Edwardian Adventuress

I am Edwardian Adventuress Charlotte Elspeth Pollard. But my friends call me Charley. ((This is an independent rp blog for the Eighth Doctor's audio companion Charley Pollard. Will rp with anyone. This blog is a sideblog so I can't follow back on this blog.))

[silverview]

simple solutions

[charlotteepollard]

@tomvanderhop

[charlotteepollard]

Charley hesitated for a moment before shrugging. “Alright,” she agreed. “Though, I must warn you, I have no idea where anything is located around here.”

[thinkersdreamersdoers-blog]

"Well, there’s a good place just around the corner, if you’d like to go there," he said, offering her his arm.

[charlotteepollard]

She placed her palm gently on his arm and allowed him to lead the way. "I hope they make a nice cup of tea," she said. "I'm Charlotte, by the way," she told him. "I think I must've missed your name--my mother would be appalled at my lack of manners."

[charlotteepollard]

She laughed in delight. “That sounds divine,” she said as she peered into the basket. She shut her eyes as the smell hit her and made an approving noise. “And it smells even better,” she said with a grin. She carefully pulled out the baked goods and glanced up at him. The wind was taking a toll on his long hair, too, and she laughed again. She couldn’t think of anything she’d rather do than sit here with him in this moment.

[thatedwardianponce]

There were fruits and glasses of jam too and soon they had spread all the contents of the basket over the blanket. He leant back and blinked up at the sky, then over at her. “Have you acquainted yourself with the layout of the TARDIS a bit by now? I once lost a companion in the library, so don’t be afraid to ask if you ever need help.” Randomly, he grabbed for the baked good closest to him and spent a strangely long time staring at it before taking a bite. “Oh, cinnamon! I love cinnamon.”

[charlotteepollard]

She spread some jam over a scone generously before biting into it and moaning in approval. "These are divine," she said before taking another bite.

"I think the TARDIS might be changing," she told him with a serious frown. "Yesterday, the kitchen was down the hall and to the left of my bedroom in the morning and then it wasn't there last night! I spent nearly twenty minutes looking for the blasted thing before I found it." She took another bite of scone pensively. "I don't suppose you have a map?" she asked.

[charlotteepollard]

@CrizzTheColourfulChameleon

[charlotteepollard]

She definitely didn’t sulk a little when he slowed her pace. She was not that childish, thank you very much. She matched his pace and did her best to absorb everything. There were aliens so different than anything she had ever seen that she was finding it difficult to concentrate on walking and she was very grateful for C’rizz’s guidance. She passed tall aliens, small aliens, aliens that walked on six legs, aliens that seemed to swim through the air, aliens who were glowing, aliens that seemed to be made of smo—

C’rizz interrupted her train of thought as he pointed out the shop and she pulled her gaze away from the particularly intriguing passerby to look at the shop. “Ohh, that looks lovely,” she said before she beamed at C’rizz again. “Perhaps they’ll sell you some sort of suit—or a dress, if you’re so inclined.” She shifted their path towards the shop cheerfully as she admired the diversity of the planet.

[crizzthecolourfulchameleon-blog]

He snorted slightly. “I may prefer looser clothing, but a dress may be taking it a bit too far in my case. At any rate I think I’ll leave the wearing of them to you, since they look nicer on you than they would on me.” He stepped into the shop and looked around at an interior just as colourful and diverse as outside.

"This place has a little bit of everything…." He murmured to her, walking over to a tall glass case containing several machines composed of gears and wires that wandered about on their particular shelves in a variety of fashions; some on four legs, some on two, one slithered like a snake, and a few of them rolled about on wheels. "Curious." Turning from the clockwork robotics display, he surveyed the rest of the shop carefully, a wary eye on the shopkeeper now approaching Charlotte— a short, thin creature with skin like back and three eyes in a row going upwards on it’s face. It was swathed in robes of rich fabric and seemed to be chatting earnestly but cheerfully at her, so he turned his attention to other things.

