I've followed the river, and I got to the sea

[sammytyler]

Characters: Sam Tyler and Annie Cartwright - FINISHED
Rating: PG to PG-13
Time Period: Modern
Location: Castle Exterior, Onto West-Southwest of Castle Grounds
Relative Date: Second Day After Arrival, Mid-Morning
Status: CLOSED

Comments

[anniecartwright]

Annie pulled away, though she tried to do so in such a way as not to further bruise his fragile ego. She really didn't want him to throw another tantrum like he had the night before, because frankly, it was rather embarrassing.

"You learned something in Manchester after all, yeah?" It was a terrible, morbid joke, but one she'd heard for as long as she could remember - the quickest route out of Manchester was a long walk and a short drop into the canal. "Of course, it is a moat - couldn't it be man-made?" She really wasn't trying to discourage him - it was an honest-to-goodness question.

[sammytyler]

Sam felt Annie pull away. Normally it wouldn't have been a gesture he thought twice about, but it pierced him when she moved away from him.

He tried not to look too wounded, and feigned a smile. "Yeah, yeah. Except that is exactly how I'm trying to avoid getting out of here," he reminded her.

Sam gestured back to the moat, and happily splashing swans. "Nah, it's connected to some other body of water somewhere. They didn't just pipe in all this water a thousand years ago," he said and placed his hands into his pockets. "From the helicopter it looked like it went on for quite a ways."

He didn't wait for her to try and discourage him again, and started walking. Sam wasn't sure how confident he felt in his plan -- if there was a way out, this certainly seemed hopeful. But it was the "if" that was keeping his hopes hanging by a thread.

[anniecartwright]

She knew better than to argue - even if it meant they'd just spend the morning walking circles around the castle, Sam would never concede the point. "Right, well, lead on, then," she said, more to herself than to him.

As they walked, she pulled the mobile phone out of her bag and started going through the old messages to get a sense of how many people were about the castle - she figured the place had to be enormous if they hadn't run into more people. She came across a conversation between the Doctor, Martha, and Sam. Stealing a slightly guilty glance sidelong at Sam, she figured they were public, so what the hell? She listened to the exchange, controlling her laughter with difficulty when she got to the bit about 'love circles.' That Doctor bloke was certainly... unique. And well, that solved the mystery of why Sam had been so reluctant to tell her what had happened in Wonderland before she'd arrived.

Ha. Like she cared. With a small sigh, she tucked the mobile away. Perhaps she'd have been better off not knowing.

[sammytyler]

Surprisingly, Sam wasn't in much of a leading mood. He walked slowly toward the bank of the river, and stopped to survey the scene. Annie had seemed engrossed in the voice mail conversations, and he could only hope she didn't care about any of the older messages. He should have just told her the whole story from the beginning, but he never got much of a chance. Suddenly Annie was there with him in Wonderland, and just as suddenly he was back in Manchester. Alone.

He turned toward her, with a crooked smile.

"So, Swindon, eh?" he asked with a teasing tone. Annie was still upset with him, or at least trying to keep a distance between them. Maybe it was better to keep things light until he got into her good graces again. Although, Sam wasn't very good at keeping things light.

[lagomorphobia]

Anya had decided that if there was no transportation to get her out, she would just walk out until she hit a town or something. After the harsh reality of finding out that there was no moneymaking seminar for small businesses, she had spent the night in the castle, figuring she might as well get good room and board out of the deal. The first door she'd tried, the "Red Room," wasn't exactly the five-star suites she'd seen, but she liked the colors. Unfortunately, she'd spent most of the night trying to figure out how to call Xander from the stupid cell phone she'd "borrowed" from the helicopter. Hey, it wasn't as if the pilot had been back for it. And if he did she'd

[anniecartwright]

Annie was midway through answering Sam when a slight American woman turned up. She smiled at her, grateful for the distraction - she really hadn't thought of how she'd explain her escape from Manchester to Swindon to Sam, because really, it hadn't been as simple as a normal promotion or lateral transfer.

"That's what we're trying to find. Sam," she said, indicating him, "and I are going to follow the water and see where it takes us." There - Annie was presenting a united front exactly as she'd been taught.

