"You can head home now, Avery. I'll close tonight." Tom, her boss, called.
"Thanks, Tom." Avery replied, untying her apron as she reached for her purse.
"No problem, love. You be careful now."
"Will do." With that, Avery hung up her apron and headed out the door.
Almost as soon as she left, her phone rang. She shook her head lightly and answered the phone, "You don't have to call every day I have work, Mum. I know the routine: Meet Rose at Henricks, wait 'til she gets off work, then walk home together."
"I just want to make sure you remember."
"I remember."
"Are you sure-"
"Bye, Mum."
"Avery-" Avery hung up the phone and put it in her bag.
She then heard a whistle. "Damn, baby, you are looking fine." Some creep catcalled. Avery rolled her eyes and kept walking, ignoring him. "Hey." He said, grabbing her wrist, "Don't ignore me. I deserve a 'thank you' for that compliment."
"Let me go." She demanded through gritted teeth.
"I'm gonna need a 'thank you' first, beautiful."
She struggled against his grasp, trying to wrench her wrist free, but his grip only tightened. "Hey! Let her go!" She heard a voice with a northern accent call. She turned to see a man with buzzed hair and a leather jacket running towards her.
"Are you her boyfriend or something?" The creep asked as he released her once the man had reached them.
Blue met silver as they silently agreed to play the part of a couple. Avery leaned into the man's side with a smile, placing a hand on his chest as his arm wrapped around her waist. "Yes, I am." The man replied, "Which reminds me, sweetheart, we better get going if we're going to make our dinner reservation."
"Of course, dear." She replied, "Let's go." They walked away, the man glancing at the creep briefly with a glare.
Once they were out of the creep's sight, the man removed his arm from around Avery's waist as she dropped her hand and said, "Thank you."
"No problem." He replied, "Well, I should get going. I have something kind of important I have to do."
Avery perked up slightly, "If there's anyway I can help, I'd be more than willing. You saved my arse back there so I kind of owe you."
He shook his head, "I can't ask you to help me. It's pretty dangerous."
"Well, I'll be the judge of that." Avery replied, "At least tell me what's going on."
He sighed before explaining, "I've been getting some strange energy readings from a department store called Henricks. I'm tracking it down and when I get readings like this then it tends to get dangerous."
She nodded slightly before asking, "Did you say 'Henricks'?"
"Yeah, why?"
"We gotta go. My sister works there." She told him, grabbing his hand and all but dragging him along behind her as she sprinted in the direction of the store, "I'm Avery, by the way."
"The Doctor." He replied.
Her brows furrowed slightly as she asked, "Doctor? Doctor who?"
"Just the Doctor."
"Well, then, it's lovely to meet you, Doctor."
"Pleasure to meet you too, Avery."
***
Avery turned around the corner in the basement of Henricks, still dragging the Doctor behind her. She saw her sister being cornered by... walking manikins? She rushed over there and grabbed Rose's hand. Rose turned to look at Avery just as the Doctor said, "Run." He then ran with Avery's hand still in his, causing her to drag Rose behind them as well.
They ran through the halls, twisting and turning, pushing through doors, and occasionally glancing back at the manikins that were chasing them. Finally, they reached a service elevator and ran inside as soon as the doors were open. One of the manikins stuck its arm through the closing door, trying to reach them, and the Doctor released Avery's hand to grab the manikin's arm. He jerked his head away from the snapping hands and pulled at the arm until it finally popped off and the door closed.
"You pulled its arm off." Avery said incredulously.
"Yep." The Doctor replied, tossing the arm to her, which she caught, "Plastic."
"Very clever. Nice trick! Who were they then, students? Is this a student thing or what?" Rose asked as her sister examined the arm she was holding, as if trying to figure out how a piece of plastic was able to move like it had.
"Why would they be students?" The Doctor questioned as Avery held the arm up to her ear and knocked on it softly, noting how it was solid all the way through.
"I don't know." Rose replied.
"Well, you said it. Why students?"
"'Cos to get that many people dressed up and being silly, they got to be students." Rose explained, completely ignorant to the fact that the Doctor was more focused on her sister than. He was fascinated by how curious Avery seemed about the situation.
