Life: Jack's Story - part twelve
Here it is the final part. Part one of Owen's story will be posted tomorrow as its not finished yet.
Life: Jack's Story - part twelve
Jack took his daughter out of the Doctor’s arms and held her for the first time. He felt tears of joy building up in his eyes; he sat down by the window with her and looked out over the city. “We’re at Rose’s aren’t we?”
“Yes” said the Doctor, “I didn’t know were else to bring you”
Jack smiled at him before turning back to the baby in his arms.
“I had to let you die” the Doctor whispered as he moved over to the bed and sat down. “So I could save her,” the Doctor pointed at Jack’s baby.
“That’s alright” Jack said unable to remove his eyes from his daughter. “Anything as long as she lives”
“She will,” said the Doctor “but I want to keep close by her for a while and just make sure that she will be alright”
“How long for?”
“A couple of weeks maybe…”
“Can we go back to Cardiff? To the future, 2008.”
“No, I don’t think time travel is a good idea, not until she’s strong enough” the Doctor looked at Jack, he must have seen the disappointment in his face. “Jack she’s almost two months early, a lot of babies that early wouldn’t survive it’s only because of… well me that she has done.” The Doctor forced a weak smile, “I don’t think putting her through anything strenuous is a good idea and your vortex manipulator takes a lot out of you.”
“We can’t go in the TARDIS, because I’m wrong” Jack said what the Doctor couldn’t.
He nodded tears welling up in his eyes.
“I’m sorry Jack…” one escaped his eyes and rolled down the Doctor’s cheek.
“Don’t be, you’ve already apologised, we’ve meet in your future and my past already. I can’t tell you what happened, but I’ve already forgiven you and that’s all you need to know.” The Doctor nodded and both men were silence for a while. Until the Doctor stood up and looked out of the window, “I should go and fetch the TARDIS before it gets dark.” Jack looked up at him.
“W ill she be okay without you… I mean is there anything special that I need to do for her?”
“Just love her” he smiled. “She’ll be fine for a few hours, there milk in the fridge for her and I’ll be back after I’ve picked up the TARDIS and been to the shops.”
“There’s milk in the fridge for her? How long was I out?”
“About two days…but don’t worry I used your vortex manipulator and arrived back here before I had left.” He grinned at Jack, “only I made sure to teleport out of the bedroom and teleport into the living room. She wasn’t left alone at all.”
Jack slipped of his vortex manipulator and handed it to the Doctor, “here use this, If I’ve really been out for two days then Owen and Suzie are probably already there sorting through the wreckage. You don’t want them finding the TARDIS, they might not be able to get into it but they’ll have a go at moving it that’s for sure.”
The Doctor smiled and with that he was gone, Jack wondered if he would come back or weather he would forget. He’d once meet a woman whom he had simply forgotten about until he meets her years later in a school. Jack hoped he didn’t forget him; he could stand waiting a few weeks for his daughter’s safety to see Ianto again. But years would be torture. He looked down at his daughter he had decided what he was going to call her “Hello Evelyn Lisa Jones, I’m your mommy but you can call me Daddy…please call me Daddy the 21st century isn’t ready for male mommy’s yet.”
Two years later.
It had been longer than the Doctor had expected. Evelyn had taken a turn for the worse she had a weak heart it turned out. They had taken her to a London hospital, were the Doctor thought something weird was going on. He was right of course the hospital was teleported to the moon and Evelyn and Jack almost died from lack of oxygen. When the hospital was return the Doctor left with Jack but couldn’t stop talking about a Martha Jones he had meant and spent most of his time on the moon running around with. While Jack cared for his dying child, it was painful to watch her losing the battle against the darkness knowing he had forever.
Nothing was working and in desperation Jack begged the Doctor to take her away in the TARDIS and find her a cure. He did once he had gotten to the right plant with the medicine to save Evelyn the Doctor rang Jack and told him the coordinates and timescale and Jack used his vortex manipulator to teleport to it. So he could be at Evelyn’s side as she recovered. She was two before she did so, before she was well enough to go home and meet her father.
