!EDITED!

A/N: was 7139 words, is now 9325! Enjoy! :D

After what happened with Reinette, the Doctor had taken us to a few 'safe' planets. My favorite had to be this planet that was just a huge field with lakes of turquoise water. At night there were these lights - like the Northern Lights - and these multicolored flowers that would bloom. Another one was this massive marketplace where the Doctor and I had gone off on our own while Rose and Mouse looked around together. The Doctor and I'd gone around to all of the stalls, trying different foods and drinks that they were selling. There was this gross neon green, jelly blob thing that one of the vendors was giving out free samples for and I had shoved it into the Doctor's mouth. He'd immediately spit it out, grimacing and wiping at his tongue while I was bent over, crying I was laughing so hard - his face had been beyond priceless.

Stepping into the console room, I raise an eyebrow at the scene in front of me. Rose and the Doctor were sitting on the jump-seat, laughing hysterically while Mouse was stood by the console to listen.

"-and that weird munchkin lady with the big eyes?" the Doctor laughs. "Do you remember? The way she looked at you! And then she opens her mouth and fire comes out!" he clutches his stomach, leaning back against the seat and I smile at the memory.

"I thought I was gonna get frazzled!" Rose wheezes.

"Yeah!" the Doctor laughs. "One minute she's standing there and the next minute - rawwwh!" he and Rose mime fire coming out of their mouths, leaning against each other.

"Yeah... where... where was that, then?" Mouse asks, looking between them. "What happened?"

I frown when I see him holding down a button on the console - the Doctor'd been teaching me how to fly the TARDIS more seriously since France. That... what was he doing?

"Oh, it was this um..." the Doctor sobers, rubbing at his eye. "Uh, this uh... planet thing... asteroid... it's a long story, you had to be there," he waves off. "Tiny!" he beams when he sees me standing there.

The Doctor pouts when I ignore him and focus my attention on my best mate, "Mouse, what're you doing that for?"

"Cause he told me to," he shrugs, pointing to the Doctor with his free hand.

"Did he?" I raise an eyebrow, turning to the Doctor and folding my arms.

"... when was that?" the Doctor asks, avoiding my gaze.

"About half an hour ago," Mouse frowns and I glare at the Doctor.

"Um... you can let go now," the Doctor bites his lip, trying not to laugh as he rubs at his earlobe and I narrow my eyes between him and Rose, who was snickering quietly.

"Well, how long's it been since I could've stopped?" Mouse demands.

"Yes, Doctor, how long?" I ask, cocking my hip to the side.

"Ten minutes?" he tries, wincing as my glare hardens. "Twenty?" he tries again, his voice going all high. "... twenty-nine?"

"I really wish I could slap you," I huff, making him wince again.

"You just forgot me!" Mouse shouts indignantly.

"No, no, no!" the Doctor denies quickly, sitting up straight. "I was just... I was just... I was calibrating!" he tries, making me roll my eyes. "No, I know exactly what I'm doing!" he points at me.

The second the words leave his mouth, the console explodes and sparks fly everywhere, the TARDIS jolting to the side sharply. I scream as I'm thrown into a pillar, feeling a sharp sting in my arm and my eyes widen when I see flames popping up around the console room.

"What's happened!?" Rose screams from the other side of the console.

The Doctor scrambles to his feet, pulling the monitor around to look at it, "the time vortex is gone!" he shouts in disbelief. "That's impossible, it's just gone!"

"What!?" I shout incredulously. "How the hell did that-" my sentence is cut off when the TARDIS jolts again.

"Brace yourselves! We're gonna crash!"

I scream, holding onto the coral pillar for dear life when the TARDIS crashes. Gas-masks fall from the ceiling and the lights in the console room go out. The Doctor shoots up, grabbing a fire extinguisher and putting out the couple of small fires. I sit up, coughing at the smoke all around.

"Everyone alright?" the Doctor asks, throwing the fire extinguisher off somewhere. "Lizzie, Rose, Mickey?"

"I'm fine! I'm ok, sorry!" Mouse calls, helping Rose up.

"Alright!" Rose calls.

I try to get up, but whimper at the pain in my left arm when I put weight on it. The Doctor hisses in pain and then was kneeling beside me in an instant, "Lizzie, sweetheart, what's wrong?" he asks worriedly, frowning when he sees the blood on my arm.

"I don't think it's too bad," I shake my head, hissing when he pushes my sleeve up further. "Oh.." I breathe out in slight shock, seeing the cut that goes along the outside of my forearm and up to my elbow, but it wasn't bleeding that bad. "Ow," I whimper slightly when the Doctor pokes around it and he murmurs a quick 'sorry'.

"That looks pretty deep..." Rose comments, coming to stand behind the Doctor with Mouse.

The Doctor runs the sonic along my arm, his eyebrows furrowed in concern, "it's not," he shakes his head. "Mickey, go get the first aid kit from the med-bay," he orders.

"You got it, boss," Mouse nods, running off.

"What's wrong with the TARDIS?" I ask the Doctor as he helps me stand.

"Yeah, why did we crash?" Rose frowns.

"... she's dead," the Doctor mutters, a wave of grief hitting me.

"What!?" I squeak out, running my hand along the console worriedly. "But she-" I cut myself off when I don't hear a hum in response or any singing in my mind.

"Got it!" Mouse runs back in, coming to a stop and looking between the three of us. "What's going on?" he sets the first aid kit on the jump-seat.

"The TARDIS is dead," the Doctor answers quietly, leaning against the console and folding his arms.

"... you can fix her?" Rose asks carefully.

"There's nothing to fix," the Doctor shakes his head. "She's perished... the last TARDIS in the universe - extinct," he flips a lever back and forth uselessly as more grief hits me.

"We can get help, yeah?"

"Where from?" the Doctor raises an eyebrow.

"Well, we've landed," Rose retorts, folding her arms.

"We've got to be somewhere," I agree.

