Watching the Doctor

by RedRobyn2

The Doctor is stranded in prison, dealing with the revelations of the Timeless Child and the memories of her time travelling, all alone. Until the Tardis decides enough is enough and gathers her and some of her more recent companions to help her deal with her past and make some amends by watching her adventures. Characters watch the show, set after Timeless Child/Pre-Resolution.

17. School Reunion

Hello everyone!

First of all, I'm late, I know, I'm sorry. Somehow life has only gotten busier despite university finishing for the summer. Isn't that typical?

Second of all, I do have a plan of action for the next few chapters. Next chapter (chapter 18) I want you all to choose between Boom Town (9th Doctor), Partners in Crime (10th Doctor) and Pilot (12th Doctor) - whichever appears most in comments will be the one I do next (the others I will do semi-soon). Then after that for chapters 19 & 20 (when my schedule clears up) I will do A Good Man Goes to War and then Let's Kill Hitler to add to River's arc (as those were highly demanded episodes). Sound good?

Third, Sarah Jane Smith isn't dead yet for the purpose of this fanfic/chapter. I love her too much and I can't put the Doctor through that (yet).

Finally, as always I hope you enjoy and thank you for reading!

Please comment what you think, I love your comments and I always welcome suggestions for episodes to do soon.

Thank you!

Robyn

---

The screen turned blank and the title of the next video appeared on the screen. The people in the room all glanced around to try and see if anyone was reacting to the video's title - 'School Reunion'.

The Doctor had scrunched her face up in confusion, mentally trying to figure out what the title was referring too – maybe something at the university? It hadn't been like she'd been around too many other schools in more recent years (relative to the people in the room at least). A glance around the group (in an attempt to jog her own memory) revealed that most of the group was also confused by the name.

Rose's expression, however, made her pause. Rose had her eyes narrowed at the screen in a more contemplative way then the confusion prominent on the rest of the room's faces.

"Rose?" The Doctor asked curious.

"Hmn?" Rose hummed still stuck in her own thoughts. Their exchange had succeeded in drawing the rest of the room's attention towards them though.

"You have an idea about the video?" The Doctor prompted, leaning forward slightly in her seat, gaze focussed on Rose.

"Oh? Oh, yeah." Rose jerked out of her thoughts, noticing the room's eyes on her. Noticing the Doctor's almost teasing smile she rolled her eyes before sharing her thoughts. "I was just thinking, maybe this is about that school? You know with Mickey and the bat-people? After all, we both had reunions there – me with Mickey, and you with Sarah Jane and that tin dog of yours."

"They were Krillitanes, not bat-people, but that's a fair point." The Doctor corrected (which Rose ignored) before humming her own thoughts – Rose was right, that was a good guess. Mickey was nodding along too, being the only other person to which those words meant anything.

"Bat people?" Amy asked, eyebrows raised high.

The Doctor shrugged with a smile, "I guess we'll see." She offered no other words, instead turning back to the screen to see what it would show. The rest of the group shared a fond exasperated look at the Doctor's behaviour before copying her.

[Outside the Headmaster's office]

(A man comes down the stairs of Deffry Vale High School and walks to the Headmaster's office. A girl is sitting on a chair nearby.)

"You were right Rose." Mickey grinned at his friend who grinned back proudly.

"Guess we'll get to see about those bat-people then." Rory smiled at the pair.

The Doctor nodded along almost absentmindedly; this would be interesting. The whole group was going to get to see Sarah Jane and she couldn't help but mentally run through their conversations. Yes, this would be interesting indeed, it would be the first time many of them got to see her interact with a former companion (at least not through the screen), a few of them had met others but this was one Sarah Jane, who had travelled with her a long time before any of them had done so. She couldn't help but be a bit curious about how they would react – especially her newer companions, after all Donna, Marth, Jack, Mickey and Rose had all met Sarah Jane (most of them through the planets in the sky mess).

FINCH: What do you want?
NINA: The nurse sent me, sir. I was in English and I got a headache.
FINCH: Then don't bother me, go home.
NINA: I can't.
FINCH: Why, is your mother at work?
NINA: I live in Ambrose Hall. The children's home.
FINCH: No parents. No one to miss you. I see why the nurse sent you. You poor child. Poor thin, child. Come inside.
(He opens the door and the girl walks through.)
FINCH: It's nearly time for lunch.
(The door closes behind them. There is a screech and flapping of wings, and a scream.)

"Please tell me he just let her watch a movie while she waited for someone to pick her up?" Donna asked, frowning as if she already knew the answer. Most of the group was wearing similar expressions.

The Doctor, Rose and Mickey grimaced all knowing the true nature of Mr Finch and half of the other staff. Their expressions and lack of explanations was all the answer the group needed and they all frowned more thinking about the poor girl. Clearly this video wasn't going to be as nice as it first seemed, although Rose, Mickey and the Doctor hadn't seemed too worried about it.

[Physics laboratory]

(Up on the first floor, there is a change of class. The teacher enters, wearing a brown suit and white sneakers.)
DOCTOR: Good morning, class. Are we sitting comfortably?

The room started grinning upon seeing the Doctor, especially those that knew that particular incarnation. "Are you trying to be a teacher?" Martha teased, being the only one with experience of seeing them as a teacher (bar Bill).

"What do you mean trying?" The Doctor protested as the group started snickering.

"To be fair, they made a pretty decent university tutor." Bill defended the Doctor. The snickers, however, continued when the Doctor started gesturing to her frantically as if to prove a point.

"But they're a terrible janitor." Clara added with a wide teasing grin. The Doctor just pouted as the snickers continued, everyone was far too entertained at teasing the Doctor even though they didn't quite understand half the jokes.

(The Doctor writes on the board.)
DOCTOR: So, physics. Physics, eh? Physics. Physics. Physics! Physics. Physics, physics, physics, physics, physics, physics, physics. I hope one of you is getting all this down.

Slowly, as one, the group turned to stare down the Doctor. It took a minute or two for the Doctor to realise the whole room's eyes were on her.

"What?" She looked around the room, unsure about why they were all staring unimpressed at her.

"Seriously?" Donna snorted.

"What!?" The Doctor asked becoming more confused by the second.

"How are the kids supposed to learn if all you say is 'Physics'?" Amy added in, apparently the res-heads were teaming up against her (and wasn't that a scary idea).

"What do you mean? I was talking about some easy three-fold quantum physics that I learnt when I was their age?"

This time it was the groups turn to look confused, all sharing equally bewildered looks with each other.

"No? All you said was 'physics' like a dozen times." Ryan said, uncertain. The rest of the group was nodding along in agreement while the Doctor just looked more confused.

The Master was the one to break up the confusion-party, smirking degradingly at the group. "Humans can hardly understand our level of intellect, dear. Your words probably short-circuited their little monkey brains."

His words earned him plenty of glares and protests around the 'monkey-brain' comments from the companions. The Doctor however, just sighed annoyed at his delivery and tone but did consider his words. Frowning slightly, she spoke up, "Unfortunately, for once I think he's right." She hurried to continue her explanation upon seeing all the glares turned her way. "I mean that the physics I was talking about was a bit too high level for the group, that's what we were there investigating after all. Hmm, the word literally went in one ear and out the other, interesting." She scrunched up her face in concentration, that was indeed interesting – was the Tardis just translating it as the kids heard it or would no one else in the room understood it either? She (and apparently the Master) had heard what she had intended to say but clearly no one else was, no wonder the kids had looked so confused.

The Doctor was so deep in thoughts, pondering on the phenomenon, that she missed most of the group shake their heads at her antics and mutter about crazy Time Lords.

Okay let's see what you know. Two identical strips of nylon are charged with static electricity and hung from a string so they can swing freely. What would happen if they were brought near each other?
(A young boy with spectacles puts his hand up.)
DOCTOR: Yes, er, what's your name?
MILO: Milo.
DOCTOR: Milo! Off you go.
MILO: They'd repel each other because they have the same charge.
DOCTOR: Correctamundo! A word I have never used before and hopefully never will again.

"Sweetie, I love you but that is a terrible word that you should never use again, and with your vocabulary that's saying a lot." River raised an eyebrow at the Doctor.

"Hey!"

Question two. I coil up a thin piece of microwire and place it in a glass of water. Then I turn on the electricity and measure to see if the water's temperature is affected. My question is this. How do I measure the electrical power going into the coil?
(Just one hand goes up. Everyone else looks totally bored.)

"That brings back memories." Rose grinned at Mickey, as the person who had gone through school with her. "I mean the bored pupils not the genius kid." She added on at the end upon seeing a few curious looks. Mickey grinned back; it was definitely a familiar picture. The rest of the group nodded along, all thinking back on their own school days.

DOCTOR: Someone else. No? Okay, Milo, go for it.
MILO: Measure the current and PDs in an ammeter and a voltmeter.
DOCTOR: Two to Milo. Right then, Milo, tell me this. True or false. The greater the dampening of the system, the quicker it loses energy to its surroundings.
MILO: False.
DOCTOR: What is non-coding DNA?
MILO: DNA that doesn't code for a protein.
DOCTOR: Sixty five thousand nine hundred and eighty three times five?
MILO: Three hundred and twenty nine thousand nine hundred and fifteen.
DOCTOR: How do you travel faster than light?
MILO: By opening a quantum tunnel with an FTL factor of thirty six point seven recurring.
(The Doctor's jaw drops.)

"I don't know about anyone else but I'm pretty sure Milo should not know that much at that age, even if he was a genius." Rory pointed out, sending questioning glances at the Doctor.

"He absolutely shouldn't. That's why we were investigating – something was wrong with the school." The Doctor nodded.

[Canteen]

(Chips are still on the menu here. A young blonde slops mash into the Doctor's tray. He walks away with a grin. A little later she goes over to wipe his table.)

The room turned to look at Rose, they'd already guessed she'd been involved in the video based on the fact she's been the one to guess its contents from the title but it was still something to see her on screen.

Rose in turn, shifted her gaze to glare at the Doctor still annoyed and disgruntled over having to be a dinner lady. She understood why, there'd only been one teacher opening and one dinner lady and the Doctor (at the time) couldn't exactly be a dinner lady, but still it was the principle of the matter. The Doctor just smiled back a bit sheepish under Rose's gaze but couldn't hide the way her lips kept twitching up into a smile.

ROSE: Two days.
DOCTOR: Sorry, could you just? There's a bit of gravy. No, no, just, just there.

The group couldn't help but start chuckling at the pair's interaction, it was very typical Doctor-companion behaviour with the teasing, and it was always good to enjoy the calm moments before the chaos started. Even Rose was smiling, better able to see the humour now. She still got several looks of commiseration, after all they'd all had to deal with the Doctor's antics.

ROSE: Two days, we've been here.
DOCTOR: Blame your boyfriend. He's the one who put us onto this. And he was right. Boy in class this morning, got a knowledge way beyond planet Earth.

