A Fair To Remember
Part Two: Come to the Fair!
Author's Comments: In this section for chapter one I misspelled the name of Scott Simerlein
of the LaPorte, Indiana, Wordcrafters writers' group, but it is now correct. Sorry, Scott.
Now, my thanks to those who read Chapter One and offered comments, listed this tale as a
Favorite Story or put it on Story Alert: Cajun Bear73, Mahler Avatar, Muzzlehatch, Old King
Betsy, Sharp the Writer and Stormchaser 90.
Read on, people, and enjoy . . .
Kim quickly reviewed the events of the past half-hour in her mind, weighing the
wierdness of the sitch with the fact that everything the Doctor told them seemed to check out.
Finally, after considering that she and Ron had already been in situations that came close to
this one for strangeness, Kim made her decision. She glanced around at the white walls
again, and then addressed the Doctor. "Okay, so, this is a space and time machine, and its
taken us to Chicago in 1893." She looked closely at K-9. "Did you build all of this yourself,
Doctor?"
"Oh, I didn't build the TARDIS. All Time Lords can have access to one, if they need it."
The Doctor patted K-9 on the head as he went on. "But this is K-9 Mark Two. I put him
together after K-9 Mark One decided to stay with Leela on Gallifrey, my home planet." As an
afterthought he added, "I got K-9 Mark One from Professor Marius on Asteroid K4067 in about
5000 AD."
Kim and Ron exchanged puzzled looks. "You mean you come from another planet, and
a different time?" Kim didn't even try to avoid sounding skeptical this time.
"Certainly. Here, I can prove it. Just listen to my heart beats," the Doctor replied,
pulling a stethoscope from one pocket and holding it out to Kim. "You know how to use one
of these, don't you?"
Kim nodded. "I can use it." As she took the stethoscope and fitted it to her ears, Ron
looked up from where he knelt beside K-9.
"Hey, dude, check her name! She's Kim Possible, and she can do anything."
Kim paid no attention to Ron's comment and held the stethoscope to the Doctor's
chest. She blinked, moved the disc around, listened closely, and then stepped back.
"You've got a double heartbeat . . . do you have two hearts?"
"Of course. One for everyday use, and a second for parties." He grinned broadly,
as if this was a private joke he had used before.
"Well, that's settled. Now let's take a stroll around the fair. We can see the sights and
have a bit of a holiday; then I'll take you back to your home."
"Well . . . " Kim hesitated. "If we're gone all day, our parents might worry. I know that
Daddy will," she added to Ron.
"Oh, no problem there, Kimberly. The TARDIS will get you back to Middleton,
Colorado, only ten minutes after you left it." At Kim and Ron's dubious expressions the
Doctor added, "Or would you prefer five minutes instead? I shouldn't like to cut it any closer
than that; we might meet up with ourselves, you see."
Ron looked at K-9 and asked, "Can he really do that?"
"Affirmative. The TARDIS can travel to any place in the universe and to any moment in
time."
"The Columbian Exposition was the largest and most impressive world's fair to be held
on Earth until the Planetary Exposition of 2069," the Doctor remarked. "I've read up on it, but
never actually paid a visit before."
"Let's take a look, KP," Ron pleaded. "Maybe they have a taco stand here."
Kim grinned. "All right, let's see what it's like. So long as we get home in time," she
added, giving the Doctor a stern look.
"Fine. But I think you'd better have something else to wear," the Doctor observed,
as he gave the two young folks a criticial look.
"What's wrong with our clothes?" There was a note of annoyance in Kim's voice.
"Young women of 1893 simply did not wear slacks and a cut-off top in public," the
Doctor explained. "You both need to look a bit more . . . formal. There should be something
in Sarah Jane's room that you can wear, Kimberly, and as for Ronald . . . yes, yes, I've
something that should fit him, too." He went to the inner door and opened it.
"Come along, I'll show you where they are."
Kim and Ron looked at each other. Ron rose to his feet, Kim shrugged, and the two of
them followed the Doctor out of the room as he called back, "Keep an eye on things, won't
you, K-9? There's a good dog."
"Affirmative, Master." K-9 turned to look at Rufus, whom Ron had absently placed on
the console. He then squeaked, Rufus answered, and the two began a lengthy conversation.
