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

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

She shook her head. "I know he's not really there." So she wasn't going to let it lure her away. Besides, he wasn't doing anything, just standing there and looking at her.

"He looks like someone I used to know," she replied. "What does it look like to you?" Maybe knowing that would tell her something, although she wasn't sure what.

She took a step closer to him, reaching a hand out, wandering, if she touched him, whether her hand would go straight through him.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

The Doctor put a hand on Jo's arm.

"Nothing," he said. "It's not there for me, it's---"

The moment he looked back, though, he saw Donna. Standing there, in a silly holiday hat, looking sad. She was transparent, obviously unreal, but something about the way she stood there made it almost irresistible to go towards her.

"I can see it," he said. "Looks like an old friend of mine. You have to fight it. We can do it."

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

Jo hadn't thought there was anything wrong with wanting to touch the spirit, or whatever it was. But Jack clearly did and it made her think that maybe she was acting on impulse and not thinking it through.

"But what if it needs our help?" she asked and the unreal Doctor smiled at her. "What are you trying to tell us?" Presumably if it could talk then it would. "Is it something about old friends?" She frowned. "Or the crystals that got hot. Are you too hot? Too cold?" The unreal Doctor didn't react to any of her questions, which suggested they were all wrong, but she couldn't be sure about that.


ooc: just had a crazy idea - what if it's something that grants wishes and is trapped/overloaded/something along those lines by everyone wishing for stuff for Christmas?

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Clever as ever," the Doctor said under his breath, smiling at Jo. Always thinking on her feet, trying to figure out what was hidden in the different meanings of things.

He shook his head. "Wherever it is, we need to find it first, and then ask it face to face."

Donna still looked sad, but she reached out an arm for him. The Doctor took half a step back. He didn't want to to be pulled in, and he didn't have the faith in this being like Jo did.


OOC: Sounds fantastic! Feeding harmlessly on energy before as it tried to get out of its situation, now gorged and sick it needs to get out asap?

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

"Being able to talk to it would be such a big help." There was just the question of how to do that. Jo didn't believe it would hurt them - if that was what it wanted it surely would have already done that. Or done a better job at luring them closer.

"We can help you," she told it, "but you have to help us. Is there any way you can talk?" The unreal Doctor shook his head, which was an answer at least. Then he reached out a hand to her, inviting her to take it.

She looked over at Jack. She didn't know whether he had a reason for her not to touch it or whether it was just being curious. "It wants me to take its hand," she told him. "Do you know any reason why I shouldn't?"


ooc: Ooh, yes, I like the sound of that

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Because it's what you want, right? And if there's anything I've learned, it's you don't trust things that want to give you exactly what you want," the Doctor said.

After a moment, he added, "From...working at Torchwood. I learned this there."

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

Jo shook her head. "It isn't what I want. Not really." Maybe for a moment she'd wanted to see the Doctor again, but she hadn't meant it literally.

When she turned back to look at the unreal Doctor she called out, "Cliff!" Because now it looked like her husband, only he was doubled over and in pain. And that image was something she couldn't resist helping, so before Jack could stop her she rushed over and put a hand on 'Cliff''s shoulder.


ooc: I have a vague idea that maybe it can communicate in some way if she's touching it - but feel free to make up whatever the Doctor's seeing once she's touched it

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Jo, don't!"

It was too late, though, and her hand went to the apparition. As she touched it, it changed from Donna to Jo's husband (only older, now, and the Doctor could smugly state that he had not aged as well as the Doctor had).

But it was more than that. He saw beams of light where the apparition pulled from Jo. Life energy? Psychic reserves? Whatever it was, it fueled the apparition to make it stronger.


OOC: Sounds good to me!

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

When she touched the unreal Cliff's shoulder he looked up at her and smiled. He looked better already, he thought, smiling back at him. "Are you alright?" she asked.

He didn't say anything in return and she wondered if he couldn't. But he raised an arm and put a hand on her cheek. It felt different from when Cliff did that, though, because this Cliff's hand made her cheek feel very cold - colder than the air made it.

"What can I do to help?" she asked. Around them a transparent image of Jo's home in South America appeared. She could still see the London street behind it.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Jo, be careful!"

He took a step towards her and placed his hand on Jo's arm, trying to pour his energy through her. If whatever it was fueled itself through energy, maybe the Doctor could keep her from being drained while the creature communicated.

"Ask it where it's from," the Doctor offered.

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

That helped. She didn't know how, but when Jack touched her arm she felt a little less cold.

"Where are you from?" she asked the unreal Cliff as directed. Presumably it's reason for showing her her home was to tell her something about its home. Perhaps it wanted to get back there.

The image around them changed to a view of a galaxy and then zoomed in further and further. Jo could tell it wasn't Earth, but beyond that she didn't know where that was. "Do you recognise that?" she asked Jack. "Is that where you want to go?" she asked the unreal Cliff.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Bretexia cluster," the Doctor said. He could feel his feet start to chill. This creature needed a lot of energy, but it didn't seem to be malevolent towards Jo. It probably didn't even realize it was draining her.

"Betexia's a galaxy of traditionally very psychic creatures, absorbing the energy of desires, wishes, needs, that sort of thing. They offer up the desires in return for a little psychic residue." He shook his head. "Ask it why it can't stay on Earth? Seems a harmless sort of place to end up."

