I don't know where Professor Omicron got the spy thrillers.

A new day, a new Tegan. She started by ruthlessly dominating her wardrobe. "Gathered around the neck in a soft roll… yes, like that, dark green, and I'll have the cream and gold wrap and the brown boots." She dragged the green sweater dress over her head and smoothed it down her body. No Gallifreyan would be titillated by a glimpse of her nape today, but the knit material clung to the rest of her. There was no skin to be seen save her hands and face, but there was a lot of Tegan on display.

It had taken her an hour to get the material right, but it had been worth it to get such a soft, lush fabric against her skin. It reminded her of angora or cashmere but was lighter than either.

Making fashion waves was something to do while she waited for answers to her messages. There were several people she wanted to speak to, but none of them had been available for direct contact.

The system chimed, then announced, "Message reply received, text: Yes. Look down."

"What?"

"Please specify object of query."

"Repeat the message!" Even Tegan couldn't glare at midair, much as she wished to.

"There is no message."

"Then what was that about 'look down'?"

"One moment. Search for phrase 'look down' shows the latest instance included in an environmental update for the Presidential Garden."

"That must be the Professor. Weather report, indeed," Tegan grumbled, and went outside. Looking over the edge in various spots, she finally saw an arrow formed by tamped down snow on a lower level terrace that was a public garden, though she'd never seen anyone down there. She imagined the Professor in his robe and stole and cowl out tromping down the snow. "Serve him right if his toes got frostbite," she muttered.

The exit out onto the terrace reminded her of the veranda off the festival hall. There was a force-screened area that was quite separate from the main public space. In that area was an airlock door out onto the terrace, to prevent anyone from accidentally getting a breath of fresh air. "Gallifreyans," Tegan muttered to herself. The snow was not marked until she stepped onto it, and she wondered how the Professor had managed to make the arrow. The lines were a meter wide, but there was no trail leading to them.

Tegan circled around to the arrow line, and walked up it to the pointy bit. A blue crystal was half-buried in the snow there, and she plucked it out. The arrow pointed to a maintenance hatch on the wall. "The Professor's gone all James Bond on me," she sighed, and kicked calf-high snow out of her way to get over there. As she reached the hatch, the crystal in her hand glowed blue. The hatch swung open. Tegan shook her head wryly and stepped in. Behind her, she heard WHUMPF! Turning around, she saw that the snow cover of the area had been blasted up into the air. There would be no marks left. She closed the hatch behind her, and the crystal lit up in her hand and sent a beam down the corridor. Tegan followed it; it led her to an alcove set above the Panopticon galleries.

"Hello, Professor. Is all this cloak and dagger necessary?"

"Perhaps not, my dear young lady, but I thought I would practice my techniques. You did arrive here safely, did you not?" The Professor sat down.

"No one was following me. Your people aren't that interested in what I do, with a few exceptions."

"You may find that has changed. I was watching last night, remotely. I wanted to see the dancing. Gallifreyans do have emotions. We are trained not to act on them, but that is an ideal. I'm sure you're familiar with the process of rationalization. It is a common sentient fallacy to invent reasons for doing what we do for no reason."

"Like the freaking nape of my neck?" Tegan stomped back and forth and the Professor waited for her to calm down before speaking again.

"In my second incarnation, I had a relationship with a magnificent lady whose name I will not repeat. What a mind she had! Such insight, allied to incisive logic and an ability to put her thoughts into words that had me at her feet." He folded his hands and rested his chin on them, eyes gazing into the far recesses of his memories. "The nape of the neck signifies vulnerability, a willingness to share private thoughts. Those in intimate circumstances initiate mental contact with physical contact to the nape of the neck. At least, so it was back in the day."

"Mental contact?" Tegan put a hand up to her neck as if to shield it.

"You were no more exposed to mental contact last night than you are now. Do not let that trouble you. Gallifrey is not a world where trust comes easily. I think that is also behind those high collars. Last night, you projected an image of innocence and willingness to trust."

Tegan remembered the Doctor asking her to trust him, and turned away so she could hide her blushing face. She felt naked. "Does everyone on Gallifrey have mental powers?"

"The talent is broadly distributed, but it takes a long time to acquire the necessary techniques. All Time Lords have a modicum of ability, for they undergo intensive training. It is rarer in ordinary citizens."

"Are there defense techniques someone who doesn't have powers can learn? I've had some bad experiences in the past."

"You should ask your friend the President. I shall do some research on the question, as I am interested for my own reasons. Speaking of reasons, what brings you to call on an old fellow the very day after your social triumph?"

Tegan went for the blunt instrument approach. "Keludar bet I don't know who in the senior class that he could have sex with me. You knew about this, didn't you? You warned him to treat me respectfully."

"He wagered with himself. Simply to succeed in fulfilling the terms of a wager is victory enough, according to the difficulty of the task. The most difficult emotion from which to detach is pride, dear child. Time Lords innumerable have succeeded in suppressing all others save that one. It is the other curse of the Gallifrey."

"Other curse?"

"You spoke with Lady Thalia. Did you notice her necklace?" Professor Omicron leaned forward a little, as if particularly interested in her answer.

"I'd wondered about it. It looks very old."

