Breakfast is the last opportunity for the family to be together before the day begins a second time. It was entertaining as two watched Mother Jenny eat five pancakes, all of the mushrooms, around five eggs and almost a half loaf of bread.

"Did mother eat this much with me?" Alaya asks.

"No, it is quite unusual for your mother to have such an appetite." Mother Vastra smiles as she caresses the large stomach. "I do believe your sisters are quite hungry."

Fiona isn't participating, she is just staring at Mother Vastra.

"Fiona, please just ask your question, if you have one." Mother Vaster looking directly into Fiona's eyes.

"I ... I ... it will sound absolutely preposterous. Are you able to read minds?"

Mother Vastra tilts her head back and laughs.

Mother Jenny touches her wife's arm tenderly as she chews, "wevs ... communicate ..." as she points to her head chewing.

Mother Vastra looks at the small hand on her arm. "What my beautiful wife attempts to inform you that I, we have the ability of telepathy."

"What? Since when?" Alaya looks to her mothers sits back with her hands folded and asks, "What else do not I not know?"

"Do you read minds?" Fiona asks again defensively.

Alaya stands up and paces in the kitchen, "Do I have the ability to communicate telepathically?"

"I do not know. Have you tried?" Mother Vastra asks her daughter.

Alaya comes over to the table as she slams both hands on the table and looks into Mother Vastra's eyes, "... How do I try?"

'Alaya dear don't be upset, please.' Mother Jenny telepathically talks to her daughter with a smile.

Alaya changes her focus to her mother Jenny.

'Alaya dear don't be upset, please.' Mother Jenny telepathically repeats herself and maintains the smile.

"Ahh!" Alaya places her hands over her ears and spins around.

'Alaya dear don't be upset, please.' Mother Jenny telepathically repeats herself a third and final time.

Alaya takes a deep breath and concentrates. She places all her anger and thoughts into the forefront of her mind and lashes them out to the air, 'Mother, I am upset because there is one more secret. What else do my mother's hold back? What other things will I find myself blind-sided with information? Do I scare my mothers? Do I lack their love and understanding? Have I let you down? Have I given you reason not to trust me with information? Am I too human? Am I too Silurian? Am I not enough human? Am I not enough Silurian? Please tell me, I am able to understand any truth.'

Alaya walks out of the kitchen. Moments later there are deep angry sounds coming from the gymnasium as each

Fiona looks up to the ceiling as she remains in her seat across the table from Alaya's mothers. She puts her head down and whispers, "I am too upset to console my wife.'

"Why should you be upset?" Mother Vastra asks.

"I have to go to work." Fiona walks to the doorway and without looking back she responds softly, "Why not just read our minds and figure it out yourselves."

Alaya runs down to the landing, "Are you going to work?"

Fiona whispers, "I am." She turns and leaves 15 Savile Row angry and cautious about her family. Something she never expected to feel.

Alaya stands there on the landing watching her wife leave. She stands there at the landing and is interrupted by sounds in the kitchen.

"Mother what is on our schedule for the day?" Alaya asks with the kitchen door is opened.

"We have to investigate the possible black markets for Scotland Yard." Mother Vastra replies.

"Thank you." Alaya leaves the kitchen.

"Alaya!" Mother Jenny calls to her daughter.

"Yes?"

"Talk to us, please. We heard you." Mother Jenny gently responds.

"Oh." Alaya stands on the other side of the kitchen door not knowing what to do.

"Come back in to the kitchen, please." Mother Jenny begs.

Alaya pushes open the door to see her mothers doing the dishes together. Alaya only sees their backs and moves to sit at the table. This time she decides to sit in her wife's usual seat.

Alaya patiently waits until the kitchen duties have been completed.

Mother Jenny pulls her wife as they sit down to face their daughter.

"We are sorry." Mother Vastra says with compassion and earnest.

"Why are you apologizing?"

"We should have told you when you were old enough to understand. Life got in the way."

"I understand." Alaya replies with a whisper.

"I heard you." Mother Jenny reaches across the table to hold her daughter's hand. "I did."

"What did you hear?"

Mother Jenny carefully asks, "Do you want to verbalize your thoughts?"

Alaya nods yes.

"You are upset because there is one more secret. then you asked a series of questions including why we hold back ... what other things will I find myself blind-sided with information ... are we scared of you ... do you have our love and understanding ... have you let us down ... is there a reason not to trust you with information ... are you too human or too Silurian, enough human or Silurian." Mother Jenny chokes out the words with pain in her chest.

