"W-Whoa."

I chuckled into the pillows, lying on my stomach, wings spread out with one covering Jack's naked body—his fingers idly toying with the soft feathers.

"I take it, it was everything you wanted?"

"And more," he breathed, rolling over and trailing his fingers up my wing to my shoulder and cupping my cheek. "And we weren't even allowed to do the good stuff. How do you keep everyone off you?"

"Hypnotism. I can show up, have sex, and disappear without a trace," I replied, slowly pushing myself upward with Jack following.

"Must be handy," he murmured, hugging me from behind and lightly brushing his lips over a scar near my neck. "If you're a demon, how do you have scars?"

"Fighting other demons, angels, and some human injuries don't heal properly, especially in this world.

A finger ran over a large scar on my abdomen, sending a trill of pleasure up my spine. It's been a long while since someone's managed to make me feel this way, much less a mortal.

"Another go?" He offered, tightening his grip around my waist and nipping at the hollow of my neck.

"Perhaps not," I answered, feeling his lips turn down into a pout. "The Doctor is getting antsy and Rose is up. They'll come for us momentarily."

"Shame. I had fun."

I smirked. "Another time. It's been a while since I've enjoyed myself as much as well."

He chuckled as we rose to get dressed. "I'll have to add that to my resume: pleasured a demon."

"No one will believe you."

"They don't have to."

Once dressed, we headed down into the console room where Rose and the Doctor waited, said man taking one look at us and groaning.

"I said no shagging."

I chuckled, appearing behind him when he turned back to the controls. "There's a lot one can do without actually going that far." I cackled when he attempted to swat at me, ears flaming red.

"Foreplay is just as bad!"

"Oh, don't be such a buzzkill, Doc," Jack beamed, draping an arm over his shoulders. "You're always free to join us."

"As interesting as this conversation is," Rose interrupted, "where exactly are we headed?"

"Cardiff."

"Cardiff?" Rose repeated with a crinkle of her nose.

"Yup. Remember Gwyneth? There's a rift through time right here in Cardiff. I land there, just keep her parked for a couple of days and we're off. Just a little recharge."

"Can't Ornias do something?" She questioned, looking to me. "You charged up the Tardis key before."

I shook my head. "Oh, no. Nope. I'm like a car battery. This thing requires a bloody star to run, I'm sure. Even if I could manipulate some energy and add it to mine, I'd be as close to dead as a demon could get in this world. Besides, I think Cardiff is great."

"Yeah, you would." She rolled her eyes, pulling out her phone. "In that case, I'm going to call Mickey."

The Doctor shrugged, prepping the ship. "All right. I could do with a laugh."

Rose smacked his arm, though a smile slipped over her face. "Stop it."

As she stepped away to call, Jack looked over to the Doctor as I lazily blew bubbles—earning a look from them.

"Who's Mickey?" Jack asked.

"Boyfriend."

"Yours?"

The Doctor grimaced. "No, Rose's you dolt."

Jack chuckled. "Just checking."

I drifted closer. "I thought you and her were… dancing."

The Doctor flushed, hastily looking back at the controls. "No. She's human. Nineteen at that. It would never work out."

Jack and I exchanged glances before I hummed, lying on thin air and propping up my chin in my hands like a girl eagerly awaiting gossip at a slumber party.

"The tension between you two is delightful and as much as I'd hate to end it, the feelings are there," I mused, rolling over onto my back. "You could just do it. Could be fun. What's that human saying? 'Better to have loved and lost than to never love at all'?" I rolled back over. "A hundred years could be worth it, and I'm sure you could even extend it a few decades if you—"

"I'm not going to get with her only to watch her die!" He shouted, grabbing me by my shirt in his anger.

I blinked, unperturbed by his burst of outrage when I'd tasted it coming. He shoved me away bitterly, hands gripping the console tightly.

"You wouldn't understand. What the hell would you know? You're a demon. You'd probably get a kick out of watching someone wither away and die like that."

An image of a caramel-eyed woman getting old flickered in the back of my mind. Her once luscious brown hair turning grey and her lightly tanned, smooth skin growing sickly pale and wrinkled. The way her eyes crinkled in joy every time she saw me even though I never aged, never changed as I came to her bedside. The way she coughed blood violently on her deathbed and there was nothing I could do, even as I was. A woman who loved a demon, and a demon who became her death sentence.

"I do understand," I stated, eerily calm and surprising both him and Jack. "Better than you think. You're not the only one who has lived for too long. And most demons were human once too. I wasn't but I'm perfectly capable and lived with them for so long... Sometimes… that leaks through."

Silence fell over us—the only sound being Rose's voice drifting from the nearby hallway and the soft hum of the Tardis.

"I… I didn't know," the Doctor muttered. "I'm sorry."

