THE FOUR MADE THEIR way out of the cabinet room and ran down some hallways before Harriet pulled everyone to a stop, "No, wait. They're still in there. The emergency protocols. We need them." She took off back the way we came to only turn around quickly with a scream as Margaret chased after the four.
They weaved in and out of doors, corridors, and rooms. Trying to shake their tail only for the Slitheen to catch up with them with their freakishly long legs and crouching manner.
They came to a door that finally would not open. They tugged and rammed into the door trying to escape the clutches of Margaret. They heard the elevator door open, and the Doctor gave a cheery, "Hello." Before the buzzing of the Sonic was cut off from the closing doors of the elevator, Indra tugged the girls off down another hallway and into another room.
"Hide!" Rose whispered-yelled. She made her way behind the desk while Harriet and Indra hid behind a paper screen. Lyla hid herself behind the curtains and tried to even her breathing and placed a hand over her open and bleeding wound on her stomach.
They heard Margaret enter the room with her creepy clicking noise. She began to speak in a high pitched overly animated voice. It cracked and somehow sounded like static was being played in the background as she talked, "Oh, such fun. Little human children, where are you? Sweet little human kins, come to me." Rose leapt up and hid beside Lyla behind the curtains. "Let me kiss you better. Kiss you with my big, green lips." The hiding humans heard the sound of more clicking and heavy footsteps entering the room. "My brothers," Margaret addressed the new occupants.
They heard a deeper clicking sound when one spoke up, "Happy hunting?"
Margaret answered, her voice going up an octave in her excitement, "It's wonderful. The more you prolong it, the more they stink."
"Sweat and fear," one of the brothers said. It was hard to distinguish which for Lyla. "I can smell an old girl. Stale bird and brittle bones."
Margaret joined in, "And ripe youngsters, all hormones and adrenaline. Fresh enough to bend before they snap." The two human girls heard her take in a deep breath closer than what they were comfortable with. "And an injured one. Her blood taints the air." Margaret ripped the curtain open with a swipe of her claws to the twin screams from Rose and Lyla.
Harriet rushed out from behind the screen, "No! Take me first! Take me!"
The door flew open to reveal the Doctor with a fire extinguisher held in his hands. He released the safety and sprayed the aliens down with the white powder as he yelled at the trapped humans, "Out, with me!"
Lyla looked to Rose and found that she was already looking back at Lyla. The two women in silent agreement and understanding, they both grabbed the curtain and with a fierce tug brought it down over Margaret. The four rushed to get behind the Doctor as he continued hosing the aliens down. The Doctor, never taking his eyes off of the three aliens in the room, asked the two newcomers, "Who the hell are you two?"
Harriet, without fail and never taking her eyes off of the aliens, held up her badge and recited, "Harriet Jones, MP for Flydale North."
Indra, eyes darting from the aliens to the Doctor, squeaked out, "Indra Ganesh."
"Nice to meet you two," the Doctor said, finally turning slightly to acknowledge the two with a smile and a nod.
"Enough flirting. More Running," Lyla hissed as she pulled Rose toward the door with the others following behind her.
Once in the hall again, the Doctor taking the lead spoke up, "We need to head to the Cabinet Room."
"The Emergency Protocols are in there. They give instructions for aliens," Harriet commented breathlessly as they ran.
"Harriet Jones, I like you." The Doctor exclaimed to the elected official that was following behind him.
"And I like you too." Harriet, always a polite person, commented back to him.
"And I would like not to die today so shut up the both of you." Lyla snapped. The pain from her wound and the running was getting to her and shortening her patience a great deal. Don't think about it. Just one foot in front of the other. Almost there.
The group ran down the hallways until they got to a locked door that was no match for the Doctor's sonic screwdriver. They rushed in, Harriet immediately rushing toward the red briefcase and hugging it to her chest, Indra shuffled to the main door and stared in horror at the three green aliens, Rose and Lyla followed the Doctor and stood at his back as he snatched up a decanter of alcohol and placed his sonic against its side. He turned to the aliens with a sharp warning, "One more move and my sonic device will triplicate the flammability of this alcohol. Whoof, we all go up. So, back off." Once the hostiles paused, he continued in a calmer tone, "Right then. Question time. Who exactly are the Slitheen?"
Harriet interrupted, "They're aliens."
"Yes. I got that, thanks." The Doctor threw over his shoulder sarcastically.
"Who are you, if not human?" One of the Slitheen answered his question with a question. God, I hate when people do that. Doesn't matter if you are human or alien... just answer the fucking question, jeez.
"Who's not human?" Harriet asked, confused.
Pain clouding her judgement and any type of filter that she may have had, Lyla lost her temper on the situation, "Oh. My. Fucking. God." She turned toward Harriet with a small glare, "The Doctor is not human. He's an alien. And yes, he sounds northern. Lots of fucking planets have a north. Now hush up and watch the Doctor outsmart the hostiles." She turned back toward the scene in front of her.
"Thanks," the Doctor added with a nod and his classic grin. He went back to asking the Slitheen questions, "You've got a spaceship hidden in the North Sea. It's transmitting a signal. You've murdered your way to the top of the government." He cocked his head to the side as he finally asked a question, "What for, invasion?"
One of the Slitheen answered him, "Why would we invade this God-forsaken rock?" If the aliens' face could sneer it would have as it replied.
"Then something brought the Slitheen race here. What is it?"
"Slitheen is not our species. Slitheen is our surname. Jocrassa Fel Fotch Pasameer-Day-Slitheen at your service," Margaret answered patronizingly.
"So, you're family," the Doctor clarified, finally putting two and two together.
"Family Business," one of the Slitheen proudly stated.
"Then you're out to make a profit. How can you do that on a God-forsaken rock?" The Doctor questioned with a raised eyebrow.
The Slitheen questioned the Doctor knowing he was lying, "Ah, excuse me? Your device, will do what? Triplicate the flammability?"
