abraxaslogs | [ open ] in order to get to the heart of things

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[ open ] in order to get to the heart of things

Who: Julie + opens
When: October
Where: Free Cities + Horizon
What: Julie does a pretty big thing, then spends a week on top of the world
Warnings: Doing real stupid things, otherwise noted in subjects. Halloween party will be a separate post later in the month!

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[ He takes notice of those details as well, more curious and fascinated than anything. In his travels, he's grown familiar with all manner of plant life and various recreational uses so many cultures exhibit. What a delightful little place this is; Salves & Stitches — he loves it! ]

Julie Lawry and Kajal — glad to meet you both!

[ The Doctor attempts a nose wriggle of his own back at Kajal. Nowhere near as good, though. Naturally, he follows Julie, excited to see what else she has planned and to help however he may. ]

And I'm sort of an everything Doctor. Time and space, wibbly wobbly things, cheese-making, mad and impossible things. Your friend will be the expert on the medical bits, though. Love this clinic! I could be here hours.

[ The Doctor speaks at a bit of a frenetic pace, his accent British, though he hails from quite far away, a planet now long gone. ]

Right, enough talking, sorry! I get carried away. Put me to work — should I help with the painting?

[ Inside the shop, there's more shelves of bottles and jars. Baskets of various herbs, leaves, and flowers, ready to be assembled into customized blends. More jack-o-lanterns are dotted throughout the store. Near the ceiling are what appear to be string lights in orange and black; closer inspection reveals that each "bulb" is actually just a floating orb of colored light, hovering on their own in the air.

On the counter next to the large, Victorian-esque cash register, is an unfinished wooden house nearly the same size. It's built to resemble the unique hodgepodge-y style of housing found in Cadens.

Julie goes behind the counter, but pauses to tilt her head at him. He's a what doctor? She knows that PhDs are mostly bullshit degrees for obsessive rich people with nothing better to do, but most of what he's said doesn't track as a specialty. Except cheese-making, she absolutely believes he might have a doctorate in cheese-making. Weirdo rich people stuff, clearly. ]

You're a doctor of... everythin'? What does that mean? Like, what kind of doctorin' do you do for money?

[ A polished wooden case rises from under the counter, seemingly of its own volition; it then proceeds to set down and open itself up, revealing a set of paints and paintbrushes. ]

Are you good at paintin'?

Not entirely everything, but loads of things. I try not to limit myself, and I learn as I go. Still learning after all this time!

[ All this time being roughly a thousand years (or thereabouts) now.

He could spend hours in here just looking at everything, but he did offer to help and he's true to his word, so the painting will take priority over his curiosities. ]

Oh, no, I don't do anything for money. I help, however I can. Planet-saving, chasing monsters away, keeping people safe. I'm just the Doctor, here to help. Well, not here to help, though I do intend to help here, too, as much as I can. But I ended up here — well, you've been through it.

[ His attention is captured by the question, of course, and the paint set just suddenly appearing. Oh, that's cool! And he looks utterly delighted. ]

I've painted loads of things and I enjoy it, though I'll leave the judgment of good up to you when I'm through.

[ He is actually good at painting, if that can be gleaned from his tumble of words. ]

So you're... not a doctor, then. [ She shakes her head and sighs, but otherwise appears to accept this strangeness at face value. After literally years of people telling her that they are monster hunters or sorcerers supreme or just straight-up angels, Julie no longer spends much time questioning things.

She also seems content to just let him paint as he pleases, figuring that she can just trash it and get another if he messes it up. But it is one less thing for her to do if he's good at it, so she walks around the shop as she continues talking. ]

Sorry to do chores while you're here, but I gotta open while Nadine's in class. [ A glass of water pours itself and then places itself next to him, to clean brushes. Julie is lighting candles on the shelves, her hands glowing a soft pink as she waves them over the wicks. ] Anyway, if planet savin' and monster fightin's your business, then you're fixin' to have quite a boom. First we had like, squids and shit droppin' outta the sky, then the other nasty critters too. That reminds me, I gotta find out who killed the hippo thing and send 'em flowers.

[ Fuck that hippo, seriously.

An open aquarium filled with saltwater plants burbles in the corner, where she pauses and swipes her hand across the glass; it clears instantly of the natural cloudiness and sediment that might block the view of the plants. A little orange seahorse pokes its face between some leaves to look out at her before she walks away, her attention turned back to the Doctor. ]

How long you been here?

I can help with the doctor-ing, if needs must, but yes, I'm just the Doctor. The name I chose, more specifically.

[ The name he chose long ago when he first set out in the universe, in the hopes of being someone others might feel safe and comfortable turning to in a time of need. He's more of an engineer and a scientist, though he can help in a pinch with injuries, illness, and the like. He's never very good at explaining it, though. And she wouldn't be the first to think his explanation strange or more confusing.

