hello all! Sorry that i havent been uploading in a while. I have been working on another story so i have been distracted. I am going to try and upload the rest of the story on here today, but who knows. Reviews are much appreciated!
Kathy and the Doctor peeked their heads above the dark green brush of the Moaning Wood and looked through a pair of binoculars that the Doctor had stored in his TARDIS. It reminded Kathy of a James Bond thing, and hummed the theme in her head. They studied the Lone Island Estate intently, as the teenagers lived a care-free night. Kathy couldn't help but feel jealous as she watched her friends and colleagues party and have fun as if there wasn't a care in the world.
"So tell me again, why we are playing peeping toms when I could just go over there and experience things for myself?" Kathy questioned, feeling rather anxious.
"I want to make sure that there are no immediate or obvious signs of danger. I don't want to just go sauntering in without knowing exactly what we are dealing with. Using your knowledge of local life, we can identify any abnormal behavior." The Doctor explained, almost monotone. He wasn't really paying attention to her anyway.
"But what if someone sees us?" Kathy persisted. She didn't want to get caught by a local, and have it spread around town that she liked to watch teenagers from afar, especially since she was supposed to be working. Oh, she was so getting fired.
"The TARDIS scanned the area. There is no one living within 20 kilometers from here. The probability of someone spotting us is highly unlikely, especially since this is referred to as the Moaning Woods."
"Kilometers?"
"Oh, right. America has a different system. Uh, 20 kilometers are equivalent to about 12 miles."
"Alright, but what about the Gronthaars? The TARDIS also mentioned that there were some in the woods."
He held up his sonic screwdriver without breaking his concentration, and pressed the button, which sounded the electronic hum. "I've set my screwdriver to alert us if a Gronthaar comes within 50 feet of us. Now, quit your fussing and keep a look out." Keeping his finger on the button, he adjusted the focus and tried to zoom closer on the teenagers. "Notice anything different? Anything at all? Even the smallest bits can help."
Kathy raised an eyebrow and sighed. She peered once again to the Estate. There was a boating dock on the south end of the small island. The mansion stood in the middle, consumed with ivy and mold. Gardens that were, at its prime, more beautiful than the gardens at Versailles. Now, weeds had invaded and chocked the beauty to death. Vines and dead twigs scattered the grounds. What used to be an illustrious posh fountain was now a fire pit where most of the teens were gathered at that time. It was common knowledge among the locals that the mansion was only used for more "private and intimate" meetings.
As she looked about, she thought she would say what she saw out loud. That way the Doctor could catch up with some local news. "Well, I see that Dexter Trouff is no longer single. Mary Jo and Gracie are insulting everyone around them, no surprises there. Ha! Mark Johnson is trying to pick a fight with Justin Cole, captain of the wrestling team. Oh, he must be drunk or something. Good luck, Markie. Karla Scythe is the head cheerleader and looks like she is getting very friendly with Bobby Boyd. I wonder what her boyfriend will think of that. Foster Preston and his gang look like their choosing their next girlfriend. They are such sleaze balls. You should have seen them at the Halloween dance last year…"
The Doctor was only half listening. Humans and their drama were annoying to him. All they lived for was the next scandal or something. Maybe it's because their lives are so boring. He could care less about who cheated on whom, or who broke up with whom. Nonetheless, Kathy kept gabbing about it.
Kathy. She complicated the situation that was supposed to be so simple. He was not about to have another person accompany him in the TARDIS, not after what he had been through. He told her it would just be this once, but he knew the reality. All the Doctor wanted was to pack a few adventures before he had to… die. The thought made him shiver and shake in fear. It was going to be soon, he knew that. It was just a matter of when. And the thought, well, scared him, though he never in a million years would admit it. So, if his time was almost up, what was the point in having a companion?
"Well, that's different." Kathy commented, snapping the Doctor out of his thoughts.
"What? What do you see?" he asked eagerly, thankful for some action.
"Do you see the boy on the far right with his group of nerd friends? He has blonde, curly hair and dark blue glasses. His gang is wearing t-shirts that say 'SMarty's Chess Club'." He was able to spot the awkward looking kid with his gang of other awkward kids. He still wore braces and wide rimmed glasses, like he came out of the 1980s. "That's our class president, Carl Rooney. He's been class president for ten years now."
"Ten?"
"Yea, well, no one else cares that much about it, so he's always the only candidate. He's also president of the computer and comic book club. Straight A student. Winner of the Science fair three years running. Your classic nerd. Gets picked on quite a bit, but looks like he's planning something." Kathy felt a twinge of jealousy. Even Brainy Rooney got to party at the Estate. She quickly shook the feeling away, and observed the scene before her.
Carl's buddies were nudging him forward and laughed mischievously. At first, Carl seemed reluctant. But eventually, he walked up to Justin. They exchanged a few words. Then, Carl punched Justin in the face, knocking him backwards with shock. Kathy's mouth dropped, as well as the people around the two boys. Anyone who picked a fight with Justin Cole was asking for death. And here was the class nerd whopping the wrestling captain! Justin took a couple seconds to regain his bearings, while Carl looked at him smugly. Then, Justin tackled Carl to the ground with an animal-like force.
