Chapter 18: Tooth and Claw
A group of cowled figures cross the windy moor with their cart and enter the courtyard of a large house. They are greeted by the main manservant of the household. The steward says to the Father that he is not welcome, particularly today and the Father replies they want the house. He states they will take the house and the Steward sarcastically asks if they want his wife as well.
"I like him." Donna laughs.
The Father states they will take it by force and the steward mockingly asks by what power, the hand of God. Father Angelo replies the fist of man. He attacks the Steward and fights like an eastern martial arts master, using his long staff to good effect.
"Oi!" Donna protests at the screen.
At his signal, the other monks drop their homespun robes to reveal that each of them is bald and wearing a red Gi. They take on and defeat the rest of the men. Then they go into the house, taking most of the rest of the servants prisoner.
"Well that escalated quickly." Martha remarks.
"So were we supposed to be stopping off in Scotland?" Rose looks at Ten who goes slightly red.
"Not quite." He mutters.
"Where were we going?"
"Sheffield." Everybody laughs.
"Close."
"Well given that he mixed up Aberdeen and Croyden I'm not surprised." Sarah-Jane teases. A fresh round of laughter begins as both Doctors try to protest they aren't that bad at driving.
The servants are chained up in a cellar, along with their mistress. The Steward is surprised to see the woman next to him. The monks wheel a covered crate down the slope into the cellar. Steward asks what is under the canvas. When he is ignored he tries again and Angelo simply says may God forgive him. The canvas is removed and the monks leave. The captives scream.
"Well, this should be interesting." Jack raises an eyebrow.
"I'm sure he'll find out what that thing is." Mickey gestures to Ten.
"Of course." Ten grins. This was one monster that, while dangerous, he had found truly interesting.
In the TARDIS Rose has changed into denim mini-dungarees. She asks if it will do and the Doctor tells her in the 1970's she'd be better off in a bin bag.
"Oi." Rose protests while trying not to laugh.
"Depending where you're supposed to be going he isn't entirely wrong." Sarah-Jane tells her.
The Doctor tells her to listen as he puts on a CD. It's Ian Dury and the Blockheads. Rose calls him a big old punk with a bit of rockabilly thrown in. He asks if she'd like to see him and she asks if he means in concert. He points out that's what they have the TARDIS for.
"I thought it was for finding trouble?" Jack grins.
"I don't go looking for trouble, it usually finds me." Ten complains. Martha and Rose both laugh loudly.
"That didn't look like 1979." Mickey points out.
"Weeeell...I might have gotten the year a bit wrong too. Easily done." Ten sniffs.
"How wrong?" Sarah-Jane asks in amusement.
"It was 1879." He admits.
He names a bunch of places he could take her, including an Ian Dury concert, Sheffield, 1979 and Rose agrees to the concert. He tells her to hold on and pushes the button. They both jerk forwards. The Doctor beats the rhythm of the song on the console as they travel. Rose calls for him to stop and they stop suddenly. They both get thrown to the floor laughing.
"You're awful." Rose giggles. "Carpets might help with those landings."
"No carpets. Ever!" Nine tells her sternly, though his lips twitch in amusement.
"Spoilsport." Jack grins. "Carpets make so many things more comfortable." He waggles his eyebrows and Martha wacks him on the arm.
The Doctor jumps to his feet, offering a hand to Rose before putting on his coat and listing all the things that happened in 1979, including Skylab falling to Earth and almost taking off his thumb. He walks outside and trails off as rifles are cocked all around them. They are surrounded by Redcoats. The officer in charge is on a black horse. He realises the year saying it's the same difference.
"Not really." Donna snorts.
"Well, it was just as interesting as 1979." Ten shrugs.
The captain tells him to explain his presence and the nakedness of Rose. The Doctor puts on a Scottish accent asking if they are in Scotland. The captain asks how he can not know that and he blames it on being dazed and confused from chasing the 'wee naked child' over hill and dale.
"You're blaming me" Rose looks at him, eyebrows raised.
"Well you are the one that's half naked." Ten grins.
"Because I didn't know to dress for 1879." She mock glares at him. "Which is your fault."
"Well, I couldn't tell them I was supposed to be in 1979, they'd think I was crazy." He protests.
"They'd be right." Donna laughs.
"Oi!" Both Doctor's protest.
He asks Rose if that is right, calling her a timorous beastie. Rose tries a Scottish accent but the Doctor tells her not to. She continues and he pleads with her to stop, which she does eventually, and identifies himself as Doctor James McCrimmon from Balamory.
"Really? Balamory?" Mickey looks at Ten like he has lost his mind.
