poly_chromatic | (video)

[ The video feed clicks on, showing a room, a little dusty and not too large, rows of shelves filled with hats of all sorts along all walls. There's a desk in the middle, and it has Amy Pond pacing diagonally through it. ] Okay, yeah, but we gotta. Promote it somehow, right? Can't have a detective agency without clients, right?

Posters! [ There's a crash from somewhere off screen, before something is flung across the room. ] That's how they did it in the old days, massive posters. With slogans. We need a slogan, something cool.

[ The video doesn't pick up on Amy rolling her eyes, but it's obvious in her tone anyways. ] Posters, Doctor? Really? That's so— no. no. This is the 21st century, yeah? Or like it, at least. We should make a post on the network. [ Pausing just a moment. ] But we need a slogan, yeah. And a name.

What's wrong with posters? [ He sounds wounded, wandering into view, with his fingers curled around his braces, straightening himself up. ] I've always loved a good poster. Of -- what do people have posters of, anyways?

Posters are for teenage girls with crushes on movie stars or little girls who like ponies. Or boys who like cars or naked girls, I s'ppose. We're not gonna do a poster. [ All the frowning ]

[ Abandoning that in favour of tripping forward, crossing his arms over his chest and looking unimpressed. ] But I really wanted a poster. [ A sigh. ] Let's get on with this then.

Yeah, all right. [ Grinning now ] So. Hey City. You've heard, yeah? Detective agency, we need cases. We're— Pond and Smith? Smith and Pond? Detectives, anyhow.

And we are going to solve all your mysteries, big or small, weird and wonderful, strange and spooky. Just leave it to us, honestly, it's what we do.

[ — and the feed clicks off ]

[ Red is the eleventh Doctor, green is Amy and Pond and Smith is now open for business. Give them cases! Lost a fez? Searching for your pet pig? Want to know what your neighbour's cat gets up to at night? Or why there's a crack in your wall? Call them! ]

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[ With a laugh. ] We need to find you a tunnel, you'll just love the echo.

[She's not sure she likes the use of the word 'echo' coming from him. It takes her back to the time before he'd recognized her as something more than a generated anomaly when he'd called her nothing but an echo. Before Donna had made him see she was indeed like him. So when she speaks again some of that enthusiasm is gone.]

Well... are there tunnels? Here? I'll have to seek one out. [Annnnd now it's back, because she has an idea.] Or! You could find some tunnels... as a detective! You and Pond! Smith and Pond!

Would you like to come with us? I don't think having a tag-along is against company policy. I don't even think we have a company policy.

But if we find one, we'll yell down it, it'll be brilliant.

Company policies sound very important. I've never seen one before, a company policy. Perhaps you should whip one up before you go tunnel hunting just in case it becomes needed mid-hunt. As I just told Pond... I mean Amy...

[Pause.] As we're talking about company business I suppose I should call her Pond. This is very confusing, different names for different things.

Anyway, as I just told Pond, I don't want to break the rules!

But breaking the rules is all the fun of life. You've never broken any rules before?

[She considers that a moment before answering. But when she does answer, she sounds very proud of herself. Especially since her dad had just said that breaking the rules is all the fun of life and she tends to take his word as rule.]

Oh! I suppose I did break the rules once. When General Cobb ordered me to come fight with him and I didn't. I went with you and Donna instead! That's like breaking the rules, isn't it?

Exactly.

[ Should he really be leading her astray on madcap breaking the rules adventures? ] Besides, some of them aren't as bad as overs.

Some of the rules, you mean? So there are different degrees of breaking the rules, some worse than others. Is there a list somewhere? A book that dictates which are more acceptable?

Unfortunately not, it changes.

[ But his smile turns kindly. ] We'll help you figure it out as we go along, all right?

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