Sorry, WriteFury. I didn’t get that fanfiction crossover you requested done…
However, I did write something.
This was spurred on by a love of vanilla, listening to PianoGuys, and an appreciation of simple things.
Allons-y!
Vanilla
It was one of those talks that they’d started before the Doctor regenerated (in this case, long before) and finished after.
“What’s your favorite kind of ice cream?” Rose asked suddenly, out of the blue. Unsurprised, the Doctor looked her over for a long moment before answering.
“Vanilla,” he said. Rose smiled.
“Of all the flavors in the universe… vanilla?”
“Oi! Don’t knock it!” the Doctor protested. “When you’re as old as I am, you’ll appreciate vanilla too. What’s yours?”
“Chocolate,” Rose said, licking her lips.
“Well, it makes sense,” the Doctor said.
And that was the end of it, at the time.
Now, counting her blessings, Rose remembered this: The one place she remembered best, of all the alien places they had gone, and she remembered this one: a small café in Soho, but a café with the best milkshakes in the world. (Or so the Doctor had said.)
They walked up to the door, side by side and arm in arm, just a pair of friends out for a stroll. A tiny bell jingled as the door opened and closed again, and the waitress, a slim young Asian woman, greeted them with a smile. They obviously weren’t recognized, Rose thought, but it was clear that the Doctor, at least, had been here before. Glancing at him, she admitted to herself that he had changed. A lot, she amended mentally.
They sat down at a table with a bouquet of daffodils and violets set in a small, graceful vase and pansies embroidered on the table cloth. Rose ordered a grilled cheese, the Doctor ordered leek and potato soup, and when they finished their meal, the waitress brought over two milkshakes—one chocolate, the other vanilla.
Rose grinned mischievously at the Doctor, who raised a finger in warning. “Don’t start.” He absentmindedly nudged the whipped cream on top with a spoon, dropping the cherry onto his discarded plate, and tasted his milk shake. Rose, still grinning, started in on hers. The Doctor suddenly smiled mischievously back at her and asked her to take a sip of water. Then he offered her a second straw, stuck into his milkshake. Rose laughed, convinced that he was just playing a practical joke on her, and accepted.
The flavor that exploded in her mouth was unlike anything she had ever tasted before. Rich and complex, with hints of sweet spiciness, and completely lacking any of the sour or tart off-notes that she remembered as a part of the vanilla extract that Jackie had always used. Rose blinked in surprise. “Wow. What is that?”
“Vanilla,” the Doctor said, smiling. “The ethanol they use to make the extract leaches all the goodness out of it. This comes straight from the bean; they simmer the beans gently in milk then scrape them, and this is what you get: straight vanilla, with just a touch of nutmeg. Do you like it?”
“Oh my gosh,” Rose replied. The Doctor smiled, raised his milkshake, and clinked glasses with hers.
“To lovely things in unexpected places.”
“Absolutely,” Rose replied.
Please tell me what you think! 😉
(Written to the PianoGuys’ versions of “Rolling in the Deep” and “O Fortuna.”)
Ah, PianoGuys! I was just talking about them only the other day…
YESSSSS THE PIANOGUYS ARE AWESOME X-D X-D X-D
They’ve got great music videos…
And awesome music. ^_^
“You strike me as the kind of guy who would always choose vanilla. I mean, when there’s a million other flavors. Sometimes you might go ‘oh, I’ll be a rebel and get a scoop of butterscotch ripple’, but otherwise it’s vanilla, vanilla, vanilla.” – Harley Quinn to Batman. So no, it’s not just the Doctor who has good taste. (Need I add vanilla is my favorite as well?)
But srsly, whipped cream and cherries on a milkshake? What country are you in? (Oh, of course… only in America.)
What from?
I don’t get why people bash vanilla. It’s really good stuff… mmmm. Also, it really seemed to fit really well with the Doctor–given that so much of the show is dedicated to things that seem bland and simple but can surprise you. (Such as Rose Tyler, for instance, and humanity in general.) It’s superbly understated, and I really love that angle.
(Also, I love vanilla, though homemade chocolate is good too, and mint chip, and butter pecan….)
Well, what do you put on top of your milkshake? (I hate maraschino cherries. Black cherries are much better!)
From what? Oh, last year’s Batman annual. (Milkshakes… usually I make them in the blender, and blender milkshake you have to drink straight off or it melts. So I don’t put anything on top.)
? (What sort of publication is that???)
Yup, I know… milkshakes are good, though. Mmm.
