notbychoice | [OOC] Asgard application

IC Information;
Character Name; The Doctor (Ninth).
Canon; Doctor Who. http://tardis.wikia.com/wiki/Ninth_Doctor
Canon Point; Post 1x13, The Parting of the Ways.
Age; The Doctor's age is complicated, and sometimes it seems as if even he has no idea how old he is. But he says at one point that he's seen 900 years of time and space, which isn't actually an age, but it does imply he has to be at least 900. Physically, he appears to be about 40 years old.
House; Hel.
Power; Shadow control.

Personality; The Doctor is quite possibly the most stubborn individual alive. When things are going badly and it looks like all is lost, he just finds another way to get around that, and if that turns out to not be possible, then he'll give his all trying to find a way to save as many people as he can.

And really, that's what he winds up doing most of the time: saving people.

So why is he so hell-bent on making sure that people live? Well, the short answer is because he believes himself to be the only survivor of the Last Great Time War and the last Time Lord left alive. The Time War saw the Daleks and the Time Lords locked in combat against each other, and on the very last day, the Doctor did something that ended the war but killed a lot of people and ultimately destroyed the planet. At least, that's what he believed.

And really, no one could live through something like that without coming out of it with a load of scars. The Doctor lost his family and friends that day, and what's more, he lost his entire people. Children died as well as adults, and although the Daleks died, so did the Time Lords. He doesn't count any of this as a victory, by the way.

So when it comes to humans or anyone being threatened by a hostile group, naturally, the Doctor's inclination is to save as many lives as possible or die trying. Oh, and if you happen to hurt anyone he cares about, even if he insists he doesn't, then you'd best run. Usually, he becomes the most dangerous when his traveling companion Rose Tyler is threatened.

He warmed up to her rather quickly, and for the majority of his life, she traveled with him, going back and forth from the past to the future, depending on whatever mood they were in at the time. At one point, they encountered a lone Dalek, and to keep things short, the Dalek had Rose in a precarious position, which in turn put the Doctor in a tight spot, and he had to decide whether ensuring her safety was worth putting the entire world in danger. He's had to make decisions like that quite often throughout his time, and usually Rose is at the center of his dilemma. He would do anything and everything to keep her safe, even going so far as to absorb a volatile time vortex into himself rather than risk losing her. It's plain that he does not value his life over her, because by taking the time vortex for her, he triggered a reaction that destroyed every cell in his body, thus making regeneration necessary. But he did it for her, because she meant that much to him.

But when it comes to the safety of the world and the universe versus Rose's own safety, that's a bit of a sticky thing. She is something of the Doctor's blind spot. He's got other blind spots too, of course, namely hatred and rage, though those are kind of justified, given his past. But when he finally confronted that lone Dalek, he was fully prepared to destroy it because the Daleks are nothing more than murderers. But Rose refused to let him do it, even though he was adamant that the Daleks were evil and killers. She made a point of saying he was the one pointing the gun at her and refusing to back down. In the end, it's Rose's drawing attention to the fact that the Dalek just wanted to feel the sunlight, and that it couldn't kill her that brings him back to reality. Rose kind of does that a lot for the Doctor, actually.

It's almost as if she's the voice of reason at times, possibly even reminding him of his conscience. And speaking of his conscience, he could stand to listen to it a bit more. But then again, that's where Rose comes in, and it's through her reminders (the subtle and not-so-much) that gets into his head and changes him, even though he might not be fully aware of it.

But when he's angry, he can be rather intense and even frightening. Now, he might not kill, but there are ways of dealing with an enemy that don't involve murdering them. Of course the Doctor has been shown resorting to physical violence (punches and the like), but I really think the death of his entire people and the loss of his planet has left him more or less convinced that killing is not the answer. It might be in cases when there is no other option, but things would have to be very dire indeed for him to resort to that.

When the Doctor isn't being intense, calculating, and warlike, he's been known to display a humorous side and also a rather scathing, sarcastic side, which, naturally, hardly endears him to people. He'll crack jokes and say wisecracks, but he's also quick to make some cheeky remark, especially when someone's being a bit stupid.

And I think in part, the Doctor doesn't have patience for people he deems not very bright. He's also not very polite, because he's quick to slap labels on people before he's really gotten to know them. And I also think in some cases, he doesn't want to know them. But it's strange, because in almost the same breath that he uses to call humans stupid apes (specifically Rose's boyfriend Mickey, though I don't think he considers Rose's mum very bright either), he'll praise people like Rose Tyler for being fascinating and brilliant. What's more, the Doctor seems determined to keep the universe (including the earth and its stupid humans) safe at any cost. So I suppose the Doctor has exceptions to his rules. And when I say "his rules" I mean just that. He's got an arrogant streak to him, which could explain his rather judgmental reactions to humans other than Rose.

