Promised One 2

by arielle.dawnn

A continuation of season one with my OC Layla.

6. The Rise of the Cybermen

Just one more left...

Xxxxxx

Layla was skipping down the hall in a happy mood and humming quietly. While she can't sing to save her life, she can somewhat hum, as long as it was done softly. The Tardis was humming along with her also in a good mood. The Tardis knew that the next adventure was going to be a tough one, but they would get through it, and then what she was the most excited for. It was time for her Thief to tell his Promised One about their bond. The anticipation was killing her.

Layla gets to the console room and she hears the Doctor and Rose talking about a past adventure. Not wanting to interrupt she moves over to where she sees Mickey standing and holding down a button? What the…? She leans close to him and whispers. "Why are you doing that?"

He shrugs and nods his head towards the Doctor and whispers back. "He told me to." Layla narrowed her eyes at the Doctor and looks at him questioningly.

The Doctor is waving his hands all around in the air. "And that weird munchkin lady with the big eyes? Do you remember her? The way she looked at you! And then she opens her mouth and fire comes out!"

Rose laughs hysterically, she was happy that for once the Doctor was paying her attention. "I thought I was going to get frazzled!"

"Yeah. One minute she's standing there, and the next minute roar!" He imitates the woman's reaction poorly.

Mickey cuts in. "Yeah, where was that, then? What happened?"

The Doctor and Rose looked over at him in surprise. And the Doctor's face lights up seeing that Layla is standing there. Layla looked at them angrily realizing that they both had forgotten that he had been there. That means that the Doctor forgot that he told Mickey to hold down this button, so Mickey had been doing this for nothing.

"Oh, it was on this er, this er planet thing. Asteroid. It's a long story, you had to be there. Er." He scratched his head and scrunched his eyebrows together. "What're you doing that for?" He winces as he catches the angry glare that Layla sends his way, but doesn't know why she is mad at him.

"Because you told me to." Mickey snapped at him, now getting mad realizing what Layla had already figured out.

"When was that?"

"About half an hour ago." Was the flat response.

"Er, you can let go now." The Doctor was sheepish, but tried to play it off.

"Well, how long's it been since I could've stopped?" Mickey knew he had been forgotten about, he just wanted to know how long he had been forgotten for.

The Doctor tugged on his ear. "Ten minutes? Twenty? Twenty-nine?" If he could, he would have melted from the scorching gaze that Layla was leveling at him.

"You just forgot me!"

"No, no, no." The Doctor tried to play off.

"Yes, you did Doctor. Stop lying." Layla snapped at him.

"I was just, I was, I was calibrating. I was just. No, I know exactly what I'm doing." He didn't want Layla to think badly of him. He didn't want her mad at him either. As soon as he said that though the time rotor blew up and the Tardis immediately started to shake like crazy with sparks were coming out of random places.

"What's happening?" Rose asked gripping onto her seat.

"The time vortex is gone. That's impossible. It's just gone!" The Doctor was running around the console trying to see if he could fix it, but realized he couldn't and that they were going to crash. He rushes over towards Layla, wraps himself around her and grabs onto the column with her in the middle and holds on tight. "Brace yourselves! We're going to crash!"

"Hold onto your butts!" Layla got out with a slight hysterical giggle before they landed with a jarring and sudden stop. Oxygen masks drop from the ceiling and the power is off. The room is semi dark, but everyone can see around them.

The Doctor sags against Layla, happy that she is okay and wanted a moment of comfort from her, knowing what had happened to their home. "You alright?" He feels her nod against him and gives him a soft yes. He lifts his head up and pulls away from her. "Everyone alright? Rose? Mickey?"

"I'm fine. I'm okay. Sorry. Yeah." Mickey popped up like a jack in the box and dusted himself off.

The Doctor didn't wait for Rose to reply, but he had seen she was up and moving around so that was good enough for him. He looks around in anguish. "She's dead. The Tardis is dead." He feels Layla rub his back gently and he appreciates the comfort only she can give, but he still grieves for one of his oldest friends. For the loss of the last bit of his planet. His home. Their home. Their ability to have children. Oh, he could prolong her life, but he could not give her children now, not without the help of the time vortex.

Rose looks at him sadly. "You can fix it?"

"There's nothing to fix. She's perished. The last Tardis in the universe. Extinct."

"We can get help, yeah?" Rose was trying to be positive. Layla raised her eyebrows. What did she not understand about the last in the universe and extinct? There was nowhere to get help.

The Doctor was thinking along the same line. The only place they could get help is the place that he destroyed and that is impossible. "Where from?" He asked a little sourly.

Rose didn't notice his tone though. "Well, we've landed. We've got to be somewhere."

"We fell out of the vortex, through the void, into nothingness. We're in some sort of no place. The silent realm. The lost dimension." The Doctor knew he was probably being dramatic, but his hearts felt like they were being ripped apart from both the Tardis dying and that his future with Layla was now messed up.

They all missed Mickey going to the doors and opening them up. "Otherwise known as London." The all go outside and look around and see that it does indeed look like London. "London, England, earth. Hold on." Mickey picks up a newspaper from the ground. "First of February this year, not exactly far flung, is it?"

The Doctor looked around and noticed something that Mickey did not happen to notice. "So, this is London."

"Yep."

"Your city?" He asks him for clarification.

"That's the one."

"Just as we left it." The Doctor really wanted to snicker and call him Ricky the Idiot again.

"Bang on."

"And that includes the Zeppelins?" The Doctor points up to the sky and Mickey's mouth drops open comically.

"What the hell?" They all watch as massive airships pass overhead.

"That's beautiful." Rose watched them in awe. Layla just raised her brows wondering how that was beautiful.

Mickey tried to reason it out. "Okay, so it's London with a bit international Zeppelin festival."

The Doctor shook his head. "This is not your world."

Mickey shook the newspaper. "But if the date's the same, it's parallel, right? Am I right? Like a parallel earth where they've got Zeppelins. Am I right? I'm right, aren't I?"

He shrugged looking unconcerned but inwardly he was very much concerned. "Must be."

"So, a parallel world where…" Rose was trying to see what the differences would be.

Mickey was all too happy to be the one to explain it to her. "Oh, come on. You've seen it on films. Like an alternative to our world where everything's the same but a little bit different, like I don't know, traffic lights are blue, Tony Blair never got elected."

Mickey never got to continue to make examples because something caught Rose's eye and she cut in. "And he's still alive." They all look to see what Rose was staring at and they see an advert for Vitex Lite, and it had a picture of Pete Tyler on it. "A parallel world and my dad's still alive."

The Doctor's face darkened slightly, remember the disaster of what happened the last time they dealt with her father. "Don't look at it, Rose. Don't even think about it. This is not your world."

"But he's my dad and…" She touches the paper and it triggers a short holographic film. Trust me on this. "Well, that's weird. But he's real." Trust me on this. "He's a success. He was always planning these daft little schemes. Health food, drinks and stuff. Everyone said they were useless. But he did it."

The Doctor grit his teeth. "Rose if you've ever trusted me, then listen to me now. Stop looking at it. You father's dead. He died when you were six months old. That is not your Pete. That is a Pete. For all we know, he's got his own Jackie, his own Rose. His own daughter who is someone else, but not you. You can't see him. Not ever."

Trust me on this. Trust me on this. Trust me on this. Trust me on this.

Xxxxxx

Layla and the Doctor went back into the Tardis while Mickey stayed out with Rose. The Doctor was moving around the console trying to see if there anything he could do to fix this problem. Layla was staring blankly at a grate on the floor.

