Chapter Text
Gallifrey – Somewhere into the main city
The Storyteller was an old woman, all white hair and kindness reflected in her pales eyes. Clad into the massive traditional robes of gallifreyan nobility by day, she traded it for a light tunic and trousers from one of her numerous travels when she came visiting the children at dusk, as always.
She spent many a regeneration travelling, collecting stories. Now, at the end of her last life, she dedicated her time to tell stories, to give bits of wisdom to the children of Gallifrey, the next generation. One day, one of them would rise, embrace his name and travel through space and time, creating new tales, becoming another legend. One she wasn’t meant to tell.
Another would do it.
But for now she stood in the middle of a place, and the children slowly gathered, eyes wide open and full of mirth. A new tale!
She spotted a little boy, scrawny and clothed in hand-me-downs. He dodged some other bigger boys and girls, and sat in front of her. She smiled, and said nothing.
She rose her right hand, and silence fell all over the place. Numerous eyes were fixed on her. The adults were hidden behind, smiles on their faces. They knew most of the tales the Storyteller usually told, for they had been children which gazed at the woman in the same fashion their little ones do now.
She smiled again, a sweet smile. Those were in for a treat.
And her voice rose, calm, but powerful. Steady, like a wave, born from unknown waters, rising higher and higher.
This was her secret power. All Time Lords developed an ability born from the name they chose.
She was the Storyteller.
A long, long time ago, in a faraway galaxy… was a Time Lord. Like all of us, he went to the academy, he learned all our ways. And the time came for him to choose his name. He was a little vain, and he liked things. Beautiful, rare things.
Officially, he was known as the Dandy. But everyone secretly knew him by another name, a better suited name… The Burglar.
Somewhere in space – somewhere in time
The TARDIS’ door closed in the face of a group of angry humanoids, small but burly. They had weapons in hand, and they started to hit the door of the strange silver ship, shaped like a cigar, all sharp curves for deadly speed. The head of a man came out the glass-like cockpit, and he waved at them with a large smile. A young, round face, a mop of blonde curls, green eyes and an air of slight disdain.
The ship took a rough start, the humanoids falling to the ground in a pile.
Soon the very planet disappeared behind. The man pushed the autopilot button, deeming his current situation quite safe. Time for a bit of gloating and self-satisfaction, a.k.a admiring the new addition to his growing collection.
He made a… permanent loan for his personal museum.
The said museum was hidden in a secret place, an artificial asteroid he spent nearly a decade to construct. It was a sort of a secret base, loaded with supplies of all kind. He could spend an entire lifetime here. Enough to be forgotten between two… errands.
He rose from his seat, took a quick look in a mirror, straightening his waistcoat. He looked like an earthling from the 18th century, in a strange blend of brightly coloured clothes.
Physically, he hasn’t anything truly remarkable. He wasn’t really tall, nor muscled, he looked rather quite delicate. He liked his meals, hiding a pudgy belly under immaculate shirts.
He wasn’t the lazy sort either. He just did the right amount of exercise, as he always said.
And he made a point to never use weapons of any sorts. Those awful things were for barbarians.
He opened the wooden box he just snatched. A perfect blue stone sat here on a velvet cushion. Beautiful. Precious.
He smiled, losing himself in contemplation. One more, the most precious of all, and his collection would be complete…
A perfect white stone, hidden in a mountain’s core.
Where? He didn’t know. He would need information. He would need the Old Man.
He sighed, watching his ship reaching bay. The Old Man would ask questions. But first and foremost, and the task wasn’t an easy one… he needed to find him.
He took his time, putting the stone inside a glass case, eating, drawing a bath then soaking for nearly two hours. Perfectly relaxed now, his hair damp, clad in a soft bathrobe, he carefully choose a new set of clothes in green tones matching the colour of his eyes.
His apartments inside his base were designed in the likeness of old earth houses, with wooden panels and even a real hearth. He liked to spend his evenings sitting in front of the fire, a clever contraption that provided heat and pretty flames without the inconvenient of a real one. In addition, wood was too rare in this part of the universe to simply be used for burning.
Technology blended with the traditional style, and a mix of doilies from all sides of the universe.
Yes, the Time Lord known as the Dandy liked his home and comfort. The Burglar in him enjoyed his adventures, and the two of them were perfectly at peace with each other, thank you very much.
Kind of a perfect life.
Something beeped in the background. A glass of wine in hand, he rose up and sat himself behind a console. A whole communication system. He pressed a series of buttons, and a familiar face appeared on the screen.
“Hello there, Old Man.”
“Good day to you, Burglar.”
An old man indeed, fully clothed in greys. A strange one, looking like a wizard from old tales. The younger one grinned.
“What do you mean by ‘good day to me’?”
“All fun and games, I see. I’ve heard you search for something in particular…”
“I won’t fall for it.”
The Burglar’s smile never faltered.
“Tell me, Wizard. I know you want something from me instead.”
The Old Man’s eyes twinkled. They knew each other enough to go straight to the point.
“Indeed. You’re always up for an adventure, are you?”
“Maybe. I must confess I wanted some time for myself right now, but…”
“Oh, please. Your last one was a walk in the park.”
The Burglar put one stray curl behind his ear.
“Don’t care, mister. I do what I want, and I want peace, right now, please and thank you.”
“Yeah, sure. Expect me and some guests for supper.”
“Good luck with that. May I remind you you don’t even know where I am?”
The Old Man said nothing, and nodded with an enigmatic smile.
“We’ll see, Burglar, we’ll see.”
“Sure, Wizard. Good day.”
He cut the communication with a frown. The old bugger was perfectly able to find him without even trying; he knew that. He had strange ways, always meddling in others’ business.
Oookay. Time to flee.
No, he thought with a flaring anger. He would not change his plans for all the strange and precious stones in the universe. The Old Man and his guests could put their adventure where the sun never shines.
Maybe in a decade or two, he would consider the question.
The Burglar-Dandy was, hum, a little bit full of himself, to be honest. He took care to forget he owed one to the Old Man. It was such a long time ago, he surely had forgotten, hadn’t he?
Maybe not.
Deep inside he knew his fate was sealed.
Outside, in the pitch-blackness of endless space, an old man in a spacecraft used a tractor beam to move a bit of rock engraved with a strange rune – the letter ‘G’ – near the Burglar base.
The sensors noticed nothing.
He sent coordinates, then maneuvered, his craft bolting forward. He had some business to achieve before tonight.
Inside, a forgetful Burglar took his tea and sat before the fire, an old book in his lap.
A good day indeed.