While Truman was learning many of the frightening truths which had been present in the hotel, Rose was playing around with an old-fashioned train set in the playroom while talking with John Smith.
"Why is it that I'm not able to put all the dolls in here like I was able to do with the big toy train we had back in nursery school?" Rose asked, disappointed in how the train was too small to place anything inside of it, since she'd been thinking of playing her old game where she had a large group of dolls venturing through the London Underground and running across a large number of frightening monsters who took advantage of the complete darkness in order to devour as much of the innocent passengers as possible.
"I think that might be because that train had not been designed as a plaything in the first place," John Smith told her. "This looks more like those trains which are found riding around one of those miniature towns they put on display at shop windows on Christmastime than something which was meant to be played around with by troublesome six-year-olds like yourself."
"Then why is this in the playroom?" Rose asked.
"For the exact same reason as you've got Little Franny lying around your bed with her sole eye: because it's a toy which is as old as the hotel itself, and good old Michael Truman is very fond of putting the hotel's history on display for all to see, regardless of whether or not other people are interested in seeing it," John Smith responded in a tone of grandeur, most likely in an attempt to mock Truman, which had Rose giggling in spite of the memories of what Truman had done to Laura and Victoria remaining clear in her mind. After all, it was better to laugh at the bad guys at times than it was to fear them, as John Smith liked to say.
It was then that Rose heard someone knocking on the door, making her tilt her head from the small train in curiosity.
"Hello?" she called out. "Who is it?"
"It's Mr. Truman, Rose," an anxious voice which Rose believed shared little resemblance to Truman's usual confident and demanding tone answered back. "I need you to come follow me right now, since there's someone who wants to meet you."
Upon realizing that it was Truman, Rose started shaking with fear, and she wrapped her arms around a blue Care Bear in an attempt to ease her anxiety. "No," she called back when she found the strength to speak up. "I don't want to go anywhere with you after what you did yesterday."
"Rose, I'm completely sorry about what I did," Truman responded urgently. "And I promise that I'll do my best to set things right with Laura and Victoria as soon as I can. But right now, it's very important that you do as I say and meet up with this person who needs to see you. The future of the hotel depends on it."
"I don't care about what happens to the hotel!" Rose yelled. "If you lose money or something, you'll deserve it because of how you treat the people that come here!"
"Maybe so, but this isn't just about me. This could also affect you and your mum's lives, as well as those of my employees. I don't want to put anyone's life on the line any more than I already have, Rose, and I'm going to need your help to do it."
When he said this, Rose remained quiet for a moment, wondering what it was that Truman may have just figured out that was causing him to act so desperately. However, before she could make any choice on the manner herself, she heard John Smith's voice urging her gently, Rose, do as he says. He really does mean what he's saying, and you're the only person who's capable of helping him.
I see, but do you know the person who's waiting for me, John Smith?
Yes; it's that same friend who's been helping your mum and several others out. Don't worry about being able to trust her, because she happens to be one of the closest people to me in the world.
The closest? Rose asked. John Smith always seemed to have a different person whom he considered to be his closest friend, so this didn't seem very helpful to her. Sometimes, it was Romana, who was a Time Lord like himself and had traveled with him for around two years, having even regenerated while with him. Other times, it was Sarah Jane or Ace, and he'd even gone so far recently as to say that he sometimes felt closer to her than he'd been with any other friends. So who could it…?
She happens to be a close family member, John Smith responded to her question. That's all I can tell you right now. Now go ahead and follow him, Rose. I promise everything will be okay.
"Rose?" she heard Truman asking her, "Is everything all right in there?"
"Yes," Rose answered, doing her best not to sound too scared. "I'll be coming with you."
And with that, she set the Care Bear beside the small train and slowly stepped out of the playroom, thinking that no matter what happened, what was ahead of her was probably going to be a lot more thrilling than any London Underground game could ever be.
...
Rose was more than a bit surprised when Truman ended up escorting her into the ballroom, especially since only a couple of days ago he'd told her that she wouldn't be allowed to come in there without her mum being present. And upon coming inside, she understood at least part of the reason why: everything inside looked so elegant, expensive, and breakable, with the tables and cups that were big and made of glass, the dark red carpet which covered up the whole floor, a large podium at the center of the room which happened to contain a piano, and a beautiful chandelier hanging through the ceiling, being exactly like those exotic rooms which Rose saw appearing in the old movies which her mummy liked to watch.
In addition to all this, she could hear lively yet old-fashioned sounding music coming from an old record player located not that far from the podium, giving the ballroom a classy feel and making Rose think that the Christmas party was going to be amazing.
"So, do you like this room, Rose?" Truman asked. "I know it may not have all the fun, modern devices which you can find in the playroom and rec room, but…"
"I love it," Rose responded cheerfully. "It looks like those posh party rooms you see in the movies."
"Oh," Truman said, sounding surprised that someone so young could like a place as old-fashioned as the ballroom. "Looks like you've already inherited your mother's good taste in that case. Well, I supposed you won't be so bored at the Christmas party after all."