I shrugged, pushing the uneasy feeling away as best I could, moving towards the jump-seat.

"What was her name?" Jack asked, curious but soft—something I didn't know I could taste.

"Janette Norris," I replied, managing a small smile. "What a stupid woman, falling for someone like me."

"Must have been some woman," the Doctor muttered in response, flicking some switches on the console. "Making a demon fall for her."

I had no response for that and soon, Rose bounded back in and the Doctor plastered on a smile as if nothing was wrong.

"Ready?"

"Yup!"

"All right! And we're off!"

The Doctor sat up on a ladder, repairing something once they'd landed, awaiting Mickey's inevitable appearance. Jack was lounging on the jump-seat with a magazine in one hand as the other ran lightly through a napping Ornias's auburn hair. The Doctor felt guilty for snapping at Ornias before but another part of him was curious. The demon seemed to be slowly becoming more and more human.

He'd helped Nancy and seemed to genuinely care about the Doctor getting hurt—though his response to danger could be improved, if his reaction to the gas-masked patients was any clue. And seeing that look on his face when he said he understood the Doctor's pain only added to that thought. That was genuine sorrow, mourning. Maybe, with him being out of his own universe, something's changing. I wonder if he'll let me do a scan. He says technology doesn't agree with him but since the Tardis likes him, maybe something will come up.

There was a knock on the door then, and Jack got up to get it as Ornias sighed, tucking away his wings. Rose had given a stern warning not to frighten Micky off with being a demon and surprisingly, Ornias was listening. Mickey shoved past Jack then, who raised a brow.

"Don't tell me. This must be Mickey."

"Here comes trouble," the Doctor teased. "How're you doing, Ricky boy?"

Mickey frowned. "It's Mickey!"

"Don't listen to him, he's winding you up," Rose chirped, catching Mickey's attention.

"You look fantastic."

The two hugged and Jack leaned over toward Ornias and the Doctor.

"Aw, sweet. Look at these two. How come I never get any of that?"

"Buy me a drink first," the Doctor flirted harmlessly.

"You're such hard work."

"But worth it. You should just ask Ornias if you want to have it easy."

Jack smirked, leaning over and kissing Ornias's jaw. "I already did, but someone has to put restrictions on our fun."

They both shot the Doctor a look and he huffed.

"Who knows what trouble you two would get in if I allowed it."

Ornias smirked. "Oh, all sorts."

Mickey handed Rose her passport then, and she waved it at the group.

"I can go anywhere now."

"I told you, you don't need a passport," the Doctor reminded her.

"It's all very well going to Platform One and Justicia and Glass Pyramid of San Kaloon, but what if we end up in Brazil? I might need it. You see? I'm prepared for anything."

Ornias smirked at the Doctor. "I'm beginning to think she doesn't trust you."

"Oh, hush," he chided as Mickey shot the group a look.

"So, what are you doing in Cardiff?" He asked Rose. "And who the hell's Jumping Jack Flash and Tall, Dark and Gloomy? I mean, I don't mind you hanging out with big-ears up there—"

"Oi!"

"Look in the mirror," Mickey huffed at his complaint. "But these two, I don't know. They're kind of…"

"Handsome?" Jack offered.

"More like cheesy."

Jack looked at Ornias. "Early twenty-first-century slang. Is cheesy good or bad?"

Ornias shrugged. "Asking the wrong person. I get everything mixed up with seventeenth century and onward."

"It's bad," Mickey clarified, still eyeing the two distastefully.

"But bad means good, isn't that right?" Jack grinned as the Doctor frowned.

"Are you saying I'm not handsome?"

"In comparison?" Ornias teased, earning a frown. "I mean, I am—"

Rose slapped a hand over his mouth. "Obnoxious."

Ornias raised a brow and Rose's cheeks flushed bright red as she jerked her hand back, wiping it on her trousers.

"D-Don't do that! Gross!"

"Hm? That's not what it tastes like." Ornias ran his tongue over his lips and Rose promptly punched his arm.

"Quit it! You're being weird!"

Ornias looked at Jack. "Good or bad?"

Jack snorted. "In this context? Probably bad."

Ornias smirked. "Which is good, yes?"

Jack laughed as the Doctor groaned.

"Good God, it's been like fifteen minutes! Take it outside, would ya?"

"Ignore them," Rose waved off, looking back to Mickey. "We just stopped off. We need to refuel. The thing is, Cardiff's got this rift running through the middle of the city. It's invisible, but it's like an earthquake fault between different dimensions."

The Doctor nodded, climbing down from his ladder as he picked up where she left off. "The rift was healed back in 1869."

"Thanks to a girl named Gwyneth, because these creatures called the Gelth, they were using the rift as a gateway, but she saved the world and closed it."

