Jack wheeled the bed out of the small room and down the halls, towards the med bay where his partner was waiting for him.
"Well?" his partner asked.
"Doubt she'll be a problem. Bit bossy, but harmless. Well, harmless to the world. She'd probably ring both of our necks if she could. She's Torchwood, all right. "
The other man laughed. "And the story?"
"Pretty much what we figured, alternate universe, she and Smith traveled with a Time Agent, that's why they've got the energy, but hers are higher because she traveled longer. So, the usual scans and samples? Or did you want to take a look for yourself?"
"Nah, got better things to do than deal with a displaced little human. If you think she's fine, just run the usual and set her up. I'll look in on her eventually."
"Will do." Jack said, reaching for a kit on the counter.
Rose awoke, again feeling as though she'd slept for days. And maybe she had, considering the stasis she'd been put in. She sat up, this time in a larger bed, in another dimly lit room. Remembering the last room, she swung her feet over the side of the bed and onto the floor. Again, the lights brightened as her feet touched the floor. This time, though, there was much more to see. The room was larger, with three doors and only a small window shaped one-way mirror which had curtains that could be closed over it. "That's an improvement." she muttered, to herself or whomever might be observing her at the moment.
There were three sets of shelves on the wall to the right of the bed. A picture in the middle caught her eye and she wandered over to look at it. It was a picture of her, her mum, Mickey and her second Doctor on Christmas that she had managed to print from the picture on her phone, the only item she had with her when she crossed into this universe. A picture that usually sat on her fireplace mantle. She quickly scanned the rest of the contents of the shelves and realized that they were all hers. Her books, pictures, knick knacks. All the personal contents of her flat, it seemed, had been transferred to this room. She turned back to the bed she'd just been in and realized that it was her own bed. All of the furniture was from her flat. Her sofa was on the other side of the room, in front of a large flat-screen television above the console which held her movies. Next to that was her desk and work chair from her home office.
She stormed over to the window-mirror. "Oi! Is anyone there? What do you think you're playing at? Why's this place got all of my things? Why am I still in here?" she punctuated this with her fists on the glass.
"Cool it, blondie. Not that you'll break the glass, but you might break your hands and I don't feel like putting you back under to take you out again. So I might just leave you there with a broken fist, and then how would you feel?" The voice of not-Jack had started out over the intercom again, but he'd entered the room as he wrapped up. "Now, what can I help you with, Princess?"
"Why am I still here? I told you what you wanted to know."
"I told you, it was never about that. We already pretty much knew all of that, just needed to figure out how dangerous you were to us and our other guests. I judged you not to be a threat, so don't make me change my mind."
"So what am I doing here?"
"Told you that, too. You're not a threat to us, but you are a threat to your planet, and any other planet you go to. We can't let you go."
"What? You can't keep me here. Besides, aren't I putting you in danger, then, too? Being here?"
"One, yes we can. And two, we're not on a planet, we're on a ship. And we're heavily shielded, it's safe for you here."
"So what, you just kidnap me and I live in this room for the rest of my life? How is that okay?"
"It's the only option. There's nothing to be done about it, and if you leave here you put everyone around you in danger. Don't be selfish."
"That's rich, don't be selfish? It's MY life you're messing with! And we were handling things pretty well before you lot came along."
"How many casualties?" he asked, not unkindly.
She looked away, not answering.
"And one day, you wouldn't be able to handle it and there would be more than just a few casualties. It's safer for your planet, for your loved ones, with you here." he said quietly.
"And what about my family? They think I'm missing? Dead?"
"We cleared out your flat, as you can tell, and left a note with your parents. Said you managed to find a window back into your own universe and were sorry you couldn't say goodbye, but the window was only open for a short period of time. Said you love them and all that jazz. I assumed there was something back there that would draw you back, without saying goodbye, if you could."
"And what about you? Can't you help me find a way back there? If you're so high and mighty and advanced, saving the universe from dangerous little girls like me. Can't you help me go home? Then I wouldn't be a danger, and I wouldn't have to live in a cage."
