AUTHOR'S NOTE: As with other stand alone scenes, I have to admit that the bathroom scene in this chapter still tickles me quite a bit.
CHAPTER 52
"WILL HE BE ALRIGHT…?"
"Doctor, are you ever going to tell me what's going on?" Mel asked for what seemed the hundredth time. It was bad enough that everything had been completely turned on its head in a matter of minutes. One minute Jason was abducting the Doctor, stealing the TARDIS, and doing who knows what else. The next, the Doctor was agreeing to help him, sending him to bed and acting as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened.
After Jason went to his cabin, the Doctor had gone to the TARDIS console room to make certain it hadn't been damaged when the two ships were connected together. Then he returned to the ARGO and brought up the program that Jason had entered to see how he had managed to link the incompatible ships together. He had been muttering approvingly to himself ever since, sitting transfixed as the program scrolled past.
"First things first," the Time Lord said suddenly, sounding as if absolutely no time at all had past. "Computer, map," he commanded as he got to his feet. A map of the ARGO appeared on screen and he gave a small satisfied sound. "Come on," he then said, heading for the interior door.
"Now where are we going?" Mel asked helplessly.
"The galley," the Doctor replied happily. "Nothing gets the gastric juices flowing better than being kidnapped."
Mel gave him a disapproving scowl but did not reply, following after him as he led the way through the ship. She was surprised when they arrived right away, having gotten used to the seemingly endless corridors of the TARDIS. The galley was larger than she expected. It had a large, oval table in the center, a counter and sink along one side. The Doctor went to a food synthesizer that was opposite and in a few minutes had their meal on the table.
"This is edible, I suppose?" Mel said dubiously. Despite the fact that the food looked as it should, she had her doubts about how it would taste after seeing it appear out of thin air.
"Absolutely," the Doctor said happily as he tucked into his lunch. He frowned when his companion continued to push her food suspiciously around the plate. "Come on, Mel. At least try some toast."
Thinking she should at least humor him, Mel took a tentative bite. To her surprise, it did not taste like blackened cardboard. It was a delicious multigrain bread, and the jam was spectacular.
"There! What did I tell you?" the Time Lord said happily. He finished his lunch and poured a second cup of tea after which he gave his companion an explanation of what was going on and why Jason was currently running from the Time Lords—and possibly everyone else in the universe. It took quite some time to tell the whole story.
"You're sure he's not responsible," Mel said finally.
"Unequivocally," the Doctor replied, leaning back in his chair. "Jason and I put quite a lot together using the Matrix archive. There's no question that Trevor, acting the parts of the Benefactor and Cardinal Wythe, was the man pulling all the strings. Jason and I got completely tangled up in them."
"He must've done some job to get you two at each other's throats," Mel remarked.
"Mel, you don't know the half of it." It was at that moment the Doctor actually remembered the Alterran was somewhere onboard. "Computer, is Jason asleep?"
"Affirmative," the computer replied.
"Good," the Doctor said with a relieved sigh. "He hasn't slept properly in weeks."
Mel threw a concerned look at the door. "Will he be alright on his own, do you think?"
"I don't see why not. He's got this ship wired as he own personal babysitter and guard dog."
"I just think we should check on him," his companion said worriedly.
The Doctor wasn't sure if this sudden worry for Jason's wellbeing sprang from actual concern or from apprehension after learning about what happened on Eldeberon. He decided not to argue the point and led the way to the Prince's cabin.
"There," he said grandly, holding out a hand. "Go and check, if you like. But whatever you do, Mel, please don't wake him."
"I won't," Mel replied tersely as she entered the room. The interior of the cabin was not what she expected. Considering the Alterran's gregarious personality, she had imagined numerous personal items scattered around the room. It was, in fact, quite austere. The only decoration she could see was a single illuminated portrait of a very beautiful, and very regal looking woman that could only have been Jason's wife, Shadra.
Passing through the main cabin, Mel went to what she assumed was the bedroom, which was verified when she peeked through the door. The only problem was Jason wasn't in his bed. She heard the sound of the whirlpool and crossed to the door, seeing the swirling waters of the sunken tub within. Then she saw what looked like a body floating in it. "Doctor, he's drowning!"
