Chapter Seven:
~of showers and adventures~
I feel like the title of this chapter is a bit misleading... it isn't THAT kind of story... if you catch my drift...
"Wow." Gasped Rose, as she stepped into the large room, filled with the steady breath of the Tardis. "It's smaller on the outside!" She exclaimed as the Doctor mouthed, It's bigger on the inside.
"Oh not you too! How many times to I have to tell people that the line is, It's bigger on the inside? Honestly, you're all a disappointment." Groaned the Doctor.
"It hasn't changed much." Said Mary, dragging Matthew over to a couch and collapsing on it. "Didn't you say there was coffee?" She asked.
"Of course. I'll go make some it's just down that hall-" The Doctor was cut off by Clara, who had emerged from the same hallway he was looking at… except she was in her towel and humming what seemed to be a Christmas song. "Clara?" He asked. He was the only one to speak. Her head whipped up,
"Oh my god, Doctor! What the hell are you doing in my bedroom…" Her voice petered off as she realized that this was not in fact her bedroom. "Oh no. Ohh, no, no, nO." Her voice grew to a yell. "YOU STUPID BOX. YOU LITTLE-"
"Clara!" Scolded the Doctor, "No wonder she doesn't like you."
"I just stepped out of my en suite bathroom into the control room. And you" She jabbed her finger at the Doctor, "Are telling me to be nice to her?!" She turned around and began walking swiftly through the hall. "Oh, when will the torture end!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air. The group watched her until they heard a door slam.
"Coffee anyone?" Asked Matthew.
"Yes please." Said Tom. Matthew stood up, pulling Mary with him since their hands were still connected. The Doctor led the group down the long hallway, pointing out rooms as he went.
"And this." He said, gesturing to two large double doors at the end of the hallway, "Is the library." Matthew looked at in awe. He took a peek inside and grinned,
"There must be so many books!" He exclaimed.
"Oh yes. And a swimming pool."
"A swimming pool?" Asked Matthew, practically jogging to keep up with the Doctors fast pace.
"Ooh yes, big swimming pool. Olympic size." The Doctor replied.
"But how does it fit?" Asked Matthew.
"I think you already know the answer to that." Laughed Tom.
"Where are we going?" Asked Mary, whose legs were beginning to burn from all the fast walking.
"We're going to collect Clara. Then, we're going down to the data banks and see if anything is amiss. Finally, we're going back to Downton to convince Edith not to go to Germany."
"But isn't that a fixed point in time?" Asked Matthew who seemed to have figured out a basis of what was going on.
"Perhaps. But the Tardis would say." The Doctor shrugged.
"But we saw her…" Said Mary slowly.
"Time can be rewritten." He exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air for emphasis. Rose was silent, thinking to herself. These people are mad, she thought, and to think I'm related to some of them. She pondered for a moment. Perhaps they're not mad at all. Perhaps they've just been around more.
"Do all adults do this? Is it like a right of passage thing?" Rose muttered.
"What?" Asked Mary, giving her cousin a strange look.
"What?" She replied, genuinely confused. Suddenly she realized her mistake. "Oh, I didn't say that out loud did I?" She asked, blushing.
"I'm afraid you did." Laughed Tom. "And if you actually wanted to know, the answer is no. I don't think this happens to many adults, or people in general."
"Actually, the amount of aliens in London is rather large, if only you'd open your eyes." Responded the Doctor, stopping in front of a navy blue door. He knocked once and was met with Clara; who had her hair back in a ponytail, black capri workout pants on, a grey shirt, and sneakers. The three aristocrats (plus one socialist and one time lord) stared at her, confused. She snorted,
"You actually thought I was going to run in a dress and heels?"
"Fair enough." Shrugged the Doctor.
"Is that fashion in the future?" Asked Mary, who looked concerned.
"Only if you're working out. Some people wear stuff like this all the time though. It is rather comfortable." Mary still looked skeptical but made no remark. "So where are we headed?" asked Clara, jogging in place to show her enthusiasm.
"The kitchen!" Replied The Doctor. "You need energy to save the world y'know."
"We're hardly saving the world." Laughed Mary.
"Well, we're saving your sister." He pointed out.
"True." The group continued on their way, before stopping in front of a white door. The Doctor pushed it open to reveal a decent sized kitchen. The walls were a deep blue but all the cabinets were white. It had stainless steel appliances and a black and white tiled floor. In the corner by the door, a small table with four chairs sat.
"It's sweet!" Exclaimed Rose. "But these appliances… what is this?" She asked, opening up the dishwasher.
"Haven't you heard of a dishwasher?" The Doctor asked, "They were invented in the 1850s."
"I've never seen one before." She shrugged. Mary sighed dramatically,
"I'm only here because I was told I'd get coffee." She said. Matthew rolled his eyes at her while the Doctor went to the fridge and began rummaging through it. He pulled out six cups of coffee.
"Where did you get those?" Asked Clara.
