we are young, we run free, keep our teeth nice and clean

[oddbod]

WHO: Clara, Cosima, and Brianna
WHERE: De Chima Gov't Apartments
WHEN: May 14-20
WHAT: Sci-fi moms and their superhero baby
WARNINGS: just FUN and CUTENESS

[Starters inside.]

Comments

invading clara's apartment, whoo!

[doubleblind]

[Cosima doesn't do it often, mostly because she actually likes her work, but sometimes you just don't feel like going into the lab. And when you suddenly find yourself with the ability to make copies of yourself, it's easy to send them off to work for you on those days. (Cosima thinks a few of her copies have actually been more productive than she is on an average day, which is just unfair.)

On this particular day, Cosima sent her copy off to work and then went straight to Clara's apartment. Clara wasn't there, but that didn't stop Cosima from invading her space until she comes home. When she hears someone enter the apartment, Cosima calls out, not moving from her spot sprawled out on the couch.]

Man, I think your place has more comfortable furniture than mine...

[fayzedandconfused]

[ Brianna pads into the apartment like she owns the place, throwing her backpack into a corner and kicking off her latest pair of ratty sneakers. She's all set to flop down on the couch and see if she can catch anything decent on TV, but she freezes when she realizes that someone is already camped out on the couch under a blanket, and they're not Clara. ]

Who are you?

[doubleblind]

[That voice is definitely not Clara's. Cosima opens her eyes slowly, shifting into a sitting position. Her eyes widen slightly. She clearly wasn't expecting a kid to interrupt her day off at her girlfriend's apartment.]

Who are you.

[Real mature, Cosima.]

[fayzedandconfused]

I, [ said in the most self-important voice a thirteen year old can have, which is pretty damn self-important, ] am Clara's guest. Who are you?

[ She already has a good idea, though. Clara's girlfriend from California. Greeeeat. ]

[doubleblind]

[Cosima just waves a hand, trying to hide a smile. The only thing that keeps her from laughing is the fact that she knows it won't go over well. Instead she offers her a seemingly sincere smile.]

Cosima. I'm Clara's guest too.

[fayzedandconfused]

She didn't say you would be here.

[ Breeze zips over to the couch and flops down onto it as far from Cosima as she can get. ]

You guys better not make out in front of me.

[ Now that the surprise is over with, she's not too put out, though. The more the merrier, or whatever. ]

[doubleblind]

It's a surprise visit.

[Cosima scoots to her corner of the couch, letting Brianna have as much space as she wants.]

We'll try to keep the PDA to a minimum. Does Clara's guest have a name?

[fayzedandconfused]

Breeze.

[ She looks more closely at Cosima. Huh. Like Alison if Alison was cool. ]

You have sisters?

[doubleblind]

[It's a look Cosima has become increasingly familiar with. She doesn't question why Breeze is asking, just what sister she met. It's probably Alison. Kids have usually met Alison.]

I've got four.

[fayzedandconfused]

That's crazy. I only have two.

[ She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a handful of Jolly Ranchers, then holds them out to Cosima. ]

[doubleblind]

Want to know what's crazier?

[Cosima doesn't give her time to answer the questions, charging ahead with the conversation while stealing a watermelon Jolly Rancher from her hand.]

We're all identical.

[fayzedandconfused]

I noticed. I met... [ And she starts counting on her fingers. ] Hm, you, Alison, Sarissa and the one with the crazy hair. None of them have glasses like you, so are you really identical?

[ Hah. Explain that. She pops an orange Jolly Rancher into her mouth. ]

[doubleblind]

Did your parents ever tell you not to read in the dark?

[Cosima is clearly heading straight into scientist mode and embracing the chance to pull out her nature vs. nurture theory.]

We all grew up in different environments. It's the perfect test of nature vs. nurture. Okay, not perfect, we didn't have a control group...

some point earlier

[fayzedandconfused]

[ Brianna knocks on the door to Clara's apartment, taking care (something she rarely does) to knock like a regular person and not like a woodpecker on speed. She's still not sure about moving to De Chima for real or anything like that, but she jumped at the chance to stay at Clara's for a couple days. Her own house in Heropa is getting way too crowded at this point. She doesn't like being there right now. This is going to be better. Clara is cool for a grownup.

When nobody answers the door in the appropriate amount of time, roughly two seconds, she knocks again and calls out, ] Hey, it's me.

[oddbod]

[The door swings open just after the second knock, and Clara appears - her hair is wet from a shower, and there's a purple towel over her shoulders.]

Sorry, just washing up after a run! [She gives Brianna a warm smile, and steps back to let her in.] Come in, come in.

[fayzedandconfused]

[ Brianna enters, adjusting her backpack so it's hanging from one shoulder, and looks around at the apartment. ]

You like to run?

[oddbod]

Yeah, a bit. [She slides the towel back up to pat at her hair.] Used to do a few miles after work with my old boyfriend. Not as fast as you, of course.

[fayzedandconfused]

We should work out sometime.

[ She hops onto the couch and works her ratty sneakers off, making herself at home. ]

This is a pretty nice place. My house is bigger, but it's full of people. [ Blech. ]

[oddbod]

As long as you don't lap me on purpose.

[She reaches out to swat lovingly at Breeze's hair.]

Yeah, I felt the same way. Four was a bit of a crowd.

[fayzedandconfused]

I can do other stuff, like pull-ups. Or run backwards.

[ Shoes off, she kicks them into a corner. ]

Yeah, I don't like all the people. I'm used to living by myself. Or with one other person.

[oddbod]

[The living room is shady and comfortable, an IKEA-and-thrift-store approximation of her flat back home. A cooled cup of tea is still on the coffee table, and the cheap sofa is piled with colorful (cheap) pillows. A spare set of blankets is folded neatly for Breeze's use later.]

Me too. I always had my own flat, back home, except when I worked as a nanny. But most of the time it was just me and the Doctor, on his spaceship.

[fayzedandconfused]

I lived with my friend Jack.

[ She stretches out on the couch, facing Clara. ]

What's the spaceship like?

[oddbod]

[Oh, she loves telling this part.]

Well, she looks like a phone booth at first. But then you open the door up, and she's bigger on the inside. There's a huge control room, with columns and bookshelves and bits that glow for no reason. And once you leave there, it just goes on and on. You could get lost for days, and never see the same hallway twice. Kitchens and swimming pools and gardens and wardrobe rooms with the most ridiculous costumes. Rooms that I couldn't even describe if I went in with a notepad.

And the most magical part is, she's alive.

[fayzedandconfused]

[ Normally Breeze would be suspicious of a story like that. It sounds like something a grownup would tell a kid just to trick them. It could still be, she guesses. But she trusts Clara, and despite her teenage skepticism she can't help but get a far-off, amazed look in her eyes when she hears Clara describe the ship. ]

Cool. I wish I could see it. [ Her? ]

[oddbod]

I wish you could, too. [She can't help but sound a little wistful, talking about the TARDIS.] And I got my own, right before I came here. Looks like an old American diner. If they'd have let me brought her here, I could take you on a trip.