The boyfriend comment drew the group's eyes to Mickey, aware that he's used to be Rose's boyfriend before she'd started travelling and with how the Doctor was still travelling with Rose it meant he hadn't meant Martha yet. Mickey just smiled proudly, offering a small wave which earned him a few grins.

ROSE: You eating those chips?
DOCTOR: Yeah, they're a bit different.

Unnoticed by the rest of the group, Mickey, Rose and the Doctor shared a knowing glance – the chips were definitely different alright.

ROSE: I think they're gorgeous. Wish I had school dinners like this.
DOCTOR: It's very well behaved, this place.
ROSE: Mmm.
DOCTOR: I thought there'd be happy slapping hoodies. Happy slapping hoodies with ASBOs. Happy slapping hoodies with ASBOs and ringtones. Huh? Huh? Oh, yeah. Don't tell me I don't fit in.

Her comment on screen drew the Doctor several exasperated looks from the group (again).

"What?" She questioned, bewildered by the group's sudden exasperation with her (again).

"You have no idea about Earth schools or teenagers, do you?" Clara teased, rolling her eyes at the Doctor.

The Doctor just shrugged. "It's not like I spend much time around schools or younger teenagers." The only time she spent much time around kids were briefly during adventures, it had been a long time since she'd had her own children or grandchildren and they hadn't exactly been human. How was she supposed to know much about it all, especially recent years – it had been decades since Susan had gone to school on Earth.

(The head dinner lady comes over.)
JACKSON: You are not permitted to leave your station during a sitting.

"Ooh, Rosie. You're in trouble." Jack teased, he was enjoying the opportunity to see Rose, the Doctor and Mickey adventuring together, the last time he'd seen them together (before the planets in the sky mess) was their trip to Cardiff which had ended with Mikey leaving. It definitely brought back good memories. Rose just rolled her eyes at him but didn't hide the smile that broke across her face.

ROSE: I was just talking to this teacher.
DOCTOR: Hello.
ROSE: He doesn't like the chips.
JACKSON: The menu has been specifically designed by the headmaster to improve concentration and performance. Now, get back to work.

"Okay, so that is suspicious." Yaz narrowed her eyes, they'd already seen (vaguely) that the headmaster wasn't what he seemed, something was up. The Doctor smiled softly at her, lips twitching up into a proud smile but didn't say anything.

ROSE: See? This is me. Dinner lady.
DOCTOR: I'll have the crumble.
ROSE: I'm so going to kill you.

That drew laughter out of the group again, as the Doctor grinned teasingly at Rose who shot him a (mostly) mock glare.

(A dark teacher walks over to a girl with a pony tail.)
WAGNER: Melissa. You'll be joining my class for the next period. Milo's failed me, so it's time we moved you up to the top class. Kenny, not eating the chips?
(Tubby Kenny is eating a home prepared lunch from a Tupperware box.)
KENNY: I'm not allowed.
WAGNER: Luke. Extra class. Now.
(Luke and Melissa follow Mister Wagner out. Headmaster Finch stands on a balcony overlooking the canteen and watches it all.)

"Okay, I'm getting creepy vibes from these teachers." Bill declared, glancing between the screen and the trio in the room. The Doctor just shrugged noncommittedly which only served to make Bill more suspicious. The Doctor was starting to enjoy knowing the answers to the lighter videos as it was fun to tease her friends.

[Kitchen]

(Rose is drying up when other dinner ladies wheel a large cooking oil drum through. It has lots of strange symbols on the side. They are wearing breathing masks and heavy duty protective gauntlets.)
JACKSON: Careful. Keep it steady. Don't spill a drop. I said, keep it steady. Careful. That's it. Easy now. Steady.

"That's a lot of protection and safety measures for a barrel of cooking oil." Martha said, eyes narrowed at the screen. Whatever was going on in this school had something to do with the food then, which did not sound good by any standard.

(Rose's phone rings.)
JACKSON: Right. Second barrel. Quickly now!
ROSE: What you got?
MICKEY [OC]: Confirmation.

"Confirmation of what?" Graham asked the pair who just smiled at each other before waving at the screen – happy to be the ones in the know this time.

[Library]

(Mickey is using the internet somewhere with books in the background.)
MICKEY: I just got into army records. Three months ago, massive UFO activity.

"You got into army records? Did you hack them?" Yaz interrogated, this was a situation where she was stuck between being a police officer and also her travels with the Doctor (which had taught her sometimes you needed to do things like hack army record to save people).

"I'm pretty good with computers. Only gotten better since then." Mickey shrugged, but his smile told the group how proud he was of his skills.

[Kitchen]

MICKEY [OC]: They logged over forty sightings. Lights in the sky, all of that.

[Library]

MICKEY: I can't get any photos, because then it gets all classified and secret. Keeps locking me out.
(With the message - Torchwood Access Denied)

Upon seeing the words Torchwood, Jack started grinning while the Doctor rolled her eyes. Jack turned his grin on Mickey who just shook his head, it was weird to think that he knew nothing about Torchwood back then, especially now that he had worked for them (on the parallel world) and knowing Jack who led Torchwood three.

ROSE [OC]: Tell you what, though.

[Kitchen]

ROSE: Three months ago, turns out all the kitchen staff were replaced. And this lot are weird.

[Library]

MICKEY: See? There's definitely something going on.

[Kitchen]

MICKEY [OC]: I was right to call you home.
ROSE: I thought maybe you called me home just, well, just to call me home.
MICKEY: Do you think I'd just invent an emergency?

The group shifted a bit uncomfortable upon seeing the (clearly) private relationship drama from the younger versions of Rose and Mickey. The Doctor glanced quickly at the pair before glancing away, she was ashamed to say that she had considered that Mickey had called just to see Rose at the time and she still felt guilty for separating the two even though they were both happy now.

Mickey and Rose met each other's eyes, having a silent conversation – they'd been a lot younger back then and far more insecure about themselves and their relationship. Looking back, it was hard to believe how much they'd matured sometimes, they were both confident and happy in both their relationships and current lives. Things had been rough at times but it was worth it in the end.

[Kitchen]

ROSE: You could've done.
MICKEY [OC]: That's the last thing I'd do.
JACKSON: Watch it!

[Library]

MICKEY: Because every time I see you

Rory couldn't help but offer Mickey a sympathetic look, he understood the other man's worries – Amy had run off with the Doctor with barely a thought to the fact she was getting married to him, but the difference between them was he'd ended up with Amy anyway but Mickey and Rose had ended up with others (but no less happy).

[Kitchen]

MICKEY [OC]: An emergency just gets in the way.
(The next barrel of oil topples over. One of the women gets splashed and starts screaming.)
ROSE: I've got to go.
JACKSON: Get her up, get her up!

"You know you just proved him right." Nardole said.

"Shut up Nardole." The Doctor sighed upon seeing Rose's guilty face.

[Library]

MICKEY: Rose, what is it?

"Well, that explains that." Mickey muttered, but offered a smile to Rose, he didn't blame her anymore.

[Kitchen]

(The injured woman is hustled into the office and the blinds are pulled down. Rose redials.)
JACKSON: What're you doing?
ROSE: Calling an ambulance.
JACKSON: No need. She's quite all right.
(There is a whumph! like a sudden fire, and a scream.)

"That does not sound alright." Amy raised her eyebrow at the screen.

JACKSON: It's fine. She does that.
(The woman goes back into the smoke filled office. Rose sees that the spilt oil has eaten through metal.)

"That's definitely not cooking oil." Bill exclaimed, sitting up straighter in her seat. The rest of the group also looked alarmed at the 'oil'. Something really weird was going on at this school.

[IT classroom]

WAGNER: I'd like you all to put your headphones on now, please. Now, children, the things you will see.
(Symbols and equations scroll down on the slaved computers and the children start typing faster and faster.)

"What are they doing to those kids!" Martha protested, glancing concerned between the trio in the room and the screen. Said trio just shared a look but didn't offer any answers.

"The kids, weird teachers, and something is up with the food. What isn't wrong with this school?" Clara snorted, but her concern was obvious in her eyes – she was a (former) teacher so this video was both interesting and concerning her.

[Staircase]

(Finch is talking to a not quite so young woman investigative reporter, who hasn't changed her hairstyle in thirty years.)

Those that knew Sarah Jane, so Rose, Mickey, Martha, Donna, Jack and the Doctor, all perked up grinning upon seeing the former companion and famed investigative reporter. The Doctor's expression was so fond and wistful that it was almost painful for anyone to look at.

The rest of the room had noticed the way that half the group perked up, sending them curious looks but didn't ask any questions knowing the chance of them being answered was slim and they'd likely find out soon anyway.

The Master (who'd had the misfortune of having met and had plans foiled by Sarah Jane) just glared at the screen. It was bad enough that the Doctor picked up new companions constantly but re-uniting with older companions (and yet still ignoring him) was just infuriating.

FINCH: Our work here. My improvements aren't confined to the classroom. Oh, no, no, no, no, no. We've introduced a new policy. School dinners are absolutely free, but compulsory. Do try the chips.

"Okay, so they have absolutely done something to the chips, which is sacrilege." Bill said, narrowing her yes at Mr Finch, she did not like him, not just because of the chips (but that was bad – she was a former chip girl after all), everything about him was creeping her out. The Doctor just smiled fondly at her, glad to see familiar behaviour from the young woman.

SARAH: Oh, I'd love to. Thank you. And it's got to be said, the transformation you've brought about is amazing. I mean, maybe you're working the children a little bit too hard now and then, but I think good results, they're more important than anything.
FINCH: Exactly. You're a woman of vision, Miss Smith.
SARAH: Oh, I can see everything, Mister Finch. Quite clearly.

"She's not taking his nonsense." Jack grinned, happy to see the other former companion on screen. He'd met up with Sarah Jane a few times after the planet in the sky mess, and she'd introduced him to several of the Doctor's other companions that were still on Earth. They had plenty in common and it was always good to be able to talk to others who had experienced similar things to him.

"She never does. Not from anyone." The Doctor grinned, proud and fondness clear on her face. She was practically bouncing in her seat in her excitement.

[Staff room]

PARSONS: Yesterday, I had a twelve year old girl give me the exact height of the Walls of Troy in cubits.
DOCTOR: And, it's ever since the new headmaster arrived?
PARSONS: Finch arrived three months ago. Next day, half the staff got flu. Finch replaced them with that lot, except for the teacher you replaced, and that was just plain weird, her winning the lottery like that.
DOCTOR: How's that weird?
PARSONS: She never played. Said the ticket was posted through her door at midnight.
DOCTOR: Hmm. The world is very strange.

"You couldn't at least be a little more subtle?" River sighed at her wife, she always used the same tactics and could be very dumb sometimes. The Doctor just grinned with a shrug, completely unrepentant (and far too excited to see more of Sarah Jane).

