Disclaimer: Alex Rider is not mine. Nor is Doctor Who.

The day had been a fairly normal one. Well, near the beginning, of course. Alex Rider, now nearing 21 years of age, had left college for the weekend. He and Sabina were heading back to the house they called home, to celebrate Edward Pleasure's birthday. Sabina had picked him up at his dorm and, after somehow managing to fit his duffel bag in between all of hers, they were off.

The top of the convertible was down, the wind streaming past them. Sabina's dark brown hair flew in the wind behind her as her foot pressed the gas pedal down farther and farther. She certainly liked speed.

"So, how's college been treating you, Alex?" she called over the sound of the roaring wind.

"Great, Sab," he said back, talking loudly as well.

"And the girlfriend? What was her name again?"

"Nikki. She's great. And what boyfriend are you on again?" Alex shot her a look.

Sabina flashed a smile at him. "It's Damian this week!" They were perfectly at ease talking about each others' girlfriends and boyfriends. Because of living together for almost six years, they realized they weren't quite cut out for each other. But it was no loss, either. They liked being brother and sister.

"Good God! Why do all of them sound like they're gay?" asked Alex, grinning.

"Because half of them have turned out to be!" she laughed. As they turned down the Pleasure's street, Sabina pointed with a hand. "Look! Mum and Dad are out waiting for us!"

Sure enough, as Alex looked, he could see Edward and Liz Pleasure standing out on the front lawn, waving with cheesy grins on their faces. The car pulled up into the driveway and the two got out. Much hugging was done, followed by "Hello"s and "How've you been?"s.

"Well, come on, then," said Edward. "Grab your bags and let's get inside."

"Sab's going to need help," Alex joked. "She brought enough stuff to provide for a small army."

Sabina hit him in the arm lightly. "Good thing I've got someone who'll help me carry it all in."

"Who, me?" asked Alex. When she nodded, he shrugged. "Sorry, Sab, but my hands are full." Quickly, he grabbed his bag and dashed for the house.

"Alex Rider! You get back here!" cried Sabina.

He ignored her and went into the house, followed closely by Liz. "Why don't you go put your stuff in your room, Alex? Lunch will be ready in a few minutes, so don't take too long," the woman said. Alex nodded and began to leave the room, when Liz said something else to him. "Oh, and there was a letter for you in the mail today. Don't know how they knew you'd be here, but it's on your bed, sweetie."

"Thanks, Liz." With that, he took the stairs two at a time, to the second story. Down the hallway to the second door on his left. That was Alex's room, as it had been ever since he'd moved here when he was fifteen. Not much had changed about the house. But a lot had certainly changed about him. Almost unconsciously, Alex's hand moved up to touch the key that hang on a necklace around his neck. You'll need this, in the future, he'd been told. The thing had hung around his neck ever since.

He pushed open the door and the first thing he saw was the envelope sitting on his bed. It was a dark blue, a very familiar color. That's a bit odd, he thought. He let his duffel bag fall to the ground beside the door as he walked over to his bed. Sitting down on it, Alex picked up the letter. Here goes nothing... he thought as his finger tore through the glue holding the envelope shut.

Fifteen minutes later, Sabina came stomping up the stairs. "Alex? Mum told me to come find you, see what was taking you so long..." She turned into his room to find him sitting on his bed, rereading the letter for what would be the seventh time.

"It's got to be a joke..." he mumbled to himself. "But it's not."

"Alex?" asked Sabina.

His head snapped up. "I've got to go."

"What?" she said. "But we just got here!"

Alex stood up, stashing the letter into his back pocket. "I'm sorry, Sab, I really am. But this is important." He moved toward the door and picked up his duffel bag. Shouldering it, he walked past her, out into the hall.

"Alex! What is going on?" she demanded.

He turned to her, a faint smile on his face. "I've got to go save the world. Again. Tell Edward I'm sorry for missing his birthday, will you?" With that, he was gone. In a few seconds, Sabina could hear the garage door opening and the sound of a motorcycle starting up. Then, it faded into the distance, as did its rider. Sabina looked into Alex's room, where she saw the blue envelope. It had fallen to the ground as Alex had stood up. Stepping inside, she picked it up. On the back was a number five.

Odd, she thought.

… … … … … ARDW... … … … …

Alex couldn't stop thinking about the letter. It was practically burning a hole in his back pocket. Consciously now, he brought his hand up to the key around his neck. Yes, it was time to save the world again.

I'm coming, Doctor.

Finite.

Please, if you enjoyed, review and tell me what you liked. I'm not sure if I'll make this into a more-shot, or just leave it as this. It's a stand-alone for now, that's all I know. If I get good reviews, I might add more. Background information, present adventures, whatever.

Until next time.

~AM~