The Orphan and Her Family

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Sophie smiles, and looks at herself in the mirror. It's been a while since she's been invited to a party of any kind, and a fancy dress party is one of her favourites. Her blue swing dress sits perfectly, and she sighs, glad that she can fit in. Her phone pings, and she glances over the text, letting her know that her ride is there. She smiles, and pulls her coat on. Grabbing her bag, she swings out of the door and heads down to the car.

Climbing in, she's greeted by Jonathan and all of his friends. She offers a small smile, and the car rolls off. The party is approximately two hours away, so the group starts to chat. They arrive in Cardiff a couple hours later, and Sophie smiles as they cross the Plass. She's staring out the window, so she doesn't see the looks the group give each other. The driver starts to slow as they get into the darker part of the city. One of them leans around Sophie and grabs the door beside her, and pushes it open. She turns quickly, looking at him with wide eyes, and he shoves her out onto the street. They laugh loudly as she tumbles onto the curb, as they snap some photos.

***

Captain Jack Harkness moves to the stairs to enter the old dance hall. He turns to meet Toshiko's eyes, but spies a car driving slowly up. He reaches for his holster, fearing the worst. The car slows more, and a door swings open. A woman unceremoniously tumbles out of the vehicle, and hits the sidewalk hard. The car starts off down the road again, and the woman sits up, flipping the bird at the car. "You jerks could have at least dropped me near a bus stop!" she shouts at the retreating vehicle, and Jack can hear the pain in her voice.

Tosh's eyes widen, and she turns her gaze to Jack. The immortal feels his blood boil at the treatment of this woman. She turns away from the road, brushing her hair out of her face. The anger that he was feeling increases tenfold. "Wow, Soph," he starts, painting a smile on his face, "I can't go anywhere without bumping into you, huh?"

Her face snaps to his, and she swipes at her eyes. Her cheeks are red, and Jack can't tell if it's because she's embarrassed, upset, or cold. "Those guys are jerks," she tells him, and there's a waver in her voice.

"I will track them down and shoot them if you want," he offers.

He steps off the stairs, and she smiles, "Thanks for the offer, but unfortunately, murder is probably a no-no."

He shrugs, "Not if they're jerks." The first genuine grin of the day crosses her face, and she walks up to him, and wraps her arms around his torso. He smiles down at her head, and holds her back. She rests her head against his chest, and sighs. She steps back, and Jack takes her face in his hands, noticing the scraped skin on her cheek, "I swear if I ever see them I will shoot them."

She pulls away from him, "What sort of Torchwood investigation brings you here today?"

Jack frowns at her, but Toshiko takes a step forward, and smiles, "People have been reporting that they've heard 1940's music from inside this dance hall."

She smirks at Jack, "That doesn't sound like a normal Torchwood gig."

Jack shrugs, "They can't all be exciting." He seems to consider something, and then smiles at her, "You're more than welcome to join us if you want, kiddo."

She shrugs, and nods, following the duo into the old dance hall.

As they step inside, Tosh consults the device in her hand, "The Ritz dance hall. It's been derelict since 1989 but someone's complained about hearing music drifting out. Music from the 1940s?"

Jack holds a finger to his lips, "Shush. Listen." The trio stand in silence for a moment, and Sophie can hear what sounds like swing music. The Captain raises his eyebrows, and moves for the staircase, "You coming up?"

Tosh looks over at Sophie, who shrugs, and follows the Captain up to the dance floor. He gazes around the room, a look of calm across his face, "Wow," he breathes. "Look at the chandelier. No neon lights back then. Just dashing young soldiers and pretty young ladies." He grabs Sophie's hand, and begins to slow dance, "And as they danced, the girls would look into their partners' eyes, smile softly and say..." he spins her around, a smile on his face.

"How long before you head off to war?" Sophie grins, playing along.

He grins, grabbing her hand, and pulling her to the second set of stairs. Tosh rolls her eyes, and follows the duo. Jack heads for the exit when they reach the landing, "Come on. There's nothing here but memories and dust."

Just as Jack goes to pull open the door, the trio hear laughter and music drifting down from the dance hall. Jack and Tosh share a look, and head back for the stairs, Sophie following behind. Gazing out at the dance floor, Sophie's eyes widen, as men in uniforms twirl ladies around, dancing to the music from the band.

"They look so real," Tosh breathes, watching the dancers.

Sophie pulls her sonic out of her coat pocket, and scans the crowd, as Jack keeps his eyes in rapt attention on the dancers. She checks her readings, and grabs Jack's hand to get his attention, "They're not ghosts." She looks back at her sonic, "It's a temporal shift, pretty simple one too."

Jack once again gazes out at the dancers, "It's beautiful."

"We should get out," Toshiko states, turning back to the stairs.

Jack tears his eyes away from the scene in front of him, and grabs Sophie's hand, following the woman down the stairs. A man stands by the door, in an old jacket and a cravat, and smiles kindly at them, "Do call again."

Jack glances back up at the dancers, "I would love to."