In a rare turn of events, Theodore and Lila received an invite from both Samito and Ko'gan for an event, following the hit show, "The Doctor" winning a spot on an award show, where the show runner who replaced David's set to reveal details of the next series following the success of his recent series.
The Samito and Ko'gan hinted that they went behind the show runner's back to make a spectacle, but not out of malice, they believed it'll fit the show, just fine.
They wanted Theodore and Lila there since there'll be too many time delays and joining them in this affair's David, Catherine, with Jenny and her father in tow.
David never gotten the chance meeting the show runner who replaced him, so he wanted to meet the man who managed to take steps in the big shoes David left, maybe even made them bigger if what he heard meant anything.
Odette and Ben also in attendance as their show's in the lineup for the awards with their show's show runner set to reveal details of the next series and once the show's over, Theodore and Lila planned on joining the two at dinner, as the two ran their stomachs dry the other night, only sufficing on power bars to get through because of their rush to get to the award show in time before the lockout period.
With their tickets in hand, dressed formally with Lila taken liberties as she didn't have anything formal on hand, they even have a backstage pass printed on the tickets, courtesy of Dom who secured them as thanks, in his own way.
"Well, it's good that they're amicable working with the new guy," Lila shrugged as she walked with Theodore, whom wore a prim outfit for the affair, towards their spots at a large reserved table with plump seats near the stage.
Wearing a normal deep navy-blue pinstripe fitted suit with a white-collar shirt, polished dress shoes, his hair lightly trimmed and moused, hard to believe it's the same man Lila's adventured with multiple times in months.
"The Samito know better to cause trouble and Dom promised David he wouldn't be too hard on the new show runner, I don't know if he even figured it out, yet," Theodore shrugged as he stated that he trusted the Samito and the Ko'gan to keep their words, not causing any trouble for him, because he's at the stage of his life where he'll send them all into the fiery sun if they make enough trouble to last him a century's worth of migraines.
Giggling as she held her hand over her mouth, Lila mused that Theodore's got a temper on him for a spry thirty-four-year-old with a birthday coming up in July.
"You fix everyone's problems, eventually they become your problem," Theodore yawned as he plopped down in the comfy seat with Lila joining him in the seat next to him, a waiter already coming by with drinks for them.
Lightly touching his shoulder, Lila comforted him, saying that Al's finalizing details, they'll get a break from it all, soon.
Rubbing his eyes, Theodore mustered, "Soon!"
As he lowered his large hand, he heard a familiar voice calling him, when he turned his head, he sees David with his large hands in the pockets of his brown trench coat as he's walking over to the table, trailing behind him's Catherine, wearing a black dress, heels, pearl earrings and necklace, like Audrey Hepburn.
"Feels nice not having to run from something," David smiled at Theodore as he settled in his spot with Donna adjacent to them with two open seats for Jenny and Mr. Pratchett.
Sitting beside him, Catherine muses while seeing the glass of drinks set in front of her and David before another waiter came by, giving them starters, "Feels nice being able to eat something! It is dreadful how many foods can look so delightful, yet so poisonous!"
Lila wasn't hip with ritzy food, but she couldn't say no to free food, especially at an awards show helmed by A-listers commanding ritzy food and drinks to go along with them.
Theodore shared her sentiment and added to Catherine's musing that while he can stomach most things, most things being RATT packs, eating something made with pineapple's asking too much from him.
"Aw, you're missing out, the nice bartender made me fantastic drinks on Mars!" David couldn't understand the three not daringly trying new foods in their adventures.
The nice bartender he met on Mars' nice enough to make him drinks, even recommended other drinks. "Banana daiquiris are really good!"
Puzzled as she looked at him, Lila pointed out that David didn't need to go far looking for banana daiquiris, there's plenty of options for him to choose from here in town if he looked hard enough, which David says he knows that, but there's something about having a banana daiquiri made with quantum breaking white rum just made it more memorable.
"All he did was drink it, I don't know if he even had actual food!" Catherine commented that when they were at the resort on Mars, she only saw David drinking the daiquiris. He didn't seem to eat much at all, except the salty peanuts at the bar, but nothing substantial.
