Julian watched as the guests had started arriving, a scowl on his face. The fake smiles, the formal pleasantries- they were all scenes he was all too familiar with. He'd lived through countless parties just like this, eventually meeting his end at one. It annoyed him to no end, Alison deciding to go through with the party.
Alison and Mike had been welcoming them with open arms, distributing floor plans and giving them a voucher for a discounted stay in the future. (that had been Pat's idea, which he was still proud of.) Julian finally huffed and gave up, making his way from the foyer towards the main room, which in this case was the biggest room- the sitting room. It had been decorated lavishly with baubles, holly, tinsel, stockings, mistletoe and other random Santa heads and figures.
He found Kitty and Mary there, discussing the guests from a safe distance near the fireplace, looking around in wonder at all the women in their neat suits (which included trousers). Pat was hovering over a group of teens, who were having a heated discussion about the match between Manchester and Liverpool that had taken place that weekend.
Thomas was nowhere to be found, but he was probably sulking around somewhere. Robin was weaving around the guests, trying to find his place in the crowd. Their chess table had been temporarily moved upstairs, and so his usual spot was concerningly empty. Julian stormed through the room, scoffing and almost running straight into Fanny, who he had managed to avoid for most of the day. She gave him a weary look, still unconvinced he wasn't up to something.
"You better not be planning anything." She said, pulling a characteristically Fanny face. Julian rolled his eyes and raised his hands. "I'm not! It's a little hard when you can't really touch most things." He replied, getting defensive. She hummed, giving him one last look before her eye fell on something behind him and her mouth fell open in disgust.
"Young man that table is a vintage! Use a coaster!" She futilely called out, pointing her finger and stomping over. Julian took the opportunity to slip out of the busy room, avoiding Alison and Mike- who had welcomed their last guests and were getting ready to host a speech. And though he would normally always stick around for a good speech, he had better things to do right now.
He made his way over to the kitchen, where he'd hidden the little white remote the day earlier. The remote to the sprinkler system. A devious grin spread onto his face as he warmed up his finger. This was going to be fun...
"Welcome to 2019, Theo." William said, as Captain tried desperately to get his breathing back under control. He did feel a little better, but the loud music made him want to put his hands over his ears. He was still not feeling great, the sickness making him shiver from the cold and sweaty from the heat at the same time.
"2000? And 19? Surely this is a joke... I expected better from you Lieutenant. The war may be over b-"
"No, I'm telling the truth, Theo. Look!" He said, scanning a nearby room and finding a television in it. Leading the Captain into it, he grabbed the remote and turned the TV on. He watched the Captain's eyes grow as large as saucers at the sight.
"What in the bally hell-..." He began, cutting himself off. William couldn't help but grin at it, despite the tired look on his face, this was still the same man he'd come to know so well over the past few years. William grabbed the Captain's upper arm, turning off the TV with his free hand and leading him out of the television room, and down the stairs.
The Captain was hesitant, not wanting to be any closer to the loud music than necessary, but followed William regardless. William, who felt like he had been holding his breath the entire time, was growing more anxious by the second. His decisions had led him to this point, a point where he could not get back from- he'd already brought the Captain back to the future, and told him more than he probably ought to have told. There was no bringing the man back to the past now.
He was still leading the Captain down the hallway, on his way to the library, where he knew he would find... The Captain. His Captain- Theo. God, this was getting confusing. He held his breath as they neared the library, and when he finally rounded the corner and could take a look into the room, he could see the Captain there in the windowsill, looking out into the night with a firm expression- as if he were deep in thought.
This was it.
If his plan didn't work now, he would be screwed.
But there was no going back anymore, the past Captain was already here- and so was the present Captain.
He had to do this. Now.
He tried to swallow down his wildly beating heart to get in enough air, and cleared his throat, causing Theo to turn his head towards him. His heart skipped a beat at the look on his face. How this man could be the same man as the worn Captain who was standing beside him, just on the other side of the doorframe was still a mystery to William.
