thetenspot: Ten Things You Learned As A Child

1. You're eight years old. You look into the Time Vortex. You learn how to start running.
2. You can see the Vortex in your dreams, There are worlds out there, beyond the Gallifreyan horizon, that are terrible and beautiful. You learn about desire. You desire the universe out there.
3. You get an subquarkian microscope for your birthday. You learn that things are more beautiful up close. You decide that the stars must be more beautiful up close, too.
4. You learn about diseases of the brain. You're your own physician, so you diagnose yourself. It is a disease, the desire to see them all, all those stars. You're not a doctor, not yet anyway, so you can't cure that ill yet. You learn to accept that you'll always de different.
5. You do well in school. You hear your teachers making snide comments about the overachieving half-breed in your class. Human mother, didn't deserve to become a Time Lord. You realize they're talking about you. You learn to resent prejudicial hate, you promise yourself to always give people the benefit of the doubt.
6. You do badly in school on purpose. You overhear your teachers making snide comments about the stupid half-breed in your class. You smile and learn how much fun it is to defy authority.
7. You fail three classes, and decide that school is a ridiculous institution. You resolve to never end up like your indolent ancestors. You learn that doing is so much better than merely reading about it.
8. Your mother dies. Too young, only 75. Your father shuts down, hides away, and immerses himself in research. You learn how to repress.
9. You walk by the shipyard and watch the foreman close the gates. Koschei mocks the man, gets tossed away. You make polite conversation. The foreman offers you a drink in exchange for company. You learn that the right words get you anywhere you want to be.
10. You listen to him complain about shipyard management. He's one of those Time Lords, like you, that doesn't believe in stuffy research, and would rather take the Type 40s that are sitting in that yard out for a spin rather than let them sit and rot. You learn that the Time Lords don't take care of those ships. You learn that it's very easy to break into the shipyards at night.


Muse: The Doctor (Ten)
Fandom: Doctor Who
Word Count: 398