Curiouser and curiouser [open to multiple]

[theoldgirl]

The TARDIS doesn't sleep, and she certainly doesn't dream, except under very rare and usually adverse circumstances. But with the Doctor safely tucked away in one of her bedrooms, catching up on his sleep and comforting her by his presence alone, she does allow herself to relax enough to do something akin to dozing. Many of her systems power down to stand-by, she becomes less aware of her surroundings, and for a while she thinks nothing in particular.

To her surprise, she suddenly feels something tugging at her awareness, a telepathic current that, upon more conscious inspection, doesn't appear to be coming from anywhere. Curiosity piqued, she allows the current to draw her focus away, though not before making sure it can't affect her mind against her will. What is it going to show her?

Comments

[brink]

The mind that visits his feels strangely familiar, but not in a way he can pinpoint. The fact it gives no shape for him to communicate with, just a presence, that's certainly unusual. A powerful presence, too.

Being addressed as Morpheus is even more unexpected. He's only used that name with Daine, and this is definitely not Daine. But perhaps someone else is expecting the Lord of Dreams to wander by.

"I answer to that," he says, and changes his shape to look like himself. If this is someone very powerful, he knows better than to try to decieve them.

[theoldgirl]

She takes him displaying his true appearance as a sign that he realizes she's not in a good mood, and is mollified enough by that to project her humanoid form for him. If her displeasure wasn't clear before, it should be now by the way she glowers at him.

"Without any right to," she scolds. "Pretending to be a dream god to extract information from people who can't know better? I thought better of you." Granted, she doesn't actually know him well at all, but she liked him and it always upsets her when humans who managed to earn her sincere approval do something reprehensible.

[brink]

Oh, it's the TARDIS. A very angry TARDIS. He's not immediately sure exactly what she's angry about, but her scolding makes it clear, and he has the decency to look embarrassed and apologetic. It's been a while since anyone lectured him like this, and he can't help being reminded of Adelle - which is a bit painful in itself.

"It's not.. extracting information," he answers carefully. "It's not like anyone has to tell me anything. And I just go with expectations. She thought I was a dream god, and... I thought it sounded cool..." His voice kind of peters out timidly. He was never very good with confrontations.

[theoldgirl]

Hmph, well, the general air of guilt and apology helps to satisfy the TARDIS a little, though it's not quite clear whether he's actually repentant or just upset he got caught. Either way, her glower settles into a stern look and she restrains her feelings of displeasure somewhat. Admittedly she hadn't corrected Daine's unspoken assumption that she was a goddess either, but she never actively pretended to be anything she wasn't.

"She? You only tricked Daine?" That would also go in his favor; so far she'd assumed 'Morpheus' was lying to everyone he met. But it's still not right. "She was very upset when she realized she'd been fooled."

[brink]

"I didn't mean to trick her," he answers - not exactly upset he got caught (as it was never meant to be anything wrong in the first place) as upset he's being painted as being so devious. "I mean, I don't admit who I am to most people in here - there's a lot of people who could kick my ass, and I don't have anyone to look out for me in here, so I put on a disguise."

He's not being particularly attentive to which of his feelings are bleeding out into to the dreamspace, so she might notice he is genuinely scared about this possibility. Being the rift expert at Romac, with access to a lot of information, means there's a lot of people who'd like to get their hands on him for a variety of reasons. If he didn't think well of the TARDIS's intentions, he'd be pretty terrified now, but having her in his mind.

"But no, I don't usually pretend to be a dream god," he adds. "I got carried away. I wanted her to trust me, so I could make sure she was alright," he answers honestly. Admittedly it was not a great way to do that. He's not good with people, okay?

[theoldgirl]

The genuine fear accompanying his explanation surprises her enough to break her anger. And the apparently honest assertion that he'd had good intentions concerning Daine helps too, so that she stops projecting displeasure and considers him more calmly. Perhaps he did have better reasons for what he did than personal gain.

"Why do people want to harm you?" She asks softly. "And why do you visit other minds if it is dangerous for you?"

[brink]

Topher relaxes a little bit once the TARDIS stops emanating pure disapproval. Not completely relaxed, though, given the topic.

"Well, you know," he laughs nervously. "I'm in charge of the Rift science department at Romac. Privy to a lot of information that people would love to get their hands on. Or just to sabotage Romac. Or making me work for someone else." Lots of possibilities when you're in his position. It's a bit late for him to try to simply lay low or duck out from the whole thing.