Jack jumped in too. "But closing a rift always leaves a scar, and that scar generates energy, harmless to the human race—"

"But perfect for the Tardis," the Doctor continued. "So, just park it here for a couple of days right on top of the scar and—"

"Open up the engines, soak up the radiation."

"Like filling her up with petrol and off we go!" Rose high-fived Jack who did the same to the Doctor.

"Into time!"

"And space!" The trio cheered, leaving Mickey and Ornias watching the group.

"My God, have you seen yourselves?" Mickey complained. "You all think you're so clever, don't you?"

"Yeah."

"Yep!"

Ornias snorted. "And they complain about my antics."

"Yeah, you're off too, mate," Mickey huffed as they stepped out of the Tardis.

"Should take another twenty-four hours, which means we've got time to kill," the Doctor hummed, locking the doors.

"That old lady's staring," Mickey informed them as the old woman quickly scuttled off.

"Probably wondering what five people could do inside a small wooden box," Jack hummed.

"A lot," Ornias replied, sparking mischief in his eyes.

"What are you the captain of, the Innuendo Squad?" Mickey huffed. "He your lieutenant?"

"Oh, no. He's the general," Jack replied with a chuckle as Ornias smirked, sending a chill down Mickey's spine.

"Right…"

"I swear, six feet tall and with big tusks!" Jack grinned, recounting some adventure he'd had as we sat in a restaurant.

"You're lying through your teeth!"

"He's really not," I informed the Doctor, sipping at my wine.

"I'd have gone bonkers! That's the word—bonkers!" Rose gasped.

"I mean, it turns out the white things are tusks and I mean tusks! And it's woken, and it's not happy."

"How could you not know it was there?"

Jack continued his story. "And we're standing there, fifteen of us, naked—"

"Naked!"

"And I'm like, 'Oh, no, no, it's got nothing to do with me.' And then it roars, and we are running. Oh my God, we are running! And Brakovitch falls, so I turn to him and I say—"

"I knew we should've turned left!" Mickey jumped in, the group bursting into laughter.

"That's my line!"

I tasted something off then, slicing through the merriment and drawing my gaze to the Doctor as he got up from the table. The others didn't notice, too busy learning the details to Jack's story to realize his sudden absence or the frown on his face when he returned with a newspaper.

"And I was having such a nice day."

Jack and I were more than confused as to why the woman on the front page was cause for trouble, but Rose and the Doctor were quick to update us.

"It's a bit mundane," I commented as we approached City Hall. "Sneaking into the government just to blow the planet up for a cheap dollar. You can do quite a lot from a position of power on this planet. Money runs out quickly. Entertainment doesn't."

"You say this like you've snuck into the government," Jack mused.

"I have," I chirped, smirking at the memory. "I had the Egyptians build me the pyramids. Best part was, I never told them why. Just said, 'Build a triangle over there. Chop, chop!' And off they went. And to watch archaeologists question why hundreds of years later?" I chuckled. "Not once did they think it was just for fun! Humans are so funny."

"What do you mean?" Mickey questioned. "There's no way you did that! It was a pharaoh!"

"And who do you think advised the pharaoh?"

"Why the hell would he listen to you?"

I glanced at Rose with a groan. "Can't I scare him? Just this once?"

"No."

"But it will be hilarious!"

"Nope."

"We can't just keep dancing around it." I snapped my fingers. "I'll hypnotize him after! He won't even know! And it means I can do it more than once!"

"Rose, what's he talking about?" Mickey questioned, but Rose was stubborn.

"I said no scaring him and if you don't behave, I won't get the cinnamon rolls you wanted."

I groaned loudly, giving in as the Doctor raised a brow, looking amused.

"Cinnamon rolls?"

"The sticky goodness is so tantalizing. I don't know how the stores aren't broken into daily."

"Seriously?" Jack smiled. "That's what turns you on?"

"You humans don't understand what it's like. The food where I'm from is always so boring to me. I don't even bother with it usually, but those pastries are more delectable than almost every terrible situation I could dream of. What I wouldn't give to have a dozen of them while watching the Spanish Inquisition," I sighed softly, hugging myself wistfully.

"Yeah, am I supposed to listen to that and not question his sanity?" Mickey asked as Rose wrapped her arms around his elbow.

"Mm-hm. He has a thing for bad situations in history. Don't mind him."

We stepped into the foyer and Jack spoke up, taking charge.

"According to intelligence, the target is the last surviving member of the Slitheen family—a criminal sect from the planet Raxacoricofallapatorious—masquerading as a human being, zipped inside a skin suit. Okay, plan of attack, we assume a basic fifty-seven fifty-six strategy, covering all available exits on the ground floor. Doctor, you go face to face. That'll designate Exit One, I'll cover Exit Two with Ornias. Rose, you Exit Three. Mickey Smith, you take Exit Four. Have you got that?"

