She had been there for two weeks now, and nothing. As per Jack's instructions, Rachel had managed to integrate herself with the most influential students in school. And none of them had so far expressed any interest in the more 'creative' subjects.
This was a waste of time. What the hell had UNIT been thinking? Ok, so a lot of the kids were building stuff, and not necessarily recognisable stuff, but how could they be a threat? It was ridiculous.
"Hey, Rach?" Rachel looked up to see Cindy standing over her. "Rach, we're going to be late for maths"
Putting away the notes she had been writing, Rachel sighed and grabbed her bag. She sure as hell didn't imagine she'd be back at school again. She had thought those days were happily behind her.
"Have you heard anything from her?" Ianto asked as he brought Jack another cup of coffee.
"Nope." Jack saw the look of concern on his lover's face and, despite what he had said about not being the jealous type, felt a slight pang at the obvious affection Ianto felt for the girl. He covered it well. "That's probably a good thing," he told Ianto "I told her only to use her headset in emergencies. And besides, you'll be seeing her at the weekend, wont you?"
That was the rule. Boarders at the school had no access to telephones during the week, but were allowed to visit home during the weekends. That was when, provided she didn't run into any problems, Rachel could report to them. They had, however, now had two consecutive weekends, with nothing to report.
Jack took a sip of his coffee and grimaced. "Damn, Ianto! Are you sure you couldn't bring the coffee machine here? This stuff just does not compare."
Ianto smiled at the look on Jack's face. "Sorry, sir. It was too big to get out of the Hub."
That was one of the bad things about having to live at Toshiko's. Only the very necessary things had been bought from the Hub, which meant that several times Jack had wanted something which just wasn't there. And he couldn't even go to the Hub in case he was followed, had to rely on Ianto to bring anything they needed with him when he visited. With a sigh, Jack turned back to the report he was reading.
"You're WHAT?!" Rachel looked at her 'friend' in horror.
"I'm. Taking. Up. Woodwork" said Rebecca, as though talking to an idiot.
"But…why? I thought you said anything that involved the use of your hands in a lesson was a waste of time, as it wasn't going to get you into a good Uni?"
Rebecca tossed her long black hair, attracting admiring glances from several of the boys seated nearby. "Did I? Well…I was so immature. I've grown up since then"
"It was yesterday!"
"Whatever. Hey, you should join in! It'll be great fun!"
Rachel felt a stab of unease. Was it mind control? Drugs? She couldn't work it out. One thing was for sure, and that was that Rebecca was not going to take up woodwork without some sort of influence. Should she call for Torchwood?
No. said a little voice in the back of her brain. Calling in to tell them about this will show them you can't cope. This is the first sign that anything weird is causing this, its not like you're in immediate danger. Besides, you've handled all sorts. Daleks. Flitters. Demus. You can handle a bunch of teenagers armed with chisels and hammers. Maybe joining this group could give you the 'inside scoop', so to speak?
"Sure, why not?" she said aloud. "I'll come to the next lesson. After all, what's the worst that could happen?"
Which just went to show how wrong someone can be.
The following weekend saw Toshiko standing outside the school gates, waiting. She wasn't in the best of moods, probably due to the rain. And due to the fact that Gwen got to sit in the car, because she was speaking to Jack and couldn't risk being overheard. She waved as she saw Rachel emerge from the front doors. A huge grin burst onto the young woman's face, and her walking pace increased slightly.
"Tosh!" she called as she got near. "What are you doing here! I was expecting Dad!" It was true that Jack normally came to get her, but Toshiko frowned uncertainly. "Rachel, didn't Ja– um, didn't James arrange that I was coming this week? I'm sure you were told last weekend."
"Was I?" Rachel frowned briefly, and then an unconcerned look washed over her face. "Oh well, I must have forgot. Its great to see you, how's Owen? Did he…"
But just what Rachel wanted to know about Owen, Toshiko never found out, as at that moment they came within sight of the car and Rachel spotted Gwen. She froze, and a look of intense dislike appeared.
