Her hair fell over her face, and The Doctor looked up as she raised a shaking hand and tugged weakly on something.

"Rose?"

He felt the heat drain from his face as she pulled out a dart-like object, the end thinner than a needle.

"Oh no, Rose!" he shouted desperately, lowering Hermione once more to the ground as he stumbled to his feet. He moved around to Rose, and crouched down in front of her, taking the dart from her slackened grasp. He examined it quickly, his eyes wide and his hearts racing.

"Rose? Rose, are you alright?" he whispered, gently, as he dropped it onto the floor, more interested in his companion.

Rose finally raised her head, moving her hair out of the way with a strange hand, her fingers unusually thin for a human's. The Doctor stared at her in horror, taking in the wide, ochre eyes and her suddenly sharpened teeth. Her elongated blonde hair was curled around a pair of wolf-like ears, and she let out a low growl of rage.

The Doctor stared, horrified, then jumped backwards as she stretched out a strangely clawed hand and aimed for his face.

"Hey! Now, that's not very nice, is it? Rose! It's me! Snap out of it!"

Rose howled and ran at him again, missing his face by inches. He reached back and grabbed her around the waist, but she kicked out of his grasp and tugged at his shirt, leaving large claw-marks inches above his skin.

He stumbled clumsily to his feet and threw himself behind the statue, following her movements with his eyes as he tried to concentrate on his own at the same time. She followed, her clawing and biting missing him by mere inches, as he dodged out of the way.

"Rose! It's me! The Doctor! Come on, Rose, please! Stop it, right now!"

Rose launched forwards her arms outstretched, and, this time, her aim was true. She grabbed onto his wrists, her needle-sharp nails digging beneath the skin. He yelled in horror and made to tug away, but she leant forwards, and attacked at his neck viciously with sharp fangs, before he could move a muscle. A scream of pain tore from his throat as he pushed her away from him, raising a hand to his neck, but his movements began to weaken as his vision hazed over. He stumbled backwards, shaking his head feverishly, as Rose stopped just in front of him, her fangs bared and her clawed arms wide. Her now remarkably heavy breathing burnt treacherously against his eardrums, as a faint mist began to cloud his vision.

"Rose," he murmured. She howled triumphantly as he watched helplessly, her hazy figure swimming before his eyes. Lowering his hand, he vaguely registered its now blood-stained appearance as he fell to his knees, before his eyes closed on him, rolling up into his head despite his reluctance to allow them to. His head split with pain as his neck throbbed horrendously, and he fell forwards onto the icy floor with a low and gentle moan, consumed by an endless, pain-filled blackness.

Jack blinked and shook his head once, staring around at his surroundings with, clearly forced, interest. Teri took that as a yes. Jack knew The Doctor.

"Do you, er, know what those things were that brought me in here? Those hooded things. I don't think they were human."

"Have you changed the subject on purpose?" Teri asked suspiciously.

"And who's sort of sick joke are we tangled up in? Who's the resident megalomaniac this time?"

"You're not going to answer my question, are you?"

"No, I'm not," he said, shortly, looking at anything but her, despite the fact that there was precious little to look at. Teri sighed heavily, and decided to try reverse psychology. Maybe whatever they had made him relive, and it had obviously worried him enough to make him want an idea about what he was up against, would encourage him to talk about The Doctor.

"Those things were Dementors. Or so He said. Creatures of Darkness who force people to relive their gravest memories. Why? Did you not like what you saw, or something?"

"No. So it wasn't just my imagination, then?"

"I doubt it."

There was a pause, during which Jack turned to her, watching her curiously.

"So, if they make you watch your worst memories, yours wouldn't include The Doctor, would it?" he asked, quietly. Teri smiled in spite of her situation. Reverse psychology worked, then.

"Yes, I suppose it did. I can't remember much about it. I was too young, but still I can remember bits of it. Horrific bits, mainly. The Doctor was there, not as he is now, but as he was."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"He's changed a lot since then. What was yours?"

Jack paused, thinking about how easy it was to talk to this stranger.

"The day I died. The day I was reborn. The day they left me behind."

Teri blinked. Now they were getting somewhere.

"Who's 'they', Jack?" she asked, gently.

"The Doctor and Rose." Teri felt as if her heart had just plunged itself into her stomach. Pieces flew together in her mind, and she gasped.

"Oh, my God… they left you on Satellite Five, didn't they?" she whispered.

"What do you know about Satellite Five?" Jack asked her curiously. "What do you know about The Doctor?"

