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Rose leant over one of the bodies in the wartime hospital, looking over it with confusion. All the rest of the patients had exactly the same injuries and all had gas masks on their faces, but she didn't really understand why. It had something to do with the war sh- ambulance Jack had dropped down onto London. At least, that's what the Doctor seemed to think and he'd not been wrong before. Well, there was the Dalek but he'd not been wrong, just scared. And the GELF... okay, so he'd be wrong before, but he was smarter than anyone she'd ever met so if he thought that was what it was, then she'd agree with him. She glanced over at Jack, feeling slightly hurt that he'd been so nice to her then turned out to be a con-man. Serves her right for falling for a pretty face, worked every time. She gasped in surprise as every patient sat up in unison, causing her to jump backwards as they all started chanting 'mummy'. Jack and the Doctor backed away as well, Jack's eyes darting around the room trying to keep them all in his eye line.
"What's happening?" She asked the Doctor who shook his head, holding his hand out to her.
"I don't know." He admitted as the patients all climbed out of their beds, slowly surrounding them and backing them into corner.
"Don't let them touch you." He told the pair firmly.
"What happens if they touch us?" Rose asked.
"You're looking at it." They continued to chant the word 'mummy' at them as Rose felt herself hit the wall behind her. She glanced across at Jack, who seemed just as frightened as she did. Then, the Doctor stepped towards the patients, his hands clasped behind his back.
"Go to your room." He commanded and Rose frowned in confusion. The patients stopped in their tracks, tilting their heads to one side simultaneously, "Go to your room!" He commanded again. Rose looked over at Jack again, who stared back equally baffled, "I mean it! I am very, very angry with you. I am very, VERY cross! Go - to - your – ROOM!" He pointed upwards, as if their bedrooms were upstairs and the patients all turned away, looking almost dejected as they headed back to their beds, "I'm really glad that worked. Those would've been terrible last words." The Doctor stated, sighing in relief.
"Danni!" Rose exclaimed happily and the Doctor turned to the doorway to see the red-headed girl stood their, her hands raised almost protectively in front of her. She was scared, that was obvious by the way her eyes darted around trying to work out where she was. He frowned, she looked really ill. Then her eyes landed on the group and she beamed widely, suddenly very happy.
"Jack!" She screamed joyously, charging at them and chucking her arms around the very bewildered American, who patted her back slowly.
"There, there Red." He replied with a nervous laugh, "I think you might be a bit confused." She just seemed to squeeze him tighter and he shrugged, his trademark smirk appearing on his face, "Not that I'm complaining..." He gently but forcefully moved her back from him, "Captain Jack Harkness." He introduced himself, "But you seem to already know that." She nodded, rolling her eyes.
"Of course I do." She replied, confused, "Why don't you..." She looked around again, "We're in a hospital, aren't we?" He nodded and she sighed sadly, "You don't know who I am yet." It wasn't a question and he felt bad about disappointing her. His con had already failed, he hated when that happened, so what better way to pick up his spirits by making a pretty girl smile again.
"What's your name?" He asked her.
"Danni." She replied quietly and he frowned.
"What, like the boys' name?" Danni's eyes narrowed dangerously. Why did people keep saying that?
"I'm quite obviously a girl." She retorted, motioning to her torso.
"I don't know." He smirked, "Much more of a woman, I'd say."
"Do you mind not flirting whilst we're under attack?" The Doctor snapped, glaring at the pair but Danni barely spared him a glance.
"You're just jealous I'm flirting with him and not you." She remarked.
"N-No I'm not!" He cried, because he wasn't jealous.
"Yes you are." Rose suppressed her smirk, that seemed more like the Danni she knew. Not the frightened girl who'd appeared moments ago, "That's why you kissed Martha instead of me."
"Who's Martha?!" The Doctor exclaimed, "Oh, nevermind!" He stormed off to examine on of the patients, frustrated by the red-head already.
"Nice." Jack stated, impressed at how flustered she'd made the Doctor so quickly. He hated to admit it, but the man was much more in control of the situation that he was and to make him stutter was a feat in itself, "Danni, was it?" She nodded, taking his hand, "Yep, most definitely a girl." He pulled her hand to his mouth, placing a kiss on her palm and she giggled in delight.