Theo raised his eyebrows. He hadn't seen William at all since their conversation that afternoon, and by the way he'd stormed off he'd expected the ex-lieutenant to need some more time to cool off. He was about to open his mouth to ask what was wrong, when William beat him to it.
"Theo." He said, his eyes briefly flickering from him to something on his right, just outside the room. "I want you to see somebody." He eventually continued, and he stepped aside, pulling into view...
Himself?
What?
What had William done... Had he actually gotten his past self? Was he truly that desperate to be with a living version of him? A sick, lonely and pathetic version of him-
His past self had stumbled into view, locking eyes with Theo immediately, his mouth falling open in disbelief. Neither of them quite knew what to say, but neither of them would have the time- because according to William's recollection...
Theo felt a sudden pull as a wave of dizziness hit him- a wave like he hadn't experienced in decades. His head was spinning, and the muffled music from downstairs painfully pounded through his skull. He brought his hands up to his eyes, trying to get his bearings, but it didn't help much. He felt nauseous, his stomach seeming to coil with every slight movement he made. He instinctively brought his arm up around his stomach and doubled over in pain. The lights were all of a sudden too bright, the sounds too loud but yet muffled, and he felt heavy. His knees started to shake as he tried to wrap his head around the fact that he was standing now, while he had been sitting in the windowsill moments before. He was hot and cold at the same time, feeling a cold sweat break out on his brow. Then there was a warm pair of hands on his back as he doubled over in pain. He distantly heard William calling out his name, but he lacked the energy to respond to anything else than the onslaught of sensations that suddenly flooded his system.
His knees finally gave out, and he felt himself fall- but before he could hit the ground, he felt arms wrap around him, lowering him down gently. The hands were on his shoulders then, and then on jawline. He slowly tried to open his eyes, letting the bright lights of the corridor blind him temporarily. With a start he realised he was panting, chest heaving with deep breaths trying to get air into his lungs. All he could see was the blurry shape of William in front of him as he rested his back against the wall of the corridor.
"Oh my god,"
"Oh that doesn't look good." A voice mumbled, one he vaguely recognised as Thomas. William shot them both a quick look, unable to keep the smile from his face.
"Theo! Theo.... Theo" William began, trying to get the man's attention. "My plan worked." He continued- but to Theo it was muffled, like there was cotton in his ears. The sound of William's voice calmed him down a bit though, so he concentrated on it. On his voice, his hands on his jawline... He kept panting, unable to stop like he usually would. He barely noticed two other blurry shapes stepping into the corridor, moving towards them quickly.
"You merged with your past self, Theo... I was right." Looking back at William, Theo was suddenly aware of the way he could feel his heart jump. And jump again. And again, falling into a comfortable rhythm once again as he finally got his breathing under control. His vision swam as he realised it wasn't just a random jump, but a beat. A heartbeat.
"You're alive!" William said, a broad smile growing on his face as he threw his hands around the former ghost briefly, before sitting back. The Captain was still in a state of shock, barely managing to register what was happening when he felt another wave of dizziness come over him...
...and it all went black.
Alison led Mike out of the foyer, and pressed a pile of cards into his hands. "No I can't do it. There's so many of them!" She said, stealing a glance into he room, which was packed by now with important people, who no doubt could speech and toast like anything. Mike held up his hands, doing anything he could to not take the cards from her.
"How am I supposed to give a speech to people who speech for a living?" She asked again, shooting Mike a nervous look. He wrapped his arms around her, placing a soft kiss on her head.
"You'll be fine love, remember the tv-interview? You did fine there." He said, to which Alison rolled her eyes.
"Oh the Butt Ho interview you mean? Yeah, that went splendidly." She remarked, causing Mike to let out a small laugh. She shot him a dirty look, and he quickly stopped.
"Look, Obi's not made your outfit today, you've got the cards... You'll be absolutely fine! I believe in you."
