Christmas Open Thread

[rude_not_ginger]

•deck•the•halls•

• THE DOCTOR LEARNS THE TRUE MEANING OF CHRISTMAS •

~•~


Christmas Eve. 2009.

The Doctor loved Christmas! Back when he was a wee Time Lord, the first place he ever landed was London on Christmas Eve. He promised himself he'd never miss another Christmas ever, but that promise went into the same pile as "Lose weight" and "Regenerate a better hairline" and "Stop leaving companions in other universes". But the Doctor had never quite gotten the hang of New Years'. (He once spent several hours commiserating on the similarity between the confusing nature of New Years and Thursdays with one Arthur Dent, who will sadly not be appearing in this piece of narrative. -editor)

But! Through all his travels in space and time, he still hadn't quite figured out what Christmas was for exactly. Except as a yearly excuse for turkey, too much wine, and plum pudding (all of which the Doctor approved of). This year, though, as he strode the streets on this wonderful Christmas Eve, the Doctor decided he would figure out exactly what Christmas was all about.

This may or may not have included use of a intergalactic manipulative detector and a full pack of radio stellar isotopian crystals. Oh, and a cup of hot chocolate. In a festively-coloured cup.

There was a lovely light snow, and the Doctor grinned madly at the stars. Christmas. This year, he was going to figure out what it was all about.


~•~

OOC: Open thread, feel free to tag in as if your character is a passerby or as if your character is a long-standing companion! I'll be working on this thread up until the New Year, most likely! Everyone from any verse (or no verse!) is welcome, just let me know if you'd prefer it from a community or specific universe! And, for this thread, threadhopping is totally welcome!

Happy Holidays, everyone! &hearts

Comments

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Well, when I first stole the TARDIS, the very first place we landed was Christmas Eve, in London. I'd never been off-world before, and it was everything I could've possibly wanted in a new world."

He grinned madly over to Dorothy. "Strange sights, odd smells, and snow falling from the sky. I'd never seen anything like it."

It was one of the reasons he'd always loved London, too. The first place he'd visited, and it hadn't let him down, not even a little bit. He sighed, happy and nostalgic.

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

"Odd smells? You callin' my planet smelly?" She playfully poked him in the side with her elbow. "I can understand the feeling, though. Green grass, white snow, Christmas lights everywhere. Must have felt like magic."

There was a small chance she was being hyperbolic there, but it was equally as likely that she was dead serious. After all, she was the one, between the two of them (three, if you count the dog) who knew what magic actually felt like. Maybe it felt like Christmas.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"It did," the Doctor said. "And I fell in love with Earth."

He grinned up to the sky, where the snow fell into his hair, cold and wet. It was wonderful.

"And I don't fall out of love easily."

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

Dorothy smiled at him-- she couldn't help it, the look in his eyes could pretty much melt even the most frozen of hearts-- and turned her face to the sky as well. The snow blowing through the path of a nearby streetlight's beam looked like a million tiny feathers in a cyclone.

"That's what you tell me."

The dog lets out a bark here, just one short sharp one, which draws a quietly forceful scolding from Dorothy. He promptly quiets and goes back to watching the snowfall.

"We really need to find a name for him, y'know."

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Don't even think about naming him Christmas," the Doctor said, firmly. "He needs something dignified, and yet doggie."

He thought for a moment, and then grinned. "Mickey?"

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

"Too mousey." While it's a sad thing that Dorothy's never met poor Mickey Smith, and she'd probably like him if she had, it was in his best interests that her latest dog does not end up named after him. The Doctor would never let him forget about it.

"What about Rex? Rex is a good dog name." She looked down at the mid-sized shepherd dog, who looked up at her, smiling and wagging his fluffy tail. "Maybe Elvis."

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Oh, I like Elvis," the Doctor said. He knelt down, looking at the dog and sighing. It was cute, but he couldn't help but think that no dog would enjoy a life on the TARDIS. Cats, sometimes. but only for a while.

"Something intellectual. Like Socrates." He paused, considering Dorothy's taste. "We could nickname him Socks."

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

The nameless dog smiled up at the Doctor, in his happy doggy way, and licked him. It licked him lots. Dorothy continued on, as if it wasn't even worth mentioning.

