And here's chapter two. Thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, followed and favorited so far.
Gallifrey 22.3: Thank you.
London
Morning
In a bar, Jack was sitting at a table, taking a sip of his drink before he spotted his guest arriving.
"Thank you for meeting me," Jack said as he put his drink down on the table.
"When Jack Harkness requests a meeting, you give it. Something my father always used to say," Kate Stewart said as he sat down across from him. "But why did you want to meet here?"
"Only bar in London that doesn't have any kind of computer or TV. Cell phones don't work in here because a fault in the wiring puts out a frequency that disrupts them. It's the only place we can talk where they won't be able to hear us," Jack explained and Kate frowned in confusion.
"Who?"
"An organization called The Shard. They use alien technology to control people, uploading their consciousness onto the internet. As long as they have you in their sights, they can take control of you, switch you on and off like a light switch. They can take control of any electronic device, they could highjack a plane and crash it into the Tower of London with just a few strokes of the keyboard," Jack said, horrifying Kate. "It's why I wanted to meet here. They'll be onto us in a second if we talked in your office. If we're going to take them down, we need to make sure we don't leave a digital trail."
"Going up against people like Shard, it won't be easy," Kate pointed out and Jack smiled tightly.
"I know. But I have reason to believe that Shard is only the middle man. Someone else is pulling the strings, someone far above Shard. Taking out Shard will limit their ability to do harm," Jack explained and she raised an eyebrow.
"Who is this mastermind then?" Kate asked curiously.
"I doubt you'd believe me if I told you. Look, all you need to know right now is that The Doctor will need our help," Jack told her seriously and, after a moment, Kate nodded.
"My father told me when I took over UNIT that I could trust you. I hope he's right," Kate said with a sigh. "I will get to work on Shard. We'll be in touch."
"Only through letters," Jack said and Kate nodded.
"Only through letters," she agreed before getting up.
Kate got up and walked away as Jack watched her leave. That was one part of his plan done. But he couldn't move onto the rest until after he had met up with The Doctor.
Mott-Noble house
Later that morning
In her kitchen, Sylvia poured some tea, putting a cup in front of her son in law, Shaun. He hadn't said a word since Donna and Wilf had gone to put Will down for a nap.
"She told you," Sylvia finally said and Shaun nodded.
"Yes, yes she did. It's…quite a lot to take in," Shaun said, his mind still whirling from everything Donna had told him.
"She's not mad. I thought she was at first, when I found out. But I saw it, it's all real," Sylvia told him and Shaun nodded.
"I know she's not mad, I know my wife enough to know she's not mad. And after everything that happened on Christmas a few years ago, I know the world is…full of things that don't make sense. But I have…concerns. This Doctor, is he a good man?" Shaun asked and Sylvia almost laughed.
"Had you asked me that when you first started seeing my daughter, I would have had a different answer. But yes, he is a good man," Sylvia assured him and some of the tension left Shaun.
"Good. That's good. But…is he dangerous?" Shaun inquired and Sylvia took a moment to gather her thought.
"That is…not an easy question to answer. I wish I could say a simple 'no'. But the truth is, yes, The Doctor is dangerous. Whether he wishes to or not, every time he appears, some danger seems to follow him. But I also know that he would never wish harm on anyone, much less Donna. He would give up his own life to protect her," Sylvia told him.
Shaun frowned, not entirely pleased with this answer. But, he reasoned, in a world with hostile aliens, he supposed Sylvia's answer was the best he was going to get.
In another room, Donna was putting Will down for a nap as Wilf watched with a fond smile while Donna old him of her conversation with Shaun the previous day.
"So it went well then?" Wilf asked.
"It went better than I expected," Donna said softly, putting Will down in his crib before turning to her grandfather. "He didn't call me mad, he believed me. It's just…a lot to take in."
"I imagine it would be. It wasn't any easier for your mother," Wilf pointed out and Donna had to concede his point.
"But at least the Spaceman didn't show up and ruin my wedding to Shaun," Donna said with a laugh and Wilf gave a chuckle.
