1x11 "Boom Town"
The Doctor had only just landed the TARDIS before there was a knock at her door. Jack, being the closest, answered. I merely listened in, "Who the hell are you?" He paused and said, "And who are you darling?"
I heard Mickey's voice say, "What d'you mean, who the hell am I? Who the hell are you? And don't hit on my girlfriend!"
"Captain Jack Harkness. Whatever your selling, we're not buying. But if your selling, we're definitely buying."
"Get out of my way!" Mickey said. He pushed his way past Jack and into the TARDIS, pulling Rose with him.
Jack shut the door and said, "Don't tell me, this must be Mickey. Promise me that this is Rose."
The Doctor was way up in the gantries, standing on a ladder. He held, what he pretended to be the TARDIS manual, as he worked. He had a red flashing light attached to his forehead, looking extremely dorky. "Here comes trouble! How're you doing, Rose? Ricky boy?"
"It's Mickey!" he growled.
Rose placed a calming hand on his arm, "Don't listen to him, he's winding you up." Mickey wrapped his arm around her waist.
"Aww, sweet, look at these two. How come I never get any of that?" Jack turned his attention to the Doctor.
"Buy me a drink first."
"You're such hard work."
"But worth it," the Doctor grinned in an extremely self-satisfied way.
I laughed and made my way to Rose and Mickey, hugging the two. "Hey you guys! How've you both been?"
Rose smiled, "We've been good. My mum says 'hi'." She pulled something from her pocket, "And this was sent to my house for you."
I took the folded letter and opened it. I smiled at seeing the folded picture of the secret entrance to the Torchwood hub. On the back it read, I know we've met. Visit me some time. I need to find out why I am the way I am. And I know you know what I'm talking about. – CJH. I glanced at Jack quickly before placing the picture in my pocket. "Tell her I say 'hi' back. And thanks for being my personal delivery service while my phone charges. Stupid thing died." I sent a glare to Jack knowing it was his fault that all my battery was gone, thank god there was nothing on there that could pertain to his future or the Doctor's other than some ringtones involving Doctor Who and Torchwood. Though I made sure to get rid of certain ones, like my 'Exterminate' alarm. I shivered; I don't think that I could ever listen to that sound again without getting chills.
"Sounds like your staying, then," Mickey said. There was an awkward silence between all of us. I felt the Doctor's eyes on my back. Mickey then smiled, attempting to lighten the atmosphere again. "So, what're you doing in Cardiff? And who the hell's Jumping Jack Flash? I mean, I don't mind you hanging out with big-ears up there-"
"Oi!" the Doctor protested.
"Look in the mirror," Mickey said. The Doctor shook his head and returned to his work. Mickey then nodded to Jack, "But this guy, I dunno, he's kinda…"
"Handsome?" Jack said.
"More like cheesy," Mickey said.
"Early 21st Century slang - Is cheesy good or bad?"
"It's bad," I told Jack.
"But bad means good, isn't that right?" he said.
I rolled my eyes with a groan as the Doctor made his way down the ladder. "Are you saying I'm not handsome?" Everyone but me ignored him.
I looked to the Doctor with a sweet smile before turning to Mickey and Rose, "We just stopped to refuel. Cardiff has a rift running through the middle of the city. This rift is basically a door between our world and others-"
The Doctor interrupted me, "The rift was healed back in 1869—"
I nodded, "Thanks to a girl named Gwyneth. She risked her life to save everyone then and in the future." I smiled. "She saved her great-something grand-niece's life. Anyways, she closed the rift on her end." Both Mickey and Rose seamed to be having a hard time following.
"But closing a rift always leaves a scar, and that scar generates energy, harmless to the Human Race-" Jack said.
The Doctor cut in, "But perfect for the TARDIS, so just park it here for a couple of days right on top of the scar and—"
"Open up the engines, soak up the radiation—" Jack continued.
I smiled at them, "It's like filling her up with gas."
Jack high fived me, "Into time!" we cried.
The Doctor and I then high fived, "And space!" the Doctor joined in.
I threw my arms up and shouted, "Woo-hoo!"
Mickey started at the three of us while Rose laughed. "My God, have you seen yourselves? You all think you're so clever, don't you?"
I ran forward and threw myself at Mickey. He almost dropped me but was able to keep me from falling. I laughed, hugging him around the neck and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Dear, dear Mickey. We are brilliant." As the Doctor and Jack laughed I whispered to him, "And your included in the 'we'." I moved from his arms and then hugged Rose telling her the same thing. I stood between the two, "Want a tour? While the Doctor and Jack have fun dancing?" I laughed as I led Mickey and Rose away, not bothering to tell them what I meant about 'dancing' or why the Doctor turned so red or why Jack had such a large smile on his face.
