The Doctor straightened, looking over at Jessie. "They're coming."
Jessie nodded, swallowing a little. "I'm ready."
***
Saleen threw the door of Grant's car shut and ran out onto the beach of Dårlig Ulv Stranden, looking around, desperately hoping she hadn't been wrong.
"Saleen."
The Doctor's voice kept calling out to her, and she walked slowly towards the water edge, narrowing her eyes and looking out across it.
"Saleen."
The air warped next to her, and Saleen slowly turned. The Doctor's image appeared, and next to him was a blond-haired woman she didn't know. Saleen swallowed, looking at them. "Where are you?" she asked.
"Inside the TARDIS," the Doctor replied. "There's one tiny little gap in the universe left, just about to close, and it takes a lot of power to send this projection. We're in orbit around a supernova."
The blond cracked a small grin. "We needed to burn up a sun to say goodbye."
Saleen walked forward. "You look like ghosts."
The Doctor held up a finger. "Hold on." He held out his hand, holding the sonic screwdriver, and the image adjusted. Saleen took one more look at the blond, and her eyes widened. "Oh my God - "
She smiled weakly. "Recognize me?"
"No," Saleen choked out, holding a hand over her mouth. "What happened to you?"
"Looking into the heart of the TARDIS has its benefits," her changed best friend chuckled. "The Void tried to pull me in, but it closed just in time. My skull caved in, and I was dead for three days." Saleen quirked an eyebrow at the irony, and Jessie laughed. "I thought the same thing. And apparently stubbornness helped make me into half a Time Lady." She held out her arms. "And I turned into an Aussie."
Saleen grinned. "You got your forever."
Jessie nodded, biting her lip. "Yeah. Yeah, I did."
Saleen bit her lip, too, holding up a hand. "Can I - ?"
"We're still just images," the Doctor said, shaking his head. "No touch."
Saleen slumped, looking at both of them. "Can't you come through properly?"
He shook his head again. "The whole thing would fracture. Two universes would collapse."
Saleen tried to smile, for their sakes. "So?"
It worked. Jessie gave a small laugh, and the Doctor shook his head with a smile before looking around curiously. "Where are we?" he asked. "Where did the gap come out?"
Saleen rolled her eyes. "You had to call me to Norway, didn't you?"
"Norway?" Jessie snorted loudly. "Norway. Right." She looked at the Doctor. "Nice job."
"Around fifty miles out of Burgen," Saleen said. "It's called Dårlig Ulv Stranden."
"Dalek?" the Doctor asked in surprise, Jessie's eyes widening.
Saleen chuckled at their nervousness. "Dårlig," she corrected. "Norwegian for bad." She grinned at them. "Guess what it translates to?" Jessie quirked an eyebrow, and Saleen chuckled again. "Bad Wolf Bay."
Jessie shook her head, grinning. "Of course it does." She swallowed, then looked at the Doctor. "How long have we got?" she asked.
The Doctor sighed. "About two minutes."
Jessie's breath came out in a whoosh, and she shook her head, tears forming in her eyes. "And I can't even think of what to say!"
The Doctor looked over Saleen's shoulder, and he brightened. "Still got the Jakey boy with you, then?"
Saleen turned to see Grant, Skye, and Jake leaning against the car, Grant's arm around Skye, the two of them with their eyes narrowed at Jessie. Saleen shook her head and mouthed "Jessie" at them. Skye's jaw dropped, and she put a hand over her mouth, and Grant rubbed her back. Jake gave a thumbs up, and Saleen shook her head again, turning back with a grin. "Yeah, I've still got Jake. There's a bunch of us now. Me and Jake with a few of my old friends from the war. Grant and Skye in the mansion . . . " She smiled. "And the baby."
Jessie's eyes widened. "You're not - ?"
Saleen shook her head. "No. It's Skye." Jessie put her hands over her mouth, and the Doctor smiled. "She's three months gone. She and Grant got married again almost as soon as they could."
"And what about you?" the Doctor asked.
Saleen shrugged. "I'm back to working at SHIELD. Skye's working there again as well. Luckily, the SHIELD team back home isn't operating in this area."
"Good for you!"
Saleen snorted. "Oh, shut up. No, I'm not." Jessie smirked, and Saleen sighed, looking at the ground. "I don't know. There's still a Torchwood on this planet opening for business." She raised her head, looking at the Doctor. "I think I know a thing or two about aliens that they can use."
"Saleen Harper, Defender of the Earth," the Doctor tried out, nodding his approval. "I like that."
Jessie swallowed. "Saleen, we're dead officially back home. So many people died that day, and we've gone missing. We're on a list of the dead. You, me, and Skye."
Saleen nodded, and the Doctor smiled. "Here you are, though, living a life day after day. The one adventure I could never have."
"But you have Jessie," Saleen pointed out.
Something flickered across the Doctor's face when he turned to Jessie. "Thirty seconds," he said.
Jessie sniffed, rubbing at her eyes, and Saleen began to cry, too. "Am I ever going to see you again?" she asked.
Jessie shook her head, unable to talk, and the Doctor answered for her. "You can't," he said apologetically.
"What're you going to do?"
The Doctor shrugged. "Oh, we've got the TARDIS. Same old life. Last of the Time Lords."
"On your own," Saleen said slowly. "Both of you." She shook her head. "Doctor, you better take care of her if it's the last thing you do. SHIELD will be out to murder you."
"Quite right, too," the Doctor agreed with a grin. "And Saleen . . . I will. Good luck."
"I love you!" Saleen shouted to them as the image wavered.
"I love you, too!" Jessie shouted one last time before the image warped entirely.
The image disappeared, and Saleen blinked her tears away, sobbing as she turned away. Skye instantly ran towards her, Jake not too far behind. Saleen crashed into Skye, hugging her tightly and crying hard, Skye crying as well.
They were stuck. Forever.
***
Jessie held her hands to her mouth and turned away from the console. She didn't react when the Doctor squeezed her shoulder sympathetically before moving around the console. She leaned against the coral structures, struggling with the fact that her best friends were now gone. She slid down the structure to the floor, burying her face in her arms as her tears kept flowing.
In fact, the only time she took notice of anything was when the Doctor squeaked in shock. "What?" he asked.
Jessie sniffed and looked up, and she stiffened when she saw a ginger all in white with a veil in the TARDIS. "Oh, that's just not fair!" she said dryly. "Why did that have to happen?"
The figure turned, and she squeaked as well. "Oh!"
"What?" the Doctor repeated, still staring in shock.
Jessie slowly stood. "Doctor?"
"Who are you?" the ginger demanded.
"But - " the Doctor protested, looking at the console.
"How the hell did that happen?" Jessie asked.
"Where am I?" the ginger asked, looking from the Doctor to Jessie.
"What?" Jessie asked blankly.
The ginger turned to her angrily. "What the hell is this place?" she almost roared.
The Doctor and Jessie turned to each other and said the same thing at the same time.
"What?!"
***
And there goes Book 2.
Wow . . . two books in less than six months. Well. That's impressive.
The third one's introduction will be up soon, but as for the contents itself . . . I might upload the prologue, but from then on, it'll be on hiatus until who knows when. Maybe until school gets back in session, or maybe if I can type on my computer. I don't know, but keep eyes peeled! Until book three.
~ WB039