Author's Notes: I do not own, Doctor Who, the Duplicate Doctor, the Alternate Donna or any of it. They all belong to the BBC who had left this unexplored and probably wants me to think the Duplicate Doctor is happy with Rose in Pete's World. Really? Is anyone buying that? So, thanks for the reads and reviews and hello, lurkers! I appreciate it all and hope to hear from you more about what you think of this chapter!

Donna really liked being a mum, honestly, but some days it was just a rubbish job she felt like she had failed at. The first time was when she explained to Josh and Ella that Mummy and Daddy would not be living together anymore. Then every time after that when she had to explain that Daddy was off with his new girlfriend at some nude beach and wasn't going to be able to see them.

This was going up there.

It was the day before the first day of the autumn term. She usually looked forward to this. She took a rare short day at work and came home to have a final once-over of the kid's school uniforms and sort their book bags and gym kits. They went to lunch, then usually an outing to the zoo or something, complete with ice cream and treats.

She felt like a total failure this year. She hadn't been able to find a place for Ella anywhere, there was talk of something at some school in South London where there had recently been a stabbing, so nothing Donna was going to actually do. She was going to have to send Ella back to her school, with the bint mothers and the best Donna could hope for was that their bints in training daughters would ignore her.

The worst part was that Ella knew Donna was lying when she promised everything would be alright. Donna could tell. So she had rounded up Josh and Ella and taken them to Torchwood.

"Donna!," exclaimed John. He greeted her with a kiss. "What are you all doing here?"

Donna smiled. "Well, we Nobles have a last day before school tradition of lunch and wondered if you would like to partake."

"And ice cream!," added Josh.

"And ice cream," Donna sighed.

"I would love to partake," John smiled.

"Donna!," exclaimed Adeola, as she came over, quickly followed by Gwen. "You look wonderful."

Donna motioned at John. "No thanks to him."

They started asking all sorts of baby questions and John saw the kids growing bored. He ushered them over to his office.

"Cool!," said Josh. "I can see all the way down the river from here!"

John looked at Ella, who sat in his chair. He walked over and sat on the desk. "What's wrong?"

"School," said Ella.

"Oh. School," John said sympathetically.

"Could you talk to Mummy?," asked Ella.

"About school?"

"She'd listen to you if you told her not to send me."

"Ella..." He paused. "You want to know something about time?"

She looked like she didn't but John knew she would listen anyway. He took a breath.

"You think you're big now, but really you're little. And things seem big now because proportionally they make up a bigger piece of your life. It's like, it's like Christmas. You know how long it takes for Christmas to come?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, when you get to be your mummy's age they come fast and at my age they come lightning fast. Someday school and those mean girls will be a tiny, insignificant part of your life. You won't even remember their names. But they'll all remember you because you'll be Ella Noble, that brilliant girl."

There was a knock on the door. Amy entered holding the hand of a man in jeans and a plaid shirt, with a nose John couldn't fail to notice.

"I'm not interrupting, am I?," asked Amy.

"No. Amy, this is my stepdaughter, Ella and my stepson, Josh."

"Hello," said Amy. She smiled. "This is my boyfriend I was telling you about."

"Right," said John, shaking hands, "Ronny?"

"Rory," he said.

"Right, Rory."

"He surprised me. He's taking me to lunch. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, that's fine." He looked up to notice Donna entering, taking a good look at Amy as she came in. "Donna, this is Amy and Rory."

"Hello," Donna said crisply.

"I'm so glad to finally meet you, Donna. When John's not talking about work, all he talks about is his family," said Amy. "Everyone here loves him."

"Well, we're pretty fond of him ourselves," said Donna.

Jack entered with a question for Amy about some paperwork. Donna turned to John. "So, you hired her then?"

"Yes."

"Pretty."

John sighed. "I hadn't noticed."

"You'd have to be blind not to," she whispered.

"Not why I hired her and besides, there's only one woman for me."

"Oh, I'd love to meet her," said Donna.

John was about to make another retort of his own when an alarm sounded. Metal shutters came down over the windows of the office, obstructing Josh's view.

"What's that?," asked Ella.

Donna answered, fearing John would make the mistake of telling her the truth. "Just a fire drill, sweetheart."

"Yeah," said John. "Rory, Donna, why don't you all stay in here?"

Amy and John walked out into the main room. The weapons lockers were opened and Gwen was passing out guns.

