Jane Smith had been a godsend, Jackie Tyler mused. The woman had moved in next door not two days after her Rose went missing and Jackie had instantly liked her. She was a bit strange, not knowing some things that even children knew, but Jackie chalked that up to her being foreign, French or Spanish, or something.

They had tea twice a week and it was in the middle of this that Jackie's front door opened. She stopped in the middle of her sentence, locking eyes with Jane.

"Were you expecting anyone?" Jane asked softly. Jackie shook her head.

"I'm back!" Jackie froze, blood draining from her face. "I was with Shareen. She was all upset again. Are you in?" Jackie ran out of the living room, Jane behind her not a second later. They both skidded to a halt when they found Rose standing in the entry hall. "So, what's been going on? How've you been?" Rose looked at her mother in concern. "What? What's that face for? It's not the first time I've stayed out all night."

Jackie dropped her mug in shock, hands going to cover her mouth. "It's you."

"Of course it's me, Mum," Rose answered, confused.

"Oh my god, it's you," she whispered. "Oh my god." She surged forward and threw her arms around her daughter. Rose glanced at the brunette standing behind her mother. The woman smiled a little sadly and pointed towards the table. A stack of missing posters with Rose's face sat there.

"You've been gone for a year," Jane said quietly. At that moment, the door burst open and the Doctor ran in.

"It's not twelve hours, it's twelve months," he said. "You've been gone a whole year. I'm sorry."

~~~

"The hours I've sat here," Jackie ranted angrily, "the days and weeks and months, all on my own. I thought you were dead. And all you can say is you were traveling?" Jackie scoffed. "Traveling. What the hell does that mean, traveling? That's no sort of answer!" Jackie turned to where the police officer sat next to Jane. "You ask her. She won't tell me. That's all she says. Traveling."

"That's what I was doing!" Rose tried. Jackie rolled her eyes.

"With your passport still in your drawer?" she said. "It's just one lie after another."

Rose winced. "I meant to phone," she excused halfheartedly. "I really did, I just... forgot."

Jackie gaped. "What, for a year? You forgot for a whole year? And I am left sitting here." Jackie turned to Jane. "I just don't believe her. Why won't she tell me where she's been?"

Jane shook her head helplessly. "I don't know, Jackie."

The Doctor spoke up then. "Actually, it's my fault," he said cheerfully. "I've sort of... employed Rose as my companion." Jackie, Jane, and the officer all stared at him. The officer was the first one to speak.

"When you say companion, is that a sexual relationship?"

"No!" Rose and the Doctor both yelped.

"Then what is it?" Jackie demanded. "Because you, you waltz in here all charm and smiles, and the next thing I know, she vanishes off the face of the Earth! How old are you then? Forty? Forty five? What, did you find her on the Internet? Did you go online and pretend you're a doctor?"

"I am a doctor," he insisted. Jackie glared.

"Yeah?" She brought her hand back. "Then stitch this, mate!" She slapped him full force and the Doctor actually stumbled backwards.

Jane snickered from her seat on the couch.

~~~

Later, Rose found the Doctor on the roof. She walked over to him. "I can't tell her. I can't even begin." The Doctor hummed. "And I missed a year. How was it?"

"Middling." The Doctor replied. Rose laughed.

"You're so useless." She pushed him gently. He grinned at her before his smile fell a little.

"Well, if it's this much trouble, are you going to stay here now?" the Doctor asked. Rose hummed thoughtfully.

"I don't know," she finally said. "I can't do that to her again, though."

"Well, she's not coming with us."

Rose laughed. "No chance."

"I don't do families," the Doctor said, grinning.

Rose pointed at his face, laughing harder. "She slapped you!"

The Doctor shook his head ruefully. "Nine hundred years of time and space, and I've never been slapped by someone's mother."

"Your face," Rose giggled.

He rubbed at his cheek. "It hurt!"

"You're so gay," she teased. His words hit her and she turned to him. "When you say nine hundred years?"

He nodded. "That's my age."

"You're nine hundred years old," Rose repeated incredulously.

"Yeah."

Rose shook her head. "My mum was right. That is one hell of an age gap." She stood and walked a bit away from him. "Every conversation with you just goes mental. There's no one else I can talk to. I've seen all that stuff up there, the size of it, and I can't say a word. Aliens and spaceships and things, and I'm the only person on planet Earth who knows they exist."