He ignored the first part. "You're hardly in a cage. Come on, I'll show you." he placed his hand on her lower back to guide her, and it felt like an electric shock – as it had always felt when Jack had touched her. He smirked, "You never did tell me how you know me. Or, I'm assuming you're not from my future, so you must have known your universe's version of me. Can't wait for that story. But not today. Come on." he moved his hand to her shoulder instead. "Okay, through door number one is the basics." he said, leading her through the door next to the rows of shelves which opened upon a small room with three more doors. "On your left, you'll find a wardrobe room. All your clothes are there and you'll find plenty more, it'll change every day. So have fun. In front of you is your bathroom, but, you know, with benefits. And on your right is a basic kitchen. Mostly for tea and snacks. Your food will be prepared for you, all you have to do is choose what you want from the tablet and it'll show up in the dumbwaiter. You can have a look around on your own time, for now I'll continue the tour." he turned them around, back into the bedroom, and towards the third door, the only one which seemed to have a control pad next to it. "This one leads you out to the common area."
"What, like that courtyard? No thank you." she said, shuddering.
"No, silly. Not everyone we pick up is harmless. That's where we keep them. You, however, have done nothing wrong and while you are being held, you're not really a prisoner. More of a guest."
"Got a twisted sense of hospitality, you have." she muttered.
"You'll get used to it." he replied, unfazed. "Okay, so this is pretty self explanatory but I'll go over it with you anyway. So, this is the entrance screen, you just need to put your hand on it and it'll register for you. It's also how you enter back into your room from the other side. It's a touch screen, so you just choose the different options. You'll find all the different rooms that are available for you to go to. For now, you only have access to a few but it'll grow as you get used to the place and we find if we can trust you around the others. For now, you can access the group kitchen which is better stocked, the gym, the swimming pool, the library, the media center where you can find more movies and video games or whatever you want, and three outdoor rooms."
"Hang on, we're on a ship, yeah? How's there an outdoor room?" she asked, with growing suspicion.
"Magic." he deadpanned. "Anyway, there's also an art room. And that's it, for now. Like I said, we'll adjust it later depending on how it's working out. You'll encounter others, they're also harmless but it doesn't mean you have to talk to them if you don't want to. No one can get into your room from that side of the door except for you and me. And I don't visit much, so you may get lonely. Might be good to make nice with the locals. They don't bite. Mostly." he added with a grin. "So you just need to press the icon for whatever room you want to go to and when you open the door with this button, it'll be on the other side."
"Fancy." she muttered, rubbing her temples. "I think I need to lay down again." she added, walking back towards the bed. For the first time, she noticed that someone had changed her clothes while she was out. "Did you change my clothes?" she asked with an edge to her voice.
"Don't get mad. I just put long pajamas over your shorts. It was cold in the med bay. If the other me you knew is anything like me, I can see why you might get the wrong idea. But I'm a professional, Rose. I'm not going to take advantage of you, so you can relax."
"Says you." she shot back, but already sitting back down on the bed.
"You okay?" he asked, stepping back from the door.
"I've just been told I'm being held prisoner for the rest of my life and I can never go home or see my family ever again. How d'you think I'm doin'?"
"Give it some time, you'll see it's not so bad here."
"Says the man who can come and go as he pleases."
"So can you, I just showed you."
"To a pre-determined set of rooms, nowhere else. What else are you hiding on this ship? Cuz if we're so free, how come we can't go out the other way, the way you came in?"
"I told you, we'll adjust where you can go when you've been here longer. And who says no one can go out the other way? You don't think I'm doing this job for my health, do you? I started off right where you are, but I cooperated and made myself useful, that's why I'm on the other side of the door. And trust me, you're not missing anything over here."
"You're tellin' me you're a prisoner, too? What'd you do?"
"I didn't do anything, same as you. I'm here because it's the safest place for me to be."
"Yeah, all right then. So who's keepin' us all here?"