"Oh, my god." Kathy gasped as she watched a live Animal Planet show.
"I am guessing that's not normal behavior." The Doctor remarked. "That boy has phenomenal amounts of strength in that tiny little body."
"Carl couldn't even lift his lunch tray without struggling. Let alone knock a hundred-twenty pound dude over." Everyone around the two wrestling boys were frozen, not sure if they wanted to run away or help. "The last person who picked a fight with Justin ended up with severe brain damage, enough to cause a minor concussion."
The brawl intensified as Justin let the blows grow harder, enough to make Carl's weak body shake violently. Nevertheless, Carl kept returning the blows with impossible amount of power. At last, Justin's team mates decided to break it up and pulled the two off of each other. Justin could barely stand properly; his face littered with dirt and blood. Carl wiped his mouth that was dribbling with blood as well and stared at Justin with defiance that had never been seen in him or anyone who had faced the wresting captain. Justin hobbled off with the help of a few team mates and the crowd dispersed away from Carl and his gang. No one dared to speak a word to Carl. His friends slapped him on the back and cheered loudly. They eventually walked off to the north side of the island, the more secluded part, leaving the garden empty and bare.
Kathy stood up slowly, still in shock. She walked to the nearest tree and leaned on it, her mind flying a million miles per minute. "What just happened?" she exhaled.
The Doctor stood up as well and gathered the binoculars. "The Gronthaars are getting more dangerous. I suspect they are tapping into a teenager's psychic network and using their hormones as weapons. They are getting stronger."
Kathy couldn't even listen; instead she sat shaking her head. "No, this can't be happening. Not to me. Not to this stupid town. Not to my friends. Oh, my God, my friends are over there. Everything is changing too quickly."
Placing both the binoculars in his pockets, the Doctor walked to Kathy and placed his hands on her shoulders again, reassuringly. "Look, I promised you I would help them, remember? And when I make a promise, I keep it. There still is a good chance that your friends are unharmed. But we need to get over there and investigate. Can you do that, Kathy?" She nodded.
"Let's go kick some alien rear." She smiled determinedly.
"So, wait, why can't we just rent a boat?" Kathy asked as they entered the TARDIS again. The Doctor ran over to a portion of the floor and lifted the metal grating. "Won't a blue police box look out of place on an island full of curious teenagers?"
The Doctor lowered himself down into the compartment in the floor and began to search. "Not if we park inside the mansion. It looks run down anyway."
"Yea, well let's just hope we don't land next to a couple of really good friends." She muttered. "And what are you doing?" Kathy asked, dodging flying objects the Doctor was flinging over his shoulder.
"Searching for something. It will help us in the investigation." He mumbled beneath her feet.
"Huh, investigation." She thought aloud. "Never thought of it like that. It's like Ghostbusters and CSI combined."
The Doctor chose to ignore the last comment for more reasons than one. "Aha!" he exclaimed. He stood up quickly, forgetting that there was a metal grating above him. Thus, he hit his head on the metal. "Ow." He mumbled.
Kathy wasn't sure whether to be concerned or to laugh. "You alright?" she asked swallowing a chuckle.
This time he poked his head out of the opening, still rubbing his head. "I found it." He said, pulling himself from the compartment.
"And what exactly is that?" She grunted, helping him out.
He replaced the grating and faced Kathy, holding out his hand. In it, laid two sets of brass keys that were tied to a thick black strand. "Perception filters!" He said excitedly, as if they were toys he just got for Christmas. "You see, these will allow us to walk around the island without being detected."
"So, that's your big plan?" Kathy stated sarcastically. "How do they work? If anyone spots us, do we hold up the key to their face like the Exorcist?"
"No, no, no. Nothing like that. These little dandies have a… well, let's just say a complicated composition. See?" He placed the key around his neck like a necklace. Kathy stared at him, but with the key around his neck, she felt her eyes wander away from him. She had to shake her head a few times. But it was like her eyes couldn't land on the Doctor. "Hello?" he called teasingly. The voice sounded like it was coming from inside her head.
Placing her fingers on her temples because of the headache she was getting, she said, "It's like you were speaking in my mind."
The Doctor had his fun and slid off the key. "You see, perception filters are just what they sound like. They change the perception of others. They play tricks with the brain, making it so that the person wearing one is virtually invisible. It'll be like they know we're there, but we won't register as anyone of importance or a threat in any way."
Kathy nodded, only half getting it. "So, we wear these around our necks and no one will notice us?"
"Yep, as long as we don't do anything to draw attention to ourselves, we should be able to observe and investigate without anyone knowing! Well, when I say they won't know, I mean that-"
Kathy held up her hand to stop him from confusing her even more. "Yea, yea, I get it." She insisted.
"Right." He nodded once and waltzed over to his beloved control board. "Off we go. Allons-y!" The Doctor pulled a lever and the TARDIS sprang to life.
A bit of "Allons-y!" for ya, there! ;)
