And I tell myself, I keep repeating, that your ways are bringing you to me [closed]

[theoldgirl]

A week passes for the TARDIS in both the blink of an eye and excruciating slowness. It's so minuscule within her understanding of time and compared to her age, but spending it separated from the Doctor, trying all day to find him on foot in her tiny humanoid form and trying to get used to the constant unease and limitations being in this universe causes her makes it seem to go on forever. She doesn't like being forced into such a subjective perception of linear time, and she particularly doesn't like how it reminds her of the other occasions she was crippled and stranded somewhere. It is difficult not to fall into the same state of despondent disconnection, of resigned misery interspersed with outbursts of desperation that she had cultivated then.

Ianto does his best to help, of course. He spends as much time with her as he can, either helping her search, showing her how to conduct herself in the city (obviously she knows about cars and money and subway trains, but she's never had reason to apply that knowledge), or making sure she keeps her body fed and rested. It's such a small concern compared to everything else that's weighing on her, but she does have to admit, left to her own will she'd have worn it out entirely by now searching for the Doctor without interruption. When it sleeps, she busies herself with healing the damage the journey through the rift caused her and recalibrating her sensors to this universe, but she soon reaches a point where she simply needs the Doctor's assistance.

It isn't even a search really, it's more of a pursuit. She knows where he is, approximately, but he moves a lot faster than her, so that by the time she's reached and searching an area he has already moved on. She'd even caught up with him once, but then he got on a train and her small form was unable to squeeze through the slow-moving mass of people in time to follow him. If she could just see where he is going next, this all wouldn't be so difficult. However, with her confined to a linear existence like this, he keeps being just out of her reach. The frustration and loneliness are almost too much to bear.

But today, shortly after breakfast with Ianto, she senses the Doctor actually moving towards her, towards her true form hidden in the park. With a mixture of desperate hope and trepidation at the possibility of losing him again, she hurries back to her self, straining to pinpoint his location more precisely and trying to decide which route through the park to check first. She can't miss him this time, not again.

Comments

[alwaysalright]

Well, he mentioned he was a friend of Andrew, that ought to have helped. The TARDIS did drop James off there. But alright, they could've become friends since coming here.

"Android?" he asks, equally surprised and confused. "He didn't appear to be an android," he says, considering it. Could've been a very convincing android, perhaps. "Then again, the Rift might have changed him too." And he supposes they didn't actually meet in the physical world, so how he appeared could have been only how he envisioned himself.

[theoldgirl]

All this talk of the Rift changing people is quite worrisome and she frowns slightly, but decides to see James for herself before making any judgement.

"He is the android from Androzani Minor," she explains to alleviate his confusion. "Though he rewrote and enhanced himself and was rewritten by others a few times, as far as I know. The changes he made to himself were quite impressive."

[alwaysalright]

"Oohhh," the Doctor answers, thinking back. He would've thought that android had been destroyed, but he never did check. "Well that explains why Andrew described him as having been me, but not as much anymore."

He's a little worried now, though. If James still has his memories, well... Not good having a rewritable android walking around with all that information about the Doctor. But then, he'd seemed a nice enough fellow, and it seems unkind to go force him to be rid of those memories. He shall have to investigate further, though.

"Lots of familiar faces here, it seems. There's another one with my face, I'm told. A human, apparently a foul-mouthed street magician by the name of Peter," he informs her.

[theoldgirl]

She shakes her at that, a little bit amused. "Your face seems to be very popular." Not that physical appearance matters to her; if he's human and not connected to the Doctor in some way, she won't have any trouble treating him as an independent person. But she knows it must be a bit odd for the Doctor and for his friends. Speaking of which-

"I met Ianto... but you wouldn't know him yet." Unless that whole mess with Ianto travelling with his fifth and eighth selves also happened in his universe, but she's seen no evidence that he's been going to intergalactic tea parties. Though it does remind her that Ianto might like to know their search is over, and she quietly sends him a message.

[alwaysalright]

The Doctor will later find that physical appearance DOES matter quite a bit to Peter.

The Doctor frowns, considering the name. "Only Ianto I know of is Jones, from Jack's little gang," he says. "But I haven't met him, just know of him by name." Of course, he's known other Iantos too, but not in this body. That he might come across Torchwood again doesn't seem the unlikeliest, though.

[theoldgirl]

Just as she thought, then. "Ianto Jones, yes. He is from my universe, he has been helping me search for you and keeping me company. He is a good boy." Except currently he's being purposefully irritating in their message exchange, but she's learned to ignore his particular kind of childishness.

"Oh, and when I arrived I met a scientist; he is quite intelligent and has been studying the Rift, so he may be of help to you in augmenting my systems. He was... very enthusiastic about meeting us." Because he knows them from a TV show. That part is still so baffling that she doesn't mention it.

[alwaysalright]

The Doctor nods, glad there's been someone to watch out for the TARDIS while he's been busy running around. He'd like to meet Ianto, if the TARDIS approves of him.

And this scientist too, if he can be of help. Their situation is serious (if not immediately dangerous) enough that help would not be unwanted, or at the very least more information. He assumes the man's enthusiasm is because the TARDIS told him something or other about what they do or what they're capable of. "What's his name?"

[theoldgirl]

"Christopher Brink," she answers. "He works for those organizations involved with the Rift, but distrusts both of them. And he promised to keep my presence a secret. As far as I could tell, he is trustworthy." She didn't exactly inspect his mind for amorality or anything, but it was obvious he was being sincere.

And that reminds her, before they're doing any rewiring to deal with the Rift, there's rather a lot of repairs she'd like him to perform. Her struggle with the Rift took a lot out of her. So the console starts showing various error messages and fault reports for him to peruse at his leisure. By which she means, get to it, Doctor.

[alwaysalright]

It takes him a second to connect the name - he's usually heard him referred to as 'Topher' - and is momentarily alarmed at the news that Romac knows about the TARDIS. At her reassurances though, he nods, satisfied. He's done some poking around regarding the organizations, but hasn't gotten involved. Good to know they have a friend on the inside, though.

And oh, hey, right, things that need his attention! He'll get right on that, perusing and pondering and fiddling with controls, investigating what needs to be done.