As much as he talks, he's just as content actually doing things, and since he offered to help, he wastes no more time delaying. Sleeves rolled up, he begins to get to work, dipping his paintbrush in a dark blue to start and applying a bottom layer. While the sort of painting he normally does is entirely different from painting wooden houses, he has some measure of skill with a brush and it isn't just talk. He's also good at multitasking — busy as his mind often is — so he listens with rapt attention as she talks, also fascinated by her magic. ]

Oh, please, by all means, do what you must! I've been here...oh, near about a month, give or take. From the sound of it — with nasty things coming through those rifts — I was a bit too late, though I'm glad to see you safe.

[ He dips his paintbrush in black now, then adds — ]

Ish. Were you hurt? By that...dreadful hippo creature?

You chose your own name, and you went with just Doctor? [ She sounds incredulous, and she's visibly reconsidering her initial sizing up of him. ] I can think of like, a million jobs that would make a better name, if you're just makin' one up. Guru, Ninja, Pilot, Captain, Sensei, Sailor, Judge, Warden, that's just off the top of my head. [ She could actually go on, but she doesn't. ] I mean, we got doctors here. Crane's one, Strange too. Maybe Viktor but he would be like a PhD kinda doctor, probably.

[ A feather duster tends to the ceiling corners, apparently on its own accord. Kajal, who has been alternately fluttering and hopping along the shelves with her, is picked up and placed in a large, decorative aviary, resembling a very fancy house, which stands near the counter. "Pianko will be here soon," she coos as she closes the cage door, then turns to lean on her elbows across from the Doctor. ]

You could say that. [ Her tone is extremely dark. The hippo didn't hurt her, but it might as well have. ] The marlboro was way weirder, though. Plus, it's still here. The government hid it away, probably to do experiments or some creepy shit to it.

[ Verbose and absurd and often unaware of when he's being a bit overmuch, the Doctor has at least begun to recognize after all these years (nearly a thousand, now!) that it's a lot to thrust on someone to explain that he can diagnose a blood clot often just by looking at someone, but he can't do actual surgery. He can travel through time but he's too distractible to do something mundane and seemingly easy like balancing a checkbook. He can take on a Dalek army and trick them with a Jammy Dodger, can destroy a fleet of Cybermen, but refuses to carry a weapon. His knowledge is vast and he has degrees in loads of things, from the serious to the silly, but he leans on maintaining an air of mystery and silliness himself. Beneath it all is far more than he often lets on, or can easily explain to someone he's just met.

But he loves her suggestions! ]

A thousand years with this name, now you've got me questioning myself. Good ones in there!

[ He smiles softly, briefly looking at her. ]

I chose the name Doctor, because I thought...well, the name you choose — if you can choose — it's like a promise. To the universe, in my case. When people call on me, wherever they are, I come if they're in need, if they're in trouble, no matter what it is, and I'll be there. Doctor seemed fitting, though you've nearly sold me on Ninja.

I'm sorry, for what you've been through. Experiments, though — certainly doesn't surprise me, given how they are here. Have you been here long, Julie?

[ He does get back to his painting, though, nearly finished now. ]

A thousand years. [ She does not, actually, seem very fazed by this. She's become accustomed to people who live significantly longer lives than normal humans. Even the mages here in Abraxas can extend their lives, if they choose. ] All that time and you never wanted to just... change your whole self? Drop everythin', go live a whole new life somewhere else? I think it'd be borin' to be the same person for that long.

[ She's done it twice now, although she hasn't yet changed names. Her given one is fine with her, has fit well enough through her second and her current life.

A wrinkle momentarily develops between her eyebrows, indicating that she still doesn't really understand. Is he famous? Who would know to call him when they're in trouble? How would he know? But the crease disappears just as quickly when she doesn't push for more information. ]

A bit over three years now. I was in the second group they ever summoned.

[ Changing his whole self, living a whole new life — oh, she's so very close to the whole story. He doesn't mind telling it, necessarily. Everyone has things they hold close and keep tightly locked away from people they've only just met, until they're closer, until it feels safe and natural to reveal more. He doesn't think he's unique in that way, but the fact that he's regenerated so many times and had so many different faces in his life, well, that particular truth isn't one he finds any real need to hide at all. It's simply a fact of his nature as a Time Lord, it's only that he doesn't often think to tell it for one reason or another.

He only hesitates now as he considers how much is too much when you've only just met someone? Best not to overwhelm her all at once. He's made a bad habit of doing that here already and though it's somewhat in his nature, he's trying to temper his enthusiasm, if not his strangeness. That, he'll always and ever be.

He does smile gently, though. ]

I have a bit, actually, over the years. [ A bit. ] Though not how you mean, I think. A different life, quieter perhaps — something to ponder! I've been traveling the universe so long now, I'm not sure I'd quite know how to do anything else. Although, being here has certainly changed that trajectory.

[ Softly, he asks — ] That long now, do you feel...settled? Is that the right word for it? Is there a right word for it?

