SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW

Chapter Eighty Nine

(One week later...)

After spending time in Indiana, the three friends headed up to Michigan, then swung back down and around Lake Michigan into Wisconsin. At the moment, they were in a Wal-Mart in Madison looking through the Halloween section. It was a week away and Awinita had suggested that perhaps they could find a Halloween party in addition to the other things they had planned. The three of them were looking through the costumes and getting other things before going on north to a theme park called Extreme World that was in Wisconsin Dells.

“So, I suppose by the time Halloween rolls around we’ll be somewhere in Illinois or Missouri?” Alan said as he picked through the costumes.

Rose nodded.

“Yeah, but are you still gonna do that trick or treat stunt?”

“Course,” Alan replied. “I’m curious to see if anyone will give me sweets or not.”

“You’ll be lucky if no one shoots ya,” she replied.

“Oh, ye of little faith, I may be half human but I can still take care of myself,” he said, winking. “I think I can handle an old lady holding a bowl of sweets.”

He paused at a costume and pulled it out. It was a vampire costume.

“Count Dracula?” he said, holding it against his body.

“Nah, doesn’t suit ya.”

He shrugged and put it back. Rose pulled out a Snow White costume and showed it to him. Alan studied it.

“Ummmmm, that might look good on you,” he said. “So I s’pose I’m Prince Charming then?”

“Um…yeah.”

He smiled.

“Hey, Rose.”

Rose looked around Alan when Awinita called her name.

“Yeah?”

She pulled out a purple harem girl costume and giggled.

“How ‘bout this? I bet Alan would really love this on you.”

“Too bloody right I would!” he said as she laughed. “Let me see that.”

She handed it to him and he held it against Rose’s body. Rose looked at his face and could practically see the drool cascading out of his mouth.

“You want me to wear this, don’t ya?”

“Ooooh, in the worst way,” he said as Awinita bent over laughing.

“What about other men? Aren’t you scared they’re gonna try to chat me up if I wear this?”

“No, because if any man so much as breathes on ya wrong, I’ll knock em across the room.”

Rose took the costume from his hand and hung it back on the rack. Alan groaned.

“Aw, come on, it’ll look beautiful on ya,” he said.

“No, I won’t feel comfortable wearing it. I want something that isn’t that skimpy. I’m sorry, Alan, I know you want more than anything to see me wear it but I don’t like it.”

He shrugged.

“Eh, just as long as I can see you in skimpy clothes in private, that’s all that matters.”

They went back to looking. Suddenly, Alan started to giggle.

“What?” Rose said.

He grabbed a maid’s uniform.

“Remember the last time you wore something like this?” he said.

Rose rolled her eyes.

“All too well,” she said.

“Why? When did she wear a maid’s uniform?”

Alan turned to Awinita.

“The first time they came to this universe, they fell through a gap in time and space. In her original universe, her dad was killed by a hit and run driver when she was six months old.”

“Oh God, that’s terrible,” Awinita said.

He nodded.

“But here in this universe, her dad survived and became successful. Rose wanted to see him badly and the Doctor didn’t want her to at first because it wasn’t her dad and he didn’t think it was a good idea for her to go looking for him. But she gave him the….face.”

Rose and Awinita giggled when he rolled his eyes.

“And he finally gave in. Pete was throwing a party for this universe’s Jackie and in order to get inside she and Doctor posed as the catering staff. Rose was wearing an outfit much like this one that night.”

“I see. Did you get to see your dad?”

Rose nodded.

“Yeah, but then the Cybermen showed up and all of us had to go and stop them,” she said. “He freaked out when he found out I was his daughter in another universe because here Rose was the name of the alternate Jackie’s yorkie.”

She shot a look at Alan when he giggled again.

“But,” she said, ignoring his snickers, “once I became trapped here, we went to live in the mansion with him and because the other Jackie had been killed by the Cybermen, he ended up marrying my mum and I became his step-daughter. We get along great now but it took some time to get used to it, especially for mum since he’d been dead for so long. But anyway, that’s why Alan finds the maid’s outfit so funny and no, I don’t wanna wear that either.”

“Well, speaking of past adventures, look at this one,” he said, pulling out a werewolf costume. “I could wear this one.”