"We fell out of the vortex, through the void, into nothingness," the Doctor shakes his head. "We're in some sort of no-place... the silent realm... the lost dimension..."

"Otherwise know as London!" Mouse laughs.

The three of us frown, turning to see Mouse stepping outside the TARDIS. Following him, I look around in shock to see that we were, indeed, in London.

Mouse grins widely, "London, England, Earth! Hold on..." he hops down off the low patch of grass we'd landed on and picks up a paper out of a bin. "First of February, this year," he tells us as I hop down as well - the Doctor and Rose right behind me - to peer at the paper. "Not exactly 'far-flung', is it?" he snorts.

"So... this is London?" the Doctor asks and I look up, my eyes widening when I see zeppelins all over in the sky.

"Yep!"

"... your city?"

"That's the one!"

"... just as we left it?"

"Bang on..." Mouse trails off when I push his face up.

"And that includes the zeppelins?" the Doctor asks.

I roll my eyes, "arse," I send him a look and he just sticks his tongue out childishly.

"What the hell?" Mouse gapes up at the sky.

"That's beautiful!" Rose smiles.

"Ok... so it's London with a big, international zeppelin festival," Mouse shrugs.

"This is not your world," the Doctor murmurs seriously, making me frown.

... so is it parallel, then? Like a multiverse sort of thing?

"But if the date's the same..." Mouse trails off before smiling. "It's parallel, right? Am I right?" he grins, making me smile at his enthusiasm at being right. "Like a parallel Earth where they've got zeppelins, am I right? I'm right, aren't I?"

"... must be," the Doctor admits reluctantly.

"So, a parallel world where..." Rose trails off.

The tone she uses makes me look over and I freeze. There was an advert for Vitex and on the poster was... was dad, Peter Alan Tyler. He was holding a bottle of the drink, smiling widely and very, very much alive.

"Oh, come on!" Mouse scoffs, not noticing either of us but I feel worry wash over me. "You see it in films! Like an alternate 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!"

"... and he's still alive," I whisper, my voice cracking slightly as tears well up. "A parallel world and our dad's still alive..."

Rose grabs my cut-free arm and pulls me over to the advert quickly, the Doctor and Mouse following closely. "Don't look at it, girls," the Doctor tells us sternly. "Don't even think about it! This is not your world!" he steps in front of us.

Rose pulls me around him to the poster, "but he's our dad and..." she touches the advert.

I jump back a bit when it comes to life and Poster Pete smiles, saying 'trust me on this' as he gives a wink and thumbs up. "Ok... that's odd," I mutter, a smile forming. "But he's real! He's a success!"

"He was always planning these daft little schemes; health-food drinks and stuff," Rose smiles. "Everyone said they were useless," she shakes her head. "But he did it!"

The Doctor turns me to him, bending down to look me in the eyes and grabbing Rose's arm to turn her as well. "Girls, if you've ever trusted me, then listen to me now," he says urgently but I glance back at the poster. "Stop looking at it!" he snaps and I jump, looking back to him. "You're father's dead, he died when you were three and six months old," he tells us firmly. "That is not Pete, that is a Pete. For all we know, he's got his own Jackie, his own Lizzie, his own Rose - his own daughters who are someone else, but not you," he looks between us, his eyes softening when he sees tears in our eyes. "You can't see him, not ever," he mutters gently.

I chew on my bottom lip, a tear sliding down my cheek as I pull Rose into a tight hug. I hiss when my arm brushes against her, being helpfully reminded of my cut. The Doctor hisses in pain, "come on," he puts a hand on my shoulder as I pull away from Rose and she clutches onto Mouse instead. "Let's get you fixed up," he grabs my right hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Look after Rose," he orders Mouse as he leads me back to the TARDIS.

***

Inside the TARDIS, my heart aches at the darkness - there was no singing in my mind, no humming, no amused trilling. A rush of grief washes over me as the Doctor leads me to the jump-seat. I sit down and cross my ankles, watching the Doctor as he opens up the first aid kit and starts to search for whatever it is he's going to use. "Shirt off," he orders and I blush slightly as I take off my over-shirt, leaving me in a white tank top.

I wrap my right arm around myself, trying to hide at least a little bit as I hold my left arm out for him. "Look at you.. being a real doctor and all," I tease him, biting my lip.

The Doctor snorts quietly, shaking his head, "I have my moments," he smirks, taking my arm in his hand and looking it over. "Are you alright?" he glances up at me, starting to clean my cut with an antiseptic wipe and we both hiss at the sting.

"... it doesn't hurt as bad now," I mutter, watching him work as I mess with the hem of my tank top.

"I can feel it, so you know that's not what I meant," he gives me a pointed look.

"I know," I look down at my arm, watching as he starts to rub some sort of cream into it that takes the pain away completely. "I know that... that logically he's not really my dad and that I can't see him but..." I trail off, tears welling up.

"Doesn't stop you wanting to," the Doctor finishes for me softly, starting to wrap a bandage around my arm.

"... yeah," I whisper, looking away and wiping my tears away with my free hand.

"All done," the Doctor tells me a moment later. "Open up," he orders, tapping under my chin.

I look up at him with furrowed eyebrows but do as I'm told. I giggle when he pops a lolly in my mouth, smiling happily at the strawberry flavor. I take it out of my mouth, twisting the stick in my hand, "is this all I get for being such an exceptional patient?" I ask innocently.

The Doctor rolls his eyes with a smile and leans forward, pressing a kiss to my cheek. "That good?" he leans back, raising an eyebrow.

"Eh, it'll do... I guess," I smirk, popping it back in my mouth.

"Cheeky," the Doctor smiles, tapping my nose.

"Old man," I giggle.

"Tiny," he narrows his eyes.

"Rude," I pout, folding my arms.

"Not ginger," he shrugs.

"Twig," I nudge his stomach with my foot.

"Not my favorite," the Doctor grimaces, standing up and cleaning up the first aid kit.