"It was the first thing that sprung to mind. I wasn't exactly expecting this." Ten defends.
"Really? Balamory was the first thing that sprung to mind?" Rose asks in amusement. Ten looks at her, annoyed and doesn't deign to respond.
He adds that he has credentials, pulling out the psychic paper. A voice calls from the carriage to let them approach. The commander doesn't want to but the voice insists. The commander tells them to show all due deference. A footman opens the door to reveal Queen Victoria. The Doctor informs Rose who she is and Rose introduces herself, apologising for being naked.
"Queen Victoria? That's cool." Jack grins.
"Least she didn't want to cut your head off." Martha sniggers.
"Yet." Ten mumbles quietly.
"Yet? Did you run your mouth again?" Donna laughs. He sticks his tongue out at her.
"It wasn't my fault this time."
Victoria dismisses this, saying she's had five daughters, then asks to see the Doctor's credentials. He hands her the psychic paper and she says that it states he has been appointed her protector. He is momentarily surprised but recovers and asks why she is travelling by road when she could go by train.
"You didn't know it was going to say that?" Mickey asks, rolling his eyes.
"It has a mind of its own sometimes." Nine shrugs. "Sometimes I don't have time to think of anything suitable so just let the paper do the work for me."
She tells him there was a tree on the line. When he asks if it was an accident she points out that, as Queen, things around her tend to be planned. Rose is surprised that there are people wanting to kill her.
"She's had six attempts on her life by this point." Nine laughs.
"If what happened at the beginning is anything to go by, there's another one coming." Sarah-Jane notes.
Victoria notes that she is used to staring down the barrel of a gun. Commander Reynolds informs her that Sir Robert MacLeish lives ten miles away and will shelter them so they can reach Balmoral the next day. Victoria states that the Doctor and his timorous beastie will go with them.
"Great, now even Queen Victoria is calling me a timorous beastie." Rose glares at Ten. He shrugs, looking sheepish.
"I'll remember not to call you that if we end up there." Nine promises. She nods and her glare lessens to a fake scowl she keeps directed at Ten. He winks at her.
Reynolds says they should get moving and Victoria mentions that there are stories of wolves in those parts, calling them fanciful tales intended to scare children.
"Wolves?" Martha looks at Ten. "You telling me you met a werewolf or something?"
"Or something." He grins.
The Doctor and Rose walk with the soldiers behind the carriage. Rose is saying that assassination makes you think of Kennedy, not Doctor tells her that by 1879 she has had six attempts on her life. Then grins as he states they just met Queen Victoria. They bet a tenner that Rose can get her to say 'I am not amused'.
"I bet you don't pay me." Rose grins at him.
"You don't know you win yet." Ten protests mildly.
"Course I do." Rose smirks. He rolls his eyes playfully. Then shakes his head. "Your debt really is adding up." She teases.
"Debt?" Nine raises an eyebrow.
"Yeah, maybe we should stop betting till you can pay up?" She suggests. He looks indignant and she laughs.
We finally see the grand granite edifice that owns the courtyard. It has a large astronomical observatory on the roof. The master of the house watches the Royal procession enter the courtyard from an upstairs window. Robert protests he can do this as it is treason. Father Angelo is dressed as a butler and tells him his wife will suffer if he doesn't.
"Poor bloke." Martha mutters.
"Still tried to warn us, bless him." Ten mumbles, sad he couldn't save the man.
Sir Robert comes out to meet Queen Victoria. The rest of the monks are also dressed as indoor servants. She greets him and asks after his wife. He tells her she has gone to Edinburgh for the season and has taken the cooks. He tries to persuade her to move on but Victoria is having none of it, saying her late husband often spoke of the Torchwood Estate.
"Torchwood?" Jack raises an eyebrow. Ten nods angrily. He hadn't thought anything of it then and didn't realise the name had gone so far back in time.
Victoria asks him to excuse the naked girl. Rose apologises and the Doctor explains she is feral and he bought her in London.
"I'm going to kill you." She tells Ten pleasantly. He grins sheepishly at her.
"If I told you I'd learnt my lesson?" He asks.
"I wouldn't believe you." She replies. He pouts.
Rose cuts him off, saying he thinks he is funny but she is not amused before asking Victoria's opinion. She states it hardly matters and asks if they shall proceed.
"Gotta try harder than that Rosie." Jack tells her with a smirk.
"I'm just getting warmed up." Rose replies.
Rose comments she was close.
"Not really." Mickey tells her in amusement. Rose rolls her eyes at him.
Queen Victoria goes inside. Reynolds tells two men to escort the property. They take a small locked box from the carriage and carry it into the house. The Doctor asks what's in there and Reynolds tells him it is the property of the crown and not to think on it anymore.
