Ficlet: Yes/No/Perhaps

[bagheera_san]

Title: Yes/No/Perhaps
Rating: all ages
Characters: Three, Jo, Delgado!Master/Three
Prompt: #6 Farming
Summary: A while ago there was a macro on ihasatardis that inspired this.



Sometimes humans baffled him. This was a good thing, because the Doctor would hate to be stranded among boring people. "I didn't know you had an interest in agriculture, Jo."

She rolled her eyes and mock-punched him in the arm with her tiny fist. "Crop circles, Doctor. I bet you know exactly what I'm talking about. They're made by aliens, aren't they? Look, I've read an article about them here."

Jo brandished a brightly-coloured and not very respectable looking glossy magazine at him. The Doctor decided to humour her, but couldn't help his amused smile. "There are many strange things out there, Jo, but have you asked yourself why anyone would travel all the way to Earth just to destroy some poor farmer's hard work? Most likely they're some kind of prank."

"Well, they might want to communicate with us," Jo pointed out, undeterred. "Perhaps for once they're friendly aliens!"

"Perhaps."

The Doctor had found the article in question and peeked closely at the photographs of vandalised wheat fields. He blinked, straightened the paper and looked again. His brows rose. The penmanship was very neat. Someone had gone to a great effort to ask a very simple and slightly silly question. 'Yes/ no/ perhaps' indeed. He put down the magazine, suppressing a laugh.

"Jo, we're going on a trip to Hampshire."

"I knew it! They're real!"

"Not quite. They are a prank, I suspect, but definitely not a human one." Under his breath, he added, "He can't possibly be serious."

"Well, what are we going to do? Shouldn't we tell the Brigadier?"

He shook his head and steered Jo out of the lab. "Not this time, Jo. We're going to do something not quite legal – we're going to reply to the message."

"Oh!" Her eyes sparkled with excitement and mischief. "Well, we shouldn't tell the Brigadier that, you're right."

"No, I doubt he would approve."

"What are we going to write, then?"

"Oh, something very simple. 'No, absolutely not.'"

The fact that the Doctor had answered at all would speak for itself.

Comments

[lukita.livejournal.com]

*giggles* The great thing about your ficlets is that I can know next to nothing about Doctor Who and still gets it. :p

[aralias.livejournal.com]

i'm commenting in the wrong order, but never mind - the ending is so good. all of it is, i love jo (in general, but particularly her insistence on believing what the media tells her about aliens despite the doctor mocking her for it, and being right - which is the important thing about jo) and the doctor doing something illegal for kicks, but i particularly love the doctor being so deliberately and knowingly annoying. how the master must hate him.

excellent use of prompt too.

p.s. intrigued by the macro. have you a link?

[x-losfic.livejournal.com]

The fact that the Doctor had answered at all would speak for itself.

V. cute. Poor intensely frustrated Master. What a complete contradictory ass Three can be.

[gritsinmisery.livejournal.com]

*gigglesnort*

[snowgrouse.livejournal.com]

Aaaaaaahhhahaha, YES. Definitely "are you asking me out on a date?" time. I love this idea:D.

[dirty-smudge.livejournal.com]

I like the "perhaps", it's kind of cheeky. And very in character for Delgado!Master.

(I want to give him a cookie. Don't you want to give him a cookie? He looks like he needs a cookie. Just, you know, in general.)

[ariastar.livejournal.com]

Oh my lord, the joyful little noises this just produced. The whole thing is lovely, and then the last line makes it gold. <3

[dragonlit.livejournal.com]

Love the Doctor taking the challenge to respond. Crop circles indeed! Cute.

[teaji.livejournal.com]

Basically passing notes, but with aliens and crop circles:)
WIN. Except I still want to thump Three for being a tease.

[elviaprose.livejournal.com]

I know this fic is really, really old, but I just found it and I adore it and it makes me want to ramble to everyone I know about how wonderful Three/Delgado!Master is. Just thought I'd drop you a line to say so.