The Doctor showed Kim to a room that he said a young lady named Sarah Jane Smith
had used for some time, adding that she had returned to her home near London. "But there's
plenty of things to choose from, Kimberly. Just check the costume guide on this screen and
see what's on hand for the 1890s in America. The TARDIS's wardrobe facilities cover all of
time, space and fashion sense, so I'm sure you'll find something suitable," he concluded, and
then left to get Ron properly fitted out. Kim soon found a white blouse, and a long grey skirt
with a matching jacket that both fit her and looked appropriate. But it all seemed to be a lot
of clothes, compared to Middleton styles at the start of the 21st century!
When she returned to the control room Kim found a chessboard set up on the floor,
with Rufus and K-9 on one side and the Doctor on the other. Ron's pet was walking around
the board, studying the location of each piece, until he stopped and squeaked to K-9.
"Bishop to Knight's five and check, Master," K-9 translated. The Doctor moved one
piece as K-9 had directed, and then gazed at the board critically. Looking up for a moment he
saw Kim.
"This is a bit unusual, Kimberly," the Doctor remarked. "I seem to be losing to a naked
mole rat."
Kim hid a smile, and only observed that Rufus was very smart. Then the door opened
again, and Ron came in.
"Well, Ronald, you look quite dapper," the Doctor said as he rose to his feet, chess
game forgotten. "Wouldn't you say so, Kimberly?"
Kim eyed the matching trousers, jacket and vest Ron wore, along with a white shirt and
tie, all topped by a derby hat. "Is that what people wore to a fair back then?" she asked.
"Oh, young men going to the Columbian Exposition would be in their best! It was a very
important occasion, you know. But here, Kimberly, you need a hat, too," the Doctor handed
Kim a flat-brimmed straw hat. "Try this on. And then you'll need . . . this!"
Kim thought the hat looked rather stylish, but she was appalled when the Doctor gave
her a lady's parasoll. Walk around carrying that? Then she noticed Ron's face, and heard a
suspiciously humorous squeak from Rufus. She gave each of them a look that clearly said:
one laugh and it's sixteen kinds of Kung-Fu for you!
"K-9, I want you to stay here and see that no strangers come in and start poking
about," said the Doctor.
"Affirmative, Master. Can Rufus also remain? I find his accounts of Mistress Kimberly's
and Master Ronald's adventures quite interesting." Rufus gave a chirp-squeak that Kim knew
meant 'Yes, please!' and he looked hopefully at Ron.
"Okay little buddy." Ron knelt and held out his right index finger, which Rufus clasped
in his front paws.
"Stay safe, now." Teenage boy and naked mole rat solemnly 'shook' on it.
"Now, let's have a look outside, shall we?" The Doctor took the broad-brimmed hat
from the hatrack, clapped it on his head and pushed a control on the console. Nothing
happened.
"Won't people think your clothes are a little strange?" Kim pointedly inquired.
"Oh, I'll just be your eccentric uncle from Canada who's treating you to a day at the
fair," he remarked absently. "Now, what did I do the last time the door was stuck . . . ? Oh,
yes!" He brought his fist down firmly on the console with a thump, and two of the wall panels
behind the Doctor smoothly swung open.
Nobody seemed to notice them when they stepped out of the TARDIS, so the Doctor
led the way as they walked through the exhibit building and out onto the fair grounds. The
various buildings seemed to stretch to the horizon, and when Kim and Ron turned around they
saw the surface of Lake Michigan to the north, east and south. An odd-looking steamship was
coming down from the north, and sailboats were everywhere.
"Now, if you're hungry there are several restaurants in this part of the grounds," the
Doctor remarked. "That long building over there is the New England Clambake. The Polish
café, the Swedish restaurant and the Japanese tea house are that way." He pointed directly
west.
"No taco stands?" Ron's voice had a plaintive tone.
"I don't believe so."
"I'm not hungry just now," Kim said, nudging Ron at the same time. "Why not look
around a bit. Maybe we'll spot a good place for lunch along the way, Ron."
With a slight sigh for his favorite food, Ron agreed.
"Very good. Let's walk over to the Intramural Railway and ride it to the Midway
Plaisance." The Doctor strode off while Kim and Ron quickly followed.