"You can tell he's not met you before." Donna sniggers.
He tells the other guards to assume their designated positions. The shadows of the soldiers pass the cellar lights. A cloaked figure in the cage makes the shush gesture to the captives. One of the soldiers places the wooden box inside an iron lattice crate. Reynolds tells him to guard it with his life. In the Observatory, Victoria asks if a massive bronze telescope if the famous Endeavour. Robert tells her it's his father's work, having become his obsession.
"It's pretty impressive." Martha nods.
"Very big though. Does it need to be that big?" Sarah-Jane asks.
"In those times, probably." Jack shrugs.
The Doctor states he wish he'd met him and asks if he can. Robert agrees and the Doctor looks it over asking what he modelled it on. Robert claims to know nothing about it but wishes he had listened to his father's stories now. The Doctor states it's a bit rubbish, asking how many prisms it has, before stating way too many.
"Rude!" Rose exclaims.
"Oops." Ten rubs the back of his neck sheepishly.
He continues that the magnification is way over the top before asking Rose if he is being rude again.
"Well, at least you realise it, eventually." Donna rolls her eyes.
Rose agrees and as he stands up he states it is very pretty.
"Brilliant cover." Martha shakes her head in amusement.
Victoria states the imagination of it should be applauded. Rose tried again to get her to say the famous phrase but is unsuccessful. They talk about her husband and Robert's father before mentioning a story about a wolf. The Doctor asks him to tell the story but Angelo interrupts to tell them it's almost dark. Victoria says it is supper time before asking to find some clothes for Rose. Rose tries again but is ignored as Victoria continues that they shall dine at seven to hear talk of the wolf as it is a full moon that night.
"They have a werewolf downstairs and it's a full moon?" Martha looks rather excited.
"It's like a werewolf but not quite." Ten corrects, unable to help himself.
Rose explores the contents of a wardrobe. Downstairs in the kitchen, the monks are making a brew with mistletoe, under the watchful gaze of Father Angelo. Rose finds a blue velvet dress that is to her liking as the monks serve mugs of their special brew to the soldiers on guard. Rose opens another cupboard and discovers a housemaid.
The soldiers fall down. The monks take their weapons.
"Woah." Rose exclaims upon seeing the girl in the cupboard.
"I wonder how she escaped being captured with the rest?" Sarah-Jane questions.
"She might explain." Donna shrugs.
The maid tells her they took the Steward, the Master and her Lady. Rose tells her she has a friend who will know what to do, urging the girl to go with her.
"I doubt you'll get that far through the house." Jack winces. "Especially if you bring her with you. The second they see her you'll both be caught."
The girl tells her she can't. Rose asks for her name and she gives it. Rose tells her more people arrived downstairs who can help them. Around the corner they find one of the soldiers lying on the floor. Flora points out she did warn her and Rose realises he isn't dead just drugged. Father Angelo grabs Flora from behind and drags her away. Another takes Rose and a third removes the soldier.
"Great." Rose groans. "Wonder how long it'll take you to realise I'm not at dinner." She looks at Ten.
"I obviously knew you weren't there. It's more a case that I was told you were just taking your time getting dressed." He tries for a winning smile and she rolls her eyes at him.
In the dining room, Angelo indeed tells the Doctor Rose has been delayed by her clothing. The Doctor is unconcerned, telling them to save her some ham. Victoria comments she could probably eat it raw. Reynold tells her that was very witty and she dryly tells him it was slightly witty perhaps and not to get over excited about eating with her.
"Well she's just bundles of fun." Rose grumbles.
"She is the queen." Martha points out. Rose just shrugs, unimpressed.
The Doctor reminds Robert of his promise to tell them of nightmares. Victoria agrees. In the cellar, the young monk in the cage is sitting quietly. Lady Isobel tells them not to make a sound as if they scream he will slaughter them.
"I get the feeling he'll do that anyway." Mickey mutters.
Rose says he is in a cage and a prisoner like they are. Isobel corrects he is nothing like them, saying he is not mortal. The young man opens his eyes. They are completely black.
"Woah!" Donna exclaims.
"Of course you'd arrive when it's the full moon that night when they have a werewolf." Jack sniggers.
Robert begins to tell the story. Reynolds dismisses it as a tale to cover up thievery and blame it on a wolf. Robert states that once a generation a child goes missing. Down in the cellar Rose gets up and moves towards the crate, as far as the chain will let her. Isobel tells her not to.
"She wouldn't be Rose if she didn't." Nine smiles slightly.
