Jamie McCrimmon (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
bonnypiperlad) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
trans_92010-04-13 03:24 am
bonnypiperlad) wrote in trans_92010-04-13 03:24 am
Entry tags:
Distractions [Open]
After helping Kaylee while her arm was hurt, Jamie was curious as to exactly what it would take to try and learn enough about simple repair to try and do the same with the Engineering department. The work in the city wouldn't take forever, after all, and while there were other things he agreed to do, he didn't think they would take a lot of his time. He could volunteer for security, but he wasn't sure if that was something he really wanted to do. And since there wasn't really a 'creeping along corridors' department, maybe this would be some other way he could help.
He had managed to get the information onto one of the data pads and settled down for a good read. Some time later, however, he found himself staring at the screen in dismay. There was a lot more to it than he had expected. Sure, he could push buttons and throw levers when directed - and he had helped fix that one frayed wire. But everything else...
"Och," he muttered, pushing the pad aside in frustration. Maybe later, he'd look at it again. Right now, he needed to do something, anything other than just sit there and stare at a wee little screen and try and figure out what it all meant. Maybe a walk was in order. After some aimless wandering, Jamie found himself in the vehicle bay. It was as good a place as any, he supposed. He'd just have a quick peek around, then get back to work.
It was when he was nosing about that he heard the sound. He was being very careful not to actually touch anything - you never knew when someone would show up and get all upset over some imagined scrape and blame you for it. That meant it wasn't anything he had done...so it was likely someone else was there with him.
Raising his voice so it would carry a bit, he called out, "Hey, anyone there?"
He had managed to get the information onto one of the data pads and settled down for a good read. Some time later, however, he found himself staring at the screen in dismay. There was a lot more to it than he had expected. Sure, he could push buttons and throw levers when directed - and he had helped fix that one frayed wire. But everything else...
"Och," he muttered, pushing the pad aside in frustration. Maybe later, he'd look at it again. Right now, he needed to do something, anything other than just sit there and stare at a wee little screen and try and figure out what it all meant. Maybe a walk was in order. After some aimless wandering, Jamie found himself in the vehicle bay. It was as good a place as any, he supposed. He'd just have a quick peek around, then get back to work.
It was when he was nosing about that he heard the sound. He was being very careful not to actually touch anything - you never knew when someone would show up and get all upset over some imagined scrape and blame you for it. That meant it wasn't anything he had done...so it was likely someone else was there with him.
Raising his voice so it would carry a bit, he called out, "Hey, anyone there?"
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"Well," he says thoughtfully, "There was that travel capsule on Dulkis, but that was a wee bit different. The Doctor had to take it to pieces to get it to land before it was supposed to." There's a faint disparaging noise from him at the memory. "Ye would think the fact we were traveling at heaven knows what speed at the time would have made him think twice about it, aye?"
In retrospect, it really was the only way for the Doctor to get the capsule to land. Better that than the Quarks that were waiting at the pre-determined stopping point.
Dragging his thoughts away from their time on Dulkis, Jamie turns his attention back to the flying car issue. "I suppose it would make more sense to have some place down there to put it rather than moving it back and forth, but I bet we could find some place to keep it that's not being used. I don't know why ye would worry about security systems, though." He really doesn't think that anyone would make off it with it. If they really wanted to, they could do that here just as easily as down in the city. He decides not to point that out, however.
Instead, he asks hopefully, "Could ye maybe ask, then? It'd be...verra distracting." Sometimes just going ahead and doing things you probably shouldn't is fun, Billy.
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He flashes a smile at the story of the Doctor's antics, imagining what sort of trouble the odd Time Lord must have gotten Jamie into. "Sometimes there isn't time to think in a crisis. Though I agree, it sounds dangerous."
Now, though? The ideas churning in Billy's mind are all about what he can do with the car. He feels that it's safer here because Stacy isn't as able to deter thieves in the City, but perhaps he can park somewhere well-hidden. And there /was/ that name recognition tech he'd installed to prevent a flying car being unleashed on Angel Grove with unskilled hands. Hmm.
A split second later, Billy's throwing open the door. He'd checked over the Radbug's condition before Jamie's arrival, and it seems to be road/air-ready, but there is only one way to find out. "I may regret this shortly, but hop in. We're going to the City for a distraction---if you're still interested."
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"Aye, well. That's not unusual, with the Doctor," he says with a shrug. Danger does seem to lurk around every corner when you travel with him. It's part of the excitement.
Speaking of which, Jamie is climbing in through the door practically before Billy gets a chance to get it fully open. Settling into the seat, he turns to investigate the window. He likes propping his elbow up when it's possible, and doesn't see any issues with doing so while they're flying. He's not really thinking that the car might be able to go fast enough that it'd be a problem.
"Hey, can I open this?"
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He gently beeps the horn as they travel slowly along the hallways, ensuring that no one is in danger of being hit before they have a chance to take off. "It seems to be running smoothly so far, but the true test is in the air."
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He's happy for a few minutes while they move down the hallways, enjoying the drive. All too soon, however, he finds himself getting a little bored with the slow speed. And while he understands that it's not a good idea to go too fast - running over the crew would be bad - surely they can go a little bit faster?
"Could ye not hurry it up a bit?", he says, a touch impatiently. Jamie would like to get to the flying part now, thank you very much.
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"I think this is sufficient space for taking off. Are you ready?"
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Since the rest of the trip goes uneventually, he's more then ready to take off once they reach the abandoned road. He nods enthusiastically. "Aye!"
