When John Smith's eyes snapped open, words from a man that looked like him echoing in his ears, it was because there was a knock on his office - and room - door. Grunting softly under his breath, he sat up, rubbing tiredly at an eye. "Come in," he called, yawning a little after speaking.

The door opened and a young woman dressed in a maid's uniform entered: Martha, he knew. Her hair was tied into a bun, her dark eyes lowered to make sure she watched where she stepped as she balanced a tray of breakfast in her hands. Her gaze flicked up for a moment and her eyes dropped after widening a fraction, her body turning away. "Pardon me, Mr. Smith," Martha said tersely, sounding somewhat annoyed, "you're not dressed yet. I can come back later."

John hurried to grab a dressing gown thrown over the end of his bed, tugging it on and tying it shut as he reassured, "No, it's alright. Put it down."

With a brief moment of hesitation, Martha turned and walked to the small table off to the side, setting the tray of breakfast down atop it. She kept her gaze lowered as she stepped back, folding her hands in front of her and spinning on her heel. He watched her as she crossed the room to open the curtains, throwing them open with ease. With a wary look in his eyes, John told her, "I was...sorry. Sometimes I have these...extraordinary dreams."

Martha's shoulders tensed a little as she asked, "What about, sir?"

"I dream I'm this...adventurer," he said, frowning slightly. "This...daredevil, a madman. The Doctor, I'm called. And last night, I dreamed that you and this other woman was there...as my…" He became a little flustered, not liking the word he was using as he finished. "Companion."

Martha snorted softly, retreating back to the tray to make sure a final time that everything was there. "A teacher, a housemaid, and a stranger, sir? That's impossible."

"Ah, perhaps," John admitted, moving towards the fireplace in the room. He was studying a watch atop the mantle, lost in thought. It was small, a fob watch that wouldn't have garnered much notice on any other day - nor had he noticed it really before then. Martha took notice and watched with an almost hopeful expression on her face. But he turned away and she slumped a little as he said, "It's funny how dreams slip away." He turned back to Martha, looking amused with himself. "But I do remember one thing. It all took place in the future, in the year of our Lord, two-thousand and seven."

Martha's smile softened and she told him proudly as she shook out a newspaper she'd brought up for him, "I can prove that wrong for you, sir. Here's the morning paper." She handed it to him. She smiled as she tapped it and added, "It's Monday, tenth of November in the year nineteen-thirteen, and you're completely human, sir. As human as they come."

"Mm, that's me," he agreed, studying the front page. "Completely human."

He missed the way Martha's expression darkened with despair as she turned away.

A few hours later found the young woman on her hands and knees with a cheerful maid named Jenny, scrubbing the tiled floor of the school with a hard brush. She glanced up when John walked by and smiled at him, wishing him a good morning, but was disappointed when he barely responded. Jenny watched him go with a sigh. "Head in the clouds, that one." She went back to scrubbing, smirking at Martha. "Don't know why you're so sweet on him."

Martha wanted to tell her newfound friend the truth. About who he really was, who she was. But she couldn't. We have to be human, she told herself, and then added, At least, we have to be humans in the year nineteen-thirteen.

"He's kind to me," she huffed, scrubbing furiously. "That's all. not everyone's that considerate, what with me being…" She gestured to her face, indicating the darkness of her skin. She hated this time period and all of the ones before it regarding the discrimination. She wished they could have ended up in another galaxy. At least then she wouldn't have been looked down upon.

"A Londoner?" Jenny said with a wink, her expression softening, and Martha laughed. She adored this maid, who'd taken her under her wing when John Smith and Martha had walked into town, seeking work. But Martha still missed Jay. She hoped she was doing well, or at least better than Martha was.

As they went back to scrubbing the floor, giggling, a pair of boys suddenly paused and Martha fought the urge to scowl when one, who she knew to be named Baines after being tormented by the boy, sneered, "Ah, now then, you two. You're not paid to have fun. Put a little backbone into it."

Jenny lost her smile and quickly scrubbed harder. "Yes, sir," she mumbled, "I apologize, sir."

The other boy, Hutchinson, looked to Martha with a smirk, and Martha bit the inside of her cheek as hard as she dared. "You there, what's your name again?" Martha answered truthfully, making sure to stay polite. "Tell me then, Jones. With hands like those, how can you tell when something's clean?"

Martha wished she could have decked the boy. She wasn't fond of teenage boys to begin with; these young men were reminding her why. As they snickered and left, she muttered sarcastically under her breath, "Very funny, sir."

"Martha," Jenny warned. "Careful now, don't answer back."

"I'd answer back with my bucket over his head," Martha muttered, and Jenny threw her head back and laughed.

"Oh, I wish," she giggled. After a soft sigh, she said, "Just think though. In a few years time, boys like that will be running the country."

Martha didn't lift her head from where she was staring at the floor she was scrubbing. "Nineteen-thirteen," she muttered, thinking of the horrific war that would come the next year and kill millions. "They might not."

Jenny and Martha kept up the scrubbing for what seemed like ages, making sure each little space was clean. They knew it was worthless; the floors would need scrubbing again within the next few days. The boys liked to trample mud on them on purpose, just so they'd have more work to do. There was only a few of the boys who would politely come by in the dead of the night to sweep the mud off if they could, and Martha knew precisely which ones to sneak treats to if she went by the kitchens.