The Doctor gave a false grin and hesitated, "Is that what I said?"
"You're making it up," one of the Slitheen declared.
"Ah, well! Nice try." The Doctor reached behind him and offered the decanter to Indra, "Indra, have a drink. I think you're gonna need it."
Indra gave a nervous glance down at the offered alcohol and said softly, "You pass it to the left first."
"Sorry," he handed it to Lyla, who took the offered liquor without a word.
Lyla took the crystal topper off before she took a mouth full of what she found to be scotch, "Thanks." She took another drink as she moved to a chair, where she flopped down in exhaustion and pain. Jesus that burns. Man... I hate scotch.
She heard the conversation continue as she finally started to slowly sip the scotch now. "Now we can end this hunt with a slaughter," one of the brothers said with glee.
"Doctor. The doors," Indra whispered to the Timelord.
"Fascinating history, Downing Street. Two thousand years ago, this was marsh land. In 1730, it was occupied by a Mister Chicken. He was a nice man. 1796, this was the Cabinet Room," he lectured as he reached over to a panel and flipped it open revealing a red switch. "If the Cabinet's in session and in danger, these are about the four safest walls in the whole of Great Britain. End of lesson." He pushed the button and metal shutters slammed down over the windows and doors. "Installed in 1991. Three inches of steel lining every single wall. They'll never get in," he finished proudly with a wide grin.
Lyla snorted from the table as she took another mouth full of the scotch and wincing from the burn she grumbled, "Yeah and how do we get out, Smarty Pants." Again, that fucking burns.
He looked over everyone, but his eyes stayed on Lyla as he answered, "Right." His frown deepened as he watched her guzzle down the scotch. He hastily walked over and snatched the decanter from her loose grip and uncharacteristically snapped at one of his companions, "What are you doing? Trying to get drunk. We are in the middle of something,"
"Yep." She popped the 'p' at the end of the word and looked up at him from her seated position and slightly giggled at the outrageous look he was giving her. Well, that went straight to the head. And not where I need it to go.
He took a deep breath, calming his confused and ragging thoughts that surrounded his curly haired companion. He walked away from her still carrying the alcohol and setting it down at the other end of the table. The Doctor finally had a chance to take in all of his surroundings in better detail. He noticed the prime minister's body and the used skin suit still laying in a heap on the floor and started moving the bodies to the closet and out of sight.
While the Doctor was removing that sick reminder, Harriet sat down beside Lyla and started going through the red briefcase full of emergency protocols.
Rose and Indra sat opposite the two and watched as Lyla flopped her head down on the table and Harriet flipped through the papers.
The Doctor spoke up after he cleared the room of the dead body and skin suit, "Right, what have we got? Any terminals, anything?"
Rose sighed and looked around, "No. This place is antique." Her face took on a look of confusion, "What I don't get is, when they killed the Prime Minister, why didn't they use him as a disguise?"
"He's not fat enough obviously. All the others are slightly overweight individuals. More room." Lyla slurred from her bent position. Her arm came up to hug around her middle. That fucking hurts. Don't cry. I can't cry yet. Jobs not done.
"But the Slitheen are about eight feet. How do they fit inside?" Rose asked.
"That's the device around their necks. Compression field. Literally shrinks them down a bit. That's why there's all that gas. It's a big exchange," The doctor explained as he took up at the head of the table.
"Wish I had a compression field. I could fit a size smaller," Rose whispered with a slight snicker.
Harriet looked up at Rose with a disapproving and outraged face, "Excuse me, people are dead! This is not the time for making jokes."
"Sorry. You get used to this stuff when you're friends with him," Rose explained with a sigh and a shrug at the Doctor.
"Well, that's a strange friendship," Harriet observed.
Lyla bit out a harsh laugh that caused her to wince and the others to pause and look over at her as she mumbled into the tabletop, "It's really not." Having got her breath back from the pain of laughing, she looked up and met Harriets eyes as she continued, "We save the world Harriet. Death is part of the job. If we don't find laughter in the middle of what could possibly be a deadly situation, then we would be paralyzed in fear and distress just like any other random person on the street. It's a coping mechanism easily found in first responders and cops. Don't judge a book by its cover Harriet Jones. Be better than that." Lyla sighed and leaned back in her chair to rest her head on the back of the chair and closed her eyes and listened to the unfolding scene around her. Don't need me for a bit. Just gonna try to pass out.
"Harriet Jones. I've heard that name before. Harriet Jones. You're not famous for anything, are you?" Doctor interrupted, pretending to not pay full attention to the conversation.
Harriet rolled her eyes, "Oh, hardly." Oh, you'll be known as something if I don't stop you next Christmas.
"Rings a bell. Harriet Jones…" He snapped his fingers a couple of times in thought.
"Lifelong backbencher I'm afraid, and a fat lot of use I'm being now." Harriet explained but got easily distracted by the emergency protocols in her hands, "The Protocols are redundant. They list the people who could help and they're all dead downstairs."
"Hasn't it got, like, defense codes and things? Couldn't we just launch a nuclear bomb at them?" Rose said.
"Oh yes, like we didn't learn from World War II. The answer to everything is 'Let's throw a bomb at them.' Really Rose." Lyla snarled with a bit of bite in her voice.
"You're a very violent young woman," Harriet volunteered off handily towards Rose.
Rose looked at Lyla with a wrinkled brow and a frown marring her features when she replied to Harriet, "I'm serious. We could."
"Like that information is in a red notebook in a famous house in London," Lyla sneered.
"If you're not going to be anything but a sarcastic bitch the whole time Lyla, then shut up," Rose snapped.
Lyla's head popped up and looked at Rose with a cold stare, "You little-."
"Lyla. That's enough," the Doctor snapped, cutting off her unpleasant comeback.