-x-x-x-
It was a half hour later when we came out of the TARDIS. I had taken Mickey and Rose on a basic tour of the TARDIS. I had shown them the library, even though the Doctor didn't like me in there reading books I shouldn't; the swimming pool, I haven't had the chance to try it but I plan to in the near-ish future; the kitchen, which was now free of whatever had tried to eat me and was fully stocked. We ended up spending quiet a bit of time in there; Mickey eating leftovers and Rose made tea for all of us, I brought some for the Doctor and Jack before going back to Rose and Mickey. I still can't make tea to save my life, it's mostly already done by the time I wake up the Doctor being kind enough to make me a cup. I showed them the dressing room, which Rose fell in love with; I showed them my room and then we returned to the control room.
"Should take another twenty-four hours, which means we've got time to kill," the Doctor said.
"That old lady's staring," Mickey said.
Jack smiled, "Probably wondering what five people could do inside a small wooden box..." He patted the Doctor's shoulder suggestively. I covered my mouth to keep from laughing. Rose snickered from beside me.
Mickey gave Jack a glare, "What are you captain of? The Innuendo Squad?" Jack made a 'whatever' sign and began to walk off. "Wait! Er, the TARDIS - we can't just leave it. Doesn't it get noticed?"
Jack turned back and said, "Yeah, what's with the police box? Why does it look like that?"
I shrugged, "It's a cloaking device. She'll be fine."
The Doctor then explained more in depth, "It's called a chameleon circuit. The TARDIS is meant to disguise itself wherever it lands, like if this was Ancient Rome, it'd be a statue on a plinth or something. But I landed in the 1960s, it disguised itself as a police box, and the circuit got stuck."
Rose frowned, "So it copied a real thing? There actually were police boxes?"
The Doctor nodded, "Yeah, on street corners. Phone for help before they had radios and mobiles. If they arrested someone, they could shove them inside until help came. Like a little prison cell."
Jack leaned towards the Doctor, "Why don't you just fix the circuit?"
"No!" I almost screamed. They all turned to me. "That would be like the Doctor changing his name and everything he stands for." I placed my hand on the TARDIS. "The TARDIS being a police box is something that should never change. Besides, her being 'burrowed, new, old, and blue' is something that is very important in the future."
"But there's no police boxes anymore, so doesn't it get noticed?" Mickey said.
"Ricky, let me tell you something about the Human Race. You put a mysterious blue box slap bang in the middle of town and what do they do?" He put his hands on Mickey's shoulders. Mickey opened his mouth to reply, but didn't get a chance. "Walk past it. Now stop your nagging, let's go and explore!" I smiled thinking of how people walked right past the entrance to Torchwood every day and no one knew about it. Then I thought about how I never just walked passed the TARDIS, but rather thrust myself into the Doctor's world. The Doctor walked off, taking my hand. Mickey, Rose, and Jack followed behind us.
"So," I said. "What's on the agenda today?"
"I don't know! Cardiff. Early 21st Century. And the wind's coming from the... East. Trust me - safest place in the universe." He told me.
I laughed and the Doctor gave me a frown, "Now that is a complete and utter lie Doctor. Noting around can ever stay 'safe' for long." I smiled and tightened my grip on his hand. "That's why you can go everywhere, because you follow trouble." I paused. "Or it follows you."
-x-x-x-
The five of us ended up at a restaurant on Cardiff Bay. We ordered food, all of them getting fish and 'chips' but me. I hate fish, so I ended up with chicken and fries. I ignored the jokes they decided to make about my distaste for fish. The attention finally turned from me to Jack when I implied that he had to tell us one of his stories. So that's what was going on, Jack telling us an exciting story. "I swear, six feet tall and with TUSKS—"
"You're lying through your teeth!" the Doctor said.
Rose smiled and said, "I'd have gone bonkers! That's the word - bonkers!"
Jack continued, "I mean, it turns out the white things are tusks and I mean TUSKS! And it's woken, and it's not happy-"
The Doctor smiled, "How could you not know it was there?"
"And we're standing there, fifteen of us, NAKED—" Jack said.
"Naked?" Rose interrupted.
I laughed, "You would be naked!"
"And I'm like, oh, no, no, it's got nothing to do with me! And then it roars, and we are running. Oh my God, we are RUNNING! And Brakovitch falls, so I turn to him and I say—"
Mickey smiled and said, "I knew we should've turned left!"
We all laughed. "That's my line!" Jack protested.