It was just as they were finished that Martha heard one boy tell a few others as they walked by that he'd heard one Mr. Smith had fallen down a flight of stairs. Without hesitation, Martha left Jenny alone, running.

He may not have been the Doctor right now, but he was somewhere deep down. And she worried about him. So, when she reached the matron's room, she burst in without hesitation, not bothering to knock, and cried, "Is he alright?"

Matron Joan Redfern paused to give her a nasty look, and Martha grimaced. Oops. "Excuse me, Martha," Joan said rather coldly. "It's hardly good form to enter a master's study without knocking."

Martha huffed softly and strode back to the door and knocked on it before hurrying back in. "But is he alright?" She studied the Doctor - no, she told herself when she saw his surprised, flustered expression. John Smith. "They said you fell down the stairs, sir."

"No," he said, cheeks red. "It was just a tumble, that's all."

Martha addressed Joan, entirely forgetting who she was supposed to pretend to be as she asked, "Have you checked for a concussion?"

Joan gave her quite a nasty look. "I have," she said irritably, "and I daresay I know a lot more about it than you."

Martha wanted to retort something about how likely that was, but she pushed the anger from her mind and reminded herself of her current standing in the world. She'd kill him for this, she decided. "Sorry," she muttered, "I'll just...um, tidy your things." She glanced at the Doctor for a moment and then went to do just that at the professor's desk.

"I was just telling Nurse Redfern - Matron," he corrected, and a cold stone filled her gut. Something was going to happen, and it wouldn't be good. John smiled a little, as if amused with himself. "About my dreams. They are quite remarkable tales," he added to Joan. "I keep imagining that I'm someone else and that I'm hiding."

Joan looked at him with interest. "Hiding? In what way?" she asked.

Rather than answering that question in particular, the Doctor tilted his head and mused, "Almost every night…" He laughed to himself. "This is going to sound silly, but I dream, quite often, that I have two hearts."

Martha's own heart twisted with pain at that, and even more so when Joan chuckled. "I can be the judge of that," Joan said. Martha watched out of the corner of her eye, straightening papers as Joan found a stethoscope and used it to check his heart, claiming that he only had one heart.

John laughed again, and Martha wished that he could laugh like that all the time. Even when he was happy as the Doctor, he was always suffering deep, deep down. It hurt her to think that the only way for him to be truly happy without burden was to find another way of life that didn't involve his most beloved possessions - and memories of people like Rose Tyler, who though she hated being second place to, had been more than just a some random dreamed up person to him.

"I have written down some of these dreams," John said cheerfully, and Martha bit the inside of her cheek as he continued, climbing to his feet, "in the form of fiction...not that it would be of any interest." This was tacked on with a hint of a blush to his cheeks. Joan insisted, and he sighed as he stood and went over to the desk Martha had just tidied. "Well...I've never shown it to anyone before."

With a smile, he removed it and handed it over. Joan took it with gentle hands and Martha felt a spike of unnecessary jealousy. "Journal of Impossible Things," Joan said aloud, nodding in approval at the title. She began to flip through the pages, her eyes widening and a gasp escaping her. "Just look at these creatures! Such imagination."

John hummed in response. "It's become quite a hobby," he said honestly. And it was. It took up quite a bit of free time, drawing and writing.

"It's wonderful," Joan breathed. "And quite an eye for the pretty girls," she added teasingly, tapping a sketch of a woman's face within the journal.

John became flustered. "Oh, no! No, she's just an invention. This character...Rose, I call her. Rose. She seems to disappear later on..." Martha's stomach twisted violently at the name. She'd hated Rose at first, when she'd first realized that the Doctor was in love with her. Still was. She doubted he'd ever lose that love. To hear him speak so carelessly about his previous companion...it hurt. What care did he give she and Jay if this was the case?

"Ah," he said suddenly, smiling as he reached out to touch a small sketch. "That's the blue box. It's always there, like a magic carpet. This funny little box that transports me to far away places." His expression softened. "I sometimes think how magical life would be if things like this were true, but it's only a dream." He laughed softly and then a bell rang, and he blinked. "Oh! Time to teach," he announced.

Joan closed the journal and smiled warmly. "Thank you for letting me look," she said, immediately moving to hand it back, but John pushed it back at her. She blinked as they studied each other's face in silence. Finally, she smiled, understanding. She tucked it safely under her arm and said, "Careful with your head, Mr. Smith. I believe we'll see each other around."

"Certainly," he said pleasantly and watched as she left. Martha faltered, studying him, but then bolted after Joan. That journal was so important. If it fell into the wrong hands-

"Ma'am!" Martha cried as she caught sight of Joan. Joan stopped to look back at her, alarmed. "That book," Martha began, breathless.

"Oh, I'll look after it, don't worry," Joan said, furrowing her brow a little. "He did say I could read it." She turned to leave, but Martha stopped her again.

"But it's silly that's all." Joan turned around again to look at Martha evenly as the maid added, "Just...stories."

Joan took a few steps towards her, thinking. She stopped a few inches away and asked quietly, "Who is he, Martha?" Martha blinked, questioning her on what she meant, and Joan clarified. "It's like he's left the kettle on. Like he knows he has something to get back to, but he can't remember what. You arrived with him, didn't you? He found you employment here at the school, isn't that right?"

