Mutual Dislike
Title: Mutual Dislike
Author: tromana
Rating: PG-13
Characters: 5th Doctor, Peri, Erimem, Antranak (the cat)
Spoilers: Only 5/Peri/Erimem stories. But I've written this only listening to one, so...
Summary: Antranak and the Doctor have a mutual agreement. Hatred.
Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who. If I did, you really wouldn't want to watch.
Notes: Blame sneakyangel for this. She introduced me to Erimem in the audios, and I'm hooked after one! For the record, I love cats - I have four.
Beta'd by sneakyangel , too. Thanks!
Mutual Dislike
He knew he should never have let Erimem bring that damn animal on board. After all, his earlier selves would never have stood for it. But, there was something gentler about this incarnation and something about that look in Erimem’s eye as she stared at the TARDIS exterior. Maybe going inside would be one step too far into the unknown for this Egyptian Pharaoh who never was? He’d sighed heavily in agreement as Peri smirked beside him. He had a feeling that those two would be plotting behind his back quite a lot, now. It was a smug, vicious thing. Two-faced, too. Wherever you went in the Universe, whatever time-zone, it seemed that cat kind were always the same. They were only willing to rest on a pliant humanoid’s shoulder if it made it easier for them to scratch the eyes out of the humanoid behind. Of course, both Peri and Erimem were blind to this. Totally under the cruel animal’s spell whilst it clawed its way up his favourite trousers. And to think they were worshipped as Gods where Erimem came from!
He had ‘accidentally’ shut it outside. Once, twice… seven times. So far. But every time he did so, somehow either Peri or Erimem were by his side either glaring at him or looking impossibly sad. And when he finally gave in, the TARDIS door had seemed to amount a significant amount of scratches in her paintwork. Each incident had lead to the TARDIS seeming to sulk and refuse to comply, for a while at least. That wasn’t as bad as the time when the animal had been let loose in the wardrobe. It seemed to magically avoid all of Peri and Erimem’s clothing, yet attack anything the Doctor held dear. Items shredded included a spare cricketing outfit, that fancy-dress outfit that Nyssa had looked so charming in at the Cranleigh Estate, Romana’s Taran suit (if she ever found out, that cat would have it coming) and his extensive scarf and tie collection. As revenge, he shut it in the fourth bathroom. For a week.
Worst of all was the amount of food it seemed to consume on a weekly basis. It felt like ever other day that Peri was asking to stop off at a supermarket to buy some ‘kitty food’ or Erimem would be asking for a suitable hunting ground for ‘my Dear Antranak’. If he hadn’t known otherwise, he would have sworn that Erimem had insisted on bringing along a horse, not a cat.
So that was his life, for now. Dodging expertly aimed cat claws, cleaning up an impossible volume of cat hair and avoiding being tripped up by a lounging… thing under the console. He supposed it was worth it, though. Both Peri and Erimem seemed to adore him, and the feeling appeared to be mutual. He just had to be sure to warn his future selves to never, ever let companions bring a pet aboard. The smaller, the more deadly.
But maybe he should get a pet vortisaur sooner or later. Anything had to be easier than a cat.