Uncertainty Principles

Pairing: Ten/Simm
Length: 4592
Warnings:
Author on LJ (or Teaspoon, or Prydonian): mercurial_wit
Why this must be read: One could read this fic and love it on a basic level (it’s good old Ten’n’Simm post S3 AU that combines lots of science and slash, guys), or one could stop, savor it, and appreciate what it accomplishes: it beautifully bridges the science/art gap by successfully using physical properties as complex and subtle metaphors, and it hits on an intelligent and intimate Master’s-eye-analysis of the nature of Ten and Simm’s conflict. I especially love SimmMaster’s characterization here, as one who is unstable, but like his previous regenerations, also very intelligent and thoughtful. And of course, the prose is breathtakingly good.

And my god, the physics metaphors. They make me fluttery.

Excerpt: The Doctor frowns. "I don't think I like who I turn into around you, sometimes."

"I know," he replies. "Because that person is more real."

"That's not true." Steady. "That's not why this is difficult." His hand waves on this, a vague gesture that would mean nothing to anyone who hadn't grown up with an intimate knowledge of that hand's subtle tells, the language that remained constant beneath the quirks of regeneration. To the Master that gesture encompasses the both of them, the planet, the TARDIS, the stars above their head -- the circumstance that has their personal timelines curving in parallel for the time being and perhaps for a long time to come.

Link to the story: PHYSICS

And if you love this, you should also check out this and this one. They’re the chemistry and biology counterparts to the physics story.

Rec: Uncertainty Principles

Uncertainty Principles