"Doctor? Would it really be such a bad idea for Rose to meet this world's Pete Tyler? It's not like what happened in our world would happen in this one. For one, he is alive and not dead, so there isn't a chance she would save him when she was supposed to be dead. But even if she told him she was his daughter in another world, it would be up to him to accept her word or not. Even she couldn't force him to accept it and she would have to give up eventually especially if we are stuck here."

The Doctor huffs and slumps down in the seat next to her and takes her hand. The Doctor had to admit that one of the reasons for denying Rose was because a part of him was still mad about losing Layla to the reapers because Rose saved her dad in their world. "I know. But we aren't supposed to be here. It's supposed to be impossible. Traveling in between the worlds like this, with other Time Lords, sure, but with only me, no way. I just don't know how we got here. And since I am the only one left, I just don't know how to get us back." He also doesn't want to tell her about the issue with the time vortex and their childless future. "It would also complicate things if this Pete Tyler already had a Rose Tyler for a daughter. Our Rose Tyler couldn't pretend to be his Rose Tyler because they are two different people. He would get suspicious and that would be bad. Or they could end up meeting and that would also be bad. I don't know what to do."

"Well, we can just make it up as we go, usually what we do anyways, yeah? If he doesn't have a Rose Tyler, we could give her the opportunity to meet him, and if it fails and she gets hurt, well we won't say I told you so, and we would be there to support her. But maybe she would finally learn that after two times of losing her dad, she just isn't supposed to have one in her life. Who knows, she might get lucky."

"Fine, but I won't make it easy on her. I don't want to give in right away and let her think she can do whatever she wants like this because like the first time, she severally damaged time and she killed you. I won't put up with things like that."

Layla leaned over and gave him a lingering kiss on his cheek. "I know… Grandpa. Thank you." Honestly, Layla wasn't sure why she was trying to help Rose like this. They had been having a rocky friendship as of late. She still loved her, but there was definitely tension. Rose seemed to be mad at Layla that the Doctor seemed to have feelings for Layla. However, if it had been the other way around, Layla would not have been that way. She would have been upset that the Doctor did not return her affections, but she would have been happy that her friend's feelings were returned. She doesn't understand why her friend wouldn't be happy for her like she would be for her friend. It was also rocky and even Mickey agrees, because Rose has been pulling away from the both of them, and even her mum. If they weren't the Doctor, she didn't really want anything to do with them. It was always about the Doctor now. All she seemed to care about now. When they got back from their adventures, Rose didn't want to spend any time with her. She would usually just go to her room for the night. And if she was in a common area by herself, it didn't take long for her to make an excuse and leave if Layla or Mickey entered the room.

Mickey comes in and the Doctor is annoyed that his time with Layla is interrupted. "I told you to keep an eye on her."

Mickey just waved him off, not concerned with her. "She's alright."

"She goes wandering off. Parallel world, it's like a gingerbread house. All those temptations calling out."

"Oh, so it's just Rose, then? Nothing out there to tempt me?" Layla looks at him thoughtfully and he avoids her eyes. She thinks about it and then she looks at him knowingly.

"Well, I don't know. I can't worry about everything. If I could just get this thing to…" He kicks the console and then starts to hop around on one foot and holds the other in his hands. He sits down and takes his shoe off and rubs his foot.

Mickey looks at him amused. "Did that help?"

"Yes." The Doctor says petulantly.

"Did that hurt?" Mickey snickers.

"Yes. Ow." He whines like a child. Layla reaches over and grabs his foot and rubs it firmly and he chokes down the indecent moan that almost comes out. She definitely knows how to use her hands to make someone melt.

When Layla finishes the Doctor has to restrain himself from asking her to do his other foot. So, he gets back onto the problem at hand. "We're not meant to be here." He explains to Mickey. "The Tardis draws its power from the universe, but it's the wrong universe. It's like diesel in a petrol engine."

"But I've seen it in comics. People go hopping from one alternative world to another. It's easy." Mickey figures that they would have had to base those type of stories off of something, right?

"Not in the real world. It used to be easy. When the Time Lords kept their eye on everything, you could hop between realities, home in time for tea. Then they died, and took it all with them. The walls of reality close, the worlds were sealed. Everything became that bit less kind."

Mickey asks the one question that has been bouncing around in the Doctor's brain since they arrived in this parallel world. "Then how did we get here?"

"I don't know. Accident? Should've been impossible. Now we're trapped." His head flops onto his chest but then something catches his eye. "What's that?"

Mickey looks to where he was looking at but didn't see anything. "What?" Layla didn't see anything either, but that was because as soon as the Doctor said something, he stood up and blocked her view of it, but she got a view of his bum and was ogling him. She wasn't going to complain at all.

"That, there. Is that a reflection?" The Doctor races over to the grate and pulls it off. He starts to dig around and tosses things out. "It's a light! Is it? Is that a light? I think that's a light. That's all we need. We've got power! Layla! Mickey, we've got power! Ha!" Yes! We can get home! Our home! Our future!

The Doctor wraps his hand around this tiny green light and Layla and Mickey crouch around him to see it. The Doctor is beaming at them, he is so excited to have found this. They can't even understand how happy he is to have this. They will never understand how happy he is, well maybe Layla would, one day. "It's alive!"

All Mickey sees is a growing green light. "What is it?"

"It's nothing." The Doctor says and Mickey's face drops. Then why are you so excited? The Doctor continues though. "It's tiny. One of those insignificant little power cells that no one ever bothers about, and its clinging onto life, with one little ounce of reality tucked away inside."

Mickey is starting to understand now. "Is it enough to get us home?"

Layla also understands that with the Doctor being this happy, it means that there is a way to go home. Which is phenomenal because she doesn't want to give up traveling with the Doctor and she doesn't want the Doctor to be sad to lose his home and have to be stuck without being to travel like he does.

The Doctor shakes his head. "Not yet. I need to charge it up."

Mickey misunderstands the type of energy needed for this power cell. "We could go outside and lash it up to the National Grid."

"Wrong sort of energy. It's got to come from our universe."

Mickey slumps. "But we don't have anything."

The Doctor just gives him a beaming grin. "There's me." He cradles the little green light and blows an almost gold air on it. It gets brighter. He gives a giddy laugh. "I just gave away ten years of my life. Worth every second."

"It's alive! It's alive!" Layla cackles like Dr. Frankenstein and the Doctor looks at her fondly.

The power cell started to dim and Layla started to look at it worryingly but she sees that the Doctor isn't so she relaxes. Mickey also looks at it worried. "It's going out. Is that okay?"

"It's on a recharging cycle. It'll loop round, power back up and be ready to take us home in, oh, twenty-four hours?"

Mickey jumps up and claps his hands together. There has been something he has been thinking about and wondering if he would be able to do. Now that he knows that they have twenty-four hours before they can leave, he knows he has plenty of time. "So, that gives us twenty-four hours on a parallel world?"

"Shore leave. As long as we keep our heads down. Easy. No Problem. Let's go and tell her."

Layla just started to slow clap. "Didn't I say this before, Doctor. Remember Margaret. You never say things like, easy, no problem, keep our heads down. You can never do any of that."

"Oi!" Was the Doctor's indignant reply as he reached over to pinch Layla's side. She laughs as she avoids him and runs outside.

Xxxxxx

Rose was sitting on a curb looking at her phone so she didn't see that the Doctor and Layla came out. She never even noticed that Mickey had even left her and came out with them. "There you are. You alright? No applause. I fixed it. Twenty-four hours, then we're flying back to reality. What is it?" The Doctor explained smugly before looking curious at Rose's expression.

Rose didn't even look at him, too focused on what she was reading. "My phone connected. There's this Cybus Network. It finds your phone. It gave me internet access."

The Doctor realized what she must have done, and like he told Layla, he wouldn't make it easy for her. Besides he was still hoping she would give up her plan of trying to see Pete. "Rose, whatever it says, this is the wrong world."