~0~0~0~
Rose sat down in a chair by one of the beds, looking at the patient and trying not to glance over at Jack and Danni, who were chatting animatedly in one corner. The girl hadn't said a word to her since she'd appeared. Rose had been so happy to see her, especially after being advanced on by gas mask wearing people but she'd run straight to Jack of all people and she couldn't seem to leave the man alone. Not like he was complaining. Danni had taken his hand and he'd yet to let it go, their fingers intertwined as he flirted shamelessly with her. Rose turned back to the patient, Danni normally made her feel better about the situation because she always seemed to know what was happening, but this time she just felt rejected.
"Hello Rose!" Danni cried cheerfully, pulling a chair over and sitting next to her, "Sorry for ignoring you, I was just excited to see Jack." She nodded towards the American, who had sat next to her and chucked his feet up on the bed in front of them. Danni frowned and smacked his feet off the bed, how rude.
"Who isn't?" He retorted, amused by the girl.
"You can stop the flirting now." She mock-scolded him, "I'm in a relationship."
"Is it serious?" He asked. She was pretty, sure, but not really his type. Still, no harm in testing the waters now and then. She looked thoughtful for a moment then nodded slowly.
"Going on 300 years." His eyebrows shot up.
"You're looking good for it." He replied, surprised. He'd seen the vortex manipulator on her arm as soon as she'd first hugged him. Still, 300 years seemed a strange way to define a relationship. She shot him an incredulous look.
"Are you kidding? I look like I'm dying. Appropriately so, I should add." She turned back to the patient, "So, gas masks for faces, eh? I think I remember this. We're in a war, right?"
"Hold on." Rose exclaimed, "You're dying?" Danni nodded.
"Of course." She replied before turning to look guiltily at Rose, "But I've not told you that yet, have I?" Rose shook her head, "Oh. Yeah, sorry..." Danni patted her arm as Rose stared at her, gobsmacked, "Don't worry though. It's completely justified."
"What the hell does that mean?" Rose asked.
"Well, I've killed someone, now it's my turn." Danni replied off-handedly, "But that's not the pressing issue right now." She turned to Jack, "Why are they all wearing gas masks?"
"They're not. Those masks are flesh and bone." He replied, seeing the look on her face. He knew that look, it was of someone who really didn't want to continue talking about the topic at hand. It was a look he knew all too well, probably mirrored a good number of times himself.
"How was your con supposed to work?" The Doctor called over, having been examining a body for himself. That had been a child talking, calling for its mummy so he had guessed it was the little boy that Nancy knew... Jamie, was it? But how was he controlling all the victims? And why did they all have the same injuries as him?
"Simple enough, really. Find some harmless piece of space-junk... let the nearest Time Agent track it back to Earth. Convince him it's valuable, name a price. When he's put 50% up front - oops! A German bomb falls on it, destroys it forever. He never gets to see what he's paid for. Never knows he's been had. I buy him a drink with his own money, and we discuss dumb luck. The perfect self-cleaning con." The Doctor stared sternly at him.
"Yeah. Perfect." He replied sarcastically, but Jack just shrugged.
"The London Blitz is great for self-cleaners - Pompeii's nice if you want to make a vacation of it though, but you've got to set your alarm for volcano day." Jack started laughing at his own joke but Danni placed a hand on his arm.
"Don't." She whispered gently at the Doctor's unimpressed look. Jack caught it and he slowly stopped.
"Getting a hint of disapproval." He stated.
"Take a look around the room. This is what your 'harmless piece of space-junk' did." The Doctor snapped in reply.
"It was a burnt-out medical transporter - it was empty." He insisted. The Doctor shot him an angry look and turned, storming off.
"Rose." He commanded and the blonde girl shot after him, surprised at his sudden departure.
"We getting out of here?" She asked hopefully.
"We're going upstairs." The Doctor replied, heading out the room and down the corridor. Jack turned to Danni.
"This wasn't my fault." He told her and she smiled apologetically.
"You weren't to know anything was in there." She replied gently, "But there was." She leant back on her chair, "I jump around the future, but I actually already know what's happening. This is broken." She waved her arm at him, "And this universe was just a TV show to mine." Jack shot her a look of disbelief.
"Sure." He drawled and her eyes narrowed.
"Don't believe me, Mr Face of Boe?" She taunted and he blinked, surprised, "This has something to do with Rose's hand. Something you did to her hand, but..." She rubbed her temples in frustration, "I can't remember. That little boy's important too. He's the girl's son, why's that important?" She jumped up, holding her hand out, "Come on, we'd better catch up with them." Jack frowned but took it and she linked her fingers with his, "They'll forgive you. I know you don't really care right now, but you will."
