Chapter Seven: The Other Girl
The girl's eyes suddenly met his, like she knew he'd been there all along, her lips morphing into a sly smile. "Ah, Bilis Manger." she said smugly. "I've been waiting for you."
This was not the same girl.
No, this was definitely not the same girl. Bilis was sure.
Not only did she know him by name, and know he was here, she looked slightly different than the original he'd seen with the man mere minutes ago.
She was a tad thinner, her voice less brash and more well-spoken. Although, her clothes were atrocious, nothing but ropey rags covered in holes. But despite her shoddy appearance, there was something different, something ominous about this girl, conniving.
Bilis stepped further into his cluttered, old fashioned office; filled with a numerous assortment of clocks, ticking away in precise synchronisation. "Who are you?" he demanded, his expression stiff, not giving any of his emotions away as he tried to read her mind, her possible futures, her past.
He concentrated hard.
She knew him. He needed to find out who she was. He needed to know if she was the one responsible for the tag-a-longs, if she was the one disrupting his plans, putting everything in jeopardy.
"Uh, uh, uh." the woman said, wagging her finger patronisingly from side to side. "No cheating. Let's keep the mystery alive shall we?"
This other girl could tell when he was trying to infiltrate her mind, see her past? She was even more powerful than the man, meaning she was even more trouble.
He had to tread carefully, very carefully, and find out what she wanted.
Bilis sighed and walked up to the girl, standing directly opposite the desk she was sitting in. Her eyes followed him, but she wasn't intimidated in the slightest, not budging from her relaxed position on the chair, her legs still resting on the top of his desk.
"Very well." he said, still not giving away any emotion in his voice. "But you still have yet to tell me your name, my dear?"
The other girl smirked. "Ah Bilis, as camp as ever." she said ironically, seeming annoyed by the question. "Who I am isn't important… well, not to you." she muttered the last part under her breath, before her voice turned quirky. "But let's just say, I can see that you've spent quite a lot of time on this little project of yours, and since it's pretty obvious you've concocted a complete misfire, I thought we could help each other."
Bilis raised an eyebrow. "Obvious? I'm afraid you've lost me, my dear."
The other girl sighed, morphing into a frustrated almost-roar. She slumped her head back on the top-back of the chair, staring up to the ceiling.
Bilis twitched a little but said nothing.
The other girl didn't open her mouth again for several seconds, not sparing him a glance. "Bilis, Bilis, Bilis." she said tiredly. "You really need to get with the times a bit more." She lifted up her head to look at him. "You've not watched the news recently I take it?"
Bilis tensed.
That wretched box? No, of course not! Why would he, Bilis Manger; someone who can see into the future, need to keep up with current events?
He forced himself to relax. "No, my dear." he said calmly. "I abhor television."
The other girl smiled to herself. "Of course you do." She straightened up a little in the chair, and inhaled like she was getting ready to hold her breath for a competition, or like she was about to say a really long sentence really quickly without stopping. She exhaled slowly, but when she spoke, she did so calmly. "Well, in that case it brings me great joy to inform you, Bilis Manger, that the rift you were so keen on opening his currently being sucked closed, the Torchwood hub that you so vitally needed to open said closing rift, is now a giant crater in the ground, and the team you planned on manipulating so cruelly - and really that was quite spectacular - to get their precious leader back, is currently disbanded." she explained, before leisurely leaning back into the chair, a triumphant look on her face, not taking her eyes off Bilis as she enjoyed his reaction.
Bilis tried to keep his emotions in check. Surely, this 'other girl' was lying through her teeth. The hub destroyed? The team disbanded? No, impossible, that was not meant to happen until the 456 and John Frobisher, after Toshiko Sato and Owen Harper had died. And the rift, closing? He mentally scoffed. How? What other worldly technology could possibly do that?
"Oh, Bilis." the other girl complained. "You should trust me more." she said, before eying a newspaper, resting on a pile of books towards the middle of the office.
Bilis didn't understand the gesture at first, so the other girl repeated the motion, more slowly and more obviously.
It took Bilis a few seconds before he followed the other girl's line of sight and went to inspect the newspaper, a typical gossip rag, tabloid filth, nothing he'd ever bring in here.
He picked it up while looking at the other girl, who jerked her eyebrows at him, a knowing smirk on her face.
He studied the front page, only for a sudden plummeting sensation to overcome him.