"Nothing else to do, might as well see if it'll talk to me and get some answers." She shrugs.
Rose asks who he is and the Steward tells her not to enrage him. Rose continues to ask what planet he is from and the man says she has intelligence. He states the body he is in was born ten miles away and stolen by the brethren.
"Poor kid. And his parents." Rose shudders slightly.
In the dining room the Doctor asks if there are descriptions of the creature. Robert tells him there are but he is more than a wolf, he is a man who becomes one. The Doctor states a werewolf. In the cellar Rose states the body is human but asks about the thing inside. The man says he is so far from home and Rose offers to help. He asks why he would leave when he could turn the world to such purpose.
"Werewolf diseases are spread through bites in the stories, aren't they? Well, who have the seemed to work hard to bring to that house?" Martha asks.
"You think they are after Queen Victoria?" Mickey asks her.
"Wouldn't be out of the question with these two around." Donna smirks, nodding at Ten and Rose.
"The royal family...werewolves?" Rose snickers.
"Didn't one of them be said to have a blood disease?" Donna remembers. Everyone shrugs.
Rose asks how it would do that and it tells her he would migrate to the Monarch. Rose confirms he means Victoria. He agrees that with one bite he would pass into her blood and then it begins.
"He would pass into her blood?" Jack frowns in confusion.
"Well, he said earlier that he had taken over that boy's body." Sarah-Jane points out.
"Not the normal, story version of a werewolf then?" Rose grins.
The man lunges at the crate. Everyone jumps as he says Rose has seen it too. When she asks what he says there is something of the Wolf about her.
"What?" Ten leans forwards. He vaguely recalled Rose telling him it said this but there had been many other things to worry about at the time.
"Do you think that means there is some lingering effect or something?" Rose asks him nervously.
"I don't know and I can't check because it's not happened to you yet." He grumbles, frustrated. "I don't think so."
She is surprised but states she doesn't know what he means and he continues that she burnt like the sun but all he requires is the moon.
"Some form of telepathy then." Nine mutters. "No other way he could possibly know that."
The full moon hangs high in the sky. In the dining room, Robert tells them his father didn't think it was a story. His father's work made enemies and the Brethren opposed his father's investigations. Angelo gazes out at the moon and starts chanting lupus deus est. Victoria comments that perhaps they thought the work ungodly. Robert agrees he thought that but now he wonders if they turned from God and worship the wolf.
"Seems like it." Jack agrees.
"Possibly." Donna mutters sarcastically.
The Doctor asks what if they were with them right now while looking at Angelo. The cellar doors are flung open, and the light shines in on the crate. The man says moonlight. The young man removes his cloak as an unnatural wind starts to blow through the cellar. Rose tells all of them not to look and to help her pull the chain.
"Well done Rose." Nine smiles.
"You'd better finish chatting and come help us out of there." She tells him sternly, not really doubting that he would come.
"Yes ma'am. I'll get right on that." He retorts with a grin.
The man begins his transformation. Everyone is scared and Rose tries to keep them focused on pulling the chain. In the dining room, Victoria asks what the meaning of this is as Reynolds points his gun at Angelo and demands Robert explains himself. He tells them that they have his wife and the Doctor yells, demanding to know where Rose is. Captain Reynolds keeps his revolver trained on the chanting monk as Robert and the Doctor dash out of the room.
"I'm more concerned that he didn't even notice a gun being pointed at him." Donna frowns.
The man continues his transformation as the girls and the Steward keep pulling on the chain. Upstairs, Reynolds keeps trying to ask Angelo what is going on but he simply keeps chanting. When he asks what he wants, he finally replies the throne before disarming Reynolds. Robert and the Doctor run along a corridor. The werewolf is fully formed, and examining its paws. The end of the chain breaks free of the wall. The Doctor and Robert kick their way in. Rose demands to know where the hell he has been.
"Wouldn't be the Doctor is he didn't take his time rescuing me." Rose teases.
"Oi!" Ten protests. "I take your safety very seriously."
"Yeah, I know. Still, for someone who boast about us humans being stupid apes, you can be quite slow sometimes." She grins. He pouts.
The Doctor sees the occupant of the crate and stares in awe as he calls it beautiful.
"Not the time, Doc." Jack tells him.
Robert tries to get everyone out as the werewolf starts breaking out of the cage. The Doctor then starts ushering people out but turns around and stares in admiration, then ducks as it throws a piece of crate at him. He runs out and locks the door with the sonic screwdriver.
"Yes it's pretty. Can we work out a way to stop it before we admire it?" Rose rolls her eyes.
"But if we stop it, I won't be able to admire it." Nine smirks. "And it is really rather wonderful."