"It's mine," I smile, slipping my shirt back on and buttoning it. "Especially since I can't call you 'big ears' anymore!"

"You-" the Doctor narrows his eyes, but gets cut off when Mouse walks into the TARDIS alone. "I told you to keep an eye on her!" he rounds on him.

"She's alright, just needed a bit to herself," Mouse waves off, coming over to sit beside me. "How're you?" he asks gently.

"Good," I smile, holding up my newly bandaged arm so he could see. "The Doctor fixed me all up!"

"She's goes wandering off!" the Doctor glares at Mouse, obviously not done with the subject and I sigh. "Parallel world, it's like a gingerbread house! All those temptations calling out!"

"Oh, so it's just Rose and Bird, then?" Mouse scoffs, folding his arms as he glares up at the Doctor. "Nothing out there to tempt me?"

I lean into his side, trying to give him some comfort. I knew that he'd be thinking if my dad's alive in this world, then his gran could be as well.

"Well, I don't know! I can't worry about everything!" the Doctor huffs. "If I could just get this thing to-" he kicks the console and I whimper, grabbing my foot.

The Doctor winces, limping over to sit next to me on the jump-seat with a scowl.

Mouse looks over at him, trying not to laugh, "did that help?"

"Yes," the Doctor glares at him.

"... did that hurt?" Mouse raises an eyebrow.

"Yes," he huffs, pulling his foot up to rub it. "Ow," he whines.

"Bloody idiot," I roll my eyes, rubbing at my own foot.

"... sorry," the Doctor glances at me sheepishly and my lips twitch up. "We're not meant to be here," he shifts uncomfortably. "The TARDIS draws her power off the universe, but it's the wrong universe... it's like diesel in a petrol engine," he sighs.

"But I've seen it in comics," Mouse frowns, placing his arm on the back of the jump-seat behind me. "People are hopping from one alternative world to another - it's easy."

"Not in the real world," the Doctor gives him a scathing look, making me glare at him when Mouse quiets. "... used to be easy," he softens his tone a bit. "When the Time Lords kept their eye on everything, you could hop between realities, home in time for tea. Then they died... took it all with them," he shakes his head, a wave of grief and guilt hitting me and I reach over to take his hand in mine. "The walls of reality closed, the worlds were sealed... everything became that bit less kind," he murmurs, tightening his hold on my hand.

"... then how did we get here?" Mouse asks.

The Doctor sighs, rubbing his face with his free hand, "I don't know... accident?" he guesses. "Should've been impossible, now we're trapped," he mutters before brightening, a wide grin starting to form and I frown at the sudden change. "What's that?"

"What?" Mouse and I ask, both equally confused.

"That there! Is that a reflection?" the Doctor lets go of my hand and points to a spot beneath the console.

My eyes widen when I see a tiny green light and I slide off the jump-seat, crouching down to get a better look. "No way," I breathe out.

"It's a light!" the Doctor smiles, crouching down beside me. "Is it? Is that a light? ... I think that's a light! That's all we need!" he beams and he and Mouse quickly remove the grating. "We've got power! Lizzie, Mickey, we've got power! Ha!" he laughs, throwing his arms around me and lifting me up, spinning quickly and I clutch onto him, laughing with him.

***
The Doctor was underneath the grating floor, pulling up some... rather important looking wires and things. "It's alive!" he beams, tossing a huge tube to me and I raise an eyebrow, shrugging as I set it aside.

"What is it?" Mouse asks curiously.

"It's nothing, it's tiny," the Doctor waves off before frowning. "Well... not- not Lizzie... anyway," he shakes his head, making me smile at his slight spluttering. "One of those insignificant little power cells that no one ever bothers about and it's clinging to life! But with one little ounce of reality tucked away inside!"

"Enough to get us home?"

"Not yet," the Doctor mutters, picking out the little power cell and sitting under the grating on the small set of stairs.

I sit on the grating beside him and smile, running my finger along the power cell that was glowing a bright, sea green.

"I need to charge it up," the Doctor explains, cupping the cell in his hands carefully.

"We could go outside and latch it up to the national grid!" Mouse suggests happily.

"Good idea," I smile up at him. "... but wrong sort of energy."

"It's got to come from our universe," the Doctor nods.

"But we don't have anything," Mouse points out, his smile fading.

"There's me," the Doctor retorts, throwing me a wink as he blows on the power cell gently.

The power cell glows brightly before dimming down a bit and the Doctor beams, "I just gave away ten years of my life," he tells us, making me look at him with wide eyes. "It's fine, worth every second," he laughs with a wide, goofy grin.

"So... we're going home, then?" I ask hopefully and he nods, tossing the power cell in the air and catching it. "Yes!" I squeal excitedly, throwing my arms around him and kissing his cheek.

"It's going out, is that ok?" Mouse asks worriedly and I look down at the cell to see that it was dimming more and more before brightening again.

I pull away from a chuckling Doctor, red-faced. "It's on a re-charging cycle," he explains, ruffling my hair with a teasing grin and I stick my tongue out at him. "It'll loop round, power back up and be ready to take us home in... oh, twenty-four hours?" he guesses, kissing the power cell.

"So, that gives us twenty-four hours on a parallel world?" Mouse asks carefully, making my smile fade a bit.

"Shore leave!" the Doctor beams, not paying attention to Mouse's change in demeanor. "As long as we keep our heads down - easy! No problem! Let's go and tell her!" he hops out of the grating and gives me a hand up.

***

The Doctor walks in front of Mouse and me with his hands in his pockets. I was walking beside Mouse with my arm looped through his and my head on his arm. "I know what you're planning," I whisper.

Mouse immediately goes on the defensive, "Bird, I've got to, it's my gran-"

"I won't stop you," I cut him off, making him blink down at me in surprise.

"... you won't?"

"No, I know I'd never be able to," I shake my head. "Just... just be careful, yeah?" I ask, chewing on my bottom lip in worry.

"Course I will," Mouse smiles, kissing the top of my head.