"I made them. I find it useful to have coffee on hand, you never know when you'll need it." He told her taking a sip of the coffee. As the group drank their coffee and regained their energy they began to make a plan. Soon enough, all the mugs had been placed in the dishwasher and they were on their way.
"Doctor." Clara said, drawing the man's attention to her. "Have you ever wondered why there are only hallways in the Tardis? It's bigger on the inside! Why aren't there ladders or stairs or-" She was cut off because right as they rounded the corner, they were met with a staircase entirely made of glass. Clara whispered a tiny "oh" and looked over the railing.
"Is that the way to the data whatever you called it?" Asked Mary, leaning over the railing with Clara. Below them was only darkness, it seemed the stairs had no end.
"Data banks. And yes, I do believe it is." Said the Doctor.
"Are you sure this is safe?" Asked Matthew. "What if there's something dangerous down there?" He ran his fingers through his blond hair.
"This is the safest place you can be. Trust me, there's nothing down there." The Doctor reassured him. Clara and The Doctor shared an excited look before bounding down the stairs. The others however shared an unsure look before shrugging and following the time traveling duo down.
"Hereeee we are!" Exclaimed the Doctor. "Here we have all the information we'll ever need." In the center of the room was… a computer.
"Well." Said Tom. "That was anticlimactic"
"Oh no, dear sir, see this isn't an ordinary computer. It's hooked up to the heart of the Tardis, it stores all of the information in this whole universe, everything, everywhere, everyone." As he spoke he got closer and closer to Tom until their noses were practically touching.
"Got it." Tom said, awkwardly shuffling backwards.
"But what seems to be the problem with it?" Asked Rose, who had gone up to the computer and was looking at it closely, even though she had no idea what it was or how it worked. The Doctor turned and pointed at her,
"Aha!" Everyone jumped, "That's the question!" He spun a full 360 degrees and pointed at Clara,
"What is wrong with it?" He asked.
"Don't ask me." She snorted, "I'm rubbish with computer-y stuff." The Doctor sighed and went to closer inspect the small box.
"Does it turn on?" Asked Matthew, who went up and tapped the screen. The Doctor went around to the back of the computer and flicked a switch, making the screen light up. Matthew jumped back in surprise.
"Now scooch." He pushed Matthew and Rose back towards Tom, Mary, and Clara, who decided they'd rather watch from afar. After a few moments of silence, Clara made her way over to The Doctor, kneeling next to him. He pulled up a screen with the headline, The History of Edith Crawley. They scanned the document, looking for something about her traveling to Germany. Nothing arose however and they locked eyes, thoroughly confused.
"Is it supposed to make that noise?" Asked Matthew, going round to the back of the computer. The Doctor rolled his eyes,
"Like you know anything about it." But Clara shushed him,
"No, no, he's right! It sounds like someone's crunching on something." The Doctor fell silent and slowly moved to where Matthew was standing, putting his ear up to the back of the computer. His eyebrows furrowed and he began to pry at the back, earning many stares. Tom looked around and located a crowbar. He tossed it to The Doctor and he caught it, using it to pry away the back. He groaned loudly,
"RIDICULOUS." He exclaimed, causing Matthew, who was standing right next to him, to jump back in surprise.
"What's ridiculous?" Asked Mary, inching around to see what he was looking at.
"This," He said, pulling out a bright green caterpillar, "is like the moth of space. It goes around, eating up information. Horribly inconvenient. He frowned at the creature.
"Will you kill it?" Asked Rose.
"What? Of course not! I'll just throw it into some galaxy." He waved his free hand around as if it were no big deal. He held it out to Mary, "Mind holding this while I rewire the computer?"
"Actually yes, I do mind." She cringed and stepped away. Rose, much to everyone's surprise, decided to volunteer. She gingerly picked it up from the Doctor's hand and placed it in her own, taking a deep breath and inspecting it. The Doctor went back to work, connecting wires and such,
"THERE WE GO!" He exclaimed standing back up and reattaching the back of the computer. Rose, who was used to the silence of the Doctor working, accidentally closed her hand on the caterpillar who, in self-defense, bit her. She let out a small gasp before she fell on the floor.
"Rose!" Exclaimed Matthew. The Doctor jumped up and pulled out his sonic screwdriver.
"What on earth is that?" Asked Tom.
"This is my sonic screwdriver. I also have a pair of sonic sunglasses but I left them upstairs." HE scanned Rose and let out a sigh of relief. "She's not dead. Just passed out. Let's get her into one of the rooms while we come up with a plan."
"But, if we don't convince Edith now then she will get on the train in a matter of hours." Grimaced Matthew. The Doctor considered his options.
"Fine. Then we'll drag her back to Downton and confront Edith." Said the Doctor, finally speaking.
"Oh not again." Sighed Mary unhappily.
"What do you mean?" Asked Clara.
"Well, let's just say this won't be the first time I've dragged an unconscious body through the halls of Downton." She Said.
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