The Doctor walked back to the school with the two time agents just behind him and Jake and Troy following after them. When they arrived, nearly everyone was outside waiting for them. When they caught sight of the two new people, they were all very curious and whispering to one another.
Donovan asked what they were all wondering. "Who are these people?"
"They're the people who put us here. They came to slaughter us," Troy answered, still glaring at the agents. Everyone gasped and the whispers increased.
"Thank you, Troy," the Doctor said flatly, "but I was hoping to explain in a way that wouldn't cause panic and outrage."
"How could you explain it without causing panic?" challenged Jake. "They tried to kill us."
"Why would they try to kill us?" asked Donovan. "Who are they?"
"They're time travel people," said Jake. "They want to-"
"Thank you, Jake, but if you don't mind, I think I'll explain," the Doctor interrupted him. "They come from the future. People think it's impossible, but far into the future, time travel is discovered. The problem is, you can't make a big discovery like that without trial and error. Your school ending up here was one of those errors. Though time travel is discovered, it is very, very restricted and taken very seriously. Only people working for the Time Agency are given that right and responsibility. People are not supposed to know they exist, most especially, people from their history. This was their mistake and they were sent here to fix it. There was no way for them to prevent the school from being sent here so it's their mission to erase the evidence. If archeologists dug up this school and modern human fossils from this time era, questions would be asked. I want to send you home and they fear that even more. Right now, no one from your time period has any idea what might have happened to you. If you go back with evidence and testimonies of time travel, some people might believe you. People might realize that one day time travel will be discovered and the Time Agency doesn't even want there to be suspicions of that. This weapon had the capability to disintegrate the school and all of you, turning you into dust. This weapon has been completely disabled. There is no way that it can be repaired. You don't need to fear this weapon or the agents anymore. You're still safe and going home."
"You're a time traveler, too, then," said a girl from the crowd.
"Sorry, but I thought that was obvious," the Doctor replied.
"But does that mean you work for that agency, too?" she persisted.
"Absolutely not!" The Doctor looked offended by the suggestion. "I started time traveling long before them. I'm far more clever and my technology is more advanced than they could ever imagine. Rose and I work for no one. We try not to make big names for ourselves, but it's disgusting to think of putting secrecy above the value of life."
"If you do this, if you put them back, it could change history," the female agent warned. "Time travel might be discovered too soon or not at all."
"It won't be discovered before your time. The technology and resources won't be available. The double nexus particle couldn't possibly be discovered before then. And as much as I dislike the Time Agency, it will still be formed. There will be rumors and probably research in their time, but the research will go nowhere and will most certainly be forgotten," the Doctor argued. "History can be changed, but events are still drawn to a certain direction. This will be a teeny bump off course, but things will get right back on track."
"You can't know-" the man started.
"Yes, I can," the Doctor disputed. "And you can say what you want, but it's not going to change anything. In couple hours, these people will be back home. End of discussion."
"What do we do with them?" asked Troy.
"Well, I don't want them to sabotage my device, so I guess it's best to detain them until I figure out what to do with them next," the Doctor answered. "Lock them in one of the classrooms."
"What about their vortex manipulators?" Rose asked as she arrived. "Don't they have the ability to unlock things? Or was that just Jack's?"
"Jack did a lot of upgrading to his, so the Time Agency might never adopt that. They're early Time Agency though. I very highly doubt that they can."
"They may try hopping out a window," she pointed out.
"Good point. Sonic the windows in the room. As an extra precaution, maybe we could enlist a few guards. Donovan, do you think you could oversee that?" the Doctor requested.
Donovan agreed, but before he left, the Doctor addressed the entire crowd again. "I know that these two have scared you. When your life is threatened like that, you get angry. Very angry and rightfully so. That does not mean you should resort to violence. No matter how frightened or furious you are, you will not harm them. Anyone that attempts any sort of revenge on them will be punished. I will deal with them myself when the time comes."
Rose and Donovan led the way into the school. Six people of Donovan's choosing followed behind the agents, herding them into the classroom that Donovan chose. It was an average classroom on the ground floor. He checked to make sure there was nothing there that they could use as weapons while Rose sealed the windows with the sonic screwdriver. The door was locked once they left and the group was left to guard the door.
When Rose got back to the Doctor, she immediately handed over the sonic screwdriver.