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

"Maybe that depends on the psychic residue or the desires," Jo said, frowning. What she desired was far too complicated and required hard work anyway, if only to convince the people in power it's what they needed before the Earth became unliveable. But she turned back to the unreal Cliff anyway and said, "You can stay here if you like. If you're not doing any harm no one's going to hurt you."

In response the unreal Cliff looked a little green and he looked down at his stomach, which had grown very fat. And Jo realised what was going on. "Wishes and desires," she said to Jack. "It's Christmas and lots of people are wanting presents. He must have eaten too much. Can you send him home?" A thought occurred to her. "If I desire for him to go home can he make that happen?"

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"If he's so bloated from the desires of the season, he might not be able to move," the Doctor said. "Might be far too heavy under the weight."

If he'd been alone, he probably would've said that it served the creature right, stuffing itself on the needs of the human race, even if it wasn't hurting anyone. Didn't it know better?

But the Doctor's arm was on Jo, and she wouldn't want that. She just wanted to help.

"I can get him home," he said. "But I'll need you to help me."

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

"Oh, the poor thing." Jo looked at it sympathetically and laid a hand against its cheek. Although it leaned into her gesture her hand was so numb she couldn't tell if she was touching it or not - assuming there was anything to touch.

"How can I help?" she asked Jack, turning back to him.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

It was strange, but the Doctor felt a surge of envy run through him. He couldn't see what Jo could, all he saw was Donna, still looking so sad. But the gesture she made was gentle, and the Doctor could imagine she was holding its shoulder or cupping its cheek. Ridiculous thing to be envious of, perhaps, but it had been quite a long time since someone had shown that sort of sympathy towards him.

"You're going to need to lead it back with me. My ship isn't far, but she's a whirlwind of energy and if we can't contain it, it might burn out." He took half a step back, making sure to keep his hand steadily on Jo's.

"Just make sure it comes with you. It trusts you."

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

"You have a ship?" she asked with a frown. It would be useful to take whatever this creature was home, but she didn't know Torchwood had spaceships. She and Cliff were going to visit his family after Christmas, so perhaps they could stop off in Cardiff and have a look.

That wasn't important at the moment though. "We're going to take you home," she said to the creature and held out her hand for it to take. The image of her home in South America appeared around them again and Jo smiled. "Yes, but your home, not mine."

'Cliff' smiled back at her and took her hand - or at least appeared to. And when she took a step in Jack's direction, it did the same. "How far away is it?" she asked Jack.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Just around the corner," the Doctor said. He took another step back, and another, making sure to keep track of where he was walking. People around them stared at the young man walking backwards with the older woman, but, well, maybe they'd just chalk it up to it being Christmas and people being very strange.

"Also, I need to warn you, Jo, I may have lied about who I am."

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

Jo had long since learnt to ignore strange looks. "You may have lied?," she asked, looking at Jack suspiciously. "You mean you did and you don't really want to admit it." She looked back at the creature who still looked like Cliff, wondering if she should have trusted this man and just what it was he intended to do.

She stopped, keeping one hand on creature and keeping between it and Jack. "So who are you and what are you doing?"

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

He looked back to Jo's arm, and then to the creature she was touching.

"I'm only trying to help," he said. "I promise, I'm not going to hurt either of you. We can get it home, get it somewhere safe, but you have to trust me."

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

Jo wasn't sure if she should trust him, given that he'd lied to her. But then he had admitted it at least and it wasn't as if she would be able to get the creature home herself. She could contact UNIT, but they didn't have any spaceships - at least not that she knew of.

"Alright," she said in the end. "But I'll be keeping an eye on you," she warned, and started walking again.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Well, I can understand that," the Doctor said. "Though, really, if you meet anyone named Jack from Torchwood, you should keep an eye on him. Never much of a fan of Torchwood, me. Jack's a good enough bloke, but a bit jeopardy-friendly."

He talked as he followed her lead, taking a few steps back and directing her around a corner. The TARDIS was nestled in the dark awning of a fire escape.

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

Jo wasn't entirely sure about taking advice from someone who'd admitted he'd lied. And she was fairly sure she'd notice if someone was particularly jeopardy-friendly. But she also wasn't going to dismiss his advice out of hand. "I don't know..." she began, but drifted off as she saw something she wasn't expecting to.

She stopped walking when she saw it and looked over at 'Jack', her eyes wide. "Doctor?" she asked softly, thinking of all the people who could have a TARDIS that weren't the Doctor.

[rude-not-ginger.livejournal.com]

"Hello, Jo," the Doctor said, quietly. As far as reunions went, this was a good deal more awkward than he'd expected. He hadn't anticipated running into her, much less finding an alien in need of help.

"Nearly there." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his key.

[unit-girl.livejournal.com]

Jo stayed still not quite sure what to think. Once she'd have given anything to have seen the Doctor again, but that was thirty years ago and she'd long since given up hope. Now she was faced with him - and with him looking a lot younger than he did, not to mention younger than she was - she didn't quite know what to say to him.

"What...?" she began, but then there was a movement from behind her and she realised she'd forgotten about the creature they were trying to help. She turned to give it a reassuring smile and then started walking towards the TARDIS again.

"At least I can be sure of your intentions now." She stopped at the door while the Doctor opened it and turned back to the creature. "You'll be safe with the Doctor," she told it. "I promise," she added in response to the puppy dog eyes look it was giving her.