Dreams Come True

Prehistory Piggy Poaching

I let out a happy sigh as I chilled inside of the TARDIS' kitchen, sipping on a glass of juice as Gladius talked with Maria and Manolo. Steve and Rory were in the middle of cleaning up after breakfast, the memories of the earlier day still fresh in our minds. Because of that, Marco had been making sure to keep a careful eye on his friend.

As a matter of fact, everyone was a lot more on edge. It was pretty clear Maria wasn't going more than a metre away from me, as she was currently right by my side and hadn't left it since I woke up. Honestly, though, I didn't mind. It was always nice to be able to look to my left and see the woman who basically became my mom over the last few days.

My heart swelled with joy every time I thought of that.

But I was sucked out of my happy thoughts when Gladius shook my shoulder. "Caleb, Maria was talking to you."

I shook my head and looked at her, the wooden woman giving me an odd look. "You doing okay, Caleb?"

"I am", I reassured with a nod. "Just thinking about things. Happy thoughts, obviously."

"Like what exactly?"

I simply gave her a look, my eyes soft and loving. She caught on quickly, and gave me a small and gentle smile.

"Ah, you're adorable", she said with a giggle. I pursed my lips and looked away, and embarrassed blush crawling across my cheeks.

Gladius quietly chuckled. "When a boy finds his place, it's hard for him to stop talking about it."

"Says you, Mr.'Caleb saved me from being trapped in a rock'!" I snarked back. Maria laughed as the three of us all left the kitchen, heading towards the central room so we could go outside. Manolo was there waiting for us, Gladius' scabbard in hand. He smiled at us and handed me the sword cover, Gladius swiftly sliding in as I put it on. Once I was ready, we bid farewell to the others, and left the TARDIS.

I closed my eyes as I soaked up the midday sun, my two adoptive parents at either side. We walked down the sidewalk, no distinct target in mind as we wandered around town.

"So, this town has been... something", Manolo said abruptly. "After you went to have your nap yesterday, me, Ralph and Rory went to check things out a bit. And some of the people here are... I'll say very interesting."

"They found some crazy old man at the junkyard", Maria added bluntly.

I let out a quiet noise of understanding. "Ah, yeah, Old Man McGucket. He's the resident crazy hobo.  And he calls himself that, so don't chew me out for calling him that."

Maria snorted, and Manolo sighed. "Don't worry...", the musician groaned, "He jumped in front of us and did the 'Crazy Hobo Riverdance'... which reminded me of a dead fish."

Gladius wiggled so he could look at the musician. "That's... That's definitely one way to put it..."

Maria snorted. "Considering there's a cult under the museum, I'm not that surprised." She paused. "I think I also saw a gnome rummaging in the garbage bin next to the TARDIS last night..."

"This place sure is eccentric", I said wistfully. "I'm not complaining, it just can be a bit much. But I guess that's just how things are."

Both adults hummed, and we continued our walk in silence.the town was bustling with activity, and I couldn't help but admit it was nice. We walked by a used car dealership, a fancy tent with some sign mentioning a Gideon kid, and another arcade. I was honestly kinda glad yesterday spooked Vanellope into not leaving the TARDIS for the rest of the time we were here.

The married couple led me to the community park, and I followed them as we headed down one of the trails that led to the forest. Birds chirped out a sweet song, a calm summer breeze rustling between the leaves, and some scattered about people minding their own business.