AN: I'm skipping all of Series 9. I didn't like what Moffet did to Clara, so in this world, Series 9 didn't happen. Now, on with the show…

The Return of Doctor Mysterio

After we left Clara, The Doctor, Annabelle and I traveled through time and space having all kinds of adventures. One of our stops was in New York City. We decided we needed to clean up all the time distortions in the city. We landed in 1992 and started to work on setting up a device on a roof of an apartment building. "Working on Christmas Eve," said Annabelle, as she worked on setting a trap that would keep people from messing with the device.

"Could be worse," said I said as used my sonic to hook some wires together, "We could be fighting the Daleks or Cybermen or Weeping Angels…"

"True," she said, as she used her sonic on her trap, "

I crawled out from under the device and looked around, "Where's Uncle Theta?"

"He went in the TARDIS to get the gemstone."

At that moment the door opened and said The Doctor said, "Found it…" he said, as he showed us a small orange gemstone and slipped it in his coat pocket.

"Where was it?" I asked.

"In my sock drawer."

"You keep a gem that can grant wishes in a sock drawer?" asked Annabelle.

"Oh, and I suppose you'd want to keep it in a safe?" said The Doctor, "That's the first place a thief would look."

I rolled my eyes and crawled back under the device. Just then, I heard Annabelle call out, "No! Stop!" Then I heard the Doctor scream.

I scrambled out from under the device. I saw Annabelle looking over the ledge and The Doctor was gone, "What happened?" I asked as I joined my daughter at the ledge.

"The Doctor put his foot in my trap," said Annabelle. I looked down and saw my uncle dangling a couple of floors down by a rope attached to his foot.

"You made a rope trap to fling someone off the side of the building?"

"Well, it wasn't my idea. It was…"

"The Doctor's" she and I said together.

"Doctor!" I called out, "Are you okay?"

"Oh yes!" he called back, "I'm just fine…"

Annabelle and I tried to pull on the rope to bring him back up, but he was too heavy. Just then I heard the Doctor call out, "Hey you! Hello there!"

I opened my telepathic link to The Doctor, "Are you talking to someone?" I asked.

"Yes, there's a young man in his bedroom. He's coming to the window "Ah, hello!" he said to the boy.

"Hello?" said the boy

"Hello!"

"What are you doing?"

"My niece and I were setting a trap."

"A trap?"

"On your roof."

"What happened?"

"I tried it out."

"How?"

"Accidentally," The Doctor grabbed the window sill and the boy sneezed, "Bless you."

"Thanks," said the boy.

"What's your name?"

"Grant."

"Hello, Grant. What floor is this?"

"Sixty."

"Ah!" said The Doctor.

The rope started to fray, Annabelle and I grabbed on to the rope. "ASK HIM TO COME IN ALREADY!" I screamed.

"I'm getting there!" he called out.

"Who are you talking to?" asked Grant.

"My niece, Teddy… She's a ginger right now, so she has a bit of a temper."

I groaned as Annabelle and I held the rope, "Remind me to kill your uncle, the next time I see him."

"Done," groaned Annabelle.

"Would it all right if I came in?" The Doctor asked Grant.

"I'll have to ask my mom," said Grant. Then he closed the window.

"Ow!" said The Doctor as the window closed on his fingers.

Annabelle and I held on to the rope, but we were slowly losing our grip. The Doctor tried to use his sonic to open the window. A few moments later, the window opened, "Mom says you can come in. You're expected."

"Expected?" said Annabelle, The Doctor and I altogether. Then the rope snapped and the rope slipped from our hands.

"Doctor!" said Annabelle and I together. We looked and saw The Doctor had grabbed on to the window sill and pulled himself in Grant's apartment. We both slid down and sat on the roof. I turned on my telepathic link to him, "Are you okay?" I asked.

"Yes," said The Doctor, "Grant and I hare having some cookies and milk… We'll be up shortly…"

Annabelle and I looked at each other, "Cookies and Milk?" Then it both dawned on us why and we laughed.

I continued to work on the device, while Annabelle worked on the trap. A short time later, the door to the roof opened and young boy holding a flashlight. He had glasses and was wearing a robe and pajamas. "No, he got special powers." He said.

"What, vomiting, hair loss and death? Fat lot of use," said The Doctor, "Ladies. How are we coming along?"

"Just about finished," I said.

"Grant," said The Doctor, "These are my nieces, Teddy and Annabelle."

"Nice to meet you, Grant," said Annabelle as she shook his hand.

"Like wise," he said.

"Thanks for saving our uncle," I said, as I shook his hand.

"You're welcome."

"What do you think?" asked The Doctor as he walked over to the device.

"That looks," said Grant, as we walked over.

"I know."

"Cheap."

"Oh, shut up!"

"Doctor!" I scolded. Just then Grant sneezed, "Do you have a cold, Grant?"

"I always get a cold at Christmas," said Grant.

"Me too," said The Doctor, "Or an invasion." Then he handed Grant a glass of water.

"Where did you get that from?"

"My pocket."

"How do you keep a glass of water in your pocket?"

"Skills. Now hush, we've got a lot of work to do. Take this," The Doctor handed Grant the gem and we went to work on the device.

"Who are you?" asked Grant.

"The Doctor," said my uncle.

"Yeah, but who are you?"

"The Doctor."

"Which one, though? There's lots of doctors."

"The one. I'm the main one. The original. I started it. They're all based on me. Now everyone who wants to sound clever calls themselves Doctor. Bandwagon!"

I rolled my eyes. Then Grant said, "In a comic book, you know what you'd be called? Doctor Mysterio."

"Oh, I like that. Doctor Mysterio! I'll have that."

"Thanks, Grant," said Annabelle, "It's just about ready."

"What is it?"

"Well, in terms that you would understand…" said The Doctor, "Sorry, there aren't any. It's a, it's a, it's a, it's a time-distortion equalizer thingy."

"A what?"