"Excuse me. Who's in charge?" The Doctor questioned, making Jack begrudgingly step down.

"Sorry. Awaiting orders, sir."

"Right, here's the plan." The Doctor suddenly grinned. "Like he said. Nice plan, except Ornias is with me. No flirting on the job. Anything else?"

"Present arms."

Everyone but I held out a cheap mobile phone before we all split up—myself following the Doctor to the Mayor's office where we approached the secretary.

"Hello, I've come to see the Lord Mayor," the Doctor chirped at the man, who blinked.

"Have you got an appointment?"

"No, just an old friend passing by. Bit of a surprise. Can't wait to see her face."

He was hesitant. "Well, she's just having a cup of tea."

I smiled pleasantly, leaning over the desk a bit. "Just go inform her that the Doctor is here to see her."

He almost argued but got up with a nod and stepped into the office as the Doctor gave me a look.

"Hypnotism?"

"He was taking too long."

There was the sound of glass breaking and the man stepped back out, looking worried until I placed a hand on his shoulder.

"She's climbing out of the window," he answered when I mentally prodded him.

"Don't let anyone enter here until we're gone. In fact, take the rest of the day off. Enjoy it."

He nodded, dazed as he began to gather his things and I gestured the Doctor to the door.

"After you."

He went in and we headed for the balcony that was under construction, Margaret climbing down.

"Slitheen heading North," the Doctor informed the others as we started to climb after her.

"I could just grab her, you know."

"But we came up with a plan and everything."

I sighed. "Have it your way."

We went to down to the carport where the others began to cut off her exits. All but one, anyway.

"Who's on Exit Four?" Jack complained.

"That was Mickey!"

Mickey joined us out of breath. "Here I am."

"Mickey the idiot," the Doctor drawled.

"Oh, be fair," Rose defended. "She's not exactly going to outrun us, is she?"

I tipped my head, watching the overweight woman run. "Do you want me to get her?"

The Doctor shrugged. "Might as well. You know the rules though."

"Yes, yes. Though, if she struggles and hurts herself?"

"That's on her. You're good."

"Perfect," I smirked, eyes flaring gold before I flickered ahead of the woman, who pulled to a stop in shock. "Hello!"

She turned, vanishing into thin air and making me frown lightly.

"She's got a teleport! That's cheating!" Jack complained. "Now, we're never going to get her!"

"Oh, the Doctor's very good at teleports." Rose smiled as the Doctor lifted his sonic.

"Ornias, take three steps forward and one to the left."

I did so without question and with a buzz of his sonic, Margaret reappeared right beside me. I smiled sickly sweet as I grabbed her wrist, stopping her from teleporting away and crushing said device easily.

"Hello again."

"Let go!" She struggled. "This is persecution. Why can't you leave me alone? What did I ever do to you?"

The Doctor blinked. "You tried to kill me and destroy this entire planet."

"Apart from that," she mumbled, jerking in my grip again. "How are you so easily able to hold me? Even in this skin suit, I'm stronger than any human."

I smiled. "Not human."

"How did you teleport before?" Mickey questioned—the group of us heading back to City Hall.

"I didn't," I hummed. "I can manipulate time to an extent. I walked, not teleported."

"No way. What kind of alien are you?"

Margaret scoffed. "No creature can do that. Human or alien."

"Because I'm neither. I'd tell you, but then Rose won't buy me cinnamon rolls."

"I'll buy you more," Mickey offered—my eyes flashing gold as I shifted my gaze to him with a grin.

"Will you now? And what punishment do you get if you're lying?"

"I-I, uh… I'll—" He was cut off when the Doctor covered his mouth, making me pout.

"No tricking companions into making deals with you," he commanded, adding yet another rule to our contract. "Sorry, but you'd probably trick Ricky Boy out of house and home."

I huffed, eyes returning to caramel brown as we went into Margaret's office. "I just wanted cinnamon rolls."

He released Mickey and cracked an amused smile. "You could just ask, you know. Not everything requires a binding contract. You can let Margaret go now. Just keep an eye on her. We don't want her running off just yet." He cleared his throat then, speaking to Margaret over by a model of her project. "So, you're a Slitheen, you're on Earth, you're trapped. Your family gets killed but you teleport out just in the nick of time. You have no means of escape. What do you do? You build a nuclear power station. But what for?"

"A philanthropic gesture. I've learned the error of my ways."

I snorted. "Liar."

She glared at me as the Doctor raised a brow.

"And it just so happens to be right on top of the rift."

"What rift would that be?"

I sighed. "No point in playing coy."

Rose smirked. "Ornias is right. He can tell when you're fibbing, you know."