[ As he speaks, with just a few more brushstrokes, he feels satisfied with how the haunted house looks, smiling triumphantly and setting his brush down before gesturing at it. He'll let her decide, of course, if it passes muster. ]

[ At this point, Julie is probably one of the least overwhelmable people possible. Her own life is so goddamn much all the time that she doesn't have much emotional bandwidth left to waste on other people's nonsense; even right now, she can feel the Singularity's consciousness in her mind as it wakes up for the day. Which is, y'know. Just. A lot on its own. So she tends to just accept whatever people say at more or less face value, then suss out the reality as she goes along.

From somewhere deep in one of her pockets, she digs out an ornate cigarette case and flips it open to reveal herbal blends rolled in rose petals (available two per silver, or five for two), one of which she places between her lips. She makes a finger gun and points it upward toward the end of the joint, which lights with a brief pink flash at the tip of her finger. ]

I don't know that I've ever had much of a choice but to settle. There's no goin' back for me. [ A steady stream of smoke slips out of her mouth. She doesn't clarify what she means. ] 'sides, this world feels more like me than mine ever did.

[ Earth, America. They had been comfortable. Familiar. But she didn't fit in in Kansas, New Vegas was all a lie, and neither of them had magic. Didn't have her people. Didn't have the Singularity.

Julie rarely misses home. She misses people, traditions, technologies. But she never wants to go back, even if it were a choice (it isn't).

Smiling, she rests her cigarette in a crystal ashtray next to the cash register, then straightens up and looks at the house. She actually looks at it, too -- she isn't one to pull punches when she doesn't like something. Delicately holding the base, she turns it side to side to inspect it. ]

Love it.

I know that feeling. [ His voice is soft, a measure of understanding. But then he's quick to add — ] Well, I know a feeling like that feeling, where a place you didn't come from can make you feel as though you belong far more than any other.

But your feeling is yours alone, of course, and not mine, so I won't presume. Only that I...know a bit, a feeling like that.

[ ...going for a record with how many times he can say, feeling! He also catches that phrasing, that there's no going back for her, and it rests in his mind, something he tucks away to remember for later. It makes him worry, of course, only in the sense that he wants her to be where she wants to be and if that's here, he wants to help make it safe for her if he can.

Then she's studying the haunted house and he's fully prepared for any critique, arms crossed loosely over his chest. She likes it, no, loves it, he thinks to himself, for a moment every bit like a child on Christmas morning as he smiles back at her. His outward exuberance comes easily — perhaps too much so at times, if the reactions he elicits are anything to go by. But she's been kind and hasn't thought him too much, at least so far, and for the Doctor, the simple pleasure of her company is actually quite enough to be delighted by. It's why his smile is so swift, yet genuine. ]

Oh, you're very kind to say it. Julie, thank you for the pleasure of your company. And the opportunity to play a bit with paints, always love that!

[ He begins to step away from where he was, gesturing just a bit with his hand idly. ]

I've hardly done a thing, though. If I can be of further use, you'll tell me?

[ Her head tilts and her nose wrinkles a little as she looks at him. He's a strange man, she thinks. Not necessarily in a bad or annoying way, just. Strange. Maybe quirky is a better word. Like a more likeable version of Zooey Deschanel, except taller.

It means something that his delight at her approval doesn't make her wary. Julie is from a world where trust no longer existed -- every single person was a very real threat. Every thought and action was a potential deathtrap. And that was before she got blown up and resurrected as a prisoner in an entirely different world that had magic. Suffice it to say that she is deeply suspicious of most people. But Doctor (she does not recognize the article as part of the name, and possibly never will) is either strikingly sincere, or the best actor she's ever met. Which is saying something, because she's met herself.

She holds up one hand and bends slightly at the waist. A tiny ball of light forms at the tip of her index finger and she gently pushes it through one of the upstairs windows, careful not to smudge the paint. It hovers inside the house, illuminating the top floor. ]

I will. [ A second light goes in the ground floor, then a third in the bell-tower, then Julie stands straight to look at him. ] But I won't eat up your day. And if there's anythin' you'd like to try, feel free to grab one.

[ The Doctor should, in theory, be more outwardly wary of people given his own history. He's been at times, in his own past, far more closed off, distant, even crotchety and cynical. Something changed in his last life, though. He'd come very close to being the darkest version of himself near the end there. He thought the universe owed him and the laws of time should obey him and frankly, he'd needed to be stopped. And he had been. His life now, being the last chance he'll get at it, has been an abrupt departure from that, a return to the promise of his chosen name — an attempt to bring hope and kindness and joy where he goes.

But he's a wanderer among the stars so he'll never quite fit exactly anywhere, he assumes. Always a bit strange, always a bit out of place. And yet, always grateful when he meets people like Julie, whose magic in lighting up the haunted house is enough to delight him all over again. ]

Julie, you are brilliant. Thank you, that's beautiful. Ha, love it! I'll be thinking of this all day and will absolutely stop back.

[ Meeting her was gift enough for him today, though he appreciates the offer to grab something. He'll absolutely be back to look more and purchase something, ever so impressed by what they've done with the place. ]

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[ open ] in order to get to the heart of things

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super sorry for the delay!

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i am so sorry this took so long

no worries at all! ty for the thread, i enjoyed these two! 🎁