"Well, there's been a lot of localized disruption here in New York," I said, "Most of it our fault, actually. Hopefully this will make it all calm down."

"I don't understand," said Grant.

"Do you know what a lightning conductor is?" asked The Doctor.

"Yeah."

"Well, it's nothing like that," I said.

"I thought you and your niece were setting a trap," said Grant.

"We were, to protect this," said Annabelle, "We don't want anyone turning it off."

"Or stealing it for a Christmas tree," added The Doctor.

"But it looks like a Christmas tree," said Grant.

"Of course, it does, it's science."

I rolled my eyes, "Yes, because everything that has to do with science looks like a Christmas tree," I walked over to Grant, "Do you want to turn the lights on?"

"Can I?" asked Grant.

"Go on. It's Christmas Day," said The Doctor.

"What do I do?"

"Ah! Right" said The Doctor. He handed Grant a key, "you put this into this."

Grant did that then I said, "and you flick all those little switches on."

Grant did that then he said, "Nothing's happening."

"Yeah, because now we get to the cool part," said Annabelle, "Come here." We took Grant around to the other side, "Do you see that little door there? Open it up."

Grant opened the door and inside was a bunch of circuitry and wires. There was a circle in the middle with a hole for the gem, "Now we turn on the lights," said The Doctor, "Pop the gemstone right in there."

"What gemstone?" asked Grant.

"The gemstone that I gave you. Pop it right in there," said The Doctor, as he pointed at the hole.

"That was a gemstone?"

"Well, it's more than just a gemstone," I said, "it's also like a kind of on-board computer. Come here." I took Grant to the edge of the roof and I pointed up in the night sky, "Can you see, can you see that little yellow star at the end of that curve? It comes from near there."

"Formed in the heart of a red hole and stabilized in pure dwarf star crystal," said The Doctor, "The gemstone is intuitive. It knows what you want and draws energy from the nearest star to make it happen."

"There's only four of them left in the universe," said Annabelle, "The Apocalypse Monks of the Andorax called this one the "Hassandra", the Ghost of Love and Wishes."

"Okay, then, pop it in," said The Doctor, as us three Time Lords walked back over to the machine.

"I thought it was medicine," said Grant.

We all turned and looked at Grant, "What?" said The Doctor.

"It looked like medicine."

"What have you done with it?"

"Well, you gave me medicine and a glass of water, and you said you were a doctor. I thought it was for my cough."

The Doctor opened Grant's robe and there was a red glow. "Oh! You swallowed it. You can't go round swallowing things. What age are you, 36?"

"8," said Grant. I took out my sonic and scanned him, "Am I going to get sick?" he asked.

"No," I said as read the readings, "Quite the opposite."

"The opposite? What's the opposite?" asked Grant as he started to float. The Doctor gently pushed him back down, "What happened?"

"Nothing," lied the Doctor.

"What's wrong with me?" asked Grant as he started to rise up again.

"Well, you've got a cough and a slight case of levitation." The Doctor pushed him back down.

"Now, you need to stay calm," I said.

"What happens if I don't stay calm?" Grant started to go up.

The Doctor grabbed on to his legs, "Don't panic."

"What happens if I panic?" Then, Grant flew into the night sky.

"Come on!" I said, as I grabbed Annabelle's hand and we ran in to the TARDIS. "Lock on to the gemstone!" I said, as we ran to the console.

"On it…"

"Preparing for non-Vortex flight," I said as I typed some commands into the console.

"Got it!" said Annabelle.

"Here we go!" I said as threw the lever to put the TARDIS in flight.

We chased after The Doctor and Grant and caught up to them top of the Empire State Building. We landed the TARDIS at the base of the mast at the top of the building. Annabelle and I rushed out of the TARDIS, just as the Doctor and Grant came down from the mast. "Doctor!" I said, "Are you two all right?"

"Oh yes… We're fine..."

"What happened?" asked Annabelle.

"Intuitive crystal, plus too many comic books," said The Doctor, "The gemstone gave Grant want it thought he wanted. It gave him superpowers."

"So I'm a superhero now?" asked Grant.

"Well, once the gemstone is gone from inside you, you'll be back to normal. It will pass."

"But how will it get out?"

"Like I said, it will pass."

"I'm so looking forward to that," said Annabelle, sarcastically.

"Are you sure?" asked Grant.

"Of course I'm not sure," said The Doctor, "Nothing's ever sure."

"Grant," I said, "You have to promise us one thing. For as long as you have these powers, you will never, ever use them."

"Sure," he said.

We took Grant back home and headed off again. During our travels we met up with River Song again, but it was the last time we would see her. We finally took her to see the Singing Towers of Darillium. That was a family moment, so I won't be telling you about that.

After leaving River Song for the last time, we continued with our travels. We were joined by a friend of River's named Nardole. As we continued to travel we found out about a group of alien life forms in the shape of brains. They called themselves Harmony Shoal. They migrated from planet to planet extracting and replacing the central nervous systems of compatible hosts and once the whole planet was colonized they moved to the next planet, and their next planet was Earth.

They had set up shop on Earth as a research institute and had opened a new large building in New York City, and was holding a tour for the press. Annabelle, Nardole and I used psychic paper as press credentials to get in the building. Once we were done with the tour the head of the institute, a Mr. Brock addressed us, "Any questions after today can be handled by Miss Shuster or Miss Siegel, who can be contacted on the e-mail addresses provided in your welcome pack. That's all we have time for, ladies and gentlemen. I hope you had a stimulating day, and maybe saw a little of what makes Harmony Shoal the foremost innovator in science and technology the world over. Like we always say, we're here to open your minds."

Just then a young, blond, female reporter spoke up, "Mr. Brock, just one more question. I've been looking into your funding, and you seem to have a lot of benefactors for a research institute."

"The world is changing, Ms. Fletcher. Science got sexy," said Mr. Brock.

"Yeah, but your benefactors? I can't seem to find any of them."

"Very simple reason for that. I killed them all, buried them in my back yard."

