A/N: Chapter two! I've actually made it. This is a milestone, I tell you.

Disclaimer: Let me spell it out for you: N-O-P-E

Chapter 2

Rose's week passed by, the days blurring together. Yesterday, or was it two days ago? She couldn't tell. Her mate, Shareen, had dropped by to tell her all about her latest boyfriend and to try and get her away from the coffee shop and her textbooks. Or had that been two days ago? At some point her Mum had called to see how school was going along, and to say that she missed her. Rose had rolled her eyes and laughed, mumbling, "I miss you too," through the receiver.

Work at the Café was steady, but tended to have dull and boring nature when Rose had other things she needed to do: mainly Uni and homework. Well, it was boring when John wasn't hanging about, order tea and coffee right and left with the occasional banana muffin. When she'd told him all the flavors of muffin they sold, his face had light up with excitement so tangible when the word, "banana" had just began forming in her mouth, it was like watching a little kid at Christmas, staring at all of the presents under the tree. Well, that was until she mentioned pear. Rose had never seen someone's expression change quite so quickly or so violently as John's had. She promptly spent the next few minutes clutching at her sides as her peals of laughter rang through the air.

"What?" he asked, a befuddled air settling on him, "What'd I do?"

Rose couldn't answer, but instead just pointed at his face and grabbed at her sides again.

Most days were like this, whether it just be friendly conversation, writing, or a hello and a goodbye. They were... companionable to say the least, like old friends. They had fallen into comfortable patterns with each other, John would come in and wave, maybe chat with Sarah Jane, the Riverside's owner (lovely woman), and Rose would have a cuppa waiting for him at his usual table. They both would grin and smile and greet each other and John would sit down in the the armchair facing the window, and Rose would sit across from him, with a muffin in her hand until Sarah Jane told her to get back to work. It was their way of being normal.

::

One day while the two of them were crowded around their petite table, laughing as they typed down ideas, a commotion had broken the quiet ambiance of the shop. It was Sarah Jane, she had pulled herself up to her full height of about five feet and four inches and had managed to corner a rather tall, solid man in a blue trench coat. He seemed to have done something to anger her, by the sheepish expression that shone in his eyes.

"Now get out of my café." Sarah Jane glowered at him showing him the door, her fists clenched tightly by her side.

"Alright, doll, I'm leaving." The man mumbled, raising his hands in surrender, "But at least hear me out, okay? I didn't mean to knock her-"

"Out." Sarah Jane shot coolly.

"Yes ma'am."

"What do think he's done?" John murmured, following the scene with his eyes, Rose couldn't take her eyes from the two,

"Something bad. Sarah Jane doesn't get upset easily, and I've only ever seen her shout once before." She whispered back. The entire café had hushed to watch the two figures, nobody knew what to do. Just as he crossed the threshold, his blue eyes caught hers, "Doc! Rose!" She shook her head, no, she must be hearing things.

"Do you know him?" John asked, looking at her carefully.

"No." Rose murmured, racking her brain for anyone who looked like that man, he seemed familiar, yet her mind drew a blank. She shook herself again, before she got lost in her own mind, "So, what happens next?" Rose pulled the laptop towards herself, fingers poised at the ready over the keys, "Fire away, captain."

"Welllll..." They launched back into their fairytale.

"That'll teach him to mess around with my family." Sarah spat to unopened ears.

::

"Some things never change." The man muttered to himself, before he turned on his heel and sauntered down the pavement, that had to have been them, the only person Rose would get that close to was the Doc.

Jack had been trying to find the two of them, or somebody who would know what in God's name was going on around here. It seemed that something was turning people backwards and inside-out right and left, whenever it pleased. Everyone thought he was crazy. He was just damn confused by it all. And then he'd found them. On accident, of course, by sheer dumb luck, but he'd found them nonetheless. Except that they weren't them. Well they were, but they weren't, it was complicated. He could feel that they were them, the ones he'd traveled with for so long, but they didn't remember him or had forgotten everything all together, like everyone else had.

He felt lost. He hadn't felt so lost in many, many years, and now he felt like he was trying to find his way through an unfamiliar house with the lights off. Great. What was he supposed to do if the Doc couldn't help him? Well somebody had to fix what had happened. First they would have to figure out what had happened, and then they had to fix it. And it seemed that Jack was the only person left unchanged, left with memories of something that now had supposedly never happened. Perfect. Absolutely perfect. He was going to kill the Doctor when he remembered everything. To tell you the truth, the Doc might have been the on e to have caused this alternate reality in the first place.

~oOo~

Sarah Jane had been suspicious of that Harkness man ever since he had walked into her shop and her life and bought a cup of coffee before he sat down and seemed to keep track of everyone who came in and out of the glass door. He'd seemed especially interested in Mr. Smith and her Rose. It just wasn't normal.

The next time he came in, he started asking these personal questions about her and her employees and regular customers, stuff that you don't just tell a stranger. And then he started dating her niece, Jenny. Not only that, but he'd broken up with her a few months afterwards and then they'd found out that she was up the duff! That's when she started yelling.

Rose came over to the door then, her brow creased, "Is everything alright?"

"Of course, just a cocky git, dear. Nothing dangerous." She patted the young woman on the cheek before walking back to her place behind the counter to make another batch of coffee.

He didn't come back again and Sarah Jane made certain that he would stay far away for as long as possible.

She turned her thoughts elsewhere as the sun sank lower in the sky and the number of people in the little shop dwindled. Things were never very busy at the Riverside Café, but there was always somebody occupying a little table, or an armchair, happily munching away on a muffin or biscuit, and that was the way Sarah Jane Smith like it. It was easy to manage and God forbid it changed being so.

The cash register chimed as the small receipt meandered out, and the next customer stepped forward. It was getting close to closing time.