"It represents her genetic line's claim to the heritage of the Pythia. Our histories of the time of Rassilon are unreliable, but they tell us that the Pythia was the matriarch of Gallifrey. She ruled by blood and by the powers of the mind, and was overthrown by Rassilon and his allies. In revenge, she is supposed to have cursed Gallifrey with sterility. This was the impetus for the invention of the Looms. That is the story; I could not say if it is a true history."

"If the Time Lords place pride above love, then I'd say they cursed themselves. Should I do something about Keludar and his bet?"

"There is an archaic custom that allows for personal challenge in matters of insult. However, I think you would best be served by a dignified silence. You are the wronged party, it is for Keludar to make some gesture of appeasement."

"I'm not about to challenge him to a duel. Do Gallifreyans really do that?"

"It's not necessarily a matter of physical combat. There are duels of mental prowess as well."

"Rrright. I'm definitely not dueling. Dignified silence is not exactly my strong point, though." Tegan looked speculatively at Professor Omicron. "I've been thinking of finding some work to do. I'm tired of playing tourist. I've always believed in pulling my own weight."

"That's a praiseworthy ethic. While I've found your company charming and your observations of my world most illuminating, I can appreciate that you may not feel you have been constructive. Are you going to apply to the President?"

"Lady Flavia and Lady Thalia both seem to think that I'd do more harm than good by trying to help him. Lady Thalia accused him of playing God. I didn't think Gallifrey had religion."

"It doesn't, which may have been the source of Thalia's objection."

"He is an idealist, but how else is he going to have any hope of changing things? The Doctor came back to Gallifrey out of duty. He doesn't want to be President."

"My dear, that is an invalid statement. 'Want' and 'wish' are positively mythical qualities. The Doctor decided to take up the office; he chose to do it; he did indeed do it. He performed all the necessary actions to acquire the Presidency. To say he did it against his true wishes is not merely meaningless, but insulting. It implies he does not know what he's doing."

"I suppose so," Tegan said thoughtfully.

"To choose and then to act on one's choices is the only true freedom."

- o - O - o -

Once back in public, Tegan checked her contact point. She had a message from Turlough offering to meet her for lunch, and one from Leela that had a privacy flag, so she couldn't receive it except in her apartment.

It was more convenient to meet Turlough for lunch first. He'd specified a public meeting place that seemed to be used only by pensioners and not his Academy cronies.

Tegan sat down opposite Turlough and speared him with a look. "You know about the bet."

"I only found out last night! I would have told you if I'd known earlier."

"Who told you?"

"Ambirren."

"Ah," said Tegan significantly. "Before or after you sent him looking for the Doctor?"

"After. What you and the Doctor were doing alone is not my business–"

"And what makes you think we were doing anything?" Tegan stared at Turlough until he squirmed. "Hah! A dog that will fetch a bone will carry a bone." She ordered a fruit drink and a meal pill.

"What does that mean?"

"It means Ambirren's a snitch. I suppose a simple hug looks scandalous to a Gallifreyan." Tegan sipped her drink, savoring the feeling of for once having the upper hand with Turlough.

"It does." Turlough seemed to be struggling with his words. "Tegan, no one cares about what you did or didn't do with Keludar. Students aren't important. The Lord President is another matter."

"It's Keludar I want to talk to you about. Did you tell the Doctor about the bet?"

"No. I didn't want to bring it to his attention in case he had to do something officially."

"What they're calling 'plausible deniability' back on Earth, isn't that so?"

"Something like that. Tegan, you're not going to raise a fuss, are you? It wouldn't help anyone."

"I'm going to maintain a dignified silence," Tegan said sourly. "Do you think the Doctor knows?"

"It's hard to say what he knows and doesn't know. He gets passed information through various channels, and he spends a lot of time communing with the Matrix. But a student prank? Even if it concerns you, I doubt he'd pay attention unless you complained. Are you?"

"I've nothing to complain of. Keludar embarrassed himself, not me. Is there any kind of rumor on that I should know about?"

Turlough blushed. Tegan washed down her food pill with the fruit drink, waiting for him to speak.

"It's assumed by some that the Doctor has primitive companions so that he can indulge in sexual activity." He cleared his throat. "Then there are the more conservative sort who believe he has primitive companions so that he can impress them with his intelligence."

Tegan snorted. "That's not far off. They don't put much value on simple friendship, do they? What about Rassilon and his buddies?"

"A mutually beneficial alliance between those with an affinity of purpose. I think they do have friends, but they don't admit to irrational preferences."

"Rationalization," Tegan murmured. Turlough looked at her sharply. "It's so hard to tell what they mean and what is just good manners."

"The appearance of friendliness, rather than the substance?"

Tegan cocked her head. "You've run into that dealing with the Academy gang?"

"Yes, but two can play at that game." Turlough put on his nasty little smirk, and for once Tegan found an answering grin.

- o - O - o -

She listened to Leela's message when she got back to her apartment. It was short and to the point:

'I knew that the dress would make you desirable in the eyes of men. Is that not what you wanted? It was a good choice. You made no pretense, but gave them the truth of you. If they felt lust, then for once they felt as men should. Do not grudge them the life in their veins. Either they are men or machine; the choice is theirs.'

Tegan had to admire the way Leela cut to the bone. "They should put you in charge of this place, Leela. That would really stir things up. You don't have plausible deniability, you have a knife."

tbc