(Basically a collection of Batman short pieces they couldn’t find a place for anywhere else.)
Ahhhhh! Okay. Now I get it, I think. 😉
Yes, piano guys! And yes vanilla ice cream! 🙂 You’re reminding me of my brother. He almost never tries anything new as far as icecream goes. Only vanilla and the occasional bubblegum. 😉
BUT SERIOUSLY. Well made vanilla is one of the better tastes in this world. 😛
Hey, have you heard “All of me” by the piano guys? I’ll listen to yours, but that one is really awesome. 🙂
They make bubble gum flavored ice cream?
YESSSS X-D
I guess I’ll have to check it out?
Yeah, actually in a lot of ice cream stores around here. When you come to play HTTYD, I must take you to Snow Goose Produce.
OH MY GOODNESS THEY HAVE SO MUCH ICE CREAM. 😀
Yes, definitely! 🙂
Weird.
Sounds like fun X-D
What’s your favorite kind of tea?
And they have like a million different flavors, too. I always wonder what’s the difference in ingredients between coffee and coffee explosion…
I like black tea pretty well. White tea is nice and floral, but a bit too watery for my taste. What about you?
huh. IDK. 😛
I FOUND LIKE FIVE CANDLES AT WALMART FOR $14 TODAY!!!
Peaches and mango, and roses. I am so happy right now. My Christmas gift card is well spent. ^_^
Ooh! Candles! 😀 Candles are so awesome.
And I just got a haircut, while we’re on life news. 😛 Took off quite a few inches, but it sprung up without all the weight and now I look like Natasha. XD
Actually, it was TEN candles for $14 bucks. AWESOMESAUCE! ^_^
Sounds like fun 😛 I actually discovered that I look a bit like a cross between Peggy and the Tenth Doctor. Yoikes. 😛 (Hayley Atwell is AWESOME. If you have not seen “Agent Carter” you are missing out!!!)
Wow! That’s definitely awesome. 🙂 We have a store that sells candles nearby, but it’s pretty expensive. Our family burns a jar candle in our entryway every saturday. We light it in the evening so in the morning the whole house smells candle-y. 😀
Haha, okay… I think I have a better idea of what you look like now. XD I can totally see that tenth doctor smile at home on your face.
I actually have a coloring almost identical to Hiccup’s. Lots of freckles, green eyes and brown hair that looks reddish in the sun. And I have a smile that looks extremely similar to Archie’s. Though when I laugh, mom says it makes her laugh because the whole left side of my face scrunches up. 😛 Haven’t found that in a fictional character yet…
X-D Pretty much. What’s your favorite scent? I love vanilla and lilacs and raspberries and mint…mmmmm….
I don’t have the same tan, so my freckles stand out a bit more, and I’ve actually got some ginger to my hair… but other than that, yeah. 😛
Also, I know I’m like the Doctor because he sometimes pulls on one ear while he’s thinking, and I do that too. 😛
Mmmm… those are all good. 🙂 I like pine scented ones pretty well, but they can be overpowering depending on the brand. Ones that smell like baked goods are awesome too. We had one that was scented berry cobbler once…. 😛 That was really good!
haha, that’s always cool to spot something like that. 🙂 I bite my lip usually. Or tap weird beats on anything that’s nearby. (blame my dad for that one)
MMMMMM….. Sounds delicious! X-D One set of candles was rose-scented, the other was mango peach ^_^
I sometimes drum my fingers very rapidly, but not a lot–it annoys people.
OOOOH. Peach and mango are soooo good!
I don’t do it all that rapidly, but I try and make it like the beat of a song to any other noises going on. Like a turn signal or a timer. 😉
Or a clock… The turn signal on the station wagon plinks every fourth repetition rather than clicking… it’s weird.
Huh. That is weird. My tapping is nothing compared to my brothers’ though. They drive mom nuts. 😛
X-P
I guess I just noticed it because it was annoying me. Or maybe it was because it sounded eerily similar to some of the villains from a Doctor Who episode? IDK… *gets smacked upside the head by random person*
Ah, that would definitely be noticeable. 😉
😛
When I buy ice cream it’s either Vanilla Bean, which has tiny pieces of vanilla bean actually in it, or a nice rich chocolate.
Oh, and Tillamook Banana Split, for those of us who can get Tillamook dairy products on the West Coast. Yum…
mmmmm…. that sounds so good right now…
Kind of a sad story… I found out I’m allergic to bananas when they’re not cooked or dried.