Chapter Text
Dr John Noble looked around his new lab space and sighed. Everything was taking a little getting used to and he sometimes felt completely out of place. This wasn’t his universe, it wasn’t even Pete’s universe it was somewhere different. He was different...
“Hey, settling in okay?”
John turned and smiled at his new boyfriend. He liked that word – boyfriend. Ianto had qualities that surprised him, a heart that beat with truth and love which was such a rare quality in anyone John realised. He was loved by this man, loved and wanted. That was also taking time to get accustomed to – he’d never had a relationship like this before. Not living day to day with someone, planning a life and actually growing old with them. It was an adventure he found himself looking forward to.
“Yeah, all the new equipment has arrived.”
Since his unexpected arrival in this dimension John had taken on the role of Science specialist at Torchwood 3. His new lab was once the home of autopsy and the previous domain of Owen Harper. Sometimes Gwen and Ianto would come here, stand silently for a while and he knows they aren’t looking for him. He never wants to replace Owen but he hopes he can make new relationships with his team mates. With the help of Theta and Jack, John has managed to update the equipment in the lab and was hoping to engage in more experiments partially concerning the Rift.
“Want some help?” Ianto asks, giving John a grin that speaks of doing nothing of the sort. John smiles and blushes at the innuendo. It still makes him nervous but Ianto is so giving and kind that he’ll never tire of his tender touches.
“Maybe a little,” he mumbles watching Ianto’s eyes light up and those warm soft lips touch his. He likes kissing; especially Ianto who kisses like he’s dying or it’s their last. He is panting when Ianto breaks away and on the path to full arousal.
“However, I think we’d better save this until later,” Ianto finishes making John groan with the teasing. He nods dumbly; watches Ianto leave and moans as desire still burns through his body. However, Ianto is right - kissing is not going to get anything done but it was very nice. He turns back to unpacking while considering his new reality.
His first shock upon arriving here had been the state of this universe’s Doctor. Here things had taken a drastic change for the worse after his regeneration on the Game Station. His imperfect human brain didn’t have total Time Lord recall of everything that had happened to him in the alter universe, but he could recognise many events that did not co-inside with this dimension. The Battle of Canary Wharf had taken place, but it was Jack and his team who stopped the Cybermen breaking through the abyss while never discovering the Dalek’s void ship. Rose had worked for Torchwood after turning against him and handing him over to a former time-agent named Captain John Hart. The biggest difference here was the Time Lord’s and Rassilon. They had seriously messed with events, changing fixed points in time and sending this dimension into a whole new unknown future.
He’d tried to track his own timeline of events at this juncture using the knowledge of the Time Lord he’d been duplicated from but it had been difficult. His memories weren’t as clear as it would be if he was fully Time Lord since he was half human and he had a regrettable tendency to forget stuff. Not only that but he had to account for Time Line discrepancies since events happened out of order, or had taken place, or was even in the process of developing. He’d imputed the information he could remember into a computer hoping to get some hits and using his alternative knowledge to help this dimension with its problems. His computer was still in search mode when suddenly it bleeped a loud alarm. A name flashed up and John recognised it immediately – Mr Finch.
*****
“So these things are called Krillitanes?” Gwen asked looking over the report John has printed out concerning a High School in London. “And what are they doing exactly?”
“In my timeline, the Time Lord me came face to face with them at this school, trying to err...take over children’s minds,” John explains getting a strange look from Theta as if he knows he’s holding something back. He wonders if he should have told them the Krillitanes true intention of cracking the Skasis Paradigm. He had meant to say it but one look into the Master’s glowing red eyes had changed his mind. He knew this wasn’t the same man who became Prime Minister in his dimension, who killed millions of people but it doesn’t mean he’s going to trust him to the extent the others do. What would the Master do with the Skasis Paradigm – the ultimate creator or destroying machine? Theta’s golden eyes are fixed on him for a long moment but then he looks away back to his pack. Does he know? It hurts to keep secrets from him, John really does like Theta and they are as close as siblings. Theta is family but John cannot find the words to say it.
“What do you suggest?” Jack asks watching the interaction between Doctor’s and raising an eyebrow. “I’ve heard of them before, in my time they had died out – too many genetic mutations.”
“Why?” Ianto enquires not sure what Jack meant.
“The Krillitane are a composite race. Just like this culture it is a mixture of traditions from all sorts of countries, people you’ve invaded or have been invaded by. You’ve got bits of Viking, bits of France, bits of whatever. They are just the same; an amalgam of the races they’ve conquered but they take the physical aspects as well. They cherry pick the best bits from the people they destroy. In the other dimension I didn’t recognise them because they had added wings and got rid of the long neck,” John explains. Theta snorts with laughter at the thought, wishing he could have seen them with long necks. Inside his mind, the Doctor supplies him with an image and he giggles even more. Jack glares at him to keep quite but he just ignores it and grins back. Jack has to admit that he never really gets Theta to stop doing anything he shouldn’t...but, Jack does adore the adventures they have! The Master, being pack Alpha is a different matter and slaps his hand causing Theta to pout in annoyance.
*Punishment,* the Master snarls sending an image of a cane and Theta’s red ass. He quickly falls silent wanting this meet over...quickly.
“They are using the children to solve a technical answer to advance their race. If they succeed it won’t be very good for this planet either. They have a secretion called Krillitane oil, after all their genetic alterations it has become toxic to them, but it does have a very unusual affect on the human mind. It increases intelligence.”
“No wonder the school is doing so well in the league tables,” Gwen comments pretty annoyed that another school has been crossed of the list for her daughter. Anwen is only a couple of months old now, but she does have to plan for the future.
“So what do you suggest?” the Master asks with a look that tells John that he’s not completely fooled and knows he is holding something back. John and the Master haven’t quite settled their differences and are easily perturbed. They are cordial but that is about it, so they try to avoid each other’s space.
“We go in and stop them,” John continues. “Last time, Rose and...”
Theta’s face pales at the sound of the human name and he leaves the room in a flash, Jack soon follows. John sighs kicking himself for not remembering. He had feelings for Rose – well, his Time Lord copy did, but here she caused terrible damage not only to the Doctor but her Torchwood colleagues as well. Her name is one of those forbidden subjects you don’t mention like – ‘Master and evil.’
“How about this, you humans go in, find out what is happening and then we’ll clean up your mess.” The Master scoffs before he too has vanished, no doubt going in search of his mates. John sighs sitting down beside Ianto who touches his hand offering support.