The group laughed. Then Ms. Fletcher asked, "How big is your back yard, Mister Brock?"

"At the last count, Wyoming," said Mr. Brock. The group laughed again, "Now, if you good people will excuse me, this young lady will guide you to the exit."

Just then Nardole spoke up, "Mr. Brock? Er, Mr. Brock? Mr. Brock? Mr. Brock."

"Apparently, we have one more question."

"Yes. Where is the little boys' room?"

"I think you'll find the restrooms to the left, on your way out."

"No, not the restrooms, the little boys' room."

"If you successfully locate the restrooms, I think you'll find everything you need in there. Thank you all."

"This way, ladies and gentlemen," said a woman.

"I don't want a rest. If everyone's just having a rest, I might cause an incident." I smiled and patted Nardole on the shoulder. Then, Annabelle and I followed the rest of the group out.

Nardole hid in the restroom while Annabelle and I headed back to the TARDIS. Later that night, Nardole gave us the all clear and we landed the TARDIS inside the building. We met up with Nardole and he told us the direction Brock and another man, a Dr. Sim, headed in. We followed them to a large vault. But we weren't alone, the reporter from earlier was there too but she had on a cleaning woman's uniform. We stood around the corner from her and listened.

"These specimens were donated to this facility by our benefactors for a top-secret research project," said Brock, "A project which is not to be questioned, impeded, or in fact mentioned by any of the employees of the Harmony Shoal Institute. Even I don't have the clearance to know what's going on in here."

"But why?" asked Sim.

"It's not your job to ask questions. Stick to science. Something wrong with your eyes?"

"Sir, the first time I came in here, I counted 24 specimens. The second time I counted, there were 30. Now there are 36

"Well, I guess they've got the space."

"You don't understand. There have been no deliveries. I checked it. Some of these brains, sir, they just... arrived."

Just then I heard the sound of eating. I turned and saw The Doctor eating sushi. The Doctor noticed that Ms. Fletcher had turned, too and he said, "It's okay. We're intruders too. Yeah, I brought snacks. Mark of a pro. Keep listening."

I shook my head and we went back to listening, "Looks like a brain to me. Kind of blue, I guess, but that's the fluid, right?"

"Yes. That's the fluid," said Sim, "Tap the glass, sir."

"What'd you say?"

"Tap the glass, please."

Brock tapped the glass and two eyes appeared on the brain, "What? What the hell is that? Is that a joke?"

"No sir, it's not a joke," said Sim.

"It's got eyes! Look at them, they're like… They're like your eyes."

"Yes sir, they are."

"Dr. Sim?" asked Brock. Dr. Sim pointed at one of the jars, "What are you pointing at?"

"I'm pointing at Dr. Sim. Don't look so alarmed. We merely exchanged containers. You might call this a hijack."

Brock punched Sim. Sim grabbed him by the throat and threw him to the floor. Sim adjusted his head and Brock said, "What happened to you? I don't understand."

"The same thing that is about to happen to you. I had a change of mind."

I tapped Ms. Fletcher on the shoulder and had her follow us. We went further down the hall and watched from around a corner as Sim left the vault and locked the door behind him. Then, we headed back to the lobby we were in earlier in the day. As we walked down some stairs the Doctor asked the woman, "Who are you?"

"Lucy Fletcher, reporter from the Daily Chronicle," said Ms. Fletcher. When we go to the bottom of the stairs, she stopped and said, "Hang on, why am I telling you the truth?"

"Spooky, isn't it?" asked Annabelle, "Are you looking for a story?"

"I think I just found one."

"'Brains with minds of their own?'" asked The Doctor, "No one will believe that. This is America." I smacked him upside the head.

"Who are you?" asked Lucy, as we walked over to a map of the world with marks on it.

"Special Agent Dan Dangerous from Scotland Yard, Scotland. The Doctor for short. These are my associates, Teddy and Annabelle Duncan from the FBI," said The Doctor. I rolled my eyes. Then, The Doctor continued, "See, they've got institutes all over the world. And always in capital cities."

Just then Nardole walked up, "Nope."

"Yes, yes, they are, see?"

"He's right," I said, "New York is not a capital city."

The Doctor looked at me, "Don't encourage him… He's not here to point out mistakes."

"Washington's got its own one, yeah," said Nardole.

The lights came up and Dr. Sim came walking in holding a gun. Lucy and Nardole put their hands up, "I would call Security, but they might leave you alive. I do not want any awkward questions about the intruders I was forced to shoot for my own protection."

"That's a good plan," said Annabelle, "Here's another one." She turned her back to Sim, "Tell them you shot us in the back in self-defense."

"Good…" said The Doctor as we turned our backs to Sim, " We'll be laughing all the way to the slab."

Just then we heard knocking, "Face me," said Sim.

"I don't think so," I said.

"Face me now." The knocking returned, "What is that?" asked Sim.

"It's not me," said Nardole.

"It sounds like…" Lucy started to say.

"Like someone knocking at a window," finished the Doctor.

"We're on the 100th floor," said Annabelle.

We turned and saw a man in a superhero costume hovering outside the window. "Oh, my God, he's real," said Lucy.

"Who's real?" I asked.

"The Ghost."

"Who's the Ghost?" asked Annabelle.

"Masked vigilante," said Lucy, "But he's…"

"What?" asked The Doctor.

"Super."

The Ghost snapped his fingers and glass shattered and then he glided inside. When his feet touched the floor he walked towards us, "Mind if I come in?"

"Impressive," said Sim, "Those windows, like everything in this building, are built to withstand a blast equivalent to four nuclear explosions."

"Sorry about that. Would you like me to call a glazier?"

"Hmm." Then Sim started firing at The Ghost as he walked toward Sim. But, the bullets bounced off him.

When the clip was empty he brushed the last bullet off of the G on his breast plate. Then, The Ghost quickly moved forward, grabbed Sim by the neck and lifted him up. "Please understand, it's against my personal code to cause lasting harm to any individual." He threw Sim against the map. "However, light to moderate injury's fine."