Those look interesting…. C’rizz drifted off to the back of the shop.

[charlotteepollard]

"I think you'd look lovely in a dress," she said. "Particularly something pink, I should think. You could make yourself a complementary tone--it would work nicely," she told him before she was distracted by the shop's interior.

Charley turned straight towards the exotic looking bookshelves while C'rizz wandered away on his own. She scanned the spines of the heavy tomes with interest, catching glimpses of all sorts of books: cookbooks, instructions for hunting, a book entitled Getting Inside Your Partner's Head (Literally), and several others with letters that didn't quite come into focus no matter how long she stared at them.

"I see you've found our literary section!" the shopkeeper said enthusiastically. She turned to look at him and had to bite her tongue to keep herself from inquiring about his eyes. Surely she had to look just as odd to him as he did to her.

"I have," she said instead.

"These are all very rare," he informed her, his tone still impossibly cheerful. "They're said to hold mysterious powers." His eyes all glittered as he spoke and she found herself smiling at the small man.

"I can't seem to read some of these titles," she told him as she reached up to tap the book that was giving her the most trouble.

He hurriedly snatched her wrist before she could touch it. "I would be very careful if I were you--these tend to... ah... bite."

"Oh," she replied and stared at it in confusion. "Do you mean literally?" she asked.

The shopkeeper laughed. "I see you are a very curious young lady! Perhaps I have something of interest for you in the back...?" he indicated the beaded doorway a few meters from where they stood.

"Well," Charley hesitated, glancing up at C'rizz. "I suppose I'd like to see more."

[charlotteepollard]

Either Way She's Not a Man

[ididntsayipassed]

Resupplying was taking far too long for First Mate John Benton’s taste, but there wasn’t much he could do to help that, and so he was standing next to Coxswain Mike Yates and watched as the crew rolled and hauled barrels and crates of food, water, and booze up onto the four ships that made up their current home when he spotted the young man making his uncertain way towards them. Putting on an air of mild aggression in hope of intimidating this person should they bear ill will towards them, he walked along the docks to meet him.

"What do you want?" His voice was low but not angry, simply stern, and he kept a loose grip on the hilt of the cutlass stuck in his belt while the other hand dangled near his pistol. He looked the man— no, boy really— over to check for weapons. "Well? We are a bit busy, as you can see."

He felt Yates walk up beside him and knew he would be fixing the stranger with his usual, slightly unnerving stare. “He may be here about our need for a new cabin boy for the Captain. Are you boy?”

[charlotteepollard]

It was quite a lot of effort not to bristle at the tone of the man who addressed her first; she had a certain amount of pride that made her far too quick-tempered according to her mother. She relaxed slightly at the suggestion she might be here for the job as the cabin boy. "Yes, sir," Charley replied and kept her voice gruff, speaking at the low-range of her register. "I heard that your ship needed a new cabin boy. I'm here to apply for the post."

She had to admit that she was pleased with the way her voice stayed strong. She hesitated at the ramp that led up to the ship, feeling suddenly very bare to be without a weapon of some sort. Nicely done, she scolded herself silently, applying for a position on a pirate's ship and coming unarmed. She did her best to look as tall and intimidating as she could--not that standing at her full height of four inches over five feet was tall by any stretch of the imagination but every millimeter counted.

[charlotteepollard]

Open RP

[charlotteepollard]

Charley laughed. “That’s exactly how I felt about you.” She stuck a hand out, offering it to the other blonde. “Charlotte Pollard. But my friends call me Charley!” She couldn’t help but feel at ease with this stranger; there was… something about her that just oozed sincere kindness and Charley didn’t bother to hide her bright smile. 

[ididntsayipassed]

She shook the offered hand firmly. “Josephine Grant, call me Jo.” Smiling still, she looked around again for a few moments before turning back to Charley. “So what brings you here?”

