A/N: Alex's outfit for this chapter can be found on my Tumblr, under the name 'darksideofparis'.
Alex stepped out of the sleek black car that had been sent to pick her up at the airport. She was currently in a large warehouse-style room, people bustling around everywhere. They were carrying boxes that were probably full of alien technology, oblivious to the drama that was surrounding her right now. As a speaker blared overhead, Alex turned and caught sight of Colonel Karim.
Alex crossed over to her as the driver wrestled her luggage from the car. Colonel Karim's hair was down today, and she was in a black UNIT trench-coat. Alex's combat boots stomped heavily on the floor as she approached.
"Hello, Miss Locke," Colonel Karim greeted, her head tilting in a slight nod. "I trust your flight was good?"
First class courtesy of UNIT with free champagne, chocolate-covered strawberries, and English TV. Not that Alex was able to enjoy any of it. "Fine," she nodded, leaving it at that as she turned to grab her simple black rolling suitcase from the driver.
Colonel Karim led her to a steel door on one side of the room. "Now, we've allocated a bedroom for you," she explained as they walked down a hall. "The funeral is to take place at 0900 hours tomorrow, so that gives you time to acclimatize. The doors to the funeral wing will be sealed at 2100 hours. This is still a working military base, so you'll only have access to the specified areas."
"Lovely," Alex muttered. It certainly seemed like they didn't want her here.
They turned down another hallway and upon seeing what was in it, Alex stopped dead in her tracks. "Who are they?" she demanded, pointing ahead of the colonel to several small aliens with funny-shaped blue heads, all dressed in black UNIT jumpsuits. Alex watched in shock and amazement as they busied themselves with working on some wires dangling from the ceiling.
Colonel Karim turned to look at the aliens, then back at Alex. "Oh, don't worry," she assured her. "They're Groske, cousins to the Graske race."
"Groske very different," one of the Groske said as it approached them. "Groske are blue. Hate Graske. Graske make me stamp my feet." The Groske stamped its feet for emphasis, making Alex smile a little.
"The Groske were stranded on Earth in 2006," Colonel Karim explained. "We took them in, and they've been earning their keep as workmen."
"Groske build rocket for funeral," the Groske added. "Come and see! Come and see!"
Alex's smile fell and she cautiously stepped forward as the Groske waved her to a door on the opposite end of the hallway. Trying to keep her emotions under control, Alex stepped through the doorway.
She was led through another hallway by the Groske and Colonel Karim to a large chamber. "Rocket 815 will take the Doctor's body into space, sealed inside a lead-lined coffin," Colonel Karim explained. "And he'll be set free in death as in life."
Alex gaped at the enormous rocket. It was long and thin, unlike the Apollo 23 one the Doctor had described to her. This one looked much more futuristic. Alex bit her lip, trying not to imagine the Doctor's body lying in a lead-lined coffin in this thing.
Colonel Karim noticed Alex's staring and smiled. "Impressive, isn't it?"
Alex snorted. "No, it's tacky and completely the opposite of anything the Doctor would want." She knew that the Doctor would never want such a fuss made over him. He'd be disgusted with the rocket. Knowing him, he'd rather be dropped into the Thames when he died. "He'd never want such a fuss being made over him. He's like that."
"Was like that," the colonel corrected.
Alex ignored her, concentrating on figuring out what kind of sick game UNIT was playing with her. "Where's the TARDIS?" she wondered. What was UNIT planning to do to the box? She knew that the Doctor would never want anyone, least of all UNIT, to get control of the box. If he was dead, God forbid, Alex was fully ready and willing to take the TARDIS back to Bristol and keep it hidden.
"There was no sign of it," Colonel Karim revealed, causing Alex to raise her eyebrows and stare at her in shock. After all, how hard could it be to find the TARDIS? It was a big blue box! "The body was found all alone."
Alex pressed her lips together and pushed down the tears that were threatening to come up. The Doctor couldn't be dead. He just couldn't be. She concentrated on repeating that mantra in her head instead of imagining the Doctor dying on some planet somewhere all alone.
"Anyway," the colonel said, interrupting her thoughts, "this area's about to be sealed off as part of the curfew. I can take you to your bedroom and then the Shansheeth are holding a gathering of remembrance."
Alex only nodded, not trusting herself to speak.
~Living the Life of Ally~
Ten minutes later, Alex had dropped her luggage off in her bedroom. She hadn't bothered to change, instead wearing the clothes she had arrived in, funeral clothes consisting of a short-sleeved black velvet dress, combat boots, black leggings, and hoop earrings. Her sonic necklace was still fastened around her neck. Alex reached up to rub it as she stepped through the doors into the funeral wing.
It was obvious that she had arrived a little late, for several people were sitting on pews, staring straight ahead. Two Shansheeth were stationed at the doors, making Alex tense a little. She was never really scared around aliens, but these just gave her really bad vibes.