THEY LIVE AMONG US! HUMANITY'S TRAITORS
JOHN FROBISHER AND BLAKE PETERS CHARGED WITH AIDING THE 456
THEY WERE GIVING THEM YOUR CHILDREN! SIX PAGE SPREAD
Bilis's eyes widened in horror, quickly searching for the date. The other girl must've taken this from the future, surely; a future where John Frobisher survived.
It was today's date.
Impossible.
He looked back at the other girl, unable to hide the dread on his face.
She smiled brightly at him, wiggling her fingers in his direction.
What had she done?
That future had taken him years to plan, centuries. And now it was in tatters.
He'd been monitoring the possible timelines so carefully, everything was happening according to plan four days ago, everything was set.
This other girl had changed fixed events, moved them forward? How else could she change everybody's' possible futures so drastically?
But how?
Just who was she?
How did she have such power?
And more so, why was she so keen on offering him a deal? Especially if she could move time around so easily.
Bilis adjusted his posture, squirming a little. "A deal?" he asked, as if he had any choice in the matter.
The girl nodded.
"And what gave you the impression that I was looking to do a deal with a stranger?"
"HA!" the girl spluttered, a look of disbelief across her face. "Isn't that what got you in this mess in the first place?"
This other girl knew about his deal with Abaddon?
She was impossible.
"Oh, don't look so shocked." the other girl complained dryly. "Your not the only one who can hear what's going on inside someone's head." she said arrogantly, pausing a moment to study his reaction, a self-satisfied grin briefly spreading across her face before her expression hardened, her voice becoming sterner, more impatient. "So, are you interested or not?"
Bilis considered it for a brief second. This girl was powerful, but the fact that she was offering any sort of a deal at all; after ruining his centuries of effort so spectacularly, meant that she needed something from him. Something that she couldn't do herself.
"That depends." he said calmly. "What's in it for me?"
The girl took her legs off the desk and leaned forward in the chair. "Let's be honest with each other, we both know you have no way of opening the rift without the hub." she shrugged. "But if you take the deal I'll tell you how you can get the Doctor to open the rift with the Tardis."
Doctor?
Tardis?
Who and what were they? And more importantly…
"Why would you do that?"
The woman shrugged, re-crossing her legs on the table and leaning back into the chair. "Well isn't that obvious?"
Bilis said nothing.
She puffed air out her cheeks. "Well, then I guess not." she muttered.
Bilis let out a wound breath, unable to keep his emotions completely hidden. This girl was infuriating.
She rested her head on the back of the office chair, seeming fed up that he didn't understand. She stayed like that for a good few seconds, making Bilis wait until she lifted her head up. She tapped her finger on her chin thoughtfully, brows furled with fake concentration. "Why? Why? Why? Why would I offer you a deal?" Her face lit up. "Ah, yes! Revenge you see."
"Oh?" Bilis asked, revenge he could work with, revenge was doable.
"Yes, you see, I have a little deal of my own going on, well, maybe more of a wager than anything. And my little wager-ee cheated… or perhaps is going to cheat, I always do mess those two up." She shook her head to refocus. "Either way they stacked the odds in their favour and that wasn't part of the deal, it was an interesting work around, impressed me for sure, but it wasn't in the fine print. So I thought I'd have a little fun, mess with them a bit. And you can help me with that."
"And what is it you require from me?"
"Simple." she shrugged. "You let them have a little rummage around this place, kick up some dust and all of that," Her eyes locked onto his, and her voice grew sterner. "You make it so they find nothing, not you, not that piece of the rift manipulator, not that file you have on Torchwood." she kicked the desk with the heel of her foot close to the location of the file. "Nothing, they'll go home, they'll leave you alone, and then they'll pick up their friends from 1941. Then, in eight months, once the rift is replenished, they'll come back. They'll meet Adam, and - with a little help from me - he'll trick the Doctor into opening the rift, Jack stops you're boss as planned, and it all turns out like it should. You'll even get to keep your hands clean, aren't I generous."
Bilis was silent for a few moments. "I'll think about it."
The other girl's face remained serious. "Trust me Bilis Manger, I'm doing you a favour." she warned
Bilis studied the other girl for a few moments, trying to work out her angle. Maybe this was a ruse to try and get him to take the deal. He still couldn't quite work out why this other girl, who was so powerful, would so desperately need his presence to remain hidden, for his master's existence to remain a mystery.
But before he could speak, a voice echoed from the hallway outside his office.
"Hello?"
Ah, the original girl. She was still pointlessly searching the building for some sort of technology.