(The Headmaster enters.)
FINCH: Excuse me, colleagues. A moment of your time. May I introduce Miss Sarah Jane Smith. Miss Smith is a journalist who's writing a profile about me for the Sunday Times. I thought it might be useful for her to get a view from the trenches, so to speak. Don't spare my blushes.
(Finch leaves.)

"Sarah Jane Smith? Isn't that the investigative journalist who looks at some weirder stuff? I think I've read some of her stuff." Graham asked thoughtful.

"Didn't you mention her earlier?" Yaz said, combing through her memories of their time in the room (she'd learnt a lot about the Doctor in a short amount of time but she was sure she'd heard someone mention the name Sarah Jane Smith).

"Yeah, isn't that the former companion of yours that you dropped in Aberdeen instead of London?" Ryan added, drawing a rapid nod of agreement from Yaz.

The Doctor grinned, "Yep, that's my Sarah Jane. This was the first time I'd met her since I dropped her off in my fourth face." Her tone and face turned more wistful and sadder. "It was a long time ago, even longer now. But she was as amazing as always."

The rest of the companions all shared a glance as the Doctor was distracted. They couldn't help but think about if the Doctor would talk about them like that when they had/did leave them.

SARAH: Hello.
DOCTOR: Oh, I should think so.

"You're so excited." Rose shook her head fondly. She wasn't looking forward to how jealous she was going to seem, especially now that she understood Srah Jane so much better now, but she couldn't do anything about that. Watching the video was rather telling though, it was entertaining to see how excited the Doctor was to see Sarah Jane (now that she wasn't distracted by her drama with Mickey and jealousy over the Doctor).

The Doctor's grin was all the answer she needed (and the way the Doctor was fidgeting, unable to stay still in her excitement).

SARAH: And, you are?
DOCTOR: Hm? Er, Smith. John Smith.
SARAH: John Smith. I used to have a friend who sometimes went by that name.

"You do use that name far too often." Donna pointed out, almost accusingly.

The Doctor shrugged, "It's a common name."

"Real question is what name are you going to use now?" Martha asked, she'd heard the Doctor use the name John Smith so many times. Any time she heard the name, even now, she thought about him (the first while after leaving him, she'd been convinced every John Smith she met could be him).

"What do you mean? Why can't I use John Smith still?" The Doctor asked, face scrunched up in (adorable) confusion.

The group shared nervous glances, no one wanting to hurt the Doctor's feelings on this matter and unsure how to explain exactly.

Bill being one of the most aware about these things, took a deep breath before trying to explain. "Well, 'cause you look like a woman now and humans can be a bit funny about this stuff. John is a very typical male name, which you don't look anymore. Not that that should matter, but you spend a lot of time in the past and it would draw a lot of attention. Attention that you don't really need when you want to adventure."

The Doctor nodded along considering, but frowning. Eventually she sighed, "Maybe you're right. I'll have to think about a name for at least my travels to the past. I'll likely keep Smith though, maybe Jo? I don't know." The group let out quite sighs at avoiding a debate over the bad habits of humanity, and turned back to the screen as the Doctor kept muttering to herself about possible names.

DOCTOR: Well, it's a very common name.
SARAH: He was a very uncommon man. Nice to meet you.
DOCTOR: Nice to meet you. Yes, very nice. More than nice. Brilliant.

"You're not going to tell her?" Amy asked, confused.

"Not yet, didn't want an audience." The Doctor explained, distracted from her thoughts over names.

"You almost gave it away with your excitement. She's going to be suspicious of you now." Clara sighed fondly, shaking her head as the Doctor just grinned uncaring. Sarah Jane's appearance had been so unexpected and she'd gotten too excited to think properly.

SARAH: Er, so, er, have you worked here long?
DOCTOR: No. Er, it's only my second day.
SARAH: Oh, you're new, then. So, what do you think of the school? I mean, this new curriculum? So many children getting ill. Doesn't that strike you as odd?
DOCTOR: You don't sound like someone just doing a profile.
SARAH: Well, no harm in a little investigation while I'm here.
DOCTOR: No. Good for you.

"So, you're off the suspect list, but she still thinks there is something weird about you." Martha summarised the interaction.

"There is something weird about her. She is weird." Donna announced, to agreeing nods form the rest of the group to which the Doctor shrugged, she couldn't argue that.

(Sarah moves away from the scary grinning Doctor.)
DOCTOR: Good for you. Oh, good for you, Sarah Jane Smith.

[IT classroom]

(The end of day bell rings. Kenny walks into the now dark room to investigate a strange sort of eating sound. A nasty large set of teeth snap at him from behind a row of computer screens, then the teacher stands up.)
WAGNER: This isn't your classroom, Kenny. Now run along.

"Bat people?" Jack asked, face revealing he already knew the answer and didn't like it.

The trio shared a glance before nodding in confirmation.

[Corridor]

(After dark, Sarah Jane Smith breaks into the school.)
ROSE: Oh, it's weird seeing school at night. It just feels wrong. When I was a kid, I used to think all the teachers slept in school.

Rose looked around the group a bit embarrassed, but the group just smiled and nodded along. Everyone had weird thoughts about school as kids and this school was absolutely weird.

DOCTOR: All right, team. Oh, I hate people who say team. Er, gang. Er, comrades.

The Doctor found herself facing down her current three companions who were all staring intensely at her. "You should go back to that belief, cockle." Graham said.

"Yeah, Graham's right." Ryan nodded (with Yaz beside him nodding too), the three of them had had to suffer the Doctor's attempts to name them for too long.

"Nah, you're my team, my gang, my fam!" The Doctor declared, bouncing in her seat only to be met with groans by the trio while the rest of the room watched on entertained. The trio missed the Doctor's triumphant grin at annoying them.

Anyway, Rose, go to the kitchen. Get a sample of that oil. Mickey, the new staff are all Maths teachers. Go and check out the Maths department. I'm going to look in Finch's office. Be back here in ten minutes.

"Good, you actually have a plan." Rory nodded, glad to see the Doctor having a plan for once.

"It won't last long." Amy countered with a fond smile.

(The Doctor leaves.)
ROSE: You going to be all right?
MICKEY: Me? Please. Infiltration and investigation? I'm an expert at this.
(Mickey leaves, then comes back.)
MICKEY: Where's the Maths department?

The group burst out laughing, with Mickey along side them. It was both embarrassing and interesting to watch the younger versions of themselves, but it was far more entertaining now then it would have been back then.

ROSE: Down there, turn left, through the fire doors, on the right.
MICKEY: Thank you.
(Sarah Jane chases something flying in an upper corridor. Rose gets the oil sample as instructed, then looks up as something screeches overhead.)

The group watched the scenes getting more and more troubled by the situation in the school. The repeated mention of bat-people and the knowledge about the kids in danger was worrying them. The only reassurance they had was how at ease the trio who had actually been there seemed to be. Whatever happened apparently wasn't catastrophic and had been dealt with, but seeing their friends in danger was always worrying.

[Corridor]

(Sarah Jane opens a storeroom door to discover the Tardis parked inside.)

"She's found you." Jack grinned, happy to see the Doctor reveal themselves to Sarah Jane. He had many feelings on the matter, and couldn't help but think of his own reunion with the Doctor.

"Did you have to be so dramatic?" Clara sighed in fond exasperation. No matter what Doctor it was, some things never changed.

"Yes." The Doctor answered, eyes locked to the screen.

"Which question are you answering yes to, Sweetie?" River teased her wife, drawing the Doctor's gaze away from the screen (and Sarah Jane on screen).

"Both?" The Doctor answered unsure.

"You didn't even hear what they said did you?"

"Maybe?"

DOCTOR: Hello, Sarah Jane.
SARAH: It's you. Oh, Doctor Oh, my God, it's you, isn't it. You've regenerated.

"No doubt at all, she knows you too well." Rose smiles softly at the Doctor; she'd had her own doubts after watching the Doctor regenerate but Sarah Jane knew them too well to second guess it.

DOCTOR: Yeah. Half a dozen times since we last met.
SARAH: You look incredible.
DOCTOR: So do you.
SARAH: Huh. I got old. What are you doing here?
DOCTOR: Well, UFO sighting, school gets record results. I couldn't resist. What about you?

"Knowing Sarah Jane, probably exactly the same." Jack laughed.

SARAH: The same. I thought you'd died. I waited for you and you didn't come back, and I thought you must have died.
DOCTOR: I lived. Everyone else died.

That dampened the atmosphere in the toom drastically, everyone making the connection that this was after the Time War but before they (knew they) saved Gallifrey. The Doctor had stopped fidgeting and curled in on herself slightly, thoughts about to plummet but River and Jack grabbed a hand each to offer comfort.

SARAH: What do you mean?
DOCTOR: Everyone died, Sarah.
SARAH: I can't believe it's you.
(Mickey screams.)

The group whipped around to face Mickey, concerned after hearing his scream. The Doctor and Rose, however, were trying to hide their snickers while Mickey just rolled his eyes at the pair of them.

SARAH: Okay, now I can!

"What does it say about you that it took someone screaming for her to believe it was really you?" Amy teased, glad for the distraction and happy for the Doctor to be reunited with an old friend, one that they clearly cared about very much.

"That I'm interesting?"

"That's one word for it, Spaceman."

(Rose runs up.)
ROSE: Did you hear that? Who's she?

"Ooh, jealous Rosie?" Jack noticed, turning to Rose with lips twitching into a grin.

"Don't remind me."

DOCTOR: Rose, Sarah Jane. Sarah Jane, Rose.
SARAH: Hi. Nice to meet you. You can tell you're getting older. Your assistants are getting younger.
ROSE: I'm not his assistant.
SARAH: No? Get you, tiger.

"This is going to be embarrassing, isn't it?" Rose bemoaned while Mickey nodded and the Doctor groaned in sympathy. Both of them were going to have to deal with their choices during the video, the joys of youthful decisions.

"I have to ask, assistant?" Yaz questioned.

The Doctor sighed but answered. "I met Sarah Jane when I was still on Earth working for UNIT. Originally she was my lab assistant before travelling with me." Rose blinked, she hadn't known that and had been too distracted by her jealousy to question it but that did make some sense.

[Classroom]

MICKEY: Sorry! Sorry, it was only me. You told me to investigate, so I started looking through some of these cupboards and all of these fell on me.

The room let out a breath they didn't know they'd been holding upon seeing Mickey not in any danger, instead they started snickering at the sight of him by the cupboard, while Mickey just groaned – it was embarrassing but he had been very surprised to have the rats fall on him.

ROSE: Oh, my God, they're rats. Dozens of rats. Vacuum packed rats.

"Rats? Why are there rats in a school?" Ryan asked, grimacing at the sight of the rats.

"Well, in my day we used to dissect them and frogs in biology." Graham answered his grandson, neither noticing the looks Rose, Mickey and the Doctor shared. This conversation was very familiar.

"Yeah, but that was the olden days. No one does that in school anymore." Ryan shot back.

"Hey! It wasn't that long ago."

"You're old Graham."