Rose smiled, "I don't BELIEVE you, I don't believe a word you say EVER, that is so brilliant!" I laughed along with Rose, my eyes moving to the Doctor. He was looking at the newspaper the old man at the table beside ours was reading. The Doctor stood as Rose asked, "Did you ever get your clothes back?"
"No, I just picked him up went right for the ship, full throttle, didn't stop until I hit the spacelanes, I was shaking! It was unbelievable, I'm freaking out and by the time I got there I was fifteen light-years away I was like this!" While Jack continued the Doctor pulled the paper from the old man's hands and looked at the front page.
The Doctor locked eyes with me and I slowly stood. The others noticed my movement and then turned to the Doctor. "And I was having such a nice day," he said. He held up the paper, showing us the headline. 'New Mayor, New Cardiff'. Underneath was a picture of the Slitheen in her Margaret skin suit.
-x-x-x-
The Doctor brought us to the town hall. We stood in the entrance hall as though we owned the place. "According to intelligence," Jack said. "The target is the last surviving member of the Slitheen family, a criminal sect from the planet Raxacoricofallapatorious, masquerading as a human being, zipped inside a skin suit. Okay, plan of attack, we assume a basic fifty seven/fifty six strategy, covering all available exits on the ground floor. Doctor and Faline, you go face-to-face, that'll designate Exit One, I'll cover Exit Two, Rose, you're Exit Three, Mickey Smith, you take Exit Four. Have you got that?"
A smile grew on my face as I watched the Doctor's expression. He acted as though Jack just stole all his toys and said that he wanted to be the captain. The Doctor gave a frown and asked, "Excuse me. Who's in charge?"
Jack gave me a quick glace and my smile brightened. Jack turned his full attention to the Doctor and said as seriously as he could, "Sorry. Awaiting orders, sir."
The Doctor's voice deepened with authority, "Right. Here's the plan." He paused and smiled, "Like he said. Nice plan. Anything else?"
"Present arms," Jack said. We all pulled out a cell phone, well except the Doctor but seeing as I was paired with him it was alight. "Speed dial?" Jack asked.
We each pressed a button with a beep; well mine didn't beep rather it played the theme to Torchwood. They turned to me with a frown as I quickly ignored my text sent from CJH. "All set," I said.
"Yup," came the Doctor.
"Ready," said Rose.
"Check," finished Mickey.
Jack gave us a lazy grin. "See ya in hell." He then walked off to the right.
I took the Doctor's hand and followed him. He always seamed to know where he was going. The Doctor led me to a secretary desk near a door that I was sure led to the Mayor's office. I glanced at the name tag sitting on the man's desk, Idris Hopper. The Doctor smiled to the secretary, "Hello! I've come to see the Lord Mayor." I frowned slightly when he said 'Lord Mayor', but then remembered that Americans have to be different from our English counterparts so it made sense that I've never heard the term before.
"Have you got an appointment?" Idris asked.
I smiled sweetly to the secretary, "No. We're just friends passing through and we thought that we might just see her. Face to face."
"Well, she's just having a cup of tea," Idris said.
"Just go in there, and tell her the Doctor would like to see her," the Doctor said.
Idris then asked something that caused my smile to brighten, "Doctor who?"
"Just the Doctor," he said. "Tell her exactly that. The Doctor."
Idris slowly stood, "Hold on a tick…" He entered the office and I snickered.
The Doctor turned to me, "What?"
I smiled, "Did I ever tell you the name of the show your in from my world?"
"No," he said.
I laughed. "Doctor Who."
The Doctor smiled at me but then we both turned quickly when we heard a teacup smash from inside the office. Idris came out of the office a moment later, looking flustered. He only opened the door far enough for her to squeeze herself through before shutting the door behind himself. "The Lord Mayor says thank you for- for popping by... she'd love to have a chat, but, um... she's up to her eyes in paperwork. Perhaps if you could make an appointment for next week...?"
"She's climbing out of the window, isn't she?" the Doctor asked.
Idris nodded, "Yes, she is."
The Doctor nodded and pushed past him into the office. I followed the Doctor as he ran across the room to the open window and onto the balcony. I came up beside the Doctor and handed him my phone and he immediately connected to the other three. "Slitheen heading North,"
"On my way," Rose said.
"Over and out," Jack added.
"Oh my God," Mickey finished.
Idris suddenly rushed at the two of us. The Doctor moved in front of me as Idris started a fight. "Leave the Mayor alone!" Idris growled.
I took the chance to follow Margaret, or at least get off the balcony. I followed the path Margaret took and made my way after her, seeing her take off her brooch. "Margaret!" I called.