"It might be less wonderful if it takes your head off." Donna shakes her head.
The werewolf's howl echoes through the house. Victoria asks Angelo if he halted the train to bring her there. He admits they waited a long time for her journey to coincide with a full moon and she tells him he has waited in vain. After six attempts on her life, she draws a gun and tells him she is hardly unprepared. Angelo isn't concerned and she tells him the correct address is Your Majesty, then she shoots at him.
"The Queen shooting a gun." Martha looks on in disbelief.
"Well, after six assassination attempts, I don't blame her carrying one around." Jack shrugs. "Makes sense really."
"Wonder if anyone actually taught her to shoot?" Ponders Sarah-Jane.
The Steward hands out the contents of the gun cupboard to the men. He tells Isobel to get the girls out through the kitchen.
"I don't think it will be that easy. There are a lot of them." Rose sighs.
Isobel says she can't leave Robert and asks what he will do. He tells her he will defend the Queen and that she needs to go. Isobel obeys and leads the girls away. The Doctor is removing the shackles with the sonic screwdriver as he asks Rose what it wants. She tells him it wants the Queen and everything.
"Light modulated species?" Mickey looks at Ten in confusion.
"I'm sure I'll explain eventually." He gestures to himself on the screen.
There is a crash of something bursting through a wooden door. The Doctor goes out to investigate and sees the werewolf at the other end of the passageway. He watches it for a few seconds then runs back in and grabs Rose. They stand behind the men who fire at the werewolf as it comes in and it backs off.
"Will they actually be able to kill it?" Martha asks.
"No." Nine tells her flatly.
In the kitchen, the outside door will not open. Isobel says they are sealed in and Flora looks out the window to see armed monks standing outside. She states they won't let them go.
"It's never that simple." Sarah-Jane sighs.
The Doctor has dropped his Scottish accent and tells them all to retreat upstairs but the Steward refuses, thinking nothing could survive such an assault. The Doctor tries to insist but he refuses again. When he checks the hallway he states it must have crawled away to die when he is hoisted up to the ceiling. The Doctor says there is nothing they can do and ushers Rose out of there. There is the sound of snarling and gunshots.
"I'm not sure upstairs is any safer." Mickey comments.
"We needed to find a defensible position while I worked out a way to stop it." Ten tells him, anger and sorrow etched on his face. Rose squeezes his hand and he smiles at her.
The women hear the shouting and gunshots. Flora asks if they killed it but then the werewolf enters, sniffs the air and leaves.
"It just left them?" Rose looks confused.
"It doesn't like the smell of the kitchen?" Sarah-Jane frowns.
Meanwhile, Victoria recovers her property from the strongroom. The Doctor, Robert and Rose meet Victoria on the staircase as she asks Robert what is going on. He tells her they need to get out and asks about Angelo. She lies and tells him Captain Reynolds disposed of him.
"Guessing she's kept that gun quiet then." Mickey states.
"Well, wouldn't do her much good if everyone knew she had one." Nine points out.
"Well yeah, but you would think her guards would know." Mickey replies.
"Robert isn't one of her guards." Jack shrugs.
The Doctor tells them the front door has been boarded shut so her Majesty will have to let it out a window. In the drawing room, Robert says he will go first to assist Victoria and she says that is a noble sentiment. The Doctor and tells them to hurry up. Robert opens the window and the monks fire. Victoria asks if they know who she is.
"Yes, I think that's kind of the point." Rose rolls her eyes.
Rose points out they do and the wolf has lined her up for a biting. Victoria tells her there can't be a real wolf. There is a howl and they run out of the room. In the corridor the wolf is smashing the door and Rose asks what they do. The Doctor says they run and she asks if that is it.
"Not many other options." Nine tells her.
"You should be used to that plan by now." Donna laughs.
He asks if she has any silver bullets and she retorts not on her. The Doctor says they run then and tells Victoria that as a doctor he recommends a vigourous jog. He takes her hand and they run up the staircase.
"Don't envy her running in that dress. Glad I didn't have a chance to get changed." Rose notes.
"Probably for the best." Jack agrees with a wink.
The werewolf smashes its way out of below stairs and follows them. The Doctor urges them all on. The werewolf is nearly upon them when Reynolds turns and shoots. It retreats. He says he will hold the position and tells them to keep moving. He adds that Victoria's property was gone. She tells him she has it.
"Probably not the most important thing at the moment." Martha rolls her eyes.
He tells her to go and the Doctor to stand as her protector. He calls Robert a traitor as the Doctor points out that bullets can't stop it. Reynold just says it will buy them time.