"You're not exactly a spring chicken anymore, Ryan."

DOCTOR: And you decided to scream.
MICKEY: It took me by surprise!
DOCTOR: Like a little girl?
MICKEY: It was dark! I was covered in rats!
DOCTOR: Nine, maybe ten years old. I'm seeing pigtails, frilly skirt.

The group started chuckling at the pair, interested to see the early dynamics between the pair. Rose just sighed in fond exasperation, "Honestly, both of you are so childish." Mickey and the Doctor just grinned at her unrepentant.

ROSE: Hello, can we focus? Does anyone notice anything strange about this? Rats in school?
SARAH: Well, obviously they use them in Biology lessons. They dissect them. Or maybe you haven't reached that bit yet. How old are you?
ROSE: Excuse me, no one dissects rats in school anymore. They haven't done that for years. Where are you from, the dark ages?

"Deja Vous." The Doctor muttered, cringing away from the screen a bit. She'd been unaware (well, not unaware, more ignoring) the turbulent meeting between Rose and Sarah Jane, and it was uncomfortable to watch now. She wasn't exactly good at social situations and relationships (never had been really) but she was a bit more aware than she was back then (or she hoped so anyway).

Rose also cringed, aware of heat rushing to her cheeks. This really was going to be embarrassing, and she'd called Mickey and the Doctor childish – yet here she was squabbling with Sarah Jane. She'd still been trying to establish her relationship with the new Doctor, and between Mickey calling them home and Sarah Jane's appearance she'd been so unsure of where she'd stood and lashed out at Sarah Jane. To be fair, it also wasn't just her, Sarah Jane had also gone along with their fights (likely because of her own nerves and uncertainties over where she stood with the new Doctor). The Doctor also hadn't helped by ignoring the situation.

DOCTOR: Anyway, moving on. Everything started when Mister Finch arrived. We should go and check his office.

[Corridor]

ROSE: I don't mean to be rude or anything, but who exactly are you?

"For some reason, I don't quite believe the whole 'not to be rude' comment." Mickey grinned teasingly at Rose, who turned around and tried to hit him. Unfortunately, she couldn't quite reach him, but Martha glanced at her and turned to elbow her husband in the side for Rose. That earned her a grin from Rose and a mock scowl from her husband.

Martha could understand where Rose was coming from in the video, heavens know she'd spent most of her time with the Doctor being jealous over Rose who wasn't even around. Being here in this room, and watching these videos was giving her a better appreciation for a lot of things, and it was nice to be able to spend time with old friends without imminent danger (just emotional trauma). It was also nice to see the Doctor again, and get the chance to meet all these new people they travelled with.

SARAH: Sarah Jane Smith. I used to travel with the Doctor.
ROSE: Oh. Well, he's never mentioned you.
DOCTOR: Oh, I must've done. Sarah Jane. Mention her all the time.
ROSE: Hold on. Sorry. Never.
SARAH: What, not even once? He didn't mention me even once?

The group shifted uncomfortable in their seats, all thinking back to their own travels with the Doctor. Most of them hadn't heard of the people that had travelled with the Doctor before them, or of they had it was only one or two names, never a full list.

Rose frowned, glancing between the Doctor and the screen. The Doctor was looking at the floor, hands curled tight into fists – probably thinking back to all those that had travelled with her in the past (most of whom were lost to her). Rose sighed, "I'm sorry Doctor, that was a bit insensitive."

The Doctor glanced up at her, expression troubled and grieving. "It's fine Rose. I didn't mention Sarah Jane before, didn't really want to think about anything from before the war, that mess is on me."

That only made Rose frown more. "Maybe, but I didn't need to rub it in." The Doctor hummed noncommittedly, eyes turning back to the floor. She missed the concerned look that Jack and River shared over her head.

"Do you mind if I ask how many people have travelled with you?" Bill asked, she looked a bit nervous about asking the question but her curiosity had won out in the end.

The question at least distracted the Doctor from her spiralling thoughts. She glanced up at Bill, tilting her head to the side while she scrunched up her face as she thought about it. "Including you all? It depends, some only travelled with me once or other things, and people like River and Jack are a bit different. But people like most of you? Roughly, 40 odd people maybe? I remember them all but it's hard to keep track sometimes." The names were racing through her head – Ian, Barbra, Susan, Adric, Jamie, Peri, Teagan, Zoe, Nyssa, Jo, Polly, Dodo, Ace and more – and it only served to make her more wistful.

The room was silent, all deep in thought. They all knew they weren't the first, and being in the room and watching these videos had only informed them of several former companions, but to know there was that many people who had travelled with the Doctor was almost overwhelming. Although, it wasn't actually that long a list when you consider how old the Doctor is, and that there were often several companions at one time.

MICKEY: Ho, ho, mate. The missus and the ex. Welcome to every man's worst nightmare.

[Outside the Headmaster's office]

(The Doctor uses the sonic screwdriver on the lock.)
DOCTOR: Maybe those rats were food.
ROSE: Food for what?

[Headmaster's office]

DOCTOR: Rose, you know you used to think all the teachers slept in the school? Well, they do.
(Giant bats are hanging from the ceiling.)

"Ah, Bat-people." Rory muttered, their earlier comments now making a lot more sense.

"I'm going for the rats being food for them." Clara grimaced; it was preferable to the other option but still this school was getting worse as the video went on.

MICKEY: No way!
(Mickey runs. The others follow more sedately. One wakes when the Doctor shuts the door.)

The group started chuckling at seeing Mickey run while of the rest of the group remained much calmer. It really showed that Mickey was much newer to everything compared to the others. Even the Mickey in the room was shaking his head at the onscreen version of himself.

[School yard]

MICKEY: I am not going back in there. No way.
ROSE: Those were teachers.
DOCTOR: When Finch arrived, he brought with him seven new teachers, four dinner ladies and a nurse. Thirteen. Thirteen big bat people. Come on.

"Great, they outnumber you 3 to 1." Martha sighed, wasn't that just typical. Even with Sarah Jane's assistance they were still vastly outnumbered and they weren't exactly in a secluded place to deal with the bat-people, a school was a horrible place to try and deal with everything.

MICKEY: Come on? You've got to be kidding!
DOCTOR: I need the Tardis. I've got to analyse that oil from the kitchen.
SARAH: I might be able to help you there. I've got something to show you.

The Doctor perked up in her seat, shifting closer to the edge in her excitement to see K9 again, it had been a long time since she's seen him last. Honestly, it would be a good excuse to visit Sarah Jane again, plus her new appearance may confuse Sarah jane for all of two minutes.

[Car park]

(In the boot of Sarah's car is - )
DOCTOR: K9! Rose Tyler, Mickey Smith, allow me to introduce K9. well, K9 Mark Three to be precise.

"A robot dog? You made a robot dog?" Yaz questioned, eyebrows raised high in disbelief. These videos some how managed to keep surprising her.

"Yep! He's the best dog ever." The Doctor grinned proudly, completely ignorant to the exasperated looks the group was all giving each other. Even the Master rolled his eyes at her excitement (typical that she would prefer a robotic dog to his company).

ROSE: Why does he look so disco?
DOCTOR: Oi! Listen, in the year five thousand, this was cutting edge. What's happened to him?
SARAH: Oh, one day, he just, nothing.
DOCTOR: Well, didn't you try and get him repaired?

"I don't exactly think there's many places you could take a robotic dog to be fixed without getting questioned, and that's if you could even find someone who could fix it." Amy pointed out, raising an eyebrow at the Doctor who just shrugged a bit sheepish.

SARAH: Well, it's not like getting parts for a Mini Metro, Beside, the technology inside him could rewrite human science. I couldn't show him to anyone.
DOCTOR: Ooh, what's the nasty lady done to you, eh?
(K9 is getting rusty round the edges. Something is watching them from midair.)

The room was instantly on edge upon seeing something watching the group. Rose, Mickey and the Doctor shared a glance, they hadn't been aware of being watched then. They'd all gotten distracted by Sarah Jane and K9's introduction that they'd half-forgotten there was still imminent danger.

ROSE: Look, no offence, but could you two just stop petting for a minute? Never mind the tin dog. We're busy.
(A giant alien bat creature flies across the face of the full moon.)

"They must have heard you in the school." Jack pointed out, face troubled.

"Probably when Mickey started screaming." The Doctor teased, she was at ease with the contents of this video so far and while she knew there was a few rocky moments ahead, it was nothing in comparison to some of the videos they'd already seen.

"Maybe we would have gotten away unnoticed if you hadn't stopped to play with the tin dog." Mickey shot back, smile on his face making it clear he was teasing.

"Maybe if the pair of you would shut up, we could see the rest of the video!" Rose interrupted, earning looks of surrender form the pair. Neither of them was willing to risk Rose's wrath, even for this joke.

[Coffee shop]

(Rose and Mickey are at the counter while the Doctor and Sarah Jane have put the defunct K9 on a table. The musak is Love will tear us apart by Joy Division.)

"Did you seriously just take it to a café? Don't you think people would ask questions?" Donna asked, shaking her head at the Doctor.

"It's not like people normally ask questions, plus we could have always made up a lie about it being a model or something if someone did ask." The Doctor shrugged, in her experience humans weren't exactly the most observant species at times.

MICKEY: You see, what's impressive is that it's been nearly an hour since we met her and I still haven't said I told you so.
ROSE: I'm not listening to this.
MICKEY: Although, I have prepared a little I was right dance that I can show you later.

The group was grinning at the young pair of Mickey and Rose on screen. The Doctor couldn't deny she was curious about their conversation, she hadn't heard it the first time but by the end of this adventure Mickey had joined them to Rose's frustration.

Rose and Mickey (in the room) shared a silent conversation. Their time on the parallel world together had given them plenty of time to sort through their issues and they were both happy with their lives now but it was unarguably weird to see themselves on screen like this.

WOMAN: Two quid, love.
(Rose pays for a portion of chips.)
MICKEY: All this time you've been giving it, he's different, when the truth is, he's just like any other bloke.
ROSE: You don't know what you're talking about.
MICKEY: Maybe not. But if I were you I'd go easy on the chips.

"Mickey!" Martha exclaimed at the subtle insult towards Rose, elbowing her husband in the side as well, earning a grateful smile form Rose.

"Ow! Jeez woman. I'm sorry okay!" Mickey protested, rubbing his side.

"It's not me you need to apologise to!"

"Okay, okay, sheesh." Mickey turned to Rose who was watching expectantly, "Sorry, Rose."

"It's fine Mickey. It's not like I don't have years of blackmail on you." Rose said, giving Mickey a pointed look. Mickey had the decency to look a bit unnerved by that declaration, far too aware of what kind of antics Rose had seen him get into over the years.

"Maybe you can share some of that blackmail with me later Rose." Martha asked, smiling mischievously at the other woman.

Rose grinned back, recognising the olive branch. They hadn't had much time to talk yet, but this would given them a common topic to start a conversation on. "Absolutely." If possible, Mickey looked more scared.