[charlotteepollard]

"I'm traveling with a friend of mine," Charley replied. "I'm sorry to ask, but where are you from? It's been a while since I've met someone of my own species. Of course, I've met loads of aliens who look just like Humans. You'd think that the universe would be more, I don't know, diverse, but I suppose it isn't." She smiled again, a bit embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I haven't given you any time to answer my question!" She firmly closed her mouth with an apologetic look.

[ladydoctorwho]

Space Crash (AU thread with Charlotteepollard)

[ladydoctorwho]

"Charley," the Doctor says with a laugh. "What’s the rush?"

She doesn’t mean it, and she’s running right along with her, after taking a second to get used to the feeling of Charley’s hand in hers. Her skirt flaps around her knees as she runs, and she can’t help giggling along with Charley as she laughs. God, she’s missed this. It may not always be easy, having a companion, but not having one means she also misses out on times like this, when nothing much matters but the wind in their hair and each other. And it’s such a beautiful day for running, or for anything else they like, with the sun and the breeze and the grass beneath their feet.

[charlotteepollard]

Charley runs until she's winded and collapses on the fragrant grass in a heap of giggles. She releases the Doctor's hand as she falls and stretches leisurely in the grass to stare up at the sky. The clouds float lazily above them and Charley watches them as they drift soundlessly.

"I thought I'd never see another sky again," she says when she finally catches her breath. She smiles again, relieved and happy, before adding, "I'm so glad you found me."

[charlotteepollard]

@tomvanderhop

[thinkersdreamersdoers-blog]

"Somewhere around here. Sent me out to buy him bananas. Don’t ask why cause I don’t know either."

[charlotteepollard]

"Bananas?" she echoed before shaking her head. "I’m killing time for now—my friend is busy fixing our, err, transport.” She gave him a small smile. “I suppose I’ll allow you to be on your way, then.”

[thinkersdreamersdoers-blog]

"I have a bit of time. You wanna go out for coffee or something?" he asked, flirting with a smile.

[charlotteepollard]

Charley hesitated for a moment before shrugging. "Alright," she agreed. "Though, I must warn you, I have no idea where anything is located around here."

[charlotteepollard]

@Boomgoesthenitro

[charlotteepollard]

"That’s what the Doctor said. Still, I don’t think she much cares for me." She carefully turned around the corners, setting him down when she reached his room. She tried the handle, glaring at it when it wouldn’t open. "Oh, come on," she grumbled as she wiggled it. "We’re trying to help him!” she directed her last comment at the ceiling. The door opened on its own and she muttered a thanks before lifting the Doctor again.

[boomgoesthenitro]

Ace raised her eyebrows a little as she watched Charley struggle with the TARDIS.  She was right, the TARDIS didn’t seem to like her much.  Even Ace hadn’t had that sort of trouble, and she’d mixed up explosives in her old room.  Once the door was open, she helped Charley carry the Doctor inside and over to the bed, carefully setting him down.  

"You want to tuck him in, or should I?" she asked, nudging Charley aside so she could pull off the Doctor’s shoes.  For all her big talk, she didn’t know how to care for a Time Lord.  The most she could really do was get him in bed safe and then try to poke around the ship and come up with a solution.

[charlotteepollard]

Charley bit her lip and studied the Doctor as McShane removed his shoes. "I don't know... We don't even know what's wrong with him," she said as she smoothed his curls away from his face. She didn't know what she would do if he never woke up--surely staying on this planet wouldn't be a viable option. It seemed far too volatile to prove a decent home.

She glanced up at McShane and smiled. "Thank you," she said sincerely. "I don't know what I would have done without you."

[theedwardianadventuress]

Impossible

[theedwardianadventuress]

She took a step back, though trying to mask the fact that she was doing so by acting as though she was shifting her weight from side to side. Despite her mirror image not looking terribly threatening, she couldn’t be completely sure that everything was going to be safe. After all, she and the Doctor had an awful habit of walking straight into trouble.