I tasted a hint of unease from the Slitheen, but I paid it no mind as I prodded at a model tree.

"If this power station went into meltdown, the entire planet would go…" Jack made an explosion gesture with his hands as the Doctor picked up where he left off.

"This station is designed to explode the minute it reaches capacity."

"Didn't anyone notice?" Rose asked. "Isn't there someone in London checking this sort of stuff?"

Margaret scoffed. "We're in Cardiff. London doesn't care. The South Wales coast could fall into the sea and they wouldn't notice. Oh." She grimaced. "I sound like a Welshman. God help me, I've gone native."

"He won't help you with a soul like yours," I commented idly. "And humans are dull. They never check further than they must. You'd be surprised how much trouble can be caused through fine print."

"But why would she do that?" Mickey asked. "A great big explosion, she'd only end up killing herself."

I raised a brow. "Humans do that on a daily basis."

Mickey scowled. "She's not a human terrorist."

"She's got a name, you know," Margaret grumbled, drawing attention back to her.

"She's not even a 'she,' she's a thing."

I licked my lips, enjoying the tension in the group as the Doctor pulled an electrical board out of the model.

"Is that a tribophysical waveform macro-kinetic extrapolator?" Jack gaped as I tried to process what the bundle of words he'd just said meant. "You didn't build this."

"I have my hobbies—"

"Lying," I piped in again, leaning over Jack's shoulders to eye the technology curiously.

"I bet she stole it," Mickey snapped, and Margaret hummed.

"It fell into my hands."

She's not lying about that, but it could mean anything.

"Is it a weapon?" Rose asked.

"It's transport," Jack explained. "You see, if the reactor blows, the rift opens. Phenomenal cosmic disaster."

I hummed. "That's my middle name."

Jack winked at me and continued. "But this thing shrouds you in a forcefield. You have this energy bubble, so you're safe. Then you feed it coordinates, stand on top, and ride the concussion all the way out of the solar system."

"It's a surfboard," Mickey concluded simply.

"A pan-dimensional surfboard, yeah."

"And it would've worked," Margaret complained. "I'd have surfed away from this dead-end dump and back to civilization."

"You'd blow up a whole planet just to get a lift?" Mickey questioned in disbelief.

"Like stepping on an anthill."

Ooh, the lack of remorse. I love this! "Can she stick around? This is delicious."

"No!" Rose complained, shooting me a look. "Behave. I'm still holding your pastries hostage."

I clicked my tongue. "Cheeky woman."

"How'd you think of the name?" The Doctor asked them, drawing my gaze to the banner and frowning.

Something's wrong with those words.

"What, Blaidd Drwg? It's Welsh."

"I know, but how did you think of it?" The Doctor pressed.

"I chose it at random, that's all. I don't know. It just sounded good. Does it matter?"

"She's not lying," I informed the Doctor, who was caught up on the name.

"Blaidd Drwg."

"What's it mean?" Rose asked.

"Bad Wolf."

Her eyes widened, shock and a flicker of fear passing over my lips. "But I've heard that before. Bad Wolf. I've heard that lots of times."

"Everywhere we go. Two words following us. Bad Wolf."

"How can they be following us?"

"It's wrong," I cut in, making them turn to me as I eyed the words.

"What do you mean? Wrong how?"

"They have power. No… They were made by power," I answered, unsure how to explain it. "It's a brand, burned into the time and space around it. A message leading to the ultimate source. It's…" My brows furrowed before I grimaced and had to look away from the words. "It's wrong. Very wrong. I can feel it. Whatever did this is calling out, beckoning and manipulating. It's, it's… ineffable."

I rubbed at my now-aching head as the Doctor was silent for a few moments. Then, he plastered on a smile and pat my back as though nothing was wrong. But the act only worked on the humans and even then, only partially. I could taste it though, clear as day. The Doctor was scared, and that was never good.

"This ship is impossible," Margaret breathed in shock upon entering the Tardis. "It's superb. How do you get the outside around the inside?"

"Like I'd give you the secret, yeah," the Doctor scoffed.

"I almost feel better about being defeated. I never stood a chance. This is the technology of the gods."

Ornias groaned as he walked past her, muttering about religions under his breath.

"Don't worship me," the Doctor huffed. "I'd make a very bad god. You wouldn't get a day off, for starters. Jack, how we doing, big fella?"

Jack was hooking up the extrapolator to the Tardis with Ornias hovering nearby.

"This extrapolator's top of the range. Where did you get it?" Jack asked Margaret.

"Oh, I don't know. Some airlock sale?"

"Lying again," Ornias chirped, earning a glare from the woman.

"Must've been a great big heist. It's stacked with power," Jack praised.

"But we can use it for fuel?" The Doctor asked.