"So you can read minds." Alaya looks down at her lap and understands why her wife has left so abruptly. 'I have to fix this.' "What else should I know?"

"There isn't a list, if that is what you seek?"

"A list, no." Alaya realizes what she has asked and decides to rephrase, "What other Silurian or Human traits do you have that I might or might not have acquired?"

Mother Vastra answers honestly. "You are split down the middle with part of me and parts of your mother. Imagine a bowl of a thousand marbles of which represents myself and another bowl of a thousand marbles. Now pour half of my marbles into another bowl and do the same with your mother's bowl. You ask of us to know which marble is a particular in human or Silurian. There is no answer, because even though your mother and I look quite different we are anatomically quite similar."

"I understand."

"There is nothing of you that is defective." Mother Jenny offers words with tears going down her cheek, "My dearest, you have all our love possible a parent could offer their child. You have never let us down. It was our mistake to not share with you, truly we have forgotten. It was like informing you how we breath. Please forgive us."

Alaya melts with her mothers soft words, "You have no reason to apologize ..."

Fiona runs into the kitchen, flops into her wife's arms and quickly buries her head.

"I am quite pleased you are in my arms. I need to know, my Scottish girl, why are you home?"

Without leaving her wife's chest Fiona points to the calendar open to March 1916 with a red circle around today's date. She meekly speaks into her wife's chest and vibrates the scales, "I have off today. My anger got the best of me this morning. Please forgive me?"

"It seems this is a morning for apologising. First my mothers and now my wife." Alaya looks to her wife, 'Everything will be fine. Are you still upset?'

Silence.

Alaya looks to her wife and says in a whisper, "Everything will be fine. Are you still upset?"

"I heard you the first time." Fiona responds looking up at her wife, "I am upset. I have reason to feel violated."

Alaya looks to her mothers smiling and back at her wife. "You heard me?"

"Your wife does have perfect hearing."

"I didn't use my vocal cords to communicate the first time?"

Fiona sits up and looks into her wife's eyes, "I heard you loud and clear. Say something."

'Something.'

"No really, a longer sentence."

'What do you want to do on your day off? How does a picnic sound with a trip to the library?'

Fiona inquires, "Did you ask me what I want to do on my day off? Picnic and then library?"

Alaya nods yes.

Fiona closes her eyes, 'Are you hearing me wife? I am tired. I would be open to the library and picnic but I need to get to bed early.'

'I hear you loud and clear. We can just stay home and you can nap on your Silurian pillow.' Fiona eyes pop open and she whispers, "Are our conversations secret?"

"I do not know."

Alaya and Fiona turns to see a blushing Mother Jenny and a darker green scaled Mother Vastra.

"So that is a no?" Fiona smiles to her wife. "I assume, please let me know if I am wrong ... but you have to be a close proximity and available to receive. If not, then Alaya and I would have discovered this ability on our own."

"That is correct." Mother Vastra responds with soft smile. "I can listen telepathically ... but I respect privacy."

"Have you ever listened to our thoughts?" Alaya faces her Mother Vastra. "Ever?"

"Yes." Fiona and Alaya faces become red with anger. "Especially when you were younger. I was hoping to find out if you could speak telepathically. You never responded; we assumed you lacked the ability."

"Clarify if you listened to any of our thoughts as adults?"

"Of course."

"Why?" Fiona dares to ask, "When?"

"From the moment you came into our lives. I wanted to make sure you were not a treat."

"From the moment we started to correspond?"

"Yes. You were without a doubt a conflicted with your time."

Fiona's mouth dropped open. "What?"

"You wanted to write but you didn't have the time. You ..."

Fiona stood up with a flushed face, "No. No more. My private thoughts were mine. Not yours to invade. Did you discuss my thoughts to Mother Jenny?"

Mother Jenny nods yes, "We had to know your intentions."

Fiona gets up and leaves the kitchen. "I need time alone."

Silence.

Alaya licks the air continuously as her wife's scent slowly moves down the stairs and out the front door.

Alaya is shifting her eyes back and forth to her mothers. "Well?"

"No. If Fiona wanted you to know, she would have told you." Mother Vastra firmly replies.

"You both know her personal thoughts. Now my wife has left the house. How do I fix this?"