"That was good," said Nardole. I rolled my eyes.

The Ghost walked up to Lucy, "Hello. Was that man annoying you?"

"You're real?" asked Lucy, "I can't believe it, you're actually real."

"I'm afraid I am. I enjoy your column, Miss Fletcher."

"You read my column? You read? You're real and you read?"

"Though I find the political bias in your paper's editorial not entirely to my taste."

"I'll pass that on."

"Thank you," The Ghost looked at us, "Who are they?"

"They're, er. I don't actually know."

"This is my friend, Nardole," said The Doctor.

"Hello, The Ghost," said Nardole.

"These are my nieces, Teddy and Annabelle. And I'm The Doctor."

"The Doctor. I thought we had lots of doctors."

"I'm the main one."

The Ghost nodded slightly then looked back at Lucy, "Can I give you a ride home?"

"You have a car?"

"No," He took her in his arms, "I hope you're okay with heights."

"I'm okay so far."

"Have a good evening, ladies… gentlemen…"

"He seems nice," said Nardole.

"Grant," I said.

We headed back to the TARDIS and locked on the gemstone in Grant and tracked him back to an apartment, where we heard a crying baby. I picked up the baby and sat down in a chair just as Grant rushed in the room. He had quickly changed out of his superhero outfit and into a flannel shirt, t-shirt and lounge pants. He looked at the empty crib and I said, "With great power comes great responsibility. No man worthy of the title leaves a baby alone." I stood up and walked out of the room with The Doctor and Annabelle behind me.

"How did you find me?" asked Grant as he followed us.

"We tracked the gemstone inside you," said The Doctor. We walked to the small dining area, "Your powers, they don't belong in this world. They're an anomaly."

"You promised me you'd never use them," I said.

"May I take her?" asked Grant.

"She's yours?" I asked as I handed the baby to him.

"I'm hers. I'm her nanny."

"You're her nanny?" asked The Doctor.

"Yeah, her nanny," said Grant, "You got a problem with that?"

"No, no, it's just, well, okay, so you are a superhero and a nanny?"

"Well, you've got to make a buck somehow. I mean, you don't get paid for saving people."

"Oh, you don't have to tell us," said Nardole, as he walked in with a bottle, "Here you go, nice and warm. And tasty." Grant took the bottle and I shook my head, "Ooo, elephant."

"It's fine," said Grant, "It's a long-range baby-monitor. I can get back to this apartment quicker than most people can get to their kids' bedrooms."

"Grant, Grant, this is insane," said The Doctor, "Look, I'm me, the Doctor, and even I think this is insane."

"And that's saying something," I added.

"I can cope," said Grant.

"Of course you can't," said Annabelle, "When do you sleep? When are you not on call? How complicated do you need your life to be?"

Just then the front door opened and closed, "Well, not as complicated as it's about to get. Er, we're in here, Mrs. Lombard."

Grant walked up to meet the baby's mother. We looked down the hall and saw that Mrs. Lombard was Lucy! "Oh, Jennifer, look at you, up again?" she asked as she took the baby from Grant, "Don't you ever sleep?"

"Did you have a good evening, Mrs. Lombard?" asked Grant, as he tried to keep us covered as Lucy walked around the apartment.

"Oh, it was work. Why would it be good?"

"Well, I don't know, you seem a little buzzed. I thought maybe you'd met someone."

"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't." Grant got in Lucy's way and she said, "Grant." Grant stepped out of her way and she saw us, "What are you doing here?"

"We could ask you the same question," said Nardole, "But it's your apartment, so we probably won't."

"Well…" The Doctor started to say. We saw Grant shaking his head no.

Us Three Time Lords started to stammer, "We" to think of a good excuse then I said, "We were worried about you. We wanted to make sure that you were all right, so, er, we followed you."

"You followed me and got here first?" asked Lucy.

"Well, that's just the level of our concern," said Annabelle.

"Very concerned," added Nardole.

"They said they knew you," said Grant, "I let them in."

"We met tonight," said Lucy as she stepped up to us, "We need to talk, us four."

"Oh! Did something happen?" asked Grant.

"Nothing for you to worry your pretty little head about." Lucy turned and started to walk out of the room, "I'll put her to bed."

"I can do that."

"No, it's okay, I want to." Then Lucy left.

The three of us walked up to Grant and he said, "Lombard's her married name. He ran off when the baby came along."

It popped in my head, "Lucy… Of course…" I then thought about the time that we checked in on Grant when he was in high school. The gemstone had bonded to him and wouldn't pass. He couldn't control his X-Ray vision and he could see under everyone's clothes. Lucy and some of her friends walked by after they passed he levitated a few feet off of the bench he was sitting on. We knew he liked her.

We went out on the fire escape and he told us about Lucy, "A couple of years after high school, I ran into her again. She even remembered me."

"Oh, that was lucky," I said.

"And I was with my best friend at the time, and she couldn't take her eyes off him."

"Oh…" said Annabelle.

"Love at first sight," said Grant.

"Right," said The Doctor.

"Then marriage, then a baby, and then he ran off with someone else."

"Leaving, I suppose, the field open for you to move in.

"Yeah."

"And care for the child she'd had by another man," I said.

"Yeah," said Grant.

"So, she could keep working and possibly date other friends of yours," said Annabelle.

"Pretty much."

"You tiger," said The Doctor. He looked up at the sky, "Thank you!"

"Who are you thanking?" asked Grant.

"The universe. There's somebody worse at this than me."

Just then fire engines and police cars went flying down the street below us. We looked down the street and we saw smoke and the glow of fire in the distance. Grant handed The Doctor his glasses. "Excuse me." He quickly changed and flew off

We looked up in the sky and a few moments later we heard a toy squeaking. We turned and saw Lucy looking out the window. Holding a toy with black hair, "This is Mr. Huffle. Mr. Huffle feels pain." She squeezed the toy again, "Meet me in the kitchen."