"What," she demanded, "is SHE doing here?"
Gwen looked up, surprised. They were close enough for her to have heard this exclamation. Ignoring the look on the young woman's face, she smiled brightly.
"Hey babe" she said cheerfully as Rachel climbed into the car. "How is everything?"
The look that Rachel directed at her could have killed. "Like you care. Just because you married dad, does not make you my mother!" she muttered something Gwen couldn't hear, due to Toshiko starting the engine and driving off, then turned away rudely and stared out the window at the trees flashing past.
"Rachel? Is everything ok? I mean, are we free to talk?"
"Why wouldn't it be? Just don't expect me to talk to you." She turned her attention to Toshiko. "So, have you and Owen managed to find a flat yet? I mean, you can't go on living with me and dad forever, can you?"
Toshiko and Gwen exchanged startled looks. Why was Rachel talking about her fake family story? Was she bugged or something? She certainly wasn't indicating so. It was as if… Gwen looked sharply in the mirror at Rachel. Had they got to her? She seemed to think that the cover story was real life…
"Could you drop me off here, Tosh?" she asked "I need to pick up a few things for James' dinner."
"Sure" said Toshiko, giving her a look that plainly said what the hell are you doing?
Trust me Gwen tried to convey back. As soon as the car had driven out of sight, she activated the earpiece she wore. "Jack?...yeah, its Gwen…listen, we may have a problem with Rachel…"
Rachel opened her eyes. And looked around. She was shackled to the wall in what looked like a deserted corridor. Except that on the walls… she shuddered. Lining the walls, shackled just like her, were people. It was too dark to see any of their faces. She could see at least 20 people along her section of corridor, but she thought she could see others branching away. How many were down here anyway? She struggled with the cuffs, but they were too tight. Why hadn't she called Jack when she had the chance? She thought about what had happened, about how Rebecca had jumped on her as they entered the technology room, held her down, injected her... it was too late now. She had no way of reaching them; her headset was back at the school. She shifted uncomfortably and felt something dig into her chest. Looking down, she could see a slight lump under her shirt. The sonic eyeliner. She had stuffed it into her inside pocket before leaving the dorm that morning! But how to get it? Her hands were securely fastened on either side of her. Could she get it in her teeth? She bent her head down as far as she could and arched her chest. Almost… but almost wasn't good enough. She took a deep breath and tried again, reaching down with her head as far as possible. Her neck burned with pain, but this time she felt the slim tube graze against her teeth. It took another 3 attempts, but eventually she had the eyeliner in her mouth. Her sense of elation vanished quickly, however, as she realised that she still couldn't reach it with her hands. She was going to have to use her mouth. Using her tongue, she twisted it round until she felt the bump that was the 'ON' button. Preying it had enough juice left; she aimed it at one of her cuffs and pressed. A dull green light illuminated the chamber and the cuff popped open. Gratefully, she took the eyeliner out of her mouth, and undid the cuffs securing her other wrist and her feet. Just as the final cuff unclasped, the light died.
"Fuck" she muttered, shaking it and pushing the button once more. Nothing happened. "I hope there are no doors I need to open." She said to herself, and turned to leave. And froze. There, suspended 3 feet away from where Rachel had been, was Rebecca. Closer inspection of some of the other people revealed several other classmates she recognised. All of whom did some form of tech. and all of whom had a puncture mark on the side of their throat. What am I dealing with here?? She wondered. As she moved further down the corridor, she realised that she recognised all these people. Shit! Her sudden realisation left her cold. This isn't mind control we're dealing with here. This is body swapping! Cloning! She set off again, and then another thought trickled into her brain. She was down here. They had got her. And that meant… "Oh god." She whispered, horror struck. "They've sent a duplicate of me back home. Back to Torchwood. They could learn everything about us!" she hurried her pace, making sure to keep quiet and keep to the shadows. No normal human could have done it so well, she thought, if it weren't for the Kalamarai training she would be screwed. She turned into yet another corridor, expecting to find more school-mates. Instead, she saw a door at the far end. She ran towards it, praying it would be unlocked and that, if it was, there would be nothing but freedom behind it. She grasped the handle and pushed experimentally. The door swung open easily, silently. Gratefully she slipped through it…
…and found herself in the stretch of woodland that separated the school from the main road, not far from the posted walk. Turning quickly back to the closing door, she saw that it was concealed within a large mossy boulder. Clever she thought. But now what? Back to Toshiko's? No, she couldn't do that. If these … aliens or whatever was causing this had cloned her, they would have sent it back there. And there was still the chance that the team had realised what had happened and were playing along. It was slight, but it was there. The school then? She certainly couldn't stay out in the open like this. She set off at a hurried jog, keeping to the trees. She gasped as she nearly collided with a figure in front of her, and reared back, ready to fight. Then she realised the figure was Ianto.