"We are responsible and we shall talk to her." Mother Jenny kindly offers advice.

Alaya licks the air, 'She is gone.' She stands up and looks to her Mothers with anger in her eyes. "I am angry. I do not know what to do. I will be in the office doing research. I need to be busy."

Afternoon tea was entertaining as Mother Jenny had three sandwiches, as if she was starved. Alaya offers a muted smile at her mothers as Fiona has not returned home.

"Tonight we shall go to the navy ports to watch the activities."

Alaya nods.

A knock on the drawing-room door. Alaya and Vastra lick the air, 'Miss Shaw'.

Alaya answers the door with her usual pleasantries, "Good afternoon Miss Shaw."

"Doctor Fiona called just a moment ago. I decided to deliver it myself." She hands Alaya the folded note. "Have a good evening."

"Thank you."

After Alaya closes the door she moves towards a window and opens the note.

Alaya

I have taken a shift and will be staying the night at the hospital.

Fiona

Alaya crumbles it up into a ball, throws it into the fire and returns to the office to do more research. She stays there immersing herself in reading line item entries and cross referencing balance sheets until there is a knock at her door. "Come in."

"It is time we leave, we have the night." Mother Vastra instructs.

Alaya stands and gathers her usual items, puts on her heavy coat and they head out into the night.

Alaya and Mother Vastra are watching the docks. Mother Vastra interrupts the quiet. 'This is where our private communications will be useful.'

Alaya nods as she writes down the various boats coming in and out of port.

'Look at the man who is wearing that black driver cap. He looks out of place.' Mother Vastra points towards a man in a long coat.

'His shoes are too fancy.' Alaya adds.

'Shall name him Mister X?'

Alaya write down in her notes and pulls out folded papers, 'The cargo is supposed to be food. The weight is too much, it seems that the crane is strained.' She licks the air, 'I can't find a scent inside.'

'I do not detect food. I can't make out the contents. We will see if we can come back tomorrow to get closer. The docks aren't business for us and the lights taken away our shadows.'

The captain of the ships comes over to Mister X, "Wir verlassen morgen um fünf Uhr morgens. Achten Sie auf die Dokumente."

"Die Dokumente kommen. Es kann während des Tages nicht kopiert werden. Sie werden aus Dover kommen." Mister X quickly responds.

'We need to clarify this translation and return.'

Alaya nods as they both leave their perch and head back towards Savile Row with a stop at their personal translator, "I am sorry Miss Gardner, we seek Miss Shaw's skills. It is rather important."

Miss Gardner returns the umbrella hook inside the door. "Tori. You are needed."

Allie's companion quickly put on her housecoat, "Allie, thank you. I am ready."

"We are very sorry to disturb your sleep, but your services are needed." Vastra nods to both Allie and Tori.

"How can I be of asstance?"

Alaya reads her notes.

"First I do an exact word for word translation in my mind and then a more structured assumption verbally. Please read it back again."

Alaya read her notes again.

"Was this a conversation?"

"Yes two men."

"That makes sense. The first wanted to make sure that they leave with the documents at four in the morning. The second said that the documents come from Dover which can't be copied during the day."

"Are you positive of the translation?" Vastra asks Miss Shaw.

"The only word I have trouble with is Achten Sie as it could be translated either make or watch."

"Thank you." Mother Vastra turns to leave. "We shall let ourselves out."

"Our apologies for disturbing your sleep. Please know your skills are vital to our work. Thank you again."

Quickly Mother Vastra and Alaya head home. Vastra calls Scotland Yard and updates on their findings. Alaya calls Dover to speak to military security.

"Dover Security will call back as soon as they clarify our qualifications with Scotland Yard." Alaya tells her mother.

"Now we wait." The phone rings, "Not for long." Vastra picks up the phone. "Yes. No, we can assume three or four hours if by car. No trains are running. We will head back to port around three. Yes. I agree." She hangs up the phone.

"What did they say?"

"There was a young female clerk who just got off duty at the Dover military facilities. The military wants us to return to the docks at three to watch any transactions. They are sending a ship to block it's movements on the Thames."

Alaya looks to the clock, that gives us two hours. I will take the car and will return to pick you up at two-thirty.

"I need your head with me when you return."

Alaya smiles, "My mind is always focused when business is concerned. Have I let you down tonight?"

"No. You are an excellent partner." Mother Vastra smiles.

