Sci-Fi Big Bang - Children Through Time - Elizabeth's Book
Title: Children Through Time - The Book of Elizabeth
Chapter: 6
Rating: R
Characters: Team Torchwood, Elizabeth Murphy, David Ortiz, OC's
Spoilers: Children of Earth
Disclaimers: I do not own Torchwood or the characters therein, they belong to the BBC and RTD. Any original characters and places are my property.
Author's Notes: The series of events in Children Through Time take place after Children in Time. It is not necessary to read Children in Time but it can be found here.
Special Thanks: To my awesome beta faithharkness, and to my artist laura_guerin, and great cheerleading from knitchick1979, chicago_girl_07 and all the others. It was rough going this time, but we did it.
Chapter 6
Elizabeth flipped the paper over and over. This was ridiculous. She didn’t think meditating and memory recall would work, but what harm could it do? The children were asleep and David was still at work. She made herself comfortable on her bed, stretching out. Reaching over she turned on the music player to some instrumental music.
Taking a deep breath, like the paper had told her to do, she slowly released it with a count of four. She did this three more times. Elizabeth then cleared her mind. She willed the spirit guides to take her to her past and relaxed her body, letting her mind drift. At first it was hard, thoughts of the day kept coming back to her, but then she started getting warmer and found herself drifting off, while still breathing deeply.
"Uncle Jack!" Caron ran full tilt at Uncle Jack, barely allowing him to get his coat off.
Uncle Jack swooped down and she grabbed him around the neck. "What's up kiddo?"
"Akira's after me! Save me!" Caron giggled in his ear.
Uncle Jack smiled as Akira came tearing around the corner. Caron laughed as he stopped and looked up Uncle Jack to where she was sitting in his arms. Akira pouted and stuck out his tongue at her, making her laugh even more. Uncle Jack raised her up, arm under her arse as Akira took it as a challenge and tried climbing up Uncle Jack. Uncle Jack started laughing, too. He was laughing so much that while Akira tried climbing, Uncle Jack fell backwards. He rolled out of the way, keeping Caron and Akira safe. Caron sat down on Uncle Jack's chest as Akira staggered towards her, tackling her. Akira began tickling her mercilessly.
"Stop it!" Caron let out a yell as she started to wet herself from being tickled.
"Just what is going on here?" Mum suddenly said. "Jack! Stop them!"
Uncle Jack pulled Akira off Caron and she looked up, seeing her Mummy feeding little Emiko. Caron grabbed at her jumper, pulling at the wetness. She let out a pout and bit her lower lip. Mummy held out a hand to Caron who took it and stood up.
"Jack, since you started this, could you please change her?"
"Since I started what?"
"But I'm a big girl!" She didn’t need Uncle Jack helping her. Who would watch Akira then and make sure he didn’t do anything else?
"Please, Jack. Sweetheart, I know you're a big girl, but if Uncle Jack helps you it will get done a lot quicker." Emiko started gurgling and Mummy left with the new baby.
Uncle Jack held out his hand to Caron, already holding Akira by the other hand. "Come on, let's go make your Mum happy."
Caron reluctantly took his hand. As they started heading into the Hub, she looked up at him, her eyes big and wide. "Uncle Jack, will you marry me like Mum did Rhys?"
Uncle Jack chuckled and looked down at her, looking very serious. "Maybe, someday kiddo. We'll see what your Da says to that."
Elizabeth's breathing started getting more rapid and shallow. She tried calming down, taking deep, slow breaths. She listened to the cadence of the drums in the music and allowed her heartbeat to match. She cleared her head and let her body sink into the bed.
The pain was so intense. Elizabeth struggled against the metal cuffs that pinned her down to the disc. She could feel her ankles and wrists chafing, but she didn’t care. Her cheek lay against the blood of whoever had been strapped down here before. Something grabbed her hair and yanked her head forward, exposing the back of her neck
A rough hand caressed her skin, making her shudder. One of the creatures talons scraped along her neck. She was mumbling something that was incoherent even to herself. Around her she could hear the other three whimpering and begging. These creatures didn’t even seem to care. A stabbing pain shot through her neck and into her body. Elizabeth tried to cry out, but her throat was raw from the screaming she had already done.