“Good one,” Gwen mumbles getting a little weary of the tension and leaves. This is a great start, John considers.
“They are still a bit touchy,” Ianto comments stroking over John’s fingers. “You and he had very different experiences with Rose and the beginnings of his life.”
“I know, I shouldn’t say it, but....I just...”
“You’re afraid.”
“No...Yes...”
“There is something the Krillitane want but you think the Master will get it?”
“Damn, am I that obvious?!” John snaps standing up to pace across the conference room, running an annoyed hand through his already messed up hair.
“A bit,” Ianto admits, actually it was so obvious he was surprise John just didn’t put up a sign saying ‘Warning avoid Master at all costs – he might take over the universe!’ “This dimension isn’t the same as yours John; you have to work with what you have. I know it’s not ideal, even Theta and Jack have to keep a close eye on him but this is the way it is....” Ianto knows he’s not making this clear. “You dealt with certain things in one way that you think was the right way, maybe it was and is, but here we don’t have that choice. Rose isn’t here. Things that happened there cannot happen here.”
“It’s not only that it’s...I thought about it too.” John sits back down and rests his head into his hands. “They offered it me - the Skasis Paradigm. They said I could bring the Time Lord’s back and that I could put the universe to rights. I really thought about it too. I wanted that power, Ianto. I wanted to change the universe for the better.”
“You said no in the end, John. You refused them.”
“I know, but it was hard and I kept thinking about it. I kept wondering if I could go and salvage the research and... Ianto here in this dimension there is so much he or I could do with it. I could change Theta’s life, I could bring the Time Lords back, I could stop the Master getting the drums, I could....”
“No!” Ianto snaps interrupting. “We can’t change the past, John. If you took Theta then will this Doctor ever have the happiness he has found with his mates. Will Jack have a lover? Would I still have you?”
“I don’t know...” John admits taking Ianto’s hand and entwining their fingers together with a little squeeze, needing his reassurance. “I really don’t know.”
“You are right, they need to be stopped but this research has to be destroyed too. We either do this as Torchwood or with the Pack, I would rather do it with their help but it’s your choice, John.” Ianto pats his lover’s hand sadly and gets out of his seat. This isn’t a decision Ianto can make for him.
****
Back in the Tardis the Doctor dreams. It’s unusual for a Time Lord to dream but the Doctor isn’t sure these are true dreams. He keeps experiencing the same images but he doesn’t understand what they are. He sees Gallifrey, a red circle and then standing before him is Rassilon holding a collar. It’s usually then he wakes up and finds himself back in his bed with his mates and the dream feels so unreal. For the first time he wonders if they are in fact memories and not just wild imagines.
*Pain.*
Theta understands how memories can be destructive to one’s being and while he doesn’t dream as the Doctor does he shares those thoughts at times. He might control the body but the Doctor controls the sub-conciseness, along with the past.
*It is something we must see, my own.*
All thoughts of dreams are pushed aside when Jack starts to awaken, stretching his body along his and pulling him tighter. Off course that means the Master snuggles further into his chest and warm hand cups his cock. Theta loves sex with his mate; the Doctor gets distracted sometimes and forgets how making love can connect you to someone. He’s usually thinking of 1001 things as well as sex but for Theta it is an impetrative of his mating bond with Jack and the Master that he loses himself inside the connection intercourse gives them. Without that type of deep contact he becomes isolated and it’s something he really doesn’t like - as well as having a detrimental affect on his mood and physical functions.
*Pain.*
At first Theta doesn’t understand the word floating around in his head which pushes the Doctor’s consciousness aside. He thought it was a response to the Doctor’s dreams, but it’s not...it’s something more. Something ancient.
“Sleepy,” Jack purrs pressing his hardening cock against Theta and turning his head enough for them to kiss. The kiss is wet and tender but quickly warms as their tongues entwine. A wet mouth licks along his jaw and Theta moans with delight as the Master’s hands tighten on his hips.
“Thought you were sleepy,” he growls at Jack while pressing his body along Theta’s.
“You were asleep,” Jack answers back but the bickering soon comes to a quick end when Theta stretches, pushing his behind against Jack’s groin and rubbing his cock into the Master’s. They are so easily distracted, he decides with a grin as both mates turn their attention back to him. The Doctor part of his personality doesn’t need this contact or touch, but Theta does. Without it he feels alone, adrift and he aches to be connected to someone weather that be via mind or skin on skin. He enjoys both types very much. The Doctor doesn’t need anyone else to make him who he is, he likes companionship, he’s learned to enjoy sex but he doesn’t NEED anyone. He’s spent centuries alone, but for Theta that is his worst nightmare – to be singular.
*My own,* the Doctor calls in a calming voice that settles Theta’s mind once again and he can turn his attention back to the present. The Doctor doesn’t really understand his needs but since he too loves their mates, he doesn’t interfere with Theta desires and impulsions.
“Pretty,” the Master moans, breaking into Theta’s thoughts with his own desire and hearing the answering purr from his mate. The Master has always had a deeper link with the Doctor, they had history together and as Time Lord’s they shared bio-data. Those early days when they were young and reckless, sex wasn’t always about bodies sometimes it was something deeper. Mystical and forbidden were the rites they performed in their bed, sharing not only flesh but genetics. Maybe that was why the Master’s betrayal and rape had driven the young Doctor to run away from him. It had forced him to end their affair when he’d learned the Master couldn’t be trusted. That he could not be dependable if the Doctor gave his hearts or his love. Now, however with the Master’s new sense of sanity he was rebuilding those connections to the Doctor and proving to his lover that in fact his feelings had never changed. They had been warped by his insanity but the Doctor was forever his chosen mate.
Warm fluttering filled Theta as the Doctor’s love grew for their alpha, the mental bond between them burning with life and energy. Their minds touched and Theta purred with the resulting pleasure, sharing it with another inside his mind – Jack. If the Master was the Doctor’s true mate then for Theta it was Jack. He loved the Immortals heat, his thoughts, his emotions and his delicious body. As the Master and Doctor’s minds burned with passion, Theta’s body heated with another type of pleasure. Jack’s form pressed against his back, the heavy cock pushing against his tiny hole and firm hands stroked all over his skin. Wherever the hands touched a fire was ignited which left Theta trembling with need.
