"Yep. Just you and me." He leant over to kiss me…

CRASH!

Chapter 2

We jolted apart at the sudden noise, which was almost immediately followed by distressed screams, pouring through the open kitchen door. Dashing to the door, Phil stopped only for a moment to pull an enormous chef's knife from the chopping board and wielding it nervously in his hand, before following Dan and the rest of the remaining kitchen staff into the dining area.

Whatever they had expected to see, neither boy was prepared for the sight before their eyes.

Dan recognized the man he'd been serving, Mr Smith, crouching behind a small shield he'd created by tipping over his desk. Alternating between ducking and then peering over the edge of the wooden surface, he had some strange kind of laser pointed directed at a crumpled figure, curled up on the floor, emitting a strange, blue glow. The person was surrounded by a circle of wreckage, as if each chair or table had been flung directly from their form, as various waiting staff and customers pulled away from the rubble, several nursing superficial injuries.

"It's okay, it's alright, and I promise I'm not going to hurt you!" The spiked hair popped up over the overturned table, followed by the laser pointer, which made a strange, electronic sound as it flashed green. "I know you're confused and you're afraid and that's okay! I can help you; please just calm down and I'll take you somewhere safe!"

"What's he doing?" Phil whispered, shifting his grip on the knife. His palms were sweating profusely and he didn't want it to slip from his grasp- not that he'd actually use it to attack someone. He couldn't explain why, but the threat of danger being in the same room as Dan had made him want to be armed- or at least look slightly threatening.

Mr Smith suddenly widened his eyes and bobbed down again. There was another wave of blue light, pulsing from the curled form, dissipating out around the circle of rubble. There was a sudden wail and the form- evidently a young woman, arched back, her hair falling back as she curved backwards over her calves, face glowing with strange insignia, like neon tattoos, carved across her brow, her cheekbones and down her neck.

Dan silently reached down and grabbed Phil's free hand, squeezing it hard. His heart was pounding behind his ribs, so loud he was sure that Phil must have heard it, but he has to stay strong for Phil. Whatever madness is going on, there had to be a way to get out of the restaurant- besides the front door which was blocked off by a stray table.

"Phil. Move backwards slowly into the kitchen- we can use the managers phone to call the police quietly so we don't disturb- it." Dan's voice was barely a whisper but to his surprise, Phil shook his head.

"We can't just leave everyone else here!" His murmur was barely audible over the various panicked voices already filling the room as well as the continual stream of apparent consoling that Mr Smith was calling out to the girl in the middle of the room.

"We would be more help if we went and got actual help, like the police?" Dan places himself more firmly in front of Phil. "No one even knows what the hell that is-"

"Oi! Don't call her an it, do you have any idea how rude that is?" The carrying voice of Mr Smith cuts across Dan's argument and they spin to face the stranger, who has edged slightly out from behind the table.

"I'm sorry but do you understand what's going on Mr Smith? Because if you do-"

"Mr Smith?" He interrupts Dan again, a bewildered expression creasing his eyebrows, "My name's the Doctor and of course I understand what's going on! Or, well, I hope I do! Now if everyone just calms down a little and listens to me, we can sort this out without too much disruption to your comfort." He turns around, now apparently addressing the whole room.

"My name is the Doctor and I'm a- err... government specialist! You have those on Earth, don't you? Good. Well everyone can calm down now, while I try and talk to this young lady and get her back home. If you could just move back a little and-"

Phil noticed the arm moving first, convulsing and reaching out, stretching beyond the natural arm length; aimed directly at the back of the Doctor's neck.

"Doctor! Behind you!"

What a wonderful chapter. I must say, Potatoes-are-not-for-sex, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I'm going to have to work pretty hard to match the excellence of this chapter. I hope I can do the next chapter well. Thanks to LubricateMyLlama for the first review.

Until then… ALLONSY!