We looked at each other and headed inside. We walked in the kitchen and Lucy was working on her laptop. She pointed to some chairs next to the table. We sat down. On the TV in the kitchen, there was a report about a fire in Manhattan. "With you in a minute." Said Lucy. We watched on TV as the Ghost flew into the burning building. "So, you're from Scotland Yard and the FBI?" she asked.

"Yes," said The Doctor.

Lucy grabbed Mr. Huffle and squeezed him hard. The toy squeaked as if it was screaming in pain. "It's fine if you don't tell me your secrets. I intend to keep mine. But don't lie to me."

"Or what?" I asked.

"I hurt Mr. Huffle. I assume you three belong to some kind of, I don't know, agency, I don't care which one, and that your current assignment is to investigate Harmony Shoal. Correct?"

"No," I said, "We were passing through"

Lucy grabbed Mr. Huffle with both hands, "Okay, okay," said The Doctor, "Yes, fine, okay, yes, broadly speaking, yes."

Lucy set the toy back on the table and it started to reflate, "What are those brain things?"

"We don't know," said Annabelle, "It's nothing that you need to worry about."

"I'm a reporter," said Lucy, "That category does not exist. What are they?"

"You wouldn't believe us if we told you," I said.

"No reason not to tell me, then."

"Those brains, they aren't just brains," said The Doctor, "They're independent alien life forms."

"And?" asked Lucy.

"They migrate from planet to planet, extracting and replacing the central nervous systems of compatible hosts," I said.

"And?"

"Harmony Shoal is a multinational corporation whose true purpose is to extract and replace the brains of key authority figures from around the world, and prepare Earth for full colonization," said Annabelle.

"Huh."

"You believe us?" I asked.

"I don't think you're lying," said Lucy, "Slightly different. What has Harmony Shoal got to do with the Ghost?"

"Nothing." I said. I saw The Ghost on TV holding a couple children with soot on their faces. He was setting them down on the ground.

"Ah, so you three know who the Ghost really is, then?

"No, we have no idea," said The Doctor.

"Oh, stop it," said Lucy as she grabbed a hold of Mr. Huffle, "We just went to a top-secret science research facility apparently run by brains from space, and a flying man with superpowers turns up. Anybody would assume the two were connected, except for somebody who already knew they weren't. So, clearly, you three know the Ghost and trust him. Nobody trusts anybody without knowing who they are, so you know who he really is. So now you can tell me. Who is he?" The Doctor didn't say anything, "Oh, that's interesting. You don't work for an agency, do you?"

"Don't I?"

"You're not used to being spoken to like this, which means you don't have a boss or an employer. So why are you investigating Harmony Shoal? What's in it for you?"

"We like to keep busy."

"Why? What happened to you?

"Nothing," said The Doctor. Lucy went to grab Mr. Hufflle but he beat her to it. The Doctor jumped out of his chair, "Oh, look!" He rushed over to the TV where the Ghost was being interviewed.

"Whoa…" said Lucy.

She grabbed the remote and turned up the volume, The Ghost was speaking, "…because fire prevention is the responsibility of every citizen, so get a smoke detector!" Just then Jennifer started to cry. Lucy turned away from the screen and missed the Ghost checking his baby monitor. "Sorry, duty calls."

"Oh, look at him go," said Lucy, as she turned back to the screen, "I need to know who he is."

Just then Grant walked in with Jennifer. He had changed back into her normal clothes minus his glasses. "You're all right. She just needs a change."

"Oh, it's okay, I'll do it," said Lucy as she took the baby, "You're so quick, Grant."

"Oh, yes. He's definitely quick," said The Doctor, as he put Grant's glasses on him.

Lucy walked out of the room and I said to him, "Do you have any time off?"

"Sure," said Grant.

Just then we heard a reporter on TV say, "As the storm hit, it became clear that two children were still trapped on the big wheel. The two small figures can be seen clinging on to the…" Then we heard Grant's glasses fall on the table.

"Doctor?" called Lucy.

We went in the nursery and Lucy had finished changing Jennifer, "So, can you put me in touch with him? The real guy behind the mask?"

"You're smart," said The Doctor, "You're so clever I actually noticed. I hardly ever listen when other people are talking."

"So what?"

"So why can't you find him yourself?"

"I got a lead."

"What lead?" I asked.

"You three," said Lucy, "You all know him. Don't even try telling me you don't."

"Maybe you know him, too," said Annabelle.

"Hey, where'd Grant go?"

Just then Grant walked in, "Right here, Mrs. Lombard."

"Oh."

"Would you like a coffee?"

"Oh, no, I'm okay, thanks. Are you all right?"

"Sure. Why?"

"You're kind of wet."

"I prefer mild-mannered."

Lucy turned and looked at us, "Can you put me in touch with him?"

"The Ghost?" I asked.

"Yeah, the Ghost."

Grant shook his head. The three of us Time Lords quickly talked about it telepathically. We all agreed that this couldn't continue. Lucy needed to know the truth for her safety and Jennifer's. "Mrs. Lombard, there are some situations which are just too stupid to be allowed to continue," said The Doctor.

Just then Grant rushed out of the room and the phone rang, "Hang on," said Lucy. She picked up her cellphone, "Hello… Yes. Who is this?" Lucy gasped, "Am I? Sorry, am I, am I speaking to the Ghost?" The three of us slipped out of the room, "So, I'm hoping this means I'm getting an interview."

We went looking for Grant and we heard him say in his Ghost voice, "An interview is entirely possible," We found him in the kitchen, "but I must make one thing clear. There must be no talk of who I really am."

"Hey, you make the headlines, you make the rules."

"Discussion of my true identity would put the people closest to me at risk. That is not acceptable."

"Fair enough, get that. How about tomorrow night?"

"For what?"

"The interview? We could get dinner."

"Dinner."

"Do you eat dinner?"