"Well, not the only one," a voice quipped from behind them. They both spun to see Jackie's friend Jane standing against the wall. "I mean, I'm on Earth and I know about them."

"And who are you?" the Doctor asked.

"I go by Jane Smith here, but you'd know me better as the Emissary," Jane said. The Doctor gaped. Rose scrunched her face in confusion.

"Hang on," she said, "like the Doctor?" The Emissary nodded. "I thought you said you were the last!" Rose turned to the Doctor. He winced.

"Thought I was," he muttered. "How did you survive, Emissary?"

She opened her mouth to explain when a loud horn from behind them made them all turn. A spaceship headed towards them, trailing black smoke. They ducked as the ship sailed overhead and crashed into Big Ben, then landed in the Thames. They stood, watching as sirens began to wail towards the plume of smoke rising from the water.

Rose groaned. "Oh, that's just not fair."

~~~

The trio stood in the middle of the street, staring at the massive traffic jam the army had caused.

"It's blocked off," the Doctor said. The Emissary brought her hand up and smacked the back of his head.

"We can see that, thanks," she replied. "Dollophead." The Doctor looked at her, offended.

"OI!"

"We're miles from the centre," Rose pointed out, trying not to laugh at the two aliens. "The city must be grid locked. The whole of London must be closing down."

The Doctor turned away from the Emissary and grinned widely. "I know. I can't believe I'm here to see this. This is fantastic!" Both girls stared at him incredulously.

"Did you know this was going to happen?" Rose demanded.

"Nope."

"Do you recognise the ship?"

"Nope."

"Do you know why it crashed?"

"Nope."

Rose rolled her eyes. "Oh, I'm so glad I've got you."

"I bet you are." The Emissary shook her head at his words, pinching the bridge of her nose. "This is what I travel for, Rose. To see history happening right in front of us."

"Well, let's go and see it. Never mind the traffic, we've got the Tardis." The Doctor shook his head immediately.

"Better not," he said.

Rose frowned. "Why not?"

"It isn't safe," the Emissary explained. "They already have one spaceship crashed in the middle of London. We don't want to give them another one."

"Yeah," Rose started to agree, "but his looks like a big blue box. No one's going to notice."

"You'd be surprised," the Doctor told her, ignoring the questioning glance from the Emissary. "Emergency like this, there'll be all kinds of people watching. Trust me. The Tardis stays where it is."

"So history's happening and we're stuck here," Rose said flatly.

"Yes, we are."

"Bet your mum will have the news on," the Emissary whispered to Rose. She nodded, then turned to the Doctor.

"We can always do what everybody else does," she suggested. "We can watch it on TV."

~~~

The Emissary sat on the arm of the Doctor's chair, watching the news. Rose looked at her. "So how long have you lived here?" she asked.

The Emissary turned to face her. "I moved in about a year ago,"she told her. "Met Jackie the day after I moved in."

"Shush!" The Doctor hissed at them. The Emissary smacked him in the arm and turned her attention to the news.

"The army are sending divers into the wreck of the spaceship. No one knows what they're going to find." The Doctor flipped the station to an American one. "The President will address the nation live from the White House, but the Secretary General has asked that people watch the skies."

Jackie walked over with three mugs of tea. She handed two to Rose and the Emissary and then her friend Ru Chan. "I've got no choice," she was saying to Ru as she sat down next to Rose. Ru gave Rose a look.

"You've broken your mother's heart," she stated. Jackie just glared at the Doctor.

"I'm not going to make him welcome," she told Ru. Ru nodded understandingly, still watching Rose.

"I cradled her like a child," she continued to Rose as if Jackie hadn't spoken.

The Doctor shushed then. "Oi, I'm trying to listen." The Emissary shook her head at him and tuned out the gossiping women.

"News is just coming in," a reporter was saying. "We can go to Tom at the Embankment."

Tom was standing in front of the Thames. "They've found a body. It's unconfirmed."

The Emissary and the Doctor exchanged looks.

~~~

The Emissary sighed as she shut the door to her flat. Jackie's news watch party had morphed into a welcome home party for Rose, though by looks of it Rose didn't even know half the people there. She snorted, shaking her head as she walked towards her room.

The Doctor being alive was a shock. She hadn't felt him in her mind, but then after the... incident that caused them to drift apart, she hadn't really tried to feel his mind. It wasn't surprising to think that so many years of suppressing the feel of him in her head had backfired once they were the only two left.

The Emissary opened a drawer on her nightstand and pulled up the false bottom. Inside was a black jewelry box. She stared at it for a moment before picking it up and opening it. She gently lifted out the bracelet inside and put it on. Then she grabbed her phone and her wallet and headed back towards Jackie's.

