Oh dear, I've done it again. Final chapter, twice the length of the other chapters. Ah, well, never mind. Still rounds this one off nicely, I think.
Several things to look out for:
Two hugely gratuitous Knightmare quotes, simply because I've been watching that a lot recently.
A quote from the recent end-of-season two-parter for series 3 of Doctor Who.
A reference to one of my favourite Billy & Mandy fanfics, as I suddenly realised today I've been subconsciously ripping it off! Sorry KKBS!!! It was never intentional!
And an adult joke thrown in to the mix for another of my favourite B&M authors, Andie.
So, sit you down, and settle in (ok, make that 3 Knightmare quotes) and enjoy the finale to: Terror At Birdland!
Disclaimers, as usual, at the bottom.
Somewhere, in late 1920s England, a street existed. There was nothing particularly special about this street, it just was. It had houses, and trees, and birds that lived in the trees, but not much else, really. But it was calm. Yes, very, very calm. As were most streets in this little English village that was practically in the middle of nowhere.
The calm was, however, interrupted suddenly when the ground began to shake, with a crash. A pause, and then another crash, this time a little heavier. Three figures appeared over the horizon, running from something. Two children - a boy and a girl of no older than twelve - and a skeleton dressed in black, clutching a scythe.
"GRIM!" Screamed the girl as the trio ran for their lives. "What were you thinking?"
"I'm sorry, Mavis!" Replied the skeleton. "Roger asked me to do it, and my curiosity got the better of me."
"Roger!" Mavis cried, turning and looking at the boy.
"Don't look at me, Mavis," Roger protested, "Grim's the one that bought that thing to life. I just begged and begged and begged and begged and begged and begged and begged and begged until he did it to shut me up. You would have done the same!"
There was another almighty crash from behind them.
"But seriously? A teabag?" Inquired Mavis.
"I was bored," replied Roger, shrugging.
"Ugh! Well, never mind that for now, just keep running!" said Mavis, daring to glance behind her. She wished she hadn't, as all she could see on the horizon was the giant teabag Grim had bought to life, stumbling through their village at an alarming rate, crushing buildings as it went. It was hell-bent on catching up to the trio.
"To be fair to me," Roger continued, sounding out of breath but determined to defend himself, "I never asked Grim to make it that big!"
Mavis raised an eyebrow at the boy, and then turned back to look at the Reaper.
"What?" Grim protested. "Me scythe's on the blink!"
"Ugh!" Shouted Mavis out of frustration.
"Oof!" Cried Roger.
Mavis turned round to see that the boy had fallen over his own feet. Without a second thought, she jumped, turned in mid air, and landed, running back towards the fallen boy. "Grim!" She shouted. The Reaper dutifully turned round and headed back towards the children.
"For goodness sake Roger," Mavis sighed loudly as she approached him. "Watch your feet, will you? You bloody idiot!"
As Mavis bent down to help the lad, an ominous shadow cast over the pair of them. They looked up slowly, just as Grim rejoined them. All three stared in silence for a few seconds at the giant teabag that was now right on top of them.
The teabag, which now had an evil looking face, roared and almightily roar and lent into towards the trio. It coughed slightly.
"Sorry about that," it said in a highly posh English accent, its' face suddenly sporting a very friendly look. "Cup of tea?"
Mavis, who was still staring at the monster with eyes wide in fright, grabbed Grim's scythe. She swiped the scythe out in front of her, and tore a hole in the teabag's thin, cotton exterior. Large chunks of tea powder began to pour out of the creature's wound. Mavis, Grim and Roger stepped back quickly and watched as the teabag deflated and it's contents emptied over the ground. The bag, now empty shell, blew away, leaving just a huge mound of tea granules all over the floor.
Mavis looked at her two friends. Grim stood, mouth wide open, while Roger stared at the tea pile, a huge grin forming on his face.
"Yay! Tea sand!" He cried, diving head first into the pile.