The female Slitheen only went faster. She turned one way, only for Rose to block her. Margaret turned, pulling off an earring. Jack ran towards her. She ran back the way she came only to see me and the Doctor not far behind, "Margaret!" the Doctor called mockingly.
Margaret bolted down the fourth exit. She ran as fast as her legs could carry her while pulling off her second earring. Jack, Rose, the Doctor, and I converged at one end. The end opposite of her. "Who was on Exit Four?" Jack growled.
"That was Mickey!" Rose said. I could hear the hint of worry in her voice.
Mickey finally caught up with us, panting, "Here I am!"
The Doctor gave the younger male a glare, "Mickey the idiot."
Rose stared at Margaret as she ran, "Oh, be fair - she's not exactly gonna outrun us, is she?"
I sighed heavily and said, "She doesn't have to." Margret then disappeared in a blue light with a small, echoing 'ting'.
"She's got a teleport! That's cheating! Now we're NEVER gonna get her!" Jack yelled.
I smiled at Jack patting his cheek, "Never say never when your with the Doctor."
The Doctor pulled his sonic screwdriver out from his jacket pocket. He held it in the air with a dopey grin and clicked it once. Margaret reappeared, only she was much closer and running straight at us. The smile she wore faded as she realized where she was. She turned around and ran, activating her teleport again. Almost a second after she vanished the Doctor pressed the button and she reappeared, again running towards us. This continued several more times before she ended up right in front of us, absolutely exhausted and gasping for breath. Margaret had finally given up.
The Doctor smiled and said, "I could do this all day."
Margaret put her hands up, "This is persecution. Why can't you leave me alone? What did I ever do to you?"
"You tried to kill me and destroy this entire planet," the Doctor reminded her.
"Apart from that," Margaret dismissed.
-x-x-x-
Margaret was the one to suggest we go back inside, causing less of a disturbance. I immediately agreed with her, just in case she decided to unveil herself in front of bystanders. So that's how we ended up in the exhibition rom. Margaret's nuclear power plant model in the middle of the room, it's name plastered on a banner hanging from the ceiling. The Doctor turned to the masked Slitheen, "So, you're a Slitheen, you're on Earth, you're trapped. Your family get killed but you teleport out, just in the nick of time. You have no means of escape. What do you do? You build a nuclear power station." He gestured to the model, while Rose and Jack examined it with great interest. "But what for?"
"A philanthropic gesture. I've learnt the error of my ways," she said. I would have snorted had I not remembered two key moments that had and will happen. Margaret sparing the young woman in the bathroom after finding out she was getting married and was pregnant; something Margaret clearly wanted to happen to her. And then later on the 'moment' she will share with the Doctor.
The Doctor, however, rolled his eyes, "And it just so happens to be right on top of the rift."
"What rift would that be?" Margaret asked faking ignorance.
Jack chimed in, "A rift in space and time. If this power station went into meltdown, the entire planet would go schwwwupboom!" He made a little gesture to go with his explosion noise.
Looking down at the model the Doctor said, "This station is designed to explode the minute it reaches capacity."
Rose frowned, "Didn't anyone notice? Isn't there someone in London CHECKING this sort of stuff?"
Margaret rolled her eyes, "We're in CARDIFF. London doesn't care! The South Wales coast could fall into the sea and they wouldn't notice- oh... I sound like a Welshman. God help me, I've gone native." I smirked.
"But why would she DO that?" Mickey asked. "A great big explosion - she'd only end up killing herself."
"She's got a name, you know," Margaret growled.
Mickey glared at her, "She's not even a she, she's a... thing."
I punched him in the shoulder. "Not cool Mickey," I told him softly.
The Doctor eyed Margaret, "Oh, but she's clever..." in a swift movement he pried the middle section of the model off and flipped it over. Underneath was a giant circuit board. "Fantastic."
I smiled at the excitement in Jack's voice as he asked, "Is that a tribophysical waveform macro-kinetic extrapolator?"
"Couldn't have put it better myself," the Doctor said.
Jack took the extrapolator from the Doctor for a better look, "Ooh, GENIUS!" I noticed as the Doctor's attention was drawn to the poster with the name of the project. 'Blaidd Drwg'. Jack continued to Margaret, "You didn't build this."
Margaret gave a shrug, "I have my hobbies. A little tinkering…"
"No, no, no, I mean, you REALLY didn't build this. Way beyond you," Jack said.
"I bet she stole it," Mickey said.
"It fell into my hands," Margaret said.
"Is it a weapon?" Rose asked.