"I don't exist."

"What do you mean?" Please don't tell me…

"There's no Rose Tyler. I was never born. There's Pete, my dad, and Jackie. He still married mum, but they never had kids."

Dammit. Exactly what I was hoping she wouldn't say. But I'm not giving up. "Give me that phone."

"They're rich. They've got a house and cars, and everything they want. But they haven't got me. I've got to see him."

He shook his head. "You can't."

"I just want to see him."

You already seen him before! You saved him! You damaged time and killed my Promised One! Wasn't that trip enough for you! "I can't let you."

"You just said twenty-four hours!" Rose didn't understand why he was being so stubborn about this.

"You can't become their daughter, that's not the way it works. Mickey, tell her."

Xxxxxx

While the Doctor and Rose were arguing with each other, Layla and Mickey were having their own little chat. Layla knew what Mickey wanted to do. She knew who he wanted to see, and she didn't blame him. She also knew that he knew that she knew because he had been avoiding her eyes for a while now.

"Mickey." She watched him flinch a little guiltily before resolving himself to his decision and looking at her with defiance, but he relaxes when he sees the understanding in her eyes. "I know who you want to see, and I don't have a problem with it. If I had someone like her in my life and lost them, I would probably want to do the same. Your gran was a wonderful person and I hope she is here." She looks over her shoulder to see how the Doctor and Rose's conversation was going and see that it is still heated.

She steps closer to Mickey and speaks a little more urgently not sure how much time they have left to talk. "Listen. I would go with you. I would love to see her, even if she wouldn't know who I was. But I don't think the Doctor would let me. Look at the trip with Reinette. He took me with him everywhere he went. And I think if I forced the issue and went with you, I think he would even come with us, and you and I both know that Rose would go see Pete whether she had to go alone or not. And we can't let that happen. Who knows what kind of trouble she would get into in her emotional state. You remember what I told you what happened last time she seen her dad in our world, right?"

"Yeah, you died. And this Pete has no idea who she is, and wouldn't believe that she is his daughter from a parallel world. Yeah, she can't be by herself. And I agree, the Doctor wouldn't let you come with me without him wanting to come too. But that's okay. I can take care of myself, and I am glad you will be there to protect Rose. I may not be happy with her right now, but I do still love her. I think I always will and I want her safe."

Layla looks at him sadly and gives him a small hug ignoring the feeling of wrongness that glides across her skin. "Try to sneak in a hug to your gran from me. I hope she is here Mickey."

They finish their conversation just in time to hear the Doctor demand Mickey to tell Rose that she can't see Pete. But he just starts to walks backwards away from them. "Twenty-four hours, yeah?"

The Doctor looks at him baffled. "Where're you going?" Layla turns away from the Doctor to hide her amused grin at his expression at losing control of the situation.

"Well, I can do what I want." Was Mickey's snarky reply, and he bit his cheek to keep from laughing when he seen Layla's smile and the Doctor gaping at him.

Rose cut in and started to walk to opposite way as well. "I've got the address and everything."

The Doctor stomped his foot like a toddler and like it would make a difference. "Stay where you are, both of you. Rose, come back here! Mickey, come back here right now!"

"I just want to see him." Rose repeated like a broken record.

"Yeah, I've got things to see and all." Mickey said knowing that the Doctor would have no idea who he would want to see, but it still stings to be proven right with his next question.

"Like what?"

"Well, you don't know anything about me, do you? It's always about Layla and Rose. I'm just a spare part." He directs that specifically at the Doctor because he knows that Layla never treated him like that. She always made sure he was never treated like that.

"I'm sorry. I've got to go." Rose took off and didn't look back too focused on her own goals.

The Doctor was looking back and forth between Mickey and Rose and then at Layla. His nostrils were flaring and there was a tightness in his eyes. Mickey decided to help him out to stick to the plan that him and Layla came up with. To protect Rose. "Go on, then. There's no choice, is there? You can only chase after one of us. It's never going to be me, is it?"

"I'll go with hi…" Layla doesn't even get to finish her sentence before the Doctor grabs her hand and yanks her towards the direction where Rose went. She figured he would, but if she didn't at least say she was going with Mickey, it would be suspicious since she always chose to go with him when she got the chance. Mickey was her best friend. She wasn't going to stop spending time with him just because she loved the Doctor.

The Doctor's mind and emotions were in a chaotic storm. He was frustrated with Rose, frustrated with Mickey. Irritated that they had to stay here for twenty-four hours. And jealous that Layla wanted to leave him again to go with Mickey. She is his. His. She should want to be with him, and she always wants to go with Mickey. There was a dark possessiveness in him that wanted to show her who she belonged to, and it wasn't Mickey. It was him. It would always be him. He shivers slightly at all the sinful thoughts that race through his mind. Ways that he could show her such pleasure that she would never want to be with anyone else. Of course, she would have to beg for it, and would only get it if he felt she had earned it. He never once realized that had she really wanted to be with Mickey, she would have fought against the Doctor to be with him.

"Back here, twenty-four hours!" He growls out to Mickey. His voice was gravely and it caused Layla to shiver in arousal at that and his possessiveness.

Xxxxxx

Mickey is walking with his hands in his pockets casually taking in this parallel worlds London and noticing the similarities and differences as he heads to his grans house. He tilts his head to the side as he comes up to an army roadblock that he would have to go past to get to her house. "Am I alright to get past?" He was worried about getting into trouble, but the possibility of seeing his gran was worth the trouble.

The soldier just nods good naturally. "Yeah. No bother. Curfew doesn't start till ten."

"There's a curfew?"

The soldier looks at him like he was an idiot. "Course there is. Where you been living, mate? Up there with the toffs?" He points up towards the Zeppelins.

Mickey just chuckles awkwardly trying to play it off. "I wish. See you."

The closer he gets to his grans house, the more nervous he gets. Many thoughts are running through his head. He is wondering if she is even in this world. Alive? Blind? Black? He wouldn't be surprised if she was different on all accounts, Rose wasn't even born, anything was possible in a parallel world. He hopes she is still at the same flat she was in, otherwise he has no idea what to do and he doesn't have the time to try to find her with only twenty-four hours and he knows that the Doctor won't help him find her either. He could probably get Layla's help in securing the Doctor's help, but again, only twenty-four hours. He chews the inside of his cheek and is tapping his fingers against his thigh as he thinks about seeing his gran.

Getting to his grans possible flat, he wipes his sweaty palms on his pants, takes a deep breath, and rattles the knocker on the door. The wind is knocked out of him with he hears his grans sweet voice call out from behind the door "Who's that there?" She opens the door and has a white stick and he sees a pair of big ear pods in her ears.

Mickey's eyes cloud up with tears and his lip trembles. He is just speechless and he isn't sure what to say. He can't believe it. She is here. She is alive. Still blind, but here, and still black! "Who is it? I know you're there. Shame on you, tricking an old lady, I've got nothing worth stealing. And don't think I'm going to disappear! You're not going to take me."

"Hi." Was the only thing he could get out and it was said so softly he wasn't sure she could even hear it.

But she did. She stops herself from her next tirade and her face softens and she looks so hopeful. "Is that you?"

Mickey knows that it isn't really him that she is waiting for to come home. That it is his parallel self, or even someone that sounds like him, but this is his gran! And he has missed her so much. And to even have a conversation like this, to get some type of love from a woman he misses dearly would mean the world to him, even if it isn't meant for him. "It's me. I came home."

"Ricky?" She asks for clarification, but the hope is still there.

"It's Mickey." He corrects out of habit because of the Doctor's habit of calling him that.