He turned back to the office chair, expecting the other girl to be gone, assuming the two could not coexist.
But apparently they could.
The other girl was still sitting there. She jerked her eyebrows in his direction and shrugged, as if to say 'Yes, and?'
Bilis glanced back to the entrance of his office and moved to the hallway. He stood in a way so the original girl could see him but not who else was inside the office. She seemed startled by his sudden presence and took a few small, cautious steps back. There was a flash of fear on her face but she stood her ground.
"Hello." he replied. "And who are you, my dear? How did you get in?"
The original girl changed her stance, trying to make herself look less afraid than she truly was. "I'm with Torchwood." she said firmly. "We got some calls about this place, so we let ourselves in. Who are you?"
"I'm Bilis Manger, the caretaker."
"Right." said the original girl, not believing him in the slightest. "We've been calling for ages, didn't you hear us?" she questioned.
"No, sorry dear, bit hard of hearing."
The original girl nodded slowly and obviously, as if to say 'I'm offended you think I'm stupid enough for that excuse to work.' "Hard of hearing… right."
He glanced back to the chair, to see if the other girl was still there. She was; still lounging, watching the whole interaction play out.
But, although the original girl seemed a bit rougher than her twin, she was certainly sharp, picking up on his actions straight away.
Her eyes darted towards the entrance of the office, a curious look on her face. "Is there someone else with you Bilis?" she asked.
The other girl smirked and brought a finger to her lips, shushing Bilis like a school teacher during assembly.
Hmm, rather patronising, Bilis thought, but for now, he had such little information about either of the two girls and the other tag-a-longs, that he had no choice but to play along.
He turned his head slowly to face the original girl. "No dear. It's only me." he said lightly.
"Uh –huh." she said, unconvinced. "Cos, it looks to me like you're staring at sommin."
"Only my clock collection my dear."
The girl scanned him up and down. He didn't need to be able to read her mind to tell she thought he was a bit of a loon, her expression was telling enough.
"You won't mind if I see then?" she asked but was already moving towards the doorway before he could answer.
The two girls eye's met for a brief moment. The other girl feigned surprise, bringing a hand up to her mouth and letting out a shocked gasp.
But a moment later it became clear that the original girl couldn't see the other girl at all. It was obvious from her expression of disappointment, her shoulders slumping as she scanned the room, her eyes checking over the numerous clocks littered around the room.
"Wow you weren't kidding ." she mumbled, inspecting one of the grandfather clocks against the wall.
"Why, yes. There's nothing a man needs apart from clocks." he said calmly, observing the original girl step around his office, clearly searching for something out of place. She was not subtle.
Yet, she was… unguarded, far away enough from the man. And assuming this man was 'the Doctor' the other girl was talking about, then he had someone reachable who could open the rift.
Why wait eight months and re-jig his plans with Tretarri, when there was a way to stay on schedule right in front of him?
After all, why would the other girl offer him such a good deal in the first place, unless she had something to lose, unless she didn't want him to figure out that he could fix things himself? That, opening the rift now would greatly inconvenient her, and that's why she wanted him to keep away.
The other girl, still on the chair, pouted, hearing his mind. "Aww Bilis." she sighed, causing Bilis to focus on her instead. "This is a onetime offer. I'd take it if I were you."
Bilis knew desperation when he saw it, it was obvious, his theory was correct. Why the other girl didn't want him opening the rift now, he had no idea, and frankly didn't care. But she'd slipped up, because now Bilis knew all he needed to open the rift without the Torchwood hub was this Doctor.
"I'm afraid I'll have to decline, I'm already under contract you see." he replied pompously.
Beside him the original girl tensed up, snapping her attention to him, unaware Bilis was having a two-way conversation.
"Oh Bilis." the other girl sighed, fed up and disappointed. "Well, don't say I didn't warn you. Enjoy the preview." she said, smirking one last time before she clicked her fingers and disappeared in a fraction of a second.
'Oo are you talking to?" the original girl demanded, fear creeping into her voice.
"I have no idea." he admitted, giving the original girl his full attention. He took a step closer to her, she took a large step back, towards the entrance of the office. "A friend of yours perhaps?" he asked, staring at her unblinkingly.
"Wot makes you say that?" she asked, pushing on with her questioning despite how scared she seemed.
He could easily send this girl somewhere else in time, send her back to 1941, then shift her somewhere else before 'the Doctor' got there. That way 'the Doctor' would have no way of knowing where in time she was, leaving him at his mercy. He'd order him to open the rift in exchange for getting her back. Abaddon would be free. The future would be what he'd moulded it to be.
