Chapter 11

Having left the Doctor and Harry, Sam went straight to the TARDIS. He walked in, shaking his head as he noticed the duck still on the console. He decided he'd see just how long it would stay there before the Doctor noticed it. With a smile, he continued walking through TARDIS, calling out, "Please don't put me through a maze again. I just want to find that wardrobe with the clothes."

The TARDIS' hum pitched slightly higher in response to Sam's plea, almost as if she were laughing at him. Nonetheless, the corridors were easier for Sam to navigate, making it simple for him to locate the wardrobe. As he picked out comfortable clothing which he preferred, he continued speaking to the TARDIS. "I appreciate your helping me find my way. I've never had to figure out semi-infinite space before other than in theory."

The TARDIS, being slightly telepathic, projected a sense of warmth, curious to see if this new visitor shared the same abilities that other previous visitors had.

As Sam reached to pull a sweatshirt off a hanger, he was suddenly taken by a memory of sitting in the kitchen of his family home in Elk Ridge. In his thoughts he was enjoying milk and cookies and his mother was kneading dough at the table. He smiled. It made him feel good.

The TARDIS hummed softly again, noting the smile on Sam's face. However, every time Sam tried on a piece of clothing that didn't seem to fit Rose's sense of style, the time ship projected disapproval.

Sam was confused. As he picked out clothing, his mood and traces of memories would change. Additionally, the hum of the ship would change almost imperceptive from a pleasant hum to almost a light screech. As the moments went on, he formed a theory. "Are you communicating with me?"

The TARDIS hummed with approval. Oh, yes. This one was definitely one of the smarter ones, like Sarah Jane Smith, Romanadvortrelundar, Jack Harkness and Rose Tyler. The time ship again hummed with the pleasure of having another strong mind in her corridors.

"Well, nice to make your acquaintance, TARDIS. I apologize that my initial perception wasn't quite on the mark. This type of thing is new to me." The leaper noticed the small pile of clothes he'd decided on. "I think I have enough. Thanks for helping me keep up my auras sense of style."

There was yet another gentle hum as the door to the wardrobe opened.

Sam noticed the door and quickly pulled the clothes into a bundle. Stepping out, he allowed the TARDIS to guide him, trusting that she wouldn't mislead him again. After a short walk, the physicist found himself outside a door which opened automatically to reveal a teenage girl's room, messy and with posters on the wall showing a fondness for '90's punk rock and pop. The color scheme was of pinks and purples but wasn't exceedingly "girly." The TARDIS gave a low hum, indicating to Sam sadness and concern for the owner of the bedroom. "Rose. You're concerned about Rose," he said with empathy. "I promise you, she's safe. She's in the future sometime... near future for you but I don't know when. She's being cared for and will return after I finish the task I need to do. I'm afraid I can't tell you for sure when that will be."

This time, the memory Sam recalled was of Theresa Bruckner when he had told her that her mother would be home but that the "angel" and him had to help her brother first. It was a memory that Sam knew meant the TARDIS was willing to trust him. He understood, somehow, that this was not something easily given. "Thank you. I won't let you down," Sam voiced solemnly.

The TARDIS hummed again, obviously accepting Sam's words before going silent mentally, the steady hum that had always been there like a soft heartbeat.

Sam walked into the room, reading into the things that belonged to his host. He'd gotten quite good at being able to get a definite feel for the person whose life he'd lead for a time. The walls of the room were painted purple and were covered with pine bookshelves, each of which were filled with photos and knick-knacks, most of which Sam had no clue what they were. The photos showed Rose Tyler, dressed always in 21st century casual wear, with various people. One picture had Rose with an older blond woman who resembled his host so much that Sam instantly assumed that she must be her mother. Another had her with a good-looking black man, their arms wrapped over each other's shoulders. But most photos were of Rose with either the Doctor or another man dressed in a black leather jacket and a good-looking man with a dazzling smile wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans, all of them having unusual locations in the background. Further investigation proved Rose to be a typical teenage girl who was slowly realizing she was soon going to be in her twenties.

