Mum looks worried as I tell her what Laura was like in the twenty-first century. "She's never liked hybrids," she agrees, "but I have no idea how she's found you now. None of us have done anything to draw attention to ourselves."
"I know, that's the problem. What if she's here to change history?"
"That could be a possibility as she's never liked humans much, either. Whatever happens, we must listen to her. She might be here for another reason altogether."

I don't like it, but what else can I do? Mum opens the door. "I am sorry about that, Laura, do come in."
"Thank you." Laura walks inside, and I move to stand beside Mummy. "I see your group of devoted servants have grown since we last met."
"This is my girlfriend and daughter."
"You? A daughter? Ruby, please! You were the last Qetesh I thought would settle down and start a family."
"Well, it happened. Now, if you will excuse us, we have a busy day and a lot to get through."
"Oh, do not mind me. However, I am sure you are interested to hear how Ryan is getting on."

"Do you think all Qetesh have twenty-first-century names?" Mummy whispers to me.
"No idea, but that is one possibility."
"What makes you think I'd be interested in Ryan?" Mum asks.

Laura starts walking around the room and looking at everything. "I am sure your brother would be disappointed to know you asked that. He asked me to check on you personally."
"Why would he ask that? If he wants to talk, he knows where to find me."
"Our brother is a stickler for the rules. Once you announced you would settle on Earth permanently, he vowed he will not enter your territory. After all, the planet is yours to do with as you please. Although I cannot think why you would choose to have a human family." She looks at Mummy and me. "Unless you are planning to—"
"Those days are long behind me."
"Are you so sure about that?"
"Yes. I won't do anything that hurts anyone."
"It seems like your so-called daughter is taking a different direction."

"What do you mean?" I ask.
"There are rumours swirling around Court. If you listen carefully, you hear everything."
"What sort of rumours?"
"Just this and that, that you come from the future, that you aren't fully human. People already know. How long do you think it will take before they decide to kill you for it?"

I dare not tell her that already happened. One, Laura will not believe me, and two, she might convince More to do it again. I stay quiet. "Is it already happening? Do they already know they have a monster in their midst? Actually, that's two monsters."
"That's enough!" Mum growls. "If you cannot treat my family with respect, you can get out!" Her hair turns darker, and her eyes fade from brown to red. "Get out of my sight before I regret something."

Laura turns tail and runs out of the room.

"Ruby, what did you mean by that?" Mummy asks.
"I assume you know what Qetesh are."
"Yes."
Mum's hair turns back to brown, as do her eyes. "Then I don't need to explain it." She smiles at us. "Come on; we don't want to be late."

When we get to Lady Anne's rooms, we find that there is barely anyone there. "What is going on?" I ask Anne. There are usually many ladies in her rooms, even at such an early hour.
"I sent them all away for an hour. It feels like we barely have any time to catch up."

Anne never usually acts like this. I hope Laura doesn't have anything to do with it.

Mummy is happy to indulge in Anne's request, but Mum and I glance at each other. "Are you all right?" Mum asks Anne.
"I am." Anne tries to smile but fails. "Oh, all right. A strange woman visited me this morning and left me on edge."
"Why didn't you tell us that to begin with?" I ask.
"I do not know, but she was strange. She called herself "Laura" and knew you three. She said if I did not stop my marriage to the King, she will go after Catalina."
"How could she know about that?" Mum asks. "We are so careful. We never trust anyone outside our group."

I begin pacing and look out of one of the windows. "We cannot do this alone, but we also can't leave Catalina unprotected. Some of our group must stay with her, and the others return to Court. Who will be best to protect Catalina?"
"None of us have any experience with fighting. If anything, either of you three would be best to stay with her."
"Mum and I are the only ones who faced her when she tried to kill me. Mum was the one who defeated her as she was stealing my soul."
"Laura is a soul stealer?" Anne screams.

The doors burst open, and King Henry and some of his courtiers walk in. We quickly curtsey. "What is going on?" He asks.
We quickly explain, and I see Anne's father and brother in the group. Thomas Boleyn has silver hair and pale skin with a pink undertone. On the other hand, George has dark brown hair and fawn, light yellow-brown skin with pink undertones. As Anne's life could be at stake, we must tell them. "There is every chance my aunt will kill us all if she does not get her way," I say. "And that is not a fate I would wish even on my worst enemy."
"So, what do we do? Do we break it off?" Thomas asks.
"I will not let some good-for-nothing alien break my hard work off!" Henry roars. "We will go through with the marriage whether this Laura likes it or not."
"Be careful," Mum says, "my sister is—"
"You are siding with her?"
"No, no, no, not at all. I hate my sister with every fibre of my being. All I am saying is she is dangerous. Once you cross her, she will do anything possible to ruin your life."
"Surely she will not go to such an extent?"
"I'm her niece, and she'll try to kill me in the future for simply being half Qetesh," I say. "She will do anything, including killing her own family."