[Street]

(Finch is standing on the roof of the building opposite the coffee shop, watching the Doctor working on K9.)
FINCH: Come to me. Come to me.
(A giant bat flies over to him.)

"Creep." Bill muttered, eyes the screen nervously.

Rose, Mickey and the Doctor shared another glance, they hadn't been aware Finch had followed them to the coffee shop, not that it mattered anymore.

[Coffee shop]

SARAH: I thought of you on Christmas Day. This Christmas just gone? Great big spaceship overhead. I thought, oh yeah, bet he's up there.

"Wait, what spaceship? Which Christmas was this?" Rory asked, glancing between the Doctor and Rose.

"Back in 2006 the Sycorax tried to invade, Rose and Mickey helped stop them. That was the start of me having no luck with Christmas, every time I manage to land anywhere around Christmas something always goes wrong." The Doctor explained.

"Anytime you go anywhere something goes wrong." Amy snorted, earning a small pout from the Doctor.

"Yeah, that was scary." Rose nodded, focusing on the Doctor's words rather than Amy's, "You'd just regenerated and weren't even conscious half the time. I had no idea what was going on and we had the Sycorax invading too." The Doctor frowned, shooting an apologetic smile at Rose (she really should have explained the whole regeneration thing more before it happened).

The group glanced concerned at the pair, but didn't make nay more comments, curious to see where this video was going and aware that if it was important, they would see the video Rose was talking about.

DOCTOR: Right on top of it, yeah.
SARAH: And Rose?
DOCTOR: She was there too.
SARAH: Did I do something wrong, because you never came back for me. You just dumped me.

"Oh, Sarah Jane. My Sarah Jane. It wasn't you." The Doctor muttered to herself, watching the screen sadly. Most of the group hadn't heard her, too focused on the conversation on screen. Rose and Mickey, especially were curious – they'd missed it the first time, and while it seemed private it wasn't like they had a choice in hearing it.

DOCTOR: I told you. I was called back home and in those days humans weren't allowed.

"Even in these days humans aren't really allowed … weren't allowed." The Doctor said, watching herself try to make excuses on screen was painful. She missed the concerned glances the group all shared, no one had missed her slip up in tenses when she referred to Gallifrey.

SARAH: I waited for you. I missed you.

"I missed you too. I always miss you all." The Doctor sighed, eyes darting to the floor. Her companions always left, one way or another they did, that was just a fact of life. She always preferred it when they left her voluntary, when they let happily and went on to continue their lives. The ones that died haunted her, always had and always would. But no matter their fate, no matter how they left, they were all ultimately lost to her and she did miss them.

River and Jack grabbed a hand each again, offering comfort with their presence as they knew that there weren't any words that they could offer to comfort the Doctor.

DOCTOR: Oh, you didn't need me. You were getting on with your life.
SARAH: You were my life. You know what the most difficult thing was? Coping with what happens next, or with what doesn't happen next. You took me to the furthest reaches of the galaxy, you showed me supernovas, intergalactic battles, and then you just dropped me back on Earth. How could anything compare to that?

Several of the companions shifted uncomfortable, relating far too much to Sarah Jane then they were comfortable with. None of them regretted their travels with the Doctor but learning to live 'normally' afterwards was difficult, and very few of them actually managed it. Both Martha and Mickey were freelancers, Amy and Rory were stuck in the past, Rose was on a parallel universe, Bill, Clara, River and Jack were all traveling through space and time still and the fam were still with her.

Graham, Ryan and Yaz couldn't help but think if that would be them one day. It had been hard to just go back to their normal lives after everything on Gallifrey, not knowing if the Doctor was alive or coming back for them. Ryan glanced at the Doctor before swiftly looking away, he couldn't deny he'd enjoyed being home and definitely considered staying on Earth even if the Doctor came back but he hadn't mentioned his thoughts to the others. Yaz especially had been struggling with the Doctor's absence and he knew it wouldn't end well if he breached that topic yet.

DOCTOR: All those things you saw, do you want me to apologise for that?
SARAH: No, but we get a taste of that splendour and then we have to go back.
DOCTOR: Look at you, you're investigating. You found that school. You're doing what we always did.
SARAH: You could have come back.
DOCTOR: I couldn't.
SARAH: Why not?

"Why didn't you go back?" Rose asked softly, like Sarah Jane she'd met the Doctor again after her departure only to leva again, but not everyone was that lucky.

The Doctor hesitated, unsure she actually wanted to (or could) answer but sighed upon seeing the room's eyes focussed on her, "I went home only to get involved in an assassination plot. Once I left again, I can't deny I thought about it but Sarah Jane had a life outside me and I just kept tumbling from one adventure to another. I just couldn't." Couldn't watch Sarah Jane die, couldn't watch her age while they stayed the same, couldn't put her in more danger than he already had, couldn't, couldn't, couldn't.

No one had anything to say to that, staying quiet until the video continued to play.

(The Doctor keeps working on K9.)
SARAH: It wasn't Croydon. Where you dropped me off, that wasn't Croydon.
DOCTOR: Where was it?
SARAH: Aberdeen.
DOCTOR: Right. That's next to Croydon, isn't it?

"It's like the opposite side of the country! Not even the same country! Aberdeen's in Scotland which is thousands of miles from Croydon!" Donna protested for Sarah Jane's sake.

"I hit the right time!" The Doctor protested, "I'm lucky I hit the right place as often as I do, especially back in those days."

"So, what you mean is you've always been a terrible pilot." River added, teasing her wife.

"Oi!"

(K9 comes back to life.)
DOCTOR: Oh, hey. Now we're in business.
K9: Master.
DOCTOR: He recognises me.
K9: Affirmative.

"You really love that dog." Clara shook her head; honestly, she really shouldn't be surprised by any of this anymore. The Doctor had made the robot dog, of course she loved it.

DOCTOR: Rose, give us the oil.
ROSE: I wouldn't touch it, though. That dinner lady got all scorched.
DOCTOR: I'm no dinner lady. And I don't often say that.

"Sentences you don't hear often." Jack laughed, absolutely picturing the Doctor (both Pinstripes and the current Doctor as dinner ladies). The Doctor narrowed her eyes at him, seemingly aware of where his thoughts had ended up.

(The Doctor smears a sample on to K9's probe.)
DOCTOR: Here we go. Come on, boy. Here we go.
K9: Oil. Ex ex ex extract. Ana ana analysing.
MICKEY: Listen to him, man. That's a voice.
SARAH: Careful. That's my dog.

"You're both very defensive of the dog." Mickey said.

"Rightfully so, Ricky. K9's brilliant." The Doctor shot back.

K9: Confirmation of analysis. Substance is Krillitane Oil.
DOCTOR: They're Krillitanes.

"Krillitanes?!" Jack, River and the Master all perked up, recognising the species.

"Last time I saw them they had giraffe necks; can't say they look any better now." The Master commented assessing, glancing to the Doctor who nodded happily (temporarily forgetting that she wasn't happy with the Master in place of agreement over the Krillitanes).

"I'm guessing that's not good." Rory summarised, giving the Master a wary look.

"Not at all." River answered with a glum face. She had also glanced wearily at the Master (who was looking far too smug for getting the Doctor's attention).

ROSE: Is that bad?
DOCTOR: Very. Think of how bad things could possibly be, and add another suitcase full of bad.

"As always, you're very eloquent." Martha grinned, getting a grin from the Doctor in return.

SARAH: And what are Krillitanes?
DOCTOR: They're a composite race. Just like your culture is a mixture of traditions from all sorts of countries, people you've invaded or have been invaded by. You've got bits of Viking, bits of France, bits of whatever. The Krillitanes are the same. An amalgam of the races they've conquered. But they take physical aspects as well. They cherry pick the best bits from the people they destroy. That's why I didn't recognise them. The last time I saw Krillitanes, they looked just like us except they had really long necks.

"So, they must have conquered a planet of bat-people, right?" Bill asked, looking far too curious for her own good.

"Kind of, I think they'd conquered Bessan a few generations back and they had wings like that, but I don't exactly follow their full history." The Doctor tried to explain.

ROSE: What're they doing here?
DOCTOR: It's the children. They're doing something to the children.

"Nothing good then." Nardole muttered, going promptly ignored.

[Outside the coffee shop]

(They put K9 back in the boot of Sarah's car.)
MICKEY: So what's the deal with the tin dog?
SARAH: The Doctor likes travelling with an entourage. Sometimes they're humans, sometimes they're aliens, and sometimes they're tin dogs. What about you? Where do you fit in the picture?
MICKEY: Me? I'm their Man in Havana. I'm the technical support. I'm. Oh, my God. I'm the tin dog.

The group started laughing at Mickey's realisation, while the Mickey in the room just groaned. Rose and the Doctor were laughing especially hard.

[Street]

FINCH: On my command.
(Rose and the Doctor come out of the coffee shop.)
ROSE: How many of us have there been travelling with you?

Rose shot the Doctor an apologetic look, she understood better now why the Doctor didn't like to speak about previous companions and she knew she'd been pushy (mostly due to her jealousy and remaining uncertainties surrounding the new appearance of the Doctor). The Doctor shrugged one-heartedly, smiling softly in understanding, she knew her companions often wanted to know more, it was frankly inevitable but nonetheless painful every time.

DOCTOR: Does it matter?
ROSE: Yeah, it does, if I'm just the latest in a long line.
DOCTOR: As opposed to what?
ROSE: I thought you and me were. I obviously got it wrong. I've been to the year five billion, right, but this? Now this is really seeing the future. You just leave us behind. Is that what you're going to do to me?
DOCTOR: No. Not to you.
ROSE: But Sarah Jane? You were that close to her once, and now you never even mention her. Why not?

The group watched the exchange uncomfortable to be, yet again, intruding on a private conversation. Although non could deny they were still curious to know the Doctor's response. Most of them had already accepted the fact they were just one in the line of many, though that didn't belittle their time or relationship with the Doctor.

The Doctor frowned, watching the conversation. She never wanted to leave nay of them behind but sometime it happened. Rose had gotten separated from her unintentionally, but ultimately, she had left Rose in the end (yes it was with the meta-crisis) but still she had done it despite her denial here. This time it was Rose who shot her a soft smile of understanding.

DOCTOR: I don't age. I regenerate. But humans decay. You wither and you die. Imagine watching that happen to someone who you
ROSE: What, Doctor?
DOCTOR: You can spend the rest of your life with me, but I can't spend the rest of mine with you. I have to live on. Alone. That's the curse of the Time Lords.

That made the group pause, the Doctor had mentioned similar sentiments before but it was still a painful fact, and certainly explained part of the Doctor's reluctance to visit after they left.

Jack noticed the Doctor's forlorn expression and nudged her, "But you're never getting rid of me, Doctor."

"Thanks Jack." She smiled at him, appreciative of his attempt to distract her from her thoughts, even if she knew he would die at some point (she'd seen it with Martha after all) but time travel did help with that.