"You'll meet him soon enough. He's busy keeping everything running, so he'll come down when he gets a chance. Until then, I'll leave you to it. If you need anything, anything that's not being provided for you, just use that control pad and hit the message icon. Works like an answering machine, sort of. Just leave a message and I'll see what I can do."
"All right. Thanks." she said, resignedly. "So I'll see ya again soon?"
"Soon enough. Goodbye Rose." he gave her a brief nod, then turned and left through the door he'd come in from.
Rose decided now was as good a time as any to take a look around. She approached the wardrobe first, wanting to change out of her pajamas. The wardrobe room was large and well organized. She could see that Jack was right about her own clothes being there, as well as a plethora of other clothing that had been provided for her. She glanced through it, but opted for her own set of sweat pants and a hoodie. No one to impress here, and she didn't feel up to venturing out past her room just yet. She grabbed her chosen clothing and walked into the bathroom. This was an improvement. There was a large walled in shower, a separate tub, almost like a jacuzzi (and perhaps it was, given the number of buttons and taps it had), She could see all of her products from her flat had also been transferred here. She found a large, fluffy towel and opted to take a quick shower before getting something to eat. The shower had a control panel, as well. She found she could adjust the water pressure, temperature, and heat of the shower room, along with controlling several nozzles where the water came out of. She showered quickly and changed into her clothes.
Next up, she walked over to the kitchen. There was a small, two burner stove, a half refrigerator filled with fruit, cheese, water bottles, juice and milk. The cabinets held an assortment of snacks, teas, and cookware. She approached the dumbwaiter, which had a control panel next to it. She quickly navigated it to a breakfast menu and selected french toast, eggs and sausage. Almost as soon as she'd sent the order, a chime signaled from the dumbwaiter. She opened the door and there was her breakfast, steaming hot and ready for her. Her suspicions grew, but she figured there had to be more than one ship in the universes that had the capacity to change rooms, supply clothing and prepare food for its inhabitants.
She took her breakfast back into the main room and over to the small dining table. She found the remote and decided to see what kind of television they gave her access to. She found a welcome screen, asking her what planet, location, and time she wanted the programming for. She programmed it for London, Earth for the day after she'd been home last and found the regularly scheduled programs, including the news. She turned it there, to see what was going on back on Earth and if there had been any mention of her disappearance. They were discussing the upcoming election, so she tuned out and went back to her breakfast.
A few minutes later, her attention was caught by her name being mentioned. She turned up the volume.
"And sad news, this morning. Rose Tyler, daughter of Pete Tyler, owner of Vitex Industries, has been found dead. We're told it was a car accident, late last night. It appears her brakes malfunctioned. No other cars were involved. The family has asked for privacy in their time of mourning, and asks that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the charities listed on the screen."
Rose watched, jaw slack, as a list of charities her mum worked with flashed on the screen. "How could they?" she asked, to the room in general. Torchwood must have faked the accident almost as soon as the letter was found. Which could have been immediately, if Jack and his boss had sent it to her family directly. After a minute of thought, she realized it was probably for the best, from their perspective. Wouldn't want to have to deal with questions regarding where she'd disappeared to. But she couldn't help but feel betrayed, that they weren't even going to look for her or consider she hadn't left of her own volition. "They must have had this planned all along, thinking I'd just leave them." she murmured, fighting back tears.
She quickly turned the television off and set to pacing the room. She needed to find out who was keeping her here. In order to do that, she needed to be able to get out and look around the rest of the ship. And in order to do that, she would have to do as Jack had said, cooperate and make herself useful. She wasn't going to just sit idly by and take someone's word for it that she was a danger to the planet, not when Torchwood had never detected anything wrong with her. She'd do everything in her power to get back home and find out for sure if it was true, then they could figure out a way to fix her, or shield her, or something. Anything that would allow her to go home, see her family again.
With a new resolve, she marched back into the wardrobe room and found something a little less informal to put on.
It was time to meet the neighbors.
