Fic: Unthinkable?
Everyone’s gone, now. It’s quiet, so quiet. The Doctor faces the empty Tardis and only wishes it were for the first time.
Sarah Jane was right. He might be lonely, but he’s not alone. When it counts - when it really counts - he can call on some of the best, most brilliant people in the world. Today, if nothing else, has taught him that. But what of the moments when the universe isn’t ending? Today has also shown him that when the crisis is over, his friends - his family - will need their own worlds, their own lives. And after all they’ve given for him, he can’t even suggest that they deny themselves that.
So now, he’s alone again. A selfish, childlike voice in his head wonders, couldn’t one of them have stayed? Just one? Just for a while?
But who? Rose is back in her parallel world, and he senses that now, at last, their paths have finally parted.
Martha … he hopes Martha knows how much he appreciates all she has done. He turned her life on its head, and she never complained. She faced the end of the world, alone … and even now, she continues the fight, dedicatedly, in any way she can. He’s aware that he’s never once shown his appreciation, but … maybe she knows. And the least he can do is let her carve out her own life, find her own way.
Sarah Jane … oh, it was good to see her again. Still strong, still resilient, still cheerful … still saving the world. And she has a son, now. He didn’t doubt that she’d be a wonderful mother, and she deserved every bit of happiness.
In the seconds before they’d parted, he’d considered asking Mickey to stay. Everyone else was leaving, heading back to jobs, families … purposes. Mickey had looked a bit lost, in comparison; a bit directionless. But the last thing he’d needed was more wandering, more danger, more upheaval. He’d finally chosen which world he wanted; now, he had to live in it for a little while.
Which left … Jack. There was a time when he’d thought Jack would travel with him forever. He had a raw strength, coupled with a love of adventure and discovery, that made him perfect for the life. Then Jack lost the ability to die and, once the Doctor recovered from the horror of that situation, he’d wondered if he’d finally found a companion who wouldn’t leave him, who wouldn’t get old or get tired or get killed. But, much to his surprise, Jack had chosen to return to Cardiff, to the ‘new’ Torchwood. Mourning the loss of the Master, and then caught up with the Titanic, the Doctor hadn’t given it much thought.
This time, he hadn’t even hoped that Jack would stay. Something about him had changed … something was subtly different. He’d discovered that Jack had just lost two member s of his team … two dear friends. He’d been able to perceive the sense of love and sadness surrounding the man, and yet -
Much more so than the last time they’d met, Jack seemed happy. He’d always been an upbeat, cheerful sort of chap, but this went deeper … there was, about him, an air of peace, and contentment, that seemed remarkable in its very presence.
Something else about his friend had seemed odd, though it had taken him a while to realise what it was. Donna, bless her, had flirted outrageously with the Captain, as seemed to be the reflex of … well, of just about anyone with working senses. Jack obviously still enjoyed the attention, and clearly still possessed that easy charm, but he’d been friendly rather than flirtatious in response.
Come to think of it, Jack had rather seemed to be on his best behaviour. Put the two and two together … the Doctor’s jaw dropped, his eyes open wide. He leaned into the screen on the Tardis console and zoomed in. Earth … Great Britain … Wales … Cardiff. He stared at the map in fascination.
Humans … they really were amazing. They stood and they fought and they faced monsters, they adapted and evolved and survived at the end of the universe. And one of them, one of them down there, in that city … one of them had made Captain Jack Harkness happy. Happy to stay, to settle in one place, to be with one person. Imagine that.
That must be quite a human. He wouldn’t mind meeting that person. His hands hovered over the console for a moment, toying with the idea of setting the co-ordinates for Cardiff.