Yvip didn't like the look of the Naglons. He had the sense that the feeling was mutual.

"How long will they be?" Therri growled, standing close enough to Yvip that he could feel the tips of the Naglon's facial hairs brushing against his own face.

"The Representative is obviously being very thorough in his interrogation," Yvip said soothingly. "Let me go check with him." He would enjoy being away from the Naglons for a little while.

He went down the corridor, and nearly collided with the Representative and his companions, and the Naglons. But something had changed - in fact a lot of things. The Representative's companions were wearing the Naglon's grey coveralls, and the two people with them - the ones wearing masks…

"May I ask what is going on here, please?" he said, crossing his arms and raising his chin just a hair.

The Representative coughed, then stepped forward. "Mr. Yvip, it is clear to me that these two young people are escaping the worst, the most hideous sort of oppressive society. And from my conversations with them, I strongly believe that Therri will not honour the decision, that is to say my future decision that I am about to make, that they should be allowed to live here and not be compelled to return to Naglon."

"And?"

"Well, I thought it would save some, well, save some trouble, if Elvit and Brot could just sort of, you know, stroll out of the transit building? While my companions stay here in the corridor, wearing their coveralls, and make the Naglons think that they are still here…"

The Representative's voice trailed off at the sight of Yvip's scowl.

"That is well outside the letter of the law. All members of a dispute are supposed to be present for the Representative's decision," he said severely. Then he paused, and a smile rose like white dawn on his blue face. "And it is my job to uphold the spirit of the law, and not the letter."

He reached out and took Elvit and Brot's hands in a clumsy three-way grip. "Good luck - I'll do all I can to help."

The Representative gave a relieved smile. "That's very decent of you, Mr. Yvip, a very decent thing indeed. Now, if you could just announce me?"

* * *

"How long do we have to stay here?" Victoria asked quietly. She and Jamie were standing in the corridor, backs to the room where the Doctor was getting ready to give his speech. They heard his voice.

"There's no reason for my friends to wait here, why don't they go out and see some of the sights. Mr. Villet, if you would be so kind as to point out the route to where they want to go?"

"Of course," said Mr. Villet a little too eagerly; Jamie would bet that Yvip had had a quiet word in his ear. "Come along, you two." And that was that: Elvit and Brot had escaped. Now the Doctor's task would be to keep the other Naglons here as long as possible, and keep them in the dark, to give the couple more time to get away.

"Now then." The Doctor's tone was so familiar that Jamie could picture him perfectly in his mind: feet spread a little apart, a serious look on his face, and perhaps with his thumbs under his suspenders. "Unaccustomed as I am to public speaking, it falls upon me to tell you all of the reasoning that has gone into my final, and legally binding, decision."

Jamie winked at Victoria with a smile; then his smile faded. There was someone else talking, hissing almost, who sounded like they were standing in the doorway between them and the Doctor. They couldn't turn around of course: one glimpse of their faces and the Naglons would know that they were impostors.

"Therri is unimaginative," the voice hissed. "He will give me to you for the torture; he values my expertise that much. I know exactly what I will do to you. Both of you. In fact, I think I will make you watch while we work, one to see and one to suffer, yes…"

Jamie held his finger to his lips, shushing Victoria. Their voices would be a dead giveaway - perhaps literally dead. They just had to stand there, backs to the door, and try to concentrate on the Doctor's words instead of the Naglon's hissing.

The Doctor was saying, "In the grand galactic tradition of universal sanctuary, where every planet acts as neighbours to one another in times of hardship-"

But closer and harder to ignore was the Naglon. He detailed tortures of maddening cruelty; a fair number of them seemed to concentrate on portions of anatomy that neither of the humans possessed, which made those words easier to disregard. But when he started describing exactly what the crew would do to Elvit, while Brot watched, Victoria felt her face redden again, this time in fury.

Jamie clenched his fist in front of her, and then made a striking motion, several times. Victoria remembered: Brot had told them that if they had to fight the Naglons, they should try to punch them in the sides, where a human's lower ribs would be. Victoria made a rather weak smile, and clenched her fist in turn.

But the Doctor sounded like he was winding up his speech.

"-and therefore, in my role of Justice Representative, I hereby declare that the Naglons known as Elvit and Brot shall be permitted to remain on this planet, as they have chosen."

"What? WHAT?" Therri's roar was unmistakable.

"Too late - they are ours!" the Naglon voice shouted right behind them, and heavy footsteps stamped against the steel floor. Jamie turned and raised his fists, and the Naglon came to a sudden halt.

"Where are they?" he nearly screeched, face purple.

"Back there," Jamie pointed, and the Naglon actually turned around and looked - just in time for the Doctor to slip round him. His face had lit with the brightest smile yet.

