The booming thunder echoed throughout the manor as the storm settled in the area, crashing lighting with heavy rain pelting the French style windows around the manor.
In the air a slight chill as the rain brought down the temperature.
Sitting around the parlor room, Liliana and Melia discussed things with Ripley and Matt.
It's quiet, there's no sign of the alleged ghost haunting the manor.
Matt and Ripley discussed what would've happened if they captured the ghost.
Liliana hinted she planned to force out information regarding where he came from and the meaning of his trespass.
She wanted an apology from him over scaring poor Melia twice, now.
"What do you think he was trying to say to you?" Ripley asked Melia as they sat across from each other.
Pondering Melia shrugged as she responded that she didn't know.
"Maybe he needs help?" Matt suggested.
Whoever the spectral menace is needed help and going to Melia for it, but since he couldn't talk to her and remain corporeal, it comes off as haunting her.
Ripley wondered how they're supposed to help him and Matt looked down to the handheld he carried with him into the parlor room.
He and the TARDIS made sure that it couldn't hurt him when they trap him, so hopefully he can use it to help the spectral menace talk.
"I have no doubt in your aptitude, Doctor," Liliana encouraged Matt.
Matt appreciated the encouragement from Liliana, considering he hadn't discovered the root to this, yet, but all the same he's happy to help.
Another rumble rattled the windows and unease Ripley as she glimpsed around.
"Spring showers, they'll level out before summer. Then we'll melt in our dresses," Liliana sighed as she drank her brandy.
As the cold air lingered, the warm air slowly moved inward, causing the combination resulting in these storms. Soon, though, the cold air moves out and the warm air will stay until October at the latest.
"A storm like this resulted in the disturbances happening, correct?" Matt looked towards Liliana as she rested her glass cup on the coaster.
Liliana nodded as she affirmed that it's exactly as that.
"Might cause another disturbance," Matt scratched his chin.
It's worth trying, considering they don't have anything else to go on, and if it's fueled by the electrical storm outside, it should theoretically cause even more disturbances late into the night until it naturally dissipated until the next set of storms.
"What do you suppose this is?" Ripley inquired Liliana's thoughts.
Liliana shrugged as she admitted that she didn't know for certain. She only knew that there's no chance it's a literal ghost.
Her years in the army endowed her with knowledge and many ghost stories as well.
This didn't fit the criteria of a ghost story.
"Lily, I'm kinda tired," Melia rested her empty cup on the coaster.
She told Liliana that she'll wait for them in their room as she stood up and bowed her legs as she raised her dress slightly towards the couple before leaving the parlor room.
As she departed, Ripley glimpsed over to the time on the grandfather clock. It's rather late and she felt tired.
"Eh, I should hit the hay, too," Ripley stood up as she stretched her arms.
Liliana asked if she remembers their room and Ripley recited the directions given by Patata.
Acknowledging that Ripley knew where to find her room, Liliana pardoned her from the parlor room.
Looking down, Ripley asked if Matt's joining her and he declined for the moment. He wanted to make sure nothing else happens for the hour, but he'll be sure to head back to their room.
"Alright, meet you, then," Ripley gently pulled on his cheek before leaving the parlor room, heading up to the second floor where their room was.
It's just Matt and Liliana in the parlor room.
"Quite smitten, aren't you?" Liliana looked at Matt.
She didn't have eyebrows on the account Silurian don't have eyebrows, but Matt knew if she did, her eyebrow would've raised like a flag.
"I mean, the more the merrier, you know," Matt struggled to find words describing their interesting relationship.
She was his companion, but also his friend, lover, and boss.
He was the Doctor, her friend, and co-worker.
"Hm, it's better to have someone you trust with you on these long journeys," Liliana conversed Matt about his adventuring ways.
She seemed to know him from asking around, at least he thought she had him in mind. Bit tricky when there's more than one Doctor running around every which way in different timelines.
Parallel, alternate, up, down, left, and right, there's probably a Doctor here and there.
If anyone could've cohesively guessed he was the Doctor and acknowledged only the feats he had part in, he'd probably give them a medal!
"So, what about you, before this, what was it like in the Silurian army?" Matt inquired about Liliana's time in the service.
Very rarely did Matt have a chat about these things, so, he wanted to know more about the Silurian army and their ways. If only, to have it in the event he needed the reliable knowledge.
