[licenseartistic] January 2008 - Come and take a walk with me
Title: "Companion"
Prompt: "How'd you feel about it, come and take a walk with me?" ("Opportunities" lyrics)
Character: The Tenth Doctor
Warnings: None
Pairings: None
Fandom: Doctor Who
Word count: 645
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: The Doctor and all other mentioned characters are property of the BBC, and are used without permission.
The universe is infinite. And now, I know that if you ask most people, they'll tell you that they understand the concept of "infinity" as meaning "without end" or "immeasurably large", and those definitions are both correct, but you can't really get the idea of the infinite until you've experienced it. It's like you don't really understand how big the Empire State Building is until you've gone to New York City.
The universe is infinite, and there are countless kinds of individuals to meet and endless experiences to, well, experience. There is no end to what may be learned, and for me that has always been the thing pulling me out into the stretches of time and space. I have the opportunity and the means to learn and see and do more than nearly anyone in existence, why shouldn't I? So I do.
Here's the funny part, though-- after a little while of learning and seeing and doing, I started to come to a new conclusion. As it turns out, there is a finite level of enjoyment to be gained from adventuring all on one's lonesome. And while there are more than a few species in the universe that are fiercely and decidedly solitary, most are not. Most kinds of beings crave some kind of companionship, need some kind of friend to share time with or at least the occasional fellow traveler with whom they can share experiences.
People like to be around other people, and I'm that kind of people, too.
It's not that important to tell you about the very first time it happened. Not like I woke up one morning and thought to myself, "Well, Doctor, it's about time you picked up that first Companion and got on with your life." But I can tell you how it usually works.
We start off with The Doctor on one of his solo adventures, the exact nature of which really isn't relevant. More than likely, some alien menace or another is doing what it does best-- menacing some variably-sized group of innocent beings. The Doctor might know about said menacing, or he might just be stumbling upon the situation. Either way, being who and how he is, The Doctor gets involved to fight on behalf of the innocents.
One of those innocents catches his attention. Sometimes, it's because they're just so damnably clever or capable that they can't help but be of great assistance in the matter at hand. Sometimes, it's because he's got to rescue them from the alien menace because they're in grave danger, often of their own making. And sometimes, they just fall into his lap. Every now and then, he gets the triple play.
Whoever this person is (and of course, we're using the word "person" loosely, because not all Companions have to be human, but the odds are good), they make a difference in the fight, and The Doctor prevails as he always does.
Finding in this person a spirit with whom he can share a little time with, The Doctor makes an offer: travel with him, walk amongst the stars and cross vast distances of time. Most of the time, they agree, and it's off to the races. They walk into the TARDIS for the first time (and say, inevitably, "it's bigger on the inside", because it is), and have a few adventures. Eventually, they get a key, they learn some hard-earned but valuable lessons, they grow as and individual.
Then the journeys end. Most Companions choose to leave, once they've discovered something worth standing still for, whether it be love or cause. A few are forced to part ways with The Doctor thanks to circumstances beyond their control.
Sometimes, they die.
And that's the story. I take on Companions because it's nice to have someone to chat with. And it works out, usually. So there.
Prompt: "How'd you feel about it, come and take a walk with me?" ("Opportunities" lyrics)
Character: The Tenth Doctor
Warnings: None
Pairings: None
Fandom: Doctor Who
Word count: 645
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: The Doctor and all other mentioned characters are property of the BBC, and are used without permission.
The universe is infinite. And now, I know that if you ask most people, they'll tell you that they understand the concept of "infinity" as meaning "without end" or "immeasurably large", and those definitions are both correct, but you can't really get the idea of the infinite until you've experienced it. It's like you don't really understand how big the Empire State Building is until you've gone to New York City.
The universe is infinite, and there are countless kinds of individuals to meet and endless experiences to, well, experience. There is no end to what may be learned, and for me that has always been the thing pulling me out into the stretches of time and space. I have the opportunity and the means to learn and see and do more than nearly anyone in existence, why shouldn't I? So I do.
Here's the funny part, though-- after a little while of learning and seeing and doing, I started to come to a new conclusion. As it turns out, there is a finite level of enjoyment to be gained from adventuring all on one's lonesome. And while there are more than a few species in the universe that are fiercely and decidedly solitary, most are not. Most kinds of beings crave some kind of companionship, need some kind of friend to share time with or at least the occasional fellow traveler with whom they can share experiences.
People like to be around other people, and I'm that kind of people, too.
It's not that important to tell you about the very first time it happened. Not like I woke up one morning and thought to myself, "Well, Doctor, it's about time you picked up that first Companion and got on with your life." But I can tell you how it usually works.
We start off with The Doctor on one of his solo adventures, the exact nature of which really isn't relevant. More than likely, some alien menace or another is doing what it does best-- menacing some variably-sized group of innocent beings. The Doctor might know about said menacing, or he might just be stumbling upon the situation. Either way, being who and how he is, The Doctor gets involved to fight on behalf of the innocents.
One of those innocents catches his attention. Sometimes, it's because they're just so damnably clever or capable that they can't help but be of great assistance in the matter at hand. Sometimes, it's because he's got to rescue them from the alien menace because they're in grave danger, often of their own making. And sometimes, they just fall into his lap. Every now and then, he gets the triple play.
Whoever this person is (and of course, we're using the word "person" loosely, because not all Companions have to be human, but the odds are good), they make a difference in the fight, and The Doctor prevails as he always does.
Finding in this person a spirit with whom he can share a little time with, The Doctor makes an offer: travel with him, walk amongst the stars and cross vast distances of time. Most of the time, they agree, and it's off to the races. They walk into the TARDIS for the first time (and say, inevitably, "it's bigger on the inside", because it is), and have a few adventures. Eventually, they get a key, they learn some hard-earned but valuable lessons, they grow as and individual.
Then the journeys end. Most Companions choose to leave, once they've discovered something worth standing still for, whether it be love or cause. A few are forced to part ways with The Doctor thanks to circumstances beyond their control.
Sometimes, they die.
And that's the story. I take on Companions because it's nice to have someone to chat with. And it works out, usually. So there.