for quitehomoerotic: Welcome to Woodstock, 1969

[rude_not_ginger]

Follows this.

Somewhere fixed and somewhere sunny. And, the Doctor decided, somewhere they could have a good time. So, scratching off a number of natural disasters and wars, he picked out a particularly famous and particularly fixed large concert in New York.

He even had a tie-dyed tie that clashed beautifully with his suit.

"It's a bit muddy," he said as he attached an 'Out of Order' sign to the TARDIS. "But I think we're just in time to listen to Santana. Janis should be up in a bit, I might be able to introduce you two." A beat. "If she's met me yet, I can never remember, what with that whole mix-up with time..."

Still! No reason not to have a good time. He tinted his glasses and slipped them on, grinning madly at Jack as he did so. At least three days of fun, without the worry of something terrible happening, just so long as they stayed within the concert.

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[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

Jack shot the Doctor a second half glare, and took a step or two away to conduct the phone call.

"Hi, Martha," he said quietly, wiping a hand up over his face. It was nice to hear her voice, he had to admit. He'd missed Martha, like he'd missed so many people.

"Yeah, we're... he found me."

He took a deep breath. So she'd been trying to find him? She must have been in contact with Gwen, she must have known he'd gone completely, so what could she possibly want to find him for? What would matter?

"You're looking for me?" he asked, more businesslike than chatty, as though he's not sure how to be casual with her like he once could.

[imnot-hisgirl.livejournal.com]

The switch in his tone caused an immediate switch in Martha's tone. Gone was the blabbering girl from moments ago, now she was the medical supervisor of UNIT.

"It's Alice."

[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

Any discomfort, any awkwardness or how-to-talk-to-Martha tone swiftly left him. The words hit like a blow, even though they explained nothing.

He hardened, both inside and out. Building walls quickly. His back straightened and he looked up, staring briefly at the Doctor then away. He took another few steps over on the muddy grass.

"Tell me," he said, a firm instruction.

[imnot-hisgirl.livejournal.com]

"Her mother had her placed into witness protection when she was young, nobody knows where she came from or who she really is," Martha said. These were things Jack already knew, but if she was speaking on the record now, she was going to do it right.

"But someone leaked the information about your relationship to her. I don't know who, we're still tracking them down. But whoever it was passed it on, and she's been targeted."

Martha bit her lip. "Jack, she's been taken by beings we've never seen before. They say they're willing to negotiate, but they want to negotiate with you. The oldest resident of Earth."

[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

As Martha spoke Jack felt his stomach twist and contort. His heart seemed to stop and start.

How? How even when he ran this far away did he still manage to be a curse on Alice's life? How now when she was only a few months down the line of recovering from losing her son could she have to go through that.

It was all his fault, as it always would be.

"I can't come back," he said with conviction but it was really no more than cursory. A protest he felt he had to make. "I can't."

He didn't want to go back. Not yet. Not for many reasons. Not least of all which being the man a few feet away from him. He wanted to stay with him.

But this was his daughter. This was his Alice, and he'd do just about anything for her, especially now. "Fine," he said, a little colder than he meant to. "They want to negotiate with me, then fine, they've got my attention. Guess they're not leaving me with much choice."

He glanced over at the Doctor again and nodded, "We'll come," he knew the Doctor would take him as soon as he explained, "but you're not to tell anyone I'm there. Nobody is to find out, you hear me?" And of course by nobody, he meant Gwen.

[imnot-hisgirl.livejournal.com]

Martha's militaristic demeanor dropped for a moment. She knew what it was like, traveling with the Doctor. Being away, being out in the stars. Being happy and free.

But there were more important things.

"Jack, your family needs you. We need you. The whole world needs you." Again. The last time the world needed him, she was trapped on an exotic island without so much as a plane or a mobile to get her back to help.

She nodded, though he couldn't see her. She took a few steps away from the control booth and lowered her voice. "But the Doctor can't help. UNIT has a lot of questions for him about the 456 and I don't think they'll let him go once they've answered them. He has to stay away, Jack. Just while you're here. You two can meet at my flat afterwards and go back off into the stars. But he can't stay on Earth. It's not safe for him, now."

