Doctor Who_ Wolfsbane - Jac Rayner [85]
but breathing. Sweet pink and white blossoms began to fall from the trees, covering her nakedness.
The Doctor held up the steak knife. „Stainless steel,‟ he said. „She‟ll get better.‟
Sarah emotions were all over the place. „Did you know that before you stabbed her?‟ she asked accusingly.
„I was fairly sure,‟ he said. „And I thought it might reverse the change too. All in all, it seemed worth the risk.‟
„But you didn‟t ask her if she was prepared to take the risk,‟ said Sarah, looking at the unconscious figure - no longer a wolf, no longer a threat, but a human woman who could have been a friend or a sister.
„No,‟ said the Doctor. „I didn‟t.‟
The Doctor, in his guise of house agent, had walked boldly into the Leffy house and packed a suitcase full of Emmeline‟s belongings, the things that she hadn‟t found the nerve to collect before. For that, she was grateful; she had little enough in the world. They hadn‟t talked much after she had regained consciousness. Perhaps she understood why the Doctor had done what he had done, perhaps she even forgave him. He had rescued her once, after all. But she was wary now, and did not like to be alone with him. She would not stay in England any longer, she said. Her hopes had been dashed. She had thought it was a place of safety, a place to hide from persecution and torture, but she had been wrong.
There was nothing here to stay for, any more. Sarah got the impression that Emmeline had perhaps been a bit fond of Harry Sullivan. She thought about telling her that Harry hadn‟t really died, but decided it wouldn‟t be lair. As well as far too complicated.
„I shall make my way back to Germany,‟ she said. „It may not be easy, but I have made the trip once, and I will do it again. And then, if they are there, I shall liberate my people.‟
As they made their farewells, Sarah suddenly thought of something, and had to have her curiosity assuaged. „I hope you don‟t mind me asking,‟ she began, and then thought that for the worry she‟d been put through she deserved an answer, and took some of the polite request out of her tone.
„The Doctor said it‟s not just a werewolf bite that turns someone into a werewolf. So what is it?‟
Emmeline smiled, a little sadly, as if considering something. Finally she answered. „It is merely desire,‟ she said. „It is just that one has to want the other person to change.‟
Then she turned and walked away.
Back in the TARDIS, Sarah watched the Doctor set the exact coordinates for the rescue of Harry Sullivan.
„So, you had it all figured out,‟ she said.
„Well - more or less,‟ he said modestly. „If the werewolf is connected to the land, and the werewolf shedding blood enables someone to grab control, how much more powerful must it be if the blood of the werewolf itself is spilt? Enough to enable one to control the earth without needing recourse to magic spells.‟
„Or so you hoped,‟ Sarah said. She thought for a moment.
„Will she get back OK? And will she liberate all the other werewolves?‟
„With the Second World War coming, and both sides wanting to use them as secret superweapons?‟ said the Doctor. „I very much doubt it.‟
He flipped the final switch, and the TARDIS began to go back in time.
Harry didn‟t spot the cave entrance at first. In fact, he probably would never have seen it, if it had not been for the bushes and flowers easing out of his way and creating a path. And then, as the path ended, a giant yellow gorse suddenly peeled back on itself and revealed an opening.
Harry had to duck down to get into the cave. His senses were already overwhelmed with the smells of the forest, but suddenly they were blotted and smothered by the glorious scent wafting towards him now. He stepped inside. A hundred thousand bluebells covered the floor - he could hardly bring himself to step forward, he didn‟t want to tread on them. But when he did finally make his way in, he saw that every flower he crushed sprang back to life the instant his foot left it. The cave was small, but its walls were formed from crystal, made iridescent