"There you are!" the Doctor exclaims and I look to see Rose sitting on a bench, looking at her phone with a heartbroken expression. "You alright? No applause, I fixed it!" he beams, showing Rose the power cell. "Twenty-four hours, then we're flying back to reality!" he sits down beside her.

"... Rose?" I ask carefully, sitting on the other side of her when she doesn't give any sort of reaction.

"What is it?" the Doctor asks, worry hitting me as he places a hand on Rose's shoulder.

"My phone connected," Rose tells us, sounding close to tears. "There's this... Cybus Network; it finds your phone... it gave me internet access," she explains.

I frown, pulling my phone out and seeing a page pop up with the words 'Welcome! Free Trial Period!'. "I got it too," I mutter, putting my phone back in my pocket.

"Rose, whatever it says: this is the wrong world," the Doctor tells her firmly.

"Lizzie and me... we don't exist," Rose's voice cracks and I wrap an arm around her, my eyebrows furrowed.

"What do you mean?" the Doctor frowns.

"There's no Lizzie or Rose Tyler," Rose shakes her head. "I was never born and... you were never left with mum and dad, you were never adopted," she snuggles into my side and I run my fingers through her hair.

I frown, so does that mean that my parents never gave me up in this world? Was I... was I enough for them here? Maybe I could figure out- I cut my thoughts off. There were never any records of who I was before being left on the mum and dad's doorstep. So how would I even go about doing that? I sigh, holding Rose closer as my heart aches. If they did keep me here, then I guess... at least a version of me is with them. At least of version of my parents could be happy... I didn't need them, anyway. I have Rose and mum and Mouse and the Doctor - they're my family.

"There's Pete - our dad - and Jackie... he still married mum, but they never had kids..."

"Give me that phone," the Doctor orders, reaching to grab it.

"They're rich," Rose goes on, pulling her hand away before he could get her mobile. "They've got a house and cars and everything they want... but they haven't got us," she wipes at her eyes. "... we've got to see him," she decides, standing up.

"You can't," the Doctor narrows his eyes at the same time I mutter, "we can't," thickly.

"What?" Rose stares at me.

I stand up, taking a step toward her, "do you remember what happened the last time I saw dad?" I ask, voice cracking and Rose falters. "I got the Doctor eaten! He was gone and it was all my fault because I was selfish and I-" I cut myself off. "... do you really think it's a good idea to go anywhere near him?"

"... I just want to see him," Rose shakes her head.

"I can't let you!" the Doctor cuts in.

Rose turns to him, "you just said twenty-four hours!" she glares.

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

"Twenty-four hours, yeah?" Mouse asks, starting to walk off.

"Where're you going?" the Doctor demands, standing up as well and staring after him.

"Well, I can do what I want!"

"I've got the address and everything," Rose starts to walk backward in the opposite direction.

"Rose, stop it!" I glare at her, tears welling up.

"Stay where you are, both of you!" the Doctor shouts, looking between them frantically. "Rose, come back here! Mickey, come back here, right now!"

"I just want to see him," Rose looks between the Doctor and me pleadingly.

"Yeah, I've got things to see and all," Mouse shrugs.

"Like what?" the Doctor scoffs.

"Well, you don't know anything about me, do you?" Mouse retorts and my heart aches at the sad but accepting tone he uses. "It's always about Rose and Bird... I'm just a spare part," he shakes his head.

"That's not true!" I tell him firmly, a tear sliding down my cheek. "Rose, get back here!" I turn to her.

"Just cause you care more about your boyfriend than seeing our dad, doesn't mean I'm the same!" Rose shouts, making my eyes widen as I take a step back in hurt.

The Doctor pulls me to his chest and Rose looks at me, wringing her hands guiltily. "Lizzie... I'm sorry but I've got to go," she turns away.

"Rose, come back!" I shout after her.

"Go on, then!" Mouse calls. "No choice, is there?" he scoffs as the Doctor looks back and forth between him and Rose, worry and anger washing over me. "You can only chase after one of us, and it's never gonna be me, is it?"

I get out the Doctor's hold, going to move toward Mouse, "I'm coming with you!"

"No, you're not," the Doctor grabs the wrist of my uninjured arm.

"You're not the boss of me," I glare, yanking my wrist from his grasp. "I can do whatever the hell I like!"

"No," Mouse's voice makes me turn to see him coming back over to us. "You go to Rose... she's your sister," he shrugs.

"But you're my Mouse," I retort, my eyebrows furrowing.

"Yeah, but Rose needs you more right now," Mouse smiles, putting his hands on my shoulders. "So go," he nods to where she had left.

I look over my shoulder where Rose had gone and back to Mouse, "be back here in twenty-four hours," I pull him into a tight hug. "If I don't see you, then I'm tracking you down and dragging you back myself," I nuzzle his shoulder.

"I wouldn't expect any less," Mouse chuckles, kissing the top of my head and squeezing me briefly. "I'll be fine," he assures me, pulling away and cupping my cheek before heading off.

I watch him go around the corner before wiping at my eyes. I feel a hand on my shoulder and turn into the Doctor, wrapping my arms around his waist.

The Doctor sighs, "come on," he nudges me gently, pulling away and grabbing my hand. "Before Rose gets in any trouble by herself," he jokes, making my lips twitch up.

***

After catching up with Rose, the Doctor had asked what Mouse was going after. Rose took it upon herself to explain. "Mickey's mum just couldn't cope... his dad hung around for a while, but then he just sort of wandered off," she folds her arms. "He was brought up by his gran - she was such a great woman," she smiles. "God, she used to slap him!" she laughs and my lips twitch up before both of us sober up. "... and then she died," she sighs sadly. "She tripped and fell down the stairs... it's about five years ago, now... we were still in school."

"I never knew," the Doctor mutters, running his thumb up and down my arm.

"Well... you never asked," I shrug.

"You never said!"

"It wasn't my story to tell," I shake my head.