"What about you?" He asked as they headed into the hallway.
"Always and completely." She replied instantly, "You'll never get rid of me, Harkness, so don't get your hopes up." She frowned, "Well, you know, until I die. That makes the threat kind of redundant, doesn't it?" He laughed at how disappointed she looked at the snag in her plan.
"Oh, Danni. The girl named Danni." he chuckled, "You're really quite something."
~0~0~0~
Jack and Danni wandered around the hallways, peeking into empty rooms where discarded beds lay forgotten and in disarray. Danni looked over it suspiciously. It reminded her too much of the orphanage poor Melody had been hidden in, with that man with the messed-up memory. She felt like that, sometimes. She really couldn't remember anything anymore. Something to do with Rose's hand? What use was that? She sounded like one of those psychics you find on beach fronts who read your palm.
"Mr Spock?" Jack called as he opened another door and Danni began laughing.
"Who the hell is Mr Spock?" She asked and he pointed upwards.
"You know? Your mate with the..." he motioned to his ears and she was reminded of Satellite 5, turning her slightly sombre again.
"He's not Mr Spock. It's just 'the Doctor'." She made quotations around his name, "He doesn't have a name, just a title. Well, actually, that's a lie. He does have a name, I just can't tell you it. There's rules about that sort of thing."
"Why not? Sounds a bit... pompous." She nodded.
"That's Time Lord's for you." She retorted, "I don't think he's on this floor. Let's go to the next one."
"Time Lord?" Jack scoffed as she strode purposefully towards the stairwell, "You can't be serious? They were wiped out in the Last Great Time War, along with the Daleks."
"I know." Danni replied vaguely, "Who do you think did it?" She started walking down the next floor, "Doctor?" She called, "Doctor? Oh, he never gets easier to find." Jack was just staring at her, confused at that sudden piece of information. Rose appeared around the banister at the end of the corridor.
"Up here!" She called, "He's having a bit of trouble getting into the room."
"No I'm not!" The Doctor's voice floated from somewhere behind the blonde, sounding offended she'd insulted his competence.
~0~0~0~
The Doctor 'allowed' Jack to use his blaster to get rid of the lock on the door he was trying to open, casually letting Jack know he'd destroyed the factories the sonic technologies were made in as they stepped inside. There was a glass divider in the room, but it had been shattered with pieces of glass all over the floor. All the other furniture had been cast aside as whoever had been hit by the bomb had escaped, infecting the rest of the hospital as they ran. Old-fashioned recording devices were strewn in it's wake... well, probably cutting edge if they were in one of the World Wars.
"What d'you think?" The Doctor asked aloud, mainly to Jack as he continued to test the man. Danni had popped up in his and Rose's lives a few times now and had helped them out, and he had worked out that she was someone important in his future, so he had decided to start to try and trust her. She'd seen Jack and been elated, so he was trying to find something redeemable in the man who'd hurt the small boy.
"Something got out of here..." Jack replied as he took in the mess.
"Yeah. And?" The Doctor pressed.
"Something powerful. Angry."
"Powerful and angry." The Doctor confirmed as Danni and Jack entered the room cut off by the glass divider. There were children's drawings all over the wall, on paper and on the surface itself, all of various versions of a stick woman.
"A child? I suppose this explains 'mummy'." Jack declared, slightly horrified.
"Jamie." Danni corrected instantly, confused by her own exclamation before remembering the little boy wandering around London, looking for his mummy. The girl with pigtails. What was her name?
"How could a child do this?" Rose asked the Doctor.
"Jamie." Danni corrected again and Rose turned to her, seeing the slightly annoyed look on the red-head's face, "Not 'a child'. Jamie."
"Do you know where you are?" Another male voice asked, the sound crackling on the old technology as the Doctor played the recording Dr. Constantine had obviously made with Jamie.
"Are you my mummy?" A little boy asked.
"Are you aware of what's around you? Can you... see?" Dr. Constantine tried again, sounding calm although he had no idea what he was dealing with.
"Are you my mummy?" The little boy – Jamie – asked again.
"What do you want? Do you know-"
"I want my mummy." Jamie interrupted, "Are you my mummy? I want my mummy! Are you my mummy?Are you my mummy? Mummy? Mummy?"
"Doctor, I've heard this voice before." Rose said sombrely, pointing to the recording device. The Doctor nodded slowly.
"Me too." He replied, thinking back to the house and the little boy he'd encountered.