"Of course I eat dinner."

"Okay, then. Pick me up here tomorrow night, er, eight o'clock? I'll wait for you on the roof? Wait a second."

Just then Lucy came out of the nursery, "Grant, could you babysit for me tomorrow night?"

"Er…" Grant started to say.

"Please, it's important."

"I've got a date," they said together, "A date?"

"Er, kind of a date," said Lucy.

"Okay," said Grant.

"An interview. Are you seeing someone?"

"Er"

"None of my business. I mean. But are you? I mean, you never even go out, and suddenly you've got a date?"

"Yeah, well, it kind of came as a surprise to me too."

"I'm sorry?"

"It's complicated."

"Oh, I can confirm that it's definitely complicated," I said.

"You know, don't worry about it, I'll look after Jennifer," said Grant.

"You will?" said Lucy.

"You will?" said The Doctor, Annabelle and I together.

"I'll figure it out," said Grant, "Let me take care of it."

"Okay," said Lucy.

"Okay."

Then Lucy left. We walked up to her and The Doctor said, "She's jealous."

"I'm jealous!" said Grant.

"Grant, you are jealous of you," I said.

"Technically, she's jealous of her."

"Grant, how long have you known this woman?" asked Annabelle.

"Since elementary school," said Grant, "24 years."

That number hit the three of us like a ton of bricks, "24 years… It would be that long wouldn't it …" I said.

"Are you guys okay?" asked Grant.

"Time passes for everyone," said The Doctor, "Even for us."

"Grant, please," I said, "as much as it is possible for a male of any species, try not to be an idiot."

"No, seriously, are you guys okay?"

"We're always okay," said Annabelle. Then we left.

TDTL

We got in the TARDIS and set the engines on silent and landed back at Harmony Shoal We told Nardole to come back for us in about 10 minutes. Sim and Brock were looking at security camera footage of the Ghost and us from earlier. "Observe this," said Sim, "The finest vehicle this planet has to offer."

"Interesting. And can it be acquired?" said Brock.

"A plan is being formulated."

"This one. Who is he?"

I knew they were talking about The Doctor, "I'm not sure," said Sim, "But he may be dangerous."

"He doesn't look dangerous."

The Doctor used his sonic to override the security camera, so it was showing live footage, "Boo!" he said as he looked at the camera, "I'm talking to you live!" the lights came back on and we walked over to Sim and Brock, "In person!"

"You can jump back in your skins now," I said, "Except, of course, they're not your skins, are they?"

"What do you want?"

"Mercy," said The Doctor.

"We have none."

"It's not a request, it's an offer," said Annabelle.

"We'll give you a head start," said The Doctor. Brock and Sim walked toward us and we backed away from them, "We'll close our eyes and I'll count to ten."

"We will make no attempt to follow you," I said, "But, starting now, all of you, everywhere, pack your bags and get off of this planet."

"Are you declaring war on us?" asked Brock.

"We are drawing a line," said Annabelle, "and I'm suggesting you step back from it with awesome speed."

"Then war it is."

Brock opened his head along a diagonal scar. He reached in and took out a blaster. Then I said, "A multi-nucleate organism, functioning as an infinitely adaptable, independently functioning, peripatetic central nervous system." I smiled, "You know it's good to keep an open mind." I laughed then then I got serious again, "Of course it won't work."

"What won't work?" asked Brock.

"Whatever it is, whatever you've got planned," said Annabelle, "It's pretty obvious, you've set up in every capital city in the world, so clearly the plan is to unzip the head of every world leader and put yourselves inside."

"Of course," said The Doctor, "You can't just roll up with a team of surgeons to the White House or to the Kremlin, because they've got big fences, shouty people and cross dogs."

"They will come to us, and they will come running," said Sim

"Oh. I very much doubt it. Take this!" The Doctor reached in his jacket and took out a wrapped-up burger. Sim took it, "Yes, take that!"

"Who are you?" asked Brock

"There have been many attempts to conquer the Earth," I said.

"I've lost count," said Annabelle.

"Not one of them has succeeded," said The Doctor.

"Not a single one," I said.

"They all lost and burned and ran," said Annabelle.

"That's who we are," said The Doctor. He put his fingers to his mouth and whistled.

"What is this?" asked Sim, as he held the burger.

"It's a burger," said The Doctor, "I always bring a snack. But I don't want it now." He pointed at Brock, "He's put me off my dinner."

The TARDIS materialized around us. We found ourselves in the lower level of the control room, "Very good," said The Doctor as we walked up the stairs, "Right on target."

When we go to the console we saw Nardole was wearing ornate robes and a headdress as he concentrated on flying the TARDIS, "Trial and error, to be honest. A few accidental stop-offs along the way."

"Where'd you get the robes?" I asked.

"Twelfth century Constantinople. I ruled firmly, but wisely." The Doctor moved a leaver but Nardole put it back. The Doctor tried to move it again but Nardole said, "Ah, ah, ah. How did it go?"

"Oh, you know," said The Doctor, "Issued a warning, donated a burger, nicked some stationery. The Ghost. What have you got?

"The whole story," said Nardole.

"Give it to us," said Annabelle, "It's why we reassembled you."

"No, ma'am, that's not the reason, is it."

"Oh, just get on with it," said The Doctor.

"You cut me out of Hydroflax because you were worried you'd be lonely," said Nardole, "And we all know why, don't we…. But, oh, look at you lot, avoiding the subject."

"We're not avoiding anything," I said, "We're just trying to save a planet."

"Which is what you always do when the conversation turns serious," said Nardole.

Nardole told us about The Ghost and I said, "He's not supposed to be using those powers. He made a promise."

"What, like the Time Lord promise never to interfere in the affairs of other peoples or planets?" asked Nardole.

I gave him a look, "I glued your head back on. You should have a little bit more respect."

The Doctor brought the TARDIS to a stop, "Come on."

"Where are we?" asked Nardole.

"Where we were, except not."

