Finally, sufficiently composed but still feeling like a bag of spanners Ruth managed to ease herself from the toilet bowl and make her way back towards the grid.

At that moment in time there were two people that she did not wish to encounter, Harry was one of them.

"Ah, the wanderer returns!"

"Hello Ros," Ruth carried on walking. Ros was the other.

"Good night, was it?"

"What?"

"Good night?"

Ros was certainly enjoying this.

Ruth half nodded, eyes down, moving quickly on, having no idea what to say but simply not wanting to be there.

"More Miss Marple than Mi5," Ros smirked, "Analyst missing in action..."

Ruth was about to round the corridor to safety.

"…Found asleep on the number 52 bus."

Ruth stopped.

Ros was leant against the wall. Ruth had seen her smug on many occasions but this moment truly was worthy of winning all the awards.

"Section D Red flashed for a nap!" she smirked.

"Red flashed?" Ruth glanced warily over her shoulder and moved closer.

"If only they knew…" Ros leant in a little closer and peered at her, "You know, you really don't look all that well, Ruth."

Ruth wasn't feeling well. Nausea spent, she was now capable enough to be overwhelmed with the first approaching wave of humiliation.

"Harry red flashed the team?" she repeated.

"Missing agent, Ruth. All hands on deck."

This was just getting worse.

"Ros, please don't say anything."

Ros tilted her head, enjoying the moment way too much, "Embarrassed?" she asked.

"Just a little," answered a straight faced Ruth, determining to try and show her no more weakness.

Ros considered.

"Hats off to you though, you've certainly given them something to talk about."

"You've told them?" Ruth asked aghast.

Ros shook her head "No, why should I… you've said more than enough," and with a wink she began to walk away.

"Thanks," murmured Ruth after her, grateful, confused and not a little surprised. She didn't trust Ros, not by a long way, but whatever she was talking about, and Ruth really wasn't sure what that was, at least it appeared she had said nothing to the others.

The pod doors opened and Harry strode out, damp, miserable and unwilling. He had spun out his meetings for as long as possible; even insufferable politicians and civil servants being preferable to being back on the grid. A couple of pairs of eyes glanced up at him but no one spoke. He didn't look, he didn't want to; he wanted no contact with the team, or with Ruth.

"All right?" grinned Zaf as he sat down.

Ruth glared at him.

She was feeling a little better. The afternoon had brought some relief both to head and to stomach, besides which she seemed to have got away with the ignominy of the bus.

"You look a bit tired. Must be ready for bed, Ruth?" he asked smirking.

There was an awful lot of smirking around today. Ruth glanced over at Ros wondering if she really had said something, but she was on the phone, intent and business like.

"What do you mean?" asked Ruth pointedly.

"He means nothing, Ruth," Jo said, whacking Zaf across the head, "he's just in an even more stupid mood than usual."

Adam crossed by dropping a folder onto Ruth's desk, "Glance through that and if there's nothing that's flagged up give it to Harry." He was already heading towards the pods, before she had chance to protest.

Having avoided Harry all day either because she had been welded to the toilet, or because he had been out at several meetings, she found she could avoid him no longer.

Unusually she knocked on the door before entering.

He glanced up at her briefly before returning his gaze to the paperwork on his desk.

"Adam asked me to give you this," she said.

"Thank you," came the curt reply.

She turned to the door but paused.

"I'm very sorry that I was late for the briefing."

There was no reply.

"And that I caused any … trouble," she added. "It won't happen again."

Still no answer.

She cut her losses and slid the door closed behind her.

Malcolm left the forgery suite, he had seen Ruth exit Harry's office and he could hold his tongue no longer.

"I'm sorry I have interfered in the past Ruth and I know it's none of my business but I have to say that I don't think you're being very fair to him."

"It's the first time I've been late in three years Malcolm."

"It's not your time keeping, Ruth and you know it."

He walked away leaving her bemused, guilty and yet somewhat indignant.

"Oh come on, enough's enough," announced Zaf plonking himself on the corner of Ruth's desk.

"What?" she looked up irritated, pulling at the file now trapped under his thigh, "Zaf, move!"

"Who is he, Ruth?"

"Who is who? Will you please move!"

Zaf's eyebrows shimmied in mischievous manner.

She sighed deeply. Was she suddenly operating in some kind of parallel universe where no one actually made any sense anymore?

A few more minutes and that would be it, she could go. All she had to do was stick it out just that few more minutes. And so she painted on a smile with which to humour him by.

"Ruth!" A loud, barked, irritated shout came from the direction of Harry's office.

Zaf scurried off.

Ruth got up and made her weary way towards the office.

She would be more than glad when this day was over and done with.