Jack placed the extrapolator down on the floor, "It's transport. You see - the reactor blows, the rift opens, phenomenal cosmic disaster, but THIS thing shrouds you in a forcefield, you have this energy bubble, zzhum, so you're safe. Then you feed it coordinates, stand on top, and ride the concussion all the way out of the solar system."
Mickey smiled, "It's a surfboard!"
Jack nodded, "A pan-dimensional surfboard, yeah."
"And it would've worked," Margaret said bitterly. "I would've surfed away from this dead-end dump and back to civilisation."
I smirked and asked, "If it weren't for us 'meddling kids' right?"
"Yes," Margaret said. I smiled. Yes! She agreed with me. That means we're like the time/dimension traveling version of Scooby Doo!
"You'd blow up a whole planet just to get a lift?" Mickey asked.
Margaret smirked, "Like stepping on an anthill."
The Doctor finally spoke after staring up at the poster for so long, "How'd you think of the name?"
"What, Blaidd Drwg?" Margaret shrugged. "It's Welsh."
The Doctor nodded, "I know, but how did you think of it?"
"Chose it at random, that's all I dunno. Just sounded good. Does it matter?" Margaret asked.
The Doctor turned around, frowning, "Blaidd Drwg."
"What does it mean?" Rose asked.
"Bad Wolf," the Doctor said looking at me. I flinched at the name as the Doctor continued, "Everywhere we go. Two words. Following us. Bad Wolf." Tears began to well in my eyes as I remembered what had happened. Now that Rose didn't travel with the two of us I just had to wonder … what if the Doctor actually dies at the end? What if I die? What if I mess up and Jack doesn't come back to life? What would happen to the TARDIS? "Faline," the Doctor said drawing my attention to him. "Do you know what 'Bad Wolf' is?" I nodded. "Can you tell me?" he asked. I shook my head. "Why not?"
My voice shook, "Be-because it's a fixed point. I-I can't let 'Bad Wolf' not happen." I looked into the Doctor's eyes. "I'm terrified of what would happen if 'Bad Wolf' never came into existence. But I will tell you … I'm sorry." The Doctor stared at me for a long moment as tears began to leak down my cheeks. "I'm sorry Nine. I'm so, so sorry." Jack wrapped his arms around me while I just stared at the Doctor trying to convey my sorrow with my eyes. I am so sorry that you have to die Doctor. But this is just the way it has to go, even if it kills me. You have to die. You have to regenerate.
The Doctor was quiet for a long moment before saying, "Never mind! Things to do." I smiled at the Doctor and whipped away my tears after returning Jack's hug. The Doctor clapped his hands briskly, "Margaret, we're gonna take you home."
Jack frowned as I moved from his arms, "Hold on, isn't that the easy option, like letting her go?"
I smiled and said, "Finally!" Everyone looked to me and I smiled showing them that I was alright. "I finally get to see Raxacoricofallapatorius." They smiled at me.
"They have the death penalty," Margaret said. All smiles vanished. "The family Slitheen was tried in its absence many years ago and found guilty. With no chance of appeal. According to the statutes of government, the moment I return, I am to be executed. What do you make of that, Doctor?" She held the Doctor's cold stare. "Take me home and you take me to my death."
The Doctor looked at her and said indifferently, "Not my problem."
-x-x-x-
By the time we made it back to the TARDIS, Margaret in tow. The Slitheen looked around the inside of the TARDIS in wonder. "This ship is IMPOSSIBLE! It's SUPERB. How do you get the outside around the inside?"
The Doctor gave her a look and said, "Like I'd give YOU the secret, yeah."
"I almost feel better about being defeated," Margaret said. "We never stood a chance. This is the technology of the Gods."
"Don't worship me - I'd make a very bad God. You wouldn't get a day off, for starters..." the Doctor turned to Jack. "Jack, how we doing, big fella?"
Jack was on the floor next to console, wiring the extrapolator up to the TARDIS. "This extrapolator's top of the range." He peered around his work at Margaret, "Where did you get it?"
Margaret shrugged, "Oh, I don't know... some airlock sale...?"
"Must've been a great big heist. It's stacked with power," Jack commented.
The Doctor came towards him, "But we can use it for fuel?"
Jack shook his head, "It's not compatible... but it should knock off about twelve hours. We'll be ready to go by morning."
"Then we're stuck here," the Doctor said. "Overnight."
"I'M in no hurry..." Margaret commented.
Rose sounded almost happy when she said, "We've got a prisoner! The police box is really... a police box."