"I suppose it could have gone worse," Wilf agreed and it was silent for a moment. "Have you…decided when you're going to see him?"
"I'm going over to Mickey and Martha's tonight so we can all talk about it. It's why I brought Shaun and Will over. I didn't want him alone while he's dealing with this," Donna confessed and Wilf placed a hand on his granddaughter's shoulder.
"We'll look after Shaun. You go do what you need to do," Wilf assured her and Donna smiled gratefully.
Smith Residence
Night
That night, Donna stood outside Martha and Mickey's flat. She stared for a moment before knocking on the door. After a few moments, Martha opened the door, smiling as she saw Donna.
"Hi, Donna. Come on it," Martha said, letting her friend in before closing the door.
"Nice place," Donna said as he looked around, silently noticing it was much nicer than the flat she and Shaun had lived in before The Doctor had given her that lottery ticket.
"Nothing fancy but it's good enough for us," Martha said with a shrug as she led Donna into the dining room.
Mickey and Jack were waiting as the two entered and, upon seeing Donna, Mickey set down some plates for dinner.
"Hope you two are hungry, I made the famous Smith pot-roast," Mickey quipped and Martha gave him a look.
"He exaggerates, but it's pretty good," Martha said before the four of them sat down, Mickey severing them all a piece of pot-roast. "So Donna, how'd it go with Shaun?"
"Better than I thought, but he's still taking it all in. How about you? How'd your family take it when you told them The Doctor needed your help?" Donna asked curiously and Martha grimaced.
"They weren't happy, especially my Mum. But she knows it's pretty bad when The Doctor needs our help, so she really didn't complain about it like she would have before," Martha explained before smiling. "I made it up to her by letting her watch Matthew for the night."
"There's nothing greater for a grandparent than letting them spend time with their grandchild," Jack said wistfully, thinking of Steven.
It was silent for a moment, all of them knowing what Jack was thinking off but, tactfully, no one called him out on it.
"How did your meeting go?" Martha inquired.
"As well as I expected. We're working on it, but it might take some time," Jack said vaguely, all of them aware of the electronics in the room. "Onto other matters, The Doctor."
"I have Amy and Rory's address. We can show up there anytime we want," Mickey pointed out.
"So what, we just show up unannounced?" Donna asked in surprise.
"Do you really think we could call him and tell him we know where he is?" Jack asked and Donna paused, considering.
"Fair enough," Donna gave in.
"So Jack, when do you leave?" Martha asked and Jack stiffened.
"What makes you think I'm leaving?" Jack asked evasively.
"Because I know you, Jack. And I know you're already making plans, checking things off a list so you can feel content to leave, do something that'll take time," Martha pointed out and Jack nodded after a moment.
"You're right," Jack admitted. "I need to leave Earth for a while, find some things that can't be found on Earth, something I have to take care of."
"Wouldn't The Doctor be able to help you find whatever you're looking for?" Donna asked and Jack smiled tightly.
"Probably. But the things I have to do…I doubt he'd approve of it. I have to do it on my own. I'll stay until we see The Doctor again, then I have to leave," Jack explained to them.
"So we head to Amy and Rory's tomorrow then?" Mickey asked after a moment and Jack shrugged.
"Seems as good a time as any," Jack said.
"You are planning on coming back, right?" Martha asked a little uncertainly, knowing he'd left after the 456 incident and had only returned when The Miracle had called him back.
"Of course. I might just have something for The Doctor when I do," Jack said, smirking mysteriously.
Martha, Donna and Mickey eyed him oddly, wondering what he might be planning. But they knew Jack well enough to know he wouldn't tell if they asked. So the four of them continued their meal, making small talk as their thoughts turned to The Doctor, wondering what tomorrow would bring when they finally saw him again.
A bit filler, but I hope you all enjoyed it.
I think you can all guess what Jack is planning on doing once he leaves Earth.
And next chapter, the past Companions finally reunite with The Doctor and properly meet the Ponds.