Bilis smirked.
Yes, everything was falling into place.
If he ever saw the other girl again, he'd have to thank her for the suggestion.
"'Oi, who are you talking to!" the girl demanded. "I know there's someone there." she turned to the chair. "Show yourself!"
"They're gone, dear." he took another step closer to her, building up the energy he needed to shift her through the rift.
"Stay back." she demanded, her body stiffening with fear, bracing herself for a fight. But he didn't need to touch her, just send her away. 'The Doctor' was too far away to save her. "Oo are you? What do you want?"
Just a bit more energy, that's all he needed.
But then it hit him.
He could see it.
All of it.
He could see into her mind, see her thoughts, her fears, her dreams. Her past, her potential future. His abilities rushing back. He was at full power once more.
Then, he stopped. His body frozen, the shift he was building dying with a whimper.
It was her.
It was her.
She killed the Beast.
This ordinary human girl, who grew up in some poverty stricken dwelling, brought up by some leach of society. In any other timeline destined to die in a dank shop basement, her life meaningless, forgotten in mere decades. Her funeral a mediocre turn out, held in some crumbling church, lumped together with all the other's who'd lost their lives that day.
This girl, this one, she'd killed the Beast; defeated him, prevented him from escaping his prison.
Not this 'Doctor,' but her.
His Master would be furious.
But the girl's impossible past didn't stop there.
She'd looked into the heart of an ancient machine and killed thousands, risked death, made a deal with the most powerful creature in existence, all to keep her lover safe; 'her Doctor.'
She was the one who made Jack Harkness un-killable, a fixed point in time, the man pivotal to his plans, the man who's timelines he could never see.
Now he knew why.
It was all because of this girl,
Rose Marion Tyler.
How was that even possible?
"Oi." the girl – Rose Tyler - said impatiently, clicking her fingers in front of his face. "You alright, mate?"
Bilis blinked, reminding himself where he was. That was quite an unexpected shock to the system.
He needed to get out, his plan had failed.
He couldn't take Rose Tyler now. What if she found a way to kill Abaddon? That would sabotage his plans completely beyond repair.
"I said, who're you?" she demanded, having gained confidence during the time he'd been zoned out.
"Why I've already told you dear, I'm Bilis the caretaker." he said with a welcoming smile.
He couldn't shift now, not right in front of her.
He needed to get out the building. Hide away for a while.
"Okay." she scoffed disbelievingly. She folded her arms, scanning the office chair with her eyes, still suspecting someone else was there. "And who were you talking to just now?"
"Just myself dear, it can get a bit lonely in this old building now and again." He explained calmly, while mentally frantically concocting an escape plan that didn't end with Rose Tyler or the Doctor pursuing him. "Now, you'll have to excuse me I must go." he said, quickly manoeuvring around 'Rose Tyler' and scurrying out of his office.
The original girl started to go after him but he slyly kicked back a book on the floor. It skidded across the wooden floorboards, stopping just under the original girl's foot as she took a step. She tripped and lost her balance, falling sideways into some of his clocks, a large crashing sound echoing down the hall.
A tad risky but now he had time to escape, move down the corridor and straight out the main entrance.
He was not even halfway down the corridor when the Doctor stepped through the arch leading to the main lobby.
His chest was heaving like he'd run a marathon, his face twisted in fury, his eyes dark, glaring murderously at Bilis. "Where's Rose." he demanded, his voice ice cold.
But Bilis couldn't answer, he was stunned into silence, sheer fear consuming him. He couldn't see the Doctor's past, that still escaped him. But his futures, his futures he could see, swirling around him.
He saw the fires raging, stars collapsing, suns dying. He saw seas boiling, forests burning, deserts freezing. He saw the Doctor's seething rage, his immeasurable knowledge, his overwhelming capacity for cruelty and suffering, for death and destruction.
And the sole target, the one at the very core of all this destruction was Bilis himself.
Bilis saw himself dying over and over again, every death cruel and painful, following years of agony and torture. In every future that was his fate, destined to die.
The Doctor had heard Rose Tyler yell, had sensed the Temporal Shift and heard the crash of the clocks from the office.
And ran.
And now he couldn't see Rose Tyler, he could only see Bilis.
The Doctor thought Bilis had sent Rose Tyler away; separating him from her.
And there wasn't a possible future, not one, where the Doctor took that well.