"Fantastic," Mavis said sarcastically. "He'll be dripping tea granules all over the place for weeks now." The girl sighed. As annoying at that would be, she wouldn't have it any other way.
Mavis hoped that this would never end …
"Mavis!"
The old lady shook herself out of her daydream.
"Mavis!" Mandy shouted again. "Come on, stop daydreaming, we have work to do!" With that, the girl ran out of the café. Mavis, still warm from the memory, followed.
--
The Grim Adventures of Doctor Who
Terror At Birdland - By Father Jack
Part 4 - "All the Time in the World"
--
"If there's one constant in this world, it's nutters!"
"Nutters?"
"Yeah, mad people!"
Two men sat in the side of the massive BBC van that was currently parked outside Birdland.
"Mad people, Steve?"
"Yeah, Dave," replied Steve. "I mean, come on! A talking bird. Who on Earth in their right mind would phone up the BBC and say they had a bird that could hold conversations in fluent English at their theme park."
"I dunno, Steve, someone desperate for publicity?" Dave replied, annoyed.
"Yeah, or someone who had a screw or two loose."
"Fair point, I reckon Steve," said Dave, giving into Steve's logic. "But who's more of a nutter? The bloke that phoned us, or the idiot boss who sent us on the this wild goose chase."
"Must be a slow news day, I reckon," Steve said. "It's probably just a parrot that says 'bollocks'."
As two more BBC vans pulled up, no-one noticed the dozens of birds still watching their every move.
--
The Doctor, Mavis, Grim, Mandy and Tony all stood opposite the exit gate, spying on the BBC vans.
"We need to get over there," said the Doctor, adjusting the sonic screwdriver. "I'm guessing the van that has a large satellite dish poking out of the top has an outside broadcast unit."
"What do we do once we're get there?" Said Tony.
The Doctor handed Mandy the sonic screwdriver.
"And what am I supposed to do with this?" Asked Mandy, one eyebrow raised at the Doctor.
"You and Mavis find a way to get to the OB unit van. Point the sonic screwdriver at the console inside the van, press and hold the button for six seconds. It'll synch the OB unit up with the phone. When Aak is close enough, just make a call or something and it'll knock him out."
"They're hardly likely to let Mandy just walk up and start tinkering about with it!" Exclaimed Tony.
"Well, she'll have to improvise," the Doctor said, grinning.
"Just follow my lead, Mandy, you'll do fine," Mavis said to the girl, patronisingly.
"Shut up, or I use this on you," Mandy snapped, brandishing the screwdriver.
"Try it," Mavis goaded Mandy.
"Um, there's a back way out through the car park," Tony interrupted. "I'll let you out that way."
"Good," said the Doctor. "Then you get back here, Tony, and keep the BBC people talking through the gate. Grim and I will try and lure Aak out here, instead of bringing the cameras to him. We've more of a chance of beating him if he's out in the open."
"Will do," replied the lad, obediently.
"Right," said the Doctor, "let's go!"
--
"So, why are you so hostile?" Mavis asked Mandy. The pair had been let out through the back gate and were currently making their way round to the front. "What's the real reason, Mandy?"
"It's who I am. Now just drop it, ok?" Was Mandy's curt response. She walked a little ahead of Mavis, not turning to look at the woman.
"I don't believe that for a second."
"And I don't believe that we're still on this subject. We have a job to do, and the sooner it's done the better."
"Would you be so anxious to get this done if Billy weren't trapped in there?" Mavis' question scored a direct hit on Mandy's nerve. The girl stopped dead in her tracks. Mavis stopped too, still a few paces behind the girl.
"The bird has my property. I want it back," said Mandy, coldly. "Nothing more, nothing less."
"Billy is your property?" Said Mavis. She could hardly believe what Mandy was saying.
"Of course," Mandy replied, still icy cold. "What else would he be?"
"What else indeed?"
Mandy spun around and looked Mavis in the eye. "Look, I don't know what you're trying to achieve here. Maybe you feel guilty about your friend dying, I don't know. But I am not you, and any similarity you see between me and you is in your head, got it? We may have Grim in common but that's where it ends."