He doesn't answer the second question yet, because it's partly the same answer Gabriel refused to give - loneliness.

[theoldgirl]

For a moment she can't help another wave of disapproval, but this time it's directed at humanity in general and their insistence on useless squabbling and hurting each other instead of working together. And she knows what being the victim of those ambitions is like, so she nods in understanding.

"I asked Daine not to give my existence away to anyone in the waking plane; I do see the need for caution, here. But does that not make it all the more important for you to not put yourself in such a vulnerable position as visiting other minds?" She may be having to hide too, but only very few beings could actually harm or coerce her here. The same can hardly be said of Topher.

[brink]

Topher shrugs a bit. "Since I came here, I'm almost always conscious when I sleep. Gets dull, sitting inside your own mind for hours on end. And there's always new people coming through the rift, people who might not have been found and who need help or information. It's easier for me to find them in here." It's impressive just how many people he ends up greeting, if you combine his time in the park and his dream-walking.

[theoldgirl]

Well, that explains the barren dreamscape, and her good opinion of him is restored upon hearing he uses the telepathic current to help new arrivals. It still concerns her that he risks his own safety if he is in fact in that much danger, but she also deeply sympathizes with not wanting to be cut off from sensory input and the rest of the world.

"You can try to reach for me if you need assistance. I do not sleep, but now that I am aware of this telepathic plane, I can likely remain connected to it permanently to some degree." It's probably more difficult to retain the connection when she is focused on the physical world, and she might lose it if she gets distracted by something, but she wants to offer her help somehow. "You sound more capable of navigating and using this place than I would expect a human to be." So he might actually be able to call for help.

[brink]

Topher smiles gratefully at her offer to help. It's always nice to have someone to turn to who isn't quite so, well, affiliated.

"Most humans aren't. Many don't even realise it's more than a dream, and sometimes forget it happened," he answers, figuring he can be helpful in providing some information. "And their meetings are often pure chance or the will of the rift, or whatever. People with telepathic or strong mental powers are usually more adept at it, able to seek out other minds, or manipulate the dreamscape, like I can."

Their surroundings change to a Los Angeles beach for Topher to illustrate. "Like, when I first entered Daine's mind, she was having a nightmare. I changed it so she calmed down," he says as an example.

[theoldgirl]

She turns to look at the change of scenery, a somewhat metaphorical gesture of interest and surprise. The ease and level of accuracy with which he manipulated the dreamscape are quite impressive, considering the limitations of his kind.

"I see. I have met humans whose latent, above average telepathic abilities were considerably enhanced by the presence of a rift. It seems the same happened to you."

[brink]

This is his own mind - conjuring up surroundings here is as easy as falling off a log. It's trickier in other people's minds, but still not terribly difficult.

He shrugs. "It doesn't do much good while I'm awake, though. But I can wake up and fall asleep at any time, at almost a moment's notice, so there's that."

He can also refuse to fall asleep quite easily, though it isn't very good for him in the long run. When he first came through the rift in San Francisco and was freaked out by his new strange way of conscious sleeping, he ended up staying awake for nearly a week. While the effects weren't as bad for him as they would've been for normal people, it was neither pleasant nor healthy.

[theoldgirl]

It is a bit strange that his telepathic abilities don't extend to the waking world, but then this particular rift has had more arbitrary effects on people than that. Like kittens.

"Well, I am glad to hear you are using your talent to be helpful. I had begun to suspect that 'Morpheus' was manipulating the telepathic current for his own gain. It is too delicate, and the dreaming minds too vulnerable, for anyone to be allowed to do that." There's no reprimand in her voice, nor an apology, it's just an explanation for why she was so displeased.

[brink]

At least he doesn't manifest kittens. There is that.

"Oh, well, there probably are some who do do that, actually," Topher points out, because, well, maybe she can actually do something about it. "I try to steer clear of them, so I can't really tell you much, but, yeah..." Topher doesn't exactly consider himself a hero, and running headfirst into danger isn't something he does lightly.

[theoldgirl]

Well that's unpleasant news and she frowns thoughtfully. "I will have to see about putting a stop to that, then. Though exploring the telepathic current requires most of my focus, so I can only do it while the Doctor is asleep or otherwise not in need of me." Which is really annoyingly difficult to predict when she can't see the future, and reduces the time she can actually spend here by rather a lot.

But that reminds her, her expression turning pleased, "Oh, I finally found the Doctor. He has already repaired most of the damage the rift caused me."