He turned back to Rose and said, "That makes sense. Well done."
"Thanks."
"They're not students." Avery stated, meeting the Doctor's for confirmation. He nodded slightly, confirming her theory.
"Whoever they are, when Wilson finds them, he's going to call the police." Rose told them before rolling her eyes slightly and taking the arm that her sister was handing to her.
"Who's Wilson?" Asked the Doctor.
"Chief electrician."
"Wilson's dead."
"That's just not funny. That's sick!" Rose exclaimed as the trio exited the lift.
"Hold on. Mind your eyes." The Doctor said as he grabbed Rose's shoulders and Avery ducked under his arms, squeezing between them.
"I've had enough of this now." Rose tells him as he turns and points a metal device at the lift mechanism. Avery's head tilted slightly in curiosity as she watched him press a button, causing the device to light up and make a high pitch buzzing sound that caused the mechanism to spark and Rose to whimper in surprise. The Doctor began to walk away with Avery following right behind him, listening as Rose asked, "Who are you, then? Who's that lot down there?" She paused for a moment before continuing as she followed after them, "I said, who are they?"
"They're made of plastic." The Doctor began.
"Living plastic creatures?" Avery inquired.
"Yes." The Doctor glanced back at her briefly with a slight smile, "They're being controlled by a relay device in the roof, which would be a problem if I didn't have this." He pulls out a small device that's beeping and shows them before continuing, "So, I'm going to go up there and blow them up, and I might well die in the process, but don't worry about me. No, you go home." He gently pushed Avery and Rose out the door, the former opening her mouth slightly in protest, "Go on. Go and have your lovely beans on toast. Don't tell anyone about this, because if you do, you'll get them killed." He shuts the door behind him before opening it right back up a few moments later, "I'm the Doctor, by the way. What's your name?"
"Rose."
"Nice to meet you, Rose. And, it was lovely meeting you, Avery." He told the sisters before lifting up the bomb and shaking it slightly, "Now, run for your life!" He slammed the door closed.
Avery was stunned, causing her to stand there for a few moments until she felt her sister grab her hand and drag her along behind her. Rose pulled Avery around behind her, rushing through the streets and away from Henricks, almost getting hit by a car in the process. Once they were a good distance away, Rose stopped and the two sisters looked up at the department store, and watched it explode. Rose looked at Avery and saw a look she had so many times before. "Avery, no." She whined.
Avery gave her sister a sheepish smile, "Sorry, I have to make sure he's okay. I'll see you at home." With that, Avery let go of her hand and took off across the road, smoothly sliding over the hood of a car as she went.
***
When she arrived behind Henricks, she saw the Doctor walk out the door, covered in soot. Upon noticing the girl, the Doctor asked, "Avery, what are you doing here? I told you to go home."
"I had to make sure you were alright." They stared at each other for a few moments before Avery asked, "Those plastic things. They were alien, weren't they?"
"Yes." He answered honestly, "You believe in aliens, then?"
"I don't like to rule out the possibility."
"You have a very fascinating way of seeing things."
She let out a breathy laugh and shook her head slightly, "I just have a very open mind."
He doesn't know what compelled him to do it but he asked her, "Do you trust me?"
"For some reason, I think I do." She replied somewhat hesitantly.
"I want to show you something." He told her, offering her his hand.
"Okay." She took his hand and allowed him to lead her through the streets until they ended up near where she had just been with Rose. He led her over to a blue police box before pulling out a key and unlocking it, walking inside. "Doctor, what are you doing?" She asked as she pushed the doors open after him. What she saw inside was impossible.
She backed right back out, glancing around either side of the box to try and see if it was connected to a room. It wasn't. She went back inside, a look of wonder glinting in her eyes. She walked further into the impossible box, the doors closing behind her. "It's-"
"Bigger on the inside, yes." The Doctor finishes, watching the girl's reaction.
"No, it's... beautiful." She spins around herself, taking a good look at everything. "What is it?" She asked as she turned to look at him.
"She's called the Tardis." He began.