"I'm so sorry for your loss," one of them said as Alex stepped though.
Alex nodded, still not speaking, even as the second one repeated the same apology. Ahead of her, another Shansheeth spoke. "The Claw Shansheeth invite you to spend tonight reflecting in the memories of a loved one who's lost."
Alex bit her lip and looked around the room. She was alarmed to see that the several people were, in fact, very few, and mostly limited to soldiers. "Who are all these people?" she murmured to the colonel.
"Mostly soldiers," Colonel Karim said quietly. "It's not easy to find friends of the Doctor. He would come and go without a trace."
Alex turned away from the colonel. As she did though, her eyes settled on the large lead coffin at the front of the room.
~Living the Life of Ally~
Sarah Jane Smith and Jo Grant, er . . . Jo Jones, since she was now married, were talking excitedly about how they both thought that the Doctor was still alive when the doors at the back of the room opened. Curious, since they hadn't expected anyone else to show up based on how few companions were present, they turned to study the new arrival.
It was a girl, roughly in her late teens to early twenties. She was beautiful with long light brown hair and blonde highlights. She was dressed in a black velvet dress that reached down to just above her knees, black leggings, combat boots, and large hoop earrings. The girl didn't speak as the Shansheeth apologized to her for her loss. Instead, her hazel eyes flicked around at the people seated on the benches.
She turned to Colonel Karim. "Who are all these people?" she murmured, her voice just barely audible. Listening closely, Sarah Jane was able to determine that she was American.
"Mostly soldiers," the colonel replied, causing Sarah Jane and Jo to bristle. "It's not easy to find friends of the Doctor. He would come and go without a trace."
The girl didn't respond, instead turning away from the colonel. Sarah Jane watched as the girl's eyes became fixated on the coffin. The girl took a deep breath, shuddering slightly. Then, just as quickly, she shoved all her emotions down. This was a familiar thing to Sarah Jane, as she had seen it done by one other person many, many times.
The girl turned back to the colonel. "Is this really all that's here?" she asked a bit louder. "I mean, I know the Doctor had several companions."
"Like I said," Colonel Karim replied, "friends of the Doctor are hard to find."
The girl snorted, showing that she didn't believe any of this rubbish. "Really. Tegan Jovanka, Australia. Barbara and Ian Chesterton, Cambridge, England. Martha and Mickey Smith, London, England. Jack Harkness and Torchwood Three, Cardiff."
Colonel Karim noticeably stiffened at the mention of Torchwood. "Really?" she said, her voice almost squeaking. "Well, I'm afraid Torchwood and UNIT don't have the best relationship. In fact, we tried to call Torchwood several times, but they didn't answer."
"That's funny." The girl crossed her arms and glared at the colonel. By this point, Clyde, Rani, and Santiago had turned around to watch the scene. "Because I talked to Jack, and he said that UNIT never contacted them." The colonel didn't say anything, which seemed to be the reply the girl expected, for she laughed and said, "Damn international lines, huh?"
The girl turned back to the coffin and bit her lip. Anyone could tell that she was upset and nervous about what may or may not be inside. "Can I see him?" she asked.
The colonel seemed to regain any bravado the girl had stripped away from her for she shook her head and quietly said, "I don't think you want to."
Wrong answer. Quick as a wink, the girl's eyes narrowed, and she whirled back around to face the colonel. "Excuse me?" she cried. "I was his companion! I've got more rights to see him than anybody else in this room!"
Sarah Jane and Jo raised eyebrows at this but said nothing. The girl probably didn't know who they were after all.
"Miss Locke, he. . ." Colonel Karim paused, trying to figure out how best to tell the obviously upset girl what Sarah Jane already knew. ". . .he was hurt."
~Living the Life of Ally~
He was hurt.
Alex tried not to think about what those words implied. No, no, it wasn't true, any of it! The Doctor was not dead. He was still alive and kicking and rambling somewhere. He was surely being smug about the fact that he'd managed to give her a sonic necklace without her knowing. He was probably thinking about how long to wait until he picked her, Amy, and Rory up and they went off traveling again. Maybe he was thinking about where to take her so he could impress her some more, when to tell her that her necklace was sonic and how to use it. Maybe he was visiting River . . . but he was. Not. DEAD!
But the colonel's words sank into Alex's brain, unwillingly creating horrible images of the Doctor's final moments. Being burned alive, shot at, stabbed at, falling into a vat of acid. . . Any or all of that could have happened to him. Try as she might to repeat her beliefs about him being alive, Alex knew that she was starting to lose hope, not to mention control on her emotions.
~Living the Life of Ally~
Sarah Jane could see that the girl was starting to unravel, so she quickly got up and walked over to her. "Hey," she murmured, placing her hands on the girl's shoulders. "Hi. Why don't we go and sit over here, shall we?" The girl didn't protest, instead allowing Sarah Jane to lead her over to the bench where she and Jo were sitting.
