2

The Doctor took me to a building near the edge of the downtown area, and at first I thought it must be another hotel, based on its size and design. But when I noticed that there wasn’t the usual buzz of tourist activity, I realised with a start that this was a private residence. The sprawling building took up several city blocks and had five floors, and the glass in the arched windows along the front had undergone some special treatment to make it sparkle in a rainbow of colours. It even had flying buttresses, though their silvery-blue surfaces were a far cry from any medieval church.

‘How many people live here?’ I exclaimed. ‘There must be more than just your friend and his family.’

The Doctor shrugged. ‘Not as far as I know. Well, aside from the servants.’

One of those servants, dressed in a sunny yellow uniform, showed us into a vaulted foyer. We gave our names, and moments later an older man with receding lavender hair came scurrying in. His face was alight with joy.

‘Doctor! Is it really you? You’ve changed … Not that we aren’t used to that sort of thing around here.’

He must’ve seen the Doctor before this most recent regeneration.

The Doctor shook the man’s hand vigorously. ‘Yes, yes. A little different round the edges since our last meeting on Kiri 4, but all the charm and intellect are still here.’

‘And the modesty,’ I added.

The man turned towards me, and the Doctor seemed to remember I was there. ‘Ah, yes. Evris, may I present Miss Peri Brown of Earth. Peri, this is Lord Evris Makshi. We were once both caught up in a minor incident involving some very disagreeable robots.’

Evris chuckled. ‘Incident? Is that what you call saving my life? However you want to spin it, I’m just honoured that you came to attend my son’s wedding. And you too, Miss Brown.’

There was a shrewd glint in the Doctor’s eyes. ‘And what about the adorably terrifying pterodactyls we encountered on our way in? Are they on the guest list too?’

The cheery look on Evris’s face vanished. ‘Ah. Them. I’d heard there was another attack today.’

‘Another?’ asked the Doctor. I was reminded of a hunting hound sniffing the wind.

Evris nodded. ‘Those creatures have been plaguing us for a few months now. It started off as just a nuisance. They’d appear briefly on the Swathe and –’

‘Swathe?’ I interrupted.

‘The city’s main tourist district,’ he explained. ‘We call it that because it’s a swathe of commerce and delight.’

‘But not a strip.’ I tried to keep a straight face.

‘No. Much more expansive.’ Evris cleared his throat. ‘Anyway, they used to content themselves with mild attacks: a few swipes, a little blood here and there. Then, in the last two weeks, it’s suddenly increased. We see them nearly every day, and their assaults are more vicious. They’ve even started carrying away victims – never to be seen again.’

‘How awful,’ I said, recalling how I’d nearly witnessed that very thing.

The Doctor nodded in agreement. ‘Hardly a favourable time for a wedding.’

‘I concur.’ Evris’s face fell even more. ‘Tourism’s taken a downward turn, and half our citizens won’t even go outside. If Jonos wasn’t so near the end of his Phasing, we’d call the whole thing off. But none of us knows how long he has, and so we’re going forward with it tonight. After that … well. Then we hope to do something about this little problem.’

I didn’t really think flying reptiles that attacked and kidnapped people qualified as a ‘little’ problem, but I was too interested in his earlier word choice. ‘Phasing?’ I asked. ‘What’s that?’

The Doctor shone with his usual delight for anything curious and fascinating. ‘It’s what I meant earlier about Koturians having an especial interest in weddings. During their marriage ceremony, they transform and take on a new appearance. Several factors, internal and external, kick their metabolism into overdrive – for lack of a more technical explanation.’

Evris was nodding along. ‘It’s a very sacred thing for our people. The beloved is the first one to see the new face as they begin their lives together. It also marks an important rite of passage in general, a brilliant experience that all Koturians should go through.’ His brief enthusiasm turned to dismay. ‘However, we’re only capable of it once, during a very short window in the prime of our lives. Then the chance is gone forever.’

It was hard to wrap my mind round such a concept – though certainly not as hard as it would’ve been before I began travelling with the Doctor. ‘And your son has nearly passed his?’

‘Yes. In fact, we’d given up. He’s a good boy – but has his fair share of quirks. Those sorts of individuals can be quite challenging, you know.’

‘Yes,’ I said. ‘I certainly do know.’

The Doctor cut me a look. ‘Well, well, aren’t you on a roll today?’

Evris, oblivious to our exchange, shook his head in a mix of both amusement and exasperation as he continued about his son. ‘I suppose we shouldn’t have been surprised when he chose an alien bride. It’s exactly the kind of contrary thing he’d do.’

The Doctor had been listening with an indulgent expression, but at those words everything about him suddenly went on alert. ‘Alien?’

‘Humanoid,’ Evris said quickly. ‘No tentacles or sentient piles of slime. Of course, we were desperate enough that we might have very well accepted that.’ He chuckled at his own joke. ‘And, really, she’s a lovely woman. Cultured and intelligent. Jonos is quite smitten with her.’

‘Yes, I’m sure,’ said the Doctor, more to himself than us.

I frowned. ‘But if she’s alien … can he still transform? Go through the Phasing?’

‘Certainly,’ said Evris. ‘I mean, she can’t, of course. It’s not in her physiology. But for us it’s the chemicals and neurotransmitters involved in love and bonding with another person that serve as the catalyst. Those will be the same for Jonos, regardless of his object of affection.’

I could tell that the Doctor still had some puzzle on his mind, though he was keeping it to himself for now. ‘Well. Between the upcoming wedding and unwelcome flying visitors, you’ve certainly been kept busy. I’d love to hear more about it. And I’d also love to hear more about your future daughter-in-law. In fact, I don’t suppose I could meet her?’

Evris looked surprised. ‘Not before tonight’s festivities, I’m afraid. She’s deeply involved with preparations. Besides, she’s off in the women’s section of the house, inaccessible to the likes of us. But I find myself with a bit of time right now, if you’d like to have an early dinner?’

‘That sounds wonderful,’ I said.

‘No, no, not in your state, Peri.’ The Doctor’s look of chastisement was wholly unexpected.

‘My state?’ I asked.

He gestured to my skirt. ‘Look what you’ve done in your carelessness. You can’t go to a civilised event like that. Evris, I don’t suppose your people could make her look respectable?’

‘Carelessness! Respectable!’ It was the best response I could splutter out.

‘Easily,’ said Evris. He moved over to a table at the side of the room and pushed a few buttons on a console.

Within seconds, a young woman scurried in, wearing one of the yellow servants’ uniforms. A matching veil covered much of her head, but I could see that her pale blonde hair, streaked with blue, was pulled back into a neat bun. She bowed low to Evris and kept her eyes averted.

‘Yes, my lord?’

‘Please take Miss Brown and help her with whatever she needs to prepare for the wedding. The Doctor and I will be in the green dining room.’

‘How many dining rooms are there exactly?’ I asked.

The Doctor waved me off. ‘Sounds like you’re in good hands. Go enjoy yourself, and who knows? Perhaps you’ll get a glimpse of the lucky bride.’

His face still wore that sunny, flippant expression that could win others over, but I saw a knowing glint in his eyes. I understood what he wanted me to do perfectly, even if I didn’t know his motivations.

‘Perhaps,’ I agreed.

He and Evris strolled off without another word, and I turned towards the patiently waiting serving-girl. ‘Shall we go, miss?’ she asked.