"'She'?" Avery inquired, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
"I, um-"
"I was just teasing, Doctor." She told him, "A lot of captains refer to their ships as a she."
He narrowed his eyes at her slightly, "You're quite intuitive, aren't you?"
"I like to believe so." Avery stepped towards the console, her hand barely brushing it before the Doctor smacked it away. She raised her hands in a surrendering position as she continued, "And, as a sign of how 'intuitive' I am, I can only assume by how impossible this ship is that she is alien, and as her pilot you are also alien. Is that correct?"
The Doctor smiled slightly. "Clever, you are." He told her, indirectly confirming her conclusion.
"What does she do?" Avery asked as she moved to sit in the jump seat.
The Doctor grinned at the question and answered, "She can travel anywhere in space and time."
Avery raises a brow, "Space, you say?"
"Interested in a little trip?"
She stood up with a grin, "I've always loved astronomy."
The Doctor grinned in return before beginning to move around the console, flipping switches and pressing buttons, causing the Tardis to shudder as it took off. Avery yelped in surprise and grabbed onto the console, careful not to press anything.
As suddenly as it came, the shuddering stopped. "Ready?" The Doctor asked her, leading her towards the doors.
"I think so." She replied and, taking that as confirmation, he opened the doors. Avery gasped as she realized they were floating above the earth. She marveled at the beauty.
Meanwhile, the Doctor was looking at her. There was something about her beauty and wonder that made his hearts flutter, a feeling that he hasn't felt in a long time. This girl was really something.
***
Avery walked up to her flat, hoping that the Doctor was telling the truth about it only being five minutes since they had left. She was about to open the door when Mickey did, holding the plastic arm and walking out backwards. He nearly backed into her when she pressed a hand to his back, causing him to turn around in surprise. "Oh, sorry, Avery."
"It's fine." She reassured him before moving around him into the flat.
"Avery, you're alright!" Rose gasped, watching her sister enter the room.
"Yeah." She agreed before going to her room, careful to keep her smile hidden. She had seen so many wonders today and that was something she wanted to keep between her and the Doctor. And, although he said that she was better off forgetting him, she knew she never would.
***
"There's Finch's. You could try them. They've always got jobs." Jackie suggested, sitting down beside Avery as she took a sip of her tea.
"Oh, great. The butchers." Rose replied sarcastically.
"Well, it might do you good. That shop was giving you airs and graces. And I'm not joking about compensation." Jackie stood up walking towards the doorway, "You've had genuine shock and trauma. Arianna got two thousand quid off the council just because the old man behind the desk said she looked Greek! I know she is Greek, but that's not the point. It was a valid claim." Jackie made her way to her room.
Something rattles at the front door, catching both sisters' attention. "Mum, you're such a liar. I told you to nail that cat flap down. We're going to get strays." Avery says as she gets up and walks towards the door.
"I did it weeks back!" Jackie protested.
"No, you thought about it." Rose interjected from the kitchen.
Avery kneeled down, picking up the screws from the cap flap that were on the floor. She flinches in surprise when the flap moves suddenly. She puts the screws down and leans forward more to look through the flap. She carefully pushes the flap open to see the Doctor peering through. "Doctor!" She gasps before standing up and opening the door.
"What're you doing here?" He asked.
"I live here." Avery states incredulously.
"Well, what do you do that for?"
"Because I do. I'm only at home because someone blew up my sister's job."
"What?" The Doctor asked in confusion.
Avery rolled her eyes slightly, "My boss gave me the week off because he wanted to be there for my sister, help her through any trauma she might have."
The Doctor furrowed his brows before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a familiar cylindrical device. He presses a button that causes it to buzz, "I must have got the wrong signal. You're not plastic, are you?" He reaches over and knocks on her forehead before she bats his hand away, "No, completely human. Bye, then."
"Alright." Avery says before Rose, having heard the commotion, came barreling past.
"You. Inside. Right now." Rose told him, pulling him into the flat.
"Who is it?" Jackie calls as Avery closes the door.
Rose rounds the corner, peeking into her mother's room as she quickly explains, "It's about last night. He's part of the inquiry. Give us ten minutes."