"How is it?" she asked. "The power, I mean."
"Just finished charging back up," he informed her.
"I really didn't want to zap its power, but I needed a lot of range to take out the power of the time agents' equipment."
"No, you were brilliant," he assured her. "We'd all be dead if you didn't."
"What'd you actually do?" asked Jake.
"It's like an electromagnetic pulse, but not all advanced equipment is electric. The lab can send out a different energy wave that zeros out all kinds of power supplies," Rose explained. "It only works for a certain amount of time though, then things are able to recharge. Their equipment charges very quickly, so we were cutting it close. Anyway, that energy wave also took out the power of the Doctor's time device."
"But like I said, it's all charged back up," said the Doctor. "I had a chance to look at those readings and all is looking good. Even better than I thought. Soon and very soon, we'll be able to activate it. Now, I think it's time for another test. Think you could use the Om-Com for me, Rose?"
Rose took the Om-Com and spread the Doctor's message. Everyone inside was to stay inside and away from the windows. Everyone outside was to step away from the school building. They gave people a few seconds to follow instructions and then the Doctor performed his test. He used his sonic screwdriver on the device and the school was suddenly encompassed by a force field. Unlike the original 'time bomb', the Doctor's force field wasn't completely invisible. It had a light blue tint and was very reflective. When Rose asked about it, he informed her that it was purposeful. He wanted a visual so the he could be sure it completely surrounded the school. It looked like it at first glance, but he and Rose still walked around the property to be certain. The Doctor turned it back off and sat on the ground with his notebook.
"It's almost done, isn't it?" Troy excitedly asked Rose.
"It is done," Rose answered. "The Doctor's just checking his calculations now."
"Really?!" Jake was beaming. "Do you know how long that will take?"
"Not long at all, but he'll check them twice. He promised to have you back five days after you left at exactly 8:00 PM. He wants to make sure that every single equation is correct."
"Why five days?" asked Jake.
"Because there were a lot of scientists there. The entire country, the entire world, wanted to know what happened. He doesn't want to plop the school down right on top of them. That's also why he's waiting until evening. Everyone should be gone then," Rose explained.
"My parents will think I'm dead," Troy said quietly. "For five days, they'll think I'm dead."
"But then they'll get you back," Rose reminded him. "It will be the five hardest days of their life, but they'll still get you back."
Both boys nodded.
"What about you and the Doctor?" asked Jake. "What are you two going to do after this?"
"Don't know." Rose shrugged. "Travel, as always, but we never know where we're going next. Sometimes we put our coordinates on random just because we run out of ideas. Sometimes, we receive distress calls and go after those. This was something like that. A friend of ours told us about a school disappearance on the news and thought we could help. We travel for pleasure, we travel for adventure, and we travel to help out when we can. Not a clue where we're headed next."
"And that's your life," said Troy. "Always moving and always exploring?"
Rose nodded. "Best life there is, if you ask me. It's not for everyone, but definitely for me and the Doctor."
"What kind of things have you seen?" asked Jake.
"Tons. Highlights of Earth? I met Charles Dickens and Queen Victoria. Been to the year 5 billion. I attended my parents' wedding. World War II during the London Blitz and 1336 Japan. And those were just the first few adventures I had."
"That's crazy," said Troy. "Seriously crazy. I know I couldn't make that a lifestyle, but it would be amazing to see that kind of stuff."
"Yeah," Jake concurred, "I wouldn't know where to start. Past and future, anywhere in the world. It's all yours."
"Well, I know one place you wouldn't choose," Rose replied. "I can't see you ever wanting to see prehistoric times again."
"Alright, everyone inside!" the Doctor ordered. "Time to go home!"
As soon as he said it, everyone outside rushed for the doors at once, pushing and shoving to get in. Rose used the Om-Com again to order everyone into the gym. Everyone gathered and sat on the bleachers like they had during their first meeting. The Doctor and Rose took the stage.
"We'll make this short and sweet," the Doctor spoke with the Om-Com. "It's time to go home. You are going to arrive five days after your disappearance at 8:00 PM. We'll follow after to make sure that you arrive okay, but we're just going to have a peek. Once we leave this school, you can expect to never see us again. And that's a good thing. Your lives should resume as normal and you won't have to worry about time bombs or the Time Agency again."