Unlike what he would expect from a teenager however, Sam didn't find a single poster or picture of modern heartthrobs. Instead, the posters on the wall were specific to a genre of music... the bands, the clothing, the music itself, even concert tickets. Other than that, the room was a mess, clothes strewn across the floor and seeping out of dresser drawers. The leaper found in the room and its ambiance even more proof that he liked the person whose aura he inhabited. If he'd leapt into a guy, the situation would have been just about perfect. Still, as women went, Rose was easy to "live in." He found a small bag in her closet and put the clothes he'd retrieved from the wardrobe in it as well as a few toiletry items, including a hairbrush.

"Did you find everything?" the Doctor's voice came suddenly from the door. The expression on his face clearly said that he wasn't pleased to see Sam in Rose's room, even if the latter looked like Rose.

The human turned around suddenly at the voice. Noting that the Doctor was alone, he figured that Harry was probably still working in the lab. "The TARDIS led me here," he responded. "I just picked out some clothing and a few items Rose uses. Trust me, I respect my host's life and only go as deep as necessary to meet the needs of the leap."

The Gallifreyan just gave a brief nod, relenting on the issue without actually verbally giving approval. "She shouldn't have done that. Then again, she does things I don't approve of all the time." He nodded his head to the hallway behind him. "Harry and I have found something. Figured you'd want to take a look yourself."

"Yeah. I'd like to see what you've found." He started following the Doctor down the corridor and felt the need to explain at least part of what had occurred. "The TARDIS is concerned about Rose. She just wanted some confirmation that her friend was all right and safe. I can understand."

"So can I," the Doctor agreed. "But that doesn't give you permission to invade her privacy by poking your nose around her bedroom."

Sam started getting a bit perturbed by the implication. "I wasn't poking my nose in anything. When I'm in a person's aura, I need to dress like them, act like them - at least as much as possible, pretty much be them to anyone who sees me. This leap's a little different from the standpoint that you are the only one I'm interacting with that actually knows Rose Tyler. Still, Harry and Sally expect a young woman. I have to be that."

The Time Lord stopped abruptly, turning to look at Sam. He seemed about to say something but then changed his mind. Sniffing slightly, he cleared his throat. "Of course, you do. Sorry." He turned again, walking down the corridors to the lab.

Sam wasn't sure this was over, but he knew how to choose his battles and, for the moment, it was time to let it drop.

As the Doctor and Sam entered the lab, Harry looked up from working with a pH meter. "Ah, you're back." He got up and walked over to them. "Fascinating stuff this. Takes me back to when I was traveling with the Doctor. Never a dull moment, that's for sure." He gestured to another lab bench where several microscopes of different designs were lined up. "Why don't you come take a look?"

Sam moved over the where he was directed. Straddling a lab stool, he looked into the microscope in question. "Wow! That's... um... interesting. What is that stuff?"

"It's a poison, a natural defense mechanism for the creature in the cellar," the Time Lord replied. He grimaced slightly. "I really wouldn't suggest tasting it. Leaves a nasty aftertaste." He scraped his tongue for the third time that day as if to emphasize his critique.

"Oh... I wouldn't think of it. Now, will you think twice before doing something so... boneheaded?" asked Sam with a slightly sarcastic tone to his voice.

"Well... it was the quickest way to assess its properties," the Gallifreyan pointed out. "Not that I gained any information from it other than it really wouldn't go well with tea and biscuits."

"So you're saying it was a calculated risk on your part? Personally, I thought it was a potential entry into the Darwin Awards." Sam looked him over. "Still you obviously didn't ingest enough to cause death. You sure you're not having any other reactions to the compound... other than having the taste repeat on you?"

"Darwin Awards?"

"Yeah. Darwin Awards. Removes you from potentially passing on your genetic material because of asinine actions that guarantee the end of that possibility."

Harry chuckled at the banter. He had to admit, there must be a very good relationship between these two as the Doctor was not usually this jovial about someone calling him on his sometimes less than thought out actions. When he had travelled with him, the Doctor would regularly point the blame at someone else, usually Harry, though the man always knew that it was never out of malice.

"Oi!" the Gallifreyan protested but without heat in his voice. "I take exception to that and so would Charles! Besides, I'm fine. My biology is different than yours. It would take a great deal more than a little taste to affect me. Besides, I have a whole medbay full of anti-toxins." The list of reasons was said as if the Doctor were defending his own existence. He motioned Sam towards the microscope. "Now... take another look. Tell me what you think."

