Bright and early, next morning, Theodore gotten up, made sure his fur friends had their morning baths, breakfast, everything to primp them before he left Al in charge of them while he's out.
Taking a rift to the household wouldn't work, too much interference today with the storms in the yonder, that taking the cab with Lila to the household's a better idea.
Tugging on his stitched long coat while sitting beside Lila as the cab driver took them on the course to the Watson household, Theodore checked himself in the reflection as he aimed to look presentable to Daphne, while Lila sat quietly beside him, the look on her face showing her inner discourse.
Slightly turning his head, Theodore sees the look, before gently nudging her foot with his, reminding her of their conversation the other night.
Lila turned her head to look at him as she said to him, "I don't know how you convince me into doing this, you're worse than one of those informercial idiots that take up dead air!"
Somehow, someway, Theodore managed to convince her into doing this despite her disposition, and he's not even trying to sell her a useless product that doesn't even work for an exorbitant price.
The curse of having the spaceman in her life, she supposed.
"Because we both know deep inside, I'm right," Theodore flashed his pearly whites to Lila as she rolled her eyes at him.
Exhaling, Lila responded with a flat, "You're really lucky you're cute and you're my boss's brother, bud."
If not for those key factors, Lila would've sucker punched Theodore at that point.
Waving his hand, Theodore adamantly tells her that she wouldn't hit him anyhow, it's not her nature.
"And you would know how?" Lila asked Theodore how he figured that Lila didn't have it in her to hit him.
Showing her his pearly whites, Theodore tells her that he's the Doctor, it's in his best interest to know.
"As with everything else," Lila muttered under her breath, before Theodore reached over to lightly touched her nose, indicating that he heard that, before winking at her.
The cab ride lasted over two hours due to the traffic and the rerouting from the construction going on in the city, but they arrived at the household on time.
Paying the cabby his due, Theodore got out of his seat with Lila waiting for him on the side, he joined hers, as they walked up the cobbled pathway up to the house.
His icy blue eyes glancing around, Theodore sees different flowerbeds around the yard, something Daphne liked doing with her downtime.
It's fortunate that Lila stocked up on allergy medicine when she did.
While glimpsing around, Theodore noticed one underneath the kitchen window with lilies with red bricks surrounding the flowerbed.
The bricks are taller, anyone near them would have to slightly lean forward to see the flowers below, Lila says that Daphne did that to keep most animals away from the lilies, as they're toxic to some, such as cats.
With them near the window, Daphne can look over periodically while in the kitchen, making sure any cats or other come too near, won't get close to the lilies.
Pushing the ringer, Theodore waited with Lila, as comfort, Theodore held his long arm around her shoulder.
"Why did I let you talk me into doing this, again?" Lila filled the dead air while waiting for someone to get the door.
Winking at her, Theodore says he happens to be a sweet talker.
"And corny, too!" Lila pointed out that Theodore's corny, not a sweet talker.
Shrugging his wide shoulder, Theodore says that he didn't hear any complaints coming from her.
Their conversation's cut short when the door open and Theodore sees a petite woman, in her fifties, with thick dirty blond hair tied back in a ponytail, her blue eyes reflecting them, standing there.
She immediately greeted Lila before noticing Theodore who introduced himself before she did the same.
Forcing herself, Lila acknowledged Daphne's birthday as Daphne pulled her into a hug, Lila briefly squirming as Daphne hugged her, before she released her grip.
Mystified as she's looking up at Theodore, Daphne remarked, "Oh, you didn't tell me you had a boyfriend!"
Lila attempted to tell her otherwise, but Daphne politely tells her with a wink at the end, "Luv, I've been a teacher for twenty years."
Theodore raised his brow, confused, as Daphne said that she worked as an art teacher for a school, all those little lies, all those misdirections, she heard them all, most don't expect an art teacher to know these things, but trust her, twenty years is a long time to learn.
"Trust me. I don't have time for anything, anymore," Lila tells Daphne that she didn't have any time, what with working at the library, that dating's gone out the window.
Really, all she wants to do's go home and sleep, nothing else mattered more than a "Die Hard" movie marathon.
"Trust me, I'm a teacher," Daphne wasn't swayed by Lila's attempts at changing her mind on the matter.