"After all, one of the great sights of this fair is on the Midway," the Doctor remarked.
"It's actually the main reason I wanted to come here."
"Oh? What is it?" Ron asked.
"The Ferris Wheel, of course. I'll treat you to a ride on it."
"Wait a minute! You've come all this way, just to . . . ride a ferris wheel?" Kim gave the
Doctor a puzzled look. "Isn't that a bit, well, childish?"
"What's the use in growing up if you can't be childish now and then? Besides, it's not
just a ferris wheel, Kimberly. It's the Ferris Wheel!" the Doctor replied. "The brainchild of
George W. Ferris, it's the very first, and the very biggest one to be built. Until 2069, of
course," he added in an off-hand manner. "An amazing technical achievement for a man only
34 years old. It was meant to rival the Eifel Tower of 1889." Stopping his brisk pace and
turning to face the two teens, the Doctor went on, "Once you've seen it, I think you'll agree that
it's definitely something worth visiting."
Turning to the left the Doctor led the way toward a bridge over a narrow canal that ran
into the exposition grounds from the lake. As they crossed the bridge the Doctor pointed to
what looked like a warship moored at a pier jutting out into the lake. "Now, that's the American
Navy exhibit. It's called the U.S.S. Illinois," he remarked.
"Is it a battleship?" Kim asked, thoughtfully. "If my American History textbook is right,
the United States and Canada have a treaty that says 'No warships on the Great Lakes.'"
"True," the Doctor replied. "But that isn't really a ship. It's just a brick foundation on the
lake bottom with an above-water superstructure that duplicates a class of three battleships
now being built for the American navy."
"What's that one, Doctor?" Kim continued, pointing at a small, one-masted sailing
vessel that was closer to the path they were on. "It looks like a Viking longship."
"That's just what it is, in a way," he answered. "It's an exact replica of the original
Gokstad Ship that was found in a burial mound. This one was built in Norway and then sailed
across the Atlantic to be part of the Norwegian exhibit here." He grinned at them. "After all,
Leif Ericson got to North America over four hundred years before Columbus." With a
thoughtful nod, he added, "Believe me, I know."
"You said that as if you'd seen it happen," said Kim, suspiciously.
"Why, yes." The Doctor smiled broadly. "I did, didn't I?"
When they reached what the Doctor called the 'Intramural Railway,' Kim had started
to buy her own ticket, but the Doctor beat her to it. He pulled out a couple of bills and quickly
bought three tickets, a guide book and a map of the fair, waving Kim's protest aside as he
did so.
"No, no, my dear Kimberly, this is my treat! Just humor your old Canadian Uncle, won't
you?" He winked at the two teens, and Kim accepted her ticket.
After they had boarded the elevated electric train, the Doctor smoothly passed Kim and
Ron each a leather pouch that he said had some money for anything they wished to buy.
"Your own money wouldn't be any good here, you know."
Kim had noticed that the bills the Doctor had used seemed to be larger than the paper
money she was used to. Then she remembered that any coins she had would have dates
on them almost a hundred years later than 1893. The faces on the coins would be different,
too. Better to accept the Doctor's courtesy, she decided.
Checking the guidebook from time to time the Doctor pointed out various buildings as
the train rolled north, turned west and then south around the edge of the fairgrounds. In
between his comments, he mentioned that prices here would seem very low to Kim and Ron,
but for people of 1893 the fair was not inexpensive.
"And be alert for pickpockets and thieves," he warned. "An event like this tends to
draw them out of the ground like spring flowers."
"Don't they have a police force here?" Ron asked.
"Oh, certainly. But they can't be everywhere, you know," the Doctor replied. He
glanced up from the guidebook and pointed out the window. "Ah, there's the Colorado
building! And the next one, in the Spanish Mission style, that's the California building."
Kim was impressed by the way the Doctor played the role of 'Uncle showing the fair to
his niece and her friend.' At the same time she found the sights amazing. The fair seemed
to be a small city of clean, white buildings and colorful pavilions, while the people on the
train were just as real and human as anyone she and Ron had ever met.
They got off at the next stop and headed west down a broad walkway, and under a
viaduct just as a train was passing. Coming out on the other side the Doctor stopped and
gazed ahead.