When that day came Jack was nervous and excited, the Doctor was talking about finding that Martha Jones and thanking her for all of her help. Either Rose had a bigger effect on the Doctor than Jack thought or Miss Jones had gotten under his skin. Joneses had a way of doing that. Jack packed her suitcase in Evelyn’s hospital room while she played on the floor with the Doctor. They where playing with her favourite teddy bear and a doll whose hair grew of its own accord and changed colour each time you cut it off.
Evelyn had a mixture of alien toys and earth ones, but she only had six of them altogether she wasn’t really meant to have them when she was ill. She had the bear called Freddie who’s head and arm where both wrapped in bandages, the doll was called Josie which Evelyn pronounced as nosey, she had a set of plastic building blocks from earth. Silver ball, which played music and put one a light show at nighttime.
She also had a dog that was mounted on wheels and could be pulled along by a piece of string, barked and changed colour according to the weather the Doctor had brought for her second birthday. Finally there was a large jar of play-dough, which could be sculpted into a dollhouse that would stand of three days before turning into mush again. Jack packed them all into her suitcase along with what little clothing she had, she’d spent most of her short life in her P.J’s. As he did so he though it was a same that she would be to big for the things Toshiko had brought her.
Knowing Tosh’s taste they would have been beautiful, he hoped she could take them back and exchange them. Once she was packed he and the Doctor said their good byes. The Doctor programmed the vortex manipulator to take Jack back to Cardiff three weeks after he had disappeared. Explaining that he had left a massage for his team to find so that they wouldn’t be worried about him, an obituary under the name of Bilis Manger in the local paper. Jack knew they would get, after all most of his team where brilliant.
Jack and Evelyn beamed down to the bay. Jack looked out at the sea it had been a long time since he’d seen that view. He held Evelyn with one arm and their baggage with the other. Evelyn clutched Freddie and sucked his ear, just as she always did. “Where Ducky?” she asked when she had noticed the Doctor was no longer there.
“Ducky went to find his friend, but he’ll be back I promise” he couldn’t help but think his daughter was sweet. The first time she had called the Doctor ‘Ducky’ was one of his favourite memories; the look on the Doctor’s face had been priceless.
“No Ducky?” she frowned.
“No Ducky, baby” he kissed her fore head, “we’ve going to meet Daddy” he grinned at her. She copied him, she had Ianto’s eyes and they lit up when she smiled. She had Jack’s smiled and cheek bones, but Ianto’s nose. He carried her into Torchwood only putting her down once they where in the lift.
She yawned and said, “Want Dee -dee dum.”
Jack looked down at her, “We’ll see Daddy first then you can have dee - dee dum” She rubbed her eyes but didn’t cry or moan. When the lift stopped Jack stepped out and waited for her. Evelyn held up her arms so Jack picked her up. The cog door rolled back and Jack took a deep breath. He stepped through it; the hub was dark and quite. It was six in the evening but the team usually worked until half past. This was weird. He went to Tosh’s workstation there was a video message on it ready to be played. It was Gwen. He put Evelyn down on the sofa and returns to the screen. He played the message.
“Hello Jack, I don’t know if you’ll ever get this but I’m hoping you will. Manger has taken Ianto and I don’t know where there’s nothing in the history books about him, no sign that he was ever in the past. He’s hidden him; he didn’t want us to find Ianto. With you he did, you where listed on the list of the dead and there was photo’s of you on Torchwood one’s CCTV. But Ianto’s just… nowhere.” She had tears rolling down her face as she tried to continue.
“Owen, Toshiko and I tried to continue but then… he came back Captain John Hart or what ever his fucking name is. He had a whole team with him, there were eight of them we were out numbered and they took them.” She wiped the tears from her face.
“They froze them with their ice guns and took them away into the future to be part of some collection. I got knocked out and when I woke up I was all-alone. I couldn’t go on, I tried I really did but I just couldn’t it too much for one person and…I should have saved them or done something better than passing out…”
She wiped her nose on the arm of her jacket “I’ve shut down the hub you’re the only one who can open it now. I’m going to take a lot of retcon; it will be like I never left the police. I’ve programmed it so that I’ll think I transferred to a different station and no one will know me so they won’t jog my memory by mistake. Good luck Jack, I hope you can find them and the you Ianto and your little girl live happily ever after.”
Jack dropped to the floor like a stone, that was it then no Ianto, no Owen, no Toshiko, no Gwen… no Torchwood.