It was then that she felt the cool of the disc placed against the back of her neck. An eerie calmness crept across her body as she slumped against the sacrificial wheel. She knew what she had to do, and nothing would get in her way.
Elizabeth's eyes snapped open and it took a moment for the ceiling above her to come into focus. She tried to get her breathing under control. That last image was so real. Both of them had been so real. She sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. Elizabeth grabbed at the bedside table as she suddenly felt lightheaded. Taking a couple of minutes to steady herself, she pushed herself up to a standing position.
Elizabeth slid into her slippers and walked down the hallway to the kitchen. The kids were still sleeping. She wasn't surprised. Tami had come over to watch them so Elizabeth could get a couple of errands done. Tami always loved to play games with James, and he always slept so soundly those nights. Tami had been a godsend.
Starting the kettle, Elizabeth pulled out her favourite mug from the cupboard. She and the kids had been here a month, and already it was feeling like home. Elizabeth had to start considering subletting her apartment if she was going to stay with David. It would be fair.
Sitting down at the kitchen table, Elizabeth picked up the nursing home brochure. This was the home her mother was at, and Elizabeth intended to see her. Tomorrow was a Tuesday and according to what David's private investigator found out, her sister never visited on Tuesdays. She knew she had to see her mother at least one more time.
The kettle whistled and Elizabeth took her mug over by the counter and popped in a teabag. Pouring the hot water on top, she then added a bit of milk and took a sip. She watched as her hand stopped shaking. Elizabeth didn’t know what she was trying to achieve with this "vision quest" or whatever it was called. She heard the elevator open and glanced at the security panel on the wall. Someone had entered, and it recognized them as David.
Elizabeth hurried down the hall and met him in the living room. "Long day?"
"You could say that," David said as he poured himself three fingers of whiskey. He sat down on the sofa and watched the view over the lake.
Elizabeth followed his gaze and saw the storm coming ashore. It would be a bad one if the lightning was any indication. She sat down next to David. They sat there in silence for at least half an hour. Finally, Elizabeth put the mug of tea down and curled up on the couch, laying her head in David's lap. David's breathing grew shallow as he fell asleep on the couch, his head lolling back. Elizabeth thought of getting up when David's hand reached along her body and took her hand in his. Glancing upwards, Elizabeth smiled as she saw that he was still asleep.
She didn’t know when she had fallen asleep, or how she had slept with the storm raging outside, but it was David's watch that woke her up as it beeped incessantly in her ear. Elizabeth let out a grumble as David gently moved her aside and got up. Cracking open one eye, Elizabeth saw that it was still the dead of night and still raining. David disappeared for a couple of minutes and came back wearing jeans, boots and a long sleeved brown shirt. He threw his leather coat on.
Elizabeth quickly sat up. "Where are you going?"
"To get someone."
"What? That doesn’t make sense." Elizabeth hurried over to David's side as he stood by the elevator.
David tucked his PDA away into an inner pocket of his coat. "I can't tell you. In case UNIT comes by."
"I don’t care about UNIT. What's going on?" Elizabeth grabbed David by the arm.
A small smile spread across his face. "Fine. I think I found Jillian. Someone accessed her account in Sao Paolo."
"But you can’t fly. Neither of us can leave the country. UNIT grounded us with every government organization."
"That's why I'm not involving UNIT. I have other means and another escort."
"Agent Johnson?" David didn’t answer her. "I want to go with you."
"Someone has to stay and keep the kids safe. I'll be fine."
Elizabeth looked at David for the first time in a while. Before he could say anything she put both her hands on his cheeks and pulled him in close, kissing him hard. She pulled away slightly, their foreheads still touching, her hands still cradling his face.
"I hope to God it's her. I'll be waiting for both you and Jillian to come home safe."
Elizabeth watched as he shook his head and gave her a quick peck on the lips and then hurried into the elevator. After staring at the elevator for what seemed like forever, Elizabeth hurried over to the cool window, pressing her hand against it. The sky lit up her face as thunder and lightning rained down.