"We will not let her get in the way of our plans for me to marry Anne."
"We might not have much of a choice," Mum says. "If she starts killing people within the Court, what will you do?"
"I will still marry Anne."

"Mum, we have to go with the King's plan," I say. "We must keep history on the right track. If we don't, Mummy and I won't be here. Do you want that?"
"No, but she will go after the Dowager Princess."
"Let her," King Henry says. "All she is a nuisance. It will be great to get rid of her soon."

I gasp in horror. I knew King Henry was a nasty piece of work, but this... I begin thinking about what King Henry will do in his lifetime. "I cannot believe you just said that," I growl. "I knew you were a nasty piece of work, but this—"
"Take that back!"
"NEVER! You are the worst person I will ever have the indecency of meeting in all my lifetimes. You will go on to execute people on a whim, including two of your wives, including Anne. I will not stand by and let you ruin my friends' lives. Destroy me, I don't care, but the one thing I'll never let you do is hurt my friends. Once you marry Anne, you will cross a line of no return. I already won't forgive you for how you treated Queen Katherine—"
"The Dowager Princess!"
"Queen Katherine! And I will never forgive you for anything you will do. You have the chance to become a magnificent king, yet you are throwing it away for a son!"
"A son must be king when I die! A woman cannot rule."
"Ha! Your daughter by Anne will prove you wrong. She will rule England for forty-five years without ever marrying or submitting to another country. She is one of the greatest monarchs England will see. If you continue pursuing a son, we will become enemies, whether we are supposed to marry or not be damned."
"Watch your tongue, woman." King Henry grabs my throat, and he pushes me back against the wall. I collapse but pick myself up.

"You forget I am not one of your subjects."
"You are while in my realm! Now you will hold your tongue and leave Laura to the professionals. We will send her to the Tower if she threatens Anne." King Henry turns away and is about to walk out when I tackle him. "Get off me!"
"I always thought you might have at least one redeeming quality as King, but I have yet to see it. Now, you will stop with this nonsense and let the professionals deal with Laura."
"My guards—"
"Your guards are useless little knaves who can't tell an alien from a human. Get Torchwood on the case."
"I will not let a woman order me around." He throws me off, but I jump back on him as soon as I restore my balance. He pushes me off, and I fall onto my parents.
"Are you two all right?"
"We're fine," Mummy assures me. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah."

"The only reason I am not having you arrested is that I will marry you. By then, you must become obedient to your King!" King Henry sweeps out of the room. Thomas and George stay while the rest of his courtiers follow.

"What were you thinking?" Mummy demands. "King Henry will hate you because of this."
"Let him," I shrug. "I will not let anyone hurt my friends, not now, not ever. Even if it means we must change history to do it."
"But that means you'll never be born. England won't be the same without the reformation."

I begin pacing. "King Henry has an illegitimate son, right?" Thomas asks.
"Henry Fitzroy, yes," I say. "What about him?"
"What if we could persuade him to take the throne?"
"And commit treason?" Sarah Jane asks. "If King Henry finds out..."
"We can gather allies," George promises. "From what we can tell, King Henry is already becoming a tyrant. Why would we want someone like that as our king?"
"What about all the people he has executed because they oppose him?"
"What sort of people?"

I try and explain what King Henry will do, but I find myself grabbing my computer and researching it all. "The future seems like a fascinating place," Thomas says. "But if we do this, you and Sarah Jane might cease to exist. Are you willing to do that?"

It is a massive risk, but it is either getting rid of King Henry or letting him harm my friends until the beginning of the twentieth century. "I always thought I should keep to history," I say. "Now I am living through it; I'm not so sure that's a good idea. The Higher Authority—" I stop when I realise Anne, George, and Thomas are looking at me strangely. "They are what you call God, and they use they/them pronouns. They said I can start changing small things by the beginning of the twentieth century."
"But if you start changing things now, your life is at risk." George puts his head in his hands. "Is there any way we can get rid of the King but still make it seem like history will continue as normal?"
"I don't know, but it's worth finding out. I will need to contact the Higher Authority, so I will need to kill myself."
"Kill yourself?"
"It is the only way I know to contact them."
"Here, please use my dagger." George hands it to me. "I will clean it well after you finished with it."
"No need. My blood will flow back into me, so it will be like I never used it. But we still need to figure out the situation with Laura, no matter what we choose to do." I stab myself with the dagger and let it clatter to the floor. My weight shifts, and I topple to the floor, hitting my head on a nearby table.

"Are you joking?" The Higher Authority asks, folding their arms.
"Joking that I am back here, or joking about what we are planning?"
"The second! King Henry VIII brings the reformation to England, and if you depose him or worse—"
"Higher Authority, I promised my friends that I won't let Henry hurt them."
"But you know how history goes. You will have a lot of documents, executions, and marriages to fake. Besides, people talk. News of his death will reach the people, and they will rise against one of your friends."
"Is there any way we can fake Henry VIII being on the throne? Is there any chance?"