Letting them through the doorway, Lila asked about the old drama teacher that used to work for the same school, having transferred from a different school to take after the class when the previous drama teacher retired.
Mr. Smith, not related to Theodore, some other, heard he had a different way of doing things with his class, but apparently, he was beloved despite his thorny reputation, but apparently something happened to him, because he simply disappeared one semester.
Never seen or heard again.
Became a bit like a ghost story with people making up what happened to him.
He had a mental breakdown, which was nulled when it was learnt that he loved his class.
Health problems, he was peak health.
Just upped and left with no warning, no family for authorities to talk to, no one close to point the way.
Daphne mentioned him more than once, one of the rare things that Lila talked to her about out of curiosity.
"Oh, I heard from Mrs. Aggie, they found his remains a while ago," Daphne tells Lila that recently, police found the remains of Mr. Smith.
Bones by now, but intact enough that investigators have probable cause.
"Probable cause?" Theodore took intrigue as Daphne led them to the dining room where they sat, she poured him tea while Lila made herself coffee.
Nodding, her loose blond hair bobbing, Daphne says that the investigators think that Mr. Smith was murdered.
"What happened?" Theodore asks her as she sipped on her tea.
Resting her teacup on the saucer, Daphne says that they don't know, but they think he was stabbed through the heart, the breastbone had only one point of entry.
Investigators don't know if he died there or somewhere else, much of what was used, but she found it difficult that someone would've killed Mr. Smith.
"I remember him fond of his leather jacket, made bunch of the kids jealous. Oh, he was rough around the edges, but the kids couldn't get enough of him," Daphne mentioned that she remembered the old drama teacher having a leather jacket that he wore a lot over the years when he worked at the school.
Drove some students mad that they worked to try to get one like it for themselves, but that went well as one expected, especially when they tried conning people for money.
Even on his bad days, the students still adored Mr. Smith, many cried when they heard the news of his disappearance, and when Mrs. Aggie broke the news of his murder.
"Rather macabre talking about that sort on your big day, mum," they heard Billy coming through the doorway with Ethan following behind, with their arms behind their backs.
Daphne's eyes twinkled as she greeted her sons who adorned her with hugs and gifts.
"You didn't tell me!" Daphne chortled as she held the two wrapped boxes with her birthday card on top.
The brothers informed her that they managed to work out a deal, but they don't have the luxury of a week off, so they want to spend enough time with her with the meager days they got.
"We even booked a spot at your favourite restaurant," Billy tells her as he sat next to Lila with Ethan next to Theodore while their mother sat at the head of the table with her gifts in front of her.
Wiping her eyes gingerly with a tissue, Daphne modestly told her sons that they didn't have to do that for her, but they insisted.
Gesturing, they insisted that their mother open her presents now, since they have time before leaving for the restaurant.
Encouraged, Daphne opened her presents, happiness in her blue eyes as she sees the presents that her sons got her.
Billy gifted her a detailed statue of Amaterasu, the sun goddess of Japanese mythology, that he picked up on a mission to Okinawa.
Ethan gifted her a tea seat that he obtained in Singapore, handmade, of good quality, and there's a look towards Lila sitting quality in her chair, awkwardly.
She felt something tap against her foot, she ended up looking down to see…
A present…
He's REALLY lucky that he's cute and he's her boss's brother.
Reaching down, Lila grabbed it from underneath the table, lifting it up, and sat it down, much to the amazement of Daphne.
"Where'd that come from?" Daphne's shocked that Lila hid a present underneath the table without her knowing.
Showing his pearly whites to Daphne, Theodore tells her that Lila didn't want her to see it until now, she convinced Theodore to hide it for her.
Her fine brow raised, Daphne processed this story before shrugging her shoulders, as she pulled the present towards her.
"When the hell did you get her a present?" Lila privately talked with Theodore via his telepathy. Theodore responded with, "This morning before we took the cab. Really, Lee, what would you do without me?"
Ah yes, what would she do without the spaceman in her life?
"What did you get her?" Lila asks Theodore what he picked up for Daphne and he said that he felt he wanted to put Lila's best foot forward, so he gotten her a kimono.
