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Chapter 9 - Lunch with Waterfalls
Tony, Pepper and Exton walked into a bank in Paris. A woman turned to greet them. She spoke French and Pepper replied with, "Ummm."
Tony never wavered and explained to her, speaking French, that he needed to access a safe deposit box. Pepper noticed he never told her his name. She guessed she had just recognized him. She smiled, and escorted them to over to a table. She asked Tony a series of questions, which he answered as he filled out a card. He handed it to her, and she took them to the vault.
As they walked into the vault, she turned and explained something to Pepper. Tony interrupted her and seemed to explain something. The woman smiled and pointed her finger to tell them she would be just outside if they needed her. Exton stood in the doorway of the vault with his back to them.
"I'm sorry, I'm really not much help with French."
He looked surprised back at her. "You're a lot of help. I don't want to do this on my own. She was trying to throw you out of here. I insisted that you stay."
"Do you know which one it is?"
He found the correct box and put his thumb to the thumb plate. "Yep."
It sprang opened and he slid a box out. "I was worried that wouldn't work." He looked up at her, "I've burnt that thumb so many times." He sat the box on the table inside the vault. There was another thumb plate on the box, which he opened. Pepper watched as he opened the box and sat things down on the table. "Tony, I feel like I'm intruding a bit-"
"You're not. It's fine." He looked in the box.
The box had several jewelry boxes inside, some military ribbons and some photos. Tony looked at a few of the photos and then handed Pepper one that was in black and white. It was of a man, wearing a suit and a fedora. He had a cleanly shaven face and a very kind smile. "Howard Stark, Senior."
Pepper smiled at the picture, "He reminds me of you. You look like him."
Tony chuckled as he continued to take things out of the box, "Maybe I should get a fedora."
Pepper picked up a jewelry box he sat on the table, "Do you mind?"
He shook his head. "No. Go ahead."
She opened it and saw a very simple, gold band with a small diamond in the center. Tony looked at it and smiled, "Mom's engagement ring. I wondered where that went."
Pepper smiled at it. "It's so simple."
"She had several. She said that Dad kept asking her. That was the first one."
Pepper smiled and closed the box. Tony handed her another picture. "Dad and Obadiah. The first Expo." Pepper took the picture and looked at the two men, with their arms around one another's shoulders, smiling.
"Masters of the Universe." She mumbled.
"They thought so." Tony agreed as he continued to look in the box.
Pepper sat the photo back in the box and saw another picture in a small frame. She turned over the frame to discover a picture of a man and woman with a small, dark haired boy hugging them from behind. They looked to be on a picnic in a field. Howard Stark wore sunglasses and Pepper couldn't help but think at how much he looked like Tony. She showed it to Tony. "Is this little boy you?"
He looked at the picture. "Yep. We would go to that field every summer. Damn. It's not here."
Pepper held the frame in her hand. "Why is this one in a frame when the other ones aren't? That's odd."
Tony rose his eyebrows. "That's true. Let me see."
He opened the back of the frame and found a small key. Written on the back of the picture was, 'Remember Tony. You need to finish this. What did we always sing, son? T-O-N-Y. I know you can do this. You were meant to do this. –Dad.'
Tony sighed and handed it to Pepper. "And a message from the grave."
She read the message as he leaned on the table and thought for a moment. He started to put everything back in the box and Pepper stopped him. "You don't want to take this stuff with you?"
He stopped and looked back at her. "Well…."
She put her hand on his forearm. "Take it with you for now. You can always bring it back."
He nodded his head and looked back at the box. "You're right. I probably need to take a closer look at all of this."
He put all of the stuff back into the box and held the small key in his hand. Pepper still held the framed picture. "You left this out."
"We'll take it with us. Damn. T-O-N-Y. I've not thought of that in years. Exton, we're ready. Could you ask someone to transport this up to my suite?"
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The Doctor had put on one of his suits' jackets over his t-shirt that he wore with his jeans. Rose had put her hair up and wore a lovely blue dress with long, sheer sleeves shoulder cutouts that opened all the way to the cuffs.
