RP with seriousmarauder

[bit_impossible]

He couldn't help pulling a face as plumes of fog rolled in over his feet the moment he'd opened the TARDIS door. "Well, certainly wasn't expecting that," he muttered to himself. Bit of fog never harmed anyone, and he thought it was better than water rushing in--or worse. Then again, he hadn't been expecting...well, whatever that had been to

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[bit_impossible]

The Doctor hadn't noticed how much time had passed, so lost he was in running every diagnostic possible on his poor ship--and taking a few moments to replace some burnt out wires and components that had bit the dust from the last spray of sparks. As far as he could tell, there was no reason for him to even be in a Britain where magic existed and babies could defeat evil wizards, though he thought that was rather amazing but embarrassing for the wizard. The ride through the vortex had been smooth; granted, there were the usual bumps and jostles on occasion, but he'd long gotten used to those.

By the time Sirius finally joined him, he was letting a panel of metal grating fall back into place with a clanging slam. He'd found the source of the problem and was mentally kicking himself for not realising it sooner--and more importantly, for having ignored the problem for so long. At least the trip hadn't drained the old girl of power. Unfortunately though, he couldn't pilot her until he'd either repaired or created from scratch the two small, but extremely complicated parts he held in his hand.

"Well," he said slowly, tucking the parts away safely into his pocket. "She's seen better days." He smiled apologetically at the central console, resting a hand on the time rotor. There was a note of fondness in his voice as he spoke. "We were lucky to get out of Azkaban, you know. Logistically, we shouldn't have even been able to make the jump from there to here, but my TARDIS is rather brilliant. Always there to save me when I need her most..."

He fell silent for a moment, then spun round to face Sirius again. "That means I'm going to be stuck here for a while. And though I know my way around Britain--and, well, the rest of this planet, really--I'm unfamiliar with how things are in this Britain in this time period." He stopped there, leaning back against the console, and hoped Sirius caught his meaning.

[seriousmarauder]

Sirius smiled a bit, fully catching the Doctor's meaning. "I'd be happy to show you around then, Doctor. If you wouldn't wandering around with Padfoot again, that is," he replied hesitantly. If he was going to introduce the Doctor to wizarding Britain, he certainly wouldn't be able to do it as himself, unless they avoided everywhere that was remotely interesting.

"I haven't really got anywhere to stay, except...no, wait. There is one place...it's hidden away in muggle Britain, actually, but if we can find a fireplace to use and some floo powder, I could get us there," he replied thoughtfully. He didn't particularly want to go back to his old home, but nobody was living there now, and it was the most well-hidden place he could think of.

[bit_impossible]

"Ohh, I wouldn't mind at all!" he said cheerily, grinning broadly. "It's been a long time since I've travelled with a canine companion, well, to be fair, he was a computer as well, so technically I haven't truly travelled with a real dog. Then again...I won't have done anyway, since you're really human..." He realised he was getting very off-track and shut up.

A moment later, he'd been about to say that finding a place to stay would be of no trouble for him--he was well-versed in finding lodgings for the night no matter where he went--but he instead gave Sirius a puzzled look. "Flue powder? I've got a fireplace, one of several actually, in the library but you don't mean soot, do you? There's plenty of that there." To his recollection, he hadn't bothered giving any of the fireplaces a good cleaning in the past couple centuries. Thank goodness for the TARDIS air circulation and purification systems, he thought.

[seriousmarauder]

"You mentioned that before," Sirius replied, curious again. "I'll admit I don't know much about technology...that's mostly a muggle thing. But a robot dog sounds like fun."

He rolled his eyes at the Doctor's questions. "Floo powder. Comes from the floo plant, which...we might be able to find around here somewhere, actually. Hang on, I'll see if I can't sniff some out." With that, he shifted into Padfoot again, pawing at the door until the Doctor let him out.

Once he was outside again, he sniffed around the area until he found exactly what he was looking for, and he barked excitedly.

[bit_impossible]

He made a mental note to brag all about K-9 later as he followed Sirius out of the TARDIS and back out into the field. For a moment, he stopped, taking a deep breath, the smells of the heather and sea air filling his lungs. At least there were plenty of things for him to learn about. It would keep away that itch he always felt when he'd stayed in one place for too long... Or at least he hoped it would.

The barking snapped him out of his train of thought and he ran over, so very tempted to make a Lassie joke. "Hello there..." he said, squatting down and peering curiously at the new plant. "Just the one, you think? Or should we grab a bunch?"

[seriousmarauder]

Sirius shifted back into himself, wincing again at the transformation. He managed not to collapse, though, which was an improvement.

"Let's take several, just in case." He carefully picked a few, and gestured for the Doctor to do the same.

"Your fireplace won't be connected to the floo network, but if we can figure out how to hack in somehow, it might work. Otherwise, we'll have to find one that is," he explained, hoping they would be able to find a house nearby. Preferably an empty one.

[bit_impossible]

He plucked a few out of the ground, exercising about as much care as Sirius exhibited. After all, he didn't know what part of the plant they'd need.

"The 'floo network'?" he asked incredulously, highly amused. "How exactly would you hack into a fireplace, a pickaxe?" Part of him also wondered, cheekily of course, if he could use iPlayer on it.

[seriousmarauder]

Sirius rolled his eyes. "It connects all the fireplaces together. Muggle fireplaces aren't generally connected unless you get special permission from the Ministry. There are a few unlocking spells I could try, but I might not be able to get a good result without my wand," he sighed, feeling ridiculously helpless.

[bit_impossible]

He'd always wondered if a wand was vital for the casting of magic, but now that he knew, he couldn't help wondering what a crutch it must be. Then again, he felt somewhat lost if his sonic screwdriver broke and never dawdled in making another. That lesson was well learnt long ago.

"So what exactly would happen in a bad result scenario?" he asked, heading back to the TARDIS with his bundle of floo plants.

[seriousmarauder]

"In a bad result scenario, we wouldn't be able to get in, and we'd have to do a bit of breaking and entering, if we can find an empty house somewhere," Sirius replied, a sly smile gracing his gaunt face as he followed the Doctor back to the TARDIS. "You don't mind a little crime, do you, Doctor?"

[bit_impossible]

For a moment, he was afraid that the attempt would damage his TARDIS in some way and almost reconsidered his decision, but hearing that was a relief. As he led the way through the console room, heading towards the nearest workshop, he glanced over his shoulder, a mischievous glint in his eye.

"It's not a crime when you've got the key," he said cryptically.

[seriousmarauder]

Sirius laughed. "You might just make an honorary Marauder yet, Doctor," he replied wistfully. What he wouldn't give for a Time-Turner.

He gathered the plants together when they reached the workroom, remembering his Herbology lessons, and grinding the plants into a fine powder when he found the right tools. It hadn't been his best subject, granted, but he never did poorly in anything.

[bit_impossible]

"Marauder? I thought you lot were called wizards," he said cheekily. He watched curiously while Sirius began to work. Part of him had hoped for something a bit more flash, but then again, he supposed that even a wizard's work wasn't always so showy. After a moment, he dug out comparable tools to join him. He was eager to see just what the floo powder would do--and of course, he was going to test a bit of it to see what sort of chemical properties made the plants so special.