earlgreytea68 | The Chaosverse Book Club: Week Four

Chapter Two of Chaos Theory

This chapter is mainly about Jackie. I don't think I ever intended to spend as much time on Jackie as I've ended up doing in this 'verse, but I'm absolutely fascinated by her relationship with her daughter and the strange family her daughter chose.

You know, I forgot that there's an implication in this chapter that Rose's ability to have Time Lord children might be unusual. I have never reached the point, in my thinking about Brem, where he wants to have children, but I wonder if that's ever an issue for these future generations. Hmm.

Questions for Discussion:

I make lots of references to the Doctor and Jackie sharing terrible taste in television. What do you like to imagine they watch together?

Chapter Three of Chaos Theory

The TARDIS is nurturing. What's interesting about this is that, in "College," we learn that the around this time the Doctor must have taken some coral from the TARDIS to start growing Brem's TARDIS. I wonder if he's already done it here, and that the TARDIS is actually nurturing the baby TARDIS and it's manifesting this way. I like to think that's why.

It's always bothered me a little bit that the Doctor doesn't realize immediately that he can sense the baby. One has to imagine his head is pretty cavernous with all the Time Lords gone, and he feels a tickle in the back of his mind, and, by his own words, he doesn't pay attention to it. I find that stretches credulity a bit.

You know, I always write the TARDIS as being very fond of Rose, but I think in my head that's not because of Rose's Bad-Wolf-ness but because the TARDIS loves the Doctor and Rose makes the Doctor happy. I guess either explanation could work, though.

Rose worries that the baby will replace her, which clearly doesn't happen. But I find it interesting that the opposite almost comes to pass: The Doctor and Brem turn out to be so much alike that, rather than being able to read each other's thoughts, they are amazingly obtuse about each other.

Questions for Discussion:

2nd2ndalto, in a recent comment, said that there's always one line in a fic that sticks with her. What's your one line from this chapter?

Chapter Four of Chaos Theory

You know, I think the Doctor never fully gets the hang of living with a non-telepathic creature like Rose. In this chapter, Rose is determined to have it out, to discuss their feelings, and the Doctor is irritated. I think at least part of the Doctor's irritation stems from the fact that, as a telepathic being, he thinks she should just be able to sense how he feels, and he'll sense how she feels, and then they never have to have a messy discussion about it. I think Time Lords, on the whole, dislike messy emotional confrontation, for this reason.

Rose's doubt in this chapter about her utility as a mother to Gallifreyans rings true to me. But it's especially heartbreaking in light of the fact that we eventually get to see her children trying to make a life without their mother, and we know what a complete disaster it is without her.

Ah, the pendant. Sometimes I remember Rose's pendant, most of the time I forget about it completely. I'm the worst at continuity.

This is a sex scene I actually really like, because I think it's fun.

Questions for Discussion:

Ah, there's been much speculation. What are those thoughts the Doctor leaves out? What did you always imagine them to be?

Next Week: Chapters 5, 6, and 7 of Chaos Theory in Vortex Orbits in Relative Dimensions in Time and Space

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

it's especially heartbreaking in light of the fact that we eventually get to see her children trying to make a life without their mother, and we know what a complete disaster it is without her. it's SO heartbreaking. Her children love her and need her so much, although maybe in a way they all needed to loose each other for a little bit to appreciate just how much the need each other? Or maybe that's just me trying to rationalize away the grief I know is coming eventually.

I had an interesting thought about the pendant while I was reading this - That it could be comical if when Brem was older Rose was wearing the pendant one day and the colour of it revealed his feelings for a girl or something but then I realized that was stupid because Rose wouldn't need a pendant to know that. Rose would just know. I'd love to see you use the pendant a bit more though.

As for the thoughts the Doctor left out, I think at least one of them is how much he loves Rose, because at this point it's very clear that he does, but you've established a few times that he hasn't said it yet and I feel like this is one of those times where he could have, or at least would have wanted to, but he is once again holding himself back.

I think they definitely appreciate each other in a more conscious way after they get separated, but I don't think this was ever a family who took too much for granted. I think that was the influence of the Doctor, who's lost so much that he's stopped taking things for granted.

Rose would just know, it's true. And Brem is pretty adept at shielding from the pendant what he doesn't want his mum to know (although she still just knows). However, you're right, I need to use the pendant more.

You're right, I think the Doctor probably does think a lot about how he loves Rose. I think it's not a natural word for him to use, I'm not sure it exists in Gallifreyan, but I think it's definitely true for him and he knows it.

The Chaosverse Book Club: Week Four

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