"It's not compatible, but it should knock off about twelve hours. We'll be ready to go by morning."

"Then we're stuck here overnight."

"I'm in no hurry," Margaret mused.

"We've got a prisoner," Rose hummed. "The police box is really a police box."

"You're not just police, though. Since you're taking me to my death, that makes you my executioners. Each and every one of you."

"Not really much of a career change," Ornias hummed to himself, using a knife to peel the skin from an apple as Mickey huffed at Margaret.

"Well, you deserve it."

"You're very quick to say so. You're very quick to soak your hands in my blood, which makes you better than me, how, exactly?" She asked. "Long night ahead Let's see who can look me in the eye."

Her gaze passed over everyone, no one able to lock eyes for long until she came to Ornias. Said man not only stared right at her but smiled as he carved out a chunk of his apple without looking away. His gaze unnerved her, making her question just who and what he was. It was almost as if her upcoming execution was entertainment. He was enjoying this, she realized. And it wasn't long before she was the one who had to turn away. When she turned though, she was rather startled to find him standing directly before her, curiously.

"So, how do I look?"

"W-What? How do you—" She looked back at where he'd been before to find the space empty.

And the only other person in the room surprised by the sudden movement was Mickey.

"What I mean is," Ornias continued, drawing her gaze back to him. "How handsome am I to you?"

"Excuse me?"

"Ornias, leave her alone," the Doctor drawled.

"Oh, come on. You've got to be curious too." Ornias looked back to a greatly confused Margaret. "Tell me, honestly. In your personal opinion as a Slitheen, how appealing am I?"

Margaret gave him a once over, frowning. "Decent for a human, but what does that—"

"No, no. Not for a human. For a Slitheen," Ornias corrected. "Is there any attraction at all?"

"What? No. What makes you think—"

Ornias's eyes flashed gold, a smirk forming on his lips. "Are you sure?"

"O-Of course, I'm…" Her brows furrowed the longer she stared, something fluttering in her chest. "What… Why are you so…" Her hand reached up, fingers brushing over Ornias's cheek as his grin widened.

"Ornias!"

He blinked, turning away with an innocent smile as Margaret looked at her raised hand in confusion and slight unease.

"What?"

The Doctor shot him a look. "No hypnotizing or fraternizing with the prisoner."

"What fun are you?" Ornias drawled, sauntering away from Margaret as she struggled to understand what just happened. "I just wanted to know how aliens viewed someone like me. I've done no harm."

"Yet."

Ornias smirked. "Don't tempt me."

Rose smiled, nudging a confused Mickey towards the doors. "Well, since we're stuck here, Mickey and I are going out. You lot behave yourselves."

"Have fun," Jack waved as Ornias hummed.

"Can I relax now? Or do I have to restrain myself for the alien too?"

The Doctor waved him off as he watched Rose and Mickey on a monitor. "Do what you want."

"Oh, hell yes," Ornias purred, allowing his wings to spread out, much to Margaret's shock.

"What the devil are you!"

"An apt description," Ornias mused, bowing dramatically. "Ornias. Fallen angel and demon of hell in another universe parallel to this one. A pleasure."

"A-A demon?" She turned to the Doctor. "You of all people have employed a demon to help you?"

"I didn't employ him. I just picked him up. We're working on a few things, but he's generally a decent guy."

"Insulting for a demon, I know," Ornias sighed dramatically. "But he provides me with entertainment and in return, I follow his rules. It's proven a beneficial relationship."

Margaret scoffed. "How fitting. I gather it's not always like this, having to wait. I bet you're always the first to leave, Doctor. Never mind the consequences, off you go. You butchered my family and then ran for the stars, am I right? But not this time. At last, you have consequences. How does it feel? Knowing you're fitting company for a demon?"

"I didn't butcher them," the Doctor replied as Jack shot him a look.

"Don't answer back. That's what she wants."

The Doctor ignored him. "I didn't. Ornias can tell you I'm not lying." He looked back at Margaret. "What about you? You had an emergency teleport. You didn't zap them to safety, did you?"

"It only carries one," she said solemnly. "I had to fly without coordinates. I ended up on a skip in the Isle of Dogs."

The Doctor chuckled.

"It wasn't funny."

"Sorry. It is a bit funny."

Jack and Ornias were chuckling too as Margaret spoke.

"Do I get a last request?"

"Depends what it is," the Doctor answered, eyeing her with a hint of suspicion.

"I grew quite fond of my little human life. All those rituals. The brushing of the teeth, and the complicated way they cook things. There's a little restaurant just round the Bay. It became quite a favorite of mine."

"Is that what you want, a last meal?" The Doctor looked at Ornias, who shrugged with his palms up.