The words felt bitter in her mouth. "I used to work for the family, he just kind of inherited me."

"Well, I'd be careful." Joan's eyes sharpened a little, and Martha pressed her lips together unhappily. "If you don't mind me saying, you sometimes seem a little familiar with him. Best remember your positions, Martha." And with that, accompanied by a sharp nod, Joan left Martha standing there alone.

Martha curled her lip a little, wanting nothing more than to slap the woman.

Only one month, she told herself, and then smiled as she went to go and find Jenny. She was, at least, going to be able to see Jay tonight. She hoped the other woman was holding up better than she was, even while being stuck in a world she knew less about than Martha's original year.


From where she was weaving among the crowded village pub, Jayden O'Connors vowed to commit murder for the first time in her life and nearly sobbed in relief when she emerged from the damn building and found Martha waiting outside, wrapped up tightly in a coat with a hat perched upon her head and gloves cladding her hands. Martha looked ready to cry upon seeing her.

"Jay!" she cried, ignoring the fact that Jay held two large drinks in hand in favor of hugging her tightly.

"Martha," Jay murmured in relief. "I've never been happier to see someone in my life. Are you doing okay? It feels like it's been ages...I can't believe it's only been two and a half weeks!"

"Not really, but...oh, it's freezing out here! Why don't we go inside?" Martha suggested as she took one of the drinks from Jay, accepting it happily.

"It wouldn't be proper for this time," Jay said with a roll of her eyes. "Discrimination...heavens above, how did any country ever get to the point where it can accept aliens?" She inclined her head towards the door as they moved to lean against the nearby wall. "He's in there. Came in about an hour ago with another teacher."

Martha's expression darkened. "I hate this. I want to scream, having to bow and scrape and behave."

"We'll be out of here within a month," Jay reassured, heaving out a large sigh. She wrapped her fingers more securely around the cup she cradled in her fingers, biting her lip. "Is he doing okay in that school? I wish I could have gone with you...but like he said, I need to be around as many humans as possible."

Jay had taken on work with a seamstress that lived within the village. It wasn't too bad a job, with her being a maid to the woman's home. The older woman had no family or friends, and tended to prefer being alone, but seemed alright with Jay coming around to keep her things in order and help her deliver her work to those who need it. On a very rare occasion, Jay had gotten lucky the week before and had been sent to the school, to take some newly made uniforms and clothes in for John Smith himself.

When they'd gone into hiding, before he'd done what he did, the Doctor had told her that she'd need work in a public place - to remain in that public space. Just in case, he'd said. Just in case the aliens found them and tracked her down by the poison in her veins.

"How have you been with that?" Martha asked after swallowing a sip of her drink. "Have you had any moments?"

"No." Jay smiled brightly. "I forgot to tell you before all of this. I think I've figured it out. It's got to do with circulation. Remember that ship we were on? The one heading towards the sun?" Martha scoffed, wondering how Jay could think she'd forget, and Jay laughed before continuing. "I barely felt anything before it stated. Afterwards, it was up through my arms. When my heart goes nuts, it starts moving quickly. But these past two weeks, it's only moved a little."

"So basically, we just need to keep you calm is what you're saying," Martha mused.

Jay nodded. "Precisely," she said cheerfully. "Which won't happen in the future, when we get back to that life, but it's good to know."

"Yes, it is," Martha agreed. "I'm going to go visit the TARDIS soon, I think. Would you like to come?"

"Yes," Jay said eagerly. "I miss the ship. I've not been there long, but...she's home."

Martha thought about that for a long moment, thinking of her apartment back on Earth, and agreed. The TARDIS was more of a home for the time being than anywhere else. She smiled as she stared up at the stars, and then blinked when a green light flared amongst them before vanishing. "Did you see that?"

"See what?" Jay asked, looking up, too.

"A light," she answered. "There was this light…" She narrowed her eyes, studying the stars.

"I didn't see anything. Maybe you're getting too cold," Jay suggested, licking her lips free of any final drops as she caught sight of someone fearfully running for the pub. She stood, setting her drink aside as a woman in distress came to a halt before them, shaking a little.

Martha recognized her immediately. "Matron, are you alright?" she asked, setting aside her own drink.

Joan was breathless as she breathed, "Did you see that? There was something in the woods! This...this light…"

Jay exchanged a curious look with a worried Martha and then jumped when none other than John Smith stepped out of the pub, shrugging on his coat. He paused in surprise when he saw the group of women gathered together. "Anything wrong, ladies?" he questioned, and both Jay and Martha exchanged unhappy looks, missing their Doctor, who'd been replaced with this human who barely knew Martha and nothing of Jay. "Far too cold to be standing around in the dark, don't you-"

"There!" Joan cried, pointing at the sky. They all tipped their head to look up. "There, look in the sky!"

"Beautiful," Jay breathed at the sight of something shooting through the sky. Yet a frown encompassed her face. Was that something alien? She certainly hoped not.

"Commonly known as a meteorite. It's just rocks falling to the ground, that's all." John told them all.

"It came down in the woods," Joan fretted and that was enough for Martha and Jay. They exchanged a look. They'd be going to investigate the second they could.

"No, no, no, they always look close, but they're miles off," he told Joan, and then shook his head with a small smile. "Nothing left but a cinder. Now, I should escort you back to the school." He looked over at Jay and Martha, who were still watching the sky closely. "Ladies?"