*Theta,* Jack gasped as his clawed hands dug into the slim hips of his mate, dragging him nearer and then reaching for the tiny pucker of skin. Theta growled as a claw pressed against him, breaking him open and sliding into his heat. He wanted Jack connected to him – wanted them physically and mentally bound together. He rolled, pressing the Master under him and moaning a little in distress as his fingers shifted on Theta’s temple. The Master’s soft pads once again returned to the contact points and Theta whined was they were joined as one.
Jack followed as Theta rolled, moving up onto his knees and spreading the long legs of his lover. Theta helped, pushing his hips high and then moaned as Jack found that private place. With one last caress Jack shifted, moving forward and pushed his cock against the tiny opening. Theta growled in pain and the beautiful ache that filled him as Jack shoved inside him. There was no waiting for him to adjust, Jack knew him to well to wait and started a deep violent rhythm. The Master called it rutting but Theta loved every second. He loved the rawness, the heat, the violence but above all Jack’s desperate need to be connected to him in such a way. He started panting, growling and purring all at once as his body was caught between his lovers. A mental and physical touch holding him in place until it became too much.
“Oh fuck, fuck,” Jack gasped, his hips pummelling his mate and he loved the sound of his skin slapping against Theta’s. Once I had stamina, Jack thought with a laugh but didn’t slow. Sex like this might be short lived but the orgasm that followed would buzz through his system for hours. He reached deeper into Theta’s mind, finding the bond between them that shone like the brightest of suns and wrapped his essence around it. Theta screamed and came, triggering not only his but his mate’s orgasms too. Their bond pulsed with burning light, filled with passion and love that consumed them all. It sizzled though Theta’s every nerve, into every thought and memory and exploded deep into his soul.
*That is....Fuck....* Jack gasped into his mind, his heavy body pressing Theta into the Master’s. Theta had to agree with that assessment and like Jack was unable to find the words to explain how that type of joining felt. Jack shifted; rolling them so they lay side by side and Theta once again wrapped his body around the Master’s and drew Jack against his back. Jack laughed as he smuggled into the bed, getting comfortable for another short but well deserved nap. He really didn’t mind his mate’s waking him in such a way, but now he was wide awake and buzzing with energy.
“Did you sense something?” The Master asked, not opening his eyes or moving from Theta’s embrace. Jack was surprised he was awake since he usually liked to nap with Theta, while touching the Doctor’s subconscious. Jack had never really been that fantastic with his mental abilities but sometimes enjoyed time in the Doctor’s mindscape. Jack just didn’t feel comfortable with his psionic talents finding that he was the kind of person stuck in the physical aspect of life – he enjoyed touching, seeing, smelling – what he called reality. Telepathy and other psionic abilities were for Jack lost in the mystical. They didn’t have substance to him; take Theta – While he loved sharing their bond, hearing his thoughts, sometimes just a simple touch like handholding could be just as erotic.
“No...is there something wrong with the Doctor,” Jack asked with concern, sitting up and looking down into the Master’s red glowing eyes. The Master blinked a few times, but then those eyes returned back to their normal hazel and he closed them once again.
“No...it’s nothing,” he answers with a sigh, curling into Theta’s heat, pressing his nose into his neck and licking his mark.
Jack considers pushing but decides against it. For now he’s wide awake and a hot shower is calling him. He slides from the bed, just missing standing on Lena’s tail and pauses. There is an unnatural cold in the room, even though inside the fire pit the fire is burning with its artificial life and heat rolls from its central position. Yet, it feels chilly. Jack shiver’s and laughs at a silly thought.
‘Like someone walking on your grave.’ Ianto had said that once and Jack suddenly understood what that term meant. A chill past through him but as he tried to work out what it was the sensation dissipated and everything was once again normal. It troubled him however; the Master had sensed something too. Jack looked back at the bed but his mate’s were breathing deeply in rest so he decided to leave it for later. Now, he wanted a shower and after he might wake up Theta this time and fill his lovely hole once again.
*****
Getting into the Deffry Vale High School wasn’t difficult. A lottery winning teacher had left an opening that Dr John Noble had been very happy to fill. However, seeing the school left John in shock. Maybe he remembered wrong or something but what he recalled from his last visit did not coincide with this dimension. The School appeared completely different to his cloned memories leaving him feeling very lost. It was a very modern building and every where he turned the whole place was filled with computers leaving him wondering where to start.
John’s second problem was that he didn’t recognise the teachers...no, that wasn’t entirely true. He did recognise one – the Headmaster Mr Finch. He looked just like his alter dimensional one did and gave of this strange evil, almost Master-like vibe. Thankfully for John the children were all too familiar. There was Milo, obviously changed by the...by the...Krillitane Oil.
The lack of memory terrified John who observed it had happened quite a bit lately especially with his timeline research. He found himself forgetting things and his memories weren’t as clear as they once were. Off course, he now had a human brain but unlike other homo-sapiens he did use all of his mental ability...still that wasn’t as efficient as a Time Lord one. His memories appeared to get a little foggy or something would slip his minds at times of stress or upset (also like a human.) It wasn’t something he’d ever experienced before, but unlike a Time Lord body he didn’t have perfect control over it. Let’s just say this, he was finding the differences between species very annoying at times. His memory wasn’t as it was, his reading speed was nowhere near the same and he couldn’t remember the whole of Pi in his head to the one thousandth digit. Being human was really holding him back...and yet, he liked it. Still, he just wished their brains worked more efficiently!
“Okay, John?” asked a voice in his ear and John felt a flush of wondrous warmth. Ianto was speaking through the ear piece and every time he heard that voice he wanted to see the young man, to hold him and kiss him. He was falling hard and quick for the Welshman but sometimes that worried him. Time Lord and Human don’t have the same emotional background, the same teachings, the same culture, the same physical functions and they certainly don’t have the sex drive as a human male does. They got rid of all that when they left their ancient forms behind and evolved into something very different during the times of Rassilon. Sex, love, pack and family were left behind and nothing was the same again. Yet, for Ianto he wanted to fight for this relationship and with all his singular heart he needed it to succeed. Even though at times he makes a right fool of himself or finds everything so damn alien.
“Okay class, Physics!” John starts, speared on with new confidence just from the sound of Ianto’s voice.
****
Theta despises the smell of the Trillitane. Their stench fills the quite hall of the deserted high school making it smell evil and well, basically just bad. However, there are other smells here; one is familiar and reminds him of home but the other...the other is power.
