As lexi-myrnin pointed out, I managed to let Evie AND the Doctor have the sonic screwdriver at the same time… oops! Just pretend that didn't happen, OK? :P
Comment if you're enjoying it! :)
"You fell asleep." The Doctor said accusingly the next morning as he joined Evie in the inn for breakfast. She winced guiltily and shrugged.
"Sorry…"
"Anyway… I ran into Mr Darcy last night." He continued, forgetting to be annoyed with her. Evie almost dropped her mug in astonishment.
"What d'you mean you ran into Darcy last night?"
"When I went looking for your spy, I ran into Darcy wandering around in the street." He told her, ripping a piece of bread off the loaf and stuffing it into his mouth. "Could he have been the man you heard?"
Evie shook her head. "No way." The teenager was adamant. "I told you, he spoke to me before the figured vanished."
"Hmm… strange though."
The teenager shook her head, wondering what the Doctor meant by that comment but deciding that it would be far less confusing not to ask. "What are we doing today then?"
The Doctor paused as the landlord came into the room, stopping at the end of the table and leering at Evie who jumped slightly as she glanced up and noticed his gaze. She caught the Doctor's gaze and he hastily removed the smirk from his face as he read the expression in her eyes.
"Yes?" Evie asked the man frostily.
"I just came to enquire whether you managed to catch the person last night, Sir." Cartwright said, directing his question at the Doctor while keeping his gaze firmly on the teenage girl.
"No… Sadly I didn't." The Doctor said, pulling a disappointed face. "But Evie's fine, aren't you." She nodded and they waited until the man backed out of the room, reluctantly, before speaking. "I think you've got a fan."
"Eurgh!" Evie groaned. "You realise he's going to be mentally undressing me every time he sees me."
"He won't have to imagine much." The Doctor joked with a grin.
Evie reached over and thumped him on the arm. She was more than embarrassed that the Doctor had seen her in her underwear. The more time she spent with him, the more he was beginning to feel like a brother or father. Her immediate crush the first time she'd met him had vanished, now the idea of it made her feel slightly sick.
The man put down the chunk of bread he was still picking at and looked at her seriously. "I was thinking that we should take a walk to the Church and have a look around the grounds… see if we can spot anything interesting."
"Alright… I'm ready now."
"Go and get your bonnet or whatever you need and we'll go." He told her.
As Evie got to her feet to go and collect her things, she passed behind the Doctor's chair and whacked him round the head as she walked. He pulled an outraged face, but she just narrowed her eyes and stuck her tongue out.
x
Evie and the Doctor hadn't even made it half way down the street before they heard hurrying footsteps and raised voices behind them. Evie stopped at the sound of her name and saw all five Bennet sisters as well as Charlotte and Maria Lucas walking towards them. She glanced at the Doctor who, if she hadn't known better, Evie would have sworn was looking nervous.
"Evie!" Lydia called loudly. "Doctor!"
"Miss Lydia." The Doctor said with a smile, bowing in general to all seven females. Evie was astonished at how well he fitted in but then, she supposed, he'd had enough practise.
"Did you enjoy the ball last night, Miss Jones?" Jane asked in a soft voice, speaking before her younger sister could. Lydia looked cross that the question had been asked by someone else, but said nothing.
"I did, Miss Bennet." The teenager agreed with a smile. "I noticed that Mr Bingley danced almost every dance with you. I reckon you're in there."
"You suppose that I'm 'in there'?" Jane asked in confusion. Evie realised her mistake and blushed, almost as much as Jane was.
"I think that he must like you a great deal." She said, thinking hard about what she was saying. Jane blushed even more deeply and Elizabeth shot her sister a look.
"Mama was wondering whether you would both care to join us for dinner again tonight, Doctor Jones." The second Bennet sister said quickly, trying to draw the attention away from her older sister. "She is sure that the food at the Meryton Arms cannot be anywhere near the standard you are used to and hopes that we can do better."
The Doctor smiled and accepted the invitation, much to Evie's discomfort. As much as she liked the Bennet girls she found it difficult to remember where she was – as she had just proved.
"We were just about to go and look at the Church." He told them with a flash of his wide, slightly goofy smile. "We have been informed that it is well worth a visit."
"Why ever should you want to visit the boring old Church on a Saturday?" Lydia asked pulling a face.
"Yes, when you'll surely be there in the morning anyway." Kitty added.
"I do not see why wishing to admire and appreciate the splendid architecture of such a building as Meryton Church should be scoffed at." Mary told them with a shrug. "After all, as they have been informed, it is well worth a visit."
Lydia sighed and she, Kitty and Maria Lucas all pulled faces. The three older women smiled vaguely, shaking their heads at their younger sisters' expressions and Mary exhaled sharply in annoyance.
"Miss Jones," Elizabeth said with a smile. "My sisters, mother and I have been invited to Netherfield Park for tea this afternoon and our invitation included you. Apparently she and Mrs Hurst were under the impression that you and your brother were our guests at Longbourn."
"Oh…" Evie didn't know what to say to that. She wasn't sure if Elizabeth was annoyed, amused or just informing her of the contents of the invitation. "Umm…"
"My sister would be honoured to join you." The Doctor said, noticing that Evie was wavering. "She can inform your hosts of their mistake then. We wouldn't want you to be inundated with our correspondence!" He joked. The dark haired, dark eyed young lady smiled, her eyes twinkling with humour as she met his gaze. "I will deliver her to Longbourn directly after Lunch, if that is agreeable to you?"
The Bennets nodded, Lydia and Kitty squealing with excitement, and Evie and the Doctor excused themselves, turning to head towards the Church. The Doctor put a hand on the teenager's waist, propelling her forward as he could tell she was about to start complaining at him. As his hand rested lightly on her waist, he heard a sharp inhalation of breath behind him and hastily moved it, grabbing her elbow instead.
"Thanks for that." The teenager snapped, thinking about the fun afternoon she was going to have with Miss Bingley and her sister.
"You might as well get on and enjoy yourself while you're here." The Doctor said lightly. "Besides, you might find out something interesting."
"What, you think one of the Bennets is an alien? Or Miss Bingley? No! I know… you think it's Darcy, don't you?" She asked, half annoyed, half amused. "You think Mr Darcy is an alien?"
"No… I know he's not." The man said shortly, opening the gate to the Churchyard and pushing the teenager through it.
"How? Can you tell an alien just by looking at them?"
"No, I scanned him with the sonic screwdriver." The Doctor said with a shrug, opening the heavy wooden door and going inside.