"They haven't exactly bought much time before." Sarah-Jane points out.
Reynolds empties his revolver at the werewolf before it pounces and rips him apart.
"It didn't even slow it down at all." Jack exclaims, wide eyed. "Before, it at least backed off a little under fire."
They all dash into the library except Rose, who stands just outside watching Reynolds.
"No! Just move!" Mickey urges her.
The Doctor calls her and drags her inside the room. Robert tells them to barricade the door and they do. The Doctor tells them to shush and then states it has stopped. He leans against the door and on the other side the werewolf sniffs at it then leaves. He tells them it's gone and Rose tells them to listen. There are footsteps and growls from outside the walls as it walks around the room.
"Why hasn't it just smashed the door down?" Donna asks.
"Dunno, I'm just grateful for whatever is stopping it." Rose shrugs.
The Doctor asks if that is the only door. Robert says yes and then yells no and they dash to barricade the other door. The noises continue outside the walls. Rose asks what's stopping it. The Doctor says something inside the room and then he and Rose grin about the fact they've seen a werewolf.
"Again, time for that later." Jack laughs.
He asks if she is ok and she tells him she is. Robert apologises for this, saying he tried to suggest something was wrong and asks if they noticed anything strange about the staff. The Doctor shrugs this off and Rose tries to get Victoria to say the famous phrase again. She is upset Rose thinks this is funny and asks what it is. When the Doctor answers her she asks why she should trust him when his voice changes so easily.
"Oh yeah, I hadn't even thought about it." Martha laughs.
"Can you do a Scottish accent?" Rose asks Nine. He shakes his head.
Victoria says she won't have it, all of this is not her world. In the kitchen, Isobel spots something draped over the monks outside and realises it's mistletoe. Then she asks who brought all the mistletoe isn't the kitchen and Flora tells her it must have been the brethren so Isobel tells them to gather it all up.
"Oh she's a smart one." Ten smiles.
"Good job she's paying attention." Sarah-Jane nods.
In the library there is a carving of mistletoe on the door. The Doctor notices and says it's mistletoe, asking Robert if his father put it there. He says he doesn't know but he supposes so. The Doctor notes there is one of the other door but a carving wouldn't be enough. He licks the door and Rose gives him a slightly disgusted look.
"Better than licking blood I suppose." Martha laughs slightly.
"Well, he's already done that, I can think of better things for him to lick." Jack sniggers and winks. Both Doctors throw him a disgusted look.
The Doctor notes that the oil of mistletoe has been worked into the wood and calls mistletoe powerful stuff. Rose asks if the wolf is allergic and he says it thinks it is. The brethren need a way of controlling it so they trained it to react against certain things. Robert states they still don't have a weapon.
"His father got all the brains of that family then." Nine rolls his eyes.
The Doctor comments that his father got all the brains.
"Some things don't change." Donna laughs.
Rose comments he is being rude again and he says he meant that one. They are in a library and books are the best weapons in the world. He throws some books at Rose and tells them to arm themselves.
"It's not exactly something humans will have done much research on." Mickey points out.
"No, but the person who has done almost all research that humans have, is Robert's father." Sarah-Jane grins.
The housemaids are chopping up the remaining mistletoe. Flora points out there is no sound of the wolf, suggesting it has gone. Isobel says it could be toying with them but while there is a chance her husband is still alive, she will assist him. Flora throws the mistletoe into boiling water.
"Good for her." Martha smiles.
In the library, Robert, Rose and the Doctor all flip through books, trying to find something when the Doctor jumps down from a ladder and puts a book on the table saying something fell to Earth. Robert reads that in 1540 an alimight fire burned in the pit and says that is the Glen of Saint Catherine by the monastery. Rose points out that was over three hundred years ago, asking what it has been waiting for.
"It's surviving by infecting a host. Probably only a single cell survived and had to grow through the generations." Nine tells her.
The Doctor says that maybe only a single cell survived and it grew host by host. Robert asks why it wants the throne and Rose tells him that's what it said, the empire of the wolf. The Doctor tells them what could happen but Victoria interrupts to say to Robert that if she is to die here at which point he cuts in telling her not to say that. She ignores this and states she would rather destroy herself than be infected.
"Don't blame her on that front." Donna mutters.
She continues that she wants him to protect something older and more precious than herself. The Doctor tells her it's not the time to be worried about her valuables.
"Agreed." Mickey nods.
"Besides, I'm not sure what she thinks he can do with it. The way he has been talking, he will probably die defending her if it comes to that." Martha points out.
Victoria thanks him for his opinion but states there is nothing more valuable than this and draws out a large diamond.
Jack whistles appreciatively.