Chapter: 6
Rating: R
Characters: Team Torchwood, Elizabeth Murphy, David Ortiz, OC's
Spoilers: Children of Earth
Disclaimers: I do not own Torchwood or the characters therein, they belong to the BBC and RTD. Any original characters and places are my property.
Author's Notes: The series of events in Children Through Time take place after Children in Time. It is not necessary to read Children in Time but it can be found here.
Special Thanks: To my awesome beta faithharkness, and to my artist laura_guerin, and great cheerleading from knitchick1979, chicago_girl_07 and all the others. It was rough going this time, but we did it.
Chapter 6
Elizabeth flipped the paper over and over. This was ridiculous. She didn’t think meditating and memory recall would work, but what harm could it do? The children were asleep and David was still at work. She made herself comfortable on her bed, stretching out. Reaching over she turned on the music player to some instrumental music.
Taking a deep breath, like the paper had told her to do, she slowly released it with a count of four. She did this three more times. Elizabeth then cleared her mind. She willed the spirit guides to take her to her past and relaxed her body, letting her mind drift. At first it was hard, thoughts of the day kept coming back to her, but then she started getting warmer and found herself drifting off, while still breathing deeply.
"Uncle Jack!" Caron ran full tilt at Uncle Jack, barely allowing him to get his coat off.
Uncle Jack swooped down and she grabbed him around the neck. "What's up kiddo?"
"Akira's after me! Save me!" Caron giggled in his ear.
Uncle Jack smiled as Akira came tearing around the corner. Caron laughed as he stopped and looked up Uncle Jack to where she was sitting in his arms. Akira pouted and stuck out his tongue at her, making her laugh even more. Uncle Jack raised her up, arm under her arse as Akira took it as a challenge and tried climbing up Uncle Jack. Uncle Jack started laughing, too. He was laughing so much that while Akira tried climbing, Uncle Jack fell backwards. He rolled out of the way, keeping Caron and Akira safe. Caron sat down on Uncle Jack's chest as Akira staggered towards her, tackling her. Akira began tickling her mercilessly.
"Stop it!" Caron let out a yell as she started to wet herself from being tickled.
"Just what is going on here?" Mum suddenly said. "Jack! Stop them!"
Uncle Jack pulled Akira off Caron and she looked up, seeing her Mummy feeding little Emiko. Caron grabbed at her jumper, pulling at the wetness. She let out a pout and bit her lower lip. Mummy held out a hand to Caron who took it and stood up.
"Jack, since you started this, could you please change her?"
"Since I started what?"
"But I'm a big girl!" She didn’t need Uncle Jack helping her. Who would watch Akira then and make sure he didn’t do anything else?
"Please, Jack. Sweetheart, I know you're a big girl, but if Uncle Jack helps you it will get done a lot quicker." Emiko started gurgling and Mummy left with the new baby.
Uncle Jack held out his hand to Caron, already holding Akira by the other hand. "Come on, let's go make your Mum happy."
Caron reluctantly took his hand. As they started heading into the Hub, she looked up at him, her eyes big and wide. "Uncle Jack, will you marry me like Mum did Rhys?"
Uncle Jack chuckled and looked down at her, looking very serious. "Maybe, someday kiddo. We'll see what your Da says to that."
Elizabeth's breathing started getting more rapid and shallow. She tried calming down, taking deep, slow breaths. She listened to the cadence of the drums in the music and allowed her heartbeat to match. She cleared her head and let her body sink into the bed.
The pain was so intense. Elizabeth struggled against the metal cuffs that pinned her down to the disc. She could feel her ankles and wrists chafing, but she didn’t care. Her cheek lay against the blood of whoever had been strapped down here before. Something grabbed her hair and yanked her head forward, exposing the back of her neck
A rough hand caressed her skin, making her shudder. One of the creatures talons scraped along her neck. She was mumbling something that was incoherent even to herself. Around her she could hear the other three whimpering and begging. These creatures didn’t even seem to care. A stabbing pain shot through her neck and into her body. Elizabeth tried to cry out, but her throat was raw from the screaming she had already done.