Baffled, Lila asks where he could've gotten a kimono at that hour in London, for a decent price, only for Theodore reminding her that, the Doctor has his ways.
"Oh, how fabulous!" Daphne marveled the kimono as she pulled it out the blue box.
With Lila's knowledge, Theodore's able to get a kimono for the summer, and he made sure it was the proper one for Daphne.
It's a light pink, sakura designed, kimono with a silky white underlying, and a red bow to fasten it.
"When did you get that, luv?" Ethan asks Lila where she gotten a kimono in Britain and Theodore helped by concocting a story on them finding it at a flea market.
They bought into it easily and Daphne's chuffed that she tried it on, marveling at it as she slowly turned herself around as it flowed over her.
"Oh, when Paul finally has time, I'll be wearing it during Oban!" Daphne fawned over her kimono.
With her gifts opened and there's still time, Daphne spoke with her sons, Lila, and Theodore.
"Wished dad was here," Lila commented that she wished her father would've come to the birthday, but Daphne understood that he couldn't.
Gesturing, Daphne says that her husband's happy about his new job and being closer to them for once.
While she doesn't know the specifics on his new job, she knows that he won't be traveling much, this time around, and she's happy about that.
"I hate taking out the rubbish, anyhow," Daphne mentioned not liking having to take out the bags of rubbish every now again.
Noticing the teapot's empty, Daphne asked if anyone wanted any more, but noticing the time, Ethan says that they didn't need to make more, since it's closer to the time they leave for the restaurant.
Lila volunteered to take the tray back into the kitchen with her coffee mug, leaving Theodore along with Daphne and the brothers, looking at him with intrigued.
"Well?" Billy began.
Ethan then added, "We're waiting!"
Daphne's laughing at them and Theodore's having a hard time understanding what they're implying until they spelled it out, wanting to know about him, as they haven't met him until then.
Since Theodore couldn't tell them the whole truth, he boiled it down to him working odd jobs, and generally living a carefree life until he eventually found himself back in the city, and Hammond finding out about it, forcing his employment.
"He's always been that way?" Ethan inquired if Hammond's always been terse, to which Theodore tells him that, yes, Hammond's always been that way, since they've known each other.
"He only means well," Billy assures Theodore that Hammond only meant well, though difficult, may be.
Sighing, Theodore mustered that people have told him that, many times, and in those times, he still doesn't see it.
Daphne had a laugh before comforting Theodore, telling him that she dealt with the Watson siblings enough times to know his plight.
"Why, Lila practically had her brothers military trained before they actually joined when they turned eighteen!" Daphne mentioned how Lila kept her brothers trained in the twenty years of their lives before they joined.
"Commandos! Ten-hut!" They hear Lila coming from the kitchen, bellowing out an old quote, as she tells them it is time for them to head out to the restaurant.
Checking the time, the Watson family noticed it's gotten to that point, as Lila joined them, Theodore instantly saw something sticking out of her nose, a piece of paper towel, a dribble of blood.
"It… feels like time didn't go that fast, did it?" Billy checked his wristwatch and surprise, it's nearly time.
Ethan checked his, his phone, the clock on the mantle, but there's no indication the clocks went faster.
Gathering their things, the family went to the door, but not before Theodore pulled Lila to the side, asking her what happened.
"I don't know, I was doing the dishes, kinda dozed off for a moment, when I snapped back, I had blood coming from my nose," Lila privately tells Theodore that she gotten a nosebleed.
It took her longer to finish the dishes as she took care of it, causing pause in Theodore, noting that the air wasn't dry, no reason for her sinuses to dry badly enough that she bleeds.
They haven't gone on adventures with the right conditions to dry out sinuses, nostrils, so forth.
Certainly not a case of digging too greedily.
"I don't know, I just started having it, and that was it," Lila mustered that she doesn't know why she had it.
It stopped, she cleaned it up, stuck a wad of paper towel up her nose to catch any stragglers.
Seeing Theodore's concern, Lila weary told him that she was fine, everybody gets nosebleeds once.
"Only if you're sure," Theodore murmured before walking with her back to her family as they left for the restaurant.
Once arriving at the restaurant, Lila took a moment to head to the bathroom to check herself and "powder her nose" while the others took to their table.