This is what the other girl had meant; when she said enjoy the preview.
How could he hope to control a being like this? Ever dream of threatening him, when he was capable of inflicting so much pain?
He'd made a mistake, he should've taken that deal.
Now he'd be lucky to get out alive.
Rose Tyler sped around the corner, grabbing on to the frame of the office entrance in order to swing her body around more quickly. "Oi! Mate, what was - " She stopped by the doorway, and blinked at the Doctor, only a few metres away from Bilis. "Doctor!" she called happily.
And just like that the Doctor's timelines shifted again, his expression softening as his eyes fell on Rose Tyler. The oceans were cool, the forests still lush, the deserts still hot and scorching.
The Doctor could see her.
And because of that, Bilis could sense there was a possible future, a chance, where he could still get away.
Only a chance unfortunately, for the Doctor's rage was not quelled, his mind not put at rest. The Doctor still saw him as a threat. Bilis was between him and Rose Tyler. The destruction Bilis had seen was still simmering, brewing, lying just below the surface.
Even taking one step towards her was too risky. If the Doctor suspected, even for a fraction of a second, that he was a threat to Rose Tyler's safety, then he would lash out to protect her, immobilising him in an instant. There were many different ways he went about it in the variety of possible futures, and everyone eventually led to eternal suffering on his part, so Bilis was rather keen to avoid that scenario.
He needed to calm the Doctor down.
"There's no need to shout. Miss Tyler and I were having a discussion in my office. I'm Bilis Manger the care taker." he said calmly, with a welcoming smile, supressing his fear.
The Doctor's body was rigid, prepped to attack at a moment's notice, but after he spoke Bilis saw his stance relax the tiniest amount, considering his story.
"How do you know my last name?" the girl demanded. "I didn't tell you my last name and neither did 'e, so how do you know it?"
In a second the Doctor was on maximum alert once more, this time moving his body to fully block the archway leading to the main lobby. "Answer her." he demanded.
Damn, thought Bilis, his nerves were getting the better of him.
"I'm afraid I don't know what to tell you. You told me your name Miss Tyler." he said, addressing her.
"No I didn't." she said sternly.
Bilis let out a little laugh of disbelief. "Well I don't know what to tell you, Miss Tyler, but I assure you, you told me your name."
Rose Tyler folded her arms. "Wot about your friend in there?" Rose stated, pointing into his office. "Did they tell you my name? Are they the ones creating the Shifts?"
Damn this girl! He could swear she was doing this on purpose! Was it really the original girl? Or the other girl playing pretend, trying to trick him. He snapped his attention to her, a mistake, the Doctor took a step closer to him, dare not taking any chances.
"This is your only warning. Stay away from her." he spat.
No, there was no ominosity, no forebodingness, it had to be the original girl. She didn't understand what her words were doing. Now it wasn't him that was boxed in between her and the Doctor, but her who was boxed in between himself and the 'creature' in the certainly empty office. She was in more theoretical danger, meaning the Doctor was even more on edge, even more ready to attack.
Bilis's life was even closer to ending.
"There's someone else?" the Doctor asked, but it was directed at Rose and not Bilis, his voice was softer and there was no aggression in it.
Rose gave the Doctor a quick glance to confirm and the Doctor snapped his attention back to Bilis. "Who is it?" he demanded. "Answer her!"
Bilis looked towards Rose. "As I told you before, they've gone dear."
"Then, who are they?" she pressed. "Are they the ones causing these shifts or is that you?"
Damn, how was he going to get out? Bilis couldn't answer honestly, in only 1% of the possible timelines does the Doctor believe him, and even then it just makes him angrier. He couldn't physically best the Doctor, he couldn't go after the girl or he'd be killed instantly, and if he tried to shift and disappear in front of them, Rose Tyler would charge forward, screaming for the Doctor, causing Bilis to accidently shift her to 1941 with him. Where a very unmaintained, and extremely distressed Doctor would be waiting for them, incapacitating him in a second.
That was the worst outcome of them all.
There was only one thing left for him to do;
surrender.
It was at the end of that thought that the other girl nonchalantly swung her head around the door frame of the office, just behind Rose Tyler. Bilis's eyes widened as they drifted over to her position, causing Rose Tyler to double take, looking back towards the office.
"Are they there now?" she asked, quickly whirling round to the entrance of the office and backing away from it slightly.