"I know my own grandson's name. It's Ricky." She snaps softly. "Now, come here." She pulls him into an embrace and Mickey's heart is racing, there is a warmth filling his body, and he feels almost breathless as he feels his grans arms around him.

They pull back and he remembers what he says and has to laugh at his parallel self's name, I give up. "Okay. I'm Ricky. Of course, I am. Ricky, that's me." All of a sudden, she proves that she really is his gran and starts to slap the shit out of him. "Ow!"

"You stupid boy! Where have you been!"

"Ow! Stop hitting me!"

"It's been days and days! I keep hearing all these stories. People disappearing off the streets. There's nothing official on the download but there're all these rumors, and, and whispers. I thought that God had disappeared you."

Mickey wasn't really listening to her though, something had caught his eye and there was a heavy pressure in his chest, his heart hurt. He couldn't believe that even in this world, it was the same and he had to stifle a strangled sob from escaping his mouth. "That carpet on the stairs, I told you to get it fixed. You're going to fall and break your neck." His voice cracked as he relived his own memories of his gran's death and not even realizing that his parallel self might not have even told her that.

She looks at him softly. "Well, you get it fixed for me."

Mickey's shoulders slumped. "I should have done way back. I guess I'm just kind of useless."

"Now, I never said that." She told him lovingly. It was said in a way that she thought he was silly for even thinking that.

"I am, though. And I'm sorry, gran. I'm so sorry." Mickey was so close to breaking down, because he knows. He just knows that she will have the same death here as she did in his world if that carpet doesn't get fixed and there is less than twenty-four hours left.

His grans face draws into a concerned one as she faces his way. "Don't talk like that. Do you know what you need? A nice sit down and a cup of tea. You got time?"

Mickey gave her an affectionate look. "For you, I've got all the time in the world."

Mickey's gran raises her brow. "Oh, you say that, but it's all talk. It's those new friends of yours. I don't trust them."

Mickey tugs on his ear and his lips tilt downward. "What friends are they?"

His gran looks like she is going to slap him again and he reflexively backs up a bit. "Don't pretend you don't know. You've been seeing them. Missus Chan told me. Driving about all helter skelter in that van."

Mickey was honestly lost, but he was so happy to be back with his gran that he forgot that this wasn't his gran and her wasn't her grandson. So, whatever friends she was talking about, her grandson had been spending time when was who she was talking about. "What van's that, then?"

"You know full well! Don't play games with me." She turned around to go into the flat so they can have their cup of tea when a van does a handbrake turn in the road behind them. "Get inside." His gran tells him. Since she is blind, she doesn't see the van.

A white male jumps out and grabs Mickey. "I've been looking for you everywhere!" He pushes Mickey into the van and they drive off and Mickey can hear the worried calls of his gran calling for her grandson.

Inside the van Mickey relaxes a little when he realizes that the people think that he is also Ricky and he hopes he can fool them like he was able to pretend for his gran. He thinks it will be harder to trick these people though, especially if Ricky spends a lot of time with them.

"Ricky, you were the one who told us you don't contact your family because it puts them in danger." The man tells him.

"Yeah. Ricky said that. Course I did, just testing." He stutters out and sighs in relief when they didn't seem to notice anything wrong.

The guy seems a little excited to have found 'Ricky' and immediately starts to give him the low down. "I saw them. I taped them. They went round the Blackfriars gathering up the homeless like the child catcher. They must've taken four dozen."

The woman who was driving then cuts in. "The vans were hired out to a company called International Electromatics. But I did a protocol search. Turns out that's a dummy company established by guess who?"

Mickey was looking back and forth at them a little bewildered. "I don't know. Who?"

The guy gets this wide grin and his eyes seem to sparkle, and Mickey wasn't sure what expression the woman had, but they both said, "Cybus Industries!"

"Well, now we've got evidence." The man continues happily.

Now the woman cuts back in. "Bad news is, they've arrested Thin Jimmy. So, that just leaves you."

Mickey nods his head before he realizes he has no idea why he is doing that. "Leaves me what?"

The man grins. "The Number One. Top of the list. London's Most Wanted."

Mickey nods his head again glad that he now knows why he is doing it. "Okay, cool." And then pauses as he replays the words in his head. "Say that again?"

They drive for a little longer and Mickey is so thankful that it is a pretty quiet drive. They get to a house that is free of neighbors. They get out of the van and the man narrows his eyes. "There's a light on. There's someone inside the base. Missis Moore, we've got visitors." Both he and the woman, now identified as Missis Moore hold up their guns and prepare to storm the base. "One, two, three, go!"

Missis Moore and the man that Mickey still doesn't know the name of are in front of him since he is weaponless and they bust into the base and see a familiar figure inside the room making a sandwich. Mickey's jaw drops to the floor. Ricky, because who else could it be, turns around and his eyes widen. He points the butter knife at them seeing as they are still pointing their guns at him. "What the hell are you doing?"

The unnamed man was bewildered and lowered his gun. "What're you doing there?"

"What am I doing here? What am I doing there?" He points the butter knife at Mickey. As if they just now remembered him, both Missis Moore and the man raised their guns at him. He, quick as a fly, raised his hands in the air.

Xxxxxx

How humiliating, Mickey thought as he sat tied to a chair in his boxers. At least they let me get undressed myself and let me keep my boxers on, and at least I wear boxers and not something more embarrassing like tighty-whities. He is feeling a little exasperated at the extent they are going to check him out though. For what? He doesn't know, but it does seem excessive.

The man, who Ricky had called Jake, was scanning him and tossed the scanner on the table slightly frustrated, but also relieved. "He's clean. No bugs."

Ricky was staring at him with hard suspicious eyes. "But this is off the scale. He's flesh and blood. How did that happen?"

Missis Moore was working on her computer, but she was still part of the conversation and she shrugged. "Well, it could be that Cybus Industries have perfected the science of human cloning, or your father had a bike."

Ricky walks up to Mickey and bends down so they were eye to eye. "And your name is Mickey, not Ricky."

Mickey nodded. "Mickey. Dad was Jackson Smith. Used to work at the key cutters in Clifton's Parade. Went to Spain, never came back." They both inwardly flinched at the reminder that their dad didn't want them, even when they tried to tell themselves that they didn't care.

"But that's my dad. So, we're brothers?" Twins? Separated at birth?

Be fair. What else could it be?" Jake couldn't think of another reason as to why an exact copy of Ricky would be running around.

Ricky put his face closer to Mickey and was taking in all of his features and cataloguing them. "I don't know. But he doesn't just look like me, he is exactly the same. There's something else going on here, Jake. Where did you pick him up at?"

"He was at your gran's house. Looked like he was about to go inside."

The halfway decent look on Ricky's face instantly vanished and a harsh and stone-cold glare was leveled at Mickey causing him to flinch back in surprise. He had never thought his face could make an expression that menacing before and it caused goosebumps to rise along his skin. He gulped harshly feeling like the temperature in the room dropped. "Did you do anything to my gran? You had better not have harmed my wife and unborn baby or her parents if they were there!" Mickey's jaw hit the floor again for the second time that night at what he just heard. WIFE!? BABY!? He felt like he was about to pass out.

"Woah, Ricky, tone down the killer intent. It looks like he is about to pass out." Jake mistakenly misread Mickey's expression at being scared from Ricky's expression, not that he was married with a child on the way.

"W…wi…wife? B…baby?" Mickey was able to stutter out. He was seeing spots in his vision and he was having a hard time breathing. It was so hot in the room and sweat was starting to form on his body.