Lyla rolled her eyes and leaned back in her chair with an annoyed huff. Ignoring the rest of the room, she closed her eyes and let her mind wander. Ok so Operation save Indra was a success. I'm bleeding. Haven't looked yet but it hurts like a bitch. She shifted in her seat with a soft hiss of pain as her stomach muscles pulled. No adrenaline in her system to ignore that pain.
As she was focused on the pain of her stomach, she missed most of the conversation that flowed around her. She finally looked up and tuned back into her surroundings, just in time to hear Jackie yell over the phone, "It's the Slickeen!"
Mickey said solemnly over the phone, "They've found us."
"Mickey, I need that signal," the Doctor said desperately.
"Really." Lyla hissed at him completely fed up with the situation. Ok, long lasting pain makes me short tempered. But it does that for everyone. Right?
Rose leaned over the table and desperately yelled to the phone. "Never mind the signal, get out! Mum just get out! Get out!"
"We can't. It's by the front door," Mickey said over the phone. "Oh, my God, it's unmasking. It's going to kill us."
Harriet pointed out desperately, "There's got to be some way of stopping them! You're supposed to be the expert, think of something!"
"I'm trying!" the Doctor added.
Rose looked toward the doctor with a desperate air around her and whispered, "That's my mother." Like he doesn't know that already Rose. Stop stating the obvious.
He paused and looked at Rose before leaning against the table and addressed the room, "Right, if we're going to find their weakness, we need to find out where they're from. Which planet? So, judging by their basic shape, that narrows it down to five thousand planets within travelling distance. What else do we know about them? Information!"
In rapid fire Rose, Harriet and Indra shouted out information.
"They're green," Rose started.
"Narrows it down."
"Good sense of smell," Indra added.
"Narrows it down."
"The pig technology," Harriet stated.
"Narrows it down."
"The spaceship in the Thames, you said slipstream engine?" Rose jumped in again.
"Narrows it down."
"They hunt like it's a ritual," Indra chimed in.
"Narrows it down."
"When they fart, they smell like bad breath," Lyla finally interjected in a low voice, her eyes trained on the Doctor.
"Calcium decay. Now that narrows it down." the Doctor intoned enthusiastically.
Rose spoke toward the phone again, "We're getting there, Mum!"
Mickey said over the phone back to her, "Too late!"
The Doctor carried on as if the two weren't talking, "Calcium phosphate. Organic calcium. Living calcium. Creatures made of living calcium. What else? What else? Hyphenated surname. Yes! That narrows it down to one planet. Raxacoricofallapatorius."
"Oh, yeah, great. We could write'em a letter." The sarcastic reply came from Mickey as they heard the door splinter and the Slitheen roar over the phone.
"Get into the kitchen!" The Doctor shouted.
They heard the shuffling and snarling over the phone quiet as a door shut. Jackie was then heard over the phone, "My God, it's going to rip us apart!"
"Calcium weakened by the compression field. Acetic acid. Vinegar!" the Doctor explained.
Harriet exclaimed in realization, "Just like Hannibal!"
The Doctor gave the older woman a smile and agreed, "Just like Hannibal." He addressed the phone again, "Mickey, have you got any vinegar?"
"How should I know?" Mickey asked.
The Doctor rolled his eyes, "It's your kitchen."
"Cupboard by the sink, middle shelf," Rose interjected quickly.
They heard the phone shuffle hands and Jackie's voice came through clearly, "Oh, give it here. What do you need?"
"Anything with vinegar!" The Doctor yelled.
The sounds of splashing liquid came over the phone as Jackie poured an assortment of pickled items in a bowl, "Gherkins. Yeah, pickled onions. Pickled eggs."
"And you kiss this man?" the Doctor questioned Rose with a disgusted look.
They heard the door come down and a high-pitched screeching noise that signaled the entrance of the Slitheen. Then everything was dead silent except for the ragged breathing of the two humans then they heard a fart-like sound that was followed by a loud squish and splat.
Rose let out a breath and held up a small glass of scotch while Indra questioned, "Hannibal?"
Harriet took the time to explain as she held her glass up, "Hannibal crossed the Alps by dissolving boulders with vinegar."
"Oh. Well, there you go then," Rose stated as she sipped the scotch with the rest of the occupants besides Lyla, who was leaning back in her chair again, slouched low in her seat. Her arm wrapped around her stomach and pressed against her stomach to somewhat stop the flow of blood she could fill soaking her jeans and top. Don't pass out. That would be embarrassing.
The four had their drink then heard Mickey speak over the line, "Listen to this."
The five occupants listen closely to the News Station, "Our inspectors have searched the sky above our heads, and they have found massive weapons of destruction capable of being deployed within forty-five seconds."
"What," the Doctor said in disbelief.
But the news cast went on, "Our technicians can baffle the alien probes, but not for long. We are facing extinction unless we strike first. The United Kingdom stands directly beneath the belly of the mother ship. I beg of the United Nations, pass an emergency resolution. Give us the access codes. A nuclear strike at the heart of the beast is our only chance of survival, because, from this moment on it is my solemn duty to inform you that planet Earth is at war."
As the news cast ended the Doctor launched into a tirade, "He's making it up. There's no weapons up there, there's no threat. He just invented it."
"Do you think they'll believe him?" Harriet questioned.
"They did last time," came from Indra as he took another pull from his glass.
The Doctor paced, "That's why the Slitheen went for spectacle. They want the whole world panicking because you lot, you get scared, you lash out."
"What does a wounded animal do when it's threatened," Lyla spoke in a soft voice that grabbed the attention of everyone in the room. When no one spoke up to answer her question she continued in a solemn voice, "It snarls."
A pause rippled through the room with only Rose breaking the silence, "So, they release the defense code."
"And the Slitheen go nuclear," the Doctor jumped back into the discussion.
Harriet asked the real question that ran through everyone's mind at that moment, "But why?"