The Doctor felt the Master knock on the metaphoric door to their mental link and let him in reluctantly, "You're never getting rid of me either, dearest. Even after all your little pets are long dead I will be here, chasing you." She swiftly closed the mental link on him again, regretting opening it. As usual, he left her conflicted – on one hand it was reassuring that she'd never be alone on the other hand, as always, his words had a heavy tinge of a threat.

FINCH: Time Lord.
(The Doctor looks up. The giant bat swoops down. They all duck and it flies off.)
SARAH: Was that a Krillitane?
ROSE: But it didn't even touch her. It just flew off. What did it do that for?

"It wanted to know what you were." Rose realised, "Well that explains that."

[School yard]

(Next morning, the pupils are arriving at the school.)
DOCTOR: Rose and Sarah, you go to the Maths room. Crack open those computers, I need to see the hardware inside. Here, you might need this.
(Rose holds out her hand, but the Doctor gives the screwdriver to Sarah.)

"Are you trying to make the situation worse?" Donna exclaimed, "Men!"

"Oi!"

"Oh, apologies, Spaceman. Aliens!"

DOCTOR: Mickey, surveillance. I want you outside.
MICKEY: Just stand outside?
SARAH: Here, take these you can keep K9 company.
(Sarah throws Mickey her car keys.)
DOCTOR: Don't forget to leave the window open a crack.
MICKEY: But he's metal!
DOCTOR: I didn't mean for him.

The group chuckled at the interaction between Mickey and the Doctor, they certainly had an interesting starting dynamic. Mickey and the Doctor shot each other mock glares while Rose rolled her eyes at them, apparently, they never changed.

Rory shot Mickey a commiserating look, understanding him better than most of the rest of the group. Mickey shot back an appreciative smile, glad someone understood at least some things.

ROSE: What're you going to do?
DOCTOR: It's time I had a word with Mister Finch.

[Swimming pool]

(They stand at opposite ends of the pool.)

"Dramatic stand of." Bill muttered, eyeing both the Doctor and the screen. No matter what they looked like, the Doctor was always dramatic.

DOCTOR: Who are you?
FINCH: My name is Brother Lassa. And you?
DOCTOR: The Doctor. Since when did Krillitanes have wings?

"Oh, so you're just going to have a nice conversation before you get to the threats." Clara said, rolling her eyes at the Doctor who grinned unabashed.

"Needed to distract him long enough for Rose and Sarah Jane to work, and it's always nice to know who wants to kill me." The Doctor countered.

FINCH: It's been our form for nearly ten generations now. Our ancestors invaded Bessan. The people there had some rather lovely wings. They made a million widows in one day. Just imagine.

"See, like I said they invaded Bessan." The Doctor nodded, proud of themselves for remembering that fact (it had been a long time since then).

"That's delightful, Doc. But I'm more concerned with the 'million widows' comment." Graham said, staring down the Doctor with a very grandfather-y look. That took the wind out of her sails, and earned Graham a sheepish apologetic look.

DOCTOR: And now you're shaped human.
FINCH: A personal favourite, that's all.
DOCTOR: And the others?
FINCH: My brothers remain bat form. What you see is a simple morphic illusion. Scratch the surface and the true Krillitane lies beneath. And what of the Time Lords? I always thought of you as such a pompous race. Ancient, dusty senators, so frightened of change and chaos. And of course, they're all but extinct. Only you. The last.

"I mean he's not wrong form what I've seen." Yaz said, shooting a semi-apologetic look to the Doctor for the comment about 'her' species.

"Nah, it's okay. I've definitely called them worse to their faces before." The Doctor sighed, there was a reason (several actual) that she tried to never take her companions to Gallifrey.

DOCTOR: This plan of yours. What is it?
FINCH: You don't know.
DOCTOR: That's why I'm asking.
FINCH: Well, show me how clever you are. Work it out.

"Oh, he's confident." Amy said, eyeing Mr Finch on screen. None of them had worked out his plan yet either, but it wasn't exactly sounding pleasant.

"The taller they are, the harder they fall." Rory added to his wife's remark, earning him a smile from his wife.

DOCTOR: If I don't like it, then it will stop.
FINCH: Fascinating. Your people were peaceful to the point of indolence. You seem to be something new. Would you declare war on us, Doctor?
DOCTOR: I'm so old now. I used to have so much mercy. You get one warning. That was it.
FINCH: But we're not even enemies. Soon you will embrace us. The next time we meet, you will join with me. I promise you.

The group shifted a bit uncomfortable upon hearing the Doctor's threats, it wasn't a new phenomenon to any of them but this version of the Doctor seemed to be especially good with threats. Donna couldn't help but think back to their first meeting under the Thames on Christmas day – he hadn't looked like he was going ot stop anytime and here he was verging towards that kind of anger.

The Master, unnoticed by the rest of the group, smirked upon seeing the darker side of the Doctor peak out. It wasn't often that he got to see it but he always loved those moments of darkness from the Doctor, and Pinstripes had had several dark moments.

[Sarah's car]

MICKEY: Surveillance. If you ask me, it's just another way of saying go sit at the back of the class with the safety scissors and glitter. That'd be me talking to a metal dog, then.

Mickey groaned, realising his whole conversation with K9 was going to be shown – he knew the Doctor would enjoy teasing him. He didn't miss the teasing grins sent his way as he grumbled in the car.

[IT classroom]

(Sarah isn't making progress with the school computers.)
SARAH: It's not working.
ROSE: Give it to me.
SARAH: Used to work first time in my day.
ROSE: Well, things were a lot simpler back then.

"Ooh, Rosie. Still squabbling with Sarah." Jack smirked, enjoying teasing Rose (it brought back good memories of his travels with the Doctor and he didn't often get the chance anymore).

"Sarah Jane would kill you for calling her Sarah, Jack." The Doctor interrupted before Rose could try and attack Jack (or glare him into submission as she was currently trying to do).

"What she doesn't know won't hurt her."

"I'll make sure to tell her next time I see her." The Doctor continued.

"Well, I do like dangerous woman." Jack shrugged, playing nonchalant.

"You like everyone Jack." The Doctor sighed.

"And don't you know it."

SARAH: Rose, can I give you a bit of advice?
ROSE: I've got a feeling you're about to.

The Doctor tried to lean forward subtly, she had missed this conversation the first time and only come in later to be laughed at. She was very curious to know what they'd said that had ended up as friends when the last time she'd seen them they were, well not enemies, maybe rivals was the best term. Either way, she wanted to know what had been said and this was the only opportunity she would ever get.

SARAH: I know how intense a relationship with the Doctor can be, and I don't want you to feel I'm intruding.
ROSE: I don't feel threatened by you, if that's what you mean.

"Lies." Mickey teased Rose who turned to glare at him, mouthing 'blackmail' to get him to back off.

SARAH: Right. Good. Because I'm not interested in picking up where we left off.
ROSE: No? With the big sad eyes and the robot dog? What else were you doing last night?
SARAH: I was just saying how hard it was adjusting to life back on Earth.
ROSE: The thing is, when you two met they'd only just got rid of rationing. No wonder all that space stuff was a bit too much for you.

"Rose." The Doctor sighed.

"I know, I know. Don't remind me." Rose muttered back; she already had an ugly feeling of guilt stirring in her stomach. She'd been so focused on her jealousy and uncertainties that she'd almost missed the opportunity Sarah Jane represented (that opportunity being getting dirt on the Doctor and having someone who understood her).

SARAH: I had no problem with space stuff. I saw things you wouldn't believe.
ROSE: Try me.
SARAH: Mummies.
ROSE: I've met ghosts.
SARAH: Robots. Lots of robots.
ROSE: Slitheen, in Downing Street.
SARAH: Daleks!
ROSE: Met the Emperor.
SARAH: Anti-matter monsters.
ROSE: Gas masked zombies.
SARAH: Real living dinosaurs.
ROSE: Real living werewolf.
SARAH: The Loch Ness Monster!

"Vampires." Amy added.

"Shakespeare." Martha grinned.

"Baby fat aliens." Donna suggested.

"Pirates." Rory reluctantly added, after Amy nudged him.

"Robin Hood." Clara joined in.

"Sea monster in the Thames." Bill sat up in her seat, grinning.

"Giant spiders." Ryan added with a shiver.

"Nicola Tesla's death laser." Graham said.

"Rosa Parks." Yaz injected.

The group stared at each other for a minute before bursting out laughing, glad to see no matter how long the Doctor travelled things never got any less weird.

ROSE: Seriously? Listen to us. It's like me and my mate Shireen. The only time we fell out was over a man, and we're arguing over the Doctor. With you, did he do that thing where he'd explain something at like, ninety miles per hour, and you'd go, what? and he'd look at you like you'd just dribbled on your shirt?
SARAH: All the time. Does he still stroke bits of the Tardis?
ROSE: Yeah! Yeah, he does. I'm like, do you two want to be alone?
(The sisters have bonded and laugh. The Doctor enters.)
DOCTOR: How's it going?
(They keep laughing.)
DOCTOR: What? Listen, I need to find out what's programmed inside these.
(Hysteria is setting in.)
DOCTOR: What? Stop it!

"Oh, so you started bonding by mocking me?!" The Doctor pouted, that certainly explained that changed relationship and laughter.

"You make it so easy, Sweetie." River tried to comfort her wife while the rest of the group burst out laughing again.

"Please, tell me they still do all that." Rose asked the group at large. They paused in their laughter, glancing at each other before nodding in sync and then laughing even harder. It took several minutes for them all to calm down enough for the video to continue.

[Headmaster's office]

(Finch opens the door on the dinner ladies and teachers.)
FINCH: Brothers, we must initiate the final phase. Get the children inside and seal the school. Our time has come, my brothers. Today we shall become Gods.

"Oh, so he's delusional as well." Martha announced. The atmosphere had taken a 180 from the entertainment of watching Sarah Jane and Rose become friends to the situation with Finch really start to deteriorate.

[School yard]

(Games of football and netball are interrupted by a klaxon.)
TANNOY: All pupils to class immediately. And would all members of staff congregate in the staff room.
MELISSA: Breaktime's finished early. Isn't that fantastic?
(Kenny is the last to go inside.)

"They are clearly brainwashed. No British kid is excited for school." Donna snorted, gaining nods from most of the group.

[IT classroom]

(Rose turns children away at the door.)
ROSE: No, no. This classroom's out of bounds. You've all got to go to the South Hall. Off you go. South Hall!

[Staff room]

PARSONS: What is it now, Mister Finch?
FINCH: A slight change in the timetable. We're having an early lunch.
(Wagner shuts the door on us. Flaps and screams come from inside.)

"Oh God." Someone muttered. The situation had certainly gotten horrible very quickly. The group had a moments silence for the death of those teachers and the rest of the staff, which no one would ever be able to properly explain.