~~~

The Emissary grumbled to herself as yet another person bumped into her in Jackie's living room. It was like the entire floor had crowded into the Tyler flat to welcome Rose home. She finally pushed her way through the crowd and dropped onto the arm of the Doctor's chair.

"I don't know how she knows so many people," she grumbled to him. "Nor how they all fit in here." He looked around.

"It is getting a bit crowded," he agreed. "I'm gonna go check out that alien. Would you like to come with me?" The Emissary smiled in relief.

"Oh god yes." The two of them stood and made their way out. They were just out the door when Rose caught up to them.

"And where do you think you're going?"

The Doctor turned. "Nowhere," he lied. "It's just a bit human in there for me. History just happened and they're talking about where you can buy dodgy top-up cards for half price. I'm off on a wander, that's all."

Rose nodded slowly. "Right," she said, not sounding like she believed him. "There's a spaceship on the Thames and you two're just wandering."

"Nothing to do with me," the Doctor answered. "It's not an invasion. That was a genuine crash landing. Angle of descent, colour of smoke, everything. It's perfect."

Rose shrugged. "So?"

"So maybe this is first contact," the Emissary said. "The day mankind officially comes into contact with an alien race. He's not interfering because you've got to handle this on your own."

"That's when the human race finally grows up," the Doctor agreed. He grinned. "Just this morning you were all tiny and small and made of clay. Now you can expand." His grin dropped. "You don't need me. Go and celebrate history."

"Spend some time with your mum," the Emissary interjected. They turned to walk off again.

"Promise you won't disappear?" Rose called. The Doctor stopped, closing his eyes.

"Tell you what," he said, turning and smiling at her. He pulled a Yale key out of his pocket. "TARDIS key. It's about time you had one. See you later." Rose smiled down at the key, looking up to see the two aliens walk off. She grinned, closing her hand around the key and heading back inside.

Mickey Smith stepped out onto his balcony, checking his shoes. He looked up when he heard a very familiar voice. Sure enough, that Doctor man was walking to his ship followed by - Mickey squinted at the figure - Jane Smith, Jackie's neighbor.

He turned and ran for the door.

~~~

The Doctor led the Emissary to the TARDIS. He unlocked the door and went inside to the console, leaning against it. "Well?" he asked. "What do you think?"

The Emissary stood in the doorway, a look of awe on her face. "She's wonderful," she said, grinning. She ran up to the console, running her hands over it gently. The Doctor smiled, looking down at the controls and starting to flip switches to send them into flight. The TARDIS shook,

resisting. The Doctor hauled out a large hammer and banged on the console. The Emissary laughed.

"You still can't fly properly, can you?" she teased. "Need a hammer to get anywhere." She reached over and flipped a switch, stabilizing the flight. He glanced over at her, taking note of the bracelet she wore.

He pointed at it. "You still have it, then." She looked away.

"I didn't take it off once until I got stranded here," she told him. "Then it was too painful to wear."

He watched her face. "I thought you would have gotten rid of it."

She finally met his eyes. "You were the one who pulled away from me." She shook her head. "I never wanted to stop being friends."

"You mur-" Whatever he was going to say was cut off by the TARDIS landing. "We're here."

He headed out the door, the Emissary trailing behind him. They step out into a storage cupboard and the Doctor pulls out a sonic screwdriver and sonicked the lock of the cupboard. He pushed open the door and they stepped out into a room full of Red Berets.

The Berets stared at the two Time Lords in shock. It was silent for a minute before the soldiers all grabbed their guns. The Doctor threw his hands up as they all trained their guns on him. The Emissary stood next to him, hands up and glaring at him.

"If we die here, I'm going to kill you," she hissed.

The Doctor didn't get a chance to respond when a scream echoed down the hall. He lowered his hands and started for the door. "Defense plan delta!" he yelled at the soldiers. "Come on, move, move!"

~~~

The Emissary and the Doctor found Toshiko Sato cowering by her desk.

"It's alive," she told them. The Doctor looked back at the soldiers following them.

"Spread out," he ordered. "Tell the perimeter it's a lockdown."