"She's being genuine, other than the fondness-for-human-life thing. And I totally agree. Why spend an hour cooking for something that takes you twenty minutes to eat? Humans," he scoffed as the Doctor rolled his eyes and Jack stepped over.

"Like she's not going to try to escape."

"Except I can never escape the Doctor, so where's the danger?" She looked to said man. "I wonder if you could do it? To sit with a creature you're about to kill and take supper. How strong is your stomach?"

"Strong enough," he replied calmly, though he could feel Ornias's penetrating gaze on his back.

"I wonder. I've seen you fight your enemies, now dine with them."

"You won't change my mind."

"Prove it."

He frowned at her. "There are people out there. If you slip away just for one second, they'll be in danger."

"Except I've got these," Jack said, holding up two bangles. "You both wear one. If she moves more than ten feet away, she gets zapped by ten thousand volts."

"You didn't tell me you had those last night," Ornias purred.

Jack smirked. "Down boy."

Margaret looked a little worried now as the bangles were put on and the Doctor smirked.

"Margaret, would you like to come out to dinner? My treat."

"Dinner in bondage. Works for me."

"Ditto," Ornias hummed as they made for the doors, and the Doctor pointed at him and Jack sternly.

"Keep working. No foreplay while we're gone. I mean it."

Ornias sighed as the door clicked shut. "Honestly, I may have to hypnotize him to have a good time one of these days."

Jack chuckled. "I don't think he'd appreciate that, but what he doesn't know…"

Ornias growled low in his throat as Jack rested his hands on his hips. "You, Jack, are a terrible human being."

"Love you too. Now, shut up and let's have some fun."

The Doctor was beginning to get a little tired of Margaret's innocent act and failed attempts to either kill him or persuade him to let her go. A part of him was glad Ornias hadn't joined them. While the demon would've been useful in regards to predict her actions and whether she was truly apologetic, he would have undoubtedly seen the conflicting emotions raging war in the Doctor too.

He wasn't too keen on being the one to send Margaret—or anyone, for that matter—to death. He just didn't see any other way. She'd been left alone for this long and look at what she'd tried to do. Letting her go wasn't an option but it didn't mean he had to enjoy her demise. He heard something then, looking away from Margaret as she rattled on about her childhood.

"Doctor, are you even listening to me?" She complained, and he was tempted to just tell her to shut up.

"Can you hear that?"

"I'm begging for my life—"

Yeah, no. He would definitely tell her now. "No, listen. Shush."

The windows and glasses in the restaurant began to vibrate before shattering, sending panic into everyone. He bolted from his chair and ran towards the source; Margaret struggling to keep up until he doubled back to grab her wrist and pull her along. Fear ran through him when he saw the energy jutting out of the Tardis and into the sky.

"It's the rift! The rift's opening!" He rushed inside to see a scrambled Jack. "What the hell are you doing!"

"It just went crazy!"

"It's the rift," the Doctor explained. "Time and space are ripping apart. The whole city's going to disappear!"

Jack pointed to the extrapolator. "It's the extrapolator! I've disconnected it, but it's feeding off the engine! It's using the Tardis! I can't stop it!"

"Never mind Cardiff, it's going to rip open the planet," the Doctor panicked. "Where's Ornias?"

Jack pointed to the other side of the console where Ornias was doubled over, gripping the edge with one hand as the other cradled his head.

"He said something about an overload! I-I couldn't do anything!"

The Doctor hurried over, reaching out to Ornias's shoulder only to jerk back with a wince as a spark of energy snapped against his palm. Ornias's bright golden eyes whipped to him as he bared pointed canines with a growl.

"Don't touch me. I'll kill you."

The Doctor shook his head. "You can't. We have a deal. Ornias, what's going on with you? Talk to me!"

"Power. So much raw power," he grunted out, black feathers quivering as more energy sparked off his body. "I-I can feel everything. Every black mark on every soul of every person." He chuckled then, bordering maniacal. "Even yours! Oh, how tantalizing. How delectable. A soul like yours would be a feast."

The Doctor took a step back when Ornias made to move closer until he suddenly whipped around with a growl. Jack had snapped a handcuff onto the demon's wrist, locking him to the console.

"It won't work. He's a demon," the Doctor warned.

Yet, Ornias wailed and tugged uselessly at his binding.

"He apparently doesn't know that," Jack panted, looking worried. "He's lost it, hasn't he?"

"There's too much power around. He and the Tardis might be partially connected in a way. The rift might be pushing energy through him too. Like he said, it's an overload, even for him."

Rose burst through the doors then, looking at the situation in worry. "What is it! What's happening!"

"Oh, just little me," Margaret purred, letting her Slitheen arm out of her skinsuit to grab Rose around the throat. "One wrong move and she snaps like a promise," she warned the Doctor and Jack, who'd taken a step forward to try and help.