The menacing look slowly left Ricky's face as he took in the shock on Mickey's face. He scratches his cheek and looks at Jake and Missis Moore in question and they shrug unsure as to what the problem is. They decided to just give him a few minutes to work through whatever the issue was and if he didn't, they would intervene. After few minutes had passed Mickey still seemed out of it. With a small amount of amusement, not feeling inclined to being nice to someone who possibly hurt his family, Ricky got a glass of water and tossed it in Mickey's face. It causes him to shoot up slightly and sputter, but it cleared his vision and he took a deep breath. His body sagged, relaxing.

"Now, are you better from whatever freaked you out?" Ricky asked him.

"YOU HAVE A WIFE AND A BABY?" Mickey practically screeched out hysterically. Ricky, Jake, and Missis Moore looked at him with wide eyes and all of them collectively took a large step back from him.

"Yeeees?" Ricky stretched out the word wondering why it was such a big deal that he did.

"But. But. But. You're so young." Mickey blurted out the first excuse he could think of. He never thought he would ever marry that young and he keeps forgetting that this is a parallel world and somethings are different in parallel worlds. But if there isn't a Rose here, who is Ricky married to?

Ricky takes his reaction as proof that he hadn't done anything to his wife because she would have thought that Mickey was Ricky and Mickey would have already known that he was married and expecting a baby. He is amused though that Mickey is freaking out about this. He gives him a lopsided grin and shrugs carelessly. "I love her. Why wait? Life's short."

Mickey still felt a little queasy and he didn't want to think or talk about it anymore right now until he got used to it some more. "So, who are you lot?"

They all snicker slightly at his obvious attempt at a change in subject, but go along with it because they don't want him to have another panic attack. Ricky opens his arms wide and gives a proud smile. "We? We are the Preachers. As in Gospel Truth. You see? No ear plugs. While the rest of the world downloads from Cybus Industries, we, we have got freedom. You're talking to London's Most Wanted, but target Number One is Lumic, and we are going to bring him down."

"From your kitchen?" Mickey blurted out after looking around.

Ricky narrowed his eyes and stepped forward. "Have you got a problem with that?"

Mickey has a small flashback to the look Ricky had on his face when he thought his family was hurt and he shook his head quickly. "No, it's a good kitchen."

Missis Moore interrupted them. "It's an upload from Gemini."

"Who's Gemini?" Mickey wondered, but he was obviously ignored.

Missis Moore was rapidly reading whatever was on her screen. "The vans are back. They're moving out of Battersea. Looks like Gemini was right. Lumic's finally making a move."

Ricky clapped his hands in excitement. "And we are right behind him. Pack up, we're leaving." He goes to Mickey and unties him and tosses his clothes to him. "Get dressed, you're coming with us."

Mickey quickly gets obeys having a guess that if he wasn't quick enough, they would drag him out whether he was dressed or not. They all load up into the van and follow a lorry. Jake and Ricky are checking on all of the weapons and Mickey is just watching, slightly uncomfortable being around the guns.

Missis Moore drives the van outside this huge mansion like house. Jake and Ricky get out to do surveillance while Missis Moore and Mickey stay behind. Missis Moore was continuing to do research on who owned the house they drove to. She made a noise of excitement. "I've identified the address. It belongs to Peter Tyler, the Vitex millionaire."

Mickey's jaw drops and his eyes widens. "Pete Tyler?" He asks hoping he heard wrong.

"He's listed as one of Lumic's henchmen. A traitor to the state."

Mickey looked towards the house realizing that Rose, Layla, and the Doctor would be in that house at this moment. "But…" He gets out of the out of the van and rushes to Ricky. "We've got to get in there." He had to warn the others.

Ricky shoved him aside. "Now, shut it, duplicate. That's what I just said." They all quiet down when they hear the ramp drop down form the back of the lorry. "What are they doing?" They crouch down and they aren't sure what they see come out of the back of the lorry. "What the hell are they?"

Xxxxxx

Rose was so determined to see her dad, conveniently forgetting that this Peter Tyler is not her dad, she was practically sped walking to his house. The Doctor was walking with Layla to catch up to her, but he wasn't walking as quickly as she was. But both him and Layla are longer legged than her so they easily catch up to her and when she realizes that, she slows down slightly, happy that she didn't have to do this alone. She talked up a big game, but she was nervous to meet this world's Peter Tyler. She was so excited though she didn't see that the Doctor had no let go of Layla's hand the whole time.

The Doctor wouldn't have cared if she had seen or not. He was not in a good mood right now and he was not happy with Rose. He was just biting his tongue to keep from snapping at her right now. But with the help of holding Layla's hand and her frequently squeezing his hand, he is calming down pretty quickly.

Rose noticed that Mickey wasn't with them and realized that like her, he would have wanted to see someone who he could no longer see in their own world. His beloved gran. "You know, Mickey's mum couldn't cope. His dad hung around for a while, but then he just sort of wandered off. He was brought up by his gran. She was such a great woman. God, she used to slap him!" Rose laughed as she thought back to those days, and Layla had a fond smile as she thought of the older woman who was Mickey's rock. Rose sighed sadly. "And then she died. She tripped and fell down the stairs. It's about five years ago now. We were still in school."

The Doctor sighed deeply, the anger leaving him totally as he realized why Mickey was so upset with him and why he wanted to leave like Rose. "I never knew."

"Well, you never asked." Rose said as if she had brought up Mickey before in conversations with the Doctor and Layla looked at her in annoyance knowing that she never once brought up Mickey in conversation with the Doctor before.

The Doctor seemed to agree. "You never said."

"That's Mickey." Rose decided to blame him instead. "I suppose, I, we just take him for granted. Do you think she's still alive, his gran?"

"Hey now, don't lump me in that statement with you. I have never taken Mickey Mouse for granted. I have always appreciated him for who he was and he knows that. It is why we are so close and why we always wished I had grown up with him as his sister. And I am going to stay positive and think that his gran is alive here and will think that until I am told otherwise." Layla finishes that statement with a firm nod of her head.

The Doctor agrees with Layla. "Could be. Like I said, parallel worlds, gingerbread house. We need to get out of here as fast as we can." He said that as if he was worried and annoyed, and inside he was. But he was also feeling emotions such as relief and dread. Relief that he doesn't have to worry about Mickey having any romantic interest in Layla if he thinks of her as a sister, but dread because that means they think of each other as siblings and they will want to do domestic things all the time.

There was a loud beeping sound and everyone around them freezes as if they were statues. Rose, Layla, and the Doctor are the only ones to move and they look around in confusion. The Doctor is even waving a hand in front of someone's face and they are not responding. Layla lets go of the Doctor's hand and goes up to a child and sees that they are also frozen and she looks at the boy in worry. She can see that he is still breathing and blinking, but unresponsive otherwise.

"What're they doing?" Rose asks.

"They've stopped." Everyone's ear pod start flashing and even the child has an ear pod surprising Layla. "It's the earpieces. Like Bluetooth attachments, but everyone's connected together." Layla walks back to the Doctor but keeps looking at the child in worry. The Doctor notices this and quirks his lips up in a small smile and grabs her hand.

Rose's phone beeps and she pulls it out. "It's on my phone. It's automatic, look. It's downloading. Is this what they're all getting? News international news, sports, weather."

"They get it direct. Downloaded right into their heads." The Doctor said looking over her shoulder, but not too close to where he would be touching her.

"TV schedules, lottery numbers."

"Everyone shares the same information. A daily download published by Cybus Industries." The next download is a joke and everyone scarily laughs at the same time and then they continue on their way as if nothing had happened.

"Even the children? That stuff would be boring for a child and they have no need for lottery numbers." Layla asks the Doctor wondering why a child would even need one of these ear pods to begin with.

The Doctor snatches the phone from Rose and presses the buttons quickly taking in the information far faster than they could. "No, they don't get the same stuff that adults do. They get schooling basically. It is extra tutoring. Educational things and they can also select topics that interest them and learn about them. Like if they want to know more about trains or the pyramids."