The Emissary helped Sato up. "My god," she was saying as they headed into the mortuary. "It's still alive. I swear it was dead."

"Coma, shock, hibernation," the Emissary brushed off. "It could be anything. What does it look like?" Metal clattered behind the filing cabinet and all three ducked down behind a table.

"It's still here," the Doctor said. He beckoned to a soldier outside the door to come in. The soldier entered and kneeled by Toshiko. The Doctor stood carefully and walked over to the filing cabinet. He swallowed his shock when he saw that the alien was a pig in a spacesuit.

"Hello," he said softly. The poor thing squealed and ran out on its hind legs. The Doctor spun to face the soldier.

"Don't shoot!"

The Emissary stood, shock written all over her face. "Was that... was that a pig?" The Doctor nodded. The Emissary opened her mouth to continue, but was cut off by a gunshot ringing out in the hall. The two Time Lords ran for the door.

"What did you do that for?" the Doctor demanded as the Emissary fell to her knees at the pig's side. She cradled its head in her arms. "It was scared! It was scared."

He joined her on the floor, just being there as the poor pig died.

~~~

"Here's to the Martians!" Jackie cried, lifting her wine glass in a toast. Rose rolled her eyes as the guests all echoed the toast. She shook her head, then looked up as Mickey burst through the door, stopping and staring at Rose. The entire flat fell silent.

"I was going to come and see you," Rose said weakly.

Ru Chan shook her head. "Someone owes Mickey an apology."

Rose winced. "I'm sorry."

"Not you."

"Well, it's not my fault," Jackie sniffed, crossing her arms. "Be fair. What was I supposed to think?"

She turned with a huff and walked into the kitchen. Mickey followed her immediately, a cross look on his face. Rose sat in her chair a moment more, before sighing and following. As soon as she stepped into the kitchen, Mickey turned on her.

"You disappear, who do they turn to? Your boyfriend," he snapped. "Five times I was taken in for questioning. Five times. No evidence. Course, there couldn't be, could there?" He gestured angrily at Jackie. "And then I get her, your mother, whispering around the estate, pointing the finger. Stuff through my letterbox, and all 'cos of you."

Rose looked down. "I didn't think I'd be gone so long."

"And I waited for you, Rose," he replied. "Twelve months, waiting for you and the Doctor to come back."

"Hold on," Jackie interrupted. "You knew about the Doctor? Why didn't you tell me?"

Mickey started to answer, then noticed people trying to listen in. He stepped over and slammed the serving hatch shut in their faces, then closed the door. "Yeah, yeah," he scoffed. "Why not, Rose? Huh? How could I tell her where you went?"

"Tell me now," Jackie snapped. Rose shook her head, but Mickey just snorted.

"I might as well, 'cos you're stuck here. The Doctor's gone. Just now. That box thing just faded away," he told Rose, just a bit smug.

"What do you mean?" Rose asked him, confused.

"He's left you," Mickey gloated. "Took that Jane chick with him. Some boyfriend he turned out to be."

Rose turned and ran out of the flat.

~~~

"I just assumed that's what aliens look like," Sato said once they were back in the mortuary, "but you're saying it's an ordinary pig from Earth."

"More like a mermaid," the Doctor said. "Victorian showmen used to draw the crowds by taking the skull of a cat, gluing it to a fish and calling it a mermaid. Now someone's taken a pig, opened up it's brain, stuck bits on, then they've strapped it in that ship and made it dive bomb."

"It must have been terrified," the Emissary said, eyes dark. "They've taken this animal and turned it into a joke."

"So it's a fake, a pretend, like the mermaid," Sato said agreeably, not really paying attention to them. "But the technology augmenting its brain, it's like nothing on Earth. It's alien. Aliens are faking aliens." Sato didn't notice as they left. "But why would they do that?" she asked, turning to them. "Doctor? Ambassador?" She stepped out into the hall. "Doctor?"