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"What do you think, Jamie?"
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He closes his eyes, letting himself enjoy the feeling of air against his face briefly. There's a moment where he considers trying to downplay his reaction, but there's a smile that keeps threatening to break through. He decides to let it.
"Och, it's grand!"
And a perfect distraction to boot. Pulling his head back in, he turns towards Billy and asks curiously, "Which way do ye want to go?"
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"You know...I've just realized that I've never actually driven the Radbug for mere enjoyment before. It's always been used during emergencies only. I really was too responsible for my own good, wasn't I?" he jokes.
As for where they should go...Billy has ideas. "How about over there, toward the castle and the park? I've always wondered about their full size."
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More seriously, he is all for the plan to go towards the castle and the park. "Let's go, then." His head pops back out of the window so he can get a better view as they travel. And sure enough, once they get closer to the castle, there is one of his typical reactions to very large objects.
"Hey, would ye look at the size of that thing!"
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With that, he veers over to the castle (but not too close, he doesn't want to cause Goliath to feel threatened) and listens for Jamie's reaction.
"The size of what? The castle? A Gargoyle? Or is there something that can't be seen from the ground?"
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"Och, I meant the castle. It's just I've not seen it from up here before. Ye don't really notice the size of something the same way from the ground, aye?"
Billy can't really see it the same way, though, not if he's driving. He eyes the steering wheel thoughtfully. "Do ye have some way of getting the RadBug to just...stay where it is? Ye should really see how this looks."
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"That should do it," he decides, rolling down his window and poking his head out. "Wow! It really is something special."
He'll just admire the view for a few moments if Jamie doesn't mind.
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Jamie's quiet for a bit, allowing Billy to take in the view as well. And he seems happy...until he catches a glimpse of some of the city that hasn't been cleaned up yet. Unfortunately, that brings back the whole situation he had been trying to distract himself from, and he lets out a rather disgruntled sounding sigh.
"Billy? Can I ask ye about something?"
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"Of course, anything. What is it?"
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"How did ye get interested in this mechanical stuff ye do? Inventions and fixing things and such?"
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"I suppose it started when I was very young. From an early age I was motivated to read, learn everything I can, and ask questions. Now...I don't intend to put myself on a pretentious pedestal, but my parents found that I was qualified for genius programs, where my curiosity was rewarded further. For a time, it was all wonderful. I absorbed information for the pure joy of doing it. I saw mysterious objects and wanted to understand them. I took things apart to learn how they worked, and pieced them together again. From there, I learned how to build more and more complex devices, and it was thrilling to truly accomplish something. My obsessive interest eventually made me an outcast from the other children, so I retreated into my work. The world scared me, and I thought I would be able to master it if I could only take it apart to study it." He pauses reflectively. He'd never said that in so many words before, and it was an unsettling epiphany.
"My sour experiences with people led me to study hard facts---numbers, physics, mechanics. Items that had a clear answer, unlike the people I knew. It was an escape from loneliness to tinker with machines, and it gave me strength to know that I could solve a problem if I wanted to. But I never gave up on people entirely. Every now and then, I met someone who wasn't intimidated by my studies. And I eventually became friends with all sorts of people, once we learned that our judgments had been hasty and based on faulty information, but even then I still invented. It was my way of contributing to the world. I proved myself in that lab."
Billy's facial expression might be strange---haunted with remembered pain but hopeful. "So...overall, I'd say my interest was partially curiosity and partially a desire to be helpful. I've never thought about how or why it happened before."
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"That's what it is." There's something about Billy that's reminded him of something, but he hasn't been able to put his finger on it until now. It's that curiosity, that urge to learn things...and that ability to create. "Ye remind me a wee bit of the Doctor."
There's large differences between the two, and Jamie's not under any delusions that there's not. Still - he means it to be a good thing. He thinks rather highly of the Doctor, after all.
Seeing that haunted expression, though, he adds, "I hope ye don't mind my thinking so." He's not sure if it would bother Billy or not.
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"I partially resemble the Doctor? The person who constantly brought you into contact with perilous situations?" Well, that was the last thing that had come up about the Doctor. But he quickly smiles to assure Jamie that he doesn't really think Jamie would think that lowly of him.
He thinks a moment longer, considering everything else Jamie had ever said. "He was also clever and eccentric, right? Is that what you're getting at?" Jamie talks about the annoying aspects of life on the TARDIS, sure, but something tells him that Jamie doesn't intend it as an insult.
"I don't mind, as long as it doesn't mean I annoy you."
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Jamie does like to complain about life on the TARDIS, true, but that doesn't mean he didn't enjoy the time there. It's just...Jamie being Jamie. And Jamie's a bit puzzled by Billy's reaction, until he realizes that that's probably why his friend would think he was annoyed.
"Ye never annoy me. I meant it as...och." He sighs for a moment. "I meant I think that's part of why I like ye. Ye are a clever wee chappy, like he is."
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After a happy moment, he sets one hand on the wheel and meets Jamie's gaze again. "Did you have more questions?"
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There's a chuckle from him then. "Aye, but when do I not have questions?" He is aware he asks rather a lot of them - including that last one.
"I suppose, though, ye might have been wondering why I asked about that in the first place."
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That statement rings true, though, so he again focuses on Jamie curiously. "I did wonder about that, actually."
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"I was trying to think on what I can do, once this is cleared up. It's not like the ship needs a piper, aye?"
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