But there was a strange sort of look on the other Charley’s face, and Charley herself felt as though she was being stared straight through, as though the other version of herself knew she was there and yet was looking at her like she was a ghost. It was unnerving — she felt the hairs stand up on the back of her neck as she met the other’s eyes steady on.

The future. The woman in front of her, if Charley took her word, was actually Charley just as much as she was; in fact, if she was telling the truth, she had once been where the younger, present Charley was standing now. Oh, this was properly confusing. A headache was definitely what it was.

"Alright," she replied slowly, her hesitance to accept the idea clear in her expression; but, as there was no other ready explanation for what was happening, she went along with it. "We’re Charley. At different points in our life.” She frowned, momentarily, in confusion. “I’m guessing this isn’t the sort of thing that’s ever meant to happen, is it?” A smile, faint but still there and slightly amused, turned her lips upwards. “Well, it’s not every day that you get to talk to yourself in the flesh. I suppose we should feel lucky!”

[charlotteepollard]

"I don't think this is supposed to happen," the older Charley answered. She couldn't help but stare a bit; this was her. This was who she was before C'rizz, before Zagreus. Back when she was so very much in love. Back when she still had so much to lose. She swallowed hard and tried to smile--gosh, what a strange thing it was to see herself like this. She suddenly felt very, very old and she shifted nervously on her feet.

"It's a bit--a bit disorienting, isn't it?" she asked her other self. "I wish I could tell you what happens next but, well, I'm not quite sure, honestly."

[inboxideas]

Everybody has some kind of scar. Send me a ✗ to hear about a physical scar my character has, or a ✧ to hear about an emotional/mental scar.

[charlotteepollard]

Either Way She's Not a Man

Charley reached up to verify that her hair was, indeed, tucked firmly under her hat. She took a few deep breaths before stepping out of the shadows and heading towards the docks. She heard that a pirate ship was docked in the harbor and that it was in need of a new cabin boy. And Charley was in need of a job, preferably one that involved adventure. The locals had told her, well, they believed that she was a he, that the captain, Captain Jo, was a good captain who believed in plundering but not pillaging and that was something Charley could get behind. There was no way she was going to stay home to be married and live a boring life in a boring town with a boring husband.

She stepped onto the docks with a confidence she didn't feel as she headed towards the pirate ship. Her purse was much lighter since her arrival in this port city but she had waited to conscript herself to a suitable ship instead of jumping at the first opportunity that presented itself. Now that she was here, though, she felt a bit weak at the knees and chalked it up to the strong smell of fish from the fishing boats that were docked near by.

She took a few deep breaths, braced herself, and approached the ship.

[charlotteepollard]

@CrizzTheColourfulChameleon

[charlotteepollard]

Since she had no idea what sort of currency was used here, she argued the price down to the best of her ability before handing over the money. For all she knew, they had been thoroughly ripped off but there wasn’t much she could do about it now. Charley took the packaged dress that the merchant had placed in a bag for her and turned back to C’rizz.

"Come on," she urged as she took his hand with a brilliant grin. "We have a whole planet to explore!” She led the way out of the stall and back onto the bustling street, an extra spring in her step.

[crizzthecolourfulchameleon-blog]

He couldn’t stop from grinning himself as she lead him outside, his own personality shifting to adapt to her giddiness. It was good to see her genuinely happy, C’rizz had seen Charlotte upset far too many times. “Yes but if we hurry we might miss something interesting.” He tightened his grip in her hand minutely and gently encouraged her to match his somewhat slower pace, walking beside her.

His carapace had turned a shade of pinkish-white only a fraction darker than that of the materials used to make the roads and the majority of the houses— although these had largely been painted different colours. This market certainly was busy, and with all the other life forms moving past it was hard to focus on one thing for long. C’rizz couldn’t recall the last time he had seen so many different species all in one place, certainly not one so peaceful yet diverse.

"Charley, what about that shop over there?" He gestured to one of the buildings nearby, its doors propped open and a colourful and varied display in the front windows.