"Why would I get bored at a party if I've never gotten the chance to go to many of them before?" Rose asked.
"It's just… never mind for now. Best to get back to business before it's too late," Truman said, thinking that it was best to put any unnecessary questions aside for the moment. "So, Rose, I want you to look around now and try to find a hidden door. It may be difficult to see at first, but the closer you examine the place,the better chance you'll have of finding it."
Rose tilted her head towards both her front and back side, scanning the ballroom around for any sign of another door, but finding nothing except the velvet colored walls and the various other adornments which could found around the place, like a small mirror fastened onto a hidden corner of the room and a miniature statue of what looked like an angel, wearing a robe that only covered part of its body.
"I can't find it," Rose said after peering around for several minutes.
"That's funny," Truman said with a frown. "I was pretty sure it was close to the mirror the last time I looked, but it appears as if you're right; there really is no sign of that door anywhere."
"Why would it be gone all of a sudden?" Rose wondered.
"I have no idea, unless certain things in here have the ability to appear and disappear at different moments and I just…"
Just then, the two of them heard a loud thud coming from their left (which was where the angel was located), followed by the sound of running feet. And within a few seconds, Truman once again saw the woman right before him, looking just as alert and energetic as she'd been before the strange being had brought her down.
"How's it all going?" she said with a smile as she noticed Truman and Rose.
"A lot better than I thought it would," Truman said. "So, this is Rose Tyler, daughter of…"
"Mr. Truman, I already know who she is. I want to know if she was able to figure out who I am," the woman said, sounding serious once again. Then, turning to Rose, she said, "So, Rose, do you have any idea who I am?"
Rose started at her for a while, and then said, "Well, you're probably not Romana, since John Smith said that she had blonde hair, or Ace, since she was blonde and stocky, and you have that magic screwdriver with you."
The woman turned to Truman with an impatient expression. "Mr. Truman, did you show her the note at all?"
"I didn't know whether that was the right thing to do," Truman responded. "First of all, because she was very hesitant to come with me when I first asked her, and then I figured that she may be too young to understand what was written in the note, since she's six and is probably just learning to read in school."
"Rose has known how to read for quite a while now, since her mother started teaching her when she was in nursery school," the woman explained. "She would have been able to understand well, since it's simple enough for anyone to get the meaning of."
"So, would it be convenient for me to show it to her now?" Truman asked.
"Better late than never," the woman responded.
Truman then took the note out of his pocket and handed it to Rose. "Go ahead and read this, since it's supposedly going to help you realize who this woman is," he told her.
It didn't take long for Rose to be able to guess the identity of the friend who went by the initials S.F.: Susan Foreman. Why she called John Smith Theta in the note, when John Smith told her that Susan would always call him Grandfather, was a little confusing to understand, but other than that, this short note really did seem like something a close family member of his would write, even sending a message of love to him at the end.
"So, you're Susan?" she finally asked, wanting to know for sure that she was correct.
"Yes, that's me," the woman responded. "Granddaughter of your friend John Smith, who was also known as Theta back in the Academy. He's probably the most well-known Time Lord in Gallifrey who wasn't amongst the top of his class, but of course, his claim to fame came about in a different manner than it did for the others."
"I think John Smith already told me about all that," Rose said.
"He could tell you about being Gallifreyan and his time at the Academy, and yet he couldn't even give you a hint that his granddaughter had been helping your mother and friends out this whole time," Susan said with a sigh. "I guess Grandfather still loves having certain things remain a big mystery to his friends. I remember how Ian and Barbara used to beg him for details of our true identities and home planet, and how he would always respond with a long musing on how big the galaxy is and how certain individuals are so unique that narrowing them down to a specific identity is impossible. I thought it was a bit silly, but he kept at it up throughout our whole time together, even when I left to join David in a future version of Earth."
"Now John Smith never talked about that before," Rose said, fascinated by all Susan was telling her.
"I think what surprises me the most about you is that you have such a typical name," Truman told her. "It sounds more like the name of a young British woman than an alien from Galilee…"
"You mean Gallifrey," Susan corrected.
"Yes, Gallifrey. Anyway, I almost that you'd have a name like R2D2 or Spock, or at least something exotic like Aphrodite or Leela."
Susan laughed. "Actually, Susan Foreman isn't my birth name. Time Lords tend to go by many different names throughout their multiple lives, with some taking on new names after their completion of the Academy or after regeneration. Some young Gallifreyans aren't even given a birth name, going by numbers or different nicknames until they become adults, during which they're able to pick out a name for themselves."
"What was your birth name, Susan?" Rose asked.
Without hesitation, Susan responded by saying, "When I was born, my parents named me Susallena Florentine. Some of the more scientific Time Lords gave their children combinations of different words as names, like lunar and aqua, or nova and light, but since my mother is said to have been a big romantic, she combined the names Susan and Elena together to form Susallena along with Florentine to form my full name. I don't even want to get started on my name from the Academy. By that point, I was begging Grandfather to use Susan as an alias for our time on Earth."