The girl sat down on the bench seat next to Jo, Sarah Jane sitting on Jo's other side. Once the Shansheeth started playing what looked like a futuristic harp again, Sarah Jane introduced herself. "Sorry, I don't think we've met. I'm Sarah Jane Smith."
Alex perked up upon hearing the familiar name. "Oh my gosh, the Doctor told me about you!" she cried. She paused, reconsidering her words. "Well, by told, I mean finally answered when I started pestering him."
Sarah Jane and Jo chuckled. Certainly sounded like the Doctor. "And this is Jo Grant." Sarah Jane nodded at Jo. "Well, Jo Jones now."
"The Doctor told me about you too!" Alex squealed. "Auton invasion of London, right?"
"Exactly!" Jo beamed, remembering the adventure.
Alex smiled, glad that she could rely on some people here. "It's nice to meet you both. I'm Alex, Alex Locke."
Sarah Jane stiffened and her smile froze. This was the fixed-point Alex Locke she had heard about back during the reality bomb fiasco? Sarah Jane studied her. She certainly seemed human, so why was she a fixed-point?
"So, you travel with the Doctor now?" Jo asked, unaware of Sarah Jane's wondering.
Alex nodded. "Yeah. I have been for a while now. Daleks, Silurians, end of the world, a lot of crazy stuff." She turned to gaze at the coffin. She bit on her lip and absently reached up to play with the charm on her necklace. "I still can't believe he's dead. I don't want to believe it."
As she played with her necklace, Sarah Jane and Jo were drawn to the charm. It was a glittering, jewel-encrusted TARDIS. The police box exterior shined in the dim lighting. "What's that?" Sarah Jane asked, nodding to the necklace charm.
Alex glanced over and saw that they were looking at her necklace. "Oh!" She fingered the charm and looked around a little before leaning closer and whispering, "It's a sonic necklace. The Doctor gave it to me for my birthday a few days ago."
"May I?" Sarah Jane asked. Alex nodded and leaned closer so that Sarah Jane could finger the charm. She ran her finger over the stones, easily able to see that they were real.
"He just gave you a sonic necklace?" she asked, an eyebrow raised.
Alex shifted slightly under the woman's questioning expression. "He didn't tell me it was sonic. I guess he hoped to surprise me."
It was Jo's turn to examine the charm. "My goodness, these are real!" she exclaimed.
Alex blushed. "The Doctor said the inhabitants of some planet owed him a favor."
Jo and Sarah Jane looked at each-other. They both knew that no companion just got a sonic device. Sarah Jane, as far as she knew, was the only one who had one, the sonic lipstick. The Doctor barely allowed a companion to use his sonic screwdriver! So that brought up an interesting question. Why did the Doctor give a sonic necklace to Alex?
But before either one of them could pose their question, Alex started talking again. "You know what's funny?" she asked, gently pulling the necklace away and tucking the charm under the collar of her dress. "I don't think he's dead. I think the Doctor's still alive. I know some people would say that's just the grief talking, but I really believe it. I feel like I should've felt something, you know? Just . . . something that would let me know he's gone."
Sarah Jane and Jo exchanged startled looks. They'd been talking about the same thing not ten minutes ago! "Really?" Sarah Jane asked, looking at Alex critically.
Alex turned and noticed their slightly eager faces. "Yes."
"We were talking about the same thing, right before you came in!" Jo revealed.
"So you think. . ."
"The Doctor's still alive!" all three of them cried.
Alex gasped and laughed. She was quickly pulled into a hug by the two women, which she eagerly reciprocated. She felt so happy now that people were on her side. She just knew that if anyone could prove the Doctor was alive, it was some of his companions.
~Living the Life of Ally~
"Right!" Sarah Jane exclaimed as she dug a notepad and pen out of her purse. "We need to make a list, because we need to work out who'd fake the Doctor's death and why."
She, Jo, Alex, Clyde, Rani, and Santiago were all back in her and the kids' room. While Clyde, Rani, and Santiago stood off to the side, Alex sat on the bottom bed of one of the bunkbeds, Jo opposite her, the latter digging through her luggage. Out of the corner of Sarah Jane's eye, she could see Clyde and Rani eyeing Alex curiously. She'd told the kids about Alex and what the Daleks had said about her. It was no wonder they were so curious.
Alex crinkled her nose as she tried to think. "Well, the first thing that comes to my mind is the Daleks. But why would they fake his death? They'd kill him on the spot and brag about it."
Sarah Jane nodded, knowing that she was right. As she mentally crossed off Daleks from their suspect list, Jo said, "And these can help us to think." She stood up and walked across the room, carrying what looked like eggs in little gold stands. "They're scented with jatamansi oil. It's a herb from the base of the Ganges. It helps to focus the mind." Alex noted with mild amusement that Sarah Jane didn't seem to know what to think of this.