They were gone.

~~~

Rose stood, staring at where the TARDIS had been in shock. "He wouldn't just go, he promised me."

"Oh, he's dumped you, Rose," Mickey whooped. "Sailed off into space with Jane. How does it feel, huh? Now you are left behind with the rest of us Earthlings. Get used to it."

Rose shook her head. "He would have said."

"What're you two chimps going on about?" Jackie called, coming out. "What's going on? What's this Doctor done now?"

"Ho, ho, ho," Mickey cried. "He's vamoosed." Rose whipped around to face him.

"He's not, because he gave me this," she told him, showing him the key. "He's not my boyfriend, Mickey. He's better than that. He's much more important than-" She cut off as the key started to glow. She looked up as the TARDIS started to land.

"I said so," she breathed, then turned to her mother. "Mum! Mum, go inside. Mum, don't stand there, just go inside. Just, Mum, go." She sighed as Jackie stood frozen. "Oh, blimey." She turned and went into the TARDIS as soon as it landed.

"How'd you do that, then?" Jackie asked Mickey. He didn't answer, just following Rose inside.

~~~

"All right, so I lied," the Doctor said when he heard Rose come in. "We went and had a look. But the whole crash landing's a fake. I thought so. Just too perfect. I mean, hitting Big Ben. Come on, so I thought let's go and have a look-" Rose interrupted.

"My mum's here."

The Doctor turned and looked at Mickey and Jackie standing by the door. "Oh, that's just what I need," he complained, the Emissary snickering from her place on the captain's seat. He pointed at Rose. "Don't you dare make this place domestic."

"You ruined my life, Doctor," Mickey snapped at him. "They thought she was dead. I was a murder suspect because of you."

"You see what I mean?" the Doctor asked his girls. "Domestic."

"I bet you don't even remember my name."

"Ricky."

"It's Mickey," he corrected.

"No, it's Ricky."

Mickey glared. "I think I know my own name."

"You think you know your own name?" the Doctor teased him. The Emissary was full out laughing now, Rose watching the two men in amusement. "How stupid are you?"

Rose suddenly pushed past them. "Mum, don't!" she called as Jackie ran out of the TARDIS. She sighed and turned to the bickering men. She pointed at the Doctor. "Don't go anywhere." She pointed at Mickey. "Don't start a fight!" She pointed at the Emissary. "Don't let them do either!" Rose came out of the TARDIS to see her mum running towards their flat. "Mum, it's not like that!" she shouted. "He's not... I'll be up in a minute! Hold on!" She ducked back inside, going back to the console. "That's a real spaceship."

"Yep," the Doctor agreed.

"So it's all a pack of lies?" Rose asked. "What is it, then? Are they invading?"

"Funny way to invade," Mickey pointed out, "putting the world on red alert."

"Good point!" the Doctor praised. "So, what're they up to?"

~~~

Jackie sat on her bed, head spinning. That ship was impossible! And her Rose just walked about it like it was nothing! And Jane, her nice, normal neighbor, was sitting there like she belonged there! Jackie flopped down, hands on her forehead.

The news was still playing on her tv. "Are there more ships to come? And what is their intention? The authorities are now asking if anyone knows anything. If any previous sighting has been made, then call this number. We need your help." Jackie looked at the number on the screen and bit her lip, wavering. Then she picked up the phone and dialed. She huffed as she got the busy tone twice before getting through.

"Yes, I've seen one," she blurted as soon as someone picked up. "I really have. An alien. And she's with him. My daughter, and my neighbor, they're with him. And she's not safe. Oh, my God. She's not safe." She paused to collect herself. "I've seen an alien," she continued, "and I know his name. He's called the Doctor. His ship, it's a box. A blue box. She called it a TARDIS." Jackie frowned at the phone when she was abruptly hung up on, then sighed and put it down.

The army knew now and they would keep Rose - and Jane - safe.

~~~

Back in the TARDIS, the Doctor was under the console fiddling with the wires. Mickey stood over him, watching.

"So, what're you doing down there?" he finally asked.

The Doctor took his screwdriver out his mouth. "Ricky."

Mickey sighed. "Mickey."

"Ricky," the Doctor ignored him. "If I was to tell you what I was doing to the controls of my frankly magnificent time ship, would you even begin to understand?"

"I suppose not."

The Doctor smiled. "Well, shut it, then." Mickey huffed and walked back over to Rose.

The Emissary leaned over the Doctor. "You should be nicer to him," she scolded. "He's Rose's boyfriend. And anyway, does the TARDIS even need repairs, or is this just because you hit her console with a hammer?"