[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

And what about what he needed? He thought. What about that? But no, that was a thought that would remain as such. He wouldn't voice that.

The thought's about Alice raced through his mind. What might be happening to her, if she was safe. She had to be, so far, he deduced. If they were willing to negotiate then it stood to reason they'd be looking after her. But Jack didn't want negotiations. Oh he'd deal with this. But he wouldn't stand back and let some species dictate to him. That was a mistake he wouldn't make again.

It couldn't get any worse, he thought. Couldn't get any worse than that, but then it did. Oh it did.

"I can't leave--" Jack started but how could he go on. He couldn't possibly explain, and he wouldn't really want to. But the thought of separating from the Doctor filled him with as much dread as hearing about Alice.

But Martha new what she was talking about, and Jack trusted her on that. If she thought the Doctor should stay away, then he should stay away. Jack wouldn't put him in danger. He wouldn't.

He glanced over at the Doctor again and took a deep breath. "Three weeks," he said. "I'll come back for three weeks to fix this and then I'm going again. Three weeks, that's all. Three weeks and we'll go. I'll meet you in London. I'll send an address to you when I'm there."

Without waiting for a response, he hung up the phone and for a moment stood fast to his spot. The revelry and excitement around him was dull now. He was numb and he felt sick.

With a deep breath, he stepped back to the Doctor, and looked at him through red eyes.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

The Doctor stood aside, pretending to care what an impossibly inebriated flower girl was saying to him as she danced to the music. He smiled at her as she spoke, but his mind was fully on the half of the conversation that was coming from Jack.

(Right, not fully. Partially. The other part was on the light in the sky, the TARDIS not too far from them, and the buzz from the fixed-ness of everything around them.)

Three weeks. Why would Jack agree to three weeks? Of course, in the grand scheme of things, three weeks wasn't all that long. But the Doctor's feet always itched when he had to stay put for too long.

"Allons-y?" he said to Jack, nodding to the TARDIS. He put a mark in his internal memory to come back to this time, figure out what happened here.

[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

Jack nodded silently, and held the phone back out towards the Doctor. He wanted to speak, but he didn't know what to say. Not really. How could he?

So he walked quietly beside the Doctor for a few steps without saying anything at all, until he broke the silence (and considering where they were, it was no silence at all).

"They've got Alice," Jack said. It didn't matter who 'they' were. Those were details that seemed to fade into nothingness.

"They've got Alice and apparently they'll only negotiate with me. 'Oldest resident on Earth' she said," Jack all but scoffed the words out. he didn't like speaking them.

But that wasn't everything, and Jack couldn't hide the truth. If he looked how he felt he was sure it would be written all over his face.

"And Martha tells me," Jack started overly casually, "apparently UNIT have a few questions to ask you. Few questions and a few things you really should avoid."

He looked over at him, eyes sore and feeling so very weary. He couldn't say it, he couldn't, but he hoped the Doctor would see what he meant.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Right," the Doctor said with a sharp nod. "Right, I've avoided far worse than UNIT during a crisis. Who are 'they', do we know?"

He had a feeling this conversation wouldn't end with them and a plan to avoid UNIT and save Jack's daughter. He had a feeling he wasn't going to like what three weeks meant.

Three weeks. That was about how long Martha stayed on Earth before she decided it was time to give up traveling. The Doctor wanted to think that wouldn't happen again. Not with---no, not with Jack.

[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

"Something new," Jack said, somewhat distant.

He looked over at the Doctor again and shook his head. If he could have him there, he would, in a heartbeat. But it never was that easy, was it?

"You know I don't want to go, don't you?" he said instead. "You know that not for a minute-- but it's my daughter I can't-- I don't--" he shook his head again.

"I told her I'd go for three weeks," he went on. "Three weeks and we'll pick a date and you come pick me up. You hear me? You come straight to pick me up. Don't you go running off from me, okay?"

