Astrolinium wrote:London, England
11 October, 2014
2:43 AMThe rain had picked up to a downpour at around midnight, drenching the streets and rooftops. Droplets of water clung tight to leaves on trees and lampposts, and puddles filled the depressions in the roads and sidewalks. Most sane individuals had gone home in the face of the pouring rain, though a few brave souls had stayed out as late as one, braving the torrent with umbrellas held high. Slowly, the patrons had filtered out of the pub, and the lights had been turned off downstairs. They'd closed down. Jon and Eli had a vigorous session of... well, we'll call it cuddling, and then went to sleep. 'Twas a night in October, and all through the pub, not a creature was stirring, not even a...
If one had been awake and inside the pub at 2:43 AM, one might have heard two things stirring. The first was a faint whirring sound coming from the door. The door was wood, but its lock was very much made of metal, and so the sonic screwdriver had little trouble with it.
The other sound was that of footsteps on the stairs which led down from the upstairs. It was completely dark in the downstairs save for faint ambient light which streamed in through the windows from the streetlights, muted by the falling rain.
"Here we are, Sydney," the Doctor said quietly (even by a normal person's standards), pushing the door open and smiling at his companion, whom he held the door open for, "and I must apologize for being so secretive around Krishna and disappearing inside the TARDIS. We do things no one else in the universe can - and they'll fear us for it, or at least not react pleasantly. You see, no matter how benevolent our actions, the sad truth of the matter is that underdeveloped societies such as 21st century Earth - which is where we are, by the way, sorry for the confusion - will mistrust anyone claiming to be from the future, such as ourselves. It's only natural, after all; we must seem like madmen to them.
As for my avoidance of you, that I can also explain. I'm afraid I was exposed to a good deal of solar radiation during our prior adventure with the Sontarans. A fatal amount, in fact. However, I am not human - I am a Time Lord of Gallifrey, and our race long ago found a solution, however temporary, to death itself. We can regrow our bodies. I did just that, as you can plainly see. But it is a very traumatic process, and, as such, I needed a span of time to recover. So, I retreated deep into the TARDIS, to a room specifically designed to help me do so. I'm sure you understand.
And now we must investigate. The TARDIS seems to think we have a mission here, and I'm not going to disbelieve her, she's always been right in the past. The bartender mentioned seeing doubles, as did Richard, as you may remember. I think there's something alien going on in there. Good fun, in other words."
The Doctor entered after Sydney and closed the door behind them, locking it with the sonic screwdriver before it flashed a brilliant blue light that illuminated the pub like a flashlight.
"Did you hear anything?" he whispered to his companion, gesturing with the screwdriver at the staircase leading upwards.