The waitress sat them in the corner of a restaurant. The area was crowded with other people who were dining, but the waitress managed to sit them tables away from anyone. None of the other people dining seemed to notice they were there. The Doctor held his finger up at her and smiled, "Don't turn around and look yet. Trust me."
She sat with her back to the scene of wherever he had taken her and smiled at him.
The waitress took their order and walked away. The Doctor poured them both a glass of wine and looked across the table. "That dress is-"
"Demanding these heels. So, don't start."
He looked surprised at her. "I was so struck by the dress, I hadn't noticed the heels."
She sipped her wine, "Then my plan is working. And I finally know what is the deal with that."
"With what?"
"Heels. Lance and Poltious explained to me that we must have gotten married someplace where you promise to take care of the other person's feet?"
He sipped his wine and chuckled, "Yes. We did. I thought I had explained that?"
"Maybe you had meant to and couldn't keep your clothes on." She teased.
He laughed, "That sounds like me. Yes. We'll go with that explanation. Have I explained any of our other….promises? I probably should."
She giggled at him. "I would like to hear that. I want to make sure I'm living up to whatever I might have agreed to."
He smiled at her. "You are. I just worry that I'm not." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I probably need to compile some notes. Can I get back to you on that? I need to have a think."
She nodded, "Sure."
He finished his glass and sat back. "Yes. This is beautiful. Tony isn't too far from us. Well. Sortof. This table is…."
"What?"
"New plan. Change seats with me. Come over here."
She stood up and he held his chair out to her. He then pulled the seat she had been sitting in, beside of her and sat down. "That's better."
She put her hand on his thigh, "That is better. You were too far away."
He kissed her lips quickly and laid his arm on the back of her chair. "We're in a restaurant, full of people. Maybe this way I can keep my clothes on long enough to talk to you."
She rolled her eyes. "As long as you promise to take them off later."
He looked at her longingly. "We could just….find a hotel-"
"You are ridiculous." She laughed under her breath.
He continued to look at her dress, "Or….just….have a quick pop in the-"
She pointed at him, "We are going to have a chat."
He looked back up at her face. "Quite right. Yes. Look. See if you can guess where we are."
Rose looked through the windows of where they sat. They were high in the air, in a tower that seemed to be rotating slowly. The beautiful blue sky and one familiar sun made her smile. The lovely blue water had a mist that hung above it. As the restaurant rotated around, she saw the waterfall that sat under them. It was massive and in the shape of a horseshoe.
"Guess?"
"This is Niagara Falls. The woman had an American accent that took our order." She smiled.
He took her hand and kissed it. "You are right. Well, not about her. She's Canadian. But, yes. That's Niagara Falls. We're in a rotating restaurant, and that's the reason you didn't see it when we first sat down. It's actually three separate waterfalls that sit on the border of Canada and the United States. When Abraham Lincoln first saw this he said that he just couldn't understand where all of that water came from."
"You've met Abraham Lincoln?"
He looked back at her and smiled, "No. It was written on the menu."
"Well done, then."
He looked back out at the restaurant. They sat far from everyone else there. "This is alright? All of these people?"
She nodded, "It is fine. I'm with you. I don't believe anyone has noticed we're even here. Besides, they are all way over there. This is like a private….dining area. Or something."
He propped his head up on his fist and looked back at her. "There are only a million things I probably need to talk to you about."
"I could say the same thing."
He nodded his head as he refilled their glasses. "Alright. You go first."
"Baby, I don't know where to even start. I suppose, Lance."
"What about Lance?"
"He was just amazing while you were gone. I am glad you decided to promote him."
"It wasn't up to me. Summus just needed me to agree to it."
"He's going to stay? That's what I've heard, right?"
"Well, he needs to go do something for me. He'll be gone a while with that. But, he'll be back. I'm sure you can represent his training at playing Peducko well in his absence."
She nodded proudly. "I really enjoy that."
