Incontri TenTENNANTi (Wavering Meetings)

Chapter VIII (I): Tell me who I am!

Chapter VIII (I): Tell me who I am!


The Doctor had been walking around the Arcade for a while, looking for someone who shed light on how they see Barty and also himself.

He wants to find someone not busy, but that's not an easy task.. Most of the people are gambling, some are drinking, some are flirting, some are chatting around tables.

He can't disturb these people but out of the blue he sees a blonde, curly-haired girl strolling on her own.
He doesn't mean to follow or stare but she looks remarkably like the archaeologist he had bumped into with Donna at that library. And even though he has never liked archaeologists, he regrets the decision he had had to make then.
He has no time for basking in memories, the girl walks really fast and she's about to disappear from his eyesight. If he wants to stop her, he has to do it now.

He moves to stand in front of her, with his best sly smile. He figures out he was wrong, this girl just has the same archeologist's hair and not so identical, since this girl wears a darker shade of blonde.

The girl backs off, sort of scared.

"Excuse me, Milady," he murmurs, turning to her. "What's wrong?"

He's really trying to be as polite as he can.

"Is this celery?" she asks him, disgusted, pointing at the pocket of his jacket.

- Celery? Oh, this could be a clue. Oh wait, I can't ask her how I look, not in this way - he ponders, a doubt already clear in his mind.

"Err.. yes, it is?" he answers, hoping it is the correct answer.

"I'm sorry, I really have to go." the girl mumbles and before the Doctor can say a word she has already walked away.

Considering how little she wanted to chat and how quickly she made her escape, the Doctor can be sure he has celery in his pocket. And from there, it's only a small leap to the only person he knows who would put celery in his pocket. It's very easy to recall when the person in question is... yourself. Some regenerations ago.

- Maybe was it the fifth one? How did it feel like to be him? Probably must have helped me change my way to interact with people, human people.-

He wished he could remember how his fifth regeneration acted, but he's not sure he can do it.

It's better to keep acting like his own regeneration and find someone who can help him with Barty. He turns his attention to the door, where an old man is getting in.

It's odd that a person over seventy years old wanders around that place. Oh well, the Doctor is over nine hundred years old and he's actually at the Arcade. Maybe it's not that odd

When he can see him better he almost gasps. This man reminds him of someone. What is this? A sort of reunion of the Doctor's Companions? Maybe if he searched around better he could also take a glimpse of Donna or Martha. Do they have lookalikes in this universe?

The man who is getting closer to him has white hair and beard, he has light blue lively eyes. He's even wearing a red hat, but his nose is larger and his lips thinner, but even his wrinkles remind Tenth Doctor of Wilfred, Donna's grandfather, which leads the Time Lord to think he could be as pleasant as him. Maybe he will like talking with him.

He approaches him, more quietly this time, he doesn't want to scare the man.

"Hello," he smiles, acting as affably as he can.

The old man looks at him, almost studies him.

The Doctor considers it a positive sign, so he goes on.

"Sorry if I'm going to bother you, but I just need some information,"

The man stares at him in confusion, but at least he doesn't walk away.

"Hello to you, Sir. Sure, just ask me."

Probably he expects him to ask him about a particular room in the Arcade.