Complicated

By The Plot Thinens

Chapter 54- No one expects the Gallifreyan inquisition!

The Doctor, Rose and Hideki walked up to the entrance to the house and opened the gate, it was early yet in the day, but in a matter of minutes there would probably be plenty of people rushing about doing their business. Everyone put their shoes back on including Rose. Rose's feet were of course too big for the socks that she had been offered earlier for her outfit so she had just worn her own socks and her own shoes. It ruined the look a bit, Rose had joked, but the Doctor simply said that no one would be looking at her feet. This could have been a compliment and an insult at the same time. The Doctor pulled out the remaining two keys on strings and put one around his neck and then looked to Hideki.

"I suppose he will need one as well if he is coming." The Doctor said as he bent down to the boy's level and looped the key on a string around his neck. Hideki picked up the key from off his chest and looked at it in fascination. He had never seen such a key before and it was made from a metal that he did not recognize. He looked to the Doctor for an explanation which The Doctor gave in a means that he thought that an ancient Earth child would understand.

"This is a special key that will keep us free from prying eyes. Do not bring attention to yourself and no one will bother us." Declared the Doctor who then with a wave of his sonic activated the keys around his, Hideki and Rose's necks. Hideki was amazed by what he saw as a magic metal stick lighting up and glowing blue. He was so dazed by it that it took him a moment longer than normal to notice that they were now meant to be on their way so he followed his demon friends out onto the dirt street. They then stood off to the side of the house and waited, Hideki looked at the Doctor confused but he just signaled to be patient and wait which he did. A few moments later the boy's uncle exited the house too and after a few moments they were following him or at least walking in the same direction. The young lad wondered what was up, but did not ask if he followed the Doctor long enough he would surely find out sooner or later.


Hideki watched in stunned amazement as the two striking demons walked about the streets with no one noticing. He was sure that his friends would have caused a riot despite what the Doctor Tengu had said, but not one person seemed to notice them. Just like the Doctor had explained earlier they went unnoticed. Magic he was sure. He had a million questions but did not say a word to them or anyone as if sensing it would somehow break the magic and then the Doctor Tengu might be cross with him. He just followed close behind the couple as they held hands going down the street seeming to communicate wordlessly. They moved through the crowds as Basho walked in front of them, all the while the group was making sure not to bump into anyone passing by in the street. This was a task that got harder as the streets filled with people as they crossed into the merchant part of town. Hideki was not afraid he would lose them in the crowd. They were too tall and unusual looking for that, but he was becoming frightened that he might get pushed away from them. If he were honest with himself, he was still very afraid of being alone and by himself in public. He kept thinking that he saw his attackers at every turn and quickly as he could rushed up between the Doctor and Rose and held on to their joined hands. Both seeing that the boy was upset, they broke their own handhold and each held onto one of his hands for reassurance. The whole situation the Doctor realized would be very unusual for a child even if his traveling companions weren't strange looking. And it must have seemed odd spying on a much loved uncle from behind while fearing getting caught. To put the boy's uncertainty at ease he gave Hideki's hand a reassuring squeeze and said softly,

"You're doing fine, don't worry. No one is going to bother us. Buck up, yeah?" Rose also gave her support to the boy with a comforting smile. The child obviously didn't look like them but traveling with a child holding onto both their hands made her think of a possible future time when her own child was older.


Finally after a few minutes more they reached the warehouse and apparently living courters of Basho, which even Hideki, had to admit in a whisper that he had never himself been here before. Usually if he went anywhere he was diligently following the roofers of his father's company to soak up experience. The Doctor upon surveying the building had to agree with Rose's remark,

"What a dump." The building looked rundown but it might have seen better days at one point. The banners on it were ripping, the windows were damaged and overall it looked like it had significant damage from the elements. It didn't look like the location for such a successful business that Basho had boasted about. There did not seem to be, at a glance, any other way to get inside other than the front door but they had not gone around back yet. The group moved attempting to slip in around the back of the building when four large men rushed out of the front door and almost bumped into them which would have meant trouble. No sooner had they gasped a sigh of relief did Basho poke his head out and address his lackeys,

"Now remember, you will know them when you see them without a doubt. Big, oddly colored hair, hideous noses and eyes. If you see them come back straight away and warn me. I want no surprises if they come snooping around, not today..." Basho then went back inside and a man serving as a guard stood in front of the door.