"No, we're fine," Martha said curtly without looking at him.

Jay, however, spared him a kind smile, her blue eyes warm with gentleness. Martha didn't like John the slightest, but it wasn't his fault. John was human - he remembered nothing of the Doctor, and for that, she couldn't hate him. He looked confused as he looked at her, frowning a little, but finally shook his head and said, "Than I shall bid you good night." John placed a hat on his head and offered an arm to Joan, starting the long walk back to the school.

The second they were out of earshot, Martha spoke. "Do you know where that was? Where the light was headed?" Jay shook her head. "Alright, doesn't matter, we're going to go and find out anyways."

"We need to be careful," Jay reminded, rubbing her arms. "I don't know if that was an alien or not, Martha, but...we're going to be in serious trouble of the Family find us now."

"I know," Martha agreed. "But we need to check it out."

"Yes," Jay mused, "I suppose we do. Come on, then." She took off running, holding her skirts in her hand, and Martha tore off after her, liking the feeling of running after so long without it.


The girls found nothing in the field that night, and made plans to meet outside the pub the next morning, a Sunday when the seamstress Jay worked for was closed and the maids were given the morning off. When the morning arrived and Martha appeared before the pub, Jay was waiting for her with an impatient glint in her eyes. She smiled in greeting and together, they started for the old stone barn in the trees, where the Doctor had hidden the TARDIS when they'd arrived.

As they walked, they spoke, chatting about nothing in particular. They spoke mostly about how they missed the adventures they'd experienced, their hatred for the behavior they were required to undergo, although Jay admitted it wasn't entirely new to her. Martha was horrified upon hearing that.

When they reached that old stone barn, they didn't hesitate to open the door. Martha dug out her key as Jay went to the familiar sleeping blue box before them, resting her fingers against the familiar wood. She listened to the faint song - so much quieter than normal - in her head, and kissed the wood before stepping back to let Martha unlock the door.

Jay grinned when Martha stepped in and greeted the time machine with a simple, "Hello." She paused, and then muttered as she stalked inside, removing her coat, "I'm talking to a machine…"

"Come now, Martha," Jay said with a teasing smile, closing the door and striding for the console. She immediately ran her fingers over the controls. When she glanced up at the time rotor, frowning at the darkness around them, she remembered precisely how they'd gotten into all of this situation.

She could practically hear the Doctor's voice echoing around her.

"Look out!" the Doctor cried, and Jay's head snapped around in time to watch as Martha dove for the floor. Sparks erupted from the console as Jay slammed the door shut behind them. The Doctor flew for the TARDIS console, and not for the first time, Jay grumbled. They'd been enjoying some nice gardens in the palace of another planet when a group of aliens had shown up to cause them trouble.

The Doctor sent the TARDIS into motion, and Martha and Jay hurried to join him. They looked over his shoulder, not understanding a single thing they saw on the screen as the Doctor scowled. "They're following us," he told them. "They can follow us wherever we go. Right across the universe, and they're never going to stop… You two trust me, don't you?"

They piped up immediately. "Of course," Martha answered at the same time that Jay gave him a sharp look followed by a curt nod. Of course they did. As if they wouldn't.

"'Cause it all depends on you," the Doctor said, gaze darting between them. "Both of you." He suddenly whirled away and took off at a jog for a piece of grating in the floor, which he quickly removed. He set it aside, and then dropped into the space below. They watched him anxiously, exchanging quick looks. Finally, a mere two minutes later, the Doctor re-emerged with something in hand. "This watch!" he said, rushing over to show them a pocket watch with strange symbols carved into the front of it. "This watch is me."

"I...am completely and utterly lost," Jay asked, watching as he shoved it into her hands and ran around to the other side of the console. "What do you mean this is you?"

"Those creatures are hunters," the Doctor explained, fidgeting with the controls of the console. "They can sniff out anyone - and me being a Time Lord...well, I'm unique. They can track me down across the whole of time and space. They can smell me, but they haven't heard me. And their life's bound to be running out, so we hide. Wait for them to die."

"But...they can track us down," Martha pointed out.

The Doctor stopped what he was doing and looked up at her, eyes full of grim seriousness that made Jay bit her lip nervously. "That's why I have to stop being a Time Lord. I'm going to become human."

Jay slowly shook her head while Martha watched him dart around the console, lowering something from the ceiling. When they looked up, they found themselves looking at the strangest of headsets hanging from a cable. The Doctor was looking at it with distaste and sadness. "Never thought I'd use this. All the times I've wondered."

"What does it do?" Martha asked and Jay bit her lip harder. She didn't get it? Jay got the general idea, although she couldn't say she understood the technical parts.

"Chameleon Arch," the Doctor told them. "Re-writes my biology. It literally changes every single cell in my body. I've set it to human." With gentle fingers, the Doctor took the watch from Jay's hands and smiled briefly at her before fitting it into a section of the headset. "Now," he continued, "the TARDIS will take care of everything. Invent a life story for me, find me a setting and integrate me. It can't do the same for either of you. You'll have to improvise. I should have just enough residual awareness to let you in."

"Doctor," Jay said in a small voice, suddenly stopping him by grabbing his arm. She searched his gaze when he turned to look at her. "Isn't it going to hurt?"

