The Orphan and Her Family

Chapter Nineteen

The Doctor lands his ship right back in the middle of Sophie's flat. "Well, it's been fun, Kilt Boy," she smiles.

He grins back at her, "Aye, and we saved the day."

"That was never in question." She wraps her arms around the Scotsman, and he returns the hug.

Letting him go, she turns and pulls the Doctor into an embrace as well. "I'll be seeing you again soon, Sophie. I'm sure."

She raises her eyebrows, "See you round, Doc. And keep Jamie alive. If I can't make fun of him, who can I make fun of, eh?"

The Time Lord grins, chuckling. She flips the lever on the console, the doors opening, "I'll be seeing you," she tells both of them, and exits the box.

As soon as she's out, the doors sling closed, and the box disappears, back off into the time vortex.

***

The next day, Sophie heads back to classes. The day seems to whiz by, and she heads to the Doctor's office as soon as her last class lets out. Swinging the door open, she finds that the Time Lord isn't in the room. Shrugging, she picks up where she had left off the previous day, filing all of his paperwork.

It doesn't take her much longer to finish cleaning his office, and, as she slides the last piece of paper into the filing cabinet, the Doctor swans into the room. "Ah, Lynny, how are you?"

"Just fine. A hairy-legged highlander showed up in my flat last night, and I helped him fight an alien."

The Time Lord flops down into his wheelie chair, steepling his fingers, "Ah, Jamie, how I miss him."

"He wasn't too impressed when I told him you sound Glaswegian." she replies, hopping up to sit on the edge of his desk. The Gallifreyan lets out a deep chuckle, but doesn't get the chance to say anything else, as Sophie's mobile starts to ring. She slips it out of her jacket pocket, seeing Jack's number flashing across the screen. She hops off the desk, and shoots the Doctor an apologetic look, "Sorry, gotta take this." He simply waves her off, spinning his chair around. Once the door to the office is closed, the woman leans against the wall, flipping the phone open, "Hello."

The familiar American accent comes filtering through, as the Captain asks, "How's your knowledge of 1950's life?

She blinks, "What, no hello, how are you?"

She can practically hear his eyes roll through the phone, "Sophie?" he asks.

"I know quite a bit, but not as much as you, Mr. World War II Great Coat."

"I know it's short notice, but it's your holiday break. Ianto's on his way, and I could really use your help, kid."

Sophie sighs, and glances back at the Doctor's office, "Well, I would say let me pack a bag, but my backpack has what I need. Tell Ianto to meet me on the campus, if possible. I'll be seeing you soon, I suppose."

"Thanks Soph. You don't know how much this means to me."

She rolls her eyes, "Yeah, yeah, love you too." She hangs up the mobile, and trudges back into the Time Lord's office."So, bad news."

"You're heading off?" he guesses. "It's nearly Christmas, enjoy yourself. I'll be seeing you soon though," he winks.

"Alright, vague threats aside, I look forward to it. Happy Christmas, Doctor."

"Happy Christmas, Soph."

She sits down in a chair opposite his desk, "You don't mind if I hang out here, least till my ride gets here, right?"

He shrugs, "I always cherish your company, Lynny, you know that."

***

A few hours later, Sophie receives a text, telling her that Ianto is waiting. She says a quick goodbye to the TARDIS, and the Doctor and heads out to meet the Welshman. "Ianto," she greets, slipping into the passenger's seat.

"I'm sorry about all of this, Sophie. I told Jack he should ask you, instead of just assuming you can come."

She grins over at the man, as he pulls out of the car park, "Ah, don't worry about it. I'm honestly used to it. The Doctor is constantly showing up out of the blue, so I hardly ever make plans."

The Welshman chuckles, "Still, he shouldn't just pull you away."

She glances at the clock on the car's dash, and sighs, "I know it's gonna be a two hour drive. To be honest, I didn't get much sleep last night. The Doctor showed up, dragged me away. Would it offend you greatly if I tried to get some rest. Because I'm sure whatever's happening in Wales will keep me up as well."

The Welshman glances off the road for a moment, and meets her eyes, "Of course, Sophie. Get some rest. I can tell you it's going to be a long night."

She nods over at him, and curls her legs up on the seat, leaning her head against the headrest. About ten minutes later the sweet calls of sleep reach her, and she drifts off.

***

Sophie is woken up by a hand on her shoulder. Shaking her head, she glances over to see Ianto smiling at her, "We're here."

She scrubs a hand down her face, wiping any sleep from her eye. Opening the door, she is greeted by the smell of Cardiff. Ianto heads toward the tourist information centre, and Sophie flips her backpack over her shoulder and follows him down toward the Hub.