Liliana wouldn't lie to him, that much he figured out, and she's more open about these things than others.
Settling in her leather chair, Liliana pondered Matt's question before she told him about her past.
Part of life as a Silurian under a government with mandated military service. Liliana joined, served the mandatory seven years, and left the army.
Silurian didn't offer anything for the service, it's expected they do it, no questions asked.
Hence why Liliana only had her armor and nothing else, her people didn't believe in the idea of pension or the like. Pride of serving's all they cared about.
Well, on their home world that's all fine, but here, on Earth, humans needed money for services and they couldn't skirt by on just pride.
"Seen your share?" Matt inquired.
Liliana nodded and said she seen many things in the seven years she served, including her first war.
"You know how it goes, planet with resources, two opposing parties," Liliana summed her experience.
She learned combat firsthand. Fought her battles. Made a friend along the way.
Patata served on the opposite side of the war and just another face in the wall. His people believed in pride of serving, but preferred dying in battle.
Unlike his fellow soldiers, Patata felt differently about that, and that's how he met Liliana.
Two soldiers from opposite armies realized the futility of it all and became fast friends. It was Liliana that saved Patata from becoming a mark in his people's history by turning him into her people as a prisoner of war.
When the war ended, it ended as at a slate mate.
Nobody got the planet in the end because it imploded from the explosions caused by the warring races that resulted in the destruction of countless resources and lives.
Liliana and Patata survived it all by Liliana's technicalities and Patata's resistance to the ripple of the explosions.
Patata escaped custody of the Silurian and went MIA, preferably so. Changed his name and needed to find his place elsewhere as he couldn't go back to his home world or risk execution.
Having saved enough money and favours, Liliana coerced Patata to come with her to Earth where they worked tirelessly.
In the end, the beautiful Rose Manor where they have vast wealth and things that their respected home worlds wouldn't find beautiful or deserving.
Indeed, Liliana considered the possibility of someone from her military past causing these disturbances, but they wouldn't toil in foolish matters.
The government rendered her from service since she acquired the mandated years, thus absolved of her duties unless otherwise.
Of course, the true answer's that anyone who would've given Liliana a hard time for immigrating to Earth's dead.
Those who managed to survive have their own troubles to deal with and that's about the size of it.
"It took me time reconditioning myself," Liliana noted the time it took for her to get out of the military mindset and return to civilian life.
Immigrating to a new planet in a new system didn't help, but she managed to overcome this with Patata.
Patata wasn't sure how well he'd fit in to "Earth customs" but he took it slow and calculating until he finally realized that people weren't eating miniature Sontaran.
"So, your military, spending, social, other, doesn't seem to be the root of the disturbances," Matt sighed as he crossed his tweed arms. "I'm not seeing any connection."
Perhaps it's just a random event, no coincidence. Just is. Maybe it didn't involve Liliana, Melia, or Patata, after all. Just a strange contrived event that decided to show itself.
"It would seem so," Liliana sighed.
Overhead they heard a large crackle of thunder and Liliana noticed the time.
"I'm sure you will find the answer, Doctor, but for now, I do believe I should excuse myself," Liliana stood up and patted down her gothic dress.
Matt stood up and bid her a goodnight.
He'll let her know if he finds anything and she departed from the parlor room.
Sighing, Matt scratched his head as he wondered about this odd situation.
With his handheld, Matt left the parlor room and decided to walk around the manor for a bit. He'll do a sweep then go to bed.
Ripley's probably asleep by now.
Walking slowly through the hallway, Matt looked at the illuminated screen of the handheld as he tried to find any disturbances.
Wouldn't be the first time nothing ever happens according to plan, but Matt hoped all the same.
"Alright, I'm looking for a ghost," Matt sighed.
Walking endlessly throughout the manor, Matt stopped and felt sleepiness building in his eyes.
Yawning, Matt decided to turn in.
Whatever the ghost does or doesn't, he'll likely find out about it in the morning.
Turning back, Matt made his way towards his and Ripley's room.
Knowing her, he'll have to tickle her to get some room on the bed, but he couldn't wait to sleep.
Yawning once more, Matt turned a corner to find the staircase up when he thought he'd seen someone walk by a window at the end of the hallway opposite of him.