"It's your favourite, hm?" Theodore raised his brow as he discussed the restaurant with Daphne.
Nodding, Daphne says that it's it's the place where Paul took them on their first date and when he proposed to her.
Held a special place in her heart.
Returning to the table, Lila sighed as she took the menu into her hand, looking over it, as she joined in on the conversation.
Daphne mentioned that it was also the restaurant that she met Lila, when her father brought her over to Britain for the summer.
"Wore your father's naval cap and had his belt on!" Daphne giggled as she remembered meeting Lila the first time Paul brought her to this restaurant twenty years ago.
Lila hastily responded that she always wore her dad's extra hats and her belt broke, so she had to steal one of dad's.
Like she knew it was his utility belt until she saw the little clips on the side while walking with him, dad had a lot of belts, he always leaves them out.
The conversations continued until late at night, over food, while Theodore kept the conversations going, giving Lila breathing room while she's trying to come up with answers, something to change up the conversations.
Daphne happily talked about brothers and Lila always doing their morning drills when they were younger, like their father, going out to lakes, trying to work on boats, much to their embarrassment being reminded of their youth.
"Oh, trust me, I've had my share," Theodore assured Daphne that he wasn't any better.
Of course, he couldn't tell her everything that he did when he was younger, but trust him, it's a miracle he and his siblings reached adulthood.
The night continued until dinner concluded, where they returned to the house, there, Daphne noticed something unusual, she didn't see it initially because she didn't look over, but someone treaded through her flowerbed underneath the kitchen window.
"Maybe it was one of those tom cats, again?" Billy gestured as he assumed a neighbour's cat made its way through the flowerbed, trampling the different flowers.
Going over to the flowerbed, the light from the lamp near the front door illuminating enough that she's able to see, Daphne sees a pair of footprints, pointing towards the window, with some of the flowers flattened where the footprints were.
Large feet, looked to be dress shoes, unusual.
Calling them over, Daphne showed them, Billy and Ethan deduced that the footprints have been there for hours.
The kitchen curtains were drawn over the window before they left, nobody could've looked inside.
Doesn't make sense, but the brothers opted to go into the house first while Theodore waited with Lila and Daphne.
Canvassing and searching, the brothers returned, signifying that no perpetrator entered the home, nothing out of place, no sign of any disturbances.
"Well, I didn't see anything, did you, Lila?" Daphne turned towards Lila quizzically, and she replied that she didn't see anyone outside the window.
Pretty sure she would've noticed.
It's puzzling, but they found the footprints in the flowerbed, nowhere else, no sign of anything out of place, and no motive.
Daphne knew everyone in the neighbourhood, no reason someone would've done this, and it isn't like someone gotten out of bed deciding to do something like this, either.
"Well, we canvassed, no sign of anyone," Billy tells his mother that they looked, nobody gotten into the house.
Staying around for a moment as Daphne calmed down, she thanked her sons, Lila, and Theodore for her birthday, as weird as it ended, and she loved her presents.
At ease, she saw them off, but before letting Lila part, she exchanged words with her.
"I'd think I know my stepdaughter long enough to know she didn't come here on her own accord, that the tall man in the long coat convinced her," Daphne revealed that she's aware that Lila didn't initially want to come to the birthday.
After twenty years of raising a nine-year old, Daphne knows Lila even better than herself.
Shrugging her shoulder, Lila mustered, "Well, I'd figure you'd be better off not dealing with me on your birthday."
The friction between the two, Lila figured if she didn't go, there won't be a risk of it.
Softly chuckling, Daphne pointed out that Lila's stubbornness's matched with her father's, Lila would've found a way out of coming to Daphne's birthday.
"Must be a special man to convince you," Daphne noted that Theodore meant something to Lila, enough that he convinced her into coming.
Shrugging, Lila mentioned that she didn't have a choice, he's Hammond's brother, and Hammond's protective over him, that's she's doing what she can.
"Okay, level with me, did you really want me at your birthday?" Lila prodded whether Daphne would've even wanted Lila at her birthday, considering how Lila felt about her, and generally unfriendly towards her with forced politeness.