"Oh yeah," he confirmed with a grimace. "It hurts."

"I hate this," Jay uttered as Martha pressed a few buttons and swung the screen around towards her. Jay went to look over her shoulder and found the Doctor appearing on the screen. Her heart ached as he tapped the camera, questioning if it was working.

Finally, he began. "Martha, Jay, before I change, here's a list of instructions for when I'm human. One: don't let me hurt anyone. We can't have that, but you know what humans are like. Two: don't worry about the TARDIS, I'll put her on emergency power so they can't detect her. Just let her hide away. Four - no, wait a minute, three: no getting involved in big historical events. Four: you two. Don't let me abandon either of you. And five: Jay, you need to stay in a public area. I don't know if they can smell you, so keep near large groups…"

Martha suddenly twisted a dial on the console, speeding through his speech as she muttered, "But there was a meteor, a shooting star...what are we supposed to do?"

"-and twenty-three: if anything goes wrong...if they find us...then you both know what to do. Open the watch. Everything I am is kept safe in there. Now, I've put a perception filter on it, so the human me won't think anything of it. To him, it's just a watch. But don't open it unless you have to. Because once it's open, then the Family will be able to find me. It's all down to you two. Your choice." He disappeared from the screen, and then suddenly backgracked, giving the screen the warmest smile Jay had ever seen him give. "Oh, and...thank you."

Martha bit her lip and rested her head in her hands, frustrated. Jay rubbed her shoulder comfortingly, missing the Doctor, too, as Martha mumbled, "I wish he'd come back."

"Me, too, Martha," Jay murmured, her eyes swimming with worry. "Me, too. We just need to keep going as we are, though. It won't be too much longer, and then we can open the watch. It's where he left it, yes?"

"Should be," Martha agreed. "I'll check the next time in there, but the last time I checked, it was." She took a deep shaken breath and then rocked back on her feels. "I'm a little worried about how close he's getting with the matron, Jay." And not just worried, she'd admit aloud, but frustrated. She liked him. Why did he have to go and do this with another person,right in front of her, while he was human?

Jay took a long look at her friend. Finally with a sorrowful look, she reached out and touched Martha's shoulder, drawing her into a tight hug. Martha returned it. "We'll figure this out," she promised. "We'll be back in the stars soon enough. Just...hopefully without someone hunting us down."

Martha mumbled an agreement into her shoulder.


The sound of a paper being scratched upon by an inked pen filled the air as John carefully sketched out Joan onto the paper within his journal, his eyes darting up every now and then. His heart swelled every time he saw the kind woman, remembering their adventures earlier in the day in which he'd fixed a scarecrow's position. They'd had such a pleasant conversation despite his fumblings, and he was pleased that she'd let him draw her after taking in the new articles he'd created to add to the journal later earlier in the morning.

His mind drifted, thinking over those additions as he worked. The woman Martha had been with the evening before had appeared previously, but with even more of an influence in his dreams the previous night, as if seeing her had confirmed her presence in them. He'd seen her on the ground, back arched with her hands clawing at her chest as he and Martha knelt over her, some kind of creature that had made him wonder just how many nightmarish creatures could escape in this imaginary world he'd created-

"Can I see?"

Joan's voice snapped John out of his thoughts and he flashed her a warm smile as he stood and moved over. He joined her on the sofa she'd been posing on, handing the journal to her with ease. She laughed softly, looking flustered as she said, "Oh, goodness, do I look like that?" She giggled. "Are you sure that's me? I'd think I'm more akin to that." She pointed to an image of a round-faced creature on the opposite mage.

John grinned a little and tapped the drawing he'd just done. "Most definitely this page, I should think."

She looked at the little drawing with a hint of awe in her eyes, taking in what he saw of her through it. "You've...you've made me far too beautiful, John."

"Well," he responded honestly, "that's how I see you."

Her face fell a little as she admitted, "Widows aren't supposed to be beautiful. I think the world would rather we stopped." She paused, studying his face as he fondly brushed some hair from her eyes. "Is that fair? That we stop?"

"That's not fair at all," he responded and then leaned in and gently pressed his lips to hers. They kissed softly for a few moments, and then he pulled back, looking flustered. She looked startled, but before long, they were kissing again. This time, it was interrupted by the door flying open. He yanked back, all ready annoyed. "Martha, what have I told you about entering unannounced?" he snapped, turning to look at the shocked woman. She'd frozen in place upon seeing the pair together.

Her heart ached as she stared at him. Not even an hour ago, she'd spoken with Jay about this and here it was happening right before her eyes. Without answering, she whirled around, rushing back out. She slammed the door shut and leaned against it only momentarily as she whispered, "That wasn't on the list."

Slowly, she broke away from the door and decided to return to her quarters, shared with Jenny. Tears welled in her eyes, but she rushed to blink them back as she walked. No point in crying. "You had to," she muttered, thinking of the video he'd left for she and Jay before turning into John Smith, "didn't you? Had to go and fall in love with a human."

She reached her bedroom and dropped onto her bed, pressing a hand over her eyes as she fought to think of what to do. The Doctor hadn't planned on this when he'd left them to deal with all of this. And for that, she somewhat hated him.