[charlotteepollard]

She definitely didn't sulk a little when he slowed her pace. She was not that childish, thank you very much. She matched his pace and did her best to absorb everything. There were aliens so different than anything she had ever seen that she was finding it difficult to concentrate on walking and she was very grateful for C'rizz's guidance. She passed tall aliens, small aliens, aliens that walked on six legs, aliens that seemed to swim through the air, aliens who were glowing, aliens that seemed to be made of smo--

C'rizz interrupted her train of thought as he pointed out the shop and she pulled her gaze away from the particularly intriguing passerby to look at the shop. "Ohh, that looks lovely," she said before she beamed at C'rizz again. "Perhaps they'll sell you some sort of suit--or a dress, if you're so inclined." She shifted their path towards the shop cheerfully as she admired the diversity of the planet.

[charlotteepollard]

// What if Charley/Jo

//Melissa, have you forgotten who you're talking to?

OF COURSE CHARLEY/JO.

getting me to ship femslash pairings may be the easiest thing on the planet. Srsly.

[charlotteepollard]

Open RP

[charlotteepollard]

"Oh! I hadn’t meant to stare," Charley apologized. "It’s just—well, you look so… so different! Not that that’s a bad thing,” she hastily clarified. “You just…” she trailed off uselessly. Nicely done, Charlotte, she chastised herself. This was no way to make a good impression on anyone. 

She put her head in her hands and sighed. “Sorry,” she mumbled through her palms.

[ididntsayipassed]

With a light laugh she sat beside her. “It’s okay, I know what you mean. That’s why I came over here, you know? You’re from somewhere else, somewhere… far away. I don’t know how, but I can just sort of tell!” Jo leaned back slightly, looking her over. “You don;t dress like any of the locals, you hold yourself differently too, and there’s just something—” She shrugged, not quite sure how to put it.

[charlotteepollard]

Charley laughed. "That's exactly how I felt about you." She stuck a hand out, offering it to the other blonde. "Charlotte Pollard. But my friends call me Charley!" She couldn't help but feel at ease with this stranger; there was... something about her that just oozed sincere kindness and Charley didn't bother to hide her bright smile. 

[charlotteepollard]

@CrizzTheColourfulChameleon

[charlotteepollard]

She beamed at him as she stood on her toes to kiss his cheek. “Alright, we’ll get the dress. But then you need something to wear, too!” she insisted as she turned to the stall’s owner to discuss pricing.

[crizzthecolourfulchameleon-blog]

He sighed and restrained himself from rolling his eyes, instead choosing to watch her haggle with the merchant. He knew there was almost no way he was going to convince her that he didn’t need to purchase any clothing. “Alright, if I must.” But he was smiling as he spoke.

[charlotteepollard]

Since she had no idea what sort of currency was used here, she argued the price down to the best of her ability before handing over the money. For all she knew, they had been thoroughly ripped off but there wasn't much she could do about it now. Charley took the packaged dress that the merchant had placed in a bag for her and turned back to C'rizz.

"Come on," she urged as she took his hand with a brilliant grin. "We have a whole planet to explore!" She led the way out of the stall and back onto the bustling street, an extra spring in her step.

[charlotteepollard]

Charley took it with a relieved smile, settling her palm habitually on Ace’s bicep. “Good, because walking is just about the only thing I could think of.”

[boomgoesthenitro]

"It’s nice to catch a break and just take things slow every once in a while," Ace said, placing her other hand over Charley’s to give it a quick pat before starting to lead her down the street.  

[charlotteepollard]

Charley smiled and tried her best not to look too pleased with how this had turned out. She was fairly certain that she would have positively melted on the spot if McShane had laughed at her. "So you're a... soldier, is it?" she asked, at a loss for anything else to say. She kept a firm facade of confidence and was proud that her voice didn't betray her. She slid a look over at the other woman before returning her gaze forward to watch where they were going.