tushanshu_logs | Am I Part of the Cure

Entry tags:

Am I Part of the Cure

Characters: Valdis and some open
Date: All of July
Location: Throughout Keeliai
Situation: Various
Warnings/Rating: In headers

May had been a complete and utter mess. Between the anonymous accusations, the failings of her plan regarding them, her own foolishness and the cultist attack, Valdis couldn’t seem to pull the pieces back together. It was extraordinarily grating to feel so out of control. She still didn’t have her position back at the KPD, so she filled her time teaching at the Dojo, reading and rereading books and wandering the streets at night. Sleeping was difficult, not for nightmares, but she felt too restless. There was too much to do in the aftermath of the Cultist attacks, and she had no idea where to start. Useless, was the word. June hadn’t been much better, but at least there had been a sense of calm and healing, no matter how false the calm seemed.

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The time before their meeting - however otherwise full with all the little settling-in tasks had at least allowed Jack to get cleaned up. The smudges of dirt were gone from himself and the leather in his ensemble, though there wasn't anything that could be done just yet for the white tee.

While tea wasn't his drink of choice, that wasn't doing much to dampen his mood. He finds her fairly easily in the shop, thankful for his excellent memory for faces, and he leans just lightly on the back on the empty chair once he approaches, eyebrows raised in greeting.]

This seat taken?

[Thanks to never having met Jack in person, Valdis couldn't sense him approach that way she would with a more familiar soul. Luckily, she was good with faces too and picked him out of the crowd when he came into view. She smiled at him when he leaned against the chair.]

All yours.

Edited (coding) 2017-07-04 15:59 (UTC)

Thanks.

[Jack pulled out the chair and sat down, making a brief show of looking her up and down. Were they there, technically, for business? Sure. But a little fun first never hurt anyone.]

You know, one of these days they're going to manage to get video to do people justice, but that definitely isn't today. Hope I didn't keep you waiting too long.

[Valdis kept her eyes on him, amused by his evaluation as she did one of her own. His soul lit up in various colors, nothing immediately noticeable as different, though there might have been a certain edge that hinted at something...more, but she couldn't focus enough on it to be sure. She smiled at his compliment, letting the shine of the soul plane fade.]

Not long at all.

[She took a breath, memorizing his scent so he would be easier to recognize later. It was unusual, more pleasant than most. Definitely something to note.]

You aren't bad-looking yourself.

Just 'not bad-looking'? [Jack brought a hand flat over his heart, like he'd just been wounded. His tone itself is faux-offended. He's just teasing really.] Must be the jet lag.

[He makes his order, when their waiter approaches, though to nothing so much as 'surprise me'. If he's as flirtatious as usual while he does so, well... that's Jack. His attention transitions back to Valdis seamlessly enough when the interaction's finished.]

So. I'm guessing you've got some questions for me.

[She gave him a sly smile, head turned slightly aside as the waiter came to take his order. But she didn't comment on it, or say anything until his attention returned to her.]

A few...How long were you in the air force?

[He could appreciate that.]

The air force itself? Less than a year and more than a day. Spent a few years in my home...town's military though, and I've got a ton of experience flying things outside of there.

[That was an interesting way of saying 'not very long', but she could dismiss it as charm.]

What sorts of things?

[And here was the moment of truth, wasn't it? How much to tell. Well, he was already going to talk time travel with someone, and the whole place was a trip already. The hell with it.]

Spaceships, mostly. Had a nice Chula warship for a while.

What?

[Her tone fell flat, and her face briefly held an incredulous expression. Not that it wasn't possible. Keeliai brought all sorts from all different kinds of worlds and she didn't get the impression that we was joking.]

Chula warship. Nice little piece of work, really. Nanogenes, the whole nine yards. Felt like someone was sitting under the captain's chair keeping it from falling over sometimes, but she was a good little ship.

[Jack snaps his fingers, pausing for a moment to accept a cup of something warm and faintly sweet smelling with another smile at their waiter, before, eyes crinkling he turns back to Valdis.]

Did I forget to mention I'm a time traveler, too?

[Though it bordered on ridiculous, Valdis couldn't exactly dismiss it. She smirked, shaking her head.]

And here I thought I'd seen it all. Are you immortal too?

[It was said jokingly, because that would be ridiculous. They had enough immortals on the turtle as it was.]

Edited (wording) 2017-07-07 15:05 (UTC)

[That was ridiculous, and Jack laughed in response, the grin staying on his face as he winked over at Valdis.]

Just my reputation. If you like that man have I got some stories for you.

[Eh, he'll figure it out one day.]

I love stories.

[Valdis leaned her elbow on the table, resting her chin in her palm as she smiled at him.]

Are there pirates in space?

[Jack grins over at her, his tea more or less forgotten as he leans forward himself.]

Come on, you really think there wouldn't be? There are always pirates of some kind or another, wherever or whenever you go. Haven't had many run-ins personally, but I've known a few.

[Biblically, at that.]

But really, anything you find one place? You're gonna have something like it elsewhere. I mean, believe it or not time-travelling con-men are a thing.

[He smirks easily at that, but there's maybe an unintended flicker of guilt in his eyes, just for a moment.]

[Valdis leans forward too, as if listening with fascination. Con-men weren't unique, and she hadn't expected pirates to be either, but it was worth a shot.]

That makes sense I suppose.

[She noticed the flicker of guilt, but wouldn't comment on it...yet]

Time travelling and spaceships...it seems your universe could really have anything.

[That was just as well - at this point he would be more likely to laugh it off than anything else. It wasn't exactly job application material, after all.]

