A few days before the King leaves, he calls me to his privy chamber. "Your Majesty," I curtsey to him.
"Mistress Emma, I am glad I could speak with you once more before I leave for France. I will be busy during my campaign, so it would be a relief if you could help me."
"What is it you need me to do?"
"I asked the Duke of Norfolk to step down as leader of the Torchwood institute. There is now a power vacuum, and many men who have little or no desire to learn about aliens want to take his place."
"We cannot have that, Your Majesty."
"I know." King Henry looks out the window. I also look out to find troops preparing themselves for battle. Some are checking their supplies, while others are looking at banners and what shape their equipment is in. "Most of the people who want the job can barely tell a human from an alien, anyway. I need someone reliable, someone who knows aliens just as much as they know humans."
"It will be difficult to find someone like that, Your Majesty."
"It is not as difficult a task as you would expect, Mistress Emma." He turns to me. Excitement fills his blue eyes, and he smiles. "I am surprised you did not realise why I called you here."
"Me?" My voice falters. "You want me to lead Torchwood?"
"If you do not want the job, I can ask one of your mums." He stops as he considers that. "It still sounds strange saying that." He shakes his head. "But you and your mums are the only people I can trust with a job like this."
"But the Queen, Your Majesty—"
"I will talk to her, do not worry."
"Can I think about it?"
"Of course, but do not take long. I need to know your answer before I leave." I curtsey to King Henry and return to Catalina and my friends.

"What did the King want?" Catalina asks.
"He wants me to become the leader of Torchwood," I say. "He did not say whether it was temporary or permanent."
"But you can't take a permanent job with Torchwood!" Mummy says. "You remain at Court, right?"
"Yes, but this might only be temporary. I will ask the King tomorrow before I decide."

I am restless that night, but so are my parents. "Are you still awake?" Mummy whispers.
"Yeah," I reply. "I can't stop thinking about Torchwood."
"Nor can I. I know you want to make the world a better place, but is that worth it when the history we know—and perhaps even our lives—are at stake?"
"I don't know. Torchwood is critical, but we do not know what happens to it, and I highly doubt I can access that information."

I open my computer again, and Mum lights a candle so I can see better. "What are you doing?"
"I don't know, but I need to learn more about Torchwood. If I briefly take over, that is another choice ripped away from me."
"Then don't check." Mum takes my computer away from me and closes the lid.
"Mum, what are you—?"
"You talk about travelling through time like you never have any options. Well, now you do. Ask King Henry about the job, then decide. Do not research what you will do."
"But I—"
"Emma, no. Choose your own, do not rely on others to make the decision for you."

Throughout the rest of the night, I think about what Mum said. Most of what I will do is already planned out; why should I cement one more thing into my future? But what if I make the wrong choice? It could end up changing the history I know and lead to me never being born. Mummy may never be born. Is that a risk I'm willing to take?

No, I cannot take that risk. If it's a permanent job, then I can't accept it. I can settle for that if it's only temporary, either while the King is away or until he finds a replacement. I guess all I can do now is wait and see what the King says.

The following day, I am serving Catalina when the King walks in. He spends some time with the Queen before he comes over to talk to me. "Mistress Emma, how are you doing?"
"Very well, Your Majesty."
"That is good to hear. Have you thought any more about my offer?" The room falls silent, and everyone turns to look at us.
"Is the job temporary or permanent?"
"Only temporary. I want you to oversee Torchwood until we can find a suitable replacement. As none have come up so far, I would feel safer leaving the organisation in your capable hands."
"Right, then. In which case, I do accept your offer."
"Excellent," King Henry smiles. "I am glad to be leaving the country in as many safe hands as possible."
"You can rely on us, Your Majesty," Catalina assures him.
"Indeed, I can."

Over the next few hours, I begin preparing for my departure. Mum and Mummy will be staying at Court so they can serve Catalina. At least I'll have a link back to Court and a way to find out what is going on. But I should not worry about that; my main concern lies with Torchwood. As I continue packing, Mum and Mummy come in. "You will let us know if you need any help, won't you?" Mummy asks.
"Of course. I probably won't be able to deal with Torchwood alone, so it will be great to have some back-up."
"We'll talk to Catalina if we hear you're in trouble," Mum adds, and I smile. She's starting to fit in with us more. But how long will it be until Mummy and I change so we can fit in with Tudor England? It's been four years, and we still stand out. Maybe we will never fit in. I certainly don't fit in by the time I meet Will and Charles.

I stop packing. It will be centuries before I see either of them. Can I really wait that long? I guess I have no choice, I must live through all of history. If only I could just go to 1900 once my time in Tudor England is over, that would make everything much easier. But no, I have to do this the hard way. Nothing in life is ever easy.

I look over at my parents. Can I really do this? I have to marry King Henry the eighth, for goodness' sake! No, I won't do it. I will work for Torchwood and serve the other five queens, but that's all I'll do for him. I won't marry him, I won't!
"Emma, you're saying all that out loud," Mummy says.
"Oops."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"Nope!"
"If you ever want to tell us about it or talk to the others, we'll be more than happy to listen," Mum says, "but I think Catalina must know that there are five others after her."
"Yes, I guess she should. But I will not tell her now. She's under too much pressure as it is; I won't add to it."
"Fair enough."

I leave the following day for the outskirts of London. Mum and Mummy see me off at dawn, and I get there at around midday. There are a lot of men there, and they give me peculiar looks. "Right, then," I say. "What have you lot been up to?" I climb down from my horse, and the men burst out laughing. "What's so funny?"
"The King cannot expect a woman to run something like this!"
"And you think a woman in power is a funny business?"
"When it is a delicate little flower like you, yes."
What did he just say to me? The young man is still laughing. I walk up to him and glare. "What's your name?" I growl.
"Thomas."
"Well, Thomas, the first thing you should know about me is that you should never anger me. I will report your behaviour back to the King. As women and human hybrids will be joining your job, you must learn to respect them as you would respect your fellow men. You will do well to remember that. Understand?"
Thomas stops laughing. "Yes."
"Is that how you address any leader? I expect at least a "yes, Miss Smith-White"."
"Yes, Miss Smith-White."
"That's better." I look around at everyone else. "Does anyone else have a problem with me? If so, you're more than welcome to take it up with me."

No one else answers, and I smile. "Very well, then. So, what have you all been working on?" We have a long way to go. I should've remembered Tudor England will be tough.
"Well, Miss Smith-White, we have been working on our defences."
"What are they like?"
"Quite poor as Torchwood has next to no money. We cannot afford much more than rakes."
"I see." I bite my lip as I look around. What on earth has the Duke of Norfolk been doing when he was in charge? I would've expected him to do more than he has! "Well, I will be in contact with the Queen throughout my time here, so I will write to her about any problems that we have. How are you going to tell people about the different aliens?"
"We are going to let people know by word of mouth," another young man says.
"That's not reliable; we'll need another form of communication. How many of you know how to read and write?" Everyone nervously looks at each other. "Oh, dear. It looks like I'll need to teach you."
"You know how to read and write?"
"I do, yes."
"Your parents must have been rather progressive."
"In more ways than one. I had the same education as my brother since my parents agreed they should treat their children equally, so I have a broad education."
"When can we start?" Thomas asks.