fandomhigh | Adventuring Survival Tactics, Period 4, A Classroom, 4/12/07

The Doctor didn't have desks in the classroom today.

He had little swatches of carpet. About 18 inches by two feet, rectangular. In various ~~moddable~~ styles and colors. He gestured as for the students to sit on these bits of carpet. After the opening bell rang, he smiled.

"This is Adventuring Survival Tactics," the Doctor said. "And the first adventuring sruvival tactic you need you learn is that those carpets EAT PEOPLE!"

He made spooky fingers.

"Okay, maybe they don't," the Doctor said. "But they could. One some strange planet. Now something else to keep in mind is what you are, in fact, capable of. So that's today. It's a getting to know yourself, and each other, exercise. You'll tell us all your name, what you think your greatest strength is, what you think your greatest weakness is, and the weirdest fact you can think to share about yourself."

He brushed off his jacket. "I'll begin. My name is The Doctor. My greatest strength is, of course, being as fantastic as I am. My greatest weakness is the very rare ocassion when I am overconfident. The strangest thing about me is that I've suffered eight circumstances that would normally have been fatal, but I live on." He nodded. "Your turn."

After everyone shared, he smiled and clapped his hands together. "Fantastic. Now then, you're welcome to talk with your fellow students about the following situation for the rest of the hour. No homework for the next week, because I'm nice like that. Now, discussion topic. What would you carry in your pockets if you knew you were going out into a dangerous place. No backpack, no. Pockets only. What're you bringing? Discuss."

He was a bit smug at that. He knew that no one else had dimensionally transcendental pockets.

[ooc: ~~Wait for the OCD~~ Welcome to play, my friends!]

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Rose bit her lip trying hard not to smile.

"You'd be proud of him, before I came in he and ~~his boyfriend~~ Jake almost single handedly stopped the Cybermen from controlling Earth."

"Fantastic," the Doctor said. "It's good that he finally pushed himself into his potential."

"He certainly has, been a great help, Mickey has." Rose said proudly, then paused, hesistant. "Jane told me... Jane told me I -- your Rose died?"

The Doctor froze for a second, then nodded. "She did."

Oh, Doctor... Rose put a hand on his arm. "I'm so sorry. I know, I know how that feels losing someone you-- losing someone."

The Doctor tried to put on a smile, but his eyes betrayed his true feelings. "You lost me, didn't you? Well... sort of, at least."

This time Rose couldn't look him in the eye, but she still held on tight.

"Twice," she said, softly. "I lost you twice."

"Twice?" the Doctor wrapped his arms around Rose. "Well, I'll do my best to make sure we stop the count there."

Rose leaned into the hug. "I plan to, nothing's going to hurt you and make you regenerate not while I'm around."

There was a glint there a fierce, almost feral promise.

"Well, had a few close calls these past months, but nothing out of the ordinary, really. Planning on being around a long time, me," the Doctor said.

"Good." Rose said firmly then tilted her head, "What was that situation like? Any aliens involved?"

"What..." The Doctor said. "How you... died?"

"No," Rose was startled, "I meant your last close call."

A beat.

"How did I-- she die?"

"You... did something rather foolish," the Doctor said.

Rose laughed softly. "I do a lot of foolish things, Doctor."

"Absorbed all the energy of the vortex," the Doctor said. "Really, really foolish, that."

"Ah." She said, looking both rueful and sad. "She did that too."

The events were still hazy but she still got vague nightmares about that time and sometimes, Rose had an impression that she had been listening to a song she once knew.

"I didn't know what to do," the Doctor said. "And you, no... she just burnt up. Right there in front of me."

She remembered that time too-- her Doctor exploding in a fiery inferno of gold and dust.

Tears were brimming in her eyes, she squeezed his hand and said, "I'm sorry." For what happened to you, for killing you. "I'm so sorry."

"Nothin' to be sorry for," the Doctor said. "Here we are, different, older, but here we both are, right?"

"Who you callin' 'older'?" She joked, in an effort to lighten the mood but sobered quickly to say, "But yeah, we're both different now, different paths and all -- I never thought I'd stop travelling with you but life had something different in mind."