Margaret smiled unpleasantly, "You're not just police, though. Since you're taking me to my death, that makes you my executioners. Each and every one of you..."
Mickey turned to the Slitheen and said icily, "Well, you deserve it."
"You're very quick to say so. You're very quick to soak your hands in my blood. Which makes you better than me, how, exactly...?" Mickey had nothing to say about that. "Long night ahead…" the Doctor's eyes met her as she took her time walking around the console before sitting elegantly on the pilot seat. "Let's see who can look me in the eye." Margaret turned and looked to Mickey. He managed to hold her gaze for a few moments before averting his eyes. She looked to Rose next, who glanced guiltily at the Doctor. He glanced up only for a second still working away. Margaret turned to me and I looked her straight in the eyes, because I knew she wasn't going to her death. Even if she were to be presented to those on her home planet the Doctor would still try his best to keep her from getting the death penalty. What would be the point in keeping her alive, other than the Doctor's morals, only to drop her off on her planet to be killed?
-x-x-x-
Rose texted me, saying that she and Mickey were going out for a while and not to leave without saying goodbye. The Doctor watched the TARDIS screens, seeing as the two walked away hand in hand. "So, what's on?" Jack asked.
The Doctor jerked around and he turned off the screen, "Nothing," he said.
Margaret sat against the metal grilling, her back to the console. "I gather it's not always like this... having to wait." She paused. "I bet you're always the first to leave, Doctor. Never mind the consequences, off you go. You butchered my family and then ran for the stars, am I right? But not this time. At last, you have consequences... how does it feel?"
"I didn't butcher them," the Doctor said.
"Don't answer back," Jack told him. "That's what she wants."
The Doctor turned to Jack and spoke, trying to force the Captain to understand, "I didn't!" The Doctor turned to Margaret, "What about you? You had an emergency teleport, you didn't zap them to safety, did you?"
"It only carries one," Margaret said defending herself. "I had to fly without coordinates. I ended up on a skip in the Isle of Dogs." The Doctor and Jack snickered, while I had no idea what they were talking about. "It wasn't funny!"
"Sorry," the Doctor said sheepishly. Margaret turned around to see them still grinning. "It is a bit funny!" The Doctor and Jack started to laugh again with Margaret joining in.
As their laughter relaxed Margaret asked, "Do I get a last request?"
"Depends what it is," the Doctor said.
"I grew quite fond of my little human life," Margaret told us. "All those rituals... the brushing of the teeth, and the complicated way they cook things... there's a little restaurant. Just round the bay." The Doctor glanced at her. "It became quite a favorite of mine."
The Doctor walked over to her and leaned over the railing to talk to her properly. "Is that what you want? A last meal?"
Margaret gave him a look and asked, "Don't I have rights?"
Jack then chimed in, "Oh, like she's not gonna try to escape."
"Except I can never escape the Doctor, so where's the danger?" She then began to slightly egg the Doctor on. "But I wonder if you could do it? To sit with a creature you're about to kill and take supper. How strong is your stomach?"
"Strong enough," the Doctor said.
"I wonder. I've seen you fight your enemies... now dine with them."
"You won't change my mind."
Margaret smirked, "Prove it."
The Doctor was silent for a long moment and I decided to speak, "I think you should do it." All three of them turned to me. "I believe that she should get to have her last meal out with the Doctor. Its not like she's going alone."
"There are people out there," the Doctor said. "If she slips away just for one second, they'll be in danger."
"Except... I've got these." Jack held up a pair of metal hoops, like bangle bracelets. "You both wear one. If she moves... more than ten feet away..." He made a loud buzzing noise, mimicking an electric shock. Margaret and I both jumped in alarm. "She gets zapped by ten thousand volts."
"Margaret, would you like to come out to dinner?" the Doctor asked. "My treat?"
Margaret gave him a sickly smile, "Dinner in bondage... works for me."
Jack placed the bangles on each of them before thy left. I stood from my seat and asked, "Why the hell do you have those?" Jack just smiled and lay on his back halfway under the console, wiring the extrapolator up to the TARDIS.
I jumped when my phone began to ring, playing the Torchwood theme. I pulled it from my pocket and answered, as I walked away from Jack. "Now isn't a good time," I said into the phone. I walked to my room, wanting to keep Jack from hearing this conversation at all coasts.
"You have to help me understand what happened Faline," I heard CJH say.
I sighed, "Have you seen the papers today?"
"That's why I didn't come down when I saw the TARDIS," he replied.
"I-I don't know what to tell you. It hasn't happened yet, and personally I want it to." Tears began to slip down my cheeks as I opened the door to my room, making my way to my bed to sit down. "I don't want to loose you. You understand that right?"