"I just don't want you to make the same mistakes I did," Mavis protested.
"Oh I can guarantee that won't happen. After all, Grim didn't stick around with you, did he?"
Mavis fell silent.
"You thought I hadn't spotted that, didn't you? Best friend for life?" Mandy mocked the woman. "And you only managed to hang on to him for fifteen years? Pathetic. What happened?"
"I sent him away," replied Mavis.
"Brilliant," Mandy said sarcastically. "Not only did you let your best friend die, you then sent away your only other friend. No wonder you're alone."
"I couldn't deal with it," Mavis said, her voice trembling as she fought to hold back the tears. "Having Grim around after what happened, I just couldn't do it."
"And you took the easy way out," Mandy snarled.
"Maybe you're right, Mandy."
The girl was taken aback. She hadn't expected Mavis to give in so easily.
Mavis continued. "At least, I thought it was the easy way. But it wasn't easy. Far from it. After everything I saw in my time with Grim, to have to go back to normality. It was the hardest thing, especially with Roger gone. And I don't think you'd be able to do that Mandy. You'd never be able to go back to being an ordinary person."
"I was never ordinary. Besides, Grim and Billy aren't going anywhere."
"Good," snorted Mavis. "You keep telling yourself that, Mandy. Maybe one day you'll start to believe it." She looked the girl in the eye. They stood like that for a few seconds.
"Come on, we have to go," said Mandy, abruptly changing the subject. She turned around and started making her way to the front of Birdland once more.
--
"Any chance you could let us in?" The young female BBC reporter said to Tony through the bars of Birdland's gate. She held a microphone in one hand, and a polystyrene cup of coffee in the other. "It's hard to film things from the outside."
"Well, there's a little bit of a problem."
"Oh my," said the woman sarcastically, "you're not going to tell me the whole thing was - shock-horror - a hoax?!"
"Oh no, not at all! But we don't think it's a good idea to have a camera crew in here, it might upset the other birds, you see. Much better to bring the featured attraction out to you."
"Well, hurry up, we haven't got all day. I was hoping to be home in time to watch Eastenders tonight. We're live in fifteen minutes!"
"Don't worry Love, it won't be long, just stay where you are!"
"Sorry, boy, did you just call me 'Love'?" The reporter said, angrily. "Call me that again, and this hot coffee goes in your face, you got that?"
"Yes miss," said Tony, sheepishly backing down.
--
Mavis and Mandy had reached the front of Birdland, and were watching the TV vans from a distance.
"Follow my lead, Mandy," Mavis said to the girl.
Before Mandy could reply, Mavis had darted off in the direction of the BBC crew. Mandy followed her, and they approached Steve and Dave.
"Hello chaps," Mavis said, "whatcha doing?"
"TV stuff, mostly," replied Dave, uninterested.
"Oh good. I was just wondering, would you mind if we took a look around your van? My granddaughter here is fascinated by all this equipment," said Mavis ruffling Mandy's hair.
"Granddaughter?!" Mandy spluttered as she batted Mavis' hand away. She snarled at the woman.
Steve raised an eyebrow. "She don't look that interested to me," he said.
"Oh you know kids. Little scamp, always acting up, hehe," Mavis laughed nervously.
Steve and Dave stared blankly at the duo.
"Erm, well come on, dear," said Mavis, looking at Mandy. "Tell the nice men how much you want to see the lovely TV equipment."
Mandy continued to glare at Mavis, growling ever so slightly under her breath.
"Don't be like that, dear," Mavis continued, patronisingly. "Tell them how much you want to see the magical outside broadcast unit." Mavis eyed the girl.
Steve and Dave looked confused.
Mandy slowly turned to look at the men. "I really …. really …. want to see the outside broadcast unit," the girl said slowly, trying her best to put on an 'innocent little girl' voice. "Please let me and my…." Mandy paused, swallowing the last of her pride, "….Nanny have a look round. Pleeeeeeeease?" Her left eye began to twitch.
