"Oh Wow," I said in awe as I studied the speakeasy we had stepped into behind our guide, who after a little bit of prompting by the Doctor had given his name as Jimmy. The Doctor gave me a smile.
"This isn't even the most impressive speakeasy I've ever been in. Remind me to take you to Chicago or New York in this era," he said, and I nodded.
"We can take Lillian so that she'll forgive me," I said as we were waved to a booth in the corner of the bar. The Doctor slid in first, probably so that if we had to make a run for it, I would be closest to the door.
"And who are you two then?" Al Capone asked after he had thanked Jimmy for bringing us to him. The brunette girl sitting next to him pouted.
"Aw come on Big Al, we can still be hospitable before we do business, right?" She asked, and he nodded begrudgingly. She turned towards us.
"You two want something to drink?" She asked.
"No thank you. I've got terrible tolerance," I said, and the Doctor mumbled something about how 1920's liquor would probably kill me. I nudged him playfully in response and he also responded in the negative towards a drink.
"Satisfied, Lola?" Al asked, and she nodded.
"Thanks, Big Al," she said and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He nodded gruffly before turning to face us.
"Who are you two then?" Al asked, and the Doctor shrugged casually.
"Our names are Emma and the Doctor," I said at the same time as the Doctor spoke.
"Travelers." Al frowned at his words.
"You trying to move in on my business?" He asked. "I know lots of people like me use girls dressed up as boys to move cargo." I glanced down at myself and realized that I was still wearing jeans and a T-shirt.
"Just more comfortable when you're on the road," I said. "I noticed you don't think we're police." Al scoffed and jerked his thumb toward the Doctor.
"No way that man's a pig," he said. Lola and I laughed while the Doctor raised an eyebrow up at me.
"Well he's right," I said soothingly.
"Sorry for the bother, but when new folks show up in town when I'm trying to lie low, I get suspicious," Al said. "You know how those Mounties are."
"Yes indeed," the Doctor said. Lola leaned against Al's arm in an enticing manner.
"Don't you think we should offer these two a few drinks on the house if they come to the bar tonight? Just to offer a sincere apology for taking up their time," Lola suggested. Al grunted and glanced up at us.
"I don't see any harm in that." Lola leaned over and pressed a kiss to his cheek before Al slid out of the booth and tipped his fedora at us.
"You got a dress somewhere?" Lola asked me, and I sent a glance to the Doctor to see if he knew about what was in the wardrobe off the top of his head. He nodded so I took that to mean that we had something acceptable.
"I do. I just have to go put it on and do my hair," I said, and Lola leaned forward and pursed her lips at me.
"Why don't you let me do your hair?" She asked. My nerves must have shown on my face because she reached over and patted my hand quickly. "I just mean that it's always easier to let someone else do it."
"I was just going to put my hair up in a bun," I said, and she beamed at me.
"You can just meet me upstairs. Give Joe my name at the counter," she said as she got up from the booth as well and stretched slightly.
"Look at you go," the Doctor said softly into my ear as Jimmy led us out of the speakeasy and pointed at the other door to come in to find Lola. "Keep this up and you'll have a friend in every decade of history."
"Oh, like you're any better," I said teasingly. He flashed me a grin.
"I would never claim to be," he said. We walked in silence for a few moments before I laughed slightly, and he looked down at me.
"What?"
"I was just thinking that I couldn't really be considered a time traveller until I met someone out of order and then I remembered that I have met someone out of order." The Doctor laughed as well and grinned at me.
"And well before you started travelling with me as well. If that isn't the sign of a true time traveller then I don't know what is," he said.
"How was six-year-old me? I forgot to ask," I said, and he raised an eyebrow up at me.
"Perceptive and blunt," he said. "It was an interesting experience."
"You sound almost traumatized," I teased.
"At least you gave me some warning. Could you imagine if I had spilled out of the TARDIS without any?" I thought about it for a moment.
"I have great confidence that our picnic would have gone about the same way," I said.
"I have great confidence that I would have told you even more than I should have," he said with a self-deprecating eyebrow raise. I laughed at that, even though I wasn't sure he was trying to make a joke.
"More?" I repeated and glanced up at him conspiratorially to see if he would tell me exactly what he hadn't meant to tell me. He pulled a disgruntled face.
"The perception hasn't changed in the slightest," he said and sighed in defeat when I fluttered my eye lashes at him dramatically. "I hadn't really intended to tell you that I was from your future."
"What was your plan then?" I asked with a laugh.
"Let you make your own conclusions," he said as he pulled out his key to open the TARDIS for me. I thought about it for a few moments.
"I don't know if that would have worked too terribly well."
"What do you mean by that?" he asked with another quirked eyebrow.
"I would have just asked more questions probably," I said. He laughed lightly.