"This whole thing started after Satellite Five. I've been searching for The Doctor for months, though it probably won't have been that long for him. Maybe a week, maybe less, but I've been looking for ages. His last known location was Satellite Five. Him and two companions. You were one of them, weren't you? I remember seeing you, on Satellite Five, wandering corridors, unseeingly, thinking. I would have helped you, but there was no time. You didn't see me, so I left, tracking again. My… ship was pulled off course, drawn in here, to this world. A small signal that was interfering with my tracking equipment. I thought it was The Doctor, but it wasn't.

"The 'resident megalomaniac', as you so rightly put it, calls himself The Dark Lord. He's planning something. Some plot or other to dominate the world. Well, that's nothing knew, is it? But this one, well he's got brains. He's done research. He scanned me, and realised that I wasn't human, and now he's using my knowledge to call together creatures from across the Universe. His army isn't big enough. It's enormous, but he still can't see it as large enough to take over this world.

"So now, I'm kept here until I cooperate properly. It's some old, derelict house overlooking a tiny, little village, way beyond help of any kind. We have to be the only living people for miles. I've only been giving him scraps of information, so far, but the technology around here is making it harder and harder for me to fight them."

"Why were you looking for The Doctor?" Jack asked quietly. Teri studied him, smiling sadly.

"He knows about my past. Or at least, he knows about what happened to my family. I want answers. I need answers. It's been long enough, now, and I need to know why it is that I've been alone for the last ten years."

"But, you're so young… you don't look older than -"

"Seventeen? Yeah, I was seventeen last month."

Jack remained silent, thinking. Finally, he looked up and spoke so softly that Teri had to lean in closer to hear his words.

"I'm sorry. I guess that means I'm not the only person he's left behind, then." Teri shook her head so violently that he was surprised she didn't give herself a head injury.

"Jack, he didn't leave you! He thought you were dead!"

"How do you know?"

"Because I thought you'd died, too. When I heard about that war with the Daleks, the rumour was that one of his companions had died. That's why, when I saw you, I didn't help. If I'd known that it was you, I would have done anything to help you, but I'd heard that someone close to The Doctor had died. If an outsider like me thought it, then why would The Doctor have reason to believe otherwise? He honestly thought you'd been killed, Jack. He didn't leave you, at all."

"Do you know if Rose is okay?"

"Who's Rose?"

"Erm, his companion."

"Oh, yeah, I know he left with one companion, so that must have been Rose. She was fine, I think. The rumour was that he'd only lost one. And if that was – is – you, then Rose must be fine."

Jack sighed and shrugged.

"Well it doesn't matter, anyway. I doubt I'll ever see them again." Teri smiled, suddenly, and he stared at her. "What?"

"Oh, you'll be seeing them again, alright," she said, grinning.

"What do you mean?" he asked, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"They're here, Jack."

Silence.

"How?" he whispered in shock. "What're they doing here?"

"Simple. I brought them here. I need help. The world needs help. The entire Universe needs help. The Doctor may not know of my existence, but I know of his. And, my own personal feelings and questions aside for the moment, he is the only one who can help us."

"So, what, you've just pulled him from wherever he was to this place?" Jack asked sceptically.

"Well, in a sense. As I suppose you know, Jack, the Laws of Time mean little to a renegade Gallifreyan."

Jack stared at her in shock, her words hitting him with enough force to knock over an elephant. He gazed at her, amazed, a memory of what seemed so long ago echoing within his mind as he studied the truth within her eyes.

"But that's impossible. I recognise those ships. They were destroyed!"

"Obviously, they survived."

Jack had had good reason in the past to believe that the destruction of the Daleks had been the ultimate sacrifice. All of The Doctor's people. All of the Time Lords. The entire planet Gallifrey…

"Oh, my God, Teri," he whispered. "You can't mean… that's impossible, he said it was… you mean you're a…" he couldn't bring himself to say it as he stared at her, his mind drawing a sudden blank.

Teri held his silence for a moment, staring at him with curiosity. How much did he know about her race? It had to be more than she did, if he had travelled with The Doctor. That thought only increased her desperation and thirst for knowledge, and as she returned to the present, watching as Jack's mouth opened and closed in shock, she resolved to herself that she would find the answers that she so desperately needed to find.

She sighed.

"Yes, Jack," she smiled, sadly. "I'm a Time Lady."

Long chapter, this one. Suppose it makes up for the delay. Hope you enjoyed it! All reviews are welcome!