"Thank you. I will see you soon." Alaya quickly leaves their home and heads north driving the Fiat Zero.

Alaya quickly makes sure her device is activated and strolls up to the hospital administration desk. "I am here to see Doctor Flint-Saint Clair."

"Please take a seat and I will see if she is available."

Alaya sits down and watches as the nurse makes a call, talks in the receiver and then places it back onto the hook. "She is in her office. Do you need directions/"

Alaya stands, "No I know where to go. Thank you."

Alaya moves through corridors and flies up stairs until she is standing in front of an office door with the name 'Doctor Fiona Flint-Saint Clair'. She licks the air, takes in her wife's scent and knocks.

"Come in." Fiona whispers from inside.

Alaya enters a dark room and closes the door behind. She turns off her perception device and stands there. All she planned was to get here to be by Fiona's side. Now that she is here, standing in the dark she is lost. 'Be honest.' "I just wanted to be near you. I hated how you left."

"I know. I just wanted to be alone. I do not want to be chased. This isn't some childish act."

"What did you run?"

Fiona lets out a loud sigh. "Your mothers read my thoughts ..."

"Your thoughts are your own. I have never been privy."

"Your mothers have."

"That is true but you punished me. Today you had a day off and you took that away because of my mother's actions."

"I am sorry."

Alaya decides to find a seat as her eyes focused on the darkness. She can now make out her wife as she is sitting up on a small sofa. Alaya sits down in a chair furtherest away to give her wife physical space. "Have you been crying?"

Alaya smiles as she notices her wife nods yes in complete darkness. "Are you still angry?"

Fiona nods yes again.

"I can't apologize for my mothers, they can do that themselves." Alaya lets out a deep breath, "Do you need distance?"

Fiona nods yes.

"Have you thought of a solution?"

Fiona nods yes, "I am going to stay at Louisa and Flora's for a fortnight."

Alaya stands, "I see. Are you going alone?"

Fiona doesn't say a thing.

Alaya sits back down and balls her hands into a fist. 'Damn it! I can't lose my love. I can't.' "What if we lease a small flat. Something simple like Tori and Allie?"

Fiona doesn't say a thing.

Alaya decides to just sit and relax. She takes in her wife's scent and feels her presence.

They sit in silence for what seems hours. Alaya looks at the clock on the wall, two-twenty. "I am sorry, I must return to work. We have to meet Scotland Yard." She stands, walks to her wife and sits down next to her on the sofa. "Please find your happiness."

Fiona nods yes and leans into Alaya's shoulder. "All I feel is anger."

Alaya wraps one arm around her wife, "I am truly sorry. I must go."

"I do understand. I do this to you almost everyday."

Alaya kisses her wife on the cheek and heads back home to pick up Mother Vastra.

"How is the little one?"

"Let us focus on the job at hand. Please?"

Vastra nods and they go over their plan.

The two remain hidden as they watch the empty dock become an anthill of activity at four in the morning. They wait.

A automobile pulls up at four forty-five and a tall woman gets out with a roll of papers. She walks to the leaders and hands the roll to Mister X and returns to the automobile to wait.

The clocks strike five, Mister X hands the roll to the captain and goes back to the automobile the tall woman drives.

'What do we do?' Alaya asks, 'We can't let them get away.'

'They won't; we aren't alone'

Alaya licks the air, 'Scotland yard is here.'

'We must never take chances. We have wives at home that depend on us.'

'You do.'

Vastra puts Alaya's last comment in the back of her mind.

The detective partners wait and watch as a navy ship flashes on its lights blocking the now departing ship from movement. Scotland yard moves in and blocks the car with Mister X and mystery woman driver.

Vastra and Alaya emerge from their perch and meet with the Inspector of Scotland Yard. "Are these the two?"

Vastra describes what transpired throughout the night.

Alaya looks towards her notes and offers Miss Shaw's translation and time activities until Scotland Yard arrived.

The three look over as the captain is escorted off the boat and the Inspector is handed the roll of papers. He quickly unrolls it and shows his consultants. "It looks like this information will stay on our side of the pond. Good job. I expect to have your report by tomorrow evening. Good day."

The two head on home. Vastra quickly goes into bed with her wife.

Alaya does not.

Fiona is fatigued but needs to performs an emergency amputation. She completes the operation without incident. After she cleans herself off, change she returns to her dark office. She walks in and turns on the light. Alaya quickly stand with two suitcases. "Together."