"What about those agent people?" called someone from the crowd.
"We're going to let them go before we leave," the Doctor answered.
"You're just going to let them go?!" someone demanded.
"The only other option is to let them go back with you and live out their lives in the 21st century. Though it sounds like a nice punishment to me, I don't like the idea of letting them loose in that time period," the Doctor replied. "Going home will not mean they go unpunished. This mission of theirs was a huge failure and they'll suffer the consequences. They'll be punished for the wrong reasons, but punished none the less.
"Now, Donovan, I know we've asked a lot of you, but I'd like to ask one more favor. We are not leaving anyone behind, so I'd like the roster read off and everyone accounted for."
Donovan agreed and the Doctor went to find the time agents. They didn't say a word while the Doctor fixed their vortex manipulators and neither did he. When both were fixed, he spoke only one word, '"leave."
While the Doctor was taking care of the agents, Rose was saying her goodbyes. She had spent much more time with them than the Doctor and wanted to personally wish them well. The Doctor made it back to the gym before she was done and told her he'd wait for her in the TARDIS.
Rose was nearly finished. Alex informed her that he hadn't had a single seizure and Jess gave her a hug, thanking her for everything. There were only two left…
"We're going to miss you," said Jake.
"We'll never forget you," Troy assured her.
"I'll never forget the two of you either, but it's not quite time for sappy goodbye hugs and such yet. I recall saying that I'd repay you for the extra work you put in," Rose reminded them. "I thought of just the thing. Could you come back to the lab with me?"
"But the school… what if-"
"Don't worry," Rose chuckled. "You really think we'd let you get stuck here? Just let me go talk to Donovan and let him know you're coming with me."
The three of them walked back to the TARDIS together. Jake and Troy expected to wait outside for her, but Rose stepped back and motioned for them to enter.
"Really?" asked Jake.
Rose nodded and the boys walked in. They were absolutely speechless as they looked around.
When the Doctor heard the door close, he started talking. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm definitely ready to put this place behind me. Any ideas for our next- What are you doing here?" he asked when he finally looked up and saw Troy and Jake. "Rose, what are they doing here?"
"They worked hard. I couldn't have managed all this without them," she explained. "I thought they deserved a treat."
"What? But I thought we agreed 'no strays'," he argued.
"They're not strays. I'm not talking about keeping them. I just thought one trip or one trip each if you're up for that. What do you say?"
"Wait. Trip?" asked Jake. "Like a time travel trip?"
"That's the offer," Rose affirmed.
"But what about going home?" Troy worried.
"If you'd rather go home now, that's fine. I'm sure you miss it and look forward to getting back. This is just an offer. But it's also a once in a lifetime opportunity. In case you're worried, here's a little reminder, this is a time machine. If you're gone with us for a couple days, we can still have you back on school property the very minute the school reappears. No one would know you went anywhere else. Completely your choice."
Jake and Troy looked at each other as they considered the option. A smile slowly spread on Jake's face and then Troy smiled, too.
"Where would we go?" asked Jake.
"You choice," Rose answered. "Anywhere. Anywhen."
"What do you think?" Jake asked Troy.
"Well… History would be awesome, but you can read about history. You can't read books about the future," Troy reasoned.
"Alright, we want to see the future," Jake requested.
"Well, that's a bit broad," the Doctor commented. "How far in the future? Where in the future? Oh, but 22nd century and 200,000th century are completely off-limits."
"I don't know," Jake answered. "Some time with crazy high tech stuff. Like flying cars or something."
"That still doesn't narrow it down much," the Doctor replied. "A good time period and environment with flying cars? What do you think, Rose? New Earth is always a fun place to show off."
"New Earth?" said Troy.
"Yes, located in M87 galaxy. Humans relocated to it just before the Earth was destroyed. It became the new capital of the Earth Empire a little before the year 5 billion."
"Earth Empire? You mean we really colonize on other planets?" Troy said in shock. "And you can actually take us to other planets?"
"Of course. You can't time travel without the time vortex and the time vortex connects to all points in the universe from the beginning to the end of time. You didn't tell them we travel through space?" he asked Rose.
"I was afraid to overwhelm them," Rose admitted.
"You can travel the entire universe? Like different galaxies? What about aliens, are there actually any aliens out there?"