Hell, Lila wouldn't have been offended if Daphne outright banned her, it would've something that was long coming, considering, but Daphne smiled as she tells Lila that she wouldn't done that to her, even at their worst.
Careful, Daphne hinted that she has a reason for giving Lila the chances she had, not wanting to ban her from coming around the house, so forth.
"We may not agree with each other, but we're a… strange… bizarre… family," Daphne haphazardly tells Lila that though they share differences, they're a hodgepodge of a family.
She also hinted that she knows how Lila feels about her, understanding that it was a difficult period for Lila to adjust to her presence, and having to move to Britain to be with her when Paul's out of the country, as his parents could no longer watch Lila back in the States due to their advanced ages.
"I suppose I was a little rough towards you," Lila mustered that she took her grievances out on Daphne for no reason than Daphne was an easy target since she became her stepmother.
Shaking her head lightly, Daphne smiled as she assured Lila that she understood it all. She pointed it out that she won't replace Lila's biological mother by any stretch, but it doesn't mean she can't do right, keep Lila's chin up.
"Fair enough," Lila sighed as they stood near the front door while watching the brothers talk to Theodore.
Daphne then said, "Suppose we start over, it's only fair."
Metaphorically holding am olive branch outstretched, Daphne offered for them to start over, and Lila briefly looked away before turning back, sighing, as she says that it's what her biological mother would've wanted.
Their conversation ended and Lila joined up with Theodore and her brothers, Daphne waving them off as they gone their separate ways, with Theodore going with Lila.
"See, not so bad, is it?" Theodore smiled as he went with Lila back to her flat.
Lila crossed her arms as she sat in the backseat with him as the cab driver took them back to London.
Shrugging her shoulders, Lila remarked that he had a point, but he only managed to get that point by being cute and being Hammond's brother.
"Oh, come on, it's totally because I'm the Doctor," Theodore teased her as she rolled her eyes.
Shaking her head, Lila replied that Theodore's lucky.
Gently nudging her, Theodore showed her his pearly whites, before inquiring Daphne's comment.
"How on earth could've she picked up on that, I'll never know," Lila rubbed her eyes, how Daphne seemingly rooted out that detail without sleuthing while on mint juleps.
Settling in his seat beside her, Theodore noted they have been going on dates in other worlds, even though they kept it private from their coworkers and Hammond.
They kept things professional, of course, just dinner dates with two friends, but there's a look in Theodore's eyes that he bashfully kept from Lila.
Her head on his wide shoulder, Lila gently rubbed her nose, Theodore asking how her nose felt, and she confirmed that she feels better than before.
"I don't know how, I usually don't get them," Lila mused that she rarely gotten nosebleeds unless the conditions are just right.
Theodore responded it could've been any number of things, they've adventured so much, it's a miracle they didn't get alien spores in their sinuses!
"Don't jinx me, I do not want to lose my face like that guy," Lila winced at the thought of that.
Watched an episode on that, spores infected a man's sinuses and ate them, causing doctors to remove portions of his face in an attempt at stopping the spread and the infections.
Not a good thing to watch before bed.
Soothing her, Theodore tells her that she doesn't have to worry about it happening to them, he won't let it.
"Thanks, Theo," Lila smiled, more when Theodore teasingly tickled her with his nose when he lightly touched her forehead with his.
Returning home, the two parted ways, with Lila going up to her flat as she readied for the night, checking her nose, finding flakes of dry blood.
Blinking her chestnut eyes, she wondered what happened, especially those footprints.
She didn't see anyone out there when she did the dishes, definitely would've noticed.
It's weird, but her brothers said that they didn't find anything out of the ordinary on their sweep through the house.
It's honestly weird.
Settling in her bed, Lila relaxed, on her mind, something different than the events of today.
"I can't lie to him," Lila murmured to herself. "He won't be happy, but… Odette saw him too, that's no coincidence."
On her mind, Lila wondered if she should tell Theodore the truth. Hamon won't be happy about her breaking her promise to him, however, Odette saw the man, too, and Lila didn't tell her.
She laid in bed, still in thoughts, before noticing the time, and gone to bed, finally.
Outside her window, there's movement, a shadow of a man peering in behind the close curtains.
THE END