"She deserves compensation." Jackie calls.
"Oh, we're talking millions." The Doctor says, leaning against the door frame. He looks back at Avery, giving her a joking wink that made her roll her eyes.
Jackie clears her throat and stands up, "I'm in my dressing gown."
"Yes, you are."
"There's a strange man in my bedroom." Avery cringed at her mother's tone of voice.
"Yes, there is."
"Well, anything could happen." Avery gagged, causing the Doctor to glance at her for a moment before back at Jackie.
"No." Is all he said before walking further into the flat.
Avery moved to stand in the doorway for a moment, "Mum..."
"What?" Jackie asked, clearly confused by her daughter's disgusted tone of voice. Avery merely shook her head and followed after the Doctor.
"Don't mind the mess." Rose told the Doctor as she shuffled about before making her way towards the kitchen, "Do you want a coffee?"
"Might as well, thanks. Just milk." He told Rose as he entered the room, Avery trailing not far behind.
"We should go to the police. Seriously. The three of us." Rose was telling them.
However, Avery had returned to sipping her tea as she watched the Doctor pick up a magazine that was on the coffee table. "That won't last, he's gay and she's an alien." Avery raised a brow, opening her mouth to say something before the Doctor replied, barely glancing at her, "Yes, I'm serious."
"I'm not blaming you, even if it was just some sort of joke that went wrong." Rose continued, ignorant to the disinterest of the people she was talking to.
The Doctor flipped through a paperback he found, humming, "Sad ending." He then looked at Avery and said, "Yes, I just read the entire thing." Avery gave him an incredulous look.
"They said on the news they'd found a body."
"Avery Tyler." The Doctor overpronuciated her name, reading it off of the back of an envelope before she snatched it away from him. He caught himself in the reflection of a mirror and looked himself over, "Ah, could've been worse." He wiggled his ears, "Look at the ears."
"All the same, he was nice. Nice bloke."
"I like your ears." Avery spoke up, "Adds character."
"Thank you, Avery." The Doctor replied before leaning down to pick up a deck of cards, singing, "Luck be a lady." As Rose continues to rattle on he attempts to shuffle the deck of cards. The first attempt went fine before the second went flying everywhere, "Maybe not."
"Oi, you're cleaning that up." Avery told him before their attention was caught by a rattle from the cat flap.
"What's that, then? You got a cat?" Doctor asked Avery, looking behind a chair.
"No." Avery replied.
Suddenly, a familiar plastic arm flies out from behind the chair and onto the Doctor, gripping his neck tightly. He makes strangled sounds as he falls to the floor, causing Avery to jump to her feet and rush over to him. Thinking quickly, Avery kneeled down, one knee beside the Doctor and the other on his chest, pressing against the arm to try and pry it off. She reached into the Doctor's pocket and pulled out the cylindrical device and fiddled with it, trying to find the button.
As she fiddled with it, the Doctor managed to pull the arm off of his neck and it flew towards Avery. However, before it could reach her, she caught it by the wrist and pressed the but on the device, pushing the tip into the palm of the hand in an attempt to get it to stop. The fingers flexed a few times before it stopped moving. Avery let out a deep breath, moving her knee off of the Doctor's chest. "Well, there we go, then. Armless." He said, sitting up.
"You're an idiot." Avery told him, hitting him with the arm.
"Ow."
"What the bloody hell just happened?" Rose asked as she placed the mugs she had on the table, having seen the entire thing.
***
"Hold on a minute. You can't just go swanning off." Rose told the Doctor as she and Avery followed after him down the flight of stairs.
"Yes I can. Here I am. This is me, swanning off. See you!"
"But that arm was moving. It tried to kill Avery."
"Ten out of ten for observation."
"You can't just walk away. That's not fair. You've got to tell us what's going on."
"No, I don't."
As soon as they were out of the building, Avery and Rose flanked either side of the Doctor, the latter saying, "All right, then. I'll go to the police. I'll tell everyone. You said, if I did that, I'd get people killed. So, your choice. Tell us, or I'll start talking."
"Is that supposed to sound tough?" The Doctor asked.
"Sort of."