"Fine. Keep telling yourself that..." Sam started, still concerned about the Doctor. He then shrugged, "But they're your lives to live, not mine." He bent his head back to the eyepieces of the microscope as requested. "This really is fascinating. I don't think I've ever seen organic material shimmer quite this way." He continued to gaze into the instrument, identifying some rather strange cells. "I'm not sure what to make of these."

"Wouldn't expect you to. Definitely reptilian in nature. As I said before, the blue ooze is a defense mechanism. Incapacitates most species in less than a minute." The Doctor took a deep breath. "Good thing you and Harry used gloves. I would've had to carry you up the stairs."

"So, does this narrow the list of potential species?" Harry asked, now that they were back on the hunt for the solution to the mystery.

"Oh, yes!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Of the non-humanoid reptilian species out there - and it's plainly obvious that we're dealing with a non-humanoid - only three thousand have such defense mechanisms. Narrow that down to the color of the ooze and how slimy and toxic it is, plus the interesting footprints... that leaves us some five hundred different species. Now, if we can only get good video of our visitor, I'm sure that I'll be able to identify him in no time."

Sam blinked. "500? That many?"

"Oh, it's not that bad really," the Time Lord told him, standing up. "Think of how many planets are out there just in the Mutter's Spiral. And this little galaxy isn't the only one in the universe. Besides, we've only two pieces of evidence to work with."

"Mutter's Spiral? What's that?" This was a new term for the human physicist.

"The Milky Way," Harry translated for him, a wry smile on his face. "I think, Miss Tyler, that the Doctor enjoys confusing his companions even more now than he had in his previous incarnations. Well, the ones that I'm aware of anyway."

"Great, just what I need. Someone trying to obfuscate matters," the other human groused.

"I do not!" the Doctor protested both Harry and Sam's words. "It just happens that that is what this galaxy is called by the rest of the known universe."

"Well, I've never heard it called that before."

"Well, that's only because you've spent your entire life, other than recently, on this small little rock," the Time Lord explained. "Anyway, the point is that we've narrowed over thirty-five thousand possibilities to only five hundred!" he continued. "I mean, that's quite an accomplishment if you ask me." His cheeks broadened into a manic grin. "And all before dinner time!"

"I agree with the Doctor on that point," Harry put in with a nod. "Still, it would be nice to narrow it down further. And, as he said, we still have the recording equipment in the cellar. Hopefully we'll get some audio and video evidence before tomorrow."

Sam, acknowledging the logic of the situation, produced a self-depreciating grin. "Yeah. That makes sense. I guess I really need to expand my point of view to a more universal one now that I know for sure there is a more universal view." He paused. "Dinner does sound good. What time is it anyways?"

Harry lifted his hand and looked at the watch on his wrist. "Uh-oh," he groaned.

"Don't tell me we're late for dinner," the Doctor stated, already knowing the answer to his words.

"We're late for dinner," Harry replied with a sigh.

It was the Gallifreyan's turn to groan. "I asked you not to tell me that."

Sam looked between the two men. "Well, if Sally's anything like my..." He hesitated for a moment, remembering the statement about his accent. "...my Mum, then we better get in there instead of just discussing it."

"If Sally were anything like Jackie Tyler, I'd be tempted to dematerialize the TARDIS right now and going back ten minutes so that we weren't late for dinner."

"Brilliant, Doctor," Harry stated with enthusiasm. "I must say, I have missed the TARDIS and her wonderful abilities. To never be late for dinner again? Sally would be ecstatic."

"I didn't say that we were going to go back ten minutes," the Doctor told him bluntly. "That would risk ripping apart space-time. You know that, Harry."

"Right," Harry said, his hopes dashed. "Oh, well. The idea was fun while it lasted."

Sam let out a deep breath. "And now were even later for dinner. Do you two really want to push Sally over the edge?"

"Better her than your mum," the Doctor replied, rubbing his face and wiping his mouth with a shiver before he and Harry started for the door.

Sam considered the final statement as the other men exited the TARDIS. To himself, he stated, "With a recommendation like that, I don't think I want to meet her." The memory that Sam suddenly was aware of was of Michelle's mother when he'd leapt into the life of Andrew Ross. The woman was over-protective, self-absorbed, and verbally aggressive and had shown her colors quite vibrantly with a strong slap across his face. Realizing that the memory came because of his newfound link with the TARDIS, he exhaled slowly. "Oh. Now I know I don't want to meet her. Thanks for the clarification." He quickly followed the others out of the time ship.