[sammytyler]

Sam furrowed his brow toward the American. He didn't recognize her from Wonderland or his life outside all of this. He nodded toward her, as Annie answered.

"Yeah, and see if we can even make it that far," Sam added with a tone of cynicism. "I'm Sam Tyler. This is Annie Cartwright. We're police officers."

[lagomorphobia]

Anya snorted, skeptical. "Police officers? What kind, the ones in the mall giving out parking tickets? I mean, you're not even in uniform." She took a breath, and then continued on as if she hadn't even noticed her own rudeness.

"What if the water doesn't go anywhere-- anywhere useful, anyway? I mean, it is a moat." She looked at both of them innocently.

[anniecartwright]

Annie arched an eyebrow. "We're detectives with CID." She glanced at Sam as if to say, "She's not the brightest bulb on the chandelier, is she?" Clearing her throat, she went on, "And if the water doesn't lead us anywhere, we'll just think of something else, right, Sam?"

[sammytyler]

Sam folded his arms over his chest defensively. Sam desperately wanted to correct Annie, and mention he was actually a DCI where he came from. Well, where he last came from, but kept his mouth shut on the subject.

"It's been a while since I took a geography class, but from what I can remember...rivers tend to lead to the sea," he said with a gesture toward the river's water.

"Following the water somewhere isn't going to be the problem, it's whether or not it will let us get that far," he added cryptically.

"What's your name?" he asked the American girl.

[anniecartwright]

"Well, the water is moving," she put in encouragingly, smiling at the American girl.

"And if you'll kindly stop ending our tour before it's begun, Sam, we can see just where this water does go." Honestly, he was such a defeatist - who was to say the water wouldn't lead them out. After all, there had been a way into the castle, and since it was well stocked with food and drink (and kumquats of all things), Annie reasoned there had to be other routes into and out of the castle - after all, they didn't seem to be held captive alongside merchants and farmers.

[lagomorphobia]

"I'm Anya." She stepped closer and held out her hand, pretty sure by now they were not vampires-- or if they were, they were the pathetic, neutered kind like Spike and probably not much of a threat.

"I agree that we should get going as soon as damn possible," she told Annie. "Xander's going to be worried sick about me, and I could never get this stupid phone to work. You seem to be a lot more adequate at this than him," she jerked her thumb at Sam, still smiling politely.

[sammytyler]

Sam took her hand and shook it lightly. "It's nice to meet you, Anya," he said sincerely, looking her over. He wondered what note to this girl could have said to lure her here, and what someone's reason for luring her anywhere could have been. She looked pretty harmless.

Sam sighed, and tried to ignore the jab directed toward him. He rubbed his temple before speaking again.

"Yeah, okay. Let's get going, then," he turned and started to walk along the bank. "If anyone feels anything we're turning around, though."

[anniecartwright]

Annie shook the girl's hand in turn, then walked beside her along the river bank. "Right, well, he's..." How did one even begin to explain Sam Tyler? "He's all right. Just a bit brusque is all." She nodded - 'brusque' was Sam in one word, she thought. "And we're both a bit tired, I think.

"How about you, Anya? Did you only just arrive?" Annie'd already guessed someone was bringing them all there with clever little notes, and she couldn't help wondering what this girl's note said.

[lagomorphobia]

"Only yesterday," Anya replied. "I was told that this was a seminar for small businesses-- to make more money, you see. But when I got here, well. No money! It was very disappointing, let me tell you."

She would have gone on about herself for years but a thought had suddenly hit her from what Sam had said earlier. "Are we supposed to be feeling something? Other than irritation, I mean."

[sammytyler]

Sam also tried to ignore Annie's jab at him, and kept walking.

"Yeah, we all got lured here. One way or another," Sam said with a disapproving sigh.

He glanced over his shoulder toward Anya.

"Some people tried to leave the grounds last night. They got sick, from what I understand. They tried to take a road out of here. If you feel anything...anything at all, speak up. Got it?" Sam was trying not to sound too authoritative, but it was hard. He wanted to make sure Anya understood the seriousness of the situation.