LOG: River/Five

[takingcareof]

River had strayed into the library, intent on a few books on various topics. She needed to brush up on her molecular physics and astronomy if she was going to be of any help in getting out of here. Of course, that did conflict with the other object of her search - Inara had an old book called The Joy of Sex that while it sounded far out of her

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[beige_doc]

The Doctor was adding what he hoped to be the finishing touches to his re-built sonic screwdriver, a muffled curse in his native tongue slipped out just as a piece slipped through his fingers. His head shot up when he heard his name uttered, "Hmmm? Oh hello River, how do you do?" A bright, pleasant grin on his face.

[takingcareof]

"How do I do what?" River cocked her head. But she smiled a bit, seeing how contented he looked. She sat at one of the other chairs, folding her left leg underneath her body. "Are you rebuilding some sort of tool? Lilo told me you have a machine capable of penetrating the space-time continuum."

[beige_doc]

"I mean, 'how are you?'" Sometimes the Doctor forgot that not everyone in the universe was English. Sometimes it rather seemed they were.

"My sonic screwdriver. It was destroyed just before the Great Fire of London, I didn't have much of a chance to rebuild it prior to my arrival here." Reverentially he placed the device on the table and turned his attention to the young woman. "You mean the TARDIS? Wonderful thing she is the old girl."

[takingcareof]

"Lilo didn't tell me her name." River nodded, though; how many time travelling devices could one man have. She bit her lip. "I was curious as to its operation. How far you can go." What times he had seen. If he'd ever been to her world.

[beige_doc]

"It stands for Time and Relative Dimensions in Space. My granddaughter Susan gave her the name." A rather proud and wistful smile on the Doctor's face, "Lilo reminds me of her quite often."

"Theoretically, one can travel wherever there is Time. Though my people attempt to put limits as to how far forwards we can go or how far back they are only guidelines. At the beginning of this regeneration my friends and I were almost a part of the 'Big Bang.'"

[takingcareof]

River nodded. It made sense to her. "Do you worry about changing the fabric of time through the application of chaos theory?" She was curious. "In theory the slightest shift caused by your actions could decimate an entire future, obviously, but you seem to guard against that."

She decided not to speak of Lilo for now. It seemed to make the Doctor sad, somehow.

[beige_doc]

"History is an established event. Unless you go back actively seeking to change it, for the better or worse it doesn't matter, then you don't have to worry. If you look at it from the standard chronological point of view, I will have always met Leonardo Da Vinci whether it was in my last lifetime or in my future." He clasped his hands in front of him.

"Time is more resilient than most people give it credit. If something is happening that goes against the known history books? Then that is where I need to play a role. Paradoxes do so give me a headache. Otherwise, I'm just a mere observer." A bright grin on the Doctor's face as he explained temporal physics.

[takingcareof]

River nodded slowly, though she'd never been taught such things. She'd always learnt that time was a fleeting thing, and one should use it well. Or at least, that was how it made the most sense to her.

Still. She blinked. "Who else have you met?" If he'd been coming to this planet for his entire lifetime, one could only guess how many famous humans he'd encountered. The captain had always told her history was a waste, given it had already happened, but she clung to it. She didn't see a choice.

[beige_doc]

"Ohhhh, many people." A small, cheeky grin on the Doctor's face. "Shall I just name some famous humans or are other species allowed as well?" In every incarnation the Doctor was a terrible name dropper.

[takingcareof]

River liked that he was happy. But the last part of his sentence made her blink. "You've met other sentient species? Humans are so capricious." She was fascinated; she had to admit. "My Dean has seen vampires and werewolves, but my research has indicated such things are indigenous to this planet only." And she didn't count demons as a sentient species.

[beige_doc]

The Doctor nodded, "of course. The universe is filled to bursting with what humans refer to as aliens. You'd be surprised at how many are able to integrate themselves into human society." He fought back a wince at the mention of vampires, it was a natural response to his people, one that came from being almost wiped out by the Great Vampires.

"No, lupine wavelength haemovaroforms are rather common throughout the universe...vampires on the other hand...there are thankfully very few left of them. Vengeance we called it, they nearly wiped out Gallifreyan civilization ohhhh about 50 000 years ago now."

[takingcareof]

River raised an eyebrow, shifting her body in the chair. "Lupine ... why have I never seen evidence of a lycanthrope anywhere in my time? Do such things assimilate into the human genetic pattern?"

She would have asked more, but she saw the faint shadows in his eyes, saw the faint droop of his shoulders. She presumed Gallifrey was his home planet. All she said was "Dean says there are hunters like him who search out the vampires and exterminate them. It's necessary for human survival."

[beige_doc]

"Perhaps because they've ceased to exist. Though they do take a basic humanoid form when not appearing as a wolf. Perhaps they simply excel at hiding themselves from prying eyes?"

"After the last great war with the Great Vampires, my people killed all but one. The most dangerous one of all, he just disappeared. I found him...a handful of years back in my time now, I was a different person then. A group of people...vampires were seeking to raise him from the dead. I killed him. And them. The last of the Great Vampires." The Doctor attempted to hide a grim look of satisfaction on his face. "Though theoretically not all races who drink blood are your typical evil vampires." A slight change of topic to raise the mood a little.