"Mummy?" Jamie continued on the recording.
"Always, 'are you my mummy?'. Like he doesn't know." Rose looked up, horrified, "Why doesn't he know?"
"Mummy? Please, mummy? Mummy?" Jamie continued calling as the tape began to flap loudly, the recording ending. Danni eyed it warily, no one else seeming to notice it as the Doctor began pacing around the room they'd held Jamie in.
"Doctor?" Rose and Danni asked at the same time, Rose wondering why he was pacing and Danni wondering why the tape had finished but he was still calling to his mummy.
"Can you sense it?" The Doctor asked in reply as he made a circuit around the room.
"Sense what?" Jack asked, confused.
"Coming out of the walls, can you feel it?" The Doctor replied, pausing when they didn't answer, "Funny little human brains, how do you get around in those things?" He asked mockingly with a smile and Rose turned to Jack, smiling apologetically.
"When he's stressed, he likes to insult species." She explained.
"Rose, I'm thinking." The Doctor snapped in reply.
"Cuts himself shaving, does half an hour in life forms he's cleverer than..." She continued.
"There are these children living rough around the bomb site. They come out during air-raids looking for food." The Doctor interrupted.
"Mummy, please?"
"Suppose they were there when this thing - whatever it was – landed?" He theorised as he stopped pacing to face the three stood there, Rose and Jack staring at him, hanging on his every word as Danni stared at the door. Ah, so she'd noticed too.
"It was a med-ship. It was harmless." Jack defended.
"Yes, you keep saying. 'Harmless'." The Doctor snapped at him before turning to Rose, "Suppose one of them was affected - altered?"
"Altered how?" Rose asked.
"I'm here!" Jamie called.
"And what if it was a little boy who'd gone looking for his mummy?" Danni piped up, "And he was still looking for her?"
"It's afraid. Terribly afraid, and powerful. It doesn't know it yet, but it will do." The Doctor laughed at the absurdity of the situation, "It's got the power of a god, and I just sent it to its room."
"Doctor..." Rose started slowly, finally hearing the spin of the tape.
"I'm here. Can't you see me?" Jamie asked.
"What's that noise?" Rose finished and the Doctor's smile dropped from his face.
"End of the tape. It ran out about 30 seconds ago."
"I'm here, now. Can't you see me?" Jamie asked again.
"I sent it to it's room." The Doctor pointed out, "This is its room." He spun and there, by the tape machine, was Jamie.
"Are you my mummy?" He asked the foursome, tilting his head as he regarded Rose, "Mummy?" Then turned to Danni, "Mummy?"
"Doctor?" Rose asked quietly as the Doctor stood in front of her, holding his hand towards her so she could take it.
"Okay... on my signal... make for the door." Jack told them lowly, "NOW!" He rached into his pocket, pulling out his blaster to aim at the child. However, he frowned at the sight of the bright yellow banana that was in it's place. The Doctor grinned as he pulled Jack's blaster from his own pocket, aiming it at the door and firing it. A large square appeared in the brickwork.
"Go! Now!" He cried and Danni grabbed Rose's hand, pulling the blonde towards the hole, "Don't drop the banana!" He called to Jack as he followed the two women.
"Why not?!" Jack asked.
"Good source of potassium!"
"And one of the main ingredient in the Banana Daiquiri." Danni added, "I know you like them Jack." One of the many times Eleven had taken her to see Jack they'd gotten drunk drinking the cocktail. She'd never been fond of bananas herself, but after the first few it didn't seem so bad. Eleven liked to take her to see Jack, for which she was very grateful. Although he hadn't been so happy when he'd come in to her telling Jack about Doctor Moo. Especially since the immortal man had heard of the bear before.
~0~0~0~
The four landed in a pile on the floor as Rose aimed Jack's blaster downwards, opening a square hole as they'd run from Jamie and his horde of gas mask-wearing minions and they fell through to another empty ward. Jack pointed the blaster upwards, re-sealing the hole above them.
"Doctor, are you okay?" Rose asked the Time Lord as they all stood up, groaning from the impact.
"Could've used a warning." The Doctor said as a reply, indicating he was absoulutely fine.
"Ugh, the gratitude." Rose grumbled, brushing the dust off her jeans.
"Oh, ignore Mr Grumpy." Danni replied, "We're very grateful, aren't we Jack?"
"Who has a sonic screwdriver?" Jack just asked, ignoring the two girls.
"I do!" The Doctor replied defensively.
