1. Persian Cruise.
The Doctor's close companion, Ommera, is applying copious volumes of sun cream in preparation for a beautiful afternoon sunbathing.
She had met the Doctor one day, quite a while earlier, when she had wandered into the Tardis thinking it was a museum (in episode Maintenance Mission in this series). Since then she has travelled extensively with the Doctor as his prime companion and they have grown closer. After a recent regeneration he has permitted her to become closer to him and then inducted her to become a Gallifreyan (in episode Thermal Runaway in this series). Then, a surprise proposal to her (in episode Magnetic Field Loss in this series) was followed by a surprise wedding (in episode The White Dress in this series). Now, they are on their romantic honeymoon.
Today they have joined a small cruise ship in the Persian Gulf.
"Just how much sun cream do I need?" Ommera asks. She is pure brilliant white where she has applied the sun cream to her light olive skin.
Ommera had grown up on a planet with a red sun, but the rather specific light purple sun cream there had been mandatory; even her hair had needed protection there, on Slint.
"Maybe we should spread it out a bit," the Doctor suggests gently. Initially he refrains from assisting because Ommera is more than capable of putting on her own sun cream. Then the Doctor feels that he is close enough now to help Ommera and the sun cream becomes well distributed.
"Now, we can enjoy the afternoon," the Doctor says.
They choose sun loungers on the deck and watch the craggy shore line drift past to the chug of the ship's motor.
As a spaceship engineer, Ommera finds harmonies in the sounds of well-tuned machinery. The motor noise isn't tuned! She will just have to survive.
The sun moves gradually around the sky and the afternoon draws to a close. A beautiful aroma greets them and the ship's cooks announce that dinner will be served shortly, just as the evening light falls.
Ommera turns to the Doctor and says, "that's so romantic, thank you. We must freshen up now." She removes a hair grip and shakes out her long brown hair before making her way with the Doctor to their cabin.
Later, the Doctor and Ommera go to the dining area to choose their seats for dinner. The lights around the ship illuminate not only the tables, but also the nearby sea.
As they pass another table, one of the guests, Julia, addresses her. "Hello, my name is Julia, what's your name?"
Ommera is aware that her name is rare to the point of never having been used elsewhere. "Ommera," she says. "Pronounced like omnivorous, with a short O with the emphasis, a long double m and no emphasis at all after that!"
"That's so unusual," Julia says.
"I was named after a star that had just been discovered," Ommera says. She is pleased to have been named after a star, although it's discovery would be over two millennia in the future.
"Oh, how beautiful," Julia says. "Are you working?"
"Not just now," Ommera says. She smiles as she enjoys being on holiday
"No," Ed, Julia's boyfriend, intervenes. "She wants to know if you have a job."
"Oh, sorry," Ommera giggles. "I'm a spaceship engineer, ground based." She is proud of her own career from before she had met the Doctor. She had worked long and hard for it and succeeded beyond her dreams. Her skills come in useful when she is travelling with the Doctor, although not on a daily basis. She still feels she could return to her career, but because the Doctor had elevated her and married her, she feels her future is firmly with the Doctor.
"How amazing," Ed says, eyes wide. "I suppose you work for NASA?"
"Just say yes," the Doctor urges her.
"Ok, yes," Ommera says. This is going to get complicated if they don't move on soon. She mustn't reveal that she is from at least two millennia in the future. "We ought to get seated."
The Doctor locates an empty table for two and they sit down.
There is an extensive seafood cuisine on the menu; other meats include local camel from the port of departure.
They enjoy their meal immensely. Ommera feels honoured that it appears that there is no expense the Doctor won't go to in order to ensure she is happy.
As a spaceship engineer from a later millennium, Ommera has simple tastes and assures the Doctor that he doesn't need to entertain her quite so extravagantly.
"Oh," the Doctor says, "but the evening treat is yet to come. They will go on to say that it is quite out of this world."
After dinner, Ommera notices something odd about the sea. "Doctor; just look at the sea! It's glowing!"
"So, it is," the Doctor says. He looks over the side of the ship. "Let's ask for the lights to be dimmed to see the glow!" Suddenly the Doctor is relishing the occasion. He asks a waiter to do this.
His evening treat for Ommera is about to start.
Once the lights are appropriately dimmed, the sea illuminates the ship with a green glow. "An algal bloom," the Doctor says. "Bioluminescence."
"It's a weird feeling," Ommera says. "And the other passengers are saying they've never seen anything like it."
"Yes," the Doctor says. "Here, this is unusual to the point where they say it's of another world."
"It's magical," Ommera says.
They look out over the vast sea towards the horizon. "Where does the sea stop and the sky start?" Ommera asks. "You really can't tell."
A murmur rises among some of the curious passengers. "Are we on another planet? This isn't Earth."
The Doctor retrieves his sonic screwdriver. It chirps happily. "You will be pleased to know this is definitely Earth," he assures them.
"Who are you with your chirp stick, pretending you know?" one of the passengers, Ed, says. "I say we abandon ship!"
"Why should we do that?" Ommera asks. "We're safe on board this ship, wherever it is."
"That's true," Ed's girlfriend, Julia, says. "Do sit down, Ed! She works for NASA, so she should know!"
"We're becalmed," another passenger, Geoff, says. He says this with an inflexion to add drama and fear beyond what he is feeling, mostly to try to calm himself, but the other passengers are becoming uneasy. "Becalmed!" He keeps repeating it, trying to calm his own fears.
"How easily people are upset by the disquieting ideas of fellow passengers," Ommera comments. Then she asks Geoff to quieten down.
The Doctor asks for the ship's dining lights to be put back on again. After that, the negative mood subsides as it stops playing on their imaginations.
"Doctor, it is beautiful," Ommera says. "Did you know we would have this biolumi … whatever it is?"
"Yes," the Doctor says. "I thought it would be a fantastic treat. After dinner, a romantic view, something a little out of the ordinary, even for you, coming from Slint. You would never have got that green colour with your red sun!"
They stroll over to the ship's handrail. Ommera turns and embraces the Doctor; they kiss passionately. It's a truly romantic moment, and the Doctor has managed to capture the romance for them to enjoy.
"I have another cruise booked for us," the Doctor says.
"Wow, thank you!" Ommera says, absolutely delighted. "Where are you taking me next?"
"I just hope it works out," the Doctor confides. "You see, the ship sinks …"
Ommera interrupts. "What? You're taking me out for a date on a ship that you know will sink? You know I really don't like water after my brother was drowned!"
Maybe the Doctor has said more than he ought. What is he thinking of?