"I might've known," the Doctor grumbled as she smirked.

"I've had you bleating all night, poor baby, now shut it. You, flyboy, put the extrapolator at my feet."

Jack gave the Doctor a hesitant glance, but a brief nod gave him the go-ahead.

"I thought you needed to blow up the nuclear power station," Rose croaked out, tugging uselessly at the green arm around her neck.

"Failing that, if I were to be arrested, then anyone capable of tracking me down would have considerable technology of their own. Therefore, they would be captivated by the extrapolator. Especially a magpie mind like yours, Doctor," Margaret chuckled. "So, the extrapolator was programmed to go to plan B. To lock onto the nearest alien power source and open the rift. And what a power source it found. I'm back on schedule, thanks to you."

"The rift's going to convulse!" Jack exclaimed. "You'll destroy the whole planet!"

"And you with it!" Margaret beamed, stepping onto the extrapolator. "While I ride this board over the crest of the inferno all the way to freedom. Stand back, boys. Surf's up."

The console panel nearest Ornias creaked before cracking open; something the Doctor didn't look bothered by.

"Of course, opening the rift means you'll pull this ship apart."

"So, sue me," Margaret huffed, though her gaze drifted to the glowing light coming from the console opening.

Ornias too had stopped his struggling and stared into the light—distracted.

"It's not just any old power source. It's the Tardis. My Tardis. The best ship in the universe."

"It'll make wonderful scrap," Margaret said, though less confident than before.

Rose gave the light a glance too, fighting to look away. "What's that light?"

"The heart of the Tardis. This ship's alive. You've opened its soul."

"It's so bright," Margaret murmured, starting to loosen her grip on Rose.

"Look at it, Margaret."

"Beautiful."

"Look inside, Blon Fel Fotch. Look at the light."

Rose was released and Margaret vanished in a flash of light.

"Don't look!" The Doctor shouted as he went to close the console. "Close your eyes! Ornias! Close them! Now, Jack, come on, shut it all down. Shut down! Rose, that panel over there, turn all the switches to the right."

The rift energy went away, and the Doctor let out a sigh of relief.

"Nicely done. Thank you, all."

"What happened to Margaret?" Rose asked, eyeing the crumpled skin suit uneasily.

"Must've got burnt up." Jack shrugged. "Carried out her own death sentence."

"No, I don't think she's dead," the Doctor hummed, heading over.

"Then where'd she go?"

"She looked into the heart of the Tardis. Even I don't know how strong that is. And the ship's telepathic, like I told you, Rose. Gets inside your head. Translates alien languages. Maybe the raw energy can translate all sorts of thoughts." He pulled out an egg from the folds of the skins suit. "Here she is."

"She's an egg?" Rose questioned

"Regressed to her childhood."

"She's an egg?" Jack repeated, having a hard time believing it.

"She can start again. Live her life from scratch. If we take her home, give her to a different family, tell them to bring her up properly, she might be all right!"

"Or she might be worse."

"That's her choice."

Rose still couldn't believe it. "She's an egg."

The Doctor nodded. "She's an egg."

Rose's eyes widened then. "Oh, my God. Mickey!" She rushed out and the Doctor rolled his eyes before turning his gaze to the oddly quiet third occupant of the room.

"Ornias? You all right over there?" He asked, moving cautiously over to the man hunched over the console, quivering. "Did you get it all out of your system?"

Jack headed over as well when there was no response from the demon. "He okay? He looked at that light for pretty long. Could something have happened to him too?" He asked the Doctor, who frowned in slight worry.

"It was mostly focused on Margaret, but…" He reached out, prepared for another snap of energy, but none came as he turned Ornias's shoulder. "Ornias?"

It was then that he saw the expression on the man's face, making his eyes widen. Ornias wasn't shaking because of exhaustion or anything like that. No, he was shaking out of fear, out of terror.

"O-Oi, I really don't think a demon should be making an expression like that," he teased, trying to get through to the man as Jack unhooked him from the console railing. "What did you see that's got you so worked up?"

What could the Tardis have shown a demon to frighten him into silence?

"B-Bad Wolf," Ornias breathed out, shocking the Doctor.

"What?"

"It's… It's ineffable. It will draw her in, consume her, consume you."

"Who? Ornias, what are you talking about?" The Doctor pressed, uneasiness beginning to settle in his gut at the demon's ominous words.

"All that power… That wasn't the Tardis. That was like Him. That w-was a God." He let out a manic chuckle. "I-It's been a while since I felt so small."

Then, his eyes flickered shut and the Doctor had to catch him before he could bash his skull into the console. Jack offered to get the man to his room, and when he returned, he asked the question on the Doctor's mind.

"What was that about?"

"I… I honestly don't know."