Sweeter than the First Time [Open to All]

[applesaucemod]

Hello, dreamers of Manhattan. The Rift knows that things have been kind of rough, lately. The last dream didn't go as well as it had hoped. Consider this an apology of sorts, and a hearkening back to the good times you've shared.

It's a grand old (and potentially familiar) cabin house that the dreamers will find themselves wandering. The furniture is plentiful and comfortable, the floors are strewn with cushions and blankets, and there are cheerful fires burning in the grates. It seems a little odd that the house still manages to be on the chilly side despite looking so warm, yet it is.

Oh, well. You'll just have to find another dreamer or two and spoon up and fall asleep like little baby cats get cozy. It shouldn't be difficult; most of the dreamers (excepting those with strong telepathic defenses or deeply ingrained cuddle-averse personalities) will find themselves feeling friendlier than usual, along with an almost overwhelming desire to snuggle up to someone. How convenient that the house seems designed for that very purpose!

And if some of the cushions are Hello Kitty themed, well, that's just coincidence.


[OOC: Standard dream party rules apply. Characters will be affected by the dream-whammy to whatever degree makes the most sense for them, and will remember or forget the events of the dream at the player's discretion. Backtag into infinity.]

Comments

[theoldgirl]

Oh look who it is. One of the Doctor's newest strays, who might be tolerable if they didn't need a lesson in manners every twenty minutes. This is not a conversation the TARDIS has any desire to be having at all, no matter how sincere the apology may have ended up being.

"Evidently not," she says, a raised eyebrow and icy tone of voice making it abundantly clear that she really would rather be.

[etherthief]

Guess that was a bit to strong then. Fair enough. Iman raises her hands, smiling a bit more innocuously. "Sorry, sorry. I just thought, you know. Everyone seems to be in a companionable mood tonight, I'd hate to see anyone left out."

Well, she's not going to push this, but she's not gonna just admit defeat either, at least not without an introduction.

"Iman," she says gamely, offering a hand. See, she can be polite, too.

[theoldgirl]

The TARDIS remains obviously unimpressed, despite Iman's friendly sounding explanation. If previous experience is any indication, it's only a matter of time before this one does something staggeringly irksome just as soon as the TARDIS starts thinking she might be a pretty interesting and decent human. Those are always the worst; she hates being proven wrong.

Nevertheless she takes the girl's hand, employing a measured tone of voice as she replies, "The TARDIS. We've met." This may just be a challenge.

[etherthief]

[. . .]

Iman's smile freezes on her face, then slips, along with nearly all her composure. Her tenuous grasp on it is about all that keeps her from melting directly into a puddle on the floor.

The TARDIS. Of course. Of course she can take a, what, a 'recognizable' form, something to interact with people on their level? OF COURSE the Doctor didn't see fit to like, mention that, why would he. Of course she just inelegantly hit on the TARDIS.

"Oh my god," she blurts. "Oh. I. I'm sorry." She takes back her hand, realizing the shake has gone on way too long now. "Fuck, I didn't - I mean of course I didn't know, why would I know." Calm down. "Listen, I just wanted to say again, I'm so sorry about, um, before, won't happen again, absolutely, and I just-" Calm. Down. "This is incredible, I mean, not that you can do this, that shouldn't surprise me, that's, I mean, that's child's play compared to what else you can - I just didn't know you could talk back to me in a way I'd understand, I - really, honestly, I'm so honored to meet you. Again. Like this."

Holy shit. Stop talking. Stooopppppp.

She pulls her hands back and covers her face.

[theoldgirl]

Well, challenge probably passed. There wasn't anything objectionable in there, certainly, and the TARDIS feels her displeasure mellow just a little. As always, flattery goes at least some of the way towards her favor. The question is just how long Iman will remain tolerable.

"Good," she says, incrementally less stern. "I'm glad to hear you have realized your mistake and learned from it." That's all she'd wanted to accomplish with her lesson, after all. That and acknowledgement, which Iman is being quite generous with now. Better late than never.

[etherthief]

Iman peeks nervously through her fingers like a child expecting something scary to happen. She's marginally relieved the TARDIS isn't just waltzing away after that horrifying display of babbling, but she still feels distinctly under scrutiny.

"Yes," she says somewhat meekly, lowering her hands. "I, um. Yes. Next time will be better." It's been a while. And now they have a new potential colleague. Possibly she shouldn't mention that yet.

"Is, um, is this form something you use just for dreams?" she asks, hoping a little glimpse of her oceanic curiosity is acceptable. "Is it a projection, or an organic body?" Potentially she's asking how solid the body is, but she's definitely not going to reach out and touch at this point.

[theoldgirl]

Well Iman isn't wrong; she is definitely under scrutiny. That 'next time' she mentioned isn't as sure as she seems to think, and may in fact be decided right now. But the TARDIS wouldn't get an accurate response if she pointed that out.

Sensible questions about her body are allowed, encouraged even, and she folds her hands behind her back, a slightly less forbidding stance. "It is an organic body in the waking plane. I occasionally use a manifestation of it in the telepathic network. Though I don't need to, as I function primarily telepathically."

[etherthief]

"That's incredible," says Iman, openly impressed, an attitude that comes much more naturally to her. "I'm so glad I can - I mean, there are so many questions I want to ask you, and I wouldn't even know where to begin communicating with you properly, it's probably not possible, is it? For me, I mean. I wish it was. I wish I could understand - I mean, are you all organic, I can't imagine anyone actually building you, or..."

She's having so much trouble keeping her shit together. She presses a hand to her mouth, the other arm wrapped around her midsection, visibly trying to hold herself back.