He didn't answer.

~~~

Rose looked over as Mickey walked over. "Some friend you've got," he said flatly.

Rose smiled apologetically. "He's winding you up. I am sorry."

"Okay."

"I am, though," Rose insisted.

Mickey sighed. "Every day, I looked," he told her. "On every street corner, wherever I went, looking for a blue box for a whole year."

Rose winced. "It's only been a few days for me. I don't know," she sighed, rubbing her face. "It's, it's hard to tell inside this thing but I swear it's just a few days since I left you."

"Not enough time to miss me, then?"

"I did miss you."

"I missed you," Mickey offered.

Rose didn't look at him. "So, er, in twelve months, have you been seeing anyone else?"

"No."

"Okay."

"Mainly because everyone thinks I murdered you," Mickey explained awkwardly.

"Right."

"So, now that you've come back, are you going to stay?" Mickey asked hopefully. He leaned in to kiss her, but Rose pulled away when the Doctor jumping up from under the console.

"Got it!" he cried. "Ha, ha! Patched in the radar, looped it back twelve hours so we can follow the flight of that spaceship."

The Emissary smirked. "Oh, is that what you were doing?"

"Here we go," the Doctor said, ignoring her smirk. "Hold on. Come on." He smacked the side of the screen to make it focus and grinned when the ship trajectory came up.

"That's the spaceship on its way to Earth, see?" he pointed out to Rose and Mickey. "Except. Hold on. See?" Rose shook her head.

"The spaceship did a sling shot round the Earth before it landed," the Emissary explained.

"What does that mean?"

"It means it came from Earth in the first place," the Doctor said, sounding vaguely excited. "It went up and came back down. Whoever those aliens are, they haven't just arrived, they've been here for a while. The question is, what have they been doing?"

~~~

The Doctor flipped through channels on his scanner, looking for the right news station. Rose and the Emissary stood on either side of him, watching.

"How many channels do you get?" Mickey asked, standing behind the trio.

"All the basic packages," the Doctor told him.

Mickey looked at the scanner in interest. "You get sports channels?"

"Yes, I get the football," the Doctor said, exasperated. He perked up when several uniformed people walked on screen. "Hold on, I know that lot."

"It is looking likely that the Government's bringing in alien specialists - those people who have devoted their lives to studying outer space."

"UNIT," the Doctor told the others. "United Nations Intelligence Taskforce. Good people."

"How do you know them?" Rose asked.

"'Cos he's worked for them," Mickey answered. He gave the Doctor a smug look. "Oh yeah, don't think I sat on my backside for twelve months, Doctor. I read up on you." He looked at the girls. "You look deep enough on the Internet or in the history books, and there's his name, followed by a list of the dead."

"That's nice," the Doctor replied flatly. "Good boy, Ricky."

The Emissary looked at the Doctor, not missing the flash of pain in his eyes. She swallowed and looked away for a minute. "You had a job?" she asked him, looking back with a teasing smile. "You, and a job?"

"If you know them," Rose pointed out, "why don't you go and help?"

The Doctor moved away from the scanner. "They wouldn't recognise me. I've changed a lot since the old days," he told her. The Emissary wondered how many regenerations he'd gone through since she'd last seen him in his sixth incarnation. "Besides, the world's on a knife-edge. There's aliens out there and fake aliens. We want to keep this alien out of the mix. I'm going undercover," the Doctor headed for the TARDIS doors. "And er, I'd better keep the Tardis out of sight. Ricky, you've got a car. You can do some driving."

"Where to?" Mickey asked, following the girls to the door.

"The roads are clearing," the Doctor said, opening the doors. "Let's go and have a look at that spaceship."

The moment they stepped out of the TARDIS, a spotlight was on them and they were surrounded.

"Do not move!" the police yelled, pointing guns. "Step away from the box and raise your hands above your heads."

The Emissary put her hands up as Mickey ran and hid. Jackie came running out of the flat.

"Rose!" she yelled as soldiers grabbed her. "Rose!"

"Raise your hands above your head," the police ordered again. "You are under arrest." The Doctor and Rose finally put their hands up.

"Take me to your leader," the Doctor said cheerfully.

The trio were forced into a car. Rose looked around, smiling at the two aliens. "This is a bit posh. If I knew it was going to be like this, being arrested, I would have done it years ago."

"We're not being arrested, we're being escorted," the Doctor corrected.

"And where are we being escorted to?" the Emissary asked him.

"Where'd you think?" he answered. "Downing Street."

Rose gave a shocked look to the Emissary. "You're kidding," she said, eyeing the Doctor.

"I'm not," he said, a smug grin on his face.

"10 Downing Street?"

