"I hate wearing dresses," grumbled Charlie as she stepped out of the TARDIS. "I feel like a proper woman."
Stepping out beside her, Fred gave her an up and down. "It's a nice dress. Better than what the Doctor forced me into."
Charlie examined his tailcoat. "It's certainly fashionable."
"I wouldn't be caught dead in this thing," said Fred. "Thank god all these people are dead in our time. I'll never have to face them again."
Giggling, Charlie turned back to look inside the TARDIS. "Are you lot coming or not?"
"Some last minute fashion scares!" yelled back the Doctor. "Scorpius is refusing to put on dress shoes!"
"You got that right!" yelled Scorpius. "Those things are death traps!"
Suddenly, he let out a yelp and there was a loud crash. Rose yelled out, "I got him! Al, hold him down and I'll put the shoes on him."
Charlie laughed and closed the door. She turned to Fred who was surveying the mansion in front of them. It was an extremely large square with a towering structure coming out of the middle. It was a beautiful building.
"What did the Doctor say this place was?" asked Charlie.
"Downton Abbey, home of Lord and Lady Grantham, our hosts," answered Fred. "Do you know how we're getting into this party?"
"When I asked, he just laughed and said, 'please.' It's impossible to get an answer out of that man," said Charlie.
"Quite mysterious," murmured Fred, looking thoughtful.
"Snap out of it Fred," said Charlie sharply. She looked at his face worriedly.
He glanced at her. "Why?"
"You know why," she sighed.
He also sighed dejectedly. "It's just not fair is it… You meet someone and it turns out he's 1200 years old."
"Typical teenager drama," said Charlie, smiling.
"Do you think if he was younger?" mused Fred.
Her smile faded. "But he isn't. And you don't even know if he's gay…"
"With that fashion sense?" scoffed Fred. "Bowtie? Tweed jacket? Suspenders? Please. Trust the gaydar!"
"Gaydar? What's that?" asked the Doctor as he stepped out, followed by Rose, Scorpius (in full dress clothes), and Albus.
Fred blushed, hoping the Doctor hadn't heard what he had said. Fortunately, Charlie had her wits about her. "It's what Fred calls his owl."
"Hmmmm… I like that name. I'll have to write it down somewhere," said the Doctor. He looked around before realizing that he was outside and there wouldn't be a pen just laying on the ground.
"So how did you get us invited?" asked Charlie again.
"Please," said the Doctor. He looked up at the students who were staring intently at him. "We have more important things to discuss. Let's go over our identities again."
He motioned for them to begin and Albus took the lead. "My name is Albus Potter and I am the heir to the Potter fortune. I am from Godric's Hollow and my father is known by the local community, but he rarely leaves the area."
"I am Albus's fiance, Charlie," said she. "My father is business partners with my fiance's father. Albus and I have known each other since birth and we recently decided that it would be beneficial to our fortunes if we wed."
"Perfect," said the Doctor nodding. "That'll allow you two to not be all gross and coupley. All these lords and ladies will understand that cover. They all married each other for political purposes."
"Is that really how things were done back then?" asked Rose, with her nose crinkled.
"Yes," said the Doctor. "But sometimes they do marry for love. Like Lady Sybil and Tom. But that's beside the point. Your identity?"
Rose grinned. "I'm Rose Weasley. Fiance of Scorpius Malfoy. I'm from an old family from up north."
"And you Scorpius?" asked the Doctor.
"I'm a Malfoy. I'm rich as fuck," he said.
"Crude, but true," said the Doctor. "And that'll be enough because the Malfoys are quite well known in these parts. Even purebloods knew it was important to have powerful friends in both worlds."
"And I believe Fred has the most fun identity?" said the Doctor.
Fred's identity was harder to come up with because of his darker skin. He would be completely out of place amongst the pale nobility of England.
"I will be playing the part of Fred Baldwin. I'm the son of an American poet, but I've lived with my mother in England for my entire life. My father and I try to correspond monthly," said Fred.
"Excellent," said the Doctor. "And who am I?"
"You're Doctor Smith. You have a PhD from Oxford and you're a researcher for the government. You have close ties with the royal family," said Rose.
"You bet I do," muttered the Doctor to himself. "She's not the virgin queen anymore."
The students looked shocked. Albus was the first to recover. "You mean? You… and Queen Elizabeth? You… and her…?"
"Good ol' Bess," the Doctor said, reminiscing. "I was a different man back then…"
Fred looked disappointed so Charlie sent him a sympathetic smile. He shrugged; it was no big deal, it wasn't as if he was in love with him or anything. The Doctor was just bloody good looking.
"Who's that coming over here?" asked Scorpius, looking over at the Abbey.
A young woman with short black hair and a severe but beautiful face was coming over to them. She had on a simple but elegant dress and carried herself with grace and style. The Doctor smiled happily. "That is Lady Mary."
When she reached the group, she made a beeline for the Doctor. She looked him up and down before slapping him across his face.
The students pulled out their wands and pointed them threateningly at the woman. But she was ignoring them and glaring angrily at the Doctor.
"Mary? What the hell was that for?" yelped the Doctor, waving his arms for the students to put down their wands.
"It's Lady Mary, Doctor," said the woman, putting derision into his name. "And that's for dropping me of here without any explanation."
"Sorry about that," said the Doctor meekly. "I thought the TARDIS was going to blow up and you would be safer here."
"You dropped me off in Scotland," said Mary. Her voice was calm and cool but her eyes betrayed her angry emotions. "I had to telephone Anna and she had to arrange transport. Thank heavens she knew some of the truth or it could have been much worse."
"Well sorry about that," said the Doctor. "You know how the old girl can be."
"I'm not finished," snapped Mary.
"Oh fuck," muttered Fred. "Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned."
"I beg your pardon?" said Mary, turning her icy gaze towards Fred. "Vulgarity has no place in a civilized house like Downton. I suggest you keep that language away from the Dowager Countess."
She turned her fury back onto the Doctor as Fred glanced at Albus whose jaw was dropped. Fred couldn't help but smile at Albus's new found crush. He also couldn't help but glance at Charlie, who was looking at Mary with respect and admiration. Go girl power!
"Listen Mary, I'm sorry for not coming back yet. I was going to but things happened," said the Doctor.
"Like what?" asked Mary in a bored voice.
"The Time Lords are coming back," the Doctor said triumphantly.
Mary's cold demeanor faltered for a second. "You found a way? Didn't you?"
"Not just me," said the Doctor, smiling. "Well yes. In a roundabout way it was just me. Doesn't feel like it though…"
"He still does this then?" asked Mary of the students.
"Only known him for a few hours and he's done it at least five times," said Scorpius cautiously.
"A few hours?" repeated Mary. "Is this their inaugural trip?"
"What better way than to visit an old friend?" responded the Doctor.
Mary smiled, officially breaking the cold demeanor of her arrival. "I've missed you.
"I've missed you too," said the Doctor, very glad for the shouting to have ended. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry I haven't come back until now.
Mary waved her arm tiredly. "Water under the bridge, old friend. You're here now. I apologize for my behavior; it was most uncivilized of me."
She turned to Rose, Scorpius, Albus, Charlie and Fred. "You must think of me as such a horrid hostess. I will have to rectify this over the coming days. Welcome to Downton!"
