In the wake of a Pandora plot at lastvoyages

[timesbureaucrat]

I am not going to "fall apart." Not now, not later. Really, mundane, I'm starting to suspect that you don't know me at all. Yes, possession and torture might be traumatic for humans but Time Lord minds aren't nearly so fragile.

I am not deluding myself. And the identity of the torturer is irrelevant.

Comments

[romana2]

[Excuse Romana as she is highly amused by Narvin's naiveté concerning this matter.]

Narvin, you haven't spent nearly enough time with humans. They are quite resilient, when needed. And Time Lords are just as susceptible in the proper circumstances.

[timesbureaucrat]

I don't need to spend more time with them to know that they can't consciously partition their minds as Time Lords do. That alone must leave them at a serious disadvantage.

[Narvin blithely ignores the detrimental effects long-term repressing can have on Time Lords. It doesn't fit into his worldview of Time Lord brains being better than alien brains.]

[romana2]

[Romana does know and might even argue it's one of the reasons why she is President and Narvin is not.]

Everything can be a weakness, Narvin. I thought you would understand that, considering your position with the CIA.

[timesbureaucrat]

All the same, Madam President, my mundane cannot expect me to be bothered for long by those...inconveniences I recently went through.

[romana2]

It is our experiences and what we do with them that define and change us, Narvin.

[She is still less than pleased to be stuck on the alternate Gallifrey, away from K-9 and even Brax. It wasn't her home and she still worried about Gallifrey Prime...]

[timesbureaucrat]

I'm perfectly fine the way I am. I don't want or need change.

[romana2]

I know people who would take issue with all those counts.

[She would be first in line. Even if they have grown to... tolerate... each other recently.]

[darknessb4me]

Good, because there's still work to do.

[timesbureaucrat]

Precisely. [Wait. He's agreeing with Arthas. Again. The frequency which with this is happening lately bothers him.]

[ofdrumsthesound]

Someone tortured you and I wasn't there?

What a waste.

[timesbureaucrat]

Next time I'll send you an invitation first.

[ofdrumsthesound]

Why thank you, I'm touched.

[thecricketer]

Denial and repression will do you no favours, Coordinator. [pots and kettles, Doctor, pots and kettles]

[timesbureaucrat]

On the contrary, denial and repression are working just fine for me.

[thecricketer]

It may seem so, for a while - but in the end, it will only make matters worse.

[timesbureaucrat]

I see no reason why I should take advice from a mad renegade, Doctor.

[thecricketer]

As a mad renegade, I have quite a lot of experience with trauma.

[sevateem]

Who tortured you, Narvin?

[The obvious solution to this problem is shank them]

[timesbureaucrat]

[Dilemma. On the one hand, the idea of watching Leela chase down Braxiatel with a knife holds undeniable appeal. On the other hand, he half-expects Leela to side with Braxiatel instead of him, which would be rather demoralizing. (And, if he's honest--which does happen occasionally--there were Pandora-sized extenuating circumstances behind Brax's decision.)]

No one of importance.

[At least he gets a bit of private joy in describing Brax as unimportant.]

[sevateem]

[You're lying, Narvin. Still, if he wants to lie about who tortured him, then Leela will accept that lie...for now.]

You should have fought back more and not given in so easily.

[timesbureaucrat]

I didn't give in. [The pitch of his voice rises. He pauses, gets his thoughts back in order and adds in a calmer tone.]

The situation was complicated. You wouldn't understand.

[sevateem]

Just because I am a savage does not mean that I am ignorant. The least you could do is tell me what happened.

[Because dammit Narvin, you got tortured. :c ]

[timesbureaucrat]

Pandora made an unfortunate appearance on the inter-dimensional prison ship I'm currently occupying. She's been dealt with. That's all there is to it.

[He'll leave out all the torture bits. It's not really lying, it's just withholding the important information.]

[stillherown]

Our minds may not be as fragile, but it's really not something to be brushed aside like that. Enduring more of it isn't something to be proud of.

[ Curious Romana is now very curious. ] I doubt someone like that would be irrelevant.

[timesbureaucrat]

I merely mean to say that the identity of the perpetrator does not influence my reaction to the events in question. Knowing the person involved doesn't make it any better or worse--that would be irrational. Therefore the person is irrelevant.

[He speaks with all kinds of political weasel words to avoid saying things like "torture" or "torturer." He probably doesn't even realize he's doing it.]

[rass_bestie]

You're deluding yourself.

[timesbureaucrat]

On the contrary, I'm perfectly fine.

[rass_bestie]

Narvin. You're an idiot.

[timesbureaucrat]

I certainly am not. I simply see no reason why this should affect my work in any way.

[rass_bestie]

Your second sentence directly contradicts the second. It's folly to assume that problems go away simply if you don't look at it. You're a little old for 'peek-a-boo'.

[sixthanimorph]

If you don't fall apart, I'm coming after you.

[timesbureaucrat]

So my choices are to have an inconvenient and highly embarrassing breakdown or be hunted by a human-animal child. Oh wonderful.

[sixthanimorph]

Oh, don't get me wrong. I'll come after you regardless. I haven't forgotten what you did to me.

Nice of you not to say anything about it, though. It really makes things easier for me. It's probably the only reason I've let you live this long.

[noblesavage]

You do not have to hide the truth from your friends, Narvin.

[timesbureaucrat]

I'm not hiding the truth. [Of course he's hiding the truth, it's Narvin.]

[noblesavage]

I do not believe you.