There was a sigh, "Yes. I understand. But you will tell me right?"
I nodded my head even though I knew he couldn't see, "Yes. It just has to be at the opportune moment. You don't see us again until after two Christmas' from now. You'll understand how you can contact us, but just in case I'll send you a text telling you to get your ass over to the TARDIS. Until I tell you to your just going to have to stay put in Torchwood."
"Alright," he said.
"Trust me," I told him. "I want you to understand what happened then more then anything. But I can't tell you if I don't know what happened. I don't know if I even make it; don't tell me if I do. But I can't get your hopes up. Either way, you will get the information from the Doctor or I."
"Okay Kitten," he said. "But until then, next time you make food for Rose you better bring some. Owen wont stop bugging me about who you are. Same with Tosh and Suzie."
I shivered at the mention of Suzie but said nothing pertaining to her future. "Of course. Maybe I might just stop by for an actual visit once this is through. You can't ask me about what happened, but we can expand everything we have and I can meet your little Scooby Gang."
There was a chuckle, "Great. I'm sure you could help us too. With your wonderful insight."
I laughed, "How about just dinner with you all so we can swap past stories?"
"Alright," there was a pause. "I have to go, bye Kitten."
"Goodbye Captain." I hung up the phone with a small smile. However my smile didn't last long as the TARDIS shook. "What the hell?" I asked. I stood and ran into the console room, only to see said console sparking. Jack pulled the extrapolator from the console, ripping out the wires connecting it. I ran forward and helped him, tugging on the wires hurting the TARDIS. "What happened?" I asked him.
Before he could answer the doors opened and the Doctor came in with Margaret following behind him. "What the hell are you doing?" the Doctor yelled at Jack.
"It just went crazy," Jack said.
The Doctor ran to the console, checking it over. "It's the rift! Time and space are ripping apart. The whole city's gonna disappear!" A small explosion erupted from the console, fairly close to where I was standing. I yelped and jumped back, almost tripping over that stupid extrapolator.
Jack and the Doctor worked furiously to stop the explosions come from the TARDIS console. "It's the extrapolator!" Jack said. "Faline and I disconnected it but it's still feeding off the engine! It's USING the TARDIS - I can't stop it!"
"Never mind Cardiff - it's gonna rip open the planet!" the Doctor said.
Rose burst through the TARDIS doors. "What is it? What's happening?" she asked.
"Oh, just little ME!" Margaret said. I turned to look at her, but her Slitheen claw suddenly wrapped around my neck. I gasped and grabbed at it only for her to tighten her grip slightly. The Doctor darted forward only to stop when Margaret tightened her hold on my neck. "One wrong move and she snaps like a promise."
"I might've known," the Doctor said.
Margaret began to move closer to the Doctor, pulling me with her. "I've had you bleating all night, poor baby, now shut it." She turned to Jack. "You – fly boy – put the extrapolator at my feet." Jack hesitated only for a moment. Margaret used that moment to tighten her grip on my throat cutting off my air. Jack looked to the Doctor for help – he nodded, so Jack did as he was told. Margaret smiled, "Thank you. Just as I planned."
"I- I thought you ne-needed to blo-ow up a nu-nuclear power station," I choked out.
"Failing that - if I were to be... arrested... then anyone capable of tracking me down would have considerable technology of their own. Therefore, they would be captivated by the extrapolator. Especially a magpie mind like yours, Doctor. So the extrapolator was programmed to go to Plan B!" She tugged at my throat and I whimpered and coughed. "To lock onto the nearest alien power source and open the rift." She looked around the TARDIS with awe. "And what a power source it found... I'm back on schedule... thanks to you."
"The rift's gonna convulse – she'll destroy the whole planet," Jack said.
Margaret smiled, "And you with it." She pushed me to the side so she could stand on the extrapolator – but her clawed hand was still wrapped firmly around my neck. "While I ride this board over the crest of the inferno all the way to freedom. Stand back boys... surf's up."
A panel of the console directly in front of Margaret suddenly burst open, a blinding light flooded out. Margaret looked directly at the light while my eyes locked on with the Doctor's. The Doctor turned his gaze from me to Margaret. "Of course, opening the rift means you'll pull this ship apart."
"So sue me," Margaret said.
The Doctor continued to explain, "It's not just any old power source. It's the TARDIS. My TARDIS. The best ship in the universe."
"It'll make wonderful scrap," Margaret growled.
I heard Rose ask from behind me, "What's that light?"
"The heart of the TARDIS. This ship's alive. You've opened its soul."