"That's Mickey," Rose sighs. "I suppose I- we just... take him for granted..."

That makes me stop in my tracks, pushing the Doctor's arm from around me, "excuse you? I don't take him for granted," I scoff, making the Doctor and Rose stop as well. "All either of you do is make fun of him or forget he's even with us!" I glare between them, finally snapping and I get a rush of guilt and worry. "Mouse is always there for me when I need him - no questions, no judgment, and no hesitation! Never once made fun of me or made me feel small for my knowledge or blurting out the answers to questions I had no business knowing! 

"If anyone did and he was around to hear them, he'd be there to defend me in an instant! That brave, kind, funny, amazing man has done nothing but love and protect me my whole life and you two treat him like he's nothing! Well, he's not, he's everything!" I shout at them, my hands clenched at my sides and I was breathing heavily as tears stream down my face. "I'd be nothing if it wasn't for him and I am so bloody sick of you two treating him as some sort of toy that's only here for you to push around and have a laugh at!"

Rose and the Doctor both stare at me in shock, a few people in the street pausing to stare at me as well. "What are you lot staring for?" I turn my anger to the people that had stopped. "You've never seen people have a row before? Just fucking shift!" I glare at them and they hurry past.

"I-" Rose squeaks out, shuffling on her feet. "I'm sorry..." she whispers, her bottom lip trembling. "I... I know I don't treat him right, but I... I love him," she wipes at her face.

"Well, maybe you should show him that once in a while," I nearly spit at her.

"... ok, let's just... just calm down," the Doctor cuts in cautiously, putting his hands on my shoulders from behind.

"I'm pissed at you too," I huff, folding my arms and not looking at him.

"I know... I'm sorry," he kisses the back of my head, rubbing my shoulders and I hate the fact that I start to relax.

"I'm not the one either of you should be apologizing to," I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose. "... do you think she could still be alive? His gran?"

"Could be," the Doctor answers, wrapping his arms around me and leaning his chin on my head. "Like I said: parallel world - gingerbread house," he mutters, swaying us from side to side and I roll my eyes, my lips twitching up despite myself. "We need to get out of here as fast as we can..."

An alarm suddenly goes off and everyone in the street freezes. I frown, stepping away from the Doctor, "what the hell?"

"What're they all doing?" Rose asks, her eyebrows furrowing.

"They've stopped..." the Doctor trails off, pausing beside a man and narrowing his eyes as he looks him over.

I look around at everyone and notice that they all had ear-pods on with flashing blue lights. "I've a feeling it's got to do with these ear-pods," I mutter.

"Like bluetooth attachments," the Doctor nods. "But everyone's connected together..."

My phone beeps, but I ignore it when I see Rose taking her's out. "It's on my phone, it's automatic," she mutters. "Look, it's downloading," she frowns and the Doctor and I peer at her phone, the Doctor slipping his 'brainy' specs on. "Is this what they're all getting?"

"Must be," I shrug. "News... international news... sport... weather..." I read off.

"They get it direct, downloaded right into their heads," the Doctor frowns.

"TV schedules... lottery numbers," Rose reads.

"Everyone shares the same information," the Doctor takes Rose's mobile, scrolling through it. "Daily Download: published by Cybus Industries," he reads off.

I pull his hand down, my eyebrows furrowing as I look at the screen. The download scrolls down to 'joke' and everyone around us laugh before going about their day as if nothing had happened. "Yes, because that's not unnerving at all," I roll my eyes, folding my arms.

"You lot, you're obsessed," the Doctor shakes his head, still scrolling through Rose's phone. "You'd do anything for the latest upgrade," he scoffs.

"Oi, not our lot," Rose sends him a look as I roll my eyes again. "Different world, remember!" she slaps his arm lightly.

"It's not so far off your world - this place is only parallel," the Doctor shrugs. "Oh, look at that," he shows us the phone quickly. "Cybus Industries owns just about every company in Britain, including Vitex," he reads off. "Mr. Pete Tyler's very well connected," he mutters.

Rose gives me a pleading look and I sigh, grabbing the Doctor's bicep and he looks down at me questioningly. I smile up at him innocently, giving him my best puppy-eyes while biting my lip. Rose leans her head against his other arm, grabbing hold of it with a tongue-in-teeth, batting her eyelashes up at him. The Doctor looks between us and groans miserably, "both my girls are ganging up on me... that's completely unfair," he huffs. "Ok, ok, I give up," he sighs, handing Rose her mobile back and she squeals happily. "Let's go and see him," he rolls his eyes with a small smile.

***

The Doctor, Rose, and I get to the Tyler Mansion - yeah, mansion. The three of us crouch down by some bushes, watching as expensive cars pull into the long drive. "They've got visitors," the Doctor points out.

"February the first, mum's birthday," I tell him.

"Even in a parallel world, she still loves a party," Rose smiles, making me snort quietly.

"Well... given Pete Tyler's guest list, I wouldn't mind a look," the Doctor murmurs. "And there is one guaranteed way of getting inside," he pulls out the psychic paper, waving it around.

"Psychic paper!" Rose beams.

"Who do you want to be?" the Doctor smirks.

***

When the Doctor had asked who we wanted to be... I didn't expect him to decide on servers. I had a tray of appetizers in one hand, pulling down my skirt with the other before putting it behind my back to hide my bandage as best I could. Apparently, whoever came up with these uniforms was a fan of short skirts - this one coming just a bit above mid-thigh.

Rose scowls with her tray of champagne, "we could've been anyone," she shoots the Doctor a glare.

"Got us in, didn't it?" he retorts.

"You're in charge of the psychic paper," I murmur and smile as someone comes up to me, grabbing a cocktail sausage. "We could've been guests, celebrities even," I whisper.

"Sir Doctor, Dames Rose and Elizabeth," Rose agrees under her breath. "We end up serving! I had enough of this back home," she huffs.

