Chapter One: A Day in the Life of Thalia Tyler

"Thalia! Get up already! You're going to be late for school and your breakfast is getting cold," Rose Tyler shouted up the staircase of her townhouse.

Thalia Tyler lay semi-conscious in her indigo felt pajamas with bright stars on them. Her light brown hair covered her barely–open hazel eyes. She rolled over and shouted, "I'm coming, Mum."

Thalia sat up in her bed before walking to her personal bathroom. She splashed cold water on her face to wake herself up. She then brushed her teeth, and then her hair, which she then straightened. Next, she went to her closet to put on her school uniform, which consisted of white Peter Pan collared shirt, dark blue blazer, knee-length blue plaid skirt, white lacy socks, and saddle oxfords. She had ironed her clothes last night, as she did every night whenever her mother could convince her to take a break from homework and reading.

Thalia finally joined Rose at the kitchen table. Rose was sitting across from Thalia, sipping a cup of coffee. She had just placed bacon and eggs at Talia's place. "Good morning, sweetie. Glad you could finally join me," she said.

"Good morning, Mum. Did you see the stars last night?"

"The stars?" Rose asked, confused. "I see the stars every night, dear. Why do you ask?"

"There just seemed to be fewer out last night. I couldn't even see any planets. It's almost like they're disappearing before my eyes. Bit unusual this time of the year. You and Uncle Mickey should talk to the Torchwood team about it."

Rose thought, "The stars are going out. This can't be good. Her dad would know what to do." But her father was not there, so this was a problem for her, Mickey, and the Torchwood team. But, not to concern her daughter, she said, "I will. It's probably nothing, though."

Thalia gulped down some water before moving on to a different topic. "So Gus's little brother just got a new hamster and Gus wants us all to come see it after school today."

"You know the rules. Once you get home from school, you do your homework. Seeing your friends interferes with your education. And you know how I feel about his mother," Rose said sternly.

"Her weight means nothing to me and it shouldn't to you either. But why not just this one time, Mum? I'm doing well in all my classes," Thalia pleaded.

"Rules are rules, Thalia."

Thalia sighed and said, "Fine, Mum." She and Rose silently finished the rest of their breakfast.

The car ride to Talia's school, Queen Elizabeth Academy, was no less tense than the breakfast. "So Chloe and I were talking and she wants to go to the mall this weekend," Thalia stated.

"You know, Thalia, I really don't like you going to malls by yourself," Rose said.

"But I won't be by myself. Chloe will be with me. And Gus. And maybe some other kids."

"I mean by yourselves with no trusted adults with you."

"It's a mall, Mum, not a pub. Besides, you don't trust any adults besides yourself, Nana, Grandpa, Uncle Mickey, and the Torchwood people."

"Exactly," Rose smirked. "And if I can't get any of those people to watch you while I'm at work, then you can't go."

"I'm fifteen years old, Mum. I can take care of myself, and so can my friends. Why don't you trust me?" Thalia asked.

"Oh, sweetie, it's not you I don't trust. The world is a very dangerous and unpredictable place. You could get the rug pulled out from under you at any moment and I just can't bear the thought of you in danger," Rose said.

"I know Mum." Soon, they pulled up to Queen Elizabeth Academy.

"I'll see you later, dear," Rose said. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Thalia said. She unbuckled her seat belt, gave her mother a kiss goodbye, and hopped out of the car.

Thalia headed toward her locker, saying hi to some of her classmates and looking at the posters on the bulletin board. Some of them were for different clubs, organizations, and sports teams. Others were motivational. One that Thalia always liked had a picture of the stars at night and said, "Reach for the stars."

Thalia was staring intently at her favorite poster when she heard a "Hey, Thalia!" from down the hall. She turned her head and saw her two best friends, Chloe and Gus, excitedly heading towards her.

"Hey guys, what's up?" she asked.

"Did you hear about the new game that's opening in the mall tomorrow right next to the arcade?" Gus asked. Thalia shook her head. "Well it's called 'The Strongest Link' and it's for the smartest kids around."

"You have to be good at history, science, and astronomy and that's you all over, Thalia," Chloe said.

"You guys are smart, too," Thalia said.

"But you're the smartest," Chloe said. "You have to go."

"It sounds amazing, it really does. But there's no way my mum would let me go. She won't even let me go see your little brother's new hamster, Gus."

"Aw, man," Gus said.

"Your mum never lets you go anywhere or do anything exciting. Just this once, go out and have fun without her. Get a taste of what the rest of us do," Chloe said.

"She'd ground me for the rest of my life."

