Daughter of Torchwood

The 456

There is very little homophobic language in this chapter. I support the LGBTQIA+ community, love who you want to love and be who you want to be. The comment is just what was said in the episode.

Also, just three chapters left, guys.

The loud, frantic knocking at the front door broke the heavy silence of the afternoon. Luke pulled it open, his mind halfway through a calculation for Mr Smith, but the sight of the girl on the doorstep made his thoughts vanish.

Starla looked exhausted. Her chambray shirt was stained with Cardiff grit, her skater skirt was wrinkled, and her eyes were rimmed with red. After forty-eight hours on the run, sleeping on potatoes, dodging snipers, and mourning her home, the sight of Luke was the final straw. She didn't say a word; she just collapsed into his arms.

Luke caught her, pulling her inside and kicking the door shut. He wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her hair and kissing the side of her head. "I've got you," he whispered, "I've missed you so much."

"I missed you too," she sobbed into his chest, her fingers clutching his shirt as if she were afraid he might disappear.

"Starla?" Sarah Jane hurried out of the living room, her face pale with relief. She stepped forward, pulling the teenager into a protective embrace, "Oh, thank goodness. We've been so worried. Are you hurt? Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Starla managed, wiping her face with a shaking hand, "Just tired. And I feel like I stink. I've been in these clothes since the Hub blew up."

"Go and have a shower," Sarah Jane said firmly, already in maternal mode, "I'll wash what you're wearing. You'll find some of your old things in the dresser."

Starla nodded gratefully and headed upstairs to her old room. After a long shower had scrubbed away the physical grime of the last two days, she changed into a pair of soft pyjamas. She was sitting on the edge of the bed when Sarah Jane appeared with a plate, and Luke followed close behind.

"Hungry?" Sarah Jane asked, setting a sandwich down.

"A little," Starla admitted, "Gwen, Rhys, and I managed to get some food at a cafe, but it feels like a lifetime ago."

Luke sat beside her, taking her hand, "What about Ianto? And Jack?"

Starla's expression darkened, "I don't know about Ianto. But Gwen and Rhys have gone to break Dad out. He's being held at a military compound." Her voice dropped to a whisper, "The explosion at the Hub... it was inside him. It's the government, Sarah Jane. They're trying to wipe us out."

Sarah Jane sank into the chair opposite the bed, her face etched with worry, "So you're in real danger. All of you."

"Yeah. Gwen and Rhys are using an undertaker's cover to get into the compound this evening. I knew a teenager would just be a liability for that kind of bluff, so I came here. I needed to know you were safe, and I needed to regroup."

She started to stand, her instincts telling her to keep moving, but Sarah Jane reached out and stopped her, "Tell me what you need, Starla? I'll get what I can before the morning. But you are staying here tonight. You need to sleep."

Starla sank back into the mattress, the adrenaline finally leaving her. She gave Sarah Jane a list.

The next morning, the attic felt still. Sarah Jane handed her a packed bag filled with everything she'd requested, "Are you sure you don't want a lift, Starla? I can take you as far as the warehouse."

"No," Starla said, pulling on her brown lace-up boots, "If they're tracking, they might be watching the roads. I don't want them to link you to this. That's why I walked from the station yesterday."