"Light!" Rose snapped at them, her and Danni looking for one.
"Who looks at a screwdriver and thinks 'oohoo, this could be a little more sonic'?" Jack retorted and Danni rolled her eyes.
"You're both so rude." She called over, feeling along the walls for the light switch and trying desperately not to notice the darkness around them. The last time she'd been in the dark... She felt herself scrambling against the wall harder. If Eleven were here he'd use his screwdriver to turn the lights on for them, instead of arguing with Jack. Or at least he'd turn the lights on before arguing with Jack. Ten might do, depending on which version she saw him with. The last time it was Rose-Ten he'd locked her in a cupboard accidentally-on-purpose, leaving her to scream for a moment before Rose made him let her out. He'd called her a silly little girl. She'd kicked him in the shins. It was a good day.
"What, you've never been bored?" Nine gave as an excuse.
"There's gotta be a light switch!" Danni heard Rose call from the other side of the room.
"If the electricity is still running down here." Danni murmured as the lights came on. She relaxed for a moment, only to run over to Jack when the patients in the not-so-abandoned beds sat up, chanting for their 'mummy'.
"Door." Jack said authoritatively, the four rushing over locked door. Jack aimed his blaster at it, but nothing happened. He smacked the bottom of it, moving out of the way so the Doctor could try his screwdriver, "Damn it! It's the special features, they really drain the battery." He explained to Rose and Danni.
"The battery?!" Rose scoffed as they headed into the other, also quite dark room, "That's so lame." The Doctor slammed the door shut behind them, locking it again with his screwdriver. Danni headed immediately over to the barred window letting in the little bit of light illuminating the room. She wrapped her arms around herself, taking in the storeroom they'd found themselves in.
"I was gonna send for another one, but somebody's gonna blow up the factory." Jack said with a pointed glare towards the Doctor.
"Oh, I know - first day I met him, he blew my job up. That's practically how he communicates." Rose replied, "And don't even mention when he first met Danni."
"Okay, that door should hold it for a bit." The Doctor stated loudly, not wanting to bring up that particular topic of conversation.
"Why? What happened when he met me?" Danni asked anyway, walking over to Rose who shot her a sympathetic smile. She knew that smile, it was the universal signal for 'Sorry, spoilers'. Bloody time travel, so many rules.
"The door?! The WALL didn't stop it!" Jack shouted.
"Well, it's gotta find us first! Come on, we're not done yet! Assets, assets!" The Doctor repeated, jumping onto the table by the window and looking out.
"Well, I've got a banana, and at a pinch you could put up some shelves." Jack mocked, falling into a chair and pulling Danni onto him. He'd seen the way she'd flustered the Doctor before, and being more than annoyed at the man in question he held onto Danni tighter. That should show him for being so pompous.
"Window-"
"Barred, sheer drop outside. Seven stories." Jack interrupted, having checked it out the moment they'd entered the room.
"And no other exits." Rose added, falling against a wall with a sigh of resignation. Of course there wasn't.
"Well, the assets conversation went in a flash, didn't it?" Jack sighed. The Doctor eyed him, shifting uncomfortably at the sight of the man's arms around Danni. What annoyed him even more was the fact she didn't seem to mind, leaning on the man's shoulder for comfort, scared as she was of the dark. In Cardiff she'd grabbed his hand.
"So, where'd you pick this one up, then?" He asked Rose, who blushed.
"Doctor..." She growled, embarrassed.
"She was hanging from a barrage balloon, I had an invisible spaceship. I never stood a chance." Jack taunted, pulling out a small device out of his pocket, "Hold on, Red." He told her with a smirk, pressing the button. Danni yelled in surprise, the familiar feeling of being moved washing over her as they landed in Jack's spaceship. He leant her against the wall, making sure she didn't fall over like Rose had before moving to the controls.
"I thought that it was set just for you?" Danni groaned, her head and the drums protesting furiously at being moved so suddenly.
"Why would you think that?" He asked, "Me and one other. I hacked it, no point leaving a date out there with me in here." He shot her a wink. She frowned, she was sure he told Rose and the Doctor it was set just to him.
"Still," She scolded lightly, feeling steadier as she walked over to his side, kneeling on the ground next to him, "You could have given them a bit of warning."
"Where's the fun in that?" He retorted. She shook her head, leaning on his arm.
"Oh, you never change." She told him fondly and his hand moved from the console in front of him to run through her hair once.
"Glad to hear it, Danni the Girl."