“You guys saw a werewolf?”

Rose nodded.

“That’s when we met Queen Victoria. We rescued her from one.”

“Only technically, it was a lupine wavelength haemovariform,” Alan said.

“A what?”

“An alien that possessed a boy and turned into a werewolf during the full moon,” Rose said.

“Oh.”

“You can wear that if you want,” Rose said, shrugging. “It’d be better than Dracula.”

“No, actually, I found something even better,” he said.

“What?”

He snickered and showed her a cow costume.

“Moo,” he said.

Rose looked at it. It was white with black spots all over it and huge plastic udders on the front. It had a soft fabric cow head that was tied onto the top of the head, leaving the lower part of the face visible. Rose eyed him.

“You’re serious?” she said.

“Yes, and look…”

He pulled another costume off the rack. It was a farmer’s overalls that had several colorful patches sewed onto it and a red flannel shirt.

“Wear this, you could be a farm girl and I’ll be your moo cow.”

Rose put her head in her hand while Awinita laughed hysterically.

“Come on, Rose, if it’s a Halloween party they’re sure to have a costume contest, we’ll win first prize!”

“Do it, Rose, please!” Awinita said. “I have to see you guys dressed up like a farmer and a cow!”

Alan grinned and gave Rose the face. Rose stared at him for a moment and then rolled her eyes.

“Alright, I’ll be a bleedin’ farmer for ya,” she said.

“Yes!” Alan and Awinita said in unison.

“The things I do for ya,” Rose said, taking the costume.

“Now you have to find some black and white makeup,” Awinita said, “and maybe some black gloves for your hooves.”

“On it,” Alan said walking to the other side of the aisle.

Rose looked at Awinita and shook her head.

“I think you’ll look cute as a farm girl. We’ll have to put your hair in pigtails and maybe put some makeup on you and…”

She giggled.

“You could get some balloons, blow them up and stick them down your shirt so you can have a big chest.”

Alan laughed.

“Brilliant idea!” he said to her.

Rose walked over to her.

“What about you?” she said. “What are you going as?”

Awinita took a pirate girl outfit off the rack.

“I was thinking about this,” she said.

Alan turned back to her.

“That’s neat, get that one,” he said.

“You think it’s alright?”

Alan nodded.

“Yeah, I think it would good on you. I would love to see you as a pirate. Get it.”

“Then you can put balloons down your shirt,” Rose said.

They laughed.

“Okay, I’ve got mine then, so what should I wear with it? I guess I need a fake sword,” she muttered.

They walked over with the shopping trolley to the other side and joined Alan who was grabbing some makeup off a hook. He looked at Rose.

“Do you need makeup?” he said.

“I have regular makeup, I can wear that,” she said.

Alan took a hold of her chin. He looked down at the makeup.

“What we could do in addition to that is perhaps use some of the black makeup here to give you exaggerated freckles,” he said.

“Do they have that tooth blackener stuff?” Awinita asked. “You could make it look like she has teeth missing.”

“Hmmm, not a bad idea, how ‘bout it?”

“Am I an ugly farm girl then?” she said.

“Well not ugly, per se, I’ve just kicked you in the teeth a couple of times when you tried to milk me.”

Rose gave him a swat on the arm.

“Okay, tooth blackener then,” she said.

They scanned the items and finally found it near the bottom. Alan located a pair of black gloves and put them in their trolley with everything else. Awinita walked up and put a fake sword in the trolley.

“I found a pitchfork. Unfortunately it’s supposed to be for a devil,” she said to Rose. “So I don’t think it’ll fit.”

“Well, I could be an evil, demonic farm girl,” she replied.

“Am I a demon cow then?” Alan said.

Rose thought.

“Nah, you’re too sweet. You can be a sweet cow that I’ve enslaved.”

He chuckled.

“Thing is, are you gonna change your shoes, Alan? I mean, you’re gonna be a cow with half your hooves black and the other half maroon,” Awinita said.

Alan looked down at his trainers and considered that.

“Nah, I don’t need new shoes yet and I don’t want to buy some just to do this. I’ll just be an oddball cow.”

“Got that right,” Rose muttered.