"If you want to know what's going on, work in the kitchens," the Doctor defends himself indignantly, making me roll my eyes as we move to a secluded area of the room so we could watch everyone. "According to Lucy, that man there-" he nods over to an older man that was drinking and socializing.

"Who's Lucy?" I cut in curiously.

"She's carrying the salmon pinwheels," the Doctor nods over to a pretty waitress on the other side of the room, who waves over at us with a friendly smile when she sees us looking and I smile back, nodding.

I raise an eyebrow, though, deciding to mess with the Doctor a bit, "oh, that's Lucy, is it?" I ask, scoffing a little.

"... yeah," the Doctor shifts on his feet, making me bite my lip and share a look with Rose as we both try not to laugh. "Anyway," he sighs, shaking his head as his lips twitch up. "Lucy says that is the President of Great Britain."

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

"Seems so," the Doctor nods.

"Excuse me!" a voice call, making me freeze slightly. "Thank you very much! Thank you, if I could just have your attention, please?"

I move through the crowd with Rose and the Doctor behind me as I follow dad... no Pete's voice. My heart aches at the mental correction and I stop in my tracks when I get to the foyer and see him on a grand staircase; it was decorated with beautiful flower arrangments and streamers.

"Um, I'd just like to say um, thank you all for coming on this um, very special occasion - my wife's... thirty-ninth," he smiles, making the crowd laugh and I raise an eyebrow, smiling at the lie. "Trust me on this," he gives a thumbs up, making the crowd laugh harder. "So... without further ado, here she is! The birthday girl - my lovely wife - Jackie Tyler!" he holds his arm out and mum... no Jackie comes down the stairs to stand by him in a form-fitting black dress that came down to her knees and she had her hair up in curls.

"Now, I'm not giving a speech," Jackie smiles. "That's what my parties are famous for - no work, no politics! Just a few good mates and plenty of black market whiskey," she makes the crowd laugh. "Pardon me, Mr. President! So, yeah! Get on with it, enjoy! Enjoy!" she waves everyone on and the crowd cheers as she takes... Pete's hand and they descend down the rest of the stairs.

"... you can't stay," the Doctor murmurs to Rose and me softly. "Even if there was some way of telling them-"

"Course we can't," I shake my head. "... we've still got mum at home - our real mum."

"Couldn't just leave her, could we?" Rose agrees, staring at our 'parents'. "It's just... they've got each other and mum's got no one," she whispers thickly.

"She's got you! Those two haven't!" the Doctor argues, raising his voice slightly. "All these different worlds, not one of them gets it right," he sighs.

"Rose!" Jackie calls suddenly, making Rose and I share a look of surprise. "There's my little girl!" she coos and my shock turns to amusement when a Yorkie comes in, yipping and barking around Jackie's ankles. "Come to mummy! Come to mummy!" she kneels down, picking up the dog. "Yes, good girl! Good girl, aren't you?"

I snort at the indignant look on Rose's face as she stares at the dog. The Doctor takes one look at Rose and bursts out laughing. Rose shoots him a glare and he quiets immediately, "... sorry," he bites his lip to keep from laughing more.

"At least you've got a dog," I whisper, nudging her with my elbow. "I haven't got anything..."

"Yeah, I guess," Rose mutters, not taking her eyes off... Pete as he walks through the crowd.

"I'm going to see if I can find anything out," the Doctor whispers. "You girls gonna be alright?"

"... we're fine," I wave him off, Rose nodding in agreement.

The Doctor sighs, putting a hand on my waist, "come find me if you need to," he murmurs, pressing a kiss to the back of my head.

***

After a bit of walking through the crowd and seeing if we could hear anything, Rose and I meet up off to the side of everyone. I lean against the doorway, smiling when I see Jackie laughing with some of the guests.

"I remember her twenty-first," Pete's voice makes both of us jump as he comes up on the other side of Rose. "Pint of cider in the George," he smiles, watching Jackie.

Rose clears her throat, "sorry... champagne?" she offers.

"Oh, might as well," he smiles, taking a glass. "I'm paying for it!" he laughs.

"... sausage?" I offer and he takes one, sipping his drink.

"It's a big night for you," Rose smiles.

"Well, for her," he corrects. "... still, she's happy," he sighs.

"Yeah, she should be," I smile. "It's a great party!"

"... do you think?"

I give a thumbs up, "you can trust me!" I smile, Rose giggling beside me.

"You can trust me on this," Pete smiles.

"That's it, sorry," I smile sheepishly and just watch him laughing... alive.

Pete looks down at my arm, frowning, "if you don't mind, what happened to you?" he asks worriedly.

"Oh..." I look down at my bandage, not being able to take the look of concern he was giving me. "I cut it... total klutz, me," I mutter, putting my arm behind my back.

"So um, how long have you two been married?" Rose changes the subject.

Pete raises his eyebrow, eyeing both of us, "twenty-three years," he answers.

"And no kids, or...?"

"We kept putting it off," he shakes his head before leaning in. "She said she didn't want to spoil her figure," he murmurs.

"It's not too late, she's only forty-three," I put in.

"Thirty-nine," Pete corrects with a smirk.

"Oh, right! Thirty-nine!" Rose smirks back and the three of us laugh quietly.

"You've never thought of... of adopting a child?" I ask hesitantly, glancing at Rose as I mess with the tie on the back of my uniform.

"We had thought of it, yeah," Pete nods. "Always wanted girls... was gonna name our first Elizabeth, after mum," he smiles, making my breath hitch in my throat. "Too late now, though... I moved out last month," he shakes his head. "... we're gonna keep it quiet, you know, bad for business," he whispers.

Rose and I share a look, both of our smiles faded. Pete clears his throat, looking between us with furrowed eyebrows, "why am I telling you two all of this? We haven't met before, have we?" he stares at us. "I don't know, you both just seem sort of..."

"What?" Rose's voice shakes slightly.

"I don't know, just sort of... right..." he frowns before shaking himself and moving over to a small group of people.