Neither did the kids, it seemed, for Rani grabbed her jacket. "We'll just . . . go and get some tea," she chattered, straightening the hoodie she had on underneath her jacket.
"Oh, no, no, no, just hot water for me, sweetheart," Jo called. "I've got some powdered lapacho." She smiled, her mind traveling back to an old adventure. "You know, the Doctor took me to this planet once called Peladon." Sarah Jane looked up at this. "And the smell of lapacho, it reminds me of the . . . of the royal palace."
"I went to Peladon," Sarah Jane revealed.
Jo looked up, excitement on her face. "You never did," she breathed.
"With the great beast Aggedor?" Sarah Jane asked, holding her hands up in what Alex guessed was an effort to mimic this beast.
"Same planet!" Jo confirmed, beaming brightly. Sarah Jane matched her grin, jumped up, and rushed across the room to hug her. The two women stayed in this position for a moment before turning to Alex, expecting her to chime in.
Alex smiled thinly. "I haven't gone there," she admitted, playing with a loose thread on the comforter. "My friend Amy found the name in an encyclopedia once and asked the Doctor to take us there, but he said no. Something about 'beasts' and how he may or may not have been banned from there."
"Sounds like something he'd do," Sarah Jane said, rolling her eyes at her friend's antics.
"Okay!" Clyde cried out, sensing that the women might want to be left alone. "Laters!"
Just as the children started going out the door, Alex jumped up. "Wait! I'll come along with you." She turned to smile at Sarah Jane and Jo. "Best someone keep an eye on them."
"Good luck," Sarah Jane told her, knowing how Clyde and Rani could find trouble almost effortlessly.
Alex nodded and rushed out the door after the children. Overhead, the speaker blared, "Funeral wing now closing. Repeat, funeral wing now closing." Alex looked up and glared at the ceiling. She could just imagine the Doctor's response to that.
"It's tragic!" Rani bemoaned as Alex closed the door to the suite and started following them. "He's dead and they just can't face it."
Alex picked up speed so that she could stand beside Rani and frown at her. "You can't blame us for having a little hope, Rani," she said coldly.
Rani winced under Alex's glare. Therefore, she was grateful when Santiago, whom Alex had learned was Jo's grandson, spoke up. "I've never met the Doctor," he revealed. "I've always wanted to, but too late."
"I wish he was here right now," Clyde said from behind them. Alex frowned at his tone of voice. It sounded worried.
"Yeah," Rani agreed, smiling wistfully. "Me too."
"No," Clyde said, stopping in the middle of the hallway. The three turned around to see that he was staring down worriedly at his hand. "I really wish he was here right now 'cause then he could explain this." Clyde raised his hand to show a bunch of blue electricity crackling around it.
"Clyde!" Rani gasped as Santiago and Alex gaped at the sight. "It's happening again!"
"I know! But I couldn't say anything, not inside UNIT. They'd lock me up and dissect me!"
"Here, let me look," Alex said, pulling out her necklace charm. Clyde allowed her to hold his hand as she scanned it with her sonic necklace.
The buzzing sounded out around them as Santiago said, "Hold on. What do you mean 'it's happening again'?"
Alex looked up at Clyde, waiting for an answer.
Clyde hesitated for a moment until Rani nodded her head, silently telling him it was okay. "Last time we met the Doctor, it was at Sarah Jane's wedding, and we got stuck in this time loop thing and the TARDIS, the Doctor's time machine, kept phasing in and out of reality. But I touched it and got zapped with this."
Alex stepped back and examined the results on her necklace. "Artron energy," she revealed, saying this at the same time as Clyde.
"That's what he said!" Clyde cried.
"It's part of the TARDIS," Alex said, still eyeing her necklace. "It's a form of temporal energy, generated by Time Lord minds, and helps to pilot the TARDIS."
"Whoa!" Santiago chuckled. "And you thought my life was good!" He, Rani, and Alex smiled a bit.
"Don't worry, Clyde," Alex assured him. "It doesn't seem to be harmful, according to this anyway." Clyde let out a sigh of relief at that, glad that he didn't need to keep worrying about it.
"Smelly getting closer!" a voice called out. The group looked ahead to see the same Groske that had showed them the rocket standing at the end of the corridor.
Clyde frowned at it. "What do you know about this stuff?" he demanded, holding up his hand.
"Closer and closer!" was the Groske's only response. He then turned and started running down the hallway.
"Oi, come back here, blue boy!" Clyde shouted before rushing off after it. Rani followed him as well, Santiago and Alex bringing up the rear. As they ran, Alex thanked God that she'd had the sense to wear combat boots today.
Turning a corner, they saw the Groske crawling into an open vent. "You coming?" Clyde asked Rani as he ducked in.
"Yeah," Rani nodded as Alex ducked in after Clyde. Once Alex crawled in, Rani turned to Santiago. "Oh, honestly, we'll be fine," she assured him, not knowing if Santiago was familiar with this kind of running or not. "We do this kind of thing all the time!"