"You are really good at that. Lance taught you to play that well during that short time we were gone?"
"I wonder if it has something to do with that….loop thing."
He looked confused at her. "What loop thing?"
"Like the French lessons. I didn't speak French at all, but I will one day so now I do. It's a loop, is how you explained it."
He nodded his head in understanding. "Oh. Yeah. That's probably it. Man, that's really unfair. I'll never be able to win a game against you."
She rolled her eyes at him. "Why doesn't that work for everything? Seems odd it just doesn't."
"What else would you like to be able to do that with?"
"Hell, I don't know. Maybe….learn to fly a ship-"
"I could show you that."
"Maybe, cook."
"You are doing better with that."
"Maybe, learn to speak another language."
"What language, Sweetheart?"
"Your language. Is that mad to even think I can? "
He smiled proudly, "No, it's not mad. You could do it. There are just words you probably couldn't pronounce."
"I remember you saying there were two languages."
He nodded, "Yes. High Gallifreyan and just… Gallifreyan. High Gallifreyan is something that is odd to know even for Time Lords. It's…. well…."
She smiled at him, "Magic."
He sipped his wine and nodded, "Yeah. I suppose it is. It's not something I could feel comfortable teaching you. And, Gallifreyan ….well….I could teach it to you, but you wouldn't be able to pronounce a lot of it."
"I would like to be able to say a few things. Things I think you need to hear."
He smiled at her, "Like what?"
"I love you."
He chuckled and nodded his head. "It doesn't translate to exactly say that. It means… closer to…..'my soul fits with yours', or something like….'together, we are…..what is right.' English is a very limited language. There are words that mean such odd things. It's….I'm explaining this badly."
She smiled, "No, I understand. Well, something simple. 'Good night'."
"It's not just 'Good Night.' It's, something like, 'Sleep well and may only beautiful dreams find you'."
"Geez. No wonder you like to talk a lot. It's just your culture."
He nodded his head. "Yeah. See? Exactly!"
She giggled and looked back at the falls. "Legate said he will bring you something."
He rubbed his hands together in excitement. "My surprise. Yes! He's with Michelle now picking it up. What is it?"
She sipped her wine. "You'll find out soon enough. Now…ummm….tell me where this little boy came from. I thought you said he had the same thing I did-"
He nodded, "I thought he did. That's the reason I went to check on him. I thought it would give me some answers to what happened to you. Coma. Heavy brain activity. Very similar to you. But, it's not it at all. He's a member of a race that can control electricity."
She looked surprised, "Really?"
"It's a fable. A legend here. Even back in the other dimension. But, it's absolutely true. In the other dimension, his father goes mad looking for him. Destroys entire systems. He never found the little boy."
"And you have him."
He nodded his head. "I do. I can't even believe it. I should really be taking notes."
"Why notes?"
"One day, after I punch him in the nose, I could hand him this notebook and he could go fix this stuff in that dimension."
She smiled as she watched him refill both of their glasses. "That could be the nicest thing you have ever said about him."
He sat down his glass. "Maybe I shouldn't be drinking. I rather was."
Legate walked through the crowded restaurant and sat down at the table with them. He had with him a white box with a red ribbon tied around it which he sat on the table in front of them. "Quick delivery service. Would you like me to stay and take it back to the ship for you?"
The Doctor looked at the box, which was big enough to hold a laptop inside. "I have no idea. What do you think, Rose?"
She smiled, "It will be alright. He can bring it back when we leave."
Legate nodded his head. "Well, enjoy it, mate. I'm headed back up." They both thanked him. Legate stood up and left.
The Doctor looked at the box that sat in front of him. "And now that it is here, I'm rather nervous to open it."
Rose rolled her eyes and kissed his cheek. "Well, it might take a bit of explaining. So, do not get cross. I know how you are."
He looked back at her, "What the hell is in that box?"
She laughed and sipped her wine. "Open it."
He sighed and opened the box. Inside he found a large photo album. He rubbed his chin and looked back at Rose.
