Hello people of fanfiction! This is my first attempt at a Doctor Who one-shot based around the idea of "what about the civilian's in London that the Doctor saves?" So this is the result. This story takes place during the events of Runaway Bride and cuts to weeks before Partners In Crime.

"Good morning, what can I do for you?" Alice asked the suited man in front of the register. He looked her in the eye and smiled.

"Yes, hello, can you tell me what the day is?" He asked.

"December 22, anything else?" She said.

"No, thank you." He said, running out. Alice was extremely perplexed but let the thoughts fade as she took care of other customers. By the end of the day, she had forgotten the exchange. The next day, she headed in and went about as normal until she saw a ton of people crowding into the streets. It was another one of those things that Alice shrugged off. She had a job to do until somebody told her otherwise.

"Alice, come see this!" her coworker Janie called for her. Alice sighed and walked over to the window and flying high in the sky was a giant star shaped thing.

"It's an alien ship, so?" Alice commented. Had you said a sentence like that to her three years ago, she would've looked at you like you were mad. But since the missile strike on Downing Street and the ship in the Thames, the "freak earthquake" in Cardiff, living plastic mannequins, the Battle of Canary Wharf, and all the other shit that's happened, it's harder to not believe.

"You say it like it's an everyday thing." Janie said.

"Well, isn't it? So much has happened harder to believe we're alone in the universe." Alice replied.

"Well, let's go look!" Janie said, starting to tug on Alice's wrist.

"No way, England has yet to meet an alien race that didn't want to murder or enslave us. Therefore, no way in hell am I going out there." Alice ripped her wrist away. Sure enough, screaming was heard outside and lasers hit the sidewalk. "I told you so," Alice muttered pulling Janie away from the window. The duo made a break for the back room; they got to the door when all the screaming and laser buzzing came to a stop.

"I told you so." Alice told her as the two crashed to the floor. Janie simply rolled her eyes.

"Fine, but maybe one of these days there will be an alien race that doesn't want to kill us." Janie said. Alice shrugged and stood up, heading out.

"Maybe one of these days, see you tomorrow Janie." Janie nodded and watched Alice walked off until she turned the corner. When Alice got home, she crashed on her couch. A job that required standing on her feet all day got extremely tiring. So she sat in silence until she decided to turn on the news. The anchor was reporting about witnesses seeing a man, a flying box, and murderous Santa statues.
"Aliens sure do know how to get into the Christmas spirit." She commented with a chuckle. After a couple more hours, well more like two, she turned off the television and went to sleep. She spent her dreams thinking about the man in the box.

Alice lived through a lot of shit the months following the Christmas laser star. Lazarus's crazy experiment, Harold Saxon, Troplahane, the three public enemies including someone who looked like the man in the box, and the Titanic over Buckingham Palace. All in all, she was getting real sick of this alien shit. Seriously, couldn't they pick a different area of the world to fuck with and enslave? But in the end, she had managed to survive and go to work every morning like nothing was out of the ordinary. And again she was at the cash register when a man with wild hair, pinstripe suit, and flowy brown coat.

"Hi, what's the date?" He asked, a bit frantic, like he was in a rush to get somewhere.

"March 27, why?" She replied, taking in his appearance a bit more. She had to bite back a gasp when she realized that he was the man with the box. She was sure, but didn't say anything. He was staying anonymous for a reason. She wasn't going to blow his cover.

"The year?" He asked. She Alice considered this a weird question but answered it anyway.

"2008." Was her simple reply. Again, he said thanks and ran out. Alice peered out the window and in an alley just off the square was the blue box. She smiled to herself and took a sticky note, scrawled a note on it and ran out of the shop, Janie calling after her. "I'll be back in two!" Alice yelled over her shoulder. She darted into the alley and stuck the note on the door. She then ran back to the shop.

"What was that all about?" Janie asked when Alice came back into the shop.

"That box, and the man who owns it, is the reason Saxon didn't kill us, and why the Titanic replica didn't crash into Buckingham Palace. Whenever an alien threat is here, so is that box. It was here on Christmas too!"

"I assume you mean last Christmas," Janie said. Alice rolled her eyes but nodded. "So, what, you left a thank you note?"

"Yup."

"Be so happy that our boss is off this week. Otherwise he'd have your hide for leaving the shop." Janie said with a chuckle. Alice laughed as well and went back to work.

What the two girls didn't see, what the man in the suit return to the box. He was about to open the door when he saw the little yellow note stuck to it. He picked it up and read it.

To the man with the box,

Thanks =)

Signed, the entirety of the human race. (Seriously)

He read it again and smiled. Typically, he wouldn't take a thanks, but after the mess with the Titanic. He was willing to accept this one.

"You're quite welcome." He muttered to himself, disappearing into the box. He promptly stuck the note to his control panel. As a simple reminder that the little job he did wasn't entirely thankless.