"Hey, my gran once handcuffed herself to Robert Mugabe," Santiago replied as Rani crawled in. "I'm loving it!"
Alex crawled behind Clyde as they made their way through the vents. Alex smiled to herself. She figured she would be crawling through vents at some point with the Doctor, but she never imagined it would be like this.
"Oi!" Clyde called out loudly as he led the way through the vents. "Groskey! Where are you?!"
"Shh!" Alex hissed, pausing a moment to listen and make sure no one outside had heard them.
"She's right! Keep it down!" Rani hissed. "This is a top-secret military base! They might shoot us dead! Oh, and I kind of promised my dad I'd be in bed by half ten."
Clyde's only response was to roll his eyes and continue crawling.
The four continued down the ventilation shafts, by this point not sure where they were going as the Groske was no longer in sight. Then, all of a sudden, Clyde stopped. Alex peeked over his shoulder to see that he was looking out a small vent. Echoing out was the Shansheeth's harp playing from the Remembrance Ceremony.
". . .such excellent, sorrowful memories," one of the Shansheeth's voices rang out. Alex gently pushed past Clyde so that she could get a better look.
Out in the room, the Shansheeth were gathered around the futuristic harp. Alex squinted, trying to see what they were up to. Behind her, Santiago asked, "What have we stopped for?"
"Hush," Alex and Clyde ordered.
"Clyde, I'm staring at your bum!" Rani whined.
"Better his than mine," Alex smirked, unable to resist making a joke even in this situation. "Santiago, eyes on my hair." Rani giggled a little at the wide-eyed look on Santiago's face. The poor guy then became very fascinated with the back of Clyde's head.
"No, seriously," Clyde hissed, turning around to look at Rani so she'd stop giggling. "Shh!"
"The women are named Smith, Sarah Jane and Jones, Josephine," one of the Shansheeth continued. "We must drain their minds." Alex and Clyde's eyes widened, both exchanging worried and terrified looks. What were the Shansheeth planning to do to Sarah Jane and Jo?
They were pulled back into eavesdropping when another Shansheeth asked, "What of their bodies?"
"They will die," the first Shansheeth calmly answered. "Fortunately, there are excellent undertakers at hand." All the Shansheeth chuckled darkly at this.
"Guys," Clyde murmured, "back up." He rested a hand against the slats of the vent. "We have to get out of here. . ." But he trailed off when his hand began sparking again. "No, no, no, no, no, no!" The Shansheeth whirled around, easily seeing the blue light through the gaps in the vent.
Alex's eyes widened. "Back up!" she shouted, not caring if the Shansheeth heard her. "Back up! Back up!"
"We are witnessed!" one of the Shansheeth cried.
"There's nowhere to turn around!" Santiago argued.
Rani wracked her head for a solution, coming up with one a split second later. "Then go backwards!" she cried. "Shuffle!"
The four immediately began doing this, Alex behind Clyde as she desperately crawled backwards. It was harder than it looked because she had to be quick for Clyde but not too fast for Rani. Ahead of them, she saw one of the Shansheeth open the vent.
"Faster!" Clyde shouted when the Shansheeth appeared. "Shuffle for your life!"
Somehow, they managed to make their way through the vents and back to where they first entered them. Alex scrambled out, jumping onto her feet before reaching down to assist Rani in helping Clyde out. "We've got to get out of here," Clyde stated as he hopped to his feet. "Okay?"
"Okay!" Rani whispered as they started to run down the hall. However, they soon skidded to a stop when Sarah Jane and Jo came rushing up to them from a side corridor.
"There you are!" Sarah Jane sighed in relief.
"Sarah Jane!" Clyde cried, happy to see that she and Jo were alright. "It's the Shansheeth. They're lying through their beaks. They want you and Jo! This whole thing's a trap!"
"I knew it!" Sarah Jane cheered.
Alex beamed. "Me too. I love it when I'm right."
"Hold on," Jo said. "If they're lying, that means the Doctor's still alive!" She, Sarah Jane, and Alex did a three-way high-five, all of them cheering, "Yes!"
"Course I'm still alive, Jo," a new voice retorted. The group whirled around to see the strange voice coming out of Clyde's mouth. "I'd have thought that was obvious. Catch up!"
Alex's eyes widened. She recognized that voice. She heard it practically every day now!
"I beg your pardon?" Jo gasped.
"Clyde, is that you?" Sarah Jane demanded, not familiar with the Eleventh Doctor's voice.
Alex was about to reply, but the voice coming out of Clyde beat her to it. "'Course it's not, it's me! I'm using Clyde as a receiver. I've keyed into his residual Artron energy so I can organize a very complicated biological swap across 10,000 light-years. Hold on." Suddenly, Clyde arched his back, his whole body snapping and crackling with blue light. A second later, he slumped forward.
