RP for renegadeinexile

[thecricketer]

The Doctor waited outside his TARDIS, leaning nonchalantly against the door and turning his hat in his hands. Only in them was his anxious excitement evident.

It had been good seeing Ushas after so long. He'd almost felt young again, talking with her. Remembering that there were times on Gallifrey that he could still remember fondly.

He knew this might not have been the best of ideas. He couldn't simply disregard his future incarnation's suspicion, his enmity, even if he didn't understand it – couldn't understand it, if they were to preserve his future.

He couldn't, however, turn his back on someone who had been his friend for what she might have done. Perhaps she came from both their futures – perhaps things had changed.

Even if he was wrong, he decided it was worth it. They could enjoy their stolen time, for as long as it lasted.

Comments

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

There was a plateau just ahead of them, a few more arms' lengths up. The Rani pushed her protesting muscles as hard as they would go...

...and still only managed to crawl up onto the blessedly flat ledge a second after the Doctor reached it.

She pulled herself up onto it, sitting, dangling her legs down the way they'd come, huffing a bit as her eyes searched the landscape below. She turned toward the Doctor, seemingly ready with some biting remark, but instead she sort of made a face and put her hand over the stitch in her side.

"I'm getting far too old for that," she panted.

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

The Doctor was leaning back on his elbows, breathing deeply through curved lips. That...well, that was fun, and he won!

He turned to her, eyes lit with laughter - "Come now, you can't be so much older than...well, no, I suppose you can considering" - that faded as his brow furrowed. He pushed himself into sitting position and leaned closer.

"Well, we should certainly get rid of that before moving on. Lie down?" His expression was bright, and beseeching.

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

The Rani was still panting, her exhalations sounding out very audibly from parted lips. She glanced over at the Doctor and gave him a look that started out saying "do what?" but quickly gave way to "I'm too sodding winded to argue with you."

She lowered herself gingerly onto her back, and lay there, blinking up at the sky, her breathing starting to quiet just a bit.

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

"Thank you." He scooted closer and reached out, applying gentle pressure as he stroked one of her ribs.

"This will hurt at first, just a moment..."

His touch was deft, practical, determinedly that of a doctor. It was all that kept him from flushing further. That, and explaining himself.

"...It's the, ah, well, humans call it the primary serratus anterior trigger point. Straining those muscles is usually what causes these kind of cramps - ah, if I'm wrong this won't work. Sorry." She should have been feeling the pain ebb away by then, since he doubted it was serious.

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

"Doctor..."

The Rani drew in a breath sharply, a bit from discomfort, and a bit more from surprise. The last thing she'd expected to be doing this afternoon was lying prone on her back with his hands on her body. "I see," she breathed, exhaling, forcing herself to relax under his ministrations.

She shifted a bit, the tightness around her eyes slowly wearing away as the pain ebbed. "That's... actually much better," she murmured, blinking up at him. "...thank you."

She took a few more breaths, and smiled faintly.

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

He grinned down at her, hand falling away.

"You're welcome." He drew back, resting on his hands, the smile lingering.

"It's a good technique to know."

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

"I'm glad you knew it."

The Rani sat up, still smiling. She folded her long legs under herself, and rested her forearms on her knees. "Shall we rest for a bit before we start the final assault on the top of the hill?" she asked. "And shall we further agree, no racing the rest of the way...?"

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

He chuckled, and nodded after pushing himself up so that his hands rested in his lap.

"Sounds like a sensible plan."

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

They sat together in rather a companionable silence for a bit. Then the Rani straightened up a bit more. "If you don't mind me asking... how old are you now?"

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

The Doctor was gazing at their surrounding when she spoke, trying to figure out if he recognised them, and simply appreciating the calm, natural sight.

"Hmm?" He turned to her, eyes widening slightly.

"Oh, around eight centuries, give or take a few decades."

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

"Oh."

The Rani regarded him curiously for a while, and then turned her own attention to their surroundings. Almost as an afterthought, she added, "...I've just gone nine hundred thirty-seven this year."

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

"My, you're my elder now!" He adopted a horrified expression, which faded shortly into sombre thought.

"...We were quite near the same age, weren't we? And you know my later incarnations..." No, that train of thought was dangerous, those calculations shouldn't be made.

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

The Rani smacked the Doctor's upper arm, smirking. "Not that much elder, thanks," she protested. "You don't have to be quite so horrified..."

She caught his somber expression and shook her head, reaching for his hand. "...don't. We both know those sorts of things are meaningless. Doubly so in our cases, with us both travelling so much through our lives. Time is never parallel, no matter that we were the same age once."

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

He looked down, watching his hand turn to clasp hers, and when he looked up he was smiling faintly.

"Perhaps. Hardly matter either way, really - it's not the years, it's what one does with them." He chuckled, then, less bright but not forced.

"Most Time Lords would think we're going through regenerations remarkably quickly. Apalling, really."

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

"I'm sure they would, yes," she murmured in reply, letting his hand clasp hers, and why wasn't she protesting or pulling it away?

She smirked, and added, "And you know what I've always thought of most Time Lords' opinions... I'm sure you've felt the same way. Still... you're right about one thing. It's what you do with the years."

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

"I'm afraid I can't take anyone in robe and headdress very seriously," he admitted.

Without quite realising, or knowing why, he gently squeezed her hand.

"At least we've made names for ourselves. I always did say we would."

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

"I..."

The Rani sighed, and returned the hand squeeze.

"My name hasn't always been met with happiness or even respect," she admitted. "I suppose you could have gathered that from your future self's reaction to me. I daresay I've made an entirely different sort of name for myself than you have."

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

He was silent for a moment, then rested his other hand atop hers, and steadily met her gaze with determined tenderness.

"We have all made mistakes, including me. What matters is what we do next. What we choose to become."

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

"They weren't mistakes, Doctor," The Rani replied. "They were deliberate acts."

She glanced down at their hands, and frowned softly. "I... should hate to have you place your faith in someone who might only disappoint you down the road."

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

"Do you regret them?" he asked softly. There was an intensity behind his gaze, though it remained gentle.

He shook his head.

"My faith can handle being misplaced, Ushas, and I'd much rather take the risk."

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

She sighed, and then was silent for a while.

Then she turned and gazed at him. "I've come to regret things, yes," she said. "The... circumstances in which I found myself in the last few years--"

Meaning, as the sole survivor of their people, or so she'd believed...

"--gave me reason to rethink things."

She gave his hand another squeeze. "It's still a very large risk, though, Doctor."

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

He waited silently, patiently for her answer, and when she gave it he nodded, slowly, never breaking that gaze.

When he spoke his words were quiet but certain, decided.

"I take very large risks quite often. It's what I do." He was, furthermore, quite tired of giving up on old friends.

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

Her eyes had never left his, either. She studied his face for a few moments and then nodded slowly. "Well. As long as you're willing to take that risk..."

She reached over and put her free hand over both of his.

[thecricketer.livejournal.com]

He smiled softly, and began to rise, not pulling his hands away.

"Come now, we've a city to discover."

[thisway-comes.livejournal.com]

The Rani clutched his hands a bit tighter to steady herself as she rose to her feet beside him, strangely reluctant to let him go.

"It's not much farther to the top of the rise," she observed, glancing up. "There's even almost a path. Shouldn't be too difficult to get to the top. We should have a clear view of the surrounding area from there."