I let out a shaky breath as I set down my tray and move around the corner to lean against the wall. Rose comes to stand beside me - her tray gone as well - and lean her head on my shoulder, wrapping her arms around my waist. I wrap my arms around her shoulders as she snuggles into me, sniffling quietly. "Are you ok?" I whisper, fighting off tears as I stroke her hair.

"Alright, I guess... you?"

"Yeah, fine," I nod, my voice cracking slightly and I clear my throat. "I just- just need a bit where I can't see him," I bite my lip, tightening my hold on her. "Would it be alright if I..." I trail off.

"Go on," she squeezes me. "He's probably worried anyway," she kisses my cheek, pulling away. "I need some air, so I'll be fine on my own," she gives me a small smile, straightening her outfit. "... and Lizzie?" she shifts on her feet and I raise an eyebrow in question. "I'm sorry for what I said earlier," she mutters, looking down.

"Hey," I smile, putting my hands on her arms and she looks back at me. "We were both upset, it's fine," I pull her into a tight hug. "I'd never hold something like that against you, alright?"

"... yeah," she nods.

***

Upstairs, I walk into a room and shut the door behind me, leaning against it with my eyes shut as I breath out slowly.

"Thought you might come up and find me," the Doctor's voice says lightly.

I jump and open my eyes to see him sitting in front of a laptop with his 'brainy' specs on, not looking back at me. "... I didn't know anyone was in here," I murmur, wrapping my arms around my waist. "I- I was coming to find you..."

"How's Rose?" he asks worriedly, spinning his chair around to face me.

"Fine... went out to get some air," I mutter and he nods, folding his arms. "He and Jackie are separated... they're splitting up..."

The Doctor sighs, gesturing me over to him, "they're not your parents," he tells me softly, grabbing my hand when I reach him.

"I know," I whisper, looking away and wiping at a tear that slips out with my free hand. "I just thought that... that if they didn't have me or- or Rose in this world... then at least they have each other... and they haven't even got that," I shake my head, my voice cracking.

"Come here," the Doctor pulls me into his lap and I wrap my arms around his waist, snuggling into his warmth as one of his arms comes around me and he runs his thumb up and down my side. "My sweet Lizzie-" he leans his cheek against the top of my head, making my face burn as I catch the 'my' and how his arm tightens around me just a bit. "-always wanting everyone to be happy and loved and safe," he presses a kiss to my temple.

"... what-" I clear my throat, ignoring the Doctor's smug smile and the shiver that runs down my spine when his thumb grazes my hip. "What are you, um... doing, then? On- on the computer...?" I ask, peering over his shoulder at the laptop.

The Doctor smirks, spinning us around, "hacking into Cybus Industries," he looks down at me. "Want to help?" he wiggles his eyebrows enticingly.

"Aw, you know just how to get me," I smile, sitting up straight so I could reach the keyboard better. "... you've done most of the work," I pout, seeing he was nearly in already.

"You can finish up," the Doctor chuckles, wrapping his arms around my waist and leaning his chin on my shoulder. "I'll just sit here - nice and comfy - and bask in your cleverness," he holds up the sonic.

"Charmer," I accuse teasingly as I take it.

"Only for you, love," the Doctor smirks, brushing his thumb along where my tattoo is.

I let out a small squeak, making him chuckle quietly. I huff with a beet-red face as I focus on the computer, sonicking it. I glance back at him, "... thank you, Doctor," I bite my lip, grateful that he was trying to distract me.

The Doctor kisses my cheek, squeezing me a bit and smiling against my skin when he feels my face burn more... smug bastard. I pull a face, mocking him under my breath and he narrows his eyes playfully, tickling my sides. I squeal slightly, trying to squirm away from him but he just forces me to stay. "I'm trying to work! Ah! S-stop it!" I get out between my giggles. "D-Doctor!"

"Cheeky," he stops, wrapping his arms back around me.

"Meanie," I glare, trying to catch my breath.

"That look only works if you're actually cross with me," the Doctor smirks.

"Bastard..." I huff, going back to the computer.

"Rude," the Doctor pinches my sides slightly.

"Not ginger," I roll my eyes.

The Doctor hums, "tiny," he smiles.

"Twig," I bite my lip, trying not to laugh at his grimace. "Ooo, I'm in!" I smile when I get into the company files and find a presentation video.

"That's my girl," the Doctor smiles, reaching over to press play.

Voiceover - The most precious thing on Earth is the Human brain and yet, we allow it to die. But now Cybus Industries has perfected a way of sustaining the brain - indefinitely - within a cradle of copyrighted chemicals. The latest advances in synapse research allow cyber-kinetic impulses to be bonded onto a metal exoskeleton. This is the ultimate upgrade. Our greatest step into cyberspace.

My face had gone very pale as I freeze in place, the Doctor's arms tightening around me as horror washes over me. The video shows a simulation of a man getting his 'upgrade' as metal handlebars are placed over his head from his ears. "Cybers," the Doctor whispers, staring at the screen.

"Rose!" my eyes widen as I jump off the Doctor's lap and run from the room with him right behind me.

***

Getting back downstairs, I look around frantically to try and find Rose. I see her across the room and the three of us move through the crowd and meet up at a window. I look out and my face pales even more as I see figures marching toward the mansion. "Oh, God..." I whisper shakily.

"It's happening again," the Doctor shakes his head.

"What do you mean?" Rose looks between us.

"I've seen them before," the Doctor whispers between clenched teeth.

"... what are they?"

"Cybermen!" the Doctor grinds out at the same time I whisper it.

Several of the Cybermen crash through the tall windows, stepping through. The guests all scream, cowering as the Cybermen corner everyone into the back of the room in a circle. I wrap an arm around Rose and the Doctor pushes us behind him quickly.

The President's ear-pods beep, "Mr. Lumic," he nearly spits out. "I forbade this!" he stares at the Cybermen, having a conversation that we can only hear his half of.

"What are they? Robots?" Rose asks under her breath.

"Worse than that," the Doctor shakes his head.