"Try the middle right corner in the wardrobe," he suggested.
"I'm still not sure how you can have a middle corner, but thanks," I said as I wandered to where the wardrobe had been the last time I'd gone looking for it. I dug out a few options and held each one in front of me in the mirror, watching the TARDIS give her opinion as she raised or lowered the lights whether she liked the dress or not.
"I don't really know if green is my colour or not," I said as I held up the final pick in front of me and tilted my head to the side. It was perfect for the time period and would fit me like a dream, but I was still hesitant about the pale green colour. The TARDIS vibrated the floor under my feet gently.
"Yeah okay I'll trust you," I said and quickly changed. When I turned around there was a pair of matching shoes sitting next to the door. I patted the wall gently in thanks as I scooped them up before heading back to the console room.
"What do you think?" I asked and gave a quick spin in front of the Doctor. He smiled widely at me.
"You look absolutely lovely," he said. I fussed with the hem a tiny bit.
"I'm not sure it's my colour," I admitted. He reached out and cupped my face in his hand.
"It brings out your eyes perfectly," he said, and I blushed.
"Thanks." I planted my hand on his shoulder to hold myself steady as I slipped my shoes on. "I just want you to know that I think it's very funny that you and Al Capone practically had matching suits."
"It's not my fault pinstripes fell out of fashion," he said, while adjusting his jacket and I laughed.
"Somehow I think this is the only case of your clothing being fashionable at some point," I said as we headed for the door again.
"I wore a leather jacket before this I'll have you know," he said. I raised an eyebrow up at him.
"And before that?" I asked, and he frowned slightly.
"I fit in very well with the Edwardian crowd," he said. I thought about it for a few moments.
"I suppose that technically counts," I said, and he laughed.
"Remind me to show you some pictures of my fashion disasters," he said, and I beamed at him.
"Deal. By the way what are you going to do to keep yourself entertained while I'm hanging out with Lola?" I asked. He shrugged.
"I've heard that the rum runners here use an intricate tunnel system, so I thought I might explore those for a little bit," he said.
"It is definitely your turn to go walking around underground," I said. He laughed and nudged my shoulder with his.
"I don't know, I'm pretty sure I have a few dozen more dungeon crawls over you," he said.
"I'm sure you do. But I am only counting from when I started travelling with you, which means I have quite a few over you," I said. He raised his eyebrow up at me teasingly.
"Oh, is that where we're counting from?" He asked, and I nodded.
"It is indeed." He chuckled and leaned over to sweep a kiss across my temple. I thought about commenting on the lack of brilliance but decided I didn't care. "Just try to keep yourself contained."
"Emma, whatever do you mean by that?" The Doctor asked with faux offence in his tone. I grinned.
"I'm not sure a town of this size is ready to handle you full force," I said, and he laughed as we slowed to a stop outside the door that Jimmy had pointed out to us earlier.
"Do you have your phone with you?" He asked, and I nodded.
"For the sake of my modesty, don't ask where," I said. My phone wasn't anywhere too scandalous, but it might get a little bit weird if he asked me to fish it out right here in the street. Or if my chest started ringing at some point.
"Noted," the Doctor said with a slightly pale face. I patted him on the shoulder gently in support.
"Hey, do you think it would mess up the timeline of human history too much if we convinced every single clothing designer to put pockets into dresses?" The Doctor gave me a funny look. "Actually, just pockets into female clothes in general?"
"It's not something I've ever considered," he said like he was trying to decide whether or not he wanted to laugh.
"It's a serious problem," I said. He laughed slightly before he tried to force himself back to seriousness. I quirked an eyebrow up at him.
"Sorry you just had the most adorable frown I've ever seen in my life," he said. "Promise me you'll be careful."
"I'm sorry which one of us is going wandering around in tunnels that rum runners use?" I asked.
"We haven't had the best of luck when we separate," the Doctor pointed out and I nodded.
"Fair point." I crossed my heart. "I promise to be careful."
"Thank you, Emma." The Doctor said and copied my hand motion. "I promise to be careful." I waved him off down the street and pushed the door open to a little general store. An older man looked up at me from behind the counter.
"I'm supposed to ask for Lola," I said, suddenly feeling awkward. He nodded and jerked his thumb at the stairs in the corner.
"First door on the right." I nodded and thanked him as he ducked back down behind the counter. The stairs were narrower than I had expected so I took them a little slower than normal until I found the door that I'd been directed towards.
"Thank goodness you're here," Lola said as she embraced me like we were old friends.
"Sorry it took so long," I said as I looked past her into the room and saw two men sitting on her chaise longue. I suddenly had a bad feeling about this and I was really hoping that I was going to be wrong, because otherwise the Doctor was going to murder me.