"Well, here on Earth, people usually change their names only if they become famous, join a religious order,or get married, with the latter situation usually involving just changing their last name," Truman explained to her. "I can't imagine all the trouble it would take to change your name up to three times."
"It may seem overwhelming for humans, but it tends to be fun for us Time Lords," Susan said. "So, now I'll try to tell you at least part of the story of how I got involved in my Grandfather's mission."
"Why can't you tell it all?" Rose asked.
"Some information must remain a secret, and I also don't want to take up too much of our time," Susan explained.
"In that case, you should start right now. After all, I always like entertaining guests with stories," Truman said.
"All right. So, Rose, did Grandfather tell you about how I got together with a man named David in the 22nd century Earth after surviving the invasion of the Deleks?"
"I think he did," Rose responded.
"Well, for a while, my life was quite ordinary. David and I got married after two months of being together, and we both got involved in the reconstruction of London. Around that time, we settled down in a flat building which became the home of fifteen different families and got jobs in sanitary keeping of the city. For a while, we were happy with the way things were. We even managed to have two children together, which I wasn't even sure would be possible at first. Their names were Daniel and Emma, and all was good for them while it lasted."
"While it lasted? Does that mean there was another invasion?" Truman asked.
"Yes," Susan answered, her expression then looking more somber. "It happened twelve years after the last invasion, and it was the Deleks once again. Only this time, they succeeded at killing twice as much people as before, and amongst the victims were David and Daniel, who died while escorting people into a safety zone. Me, Emma, and five others were the only people who survived from our community."
"That sounds awful!" Rose said, amazed at how Susan was able to tell such a sad story without crying or breaking down in some way.
"It was, but what kept me going was my longing to protect Emma and my friends. Like Grandfather, I'd developed the ability to adapt to a variety of situations while keeping my sense of logic intact, and I used it as best as I could under the circumstances."
"So, did the invasion go on for a long time?" Truman asked.
"It lasted for two weeks after David and Daniel died, and then members of my people arrived, putting a stop to the invasion by rescuing those of us who remained. A former scientist amongst the survivors set up a liquid which wiped out the remaining of the Deleks, killing them instantly and saving the Earth. My people had located me after Grandfather saved the Gallifreyan government from the threats of the Master, and told me that they were going to pardon me from my past crime of leaving Gallifrey without permission, granting me full privileges as a Time Lord once again. I was able to gain excess to their latest gadgets, get my own TARDIS…"
"A TARDIS? What's that?" Truman asked.
"It's supposed to be a time machine," Susan explained. "The letters stand for Time and Relative Dimension In Space."
"I see. Go on then," Truman
"However, I was told that all of this would come to me at a cost. Since Emma was half human, and humans weren't allowed in Gallifrey at the time, she would not be allowed to come along with me if I were to return there at some point. She could still travel alongside me and live with me if I were to live in any other planet, but never to Gallifrey."
"What did you do?" Rose asked.
"At first, Emma and I traveled around in my TARDIS together, going wherever we wanted and thinking things would go on like this for a long time. However, within a couple of years, Grandfather found himself in trouble again and I was called in to serve as a temporary advisor. At first, I was devastated to have to leave Emma behind, but she was able to find a home in Mars, assisting in time traveling advice and construction in the planet. Giving the fact that she was always so resourceful and had an expanded life span on account of being half Time Lord, I knew she'd be all right on her own..."
As Susan went on with her story, Rose noticed a large door suddenly appearing on the wall next to the mirror. Curious as to how it got through, she started moving a little closer to that side of the ballroom, wondering if she'd be able to discover the source of what had brought it in. At the same time, she could still hear Susan speaking, although she failed to notice that she had moved away for some reason:
"After a while, although Grandfather was gone from Gallifrey and I was free to go on my own again, I could still see what he was doing through visions and dreams which were so vivid that I was always convinced they were real. I'd experienced a feeling similar to this back when I first traveled with Grandfather, when I started seeing this girl who appeared to be under a lot of distress. As with those visions, I wasn't able to have any contact with him, nor was I capable of taking action at any moment. All I could do was witness everything from his happiest moments to every dangerous situation he got himself into. And then, there came a time when I could communicate with him once again, although he now appeared to be confined to one space the whole time…"
"Susan, I think Rose has wandered off," Truman interrupted her.
Susan tilted around to see where she was, and upon noticing that she was about to open the door, she called out, "Rose, step away from there right now! If you walk in there without me by your side, you'll be walking into danger!"
But all Rose could hear was a low, yet highly persuasive voice urging her on by saying, Go ahead, Rose. The answer to the mystery you've been wanting to solve all this time will be right in here.
Rose went on without hesitation, with no doubt about what she was saying until she heard John Smith's panicked voice calling out, Rose, don't step inside! Stepping into that room will mean danger for both of us as well Susan and Truman!
"Grandfather?" Susan yelled urgently. "Grandfather, is that you?"
But by then it was too late, because the door shut down with a hard slam, and Rose soon found herself in exactly the same place she'd just been, but looking a lot more luxurious and old-fashioned than it had been before.
Next, where exactly is Rose right now, and what other mystery will she possibly discover in there?