She tried to run but Alan grabbed her around the middle and planted a wet, sloppy kiss on her cheek.

“So, is that it?” he said, keeping a hold on Rose.

“Do you guys wanna get some sweets? Just in case Alan’s little trick or treat scheme fails?” Rose asked.

“Fails? It won’t fail!”

“Okay, do you guys wanna get some sweets, full stop?”

“I wouldn’t mind getting some candy corn,” Awinita said.

“Oooo, love candy corn,” Alan said.

“Okay, let’s get that and a bag of chocolate or something, just so we can have something to celebrate with,” she said.

After paying for everything, they wheeled the trolley outside and loaded their stuff into the van. In addition to getting the costumes and candy, they also purchased some drinks, snacks, toiletries and a couple of new DVDs. Awinita volunteered to drive and she walked around to the driver’s side while Rose climbed in the back seat. Alan got in the front seat and they both closed the doors. Awinita started up the car, backed up and they headed out of the parking lot.

They reached Wisconsin Dells a short time later. In addition to Extreme World there were also several Water Parks, a riding stable, Cave of the Mounds, Raceway Park, a haunted house and several shows. They had decided to stay a couple of nights and take it all in. Rose had booked a room at the Atlantis Waterpark Hotel which according to the website had fantasy themed rooms with balconies, whirlpools and fireplaces. She had decided to get them a mermaid themed room with a whirlpool in it much to her friends delight.

“Well, I thought it’d be something different after all the ordinary hotel rooms we’ve been in,” she had said.

“I can’t believe you talked me into this,” Rose said.

They had just walked through the entrance of Extreme World. The theme park was dedicated to extreme sports with bungee jumping, sky coasters, an ejection seat, a ride called Terminal Velocity and go-karts.

“Come on, Rose, it’ll be fun. You’ve done things that were far more dangerous than this.”

“Not on purpose!”

“It’ll be fun. Look, I’ll go first, alright, just to show you how safe it is.”

“It’s not the safety part I’m worried about.”

“Just…follow me,” he said.

Rose glanced back at Awinita.

“Okay, your phrase for today is off your trolley, which is what Alan is,” she said as Awinita laughed.

They walked over to the 130 foot tower that the bungee jumpers were jumping off. There was a chain link fence surrounding it. They walked over to the queue and got in line behind several others. While they waited, they watched other people jumping forwards or backwards off the tower and listened to their screams as they plummeted down.

“I’m not doing it backwards,” Rose said.

“Me neither,” Awinita replied. “I wish they could put the harness around my wrists so I wouldn’t have to go head first!”

“You and me both.”

“Aw, come on, you two!” Alan said, looking at them. “I told you I’d go first.”

“And how is that supposed to make me feel better?” Rose asked.

Alan stared at her.

“You get to see me go first?” he said.

“I repeat, how is that supposed to make me feel better?”

“Well, be fair, Rose. We can’t go together otherwise I would take you. Just don’t think about it, do it. If Awinita is gonna be our companion, she’s gonna have to learn to deal with terrifying situations. This is a safe way to simulate that.”

“I’m sure that makes her feel better too,” Rose said.

It was finally Alan’s turn.

“Wait here, I’ll be right back,” he said to them.

He stepped through the entrance and was escorted over to a scale.

“This is so we can figure out what strength harness to put on your legs, “they heard one of the men say.

Alan stepped on the scale.

“I wonder what type of harness they use for fifty pound men?” Awinita said as Rose giggled.

He stepped off the scale.

“Okay, sir, now step on it one more time so we can be sure we have the right weight for you.”

He got back on and the man checked the readout. He nodded.

“Alright, just wait here and we’ll get the harness.”

They walked off. Alan looked back at his girls.

“What’d the scale say?” Rose asked.

“I refuse to discuss that. It’s not polite for a man to disclose his weight to others,” he said sniffing.

“What was it though? Ten, twenty pounds?” Awinita said. “Can’t be more than thirty.”

Rose bent over laughing when Alan flipped her off.

The men returned. They escorted him over to a metal platform. It was surrounded on all sides by waist high metal walls except for the front which had a gate covering the opening. They got inside and Alan stood and waited patiently while they wrapped the harness around his ankles and checked and double checked it to make sure it was on properly.