"I'm sorry," she says again. "I - I can leave you alone, if you'd prefer. I just - I want you to know that I know I acted inappropriately before, and I have every intention of righting that, I - I think you're the most amazing entity I've ever come across, could ever hope to really, and I would hate to think that I... well, I hate knowing that I botched our first, you know, interaction. I hope that I can prove myself, um, better at... this."

Well, that fell apart. She's still reeling, inwardly. She needs to sit down.

[theoldgirl]

This is all rather more respect and admiration than she usually receives even with her humanoid body, so she is starting to feel a bit more optimistic with regards to Iman and her future manners. There may even be a slightly amused smile tugging at the corner of her lips, watching Iman's obvious and disastrous attempt at containing her fascination.

She takes the continued apology seriously, though, and nods in agreement. "I hope so as well. I would not like to judge you prematurely." Still guarded, but slightly more encouraging now, she adds, "And I don't mind questions and curiosity in the slightest. The Doctor and I enjoy helping lesser beings grow. Since you asked - I was organically grown as well as technologically augmented by the Doctor's race, long before even his time."

[etherthief]

Lesser beings stings a little - Iman doesn't like hearing that kind of thing, regardless of how objectively true it may be - but she maintains composure. She's sure she's not the first person to behave like an ass around the TARDIS, that surely gives her a bit of an excuse to be politely condescending, at least.

"That's great," she says sincerely. "Thank you." She laces her fingers together, holding them before her in an effort to stop fidgeting. "Organically grown - by someone? Or are you a naturally occurring lifeform?" This is so fascinating. Her eye strays briefly to the nearest sofa, wondering if it would be incredibly bad form to ask if they sit. It's so hard not to want to sit and be as cozy as possible in this dream.

[theoldgirl]

Iman is just going to have to get used to the polite condescension, if she's genuinely interested in befriending the TARDIS. It's not like she even does it on purpose, or is likely to be deterred even if it was pointed out to her.

And Iman apparently doesn't go for the easy questions. She can't blame her for being thorough, though, and will do her best to answer. "My origin isn't as straightforward or linear as those options," she begins with a slight shake of her head. "The seeds of my species lay in the time vortex, naturally occurring since the beginning of Time itself. The Time Lords used these to engineer time capsules, until they had drained the vortex of all seeds and were proficient enough to grow us themselves. I am a Type 40 TARDIS; my construction is eons removed from those origins." This is delivered in a somewhat lecturely tone, nothing more than a small excerpt from her databanks. And if Iman wants to sit, she's going to have to suggest it herself; there is no marked difference between the two positions to the TARDIS, especially here where any comfort is imaginary.

[etherthief]

Iman can feel her eyes getting steadily bigger as the TARDIS explains. The details mean little to her, but they don't need to. The implications are easy enough to track, and her imagination is already running rampant, hungry for more information, how widespread is this, is this in one universe, or many, or all of them? A 'time vortex' - a species grown from seeds?

"I," she blurts after a moment. "I need to sit down. I'm sorry, I'm - I'm going to sit."

She does, stepping back and dropping onto the nearest sofa, resting her elbows on her knees and her chin in her hands. She stares at the woman who represents an infinite being, not sure how to proceed, what else to ask, what to do.

"This is," she says, stumbling through her various impulses. "I'm. I want to know everything. I mean I always have, everything about everything, but now I - this is so much." She slides her fingers self-consciously under her hijab, straightening her hair and the scarf. "I can't even determine where to - I mean, this is the kind of knowledge that changes entire thoughtforms, this is huge."

Again, she buries her face in her hands, trying to pull herself together. Then as something else occurs to her she looks up sharply, all the other questions shoved abruptly aside.

"The Rift keeps you here," she says. "It keeps you here. How can it - how powerful does it have to be for that?" More importantly. "That - it must be so awful. I can't even imagine. Obviously I can't." She gazes at the TARDIS, almost overwhelmed by the sadness of it, like seeing a rare, beautiful animal in a cage. "I'm so sorry."

Sadness gives very quickly into a very sharpened, determined sort of anger. She sits up a little straighter. "We are going to beat this," she says. "We are going to find a way out. I refuse to accept any alternative."

i hope you like feels from two weeks ago

[theoldgirl]

Once again the TARDIS finds herself both pleased and slightly amused by Iman's overwhelmed fascination. It's always nice to see she's still capable of eliciting that sort of reaction despite being so limited here. She patiently waits for Iman to stumble through her various impulses of commendable hunger for knowledge and then joins her side on the sofa, primly folding her hands in her lap.

Unfortunately Iman arrives at a far more unpleasant thought just then, and the TARDIS' expression loses all warmth. Her sympathy and limited understanding are appreciated, though, even if it can't be much help, and she nods in thanks. "The Doctor and I have weathered worse circumstances and always escaped eventually," she agrees levelly, if not with quite as much determination as Iman's pronouncement. The longer that the rift and this universe drain and blind her, the longer she is forced to carry on without her Doctor, the more worn out this certainty is becoming. But losing hope is unthinkable, and so she won't. Iman's typical human resilience is good to see though, endearing, the sort of thing the Doctor is always fond of in them. "He thinks you will be able to be of help in the effort," she adds, wanting to be encouraging. Whether she agrees is a different matter, but she trusts her pilot's judgement.

you know it

[etherthief]

"As well he should," says Iman doggedly. "It's what I do."

She's not sure what else to say. She feels the strange, potentially dream-induced urge to move closer to the manifested body beside her but only looks over at her, feeling sourcelessly nervous. That isn't like her at all. But conversation with a magnificent sapient ship isn't really in her wheelhouse either.

"Are you cold?" she asks curiously. "I mean, does this body feel the same general sensations that ours do?"