Tardis. No time.
"Come now Jamie, I'm sure she's perfectly fine."
Jamie shrugged and dropped into a chair. The central column moved up and down silently, he stared at it. "Well, if ye say so, Doctor. I still din't laike leaving her."
The Doctor tut-tutted and fiddled with a nob. Jamie had been morose
since the end of their previous adventure. He and Ms. Brown had hit
it off rather well. The Doctor shrugged, Victoria was left at a
respectable girl's college, she should be fine.
12:34 p.m. Maron Hall, C. Girl's Inst., Mars.
"She's WHAT??" The Doctor looked at Mrs. Wiggs anxiously, "Oh, dear, oh dear. This is very bad. Do you know anything about why she would leave?"
Mrs. Wiggs looked at him and shook her head, "We here at CGI wish to extend our condolences, but there's nothing we can do."
Jamie glared at her and mumbled something about Sassenaches and their "security" that was probably best unheard.
The Doctor ran a hand through his hair, "But, did she leave a note? Anything?"
Mrs. Wiggs opened her mouth and was interrupted as one of the Juniors ran up to her, "Mrs. Wiggs! There's a letter here for you!" She took it from the young woman, and opened it.
"Please give this to the Doctor or Jamie." was written at the top. She blinked and looked at the Doctor in surprise.
"Sir? I believe this is for you." Mrs. Wiggs said as she handed a red and green envelope to him.
He quickly opened it, reading silently.
"What's it say?" Jamie demanded, "Is it from Victoria?"
8:50 p.m. 1998 St. Louis Science Center.
Mary sat at the information desk feeling bored. Ana had just run by and made a crack about missing her brain, they'd both giggled, then Ana'd run off. She sighed, people were beginning to exit the Omnimax, drifting down the escalator and out the door. Another long, boring day at the Center. Ick.
"Excuse me?" A man stood there.
Mary put on her public face, "May I help you?" she studied him. He was short with dark hair, wearing a dusty, black frock coat, and plaid trousers.
"Yes. I'm looking for a young companion of mine--a young girl."
Lost child. Damn. "Ok, how old is she? And her name?"
He put a hand to his forehead and muttered, "Age? Victoria?" he straightened, looking at her again. "Seventeen, I believe."
Not lost, then. "I'm sorry, I can't page anyone that old. If you want ..."
"There's nay sign o' Victoria, Doctor." Tall, dark-haired, and wearing a kilt. Mary blinked.
Mmm, nice legs.
"Wait. You're the Doctor?" She felt more awake as she turned to the desk,
Now, where did I put that ...
"I'm Jamie McCrimmon, this's the Doctor." That gorgeous brogue rolled out again.
"Ok, there's a message here for you." Where is it? I thought I ...
"Mary, I've got it right here." Irwin smiled at the two gentlemen as he handed them a red envelope with gold script.
Thank God. "Hope this helps." She watched as they turned away.
The Doctor mumbled a thanks to the young woman as he and Jamie walked off. Once in the corner, he hastily opened the envelope. As he scanned the message, Jamie picked something up off the floor.
"The hills are alive with the Sound of Music." he read. His brow wrinkled.. "This makes no sense, Jamie. Hills??"
"I think this may help ye." Jamie handed the little piece of cardboard to the Doctor. He looked at it, then walked back over to the information desk to ask directions to this "Muny in Forest Park."
7:30 p.m. 1996, Muny, Forest Park St Louis, MO.
Jamie had been forced to wait outside by the guard. The Doctor had only the one ticket. He wasn't happy about letting the Doctor go in alone, but they had to find Victoria, and if going into the Muny was the way to do it ...
The show hadn't started yet. Music was playing softly and huge fans turned lazily, stirring the air. The Doctor mumbled as he walked down the centre aisle, looking for the FF row. "mm, ll, kk, jj, ii, hh, gg, Ah! FF!" He stopped, then began slipping his way through the people sitting there. "Excuse me, pardon me, excuse me, I'm looking for seat 78? Excuse me. Oh, thank you. Excuse me.."
Seat 78 was empty. He sat down, and immediately popped back up, due to the thing on the seat back. Peering closer he noted that it was an envelope. This time powder blue, with dark writing. He quickly picked it up, looking around wondering if Victoria was there.
"Did ye see her?" was Jamie's first question as he came out of the amphitheater.
"No, Jamie, I didn't. But there was another message left for us." He opened the envelope.
For the next three days, Jamie and the Doctor chased the elusive envelopes--and, hopefully, Victoria--around the universe.. Destinations included: New Orleans, in 1865; Antarctica in 1100; Moscow in 2001; Mexico City in 1743; Washington, DC in 1856; Moore, Idaho in 1845; Sydney, Australia (where they visited the Opera house) 1997; in 1924 they went to Hollywood, where Jamie encountered a starlet and got a vague answer to their quest..