The Doctor walked over toward the metal shutters that was the door and pushed the button giving the view of the room to the Slitheen. He jumped right in with asking the hard-pressed questions, "You get the codes, release the missiles, but not into space because there's nothing there. You attack every other country on Earth. They retaliate, fight back. World War Three. Whole planet gets nuked."
Margaret, back in her skin suit, added proudly, "And we can sit through it safely in our spaceship waiting in the Thames. Not crashed, just parked. Only two minutes away."
"But you'll destroy the planet, this beautiful place. What for?" Harriet asked in confusion.
But the Doctor answered her, "Profit. That's what the signal is beaming into space. An advert."
Margaret smiled a wicked little smile as she continued to monologue, "The sale of the century. We reduce the Earth to molten slag, then sell it piece by piece. Radioactive chucks, capable of powering every cut-price star liner and budget cargo ship. There's a recession out there, Doctor. People are buying cheap. This rock becomes raw fuel."
"At the cost of five billion lives," the Doctor objected.
Margaret claimed, "Bargain."
"I give you a choice. Leave this planet or I'll stop you," threatened the Doctor.
Margaret looked back at her brothers, and they all started giggling. "What, you? Trapped in your box?" She taunted.
"Wrong thing to say sister," Lyla cautioned under her breath, but everyone still heard her.
The Doctor quickly added, "Yes. Me." And there is the beginning of the Oncoming storm.
He pushed the red button again and the metal shutters came down. The last thing they saw was the patronizing smile slip from Margaret's face.
oOoOo
Everyone took a deep breath and returned to their seats. They could hear the television still playing the news over the phone at Mickey's flat. Lyla slumped further into her seat, not noticing Indra paying closer attention to her face and actions, "Does anyone else think that she looks sick."
The Doctor turned a critical eye on Lyla as he made his way around the table and turned her chair swiftly to where she was facing him. She moaned and slumped forward, just catching herself on his shoulder before she fell to the floor. Don't lose your cookies. Do not vomit on the inconsiderate Timelord. He would not appreciate that. He gave her a once over but ended up focusing on her abdomen, where her black shirt looked damp compared to the rest. He slowly lifted the shirt displaying the jagged slash. It started under her left ribs and crossed over to just above her right hip. The cut was slowly but steadily leaking blood down her stomach and was absorbed by the front of her jeans. "Oh, you stupid woman," he all but snarled as he dropped the shirt and lifted her from the chair to just place her on the table and pushed her into a supine position.
Her feet hung over the edge of the table as he stepped up between her knees and lifted her shirt again to get a better look. Once the other occupants witnessed the wound, they gasped as one and made their way over to watch as the Doctor did as he was named. He became Lyla's Doctor. Again.
Lyla looked at the concerned faces around her and laughed softly but gently, trying not to use too many stomach muscles, "It's blood, not nuclear waste. Chill out with the horrified faces."
"How long?" was the only thing that passed the Doctor's lips as he dug around in his pockets for his emergency tiny med kit.
Lyla looked down and up at him, where he was situated between her legs and bent over her stomach. She frowned when she saw the repressed anger and tightened eyes. And there is the full Oncoming storm. Who knew it was that easy to provoke? It just took getting cut open and not saying anything. She decided to question him instead of answering his demand, "Why are you mad?"
He looked up at her to see her head tilted to the side with genuine curiosity. He let out a puff of air through his nose before losing some of his temper seconds later. "You," he snarled and slammed the tiny red box on the table beside her, "You could have bled out while we have been yammering on about nuclear strikes." He backed up and paced in front of her with a hand flying to his head to rub it in agitation, "And you don't even care about your life enough to say anything. You just sat there."
She pushed herself into a seated position on the table, slapping hands away that offered her help. Lyla watched him pace and rub his head before she interrupted him with a quiet but firm, "My life isn't worth billions of innocent lives." She saw a mutinous expression cross his face when she said that, but she ignored it and turned slightly to the speaker phone and addressed Jackie over the line, "That's the job Jackie. That's what he has taught us in the short amount of time being with him. We learned to care for others before ourselves. Even if that means our lives are forfeit in return." Her eyes turned back to the Doctor and stared him down as she continued, "You must do what's right over what it is you want." Her eyes flicked to Rose then back to the speaker phone that she was addressing, "And if you believe for one second that Rose doesn't share those thoughts, then you need to have a long look at the girl you raised, because she has the biggest heart out of everyone in this room." She gave a weak chuckle, "What's the price of one when you could save billions." She turned back to the Doctor and gave him a small true smile. "I trust you. And now that we have time, I think that I need my Doctor please," she breathed as held his eyes.
An echoing silence followed her monologue. The doctor slowly stepped back up to her and pushed her gently back down on the table. He pulled the med kit towards him and started unpacking gauze, alcohol swabs, and a tiny suture kit. He looked around and started barking out orders to the others. "Is there anything in that liquor cabinet besides scotch? If there is any clear liquor, bring it here. I need a cloth of some sort. Like an extra tablecloth or even a piece of this one will do." He asked the room at large. The others jumped to attention and started following his rushed orders.
Before he could really start demanding things, Lyla grabbed his hand and spoke quietly, "Doctor, it doesn't need to be perfect. Just needs to hold long enough to get to the Tardis." She saw his mutinous stare that he gave her words and huffed with an eye roll, "Really. Rough and dirty," she said, her voice almost dropping to a whisper and with an added wink and smirk. Lyla added, "Just clean it good enough to stitch up to stop the bleeding. I won't do any major movements until we are back at the Tardis, so I won't rip open your hard work. Promise," she ended on a sigh and a slightly pleading look. Ignoring the roller coaster ride by missile that I am so not looking forward to… sure no fast movements from me.
He looked down at her and shook his head slightly before he ripped the alcohol swabs open to start cleaning the wound so he could see what he was working with. "You're lucky this isn't too deep," he whispered on a sigh.
Lyla hissed out a breath with the first swipe of the alcohol wipe and Rose grabbed her hand to help distract her from what the doctor was doing. "I should have known something was wrong. You normally don't snap at me, or anyone really like you did earlier," Rose said quietly to Lyla.