"Doesn't work."
Avery snorted slightly, completely amused by the situation before turning her attention to the device that was still in her hand and examining it. "Who are you?" Her sister asked.
"Told you. The Doctor."
"Yeah, but Doctor what?"
"Just the Doctor."
"The Doctor." Rose said incredulously.
"Hello!" The Doctor chirped in reply, waving at her.
Rose laughed slightly as Avery asked with a sly smirk, "Is that supposed to sound impressive?
"Sort of." The Doctor told her, copying her sister's previous words.
"Come on, then. You can tell us. We've seen enough." Rose told him before asking, "Are you the police?"
"No, I was just... passing through. I'm a long way from home."
"But what have we done wrong? How come those plastic things keep coming after us?"
"Oh, suddenly the entire world revolves around you. You were just an accident. You got in the way, that's all."
"It tried to kill us."
"It was after me, not you. Last night, in the shop, I was there, you blundered in, almost ruined the whole thing. This morning, I was tracking it down, it was tracking me down. The only reason it fixed on you two is 'cos you've met me."
Avery raised a brow, "So what you're saying is, the entire world revolves around you."
"Sort of, yeah."
Avery laughed slightly, "You're full of it."
"Sort of, yeah." He repeated, grinning at her.
"But, all this plastic stuff. Who else knows about it?" Rose asked.
"No one."
"What, you're on your own?"
"Well, who else is there? I mean, you lot, all you do is eat chips, go to bed, and watch telly, while all the time, underneath you, there's a war going on."
"Okay. Start from the beginning." The Doctor nodded and Avery continued, "I mean, it's living plastic. How did I kill it?"
"The thing controlling it projects life into the arm. You cut off the signal, dead."
"So, that's radio control?"
"Thought control." She nodded slightly, trying to put the pieces together, "Are you all right?"
"You know I am." She shared a glance with him before continuing, "So, who's controlling it?"
"Long story."
"But what's it all for?" Rose questioned, "I mean, shop window dummies, what's that about? Is someone trying to take over Britain's shops?"
The trio all chuckled at the idea before the Doctor said, "No."
"No."
"It's not a price war." Avery laughed at the joke causing the other two to laugh as well before the Doctor continued in a far more serious tone, "They want to overthrow the human race and destroy you." He looked at Avery first and asked, "Do you believe me?"
She smiled slightly, "You know I do."
He nodded before looking at Rose and asking, "Do you believe me?"
"No."
"But you're still listening."
Rose stopped walking, Avery stopping a moment later, and asked, "Really, though, Doctor. Tell me, who are you?"
The question caused the Doctor to stop and turn to face the girls. He had a slight smile for a second before asking rhetorically, "Do you know like we were saying about the Earth revolving?" He paused for a second as he walked closer to them, "It's like when you were a kid. The first time they tell you the world's turning and you just can't quite believe it because everything looks like it's standing still." He looked Avery in the eyes as he continued, "I can feel it." He took her hand and then Rose's, "The turn of the Earth. The ground beneath our feet is spinning at a thousand miles an hour, and the entire planet is hurtling round the sun at sixty seven thousand miles an hour, and I can feel it. We're falling through space, the three of us, clinging to the skin of this tiny little world, and if we let go..." He released their hands, "That's who I am. Now, forget me, Avery and Rose Tyler. Go home."
Rose begins to walk away as the Doctor makes his way towards the Tardis. However, Avery follows after him. He enters the TARDIS only to walk right back out a moment later when he notices the girl standing outside his ship on the monitor. "Avery, I told you to go home." He tells her.
"Yeah, well, you forgot your..." She trailed off as she looked down at the device that was still in her hand, "Thing." She finally said, holding up the device.
His eyes widened as he took it from her, "Sonic screwdriver."
Avery raised a brow before shaking her head, "I'm not even going to question it at this point." The Doctor laughed lightly before thanking her and going back into the Tardis. Avery smiled and ran her fingers over the wood of the door, saying, "It was good to see you again, pretty lady." She then backed away and allowed the Doctor to dematerialize the Tardis, listening to the lovely wheezing sound it made.