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Of course," the Doctor said, shaking his head. If the situation had been reversed, the Doctor would've gone in a heartsbeat to his own daughter, Susan, or Jenny. He wouldn't deny Jack that. And he wouldn't have him worry by staying.

And three weeks wasn't that bad. He could hop that easily, maybe even take a quick detour back here to figure out what the light in the sky was. Then, pick him up. Like no time had passed at all.

Three weeks would probably be good, too. He was becoming far too attached to Jack. The space might be good for them.

"But if you need me," he said, opening the TARDIS door. "You call. There aren't any other grand spaces in time where I can't help, not for at least fifty more years."

[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

Jack stopped at the door and tried to smile at the Doctor, but he didn't really have the energy for it. "I will," he said with a nod.

He took a long breath and stepped inside, a hand on the handrail for support (which luckily this time didn't burn or freeze, or if it did he didn't recognise it).

"I think..." he started, "I think though maybe this is one I have to do alone. I need to put things right. I owe her that, if nothing else. I'm not going to make the same mistakes again."

Taking the extra steps forward he looked up and around the TARDIS. He didn't want to leave. Not one bit, and his heart clenched tight at the thought of it.

"So," he sighed, "back to London, I guess."

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Right." That was something the Doctor did understand. Pride and all that. It was one of his own faults, he couldn't deny Jack his.

He crossed past Jack swiftly to the controls. Everything was already set to London, 2009. He felt immediately relieved, and then suspicious. The TARDIS was never this easygoing when it came to taking his companions where they wanted to go.

He couldn't even pretend she was doing it out of some loyalty to Jack. She was far too bitter right now. Maybe a few more months or centuries and she'd get over her jealousy.

"Yup," the Doctor called over to Jack. "Hold on."

He pulled the parking brake and the TARDIS smoothly glided down the vortex. Far too smoothly. She was almost humming in approval.

[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

Jack stepped around the console, keeping a few feet back, keeping his hand on the railing. He felt numb and disconnected. He wasn't ready to go back, he wasn't ready at all.

But three weeks. He could do three weeks, couldn't he? Of course he could. For Alice he could. And then the Doctor would come back. They'd be right back and they could go again. It'd be fine. He had to believe that.

He gripped onto the rail at the Doctor's instruction, but barely shook as the TARDIS moved.

With a glance over he watched the Doctor move. He wanted to say things, but he wasn't sure what.

"I--," he started, and took a deep breath. "I'll miss you, you know." Too honest, maybe? Too truthful? Oh but they'd got past the point of pretending hadn't they.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Nah," the Doctor said as the console settled. "Miss me? How could you miss me? I'm the guy with two hearts and a great big blue box. I'm easy to find."

He turned and plastered a smile on his face. "And you won't be waiting a hundred and some odd years to see me again, right?"

Right?

But if Jack reconciled with Alice, he might want to stay. The Doctor would allow him that, of course. He'd give him all the space he needed. He wouldn't presume to--wouldn't think to--he just wouldn't cause any sort of problems for Jack.

He wouldn't cling. Even if he wanted to.

"Besides, knowing you, this won't take more than a few days at most."

[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

"Stop it," Jack said, slightly annoyed. He wouldn't let the Doctor follow his usual pattern of brushing it off and smiling and pretending everything was perfectly fine.

He stepped over, closer. "You know I will," he urged. "You know where I want to be." He looked down, feeling oddly sheepish, or maybe just too heavy. He had thought he was better, a lot better since the Doctor had taken him from that bar. But not better enough to go back, not better yet.

"Yeah," Jack tried his own smile for size, false and wide and it felt wrong to lie like that. "Over and done with and back in time for tea," he said with a nod. "And speaking of, don't I still owe you that drink? We'll do that. First thing when we're off again. Pick a bar, any place anywhere."

Reaching a hand up he wiped it over his face. He wondered if the Doctor would miss him too, but... no, no that'd be silly to imagine, wouldn't it?

"Doctor, will you-- where will you go?"