"Oh, that's actually kind of cool and helpful, but a little odd though. No social interaction doing that."

The Doctor nods in agreement. "You lot, you're obsessed. You'd do anything for the latest upgrade."

"Oi, not my lot. Different world, remember?" Rose pointed out.

"Hey! I usually leave my phone in the Tardis anyways. I never think to bring it with me. In the past, it's witchcraft and in the future it's primitive." Layla smirks at him.

The Doctor snorts. "It's not so far off your world though. This place is only parallel. Oh, look at that. Cybus Industries, owners of just about every company in Britain, including Vitex. Mister Pete Tyler's very well connected." He stops talking as Rose gives him a smug smile knowing that she won and that they will be going to see her dad as there seems to be something off about this Cybus Industries that the Doctor wants to look into. He sighs and drops his head before looking at Layla who was biting her lip holding back a smile and then looking at Rose who wasn't even trying to hold back hers. "Oh, okay. I give up. Let's go and see him."

Xxxxxx

They make it to the address that they got from Rose's phone and Rose's eyes are wide. This is what I could have had in my world had my dad not died?! Layla looked on not really impressed. She liked the house, sure, she can appreciate the architecture. But she has never cared about money and only ever wanted it in a means to support herself and to use it to travel. Besides, she knew that if she had to pick between living in this mansion or in the Tardis, she would hands down, pick the Tardis. It feels like home to her. The Doctor looked on at it and definitely not impressed. His Tardis was by far superior and he obviously has never cared about money.

A stretch limo drives past them and the Doctor takes in the number of cars around and people entering the house. "They've got visitors."

"Not surprising." Layla mumbled, realizing the reason.

"February the first. Mum's birthday. Even in a parallel universe, she still loves a party."

"Well, given Pete Tyler's guest list, I wouldn't mind a look. And there is one guaranteed way of getting inside." The Doctor pulled out his bifold and flipped it open.

"Psychic paper." Rose grin.

"I have always said you never got invited to things and you had to resort to using that to have any kind of fun." Layla snickered as he gave her the stink eye before he grinned good naturally.

"Who do you want to be?"

Xxxxxx

Rose and the Doctor are carrying trays of hors d'oeuvres and champagne for the guests scattered through the ground floor. As soon as they were clear of any guests Rose stomps over towards the Doctor and leans in towards him. "We could have been anyone."

He leaned away but spoke quietly to not draw attention to them. "Got us in, didn't it?"

"You're in charge of the of the psychic paper. We could've been guests. Celebrities. Sir Doctor, Dame Rose. We end up serving. Did enough of this back home."

"If you want to know what's going on, work in the kitchens. Where is Layla?"

"I don't know. Last time I seen her the manager was getting her a uniform."

"Alright. Mingle for ten minutes or so and gather some information. I'll do the same and if you see Layla, bring her along and meet me back here and we can discuss what we learned." He doesn't wait for her response and quickly walks away from her to look for Layla worried about her in this strange universe.

"You would not believe how many phone numbers I have gotten since coming out after getting dressed. We should make some prank phone calls to them." The Doctor heard Layla say before he saw her.

His jaw clenched and he instantly got angry and jealous at the thought that other people were giving her their phone numbers, but the jealousy vanished as soon as he turned around and he saw her. Oh no, instead his eyes widen and his jaw dropped. He grabs her wrist and pulls her to a more secluded area and steps closer to her, getting into her personal space. He grips her waist tightly as he resists the urge to explore her curves, and the more he fights himself, the more his grip grows possessive and intense. She runs her hands up his forearms to his shoulders and back down, squeezing along the way and she can feel the tension in his muscles. "What the hell are you wearing?" He hisses in her ear. Anger and arousal both fighting inside him.

She took in his reaction and she gives him a husky little laugh. She feels heated from his tone and his grip. "Yeah, I know. The manager said that there were 'no more' uniforms in my size. Crock of shit if I do say so myself. Especially considering he didn't even ask for my size. Just looked me up and down and then threw these at me. I've seen him in my rounds several times so far when I have gone back into the kitchen. But it was weird because after he got you and Rose situated, he didn't even look at the information we had made for me, not even to call me by my name. He called me Kayla and said that he thought I had quit, but he was happy I hadn't as they were understaffed and needed the help? I don't know, must have to do with my parallel self?"

The Doctor growled and was tempted to have a talk with the manager, but restrained himself because he wasn't sure what he would do, because when it comes to Layla, he is pretty unpredictable. He looks her up and down slowly and his eyes darken as he takes in the uniform she was forced to wear. Although he wasn't happy others could see her like this, he is enjoying it personally. The shirt was obviously designed for a woman that had a smaller bust and the skirt for shorter legs. His eyes glaze over as he sees her in the Tardis, in his, their, room, her in black heels and stockings. This skirt and shirt with some of the buttons undone. Her hair mussed and cheeks a pretty pink. She is lightly biting her red painted lips and her eyes are black with her own desire. The image is so vivid he closes his eyes and leans his head forward, resting on her shoulder, against her neck and he groans roughly.

He hears her gasp lightly and her breathing increases as she tilts her neck to the side allowing him to get closer and can feel her heartbeat increase from where his skin is touching hers. He runs his nose up the length of her neck, breathing in her scent along the way, he can smell the pheromones her body is giving off and it is making him even more heated. He continues up until he gets to her ear. "Make sure to keep the uniform when we leave here."

He pulls back and is happy to see that her eyes are dilated and she is panting. He smirks in male pride. She takes a deep breath to steady herself and then gives him an impish grin. She brings her hand to his chest and lightly runs it up and down before holding onto his tie. "Oh? You like the outfit? I will make sure to keep it." She gets closer to him and uses his tie to pull him down so she can whisper in his own ear. "But I have a few other… outfits that you might like just as much." Now it is her turn to smirk as she sees him physically shudder, he closes his eyes as if to imagine what she could have and he mindlessly skims his hand along her stomach before anchoring on the waistline of her skirt and slipping a finger inside. He opens his eyes when he realizes that his pants were starting to feel a little tight and remembered that they were in public. He pulls away and he knows he is going to struggle to focus on their task for a bit now, especially when he looks at Layla.

"Now, we are here for a reason. Let's get on with it." She gives one last pat to his chest before she steps out from their hidden area and gets back to work. The Doctor stood frozen for a few seconds. His brain needing a reboot from replaying what had just happened and trying to calm his mind and body down. He shakes he head and then realizes she has left and bolts out after her. There is no way she is going out there on her own looking like that.

Xxxxxx

It is closer to fifteen minutes by the time they all meet up again. Mainly because he was distracted by Layla when she had found him, but he isn't upset by the extended time. Rose was, but oh well. He was upset they were here; she can be upset that she had to wait five more minutes. "So, according to Lucy, that man over there…" The Doctor pointed at a man but Rose interrupts with a question that was more important to her.

"Who's Lucy?"

The Doctor's jaw clenched and one of his eyes starts to tic, he was tired of Rose thinking she had some type of claim over him or that they had some type of relationship. Layla rubbed her forehead as if he had a headache. She was also tired of Rose and her blatant jealousy. He points to Lucy. "She's carrying the salmon pinwheels."

Rose looks over at her and gives her a once over and slightly sneers. She is slightly pretty. Is that why he talked to her? "Oh, that's Lucy, is it?"

"Yeah. Lucy says, that is the President of Great Britain."

"What, there's a President, not a Prime Minister?"

He shrugs. "Seems so."

Rose smirks. "Or maybe Lucy's just a bit thick."

Layla frowns at how mean Rose is being because of her jealousy. "Parallel world, Rose. Not everything is the same here. I mean they don't even eat mushy peas in this universe's UK from what I've heard."