"Of course there are." The Doctor answered as though it was the most ridiculous question he'd ever heard. "Humanoid species alone number in the billions. Where do you think all the gadgets we use are from? I may be a genius, but I don't have time to come up with all this stuff."
"Is the 'bigger on the inside' thing alien technology, too?" Jake inquired. "Rose said that people never develop that kind of technology. She said that's just yours."
"I think you mean humans never develop that technology. 'People' doesn't just mean humans. I didn't develop the technology personally, but my people did. But we're not supposed to be talking about-"
"Your people? You're not saying… you're not human?" Troy said in shock.
"Of course not. Humans don't have the brain capacity to hold my genius," the Doctor claimed.
"No, now you're just messing with us," Jake said skeptically. "You look just like a human. There's no way-"
"He is," Rose declared. "And as I'm sure he's ready to tell you, humans look like his people, not the other way around. His people were the first sentient culture in the universe – the time lords. They created the operational parameters of the universe and the morphic field that influenced the creation of other living beings, focusing on humanoid development. With billions of species evolving into humanoids, there had to be at least one that looked like time lords."
"And we might look the same on the outside," the Doctor continued, "but my physiology is far superior. Very, very different on the inside."
"Prove it," Jake challenged.
"Rose, I don't have to deal with this," the Doctor whined. "If they're-"
"It'll take like five seconds to prove. And this is why I didn't tell them about space. It's hard to grasp and this was just supposed to be a quick trip. Just scan yourself," Rose requested.
The Doctor went to the other side of the console and scanned his DNA. Rose beckoned the boys forward and pointed at the monitor.
"Is that… Is that three strands of DNA?" asked Troy.
The Doctor typed in something on the keyboard and suddenly a fourth semi-transparent strand appeared.
"Three strand are visible, the other is temporal. Time lords have time written in their construction."
Rose then help up the medical scanner and held it in front of the Doctor's chest, displaying two beating hearts.
"Oh god, he's an alien," Jake breathed in surprise.
"What about you?" Troy asked Rose.
"Human," Rose answered. "I was born and raised on Earth, remember?"
"And you married an alien?" asked Troy.
"Again, a good reason not to bring up space travel," Rose told the Doctor. "Yes, I married him. You thought he was amazing when he was saving you, how does this revelation change who he is?"
"I guess it doesn't," Jake replied. "It's just… mind-blowing."
"Okay, I'm going to try this again," said Rose. "Fancy a one-time trip through time and space or would your rather head straight home?"
The boys looked at each other again and Jake shrugged. Troy nodded in agreement.
"Hell yeah!" Jake replied.
"Alright," Rose said with a smile. "It's getting into evening so I'm going to order we have dinner then sleep first. After breakfast we'll take off. No set destination yet, so take some time to discuss what kinds of things you want to see."
"You want dinner now?" the Doctor asked her.
"In a little while. For now I want to relax a bit."
"Swimming pool or library?" he asked.
"Pool. You interested?" she asked him.
"I'll grab my swimsuit," he agreed.
"You weren't kidding about the swimming pool?" Troy said in shock.
"Nope. We have tennis courts, too. The zoo though… We still have it, but it's been empty for centuries."
"Centuries?" Jake asked in surprise.
"We'll talk about that later," said Rose. "You can join us at the pool if you want or you could go exploring. If you find the kitchen, you can help yourself, but don't go overboard because we're having dinner in just a bit. If you go exploring, please don't get lost."
Rose turned to catch up with the Doctor, but Troy stopped her. "You still have to send the school back."
Rose laughed. "The Doctor did that the second I stepped into the TARDIS."
She pointed out the time device that was used to send the school back. It was just below the console. "That was part of the programming. The school goes home and the device is pulled here. Welcome aboard the TARDIS, boys. Make yourselves at home."
I'm so sorry that it took so long to post this last chapter! I had so many issues. This chapter has been lost and found and then accidentally deleted. Serious writer's block kept me from rewriting it. It's been over a year though, so none of those excuses are good enough. I don't think this rewrite was as good as the chapter I had written before, but I hope you like it.
With the horrible writer's block I had and two abandoned fics I was writing (nothing ever posted) I'm still nervous to start writing again... but I still have some ideas for this 'verse. So perhaps this series might continue.