“Ready?” the man said when they were finished.

Alan nodded. The man pushed a button and the platform started to go up the tower. Alan smiled at his girls and waved. They waved back.

“You’re completely barmy, you are!” Rose yelled as he laughed.

“Stay right there! I’ll be back down in two shakes of a Judoon’s tail!” he yelled back.

They watched as the platform climbed higher and higher.

“Oh God, Awinita, I don’t know if I can do this,” she said as she watched Alan getting further and further away.

“Do you want me to go next?”

“Do you want to?”

“I can.”

“Could you? I mean, I really have to get my courage up.”

“Sure.”

“Aren’t you scared?”

“Yeah, but I might as well do it and get it over with.”

“I should do that but I really do need to have a minute to get myself ready. I’m probably gonna have my eyes closed too.”

The platform finally stopped at the top of the tower. Rose put her hand over the top of her eyes, shielding them from the sunlight, while she watched the man talk to Alan. There was a moment when nothing happened and then he saw him opening the gate and walking Alan to the edge of the platform.

“Okay!” she heard the man yell. “Here we go! 1…2…3!”

Alan dived out without any hesitation. He had his arms out in front of him like a diver and was whooping and hollering all the way down. The bungee grew taut and snapped back and he bounced up and down for a few moments in the air, laughing and yelling as he did.

“You’re crazy!” Rose yelled at him.

“Oh man, you gotta try this, Starlight! It’s fun!” Alan yelled back.

They lowered him down to the ground and two men caught him and helped him onto his feet.

“You’re next, dear!” he said to her as they undid the harness.

“Actually, I am. I told Rose I’d go next so she has more time to get ready,” Awinita said.

“Oh, okay. Well, you’ll like it. It’s fun. Just jump out and enjoy the ride.”

They let him out of the harness and he walked out the exit as Awinita headed in. He went over to stand beside Rose.

“There’s nothing to be afraid of, really,” he said to her. “It’s an adrenaline rush. You’re perfectly safe. That’s why they weigh everyone and make sure they have the right harness.”

“Sir?”

Alan looked over when a man walked up to the fence.

“We recorded your jump, would you like to see it?”

He smiled.

“Yes, I would, but can I wait till my friends are done?”

“Certainly, just let me know when you’re ready.”

“Thanks.”

He walked away.

“I guess they film everyone then.”

“Great, I can watch how terrified I am after it’s done.”

“You’ll be alright; you’re my strong, brave Rose.”

They waved at Awinita when the platform started to go up. Alan laughed when she gave out a terrified squeal.

“Be brave! We’ll be down here supporting you!” Alan yelled.

“Wow! That really fills me with courage, thanks!” she yelled back.

Alan let out a low whistle when the platform went higher and higher.

“Wow, from down here it really is high up, innit?” he said.

“Don’t remind me.”

The platform stopped. Alan and Rose laughed when they heard, “OH GOD!” coming from it. Both of them waved to Awinita who was now at the edge looking down at them.

“COME ON!” Alan yelled. “JUST JUMP!”

“I HATE YOU, ALAN TIMELORD!”

Rose bent over laughing. She patted his back when she saw the hurt look on his face.

“She was kidding, honestly,” Rose said.

“Okay, are you ready?” they heard the man yell.

“No!”

They watched while the man talked to her for a moment. They could see Awinita shaking her head.

“If you cause our best friend to have a heart attack, I’m gonna kill ya,” Rose said.

They saw her nod her head. The man held her and inched her towards the edge. They heard him count to three and then Awinita fell out. She screamed loud and long all the way down. She bounced a couple of times and then they lowered her down.

“She looks fine to me,” Alan said, shrugging.

He gave her an evil grin.

“Your turn, my love,” he said.

Awinita stumbled towards the exit when they released her from the harness. Rose flinched when they beckoned for her and Alan gave her a kiss on the cheek.

“You’ll be fine,” he said.

She walked through the entrance while Awinita walked over to Alan. Alan embraced her.

“I’m proud of you,” he said.

“Yeah, so am I. I never thought I’d ever do something like that.”

They finished hugging and Alan put his arm around her shoulder while they watched Rose being weighed. The man came to the fence and asked Awinita about viewing her jump.