"What's going on?"

"There's a security breach on levels four and five," said Jack.

"The cells," said John.

"What's level four?," asked Amy.

"The Torchwood vault," he answered. "We've got to get down there."

John looked back to see Donna standing at his office door. He hurried back. "Wait here."

"What's going on?"

"Security trouble," he said. "Just stay here. This section will be locked off. You'll be safe. I'll be back."

"Do not get shot again," said Donna being quite serious.

"Not planning on it," he said, giving her a kiss.

They geared up. John took a gun that Gwen insisted on giving him that he had no intention of using. They got in the lift.

"If it's the Silence," said Amy, "you have to remember that you can't turn your back on their monsters. Once you look away, you'll forget everything, won't know what you were shooting at. Keep at least one in your sight."

"How am I going to forget what I'm shooting at?," asked Gwen.

"Are the recorders in the Kevlar working?," asked John.

"Still experimental," said Adeola. "And only a few of us have them."

"Better than nothing," said John. "It was a good idea, Amy."

"Thanks," said Amy.

The lift opened on level five. They walked out, guns drawn.

"What?," John said suddenly, looking back at Amy.

She looked at him with wide eyes. "John, there was one right now, just in front of you. Keep looking at it."

John tried to process it. It was the strangest thing ever. He looked back in front of him and yes, there was some kind of monster, a race he didn't recognize. A bulbous head, dark eyes, long limbs and why was it wearing a black suit and tie? It hardly needed to blend in, John couldn't remember seeing them! No one could!

"Who are you?," he said. "I demand you identify yourselves!"

Some sort of electricity started in its hand and Gwen shot at it, it fell to the floor. They moved down the hall, to find the cell doors opened and their prisoners from the warehouse were wearing eye patches again, even Ephraim. They all seemed to point their guns at John.

"Ephraim, what's going on here?"

"Stop!," he heard a woman shout.

John watched as a woman in a black leather suit approached wearing an eye patch.

Madame Kovarian turned to Ephraim. "Not him. He's necessary."

"Necessary for what?," demanded John, looking at one of the Silence's creatures.

She smiled. "All in good time."

"What are you doing here?"

"Picking up something for a friend."

There was an explosion, causing John and the others to be blown back further in the hallway. John helped Adeola up off the debris ridden floor as she coughed on the smoke.

"What the hell happened?," said John. He looked at Amy. "We forgot, didn't we?"

She nodded. "You get the hang of it."

"They're going to bloody get away," said Gwen, picking herself up off the floor.

"Well, I'm not seeing what we can do about that," said Jack.

John walked over to a panel and popped off the lid.

"What are you doing?," asked Amy.

"Seeing if I can lock down the vault further," said John. He played with the panel, trying to log into the building's security protocols.

They heard another explosion, below them.

"Well, never mind," said John.

Another alarm sounded.

"Evacuation," said Adeola.

"I can't. I've got to go back and get Donna and the kids."

"They'll send the sweeper teams through," Adeola insisted.

"No, I've got to go," said John. "The rest of you, get out, find one of the mobile command vehicles, log in and see if you can track whatever mode of transportation to get out of here."

"Mode of transportation?," asked Gwen.

"Every heist has a wheel man," said John. "Blimey, haven't you seen any films?"

"I'm coming with you," said Amy. "For Rory."

"No, you go. I'll get Ronny."

"Rory!"

"Whatever, I'll get him. Guy with the nose. I know who he is."

"Should you be talking about people's noses?," said Amy.

"What's wrong with my nose?"

"I'll go with John," said Jack. "You ladies should go."

"Oh, now he's chivalrous!," said Gwen.

"You have your orders," said John.

Donna was terrified and just sitting, not her favorite combination. She sat between Josh and Ella, making small talk with Amy's boyfriend that neither of them were interested in when a Torchwood tactical team burst in the office, guns drawn.

"Who are you?," demanded the leader.

"Visitors!," answered Rory. He held up the visitor lanyard around his neck. "See?"

"I have to see them!"

Donna held up hers, then Josh and Ella's because the children were too scared to move.

"Sorry about that," the leader dropped his gun. "Lieutenant Ross. We have to evacuate the building."

"My husband, John Smith, said he would be back," said Donna.

"The building's been compromised, ma'am," said Ross. "There's a fire and you must have felt the explosions."

"What about John?," said Josh.

