Egyptian Tahtib: The Most Loyal Companion

"No..." Rose sobbed. "No... Tock..."

Tears streamed down Jared's face, too, as he held his beloved close in his arms, grieving with her for their canine companion. The scene just past replayed in his mind again and again, but each time, he realized there had been nothing he could have done. Their best and most loyal friend had died as he had lived, ever since they'd rescued him from the abandoned mine shaft in ReichWorld, giving his life to protect his humans.

And perhaps he wasn't dead, but alive and well somewhere else, in whatever time and place the Portal had been set to. As long as he managed to escape the Cybermen, that is.

And that's when it hit him.

"Come on!" he cried, startling Rose into silent compliance as he scrambled to his feet, hauling her up beside him. She had no time to question him, as he grabbed her hand with his left – the one wearing the time jumper – madly punched in spatial coordinates dragged instantly up from memory, and punched Activate.

A squished moment later, they stumbled into the sunset back in Suez. Jared stared wildly around to get his bearings, then took off at a dead run. Rose just held on and came along, still just trying to unscramble her head.

A block away, he screeched to a halt and ducked inside a familiar-looking building. It wasn't until she followed him inside, and through another door, that she recognized it. The metallic statue the locals called "aled'eb sey'eh", Bad Wolf, bared its teeth at them again from his crouch on the dirt floor, ripping her heart out all over again with its incredible resemblance to their missing pooch.

"Jared..." she began, brokenly, but stopped at the look on his face.

"Please," he whispered to the air. "Please. Give me a day like today. Just give me this."

Then he brought out the sonic, clicked in a setting, and pointed it at the statue.

Nothing happened.

His thumb found the tiny flywheel, and he slowly pulsed up the intensity of the beam. Again. And again. The sonic wavelengths sliced through their ears audibly, screeching higher and higher, louder and louder...

… until suddenly, a tinkling explosion crashed through the room, and the statue burst into a gazillion tiny shards of metal, exploding outwards like a miniature dust storm. And Tock stood up, gave himself a mighty shake, and bounded over to Rose, licking her astonished face as she collapsed to her knees beside him.

Tears of joy, this time, streamed again down her face, as she hugged her beloved pet, then ran her hands all over him as he danced around her, as overjoyed to see her as she was to see him. Then, stunned, she simply looked at Jared and shook her head in wonder.

He knelt down before her and reached to brush away her tears with his fingers. "There," he croaked out. "This is my wedding present to you."

Half sobbing, half laughing, she flung her arms around him and held on tight, as Tock frisked and pranced around them in the dingy, dusty room.

At last, they drew back, and went through the ritual of petting Tock, praising him to the dog gods, and brushing the dust off his coat – and their clothes. Jared stood and pulled Rose to her feet once more.

"And speaking of weddings...," he began, grinning. "I think there's one waiting for us. Shall we?"

Rose laughed, full and free and happy, then threaded her arm through his and nodded up at him.

"Let's go home."