Chapter 1

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The sound of giggling startled me awake. I sat up and rubbed my eyes, then dragged myself into the kitchen to see what was going on. At first, I couldn't find the source of the noise, but a sudden mechanical whirring caught my attention.

My head snapped to the right and I couldn't believe what I saw. Ryan had his head upside down, mouth open, under the coffee pot, chuckling like a little boy. The Doctor was making her happy scronch face as she encouraged him.

"What are you doing?" I asked, horrified at the sight. It was so early that the sun hadn't even risen yet. The Doctor jumped and soniced the pot before rushing over to me.

"Did we wake you? Sorry, Yaz. On the bright side, I fixed your coffee pot!" She rambled. I furrowed my eyebrows and Ryan pulled his head out from under the machine.

"What do you mean? My coffee pot worked perfectly fine," I inquired, deciding that whatever they had to say next wouldn't be anything normal. Of course, I was right.

"Now it dispenses chocolate," Ryan exclaimed, licking his lips. He gave the Doctor a fist bump and she looked like she just received a metal. I raised my eyebrows and they both had the common sense to look down at their feet.

"My mom isn't going to be pleased," I warned, heading over to the big purple couch. I sank down and Anna hopped up into my lap. The Doctor made her a little cat bed next to the couch where she'd been sleeping and she loved it.

"Don't make assumptions, darling," Najia advised from her bedroom doorway. She shuffled out to the kitchen, looking groggy, and the Doctor began filling a mug of chocolate.

"Is it still caffeinated?" My mother asked, and Ryan grinned.

"Yeah. I feel great. Wide awake," Ryan announced, plopping down beside me on the sofa. The Doctor handed the mug to my mom with an apology for waking her.

"Shouldn't you be watching Jack?" I asked, motioning to the TARDIS. It had been a full day since we'd picked up Captain Jack Harkness from that van parked on the side of the road. He still hadn't woken up, and I was on edge. I didn't know who he was or if he was dangerous.

"Eh, I put a sensor on him. The TARDIS should set off all of her alarms when he wakes up. Might startle the neighbors, blow a few power boxes, hopefully nothing serious though," The Doctor smiled, hands on her hips. She filled another mug and handed it to me. Hesitantly, I took a sip. It wasn't half bad.

My mom decided to head back to bed and the Doctor squeezed herself in between me and the arm of the sofa. I turned to Ryan, suddenly realizing how odd it was for him to be here so early in the morning.

"Did you seriously come over here just for the chocolate coffee pot?" I asked, tilting my head. Sometimes it felt like Graham and I were the only ones of the group with any maturity.

"No, there was something else," Ryan trailed off, surprising me. Had he really come over here with an intention? I was nearly impressed. He made a face like he suddenly remembered.

"Oh yeah. Graham has been acting really strange lately," Ryan started. I furrowed my eyebrows and the Doctor looked up from her sonic.

"And that's why you decided to come over at 3am?" I asked. He shook his head and rolled my eyes, as if he expected me to know what he was talking about.

"No, obviously I had more reason. Come on, Yaz," Ryan teased. Now it was my turn to roll my eyes. The Doctor seemed more concerned.

"What do you mean, acting odd? How, whats he doing?" She questioned, leaning in over my lap. Anna purred beneath her face and a month ago, I would have turned red and flustered. Now- now that I've spent more time with the Doctor- I can better handle myself. We're just friends, and I know that now. Best friends.

"Well, the other day I said I was hungry, and he went- 'we just ate'!" Ryan exclaimed. I raised my eyebrows, finding little proof in that. The Doctor's, however, lowered.

"Graham is always hungry," she stated, almost gravely. Ryan's eyes were wide and panicked.

"I know!" He agreed. I shook my head and handed Anna to the Doctor so I could stand up and pace.

"That just doesn't seem like enough proof to start investigating to me, Ryan. Do you have any proper evidence?" I asked, really wanting to help, but not knowing how. If I were going to assist in any way, I'd need to know a little more.

"Stop talking like a fed, Yaz, we're your friends, not your coworkers," Ryan scolded. I shrugged and crossed my arms. I couldn't help it- we'd been in Sheffield, taking a break from traveling, for a while. I'd finally gotten back in the groove of police work.

"I'm sorry. It's just, I can't be suspicious of someone just because they weren't hungry," I reasoned. Ryan seemed to leap at the opportunity to share more.

"It's not just that. A few hours ago I got out of bed to get a drink and he was in the kitchen- just standing there, all freaky, staring out the window. He didn't even blink, it was like he didn't notice me there," he worried. I crossed my arms and considered the statement. It was certainly odd- Graham always took every opportunity possible to interact with his grandson. And it was a bit strange to stand in your kitchen motionless in the middle of the night, too.

I could tell the Doctor was ready to go check Graham out for herself and I grabbed my coat.

"Who's going to listen for Jack?" I asked, concerned that he would wake up when the Doctor's not there. She grinned, grabbed a walk-in talkie from her pocket, and ran into my parents' room. Who knew where she got the walker talkie from, but apparently my mother was willing to keep and ear out and report any changes.

"It's way too early for this," I groaned, tying my shoes. Ryan rolled his eyes and walked out the front door, and the Doctor was so excited that she was practically jumping. I knew she was growing restless here.

"Never too early for a good mystery," The Doctor sung, linking her arm with mine. 

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