"She said he called himself the Master."
And, then they were off to Glasgow, 1954; Caerleon on Usk, 967 (That was kind of fun for Jamie.. There were all these knights). One city was packed, absolutely stacked high with luggage. All of it from various planets and times and systems. From there, they were sent to a floating island over the Pacific ocean AD 3543.
At the third Lunar colony of Alnad Prime in the year 9856 of the Galactic calendar, they met up with a strange young woman calling herself Lyn. She gave them a yellow and green envelope, which directed them to the Observation satellite orbiting the sun in the Earth year 3478.
The clues were all fairly straightforward. A few were odd, but most made sense, or they figured them out by checking the Tardis databanks. Jamie barely slept or ate. The Doctor didn't sleep at all. And still they wandered searching for Victoria, hoping she was all right.
The Doctor worried over the "Master" comment, but had no way of telling who was meant. He vaguely recalled an ex-classmate calling himself that, but it might not be him.
At a few of the stops, they were required to split up, or go alone. Jamie disliked letting the Doctor do this, knowing that the Doctor couldn't take care of himself, so he went to most of them.
1815, Elba of France, "Jamie, that wasn't well done of you."
"He was gonna raise the alarum, Doctor, I had to do something!" Jamie didn't bother to look down at the guard he'd cold-cocked, he just followed the Doctor deeper into the complex.
They rounded a corner and encountered three men creeping towards them.
"Oi! Who're you lot?" Demanded the tall man on the right as he glared at them. The man in the middle was short, stout and had an oddly intelligent look in his eyes. The man on the left was in between the other two in height and merely looked at them impassively.
"Er, hello." said the Doctor, "We're just passing through, don't mind us." He started to step towards the men.
The one who appeared to be in charge pulled a pistol out, "Stop. Any further moves an' I'll kill ya."
The Doctor nodded, "Yes, yes, but we really are in a hurry."
"Move back thataway." he ordered, advancing on them menacingly.
"C'mon Jamie, let's do as the man says." The Doctor carefully began backing away pulling Jamie with him.
Jamie kept an eye on the man with the gun and also tried to eyeball the man on the left. He's an odd one. Cold. "Doctor, d'ye think they know where Victoria is?"
"No, Jamie I rather think they don't." They were nearing the spot where Jamie had downed the guard. "But," he whispered, "We might be able to get away if we -- RUN, JAMIE!" he spun, and dove into the doorway in the wall. It exited into another corridor. A shot rang out behind them, and a curse was heard.
They ran down the dank passageway, and then turned a corner. Then stopped. "They're no' following us." Jamie announced after glancing round the corner. "Now, where is Victoria? And who was that, d'ye think?"
"I'm not sure, Jamie, that man in the middle looked familiar. And, I have the strangest feeling..." He shook his head, "No matter, let's see what we can find."
Eventually, in a distant cell, they found a beige envelope with
green script. In it was a clue that sent them to London, 1643.
In Londontown, they found a clue that sent them to a planet in the far reaches of the universe. Arrauss was a peaceful planet, the citizens devoted to art and all higher forms of entertainment. Theatre was one of these; it was to the replica of the Fox Theatre that Jamie went, searching for a clue.
The receptionist, a young blond girl gave him a purple envelope--at the same time as she batted her lashes at him..
"Oh, Mr. McCrimmon!" She gushed, "I hope this has helped you!"
"Yes, thank ye." he smiled abstractedly, and walked away back to the Tardis.
This clue sent them to a Jupiter Mining Corp ship. The clue from there sent them to Hong Kong, 1876. After a rather boring run through downtown Hong Kong, they went to San Francisco, 1914. Then, Calcutta 1881; Calufrax (a rather boring planet, where nothing ever happens), 3598; and Clind, 7654.
The bright green envelope from Clind sent them to Frobozz.
"WE are the Nriitii! We will invade!" The golden-skinned woman stopped spouting slogans and looked in surprise at Jamie's bare legs. "And who the hell are you?"
"Oh, aye, I'm Jamie McCrimmon." he bobbed his head at her, "An' I'm looking for a friend. A girl about so tall." he raised his right hand to chin-height. "Dark-haired, her name's Victoria, have ye seen her?" He hooked both thumbs into the belt of his sporran and waited.
She blinked again at him, "A girl of that description came through the spaceport an hour ago with her uncle. They left a message for her cousin or other uncle. Jamie or the Doctor, she said; just a moment, let me find it." She turned away, and searched the drawer in her desk. A silver envelope with yellow script was on top.