Martha must have sat in her quarters for hours, not seeming to notice the time flying by as she fought to figure out what to do. She'd have to warn Jay, although she was sure Jay would see. She was helping out with the village dance that night, sent to do so by the woman she worked for. She was wondering if she should go and find Jay or not, making some tea, when the door opened and a familiar woman entered. She smiled faintly when she saw Jenny, greeting, "There you are! Come and look what I've got. A nice pot of tea. And there's enough for two."

Jenny remained in the doorway, not bothering to answer. Martha's eyebrows rose, a tug in her gut telling her that something was off. "What are you standing there for? Are you alright?" she added when Jenny loudly sniffed.

Jenny answered in a surprisingly cold voice, "I must have a cold coming on." She finally came to join Martha at the small table they shared in their room.

As she did, Martha sighed aloud, finding that voicing her thoughts aloud to Jenny helped most times. "Problem is, I keep thinking about them, but I don't know what to do. Mr. Smith and Matron…it's never gonna last. He's gonna leave in a few weeks."

"Why?" Jenny asked rather sharply.

"It's like his contract comes to an end," Martha said with a small shrug. "And she's gonna be heartbroken." Jenny demanded to know where he was leaving for, so Martha answered. "All sorts of places. I wish I could tell you Jenny, but it's complicated."

"In what way?" Jenny inquired, but Martha shook her head, and Jenny sharpened her voice again, sounding near icy in tone "It sounds so interesting. Tell me. Tell me now."

Martha frowned, immediately confirming that her gut was right. Something was wrong. Immensely wrong with the woman before her. But, used to things like this now, Martha kept her calm. She swallowed thickly as she smiled at Jenny. "Would you like some tea? I could put a nice bit of gravy in the pot, and some mutton. Or sardines and jam. How about that?"

"I like the sound of that," Jenny answered, but very clearly didn't.

Martha smiled again. "Right, hold on a tick." She moved at a normal pace to the door, closing it on her way out. When she was out, her smile vanished and her hands trembled as she walked quickly to the stairs before pushing into a full-blown run. She had to get to Jay and John Smith, she thought as she ran as fast as she could, her heart racing with fear. The Family was here.

She had made it into the courtyard when something slammed into the gravel nearby - a shot from an alien weapon, Martha realized, and gasped as she ran faster.

She went straight to John's office, hoping that he wouldn't yet be at the village dance that she knew Jay would be at. She was relieved when she slammed into the office and found John and Joan kissing, though they jerked away from one another when she breathlessly cried, "They've found us!"

"Martha," John gritted out, irritated that they'd been interrupted again. "I've warned you."

"They've found us," she said fiercely, ignoring him. "And I've seen them. They look like people, like us. Like normal. I'm sorry, but you've got to open the-" She cut off, looking to the mantlepiece, where she knew the watch had resided, only to find it missing. Horror filled the young woman as she realized it was gone. "Where is it? Oh, my God-" She rushed over to the mantle, digging furiously through various things to try and find it. "Where's it gone? Where's the watch?"

"What are you talking about?" John demanded.

"You had a watch, a fob watch!" Martha said anxiously, struggling to find it as best as she could. Jay was going to kill her - if the aliens didn't first! "Right there, on the mantle!"

Joan looked a little bothered as she said, "I can't see what concern it is of yours."

Martha wanted to throttle the woman. Without the Doctor, they'd all be in trouble, and Joan Redfern was most certainly not helping! "But we need it...oh, my God, we're hiding from aliens, and they've got Jenny - they've...they've possessed her or copied her or something, and you've got to tell me where's the watch?"

John's eyes widened a little as he stared at the distraught woman. "Oh, I see," he said suddenly, and Martha looked over her shoulder at him with excited hope. Picking up the journal that Joan had brought back for him, John carefully approached Martha, saying patiently, "It must be so confusing for you...Martha, this is what we call a story."

Martha would kill him, she decided. When he snapped out of all of this, she would kill him. "Oh, you complete - this," she waved at him, "is not you. This is nineteen-thirteen."

"Good," he said with exaggerated patience. "This is nineteen-thirteen."

Her eyes narrowed. How dare he! "I am sorry," she seethed. "I'm really sorry, but I've got to snap you out of this." Without further ado, she reached up and slapped him as hard as she could across the face. Joan gasped in horror and Martha ignored her, grabbing his upper arms and giving him a firm shake. "Wake up! You're going with me to get Jay, and then we're getting back to the TARDIS!"

When she grabbed his hand to pull him to the door, John snapped, "How dare you! I'm not going anywhere with an insane servant!" The way he said the word servant had her faltering, and before she knew it, he was leading her to the door. "Martha, you are dismissed. You will leave these premises immediately. Now get out!" With that, she found herself thrown out, and her eyes filled with tears when the door slammed shut behind her. But she blinked them back.

She didn't have time for crying, she told herself, and ignored the sound of John saying something rather loudly about her in the office. She took off running again, bumping into a surprised student who she recognized from being one of the few who helped when he could despite being bullied so often. "Oh, sorry!" she gasped.

"Martha?" Timothy Latimer said with surprise, looking slightly dazed.

"Not now, Tim, busy!" she shouted over her shoulder as she ran off again.

She would forego Jay for now, for she knew John and Joan were going to the village dance. She needed to get something from the TARDIS that would remind him, even with the watch missing like it was.

Once again, Martha ran.