Dave rolled his eyes. "Fine, just don't touch anything. It's in the van, just head round the other side."
Mavis thanked the men and the pair walked round the vehicle.
"See, that wasn't so hard, was it?" Said Mavis, grinning at Mandy.
"I hate you," hissed Mandy, her eye still twitching.
--
"Well, where are they?" Aak shouted from atop the Tropical House. He stared down at Grim and the Doctor.
"Slight change of plan, Aak," the Doctor said calmly. The Thraptusian glared at the Time Lord.
"Yeah," continued Grim, "the television people want you to come to them. They said something about not being able to get all the equipment through here. It just makes things easier."
"Hmmm," mused Aak. After a few seconds he added, "very well then. Prepare them for me. I will show the world my magnificence, before beginning the enslavement of the human race!"
"Enslavement? I thought you were going to destroy the human race, not enslave them?" Grim said, puzzled.
"Urm, yes well, you know what I mean," Aak babbled.
"You're making this up as you go along aren't you?" Grim exclaimed.
"Well, not exactly," Aak began to protest.
The Doctor grabbed the bridge of his nose between his finger and thumb and sighed.
"Yes, you are! You haven't got a clue what you're doing, you have no plan, you're just hoping it all works out, aren't you?" Grim said accusingly.
Aak stared at the Reaper. "Shut up!" He shouted.
"Look," interrupted the Doctor, "we kept the BBC people here, now release Billy!"
"Hold on a sec," said Grim, looking at the Doctor, "is that really necessary?"
"What?" Said the Doctor, exasperated.
"We don't really need Billy, do we? He can stay in there!" Grim protested.
"Stop it," said the Doctor. "Aak, Billy, out here, now!"
"Very well, Doctor," the bird replied. "Let the boy enjoy his last few moments of freedom. It won't matter in a very few hours."
With that, the doors opened and Billy stepped out, ginning his usual inane grin of idiocy.
"Hiya Grim! Hiya Doctor!" He said, chirpily. "What's going on? I'm hungry, I want food now. Do you have any jelly babies? I like jelly babies! I also like cheese and crackers and other things that taste like chicken. Are you related to Dr. Pepper, Doctor? I bet you are! Why does Dr. Pepper come in a bottle, Grim?"
Grim sighed. "Now do you see why I wanted to leave him behind, Doctor?"
The Doctor nodded.
--
The BBC reporter went up to the gate once more.
"You, boy. How much longer?" She said.
"Um, well," Tony began. He glance behind them and saw Aak flying towards him, with the Doctor, Grim and Billy in tow. "Here they come now!"
"At bloody last! Right," she addressed the crew, "places everyone!"
Aak flew to the top of the gate and perched on it. He looked at the reporter and said, in his most charming voice, "are you ready for me yet?"
The reporter stared, open mouthed, at the creature.
--
"Now, remember what the Doctor said: hold that thing in front of the OB thing and press the button," Mavis stated.
"I know, I'm doing it!" Mandy shouted. She held the sonic screwdriver up and pointed it to the OB unit.
"You're not doing it right!"
"Yes I am, now back off!"
"Give it here," Mavis made a grab for the screwdriver. Mandy pulled her hand away quickly, and accidentally dropped the implement. It fell to the floor and rolled out of the van.
--
"I'm standing outside Birdland in the Cotswolds," the reporter said, standing in front of the camera, "where we are witnessing something never before seen. An unusual bird, that is capable of coherent speech."
The camera pointed up to where Aak was perched. The bird spread his wings to their full span and stood still, basking in the attention. After a few moments, he looked into the camera.
"Look upon me now, humans, look upon me and quail! Your time as masters of this planet is over. Now, you will serve me."
The camera crew stared at Aak, aghast.
The Doctor, Grim, Tony and Billy stood helplessly behind the closed gate.