It was then that she felt the cool of the disc placed against the back of her neck. An eerie calmness crept across her body as she slumped against the sacrificial wheel. She knew what she had to do, and nothing would get in her way.
Elizabeth's eyes snapped open and it took a moment for the ceiling above her to come into focus. She tried to get her breathing under control. That last image was so real. Both of them had been so real. She sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. Elizabeth grabbed at the bedside table as she suddenly felt lightheaded. Taking a couple of minutes to steady herself, she pushed herself up to a standing position.
Elizabeth slid into her slippers and walked down the hallway to the kitchen. The kids were still sleeping. She wasn't surprised. Tami had come over to watch them so Elizabeth could get a couple of errands done. Tami always loved to play games with James, and he always slept so soundly those nights. Tami had been a godsend.
Starting the kettle, Elizabeth pulled out her favourite mug from the cupboard. She and the kids had been here a month, and already it was feeling like home. Elizabeth had to start considering subletting her apartment if she was going to stay with David. It would be fair.
Sitting down at the kitchen table, Elizabeth picked up the nursing home brochure. This was the home her mother was at, and Elizabeth intended to see her. Tomorrow was a Tuesday and according to what David's private investigator found out, her sister never visited on Tuesdays. She knew she had to see her mother at least one more time.
The kettle whistled and Elizabeth took her mug over by the counter and popped in a teabag. Pouring the hot water on top, she then added a bit of milk and took a sip. She watched as her hand stopped shaking. Elizabeth didn’t know what she was trying to achieve with this "vision quest" or whatever it was called. She heard the elevator open and glanced at the security panel on the wall. Someone had entered, and it recognized them as David.
Elizabeth hurried down the hall and met him in the living room. "Long day?"
"You could say that," David said as he poured himself three fingers of whiskey. He sat down on the sofa and watched the view over the lake.
Elizabeth followed his gaze and saw the storm coming ashore. It would be a bad one if the lightning was any indication. She sat down next to David. They sat there in silence for at least half an hour. Finally, Elizabeth put the mug of tea down and curled up on the couch, laying her head in David's lap. David's breathing grew shallow as he fell asleep on the couch, his head lolling back. Elizabeth thought of getting up when David's hand reached along her body and took her hand in his. Glancing upwards, Elizabeth smiled as she saw that he was still asleep.
She didn’t know when she had fallen asleep, or how she had slept with the storm raging outside, but it was David's watch that woke her up as it beeped incessantly in her ear. Elizabeth let out a grumble as David gently moved her aside and got up. Cracking open one eye, Elizabeth saw that it was still the dead of night and still raining. David disappeared for a couple of minutes and came back wearing jeans, boots and a long sleeved brown shirt. He threw his leather coat on.
Elizabeth quickly sat up. "Where are you going?"
"To get someone."
"What? That doesn’t make sense." Elizabeth hurried over to David's side as he stood by the elevator.
David tucked his PDA away into an inner pocket of his coat. "I can't tell you. In case UNIT comes by."
"I don’t care about UNIT. What's going on?" Elizabeth grabbed David by the arm.
A small smile spread across his face. "Fine. I think I found Jillian. Someone accessed her account in Sao Paolo."
"But you can’t fly. Neither of us can leave the country. UNIT grounded us with every government organization."
"That's why I'm not involving UNIT. I have other means and another escort."
"Agent Johnson?" David didn’t answer her. "I want to go with you."
"Someone has to stay and keep the kids safe. I'll be fine."
Elizabeth looked at David for the first time in a while. Before he could say anything she put both her hands on his cheeks and pulled him in close, kissing him hard. She pulled away slightly, their foreheads still touching, her hands still cradling his face.
"I hope to God it's her. I'll be waiting for both you and Jillian to come home safe."
Elizabeth watched as he shook his head and gave her a quick peck on the lips and then hurried into the elevator. After staring at the elevator for what seemed like forever, Elizabeth hurried over to the cool window, pressing her hand against it. The sky lit up her face as thunder and lightning rained down.