"Not your fault. Other things on everyone's mind besides why your normally patient and calm Texan is suddenly biting everyone's head off," Lyla reasoned.
Lyla hissed and jerked her head up to look at the Doctor when the first pull and biting sting of the needle met her skin. He froze and gently pushed the women back flat on the table so he could work. Lyla closed her eyes and took several even breaths as he worked just trying to ignore the pain of getting stitched up without a local anesthetic. Breath. I have had stitches before. I know what he is doing. There is no reason for me to look and see what he is doing.
Before Lyla could get too deep into her panic and pain her mouth started rambling, "You know Doc," she slurred quietly, "I'm three for three. Or is it four for four. For some reason, every adventure ends with you patching me up in some way." She hummed as she thought about all their adventures so far. "Burnt hands on platform one, bruised vocal cords and gas filled lungs in Cardiff, broke hand at Albion hospital, and now this. Stitched up at Downing Street." She turned her head and looked at the Doctor that was leaning over her stomach, with an amused smile she stated softly to the alien, "Good thing I travel with my Doctor." Lyla's head rolled back to staring at the ceiling and whispered to herself, "I think I might be a bit accident prone, or the universe is out to get me." Most likely the second one. This Universe is going to make me work in fixing it.
The Doctor cleared his throat roughly and stood up straight as he wiped his hands on a spare alcohol wipe, "Right. All done. No sudden movements." He wrapped a hand around one of her wrists to pull her gently upright and helped Lyla down from the table where she found herself back into a chair. The other occupants in the room shuffled away to do their own thing while they waited on more news from Mickey. Harriet Jones sat herself in a chair with the emergency protocols to do some reading with Indra reading over the content she put aside; Rose started talking softly to her mother and Mickey on the phone. The Doctor kneeled down beside Lyla and lifted a hand to gently tug a lock of hair grabbing her attention, "It's not a competition on being the most jeopardy friendly of all my companions. Stop trying to outdo the last adventure." I swear to god if he pulls my hair one more time.
"If I didn't, Doctor," Lyla nodded her head softly in Indra's direction, "You would've had to move two bodies and a skin suit into that closet." She caught the Doctor's eyes when she turned back to him, "I will not stand aside when I could be doing something."
The Timelord took a shuddering breath and with a sad shake of his head he muttered, "Please don't make me call your family to tell them that you died while with me."
She lifted a hand to stroke the back of his neck with sad eyes and a fragile smile, "My family is gone. No one for you to call."
He leaned forward to rest his forehead on hers and with a shuddering breath and a slight shake of his head he leaned further up to place a kiss on her forehead before he muttered roughly, "Remember no sudden movements."
She huffed out a slight laugh, "Sir yes, Sir."
oOoOo
The sun was now rising on Downing Street when Jackie finally spoke up about the potential world ending situation after hearing the newscasters bleak outlook. "All right, Doctor. I'm not saying I trust you, but there must be something you can do." Alright my part is done. Saved everyone that I could now it's up to the others. Just keep an eye on events so we all don't die but the hard work is over. Thank god.
Harriet, who was pacing around, tapped the side of the alcohol container and offered, "If we could ferment the port, we could make acetic acid." Yeah, that would have been helpful hours ago when we first got in here. Great timing future Prime Minister.
Rose leaning over the table to get closer to the speaker phone asked, "Mickey, any luck?"
"There's loads of emergency numbers. They're all on voicemail," Mickey answered over the speaker phone.
"Well, that's fucking peachy. Ain't it." Lyla commented lightly with a slurred and thick accent due to weariness. Her head was thrown back against the chair and her eyes closed, while her arm was wrapped around her middle. Man, almost bleeding out is no joke. Must not fall asleep.
"If we could just get out of here," Indra reasoned in a small voice.
"There's a way out," the resident Alien said in a low voice. If I didn't know what was going to happen, I would probably be mad at you for withholding information. Especially information that could help us get out of this tiny wood room.
"What," voiced everyone that wasn't injured, their heads snapped to the Doctors.
The Doctor clarified and finally looked up to the room at large, "There's always been a way out." Hmm. Always the one for dramatics.
"Then why don't we use it," Rose demanded as she got closer to the Timelord.
"Because I can't guarantee your daughter will be safe," He said as he leaned over the table closer to the speaker phone but also, he leaned next to Lyla in the process.
Sounds of outrage and pleading come over the speaker phone as Jackie protested, "Don't you dare. Whatever it is, don't you dare."
"That's the thing. If I don't dare, everyone dies."
"Do it," Rose immediately responded.
The Doctor jerked his head up to look at Rose in confusion, "You don't even know what it is. You'd just let me?"
"Yeah," she responded, full of trust.
"Please, Doctor. Please. She's my daughter. She's just a kid." Jackie's voice pleaded to the Timelord over the speaker.
He took a quick breath and looked away from the speaker and said with a desperate edge in his voice, "Do you think I don't know that? Because this is my life, Jackie," he retorted. "It's not fun, it's not smart, it's just standing up and making a decision because nobody else will," he snapped. Man, that was better in person than witnessing it on a television show.
"Then what're you waiting for?" Rose responded back.
"I could save the world but lose both of you," he tried to reason with one of his companions, while flicking his eyes down toward his other hurt companion who was already looking at him with eyes full of trust and a small smile stretching across her face.
Lyla reached over to circle a hand around his wrist that was on the table next to her. Her fingers stroked the skin she found as she lifted her head to stare at the speaker in the center of the table. Lyla finally added her two cents, "Like I said earlier Jackie, Rose has the biggest heart in this room. Be proud you raised a daughter that is willing to put everyone else before herself. She is old enough to know what she wants to do and how to live her life. You raised a magnificent woman." She smiled at Rose. "As for my opinion," she smiled and looked back at the Doctor, "You know my answer, but if you have to hear me say it then. Do it. Have faith that everything will work out and do it."