Billy tugged on Grim's cloak. "Where's Mandy?" Whispered the boy.
Grim shrugged.
Aak grinned at the reporter. He then raised his head, looking into the sky and spread his wings once more. "Go," he shouted.
The dozens of birds that had been watching everything suddenly took to flight. They set their sights on the BBC crew and dove out of the air, attacking anyone they saw. More birds began appearing over the horizon, too many to count, all heading for Birdland.
"That's no sodding parrot!" Cried Dave as he and Steve ran for their lives.
"Really?!" Called out Steve, sarcastically.
Both men screamed as forty birds or more enveloped them, pecking them to death. Other members of the crew scattered off in different directions, but one by one were brought down by the rampaging birds, most being pecked to death.
Tony gasped in horror at the sight that was in front of him. He tried desperately to unlock the gate that separated him and his friends from the slaughter. Although the key fit, the gate wouldn't budge. He kicked it hard.
"That won't do any good," said the Doctor. "Aak's doing his usual trick, keeping the gate shut."
"This creature has no consistency!" Said Grim. "Now he's gone back to the 'killing everyone' idea? I wish he'd just make up his mind."
Aak heard him, flew down and faced Grim through the bars of the gate.
"I'm just showing the world my powers. Wouldn't want an uprising now, would we?" He grinned, then shouted to his birds. "Remove one tenth of the population!"
"You monster," snarled the Doctor.
Aak looked at him, then at the others. "Where are the other two?"
The group fell silent.
"Where are they??" The bird shouted once more. He reached out with his mind and took control of Tony. The boy fell to the floor, clutching his head as Aak probed his mind. "So, a plan, eh? Interesting!" The bird turned round and took to flight.
The last of the BBC crew fell to the floor, and the attacking birds began to turn their attention on the small crowd of civilians that had gathered.
--
"What the hell is going on out there?" Mandy said. She and Mavis had been outside the van, looking for the sonic screwdriver when the birds had started attacking. They had jumped in the van and closed the door, but there were no windows in the section they were in.
"I don't know Mandy, but it sounds horrific, we have to do something!" Mavis replied.
Mandy nodded in agreement. "I'm going out there."
Before Mavis could react, Mandy opened the side door of the van and cautiously stepped down. She looked under the van, and saw the sonic screwdriver. Mandy reached down and picked it up, and started to climb back into the van.
Suddenly, she was pulled away from the van. Mandy looked round and saw Aak. He had grabbed her with his feet and was carrying her away.
"Mandy!" Mavis screamed.
"Here!" Called out Mandy, and she threw the sonic screwdriver to Mavis. The woman caught it and pointed it at the OB unit, pressing the button in.
Aak turned around, dropped Mandy to the ground and flew towards Mavis. Mandy landed with a thud.
"Ouch," she said as she slowly stood up.
"Stop that at once!" Aak called out to Mavis. "Get away from that unit. NOW!"
Mavis held her hands up, still clutching the screwdriver. She slowly got out of the van and moved away.
"Sorry," she said, and then looked at Mandy. "Six seconds."
Aak turned round once more, just in time to see Mandy press the call button on her phone.
"Noooooooooooooo!" He screamed.
The call went out, and the electronic pulses began to fill Aak's head. The OB unit in the van began to beep and flash, as the signal was picked up. The satellite transmitter on top of the van began to broadcast the pulses, and these too pieced Aak's mind like a red hot poker. He screamed, fell to the floor, and curled up into a ball.
--
The birds attacking the public suddenly broke away, Aak's mind control over them destroyed. They scrambled and flew away, leaving only the bodies of their victims behind. An eerie silence fell on the area.
"Mandy and Mavis must have done it!" Said Grim, elated.
Tony was now able to open the gate, and he stepped out of Birdland along with Billy, Grim and the Doctor.
"All those people," said Tony, staring in shock at the corpses.
"It could have been far worse," said the Doctor.
"How can you say that so nonchalantly, Doctor? They're all dead. Doesn't that matter to you? You seem so …. so …."