"More like Diogenes," she muttered, tapping her chin absently. "What about an astronomer? Or an astrophysicist or something? If we absolutely have to take the science route."

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"The sheer number of germs you're sharing with me is disgusting," the Doctor told the dog, though he didn't even try to push it away, he just pat its head.

A name wasn't that important, it was just a sweet pet. Made the Doctor smile, even though he was working very hard on his most grumpiest face.

"I'm sure we'll work something out," he said. He grinned. "Who's a good boy?" he said to the dog.

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

Woof, the dog replied. He would like the Doctor to know that he is, in fact, a very good boy. A very good boy that deserves a treat, yes?

"See? You like dogs. You always act like you don't like dogs, but you like dogs. And he likes you. They're just like children, only dogs will actually do what you tell 'em."

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

The Doctor looked up to Dorothy with mock skepticism. "Are you sure we're ready for that sort of responsibility?"

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

"Well, I am. You probably won't ever be."

Dorothy gave the Doctor her most matter-of-fact look.

"That's alright, though, plenty of dogs live in single-parent households."

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

The Doctor scratched behind the dog's ear. "You hear that? I'm not grown up enough to take care of you. She's so mean." He grinned back to Dorothy, then straightened, focusing again on the device in his hand.

"So! We'll have Rudolph here lead the way, shall we?"

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

Dorothy made an effort to fake an offended look. "I'm not mean! I don't have a mean bone in my body. You better watch what you say about me, Stringbean, or you'll be the one sleeping in the doghouse tonight."

But she could never stay mad at him for too long. Especially when it was fake. She leaned over and peered at the weird device.

"Depends. What exactly is that and what's it leading towards?"

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Psychic wavelength detector," the Doctor said, showing it to her. "Keeps track of the size of different psychic energies. I figure if Christmas is a psychic feeling or a sense of good will, we should be able to follow it right to the source."

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

"...You think there's a physical source of Christmas cheer?"

Dorothy was skeptical about his technological doodads on the best of days. This one, though, took the proverbial cake. This was, in her experience, the sort of situation where you just sit back and wait for the inevitable ridiculous explanation before you jump in and try to explain why it makes no sense. At the very least, she'd get a laugh out of it.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Why wouldn't there be?" the Doctor asked, genuinely confused by her question.

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

"A thousand years old, and you've got a lot to learn about humanity."

The dog whined, and Dorothy kneeled down and unclipped the leash from his collar. He bounded off into the snow, jumping and rolling around in the fluffy whiteness.

"It's not about 'psychic energies'. It's just the time of year when people appreciate the things they're blessed with." She stands, dusting snow off her knees. "Showing love to people we care about is what Christmas is all about."

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Isn't that what any part of the year is about?" the Doctor asked, distracted again by the device he played with. "What is it about this time of the year specifically that makes people want to do the right thing by their fellow man?"

The Doctor had to admit, it was adorable to watch the dog leap through the snow, excited by something so simple.

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

"Ideally, sure. Humans tend to be pretty selfish most of the time, though. Having a holiday that reminds us to be good to our fellow man and tell our families we love and appreciate them is kinda necessary, a lot of the time."

Dorothy tucked her hands back in her coat pockets, shrugging a little. "And it's got to do with the time of year, I s'pose. Winter's a long, dark, cold time for most of the world, Doctor, people need an excuse to get together and be warm and happy for a while."

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"I thought that was what Valentine's Day was for," the Doctor said. He popped the top off of his device and blew into it. "Am I wrong?"

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

"No, dear, Valentine's Day is for buying your girlfriend chocolates." She peered up at him, that teasing half-smile on her face. "I like dark chocolate, by the way."

The dog bounded over in front of them, and barked twice, clear and sharp, to get their attention. As if to say, silly noisy human people! What are you waiting for, there's SNOW to play in!

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Dark?" the Doctor said, making a face. "Milk is infinitely better. What day of the year do you buy me chocolate?"

[galeforcehero.livejournal.com]

"I don't know, your birthday?"

She paused.

"Do you have a birthday?"

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Of course I have a birthday," the Doctor said. "It just doesn't fall on an Earth day. So! I just don't worry about it, and neither should you."

Age may or may not have been a particularly sore subject.