"That wasn't me," Clyde gasped, looking around in confusion. "That wasn't me speaking. I'm getting. . ." But he trailed off when he looked down. Alex followed his gaze, not at all surprised to see a white hand replacing his black one.
Clyde stared at his newly white hand in shock. "That's not my hand," he stuttered, "'cause my hand's not white!" Right then, the Artron energy crackled through his body again. Clyde groaned in pain, his back arching.
Then, Clyde's form changed. A man appeared in his place, wearing a tweed jacket, blue bowtie, and a white shirt with blue buttons, a man very familiar to Alex. "Sorry, Clyde!" the man gasped a second before Clyde took his place again.
A second later, the man again. "But. . ."
Clyde.
The man. "This. . ."
Clyde.
The man. "Space. . ."
Clyde.
The man. "Is. . ."
Clyde.
"Taken!" the man cried, appearing before them. "Good! So, gosh, that was different. Hello, everyone!"
"Who are you?" Rani blurted. She narrowed her eyes at him. "Where's Clyde?"
"Come on, Rani, use your brain," the man replied. "Clyde and I swapped places, yes, I'm where he was, so he's where I was which means right now, ooh. . ." The man winced. "He's in a lot of trouble."
Rani frowned, not happy with this at all. "You bring him back, whoever you are!" she shouted, stepping threateningly towards him.
"No, no, no, Rani," Sarah Jane interjected, holding her arms out to keep the girl from lunging at the man. "Don't you see?"
During all this, Alex had been frozen in shock. It was . . . he was . . . he wasn't. . . It was all so much, so much to take in, but the minute Sarah Jane uttered those words, Alex unfroze and her face lit up into a grin.
"Doctor!" she cried, running forward and jumping into the Time Lord's arms. The Doctor, slightly taken aback, fell back a step before recovering and throwing his arms around Alex.
"Alexandria Nicole!" he cheered, lifting her up in the air and twirling her around. God, he had missed her! He had no idea how he'd managed to go 900 something years without her. He'd about driven himself mad talking to himself. Sometimes, he would find himself rambling on and on about something and then turn, expecting Alex to reply, only to see that she wasn't there. It was pretty disconcerting.
Meanwhile, Alex let out a whoop as he twirled her around, a little surprised that he was acting like this. Had he really missed her so much? Alex's smile grew wider just thinking about it.
As this was going on, Sarah Jane and Jo were staring at the Doctor in shock. Sarah Jane wasn't too surprised, remembering how the Doctor's last incarnation had been around Rose, but it was still a little shocking to see the Doctor so . . . delighted and eager to see his companion again. Jo, on the other hand, had never seen this type of behavior from the Doctor before. He looked so happy and eager and . . . loving, not a trait Jo would have assigned to the Doctor she knew at all.
Finally, after almost a minute of hugging and twirling, the Doctor pulled back to look Alex in the eye. "Miss me, Ally?"
"More than you could imagine, Doc," Alex replied, her voice flirty. God, she had missed flirting and bantering with him.
The Doctor was reluctant to set Alex down, but he knew time was of the essence. As he placed her down on the floor, right next to him, Sarah Jane stepped forward. "It is you, isn't it?" she breathed, her eyes taking in his new appearance. "Oh, you've done it again."
The Doctor smiled at her, pulling Alex into his side. "Hello, Sarah Jane."
Sarah Jane arched an eyebrow. "Doctor?" The Doctor smirked in reply.
"That's the Doctor?" Rani cried, her eyes widening as she took in the new man before her.
"What Doctor? The Doctor? My Doctor?" Jo babbled.
"Oh, well, didn't you know he can change his face?" Sarah Jane asked.
"Well, I know, but into a baby's?"
"Oi, imagine it from my point of view!" the Doctor cried. "Last time I saw you, Jo Grant, you were what, twenty-one, twenty-two? It's like someone baked you."
Jo gawked at him while Alex frowned. Within an instant, Alex had whacked the back of his head. "Don't be rude!" she scolded while the Doctor yelped and placed a hand on the spot she'd hit. The Doctor glared at her while the others tried to control their snickering.
All except Santiago. "Everyone!" he cried, tapping his gran's arm to get her attention. "Meanwhile!" He nodded to the other end of the hallway where the Shansheeth were now standing.
The Doctor frowned and marched forward, placing a hand on Alex's shoulder as he walked to let her know to stay with the group. "Ah, yes, the Claw Shansheeth from the 15th Funeral Fleet, I've been looking for you! Have you been telling people I'm dead?"
"I apologize," one of the Shansheeth replied. "The death notice was released a little too soon. Though I can rectify this, immediately." Suddenly, he held out his hand and a burst of orange light shot out from it, striking the Doctor in the chest. The Doctor gasped and staggered back in pain.
Alex, of course, would not have any of this. "Doctor!" she shouted, getting ready to race forward.