She smiled, "It's alright. It's not going to bite you."
He opened the photo album to see black and white pictures of Rose. She was wearing lingerie and was lying across a bed with silk sheets.
"Oh wow." was all he could say.
She smiled at him, "It's called a boudoir session."
He nodded his head and turned the page. "Yeah. I've ugh…wow."
She giggled at his reaction. "That was some of my favorite pieces you brought back. I've tried on most of it now."
He closed the book and rubbed his face. "Oh…just wow. Who took these?"
"A photographer. Do you remember when we were dancing at that State Dinner, and the photographer asked to take our picture?"
"Her? How did you find her?"
"Michelle. Of course. I asked her to do these for me. It was Pepper's idea."
"Michelle needs a raise. How do you know this photographer won't sell-"
"Them to the newspapers?" She finished his sentence. "Well, I have made a deal with her that she is now our family's photographer, for everything. Every holiday, every milestone of the childrens'. Just everything. The only way she can remain in that position, is to never give anything to the press without our written permission."
He smiled proudly at her. "So, you've hired a photographer."
"I've hired a photographer. I want some pictures of all of us."
He opened back up the album to look at the pictures. He made it to the fourth page. "Where was Lance when these were taken?"
She giggled, "Behind a screen where I would change, in the same room. She has a lovely studio there. He kept telling me how you were going to kill him when you saw these pictures so, 'Please, be sure to explain to John that I saw, nothing!' The photographer laughed so much at him. They really got on well."
He closed the album. "I really just can't even look at these here now."
She looked confused, "You don't like-"
"Oh! I do! Yes. I just…. Have a problem with…. Self control already, and to look at this."
She laughed and kissed his lips quickly. "Put it in your pocket and you can look them over completely later, then."
He put the album back in the box and sipped it into his bigger on the inside pockets just as the waitress brought them their order.
"The salmon for you, ma'am." She told Rose as she sat the plate in front of her.
Rose smiled at her. "Thank you."
"A burger for you, sir. And your beer."
Rose rubbed his thigh as she felt the pang of annoyance at being called 'sir.' He closed his eyes and thanked her.
Rose smiled, "Could we please have another bottle of this wine?"
"Of course." The waitress smiled and walked away.
He looked surprised back at her. "Have we already finished an entire bottle?"
"I have a feeling we will."
He smiled at his plate and rubbed his hands together. "Best place for this. Yes! Even if it has that odd taste in the air."
Rose put her napkin in her lap. "What else is going on?"
"Well, I told you about the plague and Ashena has decided to put a base there."
Rose nodded her head as she ate. "Yes."
"Well, she wants me to go and oversee the construction of it. But, I'm going to send Lance instead. Pete doesn't want me to go, and take you and the children. He's not comfortable with us being that close to it. Pete is evoking his Right of the Patriarch against my Quauhtin Primus. Damn it."
Rose shook her head. "I have no idea what you are talking about."
"I hesitate to tell you. Pete, is the head of the Tyler family. So, me, being a Quauhtin gives me the ability to be with you, you know, out like this. On our own, but if the Patriarch asks me not to do something, I have to obey his wishes. Otherwise, Lewis will relieve me of my rank. And we're back to having our babysitters again."
"That's going to drive you mad."
"It does." He grumbled. "But, he was going to find out at some point."
"I agree with Dad on this. I don't like you being that close to that, either. And you would be gone for months."
He shook his head. "I'm not going. I'm not allowed."
"Damn. You're serious."
He nodded his head. "I'm completely serious. There's no way around it. Rose, does Pete think I'm a kid?"
"Baby, he doesn't-"
"I mean, I'm older than the planet he was born on. I'm not an idiot-"
"He doesn't think you are an idiot. He just is frightened and doesn't want to lose you. It's the same thing as you putting these force fields up all over the house for Samuel. You don't want him to get hurt."
"Samuel is an infant. I'm considerably older than-"
"It's just part of being in a family. You have to go with some things."
He groaned and nodded his head. "You're right. It's an adjustment."
