A typical Doctor Who companion injury [open, post-rebellion]

[splendid_roman]

Of all things, Ian hadn't been expected to be bested by a tree. That it was a tree that moved without the wind should have given him a clue, but, well, it was a tree. He'd got too close, it got a good hit in, he'd landed awkwardly and now he couldn't walk.

It was only his ankle and, feeling embarrassed about the whole thing, he'd intended to just hobble home. Except that it did really hurt. So halfway there he found the nearest teleport and ended up in the medbay.

Comments

[morphitudinous]

The question caught Billy off guard. He'd never been mistaken for a doctor of all things! He chuckled, shaking his head.

"Not at all. I'm a mechanic---I suppose you could say I fix machines, not people. I'm just here to lend a hand wherever I can, because I've heard the staff was overwhelmed. Is there anything a non-expert can do for you at the moment?"

[splendid_roman]

He shook his head. "I don't think so." There didn't seem to be that much an expert could do either. "Unless you'd like to stay and keep me company. I didn't think to bring anything to read," he joked.

[morphitudinous]

"I can do that," Billy agreed, smiling lightly and taking a seat in the ward. "I almost always bring reading material, but you probably wouldn't be interested in mechanics and formulas. Should we start with introductions?"

He hoped he'd be forgiven his awkward nature. Meeting people wasn't second nature quite yet, especially not in a setting like this.

[splendid_roman]

"I'm Ian," he said, "and you'd be surprised. I used to teach science to teenagers." Not knowing what his world called the equivalent of secondary school, just saying he taught teenagers was the easiest way to describe it. "What area of mechanics is your speciality?"

[morphitudinous]

"You're a high school teacher? It's been a while since I've spoken to one." Billy smiled. There hadn't been many teachers he'd felt challenged by in Angel Grove, but ship life had a way of teaching him something interesting.

He sat up straighter, definitely interested. "I specialize in heavy machinery, vehicles, and communication devices. I'm also an inventor of weapons and armor. I'm capable of chemistry and some of the science lab's functions, but I like my work more."

[splendid_roman]

He nodded. He supposed there weren't many teachers around here. It might mean something, although he had no idea what. "That sounds interesting." And like he did a lot. "What have you invented?"

[morphitudinous]

"I've largely had to focus on portable shields and weapons and armor here, but I've had a chance to make more mundane things. The water filtration system for the baths, for instance."

He was quite proud of that one. "And I was on the team that originally built these," he added, lifting up his omnicom. It was a miracle that he'd been able to restore the date from his original one upon his return---all that data loss would have been painful.

"Have you worked as a field scientist at all?"

[splendid_roman]

He shook his head at Billy's question, but he was more interested in what Billy had achieve. "You built those?" He couldn't imagine someone so young doing so much. "Where did you learn all those skills?"

[morphitudinous]

Billy reached across his lap to rub his wrist, faintly embarrassed. "I've been learning how to work with machines since I was about five. Even before the simplest experiments, I was taking apart and putting together anything I could get my hands on. My parents were overwhelmed."

His mind flicked back to them, as it always did when they were (rarely) brought to the forefront, but he shook it off and pressed on. "I had my own lab in the garage by the time I was ten. I read every science book in the library as soon as I could, visited all the museums, and worked until I could manage most things. After a while, the concepts start to blend with each other."

[splendid_roman]

He raised his eyebrows. "Really?" That explained a lot. He wondered if Billy was a genius. "You did things other than work when you were younger, though, didn't you?"

[morphitudinous]

"It never felt like work to me. Scientific pursuits were fun back then. I was in the school clubs for mechanics and chemistry, as well as chess. I knew where my strengths were, so I focused on them." Often to the exclusion of other things, but Billy wasn't planning to mention that.

"If you're wondering whether I had friends at home, the answer is yes. We didn't always understand each other, but they became the most important thing to me. I still miss them, but I have people who need me here."

He smiled. The guilt about the people lying here injured had started to ease a little, and now he could concern himself with helping them.

[splendid_roman]

He nodded and looked guilty about being caught out. "I was wondering that. I don't think it's necessary to understand someone to be friends with. Everyone does something that's hard to understand once in a while. They're just a little more predictable once you've known them a while." He frowned, thinking of friends that he couldn't say that about. "Or just a unpredictable."

[morphitudinous]

"It was so bad that I needed a translator at first," Billy admitted. "I really don't know how she could stand it.

"You've had friends like me? Ones that tend to go on and on about something you have no interest in?"

[splendid_roman]

He smiled and nodded. "The Doctor's not quite as bad as that, but he tends to talk about things that are beyond me and he never can understand that."

[morphitudinous]

Ah, the Doctor. Billy knew of the man and his work. "Jamie tells me that I'm a little like him, and sometimes I can't tell if that's meant to be a compliment or complaint," he confessed.

[splendid_roman]

Ian smiled. "Maybe both. The Doctor can be frustrating at times, but he's a good man to have around."

[morphitudinous]

"He is. I never have the chance to know him very long, but he's always helped." Billy sighed. There were so many faces and places to know. And he hardly had a chance before they were gone.

"You've been dragged along with him too?"

[splendid_roman]

He nodded. "You could say that. We stumbled into his ship and the next thing we knew he'd whisked us off through time and space." He smiled. "I can't say I regret it, though."