Quite the distinct smell it was.
A blend of anti-septic, a citrus-scented cleaning product, bleach and an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
And ah, yes, the slightest tinge of blood.
It was a hospital.
And it was practically buzzing with the expected personnel.
So, as one would expect…
The 10th Curator had a rare moment of dark fascination creeping up on his features as he clarified;
"Of all the ways to die…"
"Well, if being hit by a sentient beam of pure solar energy tickles your fancy, you're welcome. We already experienced it in the 11th incarnation." the 12th Curator matched his sprint through the busy hospital corridors with a passive response, the wavy strands of his red hair wildly flaying against the breeze.
"Worse than a million rads of UV rays?" the Chaotic 10th pushed intriguingly.
His stylistic black hair was singed from the flames of the Kalis' mothership they had set ablaze a couple minutes ago.
Yet, that didn't stop it from ruffling gently alongside his signature Belle Époque long coat.
"Hmm, can't say." the 12th tilted his head slightly as they turned around a corner, much to the dismay of the nurses and security guards chasing after them.
"Still, a conversation about something so grim on a day so auspicious? How spectacular of us." the 12th Curator had a done look on his features as he halted before a certain door.
Having to deal with his younger incarnation whom had been mistakenly brought to his own timeline due to an instability in The Horologium's time-travelling mechanism, had been quite the experience to say the least.
In an effort to fix what the Kalis had once again broken, the Snarky 12th had accidentally gotten entangled with the energy of her time stream, an accident that resulted in a temporary split of his current incarnation.
Pressing down on the door's handle, the two aliens quickly shuffled in as the Chaotic 10th locked the doors behind him by deconstructing its lock mechanism with his construct gloves.
As the security guards and nurses on the other side of the door tried to get to them, all three turned to face the individuals in the room.
It was a woman who bore a striking resemblance to someone they very well knew, her husband, a couple of their family and friends.
Genuinely relieved to see that she very much existed once again, was proof enough for them to know that the timeline had been fixed.
It however, also meant that they themselves would be returning back to normal pretty soon.
With utterly confused and wary expressions painting the features of each respective individual in the room though, the 10th took the initiative to address their concerns…
"It's a long story."
… not that it stopped them from instinctively taking defensive stances.
One could say his words further served to exacerbate their alertness instead.
"Who are you?" the strikingly familiar woman soon questioned, a strong hint of wariness lacing her features.
"I'm The Curator." the 10th gestured with a mysteriously inviting smile tugging on the corners of his lips while the 12th, ignored the question and simply angled his gaze over to the baby crib.
"She's alright…" he whispered, his tone full of relief.
Following with their gazes as the husband quickly picked up their baby from the crib whom was currently awake and letting out a few incoherent babbles, the 10th, let out an amused chuckle while the 12th had a thin smile form on his lips.
This however, only served to increase the confusion in the room as all cautiously watched the two weirdos in long coats.
But for The Curators whom were capable of understanding all kinds of language, one that also extended to baby babble…
"Her name's Mummy, Kiera Snow, not Big Milk Thing." the Chaotic 10th soon corrected with a gestured finger.
Yet, no sooner had he done that, the tip of said finger, slowly started fading away in a hue of golden shimmer.
Glancing over to the 12th whom was also experiencing the same phenomena, both incarnations glanced over to each other in understanding.
In the blink of an eye, they up and vanished into thin air, faded shimmering dusts of gold left in their wake.
At the exact time, the security guards and nurses burst into the room, their gazes befuddled at the sight of the shimmering dusts.
Landing in The Index, courtesy of The Horologium whom was currently back in tip-top shape, the 10th gave the old girl a bodacious wink;
"Thanks dear."
In response, the technological marvel vibrated. She seemed happy to be complimented as usual.
Clasping his palms lightly, the 10th Curator, then angled his gaze towards the 12th, slowly walking towards him as he spoke.
This time though, all traces of his eccentric persona was gone, his eloquence giving way to a very old and very wise alien;
"We are, ever changing, aren't we? Much like the Ship of Theseus, we are replaced, time and time again, so, when you think about it, we're all different people, all through our lives."
"But that's okay, and that's brilliant. We have to keep moving… so long as we remember, who we once were, what we have to do and, who we're meant to be."
Extending a handshake in the 12th's direction, one whom was ironically giving his younger self a light smile as he also extended his hand in return, the 10th concluded with a sagely smile;
"Never forget who you once were. Never forget what you have to do. Never forget who you're meant to be… because I, will always remember, when the Curator, was me."
No sooner had the 12th received the handshake, the Chaotic 10th flashed him a light grin as he was absorbed into his older incarnation in a stream of silvery hues.
Clenching and unclenching his fists, a genuine smile of appreciation nestling on his features, the 12th spoke;
"He was always quite the deceiving one with that young façade of his."
And then he snapped his fingers as he lightly turned towards The Horologium whom was noticeably enthusiastic for another adventure as she hummed and buzzed;
"Alright dear."
"Where to next?" the 12th pulled on the lever with a spark of wanderlust in his woody-brown irises, the familiar adventurous theme of The Curator kicking in.
-
As the credits of the 50th anniversary special episode rolled, Christina let out another exhilarated shiver of excitement.
This was literally her fifth re-watch of the special episode and yet, it did nothing to dampen how highly-spirited the last scenes especially made her feel.
And well, considering she had written the dialogues in those scenes, one that her husband, in typical fashion had refined to no ends, her current euphoria was justified.
Yes. Husband.
Christina Aubert was now Christina Kestis… for roughly a year at that.
'Oh! Come to think of it, I could tap into the Ship of Theseus analogy! Use its implications, barebones for Vic's speech to Pedro.' Christina swiped her trusty journal off the table and jotted down a couple notes.
'Will need to readjust it to fit the theme though…' she mused, her pen lightly tapping on her chin.
Piercing through her thoughts, the door to the rented condo gently clicked open.
"Babe. What if I told you, right, that the Deli across the street sells those strawberry-flavored boba teas you really love…" Kyle walked into the apartment with a plastic bag in hand, only to give his wife an intrigued squint a couple seconds later.
"… and why, pray do tell, are you staring at me with those loving evergreen eyes?" he pivoted and asked instead.
"For you dear?" Kyle placed the plastic bag on the counter.
"I'd do anything." he replied with an adoring smile as he walked over.
Having acted out the scene she wanted a few minutes later, Christina at the moment, was furiously jotting down all the ideas she was brimming with to improve upon said scene.
Kyle on the other hand, currently laying on the sofa, head resting on Christina's laps, reached out for the stack of scripts for the movie his wife was writing.
Still relatively fresh off her success with [Evergarden] and the romantic anthology, the lady had gotten an idea for a new novel, just a couple months after they'd gotten married.
However, after much deliberation on her part, Christina had figured that it'd work better as a film script.
That said, the unexpected shift in genre she had gone for, came as quite the shocker to a lot of her fans.
Titled, [Lost Haven], the script was at the moment, still being revised as the couple worked to iron out a few kinks here and there.
And so, a couple months later, after the script was finalized, Kyle had addressed the inevitable leaks and rumors at a red carpet interview, confirming that an original, new Hollywood movie was well and truly in the works.
But what really got people hyped and had his adoring masses of fans losing their shit, was the last statement from the man himself;
"Yeah. I'll be helming things as the Executive Producer and, I'll also be playing the role of the story's main antagonist. Please, look forward to it."