Martha had been right to be concerned, Jay thought as she swept around a table and ran her cloth briefly over a table, sweeping it free of crumbs and spilled drink, grabbing the empty glasses as she did so. She carried them back to the bar, her eyes darting over her shoulder to where she could see the Doctor - John, she corrected, because the Doctor was in hiding - and Joan enter. They looked happy, and Jay felt another stab of pain for Martha.

Poor Martha, she thought as she watched them, noting a boy that had slid through the doors. Jay gave him a curious look, wondering what he was doing there. He clearly lived at the school that Martha and John worked at. He had no business being here. But she left him be. He didn't seem inclined to do anything bad, so Jay went back to work.

She was sweeping away shattered glass when a hand grabbed her arm, making her jump a foot in the air. She snapped her head around, squealing, and Martha glared at her, pressing a finger to her lips. "Martha?" she questioned, frowning. "What's wrong?"

"They've found us and the watch is missing," Martha said hastily, glancing over her shoulder. She searched the crowds for the Time Lord in hiding and Joan, finding Joan at a table. Without further explanation, Martha dragged Jay over to where Joan was seated and stood before it. Joan, who'd been watching John as he went to fetch them some drinks after dancing, lost her smile when she saw Martha. "Please, don't," she begged. "Not again."

Martha ignored her. Jay awkwardly stood beside her, giving Joan a curious yet apologetic look as Martha spoke hastily, her dark eyes blazing with determination, because damn it, she would make them understand even without the watch!

"He's different," Jay said quietly, catching both by surprise. Joan looked to her, blinking. Who even was this woman? Where had she come from? But Jay merely smiled gently at her, throwing a look over at John. "He's different from any other man you've ever met, right?"

"Yes," Joan said, narrowing her eyes. "Where are you going with this? Who are you, anyways?"

Jay shifted, taking the seat across from Joan. "Jayden O'Connors, but you can call me Jay. I'm like Martha, a friend of the Doctor's. Whether you believe us or not." She squeezed Martha's hand. Martha was looking at her in shock as she continued, clearly startling the pair of women for speaking up let alone in a way that even Martha had not thought to say. "Sometimes, he says such strange things. People and places you've never heard of. But...sometimes when you look in his eyes, you know that there's something else. Something hidden, right behind his eyes, hidden away in the dark. I've seen it, just as you have. It's the same, whether he's John Smith or the Doctor. They're the same, although they have their differences."

Joan's mouth had opened in shock, and she stared at Jay. "I…"

"Now, really Martha," a voice said sharply and Martha looked to find John standing there, scowling at her with two drinks in hand. "This is getting out of hand-" He cut off, looking at Jay in surprise. Martha glanced at Jay, who smiled in a friendly manner, and furrowed her brow suspiciously. He studied her warily, but with interest, as if she was a puzzle to solve, and then returned his gaze to Martha, focusing on someone he knew how to respond to. "I must insist that you leave."

Martha replied by thrusting something into the air between them. Her jaw worked furiously as she held the sonic screwdriver. John stilled, his eyes widening a fraction as he comprehended what he was looking at. Martha didn't move, stating boldly, "Do you know what this is?" she said, and Jay opened her mouth to protest, not entirely happy with how Martha was going about doing this. "Name it," Martha ordered. "Go on, name it."

"John," Joan said, her eyes flickering anxiously as she looked between he, Martha, and Jay. "What is this silly thing? John?"

They all watched as John took the screwdriver, turning it around in his hands. His fingers trembled as he paused to slowly look up, eyes holding a little bit of fear as Martha said evenly, "You're not John Smith. You're the Doctor. The man in your journal is real. He's you."

Jay opened her mouth to speak, to encourage the man and warn Martha not to push too hard, but was interrupted when there was sudden screams. They forgot what they were focusing on to turn around and look as a voice filled the air, loud and furious. "There will be silence! All of you! I said silence!"

Joan shot to her feet as a man who'd been announcing people who entered - well, those who "deserved it," as he'd put it - demanded of the large man who'd entered with a gun, making Jay flinch, "Mr. Clarke! What's going on?!"

Rather than answering, Mr. Clarke turned the gun on the announcer. It wasn't a normal gun, Jay and Martha noted as it turned the poor man into silence. The boy and maid, who Martha mournfully looked at, with him snickered. Joan gasped in terror behind them and Jay latched onto Martha's arm, squeezing it. Hastily, she suddenly grabbed John's arm, hissing in his ear, "Mr. Smith, everything Martha told you. Forget it, forget all of it! Don't say anything, alright?"

"What?" he rasped, but the boy - Baines, John knew him as - shouted, "We asked for silence! Now then. We have a few questions for Mr. Smith."

"No, better than that," a girl called cheerfully, skipping over with a red balloon in her hand. She stood beside Baines and Mr. Clark with a smug smirk, her dark eyes twinkling as she looked at John. "The teacher," she told them. "He's the Doctor. I heard them talking."

"You took human form," Baines laughed, looking delighted by this development.

"Of course I'm human," John said, voice trembling a little as he looked between the three in confusion and fear. "I was born human! As were you, Baines. And Jenny, and you, Mr. Clarke!" He looked between them all with confusion, narrowing his eyes just a fraction. "What is going on?! This is madness!" First Martha and this strange blonde woman who seemed to be close with her, now these four! Why could no one make sense?!