"Okay, front door is definitely out now. Let's move around back." Whispered the Doctor. Around back was a small yard that was covered in crates and barrels of goods. It had a foul smell to it that made the Doctor's very sensitive nose twitch as well as Rose's. Hideki seemed not to notice, but he was more accustomed to strong smells every day. It was an especially hot day and as they turned the corner the three spotted a group of sliding doors that were open to let in a breeze and their going over figures sat Basho. The time travelers and the boy settled in behind some barrels in the small patches of grass they could find for a sit. They wanted to see if anything suspicious would happen. It was a waiting game and they did wait, nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary and the Doctor was about ready to come up with another plan when a loud cry and crash was heard toward the front of the building. The Doctor grabbed Rose and Hideki protectively and hunched down lower. Trouble seemed to be coming. Basho looked alarmed as his guard was thrown into the room on his feet and two men still wearing their sandals stormed in. One of them was small and lavishly dressed by comparison to his stockier and muscular companion, who appeared to have dragged and then thrown the poor guard to where he found himself in a daze now. The muscular man grabbed Basho and lifted him up off the ground before roughly depositing him on the floor. The Doctor thought that things were getting interesting. Hideki on instinct was about to run to his uncle's aid, but Rose reminded him to be still and not wishing to displease demons, he remained silent.

"Look, I'll have the money for you soon. I'm just having an issue with my banker is all. It's coming soon I promise. This isn't a big deal shipments go missing sometimes and my company has every intention to reimburse you." Said Basho almost whimpering. The thugs warned him that he had maybe less than a day to reimburse them, and not to press their 'kindness' anymore than they already had.

No sooner had the thugs left and Basho was alone did another man come into view, this time from a hidden compartment in the floor. Rose had to stifle Hideki from crying out when he had finally seen the face of the man that had been hiding in Basho's apparent smuggling place for hiding anything he didn't want found. Basho looked irritated at the man, if he had not been so reliable in the past when he needed something done he probably would have tried his luck hiring some idiot off the street to do his bidding. Basho snarled,

"When I said to come back here and wait, I didn't mean do so like a sniveling coward. Now that my, expected guests, have left… I want you to explain to me in detail why my Nephew continues to breathe air!"

"As I said it was a botched job and demons assisted him! I swear." Said the man who seemed so disturbed by last night's event that he expected demons to crop up out of every shadow.

"Idiot, I've seen your demons and they are hideous creatures, but as mortal and flesh and blood as myself! I need that boy dead! I don't care how it is done. Drowning didn't work, then poison him! Find someway to do it. Be bold, any questions as to his end can be blamed on those foreign devils. They are staying in the house and their looks alone are enough to condemn them to guilt. I need him dead so I can inherit everything and settle this debt!" Declared Basho as he grabbed the man and all but kicked him out the door. Alone or at least thinking he was alone, Basho collapsed to the ground and put his palm over his eyes in frustration. Basho was in trouble and trouble historically had been his brother's job to dig him out. Without him Basho was now drowning in a situation over his head and ability to control on his own, though he did not want to admit that. His brother had always helped him in the past but then there was the one time that Haro had refused and that had spiraled his life to the way it was now. None of this was his fault in his mind it was his dead brother's fault he was in trouble and who better to pay him back for his despair than his son. Basho's mind was going to dark places again and he needed to focus on work. He had so much paper work to do and for now he had enough time he thought for his remaining assassin to get the job done right.