[IT classroom]

(The Doctor does his old trick of looping wires around his neck and shoulders as he tries to get inside the CPU.)
DOCTOR: I can't shift it.
SARAH: I thought the sonic screwdriver could open anything!
DOCTOR: Anything except a deadlock seal. There's got to be something inside here. What're they teaching those kids?

"Nothing good." Rory muttered, not liking how things had suddenly gotten dangerous.

(Kenny doesn't go into a classroom.)

"He knows something's up." Ryan commented.

[Headmaster's office]

FINCH: Close the school.
(Alien symbols come up on his computer screen, then Security Override. He burps. The external doors all slam shut. In another computer room, the children are typing quickly again.)

The Master's head whipped around to face the Doctor. "Is that -?"

"The Skasis Paradigm? Yes." The Doctor nodded confirmation while the rest of the room watched on confused. Only Mickey and Rose knew what they were referring to and were frowning. Both Jack and River had looks of concentration on their face, both could have sworn they'd heard those words before but couldn't quite place why it was important and where they had heard it.

[IT classroom]

(The symbols are all on these screens too.)
SARAH: You wanted the programme? There it is.
DOCTOR: Some sort of code.
(It starts to resolve itself. Kenny runs along the corridors, looking into the classrooms. All the children are working at computers. He runs downstairs to the main entrance, and tries to open the doors. Mickey spots him.)

"The kid's figured out something's wrong." Clara said, glad to see that not all the kids were brainwashed.

"Yes, but why him?" Amy asked. The group all thought for a second trying to remember if they'd seen anything about him that was different.

"The Chips!" Bill suddenly announced, drawing the rooms attention. "He didn't eat the chips but everyone else did, and they had the oil on them, right?" She turned to the Doctor for confirmation who smiled proudly but waved to the screen.

DOCTOR: No. No, that can't be.

[Main entrance]

KENNY: They've taken them all!
MICKEY: What?
KENNY: They've taken all the children!

[Sarah's car]

(Mickey pushes the buttons on K9's back.)
MICKEY: Come on, I need some help.
(He hits K9's head, and it starts up.)

"Oi! Be nice to K9!" The Doctor berated upon seeing Mickey hit her dog.

"Sorry! He wasn't waking up." Mickey protested. The Doctor scowled but let it go.

K9: System restarting. All primary drives functioning.
MICKEY: You're working! Okay, no time to explain. we need to get inside the school. Do you have like, I don't know, a lock picking device?
K9: We are in a car.
MICKEY: Maybe a drill attachment?
K9: We are in a car.
MICKEY: Fat lot of good you are.
K9: We are in a car.
MICKEY: Wait a second. We're in a car. (to Kenny) Get back!

"Took you a while to work that out." The Doctor teased Mickey who just rolled his eyes, having expected it.

"Oh Mickey, turns out you needed the dog after all." Rose added with a grin, happy for the opportunity to tease Mickey after all the times he had done so to her.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up you two." Mickey sighed. The pair dissolved into snickers with the rest of the room following after them.

[IT classroom]

DOCTOR: The Skasis Paradigm. They're trying to crack the Skasis Paradigm.

"Lovely, could you actually explain what that is now?" Donna raised an eyebrow at the Doctor, already fed up of not having the answers this video. The Doctor just smiled mischievously and waved to the screen in answer, earning a glare from Donna who reluctantly turned back to the screen.

SARAH: The Skasis what?
DOCTOR: The God maker. The universal theory. Crack that equation and you've got control of the building blocks of the universe. Time and space and matter, yours to control.

"Okay, that's bad. Finch and the others absolutely cannot crack that." Martha announced, expression worried. That revelation added a whole new layer of bad to this mess.

"No one should have that power." The Doctor agreed, trying not to think about how they had hesitated when Finch had started talking, she wasn't proud of that.

ROSE: What, and the kids are like a giant computer?
DOCTOR: Yes. And their learning power is being accelerated by the oil. That oil from the kitchens, it works as a, as a conducting agent. Makes the kids cleverer.

The group nodded along, glad to finally be getting a roper explanation and a connection for all the little threads the video had introduced. Now they just had to see how the group got out of this mess.

ROSE: But that oil's on the chips. I've been eating them.
DOCTOR: What's fifty nine times thirty five?
ROSE: Two thousand and sixty five. Oh, my God.

"That's so weird to hear." Rose shook her head; it was weird at the time and it was still weird now.

SARAH: But why use children? Can't they use adults?
DOCTOR: No, it's got to be children. The God maker needs imagination to crack it. They're not just using the children's brains to break the code, they're using their souls.

"What would happen to those kids if they kept going for a long time?" Clara asked concerned for the kids.

The Doctor's grimace was all the answer she needed.

(The Headmaster has entered the room.)
FINCH: Let the lesson begin. Think of it, Doctor. With the Paradigm solved, reality becomes clay in our hands. We can shape the universe and improve it.
DOCTOR: Oh yeah? The whole of creation with the face of Mister Finch? Call me old fashioned, but I like things as they are.
FINCH: You act like such a radical, and yet all you want to do is preserve the old order? Think of the changes that could be made if this power was used for good.
DOCTOR: What, by someone like you?

Jack groaned, "He's going to go all evil monologue and try and convince you to join him, isn't he?"

"Talking from experience?" The Doctor asked, using her typical avoidance tactic of answering questions with questions.

"I do have adventures without you. And, don't think I noticed you avoided the question Mrs." Jack answered back, narrowing her eyes at the Doctor who conveniently avoided eye contact all of a sudden.

FINCH: No, someone like you. The Paradigm gives us power, but you could give us wisdom. Become a God at my side. Imagine what you could do. Think of the civilisations you could save. Perganon, Assinta. Your own people, Doctor, standing tall. The Time Lords reborn.
SARAH: Doctor, don't listen to him.
FINCH: And you could be with him throughout eternity. Young, fresh, never wither, never age, never die. Their lives are so fleeting. So many goodbyes. How lonely you must be, Doctor. Join us.
DOCTOR: I could save everyone.
FINCH: Yes.
DOCTOR: I could stop the war.
SARAH: No. The universe has to move forward. Pain and loss, they define us as much as happiness or love. Whether it's a world, or a relationship, everything has its time. And everything ends.
(The Doctor throws a chair at the big screen, smashing it.)
DOCTOR: Out!

The room let out a breath they didn't know they'd been holding upon seeing the Doctor hesitate at Mr Finch's offer. They knew that he wouldn't have accepted the offer, it would go against almost everything they stood by but it was still nerve wracking to watch.

"Thank god for Sarah Jane." Jack muttered, earning a sad smile from the Doctor who had been determinedly watching the floor instead of the screen.

In his corner, the Master smirked upon seeing the Doctor hesitate, although he was annoyed that it was Finch's offer that made the Doctor considerate it and not any of his own amazing offers. It was just more evidence; the Doctor wasn't as impervious to the desire for power as they claimed to be.

[School entrance]

(Mickey drives Sarah's car through the glass doors.)
MICKEY: Come on!

"That looks like so much fun." Amy grinned; she'd certainly wanted to destroy her own school on several occasions.

Mickey grinned, "Honestly it was a bit scary but also sort of therapeutic." Rory glanced at his wife worried, she really didn't need any encouragement or ideas to cause trouble. It was absolutely Amy that River had gotten her chaotic streak from (River, then Melody, stealing a bus came to mind), but he had his own mischievous streak, just not anything as bad as his wife or daughter's.

[Staircase]

(Finch summons his brother. They throw off their disguises in the corridors and fly to him. Mickey and Kenny meet the Doctor, Sarah Jane and Rose at the bottom of the staircase.)
MICKEY: What is going on?
(The Krillitanes are coming.)

"Time to run." Rory sighed, but a small smile was making its way onto his face. He was glad to see things start to turn in the group's favour.

[Canteen]

(Finch walks in followed by the bats.)
KENNY: Are they my teachers?
DOCTOR: Yeah. Sorry.
FINCH: We need the Doctor alive. As for the others? You can feast.

"I love being dispensable." Rose grimaced, it happened semi-frequently with the Doctor but was never not annoying.

"I love how calm the kid is with his teachers being bat-people." Ryan grinned.

"Don't you know Ryan? All teachers are giant bat-people." Yaz grinned back.

(The Krillitanes swoop. They hide under the tables. Suddenly a laser beam fells one of the bats. Finch is furious.)
SARAH: K9!

"That dog is awesome." Bill grinned wildly.

"Absolutely." The Doctor grinned back, proud of K9.

K9: Suggest you engage running mode, mistress.
DOCTOR: Come on!
(Everyone runs.)
DOCTOR: K9, hold them back!
K9: Affirmative, master. Maximum defence mode.
(The Doctor seals the doors.)
K9: Power supply failing.
FINCH: Forget the shooty dog thing.
K9: Power supply failing.

The room was relieved to see the group escape unharmed, things were really heating up and they were still vastly unnumbered and the school kids were all still brainwashed. A few chuckled upon hearing Finch's description of K9.

[Physics laboratory]

DOCTOR: It's the oil. Krillitane life forms can't handle the oil. That's it! They've changed their physiology so often, even their own oil is toxic to them. How much was there in the kitchens?
ROSE: Barrels of it.

"Really? That's hilariously ironic, that their own oil can hurt them because they changed so much. You have to love biology." Martha smiled, unable to deny she was interested in that (blame it on being a doctor).

"Science is amazing in general." The Doctor agreed.

(The Krillitanes are battering at the door.)
DOCTOR: Okay, we need to get to the kitchens. Mickey.
MICKEY: What now, hold the coats?
DOCTOR: Get all the children unplugged and out of the school. Now then, bats, bats, bats. How do we fight bats?
(Kenny sets off the fire alarm. The noise hurts the Krillitane's ears. The humans escape.)

"Smart kid." Donna smiled; things were starting to look like they could actually get out of this alive.

"Oh yes, didn't even need the oil." The Doctor smiled; she'd almost forgotten that part but Kenny had been remarkably calm for the situation.

[Corridor]

(Finch manages to punch through the wall and pull out the alarm wires. The noise stops.)
FINCH: Get after them.

Half the room grimaced at seeing their only weapon (bar K9) disabled. "At least it distracted them enough for you to get away." Amy sighed.

[Outside the canteen]

K9: Master.
DOCTOR: Come on, boy. Good boy.

[Classroom]

MICKEY: Okay, listen everyone. We've got to get out of here.
(The children don't hear him, or notice when he waves his hand in front of their face.)

"I think you're actually going to have to do something about the computers." Clara pointed out, expression turning more worried when the kids didn't respond at all.

"It can never be that easy can it." Mickey sighed.

[Kitchen]

(The Doctor tries his sonic screwdriver on the barrels of oil.)
DOCTOR: They've been deadlock sealed. Finch must've done that. I can't open them.
K9: The vats would not withstand a direct hit from my laser, but my batteries are failing.
DOCTOR: Right. Everyone out the back door. K9, stay with me.