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

The Doctor dropped the false smile and relaxed composure, immediately sobered by Jack's annoyance. Why didn't pretending nothing was wrong work all of the time? It worked part of the time, and logically all of the time should've been enough.

He nodded. "I know a fantastic bar at the end of the universe." He had a feeling he would be going there alone. Nothing good lasted. This was really just the beginning, wasn't it? Wasn't there supposed to be more?

"I think I'll let the TARDIS decide for a while. She's feeling a bit neglected. Might do a little repairwork, cause a bit of trouble. You know me."

[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

Jack listened and he felt a sharp pang of jealousy. He wanted to be there for that. For those random trips that took them anywhere, for getting into trouble that they shouldn't. It should have been the both of them. He looked up at the TARDIS as the Doctor spoke of her and he thought he'd miss her too. Three weeks was nothing though, not really.

"But you won't forget, right?" he questioned, worried that he might. "You'll remember to come back for me?"

Jack had had experience in the past of being left by the Doctor. Things may have changed, but well, old habits died hard.

"That is-- I mean, you do want to, yeah?"

Why was he so worried? He wasn't sure. But worried he was. Worried for many reasons.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

The Doctor turned to Jack, an offended look on his face.

"What makes you think I'd forget?" he demanded. "I promised I wouldn't leave you behind, and I'm not about to change that now."

[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

Jack ducked his head, he felt immediately guilty. He shouldn't doubt the Doctor, especially not now.

"I know," he sighed, "I know, I'm sorry I just-- This is all a bit unexpected and I guess I just... I just don't want this hiccup to change anything between me and you."

And that was the honesty of it. He wanted him and the Doctor to be... well, him and the Doctor. Or at least the him and the Doctor they'd become.

It was a terrible thing really, to call it a hiccup, considering it was saving his daughter's life, and likely the lives of a lot more. But that didn't matter, or at least it didn't seem to.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"It's not a hiccup," the Doctor said, not unkindly, unwittingly voicing Jack's own thoughts. "It's your daughter's life."

He tilted his head to the side, to point to the door. "You should go save her. And call me, if you need me."

He wanted to hug Jack. He wanted to show, somehow, that he cared. More specifically, he wanted to park the TARDIS not far from here and keep an eye on him, because the last time he left him alone, he found him dying of alcohol poisoning in some pathetic bar.

"You and I know Doctor Jones. She'll already be on her way here."

[quitehomoerotic.livejournal.com]

Jack turned his head and glanced at the door, worried about the world that sat behind it. Earth, 'home', so much more scary in so many ways than any alien planet.

"No," Jack agreed, glancing down again, feeling guilty for having said it, "no, it's not. But I'll fix it. I'll fix things this time. I'll do it right."

The Doctor was right, Martha wouldn't be far away, so Jack had to go. He had to go now. Do it quick, like pulling off a plaster. Quick and sharp.

He turned as if to move to the door, but stopped again and turned back. "Three weeks," he said again, "three weeks, and I'll meet you here. And if you need me too, Doctor, you call me, okay? You know where I am."

Repeating his movement he made for the door, a couple more steps before again stopping and turning back, this time striding the few steps back to the Doctor. He approached him quickly and without questioning or speaking at all, he kissed him. Just one kiss, brief but with pressure behind it, before pulling back and nodding.

"See you soon, Doctor."

And with a tight smile, he turned and left the TARDIS.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

The Doctor was a man who was used to having all of the time in the universe. But this, with Jack, it was too brief. Too brief a good-bye, too brief a time traveling, too brief a kiss, and now---now, he had three weeks on his own.

He stepped over to his coat and plucked the mobile from his breast pocket. Jack might not call him if things went wrong, but the Doctor was ready if he did.

He stepped over to the console and laid a hand against the coral. She seemed to be buzzing with excitement. He sighed and tugged back the hand brake. Quick trip. He'd be right back.

"Where to next, old girl?" he asked, checking the monitor. "Back to Woodstock?"

No, no, she'd already set up another destination.

"Mars?"