What Dreams May Come

[riversinger]

Dr. River Song is holed up in a corner of the bar, her notebook spread before her, and surrounded by a formidable stack of books.  Biology, genetics, advanced gene therapy, chaos theory in genetic mutation, and a myriad more.  There is one very lonely book sitting at the edge of her table, ostensibly being ignored.  Very pointedly ignored.  En

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[tanyadams]

And there is a woman in half-military attire (black tank top, BDU pants, combat boots, tactical belt with guns) looking at the ignored book while sipping her coffee.

Because the poor book must be lonely.

[riversinger]

River is now annotating her own notes, scribbling in the margins, flipping back to cross reference an earlier passage. It's a wonder she hasn't bloodied her lower lip the way she's chewing on it.

[tanyadams]

Beast-men. Well, Tanya's experience with such kind is rather limits, even if she speaks good latin. "Werewolves?" She goes for the assumption based on the types of critters she met in the End of the Universe.

[riversinger]

River puts her pen down and runs her hands over her face and into her hair, still glaring at the page.

"Yes." There is a strained smile. "Yes, I suppose anyone here could tell you that's all I've been researching for the past six weeks."

"My apologies, I don't believe we've met. Dr. River Song."

She goes to take a sip of her tea and makes a face. A moment later she's waving a rat over to bring a fresh pot.

[ostro_goth]

"Greetings," Teja says, eyeing the title of that book. "Somebody tried for Latin, and missed?"

[riversinger]

"Church Latin," she explains, setting her pen down and resting her head in her hands. "Thaumaturgical nonsense. Bloody monks."

She looks up and gives Teja a tired smile. "My apologies. I don't believe we've met. I'm Dr. River Song."

[ostro_goth]

"Ahh, monks," Teja says, as if that explained everything. "Bloody monks indeed!"

Pause.

"Greetings, Dr. River Song! I am Teja, son of Tagila; I was the last king of the Ostrogoths in Italy and died in battle, on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius, in the year 552 of Christian reckoning."

Another pause.

"All that is truly needed; else, there will be wonderment later about my being dead, or having been a king, or suchlike."

[riversinger]

River blinks. Ah the social niceties of Milliways.

"K'plah, or something," she smirks. "A pleasure to meet you, Teja son of Tagila."

"I suppose if we're doing formal introductions, I am River Song, archaeologist, daughter of Alisande and Walter Song, in the 51st century of Earth reckoning. My physical form terminated in the Great Library, Outer Reaches, and my data ghost was uploaded to the Library's computer a hundred years before I discovered my door to Milliways. So I suppose, technically, I'm dead too!"

This commonality seems to cheer her up some.

[gone_byebye]

Our apologies for the icon, but it's the only one we have of an old and grungy book.

"Hey there," says Ray, who's got a knack for being present when this kind of subject turns up. "How's it going?"

[riversinger]

It's a damned nice icon for the subject matter, the narration agrees.

River looks up to see him and sighs, smiling. "Ray. Good to see you. It's gone sideways. And you? Still shovelling twinkies down Gozer's gob?"

She's shifting books around, trying to make a space for him to sit.

[gone_byebye]

"Thankfully yes," says Ray, "as the court case got turned back on some technicalities of filing to date. We're working with representatives of the Great Lemurian Empire on how best to go about sending him back where he came from using the information you got us, since they've had the longest history of distributed restraint of an extradimensional entity in Terran history. How're you?"

[riversinger]

"The Great Lemurian Empire, I don't believe I've ever heard of them." She pauses to make a note of the name in the margin, for more research later.

"I am well, I suppose. Coming to the inevitable conclusion that the science I have held dear my entire life is just not up to the task of explaining lycanthropy. Much as I hate to admit it."

[wheatencrown]

"River, child, what are you working on?"

Demeter peers over her shoulder in confusion.

[riversinger]

"Demeter! Oh my dear, here have a seat."

She shuffles over a stack of books to make room.

"More of the same, really. The lycanthropy infection. That isn't an infection, apparently. I just can't get my head around it."

[wheatencrown]

"Oh dear, you should talk to Moon. I'm not sure if she'd make sense but she understands it as only the Moon can."

Demeter sits down and gives River a small hug.

[riversinger]

River returns the hug, happily. There's obviously a great weight on her shoulders.

"I'm sorry, Moon? I'm afraid I don't know her."

[waysthingsare]

Barty has a library book and a notebook, and is looking for a quiet place to sit. This can be a feat in the bar.

He is distracted, however, by River's piles of books.

He's not tall enough to reach the table properly, really, but he stands on tiptoe to try and read the spines.

[riversinger]

River is rather distracted but the top of Barty's head keeps peeking over the table.

Oh goodness. A small child. Near her books.

"Hallo? Can I help you?"

[waysthingsare]

"Hello," Barty echoes cheerfully. "What does 'theranthropa' mean?"

He's usually pretty good at sounding out words (in fact, he's reading on a nice solid fifth grade level right now), but Latin doesn't always play fair on that front.

[riversinger]

River blinks in utter astonishment. A wunderkind? Well, this is Milliways.

"THARE-ee-AN-THROW-pay," she corrects gently. "It's Latin and refers to humans that can change into animals."