Now, beneath his rather biting exterior, the Doctor's got a lot of baggage. He believes himself to be the one responsible for the loss of his planet Gallifrey and the deaths of all the Time Lords (though they took the Daleks with them), and that is not a light burden to carry. The knowledge of what he thinks he's done haunts him and makes him prone to periods of moroseness and brooding. He's able to hide it well, relying on his wit and biting remarks to conceal the regret and sadness he feels because of his past. But there's also his propensity for running around at a madcap pace that acts as a cover for the feelings he'd rather not talk about or show.

And speaking of those feelings, the things he tries to hide are his guilt and sadness over the loss of Gallifrey and his true affection for Rose. He's more likely to let his feelings about the Time War and Gallifrey show than he would let on about Rose, but it can be inferred from his actions; for instance, there's the sadness he feels when he thinks Rose has been killed by the Dalek, or the blind anger and rage he felt when he thought Rose had been killed by the Anne-Droid on the Game Station platform. And again, there's the time towards the end of his life when he sent her back to her home on earth, knowing that if she stayed with him, she might die too. He really does care about her, even if he'd be hard-pressed to actually say those words to her face.

So, to summarize: the Ninth Doctor is every bit a fighter with a lot of personal baggage that he just won't show and covers up with sarcastic comments and scorn. Underneath that, though, is someone who still wants to live life to the fullest, not just being content with letting things happen, making a stand for the things that count or for the people who can't stand up for themselves. He's not a doormat in the least; if something gets in his way, he finds a way around it, come hell or high water. Or he'll blast a hole through it, if it comes to that.

And really, with all his brooding and sarcasm and wit, I really think the Doctor's got the most mature view about life and death, which makes sense, given how much of it he's seen. When he's about to regenerate, he seems peaceful about it, and he even manages to bring a bit of humor to the situation, going out with a smile for Rose and some very complimentary last words for the girl who changed his life.

Samples;

Network Sample;

[ At first, all that can be seen is a pair of blinking eyes. Someone is apparently holding the device a bit too close to their face. ]

Alright, a bracelet for communicating. I think I can get used to that. I don't suppose there's any other options, anyway.

[ Eventually, the view changes to show a man with a short haircut wearing a leather jacket. ]

So, this is the city of Asgard, and I live here now, is that it?

[ Someone has been reading that stupid little guide, or at least skimming it. ]

There's a war between some gods and giants and we're supposed to help with that, yeah?

[ He looks a little unimpressed by that, or maybe it's more than he's uninterested. ]

Who even wrote this? It looks absolutely daft. Ridiculous. Stupid.

[ He crosses his arms, frowning. ]

It has some useful information, but it's hard to pick it out. Anyone got anything better? Talk to people, that thing said. So that's what I'm going to do.

[ He waves and even manages to grin. ]

Hello! This is me, talking to people. Well, sort of.

[ Actually, it's more like he's talking to himself, but he's not too bothered by that either. Anyone care to engage him in conversation? ]

Log Sample;

Of all the things the Doctor wanted to walk into immediately upon his arrival, it was safe to say that earthquakes were definitely, definitely not one of those things. But it was exactly what he got: he listened to the explanation from the faceless maid, and then he attempted to ask her more questions, and when that didn't work, he went out on his own to see what there was to see.

There really wasn't much, either; just a city that wasn't remotely familiar that kept getting tossed around by intermittent quakes. And unless this city was built on a rather large fault line, which was possible, he wondered if something a little less ordinary was causing all this.

And there was the tiny little fact that, as far as he knew, he was supposed to be dead. Well, he'd regenerated in order to prevent his death, he knew that much. It really wasn't well known, what happened to a Time Lord after they regenerated. Maybe this was really it, this city with its shaking and faceless maids.

"Strange sort of afterlife, not that I ever believed in an afterlife." Honestly, though, he's not sure what he really believed. It wasn't something he'd put a lot of thought into, so he had no expectations about what it might be like for him after regenerating.

That was probably a good thing, however, because it left him free to form his own opinions and experience things on his own terms, quite like he'd done throughout his entire life until this very moment.

"Right, well, first order of business: getting off these streets and finding somewhere to wait out this shaking." Because it didn't take a genius to tell that the quakes were getting stronger, and the last thing the Doctor wanted to do was to become the first Time Lord ever who managed to die after regenerating. Something told him there wouldn't be any safeguard against death if that were to actually happen.

And with that in mind, the Doctor shoved his hands into his pockets and strode off purposefully for the nearest and hopefully uninhabited building.