That was all that the Doctor and Rose had needed to see and quickly and quietly they moved Hideki, still in shock, toward the street and off into what appeared to be a small garden, possible graveyard, that was somewhat secluded and that they had spotted two blocks down earlier. The whole time Hideki had been good as gold and had remained quiet so that his friends' magic would not be broken. The garden which had turned out to be a small cemetery and shrine was somewhat private as it was surrounded by an open wooden gate and stone walls. The space was littered with bushes, trees, and precious shade on this summer month. They sat on the ground just by the gate in the shade among some stone lanterns to plan what needed to be done next. The boy was horrified that his own uncle had planned his murder. He wanted to cry but instead clung to the Doctor, whom rested a comforting and protective hand on his shoulder.

"Why does it have to be like this?" The boy asked, he had always been fond of his uncle as much as his father had been. The Doctor sighed,

"There is no sure reason, lad. Some people are just like that. They value money over all things, even other people. And then there are some people like you, me and Rose who value life in all its forms and see that it's the most precious thing out there. We can just see that some things are more valuable than gold." The Doctor said to the boy and then smiled at Rose. Rose turned her head to the side and blushed from the Doctor's gaze. She couldn't help but feel like the Doctor had directed that last sentence toward her. She felt that her blushing was getting obvious and looked to change the subject.

"So I get it, Basho needs money. Why didn't he just ask for help, yeah? You're family doesn't seem to be too short on cash?" asked Rose of Hideki confused. The boy could only shrug, if he had known that his Uncle was in trouble then he would have gladly asked his mother, who held the change purse now that his father was dead, for help. The Doctor just grumbled,

"They say too much pride can kill a man."

"What do we do now, tell the police?" inquired Rose of her husband. The Doctor thought of that idea and then wisely declared,

No, too dangerous even if Hideki does go and report, they might not believe a child without evidence or two demons who don't exist."

"Ah, right. So what's the next move then?" replied Rose.

"Best to let him incriminate himself, humans become very desperate when money is involved." Stated the Doctor as fact. He would have to think of some plan to help put the criminals behind bars before they had another go at Hideki. The Doctor began to donate part of his very large brain to formulating a plan. The other part of his brain, the part that still held his parental instincts, which had lay dormant for so long, saw that there was still a very upset child in front of him. He saw across the street was something of interest to a child but just to be safe, he first got up and looked to make sure that no one suspicious was around. Seeing that the coast was clear he walked over to Hideki, who now was sniffling, the Doctor reached, into his very deep pocket and fished around inside of it. Eventually the Doctor pulled out what appeared to be a gold piece and handed it to the boy.

"Couldn't help but notice a vender across the street. How does a nice treat of takoyaki sound. You can go over and talk to the man now, it's fine. Just be quiet when you walk back over here." Explained the Doctor as he patted the boys head. The little guy perked up and he happily ran over to the vender's steaming stand and paid for three servings of takoyaki. Rose loved this side of the Doctor. He might come off as a grumpy old alien some of the time, but there was no denying that he had a soft spot for children. Rose's thoughts immediately flashed to their own child as a toddler and the Doctor taking them through time and space just so that they could pick up a favorite treat for their little one if they were feeling blue. There was no doubt now that he would make a grade 'A' father to her child, if she could just get up enough courage to tell him that he had one on the way. Rose reclined back against a shady tree as she watched her husband keep a safe eye out for any sign of trouble on the street that might threaten the boy. Ready to jump out, crowd or no crowd, to save the child in his charge. 'Protective father and good with kids too? Sign me up for that man. Well, technically I already am.' Thought Rose happily as she absentmindedly rubbed the part of her abdomen where their baby was growing. Realizing what she was doing she stopped immediately before the Doctor could have a chance to spot her and sat up to see Hideki coming back unharmed and very happy.

"Thank you, Doctor Tengu." Said the boy when he came back, and handed the other two servings to his friends before happily gobbling his own treat. Rose looked at the doughy griddled balls on a stick and sniffed it suspiciously.

