Clyde and Maria said goodbye and left the room.
‘He’s right,’ said Sarah, after a pause. ‘You were amazing. Again.’
‘I nearly destroyed everything,’ said Luke, shyly. ‘I messed up.’
‘I messed up.’ Sarah Jane stared down at her feet. ‘The new building, the strangeness of it… Of all people, I should have seen it. Instead, I sent you and Maria right in there. And it was nearly the end of you.’
Luke put his hand on her shoulder. ‘But I’m still here,’ he said, with an affectionate grin. ‘Always will be… Mum.’
Sarah’s face lit up in a blazing smile.
She wasn’t alone in the universe anymore.
Epilogue
Maria stared out of her bedroom window at the big house across the road. Above, the stars twinkled in the night sky.
She thought back over the day. How they’d defeated the Slitheen, destroyed their machine, saved the Earth. Again.
Then she remembered tomorrow was just another normal school day. She’d wash, brush her teeth, put on her uniform and go in like nothing had ever happened.
But something had happened. She knew that. And so did Luke and Clyde. If they weren’t able to share their stories with the rest of the world, then at least they had each other.
Maria looked over at number thirteen. What would life have been like if she’d never moved here? She’d never have met Sarah Jane, never have known that alien worlds exist beyond the stars - and sometimes in your own backyard.
It had been a sad day when she and her dad had moved away from mum, and Maria had been forced to say goodbye to her old school and her old friends. But now, she thought, thanks to Sarah, she had an amazing new life and wonderful new friends. And what was more important than that?
Today wasn’t the first time Sarah Jane had brought sunshine back into the world.
Maria moved away from the window and lay back on her bed, gazing up at the ceiling.
Tomorrow was a whole new world, she thought. And maybe a whole new adventure.
She closed her eyes. And even though they were tightly shut, she was sure she could still see the stars, shining down through the darkness.
[Sarah Jane Adventures 02] - Revenge of the Slitheen Page 8