"Oh…. Sorry?"

We walked out of the TARDIS and we were in the Tokyo branch of Harmony Shoal. We rushed down the stairs, "Oh, Tokyo branch." said Nardole

"Yep," said The Doctor.

"A bit empty, isn't it?"

"Yes, I created a distraction," I said, "I flooded downstairs with Pokémon."

The Doctor sat town at a computer. Just then a man came up to us, "You're not supposed to be in here."

"I know, it's terrible," said The Doctor, "Sorry, I'm doing everything I can to stop me. See that?"

I looked at the screen, "It's a signal, isn't it?" asked Nardole.

"It's a signal beaming into space," I said, "There was one from the New York office too. There's something in low orbit."

We rushed back to the TARDIS and started to scan. "Yep, low orbit," said The Doctor.

"But you can't get a fix on it?" asked Nardole.

"I'm trying," I said, "The shielding's too good."

"But can't we track the signals?"

"Tracking them now," said Annabelle. She threw a lever on the console, "Boom."

"Ha, ha!" said Nardole

We found the ship and opened the door of the TARDIS and had a look. Nardole changed back to his regular clothes. "That's what Harmony Shoal is signaling to," said The Doctor, "Shall we pop over and have a look? Pretty sure no-one's on board."

"How do you know?" asked Nardole, "Did you scan for lifeforms?"

"No. All the lights are off."

"Mmm," said Nardole. I shook my head.

We landed in the ship and walked off the TARDIS. "Bridge is this way," said The Doctor.

We got to the bridge and we scanned it with our sonics, "Hmm," I said.

"Bit rubbish, innit?" said Nardole.

"Don't touch anything," I said.

"No, it's quite safe, it's just a freighter."

"I said, don't touch."

"What do you…"

"You see?" said The Doctor, as he pointed to a control panel, "The reactor core. It's cycling at critical. Someone's been rewiring. This isn't a ship any more. It's a giant bomb."

"Ooo! Just going to move out," said Nardole." Doctor!"

We saw some people coming down a corridor on a monitor. I closed the door with my sonic and locked it, "They're security drones, that's all." I said.

"So, what do they want a bomb for?"

"What does anybody want a bomb for?" said Annabelle

"Surely they want to conquer the Earth, not blow it up."

"Oh, you couldn't blow up the Earth with this," said The Doctor. Then he paused. "But you could wipe out a city. Good point, well made."

"What point?" asked Nardole.

It dawned on me, "Of course… New York. It's not a capital city. You were right, Nardole."

"Oh. I don't understand."

"What would happen if you dropped this ship on New York?" asked Annabelle.

"The reactor core would split and New York would vaporize," said Nardole.

"Not all of it. Not all of it, Nardole," said The Doctor, "Remember what he said, the scary little German fella?"

Just then we heard Dr. Sim's voice, "This building can withstand a blast up to four times the strength of a nuclear explosion."

We turned and saw him talking to us on the monitor on the wall behind us, "Oh, this is very good, very meta."

"Did you understand?" asked Sim.

"You're stage-managing an alien attack when the aliens have already landed," I said.

"But why?" asked Nardole.

"Because of what happens next," said Annabelle, "When everyone thinks that the Earth is being attacked from space, what then?"

"Mass panic," said Nardole. Just then there was pounding on the door, "Ooo, speaking of panic!"

"Don't worry," I said, "it's triple deadlock-sealed. It'll hold for at least ten minutes. The people will panic, yes. But what about the world leaders? The presidents and kings, the prime ministers and generals? What will they do? What do the rich old men always do when the fighting starts?"

"They'll find the safest place to hide themselves away and send all their young people to die," said The Doctor, "And where's the safest place in every capital city now? What's the only part of New York still standing?"

"Harmony Shoal." Said Nardole

"New York isn't a capital city. It's a shop window. When the world is in danger, come hide with us. Harmony Shoal will open its doors to the terrified leaders of the world."

"And they will come running," said Sim.

"A few hours later, every politician and commander-in-chief will have a zip in their head. An alien sitting inside their skull," I said, "In one day of terror, the executive authority of Planet Earth will pass to Harmony Shoal."

"It's a good plan," said Annabelle, "I like it. How come our side never gets plans like that?"

"The humans have no plan at all," said Sim.

"That's where you're wrong," said The Doctor, "They have the same plan they always have."

"What plan?"

"Us," said The Doctor as he sat down at the controls.

"Hey, hey!" cheered Nardole.

"Don't do that."

"Sorry."

"Stand away from the controls," said Sim, as we scanned the controls with our sonics, "Any attempt to interfere with them will precipitate the attack immediately."

"Yes, we see that," I said, "Very clever. One question, as long as we're here. Why haven't you done it already?"

"When the time is right, there will be no delay."

Annabelle smiled, "Oh, you told us something there. You told us something useful. You shouldn't have done that."

"What did I tell you?"

"You told us that the time is currently wrong," said The Doctor. Then he smiled.

"Oh, it's the smile. I don't like the smile!" said Nardole.

"The Sword of Damocles hanging over New York. We can't destroy it…"

"We can't remove it," I said.

"And we can't stop it falling," said Annabelle, "There's only one thing we can do."

"What?"

"The unexpected!" said The Doctor, "The thing about being in a room full of buttons and switches is…"

"We love buttons and switches!" said The Doctor, Annabelle and I together.

We started pushing every button and flip every switch on the bridge. "Oh, don't!" said Nardole.

"What are you doing?" asked Sim.

"No!"

"What are you doing?"

Then, the ship started to move toward Earth. "Thrusters engaged," said the computer.

"Next stop New York!" said The Doctor, "Say wheeee!"

"Whee!" said Annabelle and I together.

"Oh!" groaned Nardole.

"Lower shields!" said Sim, "Brace for impact! New York is under attack."

Alarms started sounding and we could see the fire coming off the head shield, "Stop! You're going to destroy New York!"