"Santiago, keep her back!" the Doctor weakly shouted, knowing that the Shansheeth had only brought Alex here because she was important to him. He knew they wouldn't hesitate to use her to get to him.
Santiago, who'd already figured out that Alex was important to the Doctor, hastily complied. Before Alex knew it, her arms were crossed behind her back as Santiago held her in place. "Let me go!" she shouted, kicking a little. "Unless you want a certain part of your anatomy to be an inch shorter!"
Santiago didn't listen though and neither of the others did anything, only watching in shock and horror as the Doctor fell to the floor in pain. "Sorry for your loss, Doctor," the Shansheeth snarled. "Rest. In. PEACE!"
Alex was just about to kick Santiago in a place where it would really hurt, when a large blue light began casting outwards from the Doctor, completely shielding him from the Shansheeth's orange light. A second later, the Doctor disappeared, replaced by a standing Clyde, who was no doubt confused over what had transpired moments before.
The Shansheeth's orange light cut off and as the creatures stared bafflingly at him, Clyde hesitantly opened his eyes. Traveling through space like he just did was not an easy thing to do. He stumbled around to look at the shocked faces of Sarah Jane, Rani, Jo, Santiago, and a newly still Alex.
"I was on a planet. . ." Clyde murmured confusedly.
"No, no, never mind that!" Sarah Jane interrupted. She waved her hand in a frantic beckoning motion. "RUN!"
Clyde turned around to see the Shansheeth, then immediately started running as the giant feathered aliens began to advance. Santiago released Alex, who immediately dashed forwards. She whirled her head around, making sure there were no UNIT soldiers coming, before leading the group over to a large steel door. She wrenched it open and darted inside, waving for everyone to follow her. Sarah Jane came up, holding the door open for everyone as they rushed in. Just as Clyde came running up though, he changed into the Doctor.
The Doctor rushed in and turned to look at Sarah Jane. "Come along, Smith!" he urged before running off. Sarah Jane gaped at him, baffled by his sudden disappearances and reappearances, before doing as he said and following him.
The group ran down a hallway, Rani rushing over to the first door she spotted. "In, in, in, in!" the Doctor shouted, pushing Alex inside after Santiago. He flattened himself against the wall as the others passed . . . and as Colonel Karim came walking up.
"I'm sorry, is there a problem?" she asked, marching forwards.
The Doctor stared at her as he shuffled backwards into the room before abruptly slamming the door in her face. A second later though, it opened again. "Sorry," he said, still staring at her like she was a four-headed toad or something. "I was . . . slamming it." He then slammed the door again.
He leaned back against the door, Sarah Jane resting next to him. "Right, now we need to lock it!" he declared as Alex darted up to him. "Come on! Use the sonic lipstick!"
"Haven't you got the screwdriver?" Sarah Jane asked.
Alex, however, already knew the answer. "They took it, didn't they?" she deadpanned.
The Doctor winced. "Yeah."
Sarah Jane groaned and shook her head before pulling the sonic lipstick out. As she buzzed it over the door, Jo exclaimed, "They do sonic lipsticks now!"
"Speaking of sonic things," Alex mused, remembering her newly gifted sonic necklace. She smirked up at the Doctor. "Sonic necklace?" she said, holding up the charm. "When were you going to tell me?"
The Doctor matched her smirk right back. "Well, that depends. Do you like it? 'Cause if not, I can always take it back. . ."
"Absolutely not!" Alex cried, putting the palm of her hand over the charm. "I love it!"
"Oi!" Rani called. As cute as it was to see the Doctor and Alex flirting with each-other, there were much better times to do it. "Could you two stop flirting for a minute? We've got Shansheeth breathing down our necks!"
The Doctor and Alex cringed and immediately jumped back into business. "Right, we're running out of time," the Doctor said, pacing the room for a moment before going back over to Sarah Jane, Jo, and Alex. "I need you, Sarah, you, Jo, and you, Ally."
"Need us for what?" Jo inquired as the Doctor took her hand. His other hand grabbed Alex's, who in turn grabbed Sarah Jane's.
"Remember the old days when we would go zooming off to faraway worlds?" Then, before any of them could try and respond, a blue crackling light engulfed them, taking them away and leaving Clyde in their place.
Clyde looked around in confusion, noting he was no longer in a hallway, but in a room. Then, he leaned forward, his hands resting on his knees. No, travel like that was not fun at all. His insides felt like they had been jumping up and down, making him feel nauseous. He straightened back up. "Oh, I'm getting space-sick," he said, teeth slightly gritted.
Rani laughed and rushed over to hug him. Clyde didn't even object, still concentrating on not throwing up all over his sneakers. Besides, it felt good to be back.
~Living the Life of Ally~
Alex stumbled slightly upon landing. That traveling hadn't been as bad as traveling by vortex manipulator was. She still felt like she was being torn apart and put back together again, but she didn't feel nauseous.