"Alien?" The Doctor finished Tony's sentence. " Come on, we'd better go find the others."
--
Mandy pressed the call-end button on her phone and walked towards the fallen bird. She towered over Aak as he lay there trembling.
"Mandy!" A familiar voice shouted.
Mandy turned round to see an over excited Billy run up to her. He jumped towards her and grabbed her, pulling her into a tight embrace that knocked the air out of her. Mandy's arms stayed firmly at her sides.
"I missed ya!" He yelled in her ear.
"The feeling's not mutual," she said, stone cold.
Billy, with his arms still around the girl, looked behind him at Aak. He faced Mandy again. "Yay! You beat him up, that nasty Thrrrrrrrr ….. Thhhrrrrrrrrr …" Billy blew more raspberries in Mandy's face as he tried once again to say the name of Aak's species.
"Eww," she said, pushing him away from the hug. "If you have to refer to him, please just say 'Aak'. I've had more of your bodily fluids on me today than I ever would have cared to in my whole life!"
"You won't be saying that when you're older," said Grim, walking up to them.
Mandy looked at him, a look of pure disgust on her face. "Ick," she said.
"Err, where's Aak?" Said the Doctor, pointing the spot on the floor where the bird had been a few moments previously.
The group looked up to see Aak staggering in a daze towards Birdland on his feet. Although he was hurt, he still moved pretty quickly. Mandy began to chase him.
"No one follow me!" She screamed at the group.
--
Aak frantically looked for a place to hide so he could recover his strength, continue his conquest of the planet and work out a way of combating that infernal weapon Mandy had. He spotted the Tropical House and took sanctuary inside. Aak tried to lock the door with his mind, but it was no good. He was too weak.
A dark figure stood in the doorway, blocking the light that was coming in and casting a shadow over the bird. "No where to run," said Mandy, coldly.
Aak tried desperately to hold her back with his mind, but he just didn't have the strength. The bird collapsed on the floor, panting. The girl moved towards him, staring at him the whole time. She held in her hand a large rock, which she brandished as she advanced on Aak.
"So now you're going to kill me?" Aak panted. "I don't think so. You don't have it in you."
"Tough talk for someone who can't even stand. It ends. Now." She stood right over him and began to raise the rock far above her head.
"Wait!" Aak shouted. He looked her in the eye. "Human? Or not so human, Mandy? You're not like the others on this planet. I sense an evil in you."
"Yes, yes, I'm evil, we all know that."
"No, Mandy, it's not as simple as that. You're harbouring something, something you don't know about. Something beyond this universe. It stalks you Mandy, and it's coming for you. And it's going to get you," the bird spat.
"What the hell are you talking about?" The girl said, puzzled.
"The sparrow, Mandy. The sparrow. It's coming for you…" The bird trailed off as if going into a trance.
The girl looked at the bird for a second, unsure as to whether she should finish him or not.
The bird quivered.
Mandy brought the rock down on his head.
Hard.
The bird no longer quivered.
--
"What happened to Aak?" The Doctor asked Mandy as she walked back up to the group.
"Must have fried his brain pretty bad. He was dead by the time I got to him," she lied.
"Indeed," said the Doctor, not quite believing the girl. "Right, we'd better get out of here. UNIT will be here soon."
"What's UNIT?" Grim asked. The group started heading back towards the Tardis.
"They deal with this sort of thing, aliens, paranormal etc. No doubt they saw the broadcast before the cameras went dead. They'll come in, clean it all up, make sure it's covered up, that sort of thing. You two," he said, addressing Tony and Mavis, "as far as anyone's concerned you were nowhere near Birdland when this was happening. And you never saw me, ok? The less questions asked, the better."
"Got it," said Tony, and Mavis nodded in agreement.
The group reached the Tardis and the Doctor unlocked the door. He ushered Billy inside.
"Mandy?" He said, indicating she should step inside.
"Um, can I just have a moment with her?" Said Mavis.