The Doctor was through the cabin and at the door of the bath within seconds. He arrived just as Mel jumped into the tub and pulled the Alterran up out of the water. She was completely unprepared for the sight of him in his true form and screamed at the top of her voice.
This would be enough to rouse anyone from their sleep. Jason rose further out of the water, his sensors flaring. A split second later, he was in human form and falling back onto one of the benches in the tub. "I'm up! I'm up!" he gasped out, grabbing at the side of the tub to keep from going under. When he finally came fully awake, he looked at the woman beside him in bewilderment. "Mel…? What on earth are you doing in my tub?"
The Doctor immediately burst out laughing. The baffled Jason scowled over at his friend as he fell back against the counter, howling with laughter. "She thought… She thought…" After several tries, the Time Lord finally managed to squeak out, "She thought you were drowning!"
Jason's eyes lit up. He looked over at the bewildered Mel and then, to her added annoyance, he burst out laughing too.
"It's not funny!" Mel snapped angrily, causing the two to laugh even more uproariously.
Once he was able to speak, Jason explained that he preferred to sleep immersed in water, which was impossible in human form because, of course, he would drown. This was easily solved by reverting to his true self, which allowed him to sleep without fear of drowning in the process.
Mel blinked and looked him up and down. "That's what you really look like?" she asked in amazement.
Jason groaned inwardly, dreading what her reaction might be when he replied, "Yes. That's what I really look like." She gave him an astonished look and he said cautiously, "You're not going to scream again, are you?"
"No. I just…didn't expect that," Mel replied calmly.
The Doctor smiled proudly and crossed to the side of the tub, holding out a hand. "Come on. Let's get you out of there." He pulled his soggy companion from the water and she stood dripping on the tile, clearly embarrassed.
"Can you find your way back to the main entry?" Jason asked mildly. He looked down at his naked body, the lower half of which was still beneath the swirling water. "I'm not really dressed for a tour."
"You're not really dressed," the Doctor joked. "Go back to sleep. I think we can make our way back to the TARDIS without getting lost." So saying, he led his drenched companion from the room.
Jason watched them go still chuckling. Then he realized he could not remember the last time he had had a good laugh and frowned. "That's depressing," he muttered, leaning back and letting his body slide further into the warm water. He wondered if he would be able to get to sleep again. After several minutes, he concluded that he was too wide-awake to even try.
"Computer, shut down whirlpool."
"Acknowledged."
He reluctantly climbed from the tub and dried himself off, taking the time to consider what he actually wanted to wear before deciding on a light colored jogging suit. The Alterran looked at himself in a mirror, cocking his head to one side as he appraised his appearance. What were the colors of the rainbow? he thought, Oh yes! Red. His clothing instantly changed and he grinned, another purr of delight escaping him. Orange. Yellow. Green. Blue. Indigo. Violet. Scotch plaid! He giggled at this one and put his hands on his hips. "What else?" he said to his reflection.
"Why don't you just go with a tie-dye and have done with it?" came the unexpected reply from the door.
Jason gave a startled cry and spun around. The Doctor was leaning on the doorjamb with his arms folded, watching him with an amused look on his face. "Having fun?"
"I was," came the truthful reply.
"I rather suspected you wouldn't go back to sleep," his friend said mildly. "And before you get all paranoid, I'm not spying on you." Jason flushed slightly upon hearing this and lowered his eyes guiltily. "Mel's gone to her room to change. When she gets back, I thought we might have a bit of a planning session."
"Planning what, exactly?"
The Doctor looked his friend up and down. "Your choice in wardrobe, for a start."
Jason's mouth dropped open. The absolute arrogance of the man amazed him sometimes. "Me!" he squeaked. "Isn't that like the pot calling the kettle black?"
The Time Lord drew himself to his full height and pulled on his lapels. "I am unique," he announced with exaggerated pomposity.
The Alterran's eyes lit up. "That you are!"
"Well, finally we agree on something," the Doctor replied cheerfully and turned from the door. "Now, let's see how Mel's coming along."