“Where are the others?” Theta can hear Jack speaking just a little further down the dark corridor. He’s got a ear piece on which Tosh and Theta designed some time ago to break into David’s compound. It still hurts him the lost of such a wonderful mind but Theta considers her once again a part of the universe so she’s never really lost. He won’t wear an earpiece no matter what; so Jack always accompanies him when the Master isn’t there. ‘No Earpiece, no going off alone’; the Master had ordered but Theta doesn’t mind, he likes hunting with Jack. Jack can find trouble just like he can and they get into lots of wonderful problems together. As he always believed, Jack is his perfect mate and partner.
“Okay, see what you find.” Jack breaks contact with the rest of the team which are securing the other side of the high school and comes to see what Theta has found. He’s still and silent, his eyes closed and he sniffs the air. Time Lords have lots more senses than the basic human five but Jack is still having problems learning to use them properly. Off course he’d not had over a thousand years of experience like his other two mates and sometimes his senses get confused. Most of the time he’s not even sure what it is he’s sensing since as a human he had no experience or comprehension of the results. Basically, he’s still learning about himself, his new body and his mates.
*Smell.*
“If you’re saying these Krillitane smell terrible you would be right,” Jack remarks, that is one smell he’s discovered he really doesn’t like. It smells wrong as though the twisted DNA of the Krillitane has gone rotten.
*Someone.*
“Huh?” Jack doesn’t understand what Theta means since the creatures they are hunting are the only smell he’s picking up. Oh, he can smell the humans, John and Ianto are on the other side of the School, as well as Gwen and the Master who are heading towards the headmaster’s office. Since there are gaps and differences in John’s memories, he cannot exactly say where the Krillitane are hidden. Jack can see that it upsets him, the way his memoires aren’t perfect but that is the cost of living as a human. He doesn’t have the Time Lord mind to protect and keep those experiences. Jack knows John has pretty much surpassed genius level for a human therefore at least he’s ahead of the rest of his new species. Sometimes he wonders if John wants his Time Lord Body back, if he could somehow removed the primary human DNA and become what he once was...a whole and complete Doctor. Okay, that thought pisses Jack off no end, his Doctor might have problems but he is still whole in certain ways and Jack loves him so damn much he never wants him to change. He loves every aspect from the primal to the subconscious. He loves both Theta and the Doctor equally.
*HERE!*
Theta’s mental shout breaks into his thoughts and Jack gets a whiff of the scent he’s referring too. It’s human and coming this way. They hide in the darkness of a doorway and not long after a woman appears at the end of the corridor. She’s older than the Doctor remembers but at first sight he knows who she is even if Theta doesn’t. In her hand she holds a small lipstick with a glowing end and he grins with pride. His amazing Sarah Jane!
“Come out now,” she demands, waving the sonic lipstick which has obviously giving her readings on their presence. She must be thinking she’s found the cause of the mystery of the school when two figures step out from the darkness and all she observe is their alien glowing eyes. One gold and one blue.
“What do you want here? What are you doing to these children?!” Her voice rises with indignation and anger. She hates for children to be hurt in anyway but to be abused by another species is unforgivable.
“You’re...” Jack starts but is suddenly cut off when Theta speaks a name – a human one.
“Sarah Jane.”
“Who are you?” she hisses becoming a little afraid of these creatures that know her name.
“Sarah Jane,” Theta repeats and it is such a forlorn sound that Sarah pauses staring at the man that becomes clearer as they advance towards her. The light from her corner of the corridor shines upon them, making them clearer and to her surprise outlining two normal human males. Their eyes no longer glow and she gets this strange sensation that she knows one of them.
*Hello, my Sarah Jane.*
“Oh my...”
Jack runs and catches the woman before she hits the ground, holding her up and protecting her head so it doesn’t hit the floor. She has passed out completely and is a dead weight in his arms. He looks at Theta who watches a little detached and tries to ask him a mental question, but to his surprise he’s hit back by a wave of pain from the Doctor. He recognises this woman that much is clear. Jack knows that the Doctor has had many companions in the past, lots of them and they are nearly all pretty, female and young so he just cannot help but be a little jealous.
“Guys, we need to cut this investigation short. Everyone to the coffee house,” he speaks to the rest of the team via the earpiece and receives back a whole range of annoyed groans. “This is important guys, we need to meet!” he repeats not wanting to broadcast what has happened just in case others can hear them. He starts back tracking away from the centre of the school and out into the car park. He keeps going, carrying the woman while Theta trails behind until they reach the arranged rendezvous point. It’s a small coffee shop that has been closed down for about a month, but it does have very good internet access and a coffee machine that works which Jack happens to adore. It’s been their base for the last couple of days while they check out the school and the Krillitane.
Theta opens the door for him and Jack enters, laying Sarah Jane onto a nearby couch and turns worried eyes to his mate.
“Okay, what is going on?” he asks but for a while doesn’t get answer. Before he can say anything else four people come barging into the shop, heading directly towards Jack.
“What happened? We were nearly there,” John complains before he too spots the woman and freezes. The Master is the last to enter and groans at the sight of the human.
“Oh fucking great, Miss Goody Two Shoes,” he snarls in frustration. He throws himself into another couch and puts his feet up clearly agitated.
“You know her?” Ianto asks looking from the Doctor, John and then back to the Master.
“Ask him,” the Master replies and gives John a very dirty look. He really hates meeting up with past companions. They all think they have some piece of the Doctor or actually know him but it’s all lies. No one can know him like the Master can...oh, and Jack too. The rest are just stupid little flings that should keep well out of his way.
“Wh-What...” Sarah Jane moans, rubs her head and looks around startled. She’s no longer in the school but what appears to be a cafe. She doesn’t recognise the people around her but for the strange man who spoke her name...who spoke her name inside her head.
“Doctor?” she whispers, staring at the young face, the bright eyes and the scar on his forehead. She should have recognised him, that timeless face with ancient and pain filled eyes. No matter what he looks like the eyes are always the same. Yet...there are two of them...
*Hello, Sarah Jane.*
“It’s you,” she breathes staring at the scarred Doctor before her. “Oh Doctor, Oh my God...It is you, isn’t it? You’re regenerated.”
*Yeah, half a dozen times since we last met.*
“I thought you’d died. I waited for you and you didn’t come back, and I thought you must have died.” There are tears in her eyes revealing both her anger and her joy at his presence. Anger because he left and didn’t come back but also joy because he still exists. She doesn’t miss the pain on his face at her words and she’s suddenly afraid.