"Mr. Smith will have to evacuate as well," said Ross. "Sorry, sir, ma'am, we must go now."

"Right." Donna grabbed her bag and looked at Josh and Ella. "Sweethearts, we have to go. I just need you to be very brave and hold my hand and we'll see John outside and everything will be fine. Understood?"

"Yeah," said Josh.

"Yes," Ella said quietly.

Donna took Ella in one hand and Josh in the other and started out following Rory and the soldiers. They went out the hall and into the emergency stairwell. The air was filled with smoke and the noise of the alarms. Donna heard Josh coughing and made him hold on to the hem of her top while she rustled in her bag for an Hermes scarf and told him to hold it over his mouth and nose.

"Are you alright, Ella?," asked Donna, not knowing what to offer her if she wasn't.

"Yes."

"Try not to take such deep breaths," Rory said to Josh. "I know it's hard when you're excited, but keep your breathing nice and steady, like you're bouncing a ball, okay?"

Josh nodded.

"You're good," said Donna.

"I'm a nurse," Rory shrugged. "I work in pediatrics a lot."

"We'll get medical attention outside, ma'am," said Ross.

Donna looked at the wall. They were on level ten, making good progress. In front of them, a security camera shorted out, giving them a good startle.

"Side effect of the fire," said Ross. "Just need to move quicker."

Donna gripped her children's hands tighter, looking at Josh frequently. They increased their speed and were down to eight when Donna heard screaming and saw a woman running back up.

"What are you doing? Down!," shouted Ross.

"I'll get her, sir," said one of the others.

"Maintain contact," instructed Ross.

They headed down and saw what the woman had been screaming about. There was a stampede at about level five.

"That's my monster!," shouted Ella.

Donna looked ahead at what was definitely a monster with a big head and dark eyes and long limbs. This was Ella's monster? What? It was real?

"What?," asked Donna, looking back at Ella, completely forgetting what the hell she was talking about.

Then she looked back. There was a monster.

"See, Mummy? See? I'm not lying! That's my monster!"

"Okay," said Donna, "it's okay." She didn't take her eyes off the thing, just held on to her children tighter.

"Weapons!," shouted Ross as though he saw monsters in stairwells all the time. He turned to Donna and Rory. "Sir, ma'am, take the children. We'll cover you."

"What is that thing?," asked Rory.

"Some kind of alien," said Ross. "Don't worry. Apparently you don't remember them after you take your eyes off them."

"Oh, that's comforting," said Rory.

"Go," shouted Ross. "Go!"

Rory and Donna made a break for it with the children. Josh almost fell, but Rory caught him.

"Mummy!,' shouted Ella.

Donna looked back to see Ella desperately struggling to hold on to her with one arm and being pulled by the monster with the other.

"Cease fire!," shouted Ross, not wanting Ella to catch a stray bullet.

"You let go of her!," shouted Donna. "Let go of my baby! I swear to God, I'll rip your eyes out!"

Ella screamed, the monster didn't loosen his grip and Donna continued shouting a stream of profanity at it. Ross joined in to help as Ella screamed more.

Then Donna blinked and in an instant, everything had changed. She looked back down the stairwell to see Josh, standing with Rory.

"Where's Ella?," Donna screamed.

"The creature took her, ma'am," said Ross.

"Mummy!," Donna somehow heard Ella scream over the sirens, fire and noise. "Don't let the monster get me!"

"I'm coming!," Donna shouted, ready to run down the corridor when she felt Ross holding her back. "What are you doing? Let me go!"

"Ma'am, you have to get out!"

"Not without her!"

"Mummy!," shouted Josh.

She looked back at her son, desperately.

"Mummy, come on!," he said.

Rory looked at Donna, understanding. "Don't worry. I'll get him outside and find your husband."

"Thank you," said Donna. She looked at Josh. "Mummy loves you and someday when you have children you'll understand this." She sighed and looked at Ross. "Sorry about this."

"Sorry about what, ma'am?"

She elbowed Ross, kicked him in a rather sensitive area and twisted around to get out of his grip, sprinting into the corridor where she could still just barely hear Ella's screams.

Yes, Nerys had been right.

The Women's Krav Maga Self Defense Seminar she'd dragged Donna to after Ethan tried to kill her was rather empowering.

"I'm coming, Ella!," she shouted as loudly as she could.

Author's Notes: Yes, I know. Cliffhangers.