“You can do that?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Wait until Rose gets done. Then we can all view ours together,” Alan said.

“Can I do that?” Awinita asked the man.

“Sure, just let me know when you’re all ready.”

She nodded and he walked away.

Alan smiled when Rose was escorted to the platform.

“Brave heart, Rose!” he yelled.

“You’re gonna think Braveheart when I rip your guts from your chest,” she said as they laughed.

While they fitted her with the harness, Awinita glanced around. There was another tower nearby with a huge net suspended under it. She grimaced when she watched someone freefall into it.

“Oh my God, that person just did that without a bungee cord or anything,” she said.

Alan looked where she was pointing. He watched while they lowered the net and helped the man out.

“He’s got a harness on, it’s around his body and crotch,” he said, pointing.

“Yeah, but that’s so they can suspend him out in the middle of the platform. When he dropped there was nothing between him and the net.”

He shrugged.

“There’s a net to catch him. I s’pose they don’t need anything else,” he said.

“I bet you wanna go on it.”

“Yup!”

He glanced back up and turned Awinita when he saw the platform had stopped. Just like before, Rose was hesitant to go and the man had to give her a pep talk.

“At least she’s not screaming out that she hates me,” Alan said.

“I didn’t mean that.”

He smiled at her.

“I know you didn’t,” he said, winking.

He looked up.

“COME ON, ROSE! JUMP! WE’RE WAITING!”

“SHUT THE HELL UP, ALAN!”

They heard the man count to three and Rose jumped out. She screamed even louder than Awinita did and grunted when the bungee grew taut and snapped her back up. Alan and Awinita clapped when they lowered her to the ground and undid the harness. They looked at each other and walked back through the exit towards her. Alan embraced her tightly and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

“I’m proud of you,” he said.

“Thanks, me too. Now if only my heartbeat will stop sounding like the Doctor’s, I’ll be fine.”

The man walked up and asked them about the viewing. This time they all agreed and he led them to a room where they could view the footage. Alan grinned when he watched himself.

“I was very graceful,” he noted.

“Don’t rub it in, will ya?” Rose said.

He smiled when they showed Awinita and Rose both screaming like banshees. When they were finished the man looked at them.

“If you want these made into DVDs, the cost is 15 dollars.”

“No thanks, I don’t want Alan playing this over and over and over for the rest of my life,” Rose said as they laughed.

They thanked the man and walked out.

“I want to do this one next,” Alan said, pointing to the tower. “Awinita informs me that you don’t have any harness when you go up, just a net.”

“Oh Christ, just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse,” Rose said.

They walked over to the fence surrounding it and watched as a man sat suspended over an opening in the platform. The pulled a release on the harness and the man fell 140 feet into the net.

“You go first again,” Rose said.

“Gladly.”

They got in the queue.

Alan waved as the platform went up. He had a blue harness around his body.

“This one might not be so bad,” Awinita said, looking back at Rose. “At least when you fall you’re in a sitting position.”

“Yeah, you might be right. I’d rather do that than dive headfirst.”

The platform stopped at the top. A moment later, a trapdoor was dropped open and they saw Alan suspended in the harness above it. The man counted to three and they watched while he plummeted to the net below. They lowered it and he jumped out.

“Guys, this is even better,” he said as they unhooked the harness. “You can’t even really feel the net when you land.”

Once he was out of the harness, a man asked him if he wanted to view his fall. He gestured to Rose and Awinita and asked if he could wait. The man nodded and he walked out of the exit as Awinita walked in.

“Seriously, you can barely feel the net, it’s a soft landing,” he said to Rose.

“Well, this one looks better than the other one. At least you aren’t headfirst. I don’t know about the slingshot one though.”

“What slingshot one?”

“Over there, the one where you stand on the ground and they slingshot you into the air,” she said, pointing to the one beside the tower. “Then the other one, they put you in a harness and you swing to the ground and up like a giant swing. But that one can have more than one person in it. I saw two people in it just now.”

“Great, then we can go together on that one.”

“You are nuts, you know that?”

“Yup, I am and I love it!” he said grinning.

