"I'm here, Jack."
The figure of a woman was silhouetted in the hall light behind the Doctor.
"Here Jack," she said softly. "I'm here."
As she stepped into the infirmary, the rest of the team looked in amazement at the petite, blonde woman with dark brown eyes. She swayed a bit as she walked towards Jack. Her father quickly took her by the arm.
"Mom?" asked Toshi as she took in the sight. She stared incredously at Mara. The Catkin doctor looked puzzled and shrugged.
Jack walked up to her and took her gently into his arms. "What happened, Jen?"
"I followed you…" she said as she touched his face. "I thought…I thought I lost you."
Gray turned to the Doctor and whispered. "Who is this? Jens is a guy."
"Jens is Gallifreyan, not human," said the Doctor, but Gray still looked confused. " I'll explain later."
"Doctor?" Jack stared at the Time Lord as he held her. He could tell she was unsteady and concern spread over his face. "What…?"
"He went with you…to the other side," explained the Time Lord. "To protect you."
"But that was stupid!" blurted the Captain. "Jens could have died!"
The Doctor nodded, "Jens regenerated."
"But she's…"
"Not fully healed," the Doctor finished. "I'm concerned too, but Jen's body never has reacted in the original pattern of her birth on Messaline. This time she did not regenerate forward like I do. She just reverted back." He caught Jack's eye. "I'm concerned too, but I think she is fine."
Jack picked her up, and laid her down on the hospital bed.
"Mom?" Toshi stepped forward to stand next to her father, and took her mother's hand.
"She just needs time to heal," repeated the Doctor. "Both of you, stop worrying. She's fine." He raised his brow as he cast his eyes on the rest of the team. "I think they need some time alone." As he looked from one to the other, the rest of the team slowly left the room, followed by a reluctant Toshi. Finally the Doctor dimmed the light, left the room, and shut the door behind him.
Jack smoothed her long blonde hair back from her face and whispered, "What were you thinking, Jen? So foolish." He climbed onto the bed and placed his arms around her, burying his face in the fragrance of her hair.
Jen smiled and closed her eyes as she pulled him closer. "Just stay with me…like this." Her voice was drifting. "Just want…hold you."
Jack adjusted his body as he curled around her. "I'm here," he said softly, his mind drifting as he listened to the rise and fall of her breathing as she slept. "I'm here."
XXX
The Doctor returned early in the morning to check on his daughter and the Captain. As he quietly opened the door, he saw that they were both up. Jack sat in one chair facing Jenny in the other. They stopped their conversation when the Time Lord entered the room.
"How…?"
"She's fine," interjected the Captain. "We're both fine."
Jen rose first, followed by Jack.
"How about some breakfast?" asked Jack. "Pancakes? I make a good pancake! Maybe an omelet if we have any eggs. And some hot chocolate." He closed his eyes and breathed in the memory. "Oh, how I missed chocolate."
"How about fish fingers and custard?" asked the Doctor with a mischievous grin.
"What?" The Captain and Jens looked at each other.
"Never mind," said the Doctor. "You two go start breakfast and I'll wake the others."
As the Doctor turned to follow them out of the infirmary, he saw pages of faded letter lying on the floor. As he bent down to pick it up, he noticed it was written in a Boeshane dialect. He slipped it in his pocket and left to wake the others.