Breathing heavily, Margaret stared into the light, as if forgetting everything else. Her voice became dreamy, "It's … so bright…"
"Look at it Margaret…" the Doctor told her.
"… Beautiful …" she whispered.
"Look inside, Blon Fel Fotch," the Doctor said. I could only assume that was her name. "Look at the light."
Margaret was so transfixed with her grip on me relaxed. I pulled myself from her grasp and almost ran into the closest person's arms, that person being Jack. I held onto Jack as I watched Margaret stare into the light, the TARDIS heart and soul, a smile spread across her face. She then looked at the Doctor who smiled in return. "Thank you ..." She was then engulfed by the light. When it cleared her body-suit fell on top of the extrapolator.
The Doctor sprung into action, darting around the console. "Don't look - stay there - close your eyes!" He slammed down levers and the gap in the console closed, shutting out the white light. "Now, Jack, come on – shut it all down. Shut down!" Jack released me and rushed over to the console. "Rose, Faline, that panel over there – turn all the switches to the right." Rose and I rushed forward, doing as told.
After a few minutes of rushing around the inside of the TARDIS returned to normal, letting us assume that whatever happened on the outside returned to normal too. The Doctor turned to us with a smile, "Nicely done. Thank you, all."
"What happened to Margaret?" Rose asked.
"Must've got burnt up," Jack said. "Carried out her own death sentence."
I moved beside the Doctor as he looked down at the body-suit, "No. I don't think she's dead."
"Then where'd she go?" Rose asked.
"She looked into the heart of the TARDIS," the Doctor said. "And even I don't know how strong that is. And the ship's telepathic. Gets inside your head. Translates alien languages. Maybe the raw energy can translate all sorts of thoughts..." He knelt down next to the skin-suit for a closer look. Rose, Jack, and I followed in suit. All three of us were huddled around the body-suit, watching as the Doctor reaching inside and pulled out a fairly large egg. "Here she is!" he said.
"She's an egg?" Rose asked.
"Regressed to her childhood," the Doctor said.
"She's an egg?" Jack echoed Rose.
"She can start again! Live her life from scratch. If we take her home, give her to a different family, tell 'em to bring her up properly, she might be all right!" The Doctor smiled at me, and I gave him a smile in return.
"Or she might be worse," Jack said.
I rolled my eyes, "That's her choice." My voice cracked and quivered as I spoke. The Doctor looked at me worried. "I'm fine," I said placing my hand on his shoulder.
"She's an egg," Rose said.
"She's an egg," the Doctor confirmed, seeing that the blonde wasn't going to get over that very quickly.
"Oh, my god." Rose said bolting up. "Mickey!" I smiled and hugged the blonde, knowing that she was leaving us. "I'll see you again soon right?" she asked pulling out of the hug.
I bit my lip, tugging on the lip ring. I pulled her into another hug and whispered, "Be ready for Christmas to be less than normal." Rose nodded and pulled out of the hug. She turned and ran from the TARDIS.
"Faline," the Doctor said. I turned and smiled at him, "Come with me." I frowned and followed the Doctor. He led me to the infirmary.
I sighed, "Doctor, I'm fine." My voice cracked proving otherwise.
"No your not," he pointed to the bed. "Sit." I rolled my eyes and did as told. The Doctor then pulled out the sonic screwdriver and tilted up my chin. I waited a moment before he flipped it open and looked at it. The Doctor didn't say anything, only went to a counter and grabbed a vile, placing it in my hands. "Drink," he told me.
I rolled my eyes and drank the liquid. It didn't taste horrible but I cant say that it tasted good either. However, the warming feeling that soothed the back of my throat was highly welcomed. I finished what he gave me and handed it back to him. I rubbed my throat and said, "That wasn't that bad."
"I wasn't going to give you anything that was horrible," the Doctor told me.
"Ya, I know that. But still, taking medicine was always something that didn't turn out well for me," I told him. I got up from the bed and smiled. "But I guess I've never had super awesome alien or future whatever medicine."
The Doctor chuckled and led me back to the control room. "We're all powered up," he told me. "We can leave. Opening the rift filled us up with energy - we can go." He pulled a lever.
Jack smiled, "Next stop, Raxacoricofallapatorius. Now, you don't often get to say that." I smiled at the egg that rested, balanced between two parts of the console.
"We'll just stop by and pop her in the hatchery," the Doctor explained. "Margaret the Slitheen can live her life again! A second chance."
"Good," I said. "Everyone deserves a second chance." I then flipped a lever without the Doctor needing to tell me to. The engines began to rise and fall as the TARDIS faded away.
END