"Here it is, Kimberly, Ronald. The Midway Plaisance! A collection of people and places
from all over the world, to entertain and enlighten. South Seas islanders and Bedouins, a
Chinese theatre and the Hagenbeck Animal Show." He winked at Kim. "For over ninety
percent of the people who come here, this is their first look at sights from around the world that
they'd never see, otherwise." He gave a 'take-it-all-in' gesture. "The living world has come to
Chicago, so that Americans can see the world without spending years traveling around it."
"Wow . . . badical," Ron breathed.
In spite of all the places she and Ron had been, Kim found that she was impressed.
The stream of people going and coming would have easily crowded the Middleton Mall. In the
distance they could see a large observation balloon in the air, riding to a cable that tethered it.
Somewhat closer was the Ferris Wheel, at what Kim judged was almost a half-mile from
where they stood.
The Doctor pulled out the guidebook again and opened it. "Now, what shall we see
first . . . ?"
Kim, Ron and the Doctor strolled along the Midway Plaisance, taking in sights and
visiting exhibits. They ate lunch at a restaurant beside the Moorish Palace and then visited a
diorama of the destruction of Pompeii. Even though it was done without computer control,
lasers and a high-tech sound system, Kim and Ron were both impressed at how realistic it
was, but as they left the diorama the Doctor shook his head.
"Oh, it's a good job, very spectacular," he remarked. "But not entirely accurate." He
shook his head again. "They really should have consulted someone who saw it happen."
"You mean that you . . . " Kim began and then stopped. "Never mind, Doctor. I'm not
sure that I want to know."
"Now, let's try the Ferris Wheel." The Doctor pointed directly ahead of them, where the
great wheel was slowly rotating in a manner that could only be called 'majestic.' "After that
we'll take a walk down Cairo Street," he went on. "There should be something interesting
going on there. Of course the theatre there will probably be busy, and the same for the
Algerian Theatre."
At Kim's quizzical look the Doctor explained.
"They have dancers performing Middle Eastern dances in both places." They began
walking toward the Ferris Wheel as he went on. "It's generally known as the danse du ventre,
which a local newspaper translated as 'belly dance.'"
The Doctor flashed his broad grin at Kim and Ron. "Dances of that sort had never been
performed in America before, so the patrons came flocking in droves."
"You mean they were the first belly-dancers in America?"
"Don't even think about it, Ron!" Kim growled.
"Kimberly," the Doctor said softly, "In your day, dancers in the shows in Las Vegas wear
far less than Little Egypt does."
"Have you ever seen this 'Little Egypt,' Doctor?" she asked.
"No. I've done a bit of research, 'swatted up the books' and so on, but I've never been
here before." He frowned in annoyance. "I tried to, once, but my plans were unexpectedly
upset. Drat those Daleks!" he muttered. "They're even worse than the Cybermen."
Kim gave the Doctor a skeptical look. "Well, what about Las Vegas showgirls?"
"Oh, I stopped off there in May, 1975, and took in a show called 'Vive Paris Vive' at
the Aladdin Casino," he remarked absently.
Just then a woman's scream split the air, and someone shouted, "Stop, thief! Catch
that man!"
TBC . . .
Author's Disclaimer and Notes:
The Disney Company owns the Kim Possible concept and characters. The British
Broadcasting Corporation owns the Doctor Who concept. The term TARDIS is also
copyright by the BBC. The plot of this story is my responsibility.
The Columbian Exposition of 1893, aka The Chicago World's Fair, was the first such world
exposition to have a dedicated amusement area. It ran due west from the main fair grounds,
and since it was much like a circus midway it was named the Midway Plaisance. The Midway
Plaisance is now a boulevard in Chicago that follows the course of the original Plaisance,
which is why the Chicago Bears are known as "The Monsters of the Midway."
The descriptions and locations in this story of buildings and exhibits at the 1893 World's Fair
are as accurate as possible.
The USS Illinois did exist at the Chicago World's Fair. Since the first United States warships
to be called battleships (the USS Maine and the USS Texas) were completed in 1895, the
Navy exhibit at the 1893 Columbian Exposition is sometimes refered to as "The first battleship
in the modern U. S. Navy."
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