Blinking, Matt thought it was just his shadow, a trick of the mind, and tried to ignore it.
As he tried to turn, he felt the sudden compulsion to turn back towards the hallway.
He didn't know why, but he felt a nagging sensation that's telling him to go down that hallway.
Smartly, he wouldn't do such a thing, but here he was going down the hallway towards the window.
Reaching the end, Matt turned around when he didn't see anything only to stop again.
Turning his head, Matt noticed a hallway that he swore wasn't there before and a shadowy figure entering a room.
Matt felt compelled to go down that hallway and felt like he was walking on air.
Slowly, he walked as lighting lit up the blue hallway with black elegant doors until he stopped at the one the shadowy figure disappeared through and opened the door.
He enters and found a study.
There's a globe on a desk and when he stepped near it, he noticed something peculiar.
Wasn't a globe of earth.
Not the home planet of Liliana or Patata, either.
A completely differently globe.
There's markings indicating areas on the globe, but Matt couldn't read them.
However, the more he looked, the more the markings looked familiar.
A little like the markings on his pocket watch Jodie gifted him a while back.
As he looked at the globe, Matt spun it with his finger, looking at all the markings and indicators of landmass, water, and so forth.
Matt turned his head when he heard something and noticed a large armoire.
Going towards it, Matt reached out and slowly opened it.
There's clothes, clothes that looked familiar to him.
These were clothes that he and Ripley sold daily at her shop, elegant, smelled of cologne, and his dark green eyes looked down to something at the bottom.
Slowly, his arm reached out and grabbed what appeared to be a book.
It looked vaguely familiar and he didn't know why, but he's compelled to pick it up and hold it.
Matt wasn't able to read the book, as he felt an unusual presence near him and turned his head slightly.
There's a man there, his eyes illuminated by the lighting strike, icy blue.
His skin pale, black veins pushing against it, face lines that made him look older than Matt.
He reached out and took the book from Matt and opened his mouth.
Only, Matt couldn't hear him, but felt his eyes closing on their own.
Feeling himself falling to the ground without a thud, Matt didn't know what happened.
He awoke when Ripley poked him, causing him to stir.
Slowly opening his eyes, Matt looked down to see Ripley looking unamused.
"Wha?" Matt blinked.
Ripley explained to him what'd happened, "You dead weighted yourself on me after you came back last night. Did you investigate the icebox, you're freezing cold!"
Rubbing his eyes, Matt slowly looked towards the window of their room to see rain pattering against it, the sunlight muddled by the thick clouds.
"Huh?" Matt blinked.
He heard Ripley tell him that he'd woke her up by plopping down on the bed and "bunched me up like a pillow."
Matt apologized as he pushed himself to the side and Ripley righted herself, stretching her legs and arms as she felt her joints pop.
"I must've slept walk or something," Matt yawned.
Ripley pulled the comforter up to her chest as she blinked.
"You must've, didn't say much to me when you came in last night," she said.
Matt asked her what he did and Ripley said he'd come into their room, sat on the edge of the bed, all quiet like, and slowly made his way towards her.
Woke her up when she felt him on her, but noticed his eyes close as he settled in the spot.
"I asked you if you wanted to warm up under the covers with me, but I guess you were out of it," Ripley mused.
Didn't react to her poking him in the cheek either.
Ripley couldn't do much because the rain sapped her energy like a cold winter and batteries.
She figured Matt would've warmed up since he's with her, at least in her addled mind, and fell asleep, again.
"So, nothing happened?" Matt asked her, concerned.
Ripley poked him.
"No, nothing like that. Woulda smacked you awake if you did," Ripley shook her head as she told him that nothing, he's thinking of happened.
Sighing, Matt rubbed his eyes and felt her hand on his tweed shoulder.
"Nobody said anything, the handheld didn't go off, come on, this rain's not doing us any good," Ripley yawned.
She suggested he'd get comfortable and catch up on sleep if he wants to do more ghost hunting tonight.
Seeing her point as he didn't feel compelled to leave the bed, Matt nodded and tossed his tweed jacket on the chair across the bed, pulled off his suspenders, shirt, trousers, bow tie, shoes, and socks, gotten comfortable under the covers as he yawned.
He pulled Ripley close to him and the couple drifted off to sleep, yet again, to the tune of the rain pattering the window.