Most universes do, if you know where to look for them. If you don't think you've got them? Chances are somewhere or somewhen out there someone's proving you wrong. Believe me, just about everyone thinks they're alone out there at some point or another.

Well, I suppose I can't argue with that...I mean, we are in a city on the back of a giant turtle. And there are people here from other worlds too.

[A slight pause.]

Do you have angels in your universe?

[Jack gives a short laugh before he realizes that she might be serious, and his eyes turn more thoughtful though he keeps a hint of a smile.]

Guess that depends. Plenty of winged humanoid races out there, and I've even run into one that's pretty much nothing but eyes and wings and fire - think that matches some description somewhere, or am I getting my religions mixed up?

[Religion had never really done anything for him, and he'd never really paid it too much mind in return. But the Time Agency wanted their people informed. Best not to, say, wind up on the wrong end of the Spanish Inquisition if you happened to be there. Still, he shrugs and continues not really expecting an answer.]

Beings made of light, or song, or who actually feed on belief. That one was second-hand, but the man who told me had no reason to lie. I've seen someone come from nowhere in the middle of an epidemic in the middle of the London Blitz that would have spread to the whole damn world and burn humanity out way before it's time -- and cure it. More than cure it. Give them one damn night in the middle of a war where no one died. And on top of that? [The hint of a smile curls into a smirk.] Gave the moron who caused it a second chance.

[Jack shakes his head, taking another drink from his cup.]

I don't know about literal messengers of God. As far as I know? All that's still something being taken on faith, no matter when or where you go. But there are plenty of things I haven't seen out there. To be honest? Never really cared.

[He's lying, at the end. But he's good at it; He has done it for a living after all.]

[It seemed there were several angel-like beings in his universe, but it all still seemed tainted by humanity. Though that wasn't necessarily a surprise.]

Another commonality it would seem, but no, there are fiery eyeballs with wings mentioned in the bible. They don't actually exist like that in my world. What about demons?

Demons?

[Jack smiled a little.]

Again, that depends. Fallen Angels? I mean, sure, some of the people I talked about before probably went bad at some point or another. How honestly biblical any of it is? You tell me. Hell's about as tangible and proven as heaven - except for the metaphorical.

That in mind... we've got evil, but that's not what you asked for.

There are many worlds, Captain. Many legends, perhaps even many gods. All real depending upon which world you are on. I am simply curious as to what legends your and mine have in common.

[Oh. That made a lot more sense, didn't it? Jack smiles and makes an apologetic motion before taking a sip of tea.]

You should've said. I thought you wanted to know what we had knocking around. Every planet's got their legends, and I haven't spent that much time studying Earth's theology. Though, ironically, I swear I remember something taking place on a giant elephant standing on a turtle's back or something.

You want a legend though, I've got a question for you. Ever hear of the Time Lords, and the Last Great Time War?

[Jack settles back a little in his chair, leaving that opening. The look on his face made it pretty clear that if she hadn't he'd have no problem fixing that.

[Valdis smirked. Legends were many, even on her world. Who knew how many of them were true and which were not?]

I have now. Not that I could tell you the story.

Well, I guess I should fix that, shouldn't I?

[There's a sort of brightness to him, an even more confident slant to his posture as he gets ready to tell. It was obvious to him who was still on his mind, despite himself, but he'd run with it.]

Now, in this distant little corner of the universe there was this planet called Gallifrey. It was supposed to be a gorgeous place, all red and gold and shining, with a fantastic citadel covered by a protective dome, like a high end snow globe.

[Jack gestured as he spoke, shaping the dome in the air and illustrating the domes. It was a little more description than he'd had most of his life, but Rose had gotten the Doctor to talk - just a little - in that way only she could, and he'd been lucky enough to listen.]

Now, there's more to it than that of course. Because these guys? They were some of the first people to develop time travel, and they got good. But they also got a little high and mighty. 'Time Lord' isn't a name anyone else gave them. But they could see, supposedly, the way things were supposed to go, and if anyone else tried to change things up in the timestream, they'd be there to stop it. To keep things like paradoxes from happening. The thing is, other than this, they got this strict non-interference policy. They wouldn't help you out any other way, barely even interacted with anyone off their planet - or outside of their bubble, actually. They became the self-declared wise observers of time and the universe and everything in it.

[Jack waited a moment to take a breath, to let the background set in.]

Now, there was one Time Lord who wasn't so fond of that idea, who thought the rest of them were stodgy old buzzards and wanted to see the universe first-hand. [If there's a modicum of fondness slipping into his voice, he's trying his best to hide it.] So he stole one of their time ships and...off he went. The other Time Lords...they didn't like that very much.

[He shrugs, like he can't imagine why not.]

So this rogue Time Lord would get into trouble, zip around time and space sticking his nose into everyone's business, and overall be against everything they stood for. They caught him, at one point. Wiped his companions' memories and sent them back to where they were from. And then they killed him. But the Time Lords, they're a little like cats. They want attention on their own terms, are up for a little adoration, and they've got more than one life. When you kill a Time Lord, they just...change. Come back as a completely different person - looks, personality, favorite foods - but they've still got the same memories. The same heart, soul, however you want to put it.

[Jack looks pensive for a moment, still, for now, very much enjoying the telling of the story. He takes a sip of his tea and only makes a little of a face when it turns out to be cold. Ah well.]

But I guess, before I go into the Time War, I have to tell you about the Daleks.

Am I Part of the Cure

Re: Jack Harkness | Backdated | Sky Sector Tea Shop | CW: None

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