"Good dog." The Doctor muttered, frowning in memory of what was going to happen, poor K9.

[Classroom]

(Mickey follows the computer power leads back to - a single wall switch. Click, fizz, and the screens go blank.)

"Smart but not very destructive." Rose smiled at Mickey; she'd missed that part.

"You don't need to sound surprised." Mickey shot back, not unkindly.

"I meant more that I would have wanted to destroy some stuff between the two of us I think I'm the more destructive one." Rose tried to explain, realising her comment could have been taken badly.

"True." Mickey offered a smile, telling her he understood and it was okay.

MICKEY: Everyone get out. Now!
(The children get up.)
MICKEY: Come on, move! Let's go! Let's go!
(The Krillitanes pause to disguise themselves as humans again.)

"What's the point of disguising themselves again?" Rory asked, watching the screen confused.

The Doctor shrugged, "Maybe they thought it would be easier to corral the kids?"

[Kitchen]

(The Doctor lines up the oil barrels for K9 to shoot at.)
K9: Capacity for only one shot, Master. For maximum impact, I must be stationed directly beside the vat.
DOCTOR: But you'll be trapped inside.
K9: That is correct.
DOCTOR: I can't let you do that.
K9: No alternative possible, Master.
DOCTOR: Goodbye, old friend.
K9: Goodbye, Master.
DOCTOR: You good dog.
K9: Affirmative.

The Doctor frowned; eyes sad as she watched the screen. Even though she'd remade K9 and he wasn't really dead it still hurt to have to say goodbye to him again (especially after having reunited so recently).

The rest of the group shot her concerned looks, aware that this video had been heavy on comments and references to her companions leaving her which was always a rough topic for the Doctor. Plus, it was sad for them to see K9 go to his 'death', they'd only just met him but they'd enjoyed watching him and they could see how much the Doctor cared about them.

[Outside the kitchen]

(The Doctor seals the door.)
SARAH: Where's K9?
DOCTOR: We need to run.
SARAH: Where is he? What have you done!

"Ooh, Sarah Jane's not going to take that well." Jack winced, all too aware that getting on the wrong side of Sarah Jane was a terrible idea. The Doctor's pained grimace told Jack he was right.

[Kitchen]

FINCH: When you find him, eat him if you must, but bring me his brain.

"You know, I don't want to know what he'd do with the Doctor's brain." Bill grimaced at the mental image, she had a couple theories but no idea how Finch would actually use the brain, and frankly she didn't want to know.

(They find K9.)
FINCH: The little dog with a nasty bite. Not so powerful now, are you?
(K9 fires a sustained burst at the nearest barrel. The Krillitanes get splattered with their own oil.)

"Oh contrary, K9 has all the power needed to destroy you." The Doctor muttered darkly, already mourning the loss of her beloved pet and friend. The people close enough to hear her glanced ta her concerned by her tone but decided it wasn't worth saying anything.

[School yard]

MICKEY: Come on, guys! Let's go, let's go! Run!

[Kitchen]

JACKSON: Burning!
FINCH: You bad dog.
K9: Affirmative.

"How is even your robotic dog sarcastic?" Clara shook her head fondly, what else should she have expected of something the Doctor made.

[Outside the school]

(The school goes KaBOOM! The children rejoice as paper rains down on them.)
KENNY: Yes!
MELISSA: Did you have something to do with it?
KENNY: Yeah, I did.
MELISSA: Oh my God. Kenny blew up the school! It was Kenny!
CHILDREN: Yay! Kenny! Kenny! Kenny! Kenny!

"He's going to be a legend for the rest of his school life." Ryan grinned.

"Undeniably." Yaz matched his grin with one of her own, while she couldn't condone blowing up the school as a police officer, the situation kind of demanded it and she would have appreciated it when she was their age.

DOCTOR: I'm sorry.
SARAH: It's all right. He was just a daft metal dog. It's fine, really.
(Sarah bursts into tears. The Doctor tries to comfort her.)

The room shifted a bit uncomfortable with seeing the normally strong, Sarah Jane break down into tears over K9's loss. They could kind of understand it, as he had been her last connection to the Doctor and her friend for so long, of course his loss would hurt her. Rose and Mickey who knew the outcome of the video were reassured at least that the Doctor had solved the K9 issue in their own way.

[Outside the Tardis]

(Which has relocated itself from the destroyed school to Belle Vue Park. Sarah Jane walks up and the Doctor steps out.)
DOCTOR: Cup of tea?

[Tardis]

SARAH: You've redecorated.
DOCTOR: Do you like it?
SARAH: Oh, I, I do. Yeah. I preferred it as it was, but er, yeah. It'll do.

"What was it like when she travelled with you?" Amy asked, curious especially after seeing so many versions of the Tardis through the videos.

The Doctor considered that for a second, grateful for the distraction from both Sarah Jane breaking down and K9's loss, "Brighter. More like Ruth's Tardis or the one from Gallifrey. I was going through my grunge phase back then and it took a while for the Tardis to really change its console room look drastically."

The group nodded all trying to picture it based on the Doctor's description. All of them held a special place in their heart for the Tardis' appearance when they travelled with the Doctor, but it was interesting to see all the different console rooms through the videos.

ROSE: I love it.
SARAH: Hey, you what's forty seven times three hundred and sixty nine?
ROSE: No idea. It's gone now. The oil's faded.

"That's good, it was weird seeing you all smart like that." Mickey teased Rose.

Rose raised an eyebrow, "What was that, tin dog?"

"Okay, break it up ou two." The Doctor interfered before things could become heated, but the smile was obvious on her face.

SARAH: But you're still clever. More than a match for him.
ROSE: You and me both. Doctor?

"You're all a match for me in your own ways. For better or worse." The Doctor grinned at the group who all smirked back, mentally shelving it away that the Doctor had finally admitted it.

DOCTOR: Er, we're about to head off, but you could come with us.
SARAH: No. I can't do this anymore. Besides, I've got a much bigger adventure ahead. Time I stopped waiting for you and found a life of my own.

"That you did Sarah Jane, and what a life it is." The Doctor muttered softly, almost wistful with a touch of pride. She really needed to go visit her Sarah Jane again soon.

MICKEY: Can I come? No, not with you, I mean with you. Because I'm not the tin dog, and I want to see what's out there.
SARAH: Oh, go on, Doctor. Sarah Jane Smith, a Mickey Smith. You need a Smith on board.
DOCTOR: Okay then, I could do with a laugh.
MICKEY: Rose, is that okay?
ROSE: (lying) No, great. Why not?

"Ooh, drama on the Tardis." Jack teased the trio who all shot glares at him.

Rose then turned to shoot Mickey an apologetic look, she definitely hadn't wanted Mickey to come along with them but it had turned out for the best in the end. Mickey smiled, nodding in understanding and acceptance of the silent apology.

SARAH: Well, I'd better go.
ROSE: What do I do? Do I stay with him?
SARAH: Yes. Some things are worth getting your heart broken for. Find me, if you need to, one day. Find me.

The Doctor frowned at that comment, glad to know Sarah Jane had offered to help Rose, but depressed by the broken heart comment. She'd never intended for that to be the case, but it seemed any time a companion left it was her own two hearts that broke anyway as well.

The rest of the group glanced at the Doctor (who wasn't looking at anyone) all thinking the same thing – Sarah Jane had it right. It hurt when they left, but the travels and friends they made along the way made it worth it, as cheesy as that sounded.

[Outside the Tardis]

SARAH: It's daft, but I haven't ever thanked you for that time. And like I said, I wouldn't have missed it for the world.
DOCTOR: Something to tell the grandkids.
SARAH: Oh, I think it'll be someone else's grandkids now.

"Didn't need to have grandkids to pass on the stories, did you Sarah Jane? But you might have them now anyway." The Doctor smiled softly at the screen, seemingly forgetting the fact it was just a video. Her comment attracted several questioning looks from the rest of the room that didn't know Sarah Jane but no one said anything, sensing they were almost at the end of the video.

DOCTOR: Right. Yes, sorry. I didn't get a chance to ask. You haven't? There hasn't been anyone? You know.
SARAH: Well, there was this one guy. I travelled with him for a while, but he was a tough act to follow. Goodbye, Doctor.

"The toughest act of all." River murmured quietly, moving to take the Doctor's hand again to offer both of them comfort and reassurance. She could certainly understand Sarah Jane on several levels.

DOCTOR: Oh, it's not goodbye.
SARAH: Do say it. Please. This time. Say it.
DOCTOR: Goodbye, my Sarah Jane.

The room watched the departure with a bittersweet atmosphere.

"At least, you left her in the right place this time." Donna snorted, teasing the Doctor in an attempt to replace the sad look on her face with a smile. It semi-worked, a sad smile breaking across the Doctor's face.

(He lifts her off her feet in a big hug, then goes back inside the Tardis. Sarah Jane turns her back and walks away as the Tardis starts to dematerialise. At the last moment, she turns back to see -)
SARAH; K9!
K9: Mistress.
SARAH: But you were blown up.
K9: The Master rebuilt me. My systems are much improved with new undetectable hyperlink facilities.
SARAH: Oh, he replaced you with a brand new model.
K9: Affirmative.
SARAH: Yeah, he does that. Come on, you. Home. We've got work to do.
K9: Affirmative.

The room grinned upon seeing the new version of K9, ignoring the jolt in their hearts at the replacement comment in favour of enjoying the reunion of Sarah Jane and K9. They were glad the video hadn't been nearly as intense as some of the other videos they'd watched, it was nice for a break and interesting to see the different dynamics between groups, especially in this video with the introduction of Sarah Jane (and K9).

"Well, that's another one done." The Doctor announced, ignoring Ryan's start to hum 'Another one Bites the Dust' in the background while Yaz chuckled. "Any questions?"

"What happened to Sarah Jane? Last I saw her she was helping out with the planets in the sky-Daleks mess." Rose asked, that was one disadvantage of living on a parallel world, she had no idea what had happened to any of her friends really.

The Doctor smiled at her question, "Last I saw she was happy. Adopted two alien kids and helps a few others, all of them investigate alien troubles on Earth that Torchwood, UNIT and I miss. She's as amazing as ever."

Jack nodded along with his own smile, adding on to the Doctor's comment. "She helped Torchwood out on several occasions and helped introduce me to a network of the Doctor's former companions that are on Earth. Definitely not someone to mess with."

Martha and Mickey nodded as well, "She's introduced us to the network too and is always happy for a chat or to offer help in a situation. She consults with UNIT sometimes." Martha added as well with a smile, it had been illuminating to meet so many of the Doctor's former companions and it was great to have a support network that understood.

The Doctor clapped her hands together, successfully drawing the room's attention towards her. "Any other questions?" The group all glanced at each other but no one spoke up. "Great, how about one more video before we have a break for the night?" This time she was met with a series of nods from the group as a whole. "Okay, let's see what's up next."