"Then ask her," Chloe suggested.

"I'll try, but there's no way she'd say yes. She's so paranoid about the mall, like the window dummies are going to come alive and grab me or something crazy like that."

"Sneak out then. What she doesn't know won't hurt her, right?"

"Then she would ground me for all eternity."

"Just think about it, Thalia. Our parents let us go out and have fun and we turn out just fine every time. What makes you so different from the rest of us?" Chloe asked.

"Other than the facts that you're wicked smart and agile and you totally want to be the first British girl in space," Gus chimed in.

"Well there is the whole…two hearts thing," Thalia whispered. Although it was something her mother had tried to keep as secret as possible, Thalia trusted Gus and Chloe enough to tell them.

"True. But when you look at it, you're in no more danger than the rest of us. So just ask your mum about it and try to go?" Chloe pleaded.

Thalia smiled and said, "Okay, I'll try." The three best friends headed off to class.

At lunch that day, the topic was revisited. "So what happens when you win this game?" Thalia asked.

"That's the million dollar question," Gus answered. "I've heard money, an American sports car, a university scholarship, a cruise to the Caribbean, everything you can think of."

"Whatever. We've got to come up with a way to convince your mum to let you go," Chloe said.

"Unless that plan involves the Royal Air Force, I don't think you'd have much luck," Thalia said.

"Hi Thalia! Mind if I join you guys?" a voice piped up. The three friends lifted their heads. It was Tony Tyler, the son of Jackie and Pete Tyler, born just one month after Thalia. Because of the small age gap between Tony and Thalia, they saw each other more as cousins instead of uncle and niece.

"Yeah, of course," Thalia said. Tony sat down next to Thalia and placed his tray on the table. Chloe and Gus grinned at first each other and then at Thalia, as if they had a plan in mind. Thalia grinned back, catching on to their idea.

"Tony, do you have any plans for tomorrow after school?" she asked.

"No, not really."

"Well how would you like to come with us to the opening of that new 'The Strongest Link' game at the mall tomorrow?"

"I'd love to. It sounds like fun. Sounds like a lot of stuff your mum and my dad would know about, huh?"

"Sure does. Be sure to tell Nana that I am going with my uncle," Thalia insisted.

"I will," Tony said, before continuing to eat his lunch. Thalia, Gus, and Chloe grinned at each other, finally seeming to find a loophole in Rose's strict orders.

Later that night, after Rose and Thalia had finished dinner, Thalia decided to bring up the topic again. "So, Mum, there's this game that's opening tomorrow at the mall. It's called 'The Strongest Link.' It's like a quiz show for history and science and outer space and I think I'd be really good at it. It's supposed to have lots of cool prizes and I'll be going with my friends and my uncle, whom I know you love and trust."

Rose turned from wiping down the table to face her daughter, who had just finished loading the dishwasher. "Mickey and I have some very serious business to attend to tomorrow, darling. We won't have time to take you to your game. Maybe I can go with you another time."

"But I'll still be with people you know-"

"Tony doesn't count as the responsible adult in this case, Thalia. He's one month younger than you."

Thalia's mouth dropped, shaking her head in disbelief that her plan had failed.

"How stupid do you think I am? Tony is the kind of child who respects his mother and tells her everything. And I am the kind of daughter who listens when my mother has something to tell me because I know that she is looking out for her family," Rose scolded her daughter.

Thalia scoffed. "I am going to get that little rat."

"Well you're going to have to wait a while to do that because for the next two weeks, you are grounded," Rose continued.

"I might as well be already grounded now. You never let me go anywhere or do anything exciting. Day after day, it's always the same old routine: get up, get dressed, go to school, come home, do homework, do chores, and go to bed. There's never any down time, never any fun time with my friends. I only see them at school. Do you realize how frustrating that is for me? I get good grades in school. I think I deserve at least one afternoon off with my friends. I just want to be normal. Why won't you let me go?" Thalia shouted at her mother.

"Because I said so, Thalia. I set these rules to protect you. You don't know what the outside world is like," Rose shouted back. "There are strangers and monsters and-"

"I'm not a baby anymore, Mum. So stop treating me like one!"
"Then stop acting like one!"

"You can't protect me forever!"

"Watch me. Go to your room, Thalia!"

"It's times like these when I wish you weren't my mother," Thalia screamed as she stomped up the stairs and slammed the door to her room. Rose groaned into a nearby pillow, shook her head, and ran her fingers through her hair.

"If only she knew how vulnerable she was. If only her dad were here. He'd know what to do," Rose thought to herself before releasing silent tears into the pillow.