"And now I think we run," he suggested, and they ran. Behind them came shouts of alarm, and the sounds of sirens, but closer was the thudding of the charging Naglons in pursuit. The TARDIS was close, very close, just around this corner and down this corridor, but all the corridors looked alike….

* * *

"I will eat your hearts in front of your eyes, vermin!" Therri bellowed, and then slid ignominiously as the prey turned and vanished down another corridor. The crew's spacesuits were heavy enough that they were forced to run on two legs, which made them clumsy.

His face was nearly too swollen to be seen out of, black with rage. His men were going the wrong way down the corridor! The aliens were too fast. They had dodged round through the corridors, and were heading back towards him.

He couldn't get all of them. But he leaped forward, arms wide, and while one of the aliens went to each side and past, the third came to a halt almost within reach. He stepped forward, gloating. His men were close, he could hear them shouting. The aliens were shouting behind him as well, but he ignored them. Perhaps if he hurt this one enough, the others would come back to be captured. He reached out, slowly, staring at its ridiculous blank face.

It spoke, its tone as icy cold and stabbing as that of any Naglon female.

"How dare you raise your hand to a woman!" she demanded, and punched at him.

Her punch was soft and sloppy, her feet not braced, her knuckles uneven, but she planted her blow firmly into Therri's side, right in the place where every male Naglon feared to be struck. He twisted sideways and fell to his knees, his breath a screaming whistle, every nerve and fibre of his being telling him to cringe, to grovel, to not let this terrible female hurt him.

Distantly, he heard his Second-Fist give a barking laugh at his leader's predicament, but all he could see was the female - the alien female - as she strode over him, took her two companions in hand and escorted them into a blue box that faded away. Some sort of transport, he thought, swallowing his shame.

Then he rose to his feet. He would discipline his crew later; right now he had to prevent them (and himself, for that matter) from being taken captive by whatever security forces this planet had. "We go!" he bellowed. "Back to the Overborne! Combat formation!"

* * *

"Whoof!" said Victoria, breathing too fast in relief as she heard the TARDIS take off.

"Young lady, you were magnificent!' The Doctor beamed at her, and even Jamie looked impressed.

"Thank you, Doctor," she said, and gave a little nervous laugh. "I didn't know I had it in me."

"I did," said Jamie, and grinned at her look of incomprehension.

The Doctor inspected the TARDIS controls. "Well, we're safely on our way. And so are Elvit and Brot."

"Oh, I do hope they will be all right," Victoria fretted. "They seemed so sweet."

"Sweet? Under all that ripplin'?"

"Yes, but - oh Jamie, it was them that I liked, not their faces. I mean, I suppose if we had more time to be with them, we'd start to learn all the things their colours meant."

"Who knows? Perhaps someday they will learn to understand us as well." The Doctor frowned, adjusting a dial. "Someday."

* * *

The tour of the Barragan Corporation facility had gone quite smoothly. After Brot excused himself from Villet's office, and prepared to retrace his steps to his new quarters, Villet's manager Yrit unexpectedly dropped by. Villet cordially touched palms with him.

"All right, Villet, give." Yrit sat down and ran his fingers through his beard, making his rank-beads clink. "Why him?"

"Why him - you mean Brot?"

"Who else?" Yrit narrowed his eyes and stared at Villet. "You've bent over backwards and stretched several regulations to get him hired. He does show considerable intelligence, but there's the language barrier to overcome, a period of adjustment to this planet's environment - so. Why him?"

"You are aware of the new planetary regulations related to diversity in the workplace?" Villet arched one brow, pale against his blue skin.

"Naturally. Barragan has always been a forward-facing corporation."

"And the compensation for hiring non-native employees is very generous."

"Very. But-"

"And that compensation is based on the percentage of the alien race represented in the planetary population. And Brot is the only Naglon employed on this planet. Considering the exit that those other Naglons made from the spaceport-"

"How long until the damage is repaired, do you know?"

"They haven't said; a reactive drive fired at ground level is bound to do substantial damage, though." He recaptured his train of thought. "Anyway, it seems a safe bet that he could be the only Naglon working on the planet for some time."

Villet slid a sheet of plastic forward. "Here are the figures - scaled for projections of increased corporate rank over time, of course."

Yrit's eyes widened. "He could just sit on his hands and turn a profit for us."

"Not that we'll let him, of course. We'll give him access to all pertinent training; advance him at a due pace. We want him to be happy here, to work well and harmoniously-"

"And not get hired away by anyone else."

"Precisely."

"He's wearing a mask, isn't he? He certainly doesn't look like he did in that first communication."

"He was given it on leaving the transit building, apparently. Up to him if he decides to wear it at work or not." Villet pursed his lips. "All that mobile facial hair might be a hazard, otherwise. Contaminating the work area, etcetera." Villet touched his own smooth-shaven cheek.

"Point taken. And well done, Villet." Yrit tipped his head to his co-worker.

"My pleasure."