All three headed back to the inn, Sam having stopped briefly to retrieve the bag he'd packed of his host's possessions. Once back, they encountered Sally standing in the middle of the dining room, her arms crossed.

"I said seven o'clock, Harry. You're fifteen minutes late. And look at you. You haven't even cleaned up from drudging down in the cellar. Get up those stairs and get changed before the food gets cold." She regarded the Time Lord for a moment. "And you can start setting the table after you've washed your hands. At least you had the good sense not to get muck all over yourself."

Harry gave the Doctor a sympathetic look before quickly leaving the dining room, not wanting to get any further on his wife's bad side than he already seemed to be. The Doctor, for his part, looked over to Sam for a show of support. His eyes widened with trepidation at what happened next.

Sam blinked a few times, holding his bag and looking down at the clothes he'd gotten dirty while crawling around in the cellar as he and Harry investigated the footprints and the blue ooze. Sally looked over at the young woman's aura with sympathy. "Why don't you get cleaned up, dear?" she said kindly, her voice changing dramatically from how she'd addressed the "boys." Sam gratefully thanked her and ran upstairs to get somewhat cleaned up and change his clothes, ignoring the looks shot at him from the Gallifreyan.

"Umm..." the Doctor started, seeing that he was alone with his dear friend's angry wife. "What was it that you wanted me to do?" At that moment, he wished he had gone ten minutes into the past in the TARDIS, the consequences seeming the less painful of the choices.

Sally simply stood there for a few beats, her eyes skewering the Gallifreyan. "You know where the washroom is. I want your hands clean before you set the table, Doctor. You have two minutes."

Rather than proclaiming the fact that, as a Time Lord, he had a perfect sense of time - a fact that certainly wasn't apparent with them being late for dinner - he nodded slowly. "Right. Washroom. On it now." He hurriedly left the dining room to do as he was told, washing his hands before setting the table as instructed, and all the while making compliments to Sally's skills as a homemaker. The last thing he wanted was to find himself no longer welcome at the inn, especially since he really liked Sally's cooking.

A few minutes later, both Sam and Harry walked into the dining room wearing fresh clothes, their faces washed and hair combed. The two of them stopped in awe seeing the Gallifreyan wearing an apron and taking orders meekly from the lady of the house.

"Doctor?" Sam asked.

"Nothing to be done about it, Miss Tyler," Harry stated, trying to stop the leaper from pursuing further. "Sally's got a burr under her saddle and he's taken the brunt of it."

"But... why...?" Sam started, knowing that this was beyond just keeping a low profile.

Harry smiled slightly. "Well... you'll definitely know why at the end of dinner."

The Doctor glanced over at the two men watching him place loaded basket of dinner rolls on the table. "Are you two just going to stand there watching or are you going to help?"

"No need. You've already got everything set on the table," Sally stated as she walked back in catching the Doctor's request. She went over and took the apron she'd given him to wear, giving him a slight peck on the cheek to say most, if not all, was forgiven. She looked over at Rose. "If you want to help out, you can fill the water glasses."

Sam did as requested, recalling the times he'd done exactly the same thing back at the farmhouse where he'd grown up, helping his mother. As he poured water into the glasses, he noticed that there seemed to be a vibration that rippled the surface of the liquid. "Do you get earthquakes around here?" he asked Sally.

"This is Chicago, Earth, Solar System," the Doctor commented. "No earthquakes in this region." He paused, a frown on his face. "Although, you do have a point. I thought I felt a bit of a tremor."

Sally looked over to the Doctor. "Well, there have been one or two around here historically, but you're right. Basically, the answer is no." She waited while Harry pulled out her chair so she could sit down. She looked at him lovingly. "Thank you, Harry."

Sam continued to look at the liquid. It was still moving slightly, more than made sense. "Look at the water in the glasses."

Harry followed Sam's lead as he moved towards his own chair. The water moved for a few seconds more and then simply stopped. "Huh. That is strange. Still, not totally outside of the realm of reasonable possibility."

The Doctor too seemed somewhat interested. "Small seismic tremor. Interesting." Without further word, he sat at the table while Sam returned the water pitcher back to the kitchen.