"Who were these people?" the President demands of Mr. Lumic.

"They're people?" Rose stares at the Cybermen, her face paling.

"They... they were," I mutter, my stomach churning as I tighten my hold on her. "Until they had all their humanity taken away," I whisper, swallowing thickly.

The Doctor reaches back, gripping my hand in his, "it's a living brain jammed inside a cybernetic body with a heart of steel - all emotions removed," he explains darkly.

"Why no emotions?" Rose asks quietly.

"Because it hurts," the Doctor answers just as quietly, his voice thick.

"I demand to know, Lumic!" the President raises his voice. "These people, who were they?"

After a moment of silence, his ear-pods turn off and a Cyberman faces the crowd head-on. "We have been upgraded," it announces.

I flinch at the cold, unaffected tone of its voice and Rose curls into my side a bit as she flinches as well. The Doctor squeezes my hand before moving to face the Cyberman but making sure that Rose and I were still behind him. "Into what?" he asks.

"The next level of mankind - we are Human Point Two," it answers. "Every citizen will receive a free upgrade. You will become like us."

"I'm sorry," the President shakes his head, stepping forward. "I'm so sorry for what's been done to you, but listen to me," he turns to face all the Cybermen. "This experiment ends tonight!"

"Upgrading is compulsory," a Cyberman retorts.

"And if I refuse?"

"Don't," the Doctor warns immediately.

"What if I refuse?" the President ignores him.

"I'm telling you: don't!" the Doctor steps forward.

"Please, listen to him, sir," I plead, my heart beating rapidly.

The President steps right up to the Cyberman, "what happens if I refuse?" he persists.

"Then you are not compatible," the Cyberman answers simply.

"What happens then?" the President challenges.

"You will be deleted," the Cyberman grasps the President by the shoulder.

The President screams as his body is engulfed by blue electricity and he falls to the ground. The crowd screams at his lifeless body and they start to run. I whimper, dreams of when I was little flashing through my mind as the Cyberman start to shout 'delete' as they kill the guests one after one. "Jackie!?" dad's voice snaps me from my thoughts.

The Doctor grabs my hand and pulls me - and Rose - through one of the broken windows, "there's nothing we can do!"

"Our mum's in there!" Rose screams, pulling away.

Letting go of my hand, the Doctor grabs her wrist, "she's not your mother!" he pulls her back. "Come on!"

The three of us hurry up a slope, only to change direction immediately because of a row of Cybermen marching toward us. On the other side of the mansion, I see dad hopping out of a broken window. "Quick!" Rose and I shout.

Pete joins us and we run to the front of the mansion. "Pete is there a way out!?" the Doctor asks quickly.

"The side gates!" Pete runs off, the three of us following. "Who are you? How do you know so much?" he asks as we run.

"You wouldn't believe it in a million year-" the Doctor cuts off as we skid to a stop.

There was another row of Cyberman marching toward us and we change direction again. Two figures come running toward the mansion in the distance and we slow to a stop. "Who's that!?" Rose asks.

"Get behind me!" I hear Mouse yell.

The Doctor, Rose, Pete, and I run over and crouch behind Mouse and some bloke with spikey blonde hair. I frown at Mouse dressed in all black and holding a gun, which he and the blonde use to fire at the Cyberman, making them halt in their marching.

"Oh, my God! Look at you!" Rose cries and starts to fuss over Mouse. "I thought I'd never see you again!" she pulls him into a hug.

I frown when he scowls and pulls away from her, "yeah, no offense, sweetheart... but who the hell are you?"

"Rose! Bird!"

I turn to see another Mouse stumbling over to us, panting with his hands on his knees when he reaches us.

"Oh..." I mutter, looking between them.

"That's not me, that's like... the other one," Mouse explains.

Rose stares between Mouse and his parallel self before launching herself at ours. Mouse stumbles back a bit before wrapping his arms around Rose with a slight smile.

The Doctor looks between the two Mouses, "oh, as if things weren't bad enough! There's two Mickey's!" he groans, making me send him a glare and he has the decency to at least look guilty.

"It's Ricky," the other Mouse corrects.

"What the hell?" my eyes widen as I share an incredulous look with the Doctor, who had burst out laughing.

"But there's more of them," Mouse cuts in, nodding to the Cybermen that were slowly starting to circle around us.

Mouse pushes quickly Rose behind him. "We're surrounded," she whispers.

Ricky and his blonde friend raise their guns and the Doctor groans, "put the guns down! Bullets won't stop them!"

Blondie ignores him and starts to shoot anyway. As I was the closest to him, I push his gun down and he stops firing immediately. I gasp, stumbling back a bit as an image of a woman - who was glowing a soft purplish-white with eyes of the same color - firing off a blaster at a group of Cybermen that were coming at her. I whimper, clutching my head as it starts to hurt.

"Stop shooting, now!" the Doctor shouts, snapping me out of my... daze?

My hand moves to my necklace chain absently and I roll the metal between my fingers. Mind going a bit fuzzing, I frown as I forget what I'd been thinking about and the pain in my head stops. What... what just happened? The Doctor looks back at me with a frown and I just shrug, not understanding the wave of worry I get from him suddenly. With furrowed eyebrows, he turns back to the Cybermen. "We surrender! Hands up," he orders us and we all raise our hands immediately. "There's no need to damage us! We're good stock! We volunteer for the upgrade program! Take us to be processed!"

"You are rogue elements," one of the Cyberman denies.

"But we surrender," the Doctor falters.

"You are incompatible," the Cyberman retorts.

"But this is a surrender!"

"You will be deleted!"

"But we're surrendering! Listen to me! We surrender!"

"You are inferior! Man will be reborn as Cyberman but you will perish under maximum deletion!"

The Cybermen raise their hands out toward us, marching forward and chanting 'delete'. Mouse pulls me behind him as well and I wrap my arms around Rose, my heart beating rapidly in my chest.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think by dropping a comment or vote! :*