Snorting, David swears that he ate actual food on Mars, but the bartender's drinks were too good to put down.
Waving his hand, David assured Theodore and Lila that he had food on Mars, that wasn't just bar peanuts.
"He also danced to… what do you call it… "Hungry Eyes"?" Catherine brought up an embarrassing factoid about David drunkenly dancing to Eric Carmen's "Hungry Eyes" in the bar after consuming his umpteenth banana daiquiri.
Yet, somehow the moment he took a nap, he was back for more!
"Gotta love that regeneration," David gave a nod to the show, before Theodore rolled his eyes.
They conversed a short while before Jenny and her father joined them at the table, David standing up to pull out Jenny's seat for her, before doing the same for Mr. Pratchett.
"Sometimes, I miss the old days," Pete mused as he settled in his chair with his daughter across from him next to David and Catherine beside her.
Chuckling, David mused that Pete doesn't miss the screeching Daleks, which he noted that David isn't wrong.
For Pete, he feels simply out of his element in the award show that having Daleks chasing him's close to him being in his element than it's been in decades.
Reaching over to touch her father's hand, Jenny assured him that he'll be fine at the show, he doesn't have to worry about running and twisting his knees again.
Groaning, Pete scratched the side of his head as he admitted he never missed the running and twisting his knees from it, why, he had to rely on heating pads for much of his time before he left.
"Do you miss it, though?" Lila asks if Mr. Pratchett, er, Pete miss his time as the Doctor and he gave a long pause before he answered while holding his glass of champagne.
Pulling it close to his lips, Pete said that despite what happened, it was the best decision he ever made, and if he had the opportunity, he would again.
"Never say never, could come back," David winked at Pete with a grin as he mentioned that they're thinking of doing crossover specials for the show. If David could come back as the Doctor, maybe Pete can reprise his role once again for old time's sake on the show, at least he knows the animatronics won't try and kill him, and the Samito learnt their lessons.
"So long as you keep them in check," Pete pointed his finger at David.
Within a minute meeting the disguised Samito, Pete deduced them as alien.
Many decades since he had the title to his lonesome and he still has it in him.
"Well, at least you and Dom get along," Theodore brought up that there's a benefit of meeting the aliens, Pete became friends with Dom due to their shared positions in life, and they talked to each other like old bar friends.
Resting the half-empty cup on the white clothed table, Pete responds, "Quite. If he doesn't try to convince me into head butting people, again."
Ah, Dom, still in the old mindset, thinks everything resolves once he delivers a head butt of the century to anyone he disagrees with, that it's a miracle David convinced him that humans can't withstand the force.
It led Dom into musing, "Heh, you're all too squishy."
The conversations continued until the host for the award show came on stage with the opening speech, going through the itinerary, when he finished, the award show began.
Awards for best thriller, dramas, comedies, you name it, there's an award for it, and the show Ben and Odette worked on won the award for best thriller of the year, leading to resounding applause from Theodore.
As he sat down, Lila wondered, "Hey, where's the boss man, anyway, I thought he be down here for the show, too."
His baby sister's in the awards, surely, he'd make time for that, which Theodore says Hammond was never into watching the Telly much.
"You didn't tell him, did you?" Lila crossed her arm as she turned her head towards Theodore.
Shirking in his seat, Theodore swears that Hammond's always difficult, leading to someone clearing his throat behind Theodore.
He said to Lila, "Oh, he thought he could get away with having me in the back."
Sharply turning his head, Theodore winced as he sees Hammond dressed to the nines for tonight, an irritated look on his face directed to Theodore.
Sputtering, Theodore asked how Hammond gotten this far into the auditorium without someone preventing him from getting too close to where he isn't supposed to seat, only for Hammond to tell him that he's friends with the owner of the building.
He got permission from the owner to sit with his dear little brother and friends.
"Hey, where's Hamon?" Lila asked Hammond if he knew where the old Time Lord went, figuring he'd be here for the show, too, and Hammond responded that their uncle's somewhere else for the moment, he won't be back for a while, and gave Odette his belated congratulations.