"I think that's it." Jamie said, pointing to it.
"Oh. So it is." She picked it up and handed it to him. "There's a datacube in it. Readers're over there." She gestured to a bank of cubicles of to her right.
He nodded his thanks and made his way to the cubicles. Once inside, he opened the envelope, pulling out the cube. He carefully checked the envelope for anything, but found nothing else. Popping the cube in, he waited.
"Jamie? Doctor?" Victoria's voice sounded a little odd, her face on
the screen looked a little strained. "I'm alright, don't worry. Meet
me in St. Louis." There was a click and a puff of smoke. Jamie swore
under his breath and tried to pull out the cube. He was too late.
"Well, what happened, Jamie?" the Doctor looked up at him as he entered the Tardis.
"The lass is fine, she said to meet her in St. Louis." he looked at the Doctor puzzledly. "I'm no' sure what that means."
"Yes, well, St. Louis ... Hmm ..." the Doctor flipped some switches and typed on a keyboard. "Hm ... St. Louis, Meet Me in: Play best known as being about the World's Fair of 1904, held in St. Louis. They didn't actually go to the Fair in the play." He paused, staring off into the distance. "Well, we shall try the Fair."
At the Fair, the Doctor bought a waffle cone for Jamie. At the next booth, a man was selling pies. As they went and got one, he welcomed the Doctor as if he knew him. A yellow envelope with blue script was the result, there.
In Egypt 1918, they met up with Amelia Peabody and her husband while they were unearthing what was believed to be the tomb of Tutankhamen. While there, one of the servants gave them a bright, exceedingly eye-destroying yellow envelope, which directed them to Dizzeeplanet, 5687.
Dizzeplanet, was just that-dizzy. After being exhausted by the colours and people, an orange and green envelope (mild for DP) sent them to this little planet orbiting the star Betelguese in the constellation of Orion.
From what appeared to be Betelgeuse 6, they took the clue in a blue and orange envelope and arrived at an asteroid colony. From Asteroid M, they went to Nowheresville, Canada.
1999: "Sir? Is there something I can help you with?"
The Doctor looked at the young man, "Yes, I'm looking for a young friend, Victoria, you haven't seen her, have you?"
Little Bobo shook his head at the oddly dressed man, "no, sir, I haven't seen a Victoria. But, there was a funny little man here earlier!"
"Oh, really?" the Doctor felt a surge of hope, "What did he do?"
"He came into the general store and left a message for a doctor." Bobo had been a little disappointed at the lack of more oddness to relate.
The Doctor thanked the boy and nearly ran to the store. The shopkeeper gave him a pine envelope with ruby script. Inside was a clue that sent Jamie and he to a super-secret underground military base in Area 51.
Jamie got a white and pine envelope which sent them to Whistler, BC. There, a black and white envelope was waiting.
"'Come back to the school with all due haste, Ms. Victoria has returned!'" the Doctor looked at Jamie in shock.
1:04 p.m. Maron Hall, Cambridge Girls' Institute, Mars.
"Oh, Doctor!" Victoria rushed up to him, hugging him, "Jamie!" she hugged him as well.
"Um." He hugged her back, uncomfortably, "Victoria, where have you been?" the Doctor looked at her in mild worry.
"I ... I met this man, he said he was a friend of yours!" She twisted her hands, "He claimed you needed my help, so I went with him. And, well, after a little bit, I realised that he wasn't a friend. I did try to get away, but he stopped me." She looked at them, miserably, "He said he had to make you collect thirty-five envelopes. He left me here a few minutes ago."
"Victoria, you are alright, are you not?" the Doctor looked at her.
"Yes," she glanced down, "I am. I just feel, so, so embarrassed! Oh, Doctor, I am sorry to have caused you so much trouble!"
"That's alright, Victoria, as long as you're safe." The Doctor put his hand to his forehead, thinking. Thirty-five? What significance is this?
Jamie, who had been silent up to now, opened his mouth, "Tha' was a bloody daft thing to do, my girl! Ye coulda gotten killt!" he shook his head at her, "But, I'm glad ye're safe."
"Oh, I am Jamie, I am." Victoria nodded emphatically.
"Victoria, he never said what his name was, did he?" The Doctor asked.
"Well, he called himself the Jester."
"Oh, my. Oh my, my, my ..." The Doctor trailed off. Oh, dear. He's back.
"Who is tha' Doctor?" Jamie demanded.
"Hmm? Oh. No one. No one at all." He nodded, decisively, "Victoria, are you done with your studies?"
"Yes. For now, can we go Doctor?"
"Why, certainly, my dear." He nodded to Mrs. Wiggs, "Good day, Madam."
_Finis_