Disclaimer: I don't own the Doctor, the TARDIS, Rose or any of the characters, planets, technology etc that appear in Doctor Who. I wish I did but who doesn't?

Chapter Summary: The Doctor and Liana have a talk. Rose feels left out, wanders away and ends up in trouble. Again.

Chapter Seven: Information

The Doctor didn't do much more looking around, Rose noted, a little sourly. He took a cursory look at one or two things and then found Liana, who looked more than a little pleased to be found.

Sensing that there was little room in the conversation or the Doctor's attention for her at this present moment, Rose decided to leave them to it. Feeling a little left-out, she muttered something to him about shopping, which he responded to with a quick nod, and then she took herself off again into Circle Three.

'I still can't believe this,' the Doctor said. He and Liana were stood sat inside one of the back rooms of the shop. It was large, spacious, and had the appearance of an office. Presumably, this was where Liana did all her business that wasn't conducted on the shop floor.

Liana smiled. 'You know, neither can I. Would you like a drink, Doctor?'

'I'd love one,' he said.

She rose. 'A moment, I'll bring some refreshments back.'

Whilst she was gone, the Doctor took an interested looked around. All the equipment was cutting edge technology, he noted with approval. Most was almost as good as what he might have built himself. The walls contained what looked like two massive windows, but the Doctor knew that they weren't. They were holo-panels, hologramatic screens that projected whatever scenery someone wanted to see. Currently, the screens were showing two views, one of a stunningly beautiful snowfield, the other showing the city scape outside of the building. The images even moved, showing creatures and machines shifting across the screen as if they were real, not computerised images, and there appeared to be real snow falling on the icy fields.

Everything in the office was neat and compact, everything perfectly organised and put away in its rightful place. The atmosphere here was rather different to the TARDIS, which generally trailed wires and pieces of metal and circuit boards. The Doctor had never been known for being obsessively tidy.

The door hummed as it opened and Liana returned, carrying a bottle of wine and two glasses.

'Well,' he said, examining the label as she handed him the bottle. 'This is one I've never heard of.' He unscrewed the top and said, 'A full glass?'

'Please,' she said, taking the glass once he had filled it. 'This is one of my favourite vintages, although one of the most expensive.'

He took a mouthful, raising his eyebrows. 'Mm. I can see why.' He set the glass down and looked at her. 'How did you survive the Time War?' he asked.

'I wasn't involved in the war,' she said. 'I was here. I decided to stay, there was no point going back to a planet that wasn't there anymore. I thought I was alone in the universe.' She shrugged. 'I was resigned to that fact. Then you come along.' She brushed her eyes quickly and said with a soft laugh, 'I'm sorry. It's – strange.'

'I know,' he said with a small smile. 'I just – ' He shook his head and laughed. 'I can't believe it. This is fantastic!'

Liana smiled and refilled his glass. 'So, what brings you here, Doctor?'

He raised an eyebrow. 'What makes you think I'm here for a specific reason?'

'I don't know. Maybe just the shopping?' she suggested.

'Well…' he said slowly. 'There is something…' Something was nagging in the back of his mind. 'It's a bit…strange. My friend and I were passing through – '

'Oh, yes, your little human friend,' Liana said. 'Human. What's a Time Lord doing travelling with a human, if you don't mind me asking?'

The Doctor frowned. 'She's my friend. I like travelling with people.' His frown melted into sadness. 'It's lonely, thinking you're the last of your species. Friends help you fill the void that leaves.'

Liana nodded in perfect understanding. 'Of course. I didn't mean to be – insulting. But tell me what brings you here. Maybe I can help.'

He drank the glass of wine down. 'You see,' he said in a thoughtful tone, 'we were on our way back to Rose's home, when we caught this distress signal. Coming from this city.'

'This city?' she said, smiling slightly.

'All right,' he admitted. 'This Circle.'

She looked surprised. 'This Circle?

He nodded.

'Odd. I hadn't noticed anything strange.' She frowned. 'Maybe it was a hidden signal…what do you think?'

'I don't know. I'd have to track down the source, and the person who sent the signal. Has anything strange been happening around here recently?'

'Yes,' she said slowly. 'There have been some strange things going on. People have been turning up dead, or close to death, mutilated and no one seems to know anything about it.'

'Do you?'

'No,' she said frankly. 'No, I don't, and I wish I did. But any inquires I've made have come up with nothing. Maybe you'll have more luck.'

'I usually do,' he agreed with an astounding lack of modesty. 'I'm sure you'll be willing to help? Two minds are better than one, especially minds like ours.'

Liana looked genuinely pleased. 'I'd be delighted to help, Doctor.'

Rose told herself she shouldn't be feeling jealous. It was stupid, and she knew it was stupid. After all, she couldn't expect him to throw aside the chance to talk to one of his own kind. Especially since he had told her himself that he was the last of his kind and now it turned out there was another one. She couldn't see him staying here, either, even if this Liana was another Time Lord. Although she could see him inviting Liana along with them…hopefully the other woman would decline…

She shook her head, trying to stop herself thinking such unfair thoughts. It was unfair to all of them. However, she couldn't help feeling bad and miserable and jealous.

The Doctor never looked at her like he had at Liana.

There was no reason why he should, because she wasn't another Time Lord. But she still felt just a little bit jealous.

She was pulled from her slightly self-pitying and depressed thoughts by someone bumping into her. She looked around sharply and saw two figures hurrying past quickly. One was tall, dressed in black, and the other was small, dressed in drab grey and was being literally dragged along by the other. Rose frowned, irritated, and glanced down at her sleeve where they had brushed against her.

There was a smear of blood on her sleeve.

Rose stared at it in astonishment for a moment and then headed after them. After travelling with the Doctor for so long, she wasn't going to do anything else. They had moved quickly, but there was a trail of blood drops for her to follow. The trail led her through the shops to a narrow space between two shops, hidden by a large display of green plants. The space led into an alley behind the shops, which was apparently used for storage and so on. Moving slowly and as quietly as she could, Rose crept through the alley until she heard voices. Ducking quickly behind some boxes, she peered through a gap and watched and listened intently.

To her astonishment, the man wearing black was the man she had talked to earlier that day. He had blood on his hands and face, and was crouched down in front of the figure he had been dragging through the centre. He looked worried.

'Tell me!' he said angrily, one hand gripping the other man's shoulder tightly, shaking him slightly. 'You have to tell me!'

The other man, slumped against the wall, mumbled something coherent, his head lolling to one side. There was a line of blood trailed down the side of his head, although Rose couldn't see his face. She could see the stains of blood on his clothes, however.

The blond man shook him harder. 'Tell me!' he snarled. 'Tell me, damn you! You have to tell me – '

The slumped man moaned softly in his throat and struggled weakly for a moment, then let out a long, rattling breath and was still.

The blond man spat something under his breath than Rose was willing to bet was probably unrepeatable, and straightened. He growled angrily and kicked savagely at a pile of boxes, causing them to crash and collapse onto the floor. He put his head in his hands for a moment, and then looked up.

'Why don't you stop spying on me and come out?' he said.