"Two minutes, then we have to go!" The Doctor stood by the Tardis with Grim and Tony as Mavis took Mandy off to one side.
"How do you all fit in there?" Tony asked, puzzled.
"Oh, don't start," said the Doctor.
"Well, go on then, tell me what a horrible person I am to Billy," Mandy said to Mavis once they were out of ear shot with the others.
"I just want to tell you what happened to Roger," Mavis said, quietly.
"Well go on then, and make it quick. What happened?"
"Think about it. The year was 1939, a young man in his 20s."
"World War Two," Mandy said, softly.
Mavis nodded. "He went off to fight. Did really well, apparently. He wrote to me all the time. Well, I say he wrote to me. They were mostly crudely drawn pictures of squirrels in army gear, but I knew what he meant. Then, one day, after two years, Grim came to me, and told me Roger had been killed in battle. I was so devastated and angry, I just sent Grim away there and then. Never saw him again, not until today. All these years I've blamed him." Mavis choked back tears.
"What are you trying to say to me?"
"Roger never knew how I felt, deep down. Never got the chance to tell him. You think you have all the time in the world, but suddenly it's gone. All I'm saying is show your friend a little tenderness from time to time, let him know you care for him."
"I don't care," protested Mandy.
"Fine. Just try telling me that if you ever lose Billy. There's a lot of danger out there, and it only gets worse. Somehow I doubt that Aak will be the only giant, bird-like creature you'll ever run into," Mavis said ominously.
Mandy looked puzzled for a second. She looked at Mavis. "Look, I'm sorry for your loss," she said with genuine sympathy.
"Thanks. There was one consolation, though. When Grim told me the news, he also said that Roger didn't die alone. Grim saw someone sitting with him on the battlefield, but they ran off before he got close enough to see who it was. I always wondered why."
Mandy's eyes widened. "Wait there!" She said to Mavis. Mandy ran towards the Doctor. "Before you take us back to Endsville, Doctor, can you do something for me?"
--
A lone man lay dying in a misty field, a single gunshot would to his chest. He gasped for air as a wave of pain enveloped him. A face appeared, looking down at him. It was a familiar face, one that filled him with warmth.
"Mavis!" Exclaimed the man.
"Hello Roger," said Mavis. She knelt down beside him and held his head in her arms.
"You look different," Roger said, smiling. "Is it your hair?"
Mavis smiled. "Yeah Roger, that's it exactly."
"What are you doing here?" Roger said, excitedly. "Did Grim bring you? Where is Grim, is he coming?"
Mavis went cold. "Yes, Roger, Grim'll be along in a few moments." She tried to fake a smile, but started crying.
"Awww, what's wrong Mavis? Have you missed me? I've missed you," Roger smiled, then winced in pain.
"Yeah, yeah I've missed you," Mavis said through the tears.
"I'm scared Mavis. It hurts."
"I know. Roger? I love you. You know that, don't you?"
"Yeah I know, Mavis. I love you too."
The two smiled at each other, and Mavis leant in and gave Roger a quick kiss. She looked up and noticed a dark figure appearing in the mist.
"I have to go now, Roger. Grim will be here in a second."
"Goodbye, Mavis," Roger said, and he began to slip out of consciousness.
"Goodbye, my love," Mavis said as she stood up. She ran back towards the Tardis that was concealed by the mist.
--
Billy, Mandy, Grim, the Doctor and Tony stood in silence in the Tardis control room, looking intently at the view screen. As Mavis approached, the Doctor pressed a button the control panel which opened the door and let her in. She darted inside and the door closed behind her.
"You ok?" Asked Grim.
"Yeah. Yeah I am now," she said, smiling weakly at the Reaper and wiping away a tear. "Thanks, Doctor."
"You're welcome," he said. "If the Time Lords ever find out what I did they'll be furious." He grinned.
Billy walked up to Mandy, who was still watching the screen. "Mandy?" He said, quietly.
"Yeah, Billy?"
