Chapter 5:

Night

Disney Land Hotel

Harrison is packing both his and Tru's suitcases.

"That's it, we're out-a-here. What's the matter, Tru? Help me out."

Sitting in the corner of the room, Echo/Joy cries and shivers as she tries to convince Harrison that she's not his sister Tru.

"Please… I need to go home, please."

"That's exactly where we're going, Tru. We can't be around those crazy people. Now get up and pull yourself together. By the way, were you wearing that this morning?"

"Please… don't hurt me. Please… my mom must be worried sick about me now, please let me call her."

Harrison's phone rings, he panics but picks it up.

"Hello."

"Harry, I'm so glad I found you. Listen, I had the craziest day today, I'll tell you all about it later. I'm in a hospital in LA right now; I had to save a wounded guy. But there's an FBI agent on my tail and I don't understand why. I'm not even sure he's with the FBI. He thinks I'm someone else. I think Jack might have something to do with this. All the crazy mess usually starts happening when he's around. God knows what kind of sick, twisted crap he's up to now! Can you come and get me?"

Shocked by the phone call. Harrison looks at the girl in his room and says: "Tru! How can you be here and there?"

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Dollhouse

Suddenly the call ends. Tru turns around to see who interrupted the phone call when her eyes meet an elegantly dressed woman standing behind. "Hello, Joy! It's time for your treatment." Declares Adelle DeWitt, the manager of the Dollhouse.

"Treatment? Why does everybody think I need a treatment? And my name is Tru. I just need a cup of coffee, and a sandwich. It's been a long day, and I'm very hungry."

"Very well. Please come with me." Adelle leads her outside of the office and downstairs where the actives are doing yoga on the bridge of the pond, while others are exercising or painting.

"Just wait here; I'll have someone help you in a minute." Adelle tells Tru.

"Ok, thanks." She responds.

Seated on the couch watching the actives in their daily routine, she wondered why they didn't have hospitals like that in New York. "Is this some kind of medical retreat? It's like a sanctuary!" She whispers to herself.

"Hello, Echo!" A sweet gentle voice addresses her. She lifts her head up to see a pretty young lady, standing directly in front of her. "How are you today?" the lady continues.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know you were talking to me. Have we met before? What's your name?" Tru gently asks.

"November! You know that, Echo"

"November… hmmm.... doesn't ring any bell, I'm sorry."

"What bell?" November innocently wonders.

"November, it's time for your treatment." Her handler calls.

"You have a treatment? Why, are you sick?" Tru asks.

November smiles at Tru and says: "I try to be my best. See you later, Echo."

"It's Tru!" She shouts. "And good luck with your treatment. Hope you get well soon." She tells November. Then she whispers to herself again: "What's wrong with people today? One man calls me Caroline, another calls me Joy, and now I'm Echo?!"

"Hey, Echo!" A male voice from behind her calls, but this time she knows that she's the one intended. She turns around to face the caller. It's Victor and Sierra.

"It's Tru, TRUUUU!" She confirms.

"What's true? Was there something false?" Victor asks innocently.

"Oh, God! Never mind. This is not a hospital retreat; this is obviously a high-class mental institution." She thinks out loud.

"Sierra and I are going to have a shower, you wanna join us?" Victor asks Tru.

"Excuse me?" Tru fires out.

"Victor, Sierra, please go to the showers now, Echo will be with you shortly." Adelle says, now standing with a cup of coffee in her hand that she hands to Tru.

Concerned with everyone's interest in her taking a shower with complete strangers "Hah?" she looks at Adelle.

"Don't worry. Drink this, your sandwich will be ready in a minute."

"Finally! Thanks." Tru says.

"But you have to get our doctor check on you. You've had a rough day, and we would like to make sure you're in good health."

"OK… NOT necessary, but OK."

"Excellent! Please try to relax while we prepare for your treatment."

Tru wanders around the Dollhouse, drinking her coffee and checking everything out as her wonder grows. She notices a message room, a dining area and a gym, before she finds herself entering a coed shower. Sierra and Victor wave to her, but her astonishment prevents her from any kind of response gesture.

"Tru? It's now time for your treatment. Please come with me." Adelle calls her and both ladies go upstairs and enter Topher's lab.

"What kind of a doctor are you? I've never seen so many computers in a doctor's clinic before." She embarks.

"That's because I'm the only doctor who is genius enough to use this technology." Topher flaunts.

"Just get on with the treatment, doctor." Adelle tells Topher before she approaches him and whispers: "You better do this right. We don't need another Alpha situation."

"No worries! The wipe will take all that glitching thing away. You don't think by any chance that Alpha had something to do with this, Do you?"

"Who else? Her entire imprint changed dramatically. I can't think of anything or anyone else that could have caused this. He is still determined to bring us down. He's determined to destroy the Dollhouse."

"The Dollhouse?!" Tru overhears their conversation. "Are you telling me that this is the Dollhouse? So that FBI agent was right after all!"

Topher then pushes a button, a blue florescent light turns on, and Tru screams with pain, and then she looks at Topher and says: "Did I fall asleep?"

"For a little while."

"Shall I go now?"

"If you like."

Tru, who's memories are now wiped clean walks out of the lab.

"TRU!" A scary voice fills the air around her. She could not tell what it was, what it meant or where it was coming from.

"TRU!" The voice now becoming louder. "I need you, Tru!"

She follows the voice which leads her to Dr. Claire's office.

"What can I do for you, Echo?" Dr. Claire Saunders asks Tru while wiping a tear off her scarred face.

"You're hurt!" Tru tells Dr. Saunders, referring to the scars on her face. "Is that why you're crying?"

"No, Echo" The doctor responds, "I just lost a good friend. This man was my friend, and now he's dead." Referring to Boyd who died a few minutes ago.

Suddenly, Boyd's head turns to face the newly mind wiped Tru.

"Tru! We need you!"

Tru's day rewinds. She sees quick flashes of memory:

Harrison throwing up on the sidewalk

Her snapping pictures on the Jungle Cruise

A hippopotamus

Paul Ballard showing his FBI badge

Jumping in the water

Boyd getting shot

Dr. Claire's scarred face

The coed shower

The imprint chair

Suddenly she wakes up with the sound of Harrison jumping on her bed wearing a Mickey Mouse hat and singing:

"In the tiki, tiki, tiki, tiki tiki room
In the tiki, tiki, tiki, tiki tiki room
All the birds sing words and the flowers croon
In the tiki, tiki, tiki, tiki tiki room"

"Wake up sis, time to have some fun. It's our first day in Disney Land! What do you say we warm up with the Roller Coaster ride?"

Her big brown eyes wide open. "OH. MY. GOD!!!"