"Excuse me!" They all turn and see Pete Tyler standing on the staircase and it quietens down. "Thank you if I could just have your attention, please."

"Pete! Go on, Pete!" Someone shouts from the crowd.

He smiles and waves his hand. "Thank you very much!"

"It's about time you did some work." The same man heckled.

"I thought you liked them young." Another joined in.

Pete kind of looked uncomfortable but put on a smile anyways. "Um, I'd just like to say thank you to you all, for coming on this, this very special occasion. My wife's thirty ninth…"

"Don't believe that one." The first man cut in again.

Pete just gives a cheesy smile and a thumbs up like his advert. "Trust me on this. And so, without any further ado, here she is, the birthday girl. My lovely wife, Jackie Tyler."

Everyone claps and Jackie makes her way down in a lovely dress. She gets down to the bottom and gives everyone a smile. "Now, I'm not giving a speech. That's what my parties are famous for. No work, no politics, just a few good mates, and plenty of black-market whisky. Pardon me, Mister President. So, yeah, get on it with. Enjoy, Enjoy."

The Doctor looks down and sees the look on Rose's face and gives her a stern look. "You can't stay. Even if there was some way of telling them." Layla looks at Rose and really hopes she doesn't do something stupid like she did when they went to see her dad in their universe.

"Course I can't I've still got mum at home. My real mum. I couldn't just leave her, could I. It's just, they've got each other. Mum's got no one."

"She's got you. Those two haven't. All these different worlds, not one of them gets it right."

"She has you, you have her. Like I said before, not everyone has that." Layla tells her quietly and Rose nods letting her know that she understands and remembers what she had said before.

"Rose!" All of their heads snap towards Jackie in shock but she wasn't looking at them. "There's my little girl! Come to mummy, come to mummy!" Jackie bends down and picks up a tiny little dog. "Yes, good girl! Good girl, aren't you?"

The Doctor tries but he can't help but laugh and when he starts Layla joins in. Rose is just glaring at them. They don't laugh long but they are still smiling as they apologize at the same time. "Sorry."

Xxxxxx

The Doctor sneaks off, dragging Layla with him, to go find some information while everyone is distracted by the party. There was no way in hell he was leaving Layla in there without him.

Rose stayed and was serving people, but she was also sending looks at Pete and Jackie. She is watching Jackie right now who was laughing with the President and doesn't notice that Pete had come up to her until he started talking.

"I remember her twenty-first. Pint of cider in the George."

Rose was startled and presented him the tray. "Sorry. Champagne?"

He looks away from his wife and reaches for a glass. "Oh, might as well. I'm paying for it."

Rose was happy that she is talking to him. It was what she had been hopeful for to happen on this night. "It's a big night for you."

Pete takes a sip and then points towards Jackie with the hand that held the glass. "For her. Still, she's happy." His tone was a little off and the look in his eye seemed slightly sad.

Rose didn't notice though, she was just so happy to be talking to her dad again, forgetting that he wasn't her dad and that he thought that she was the wait staff. "She should be. It's a great party."

"Do you think?" He asked a little unsure.

She gives him a cheesy grin. "You can trust me."

He gives her a small smile, wondering why he was feeling so comfortable around this woman. "You can trust me on this."

"That's it, sorry. So, how long have you two been married?"

"Twenty years."

"And no kids, or?" Rose knew she didn't exist in this world, but she wanted confirmation that they didn't have any other children.

He looks back at Jackie and gives her a wistful look. "We kept putting it off. She said she didn't want to spoil her figure."

This time Rose noticed the look on her dad's face and was hopeful that maybe she could convince him to have her now, and at least this parallel version of her would get to grow up with a dad. "It's not too late. She's only forty."

Pete smirks. "Thirty-nine."

Rose laughs. "Oh, right. Thirty-nine."

Pete gives a big sigh, his shoulders slump and his eyes look dull. "It's still too late. I moved out last month, but we're going to keep it quiet. You know, it's bad for business." He pauses as he realizes he just told a major secret to a total stranger. An employee at that. "Why am I telling you all this? We haven't met before, have we? I don't know, you just seem sort of…" He trails off as he looks at her thoughtfully.

Rose looks at him hopefully, for what, she isn't really sure because it would be impossible for him to know her. But maybe it is destiny for all Pete's everywhere to have a Rose Tyler as their daughter. "What?"

"I don't know. Just sort of right." He shakes his head, feeling uncomfortable with whatever he is feeling and decides to leave. He turns towards another man and walks off. "Stevie! How's things? How's it going at Torchwood?"

Xxxxxx

While her conversation with her dad was short and he took off so suddenly, she was both happy and upset at what they talked about. She was happy that he opened up to her, for all he knows, she is a stranger. But she wasn't happy that they are splitting up. She goes around looking for her mother. Maybe she could find a way to get them to not split up and they could still have their own little Rose.

Finally, after looking all around for her, Rose sees that her mum had gone outside for some air. "Missis Tyler, is there anything I can get you?"

Jackie gives her a small glance and a small scoff. Her tone is filled with a little bit of bitterness. "The last twenty years back."

Rose inwardly winces. This was already a bad start to her plan. She gives her mum a timid smile. "I can manage a glass of champagne or a nice cup of tea?"

Jackie gives her a more friendly smile. "Oh, that'd do me."

Rose sits down next to her. "My mum loves that. End of a long night she never goes straight to bed, she always stays up just to have that last cup of tea."

Jackie isn't sure why this waitress is telling her this and not getting her the tea, but she seems friendly and harmless. Like she was trying to cheer her up. "Oh, I'm the same."

Rose grins at her mischievously because she knows exactly how this Jackie would take her tea. "Two sugars."

"And me. Pete always says, you know. Ah, never mind him." She gave a sigh of disappointment.

Rose decided to try to see if she could get them to work out their differences. "I was talking to him earlier. He's a nice man. You know, a bit of Jack the Lad, I suppose even if has got money. He's a nice man. Better than most. He's worth a second chance."

Rose knew she instantly messed up with her last sentence when Jackie's face when from a sort of soft and agreeing to an offended angry. "Are you commenting on my marriage?"

She tries to backtrack and shakes her head. "No, I was just…"

Jackie stands up and interrupts her. "Who the hell do you think you are? You're staff. You're nothing but staff. You're just the serving girl, for god's sake. And you are certainly not getting paid. Don't you dare talk to me." Jackie storms back inside and Rose slaps her palm against her forehead at her screw up.

Floodlights come on and Rose can hear an odd sound off in the distance but it is coming closer. She looks around and sees something under the lights but there is a slight glare. She runs back inside to find the Doctor and nearly crashes into him and Layla. The Doctor had panic on his face. He doesn't stop to talk to Rose though and he goes straight to a window and looks outside. And his face drops in dismay. He squeezes Layla's hand who he has refused to let go since he had found out what they were about to deal with. "It's happening again."

Layla had watched the presentation with the Doctor on the laptop, and seen how panicked he became. The presentation looked awful, but she didn't fully understand just how bad it truly was yet. But she was trying to calm him by running her thumb along his hand and squeezing it often to remind him that she was here for him.

Rose had no idea what was going on and why the Doctor was so upset. "What do you mean?"

"I've seen them before."

"What are they?" She looks out the window and she can see that they are just some robots.

"Cybermen." Was the Doctor's whispered answer.

The Cybermen smash though a series of French windows and many others march in throughout the house. The guests are surrounded and corralled. The Presidents phone rings and he puts it on speaker already knowing who it was. "Mister Lumic."

"Mister President. I suppose a remark about crashing the party would be appropriate at this point." They could all hear the amusement in his voice.

"I forbade this." The President's voice was angry and his eyes were narrowed.