*I lived. Everyone else died.*
“What do you mean?” she gasps, fearing what he is about to say. He left her back in his fourth incarnation saying he’d been recalled to his home to help solve a terrible problem. She’d always wondered what he meant, if his home was in danger or his family, but she’d never really known the answer.
*Everyone died, Sarah. I was all that is left...*
“No everyone,” the Master huffs. “Just because I ran to the end of the universe and turned human therefore never technically survived the destruction of Gallifrey doesn’t make me any less a survivor.”
For the first time Sarah notices the other people in the room as all her attention was directed at the Doctor. She doesn’t recognise them, apart from one who looks like the Doctor’s twin and she really doesn’t know how to ask about that! And then there is the intense man with (oh my, she notes) glowing red eyes. Off course if the Doctor is here, she decides with dread the other must be too.
“The Master – you’re the Master!” she cries with growing fear. Has he taken the Doctor hostage, hurt him, hypnotised him?
“Sarah Jane?” the tall handsome blue eyed man speaks and holds up his hands in surrender. “Everything is okay, the Master hasn’t done anything to the Doctor.”
“Why the hell do you all think that?”
“Oh, because most of your life you’ve been trying to get his attention by any means necessary,” Jack snaps back making the Master blush a little and then gives them dirtiest smirk Sarah Jane has ever seen, because right now he’s always got the Doctor’s attention. In fact, the Doctor can never escape him.
*Sarah—*
“Why won’t you talk to me!” she cries turning back to the silent Doctor with large pleading eyes. She doesn’t understand why he’s speaking to her that way, why he’s so silent when he has never been so. She longs to hear him again and missed the constant chatter.
“He can’t,” the duplicate Doctor finally speaks standing beside Theta. “Please, have a seat. Would you like Coffee or Tea?”
Sarah Jane blinks at the question a little surprised by the misdirection, but decides to sit down and answers, “Tea please.” She watches the strange silent Doctor as he crosses the room and climbs onto the same couch as the Master. To her horror the evil Time Lord opens his arms and the Doctor easily slides into them. He sits between the Master’s legs, curling onto his chest and lets the other Time Lord pet him, but his eyes never leave hers.
Jack remains at her side, dragging out a chair so he can sit down and not continue to stare down at her. John does the same and they share a glance.
“I think we’d better introduce ourselves,” John starts looking nervously at Sarah and holds out a hand. “I’m Dr John Noble, I’m a Time Lord/Human Metacrisis...a copy of the real Doctor if you wish.”
“Hi...” she mumbles, staring at him with disbelief as he shakes her hand. He feels warm to the touch, not cool as the Doctor always did and she doesn’t get the same tingling feeling she did when they connected.
“This is Jack Harkness, Ianto Jones is making the coffee and the young lady is Gwen Williams. We work for Torchwood.”
“I’ve heard of you,” Sarah replies but doesn’t expand. She knows about Torchwood, in fact she’s been ahead of them at times saving friendly aliens from their clutches. She’s not sure if they are for good or not, but she doesn’t trust them.
“You know the Master, and that is....The Doctor...but not.” Jack gives John a glare which he returns with a flash of anger. At times John doesn’t really understand just what the Doctor is anymore, he’s not the man he remembers, nor is he a Time Lord as he once was. He’s changed and still changing in ways that John doesn’t understand and that scares him a little.
“He is the Doctor,” Jack reiterates.
“He said they were all gone...his people?” Sarah asks calmly as Ianto starts to pass around the freshly made drinks. Everyone is silent for a moment and Sarah knows it’s true.
“Yeah, Gallifrey is dead. For a while there the Doctor was the only one left...he struggled on his own but then...” Jack doesn’t know how to say it – he never has done. How do you say a noble creature was raped and beaten down until he had to hide his identity away to stop the pain and suffering? How does he say that humanity was the culprit in breaking the Doctor when so many other alien races had failed?
“Something happened with the Doctor, something bad...” Yeah good one, Jack thinks hearing John catch his breath and the Master huff in annoyance. He really doesn’t want another argument at this moment so he presses onward. “To save himself the Doctor split his personality, Theta the feral half is currently in control of the body while the Doctor – the personality is protected in the subconscious. He’s nearer to the surface and he’s been communicating with you via telepathy. Theta’s mental abilities are very strong but in his mindset he finds the spoken language...well, ridiculous really.”
*Hot Breath!*
Sarah smiles as she feels the mental touch of the one that she assumes is Theta. It doesn’t frighten her but she can tell it’s a different entity to the one who spoke to her before. This one seems more playful but also powerful.
“Yes well,” Jack continues telling his mate to be silent a while longer. “John isn’t from this universe; he came here via a dimensional portal. Back when the Time Lords were in control of the Web of Time it was possible to cross dimensions but since the Time War they have been closed off and it’s purely by accident he’s here but it does mean he cannot get back.”
“Human Doctor?” Sarah Jane repeats giving the human man a strange look and he smiles back uneasy.
“One heart, takes a while to get used to.” John smiles and blushes at the same time. To have people try and explain who and what he is sometimes leaves him feeling ill – it’s not bad but he does get the feeling that he is incomplete. He isn’t what they want him to be. A gentle hand touches his shoulder and he jumps before looking up into the smiling face of Ianto Jones. Okay, not everything about being human is bad. Ianto is one of his highlights and the time they have spent together some of his happiest.
“Okay, I get the Doctor but I don’t understand why you’re at the school.” Sarah decides it’s best not to get into the whole ‘Master thing’ because that explanation would most likely take forever for her to understand so she leaves it for now. Not only that but she is sure if they leave them together on the couch any longer she’s going to get a lesson in Time Lord sex she really didn’t want. There isn’t an inch of skin that the Master isn’t determined to caress and he takes great delight in her discomfort.
“That’s me,” John continues giving the Master a quick glare and wishing he’d stop touching his other self like that. It was
completely annoyingly but at the same time really turned him on. He gets why, he and the Master have history but still, he feels guilty because he’s with Ianto and he’s every happy with that arrangement. Not only that but he doesn’t think the Master’s mates will be very pleased with him getting it on with their Alpha. “Back in my dimension, my Time lord self came here and found a group of Krillitanes trying to use the children at the school in...some type of experiment.”
“Really, that does explain a lot,” Sarah Jane notes and finds in her handbag a small bottle of a sample she’s already collected.
“I’ve been tracking strange events there and well I got a sample of this, it might be important. I was hoping to get K-9 to test it.”