"Rose, be careful." the Doctor called, he was really on edge now, aiming a device from his pocket directly at the other girl, although, it was clear to Bilis that he was the only one who could see her. The device's end lit up blue for a split second before the Doctor stopped to check the readings on the side. "There's nothing there." the Doctor announced. "Rose, he's just trying to trick you."
But Rose Tyler wasn't convinced.
Meanwhile, the other girl ignored them both, talking over them. "Ah Bilis! You're still alive, good on you. Didn't I tell you I was doing you a favour? Now they'll stop you straight away, before you even get a chance to free your boss. It could've been so much more interesting if you'd let Adam do all the leg work. And now I have a problem, you see it'd be such a pain if they. - " The other girl pointed around to the tag-a-longs. "Worked out who I am." She jabbed a finger towards the Doctor. "Especially him."
It was at that moment that the last tag-a-long, Mickey Smith, according to Rose Tyler's mind, appeared behind Rose Tyler, right at the end of the corridor. He took one look at how tense her and the Doctor were and raised his weapon at Bilis.
"No!" the Doctor yelled at Mickey with an intense urgency. "We think he's the one controlling the shifts, shoot and there's a chance he can shift the bullets around. You might hit ROSE!" The Doctor practically screamed the last sentence.
Mickey Smith instantly lowered his weapon, holstering it but remained primed to attack, waiting for the slightest hint of aggression from Bilis.
The other girl beamed, having watched the whole thing. "Aww, aren't they adorable when they're about to kill you?" she continued casually, Bilis looking at her as she spoke. "So, I'll tell you what, if you promise to keep quiet, then pack up and leave town, I'll make it so they let you go."
"Doctor, I really think someone's there." Rose explained shakily, backing up slowly towards Mickey.
Bilis nodded. "Very well, I accept."
Well, what choice did he have, given the sort of people he was up against.
Rose and Mickey tensed as Bilis replied, suspecting something was about to happen. Mickey pushed Rose behind him, and Bilis saw the Doctor relax a little - Rose was being looked after.
"Stop it." the Doctor said darkly. "Stop trying to scare them."
Bilis watched as the other girl walked confidently backwards towards Mickey Smith. "I'd shift, in, oh, five,"
Mickey Smith tensed as Bilis's eyes fell on him, bracing himself to swing at the nearest touch, thinking the other girl invisible. But Bilis wasn't sure she could have presence in the physical world, he couldn't see her timelines, he didn't know what she was going to do.
"Leave 'im alone." said Rose shakily to the air, keenly following Bilis's line of sight.
"Four."
"Rose, Mickey, there's no one there.-" the Doctor reassured softly to his friends.
"Three."
The Doctor's voice turned sharp and aggressive as he addressed Bilis. " - I said stop."
Meanwhile, the other girl stopped right next to Mickey Smith. He swung for her, using Bilis's reactions as a guide to where she was. Bilis jerked back at the expected impact. But Mickey Smith's fist fazed right through her.
At the same time the Doctor saw Mickey swing, he saw how Bilis flinched, calming him a little more as he began to suspect that Bilis was actually suffering from a mental illness and was simply hallucinating, the tenseness of the situation putting Rose and Mickey on edge.
"Two,"
But then the other girl jerked her eyebrows towards Bilis before leaning over to Mickey Smith and licking him on the cheek.
Mickey reacted instantly, flailing his arms around and frantically wiping at his face.
The Doctor was too confused and too groggy to move straight away, and Bilis too shocked, but Rose Tyler instantly moved forward. "Mickey!" she called, trying her best to help him.
"One."
As Rose Tyler tried to comfort her friend, her doppelganger licked her face as well, causing Rose to frantically wave her arms around, like a dangerous insect was buzzing around her face, stumbling back and hitting the wall as she tried to get away from whatever slimy thing had just touched her.
"Rose! Mickey!" the Doctor called, snapping out of it and sprinting past Bilis in an instant, not sparing him a second glance.
Of course, how simple.
The safety of the Doctor's friend and lover far overwhelmed any thoughts he had about revenge. And the fact that Bilis was just as surprised as the rest of them put him out of the firing line.
The other girl had kept her end of the bargain, so Bilis decided to keep his, and shifted away while all of them were occupied with trying to help one another.
He had gotten out alive.
A/N:
Next Chapter: A Job for the Torchwood Team
When: Monday/Tuesday
Other notes: What's this? Actual series plot? Why yes! Also, this story's looking to be about 10/12 chapters long, so we're just over half way. Hope you're enjoying so far :)