"Of course not!" said The Doctor, "Now the bomb is arming, the shields are down"

"Help!"

"We can use the TARDIS to hijack the controls and divert it into space!" said Annabelle, as she made her way up the side of the bridge to get to the door "No bomb, no plan, no problem!" She took out her sonic screwdriver.

"No, wait! Those things are out there."

"The ship is crashing! They're not going to be worrying about us!" She used her sonic to open the door and one of the drones grabbed Nardole.

"Ooo! Oh!"

Annabelle used her sonic to close the door. "Okay, plan B."

"Doctor! Help me!" called Nardole.

"Oh, you'll be fine. This ship will have blown up long before you've been strangled to death!"

"What's plan B?"

"I have no idea," I said, "but it's going to be a very big relief when one of us thinks of it."

"You are all completely out of your minds!" said Nardole.

"How is that news to anyone?" said The Doctor.

"I know you three miss her, but couldn't you just write a poem?"

"Excellent!" said The Doctor as he moved the control sticks, "The controls are locked, but they've still got a little bit of give. It means I can take aim."

"At what?!"

"New York. There's exactly one chance, and one is all you need."

"No! Nooo."

The Doctor put his sonic into the controls. "Grant! Grant! This is the Doctor! You are the only living thing on Earth that can hear this frequency. Look up! We're coming right at you. If that thing hits the ground, then New York is finished! Over to you. Everyone! Brace for impact!"

All of the sudden we stopped moving and were all thrown to the floor. I looked around and saw The Doctor and Annabelle were Okay. But I couldn't see Nardole. "Nardole? Nardole!" We called out.

I saw him under some control panels that came loose from the impact. "Okay, one more, but text me a rickshaw."

We uncovered him and I said, "Nardole, it worked. The reactor core didn't split."

"Why not?"

"Shock absorber," said The Doctor.

We made it to the TARDIS and landed near where Grant was. When we walked out of the TARDIS, we saw we were standing on a roof top. Grant was holding the nose of the ship up off the ground and Lucy was standing next to him. Brock was there as well. The Doctor saw him, and said, "There, on you go, take a look at him. That's why you don't stand a chance. You want to know why? He's actually left-handed."

In his left hand was the baby monitor, "Sorry, instinct. I couldn't let go of this."

Lucy moved closed to grant and I said, "Hold on… If you two are about to get… excited, maybe you could get rid of that spaceship first?"

Lucy looked up "You know what?" She looked at Grant. "I think I prefer you in your superhero costume."

"It's a bit difficult for me to change right now," said Grant.

"I'll do it for you." Lucy then put his glasses on his face. Then they kissed. And started to lift up.

"Grant! Grant!" called the Doctor, "Remember, when you're finished, throw that thing into the sun."

"And Jennifer's still downstairs!" I called.

The baby monitor landed at her feet and we could hear Jennifer crying, "Great…. I'm not changing her," said Annabelle.

Just then we hear Brock say, "So, you three think this is over?"

We turned and saw him pointing his blaster at us, "Yeah," said The Doctor. He used his sonic to knock the blaster out of his hand, "Your bomb's gone, your plan's finished."

Then we heard helicopters in the sky, "And look, there's UNIT, on the way to close your head office."

"It's almost like they've been tipped off," said Annabelle.

"The vengeance of Harmony Shoal is known and feared throughout the five-star systems!" said Brock.

"Ooo, is it. Is it really," said The Doctor, "Well, we'd like to stick around and listen, but it's been a very long night."

"Also, someone needs changing," I said, "You're not the only one that's full of it." Then we headed downstairs.

A short time later, Lucy, Grant, Nardole, The Doctor, Annabelle and I were sitting around the dining room table in Lucy's apartment, "So, no more Ghost, then?" I asked.

"Nah, laid to rest," said Grant.

"Are you sure?" asked Lucy.

"Yeah, of course I'm sure. I mean, life's not a comic book, right, Doctor?"

"Possibly," said The Doctor, "I'm not the right person to ask."

"What if something happens?" Lucy asked Grant, "What if the whole world is in danger?"

"Well, you know, maybe I'll keep the outfit, then. You know, just in case," said Grant.

"The world will be fine," I said.

"We've been away for a while, but we're back," said Annabelle.

"We'll take care of anything that comes up," said The Doctor.

"You were away?" asked Grant.

"Huh," said Nardole, "Twenty-four years. What a night."

Us three Time Lords all gave sad smiles when Nardole said that, "Where'd you go?" asked Grant.

"Wrong question," said Lucy, as she put Mr. Huffle on the table, "What was his or her name?"

The three of us looked at each other and The Doctor said "I'm sure that we must be busy. We better go." We stood up.

"You guys okay?" asked Grant.

"Yeah" I said, "We'll be fine…" we turned to leave.

Lucy squeezed the toy and we turned and looked at her and Grant, "Things end," said The Doctor, "That's all."

"Everything ends, and it's always sad," I said, "But everything begins again too, and that's always happy."

"Be happy. We'll look after everything else. Nardole."

"Hey, Doctor?" said Lucy. She threw Mr. Huffle to him. He caught it and she said, "Keep it real…"

Then The Doctor and I left.

Annabelle's POV

I started to follow my mom and uncle when I stopped and looked at Grant and Lucy.

"Her name was River Song…. And she was my daughter."

"Your daughter?" asked Lucy.

I smiled, "I might look young but I'm almost 1100 years old…"

"Wow…"

"Anyway… she died, a long time ago, in a library."

"I'm so sorry."

"Thank you."

"Are you guys going to be all right?" asked Grant.

I took a deep breath, "Yeah… We'll be fine… We're Time Lords… We are very brave… Very crazy... and for a time we'll be very sad… But in the end… we'll be all right."

Nardole stood next to me, "I'll make sure of it." I smiled at him.

"Bye…" I said. Then Nardole and I went to the TARDIS.

AN: If you like this story, Review, Favorite and Follow. It gives me motivation to keep going.