The end.
Life: Jack's Story - part twelve
Jack took his daughter out of the Doctor’s arms and held her for the first time. He felt tears of joy building up in his eyes; he sat down by the window with her and looked out over the city. “We’re at Rose’s aren’t we?”
“Yes” said the Doctor, “I didn’t know were else to bring you”
Jack smiled at him before turning back to the baby in his arms.
“I had to let you die” the Doctor whispered as he moved over to the bed and sat down. “So I could save her,” the Doctor pointed at Jack’s baby.
“That’s alright” Jack said unable to remove his eyes from his daughter. “Anything as long as she lives”
“She will,” said the Doctor “but I want to keep close by her for a while and just make sure that she will be alright”
“How long for?”
“A couple of weeks maybe…”
“Can we go back to Cardiff? To the future, 2008.”
“No, I don’t think time travel is a good idea, not until she’s strong enough” the Doctor looked at Jack, he must have seen the disappointment in his face. “Jack she’s almost two months early, a lot of babies that early wouldn’t survive it’s only because of… well me that she has done.” The Doctor forced a weak smile, “I don’t think putting her through anything strenuous is a good idea and your vortex manipulator takes a lot out of you.”
“We can’t go in the TARDIS, because I’m wrong” Jack said what the Doctor couldn’t.
He nodded tears welling up in his eyes.
“I’m sorry Jack…” one escaped his eyes and rolled down the Doctor’s cheek.
“Don’t be, you’ve already apologised, we’ve meet in your future and my past already. I can’t tell you what happened, but I’ve already forgiven you and that’s all you need to know.” The Doctor nodded and both men were silence for a while. Until the Doctor stood up and looked out of the window, “I should go and fetch the TARDIS before it gets dark.” Jack looked up at him.
“W ill she be okay without you… I mean is there anything special that I need to do for her?”
“Just love her” he smiled. “She’ll be fine for a few hours, there milk in the fridge for her and I’ll be back after I’ve picked up the TARDIS and been to the shops.”
“There’s milk in the fridge for her? How long was I out?”
“About two days…but don’t worry I used your vortex manipulator and arrived back here before I had left.” He grinned at Jack, “only I made sure to teleport out of the bedroom and teleport into the living room. She wasn’t left alone at all.”
Jack slipped of his vortex manipulator and handed it to the Doctor, “here use this, If I’ve really been out for two days then Owen and Suzie are probably already there sorting through the wreckage. You don’t want them finding the TARDIS, they might not be able to get into it but they’ll have a go at moving it that’s for sure.”
The Doctor smiled and with that he was gone, Jack wondered if he would come back or weather he would forget. He’d once meet a woman whom he had simply forgotten about until he meets her years later in a school. Jack hoped he didn’t forget him; he could stand waiting a few weeks for his daughter’s safety to see Ianto again. But years would be torture. He looked down at his daughter he had decided what he was going to call her “Hello Evelyn Lisa Jones, I’m your mommy but you can call me Daddy…please call me Daddy the 21st century isn’t ready for male mommy’s yet.”
Two years later.
It had been longer than the Doctor had expected. Evelyn had taken a turn for the worse she had a weak heart it turned out. They had taken her to a London hospital, were the Doctor thought something weird was going on. He was right of course the hospital was teleported to the moon and Evelyn and Jack almost died from lack of oxygen. When the hospital was return the Doctor left with Jack but couldn’t stop talking about a Martha Jones he had meant and spent most of his time on the moon running around with. While Jack cared for his dying child, it was painful to watch her losing the battle against the darkness knowing he had forever.
Nothing was working and in desperation Jack begged the Doctor to take her away in the TARDIS and find her a cure. He did once he had gotten to the right plant with the medicine to save Evelyn the Doctor rang Jack and told him the coordinates and timescale and Jack used his vortex manipulator to teleport to it. So he could be at Evelyn’s side as she recovered. She was two before she did so, before she was well enough to go home and meet her father.
When that day came Jack was nervous and excited, the Doctor was talking about finding that Martha Jones and thanking her for all of her help. Either Rose had a bigger effect on the Doctor than Jack thought or Miss Jones had gotten under his skin. Joneses had a way of doing that. Jack packed her suitcase in Evelyn’s hospital room while she played on the floor with the Doctor. They where playing with her favourite teddy bear and a doll whose hair grew of its own accord and changed colour each time you cut it off.