Alison nodded, taking a deep breath. She nervously made her way into the room, taking a quick glance around at the amount of people she was about to address, and took another deep breath before clearing her throat loudly, watching as the heads of every single person in the room turned towards her. Her breath hitched for a moment with nerves, but she swallowed them down and opened her mouth.
"Hello everyone, first off I want to thank everybody for coming to Button house, and-"
"Alison!" Came a panicked voice through the thick silence. It was Thomas, who was on the other side of the room, standing beside a distraught-looking Julian. She tried to ignore him, continuing on with her speech.
"And I hope everyone managed to find it okay-" She continued, before being interrupted by Thomas once again, who was apparently in such a hurry that he risked the nausea of walking through people to get to her faster.
"Alison!" She could see there was something seriously wrong now that he was up close, his panicked face spoke volumes. "You need to come right now, there is something wrong with the Captain!" He said, gesturing towards the back of the room. A heavy weight settled in Alison's stomach as she realised the situation couldn't be good.
"Ehm... I want to pass the word to my husband Mike for the explanation of tonight's eventsthankyou-" She sputtered out quickly, stepping back and pressing the pile of cards into Mike's hands with a knowing look.
"What the hell?" he mouthed, and she could only gesture wildly, hoping he got the message. She hurried off, a frantic Thomas following her through the crowded room over to the other side, trying to ignore the funny looks people were sending her as she made her way through the crowd.
"Right.... So.... Tonight drinks and snacks will be-" She heard Mike start as all heads turned towards him instead.
Thomas had been at his usual place in the library, sighing. There was yet another party full of people he wouldn't be able to show off his poetry to. All the people being in the same small place freaked him out as well, not because he didn't like the people, but because someone would always inevitably pass through him making him sick. He'd been there less than fifteen minutes however, before the first guests had found their way into the small library and began talking very boring business plans.
"Oh for heaven's sake!" Thomas cried, standing up with a huff. "What does a poet have to do to get a little peace and quiet around here?" He lamented, leaving the room through the wall and finding himself in the hallway that lead to the kitchen.
His complaining was interrupted by a familiar grunting, the sound that a certain MP made when he was trying to exert himself by touching something. Bored, Thomas wandered over- wanting to see what the man was up to. Knowing him, it couldn't be anything good.
"What are you doing?" Thomas asked suspiciously, peeking around the doorframe at the other man. Julian visibly jumped, obviously not expecting anyone to be in the kitchen. He shot a look back at Thomas and seemed to relax a bit, grabbing at his chest as if he'd had a heart attack- the irony of which was not lost not him.
Thomas stepped further into the kitchen, spotting the remote instantly. A frown grew on his face.
"Isn't that the remote for the sprinklers?" Thomas asked again, pointedly. Julian gaped at him in disbelief.
"How would you know? You weren't even there yesterday."
"Well contrary to popular belief I am not stupid... And also Alison asked me this morning if I'd seen a small white remote just like that." He said, pointing at the device. Julian groaned, rolling his eyes upwards in frustration. After he'd collected himself he once again faced Thomas.
"You shouldn't bother her now. We'll tell her we found it later." He suggested, hoping to god Thomas would buy it. Luck didn't seem to be in his favour however, because Thomas's gave him a suspicious look and shook his head.
"You're planning something aren't you?"
"No, I am not. Mp's honour, you know how it is." Julian tried.
"Well why don't we ask Alison then." Thomas said, a devilish smile growing on his face. Julian kept a poker face, nodding in faux agreement.
"Fine." He whispered, with the best fake smile he could muster. His plan of setting off the sprinklers at Alison's speech was miserably and direfully spoiled. Well... maybe he'd have a chance later. He cursed inwardly as Thomas led them out of the kitchen into the empty corridor. They walked a little ways down in silence, before a panicked voice distracted them from their mission.
"Oh my god." Julian said, his eyes on the two figures sitting together on the floor of the corridor.
