A tall ship and a star to steer her by (starwreck) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2017-09-04 19:21:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, clara oswald, james kirk |
Who: Clara and Jim
What: Being reckless and swimming with sharks
When: 3 September
Where: The ocean
Warnings: Low
Status: Log | Complete
Jim never did anything in half measures. No, he rented a boat, used the Enterprise to replicate scuba gear, and waited patiently for Clara to show up while the Enterprise scanned the California coast for an area with a large concentration of sharks.
Normally he’d consult actual experts but he was feeling a little more reckless than usual. That could be laid at his dreams, which only enabled his impulses. The first set of dreams had calmed him, this second set was doing the opposite. But maybe he’d end up somewhere in the middle.
But he’d really liked who he’d started becoming before.
Jim was right, Clara was an enabler. She and the Doctor had been the Hybrid after all. True, things were different here, relationships and dynamics. But there was still that push and drive to act and do things. So what if they were reckless and impulsive? Okay yes, she had a boyfriend now (still strange to think of after the past few years) and she wasn’t going to make the same mistakes she’d made with Danny in the Dreams.
But well. Reckless enabling. It was sort of a thing.
Though there was that part of her that was curious as well. There hadn’t been as much a need for enabling of impulsive behavior lately. She had noticed Jim mellowing out and now they were planning to go swimming with sharks - proper reckless at that. Oh well. She’d figure it out. For now it was arriving to the agreed upon location with a wave.
“There you are! Almost thought you were chickening out.” He flashed a grin at her, then offered his hand to help her onto the boat. “I’ve got the gear. And a few things to scare away the sharks if they get a little too hungry.”
He was reckless, not stupid.
“Please, as if that would happen.” Still, it was good that Jim had the necessary gear. True, Clara didn’t need the air as she didn’t need to breathe but there were still things which needed to be taken into consideration. Besides, there was a fine line between reckless and stupid. Best not to cross if.
“Definitely a good thing.”
Because who wanted to accidentally become shark food?
Jim tried not to think about the fact that Clara didn’t need to breathe. At least with Starfleet tech it wasn't a bulky tank. Just a breather mask. Flippers were still a thing, and he was glad for that. It wasn’t proper diving without flippers.
“Ship is running a scan, there’s a good concentration of them a few miles out. Mostly the smaller one, but maybe a great white.”
Yes, flippers were definitely a necessity when one was going to go diving and the like. So even if she really had no need to breathe, the rest of the gear would still be useful and that whole no breathing thing could be ignored. Clara was good at ignoring it and pretending to be like all the others - which meant ‘breathing’.
“Excellent.” She was probably more excited for this than one might think. But what could she say? The idea had come up, it was reckless and impulsive and thus just the type of thing she’d get excited about.
“Want to drive?” He gestured to the controls, which may or may not be a reckless thing to suggest.
As if that had to be asked? Grinning some, Clara nodded and went to the controls. Okay not that hard to figure out. Some stops and gos as she got familiar with the equipment but after piloting a TARDIS? Really not that hard.
“Go faster,” He suggested, plopping into a seat and putting his feet up on the console. With the wind and surf blowing in his hair he felt almost as free as he did on the bridge of the Enterprise. That would always be home, in any universe, any reality. The situation on Earth was only a temporary one, and some days his tether to the planet felt thinner than others.
If there was one thing Clara could understand, it was the feeling that being tethered to Earth wasn’t such a permanent thing. She’d felt it in her dreams, especially after Danny had died. He had grounded her and without him? She’d given fully into the adventures and acting more and more reckless in the different adventures she went on with the Doctor. She felt it here as well, it was part of why she stopped teaching.
So Jim suggesting they go faster? It wasn’t something she needed to be told twice and did just as that, laughing some in excitement.
He laughed with her as the boat cut through the waves. Even if the shark thing turned out to be a bust, the trip wasn’t. Being on the open ocean with a friend wasn’t exactly a bad thing. “How are things going for you? Outside of the diner, I mean.”
So long as they could make something of the trip, Clara would be happy. So just going fast on a ship in the ocean in search of potential sharks with a friend? That was a win.
“Things are going well.” There was no real need to go into some of her work, such as the stabbing incident from the month before. It was just part of the job, the risk, she didn’t put much stock into it, but she knew others might worry. “Some investigative work, actually dating. How about you? How are things going?”
“Dating huh? Do I need to give the shovel talk? Can I give the shovel talk? I’ve always wanted to give the shovel talk.” Or would it be the ‘i can vaporize you’ talk. That sounded like more fun.
Jim hid his jealousy well. “What could have been” was one of the stories of his life and he was used to it. Clara was happy, and he’d support her 100%. “Not dating. Did take someone space diving. That was fun.”
“Crazy, right?” Because really, she had not expected it. She also hadn’t expected she’d get to a point where she’d be comfortable dating again, especially given things that had happened because of the Dreams. Yet here she was. “I don’t see why you would need to give such a talk even though you seem quite excited by the prospect.”
All things considered, Clara didn’t know she was in the ‘what could have been’ category. So she just went on with the conversation. “Space diving? That does sound fun.”
And he’d never tell her. He didn’t want things awkward and he’d already put it behind him.
“Because it’s fun. Not that I’d seriously vaporize anyone, but it'sfun. You’re the closest thing I have to family. Well outside my brother and mom. And I should take you sometime. We jumped out of a shuttle somewhere over Japan...”
“Is that so? Well then.” Not that Clara was giving a real answer on if Jim could give a shovel talk to Bucky. “I don’t know if we’re at that point yet though, so like I said, probably no need to do so.” As for going space diving? “I am definitely up for that.”
“Soon.” He’d have to try. It would probably be entertaining. Or end up with him having a black eye. Also worth it. Too bad Vine was dead.
His phone dinged and he fished it out. “We’re getting close to the sharks, slow it down a notch so we don’t spook any of them.” He tossed her some flippers, and a weight belt. “Want a mask? I know you don’t need one, but I figure I should ask.”
“Okay, soon.” Because somehow, Clara had a feeling this talk was going to happen. So she should probably warn Bucky. Just a ‘sorry, I not only have an over protective grumpy Scotsman father, but an overprotective friend as well, please ignore them’ type conversation.
As she was told to slow down, Clara did just that, catching the flippers and weight belt. As for the mask.
“I’ll go without.” What could she say? While the whole...no heartbeat or need to breathe was often awkward and thus something she faked, sometimes it was great. Like now where she wouldn’t have to worry about a mask while diving.
“Got it.” Probably wouldn’t be the weirdest thing. Kirk had met fish-people before after all. Once the boat stopped, he lowered the anchor and then peered down into the water. There were shapes moving in shadow. “Whatever you do, don’t look like a seal.”
And he tipped over and into the ocean.
Boat stopped, Clara waited until they were anchored and nodded. “Yeah, I’ll do my best with that.” Rolling her eyes, she went into the water after Jim, enjoying the rush of it all.
Grinning through his mask, Jim kicked his feet and started to slowly descend. They were mostly black-tips and a few nurse sharks, and he reached out to stroke one of the latter as it swam past. As an after thought, he wondered if there was anything about Clara’s condition that might make sharks think she was a meal.
Like Jim, Clara reached out to stroke one of the sharks near by though they showed no real interest in her. She wasn’t flailing or even small movements that might come with breathing. The only movements were to remain in place and when she reached out. Either way, there seemed to be no interest in her as a meal.