She looked around at her new surroundings. They were on some kind of planet with pink skies and red cliffs that stretched on for as far as the eye could see. They seemed to be in some kind of junkyard, based on the large piles of dirt and junk surrounding them.
As she, Sarah Jane, and Jo gaped at their surroundings, the Doctor rushed over to the make-shift transporter he'd set up. "No, no, no, no!" he objected, running around the device. "Let's get you working properly! Stop, stop, stop!"
As he began fussing with some wires, Sarah Jane looked around in amazement. It had been a very long time since she'd been on an alien planet. "Where are we?" she asked.
"The wasteland of the Crimson Heart," the Doctor replied, jumping up to pull Alex over to him.
"Certainly looks like a wasteland," Alex agreed, glancing down disdainfully at the rubbish-covered ground. She kicked what looked like a leather rod away from her.
The Doctor ignored her. "Planet Earth's that way." He pointed in the opposite direction of where Sarah Jane and Jo were looking. "Bit of a long walk." He turned back to the device, pulling Alex down along with him. "Sonic, please?" he requested. Alex lifted her necklace charm and guided it into his hands, scooting closer so he could better use the necklace.
Jo turned around, staring out at the horizon. "Wow," she breathed, capturing the attention of Sarah Jane. She turned around to see a large expanse of pink sky, the outline of some planets just barely visible.
Jo's wide eyes took in the sight. "Oh, so many years since I was on another planet," she said.
"Me too," Sarah Jane agreed.
A/N: Yay, we got the Doctor back for this chapter! Not too long a wait. :)
Notes on reviews. . .
ShadowTeir - Yes, she admitted it to Lacey! That's definitely an important step admitting it to someone else. :) Hope you liked Sarah Jane and the gang's reactions to her. :) Yep, I had the sonic necklace thing planned out since the Angel episodes. And it does make sense, what River said. Alex would NEVER give up her sonic necklace to River of all people! :)
Timey-Wimey Somn-Like Lass - We found out why UNIT was so weird here, but more will be revealed in the next chapter. :) Yes, we finally got Jack! I love him. We'll be seeing more of him and Torchwood in the sequel. :) Yep, she hacked into them with her sonic necklace. She is pretty badass. :) Dalex was reunited here, so no worries! And I know, Alex hardly ever cries, so it's really sad when she does it.
TheGirlWhoWaited - Glad you like this so far. I love this episode. I haven't seen very man Sarah Jane Adventures episodes, but I love this one. :) Glad you like the part where Alex finds out her necklace is sonic! It needed to be a surprise moment for her, because she'd never expect something like that. And yes, Alex suspected something was off about the Doctor's 'death'. She's a sharp cookie. :)
Neko 97 - Glad to hear it! :)
TheUltimateGuest - UNIT faked his death . . . more specifically, someone inside it, though I'm pretty sure you know who. :) And yes, Torchwood! I haven't seen many episodes of it, but I do like what I've seen. We can expect more of them in the sequel. :)
Gwilwillith - Yes, Torchwood and I'll be doing 'Children of the Earth'. Alex will be badass in it. :)
dream lighting - Glad you liked the crossover with Torchwood! I hope you liked this chapter, where Alex met Sarah-Jane and everyone. :)
ElysiumPhoenix - Yes, not a bad way to round off a chapter, lol. :) Yep, I kept Owen and Tosh alive. They're a good couple and I just couldn't kill them off. I'll also say that something will be done about Owen's undead state in the sequel so that the couple can get together and be happy. :)
rycbar15 - Can't say! You'll have to wait and see! :)
SopherGopherroxursox - YES, she admitted it! And we found out that Rose is Ross's step-cousin! And we got a sonic necklace and Torchwood! Lol, glad you like the chapter! Yes, Jack and Alex are funny. They'll be together much more in the sequel. Hmm, I haven't thought about River and Jack meeting. I read an article once about how John Barrowman and Alex Kingston were hoping for a Jack and River spinoff, which would definitely be interesting. I think Jack will have definitely heard of River, but we'll have to see if they meet or not. :)
00 SEXY - Lol, it's alright. I just wanted to emphasize the American way of pronouncing it and how Alex thought the British pronunciation was 'wrong'. :)
setsuna1415 - Yep, they all met here! :)
jesterlover - Two words. Me. Too. Why can't the BBC make something like that?! Lol, glad you liked the Jack inclusion! :)
SopherGopher'sAwesomeSister - No, he's not dead. UNIT, or more specifically, a member inside UNIT, faked his death. Yep, we got a sonic necklace, which will definitely be useful in the future. :) And we got Torchwood! Whoo! :) The Shansheeth are really in the Doctor Who world, yes. And yes, 'Death of the Doctor' is a Sarah Jane Adventures episode. And yes, poor Amy and Rory, stuck on a honeymoon planet, none the wiser to what's happening! :)