"And a human brain, too," Jenny sneered, her nose wrinkling in a look that Martha had never seen her wear. "Simple. Thick and dull...he's no good like this. We need a Time Lord."

"Easily done!" Baines said happily, stepping forward. John froze when Baines pointed the gun at the horrified man. The people around them gasped, and someone cried out in concern. Joan whispered John's name, hands over her mouth in fear. "Change back," Baines snarled as John took a nervous step back. When John stammered that he didn't know what Baines was talking about, Baines shouted, "Change back!"

"I literally do not know!" John shouted back, glaring almost.

Jenny lost her patience. "Enough of this," she hissed, suddenly darting forward. Martha screamed when she was dragged forward, a gun pressed to her temple. Jay cried her name, her blue eyes wide with terror. On instinct, John pushed her back towards Joan. "She's your friend, isn't she?" Jenny mocked. "Doesn't this scare you enough to change back?"

"Please," John pleaded, his gaze full of anxiety as he stared at the shivering Martha. Martha swallowed thickly, her eyes wild with fear and locked on the frantic Jay. "I don't know what you-"

"Wait a minute," Jenny said with a slight giggle, glancing at Mr. Clarke. "The maid told me about Smith and the matron...that woman behind him."

"Let's have you!" Mr. Clarke said with a smirk, ignoring John's shout of protest and Joan's scream as he grabbed the poor matron and dragged her away, holding her hostage just as Martha was held, the gun pressed to her temple.

"Joan," John rasped, looking back at Jay for help. She seemed to know something about what was going on, maybe she could -

But she was looking at him with tears in her eyes, frantic. Not helpful, he thought as he turned back to look at Baines, who crowed, "Have you enjoyed it, Doctor? Being human? Has it taught you wonderful things? Are you better, richer, wiser? Then let's see you answer this. Which one of them do you want us to kill? Maid or matron? Your friend or your lover? Your choice."

"Make your decision, Mr. Smith!" Jenny called, clicking her tongue and pressing the gun more firmly against Martha's head.

Had she not been trying to look around and see what she could do, Jay would have missed it. Yet, she knew she wasn't mistaken when she watched the boy who'd sneaked in earlier suddenly pull a familiar fob watch out of his pocket and open it just a fraction. Even from where she stood, she heard the whisper of "Time Lord…"

Baines head snapped around. Jenny was effectively distracted, and Martha took advantage of it, suddenly snatching the gun from her hand, ducking around her, and pressing it to Jenny's head. Jay groaned in relief at the sight of her friend with the upper hand as the woman said evenly, "One more move and I shoot."

Baines gave her a look of delight as he laughed and proclaimed, "Oh, the maid is full of fire!"

"And you can shut up," Martha said, firing the gun at the ceiling. Even Baines flinched.

"Careful, Son of Mine," Mr. Clarke said warningly. His eyes flashed as he stared at Martha. "This is all for you, so that you can live forever."

"I'll shoot her down," Baines scoffed mockingly and Martha grinned, daring him.

"Try it," she challenged. "We'll die together."

"Would you really pull the trigger? Looks too scared to me," Baines drawled, and Jay bit her cheek hard before turning and bolting for the boy who'd had the watch in his hand. Baines narrowed his eyes but returned his eyes onto John, barely taking notice, because why should he? She was a mere human. The boy looked at her nervously, and she smiled faintly whispering something to him.

"Scared and holding a gun. Great combination," Martha hummed. "You wanna risk it?" Baines stared her down for a few seconds before lowering his gun, away from John. Mr. Clarke let go of Joan, who fled to stand beside John. "Doctor," Martha said, not taking her eyes away from Baines. "get everyone out. There's a door at the side. Over there. Go on!" When John faltered, she snarled, "Do it, Mr. Smith! I mean you. You, too, Jay!"

"Everybody out!" Joan shouted, taking charge when he merely studied Martha closely. She went to work, ushering everyone out and John finally went to help her. "Don't argue, Mr. Jackson," Martha heard her saying as she went along, arguing with someone. John sent the boy Jay had whispered to out and then turned to look back at Martha. Jay was right there with him, refusing to leave her friend behind even as Joan left.

"And you," Martha said to John. "Go on."

"What about-"

"Mr. Smith," she said icily, flicking her eyes only briefly towards the door. She returned them instantly to Baines. "I think you should escort your lady friend to safety, don't you? You, too, Jay. Stay with them."

"Martha," Jay protested as John looked to the door and back to Martha. But he made a decision, grabbed Jay's arm, and forced her to the door, immediately directing those outside as soon as he was out. Jay ripped away from him in disgust. He was running? Sure, that was what they did, but not while Martha was in danger!
"Mr. Hicks, go to the village and get everyone out," Jay heard John order. He turned on the horrified boy from before. "Latimer," he said, reaching for his shoulders. "Get back to the school and-"

"Don't touch me!" Timothy snapped, horrified. "You're as bad as them!" He took off running.

Jay, knowing what he possessed, didn't hesitate to chase after him.


Finally done with this chapter! I need to head to bed...heading out to explore some stuff tomorrow. Hated these episodes. Poor Martha.

Thanks to reviewers (isikovaelena98 and Arashi - IV of VI!) as well as those who favorited and followed! I appreciate you all!