*K-9!* No one missed that mental shout and there was an all around groan.
“Doc, please not so loud,” Gwen complains rubbing her forehead.
*He’s here...you have him?* the Doctor continues, jumping up and heading to the door. He moves fast as lightening and hops around impatiently. The Master glares in her direction but she rolls her eyes thinking at least it has got him to stop with the freaky constant touching.
“In my car,” Sarah informs him, finding the keys and beginning to get up.
“No, best you wait here just in case we were followed from the school,” Jack suggests taking her keys. “Theta and I will get back real quick.” Sarah Jane informs Jack the model of car she is driving and to her surprise both men quickly vanish as in a puff of dust.
“Time bending,” Ianto,the young Welshman explains while he gives the door an annoyed look. She grins because it appears the Doctor no matter how damaged he is can still surprise and annoy everyone around him. Nothing different there! Seconds later there is a cry of excitement and to her surprise Theta returns with the bashed up remains of what used to be K-9 the Doctor’s faithful companion. Jack follows carrying a box which he sets down onto the floor beside Theta. The feral Time Lord grins, strokes the rusted metal and gets to work.
For a second, Sarah isn’t sure what it is she is actually seeing. Light blurs around the Doctor’s hands as if by magic. She can tell she’s gaping but truthfully it’s the most amazing thing she’s ever seen. Energy twists around his hands, creating glowing black liquid metal that reshapes into the replacement parts for her last link to the Doctor. The Torchwood team like Sarah Jane still find it a little surreal as they watch Theta work and before their eyes the K-9 unit begins to take shape.
“Not the stupid dog,” the Master growls, “Not in my TARDIS!”
“The year five thousand these things were cutting edge,” Jack announces with a hint of pride. He’s always wanted one but could never afford them. “The technology inside could rewrite human science but you’ve keep him all this time?” The last part is directed at Sarah Jane who blushes.
“It was the only part of him I had left,” she replies and gets back a smile that tells her that everyone in the room understands that. They have all felt the magnetic pull of the Doctor and been drawn into his sphere never to be the same again. “However, he did save me and got a little damaged in the process. I just couldn’t leave him behind.”
*Good pet.*
“Yes, he was. He was there for me when I was trying to put my life together.” John, the human Doctor catches her eye and she can see that he understands how she feels. She felt hurt and abandoned. “Can Theta fix him?”
“Oh yes, he loves fixing stuff,” Jack replies proudly and strokes the feral Time Lord’s forehead in a gentle, loving touch. Theta smiles at him but doesn’t stop in his work. Sarah doesn’t quite know how to take that touch. She had seen Theta with the Master but could Jack be with him too? Damn, she thought no wonder I didn’t get a look in; wrong gender.
“Master!” The metallic voice makes everyone jump and they all gape at the tin dog.
*He recognises me!*
“Yes Master, thank you for fixing my telepathic circuits. They were very out of date, your bio-data is no longer as it once was.”
*A lot has happened K-9. Thank you for looking after Sarah Jane.*
“She is my home.” Sarah blushes bright red and can feel tears burning her eyes at K-9’s words. She’d missed him so much since he’d gone off line and for the first time in years she felt truly alone. He’d been with her every day since the Doctor left her behind in Aberdeen, thinking it was Croydon but she didn’t really blame him getting it mixed up, he was never very good at getting them to the right places which was really all part of the adventure.
“K-9 can you test this oil for me please,” Sarah asks, passing over the bottle of oil to Jack who gives it to Theta.
“Yes, mistress. Immediately.” Theta rubs the oil on the end of K-9’s sensor and waits a moment while the dog processes it. “Oil extract analysing....Confirmation of analysis. Substance is Krillitane Oil. DNA typing is correct by 99% however foreign bio-data is present.”
“Guess you were right,” Jack tells the human Doctor watching his face tighten.
“Didn’t you say back at the Hub that they are a composite race, an amalgam of the races they invade? Does that mean they have changed again since you last encountered them?” Ianto asked.
“Yeah, I have memories of them with long necks, here they have wings – they like picking the best parts.”
“Okay, but what would they be using their oil for?” Sarah asks, suddenly surprised when the John almost chokes on his tea and clears his throat.
“They are using it to increase intelligence,” he whispers softly but as in reply the Master gets to his feet staring at the human Doctor a little annoyed.
“You’ve been hiding stuff from us,” he accuses suddenly with glowing red eyes that darken his face making him look in everyone’s opinion more evil. “I knew you were.”
“Fine, so have you!” John shouts back, getting to his feet and facing off with the dark Time Lord.
“You have experiments in the Tardis we know nothing about and you’re doing things to Theta – What the fuck are you changing in me?”
“What?” Jack gasps as both he and the Master give each other confused glances. Neither of them understands what John is referring too. “He’s done nothing to Theta or the Doctor!”
“His DNA is changing!” John yells pointing at his twin. But before he can say more, Theta is up and across the room with a hand around his throat. Golden eyes flash dangerously but then they suddenly blink back to brown.
*I am becoming.* Theta explains the best he can to his mates.
*This isn’t the time,* the Doctor interrupts. *Something is happening to my body, but it’s not the Master’s doing. It’s something else but I am working it out. Theta knows something but won’t tell me. John, they aren’t doing anything. Please trust me.*
“I do,” John cries holding Theta’s arms and hugging him fiercely. A while back when John was settling into his new life, Theta had called him brother and that is what they have become. He doesn’t care about human understanding of family, to him Theta is another half of himself. “I do trust you.”
*Then tell them the truth,*the Doctor replies making John blush shamefaced as he lets his brother go. Theta returns immediately into Jack’s arms behind the Master and clings to him. Jack tries to talk to him but Theta doesn’t reply, at the moment all he hears is the Doctor.
“They are trying to solve the Skasis Paradigm.”
“The god Creator!” The Master cackles gleefully rubbing his hands together before he’s suddenly slapped from behind by Theta who glares at him angrily. “What?” he asks all innocent and wide eyed.
“Let me guess, you feared the Master would want it,” Jack suggests to John with a shake of his head. Everyone looks at him and he wonders why he’d ever thought anything different. Off course they would think that, hell even the Doctor thought that!
*It’s not for you.*
“Why?” the Master whines, “I could rebuild Gallifrey and everything, I mean don’t you people trust me to be a good and merciful god?”
“Err...no.” John replies undecided if he’d made the right decision in even mentioning the Paradigm.