They looked up when the platform stopped. A moment later the trapdoor was opened, they heard the man count to three and Awinita yelled as she freefell into the net. They lowered her to the ground.

“You’re right, that one wasn’t as bad,” she said to Alan as they undid the harness.

She walked out the exit when they were finished. Rose took a deep breath and walked in.

“Couldn’t feel the net, could ya?” Alan said when she walked up to him.

“No, I was surprised as fast as I was going. But you’re right, I barely felt it.”

“You wanna go on the huge swing one next? Rose said more than one could ride it. She saw two people on it but maybe they take three. That way we can be together.”

“Where is it?”

Alan pointed back behind him. Awinita turned and watched while three people swung down to the ground and swung back up in an arc.

“I guess they do allow three, brilliant,” Alan said. “Rose doesn’t wanna do the slingshot one though.”

“I don’t either. I saw that as I was going up. No way am I being launched into the air like that.”

“That’s fine; we can do the swing and then go on the go-karts.”

“Cool.”

The platform stopped. The door was opened and Alan smiled when Rose screamed as she plunged into the net. He was surprised when she started to laugh as they lowered her down.

“I guess she liked it,” Alan said.

“Either that or her mind snapped and she just went insane,” Awinita replied as he chuckled.

They walked through the exit.

“Did you like it?” Alan said.

“Yeah, that was actually fun and you’re right, the net was soft. Much better than the bungee jump.”

They followed the man to the viewing room.

“Okay, “the man said after they had fitted the three of them with flight suits, “one of you needs to pull the ripcord to start the freefall. Which one of you wants to do that?”

Rose and Awinita jabbed their fingers at Alan’s face.

“I guess I volunteer,” Alan said, grinning.

The three of them lay side by side while the men attached the harnesses to their bodies, checked and double checked to make sure they were safe. Awinita was on the far left, Rose in the middle and Alan was on the other side with the ripcord. There was a moment’s pause and then they raised them up in the air to the top of the tower. The three of them grabbed each other’s hands while they watched the ground get farther away.

“Boy, am I glad we can do this at the same time,” Awinita said.

“Me too,” Rose replied.

There was a moment of silence.

“Hey, guys?” Awinita said.

They looked at her.

“Um…if poop flies out my pants and hits you guys, I apologize in advance,” she said as they laughed.

They reached the top and hung there while the men made a final check.

“Okay! All clear!” the man said, giving him a thumbs up. “Anytime you’re ready, pull the ripcord!”

Alan gave them an evil grin and chuckled when he listened to them squeal with fear.

“Better get that shite ready, Awinita, because here we GO!”

He pulled it and they all screamed as they freefell towards the ground. When they were six feet from hitting the ground, the line became taut and the swing arced back up into the air. All of them screamed when it slowed and began to go backwards. They went back and forth a few times before it finally slowed enough that men could come and stop them. They let them out of the harnesses and they stood up.

“Well, I don’t see any poo on my person,” Alan said, looking down. “Well done, Awinita, you managed not to soil yourself and us in the process, bravo.”

“I’m amazed I didn’t,” she said.

He slapped his hands.

“Well, I guess no one wants to do the human slingshot one, eh?”

“Not on your bloody life, three death defying things were enough for me,” Rose said.

“Me too.”

“Well then, let’s go ride the go-karts then,” he said.

Rose laughed as Alan drove around the track. They were in a double car while Awinita followed behind them in a single one.

“This is much better,” she said. “Finally something near the bleedin’ ground!”

He smiled at her.

“I’m glad you did this with me though,” he said.

“Yeah, me too. I never thought I would ever have the guts to bungee jump, but then again, a few years ago I never dreamed I would be travelin’ through time and space with an alien.”

“And not only did you bungee jump, you freefell into a net and you swung through the air. You have bragging rights now, Tyler. We all do.”

“Well, just as long as we never have to do that ever, ever again. I did it once and that was enough!”

She laughed when Alan turned on a sharp corner and went down an incline. She took hold of his arm and leaned against him.

“We’re gonna have to find something else that’ll top the bungee jumpin’ now,” she said.

He grinned.

“Oh, we will, Starlight, we will. There’s still a lot of adventures left on this journey and we’re gonna find them all, I guarantee!”

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