"Except it's not your decision, Doctor. It's mine," every head in the room snapped to Harriet as she spoke.
Over the phone Jackie demanded, "And who the hell are you?"
"Harriet Jones, MP for Flydale North. The only elected representative in this room, chosen by the people for the people. And on behalf of the people, I command you. Do it."
Lyla laughed with a slight wince when it pulled at her stitches and watched a smile bloom across the Doctor's face. Missed opportunity with not showing the badge Harriet. It would have sealed the deal.
Rose took a deep breath and asked, "How do we get out?"
The Doctor quickly stood tall and grabbed the Emergency Protocol booklet from the briefcase and started flipping through it in a face clip. He answered Rose as he searched, "We don't. We stay here." He finally found what he was looking for and addressed Mickey over the phone, "Mickey, use the buffalo password. It overrides everything."
Mickey addressed something Jackie said and was back to narrating what he was seeing on his end, "We're in. Here it is. HMS Taurean, Trafalgar Class submarine, ten miles off the coast of Plymouth."
"Right, we need to select a missile," the Doctor commented distractedly.
"We can't go nuclear. We don't have the defense codes," Mickey reminded the Timelord.
"We don't need it. All we need's an ordinary missile," the Doctor reassured Mickey. "What's the first category?"
"Sub Harpoon, UGM-A4A," Mickey faintly said over the speaker.
"That's the one. Select," the Timelord said with a faint manic smile forming on his face. The room's occupants can hear Jackie muttering something over the speaker phone and Mickey's muffled answer back to Jackie. The Doctor grabbed Mickey's attention again, "You ready for this." A couple of silent seconds later, Mickey answered an affirmative to which the Doctor stated calmly to the other man on the phone, "Mickey the idiot, the world is in your hands. Fire."
The occupants of the room all took a deep breath and looked at each other before Rose jumped up and started looking around frantically, "All right, now I'm making the decision. I'm not going to die. We're going to ride this one out. It's like what they say about earthquakes. You can survive them by standing under a door frame." She came to stop at the closet and looked inside and tried to determine its sturdiness for what was about to happen. "Now, this cupboard's small so it's strong. Come and help me. Come on." Harriet and Indra jump up to help the blonde with clearing out the closet.
Lyla heaved herself up and stood close to the Doctor as he watched the others work. "We will be fine." She smiled serenely up at him and with a tug on his leather jacket she reassured, "Have faith." She made her way around the table and to the entrance of the closet that was currently being emptied. Ok. Almost the end. Just a really fucked up roller coaster next. I always hated roller coasters.
Mickey's voice came back over the speaker, "It's on radar. Counter defense 556"
"Stop them intercepting it," commanded the Doctor.
"I'm doing it now."
"Good boy," the Doctor praised him.
"556 neutralized," Mickey confirmed just as the Doctor yanked the cell phone from the speaker on the table.
The occupants piled into the closet with the Doctor tucking Lyla under an arm. Harriet looked at everyone and said with a bit of a laugh, "Here we go. Nice knowing you all. Hannibal!"
Everyone grabbed hands with their neighbor and with Rose next to the entrance and being held by the hand by Lyla then the Doctor who had the Texan tucked under his arm in a tight hold. Harriet and Indra on the Doctor's other side.
They could hear the whistle of the missile just before everything became chaos. The whole room shook, and tumbled end over end. The faintest thought floated through Lyla's mind; this is worse than the first time in the Tardis. She felt her stitches stretch and pull as they flipped and rolled in the closet.
oOoOo
Finally, everything came to a standstill. All was quiet for several seconds before they started moving and untangling themselves. Lyla found herself half under the Doctor, his hand on the back of her head to stop the worst of the head trauma damage that she was likely to get with her luck. One of her arms she found that Rose had ended up laying on while she felt another's legs tangled with hers.
Several groans could be heard from the occupants of the cupboard as their bodies realized that the traumatic and sudden roller coaster was over. That is going to leave a bruise. Lyla looked around and caught Rose's eyes first, "You good."
Rose groaned and slowly pushed herself off Lyla's arm, "Yeah. You?"
"I think. Knight in shining armor here saved me from any head trauma, which knowing my luck today I would have gotten. Have you hit your head any?" Lyla questioned with a concerned look while poking the Doctor lightly in the side to help persuade him to move.
"No, but everything else took a beating," Rose groaned out.
"Heard that," she replied to Rose as she finally looked at the Timelord that was currently not moving far from his position. She saw that he was slowly lifting the bottom of her shirt to see if she had ripped any stitches. Lyla swatted his hands away and gave him a pointed look while pushing on his shoulders to get him to move. "Budge dude. Seriously, I'm fine."
"Like I'm going to believe you," he stated plainly and lifted himself up to a standing position and helped Lyla up. Both looked around at the others to see that they were making their way to their feet as well.
"Okay, I'm just gonna say what is on everyone else's mind. I never want to do that again. 0 out of 10 would not recommend it," Lyla muttered to herself as she looked around at the destruction to the cabinet room.
The Doctor flourished his hand toward the metal door, "Well, Shall we?" He walked over, pushing fallen debris out of the way, clearing a path for the humans to follow. He pushed open the metal door, causing the door to land with a loud crash in the smoldering remains outside.
Harriet and Indra were the first out of the metal box which Harriet patted with a fond and slightly crazed laugh, "Made in Britain."
The Doctor helped Rose out of the metal box and down to the rubble quickly followed by Lyla, who he flat out picked up and set back down once out of the box. She gave him a raised eyebrow and a stern look, "I could have done that myself you know." Who knew he was this chivalrous? Or controlling? But… he also has never had a companion that has had as much medical attention as I have had. I mean seriously… Universe, what do you have against me? I'm just here to help and make sure you don't end up dying, cut me some slack.