“What is this Skasis thing?” Sarah Jane asks feeling a little lost in the conversation but recognises that everyone here has that feeling at times.
“It’s called the God maker – the universal theory,” John explains. “If they crack that equation then they have got control of the building blocks of the universe. Time, space and matter yours to control.”
“But why use Children...why not use a university with really clever adults?”
“It has to be children. The God maker needs imagination to crack it, they aren’t just heightening their intelligence they are using their souls.”
“Oh my,” Sarah gasps sitting back down again and understanding what the Master was referring too. No wonder John didn’t want to tell him.
“They offered it me...the other me. He thought about it,” John cries, his voice cracking with the fear and pain of that decision. “He wanted it – and he’s a good man...but he’d lost so much and he...”
“He didn’t, though,” Sarah Jane interrupted. “He would think about it, I know he would but he wouldn’t do it. I know him and I know you.” Sarah takes the human Doctor’s hands and wipes away a tear from his face. “You and Theta wouldn’t allow anyone to abuse it, I trust you.” A soft touch makes her jump and she looks around surprised to find Theta standing at her elbow. He’s smiling at her with golden eyes glowing but she’s not afraid. Something outside the human language passes between them and she takes his hand too. At first she’d been horrified to think that something could have broken her Doctor like this but touching Theta and John she gets the distinct feeling that he’s okay and deep down is the wonderful, impossible man she remembers.
“Fine, all goody goody,” the Master complains, “I’ll let you stop them.” He sighs and collapses into his couch giving the distinct impression that he gets put on a lot. Theta grins and jumps across the room, making the Alpha gasp as his mate lands in his arms. “It’s going to cost you,” he growls finding the hot mouth and kissing hard.
“Oh great,” Gwen sighs, picking up her coffee and heading towards the back of the cafe.
“Anyone hungry?” Ianto asks following her out.
At first Sarah wants to die of embarrassment because the Master and her Doctor are making out on the couch, their tongues and bodies entwined and oh my, they start pulling off clothing. John gently takes her elbow and starts leading her back towards the kitchen of the cafe.
“I think it’s best we...” he nods over and she understands perfectly. Moments later, K-9 bleeps and follows.
“Jack?” Sarah Jane asks confused, pausing when the handsome American doesn’t follow them out.
“Yeah, about that...I’m mated to them...both,” he replies quickly looking from his lovers and back to the humans. She can see he is torn, wanting to go to them so she nods turning away.
“Mates?” she whispers to John who sighs and shakes his head hating to be the one forced to explain this.
*****
“Let me get this straight. Jack is immortal, a Time Lord, they are all de-evolved and mated into a pack.”
“Yes,” Ianto answers this time since it’s been the sixth question Sarah has asked rephrased each time but basically the same. They are sitting at the kitchen table eating chips which were the easiest thing for Gwen to make and means she can’t really mess them up. There are the sounds of moans, gasps and things being knocked over from the other room but they are all basically trying to ignore that.
“Who would hurt him...” Sarah Jane trails off looking around the room and seeing the guilty faces. Oh, she gets it. Humanity hurt him. She shudders wishing that for once the Doctor’s faith in them wasn’t betrayed, but it had been and he’d paid a terrible price. She didn’t think she wanted to know what that was. He was alive and well, but broken and yet, he wasn’t alone. She’d recognised that feeling back in her own Doctor, the terrible loneliness he carried with him but for this incarnation that wasn’t there. The Doctor and Theta had found his home in the arms of Jack and (oh, gosh she doesn’t believe she’s thinking this) the Master. Ianto had said they were in a human’s understanding, married and Sarah Jane couldn’t be happier for her friend....even if the Master was involved.
“Look, I don’t get this but what the hell happened to the Master,” Sarah blurted and made John laugh long and hard. Finally, he whipped tears from his face and smiled.
“I think love happened. Theta kinda fooled him into mating with him and forming something like a Marriage bond between them. They are bound together in body and soul, just as Jack is. Believe me I’ve seen the Master at his most deprived but this Master here...he’s found something that completes him – I think. He was driven insane by what he called the Drums of war, a constant drum beat in his mind but now it’s gone and he has the one he’d always loved...it’s changed him. Oh, I don’t trust him but he has Theta and Jack to keep him occupied.” John looks wistfully at the door leading to the main room and the soft huffing sounds he can hear beyond. A hand touches his and John smiles, turning away from this past and looking into his future. Ianto grins back and entwines their fingers with such a look that John instantly wishes for a private room. He would love to kiss and touch and hold...
“Guys!” Gwen snaps, then both she and Sarah Jane laugh at the bright red blushes from the two men. Sarah couldn’t be happier for this development, her Doctor’s were no longer single it appeared.
Later that night everyone decided to stay at the cafe and get some rest. They had brought supplies and slept in the kitchen which was very warm but left the main room to the pack. Sounds could be heard all night but the Torchwood team had grown accustomed to it. The pack were very tactile creatures and no matter what nothing would stop them touching and being touched.
The next morning everyone awoke early to the wonderful smell of Jack cooking breakfast. Off course it was delicious and everyone chattered happily, sharing past stories. About an hour later the Master and Theta arrived. The dark Time Lord went directly to eat while Theta clung to Jack.
“Did you check out the school?” John asks.
“Yes, still there...still locked down.”
“What?”
“We couldn’t get in. I think the Krillitane’s are on to us. As soon as they got enough students to man the computers they to finish the formula, they closed down the whole school, no one could get in...or out.”
“Damn!” John exclaimed hitting the table in annoyance. He should have known this coming, seen it but he didn’t. His memories weren’t complete and he didn’t remember everything that had happened in his own timeline.
“We better infiltrate before some concerned parent rings the police,” Jack noted. “We could go for the Krilliane; their smell was centred around the headmaster’s office and I would say he is the ring leader. The rest of you would need to safely free the children and clear the building.”
“Are you going to fight them,” Sarah gasps not seeing any guns and knowing perfectly well that the Doctor would not be happy using one.
“We don’t need weapons, we have our own defences,” Jack informs her and she gasps as he allows his fangs to grow and the sharp claws dig into the hardwood table. “Not only that we are time-twisters, they don’t stand much of a chance.”
*Hunt!* Theta cries excitedly, and is about to run off until the Master caught him and dragged him onto his lap.
“Alpha remember?” the Master growls and Theta at least as the good idea of responding with a soft purr and downcast eyes showing his subservience to his Alpha mate.
