AN: Hi! Sorry this took so long- my parents have lifted the ban on laptops- but banned internet altogether for a week whilst I was on holiday in Phuket (in Thailand) So sorry this took so long!
Well done to Lily for last chap- it was Sam Keen. Also, Lady Seiryu- your prize is now ready! At last.. so PM me when you've got the time for me to send it!
This chap's quote:
Love is much like a wild rose, beautiful and calm, but willing to draw blood in its defense.
Gee, wonder why I picked that? Haha.
Quick catch up:
Weirdly, Donna's Time Lady self is coming out- which is impossible. She asks Jack and the Doctor for help, and adds the bewildering message, "Beware of the roses." A sit turns out, somehow these roses emit a pollen/gas which severely burns a perceived 'enemy. Donna's husband was grievously harmed whilst trying to save her from the 'New Gardeners', silver eyes 'humans' who'd been feeding her Time Lord food, tried to poison the Doctor, and kidnapped her when she finally recognised him.
On a gossip note- Jack's getting used to Amy and the Doctor's 'arrangements' (single bed courtesy of Donna) and Amy's unsure why the Doctor hasn't got intimate with her yet, and why he won't help her live as long as he.
The Doctor just shouted for his fesity companions- and they've come running- wonder what it's about?
Enjoy!
The Doctor ran to Jack and Amy as they came in, glancing at Jack and then checking over Amy, taking her face in his hands and kissing her forehead in relief.
"You're safe. Not burnt- either of you?"
Amy looked at Jack in confusion, the Captain shrugged. The Doctor frowned.
"Haven't you seen?"
Amy's brow was now furrowed in bewilderment. "Seen what Doctor?"
The Doctor walked through to the kitchen and Amy and Jack followed. There was a metre high window overlooking the garden behind the sink, currently with the curtains closed.
With a single, dramatic gesture, the Doctor threw the curtains open- revealing the outside of the house. All around, about 6 feet high, thick and ominous- were rose bushes- moving eerily in the still night.
In front of them, on the veranda, hands linked- Donna's 'New Gardeners' surrounded the house, still as stone, all with the same silver eyes staring towards the house.
Amy felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise up and stumbled backwards, glancing at the Doctor.
"Doctor- what are they? And what's with the roses?"
Jack's voice was hoarse when he spoke, his eyes fixed on the beautiful bushes that had mysteriously sprung up in a wall of shrubbery, surrounding Donna's house.
"They're what burnt Shaun and I. Those roses."
Amy looked at the Doctor, grabbing his arm and feeling her heart pound faster as realization came. "Beware the roses."
The Doctor nodded, staring right back at the motionless gardeners and their strange silver eyes.
"Exactly."
One of the gardeners stepped forwards- a woman with tan skin and soft brown curly hair. The Doctor tilted his head to the side. The woman spoke.
"Give us the Time Lord."
Her voice was layered- as if she was simply the mouthpiece for all of them, and there was something….compelling about it. Her silver eyes shone.
Amy frowned, shaking her head- feeling something pressing in. Jack put his hands to his temples, frowning. He looked to the Doctor for guidance.
"Doctor- what is it?"
The Doctor grinned a little, though his eyes were hard.
"Ah- just them trying to force you to hand me over. It's not working." He raised his voice a little and repeated himself. "It's not working."
He looked at Amy and Jack, taking their hands whilst the woman and the others stood impassive. The rose bushes shivered.
"Come on- lets get a better view."
The Doctor led Amy and Jack out of the kitchen, past the table, and then through to the lounge- with it's full length sliding doors onto the veranda.
He squeezed Amy's hand, then Jack's, and smiled nervously at them. The woman walked round quickly, then stood again in front of the others, between the Doctor and the gardeners.
"Give us the Time Lord." She repeated.
The Doctor cocked his head to the side- seemingly unperturbed, even as Jack and Amy shook their heads, massaging their temples.
"Why?"
The woman blinked and her eyes dimmed- as if she was conferring with the others mentally. The silver returned and she spoke again.
"The female has barricaded her mind. Only a Time Lord can unlock it."
The Doctor raised both eyebrows.
"And why would I want to help you?"
The woman did not move this time, her reply was direct.
"Because otherwise we will kill you. And your friends."
The Doctor raised his eyebrows- Amy grabbed his arm.