As Hammond gotten a chair for the table, sitting next to his baby brother, Lila's miffed, wondering where Hamon went, thinking he gone back to Gallifrey, only for Theodore telling her that he doesn't think their uncle goes back to Gallifrey often, now.
With the appearance of Hammond, Theodore's forced into catching him up to speed on who the people at the table were, since Hammond never bothered doing much but work in the library,
As he finished, Theodore noticed a look on Hammond's face, and Hammond informed him that he already knew.
"Lee!" Theodore nudged her, but Hammond reminded him that it's his interest knowing these things. He only asked for Lila's insight on the characters in Theodore's life, he never forced her.
Crossing his long arms, Theodore retorts, "You write the cheques!"
During the award show, Catherine showed interest in Hammond, talking to him about his studies, whatnot, leading to Theodore conversing with David telepathically, warning him that Hammond in his business ends in deep seated regrets.
"Aw, come on, he's dear brother, he cares about you, I don't have one, you should be lucky, y'know!" David teased Theodore, telling him that he wasn't fortunate having a big brother like Hammond looking out for him.
Gritting his teeth, Theodore hisses, "You're not helping!"
Finally, after going through this year's showcase, started a familiar music played by an orchestra with effects televised on a screen behind the host as he began talking about the latest sci-fi show that took the world by storm.
The Doctor.
With roaring applause from the crowd, the host introduced the show runner with a thunderous, "Herman Tully!"
A lanky man walked on stage, wearing clothes comparable to what Theodore and Hamon wore, a wooden pipe on the side of his mouth.
Coming up to the mic, the light reflecting his round glasses, Herman looked at the crowd clapping before the host asked him questions, which he rigidly answered.
"How did you get the job?" The host asked an innocent question, Herman tilting his head at it before finally responding with a dry, "My daughter thought I could stand to get out of the house, more often."
The host inquired if Herman's married, only for him to say, "Heh, I'm too old to marry. After a hundred years, it just isn't worth it."
It caused a chuckle among the crowd, before the host asked more questions with Herman answering in a lax tone of voice, his wooden pipe bouncing, topping it off with a question along the lines of, "Anyone in your life you're thankful for?"
A smile on Herman's face as he responded, "Of course, my daughter, and my old friend, wherever he may be."
The talking continues until it's revealed that the Samito and the Ko'gan threw together a spectacle for the occasion, causing Herman to look quizzical as he sees crew members from the show among the aliens, holding music sheets.
The band received their copies weeks in advance, giving them time to practice, and the spectacle's helmed by none other Lambert.
Quizzical looks on Theodore and Lila's faces, they can't believe the sight.
The music started and in sync the people standing together on stage began singing in tune.
"Through the narrow corridor, he'll run… wherever he runs, you can be sure he's always on time!" Lambert gestures as she sings with the crew. "A month ago… an hour ago… you can be sure, no matter the time or place, the Doctor always arrives on time!"
Gesturing, Lambert mustered to them, "Louder! Louder! Hut-hut!"
As commanded, they sung louder.
"Even in the darkest hours, he's surrounded by his friends!"
The chorus started to the tune of a tremble.
"A man who needs no introduction, just pick up the phone and call…!"
Lambert muttered as she gestured.
"Doc-tor!"
"Doc-tor!"
"That's who!"
Lambert shook her head as she impatiently muttered, "Come on! Put your backs into it! Hut-hut!"
"Even when faced with his adversaries, you can be sure the Doctor will give it his all!
"Sk-aro!"
"You imbecile!"
"Defeating the Doctor's impossible!"
The upbeat temple started with the singing following it.
"Through the valley of the shadow, no adventures big or small!"
"If you need him, just pick up the phone!"
"'Cause he's the Doctor, that's who!"
Lambert swayed her arms as she's gesturing towards the crew mates, telling them to follow along.
"Doc-tor!"
"Doc-tor!"
"Doc-tor, that's who!"
The music swelled.
"So, hurry up wayward Doctor, your next adventure waits for you!"
Waving her hand, Lambert mustered, "More oomph into it!"
The song concludes, the crowd erupted in cheering and clapping as the crew mates bowed.
When everything settled, the screen behind the host showed scenes from the next series for the hit show, "The Doctor."