"That's one big diamond." Donna looks at it surprise. "Still not as important as her life though."
Rose asks if it is the Koh-I-Noor. The Doctor agrees it is. Victoria tells them it was given to her as a spoil of war and that perhaps it's legend is coming true. Apparently whoever owns it must die.
"Well, if you keep it long enough of course that's going to be true. Everyone dies at some point." Sarah-Jane rolls her eyes.
The Doctor points out that it true of anything if you own it long enough. Then he asks if he can, while holding out his hand for it. She hesitates but gives it to him and he examines it. Rose asks how much it's worth and he replies it's said to be worth the wages of the entire planet for a week.
"My mum would kill the wolf herself for that." Rose giggles.
"She certainly would. Wouldn't even get a scratch." Ten smirks
Rose comments it's a good thing her mum isn't here or she'd be fighting the wolf off with her bare hands. The Doctor agrees that Jackie would win.
"Well, you two don't change much." Jack laughed.
Robert asks where the wolf is as he doesn't trust the silence but the Doctor asks Victoria why she travels with the diamond. She explains about her annual pilgrimage and Rose argues that it is perfect. Victoria amends that her late husband didn't think so. The Doctor adds that Prince Albert kept having it cut down.
"Why would you cut such a thing?" Donna looks astonished.
"He was just never happy." Nine shrugs.
Victoria adds that he died with it unfinished. The Doctor looks at her clearly having figured something out. He mutters 'unfinished' and throws the diamond back to Victoria.
"I know that look. That's a 'I just figured something out' look." Rose smirks. She looks up to find Nine with almost the same expression which makes her laugh. It's nice to find some similarities between the Doctors as well as the differences.
"Well, I am fantastic." Nine grins at her.
"You keep thinking that." Donna rolls her eyes.
He says there is a lot of unfinished business in the house. He states that Robert's father research and her late husband coming to the house were connected. He spins around running his hands through his hair frantically as he asks if this house is a trap for her.
"You're going to end up bald as him if you keep that up." Mickey smirks at Ten while nodding his head towards Nine.
"Oi!" Nine protests.
"My hair will be fine." Ten assures Mickey.
Victoria tells him obviously. He states that is what the wolf intended but asks what if there is a trap within a trap.
"You think Robert's father and Prince Albert put a trap in the house for the wolf?" Sarah-Jane asks. Ten beams at her.
"That's exactly what I think. The doors of mistletoe are a bit of a hint that they prepared the house is some way for this." He agrees.
Victoria tells him to explain himself.
"Don't say that, you'll be there forever." Donna sniggers.
He states that her husband and Robert's father dared to imagine it was all true and put in place a real trap for the wolf not her. Plaster dust falls from the ceiling. They look up to the domes skylight. The Doctor adds 'that wolf there'.
"It finally found a way in." Martha winces.
"At least we have something to work with now. It was kind enough to leave us alone long enough for that." Rose smiles happily.
The glass in the skylight cracks. The Doctor yells for everyone to get out. They unbarricade the door and the Doctor closes the mistletoe doors on the wolf. They run and the Doctor tells them to get to the observatory. The werewolf easily gains on them and Rose turns to see it right behind her. She screams then a pan of liquid is thrown over it. It retreats. The Doctor calls good shot.
"Thank goodness." Nine breathes.
Flora tells them it was mistletoe and Robert spots Isobel. They kiss and Robert tells her to get back downstairs. Isobel tells him to keep himself safe and then she leads the girls back to the kitchens.
"They could probably have done with making more than one pan of that stuff." Jack notes.
"Yeah, but better one than nothing." Sarah-Jane shrugs. "There was a bit of a time constraint."
The Doctor calls for them to carry on. The Robert tells them the way to the observatory. They carry on up the staircase as the werewolf recovers. Outside the observatory the Doctor notes the lack of mistletoe as Robert's father wanted the wolf to get inside. He asks if there is a way of barricading the door and Robert tells him he will buy them time. The Doctor continues that they could bind them with rope but Robert insists that he will buy them time. The Doctor looks at him steadily before saying good man and shutting the doors.
"Poor Robert." Rose whispers, knowing exactly what would happen to him.
"Poor Isobel as well." Martha adds.
The Doctor asks for the diamond and Victoria asks why. He tells her it is what it was designed for. Outside, Robert takes a sword from a display on the wall and stands ready as the werewolf comes up the stairs.
"Oh, he doesn't even have a gun. A sword will do even less." Donna mutters unhappily.
Victoria hands over the diamond. The Doctor calls Rose and they go to the control wheels and start raising the telescope up. He tells her to lift it and Rose asks if it is the right time for stargazing. He states it is. Robert mutters that he committed treason for the wolf but now Isobel will remember him with honour.