"These are my children, sir. Would you deny my family?"

Rose leans over to the Doctor. "What are they, robots?" She didn't understand why the President would be so upset over machinery.

The Doctor shook his head. "Worse than that."

He didn't need to say anymore because the President helped fill in what exactly they were. "Who were these people?" The girl's eyes widen and they looked a little green in the face. The Doctor wrapped his arm around Layla's waist tightly. He was not looking forward to what he knew she would realize later on in the night and how angry and devastated she would be.

"Doesn't matter." It was said so carelessly. And they could all imagine that he had shrugged as he said it.

"They're people?" Rose wanted to throw up. It didn't look like a suit of armor, so what exactly was human in that suit?

"They were, until they had all their humanity taken away. That's a living brain jammed inside a cybernetic body, with a heart of steel. All emotions removed."

"Why no emotions?"

"Because it hurts."

"Since when does the heart control the emotions? Wouldn't that be the brain? Or are they suppressing that part of it?" Layla whispered to him.

"Yes, there is an inhibitor. It is used to make them obey. No free will."

"I demand to know, Lumic. These people, who were they?" The President was getting angrier and angrier. He didn't understand how Lumic could be so callous with live and he doubted that these people volunteered for this.

"They were homeless and the wretched and useless. Until I saved them, and elevated them, and gave them life eternal. And now I leave you in their capable hands. Goodnight, sir. Goodnight, Mister President."

A Cyberman steps forward and stands in front of the President. "We have been upgraded."

The Doctor drags Layla with him and Layla drags Rose with her. He wanted to know how alike these were to the ones he had dealt with before. "Into what?"

"The next level of mankind. We are human point two. Every citizen will receive a free upgrade. You will become like us."

The President stepped in with compassion on his face. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for what's been done to you, but listen to me. This experiment ends tonight."

The Cyberman ignored him. "Upgrading is compulsory."

"And if I refuse?"

The Doctor grabbed his arm. "Don't."

The President ignored him wanting to know the consequences. "What if I refuse?"

The Doctor knew the consequences and wanted to save the man from that fate. "I'm telling you, don't."

"What happens if I refuse?" He pressed.

"Then you are not compatible."

The Presidents eyebrows scrunched wondering if that was a good thing or not. "What happens then?"

"You will be deleted." The Cyberman put his hand on the President's neck and electrocutes him. The Doctor grabs Layla and runs. Layla had still not let go of Rose causing her to be pulled along. The guests scream as they are grabbed and some are killed and others live but are surrounded.

They all let go of each other as they jump through a broken window not wanting to cause each other to fall and hurt one another on the glass. Rose stops and looks like she is about to go back in and the Doctor realizes why. "There's nothing we can do."

"My mum's in there!"

The Doctor was fed up with her and the delusion that these people were her parents. He knew that she had been forgetting that all night and seen them as if they were one big happy family since the moment they had arrive. "She is not your mother! Come on!"

"Rose, your mum is safe, at home in our universe. Come on, please. Don't make me tell her you died like this." Layla pleaded with her. Rose looked conflicted but started to go with them.

They are stopped with a row of Cybermen appear in front of them and they turn back and run around the side of the house just as Pete is coming out through the window. Rose's face lights up. "Quick! Quick!"

Pete follows after the three of them and the Doctor gets next to him. "Pete, is there a way out?"

He nods and looks at them questioningly. "The side gates. Who are you? How do you know so much?"

The Doctor gives him a rueful grin. "You wouldn't believe it in a million years." They skid to a stop when two figures that are armed come up to them.

Rose is squinting trying to see who they were with the floodlights in the way. "Who's that?"

Ricky can see a group of people coming towards him, but he can also see some of the Cybermen marching towards them, but they have some time. "Get behind us."

Rose's face lights up as she hears Mickey's voice and runs up to him giving him a big hug. "Oh my god, look at you. I thought I'd never see you again!"

Ricky was uncomfortable, he was an extremely happy married man and had no idea who this blonde woman was hanging off of him. "Yeah. No offense, Sweetheart, but who the hell are you?" He doesn't give anyone time to answer before he spots someone else. "Kayla?! What are you doing here? You're working? I thought you quit working for them yesterday since you got that new job starting next week? You're supposed to be with my gran and your parents." He runs up to Layla and pulls her into a big hug and gives her a long and hard kiss. The Doctor and Rose are frozen. At some point Mickey had come up, but no one had noticed him yet, but his eyes were bugging out realizing who his wife was. Layla was looking at Ricky with wide eyes. He pulls back and looks at her uniform. "That bastard, I thought you told him to stop giving you uniforms like that or you'd file charges for sexual harassment?" He puts his hand on her stomach. "How is the baby doing? Not feeling any morning sickness, are you?"

He finally seems to realize that his 'Kayla' had not said anything and all the others were deathly quiet. Next thing he knows, 'Kayla' is pulled away from him by a man with wild brown hair who snarled at him to 'let her go' and was giving him a lethal glare. He looks at 'Kayla' confused and devastated.

She realizes what he must be thinking and asks him gently. "I take it that you are not our Mickey, correct?" She looks over to the real Mickey. "And you are Mickey, yes?" They both nod their heads. She looks back over at Ricky and gives him a soft smile. "I'm sorry, while you gave me one fantastic kiss, I don't know who you are. My name is not Kayla, my name is Layla. Like Mickey, I must be your Kayla's double." But he got her thinking. He said that Kayla was supposed to be with his gran and her parents. My parallel self has her parents in her life? She wasn't sure how she felt about that so she stored it away to deal with it another day. She now also understood what the manager was talking about.

Ricky's body sags in relief that his Kayla hadn't left him for another man. He looks over to the man who had not let go of Layla and was still glaring at him angrily. And gives him a shrug. "Sorry man. Thought she was my wife."

"YOUR WIFE?" Rose screeched at him as she unfreezes from what she had just witnessed. "…WAIT BABY?"

"Yeeees?" He repeated to her like he did to Mickey. Why was this so surprising to them?

The Doctor could understand Rose's surprise and upset. He also was not happy that parallel Layla was married and procreating with parallel Mickey. He was also still trying to calm down from the ape kissing her. He also didn't like that Layla said his kiss was fantastic. It seems like everyone else gets to kiss him and her and they don't get to kiss each other. He is going to have to change that. After they get back home, he is going to tell Rose to spend the day with her mum and Mickey and take Layla off and talk about the bond. It is time. He is tired of waiting and if he doesn't force the issue, there will never seem to be a day where it will be just the two of them.

"Oh, as if things weren't bad enough, there's two Mickey's." The Doctor sneers in derision. Still upset and this parallel version even knowing that it technically wasn't his fault, but tell that to his instincts and the bond.

Ricky gives him the stink eye. "It's Ricky."

During this who time of drama, they had not realized that the Cybermen had surrounded them. Jake and Ricky had lifted their guns and started firing but the Doctor reached out and pushed them down. "No! Stop shooting, now. We surrender! Hands up. There's no need to damage us. We're good stock. We volunteer for the upgrade program. Take us to be processed."

The Cyberman ignored them and one stepped forward. "You are rogue elements."

"But we surrender." The Doctor said back, his voice raised.

"You are incompatible."

"But this is a surrender." He steps closer to Layla and Ricky subconsciously does the same momentarily forgetting that she isn't his Kayla, but she just looks like her.

"You will be deleted."

"But we're surrendering! Listen to me, we surrender!" The Doctor was panicking. He really didn't want to do it, but he would to protect himself and the humans and especially Layla.

"You are inferior. Man will be reborn as Cyberman, but you will perish under maximum deletion." All of the Cybermen around them lift up their arms and march forward towards them. "Delete. Delete. Delete!"