They ate in silence for a bit.
Rose looked back at him as he refilled her wine. "Baby, let me ask you something. If, Time Lords were here, or we were in the other dimension-"
He shook his head, "It doesn't matter. We're here. And technically, I'm not a Time Lord. That was another thing brought to my attention."
She sat down her drink. "Explain."
"Ashena is on the brink of war and my origins have come into question there. Summus and Licis put their heads together and I'm now a Quauhtin. Proper. With a complete history going back 758 years. They were really clever and gave me a few adventures. I've read the records. I admit, I was impressed."
Even though he drank his beer and acted as if everything was alright, Rose could feel he was annoyed. She sat down her knife and fork and wiped her mouth. She turned towards him. "Baby. Look at me."
He sat down his beer and looked at her. "I'm alright, Rose."
"You're not. Talk to me."
He sighed and wiped his mouth with his napkin. "It's not worth-"
"You are upset. I can feel it. If you want to continue to lie to yourself about how you really feel, that's fine. But, don't lie to me." She held his hand in hers.
"It's just….. whenever I think I've finally got a handle on this. Being here. Being me. I'm reminded how much I'm not. I'm a copy of someone-"
"You are you."
"But, I'm not. I'm-"
She held his hands tightly and looked at his pained face. "You are the Doctor. More than he is capable of being. You are every bit of the man I fell in love with. This is a new chapter in that life. You've been alone for so long, I know this has to be hard for you. But, being part of a family. Being part of….the Quauhtin. Even being part of your mad football team…."
He laughed under his breath. "Yeah."
"I don't see you as a copy. I never have. I see you as the better version of the man that blew up my job."
He chuckled at her.
"I see the father of my children, and the Time Lord that I love more than he will ever know."
She could feel his mood improve. He kissed her lips and smiled at her. "Thank you, Rose." He tossed up his hand and shook his head. "I have no idea why I'm like this. I was never like this before."
"These are huge things, Baby. You're dealing with a lot here."
He sipped his beer again and nodded his head. "I think its Donna. She was always unsure of herself. It's something I see in myself more than I ever have."
"Then that's why you have me."
He smiled back at her. "To give me a proper smack when I need it?"
"If you think it would help." She laughed with him.
"Nah. Just a …. Pep talk, I suppose."
She sipped her wine, "I'm always ready with one for you."
He tossed a chip in his mouth and smiled at her. "And I suppose this is when I tell you that we won't have our picture taken for a while."
She sat her wine down and looked back at him. "And we're leaving….?"
"In a few hours. Andromedea. We might be running into some trouble."
She smiled, "Sounds fun."
He chuckled and nodded his head. "Indeed. Tony is bringing Pepper, and his suits. We're sending Poltious out to try to find the boy's father. His name is actually Soler."
"Soler. I really like that."
"Yeah. Me, too."
"How long do you think it will take Poltious to find the father?"
"I have no idea. Days, or months. There's no way to tell. Tony has really taken to him, so I'm sure that won't be a problem."
"It might just be what Tony needs at the moment."
"Have you spoken to Pepper?"
She pointed at him, "I've drank too much wine already for us to talk about that."
He looked back at her a laughed, "Oh, then tell me. What has she said?"
"No! Because you will tell him."
"Phhh…. I won't. Is it good?"
"It's good. She's just….worried."
He shrugged his shoulders, "I get that. It's new. Everyone is like that in the beginning. Wasn't you?"
"No way. You?"
He nodded his head. "Absolutely."
"Is that why it took so long for you to make your move?" she teased.
"I was sure I was going to screw everything up and you would hate me. Break my arm, or something."
She rolled her eyes and looked back at him. He could feel her absentmindedness. "That happened afterwards."
"The day afterwards. Merely hours." He teased her.
She giggled at him and finished her wine.
He bit his lip and sat down his beer. "Are you finished? We can pop back to the island. Have a bit of….dessert."
She kissed his lips quickly and whispered, "Bring the wine."
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