"Oh that doesn't look good" Thomas remarked at the same time, watching as the Captain was struggling on the floor, his face pale and sweaty- he didn't know they could be sweaty, strange... The Captain was panting, gasping for a breath that he shouldn't need, and his eyes were unfocused.
"Theo! Theo.... Theo! My plan worked." William was saying, trying to keep the Captain from slumping downwards. He seemed beyond excited, a broad smile on his face that he didn't quite seem to be able to wipe off. He glanced at Thomas, and then looked at Julian, seemingly not really knowing what to say to them, so he simply turned back to the Captain, who had grabbed William's sleeve tightly in his delirium.
"You merged with your past self, Theo... I was right." William said then, trying to get the Captain's attention, watching as the man finally started breathing more evenly, and his hands stopped shaking as bad. Thomas and Julian could only watch on in confusion as William uttered his next words.
"You're alive."
Thomas gasped in shock, faintly hearing Julian do the same as they stared at the Captain with an open mouth, all thoughts frozen for a good few seconds. But then the Captain's head lulled, going even paler than he already was and his eyes rolled back into his head. They watched as the indescribable happiness on William's face turned to shock and fear.
"No, no no no no, Theo come on. Teddy wake up." He said in a panicked tone.
"His name is Theo?" Julian suddenly said, having it be the only thing he could properly process. He looked at Thomas, who could only shrug. He hadn't known either, the Captain was a very secretive man. The sound however, made William's head shoot up, once again reminded that there were other people there.
"Well don't just stand there! Get Alison!" He yelled at them, spurring them into action. Thomas was the first to run off, with Julian hot on his heels, speeding down the hallway like a life depended on it. It may very well do. Thomas eventually reached the sitting room, where most of the people had gathered for Alison's speech. Julian arrived a few seconds later, standing behind Thomas and scanning the crowded room.
"You're not gonna get through that, mate."
"Well we're just going to have to. You saw the Captain, there's something seriously wrong." Thomas shot back.
"I'm not going through them. Can't you just call her over?" Julian replied, a little annoyed at the amount of people. His first plan had failed miserably, and now with the Captain like this it hit even closer to home. He wasn't keen on reliving the night of his death, so he decided then and there he would do anything in his power to make sure the Captain got help. But he really didn't want to have to go through these people...
"Alison!" Thomas shouted, and both of the ghosts watched her gaze snap over to them as she pretended she couldn't hear them- continuing on with her speech.
"She's ignoring us." Thomas hissed angrily. Julian rolled his eyes.
"Well, duh. She's giving a speech. You don't disturb someone during a speech." He paused for a second, thinking.
"Now go disturb her."
Thomas pulled an indignant face. "What? Why me?"
"She'll listen to you! Now go!" He said, shoving the other ghost forward- right through the first row of people. He heard Thomas gag violently on the other side of the human wall, and thanked god it wasn't him.
Thomas continued to make his way toward Alison, waves of nausea hitting him with every person he had to pass through, but he tried to ignore the sick feeling in his stomach and finally reached Alison, who was now in the middle of her speech.
"Alison!" He said again, glancing back towards Julian for a split second, who gave him a thumbs up, and then looking back at Alison. "You need to come right now, there is something wrong with the Captain!" He couldn't express enough how badly he needed her to believe him, but somehow the look on his face must have convinced her, because she stammered out a quick excuse and pressed the pile of cards she was holding into Mike's hands.
"This better be real Thomas or I swear to god-" She mumbled softly, avoiding his gaze to try and look as normal as she possibly could. She started making her way through the crowd, Thomas following behind her, grateful for the fact he didn't need to pass through anybody this time.
"Yes! That's what I've been trying to tell you. There's something seriously wrong with the Captain, he's all sweaty and pale and-"
"I didn't know ghosts could sweat" Alison said, finally stepping out into the hallway and letting Thomas and Julian lead the way.
"We can't." Thomas replied, shooting her a serious look. She didn't reply, but hurried along the dark corridor, until she could finally see William who was hunched over the Captain, calling his name (was it Theo? How had she never
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