Title: Prevarication
Author: castrovalva9
Rating: PG
Characters: Nyssa/Tegan/Turlough
Summary: After Mawdryn Undead, Tegan and Nyssa wonder why Turlough asked to travel on the TARDIS. Obviously he can't give the real reason, so he makes up a lie.
Note: Beta read by KaraMT.
The good news: Turlough had talked his way onto the TARDIS with surprising ease. The bad news: Tegan and Nyssa were also aboard. Actually, Turlough mused, Tegan was the real problem. Nyssa had seemed prepared to accept his presence, until Tegan went to work on poisoning her mind against him.
The result was that the three of them, along with the Doctor, ended up clumped in the console room, conversation occurring only sporadically and awkwardly. Tegan seemed content to spend the night glaring at Turlough, while Nyssa shot nervous little sidelong looks at him. Turlough knew he had to allay their suspicions. Much luck he'd have with trying to kill the Doctor if Tegan decided to breathe down his neck.
For his part, the Doctor ignored the adversarial posturing, until finally--in either a very cunning or a very cowardly move--he fled, leaving the three of them to work out their differences.
Wasting not a second, Tegan crossed her arms. "Spit it out, Turlough. Admit the real reason you wanted to come on board, because 'sneak' is written all over you."
Turlough turned to Nyssa, by far the likelier of the pair to give him the benefit of the doubt. "What do you think about me?"
She hesitated. "Well, Tegan's usually a a pretty good judge of character--"
"Don't you ever have any thoughts of your own?" Turlough interrupted.
Nyssa flushed. "Of course I do. At first I thought you might be nice, but now I'm not so sure."
"Yeah, Turlough, if Nyssa doesn't like someone, he's got to be bad," Tegan jeered. "So, why are you on board?"
Turlough hedged, "Well, why are you two here? Isn't it because of the Doctor? To be with him?" They looked blankly back at him. Turlough sighed. "I believe it's commonly called a menage a trois, or a threesome."
"With the Doctor?" Tegan recoiled.
"Both of us?" Nyssa questioned.
Their reactions had been predictably horror-struck. Too predictably so. Turlough arched one ginger brow and waited them out.
After a pause, Tegan went on, "To be completely honest, the thought has crossed my mind. Once or twice."
"Mine, too," Nyssa admitted.
"But it's never actually happened," Tegan clarified.
"No? What's wrong with the Doctor, to pass up such convenient, available..." Turlough hastily continued, "...attractive, intelligent women? Well, never mind about him. I can appreciate what he doesn't."
Nyssa looked at Tegan. Tegan looked back at Nyssa and then replied, "Hell, why not?"
"After all, our last offer came from Adric," added Nyssa.
If the Doctor noticed that all three of his companions spent the entire night in Turlough's room and did not emerge until late the next morning, he never said anything.
As for the repercussions of that evening, it should be noted that very soon afterwards, Nyssa abruptly left the TARDIS with the shakiest of explanations and Tegan's mood deteriorated into pure foulness, so that the success of Turlough's endeavours to avert suspicion is thrown into serious question indeed.