"Oh my god" she said as she lowered her hands. "What the hell are you doing here? Did Jack send you?"
Ianto stared at her, polite, uncomprehending. She felt a chill of fear.
"I'm sorry, do I know you?" he asked.
"It's me, it's Rachel." He stared at her blankly. She frowned. "Where do you work?" she asked him.
"In a tourist office, why?" the young Welshman's eyes darted to the side, clearly fearing he was talking to someone unstable.
He doesn't know me she realised. They got him, too. How had they found out about the tourist office? Ok, so local people knew, or thought they knew, that that was where Ianto worked, but this school wasn't exactly local to the Hub. Did they have other people as well? How far did this spread? Suddenly, she was afraid. Should she run? Or would that make him suspicious? She was thinking about this, when she suddenly remembered the ease at which 'Rebecca' had accepted what she was told. Would the same work here?
"Alex? Alex, do you know who I am?" she said, softly.
Uncertainty flickered in the young man's eyes. "I'm sorry; you must have me mistaken with someone else. My name is Ianto. Excuse me." He started to turn, but was stopped by her arm.
"Ianto? No, Alex, darling, please!" she was crying now, but the tears were entirely real. How dare they take Ianto? She was one thing, but he was nothing to do with this. He was innocent.
"I don't know what you mean" but there was uncertainty in his voice now. "Why do you call me Alex?"
"Alex, Ianto is gone, he's dead. You're Alex, remember? I know you miss your twin, I know you do, but he's gone. Taking over his job can't have helped. I know. I should never have let you leave the house. Alex…"
"Rachel…?" it was working, it had to be working. "I…I remember. Ianto is gone. Yes." It had worked. They expected people to tell them the truth, and why not? You don't often lie to your friends and family about their identity.
"Come on, darling, let's get you home." As he turned and allowed her to push him softly in the direction of the road however, she hit him softly on the side of the head. Instantly, he crumpled. She knew he would be out for at least 8 hours now. She paused, uncertain. What should she do? Should she go back into the lair, try and find the real Ianto? Before this thought had even fully crossed her mind, however, she dismissed it. Even if she did find Ianto, what could she do? The eyeliner was out of power. Her only option was to get him to the school so she could get her headset and contact the team. Then she could go back to the Hub. Picking him up and slinging him over her shoulder, she headed for the school.
She silently made her way down the hallways; hoping no-one would open the cupboard she had stored 'Ianto' in. she was grateful it was the weekend, about 95 of the students and staff had gone home for a couple of days. She was surprised, therefore, to see a light on in one of the physics labs. Was there a teacher in there? If so, she could use their help, say that something of hers was in the staffroom and she needed their swipe-card to get in. then she could look around in there. She composed herself, and looked through the frosted glass of the door. There was definitely someone in there. A man, she thought. She pushed open the door.
"excuse me sir, I know lessons have stopped and I should have gone home, but I need…" she stopped. Her chest leapt uncomfortably and her whole body flashed hot and cold in shock. She swallowed.
The man looked up, and instantly the shock she felt inside was mirrored on his face. This was no ordinary physics teacher.
It was the Doctor.
To Be Continued...
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