Evelyn had a mixture of alien toys and earth ones, but she only had six of them altogether she wasn’t really meant to have them when she was ill. She had the bear called Freddie who’s head and arm where both wrapped in bandages, the doll was called Josie which Evelyn pronounced as nosey, she had a set of plastic building blocks from earth. Silver ball, which played music and put one a light show at nighttime.
She also had a dog that was mounted on wheels and could be pulled along by a piece of string, barked and changed colour according to the weather the Doctor had brought for her second birthday. Finally there was a large jar of play-dough, which could be sculpted into a dollhouse that would stand of three days before turning into mush again. Jack packed them all into her suitcase along with what little clothing she had, she’d spent most of her short life in her P.J’s. As he did so he though it was a same that she would be to big for the things Toshiko had brought her.
Knowing Tosh’s taste they would have been beautiful, he hoped she could take them back and exchange them. Once she was packed he and the Doctor said their good byes. The Doctor programmed the vortex manipulator to take Jack back to Cardiff three weeks after he had disappeared. Explaining that he had left a massage for his team to find so that they wouldn’t be worried about him, an obituary under the name of Bilis Manger in the local paper. Jack knew they would get, after all most of his team where brilliant.
Jack and Evelyn beamed down to the bay. Jack looked out at the sea it had been a long time since he’d seen that view. He held Evelyn with one arm and their baggage with the other. Evelyn clutched Freddie and sucked his ear, just as she always did. “Where Ducky?” she asked when she had noticed the Doctor was no longer there.
“Ducky went to find his friend, but he’ll be back I promise” he couldn’t help but think his daughter was sweet. The first time she had called the Doctor ‘Ducky’ was one of his favourite memories; the look on the Doctor’s face had been priceless.
“No Ducky?” she frowned.
“No Ducky, baby” he kissed her fore head, “we’ve going to meet Daddy” he grinned at her. She copied him, she had Ianto’s eyes and they lit up when she smiled. She had Jack’s smiled and cheek bones, but Ianto’s nose. He carried her into Torchwood only putting her down once they where in the lift.
She yawned and said, “Want Dee -dee dum.”
Jack looked down at her, “We’ll see Daddy first then you can have dee - dee dum” She rubbed her eyes but didn’t cry or moan. When the lift stopped Jack stepped out and waited for her. Evelyn held up her arms so Jack picked her up. The cog door rolled back and Jack took a deep breath. He stepped through it; the hub was dark and quite. It was six in the evening but the team usually worked until half past. This was weird. He went to Tosh’s workstation there was a video message on it ready to be played. It was Gwen. He put Evelyn down on the sofa and returns to the screen. He played the message.
“Hello Jack, I don’t know if you’ll ever get this but I’m hoping you will. Manger has taken Ianto and I don’t know where there’s nothing in the history books about him, no sign that he was ever in the past. He’s hidden him; he didn’t want us to find Ianto. With you he did, you where listed on the list of the dead and there was photo’s of you on Torchwood one’s CCTV. But Ianto’s just… nowhere.” She had tears rolling down her face as she tried to continue.
“Owen, Toshiko and I tried to continue but then… he came back Captain John Hart or what ever his fucking name is. He had a whole team with him, there were eight of them we were out numbered and they took them.” She wiped the tears from her face.
“They froze them with their ice guns and took them away into the future to be part of some collection. I got knocked out and when I woke up I was all-alone. I couldn’t go on, I tried I really did but I just couldn’t it too much for one person and…I should have saved them or done something better than passing out…”
She wiped her nose on the arm of her jacket “I’ve shut down the hub you’re the only one who can open it now. I’m going to take a lot of retcon; it will be like I never left the police. I’ve programmed it so that I’ll think I transferred to a different station and no one will know me so they won’t jog my memory by mistake. Good luck Jack, I hope you can find them and the you Ianto and your little girl live happily ever after.”
Jack dropped to the floor like a stone, that was it then no Ianto, no Owen, no Toshiko, no Gwen… no Torchwood.
The end.