"I'm sure she'd rather you alive than with honour." Rose scowls, knowing there wasn't actually much of a choice.
It is a very short fight. Victoria holds up her jet cross and prays. Rose calls through gritted teeth that the Doctor said it didn't work. He replies it doesn't work as a telescope because it isn't, it's a light chamber than magnifies light like a weapon. Rose points out there's no electricity but then realises it's moonlight that will power it.
"It's made of moonlight." Donna points out.
"Too much of anything can kill you, even if you're made from it." Nine tells her.
Rose points out it is made of moonlight. The Doctor points out she is 70% water but can still drown.
"Glad we cleared that up." Jack smirks.
The moon shines down into the telescope lens and bounces between the prisms, magnifying as it goes. The werewolf breaks in and goes for Queen Victoria. The Doctor slides the diamond over to where the light hits the floor. It refracts upwards, catching the werewolf in its beam and lifting it up off the floor. The wolf turns back into a young man, hanging as if crucified in mid air.
"Nice little slide there." Rose comments as they all breathe a sigh of relief.
"Always one for a little dramatic flair." Donna sniggers.
He asks the Doctor to make it brighter and let him go. The Doctor adjusts the magnification on the eyepiece. The man turns back into a wolf shape, howls and vanishes. Victoria looks at a small scratch on her wrist. The Doctor asks if it bit her and she denies it, saying it's a splinter from the door breaking open.
"She seems a bit too intrigued for a cut from a splinter." Sarah-Jane notes.
"And she lied pretty easily about Reynolds killing Angelo earlier." Martha adds with a raised eyebrow.
"If it infected her, would it just be a single cell again, having to grow over centuries?" Sarah-Jane asks.
"Most likely." Ten tells her with a smirk.
He asks to see it and she dismisses it again as nothing.
"That's so not nothing." Jack laughs.
In the drawing room the next morning. In the presence of the whole household, the Doctor and Rose kneel before Queen Victoria, who is armed with a sword. She knights the Doctor as Sir Doctor of Tardis and Rose becomes Dame Rose of the Powell Estate.
"Awesome. I'm a Dame." Rose grins widely.
"Go Rosie." Jack cheers.
The Doctor thanks her and Rose says they won't believe this back home. The Doctor then points out that Victoria's husband is protecting her from beyond the grave.
"That's sweet." Sarah-Jane smiles.
Victoria tells him to think on this also and then says she is not amused.
"Oh yes!" Rose cheers. "I so bet you don't pay up."
"Me? Of course I do." Ten looks at her innocently.
Victoria then tells them they are banished.
"What?" Everyone, except Ten, cries.
"Why did she Knight you only to banish you?" Donna asks.
"She was scared really. Scared by what happened and by what we knew." Ten smiles sadly.
The Doctor is confused. She explains that their world is steeped in terror and death and she will not allow it to become her world. She tells them to leave and never come back.
"She's missing out all the beauty that's out there and all the lives you save." Rose states firmly when she sees both Doctors looking down sadly.
The duo are dropped off by cart by the TARDIS. The Doctor tells Rose that Queen Victoria had a blood disease that wasn't inherited and Rose asks if he is saying it's a wolf bite.
"The royal family are werewolves?" Donna giggles.
"Might be." Ten smirks at her.
The Doctor laughs and says haemophilia may just be a euphemism. They discuss different reasons the family could be werewolves and the Doctor says it will take a hundred years to mature and be ready by the early 21st century.
"Well that's just brilliant." Martha remarks sarcastically.
They continue to laugh about how it could be true and they start howling as the TARDIS dematerialises.
"Well that was fun." Jack says.
"It's not gone black yet. There must be something else." Rose notes.
In the courtyard Victoria asks Isobel what she will do, if she will stay there. Isobel says she couldn't stay but she would sell it or pull it down. Victoria promises the events will not be forgotten and her husband's sacrifice will live on. Isobel asks how and Victoria says that she proposes an institute to investigate strange happenings. She will call it Torchwood, after the house.
Ten mutters angrily but nobody can make out what he is saying except Nine whose eyes widen in surprise and horror.
She states that if the Doctor comes back, Torchwood will be waiting.
"She saw how you helped with the strange happenings. How can she possibly think you are the enemy!" Rose grumbles angrily. Ten simply squeezes her hand gently and sighs. The wolf needed to be stopped but Torchwood was the cause of so many of his pains. He couldn't work out a way to avoid the situation and that annoyed him more than anything. He and his younger self would need to do some planning.