"That's the one."

Rose grinned widely. "Oh, my God. I'm going to 10 Downing Street?" He nodded.

The Emissary crossed her arms. "Why?"

"I hate to say it, but Mickey was right," the Doctor explained. "Over the years I've visited this planet a lot of times, and I've been, er, noticed." He glared playfully at the Emissary as she snorted.

"Now they need you?" Rose asked, watching the interaction in amusement.

"Like it said on the news. They're gathering experts in alien knowledge. And who's the biggest expert of the lot?"

"Patrick Moore?" Rose guessed, winking at the Emissary.

"Apart from him," the Doctor rolled his eyes.

Rose grinned, shoving him lightly. "Oh, don't you just love it."

"I'm telling you," the Doctor said as both girls giggled. "Lloyd George, he used to drink me under the table. Who's the Prime Minister now?"

"How should I know? I missed a year," Rose reminded him. The Emissary thought for a moment.

"Let's see, 2006?" she said. "It's Tony Blair."

"How do you know that?" the Doctor asked. She gave him a look.

"Apart from it being literally my job to know every timeline?" she stated. "I've lived here on Earth for the last year, stuck."

Rose looked between the two Time Lords as an awkward silence settled.

The car finally pulled up to 10 Downing Street and the trio got out to a horde of cameras. The Doctor started making faces at the cameras.

"Oh, my God," Rose laughed. The Emissary just rolled her eyes at his antics, walking past him into the building. Rose and the Doctor shared a grin before he took her hand and pulled her up the steps and into Downing Street.

~~~

Three policemen stood in Jackie's flat, taking a statement from her. Jackie sat in her chair, wringing her hands, more worried about her daughter than giving them their statement. "So, she's all right then?" she asked. "She's not in any trouble?"

Commissioner Strickland smiled tightly. "Well, all I can say is, your daughter and her companion might be in a position to help the country. We'll need to know how she made contact with this man, if he is a man."

Strickland sat down, and his stomach made an unpleasant noise. Jackie scrunched her nose, then got up to get some tea.

"Oof," he groaned, then turned to his coworkers. "Right, off you go then. I need to talk with Mrs Tyler on my own, thank you."

The other two left the flat as Strickland smiled sinisterly.

~~~

The Emissary and Rose looked around the building in awe as they walked in and stopped by a door. A secretary stepped forward and called out to the room of people.

"Ladies and gentlemen, can we convene?" he asked. People started moving forward, and he held up an ID card as they passed. "Quick as we can, please. It's this way on the right, and can I remind you ID cards are to be worn at all times." He handed the card he was carrying to the Doctor, and looked askance at Rose and the Emissary. "Here's your ID card. I'm sorry, your companions don't have clearance."

"I don't go anywhere without her," the Doctor said, pointing at Rose. "And I'm not leaving her behind either," he finished, pointing at the Emissary.

The secretary shook his head. "You're the code nine, not them. I'm sorry, Doctor. It is the Doctor, isn't it? They'll have to stay outside."

"They're staying with me."

The secretary sighed, sounding exhausted. "Look, even I don't have clearance to go in there. I can't let her in and that's a fact."

Rose laid a hand on the Doctor's arm. "It's all right. You go."

A redheaded woman walked over. "Excuse me," she asked. "Are you the Doctor?"

"Sure," said man agreed easily. The secretary turned to the woman and the Doctor started to argue with Rose about leaving her outside.

"Not now." The Emissary frowned as the secretary snapped at the woman. "We're busy. Can't you go home?"

"I just need a word in private," the woman insisted. The Emissary glanced at her badge. Harriet Jones, she mused. The name sounded familiar.

"I suppose so," the Doctor conceded to Rose. He headed towards the conference room, calling back to both girls. "Don't get in any trouble."

"You haven't got clearance. Now leave it," the secretary told Harriet. He turned to Rose and the Emissary, taking them by the arms and starting to lead them off. "I'm going to have to leave you with security."

Harriet stepped up behind them. "It's all right," she said. "I'll look after them. Let me be of some use." The secretary looked at her for a moment, then walked off, shaking his head. Harriet turned to the girls. "Walk with me," she said quietly. "Just keep walking." They followed her warily into the entrance hall. "That's right. Don't look round. Harriet Jones, MP Flydale North." She flashed a badge.

~~~

The Doctor sat in the briefing room, scanning the papers he'd been given, trying to keep his mind off of Rose and the Emissary.

He frowned when something strange caught his eye.