"What is it?" asked Rose as she looked to her husband. The Doctor popped one into his mouth and declared,

"Octopus in a kind of dough, kids love em. Like a hot dog to an American, heh." Rose looked skeptical at the treat to which the Doctor scoffed in mock indignity,

"Oh come on, I've fed you worse than that. At least it's cooked." Rose took another sniff at the food and couldn't help but feel that it smelled more appetizing. She guessed that pregnancy cravings were now kicking in as she had never liked eating octopus or anything with tentacles. But what the baby wanted it got and she ate down the three dough covered octopus treats and licked the stick clean. The Doctor smirked knowing all along that she would like it. Hideki was very happy to have eaten and licked his fingers clean.

"Come on, I've got a plan and it's about time that Jack started earning his keep on this trip." Said the Doctor. The group then left the shrine cemetery unseen by the crowds with the aid of the TARDIS perception filtering keys around their necks.


When they arrived at the house, they found a flustered grandfather.

"Where have you been, lad? I had to put in the report of your abduction and attempted murder by myself?" Asked the old man a bit miffed. Hideki apologized to his grandfather but explained that he was helping the Doctor and Rose about town. This of course was a more than acceptable excuse to the old man and he dropped his irritation.

"Well the police at least know about it. I gave them a description based on what you had described last night but we are going back tomorrow to see if you can't give their sketch artist enough to go by to get a wanted picture. They were very upset and eager to help since your father, Haro, redid their roof not long ago at discount. Ah your father is even helping, you know, from beyond the grave, bless my poor dead son-in-law." Declared the old man. After exchanging a few pleasantries the Doctor asked where Jack was.

"He is back in his guest quarters. I'm old but I think I tired him out last night." The old man chuckled and the Doctor smiled politely, Hideki looked confused at his grandfather's tone. The three then rushed off to Jack's room.


"Oi, Jack wake up. I got a job for you." Ordered the Doctor as he opened the door to Jack's own quarters and let accursed midday light into the room. Apparently grandfather seemed to have recovered faster than Jack. Jack rolled over, while squinting his eyes.

"What's wrong, Doc?" Asked Jack who was obviously on the mend of his hang over but would not have protested getting more sleep. He saw that The Doctor, Rose and the boy, Hideki, were standing in front of him.

"We know who tried to kill Hideki, and I have a plan to incriminate him, but I have to leave for a bit. I've suspected something and I think I know what it is now and best be on my way before I cause a paradox. I need you to protect Hideki while I am gone in case someone comes after him before I get back. The person who wants him dead is the boy's uncle. If he is dead he gets the estate and I'll assume any money that goes with it. He appears to owe a large sum of money that he doesn't have and thinks killing a child is his way to financial security." Stated the Doctor grimly. Hideki was upset at the news that his friend was leaving and the Doctor caught the worried look in his eyes from fear of not being protected. The Doctor got down to the boy's level and said in a soothing voice,

"Hideki, do you know what the Tengu respect the most? Bravery. And I can see that you are a very brave little boy. I will be back before you knew I was gone and in the meantime, Jack will keep you safe and the key you are wearing around your neck will keep you hidden as long as you obey the rules of it and be quiet and do not bring attention to yourself when people you do not want to see you are around. Can you do that for me?" The Boy nodded and the Doctor smiled and patted him on the shoulder.

"That's a good lad, now sit tight." Smiled the Doctor and Rose walked off towards the entrance of the house leaving Hideki under Jack's more than capable protection.


Author's note:

The Doctor appears to be good father material, lucky Rose. Guess they spent most of this chapter playing house using Hideki as a replacement child…Well house if it involved a murder plot worthy of the game, Clue. Anyway what do you think? Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I got ideas for stories way down the line and had to start writing them out before I forgot. Oh do I have some fun stuff in store for you if you stick around long enough for season 2 and 3. Incidentally, when I do swap seasons I'll be starting a new story so you might have to story alert a new story then. But I'll remind you at the end of season one.

UPDATE! Jeez I made so many typos and misspelling in this chapter, I had to fix it. So a few things changed here and there but nothing earth shattering.