"Will I ever have to fight in a war?"
Mandy looked at the boy. "I dunno, Billy. But if you're ever drafted into the army for whatever reason, I promise: I'll break both of your legs." She then turned round, and went through a door that led deeper into the Tardis.
"Not quite the tenderness I had in mind, but I guess the sentiment's there," said Mavis.
"That's the closest you'll ever get to a tender moment from Mandy!" Grim replied.
"I feel warm, yet I fear for my life," said Billy.
"That's love for you," the Doctor interjected. "Come, we've got to get you two back to the Cotswolds, then the rest of you back to Endsville." The Doctor looked at Tony. "What did you come along for?"
"I dunno," he said. "Everyone was piling in here, I just got caught up in the moment!"
The Doctor sighed and started programming the controls.
--
Two UNIT personnel entered the Tropical House in Birdland and spotted the motionless bird.
"I think that's the one we saw on the TV. It looks dead," said one of them.
"I don't think it's dead," said the other one.
"Well it bloody well looks like it to me," said the first one. "Just look at it's head. It's got an eye missing. Ooooh, nasty!" He winced.
"It's breathing, you idiot, look!" Both men saw the bird take a huge breath in. It started to cough ever so slightly.
"Bloody hell! Quick, get the Brigadier! We need to get that thing quarantined, it's dangerous!"
--
The Tardis materialised in the same spot it had before, and the group stepped out.
"So now what?" Said Tony.
"Well, Birdland needs a new manager!" Said the Doctor, looking at Tony. "I'll think you'll do a fine job." The Doctor paused, looking thoughtful for a moment. He then suddenly looked up and exclaimed: "K-9!"
"What?" Said Mavis. "What the bloody hell is a K-9?"
Billy's eyes lit up. He started running round in small circles, whilst shouting: "bloody hell bloody hell bloody hell bloody hell bloody hell bloody hell!!"
Mandy rolled her eyes. "Oh great, you've taught him a new swear. Billy! Zip it!"
"K-9 is my dog," said the Doctor, ignoring the children. "I left him in Endsville, I just remembered. Time we went back, I think! Come on, everyone."
"Bye, Mandy! And thank you for what you did," Mavis said.
"See ya, Mavis," the girl replied, heading towards the Tardis door. She stopped, turned to face the woman, and waved. Mandy then disappeared into the Tardis.
"See ya!" Called out Billy, then went back to shouting his newly learning phrase. He entered the Tardis following Mandy.
"You did very well, Mavis," the Doctor said, smiling at the woman and shaking her hand. "Good bye, and you too Tony!" He vanished into the Tardis.
"Well, Mavis," said Grim. "I guess this is goodbye again."
"Yes, for now, anyway," said Mavis.
"Forgive me?" Said Grim, giving Mavis puppy dog eyes.
"The Grim Reaper," said Mavis, smiling. "Looking at a mere mortal with teary eyes. How pathetic," she laughed. "Of course I forgive you Grim. We've all got to go sometime."
"Thank you," Grim said, as the two of them hugged goodbye.
"Grim!" Called the Doctor from within the Tardis.
"Gotta go!" Said the Reaper, and he entered the blue box. The door shut behind him.
"Bye, Grim," Said Mavis, as the Tardis dematerialised.
"What an extraordinary first day," Tony said once the Tardis had completely disappeared. "Do you think we'll ever see them again?"
Mavis turned round and looked at the boy. "Well, we'll both see Grim again."
"Do you think so?" Asked Tony, puzzled.
"Oh yes, Tony. It's inevitable." Mavis laughed, and wondered off, leaving Tony standing there.
Mavis headed back towards the ducks. After all, it must nearly be their lunch time by now.
Doctor Who/the Doctor, the Tardis and UNIT belong to the BBC.
Grim, Billy and Mandy belong to Maxwell Atoms and Cartoon Network.
All other characters are mine.
The real Birdland is property of the owners of Birdland. Please look up the website - I've run out of quirky things to say about it.