“I guess it’s the best way. They cannot crack that code,” John agrees but doesn’t like it.
*****
Getting into the school presented a problem. Whatever the Krillitanes had done, it had improved the schools defences leaving it almost impregnable. However they forgot about one thing. While some type of force field kept all the doors closed they forgot that glass can break and didn’t stretch the defences across some large floor to ceiling windows in the lobby. With a rush of exhilaration Sarah Jane drove her car into the glass shattering it into a million pieces.
“Remember get the kids out first, the Headmaster must be the top dog that is our first destination!” Jack cries as they clamber out of the car. The human run towards the class rooms and start breaking open doors. The Pack turned their attention to the Krillitane. Theta was sent towards the Headmaster’s office while the other two would cover the front and flank positions working their way in and hopefully taking out any Krillitane they came across.
“Be careful,” Jack tells his mates quickly worried for both but for different reasons. He’s afraid for Theta’s safety which in reality when isn’t he? But he was also concerned about the Master’s greed. Yet, he had to trust his mates, he had no choice but to do so and pray for the right outcome. They share a quick kiss before each vanish, weaving time around them and moving faster than the human eye could see.
Theta arrived at the Headmaster’s office in seconds and he took a deep breath. The rotten stench hit him again along with the siren call of power. Hell, he could literally taste the power of the Paradigm increasing as the human minds twisted the universe with knowledge and imagination. They were so close that he could taste it. A part of him wanted that knowledge and yet, something held him back. The Doctor certainly didn’t want him to have it but there was something...someone else who was interfering here. Something ancient.
*Pain.*
“Well, if it isn’t the deformed Time Lord.”
The arrival of Finch makes Theta jump and he kicks himself for letting his mind wonder. He’d been distracted for a moment and now the foul smelling creature was standing before him.
“Kashna,” Theta spat and drew in the time energy around him making his eyes glow.
“Imagine my surprise on hearing you are a Time Lord. We an ancient race believed you’d all but died out after your war in heaven. You left such wonderful messes behind you as you and the Daleks tore through the universe. Bessan was just one world destroyed by the Time Lord greed and it was so easy wiping them out. They made a million widows in one day. Just imagine.” Finch considers the strange Time Lord before him, he sees the glowing eyes but also something else; a savagery that his own race prided above all else. “Join us. You aren’t like the others; that pompous race of ancient dusty senators, so frightened of change and chaos. No, you are born of chaos. Join me, just think we could remake the universe. With you at my side we could rule the galaxies and you could rebuild your race as you see fit.”
The Doctor rebels against Theta’s thoughts because for a second he wonders. Could he control the power of the Skasis Paradigm? He could use it to destroy the filthy creature before him, become what the Time Lord’s were destined to be...Gods! He could rewrite the web of time, destroy the Daleks, bring back his shinning world, and he could destroy all those who hurt him. He could bring back...
*Theta please, please listen to me. This isn’t the way,* the Doctor begs feeling his essence being pushed to the back of Theta’s consciousness and beyond. He cannot fight the one who controls his body and he’s so very afraid. Theta is being influenced by something he doesn’t understand, something he cannot see, hear or touch.
Theta growls angry now because he feels the pull of something foreign in his mind. He doesn’t like to be manipulated and lets his fury take over. Finch doesn’t stand a chance against the fury of an enraged feral Time Lord. Theta doesn’t just use his claws to kill, he uses time and space. He rips and tears at the molecular level, tearing the creature from the web and destroying it cell by cell. Moments later, there is nothing left of the Headmaster but dust on the floor. Theta snarls again, singing out to his mates and telling them the hunt is upon them. They respond to him finding more Krilliane and destroying each they discover.
****
Deep inside the silent Tardis the Eye of Harmony shudders and quakes as time tears and twists around it. Something dark drags itself from out of the darkness forming a smoky humanoid in shape but without features. The Eye and the whole Tardis trembles at the sound of the creature’s fury as it screams in rage – a battle cry to all those that had tried to destroy it, but now the thing can have its revenge. It reached out across time and space and picks out of the minds of savage Krillitanes the information it wants and before it, taking shape from nothing glows the formulation for the Skasis Paradigm. It is incomplete and not at full power, however it gives the evil force something to work with. The figure glows with life and the smoke transforms into flesh, organs, blood and instead of smoke there stands a man.
“I will get my revenge Doctor!” Rassilon screams as around him reality cracks and shatters.
*****
“Could it have worked?” Sarah Jane asked the human Doctor as they looked around at the burnt out computers. The pack had made very effective work of destroying the computer systems and any hard wired information. Nothing remained of the Paradigm nor the Krillitane but dust and lost dreams.
“Yes, but I don’t think we’re ready for it,” John replies wistfully. It was a wonderful proposal and many a Time Lord had that dream too – to access the power of creation and set wrongs right. Yet, the Doctor and John held the same belief, there had to be balance in the universe. Good and evil must be balanced or the universe will crumble and die. It was a Time Lord belief that evil must exist for there to be good and vice-versa. While not an overly religious culture, balance was believed to be the basis of universal accord. The eternal fight wasn’t to eradicate darkness, but to maintain the balance between good and evil and making sure darkness never overwhelmed light.
Sarah Jane nods and knows this is the moment for goodbyes. At least this time she’d have the chance to say it properly for once.
“It has been good to see you Sarah Jane,” John admits nervously rocking on his feet, as if he doesn’t know if to stay or run. He’s never been good at goodbyes and would prefer to avoid them. Yet, now he’s human and he’s beginning to understand what closure can mean.
“Goodbye John,” she replies and kisses his cheek. He cannot let her go like that so grabs her tight and hugs her closely.
“Goodbye, my Sarah Jane.” She smiles and nods before turning away and walking towards her car. Leaning on the bonnet is Theta and Jack.
“Thank you for fixing K-9,” Sarah Jane tells him overjoyed to have her constant companion back.
*You are still amazing,* the Doctor replies and she can feel herself welling up once again. *You always were, I am sure we’ll...*
“Just say it Doctor, please.”
“Goodbye, Sarah Jane.”
This time the hug is mental and a wonderful warmth fills her. Jack shakes her hand, while she waves at the others standing beside their black 4x4. It is time to go, the sounds of sirens are approaching and none of them should be found here. With a sense of closure and relief, Sarah Jane gets into her car and starts the engine, for a second she pauses looking for one last time at her long lost friend and decides it’s time to get on with her life.