~~~

Harriet looked at both girls as they stood in the hall. "This friend of yours, he's an expert, is that right?" she asked, her voice wavering. "He knows about aliens?"

Rose exchanged dubious looks with the Emissary. "Why do you want to know?" she said warily, startled when Harriet started crying. She grabbed the woman trying to comfort her as she met the Emissary's eyes.

~~~

The general walked up in the front of the briefing room. "Now, ladies and gentlemen, if I could have your attention, please," he started. "As you can see from the summaries in front of you, the ship had one porcine occupant."

The Doctor stood and walked in the middle of the room. "Of course, the really interesting bit happened three days ago, see," he interrupted, "filed away under Any Other Business. The North Sea. A satellite detected a signal, a little blip of radiation, at one hundred fathoms, like there's something down there. You were just about to investigate and the next thing you know, this happens. Spaceships, pigs, massive diversion. From what?"

~~~

Harriet led them into the Cabinet room and pulled what looked like a costume out of a closet. "They turned the body into a suit," she told them. "A disguise for the thing inside!" She started crying again and Rose hugged her.

"It's all right. I believe you. It's, it's alien," she told the woman, watching as the Emissary picked up the body suit.

"They must have some serious technology behind this," she said, examining it closely.

"If we could find it," Rose said, "we could use it." She started searching the room. She opened a different cupboard and a man's body fell out. "Oh, my God!" Rose yelped, the Emissary and Harriet running over. "Is that the-"

The secretary suddenly stormed in. "Harriet, for God's sake," he snapped. "This has gone beyond a joke. You cannot just wander-" He cut off abruptly, staring at the body. "Oh, my God. That's the Prime Minister!"

~~~

The Doctor paced back and forth. "If aliens fake an alien crash and an alien pilot, what do they get?" he mused, then stopped as a thought occurred to him. He looked up in realization. "Us. They get us. It's not a diversion, it's a trap."

~~~

The Emissary pushed Rose behind her as a blonde woman, Margaret Blaine if she remembered correctly, walked in. "Oh!" Margaret smiled falsely, her voice far too sweet. "Has someone been naughty?"

~~~

Jackie stood in her kitchen, stirring sugar into her mug of tea. "It was bigger on the inside," she recalled about the TARDIS, then shrugged helplessly. "I don't know. What do I know about spaceships?"

"That's what worries me," Strickland answered. "You see, this man is classified as trouble. Which means that anyone associated with him is trouble. And that's my job." He took off his cap and lifted his hands to undo the zip across his forehead. Blue light washed over the room. "Eliminating trouble."

~~~

"That's impossible," the secretary stammered, facing Margaret. "He left this afternoon. The Prime Minister left Downing Street. He was driven away!"

Margaret smiled sweetly. "And who told you that, hmm? Me." She reached up to her hairline and started to unzip.

~~~

"This is all about us," the Doctor explained quickly to the everyone gathered in the room. "Alien experts. The only people with knowledge how to fight them gathered together in one room." He frowned when Chairman Green farted behind him. "Excuse me, do you mind not farting while I'm saving the world?"

Green smirked. "Would you rather silent but deadly?" General Asquith removed his cap and unzipped his forehead. Green laughed as the room filled with blue light and an alien started to wriggle out of the General's skin suit.

~~~

The three humans and one Time Lord stood frozen in horror as a giant green alien forced its way out of Margaret's skin. It lunged forward and grabbed the secretary by the throat, pushing him up the wall.

The Emissary pushed Harriet behind her as she stepped forward, throwing her hand out toward the alien.

A wave of bright, crackling blue energy flew from her hand and hit the alien. It flew back, releasing the secretary, who ran to join the others.

"What the hell was that?" Rose gasped.

~~~

Jackie came out of her kitchen to see that the Commissioner had turned into an alien. She dropped her mug and screamed, cowering down in the corner.

~~~

The Doctor lowered his hand as the blue light faded. Where the General has been was a green alien, nearly eight feet tall with giant black eyes in baby faces. "We are the Slitheen," it said in a vibrating voice.

Green smiled darkly. "Thank you all for wearing your ID cards," he said, holding up a remote. "They'll help to identify the bodies." He pressed a button, and the ID cards sent out a wave of electricity over their wearers.

The Doctor groaned as he was forced to his knees by the shocking.