A/N: Just wanted to say thanks for the reviews. And thanks to all of you who are reading.

Chapter Three: More People

Sarah was listening to the two Doctors talk as she trailed behind them. They were comparing interiors. The Seventh Doctor was explaining that the swimming pool did not end up in the library. It was the exact opposite. He slipped into the Library of Alexandria shortly before its demise. To make room, he put shelves on the walls and moved the light fiction there. "I had only recently put the pool back in."

Luke had to ask if it was true. Did he save the content of the Library? The Doctor shook his head. "There's only so much you can do with a temporal warp during an earthquake. And I moved the books because I needed the room for the people."

The Eleventh Doctor smiled. "Two dozen people. Much more value in people than in old pieces of paper."

"Didn't care for all that shaking about," Ace admitted.

Sarah looked at Jack for an explanation. He told her she should ask Luke. She told him she wanted an explanation she could understand.

"Fair enough. You do understand that the Tardis can go anywhere in Time. Luke is from almost a hundred years in the future. I won't even guess at the others."

"I know that."

"Do you understand that it can go to any place?"

Sarah nodded. "Any time and any place."

River interrupted. "Don't try thinking about it. I've been doing this all my life and it still gives me a headache. Just accept it. See him?" She indicated the Eleventh Doctor. "We have a wonderful relationship except for one thing. We always meet in the wrong order."

"Are you married?" Sarah asked, "Or am I being too forward."

River laughed. "Too forward? That's impossible around the Doctor. As for being married? It's complicated. Remember? We meet in the wrong order."

Sarah was unsure of what to say. Jack helped her out by being blunt.

"She wants to make sure it's a proper relationship."

"With the Doctor?" River was laughing again. Sarah, covering her face to hide her embarrassment over Jack's remark, noticed the Doctors frowning at River. The Seventh Doctor said something and both men smiled.

They had turned past another bend with a blank wall when Ace spoke up. "Ahead, there. Is he one of you?"

"After my time, if he is," the Seventh Doctor admitted. "He should be your predecessor."

Sarah peered through those in front to see a man and woman. They looked to be talking rapidly to each other based on the gestures and pointing.

Jack nudged her. "He must be another Doctor. He was pointing at the one with the umbrella."

River commented that the woman had clearly pointed at her. That meant she would know the Doctor in his next/previous regeneration. Sarah couldn't control herself. She had to laugh. It was helped by River joining in.

There was another pause as introductions and explanations were made. When River asked, the new woman and the new Doctor insisted they were only friends. The new Doctor said they were looking for the Earth when the Tardis made a detour.

Sarah also learned how complicated time travel could be. The Tenth Doctor, who had messy brown hair and a toothy smile that made you like him, met River but had never met Luke. Luke met the Doctor but never met River. River, however, revealed that she had met Luke (at a later point in his life).

"I've decided," Sarah said to Jack, "I'm in a dream. And I don't want to wake up until breakfast. I've heard talk about time travel but I never thought about how funny the problems could be." She grabbed his arm. "I like you in this dream, too."

"And why, may I ask?"

She didn't intend it, but her tone became thoughtful. "You're always afraid. Not scared or frightened but . . . it's as though you're worried." She squeezed his hand. "Here, you're . . . yourself." She laughed as she admitted she was making no sense. Her mood was helped when Jack told her they were in the perfect place for that.

They had stopped walking. Jack was smiling at her. A comfortable smile. That was the difference with him. Somehow, the world turned topsy turvy on them. He wasn't the lone outsider. Here, everyone was an outsider. Everyone was equal. If Douglas Fairbanks had a round face and short ginger hair, she thought. She giggled.

"I'm fifteen and I'm holding hands with a boy."

"Not only that. With snotty Jackie Smith."

"I never called you that."

"Not to my face."

"It was that once. I didn't know you."

"Your mother told you she was putting me up. You didn't like that. You told your friends."

Sarah remembered. She turned around after making that remark and saw her mother. And Jack. She wrote about it in her diary. Until this moment she had thought he hadn't heard.

"Well, I'll tell them I held hands with you." Sarah smiled. "I'll show them."

"Really?" Jack's smirk said he didn't believe her. "Why?"

Sarah smirked at him. "With all that you've been criticizing me, you never let go." She was holding his hand with both of hers. "I do like you, Jack." A pause. "Friends?"

Jack put his other hand on hers. "Friends."

They moved their hands quickly as though pumping a well."One." They did it again. "Two." And again. "Three." And pulled their hands away quickly. "Break," They shouted together.

"Must be a powerful oath," a man said from the opposite side of where everyone was. To confuse matters more, everyone was gone.

"River said we'd catch up," Jack explained. "She said she knew what your look meant."