"You have stitches on your stomach and were just in a missile strike. You are lucky that I put you down at all," he replied, mimicking her raised eyebrow and tone of voice.
The three turned to Indra and Harriet just in time to hear Harriet gasp, "Oh, Lord. We haven't even got a Prime Minister."
"Maybe you should have a go," the Doctor stated with a smile.
Rose piped up, "I'd vote for you."
"If I was a British citizen, I'd most likely vote for ya," Lyla said with a cheeky smile toward the older woman.
She smiled at the three, "Now, don't be silly. Look, I'd better go and see if I can help." Harriet and Indra walked off to see if they could help the soldiers and media.
The Doctor got a large smile on his face and leaned down to his two companions with a slight laugh, "I thought I knew the name. Harriet Jones, future Prime Minister. Elected for three successive terms. The architect of Britain's Golden Age." He looked down at the two and grabbed a hand of each of the girls and tugged them toward the road and back to where the Tardis was left.
oOoOo
The three made it to the Tardis where Rose peels off, "I need to see my mum. Catch up with you later. No taking off this time Doctor."
Lyla waved her away and stepped into the Tardis behind the Doctor. He grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the center console where he flicked some levers and switches before he made his way to the hallway and then the med bay that sat around the first bend. Lyla chuckled, "Guess she knows how bad off I am, or just likes me." She walked to the bed and slowly climbed on top just to lay flat so he could see her wound fully.
The Doctor walked over to a drawer and pulled out a pair of scissors before he walked to a different cupboard to pull out a spray bottle with what she could see was a fluorescent yellow liquid. He walked back and sprayed the wound causing Lyla to flinch from the cold liquid and to prompt her to ask, "And what hell was that?"
"Numbing spray so I can get the stitches out without causing you more pain than necessary." He said flatly. So, he's not in a good mood. I guess that's understandable. Maybe.
"Alright, what's the problem now?" Lyla asked with a raised eyebrow and an exasperated tone.
"You were right. Every time you have stepped out of this box with me, you have gotten hurt," the Doctor said harshly as he started cutting and pulling the stitches from her stomach. "Every. Single. Time." He spat out each word and was punctuated by a clipped and pulled out stitch. He never hurt her, but she could see the frustration with every movement he made. "What happens next time when I can't fix it 'Rough and Dirty'-like," he snarled as he pulled the stitches loose and away from her body. "You have no care over your own safety," he spat out to her.
Lyla watched him throughout his quiet tirade about her wellbeing. Hmm, isn't that just interesting. All was silent for a couple of minutes as he worked to remove the stiches and with Lyla deep in contemplation on how to fix the current mess, they were in. I knew I was making a difference. He never acted like this with Rose or any of his other companions… not even River, his supposed wife. I guess that's a good thing. I never felt that River was good for him. It's completely different experiencing this war hardened Doctor compared to just vaguely getting a hint of that roughness and self-loathing from a tv screen.
Lyla rolled her head to the side to watch the Timelord work on her fragile human body. She gave him a sad look as she continued to think, oh you stupid old Alien. You are really blaming yourself for all of this aren't you. Lyla sighed and turned her head back to looking at the ceiling with a rare frown. That. Is. It. Doctor… you are getting put on mandatory hugs. All. The. Time. Every chance I get, I'm giving you a hug and maybe if you're lucky… ah hell who am I kidding… If I'm lucky, a cuddle.
Lyla surfaced from her thoughts of cuddling the Timelord when she noticed the Doctor putting away his tools. When he put the borrowed tools away, he pulled over a large scanner device and sat it up over Lyla's slightly oozing wound. The scanner gave a beep and beamed down a blue light that roamed back and forth over her abdomen. Even through the numbing spray she could feel the slightest buzzing, like there were a million bees or butterflies wings beating under her skin. That puts a whole new meaning to butterflies fluttering in your stomach.
All was silent in the room while the machine worked to heal the human laying on the bed. Lyla watched the Doctor as he monitored the machine and her closing wound. After what felt like an hour but could have been only minutes, he pulled the machine away and checked to make sure all was healed to his satisfaction.
"Am I good," Lyla commented lightly when he moved the machine back to its original place in the med bay.
He grunted and with a nod from him she finally sat up. Game Time. Lyla swung her legs over the edge of the bed and hooked her foot into a rolling stool to pull it closer, so it was situated in front of her. With a curl of her lip, she nodded to the stool, "Have a seat then." He looked her over and slowly approached the stool to lower himself down into it. Lyla struck lightning fast and grabbed the back of his neck to yank him closer to her. His arms flail out to maintain balance and to stop her from pulling him completely off the stool in his surprise. "Now that I have your attention, I'm going to say this once and only once, Doctor. Are you listening?" She waited for the slightest of nods from him before she continued, "You say I don't care about what happens to me and you are right to a certain extent. I don't. What I do care about is the safety of everyone else around me. If you have a hard time thinking about who that reminds you of, you should have a gander in a mirror." Her hand tightened on the back of his neck as she continued to talk, "My dad was a cop. I was raised to expect the worst when you get a phone call at 2 am. I made sure he never left the house without words of love and safety. I was raised to protect everyone and to see the best in everyone until proven otherwise." She paused for a breath and to blink tears away that came from talking about her parents. She pressed on anyway with a rough but strong voice, "I remember my dad coming home and just hugging me and my mother after a bad call or shift. I know this life you lead, Doctor. I know it all too well. I know the feeling of standing up and doing something when everyone else is too scared or unwilling." Lyla shook her head and gave him a small smile, "This," she gestured down to her stomach with a wave of her hand, "'Tis just a flesh wound," she finished.
He stared at her for a long time just digesting everything she spilled out. With a huff and his hand came up to undo her grip from his neck and he finally replied, "Just because you know this life doesn't mean that I like you getting hurt because of it."