"What does she mean? How can they kill us- it's just roses and people."
The roses waved and hissed, and the gardeners stood impassive. Amy blinked, staring at the flowers.
The Doctor looked at Amy. "Remember Shaun?"
Amy looked from the Doctor to the flowers, "what? They did that? Doctor- they're flowers!"
The Doctor shook his head. "No- they're the Nondo Maua and they're deadly. These are the troops- and they're ready to fire. Literally. Well,sort of."
He shrugged off Amy's grip and stepped forwards, smiling back at her and the captain.
"I guess I better hand myself over before the roses get trigger happy."
Amy would have laughed if she hadn't been so terrified. She grabbed the Doctor's arm again.
"No. Don't. Please- there's got to be another way." She felt like some kind of cliched hollywood character- but if it worked...
The Doctor smiled, trying to reassure her.
"Look- we don't even know why they want the Doctor-Donna yet, could be they only want my help- to make her useful to them or something."
Amy frowned, her voice breaking a little. "And what about you, what about when you're no longer 'useful'?"
The Doctor glanced away, still smiling, though it seemed a little more fixed now. "I'll think of something."
He took one more step back and the woman's arm shot out like a cobra strike, yanking the Doctor away from Amy so hard the Scottish girl nearly fell. Jack caught her and held her upright, tensely holding her back as the gardeners surrounded the Doctor.
As one, they stepped back into the bushes- the air shimmered, like a mirage, and the roses and gardeners, and the Doctor, dissolved- vanishing into thin air.
X
"We have to go after him!"
Jack grimaced. "Look, Amy- whatever it is, the Doctor thinks he can manage. We just have to wait."
Amy threw her hands into the air, feeling her worry fuel her anger.
"NO! No he can't- couldn't you tell? And we can't just sit here and hope everything will be alright."
Jack sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. The worse part was he knew- he knew what she was saying was true. He knew the Doctor wasn't sure he could escape this time.
But…..
"The problem is Amy- I can't put you in danger."
Amy let out a scream, and threw the last cup on the table to the floor- watching it smash and breathing heavily. Jack got to his feet, shocked.
"Amy?"
Amy felt a tear run down her cheek and wiped it away furiously with her fist, smudging her mascara and rubbing that off her face with the heel of her hand.
"I am sick and tired of people telling me I can't look after myself. The man I love is out there- being forced to do something against his will. He could be being hurt or worse- and he doesn't know if he can get out alive, and you-"
Amy drew in a deep breath, glaring at Jack with all the fire she could muster. "YOU are telling me to sit here- for my safety?"
"No. He's telling you to stay here for his." A weak but amused voice came from the doorway, with a slight London accent.
Amy and Jack spun, to see Shaun propped up against the doorframe, looking exhausted and sore, but about a million times better than he had been.
Amy blinked. "I'm sorry?"
At the same time Jack stepped forward, holding out his hand. "Captain Jack Harkness."
Jack looked at Amy and raised his eyebrows. Amy bit her lip, stepping round the table- carefully avoiding the shards of glass and china gleaming on the floor.
"Um, yeah, sorry, I'm Amy Pond."
Shaun was staring at Jack through his slightly swollen eyes in blatant shock. He pushed himself off the doorframe and turned left down the corridor.
"Hang on." He called, coughing a little.
Amy frowned at Jack and he shrugged, before staring back down the corridor. His whole body was tense, and he refused to look at her.
Amy fidgeted a little, nervous. Finally, she let out a huff of air and spoke.
"I'm-I'm- sorry. I'm just really…"
Jack turned around, smiling a little, and nodded briskly. "It's alright. I know."
There was a look in his eyes which made Amy stare, even after he'd turned to watch for Shaun again.
"You loved him, didn't you?"
Jack didn't move. There was complete silence. After a moment Jack shrugged his shoulders and leant more heavily against the door frame. He didn't look round this time.
"He's a different man now."
Poor Jack- he's got a good heart really. Now what- why was Shaun so shocked, in spite of the fact he's never met the good captain? What are Jack and Amy going to do? What's the Doctor going to do? And why has Donna barricaded her mind? Or more to the point- why do the New Gardener's want to get in?
Please do review with comments and questions- I really appreciate them and will try and update ASAP, though it's been hard with the latop situation- should get better now.
Hope you're all still enjoying it!
Kat