Sarah smiled, turning to meet the newest person. She was idly thinking that she would like to have River as a mentor. So forceful a personality so self assured. So like Sarah Jane, but even more worldly.

"Too young to get married," said a blond girl, maybe twenty, and dressed in almost nothing.

"Jack," she whispered, "You can see her legs. All of them."

"There's only two," Jack quipped.

"You're still looking."

"They're nice legs."

Sarah smacked his arm.

"Good for you, girl," the blond said. "Had half a mind to do it, myself." She turned to Jack. "Don't you know manners?"

"He's never been introduced," Sarah said cheekily, then blushed as the blond laughed. Even Jack gave a grin.

"Rose," the tall man said. He had large ears and close cropped hair, Sarah noted. His accent said he was from the North. The man smiled at them. "My guess is: your planet; your country; early twentieth century; Good clothes but cheap cloth . . . probably during the Great War." He flashed his teeth at Sarah. "How did I do?"

"London, 1916."

"You see, Rose. She won't even show her ankles in public for at least four years."

The blond, Rose, still smiling at Sarah, asked how long before she showed her knees. Sarah was trying to return the smile when the man said 'not until after the second war'. She knew about the first war. Finding out there would be a second one caused her smile to die.

"You're the Doctor," Jack said, filling the sudden quiet.

"Have we met?" the man answered.

"Um, yes. In a way."

Sarah understood what Jack meant. The two of them knew but they didn't. "You brought us here." She added, helpfully, "earlier."

"For you, that is," Jack added.

Explanations followed after the Doctor, out of curiosity, asked how much earlier. What was funny for Sarah was that the Doctor (who said he was the ninth) was doing the explaining and he was doing most of the explaining to Rose.

"Shall we go?" The Doctor asked. "Rose, would you like to see how I used to look."

To Sarah's surprise, they grabbed hands and began running. They stopped and looked back.

"Coming?" the Doctor asked.

Sarah glanced at Jack. His look said it was her choice. She held out her hand for him to take hold and they ran after the Doctor and Rose.

As they passed the next two bends, the side hallways were there. A Tardis sat at the end of each one. The next two also had side hallways. They ended in grey walls. As they passed the last one, Jack stopped. So did everyone else.

"You're thinking, Jack," Sarah insisted. "What is it?"

"The hallways. I think I've figured them out."

"Easy enough," the Doctor said. "The empty ones are the ones that haven't arrived yet."

"No," Jack insisted. "We passed some that had no hallways. I think those are the ones that haven't arrived."

Sarah was frowning. What Jack meant was obvious. That meant that the empty hallways were the ones that . . . something happened.

"Doctor?" Rose asked.

The Doctor grinned. "Let's find out. That was good thinking, Jack." He led the way to the end of the corridor but this time everyone walked quietly, listening for any sounds from the group that should have been in front of them.

They turned sharply at the end of the corridor then after a few steps turned sharply the other way. That corridor also ended after a short walk. Sarah was staring. There was a metal statue there with glowing yellow/orange eyes.

The Doctor walked up to the statue and introduced himself. Sarah gasped as the statue answered him, welcoming him and pointing in one direction. It said that the forum was being held there. Rose then walked up and introduced herself, asking the metal statue if it had a name.

"Designation Greeting and Direction Protocol. This unit has been referred to by at least two of the Doctors' companions as 'Grady'. This unit is not sure if the term is pejorative."

"He thinks he's been insulted." The Doctor was grinning.

Rose almost laughed. "Naw, Grady. It's just easier to say. Humans do that all the time."

"This unit acknowledges the explanation. It is now necessary to direct the companions to the waiting longue." It pointed in the opposite direction. "Refreshments and entertainment are to be provided until the matter for which the Doctors have been brought here had reached a conclusion."

"Doctor?" Rose asked.

"It sounds fantastic. If it's not, you know where to find me."

Rose nodded. "Lead the way, Grady."

As they followed, Rose said the statue was commonly known as a robot. She also said she had no idea what was happening. This was a new situation for her, although she would like to have met one of the other Doctors. Sarah admitted that she had met four others. They were all different. They acted differently as well but not completely. It was as though they were brothers.

They were escorted through a doorway. Sarah liked the way the door automatically slid out of the way as they neared it. It was a wide area. Nothing was familiar except that it had furniture. There were picture frames of various sizes. The pictures on them were moving and changing. Some of the dozen or so people there were watching them. Some said hello and introduced themselves. What appeared to be food was on counters along the far wall. Luke was there opening a can. As she watched, he began to drink from it. Then he turned to look at the newcomers and smiled. She heard her name and looked to see Sarah Jane sitting off to one side. She was talking to River and the girl, Ace. When she began walking in their direction, all three smiled to welcome her.