"Well sweetheart, I don't like getting hurt either. Its fucking painful but if that little bit of pain can save someone's life… I'm gonna take that deal. Every. Damn. Time," she promised. Lyla got a thoughtful look on her face as she tried to extend an olive branch that she was ok with, "How 'bout a compromise. You care about my wellbeing, and I'll care about yours. We'll both care about everyone else. That way everyone is covered."
"That's not any different then what we have been doing and look how that has turned out," he said straight faced.
"Ah, but it is. Because we both know that we will have each other's backs. It has been spoken and agreed upon. No take backs." She pointed a finger at him and lightly poked him while he contemplated everything that had been said between the two.
He continued to look at her with a tilted head and raised eyebrow just trying to fit all these new pieces of the Lyla puzzle together. She shook her head and patted his chest while hopping off the bed and making her way to the door. Once she reached it, she turned back around with a parting warning to the still seated Doctor, "Oh and by the way Doctor. You tug or pull my hair again and I won't be responsible for my actions," she winked and flashed him a saucy smile. "Just a fair warnin' Sweets!" She called over her shoulder as she turned to leave the med bay.
She made her way down the hallway and back to the console room. She could hear the Timelord following her, so she threw over her shoulder, "I need to stop in at my flat to make sure everything is in order." Once at the console she turned to him, "You won't leave me, right?" she questioned.
"No, I won't leave. You know what I've been meaning to give you this." He reached in his jean pocket and pulled out a Tardis key. Really his jean pocket. Afraid you might lose it in the leather jacket with its bigger on the inside pockets? He stepped forward and placed the silver key in her open hand as she stared at it in open shock. I have a key to the Tardis. Holy Shit! I have a key to the Tardis. Don't fangirl. Don't do it.
"I was beginning to wonder if you didn't trust me enough with a key," she muttered as she closed her fist around the tiny bit of metal making it even more real to Texan. OK this is a perfect hug moment. Bring it in. Lyla looked up into his face and threw her arms around his shoulders and tucked her head into his neck to whisper against his skin, "Thank you," she said sincerely. The Doctor stood frozen for a couple of seconds before he looped his arms around her waist and ducked his head into hair. He gave a slight tightening of his arms when she spoke against his neck but didn't move from his current position around her.
Lyla slowly unwound her arms from his shoulders and slid her hands down until she finally had to take a small step back but never breaking his hold around her waist and her hands coming to rest on his forearms. Her face tilted up towards his, where she gave him a beautiful wide smile. His eyes for a fraction of a second slipped from hers to her lips and back up in a flash. If she would have blinked, Lyla would have missed the lightning-fast motion. She instinctively licked her lips and saw heat flash in his eyes before he pulled away from her altogether. Well, there goes that. My new daily mantra is going to have to be 'Don't jump the Doctor' isn't it.
The Timelord backed off and cleared his throat looking for a subject change and trying not to look at his brown-haired companion. "We should be ready to leave in a couple of hours. Just a few things I still need to do." He fiddled with some of the controls and pulled the monitor towards himself, looking for a suitable distraction.
Lyla smiled and took several quiet steps up the ramp and towards the door. "I'm serious, no leaving," she warned.
He turned his body towards her and met her eyes across the console room when he said softly, "I promise I won't leave you behind." With an ever-present smile she slipped out the door.
oOoOo
Once outside, she leaned her back against the door to just breathe for a second and to calm her thoughts and her body's reaction to a particular alien. Right. Focus Lyla. You are not here to have sex with or to fall in love with the Doctor. You are here to make sure that events happen like they are supposed too. He is supposed to love Rose, not you. Put your big girl panties on and get your game face back into place.
Once under control, Lyla took off running to her flat to get things in order.
She stepped into her flat with a quiet sigh and made her way to her bathroom to have a long hot shower to wash the previous days' worth of pain, blood, and stress away.
After she got dressed in a pair of yoga pants, that hadn't yet been considered trendy in this decade but Lyla not giving two shits because they were comfy, and an oversized dark green sweater that hung off one shoulder. She paired the whole outfit with her black Converses. She deemed herself ready enough to go back to the Tardis.
She was just stepping out of her flat after making sure that everything was off and ready for an extended vacation again. Lyla had already talked to Mrs. Brown and said her goodbyes to her when her phone rang. She pulled it out of her back pocket to look to see who was calling her. The name Tardis popped up on her caller ID and with a snort she flipped it open to hear what the Doctor had to say, "Hey. Whatcha need now?"
"Rose is trying to get me to eat with her mother," he complained. "I don't do domestics. I'm a 900-year-old alien, I don't eat with people's mothers," he was full-on whining now. Oh, if you only knew how often you do the domestic thing.
"Stop your complaining. And you do realize that you eat with us often. That does constitute the forbidden and horrible words of being domestic," Lyla pointed out teasingly.
"Don't rain on my parade Lyla," he shot back over the phone. "Anyway, are you on your way or do you have more domestic things to do?"
"I could be, for the right incentive," She said with a laugh. "So, my Doctor, entice me," she whispered softly over the phone.
There was a pause and Lyla began to breathe harder in anticipation of his next words. Oh my God. Please entice me. Please. I'll be a good girl just please say the lines. She heard the Doctor take a deep breath before saying just as softly, "There's this plasma storm brewing in the Horsehead Nebula." His voice dropped an octave as he continued, "Fires are burning ten million miles wide. We could fly the Tardis right into the heart of it then ride the shock wave all the way out."
Lyla shivered and was remarkably close to panting over the phone when she asked, "Where would we end up, Timelord?"
"Anywhere," he answered slowly.
Right. I'm positive that voice is illegal on some faraway planet and 100% not fair. Lyla, trying to play it cool and unaffected and failing miserably, had to clear her throat before anything would get past her suddenly dry mouth and with a thick southern accent she replied, "Consider me enticed. Be there soon." With that she snapped the phone closed and made the short walk back to the Tardis. He should not be able to do this to me. My poor heart can't take this without getting hurt at the end of it.
oOoOo