Sally smiled as Sam returned. "Thank you for your help, Rose. And yours as well, Doctor."

"My pleasure," the Time Lord replied with a broad grin, obviously suddenly eager.

Sam smiled. "Happy to do so." He sat down at his place. "That is shepherd's pie, right?"

Sally looked at him with a little concern. "Of course. Didn't your Mom make that for you?"

"That depends on your definition of 'make,'" the Doctor put in. Feeling Sam's eyes on him, he clarified. "Oh, let's face it, Rose. Jackie's shepherd's pie isn't the best in the world. Now, turkey! She can make turkey."

Sam looked at the Gallifreyan and was thankful for his providing him a way out. "Um, yeah. Mum isn't the best cook. Hers didn't look much like this, which looks and smells delicious!"

"Oh, yes!" the Doctor put in, noting that Sam had made sure to use the proper British term for a mother. Without a single bit of preamble, the alien was the first to 'dig in,' ladling at least two scoops of the pie onto his plate.

Sally beamed. "Thank you, Rose. It's one of Harry's favorites. I'd be happy to give you the recipe if you want it." She looked at the Time Lord happily serving himself. "You must be hungry, Doctor."

"Oh, he does this all the time," Sam put in. "I have no idea how he stays so thin." He blinked for a moment and then frowned, wondering where the words had come from.

"I do not!" the Gallifreyan protested. "Besides, I have a higher metabolism. Require a lot more fuel... and Sally's shepherd's pie is brilliant!" He started to take a bite before realizing that what he'd heard from Sam sounded more like his missing companion than the overly cautious human physicist.

Harry took a scoop of the pie. "The Doctor has always enjoyed his meals from what I can recall. Maybe with a little less enthusiasm in the past," he added.

Sally smiled. "I'm just glad dinner wasn't ruined by the late hour."

"I did apologize!" the Doctor protested.

"Yes, you did and I appreciate it." She paused for a moment. "But in the future, seven o'clock is seven o'clock."

"Oh, seven o'clock is always seven o'clock..." the Time Lord started before stopping abruptly. He cleared his throat. "But, of course, it's important to not allow ourselves to become too distracted to the point of missing important events such as dinner." He watched Sam with interest, realizing that the leaper was doing exactly as he'd stated earlier; he was pretending to be Rose.

Sam, knowing Rose kept a trim figure, had dished up a smaller amount of the main course. When Sally passed the salad, he took a little more of that. Sam then passed the salad to the Time Lord.

The Doctor, seeing the salad was coming his way, beamed brightly. "Greenery! I love greenery!"

As they started to eat, the lights flickered a bit. Sally sighed. "There they go again."

The Doctor stopped for a moment, his mouth full with shepherd's pie. "Have the lights done that before?" he asked around the bite.

Sally nodded. "Yes. Started about the time we noticed the footprints a few weeks ago. Didn't worry much about it at the time." She shook her head. "Now it's happening more and more."

"And no other problems with the electricity before then?" the Gallifreyan questioned before taking a drink of water.

This time it was Harry that spoke up. "No. When we bought the place, I had an electrician go through and correct any problems with the wiring then. Sally's right. This is recent."

The Doctor frowned slightly, looking up at the ceiling. "Huh. Interesting." He seemed intent on the subject but, in a flash, he grinned widely. "This is marvelous, Sally. I always said you make the best shepherd's pie in the galaxy!"

"It is really good," Sam agreed before turning to the Doctor. "It could just be a coincidence."

"The shepherd's pie?" the Doctor frowned. "Absolutely impossible for it to be a coincidence. No one... and I do mean no one... can make this like Sally."

"Why, thank you, Doctor," Sally said blushing slightly.

Sam blinked. "Yes, the pie is wonderful. Best I've ever had, for sure." He paused. "But I was talking about the electrical issues. It could just be a coincidence that the problem coincided with the appearance of the footprints."

The Doctor shrugged slightly at the statement. "Maybe," he replied, though it was clear in the answer that he didn't believe that possibility.

Dinner conversation continued with topics meandering from daily events to travels in the TARDIS and other things. After dinner, the group went into the living area and watched a bit of television. However, all parties were rather tired out by the activities that day and an 'early to bed' attitude prevailed.